Last night we spent the evening in a Bedouin camp! The Bedouin are the nomadic tribal people of the desert in the middle east. They live in tents, raise camels and welcome tourists to their simple way of life. It sounds totally touristy, but it was truly an enriching experience. Our Bedouin hosts took us on a 4-hour sunset ride through the desert, stopping to take pictures of camels, have tea with some other locals who played music for us, and tell stories from their childhood in the harsh desert. That evening we ate a delicious dinner of lamb and chicken cooked underground in traditional fashion, accompanied by more music played on an oud, the middle east’s version of a lute. After dinner we had a mint sheesha before bedding down under the night sky for the evening.
The next day we visited the place which brought me to Jordan in the first place: Petra! This amazing site is on UNESCO’s wonders of the world. It’s a canyon whose faces have been carved into sumptuous roman-style temples and tombs. Petra is most known for it’s part in the movie “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.” We took horses down to the entrance of the canyon. It was incredible, and so much bigger than I’d expected.
The next day we spent our morning at the Dead Sea! It’s a body of water that lies 422 meters below sea level, and is 8.6 times saltier than the ocean. Statistics aside, the draw of the Dead Sea is it’s nutrient-rich mud, which is dug up from the depths of the middle of the Sea, and it’s buoyancy. When you go in the water you float. I mean, you float so much that you don’t have to tread water. It’s like being in a womb or something because you just sort of bob around like a bouy. We had lots of fun smearing mud all over ourselves and doing goofy poses in the water.
We ended our time in Jordan with a day in Amman, the capital city. It’s not that interesting, some cool markets and a well-preserved roman amphitheater were the highlights. We also had a traditional Jordanian dinner in a local restaurant that was lovely but we got a TON of food.
I said good-bye to my wonderful new friends and am looking forward to hearing about all of their adventures!
“What do you call a donkey with three legs? A wonkey!”
This from one of my tour mates, Salimah, during our brief excursion by donkey to explore the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. The group tour I signed up for has been the absolute best experience of the past six months. With ten fabulous mates from various countries as Australia, England, Canada, and Sweden, I’ve bounced around Egypt, stopping at the top sites of the Ancient civilization.
We’ve packed so very much into the twelve days I’ve been here (and there are three more days), I can’t possibly detail every moment.
As Indicated by the title, we’ve had varying modes of transport, notably a camel ride through the dunes on the west bank of the Nile to see the famed monastery of St. Simon. As always, I tend to attract drama and disaster like white on rice and the camel ride could not be complete without… As the handlers brought the adorable creatures to us, one camel was making quite a fuss, growling and nipping at the guys. It appeared his saddle was a bit tight or something because the guys were messing around with it. The camel did not calm down very much. Just as I was beginning to record this scene, the guy points to me and beckons me to hop on this temperamental camel!!! After some protestations, I finally crawled on and he seemed to calm down. Then he started running away. The word running is a bit of an exaggeration; he was sort of trotting, but it was enough to terrify me! They slowed him down and the rest of the ride went rather smoothly. Walking through the desert on a camel was pretty awesome, with all of my new friends around me. Little boys led us along, making jokes and singing little songs in Arabic. The monastery was stunning. When the ride was over my pelvic bones were bruised like crazy, but it was totally worth it.
So far my favorite thing has been the day and night we spent on a traditional egyptian sailboat called a felucca. We floated down the Nile river with the perfect amount of wind to gently push us along. We stopped here and there to take dips in the cool water. Now, I know there’s a lot of paranoia about parasites dwelling in the infamous river, but our guide assured us that it was completely safe; the parasites live in the muddy banks closer to the delta, where the flow is slower and the water is much more stagnant. The waters we swam in were clear and clean, providing much-needed respite from the stifling heat. That evening we unrolled sleeping bags and slept under the stars.
We had a wonderful day and on the beach in the Red Sea, snorkeling and sunbathing. It ended with a fantastic dinner in a cabana on the sand.
I, being the tech junkie I am, brought my laptop loaded up with movies and just happened to have The Mummy and Mummy Returns! So we had a couple of “screening” nights punctuated by commentary over the factual and fictional aspects of the films.
We’ve seen the typical Egyptian monuments: the Great Pyramids at Giza; the temples at Karnak, Abu Simbel and Luxor; the Valley of the Kings where Tut is buried; the El Khalili Bazaar where they sell traditional crafts and souvenirs; and the Egyptian Museum, where the treasures of King Tut’s tomb are on display.
Although I’m excited and thrilled to see everything, the 4 am wake-up calls and 7-hour bus rides are exhausting. I’m looking forward to Turkey when I can sleep in and have more time to myself!
Whoah!!! I know, it’s been forever, but my 3-week reprieve back in the states was a whirlwind, and now I’m on this tour of Egypt. So it’s been near impossible to deal with pics or write…
After my little reunion with Alan and a week in Seattle, I headed to Portland for a reunion with my friends. We drank, karaoke’d, and it was really wonderful to see everyone again. Alan drove down that Sunday and met me with a gigantic moving van with a trailer for his car. We picked up my stuff from storage and began the long journey to Tucson, Arizona, our home for the next 3 years.
The van was 27 feet!!! There was trouble from the start when Alan turned onto a dead end street. The truck was impossible to back out in the tiny neighborhood intersection. With the help of some neighbors, we got the trailer detached, turned everything around, and crashed for the night at my friend Ernie’s. Day 1 saw us driving through Southern Oregon and Northern California to Stockton, just east of San Francisco. It was only 13 hours. Ugh. The truck kept beeping at us every time we hit the brakes and we had to shut the ignition off really quick to stop it. And, well, it was so huge it was terrifying to drive. Day 2: we made our way down I-5 through the lovely California Dust Bowl to my parents’ house in Moreno Valley. That was another 12 hours driving. The last day we cut east to Tucson, passing through Phoenix. We arrived at 3:30 in the afternoon, just in time for friends to come help unload our stuff.
The apartment filled up quickly with my boxes of books, kitchen stuff and clothes LOL. With everything in the apartment, you couldn’t walk through the rooms. There was furniture and boxes wall-to-wall! I didn’t realize how much crap I had (Alan’s stuff took up a mere 1/4 of the truck)! The next day we checked all the boxes, sorted out the stuff he would need for the next 6 months, and threw everything else in the spare room. The apartment itself is pretty standard, a gated community with a workout center and a pool. Alan’s already going on bike rides with his new co-residents and has settled in nicely.
The following Sunday I had a great time with my two dads. First was breakfast buffet at Acapulco with my Mom and Dad… so very… California Then I drove to Laguna for brunch and goofing around on the beach with my other Dad, his family and my two half-sisters. It was a great day, but I was down to only 1 day left before my flight brought me to Cairo. I had to re-stock and replace some things from my previous six months, quick!
My flight on June 22 from LAX to London was the scariest of my life. We hit some serious turbulence about halfway through and the pilot simply came on the overhead and said, “Seatbelts Please.” Seat belts please? Not very reassuring. Usually you get a, “Hey folks, we’re coming up on some mild turbulence here, we’d like you to go ahead and fasten your seat belts until we get past it. Thanks.” Okay, so I was terrified. But I’m writing this and obviously I made it alive.
I landed in Cairo, hired a taxi, and bore out the heat to my super nice hostel near the Egyptian Museum. They treated me like a queen, upgrading my dorm bed to a Double with A/C, since there were no other guests coming in. The owner hooked me up with a great dinner, and showed me an awesome garden bar where we smoked a sheesha and I sampled the local wine. Uh, I’m going to stick with the coffee and hibiscus tea from now on!
Well, it is so hot here, the minute you walk out of the shower you have to turn around and go back in again. But I’m holding up well, the tour gives us afternoons off so we can hide in our rooms or in the swimming pool during the hottest part of the day, and I’m drinking 2 litres of water or more every day.
Whew, okay. Quick rundown, we’ve been to the Egyptian Museum and the Pyramids at Giza; we then traveled by sleeper train to Aswan, where we were put up in a 3 star hotel on the Nile with a pool. I spent the morning exploring the Bazaar, with its spice vendors and touts selling just about any Egyptian thing you could imagine. I bought a few gifts, got back to the hotel and enjoyed some serious pool time. That night we took an evening cruise down the Nile in a Felucca, a traditional Egyptian sailboat. Then we had dinner in a traditional Nubian home.
The next day we got up at 3 am to take a convoy to Abu Simbel, the famous hillside temples near the great dam of the Nile on Lake Nasser. It was truly amazing seeing these temples built by Rameses II. The three-hour ride back involved a real-life mirage! That’s when you see something that looks like water on the horizon, but it’s just an illusion of the heat. That night we chilled out around the hotel.
The next morning we boarded our Felucca again for a whole day sailing down the Nile, with a couple of stops for a swim and to eat. We slept under the stars as the boat rocked us to sleep. The next morning we hopped on a bus to the city of Luxor, with a stop at Kom Ombo. I’ll talk some more about these sites in the next blog. You get the idea of the fast pace of this trip though. It’s up every morning before 6, go all day and bed every night at midnight.
I’m going to be very worn out after this tour, but it’s completely amazing!
No, I did not chicken out and decide to come home early. Nor did I run out of money. I also did not contract a strange disease. And I didn’t get sick of traveling. I came home to see Alan graduate from Medical School – yay! – to recharge my batteries, and use some off-time to plan my last 5 months on the road.
Bactrack to Goa: I spent a luxurious week lying around on a deserted beach on the Indian Sea. Palolem beach was in it’s last week of tourist season, ready to shut down before the monsoons descended. This white sand beach was lined with coco-huts and small bars, catering to backpackers and retirees who visit for the cheap accommodations and fresh caught seafood.
It was tranquil and quiet, but with just enough visitors to keep things interesting. The small concrete “hut” I snagged for $7 a night was right next to a bar called the Round Cube… they played chilled-out lounge electro and offered $2 cocktails from 5-9 every day. They also had a few chaise lounges out front for sunbathing, which I pretty much lived on all week. Not much happened, which was exactly what I wanted, but here are a few highlights:
- The people I met in Palolem Beach, both working the Cube and visiting the area, were awesome. It was like I had my own little “Cheers,” everyone was so friendly and very interesting to chat with. John Thomas McCann, in particular, was a hoot: a giant old Scottsman who could be mistaken for a shaven Fat Bastard any day of the week (Fat Bastard being one of Dr. Evil’s henchman in Austin Powers 2). Then there was Tony, an old Canadian of British descent who still lives with his Ex-wife and teenage kids, and whose parents are of Royal descent.
- In my morning walks on the beach I always found something interesting. One day the fisherman pulled their nets in and left behind a ton of sea Fauna lying at the waterline. There were Hermit crabs, starfish, crabs, stingrays and even a giant eel one day. The eel was about 6 feet long! Unfortunately he had been clubbed in the head by the time I arrived, but it was still quite a site.
-One day I rented a scooter and drove around the area, visiting a few of the other beaches. I was accompanied by an old hippie retiree from London who smoked hand rolled hash joints and spouted off great diatribes about the meaning of life, as he sees it. According to him, we’re all fucked. I had to agree with him after seeing the tar balls that had washed up on the pristine beach the night before…
-The tar balls!!! OMG!!! TAR BALLS! On the beach. In India. Tar. Sticky, black shiny balls of tar. TAR??? Okay, now that I’ve caught my breath, apparently the oil tankers that cross the seas between the middle east and India stop 100 miles offshore and clean out their cargo bays. The debris washes up on the beach the next morning. Many of the locals had never seen this before. And it came about a month into the Gulf of Mexico incident… John was right: We’re all fucked.
- Ahem. Okay, the next day I had Shark for dinner. Freshly caught from the tar-ball-laden sea. It was okay, very salty, but it was Shark for heaven’s sake! Shark! Yet another delicacy to add to my growing list of unusual food sampled in my travels. I may get cancer from the possibly tar-contaminated meat, but I’m fucked anyway, so it’s all good.
- I got a seriously lovely tan. I generally avoid basking in full sun, but I decided that just this one summer, I will make up for all the Vitamin D I’ve missed since living in Portland. I at least kept a hat on and SPF 3000 on my face. I have to say, I’m feelin’ pretty darn sexy with my golden sun-kissed tan from Goa. Maybe I’ll get skin cancer someday, but I’m fucked anyway, so what does it matter?
Okay, I know this is long, but there’s so much to say! Almost done, but I promise it’s worth the time to keep reading.
On the day of my departure from Goa, I got many warm goodbyes from all of my new friends, and everyone implored me to come back next year. I didn’t make any promises, but I know I will go back someday. There was just something magical about Palolem Beach… it wasn’t the prettiest I’ve ever been to nor did it have much in the way of activities or amenities, but the people were positively charming, inspiring, and made me feel so at home there. It made up for the fact that we’re all fucked lol
That night I was booked on an Air-conditioned Sleeper bus destined for Bombay (Mumbai if you’re Indian). I had no idea what I was in for. As I dropped my bag at the bus’ luggage hold, I bumped into another American. Looking around, I noticed we were the only white people boarding… Dan and I started chatting a bit – I found out he was from Florida and was on a break from being stationed with the Navy in Afghanistan for the past 18 months. The bus had one long aisle down the middle with two levels of double-size sleepers. We soon discovered we were sharing a bed! I had no idea the sleepers were “shared,” but the bus was full, Dan seemed okay, and I was exhausted. We got to know each other a bit, and then laid down after an hour or so to try and get some shut-eye. First off, the A/C was a small vent pointed right at my chest, blowing air that felt like wind coming off a polar ice cap. Second, the half of bed I had was about 2 feet wide. I pretty much had to lie stretched out to avoid hanging over Dan’s side. The bus driver was going like an old wooden roller coaster, but without the giant hills. It was wobbling and swerving so much I never thought I’d be able to sleep. But what really kept me up was the woman in the sleeper across the aisle from ours who was vomiting with motion sickness for most of the night. Needless to say, her predicament made me feel immensely appreciative and grateful for my own situation. It was a very restless night for me (and I think for Dan too), but we made it to Bombay alive.
I spent about 12 hours in Bombay before I had to head home. I caught a glimpse of the beach there, which was packed with Indians swimming and hanging out on the sand. One interesting thing to note: The women wear their Saris in the water to swim, but the men wear as little as possible – the skimpiest speedos I’ve ever seen! It was SO weird. Anyway, I also took in a Bollywood Movie called Kites, which was a fantastic poor-boy-meets-rich-engaged-girl story set in Vegas. I was disappointed though, because the film was devoid of musical numbers which Bollywood is so famous for.
I flew 9 hours to Frankfurt and I got upgraded to Business Class at the last minute! So I slept like a baby, then had a 6-hour layover before getting on a plane to LAX, where my parents picked me up. I stayed with them in Moreno Valley for a few days then flew to Seattle, where Alan’s parents were waiting to help me surprise the hell out of him. His Dad met me at the entrance of his building, where they had been staying in a suite on the bottom floor. Alan was hanging out with them in their suite and I just walked in. Alan looked up and just stared. It was hilarious. Then he made this like, Ah? sound, and finally came over to give me a big hug and a kiss. So, he had no idea I was coming, and was completely in shock. After it wore off though, we had a wonderful reunion, and we love each other more than ever. Isn’t that sweet?
Anyway, I’m not back for good. I’ll make a stop in Portland to visit friends before driving with Alan to Tucson… then I head out for Egypt on the 22nd to finish the last 5 months of my world tour, in Europe.
BTW, we may all be fucked, but it’s all the more reason to live life like there’s no tomorrow
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 12:54 am. 2 comments
I just landed in Goa after a crazy journey to Delhi airport involving a 20-minute walk with my giant backpack, 2 bus rides, a tuk-tuk ride and a taxi ride. All in the 103-degree heat I saved 200 rupees, or $4. How silly of me to decline the hostel taxi! But it was a great adventure…
Delhi was totally awesome! I was in this hostel where they were having a party for someone’s birthday. There was free dinner, beer, cake, and ice cream, and they brought out a hookah later. All these skeezy Indian guys were hanging out trying to impress the girls with their dance moves. It was hilarious! I was up til 4am.
And then I had to get up at 5 for my tour to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. I hired a personal air-conditioned taxi for the three-hour ride, where I also saw the enormous Agra fort, and Sikhandra, another tomb in which some king was buried. There are no cars allowed near the Taj, so my driver had to park in a nearby lot, then I hopped on a horse-drawn rickshaw for the 20-minute ride to the entrance of the grounds. So fun!
The Taj was mind-blowing. I never realized how enormous it was. If anyone is not familiar, it’s a famous monument/tomb that one of the kings built for his favorite wife (out of three). Some say it’s the ultimate monument to love. I got a little misty-eyed when i crossed that threshold where i could just see it in it’s entirety, looming beyond the immense gardens. Awwww…
After so many hours at tourist spots though, I was exhausted. There are so many scam artists everywhere trying to hustle you – the best is the one where they walk up and tell you they’re a volunteer giving information on the building, they follow you around telling you about the historical significance and cool details about who built it and whatnot. Then at the end they ask you for money. I don’t really have a problem tipping for that sort of thing, but I was running out of small bills. So I told this one guy when he approached me that I didn’t have any cash left and did not want a tour, but he insisted it was free and followed me around. I told him several times after that I was not going to give him money but he kept on. Finally at the end of a very paltry tour, he held out his hand. I screamed at him, “no wonder everyone hates India, because you’re all a bunch of thieves!” and I ran out of the building. Kids asking for money when they look perfectly clean and dressed. I gave one kid the biscuits I kept in my pack as a snack, then he asked me for money and I told him no in Hindi. That little sh!t followed me for 3 blocks, tugging on my clothes and asking for rupees. I finally turned and shoved him so hard he fell on the ground! I felt like a walking ATM machine… Finally, I went up to a cart for a bottle of water and the man wanted triple what I knew it was worth, and wouldn’t bargain down. I walked to three different ones and they all pulled the same crap on me. Then there are the sellers of crap I don’t want-they follow you around, sticking their stuff in your face and I got so fed up, I was hating India pretty bad.
And people, especially men, stare at me like crazy! But a few Indians actually asked to take a photo with me. I felt like a celebrity.
But one of the coolest things was the taxi ride. Omg talk about hair-raising automobile operations. He manouvered that car in and out of traffic like a driver in the Indy 500. Even while i was gripping my seat in terror, I was seriously impressed. Just kidding. I yelped a couple of times when a vehicle pulled suddenly in front of us and the driver slammed on the brakes.
The heat in Delhi was the worst I’ve ever felt – 115 degrees fahrenheit. The A/C in the hostel sucked, but I survived and now I’m on the coast where it’s still warm, but there’s a nice breeze. It’s quite beautiful. Of course this view couldn’t come without a price.
The two times I’ve rolled into a town without hotel reservations I’ve ben stuck walking the city from place to place, begging for a room. This was the third such occasion. I don’t know how so many other trvavelers have such luck, but I’ve decided to play on the side of caution from now on, and at least have the first night booked so if I don’t like it I can try to move. The place I found was only $7 per night but by the looks of it, the bungalow I’m in probably cost less than that to built. There aren’t any rats and the ‘door’ has a padlock on it, butits probably the most dodgy joint I’ve ever stayed in lol. Yes, worse than the capsule hotel from Tokyo!!!
But if I get my way I’ll be spending all day on the beach, which is 5 steps from my door, or in the little bar next door that has 2-for-1 drinks from 5-9. Whoo-hoo!
Posted 3 months, 1 week ago at 9:40 am. Add a comment
Well I’m in a taxi on the way to the airport. My two weeks here have been um, interesting. The highlight of the week was the touching departure I received from the children at the drc. They anointed me with a red tikka and scarves, symbols of respect and good luck. And I got tons of hugs from everyone, as if I’d been there for months. I’ll admit it’s a great feeling when tons of cute kids surround you, smiling and laughing. Especially when they’re missing limbs, covered in burn scars or in wheelchairs.
I also did something I never expected. Don, one of the children at the DRC, lost a fair portion of the lower half of his legs and is mostly confined to a wheelchair. I didn’t have the nerve to ask how he sustained his injuries, but found out he is in need of surgery. His bones continue to grow, painfully stretching the skin left on his legs. He has to endure a procedure every 2 years to cut away the bone growth in his legs so his skin can keep up.
Another volunteer was considering a fundraiser back in his home in England, so he went to the hospital to inspect the facilities and meet the doctor who would perform the surgery. He discovered the cost was a mere 15,000 rupees, which converts to about $175 US. There was no question in my mind– I had to pay for it. He goes under in two weeks. If any of you believe in a higher power, pray for a successful surgery and a speedy recovery for Dan.
Aside from that, I had many crazy bus and cab rides, ate some of the best food ever (and did not get Delhi belly). My host family made some of the best meals of my entire trip. Plus I never realized how much I miss home-cooked food! I got some of the recipes and I’m anxious to try them out when I come back.
Oh… when I come back… December seems so far away, but I’m amazed when I think about the fact that my trip is almost half-over. And I am already feeling a bit reluctant to go home!
Posted 3 months, 2 weeks ago at 8:22 am. 2 comments
Yesterday I arrived in Katmandu after a long exhausting journey involving a 12 hour layover in Delhi airport with no money and no Internet access. I spent the time drifting in and out of sleep on the concrete floor, shivering, with a blanket and pillow I stole from the airplane I’d come in on. I felt like a homeless person!
When I finally arrived, my liason was not there to meet me, and I had to beg a cab driver to take me into the city to an ATM machine. I needed cash and a phone to call the volunteer organization, to find out where I was supposed to go. Mind you, this is a very third world country. I could have been robbed or worse!
After stopping at five different ATM machines, it became clear that my card wasn’t going to work. By chance I saw a place that would give me a cash advance on my MasterCard for a very hefty fee, but I was desperate! So I got ahold of my people and arrived at a hostel where I could grab a nap and a shower before my hosts took me sightseeing.
Katmandu is the first truly third-world place I’ve ever visited. It incites in me feelings of sadness, fear, anger, pity, disgust, and horror. After a few hours my throat, nose and eyes burned from the intense pollution. My brain hurts from the constant clatter of honking cars, people yelling, televisions blasting, motorbikes and some kind of buzzing that I can’t quite put my finger on.
The streets and river are polluted beyond anything I could have imagined. Trash strewn everywhere, sludge oozing from drains, dust and exhaust clouding the air. The people are so chronically congested that they spit on the tiny cobblestone streets. Dirty children run wild, nearly attacking you for money.
And then there are the animals… around the main temple (the temple!), there are hundreds of stray dogs, many of them puppies, in various states of neglect. Some of them looked as if they were literally dying– wounded, sick, dirty.
It took all of my strength not to just break down in tears that such places could be, could happen in this world, that a government could be so neglectful of a people who, despite their situation, appear quite friendly and optimistic.
And one thing I can’t understand is how a place with so much tourism (this is a major hub for climbers of Mt. Everest, as well as Trekkers who come to enjoy the scenery), could be so impoverished.
It’s the saddest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I look forward to starting my work in the orphanage tomorrow; my hope is that I, along with the many others who come here, will contribute to their lives with compassion and education.
Namaste means good-bye in nepalese; I may not have Internet access once I go to my host family. Wish me luck!
Posted 3 months, 4 weeks ago at 8:15 am. Add a comment
We had to wear all white clothes, eat vegetarian food, start our guided meditation at 4 am and do yoga once a day. Also we were expected to meditate for 8 hours per day.
I quickly found that my ADD-addled brain was not up to the task. Out of 12 or so hours I sat in silence, I was able to focus about 10 minutes. Not per hour. Per the entire 4 days.
I pushed myself way too far in yoga the first day and spent the rest of the time in a lot of pain!
It was not that great. I don’t feel much calmer, but now I can impress people when I tell them I studied meditation in Thailand! LOL
After hearing startling reports of dead civilians and subway bombings in Bangkok, I’ve decided to cancel plans to visit Thailand’s capital city. I’m up for great adventures, but it appears visiting the city of din would be just plain stupid, esp. considering I’m a woman traveling alone.
This is very disappointing… I was looking forward to seeing the grand palace, the ladyboys in their native habitat, and what they meant when they said, “one night in Bangkok makes the hard man humble…”
My alternative plan is to fly to Chiang Mai, one of the older, more traditional cities of Thailand, or to stay in the beachy area down south. I’m loving it here and would love to spend another week soaking up the sunshine and contemplating the meaning of life. I could do the scuba certification I’ve been wanting to do, and could do some more writing. I already know I’m coming back to thailand someday so chilling out is certainly not a total sacrifice…
Anyway, not much new to write about. Wednesday night I attended the Half-moon party, the little sister of the world-famous Full-moon party of Ko Phangan. It’s a huge hippie-rave-trance party in the middle of the forest. In the midst of black lights, neon body paint, “mushroom” treats, eardrum-bursting techno music, and buckets of boozy drinks I got a taste of what a night at burning man might be like. I’m not much for the scene, but I had a great time participating with some new friends from my resort.
Speaking of my resort, I’ve been blessed with the good fortune of finding a bungalow on the rocks overlooking the sea for twenty bucks a night. Here at Mai Pen Rai in Thansadet, they turn off the electricity every day between midnight and 11 am, and from 4-6 pm; and the only ways out of here are by rental jeep or a daily taxi at 10 am. But the beach restaurant/bar serves up great reggae all day with their amazing fruit shakes and shaded hammocks; and there’s a cheap Thai masseur right at waters edge, should the tranquility of the tiny beach not be enough to soothe your nerves.
Today, made an excursion to the nearby town, Haad Rin, to get a bit of retail therapy and pedicure. It’s pretty low-key, the dirt roads lined with cafes, tattoo parlors and cheap clothing outlets. Apparently this is THE place to subject oneself to a spell under the needle, as evidenced by the many tattoo and piercing shops in the town… I would say 1 shop for every four spaces. Fortunately, I finally settled on my last tattoo and vowed to never get another last year, so the temptation is long gone for me. My resolve was steeled today when the masseur at my resort told me that although my tattoo was beautiful, I was a beautiful girl and did not need such a big tattoo to look beautiful. My response was that I didn’t get it to look beautiful LOL
I read some more of my current book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma.” It’s about the writer’s journey into the food industry. If you appreciated last year’s films “King Corn” or “Food Inc.,” you would be interested in this book. While the author touches on much of the material covered in the aforementioned films, he delves a bit deeper into the science behind food processing, and writes of his own experience attempting to track the sources of the foods we find in our local supermarkets. After reading the first half of the book, I finally see the true value of buying local, sustainably produced foods. The book brings to light the farce that the “organic” label has become, exposing the legal loopholes and profiteering that occur behind the scenes of major “industrialized” organic farming operations. It’s a brilliant but disheartening read, when I’m left with the sense that, short of driving miles to small-scale farms that practice true organic farming, I will never be able to wholly support this alternative to the perverse and poisonous food industry that exists today.
I won’t resort to quoting facts that already can be found with a simple google search. But I will say that it’s obvious most of foods we find at our grocers cost us more than the cheap price we see on the shelf. As consumers who purchase good old-fashioned beef from our grocer, we support feed lots that treat their cows inhumanely, and poison us through use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and antibiotics; as taxpayers we are subsidizing a corn industry that poisons our food supply in the form of high fructose corn syrup, preservatives and other synthetic chemicals derived from corn which have been directly linked to diabetes, cancer, birth defects, and obesity.
And just because the package says “organic,” it does not mean it’s healthier or tastes better!
Sorry… Back to travel memories and happy happy stuff!
Posted 4 months, 1 week ago at 11:51 am. Add a comment
The next day we spent our morning at the Dead Sea! It’s a body of water that lies 422 meters below sea level, and is 8.6 times saltier than the ocean. Statistics aside, the draw of the Dead Sea is it’s nutrient-rich mud, which is dug up from the depths of the middle of the Sea, and it’s buoyancy. When you go in the water you float. I mean, you float so much that you don’t have to tread water. It’s like being in a womb or something because you just sort of bob around like a bouy. We had lots of fun smearing mud all over ourselves and doing goofy poses in the water.
Then I drove to Laguna for brunch and goofing around on the beach with my other Dad, his family and my two half-sisters. It was a great day, but I was down to only 1 day left before my flight brought me to Cairo. I had to re-stock and replace some things from my previous six months, quick!
I saved 200 rupees, or $4. How silly of me to decline the hostel taxi! But it was a great adventure…