Fish out of water, lion out of the jungle

We spent the majority of the day flying to Delhi, India.  It was late afternoon by the time we arrived at our hotel, so after a short time relaxing in the room,  we headed out to find some grub.  We weren't able to take 2 steps without a tuk tuk/rickshaw driver asking if we needed a ride.  I don't understand why people can't just take NO for an answer! It was even worse as we stood on a corner waiting to cross a busy street. Guys would pull up,  and after a few adamant "no's", they'd be replaced by yet another. One guy was more persistent than others,  and he put out his hand in the gesture of a hand shake. I'm typically a friendly person, and I decided to go ahead and shake his hand. He took it and kissed the back of my hand, and as I chuckled and looked at Sita, he decided to take me off guard. He grabbed me, pulled me to him,  and kissed me. I jerked back and he continued trying to kiss me. Another driver next to us started yelling at the guy as I shoved him away from me. The idiot was just laughing and thought he was the funniest thing ever. Instead of waiting for traffic to clear, I ended up pulling a "local" and just crossing in front of cars. I couldn't wait to get away from the guy.

On the other side of the street, we ducked into a tiny local restaurant. The owner didn't speak much English, but was able to help me pick something that wouldn't be spicy. Lucky for me, he was right! The chicken dish he chose was delicious. After eating way too much, we headed back towards the hotel. Along the way,  we saw a sign for a local henna artist. Sita wanted to check out the prices, and before I knew it, we were sitting down having brown goo squeezed out into elaborate patterns on our hands. I only got one hand done, but Sita decided to do both.

The husband of the henna artist told us that the Holi festival was starting outside, so as soon as we were finished, we headed outside to watch the festivities. Apparently,  the beginning of the festival includes dancing around a burning tree before finally pulling it down. A group of young girls invited us to come across the street the following morning to celebrate the 2nd day of Holi... The day of color! Before they let us go back to our hotel,  we had to promise that we'd be there. 

For our first day in Delhi,  I believe it was quite eventful! And here we were thinking we'd have a quiet night to relax.. This area is unlike anywhere I've been so far. I'm like a fish out water, unsure which way to flop next... like a lion out of the jungle, hunting for an adventure!

Angkor What??

Is 4:30am too early to wake up when you're traveling? Not when it means you see the sun rise over Angkor Wat! Due to our early departure, our hotel fixed us breakfast to go. Now I know how hard it is to spread jam on toast while riding in a tuk tuk!

We approached the temple in utter darkness, needing the use of flashlights to see where to step. Once we were in an area where we could sit, we began the waiting game. The sky began lighting up far before we ever saw the sun, but it outlined Angkor Wat, making it a giant shadow framed against the orange sky. Finally, the blood red Cambodian sun made its arrival.

Once the ohhs and ahhs took place, everyone began a torrential descent into the temple structure. The interior of Angkor Wat wasn't the impressive part in my mind... I enjoyed seeing the formidable exterior, but once we were inside, I was ready to move on.

We went to many temples throughout the rest of the morning, but I honestly do not know their names. At most tourist attractions like this, you see signs with the name and history of each specific area...but here, there was absolutely no help. Either way, exploring the winding paths of each temple was a new experience, as each turn led to more fascinating stone work and architectural feats. In many of the temples, nature has made its claim on the structure... These are the ones that I found to be the most interesting, as it proves that this world could run fine on its own without humans. Given enough time, nature can erase any impression man leaves on it.

I asked Chorm if I could drive the tuk tuk as we were leaving, and he let me... I had to turn it around to get out of the grassy area he had parked, and as the tuk tuk went over a big root, the weight surprised me enough that I ended up dropping the bike. Fortunately, due to how the bike is connected to the tuk tuk, it can't fall all the way to the ground, so the only thing hurt was my ego...and I ended up bruising my leg pretty bad. Chorm laughed, I laughed, strangers laughed. It was a good time!

At this point in the day, Sita and I didn't realize we were about to experience a lunch to be remembered forever. Chorm mentioned us seeing his home, and I thought he meant we would be driving past it on the way back into town. After driving around somewhere I completely didn't recognize, we came up to a long stretch of dirt road. Chorm stopped, got off, and said, "OK Emily, you drive?" After my previous failure, I didn't expect him to trust me to drive, but here he was offering me the bike. That was all the prompt I needed of course! I hopped on and we took off. Chorm constantly mentioned how good I was doing, which just made me more confident. For those of you thinking, "Of course she knows how to drive, she owned a motorcycle!", Let me just say that with the weight of the tuk tuk changes everything. This was truly an amazing thing for me to do...

After a while of bumpy tuk tuk driving, Chorm told me to stop, and he took my place. We turned down an even more bumpy road, and after almost falling out a few times, we made it to his house. Finally, I got to see how the typical Khmer person lives. He built the house himself, using wood from nearby trees for the structure, and the leaves from the palm trees in his yard as the siding. He also has a shed with equipment used in the production of rice. At this point, I thought I was experiencing something amazing... Little did I know we had another stop.

We continued on to Chorm's parents house, and he asked if he were hungry. The next thing I know, he's telling the women there to cook us lunch. We sat and watched Chorm's nephews and nieces play until the meal was ready. Watching these children interact made my day (even more so than driving a tuk tuk). They were just so happy, and content with what they have. For them, a game was to chase each other with mouthfuls of water in an attempt to get close enough to spew the water out onto the other boy. Compare that to the obnoxious video games kids in the US are obsessed with!

The meal itself was delicious, but I unfortunately cannot tell you what any of it was other than rice, pork, rice noodles and mango.the sauce that actually made the meal, were of unknown origins. My stomach wasn't very happy with me after the meal, although my tastebuds sure were thankful!

I thanked the women profusely for the meal, to which they just grinned whole heartedly and acted like it was no big deal. Chorm showed us around the farm a bit, and led us on a tour around the immediate vicinity where the rest of the family lives. Aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews (6), nieces (4), his mother, father... The entire family resides within walking distance of each other, not unlike my family in northern Alabama. The standard of living is higher, but the familial relations is comparable!

Once back at the hotel, we ended jumping in the pool for a few hours before heading back to my favorite temple, Ta Prohm. This is the temple near Angkor Wat that you've probably seen pictures of before. It really looks like humans had to built around the trees, because it seems there are more trees than structures!

This day has made such an impact on me.  I learn to appreciate what I have so much more when I visit countries like Cambodia! I hope you also can see how these wonderful people live, and can realize how lucky you are to live in a country as rich as America.

Snakes on a River...again.

Next up, Cambodia.

Upon arriving in Siem Reap, Sita and I immediately realized how different it would be than Bangkok. The airport was quaint, and we had to walk across what seemed more like a grocery store parking lot than anything else to get from the plane to customs. 

We got outside and found Chorm, our tuk tuk driver. This is the first time I've had someone waiting for me outside an airport with a sign! Ok, so my name is spelled wrong.... But it's the thought that counts!

To get to the hotel, we actually drove down some crazy dirt roads... All of that just made the hotel seem that much nicer! The most important part...

After a short while, Chorm picked us up to head downtown. We walked through what seemed like a flea market, and ended up finding all kinds of stuff to buy. I got some dresses for my niece, and the soon to be born niece. Right when I thought I was done spending money, we came across a stall full of the most beautiful paintings. I ended up getting one that was actually painted with a spoon! We met back up with Chorm after a few hours of exploring. Apparently he was our guy, and only ours. He dropped us off and then just hung out in the tuk tuk until we came back! It was definitely different than anything I've experienced before.

We asked Chorm what else we should do, and he said something about a lake. We had no idea what he was saying, but just kinda went with it. It turns out that the lake was Tonlé Sap, which translates to Great Lake. You get in a boat and at first it seems like the biggest waste of time...lt just looks like a dirty river, with nothing to see! After some driving, a beautiful sight emerges. There is an entire village, floating on the lake. Women washing clothes, children playing, dogs barking... It was absolutely amazing to see. We continued driving in between the houses. We were told about a school on the lake where orphaned children attend. The guide asked us if we would be willing to donate something to them, so we bought 3 cases of bottled water. When we went into the school to give the water, I looked at some of the children's notebooks that they were working in. Every one I looked at was covered in drawings. As I kept looking, I began to wonder exactly how legit this school was. It just seemed "off." I know it's cynical to believe people would so elaborately set up a scheme like that, but in the world we live in, tourists are targeted with such things. I'd honestly rather be cynical than naive! Naivety does nothing for you when you're traveling the world.

From the school, we headed to a barge that had food, drinks, souvenirs, a catfish farm, and a crocodile farm. They grow crocodiles to make wallets and purses out of. As we were walking around the little shop, we saw a little girl holding a python, asking people if they wanted to hold it. Of course I headed over! The snake really seemed to like me, and people began taking pictures of me holding it. I really should have charged per photo!!

We left the floating village, found Chorm, and made our way back to the hotel. Due to having to get up so early in the morning the next day, Sita and I were both ready to pass out. 

Cambodia is much more peaceful than Bangkok... People still drive crazy but its quieter overall. Hopefully the peace continues!

Snakes on a River

All over Bangkok, locals ride on motorcycles and mopeds. At every red light,  you see an army of them, because they drive through the line of traffic in order to be at the front when the light turns to green.  Sita and I decided to utilize this method of transportation, and it was well worth it! Normally traffic is stop and go but when you're on a motorcycle here, you don't stop.  If the cars in front of you are slowing down,  you just whip around them or between them. Everyone actually uses their horns correctly... They give a little "beep" as they come up along side you,  so that you know they're there.  In America,  a beep means "You're an idiot,  get out of my way."

We took the bikes into the city to meet up with our group to go to the floating market.  It turns out that there are a few markets.... Some real ones,  and then the one that the tourists are taken to.  The whole thing is an enormous tourist trap. Everything sold there had souvenir written all over it. You get to see how the markets operate though, which was nice. The stalls, or booths, are accessible by boat, and everyone cruises through the canal while looking at the wares.  Hawkers have hooks on a pole that they use to reach out and grab your boat, if they even suspect that you were interested in something. 

One important thing I learned is that they mark the items up ridiculously.  A woman wanted 400 baht for an item which is the equivalent of $12.50. A man in our boat offered 100 baht ($3.3) and as the woman brought the price down,  he never came up. He just kept saying 100 and our boat operator would start to leave.  The woman got frantic trying to make the sale and finally sold it to him for 100 baht.  Now, economics say that if she weren't making any money,  she wouldn't have sold the item. I was flabbergasted at the markup on stuff! I know to barter in countries like this,  but from 12.5 bucks to 3?

As we were leaving, a small booth indoors with teak products caught my eye. I decided to buy a hand made set of the game "Jenga." The woman wanted 550 baht ($17) and I got her to do 220 ($7). I was quite proud of myself!

On the way back to Bangkok, we stopped at a snake exhibit and watched men avoid the bite of very poisonous snakes,  one of which happened to be a cobra.  The guy was amazing... One second, the snake is trying to kill him,  and the next,  he's able to calm it down with slight, rhythmic movements of his head. It was quite impressive.

While there, I was able to hold a beautiful python. He seemed comfortable on me, while on other tourists, he was moving all around trying to get down.

Instead of taking us back to the hotel, we had the driver take us to "downtown." Here, that word doesn't really mean what you would think. We ended up in the hustle and bustle of rush hour on super busy streets, surrounded by malls. We've had so much rice and noodles, that we are starting to get tired of it. We saw an A&W and decided to grab dinner there instead of from a street vendor. I know, I know... So "American."

As we were wandering around, making our way back to the sky train (the train runs above all the cars), I started getting cramps, and quickly realized that I was dehydrated. I bought a bottle of water and on the ride back towards our hotel, I sipped and sipped until I felt better. I still had a killer headache, and we ended up just staying in the hotel room for the rest of the evening.

I'm not used to having to "make sure" I drink water. I mean, I'm from a hot part of the US, so it's not like I'm a newbie when it comes to staying hydrated! Somehow, I guess I just wasn't thinking about it, and when almost the whole day out in the sun without drinking anything!

Elephants, Tigers, and Bears!

Go ahead, come out with it.... You know you just thought "oh my!" as you read this title! Don't be embarrassed.

The day started at 3:30am. Sita and I had to be downstairs by 4 to meet up with the driver from the tour company we were going to the Tiger Temple with. The drive out to the temple is about 3 hours so in order to participate in the mo"rning program, we had to be up and out WAY before the sun comes out to play. I'm not even going to try to make you feel bad for me, cause it was WORTH IT. I'll let pictures explain.

 

We got to play with cubs, feed some 8 month olds, walk adult tigers, and then play in the water with the adults. The experience was something I'll never forget! 

At one point, while we were playing in the water, a tiger ran over to everyone's shoes, snatched mine up, and carried it into the water. There's a video where you can hear me yell, "Hey that's my shoe!" Here are some screen shots from the video as he's taking my shoe...

Another part of the day was to see the bridge over the river Kwai. In World War 2, this railway bridge was used by the Japanese, and the US tried to bomb it on a few occasions. A movie starring Nicole Kidman (The Railway Man) just came out about the terrible conditions prisoners of war were forced to endure as they labored to construct the railway. Thousands of people died trying to build the railway across Thailand... 

Last, but not least, we spent some time some elephants! We rode them through part of the woods/jungle, and then out into the water along the coast line. They enjoyed being fed bananas afterward!

My today is your tomorrow

The religion in Bangkok, and probably all of Thailand, is around 93-95% Buddhist. Buddha is everywhere! There are beautifully crafted temples that are hundreds of years old... And the city has slowly crowded it's way around the temples so that they are boxed in on every side by modern buildings and fast paced roads. I find it quite odd that these devoutly religious people are using their holy places as tourist attractions to make money. I honestly don't see how charging entrance fees to a temple fit in with the type of lifestyle Buddhists are supposed to live.

We visited a few of the main temples; Wat Pho, the temple of the reclining Buddha, and Sukhothai. In the outer cloister of Wat Pho, there are over 128 statues of Buddha. A few are in the process of being restored, which if you know me, you'll know that interested me far more than people bowing to Buddha. On the base of each statue, there are thousands of glass pieces that are cut and fit into different patterns. Each piece is hand cut, and placed in a specific spot to create these beautiful works of art.

After seeing some of the temples and part of the downtown area, we went to the mall (that's right, I went to a mall). The mall here is set up as what we would consider an indoor flea market in Alabama. Each "stall" had its own vendor, so you could find the same thing for a different price if you looked hard enough. I bought some pants that you'll see in pictures over the next few weeks. They're typical dress for this culture, and are made to help out with the heat!

In Bangkok, the city train system runs in the "sky" above the main roadways. They refer to it as the sky train. I've seen a lot of people utilizing the system, but I'm constantly flabbergasted at the number of people on mopeds and motorcycles. At any given red light, 30 mopeds will have woven through cars to get to the front of the line by the time the light turns green. As soon as the green light hits, they take off. They are used for personal use, but there are also a lot used as cabs. There are always a crowd of mopeds waiting for someone to need a ride... I've seen young children on the backs, women holding infants, people with their dogs... Anyone and everyone will hop on the back of the moped and take off!

I'm 12 hours ahead of you all in Alabama... My today is ending, as your "tomorrow" is beginning. Enjoy your day... I hope you can find something new that excites you, and that you make every moment count.

It's not really "Day 1" if you don't leave airports right?

For this journey, I actually have a traveling buddy! My friend, Sita, took 2 weeks off work and is going to roam around Asia with me. We've completed 2 out of 4 flights, and are now just spending 5 hours in the Amsterdam airport waiting for the flight onwards to Delhi, India. The 7 hour flight from Chicago to Amsterdam was absolutely brutal. I love Delta, but KLM actually operated the flight... Lets just say I'll pay more attention to who is operating the flight in the future!

Whew.... Now, after 38 hours of traveling, we are relaxing in our hotel in Bangkok. The only thing we did before hibernating was find a place to eat. All I know is that the little Thai lady was stirring stuff in a big pot, and that it was $1.70 for a big bowl of it with a Pepsi. Whatever it was, it was delicious! Sometimes the best food is the unknown pot of.....?

From here on out, each day will bring amazing, new experiences, that I can't wait to share with you all!

Worst Person to Sit Next to on a Plane

I was THAT person today. You know, the person who coughs the whole flight, looks like death, sounds all hoarse and well... sounds like they're dying? That was me.

From London to Orlando, FL, I tried my best to keep sucking on lozenges and sip water, in hopes of quieting my cough. It worked, somewhat. Still, I don't even want to know what the people around me must have been thinking!! I ended up on a Virgin Atlantic flight since they are now partnered with Delta. I really enjoyed the flight (as much as a dying person can). There were tons of movies, music, and TV shows. I'm used to having that on Delta flights, but VA has a much wider selection.

In Orlando, I had a short layover before my flight onward to Atlanta, GA. As I stood in line talking to my friend Nicole (today's her 22nd birthday!) she asked me how sick I was. I explained that I thought it was just a cold, but that maybe it had turned into an infection of some sort. As these words came out of my mouth, I realized that I was in line to get on a plane, and all the passengers around me could hear me talking. Talk about AWKWARD. I got a few of those "if you get me sick, you will die" looks, but they really didn't bother me cause I was already dying anyways right?

I'm sorry for all the death jokes, but seriously this is the first time I've felt so terrible with a cold!! The exhaustion + being cooped up on a plane = worst headache/sore throat/mucus filled body/about to pass out person EVER.

My mom picked me up from Atlanta, and drove me home. My little brother had no idea I was coming home, and literally lost his mind when he saw me. Such love brought me back from the brink of death, to the normal state of exhausted world traveler. 42 days, 10 countries, 10 hostels, 8 hosts, 7 flights and only ONE run in with the police later... I'm home.

Next up... Asia?

Kilaloe

I spent my day in Kilaloe with Russ Gipp today... We sat in the living room for a long time just talking about life, which was such a drastic difference from the "go go go" pace this week has been set at. I woke up with a cough and some congestion so I just relaxed with a hot cup of tea while we talked.

He took me out for lunch to a local place that had some really good fish n chips before taking me on a drive through the Irish countryside. We ended up on a back road winding between acres of pasture and farm land. Supposedly, it's a two way street, but Russ' car barely fit on it! It got quite interesting whenever cars came from the opposite direction.

After exploring the area around Russ' little town, we had to go get my bag and head to the airport in Dublin. This is it... I'm finally beginning the journey home. I'm sitting here with the food bought with whatever Euro I had left, waiting for my flight. I'm excited folks.

Now it's 11pm... I've tried going to sleeping and it's not really working out. My cold has gotten worse, and we all know how uncomfortable airport chairs can be. Wish me luck!! Until the morning...

Sláinte

From beginning to end...

"Alright, me troopers..."

Today was the final day of the Paddywagon 6 day tour of Ireland. I've met such a good group of fellow travelers, and I look forward to seeing them again in the future.

For the majority of the day, we were in the bus, except for a few pit stops along the way. Once we arrived in Dublin, we went to the Guinness factory. Although it isn't a place I'd really want to go, the entrance fee was included in the price so I made the most of it. The history of Guinness itself was interesting to read about. I didn't know exactly how popular it was in Ireland until this week. I knew it was Irish made, but in Ireland, Guinness isn't a beer... Guinness is a lifestyle. Sláinte, in Irish, means "to good health." I'm not sure how healthy any alcohol is, but the Irish sure think it is! As part of the tour, everyone gets a free pint fresh made at the factory. We got our pints, said, "Sláinte!" and I tried Guinness for the first time ever. I took a sip to see what it tasted like, and although it isn't as absolutely repulsive as other beer, it's still rather gross. I passed it to a member of our tour, who seems to just love the stuff.

We said our sad goodbyes to Seanie, and to each other. Everyone ran around with their cell phones out exchanging emails and Facebook information, so hopefully we will see one another again someday. With that, I waved goodbye and headed out to the bus stop where I caught a bus back across the country to Limerick, where Russ Gipp, a friend from church back in Georgia, was awaiting my arrival. He is in Ireland for 12 weeks working.

I got to the bus stop, and couldn't find Russ anywhere... The only way of communication we had was Facebook, so I found some Wi-Fi and just waited. I knew (or hoped) that he would do the same and eventually, we were able to connect online and figure out what went wrong. He was waiting at the second to last stop, and I got off at the last stop... Oops!! I hailed a taxi, and had him drive me over to where Russ was, as that was easier than Russ having to find me. Finally, there he was! The big, bearded teddy bear that everyone loves. I was so happy to see a familiar face!! After a big, warm hug, we hopped in his car and headed to the little town he lives in, Kilaloe. There, we went out to dinner and just talked and talked. It was great!!!

Once at Russ' apartment, we watched TV, talked more, and just enjoyed each other's company. He's missing his family back in Gerogia, and I'm missing mine, so it was cool to have someone from "home" to talk to.

Goodnight me troopers.