After 6 months and 10 countries we've arrived safely back in the Boston area. The past 3 weeks have been full of visiting friends and family and trying to get back to normal life. We've spent a lot of time doing things like finding and unpacking real clothes, getting our car back on the road, restarting cell service, and sorting through the thousands of pictures in order to create a manageable amount to share with people. Alex spent 2 weeks in Rochester with her family and seeing high school friends. Chris started work soon after returning. Alex will be starting a 4th grade maternity leave position in Lexington next week. We're currently living in Woburn with the incredibly generous Kuschels until we can move back into our condo May 1.
Re-Entry
The transition to being back home is easier than we thought in some ways and harder in others. Probably the hardest part about it is not having the extreme flexibility we had while traveling and getting to decided every day about the fun things to do or cool places to visit. That's hard for anyone after a great vacation and it had become our lifestyle. On the other hand, it has been incredible to finally see all our family and friends again. Even just having the ability to call and talk to people whenever we want is awesome.
Changes
A lot of people have asked us if we feel like we've changed or like different people. Overall we don't. However, we've both noticed subtle changes. For example, we both feel more patient. We certainly did get a lot of practice while dealing with frustrating bus rides or well-meaning but unhelpful people. The general attitude in most of the Asian countries we visited was much less hurried and stressful than it is in America. Having to adjust to those cultural differences helped us to just go with the flow.
Another small change is that we've realized that we don't need as much "stuff." We couldn't believe how many clothes (and pairs of underwear!) we have compared to what we were used to. (Alex: For me this has caused difficulty getting dressed because I can't handle all the choices I have of shoes, shirts, pants, and jewelry. This was the first time I've ever turned down the idea of going shopping with my mom. I'm actually missing the days of looking at my 3 t-shirts and deciding which one was cleanest. But I can't deny how fun it is to wear pretty things again!)
One last thing that comes to mind: Throughout the trip we kept trying to push ourselves to get outside our comfort zone. This took many forms from using a gross toilet to trying new foods to sky diving. And it pretty much always worked out for the best. So hopefully we'll continue to take more of those uncomfortable risks back home.
Thinking Back
In some ways it feels like it was yesterday that the Kuschels were dropping us off at the airport. The time definitely flew by and if we could've extended the trip another couple months we would've considered it. On the other hand, it feels like it has been awhile when we look through our pictures or read our journals, re-living everything we got to see and experience. We were exposed to cultures and histories that we knew very little about. It was eye-opening, and at times devastating, to travel to countries with so much poverty or with Communist governments that inhibit human rights. But it was also uplifting to meet people who have so much less than us be so welcoming and friendly. We also met a lot of interesting people, locals and fellow travelers, who exposed us to many different lifestyles and viewpoints. (Alex: The whole trip we were constantly talking to strangers and being more outgoing than we are at home. But I've noticed that now I find it a lot easier to have small talk or share a smile with strangers in little ways during the day. It makes me happy and I like having that feeling of human connection.)
We hope you've enjoyed reading. Thank you for helping us to stay connected to life back home. It's been so much fun to share parts of the trip. It certainly was an experience we'll never forget.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
"It's a pretty big hole. Don't fall. Honestly."
We have been loving New Zealand and can't believe it's almost time to go home.
A few people have asked us what we've been doing for food, since we have a campervan. Typically, we cook our meals, eating out once every few days. We have a simple gas burner in the van. Sometimes if we're at a campsite they have other cooking facilities for us to use. Breakfast is often something simple like oatmeal or scrambled eggs and toast. Lunch is usually peanut butter and jelly. We don't have a refrigerator, so we're not able to keep meat. So, eggs have been our default protein. Our most common dish that we love is toasted bread, sliced tomato, fresh avocado, edam cheese, and fried eggs and salami. Every 4-5 days we'd do a short grocery trip. On these days we'll buy meat and have a nice meal, such as fillet with balsamic shallots, potatoes, and salad. And, of course, lots of good New Zealand wine.
So, after doing the Milford Track we've been keeping busy. Here's what we've been doing:
A few people have asked us what we've been doing for food, since we have a campervan. Typically, we cook our meals, eating out once every few days. We have a simple gas burner in the van. Sometimes if we're at a campsite they have other cooking facilities for us to use. Breakfast is often something simple like oatmeal or scrambled eggs and toast. Lunch is usually peanut butter and jelly. We don't have a refrigerator, so we're not able to keep meat. So, eggs have been our default protein. Our most common dish that we love is toasted bread, sliced tomato, fresh avocado, edam cheese, and fried eggs and salami. Every 4-5 days we'd do a short grocery trip. On these days we'll buy meat and have a nice meal, such as fillet with balsamic shallots, potatoes, and salad. And, of course, lots of good New Zealand wine.
So, after doing the Milford Track we've been keeping busy. Here's what we've been doing:
- Hiking above Lake Hawea -- After the Milford Track we headed north along the west coast of the South Island. The landscape was absolutely stunning. We stopped for the night at Lake Hawea, which isn't even mentioned in our guidebook, but which was gorgeous. We did a sweaty, steep hike above the treeline to expansive views of the turquoise lake and jagged mountains.
- Glacier hiking -- Franz Josef Glacier is one of New Zealand's largest. We strapped on crampons, grabbed an ice axe, and followed our guide up onto the glacier. The glacier was beautiful, all shades of blue. It was a very adventurous, fun day, as we scrambled up the ice, squeezed through tight cuts in the ice, crawled through tunnels. The quote above is from our guide -- she led us to a crevasse that we had to hop over. The hole fell hundreds of feet down.
- Marlborough Wine Region and Marlborough Sounds -- We then headed to the northern end of the South Island, where we took it easy for a few days. The Marlborough Wine Region is famous for its sauvignon blancs, so we spent a very fun day biking among the vineyards and stopping for tastings. The Sounds consists of hundreds of islands, coves, and bays. We found a secluded little cove to chill out in before heading to the North Island.
- Wellington and the North Island -- After 3 weeks in the South Island, arriving by 3-hour ferry to the North Island was a shock. It's much more built up with highways, towns, and even traffic. Wellington, the capital, is a big, modern city. But we still enjoyed it, visiting its National Museum and having a nice dinner.
- Tongariro Alpine Crossing -- Although overall the landscape isn't as beautiful as the South Island, the North Island does have some great spots. We stopped to do the Tongariro Crossing, the country's top 1-day hike. Unfortunately, gale force winds were coming in the afternoon, so we head to get up really early to complete the hike before the strong winds. Even when we were there, the winds kicked up to over 30 miles per hour -- pretty scary as we walked along the ridge of a crater to an active volcano! Another disappointing factor was the thick clouds that obscured our view of everything at the top. For Lord of the Rings fans, this is near the site of Mount Doom - a perfectly conical volcano. We wanted to climb to its summit (a 3 hour sidetrip) but weren't able to because of the winds.
- Skydiving! -- We did this at Taupo, one of the world's top skydiving spots. This was one of the absolute most amazing things we've ever done -- 40 seconds of free-falling at 125 miles per hour. The feeling was indescribable, a rush like no other. We both wanted to hop back into the plane and go again.
- Rotorua -- This is the top tourist city in NZ, known for two things: indigineous Maori culture and geothermal activity. We spent our time relaxing in hot springs and taking part in a hangi, a traditional Maori feast
- Waitomo Caving -- Our last adventure of the trip. This was a lot of fun. We rappelled 85 feet into a huge cavern and then spent a couple hours caving -- squeezing through tight areas and crawling through small holes and tubing on the underground river. At the end we rock climbed 60 feet back to the surface.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Livin' in a van down by the river
Well, we're not always by the river but we are living in a van. A small converted minivan. Renting a camper van is a popular way to see New Zealand as it provides a lot of flexibility and an easy way to see the famous scenery. It allows us to be more independent and get out into the countryside. (For that reason we have little access to internet, blogging, emails, etc.) Our new home has two benches that can be converted into a bed at night. Underneath the benches is some storage space for our clothes, back packs, cooking supplies, and food. In the trunk area we have a tiny pump sink, cooler box, and gas burner. It's wonderful to have our bags unpacked and feel like we have a home. We bought some bins and trays to make the most of the small storage space. Mom would be extremely proud.
We landed in Christchurch (on the east coast of the South Island) late on Valentine's Day and spent 2 nights there. We were able to meet up with our friend Sasha who lives about an hour north of the city. She recently spent 2 months in a camper van so it was great to get advice from her, catch up, and hang out. Then we picked up our van and started driving south and west across the island. The country is incredibly well set up for this kind of travel with lots of public bathrooms, picnic areas, and cheap campsites. They have free maps and brochures to help you find camping spots and good walking trails. Our first night was spent under some trees on a beach in a cove. Another night we just pulled off the road into a turn-off and spent the night next to the beach and crashing waves. Our first few days in the van we drove through some quaint gold mining towns that still look like they did in the 1860s. The drive across the island was full of expansive valley and mountain views with almost no houses in between the scattered small towns.
We arrived in Queenstown (near the west coast) which is situated on the shores of a bright blue lake with huge mountains rising all around. It's a very popular place to do adventure activities and we hadn't seen so many people in one place our whole time here. We met up with our friends Alex and Matt who planned their own vacation here in order to do a trek with us. We soaked up the sunshine in the park with New Zealand wines and enjoyed Western meals.
Our trek was one of New Zealand's most famous: the four day Milford Track which is on the west coast and ends at the Milford Sound. There are only 40 independent "trampers" allowed to start the track each day. We had to book it back in August! Each night we stayed in a hut that had a kitchen area with gas burners and bunk rooms. We carried our clothes, food, cooking utensils, and sleeping bags. Being with Alex and Matt made the trek for us. It was great to have time to talk while hiking and to share the experience with friends. We hiked through beech rainforest and along rivers and lakes through the valley floor. Our third day of hiking provided our best views. When we reached the highest point we could see down into two huge valleys lined by green mountains and waterfalls. It usually rains all the time but we got very lucky and had clear views into the distance. During the hike we also saw several birds including the national bird, the kiwi. The walk ended at Milford Sound which was carved out by glaciers and is now flanked by mountains covered in waterfalls. We took a boat cruise out on the water to get a better view then headed back to civilization.
Alex and Matt flew to the North Island today while we returned to our van to continue touring the South Island. We'll be heading up the west coast, through some national parks, and then cross to the North Island for our final week. Since we are usually in remote areas we don't have consistent access to internet so our next blog may not be for awhile. But we'll be able to share our stories in person soon!
We landed in Christchurch (on the east coast of the South Island) late on Valentine's Day and spent 2 nights there. We were able to meet up with our friend Sasha who lives about an hour north of the city. She recently spent 2 months in a camper van so it was great to get advice from her, catch up, and hang out. Then we picked up our van and started driving south and west across the island. The country is incredibly well set up for this kind of travel with lots of public bathrooms, picnic areas, and cheap campsites. They have free maps and brochures to help you find camping spots and good walking trails. Our first night was spent under some trees on a beach in a cove. Another night we just pulled off the road into a turn-off and spent the night next to the beach and crashing waves. Our first few days in the van we drove through some quaint gold mining towns that still look like they did in the 1860s. The drive across the island was full of expansive valley and mountain views with almost no houses in between the scattered small towns.
We arrived in Queenstown (near the west coast) which is situated on the shores of a bright blue lake with huge mountains rising all around. It's a very popular place to do adventure activities and we hadn't seen so many people in one place our whole time here. We met up with our friends Alex and Matt who planned their own vacation here in order to do a trek with us. We soaked up the sunshine in the park with New Zealand wines and enjoyed Western meals.
Our trek was one of New Zealand's most famous: the four day Milford Track which is on the west coast and ends at the Milford Sound. There are only 40 independent "trampers" allowed to start the track each day. We had to book it back in August! Each night we stayed in a hut that had a kitchen area with gas burners and bunk rooms. We carried our clothes, food, cooking utensils, and sleeping bags. Being with Alex and Matt made the trek for us. It was great to have time to talk while hiking and to share the experience with friends. We hiked through beech rainforest and along rivers and lakes through the valley floor. Our third day of hiking provided our best views. When we reached the highest point we could see down into two huge valleys lined by green mountains and waterfalls. It usually rains all the time but we got very lucky and had clear views into the distance. During the hike we also saw several birds including the national bird, the kiwi. The walk ended at Milford Sound which was carved out by glaciers and is now flanked by mountains covered in waterfalls. We took a boat cruise out on the water to get a better view then headed back to civilization.
Alex and Matt flew to the North Island today while we returned to our van to continue touring the South Island. We'll be heading up the west coast, through some national parks, and then cross to the North Island for our final week. Since we are usually in remote areas we don't have consistent access to internet so our next blog may not be for awhile. But we'll be able to share our stories in person soon!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Beach, diving, and luxury
Our last week and a half has been great. (Unfortunately, our memory card reader isn't compatible with our new memory card, so we're not able to post any pictures right now. We're sure our descriptions won't be able to do justice to our surroundings.)
We spent 10 days with Andrew who just completed a trip to many of the same places that we've visited on this trip. He's looking for work in Singapore and flew to Bali to meet up with us. the entire time was a lot of fun. The three of us, along with Andrew's girlfriend and her sister, drove to the northwest coast to Menjangan. The best diving in Bali is here, and we spent the next couple days diving in this beautiful area. Alex spent her time on the boat, snorkelling, and relaxing by the pool at our private villa. The diving was great. It's the rainy season, so visibility wasn't as good as it could be, but Chris et. al saw lots of beautiful fish, as well as sea turtles and a white-tip reef shark. The area is essentially a wall of coral that descends vertically for hundreds of feet. At one site the current whipped us along the wall for over a quarter mile, which was exhilirating.
We then headed to the opposite side of the island to Sanur, where Andrew recently lived for a couple months. It was nice to see where Andrew lived, and the town has a beautiful beach. We also got great massages for $7 for an entire hour's massage in a setting that was as nice as any spa either of us had been to.
From Sanur, we traveled a long day to the Gili islands off of Lombok (Lombok is the next island 5 hours by boat to the east of Bali). The three small Gilis are the epitome of tropical paradise. Gili Meno is the quiet, almost uninhabited one; Gili Trawangan is the party island; and Gili Air's atmosphere is in between the two. We spent the next four nights on Gili Air. (During this time, Andrew's girlfriend became his ex-girlfriend, so we separated from her and her sister.) It's a small island completely surrounded by beautiful white-sand beaches. There are no cars or motos or even paved roads; the only transport is by horse-drawn buggy. It only takes a couple hours to walk around the entire island. We stayed in a lovely bungalow from one of the island's dive shops. Since Chris and Andrew were diving we got a great deal. The days for Chris and Andrew were spent diving -- it wasn't quite as beautiful as Menjangan but they still saw lots of fish and more white-tip sharks. The coolest fish was the school of bumphead parrotfish -- these big fish (about 5 feet long) have huge foreheads and big buckteeth that they use to eat coral. We had our lunches and dinners at small restaurants that were right on the beach, which featured lots of freshly caught seafood. Overall, Gili Air was one of our top places on this entire trip.
We spent our last night on Gili Trawangan. It's more built up than Gili Air but still has a similar feel. And it's reputation as a party island is well-deserved. The clubs blast music until 5 in the morning. It was a fun time, although the hour of sleep we got wasn't the best fuel for our long trip back to Bali the next morning.
We've now spent the last several days in Ubud, the cultural capital of Bali. It's a great city with lots of shops, an abundance of art galleries, nice architecture, and the island's best food. It's the type of city to just chill out and explore for a few days. We spent one last night with Andrew where we had a great dinner and took in a cultural dance show. The setting, at night in front of a lit-up temple, was gorgeous.
And then, the luxury. Alex's friends gave us a gift certificate to the Four Seasons, which we've used in Ubud. This was without question the nicest hotel either of us had ever stayed in. Located a mile west of the city center, it's situated in a lush valley over a river. The hotel doesn't even have regular rooms, only suites and villas. Our suite was a two-story place with 30 foot windows looking out onto the valley. Upstairs was a powder room, a balcony, and a large living room with a big flatscreen TV. Downstairs was the bedroom, master bathroom with awesome shower and big tub, and another big balcony with chaises. Everything about the hotel was perfect -- complimentary fruit throughout the day, a big infinity pool overlooking the river, etc. They even lent sneakers to us for the gym, since we didn't bring any on this trip. The changing areas were more like spas than locker rooms. And off the gym were three smaller infinity pools (cold, hot, neutral temperatures), which had beautiful views.
We spent three nights there, and unfortunately were starting to get used to the luxury. Tonight we begin a long trip to New Zealand where accomodations will be a little different -- we've rented a camper van, which is what we'll be using for almost the entire time we're in the country. The camper van is essentially a mini-van with bedding and cooking equipment. We're excited and think it'll be a lot of fun; but it's no Four Seasons.
We spent 10 days with Andrew who just completed a trip to many of the same places that we've visited on this trip. He's looking for work in Singapore and flew to Bali to meet up with us. the entire time was a lot of fun. The three of us, along with Andrew's girlfriend and her sister, drove to the northwest coast to Menjangan. The best diving in Bali is here, and we spent the next couple days diving in this beautiful area. Alex spent her time on the boat, snorkelling, and relaxing by the pool at our private villa. The diving was great. It's the rainy season, so visibility wasn't as good as it could be, but Chris et. al saw lots of beautiful fish, as well as sea turtles and a white-tip reef shark. The area is essentially a wall of coral that descends vertically for hundreds of feet. At one site the current whipped us along the wall for over a quarter mile, which was exhilirating.
We then headed to the opposite side of the island to Sanur, where Andrew recently lived for a couple months. It was nice to see where Andrew lived, and the town has a beautiful beach. We also got great massages for $7 for an entire hour's massage in a setting that was as nice as any spa either of us had been to.
From Sanur, we traveled a long day to the Gili islands off of Lombok (Lombok is the next island 5 hours by boat to the east of Bali). The three small Gilis are the epitome of tropical paradise. Gili Meno is the quiet, almost uninhabited one; Gili Trawangan is the party island; and Gili Air's atmosphere is in between the two. We spent the next four nights on Gili Air. (During this time, Andrew's girlfriend became his ex-girlfriend, so we separated from her and her sister.) It's a small island completely surrounded by beautiful white-sand beaches. There are no cars or motos or even paved roads; the only transport is by horse-drawn buggy. It only takes a couple hours to walk around the entire island. We stayed in a lovely bungalow from one of the island's dive shops. Since Chris and Andrew were diving we got a great deal. The days for Chris and Andrew were spent diving -- it wasn't quite as beautiful as Menjangan but they still saw lots of fish and more white-tip sharks. The coolest fish was the school of bumphead parrotfish -- these big fish (about 5 feet long) have huge foreheads and big buckteeth that they use to eat coral. We had our lunches and dinners at small restaurants that were right on the beach, which featured lots of freshly caught seafood. Overall, Gili Air was one of our top places on this entire trip.
We spent our last night on Gili Trawangan. It's more built up than Gili Air but still has a similar feel. And it's reputation as a party island is well-deserved. The clubs blast music until 5 in the morning. It was a fun time, although the hour of sleep we got wasn't the best fuel for our long trip back to Bali the next morning.
We've now spent the last several days in Ubud, the cultural capital of Bali. It's a great city with lots of shops, an abundance of art galleries, nice architecture, and the island's best food. It's the type of city to just chill out and explore for a few days. We spent one last night with Andrew where we had a great dinner and took in a cultural dance show. The setting, at night in front of a lit-up temple, was gorgeous.
And then, the luxury. Alex's friends gave us a gift certificate to the Four Seasons, which we've used in Ubud. This was without question the nicest hotel either of us had ever stayed in. Located a mile west of the city center, it's situated in a lush valley over a river. The hotel doesn't even have regular rooms, only suites and villas. Our suite was a two-story place with 30 foot windows looking out onto the valley. Upstairs was a powder room, a balcony, and a large living room with a big flatscreen TV. Downstairs was the bedroom, master bathroom with awesome shower and big tub, and another big balcony with chaises. Everything about the hotel was perfect -- complimentary fruit throughout the day, a big infinity pool overlooking the river, etc. They even lent sneakers to us for the gym, since we didn't bring any on this trip. The changing areas were more like spas than locker rooms. And off the gym were three smaller infinity pools (cold, hot, neutral temperatures), which had beautiful views.
We spent three nights there, and unfortunately were starting to get used to the luxury. Tonight we begin a long trip to New Zealand where accomodations will be a little different -- we've rented a camper van, which is what we'll be using for almost the entire time we're in the country. The camper van is essentially a mini-van with bedding and cooking equipment. We're excited and think it'll be a lot of fun; but it's no Four Seasons.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Beautiful Bali
After our wonderful time in Laos we spent a few days in Thailand. First we stayed in Chang Rai, in the north, and visited a museum about the Golden Triangle, an area known for opium production. The museum was high-tech and interactive, one of the best we've been to in Asia. It traced the history of opium production through to today and its effects on society. Then we spent a couple nights in Bangkok. On our first day we had a chance to see the world's largest weekend market. It certainly was extensive. They sold everything from clothes to ceramics to garden tools. It was easy to spend about four hours just in one of the sections of endless rows of stalls. The next day we visited the impressive Royal Palace compound with its seemingly never-ending wats, temples, and ornate decoration. We also visited another famous wat that has a HUGE gold reclining buddha in it. Then it was an early flight to Bali. The pictures do better justice to our time here to far than words could.
The first day we took a taxi south from the airport to a beach called Pedang Pedang, known for great surfing. We had trouble finding a room until we luckily stumbled upon this gem. It was certainly rustic (fan, thatched roof and bamboo building, outdoor cold shower, separate outdoor squat toilet) but charming and welcoming. From our porch we could watch the surfers and the beautiful ocean. At night we listened to the waves. Two surfers were staying in the room next to us for months and were really friendly. It was a great, low-key way to start our time here.
The beach nearby was gorgeous and practically deserted. We were wishing we'd had time to stay one extra night. But we had already booked our room at Le Meridien on the west coast so we left around noon.
Before the hotel we stopped to see Pura Ulu Watu, a famous seaside temple near Padang Padang. It's set out on a cliff. The temple compound is full of grabby monkeys so you have to guard your camera and take off jewelry. The temple was nice but it was really the view that made it worth it.
Ahhhhh...the view from our balcony at Le Meridien. The room was beautiful and it was so great to be back in air conditioning. The pool area was very fun, complete with a long waterslide. There were private covered beds along the ocean's edge that you could relax in. Our two days here were mostly just spent relaxing by the pool.
This is the temple Pura Tanah Lot that was a five minute walk from the hotel. This picture was taken from their golf course. It's apparently the most photographed temple in Bali (and there are a LOT of temples) because of it's picturesque setting out on this island of rock. The clouds and sunset behind it were pretty amazing. Luckily for us there were also a bunch of food stalls nearby so that's where we ate lunches and dinners.
After Tanah Lot we went to a small town called Munduk in the central highlands. This was very different from being by the beach. The area is much cooler and rainier than the coast. It's lush, green, and there are rice fields and plantations throughout the area. We hired a guide to take us on a walk that led us through cacao, coffee, and clove plantations and to two waterfalls. Along the pathways we saw jackfruit, durian, bananas, pineapple, mango, and many other tropical fruits. Later that night we were invited to a Bali wedding. The groom was our hotel owner's grandson. The reception was very relaxed with people coming and going as they pleased. The bride and groom spent a few minutes greeting each guest. We had some dinner from their buffet and many homemade sweets. We were honored to be included and it was neat to see this cultural ritual.
That's all for now! We're obviously loving our time here and have just joined up with our friend Andrew.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Experiencing the Other Laos
We finally tore ourselves away from the comforts and charms of Luang Prabang and ventured into the far less developed parts of Laos. (It was tempting to write the "real" Laos but that wouldn't be fair to Vientiane or Luang Prabang -- they were touristed and affluent but their cultures are still very Lao). So, we headed north to Muong Ngoi Neua, which is accessible only by boat an hour up from the nearest town.
This was one of our ideal travel destinations -- an idyllic village set on the river with just enough tourist infrastructure (bungalows and a few restaurants) to make it comfortable. We found a great bungalow overlooking the river with two hammocks in the room. The village itself consisted of one main, dirt road about a quarter mile long. Off of that were coconut tree-lined paths to peoples homes, the school, etc. There was only electricity, provided by generators, from 6:30pm-10:30. Muong Ngoi seems to be at a perfect juncture where it's developing and gaining more wealth but is not yet overrun with tourists.
The area is known for its hikes to minority villages. We did a full day's hike with a great guide, along with a couple Aussies we met on the boat ride over. The guide told very funny stories which he almost enjoyed more than us--he just couldn't stop laughing! He particularly liked stories where his tourist trekkers had minor accidents such as disappearing off the edge of a rice terrace or a male who slipped on a ladder and fell on the rung in a straddle. Ouch! At one point the guide picked some small yellow flowers and said the Lao cook them with eel. He told us to bite a little of the end. Just as we started to feel the slightly tingly and numbing effects he exclaimed, "It tastes like electricity!! It's like when you put a battery on your tongue." What?! A few miles in we passed a large cave which we went back to the following day to explore a little bit (only a little so we didn't get lost among the twists and turns!). We passed a group of men sitting on huge logs to be used for building. They were enjoying a 10am drink of lao-lao, a homemade rice whiskey, before working. Later they passed us carrying the huge logs. When we caught up to them again they were at the building site not building but having more lao-lao. It was a funny glimpse into the laid-back, fun-loving Lao lifestyle. We then visited a Khamu village, passed rice paddies, and hiked up a small mountain with great views. On the way back our guide asked us if we wanted to join him for dinner, so we bought a duck in the village. He walked home with it flapping under his arm. That night, we sat around a small fire while his wife grilled the duck over the flames. We then sat on the floor of their house with them and a few of their friends in the traditional Lao style, eating the food and sharing some lao-lao whiskey. It was a great, authentic experience.
After a few days in Muong Ngoi we took a long bus ride northwest to Luang Nam Tha. This is known to be one of the top ecotourism destinations in Laos. It's known for trekking in its National Protected Area (like a national park, but minorities live in it and are allowed some agriculture). Apparently, this is one of the most successful and sustainable ecotourism initiatives in southeast Asia, with mainly reputable companies that offer the treks. The hiking provides extra income, education, and environmental awareness to the villages. It's also done in a way to minimize the negative impacts of tourism, such as a dependency on tourists the way Sapa, Vietnam has become. So, we booked a three-day trek. It was a great experience. Our guide was knowledgeable and spoke good English. We spent the nights staying in traditional lodging (basically just a simple thatched hut with thin mattresses on the floor) in the villages. The hike itself was moderately difficult -- lots of steep up and downs but not too long -- luckily for us, since we hadn't gotten much exercise in the last month.
The first night was a Hmong village and the second was a Lanten and Khamu. Although these minority groups don't mix much they appear similar to us because they dress the way most Lao people dress: Western clothes and sarongs for women. The villages were small and primitive; simple huts, no electricity, tons of pigs and chickens running around. The first village we stayed at had no roads at all -- if someone needs medical care they need to walk 4 hours to the nearest road. The second village we stayed at had no running water -- people bathe and get their water from the river. On our second night we sat around a fire sharing a vat of homemade rice wine, sipping it through the straw. The local people enjoyed asking us questions and it was interesting to hear their perspectives on America. One man we met fought with the Communists in the 1975 war but believes it's time to move on from past differences. Everyone we met was ready with a quick, hearty laugh and we continued to enjoy getting to know the Lao people.
We're now back in Luang Nam Tha, doing various chores and trying to figure out the plan for our last 5 days before our flight to Bali. We will probably spend it in northern Thailand where opium trade used to be big business and then a few days in Bangkok. We definitely want to see more of Laos, though, in the future. Although it's been hard to leave each country and there's always more to see this is the first place where we really wish we had about 2 more weeks. We didn't realize there was so much to see (or how long it takes to go relatively short distances) and it is a wonderful place to embrace the local culture and just chill out.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Photo Journal from Tibet
Here are some pictures from our time in Tibet (beginning of November):
The crazy moon-like landscape
Being here felt like we'd stepped back in time. People used horse-drawn wagons to get around and transport goods. We saw a lot of poverty but were impressed by the beautifully painted wood decorations that could be found on every house, even in the middle of nowhere.
The turquoise waters of the lake formed by a dam
Chris enjoys his dinner at an outdoor stand
Potala Palace, former home of the Dalai Lama, at sunrise
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Sabaidee
After a few hectic days in Cambodia, we've turned the dial down and are taking it easy in Laos. For Chris, it was interesting to see Cambodia again, especially how far it has come in such a short time. Five years ago, it was mainly the province of backpackers; now, the Angkor area has reached the high-end market. But he was excited to move on to a new place.
We've been in Laos over a week now and are loving it. This landlocked country sits between Vietnam (to the east) and Thailand (to the west); China and Burma are to the north and Cambodia is south. As with much of the region, it was formerly a monarchy but fell to communism in 1975. It has since followed the paths of China and Vietnam -- communist only in name, essentially a one-party system with a market economy. But compared to its neighbors, everything seems more low-key here. The government isn't as intrusive (e.g., Facebook isn't blocked) and people in general are more laid-back -- the Lao apparently express the notion that "too much work is bad for your brain." So, this general attitude, combined with the lowest population density and most intact natural environment in South East Asia has made this a great destination after Vietnam and Cambodia.
We flew first to Vientiane, the capital. It was far nicer than we expected -- set along the Mekong River, it's not exactly a beautiful city, but it's clean, has some nice architecture, not much traffic or pollution, lots of trees, and in general a good vibe. There's a large ex-pat community, especially of French, meaning lots of cafes and bakeries. When not in a cafe, we spent most of our time walking around visiting the many wats, Buddhist temples.
We then decided to take an alternate route to Luang Prabang. Most travelers head due north via Vang Vieng, a backpacker haven with beautiful karst scenery (and plenty of drugs). We decided to take our guidebook's advice and travel northwest to Sayabouli instead. This way we'd be able to get off the main tourist path for a bit. It ended up being a pleasant place to spend a night -- not much to do but good scenery and fun to be the only tourists, literally, in the entire city. But getting there and away was, interesting. After India, each country we visited had better and better buses. Here in Laos we've now regressed back to the beginning. Because Vang Vieng is on the main tourist path the route has big "VIP" buses with comfy seats, a bathroom, AC, etc. Sayabouli, however, does not. It has what is called an "express" bus for the 15 hour overnight trip. Boston to Rochester, NY is 400 miles and takes 6 hours. This 15 hour trip took us a total of only 280 miles! The seats were far too small -- Chris' knees were crushed against the seat in front of him. Large sacks of rice filled the aisle, on top of which were packed with people. Lao pop music blasted all night and it was pouring out (despite being dry season) so bathroom breaks were in the open in the rain. Luckily, we had peanut butter to tide us over, since the food at road stalls was often grilled rat. Amazingly though, the time actually went by pretty quickly.
After our night in Sayabouli we then went to Luang Prabang. (This bus ride was only four hours but it was missing some windows and broke down once on a steep hill. On the upside we had a great interaction with a family who handed their baby over to Alex for awhile.) This has been the city Chris has been most excited to see in all of SE Asia. It's amazing. It opened itself up to tourism in 1989, in 1995 it received UNESCO World-Heritage status, and since then has been restoring and preserving itself. It's not really like any city we've been to. The main section is on a peninsula between the Mekong and Nam Khan Rivers. A hill, topped with a stupa (Buddhist monument) looms above most of the city. The area is completely walkable but not too dense and full of tropical trees and plants. And everywhere there are wats, which are beautiful. Our book lists well over 20 and we've seen several more that weren't listed. At 6:30 every morning hundreds of orange-robed Buddhist monks walk the streets collecting alms (mainly rice to eat). Seeing the monks at the wats and on the streets, doing everything from studying under a tree to chatting on their cell phones, is one of Alex's highlights. At night, the main road closes to cars and a night market opens. And with money pouring in from UNESCO and tourism, the city has aimed at an upmarket clientele -- everywhere are nice eateries, cafes, inns, and restaurants.
Luang Prabang has its own unique food. Alex got a chicken stew with a local bitter-spicy root. And Chris got deep fried river weed served with a jam of chilis and buffalo skin -- once was enough. In general, we've indulged in the new main staple of the city -- baguettes and crepes served with everything from ham + cheese to nutella.
After 4 months of almost constant travel, we knew we'd eventually need a place to stop and relax. And Luang Prabang has been it. We planned on staying four full days. As we were walking to the bus sales office to buy tickets to our next destination, we realized we just weren't ready to leave. So, we decided to spend an extra day. We're using the extra time to recharge our batteries and it allowed us to visit a nearby waterfall that was beautiful and natural pools for swimming.
We've been in Laos over a week now and are loving it. This landlocked country sits between Vietnam (to the east) and Thailand (to the west); China and Burma are to the north and Cambodia is south. As with much of the region, it was formerly a monarchy but fell to communism in 1975. It has since followed the paths of China and Vietnam -- communist only in name, essentially a one-party system with a market economy. But compared to its neighbors, everything seems more low-key here. The government isn't as intrusive (e.g., Facebook isn't blocked) and people in general are more laid-back -- the Lao apparently express the notion that "too much work is bad for your brain." So, this general attitude, combined with the lowest population density and most intact natural environment in South East Asia has made this a great destination after Vietnam and Cambodia.
We flew first to Vientiane, the capital. It was far nicer than we expected -- set along the Mekong River, it's not exactly a beautiful city, but it's clean, has some nice architecture, not much traffic or pollution, lots of trees, and in general a good vibe. There's a large ex-pat community, especially of French, meaning lots of cafes and bakeries. When not in a cafe, we spent most of our time walking around visiting the many wats, Buddhist temples.
We then decided to take an alternate route to Luang Prabang. Most travelers head due north via Vang Vieng, a backpacker haven with beautiful karst scenery (and plenty of drugs). We decided to take our guidebook's advice and travel northwest to Sayabouli instead. This way we'd be able to get off the main tourist path for a bit. It ended up being a pleasant place to spend a night -- not much to do but good scenery and fun to be the only tourists, literally, in the entire city. But getting there and away was, interesting. After India, each country we visited had better and better buses. Here in Laos we've now regressed back to the beginning. Because Vang Vieng is on the main tourist path the route has big "VIP" buses with comfy seats, a bathroom, AC, etc. Sayabouli, however, does not. It has what is called an "express" bus for the 15 hour overnight trip. Boston to Rochester, NY is 400 miles and takes 6 hours. This 15 hour trip took us a total of only 280 miles! The seats were far too small -- Chris' knees were crushed against the seat in front of him. Large sacks of rice filled the aisle, on top of which were packed with people. Lao pop music blasted all night and it was pouring out (despite being dry season) so bathroom breaks were in the open in the rain. Luckily, we had peanut butter to tide us over, since the food at road stalls was often grilled rat. Amazingly though, the time actually went by pretty quickly.
My new little Lao baby friend
After our night in Sayabouli we then went to Luang Prabang. (This bus ride was only four hours but it was missing some windows and broke down once on a steep hill. On the upside we had a great interaction with a family who handed their baby over to Alex for awhile.) This has been the city Chris has been most excited to see in all of SE Asia. It's amazing. It opened itself up to tourism in 1989, in 1995 it received UNESCO World-Heritage status, and since then has been restoring and preserving itself. It's not really like any city we've been to. The main section is on a peninsula between the Mekong and Nam Khan Rivers. A hill, topped with a stupa (Buddhist monument) looms above most of the city. The area is completely walkable but not too dense and full of tropical trees and plants. And everywhere there are wats, which are beautiful. Our book lists well over 20 and we've seen several more that weren't listed. At 6:30 every morning hundreds of orange-robed Buddhist monks walk the streets collecting alms (mainly rice to eat). Seeing the monks at the wats and on the streets, doing everything from studying under a tree to chatting on their cell phones, is one of Alex's highlights. At night, the main road closes to cars and a night market opens. And with money pouring in from UNESCO and tourism, the city has aimed at an upmarket clientele -- everywhere are nice eateries, cafes, inns, and restaurants.
The beautiful archictecture of downtown Luang Prabang
The mornng alms tradition
After 4 months of almost constant travel, we knew we'd eventually need a place to stop and relax. And Luang Prabang has been it. We planned on staying four full days. As we were walking to the bus sales office to buy tickets to our next destination, we realized we just weren't ready to leave. So, we decided to spend an extra day. We're using the extra time to recharge our batteries and it allowed us to visit a nearby waterfall that was beautiful and natural pools for swimming.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
How to See Cambodia in 2 1/2 Days
1. Change your travel itinerary to include Cambodia.
2. Stay on the move constantly--no down time.
3. Visit only your top choice sights.
4. Thank your husband for returning to a country he's seen before.
5. Relax and breathe when you reach Laos.
So, we managed to squeeze a quick visit to Cambodia in between Vietnam and Laos. Since we were already in the Mekong delta, which borders Camdodia, we decided to go overland through the country to get to Laos. This accounted for a hectic 3 days.
To backtrack a little: We made it successfully from the delta area to Phu Quoc Island, a small tropical island off the southwestern tip of Vietnam, where our hotel reservation was honored. That was a relief. We spent the next two days completely relaxed on the beautiful white sand beach. The island is still pretty sleepy, especially considering how beautiful it is, with a lot of small beach restaurants and guest houses with bungalows. There are some newer, fancier resorts cropping up but the whole vibe was very laidback. We pretty much didn't move from our beach chairs from about noon to 6 both days except to order food or drinks. This is also where we rung in 2010. On New Year's Eve we enjoyed a nice dinner and then went to the beach where most celebrating was happening. All the restaurants had tables set out on the sand and bonfires. We got a drink on the beach before heading to a bar/club for some dancing and the stroke of midnight. There was a nice mix of Westerners and Vietnamese dancing together. At midnight they played a song called "Happy New Year" while tennis was still shown on all the TVs. It was kind of weird not to have a countdown or watch the ball drop. But the night was a lot of fun.
Then it was on to Cambodia. We spent a long day on the 2nd getting to the border and then to the capital, Phnom Penh. Border crossings are always interesting and this one was no different. You go from a pretty well-maintained facility on the Vietnam side to small shacks, no real order, and a red dirt road on the Cambodian side. We took a very dusty motorbike ride to a small town (after which Alex's legs looked like they had a bad spray tan) and then a slow, hot minibus ride to Phnom Penh. We ended up randomly at the same place Chris stayed with his friend Andrew 5 years ago. The next day we went to the Genocidal Center, more famously called the Killing Fields, where a huge number of Cambodians were killed during the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975-1979. There were hundreds of bodies found in the mass graves. The bones are now on display in a memorial stupa. You can still see the pits of the mass graves and there are plaques on the former sites of buildings used to house prisoners and the rudimentary tools of killing. One site is a large tree where babies were killed by being hit against it before thrown in the grave. It was a difficult visit and just impossible to fathom how people could do this to their friends, family, and countrymen. Afterwards Alex went to S-21 prison (Chris had been) which was where the Khmer Rouge kept and tortured their "enemies." It used to be a high school and some of the playground exercise equipment was even used in torturing victims. It was very eerie and disturbing to step into rooms that held prisoners and know they were classrooms. Some still have chalkboards. Another sad visit but I'm glad that the Cambodians have set up these places to remember and honor the 3 million people killed.
The same day we took a 2pm bus to Siem Reap, getting in at 8:45. The next morning we had a tuk-tuk driver meet us at 8 to take us to the most famous Angkor Wat temples. Chris had been to these as well but wanted to see them again. We started at the walled city of Angkor Thom. The famous Bayon temple here has over 200 carved faces of a boddhisatva (Buddhist diety) on its towers. The whole temple is beautiful and awe-inspiring. We visited several other temples here although none are quite as impressive. Our next stop was Ta Keo from the 10th century. It is huge but undecorated. It was supposedly never finished because it was struck by lightening, a bad omen. The sides have very steep, very skinny, very scary stairs to the top. Alex did not like this but still climbed up. Our final stop of the morning was Ta Phrom, also known as "Tomb Raider", which is famous for the huge kapok trees growing all over it. This was Alex's favorite as it's incredibly atmospheric and a neat mix of human achievement and nature taking it all back. The tree roots grow all over, around, and in between the stones of the building. This is obviously causing the temple to fall into ruin but is also the reason to visit. There is conservation work going on and it was interesting to think about how the government will try and preserve this unique temple.
Alex: By this time we needed lunch. That consisted of gross spaghetti with tomato sauce. And Chris' food never came. Chris had gotten sick the previous night so he returned to the hotel while I visited the temple of Angkor Wat. It is HUGE. First I had to cross the 250 meter wide moat that resembles a small lake on a wide causeway flanked by naga (cobra diety) statues. Then there are 4 "gateways" into the temple which are really gates in a wide wall that has statues and bas-reliefs inside. From the first gate to the actual temple there was another causeway about 1/2 kilometer long. It was great to get that first sight of the famous building and its corncob-like towers. Inside the temple my favorite part was the incredibly detailed and large bas-reliefs that go around the entire outside wall. It took me almost an hour just to get around it all. They're incredibly well preserved and probably 6 feet high and every inch is covered in carving. The rest of the temple was equally impressive, with more detailed carving on the walls and columns. You can no longer climb up the precarious stairs leading to the highest part of the temple (as Chris was able to just 5 years ago) because there were too many injuries. I was fine skipping that experience. :o)
The following day we flew out of Siem Reap at 10am concluding our whirlwind trip. We are really looking forward to slowing down again in Laos and taking time to visit more "off the beaten path" places.
2. Stay on the move constantly--no down time.
3. Visit only your top choice sights.
4. Thank your husband for returning to a country he's seen before.
5. Relax and breathe when you reach Laos.
So, we managed to squeeze a quick visit to Cambodia in between Vietnam and Laos. Since we were already in the Mekong delta, which borders Camdodia, we decided to go overland through the country to get to Laos. This accounted for a hectic 3 days.
To backtrack a little: We made it successfully from the delta area to Phu Quoc Island, a small tropical island off the southwestern tip of Vietnam, where our hotel reservation was honored. That was a relief. We spent the next two days completely relaxed on the beautiful white sand beach. The island is still pretty sleepy, especially considering how beautiful it is, with a lot of small beach restaurants and guest houses with bungalows. There are some newer, fancier resorts cropping up but the whole vibe was very laidback. We pretty much didn't move from our beach chairs from about noon to 6 both days except to order food or drinks. This is also where we rung in 2010. On New Year's Eve we enjoyed a nice dinner and then went to the beach where most celebrating was happening. All the restaurants had tables set out on the sand and bonfires. We got a drink on the beach before heading to a bar/club for some dancing and the stroke of midnight. There was a nice mix of Westerners and Vietnamese dancing together. At midnight they played a song called "Happy New Year" while tennis was still shown on all the TVs. It was kind of weird not to have a countdown or watch the ball drop. But the night was a lot of fun.
Enjoying sunset on the beach NYE...not too shabby
Then it was on to Cambodia. We spent a long day on the 2nd getting to the border and then to the capital, Phnom Penh. Border crossings are always interesting and this one was no different. You go from a pretty well-maintained facility on the Vietnam side to small shacks, no real order, and a red dirt road on the Cambodian side. We took a very dusty motorbike ride to a small town (after which Alex's legs looked like they had a bad spray tan) and then a slow, hot minibus ride to Phnom Penh. We ended up randomly at the same place Chris stayed with his friend Andrew 5 years ago. The next day we went to the Genocidal Center, more famously called the Killing Fields, where a huge number of Cambodians were killed during the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975-1979. There were hundreds of bodies found in the mass graves. The bones are now on display in a memorial stupa. You can still see the pits of the mass graves and there are plaques on the former sites of buildings used to house prisoners and the rudimentary tools of killing. One site is a large tree where babies were killed by being hit against it before thrown in the grave. It was a difficult visit and just impossible to fathom how people could do this to their friends, family, and countrymen. Afterwards Alex went to S-21 prison (Chris had been) which was where the Khmer Rouge kept and tortured their "enemies." It used to be a high school and some of the playground exercise equipment was even used in torturing victims. It was very eerie and disturbing to step into rooms that held prisoners and know they were classrooms. Some still have chalkboards. Another sad visit but I'm glad that the Cambodians have set up these places to remember and honor the 3 million people killed.
A prison cell/classroom at S-21
The same day we took a 2pm bus to Siem Reap, getting in at 8:45. The next morning we had a tuk-tuk driver meet us at 8 to take us to the most famous Angkor Wat temples. Chris had been to these as well but wanted to see them again. We started at the walled city of Angkor Thom. The famous Bayon temple here has over 200 carved faces of a boddhisatva (Buddhist diety) on its towers. The whole temple is beautiful and awe-inspiring. We visited several other temples here although none are quite as impressive. Our next stop was Ta Keo from the 10th century. It is huge but undecorated. It was supposedly never finished because it was struck by lightening, a bad omen. The sides have very steep, very skinny, very scary stairs to the top. Alex did not like this but still climbed up. Our final stop of the morning was Ta Phrom, also known as "Tomb Raider", which is famous for the huge kapok trees growing all over it. This was Alex's favorite as it's incredibly atmospheric and a neat mix of human achievement and nature taking it all back. The tree roots grow all over, around, and in between the stones of the building. This is obviously causing the temple to fall into ruin but is also the reason to visit. There is conservation work going on and it was interesting to think about how the government will try and preserve this unique temple.
Alex carefully descends the stairs of Ta Keo
The large kapok tree roots taking over
Alex: By this time we needed lunch. That consisted of gross spaghetti with tomato sauce. And Chris' food never came. Chris had gotten sick the previous night so he returned to the hotel while I visited the temple of Angkor Wat. It is HUGE. First I had to cross the 250 meter wide moat that resembles a small lake on a wide causeway flanked by naga (cobra diety) statues. Then there are 4 "gateways" into the temple which are really gates in a wide wall that has statues and bas-reliefs inside. From the first gate to the actual temple there was another causeway about 1/2 kilometer long. It was great to get that first sight of the famous building and its corncob-like towers. Inside the temple my favorite part was the incredibly detailed and large bas-reliefs that go around the entire outside wall. It took me almost an hour just to get around it all. They're incredibly well preserved and probably 6 feet high and every inch is covered in carving. The rest of the temple was equally impressive, with more detailed carving on the walls and columns. You can no longer climb up the precarious stairs leading to the highest part of the temple (as Chris was able to just 5 years ago) because there were too many injuries. I was fine skipping that experience. :o)
Angkor Wat
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