Alek Travels

India

2011-06-26T08:18:00.003-04:00

Shimla
After thirty-six agonizing hours of numbing transit, which started in Jacksonville, my mom and I arrived in Shimla, a town built into the mountains in Northern India. At our hotel we met up with my dad, who was one week into teaching a two-week course in International Environmental Law in a summer abroad program for law students from the U.S. and India. Over the next few days, we explored much of what the town had to offer. What seemed to me to be an unassuming place at first, Shimla is a diamond-in-the-rough, overshadowed by conspicuous destinations in Delhi and Mumbai, yet just as interesting. For comparison’s sake, I saw Shimla as a mix between the pollution and locale of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and the idyllic nature of Paraty, Brazil. On the first day, a nice tour of the town was to be had inadvertently during our hike to Viceregal lodge. We passed the Mall, Shimla’s main drag lined with high-end retailers, mom-and-pop shops, and many restaurants serving mostly local dishes. Once the Mall ended, it was just a matter of time until we were at the lodge. Although it was just “some historic building” to me, the Viceregal lodge would make any history buff revel in its glory, as the lodge and its grounds were home to the British government during the months of March to October, when Shimla served its role as India’s summer capital.

Day two saw us head up to Jachoo Temple, simply known as the monkey temple. Poking out of a mountaintop, the monkey temple marks Shimla’s highest point at 8,020 feet. Needless to say, the temple is a tribute to the monkey god, and many of the monkeys which populate the place, as well as the path leading up to it, are there to show for it. So, about that path: to get up to the temple, one must traverse by foot a one-mile path, which is at a dauntingly steep incline. To make matters more interesting, those making the pilgrimage to the temple are advised to rent sticks to fend off the monkeys which inhabit the path. I fared well going up, as did dad who was suffering from a herniated disk in his lower back. Mom, however, struggled as she was fighting what we would later understand to be a bad case of “Delhi Belly” (food poisoning). Yet, once we were at the top, the temples and monuments were very impressive rewarding.

Other highlights of our stay in Shimla were the Buddhist monastery, and girls’ ashram. The former was a secluded monastery about thirty minutes outside of town. Like most of the temples which populate India, the art work and craftsmanship in each was extraordinary. It was also fun to watch the monks dutifully working and devoutly spinning their handheld prayer wheels. We saw the opposite end of the gender spectrum a couple days later when we attended the latter, the girls’ ashram. Generally, ashrams act as residential quarters and safe havens for its residents aged eight to eighteen when they are not at school. A treacherous one-hour drive brought us to a small girls’ ashram, as we awaited the arrival of the girls from school. (Correction: it was ALL girls with the exception of one poor [or lucky, depending on how you look at it] boy, the teacher’s son, who was destined for childhood therapy at one point or another.) Once the fifty-some girls arrived, we were treated to some English and Hindu sing-alongs and dances. Later, we presented every one of the girls (and the boy) with goodie bags, watched the ensuing Christmas-morning-like joy, and then waved goodbye. The trip to the girls’ ashram was a great ending to our stay in Shimla.

Dharamsala
The following day we embarked on another long, treacherous, 8-hour drive to Dharamsala, a town northwest of Shimla. On the drive, I found out why the state in which Dharamsala (and Shimla) resides in is called Himachal: for the last two hours of the drive, we were treated to stunning views of the Himalayan mountain range. As we got closer and closer to Dharamsala, the terrain got hillier, to the point where a steep 20 minute drive punctuated our arrival in McLeod Ganj, the downtown district of Dharamsala. To quote from Frommer’s India guidebook, McLeod Ganj is, literally, a “backpacker’s ghetto.” I was able to affirm this moniker, whether it was through the smell of fresh cannabis on a morning run or the sight of many Sanuk-clad, flannel-loving hipsters. Regardless, McLeod Ganj differed greatly in personality from Shimla. Whereas Shimla was a retreat for South Indian tourists, McLeod Ganj was a melting pot of all races, with peaceful interaction between Tibetans, Indians, and tourists. You see, McLeod Ganj is home to the Tibetan government-in-exile, which has resided here since 1959. Also, the fourteenth Dalai Lama’s residence is here, making McLeod Ganj a spiritual town. We got a glimpse of this on our first day, as we visited (another) Buddhist monastery. The most memorable experience I got out of this monastery was watching the philosophical debates between monks, who would accentuate their points with an emphatic downward clap in the opponent’s face. For the rest of our first day, we explored the town’s narrow streets (complete with throngs of people dodging motorcycles and cars). It seemed that McLeod Ganj’s laid-back atmosphere got the best of us, as the rest of our three-day stay was relaxing and anything but ambitious.

The second day at McLeod Ganj saw us take a small excursion to the Norbulinka Institute, a handicrafts village. We got a tour from a knowledgeable guide who showed us the on-site temple, guesthouse, puppet museum, and store (unfortunately, due to our trip falling on a Sunday, we were unable to see the making of the crafts). The place was very serene and relaxing. Afterwards, we went to another temple and then a tea garden. In the afternoon, we explored some more and did some shopping. In comparison to our second day, our third day was a bit more packed, as I had a few volunteer opportunities. First, I tutored a Tibetan yoga instructor, Sonam, in various aspects of human anatomy and physiology so he could communicate to English-speaking tourists what muscles and systems each yoga exercise stressed. Afterwards, Sonam helped us with some shopping, as we ended up buying prayer wheels, a Tibetan “singing bowl,” and a tonka (a painting of a Buddhist figure with embroidery around it). Our second volunteering opportunity presented itself in the afternoon at the Lha Center, where a one-hour English conservation class was to take place. The class is powered by volunteers, so for that specific day there were four volunteers, including my mom and me. The class size presented a challenge, as there were nearly fifty Tibetan students and only four of us. We made due, however, as we split into equal sized groups and went from there. In my group, I conducted a game of Scrabble to Tibetans who had never played the game before. I explained the rules to them and, much to my surprise, they picked up how to play easily, with most groups getting an excess of twenty points on any given turn. Despite the fact that most of my last day was spent volunteering, I greatly enjoyed giving back to underprivileged Tibetans.

Amritsar
After our stay in Dharamsala concluded, we embarked on another (you guessed it) car ride. I must take a much-needed digression here to describe exactly how bad these car rides are. To begin, there is no such thing as a “lane” on Indian roads; cars, auto-rickshaws, motorcycles, and bicycles simply move as one big, unorganized conglomerate, dodging pedestrians. Thus, you can imagine how often tourist passengers’ knuckles turn white. Here, the only way you can survive is if your driver has a good horn, allowing him to slalom on the road through anything from cows to the ornately decorated Tata trucks.

So, after yet another long, 6-hour drive southwest, we arrived in Amritsar. If you think Delhi is chaotic, just wait until you experience the bedlam in Amritsar. The place was utterly unbelievable, complete with haggling street vendors, elusive con artists, and aggressive drivers. But the chaos here is justified, as Amritsar is home to the Golden Temple, the most sacred place of the Sikh religion. For those who need to brush up on their world religions, Sikhs are those with the long beards and turbans whose religion stresses unity and brotherhood. Fittingly, Amritsar and its state, Punjab, are home to largest percentage of India’s Sikhs. Knowing this, you can imagine the pandemonium that arose at the Golden Temple. Before we entered, we worked our way through the crowd to a shoe drop-off area, where we deposited our shoes and socks. Prior to entering the temple, all guests must wash their feet, which is done by trudging through a (cess)pool of “water.” Once inside, we walked in a clockwise direction around the temple, which was at the center of a large pond and could only be reached by experiencing India’s largest mosh pit, a long line packed with people that stretched from the temple to the complex. While walking around the square-shaped complex, we marveled at the doggy bowls of water that were handed out at every corner, to any person in need of a cool, refreshing drink. Escaping the hot marble, we queued up (reluctantly, if your name is Alek) to get into the Golden Temple, sardined with thousands of other sweaty, stinking, practicing-lack-of-personal-space Indians. I’ve never experienced such emotions as anticipation, boredom, and anxiousness, respectively, in such a short period of time, as I initially was eager to see the icon proclaimed to one-up the Taj Mahal, subsequently became bovine at the prospect of waiting in a hot, stuffy line, and then yearned to get into the frickin’ temple so I could escape the hot mess. If someone had told me while I waiting in line that I would enter the Temple, I wouldn’t have believed them. Yet, the moment came when two Sikhs lifted a pole guarding the monument, and everyone lurched forward to the shout of my “Push!” Call in karma, or perhaps a spiritual message from the Sikhs, but the second I stepped inside the Golden Temple I was hip-checked into the large, six-foot door hinge holding the palace door, a pain so intense that it elicited a yelp from me so piercing it would make a Sikh’s beard vibrate. I opened my eyes to briefly catch a glimpse of the perpetrator, a young woman with her baby in tow. The rest of my temple experience was uneventful and, for the sake of brevity, very gold.

Once out of the temple, we traversed the land bridge at a quick clip, only to be whisked into another line upon exiting. The occasion? To receive a complimentary ball of mush, served up lunch-lady style by a devout Sikh. We kindly passed on the opportunity, not wanting to play Russian roulette with amoebic dysentery. Out of the temple, Dad and I thought we had the worst behind us, yet Mom suggested that we go see the dining halls where 35,000 people are fed, for free, each day. Upon arrival, I was handed a tin dish, doggie bowl, and spoon as Dad, Mom, and I queued up yet again to get into the dining hall. This mosh pit rivaled the previous one, but once the doors were open everyone rushed in so they could get their fix of lentils and bread. Mom opted only to take pictures of the scene as we were pressed for time.

With the Golden Temple experience finally behind us, I was expecting anything and everything to happen. On our walk back through Amritsar to our driver, I witnessed the repercussions of the haphazard driving habits on India’s roads, which were at their worst here. An innocent, approximately seven-year-old boy donning a Playboy shirt (which is a surprisingly popular article of clothing for the male tweens in India) was walking with his family through the streets of Amritsar. The next moment, a motorcyclist riding his bike at an unreasonably brisk clip hits the boy, flipping him in a cartwheel motion and landing him back first on the pavement. The boy was shocked more than anything, but the real story is the mutiny that unfolded as the boy’s dad shoved the reckless driver, choking him as bystanders egged them on and placed bets on who would come out on top. Our guidebook confirmed that the bedlam that unfolds after a vehicular accident is endemic to India’s culture.

Believe it or not, our eventful day was not yet complete. Once back with our driver, we headed west thirty minutes to the Pakistan border. No, we weren’t being coerced to carry out al-Qaeda initiatives in India; rather, we were going to attend the Wagah border ceremony, which is best described as a flamboyant, bicep-flexing contest between the two rival nations, as loyal Indian nationalists cheer on the border guards to outdo their Pakistani counterparts, and vice versa. Just when I thought our day couldn’t get more hectic, we arrived to a giant mass of people waiting in line. It was another swelteringly hot and sweaty, thirty-minute affair to get into the stadium, as we filed into our seat at about 6:00 PM, with the daily ceremony scheduled to start at 6:30 PM. The festivities before the ceremony were amusing, to say the least; spectatators participated in a running of the India flags relay-type activity and run fifty meters with the flag down to the border gate. On a few instances, some Caucasians from the “foreigner’s gallery” in which we resided also participated, surprisingly eliciting a roar from the crowd as they carried the flag. Also, there was a dance in the street fling, where Indian women (and a few brave men) danced in the street to latest club hits, including “Jai ho” from the award-winning movie, Slumdog Millionaire. After the aforementioned concluded, the ceremony commenced, first with a long “Go!” note by one of the border guards. Over the course of the ceremony, the guards high-stepped and straight-legged their way to glory to chants of the crowd brought forth by the MC’s shouting, “HINDUSTAN!” and some other words in Hindi. I greatly enjoyed the ceremony, yet was left kind of skeptical; there seemed to be sentiment of indifference in the foreigner’s gallery, as I appeared to be the only one dutifully waving my mini India flag and rooting for the home team. The guards also seemed a little on the hostile side, as they forced us Westerners in every-which-way, with one even remarking to me that I shouldn’t be sitting on my Golden Temple bandana, to which a disgruntled female tourist scoffed at me “It’s a holy symbol, so don’t sit on it.” At least for her, I was able to attribute the source of the permanent scowl throughout the ceremony to a serious case of “angry fat girl” syndrome. Needless to say, I was treated to a very memorable experience at the Wagah Border Ceremony.

Even though the night had fallen on our day-long stint at Amritsar, there was still one more adventure to be had: surviving India’s notorious rail system. Traveling by train was the only other mode of transportation for this car-sick, too-poor-to-afford-plane tickets group of travelers, so we embarked on our ten-hour train ride to Delhi. As I boarded the train, my initial thoughts were that our sleeper car accommodations only fell a few notches below the very civilized Thai railway system that we enjoyed in 2008. Upon further inspection, I noticed a couple of cockroaches, a rat, and some stained pillows – enough to keep me wincing the night away.

Delhi
At 7:00 AM the next day, we arrived groggy and smelly at the groggy and smelly Delhi train station. Moments later we were whisked to our digs for the next three day and two nights, to the swanky, business traveler oriented Le Meridien hotel. After freshening up and having a mediocre breakfast, Mom and I did some leisurely sightseeing of Old Delhi, as we toured a mosque and the Red Fort, while Dad remained in the hotel recovering from back pain or from sightseeing overload – you be the judge. The excursion wasn’t complete without beggars, more con artists, and one helluva rickshaw ride, which is only slightly more nerve-wracking than a fast bicycle ride through L.A. traffic. In the afternoon we did some shopping and eating, the highlights being picking up a pair of legit fake Ray Bans and indulging in a McDonald’s McVeggie sandwich (only to be found in India!) For the most part, we took it easy before our day-long marathon in the following twenty-four hours.

Agra
I was stirred out of bed at 4:30 AM the next morning, but for good reason: we were to take a 6:15 AM train to (Vi)Agra, sight of the one and only Taj Mahal. Once we arrived in Agra at 8:30 AM, we met up with our guide who immediately took us to the Taj. We were given excellent commentary as we entered the grounds before the Taj, and then came the moment where one was able to spot the glistening white-marble monument. Seeing the Taj up close was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime experience, to say the least. And our guide was able to explain the history and many intricacies behind this wonder of the world. Up next, we went to the Agra fort, another great structure dating from the days of the Mughal dynasty. Only four miles away, we were able to snap excellent pictures of the Taj as its white marble seemed to blend in with the white sky. After all photo opportunities were taken, we headed to lunch at the Oberoi hotel, the fanciest establishment in town and one of the most exclusive hotels in the world.

A leisurely lunch to reenergize left us ready to embark to the lost city of Fatepuhr Sikr, about an hour away from Agra. The city was another mark left by the Mughal dynasty, as it served as a capital albeit for a very short time. It took about ten years to build but was only occupied for four years, becoming abandoned due to lack of water availability. Although most of the city is destroyed, some important parts remained, like the emperor’s quarters, the houses of the each of the three wives, and the treasury. Our trip to lost city concluded the day’s sightseeing, after which we relaxed at a coffee shop before heading back to the train station.

India’s train stations never cease to amaze me. Seemingly normal people came out on the middle of the platform, rats run rampant on the tracks, and many homeless people call this place a refuge. Armed with a large bag of candy, I treated some of the homeless inhabitants, most of which were young boys. We made friends with a few boys, one of whom had a cleft palate, and ended up giving them the leftovers from our lunch, which they devoured with delight. My heart went out to the homeless boys. Ironically, karma was at work again on the train ride back, although this time it wasn’t of the good nature. During the meal service on the train, I ate some mysterious potatoes in curry, which both Mom and Dad refused to ingest, and ended coming down with a horrible bout of food poisoning on our last day in India. Just seemed to me as another reason why India is mysterious and magical, and why I hope to return sometime in the future.

Paraty

2011-01-01T11:38:00.017-05:00

Day 10 – Travel

Having had our fill of Rio in four days, we were ready to begin the end of our vacation in the costal, laid-back town of Paraty, which was a 5 hour bus ride away. We were up bright and early to board our 9 o’ clock bus, which brought us to Paraty right around 2 PM. We settled into our quaint B&B, Pousada Guarana, and relaxed before heading into town in the early evening.

After a 20 minute walk, we arrived in the historic district of Paraty, which dates back to the 16th century when the town was used for the neighboring gold trade. Needless to say, the historic center is very nice, closed to traffic, and conveniently accessible by foot. It reminded us of a more rustic and less touristy version of St. Augustine, FL.

To start our culinary feast, we indulged in some excellent gelato. After some walking around, we headed to a nice restaurant which served excellent pasta. And just when you thought we had enough, for dessert we tried (for the first of three trips), the acai (pronounced AH-sigh-EE) berry puree, which was served with various toppings (like honey or condensed milk) and fresh fruit. This dessert is surely the nectar of the gods. I felt invincible and close to nirvana after each generous serving.

Day 11 – Paraty

Having a full day ahead of us to explore, we kicked off our first day in Paraty by having a laid back morning, sleeping in, and enjoying a great homemade breakfast. At about 10 AM, we headed out to the main drag and hailed down a cab, who agreed to take us to a waterfall not that far away called Penha. Turns out, this “waterfall” is actually a large slab of rock over which water flows in a steady and thin stream, making it Nature’s own waterslide. Many crazy locals, and even some tourists, took part in this experience, but I valued my life enough to pass on this tempting recipe for a concussion. Still, we enjoyed relaxing by the water in the jungle. Upon our return to the historic center of town, we did some more walking around and exploring.

Similar to the first night, our second night in Paraty was a culinary tour of the town, to say the least. We started off with appetizers and drinks at a Thai restaurant (where Dad was offered two free shots of clove-flavored cashasha, which made him a little loopy for the rest of the evening), followed by a very large meat filled Pastel from a street vendor as the main course. Finally, to top it all off, we returned to the acai restaurant where I tackled a whopping 500ml of berry bliss.

Needless to say, Dad and I had no choice but to continue the losing battle to offset this deluge of calories with an ambitious running agenda (this time with challenging hills). The final mileage scoreboard for our Brazil vacation was 68 miles for me, 52 miles for Dad, and a big goose egg for Mom (“I prefer to just walk and enjoy my surroundings.)”

Day 12 – Paraty

With a day left to our stay in Paraty, as well as to our entire trip to Brazil, we wanted to end with a bang and enjoy a memorable experience. So, what more could you ask for than a five hour long tour by boat through Paraty’s beautiful bay and nearby islands? We did just that, boarding our boat, the Rei Cigano, at 10 AM and departed for our tour.

The ride was very nice, to say the least, and included four stops to swim and snorkel. With all the swimming, I got an extra dose of Vitamin D as I discovered later in the day with a nasty sunburn on my back, rivaled only by Mom, the human lobster back. Upon our return back to land, we headed back to our pousada (B&B) before heading out to the historic district later in the evening.

Following the suggestion of our B&B owners, we headed to a local restaurant called Camello for our fix of Arab-inspired esfihas. The esfihas are excellent mini-pizzas, which disappeared in seconds after they were served to us.

For the first time in our entire trip, we took part in some entertainment, although it might not be what you think. On our final night in Paraty, we went to see an internationally acclaimed puppet show, which was an hour long wordless production. The puppeteers were excellent in execution and made the puppets seem like real human beings rather than a lifeless doll. All in all, the show was a great way to end our stay in Paraty.

Day 13 – Travel

The day finally dawned on us where we would be heading back home. With a day of travel ahead of us, we waved good bye to the beautiful country that is Brazil, hoping we will find ourselves there again sometime soon. Feliz Natal and Feliz Ano Novo!

Rio de Janeiro

2010-12-29T13:52:00.017-05:00

Day 6 – Rio de Janeiro

Now refreshed and energized, we took to exploring the streets of Rio in our first full day in the city. Due to the omnipresent cloud cover that shrouded the mountains around us, we decided to hold off on the cities two main attractions, Corcovado (Christ the Redeemer) and Sugarloaf. Instead, we took the metro to downtown and walked around a little before taking a trolley teeming with locals up to Santa Teresa, the artsy district of Rio. The trolley ride was quite an adventure as there were about 50 rowdy Brazilians crammed into a small trolley car, hanging from every corner of the old vehicle and having a raucously good time. Up there we enjoyed a nice lunch of local Brazilian fare, afterwards taking a cab back to our hotel.

Day 7

On our second day in Rio, we had a busy agenda; first, we were to go up to Sugarloaf via cable car and enjoy the view up there. Afterwards, we would depart on a tour of Rio’s favelas, or slums. With a little bit of time to spare we would get ready for dinner at one of the many delicious restaurants Rio has to offer.

First off was our trip to Sugarloaf, one of the city’s higher peaks which, on a clear day, features an excellent view of the surrounding area. Getting up to the top was relatively painless, only requiring you to take two separate cable cars. To our disappointment, the top of Sugarloaf was in a moderately thick cloud cover, thus preventing us from having a clear panoramic view of the city. Still, we enjoyed our time up there and still managed to catch breathtaking glimpses here and there.

At 2 PM, we embarked on our favela tour. That’s right, we took a tour of the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Even though favelas are unsafe and ruled by drug lords, we wanted to see what it really was like inside these neighborhoods, which are home to about 30% of Rio’s population.

After being briefed about the favela’s history and background by our very knowledgeable tour guide, we headed by van to Rocinha, Rio’s largest favela, estimated at about 120,000 residents. It was shocking to see how dense and crowded the favela was, with houses piling on top of one another. We bought some local handicrafts by some nice residents, then finished touring the rest of Rocinha by foot. The place was, again, very crowded but I felt surprisingly safe, most likely due to the strong sense of community felt among the residents of the favela.

Once done with Rocinha, we headed over to a smaller favela which only had approximately 3000 inhabitants and wasn’t associated with the drug trade. We covered this whole favela by foot, weaving in and out of the intricate alleys and seeing how the residents lived. We interacted with some of the residents, who were extremely kind and just as normal as any other resident of Rio de Janeiro. Having finished our favela tour, I felt like I had a better understanding of these interesting neighborhoods and I hope an effort is made by the government in the future to help the inhabitants of the favelas.

Tired and hungry from a long day in Rio, the three of us headed down the block to Arab, a Middle- eastern restaurant that was recommended in our guide book. The restaurant exceeded our expectations, reminding us that Rio is a diverse melting pot home to many cultures and nationalities.

Day 8

Our penultimate day in Rio included the attraction which Rio is known for: the Christ the Redeemer statue, which is perched on top of Corcovado Mountain overlooking the city.

We left our hotel at 9 AM and caught a cab to the base of the mountain, in hopes that the line for the train would not be too long. We bought our tickets and ended up boarding the train right away. The steep, harrowing ride up gave us beautiful views of the city and its beaches as we made our way up to the statue. Upon arrival, we walked several flights of stairs before making it up to the large concrete masterpiece that is Christ the Redeemer. We all took our time up there, taking an hour to enjoy the views we were presented. When the time came, we descended back down to earth.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing on Copacabana Beach. Once we soaked up enough sun, we headed over to the highly acclaimed Nam Thai restaurant to indulge in some very good Thai food.

Day 9

Much to my (and my dad’s) approval, the agenda for our last day in Rio would be less ambitious and relatively relaxing. We headed out in the morning to do some walking around the area. We visited an unusual art extravaganza that had been in the works for two decades and continues to this day. Behind an alleyway lies a large flight of concrete steps covered in different tiles, originating from more than 50 countries. This work of art comes from the Chilean artist Selaron, who moved to Rio shortly before starting his project. This unique project is his crowning achievement and it has earned him recognition from major media outlets throughout the world. We bought some prints from the artist himself and posed for some photos with him before heading up the steps and towards an art museum. He is a work of modern art work himself.

On our way back to the hotel in the mid-afternoon, we stopped by a local market to indulge in some of the world’s best street food Rio has to offer. Today, we had our first taste at a pastel, a meat or cheese filled pastry in the shape of a square. Needless to say, the delicious snack is a Brazilian favorite.

Our last dinner in the city was a memorable one, as it was a form of dinner native to Brazil: the Churrascaria. In a Churrascaria, you pay a flat rate for an all-you-can-eat meal where waiters parade around your table, cutting meat off the skewer to your desire. The restaurant we went to, Carretao, was described as one of the city’s best, and it lived up to that honor as the meat was the best we have ever had. All in all, the dinner was a tasty and memorable way to end our stay in Rio.

To keep the added weight at bay from all of the lavish meals we enjoyed during our time in Brazil, Dad and I ran quite a bit. We especially enjoyed running on the Copacabana and Ipanema beaches in Rio. I ran 47 miles, Dad ran 40 miles, and Mom (“My legs are on vacation”) brought up the rear with 0 miles. We walked at least 2-3 miles a day, too, with all of the sightseeing we did.

Iguazu Falls

2010-12-26T05:12:00.012-05:00

The 2010 Abate Winter Vacation brought us out of frigid Florida to the hot and humid weather of Brazil and Argentina. Our 14 day tour will take us to the Falls of Iguazu, Rio de Janeiro, and the mountain-studded coast of Brazil.

Day 1 – Sao Paulo

After a long, cramped flight, my mom and I arrived at Sao Paulo International Airport, where we met up with my Dad who just finished a two week “tour” where he lectured in three cities scattered throughout Brazil. He convinced us that Sao Paulo was a crowded conglomerate with nothing to see, so we simply worked out on the treadmills, enjoyed a sumptuous buffet at our airport hotel’s restaurant, and then retired early for some much needed shut eye.

Day 2 – Iguazu Falls – Brazilian Side

The next morning saw us catching an early puddle-jumper flight out of Sao Paulo to Iguazu Falls, the most popular location in South America. The falls, which border Brazil and Argentina, are aptly described as “Niagara on Viagara.” Niagara Falls looks like a leaky faucet in comparison to this impressive spectacle of nature’s beauty.

Once we landed, we met up with our driver, Ariel, who would shuttle us to the different sights for the next three days. First on our agenda was the bird park, which boasted a large collection of birds and other wildlife. You were able to get up close and personal with the birds in the walk-through aviaries, whether it was gingerly petting a Toucan or having a Parrot swoop in a dive-bomb manner inches above your head for a near-miss mohawk.

After the bird park, we crossed the street and headed to the Brazilian side of the Iguazu Falls National Park, which straddles Brazil and Argentina. We did some walking around the park, first heading to a place which offered a canopy tour and rock climbing, which I took part in. Most notably, I reconnected with my inner Evil Knievel (and my inner telephone pole worker) as I climbed a 40-foot pole, where at the top I jumped off of, catching a hanging trapeze. I didn’t need those extra few beats of my heart anyway. I just might have a future with Cirque de Soleil.

After my death-defying acrobatic act, the three of us headed down to the falls, where we took many pictures of “La Garganta del Diablo” or the Devil’s Throat, the biggest and most powerful of all the falls. But, as we later concluded, the Brazilian side only offered a fraction of what the Argentinean side did, and with throngs of annoying tourists to contend with as well. Once we arrived at the Sheraton and had a mediocre and overpriced dinner buffet, it was off to bed before another big day.

Day 3 – Iguazu Falls – Argentine Side

Our next day at Iguazu Falls brought us to the larger, more serene Argentinean side. By staying in the on-site Sheraton, we were merely a stone throw’s away from an expansive network of paved trails. We started out by completing the Lower Circuit, followed by the Upper Circuit, both which gave us spectacular views of many waterfalls and jungle-like scenery (as well as countless rainbows and exotic butterflies).

Afterwards, we headed to Devil’s Throat via a one kilometer catwalk which took us over the Iguazu River towards the falls. We were rewarded with a nice view of the waterfall despite the annoying herd of tourists whom we had to “box out” to get a good view. Once finished, we went back to the hotel and got ready for dinner. We ate at a local restaurant which offered excellent fish and meat, along with live entertainment (featuring Argentina’s answer to Eddie Van Halen playing many Latin American classics on acoustic guitar).

Day 4 – Iguazu Falls – Argentine Side

After seeing much of everything the previous day, we took to the same trails and enjoyed the waterfalls some more. Still, what we hadn’t done the previous day was the “Nautical Adventure,” which boasted a white-knuckle rapid ride, getting us soaking wet as we got up close and personal with the falls. Eager to partake in this wet and wild adventure, we signed up for one of the earlier boats.

The ride was everything it was portrayed to be: although short in duration, we white-knuckled our way to the Devil’s Throat, where we were chewed up and spit out, left soaking wet.

Once our 10 minute ride had finished, we finished walking around the park, then headed back to the hotel where we worked out and relaxed until dinner.
Something that occurs in abundance at Iguazu Falls is the wildlife. The Falls are home to a large and diverse ecosystem. We got to see the wildlife up close, too, most notably when we observed two iguanas engaged in a gruesome but entertaining celebrity death match, which lasted a good half hour.

Later in the evening, we headed into town again for another good dinner at a place called “La Rueda.” The evening was pretty uneventful as the food was excellent and rivaled our previous dinners in terms of tastiness.

Day 5 – Travel

Today served primarily as a travel day, so outside of travelling we didn’t do much of anything. We slept in before lounging around in the hotel, getting whisked to the airport at 1 PM for our domestic flight to Rio de Janeiro.

Turkey Vacation

2010-08-13T08:10:00.004-04:00

Istanbul

Mom and Tania posing in front of the Blue Mosque.

After 18 days of hard training at high altitude in Ethiopia, the “Turkey leg” of the Abate vacation was a breath of fresh air, to say the least. The four of us started our Turkey endeavor in Istanbul, a city which we caught a slight glimpse of last year on our Mediterranean cruise. Nevertheless, our agenda on this year’s trip was composed of more or less the same sights we saw last year; with this in mind, we had less of a hurry-up agenda and more of a leisurely stay in the city which blends European and Asian cuisine and culture. Here, I will present you with my list of memorable experiences from this year’s trip to Istanbul (in no particular order).

1. Running in Sultanahmet and on the sea wall. I think after one runs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, navigating the terrain of any other city is a piece of cake. With this in mind, I ran through the winding (and hilly) streets of Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district with ease. Better yet I found my way to the Bosphorus sea wall, a runner’s haven that doesn’t have the crazy drivers or massive hills found everywhere in Istanbul. With the extra O2 and flat road ahead of me, I was able to click off 7-minute miles like it was nobody’s business.

2. Indulging in Turkish ice cream. How can one stay in Istanbul without trying the taffy-like treat that is Turkish ice cream. Even more, how can one exercise enough judgment not to be enticed by one of these masters of a lost art? Despite being entertaining, these boys can leave you penniless after a small purchase; my family and I learned the latter the hard way after having to pay a hefty price of 17 YTL (or $11.50) after just buying two cones, falling victim to the acts of your friendly neighborhood scam artist.

3. Watching a Dervish spin himself into submission. Popular forms of dinner entertainment, the Whirling Dervishes are men clad in white gowns who spin themselves into a meditative trance. Not even videos can do this religious dance justice, as one has to see a Dervish in person. The best analogy for those who have yet to see this art is that they look like the Tazmanian Devil from the Bugs Bunny cartoon fame, but with more grace and without growling or drooling.

4. Playing with one of the (sometimes) friendly alley cats. Unlike Ethiopia where dogs roam on every street corner, here in Istanbul you’re likely to encounter numerous friendly cats on a stroll through the city. While sleeping I have, on many occasions, been rudely awakened by the sounds of a screeching alley cat.

5. Sailing from Europe to Asia – and back – in one afternoon. A 20 minute ferry ride from Istanbul will still leave you in Istanbul – except you’ll be on a different continent, whether it’s Europe or Asia. While Asia appears exactly the same as Europe (actually, it’s more commercialized), the ferry ride is a nice change of scenery. And the sea gulls put on a great show catching pieces of bread (flung overboard by passengers) while gliding in mid-air alongside the ferry.

After the past three days in Istanbul, I felt like I saw most of what the city had to offer. With this in mind, the four of us flew into the vast Turkish interior, where our next destination, Cappadocia, awaited us.

Cappadocia

A landscape dotted with fairy chimneys.

It was 10 AM and our puddle jumper flight just touched down on the black tarmac, which seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere. Upon further inspection, my intial impressions were right; there was desert that stretched for miles, eventually morphing into mountains in the distance. Once off the plane, the oppressive heat hit me like a ton of bricks - we truly were in a desert, leading me to think how in the world the region was such a popular tourist destination. Our stay in Cappadocia was during a stretch of unusually high tempuratures even for this region, with high temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Celsius. Needless to say, I was chronically parched during my training runs here.

The one-hour shuttle ride to our hotel gave a good overview of what the area had to offer. The landscape, which was desert-like moments earlier, quickly transformed into scenery that closely resembled that which is on Mars: jagged, pointed "fairy chimneys" crowded the dry, sandy landscape. With the tourism here being more eco-based, it seemed like Cappadocia was Turkey's answer to the Grand Canyon.

Our digs were even more of a surprise: we would be spending our nights in a cave hotel. When I heard the word "cave," I anticipated sparse accommodations with no amenities. Turns out, our room was lavishly furnished, complete with all the typical hotel amenities.

For the sake of simplicity and efficiency, here's another list of the most memorable and interesting experiences from our time in Cappadocia.

1. Trekking through valleys. You can get a good tour of the area's churches and rock dwellings with just a hike through one of the neighboring valleys. While I fared relatively well on our four-hour trek through Red Valley, these hikes are only for the rugged and not for the faint of heart. Too bad the latter wasn't known to my sister until after the hike...

2. Visiting an underground city. Cappadocia is one of the few places in the world that contains vast underground cities, some of which held up to 15,000 Christians who sought refuge in the 5th century. The cities have a vast network of tunnels passages, a select few of which are now open to the public. Nevertheless, I felt pretty claustrophobic eight stories underground.

A claustrophobe's worst nightmare: The underground cities of Cappadocia.

3. Eating kebabs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Coming from Ethiopia into Turkey, I was starved for meat. I came to the right place, and indulged in any and all types of meat in Turkey. Nothing quite beats a "doner" kebab, a foot long wrap stuffed with meat. Yum.

4. Interacting with the locals. The Turks are extremely kind and hospitable people. I think that in the small towns of Cappadocia, they pay even more attention and are more generous. While in Istanbul we met some nice people, whereas in Cappadocia, we forged friendships that will last until our next visit.

5. Exploring - just that. It's not that there isn't a lot to see or do in Cappadocia; it's just that it's less tourist oriented and more do-it-yourself oriented. Whether venturing off the beaten trail or exploring a cave dwelling, there's plenty here to be discovered. And that's what makes this place unlike any other that I've visited.

Needless to say, I anticipate returning to Turkey. I've greatly enjoyed my time here, but after being outside the U.S. for a month, I'm ready to go back home. Heat and humidity, here I come.

The Cruise in Pictures

2009-08-10T17:18:00.009-04:00

1. Ancient Acropolis; The Parthenon

2. Mykonos; Windmill

3. Ancient Ephesus; Library of Celsus

4. Santorini

5. Ancient Olympia

6. Zacharo; Coast of Greece

Cruise of the Mediterranean

2009-07-27T12:14:00.004-04:00

The whole cruise is consolidated into this one piece, enjoy.

Venice

It’s been a great feeling to finally not be in transit. After a 36-hour carousel from Connecticut to Philadelphia Airport to Paris to Milan to Venice, we are all floored from jet lag and exhaustion. But it has been an ambitious two days, to say the least, in Venice.

The four of us boarded our Holland America cruise ship, the MS Oosterdam, in mid-afternoon on Saturday, and then set out to explore Venice at night. My first impression of the city was not a great one-- after being bumped by numerous drunk Italians (and being yelled at one, who threatened “polizia”), I thought the city was overrun by tourists. The next day in Venice confirmed that impression – the city is overrun by tourists – but we enjoyed more of the city that second day, including quaint side streets—and not as many loud and crazy Italians. Saturday and Sunday marked a yearly festival in Venice called Redentore, or Redeemer, which symbolizes a pilgrimage to a secluded island’s church by a special pontoon bridge built only for these two days, as well as celebrations including fireworks at night. The next day, Sunday, was a full day to explore the city, so there were many stops to hit up. First on the list was St. Mark’s Basilica, a famous church. I’ll spare you the painstaking details but the church boasted many intricate mosaics. The church was on Piazza San Marco, one of the most famous piazzas in Italy. Next stop was one of my picks, the Campanile de San Marcos. This former lighthouse is situated in Piazza de San Marco and has an excellent panoramic view of the city. By now four hours have elapsed, including several rides on the Vaporetti (jam-packed water “buses”), and with lots of extra “walking” (a.k.a. getting lost) and gelatos (sooo good!), we were ready to end our stint in Venice, saying so long to this historic and picturesque city of canals.

Athens

After almost two full days at sea, the Abate clan was ready to take on Athens and the history it has to offer. Our ship docked in the morning at the nearby port of Piraeus, and we were one of the first ones off. It was a two mile walk to the Metro which would transport us to Athens. Our goal was to beat the sweltering heat as well as the crowds at the Acropolis. The four of us arrived at the bottom of the Acropolis before 9:00 AM, and took to a break neck pace so we could catch the sights before it was too late. The hike was challenging but nevertheless rewarding as we reached the top to see the majestic ruins dating back to 350 BC still intact. Many people were huddled around the Parthenon, which took front and center next to numerous other ruins. But between the mob of obnoxious tourists, strong and dusty winds, and the ongoing construction, the special charm of the building was diminished..

Stop number 2 on the majestic ruins tour was the neighboring Ancient Agora, which was situated at the foot of the Acropolis. The Agora was a political and cultural center of Athens. The site today boasts – you guessed it – more ruins and an interesting archaeological museum which had many fragments of ancient statues and also included artifacts dating back to 5000BC. This capped off our stay and Athens and we began the hour long trek back to the cruise ship.

Istanbul

“Ever been to a Turkish Prison?” Ever since I saw the critically acclaimed movie Midnight Express, I’ve had a perpetual fear of Istanbul and of the Turkish government in general. I figured I could be doomed to the same demise as the main character in the movie, being holed up in a dark and murky prison for an act I didn’t commit. But fears aside, the four of us journeyed into Istanbul, land of belly dancing and “Hookah” bars. Since the ship docked in around four, we just decided to walk around Istanbul, and then maybe bargain for something in the Grand Bazaar. We took a quick and easy tram ride to the Sultanahmet district, a quiet district devoid of the hustle and bustle Istanbul offers. As an unscheduled stop on our agenda, we visited the Basilica Sistern, a half underwater “temple” of sorts, home to Medusa heads at the bottom of pillars that were transported from Greece. The temple had a eerie aura to it and definitely would not be a place I would like to stay in overnight. After this quick diversion all of us headed to the Grand Bazaar, rumored to be home to over 4000 shops and vendors. The place is less like a bazaar and more like a mini mall, complete with permanent boutiques and shops. We sampled some tasty Turkish desserts and also bargained for some hand-painted tile with some young Turks who were flirting shamelessly with my sister (and obtained her e-mail address), and by then we were ready to call it a day.

The next day I was awakened bright and early and had to take part in an ambitious agenda that was planned for our final day in Istanbul. After departing the boat at 8:00 AM, we scurried over to our first stop, the Blue Mosque. This mosque was built to rival the neighboring mosque, Hagia Sophia, and acquires its name from the multitude of blue tiles that adorn the inside of the mosque. Once this brief stop was complete we took a hop over to the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul’s biggest and greatest mosque of all. It has withstood numerous earthquakes, wars, and rebuilding and was intact for us to see it today. The mosque had many beautiful mosaics and had astounding architecture, which made it my favorite stop of the day. After an hour in the mosque, all of us walked over to the nearby Sultan’s Palace or Topkapi Palace. This large and expansive palace was home to the Sultans and houses many artifacts and jewelry from their time. The palace easily demonstrated the “public herd” effect as we were squeezed into small rooms reeking of body odor and at least 100 degrees hot. You have to be an artifact guru to enjoy the palace otherwise you will feel overwhelmed. And, unlike us, try to give at least half a day to see the palace instead of jam-packing it into a 30-minute endeavor. To cap off the day, we headed over to the Spice Bazaar, a bazaar with more local flair and less tourists. To burn off the rest of our ‘Lira’ (Turkish currency), we bought at least 10 pounds of sweets, tea, and Turkish Delights combined. With no where else to go but the ship, the four of us took a tram ride back to the ship and said farewell to our favorite port so far.

Mykonos

Next stop on our cruise was the eclectic party island of Mykonos, situated in the Greek Isles. The island, which is most definitely overrun by tourists, displays unique white-washed house and windmills alongside with excellent beaches. The four of us decided to not follow any specific agenda for our day and just stroll the streets at our leisure. Downtown Mykonos has a discombobulated set up of streets, done purposefully to confuse 18th century pirates who would frequently bombard the town. It confused us, too, since we had to ask at least 10 times to find out the way to the bus terminal. Once at the bus terminal, we were schlepped onto a bus (Circa 1960) and stayed packed like sardines on the 15 minute bus ride to Paradise Beach. I heard rave reviews of this beach, which was apparently the best in the Mediterranean. Upon arrival to the jam-packed touristy beach, I was disappointed. Paradise Beach was your typical European beach complete with expensive water sports, topless women, and men who look like topless women. After a couple hours of “people watching” (I didn’t even go in the water), we left this unimpressive beach and took a white-knuckle bus ride back to down town. This time I led the pack and took us to the iconic windmills of the island as well as some picturesque churches. Once we finished walking around, it was time to conclude our stay in this laid back island.

Kusadasi (Ephesus)

It was an early morning in Kusadasi as the four of us woke up bright and early (7:00 to be exact) to prepare ourselves for an ambitious tour of the Ephesus ruins and surrounding area. Our tour bus left the Kusadasi dock 15 minutes later and took us first to the well preserved ruins of Ancient Ephesus. To give you a little background, Ancient Ephesus was the 3^rd town in a series of settlements in the nearby region. Fortunately, it was the only town to survive 2000 years buried and was intact for us to see that day. Our tour guide was very informative and gave commentary on many on the ruins speckled throughout the grounds that each served a specific purpose. My favorite spot on the ruins was the Library of Celsus, one of the three predominant libraries in the ancient world at its time. The façade was fully intact right before our very eyes and is a magnificent feat of architecture.

After the tour of the Ancient Ephesus grounds, our tour took us to St. John’s Basilica. The basilica featured red brick walls and a tomb for St. John himself. Needless to say, we were very impressed with this quick but worthwhile stop over. Lunch followed at a train museum (the largest in Europe – but it wasn’t that big) and then we took off to one last site, the EphesusMuseum. This museum is a bit off the beaten path but has an excellent collection of some original artifacts excavated from Ancient Ephesus. The museum was a great way to end a day filled with ancient artifacts and magnificent ruins. My mom and sister went shopping after the tour (and had to endure several high pressure sales pitches for area rugs) while Dad and I returned to the ship to play some more trivia.

Santorini

Our ship arrived at the last stop in the Greek Isles, Santorini, a little behind schedule. The delay made things more complicated since the ship could not dock at the mainland, therefore having to send “tenders,” or ferries, back and forth from ship to dock to retrieve passengers. To alleviate a bigger delay, the four of us hopped on a tour at the last minute and therefore were one of the first ones off the boat. Once at the main island, Thira, our tour took us up to the island via a harrowing climb through the cliffs of Santorini. First stop on the tour was the highest point at the island, where a local monastery used to be situated. The stop provided a spectacular view of the surrounding area, though the view was a bit hazy due to the heat. A bit later, we all boarded the bus and were quickly whisked to the opposite side of the island to the small town of Ia(pronounced EE-ah). Ia is one of the few towns that have kept its local flair despite being overrun by tourists for half of the year. We strolled around Ia some, and took many pictures of the nearby cliff sides speckled with white washed houses.

Katakolon (Olympia)

Last stop on the cruise was the port of Katakolon, which is a mere 45-minute hop, skip, and jump to the archaeological site of Ancient Olympia. Once the four of us were on dry land, it was a mad dash to catch our 9:00 a.m. rental car, which was a Fiat -- Europe’s answer to a golf cart in theU.S. To the tune of 40 Euros, this car presented us with minimal pick-up, non-existent breaks, no A/C, and no reverse gear (so Dad had to push the car to get us out of parking spaces and other tight spots – Fred Flintstone’s car was more technologically advanced!) Needless to say, it was an interesting car ride for the remainder of the day. Upon arrival at Olympia, we bought tickets and headed to the wide and expansive grounds of Olympia. Yes, it was riddled with throngs of tourists but they were actually spread out unlike the Acropolis where you had five people climbing over you to get a picture. I felt the ruins here exceeded many of the others we saw in quality and beauty. After a stroll on the grounds, I went and took a ceremonial lap on the track where thousands of years before my counterparts were performing the same task in the Olympics. Once done with Olympia, we headed over to the nearby museum which housed artifacts more intact and preserved than the previous ones we saw. After taking 30 minutes to view this extensive collection, we headed out to meet up with some friends for lunch at a in Zaharo, a picturesque town along the coast that boasts one of the best beaches in Greece. We enjoyed an authentic and delicious Greek feast for lunch but had to leave earlier than we wanted to ensure that our stone age vehicle (and Dad) could transport us back to our ship on time. Needless to say, our last port was a great way to end an enjoyable cruise.

Lake Como

What better way to decompress from an ambitious vacation than to spend two days in the serene, beautiful, Italian Alps? Rather than to end our stint in Europe with a bang, we chose the polar opposite: a two day stay in a quaint town bordering the expansive Lake Como. If relaxing isn’t on your agenda, then you shouldn’t be there in the first place, so what did we have to lose? Well, after a tumultuous 4-hour drive on the highways of Italy in a cramped car, our two-day stay started on a wrong note. To add more insult to injury, we stayed at the most modest accommodations in the world. Our room was complete with no A/C, bed sheets for towels, no hook for the shower head, and a spice rack odor throughout the room to top it all off. But I’m not bitter. We spent little time in the room anyways and explored the winding side streets of the quaint, little town we were situated in, Cernobbio. The four of us lounged around near the lake then had some more delicious gelato before heading to dinner. We had dinner at a nearby risotteria and pizzeria, called Tom & Jerry’s. We enjoyed the two specialties this restaurant had to offer which were, you guessed it, pizza and risotto. After one more gelato, it was off to bed in our Spartan rooms.

The next day, I woke up bright and early to the sound of cars whizzing by our window, so needless to say, the four of us got an early start on the day's activities. At 10:00, we boarded a boat that, two hours later, would take us to the "crotch" of Lake Como where the bigger town of Belaggio was situated. More relaxing was on our agenda as we strolled around, had lunch at a nice pizzeria, and enjoyed views of the surrounding area. At four we took a nice boat ride back and had our last authentic Italian dinner (and gelato, of course) before departing the next day. I forgot to mention that those crazy Italian drivers were ridiculously reckless on the narrow streets of Cernobbio, causing us to have to spontaneously "spread eagle" up against the concrete walls to avoid getting hit while we were walking. I won't even mention the motorcycle drivers, who apparently have nine lives.

Home Sweet Home

2009-07-06T11:04:00.008-04:00

Ah, New England. Home to great pizza, cool weather, and who can't forget the obnoxious drivers. New England is my long lost friend, a neglected child that I visit when I have the time to do so. And, according to the Abate Travel Dictionary, New England is the precursor to a mostly hectic, possibly relaxing, summer abroad. Yet, in the case of this year, good ol' New England called us up a little too soon...

If you ever happen to meet one of the Abates from my Dad's side of the family, you'll find out that they are a restless and energetic bunch. But sometimes these traits are unfortunately a double-edged sword for some. So this calls for Exhibit A, my Dad's Father a.k.a. my Grandfather ("Papa") . His house is his pride and joy and he enjoys perfecting it in any way he can. Preparing for the arrival of my family, he was tightening any loose ends he could find and was trying to make the house (the basement in this case) perfect for our arrival. And of course, being the epitome of a man who thinks he can do everything himself, Pops attempts to install a Murphy Bed himself. Now I won't go into the gory details that I've heard one too many times, but let's just say that the 200-pound monstrosity bed frame fell on him and fractured a couple of his vertebrae in his neck. Mistake Number Two for the poor guy was picking himself up off the floor in his bloody glory (including chipped teeth) and driving himself to the emergency room. Ten trips to the hospital to visit him and over 1000 miles later, Gramps is recovering well at home, though he is a bit cranky and frustrated due to his limited range of motion.

So, what does one do while helping one's Grandfather recover? Well, not very much in this case. Colchester, Connecticut is your typical rural New England town complete with your local multiplex playing last month's movies, a town green, and a tasty bakery. And you'd be surprised at the demographics this quaint little town has to offer: 80% Country Bumpkin hillbilly types who drive loud and obnoxious pick-ups, 19% Retirees, 1% Other. Yet Colchester still managed to snag a spot on the coveted Top 100 Places to Live in the U.S.A. list (#57 to be exact).

Well, that's about it for events these past two weeks. My running is essentially my only escape, which is good since I'm really piling on the mileage. I'm also playing tennis with my Dad almost every day. Anyway, it's been a quiet summer so far to say the least but it's only another two weeks until it's bon voyage and off to Europe. Stay tuned and feel free to comment!

Travel Itinerary for Cruise of the Mediterranean Empires

2009-06-12T16:13:00.007-04:00

Due to our liking of last year's choice of travel, by boat, the Abate family vacation will travel down that path once again as we embark on our vacation to the Mediterranean Sea region. The 12-day cruise includes ports of call like Istanbul and Santorini. But the Mediterranean is not uncharted territory for us. We got a glimpse of Italian culture and architecture during our trip to the Amalfi Coast several years ago.

But let me not get ahead of myself. There is another month until we depart for our cruise from Venice. In the meantime, I will be up in Connecticut with Mom and Dad, helping my grandpa recover from a recent neck injury. I will be keeping up my running since I have two races while I'm there, and I'm looking to build up some serious mileage for cross-country season. We will also go on several day trips in CT and New England while we visit my grandpa. So the months of June and July are hectic to say the least, and by the time I come back I will only have a few precious weeks before I start high school at Nease.

Now on to the itinerary. Mom made the unilateral decision of cruising with Holland America for this 12-day stint. The cruise features six ports of call and then we will proceed to hang out for a few days in the Lake Como area near Milan before heading back to the states.

July 18 Arrive in Milan - take train to Venice
July 19 Venice
July 20 Depart Venice 10 a.m.
July 21 At sea
July 22 Piraeus/Athens
July 23 Istanbul
July 24 Depart Istanbul
July 25 Mykonos
July 26 Kusadasi
July 27 Santorini
July 28 Katacolon
July 29 At sea
July 30 Return to Venice - train to Milan
July 31 Lake Como (Milan)
Aug 1 Depart for U.S.

And once I'm back in Connecticut, I'll be immediately whisked to Princeton for an intensive cross country camp from August 2-6.

Charleston, The Holy City

2008-12-28T09:43:00.012-05:00

Winter break brought some warm weather and a two-day stint in Charleston, South Carolina. My sister arrived in town on Wednesday and the next morning we piled into the car and departed to our destination. Since we were all big fans of Savannah and enjoyed our visit there in May, we decided to check out Charleston as the next destination in our tour of the Southeast. Much like Savannah, Charleston has a lot of history and dates back to the 1600s when the city was founded. The city also played a big role in the Civil War. Many people claim that the war started with the shots at Fort Sumter. After a tedious 4-hour drive, part of which meandered through the deserted "low country" of South Carolina, we arrived in Charleston. It took us a little while to find our four star hotel, (Mom got another great deal on Priceline) which was nestled in the heart of the city's historic district. We immediately made note of the three main groups of people roaming the streets of Charleston on Christmas Day: a few tourists, some colorful locals," and eclectic college students whose parents neglected them for the holidays. The day was perfect for sightseeing -- good weather and not a lot of tourists since it was Christmas day. After checking into our hotel, we went outside and strolled up and down the streets. We checked out the few restaurants open and decided on one. We went down the famous "Rainbow Row," a long row of antebellum houses known for their vibrant pastel colors and using every color in the rainbow. Since we arrived quite late, there was not much time for sightseeing so all of us went back to the hotel for a little bit and then headed back out to dinner. The selected restaurant was Poogan's Porch. Since it was one of the two restaurants that were open, it seemed to be a hit with most of the tourists. The wait was long and the food turned out OK, just not what we were in the mood for. We then headed back to the hotel to conclude our first day in Charleston. The next day we were out the door by 9:00 AM, heading to the Mill House Hotel for our 2-hour walking tour. The tour started at 10:00 AM and we began our guided walk through the "holy city" (Charleston has the most churches of any city in the country). The tour, led by a knowledgeable and enthusiastic Charleston native, was very informative and highllighted many points of interest that you would not discover without a guide. We strolled down Rainbow Row, down to White Pointe Gardens where Fort Sumter can be viewed, and also saw the "Battery," a collection of mansions built in the mid to late 1800s. All of us enjoyed the tour and the huge and informative dose of history that it provided. Since the tour covered so much ground, we thought extra time to see the sights wasn't necessary, so we headed for lunch at Fleet Landing, a seafood joint that our tour guide recommended. The meal was much more enjoyable here and we all got to try "Shrimp & Grits," a signature dish that can only be found in Charleston. Immediately after lunch, we departed back home and said good-bye to this elegant city, one that we hope to visit in the near future. On our way home, we purchased some delicious cherry cider and cherry butter from a roadside merchant.

Poland

2008-09-01T10:01:00.008-04:00

This past August has been a whirlwind of traveling, most of the month being occupied with my trip to Poland. I was there for 9 days visiting relatives in Warsaw. The trip was at the tail-end of my summer vacation and we were just able to squeeze it in. So, the first half of our stay would be spent in my Grandma's apartment and the second half spent in my Aunt's apartment.

The first few days of this trip were just spent to get our bearings and try to overcome jetlag that plagued us during the flight. But on the third day of our stay we ventured out of the house to a big recreational park about 20 minutes to get to by bus from the apartment. There were many options there of things to do but nestled in the back was a "line park" that my Grandma discovered a few weeks back. The concept is kind of confusing at first but I got the hang of it. You are given two carabiners of clips to hook on to the two lines that are on both sides of you. There are platforms on trees about 30 feet high and between are certain obstacles. There are also lines between trees that you would zipline across with the block that they provide you with. So I took the challenge and chose the one that suited me best. At first it was kind of tricky but towards the end I was wisking across the obstacles and was an expert in no time. So two days later, since I liked the "line park" so much, I came back to take on the next trail. Trail "Extreme" was much harder than my previous one, "Adrenaline," and took a lot more strength. I went through three hard stages until I came upon one that I could not get through. A big disadvantage to me was the fact that I was not tall enough to grab the wires at the top so I had less balance and stability. This trail was also much higher, at 45 feet. It turned out I had to be brought down by one the instructors, who complained that this was his 5th evacuation on that day (their website is veni-vici.com.pl).

Our stay at Poland was nice since we haven't seen our relatives recently. It was a good way to top off a very good summer of traveling.

Amsterdam

2008-08-23T15:14:00.020-04:00

For the whole month of August I have been abroad, first with my cruise to Alaska/Vancouver and the second half spent visiting relatives in Poland with my mom. It was a hectic summer of travel but I survived. Towards the the tail end of our trip we left Poland and headed to Amsterdam, where we had a day lay over to spend in the town.

After a short puddle-jumper flight from Poland, we landed in Amsterdam. Promptly after we got off the plane we headed to buy train tickets which would take us to downtown Amsterdam. It was a short 20 minute ride that dumped us off in Amsterdam Central station, a big railroad hub serving all of the Netherlands. We stepped out on to the main drag and started walking. A few minutes into the walk I was tempted by all of the people eating fries so I decided to get some of my own. They came in a cone with your choice of sauce. I chose the usual, ketchup, and was probably the only person with fries that didn't have mayo on them. All in all though, they were delicious, the unique taste coming from being deep fried twice. I took the portable fries with me as we walked some more. We passed by some more landmarks on our way to Westmarkt Church and Anne Frank House. Our first stop was the church and we bought tickets to take a tour to the top, a beautiful view awaiting us since the church is the tallest building in central Amsterdam. The tour provided a good workout, having us climb some 8 flights of spiral stair cases. We saw the old bells they used in the 1600s when the church and tower were built.

After our giant climb down from the top of the tower, we headed to the Anne Frank House which was about a 5 minute walk from the church. Our hopes of buying a ticket were brought down after we saw the size of the line which spanned at least a couple of blocks. My mom read that if you come later to the last tour that there isn't such a big line so that is what we did later. After about 30 minutes of checking the Internet, we headed to a ticket office to purchase tickets for a canal tour through Amsterdam's canals. The tour showed us all the major landmarks and districts of Central Amsterdam. Since the Amsterdam is at sea level, they made canals for all most every two roads. The hour on the Canal Tour passed quickly and once we were off it was time to go check out the Anne Frank house. Once we got there we saw the line was a fraction of what it was earlier, so we hopped right in. It only took us about 15 minutes until we got to the ticket booth and started to explore the house and annex where Anne Frank wrote her famous, bestselling journal. We explored through each room, a wall in each room displaying a part of Anne's journal. The house was still in good shape, almost like it was 60 years ago. We got to the Secret Annex via behind a bookshelf which the Frank's used to hide the place they staked out at. At the end we left the house, learning something more than what they teach you in school. On our way back to the train station I picked up a chicken sandwich and some more fries to serve as my dinner before we headed back to the airport to spend the night before we flew back to the United States.

Alaska Pictures

2008-08-09T10:04:00.008-04:00

Since the previous post was the length of the memoir and probably lost all of you all's attention span within the first 4 words, here are some pictures from our vacation.

Key: 1st pic: Downtown Ketchikan
2nd pic: Totem pole carving at Saxman Village
3rd pic: Totems at Saxman Village
4th pic: Glacier Bay
5th pic: Playing qith Huskie puppies
6th pic: Mendenhall Glacier at Juneau

Cruise to the Last Frontier

2008-08-09T10:01:00.002-04:00

A day at sea
Yes, we made it safely on our cruise ship and we are enjoying ourselves. Let’s start at the beginning though. We flew out of JFK after being stuck in traffic for a few hours on the Belt Parkway. Our flight had some turbulence which almost took its toll on Tania. We arrived in Vancouver at 1:50 AM and we quickly got ourselves situated in the airport hotel. After sleeping in the next day, we headed out to Canada Port to embark on the MS Statendam, the Holland America ship we would be sailing on the next week. I was ready for a wonderful vacation, supposedly because there was a jogging “track” and gym facility on the ship. My mood was brought down after we found out that on the “track” there is no jogging allowed but worst of all, I wasn’t allowed to use the gym facility. Apparently it was a rule that no one under the age of 18 could work out in the gym. So Mom complained … a lot … and as always, she prevailed, so I was happily able to use the gym. We also took in all the amenities that the ship had to offer including participating in all the events that offered “dam dollars”, a fake currency that you redeem at the end of the cruise for Holland America memorabilia. The food on the ship is also excellent, some of the best we have ever had and to top it all off Tania bought us 3 soda cards and a wine card so we could drink to our heart’s content.

Juneau
Our first port of call, Juneau, awaited us after 1 ½ days at sea. We all had our hopes up for a city with lots of local and cultural flavor. The guess was wrong and as we entered Juneau there were touristy shops as far as the eye could see. Also the weather upon arrival at 2:00 PM was rainy and overcast, typical for the area. Luckily, though, our itinerary didn’t have us hanging around in tacky downtown Juneau, but off the beaten path towards the Mendenhall Glacier, one of the bigger glaciers in Alaska. It is over 200 years old and has been retreating for quite some time. Once we got there we hiked a little and then headed towards the waterfall which required getting over a few streams and traversing some rocks. On the way there we would cross some streams that already had rocks to step on which was helpful. I jumped over a few streams before we arrived at the giant waterfall. We traversed some huge boulders to get there but it was worth it. On the way back we proceeded to take the path we used to go to the waterfall. About half way into our trek, I got the urge to jump over the same stream I cleared on the way out. Upon takeoff, I slipped and slid through the stream as if it was a slip n’ slide, drenching my whole left side of my body in the cold water. My family and a few onlookers got a good laugh at my expense. We made it back to the shuttle pretty quickly and I got back on the ship to shower while Dad and Tania covered most of Juneau on foot in 20 minutes. So that ended our stint in Juneau, the 1st port we would be visiting.

Skagway
In our next port, Skagway, there wasn’t much to do in the actual town. To put it in perspective, there were more people on our cruise ship than the entire population in Skagway, which is 800. Skagway consists of a few streets with one main drag that is swamped with touristy shops, most of them being jewelers. But again we stayed off the beaten path and rented a car. Mom had the day’s agenda already planned out, which included traveling to the Yukon Territory to see a couple of sights. My dad was not pleased since he was the one driving 3 hours round trip, but ultimately it was worth the drive. We drove to Caribou Crossing, a place that had lots of activities such as dog sledding, gold panning, and riding on ATVs. I wanted to do the dog sledding (since it is about 60 degrees the dogs pull a wheeled cart instead of a sled). My dad opted to ride with me on the cart. The ride was fast, through a trail in the forest. I was surprised the dogs didn’t get distracted and the ride was more precise than if a car drove the trail. Down the main stretch back to camp the dogs were pulling the cart pretty fast, about 20 miles per hour. I was pleased with the ride even though it was quite short. After the ride was over we all went over to play with the dogs and check out the puppies. After about 30 minutes we headed back in the car and went back to drop the car off in Skagway. Our vacation was half way over as we waited for the days to come.

Glacier Bay
Our next day of the cruise was spent at sea but it was the reason we were taking an Alaska cruise in the first place. The whole day we would be cruising through Glacier Bay National Park. Some sights that we saw were glacier calving, snow capped mountains, and some wildlife like orcas. We were out on the deck pretty much the whole day taking in all the scenery. In the midst of all these wonderful sights, my dad decided to take a nap for more than an hour. Mr. Environmentalist was criticized relentlessly by the rest of us for his ill-timed bout of narcolepsy.

Ketchikan
The last port of this wonderful cruise was Ketchikan. It is nestled on a small island near the Canada-Alaska border. The town has a population of about 8,000, which doubles during tourist season. Some of Ketchikan’s nicknames include “Salmon Capitol of the World”, “Alaska’s First City” and “Rain Capitol of the World”. It rains on about 2/3 of the days of the year in Ketchikan, so we were pleasantly surprised in that there wasn’t even a trickle of rain throughout our entire sunny and warm day in port. So we started our day by taking a tour of a fish hatchery and learned the process they go through. We explored the “park district” and then headed back downtown to catch a cab ride to Saxman Village, which has the largest collection of totem poles in the world. Once we got there we walked around and marveled at the craftsmanship and height of these relics. But my sister’s comment summarized the experience in one sentence “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.” Before heading back, we explored the gift shop where I caught Mom in a rare moment of weakness and convinced her to purchase a $200 dollar totem pole (about 1 ft.) that was handcrafted by Native Alaskans. Once we were in downtown Ketchikan again, we had a fabulous fish ‘n chips lunch and walked around a bit. I was the designated “tour guide” for today and pointed out some land marks out that were part of Ketchikan’s history. Then I had a surprise in store for the rest of the gang. They followed me to Edmonds Street (known to locals as “The Street of Stairs”). There actually is no street here-just stairs! So we decided to burn some of the 3 billion calories we had consumed on the ship and climbed up to the top to get a picture-perfect, panoramic view of Ketchikan and the vicinity. That was enough walking for us for one day so we headed back to the ship and ended our day (and our cruise) in Ketchikan.

My week in deepest, darkest, New Jersey

2008-07-18T09:53:00.002-04:00

I'm here in the dreaded Garden State, luckily spending time away from the locals. I'll be here until Friday when we head out to Vancouver. Dad is driving up from Florida on Wednesday and arriving here on Thursday (hopefully). The change of scenery though still hasn't changed my lifestyle of running twice a day. As long as I can run I'll enjoy the vacation. Lately I have been looking at some excursions for each of the places we are going to dock at. Some the caught my eye were dog sledding, zip-lining, a tram-ride and more. It seems that there is so much to do in so little time so I'm trying to choose what seems best.

As usual there was the pre-vacation planning chaos generated from my mom. My dad is going down to wire with grading exams and hopes not to bring any on vacation. But otherwise things are good. I'll post before we depart in a week to log the stress caused around here.

Alaska Cruise

2008-06-30T11:46:00.004-04:00

There you go. Our family vacation this year is a cruise through Alaska's Inside Passage. It's the beginning of a very hectic summer for me which you will hear more about. But back to Alaska. The cruise will be our first of any sorts. We booked our cruise after a roller-coaster of destination ideas such as Southeast Asia, Bali, Mexico, Mid-western United States, and Belize. Our 7 day trip is going to look a little bit like this:

July 17th-Mom and I depart for New Jersey; spend a week there with sister
July 24th-Dad drives up; we all depart for Vancouver landing at 1:00 AM
July 26th-Cruise departs Vancouver
July 27th-Day at sea; I'll make good use of the Cruise ship track this day
July 28th-Dock at Juneau, Alaska's capital
July 29th-Dock at Skagway, a small town
July 30th-Glacier National Park
July 31th-Dock in Ketchikan, Salmon capital of the world
August 1st-Back to sea; head back to Vancouver
August 2nd-Spend some time in Vancouver, depart later
August 3rd-Drive down the eastern seaboard

Sounds like a jam-packed vacation, eh? My dad hopes not to bring any papers to grade on the trip and try to relax. Me on the other hand will have some work since I'm enrolled in a Duke T.I.P. online course on Screenwriting. I will try to get work done before hand but will still have some left to do. But wait! More traveling for me. Once we are back I have a race August 8th and 9th, the Tour de Pain or as my mom calls it Tour de Pain in the ass. The day after I work my but off in the race I;m right back on the plane to Poland. I stay there for 2 weeks and come back on August 23rd, the day before school starts. I'm gunna be jet lagged as hell, hopefully overcoming it though. And I am not going to discontinue my running just because I'm on vacation. The running actually will be a part of my relaxation. But an ambitious vacation it is. So long and keep vacationing!

Savannah, Hostess City of the South

2008-05-25T18:09:00.006-04:00

Finally, a post on something other than running. Yes, Memorial Day weekend brought us to Savannah, a place we have always wanted to visit since we have been in Florida. It is only two hours from us so we drove there after we picked up my sister, Tania, from the airport. We arrived in Savannah at about 10:30, checking into the Courtyard Marriot in Savannah's Historic District. I poured over the guidebooks the previous weeks and would serve as the tour guide. The next day my Dad and I went out for a run first thing in the morning. It was an easy training run since we have the Memorial Day 5K on Monday. After a buffet breakfast, we all headed south following my lead. I took us to Forsyth Park and through the Victorian District which included lots of ancient houses and antebellums. We walked passed many of the numerous squares that the city has. Later we headed north to River Street and sampled some famous pralines. After some walking, we did an Oglethorpe Trolley Tour. The tour covered most of Savannah, telling us about the history and some stories besides these houses. The trolley dropped us off at the City Market where we ate at VinnieVanGoGos, a New York style pizzaria. It was highly recommended by many people but we thought is was exceptionally bland. We headed back to our hotel to freshen up and change for dinner at the Shrimp Factory. This restaurant is known for their many shrimp dishes. We all ordered shrimp except for Dad who had Mahi blackened. The dishes were good but what really got on our nerves (or my mom's anyway) was that out server was being rude to us (i.e. bumping into us, giving us the check while we were still eating). This left us disappointed. But after the dinner we strolled down River Street enjoyed the ambience. We headed to the Sorrel-Weed house for our ghost tour at 10:30. We first started touring the neighboring squares and areas such as the Colonial Cemetary, Old County Jail and then finally the haunted Sorrel-Weed house. This house was visited by the Ghost Hunters on the SciFi channel. The history of the house was very tradgic. Francis Sorrel, the owner at the time, had a voodoo curse put on him. First, his mother died tragicly. Then his first wife Linda died. Then his second wife Metilda died. Then after that his favorite servant Molly died. All of Francis Sorrel's close-ones that died tragicly are said to be haunting the house. I enjoyed the tour and got some "orb" pictures but my Mom thought it was boring, my sister had gastro-intestinal distress through half of it and my Dad was suffering severe allergys. All in all, a decent tour. The tour ended a jam packed day in Savannah. The next day we would only be in Savannah untill noon when we had to leave. The day was started off by me smoking my Dad in another run. We checked out of the hotel at 11:00 and headed to the Pirates House for lunch. It had a lunch buffet which is what we had. The fried chicken was excellent as well as the Tilapia. They also had good sides. After a filling lunch we had an informal tour with a guide who explained the history of the Pirates House as well as some ghosts and secret tunnels. We got some more "orb" pictures from the tunnels. We departed Savannah later for today but not forever hoping we will be back again to experience this wonderful city.

Georgetown Galore

2007-07-14T23:47:00.000-04:00

A week of stress could be another title for this post. We have been aparently running with the devil for these past days. It started with almost not getting our tickets to fly to Penang. Luckily though we survived the excessive amount of stress caused by three rerouted plane tickets. We then decided to look for hotels because we didn't have any booked. We arrived at the Golden Sands resort in northern Penang just to check out the next day. After almost getting decapitated by a parasail cord and almost getting run over by an ATV, we found out that our car in New Jersey got rammed by a speeding senior(shoudn't she be in a retierment home) and got hit with damage costing $2,400. This is hopefully taken care of by my sister and the car is driveable which is all we care about (and getting reimbursed by the senior). We still enjoyed ourselves at our resort, the Park Royal. Although the resort was on the beach you couldn't swim in the ocean because of the jellyfish. So after three days at the beach we went to the Eastern and Oriental hotel in Georgetown(by the makers of Raffles hotel in Singapore). Georgetown is a must see in southeast Asia and could put the icing on the cake as our vacation comes to a close.

Wildlife Wonders

2007-07-12T21:08:00.000-04:00

Again, sorry about the late post. At every hotel we go to you have to pay for internet connection so I only have so many opportunities to use it. After an early morning (my sister left at six so we were all awake) we followed an agenda that I chose. It was to go to Jurong bird park, another park like the Night Safari but consisting up of birds. There was everything from flightless birds to birds of prey. The park has two aviarys, one of which has the tallest man made waterfall, 100 ft! In another aviary there are lorries and just that. For only one dollar you can get a nectar that the lorries like and feed them. They will hop on your shoulder, arm or anywhere they can perch onto and drink the nectar. After a day at the bird park, had dinner at one of Singapore's 1,000 good restaurants. A food stall. Singapore is known for their street food in terms of eating. There was an array of exoctic foods from carved fruit to clay pot chicken (which I had). The next day was a day for us to explore the city. We visited temples, took a boat tour and to top it all off, spent a night at the boat quay (pronuonced "key"). Once consisting of warehouses, this strip got transformed into an array of shops and restaurants (mostly restaurants). That ended our stay in Singapore and started our last week abroad.

Metropolitan Singapore

2007-07-10T00:19:00.001-04:00

After an enjoyable and relaxing day at Bangkok we headed off towards Singapore, every shop-a-holic's and cosmopolitan's dream. Singapore was technically a long pit stop for us to change into relaxed mode for our last leg of the trip, Penang. We temporarly altered our path due to a possible terrorist attack in Bali, Indonesia. So, now we are going to Penang, Malaysia the number one beach destination in all of Malaysia. But back to Singapore. We arrived in the latе afternoon and decided to explore the city a bit (Tania was leaving early the next day so we wanted to please her in any way we could). We walked by the Raffles Hotel and the City Hall then went to Little India to have a nice dinner at the Banana Leaf Apolo. After a tasty yet filling dinner we took a taxi to the Singapore's highly acclaimed Night Safari. There you can take a tram ride through animal habitats and see lots of exotic wildlife such as Tigers, Leopards, Zebras, Goats, Anteaters, Elephants, Hyenas, Gazelles, and much more. We stayed out late exploring the trails through the reserve looking at the wonderful wildlife. After a few walks and tram rides we left the fun and interesting Night Safari and arrived a little after midnight. Singapore was the kind of thing we needed to escape all the wats and history and actually enjoy ourselves.

Trekking!

2007-07-07T22:41:00.000-04:00

Sorry about the late post but we haven't been doing a lot lately. But on friday we did trekking at Doi Inthanon national park where Thailands highest peak is. On the way up we visited a few waterfalls and did some hiking. We started off on a winding, dizzy way up to Thailand's highest peak, Doi Inthanon. About half way up we stopped at a waterfall and for lunch. This waterfall was the biggest in the national park with water cascading down into an area where it filtered out into a stream. Here is a picture of the waterfall:After the waterfall we had lunch at a nice local restaurant which had very nice food. Then we headed back onto the dizzy, winding road which later took us to Thailand’s highest peak, Doi Inthanon. We were rudely awakened once we arrived at the top with heavy rain and a strong gale. We shivered our way to the top ready to take pictures, but couldn’t because of the fog. Here is a picture of us trying to brave the elements:Later during the descent (in the car) we stopped at a few more waterfalls, one of which we hiked on to get a perfect view of the waterfall. After the tour we endured a long drive back to our inn. A few hours later we took a tuk-tuk to our restaurant, Just Khoa Soy. It only served one dish. Khoa Soy. Khoa Soy is a type of dish that includes fried noodles and noodles in a mild curry paste with your choice of pork, chicken, or seafood. It comes presented on an artist’s pallet with your bowl of Khao Soy facing you and the condiments around the bowl. These included shallots, pickled cabbage, lemon, sugar, coconut milk and much more. This is what it looks like:This dining experience was highlighted one of the best dinners we have had so far on our vacation. The next day was a day for my mom. She hired the driver we had yesterday to take us to Doi Suthep, one of the most renowned temples in Thailand. On our drive up we got stuck in traffic due to thousands of collage studdents walking up to Doi Suthep. It was as if a marathon had started! Once we got up to the temple, it was jam-packed like we expected. We were amazed by the temple and the view of the city. It was a perfectly sunny day and would have been a much better day for trekking than the day before. The last few days have been days to just walk around since we left Chiang Mai and only were staying in Bangkok for one day and Singapore for one day before my sister leaves (Randy, Nigara, and me are staying three days). We also have the ongoing task of rerouting ourselves to Malaysia since there is a high risk of terror in Indonesia, with Bali being the first priority. Check back soon for posts on Singapore and (hopefully) Malaysia!

The bustle of Chiang Mai

2007-07-03T03:16:00.000-04:00

The last few days have been somewhat an adventure and days to remember as interesting. Yesterday we took a tour of the temples of Bangkok which included the Grand Palace, The Reclining Buddha, and Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Although not much a fan of history I enjoyed visiting the temples above and surrounding wats. The Reclining Buddha was really spectacular because of the sheer size of it. Also the Emerald Buddha was amazing. It is not realy cut out of emerald but pure jade. After visiting our fair share of buddhas we headed over to the Grand Palace where we marveled over the sheer beauty of the archictecture. I highly suggest to see these sights if your spending some time in Bangkok. So we ended our stay (for now) in Bangkok on a high note. That night we departed on a 14 hour sleeper train to Chiang Mai. Talk about too much transportation. Randy and I drove up the eastern seabord for 17 hours, flew half the way around the world (18 hours), and took a 14 hour train. Luckily, the train was the best means of transpotation so far (besides tuk tuk). We had a luxurious room on the train which had a sofa which transformed into a bunkbed. We all had at least 10 hours of sleep and enjoyed the train ride a lot. Once we arrived we checked into our inn which is very nice. It has a very lush landscape with small cottage like suites. The internet connection is scarce but now it is up and running. Our inn, called Bann Orapin, is away from the hustle and bustle of the city yet is walking distance from the famous Night Market. The day of arrival into Chiang Mai was a day to get our bearings and take in the atmosphere. The next day though was full of adventure, bargaining, and adredaline. We started the day negotiating with a driver about what we going to see which he tried talking us out of but didn't prevail. After a short drive we arrived at a elephant park which we partook in feeding the elephants and riding them. The elephants were very smart and after our elephant ride we wanted to tip the elephant trainer who was ontop the elephant. We couldn't reach the trainer so we gave the elephant the money and he gave it to the trainer.

Here is a picture(bottom) of Tania and me riding an elephant:
After the elephant park, we went to the monkey school where monkeys showed off their unusual talents like swimming, doing a micheal jordan type basketball shot (layup), riding a bike and much more. This was a spectacle that my dad and I enjoyed( not so much Tania and Nigara). Here is a picture of me with the monkey Mr.Won:
Also here is a picture of Mr.Won shooting hoops:
Here is a picture of the monkey Mr.Big riding his bike:
These monkeys were very well trained and our fondness of monkeys be great. After the monkey school we sucumbed to a few more tourist traps the our driver insisted on, and then headed back to the hotel. A few hours later we went to the Old Chiang Mai cultural center for a show of Thai dances which had dinner included in it. The dinner was very good and was benchmarked our first "real" dinner on our trip ("real" meaning not hors d'ourves or potato chips). Our transportation to and from the dance show was a tuk-tuk ride which was exhilerating with a few near accidents. You may be wondering now what a tuk-tuk is since I refer to it often and don't explain what it is. A tuk-tuk is a three-wheeled motorcycle with a front row for the driver and a back for the passenger(s). Tuk-tuks are a inexpensive, scenic, white knuckle way of getting around town. I am aiming for nine tuk-tuk rides in five days. So far I have six racked up. Here is a picture of tuk-tuk (with me on it):
Check back soon for a post on trekking and on Singapore and much more!

Days to remember

2007-06-30T07:35:00.000-04:00

The span over the last three days has been a very enjoyable expierence for all of us (or for me at least). Let me start off with the day of departure. We had a flight at 11:00 and left for Newark at 6:00 arriving there way too early and contributing more to the amount of stress. Our plane ride took its toll on me and Randy with us having a combined four hours of sleep while Tania and Nigara had a total of 30. But otherwise the plane ride (18 hours) had a wide selection of movies and entertainment (and superb food). On our descent I had a sensation of my braces getting tightened which only became worse to the point where I was practically screaming on the plane. It ended in a few minutes and I am looking forward to expierencing that on our flight back (not). The flight then arrived in Singapore's pristine Changi airport which we departed from to Bangkok an hour later. We took an uneventful taxi ride (four bags, three backpacks, and 5 people into a small mercedezes-benz) from Bangkok's airport to our hotel. Once we arrived at our hotel(Hotel Sangri-La) we were amazed at the room Nigara had got for us. It was a two room suite with a master bathroom, king size bed, living room, and full size closet. This was close to best we have ever stayed at. It was topped off by nice concierges and great service. But now let me get started on the real part of the vacation. Randy and I suffered extreme jetlag (which was to Nigara's dismay because Randy and I woke up at 1:30 in the morning and didn't fall back to sleep) and took a six hour nap while Tania and Nigara went out to explore. But only don't we know that we will be expierencing something like no other tour we expierenced before. The next day started off with Randy and I eventually waking up everyone by five in the morning for our 6:30 tour. We got breakfast to the sight of me pigging out on all I could eat and then going out to the lobby to depart on our tour. We met our tour guide, who's name was Tong, and started on our tour. The first event that was the list was to make merit with a monk. Making merit is how monks survive. The procedure is that you get the monk a gift(s) (we got two 3 foot candles and a bucket of food) and present it to the monk. You will then be forgiven for anything bad that you have done in your life. This was a very interesting expierence.

After making merit we took off to the floating market where you you go on a canoe and buy food and soveneirs off of other boats. This was something I enjoyed very much and had much fun doing. The food we had was amazing. It was the best chicken satay and noodles I have ever had! The other thrill of the flaoting market was the traffic. There were points where there was traffic and times where we would dodge oncoming boats. The floating market made Vanice seem boring.
Our last adventure of the day would be at the fishing village. Once we arrived there we hopped on a small motor boat and explored through the interwinding canal and looking at how scallops and muscles were farmed. We also fed monkeys from our boat. But there was one special monkey that I enjoyed. It was a white monkey which was different from the rest. He would jump on our boat and we would feed him directly. I would hand him fruit and he would take it directly from my hand. He was a smart and intelligent monkey and he made my once in-a-lifetime expierence stand out. We had a very productive day with our tour guide,Tong, and hope to maybe do this again in the future.

More to come!

2007-06-27T21:29:00.000-04:00

Survival is the key word for these past days and also the days to come. I had to endure the 15 hour drive from Florida to New Jersey which is a trip in itself much to my dads' dismay. Being the one who was constantly nagging not to stay at a flea bag motel and keeping my dad awake, you would understand my point. Trying to catch up on my sleep is another impossible task since I didn't sleep a wink during the drive and I have a flight of 18 hours of daylight ahead of me. This is supposed to be a vacation but so far it is anything but. Hopefully it will change. :-/

Three more days untill departure!

2007-06-23T09:45:00.000-04:00

With the summer solstice comes excrutiating heat and the desire to stay inside. Apparently, that is good for us as a family because we each have tasks that would require us to escape the heat. We each have our duties of packing and preparing ourselves physically (keeping hydrated, staying away from injuries, etc.). But since my mom is leaving for a business trip I am supposed to account for turning off everything, locking the windows and doors, and unplugging the appliances (since I am claimed to be more responsible than my dad). I have three days to complete these tasks before I drive up to New Jersey (from there I fly to Singapore). My highly anticipated vacation is yet to come!

Itinerary Resolved

2007-06-16T08:29:00.000-04:00

Here is the itinerary for our trip:
June 26-27: Driving up to New Jersey to depart out of Newark.
June 28: Flying out of Newark at 9:00PM to Singapore.
June 29: In flight.
June 30: Arriving in Singapore at 6:00AM then departing from Singapore to Bangkok.
June 30-July 2: In Bangkok.
July 2-July 3: Overnight sleeper train to Chiang Mai.
July 3-July 7: In Chiang Mai.
July 7-July 8: Overnight sleeper train back to Bangkok.
July 8-July 9: In Bangkok.
July 9-10: Flying to Singapore.
July 10: Sister leaves.
July 10-July 12: In Singapore.
July 12-July 13: Flying to Bali.
July 13 to July 17: In Bali.
July 17 to July 18: Flying to Singapore.
July 18 to July 19: In Singapore.
July 19: Flying to Newark.
July 20: Driving back down to Florida.

Planning Time!

2007-06-14T14:11:00.000-04:00

Now is the time when my family will be planning for our trip. We already have chosen our desired locations and have almost finished the process of booking the hotels we plan to stay at. But the only thing different about planning now oppossed to 1 month ago is now we are trying to determine what places we are going to see and what events we are going to take part in (restaurants we just find on our own). This can be a very choatic process for I have had my share of debating about what places to see. Sadly, this will only worsen as our 10 day countdown starts. I can only hope for the best. :-/

Trip to Thailand

2007-06-12T12:40:00.000-04:00

This summer I am taking a trip to Thailand. There I will visit Bangkok then take a train up to north Thailand where I will visit Chiang Mai. But that is only the first leg of my three and a half week trip. From there I will go to Singapore. Then I will finish off the trip with a stay at Bali. I am going on this trip with my mom, dad, and sister (who is only staying for 12 days with us). This trip is our longest so far and we hope to be immersed in the Thai culture throughout our trip. We are taking Singapore airlines from Newark (eithier though we live in Florida) to Bangkok (?) on the longest commercial airline flight (20 hours!). Now we are preparing ourselves for our trip in every possible way we can as we get ready to depart in 12 days. Check back for more posts on the havoc that will be occuring in our household before we depart.