Leaving La Paz

August 9

Well, we're almost done here. Just getting ready to check out and head to the airport. 

We did it. We saw the Amazon, hiked the Inca Trail, saw Machu Picchu, and Lake Titicaca.  We did it all together. Sure, there were times (like in the last 20 minutes of climbing Dead Woman's Pass) that we both thought a beach may have been more appropriate, but we struggled through and made it together. 

True to form, we are now sick together. (Gotta live recycled air on the bus). We are ready to come home together, back to summer and sunshine. Don't get me wrong, we've enjoyed this trip and wouldn't give up the experience for anything, but we're feeling pretty lousy right now. 

So together we'll board the three different planes, and together we'll probably infect each flight. We'll do it all together, just as we were meant to ;)

Lake Titicaca

August 6

Darren and I have just had the most wonderful and genuine experience here on Lake Titicaca. We had our village home stay at Llachon with the sweetest woman named Nilda, and her husband Pedro.  Nilda is one of the sweetest people I've ever met.  She has a beautiful smile, and she runs everywhere. She'd say "uno moment" and be off.  She has 5 children, all of whom go to school across the lake in Puno. Her oldest daughter's name is Tania, her youngest (age 8) is Rosa. She had a brother named Vincente. So many coincidences.  We were also briefly introduced to her mother who is 103 years old, blind, and I believe partially deaf. Still independent though and living on her own (though not far from her daughter). 

The people around here speak Quechua and Spanish so communication often took place in three languages (Spanish, Quechua, and body language). Nilda was wonderful. She would tell us a word Espanol and then give us the Quechua version as well.  Sometimes we would talk, and just smile in clear incomprehension and then we'd all laugh. 

We arrived right around lunch time yesterday. We were each introduced to our designated families and were shown to our rooms. For lunch, Nilda made us barley soup (the soup's in Peru are fabulous), potatoes, rice and fried cheese. We had a short talk with her (in our broken languages) before getting to work on their property. 

We took part in shelling some sort of bean which was dried out in pods. Nilda laid them all out on a mat and we stepped on them. We jumped and smushed and danced to break up the pods. Then we got down and started to shell them by hand, while separating the larger pieces of broken pod. To get rid of the smaller particles, Nilda spread out a two separate mats and we would grab a handful of the beans and slowly drop them in the air. The wind would then pick up any smaller pieces and carry them into a pile. 

We also helped Nilda with her sheep. We went and fetched them from her mother's property and walked them back to Nilda's house. When I say "walked them back" they really walked us back. They were basically on leashes, and we didn't really know which way to go, but these sheep were clearly used to the routine and they led the way. The little lambs (wua wua ona), who were not tethered followed closely and obediently behind.

After some chores, it was time for a friendly game of volleyball-gringos vs locals-next to the lake.  A little beach volleyball if you will.  The locals were basically all women in their traditional garb and they kicked our butts 3 games in a row. It was a horrible slaughter. Darren represented us all well, I provided some amusement for all in attendance and avoided the ball at all costs, and the rest of our group faired somewhere in between. The locals were one handing it and hitting strong!  One of the older ladies (I think she was 80) kept score with a small pile of rocks.  It was embarrassing but a lot of fun. 

After we walked back to our houses in shame, Nilda dressed us in their traditional garments for dinner. There's no eating unless you contribute to the meal however, so we all took part in peeling potatoes. That was interesting!  I hate peeling potatoes but I've done it before, many people have not and were good sports about giving it a try. These weren't the big round smooth potatoes either. They were fairly small and uneven and full of little holes and divots. Sometimes I think the end product was half of the original size. 

Anyway, dinner consisted of soup (as good as ever), rice and stir fry. We were all exhausted and ready for bed after dinner, and it was only 730/8. 

When we left the restaurant/dinner place, Darren and I just about tripped in the dark. The stars were so incredible neither of us was paying attention to where we were going.  I have never seen stars like that before in my life. They were stunning. The Milky Way was as clear as day. There were more stars in the sky than hairs on Darren's legs. It was

breathtaking (unlike Darren's legs). 

When we finally stopped staring at the sky and went to bed, Nilda brought us a couple of hot water bottles. And by that I mean plastic water bottles covered in a small sheet of fabric. They were piping hot but were still nice to have under our blankets. We had 2 blankets of alpaca wool which were very heavy. We just about slept in the same position all night. Nice and toasty. 

This morning, Nilda woke us up and made us pancakes and biscuits for breakfast. Delicious. We had a few minutes to get ready and she walked us down to the dock where we said our good byes. She gave us many hugs, told us to have lots of babies and said "tupananchis kama"- See you later. 

It was back on the boat to Puno (with a quick stop at Tequile Island) and our last night in Peru. Tomorrow, we leave for La Paz in Bolivia.  

So, to Peru-Tupananchis kama-Buenos noches-sullpeiki-and, muchos gracias. 

We Made It!

August 2

Day 4- Unique

Well we made it. We got up at 330 to stand in line at the checkpoint, but we were watching the sunrise at the Sun Gate and were standing at Machu Picchu around 8. 

It was absolutely amazing. I was so excited I practically ran the last 5k of our hike and was jumping up and down when we finally got there. 

The structure is enormous!  It's unfathomable that a society could have built something that spectacular so long ago. Just intense. 

I promise to tell you more about it later. But at the moment, I've been up for nearly 20 hours, hiked 5k plus spent all afternoon in the scorching sun, rode a train for 2 hours, and a

bus for another 3. I'm exhausted. 

Good night. 

"Memorable"

August 1

Well today was glorious. It was such a relaxed hike with lots of opportunities to site see and get some information on the local ruins. It was pretty fabulous after the hard day we had yesterday. 

We had a short incline, past a ruin called Runkuracay (with a beautiful view of the Dead Woman's Pass and the valley below), past some beautiful lakes, and finally to the highest point of that stretch of our walk. It was such a beautiful hike and it's amazing to see how quickly the scenery changes. One minute it's cold, dry and barren, and on the other side of a peak it's hot and there is green vegetation everywhere. 

...Well this is embarrassing. Today's hike was relaxing, but Runkuracay was yesterday. Our days are so long I'm apparently losing track of them. 

Let's get back on track. Today was relaxed and chill. We made it to a peak and stopped at a few ruins on the way. We actually got to our campsite for lunch. They gave us a lot of time to recover because tomorrow we're getting up at 330. 

But on the way, we were able to stop at another ruin, absolutely huge!  The name eludes me now. But it was terrace after terrace and we explored the thing for about half an hour. The structure was incredible, and the fact that they could build something so massive with such simple technology (though advanced for their time) is unreal. 

Well lunch today was semolina soup, a chicken and veg stir fry, stir fried pickled veges, a potato and beef stew, and curried rice (yellow fever rice). The meals here are always above and beyond. 

Around 4, a small group of us went for an alternative hike. It wasn't really a hike so much as a 7 minute walk. But it lead to a hidden ruin, not as big as the last but just as incredible. Lamas were feeding on the terraces and a waterfall was pouring in behind it all. It was a gorgeous view. Darren wanted to try and mount a lama by jumping on it from above. But apparently those thugs can be mean. This structure though, was some sort of temple, and there was a "rainbow room" in the shape of an arc, with 7 windows (one for every colour). What was interesting, was that on the way back from the temple we saw a double rainbow. Today is also the day of  "Pacha Mama (Mother Earth), so it seemed quite fitting that we would have such beautiful weather, followed by suchlike rare sight. Quite fitting. 

Dinner tonight was fantastic, and a little bittersweet. We're not quite there yet, but we've been sweating and touching it out together now for 3 days, and it feels like a lot longer. It was our last dinner together on this mountain and we all reminisced about the climbs, the bugs, the ruins and the of course, food. Anyway, the highlight of this evening was the freshly made cake. Our cooks made a cake in the middle of the mountains and spent an hour decorating it to bid us adieu. (They streamed it if you're wondering because they most certainly did not have an oven.). We tried to say good-bye to them (which you don't in Quechua), but words in translation could not express how grateful and amazed we were by all their hard work. Darren, who of course brought a bottle of scotch up the mountain, shared a few drinks with some of them, and they were so very kind. 

It's the final trek tomorrow. The final hike and the final goal. I've been waiting for this since grade 6!  So excited. Just 5 more kilometers. 

"Challenging"

July 31

Day 2- Challenging

Challenging indeed. Darren and I actually feel pretty good, but we definitely had quite the hike today. 

We started at 7 this morning, but our wake up call was at 530.  When our guide told us we'd be getting room service we thought he was kidding. But when Edwin woke us up this morning, he actually gave us a cup of coca tea.  It was actually perfect given how cold it was outside. We slept in thermals, socks, and I wore my ear cover, and I still could've used another layer. Our "simple" breakfast consisted of fruit stuffed crepes, toast, and banana porridge. We thought we'd lose weight on this hike but I think we're gaining it. 

Anyway, the first part of our climb today consisted of climbing 900 meters in 5 kms to get to Dead Woman's Pass (so called because the small peak looks like a woman lying down).  It was brutal. The last 20 minutes in particular were trying. Every time you looked up you felt so defeated, like you were never going to get there. But when you did, it was incredible. The peak, was a high 4200 meters above sea level, overlooking a valley on either side. It was very rewarding and breathtaking (the hike was literally breathtaking).

Well the decent down was a lot easier on your lungs, but not really easier. The "steps" (and by that I mean humongous  boulders haphazardly lining the path) were incredibly uneven. They were tough to manage, until we figured out that it was actually easier to jog down. It kept your knees bent and your legs loose. 

After the decent was lunch--noodle soup, chicken, bean creamy stuff, vegetarian ceviche, and a stir fried quinoa. After lunch, was another climb. This peak wasn't quite as high, about 3800 meters, and then it was mostly downhill from there. 

We once again broke away from the group, stopped by an ancient ruin and made our way to our campsite. 

Dinner consisted of noodle soup, French fries, lomo saltada, and rice. Oh so good. Dessert was a delicious slice of warm pear in rum sauce. 

"Easy"

July 30

Day 1- Easy

So our guides told us that day 1 is "easy". I don't know that I would call it "easy", but Darren and I made it in pretty good time I think. We sort of ditched the rest of the group and went pretty hard.

It was a beautiful, all be it grueling, hike. The views were absolutely breathtaking. We were constantly in between the two cliffs, sometimes a little close to the edge, or too close to a donkey. And speaking of donkeys, they were everywhere for the first bit of the hike. The local people use them to port goods back and forth. Yes, people live way up here in the hillsides. The government tried to move them but the people wouldn't leave. Anyway, because of the the donkeys there is poo everywhere!  So not only are you focussing on putting one foot in front of the other, but also making sure one of those feet doesn't end up in a pile of poop. 

Today, we started at 2800 meters (above sea level) and climbed to 3300 meters in 14 kms. There isn't much to say on the rest since walking was the prime activity of the day. However, I will tell you about the "basic" food and accommodations we've had on this hike so far. But first, let me predicate by saying that in our group there are 14 hikers and 2 guides. We also have a cook, assistant cook, and 18 porters (including our waiter). Now, the fact that people are carrying our luggage up for us is crazy. They each carry 20 kilos, and yet they still beat us up the mountain. When we arrived at our meeting point for lunch the porters had exactly 14 small bowls of warm water waiting for us. A man came by with soap, and another followed with paper towels so we could wash and dry before lunch. The porters had already been there for 2 hours. They had set up a tent complete with tables and chairs, plates and utensils. As we came up over the little hill, they clapped for us and poured us each a glass of pineapple juice. For lunch, they served us the best guacamole ever, soup, a chicken curry/stew, rice and vegetables. (So much for basic right?!). Lunch was followed by hot tea in a variety of types and flavours.  They also did all the cleaning, repacked and were back on the mountain. 

The leg after lunch was almost entirely incline and Darren and I broke away to go at our own pace. We even beat a few porters to the campsite; mind you, we maybe had 5-7 kilos, not  20.

Once again, these amazing men outdid themselves. They set up our tents, lined them with tarps, laid down our mats, set up the eating and kitchen tents and had tea, coffee, hot chocolate, crackers and popcorn ready for us shortly after our arrival. Oh, and they laid out 2 bowls of hot water per tent (like right in front of the tents) for each of us to wash up first. Once again, they were ready and waiting with soap and paper towel. 

Anyway, dinner consisted of chicken soup, trout, some sort of quiche like pastry made made with spinach, vegetables, rice and potatoes. Here's the best part though...

They flambeed bananas in rum for us for dessert!  It was delicious, but seems absolutely ridiculous!  We of course grateful and wholly impressed with the incredible food, service, and effort out forth by this men. It is more than any of us could have possibly expected or even anticipated. 

So, with all my layers of clothes on this very chilly evening, and my shoes safely zipped away in the tent (so the donkeys don't eat them in the night), I will sleep soundly. 

Wake up call, 530 am. 

Up Up and Away

July 29

So I realize I've sort of lost a day and a half, but we've been super busy. Let me catch you up. 

After a nice long siesta, not a lot happened actually. It was supposed to, but the animals don't quite accommodate our schedules as much as we'd like them to. We went to a tower 35 meters above the jungle to try and spot some birds. We heard the toucans but couldn't see them. Then we went to the clay lick to try and spot some macaws, but again the creatures of the Amazon eluded us. We had a little luck later that night during our night walk, but only with the creepy crawlies of the jungle. The spiders are HUGE!!!  Other than spotting an "agutti" the next morning, the rest of our jungle adventure was pretty tame, though no less enjoyable. 

So after another boat ride, bus ride, flight, and bus ride, we landed ourselves at our hotel in Cusco. I've got to say that I was pretty impressed with this city, despite the chilling temperatures and nearly 4000 meter elevation. There is so much culture in the city and the architecture is pretty amazing. So far it's probably my favourite city in Peru. 

Our day in Cusco was packed with activity.  As soon as we got there I had to go to the camera shop while everyone else had a half hour to relax and acclimatize. In changing lenses I got some dust on the sensor and had to get it cleaned. Immediately after coming back I quickly cleaned myself up and we were gone again. We did a city walk and went to the Coca museum. 

During our city walk, we stopped at the local market where they sell everything from coffee to dinner, souvenirs to scarves, and produce to cheese and cow snouts. Yes, I said cow snouts. There's an entire section of butchered animals, and like the Chinese they don't waste anything. There were penises hanging from rods, along with tails, hearts, and entire cow heads. I kept my eyes down and just tried to follow Darren, but I did catch a glimpse of crimson blood dripping off the dirty, white counter into a disgusting pool of mixed fluids. I think it belonged to a snout of some sort. I didn't quite note what it was, as I was too focused on not vomiting. Our guide had informed us that it would be rude to cover our noses. I didn't want to risk holding my breath and passing out in one of those red puddles. 

I was a little apprehensive about the coca leaves which are used in everything here (tea, chocolate, candy, powder, etc) because they are the main ingredient in cocaine. However, the coca leaf actually has a lot of medicinal and beneficial properties. It is a natural stimulant as you might guess, it aids digestion, it helps with altitude sickness, fevers, arthritis, and can act as a natural anesthetic.  It is only addictive and bad for you when mixed with all the cleaning products, paint strippers, and other chemicals used to make the drug.  The tea has actually been a lifesaver for those of you who know my usual travel ailment, and the candies have been helping a lot of our group with altitude symptoms. 

Some more food and rest, and it was onto another bus and off to Ollayantatambo in the Sacred Valley. We stopped in a small weaving village where the men do all the weaving, to learn more about their culture and customs. They don't speak Spanish here, but Qechua. Our guide gave us all cheat sheets and after introducing us to our hosts and giving us some background information on the village, it was our turn. We had to introduce ourselves (name, and where we're from) in Qechua. The women then had an opportunity to ask each of us some questions. Their questions were rather interesting as their culture is very patriarchal. Most of the women are married young and have children young, with a preference for boys. There are a few couples around our age and the women always wanted to know why they weren't married, why we didn't have kids, and (for the unmarried girls) whether or not we lived with our parents. The youngest mother of our hosts was 23 and she had 1 child. The oldest was 76 and she had 7 children!  

Well our hosts fed us an amazing lunch, but not before outfitting every last one of us in their traditional garb.  They then demonstrated their weaving techniques for us, and gave us an opportunity to buy some of their goods (which we did of course). Then it was back on the bus. 

Another hour later it was Chicha and Sopa time!  Chicha is a beer fermented from local corn. It is very bitter and served in massive glasses. Sopa is a game they play while drinking Chicha where you throw cold coins at this wooden stand to score points through the various holes. The ultimate score is to get the coin into the narrow mouth of a frog. It's a lot of fun and I'm very bad at it. After some Chicha and Sopa, guess what we did? 

We got back on the bus. 

We finally arrived in Ollayatatambo city (it's not really a city), walked a small tour around the city and then stocked up on supplies for the hike tomorrow. 

With 4 Snickers, a bag of Oreos, a box of granola bars, 2 bags of banana chips, a roll of toilet paper and some gloves, we're just about ready to hike a grueling 48 kms!  The map they gave us said the first day is "easy", the second day is "challenging", the third day is "unforgettable", and the fourth day is "unique". Well I guess we'll see. 

Tupananchis kama-- See you soon. 

Monkeys, Monkeys and More Monkeys

July 27

Well it has been a most interesting morning. I'm writing all down now so I don't forget anything. 

As mentioned, our wake up call was bright and early at 4am. Breakfast was at 430, and by 5 we were heading back down to the boat.  At the "port" was a beautiful sunrise to greet us and the morning mists. The river looked absolutely amazing. 

Half askeep and entirely in awe, the boat dropped us off at yet another staircase where we took a short walk to Ox-Cow lake. The ride around the lake as the sun was rising was beautiful, calm and serene. We saw some Macaws, Cormarands and various other birds. Nothing too exciting but still cool. We tried our hand at piranha fishing, and Darren and I were not very good at it. The piranhas were just little ones and though we fed them a great deal, none of them would bite our hooks. Some of the rest of our crew caught several and I took pictures of those.   Unfortunately, we didn't get to see any otters as it is sort of Spring here and the otters have babies (cubs?).  Which means we could only navigate half the lake so as not to scare or stress them out, and they chose not to grace us with their presence. 

A little sleepy, and hot and sticky (when the sun comes out in the Amazon it is not shy!), we made our way back to the lodge for a little rest before we head to the botanical garden to meet with a shaman. 

Well, as we're walking along the path the jungle just lit up with sounds. It was so exciting and there was so much energy. Our guide was so excited (having felt a little put out by the lack of wild life) because we stumbled upon 4 species of monkeys all in the same area. She (Inez) says this is pretty rare. We saw red howler monkeys, brown capuchins, squirrel monkeys, and some other kind I don't remember. I didn't get pics of them all but I did snag one or two good ones.  Everyone was going crazy pointing in different directions, trying to get pictures, running with the monkeys as they fled. It was quite the sight. 

...

The Amazon

July 26

Well it was an early morning. We got up at 6 hoping to have enough time to inhale breakfast at 7, and then leave at 715. Which would have been all good, except that breakfast was't ready to go at 7 and we still left on time at 715. 

The Peruvians have an interesting schedule. Everything starts late. Breakfast is simple (bread and marmalade), which means second breakfast is a must, especially since lunch isn't until 2pm. Then dinner is around 7-8. Schedules?  Schedules are a guideline, not a structure to follow or something to design a spreadsheet after. And when they tell you 20 minutes, they mean 40 or maybe an hour, or maybe more.  It all works out though, the only reason I'm wearing a watch is because Darren looks like a girl wearing it. Ali (our guide) has let us know that the key to enjoying Peru is to be flexible, so flexible we are. 

So, off we went to catch our bus to the airport, where we all checked in, sorted out some missing luggage and got on our way. Well it turned out that on our way was not our usual back of the plane where no one will see us. Somehow, Darren, myself, and the "Jones's" all ended up in first class. I felt bad for our friends back in row 13, but for the first time I actually felt like I was on my honeymoon. We drank champagne, had lots of key room, pillows, and an amazing lunch. I felt under dressed and a little out of place but appreciated the experience none the less. 

After arriving in Maldonaldo we hopped on a bus to the Rainforest Project Office. Here we unpacked and repacked for our 2 day Amazon trip. We had a few guests while we packed. A big black monkey curled up in the lap of one of the guests and tried to schmooze their orange juice out of them. They are ballsy and so cute!

A bus ride, a boat ride down the Amazon, and here we were. Not sure what we were expecting, but it wasn't this. When they described our beds using the word "mattress" I totally expected a roll out foamy on the floor.  Well that was an understatement. 

Our room is beautiful. I can barely describe it. The far wall is completely open (to help you stay better connected with nature), working back into the room is a hammock (SCORE!), then our beautiful bed. The room is amazing, words cannot express how out of this world this room is. It reminds me of something out of a movie. 

Because we were behind schedule, it got too dark before we were able to go to the "tower", so we just hung out, basked in the glory of this beautiful and had a few drinks before dinner.  While we were waiting, we spotted a few monkeys and a capibara. The capibara was adoreable. It looked like a piglet with a long nose. 

So tomorrow, it's a 4am wakeup. We're going piraña fishing and a little more animal sighting, then a frightening though exciting nigh walk!

Wish us luck!

2nd Pisco Sour

Well, we met up with our tour group today. I'm pretty excited about out group, we're roughly the same age and everyone is pretty fabulous. There's another teacher in the group (from the UK) and a few bankers. I think it'll be a good couple of weeks. Our tour guide is especially fabulouso! She is fiery and passionate about her country. I'm already in love with her. Today was a tourist's day. We saw the San Fransisco catacombs-aka-I saw a lot of bones today. Yes, human remains. They were mostly arranged by bone type: tibia, femur, skulls, etc. There were bones in a well that were even arranged in a circle. Very strange. At one point, we were informed that only 4 meters below us were even more remains. That was weird and made me very conscious of where I stood. After that very bizar tour, our guide took us through some of the squares and showed us some of the old colonial buildings. However because of earthquakes most of those Buildings were destroyed. Where they still stood was a seedy part of town. We were considering going there and as soon as we decided not to a bunch of policia started marching across the bridge. Eek! From there we went to "Boliviarda" to have a "pure" Pisco sour. Mine was "cathedral size" and it really was! From there we went to dinner and omg was it ever fabulouso. It was one of the restaurants run by a famous chef in Peru, and I must say, the food here is moi delicioso! The best asparagus stuffed ravioli ever. I keep asking Darren to go fetch me some churros to properly round up the night, but he won't. Well, after out amazing dinner it was back to our hotel, and here we are. We have an early morning, departing at 715 for the Amazon so it's early to bed tonight. Not sure when we'll have wifi again. I doubt the Amazon will. So as long as we don't get eaten by piranhas while we're fishing I'll keep you posted. Buenos Noches!

Our First Pisco Sour

Well, day 1 in Lima and so far so good. After over 24hrs in transit, we arrived last night exhausted and smelly. But we arrived, in tact and ready for yet another adventure. After sleeping for nearly 12 hours we took our time getting up and getting ready. Now, it may sound like we're already wasting time, and I must admit there was a touch of guilt at our lack of urgency, but this was more or less how we had planned things. We wanted a day before the tour to settle in and catch up on some much needed sleep. We were so exhausted after the wedding and Sunday was a total whirlwind as well.

So, after a much needed shower and a quick chat with our guesthouse manager we grabbed a coffee and sandwich, and began walking. From Miraflores we walked through Lima (I was totally lost but Darren seemed to know where he was), to an old bridge. They say that the first time you walk across this bridge you're supposed to hold your breath and make a wish. So of course, I wanted to stop half way across and take a picture. Turning blue, Darren silently turned me down and gave me a hard time once we were on the other side (the bridge isn't even that long).

After the bridge, we went to Javier's (recommendation by our guesthouse) had our first pisco sours of the trip. Following these delicious local drinks, we had some pretty fantastic seafood. It was pretty amazing and now we're both 10 pounds heavier. To wash it all down we shared uno sangrias. Those of you who know me, know how much I love me some sangrias. A little fatter and a little barracho we hailed a taxi back to our guesthouse.

I must say that for all the warnings and caution out there about Peru, the people seem absolutely lovely. Granted, our guesthouse manager and the taxi driver were both telling us what to watch out for, but bless their hearts for caring. So far we're safe and sound, and well warned of where to stay away from.

On another note, Darren's Spanish is improving--and by improving, I mean that he adds an 'es' or 'o' to the end of English words and calls it Spanish. Like "Me goinges to drinkes some beeres". Perfect Spanish! I think people have been assuming that I can speak Spanish because they always face me and rattle off in their native tongue and don't seem to register the confused look on my face. We are already picking up a bit of the language though, being the stereotypical tourists walking around with our phrase book and butchering every word we utter.

On a personally disturbing note, my camera is feeling like a completely foreign object. It makes me a little sad, I'm so out of practice. Pictures will probably have to wait until we get home though, which will give me some time to redeem myself. Buenos Noches!

Kids

I could probably write an entire blog just on the random things that go on at work and the random people I meet.  Here's an example.

Last night I was serving a party of 7.  It was a 23rd birthday, family dinner.  Near the end of their evening I overheard two adults talking about something "that bites".  The youngest at the table was probably about 8, and very authoritatively he explained that -whatever it was- "hasn't bitten anyone in 7 years!!!"  A little skeptical, the adults asked him how he knew such facts and the boy explained that he heard it on the news.  Curious, the adults asked the boy which news station he got his facts from.  Very proudly and with wisdom beyond his years he replied, "Dr. Oz" (DUH!).

Nice People

Before we left Hong Kong, a well traveled friend explained to me that the kindness of the locals we met while traveling is different than the infamous kindness of Canadians.  She says that the kindness you encounter in Asia is largely due to the fact that everyone is selling something.  Whether it's street food, trinkets, advertising for their restaurant or some sort of tour, just about everyone in Asia is nice to you because they want something from you.  Canadians will apparently be nice to you for no reason whatsoever.

Today I was in line at the grocery store.  Standing in line at the "less than 12 items" check out, an old man took his place behind me.  Not a minute had gone by before he started chatting me up, telling me about the convenience of tv dinners, which he only eats when he doesn't feel like cooking... which isn't often because he loves to cook.  He's never cooked a roast before because it's just him and a roast is a lot of food for one person, but the next time there's a sale he's going to buy a roast and then portion and freeze the leftovers for sandwiches.  He'll keep the frozen meet, along with his tv dinners in the freezer under the stairs... He's made friends with some of the women working at Superstore, because he's a regular shopper and sometimes they stop him to say hello because they recognize him because he's a regular shopper.... It's such a beautiful day today....

He continued this type of kind and random banter with myself, everyone else in line, and the lady working the till... for no apparent reason but to be friendly and kind.

The Final Moments

It's that time.  The time that we have been both looking forward to and dreading.  It is time to go home.  Our bags are packed and waiting in the corner, and tomorrow morning, we will take one more taxi, one more ride on the MTR, and we'll check in for one more flight (okay, so we'll have to transfer and check-in in Beijing as well, but you get the picture).

Everyone we know (including ourselves) says that traveling changes your life.  Darren says (from his experience in Europe) that there comes a moment right before you get home, where you reflect on everything you've done and contemplate all that you've learned and how you've changed.  He also says that I haven't had this moment yet because I've been too busy prematurely thinking about wedding stuff (which is true of course).  However, as these last days have approached I've thought about a lot of things.  I've thought about the wedding of course, about my favourite experiences, about surviving Darren for six months, and a whole slew of other things.

For example:
I've learned that you can pretty much fit anything on a motorcycle.  You've got household furniture that needs to be transported?  No problem, strap it to a bike.  What about a few oil drums?  Done!  You've got a couple full grown, live pigs that need to get across the city?  Easy!  Maybe you're thinking the motorcycle isn't a practical family vehicle.  Well, you'd be wrong.  You can easily fit mom, dad, auntie, and two or three kids onto a bike, no problem.  Whatever you can think of, we've probably seen it being transported through dense traffic in the middle of a busy city, on a motorbike.  Those things are amazing.

I've learned that you can use the squat for anything.  Number one and number two, well those are obvious.  But what if you need to stop and have a long cell phone conversation?  Just pop a squat.  What about enjoying a midday meal in the rice fields?  Squat.  What about enjoying an afternoon meal while completely nude?  SQUAT!  You never need to worry about chairs ever again.

Through our many food adventures, I've learned, as I've mentioned before, that you can get Indian food just about anywhere.  I've also learned that I don't look good with love handles.

I've learned that being half Asian is just about the most beneficial thing when traveling in this country.  People were constantly confusing us for one of their own.  Everywhere we went it was "are you Vietnemese/Thai/Laos/Chinese?"  They weren't always sure, but the suspicion was always prevalent.  They never know what language to address you in, unless you walked in speaking English, and even then sometimes they'd offer to help you in their native tongue.  It's come in handy, especially when we have been able to speak a few words in the local language.  Initial asking prices always seemed to be lower for us, or if they weren't, they seemed more inclined to give us a better discount.  People on the street have generally been more polite and willing to help us with directions or whatever it is we've needed.  I've always felt that when I'm home (in Canada) I'm Filippino and when I'm abroad I'm Canadian.  That's still true, but here I get to be both.  There's something to be said about always feeling welcome and embraced wherever you are.  Sometimes, I suppose locals feel adverse to the invasion of their lives and culture by westerners, especially when some westerners can be very ignorant of local customs and etiquette; but, Darren and I almost always experienced nothing but a warm welcome.

I've also learned, despite the many beauties and pleasantries of all the countries we've visited, that BC is still my home.  There are some things I'm going to miss about Asia and traveling, like the incredibly low cost of living, the amazing food, the amazing people, the diversity of life, the carefree living of a traveler, and perpetual tan; but, there are things I wont miss, like the smell of fermented tofu, the spitting and loud talking, having to constantly take a bus or a plane, the complete lack of spacial awareness ("spasian awareness"), wearing clothes that are always wrinkled, and never really having a place to call your own.  Some people travel, and they say they never want to go home which I can certainly appreciate, but for me BC is where I belong.

Asia has also helped us appreciate something I think we can never appreciate enough.  The sense of community and the importance of the family in Asian culture is far beyond the ideas of the family unit in any other society I've experienced.  You don't just hang out with the kid next door around here, you hang out with the entire village.  Children run up and down the streets at all hours playing and looking out for one another.  The woman down the street is as much a parental figure to a little girl as her own mother.  We've met people who are reluctant to embrace the potential for a better life with more opportunities because they're not willing to leave their family.  The importance placed on family here really made us miss our own.  Darren and I have each other, we are each other's family, and I think that makes traveling for long periods of time easier.  Being together, we never feel lonely.  We are also fortunate enough to have family and close friends scattered across the globe.  Whether it's Hong Kong or Singapore, there are little bits of family abroad to make us feel comfortable and loved.  However, we also miss the rest of our family.  Eating with just the two of us isn't the same.  We've been fortunate enough to live in a time when technology allows us to share our experience with the people we love from so far away, but there were times when it just wasn't enough.  Times when you'd say, "This-person would love this!" or "I wish This-person could see this".  At the end of the day however, what the Asian family has really taught us, is that no matter how little money or material possessions you have, no matter how hard life can be, a family to share it with makes it all bearable.  The richest smiles I've seen were always on the poorest people surrounded by the ones they loved.

We've changed, Darren and I.  I know that the people who step onto that plane tomorrow are not the same people who made that same trip 6 months ago.  We're bigger people now, literally (our clothes are fitting a little snug and I have real love handles for the first time in my life) but, most of the changes are for the better.  We've learned a little more about each other, about ourselves and have grown together, and our views of certain things in this world have changed.  I sort of had this naive and egotistical notion when I left that after six months I'd just pick up from where I left off.  The first thing that really made me realize that life was still going on back home, despite my absence, was the realization that it would be winter when we returned, as if spring and summer were just going to wait for me to come home.  But the world back home has kept going while we've been away, and our lives and our world are going to continue to change once we get home.  Our family has changed and the true realization of that fact wont really hit us until we're there to experience it.  We're going to have to find a new place to call home and are taking on a room-mate.  I'm going back to school in January.  We're going to "start" planning a wedding, our wedding.  I guess my point comes back to what I first started talking about, that "moment".

I suppose I feel like I haven't had that single moment of reflection yet, because it's not just one particular moment.  It may sound cheesy but yes, I feel like life is an adventure.  This particular trip is ending but it's not really over.  I feel like I'm constantly thinking about what we've done, but also what we're going to do.  There are still stories to share and relive, new modes of thought to implement to our lifestyle, and people we've met to keep in touch with.  But the first thing I'm going to do when I get home, is take a breathe of fresh hair, and feel the warm loving embrace of family.

HCMC

HCMC.  Holy Congested Motorcycle Chaos!  Yes.  Ho Chi Mihn City, also known as Saigon, and home to the most motorcycles I've ever seen.  I thought Hanoi was bad, but I realized it's just because the streets in the Old Quarter are so narrow.  The streets here in Saigon are as wide as any others I've seen and still they're crowded.  It's okay though, because during rush hour when the roads look more like a swarm of buzzing bees with helmets, they just use the sidewalk.  Darren and I went on the Lonely Planet walking tour and we finished up right around rush hour.  We figured walking would be faster than taking a taxi because the traffic was so heavy, but then a piece of that traffic was honking behind me, and another piece was rushing past me.  You're not safe anywhere!

We made it out alive however and managed to see quite a bit.  The walking tour includes a lot of Saigon's various historical sights and museums.  We didn't get the earliest start and we didn't make it to all of them but the city definitely does have a lot to offer.  The most memorable for us, which I think is the same for most people, was the War Remnants Museum.  It's more of a photo gallery than a museum but I found that that made it that much more moving.  The exhibition on the ground floor, put together by Tim Page (as I understood from the guidebook) is incredible.  Not to say that the rest of the exhibit isn't incredible, but that first floor really shook me.  I took a photograph of the first photograph that struck me (in the Picassa album), but the rest were so horrific I couldn't bring myself to take pictures of those as well.  It's such a sombre and shocking experience; not because it was the most gruesome war in the history of the world, but because of how well documented it was (publicly).  There was this one image of a soldier holding the destroyed remains (including an arm, head and a bit of everything in between) which was devastating, and another of women and children's bodies laying on the ground with the caption, "Women and children who tried to get away."

Some say that the exhibit is one sided (but really, why shouldn't it be?).  I would beg to differ.  Maybe it depicts more of the Vietnamese casualties than the American or French, but what side these people belonged to doesn't really seem to be the point.  The exhibit certainly doesn't hold back in blaming the US or other armies in it's captions and introductions and the display of propaganda is plentiful; but, if you go through the exhibit (as I did) reading little of the words and just taking in the photographs themselves, what you really see, are people.  People and bombs and destruction and grief and death.  The war wasn't just the Vietnamese against the US or the French, but it was often the Vietnamese against the Vietnamese.  What the exhibit really highlighted for me was simply the pains of war.

During the entire viewing of the exhibit all I could feel was sadness, and all I could think of was the impact of each and every one of those photos and of the role of the photographer.  Some of the photographs were of the photographers and the last images of them before they were killed.  The photographers who survived wrote descriptions for the images in the museum.  I don't normally like statements or descriptions (hence why I rarely take the time to read them), and most of the time I don't even like/read titles.  With a lot of the pictures you didn't need a description or title to understand; however, there were a few pictures I couldn't help but want to know more about.  There was one image of a girl in the midst of total destruction, mouth wide open, with a look of terror on her face.  According to the write-up she was running away from an attack, running as her home was in flames, screaming 'Mommy!  Mommy!'  The picture alone was heart breaking, there was so much anguish in her face, but that description (which I did no justice to) nearly brought me to tears.  There was another of children crying and running naked down the street, with soldiers in the background, and a small mother-daughter portrait added in the corner.  The write-up explained who the central figure (a young girl) was and that she was struck by a napalm bomb.  There were others, even more horrific and violent and disturbing.

The museum also had an exhibit commemorating Hanoi's 1000 year anniversary.  They had images of the old and the new.  Hanoi during the war and Hanoi today.  It was hopeful, seeing pictures of despair juxtaposed with pictures of new life.  There was one image in particular that I remember, it was of a little girl.  It was simple.  Just a little girl, standing on a boat beside a basket of shellfish, but she had the biggest brightest eyes and the happiest smile.  It was beautiful.

If you ever get the chance.  Go see it.  Between the heart breaking photos inside, and all the tanks, bomb shells and war machines outside, it really is a unique experience.  I've never seen anything like it before in my life (maybe I'm a little sheltered) and it really is an eye opener.

(Side note:  In it's brief description of Vietnam's extensive history the guidebook suggests that if the US had bothered to pay any attention to that history a lot of lives could have been saved.  At one point some of the Vietnamese even took up the slogan "Independence or Death".  No matter how few people they had, or how few resources, the Vietnamese have always refused to surrender.)

Food for Thought

It should come as no surprise to anyone that Darren and I like to eat.  I mean, our blog title and our blog address both reference food.  We've had numerous conversations with friends and fellow travelers about how we think it's only right that people eat their way through the countries they visit.  "Half the experience of a country is in its food".  We're not the only people who think this, but somehow I feel like we do WAY more eating than other people.  Especially in small towns like this.  

Mui Ne is one of those small beach town destinations.  One of those places that locals come to for a weekend getaway.  In places like this, there's not a lot to do.  We did a hike up the "Fairy Spring" and today we went sliding down the sand dunes; but otherwise, when we're not sitting by the pool soaking up sun or playing dominoes, we're planning on where to eat our next meal.  Breakfast is always the same once we find somewhere we like, but we sometimes plan 2-3 days worth of meals at a time.

Mui Ne has everything.  There seems to be a large Russian/Czech population so that's something different to choose from.  There's an excellent selection of "international"/western food and local Vietnemese food, and the best part of a beach town are the beach side fresh seafood barbecues... I'm drooling just thinking about it all.

Darren and I are particularly fond of Indian food, and you can seriously get that stuff (in varying degrees) anywhere.  We were on a slow boat for 2 days in Laos and when we stopped in a tiny river town called Pak Beng, there were Indian restaurants everywhere.  So of course, we had no problem finding a fantastic Indian restaurant here in Mui Ne.

I'm pretty sure that anyone watching us eat tonight would think we hadn't eaten in weeks.  The waitresses were actually watching us in utter amazement.  We've noticed over the last couple days that when food is placed in front of us, we destroy it.  We eat like a couple ravenous dogs, but when the food is as good as the food at Ganesh, we can't help but turn into animals.  I think Darren once timed us, and it took us 5 minutes to polish off several plates of food.  Tonight was probably a record.  Darren was even eating the left over sauce from our butter chicken by the spoon-fulls.  No naan, no rice, nothing.  Just spoon-fulls of creamy, buttery deliciousness.  If the waitress hadn't come to clear our plates I don't doubt Darren would've licked the whole platter clean.  We astonished even ourselves tonight.

(Not a word of a lie: I just realised I have a little butter chicken sauce stuck under one of my nails, and yes, I did wash my hands.)

So here I sit, with a wonderful little quote I heard on "Friends" stuck in my head:  "A moment on the lips, forever on the hips."  I guess it's a good thing Darren and I eat so fast that sometimes the food doesn't even touch our lips!  (Yes, we've put on some weight.)

Beautiful British Columbia

As I was basking in the first bit of sun we've seen since we got to Mui Ne and listening to some good tunes I found myself missing a luxury of home.  It may seem absurd to miss anything whilst lying in the sun with the pool to your left and the ocean to your right, the sun and wind in perfect harmony to still get a tan without getting too hot... but I miss driving.  Yes, of all things.  I miss driving with the windows down and the sun shining, singing away to my favourite driving songs.  Whether it was driving from Coquitlam to Abbotsford for school, or just the fifteen minute drive to work.  I enjoy those few minutes of solitude with me and my music and the coolness of the wind (our vehicle is simple and does not have AC).  That is of course on an agreeable traffic day when I'm not running late or being postponed by dense traffic or an accident, but on good days, I really do enjoy a good drive.  We rent motorbikes on occasion, but it's not the same (helmets ruin my hair and there's no music).  The drive up to Prince George is a regular thing for us and the summer drive is just beautiful.  Nothing quite compares to the feeling of a loaded IPod and the beauty of the canyon on a summer's day.  That's one thing Darren and I can fully agree on when we're reflecting and comparing: there is no beauty like the beauty of BC.  As the days roll by we can't help but think about how soon it'll be before we're home.  There are things I don't want to leave, but I do look forward to taking that breath of fresh BC air and enjoying a long, music-filled drive.

"Tropical Tastes and warm breezes"

Read this in a menu at an art cafe yesterday.  It sums up what we're feeling, about these last days, perfectly.

"Whatever You Like We Do For You"

Okay.  So the only person who actually said this to us did not deliver, but that's beside the point.

Hoi An.  The city of tailor made... anything.  Aside from the fact that the city is quaint, beautiful and picturesque it is most well known for its surplus of tailors.  You can actually get anything made in this city.  Belts, shoes, purses, suits, dresses, shirts, ties... "whatever you like".  It's unreal... actually!  In a lot of ways it's like a living dream.

There are so many shops however, that it can be a little overwhelming.  There's a tailor next door to our hotel, and one right across the street, beside that is a restaurant and beside that is a shoe shop, then another tailor, and another, and another, and... well, you get the point.

We were not wholly unprepared!  We had met a delightful couple in Cat Ba who were doing Vietnam in the opposite direction as us and had already been to Hoi An and done the tailoring thing.  Since they already knew what a nightmare trying to find a good tailor could be, they recommended one to us.  Her name is Bee.  Her shop is one of the less prestigious ones, situated in the "Cloth Shop" market, but she could not have been more fantastic.  Despite spending three hours in her shop the first day, we started small.  She did such a fantastic job on that first order that every time we went back for a "fitting" we ended up ordering more... and more... and more.

To give you an idea, we were only going to stay for a maximum of four days, we've been here for six.  Our six days consisted of (between both Darren and myself):
2 suits, both with an extra pair of pants
4 pairs of jeans
7 men's dress shirts
4 blouses
2 blazers
2 winter coats
1 fall/spring jacket
2 pairs of sandals
2 pairs of casual shoes
1 pair of dress shoes
1 pair of stilettos
and a bunch of ties.

To sum up... we're broke, but we look good!

Okay.  So not everything we purchased HAD to be "tailor-made".  But it's hard to stop when everything is custom made to fit you.  You pick the design, you pick the fabric, the details... EVERYTHING!  Go figure, I like to be in control ;)

Bee is far too amazing for words.  There is another woman (from Vancouver) helping Bee establish a website so she can continue business with her clients overseas.  We basically assured her that we were adding ourselves to her list.  I can't say enough wonderful things about that woman's work!  (Okay, so she doesn't actually do the sewing.  It's a family run business and she's the face, the middle-man, but she's darn good at her job.)  She's also about 4 foot nothing and the teeniest, cutest thing ever!
The website is in progress: The Sewing Bee

It's All Relative

Today, Darren and I enjoyed a wonderful day of motorcycle tourism, exploring the ancient city of Hué, but more on that soon.
A report recently came out (viewed on MSN) rating the most expensive provinces to live in Canada. As you might guess, BC was the top province on that list. Along with that report was also a list of the most expensive cities and Vancouver took the top spot as the most expensive city. According to that report homeowners in Vancouver required approximately 75% of their incomes to provide for their average living expenses; while, the homeowners of Toronto, which came is second, required approximately 50% of their incomes.

This evening we met a young man (23 yrs old), a waiter at a restaurant, who looked extremely exhausted. After having invited him to sit down with us (we were the only customers in the restaurant) we got to talking and discovered that he (like so many) is working “part-time” while trying to continue his university studies. His version of “part-time” was working 10 hours a day, every day. Most days he starts at 5 am and ends at 2 (working for a tour company), and he makes 50,000 VND a day (about $2-3). One month of courses for him, is 1 million VND ($50). (If he were to go to school full-time, it would take him 3 years to finish his studies in tourism.) His rent is 300,000 VND ($15) for a small room. On top of his rent, he also has to pay utilities and all the other expected living expenses we all incur. Basically, at the end of the month his “money is very small. Not so good”.
We did a little comparison. For one semester of school in BC, Nghia could go to school for 4-5 years; for one month of rent in Vancouver Nghia could go to school for over 1 year. (Education in Vietnam, by the way, is not free. Children/their families even have to pay for primary school.)
People in BC have long been advocating to raise minimum wage, claiming that the current $8 at full-time hours isn’t enough to pay for a person’s basic needs; and, with the latest numbers, that’s probably true. I wonder if anyone is advocating for the people in Vietnam, since they don’t have the opportunity to vote and choose their own government. Or, like our friend Nghia, maybe they’ve come to accept their only option and work like dogs to get by. In any case, how is it that our one city has become so expensive, while cities on the other side of the world could survive for an entire year on what we do for a month? There are a million and one things to consider, but it all just seems rather amazing to me.