On Safari

The time that we spent in Australia gave us a taste of all of the things that we missed about home: our friends, good food, clean drinking water, and having a comfortable bed. So when it came time to decide whether or not we were going to visit South Africa before settling down in France, we were undecided. We had grown a bit tired of traveling, but we had heard great things about Cape Town. And while going on a safari had been a dream of Wayne’s for a long time, safaris are expensive and we were running low on money. As fate would have it, the decision was made for us. Just when our time in Australia was drawing to a close, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland erupted and shut down all air travel to and from Europe. We decided to go to South Africa for a short, five-day safari, and to attempt to fly from Johannesburg to France once the volcanic dust had settled.

Looking back, we made the right decision. South Africa is a gorgeous country, and the people we met were some of the friendliest we encountered throughout our entire trip– not to mention that our safari ended up being an incredibly relaxing experience! Early on the first morning, we were picked up at our hotel by our guide, Neil. We were introduced to the only other person in our group, a British geologist named Hayden, and together the four of us began the three-hour drive from Johannesburg to Kruger National Park.

At the gate to Kruger National Park

At 7,332 square miles, Kruger is immense. It’s home to 147 species of mammals, the most famous of which are the Big Five: lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants, and buffalo. Back when the reserve was used as a hunting ground, these animals were believed to be the most dangerous for a person to hunt. We were surprised to learn that of the Big Five, the most dangerous animal is the buffalo. Lions, leopards, rhinos, and elephants are predictable in their behavior, but the buffalo is something of a loose cannon. While it’s against the law to hunt in the park, poaching is still a problem and poachers do sometimes get killed by the animals when they are hunting on foot. But for those who respect the rules of the park and the animals that live there, Kruger is a safe environment. Outside of camp, it’s forbidden to leave your safari vehicle, and every camp is surrounded by a wall and an electric fence.

With our guide, Neil, outside of our safari vehicle (in a designated safe location!)

We slept at two camps during our time at Kruger: two nights at Lower Sabie, and two nights at Satara. To give you an idea of the size of the park and how much of it we didn’t see, the park has 21 camps in addition to 15 private lodges. Our budget-friendly accommodation was surprisingly plush and consisted of detached cabins complete with air conditioning, hot water, and a kitchenette with a patio. Our days began before dawn, by which time Neil had prepared coffee and rusks for breakfast. As soon as the sun began to rise, we would begin our morning drive. On these drives, we were often able to catch a glimpse of nocturnal animals going home to sleep after the hunt. Then, at around ten in the morning, we would return to camp for brunch, which usually consisted of an omelette, sausage, bacon, toast, fruit, cereal, and hash browns! After that hearty meal we would usually nap during the hot part of the day and go back out in the afternoon to spot animals again. Every night, Neil cooked us a fabulous dinner on the grill, and as we slept, we could hear hippos barking in the river beyond.

Wayne in our safari vehicle

In the end, we only saw four of the Big Five– the leopards were just too stealthy for us. Far from disappointed, we felt incredibly privileged to have been able to see such a wide array of wildlife existing in its natural environment. Neil was a knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide and taught us everything from animal behavior to how to recognize different animal tracks.

We took far too many pictures to post them all here, so if you’re interested, you can see them all at our Flickr site. For the purposes of this blog post, here are a few of our favorite shots.

Male lion

Hyena female with cubs

Zebras

Rinos

Herd of female elephants and their young

Female lions sleeping on the road after the completion of a hunt

Sunset over the savannah

We loved South Africa and the safari and we can’t wait to go back someday. It was an incredible experience, one that we’ll never forget.

 

Friends in Sydney

We had been looking forward to our time in Sydney since the beginning of the trip. Our friend Pete, who is originally from Sydney but who now lives in San Francisco, was kind enough to make the trip to Australia to meet us and show us around his home town. We couldn’t have been happier to see him! After months of traveling on our own it was wonderful to see a familiar face. After he picked us up from the airport, he brought us immediately to the beautiful Sydney Opera House for a drink overlooking the harbor. We couldn’t have asked for a warmer or more impressive welcome.

Pete and Wayne having a beer at the opera house

We were so lucky to be able to stay with Pete and his family in Sydney; once again, after being away for so long it was really nice to have a real bed in a real house. Pete’s mother and step-father were excellent hosts as you might expect from Pete’s generous demeanor. We had breakfast laid out for us every morning in perfect order, even down to which cereal we liked and whether we would have juice or not. We could not have asked for better hosts or a more comfortable place to stay.

Pete brought us to his favorite beaches, fed us delicious sausage rolls, and generally made us feel welcome and care-free in Sydney. The only time we had to worry was when we found a blue ringed octopus in the tidal pools we were exploring. (Click here to read about it.)

Bondi beach in Sydney

Pete’s wife Meryl joined us a few days later and we continued on to meet Pete’s father and sister. Pete’s father was kind enough to invite us into his home and give us use of his car while we were in Sydney. He even showed us his roost of huge fruit bats that live outside his balcony!

Drinks in Sydney

The harbor bridge

The opera house

Pete also brought us to see all the strange animals that Australia has to offer. First we went to Symbio, an Australian animal park, where we spent time with koala bears, wallabies, kangaroos and a lot of other interesting animals. Later in the week, we went to another animal park that had lots of reptiles and spiders, as well as a very angry tazmainian devil! If we learned nothing else about Australian animals, it is that the smaller they are, the more dangerous they are!

Rachel and Pete feeing kangaroos at Symbio

A very angry tasmanian devil

Finally, Pete and Meryl took us on a trip up to the beautiful wine country of Hunter Valley. We stayed in a cabin in the woods and drank a non-trivial amount of wine bought on our tasting adventures. Unfortunately there aren’t any good pictures from our time in the valley as we were busy tasting all sorts of wine, beer, and cheese!

 

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

From above, the Australian outback seems an endless expanse of desolate, rust-colored earth with sparse plant or animal life. On the ground, where it’s possible to feel the scorch of the late summer sun, it’s difficult to understand how 10,000 years ago, human beings first settled and managed to survive in this climate. Wayne and I had flown directly from Cairns to the Ayers Rock airport, on the borders of the Aboriginal reserve of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Alice Springs, the city closest to Uluru, was a six-hour drive away. Other than the small cluster of hotels and campsites that comprise the Ayers Rock Resort, there was nothing in our field of vision but shrubs, soil, and two very distinct rock formations looming on the horizon.

Uluru

Kata Tjuta

From a distance, Uluru and Kata Tjuta appear smooth, almost featureless. But as you approach these formations, it becomes clear that they are not merely monoliths. There are so many features hidden within them that much of the local Aborigine tribe’s– the Anangu’s– creation myth is centered around them. Traditional stories describe how the Anangu’s ancestral deities shaped the land in this area, creating crevices and splits, caves and even water pools. For this reason, and for reasons to which we, as outsiders, are not privy, both Uluru and Kata Tjuta are sacred to the Aborigines.

Take this rock formation at Uluru, for instance. According to Anangu legend, it’s the mouth of a particularly talkative ancestral spirit.

Even today, Kata Tjuta is the site of initiation ceremonies for young Anangu men, and certain sections of both sites are off-limits to visitors. At Uluru, scattered cave paintings betray the sites of informal schools, where children of a certain age and gender are instructed in Anangu customs, some of which are depicted by symbols such as these. Other times, the symbols serve to relay practical information, such as whether or not a source of water is nearby, or whether there are edible or medicinal plants in the cave’s vicinity.

Cave paintings, Uluru

We spent three days touring these sites, which was just enough time to make the trip worthwhile. We hiked for a few kilometers in the blazing heat through Kata Tjuta, and we spent a morning hiking around the base of Uluru on what was essentially an Aboriginal cultural tour. That afternoon, we browsed the Uluru Aboriginal Cultural Centre and marveled at the time-tested techniques that have allowed the Anangu to make their home from such an unforgiving landscape (including trapping reptiles and digging for grubs). And of course, we took the requisite excursions out to watch the sun rise and set over Uluru.

Ayers Rock Resort was a bit of a disappointment because, unfortunately, they have a monopoly on lodging in the area. The resort is geared primarily towards well-heeled travelers, and the only room option that was within our budget was to spend $45 each on a dormitory that we shared with two strangers. Ultimately, though, it was worth not having to spend twelve hours on a bus to and from Alice Springs. Overall, the park is a place of incredible beauty and cultural significance. Visiting it was an experience that I would recommend to anyone with a tolerance for heat who is interested in learning about Aboriginal culture and experiencing all the rugged beauty that nature has to offer.

 

Trials and Cape Tribulation

The more time we spent in China, the more we began to feel as though we had barely scratched its surface. This has been a recurring theme for us during this trip: the more places we’ve visited, the more we’ve been able to appreciate how much of the world we still have yet to see. To be sure, all of this traveling has made the world seem smaller in some ways. It’s helped me to realize that even on the other side of the planet, it’s possible to make a friend, feel at home, or eat at Kentucky Fried Chicken (although I wouldn’t recommend it). On the other hand, it’s also shown me that the world is huge, almost incomprehensibly so. For every city you visit, you’re bound to hear about at least three more, each supposedly more captivating than the last. But I’ve found that the sooner you admit to yourself that it’s impossible to experience everything, the easier your trip will be. As our month in China drew to a close, we adopted this attitude and told ourselves of everything we were leaving behind: we’ll see it next time.

We arrived in Cairns, Australia at the end of March– the beginning of autumn in the southern hemisphere. It was rainy but hot, and we were hopeful that the rain would relent long enough for us to have at least one good beach day. The northeastern coast of Australia is known for its beautiful coastline, particularly in the vicinity of Cape Tribulation, about three hours north of Cairns. We had rented a car with the intention of spending a few nights on Cape Tribulation, but after about two and a half hours of driving in heavy rain, we learned that the road leading to the cape had been washed out and would be closed for at least the next two days. Our rental car wasn’t exactly equipped for off-roading, so we turned around and decided to explore the area south of Cairns instead.

Wayne with our rental car, a Hyundai Getz– which “getz” you where you’re going, eventually.

The (rainy) coastline of Captain Cook’s Highway, near Port Douglas, Queensland

Our road trip was a lot of fun, despite the run of bad luck we seemed to be having. And it WAS bad luck– I was sick with a bad cold almost the entire week we were in Cairns, and it never did stop raining. We had a terrible time trying to find lodging south of Cairns. Having spent the past month in China, we had completely forgotten that it was Easter weekend, and all of the hotels and hostels we came across were either fully booked or closed for the holiday. We eventually opted for an overpriced motor inn, where I spent an entire day curled up with a box of tissues watching period dramas on TV. If I had to be sick, I figured, I was happy to be in Australia: the TV was in English, and there was plenty of familiar comfort food to be had.

Sometimes, our bad luck was funny. We took a crocodile sighting tour on a boat down the Dundee river, but the only crocodile we saw was an infant no bigger than my forearm. (Click here to see an enlarged view of the photo I took– can you spot him?) When we went diving in the Great Barrier Reef, the seas were so choppy during the 90 minute boat ride from shore that nearly half the passengers on the boat (including me) lost their breakfast. When I finally did get off the boat and into the water, I had an amazing time– until I got stung in the face by a (non-poisonous, but very painful) blue bottle jellyfish (technically a Portuguese Man o’War, for those of you who are sticklers of taxonomy).

Wayne getting ready to scuba dive

Rachel snorkeling amongst jellyfish (this variety was everywhere, but fortunately doesn’t sting)*

As usual, though, the good outweighed the bad. Wayne had a great time scuba diving while I was snorkeling, and we both saw some amazing sea life. Bright, beautiful coral was abundant, as were colorful fishes, including the giant Maori wrasse. We both saw a giant clam, and Wayne even saw a small reef shark. The most memorable moment for me that didn’t involve being stung or sick came when I was swimming a short distance away from the other snorkelers. Suddenly, I noticed a sea turtle resting near the surface of the water, facing me. I swam closer to get a better look, and when he turned around and began to swim very slowly towards the reef, I followed. Swimming alongside him, away from the splashing and underwater camera clicks of the other tourists, was peaceful and quiet. That experience alone was worth having to spend the boat ride back to shore practically sedated from Dramamine, my face slathered in vinegar.

Loggerhead Sea Turtle, Great Barrier Reef*

Maori Wrasse, Great Barrier Reef*

We spent the rest of our time in Cairns marveling at nature on land. We visited an Australian animal habitat (more on that in one of our next posts), saw many beautiful waterfalls, and visited a giant curtain fig tree that looked like something out of Lord of the Rings.

Curtain Fig Tree, Atherton Tablelands, Queensland

Millaa Millaa Falls, Atherton Tablelands, Queensland

Despite the small frustrations we experienced during our time in Cairns, we felt lucky to be traveling in such a lush, green environment. It was a stark contrast to the urban sprawl and (I hate to say it) the widespread pollution of China. The natural beauty of Queensland is something that needs to be experienced to be fully appreciated. Traveling there, we could easily see why many Australians are so committed to the environment. With so many natural treasures in their backyards, how could they not be?

*These underwater photos were taken by the professional photographer on our dive ship, the Silverswift. As much as I’d like to take credit for them, I can’t!

 

Busy in Beijing

Beijing is home to three of the most famous attractions in China. Of course, the most famous is the Great Wall, the emblem of China and a testament to the scale of their ancient empire. Secondly, there is the Forbidden City, a vast royal palace built right in the middle of the city. The third attraction is the food, most notably Peking Duck which reflects the complexity and understated precision of Chinese food.

The Bird’s Nest, built to host the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing

By the time we made it to Beijing we were used to the excellent service and accommodation at Chinese hostels and Beijing was no exception! We ended up spending a fair amount of time just bumming around the hostel and talking to fellow travelers. We met a Scottish couple that had been traveling in China for several months so we were on the same wavelength: we were all comfortable getting around the country on our own, and we were more interested in experiencing Chinese culture than in checking off a list of tourist attractions we had visited. They were at the end of their trip so we decided to go out one night to have some real Peking duck and find some nightlife. The duck was amazing and as usual in China we were the only foreigners in the restaurant. We got lots of stares and since nobody spoke English we had a lot of laughs trying to get a duck! After the restaurant we wandered along the “bar street” to find a fun place to spend the rest of the night. We ended up at a little bar that was playing really good flamenco music. We were again the only foreigners in sight, but that didn’t stop the local hospitality. At some point one of the guys from the table next to ours came over with a round of shots and said “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!” We didn’t really get it at first, but it turns out that it was HIS birthday and he had bought us shots so that we could celebrate together. Not to be outdone, we bought them a round of shots, and the rest was history. Nobody spoke any English, but we ended up taking over the stage and singing karaoke, dancing to Michael Jackson, and partying with everyone in the bar until the wee hours of the morning.

Eating Peking duck in Peking

Rachel and our Scottish friend Anna with the birthday boy

The night ended well but the morning started horribly! Not only were we in a regrettable state after the festivities of the previous night, but we had miscalculated the number of nights we were staying in Beijing and we hadn’t paid for the next night. Normally this wouldn’t have been a problem– we had extended our stay at every other hostel day by day and it had never been an issue. Unfortunately, this was a particularly busy hostel and they had already rented our room for the following night! We had to quickly pack (by this point we were experts) and try to find another place for the night. Fortunately the staff was incredibly nice and helpful as usual and they actually found us another place to stay! It was a business hotel around the corner. They booked our room, brought us over and helped us sign in. In the new hotel, there was a sign that listed the room prices and we noticed that the rooms cost twice what we had been paying at the hostel. Fortunately, the woman who brought us over told us not to worry about it: we could continue to pay the hostel the same rates as before, and everything would be taken care of. We really had no idea what was going on but we were so happy to find a place that it didn’t matter. Everything worked out, we paid our original price at the hostel and the hotel people didn’t bother us! Just one example of the many times people in China bent over backwards to help us!

We ended up having to rush through the Forbidden City near the end of our stay in Beijing. We hadn’t anticipated it closing at 4 p.m., but to be honest, we weren’t too upset. We hadn’t been looking forward to wading through the throngs of tourists, anyway. Maybe it was because of our quick visit, or the huge amount of visitors but the Forbidden City was a bit of a let down after all the amazing sights in China. The compound is huge with many large gilded buildings and lots of wide open spaces. The buildings themselves were mostly empty except for a small collection of items in the private quarters in back. It was interesting to learn about the palace’s history, and it certainly was huge– but without anyone actually living there, it was difficult to imagine it in all its splendor.

Chairman Mao’s portrait at the entrance to the Forbidden City

Rachel in the Forbidden City, standing on the central walkway that was once forbidden for anyone but the emperor to use. Remember that scene from The Last Emperor?

We booked a tour of the Great Wall through the hostel since we had heard that going on our own would be more expensive and more of a hassle. There were three choices to visit the wall, the first was the “tourist” option which included a bus to the closest part of the wall which is fully renovated and apparently swarmed with bus loads of people on packaged tours. The second was the most popular option (for the hostel) which takes you to a further part of the wall which is partially renovated and has a chairlift to get up to the top. It is a couple of hours further away but has a lot less tourists. The last choice was the “adventure” option which was the furthest one to a part of the wall the is “original” (e.g. ruins) and takes several hours to hike up to. We went with the second option and were very happy we did! The wall is really high up in the mountains so hiking would have been difficult (not to mention the hours of walking along the wall that we did once we got up there…) It was also nice to see part of the wall that was renovated to get a good sense of what it looked like, but also to see parts of the “original” wall to get a sense of the scope which was truly immense. Also, this tour included a toboggan ride down afterwards!

Riding the toboggan down from the Great Wall

Rachel waiting her turn to ride down from the Great Wall via toboggan

It was a little cold the day that we went but that was perfect because of all the walking that we had to do. Fortunately there weren’t many other tourists and we were able to explore the wall alone most of the time. There isn’t much to say about the wall itself, the pictures speak for themselves. The wall stretched as far as the eye could see in both directions along seemingly impossibly steep mountains. Truly an incredible feat of engineering and sheer perseverance. Of course, like so many ancient wonders of the world, it was all built with slave labor. But their work has endured: the wall spans over 3,000 miles and has stood for over 2,000 years! Like the great pyramids in Egypt, the great wall is awesome in the true sense of the word.

Great Wall of China, Mutianyu section, 70 km northeast of Beijing

Guard’s outpost on the Great Wall

 

Terracotta Army

Leaving Aunti Dekun (as she called herself) and her family in Chengdu was bittersweet. We had such a great time there that a week seemed to just scratch the surface. On the other hand, we were going to see the terracotta warriors in Xi’an which is something that I had always wanted to do.

After saying our goodbyes we hopped on another long train ride up to Xi’an. We were in another 4 person sleeper, but this time we had two Chinese men travelling with us. Eventually one of them started speaking a little English with us, but mostly they just sat on the other bunk and nervously glanced at us the whole time. I think they were more uncomfortable than we were!

Click to see a video of what it is like at a train station in China

We finally reached Xi’an and found our way to the hostel Han Tang Inn which we immediately felt at home in. The hostels in China were the best that we found on the trip. Without exception the staff was incredibly generous and friendly. They often had pets (which we loved!) and had huge DVD libraries, lounge areas, bars, free wifi, and just a great atmosphere.

This is Teddy who was very friendly at the Han Tang Inn

This is the cat at Han Tang Inn, he’s a bit vicious but loves to play!

Eventually we got around to seeing the terracotta warriors which were, in a word, amazing! China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, decided that he needed an army to bring into the afterlife to defend him. As you can imagine, the first person to unite China tended to like things done big. The site is huge, with only a small portion uncovered. The actual tomb is a pyramid that is supposed to contain rivers of mercury and replicas of palaces. The Chinese government has not allowed the excavation of the tomb itself, but the warriors are slowly appearing as they are uncovered. Each statue has equipment appropriate to their rank and role in the army. They were all painted and possibly the most interesting and amazing fact is that each statue has a unique face! No mass production used here, they actually sculpted each face into a mold and then broke it after each statue.

Here we see a small group of restored soldiers (Note the horses in the background)

This is the main “pit” of the army, there are at least 4 other ones!

A pikeman from the army, they all had wooden weapons when they were built

An archer from the army

Along with the army there are actually statues of acrobats, animals, musicians, workers, and everything an emperor might need in his afterlife. This is truly a monument to the megalomania and vast power that an emperor could have.

Other than the terracotta army there isn’t much to do in Xi’an so we spent a lot of time with the people we met at the hostel and we went to Wal-Mart in China! It was funny to see the bastion of capitalism in China, but it was more like a supermarket there, a lot of food and not so many household items.

Rachel at Wal-Mart!

 

A Warm Welcome in Szechuan

China is an enormous country. I’d always been vaguely aware of this fact, but the 36-hour train ride between Hong Kong and Chengdu confirmed it. People have asked us how we entertain ourselves during these epic journeys, but it’s usually pretty straightforward: after five meals, six TV show episodes, a book, a blog post, countless games of cribbage and more naps than could be considered healthy, we’re usually somewhere around halfway there. It’s not the worst way to travel, though. The trains in China are clean and comfortable, and we were lucky enough to have a four-bed cabin to ourselves on all but one occasion.

A typical A/C sleeper cabin aboard one of China’s long-distance trains

As we sped through the countryside towards Szechuan province, we were struck by the amount of construction we passed. In every city, town and village, it seemed as though something was being built, upgraded or expanded. The newly constructed buildings provided an odd contrast to the numerous Communist-era apartment buildings that appeared at seemingly random intervals. These huge, gray slabs of concrete were grouped together in clusters near schools and train stations, but it wouldn’t be accurate to call these places suburbs. Rather, they were dorm-like residences for the millions of people who commute to and from the nearby cities. When we asked a local whether or not all of the newer buildings were occupied, her reply was that they were not, but that the Chinese government was attempting to prepare for further growth in its population.

It was just after midnight when our train finally arrived in Chengdu, and when we emerged from the train station we were exhausted. Despite the late hour, there was a huge crowd gathered around the terminal, and throngs of passengers ran out to embrace their waiting relatives. We began to scan the crowd for a taxi driver when, much to our surprise and delight, we saw a middle-aged woman accompanied by a young man holding a sign that read “Wayne & Rachel.” One of our friends in Boston, Darrick, has relatives who live in Chengdu, and earlier in the week he had put us in touch with one of his aunts, Dekun. We had made plans over email to get together with Dekun and her family at some point during our visit, but never in a million years did we expect her to meet us at the train station at a quarter past midnight in the middle of the week! Dekun and her nephew, Tran, welcomed us like members of their family and piled us and our backpacks into Tran’s car. (I’m guessing that Wayne and I weren’t too difficult to pick out of the crowd.) They drove us to our hostel, helped us check in and made plans to pick us up again the next morning to go sight-seeing. Thus began one of the most enjoyable weeks of our trip.

Dekun and her family were gracious hosts. We had planned to stay in Chengdu for five nights, and every morning, she or one of her relatives dutifully arrived at our hostel with a full day’s itinerary in hand. We saw so much more of Chengdu, and of China in general, with Dekun and her family than we would have on our own. We spent our first day visiting the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, where we fell in love with the giant panda cubs and their adorable cousins, the red pandas.

Juvenile giant pandas at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

Red panda at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

Later that afternoon, we visited the Jinsha archaeological site, home to thousands of bronze and jade artifacts from around 1000 BC that were discovered accidentally during the course of (what else?) real estate construction. Over the course of the week, Dekun brought us to the towns of Dujiangyan, birthplace of an ingenious ancient system of irrigation and a beautiful bonsai park; Leshan, home to an expansive temple complex and the largest Buddha statue in the world; and Meishan, where we visited the preserved home of three of China’s most famous poets, all of whom came from the same family. We drove through the countryside of Szechuan, up and over the rolling hillsides, reaching the peaks just in time to catch a glimpse of the endless expanses of peach trees blossoming throughout the valleys in bursts of lush pink flowers. We rode bicycles through Chengdu. We even strapped on our hiking boots again in order to climb Qingcheng mountain, a sacred place for Taoists and shelter for tens of Taoist temples perched on mossy hillsides and nestled in forest groves.

On a boat in Leshan, in front of the largest Buddha in the world

Dekun next to a blossoming peach tree in the countryside, Szechuan province

Taoist pagoda on Qingcheng Mountain

And the food! Every morning, when Dekun would tell us the plan for the day, she would end by saying “and for dinner, we will have something delicious.” It was always true. I’m not the biggest fan of Cantonese food and usually don’t accompany Wayne when he goes out for dim sum in Boston, but the food in Szechuan is remarkably different. It’s spicy– spicier than anything we tried in India or Thailand, but with complex flavors to complement the heat. One of the most interesting things we tried during our trip was the Szechuan pepper, a tiny fruit whose flavor is at once both spicy and floral. When eaten, it produces a tingling sensation in one’s mouth that lasts long after the meal is over. It’s supposed to make it easier to handle the hotter spices used in Szechuan food, but it also happens to have the odd effect of making everything that’s not strongly flavored (such as water or tea) taste like flowers. Another favorite thing we tried was hot pot, in which you choose items of food from a buffet and cook them at your table in a pot of simmering broth.

Bowl of noodles covered in chili and Szechuan peppers

Eating at a hot pot restaurant in Chengdu with Tran and family

But the best part about our visit to Chengdu, in addition to all of the food and sightseeing, was being made to feel as though we were part of Dekun’s family. By the time we reached Chengdu, it had been about three months since we had eaten a home-cooked meal or even entered a person’s home. For that reason, the night we were invited by Dekun’s parents to their home for dinner is one of our most treasured memories. This is what traveling is about: making friends, sharing lives and discovering that it’s not the conveniences or the creature comforts that you miss about home, it’s the people. It’s a testament to Dekun and her family’s warmth and generosity that even though we were seven thousand miles away from Boston, when we arrived in Chengdu, we immediately felt right at home.

Dinner at Dekun’s parents’ home, with Dekun’s father on the right

With the whole family in Chengdu

 

Beach Bumming

I know we haven’t managed to be very prolific bloggers lately and that you’re probably all waiting to hear about China, but I would be remiss if I neglected to post a quick note about the rest of our time in Thailand. In short, it was amazing. For our final week and a half there, we hopped from one island to another and spent many lazy afternoons lounging in the sun. We slept in beach bungalows, went snorkeling and took motorboat rides along the coast. We spent a total of about $14 a day on accommodation and about $20 more on food and activities, which is quite a steal considering we were hanging out in paradise. All of this made Thailand very difficult to leave– but visas have a way of expiring, and so we did eventually make it to China.

I’ve mentioned Thailand’s culture and Wayne has talked about its food, but have we mentioned that it’s one of the most naturally beautiful places we’ve ever been? Here’s some photographic evidence:

Fishermen’s boats on Sunset Beach, Koh Phangan

The view from our bungalow on Sunset Beach, Koh Phangan

A small beach we visited via motorboat on Koh Phangan

Not to mention, the Thais know how to throw a great beach party:

Firedancer on Sunrise Beach, Koh Phangan, during the full moon party

Wayne getting “tattooed” with body paint on Sunrise Beach, Koh Phangan, during the full moon party

Rachel with her “tattoos” on Sunrise Beach, Koh Phangan, during the full moon party

I post these pictures not to make anyone jealous, but to illustrate Thailand’s ability to seduce tourists into never leaving. Our blog doesn’t do it justice. Thailand is home to an unbelievable number of American, Australian and European expatriates, and in the time we spent on its islands, we began to understand that the longer you stay there, the more difficult it becomes to leave. But we have a long list of things to do and places to see, so with one day remaining on our visa, we departed Bangkok for Hong Kong.

 

Mega Metropolis

When we arrived in Hong Kong we really didn’t know what to expect. We knew that it was a big, fairly modern city but nothing prepared us for the magnitude of the buildings or the surprisingly comfortable metropolitan feel. It really is a cross between Tokyo and London, but cheaper!

A good 50% of our time in Hong Kong was spent in malls. Not because we were shopping, but because it seems like every building and subway connects to one. The first mall we came across was when exiting the subway from the airport. It actually had an ice rink on the first floor! The malls are huge, spotless, and EVERYWHERE.

Another thing that is everywhere in Hong Kong is the internet. They have wifi in the subway, and they even have phone booths on the street where you can get your internet fix! We really got the impression that Hong Kong was a very developed city (more so than the cities in the west). When you walk through Times Square the buildings are certainly impressive, but imagine that going on for miles and miles!

Here are some pictures of the skyline… This goes on literally as far as the eye can see.

We had heard from a friend that we should stay in one of the “mansions” on Kowloon. These are actually huge apartment buildings that are a crazy combination of commercial and residential units. It seems like people have bought several apartments in blocks and converted them into rooms for rent. There are 16 floors and every few feet there seems to be another hostel. It really has to be seen to be believed! Needless to say, our room was tiny, it was about 10×10 including the bathroom!

While in Hong Kong our first order of business was to get a visa to go to China. There is a complicated relationship between the mainland and Hong Kong that I don’t really understand, but you don’t need a visa to get into Hong Kong but it takes 3 days and $150 to get one to go into the mainland. While in Hong Kong we also bought a replacement camera for me (I lost mine at the full moon party…) and a couple of cheap coats for the winter in northern China from the market.

P.S. I am posting this while sitting in the Hong Kong airport (on free wifi) after a really amazing month in China. I promise we will write more in the next couple of weeks!

 

The Land of Smiles

When traveling, I’m frequently reminded of the adage “travel is only glamorous in retrospect.” This is especially true of long-haul, budget-conscious journeys such as this one. Wayne and I spend a lot of time doing decidedly un-glamorous things, such as figuring out how to seal a mosquito net with only a couple of binder clips and a hair tie, or trying to discern patterns of power outages and water shortages so that our morning routines coincide with the availability of both hot water and electricity. Even the act of visiting landmarks and monuments can grow tedious after a while. More than once, we have declared that we’re “all templed out” and have decided not to visit some “must-see” shrine or ruin. When we’re feeling this way, it’s difficult for me not to wonder what exactly we were hoping to gain from this trip. But then I step outside onto an unfamiliar street in an unfamiliar city, and I remember: traveling isn’t about visiting monuments, finding the best deal on a hotel or getting a good seat on the overnight bus to Bangkok. It’s about having the opportunity to experience life as it is lived in other cultures, and allowing these experiences to challenge not only your worldview, but also the ways in which you see yourself.

Simply existing in Thailand is a cultural experience. For one thing, Thailand has been nicknamed “The Land of Smiles.” It’s not clear whether this nickname originated from the Thais themselves or from the marketing department of a travel agency, but I have to say, it’s pretty accurate. With the exception of a few disgruntled taxi drivers who didn’t appreciate our insistence that they base their fares on the meter reading, the people we encountered were friendly, playful and quick to offer a smile or strike up a conversation. Prior to our arrival, we had read about the concept of sanuk. Sanuk is the Thai word for fun, and according to our Lonely Planet guidebook, it “is often regarded as a necessary underpinning of anything worth doing. Even work and studying should have an element of sanuk, otherwise they automatically become drudgery.” From the cooking instructor who repeatedly asked us whether our food was “hot like him” to the street vendors who laughed and encouraged us to try on as many poorly-fitting hats as possible, people in general seemed not to take anything too seriously. It was a refreshing change of pace from the rest of the places we’d visited, and we came to appreciate being able to joke around with the typically annoying hawkers and to smooth over any miscommunication with a smile.

But Thailand is not a utopia, and like most of the countries we’ve visited, it has its share of problems. Serious issues related to poverty, sex trafficking and the status of women are prevalent. It is unlikely that those Thais who live a life of suffering see themselves as living in a land of smiles. Cultures and countries are invariably more complex than guidebooks or travel agents could ever hope to convey. As a foreigner who has spent only a month in Thailand, I know that what I understand of its culture just barely scratches the surface.

But from time to time, opportunities for further learning do present themselves. While visiting the Chiang Mai Arts and Cultural Centre, for instance, we were invited to attend the grand opening of a new exhibit about Thailand’s northern hilltribes’ cultural and musical traditions. The invitation came seemingly out of nowhere, and we marveled at the fact that we were welcome to attend such a high-brow event despite our seriously travel-worn appearance. The exhibition was created by an American artist and musician who spent five years living among the northern hilltribes. Her goal was to preserve each of these threatened cultures’ musical and ceremonial traditions by creating audio recordings, photographs and videos of their daily lives. The evening began with musical performances by members of each of the tribes; the opening of the exhibit in the museum itself followed. For me, one of the highlights of the event was being able to stand together with three Hmong people as they saw, for the first time, the image of themselves dancing across a television screen. They clapped their hands in delight and broke out into a fit of giggles as they watched one of their tribe’s shamans perform an infant healing ceremony, the familiar sound of her ritual chanting droning on in the speakers. As I stood with them and observed all of this, I felt incredibly lucky: I had recently read about this very ceremony in “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down,” a book written by an American about the health-related beliefs of the Hmong. To our surprise, Wayne and I were able to have a “northern hilltribe experience” after all– in a way that was much more personal and authentic than I ever could have imagined. [We've posted a video of one of the musical performances from that night here, and you can read more about the exhibit itself and listen to more music from it here.]

A Lahu man plays a traditional lute-like instrument at the opening of the Songs of Memory exhibition, Chiang Mai Arts and Cultural Centre

A Hmong woman performs at the opening of the Songs of Memory exhibition, Chiang Mai Arts and Cultural Centre

We were also fortunate in that we were in Chiang Mai during the celebration of the Chinese New Year. Granted, it probably wouldn’t compare to actually being in China for the Chinese New Year, but the festivities in Thailand were bigger than any we’ve seen before. We headed out to Chiang Mai’s Chinatown with three of the friends we’d made during our Thai cooking course, and together we watched the lion and dragon show and sampled snacks from the various street food vendors whose booths stretched on for blocks. There were fan dances, beauty pageants and children’s choirs. At the end of the night, we could see scores of floating red lanterns as they rose above the horizon and off into the night sky.

Chinese New Year celebration, Chiang Mai

And of course, a pervasive aspect of any culture is its religion. In Thailand, it seems that Buddhism permeates nearly every aspect of daily life: there are temples in even the smallest towns, special seating for monks on the commuter boats, and various taboos regarding the cleanliness of feet that dictate the ways in which a person is supposed to sit, stand and enter a monastery. Even when we aren’t in the mood to visit a temple, it’s impossible not to appreciate the beauty of the twisted spires that dominate the skyline. Underneath those golden roofs, ancient relics and statues of Buddha seated on an altar gaze down at their offering plates and serve as a source of pride for their many devotees.

Altar at Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai

Altar at Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai

It’s sights and experiences like these that help us to appreciate not only what a country is like, but also how it came to be that way. Interacting with locals and learning about their lives is a way for us to expand our horizons– even if all we can do at the moment is sit back and take it all in.