BootsnAll Travel Network



What my blog is about

Our long-awaited sabbatical trip is almost upon us! It has been in the thinking for 15 years. The original round-the-world concept has now been defined to just Southeast Asia - Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, India, Bali, Malaysia Borneo. Enjoy the blog and pictures. *** PREVIOUS months PICTURES/BLOG: - to get these scroll down to ARCHIVES ***

April 7-8: Delhi

April 19th, 2009

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India Gate – built by the British – it is down from this gate and through the “concourse” where the funeral march scene in the movie Ghandi took place.  

Delhi:  “encapsulates two different worlds, the old and the new”.  The Old Delhi served as the capital of Islamic India, while New Delhi was built as the imperial capital of India by the British.  Delhi has not always been the capital.  During the British rule, Calcutta was, but due to the championing of independence by the West Bengal people, the British moved the capital to Delhi.  There have actually been eight cities founded in and around Delhi, starting back as early as 2500 years ago.  Different rulers throughout its history have imposed either Hindu or Islamic rule.

Most of the backpacker hotels are in Old Delhi, where we stayed.  Our stay was only basically one day.  We had planned for more, but the day we arrived, we spent most of the afternoon trying to figure out our “India stay”.  The kids didn’t mind it because they just crashed in the room.  Kolkatta and Veranasi had wiped them out.  Looking back we should have stayed two nights in Delhi, rather than get up see the sights and move on to Agra. Hindsight is always easier.

Our plans for India had now changed to doing just the “Golden Triangle” trip, which is your typical tourist trip of Delhi: the Red Fort, National Mosque, Tombs, bazaars; Agra: the Fort and the Taj Mahal; and Jaipur:  in the state of Rajasthan and known for its palaces and forts.  We cancelled out south India, and knew we wanted to finish with the Himalayas and cooler weather. 

To accomplish this “triangle” tour, we had two options:  try and figure it out as we go (ie train, hotel, etc), or a more popular option is to hire a car/driver.  We opted for this to make it easier on all of us the car takes you to the sites, you get back in and move to the next one – no hassles, no touts. Looking back, this is the biggest advantage; however, train rides are a much more comfortable way to travel in India, once you have gotten through the ticket purchasing and finding your way through the crowds and which track to end up on.  The downside of car travel was the incessant honking of vehicles as you travel.  The roads are better than they were 30 years ago, and sometimes now include 4 lanes, therefore, making one feel safer.  Another advantage of taking the car was you got to see the country side and way of life as you traveled.  It was usually a 5 hour drive between cities.

Jama Majid:  built by Shah Jahan (same ruler that built the Taj Mahal).  Construction began in 1644 and was completed 14 years later.   It is made from red sandstone and marble.  The courtyard can hold a mind blowing 25,000 people. We really enjoyed climbing to the top of the minarets, where you could look out over the whole city. It made all the honking and traffic and crowds below you look like you were watching a movie, even though you knew you had to jump back into it in a little while. It was interesting too, to see all the security in place to get into the mosque – scanners, no bags, etc.  We had to “dress” down for the event.

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We climbed up the minaret – great views of city from above – incredible craftsmanship of tower and mosque.

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You will notice the Red Fort in the background

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Red Fort:  built again by Shah Jahan when he wanted to move his capital from Agra to Delhi.  Construction was completed in 1648.  It was built for a grandiose display of pomp and power (parading on an elephant through the gates to the city).  Shah Jahan was one of the last great Moghul rulers.  He never completely saw the capital move to Delhi, because his son overthrew and imprisoned him (nice son!?).  Over the centuries it has been occupied by different powers including the British and Indian armies.  Many military buildings now stand on the premises and the Indian army still has a post here. It is a little more run down than I would have thought being a major piece of architecture and Indian history. 

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The moat that surrounds the fort – had tunnels dug to bring water in from the river

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Tight security – nice to know an AK 47 is facing you when you walk in.

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The royal meeting area where the king met the “people”.

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Kings residence – where the “Peacok Throne” was until Iran stole it and where the Shah of Iran  used to use it during his reign.  The throne still resides in Iran.  The following slides show the intricate marble carvings with inlaid stone and precious jems were.  Between the different “residence places” they have a water way that goes under the residences to allow for “cooling” effect (like evaporative cooling) – very ingenious

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All Marble – incredible carvings – grate work

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Where precious stones were cut out and stolen

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Humayan’s Tomb:    World Heritage Sight – another example of incredible Moghul architecture built in the 16th century by the wife of the second Moghul emperor Humayan.  Both she and her husband and other tombs are on the grounds.  Ten years ago this was a run-down tourist site.  Thanks to the Agha Khan Foundation sponsorship and money and it being declared a World Heritage site,  the restoration is incredible and magnificent.  

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It always amazes me the grill work from either red sandtone or marble that is done – always one piece of marble – to carve the openings without making a mistake or breaking the marble

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The six sided star intrigued me in Muslim architecture

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Koranic sayings carved in marble.  The tomb is made from red sandstone.  Black marble is also inlaid with Koranic sayings etc.

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Old Delhi shot from the minaret – New Delhi and all its modern structures and freeways looks like any other big city.

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Maybe the problem with all the horn blowing is that all the trucks and taxi’s have this saying on the back of their vehicles.  It is basically to let you know that I am on your tail and want to pass you.  This is because no one follows any rules of the road – or so as it  seems.  After the sights, we hopped in the car for our drive to Agra. 

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Interesting site – a Hindu temple but it seems to have Islamic architecture.

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April 5-6: Veranasi

April 16th, 2009

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VARANASI:  (above – hotel we stayed at – inside old pictures of maharajas, the british, etc)

Leaving Kolkata, we took a 12 hour overnight train to Varanasi. This time, we had two sets of three-tiered bunks. It was more of a communal train car, rather than separate “rooms” like Vietnam.  It was real comfortable and we made friends real quickly with those around us.  We were a hit again, because we had a white guy who spoke Hindi!

Varanasi  is THE place for Hindu religious pilgrimages, as it is along the banks of the Ganges River, which was ordained by Shiva to be the holiest place to die, because if you died here, you would go directly to heaven, bypassing coming back to earth for another life. We stayed a ways out of town here, and enjoyed an old colonial hotel. It was an extra surprise, because we reserved it ahead of time sight unseen, and in India, you just don’t know what you might find. But we’ve found having a place reserved when you get off the train saves the gigantic hassle of being besieged by touts trying to get you into their taxi and to the hotel that pays them commission. As we pulled into the street where our hotel was, our hearts sank, because it was the typical dusty street, with trash along the sides and crumbling walls. We pulled up to a rusty old gate, the doors opened, and voila…there was a beautiful, whitewashed colonial building surrounded by green lawns! We arranged a tour here in Varanasi to save us the hassle factor. We went down to the river “ghats” (sort of like stone piers) one evening to see a ritual fire dance that takes place every night, and we got up at 4:30 the next morning to go back down to the river to see the ritual bathing in the river at sunrise and the cremation ghats. Two things hit us here: one was that the rituals we saw taking place happen every day of the year. This is not Disneyland and it’s not something like Christmas and Easter. This is a way of life that goes on every day. The other thing we noticed is that here, death is not something that’s hidden away and spoken of in soft tones. Entire families will bring their deceased loved one hundreds of miles on a train, in order to have them cremated and their ashes spread in the Ganges. Or, if people know they are dying, they may come and stay in a care home in Varanasi so that they are close to the river when they die. We also saw processions through the city where the body is carried by several family members on their way to the river.

After a brief 2 nights in Varanasi, we caught the night train to Delhi. We had looked forward to this trip because it’s somewhat relaxing to be on the train and you have a little of your own space. However, this was one of those times when all went wrong. The only train we were able to find seats on left at 11:00 pm.  from an outlying station about 45 minutes away from the city. We caught a taxi from the hotel with plenty of time to spare, but got caught in a horrendous traffic jam. It’s hard to describe the trip to the station, but I’ll try! There are no street lights, and in some places, no electricity, so it’s very dark, but full of honking trunks and cars. There are cows wandering around and the always pervasive smell of dung and urine) both human and animal! The road is paved but barely, so it’s very bumpy and all along the road, it just looks like rubble.  Even many of the buildings look like they’re being demolished – they’re just falling apart.  It’s so hot, you have to have the windows open, but since so much is unpaved and there are so many trucks, the dust just billows in. We then crossed a bridge that had construction going on, and there were huge piles of concrete and metal just lying in the road, and everybody, including cars, trucks, taxis, cows, rickshaws, are trying to get by and it’s utter chaos! We finally arrived at the train station, but the nightmare wasn’t over. We got out of the taxi and were immediately surrounded by folks trying to carry our bags. There were several people just sitting on the ground where we got out – some begging, some selling things, but all looking a little scary to 3 kids from a little mountain town in California. We made our way through hundreds of people sleeping on the station floor, looking very obvious as the only white people around. We sort of wandered around for awhile trying to find out which track our train was on. At this point, everyone was just ready to get on the train and hide! We finally found our track, only to find out that the train was an hour late. It was now about 11:00 pm and we had been up since 4:30 am (bad planning on our part!) We found a place to sit and wait, and it was decidedly unpleasant. Tim and I are pretty seasoned travelers, but sitting in a train station close to midnight, surrounding by staring people and the smell of human waste (to try to put it more pleasantly), was pretty hard to take. I had the girls on each side of me alternating between anger and tears, and asking to please go home! The only comfort was that it could only get better! Fortunately, Tim found a man who just happened to be travelling on the same train and even in the same car, and he became our sort of guardian angel. Between that, and Tim speaking Hindi, we managed to find our car and eventually chugged towards Delhi, 10 hours away.

Night boat trip – narrow streets – easily can get lost

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on boat – candles are lit and then you make a prayer put into the river Ganges

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The night boat trip was to see a holy ceremony called Pujay.  – Thousands in the “stands” and on boats in the river.  A very interesting exerience.  Didn’t understand any of it, but it was quite the specatacle

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A Maharaja’s “ghat”  – a palace is built for his end days where he will then be cremated on the steps leading to the river

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A cremation taking place. 

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The religion is Hindu and the cow is sacred and holy.  Check this bull out.  These cows are just wandering around the city.  We saw a picture of a bull hanging out in a jewelry store.

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4:00 am wake up to take a river boat trip on sunrise to see the bathing etc that goes on in the river.  Definately a great experience with all its ceremony, prayers, bathings, cloth washing etc.   To get to the ghat you walk through these narrow passages from the main street.

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Looking down at one of the ghats (place of bathing, prayers,cremation).  A yoga (kishna) class taking place below.am-1.jpg

This sign says it all for the river Ganges

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River side views

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Prayers taking place

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Ladies shaved their heads to gain some kind or reward for themselves and those that have gone on before them

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We look a little tired

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The cremation – burning “ghats” – different woods are used – the higher ones econmic status the choice of wood changes.

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“Ghats” – different pictures of different ghats from different maharajas over the centuries

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BAthing – washing scenes

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you will notice the garbage and sewer in the pictures that fill the sides of the river  – that doesn’t include the dead bodies and ashes that enter the river.   You can just imagine what type of bacteria etc is in the river.  The guide books talk about it – basically take your toilet with its usage every day – that is what the river is like – however, the people still bath, drink, wash their cloths every day their for blessings and purification from the river.   

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Hindu temple – our guide gave us a “sermon” on the Hindu religion.  We learned alot – this temple did not have all the erotic carvings that you see on other temples. 

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April 2-4: Kolkatta (India)

April 16th, 2009

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 Sorry, but finally back on the web due to travel and lack of internet avalability.  We have reduced our India trip to only a couple of weeks and are staying only in the north. April is not a good time to travel India due to the heat.  The travel route:  Kolkatta, Veranasi, Delhi, Agra, Jaipur – fly to Darjeeling to see the Himalayas – back to Kolkatta to fly to Singapore. 

Leaving for India:

On boarding the plane and finding our seats, most of the other travelers were Indian.  You immediately knew you were entering a different culture and mindset.  The loudness of the conversation (some yelling to their friends 10 rows up), the pushing to get a seat (even though everyone has an assigned seat), trying to cram bags into the overhead bin even though it was full,  the sweaty smell of bodies  immediately brought back memories of what it is like to live and travel in India.  I told Natalie to take a deep breath, for here comes India!   For myself, since I know the language and culture, I knew I would be the primary one “carrying” the whole family around India.  In all the other travels, Natalie or I or the kids could share the duties.  However, to get around and converse with people, I would probably be the one doing the lion’s share.  I looked forward to it, but at the same time knew it would be wearing.  I needed to take a double deep breath.

Arrival in Kolkata

Kolkata (Calcutta) tends to be known for its mass of humanity and Mother Theresa’s work with the poor and dying.   However, the city used to be the capital of India under British rule.  One reason is that it is close to the sea for trade.  Later, power was transferred to Delhi, and it kind of lost its “glory”.  As we stepped out of the airport with our “pre-paid” taxi ticket, our taxi driver was under the hood of his 1970’s Ambassador (India made) taxi.  Once again, welcome to India.  I immediately started speaking Hindi without thinking about it.  Of course, we were soon surrounded by other taxi drivers wanting to see the “white foreigner” who spoke the language.  We had to immediately start arguing about the fare, despite it already being pre-paid.  As we were driving into the city, everyone’s senses were bombarded with India:  it was very hot and humid and no AC In the taxi, dirty, dusty, garbage everywhere, crowded, traffic congestion, the chaos of driving, incessant honking (worse than Vietnam), people everywhere, infrastructure no different than when I saw it 30 years ago it seems.  Natalie thought it looked like Germany after WWII. Quite overwhelming to start with.  Kolkata isn’t exactly the place to start a tour of India, nonetheless with children.  However, we came here first because it was cheaper airfare and also to “get it out of the way” first.  We ended up in a part of the city that was away from the “backpackers, touristy” location, and stayed in a local hotel.  In other words, we saw firsthand the street life in a little different perspective.  The kids handled that first outing, but were very glad to get back in the comfort of the hotel room.   Josh summed up the first 2 days in India like this: “I don’t know if I want to cry, laugh, scream, or hit somebody!”  That statement seems to be very true to one’s experience.  However, after you get into the rhythm of a city, and how it works, and begin to see what’s “normal” – in other words, its “life”, your perspective and outlook changes a bit and you don’t feel quite so disoriented and overwhelmed.  This was more true and took longer in India than anywhere else we’ve been. The kids will write about their feelings later.  Having gone through it as a kid myself, I knew what they were going through.  The crowds, noise, congestion, and loudness of the city really got to them.  As a parent, you just have to provide for a safe, cool (AC) place to retreat to after the traditional sightseeing.  They mentioned that it would not be so bad if it just wasn’t SO hot.  Our sightseeing day included the Indian Museum (very old), the Victoria Memorial, light show of history of Calcutta, and going to Mother Teresa’s place.

Taxi’s are old Indian made Ambassadors

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No AC – kids wiped out from early morning flight and heat of day.

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Night water light show – kind of like you would see at the Ballagio in Vegas  (smaller scale)- It was in the city park the equivalent to the park in New York

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Sound and light show at the Victorial Memorial – they way it is like the white house and Taj Mahal put together?

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The Queen herself – unfortunate for bird doo on the head

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Incredible bronze sculpture

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Mother Theresa’s House – a service was going on, her tomb is in the “sanctuary”, a great exhibit of her history and years of service, saw her room where the Pope met here.  A great idea to go see where she worked and the work continues.

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Bazar – street scenes – too much seen to have taken pictures – felt very conspicious

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Day workers who my not have a home – washing in local water area

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Communit slogans – elections are going on

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The busiest train station in the world – Kolkatta – we survived it

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Waiting for train – going to Veranasi (14 hour train ride overnight with sleeper berths)

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Mar 28-31: Pai

April 1st, 2009

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Leaving Chiang Mai to head up north to Pai.  Above, we now used another form of transportation – a minibus.

Pai:  North Eastern area of Thailand – next to the Burmese border. 

We wanted to get up into the hill tribe area or mountain area of Thailand.  There are two locations that tourists seem to gravitate toward – Pai and Chiang Rai.  We decided to go to Pai – more of a quant hippie style hangout place.  It sounded more remote and less “touristy”, so we took the 4 hour drive in a minibus.  The road up the mountain was quite narrow with steep switchbacks, but the driver was real good.  It then dropped you into the valley floor.  It was a lot hotter than we expected, but the evenings were real nice (temperature wise).  It was a very peaceful, laid back place.  We were right on the small river and enjoyed sitting out on our balcony area listening to the sounds of the frogs, roosters, birds, water, etc.  This would be a great place to come after the rainy season when it would be green and the rice fields in season.  Right now, they are “burning” (the rice fields and garbage and leaves in the whole north).  It is meant to be illegal now to control pollution and environemtal hazards, but no one seems to regulate it.  It was very smoky, and hazy.  Luckily Annika, nor anyone else had too much trouble breathing.  We enjoyed the quiet.  The one “activity” of the trip was to  ride an elephant.  It was quite the experience – see kids blogs below.  We were going to go the hilltribal area called the “long necks”.  The people get this name because when young they “stretch their necks by wearing neck bracelets.  By adding more bracelets, the neck gets stretched.  This was going to be a day long switch back road, and the kids were not up for it.  On a long trip like this, one can not always accomplish all that one wants to see.  We would definitely come back to this area in the future if we are in Thailand, but at a better season.  See kids writings about the elephant ride and bath.  We did not get too many pictures because we were getting wet in the river.  However, they did video tape it and yes, we did buy the video tape.  It is a great memory.  The group we went with has had the elephants in their family for 4 generations and are conscious of the need for animal rights and care.  Below:  military checkpoint.  The north is a specific province of tribal people.  They are not necessarily considered Thai citizens.  In order to travel, the need specific papers.  Also, this area is know to have alot of  illegal immigrants from Burma and also is close to the Golden Triangle (ie. drug trade).  Therefore, the military check points with AK 47 and sniffing dogs. 

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sight of hills from our balcony.  you can see the smoky air. 

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The highlight besides relaxing – riding on an elephant

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Annika Writing:  The elephant ride was sweeto on the neeto!  We climbed up from his leg, I sat on the neck. His hair was prickly.  When he flapped his ears it kind of hurt.  We rode on the elephant on the road for a while then went on a dirt road to the river to play with the elephants. The first thing we did in the river was he sat down and squirted water at our faces. Then he rolled to the side and sometimes we fell off but not always. Then he stood up and, with one person on his back, shook you off. I didn’t stay on very long. It was totally awesome!

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Natasha writing: When we got there we gave the elephants bananas but instead of peeling them we gave the bananas to them whole! Then we got on the elephants. We rode them bear back because we were going in the river with them! We would climb up the leg of the elephant, he would pick up his foot and bend it so your left foot fit between his foot and the right foot on top of his foot and pull yourself up. Then they walked on the road for a while then we turned and walked on a dirt road to the river. It was scary when he wanted to eat something because he was trying to tare a little banana tree so he was throwing his head around.  When we got to the river the elephants sat down and rolled to the side and I fell of almost every time. Then he stood up with only me on his back and started to shake his head and shoulders. I didn’t know what was going on but then I realized he was trying to get me of so I fell off when I couldn’t hold on any longer! Then we walked back on the elephants to the place where we started. It was so FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Josh writing:  Elephants are big, just big. If you have seen an elephant before then you would know what I mean. Not to mention that they are very strong. When we climbed on to their backs, the elephants lifted me with their trunks, with their trunks!! I weigh 120 lbs and he lifted me up as if I were a feather!! Elephants might look comfortable but they are not that, especially if you are sitting on their neck. Every step they take, some muscle or bone would jab my butt. Their hair is also very prickly. The funniest part was when we went into the river and the elephants sprayed us with water, and then shook us off their backs. After that we continued on down the river and then it was done………ahhhh the end? After that we went and sat if a hot spring which felt good because since we were hot when we good out the air felt cool, for once.

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Riding shotgun – called mahoot – the one who controls the elephant.  Annika had the opportunity to be that person.

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We missed getting alot of pictures because we were all having fun being tossed in the water by the elephants.

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School work – science – what a colorful head, but when stressed its color changes

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As mentioned, the town is a very “hippie/alternative” type of community

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Our girls and their clothing kind of fit in.

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In the middle of the north of Thailand, who would believe you would see a sign for a Unkranian specialty

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Leaving Chiang Mai – Natalie was quite sad

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Everywhere are pictures of the King.

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In the Bankok train station – a big set up with signs, music, a masot (toilet?) – they are trying to sell their toilets – the gig included kids hip hop/jazz dance included.

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Here I sit at 11:00pm finishing the last of the Thailand blogs.  We will be flying out to Kolkatta (aka Calcutta) India – better known for its poverty, people, and Mother Theresa.  Everyone is a little nervous knowing India will be the hardest travel of all the countries with the crowds, heat, dust, totally different culture, etc.  Ready or not here we come!!!!

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Mar 22-27: Chiang Mai

April 1st, 2009

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Leaving Bankok – another new travel experience – night sleeper trains in Thailand – you start out with 2 sitting seats – they turn into a bottom bunk, the top bunk pulls down from the top.  They have sheets, pillow, blanket, and curtains.  Josh said he slept incredibly.  It was nice in that everyone had their own space.

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Annika’s head sticking out from top berth

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Juniper Tree:  This was a real treat. Tim called his former teacher from boarding school days in Pakistan, who is now the principal an international school in Chiang Mai. She recommended us to this place, which is normally set aside for mission families and NGO workers, but they let us come stay for a few days since they weren’t full. It was set in beautiful gardens, with a pool and meals included.

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Tiger Kingdom:  There are 2 groups that house Bengal tigers and allow people to pet them.  One is near Bangkok and is run by monks; the other is newer and in Chiang Mai.  We decided to do the one in Chiang Mai because it is close to the city rather than spending all day getting in and out of Bankok to see one.  If you read about them on the web, get opinions about them ranging from adamant disapproval to high ratings. Some say the tigers are drugged; some say not. We spoke with one couple who lived in Chiang Mai, whose friend was bitten by a large tiger and was still in the hospital.  In this instance, the “trainer” who was supposed to be the “protector” basically threw his stick down and high tailed it out of the cage.  Another male tourist who happened to be in the cage grabbed the lady and got out the gate.  Since we had also heard good tings about this place, our curiosity got the better of us and we decided to go see it, but we also decided that we would only go in with the newborns.  Below are pictures of that experience.  Unfortunately, young Bengal tigers had gotten older than we wanted to be in a cage with, but there were 2 lion cubs, which we got to pet.  Incredible beasts up close. Their habitat was clean, but too confined.  We came away with more of a sorry feeling than neat experience.

Annika WritingTiger Kingdom – In Tiger Kingdom   I got to pet a real baby lion. It was totally awesome! You also could pet a huge tiger or a medium tiger. The small tigers I couldn’t pet because they got too big for me to hold. If it were a month later, there would be new baby tigers that I could hold. There was 2 baby lions. 1 was named Ben and the other was named Dave. Their mom and dad were at the Bangkok zoo. There wasn’t much space for the tigers and the lion. I felt really bad for them. It was fun but sad.

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University Hospital – the doctors and friends that Natalie worked with when she was there.  The neat thing was when we were trying to find the parasitology lab and co-workers from 20 years ago, we had a lady trying to explain who we were and what we were there for.  By chance, she happened to knock on a professor’s door and explain it again, and his first words that came out were “Natalie Campbell?!”  He didn’t even hesitate – kind of amazing.

Natalie here…I didn’t even recognize Chiang Mai, and th kids were giving me a bad time, because I couldn’t find my way around the Univ. Hospital, even though I had worked there for 9 months! But this was a highlight to the Thailand portion of our trip to see people who had been good friends and helpers when I came to Thailand 20 years ago.

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Natalie’s former apartment on the campus

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Another travel mode experience – called “sangteow” – a little more room than tuk tuks, but we had all our bags

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Art:  seen outside a tourist shop – we’ll call this modern sculpture – it is quite incredible – it is from all kinds of metal (note the screws, chain, etc). 

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Heading to hawk one’s food at the night bazaar

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Wat (Temple) where we went to a “monk talk” and spoke for 20 minutes or so with a monk. Each of us came armed with 2 questions.

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Monk Talk:  “school work time – religion studies”.  We happened to hear about a wat where at a certain time you can sit down with the monks and talk about Buddhism and wat (ha ha) it is like to be a monk – or whatever you want to ask.  Initially, the kids groaned, but after the experience they kind of enjoyed it.  We told them they had to come up with 2 questions and had to run the conversation without our help.

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Natasha and Natalie took a jewelry class – silver making.  Here is Tasha making herself a silver ring.  She did not want to go on the zipline trip – so this was her treat.

Natasha Writing:   Jewelry Class – In Chiang Mai, I did a silver making class with Mom. It was really fun but it took a long time because you had to draw the design you wanted on a piece of paper. I wanted to make a ring so I had to find the size I needed for my finger and the width and thickness of the ring I wanted. I also needed the length of the ring so our teacher gave me the formula: L = size + (thickness x 3.14). Then you get started, he gave me my piece of silver and I heated it up to get it softer.  It was too fat so I had to roll it though a roller thing to flatten it so it is the right thickness.  After that, I heated it up again and glued my paper design to it. Then I chiseled my design into the silver. That took a long time because I had to make sure it connected to the indent before it. Then I had to cut off the extra silver with a little saw. That made my wrists hurt because you had to cut straight up and down. Then I had to heat it again and I drilled a hole in the middle. Then I got rid of the hard edges on it by filing, and heated it again and then I made it round. After I got it to where I wanted it to fit, I heated it again and put it in some kind of hot water. After that I scrubbed off the white stuff that the hot water stuff put on it. Then I polished it. Then it was ready! Even though it took a long time it was rrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaalllllllllllyyyyyyyy fun!!!!!

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Zip Line:  Chiang Mai is close to the mountains and has all kinds of outdoor activities – mnt biking, white water rafting, elephant rides, etc.  – Below are the pictures – real fun.  The zip line part took 3 hours – had 22 platforms, 18 zip line sections, and at the height was 210 feet up in some spots.

Josh WritingJungle Zip Line -One exciting thing we did in Chaing Mai was go on a zip line ‘cruise’ through the jungle. It was really rather fun. Some of the zip lines were really long; some were short. The place we went to was called Jungle Flight. It had 22 platforms, 3 bridges and the 3 drops. The drops were where they attached a rope to your back and then ‘dropped’ you down to a platform below the one you were standing on. The first one was rather short and the second one was a bit farther but the last one, oh it was scary. You pretty much just step off the platform and fall until the guides slow you. The thing is, you are seven stories above the ground. Overall, it was worth it. 

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Nice shot! The guides made me do the “Superwoman” zip on this one by attaching the zipline to the back instead of to the front, as normal.

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Mar 19-21: Bankok

April 1st, 2009

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Time to catch up on our travels: Josh seen here waiting in Siagon airport drooling over a toblerone chocolate bar while waiting to catch the flight back to Bankok.

Left Ho Chi Minh City –  Last notes:  Siagon.  However, the day before we left, rather than sightsee, we took the kids to a large water park.  This had numeruous slides and pools, etc like you would find in the States.  A good break from the continuous sightseeing, etc.  The trip has been pretty accident free despite the chances for something to go wrong – traveling on the roads, traveling on the high seas, scuba diving, snorkeling, kitesurfing, trying to cross a street, etc.  You would think these would be the areas for it to happen – but NO – it happened in the water park.  And to no other than the one who seems to always “knock” his  head – Tim.  There was one slide that we would call the “toilet bowl”.  You go down this straight shoot for about 100 yds, then it shoots you into  basically a toilet bowl, you go round and round until you slow down and it drops you through a  hole (like a toilet does) into the pool below.  Josh went first, then Tim.  In the US you are supposed to place your arms across your chest.  At this water park then wanted you to hold the back of your head – they didn’t tell us that until after the ride.  I was flying along with water spraying up into my nose and eyes making it hard to breath, so I raised my head alittle to breath.  The tube unfortunately did not run straight and smooth into the toilet bowl, there was a little drop.  All of a sudden, my head shot back and hit the structure.  I thought I had literally split my head open (Josh was outside and heard this huge “thwack”).  I didn’t know what happened, but I remember my head on fire and finally slowing down ready to drop through the hole.  I hit the pool below and remember grabbing my head and collapsing on the pool deck – only to be grabbed and told to get out of the water.  I reached back to the top of my head and my hand came away all bloody.   It sure felt like I split my head open.  To make a long story short – they had a small first aid clinic on sight with a nurse.  She cleaned it up – luckily it was only an abrasion and no laceration (which I was fearful of which would mean hospital and stitches).  I have a picture if you would like to see it – HA.  My other thought was concussion which may cause problems because we were to fly out the next day to Bankok.  No concussion, but I was “knocked” out for the rest of the day.  It kind of took the wind out of the sail for the kids fun at the water park for about a half an hour – then they were back at it.  That night was not a good sleeping night.  My neck and back still have lingering soreness. 

March 18 – back to Bankok:  since we had to leave Thailand do to the visa situation, we wanted to come back and see Bankok, then go see Chiang Mai in the north where Natalie had spent a year finishing her Masters Thesis.  What is the attraction of Bankok – all the Wats (Buddhist Temples, the Grand Palace, where the King lives, a big bussling city).  Out side of the the Palace and Wat sights, we did go to some of the big high end shopping plaza’s that have been built, walk the city streets and bazaars, go to Kauson Road (where all the “farangs” – tourists hang out), went a a cinema and saw Pink Panther II, happened to be at a guest house where there was a temple for which the Kings daughter was coming to pray – waited at the roadside for her to come out – the escort included 7 police motor bikes, front police car, her antique Rolis Royce (we got to see the princess and wave to her), then about 10 BMW sedans with all kinds of military  personell dressed up in their finest (with their distinguished badges) following behind.  No pictures, had to take our hats off –of course -, stand at attention in reverence.  It was a one of a kind experience and we got to do it.  Another interesting experience (at the cinema for Pink Panther II) – just before watching the movie started, there was a pause and on the screen was a picture of the King.   The audience (including us) all stood up to pay reverence as a song was sung.  I doubt that would ever happen in the US.  They really like their King.  Also, at 8:00am every morning in public places (like the train or bus station), the national anthem (I think) is played and everyone stops what they are doing, rise to attention, face towards a picture of the King, and pay reverence while the song is played.  Kids writing about Bankok.

Annika Writing: In Bangkok   it was vveeerrrryyyy busy in the malls. It was also verrryyy   hot!

We saw went to a lot of temples that weren’t very interesting to me. We also went shopping in the malls I got shoes and other stuff   I didn’t like the mall at all it was way too crowded. For  dinner  we mostly ate at little stalls, all I ate was satay it was the only thing I liked the rest of the food  I didn’t  like .Sometimes we took tuk tuks back to are hotel. Tuk tuks are little carts that have 3 wells it is only made for 3 people but we fit 5.  Are hotel was very clean and nice .We saw the princes of Thailand. It was ok to stay in Bangkok!

Natasha writing: It was very hot in Bangkok and veerrrrryyyy busy, too. I didn’t like it at all! I necessarily don’t like big cities in the first place so I hated it. It was fine until we got to the mall. Well I wasn’t fine but I was okay. The mall was really big and reeeeaaalllyyy crowded. I got a long sleeve shirt and new shoes. My shirt is brown and white little strips and has a A & F logo on it. My shoes are black like Convers with rainbow colored outlines. The first night we ate at a little stall and had chao men gai (cow man gi, chicken on rice) and chicken satay (fried chicken). The next night we had all Thai food at a restaurant called the Tuk Tuk restaurant. I don’t remember the other nights. We went to see the grand palace which was the king’s palace but not any more.

Josh writing: Bangkok, like the rest of Asia is really frickin’ hot I -as most people know- I hate the heat and don’t do well in the heat anyway. We stayed in the same place as we did last time we were there. I don’t have  much to say about it. We went to the Imperial Palace, which was kinda cool because it was so big and that ‘the’ Buddha was made of Jade. ‘The’ Buddha was a special Buddha made of Jade that was constructed a long time ago. Next went to this reclining Buddha who was a story and a half tall and around 50 meters long. That night we saw the Pink Panther 2 at a movie theater. Right before the movie started we had to stand in honor of the king while the national was played the movie theater was nicer than the ones at home. We did some shopping in the malls that were overly crowded and I got some Skull Candy headphones, the Hesh to be exact. Then we left for Chaing Mia.

The Grand Palace – established in 1792 – housing royal residence and throne halls, but also government offices.  It is 218,00 square meters surrounded by wals 1900 meters long.  Within the palace walls is the Royal Monastery of the Emerald Buddha – one of the most vernerated sites in Thailand where people pay respect to the Lord Buddha and His Teachings.  I won’t go into detail of all what we saw and what it was called, but you will get the idea of the detail and architecture that went into it.  The King no longer lives here – it is a tourist and spiritual place forBuddhists, and i still used for state funcions and government offices.

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Temple site of the Emerald Buddha – built from one piece of Jade found int 1434.  The temple architecture, paintings, gold paint, etc is incredible.  The doors going into the temple are all inlaid with mother of pearl.  The paintings gives you a picture of history and time of Buddha and Thai stories and proverbs.

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Reliquary of a golden chedi and where sacred scriptures are held.

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Just detail work pictures.

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Detail isbroken pottery inlay

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This was a no no – I took a picture within the museum grounds and got reprimanded by the guard.  These are old spears from different areas of King Rama.

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A royal hall used for government meetings and dignitaries

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A model in large scale of Angkor Wat.

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A long the outside walls – 4 sided – are paintings of historical battles or telling historical stories.  You can see that they are trying to keep the paint fresh.  Anything you see is dull is old and any bright colors are new.  They are starting with the gold color and it just “shines”.

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Despite all the kids bravado in not going to get all of us in a “tuk tuk” – we did and they enoyed it.

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Natalies favorite thing to do – sit out at the night markets (rather than restaurants) and catch the local food.

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This is the Temple (or Wat as they are called) of the Golden Reclinning Buddha – a very popular site next to the Emerald Buddha.  On the Bankok map there must be at least 30 Wats one could go visit – some more tourist popular than others.

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This whole all is inlaid with mother of pearl.

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These are stupas – meant to hold bone remains of “pilgrims” – didn’t quite understand that 

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The Princess Sighting – she just happend to be going to a Wat down by our guest house- pictures of  that event – the kids actually got to see the princess of Thailand. 

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Funny sayings – sights – here is a picture  telling males not to climb the wall and peak on the girls going to the bathroom

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Self explanatory – we did not stay here

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“tuk tuk” restaurant – happend to come upon this restaurant which is owned by a renowned Thai artist.  His style is different, but is real popular.  He opened up a restuarant and on the second floor is a gallery for budding artists to display their work.  Did not get a picture of the famous Kousan Road – where all the tourist – called “farang” hang out.

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Mar 16-18: Siagon

March 21st, 2009

Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon)

Most southerners still refer to HCMC as Saigon – its historical name.  We were back to backpacker style hotels here. No one slept very well for the 3 nights here due to all the traffic noise, honking cars and motorbikes.  Hanoi may be the seat of politics, but Saigon is the driving force of Vietnam’s economy, which is the 3rd fastest growing economy in the world. 

Thoughts on leaving Vietnam, compiled by the kids: western toilets (important), toilet paper (very important), very clean, modern, and cheaper hotels with AC (most important), motorbikes everywhere, crowded, touts everywhere hawking their wares – “motobike, you buy, taxi?, where you go”?, service from restaurants and hotels was great (much better than Malaysia and southern Thailand); sleeper buses with beds; economy based on US dollar; back to driving on right side of road, infrastructure (like roads) still very poor; French influence in tailoring, delicious french pastries and coffee; common person with more English speaking abilities than Thailand; everything is smaller – the size of the people, houses, cars, etc; every day uniforms more dressy; greater sense of community – sitting outside on stools eating with family, friends, people – unlike western countries where the home is more the communal place.

When we entered Vietnam, we hadn’t really read anything about it, and really did not know much about where we were heading. After travellig from the north to the south, while waiting at the airport to catch our flight from Vietnam back to Bangkok, we asked the kids how they rated the countries we had seen so far. They rate Vietnam as Number 1.  We felt like the month we were there just flew by. Now that we’re back in Thailand, it almost feels like it was a dream. We thoroughly enjoyed the people, the countryside, the cities (except Josh, who hates cities, although he was our fearless leader when crossing the motorbike clogged streets!).

PICTURES:

Reunification Palace: The seat of power for the South before and during the Vietnam War.  Modern architecture from the 1960s by a French architect. Although the capitol is now in Hanoi, this building is still used for conferences and ceremonial government meetings. 

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Street where tanks from the northern army came rumbling in and crashed through the gates to overthrow the South – April 10, 1975

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This is the first tank that crashed through the fence as described above. It’s commemorated in a famous photo depicting the fall of Saigon.

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In the basement, were the war control rooms of the South.  This was the communications room with all the original equipment.

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People’s Committee Building with statue of Ho Chi Minh

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The Rex Hotel – the hotel where a lot of the war correspondants stayed

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Believe it or not – the Notre Dame in Saigon

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Left over French Influence- bakery and patries

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Street Traffic – cannot get a picture that does justice to all the motorbikes and the lack of lanes. At one left hand turn “area,” I counted 15 motorbikes and a car trying to all turn at once through the oncoming traffic.   The real challenge is crossing a street. The jist of it is: close your eyes, walk slowly, and don’t stop. Somehow,  the traffic moves around you.

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War Museum – this picture is the number of US units and where they were located in the South.  There was a wall with the statistics of WWII, other wars, and the “American” war – ie  casualties, deaths, ordnance dropped, etc.  A very telling picture of what happened there  for the 18 years we were involved in Vietnam. (We were in the country directly after Vietnam gained independence from the French in 1954.)  There were 6 halls set up, each with a different emphasis.  This exhibit was not a Hollywood-style romanticism of war. One exhibit was just photos of different war correspondents from around the world that died during the war.  Other exhibits showed the result of all the chemical warfare that was done to the country (forests leveled from agent orange/napalm (against Geneva Convention – and why did we go into Iraq?) and its results on the people.  The photos of the deformity on the kids was sickening.  Another exhibit showed the detention centers/prisons look and life – with photos of torture.  (We didn’t take the kids through here) Ther was also an outdoor exhibit of US weapons, etc.  The take home from all of it – War IS  HELL.  Nobody won – nobody was a saint (north or south or US or Russian) Each side lost – all in the name of what? – Politics?  The soldiers were only doing what was asked of them, but we must be wary of those in political power and their decisions to send our troops into battle. There was a very telling plaque from the US constitution – all men are created equal …… and deserve freedom and independence.  The south may not have wanted to be communist, but did the US have to go to help them? 

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A guillotine – left over from the French prison system –

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left over US military equipment

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This is just ONE bomb – 12 feet high?!

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Mar 9-15: Mui Ne

March 20th, 2009

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Pleasant surprise -the trip was to be 4 hours and guess what – the bus type was a sleeper bus.  Everyone had their own “bed” for the trip.  Vietnam has this sleeper bus figured out unlike Malaysia and Thailand where the seats go back like a plane – not very comfortable like these Vietnam overnight buses.

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The southern coast of Vietnam reminds me of california coast at times.

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Mui Ne (moo-ey- nay)– Josh writing:  Lucky for us the bus we were riding in was a sleeper bus. We didn’t pay for a sleeper bus, but oh well, who is going to complain? When we first got to Mui Ne, it was hot, hotter than Nha Trang, even in the shade. We sat for an hour or so while Mom and Dad went to look for a hotel. They found a good one, and yet cheap for its quality. The hotel was right on the beach and it had good A/C and a clean bathroom (the 2 most important things in Asia). First thing we did was go for a swim (obviously). Then Dad and I went to talk to the kite surfing shops/schools about lessons. They were expensive, but it was definitely worth it.  So the next day was  the kiting class. One thing I’ve learned from that (other than how to kite board) is that Mother Nature always wins. The wind is so strong! Reason is, I was “tea bagged” by the water! If u like tea, that may make sense. What I’m saying is that my kite lifted me out of the water and flung me back into it………..5 times. WAS NOT very fun. But the rest of the class went well. I finally got up on my board, but my Dad didn’t, but I had one more lesson (hour) than he did. The beach is good, the road isn’t too busy and there are plenty of restaurants. I thought that Mui Nie was awesome.

Tim Writing:  as a beach resort, this was the best!  The beach went for miles like a california coastline.  You then had the resorts or hotels, then the road, then the restaurants.  You also were not hassled by touts constantly to buy things.  This coastline is known for its kiteboarding and windsurfing. There was also an internationally known golf course (including night golfing)- very tempting for me, but in watching everyone out there having fun on the water, Josh and I decided to take  kiteboarding lessons – a beginner course was 5 hours.  To summarize – Josh did get up and had about 3 runs over 300 meters long (he did have an extra hour); I, well, did not get up on the board – but with an extra hour I probably would have.  I  think we are hooked to continue back in the US.  Josh’s instructor and myself were psyched that he was able to get up and ride.  This area is known to be one of the hardest in the world to learn on due to the waves and wind – we were training one day in 25 knot wind – no wonder I did not get up on the board.  We were here 7 days and thoroughly enjoyed the time – except the kids had to do homework everyday.  Outside of beach and surf and pool (mainly the girls) we did rent motorbikes and take a tour of the countryside to see white and red sand dunes (and to slide down them).  The road ran along the coastline – just gorgeous.  We were sad we had to leave to head to Saigon (Ho Chi MInh City) and soon out of Vietnam.  – below is our hotel – $40 for room with AC and attached bathroom and pool at beaches edge.munei-1.jpgmunei-2.jpg

Beach views north and south munei-3.jpgmunei-4.jpg

The kiteboarding school Josh and Tim took lessons fromkiteboarding-1a.jpg

1st hour – kiteboard set up and safety; 2nd hour – flying trainer kite then main kite left and right handed; kite-1.jpgkite-2.jpgkite-4.jpg3rd Hour – body dragging in water flying the kite, learning how to relaunch if it crashes when in water

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4th hour – body dragging with board and flying kite

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5th hour – if you get to this part in that amount of time – land training on getting up on board, then trying it over and over in the water – Here is Josh actually getting up – only 6 hours in the heavy winds and wavy sea – actually a very good timeframe considering the conditions.  Real proud of him.

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Josh and Tim with their instructors – English guy (the owner) and Irish guy.  Great Instructors. 

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Rented motorbikes for a half day to go to see sand dunes.  Got lost in backcountry.  Here is our gas station!!

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Out of context picture = these were the shoes Josh had a cobbler make for him in Hoi Ann.

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We usually don’t eat hot dogs when in the states, but Josh was dying to eat one when he found out there was a restaurant that actually made them.  Eat your heart out Josh – over 12 inches long

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These next pictures are for Papa Campell or other old car enthusiasts – Ford Farlane?, Mustang Convertable, Mustang Hatchback – if only they knew how much money they have in that lot

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French Restaurant – with all these old side car bikes and car – French Restaurant with Spanish music playing with Zebra skin on the wall -?? French, Spanish, African mix ??

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Mar 2-8: Hoi An + NhaTrang

March 17th, 2009

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Hoi An –  a fabulous old city – know for its tailoring, shoe making, restaurants, chinese lanterns, and french pastries.

 Natasha writing:  I liked Hoi An because it was a quiet little town but still had stuff to do.  Mom and Josh got shoes made at a place called Ba Le.  Mom, Annika, and Josh got jackets made at a really fancy place called Yaly’s. The place had really good quality cloths but really expensive. I went to a little shop on the street, next to our hotel because i saw a skirt outside that i liked.  It wasn’t as good quality but it was still good enough to wear and I like it.  I got some lanterns in Hoi An and the lady whole sold them to me was really nice and sweet.  Her name was Ang and she was 23 years old. i got four lanterns, one big and three smaller ones, and Mom got two really small ones all for $10, USD, US dollers.  I also liked the beach, it had really big and stong waves but they were fun to try to get passed with out getting knocked over! The beach had really soft sand but if you wanted a chair you had to by something at the restaurant.

Annika Writing:  when we arrived we looked at 5 hotels and chose the one with a small pool on the roof – it was only $18 per night.  Tasha and I had our own room with mosquito netting over the beds.  We keep meeting other tourists that are following the same path.  They told us about a tailoring shop – Yalle – and I had a jacket made here.  When you get there, you sit down and look at catalogues for the picture of the jacket  you wanted, then you pick out the fabric (mine was plaid green), then they measure you, then take a picture of you and it goes into the computer, then they have a group of seamstresses working on it.  You come back the next day, try it on, they make changes if you need it, and it’s done.

Natalie Writing:  Hoi An was a beautiful, QUIET,  and old town with a lot of buildings that had been around for hundreds of  years (not common in a country that’s been at war for as long as Vietnam) The old quarter of town was closed to motorbikes and cars several times while we were there and it was magical – especially at night, when the Chinese lanterns were lit. Tasha enjoyed talking to one of the girls who made lanterns and ended up buying a few for her room. The other memorable experience in Hoi An was having clothes and shoes made. We weren’t really planning on doing this, but it seemed all part of the Vietnam experience. When else will we ever have clothes made? (Unless, of course, I manage to pull out my sewing machine sometime!)

This sure was a narrow street – to get from one to another

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Tailoring Shops throughout the town

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the famous one in the guide book – quite a production – the one we used to get a jacket made for Josh and Annika and silk suitcoat for Natalie – all in one day

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known for its restaurants on every street – also the French pastries were the best in Asia

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Known for its art stores also – water colors, oils etc – noticed alot more art in Vietnam than Thailand

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note the woodworking – all off of one piece of wood – I can’t image the hours it took to make this

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Also known for Chinese Lanterns – it is so pretty at night with the whole town lit up.  This is the lady that Tasha bought from

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And yes – we did know that there was a beach nearby – and decided to go one day – huge waves as compared to Thailand which had no waves – Yea something for Josh to do – body surf

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We had a couple of hours prior to our bus leaving so the “girls” pampered themselves for a manicure and petticure for only $ 8 US.

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After Hoi Ann, we took a night bus to Nha Trang (considered the Premier vacation/conference destination inVietnam). The main highway(there is only one) is still very much in need of repair and upkeep – a  very bumpy ride.   At one of the rest stops, the driver took out incense, lit it, put in on the license plate, and prayed – that is a good sign, since driving is very challenging here with respect to safety due to all the buses, cars, motorbikes, etc on only 2 lanes.  We arrived in Nha Trang at 4:45am – everything is still shut down. Now what do we do, or where do we go- most things don’t open up till 6:00am?  Well, as we walked to the main road that ran along the coastline-beach area, lo and behold, the place was packed with hundreds (I really am not exaggerating!)of people “exercising” – thai chi, badminton, standing in placed doing some kind of strange movements I guess you would call calesthenics, jogging in place, in groups or separately, there was even a soccer game going on (all at 5:00am – it was just bizarre – I have never seen anything like it!)   We finally found a place to sit down and get breakfast while being hounded by touts trying to sell us their hotel.  After an hour, we  found one that worked for us.  We did some sightseeing via renting motor bikes, Cham Temples, hung out at the beach, went to a small water park. In all, it was okay, but we did not really enjoy the town that much as a beach location area. We did at last meet a travelling American family, from Seattle, with two kids aged 9 and 14, who are travelling for 10 mon ths.

 photo from our hotel room – only $18

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Best way to get around – rent motorbike for $3 per day – that is Tasha you see – Tim usually took Annika and Natasha while Josh was with Natalie

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Cham Civilization – Temple – a very spiritual place – however – it was to worship the reproductive system – alot of different “symbols” were noticed

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The entry into the temple

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They had this big resort out on an island off the mainland – and – one way to get to it was via a cable car system over the ocean.  You can also see a huge cruiseliner in the background.

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Ah yes – seafood – this was a special Vietnamese local that had you barbeque your food right at your table – Tiger Prawns – yum good!

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platefule of crabs

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This picture is for Papa Campbell – a true Vespa – memories of your travels through Europe, Tasha was real happy she had to pose with the Vespa

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The Water Park – the funnest part to the park was the zip line

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Everyone got a kick out of my “pink” helmut – its all they had, I sure got funny stares from everyone.

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Feb 27-Mar 1: Hue

March 12th, 2009

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A new experience – instead of a night train with sleeper berths, now we did a night bus – kind of wild – two tiers of beds, three across, you can see how they recline back. 

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we were in the back – they had 5 “beds” next to each other – perfect for our family -I guess we slept – periodically

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Hue:  Vietnam seemed to always be ruled by other nations- especially the Chinese, then the French, then the Vietnam war. Anyways, for about 200 years (prior to the French) Vietnam was a united country under the Nguyen emperors and its capital was Hue.  It is considered a national treasure and recognized as a Unesco World Heritage sight.  The “Citadel City” , built in the 1600’s – has a moat around the  whole citadel, which is a couple of square miles.  Within the Citadel, is the Forbidde where the emperor and and his court lived. It’s surrounded by a second moat.  It is quite an architectural wonder – there are pictures dating back to the 1940’s of royal processions etc.  It was also the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the Tet Offensive in the Vietnam war.  While the Americans were fighting elsewhere, the North Vietcong entered Hue and took it over. However, they also rounded up the wealthy – bankers, merchants, political foes in house to house searches and  killed over 2500 prominent citizens.  The southern forces with the US wanted to take it back and a lot of the palace area was destroyed in the fighting. It is slowly being refurbished as the funds become available.

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check out how thick the outside wall is

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I am unsure what there is to poach – rats? 

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The moat and entrance to the forbidden city – palace

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There are 12 cauldrons made of bronze – weighting ??? lbs – each for a Nguyen ruler –  one ruler began his rule at the age of 13

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The other reason for going to Hue is that it is close to the DMZ zone – the divide between the North and the South during the Vietnam or as they call it the American War.  This area was where the North murdered fleeing civilians as they were taking it over.  The shrine below was built for this reason. 

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A French Church where the North set up a command post. There was a battle here – see the next picture and you can see the machine gun  holes etc.

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Our guide was from the south. Therefore, we heard the views of the “losing” side. Natalie’s since read a couple books about the war, and it’s pretty clear that both sides “lost.”  Anyway, our guide was a second captain – a recon guy for the GI’s.  Incredible stories – he actually would tear up and get quite emotional explaining what when on in the different areas we visited – because he was there himself and lost friends. After the war, he was sent to a “re-education camp” for 2 and a half years.When he was released, the government had taken his home and confiscated his assets. He and his wife are both lawyers. His wife was practicing for five years before the war ended. Now, since they are “blacklisted,” they can’t get any jobs. He gives these tours and his wife has been selling bananas.  We want to post this section, but Natalie wants to blog a little more on this subject – she was in the back of the tour van and was able to hear more stories.

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He explained that this leaf would shrivel up when you touched it – then after 20 minutes it would rebound to its normal size – therefore, as he brought GI’s into the jungles, he could tell if any VC were nearby based upon how much the leaf was shriveled up or not.

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Ho Chi Minh Trail

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Con Thien Firebase – the major American base where GI’s could take a break from fighting, hospital, etc.  – a big area, but you can see it is now a rubber tree plantation.  The VC would launch rockets into this area from Laos.  They would take about 4 minutes to arrive – so when the air warning was sounded, they headed toward the bunkers prior to them arriving.

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Still considered dangerous to go outside of the boundaries – unexploded ordnance still around

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at the peak of the area – good visual vantage point – note concrete bunker – only war remnant left to see

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Tube from rocket propelled launcher still lying there

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Troung Son Memorial Cemetary – for Northern VC fighters – we asked the guide if there was any cemetary for the southern forces – there isn’t. 

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The demarcation line – the Ben Hai River – the split between North and South, created at the Geneva Convention truce talks after the Vietnam-French war.  The south at the time had a ruler who was catholic and did not want anything to do with the communist north – you can see the old bridge – the northern half was painted red and the southern half was painted yellow.  The flat country side on both sides of the river was bombed repeatedly. A photo that we saw looked like a moonscapemfrom all the craters from the bombs

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bomb crater

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Vinh Moc Tunnels – in their original condition, unlike the tunnels in Siagon where they have been reinforced for tourists.  This was a community that built 3 levels of tunnels – the third level is actually 70 feet under ground – it was used to live in but also to smuggle Russian and Chinese weapons that came in from the sea, stored in the tunnels, then at night were hand lifted out to the HoChi Minh trail via Laos. The VC then travelled through Laos to attack the south.   At the surface level you see trenches -these were for if you got caught outside when a bombing run was being made. They could follow the trench and it would bring them to an entrance. 

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This is a ventilation shaft

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Here we go – went to all the levels – therefore, we were actually 70 feet underground – stay close to the guide who had  a flashlight. I (Tim) was fumbling around for my camera and lo and behold when I looked up the group must have gone around a corner, because I was left there in the black – run quick and hope there was only one path – there was

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you could actually scrape the clay off the side walls – They had a eating room, birthing room, hospital room, – a number of kids were born in the tunnel.

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Different levels would come out on the seaward side of the hill

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Chinese and Russian weapons would be smuggled in off the coast to these tunnels.

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