Travels with Jay

Hanoi Trip: Day 9 (30 Dec 2025)

Hey there readers, things were winding down, but I aimed to make the most of my ninth and final full day in Hanoi. This was also the only day that I had opted for a tour: Hanoi: Incense Village Hat & Lacquer with Options. As I wasn’t sure about how food would work, at 7:05 AM I bought a double chocolate croissant and salt coffee at 100 Grams. As is frequently the case with pastries, the croissant was pretty but not particularly tasty. Fortunately, the salt coffee was great.

Not having been particularly satisfied with the croissant, at 7:32 AM I headed back to the hotel and bought an egg sandwich at the Circle K which was right across from it at 7:40 AM. The egg sandwich was outstanding, which wasn’t really that surprising. I remembered that I had also eaten some incredibly delicious (and affordable) convenience store food when I had been visiting with my brother in Virginia in July. The food at these sorts of places is generally not that fancy, but it doesn’t have to be.

Shortly thereafter at 7:48 AM I was picked up in front of the hotel by the driver and our guide for today, Ji. By 8:22 AM we had done all of the pickups, and it looked like there would only be three of us tourists for the day. At this time Ji also told me that we would not be able to do the Lacquer village, as only I had been interested, but that she would give me the refund in cash at the end of the trip. The ride was comfortable and uneventful, but the scenery was pleasant.

We got out of the vehicle at 9:26 AM and it was a very short walk to the hat workshop. I thought it might have been nice to wander around a bit in the village, but I understood that we wouldn’t really have time.

I wasn’t really sure what I had been expecting, but this wasn’t it. It basically seemed like we were just in the downstairs part of someone’s home, with the important caveat that there were a ton of traditional Vietnamese hats.

We of course learned a lot about the process of making the hats. The master hat maker was eighty something but looked much younger. The frame of the hat has 16 rings due to some sort of symbolism which I didn’t understand. They use a heated plate to flatten the palm leaves before attaching them to the ring. However, whereas the first layer is palm, the second is bamboo shoot, then switching back to palm again. All of the hats here are hand-stitched, and it takes 8-9 hours total to make a “standard hat”. These are the hats which one sees being used by field workers, most of whom are women.

In addition to the standard hat, they now also make fancy silk and lotus leaf ones. For some reason, there is a slightly different style of hat which is used by fishermen. There are also these massive circular hats which are used exclusively by singers, but those take two months to complete. On a practical note, the standard hats are also frequently used as hand fans. Despite their light weight, they are quite firm, which contributes to another secondary use, moms whacking their naughty kids with them. With normal daily use, a standard hat has a useful “lifespan” of between five and ten years.

At 9:50 PM we were urged to choose a standard or fisherman hat to paint, with no additional cost. It was tempting to get a standard hat, but I knew that I would never wear it and it would also be a bit complicated to take it home. Fortunately, they also had mini-hats available.

At 10:30 AM we were back in the car, headed to the next destination, where we arrived at 10:57 AM.

This next area had more of a factory vibe to it. Once more, I learned quite a bit about something which I hadn’t really thought about before then. Bamboo is the center of the incense stick. After the pieces are completely dry, they cut them into thin strips that are then flattened by the first machine. Dust from the process (which causes lots of respiratory illnesses for the workers) is used to make paper and fertilizer.

But there is a lot more to the process. The sticks are then cut into different lengths depending on the country they go to; Vietnam uses longer ones. After it is cut to the proper length, the sticks go through a polishing machine which incorporates some sort of oil which helps to make it smooth and round. Here they use pink and red artificial color, but in other more expensive factories they use natural dyes. The colored part of the stick is to hold, and the other end is where the actual incense is applied.

I might have mixed up the process a bit, but after the sticks are dry (I think it takes a day in the sun), this other special machine is used to attach the incense. The incense used at this factory is a mixture of cinnamon and bamboo. The incense length used in Vietnam is always 35 cm, with 20 cm for the incense part, which takes one hour to burn. Interestingly, and they take this very seriously, incense sticks can only be given to people in groups of twos (I think that might not apply to large bundles which are handled to someone, but I might be wrong).

At 11:35 AM we moved on to the market area, which is where people also like to take pictures. As mentioned earlier, in Vietnam, they only use pink and red incense. These are used the first and fifteenth of each lunar month. Traditionally, these were only times for ancestor worship, but these days people also use the incense on these days for Buddhism and Christianity. The other colors at the market are only for the tourists to buy, and it is evidently cheaper to buy here then back in the main part of Hanoi.

At 11:50 we finished up with our tourist pictures, arriving back to the vehicle just 5 minutes later. Ji told us it would be 80 minutes for us to travel back to the Temple of Literature area. Interestingly, it seems that Hanoi is like Bengaluru in that it officially just goes on for forever, as evidently the craft villages we visited were actually part of Hanoi? The trip back was once again uneventful, with more of the same countryside views.

At 1:15 PM I was dropped off near the Temple of Literature, and I said goodbye to Ji. From there I just went out walking. I sort of wanted to get some higher quality popup cards in a bookstore, but the two which had been recommended were not open. I also had thought to check out a sort of famous frog restaurant, but it looked rather dingy and there weren’t really many customers either, so I decided against it. However, I still saw a lot of interesting things.

I was very interested in these pastries which looked like rounded gemstones!

At 3:40 AM, I checked out a small temple next to the lake, then realized that I was next to a very well-known Pagoda: Tran Quoc Pagoda. They had the laws of karma up which I had seen in Tam Coc, so this is definitely a recurring theme. Architecturally, the site is very beautiful, but if not there to worship, it is a visit which shouldn’t take more than thirty-five minutes.

I finished up there at 4:28 PM and decided to walk over to the island on the lake which I had read is considered to be a sort of fancy area where a lot of foreigners live. Once there, at 4:55 PM I stopped at Phở cuốn Hương Mai where I ordered beef rolls, fried frog with spicy sauce, some sort of fried noodle beef thing and a Hanoi beer. It wasn’t fine dining, but it was tasty and filling, with a total cost of 304,000 VND ($12.90 USD).

I finished up there and decided to take advantage of the good weather to have a leisurely walk back to my hotel room. Along the way, now that I had stopped actively looking, I was able to buy all of the souvenirs which I had earlier wanted, and I also bought some of those rounded gemstone sweets I had seen earlier. I tried two of the beautiful sweets before buying them and found them to be sweet, but not at all overpowering. I also found out that they have to be eaten in 3-5 days, and they cannot be refrigerated.

I was very excited to be able to buy some of these.

Feeling very satisfied with my purchases at 6:55 PM, I then finished the twenty-five remaining minutes of the walk back to my hotel room.

Once back in the room at 7:20 PM, I packed away all of my various purchases and finished getting ready so that I would be able to easily head to the airport in the morning without being stressed out. Along with the time I had spent in other parts of Vietnam, I had been in Vietnam for 17 days. And for everyone who had told me not to spend so much time in Hanoi, you were wrong. I had a wonderful time here. I knew I needed to get back to work in India, but I was already missing this amazing city . . .

Hanoi Trip: Day 8 (29 Dec 2025)

Hey there readers. For those of you who follow along regularly, I know that you are a bit shocked at how I have been churning out these entries so quickly the last few days. That may mean that you are a bit overwhelmed with all of the information, but I think it is better for me to do it now rather than pushing these back even later.

On Day 8 of my December trip to Hanoi, I got up a bit earlier than the previous two days. After puttering around a bit in the room, I decided to book a guided tour with a cost of 5152 INR ($55.00 USD) for tomorrow: Hanoi, Incense Village, Hat & Lacquer Artisanal with Options. As there were so few participants when I did it, the cost was much more than what you would normally be likely to pay. Having made my basic plan for Day 9, at 10:59 AM I made my way out to the street.

I had actually seen the sign for a place, and I wanted to check it out. So just ten minutes later I was already at Hidden Gem Cafe Hanoi. It seemed to be a bit quirky. You pay at the counter, and then they bring you the order. I ordered some sort of thing with beef, a coconut coffee, and cheesecake…because, why not? If nothing else, I reasoned that the place was pretty. When the food arrived ten minutes later, I saw that it was a refreshing mix of shredded vegetables, noodles, and a bit of beef broth. The cheesecake and coconut coffee were also enjoyable, but pleasantly lite tasting.

I forgot to make a note of the cost. However, I definitely remember it was tasty, so it is probably worth a visit if you find yourself in the area. I stayed there until 12:00 PM.

Like many cities in India, Hanoi is frequently an assault on the senses. However, in this particular case I don’t find that to be negative. There’s just always something interesting to see. Also, despite there being lots of traffic, unlike in Bengaluru, I didn’t constantly feel like I was about to be hit in Hanoi . . . which has actually happened to me a couple of times in Bengaluru. One thing that helps is that people here generally stay on the proper side of the road when driving. On a completely separate note, people here smoke A LOT, so I’m not sure why there is so much constant concern about air quality.

I had debated with myself about whether or not to go there, but at 12:30 PM I entered the Maison Centrale/Hoa Lo Prison. They were really pushing the 100,000 VND audio guide, so I got that along with my base 50,000 VND entry ticket (total of about $5.75 USD). In addition to the fairly decent signage, I found the audio guide to be quite good. At least when I was there, much of the place was closed due to renovations, but I am glad that I made the time to visit. However, make no mistake, this was a frequently sobering experience.

For the most part, it was just looking at posters with some few artifacts to add to the experience. There were many interesting things that stuck with me while looking around.

Female prisoners were required to do embroidery, with the profits of their finished product going back to the prison administration. However, some of them were able to sneak bits of fabric and make their own products. There was a very sad account of a bag and handkerchief made by one of the prisoners, but it was uplifting in that she was later able to leave the prison and lived to an old age.

As is perhaps inevitable in such vulnerable places, there was a lot of corruption in the prison. Guards frequently didn’t properly distribute rations to the prisoners. They of course used these undistributed items to increase their own earnings.

In a similar tale of the ineptitude and/or corruption of the guards, prisoners were actually able to have a fairly organized “academic resistance”. Despite regular checks, guards either weren’t all that interested or simply weren’t that good at finding contraband political materials. Horrifyingly, these items were frequently hidden in the latrines. They were so organized, that they basically had an entire “revolutionary school” organized in the prison. So, those who weren’t politically aligned going in, frequently became politically aligned while in prison.

I was of course only seeing one side of the story, but looking at all of this, it was very hard for me to understand how the United States had become militarily involved with Vietnam from the 1950’s to the 1970’s. These people had already gone through so much. Furthermore, what threat was Vietnam to the United States? Of course, it was a different time and there were many factors involved, but I just couldn’t get my head around it. Honestly, it was very hard reading about all that had happened here, but then I suppose it should be.

Despite all of the horrors, it was heartwarming to see how so many USA prisoners of war who had been here had later come back as tourists and had actively worked to restore better relations between Vietnam and the USA. Again, while I don’t “agree”, I understood why the French had been here; they were empire building. But why would the United States have wanted to be so involved here later on?

Despite my general conclusions, I felt that the audio guide was very well done. It resisted any obvious proselytizing or attacks on groups from the past. Of course, the passage of time no doubt has also helped with such things. The gift shop in contrast to everything else was not overly flashy, but it seemed woefully out of tune with the rest of the museum.

At 2:15 PM I finished up there. Should you visit? That is hard to say. Despite it being an obviously sensitive museum, I felt that they did a good job of trying to be even-handed in their treatment of the past. However, if you can’t handle learning about some incredibly terrible things, you should definitely give it a pass.

Once outside, I started walking towards the Temple of Literature. As always, there were so many interesting things to see along the way.

They really like tiny dogs here, especially poodles and something that might be miniature pinscher

At 2:44 PM I arrived at the Temple of Literature. As had now happened several times, there was a place to supposedly scan to pay the 70,000 VND entrance fee, but they told me that only cash was accepted. However, I then saw them allowing locals to scan, so maybe they thought that I just didn’t know how to do it?

As of 3:10 PM, from what I could understand, this had been some sort of an important school through the end of the monarchy in Vietnam. The various stele commemorated graduates from as early as 1484. It was interesting to read that during the last war in the sixties, these had all been intentionally covered with sand and surrounded by a thick concrete wall in order to protect them from the bombs. However, given their age, it was still very difficult to make out much of what was on many of the stele.

I was really impressed by both the huge grapefruit which had been left as offerings and also the beautifully manicured potted trees.

Despite all of the picturesque elements of the site, at 3:45 PM I also reflected on the fact that there was also a lot of important historical/cultural information here. While it also clearly serves that purpose, the temple is not just a set of props for people getting their “traditional dress” pictures done. It was clear that they had used a very intense and well-organized system for training their academics.

Oddly, there was also a rather large section with information about Columbia University.

And yes, had I been there with someone else, I would have been sorely tempted to sit on the bronze horse for a picture!

As is the case with most places like this, I could have explored for much longer, but at 4:20 PM I was ready to go find something to have for a late lunch.

At 4:30 PM I arrived at Koto Van Mieu. At that time of the day, almost nobody was there. I ordered the banana wrapped fish, sauteed vegetables, and a Saigon cider. This would be a “more expensive” meal for me, but the place seems quite special. It’s a social entrepreneurship project that intentionally recruits and trains disadvantaged people, thus giving them opportunities for future advancement. The fish was absolutely amazing, and I ended up also deciding to get a bit of desert. The total bill was 724,000 VND ($27.50 USD – able to pay with international credit card), which was much more than I would have paid elsewhere, but the food, service, and ambiance was very good.

I really drew out my late lunch and did not actually leave there until 6:30 PM. As I was out walking, at 6:45 PM I thought it was a really interesting combination to have a spa and a pet shop in the same location, but it might be that the English translation was just off?

Again, there were so many interesting things to see. I think they were planning for some sort of big show on the 31st, but I would unfortunately not be here for that.

Here they seemed to be setting up some sort of a stage.

Reasoning that it was still quite early and that I only had a couple more nights in the city, before heading into my room, I decided to have an evening beer at 7:45 PM before heading in.

Yep, I was once more basically sitting at a table on the sidewalk.

I stretched things out until 9:10 PM and then paid the 120,000 VND ($4.55 USD) for my two beers before turning in for the night. Despite having actually seen quite a bit, I felt it had also been a very relaxing and well-balanced day in the city. What about you, would you like a day like this in Hanoi? Let me know in the comment section below.

Hanoi Trip: Day 7 (28 Dec 2025)

Hey there folks, I hope you have been enjoying reading about my time in Hanoi so far. As I had been out a bit late on Day 6 and there wasn’t really anything pressing, I slept in quite late, not actually leaving the room until 2:15 PM.

Using the Moovit app, I plotted a route to the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, and I was already waiting for the E07 bus at 2:19 PM. I had considered getting some food, but I had eaten rather late last night, so I thought it would be fine to wait until 5:00 PM.

The E07 arrived shortly thereafter (2:25 PM), and I paid my 12,000 VND ($0.45 USD), which can be paid either by QR code (Moreta app for tourists) or cash. As had generally been my experience in Hanoi, the bus was comfortable, quiet, and not at all crowded.

As directed by Moovit, I was off the E07 at 2:41 PM and just three minutes later was already paying my 10,000 VND on the E08. Once more, there was no crowd, and the bus was comfortable and clean. The short ride ended at 2:57 PM as I got off the bus very close to the entrance of the museum.

Having learned from my earlier museum experience, I was ready at 3:00 PM when I saw that the 40,000 VND ($1.50 USD) could only be paid in cash. Lacking further information about the best way to approach the museum, I decided to head upstairs first and then work my way down.

As the name suggests, this museum is all about different ethnic groups of Vietnam. However, looking around at the displays, I had my doubts about how much of the information reflected current reality vs. historical data. As of 3:15 PM, the information had primarily been about the Cham (178,000), Hoa (749,000) and the Khmer (1,319.000).

Shortly thereafter I moved into information about the Raglai, Ede and Churu. There was a lot of printed information in Vietnamese, English and French. However, they also had a good number of actual objects on display. I was particularly interested in the clothing which was made from bark, and I wondered how they made that.

I quickly stopped paying close attention to which information corresponded to which ethnic group. I suppose that this attitude undermined the whole point of the museum, but it was just too much information to absorb. Also, the potpourri arrangement of the displays did a good job of showing diversity, but at times made it hard for me to keep the differences straight in my mind. As such, I just focused on particular items which stood out more for me, such as the termite trap, which I saw at 3:30 PM.

There was also an audio guide available, but there was already so much written information available, that I didn’t see the point. In summary, there are a lot of different groups, and if any of these pictures are of interest, I would definitely encourage you to do some more reading about the ethnic diversity of Vietnam.

At 4:00 PM I went downstairs. I realized that there were also several guided tours going on in both French and Vietnamese, so it probably would have been easy for me to participate in one of those had I wanted. However, as evidenced by the many people getting their pictures done in contrived “traditional dress” many people like me just come to see (and be seen) rather than to have an in-depth educational experience.

I think perhaps my favorite display was the one about folk toys.

This museum was definitely way more popular than the history museum I had been to a couple of day earlier. Despite my rather casual approach to it, I did still learn some notable facts. The most important is of course that the Viet or Kinh people make up 85% of the population of Vietnam, and throughout history they have been heavily influenced by Chinese, Indians and Europeans. In addition to the Kinh, there are 53 additional ethnic groups in Vietnam. As they are relatively close to one another, it was also not that surprising to learn that there are Tai-Kadai people both in Vietnam and in northeast India. Finally, there was a fairly comprehensive map of ethic distribution, but most of this information was from the nineties, so I suspect there have been a lot of changes as the country has “modernized”.

I could easily have spent several more hours inside, but given the information overload, at 4:30 PM I decided to check out the area outside.

As mentioned earlier, the main draw of the gardens and reproductions outside seems to be the dress up pictures. These were mostly solo women, but there were also male-female couples. The buildings themselves were reproductions of different traditional dwellings and village buildings from Vietnam. As an added plus, the sound of the birds in the gardens was also quite nice. I did however wonder how the people who live right next to this think about the whole affair. Do they find it odd to always see all these reproductions and people getting professional photo shoots, or do they just appreciate the gardens?

At 5:23 PM I reflected on the whole experience before heading out. One could approach this whole installation with a bit of cynicism. Like me, most visitors here don’t seem to get much out of the “ethnological education” purpose of the site. However, for 40,000 VND they also get some very nice gardens and great backdrops for their pictures. In summary, not everyone has to come here for the same purpose, and I think it is great that so many people seem to enjoy this little oasis of nature and calm in a rather busy mega city. And for those eager to spend more money, there are even a couple of nice-looking museum shops at the exit.

Seeing that time was on my side and reasoning that there would be a lot of interesting things to see along the way, at 5:30 PM I decided to walk from the museum to the venue of my evening show.

I arrived just outside Hanoi Central Circus at 6:56 PM. As I had not yet eaten anything the whole day and I still had time, I decided to get some food at one of the restaurants which are located right there. The fried corn (some sort of lightly breaded deep fried corn kernels), fried rice and Hanoi beer I had for 183,000 VND ($7.00 USD) wasn’t particularly fancy, but it met my needs. As I was the only customer, they were watching some local pop and boy band on Vie Channel while I was eating.

I paid at 7:38 PM, and by 7:41 PM was in the general theatre area. I noticed that several people inside the building, but not in the theater room itself were eating bread and oranges. So, I reasoned that I did not have to worry too much about being under dressed. Then at 7:44 PM I was inside and seated. I was happy to see that I seemed to have a good seat, but the relatively small theatre seemed to be well-designed, thus ensuring a decent experience for pretty much anyone in attendance.

Despite of course not really understanding most of the show, I was very happy about overall experience, and I would recommend other visitors to try to catch a show at the Central Circus. Regarding this particular show, as best as I could understand, there was a king and a prince who decided to become a monk after his fiancée was killed in a failed invasion. Of course, I may have completely misunderstood everything, but it was certainly wonderful entertainment.

Pictures were permitted, but neither they nor videos could really do it justice. Again, if you get a chance, consider trying to see a show here while you are in Hanoi. Still, here are a few videos as well to give you more of an idea: video 1, video 2, video 3.

Shortly after leaving, at 10:03 PM I realized that there was some sort of a massive, I think free, pop street concert going on. The crowd was huge.

From there I continued walking back towards my hotel and was able to see a bit of the night market.

Everything was very interesting, but at 11:10 PM I decided to get a blueberry smoothie and a brownie for 100,000 VND. As was common here, I ate it at a table basically right out on the main street.

From there, I picked up a couple more bottles of water and was back in the room by 11:35 PM.

So, wow! I had first learned about Vietnam’s ethnic diversity. Then I had the privilege of attending an outstanding musical and theatrical performance at Circus Theatre. As if that were not enough, there was also a massive street concert and the colorful street market. In short, it was another amazing day in Hanoi!

Hanoi Trip: Day 6 (27 Dec 2025)

Hey there followers, if you were hoping for another easygoing entry, this isn’t it. Unlike Day 5 of my December trip to Hanoi, Day 6 was jam packed. Still, I also had plenty of time to appreciate random bit of life along the way.

I left the room at 11:20 AM with no immediate goal in mind, but I realized that at some time soon I would need to get some food.

I wondered about this game they were playing, but I thought it was great that they were interacting with one another rather than everyone on their cellphones.

After a short time of absorbing the local sites, at 12:25 PM I got some noodles at a simple place near my hotel. I finished rather quickly at 12:37 PM, paid my 80,000 VND ($3.00 USD) and went back to my hotel to work a bit on my blog.

Keeping in mind my scheduled pick up later on in the day, at 2:21 PM I finished up with my writing and started walking in the general direction of the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long. At around 2:35 PM I passed what I think must be “train street,” and I can confirm that claims of it having been shut down were grossly overstated.

Business wasn’t booming at this time of day, but there was plenty going on at “train street”.

Continuing on my way, at 2:47 PM I saw this park which seemed interesting to check out later on.

At 2:50 PM I had arrived at the citadel. It was only 100,000 VND ($3.80) to enter, so I figured that I may as well. I do think that a guided night tour would have been nice, but I hadn’t thought of it earlier, and they apparently only do it on Friday and Saturday nights. Like a lot of historical sites, this was in many ways like a massive book hung on the walls, but given what it is, they had done a rather good job, and I did learn quite a bit as I worked my way through.

Here are some of the fun facts I added to my store of generally useless knowledge. The French first attacked Hanoi in 1875, and that area became a protectorate under the Harmand treaty in 1883. In 1897, for reasons which appear to make no sense, the French destroyed most of the citadel, apparently in an act of simple, wanton destruction. In order to “mass print” document or books, they used to carve the pages on wood, then using the resulting tablet as a stamp to do many pages quickly. And then upon exiting this area of the citadel at 3:35 PM, I saw what appeared to be a very oddly placed tiny tennis court? Next, I started to check out the rest of the grounds.

At 3:40 PM I realized that this must be considered a bit of a local photography site, as there was a graduating class of some sort getting pictures done.

It was interesting for me at 3:35 PM to learn that they have done some additional archeological excavations here which show much older constructions which are more than 1000 years old. However, there isn’t money to properly excavate. So, similar to what happens in many parts of the Americas with massive temples etc… known to be underground in the forest, they just leave them there, thus continuing to preserve them better than if they were improperly uncovered.

Going further in from there, I found that the limited additional archeological exhibitions were done quite well.

There was more to see, but the scheduled pickup for my Quintessence of Tonkin show was supposed be just outside from 4:00 to 4:30 PM. Unfortunately, the instructions were very poor, as was the communication from the provider I had booked through Klook. In summary, I felt that the transport was a bit of a scam, even though they did eventually contact me.

Quite frustrated at 4:30 PM, having walked up and down the supposed pickup area, I decided that I needed to just take thing into my own hands or risk missing the show. Thus, I checked with Google maps and decided I could manage it on my own by public bus. They did finally contact me at 4:36 PM (even though the information on the website had been adamant that departure would be at 4:30 PM sharp). Perhaps I would have turned around and tried to find them, but I found it to be very unprofessional that they did not even apologize, even when I directly pointed out the error to them. In case you are curious, the incompetent transport service connected to the Klook booking was called Huong Tran.

Feeling vindicated and confident of my ability to manage things on my own, I was on the public bus at 4:45 PM. The bus service was good, and it was not crowded at all. At 5:25 PM I then got off the E07 to wait for the 157 bus transfer. When I boarded at 5:28 PM, I again noted that it was not really crowded, but here there was only standing room. Around 5:35 PM I noted that the road quality was definitely worse the further one went outside of the main area of Hanoi, but it wasn’t terrible. I also realized at 5:45 PM, that unlike the buses within the city, this one definitely doesn’t stop at all of the official stops? I guess you have to press the button?

Following the instructions from my map app, I tried the button, and at 5:50 PM I was off the bus and walking. The total cost for both buses had been 30,000 VND. I have to be honest, it felt like I was in the middle of nowhere. Or to be more precise, it certainly didn’t feel like I was headed towards an extremely well-known show. At 6:00 PM I passed what I thought were people playing pickle ball, so there was at least some sort of action happening, and then happily at 6:05 PM I saw a sign with an entrance gate, but it was closed, so I was at least not completely lost. However, I was definitely the only one who was trying to arrive by public transport.

I was starting to feel increasingly doubtful about this whole affair, but woohoo! At 6:13 PM I found what was clearly a functioning entrance. I had no idea how I was going to get back (public transport would not be an option later at night), but at least I had arrived for the main event.

So, in I went with my ticket information where I was admitted with no problem. I was gratified to see that there were quite a few other people there, and quite a few food options. To buy food, you had to first buy “food tickets”, so I got four for 20,000 VND each. To their credit, they don’t seem to do “tourist trap” food prices here. There were unfortunately no longer any noodles left, but at 6:35 PM I finally chose corn on the cob, chicken and a sweet potato.

I thought it was nice that they had live music and children’s games before the actual show started.

At 7:15 PM it became clear that we were supposed to move towards the stage area, and at 7:20 PM, I was fairly confident that I was in the correct area.

Right on time, at 7:28 PM they announced that they would begin in two minutes, and they also stated that neither photos nor videos were permitted. I of course still snuck in a few photos and videos, but I was impressed at how vigilant they were about shutting down people who were obviously using recording devices. Also, while it was not for the entire show, I appreciated that they at times had English subtitles showing off to the side.

As a spectator, one of the most impressive things was seeing how they always knew where to walk, even when the whole stage was water, with various massive props submerged under the same. Furthermore, there must have been at least 75 performers. Finally, while I did cheat, getting some photos and videos, I actually was happy that they were vigilant about shutting down any obvious recording of the show; I certainly did not want another situation similar to what had happened with the annoying woman at the water puppet show a few days previous. In summary, yes, it is a truly special performance, and if you have the time and money, you should go.

With the end of the show at 8:34 PM, I was once more faced with my previous problem of trying to figure out how to get back to my hotel in the Old Quarter. Fortunately, at 8:43 I saw that the transport back to central Hanoi was managed much better (the buses were clearly marked at the exit) than the transfer to the site of the show, and at 8:55 PM we were on our way back.

The ride back to the citadel area was uneventful, and I was out of the bus at 9:41 PM. I decided to check out the nearby park which I had seen earlier, and I saw that the plaza like area of the park appeared to be a gathering place for teenagers and young adults in their early twenties. Off to the side, there was also a dance group.

The walk back to the general area of my hotel was pleasant.

At 10:23 PM I decided to get some food at a spot near my hotel, and I ordered way too much. I had a custard apple smoothie, various braised mushrooms and some steamed wantons.

I ate rather quickly, paying the 210,000 VND ($8.00 USD) bill at 10:30 PM. Nearby at 10:36 PM I bought this weird, freeze-dried dessert from a street vendor. It was only 40,000 VND. Tasting somewhat like Captain Crunch cereal, it was fun to eat, as vapor came out of my mouth while I was chewing.

Wandering around the nearby park, at 11:53 PM I had the special treat of hearing and seeing a large group of young people who were clearly enamored of some street musicians who were quite popular. I thought it was great that they were out in the street just enjoying each other’s company, while expressing appreciation for some small-time, talented local musicians. Here you can watch a short video.

No doubt I am overly romanticizing, but these are the slice of life, innocent, yet precious moments which make me love my travels so much. Still, all such moments come to an end, and at 12:05 AM, the artists packed up their things, and I finished my short walk back to the room where I arrived at 12:20 AM.

Once again, I am probably being too romantic, but seeing these two boys playing badminton out in the street after midnight seemed like a secret window into the real, daily life of the citizens of the city.

Hanoi Trip: Day 5 (26 Dec 2025)

Hey there followers, if you have found the last few days to be a bit overwhelming, then you may be happier with today. I definitely decided to slow down a bit for Day 5 of my December trip to Hanoi.

As I had been out a bit late the previous evening, I didn’t leave the room until 12:30 PM. From there I went to the nearby Pizza Belga for lunch. Honestly, it was a bit expensive compared to other options, but the sandwich and drink for which I paid 240,000 VND ($9.10 USD) was decent, and the ambiance was very pleasant.

I left there at 1:40 PM and then headed over to X-Men gym, where I once more got a 50,000 VND ($1.90 USD) day pass and had a two-hour workout.

Upon finishing there at 4:05 PM, I started back to my simple room at Home Town Cha where I hung out for a bit. I know the view from my window at 4:52 PM was definitely “gritty urban” but I still found the whole sunset combination to be beautiful, perhaps even more beautiful because of the harsh city view.

At 5:26 PM I left the room again to see what could be seen.

After having wandered around a bit, at 7:10 PM I found myself at this rather busy intersection (Pho Ta Hien and Pho Hang Bac) where people eat right out on the street. I decided to eat at Am Thuc 26 (Gastronomy 26) where I had what I thought was goose, but further investigation seems to suggest that it was actually Muscovy duck. Needless to say, it was a whole experience, including at 7:38 PM when a government car came by and made them clear all the tables away, with them then putting them back in exactly the same spot just one minute after the police had left.

I was surprised to find that the meat was very similar to beef in some ways. However, I think the roasted garlic was maybe my favorite. The total of 380,000 VND ($14.50 USD) was a bit much by Vietnamese street food standards, but as I mentioned, I was not only paying for the delicious food, but also for the unique dining experience. I finished there at 8:10 PM.

On the way back, I picked up two more bottles of water and this sort of fun looking ice-cream sandwich, arriving back to my room at 8:25 PM. Today had not been especially jam-packed, but I had enjoyed both my visit to the gym and of course my unique evening dining experience.

Does this seem like a good way to spend one of your vacation days, or do you think I should have done something more? As always, thanks for continuing to follow along, and I look forward to seeing your questions and comments in the section which is provided below.

Hanoi Trip: Day 4 (25 Dec 2025)

Hey everyone, I hope you have been doing well since I last wrote. Certainly Day 4 in Hanoi was also enjoyable for me. I woke up well-rested at 8:30 AM and after showering etc . . . decided to work on my blog for a bit.

After a few hours of that, having made some decent progress, I went out the door at 12:30 PM. It was a bit cooler than the previous day with a pleasant breeze. In summary, it was quite nice out as I started walking toward the Vietnam National Museum of History.

Very close to the museum at 12:50 PM, there was a nice park with an interesting tree which had been blended with artificial elements to make a type of a sculpture.

Right there just in front of the museum there was an automated water dispenser with several different types of water and there was also a drinking fountain attached. However, I had my doubts about it, so I didn’t try it.

Jo, the fellow solo traveler who I had met the evening before showed up at 1:00 PM and we decided to get some lunch at a nearby place.

The food was very good, and it ended up being only 130,000 VND ($5.00 USD) for both of us. This could be paid either with the Moreta app or with cash. Lunch was good, but at 2:00 PM we were ready to head over to the nearby museum.

Here when I arrived at 2:10 PM I had a bit of an annoyance. Despite there being a prominently displayed QR code payment card being displayed in the ticket window, when I showed the attendant that I had paid, she insisted that they only accepted cash (despite the amount already having been deducted). If I had spoken Vietnamese, I of course would have argued about this, but as it was, I just paid again, this time in cash, so I paid the 40,000 VND ($1.52 USD) twice. Note, we were only able to visit building #2, because as of December 2025, building #1 was closed for renovation.

The temporarily free AR app was a bit helpful, but it seemed to be more of a gimmick than anything else. At least when I was there, very few things actually worked with the app, but it was an interesting idea.

The initial display room at 2:30 PM was mostly pictures of French colonists being horrible. There was signage in Vietnamese, French and English.

Seeing these pictures and the descriptions at the end of the first room, I also started to wonder about the strange wooden pipes I had seen people using while I was travelling around Vietnam. I had assumed that they were smoking tobacco, but in these pictures, it makes reference to opium. However, upon further investigation online, it appears that supposedly people today just smoke a very strong type of tobacco in these traditional bamboo bongs.

In the next room there was reference made to something called the Tonkin free school, and it seemed like something that I would like to learn more about; however, as of the time of writing this entry, I still have not done that. Separate from that, from what I could understand, the “Vietnamese Mandarins” were the ones who ran things before the French invasion/colonization. These “Mandarins” were Vietnamese people who were strongly influenced by Confucian education.

Into room 3 at 2:50 PM, there was a lot of information about the founding of the communist party. Rather than the AR guide, I thought a quality, simple audio guide would work better, but I did appreciate that they were trying new things. Interestingly, it looked like a lot of Vietnamese people living in Thailand had been working for the revolution, perhaps some sort of a government in exile sort of thing? An additional point of interest is that in this room, signage was only in Vietnamese and English.

Room 4 was about the revolutionary movement from 1930-1931.

And then room 5 at 3:10 PM was all about the democratic movement 1936-1939. Much of this was just reading and reproductions of pictures and documents, but I was certainly learning a lot. Furthermore, despite not being extremely aesthetic, the museum seems well organized.

I am not sure of which room it was, but around about the time when I was reading about the Viet Minh movement 1941-1945 I was very impacted by the statue and story of Kim Dong. Despite only being 14 years old, he had been killed as a revolutionary.

Room 8 at 3:40 PM started out about the August 1945 revolution and the founding of the republic of Vietnam. In my ignorance, I had not known that there was a monarchy in Vietnam until 1945 when King Bao Dai abdicated. I was also quite unsettled to see more about child soldiers at 4:00 PM; many of them appeared to be no more ten years old. However, I think it is good that their role was recognized, just as the important role of female fighters was duly noted throughout the museum. In general, I was impressed by the ingenuity of people during war times: a bomb case used as a canteen, a cup made from a napalm bomb case, and a lamp made from a toothpaste box.

At 4:24 PM there was a room about the French prison system during colonization. This was the first time I had seen a real guillotine. It was smaller than I had thought it would be, but unnerving to think how it had regularly been used.

Around 4:35 PM I headed downstairs and saw what remained. This section seemed far less developed than upstairs, but there was still a lot which was interesting. I liked seeing all of the “first of” items from different factories, as I realized that these must have been major achievements for many people at that time. I also really wondered what the bamboo bell on display would sound like. Finally, it drew my attention the way different historic groups were referred to: the French “colonizers,” the “Japanese Fascist Government.” and the “US-puppet government”.

At 4:57 PM we were shooed out of the museum. They even turned off the lights. I had not seen everything, but it was enough. From there, I said goodbye to Jo and started to slowly head towards my next destination.

It is unlikely (I think) that you will see the same thing, but as I was walking towards the bus stop, I saw this random guy working out with dumbbells in front of a shop (No, it wasn’t a gym nor a fitness related store.)

Checking my options, at 6:05 PM I took the E11 bus to Hoan Kiem lake. Oddly, even though it is free, there is a guy to give you a ticket. The bus was almost empty, and it was very clean and comfortable.

At 6:33 PM I got off the bus and just started wandering around. I loved all of the “secret passages” which went down from the main street.

No doubt there is nothing “secret” about these, but that is how they seemed to me.

Finally, at 8:10 PM I stopped in to eat at some random place where I had a simple pork and rice dish for 75,000 VND ($2.85 USD).

From there at 8:30 PM I took the E05 bus to near Lotte world and went to the small club (I forgot to write down the name) which had been recommended to me by a fellow traveler a couple of days earlier. The place had few patrons, but everyone was very welcoming. I rather enjoyed the Karaoke when they moved inside, but I couldn’t make myself stay longer because they were smoking inside, and it was just too much for me after a short time. Still though, it had been a nice experience, and the 200,000 VND ($7.60 USD) I paid for my two Brat long island teas seemed like a more than fair exchange for the experience.

I had been there three hours when I went ahead and exited out to the street at 11:55 PM to get a grab for 80,000 VND ($3.05 USD) back to the hotel, where I arrived at 12:35 AM. And that was the end of my rather unconventional Christmas day. All in all, I definitely considered it a success, and as I drifted off to sleep soon after my return to the room, I was certain that the upcoming days would also have much to offer.

Hanoi Trip: Day 3 (24 Dec 2025)

The morning started out well on Day 3, but the first order of business was to drop my laundry at 9:20 AM at Fast N Clean laundry. They told me it would be ready between 4:00 PM and 7:00 PM. From there, I started off towards, Bancong, a breakfast spot I had seen the day before.

Once there at 9:28 AM, I checked the information and once more discovered that by chance, I had come across another one of the famous eateries in the area. I was starting to think that all around the Old Quarter, there are iconic spots just waiting to be rediscovered. At first, I had thought that eating on the balcony would be fun, but the sun was a bit too bright, so I ended up moving inside.

There’s no denying that the breakfast was nice and the ambiance amazing. After a leisurely breakfast experience, I paid the 198,450 VND ($7.50 USD) bill at 10:52 AM and headed back to my nearby room to grab my bag before heading to the gym.

When I arrived to X-Men Fitness at 11:25 AM, I was initially concerned that I might have been mistaken about the walking directions, but then I realized that it was actually located on the fourth floor. I used my Moreta app to pay the 50,000 VND ($2.00 USD) day pass fee and was pleased to see that this also included a locker rental. As I had forgotten to bring one, I also bought a large bottle of water for 20,000 VND ($0.75 USD).

The gym wasn’t especially fancy, but it certainly was on par with most standard neighborhood gyms. So, if you are looking for a place to work out while on vacation in Hanoi, this is definitely a good option. Things went well, and at 1:23 PM I had finished up and was back out in the street.

While I was out walking, I decided to buy one of those pairs of fake North Face pants that they sell everywhere in the old quarter. If I had been interested in more intense bargaining, I could possibly have paid less, but 300,000 VND ($11.50 USD) seemed fair for a spare pair of traveling pants. After that, I stopped in for a vermicelli with egg, colon and hot soup and special combination banh mi at 3:02 PM; I forgot to write down the name of the place. The cost for my late lunch was 95,000 VND ($3.60 USD).

I left there at 3:37 PM, and went to pick up my laundry, paying 48,000 VND ($1.80 USD). I picked up a plug-in mosquito repellant device which I plugged in back at the hotel room at 5:37 PM and then once again went out to see if I could catch the special evening light show on the lake which I had heard was going to start at 7:00 PM. As I was waiting, at 6:35 PM I decided to get some coffee and ice-cream in a convenient and comfortable spot where I could watch the show.

The view was certainly pleasant, but as of 7:50 PM the show still had not started. I had already had two cups of coffee, and it didn’t seem advisable to drink more, so I paid the 260,000 VND ($10.00 USD) bill and decided to move to a different vantage point. Fortunately, there were still benches available around the lake, and a lot of other people seemed to be waiting, so I figured that I must be on the right track. However, it was annoying that there was not a clearly defined start time. After a long, but not completely unenjoyable wait, the show finally started at 8:12 PM.

The show was nice, but perhaps a bit underwhelming after so much waiting. However, on the plus side, I had struck up a conversation with another solo traveler from Japan named Joe, and we made a tentative plan to do some museum visits together the following day. Upon leaving at 9:25 PM, I had initially thought to go to a club which I had read about, but the traffic was overwhelming, so I ended up just walking around.

At 10:45 PM, I decided to try to check out the area near the cathedral. The energy, the crowds, and the Christmas performances were amazing, but it was perhaps a bit too intense. The nearby park was also an unexpected surprise.

So, despite being on my own in a strange country on Christmas Eve, I think that in the end, it was a perfectly delightful festive experience. What do you think? Is this a way you would like to spend your Christmas Eve? If so, then remember that Hanoi is always an option. As always, I look forward to reading your questions and comments in the section shown below.

Hanoi Trip: Day 2 (23 Dec 2025)

Hey everyone. So if you have been following along then you already know that Day 1 in Hanoi was mostly about just getting settled. Thus, Day 2 was my first full on exposure to more of the city, and I actually had a fairly packed plan in mind.

I got up at 8:10 AM. To be honest, I had not slept that well, but I also didn’t feel particularly tired. It might have just been that my body was still adjusting to all of the changes.

At 9:46 AM I headed out the door in search of some tickets for a special show which I had seen advertised online. As is my default when visiting a new place, I prefer to walk whenever it seems feasible. The exercise is a plus, but this is mainly about getting a feel for the place. Furthermore, when walking around, you always see so much more than when in a car or a bus. The streets seemed a bit less crazy in the morning, but similar to Bengaluru, I noted that keeping the sidewalks clear is not always a big priority.

Upon arrival to my destination at 10:29, I was encouraged to see a banner which seemed to confirm the existence of the show about which I had read. However, a bit of a comedy then ensued . . . The ticket office was closed, and there were no clear instructions about when it would be open. So, after wandering around a bit, at 10:55 AM I managed to sort of communicate to one of the guards and he looked for someone else, who then called someone, presumably for me to be able to but a ticket. Things were looking up when a guy drove up on a scooter with a bunch of tickets at 11:00 AM.

However, somehow in our chain of communications, it became clear that he did not actually have tickets for the show which I wanted to see (the one which appeared on the banner to the right). I was feeling a bit discouraged at this point, but my team of consultants was not to be deterred. Five minutes later, another guy on a scooter appeared with a separate set of tickets, and I was able to purchase one for the show on the 28th of December at 8:00 PM. I bought the most expensive one for a cost of 400,000 VND ($15.25 USD). I certainly hope that E13 is a good seat.

I was feeling quite pleased with myself at 11:10 AM as I tucked away my prized ticket and started to walk back to the water puppet theater area. Along the way, I stopped for a moment and decided to use the Klook app to book the Quintessence of Tonkin show on the 27th, for a cost of 2362 INR ($25 USD) including round trip transport from a central meeting point. This is a pro tip, as this show is highly recommended for any visitor to Hanoi, but it was less than half the cost of the same thing via GetYourGuide.

Noting that I had not yet eaten anything for the day, at 12:04 PM I stopped at Bep Viet restaurant for mixed beef with rice noodles and Hanoi Beer. The background Christmas songs, presumably in Vietnamese, were appreciated and somewhat funny at the same time. Similar to the previous evening, I noted that communal seating was the norm here. They clearly needed the space, so at 12:37 PM I paid my 115,000 VND ($4.40 USD) bill and once more set off walking.

Finishing my walk towards the theatre, I saw several things which drew my attention. To begin with, they seem to have special motorcycles helmets for people with ponytails; is this safe? Also, the area around the lake was very nice, but it was vaguely annoying to see bunches of people doing those “traditional wear” dress-up picture shoots which are very common in China.

Using the ticket I had bought the previous day, getting into the theatre was easy at 1:30 PM, and the entire process was managed very smoothly.

The show itself was charming; although, I wanted to rip the Iphone out of the hand of the obnoxious Polish woman in front of me. To be fair, her mother was also clearly upset by the daughter’s inconsiderate behavior. Her toddler son was also a bit distracting, but I gave him a pass . . . I mean what do you expect when you go to a puppet show? Overall, I was very impressed with how everything was done live, including all the voices and the music. Despite being such a popular show, they have clearly tried to maintain the integrity of the artisans and their traditional art. So, in case you are wondering whether or not to go, it’s a yes vote from me.

Knowing that I would have several days in Hanoi, from here at 2:44 PM I decided to go to Decathlon to pick up some simple athletic shoes and a small gym bag. This was a bit further away, so I decided to try taking the bus.

This was refreshingly easy to manage, and at 2:56 PM I was on the bus paying my 10000 VND ($00.35 USD) and getting a ticket. As a woman got on, I saw her show some sort of a pass. She didn’t look that old, so I don’t think it was a senior citizen thing. Incidentally, Moovit seemed a bit better than Google Maps for tracking the bus, but both were more than adequate for telling and showing the route. Watching a bit more, it seemed that there was no button to press; the bus just stops at all designated stops. Furthermore, the traffic along this route did not seem to be much of a problem. And just in case you are cautious about trying to take the bus on your own, I also noted that although they took some liberties with the actual route, they respected all of the stops, and there was always a pleasant tone which played about one minute before each stop.

At 3:10 I was off the bus and headed straight to Decathlon where I quickly bought a pair of athletic shoes, pair of gym shorts, three pairs of athletic socks, and gym shirt and a small sports bag all for the minor cost of 3590 INR ($40.00 USD), which I paid with my international credit card.

A man on a mission, I left there at 4:18 PM and headed straight over to Vinmart to pick up a bunch of snacks. My notes are off there, but I think I paid about $25 USD for the whole bunch, but I am not sure. Certainly, it wasn’t as much $50 USD.

From there I went out in the street at 5:17 PM to just enjoy a bit of the local scenery.

As luck would have it, I quickly started to feel hungry and decided to succumb to the comforting allure of McDonalds, where at 5:44 PM I bought a double cheeseburger, 1 grande Iced Bac Su, 1 medium french fries and oddly enough, a piece of chicken. My total was 130,000 VND ($5.00 USD) and it all tasted amazing!

Satisfied both with my food and my purchases, at 6:20 PM I decided that despite having proven to myself that I could manage the bus alright, managing the same with three big bags didn’t seem like the best use of my time. So, I got a Grab back to the hotel for a cost 69,000 VND ($2.60 USD). This proved to be a bargain, as the traffic was a bit more at this time of night, and it was not until 7:00 PM that the comfortable sedan pulled up close to my lodging . . . again, as the car was very comfortable, I had not minded, but forty minutes was admittedly a fairly long time to go 5.6 km.

My snacks packed away in my purpose-bought suitcase.

Once I had put things away, I went out again at 7:30 PM to wander around the nearby area.

After having a Banh Mi and tea for 65,000 VND ($2.50 USD) at 9:10 PM, I decided to go check out the famous street where they sell all the Christmas ornaments. It was certainly festive looking, but I wouldn’t say it was “amazing”. Still, if you are in the area around Christmas, there is no harm in checking it out, but I think it is more of an area for locals to buy things than for foreign tourists.

I felt it was time to turn in for the night, so after picking up three liters of bottled water for 28,000 VND ($1.00 USD), I was back in the room at 9:50 PM. It had been a fulfilling day, and I was looking forward to whatever the next day would have in store.

Hanoi Trip: Day 1 (22 Dec 2025)

Hey there everyone. I know it has been some time since I last wrote, but I have a bit of time available, so I decided to start delivering on that promise to write about my time in Hanoi. I am going to tell myself that this delay was intentional, sharing the information at a perfect time when you might be starting to plan your end of year vacation. One word of warning, there has been a lot of currency fluctuation in the last six months. so keep in mind that USD equivalent prices mentioned may have changed since I was there in December.

Those of you who follow along regularly will remember that I had started the trip in Ninh Binh and Cat Ba Island, and you will also remember that those were fantastic destinations. So, even if you unwisely decide to give Hanoi a pass, northern Vietnam still has plenty to offer. I won’t go into a lot of details, but I made the comfortable 3.5 hour trip from Cat Ba to Hanoi with Cat Ba Express, arriving at 4:00 PM.

My room in the old quarter at Home Town Cha Hotel which I had booked on Agoda for a cost of just 11, 310 INR (About $120 USD) for 9 nights was modest, very centrally located, safe feeling, and more than adequate for my needs.

My first order of business was to go out to find a suitcase. Unfortunately I have forgotten the name of the place, but it was a highly recommended local luggage shop which was not that far away. The hard side case spinner wheel case had a cost of 600,000 VNY (around $23 USD) which I think I probably paid for with Moreta, but again, I forgot to write it down. If you look online for where to buy in the old quarter, that’s the place which will likely come up. They have a decent selection from very basic to more luxurious bags. As my purpose was to have a simple functional bag to put food in to take home, I of course opted for the cheapest thing which looked like it would work for the flight back to India.

I dropped the suitcase back at the room at 5:09 PM and then immediately headed out to the Thang Long Water Puppet Theater, where at 6:04 PM I bought a ticket for the 1:45 PM show on the following day, paying 200,000 VND (7.50 USD) via the Moreta app. Tickets can be had for as little as 100,000 VND, but if you have traveled to Hanoi already, the difference is not significant, so you may as well get the better tickets. Do note that these shows sell out, so if its high season, don’t depend on being able to get seats the same day. However, as there are several shows a day, if you have a couple days of flexibility, it shouldn’t be a problem.

From there I decided to try to find something for dinner. At 7:45 PM, by sheer chance, I ended up at Bun Cha Ta Hanoi. I really had no idea about the reputation, but this is evidently a rather famous eatery in the city. It doesn’t look fancy from the outside and it looks even less fancy inside. Despite its fame, you might even be likely to not give the place a chance.

Seating is done mostly at long tables, and they just sit you wherever a spot is available. At least when I was there, they were very busy, and the server seemed a bit frazzled. However, she helpfully pointed out the recommended dish, which I agreed to get along with a Hanoi beer. The food, which arrived very quickly, was delicious and hearty, and for a total price of 150,000 VND ($5.75 USD) the price was great for my first meal in Hanoi. Furthermore, the seating arrangement encourages casual conversation with strangers, which is an added plus for a solo traveler such as myself. I think the whole experience could be a bit overwhelming if you don’t know what to expect, but I encourage you to try it, especially if you like tasty pork dishes.

Using the Moreta app, I paid my bill at 8:22 PM and set out to wander the vibrant streets. At 9:34 PM I came across some some sort of a cultural exhibit in a temple near my hotel. Entrance was free, and I had time on my hands. So, I decided to check it out. There were several types of items, but carved buffalo horn seemed to be a big focus. Many of the items were available for purchase, and I remember thinking that the prices seemed reasonable, but I wasn’t really in shopping mode.

From there, it was a quick walk back to my room where I arrived at 10:30 PM. Despite it being December, it was just a tiny bit too warm, and there was also a fair amount of noise from the street. So, I decided to turn on the air conditioning unit which served the dual purpose of generating white noise and also making it a bit more comfortable to drift off.

Considering that I had only been in the city for 8 hours, I felt that I had accomplished quite a bit, and I was also eager to see what the next day would bring. What about you? Do you have any questions about anything so far? What about that restaurant, would you eat there, and if not, why not? As always, I look forward to responding to your comments and questions. Let me hear from you and keep following along to see how things went with the rest of the trip!

Chiang Mai Trip: Day 4 (17 March 2026)

Hey there readers. I hope all is going well for you. My first three days in Chiang Mai had been very good, so even though I hadn’t planned for much, I was cautiously optimistic about my fourth and final day.

Again, I let myself sleep in a bit, and it was not until 9:18 AM that I headed out the door. I briefly considered getting some breakfast nearby, but then decided in favor of walking straight to Kalm Village, leaving open the possibility of stopping to get some breakfast along the way.

Fortunately the temperature was still pleasant at this time of the day. However, no breakfast spots caught my eye before I arrived the spot at 9:44 AM.

It didn’t take me long to have a fairly clear idea of the purpose of this space. It is basically a small, fancy shopping center focused on their version of traditional Thai crafts etc… So keep that in mind whenever seeing prices. For instance, at 9:54 AM I noted that you can buy what appears to be a perfectly serviceable and certainly a reasonably attractive traditional broom for 720 THB ($22.09 USD). It’s a bit over the top, but if living here, I supposed that I could see the attraction.

At 9:57 AM I kind of wondered about these local artisan-made “Thai versions” of pre-Colombian water whistles. Was this cultural appropriation? Does it matter whether or not they were putting their own spin on it? Is it less of an issue because they made sure to acknowledge the origin of the craft? Regardless of your views on the matter, you can buy one for 27,990 THB ($859.38 USD).

Soon after at 10:02 AM I saw these things that look sort of like weird bookends or simply wide letter “T”s. Evidently, these are chairs? They had a QR code to scan in order to see how to use them . . . there was even a rocking chair version. I can’t say that it looked like something I wanted to try, but who am I to censor someone else’s artisanship? Still, do I really want a chair that I need a QR code to understand?

So, what were my overall impressions as of 10:20 AM. I certainly did appreciate what they are trying to do here, but like most “art,” it’s frequently a hard sell. The traditional uses of most of these crafts no longer seem practical, and the newer artistic versions are priced beyond affordability for most people. Furthermore, the average person would not appreciate the updated crafts anyway, because they are still obviously less practical than the common, modern alternatives. However, seen from the point of view of a visit to a museum, I thought they generally did a very good job of presentation. I guess it is all a bit of a paradox.

Furthermore, I definitely appreciate that they went to some pains to recognize the original traditional artisans.

I remember years ago visiting the Elwood glass blowing workshop in Indiana. The only remaining craftsman told me that he had several times gone to local schools to try to recruit apprentices, but nobody was interested. He was already in his late 50’s then. He said that fortunately he had enough back orders (mostly from museums) to keep him going until retirement and that he actually would now only take new orders from established old, family clients. By himself, he simply didn’t have enough time to fill the orders, even with a several year waitlist. Thus, he acknowledged that he personally was quite fortunate, but he was very sad that with his death, the local glass blowing tradition would be gone. Albeit for a very limited audience, I could appreciate that here they were attempting to maintain the relevance of some of these traditional crafts.

Upon further reflection at 10:36 PM, I didn’t really find the cost of many of the reasonably functional items to be prohibitive. I even seriously considered buying one or two items. However, I quickly realized that the clothing wouldn’t really work for me, and the home decor was a bit too cultured for my rather simple living space.

Could I give some of this to someone else? Yes, but would they actually appreciate it? Let’s be honest, probably not. I know it’s not exactly the same thing, but it’s like when I actually used to make spaghetti from scratch. It was a massive amount of work. After awhile, I realized that while people were fine with eating it, they didn’t actually get more out of it as a result of the many hours of work I had put into it . . . so I stopped. Connected to the same, I think people actually did appreciate it more when I used to actually regularly make bread, but again, it was just so much work for too little impact. Or at any rate, that was the way I saw it.

Some of the tunics seemed to be strong candidates for gifts, but I still couldn’t think of anyone in my life who would really appreciate actually using one, at least not $180 USD of appreciation. I guess that makes me the problem?

Finally, if I were actually living here, I found some stuff that I could realistically see myself buying. This pottery was completely functional, as well as being simply elegant. Yes, it’s far more expensive than buying mass produced stuff from a super store, but it would be justified as a lifelong, or at least several year home purchase. Of course, I write that now, but would I actually spend the money on it if I lived here? Probably I wouldn’t, not because I didn’t genuinely appreciate it, but because it would just seem silly to spend that much when I could get something functionally similar and perhaps even more attractive for much less. Still I would at least have been realistically tempted.

Maybe wealthier businesses and schools should make an effort to very visibly use products such as these. What would be the impact of a school cafeteria only using dishes made my local artisans? What about a fancy restaurant? Yes, some items would get broken, especially at school, but isn’t that the entire point of keeping these crafts alive? Of course, just as it’s difficult for an individual to justify the additional expense, perhaps even more so for a school cafeteria? But what if the students actually met the artisans? Would that make a difference? I definitely don’t have the answers, but I think it’s worth having these discussions.

There were plenty of other interesting things to see, and I will definitely admit that I felt calm, so they had achieved at least one of their stated goals. It’s certainly remarkable that I spent two hours here, amazingly, without buying anything. Furthermore, to their credit, there was nobody pressuring me to make a purchase, but I am sure it would have been appreciated.

Still, there was only so much wandering I could do. So at 11:45 AM I started making my way out, with a short stop at the unsurprisingly elegant washroom. I also noted that they had a modern elevator, so points to them for being an accessible space.

I left the building at 12:00 PM sharp, and despite the rather bright sun, it was a pleasant walk back to the area of the hotel.

At 12:35 PM I decided to get lunch at the same place I had eaten breakfast the previous day, Jok Somphet. I ordered steamed egg custard dim sum, steamed pork dumplings, chicken khao soi and butterfly pea flower tea. The pork dim sum was divine, as was the khao soi. No doubt I would get tired of it over time, but at least while in Chiang Mai, I loved it. Furthermore, it was very fast service, with the food arriving just five minutes after I had ordered!

I’m sure that I could have had the exact same food elsewhere, but I think it’s important to be a repeat customer when you feel you have had both good food and good service. Of course, that also applies to other retail outlets as well. I really dragged out my lunch, and it wasn’t until 1:53 PM that I paid the bill of 165 THB ($5.07 USD) and walked back to my nearby hotel to get my bag and head to the airport.

As I had plenty of time, I decided to try the RTC bus. So, following the indications I could find online, I walked over to the stated area of the bus stop.

However, at 2:26 PM I gave up on that whole plan. As far as I could tell, catching the bus from Phae Gate is simply not possible unless you have some special insider knowledge. There is no clearly marked stop of any sort, and the bus doesn’t just simply stop at the supposed pickup point. Maybe you are supposed to wave it down? Honestly, I don’t think they really want people using the bus. Evidently there are two different buses you can use, but if you don’t know the trick (whatever it is) then you are out of luck.

So, at 2:35 PM I threw in the towel and got a Grab for 157 THB ($4.83 USD). The good news is that the car arrived less than a minute after I requested it. I had been trying to save a tiny bit and also take advantage of public transit, but that doesn’t seem to be a preferred mode in Chiang Mai. Anyway, just 16 minutes later I was at the airport.

So, if you count the airport, how was my remaining time in Chiang Mai? Well, I had arrived rather early to begin with, and the flight was also delayed fifty minutes, so I had three fun-filled hours. I worked on my blog a bit, had a guilty pleasure light dinner of a a McDonald’s cheeseburger and an Oreo McFlurry (222 THB or $6.83 USD), and then got on my Air Asia flight at 6:35 PM to discover . . . Wow! You can read the in-flight magazine for free!

So, for the most part it had been a much “kalmer” morning and afternoon than the first three days in Chiang Mai, but I also had no complaints. Having had more time, I am sure that I would have had plenty more interesting adventures, but for now I was headed to a Teachers’ Conference in Bangkok. Do I have any immediate plans to head back to Chiang Mai? Not for the moment, but if you are headed that way and looking for some company, let me know. Who knows, maybe you can be a featured guest in a future set of blog entries . . .

Chiang Mai Trip: Day 3 (16 March 2026)

Hey there readers, I hope you have been doing well since the last time I prepared an update. Looking back at my past posts, I see that I actually passed a personal milestone for my travel blog. It perhaps sounds a bit anticlimactic, but this is my hundred and first entry! I can’t say that I ever had a particular goal in mind, but despite the arbitrary nature of the number, I still feel quite good about having kept writing for this long. But enough about my personal records; let’s jump straight into day 3 of the Chiang Mai trip.

A big part of coming to Chiang Mai before heading to a teachers’ conference in Bangkok was to make sure that I had some authentic rest time. As such, I allowed myself to sleep in, then headed out at 9:47 AM to the nearby branch of Jok Somphet for breakfast. I ordered boiled rice with pig stomach and an extra soft boiled egg.

I realize that it doesn’t actually look that appealing, but it was very tasty. Furthermore, at only 45 THB ($1.35 USD), which I paid in cash, it was an incredible bargain. For a simple, budget breakfast, I would definitely recommend this eatery to anyone who is in Chiang Mai. Hopefully, I will have a chance to come back later on.

It was a pleasant nineteen-minute walk to Wat Phan Tao, where I arrived at 10:32 AM. As far as I can tell, the most distinguishing thing about this temple complex is that the walls and ceilings of the structures that you can enter seem to be mostly made of Teak. Thinking about it more, I think I may have been even more impressed by the crazy number of places and ways that they had established to make donations. They might not actually be raking in as much as the place I had seen earlier with the huge silver-colored recipients, but they are definitely making an effort. However, it is important to note that nobody harassed me nor directly solicited any sort of payment/donation.

It was not a central installation, but I particularly appreciated this recreation of the Buddha under the Banyan tree.

As with the other temples I had visited in Chiang Mai, the gardens/grounds had plenty of benches and a clearly indicated public toilet. However, most of the benches were located in direct sunlight, so that’s something to consider when planning a visit. Regardless, the entire place was well-maintained and very peaceful.

I finished up there at 10:56 AM and decided to walk towards the interesting looking temple which I had seen the day before on my way to the cultural show. As I was not in a big hurry, at 11:04 AM I stopped in at the god of fortune temple which was along the way.

Otherwise, the walk was fine, but uneventful.

I arrived to Wat Sri Suphan (The silver temple) at 11:22 AM. There was a 50 THB ($1.50 USD) obligatory “donation” for foreign tourists, which I paid for with cash. As I understand it, most of the metallic items seen here are not silver, but rather hammered aluminum or other silver-colored metals. Unsurprisingly, as I was starting to understand, there were donation bowls pretty much everywhere. Separately, there were also various shops selling nominally religious/spiritual items.

The print was absurdly small, but inside this one little gift shop, there were signs up about different Lanna artisans and their villages. Oddly enough, the shop itself seemed to be unattended, but I am sure that I could have found someone to sell me stuff had I wanted.

At 11:40 AM, I marveled at the way this technique of hammered metal allows for an astonishing amount of three-dimensional detail on both the central temple structure and various other statues located in the immediate vicinity.

Like many religious sites in this part of the world, only males are allowed to enter the main temple. As it had been explained to me earlier at a different temple, only men can become monks, so only men can enter. Or at any rate, that seems to be the popular justification. I briefly wondered how this would apply to people who were transgender or non-binary, but that seemed like a bit too much thought for the moment.

In a word, the carvings and paintings inside the temple were eclectic. Here they seemed to be leaning more into general artistic expression rather than keeping the focus on well-known religious symbols. Of course, it might just be that I am not all that aware of popular Buddhist imagery. Nevertheless, I was happy that I had been able to enter, and I felt a bit sad about all of the women who were not permitted to do so. Finishing up with the main temple structure at 12:05 PM, I decided to check out the rest of the grounds, including some of the associated stalls and workshops.

Doubtless if I had been with someone else, I would have gone ahead and paid the 50 THB to make my own ring/keychain/bracelet. However, as I was on my own, I really wasn’t all that interested. Thus, I finished up with the temple area at 12:22 PM and decided to walk over towards John Gallery. Along the way at 12:41 PM I saw The Lost Book Shop. Photos inside were prohibited, which of course made me more determined to take some.

I like to imagine that if I were living in Chiang Mai, I would regularly buy books there, but I don’t, so I didn’t. It was fairly well-organized, but otherwise rather unremarkable. So, I am not sure what the thing was with prohibited pictures. Thus, after just ten minutes, I was once more out on the street walking.

Finally at 1:01 PM I arrived to John Gallery. This was one time when recommendations from previous travelers seemed to have steered me wrong. I wasn’t upset that I had seen it, but I just didn’t think it was really all that amazing. No doubt if I had been looking to buy some reasonably modern original art from Chiang Mai, my experience would have been different. But as it was, I just found it to be very cramped and quirky. Still, if you are in the area, you may as well stop in for five minutes. Who knows, maybe you will find your next treasure…

As the gallery visit had gone much faster than anticipated (only four minutes), I decided to also check out the temple which was right next door (Chetawan Temple), and also the big white one which was across the street. These were interesting in that they were both clearly simple neighborhood temples rather than “tourist attractions”. The white one didn’t even have a clearly identifiable name placard. Despite, their relative simplicity, I still enjoyed my twenty-five minute exploration of these two temples and their grounds.

It appears that temple parking lot is used as paid parking for those who work in offices etc…nearby.

So, it was 1:31 PM, and what to do next? I wasn’t incredibly hungry, but eating is always good. I figured that as long as I were to keep walking, I would see something interesting.

Don’t hit me, but feel free to think less of me. As I have several times mentioned, whenever I am outside of India, if it’s available, I like to get a couple of simple McDonald’s cheeseburgers, and that’s exactly what I did at 1:52 PM. Putting things in perspective, compared to my breakfast, the 285 THB ($8.80 USD) was a bit expensive for two simple cheeseburgers and a 22 ounce sugar free Sprite. Still, the place was very clean, the seating was comfortable, the air-conditioning was perfect, and I was able to easily pay with my Indian credit card. You are welcome to yuck on my yum, but I knew what I wanted and was satisfied with the experience.

Feeling fully refreshed, I finished up at 2:33 PM and continued along my way.

Admittedly, I had not been blindly meandering. At 3:17 PM I arrived at Wat Suon Dok. The main temple structure here was built in 1371, and today it is the main burial site for members of the Lanna royal family.

At 3:37 PM I noticed that there were a couple of workers repainting one of the chedis (structures which hold relics of Buddha and some of the deceased royals). I wondered if there was some sort of a schedule for repainting the tombs. Furthermore, who pays for it? Is it the municipality, general temple funds, close family members of particular tombs? Many of the structures were glistening white, but others were clearly in need of a bit of attention. The largest pagodas of course are where the Buddha relics are located, with the smaller structures holding the remains of royal family members.

I wondered, do members of the Lanna royal family visit here frequently? Do they feel any meaningful connection to all of the extended family members with their enshrined remains? What about the local people of the area? I suppose this is true of burial sites everywhere… After perhaps 100 years, certainly 200, what connection can one feel with those who have passed on? What is the point of such burial sites? Do people really feel that strong of a connection to ancestors who were buried hundreds of years ago? Taking it a step further, what about the ancestors of one’s neighbors or simply just people from the same general ethnic/cultural group?

Fortunately, five minutes later there was a downpour which pushed me to seek shelter under one of the large archways, so deep thoughts were put aside in the rush to not get soaking wet.

As luck would have it, the rain dropped off after just 15 minutes. Given that I was already in the area, I decided to go into main temple structure. This had another required “donation” of 20 THB ($0.60 USD).

As the photos indicate, there were the now familiar MANY places to deposit donations. I somehow forgot to take a picture, but there were also these little glass baubles that supposedly had reliquaries (pieces of) important deceased monks. Of course, the most important ones are those attributed to the Buddha. I suppose it is all about belief, but it seemed a bit weird to me to take little pieces of someone dead that you admire and then distribute them. Perhaps it is like how people take keepsakes from a dead relative’s house? Regardless, it wasn’t really my thing, so I exited at 4:15 PM.

Fairly close by, at 4:27 PM I came across what appeared to be a branch of a local café chain called Yummy. Once inside, from what I could make out, it appears that they sell pre-packaged pastries and simple drinks at reasonably affordable prices. I got a small croissant and a Taro milk tea for 58 THB ($1.79 USD). The croissant was about what you would expect of a pre-packaged pastry, and the tea was basically sugar water. Still, I was on vacation, so new experiences were welcome. I was the only customer, and I hung out there until 5:05 PM.

The temperature at 5:15 PM was actually just perfect, and the path along this part of the moat seemed much nicer than the other areas I had explored. Certainly I was enjoying myself, but I also had no intention of simply walking along the full circle of the moat. Thus, despite how pretty it was, at 5:43 PM I stopped in at some random restaurant called Maepasri. Yes, I know that I had just had a pastry an hour earlier, but I had also been walking quite a bit, and there was nothing else pending on my agenda.

I was very happy with my Khao Soi with pork, large Chang beer, and the artfully presented mango rice. As I was finishing up at 7:05 PM, I noted that the cost was only 215 THB ($6.65 USD) which I again paid with cash. Theoretically I could have paid with my Moreta app, but I had still not been able to add more money since arriving in Thailand despite having sent multiple messages to customer support. The app had been very nice to use in Vietnam, but it was clearly less useful in this particular country. This is not just because of the inability to add more funds to the online wallet, but also because many of the common places in Thailand seemed to have a strong preference for cash.

Still, the evening was pleasant, and it was just a leisurely thirty-minute walk back to my lodging. Upon arrival at 7:33 PM, I refilled my two water bottles at the front desk and decided to turn in for the night…perhaps I would watch some streaming video, or perhaps I would just do some reading. It wouldn’t even be a bad option to just go to sleep very early. I had seen several more interesting temples, had enjoyable walks, eaten satisfying food, and even privately reflected on issues of gender and death. In short, I wanted nothing more from the day. I was content.

Chiang Mai Trip: Day 2 (15 March 2026)

Hey there readers thanks for continuing to follow along. As always, I apologize for it taking so long to get these entries out. Just throwing this out there, if anyone wants to pay me to do this or perhaps just comp some of my expenses, I promise that I will get them done quicker. Until then though, I guess you will just have to bear with me getting these out whenever I have time.

So day two in Chiang Mai started a bit late, with me not departing my room until 10:30 AM. I had really needed the rest, and fortunately my lodging was both quiet and comfortable. Rather than just wandering around aimlessly, I went straight to BaanBaan Breakfast, which is a highly rated eatery for . . . wait for it . . . that’s right, breakfast! Fortunately it was only a ten-minute walk. As it was so close, there wasn’t really anything new to see along the way.

No, that’s not the restaurant. But I thought it was a nice looking entrance to a temple which I had not yet visited.

Upon arrival, I quickly scored a table and ordered “traditional Thai” coffee with milk. It came in a glass, similar to the way it is traditionally served in Costa Rica. However, unlike Costa Rican coffee, there was something at the bottom of the glass, which based on the name, I assumed to be sweetened, condensed milk. Shortly thereafter my “Thai egg pan” also arrived; this last was also marketed as being “traditional” but I had my doubts. Regardless, the two items together made for a nice picture.

As you can see, it is basically a keto breakfast with two eggs and three types of sausage. The serving was relatively small, but it was full of taste, which invites you to eat it slowly, savoring each small bite. As for the coffee, my earlier instincts about the white layer had been correct, so I guess that sort of threw a wrench in the whole keto thing. However, that had never really been my goal, so I wasn’t particularly concerned. The food had come out quite quickly, but it wasn’t until 11:20 AM that I used my Moreta app to pay the 139 THB ($4.26 USD) bill and then started walking towards the Lanna Folklife Center.

Walking into the entrance at 11:35 AM, I was quite pleased to see that there seemed to be some sort of school or club which had been visiting. Other people were taking pictures of them, so I figured that I may as well do the same.

After taking pictures of some random, yet aesthetically pleasing group of people, I paid the 90 THB ($2.75 USD) entry fee at 11:37 AM and was given BOTH a paper ticket which I was told to keep AND a red sticker that I was also told to stick on my shirt in a visible spot. I wondered, where there really so many people trying to sneak in here without paying?

Let’s just get this out there right away, this is probably not a place to take kids. To be fair, it is probably also not a place for most adults. In general terms, the displays are done very well, and I definitely learned quite a bit from my visit. However, there is a good chance that many would quickly become bored. Still, the air conditioning works extremely well, so there are certainly worse ways to spend the hottest hours of the day. Regardless, while I do have copious notes on everything I saw, in the interest of not completely losing your interest, I will try to only mention a small number of the things that drew my attention.

In an attempt to add some verisimilitude to the various displays, they frequently used life-size mannequins. In my opinion, these were neither realistic enough to be particularly meaningful nor fake enough looking to be just plain ridiculous. However, I know a lot of people kind of get freaked out by this sort of thing, so that might be a reason to avoid visiting.

I had definitely previously seen depictions of both the “Buddha footprint” and yantra cloth, but in both cases, I had thought that they were more decorative than anything else. Here I learned that they are both actually fairly meaningful religious symbols for Buddhists, or at any rate, meaningful for Lanna Buddhists.

There was also this entire display on small boxes. These days, they are so easy to get that we don’t even think about them. However, not too far in the past, each one of these small containers represented an important amount of effort and sometimes intentional artistic expression by a specialized, dedicated human artisan. What does it say about us as humans that this entire craft has almost entirely disappeared? Is it simple progress, or have we lost something important? Should we care?

The curators specifically lamented that the art of making wooden covers for palm leaf manuscripts had almost entirely been forgotten. Connected to my thoughts about boxes, once again I wondered, is this really a legitimate concern? In the case of small boxes, at least we regularly still use those, but who writes on palm leaf these days? Does everything have to be preserved if it has been replaced by something which is functionally better? I suppose it is useful to have records about how to make and operate hand looms for cloth and wicker baskets, but is it actually a valuable or at least meaningful use of time for humans to still be making these things by hand? I am certainly not trying to dissuade anyone who genuinely wants to do these things, but should we actually be encouraging people to do them? I just don’t know.

Reading about the Lanna “traditional partner selection” ceremony, I had to confess that I had my doubts. I mean how big were these villages? It seemed very unlikely to me that young people would not have had any sort of meaningful contact between each other before this sort of “fairy-tale” arranged meeting on the front porch. Nevertheless, it was a moderately interesting story. Separately, it drew my attention that upon marriage, the young man would go to live with the woman’s family . . . so was this a matrilinear society?

While I admired all of the Buddha statues and related artifacts, they caused me to have a thought similar to one which I had entertained the day before. Evidently these are (or used to be?) donated to temples in order to gain spiritual favor. I know something similar happens in different religions around the world, but does this really make sense? Wouldn’t a god or spiritual being, or even a good community leader, prefer for people to use their excess resources to care for those in need or simply to elevate society as a whole? How does putting yet another beautiful religious symbol which presumably cannot even be sold, even help the temple itself, let alone the people who espouse that particular religion?

I have had similar thoughts when visiting La Basilica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles in Cartago, Costa Rica. There you can find all sorts of gold symbols and trinkets which have been left as thanks for miracles which are attributed to “La Negrita.” Let us assume that “La Negrita” actually interceded with God in order to grant a miracle to a petitioner. Why would this version of the Virgen Mary or Jesus want gold trinkets to be left in a church? Once again, putting disbelief aside, what does God actually want of a devoted follower? At least from my point of view, it seems unlikely that it is more beautiful statues or gold trinkets . . .

At 1:44 PM, I was getting ready to finish up. While not the primary purpose of the visit, it was interesting to see that the building itself has gone through several transformations over the year. Evidently, it was first a prince´s house. Later on, it was used as a court building. And now, it is a museum. What will come next?

Right across the street, in front of the museum, is the three kings monument. As far as monuments go, it´s not visually all that impressive, but there is a good message attached. I didn´t spend much time checking out the detailed history, but the story goes that these three kings decided to stop having regional conflict so that through cooperation they could instead focus on improving life for the people of all three kingdoms. I´m sure it is more nuanced than that, but it´s certainly a feel good story.

Walking east from the monument, at 2:20 PM, I came across these street paintings of children. I found some of them to be incredibly realistic, almost like black and white photos. But there was also a lot of other street art in the nearby areas.

Was the shopee driver “blocking” the art or was he part of the exhibit?

It is worth noting that clearly not everyone in Chiang Mai was appreciative of the street art.

Finally at 3:43 PM I decided to stop at Move up, where I ordered a pork burger, passion fruit shake and a Chang beer.

While I was there, I tried adding money to my Moreta account, but I had no luck. I tried two Indian cards and one Costa Rican card. Finally I just gave up and sent a note to customer support. Even though this app seems less useful in Thailand than it had been in Vietnam, I still hope I am able to get it working again. Having finished my leisurely lunch at 5:20 PM, I paid the 288 THB ($8.97 USD) bill with cash and set out walking towards the Old Chiang Mai cultural center.

This place looked interesting, so I thought I might try to visit the following day.

After my rather meandering walk, I arrived to the entrance at 5:58 PM. Just inside the entrance, there was a hostess who enquired as to whether or not I had a reservation, or if I was just there eat at one of the restaurants which were also on site. I indicated that I had made an advance purchase of the “Classic dinner and show” for a cost of 690 THB ($21.42 USD). After quickly confirming the reservation, she ushered me through to the waiting area.

It soon became evident that the instructions to arrive at 6:00 PM had been a bit misleading, but the waiting area was comfortable, and the lemongrass welcome drink was surprisingly refreshing. Despite the warnings I had seen online, there didn’t appear to be a particularly large number of people, so it was comfortable and uncrowded when they had us go through at 6:35 PM to our assigned seats. Honestly, it seemed like everyone had very pleasant seating, but I was particularly pleased with my solo table, where I had a completely unobstructed, close-up view of the main stage.

I had opted for a standard table, but it appeared that the floor seating was also reasonably comfortable for those who would feel alright with that arrangement for two hours. Rather than launching right into the full show, we first had our meal served, with the live musicians accompanying us while we were eating. The food was both plentiful and delicious . . . honestly, I think it would have been worth it just to have the special meal. I didn’t feel a need to take advantage of the offer, but they were also happy to refill any of the dishes, so it was effectively a buffet.

Fortunately, they did not start the dances until most of the diners had completely finished eating, a bit after 7:15 PM. Thus, everyone’s attention was fully on the performers. I was pleased with the show, but this is a dance style which is clearly focused more on careful elegance than on fast action, so I could see how some less patient viewers might get bored. Still, it was only an hour long, so except for very young children, probably almost anyone would still find the various dances to be enjoyable.

I was very curious as to how they managed the dripping wax from these candles while they were dancing.

The whole thing was over at 8:18 PM. After a quick visit to the washroom, at 8:30 PM I began the 3 km walk back to the hotel. With all of the food I had eaten, I felt that I really needed the exercise!

Upon returning to the hotel at 9:15 PM, I refilled my two hotel water bottles at the water station downstairs, took a shower, and then turned in for the night. So there you go, a full day of Chiang Mai culture. No doubt some would have found it to be a bit of a slow day, but it was just perfect for me. What do you think? Let me know your comments and questions below, and I promise to get back to you right away.

Chiang Mai Trip: Day 1 (14 March 2026)

Hey there everyone, I hope you have been having your own amazing adventures since last I wrote. For those of you who know me better, you are probably surprised to see that this latest entry is from Thailand, rather than from Vietnam. Basically, I am cheating. Yes, the northern Vietnam trip report has more than a week left, but I took a short trip to Chiang Mai the last few days, and wanted to get to that while it was fresh in my head. Besides, it sort of makes sense, as the second part of Vietnam was all in Hanoi, so I will just write about that separately as “the Hanoi trip”. Now I know that was way more information than most of you wanted, so I will just jump right into my trip to Chiang Mai.

Despite warnings about this budget airline being unreliable, I had booked a Thai Lion Air flight from Bengaluru, with a VERY early morning departure on March 14th. Fortunately, the flight left right on time, even arriving a bit early into Bangkok at 4:10 AM GMT+7:00 (Thailand time).

The Nomad Esim I had paid $9.00 USD for connected immediately, so I was all set with 50 GB of data for my 10 day trip. Incidentally, I had originally booked an Esim with Matrix esim, but that service is complete trash, at least when trying to do it online. So it is a good thing that the Nomad Esim was so great, because the 953 INR I had paid for the Matrix Esim a day earlier had been a complete waste. In summary, Nomad is good, and Matrix is a scam, at least when trying to buy online . . . if I had checked the reviews ahead of time I would have known that, but there you go. One time following the reviews would have been meaningless, and the other time it would have saved me a bit of money and some undue stress.

Once at the airport in Bangkok, Thai Lion Air’s “fly through” service for those who are connecting to domestic flights worked incredibly well. I had zero wait time, and was through immigration and into the domestic waiting zone in less than ten minutes!

I had not eaten since the previous evening, and didn’t want to get out cash, so at 7:15 AM I opted to buy a simple McDonald’s breakfast with a double sausage McMuffin, hashbrowns and a diet sprite for 759 INR ($8.00 USD), paying with my international credit card from India. Yes, I know . . . how could I possibly eat McDonald’s while in Thailand?! In short, because I like sausage McMuffins every once in a while, and you can’t get them in India.

I was happy with my meal, and just a short time later (at 7:55 AM) I was seated on the next plane, getting ready for takeoff. Once again, the flight was uneventful, with us touching down at 9:34 AM. My first impression was that it was greener than I had thought it would be, but I really don’t know why that surprised me. I also really hadn’t been expecting to see mountains there in the distance. We had a bit of excitement when the airport bus taking us from the plane almost hit a pickup truck. Fortunately the crisis was averted, but several people almost fell down when the driver slammed on the breaks.

I had entertained taking the RTC bus from the airport to the old Chiang Mai where I was staying. However, by the time we had got to the departure area, it looked like I had missed the 10:00 AM bus, and I really did not want to wait another hour. Thus, I booked a car using the GRAB app for 171 THB (automatically charges my international credit card), vs the 50 THB ($1.52 USD) I would have paid for the bus. The main issue with the bus is that you have to pay in cash, and small bills at that, and I had neither.

Regardless, a 10 minutes trip vs. the more than 45 minutes it could have taken me in the bus also seemed like a good trade off. Furthermore, at the end of the day, $5.29 USD is perfectly fine for a comfortable airport taxi which gets me to my hotel in such a short time. As we were approaching the hotel, we drove along some sort of a waterway. It didn’t exactly seem to be a river, appearing to be more like a rather long moat; judging by the remnants of old fortifications on the other side, that seemed to be a good guess.

Upon arrival to Chiangmun Boutique at 10:10 AM, which I had booked ahead of time on Agoda for 5,077 INR for three nights ($53.57 USD) I was warmly received, but they said that my room would unfortunately not be ready for another hour. Given that check-in time is actually 2:00 PM, this seemed fair, so I dropped off my one piece of luggage and went out in search of an AEON bank ATM.

All of the travel forums said that this was the best way to get Thai Baht in Chiang Mai, giving better rates and less service charge than other ATMs. Of course, I also had some USD and even euros with me if needed, but I preferred to keep that cash as an emergency reserve, especially since it can be a bit annoying to get foreign currency in India. However, things did not go quite as planned. Evidently, AEON banks is now mostly defunct, or at any rate they now have extremely few ATMs. I figured it couldn’t be that much of a difference, so I just went for another ATM. Learn from my mistakes!

At 10:40 AM, after having established that there were no longer AEON bank ATMs, I got 2600 THB (about $80.30 USD) from some random, yellow ATM. The actual amount deducted from my bank account in India was 9641 INR ($104 USD). Yep, you read it correctly . . . $24 USD in charges to get $80.30 USD. For those of you coming from the USA, I think you get a better deal, but for those coming from India or other countries which don’t use the USD, be prepared to get majorly burned if you use an ATM. To be fair, I suspect this may be more of an “India thing,” but given the number of visitors who come to Thailand from India, it is certainly useful information. In summary, if you are coming from India, bring crisp $100 USD bills and change them at an exchange house.

It was a brief walk back to the hotel, where I arrived at 10:55 AM and they immediately ushered me into my room. As I had planned, it was a simple room, but impeccably clean, with a well-working, quiet air-conditioner. I had not been able to sleep at all on the two flights from India, so I was running on empty as far as sleep credits were concerned. I took a quick shower and immediately got in bed for a nap before going out to explore in the early evening.

I woke up at 4:15 PM and immediately headed out to the temple which was right across the road from my hotel, Wat Chiang Mun, arriving there at 4:28 PM.

I was surprised to see that this temple was founded between 1296 and 1297 AC. Walking inside at 4:34 PM, I noted that it was much less “extravagant” than many Buddhist temples I’ve seen, but it was certainly elegant. There to the right of main altar, there were a lot of what I thought were probably some sort of air conditioning units, but I wondered how well they would work in such an open space. I had noticed that there were no signs about pictures or selfies being prohibited, so I figured it was safe. I comment on this, because in many countries it is definitely not permitted in Buddhist temples.

At 4:44 PM I went out of the main temple building and off to the left of the entrance. So far I had found it interesting that there were no obvious “offerings” nor incense anywhere. Maybe that’s not a big thing here? There were some very simple gardens, and as I explored around the grounds at 4:52 PM, I decided that the lesser areas of the temple complex were actually a bit more interesting than the main temple, at least from my “tourist” viewpoint. Finally at 4:58 PM I found an area with some incense at an outside altar of sorts. There were also nagas (mythological dragon/snake guardians) EVERYWHERE. While note historical, I also thought it noteworthy that they had a a very clearly marked public washroom.

As I walked out of the temple complex at 5:03 PM, I saw that I had evidently stayed in the wrong place; right next to my hotel was Jay Guest House! At the same time, I noticed that there were some mosquitos, so I quickly returned to the room to get some natural mosquito repellant to put on my clothes. That whole maneuver only took a moment, and at 5:08 PM I was off on my way towards Wat Phra Singh. The temperature at this time of the early evening was very pleasant, and the streets, at least in this area, were very clean and uncrowded.

I arrived to Wat Phra Singh at 5:31 PM. This was clearly a larger temple complex than where I had been earlier, but it wasn’t crazy huge. Unlike the first temple I had visited, this one had a sign indicating a mandatory “donation” of 50 THB for foreign visitors. I decided to walk around outside first. The sound of the birds was very peaceful, and the walkways themselves were also calming. There was a very large structure here covered in what I thought might be some sort of shiny gold paint. However, upon closer inspection, I decided that it was actually some sort of polished, gold colored metal. Whatever it was, it was very well-maintained.

The area with wise sayings placed on trees was unattended but interesting. I guess these are the Buddhist equivalent of Christian proverbs. It seems like most well-established religions have something like this?

Tucked off to the side, at 5:51 PM I noticed a white building that sort of looks like apartments. Perhaps that is where the monks live, but I don’t know.

Soon thereafter I noticed a little offering of some sort which had been set out on top of a bush. I wondered what the tray was made of. I assume that the offering itself has a similar system to what I saw/heard about in Vietnam, with it being left out for awhile, and then picked up by the person who offered it later on. In this scenario, the offering is considered blessed. I thought this made sense, since the offering plate appeared to have clothes for a little kid, so I assumed that it would not be used by the monks. Again though, I could be completely wrong about this. These are all just my personal musings.

At 6:04 PM I decided to leave without having actually entered any of the buildings. It was all very pretty, but I just didn´t see a need to go inside.

I set off in the direction of Wat Chedi Lhuang, where I arrived at 18:24 PM.

Like the last temple complex, there was a required “donation” from foreign visitors, but this one had a sort of ticket station right there at the entrance. This can only be given in cash, which I did, receiving a printed official receipt which I kept in my pocket just in case. Near the entrance, I noticed some people selling offering candles and incense. This especially drew my attention because the breeze was not cooperating with the area where people were supposed to burn their offerings, and there was a lady standing there who had to constantly relight her candle. Fortunately the wind didn’t seem to have the same effect on the incense, so not everyone was required to do this constant dance.

Walking around at 6:33 PM, I saw there was a sign indicating that only men were allowed to enter the temple under which the main pillar of the city is said to be buried. Except for people trying to keep candles lit, the breeze was most welcome, with the constant, pleasant sound of windchimes.

Interestingly enough, the unassuming “little southern stupa” is evidently as old as the now ruined massive main stupa, but it is in far, far better condition. Maybe being the biggest isn’t always the best.

Similar to what I had observed about an earlier temple complex, the grounds/gardens were perhaps the best part of the temple complex. Especially at dusk, they were incredibly calming. I also really appreciate the benches they have throughout. That shows that they have really thought about the needs of visitors, especially those who are older or infirm.

Thinking back on the massive size of the silver colored donation vessels, I wondered. Was that just wishful thinking, or did they really need donation containers that were that huge? At 6:41 PM I had seen at least two of these massive things, and that isn’t counting the smaller ones located throughout the complex.

Continuing on my walk at 6:45 PM I really wanted to whack one of those gongs, but it seemed ill-advised. However, there were no signs of prohibition, so maybe it’s okay? Or maybe it is just common sense to not bang on the massive gongs for no special reason? Regardless, nobody else seemed inclined to hit them, so I decided to stick with my original inclination to avoid it, despite the great temptation.

Behind the main temple, there is a smaller one which evidently used to serve as the ordination hall, but now appears to mostly just be for decoration. As I was looking around there at 6:56 PM, I wondered about the pictures on the interior garden wall. Were those perhaps important donors or maybe their ashes were actually located within niches in the wall? Maybe both? I hoped that at least some people who actually know who they were/are come here to visit, not just tourists like me who don’t even know what the signs say.

Walking along the path from there back towards the main temple at 7:03 PM, I saw a sign indicating that it was free to chat with a monk. I suppose that I appreciated being told, but it was sort of sad that clarification was needed. Isn’t the whole point of religious scholars/guides supposed to be that they are there to guide all people who are seeking help? The notion of having to pay for that just seems crazy to me, but maybe it is normal in this part of the world? Regardless, just so you know, no payment required at least at this particular temple.

Having already seen most of the rest of the grounds, I decided to go ahead and enter the main temple structure at 7:21 PM. Shoes of course had to come off, and then I went in. It wasn’t an issue for me as I always tend to dress quite modestly (and simply) when travelling, but most of these temples also have signs up about keeping shoulders and legs covered.

Once inside looking around, I was intrigued by the whole gold leafing thing on the statues, but I couldn’t help wondering if that was the best use for the money. However, I may have a mistaken idea about the cost. Perhaps it doesn’t really cost that much? I mean it is basically just gold tissue paper. Still, let us suppose that the Buddha’s spirit were somehow connected to one of these statues or perhaps even all of them . . . is this really what the Buddha’s spirit would want? Wouldn’t the Buddha (or any other benevolent spirit or deity) want devotees to use their funds to help those in need or perhaps to simply improve life for the entire community? I realize there is a fine line of sorts here. I don’t think there is anything the matter with wanting a clean, attractive, comfortable place of worship, but are we really doing what is correct when we put too much emphasis on obviously luxurious ornamentation? I need to think about this more, as there are clearly greater implications than just this single Buddhist temple.

So as you could see, the temple was certainly very pretty, but at 7:33 PM I had seen about everything I needed to see. I didn’t really have a particular idea of what I wanted to eat, but after wandering around a bit, at 7:52 PM I saw a place that looked decent enough, with what appeared to be several Thai clients: Uncle Lam Thai Syle Fusion Food. Guessing from the “fusion food” moniker it is perhaps not “authentic” northern Thai food, but I was pleased with the dishes which I had selected by pointing at pictures. The broth that came with the pork in oyster sauce was particularly divine.

When I finished at 8:56 PM, I paid my 340 THB ($10.35 USD) bill using my Moreta app, noting that the food was perhaps a bit more expensive than what I had generally paid three months earlier in northern Vietnam, but certainly not prohibitively so for a tourist. Of course, based on the proliferation of fancy temples, it might just be that I was staying in a more expensive area of Chiang Mai. Still, I was fine with the expense and decided to briefly walk along the moat for a bit as I more or less headed in the general direction of my hotel.

Next to where I was staying, there was a 7-Elven where at 9:38 PM I bought some snacks for 100 THB ($3.04 USD) in cash, and then headed directly into my room which was just next door.

I showered, watched a bit of streaming video, and then went to be at 10:30 PM. It had been a bit of odyssey to get here, but the room was comfortable, the sights interesting, and the food delicious. What was your favorite part so far? Is there anything more you would like to know? Do you think you would have done anything differently? I look forward to reading your comments and questions in the space which is indicated below.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 8 (21 December 2025)

Day 8 was my last full day on Cat Ba Island. I intentionally kept things low-key today, focusing on wandering the local streets and catching a proper sunset.

The morning started slowly. At 8:15 AM, after finishing some work and showering, I went down to the reception area. The setup at the entrance to this hotel is very odd; it’s basically a reception desk that doubles as a living room and bedroom. There is a small single bed right behind the desk, and frequently there’s someone sleeping there. Similarly, the day I arrived, someone was just sleeping on the couch in the lobby. I considered trying to get a picture of the bed, but the figured that was a bit intrusive. The couch however seemed fair game, but it also seemed to miss the whole point of the picture, as there was currently no family activity going on in that area. Still, you can get some hints of what I’m talking about.

Having my included breakfast at 8:32 AM, I reflected on the fact that it is good to have some complete downtime. Nevertheless, I wished there was something slightly more structured to see or do today. Evidently, there’s a third beach here that I didn’t see yesterday, so I figured I could go check that out. The only issue was that my beach shorts from a couple of days ago were still in the laundry, so I debated whether I needed to buy another pair. I know, such a difficult decision, right?

I know it doesn’t look like much, but the bread was quite nice, and you have to remember that this hotel is proper cheap, and still has a more than adequate included breakfast. The coffee alone, was certainly of at least the same quality you would get in a nearby cafe, so I felt that I had no reason to complain. Sometimes, food is just food.

At 9:20 AM I decided to go back upstairs and just work on the blog for a bit, but I clearly had not been working on this particular entry, as more than two months have passed since I was visiting, and I am only just now writing about Day 8!

The Great Facebook Ban of 2025

Then, drama struck.

At 12:41 PM, I got a bit of a shock. I had just posted on Facebook about my Day 2 trip in Vietnam, and my account was immediately blocked. I think it was because I included an AI-created photo in the post as a joke, even though I made it clear in the text that I had intentionally included a “suspicious picture” for people to try to identify as being fake. I don’t use Facebook constantly, but getting blocked made me feel sick; I have more than 15 years of posts, memories, and contacts tied to that account. Planning for just such an eventuality, is actually the reason that I started this blog . . . Here I pay for my hosting, and maintain ownership (not that it is particularly valuable) of all of my writing. However, there is still a lot there from before I started the blog, and I would also miss the contact with a couple of friends who are regular posters.

Thus, I spent the next twenty minutes (1:01 PM) frantically uploading various documents and appealing the block. By 1:20 PM, Facebook restored my account. Who knows what actually happened (They certainly didn´t tell me the offense) behind the algorithmic curtain, but crisis averted.

Exploring the “Real” Cat Ba

At 2:03 PM I finally headed out walking, sporting some new glasses (not technically new, but the backup pair I had brought along) since my other ones weren’t staying on my face very well. The sun was very bright and it was rather warm, though there was a nice breeze coming off the water.

At 2:15 PM I arrived near the “third beach.” It’s not as fancy-looking as the others, but it still looks like a decent spot. I once again debated buying another pair of trunks, but at 2:35 PM I decided that this beach looked interesting, but not buy-another-pair-of-shorts-I’ll-never-use-again interesting. If there had been some shop selling them right there, I might have given in to the impulse, but that´s not what happened. If any shopkeepers from Cat Ba are reading, this might be a business opportunity.

I wasn´t particularly hungry, but eating is always good, so I resolved to wander around with the general goal of finding some hidden gem where I could get lunch. The wandering worked out alright, but not the lunch part.

Up on the hillside at 2:19 PM, I saw some sort of a temple in the distance, and I thought it might be nice figure out how to get there. I never discovered how to reach the temple, but the back streets themselves were eye-opening . . . so different from the main strip along the side of the lake.

No, that´s not the temple. It is just a family or neighborhood shrine of some sort.

Moving along at 2:25 PM I saw more of those local houses with massive glass front doors, in many cases left wide open; privacy curtains don´t seem to be a thing.

I really can´t tell you how I got there, but at 2:41 PM I found myself on some other “local street” which seemed to be a mix of both shops and residential homes. I suppose it wasn´t an Earth shattering discovery, but it was new for me.

Once more at 2:47 PM I noticed some more government buildings which were yellow. I was developing a working theory that “yellow equals government building” perhaps because it contrasts well with red?

I was quite proud of my architectural detective work for about five minutes, but it was all dashed to pieces when at 2:52 PM I saw a WHITE government building. Judging from the rings, I am guessing it was a public gymnasium, but I can´t confirm that. So, the new working theory was: “government buildings are yellow, unless they are gymnasiums”.

This still seemed like an understandable system, so once again I was feeling quite proud of myself. And then the whole theory came crashing to the ground when at 2:55 PM I saw yet ANOTHER white government building, which clearly was not a gymnasium. No longer a theory but just an observation . . . many government buildings in Vietnam are yellow, but at least some of them are white . . . more information is required to see if other colors also appear.

I then saw the oddest thing. There was a furniture shop with a rather large mirror. The mirror had a plush fuzzy border reminiscent of a cartoon rabbit. It made sense to me that someone might think it was nice perhaps for a child´s bedroom, but it certainly didn´t look very practical for cleaning. I mused that it might be removable and washable, but closer inspection didn´t seem to support that hypothesis. But then I suppose cloth couches and armchairs also aren´t easily washable, so maybe it wasn´t all that remarkable.

No doubt you my faithful reader have already arrived at this conclusion, but at around 3:10 PM I realized that it really doesn´t take that much to please me. I was quite happy just to have found this section where it appeared that local people actually live and go about their daily lives away from the tourist strip. Should I really care that much? Probably not, but it is something that most tourists probably won´t take the time to see. Furthermore, given that the rapid development of the area is obvious, it seemed likely that much of what I was seeing today, would be totally different in 2-3 years. I genuinely hope that the actual people of the island will benefit from all the changes.

Literally coming full circle, at 3:28 PM I noted that my wandering had brought me right back to the beach I had originally set out to see. It seemed predestined that I should check it out a bit more. As I walked down, it was obvious that this is the “old beach,” a bit neglected, having been replaced by the shiny new ones I had seen the previous day.

A Sunset Dinner and a Feline Friend

By 3:49 PM I was walking next to the lake again. I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast and lunchtime had clearly slipped by, so my mission was to find a good place to eat and watch the sunset.

The walk there had some interesting contrasts. At 3:54 PM I saw a “Protect the Environment” sign that seemed woefully out of touch next to the massive, disruptive construction going on nearby. Furthermore, the more than twenty boats in the picture also called into question the connection . . . was it meant to be a criticism of all of the boats? Or was it just environmentalist theater?

As if to further illustrate my point, at 4:07 PM I noticed a fancy harbor hotel that had obviously originally been constructed to take advantage of the view of the water, with its ambiance now completely destroyed by the recent massive filling-in of the harbor in order to construct a new mega tourism project.

I continued along my way, and at 4:30 PM I arrived at Le Pont Bungalow for dinner. As you would expect for a place with this view, the food is a bit more expensive than similar options nearby, but the prices were certainly not absurd.

It wasn´t a long wait. At 4:44 PM my food arrived, and the fish, fries, and asparagus all tasted great.

Shortly thereafter at 4:47 PM, a cat came over and sat across from me at the table to watch the sunset. Okay, let’s be real: it was more likely the cat’s table, and I was just sitting at it. Regardless, he was a very good dinner companion.

We watched the last moment of the sun before it was blocked by clouds at 5:08 PM. It wasn’t anything I haven’t seen before, but I was very happy I had come here for my sunset dinner. The fact that it was my last night in Cat Ba somehow made it even better. The ambiance was perfect. No doubt noting that I was wasting my perfectly good bone, my dinner companion jumped down to the floor and waited for me to pass it over.

At 5:37 PM I paid the bill: 225,000 VND ($8.55 USD / 765 INR) via Moreta. For a nice view, decent food, pleasant ambiance, and an adorable cat, it was well worth it.

Dessert and Early to Bed

I decided to head back into town to find a special dessert, and at 6:06 PM I stopped at Chang Dessert and Cake. I ordered a blueberry and cashew smoothie and an almond croissant for 120,000 VND ($4.55 USD), paying via Moreta. Interestingly, this was the first place I’ve gone to in Vietnam that asked me to pay as soon as I ordered.

I finished up at 6:39 PM. I really liked that smoothie; I wondered if I could figure out how to make it when I get back to Bangalore. Having seemingly exhausted my options for the day, I just headed back to the hotel.

However, I wasn´t quite ready to go inside. So, at 6:54 PM I sat on one of the very few public benches in Cat Ba, enjoying the evening view right outside the hotel. I stayed there for a bit over an hour, absorbing the ambiance, finally heading in at 8:00 PM.

I briefly considered packing, but as my pickup for the transfer to Hanoi wouldn´t be until 12:30 PM tomorrow , I decided to just leave it until the morning. Not feeling inclined to do any reading nor any sort of work, despite the relatively early hour, I decided to just turn in for the night. Keeping in line with the general vibe of the day, it was a perfect end to a day of unrushed exploration.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 7 (20 December 2025)

Day 7 was a massive day of walking with over 24,000 steps by the end of it! It started with caves and hiking, and ended with wandering through local neighborhoods and what felt like an abandoned movie set.

At 7:23 AM I went down to the front desk and dropped off a kilo of laundry which would cost 50,000 VND ($1.95 USD). Afterward, I started waiting for breakfast, which I hadn’t had at the hotel yesterday. I think it’s included with the room, but honestly, I wasn’t entirely sure. It wasn’t especially attractive looking, but it was fine for simple morning fare.

Right on time at 8:04 AM I was picked up by the tour operator for my morning excursion. This was the one which I had booked through GetYourGuide for 2067 INR ($24.50 USD). Going by the logo on the old army jeep, this tour is operated by Full Moon Travel Asia, and true to the promotional pics, we were decked out with faux army helmets.

The Caves & The Hike

At 8:24 AM we made our first stop, but the Hospital Cave was closed today. No explanation was given, but there were a bunch of army people there, so feel free to make up something exciting. Not to be deterred from some our subterranean exploration, at 8:31 AM we pivoted to “Plan B” and stopped at Trung Trang Cave. There were of course the obligatory stairs, but the ones here were actually very well-maintained.

In case you weren’t aware of how to be a civilized tourist, there was a helpful information board.

Inside the cave (8:47 AM), I noticed that the greenery growing on the walls was actually a direct result of the artificial lights; is was this a minor environmental concern or just an interesting tidbit? It was certainly pleasant enough inside, but by this point I think I was starting to be a bit jaded by limestone caves . . . I wasn’t yet quite as dismissive as I can get after a few days of cathedrals in Europe, but I was getting there.

At 9:00 AM I was already out. Of particular note, I felt that this was a very “tourist-friendly” cave for the casual traveler, complete with a cafe and restaurant right at the exit. The stairs in good-repair, paved walkway, generally high ceilings and thoughtful lighting were all much appreciated.

Walking along the side of the road at 9:03 AM, my guide gave me a travel tip. He recommended Ha Giang for a future trip. He says it’s similar to Sapa but not nearly as developed, and there’s an old town nearby as well. I realize that’s not particularly relevant to this particular island, but hey, maybe keep it in mind if you had already been thinking of going to Sapa?

At 9:21 AM, after a short ride in the Jeep, we arrived at the entrance to the hiking trail of Cat Ba National Park. There were various signs with rather obvious advice/requests that made me pause and wonder: Do they really need a sign that says “Please don’t pee on the floor”? I mean the bathrooms weren’t particularly fancy looking, still . . . From the map, it looks like you might be able to walk to Viet Hai village from here, but it’s a 12 km trek. We started our hike/walk at 9:25 AM.

At 9:36 AM the guide pointed out an edible leaf called nanook, and then shortly thereafter at 9:49 AM I noticed the guide was walking barefoot. He explained that he does this to connect to the “chi” of the forest. That all sounded very spiritual, but remembering the leeches from a couple of days earlier, I decided that I didn’t want to be all that connected. Upon reaching our obligatory stairs, I noted that they weren’t quite as nice as the ones from earlier in the day, but they nevertheless seemed to be evenly constructed and initially at least weren’t too difficult to manage.

However, at 10:09 AM as we neared the top, I felt like they intentionally make the last bit much more difficult just to test you. But it was pretty, so that seemed like a reasonable trade off.

After some pictures, we started heading down at 10:25 AM, and I initially thought that the steps were much easier on the descent. However, at 10:31 AM I realized that it had all been a ruse. I had been fooled by a false summit! The bit of climbing was much more difficult, but just ten minutes later we had made it.

Being well-connected to the chi of the forest, this was an easy feat for our guide, but despite his entreaties to do the same, we both declined.

Once we had our victory pics, there wasn’t much of a reason to continue hanging out at the highest point, so at 10:43 AM actually began our descent. Looking over the edge at 10:48 AM, I could see the gate where we originally entered somewhere way down below, thus emphasizing just how far we had come.

At 11:14 AM we were back down at the restaurant/cafe area at the entrance, departing soon after. We then had a quick stop at a random roadside park at 11:39 AM. I wasn’t sure if we were there to see the goats or the view of the ocean, but it was another opportunity for me to get a picture with my fake army helmet, so you know, why not?

I was dropped off in the center of town at 12:12 PM. Since there had been only two of us on the tour, I gave the guide a 100,000 VND ($3.90 USD) tip.

Admittedly this adds nothing substantial to the post, but I liked this Christmas tree just outside where I was dropped off, so it’s getting included.

The Beaches and Free Food

At 12:18 PM I started randomly walking, and by 12:27 PM I had arrived at a beach, but I wasn’t interested as there was absolutely no shade. Otherwise, I might have gone down for a bit. Who am I kidding? It was way too cool to be on the beach, and I certainly wasn’t going to swim. However, I could see the appeal it might have for others.

Then at 12:30 PM I spotted a path off to the left and thought, Well, maybe if I take that way…

At 12:41 PM I had a realization: you don’t really have to go to difficult-to-access places to see beautiful things. Here on this well-maintained path (I think heading toward Cat Co 2 Beach), there were amazing ocean views, stunning limestone formations, and lush vegetation.

By 12:51 PM I was admiring the beaches. Although the water was a bit darker than some other places I’ve been, it was certainly beautiful. If I were with someone else, I think I would actually get in. Instead, at 1:00 PM, I just sat for a while on a rock overlooking the ocean.

I decided to walk again at 1:30 PM and was back up from the beaches by 1:35 PM, immediately heading back to town. Unexpectedly, At 1:45 PM I randomly ran into my travel companion from my morning tour and his friend. He asked if I’d be willing to finish his chicken spring roll, because he didn’t want to waste it. I said yes, and then ordered a Hanoi pork dish for myself. He even ordered me a passion fruit juice, which was a very nice gesture. Foolishly thinking that I would remember his name, I didn’t write it down. But I figured that his gesture merited a picture being included, even if not from that exact moment in the day.

They left at 2:16 PM, and I moved to a seat in the shade to finish my meal. At 2:52 PM I was pleased to realize that the soup broth was incredible tasting. I paid my 80,000 VND ($3.15 USD) portion of the bill via Moreta and continued to meander.

Coffee, Local Life, and The Movie Set

At 3:26 PM I wandered up a loop road from the main street that is full of different restaurants and cafes.

I decided to stop at “Startup Cafe & Restaurant” at 3:40 PM to try a salt coffee. It was fantastic. At 4:08 PM I went back for round two and got a chocolate with egg cream. I was tempted to get another coffee but decided that was probably a bad idea for my heart rate and even worse for my sleep. I really liked both drinks.

I paid 75,000 VND ($2.95 USD) at 4:31 PM and left. After a brief stop at my room at 4:55 PM, I was back out at 5:10 PM, walking around the lake.

At 5:17 PM I saw some local men playing volleyball beside the lake. They have nets set up to keep the ball from going into the water or the street. They seemed to be playing quite competitively, but in a friendly manner. While relatively unremarkable, this memory sticks with me as having somehow been momentous . . .

Near where they were playing, I liked the mini grapefruit tree planted in front of a small temple. With a billiards room nearby and simple eateries, this felt like where the people of Cat Ba village actually live. Of course, I was probably just overly romanticizing the moment.

I found a road in the back (5:25 PM) that goes behind the hotels. The wind was picking up and it was starting to get a little chilly, so I put on my long-sleeve shirt which I had packed into my shoulder bag. Walking down this road at 5:40 PM, I noticed several houses with simple glass front doors left wide open, looking directly into their living rooms or even what appeared to be bedrooms.

At 5:59 PM I sat down to try and book my transport back to Hanoi. I stared at my phone for five minutes, didn’t book anything, and just continued walking. I guess the view had been more interesting than my phone.

Shortly thereafter, at 6:21 PM I stumbled onto this odd, half-constructed, mostly empty yet well-let tourism/park area near the fountain. Almost everything was closed or appeared to have never been occupied. But despite the sounds of construction continuing even at this hour, it was unnervingly peaceful.

Despite, being extremely clean and well-constructed, it felt like there was something off. No, it wasn’t exactly scary, but something was wrong? Then it hit me at 6:31 PM. It was like a movie set, or perhaps like when I used to walk with my dog during lockdown. No that’s not right; it was like when the main character from Pluribus used to go around town, pretending that it was normal to still go to the grocery store which existed in the absurdly fully functional city which had been left behind just for her. All the lights were on, but nobody was home . . .

I finally found a place to sit down at 6:35 PM. Possibly because there are no actual humans present, this zone is not very friendly for people needing to rest. While sitting there, at 6:56 PM, I finally sent the request for my transport to Hanoi for Monday (12:30 PM pickup). At 7:14 PM the confirmation came through. I paid $11.33 USD with my Indian card. Logistics sorted.

Ice Cream to End the Day

I decided to leave the weird movie-set area at 7:17 PM, and at 7:22 PM the wind had really picked up; I was very glad I had that long-sleeve shirt on.

Look! I made it back to the land of people!

Despite the crisp breeze, I allowed myself to be seduced by some tempting pictures, and at 7:45 PM I stopped at what seemed to be some sort of ice cream place. I wasn’t sure if they were actually open or going to serve me, as it seemed like nobody worked there. I stood there for five minutes with nothing happening, but there was a family from Spain sitting and eating, so I figured I would just be patient. Finally, at 7:51 PM, a woman wearing a paper mask came out. I ordered coconut ice cream, a coconut salted egg cream, and a small bottle of water.

I paid 100,000 VND ($3.90 USD) via Moreta at 8:32 PM and headed toward my place.

I walked back into my room at 8:43 PM, checking my phone to see I had logged exactly 24,511 steps today! Time for some sleep.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 6 (19 December 2025)

Day 6 was the big “Cruise Day” in Lan Ha Bay; if you have ever spoken to anyone who has visited northern Vietnam in the past several years, there is a very good chance that they have been on one of these day cruises. It had incredible scenery (I am serious; it really was!), a fantastic guide, and a few moments where I questioned my life choices (specifically regarding my wardrobe and my kayaking skills).

I was out the door by 7:28 AM.

Morning Panic & Wardrobe Malfunctions

At 7:41 AM I stopped at Nam Phuong for a croissant and a white coffee. Originally, the hotel was going to get breakfast for me (at 7:28 AM), but there was some confusion about whether or not it contained seafood. I went into full “alarm mode,” especially when I realized the guy was just going to run to another shop down the street to buy it for me. I decided to take control of the situation myself.

Unlike what seems to be the norm in Vietnam, they requested the 75,000 VND ($2.95 USD) before serving it, which I paid via Moreta. No doubt this was more expensive than I would pay at a local place, but peace of mind has a price, and in this case it wasn’t very much at that. While sipping my coffee at 8:02 AM, I noticed a weird phenomenon. About 85% of the people here were wearing what I would call Autumn or even Winter clothes (It’s called foreshadowing). The other 15%, who were overwhelmingly obviously foreigners, were wearing beach clothes.

I felt a bit silly because I was firmly in that “beach clothes” category (rocking my pillowy sandals, which I am really liking, by the way). But the tour company representative HAD insisted this is what I was supposed to wear. So, here I was, shivering slightly and having serious doubts about whether a cruise with kayaking was the best idea for today. But that’s the whole point of coming to Cat Ba, right?

At 8:10 AM, while waiting, I decided to be productive and booked a morning Cat Ba National Park tour for a later date via GetYourGuide, paying 2,067 INR ($24.50 USD). It just seemed easier than managing the transport on my own.

The Boat & The “Low Season”

From the cafe, it was a a short walk, and as I had been instructed, I made sure to be there promptly at 8:30 AM. We were picked up at 8:40 AM and dropped at the harbor. They say this is “low season,” but there were still a lot of people. Just in my group, there were about 20 of us. With that in mind, coming during “high season” (whenever that is) may not be the best idea. Still, if many more people come, there must be other attractions that overrule the “too many people” argument.

We boarded at 8:57 AM. Immediately, two things annoyed me:

The Towel: At 8:59 AM they announced they would lend us towels. Yesterday, the woman had specifically told me that I HAD to bring one, so I went out and bought one. A small thing, but annoying.
The Cave: At 9:01 AM they dropped the bomb: there is no kayaking in the cave anymore. Government authorities stopped it a month ago. That feels like an important detail that should have been mentioned when I booked, not once I’m already on the boat. I mean it wasn’t exactly their fault, but it sort of felt like a bit of a bait and switch. However, as the switch had already taken place, and I was already on the boat . . . It seems unlikely that this will be permitted again anytime soon, so keep that in mind if it matters to you.

At 9:15 AM we were moved around so that those of us who don’t eat seafood could sit at the same table. They seemed a bit obsessed with this, and there were several other divisions taking place at other tables. With so few people I sort of thought that we could figure it out on our own, but otherwise, one table seemed as good as another.

Sitting there, I had a moment of reflection. Honestly, I think I would have liked to come here with a friend or one of my siblings. Traveling solo is fine, and sometimes better when you just want to reconnect with yourself. Still, when you are in a place this beautiful, it’s nice to share it. I have mentioned the idea to my family a few times, but for financial reasons or just lack of interest, so far they haven’t come. Traveling isn’t for everyone, I suppose.

The boat crew was pushing drinks hard at 9:28 AM (they aren’t included). I noticed the hammock chairs on deck were very comfortable, and also mostly protected from the sun, but they were terrible for actually seeing the view. So, despite the pleasant conversation with a charming woman from Zimbabwe, after a few minutes I donned my full protective gear and moved to a different area.

The Bay & The Swim That Wasn’t

By 9:36 AM we were cruising. The water was very calm, and the scenery was amazing. These limestone karsts are just everywhere in the Bay. I feel like the static pictures don’t do a great job of showing this, but this short video might give a bit more of an idea.

At 10:11 AM the guide, whose name is Jack (real name Loon), told us the water is completely clean and safe, with no sharks, jellyfish nor anything sharp. However, looking at the dark water at 10:19 AM, I wasn’t fully convinced. Also, it still seemed a bit chilly. If I had been with someone else, perhaps I would have jumped in. But solo? Into cold, dark water just to say I did it? Nah. I know some people are huge fans of swimming in the sea, but I stayed dry. Several other people seemed to think similarly (10:26 AM), so I wasn’t the only one just hanging out on the deck. However, feel free to imagine that I am one of the people seen swimming in the distance.

By 11:11 AM swimming time was over.

History, Geology & Lunch

Once everyone was back on deck, Jack gave us a great rundown of the area and some general information:

Tourism: Started here in 1994. In high season, this boat holds 100 people (today we have 26). Yes, 26 seemed like very few, but I felt like 100 would have been a nightmare.
Geology: There are about 4,000 karsts here. 90% of Cat Ba is a UNESCO heritage site.
Weather: He said it gets up to 45°C (113°F) here in the summer. For him, autumn is the best time. Note to self, DON’T come here in Vietnamese summer!

Lunch was served at 11:38 AM, and by 12:35 PM we were done. It was quite pleasant, and the people at my table were nice.

Looking out at the islands at 12:40 PM, it felt like a fairy tale. Or, more accurately, like a Windows screensaver from 2010. It’s that kind of perfect, surreal beauty. Even without swimming, I highly recommend coming here just to see it.

The Kayaking Incident

At 1:10 PM it was time for sea kayaking.

Don’t let the smile fool you. It was mostly because we had made it back to the boat without me going into a full body muscle spasm.

Well, that was interesting. And by interesting, I mean I probably won’t be doing it again. I am technically not good at kayaking. To make matters worse, at 2:32 PM I started getting an abdominal cramp. As someone who unfortunately has had quite a bit of experience with terrible muscle cramps, I went into full panic mode, which definitely made my coordination worse. Fortunately, the guy I was paired with was very patient and basically did all the work. We made it back without major incident, but my contribution was mostly moral support (and mild terror).

Culture Lessons with Jack

Our guide Jack was a bit of a comedian.

He explained (3:04 PM) that the Vietnamese words for “Thank you” and “Shut up” sound very similar to foreign ears, which leads to funny situations.
He joked (3:11 PM) that the way Dutch people say “Let’s do it” sounds exactly like “F*** you” in Vietnamese, so he always thinks Dutch tourists are swearing at him.
He gave us a history lesson (2:53 PM) on how the Vietnamese defeated the Mongols in 1087 by trapping their large ships using local knowledge of the tides.

The Fish Farm & Sunset

At 4:04 PM we visited a floating fish farm. They have massive fish here. Some are 7-8 years old and over a meter long. The meat costs 400,000 VND ($15.70 USD) a kilo. You can get an idea in this video.

I learned about Cobia and Butter Fish (4:27 PM). Jack was honest about the environmental impact, noting that sea farms have waste management issues just like fresh water farms. Believe it or not, the whole fish farm visit was may more enjoyable than you might think. I was quite happy that we had stopped here.

By 4:40 PM the weather was getting much cooler, and I finally regretted my “beach clothes” decision. I kind of wished I had a jacket. However, they timed the return perfectly. At 4:50 PM we hit “golden hour,” and the sunset over the floating villages (home to 200 families) was wonderful.

We were off the boat at 5:25 PM. I gave Jack a 100,000 VND ($3.90 USD) tip back at the office. I didn’t feel pressured to do so, but I honestly felt he had done a great job. So, if you book a tour with Cat Ba Ventures, ask for Jack.

Dinner: Squid & Ginger

Rather than heading straight back to the room, I decided to wander around the main area of the tourist area for a bit.

For dinner, I went to Thao Minh Restaurant at 5:48 PM. I decided to keep it simple, ordering steamed squid with ginger.

The food had a cost of 140,000 VND ($5.50 USD) and was quite tasty. Nearby, I also grabbed a large 5-liter water jug for 40,000 VND ($1.55 USD). I was back in the room by 6:35 PM. Interestingly, despite having been told to save my ticket this morning to show later on, nobody had ever asked for it again. Fearing that I would lose it, I had taken a picture of it.

I spent the rest of the evening working on the blog until 9:20 PM. It had been a long, beautiful, and at times . . . a surprisingly chilly day.

Despite not being needed as “a towel,” my purchase from the previous day had been invaluable while serving as a shawl later on during the boat trip and then also while having dinner.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 5 (18 December 2025)

Perhaps a bit worried about today’s travel, I sort of woke up at 4:45 AM but didn’t actually get up until 6:40 AM. Despite some internal debate about whether or not I should actually be moving on from Ninh Binh, I finished packing and getting ready to head out the door. My time here had been good, both at the hotel itself and also at Tam Coc in general, but I also reasoned that other parts of northern Vietnam would also have much to offer.

Throughout my stay here, I several times was tempted to ask for more of an explanation about the purpose and the components of this alter, but for whatever reason, I didn’t.

At 7:30 AM I sat down for my last breakfast at the homestay. I stuck to the routine: fried egg with bread, a banana and mango juice, and of course, the milk coffee.

Had I been at home, I suspect that I would have found this breakfast to be uninspiring and perhaps even unappetizing, but I suppose that is the spell of being in a new place . . . here it seemed perfect.

I just hung out there enjoying the morning quiet until 8:35 AM, when I walked the short distance up to the main road to wait for my pick-up. As my homestay was down a rather narrow street, the driver had texted me the day before to request that I meet the transport there rather than right at the entrance to my lodging.

The Journey to Cat Ba

At 8:50 AM I was picked up by the Cat Ba Express, which I had booked before coming to Vietnam for $13.39 USD. The ride was expected to take about 5 hours. It was a standard Pullman bus; it was perfectly fine for this distance, though by 10:58 AM I noted that while comfortable, they were keeping the cabin a bit warmer than I would have liked. As often happens while travelling, I was stuck how much of the countryside scenery could have been from numerous other places I have been around the world.

We made a 20-minute rest stop at 11:10 AM. I noticed that the shop here had something that looked very much like tamales. I didn’t try one, but I made a mental note to ask about that later. In case you are wondering, I never did ask, so if you know, I would be happy to know what they are.

There to the left, you can see what look very similar to banana leaf wrapped Costa Rican tamales . . .

At 11:30 AM sharp we were back in the bus and continuing on our way.

The Ferry Crossing

At 12:26 PM the driver stopped at what looked like a ticket counter. I thought to myself, “Are they going to drive this entire full-sized bus onto a ferry?” The answer was yes, and by 12:40 PM, that’s exactly what had happened.

The ferry itself seemed to move very slowly across the extremely calm water. The distance is quite short, and my inner engineer started debating why they haven’t built a bridge yet. It seems like it would make more sense, but maybe that’s way more expensive/complicated than I realize. Perhaps the water is too deep? On a positive note, I checked the snacks and drinks sold on the ferry and they seemed very reasonably priced, which surprised me for a captive audience situation.

We drove off the ferry at 1:03 PM. The whole process had been quite comfortable, and my first impression of the island was that it really was beautiful. I was already thinking I might stay here a couple more days, but only time would tell. I also noted that the island was much larger than I had originally understood, with lots of small limestone islands off the coast. The road we were on (1:22 PM) was very high quality. We stopped briefly for gas at 1:27 PM and were on our way again by 1:34 PM. So far, everywhere looked very nice.

I wondered about these cable cars, which were an alternate way to get to the island from the mainland.

Arrival and The “New” Hotel

I got off the bus at 1:42 PM and walked the short distance to my hotel. I was in the room by 1:53 PM, but it took a bit longer than expected to find it because they had changed the name. I had booked it (4151 INR or $45.26 USD for 4 nights on Agoda) as MB Central Hotel, but it is now called Oriio Hotel. Just a heads-up for anyone following in my footsteps! It was objectively a bit nicer than my homestay in Tam Coc, but both had doubtless been great bargains.

At 2:37 PM I departed from the hotel to sort out my logistics for the next day.

First things first: at 3:04 PM I paid 946,000 VND ($37.00 USD) via Moreta for tomorrow’s trip with Cat Ba Ventures.

Then came the shopping. I needed beach gear, so I went on a bit of a spree, despite not actually spending all that much.

At 3:05 PM I paid 250,000 VND ($9.80 USD) for simple foam sliders and swim trunks. I know I paid too much, but it’s fine. Convenience has a price. Shortly thereafter, also in the general market area, I bought sun sleeves for 50,000 VND ($1.95 USD). Taking a bit longer to find, at 4:32 PM I bought spray sunblock for 180,000 VND ($7.05 USD) using Moreta. And then I finished up meager purchasing expedition at 4:46 PM when I paid 100,000 VND ($3.90 USD) for a simple towel. With the exception of the sunblock, all of my purchases had taken place via pointing, gestures, and bargaining via dueling prices shown on smartphone screens. Despite the relatively early hour, the day was clearly coming to an end, so I went back to the room to drop off my purchases.

Dinner at Bien Dong

I quickly dropped my purchases in the room, and immediately set out once more, this time primarily focused on finding a place to have dinner.

I was pleased to see that it would be easy to get laundry done.

At 5:56 PM I finally stopped at a place called Nha Hang Hai San Bien Dong (Bien Dong Restaurant). I ordered water spinach (which I think was some sort of morning glory) with garlic, a Hanoi Beer, and fish in spicy sauce.

At 7:04 PM I paid the bill of 205,000 VND ($8.00 USD) via Moreta. It was an amazingly huge and delicious meal. I counted this as a win for the first night on the island. It was a leisurely walk from there, and I was back at the room by 7:29 PM, ready to rest up for the tour tomorrow.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 4 (17 December 2025)

Hey there faithful readers, thanks for your patience with my posts about the recent trip to Vietnam. As I have mentioned frequently, it takes a lot more time to do these than you might imagine. Ideally I know I would post at the end of each day, but when I am actually really just enjoying myself in the moment, that frequently doesn’t work out as theoretically planned. Still, my travel notes are quite detailed, and looking back with a bit of a lapse in time also sometimes is a bit fun for me, as I relive the day in my memory.

In general terms, day 4 was a day of simply wandering around, exploring a few caves, and reflection on what appears to be the local obsession with ranking everything. As I had nothing actually planned, I took it slow this morning. At 8:55 AM I went down for breakfast at the hotel and just took my time enjoying the moment.

It wasn’t until 10:03 AM that I finally finished up (Yes, I was also surprised that I somehow stretched out the simple breakfast that long) and decided to hit the bathroom once more (always a strategic move) and then head over to Bich Dong. I was out walking by 10:29 AM.

Bich Dong Pagoda

I used Google maps for the walking instructions, and despite some rather hysterical past experiences I have had with this feature, this was once when the route was much appreciated.

Don’t get too excited. That wasn’t my hotel.

I arrived at Bich Dong around 11:07 AM. One thing I’ve noticed is that the “ranking” of places seems to be a big deal here. In this case, near the entrance, Bich Dong proudly displayed that it had the second most beautiful cave in Vietnam, thus validating its importance. The entrance itself, I think was enough to invite visitors, even without the official ranking.

At 11:10 AM I was inside the actual Pagoda. I loved these “cause and effect” religious posters, even though several of the scenarios don’t seem to make sense to my eyes. Still, they are fascinatingly specific about consequences.

At 11:25 AM, as I moved on past the initial “welcome garden” I noted that most places here only have signs in Vietnamese. It adds to the mystery, I suppose, but it seems like they might consider putting in one or two other languages. Perhaps most foreign tourists just don’t visit here? However, they had gone to the trouble of making sure that we would understand the consequences of all of our actions, so I’m not sure what was going on with that.

As I started climbing at 11:30 AM, I had a familiar thought. The implicit message of these places is “no worship nor tourism for the weak, old or disabled.” I mean, it’s all very beautiful, but so much is completely inaccessible for those with even minor special needs. That said, the stairs here were in good repair and not insanely uneven. I did notice that with some assistance, even a man with a cane was able to manage, as there weren’t too many steps. Certainly, this was physically much easier to manage than other spots I’ve been to recently.

As I was walking up, I saw there was something else up the other side. I was on the left side at that moment. Going further in, at 11:45 AM I noticed the incense they use here are these large spirals that hang down. Based on what I have seen in other places, that seems to be the standard temple incense in this region.

Then at 11:54 AM, I also wondered about the purpose of a small artificial pool to the side of the highest structure to the left. It was clearly artificial, and incense seemed to have also been burnt next to it. A ritual spot, perhaps?

At 12:05 PM I remember something about the terminology of these sites. I think they make the distinction that all of this is supposed to be a “Pagoda,” not a temple. It’s some sort of religious difference that I don’t really understand, even though it is probably quite obvious to others. Regardless, I am not certain that the cave was the second most beautiful in Vietnam, but it was certainly interesting.

The Caves to the Right

I went back down to the entry area to figure out how to go up to the right side. Wandering around a bit near the exit, I was able to see this area with what appeared to be weeping willows, that was very pretty, but I think the photos don’t really do it justice.

I don’t think “the right” is actually part of the official Pagoda complex, but it’s right next to it. At 12:13 PM I found the way: you go through the little entry to the bicycle parking area. I started up at 12:19 PM and ran into some Spanish tourists who told me that there’s a very interesting cave, but a bit hard to navigate if you don’t know any Vietnamese.

At 12:31 PM, after going up some stairs and then down again, I reached the entrance to the aforementioned cave.

It costs 30,000 VND ($1.15 USD) to enter the cave itself. The scenery outside was already beautiful, but as I was already there and had nothing else planned, I paid to go in. I think this video does a better job of showing the experience than the pictures. As far as I could tell, there were all sorts of things inside which were really supposed to impress me, but for most of the time I was just sort of low-level terrified that the guy would run off with his flashlight and leave me stranded in the completely unlit space. To ward off this horror movie possibility, I tried to make non-committal sounds of appreciation during his spiel.

Wow! At 12:45 PM I emerged. That whole experience was a bit crazy. It’s certainly worth the money, but definitely a bit “adventure style.” For sure, if you are REMOTELY claustrophobic, or even particularly imaginative, maybe don’t go in here. On a separate note, for some reason, the hollow where the cave sits seemed to be much warmer than the surrounding area.

Based on my comments, these tourists decided to give the cave a pass.

I finished up at Bich Dong at 1:11 PM and started meandering back in the general direction of my homestay. However, this time around I was not following any specific map directions, even though I realized that this approach had the potential to end up with me being lost. However, there were still several hours of daylight, so I figured it would be fine.

So, similar to what I saw a couple of times in Sri Lanka, it seems that graves can be placed in lots of different places in northern Vietnam. There doesn’t seem to be a strict requirement for it to be a “graveyard”. Maybe this is a Buddhist thing?

The Fairy Cave & The Cemeteries

At 1:33 PM I saw another set of stone stairs and asked myself, “So, where do these go?” Despite now appearing to be abandoned, clearly at some time in the past, a lot of time, effort, and even money had gone into constructing them. I mean there was even a handrail! Was it private property? As there was no sign warning people off, I decided to go up and check it out.

There was one moment in which I sort of had to crawl, but otherwise it was reasonably accessible. Given that there was an exit sign in English, clearly at some time in the past this had been a bit of an attraction, but that appears to no longer be the case. Nevertheless, probably precisely because it was mostly abandoned, visiting here had seemed like a bit of a secret treat.

The accessible area was rather small, so I finished up there at 1:49 PM and continued along my meandering path, still being mindful of the time. And then just a bit further along the way (at 1:55 PM) I arrived at Linh Coc Dong Tien Pagoda, and I was pleased to see someone in a walker, so evidently at least part of the area is a bit more accessible to people with some minor special mobility needs. The funny thing was that it was incredibly close, but due to the karst, I would have never seen it nor had any idea it was there.

There was a bit of a worship area there right after the gate, but a woman quickly approached me with a flyer in English indicating that the main attraction here was the “Fairy cave” which would have a cost of 20,000 VND ($0.75 USD) to visit. She didn’t speak English, but the flyer was clear as was her pointing to . . . you guessed it, another flight of stone stairs.

I was done with the whole Fairy Cave visit at 2:22 PM and then headed down the stairs to look around the rest of the installations. It was definitely worth the 20,000 VND. I think it is much more beautiful than the one where I paid 30,000, but also much less “adventuresome.” So, it’s a trade-off. There had been no ranking listed for this cave, but of the four caverns/caves I had seen today, I would say this was objectively the most beautiful, but a lot of that might have just been good lighting. The gardens and lower-level worship area were also quite nice. I was particularly intrigued by this berries/fruits/flowers on this one bush; I had first thought they were artificial decorations. Really it was all very lovely.

Especially from a distance, these looked like decorative lights.

This pagoda was the end of the line for the path I had gone down, so the only option was to turn around and head back along the same route. At 2:37 PM, as I started down the peaceful path, I thought it might be nice to check out the building I had seen sort of in the middle of a lake, next to a different karst, when I had come down from the “secret cavern”. It had seemed like a strange place to build a house, and there was also no obvious easy access besides a relatively narrow footpath.

Peeking in over the fence at 2:41 PM, I realized that what I had thought was a small house, was actually some sort of a small cemetery, or perhaps just a family burial plot? Continuing along the narrow footpath, at 2:56 PM, I realized that this flood plain (or whatever it is) seems to be the place to be when you are dead. There were several of these isolated burial spots. However, at 2:58 PM I realized at least part of this area is also being used as a farm. So, there you go, life and death, side by side.

Shortly thereafter, I came across which was clearly a much larger communal graveyard. The odd thing from my point of view, both with this much larger burial site and the many isolated ones I had seen, was that while it was obvious that A LOT had been spent on many of the initial tombs, the great majority of the graves didn’t actually appear to be that well-maintained. It would have been one thing if the graves were clearly ancient, but several of them were rather recent. Furthermore, even in the much larger burial site, there didn’t seem to be a clear pattern of organization. It is hard to show these things in pictures, but this video might give a better idea.

At 3:12 I was out of the graveyard and into either some sort of a neighborhood, or maybe a town? I think this whole graveyard/farm/village is on the same little island, but I couldn’t tell if it was water reservoir or a natural lake or some sort.

Then at 3:20 PM I recognized that I somehow was back on the main road I had used when I had originally walked to Bich Dong. There were a couple of these government propaganda signs that just seemed weird. They are so simplistic by today’s standards, that at one point earlier on in my trip I had thought that it wasn’t really a government sign, but rather just some sort of art installation or maybe even an intentionally ironic statement? However, several people assured me that this was not the case. Perhaps the art style itself inspires patriotism?

Dinner & Egg Coffee

The rest of my walk was uneventful but pleasant. At 3:44 PM I was back in the obvious general area of my room and decided that I would have a nice early dinner, given that I had not eaten any lunch. After some internal debate and looking at what was available, at 3:44 PM I decided to eat at Hoang Cuisine. At the server’s recommendation, I ordered the pork with quail eggs and a bottle of water.

At 4:48 PM I paid 164,000 VND ($6.25 USD) via the Moreta app at 4:48 PM. From there I walked nearby to the other place when I had eaten several times while in Tam Coc and ordered an egg coffee, a draft beer, and a Nutella pancake. (Don’t judge the combination). I was seated facing out towards the street, and somehow ended up just sitting there relaxing until 6:36 PM, when I paid 102,000 VND ($3.90 USD), once more using Moreta to pay.

It was a quick walk back to my room, where I arrived at 6:41 PM, where I worked on this travel blog (but not this entry which came more than a month later!) until 9:55 PM, finally going to sleep at 10:00 PM.

And that was my last full day in Tam Coc. Again, the various cave and cavern pictures didn’t do a good job of showing how things looked, but did you have a favorite? Do you have any idea about what is going on with all of those expensive tombs which don’t seem well-maintained? What about any special insights on the propaganda signs? Let me know your thoughts below, and keep following along if you want to see where I went next!

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 3 (16 December 2025)

Hey there followers, I am getting them out slowly, but when I have the time, am trying to continue with information about this current trip to Vietnam. I could no doubt get the writing done quicker, but honestly, I am just enjoying my time wandering around, exploring, and enjoying my vacation.

Day 3 I had breakfast again at the Homestay at 7:30 AM. Today I opted for the fried eggs, which once more they did perfectly. For drinking, I stuck with the winning formula of coffee with milk and fresh pineapple juice.

It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was a good breakfast before I headed up to the main road to be picked up at 8:05 AM. I had just a ten-minute wait before being picked up at 8:15 AM. Today’s transport was more of a “limousine bus” than a large private car.

At 8:18 AM I noted that the sky was overcast again, but the temperature wasn’t even that cold. In fact, several people in the vehicle were wearing short-sleeved t-shirts and shorts. We had a brief pause at 8:21 AM while someone tried to get cash, and then we were properly underway. I might have heard this wrong, but I think our guide’s name is Pung. At 8:57 AM there was a bit of comedy, as he realized that they had accidentally picked up someone from another tour, so we had to turn around and leave them where they had been picked up! 😂

The road in this section, which we hit around 9:14 AM, was poor quality, but the van handled it well.

The Primate Rescue Center

When we arrived at Cuc Phuong National Park at 9:58 AM, I decided to leave my jacket in the vehicle. I paid 200,000 VND ($7.60 USD) to the guide for the park entry fee, as it was cash only. He just went and bought the tickets for us. (Side note: another traveler with the group told me about the Moreta app which apparently lets you pay by scanning QR codes even as a foreigner. This is something which I planned on checking out once I had better signal; although, I expected that it wouldn’t work as seamlessly as he had suggested. Who know though, maybe yes?

We entered the welcome center at 10:10 AM, where information was available in Vietnamese, French, and English. It was well-done, but sort of like reading a short book, but with the pages on the wall.

By 10:24 AM we headed into the first area: the Endangered Primate Rescue Center. At 10:32 AM we watched them preparing leaves for the monkeys. Supposedly that is all they eat, sort of like Koalas only eating one particular type of leaves. I don’t however know if that is accurate.

Interestingly, we were required to put on surgical masks at 10:33 AM to protect the monkeys from our germs, not the other way around.

Pung (If I have his name right) gave us some sobering statistics about the wildlife here. There are two very endangered long-tail monkeys in Vietnam. This center rehabilitates them to reintroduce them to the wild. Gibbons, I learned at 10:44 AM, don’t have tails. At 10:46 AM, we learned there are only 300 Delacour’s langurs left in the wild. Doing a bit better, there are roughly 1,500 Grey langurs left in the wild. Most shockingly, at 11:04 AM, he told us there are only 90 Cat Ba langurs left in nature. Notably, it seemed that the Gibbons were doing fine, or at least the ones that live in Vietnam. Again though, I have not verified any of this information. Nevertheless, the details made the visit more interesting.

As far as I could tell, this center generally only releases juveniles born there, as adults kept in captivity too long cannot be successfully reintroduced. We left the primate center at 11:12 AM. There is also a pangolin rescue center (these are evidently only nocturnal) and a turtle conservation center nearby, making this a major hub for rescue efforts.

The Cave of Prehistoric Man

Back in the vehicle at 11:27 AM, I noticed that unlike yesterday, people here seemed to return to the same seats. That’s not a major revelation, but it’s always interesting to see how people react differently. We were back out at 11:40 AM to explore the forest, which boasts 2,400 species of trees. At 11:51 AM, after climbing 200 steep steps, we reached the Cave of Prehistoric Man. There are tombs here dating back 7,000 years. Some local people still leave offerings here.

Inside the cave (12:08 PM) was very interesting. I’m not sure how they knew it was inhabited by humans in the past except for the tombs they found. There was a ladder going to a higher level that people used to use, but it’s broken now. The cave wasn’t huge but definitely more than just an entryway; there was one part where we had to crouch low to get in.

We were back in the vehicle at 12:20 PM. At 12:33 PM I once again noted that you really can’t see that well out of the side windows of these tourist vans. I noticed this yesterday as well. The windows are tinted, and with the overcast weather and the way the windows also tend to fog up, you miss a lot of the view. Today’s group was very quiet (12:38 PM), with several napping while moving.

At 12:43 PM where we had stopped for lunch, I got unreasonably excited: I finally saw someone playing Balatro on their phone in real life. I have heard so many tech journalists talking about it, but this was the first time I had actually seen! The family-style lunch was done by 1:34 PM.

This has nothing to do with this trip, but a family from Australia suggested that I should check out Crystal Springs near Orlando in order to see manatees. If that is true, I definitely would like to go there the next time I am in the area. I have tried to see manatees a couple of time in Costa Rica, but they are very elusive.

The Jungle Trek and the Leeches

We started the jungle walk at 1:41 PM. As explained by the guide, at 1:46 PM we passed a sort of open space in the jungle, which evidently are tombs under the trees. He explained that the trees in this forest escaped being cut down because of the tombs which are evidently all around, which belong to the Muong ethnic group. In general, if you come across sort of circular small clearings in this forest, those are tombs, but there are evidently a lot of other places as well which are not as easily identifiable.

At 2:02 PM I noticed lots of dead snails, apparently due to the heavy rains a couple of months back. Then came the leeches . . . At 2:12 PM, just a couple of people found leeches on them. Fortunately, it had not rained for a couple of days, as apparently when it is wetter, they are everywhere. While I was a bit repulsed on principle, it was interesting to see how they move; it wasn’t like I thought at all. They look a bit more than an inch long and rather than crawling like caterpillars, they somehow stand on their end and completely fold their bodies in half to move quickly.

I got a picture with a “Big Tree” (only 300 years old) and then an “Ancient Tree” (700 years old) at 2:45 PM. Honestly, once the whole leech thing started, it was a bit hard to enjoy the trek. The trees and all were very beautiful, but I had seen similar in other places. Also, it was hard to pay attention to trying to see different vegetation when I was constantly checking to see if I had some creepy creature going up my leg or somewhere else! Everyone else seemed to have a similar thought, so once we saw “ancient tree” we just concentrated on getting back to the open area.

By 2:58 PM we were done with the “leech check.” I was vaguely nervous because everyone else found at least one on their shoes or somewhere on their body and I didn’t. I just walked back on the concrete path to the vehicle, hoping I hadn’t missed one. In case you are curious, it seems that I somehow lucked out, as I never found any stray ones which I had missed.

We were back in the vehicle at 3:13 PM.

Evening in Ninh Binh

I was dropped off near my place at 4:55 PM, and I decided to try out that app I had heard about earlier. The verification process took a few minutes, but at 5:45 PM I added $50 USD to Moreta and went out to see if I could catch the “dancing aunties” I had seen yesterday. I got there at 5:54 PM and the aunties were there . . . but they weren’t doing anything. Win some, lose some.

At 6:59 PM I stopped at Gia Minh Beer Garden. I ordered stir-fried duck with chili and lemongrass, fresh pork spring rolls, and a draft beer. I paid 196,000 VND ($7.44 USD) at 7:54 PM using the Moreta app, and it worked perfectly.

Shortly thereafter, I was back in the room by 8:02 PM. It had been another solid day in Vietnam. The whole leach thing had of course been a bit off-putting, even though I am not sure why they seem even less appealing than mosquitos. Nevertheless, I was glad that I had not had to directly deal with them. What about your thoughts on leeches? Just another relatively harmful insect, or an object of special disgust? Anyway, thanks for reading along, and I hope to catch you again for more adventures.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 2 (15 December 2025)

Day 2 in Vietnam started with the alarm going off at 6:30 AM, but I sort of stayed in bed until 7:00 AM. It’s a holiday, after all.

At 7:42 AM I headed down for breakfast at the homestay. It was a simple spread—pineapple juice, milk coffee, and bread with a boiled egg. I noticed they had a banana that was very similar to what they call a “Kerala banana” in India; they are quite firm, but good. The pineapple juice was clearly fresh, and the coffee was slightly sweetened but not overly so. And I have to give credit where it’s due; the egg was cooked perfectly. Despite its simplicity, breakfast was very good.

At 8:00 AM I got a message from Max, our guide for the day, saying he was on his way. This was for the “Hoa Lu, Bai Dinh, Trang An, & Mua Cave Tour“ I had booked earlier on GetYouGuide for 4,411 INR ($52.30 USD). I left the homestay at 8:10 AM and was in the vehicle by 8:12 AM. We spent some time gathering the group. At 8:43 AM we picked up two more people, making us 11, and I put my phone on airplane mode to save battery. By 8:45 AM we picked up three more, bringing the total to 14.

The Ancient Capital

We reached our first stop at 8:55 AM: Hoa Lu, the ancient capital of Vietnam. Shortly thereafter at 9:01 AM we were handed tickets to give to the collector literally less than a minute later.

As I understood it, Hoa Lu is now really just a temple. Max explained a bit about the symbolism of the place. At 9:13 AM I noted the flag which has 5 colors. Max said they represent the 5 elements (or maybe he said 5 metals? I missed the exact word).

We learned that after the incense burns down, you take the offering back home and it’s believed to be blessed or lucky. The fake money, however, is burned . . . I wondered why one might not leave real money as an offering and also collect that as lucky/blessed?

At 9:32 AM we got a bit of a history lesson. Evidently, Vietnam used to have a mixed alphabet using Vietnamese and Chinese characters, but they switched to the Latin alphabet, presumably because of colonization, but Max insists it is just easier. It’s also interesting to note that this isn’t strictly Buddhism, but a kind of ancestor worship.

The “Biggest” Everything

Back in the bus at 9:48 AM, we headed to our next stop: Bai Dinh Pagoda, where we arrived at 10:00 AM. Right off, it was clear that this place is massive. At 10:14 AM we were told to keep our tickets this time, then piling into yellow tourism electric cars to be shuttled to the main site at 10:18 AM.

The complex is relatively new, built in 2003. Max explained that while the “temples” are for traditional worship, the Pagodas are Buddhist.

At 10:32 AM I noticed dark marks on the statues of the Arhats; I asked about that and was told it is from people touching them for luck.

What followed was a series of superlatives. At 10:44 AM I think Max said this is the biggest Buddha statue in Vietnam. But then at 10:53 AM, he clarified: actually, it is the largest “Gold plated bronze statue of this particular type of Buddha in Vietnam.” It became a bit of a running joke in my head.

At 11:08 AM we reached another hall, but I decided it was too much trouble to take off my shoes to go in, so I just waited outside. Nearby at 11:10 AM we reached the Buddha Sakyamuni Hall. Keeping with the theme, this is the biggest gold-plated bronze of this type of Buddha (in Vietnam).

I wasn’t sure, but I think that this turtle looking rock was not entirely natural . . . I mean yes, it’s all rock, but I think they put some pieces together to make it look this way. Regardless, I rather liked.

We headed back to the tourist vehicles at 11:31 AM. The logistics were a bit chaotic; I was put in a vehicle going up with strangers while my group followed behind. But by 11:41 AM my group arrived, and we headed to the restaurant.

Lunch and Assembly line rowing?

At 11:52 AM I realized that even though I had slept well, I was feeling very sleepy, but I didn’t want to fall asleep. We arrived at Trang An Resort for a buffet meal at 12:08 PM, staying until 12:59 PM. The food wasn’t exquisite, but it was decent. I particularly liked the fried goat, but several of my fellow travelers were less impressed.

Back in the vehicle at 1:08 PM, we were given the “suggestion”: “If you like the boat trip you can give the rower 50,000 VND.” This always annoys me. If we are supposed to give 50,000, just include that in the price and charge us properly.

I didn’t want to think negatively, but there was a Dutch solo traveler on the tour who was clearly quite sick with a cold or flu, and of course, I got stuck next to him for this part of the ride. He really shouldn’t have come on this trip . . . Great, now the woman in front of me is also coughing! Am I a bad person for having these thoughts?

We arrived at the boat launch at 1:14 PM. The whole boat system is like an assembly line at a factory. Anyway, we got onto the boat at 1:32 PM. I’m not really sure what the point of this is. Still, everyone else seemed enthusiastic, so it must be good?

I observed that almost all the rowers seem to be slim women, though looking closer later at 2:46 PM, I guessed it was about 70% women and 30% men. Several times we saw what appeared to be baby ducklings, but no adults. I wonder why.

It was all very beautiful, but by 2:25 PM I kind of just wanted this boat ride to be over. The rowing style they use is interesting . . . it seems backwards from what I feel would work better . . . but after an hour, the novelty wears off. The seat was relatively comfortable with the mats they put on the benches, but it’s a fairly long-feeling ride.

We finished at 3:24 PM. I gave my 50,000 VND “tip” to the rower, and the two others in my boat did the same.

The Endurance Test

We were back in the car at 3:45 PM. Max told us we would be at the next destination in five minutes and gave us a choice: the left path which has 200 more steps but is more beautiful or the right-hand path, which is easier but with a less impressive view. Upon arrival to Khu Du Lich (Mua Cave) at 3:57 PM. We were told to be back at 5:20 PM.

At 4:08 PM I realized this seems to be another one of those endurance test tourism sites. I made it to the top, but at 4:33 PM I noted that the system up there isn’t very good at all. Nobody can tell who is going up or coming down, and it’s all uneven rock. Honestly, it’s a major disaster waiting to happen. Don’t even get me started on that weird crevasse you have to go through. But anyway, yay me! I conquered the dragon and got the “best view”.

I was finally down from the main difficult climbing area at 4:47 PM. Seriously. That was crazy. I then started back down and peaked in at a little side temple which mas mostly neglected by other visitors.

By 5:04 PM I was all the way down and back on safe ground, with a few minutes to just wander around the area near the entrance.

We got back in the vehicle at 5:24 PM and I was dropped off at 5:59 PM.

Evening

After a quick rest, I was out the door again at 6:31 PM. I decided to stick with what works and went to the same place as yesterday, Thuy Linh Restaurant. I ordered stir-fried bok choy with mushroom sauce, pork with Vietnamese vermicelli and peanut dipping sauce, and a draft beer. It was a bit more food than I had planned on, but it was very satisfying.

I paid 137,000 VND ($5.40 USD) and left at 7:43 PM. It had been a long day of “sort of biggest” statues and endless steps, but it was also a good one.

So, was this what you were expecting when I said I would be going to northern Vietnam, or was it something else you had in mind? What was your favorite part of the day? Do you have any thoughts on the “biggest” statues and pagodas? How about that climb up to the dragon sculpture? Let me know your comments and questions below, and keep following along for more adventures.

Northern Vietnam Trip: Day 1 (13-14 December 2025)

Hello everyone and welcome to the start of a brand-new series: Northern Vietnam! Hopefully I will be able to share about this trip in a timelier fashion than the last one. Before we get into the actual travel day, I want to share the logistics and costs that went into getting here. As always, I want to be transparent about what this actually costs.

I bought my tickets on Air Asia back on 11 November for 48,238 INR ($544.20 USD). This included 20kg of luggage ONLY for the return flight, which led to a bit of panic on the day of departure (more on that in a moment). For connectivity, I went with Vietnamesim.com. I paid $19.90 USD (1,775 INR) for a daily 5GB plan for 30 days using the Viettel network, which is considered the best provider in Vietnam. The eSIM delivery was almost instantaneous, and the setup was seamless. I also secured my Vietnam e-visa for 2,299.83 INR; this was easy to do at the official site and took less than a day to process.

For the first leg of the trip, I booked 4 nights (14-18 December) at Tam Coc Tuan Minh Homestay via Agoda for 3,862 INR ($45.80 USD). I also pre-booked a private car transfer (via Agoda) from Hanoi airport to Tam Coc for 3,385 INR ($40.15 USD), as the expected travel time was over two hours. Now, let’s get to the trip itself.

13 December: The Departure

The day started with a bit of a scramble. At the last minute, I wasn’t sure I could fit everything into my carry-on limit. My home scale suggested I was a couple of kilograms over, so to be safe, I advance paid 3,046 INR ($36.15 USD) for 7kg of additional carry-on weight. Better safe than sorry, right? At 6:45 PM I was picked up by my QuickRide driver. This was actually a bit early, as the electric car had been scheduled for 7:10 PM. I paid only 610 INR ($7.25 USD) for the 24km ride to the airport, and I even got a free upgrade to a more comfortable, compact SUV.

The ride itself was uneventful, with us arriving at the airport at 7:38 PM. By 7:45 PM I was in line to get my boarding passes (digital passes not accepted on this route), and at 7:49 PM came the moment of truth. I would barely have been over the limit, and they didn’t even weigh my personal bag. I suppose I wasted that money on the extra weight allowance, but the peace of mind was probably worth it.

Things continued to go well, and I was through immigration and security by 8:07 PM and headed straight to the lounge at 8:15 PM. Sadly, I have to report that the party is over at the 080 Lounge in Terminal 2 of the BLR airport. They have converted most of the space into an “exclusive” area for first-class or airline invitations only. As such, the Priority Pass section is now really just for eating; there is no longer a proper “lounge area” to relax in. Adding additional annoyance, my flight was delayed and wouldn’t depart until 11:42 PM. Still, since it’s an included benefit of my credit card, I may as well use it instead of paying for overpriced airport food.

At 11:25 PM I went down to the gate, and we started boarding at 11:32 PM. Once I was on the plane at 11:50 PM, an older couple asked me if I would change my seat to row eleven so they could sit together with their daughter. I agreed, since one middle seat is as good as another, but the flight attendant had other plans. The other seat was more than ten rows away and they were desperately trying to get everyone seated as quickly as possible in order to make up for lost time. He firmly but politely told the older couple that their adult daughter would be fine on the four-hour flight to Bangkok. While I agreed with the flight attendant, this showed the sort of mean, penny pinching which is common on budget (and even not so budget) airlines today.

To begin with, they had booked the three seats together, and there were only 3 seats together on either side of the aisle. Furthermore, even the husband and wife had been separated, with me being placed between them. Really? Are we supposed to believe this was unintended? If you don’t “buy a seat” they will intentionally separate you from the people with whom you booked the flight? Don’t get me wrong; I feel like the whole current system is a scam. I mean I suppose that it’s nice that this is one time when solo travelers don’t get a worse deal than accompanied travelers, but it still doesn’t sit well with me. I may be in the minority, but I yearn for the not-too-distant past when two standard size suitcases and a full-size carry-on were just included with every airplane ticket. However, those days are clearly over . . . Anyway, I did still switch seats with the husband so he could be next to his wife, thus scoring a window seat as an unexpected bargain.

14 December: Arrival in Vietnam

We finally started moving at 11:58 PM, with the plane actually taking off at 12:13 AM. After a short nap I landed in Bangkok for my transfer. At 3:46 AM IST (5:16 AM Thai time), I was off the first plane and looking for information on the connecting flight.

Waiting in line at the security check for international transfers at 5:40 AM, it was obvious that this was a very inefficient and confusing system. There was no clear way to get in line nor follow the norms, which made it understandable that people were getting upset and turned around. Of course, some people were also clearly just trying to game the system (or lack thereof). Still, by 6:08 AM I was through the silly transfer station and checked out the shops a bit.

At 7:24 AM I went into Miracle Lounge using my DreamFolks card. This was right before McDonald’s, fairly near where you go down to gates 1-6. There is a reception desk where they check your credentials, and then you go upstairs behind. Previously I had gone to the other Miracle lounge in this concourse and had not been particularly impressed. This one however seemed like a breath of fresh air. It was so quiet and elegant. Truly, it felt like a place of relaxation, which was a stark contrast to the experience in Bengaluru the night before. Furthermore, the food and drink selection was more than adequate, if perhaps not extravagant.

I left the lounge at 9:10 AM, and coming down to the boarding area at 9:19 AM was a bit of a shock. The chaos of the gate area really highlighted what a sanctuary that lounge had been. Still, no reason to complain.

At 9:54 AM I was sitting in seat 23E, next to a young French woman who appeared to be doing traditional scrapbooking right there on her tray table. It was quite charming; I watched her paste her boarding pass into a notebook.

Regarding Air Asia in general, let me be clear. These are not comfortable planes, especially for someone who is 6 feet tall. I think it would be even more uncomfortable for anyone who is remotely overweight, but the legroom was the worst issue in my particular case. Fortunately, at 10:07 AM, I reminded myself that this flight would be less than two hours. With reference to the same, the plane touched down at 11:47 AM.

My first impression of Northern Vietnam from the window was that it was greener and the sky was clearer than I had thought it would be in the Hanoi area.

I was off the plane at 12:04 PM and hit the immigration lines at 12:09 PM. It looked daunting; each line appeared to have at least 25 people. There is an autogate system labeled “Priority,” but at 12:13 PM I used my preloaded Viettel eSIM to look it up and read that it’s basically only for Vietnamese citizens with updated chip passports.

Despite the long lines, I was at the counter at 12:34 PM and done in less than a minute. I simply handed over my passport and printed e-visa. No questions asked. At 12:38 PM I was out and headed to column 12 as directed via WhatsApp by my pickup driver. There was a bit of back and forth, but communication was seamless. The temperature was pleasantly cool, though I was fine in just my t-shirt. At 12:51 PM I was in the car, a very comfortable Hyundai Stargazer X.

By 1:13 PM we were cruising along clean, well-maintained roads. Looking at the sky at 1:31 PM, I decided to check the forecast. It looked like it might rain on Wednesday, so rather than letting myself have a rest day on Tuesday, I also booked a tour for then in order to have a better chance of nice weather. Thus, I would have two days in a row of full-day tours.

At 2:20 PM the sky was blue and the road mostly flat. We arrived at Tam Coc Tuan Minh Homestay and I checked in at 2:56 PM.

After settling in, I went out wandering at 3:39 PM, and at 4:02 PM I found a TPBank ATM and took out 3,000,000 VND ($114.04 USD / 11,082 INR). It was a bit of a shock seeing those millions on the screen! Incidentally, if getting cash out in Tam Coc, this is the one with the smallest fees.

I noticed at 4:49 PM that there were several laundries nearby, which is good to know. At 4:59 PM I sat for a moment at a local park. I saw some older women were getting ready to dance, but it was unclear when that would happen, and some mosquitoes were annoying me, so I decided to try to catch them on a later day.

I was back at the room at 5:25 PM and was contacted by tomorrow’s tour operator via WhatsApp at 5:34 PM reconfirming my plans for the next day. Little check-ins like this lessen some of the stress of travel. After a brief rest, at 6:27 PM I headed out again for dinner. I chose the nearby Thuy Linh Restaurant, which was just around the corner from my lodging. My meal of Pho with beef, pork spring rolls and a draft beer was just 107,000 VND ($4.20 USD), which I paid with cash at 7:42 PM. It was simple, but a very solid first meal in Vietnam!

From there, I made a quick stop to buy some water and snacks for 53,000 VND ($2.08 USD), arriving back in the room at 8:00 PM, ready to crash after a very long day of travel.

So that’s it for Day 1! There was more initial domestic travel than I would generally like, but I hadn’t wanted to go back and forth to Hanoi. Furthermore, tomorrow morning I will hit the ground running with a full day tour. So, we will have to see how I hold up. So, what do you think? Are you ready to find out more about northern Vietnam? I certainly am. Keep reading if you want to see how things continue to develop. As always, let me know your questions and comments below and I’ll do my best to help.

Bali trip: Days 7-8 (25-26 October 2025)

Hey everyone. I decided to combine Days 7 and 8 into a single entry because, to be honest, the pace slowed down a bit, which is exactly what I needed. Day 7 was about enjoying the last bits of Seminyak, and Day 8 was the inevitable travel trek back home.

Day 7: A Slow Start and a Pork Feast

Day 7 started slowly. At 7:21 AM I had sort of woken up, or rather, I had opened my eyes at 6:30 AM and made the executive decision to ignore the world for another hour. By the time I actually dragged myself out of bed, the “morning rush” was long gone.

At 10:23 AM I finally headed out walking. One thing you notice when you slow down and just walk the streets here is the small details. At 10:30 AM I stopped to look at the canang sari (offerings). It seems that they put these little offering plates at the entrance to the narrow lanes and also sometimes right in front of gates. You have to be careful not to step on them, but they really add a unique character to the morning walk.

I arrived at Mr. Egg at 10:32 AM. It seemed like the right spot for a late breakfast. I ordered a chili egg thing, a soy milk, and an egg muffin. It wasn’t the most traditional Balinese meal, but it hit the spot.

At 12:14 PM I left, paying 158,000 IDR ($10.05 USD). As I was walking away, at 12:18 PM, I spotted a restaurant simply called “Pork.” I mean, you have to appreciate the direct marketing. I made a mental note that I might want to eat there later.

The walk also took me through an area at 12:26 PM that seemed to be the “home and garden” district; all these decor spots were just right there, more or less fighting for space together.

At 12:34 PM I arrived at De Gym again and paid my 200,000 IDR ($12.72 USD) via credit card. Honestly, more than the workout, it was just nice to get into the air conditioning. As I was working out, at 12:56 PM I was looking around and realized the clientele here is intense. There was a guy here with a huge back. To be fair, two days ago there was a different guy who was incredibly stacked. Actually, many of the people who go to this gym look incredibly fit. Then at 1:31 PM, that massively fit guy showed up again. It’s enough to make you feel very tiny, but I just kept to my routine. Another couple of things that I really like about this gym are that everyone is very respectful about putting the weights back after using them, and they don’t play any loud obnoxious music over the speakers.

I finished up at 3:10 PM and was back out on the street at 3:14 PM. By 3:30 PM I was back in the room charging my phone, only to discover a small domestic disaster. There was lots of water on the floor from where the AC had leaked. I spent some time trying to get it cleaned up…glamorous travel life, right? I then started to get ready to go out as I wanted to be at the beach for the sunset at 5:30 PM.

At 4:54 PM I took a bike taxi down to the beach. Despite the clouds, I was still able to get a bit of a sunset view.

I left the beach at 6:20 PM and headed to Naughty Nuri’s. This is a famous pork place (maybe this was the destiny I sensed earlier when I saw the “Pork” sign?). I was able to get in right away which was good, because I know it is often hard to get a spot here. At 7:50 PM I paid and left, somehow completely forgetting to note down the cost. I remember that it definitely wasn’t cheap by Bali standards, but as a farewell meal, it was more than worth it.

Then I decided to go walking to the supermarket. It was in the main tourist area, so the walk was interesting enough. I forgot to write down when I entered Bintang Supermarket, but I was there probably a minimum of an hour. I just enjoy wandering aisles in foreign supermarkets. It was 9:16 PM when I finally finished there. The damage? 806,800 IDR ($51.30 USD). I know, I know. I got lots of chocolates and some interesting snacks. To be honest, I didn’t really know what most of it was, haha.

Since it was 3 km to the hotel, I decided to walk it off.

I arrived back at the room at 10:10 PM, and by 11:44 PM I finally had everything ready and was prepared to sleep.

Day 8: The Long Way Home

Day 8 began early at 6:45 AM. I was up and getting ready for the inevitable slog of international travel.

At 7:48 AM I booked a Gojek, which is notable since this was actually the very first time that I used one of these driver apps on this trip; when going nearby I preferred to walk, and when going further, I was always on a tour. The car arrived at 7:52 AM and it was a large, comfortable SUV. I quickly discovered that I had evidently accidentally chosen the domestic terminal, but it wasn’t too hard to change with the driver. We arrived at the airport at 8:17 AM. The fare was a bit less than 150,000 IDR, something like 140,000, but I just gave him 150,000 IDR ($9.54 USD).

From what I can tell, the system here is to wait in the receiving area before going through the gate section. There are several restaurants, and I think inside there’s not really much. It’s a nice-looking airport, but at 8:30 AM I decided to just go through. Even if it’s only sitting, I can do that on the other side.

I checked in at 8:49 AM, discovering that my checked bag was only 15 KG. I honestly had thought it would be more given my chocolate haul from the night before. By 8:51 AM I was at security, which seemed very calm, and by 9:01 AM I was through immigration. It was all electronic, very low stress and even peaceful.

At 9:15 AM, I knew it would be a horrible exchange rate, but I changed my last 501,200 IDR for $28 USD. It hurt a little, but what are you going to do with leftover Rupiah? I guess I could have bought something to eat, but I had something else in mind.

At 9:18 AM I used my Priority Pass to access the Concordia Lounge. I really had not been especially impressed with what was downstairs even though it all looked fine, so I figured I may as well go here. I liked that the lounge wasn’t crowded. At 9:28 AM I tried the butterfly pea flower drink which is called Telang. It was pleasant and very refreshing.

Later, at 10:15 AM, I decided to get an iced mochaccino and a couple of pastries.

I left the lounge at 10:29 AM to go to the boarding area, Gate 9A. On the way, I saw people taking the elevator down one floor. I really don’t understand why perfectly healthy people take elevators to go one floor. At 10:37 AM I noticed there were actually quite a few shops and restaurants on the way to the gate, so my earlier assumption had been wrong.

At 10:48 AM I was seated in 7C. I bought a few things on Amazon while waiting. By 11:22 AM we moved into the starting position. I noted that I had only used 7.43 GB of data during the week despite having almost constantly used my data connection, certainly during the three long day trips. We were in the air by 11:31 AM.

The flight was uneventful. At 5:07 PM the pilot announced arrival, and at 5:35 PM Indonesian time (3:06 PM Indian Standard Time), we touched down. By 3:18 PM IST, while we were still taxiing, I noticed an older teenager near me reading The Song of Achilles; maybe I should read it? At 3:22 PM I was off the plane and onto the jetway, thinking that the cloth passport pouch I’ve had for many years is probably the best travel accessory I have.

At 3:26 PM I was at immigration. There were very few people working and also few waiting. I briefly considered checking out the fast-track immigration travelers’ program since I come here often but then realized it’s only for Indians or those with OCI cards. I sort of feel like it would make sense to open it up to those of us who have long term visas, but there’s no point in even thinking about it …

As always, at 3:34 PM, I was amazed at how long they take to process a single person. The system is clearly broken. However, they started with me at 3:36 PM, and by 3:40 PM I was through. So, sometimes it works alright.

I got my bag at 3:44 PM and headed out.

At 3:52 PM, I saw there was a significant waiting line for Uber Go, but with plenty of time, I decided to go with that option as it was more than 400 INR ($4.75 USD) less than other options and I really wasn’t in any sort of a hurry.

Well, at 4:25 PM I was still waiting. Time is money and all that. Was it really worth it? Still waiting at 4:58 PM, I fully remembered why I don’t generally do this. Finally, at 5:11 PM I got in a car. It ended up being a non-AC car, which was perfectly good with this lovely weather and the cost was even less. Still, it was an eighty-minute wait, so despite the more than 400 INR savings, probably something I won’t be repeating.

I arrived home at 5:46 PM. The ride was 688 INR ($8.16 USD), but I gave him 700. And just like that, the trip was over.

So that’s it for the Bali adventure. I know that these last two days weren’t particularly exciting to read about, but I wanted to finish up the entire trip. If all goes as planned, in just a day or two, you will be reading about my current new, and at times exciting destination!

Bali trip: Day 6 (24 October 2025)

Hey there everyone. The first thing you need to know about Day 6 in Bali was that it was a very long day, but I promise you that it is worth reading through to the end.

It all started with the alarm going off at 3:30 AM. There was a whirlwind rush to eat one of the sweet buns I had bought a couple of days ago, quickly shower and then a comical 15 minute interlude of me going through which t-shirt to wear for the day. You have no doubt noticed that I seem to wear almost the exact same clothes in every picture you see of me while travelling, and if you haven’t before noticed, it will now be impossible to not see. The main conflict was that I had originally pulled out a dark colored t-shirt for today, but then I couldn’t decide which one, and then started to debate about whether or not it would actually be better for me to wear something more vibrant while visiting ancient temples. It will soon become evident which internal argument won out.

At 4:00 AM I was waiting to be picked up. The day before, on GetYourGuide, I had booked the Bali: Besakih Temple & Lempuyang Temple Gates of Heaven Tour for 6045 INR ($67.64 USD), including all transport, entry fees and a buffet lunch.

We had barely started out, when the other person in the car and I were told that the entry fees for the tour were actually not included. I knew that it wasn’t the guide’s fault, but this was not a good way to start the day. I really wanted to enjoy the day, but the negatives were quickly adding up. To begin with, when I had originally clicked on the trip within GetYourGuide, the price shown in the trip grid immediately increased by more than 1500 INR, and then there had been a list of several obviously needed inclusions, each one having additional cost. I had selected everything it was possible to select, and was now being told that it would be an additional $18 USD? On top of that, the trip had been advertised as departing at 7:00 AM (which had seemed reasonable) and then the evening before had been changed to a 4:00 AM departure.

Both myself and my fellow traveler were very disgruntled about this, but at 4:40 AM, talking things out together, we resolved to just deal with it since we really wanted to enjoy the day. We reasoned that especially since there were only two of us on the tour, we would have initially been willing to pay a bit more in order to still have today’s experience despite there being only two travelers. However, I will admit that I wrote a very strong worded, yet still polite message to the tour operator, TripGotik.

Unsurprisingly at this time of the morning, there didn’t seem to be any traffic. Furthermore, the vehicle was comfortable, and the roads were in good condition. At 5:00 AM, we stopped briefly at a convenience store, where I bought two chicken dumplings and a soy drink for 123 INR ($1.38 USD). Moving on from there, at 5:30 AM, the sun was starting to come up, and even in the quickly moving vehicle, the sky over the distant mountains was beautiful.

The picture didn’t really do it justice, but this got me thinking about how Heetum had said that the reason for us to leave so early was in order to get a good Instagram post in some particular place. That whole “perfect photo narrative” seemed to be a recurring theme here. It guess “it is what it is,” but I thought it was a bit sad if the entire reason for visiting Bali had been reduced to social media pictures. What about actually learning something about the temples or other sites which were visited?

At 5:50 AM we stopped for ten minutes to take a picture and to let the driver take a quick nap.

We decided to let Heetum sleep a few more minutes, and then as we were going along once more at 6:11 AM, I received a WhatsApp message from the tour operator apologizing for the mix-up, and assuring me that all entry fees had been included for the day. I know it was a small financial difference, but that immediately made both of us feel much better, effectively lifting the shadow which had been there since we had been picked up. Riding along, at 6:30 AM, I realized how much I was simply enjoying the scenery.

At 6:40 AM we arrived to the Lempuyang area and almost immediately got in a bus which took up up a rather twisty road to another stopping point. Here, as frequently happens in Bali, we had “required sarongs” tied on us. This had happened to me a few days ago as well. Not to be disrespectful, but the whole thing seemed a bit silly. Still, when in Bali . . .

At 6:57 AM, Heetum parked us at a restaurant and said that he was going to take care of getting our numbers (whatever that meant), but that it would be about an hour before we could go further up. It hadn’t been clear to either of us that we were going to stop at a restaurant for breakfast, but it seemed like a comfortable place to hang out, and the view really was wonderful.

At 7:49 AM I paid 60500 IDR ($3.63 USD) for my cold coffee, and we headed up the short hill, arriving to the actual temple at 7:55 AM. They toss a bit of water on you when you enter “to purify” you, and this is not optional. It all seemed absurdly performative, as there was nobody actually telling us anything about the temple itself, and nobody in attendance seemed to care. This was clearly only about getting the pictures.

We did actually learn a detail at 8:14 AM. Evidently there were a total of seven temples here, but visitors are only allowed to visit the first one unless they have come to worship. Yes, it was all very pretty, but I felt a bit bad that everyone (including myself) was treating this religious and archeologic site as an elaborate photo prop. Of course, I could read more about the temple online or something, but I felt that it would have been much more meaningful to take advantage of the wait time to actually learn something about where we were visiting. At least we had a covered area to sit while waiting for our turn to get pictures.

Karla, from Mexico, was the other person on my tour

At 8:39 AM, I encouraged my travel partner for the day, Karla, to go get some “flowing dress swing pictures” done while I just continued to wait. Again, it was all very silly, but several places I had gone in Bali, women were having these special photo shoots done, and I had to admit that they seemed to be very elegant. After some debate, Karla decided to go ahead with the plan, as this was something which she definitely would not do anywhere else. I don’t remember exactly how much she paid, but I remember thinking that it was a perfectly reasonable price, especially if the photos turned out as beautiful as the samples which had been shown.

Finally at 9:29 AM my number was called and I rushed forward to get my 15 seconds of meticulously orchestrated photos at the “Gates of Heaven”.

At 9:46 AM Karla returned, and I had to admit that her photos and videos really were beautiful; here you can see a small sample. As soon as she arrived, they rushed her to the gates and we headed back to the car, departing from the site at 10:15 AM.

Our next stop at 10:28 AM was Tunas Bali Luwak Coffee where we had a coffee tasting tour with the on-site guide Nyoman. Obviously, the hope here was that we would buy things, but I didn´t. However, I did enjoy the “free” selection of teas and coffees, and felt that Nyoman did a good job. So, when the tour ended at 11:23 AM I left a tip of 15000 IDR ($0.90 USD), and I think that Karla also bought a couple of bags of coffee.

This civet was not caged, but presumably stayed around here because of the free food.

When we departed at 11:28 AM, I had to admit that I had actually rather enjoyed this thinly veiled sales pitch. It is not something I would have done on my own, but I would actually recommend it if you have the time to fit it into your visit to Bali.

We weren’t in the car very long before arriving to Tirta Gangga at 11:32 AM. There’s no way around it; this place is amazingly beautiful. The gardens were meticulously maintained, the giant koi stunning, and the opportunities for pictures endless. On top of that, there was also a small, but reasonably well-done museum which added a bit of historical context to the whole place. It was all so perfect that it seemed a bit like being dropped into a Disney movie or something. I feel like I should have been jaded, and end up saying that it is too artificial. But you know what, that’s not what I thought at all. It was an incredibly special surprise to have come here.

This former king had a bunch of these short swords. I didn’t understand why, but it was evidently a big deal.

At 12:51 PM we were back in the car, and Heetum said it would be about 90 minutes until our next stop. The scenery along the way was impressive, and we even did a quick stop for more random pictures.

We arrived to Lereng Agung Restaurant at 2:31 PM. There, I was initially delighted to see this large bat on a perch near the entrance. My buffet lunch here was included in the tour, and I took full advantage of the same. The food wasn’t particularly amazing, but I had no particular complaints. Furthermore, the view was outstanding.

Unfortunately as we were departing at 4:20 PM, I made the mistake of asking our guard why the bat didn’t fly away. He said that the owner of the restaurant had intentionally broken the bat’s wing so that it would become dependent on him, in the process becoming a tourist attraction . . . I have since then searched for more information on this and can’t find anything to confirm this. However, this appears to be a known practice in Bali. Is that what happened here? I don’t know, but if so, that would be a reason to skip this otherwise pleasant lunch destination.

Just ten minutes later, we arrived at Pura Agung Besakih, also commonly referred to as The Mother Temple. According to Heetum, this is the most important temple in Bali, sort of like a National Cathedral. Surprise, surprise (or not), we were once more required to put on sarongs. Unless specifically coming to worship, all visits here are managed by local guides. Heetum took care of getting our tickets, and we were rushed into a golf cart to take us up to where the actual tour would begin.

According to our local temple guide, the temple is from the eighth century, dedicated to Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu. Furthermore, this is a fully functioning temple rather than just an archeologic site. So, a lot of the construction is evidently quite modern, whereas other parts of the buildings and walls go back more than a thousand years.

These moss covered walls date all the way back to the eighth century.

Despite being such a massive temple complex, which is evidently also central to traditional religious life on the island, at 4:54 PM there was almost nobody there. The entire experience was delightfully peaceful, with impressive sites at every juncture. Furthermore, while the local guide was not incredibly insightful, he definitely made the visit much more enjoyable by adding some context to the visit.

I am only relaying what we were told, so the information is doubtless incomplete. I was interested to learn that the first temple area where we visited is evidently for the farmer caste, with the second one being for the soldier caste. Our local guide was from farmer caste, and he indicated that he could only worship in that area; this did not however seem to bother him. I wasn’t really sure of how many castes were recognized here, but the guide was quick to clarify that the system is different from Hinduism in India. I had just sort of assumed that the various sorts of roofs were decorative, but we found out that the number of roofs indicates to which the caste the area corresponds, with the highest caste having towers with eleven roofs.

At 5:23 PM we arrived to an extremely impressive structure, which as far as I could tell, was the highest point to the temple complex. I was very curious to look around inside, but you are evidently only supposed to enter if you are going to worship. They apparently just take your word for it, but I certainly didn’t want to pretend that I believed something which I didn’t, and neither did my travel partner Karla. So, we both indicated that we would stay outside and appreciate the the impressive view, made even more impactful by the lack of other visitors and the almost complete silence.

It seemed though that we had partially misunderstood about not being allowed to go up the stairs. Much of this apex structure is open to general visitors, but there is a clear invisible line which is only to be crossed by worshippers. It would have been impossible for us to identify that point on our own, but I guess that is one of the reasons that all non-religious visitors are required to be accompanied by a temple guide.

The pictures really don’t do it justice. The towers in the far distance made me feel like I was I was in some sort of a magical land from the distant past.

So wow, we made it to the top! Actually, no we didn’t. At 5:32 PM we had gone up as far as we were going to, but this whole temple area actually continues for another two kilometers! Regardless, even regular worshippers usually only come up as far as we were, and while it was all very beautiful, it was also quickly getting dark, and we were going to have to walk all the way back down. The local guide continued on down with us until the entrance to where the golf cart had dropped us off, and we continued walking down on our own from there.

As we arrived back to the car at 6:28 PM, I was overwhelmingly thankful for having been able to experience this visit. Regardless of your belief system, if in Bali, you should definitely visit this temple complex. I do however, understand that it is much busier at other times of the day and at other times of the year. Still, even if not visiting in October, I think it is worth a shot to make some time for this religious site.

The ride back to the hotel was uneventful, if a bit long. We dropped Karla off at 8:30 PM, but it wasn’t until 9:49 PM that we finally arrived back to my lodging . . . an almost eighteen hour tour! I will admit that I had been a bit cynical near the beginning of the day, but things turned out wonderfully. It is always difficult to identify “the best day” of a trip, but I think this was it. Yes, there was the inconvenience of the early departure, and the somewhat questionable emphasis at times on getting “the perfect picture”. However, all together, I had a fantastic time. Heetum and Karla, if you are reading this, thank you for contributing to this incredible memory of Bali!

So, what do you think? If you have read the other days, do you agree that this was really the best one? What about the huge wait for the fifteen seconds of pictures at the first site . . . was it worth it, or just silly? I look forward to seeing your comments and questions in the section below.

Bali trip: Day 5 (23 October 2025)

Hey there everyone, thanks for continuing to read along. I am afraid that I didn´t take very good notes for Day 5, and it was also a “rest day”. I considered skipping writing about it; however, there were still a couple of details which might be important for other visitors, so I decided to get them down for you as well. Still, if you find that this one is too slow, I will understand if you decide to just skip ahead to Day 6.

As mentioned earlier, I had decided to keep Day 5 mostly as just a rest day. With that in mind, it wasn’t until 10:11 AM that walked out from Dikubu Bali Villa and Suite, arriving to Nook at 10:27 AM. I ordered the breakfast board and Bali coffee.

If you have ever read about someone eating breakfast in Bali, there is a good chance you already know something about this place. It has a wonderful atmosphere, and like most places in Bali, they do an amazing job of presenting the food. However, fame and a pleasant atmosphere come with a cost, which in this case was 200,000 IDR ($12 USD) which I paid with credit card. Now I know that my readers from North America, Western Europe and even East Asia will think this is cheap, but it is quite a bit more than I had been paying at other spots. Nevertheless, I made the most of the ambiance, doing some reading and then leaving at 12:04 PM.

I forgot to note down the cost of the bike taxi, but it wasn’t much, arriving at 12:12 PM. At De Gym, I once more bought a day pass for 200,000 IDR ($12 USD). It was about the same experience as when I was there on Day 3, so if you want more details, you can look back at that entry. While I was there, I booked Bali’s Secret Comedy night through GetYourGuide for a cost of 1346 INR ($15.02 USD). I had tried to book directly, but I couldn’t make the local website work with my international card. I stayed there until 3:09 PM and then walked over to the same place I had eaten on Monday, getting a Pasu Kremes Komplit for only 23000 IDR ($1.38 USD).

You can´t ell in the picture, but there was both fried chicken and fried tempeh, both of which were very tasty.

I can only assume that they took pity on me this time, having seen how clumsy I had been when eating with only my hand during my previous visit, but whatever the reason, I admit that I liked having the spoon and the fork.

From there, my notes fell off a bit. I am not really sure when I got back, but while at the hotel at around 4:10 PM, I reflected on how I should probably take advantage of the beautiful pool area which was just outside my room.

I never did actually hang out there nor much less get in the water, but it was certainly pretty to see each day when I came in and out of the room. I stayed there until 6:19 PM and then headed out walking towards the venue for the comedy show, Huge Restaurant, where I arrived at 6:37 PM.

Supposedly, “registration” began at 6:30 PM, but I had clearly arrived way too early. I don´t remember how much I paid, but I got a beer while waiting and observed that the bar/restaurant looked very nice, and similarly quite expensive. I was a bit surprised when we were finally issued into the room at around 7:20 PM . . . there were only 18 people in attendance! However, they had done a good job of setting things up so that it didn´t seem horribly empty. It was like going to a show in someone´s living room. Despite the relatively small audience, both of the comedians did an amazing job, and I was very happy that I had come.

On a separate note, right after the show started I got a text message regarding my tour for the next day asking if I would be willing to leave at 3:30 AM. During the intermission, I negotiated to move the departure time to 4:00 AM . . . Supposedly this was to have a 7:00 AM departure, but I reasoned that if the guide wanted to go so much earlier, there had to be a good justification. You will have to keep reading along for Day 6 to find out I was right.

Anyway, as mentioned earlier, the show had been fantastic, and I strongly recommend for other visitors to take the time to attend. Upon leaving at 9:10 PM, I decided to grab a quick bite at another local eatery near my hotel, but I forgot to write down the name. It was a place with all sorts of food which one could see in the window. I had thought it was fake food, but when I arrived at 9:30 PM, I discovered that it was real food which had been made earlier. You just point to what you want, and they serve you.

It wasn´t all that attractive, but at least initially it tasted alright. I don´t remember how much I paid, but I know it wasn´t much, certainly less than 50000 IDR. After I had eaten about half of it, I realized that it was perhaps not wise to eat food which had been sitting in a window for an indeterminate amount of time, but I also figured that it was too late to do anything about it after already having eaten half of it. Furthermore, I was hungry and knew that I needed to get back to my room quickly so I could get a tiny amount of sleep. As I finished at 9:58 PM, I began to imagine that something had tasted off with the food, but I thought it also might have just been unfamiliar spices. Regardless, it had already been eaten, so what would happen was going to happen.

At 10:05 PM I was back in the room, immediately headed to bed. Just in case, I set three alarms: one on my watch, one on my phone, and one on my Surface Laptop Go. Between all three of them, it seemed that there would be a good chance that I would get up in time for tomorrow´s 4:00 AM pick up from the hotel. As I quickly drifted off to sleep, I was still vaguely uneasy about what I had eaten for dinner . . .

Bali trip: Day 4 (22 October 2025)

Hey there loyal readers! A few of you told me that yesterday was a bit too laid back for your tastes, so don’t worry, Day 4 was once again a jam-packed marathon of different activities. For those of you who recently read about Day 3, you probably remember that I had booked the Bali/Nusa Penida: East & West Highlights Full-Day Tour for today through GetYourGuide for a cost of 5277 INR ($59.77 USD) including hotel pickup and drop off from Kerobokan.

At 5:36 AM I was picked up by my driver Kadek right outside Dikubu Bali Villa and Suites and we were on our way. It was an easy and comfortable ride, with us pulling up outside Sanur Harbor at 6:37 AM. Kadek showed me where to sit and told me that he would take care of getting my ferry tickets etc . . . It looked like there were quite a few people waiting, so I wondered about just how many people would be on this “small group tour”.

We had a fifteen-minute wait before departure, so I just wandered around a bit until 7:00 AM, when Kadek walked me over to the boarding area and told me that he would be waiting when I got back.

The ferry departed at 7:19 AM, with the uneventful ride ending at 8:06 AM. This however was when things started to get confusing. I hadn’t realized it, but there were actually people from several different groups on the ferry, as well as daily independent travelers. Upon disembarking at 8:11 AM, I just followed a group of people who sort of looked like they were also tourists (and they were) but it turned out that they were not actually part of my group. This was an important detail which nobody has shared with me. Fortunately, my guide and driver on the island, Yogi, realized that something was wrong and called me via WhatsApp; I was really happy that I had an active internet connection on my phone! By 8:20 AM I was with the other three member of the tour, and we were off on our adventure.

Similar to what I had encountered in the morning, the car was very comfortable, and there seemed to be very little traffic. I passed the time watching the beautiful scenery and speaking to the charming Romanian couple who were on their honeymoon and a very interesting gentleman from Poland. I am not really sure where it was, but our first stop was at 9:07 AM.

The pictures really don’t do it justice, and at 9:55 AM we were back in the car heading to our next stop, arriving to Kelingking Beach at 10:31 AM.

If any of these photos look familiar, it’s because this is probably one of the most photographed spots in Bali. Supposedly the one rock formation there in the distance looks like the open mouth of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, but I didn’t really see it. Regardless, once again, the views really were absolutely spectacular. Unfortunately, here we had a bit of a conflict because despite Yogi having clearly said that it was a bad idea, the other solo traveler on the trip decided to walk all the way down to the beach. We were supposed to have left at 11:00 AM, but due to this problematic snafu, we ended up not leaving until 11:53 AM. This caused a great deal of tension in the group, with the guide being at a bit of a loss about how to proceed, and the honeymooning couple being particularly annoyed at the delay. Again, if you go on a small group tour, please be considerate of the announced timings!

Despite me also being rather annoyed, I tried to take the role of peacemaker as we arrived at our nearby lunch spot at 12:02 PM. We had originally been scheduled to spend a full hour there, but I suggested that we could make up some of the time by eating quickly and then just focusing on enjoying the rest of the day. We all agreed to the plan, but lunch was still rather tense. Food was not included in this particular trip, and my simple, but adequate meal of rice, fish and an ice sorbetto popsicle had a cost of 149000 IDR ($8.89 USD) which I paid for with my credit card.

As the food took some time to come out, we weren’t able to make up as much time as we had hoped, but at 12:46 PM we were back in the car once again. I really enjoyed the views as we were driving to our next destination.

I had really enjoyed the drive; however, I was also happy when we came to our next stop at 1:43 PM. Here we would see Atuh and Diamond Beach. Yogi said that we had until 3:00 PM to explore here. Atuh beach looked very welcoming, but the path also looked very slippery. Despite having very good walking shoes, I had almost fallen down once at this general site (Yes, I know . . . slipping and falling seemed to be a recurring risk during this trip.), so I decided to stick to the view from afar, especially as I had not brought swimming gear.

The way down to Diamond beach, while still a bit of a challenge, appeared to be much less risky than the other spot, so I decided to take a chance, going down at 2:01 PM. No doubt if I had come with someone else, I would have at least got my feet wet. But as it was, I just didn’t want to deal with the sand etc . . . I did however definitely enjoy seeing it, even though I didn’t feel any need to actually walk on the sand or get in the water.

The path down to Diamond beach seemed far more secure than the way down to Atuh beach, but it definitely wasn’t “easy”. The stone stairs were steep, uneven and at times a bit slippery due to the sand on them. It was clear that this would be a very rather difficult trek for anyone who had even minor issues with mobility. I noted that even several average looking visitors in their twenties seemed to be having some problems with the route. In summary, before walking down to Diamond Beach, consider the possible downsides.

So yes, it was very beautiful, but at 2:22 PM I decided to slowly make my way back up the stone steps, arriving back to the car at 2:58 PM with two minutes to spare! Thankfully, the others arrived soon after and we headed off towards the ferry. As we were driving, I reflected on how that despite still not being a completely simple walk down to Diamond Beach, it really was an impressive feat how they had carved the stairs into the side of the rocky cliff. The drive was uneventful, with us arriving at the dock at 4:17 PM.

I forgot to mention this earlier, but when we had first taken the ferry, we were each given a paper that we had to keep until the end of the day. I hadn’t been sure of the purpose of this paper until Yogi said that he needed it so he could pick up our return tickets while we hung out in the waiting area . . . so, don’t lose that paper! The waiting area was not fancy, but well-apportioned with restrooms, changing rooms and I think maybe even showers; however, I am not certain of the last one. Yogi said his goodbyes, and we were ushered onto the final ferry of the evening at 5:00 PM.

Just as we were starting off, I got a text message from Kadek with a picture of where he would be waiting for me. True to his word, upon arriving back to Sanur at 5:35 PM, it was a short walk from the pier to bright yellow storefront which he had indicated and at 5:44 PM we headed back to Kerobokan.

At least along this particular route, the traffic was moving better during evening rush hour than would be typical in Bengaluru, but it was still very busy. In contrast, the car was very comfortable, and Kadek was an excellent driver. So even though we didn’t pull up in front of my hotel until 7:00 PM, I had not felt that it was an especially tedious drive. After resting a bit, at 7:49 PM I decided to go get some food at that food court I had seen the previous day. However, I quickly realized that I wasn’t actually sure of where to go, so I opted to just try a tiny local stall close to my hotel. Looking at the portion sizes, at 8:00 PM I decided to get two bowls of Bakso Sapi for a total cost of just 30,000 IDR ($1.80 USD).

I liked it, but I think it is meant to be more of a snack than a meal. Still, with the two bowls, it was fine for my needs, and I was glad to have tried something new. Despite dragging things out for as long as was reasonable, I was completely finished at 8:41 PM and decided to try to stop by a bakery I had also seen the day before, but once again realized I didn’t actually know where it was. Thus at 9:18 PM I was back in the room for the night with no sweets but having eaten two very satisfying bowls of Bakso Sapi.

And with that, the day had ended. Looking back, I think I should have brought along some swim gear and a large towel for this day tour. Certainly, I think most people would have been better off with those, but given my aversion to sand, it was probably fine that I had not realized just how long we would be spending at possible swimming sites. I would however definitely advise the tour operators to make this clear for future groups, as it would have been very disappointing to not have had them if I had wanted to get in the water either at Atuh or Diamond Beach.

So, what do you think of the Bali trip so far? If you hadn’t thought of visiting earlier, do you think it is now a destination to put on your list? For those of you who have already been there, is there something important that you think I have left out? If so, maybe I will mention those things later on. If you are curious about how it all finishes up, I encourage you to subscribe in order to make sure you don’t miss a single day. Finally, thanks for reading along, and please leave your comments and questions below.

Bali trip: Day 3 (21 October 2025)

Hello readers, and as always, thank you for continuing to read along. If Day 2 seemed a bit too hectic for the laid-back view you have of Bali, then Day 3 might be more in line with your fantasy of a peaceful, island vacation.

While the previous day had been great, I was happy that I had set Day 3 as a time of relative rest. As such, it is probably not that much of a surprise that I didn’t even leave the room until 11:25 AM. I wanted to check out a local gym rather unimaginatively named DeGym, but I also realized that I should get something to eat beforehand. So, with my gym bag packed, I slowly walked in that direction, arriving about 11:45 AM. I could easily have arrived much quicker, but I was taking my time, peeking down alleys etc . . . as I walked.

I found the building at 11:45 AM without too much trouble but decided to go across the street to Tentang Kopi to get some food before going in. Given that the cafe was right there on the main rood, it was a bit noisier than some might like, but I didn’t find it particularly distracting. The ambiance inside was quite pleasant, and I ordered the Gado Gado, Chicken fried rice with satay, and pineapple juice. The Gado Gado and juice came out first at 12:01 AM, closely followed by the Chicken fried rice with Satay at 12:06 PM.

Once more, I was particularly impressed by how well the food had been presented. I will still need to check more over the next few days, but this seems to be an area of expertise in Bali. While waiting and then eating my food, I decided to once more book a tour for the following day on GetYourGuide, this time opting for the East and West highlight tour trip Penida for a cost of 5277 INR including hotel pickup and drop off from Kerobokan. Having finished my food at 12:38 PM, I paid 133,000 IDR ($7.96 USD) using my Indian international credit card and walked across to the gym.

As I had my bag with shoes and everything with me, the process of getting a day pass for 200,000 IDR ($11.97 USD) was extremely simple. The place was extremely clean, comfortably air-conditioned, and clearly appropriate for both serious and casual gym goers. While this is perhaps a minor point, I was particularly impressed by the lockers in the changing rooms; they had these simple combination locks which one sets and uses on a daily basis.

At 2:55 PM I finished up at the gym and walked back towards Dikubu Bali Villas and Suites. Along the way, I stopped in at a convenience store to get some simple groceries for 110000 IDR ($6.58) and then bought five pieces of original Cupup Tahu for just 10000 IDR ($0.60 USD).

Back in the room at 3:34 PM, I decided to forego the green chilis which had been included with the Cupup Tahu, and instead put some yogurt on them. I am not sure, but I think they were some sort of deep-fried tofu. Without the yogurt, they were plain, but not unpleasant. With the yogurt, they were a very filling and tasty after-gym snack. I stayed there resting in the room until 5:19 PM, and then once more headed out to walk down to Petitenget beach for the sunset.

Upon arriving at 6:00 PM, I once more saw that despite being in a very touristic area, the beach was uncrowded with a relaxing view.

I had missed the actual sunset but still enjoyed being there in such a relaxing setting. I stayed there until 6:40 PM, and then resolved to walk back to the room. Changing things up, I walked a different route, soon finding myself outside Grill’d Healthy Burgers (whatever that means) at 6:56 PM where I was looked over the menu which was posted just outside. I give credit to the greeter; she did a very good job of talking the place up without seeming overbearing, and then when she saw that it looked like I would probably continue walking, swooped in with a “Free french fries card” and additional information about a “buy two get one free” offer on alcoholic drinks”.

I had no interest in drinking three beers on my own, but there was also a prominent sign out front indicating that Conde Nast traveler endorsed them. Eating a hamburger and fries in Bali may seem silly to you, but having flown in from India, for me it seemed like an exotic treat. The Bintang Radler beer I blindly ordered tasted like lemonade; I had not expected that but found it to be very refreshing. Furthermore, both the burger and fries were exceptionally good.

At 7:44 PM I finished my meal, using my credit card to pay the 174,900 IDR ($10.53 USD) bill. The walk back to my room in Kerobokan was uneventful, but the peaceful streets were beautiful at this time of the evening.

This food court looked interesting, and I resolved to come back later on.

I arrived back to the room at 8:22 PM, took a quick shower and watched a bit of streaming video before heading to bed for the night. Today had definitely been far less eventful than yesterday, but I wouldn’t say that I had liked in any less. Sometimes it is nice to jump around to all sorts of iconic sites, but other times it is equally enjoyable to just peacefully enjoy simple moments.

What about you? Which day did you prefer the most? Would you generally opt for more jam-packed days of fantastic sites, or do you prefer to explore the undelighted spots of joy that might otherwise go unnoticed? Let me know in the comment section below, and please keep reading along with Day 4.

Bali trip: Day 2 (20 October 2025)

Hey there readers, before getting into the details of Day 2 of my recent trip to Bali, I would like to extend a very warm thank you to everyone who sent me direct messages of encouragement after my last post. It was very rewarding to read all of your positive notes!

So unlike Day 1, for today I had decided to book a full day tour to the Ubud area. As is generally my recommendation for day trips, particularly as a solo traveler, I booked the through Get you Guide, for a cost of 5581 INR ($62.93 USD) including lunch and all entry fees. The tour name was Ubud: All-Inclusive Tour with Optional Lunch. The actual tour operator was Tripgotik and our driver/guide for the day was Nick (Cinek). The evening before, I had been contacted by Nick to confirm the pick-up time.

The trip began with me being picked up from my hotel (see details from Day 1) in Kerobokan at 8:40 AM. The SUV style vehicle was comfortable, with a total of 5 tourists having joined the group by 9:30 AM. The drive itself was relatively uneventful, but the scenery was pleasant.

We arrived to Sangeh Monkey Forest at 10:25 AM and started looking around.

I think I would have liked to explore just a bit more, but it was clear that the main idea on this trip was to get the picture and get out quickly. That having been said, it appears that one could easily spend several hours here, but I am not sure how interesting that would be, as I really only saw the entrance. Still, everyone was happy because yes, you guessed it . . .

That’s right, close encounters with monkeys. Unlike several other areas I have visited with monkeys, at least these ones near the entrance were very docile. I suspect they were more interested in getting the processed food and occasional fruits from clever guides setting up the perfect picture for tourists than in grabbing jewelry or snatching bags. They were of course adorable, but I have to admit that I was a bit uncomfortable with the picture setup. Despite a recent news report to the contrary, the actual local people and guides on site had no issues coaxing monkeys onto people’s shoulders etc . . . through the enticement of food. I want to be clear, this was ALL the guides, not just ours. It was obvious that this is the norm.

There was no “cultural element” to the stop, and when I asked Nick about the age of the temple, he said it was 100 years old. This seemed off to me, and upon checking later, I saw that the temple was built in the 17th century. Again though, we clearly weren’t there for the temple itself nor even most of the grounds, so it is unsurprising that there was not more complete information. Still, overall, I have to admit that it was a very pleasant spot, and certainly everyone in my group seemed very happy with the experience.

We were back in the vehicle at 11:40 AM. Once more, the views were very nice, even in the moving vehicle. I found myself thinking that with more time, it seemed that it would be pleasant to wander around and check out some more of the spots we were passing. However, we were on the clock, and at 12:50 PM arrived to Ubud palace. Right off I could understand why this area is so popular for tourists to stay, and I could see myself returning later on.

I know I look ridiculous. but I was more interested in protecting my skin than in looking amazing.

Again, we didn’t really learn anything much about the palace itself. To be fair, it seems that only a very small amount of the attraction is even open to the public, so perhaps that’s just what it is. At any rate, at 1:07 PM Nick pointed us towards the Ubud art market and told us that we had exactly 30 minutes to explore before being picked up right in front of the temple. Everyone else dutifully headed into the market, but I decided instead to use my limited time to walk around a bit in the area near the palace.

It’s worth noting that just five minutes away from the palace, it was much calmer and at least from my viewpoint, much nicer to walk around. Like a well-trained tourist, I was back in the SUV at 1:32 PM, but there was a bit of an issue. Of the five of us, only the woman from France and myself had arrived. This sort of thing frequently happens on small group tours, but that doesn’t make it less annoying for the guide and for those who are on time. The final lagging member of our group didn’t arrive until 1:51 PM. In case the implied message is not clear, if going on a small group tour, please be respectful of the time expectations. Everyone on the trip wants to see things, and if you want to do things at your own pace, pay for a completely private trip or simply go on your own.

Once more, as we continued along our way, the scenery was quite picturesque. Furthermore, given that I had arrived first back to the vehicle, this time I was in the front seat where it was much easier to take pictures while in motion.

We pulled into Kawi restaurant for lunch at 2:22 PM where we were quickly seated in an area with a very favorable view. The whole lunch experience was enjoyable if not particularly amazing in terms of the food itself, and I was glad that I had simply opted to have my full lunch included in the price rather than deal with deciding what to eat and then pay right there at the restaurant.

The crispy duck was nice enough, if less amazing than I had hoped for.

Certainly, it was a good place for a small group to have a leisurely lunch, and at 3:51 PM we were once more back in the vehicle. Arriving to a stunningly beautiful rice terrace area just fifteen minutes later, we were given 50 minutes to just look around and explore.

Despite the beauty of the place, it seemed a bit silly to be wandering around some neighborhood rice crop. I found myself wondering if this would work for wheat, soy or corn fields? I did not however feel that we were inconveniencing anyone or taking advantage of the locals, as they had clearly worked out a more than adequate system to monetize the agricultural site. Nevertheless, I still found it noteworthy that this very obviously was still an actual working rice field with what appeared to be traditional farm workers. On the other side of field, several of us from my group met up in a simple café to have drinks while we appreciated the view; my tasty strawberry shake was only 35000 IDR ($2.10 USD).

Back in the car again at 4:46 PM, just twenty-seven minutes later we arrived at the entrance of Ulu Petanu Waterfall. As I hadn´t really checked where we would be going ahead of time, I took each stop as a pleasant surprise, and this one was no different.

No the water isn´t polluted. It comes directly from the spring this way, supposedly with this milky color because of the blood of a monster who had once been defeated at the site.

At 5:35 PM we departed in the car, arriving to Tirta Empul Temple complex at 5:52 PM. For local Hindus and many who visit from other parts of the world, the water which comes from the natural spring here is considered holy. It is a fully functioning site, with both tourists and those from the immediate community participating in different purification rituals which all involve being immersed in the waters of the temple. I found it noteworthy that locals were fine with “non-believers” participating in the rituals as long as the rules of the ceremony were adhered to in a respectful fashion.

It is forbidden for anyone to ever enter this pool, but twice a year they cut back the water vegetation using special tools on long poles.

Finishing up at the temple just as it was getting dark, at 6:23 PM we ended the “tour part” of our trip and started back towards my lodging in Kerobokan, dropping off people along the way. It wasn´t until 8:40 PM that Nick dropped me off outside my hotel where we said our goodbyes. After a brief break, at 9:09 PM I decided to go out to find some simple food nearby, which I bought for just 50,000 IDR ($3 USD) including some unexpectedly tasty tempeh and a mug of iced tea. Unfortunately, I had an unpleasant I fell in a hole along the side of the road, thankfully not breaking through the skin nor breaking anything, but I could tell my leg would have some soreness for a couple of days . . . I needed to be more careful, as that could have but a very unpleasant end to my holiday.

Unlike where I had eaten the first night, here they immediately pulled out spoon and fork for me which I was happy to use. Despite it being very simple fare, I was impressed with how well the food was presented.

Again, I was very thankful that my long, but very enjoyable trip to Ubud had not been destroyed by a hole in the street. I was a bit cautious to even mention what had happened, because I did not want to take away from the overall fantastic day, but I then decided it was worth the time to warn fellow travelers to be careful when out walking, especially at night in this area. So, you have been warned!

So, what do you think? Do you think that full day trip was worth $69.23 USD or should I have just managed things on my own? Or maybe you think I should have just spent the day at the beach? What would you have done? Leave your comments and questions in the section below, and I will do my best to help make sure your next trip to Bali will be at least as amazing as mine has been so far!

Bali trip: Day 1 (19 October 2025)

Hey there loyal readers. I know it has been some time since I last posted, and I have had many questions about why I haven´t yet shared any information about my trip to Bogota, Colombia in June. As I have done in the past, I will just have to beg for patience. Yes, the trip to Bogota was great, but rather than backtracking to June while Bali is still fresh in my mind, I have decided to make a big effort to get out the information about this amazing island as soon as possible.

For those of you who are just now starting to follow along, it might help you to know that I live in Bengaluru, India; as such, some of the information I mention is more specific to Bengaluru residents. With that in mind, I would like to share my new recommended airport taxi service. I was previously a huge fan of BluSmart, but they have unfortunately shut down. Then based on some suggestions from others, I used Shoffr a few times. While I still highly recommend Shoffr for a more luxury experience, the last couple of times I have gone to the airport I have used Quickride, which is my new default recommendation for transport to and from the Bengaluru airport.

On October 18th, my pre-booked electric sedan arrived ten minutes early at 9:05 PM, and by 9:07 PM I was already in the comfortable Tata Tigor and headed to the airport. There was some sort of traffic diversion at one point, and there was also unsurprisingly a bit of traffic closer to the city. Furthermore, at one point the driver sort of got lost, and I had to get him back on track using gestures etc . . . as like many Quickride drivers, he didn´t understand any English. Nevertheless, he was very polite, and a good driver. Despite the diversions and getting off track, the entire 34.9 km ride still had a cost of only 700 INR ($7.89 USD), which I paid in cash, and I arrived at terminal 2 of the airport at 10:02 PM.

At this time of night, it was much easier to get into the airport than at some other times I have travelled, and by 10:08 PM I was already inside the building. Interestingly enough, as I have observed in the past, those who didn´t have DigiYatra (like myself) actually appeared to get into the airport faster than those who did, despite this supposedly being a time saving mechanism. The line at the Indigo counter where I arrived at 10:11 PM looked a bit long, no doubt due to the fact that flights to Bali from Bengaluru currently don´t permit online check-in. However, I was not worried, given that I had intentionally come earlier with this in mind.

While waiting in the line, I completed the online electronic arrival card for Indonesia. As I was travelling with my USA passport, this was the third document which I had to do online before visiting Bali. First had been the e-Visa which had been granted in less than 24 hours for a cost of approximately $44 USD on October 12th. On the same date, I had also prepaid the special Bali tourist tax for a cost of approximately $9.30 USD. Note, at least for USA citizens, the Indonesian visa can also be done on arrival, but it is generally recommended to do it ahead of time in order to avoid delays at the arrival airport. In case you are wondering, throughout my entire one-week trip, nobody ever asked to see the proof of payment for my Bali tax, but I still think you should make sure to do it.

Despite the rather long line I was able to get fully checked in by 10:45 PM and then head straight to security and immigration. It was incredibly fast this time around, with me clearing the entire process by 10:57 PM! As you can guess, I was quite excited, given that just the immigration process frequently takes me more than 30 minutes. I briefly wandered around a bit, but decided to just go up to the lounge in terminal 2, which as I have mentioned on several other occasions is definitely one of the best airport lounges in India. You can pay for a separate visit, with a cost similar to standard airport lounges around the world, but I have it included with my credit card, so it´s a no brainer choice for me.

My lounge visit also had a couple of drink vouchers included, but I didn´t use those. Regardless, I stayed in the lounge until 12:10 AM on October 19th and then headed to C9. Wanting to ensure that I would sleep well on the roughly seven hour flight in order to be able to immediately go out and enjoy Bali, right before leaving the lounge, I took both a muscle relaxant (Tizanadine 2 mg) and an Ambien (10 mg). Yeah I know, probably a lot of you reading will be horrified by this, but sleeping on a plane is never extremely comfortable, and I was flying with Indigo (a large no-frills airline from India). I knew when booking that it would not be particularly comfortable, but it was only 49301 INR ($556 USD) round trip, with non-stop flights each way.

Given that I had stayed in the lounge until almost the official last moment, as soon as I arrived to the gate I was immediatey waved through and got onto the bus to the plane. When we arrived and started boarding at 12:27 AM, it drew my attention that it was lightly raining and there was no cover for the passengers; what would have happened had it been a major downpour? Anyway, at 12:35 AM I sat down in my aisle seat 2C, for which I had paid an additional 990 INR ($11.17 USD) and was immediately happy that I had not paid for the far more expensive ($34 USD more) seat which was right in front of me, as it looked to be exactly the same, with perhaps even less leg room due to the divider wall. I suppose the more expensive seat theoretically had more knee room, but as there was no way to stretch one’s feet further, it definitely would not have been worth the additional money.

In case you are wondering, these were the same barely cushioned seats which are common on most Indigo flights . Similarly, Indigo flights, including this one, generally lack the adjustable headrests which have become very common on planes around the world. In summary, if you are looking for comfort, look elsewhere. But hey, I had known what I was getting into, hence the aforementioned Ambien and Tizanadine. In typical hurry up and wait fashion, the flight did not actually take off until 1:19 AM, which admittedly was only 19 minutes past the scheduled departure time. Fortunately, right after that my sleeping buddies kicked in, and I had a relatively comfortable sleep until 7:15 AM IST (Indian Standard Time) when they were starting to make announcements about landing and concerns about an increase in Mpox in the region.

As I was still slightly groggy, this whole Mpox discussion made me slightly alarmed for a moment. No, I have not been vaccinated, because no vaccine is generally currently available for people living in India. But then as I thought about it more, I wondered if this might just be hysteria, as it had been so long since I had heard anything about it, I had simply assumed that this was no longer an important concern. Still, it seems to be very unpleasant for those people who have been affected, and I don’t want to be one of them. I vaguely resolved to find out more about this once I had an internet connection, but unsurprisingly never did. Certainly, I can confirm that during the entire time I was in Bali, I didn’t hear anyone talk about this, and I definitely didn’t see anyone who seemed to be affected.

So, despite the scare tactic awakening and the very thinly cushioned seats, the combination of my tablet coctail, noise cancelling earbuds and special ergonomically designed eye covers meant that I had experienced a rather restful sleep. Thus, at 7:39 AM IST when we touched down, I felt ready to happily engage with my Bali adventure. I went ahead and moved my phone out of airplane mode at 7:42 AM and was pleased to see that the Roamic Esim which I had pre-loaded on my phone immediately connected. Based on my research, this is the Esim which I recommend for Bali; it operates on Telkomsel (the best provider within Bali), and includes 20GB of data for up to 30 days at a cost of around $10.5 USD. Cheaper plans are also available if you want. I can also confirm that at the end of the trip, even though I had travelled around a good deal of the island, I had never experienced a lost connection and data speeds were great throughout.

Being reconnected to the internet also meant that my phone immediately updated to the Bali, timezone, so I skipped ahead 2.5 hours and it was suddently 10:12 AM. I also saw that about 15 minute before touchdown, my Agoda Mozio driver which I had pre-booked for 1084 INR ($12.23 USD) had sent me a text message indicating where he would be waiting for me, along with a picture of the welcome sign he would be holding. Given that this was my first trip to Bali, I thought this was a nice touch. I have now learned that it isn’t really that complicated to arrange transport on arrival, paying significantly less, but can you really complain about that amount? Perhaps that sounds a bit flippant, but if you are travelling that far for vacation, I feel like these little additional charges are well-worth the peace of mind which they buy. Furthermore, as I had unusually decided to travel with a standard suitcase in addition to my maximum size carry-on backpack, I didn’t want to be stressed about finding transport on arrival. Soon after, at 10:18 AM I was off the plane and headed directly towards immigration.

The airport itself was a bit larger than I had imagined, and quite pretty. Walking along towards the immigration and baggage reclaim area, at 10:21 AM I saw a sign reminding us of the importance of paying the Bali visitor tax. Given that I had done my eVisa ahead of time, I was able to use the automated passport check which was meant no waiting in line and an almost instantaneous green light to continue on towards luggage reclaim at 10:33 AM. It wasn’t too far to my luggage belt, and at 10:43 I collected my needlessly large suitcase, and continued walking towards the exit, appreciating the various pleasant looking shops and stores along the way.

True to his word, when I walked outside at 10:57 AM, despite the throng of various drivers with name placards, it was quite easy to see my sign and we got into the car almost right away. As we started our trip I was immediately impressed by the good state of the road and the relative calm of the drivers. I understand that those of you who are coming in from other parts of the world might be shocked by this statement, but compared to your average road experience in Bengaluru, Bali is a welcome breath of fresh air. Perhaps because it was late Sunday morning, there really wasn’t much traffic, so the 12.7 km (7.89 miles) ride only took 30 minutes, which I know seems like a long time for such a short distance, but by Bali standards this is considered very quick.

At 11:32 AM we pulled into the very narrow lane which leads down to Dikubu Bali Villa and Suites. I had booked seven nights in a standard suite for a total cost of 14987 INR ($169 USD). Yes, I could have stayed in a place paying much less, and I could also have stayed in a place paying much more. However, I had wanted to ensure that I would have a very comfortable, attractive place to sleep, and I have to say that I was not at all dissapointed. Furthermore, at least for my purposes for this particular trip, the spot was very conveniently located right next to the uber touristic area of Seminyak, but far enough away to not be annoyed by dance clubs and loud drunk people on the street. I ended up not using it, but my ground floor room also led directly to a pleasant medium sized pool with a couple different types of comfortable lounge chairs.

I sort of cheated with inserting the pictures at this point, because check-in was not actually available until 2 PM, so in reality I left my things at the Hotel at 11:49 AM and headed out to see a bit of the surrounding areas, get some cash out of an ATM, and find a place to have lunch.

Without too much effort, I found a nearby ATM, but unsurprisingly my ICICI International Debit card did not work to withdraw money. However, my HDFC credit card worked just fine; although, I found it odd that the maximum amount I could withdraw was 1000000 IDR, which is about $60.15 USD. I had read that Bali was still primarily cash driven, so I was a bit concerned about this, as it’s never a good idea to depend on cash advances on a credit card. Regardless, there was nothing I could do about it, and I figured at least in this tourist area, it was more likely for places to take credit cards, even if it did mean that they were likely to be more expensive spots.

A quick internet search suggested that for local fare, I should go to Warung Nads Bali. When I arrived at 12:33 PM I could tell that it was probably a rather expensive way to experience “local food” but the setting was certainly very pleasant, and reviews were extremely positive. I don’t remember the names of what I ate or drank, but it was what was recommended by the server, and I had no complaints. Furthermore, despite serving a rather simple dish, they did a very good job of presentation.

I just hung out there until 2:03 PM and then asked for the bill which was 110400 IDR (586 INR or $6.64 USD) which I was able to pay for by card, thus saving my limited cash for other uses. Looking back at the pictures now, I suppose one could say it was too expensive for what was essentially ramen noodles and pineapple juice, but it was a pleasant place to sit and wait and despite being simple food, it tasted good.

It was a short walk (certainly not more than 10 minutes) back to the hotel where I finished checking in and putting my things away in the room. Then at 3:34 PM I headed out again to Cafe SOI 19, where I had a simple coffe and hung out until 5:26 PM, taking another customer’s offer of a scooter ride down to Petitenget beach so I could watch the sunset. I don’t actually remember the cost at the cafe, but it had seemed reasonable for a trendy tourist spot. The ride was quick, with me arriving to the beach at 5:38 PM, and wow, was I happy I had come.

The pictures don’t really do it justice, but it was so wonderful to just sit there and take in the sound of the water, feel the breeze, and see the beautiful sunset.

By chance, I stayed there for exactly one hour, heading out just as it was almost fully dark. Walking back towards the room, the temperature was great and there were tons of restaurants and shops available where I could have entered. However, I wasn’t feeling any pressure to eat, so I kept walking until 7:06 PM when I saw Dimsum Chika Restaurant, which was just a few minutes from my lodging.

The place wasn’t particularly fancy, but it wasn’t especially crowded, and had a very relaxed feeling. I ordered the Hainan chicken full set and a Singaraja beer. The cost was 92000 IDR ($5.55) cash and I stayed there until 8:04 PM.

The food had been alright, but both lunch and dinner had been rather light, and knowing that I didn’t have any food in my room, I decided to walk a bit past the lane leading to my hotel in order to see if there was some additional, simple local food I could get in order to ensure that I wouldn’t wake up hungry later on. And I definitely found it! just about a 3 minute walk from where I was staying I got this simple chicken snack for only 13000 IDR in cash (69 INR or $0.78 USD). It was very tasty, so I figured I would be coming back here at some point during my stay.

I was then back in my room at 9:00 PM, watched a bit of Netflix and quickly went to sleep. I know it wasn’t a particularly exciting day, but I was happy to be in Bali and looking forward to a full day of exploration, starting early the next morning. So, what do you think so far, does this seem like a place you would like to visit? If you aren’t sure yet, keep following along over the next few days in order to find out more about all of the things you might do during a week in Bali.

Seattle trip: 14-19 June 2025

Hey everyone, so those of you who generally follow along with me know that I don’t generally write too much about my travels when I am primarily visiting friends or family. This isn’t so much because I don’t want you to know what happened, but rather because most of it is of no interest to anyone else except myself. However, even with the most personal of visits, there are bound to be some general details of interest to others, so this time around I have decided to do a general summary entry of my recent experiences in Seattle.

The first thing that struck me in the Seattle airport, besides the rather easy-going immigration process, was the weird baggage claim area. What are those things above the luggage belts supposed to be? Perhaps because I had just arrived in from Taiwan, I thought maybe they were dragon inspired? I mean I guess it’s nice that they are doing some decoration, but it was a bit weird.

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The next thing that hit me as I exited the building was that it was cold! I had already thought ahead that I would need some sort of a coat for my upcoming trip to Bogota, but it was 11 degrees Celsius in June! Seattle natives evidently will be unphased by this, but it was a bit of a surprise for me. Fortunately, my friend Beth quickly picked me up, and we were soon at her beautiful home where I was able to rest for a while.

In what I can only assume is typical Seattle fashion, or maybe this is just Beth and Scott’s lifestyle, in the early evening we went to an art show at Fogue Gallery.

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The art exhibition was free, and I felt very sophisticated with my plate of cheeses and flute of champagne. However, we then walked out and went over to the slightly less sophisticated Georgetown Carnival, which was pretty much what you would expect from almost any town carnival in the United States, but perhaps because of the time of day, it was particularly low key, but still a pleasant experience.

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The next day, early in the afternoon I went down to the Beacon Hill Public Library with Scott. I know you may be thinking, “Why is he writing about a public library?” So, whether or not you agree, I actually think that public libraries are rather amazing, even in this modern world of ubiquitous internet. Most countries don’t have them, or if they do, they are very limited in their scope. So, I love going to any public libraries, especially in smaller neighborhoods or towns. If you have a public library near you, make sure to go check it out; it is probably way more amazing than you previously realized.

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In the evening, Beth and Scott organized a Meet Jay party at their house. This was the second installation, as the first one took place three years ago when I was in town. You won’t get to replicate this experience, as it required Beth’s advance organization, Scott’s attentive cooking, and their joint willingness to open their home to a very interesting group of their friends and neighbors.

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You can however visit the city center like we did on June 16th. The waterfront is beautiful, and the different markets were just as interesting as they were last time I had visited three years ago.

fb_img_17501947228538468973598052664227 — No, I didn’t buy an energy drink. They were just handing them out for free.

fb_img_1750194579314399563267568593197 — No, I didn’t buy an energy drink. They were just handing them out for free.

The next day Beth indulged another of my favorite things about the United States, going walking with me at a nearby public park, Green Lake Park. Now public parks are more common outside of the United States than quality libraries, but people here really do know how to nicely maintain some beautiful public spaces which just like the libraries, are completely free and open to the general public. Again, this is one of the big pluses of the United States that I feel people who live there do not fully appreciate. With just public libraries and public parks, I think most people could have perfectly happy leisure lives.

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After hanging out at the park, we went to Snowy Village to get some delicious Korean shaved ice treats. As is obvious, these treats are not a particular highlight of Seattle vs. other places in the country nor even the world, and in this case definitely were not inexpensive. However, for an occasional tasty treat, it’s nice knowing that it is an available option in Seattle.

After resting a bit back at Beth and Scott’s home, we went out for a lifetime first for me . . . a live hockey game! No, it’s not a team which you would know, but I found the whole experience to be rather exhilarating, despite the fact that there were only two of us in the bleachers. I understand that actually participating in these neighborhood leagues is a bit expensive, but I suspect that watching is always free, as long as you know when they are playing. As Beth is rather tiny (at least compared to me), I was pretty amazed to see how impressive she was out on the ice. Also, who knew how fast live ice-hockey actually is?! If you are interested, it looks like Kent Valley Ice Center has lessons for BOTH ice-hockey and figure skating.

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On June 18th, this was one I had actually done before, but it had been a couple of years. We went bowling at West Seattle Bowl. I was not very good, but that wasn’t really the point. It was nice to share with Beth’s friends and just have fun doing something different.

wp-17504434009707262651105314447892 — Yes, it’s a DIFFERENT art car than the one you saw earlier.

wp-17504434005318605307781591979173 — Yes, it’s a DIFFERENT art car than the one you saw earlier.

Afterwards, we went to get a massive slice of surprisingly delicious pizza and an incredibly cold (I know, go figure?) but tasty soft serve ice cream sundae. These last two items were perhaps not so surprising on their own, but in comparative terms, they were crazy cheap . . . just $1.99 USD for the pizza and $2.49 USD for the sundae.

You would think that the day couldn’t get any fuller but following up on my new experience from the previous evening, I went to my second live hockey match of my entire life, this one at Sno-King Ice Arenas. I think I liked this one a bit better, as the stands were closer to the ice, and I also had a better idea of what to expect in terms of how rapidly they were playing.

For my final day, I really wanted to go to another public park type area, so Scott and Beth decided it would be nice for us to go out to the public beach area near Alki Avenue. I am not sure what this exact spot is called, but it was in that general area, and at least at some point we were next to Elliot Bay. It was great to see so many people taking advantage of the public space, even though I thought it was crazy that there were people in swimsuits and trunks without shirts when it was 19 degrees Celsius. No doubt the Seattle authorities had heard that I would be coming, so they also arranged have a real-life otter sighting!

We then wrapped up our outing for the day at Marination Ma Kai. I didn’t really have a strong point of comparison, but Beth and Scott said that they had reasonably authentic Hawaiian food. I don’t know if it was authentic, but I was very pleased with my Luau Plate Combo.

Interestingly, the “Hawaiian chips” are not actually made in Hawaii.

So, that pretty much wrapped things up for the trip. Late in the evening, Scott was kind enough to drop me off at the airport, and the whole check-in experience went quite well despite what appeared to be a rather long line for the security check.

What do you think? Are you interested in visiting Seattle. Or if you aren’t interested in visiting Seattle, maybe you just want to hang out with Beth and Scott? Let me know your questions and comments in the section below.

Taipei trip: Day 5 (13-14 June 2025)

Hey everyone, as there wasn’t so much to tell about the early morning flight out on the 14th, I will do the final day as a single entry. After a simple breakfast in the apartment which Haowen had gone out to pick up while I was packing, at 11:09 AM we headed out towards the bus stop where we arrived at 11:28 AM.

It didn’t take long, and at 11:35 AM we were already in the bus, using our metro cards to swipe in for only 15 NTD ($0.51 USD). It was a 35-minute comfortable bus ride, and when we got off it was still lightly drizzling. However, I think though that even without our mini umbrellas, it would have been fine, since it was only a four-minute walk to Breeze, where we arrived at 12:14 PM.

We went up to the i-ride Taipei place. There were several different options available, but we chose the Taipei one. Our tickets were 400 NTD ($13.50 USD) each, but we had to wait around for a bit.

The “experience” started with an introduction done all in Chinese from 1:00 to 1:14 PM, with the actual 5-D theatre show from 1:15 to 1:25 PM. As part of the whole intro, I think since there were two of us, there was a free green screen, cardboard framed photo which was actually quite nice. I know that for only 10 minutes, this seems like it was a bit expensive, but it actually did feel longer, and it was certainly enjoyable. Whether or not it is “worth it” probably partially corresponds both to your own personal interests and disposable income.

We exited the mall at 1:38 PM and headed over to the nearby Taipei 101 shopping center. I had some nice food there in the food court for a cost of 339 NTD ($11.44 USD).

As Haowen was a bit pressed for time, when we left there from there at 2:45 PM, we immediately grabbed a taxi, arriving back to the apartment at 3:05 PM. I wasn’t sure, but I think that Haowen paid 215 NTD ($7.26 USD).

I took a bit of time to finish getting packed, and then Haowen went walking with me from the apartment at 3:49 PM, with us arriving to Nangang station where I paid 190 NTD ($6.41 USD) for an unreserved THSR (Taiwan High Speed Rail) to Taoyuan. The train departed at 4:00 PM sharp, and once again, was clean, comfortable and uncrowded.

When I arrived at 4:32 PM, as had been projected, it was easy to make my way outside of the train. The train did have a few stops before mine, but there were easy to see scrolling announcements as well as a pleasant, recorded voice in both Chinese and English which announced the upcoming stops.

When I went outside the terminal at 4:37 PM, it wasn’t raining, and it was an easy and pleasant walk to Bluewater Hotel, which I had previously reserved and paid for on Agoda. Note, it is worth comparing prices when reserving hotels, as I paid $10 USD less by booking on Agoda vs. the next cheapest option. The room itself was very small, but certainly more than adequate for a single night. I had paid 3590 INR ($41.44 USD) for the tiny single room with shared bathroom. To have a convenient place to stay near the airport, it was fine . . . and certainly clean.

I wasted a bit of time in the room checking some online needs and then left headed walking towards Gloria Outlets at 6:26 PM, arriving there at 6:39 PM. If you have ever been to an outlet mall anywhere in the United States, it was exactly the same.

I however was not particularly interested in that sort of scene, so I bought my own brand-new easy card at a 7 eleven and charged it with 100 NTD for a total of 215 NTD ($2.48 USD) and then took the subway across the street to the area near Zhongli night market. Upon exiting the metro, I had bought some delicious convenience store sushi for 370 NTD ($12.50 USD) which I ate on a bench just outside.

I then walked over to the market area, really enjoying the different evening views.

I arrived at the market at 8:28 PM, enjoyed wandering around, and spent 150 NTD ($5.07 USD) more on another fried squid (100) and a sausage on a stick (50). I was tempted to buy and eat many other food items, but I was actually already rather full, so I headed back to the Laoije River station at 9:13 PM, arriving there at 9:22 PM.

I arrived back at the hotel room at 10:02 PM, showered, and was in bed going to sleep at 10:36 PM. Despite the other guests trying to be very considerate, it was extremely easy to hear people in several other rooms and in the hallway. Had I not needed to hear the alarm to get up early in the morning, I definitely would have used the free earplugs which had been offered at the front desk.

At 5:23 AM the next morning I exited from my room headed towards the nearby commuter station, catching the first train of the morning at 6:02 AM sharp. With the three rides I had used, there was only 5 NTD left on my transit card, but I will save it as a souvenir and/or to use on a future trip.

I arrived at the airport at 6:18 AM and was already through immigration and security at 6:43 AM. Checking the reviews, I decided to head over to the Oriental Club lounge and was not disappointed. I didn’t pay anything here, as I still had free spots left on my Priority Pass which comes with my HDFC credit card. In particular, the beef noodles were great!

Noting that the plane had already started boarding, I went down at 9:12 AM and had just enough time to buy 1 kg of mochi snacks for only 470 NTD ($15.88 USD) with almost all of my remaining cash, leaving only 12 NTD in coins.

At 9:22 AM I was already on the plane, getting a “special edition” pair of Delta 100th Anniversary edition free earbuds! And that was pretty much it for the trip. In particular for those of you who have been following along since day 1, what do you think? Are you now interested in visiting Taipei?

Taipei trip: Day 4 (12 June 2025)

Hi there loyal readers and also those of you who are just now discovering this travel blog. Not too much happened today, but there was still some exposure to interesting places that the average tourist might want to visit.

When I left the apartment near Nangang MRT station at 9:18 AM, it was lightly raining . . . really more of a drizzle. The collapsible, baby umbrella I had bought on Day 1 was just perfect for this. A short walk later at 9:33 AM I was already inside the station swiping the transit card which Haowen had lent me, and then immediately headed to platform 2. The wait wasn’t long, and at 9:36 AM I was in the uncrowded, comfortable subway car.

It was just fifteen minutes to go the 9 stops needed before exiting the transport. Looking down at the readout while swiping out, I saw it had cost 30 NTD ($1.01 USD). Getting out of the station itself was also fairly intuitive, and at 9:54 AM the baby umbrella once more went up as I walked towards the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, where I arrived at 10:11 AM. The gardens were very nice, and unsurprisingly, the central building itself was particularly imposing.

This umbrella dryer worked surprisingly well.

I was a bit surprised when I entered at 10:17 AM, as it in some way sort of has a mini-mall vibe, despite still being a bit more reserved. There was a bank branch, a post office, multiple gift shops, various levels of eateries, and a scale model of the whole complex. I am not sure what was originally intended when this was built, but it now seems to be more of an upscale community center. Entrance is free, so if money is tight, that alone is mentionable. There is also free internet here, as well as QR codes to help you explore. I forgot the cost, but one could also checkout a free audio guide, which I declined to do . . . if I really wanted more information, I could look it up later.

Moving on to the actual display area of 10:29 AM the ground floor struck me as being more about the Tiananmen square event/tragedy/protests and Hong Kong democracy movements than about Taiwan. However, they do attempt to make a more direct connection, placing emphasis on how Taiwan has increasingly gone in a different political direction from China since splitting off.

Heading into the permanent display area of the ground floor just ten minutes later, I could see that there really was a lot of valuable historical information. For those who read Chinese, it was nice to note that many original writings of special significance were on display. While this room was overall positive about Chiang Kai Shek, there was also definitely an obvious, strong undertone of criticism, even for a foreigner. It is clear that he is a figure much admired and even loved, but also strongly criticized by modern Taiwanese. I wondered, was the period of “repression” necessary in order for Taiwan to get to where it is today?

I did appreciate the ground floor display, but having learnt my lesson the previous day, decided to head up to the fourth floor at 10:57 AM so that I could see the central statue of Chiang Kai Shek. It was clear that they had planned on having huge crowds here, but there weren’t that many people today. Putting aside the statue, the view from this vantage point was also notable. For those of you who have been to the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., there is an obvious, similar vibe in the statue area. I did however find it a tiny odd that even right there very close to the statue there was a gift shop.

At 11:03 PM I went down to the third floor. Here there were various art exhibits and a human rights multimedia exhibition. I felt like the democratization exhibit which I saw at 11:06 AM was the most openly critical part of the memorial, but it covered everything from the Japanese occupation, up to the transition from martial law to modern democracy in Taiwan. nevertheless, there was almost no mention (none that I noticed) of the specific struggles of Taiwan’s indigenous peoples. However, not understanding Chinese, maybe I just missed that.

The exhibits here were rather small, and at 11:11 AM I was wondering through a different area where they were putting up a new exhibit, using green laser to ensure that the paintings were hung at perfect angles. Next to that was a room with an already established exhibit which was fairly enjoyable. I suspect that like everyone else, I particularly liked the painting of the cherries which seemed to spill out of the painted frame. Not to be overly critical, but several of the paintings were not at all that impressive, but there were clearly some better pieces (as if I am some sort of a highly respected art critic).

Just outside the hall with the cherry painting, there was a very nice couch for resting. I also saw that there were several classrooms in the building, presumably for workshops and visiting school groups. I hadn´t felt like I was really rushing the visit, but also didn’t feel that I needed to stay longer, so at 11:20 AM I was outside again, walking towards the Lungshan temple.

At 11:35 AM, on a completely separate note, some very nice ladies asked to speak to me about Falun Dafa, a religious group which is outlawed in China. Rather than speaking much about the religion itself, they were quite upset about illegal organ harvesting in China. If outrage was their goal, then keep it up, but if they were looking for converts, I felt that they needed to redirect their messaging. Maybe they feel that this group in particular is being targeted for this practice? Or maybe their religion is really against organ transplants? Regardless, you can guess how it went, but they were still very nice ladies. Having promised to immediately address these issues (but intending to do nothing) I continued walking at 11:36 AM, noting that even more frequent than Falun Dafa tables were the Ubikes.

I felt that it was a wonderful day for a walk in the city, with a pleasant temperature and light breeze. Adding to that enjoyment was the nice-looking older brick building I saw at 11:41 AM. I was tempted to walk closer to see what it was, but not that tempted, so I continued on my way.

At 11:59 AM I arrived to the Dongsanshui street market. I may be wrong on this, but it appeared to just be a neighborhood market rather that a tourist spot. They had everything from cheap clothes to fresh meat and jewellery.

Then at 12:07 PM I arrived at the temple. It was evidently founded in 1738, but the main building was accidentally destroyed by the USA in 1945. Miraculously though, the main Buddha statue was undamaged. According to the signage, this temple is sort of like a national cathedral. Notably, unlike similar temples, here they don’t burn incense, instead focusing on “prayers from the heart”.

Just inside the gate at 12:11 PM I saw that there was an artificial waterfall and Koi Pond with some very large fish. In case you were hoping to do so, feeding of the fish is prohibited and it is also prohibited to toss coins into the pond.

At 12:13 PM I saw that there was a scannable guide to the temple area, including worshipping instructions. This second part seemed odd to me. I mean if you are actually here to worship, shouldn’t you already know what to do. Furthermore, if you aren’t, then to my way of thinking it seems that you shouldn’t pretend . . . Anyway, I certainly didn’t fake pray. Similar to other temples I have visited in Taiwan, for lack of a better term, there seems to be these sort of dice sets which people would throw, presumably to communicate with gods? I really, have no idea, so feel free to correct me if you know more.

I know what generally happens with food offering when you go to a temple with monks, but at 12:23 PM I was wondering what was done with the plates of food and flowers which had been left as offerings. As far, as I could tell, this was not a monastery, but maybe the monks were nearby and could eat the food. I guess it would also be appropriate to give the food to the poor? That made sense, but what about all of the flowers? Many of them were very nice, and just tossing them in the bin seemed like it would be disrespectful, but again, I am definitely not an expert on the topic . . . as is obvious.

I really appreciated the stone-carved pillars at 12:28 PM, and I also understood why they had put up a sort of iron-fence protection around them. Despite being made from a very hard rock, it was easy to imagine that they could be fairly damaged over time, either by intentional miscreants or just the build-up of oils from hands over time. Off to the side of the main temple building there were various women reading books in a serious fashion, probably reading prayers or some religious text.

So, at 12:36 PM I was having my doubts about the sign which claimed that this temple was the spiritual center of the nation. I mean it is certainly worth a visit, but it’s quite small, so I didn’t see how any major events could happen here. I did however really appreciate how this was clearly an active worship site rather than just a fake tourist spot.

I left the temple at 12:38 PM and headed over towards Bangka old street. Along the way, at 12:46 PM I saw a very simple, old-school arcade. Maybe they somehow connect gambling with it as well? I was tempted to go in and play something, but it seemed weird since there was absolutely nobody else there, but they all looked like early 1980’s machines.

Bangka old street at 12:51 PM was a bit of a disappointment. As I had nothing else to do, it seemed fine that I had visited, but there just wasn’t much to see. Maybe later in the night or when it isn’t raining at all it is more vibrant, but I have my doubts. But sure, if you have time, why not go see it? There was certainly nothing “bad” about it.

Despite some doubts which were fueled by my visit to Bangka old street, at 1:05 PM I decided that I would also walk over to Dihua street. Worst case scenario, I would just get in some more walking.

However, in what I suspect was a fortunate intervention, Haowen called me at 1:12 PM and instead suggested that we go to a special Dim Sum restaurant which is rather famous. It seemed a bit far to walk within the timeframe allotted, so I consulted Google maps, jumped onto a bus, and headed over towards the restaurant which was located near Zhongshan market. Once I was on the bus, I once again reflected that people here were definitely still pro-mask. I’ve seen tons of people wearing them even out on the open street . . . quite a few people are even double masked with surgical masks. It’s not just the elderly but also younger people. However, this appears to be more of a personal choice thing, as tons of other people don’t use them.

I got off the bus at 1:30 PM and arrived in the building at 1:40 PM, much earlier than our programmed meeting time. Thus, I decided to take advantage of the time just wandering around inside. This was clearly some sort of a fancy shopping mall with many mini shops under one roof, for lack of a better term, sort of like a very upscale flea market sort of setup.

While certainly not a disaster, it was a bit funny when Haowen called me at 2:15 PM. Evidently, I had been in the wrong building the whole time. In my defense though, it was just the building next door. I went down to meet Haowen and we entered the correct building. This one seemed much more mainstream than the first one, but definitely still not a “cheap” place.

At 2:17 PM Haowen was unsurprised that we would have to wait, since the restaurant was very popular. She suggested that I might just wander around and wait for her call. There was all sort of delicious and beautiful looking food on this floor. Some of it was absurdly priced, but there was other stuff which seemed more like standard grocery pricing. For those looking to buy tea, they also had that. Again, even though much of the food looked like something which could be eaten right there, there was no clear place to do so. Thus, I assume that everyone buys and takes it home.

At 2:51 PM we were finally able to get a seat. The restaurant is called Din Tai Fung. While it hardly seemed necessary, there was a wheeled robot for us to follow to our seat. The food really was great, and it was just 1815 NTD ($61.26 USD) for both of us, including unlimited hot tea. I know that the cost may seem a little high, but it really was special, so I encourage you to try it if you even have a chance. Evidently there are branches of this restaurant in different places around the world, and the food is supposed to be of the same quality everywhere.

We finished up there at 4:34 PM and were outside walking within ten minutes. Despite having just eaten, knowing how much I liked shaved ice desserts, Haowen suggested that she share a Mango shaved ice at 5:30 PM for just 300 NTD ($10.13 USD).

From there we went to a nearby pier for the sunset and then decided to use Ubikes to get to the Ximen area where we would take the MRT back to Haowen’s place.

However, once we were there, we decided to have a drink at nearby Mudan. I had a zombie and Haowen a Piña Colada, with the cost for both being just 700 NTD ($23.63 USD). It was nice to just sit and chat some more. Coming on this trip has not only been great for getting to know more about Taipei but also for getting closer to Haowen, who is an outstanding person.

Alas, the night did need to come to an end, so we finished up at the restaurant at 9:21 PM, walking into the Ximen station nine minutes later, and exiting from Nangang station at 9:55 PM. The per person cost of the MRT was 30 NTD ($1.01 USD). Despite stopping briefly at a neighborhood convenience store, at 10:18 PM we were already safely back in the apartment.

It was a fairly relaxed day, but it was definitely good. I went to a couple of must-see tourist sites. I had eaten two types of iconic Taiwanese food. I had seen another beautiful sunset over the water. And I had of course spent quality time with an amazing friend. I really couldn’t think of how to further improve the day . . . what do you think?

Taipei trip: Day 3 (11 June 2025)

Hey there everyone, thanks for once more taking the time to follow along with my overly verbose thoughts on travel. Whereas Day 2 was all about travelling around to different tourist sites, mostly outside the city itself, Day 3 was calmer, but I think quite typical of a visit to a new city.

I left Haowen´s apartment near Nangang MRT station at 8:55 AM but decided to try taking the bus today. Google maps quickly directed me to several possible stops, and at 9:03 AM I was already on the R25. I used the same metro card as the day before, tapping in an obvious spot as I entered and quickly taking a seat. While there wasn´t a huge amount of seating available, I still had no problem snagging a spot. The bus was comfortable and cool.

At 9:11 AM I tapped out of the first bus and walked towards my connecting spot. While there, I bought a simple street sandwich for 50 NTD ($1.69) and continued waiting for the BL7 at Zhomei village 1 stop. There are these electronic signs that tell you the number of the buses and also when they are arriving. From what I could see, they tell you the one arriving next, and the one which will arrive after. So, I was waiting for the BL7, and it showed the time of the one which the most convenient, and also the following BL7 arrival time, should I miss the first one. I checked it against Google maps, and the times appeared to closely coincide.

At 9:31 AM I was on the BL7, which had arrived just one minute after when it said it would on the LED sign. Again, the bus was clean and comfortable, but even less crowded than the first one. An important practical and cultural note is that there is no eating nor drinking allowed on any of the public transport in Taipei. From yesterday you will also remember that while street food is abundant, there usually isn´t an obvious place to eat it. So, you either take it along with you until you find a place or sneakily gulp it down right there.

At 10:10 AM the bus stopped right in front of the National Palace Museum. Right near the entrance, there was a sign for some black tea ice-cream, something which sounded not at all appealing, but they had a sign with all sorts of culinary rewards. It was only 150 NTD ($5.06 USD), so I figured why not? There was no line, and the woman suggested that rather than sitting at the very sunny concrete tables which were sort of positioned near the ice cream joint, I should instead go into the Museum gardens which had free entry and would be much more comfortable.

At 10:31 AM I had finished up and headed into the museum. Rather than walking up the imposing main steps, I decided to walk up the wheelchair accessible ramp which was in the shade. There were also benches frequently placed as one continued up the ramp, but I didn´t really see how the whole wheelchair accessible thing would work, since the ramp didn´t go all the way up. However, there was a button clearly marked to ask for wheelchair assistance when the ramp ended, so maybe they just send several strong people out to carry the person inside? I clearly did not try out that theory, so it is just a supposition.

At 10:40 AM I was already in the museum. There was a line to pay a person and also several eTicket machines. I opted for the machine option, and as a foreign tourist paid 350 NTD ($11.81 USD) using my international credit card from India. That is significant, since most places in Taiwan don´t seem to take cards, and if they do, they are only local cards. There was also a sign to rent audio guides for 150 NTD, but checking online it seemed that there was also a free version one could use on one’s own phone, so I opted to go for free.

Like everywhere I had been in Taipei, the air conditioning was strong and as one would expect from a national museum, it was impeccably clean. Again, unsurprisingly, seems seemed very well organized, so I headed into room 102, the orientation room at 10:48 AM. The collection wall was interesting but seemed a bit pointless . . . why have an electronic, touchscreen wall to show the exhibits of a museum where you were physically already visiting? Anyway, it was there, but I wasn´t all that interested.

Nearby was room 101 “Connotation and wisdom: religious scriptural arts”. There were many bronze Buddha statues, but it wasn´t cluttered nor overpowering, and the emphasis seemed to be more on artistic placement than on quantity. At 11:04 I saw something which was a first for me, a “Buddha” holding a child. They had what I thought would be helpful signs to indicate when audio guidance was available for an exhibit, but I quickly discovered that it was far from a perfect system, as the number of the exhibits frequently didn’t match up with the numbers on the app. It may however be that the numbers correspond to the paid guide, and free app users just have to make do. Still, it was helpful, if imperfect.

As I walked out at 11:23 on my way towards 104, I saw that there were several conveniently placed resting benches as well as well-accommodated washrooms. However, 104 was temporarily closed, so I instead made my way to room 106 “Garland of Treasures”. Of course, there was a lot of interesting stuff in here, but the first thing that really caught my attention was a conjoined, painted enamel jar with a lid. I did not really see how making it that way added any utility, so I assume it had just been an artistic decision. Again, the mismatch between the audio guidance numbers and the images in the app was a bit frustrating but still have more context than breezing through without any context given on the exhibits. Of course, there was also quite a bit of written support, but that tended to be for general collections rather than individual exhibits. For instance, after hunting though the images on the app, I learned that eastern pearls (freshwater pearls from northeastern China) used to be a very big deal.

As I continued along, at 11:53 AM I was a bit overwhelmed with all of the rules etc . . . associated with court jewellery and dress. Who would have the time to understand all of that, let alone actually learn it in the first place. The answer of course, obviously being really rich members of noble families and their various hordes of servants who were no doubt the ones actually in charge of making sure everything was setup properly. Looking at the various fancy hairpins at 11:58 AM, I thought that at least these seemed to have a practical purpose for people with long hair, but still, lots of complicated rules about what materials, how to wear them, etc . . .

While this is not particularly insightful, it drew my attention at 12:02 PM that based on what I was seeing here and also my experiences in other parts of the world, prayer beads are definitely not exclusive to any major (or even non-major) religion.

But what was the deal with the 10 cm long fingernail guards? To begin with, was that ALL of their fingernails that were that long? If so, how did they do anything practical with their hands? I mean even just the most basic needs of going to the toilet seemed like it would be a bit of a challenge. However, they no doubt had their system. To be fair, while 10 cm is definitely over the top these days, I also wonder the same thing when I see some of the absurdly long fingernails worn by modern contemporaries in some parts of the world.

From what I could tell, pretty much everything in this room was from the Qing court, even though a lot of it was much older than that time. Maybe that was just the last court in China?

At 12:15 PM I was a bit impressed with all of the different types of carving which had been done with different materials. People usually think of ancient sculptures being made from elephant tusks, but they also had a lot of carved rhinoceroses’ horns, carved bamboo roots, different types of seeds and bone, and even tiny seeds!

I exited that room at 12:28 PM and headed towards 107 “Special exhibits.” On that day at least it just seemed to be lots of fancy use of technology . . . nice for kids and maybe for frequent visitors who want to see something different, but I decided to skip it and head up to the third floor and then work my way down to the second before heading out. At 12:40 PM, I decided to also give room 301 a pass, but at 12:46 PM I was in 302. This is the room to go if you just want to see the two main “trophy pieces” of the museum, the carved jadeite cabbage (Bok choy) and the carved piece of pork. The cabbage really was amazing when one considers that they achieved all of that affect from carving a single piece of natural stone, but for whatever reason, the “meat shaped stone” was not on display that day.

At 12:28 PM I went into 303 “Inkstones”. Yes, there was A LOT of information about different types of inkstones, way more than any average person would reasonably want, but if that’s your thing, then get ready for a delightful visit to room 303. I however exited at 1:07 PM and went into 305 “Masterpieces of bronze”.

I guess that I had never really thought about it before, which I also guess is sort of the point of museums, but it makes sense that in 1500 BC and for a very long period afterwards, bronze items would have been highly valued. Staying within the same theme, at 1:18 PM I found out that in the 11th century BC, the Ya-ch’oy Clan were a big deal since they used many square bronze vessels rather than round ones . . . Who knew?

Again, not particularly insightful, but at 1:24 PM I was struck by the fact that many of these pieces had actually been prized archeological finds which had been discovered in times which we now would consider the far distant past. It turns out that humans have been around for way longer than most of us can actually appreciate, and that in at least many parts of the world, were also way more advanced than most of us generally realize.

At 1:26 PM I also realized that I had previously had no idea that wine was such a big deal in ancient China, as evidenced by the prized collection of ancient wine vessels. Maybe that was rice wine rather than grape wine, or maybe it was something else entirely? For sure, I was fairly certain it was some sort of at least partially fermented drink. The fact that they already had a well-established writing system really helps to identify pieces and their purpose. I also rather enjoyed that many otherwise simple decorative pieces also carried important political, legal or even moral messages.

Moving on to 306 “Jade Masterpieces” I reflected that I had always just sort of thought of Jade as being used more for decoration. So, it was interesting to see that between two and three thousand years ago, it was frequently used to make practical tools, but maybe many of those had more of a ceremonial nature? I am sure that with a minimum amount of investigation I could learn more, but that is a project for another day.

Again, even 5000 years ago, the level of fairly well-documented cultural and political development in China was crazy. I mean I had never even heard of the Hongshan, but then I am also not incredibly well-read, so maybe for you it is all just common knowledge? I also learned that nephrite is the more technical term for the jade more commonly associated with truly ancient China; whereas jadeite is the more brightly colored and shiny red and green stone which most of us think of today. There was a lot more to see, but I was already experiencing museum fatigue, so I headed down to the second floor at 2:01 PM.

One side of the second floor is mostly paintings and calligraphy, and the other side is ceramics. The paintings were all very exquisite, but they were difficult for me to properly appreciate since I didn´t know much about the style. Similarly, there were also some amazing, embroidered pieces. The roles on which most of these works were mounted seemed very practical, as that would easily aid in the process of storage and transport, not without its own limitations, but in my opinion, far more practical than canvas mounted on a wooden frame. I could have spent far longer in the painting and calligraphy area, but at 2:12 PM I headed over to the ceramics side.

One thing that probably shouldn’t have impressed me as much as it did around 2:15 PM was when I saw that even as early as 200 BC, they even were using pottery to make animal decorations. However, I believe much more rightfully impressive was the fact that so much of this pottery, many of it very large pieces, had been taken care of well-enough to still not be broken after more than 2000 years! I mean I frequently can’t manage to keep a delicate piece of porcelain from being chipped for 5 years . . .

As I said earlier, museum fatigue is real, so despite all the amazing things left to see, at 2:30 PM I was ready to tap out. Thinking about it objectively, one should dedicate a single day to each floor, planning on spending between 3 and 4 hours on each floor. That way one will be mentally fresh for each floor and will actually appreciate things more. I did not have three days, so that’s not what I did, but I was still glad that I had come, but also glad to exit the building at 2:50 PM.

Since it looked like from here the only option would be bus, I decided to walk a bit to find a place to recharge the metro card which Haowen had lent me. I think I read somewhere that it is possible to pay with coins on the bus, but I certainly hadn’t seen anyone do that. Fortunately, it’s easy to recharge the card at any convenience store, which is what I did at a nearby Family Mart at 3:10 PM, this time putting 200 NTD ($6.75 USD) on the card, and then moving on to wait for bus 957 at the CMPC movie city bus station headed towards Tamsui district.

At 3:24 PM I got on and immediately found a comfortable seat. There were a couple of suggested faster routes which had come up on Google Maps, but by just staying on the 957 I would be able to get there without changing to any other buses or subway and it would only be a ten minute later arrival. Furthermore, as I had only been on a single bus, when I got off the bus in Tamsui at 4:20 PM, I saw that the total cost of the ride had only been 15 NTD ($0.51 USD), and it would be a 15 minute walk to the Santo Domingo Fort.

Unfortunately, when I arrived at 4:44 PM, they said that even though it was open until 5:00 PM, the last people in had to enter no later than 4:30 PM, so I did not get to visit there. However, this whole area was quite nice just to wander around, so that’s what I did.

At 5:13 PM I found myself walking along the seaside, where I ended up just relaxing and sightseeing in different areas along the edge of the water. As the sun was about to finish setting at 6:25 PM, with the sound of the river next to me and the pleasant wind on my face, I was truly and fully thankfully grateful to be alive just to experience life at that one particular moment.

Having finished the whole sunset experience, I went walking toward old street and at 7:04 PM decided to buy some fried cuttlefish (squid) and fried king mushroom. These two purchases were 300 NTD ($10.13 USD). Both of these were delicious as I sat in a sort of park area, and I was sorry that I did not live in an area where king mushroom and quality squid was easily and affordably available, but then also reflected that I would probably not appreciate it as much if it were something I could get all the time without much effort.

Despite how much I was enjoying myself just being in the moment, at 8:19 PM, having finished the leisurely meal of my tasty street food, I headed towards the nearby subway station where I was once more in motion at 8:28 PM. The 42-minute MRT (subway) ride to Taipei main station resulted in a 50 NTD ($1.69 USD) deduction from the transit card. Having already had some mishaps with MRT vs local train to Nangang, I decided to go old school and ask for help, which was quickly and politely given in perfect English.

At 9:16 PM I was at the platform waiting for the 4248 train to Yilan, which I was to ride for two stops. However, as had happened to me earlier with the local trains, I once again got confused, partially because the 4248 was late and partially because I was just a bit clueless, so at 9:48 PM I ended up asking for help again and was immediately put on some other random train in which the next stop was Nangang, arriving at 9:55 PM. This little mishap could have been frustrating, but I tend to be easygoing with such things while travelling, especially when not working with a set timetable. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that the local trains seem more difficult to navigate than the MRT (subway lines).

It was pleasant when I reached the street level exit at 10:01 PM and given that I had earlier not had anything to drink besides some plain drinking water from a public drinking fountain, I bought an oat milk and a sugar free Sprite for 49 NTD ($1.65 USD) before arriving back to the apartment at 10:18 PM.

Thus, my second full day in Taipei was finished. It was quite different from the first full day, but I had still really enjoyed myself. What about you? Did you like yesterday better or today? Let me know in the comment section below and also let me know if you have any additional questions. Finally, if you like what you have seen so far, keep a lookout for the Day 4 entry, and if you REALLY like it, consider scrolling backwards to checkout earlier trips over the past few years. Whatever you decide, I hope that you have found something of value in today’s entry and I hope you will read more in the future!

Taipei trip: Day 2 (10 June 2025)

Hey there everyone, thanks for choosing to continue to follow along with my travels to Taipei. I know that yesterday was not very exciting, but I think you will find today to be much more in line with your general expectations of travel adventure.

As I think I had mentioned earlier, for this trip I was staying at my friend Haowen’s place, which is very conveniently located near Nangang MRT station. So, using public transportation was a cinch. Haowen had lent me a transit card, but if you are coming on your own, it is very easy to get your own for just 100 NTD ($3.39 USD) at any convenience store or even right there in a metro station. Similarly, it’s quick and easy to reload the card at the same locations. Unless you are wed to the idea of going around in taxis everywhere, I suggest you do this the first thing you get off the plane. The card is for any urban public transport: local train, subway, bus or even bike share, and Google maps works great for suggesting the best routes at any time of the day. Furthermore, throughout my trip, I found all of the public transport options to be clean, comfortable, quiet and not really all that crowded . . . in short, an urban commuter’s dream.

For today’s adventure, I had once again decided to use the tour aggregator GetYourGuide. I have used this service in several countries and have never been disappointed; although, I do take the time to read comments and ratings before booking. For this time around, I had chosen the highly popular Shipen, Jiufen and Yehliu Guided Day Trip with a cost of $45 USD. As much as I use this aggregator, and also write fairly positive reviews, I feel like these folks should as a minimum be giving me a discount, but so far that hasn’t happened. Maybe I should ask them?

So, I will spare you the MRT (subway) details, but given my confusion the previous evening, I had left a bit early, thus arriving at 8:18 AM to Taipei Main Station, M3 exit, just as I had been directed by the tour operator. I wasn’t too sure about the food situation for the day and still had almost thirty minutes until the designated meeting time; thus, I bought 2 pork buns, 2 cabbage buns and a simple drink for 100 NTD ($3.39 USD) right near the exit.

Eating it was a bit awkward, since there was no obvious place to sit nearby, but the food was tasty and filling, so no complaints on that score. While this was in a permanent stand, I think this might classify as “street food,” and this seems to be quite common in Taipei. Similarly, I had already noticed that there frequently was no obvious place to sit to eat the food. I am guessing that most local buy this either on their way to work, school or home and then eat it once they get there. Nevertheless, nobody seemed to be mad at me for eating it right there on the street.

At 8:38 AM, just as I had been informed, I saw our tour guide for the day, Anne, in a bright yellow shirt, and at 8:43 I was already sitting in the comfortable Pullman style bus. Although the trip had been advertised as being sold out, the bus definitely wasn’t crowded, and I had two seats to myself. Also, I wasn’t sure, but most of my fellow tourists seemed to be Taiwanese, a couple Japanese and a small scattering of mixed European/North Americans.

Again, ever prompt, at 9:00 AM Anne apologized for us not taking off on time but asked if it would be okay if we were to wait a maximum of five more minutes for a latecomer, who arrived at 9:04 AM, and we were off on our adventure. I was particularly impressed that Anne asked us to fasten our seatbelts, walked through checking, and then showed an incredibly informative safety video just like on an airplane. I could see how this might get old but given that this was the first time in my life I had actually seen a bus safety video, I was actually tempted to take some notes. In case you are curious, there are all sorts of disasters which might happen when riding on a bus, if one catches fire while you are on it, the first 60 seconds are crucial to getting off safely. The video itself was in Mandarin with English subtitles.

At 9:17 AM Anne started to do her spiel. It seemed like she was simultaneously doing everything in Chinese, English and Japanese. Furthermore, she seemed quite confident in all three languages. Facilitating things for the upcoming trip, she mentioned that the first place we would be visiting was Shifen waterfall. Evidently, that area was first developed as a coal mining region, but it was unclear to me if that is still continuing today. For those who want to, while in that area we would have the option to send up traditional Chinese lanterns, but this had an additional cost of 200 NTD ($6.77 USD). Furthermore, a big food specialty of this spot is a sort of stuffed chicken wing and some sort of ice-cream with peanut; these two items could also be advance ordered for 130 NTD ($4.40 USD). I didn’t think that I was particularly keen on the lantern, but I definitely put my name down for the food.

At 9:51 AM we exited a 2 km long tunnel. Throughout, the scenery had been beautiful, the road smooth, the ride comfortable, and the driving extremely safe. As an added tidbit, Anne mentioned that certain local residents would go gather the fallen lanterns for recycling, getting 12 NTD ($0.41 USD) each from the local government. I wondered how difficult it would be to recover these, but it seemed like a fairly good motivation to do so. Anyway, we arrived at the first stop at 9:57 AM, and she told us that we had to be back to the bus at 10:50 AM sharp.

As quickly became apparent, this was just the “nature location” and it seemed fairly popular as a stopover point for many people, but it definitely didn’t feel crowded. I thought that the whole “waterfall thing” was a bit oversold, but it was still a pleasant stop along the way. If this were your only location for the day, it might be a bit of a disappointment, but as part of a larger day-tour package, it seemed more than adequate.

The suspension bridge was a bit shaky, so be warned if that is going to bother you. However, it definitely seemed completely safe.

At 10:44 AM I was back on the bus. Coming without a group, this stop could maybe have been drawn out to 3 hours, but that would only be if also getting a meal. Certainly, it seemed like an easily accessible daytrip location for nearby local residents. However, an average solo visitor would definitely not spend more than 90 minutes here, regardless of how much they wanted to stare at “the waterfall”. The bus started going again at 10:57 AM, but we were once again off at 10:59 AM. As I had opted to not release a lantern, I was told that I had until 12:00 PM to wander around on my own. Releasing lanterns seemed to be the main draw of this village, and it was definitely possible to do so without an advance reservation/purchase, but it was a picturesque spot to visit, and there were of course plenty of souvenir and food options as well.

I am not sure why “the thing” was to release the lanterns while standing on the train tracks.

At 12:00 PM I met back up with the rest of the group and received my stuffed chicken wing and ice-cream burrito from Anne. Both were nice, but the chicken wing seemed to be particularly satisfying. As far as I could tell, it was made by removing the larger bones of the wing, stuffing the extra area with seasoned sticky rice, and then roasting it in some way. I could tell it required some degree of preparation time, but I wondered why it would be more of a specialty to this particular area rather than being more widespread . . . I mean I would eat it fairly regularly if it were available. The ice-cream seemed sort of like a very thin, but glutinous crepe wrapping around very cold ice-cream with a bit of lightly sugared peanut dust

As we got on the bus again at 12:08 PM, Anne mentioned that a typhoon was supposed to be arriving either Thursday or Friday, and I wondered if that might affect my flight. However, she mentioned that it seemed that this would mainly be an issue for southern Taiwan. I suppose it was insensitive for me to just be worrying about my travel plans, but nobody else seemed particularly concerned either. I am guessing that typhoons here are fairly common. As we were headed to the village of Jiufen, Anne explained it’s three major claims to fame. The first is a 92-year-old theatre which was apparently constructed during a gold rush. The second was because of a movie called “A Chinese Ghost Story” which had been filmed there in the 1980s in which some big movie star named Tony Liang had starred. And the final one was that one of the well-known buildings in the town seems to appear in the 2001 movie “Spirited Away”. Evidently there will be a lot of stairs here, so I am guessing not the best location for those with mobility issues, but maybe they have some workaround for that?

We arrived at 12:48 AM, and Anne said that we needed to be back on the bus at 2:50 PM. We started walking up as a group, and she had a small speaker in her bag to amplify her voice, as she pointed out some of the main locations. The first stop, which was about ten minutes later, was the famous theatre.

I can’t say that I was all that impressed by the theatre, but I suppose one has to put things in historical context. I do however think that it might have been enjoyable to see a movie there. Continuing up the stairs about five minutes later was the Amei Tea House which many people claim was the basis for the main building in “Spirited Away”. As is indicated in the name, this is evidently a great place to have tea, but as far as I could tell, nobody in my group was particularly interested in that. However, EVERYONE was quite excited about taking pictures of the exterior of the house. I suppose if I had come only to Jiufen, I probably would have had tea there, even though there were clearly plenty of other options for food and drink as well.

At 1:12 PM we all sort of continued exploring on our own. I really had no idea what to expect, but I was on vacation, and it all seemed pretty enough, so there were no complaints from me. It did become clear rather quickly that the main reasons for coming here were threefold: looking at pretty buildings, buying souvenirs (from absurdly tacky to rather fine jewellery) and of course eating.

As I wandered around, I bought a Taro milk tea (bubble tea) for 60 NTD ($2.03 USD) and one duck gizzard for 40 NTD ($1.35 USD). The gizzard was even tastier than expected, but the tea was not particularly impressive. However, to be fair, I’m not generally a huge fan of bubble tea . . . it is a bit of a novelty, but I don’t really understand what it adds to the experience. I do like the texture of the bubbles, but they seem a bit tasteless, so there is always that to consider.

At 2:45 PM we were back in the bus headed towards Yehliu Geopark, where we arrived at 3:40 PM. The tour planners had scheduled things wisely, since this was clearly the highlight of the day. Like most of natural formations which “look like” something, you many times have to sort of squint your eyes and tilt your head sideways to “see it,” but even without the “natural sculptures” the park was a definite must-see site, and the other locations would have been a bit of a downer had the order of events been reversed. So, good planning on the part of the tour organizers.

The “Queen’s head” is the most famous formation at the park.

At 4:44 PM I was back on the bus, and at 4:51 PM we headed back to Taipei, with the plan to leave us at Raohe night market. I hadn’t realized it when I was there yesterday, but that market is considered a big tourist destination for the city. With today’s clear sky, I guessed that it might be more interesting than the previous evening. As we were arriving at 5:31 PM, we said goodbye to Anne Haowen so we could get together for dinner at a spot she had in mind.

However, I got a bit sidetracked, as a woman who was on the tour had no internet on her phone and needed to get transport back to her hotel with all of her luggage. After a combination of me calling Haowen, and a very kind random woman stopping to help us, we finally figured out both how to flag her down a taxi and figure out the location of her hotel so that the driver would know where to go. I was very happy to help, but it also made me realize how many of us have become overly dependent on our internet connected phones as we travel around the world. For instance, had I dropped and broken my phone, I would have had no way to contact Haowen, and wouldn’t even have been certain of how to get back to her apartment. This is an important cautionary tale that I need to keep in mind.

Fortunately, though, that had not happened, and at 6:02 PM as I was walking towards where Haowen had suggested, I marveled at the beautiful weather.

I arrived at the Teppanyaki place that Haowen had chosen at 6:20 PM and the food was amazing. The name was only in Chinese, but I got the map link; I definitely recommend it if you find yourself in the area. For both of us, it was 1250 NTD ($42.32 USD) and definitely worth it!

We left there at 7:24 PM, and I took advantage of a nearby ATM at 7:35 PM to get another 3300 NTD out in cash from my Indian bank account. Then at 7:50 PM Haowen asked me if I was up for cycling, and I was game, so we took Ubikes around for awhile until 8:16 PM and interestingly enough, there was no charge! I should clarify that Haowen actually had a destination in mind, but as I didn’t know it, it just seemed like fun.

Interestingly when we went into the nearby Xiangshan park MRT station for Haowen to use the washroom, they gave her a special token so she could go through to the washrooms without using the MRT. While I was waiting for her, I also noticed that there were special rental umbrellas for people as they were coming out of the subway; that seemed like a good idea, particularly in a place where I guess it seems to rain rather frequently.

From there we went walking up Elephant Mountain Trail, reaching the main viewpoint at 8:53 PM. It was definitely worth the view, but the steps were a bit brutal, so keep that in mind if you think about doing the same.

Once again, I was very thankful to Haowen, both for hosting me and also for thinking of all of these wonderful things for us to do. We hung out just chatting and looking at the view until finally deciding to walk down at 9:30 PM, shortly thereafter arriving to an absolutely amazing, shaved ice dessert place where we had refreshing and delicious snacks for only 80 NTD ($2.71 USD) each.

If you don’t know about it, you probably think this looks disgusting, but I found it to be amazing, especially on a hot day.

From there, we headed out again at 10:09 PM, once more taking Ubikes until 11:36 PM, this time paying 20 NTD ($0.68 USD) each for the rental, and we were finally back in the apartment at 11:40 PM.

So, I don’t know what you think, but for me, this was an absolutely perfect day. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you also have recently had a day this amazing! Let me see your comments and questions in the section below and keep following along to see what happened on Day 3.

Taipei trip: Day 1 (7-9 June 2025)

Hey there folks. How have you been doing since I last posted an entry? I know you might have noticed that just like with my Argentina trip, I didn’t actually finish the entries for my Sri Lankan trip in December, but I still have my notes and eventually will get around to finishing both of those . . . Or at any rate, that’s the plan.

For this Taipei trip, I will be jumping around a bit at times, just hitting the highlights which I think that you might find to be either interesting or helpful. For my regular readers, I know many of you prefer the detailed entries, but don’t worry if I leave out something important. If there was something else you were hoping to know about, just drop a note in the comments, and I promise to give more details.

The first detail of interest was that I had booked this trip on Batik Air, an Indonesian airline, which appears to be somehow connected to Malindo Air, from Malaysia. I was a bit concerned about quality, since it’s a budget airline, and I only paid 19,000 INR ($222 USD) for a one-way ticket from Bengaluru to Taipei, with one checked bag and carry-on luggage included. However, the reason frequent flyer miles are lost on me is that I almost always just book the cheapest, reasonable looking flight . . . and that’s what I did this time as well. Unlike many online check-ins these days, I couldn’t do it until exactly 24 hours ahead of time, so that’s what I was doing at 11:16 PM on June 7th. To my pleasant surprise, I was able to choose my seats on both flights without being charged, thus securing my preferred aisle seats for free (which is of course the way it should always be). So, one point for Batik Air.

As soon as I had checked in, I had to decide how to get to the airport. Most of you know that I was an earlier adopter and big fan of BluSmart, but they have unfortunately stopped operating due to financial problems of their parent company. Using the logic that if one electrical cab company were good, then another might also be good, a few weeks ago I had booked with Shoffr for airport pickup and drop-off, being quite pleased both times. Hopefully this new company will fare better, since they are a bit more expensive, but also ONLY have very nice cars. Still, it was only 1120 INR ($12.99 USD) for the 26 km trip, which given the semi-luxury service, is still definitely a bargain.

As appears to be the norm, the fancy BYD e6 driver of the car was waiting in front of my apartment to pick me up 10 minutes before my scheduled pickup time, but I didn’t go down to the car until 7:57 PM on June 8th. Unsurprisingly, the ride was extremely comfortable and the driver excellent, with us arriving to Terminal 2 of the Bengaluru airport at 8:38 PM. Despite not having the much-pushed DigiYatra service, by 8:41 PM I was already in the door, heading straight to security, where I arrived at 8:42 PM. However, there, much to my surprise, they told me that I had to have a physical boarding pass, so would need to go to the check-in counter . . .what’s the point of an electronic boarding pass if you can’t use it?

The whole physical thing at the Malindo Air counter took much longer than anticipated, but that sort of thing frequently happens when I fly out of India, so maybe I should just change my expectations. When I finally did get my turn at the counter, they were very reticent about believing that I didn’t need a visa to visit Taiwan. They also wanted to know the next two countries I would be going to, insisting on seeing the tickets, and also insisting on seeing my ticket for my return trip to India . . . I wondered, If I hadn’t had a return ticket to India, would they still have let me have a boarding pass? I finished up there at 9:30 PM.

As I had promised to be more succinct this time around, I won’t give the full details of getting through immigration and security. If you are reading this, there is a good chance that you already know that this frequently takes a very long time in India, but despite needing to give my entire trip itinerary to the immigration officer, things still went very smoothly, and I was done with the whole process at 9:49 PM. With boarding scheduled in less than an hour, I decided to just head straight to the waiting area rather than going to the lounge.

With the new significantly discounted cost of international roaming with Airtel I was tempted to just do that this time around. I was going to be in 5 different countries over the next few weeks, and juggling the eSIMs, can get a bit daunting. If I had been able to get the 30-day package for only 3999 INR, that is probably what I would have done, but my trip was going to be a bit longer, meaning I would need the 90-day package for 5999 INR ($69.55 USD) which includes 40 GB of data across 189 countries. At this point, for most travellers who live in India, this is probably the best choice, especially if you are going to multiple countries. However, I am already used to juggling multiple eSIMs and even have a dual eSIM phone, so I took the wait time to buy a six gigabyte 6-day data only eSIM for Taiwan from Nomad for just $9.00 USD (774 INR).

My whole boarding process started at 10:40 PM, and despite having by passport and boarding pass checked three times, I was already seated on the first plane at 10:53 PM. I had two approximately 4-hour flights, with a layover in Kuala Lumpur. The seats on both flights were reasonably comfortable on both flights, being made of some sort of faux leather material, but needed just a little more padding. Furthermore, the interiors of both planes were also new looking and the flight attendants polite. As to be expected on this sort of budget flight, they didn’t even give water without paying, but the available snacks and drinks were not exorbitantly priced. Nevertheless, I decided to wait until my short layover in KL to buy a VERY hearty sandwich for 36.43 MYR ($8.58 USD). In Malaysia, I appreciated the convenience of their newer Rapiscan scanners, rather than the older ones which appear to still be the norm in India, and I was back on the next plane at 7:06 AM on June 9th. Whereas the first flight had been full, this time I had a whole row to myself, so while the seat itself was not better, at least I was not as cramped. Still, for flights less than 5 hours, I would recommend this airline.

The flight touched down in Taipei at 12:11 PM, and my Nomad eSIM immediately connected. Like many, if not most countries, before going through immigration, I had to do an arrival card, but this could be facilitated by doing it on one’s phone. As far as i could tell, that is what everyone was doing. The entire process from stepping off the plane to finishing with immigration was incredibly smooth, and I was finished with all of that at 1:00 PM. For those of you who don’t like to get fingerprinted, do note that you will get electronically fingerprinted in Taiwan, but if you are squeamish about that sort of thing in this day and age, you should probably just stay home.

Haowen had recommended me to exchange $200-$300 USD at the airport, but that seemed a bit excessive to me, so I only exchanged $100 USD for 296 NTD, right there at one of the multiple currency exchange counters. Note, unlike most other countries, if you are going to exchange cash, you should just do it at the airport. The rates are all strictly controlled by the government, and you don’t get ripped off. Of course, you can also just get money out of the ATM, but depending upon your personal bank, there might be a less favorable exchange rate. I had read online, and Haowen had also told me to expect to pay cash for pretty much everything, but I still had my doubts, which was why I didn’t exchange more right off. Spoiler alert, even though I was staying at Haowen’s apartment, a couple days into the trip I still found myself taking more money out of the ATM. Nevertheless, the bank fees also didn’t seem excessive, so don’t worry too much if you forget to bring a major currency which you can exchange.

As Haowen had offered to pick me up from the airport, I didn’t check transport options, but it seemed well-connected. Her beautiful, modern apartment which was located near Nangang MRT station was clearly very conveniently located. After sharing a nice meal together, I indicated that I would like to walk around a bit, so at 5:29 PM Haowen left me on the nearby left bank of the Keelung River, and I went walking towards Raohe night market.

The riverbank served as a sort of park and exercise path area.

This snail was huge! Would I see many more like this?

At least along the riverbank walkway, I really liked the way they had either painted or put tile images on what would otherwise have just been concrete walls.

After a leisurely stroll, with the sun beginning to set, I arrived at the market area at 6:13 PM. This early in the evening, and perhaps also deterred by the light drizzle, the market was not that busy, but there appeared to be all sorts of tasty looking food items. In addition, I noticed that at least here at this particular night market, claw machines and fortune tellers seemed to be in high demand.

At the end of the market, I saw Songschanciyou temple, which seemed to be an active place of worship.

I had intentionally not packed an umbrella, but at 7:01 PM I bought a tiny little automatic opening and closing umbrella which was just barely small enough to fit alright in my small messenger bag. It was laughably small by Costa Rican standards, but it was only 130 NTD ($4.34 USD) cash. Furthermore, looking around me, that seemed to be the size which most people had here, so maybe the rain usually is limited to this sort of a drizzle, which would mean that this size would be just perfect.

As I wasn’t really interested in buying anything else, I decided I could use this as an opportunity to try using the public transport system to go back to Haowen’s place. Haowen had lent me a public transport card and had said I could easily top it up as needed at any subway station. Thus, at 7:10 PM I entered the Songshan MRT station.

By 7:21 PM, within going one stop, I realized that I had evidently taken the wrong subway line. Sure enough, I was on the green line and needed to be on the blue line. This did not stress me out too much. Furthermore, to my eyes, at least for local transport, both the local train and the subway looked and seemed to operate exactly the same, but they aren’t. To add to the confusion, the local transit card also works perfectly on both the train and the subway. Getting turned around wasn’t a tragedy, since I wasn’t in a big hurry, but I realized I needed to pay closer attention to this for future trips around the city. I THINK that one time I took a local train and one time I took the subway, and the cost was similar both times, around 25 NTD ($0.85 USD). When I finally exited the train/subway station at 7:55 PM, I went to the attendant window and added 100 NTD to the card so that I would be ready for the next morning. I think you can also add money using one of the multiple machines in the station, but since there was a person there available, that’s the way I did it.

It was a short walk from there back to Haowen’s apartment, but I went ahead and grabbed a simple 49 NTD ($1.66 USD) ice cream stick at the nearby convenience store before heading into the apartment for the night.

Despite my bumbling, I was already impressed with the public transport system, and I also found the city to be very clean and orderly with many interesting sites along the way. In short, things seemed to be off to a good start. Keep reading along if you want to see how things went with my first full day in Taiwan. Finally, as always, don’t hesitate to leave your questions and comments in the section provided below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 12 (25 December 2024)

Hey there folks, based on the date, I bet you were expecting something more exciting for Day 12 in Sri Lanka, but before you get too disappointed, you should also remember that a key reason why I chose to stay in Negombo my last two full days here was because I wanted to just get in some relaxation, and also to start getting caught up on the backlog of blog entries which had accumulated over the previous few months. Thus, the good news is that there was plenty of relaxation and catching up with the blog, but the bad news is that you probably won’t find it very exciting to read. However, there was still a bit of an interesting cultural snapshot which happened in the early evening, so if you feel like pushing yourself to read, you still might find something of interest.

Many of you will recall that I had gone to bed rather late the previous day, so I guess it isn’t that surprising that I didn’t get up, shower and head out more or less across the street to get the first meal of the day until 12:40 PM. Having noted that most of these places along the beach seemed similar, just like in Mirissa, I decided to just go into a place which was very close by, in this case, Oasis Fish & Lobster. In defense of many of these coastal places, especially with one that has the name “lobster” in the name, I’m highly allergic to crustaceans, so I didn’t really give them much of a chance to show off their skills with shrimp or lobster. Honestly, I don’t even remember exactly what I ate, but it was something with pork. The food was “perfectly adequate” yet uninspiring, with a cost of 4290 LKR ($14.49 USD). The one saving grace was that at least it was fast, and at 1:19 PM I had already finished eating.

I made a very minimal attempt to walk around a bit in the immediate area, but I wasn’t really into it, so at 1:47 PM I was already back in the room working on my travel blog. This became a bit of a marathon session, and I continued writing up until 5:21 PM. I felt good with that, since I finished an incomplete entry from earlier on, got it posted, and completely finished another entry which I would then be able to post later on. Some might argue that this seemed like it was turning into an unpaid job, but lots of people read or play games for several hours while on vacation, so why couldn’t I work on a personal travel blog?

Still, I WAS at a beach town, and even though I am not particularly fond of actually hanging out there for extended periods of time, those of you who have been following along have probably guessed that given the hour, there was a good chance that I was about to head back to the beach. Sure enough, at 5:30 PM I left the room to watch the sunset on the ocean, arriving at 5:42 PM. Today’s experience was a bit different from the previous days I had done this, since there was a quite a carnival atmosphere. At least in Negombo, the beach is clearly the place to be on Christmas day.

At 5:57 PM I once again caught the sun just as it disappeared, and once again I reconfirmed that this could easily become a peaceful, daily routine.

Now that I was there, I figured that I may as well make a bit of an effort to see if there was anything else of note, and there actually was! Check out some of the pics of this rather large, abandoned water park! I wondered what had happened here. Did people just lose interest? Was there some problem with the water supply? Had there been some horrible tragedy?! It looked like it might have been a rather fun place, but its new function seemed to be an informal gathering spot for young men to drink . . . but that may have just been for today.

At 6:10 PM, probably because it was a lot cooler now than during the day, I felt a bit more inspired to leave the beach area and go out walking for a bit.

However, simply walking up and down the street lost its charm after a short time, and at 7:23 PM I stopped in at some random restaurant to order fish curry coconut with rice, a tomato salad and a beer. Just as I was starting to get frustrated with the mosquitos despite using my repellant, the server came and put a mosquito coil next to me, and that mostly dealt with the problem. Unfortunately, it turned out that the “tomato” salad was at least 50% raw onion, which I really do not like, but as they had not specified that, I felt no compunction about returning it to the kitchen. But then while reading some news while I was eating, at 8:16 PM I read that just five days earlier the central government of India had reimposed the requirement to have a Protected Area Permit (PAP) to visit Manipur, effective immediately. So, it looked like my trip to Manipur the following week was most likely no longer going to happen . . . being preoccupied with this latest bit of news, I didn’t note down exactly when I left, but the bill was 2500 LKR ($8.50 USD).

I didn’t want to let a potential upcoming trip cancellation sour the end of my current vacation. So, on my way back to the room at 9:03 PM, I made sure to get a prepackaged ice-cream cone along with 100 grams of peanuts and my daily bottle of drinking water for a total of 760 LKR ($2.53 USD). At least I could have ice-cream! Back in the room at 9:16 PM, and still feeling a bit tired from yesterday, I was already in bed at 9:35 PM.

What more can I say? Not a lot happened on Day 12. Sometimes it happens that way, and sometimes that’s not really a bad thing. Your thoughts?

Sri Lanka trip: Day 11 (24 December 2024)

Hey there readers, as this has been one of my longer trips, if you have kept going since Day 1, then congratulations for your stamina. If you are however just starting out, I encourage you to look back at some of the earlier entries, not only about Sri Lanka, but also about some of the other places I’ve been able to visit over the past couple of years. Chances are fairly good that you will find something useful, and if not, then it’s almost guaranteed that you will find something to laugh about. With that out of the way, let’s get straight into Day 11 of my recent trip to Sri Lanka.

Unlike the previous evening, there had been quite a lot of noise coming into the room the night before. Clearly there had been some sort of a party nearby, and I think that the noise of the vehicles was also a bit more noticeable last night. However, with the wall unit air conditioner on, it functioned sort of like a sleep machine and also kept the room at a perfect temperature for sleeping. So, despite the noise from earlier in the evening, when I first woke up at 7:05 AM, I felt very rested. Yes, I was still a bit sad that I didn’t get to do the snorkeling with sea turtles, but that also allowed me to stay in bed later without any stress.

Still, I certainly didn’t want to hang out in bed all morning, so at 7:52 AM I got up, showered, and packed, then leaving the hotel at 9:17 AM. The location of the hotel was perfect for travel, so at 9:25 AM I was already in the bus headed back to Galle. This was a bit of entertainment in itself, as it appeared that I had got onto a disco bus. It probably would get old if doing it on a daily basis, but I rather enjoyed the music and the decorations which were included with my 200 LKR ($0.67 USD) bus trip back to where I would get my next bus for the day. Similar to when I had come here, I also noted that there were great views outside the window, as the road went right along the coast.

As the ride continued, at 9:59 AM I started to think that I could see the attraction of just hopping around some of these different villages between Mirissa and Galle. So many of the areas looked like nice places to be for a few days, especially if one is a beach person. I also wondered if these other villages were slightly less expensive than Mirissa, since Mirissa seemed to be the main beach town on the southern coast. Going back to the music, at 10:04 AM I also reflected on how I thought it was good that they were clearly playing local groups rather than international music. I also liked that the videos were not overproduced; for the most part, it was just images of the musicians themselves and some landscape. This made me think that there might be a greater appreciation here for actual music, rather than over the top costumes and fancy dancing. However, this might have just been the preference of this particular bus driver.

Up until 10:11 AM everything had been going along perfectly, but then we hit some sort of a snag. I wasn’t really fully sure of what was going on, but it seemed to be a problem with the engine. Regardless, the other passengers (almost all of whom appeared to be local) did not seem overly concerned, so I reasoned that maybe the engine just needed to cool down a bit? I don’t know what actually happened, but one way or another the bus was again in motion at 10:19 AM.

I had already been thinking that in a pinch, since I only had a maximum size carry on backpack as luggage, I could probably get off the bus and somehow easily get alternative transport to Galle. However, that was not needed, and at 10:21 AM, based on the signs, we were already technically in Galle, and then at 10:36 AM I got off the bus right near Galle fort along with the other final stragglers. Once more, as we had come through Galle, I thought that while staying in the fort itself had been nice, were I to come back on my own, I would probably stay in the actual city/town. I was sure it also had a lot to offer, and lodging would probably be cheaper for comparable quality.

Since I had arrived with a bit of extra time before catching my next bus, I went out wandering a bit with the vague notion that I would try to get something simple to eat for breakfast. I had been right that there were other interesting to see things in Galle, but my time was still limited, so at 10:58 AM I stopped a bit at Aravinda Food Cabin where I got some simple items to munch on for 500 LKR ($1.69 USD). They had more substantial food items available as well, but I just wanted something quick. Still, despite having paid only 500 LKR, I felt completely satisfied, and the food had also tasted pretty good.

At 11:21 AM I finished my food and started walking back towards the area of the main bus stop, intentionally following a slightly different route. Whenever I get a chance while traveling, and for that matter even when I have time at home, I try to switch things up a bit when I have the time in order to have new experiences. One never knows what might be seen along the way, and that was the case for instance when I saw this rather large dedicated “chest clinic” at 11:29 AM. I thought it a bit odd that such a large place in a relatively small city would be dedicated only to chest issues, but maybe it serves all of southern Sri Lanka or something like that? I suppose it may also just be a name which doesn’t mean much beyond the “clinic” part.

I arrived at 11:45 AM on the dot, as had been programmed when I booked the bus ticket with 12Go, and their representative Mr. Herbert was already there waiting along with another client. We set off walking and just three minutes later I was already on the bus; it had been waiting only for the two of us in order to leave. So, I guess that is what I get with the VIP assistance I had paid for, when I paid a total of $9.33 USD for the bus ticket. As mentioned earlier, I am sure that I could manage it on my own in the future, but if only using the service occasionally, the peace of mind bought by using this service, even having the bus wait for us, was more than enough to justify the cost. Doing a bit of investigating, I discovered that the local company provider for 12Go is Stef Lanka tours. Based on the limited interaction I had experienced with their workers, I would definitely contact them as an option to help me should I plan a future partially guided trip to Sri Lanka.

At 12:15 PM, just like when I came here from Colombo, a guy started going through charging people cash for the ride. Again, the same as last time, he didn’t even glance at me, even though I did not have a printed ticket to show this time. Those of you who have been reading along regularly know that the real cost of this bus trip is $2.66 USD, and it looks like most people just come, get in line, and then pay on the bus. Still, even at $9.33 USD, I considered what I had paid to be a bargain. I had complete peace of mind, and this comfortable air-conditioned bus still was much faster than going by train, as well as having many more departure time options. Like I said, it was fast, so at 1:15 PM we arrived at Makumbura bus station. From here I would need to get to Negombo, and I had not fully planned out how to do that.

However, I was at a central transport hub, so it seemed that it couldn’t be all that difficult to manage. Once again, I had the name of a recommended bus which I should take to the next bus destination in central Colombo. However, when I asked at the help desk, they just said “No” and pointed me to some other random line. I said, “So, I should take that bus?” This time there was no vocalization but just sort of a shooing direction towards the bus line. I figured that it was unlikely they weren’t going “away from” Colombo, and if it appeared that they were, I could always just get off at a nearby stop and take a cab or rickshaw.

So, at 1:17 PM I was in the random bus paying my 100 LKR ($0.34 USD) when the guy came around to charge us. This was perhaps pushing being adventuresome a bit far, but looking at Google maps to see our progress, we appeared to be going in the correct direction. Then at 1:22 PM a woman sat down next to me and when I asked if this bus was going to the Colombo fort area, she said yes. Thus, it seemed that all was going well. Furthermore, the bus was clean and reasonably well maintained. Unlike the other local bus I had seen a couple of days ago, this one seemed to have both buttons and a rope to pull in order to alert the driver when a stop was requested. Furthermore, it also seemed that people had the habit of using them. With that in mind, while I was certainly not “traveling in style at that moment,” I reflected that were I to return here, I would try to use local buses even more. Of course, that only makes sense if one is traveling with very limited luggage.

Providence was on my side, and at 2:29 PM I was off the bus at the central bus station and trying to follow the less than perfectly reliable Google map directions to the Negombo buses. I asked several people as I was walking, getting some significant variations in answers, but at 2:44 PM I was on the rather tiny Negombo AC express. Up until this moment, this definitely the most uncomfortable transport I had used during this trip, and had there not been AC, it would have been unbearable. The bus did not actually take off until 2:56 PM, picking up a few more people along the way, until we were completely packed in, including 6 people who were standing in the passageway at 3:13 PM. I suspected that they would have kept stuffing people in had there been the opportunity, but by that time we were on the highway.

Especially for such a full ride as this one, when the money collector started coming through at 3:16 PM, I thought it really would have made much more sense to charge people as they got on the bus. It was 310 LKR ($1.05 USD) for the ride, so I guess in financial terms it was still a bargain despite how cramped I was. Of course, had it been a longer trip, I would have thought otherwise, but at 3:48 PM I was already out of the bus at the main Negombo bus terminal. I could have taken a rickshaw or taxi to the hotel from there, but at that point I really wanted to stretch my legs a bit. Additionally, walking allowed me to see more of the city/town which I had not seen the last time I was here. I wasn’t lollygagging but also not rushing, and at 4:50 PM I arrived at the reception of Village Inn Resort.

Unlike the first two lodging choices I had paid for directly during this trip, this place wanted full cash payment up front. Using local currency, I paid the equivalent of $53.46 USD for three nights. The entryway to the rooms was well-maintained and sort of pretty, but there were clearly mosquitos. Once inside, I thought that the room was adequate, certainly nothing to really complain about at that cost, but also certainly nothing to celebrate. Oddly enough, there was a television in the room, but there appeared to be no way to plug it in, but it was certainly a large space, especially for just one person. At the end of the day, as long as it was clean, safe and reasonably comfortable for sleeping, that was fine with me.

At 5:13 PM I was back out on the street headed towards St. Mary’s Church Pitipana. Several days earlier I had seen on AllEvents that there was an annual Christmas Carol service scheduled there at 6:00 PM. It had actually been for this specific reason, that I had chosen these particular travel times to go from Mirissa to Negombo, since I understood that Christmas was supposed to be a big deal here, and I thought getting an early start at 6:00 PM would be ideal. In my mind it had made sense that there would be only one “St. Mary’s” church in Negombo, but just to be sure, I checked Google Maps and realized that it seemed to be much further away than the St. Mary’s church I had seen when I had been in Negombo a little over a week ago. It would be impossible to walk there by 6:00 PM, so at 5:21 PM I used the PickMe app to get a tuk-tuk, which arrived almost immediately.

We pulled up outside the church at 5:40 PM, and I paid the driver 650 LKR ($2.21 USD) even through the app said 541. I walked over towards the church, which was pretty enough, and thought that it did not look like there was much going on for a big Christmas event which was supposed to start in twenty minutes. However, there were a couple of people around, and I asked them, thinking maybe that 6:00 PM was a general start time, but in reality, it would be more like 6:30 PM or even 7:00 PM. Well, those of you who know about Negombo already figured out that the post on AllEvents was wrong. Their New Year’s Eve service was scheduled to begin at 11:45 PM.

I considered just hanging out in that area since it looked like a different sort of locale to explore, but on the off chance that the wrong St. Mary’s had been indicated, at 6:02 PM I again got another PickMe tuk-tuk to St. Mary’s grand street, arriving at 6:10 PM. The bill was 400 LKR ($1.36 USD).

Yes, you’ve guessed it, this was becoming a bit of a comedy of errors, but I had already suspected something like this. It appears that any rando can put things on these event apps, or at least on the AllEvents app. At the next church I spoke to one of the priests, and he told me that at 11:00 PM they would have Christmas Carols, with a special mass at 11:45 PM. I could have used this realization to be annoyed with myself for not having left Mirissa a bit later, thus having been able to do the snorkeling with sea turtles at 8:00 AM, but I was still glad that I had arrived and got checked into my hotel in Negombo with minimal stress before it was dark out. It probably doesn’t actually make a big difference, but especially when there is a degree of uncertainty involved with travel, doing it in the daylight always feels more secure than doing it at night . . . or at least that is the case with me.

So, now what would I do? I wasn’t thrilled about being up so late, but I had also specifically come back to Negombo to experience Christmas there. With no other plan in mind, at 6:15 PM I set off walking, thinking that at some point I would find a place to get some dinner. As I wandered, I had ended up in a mostly residential area, so there were not a lot of options, but at 6:47 PM I decided to try some random little local place.

I had two dosas, an egg omelette, and some small local fizzy drink for a total of 400 LKR ($1.36 USD). The dosas were actually quite tasty, and for the first time ever, I ate them with just my right hand and no utensils. None had been offered, and I figured I may as well try, once I had properly washed my hands and the prominently placed sink. So between this meal and what I had eaten earlier in the day, it looks like my earlier question about the cost of “everyday food” in Sri Lanka had been answered. You may remember that most of the meals I had eaten before this day had cost about 3500 LKR each. While those meals had been decent, and in many cases had even been buffets, I would not say they had been almost nine times better than the two meals I had eaten today. Clearly, I had been paying for and eating “tourist food”. While there was nothing the matter with that, it was nice knowing that I had the option to eat simpler, yet still tasty food for significantly less.

Although they had made the dosas and the omelette right when I ordered, this was a bit of an express eating situation, and at 7:10 PM there was no longer any reason for me to be there. However, I still had several hours before 11:00 PM. How would I fill the time? Well, one thing that had been missing from my express dosa meal had been something sweet, so at 7:15 PM I stopped in at another little local place, this one specializing in ice cream. There I ordered Badam milk ice cream for 200 LKR ($0.68 USD). The second place had a bit more of a “hang out here” vibe, and they even offered me tea or coffee, so I definitely could have dragged things out longer, but at 7:41 PM I was once more out on the street.

Sticking with the food and drink theme, at 8:41 PM I bought a large bottle of water and a rather large bottle of Coke Zero from a mini mart for 350 LKR ($1.18 USD) since I had not seen any bottled water nor water purifier in the hotel, and regardless of whether or not the tap water was considered safe, I did not want to take any chances with just a couple more days in the country. Having exhausted my interest in just “wandering around” I was back in the hotel room at 9:10 PM where I resolved to rest for a bit, and that is what I did until 10:00 PM.

After a bit of internal debate, I decided it was healthier for me to walk to St. Mary’s Church Grand Street. Also, even though I had already seen many of them, I thought it would be nice to once again see the frequent nativity scenes alongside the road and just take advantage of having no obligations to do anything else at the moment. After all, it was Christmas, and some allowances had to be made. I arrived outside the church at 10:44 PM, and as it was almost entirely empty, decided to just sit on the “Jesus bench” awhile and wait until other people started to show up.

It didn’t take too long for people to start wandering that way, and I wanted a good seat, so I entered at 10:50 PM. To their credit, at 11:00 PM sharp the church bells started to ring, and right after that they moved on to the Christmas songs and a special sermon. Despite not understanding anything, I was glad that I had come. It was especially interesting for me to hear “Christmas carols” which seemed to have no relation to those which I had heard before. I did however think it a bit odd that the only ones who sang were those in the choir, even though they put the words up on easy to see screens throughout the church. Maybe the custom here is just to listen?

Yes, I was happy I had come, but I was also happy to finally slip out at 1:16 PM while everyone was going up for communion. The church and the grounds outside were full, but everyone was behaving in a very orderly fashion. Maybe I would have stayed through until the end, but as I was tired and did not actually understand anything which was being said nor sung.

So, 45 minutes later, having completed my final comfortable walk of the evening, or my first one of the next day depending on your point of view, I was safely back in the hotel room at 2:00 AM. And that was how I spent Christmas Eve in Sri Lanka. Some might say that it was a bit lonely, but over the years I have grown accustomed both to being alone on Christmas and to being in places where Christmas isn’t really celebrated. Thus, being in a place where it was celebrated with such vigor was a very welcome treat. For those of you who celebrate Christmas, would you have felt bad about a Christmas Eve like I had, or would you have enjoyed the adventure? As always, thanks for reading along and let me know your questions and comments in the section provided below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 10 (23 December 2024)

Hey there readers. I hope things have been going well for you. I have actually just now finished my first week back at work, but I am determined to keep pushing ahead with these Sri Lanka entries so that this does not become either another unfinished trip report like when I was in Argentina (Yes, I hope to still circle back to that one.) or simply a very delayed report like when I was in Beijing. Incidentally, did I ever tell you that even the fastest of these entries takes me at least ninety minutes, and sometimes as long as four hours? So that means that I am either a very slow writer, (please no negative comments about the quality of the writing in addition to the tardiness 🤣) or writing is just really a lot harder than most people realize.

So, on Day 10 I was up at 5:00 AM, and happy to report that despite the balcony opening out on the main road, I had not found it hard to sleep at all. Given that this was still a vacation day, you might wonder why I would get up so early. Well, while I was trying hard to keep my expectations low, one of the big reasons I had come to southern Sri Lanka was to go out on a whale watching tour. Like most day trips which I select while traveling, this one had been booked through GetYourGuide, in this particular case costing $67.32 USD. I had always wanted to do one of these tours in Costa Rica but had found them too expensive. With that in mind though, I also suspected that this might be a case of you get what you pay for. Still, if nothing else, it would probably be a pleasant trip out on the ocean. Again though, anytime when booking something involving wildlife or weather, be prepared to be disappointed.

Nevertheless, I admit that right before I headed out the door at 5:58 AM, I was quite sad to see that my 6:00 AM “snorkeling with sea turtles” trip for the next morning had been cancelled, as the company was now saying that there were not a lot of turtles around at 6:00 AM, so it was better to move it to 8:00 AM. This did not seem to make sense, because the previous day I had been told by the same company that early morning was the best time, since after early morning feeding, most of them would head out to deeper waters. In reality, I suspect that they simply did not have enough signups at 6:00 AM, so they wanted to move it to 8:00 AM. Yes, I probably could have done the later tour, but that would have made it almost impossible to safely arrive for my bus trip from Galle to Colombo at 12:00 PM . . . so, I guess it wasn’t in the cards. Still, the main reason for me coming to Mirissa had been to do this whale watching tour, so I thought that I should just focus on enjoying what was already in motion.

Really it was a bit silly that the rickshaw driver had been scheduled to pick me up at 5:58 AM. The ride itself wasn’t even five minutes, and I was the first to arrive at the dock. On the plus side, I had no problem getting what I figured would be a prime seat. As more participants started arriving, at 6:14 AM the organizers started serving tea, which I politely declined. By 6:31 AM, I was starting to think that there really were quite a few people on this boat. In fact, it looked like it might already be near to full. There was both an upper and lower observation deck, both with comfortable chairs. Near us, I could see several other similar boats, doubtless preparing for the same sort of outing. It wasn’t until 7:00 AM that we finally pulled out of the dock; however, I wasn’t annoyed by the wait.

At 7:08 AM I noted that there had been a crying baby almost the entire time. This wasn’t such a big deal for me, but some of the German speaking passengers near me were clearly bothered. As a teacher, I guess I am just pretty good at cancelling out unwanted background noise. As we moved out to the open sea, different from when closer to coastal waters, one really appreciates the constant crests and troughs, even when the water was is quite calm like it was on Day 10.

Right at 7:18 AM, no doubt going with the strategy of “keep them fed to keep them happy” a guy came around passing out sandwiches, one of which I accepted. Unfortunately, it had tiny raw onion bits on it that were impossible to remove, so after just nibbling a bit on some of the bread, I wrapped it back up and put it in my bag to be disposed of later on. Evidently distracted or simply happy to have the sandwich, the constantly crying toddler stopped crying for a bit. Keeping us guessing though, he started up again with the wails at 7:24 AM. I did sort of wonder if it made sense to take such a little kid on this sort of a trip, since there were several others who also did not seem particularly interested nor pleased with the experience, but maybe it comes down to individual personalities. While it was pleasant to just watch the sea, there wasn’t really much to do as we headed out to deeper waters aside from observe those around me and engage in personal musings.

So here come more random thoughts and observations. As there were at least 100 passengers on this boat, and presumably most paid a similar fee to what I had paid, that meant that this outing had cost more than $6000 USD. Having noted that there were several other similar boats, the implication was clear. This is a big business. At 7:37 AM, after being enveloped in the cloud of vapor for at least the 10th time, my attention kept being drawn back to the two British woman in front of me who were constantly puffing on their sickly strawberry scented vapes the entire trip. Maybe this was better than constantly breathing in burning tobacco, but I’m actually not sure. As of 7:45 AM, all we had seen were other boats, fellow passengers, and of course water, but in the far distance I could see a line of 8 boats which appeared to be stationary. I suspected that those were other whale watching boats and that was the place to be, but I wasn’t exactly an expert on the topic.

So, it appeared that I was right about the other boats, since at 8:07 AM we pulled up in the general area of the other seven double decker boats and a couple of smaller speed boats. At 8:12 AM I did “sort of see” a few dolphins breaking the surface of the water. Like I said, when on a “nature tour” you get what you get. Still, while my logic may have been wrong, I thought that with so many of these boats, maybe the dolphins and whales don’t like to come close. Then at 8:25 AM I DEFINITELY did see several dolphins in the distance, and I tried to get a video, but with so many people it was very easy to have the view blocked. Furthermore, the sightings tended to be just glimpses, so if you blinked then you missed it.

Then at 8:35 AM I heard one of the boat hands say that we wouldn’t see any whales in these waters, since the water was not deep enough. I thought, fair enough, so wouldn’t it be more honest to call it a “dolphin watching” tour? But then I had to shortly thereafter eat my internal words, since at 8:56 AM we were clearly moving in a fixed direction further out into deeper waters. No doubt dolphins are an easy crowd pleaser, so it’s best to at least make sure that happens before heading out to deeper waters where whales were far less probable to emerge. As we were moving, I reflected on the fact that while there was no doubt that we were clearly “chasing” these animals, if your goal was to get as close as possible, the smaller speed boats had a clear advantage with the dolphins, but I was not sure how that would play out with the deeper waters. I wondered, just how far out could the smaller boats go?

At 9:06 AM a woman with a different crying kid sat down next to me, but he mercifully quickly quieted down. Then at 9:16 AM, as we seemed to have no clear destination in mind, just deeper water, I wondered if that was the strategy. Hang out in deep water on the offhand chance that there would be a whale? Then as an added bonus, at 9:21 AM we saw a massive container ship passing by. Maybe they should have added that to the tour description? I mean it really was rather impressive to see in person out on the ocean, maybe even as impressive as a whale? However, despite the excellent image quality, certainly it was not as photo worthy.

Then at 9:27 AM in the distance I could see about 4 boats in the distance which seemed to sort of be parked. I suspected that several more would come together to join a fleet of whale watching tourists, and that is exactly what had happened at 10:02 AM. We were 19 boats in total, 9 of them similar in size to the one I was on, and 8 being smaller crafts. So as mentioned earlier, this whole “whale watching” thing is definitely big business. While I was resigned to the fact that I probably would not see any whales, at 10:12 AM some people saw something which could have been a whale. Even I thought I saw something which might have been a whale blowing water out, but frankly it could have just been sea spray for all I know. Nevertheless, everyone was quite excited. The boat operators told us that it would be another 10-15 minutes before there might be a chance of the whale coming up to breathe again.

Knowing that I had at least 10 minutes, I decided to focus on other things, and once again noticed this long line of something sort of yellow floating on the surface of the ocean. I had seen it several times during the trip and had assumed that it was some sort of sea life, but I figured it could also be a type of pollution. Noting though that we were still seeing it this far out, I decided to ask and was a bit surprised by the answer. The boat worker told me that the yellow was mud, since when it rains a lot (which you will remember it had been doing) when the river runs into the ocean it takes a lot of mud which stays on the surface of the ocean for quite some time before eventually mixing in and sinking down.

At 10:25 AM the fleet was on the move again, presumably heading towards a spot where someone’s sonar had picked up a whale? Just in case, I decided to stand up for a bit to see if there might be a better chance of seeing something. However, by 10:50 AM it seemed to me that we might be heading back to the shore. Then, at 11:00 AM, for a tiny moment I saw something break the surface which I thought was probably a dolphin, but the boat hands claimed was a whale. Yes, I DID see it for sure, but don’t fool yourself, it was more of a tiny glimpse rather than anything clearly noticeable. Nevertheless, reenergized, they went in pursuit again, and at 11:15 AM I actually was fully confident that in the distance I did see a tiny bit of a whale’s back as it breached the surface and then sprayed out water. Again though, this wasn’t a National Geographic photography moment . . . still, it was a bit satisfying.

Then at 11:19 AM it was clear that we were on a mission to get back to the dock as soon as possible. So, things had been about what I expected, although I did secretly admit that I had hoped for a bit more. Yes, I had definitely seen several wild dolphins off in the distance, and I am “fairly confident” that I had sort of seen glimpses of a whale a couple of times. However, as I had mentioned before starting the tour, if you decide to do something similar in Sri Lanka, temper your expectations A LOT. There were however a lot of pluses which merit mentioning.

The boat seats were very comfortable, and whether or not I actually was, I felt completely safe at all times. Furthermore, while the sunny weather meant the sea had been calm and the sun strong, the covered roof of the boat along with the constant breeze coming off the ocean meant that I was comfortable throughout. However, since sunlight reflects off water, I had been extra cautious about wearing my sunhat and even reapplying sunscreen during the trip, and it seemed that my caution had paid off. There were also the multiple times that food was cleverly distributed, despite the fact that it was not always of the most notable quality: the tea at 6:14 AM, the unpleasant (for me) sandwiches at 7:18 AM, the slices of watermelon at 11:25 AM, and the cheap yellow cake and tiny bananas at 11:45 AM. Especially leaning into the cheap food strategy near the end of the trip was smart, since people will tend to remember that even if the tour itself did not otherwise meet expectations. Of course, there were also many nice views along the way, in particular if like me, you do not usually live on the coast nor frequently go out on a boat.

At 12:16 PM I was stepping off the boat and a short walk later, I reached my lodging where I paid 10,000 LKR total in cash for both nights ($33.80 USD). As with my lodging in Galle, I had booked on Booking.com, but it seems to be quite normal in Sri Lanka that one pays in cash once one arrives. They had not been pressuring me to pay nor anything like that, but I wasn’t sure when I would leave in the morning and also did not want to have to hunt around for someone to pay the next morning. I actually was a bit hungry since I had only eaten one tiny banana and a very small piece of cake, but it seemed to me that the sun was too strong for me to go out wandering around. Thus, I resolved to work on my blog for a few hours and then go out later once things had cooled down a bit.

At 4:12 PM I had finally finished the Day 4 post for my October-November trip to Beijing and got it posted. It would have been faster, but the internet was quite slow with uploading photos. So, between today and the previous day I had spent five hours working on my writing. One might debate about whether or not that was the best use of my time, since I am definitely not writing Pulitzer Prize winning content, but it filled my time and still allowed me to get into a different “vacation zone” while making me feel that I had done something productive and personally fulfilling as I waited for the weather to get a bit cooler. When I decided to leave the room at 4:51 PM, I was a bit cautious since I really had been very comfortable working in my artificially cooled room the last few hours, but the previous day I had made a resolution to try to see the sunset again. It turns out, my fears were completely unjustified.

At 5:01 PM when I stepped outside of the comfortably lit cocoon of cool which was my hotel room, I was extremely pleased to find that the temperature outside was just perfect! Given that I had a bit of time before wanting to be on the beach once more for the sunset, I wandered around a bit on a couple of the interior roads of Mirissa, and it was not until 5:37 PM that I arrived once more near parrot rock.

Of course, the previous day had certainly not been unpleasant, but at 6:02 PM I was a bit giddy since I had been able to see the entire uninterrupted sunset on the water. I remembered an old colleague Molly Schneider who I had visited quite a few years ago when we were both working on a mutual project between our two universities. She worked at University of California at Irvine, and when I was visiting there in order to promote the program in 2007 (I think), she had told me that she tried to finish each day watching the sunset on the beach. I had thought this seemed a bit silly, but I was starting to see the attraction. During the time we were working together to setup the program, it had been such a big deal for me, and I had even passed up an invitation to be principal at a school I really admired in Costa Rica in order to finish the project and make sure it was running smoothly. At the time it had almost seemed like a legacy for me . . .I wondered if the program was still running all these years later, but I suspected that it wasn’t. However, the sunset on the beach was certainly just as impactful as it had been all those years ago.

Enough memories of an old guy. The moment the sun disappeared; I headed back to the side roads of Mirissa to see a bit more of life off the beaten tourist track before it became too dark to be prudent to be walking around the mostly unlit streets. I was not able to get photos, but at 6:26 PM I saw two gigantic bats fly over as I was walking. They really do have massive wingspans!

Back on the main street at 6:39 PM and looking at all the restaurants and various smaller shops, most of which only took cash payment, and otherwise required a 3% service charge to pay with card, I reflected on how it was interesting to see how Sri Lanka appeared to be an almost entirely cash based economy, at least for tourism related things. I suppose that shouldn’t have surprised me that much since not long ago it was the norm everywhere, but it did. Also, as I decided to enter Big Belly restaurant at 6:40 PM, I reflected on how quickly it had become completely pitch-black outside in such a short time. Anyway, I ended up ordering a Lion Lager and at the suggestion of the waiter, garlic mushrooms with white rice. Similar to where I had eaten the night before, the food arrived after only twenty minutes, and in general was something I would recommend.

A7 7:42 PM it seemed that if I wanted to pay anytime soon, I would have to just go downstairs, so that’s what I did. They certainly don’t hassle you to pay and leave here. The bill was 3740 LKR ($12.79) which seemed a bit expensive for mushrooms and rice, but it had tasted decent and given that it was the only meal I had eaten that day, I was happy to have had it. Deciding to repeat my same routine of the previous evening, at 7:47 PM I left to go get another ice cream stick and soda from the same little shop from the day before, paying 400 LKR ($1.35 USD) for both. Then after a short walk, I was back in the hotel at 8:05 PM.

I get that today was probably not the extravaganza of humpback whales leaping from the ocean which you had been hoping for, and sure, even I had entertained a few fantasies of something similar. Regardless, I had been relaxed, done something different, and been able to get a bit introspective throughout the day. Does that seem like something you would also like, or are you more in line for the jam-packed adventures of my earlier days in Sri Lanka? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 9 (22 December 2024)

Hey there readers, so as those of you who have been following along regularly know, Day 8 did not end up in an ideal fashion, but it certainly could have been worse. No doubt partially as a result of that, I woke up at 5:00 AM and couldn’t really get to sleep again until about 6:30 AM. Then at 7:52 AM, I was fully awake once again and resolved to start dealing with whatever the day might have in store. At 8:19 AM I was out of the door, but it took a couple of minutes before anyone noticed me and then handed me a bill for my lodging in Mirissa. You may remember that I had booked with Booking.com, but like many places in Sri Lanka, you have to pay in cash after you arrive. Finally, at 8:25 AM someone noticed me, and I was given a bill for 9065 LKR ($30.91 USD), which means that for the second night which I had cancelled due to weather, they only charged me a $3.91 USD cancellation fee, which I understood was simply the commission which they would need to pay Booking.com. Honestly, I had been expecting to pay the entire $27 USD for the unused night, so only paying $3.91 USD was a much-appreciated good start to the day.

Walking out of the guesthouse at 8:27 AM, I was thankful that my only luggage was my maximum carry-on size backpack which really was quite comfortable. This meant it would be easy for me to wander around a bit before figuring out how to head over to Mirissa.

I had a general idea that I wanted to see a tiny bit of the actual city of Galle, get more cash out of the ATM just in case the smaller beach town of Mirissa did not have plenty of ATM machines, and perhaps also go to the Rumassala area. After getting cash out at 9:01 AM, I soon discovered that PickMe does not work as well in Galle as it does in Colombo, and I also had a very hard time making drivers understand where I wanted to go. I decided to take that as a sign to just look around a bit more before trying again.

Thus, when I saw Arpico Super Center at 9:32 AM, I thought that it might be a place I could get some simple sandals. Unfortunately, they only had flip flops, which I find very uncomfortable to wear, so I ended up just buying a small black umbrella for 1190 LKR ($4.02 USD). On my way out I checked again with PickMe to see the projected cost to go the Japanese Peace Pagoda – Rumassala, and the app said it should be 300 LKR. So, when a random tuk-tuk driver asked me where I wanted to go, and he said that he knew the place, I thought it would be fine until he told me it would cost 2000! Keeping in mind that it might just be worth it to get there and be done with it, I offered 1000, but he refused until I just said no thank you and walked away. At which point he begged me to let him take me for 1000, but I completely ignored him and kept walking. Yeah, I don’t do bargaining well . . . I mean I ALWAYS give a decent tip to drivers, but it really upsets me when I feel like they are trying to take advantage of me. So again, I took that as a sign to keep walking, and sure enough, I came upon a little stand selling the slider type sandals which I wanted for the low cost of only 1000 LKR ($3.38 USD).

Encouraged by my success with the sandals, I tried the PickMe app again at 9:53 AM. This time it worked, and I was on my way at 9:58 AM. When we arrived at 10:09 AM, the stated bill was 270 LKR, but I paid him 500 LKR ($1.69 USD). The driver at first thought I did not understand the correct price and kept trying to give me the change, but then I was able to explain to him that I was grateful for his honesty, but that I really did not want to give him something extra due to his excellent driving and great service. Thus, he earned a 46% tip, and we were both very happy with the transaction. Going up, I also saw that it while it would have been possible, the to reach the pagoda would have taken way longer than I wanted, and I would also have arrived rather worn out had I simply decided to walk the whole way. The pagoda itself was pleasant enough, as was the view from that general area.

I could have also gone down to a nice beach from there, but I had really only wanted to see the view from the spot before figuring out how to get to Mirissa. So, at 10:31 AM I started walking down to the main road where I had a vague idea that I would either try to get a taxi from there or if possible, maybe even just flag down a local bus. As I walked down, I reflected that if I were to return, I would probably not actually stay inside the fort. There would still be plenty to see, with even the possibility of going to walk around in the fort at night, and it would also be less expensive. It would have been possible to get a vehicle down to the main road, but I felt that I needed the exercise, and most of this road always had good shade where I could walk.

According to Google Maps (admittedly not always the best source of information) and a couple of other sites I had read online, near the road heading up to the Peace Pagoda from the main road, there would be a bus stop where I could wait for bus #350 heading to Mirissa. I however quickly realized that a flaw in my plan was that most of the buses either did not have numbers, or did not have numbers that I could read. Nevertheless, it all worked out since at 11:10 AM a random bus going by sort of slowed down a bit and when I called out Mirissa, the guy hanging out the door motioned that I should jump on, which I did without the bus ever actually having stopped. Once I had sat down, the same guy came to charge me 200 LKR ($0.68 USD) and even gave me an automatically printed little ticket from a machine on his belt. Looking at the route on Google Maps, it seemed that as long as we stayed on the main coastal road, we would get to Mirissa, but I resolved to look periodically just in case. The bus itself was clean, comfortable and not at all crowded. There was even a convenient rack to put my backpack.

It looked like it would be around 45 minutes until Mirissa, so I decided to get a head start checking how I would get back to Negombo on the 24th. Unfortunately, it appeared that there was no way to easily go directly from Mirissa with the times that I wanted, so I decided to go ahead and once more use 12Go to book an express bus back from Galle at 12 PM on the 24th. I had been pleased with their service before. This time, as I really wanted to make sure that there would be no issues with me getting back to Negombo before 5 PM on the 24th, I decided to pay a bit more and get “premium support” whatever that means. The cost for the bus back to Colombo had a cost of $8.98 USD, which I happily paid, remembering how well the company had handled things on my way here the day before. With a 12 PM departure on the 24th, it also meant that if all went well, I would be able to squeeze in early morning snorkeling with sea turtles in Mirissa on the same day.

It is kind of fun making travel decisions on the fly like this, but it is certainly not a luxury afforded to everyone. As we passed Welligama on Matara Road at 11:55 AM, I saw a really amazing huge tree which appeared to be growing right out of the ocean, but I unfortunately could not get a picture. In general, it was a rather scenic route, and with the windows open, it was perfectly comfortable in the bus. However, as my stop neared at 12:01 PM I started to become a bit unsure how I was supposed to signal that I wanted to stop. There were what appeared to be signal buttons on the roof, but nobody seemed to be using them, and the driver was definitely not stopping at all of “the stops” which appeared on the map.

Whether or not the button actually did anything, I pressed it at 12:05 PM, and one way or another the driver got the message, and I was off the bus almost immediately in front of my lodging in Mirissa at 12:07 PM. Similar, to the boarding process, it was more of a leaping off rather than a leisurely stop and step down, but I was used to that from travelling on local buses in much of Latin America. My initial impression of Isindu Sky Lodge was very positive, despite the less than stellar ratings on Tripadvisor. I was a bit nervous about noise from the street, since it I had a balcony facing the main road, but the room itself looked great.

After getting fully settled in, at 12:33 PM I decided to go try to find some food, as I had not eaten anything since my exorbitantly priced yet elegant “cream tea” of the previous day. As I stepped outside, I noticed that there was also a local school nearby, which had what appeared to be a large pool of stagnant water next to it. I hoped that it was something temporary which would drain very soon, as it would otherwise be a big mosquito risk for the students, and those who were staying nearby (including myself).

There seemed to be quite a few options for food, but after a short walk, at 12:50 PM I decided to give K40 Mirissa Restaurant a try. The place looked simple but pleasant, and I decided to order Rice and Fish Curry with Ambarella Juice.

I had already learned that unless getting a buffet, Sri Lankan restaurants appear to generally cook meals from scratch, so I was not surprised nor upset that it was not until 1:34 PM that my food arrived. The meal was tasty and also tasted great. When I paid and headed out at 2:23 PM, the bill was 2000 LKR ($6.84 USD).

Walking back towards the hotel, at 2:35 PM, I was a bit surprised to see these graves so close to the beach. My initial thought was that maybe they were from the tsunami of 2004, but I then decided that was probably wrong, since they seemed to have different dates, and the plot did not look particularly well cared for.

It was a bit hot out, so from 2:58 PM to 5:23 PM I stayed in my hotel room working on my travel blog. I thought it might have cooled down a bit, and I had also read that nearby parrot rock was the best place to see the sunset. As I reached the general recommended area at 5:38 PM, I saw that going up on the actual rock was not something that made sense for me with my shoes, and frankly also did not seem necessary. However, the beach itself was beautiful, and I resolved that as long as it was not an undue burden, I would make sunsets on the beach part of my routine for the rest of my days in Sri Lanka.

As I waited and watched, I noticed that despite having put on SPF sunblock on my face and neck in the morning, moving to the shade whenever possible and also always wear a sunhat, I clearly had quite a bit of red on my face and of course also my arms, where I had neglected to put any sunblock. I decided that I would need to be a bit more careful the next day, also putting sunblock on my arms and reapplying to my face and neck every three hours. I certainly did not want to have an unpleasant sunburn for my final days in Sri Lanka! As there were some clouds in the distance, I didn’t get to see the sun as it touched the water, but I did catch it in the final moment as it appeared to sink into the clouds at 5:50 PM.

I left the beach at 6:06 PM and walked a bit more until arriving at Maggie’s Roti Shop at 6:20 PM where upon the same being suggested by the server, I ordered Fish Devilled and Mango Juice. The food came out much quicker than I had expected, and I was finished at 7:00 PM. While I had “liked” the food, I did not find it to be fabulous. Notably, I had told them to please use a “normal/standard” amount of chili, since I was used to the same, but I did not find it to be spicy at all. The bill was 2400 LKR ($8.11 USD), and while I personally did not find this to be a huge amount, I was starting to wonder if this was how much average Sri Lankans would always pay when eating out. I had intentionally tried to find “simpler looking” places the last couple times I had eaten, and while this was definitely not expensive for a foreign tourist, based on what I knew of earnings in Sri Lanka, it seemed to me that it might seem quite expensive to common people. Of course, so far, I had always been eating in what I guess would be considered “tourist” places, so maybe that was the reason?

On my walk back to the hotel, I bought a small soft drink, a bottle of bottled water and a standard ice cream on a stick from a simple looking place, arriving back to the hotel room at 7:36 PM.

I had seen these “bakery rickshaws” a few times during the trip.

After showering and putting out clothes for the next day, I was in bed at 8:30 PM, since the following morning I was supposed to have a rather early pickup from the hotel, and I definitely did not want to miss the tour which I had planned. All in all, I felt that it had been a very successful Day 9 in Sri Lanka. A big part of my plan this second week had been to have more relaxation time, but I also had wanted to still see some interesting things along the way. What do you think? Would you have liked this first full day in southern Sri Lanka, or do you think I should have tried to do more? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 8 (21 December 2024)

Hi again everyone. I hope you have been enjoying finding out a bit more about Sri Lanka. So, as I think I had mentioned before, up until today I was on a pre-packaged tour deal with had been set up by Mai Global Travels. While I was mostly happy with the experiences which had been planned, I do actually think it was a bit more expensive than it needed to be, in particular since we were in a triple room throughout. However, maybe our driver Erik was getting paid very well . . .? if so, then I think it is okay, but I have my doubts about him getting even $100 USD a day. In addition to the $695 USD with each of us had paid . . .meaning it was right at $100 USD a night per person, at the end of the trip when all of our other expenses had been added up, I had spent 70994.50 LKR additional in total for the first seven nights, for an additional $242 USD. So, the cost per night had been $133 USD. The main advantage of the planned trip had been having Erik available to just take us around all over the place, and except for the time in Hatton, that had been especially useful. However, if you come with two weeks, I suspect you can spend that same amount, still have good food and more than acceptable lodging, and do everything which we had done in seven nights. Of course, that was all supposition, but I was going to find out a little of what it would be like to manage things on my own over the next few days.

After Dorothee and I had our last breakfast together at 8:30 AM, Erik arrived at 10:10 AM to take Dorothee to the airport, and we said our goodbyes at that time, with the three of us together leaving Erik with a tip of 30,000 LKR ($102.31 USD). I then used the PickMe app to get a rickshaw to the Makumbura transport hub on the outskirts of Colombo. The rickshaw picked me up at 10:21 AM, and we arrived quite early to the station at 11:05 AM. The cost of the ride had been 1100 LKR ($3.75 USD). The station was very clean, and while a bit busy, did not seem all that chaotic.

My bus was not actually scheduled until 1:00 PM, but I was supposed to meet my contact from 12Go at 12:45 PM and given that I wasn’t really sure how things worked here, I had decided that I would prefer to arrive very early and just wait at the station. Given that the station itself was perfectly comfortable, I thought this had been a good decision. From 11:15 AM to 12:15 PM I did Duolingo on my phone. Then looking around again, I reflected that I wasn’t really sure why I needed to have a contact from the booking agency, since it seemed that I should just be able to be told the gate number and go from there, but for whatever reason, this was the system they had put in place. I had been informed that I was supposed to meet the contact in front of the nearby Pizza Hut at 12:45 PM, so that is where I headed at 12:30 PM, right after I had paid 20 LKR ($0.07 USD) to use a very clean public restroom at the station.

I was getting a tiny bit nervous at 12:42 PM, but when I sent a message to the company via WhatsApp, they apologized and said that due to the high number of travellers today, the on the ground contact needed me to change spaces, going back to the station. There Ranga met me, apologized for the inconvenience and showed me a place to sit, while he said he would take finish taking care of everything and make sure that I got on the bus without any problems. As far as I can make out, in reality they do not actually have a “reserved seating” system on these buses. Rather, people just come, stand in line, and then get on the bus. The extra amount I had paid, had been in order to get someone to stand in the correct line for me, and then to assure that I actually got on the right bus. This really did seem like five-star treatment. Yes, there were a LOT of people waiting for the bus to Galle, but it didn’t appear to be a disaster. Still, the extra assistance was much appreciated, and given how little I had paid, it certainly seemed to be a bargain for me to not have to stress about anything.

At 1:25 PM I was in the very comfortable bus going to Galle. I seemed to be the only person who was obviously not South Asian, but that was perfectly fine. It appears that the “real cost” of the bus was only 780 LKR ($2.66 USD) but I had paid $8.76 USD at 12Go, which means that I had paid $6.10 USD for all the handholding, having someone put my bag below for me, not having to wait in line (which had certainly been a plus) and of course not having to find the correct bus line on my own. No doubt a local person would find this additional cost to be absurd, But I felt that this was a bargain, and still much cheaper and faster than the first-class train to Galle, which was the only option available when I had decided to book about a week before. Maybe I had missed out on some of the “authentic experience,” but I was perfectly happy with the peace of mind which had been bought with my six dollars.

At 1:36 PM I put on my audiobook and sat back to relax for the ride. A guy came through charging everyone else cash, since I seemed to be the only one to actually have a ticket ahead of time, but he didn’t even ask to see my ticket. Presumably, with the extra treatment I had paid for, he was clearly aware that I was the crazy foreigner who had paid 4 times more than necessary, but I was a happy foreigner, so that was just perfect for me. As we travelled, I noted that the highway was in excellent repair and the ride very smooth. Similarly, while the view from the bus window was not of the ocean, it was nice looking nature. At 2:58 PM we arrived right outside the front of Galle Fort, and I headed in walking to find my lodging for the night at Nisala Guest House, where I had booked 2 nights on Booking.com for a cost of $54 USD in total.

Upon arrival, I was greeted and offered a nice glass of passion fruit juice. After just a few minutes to drop off my things, I decided to go out and wander around Galle Fort while there was still daylight.

As luck would have it, at 5:18 PM there was an absurdly strong cloudburst, and the first place I could duck into was an extremely fancy hotel. I strongly suspect it may be the most expensive place in Galle. While the workers had not pressured me to buy anything, I felt a bit guilty just sitting in their lobby waiting for the heavy rain to stop, so I went ahead and asked for a menu and ended up ordering “afternoon cream tea” for a cost of 5200 LKR ($17.78 USD). This consisted of two scones, clotted cream, delicious jam and of course very good black tea. It was by far the most expensive thing I had eaten so far in Sri Lanka, but I really did have to admit that the place was extremely elegant and the service outstanding.

As it was still raining, and I also wanted to further justify the cost of the “cream tea,” I stayed there until 6:46 PM. The rain was a bit less than it had been, but it continued coming down, and I still had no umbrella, not that an umbrella would have done much with the initial heavy rain. Still, the whole point of staying in Galle Fort had been to have access to the evening shops, cafes, etc . . . so I decided to go out and try walking a bit more. I did have the opportunity to briefly see the rather picturesque Dutch Reformed Church at 6:56 PM.

Unfortunately, very soon after that, it started raining quite heavily once again, and I took refuge under the awning of a clothing shop. Then much to my surprise, even though I had not gone into the store, the shopkeeper kindly offered me a chair to sit on at 7:20 PM. One hour later, the rain was still coming down quite heavily, and I was still in the same chair. It was then that I started to reevaluate whether or not Galle was a good place for me to spend two nights. It was all very beautiful etc . . . and no doubt I would have enjoyed it even more with a companion or two, but the whole point of coming to Galle Fort was supposed to be wandering around the streets at night. Whether or not the forecast was accurate (Who could say?), but when I checked, heavy rains were also projected for the following evening. Thus, at 9:20 PM, still in my same hiding place outside the shop, I decided that I would instead go to Mirissa the next day, booking a whale watching tour via GetYourGuide on December 23rd for a cost of $67.32 USD. This meant that I would “lose” $27 USD for the unused night at the hotel in Galle, but if it was just going to be raining like this again in the evening, I was fine with that.

At 9:25 PM, despite the rain which was still relatively heavy, I decided that I had better try to get back to my lodging or risk spending the entire night in the same chair. Dodging under different awnings etc . . . I was able to get back to the homestay at 9:37 PM, take a shower and hang my clothes to dry, and then get in bed at 10:04 PM. In conclusion, that was my first solo night in Sri Lanka. While things had not gone exactly as planned, I had at least been able to see a bit of Galle Fort, and I acknowledged that it really was something which I was glad that I had at least made an effort to explore. The rain had been a bit annoying, but the weather is going to do what it is going to do. I reasoned that even if it were to be raining a lot in Mirissa, at least I would still be able to do the whale watching tour, and if things went well, I might even be able to squeeze in snorkeling with sea turtles. Of course, for the most part I was just trying to take things as they came and just enjoy a few days of relaxation.

Do you have any guesses about how things went for the following days? Or do you think it is best to just wait and see? Let me know what you think in the comments section below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 7 (20 December 2024)

Hey there virtual travellers, jumping right into Day 7, in the morning we had a breakfast at the hotel at 8:30 AM and then were picked up by Erik at 9:40 AM.

We made a stop at 9:57 AM to wander around Independence Square in Colombo 7, but were quickly back in the car after around 25 minutes.

Having spent around 25 minutes wandering around, we then took a short trip in the van to get to Gangaramaya temple at 10:31 AM. The cost of entry was 400 LKR ($1.36 USD) per person. Again, we of course had to take our shoes off. Note, if wearing socks, it is better to also take socks off since throughout many of these temples there will be damp rugs which I think are meant to help keep things a bit cooler. As we walked around, I once more noted that they are definitely not shy about displaying ivory tusks here, at least not in a religious context.

At 11:03 AM I was thinking to myself that it was very odd (for me at least) the way they had so many random old items mixed in with obvious religious symbols. I wondered if anyone had done any work to actually catalogue and study the items, since it seemed that quite a bit of history could be gleaned from some of them. While this perhaps reads as unkind, at times I sort of felt like this was just a dumping ground for stuff when someone’s grandparents died. No doubt many, if not most of the donations on display had been made with true devotion, but others really just seemed rather haphazard.

At 11:13 AM I especially wondered what the significance of clocks and watches was. There were so many there, many of them obviously just cheap LCD watches, and there was no obvious attempt to display them in any sort of a nice way.

Extra points for anyone who notices the item in the upper right-hand corner of this picture.

From there we walked to another nearby religious site (yep, shoes off again despite it being in the direct sunlight), this one being on one of Sri Lanka’s approximately 34,500 manmade lakes.

At 11:37 AM we were back in the vehicle headed over to a different area of the city where we arrived at 11:53 AM. There they had a very interesting mosque which is open to be viewed by tourists, but not until 4:00 PM, so we missed that. Still, the general area around there was nice, and I thought it might be good to wander around there a bit more.

Then at 12:17 PM we went into a very fancy looking “ayurvedic” skin care shop where Laurianne seemed to be in her element. Although I did not want to buy anything, it certainly was pretty inside.

A short walk from there we arrived at a pleasant seafood restaurant at 12:54 PM.

The bill at the restaurant was 14000 LKR ($47.74 USD) and a short trip later, Dorothee and I were left at Barefoot to do some shopping (meaning Dorothee would buy, and I would wander around) at 2:30 PM and Erik took Laurianne back to the hotel before heading to the airport for her flight back to Shanghai. I was sorry to see Laurianne, as I really did feel that she had become a nice friend during our time travelling together . . .

There actually was quite a bit to see at Barefoot, and we even had a couple of simple drinks in the cafe for a cost of 1400 LKR ($4.77 USD) for the two of us. We stayed there until 4:07 PM and then I got a PickMe rickshaw for 400 LKR ($1.36 USD) which left us at the hotel at 4:20 PM. We rested briefly, and then I convinced Dorothee to go out for an evening walk from 5:11 PM to 7:25 PM. For one direction we stayed on the beach, but on the way back we walked along the street, since there were no lights on the beach. I think it was a bit more than Dorothee had bargained for, but she was a good sport about the whole thing.

Having already been out much of the day, Dorothee and I decided to have our final dinner together in the hotel restaurant at 8:40 PM, and that was the end of Day 7.

Dorothee would be leaving the next morning, but I had decided to stay on in Sri Lanka on my own for another week. While it had not been the sort of travel which I would have normally chosen to do on my own, I will admit that it had been nice to change things up a bit. Certainly, it had been pleasant sharing with Dorothee in a non-work setting and also getting to start to make friends with Laurianne. On a separate note, earlier in the evening I had booked a bus ticket to Galle with 12Go, but I was a bit uncertain as to how well it was all actually going to work out. Of course, if you want to know what happened, you will just have to keep reading when Day 8 comes out.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 6 (19 December 2024)

Hey there everyone, considering how I had kept you hanging while I finished by entries about the trip to Beijing, if you have actually kept up with reading all of these entries about Sri Lanka, then you are definitely to be congratulated for your stamina. Anyway, I will just jump straight ahead into Day 6.

I think we were all awake no later than 7:00 AM, but Laurianne got up much earlier and even saw the sunrise. However, as there was no rush to do anything, I stayed in bed until 7:40 AM, then having a light breakfast at the hotel before departing in the van with Erik at 9:38 AM. From there, it was a relatively short trip to Tea Castle St Clair where we arrived at 9:58 AM.

While I can’t say that I am particularly interested in the topic, I was still very impressed with the crazy variety of teas. However, for someone who is really into it, I wonder if this would have been seen as a “cheap” tourist attraction or as something which was really special. For instance, what would Beth Johns’ mom have thought? I wonder.

Then at 10:18 AM we had a special tea presentation in which we learned (or at any rate heard) about the general characteristics of different types of tea. Evidently white tea, in general terms, is considered “the fanciest” but she also said that green tea was very special. One thing that distinguishes white tea is that there is no fermentation process. Honestly, for me, the white tea was so mild that I could have believed I was just drinking oddly flavored water; I guess I’m not very cultured. The only one that I categorically did NOT like was the gunpowder tea . . . the name gives a bit of a hint as to why.

Many of these places would have been displeased had I been visiting by myself, but Dorothee and Laurianne made up for my lack of purchases.

As far as the plants go, I was interested to learn that every 12 months, they completely cut away all of the green, leaving only the wood, but then the green grows back and they once again harvest the tea leaves.

We left around 10:45 AM but then stopped at a lookout spot to see Devon Falls in the distance at 10:58 AM. Evidently it is possible to take a trail up close to the waterfalls, but most people just stop where we did and look from a distance.

We were only there for a couple of minutes before driving on a bit more to stop at the viewpoint to see St Clair’s Falls at 11:02 AM.

Again, it was all very beautiful, but after looking around for a few minutes we were all ready to move on, and that is what we did at 11:09 AM, with the next stop being Christ Church Warleigh where we arrived at 11:48 AM. This really was incredibly charming, both inside and out, but there were no pictures allowed inside.

This is still a fully functioning church for the nearby community, and I thought it would be quite nice to go there for a service. However, despite all of its charm, there wasn’t a huge amount to see once one had walked around a couple of times. Shortly thereafter we were off once again to see if we could visit the dam, but it was evidently not possible that day. So, we just stopped to take a couple more pictures at 12:20 PM before getting back in the vehicle again at 12:23 PM.

Believe it or not, that was the only thing that was scheduled today, which was a bit of a shock as we started heading back to the hotel for our last night in Hatton. We had some discussion of things to possibly do . . . certainly at some point we would get lunch? The most interesting idea on the table was to go to the city/town of Hatton and just wander up and down the streets for a bit, but there was nothing of known note to do there. Then at 12:47 PM we made the decision to just leave right then and have an extra night in Colombo rather than spending two nights in Hatton. This would mean that we would “lose” the night already paid in Hatton and also would have to pay an additional night in Colombo, but it seemed worth it. Even Erik said he had never understood why we were scheduled for two nights in Hatton.

Yes, it was very pretty in Hatton, and for me at least the temperature was perfect, but it was also a bit boring, especially when thinking how there was so much to see and do in Colombo. While this might seem like a glitch or a downside of the trip, it is actually really liberating to make a decision like this. That’s another bit of my travel wisdom; when following an itinerary, even if you have already paid for something, it really is okay to change your mind and do something else instead. We were back at the hotel to gather our things at 1:18 PM, and thankfully my laundry which I had left to be washed the day before for a cost of 1000 LKR ($3.41 USD) was mostly dry. I put the lightly damp socks aside in my lightweight, cloth laundry bag as we got in the van once again at 1:44 PM and headed to Colombo. This time I switched things up a bit and decided to sit in the front passenger seat.

We stopped at 2:52 PM at a place I think called The Bridge Restaurant for lunch. It certainly had a beautiful view from the balcony, and there was even a live guitarist/singer. Frankly, he did not play/sing very well, but he was trying to entertain. The food also was also not particularly impressive, but more than adequate. However, the view and the general setting was very nice. The total cost of the buffet for all of us was 10500 LKR ($35.81 USD). We left there at 3:46 PM, with me once more riding in front with Erik.

As we continued on our way to Colombo, I noted that the seat in front was not quite as comfortable as in the back, but the improved view really did make my general trip more pleasant, which was important, because it was not until 6:57 PM that we finally arrived at our lodging for the evening, Sayura House.

Wanting to take advantage of our last evening in which all three of us would be together, at 7:29 PM we were out walking and went to the highly recommended Barracuda club which was nearby. There was a live band which sounded okay, but we found it too loud; although, we appreciated the background music as we sat out on the beach having our various snacks and drinks. We definitely made the most of our last night out together, and the final bill of 30,000 LKR ($102.31 USD) reflected the same. While that does seem like a lot of money, we had a very nice time, and it was not until 11: 30 PM that we headed back to the hotel for the night, so I think it was worth it.

So, things had clearly not gone exactly as originally had been planned, but I think that it was still a very good Day 6 of our trip. I was also VERY happy that we had traveled all of those hours on a day in which we otherwise would not really have been able “to do anything” in the afternoon, as that meant we would be able to take better advantage of the next day in Colombo before Laurianne would have to take an early evening flight back to Shanghai. What do you think? Did we make the right decision? Would you have just stayed another night in Hatton even though there really wasn’t anything more to do? Have you ever changed your travel plans like this on the spur of the moment? If so, how did it go for you? If you have answers to any of these questions you would like to share, or maybe you have some of your own questions, you can put all of that right there in the comments section below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 5 (18 December 2024)

Hey there everyone. So having really pushed myself to write two of these entries yesterday, I was tempted to let today slide and not do any, but then I remembered that the Sri Lanka trip was 14 days long and that once I am back at work, I will probably not even be able to finish one entry a day. Those of you have been reading along will have noticed that the pace of the last couple of days was intense. Once more, not having actually checked the agenda for today, I was wondering just how much longer we would keep up with this pace. I mean it had been amazing so far, but it was just so much in such a short time . . .

Anyway, we were up at 7:15 AM and had a quick breakfast at the same hotel as last night. Dorothee and Laurianne had the “western breakfast”, but I chose the Sri Lankan breakfast. We all agreed that the food was alright, and then we were in the van once again at 8:18 AM.

While the lodging had been pretty, I think it would have actually been better to not be so far from the actual city. Certainly, were I to visit here again, that is a change I would make. Shortly after we departed, at 8:58 AM we were already outside the Royal Botanical Gardens. We paid 3540 LKR ($12.00 USD) each for our entry fee, plus an additional 1000 LKR ($3.39 USD) for the buggy rental and the “sort of guide”.

This place was actually far nicer than I had thought it would be. And once again, there were so many fun facts. To begin with, this is definitely not a “natural” garden. They have lots of types of different collections of plants: grass, bamboo, agave, palm trees, etc . . . There are 200 different types just of palm trees in the garden! I did not ask about the size of the place, but it is huge, but amazingly there are only 130 workers total who manage everything: administration, gardening, cleaning, etc . . .

Yes, it is a collection of different types of grass . . .

Whenever there are pine trees with slanted trunks, at least like the ones here, it is because termites have eaten more of one side of the roots.

At 9:33 AM we came upon this area which is of different trees planted by various visiting dignitaries and heads of state over the years. While it wasn’t quite as pretty as some of the other sections of the garden, I thought it was a very nice way to note the history of many important visitors.

Evidently this is a good place to work, as the buggy driver said that he had been working there for twenty years. At 9:57 AM we came upon the topiary section.

Since we were zipping around in the buggy (basically an electric golf cart) we didn’t closely see many things, and there was a lot of stuff that I was not able to write down before we were on to the next section. So you will forgive me when I simply say that I also saw this neat looking tree . . . no further information available 😕.

At 10:00 AM we were at the orchid house, which is supposed to be one of the main points of pride for the park, but I guess we were not overly impressed, since by 10:08 AM we were back in the buggy once again.

Then, almost immediately after we left the orchid house, we were out the gates and again getting back in the vehicle with Erik at 10:13 AM. As I have mentioned earlier during this Sri Lanka trip, most everywhere only accepts cash, and places that accept cards usually charge a 3% surcharge. With that in mind, Laurianne was starting to feel in a bit of a bind, even though both Dorothee and I said that we could manage the cash expenses for the rest of the trip, since as frequently happens when travelling, her bank had put a freeze on her bank card. The day before she had called her bank and over the phone explained to her that YES, it really was her, so she was hoping that she would be able to get money out of the next ATM we encountered.

As luck would have it, she had no problems that time getting cash. However, it highlights a regular problem with travelling abroad. It’s generally not a good idea to depend on a single payment method, especially when travelling by oneself. Traveler’s checks used to be a reliable fallback, but these days I suggest always having cards from at least two different banks and a minimum of $100 USD with you at all times when travelling. As a further backup, always make sure to have a way you can easily contact family members should you be robbed or just somehow lose your valuables. So, on that cautionary note, at 10:40 AM we were at a very picturesque train station which is still in regular use.

I found it a bit odd that we were going to take a train and then meet Erik at our arrival point. This of course meant that going by road would be faster than train, and we already had a perfectly good van and excellent driver. However, this was evidently all part of the plan. Anyway, at 11:42 AM we were on our third class reserved train and in our seats. I have to say, it was way nicer than I would have expected for “third class”. But the seats did start to feel rather uncomfortable by the time we arrived in Hatton at 1:53 PM.

Evidently taking a second or third class reserved train ride is one of those “must do” things in Sri Lanka. Don’t get me wrong; it was pretty, but I felt that we actually wasted quite a bit of time. Would I do it again if I had plenty of time to spare and it wasn’t difficult to get tickets (evidently it is difficult to get reserved tickets), probably I would at least consider it. However, if road travel is faster and even cheaper, then maybe you can just skip the train. There are plenty of beautiful places all along the roads of Sri Lanka. Still, as I said, at 1:53 PM we arrived at Hatton, where Erik was waiting for us. We were finally able to mail the postcards which Laurianne and Dorothee had been carrying around for several days, and then we looked for a place to eat. While I was a bit horrified that we chose an Indian restaurant, I knew that for Laurianne it might be something special/different, and I have to admit that the food actually wasn’t bad. For the three of us, it was 6150 LKR ($20.93 USD) including some very pleasant fruit juices.

At 2:45 PM we were back in the van, now headed up to our lodging for the evening. Then at 3:05 PM we pulled up outside one of the most beautiful places I have ever stayed, The Argyle. I mean this place was proper fancy. They met us with hot towels and asked to sit in elegant chairs while they managed the check-in process and brought us some delightful welcome drinks. I mean wow, it was just too good to be true.

And like I said, it wasn’t true . . . Erik had made a big mistake and brought us to the wrong place. We were not actually registered there, but rather at the Grand Argyle. Still though, the workers were incredibly polite and even apologized that it had taken so long for our welcome drinks to arrive, which they insisted that we still have before we left. Still, I reasoned if that was the Argyle, and we were going to the GRAND Argyle, then our place was going to be a veritable palace! Thus, we got back in the vehicle and continued further up the mountain.

As you have no doubt already guessed, when we pulled into The Grand Argyle at 3:28 PM we couldn’t help but be a bit disappointed. To be fair, if we had never seen the first place, then we would certainly not have thought anything negative about the second place, except for the fact that it was literally in the middle of nowhere, but it was impossible to not make comparisons.

Left with nothing else to do but walk around or use electronics, at 3:53 PM we went out walking. Dorothee and Laurianne were keen on walking through a tea plantation (evidently, it’s a thing?) but I thought I would be happier just walking along the road. It turned out that the tea plantation walk had not been all that fulfilling, as shortly thereafter I came across Laurianne and Dorothee on a different area of the road, and we all walked around together until 5:04 PM when the two of them decided to just go into the hotel again, but I wanted to see a bit more if possible before it got dark.

I was actually a bit sorry for them that they did not continue on with me, since I found some other interesting sites which were also particularly beautiful with the setting sun.

I even got to see a local religious procession of some sort.

Still, it was quickly getting dark, and I definitely did not want to get lost out here on my own, so I took care to be back to the hotel at 5:51 PM. Dorothee was reading a book and Laurianne was taking care of some work, so I decided to follow Laurianne’s example and work on my pending blog entries from my October trip to Beijing. It was time well spent, and by 7:34 PM I had finished, edited and posted Day 3 of the Beijing trip. I was also quite happy about the chilly air, but Laurianne and Dorothee needed to break out sweatshirts and cooler weather gear. At 7:40 PM dinner was served.

They really did do a wonderful job of presenting the dinner, and we had a nice time sharing with one another until 9:08 PM when we decided to turn in for the evening. Certainly, I could not deny that it was a very peaceful and beautiful setting in nature. However, I wondered how we were going to fill up the next day, since we were scheduled to spend two nights here. Maybe the town was actually closer than it seemed, and we could simply take some time to do some exploration there the next day? Again, I could have just looked at the itinerary to know what was scheduled, but I hadn’t looked yet, so also saw no reason to start doing it now.

Yes, this was a very different day from the last few days of the trip, but I reasoned that maybe that was a good thing. Sometimes it is good to just reconnect a bit in nature. However, even that seemed sort of limited here. Regardless, I am sure that we were going to figure out a way to make it work for Day 6. Of course, if you want to find out, then you will need to keep reading. Thanks again for following along with my travels and do let me know if you have any questions about anything I mentioned today.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 4 (17 December 2024)

Hi there readers. What have you thought about Sri Lanka so far? Has it been living up to your expectations, or did you think it would be a different experience? Is there anything in particular you hope to see in the days to come? While I am not at all certain that I will be able to deliver a trip that goes along with any preconceived notions you may have had, I do promise to give a faithful retelling of what I saw, thought and felt along the way.

Keeping that in mind, our 7:30 AM breakfast was uninspiring, and I couldn’t be bothered to take any pictures. However, I appreciated that Laurianne shared some of her nice pour over Colombian coffee packets which she had brought along and then prepared for us herself. The departure from the homestay, for which Laurianne and I at least were happy to leave, was at 8:30 AM. Eric, our driver, told us that it would be 20 minutes for us to get to our first stop. His timing was a bit off, but at 9:05 AM we were at another temple with a lot of stairs, with a cost of 2000 LKR ($6.84 USD) for us to be able to go up. The stairs themselves were not that terrible, and by 9:17 PM we were already at the place where you probably already guessed, we would once more have to take off our shoes. However, unlike where we had been yesterday, there was a whole system for keeping the shoes safe while one entered the religious site.

At 9:23 AM we were in the first hall of Buddhas. While this site was mostly Buddhist, there was also some mixing, since some Hindu gods were also displayed.

There were a few different rooms. In some of them the statues were carved directly out of the rock, but in others there were carved statues, some even of wood which had been brought in from outside. On a separate note, when I asked, our driver/guide said that special allowances were made for actual worshippers who were in wheelchairs etc . . . so that they would have access to the temple. The last cave, which was also the furthest from the entry was the newest one. It had actually been made by the local village chief, so that his people from the area would also have access to the worship site.

Okay, so here are some other tidbits. The place where we were visiting was called the Dambulla cave temple. Like every other historic religious site around here, basically everything has some symbolic meaning which I of course did not understand. The first reclining Buddha seen when one enters from the stairs is from about 2000 years ago, with each area afterwards being a bit newer. Then right about as the drum started at 9:57 AM to indicate that we had to start leaving, I learned my favorite fun fact for the day. The dome shape of the Buddhist stupas is based on the shape of the Bo tree leaf, and how it looks when it is folded in half. These, trees, under which it is said that the Buddha meditated, are considered holy throughout all of Sri Lanka.

Incidentally, it is possible to hire an official temple guide for 750 LKR ($2.57 USD), which I most certainly would have done had I been on my own. When we went to get our shoes, we paid a 100 LKR ($0.34 USD) shoe care fee. My feet were very gritty at 10:05 AM when I was cleaning them before putting on my shoes and socks to walk back down, but the wet wipes in my shoulder bag helped get them clean. Then we headed back down the stairs where we arrived at the car park at 10:15 AM and then entered the van. Up until now, the day had been very overcast, but it had not been raining.

Our next step along the way was at a 10:53 AM; it was an herb and spice garden and of course shop. We had a bit of a tour, learning some facts and all sorts of supposed healing properties of different herbs and spices. While I did not believe much of what the guide said, I thought he did a very good job of making the whole experience quite interesting.

Some fun facts learned were the following. One of the reasons that Vanilla is so expensive is that most of it is artificially pollinated. The self-defense spray Mace is an extract from Nutmeg. There are more than 500 types of Aloe Vera. There are two types of Sandalwood, I think one is red, and the other is yellow. Turmeric is frequently used for preserving food, similar to salt, and Clover powder used to be commonly used to clean teeth. Once we were up to the hut area, he made the most of his marketing spiel to explain how these different mixed creams and oils can cure/fix everything one can imagine, and as part of the sales pitch smeared creams and oils on Dorothee and Laurianne, but I politely declined all of that. I did however enjoy smelling some of the essences.

I had no intention of buying any of the stuff in the shop, but I had been entertained by the guide, so when he left us at the shop at 12:06 PM, Laurianne and I each gave him a 1000 ($3.42 USD) LKR tip. Dorothee and Laurianne then did a bit of shopping in the store, with us then once again in the van at 12:20 PM.

The road to Kandy had a lot of twists and turns, and I was starting to get a bit nauseous, so when Dorothee expressed interest in getting out and looking around a bit at the Kandy War Cemetary from WWII at 2:01 PM, I was good with getting out to at least not be in the vehicle for a few minutes. I was very impressed with how well the cemetery was maintained. It was also interesting, because I had never really thought about Sri Lanka having been involved in the second world war.

However, our visit was brief before we were back in the vehicle and then we stopped at Oak Ray Regency Hotel at 2:26 PM to get a buffet lunch. The setting of the restaurant was beautiful, but the food was average at best.

The cost of the buffet for the three of us was again 10500 LKR ($35.81 USD) and we were once more on our way 3:00 PM, arriving to a parking spot in the center of Kandy at 3:24 PM. We had just one hour to explore a bit before meeting Erik for the next item on the agenda.

When we met back up with Erik at 4:30 PM, he told us that Kandy has approximately 35,000 lakes, and 99% of them are manmade, including the main one we had seen there in Kandy. At 4:43 PM we were at the folkloric dance place, where we had to pay 2000 LKR ($6.82 USD) each.

As we were leaving the dance hall at 6:09 PM I had to admit that I really had been very entertained. Of course, I have no idea if they were really “dancing correctly” or if they were doing anything “authentic”, but there is no doubt that they were trying their best, and for the most part there was never a dull moment. Finally, the whole fire walking etc . . . stuff at the end was a bit over the top, but what a way to end the show!

We had to rush from the dance place to the nearby Buddha tooth temple where we arrived at 6:15 PM and each paid 2000 LKR ($6.82 USD) to enter. Of course, this was another no shoes place. We went all over the place in there, and at times I was a bit anxious with the press of people. Special thanks to Laurianne, as she could tell that I was freaking out a bit about it and took some extra pains to calm me down and also prevent too many people from constantly pushing me from all sides. The first thing that struck me as I entered was that these people were definitely not shy about displaying elephant tusks, at least not in a religious setting. There was some sort of a religious ceremony going on related to the tooth of the Buddha relic which supposedly is located here.

At 6:58 PM we were outside for a few moments. And I was glad of that. We saw the preserved body of Raja the Tusker and then I stayed outside while Dorothee and Laurianne lit some oil lanterns in a glass enclosed space. Honestly, I was just happy to have a break from so many people and so much noise from the inside of the temple.

The temple was all very impressive, and I might even be interested in going back to see it again, but not when there are so many people. At 7:13 PM we were out and getting our shoes. With my “baby feet” all of that walking around barefoot, especially outside, had also been a bit tough. At 7:22 PM we were back in the vehicle and going very high up the mountain to Mount Blue Kandy, where we would be spending just one night. We arrived at 7:38 PM. No doubt the view would have been impressive, but it was very overcast with the recurrent rain. We had dinner at and then more or less went straight to bed. The room was nice as was the food, but arriving so late, we didn’t really get to appreciate it much.

It did not actually look this bright. This was using night sight on my Google Pixel camera. In reality, it all just looked pitch black with a few dots of light.

This is what it actually looked like from the balcony without using night sight.

We finished our food at 9:45 PM and went straight to bed. And once again, WOW! That had been a very packed day! We saw and did so many things, that it wasn’t until I was looking back over my notes and pictures that I realized just how much had been fit into a single day of travel. Do you think it was too much for a single day, or is that the way you like to travel? What part was your favorite? Was there anything that you think you would have skipped? Anyway, as always, thanks for reading along and let me know your thoughts and questions in the comment section below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 3 (16 December 2024)

Hi folks. I hope things are going well for you today. Continuing with the trend of recent days, I am going to try to turn out another one of these blog entries. In fact, today I may even try to do two! Let’s see how that works out.

So, you will remember that Day 2 was in Sigiriya, and we would be continuing there for Day 3. Neither Laurianne nor I had slept especially well, but Laurianne had been even more uncomfortable. Dorothee, who had slept the best of the three, was ironically also the one who seemed to be coming down with a cold. Regardless, we were all looking forward to our Day 3 adventure which started with breakfast at 7:30 AM. We then departed at 8:24 AM, making a quick stop at 9:29 AM where I bought some natural mosquito repellant, and also attempted to find some simple sports sandals, but there was no luck with the footwear. After just 6 minutes, we were back in the vehicle and then arrived at the Ancient City of Polonnaruva at 9:50 AM. Admission was $30 USD each for non-SAARC citizens.

It was raining for most of the visit, but Erik had extra umbrellas available for us. Erik, who was also acting as “our guide” was certainly an outstanding driver and general chaperone, but not particularly helpful as “a guide”. To be fair, he was probably doing the “guide part” as an extra, but in particular when visiting an ancient archeological site, it really does help A LOT to have someone who really knows what they are talking about. He did however at least know to point out to us that even in the 12th century, they had indoor toilets in this ancient city, which is a rather remarkable feature, if not perhaps incredibly picture worthy.

For me, one of the additional annoyances of this visit was that I only had brought one pair of shoes on the trip, and while they were great for walking long distances in a variety of conditions, they were not ideal for rainy weather, and especially not ideal for a place with tons of ancient temples where they wanted you to take your shoes off to enter. That was why I had earlier been trying to find a simple pair of sandals to change into. Also, as pretty much all the “temples” were open air, that meant that one would be walking barefoot through water and there was also no covered place to keep shoes to keep them dry while it was raining.

Having read other recounts of trips here, it seems that being here on a rainy day had its pluses, since it can also be incredibly hot, with scalding rocks to walk across when it is sunny. So, on balance, it is probably better to visit here when it is overcast, but not raining, if you can somehow manage to perfectly find that combination. Given that I only had the one pair of shoes to get me through two weeks, I opted to simply not enter any of the temples . . . which I guess in some ways was a bit of a letdown, but certainly better than having soggy hiking shoes for the next several days. So, any of the pictures from inside the temples (think Buddhist statues) were taken by either Laurianne or Dorothee.

At 11:08 we came upon this huge “stone book”. One of the big things about this site was that it supposedly once had either a tooth, or the teeth of Buddha.

It was rather impressive that after all these years the writing appeared to still be completely legible.

At 11:18 AM it had mostly stopped raining, and we arrived at what I think was the main Stupa of the site. While Laurianne, Dorothee and Erik walked inside, I walked around the perimeter and appreciated the details of the wall and the apparently still functioning drain system. While walking around, I saw that there appeared to be modern Buddha sculptures at every entrance except for the main one.

At 11:47 AM we arrived to yet another area where people were supposed to take their shoes off. There were carvings directly in the rock, similar to what can be seen in the carved caverns in the national park in Mumbai, but at a much smaller scale. Still, I do think that I would have sort of liked to enter this one, but it was just too complicated with my shoes, and the carving could at least be well seen from a distance, at least of the large Buddha.

We weren’t there long, and then at 11:59 AM arrived at the monastery complex. A friend of Erik who was along, showed me a super-secret side entrance where for some reason I was allowed to go with shoes, so there I saw most of what Dorothee and Laurianne also saw. Here there were a couple of things which drew my attention. The first was the recurring theme of the crocodile mouths for the drains. The second was how there were tiny little chubby men carved on a lot of the walls. This was the first time I could remember seeing that type of stylized human carvings on ancient architecture in this part of the world.

Another general characteristic which I kept noticing was the mixed use of brick and stone throughout the archeological site. Anyway, there was clearly a LOT more to see here, but we were also clearly only seeing the “trophy sites” since we would have needed a more insightful guide to appreciate anything else. Furthermore, it’s true that no matter how good your guide is, one can usually only handle a very limited amount of temples/churches/archeology/art in a single day.

Thus, by 12:22 PM we were back in the vehicle and heading to our lunch buffet spot, where we arrived at 12:30 PM. Of all the places we ate while travelling together, I think that this was my favorite. The hostesses did a wonderful job of explaining us a bit about the different foods; the presentation was of the food items was delightful, and it was also quite tasty. Lunch for the three of us was 10500 LKR ($35.92 USD).

On the way out, we also used the bathroom, which was simple, but once again spotlessly clean. We were back in the van at 1:30 PM headed to the safari place. I was keeping my expectations low, since my previous “safaris” have been less than super. But then I started revising expectations when right on the regular road we saw an authentic wild elephant!

At 2:23 PM we quickly left the van and entered our safari jeep, which was just for the three of us, where we paid 10500 LKR ($35.92 USD) each and the actual “safari experience began”. These are evidently 100% wild elephants which have never been domesticated nor held in captivity. On a daily basis, each adult elephant eats between 200 and 250 kg of grass, and under “normal” conditions, they can expect to live 80 years. Whenever there is a group of elephants together, they are all female, since adult male elephants apparently live mostly solitary lives except for their mating season. On a separate note, I later on read that this belief about “solitary male elephants” may not be completely true, but the information I read was all about African elephants, so maybe the same is not true of Asian elephants?

We actually saw a couple of different small herds, and then at 3:40 PM they stopped where there was a sort of large rock, and Dorothee and I walked up to see what could be seen while Laurianne opted to stay back in the jeep.

At 4:09 PM we were back in the jeep, and I figured that we were pretty much done with elephants for the day, but that was definitely not the case. At 4:16 PM we saw a mother and calf together, and we were particularly impressed at how they were “cleaning” the grass before eating it.

Around about 4:24 PM I was really starting to notice the orange spots on the ears and trunks of many of the elephants. When seeing those once before with my friend Elisabet during a show at Elephantastic in Phuket, she posited that these spots were the result of “abuse” by the elephant trainers. However, the guide on this safari said that these were just normal “age spots” . . . generally the more spots, the older an elephant is, similar to the sorts of spots many humans get on their hands and arms as they get older.

As you have no doubt noticed, pretty much the only animals we saw were elephants, but some of this may have been due to the continual light rain, which evidently elephants like quite a bit, but other animals not as much. Yes, it was really amazing to be so close to wild elephants, but at 4:30 PM we started to head out and by 4:36 PM we were once more back in the van and headed back to the homestay, where we arrived at 5:35 PM. The kindest thing to say about our dinner of fried rice was that it was lackluster, and unsurprisingly, the shower once more was not working properly. However, we did share a nice lager which Dorothee had picked up at some point. Not having anything else to do, at 8:55 PM we were in bed.

This stray puppy was clearly trying to get Dorothee to take it home, and I think it might have had a chance had we not been in another country.

So, what did you think of Day 3. I could have included about 300 more pictures/videos of elephants as well as another 50 or temples, but I think those included here were enough for you to get the idea. Given that I had not actually read any part of the itinerary, like you, I was quite curious about what we might see/do on Day 4. Anyway, as always, thanks for reading along, and don’t hesitate to leave your questions and comments in the section indicated below.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 2 (15 December 2024)

Hi everyone and Happy New Year! For those of you who were out having fun last night, I hope you are also feeling good today. For those of you who went to bed early last night like me, and those who didn’t, I hope that regardless of how you spent New Year’s Eve, you will find plenty of joy in the year ahead.

So, Day 2 in Sri Lanka started at 7:26 AM with a standard rite of passage for arranged tours, the breakfast buffet. Similarly, buffet lunches and buffet dinners are also quite common when travelling on a planned trip like this. While part of me wants to trash on buffets in general, to begin with, where does all the uneaten food go? These tend to be good ways to quickly feed a diverse set of travellers, and sometimes serve as ways to introduce us to foods that we otherwise would not have tried.

Erik then picked us up in our ridiculously large van at 8:30 AM, and we were off to see some of the local sites. We had some doubts about the fish market where we arrived at 8:40 AM, but it turned out to be far more interesting than I would have guessed.

While not an absolutely full proof deterrent, the salting process before the fish are left to dry in the sun keeps all but the most determined birds away, as they have evidently learned that at least by bird standards, these are not conveniently served tasty morsels to be quickly snatched up and carried away. This is evidently the way most Sri Lankans have traditionally stored fish before refrigeration became widely available, and it continues to be fairly popular for its convenience. I was pleased to see this, since it affords these artisanal fisherfolk a way to continue to have a livelihood. However, for those wanting fresh fish, that was also possible, and there seemed to be some birds on the lookout for those as well.

However, as we were not actually in the market to buy anything, at 9:02 AM we walked nearby to the remnants of a Dutch fort. As I have found is frequently the case in South and Southeast Asia, despite its “protected monument” status, nobody actually seemed all that interested in really preserving it.

Either within the area of the fort, or perhaps just in the immediate vicinity, at 9:08 AM we checked out St. Stephens Anglican Church, but no pictures were permitted inside. While it was tasteful looking inside, I honestly did not feel that they needed to be worried about it becoming an incredibly popular tourist stop.

From there we walked around a bit more before heading back to the hotel at 9:40 AM for a quick bathroom break before we started our road trip for the day.

As we were in Sri Lanka, I wasn’t sure why they needed to clarify that it was a Sri Lanka prison. Do they have prisons there from other countries?

Once we were on our way, we made a quick stop at 10:50 AM to get some fresh pineapple and coconut water.

Then connected to the aforementioned coconut water stop, we unsurprisingly stopped at 11:29 AM for a quick toilet break. I was very impressed by the cleanliness of the roadside toilet. Those of you who have travelled a lot will understand why I was understandably pleased. I wondered if all/most Sri Lankan public bathrooms would be like this.

Evidently Laurianne was also very happy about the cleanliness of the bathroom!

Now do remember that I told you to expect a lot of this. at 1:00 PM we stopped at a tropical lunch buffet place. There were plenty of options, and I was very happy with the variety of vegetables. The cost for the three of us was 7720 LKR ($26.41 USD).

At 1:39 PM we left the buffet and continued on towards our nearby lodging, Palitha Homestay in Sigiriya, where we arrived at 1:55 PM to drop off our bags before immediately heading out again at 2:19 PM to go to Sigiriya Lion Rock where we arrived at 2:23 PM. The cost of admission for non-SAARC citizens was $35 USD per person, but they accepted international bank/credit cards with no surcharge. The area was interesting, but I thought it would have been better to go with an actual guide; yes, Erik was along with us, but his real function was that of driver.

At 2:36 PM we started the actual walk up to the top of the rock, and by 3:01 PM I was even more convinced that this would probably have been a better experience with a properly trained guide. Having Dorothee and Laurianne along made it still be nice, but it really just turned into a test of physical endurance. I did not check, but the entry fee (as is logical) must have been WAY less for Sri Lankans, as the place was packed, and there was only one way up and one way down. Since so many people were struggling, and there was no way off the path and also no way to pass people, the pace was certainly manageable, and also less physically demanding than when I had visited the Great Wall of China in October, but it was still a bit of a challenge.

Once we were actually at the top, it did not seem so incredibly overcrowded, and there were many beautiful views, but we of course had no explanation for any of the ruins themselves. Still, it was pretty.

I thought that this abandoned cable car was a lost opportunity, since plenty of people (me included) would have happily paid to go down in it rather than get back in the horrible line . . .

We dragged it out for a while, but in the absence of any explanations, and also acknowledging that sooner or later we were going to have to get in the line to go down, and we certainly didn’t want to be doing it in the dark, at 3:34 PM we got in the line to walk down, but it was not until 4:01 PM that we were actually able to start the descent. Even more so than when we were going up, the many times unevenly shaped and sometimes slippery stairs were a bit of a challenge walking down.

At 4:21 PM we arrived at the yellow wall with apparently ancient graffiti and the fairly short flight of spiral stairs which led up to the paintings. No pictures were allowed there, presumably because if more people knew what they actually looked like, they might not go there. Don’t get me wrong, assuming they had not been retouched, the simple paintings were in good condition, but I would say that their true value was more in their age than in their artistic mastery. We were only in the actual area of the paintings for two minutes and then at 4:27 PM once more started the walk down the narrow stone stairs.

We passed the reasonably interesting “cobra rock” at 4:36 PM and then were at the bottom with the souvenir shops at 4:40 PM, quickly getting back into the vehicle at 4:42 PM and heading back to the nearby homestay where I was dropped at 4:47 PM while Dorothee and Laurianne went for Ayurvedic massages.

I am not really a big fan of all the oil they use, and to be fair I am not a big seeker of massages in general. I don’t know why, but unless it is an actual medical massage, I just find it makes me uncomfortable to be touched like that by strangers. However, I know that a lot of people are really into it, so maybe later on I will change my opinion. Anyway, while they were off getting soaked in oil, I took advantage of the opportunity to wander around a bit in the area near the homestay before it got dark.

While it was pleasant to look at, the paved road ended at 4:56 PM and I thought it unwise to continue along the rough dirt path, since I couldn’t really tell if it was meant for public access or not. Thus, at 5:05 PM I was back at the Homestay where I put the popup mosquito net on my bed (I’m not really sure why only one of the beds has a “permanently installed mosquito net”) and at 5:21 PM decided to take a shower and shave. I couldn’t figure out the hot water, so I just showered with cold water which given the heat was not so dreadful, but still a bit unpleasant. Furthermore, it was one of those horrible showers where you end up getting water everywhere since the toilet and shower and not actually separate. Then while shaving, the stopper got stuck in the sink, making it impossible to drain the water.

While waiting, at 6:17 PM I decided to do my Duolingo practice for Hindi, and at 7:53 PM we all sat down for a pleasant dinner before going to bed.

The sleeping arrangement was less than ideal, since the way the air conditioner was placed, it meant that the people in one bed would freeze, while the other bed would not get much coverage. This could also not be resolved by using the fan, since it did not actually work . . . Still, while not especially photogenic, the food at least had been fairly good.

And that was how the second night in Sri Lanka ended. The lodging was proving itself to be a bit of a challenge, but the Sigiriya rock, if somewhat overcrowded, was a nice place to visit. Honestly, it is hard for me to guess if I would have gone to the rock had I been on my own. I mean it is one of the “must see” spots of the area, but it is a bit expensive for what you get. For the most part, the food had been decent today, but not particularly outstanding. Still, it was nice to share with Dorothee and continue to get to know Laurianne while experiencing a change of scenery for a few days.

For those who are curious about what happened during our next day in Sigiriya, you will just have to keep on reading Day 3. Of course, if there were any details about Day 2 which I left out which you would like to know, shoot me a quick note in the comments section below and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

Sri Lanka trip: Day 1 (14 December 2024)

Hi there loyal readers, for those who have been following along regularly, you may have a bit of whiplash, since it may seem that I only just now got back from Beijing, but if you check the dates, you will see that I had actually just got really behind with the entries on the recent trip to China, and am now trying to keep the same backlog from happening with the trip to Sri Lanka. It is a bit odd that this was my first trip to Sri Lanka, as it is so close to where I live in India, but I have also not yet visited Mysuru, and that is just a two-hour train trip away. Still, especially since coming to work in southern India, I had always thought that I would eventually need to get around to visiting to Sri Lanka, and this way it finally happened. I would be remiss if I hadn’t mentioned that like several other great trips I have taken, this was actually my friend and co-worker Dorothee’s idea.

I will skip past the whole trip to the airport, as those who follow me know that I always opt for BluSmart, and once again I was not disappointed with their service when they showed up a bit early to pick me up and have me at the airport by 6:55 AM. Unfortunately, after having entered the car, I had checked my messages and saw that the flight would have a delay of a couple hours. However, since Dorothee was in the same boat, I thought it would be okay for us to just hang out and chat for a bit, which we did at a cafe outside until entering. Thus, it was not until 11:20 AM that we were actually on this non-stop, ninety-minute Sri Lankan Airlines flight to Colombo. Since Dorothee and I had booked separately, we were not sitting next to one another, but despite having refused to pay to get out of the dreaded center seat, there was a couple who asked me to move so that they could be together, and I ended up having my favorite aisle seat.

The flight itself was fine, but then for 90 minutes, pretty much anything would be acceptable. Still, despite how the plane looked a bit run down inside, I was impressed how in such a short time they served a nice juice and a surprisingly edible cheese and vegetable calzone before we touched down at 12:57 PM. At Dorothee’s suggestion, I had got my e-visa ahead of time rather than doing it on arrival, so at 1:29, already having been greeted by our driver/guide for the week, Erik, Dorothee and I had also both bought Dialog SIM cards before exiting the airport. Now most of you know that I generally advise getting an eSIM before travel, but I had done my homework ahead of time and had seen that this would be easy to get at the airport and also significantly cheaper. I paid 2450 LKR ($8.35 USD) for a month of cellphone service on Sri Lanka’s most recommended carrier with 50 GB of data! In short, it was a bargain, and I suggest you do the same when travelling to Sri Lanka.

Before I go on further, I should clarify that the first week’s travel was part of a tour package which Dorothee had organized ahead of time. There were three of us who would be travelling, Dorothee, Laurianne (a friend and previous co-worker of Dorothee’s, and me). At times the costs of the trip were a bit muddled, since the transport, triple lodging and some of the meals were included, but most of the activities would have to be paid for separately. Starting out on paper, this looked like it would be a bit more expensive overall than my standard trips, but I also doubted I would be returning frequently, so figured it would be okay to splurge. So, the upfront cost paid by each of us for the basic tour of seven nights was $695 USD per person, not including airfare, which can generally be managed at around $300 USD round trip from Bengaluru. Mai globe travel agency had handled all of our arrangements. Laurianne had flown in from Shanghai, so her ticket cost would of course been quite a bit more. Anyway, back to my first impressions as we exited the airport.

As we were on our way from the airport, I could see a lot of similarities to India, but at least in this area it seemed very clean, and more like a village than an actual city. It also looked like there was a lot more Christian influence around this area than what I was used to seeing in India. Our first night was not actually in Colombo, but rather in Negombo, so at 2:00 PM we were already pulling up out front Pledge Scape hotel.

Our triple room was lovely, including the view of the sea from the balcony, but my single bed was as had as a stone floor. Still, our intent was not to spend more than one night here, so I figured it would be fine. After quickly putting our things in the room, we headed straight out to do some sightseeing, even though Laurianne, who had arrived the day before, and had already been out to see a bit on her own. However, she had saved the “big stuff” so we could see them together the first time.

Our first stop along our self-guided walking tour was St. Sebastian’s church, which we came across at 2:52 PM.

We left there at 2:54 PM and continued walking towards the next church on Laurianne’s list.

While it was only 29 degrees Celsius (84 F), it was a bit muggy and anytime we were in direct sunlight the heat seemed especially intense despite me having my trusty travelling hat. However, it was only a short walk, and at 3:05 PM we were at St. Mary’s Church on Main Street.

After just about five minutes, we decided to head out once more in order to take advantage of the remaining daylight. Also, clouds had started to quickly roll in, and we were a bit worried that it might start raining heavily. We also had a sort of general plan to find a place to eat. Connected to the same, Dorothee took us on a bit of an adventure sponsored by Google maps to find a highly rated nearby eatery, but as frequently happens with Google maps, the place seemed to no longer exist. So, at 3:40 PM we decided to jump into a rickshaw and head back towards the hotel.

It turned out that this had been an excellent idea, since by the time we saw Chef Crab restaurant where we decided to eat at 3:49 PM, there was already a torrential downpour!

There were a lot of mosquitos, but Dorothee had some pleasant-smelling repellant which she passed around and that mostly dealt with the issue. I ordered the squash soup and a pork dish, which was actually quite nice; whereas Dorothee and Laurianne opted to share a crab dish which they acknowledged had been “alright” but not that filling. As we were soon to discover is normal in Sri Lanka, it had taken quite a bit of time for the food to arrive, but we weren’t in a big hurry either. The bill for the three of us was 10,098 LKR ($34.41 USD), which we would discover would be fairly standard throughout our trip. Incidentally, thanks to Laurianne, this trip we were all trying an app called Tricount in order to facilitate expense sharing and tracking during the trip. It was still raining a bit, but at 5:31 PM we dashed out and were back in the hotel just two minutes later.

There we rested a bit, and then as it had already stopped raining, decided to see if there was a place we could get an evening drink nearby. Dorothee and I also needed to get cash out of an ATM, as it seemed that most places in Sri Lanka had either a strong preference for, or only accepted cash. So once more, at 6:18 PM we were out the door, but quickly discovered that while there were plenty of ATMs available, no place “could serve” alcohol since it was a full moon. Evidently, every full moon in Sri Lanka is a type of holiday, and alcohol sales are prohibited. However, as we also soon found out, that prohibition is a bit tongue in cheek, since one pub owner suggested that we might be more comfortable sitting upstairs (where we would not be easily seen by those who would pass by), telling us that of course alcohol sales were illegal, but he might be able to help us.

For obvious reasons, I won’t mention the name of the place, but after we arrived there at 7:11 PM and were ushered upstairs, I had a lovely Blue Lagoon and a Bay Breeze. I am not sure what Laurianne and Dorothee drank, but we all seemed satisfied, and the bill when we left at 8:36 PM was 10560 LKR ($35.98 USD) for the three of us. From there, it was a short and comfortable walk back to the hotel, where we arrived at 9:02 PM.

So that was our first day in Sri Lanka. So far things had been going great, and I was really looking forward to the actual tour which would start the next day. The only downside so far had been my rock-hard bed, but I assumed that would just be for one evening. Starting to get to know Laurianne had been wonderful so far, and Dorothee and I also always make good travelling companions. Of course, if you want to really start to see some fancy Sri Lankan sites, you will have to continue reading Day 2. In closing, as always, thanks for reading along, and don’t forget to leave your questions and comments in the section shown below!

Beijing trip: Days 7-8 (2-3 November)

Hey there loyal readers. As you probably figured out from the closing of my Day 6 entry, things were winding down quickly for my trip to Beijing, but that doesn’t mean that I enjoyed my time any less. One of the best things about this trip has been that I have been able to spend a nice amount of time with Melody, Alex and Robin. For Robin, I am just some weird guy that his parents know from before, but Melody, Alex and I still have many fond memories of when we worked together at UWC Costa Rica, and we are slowly but surely starting to build non-UWC memories which I hope will keep us as friends for the rest of our lives.

One thing that really lets you know that someone is a good friend, is if you can see them again after many years, but there is no awkward reconnecting despite everything which has happened over the years. Of course, in the case of Melody, Alex and Robin, it may just be that they are amazing hosts, but I certainly count them as excellent friends. While my last two days were great for me, they might not be as interesting for you, so I will limit my comments to things which might be of interest to the casual visitor to Beijing.

Most of the day on November 2nd we just spent hanging around the house, and either today or the next day another friend of theirs came by to visit. She also seemed like a really good person, but with the months I am ashamed to admit that I have forgotten her name. That’s bad on me, as I had thought it might be nice to hang out with her sometime next year if I make a visit to Hong Kong.

While this may seem a bit odd to comment on, at 5:41 PM in the evening we were at Oasis International Hospital. Don’t worry, one of them just had a routine checkup. I was struck by how beautiful it was from the outside, and also the care taken to make it a welcoming place inside.

These vending refrigerators were intriguing.

Then after finishing at the hospital, we arrived to Jingzun Peking Duck. This was a very exciting even for me, since I had never actually had Peking Duck before . . . and to be having it in PEKING! I was also a bit giddy about actually using the lazy Susan thing on the table to get access to the food. I have no idea about the cost, since Melody and Alex invited me for this amazing feast, but it really was a special experience. I was interested in the fried milk but found that it was not as tasty as the fried yogurt had been from a couple of days ago. The duck though, really was divine.

The next day was again just hanging out and visiting, which was actually perfect for me. I wondered a couple of times if I might be getting on their nerves after so many days, but if I were, they definitely did a good job of hiding it. In the evening, I had a fun little adventure with Melody when we both bicycled to a couple of nearby grocery stores, and she helped me buy tons of Chinese snack to fill the empty suitcase I had brought specifically for this purpose. I didn’t think to take any pictures while shopping, but I bought SO MANY delicious goodies to take home with me! Throughout the entire thing, Melody patiently acted as my translator for all the food items and also gave me a couple of tips on where I might get nearby similar items for less money. I was able to buy a bit more than otherwise would have been possible, since the fancier grocer where we went accepted my international credit card, something which tends to not be extremely common in China. Afterwards we met up with Alex and Robin for a farewell dinner at a local Hong Kong style diner.

From there, we headed back to their house where I repacked my luggage two times, not sure of the best way to put everything in the bag, and at 8:47 PM Alex once again graciously helped me arrange a Didi to the airport, where I arrived just twenty minutes later . . . a definite advantage of staying in Shunyi rather than closer to the city center. The entire check-in, security check and immigration processes were incredibly smooth.

At 10:14 PM when I was then in the main part of the airport departures area, I was a bit surprised at how calm and relatively deserted the airport was at this hour. Almost all the shops were also closed. Also noticing that it was almost impossible to find charging points, I was tempted to use my Priority Pass lounge access, but I decided against it since I had already had a wonderful meal with Melody, Alex and Robin. Furthermore, it would only be an hour of further wait time before boarding.

My Singapore airlines flight, including the connection, were pleasant and uneventful, allowing me to allow rested and happy to back to Bengaluru at 10:41 AM the next day. I also had good luck at the BLR airport, where it only took me fifty minutes to finish all customs and immigrations procedures before being out the door at 11:20 AM, headed straight to the BluSmart line where I arrived at 11:25 AM. I was a bit annoyed to see that there is no longer any benefit to prebooking, so I had to wait in a line until 11:38 AM. In hindsight, that really was not much of a wait, but what’s the point of prebooking if anyone can just walk up and get in the line? So, it seems that BluSmart may no longer be quite as comfortable of an option as it used to be, but I will probably continue to use them, since I still like them more than the service I would previously get from Uber or Ola.

And on that anticlimactic note, my trip to Beijing and back was over. It was nice however to see some of the Diwali Rangolis that were still around as I arrived at my apartment. So, two months late, I finally finished reporting on my trip to Beijing. What did you think? Is it someplace you now think you might visit? What stood out for you the most? Once again, thanks for reading along, and don’t hesitate to leave your questions and comments in the section indicated below.

Beijing trip: Day 6 (1 November)

Hi again everyone. I hope things are going as well for you as they are for me. If not, take my advice, wait another day and reevaluate. There’s a good chance that you will feel better in the morning. If not, then repeat until things are going well.

Anyway, Day 6 in Beijing was for the most part once more courtesy of GetYourGuide; as much as I recommend them, I feel like I should be getting some sort of sponsorship! Today’s plan was Summer Palace and Temple of Heaven, and I had paid $51.50 USD.

As there was nothing new about how I got to the starting point of today’s formal activities, I will skip past all of that and start at 9:06 AM when our Guide Andy showed up just outside Tiantandongmen station, passed out the Bluetooth earpieces, and then we started off towards the Summer Palace. Evidently, those 60 and over can enter for free, so I was suspecting that it would be a bit more crowded inside as we entered at 9:09 AM.

Similar to my guided tour from a couple of days ago, there was a LOT of very interesting information, but I will only share those details which stood out for me, even if the details seem incoherent and of no interest to anyone else🤔. According to Andy, this whole Temple of Heaven area was built in 1420 and is actually 3 times bigger than the Forbidden City, which is also simply known as “The Palace Museum”, where I had visited yesterday. Amongst the other various fun facts shared were that ancient Chinese (like most other groups of people) believed that the Earth was the center of the universe, and like a lot of previous civilizations with monarchs, the emperor was believed to be the son of God. As with earlier visits to historic sites in China, the number 9 came up a lot, but here they also seemed keen on the numbers 8 and 5. The most significant combination was 9 x 5. Even today in China, according to Andy, numbers are a big deal. Odd numbers are used to represent men and even numbers are used to represent women.

So far, this place seemed to just be a really big park. Connected to the same, I found out that the green plaques on certain trees mean they are between 100 and 300 years old, whereas the red plaques mean the tree is at least 300 years old. They figure this out based on the diameter of the different types of trees, so it is only a rough estimate. A bit of further investigation revealed then that the reason some trees have steel barriers around them, is that they are in the red-plaque category. It was right at 9:39 AM that we came upon the seven starstones. I am not sure why they are called stars, but they represent the seven most important provinces from that time. Ironically, there are actually eight stones, but the eighth one is much smaller.

At 9:48 AM as we continued along, I am not sure this is true since the people there did not seem particularly happy, we walked through an area which Andy claimed was a blind date market. If this was true, I assume it was older relatives looking for arranged marriages for their children and grandchildren. As is more commonly seen in Chinese parks, we also came across different groups of retired people doing Tai Chi and similar activities. I’ve got to say, if you have a bit of money in the bank, eastern China seems to be a good place to be a retired person, but then I guess that is probably true for older people with a bit more money everywhere.

At about 9:54 AM as we neared the actual temple, Andy told us that the round wall represents the shape of heaven. It was also about this time that I noticed that Andy seemed a bit frazzled or just upset. He had spoken on his phone a couple of times and also seemed to have a bit of a shouting match with some other random man in the park. To be fair, foreigners frequently think Chinese speaking to one another sounds like shouting, so maybe they had just been talking about the weather.

Then at 10:02 AM we headed into the actual temple area, and I was glad that we were able to enter very quickly and with no hassle. According to Andy, the outer middle gate, which was closed, is only for God, so I can’t imagine it get’s used that often. One of the other gates was only for the emperor, but I don’t remember which one. The blue tiles we saw were supposedly original, and about 600 years old. Pretty much everything here has symbolic meeting and is tied to a system of numerology which they were using at the time; it was unclear to me if that was different from the system of numerology which is still frequently used today.

Inside, the inner circle, there was a big group of people lining up to stand on the round mound which I think Andy said represented the Tridentine heaven (I guess they also had a sort of trinity?). He was quite annoyed about the people who were standing on the round mound in the middle and bowing/praying. He said they did not actually know what they were doing, since the CCP discourages real religious learning and belief. However, I thought to myself, they might not be doing it “the correct way,” but at least SOME of them must have been doing it out of genuine belief. So, if we remove the ones who were just doing it for the WeChat/Little Red Book picture, who were undoubtedly the majority from what I could see, then what was wrong with the ones who were doing it out of genuine belief? Regardless, Andy seemed rather annoyed/exasperated/disgusted with them; so, our group got the message, and nobody got in the line!

At 10:17 AM we then exited the central mound area and looked around a bit. The uneven paving stones are original, but the ones which look nicer were recently placed by the government. There in the distance, we could see a green structure, which was where the sacrificial offerings used to be cooked.

At 10:26 AM we saw the imperial vault of heaven “round temple” which used to be open for people to see inside, but that is no longer the case. The gold metal piece on the top evidently also functions as a sort of lightning rod. Then at 10:37 AM we came across the Nine Dragon Cypress, which many consider to be the holiest tree in Beijing; evidently a lot of people seem to use it as a sort of “wishing tree”.

Finally, at 10:50 AM we were entering the main temple. There was an extensive cattle entry system to enter, but fortunately there weren’t that many people, so we got in very quickly. This main temple is the hall of prayer for good harvest, and It’s 38.2 meters tall. There was a lot to see there, including a beautiful flowering tree contest display. At Andy’s urging, I and a couple of other people pushed our way through the crowd to take a picture of the interior.

We finished up there at 11:15 AM and headed out towards the minibus, arriving at 11:29 AM, then taking a forty-minute trip to C2 Xiyuan where Andy released us to get lunch on our own until 2:00 PM when the next part of the tour would start.

There were several “western” chain restaurants in this as well as various street sculptures. There was also a different area which was like a more local Chinese food court, and I sort of wanted to eat there, but I was afraid of accidentally getting lobster or shrimp in my food (I have an anaphylactic reaction to both), since there was no English anywhere and when I attempted to talk to a couple of sellers, they either did not understand me or didn’t want to deal with me. Regardless, the food court area also did not really seem to be a place for solo travellers/eaters.

So finally, at 12:42 PM I opted for Taco Bell. Yes, I know, but I actually DO LIKE Taco Bell, and I can’t get it with beef in India. My meal was 34.9 CNY ($4.90 USD) and I paid for it using my WeChat pay wallet. The food which arrived at 12:50 PM tasted exactly like a standard Taco Bell taco. The only downside was that the only sauce they had was ketchup. The french fries were also very tasty. One thing I noticed here was that everyone except for me used a disposable plastic glove to eat this sort of finger/hand food. This was odd for me since there was a prominent hand wash station right there (which I used) with soap and everything. My drink cup was also plastic, but the lid at least was ostensibly recyclable.

While I had tried to drag out my lunch as long as possible, by 1:31 PM I was outside sitting on a red bench, where I did some personal musings and people watching. While sitting there, I once again noticed that public smoking, at least by men, is still quite common here, but I haven’t seen any women. I also once again reflected on the fact that all the metro safety officers and the sidewalk sweepers in Beijing seem to be at least sixty years old. Are these specially reserved jobs perhaps for lower income senior citizens?

Finally, at 2:05 PM our guide Andy walked up again, along with a few new tourists, and we were off once again seeing beautiful sites and learning all sorts of fun facts about the area. The Summer Palace, which is both bigger than Macau and 3.5 times bigger than The Forbidden City was made for the emperor’s mother. The garden itself is 100% manmade, including the bat shaped mountain. The emperor who made the palace was Manchurian and was the longest serving emperor in China.

After walking through several gates, all with different names and symbolic meanings, at 2:48 PM we saw this sculpture of a mythical creature called a Chin. This particular one had actually originally been in a different even larger garden which had been destroyed by the French and the British. At some point, the front legs had been broken off, so the ones seen now are reconstructions.

At around 2:56 PM and for some time afterwards, Andy talked a lot about the Empress Dowager Cixi, who is considered to have been the most powerful woman in all of Chinese history. It is from her that we get the saying “The woman behind the curtain”, since she would sit behind the curtain and tell the emperor what to do. According to history, her son (who was six when he first ascended to the throne) and the first emperor she “controlled” died from syphilis. at the age of nineteen. I took issue with them saying that he got syphilis from going to prostitutes . . . I am fairly confident that he could have gotten syphilis from sleeping with anyone and also confident that there were no STD tests nor common preventative measures at the time. But anyways, that is the story.

Anyway, when her son died at the age of 19, she somehow orchestrated things so that the next to ascend to the throne was only four, and she stayed on as the Empress Dowager.

Like everything here, the lake is also manmade, and the dirt which was dug out to create it was what was used to the make the bat shaped mountain. Also, since the mountain is completely artificial, it is all dirt with no stones. At 3:22 PM Andy gave us the option of taking a boat for 160 CNY ($21.92 USD) each around the lake. He was clearly really pushing the boat idea, but on this one the entire group rebelled since we had come here to see the architecture rather than needlessly float around on a boat, even though we acknowledged that it would have been pretty. However, it seemed like things were already quite beautiful on the shore, and we all wanted to see as much as possible.

At 3:26 PM we were where the Emperor Guangxu was kept prisoner by the Empress Dowager Cixi when he attempted to throw off her influence. He spent the last ten years of his life imprisoned in this reduced area of the garden. His wife, the Empress of Guangxu, also stayed here, but it was unclear to me whether or not she was also a prisoner. Regardless, it was all a sham marriage, since she was the niece of Cixi and never actually consummated the marriage to her husband. All the furniture we could see here was original, and it was notable the Empress of Guangxu had a very simple single bed. As with all rulers, the Empress Dowager Cixi clearly was not managing all of this on her own, but I was very impressed at how she was able to maintain power for so long; later on, I would like to read more about her.

At 3:45 PM we were walking down what is supposedly the longest corridor in the world. It is more than 700 meters long. Honestly, I had my doubts about this claim, but I suppose it all depends on how you define “corridor”. Regardless, all of the different paintings, again, supposedly none of them repeated, were impressive.

At 4:01 PM I was thinking about how it really was very beautiful here, but for me at least, there were just too many people. I couldn’t begin to imagine the masses of people who would be here during high season. Certainly, this was most crowded place I had been during my Beijing trip.

At 4:03 PM we arrived at the main tower, which has a separate entry fee of 10 CNY ($1.40 USD). To climb to the top and back down can easily be done in forty minutes, so the guide announced that he would wait forty minutes for those who just wanted to wander around a bit and for the others who intended to go up. Nobody else in my group seemed keen on climbing the tower, but I figured that I may as well . . . it was unlikely that I would be here again anytime soon. Mercifully, either due to the climb or due to the separate entry fee, this area was much less crowded.

When I reached the highest point where access was allowed at 4:19 PM, I saw that there was a statue, presumably a version of the Buddha? A lot of the tower is off limits, but if you are feeling up to it and the temperature is pleasant, there is still quite a bit to see, and the light from the setting sun was also great at the time.

At 4:34 PM I walked down and rejoined the group. As we started walking out, we saw the opera building and an interesting boat shaped building. The tour itself actually ended at 4:55 PM, but we were welcome to stay in the park until closing time at 8:00 PM, even though it would be dusk at 5:30 PM.

By 5:10 PM I was outside and then quickly headed towards the subway where I paid 6 CNY ($0.85 USD) to ride on two different trains before getting off at Jiulongshan at 6:21 PM. From there I set off walking to meet up with a friend, who was a former colleague from my job in Bengaluru, for dinner. Along the way I was curious about the burning taking place in circles which were drawn on the sidewalk, but later on my friend explained to me that this was part of a religious ceremony which is permitted on certain special days. To overly simplify things, I think it was a type of ancestor worship.

Then came the unexpected highlight of the evening when I got to meet up with Mohammed for a delicious meal which his wife had graciously prepared. We had a wonderful conversation which could certainly have gone on longer, but as it was getting late, at 10:40 PM Mohammed very kindly arranged for a car to take me back to Shunyi, where I arrived at 11:20 PM. It had been a wonderful way to end a perfect day in Beijing. Thank you so much Mohammed!

So, wow, that was certainly a jam-packed day. While Beijing no doubt has many amazing more sites to be seen, I had finished off all of the “must see” sites and have also been able to visit with several outstanding friends. At this point I was thinking that it might be better to plan to take it a little easier the last couple days, but I still had not decided. Regardless, with such wonderful friends to visit, you can bet that the last couple days in Beijing were also outstanding. Of course, in order to be sure, you will have to keep reading the upcoming entries. Will you keep on reading, or have I finally exhausted you?

Beijing trip: Day 5 (31 October)

Hey there loyal readers. Welcome to Day 5 of my Beijing adventure. If you had already read Day 4, then you know that last night I stayed closer to the center of the city, at my good friend Csilla’s place. At 7:00 AM I was out the door from her apartment and heading towards Shangjing subway station. As I walked out, I noticed that they have a nice garden in the back for the residents. As with other places I have seen in Beijing, the neighborhood looks clear and well-organized. Furthermore, the trees along the street make it feel much nicer, despite being in a megacity.

At 7:13 AM I was in the station, quickly getting my 3 CNY ($0.41 USD) ticket and getting on the train by 7:21 AM. The train was quite full, but it was not oppressively crowded. Then at 7:39 AM I hit a minor hiccup when I needed to transfer to the capital airport express at Sanyuanqiao. I guess the name should have given it away, but I hadn’t realized that this was a special train which would require a separate ticket purchase with a cost of 25 CNY ($3.43 USD). The funny thing was that I only had to ride one stop!

Still, the total trip was very affordable and despite the transfer hiccup, by 7:57 AM I had arrived at the meeting spot, the B1 northeast exit of the Dongzhimen station. There were already a couple of people waiting there, and the guide had us put on stickers while waiting. As there were a couple of stragglers, it was not until 8:12 AM that we started walking, and by 8:20 AM we were on the bus. I put my phone into airport mode in order to conserve the battery, and our guide Jessica began the tourisms spiel. She said we would have 5 hours at our destination . . . the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China!

She said that this particular section was built just 650 years ago, during the Ming Dynasty, but the oldest parts of the wall are 2000 years old. In terms of what route to take once we were there, she suggested first going to tower 3 on the eastern route. Along with that she said taking the toboggan down would be a good option today since it would be a slower day. As far as the western route which we could opt to do afterwards, she said that tower 14 to 18 were relatively easy, but 18 to 20 were very physically challenging.

For those only wanting to do one route, she said that in her opinion the western route is a bit more beautiful, but she said that both sides would be manageable in the 5 hours, especially if we went up in the cable cars rather than walking the entire time; however, the cars had an additional fee. Via GetYourGuide, I had already paid $43.78 USD for the basic part of the tour. For those wanting to take advantage of the cable cars, she also gave us special instructions about our tickets since cable cars for each side are actually managed by two different companies. Finally, she advised that we do all sightseeing first and then get the included buffet lunch. After a bit of thought, I paid 280 CNY ($38.36 USD) to do both sides with the assistance of the cable cars . . . it was unlikely that I would be returning here again anytime soon, and I wanted to see as much as possible.

At 9:45 AM we arrived at the general starting point and many of us did a quick bathroom break. While the restroom was very clean, there was neither toilet paper nor washing hose, so keep that in mind. I of course had my trusty pack of wet wipes, so it was all good for me.

Then at 9:57 AM we walked over to the MuBus family building. This whole area has a lot of shops and restaurants. It is clearly a tourist trap, but there were few people. Remember though that I did this at the end of October, which was already the beginning of the low season. While waiting in the MuBus building, she reminded us that we needed to be completely ready to head out by 3:00 PM, as that was when the last bus would leave. For those who were wondering, she said that 30 minutes should be enough to comfortably eat the included buffet lunch.

Three of us had originally opted for a slightly more expensive architectural tour of the eastern section, and at 10:09 AM our separate guide came to collect us, and we were off to get on the shuttle which goes up the last 3.5 km. While it is possible to walk, the shuttle is included for all visitors, so everyone just rides it. We were on the shuttle at 10:17 AM and in only 4 minutes were getting off to head through the passport and ticket scan at 10:37 AM.

The first lift car was a bit of an adventure since it was just a simple bench that we had to quickly jump onto without it stopping.

I was on it at 10:40 AM and at 10:47 AM was jumping off at the actual starting point. The views had been incredible!

As is generally the case, I was quite pleased to have a guide. Furthermore, as there were only three of us, so it was highly personalized. At 10:54 AM we saw the general’s room, which was far less impressive than one might have expected.

At 11:07 AM the walk was starting to get a little bit more challenging. Shortly thereafter at 11:12 AM, the Italian woman in our small group gave up and said she was going to head back down on her own. I felt sorry for her, as like me, she clearly had not been properly briefed on how physically challenging this might be, but unlike me, she had come in far less practical clothing and shoes.

At 11:17 AM we looked at some original arches which were still there and had been built with no nails etc . . . Evidently this particular section of the wall had taken 200 years to finish. Next, at 11:26 AM he showed us where there would have been a ladder to get up to the upper level, but the ladder was no longer there. The lower area was where they would live, and the upper level was for the actual guard work.

At 11:35 AM, while this had nothing to do with the wall itself, our guide commented that it was in 1985 that China opened up to more foreign visitors. To be honest, I had not even known that. Then, in an odd moment of apparent openness when we were alone with the guide away from others at 11:41 AM, the guide was very candid about living in a dictatorship, but I kind of wondered if he was just saying that to please us foreign tourists. Regardless, he was particularly bitter about how during Covid-19 times people were kept like prisoners in their homes. This seemed to have been particularly hard in the village area where he was from.

At 11:48 AM I started walking down and at 12:00 PM decided I would take the Toboggan down rather than the cable car. I think just seeing the eastern side would be enough for most people, but I had paid to also see the western route, so I figured I may as well do it. The toboggan line which I reached at 12:10 PM was very short, and by 12:16 PM I was already down the slide. It was an interesting experience, but on the way down I was behind a very cautious older woman who kept completely braking her car, so it was not especially adventuresome.

The entrance to the western route was nearby, and I at 12:24 PM I was already in the next cable car, but this one was a completely enclosed “Sky Tram” type of vehicle. This ride also only took 4 minutes, so at 12:28 I was out and walking, but now on my own, since the guide had only been for the eastern route.

I was glad that I had done both sides, as there were some notable differences. To begin with, at 12:32 I noticed that the western route looked much more developed than the eastern route. There were also way more annoying people blocking the way, doing their overly orchestrated picture poses.

Despite some doubts about whether I would do it, at 1:09 PM I was at the highest point one can go to on the western route. Along the way, several people had clearly given up before getting here.

I also had some concerns about my legs cramping up as I started walking down. Still, after just four minutes of looking around, I headed back towards the cable car.

As I was walking at 1:25 PM I felt that it was very important for me to have had a guide on the eastern route, as otherwise, the whole visit would have just been a big physical challenge. Don’t get me wrong, the Great Wall is EXACTLY like what you have seen in pictures. However, it all looks very similar. So, after the initial awe wears off, I think that without a guide it just becomes a fairly intense physical challenge. Due to the physical exertion required, I also think that in addition to the beautiful colored leaves, the Autumn temperature is ideal for this sort of a trek. Just a little bit colder would not have been very manageable, and much hotter weather would have been sheer torture.

At 1:45 PM I was getting in the cable car again, and in just three minutes was down at the starting point. There had DEFINITELY been other people around, in particular on the western route, but it had never felt overly crowded. Somewhere along the way I got lost, forgetting both where to find it and also that I needed to take the shuttle bus down to the main reception area. Asking people for help was also useless, as nobody really understood me. However, by 2:19 PM I finally somehow had figured it out and was entering the shuttle bus to head down, then arriving at MuBus family home at 2:27 PM.

The buffet was very impressive, and frankly, it was a huge challenge to quickly get food and finish eating by 2:58 PM. One new food that I particularly liked on the buffet was fried yogurt. Honestly, I don’t think I have eaten that fast in years.

I did barely make it to the final departure spot at 3:00 PM sharp, as we had been directed, but then they told us that we would actually not be leaving until 3:30 PM. It really was a pity, since I would have liked to be a bit more leisurely with my delicious lunch, but I am also happy that I did not miss the final transport!

However, it worked out since I realized at 3:23 PM that I probably needed to use the toilet before taking the long bus ride back. Unfortunately, they only had the Asian style squat toilet, and my legs were cramping up . . .somehow though, I made it work . . . which was good both for me and everyone else!

At 3:33 PM we were finally on the bus back to Beijing, and that guide was going the extra mile, trying to give us ideas of nice free places we could go to visit in Beijing, as well as suggesting affordable but tasty restaurants. I was particularly interested in the Olympic Park, which she said was a nice place to visit for a couple of hours in the evening. The chatter stopped at 3:45 PM, and we were mostly in silence up to 4:53 PM when we arrived back to Dongzhimen and said our goodbyes.

I entered the metro station at 5:02 PM, and the only thing that really stood out for me as I headed back to Shunyi on the subway, was when I was waiting for the first train, and I saw the same security guard from a couple of days ago who looked to be maximum 18 years old. Honestly, several of the guards I have seen look to be incredibly young . . .maybe it is considered a starter job?

Given that I was a bit closer to Melody and Alex’s place, this trip was only 5 CNY ($0.69 USD), and at 17:47 PM I was already walking out of the final subway station, this time having successfully remembered which exit to take.

As I was walking back, I reflected on how peaceful it was to walk here at night, so at 6:06 PM I decided to also check out the little park I had seen earlier even though the lighting was not very good. It was smaller than I had originally thought, and there was no sort of playground or anything like that, but it looked like it would be a good place to sit and read or just talk with a friend.

I did not spend too much time there and continued walking, at 6:16 PM noticing another similar small park, but I did not check it out, assuming that it was very similar to the first one. Thus, at 6:27 PM I arrived at Melody and Alex’s place where I was surprised to see Trick or Treaters! Oddly enough, from my point of view, Halloween seems to be a big deal in at least some parts of Beijing.

I had a nice time sitting out on the porch with Alex until we ran out of candy, and then we went in. Afterwards, with Melody and Alex’s coaching, I made my first ever Sushi Roll, and it was super delicious! So, what did you think of Day 5? Despite the fact that a Great Wall visit is a bit of a stereotype, I freely admit that I am extremely glad that I had visited! As I think I had mentioned earlier, this is one of the few places I’ve visited in the world which look exactly the same in person as what one has imagined when seeing pictures. Definitely, it was not something to miss.

As I had now fully leaned into tourist mode, if you follow along for Day 6, I think you will continue to be extremely pleased with what you see. Speaking of which, if you liked what you saw and read about Day 5, do let me know in the comments section below. If you completely detested it, you could also let me know in the comments section below, but please be polite about it! As always, thanks for reading along, and I look forward to sharing more in the near future.

Beijing trip: Day 4 (30 October)

Hey again everyone! So as promised, day 4 will probably be much more of what you were expecting from a trip to Beijing. The previous afternoon, noting how my earlier attempts to do things on my own, while not disasters, had also not been exactly as planned, I had booked a $40.50 USD Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square tour on GetYourGuide. I know it is not very “adventurous” but those of you who follow me know that I generally recommend this tour aggregator, and so far I have not been especially disappointed. According to the booking, we might not be able to actually get into the square, depending upon the political events of the moment, but it seemed that there would be no problem entering the Forbidden City.

I was out the door in Shunyi at 10:19 AM, once again headed to the nearby Capital Exhibition Center subway/metro station.

This time I took the little scenic path from the main street to the station.

In general terms, if possible, I like to use public mass transit, and in the particular case of Beijing, I have not been able to get the ride hailing app to work! As I am assuming that anyone who is reading Day 4 will already have seen my information about taking the subway/metro, I will not share any details beyond the most basic information. My ticket was once more 6 CNY ($0.82 USD), so I assume that around that amount is what it would generally be.

Having already done it a couple of times, the trip was now mostly unremarkable, and at 11:34 AM I was off the subway and trying to figure out how to exit and then get to the meeting place at the Grand Hotel lobby. My only complaint about the Moovit app in Beijing is that the formatting on it is off on the Android app, so you cannot see what exit you are supposed to take when coming out of the subway station. Perhaps they will get that fixed soon?

So, while trying to figure out where to exit, I somehow ended up in a mall and couldn’t easily find an exit. However, I then saw a delivery person at 11:42 and reasoned that if I were to follow him, there was a good chance he would be heading outside. As luck would have it, that was the case and at 11:48 I had arrived at the rather fancy Grand Hotel Beijing lobby.

As had been projected, our guide James arrived at 12:00 PM sharp and we waited a minute to get everyone checked in. In contrast to earlier days in Beijing, I now saw quite a few people who appeared to not be from East Asia. He gave us these handy little single-ear earphones which were connected to his Bluetooth microphone transmitter. Perhaps for others, these are common, but it was the first time I had encountered them, and I thought they would be a great idea for when we take our students on trips and tours from my school. Even with a group of no more than 10, it can otherwise be really hard at times for everyone to hear a guide.

Not having waited too long, at 12:08 PM we set off walking, and once again at 12:14 PM had a passport check. This was followed by some other sort of check at 12:19 which the guide managed without us showing any documents, but then again at 12:21 PM there was another passport check; in contrast to the earlier checks, they actually took our passports for a moment this time and appeared to be genuinely looking at them. Then at 12:23 PM we had a full airport style security checkpoint.

At 12:37 PM, while walking, we came across the Gate of Heavenly Peace. From there, in the distance we could see a pillar, and behind that is the Chairman Mao museum. We did not go there, but evidently that museum has a crystal coffin with Chairman Mao, but I understand it’s hard to get tickets to enter. The National Museum is the building with the red banner and star at the top.

At 12:44 PM James explained the design of the flag, with the four stars representing the four social classes of people. This was new information for me. Then at 12:55 PM he told us that the reason for the white and blue flags was because the president of Finland was currently visiting.

At 1:03 PM we decided to exit the square and head over to the next location. In case you are wondering, YES, I had some misgivings about visiting this place, but I also wanted to see where it all had happened. Even our guide quietly acknowledged that there have been terrible things happen here, but he also wanted to highlight that many good things have happened since then and before then as well. So anyways, yes, I was morally conflicted, but no, I was also not clueless about where I was standing.

At 1:07 PM James suggested that we do a quick bathroom break, as there were not many in the Forbidden City. Oddly enough, the bathroom building also had a gift shop and snack shop . . .I mean why not?

Then at 1:12 PM I noted that visibility was not so great, and James indicated that while air quality had been greatly improved in recent years, the visibility today was affected by a combination of both fog and smog. While walking, he also suggested that we come back on our own to this area when we have the time, since there are many museums around the square which have free entry to the public.

Having now seen several dragon images, at 1:20 PM the guide explained that the number of fingers/claws on the dragon tells us the type of dragon. Five fingers mean it is a king dragon, 4 fingers is a common dragon, and 3 is an evil dragon. Then at 1:24 PM we started to cross the bridge that before 1911 was only permitted to be used by high-ranking officials.

Looking at the map at 1:31 PM we learned that the gray area of the map is still not open to the general public. As we were getting ready there, he also told us that foreigners can buy an entry ticket on the same day, but Chinese citizens have to book their entry seven days in advance, and it is hard to get the tickets since they generally sell out completely within 30 minutes each morning. His explanation for this was that the Chinese government recognizes that for foreigners, this may be their only opportunity in their whole life to visit the Forbidden City, and it is unlikely that a foreigner would have known about the advance purchase rule. However, Chinese citizens should be able to adequately plan in advance. Still, this evidently causes some obvious discontent among the locals, so if asked when getting tickets, he told us to say that we were visiting on our own rather than with a group.

While standing in line at 1:39 PM to get my ticket, I was thinking that maybe this walk-up ticket purchase thing only functions if you already have a Tiannamen Square pass? Certainly, two days ago when I tried to get in through a different entry point, they did not let me do so because I did not have an advance ticket. Note, as my tour had been all-inclusive of all entry fees, the guide had given me 60 CNY in cash to pay at the window. The line itself was not terribly long, but it took some time. Incidentally, they don’t actually give you a ticket; rather, they record your passport information.

At 2:00 PM I was back at the table area waiting for everyone else to finish getting their tickets. While sitting there I ate one of the granola bars that Melody had thoughtfully put in for me in the morning. It was a Giant Bar blueberry flapjack bar, and it actually did taste like a blueberry pancake. Thanks Melody!

At 2:18 PM we were finally entering. Unsurprisingly, the automated passport reader did not work for me, but they just waved me through anyways. Starting from now, there was a lot of information given, most of which I was not able to write down.

For instance, at 2:28 PM James explained the difference between the male and female lions of the “lion gardens”. The female lion can always be recognized by the cub, and the male always has a ball which symbolizes unity of the state. While our guide did not tell us this, I think in a different tour I had been told that these sorts of stylized creature were not actually “lions” but I may be wrong. Regardless, they sort of look like lions. Again, there was a LOT of other information which I am not sharing, but you can definitely do a deep dive into everything found in the Forbidden City by looking online if you really want all the details about the symbolism and function of everything. I will just mention the random things that for whatever reason stood out for me.

On a practical note, at 2:37 PM the guide told us that the huge cauldrons here were actually water recipients for the purpose of fighting fires. A separate note of security was that there were 15 layers of bricks underneath the square in order to make it more difficult for an enemy to tunnel up from underneath.

At 2:41 PM we saw the hall of supreme harmony. This is where the Japanese signed their surrender in 1945. Then, at 2:46 PM we learned that up until 1924, the last emperor still lived in this palace. But at that time, he was completely removed, and the space became open to the public. While seeing the throne room at 2:53 PM (from quite a distance), we learned that through the 1950s, visitors were still allowed to enter the throne room, but they closed it off due to the room starting to be damaged with so much traffic. I think he said that this place is also called the hall of supreme harmony.

At 2:54 PM we were told that the crane and the turtle stand for long life. Separately, throughout the visit, he several times mentioned that there were not many visitors today, and that this was a positive thing. It was unclear to me if this was because it was late October, or if this was just a slow day. Regardless, I certainly appreciated that there were fewer people.

It seems that anywhere in China which is vaguely historic or pretty, you will see people, usually only women, dressed up in “period dress” to have pictures taken.

Even through I certainly was not really absorbing everything the guide said, at 3:22 PM I reflected that while coming here without a guide would not be a complete waste of time, it would certainly be far less interesting. Don’t get me wrong, but after a while, most things seemed to look more or less the same, but the tour spiel kept me engaged. So the takeaway is that if you come here without a guide, you will still probably like how many things look, but you will also probably get bored rather quickly.

At 3:37 PM we were in the garden of tranquility and benevolence. I think he said that the temple here was for the emperor’s mother and his concubines. Then at 3:39 PM I got a nice interior furniture picture at the palace of Longevity and Health.

I didn’t really understand why, but there was this golden pagoda we saw at 3:51 PM which was there to keep the emperor’s mother’s hair. Then near that, at 3:54 PM was a hall of Budhist sculptures and a few of the terra cotta warriors (not replicas).

Then at 4:06 PM we were entering the inner court. This was followed by the imperial garden and the study of the last emperor at 4:12 PM. Next, at 4:24 PM I appreciated the mosaics which were on the passageway.

Then at 4:38 PM we started to finish up and the guide gave us a small parting gift, a refrigerator magnet. I believe it is the character for luck. I would never actually buy something like this, but I admit that I took it home with me, and it is on my refrigerator today. All in all, I thought the guide did a very good job, so here is a positive shout out to Catherine Lu Tours, who were the actual tour operator for the tour I had booked through GetYourGuide. If anyone from the company reads this, I hope they will also note the great work which was done by our guide, James.

We could stay longer on our own, but I had made plans to meet up again with Csilla in the evening. Thus at 4:44 PM I looked for an exit, and by 4:48 PM I was walking outside towards the nearest subway station.

The walk itself was nice, and I arrived outside the Tiannamen East Station at 5:26 PM, but this time the ticket was only 3 CNY ($0.41 USD), since I only had to go 5 stations. It was a quick trip, so I was already back on the sidewalk again at 5:45 PM.

I lucked out, because Amap worked for where I was going when I wrote the name in English. I have probably already mentioned this in an earlier entry, but Google maps does not work well at all in China. IF you use an Android phone, Amap works great for walking and driving instructions, but the app is all in Chinese. For Iphone users, I understand that Apple maps works well in China.

So at 5:56 PM I arrived out in front of Beersmith with four minutes to spare. There were many beautiful building to see in this area, especially at night. Csilla arrived shortly thereafter. I had a very good hamburger and a 4-beer sampler for a cost of 214 CNY ($30.03 USD).

The original plan had been to stay later and listen to the live music, but Csilla was not feeling so well, and I also had an early start the next morning, so at 8:18 PM we were already back at Csilla’s place, having previously taken a couple of minutes to get some ice-cream at the shop across the street. After a brief chat while Csilla helped me get ready on her couch for the evening, we both turned in for the night.

So, what did you think? Was this more along the lines of what you had been hoping for when I said I was going to Beijing? If so, I think you will be even happier with Day 5, because it was a big one! As always, thanks for continuing to read along, and let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Beijing trip: Day 3 (29 October)

Hey everyone, so by now you have figured out that it might be a full year later before I finish up writing about these trips. Nevertheless, I fully intend to try and finish them up. Today should not be that difficult, since the only thing on the agenda was a trip to the zoo; while perhaps not the ideal way to have this particular experience, I was very excited about the prospect of seeing real live Pandas! On a separate note, I was desperate enough to churn these entries out faster that I tried generative AI to do this entry for me, but it was such a mess that I ended up giving up entirely on that route, and I’m back to doing everything manually. So, if you like to read this, then I’m an amazing writer. However, if you don’t like it . . .well, then let’s not discuss that for now.

Anyway, on Day 3, I was up and out of Alex and Melody’s house at 10:38 AM. Once more as I was walking, I was really impressed by how clean and well-maintained both the streets and sidewalk were. However, since I had already seen it once, I was not as inclined to take so many pictures. At 11:00 AM I was back at the China International Exhibition Center, this time, having already learned how to navigate things easily the day before, I was able to quickly buy my one-way subway for ticket for 6 RMB ($0.83 USD), and then get on the first subway at 11:00 AM. This first trip was more challenging than yesterday, since it would involve four different subway lines. I won’t go into all of the details about the subway trip this time, but it’s worth noting that when I changed to line 13 at Wangjing XI I had to pay special attention to the indicator lines before actually arriving at the platform.

Most of the time in Beijing, you stand on the same platform and just check to see which direction, but there are several stops where you have to check ahead of time to make sure that you get the right entrance since the train only goes one direction on each platform. However, just like for day 2, as long as I was checking the Moovit app while making a transfer, it was very easy to see which entrance to take. Still, you definitely need to pay attention. At 12:10 PM, when I was switching to line 2 at Dongzhi Men, I noticed it was another “double platform”. I also noticed that this station seemed a bit more “industrial” (read as “slightly outdated and rundown”) looking than others; I assume that this is because the line numbers indicate when each line came into service, so this was probably an older station. Still, it was very clean, safe feeling and orderly.

My other transfers were uneventful, and I was even starting to feel very relaxed about the whole thing. No doubt if I were to do this on a daily basis, within a month I would not even think about it. With great anticipation, at 12:15 PM I was finally taking the exit to street level. Pandas here I come!!

And, this is what happens when you get too excited about something . . .

So . . . what to do? Clearly, I was not the only one who primarily sees the zoo as a place to see Pandas. Otherwise, they would not have seen the need to put this sign in the window. Still, I was thankful that they had done so, since I would have been incredibly sad had I entered and then discovered that they were not available. Despite all of this, between the walking and the four different subway lines, I had travelled for two hours to get here. Furthermore, the entry fee was only 15 CNY ($2.06 USD). So, using similar logic to what got me into the park on Day 2, I went ahead and bought a ticket and headed on inside at 12:28 PM. Given all of the generally negative reviews I had read online, my expectations were incredibly low, but for two dollars, how could I complain? Rather than focusing too much on the animals, I decided that I would approach this as another “park visit”.

For most Europeans or North Americans, that is probably the right approach to visiting this zoo. The landscaping really is beautiful, and it is very peaceful if you go during the day on a weekday like I did, especially in October. Honestly though, there is a good chance that you might not be very happy about the conditions of several of the animal enclosures. While the animals themselves appear to be well cared for, the larger animals in particular seem to have very little space. This definitely seemed to be the case for the Malayan Tapirs, and I also wondered why the three of them were kept separate from each other . . . perhaps they would otherwise fight?

However, if your goal is to actually SEE the animals, these smaller enclosures pretty much guarantee that you will get an up-close view of most of them. Unsurprisingly (due to their small size), at 12:48 I saw that the banded mongoose enclosure was a bit less depressing, but I was somewhat surprised to see the people ignoring the “Do not feed” signs.

Banded mongoose enclosure

The entrance to the “American animals” area was also priceless. I will let you figure out why on your own.

So, despite obvious criticisms, it really was pretty to walk around, and there was also the opportunity to see some interesting looking animals.

Then at 1:09 PM I realized that the Beijing aquarium, which has a separate entry fee, is actually located within the zoo. From the outside at least, it looked reasonably modern, and with a fee of 160 CNY ($22.02 USD) it was also quite a bit cheaper than other aquariums which I have visited around the world. I was a bit short on cash and WeChat funds, but I decided that if I were able to pay with my international credit card, I would go ahead and check it out. Furthermore, even less so than the zoo, it did not look crowded, so I figured it would be a decent visit.

My first impression as I entered at 1:33 PM was that while it was not “incredibly fancy” it seemed to be reasonably well maintained. Furthermore, if comparing aquarium costs elsewhere, it seemed to be entirely affordable. Of course, it also helped a lot that there were so few people. There was some signage in English, but most of it was only in Chinese. Unlike the zoo, there seemed to be only one set route, so as long as one continues forward, you will see everything.

At 1:50 PM I wondered if there might be something wrong with one of the sharks, since its body seemed to be permanently L shaped.

In addition to the aquarium sites, there were of course also PLENTY of opportunities to buy overpriced souvenirs.

At 1:54 PM I noticed that the Beluga tank seemed very small for an animal of that size, but the 2:00 PM Chinese sturgeon show (a diver giving them food) was particularly impressive. I had no idea that these fish were so huge!

At 2:25 PM I saw a fire shrimp. That was also something special which I had not seen before.

The nearby tanks I saw at 2:27 PM for lobsters and crabs were way too small, but maybe they were just happy that they were not being boiled/steamed alive to be eaten? Again, I noticed that they were REALLY working the gift shop angle. Parents with more than one small child beware . . .

At 2:29 PM I came across a fairly short aquarium tunnel, but the only way through was on a fairly quickly moving mechanical sidewalk. I guess that’s one way to keep it from getting too crowded while also eliminating long term gawkers.

At 2:33 PM I walked past the penguin exhibit, but the penguins were clearly not in a mood to cooperate.

There were also some tanks with some sea turtles which seemed a bit small, but maybe they don’t actually mind? At any rate, at least they were able to move around a bit. On a separate note, all throughout the aquarium there were abundant restrooms. I also went in to check them out, and all of them seemed to be very clean.

As is normally the case at aquariums, the jellyfish exhibits were especially beautiful. Note, these tanks also seemed to be very crowded, but for whatever reason, I at least was not that concerned about jellyfish not having tons of extra room.

At 2:51 PM I decided to head towards the marine mammal pavilion for the 3:00 PM show. As is usually the case with zoo and aquarium shows, there was no extra charge for any of the shows themselves, but there were always abundant salespeople trying to hawk overpriced “souvenirs”. I was seated at 2:56 PM and I noticed that even for a “slow day” there seemed to be a few hundred people. However, as the amphitheatre itself was made to accommodate many more, the first impression was that it was almost empty.

The show started at exactly 3:00 PM with a silly clown show. I have to give them credit; they did a very good job amusing the kids. Then at 15:06 PM a sea lion came out and they launched into what I can only assume was an educational spiel, but I of course understood nothing. Despite my lingering misgivings about this sort of a show, I had to recognize that they really did seem to be trying to keep the focus on education rather than forcing the sea lion to do all sorts of ridiculous tricks.

It was a similar situation with the two dolphins which came out at 3:15 PM. Again, the emphasis did not seem to be on making the animals do lots of tricks, but rather primarily on the educational talks. Still, it was nice to see, and I was happy to see that they were pushing the learning side of things.

Especially for someone who had not seen dolphins before, this would have been a very special experience. Finally, again, for what it’s worth, not that I am an expert, the animals seemed to look healthy. The entire show was exactly thirty minutes.

By 3:36 PM I was heading out the exit where there was of course one final gift shop. This was perhaps the most “troubling” of the shops, since they were selling small aquatic animals in tiny “cute containers.” Most of these animals will presumably die within a few days of being bought, and those which do not, being confined to such tiny quarters, will doubtless be miserable unless the thoughtful purchaser has a MUCH larger enclosure at home. I did not take a picture of everything, as I figured they might realize that I was being critical, but there were even tiny animals in sealed plastic key chain pouches . . .meaning of course that there would be no way for them to be fed unless they were cut out of the pouches. On the plus side, today at least, nobody seemed to be buying them.

Putting aside all of the questionable elements of the various gift shops, the aquarium visit was nice, and certainly worth the $22 USD. By 3:40 PM I was back out outside at the main zoo. As mentioned earlier, the gardens really were a treat, and since nobody else seemed that interested, I had them all to myself.

At 3:51 PM I admitted to myself that I really did like to see the bears, even though the Polar Bear in particular seemed a bit lonely. Of course, in reality I have no idea what the any of the them were thinking, but it is impossible to not speculate.

Then, unsurprisingly, at 3:58 PM, I noticed that the Red Pandas were absolutely adorable, even though they were not the type of panda I had planned on seeing today.

Yes, I saw a couple more animals, but at 4:18 PM I decided to go ahead and start finding my way out of the zoo and then head back to Shunyi. While it only took me 10 minutes, it was a bit more difficult to figure out the exit than I would have liked; I think they could work a bit on improving their signage. Again, as mentioned earlier, the gardens continued to be a big highlight as I headed towards the exit.

By 4:27 PM I was at the exit and headed out walking towards the subway, where I arrived at 4:39 PM. Now being an old pro, I was able to quickly buy my 6 CNY ($0.83 USD) subway ticket, entering the first subway at 4:44 PM, once more following the same route to get back to Melody and Alex’s place. As I have already explained a lot about transfers, and also how to best manage them (Use Moovit!), I won’t once again share all the details.

This is not an observation applying to only Beijing, but throughout this trip I have noticed that people here REALLY seem addicted to their phones . . .a benefit of this is that everyone is very quiet on the subway.

Several smooth transfers later, at 5:43 PM I arrived back to China International Exhibition Center and finished my walk back to the house, arriving at 6:16 PM.

So, once more, things had not gone quite as planned, but I was still satisfied with my second full day in Beijing. I was now a pro at taking the subway, and I was also happily rolling with the punches whenever my plans went a bit sideways. However, if you have the patience to keep reading Day 4, you will see that things really started to pick up, and you will start to read about some of the experiences and see some of the images you no doubt had in mind when you first heard that I would be heading to this part of the world. As always, thanks for reading along, and don’t be shy about putting any questions or comments in the section shown below.

Beijing trip: Day 2 (28 October)

Hey there readers, let me first begin by saying how sorry I am that these other entries are coming out so later. However, if you think this is late, just wait till I try to finish the entries for my last few days in Argentina back in June! As is probably obvious from the less than stellar quality of these entries, I don’t have any sponsorship, so these travel blog entries can be seen either as an act of love or a simple act of insanity. Keeping this in mind, I just write these when I have the time.

So anyways, as those of you who are regular readers will remember, I was staying in Shuyin, for my recent trip to Beijing. As I understand it, which may be completely inaccurate, Beijing is built on a ring system, and Shuyin is on the 6th ring. In lay person’s terms, if you are coming as a tourist, this is probably not the best place to stay, since it is quite far from the city center, but when staying with great friends like I was doing, it was a perfect location. Alex and Melody, like pretty much everyone else I knew in Beijing, regularly recommended me to just use DIDI (the main Chinese ride hailing service, sort of like Uber). However, I strongly suspected it would not work properly for me. Furthermore, I like to use public mass transport systems while travelling if it is at all feasible. This helps me both get a better idea of what “the average person does” and also forces me to walk more, which means I see more and also get a bit of exercise.

Thus, having had plenty of sleep, I left the villa at 10:19 AM and started walking towards the nearest subway station. It was a beautiful clear day, and the temperature was a comfortable (with the sweatshirt Melody had lent me) 14 degrees C. Both the street and the sidewalks were very clean and at least at this time of the day were not very busy.

I resolved to check out this neighborhood park later on.

For those of you not used to travel in Asia, despite having plenty of highly skilled English writers and even native speakers available to proofread texts, these comical translations of English are fairly common everywhere. Still, despite the errors, they are appreciated.

Alex had warned me that it was not a short walk, but at 10:46 AM I was near the turn in which would lead to the China International Exhibition Center subway station.

It looked like I could take this nature trail to the subway station, but I opted to stay on the road this time around.

At 10:52 AM I was in the station, quickly going through the security check and then trying to figure out how to buy the ticket. I had earlier used the Moovit app, to figure out my destination of Xidan and the associated subway transfers, so that part at least was already sorted. Seeing that there were no human ticket sellers, but rather a bank of machines, after much trial and error I finally discovered that the small machine on the end was the only one that I could get to work for me, despite even having money loaded onto my WeChat wallet. Still, I was not in a hurry today, so I didn’t mind that it took me twenty minutes to finally figure it out. Armed with my single use, plastic subway card, I was safely waiting at the platform at 11:15 AM.

It was a short wait, and at 11:20 AM I was in the first train which was clean, quiet and comfortable. I appreciated that the upcoming subway/train stations were listed in both Chinese and English.

I know that for my day 1 entry for Beijing I said that I would try to be more concise than I had been with earlier trips, but I think that some of these details about subway transfers could be useful for a first-time traveller subway traveller in Beijing, so bear with me as I give you way too many details. At 11:37 AM it was time to transfer from line 15 to 16, but this time around I forgot to note down the station. There was very clear signage which I could tell was also appreciated by Chinese visitors who might not be regular users of these subway lines.

At 11:44 AM I was on the next train and was even able to get a seat until it was once more time to transfer to the Red line at Dawang Lu at 12:06 PM. As mentioned earlier, using the Moovit app, it had also been easy to see which platform to stand on even though there were trains going both directions. Again, at Dawang Lu it was easy to follow the signs, and by 12:11 PM I was in the next train. As a side note, up until now, I had not seen anyone who did not look “East Asian” but at the same time, nobody seemed to think it was of particular note that I was in the subway. Finally, at 12:28 PM I exited the last subway car of this trip and was quickly outside at 12:32 PM, having exited from the Xidan north F1 exit. While it had earlier been my plan to walk to the Temple of Heaven from here, once outside I noticed that this was much farther away than it had appeared on the map, so after a few minutes of consideration, I decided to try to walk to Tiananmen square, which seemed much closer.

So far, things seemed to be going well. Then at 12:43 PM there was an ID card check which seemed to apply to anyone on the street. As such, I was glad that I had brought my passport, but it didn’t seem to be a big deal, since the official only seemed to glance at it before waving me through. Then again there was another check just four minutes later at 12:47 PM. This did not seem to make sense to me since the sidewalk mostly deserted and I didn’t even see how anyone could have entered the sidewalk from the last check. Then much to my surprise, there was another check at 12:49 PM! I started to wonder, was I in some sort of a high-security area? This seemed unlikely since they didn’t seem to care about me walking there, but once more it happened at 12:53 PM. Still, the ID checkpoints were quick, and nobody seemed alarm that I was there, so I kept going.

Then at 12:56 PM I saw this interesting looking building. However, with all the guards outside, I was cautious about approaching closer. They weren’t particularly intimidating looking, but I didn’t see anyone else going that way, so I figured that despite outward appearances, it probably was not a “tourist attraction”.

Then guess what happened at 1:00 PM . . . that’s right, another ID check. While these checkpoints did not seem particularly onerous, I had to wander at the point of it all. I mean there were already CCTV cameras. But when in Rome, or in this case, when in Beijing . . . Interestingly, at 1:02 PM a random woman asked to take a selfie with me; this was the first time during the day that anyone had seemed to even notice that I might not just be a regular part of the scenery. Also, around about this time it started to become clear to me that I was definitely in the Tiananmen square area, which was also where there seemed to be some other standard sites of interest, but for the life of me, I could not figure out how to actually get there. Every way seemed to be blocked, but at the same time, in the far distance I could definitely tell that there were apparent tourists.

By sheer chance, at 1:15 PM I arrived at what I thought would be another negligent security check which led to some place called the temple museum, but I was made to understand that I could not pass since I did not have a ticket and there also was no way for me to get a ticket. Interestingly, it did seem to be open, despite it being a Monday, and everything online said it was closed on Mondays. I continued with this fruitless wandering for the next hour, going down into tunnels, trying through alternative exits, and even attempted to ask several people for help, but I don’t understand Chinese and at least around here (as would make sense), people also did not seem to understand English. Oddly, I even ended up inside the National Center for Performing Arts. Needless to say, it was a bit of any adventure, and I had no clear agenda for the day, so it was fine.

I will admit that while I had no fixed agenda for the day, by 2:12 PM I was starting to get just a tiny bit disheartened. I was open to seeing random sites, but I seemed to be trapped in an endless maze of blocked sidewalks and tunnels which appeared to lead to nowhere new. Then finally at 2:15 PM, after trailing after a few people walking down the sidewalk, I saw a place which seemed to be selling tickets to enter, so I decided that I may was well give it a go. It was only 3 CNY ($0.41 USD) to enter, and at the point, despite the pleasant looking mostly empty streets, I was game to try anything different.

Once inside I discovered that it was called Zhongshan park. It really was very nice inside, and for $0.41 USD you can’t really complain about anything regardless. Like other places I had seen on my earlier trip to China, a big draw of this place seemed to be for women to rent period costumes and the services of a photographer. The goldfish pond was a bit sad, and there were several buildings which looked like they might be interesting inside, but all were blocked off, so it’s hard to say.

At 2:45 PM I came across a large plaza which as far as I could initially tell, served no purpose, but then closer inspection revealed that this was the “Altar of Land and Grain”. It’s hard to appreciate in the pictures, but the altar has a symbolic pattern laid out with dirt which naturally has five different colors. It’s hard to read on the sign, but the colors evidently represent the different types of soil found throughout China.

This was clearly a very large park, and as I wandered around, at 2:53 PM I reflected on the fact that steel must be rather cheap here, since they seem to put barriers made of it around countless items. I had earlier noticed this out on the street, but oddly inside the park I saw that there were even steel barriers around certain trees, despite the fact that those trees were already in a clearly roped off area. More intriguingly, other trees which at least to my eye looked identical, did not seem to merit the same protection.

Then at 3:15 PM there was an unexpected memory triggered as I entered an area of yellow Ginko trees. This reminded me of the Autumn sidewalk outside my residence hall my first year at Truman State University. I also tried to sneak a couple of pictures of two middle-aged women who had clearly identically dressed the same for the purpose of taking pictures together; for some reason I liked this idea more than the ones I had seen who were wearing period costumes.

I easily could have spent a couple more hours here, but at 3:40 PM I started looking for the way out, as I had scheduled to meet a friend and former coworker at 5:00 PM. Again, using the Moovit app, it wasn’t that difficult to find my way out and then once again find myself in the TianAnMen Dong subway station, quickly buying a 3 CNY ($0.41 USD) ticket. This time I remembered to take a picture of the type of ticket machine which seems to be the best option for foreigners. Things went well, with a well-marked transfer to line 10 at 4:37 PM, finally arriving to my general destination at 4:56 PM.

This the machine that foreign visitors need to use.

My friend Csilla offered to book me a DiDi to get to our meeting space, but by using the Amap app I thought that I would be able to manage it walking without too much trouble. Yes, it was still a bit of a challenge since the map is entirely in Chinese, but I was up for the adventure. Sure enough, things worked out fine, and at 5:08 PM I arrived at The Local.

The place itself was “fine” and the food was “decent” but not outstanding. The real treat of course was once again meeting up with my wonderful friend Csilla Szabo, who is currently working as a Drama teacher at an international school in Beijing. Csilla and I are friends from when we used to work together in Mumbai, and while we were both in India, I always greatly appreciated that whenever she would come to Bengaluru, she would make a special effort to see me, even though distances and traffic in the city can be quite a challenge.

Despite having had an amazing visit, by 8:20 PM it was time for Csilla to head home and me to head back to Shunyi. The total cost of our shared meal and drinks was 468 CNY ($64.57 USD). Due to the distance and the late hour, I was a bit cautious about trying to take the subway back at that hour. Thus, I tried to use my DiDi app, which disappointingly but predictably didn’t work; this however seems to be a “me problem” since most foreign visitors have no issues. Fortunately, DiDi allows you to book a ride on behalf of someone else, and that’s what Csilla did for me. The car arrived at 8:30 PM, and at 9:10 PM I was already back to Melody and Alex’s place, with a total bill of 75 CNY ($10.35 USD).

And that was the end of my first full day in Beijing. Yes, there were some challenges associated with transportation and finding places, but all in all it was a very satisfying day. Looking back, I could have been very frustrated with regards to my derailed attempts at independent tourism, but I still had plenty of time left to my visit. Additionally, as long as I don’t feel in danger or under unrealistic time pressure, figuring out how to do things in a new place is in itself part of the fun. So, did I manage day 3 better than day 2 or did I get stuck in another maze of blocked streets and tunnels? If you want to find out, you will have to wait for the next entry.

As always, thank you for reading along, and don’t hesitate to leave your questions or comments in the section shown below.

Beijing trip: Day 1 (27 October)

Hey folks, so this trip’s entries are going to be a bit different than my earlier trips as I am trying a couple of new approaches.

To start out, I am going to omit the entire process of travelling from Bengaluru to Beijing. For those of you who have been following along with me, you already know my routine and also know the general process for getting out of Bengaluru and my recommendations about the same. Furthermore, I am also not detailing any information about transfers; although, in this case I only went through Singapore, and it is so easy to find information about that airport that there is no real value in providing more narrative.

Separately, I am trying out a less detailed style, still trying to include what I think would actually be interesting or important information for fellow travellers, but not always giving the minute-by-minute explanations which some of you really appreciate, but others find unnecessarily tedious. So anyways, let’s get right to it.

After an almost entirely pleasant flight on Singapore Air SQ800, direct from Singapore, we touched down at 7:15 AM, but it was not until 7:41 AM that we were actually off the plane. I was pleased to see that there was easy to follow signage in both Chinese (which I could not read) and English. However, despite the signs, not everything was clear.

At 7:50 AM there were prominent instructions about needing to register one’s fingerprints at an impressive bank of machines. However, upon further investigation, it seemed very unclear as to whether or not this applied to people with actual printed visas in their passports, like me, or only for those taking advantage of China’s recently expanded visa on arrival system. At any rate, it evidently didn’t matter, since after trying four machines, none of which seemed to work, some sort of official just told all of us encountering the same problem to ignore the machines and proceed to the next step of the process, the arrival card machines.

The arrival card machines I encountered at 7:57 AM worked for me, but they clearly were not working for many other travellers. Presumably after a few minutes of watching this, another official told all of those nervous supplicants to simply ignore the second impressive phalanx of machines. Oddly enough, the extremely expensive looking machine only fills out part of the card, which seems to negate the purpose of having it automated, since I still had to fill out more than half of it by hand, but never question immigration procedures . . . Then at 8:03 AM I was on to the actual human operated immigration lines.

These seemed to go fairly quickly, and there was another required fingerprint collection station in front of each counter. There were no questions about where I was going, when I was leaving or why I was there, and by 8:31 AM I was through and on my way towards the train which would take me to the baggage claim area when I arrived at 8:45 AM. Like many airports, there was quite a bit of walking involved, but I didn’t find it to be tedious.

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By 8:48 AM I had the bag and headed towards the exit, but I made a stop along the way which might not make sense for you. Despite the many claims about it now being so easy for foreigners to use China’s ubiquitous online payment systems, that had definitely not been my experience when I had been in Fujian province in December and January. However, part of that may be because I was attempting to use Costa Rican and Indian “international cards” so your mileage may vary. Still, as I would not have Huixian chaperoning me everywhere this time, I decided to take her advice and get $200 USD changed to 1281 Chinese Yen (CNY). I did not get the best exchange rate, but the “lost” $20 USD was worth the peace of mind enabled by having emergency backup cash.

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Upon exiting at 9:00 AM, the fancy black sedan driver which Alex had arranged for me was waiting to collect me and by 9:05 AM we were on our way to Shunyi. The roads were very smooth and the ride pleasant. While it was “chilly” outside, it was clearly warmer than I had expected. Yes, there were some signs of Autumn along the way, but most of the trees were vibrant green.

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Upon arrival to Melody, Alex and Robin’s home about thirty minutes later, they promptly got me settled in. Seeing that my coat was much too heavy, Melody lent me three sweatshirts which were just my size; they were intended to be for Robin, but he was not keen on them, so his loss was my gain, at least for a few days anyways. Then Alex helped me load up my WeChat wallet in exchange for a bunch of my Chinese cash; that way I would not have to worry about the international card connection to Alipay and WeChat not working. Then a bit later they took me out to a sort of fancy shopping area which they favor where we had a very nice late lunch at Sue Cuisine. Robin of course no doubt did not remember me at all since the last time I had seen him, I think he was maybe 4 years old; I think it had been 11 years since we last saw one another in person! Regardless, it was great catching up, and I was extremely thankful for Melody and Alex for hosting me for the week at their comfortable home.

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Following a wonderful day of catching up and reflecting on old times, since Robin and Melody had to be at school early the next morning, we all turned in by 10:15 PM. I had no clear plan about what I would actually do the next day when I would set off on my own, but I was excited about the adventures (or as is often the case with me, misadventures) which were ahead. If you want the nitty gritty of getting around Beijing’s transport system as I attempt to see the sites, you will have to read along with me for day 2.

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So, what do you think about the new style so far? Have I become too abbreviated, or should I cut things down even more? Let me know your thoughts and questions in the comment section below.

Argentina trip: Day 14 (28 June)

Hey there everyone, so day 14 was a bit different from the previous days, because nothing definite had been arranged ahead of time with any tour provider.

As such, I got up at 7:30 AM and started taking care of preliminary packing, then leaving the apartment at 8:25 AM and walking towards Plaza 9 de Julio.

At 8:42 AM I decided to get a simple and fast light breakfast at McDonald’s. I ordered a café Americano + 2 media lunas for 3500 ARS, which I paid for with my Indian credit card (235 INR – $2.82 USD). At 8:50 AM I sat down with my food.

At 9:08 AM I gave 200 ARS to a guy seeking money for Remar Argentina. He gave me a calendar which of course nobody these days would ever use. I’ve noticed that if you had out around this central plaza, there is a good chance of something similar being sold or there being some similar solicitation of funds. However, when I checked with locals, they confirmed that these are legitimate organizations doing good work in the community, so I was happy to contribute, even when doing so in a minimal fashion.

At 9:18 AM I left and went towards the meeting point in front of Hotel Salta for a “free” historical walking tour of the center which was supposed to take hours. I put free in quotations, because you are expected to give a tip. In Europe this is usually a minimum of 5 euros, but I was not sure what would be expected here.

At 9:23 AM I arrived and met a much older retired gentleman who was to be our guide, Jorge Luis Acuña. As he understandably wanted to give time for stragglers to arrive, we didn’t get started until 9:45 AM. Right off I understood that this was going to be more like a historical chat with an older relative, but he was very likable, and since it was free anyways, I figured it would be fine. If I decided I didn’t like it, I would just leave. Unfortunately, I had only just learned some background about Hotel Salta, including that it had started operating as a hotel in 1945 when at 9:50 AM I received a message from my ground transport provider for the next morning, informing me that my morning flight with Flybondi had been cancelled.

Unlike most other airlines which automatically reschedule you, I needed to make arrangements by calling them. They only had an option at 2:00 AM or one at 8:15 PM tomorrow; my original flight had been at 10:30 AM. I also found out that I would now have to fly into Ezeiza rather than Aeroparque, which was inconvenient, but not a disaster. What I did find absurd was that it took them 30 minutes on the phone in order to get my reservation changed. They said another email would arrive later in the day with the final confirmation. Now I understand why people don’t recommend FlyBondi. . . Evidently this flight got cancelled on the 26th, but last night when I did the web check-in, it showed up as fine, also permitting me to do the check-in.

At 10:44 AM I was able to join up with the group again at Hotel Adobe. 1750 was when the original house was made. Calisto Gauna lived here (not the original family owners), but he was born in Sumalau (some of the spelling might be off). There was a lot of name dropping going on of important historical figures from Argentinian history, but most of it meant little to me. However, almost everyone else on the tour was Argentinian, so it was clearly much more meaningful for them. Even though I didn’t personally connect with the names, he was incredibly knowledgeable and made the history come alive.

At 11:03 AM I was still on the tour. Evidently Gauna’s family still lives there in his house in Sumalau. What is clear, is that this whole area is steeped in important Argentinian history. Again, Don Jorge mentioned many names and events that the Argentinians knew, but I of course did not. As I assume that most of my readers, like me, will find a lot of the information to be overwhelming, I will condense down to points which I either found more interesting or which might be of interest to people outside Argentina.

At 11:29 AM we were at the main cathedral. In 1582 the first church was built here, but they finished construction of the current church in 1852. On the 13th of September at 3 PM a huge group of pilgrims arrive here from all over the north of the country, some having walked 14 days.

At 11:51 AM we saw the Archbishop’s residence. Don Jorge was quite proud that Pope Juan Pablo II slept here when he was visiting Salta.

At 12:07 PM we were in Plaza Belgrano. When General Güemes was 14, he joined the infantry. Later on when he was injured on June 7, 1821 by a competing revolutionary faction, he could have been saved by Spanish doctors, but a condition of doing so was that he would renounce control of northern Argentina in favor of the Spanish. Rather than betray his command, he refused medical attention and then days later he died.

12:31 PM we departed the plaza. This guide is extremely knowledgeable and had a wonderful way of presenting. The guide recommended Museo de Güemes, a good free museum with lots of outstanding historical information.

At 1:07 PM we were in front of the Iglesia San Francisco (where I had made a sorry visit on my own a couple days earlier). The bell which is shown in front is from 1860 and weighs 1300 kg. It was made in Italy, but it broke after just a few years since it was badly made. At 1:10 PM we finished. Although others were giving less, I gave a tip of 2000 ARS. I think it might have been better for local Argentinians, but I still was very impressed with his passion. I went off on my own from there.

If you look closely, the building with the red flag is the museum which Jorge recommended.

After so much time together, I asked if we could have a picture together.

At 1:56 PM I saw a street dog which was officially identified as a street dog belonging to the center of Salta.

This says “don’t steal”. I’m not sure if it means the dog’s jacket, the dog herself, or just in general.

At 2:00 PM I went towards the counter of the High altitude archeology museum, arriving at 2:21 PM. After some internal debate, I decided to wait in the 9 de Julio Plaza until 3:00 PM in order to register for the 4:30 guided tour (Registration was not allowed until 3:00 PM sharp, and it was first come first serve). I think no pictures are allowed inside, but it is considered an obligatory place to visit in Salta.

At 3:12 PM I bought my ticket to the museum paying 8000 ARS (538 INR – $6.45 USD) and I signed up for the guide tour at 4:30. They said I needed to be there at 4:25 PM.

As I wanted to get some lunch which I would quickly receive and would be able to eat before the tour, at 3:32 PM I ordered a Grand McBacon Doble with fries and a drink, paying 11900 ARS (800 INR – $9.6 USD). I felt a bit ridiculous buying McDonald’s for a second time in one day, but my double grand bacon burger was incredibly delicious, and I was able to have it quickly.

At 4:05 PM I had finished my food and was feeling quite satisfied. I sat there comfortably waiting for a bit, and then walked over to the nearby museum, arriving promptly at 4:25 PM.

The tour started right on time. While the artifacts were not especially fancy, it’s extremely impressive how well the funerary objects were preserved, especially considering the materials which were used in many cases, such as cloth, feathers and leather.

It was also interesting to learn that the Incas only arrived in this area a relatively short time before the Spanish. They came between 1480 and 1532, the Spanish invaders then arrived in 1532.

5:47 She suggests El museo de antropología detrás del monumento Güemes.

When it was my turn to see the mummified child at around 5:46 PM I found it incredibly impressive how her eyelashes and teeth and even the braids in her hair were perfectly preserved. At first I thought that there had been some posthumous deformation of her head, but they explained that it had been intentionally shaped into a cone shape during her life as a means of showing her high social standing. The current shawl she is wearing is the only thing which is not original, as her original covering was partially burned, as was part of her body, by a lightning strike, believed to have taken place 300 years ago. Locals from the area insisted that she be properly covered if she were to be viewed by the public, so they provided a shawl which would have been very similar to what she was originally wearing. Today only the lightning girl was on display; only one of the children is permitted to be displayed at a time, both to avoid further upsetting local native/first peoples and also for conservation purposes. At 5:47 the actual tour ended.

In the next rooms pictures were permitted, but in most cases that was taking pictures of pictures. As mentioned before, the textiles recovered look brand new, just like what you could buy today in the market, if it were good quality. I also found it interesting that the boy had short hair. What is the universality of shorter hair in men that took place in many cultures across the world despite their separation?

As alluded to earlier, no photos of any type were allowed in the area with the burial objects and the current mummified child on display. Despite the lack of any visible guards, everyone seemed to respect this rule. There are however high quality videos and pictures available which can be seen online for free. Despite this online availability, I’m very glad that I was able to see this in person. The mummies and funerary objects here were “naturally” preserved due to the climactic characteristics of the region, target than being artificially preserved in any way.

At 6:31 PM in a different part of the museum, it was notable to compare the state of the mummy and objects which were robbed in 1920, with the robbers and subsequent “owners” not observing nor having knowledge of how to properly preserve the findings. However, even within that context, even the 1920 tomb had remarkably well preserved pieces, including much of the mummy itself, which now is kept under optional preservation conditions to keep it from further deterioration.

Finally at 6:41 PM I came out of the museum and decided to go back to my apartment before meeting up later on with Natalia to go to La Vieja Estación Peña. I headed back towards the apartment, noting at 7:01 PM that it was crazy how quickly the temperature drops later in the day

From 7:20 PM to 8:12 AM I was at the apartment, and then headed out walking towards La Vieja Estación. I was really grateful to Natalia for saying that she would go with me, since it’s a bit odd to go to these places on one’s own.

When I arrived at 8:40 PM, they immediately seated us in a spot with a decent view of the stage. At 9:30 PM the show started, save I also noticed that I had another message from Flybondi saying that now my rescheduled flight would depart at 9:30 PM. At this point I didn’t believe anything from Flybondi, but I was eager to just enjoy the show.

At 10:56 PM I reflected that so far, everything about the show has been fantastic. Due to the lighting, photos didn’t come out well, but here you can see some videos. Yes, it’s a bit expensive, but if you can pay for it, then it’s worth it. When I paid my bill, it was 23800 for one glass of wine, 1 small dish of sweetbreads and 1 bread pudding. It was a bit more expensive because I paid with a card. I have discovered that many places here either charge 10% more if you pay with a card or essentially the same thing, give a 10% discount if paying with cash.

At 12:42 AM the main show was over although they continued with live music, and we left walking. On the way I left Natalia at her nearby hotel at 12:51 AM then continued walking back to my lodging where I arrived at 1:12 AM.

So it was annoying to have so many changes with Flybondi, but if this hadn’t happened, I probably also wouldn’t have felt comfortable staying out so late when I had an upcoming morning flight. Furthermore, like I said earlier, the morning walking tour was a bit of an information overload, but it was nice to not just think of my surroundings as a bunch of random old buildings. Given that I would now have most of the day in Salta the following day, I was also resolved to take advantage of the time by checking out other sites which I had earlier missed. As to whether or not the Flybondi flight ever actually left, that’s a mystery that won’t be solved until day 15!

Argentina trip: Day 13 (27 June)

Hey there readers. I really hope things are going well for you. Today, as with the previous several days, I got up at 6:00 AM and for breakfast at 6:30 AM heated up some of the empanadas and the simple pastries I had bought from the street vendor.

It wasn’t until 7:54 AM that the minibus picked me pick up. It looked like this would be the biggest group so far. There were 14 passengers with me, and 2 more entered at 7:54 AM. Today I scored the coveted single front seat, so I will have a good view of both the front and the side (get ready for lots of windshield pictures). The driver/guide’s name was Marcelo.

Around 7:58 AM Marcelo started with his running explanation, all in Spanish. That was fine with me. The sky was clear, and at 8:04 AM it was already fairly light out. Interestingly, while there are various spices and other agricultural products here, the paprika from this area is considered one of the two best varieties of paprika in the world. Among the other major products of the region are sugar cane, biodiesel, and tobacco.

At 8:14 AM the driver stopped speaking and we were given time to rest and just enjoy the scenery.

At 8:17 AM we passed Cerrillos, and then at 8:32 AM through Mercedes.

By 8:41 AM since I think everyone else on the excursion today was Argentinian or a local resident, the ever present mate thermoses and “bombas” were out in force. Before coming here I had thought it was just a custom to constantly drink this herbal infusion, but I have since learned that while there is clearly a strong cultural element, it is partially also an addiction, since mate contains various degrees of caffeine. However, similar to green tea, without the caffeine jitters at times associated with coffee. Regardless, as an outsider, it’s certainly odd to see the way they lug those Mate kits everywhere. I guess it’s no stranger than in some countries, people carry water bottles everywhere. The only difference is how the Mate is drunk out of an open cup.

At 8:51 we were in a transitory jungle/forest (selva de transición).

Then at 9:05 AM we stopped at a bridge (Cuesta del Obispo – Bishop’s Hill) to take pictures. The bridge we walked across is still good for pedestrians but no longer for vehicles.

This is the modern bridge now used for vehicles.

At 9:14 AM we got back on the bus. Marcelo pointed out that the vegetation on the right is much more exuberant than the left because of the direction of the winds. He was also full of other tidbits like how in the late 1970’s domestic tourism and then international tourism in this area started to develop because of the influence of Sol Jet, which was a subsidiary of Aerolíneas Argentinas.

At 9:32 he was still talking, and I certainly found much of it to be interesting, it was too much to write it all down. Again though, here is some that he shared. He told all the rocks in the area and why there are differences and what each type means. He also mixed it in with many stories and legends, kind of like a grandpa. At 9:40 one of the stories, who knows if it was true, was that during carnaval people could do a trial marriage for one year, but they were only allowed two attempts. If the second one didn’t work, you were allowed to separate, but had to remain single.

At 9:42 AM we had a rest stop. I paid 2800 ARS ($2.26 USD) for my coffee with milk, Alfajor and a bottle of water. It drew my attention that the cup was styrofoam and the spoon was disposable plastic. The woman who was selling was running all over the place. I had decided to buy another bottle of water since I noticed that I had already drunk half of the one I had filled in the apartment, and I decided to not risk filling it here, even though the tap water was probably perfectly good.

At 10:04 AM we were promptly back in the van and moving. Again, Marcelo was commenting the entire time. We moved onto an unpaved road, which was not permitted to be paved as a preservation effort since much of this route was a historic Incan road. While I agree with the theoretical desire to preserve, I don’t really see how this is a preservation effort when it is still constantly used by cars and vans, even with pressed down gravel; regardless, I’m not a conservationist, so who knows. Interestingly, only 20 km is unpaved because when the road moves into the national park, the national government does not recognize the preservation of the road which was declared by the provincial authorities.

At 10:12 AM we were heading up in a steady fashion.

At 10:20 AM Marcelo, who is clearly an apologist for the Spanish invasion and colonization, started making the argument that the Spanish left the Americas better than they had found it. Of course, that assumes that everyone judges better/worse using the same criteria. However, he recognized the many benefits also brought by the Incas (who were also invaders to this area), many of which still remain, both physical and cultural/practical. No doubt the first peoples of the area might have a different interpretation, especially when considering the abuse/enslavement/even genocide which took place of many tribes, but none of them were in the tour group. At 10:27 AM I acknowledged to myself that certainly his discourse in favor of the advantages of the fusion of cultures which took place in the Americas is practical for attempting to maintain peace and cohabitation of cultures today. Around about this same time, he pointed out that there are no longer trees here due to the altitude, but there was still plenty of short vegetation.

At 10:42 AM we stopped for the viewpoint and to try salami and queso made by local producers. While there were several tourists here, it definitely wasn’t crowded. There were also some local sellers of handicrafts, but they weren’t intrusive or annoying.

I noticed at 10:55 AM that they were selling llama salami and goat cheese. It wasn’t expensive at all. However, I didn’t see how I could take it back to India with me to Costa Rica or the USA. One of the people I was talking to told me that there was mostly domestic tourism in the north, partially because it’s cheaper, but it’s also considered heritage tourism. In contrast, the far south is more expensive, mostly pure nature tourism, and more where there is international tourism. In general I found it to be a good stop, but was also ready to get back in the vehicle at 11:06 AM.

Shortly thereafter at 11:12 AM we stopped at another viewpoint which is known for being where a large millstone was left abandoned when a cart broke. There was more to the story, but he was talking so much that at some points I just didn’t really pay a lot of attention, even though he was mostly entertaining and at times extremely informative. There was also a small chapel here, which I think had something to do with the whole millstone story. If you come here later on, you can ask for the additional details. Alternatively, with these modern days it’s probably also all available somewhere on the internet without too much research required.

At 11:22 AM we got back in the van. Marcelo commented that the highland valleys have a different name: “Puna” which distinguishes them from lowland valleys, simply called “vales”. In the distance we saw some guanacos which are protected in this national park. They have black faces, which distinguish them from vicuñas. Here the vicuñas and guanacos are protected animals, unlike llamas, because these first two are not easily domesticated.

Furthermore, guanacos have only one calf a year, and the vicuñas which live even higher up have only one calf every two years. In contrast, the llama is not protected, because it is easily domesticated, lives at a much lower altitude, and has two calves a year.

Vicuña wool is evidently incredibly expensive. Even in vicuñas ranches, where they have semi-domesticated animals, they are only permitted to take 200 grams of wool a year from the male vicuñas. They are not permitted to take any from the females, since it’s too cold and taking part of their wool could result in the death of the gestating calf and even the mother. As I said, assuming it was true, much of Marcelo’s information seemed useful and interesting, whereas other things were just him talking. Nevertheless, almost everyone seemed to find him to be very enjoyable.

At 11:39 AM we are on a rather large plain. Where I could increasingly see more and more of these larger cacti. Happily, at 11:42 AM, we stopped to learn about this tall cactus which is called a Cardón. He was another time when Marcelo appeared to be both very knowledgeable, and passionate about conservation. These large plants are technically considered to be trees, because inside their thick protective covering, the adult ones have wood. Due to excessive clearing of the land, and their slow growth, these must be protected from further deforestation. The Cardones, which are hermaphrodites, only grow 1 cm a year. During the first ten years of life, they depend almost entirely on the symbiotic relationship they have with the low bushes to get their water. Then they develop their interior pulp. The woodpecker takes water from them, but the cactus heals itself within a few days afterwards.

They reproduce when an arm falls off, and then rolls, until stopped by the symbiotic bush which they need for water. Initially they remain lying on their side until they finally are able to develop roots and then stand up. Really, it was all very fascinating and I was especially awed to see how many of them in this area were several hundred years old . . . If I understand correctly, the oldest of them can be around a thousand years old, but there were many here that were at least 500. I really do hope that they stick to their conservation efforts as it would be incredibly sad to lose this desert “forest”.

At 12:15 PM we got back in the van, then having another mini stop at 12:26 PM to take pictures of the snow capped Andes in the far distance, which are something to see with the Cardones trees in the foreground.

Coming in from India, at 12:37 PM it was interesting for me to see them selling local spices and talking about the advantages of those which are of course quite common in India and I think most of them originally come from India. However, in this area the mostly native/first/indigenous peoples have developed their own local spice agriculture, which they really value. They especially talked about the advantages of turmeric. I thought that all of my friends and coworkers back in India would be delighted by this.

At 12:42 we got in the van again, passing through Payogaso at 12:55 PM . Here they are extremely well known for paprika. It was interesting to hear Marcelo talk about the internal conflict of nationalized vs provincial commodities. For instance he was saying that in the north they don’t want the salt flats nationalized so that the lithium dollars will stay within the province rather than being redistributed throughout the country.

At 1:15 PM we arrived at Cachi, it’s kind of like Antigua Guatemala. Everything seems frozen in time. At the recommended restaurant, I had stuffed bell pepper, custard and lemonade. I stayed longer than I would have otherwise since I was having a nice conversation with another trip participant, a Venezuelan engineer who has been a resident of Argentina for seven years. At 2:40 PM I paid 12700 ARS cash + 1000 tip ($11.95 USD total) for my meal.

We left the restaurant at 2:56 PM and walked around. I checked out the local church and saw they had used the Cardón wood for the roof, the pulpit and a confessional. The floor was stone.

The confessional looks that way not because it’s old but because Cardón wood has holes like that.

Note, at some time while we were eating, electricity went out in the town, and as a consequence, there also was no running water. They all seemed to take this in stride, so it must be common. I understood the general problem, but thought it odd that they did not invest in water tanks to guard against this inconvenience. In other towns in the area, I had seen the large tanks which are there precisely for this purpose, also being quite common in many other parts of Latin America.

At 3:30 PM we departed from the town of Cachi. Believe it or not, he now turned on the air conditioner! Yes, there is a lot of variability in the temperature in a day, but I think people are also sometimes just too delicate. The road near Cachí was paved, but not as good as in other areas I’ve seen so far in this region.

At 3:50 PM I noticed that now the road quality was again much better.

At 4:24 PM I saw that we were clearly headed downhill again, and at 4:28 PM we were back on the winding, unpaved roads. Despite them being unpaved, they seemed perfectly safe mountain roads, nothing like when I went to Sikkim a couple of years ago.

At 4:59 PM we had another rest stop at the same place as before when we were going up: Pie de la Cuesta. This time, as I didn’t buy anything, I paid 200 ARS to use the bathroom.

At 5:15 PM we were on our way again, with traditional music playing most of this time. At 5:51 PM Marcelo said that local people here frequently mix the local wines with other things like Fanta (a type of flavored soda) or juice. I suppose that’s unsurprising, since the wine is ubiquitous and many times has a similar cost as that of a flavored soda.

By 5:58 PM we were all the way down the hill/mountain and on our way again on flat road.

At 6:35 PM I saw volunteer firefighters collecting funds in the town of Cerrillos. It was still completely clear outside, and I hoped it would be that way for tomorrow as well.

The rest of the drive was scenic and relaxing.

When we arrived at 7:10 PM It had originally been my plan to perhaps try to go to a peña (folklore and live music place) tonight by myself, but shortly before we arrived at Salta, Natalia, the engineer with whom I’d had lunch asked if I would like to walk around the center a bit. She seemed like a very nice person, and I thought it would be nice to chat with someone rather than always being alone. I said yes, and we stayed in that area, then also deciding to have a light dinner together. My food was 17400 ARS, paid by card (1170 INR – $14 USD).

At 9:48 PM we parted ways and I departed from near the 9 de Julio plaza and headed back to Donna Alba serviced apartments, where I was staying. I walked by Plaza Belgrano at 10:09 PM and then was in the apartment at 10:25 PM.

Once more, I had a wonderful day. For sure, Marcelo was certainly a character. I especially enjoyed the Cardones “forest” but the town of Cachi was also quite nice. Finally, it was an unexpected surprise to have had Natalia as a conversation partner.

I think it’s quite common to make random friends while traveling when one is younger, but at least as I myself get older, it is less so. Part of this is because of how younger people tend to stay in hostels etc, but part of it is also because I think we just become a bit more particular as we get older. Anyways, I feel like I’m rambling at this point, so I will go ahead and bring today’s entry to a close. I look forward to sharing more with you tomorrow!

Argentina trip: Day 12 (26 June)

Hey there followers, this has been one of my longer trips, so I congratulate you if you are one of those who have kept reading since day 1. If you came in late and would like to catch up, you can just go to Travels with Jay, and scroll backwards. At some point I may do a redesign of the site to make it easier to navigate to past trips, but for now it serves its purpose.

So today I was again up at 6:00 AM and got ready for the day. At 6:50 AM I was feeling a bit insecure because the previous days of programmed excursions, by this time I had already received two confirmation messages, but today I hadn’t received anything even though I had already sent messages to all the contact numbers I had. There was no reason for me to need the confirmations, but this shows the danger of changing routine. They had previously been very proactive about letting me know that everything was going well for the upcoming day, and now that I didn’t have it, I was worried.

My breakfast doesn’t look appetizing but it was delicious. They were apple crumble pastries.

Breaking the suspense, at 7:00 AM I finally received a message saying everything was in order for today. Although, I didn’t actually know where I would be going 🤣. Shortly thereafter, at 7:26 AM I was picked up and off we went towards Cafayate. This was again a slightly different type of minibus from the previous two days, but it was still a similar design.

Today, Juan was the driver and Jazmin the guide. Today’s bus was a bit more comfortable than yesterday

Unlike the other days, today at 7:57 AM they collected all of our documents to make a list. They also advised us that it was likely the police would be making stops and asking questions. I think this was related to the current national obsession with the case of the missing boy Loan. Regarding that, from what I can tell, it’s playing out in a similar way to the John Bennett Ramsey case in the USA many years ago. It’s curious how so many children go missing (usually with a family member) but you never hear about it, but then there are these huge cases which capture everyone’s imagination.

At 8:34 AM I noted the pleasant, mostly flat (unlike previous days) scenery, with mountains in the distant background. Then around 8:37 AM we started to see vineyards, but as it was “the winter” the vines were bare.

At 9:13 AM we stopped in the town of Talapampa. From here on there was no stopping point where we could use the bathroom, etc . . . Until arriving at the winery. The bathroom was clean, but the whole place was much more rustic than places from previous days. Note, there was no toilet paper nor bidet facility, and I had been told that is fairly normal in Argentina, so be prepared. Most of the others were getting something quick to eat, but I had made sure to have my delicious apple pastries in the morning.

Having a couple minutes to spare, at 9:25 AM I peeked into the chapel next to where we had stopped, Capilla San Roque. The temperature outside was 5 C.

With several other small tourist buses stopping here, it was clear that this was the stopping point for all companies. I suspect that if I had shopped around in Salta I could have found a slightly cheaper package for the four days I had bought, but Get Your Guide generally does a good job of vetting its tour operators, and I also didn’t even really know everything I wanted to do. So far I had been happy with the Tiamar operated trips, with the only hiccup being not having an advance confirmation for today’s trip. Again though, if you are really bargain shopping and have the time, it’s probably better to shop around a bit and also even contact operators directly once you arrive in Salta.

At 9:39 AM we got back in the van and went on our way. Today’s group had around 14 people, but the van definitely had a couple spots open. The microphone which was used the first day would sort of cut out, but the sound system the last two days had been much better. Jazmin continued giving us the general chat, telling us that we were going to go through la Quebrada de las conchas. She shared quite a few interesting tidbits.

Salta is a province with more rain, even in the dry season, than most of the country. That’s why things have mostly looked green, even though we are in winter. Note, much of the time of my first two days of tours was actually in Jujuy, not Salta, so it was frequently not as green.

At 9:49 AM we passed the ghost town of Alemanía which is now only inhabited by three families. It was the other side of the bus and I could not take a picture. It became a ghost town, because the train stopped operating going through here around 1970. Unsurprisingly, Alemanía was founded by German immigrants.

This area was at some point under the ocean, and there are many obvious fossils and remnants in this area. That’s why it’s called “Shell” valley (Quebrada de las conchas).

At 10:05 AM Jazmin mentioned that the first/native peoples in Salta and Jujuy held back the Spanish invaders for 100 years as the indigenous communities here were very organized and war like; however, they eventually fell. I couldn’t tell exactly how, but wine and the Catholic church were important in this. Today, Salta is the most religious/Catholic province in Argentina.

An unexpected surprise at 10:21 AM was when we stopped at La garganta del diablo (Devil’s throat). Sadly, this beautiful rock formation used to be used as a threat by the Spanish, directed at the first peoples. I’m not really sure how that worked, since it seemed that having been here first, they would have known better. However, they used to threaten the local people saying that if they didn’t pay tribute, the devil would come get them, with this rock formation being a type of portal to hell. Honestly, I found that hard to believe, but maybe they were tribes which had been moved here from somewhere else? Incidentally, until only very shortly the arrival of the Spanish, the tribes here were not part of the Incan empire, but they had active trade with them.

Evidently It wasn’t until 2007 that they started developing tourism here. Jazmin said that other companies irresponsibly allow the tourists to go up on the rocks, but she begged us to not do the same as we could either get hurt or unintentionally damage some of the natural landscape.

At 10:36 AM I noticed that various sellers had wares there on a cloth, but they respected the main space so that it would look uncluttered.

By 10:46 AM we were back in the van. It had been a nice little stop. As is frequently the case, I don’t think the photos will really show it’s beauty, but still you will get an idea.

From here we were going to a place they call anfiteatro (amphitheatre) which is well known for its natural acoustics. We actually arrived there very quickly, at 10:49 and were out again. The local people used this site as an astronomical observatory. I could see how this would have been good as an observatory, since it’s structure would keep the view to a limited section of the sky which would change over time. There was a guy singing as well, and yes, the acoustics were impressive. Jazmin said that they do local concerts here in July which go on for several hours, but no sound systems nor amplification equipment are used.

One more we were in the vehicle at 11:07 AM, arriving at “Three crosses viewpoint at 11:13 AM. The legend is that three thieves killed each other here, after they had stolen gold from the revolutionary army. Given the circumstances, I didn’t really see why they would be honored with crosses, but it makes for a good story.

While I wouldn’t say that this is a “dangerous” viewpoint, at 11:20 AM I could see that it was definitely slippery for a lot of people with a couple of women in front of me even falling down. There was also no sort of railing at the top, and a fall from there certainly could have caused greater injury. I may have separately commented on this, but throughout my time in Salta, I noticed that almost all the tourism was local. However, I was told that in the south of the country it was primarily international tourists. For my money, the international visitors are missing out by not coming to Salta and Jujuy, but not having visited the South due to time constraints, I had no point of comparison.

At 11:25 AM I got back in the vehicle, soon after passing the “El sapo” rock formation, which amazingly really did look very much like a frog, but we didn’t stop, and I couldn’t get a good picture.

Whether or not this is true, I don’t know, but at 11:34 AM Jazmin said that the Franciscans were different from other Catholic religious groups that came, because they supported the local population more and also pushed for a greater recognition of the rights of the native peoples. The Jesuits had also tried, but they were expelled by the Spanish crown, and most of their monuments and churches were destroyed. To honor their contribution, they had named a sort of “Friar shaped” natural rock formation “The Franciscan” and we passed this at 11:36 AM.

At 11:42 AM the Quebrada was coming to an end. I half slept for a few minutes, when at 11:55 AM I noticed that we were entering Cafayete, which is known probably for its white wine, but there was some red. I think I understood that most of the wine from this region was consumed by the domestic market.

We pulled into Vasija Secreta winery at 12:05 PM. Despite being at a lower altitude, it was fortunately not overcast today. This place must be quite popular, as they do mini tours and wine tasting starting every ten minutes. My group’s tour began at 12:17 PM.

This winery was founded in 1857. There is a type of wine they make which is very limited which only comes from vines which are at least 90 years old. She explained tons of other things, but it was really too much for me to mark down. Also, much of it was particular information for people who know more about wines, and that’s not me.

At 12:30 PM the vineyard guide said that the metal tanks of the white wine were designed like this in order to maintain a cooler temperature, without using electricity. She explained about how different rooms have different characteristics because they need different climactic conditions to make different wines. This is of course more important for a traditional winery like this one.

At 12:37 PM the big room with huge wooden casks was actually a museum. While their wine is still considered artisanal, they have included a lot of aspects from the industrial revolution. For instance, they don’t stomp the grapes here. A machine does that. The skins used to be fed to animals, but now that mostly goes to cosmetic use, but some is used to make Grappa.

At 12:43 PM she explained that generally speaking, Argentinean wines are considered a bit sweeter than others. After trying the Malbec Cafayete, we rinsed our cups before trying the next one. This was a Torrontés Cafayete and yes, it was quite sweet but pleasant. According to her it’s semi sweet, but I think many from outside Argentina would find it fully sweet. I did like it, but I suspect it isn’t sold much outside Argentina. I thought of my friend Dorothée and was sure that she would not have liked it, but she would appreciate learning about a different type of wines.

At 12:51 PM there was a store where one could buy, by my standards, quite cheap bottles of wine, costing between 4500 ARS and 16000 ARS a bottle. The locals confirmed that buying right here was a bit cheaper than buying from a store; this of course made sense, since they make the wine right here. I would have liked to buy some to take home, but in my case, due to continued travel and still having planned to visit a couple more countries on this trip, that didn’t make sense.

At 12:59 PM we were back in the van, making a quick stop at Feria Artesanal Cafayete where they offered us vino mistela, which was way too sweet, and some local raisins. The prices of the food items were good, and it would have been nice to take some, but all but impossible to reasonably transport the way I travel. The costs of the other souvenirs were also reasonable. I would in particular have liked to take escabeche de llama and ciervo with me, but I’m pretty sure you are only supposed to eat very small amounts at a time and I definitely didn’t want to juggle glass bottles in my luggage.

When I got back in the transpory at 1:16 PM, I asked the other passengers, and they told me that the meat escabeche is eaten with bread.

Shortly thereafter at 1:21 PM we stopped at the recommended restaurant, El criollo. I didn’t want to wander around before choosing where to eat. I ordered the plate of the day which included Jamón cocido, locro. It was cool inside but not cold, so I put on my long sleeve shirt over my other shirt but kept the coat off. I had done the same thing yesterday. The Jamón cocido appears to just be pork ham, basically lunch meat. The tiny piece of cheese was nice. It was basically a “new cheese” similar to queso Turrialba in Costa Rica.

At 1:36 PM my locro arrived. This was my first locro in Argentina. It’s basically a hominy (the main ingredient) and butter bean stew with rather chewy beef. It was alright, and good for the cold weather, but I thought it would have been better with a bit of chili or at least some black pepper. I’ve noticed that in Argentina people will add salt to their food, but I haven’t seen pepper or chili on a table. I don’t think Indians would like this food at all. . . I could see myself making something like this stew, but I would add a splash of vinegar.

Around this time I was also thinking that for dinner I would try to see if that empanada place near my apartment was open when we got back, and I would also get a couple for tomorrow morning. Separately, I think I would like to TRY mate, but I definitely don’t want to buy a big thing of it. I strongly suspect that I won’t be all that impressed, that it is an acquired taste.

At 2:02 PM I opted for Cayote con Nuez for my dessert. It’s basically sweetened squash with walnut. It was a tiny bit too sweet for my taste, but that’s also the way it’s usually made in Costa Rica. At 2:16 PM I left 1050 ARS tip on the table and then paid 11500 ARS cash ($9.27 USD) for the meal and drink. I had thought about paying with a card, but there was a 10% surcharge, and I seemed to have enough cash with me.

I departed at 2:19 PM and decided to try to check out the plaza which was near there. Upon arriving at 2:29 PM I understood why they had prohibited the tourist vans and vendors around the square. It was much nicer without them, and there were plenty of other places to buy crafts without it being there.

At 2:33 PM I entered the Catholic church. It had a simple but elegant design. I found the flooring to be of particular note, as I didn’t think I’d seen that before in a church.

I departed at 2:40 PM walking back to our transport. The plaza was very peaceful. The theme of the city/town of Cafayete seemed to be “simple elegance”. It was not overly adorned in any way, but things seemed to be cleanly organized and in an attractive fashion.

I was back in the van at 2:52 PM waiting for stragglers. Today had definitely not been a walking day. I will probably try to do more walking when we get back, even though I had sort of thought of keeping it a simple evening near the apartment. I was feeling a bit bloated from too much food.

The vehicle departed at 2:56 PM. The guide mentioned that here in February there is a huge folklore festival, and it’s always closed by several hours of el Chaqueño Palavecino (a very popular local assist) singing.

At 3:15 we had a photo stop to take pictures of what they call “Los castillos” (the castles). It was fine, but I thought the earlier things we had seen were more noteworthy. Then at 3:25 PM we were on our way once more. That was the last “tourist stop” of the trip.

However we did make a quick rest stop at 4:29 PM at the same place as before, being back on the road by 4:45 PM.

I was pleased to get off the minibus at 6:24 PM, right in front of Basilica Menor y Convento San Francisco in Salta. I decided to go into the main hall where I saw that this Catholic church was more like the ones I’m accustomed to visiting as a tourist in Latin America. Adding to the solemnity, they had beautiful religious music playing at a reduced volume.

At 6:45 PM I had to admit that even though I had only been there for a few minutes, this church left me with a feeling of peace. I’m very happy that they dropped us off here, as otherwise I probably wouldn’t have wandered inside. I left at 6:50 PM with no particular destination in mind, just wanting to see more.

At 7:07 PM I found myself back at Plaza 9 de Julio. Then at 7:22 PM there was some sort of a peaceful street protest related to education. It was very orderly. While hanging out I bought some pastries from a street vendor for 1500 ARS.

My general impression at 7:34 PM was that everything was very beautiful and there was a lot of action around the plaza. It was nice, but I decided to walk back to where I had eaten on Sunday. I had liked it before, and wanted to patronize them again.

When I arrived at 8:17 PM the gate was locked, but I knocked and they were happy to let me in where I ordered 2 of each of the types of empanada she had (6 total). I sat while she baked them.

At 8:39 the six empanadas were turned over to me for only 3000 ARS cash and I headed to the house, where I arrived at 8:45.

I washed clothes, ate, and read in bed until 10:30 PM

Today’s excursion had definitely been more low key than the previous two days, but it had been good to have a bit more relaxation. What did you think? Did you prefer today or one of the other days of excursions? Let me know in the comment section below.

Argentina trip: Day 11 (25 June)

Hey there everyone, so today is another excursion day, so I was again up at 6:00 AM, at 6:15 AM reheating pastries from two days ago for breakfast.

At 7:15 AM I was picked up and we were on our way. There were several people in the vehicle already. At 7:51 our guide Eduardo started with the spiel. Today there was one “guide”, and a separate driver, Ramon Luis. He mentioned that we would be going about 90 minutes before our first stop.

At 8:14 AM I was really feeling that yesterday’s bus had been a bit more comfortable, still at 8:22 AM I tried to sort of sleep, but it didn’t work well.

At 8:36 AM we passed through General Güemes, and then at 9:24 AM made a rest stop at a gas station in San Salvador de Jujuy.

By 9:52 AM I was back on the bus and Eduardo was continuing with his running commentary. Unlike yesterday, things are done in both Spanish and English. Maybe that’s why there is both a driver and a separate guide today.

At 10:13 we passed León. The part near the road looked kind of poor. Nearby I saw that the Rio grande riverbed is very large, but it has almost no water. They said it’s pretty much always like that.

Then at 10:21 AM we started the drive through the cloud barrier

At 10:29 AM we saw a small train which is evidently solar powered. Obviously, it must have a battery in order to get through the cloudy section.

It was great at 10:30 AM to see as we were almost through the cloud barrier. There were now patches of sun.

Then at 10:32 AM And we passed both Tumbaya and the final remains of the cloud barrier. I’m glad that I actually saw it happen this time!

At 10:46 AM we stopped just outside Purmamarca to get a different view of the seven-colored hill. This was a good stop, as it allowed for an unobstructed view, albeit from a distance.

At 10:51 I was back in the vehicle and we continued going upwards. Eduardo said that the isolated, different homes lived in here that we could at times see are almost always lived in by native/first people’s. They don’t own the land, and if they temporarily move away then they no longer have a right to return to the same spot, so in many ways they are trapped here.

At 11:25 AM my head was starting to feel a bit full as we went up, so I asked for a couple of Coco leaves to put in the side of my mouth. Then at 11:39 AM we stopped at the 4170 meter high spot for a picture. I bought some coco candies for 1500 ARS the bag: 15 candies in one bag. Supposedly you are only supposed to take 3 in a day according to what it says on the bag.

Of course at 11:45 AM I got my obligatory photo at the attitude marker.

At 11:51 AM I was again back in the van heading down to Salinas Grandes. The view really was amazing, even from the window of the van.

At 12:01 PM we had to stop as one of the passengers was not feeling well, so it was another opportunity to get outside, but it was a quick stop and we were again on our way at 12:04 PM.

Finally at 12:20 PM we arrived. In order to gain access to the salt flats tourist area we had to pay 2000 ARS cash but that really was a huge bargain as this payment also included the “artistic photo” service, and they really did a good job with these funny pictures. I had fully embraced my tourist identity, so at 12:33 PM I was in one of the several short lines waiting for my turn to get pictures.

By 12:40 PM I was finished with my silly pics and moving on to where there were the evaporation and crystallization pits. Even though it was undoubtedly a bag idea, at 12:49 PM, I scooped some of the salt crystals which were floating on top of the water and tasted them. You guessed it; they were VERY salty!

Then I decided to do some more silly pics on my own. Really being here was like being in another world. It was just amazing.

At 1:14 PM we were back in the van. Eduardo said that the local people working here taking the pictures couldn’t do it a long time because the salt in the air affected their eyes and lungs over time. It’s just a temporary job. Most of the people here don’t have cellphones themselves, since they are useless here as communication devices (no signal), but they learn how to use the camera function in order to take pictures of tourists.

At 1:20 PM we had to depart.

At 1:48 PM we had a quick five-minute photo stop and then continued on our way back to Purmamarca.

Then at 2:31 PM we arrived at Purmamarca. I was happy to learn that today we would have two hours here.

While I did want to explore, I also wanted a proper lunch today, so at 2:38 PM I went into the recommended restaurant and was pleased to see they had a live singer who was really quite good.

My food arrived at 3:01 PM and shortly thereafter I noticed this little boy who was just enchanted by the music and kept creeping up until the singer invited him to play the drum. I decided to give the singer a 2000 ARS tip which seemed to me the maximum that others were giving. He was a very good singer and also a good sport with the little kid.

I was very happy with my Cazuela de cordero. I’m sure I could have eaten for less, but the singer was very good and it was especially fun when the little boy kept wanting to join him.

Then at 3:39 PM I finished and paid 11500 ARS with my Indian credit card (795 INR – 9.53 USD). After departing at 3:53 PM I soon went into the Santa Rosa de Lima church. I loved the sound of the birds outside. It was very rustic inside. I liked it.

At 4:00 PM I left the church to wander around a bit more. There were handicraft shops, eateries and lodging places everywhere. Amazingly, I was actually even tempted to buy some things. I wondered what it must be like to grow up in a place like this, so tourism focused but also so perfectly surrounded by the beautiful hills. No doubt similar to how the natural beauty anywhere else is taken for granted and almost forgotten after a short time living in other places, I suspect the same happens here.

At 4:35 PM I was back in the van. I had sort of wanted an empanada rellena, as they looked good, but I reminded myself that I had just eaten and would also want to eat something this evening.

At 5:01 PM we were about to hit the cloud wall again, and just like that at 5:02 PM we were in the clouds again. It was now 5 C outside vs the 26 C that we were in ten minutes ago. Amazing right?

At 5:47 PM we again stopped at a gas station. Here they call bathroom breaks “technical stops – parada técnica) I paid 2980 ARS with my Indian credit card (206 INR – $2.47 USD) for a sweet treat (basically a prepacked Alfajor) and a coca cola zero. I actually wanted a coffee, but this bus while having a much better sound system than yesterday’s, did not have a place to put drinks. . . As such I didn’t fancy juggling a hot cup of coffee.

At 5:55 PM I was once more back in the van, and then at 7:38 PM I had them drop me off near Plaza 9 de Julio where I walked around the area a bit.

At 8:24 PM I decided to eat at Vaca Club located right on Plaza 9 de Julio. At 9:10 PN I asked for the bill. It was 17000 ARS which I paid with my Indian credit card (INR 1167 -$14 USD) and left a cash tip of 1700 ARS. I had eaten pepper beef and a glass of Trapiche Malbec wine.

From there, I walked back to my lodging, but at 9:49 PM I paid 4000 ARS cash for two nice looking, hearty, apple pastries which I planned to eat for breakfast tomorrow, finally arriving at the apartment at 9:52 PM.

If tomorrow is half as amazing as today, I will be incredibly happy!

Argentina trip: Day 10 (24 June)

Hey there everyone, welcome back to my Argentinean adventure. Today is the first of four day-trips around Salta which I booked through Get Your Guide for a total of $183 USD. These trips themselves are operated by Tiamar Travel. There was a similar package offered on Get Your Guide for about $50 USD less, but it’s ratings were a bit lower, so I decided to go with the more expensive, but also more popular and higher rated option. I’ve several times used Get Your Guide in the past for small group excursions, and my experience has been that they are generally good at curating the best offers in a given area.

So I was awakened by my annoying alarm at 6:00 AM, and I started getting ready. At 6:48 AM I ate a couple of reheated pastries from the day before. It’s supposed to be quite a bit colder today, 11 C (52 F), but we will see.

At 7:24 AM I was still waiting, and I noticed there were a couple of people waiting outside the main door of the apartment. Then a message came at 7:26 AM indicating that my driver was about to arrive, so I went out, and sure enough the van pulled up almost immediately. There were already several people (maybe seven) inside. However, those waiting outside my lodging were not among them; perhaps they were waiting for another tour operator? Anyway, I found my seat and at 7:29 AM we were off.

At 7:33 AM we picked up five more people. I think this was a family. Perhaps since most people in Argentina look very similar to me I had assumed that there were not many tourists wandering around, but based on what I was seeing today, evidently Salta at least had plenty of tourists in the area. It appears however that most of the tourism at this time of year is domestic.

At 7:43 AM three more people entered. It looks like we will have a full vehicle. It’s still dark out.

At 7:45 we start the official tour with Julio giving a commentary via microphone and quality speakers. Today is what was listed as “day 4” in the package I had bought. We are going to Hornocal. Evidently the altitude to which we will be arriving is high enough that many people suffer from attitude sickness; he spends a lot of time talking about that.

At 7:56 AM we drove through autódromo. It appears to be a poorer section of the city but definitely not a slum. Finally at 8:04 we were completely out of the city, moving along swiftly on a very smooth road. Outside, it was all rolling hills

At 8:30 AM we passed through the town of General Güemes. It looked like a fairly nice place. The windows were constantly fogging over, so in order to see outside I would use the sleeve of my jacket. At 9:13 we were still on the road, and most of the people in the bus were asleep.

At 9:16 AM Julio indicated we were about to make a stop and he suggested that if we planned on buying drinks or snacks we do it then, since the future stop would be “touristic” and we wouldn’t want to waste time. He also said that after this we would steadily be gaining altitude. As announced, at 9:21 we had a 15 minute gas station stop. I think we were in San Salvador de Jujuy in San Pedrito neighborhood. Lots of people were getting food, but I had eaten beforehand so thought I would be fine waiting until lunch. At 9:35 AM the advert sign for Paris lodging left little to the imagination as to the intended clientele. Then at 9:39 PM I was waiting again back in the bus. It was rather overcast and quite cool (10 C), but Julio seemed to think the sky would be more clear where we were going.

At 9:45 we were on our way again. Julio was doing a running commentary as we went. Evidently, here due to weather patterns, you are much more likely to find snow on the mountains in the Summer than you would find in the winter. That was an interesting tidbit.

At 10:50 AM I had sort of fallen into a half asleep state the last hour, so when I opened my eyes, we were just then arriving at Purmanarca and yes, it is now completely sunny here. It’s a picturesque village, and I understand why people like to stay here overnight. I was a bit sorry to have missed the gradual change of scenery and climate, but it was a beautiful thing to open my eyes to after the dreary overcast weather in Salta.

I saw at 11:06 that there was a lookout point (Mirador el porito), but it was 5500 for foreigners (300 nationals) but it didn’t seem that one really got to see anything all that special by going there. Just to stand there didn’t seem worth it. This reminded me of similar silly things which were charged for when I was visiting China.

It was very nice to walk around a bit, but I think I would have liked it for longer than 40 minutes.

At 11:34 AM I was again waiting again for the transport. There was a mobile ATM installed, as the physical one in the town was not working and the closest physical bank is 30 km away.

Then at 11:40 AM we departed, only 10 minutes later than had been projected. So far, this entire trip, I’ve found the roads to be excellent.

At 12:00 PM we passed Tilcara. For much of the ride, Julio, who is also the driver, keeps up his running commentary. Similar to when I was in the area around Ladakh, I found it all to be constantly beautiful, but I could also understand how full time residents would find it monotonous after awhile. Different from the area around Leh, where the mountains look barren, here the mountains many times had a green sheen due to low growing plants.

At 12:11 PM we made a quick stop at Huacalera where there is a monument to mark the Tropic of Capricorn line. There I took a couple of obligatory pictures. Throughout the trip I’ve noticed that while there are frequently opportunities to buy souvenirs, the salespeople don’t hassle or chase after you. This might be because bargaining isn’t a big thing here . . If you like the price, you buy it. If you don’t, you don’t, and everybody seems fine with that.

At 12:37 PM we arrived at Humahuaca, and at 12:42 PM we got off the bus and into the restaurant. The flag which is hanging is the flag of the pueblos originarios, which now has a similar status to the national flag which is blue and white. That’s why both of them were raised on flag day. I paid 9000 ARS ($7.26 USD) cash for my take away lunch and then at 12:51 PM was picked up by the next transport to Hornocal. Cachete is the guide and with this group we go to Hornocal.

He gave us a Coco candy and also suggested that we put some sort of liquid inside the nose. I have no idea what it was. He was talking the whole time, but I couldn’t hear him for most of the time because of a fan they had turned on right above me. At 1:45 PM for some reason Cachete asked us each to pay 500 ARS more which I did along with everyone else. I guess it’s an entry fee charged by the Hornocal community. Again, I couldn’t really understand anything, so who actually knows.

Finally at 1:53 PM we arrived. We were told to be back in the transport at 2:20 PM. So anyways, this was the famous 14 color hill. Yes, it was impressive, but I understand why a lot of people stayed back in the town. At 2:10 PM everyone was taking turns helping take pictures of each other next to the Hornocal sign. Despite being at 4350 meters above sea level, I fortunately didn’t feel any altitude sickness. That might have been because of the coco candy and the liquid, or maybe I just wasn’t affected. At any rate, I was happy to not feel sick. It was quite windy.

As instructed, at 2:22 PM we were back in the van and heading back down. I wasn’t really sure why we had brought this food before heading up. With how bumpy the road is from Humahuaca, it certainly does not make sense for us to eat it in the van, and there also was no time to eat it at Hornocal.

I noted that for some reason while they had thought we needed that deafening fan on while we were coming up and the guide was talking, on the way down we were without the fan. I’m glad I at least saw the hill, since it’s one of the emblematic sites of the area, and yes I would have been sorry to come this far and then not see it.

Perhaps in response to my thoughts, at 2:40 PM they turned on the fan again, I’m not sure why, but at least nobody was talking this time. Then at 2:49 we stopped, because an older woman in the van who had not been feeling well needed to get out. I’m not sure where they took her, but I think it was to get some sort of medical attention. As if altitude sickness were contagious, at 3:02 PM while we were waiting, another passenger took ill, fainting, and they had to bring the first aid people to give him oxygen. As you may already know, not everyone responds the same to high altitudes, and I’ve been told that even someone who was fine in the past at the same altitude may take ill later on during a future visit to that altitude.

Fortunately at 3:14 PM we were on our way back down again, arriving to Huacalera at 3:46 and immediately transferring to the other transport. Cachete came through to ask for tips, and I gave 1000 ARS even though I didn’t hear anything he had said. However, he had given me a coco candy and several sniffs of his magic liquid, which might have helped with me not having altitude sickness. I would have also like to walk around the town of Huacalera a bit, but there was no time.

Once we were under easy, I, like the others who had gone up to Hornocal, ate my lunch on the bus, finishing it at 4:13 PM. The roasted chicken, 2 small empanadas, rice and a badly bruised apple were not delicious, but they were perfectly adequate. The beef empanada was notably better than the chicken one.

Again at 4:17 PM we stopped on the side of the road because the woman who had fainted earlier was again sick. Fortunately she seemed to recover quickly and then minutes later at 4:27 PM we pulled into Tilcara. We had 30 minutes to walk around here. I think this is a town I would like to stay in even more than Purmamarca, since it seemed more “real” and Purmamarca appeared to just be a tourist village/trap.

At 4:42 PM I thought that this looked like it would be a nice place to live, but I can only guess at how easy or difficult it is to make ends meet. Here for sure though, I suspect one needs a car. But who knows, maybe there is a local bus that goes around to nearby villages etc. . . At 4:45 PM we departed.

However at 5:10 PM we stopped again for 5 minutes to do photos at Maimara. There was an interesting cemetery there as well as another multicolored hill. One of the other passengers there kindly gave me his SAETA (Salta public transport) card, saying that he would no longer need it. That was much appreciated, as I hadn’t been able to find one the day before.

At 5:41 PM we again started through the magical cloud boundary. I imagined that when we emerged, it would be all overcast etc again the same as it was in the morning. Sure enough when we got through at 6:00 PM, yes, that’s what happened.

Then at 6:28 PM we stopped at the same gas station as before and I bought an over-priced coffee with milk for 2750 ARS cash. Shortly thereafter we continued on our way, and at 7:50 PM I noted that we still had 45 minutes left of travel

Finally at 8:41 PM I was dropped off right outside my apartment in Salta. However, I decided to go straight to the nearby Paseo de las Poetas to get food. While I quickly arrived at 8:46 PM, I immediately saw it much less busy than last night. Almost nothing was open. Incidentally, I again saw two police officers. To be sure, I see police here everywhere. Was there really that much crime, or would it be chaos without them?

So at 8:52 PM, despite what might have been the case last night, I came to the conclusion that this definitely wasn’t a place to get food on a Monday night. I decided to check nearby for somewhere else. I guessed the Plaza de 9 de julio would work, I headed that way, but was resolved to stop somewhere else that looked okay should I encounter it before reaching the plaza.

Sure enough at 9:07 PM I saw a tiny sandwich place and decided to just go there, where I only paid 1600 ARS cash for a large subway sandwich. The lady working there was incredibly nice. I thought I might go back there again. I turned around and headed back in the direction of the apartment. Then walking back to the apartment. On the way at 9:12 PM this was the second time I had seen a local dance studio. . .Laura López studio. This sort of leisure class to formally do face must be very popular for people here.

By 9:22 PM I was back in the apartment with my sandwich! I continued working on my blog until 11:35 PM, when I was finally able to sleep. So that was my first small group excursion in Salta. I thought it was great. What about you? Let me know in the comments section below.

Argentina trip: Day 9 (23 June)

Hi there everyone, so today was my first full day in Salta, but given how late/early I got in this morning (read Day 8 for details), I obviously would not be making a full day of it.

Surprisingly though, I woke up on my own at 10:30 AM and started taking care of practical chores like washing clothes and bathing. This took some time, and I also was not in a big hurry, so it wasn’t until 1:47 PM that I departed walking from my lodging at the corner of Lamadrid and Alvarado.

Nearby at 1:55 PM I saw La Mami Empanadas y Tamales. It looked like a simple neighborhood place which no doubt would have good food. When I walked in, I saw that the window where you order actually shows what appears to be a household kitchen, where two women were hard at work making the fresh tamales and empanadas. I ordered two tamales, 1 empanada de carne, 1 empanada de pollo and some sort of local red soda called Ice Granadina. Then, as directed, I sat down to patiently wait.

At 2:12 the tamales came out. During this whole time there was some sort of a local news broadcast on, and I noted that the reporters, especially the woman were very agitated about what they were reporting. I think it has to do with a missing boy named Loan.

At 2:28 PM I noted that the tamales were nice, quite different from the ones in Costa Rica, but still tasty. Although the room was small, there were several people still waiting for empanadas. Presumably the tamales are faster since they are prepared more beforehand and only need to be boiled, but there empanadas are either freshly baked each morning or throughout the day.

At 2:45 PM the empanadas arrived. They were very hot, presumably having only just then come out of the oven. Both were delicious.

Finally at 3:15 PM I paid and left to head back to use the restroom before going to the cerro a la virgen. I paid 4500 ARS cash, which based on my most recent currency exchange in Buenos Aires, was roughly equivalent to $3.63 USD

I was back in the apartment at 3:20 PM at the apartment and then 3:28 leaving, with the intention of walking towards Cerro de la virgen. I realized though that it was much further than I had thought, so at 3:37 I got an Uber. Even with a local public transport card, which I still didn’t have, it would have been very difficult to go this late in the day, because it would have been a 90 minute trip.

In Uber, it was much faster, and at 4:05 PM the driver was leaving me at the bus transport point, as no other vehicles are allowed from this point on. The bus you take there looks like a standard public bus, but it’s free to go up and down from this point. I paid the UBER driver 5000 even though it said 4000 on the app; he seemed like a nice guy and he certainly drove well. So the trip had a cost of roughly $4 USD with the tip included.

At 4:06 PM the bus headed further up the hill; there weren’t too many people. At 4:12 PM we had arrived. I noted that everything was incredibly organized. With that in mind and given the very small number of people, at 4:16 PM I was already in the short line to see the virgin, arriving at the viewing area at 4:21 PM.

This is In no way meant to take away from the sacred nature of the site for believers, but honestly it was way less impressive looking than I had expected. It seemed to be a thing to leave rosaries hanging various places around here. I presume first they do a full rosary prayer and then leave it, but I don’t know anything about the system.

Trying to understand what it was that evidently draws large numbers of people to this place, at 4:24 I was just walking around the area a bit. They have a huge human corral system so evidently sometimes this place is massively crowded, but definitely not now. Again at 4:32 I noted that rosaries seem to get hung on stuff all over. I wondered, how long do they get left and what happens to them when they are removed? As this is a religious site, presumably they don’t get thrown out. . . Perhaps they have some acceptable way to dispose of them. . . Saving them seems like they would have a mountain of them after some time, especially after a major visit.

At 4:31 PM I saw that there were these larger birds like the size of a duck or large chicken. They seemed capable of flight but to prefer walking. As I looked at these green structures, I just couldn’t figure out their purpose. I thought maybe they were some sort of open air confessionals. Sure enough, shortly thereafter at 4:44 PM I saw a sign pointing towards the green structures, and it said “confessions”.

Well, I had thought that perhaps by walking around everywhere in silent contemplation, I would come to understand the attraction of the site, but at 4:50 PM I realized it just wasn’t going to happen for me. Honestly, it was all very anticlimactic. Undoubtedly if there were a couple thousand people, all in silent prayer it would be a different effect, but as it was, being a non Catholic simple tourist, it was pretty and all, but not amazing.

Happily at 4:54 PM I did at least finally find an unobstructed view of the city; that was at least fairly impressive. For most of the area, the trees and shrubs block the view. From here I could also understand that the city of Salta was much bigger than I had initially understood. I sort of started walking down, and at 5:00 PM I thought I might have found an alternative walking path used down. I thought maybe this was what was used by serious religious pilgrims who come here. However, this is all complete supposition.

Continuing to try to understand the impact of the site on many visitors, at 5:03 PM I thought that if people really did respect all the “silence” signs when there are a few thousand people here, that would certainly be something to see. The area itself is quite large, so that would be a ton of silent people waiting hours and hours for their turn to see the virgin.

As this was not me, she had not helped me understand why people come here in large numbers.

Walking down the pedestrian path, at 5:08 PM, I saw a couple of local people ignore the white tape which blocked access to the road, so I decided to do the same. While I could guess at the purpose of the tape, it didn’t say “Don’t pass”, so I reasoned it must not be a big offense.

At 5:14 I was now walking down the road, presumably to where the bus had picked me up previously. it didn’t take long, and at 5:28 PM I arrived at the bus area where I decided to just continue walking back to Salta city.

At 5:57 I was down to the start of the city. This section initially assisted to clearly be an upper class neighborhood, but as I continued walking, I refused my initial assessment to call it a mixed middle class and upper class area. Still, it was fully residential and without a doubt a nice place to live. I think this neighborhood was called Tres Cerritos. Here I sat reading in a small park until 7:47 PM and then decided that I should continue on my way.

At 8:24 PM I bought 5600 ARS in cash of various bakery items (4 media lunas, 4 of some sort of cheese and sausage pastry and a large, chocolate covered Alfajor) from a Virgen del Saliente bakery and cafe. I ate the Alfajor almost immediately while I was walking and it was delicious.

By 8:36 I was passing the Plaza de la Democracia and then at 8:46 PM the Plaza 9 de Julio. This second plaza appeared to definitely be a place I should return to the next day. There was a theatre and also many different places to eat.

Then at 9:02 PM I walked by the Paseo de las Poetas, which also appeared to have several good places to eat, even though it was much smaller. Finally at 9:09 PM I was back at the apartment and in bed by 10:10 PM

So there you go everyone, that was my first full day in Salta. Tomorrow I have an early day, since my first of four day-trip tours begins at 7:00 AM. Today was much more relaxing than yesterday, and while I didn’t see anything particularly amazing, it was still a good way to get settled into Salta. As always thank you for reading along, and don’t hesitate to put your questions and comments in the section indicated below. Finally, if this sort of detailed travel blog looks like something you’d like to see more of, go ahead and subscribe so that you never miss an entry.

Argentina trip: Day 8 (22 June)

Hey there followers, as this is the day I head north to Salta, I have an important errand to take care of ahead of time. Since, I’m not sure about how easy it will be to exchange dollars out what rate I might get, I left the apartment walking at 9:00 AM to try and exchange dólares at a western union which was close. I wanted to compare this to my earlier experience to see what would be better.

One big advantage was that it was a lot closer. At 9:15 AM I was already at the San Telmo Western Union branch where I changed $100 USD for 124000 ARS. They gave me 2000 bills, with a slightly better exchange rate than I got a week ago at an informal exchange place. If that is the tendency, it’s probably better to just exchange at the Pago Facil Western Union branches. According to the Dollar Blue app it should be 127000 for $100 USD but I assume nobody actually gets that amount, and again, at the end of the day, for me or didn’t make that much of a difference. Perhaps if I had asked around in several places, I could have received even better, but as a tourist for a couple of weeks, I was happy with this exchange rate. I was also happy that I got 2000 bills, since it was a smaller bunch of cash.

I left the exchange house at 9:20 AM on foot, deciding to stop in at the San Telmo church at 9:27. It was simple by Catholic church standards in Latin America go, but I liked that. This place exists as a neighborhood place of worship, not a tourist spot.

After a brief walk through, I left at 9:35, headed towards the nearby apartment, but before arriving I stopped into Bar Británico at 9:54 to get a café doble and two media lunas. Again, I didn’t really know what I was asking for in terms of coffee, but that was one of the options. There were lots of people there, so I figured it must be a good place to get a light breakfast.

At 9:59 AM the coffee and pastries were served. These were my first “media lunas”, which is sort of significant since that seems to be the default morning food here. They are a sort of dense, lightly sweet, croissant shaped pastry. I paid 4200 ARS cash + 420 ARS cash tip.

I was there until 11:04 AM when I decided to exit since it had been getting a bit warm inside for me, as I had on my coat, so I walked across the street to Parque Lezama where I stayed sitting for a while.

Then on a whim at 11:30 AM I decided to check out the nearby Museo Histórico Nacional. As luck would have it, there was a free guided tour (in Spanish) which had started right at 11:30 AM which I was able to join. Entrance to the museum was also free.

I learned that the museum and park was previously a private residence which was donated by the Lezama family. At 11:42 AM the guide was doing a great job, and really made the story of San Martín come alive. She was very expressive, making things interesting. Her name was Florencia.

At 11:49 I was also impressed that the guide had a chair brought for an older woman who was having problems remaining standing throughout the tour. At 11:54 she told us about the first “National shield” that is known to exist in Argentina. It was actually painted on top of an older sister shield from before the declaration of independence.

I also learned that in 1813 in Potosí there was clearly a discourse in favor of abolishing the inequality of the indigenous people which took place under the Spanish. A clear symbol of this was the Tarja de Potosí. However, as noted by the campaña del desierto, that didn’t really apply to all the indigenous peoples. The Tarja itself is made of silver and gold. Note the representation of an indigenous man at the top of the Tarja.

At 12:09 the guide mentioned that in the early 1800s even tiny portraits were very expensive, and as such tended to only be for wealthy people. The mini ones would have been similar to how people used to carry a few pictures of their family in the wallet, but again, this was only for the very wealthy.

Another interesting tidbit learned at 12:25 PM was that during the war in 1816, most of the food that the soldiers ate was in the form of crackers that were so hard that they had to use a special grater to get dust from them which was then put into hot water.

Then at 12:40 PM I found out that despite being the national hero San Martin in 1824 left the area for Europe because he was no longer in agreement with the governmental system which had emerged. He remained in voluntary exile for the rest of his life.

At 12:44 PM I was able to see the original San Martin de la bandera portrait which he had hanging in his room in exile in France, and which is also the most copied image on currency and for reproductions. The painter is not known, but it is believed to have been his daughter’s painting instructor, but it may actually have been painted by his daughter or even a partially collaborative effort. In summary, they don’t know.

Right here was also San Martin’s saber which seems to be considered almost sacred. It’s in a very special climate controlled chamber. It has a special military guard next to it. He actually bought this year’s before in London. Historical studies indicate that it was at least 100 years old when he bought it and it was made with Damascus steel.

At 12:55 PM The official tour ended, but I stayed around to see the change of the guard for San Martin’s saber. The guard is very respected and loved by most Argentinians. The change itself happened at 1:03 and then I wandered around a bit more on my own.

At 1:11 PM in some ways it seemed to me that once they got started fighting, they just continued. The dispute between the federalists and the unionists, as well as military disputes with neighbors continued, then later on there were various military coups and dictatorships.

As of 2023, they had finished 40 years of uninterrupted democracy, the longest in Argentinian history.

At 1:23 PM I saw one of the oldest known white and blue Argentinian flags. It was found in 1883, having been protected there in hiding from opposition leaders. Originally this flag was used by those who supported keeping the Spanish king, but with Argentina being autonomous from Spain.

Just to see, at 1:31 PM I checked out the small gift shop, and noted that there were various attractive and mostly affordable items available for anyone wanting a souvenir.

Finally at 1:36 PM I left the museum and headed back to the apartment to get ready to go. As I walked across Parque Lezama, the sound of the parrots was constant.

At 1:46 PM I departed the park and headed back to the apartment to get my stuff out. In the distance at 1:49 PM I noticed some graffiti high up on the side of a building, and I wondered how they had done it.

Soon after, at 1:54 I arrived at the entrance to the apartment to gather my things.

I had some tense moments when I couldn’t remember exactly where I had put my other passport and cash in the many pockets of my green bag, but these sort of last minute jitters are common when traveling.

At 2:13 PM I was out the door and at 2:25 PM I was then on bus 33 headed to AEP airport. Along the way at 2:46 I saw what appeared to be low income government housing. There was a street mural honoring Padre Mugica in this area but I couldn’t get a picture. The vibrations in this bus when stopped were crazy, it was like being in an out of control massage chair!

I got off the bus a couple stops early (this time on purpose!) at 2:54 PM as I wanted to see some things right there nearby, and I had plenty of time.

Still, it didn’t take long and at 3:02 PM I was in the airport and then in the quickly moving Fly Bondi line at 3:07 PM, next heading up to security at 3:17 PM. This line was also fast and I was through to the departure area at 3:30 PM.

At 3:43 PM at Pizza Zen I paid 9400 ARS (660 INR – $7.9 USD) with a card to have 1 humita empanada, 1 roast beef empanada and 1 cerveza Patagonia.

The airport wasn’t crowded, and this was a peaceful place to wait until 4:43 PM when there was a boarding call and I headed over to gate 8, already finding my seat on the plane at 5:06 PM.

I was a bit confused because when I bought the ticket it said that all hand luggage had to go under the seat, but I see a lot of maximum size carry ons. . . But also when I asked as I was checking in, they clearly only wanted me to check it in. . . I should look into this more on the flight back. I just checked, and technically it wouldn’t be allowed in as my bag weighed 7.5 kilos, but I doubt anyone actually checks the weight.

The plane didn’t actually take off until 5:44 PM. It was not especially comfortable, but I figured it would be fine for two hours.

At 7:35 PM the plane touched down. The flight itself and also the touchdown was very smooth. I guess there would be no problem with my checked bag, but based on what I had seen so far, despite numerous online recommendations to the contrary, flying with Flybondi seemed like a good option. Oddly, as we finished moving down the runway into our parking spot, at 7:37 PM the passengers applauded. Previously I’ve only seen that in the United States.

The moment we stopped, just like in India, almost everyone jumped up out of their seat before the seatbelt sign was turned off so that they could open the overhead bins and get their things down, as if that meant that they would be off the plane any faster . . .

At 7:46 I walked off the plane and straight into the airport where people were already waiting at the luggage belt where my bag quickly emerged at 6:52 PM. The exit was also right there, and my driver was waiting just outside with a sign that had my name. As luck would have it, I was the only one who had contracted the transfer, so I had a private van transport for 6500 ARS. It goes without saying that I recommend Transfer VIP NOA, especially for solo travels coming in later in the day.

The road from the airport to Salta was in excellent repair and the driver appreciated the 1000 ARS tip I gave him when we arrived outside my lodging at 8:05 PM. For some reason I had not been able to get the online payment/reservation system to work, but when I contacted them via the WhatsApp contact on their webpage they quickly helped me reserve and said I could pay in cash directly to the driver.

After getting settled in, at 9:52 PM I left the apartment walking towards calle Balcarce, which had been recommended to me by several people. At 10:21 I passed by a huge park and a statue at the roundabout.

So at 10:54 I arrived to calle Balcarce, and while the area was very nice, full of restaurants with live music and traditional dance shows, it clearly was not made for people to come alone. I went up and down the street a few times, wanting to be able to go into one of the places, but they were all packed. There was no way I was going to be able to get food there and much less get a table where I could in any reasonable way appreciate the music and shows. So, I finally gave up at 11:52 PM and set off to try to find somewhere I could at least get some food.

Finally, very hungry, at 11:59 PM I found a place that was also fairly crowded with no smaller tables, but when I asked if it would be okay for one person to eat alone, they were quick to assure me that I was very welcome, and they put me at a table for four. At Don Juan Alberti I had a delicious parrillada for over and a small bottle of wine. At 1:49 AM I paid 23700 ARS (1663 INR – $19.94 USD ) with my Indian credit card, and also left a tip of 2200 ARS cash.

Then at 2:08 AM I started walking back. It should have been a faster walk, but I was meandering quite a bit, so it wasn’t until 3:01 AM that I finally got back to the apartment and promptly went to sleep.

So it was a very long day, but despite my initial issue getting dinner, it was also a very good day. Who could tell what time I would finally wake up, and I also had no set plan, so if you want to find out what happened on Day 9 you will just have to wait for the next entry. Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.

Argentina trip: Day 7 (21 June)

Hey there everyone, it’s hard to believe, but I’m already on my seventh day in Argentina, or more specifically, my seventh day in Buenos Aires. For those of you who have been reading along, you know that things have been going pretty well so far, and that yesterday in particular was a completely unexpected treat. For today, as I have not yet visited any, I decided to make this a museum day.

So at 9:45 AM I was looking out the window before heading to the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. It had been my plan to walk there, arriving just before they opened at 11. However, it was drizzling, almost to the point of full on rain, so I figured I would wait a bit. Normally I wouldn’t mind, but with the cooler temperature (14 C – 57 F). At 10:26 AM it was still clearly drizzling, but I decided to go out anyway, but with the plan of taking the bus rather than walking .

So, at 10:45 I was waiting for the 62A bus near the entrance to my lodging. Initially I had tried for the 130, but I missed it. Then at 10:53 I moved back to the 130 as I had already seen 3 of the 130 buses go, but no 62A. Finally at 10:55 AM I was on the relatively empty bus.

Traffic went smoothly, as it has normally appeared to do in this area of Buenos Aires since I arrived, and at 11:11 I got off the bus. Right off I noticed a rather impressive utilitarian looking building, but there was no obvious sign and it appeared to be closed. Nearby there was also a nice sort of green space, not exactly a park, right next to where the museum is located. It had a couple of interesting sculptures. I took a picture of “The wounded centaur”. For obvious reasons, I was then separately reminded of one nice thing I’ve noticed here in Buenos Aires. If someone barely accidentally bumps into you, they immediately excuse themselves . . . nothing like San José, Costa Rica in that regard.

But getting back on track, at 11:21 I entered the museum and was pleasantly surprised to see there was no entry fee. I decided to start at the top and work my way down. Right off I noticed that throughout the museum, many of the pieces have QR codes which can be scanned to get rather complete additional information. It’s all in Spanish, but one could of course easily use automatic translation.

Walking up the stairs, at 11:29 AM I started on the top floor of three. Here I found a photography exhibition made of commentaries about books written by Facundo de Zuviría in the initial days of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. I was a bit impressed by how much he was able to read (or remember about having previously read) during that time. It made me think of my own COVID time in India, which went much longer (like many countries in Asia) then here. As I had been working full time online at that time, I guess I didn’t experience the sort of loneliness, fear and frustration which others did. I was so incredibly busy preparing and then doing online lessons, that I really didn’t have time to feel deep thoughts.

Of course, I did do a lot of walking with my dog Hannah at the time, 3-4 hours a day, since in India, walking a dog was one of the only ways you were allowed to be outside. Fortunately I also was living on the outskirts of the city, so there were plenty of wide, green spaces where we could go. Was it really only in 2020 that all of that began? It seems so far ago now, despite how long things were dragged out in India. . . It was an unusual time, and in many ways tough, but my comparative wealth in India and a full time job that needed to be done sheltered me from much of it. Still, I remember that was also when I did a lot of online training and also when I really started earnestly learning Hindi. I know that for the more vulnerable people in society, it was a truly horrible time.

At 11:47 AM I walked down to the middle floor (Piso 1) and at 11:51 into room 25 “Argentina and the rest of the world 1900-1820”. Shortly thereafter at 11:55 then into room 26 “Latin American art 1910-1945”, in addition to the set itself, I saw that they actually have many ways that people can connect and get more information, not just QR codes: QR codes, NFC and Bluetooth beacons. Again, most of the information is in Spanish. However, this extra information was not available for all pieces. Still, there was way more than any single person would want.

Continuing on at 12:04 PM I wondered if much of this “new art” might have simply been a backlash against photography? What was the point of realist painting if photography was increasingly so common? Then at 12:07 PM I entered the Maria Luisa Bamberg collection. She wasn’t the painter herself, but rather an art collector. She had been a film director and script writer. Later on I realized that this theme of previously private collections which were then made public through a donation (frequently) or purchase, was quite common here.

It was at 12:19 PM when not being particularly cultured myself, I had one of those classic, delightful art gallery moments when I suddenly see a painting or sculpture by an artist I actually know, such as the Composición con Reloj painting by Diego Rivera and Mujer recostada by Pablo Picasso which I saw in Sala 28. As noted earlier, it seems that many if not most of these art pieces had been donated from private collections.

If earlier had been a delight, at 12:23 PM my thoughts were a bit different. Many times when I see paintings I think, “Why would anyone pay for them, or at any rate, why would anyone pay so much?” But every once in a while there is a painting that for some reason will resonate with me, even though I suspect that it does nothing for others. That was the case with Barista by Raquel Forner.

At 12:29 PM in room 30 I was impressed by Eugenio Daneri’s “La perdida del hijo” (The loss of a child) 1945. The stoic resignation in the woman’s face was powerful.

Then at 12:39 PM in sala (room) 33, there were several sculptures by Maria Juana Heras Velasco, Noemí Gerstein and Maria Simón.. These were good examples of “art” where I simply asked myself “why”? I mean as an example of “personal expression”, do what you want. But who really WANTS to see these?

Again, at 12:51 PM in Sala 35 “Argentinian art 1945-1970” this whole room was like, really? Did these artists honestly believe what they were doing or were they just taking everyone for a ride? I could see how it might be considered “decorative” but is it “art”? For goodness” sake, one of the “pieces” was just a ripped piece of cloth!

Anyways, at 1:07 PM it was time to head down to the ground floor. This floor seemed to be more about classic or traditional art, without as much explanation as upstairs . . . Perhaps there wasn’t so much explanation because it was simply easier to understand.

Right off at 1:13 PM there was this brilliant painting by Giovanni Da Milano from between 1345 and 1370. . . It was amazing to see how vibrant it still looked after at least 650 years.

Then at 1:19 PM I saw a stunning, huge tapestry by Everaert Leyniers III from 1660 “Banquete de Escipión después del triunfo”. It’s size alone, and how much detail was done just through weaving and needlework. . . wow!

I observed at 1:26 PM that this ground floor area in general seemed far more popular than the upstairs areas. With many of these older paintings, it is striking how a single, seemingly unimportant element of a huge painting will really stand out, such as the dog’s collar in “Master Cathcat and dog” by Henry Raeburn 1756-1823.

Then at 1:31 PM, playing to my joy at seeing original works by known artists, it was a treat to see several works by Francisco de Goya y Lucientes. Then at 1:34 PM there was a very big collection of works by Rodin. I hadn’t even known that he had lived and worked many years in Argentina. I was also impressed to read the details about many of his creations, in particular learning that much of his work was the result of a massive failed undertaking in France that was never completed. As a result, he had then repurposed and altered a lot of pieces.

Then at 1:43 PM I was once more surprised to find a painting I had seen reproduced in several books and prints, “Arlequin Danse” 1890 by Edgar Degas.

Next at 1:47 PM there was a painting by Claude Monet, which I critically had to admit was not really better than many of the questionable works upstairs.

Many of these paintings had been donated by Mercedes Santamarina. While I appreciate that in her later years she donated the work to the public museum, as with other wealthy patrons who collect art and then donate some or even all of it, I found myself thinking that “yes, the donation is appreciated, but one can’t help but wonder at the absurd inequality of wealth, usually coming by way of inheritance.” She had also donated some paintings by Cézanne and Renoir. Again I thought, “The art is beautiful, but with so much suffering in the world, was this the best way to use her money, even if later on she donated the work to the public?” Maybe I should keep these thoughts in check; I suspect that this is the way revolutions get started.

At 1:57 PM there were also several works by Edouard Manet.

Introspection seemed to be my personal theme of the day, and at 2:00 PM I was thinking about how I almost hadn’t visited this museum, since I reasoned that as entry was free, it wouldn’t be that impressive, but clearly I had been very wrong. Especially for art lovers, this is an amazing place to visit. I had no idea I would find something like this in Buenos Aires. Continuing with another recurring theme of the day, there was a huge selection which had been collected by Jose de Guerrico and his son José Prudencio and then donated in 1938.

One thing that really impresses me about this museum is how the pieces are so accessible to the public. Yes, there are guards, but entry is free, and the visitors are allowed to get extremely close to the artwork.

At 2:10 pm I noticed a big collection of beautiful hair combs, all of them being of anonymous origin, but no less beautiful. I wondered at the work that went into creating them, but the author did not sign them anywhere. . .I guess since they were just considered fancy hair pieces, not meant to be appreciated/remembered on their own. Why were these anonymous, but paint splatters upstairs were proudly titled, dated and signed?

At 2:23 PM I looked at some of the native art and pieces commemorating the Spanish conquest. It was quite uncomfortable to learn that as late as the 1870s and 1880s there was the period of the campaña del desierto which had resulted in the extinction of most of the first peoples native to Patagonia. I learned that something similar was happening in Chile at the same time. This was of course in no way exclusive to southern South America, but that doesn’t make it any less uncomfortable nor less tragic.

So, as is usually the case with art museums, I obviously could have spent much more time here, but at 2:30 PM I was ready to leave. My original plan for the day had been to also visit the Museum of Latin American art, but now I was thinking that might be a bit much. I had already been three hours in a museum today, and while it had mostly been amazing, the mind can only attempt to absorb so much before being overloaded. While at 2:35 PM I saw that it was still drizzling, I decided to go out walking anyway.

At 3:20 PM I suddenly realized I was in front of the famous Ateneo book store. While it’s certainly impressive, this is definitely not a “discount bookstore”. A lot of people, like myself, clearly only come in to take pictures. Perhaps if I lived here or had I not become accustomed to reading on a device I would have taken a picture, but at 3:42 PM I was out walking again.

At 3:44 PM I saw another of these concrete benches throughout the city that look like they are cushioned. It’s a clever idea, and the “button holes” allow water to drain out easily. Continuing my walk, at 4:00 PM I walked into the Recolecta Urban Mall, which I had previously seen from the outside when visiting Recolecta cemetery. However, there wasn’t really much of interest inside, even though I walked through the whole thing, and by 4:26 PM I was once again out in the street walking.

Finally at 4:50 PM I stopped in at Bonafide – Las Heras to have a coffee and a dessert. The cake and coffee was just beautiful looking, and the cake, despite it’s appearance, was not overly sweet. I paid 9500 ARS (667 INR with my Indian credit card).

I was there relaxing until 6:10 PM, and then once again left on foot, headed towards Beatriz’s place in Belgrano. Despite the kind of rainy weather, I had found it to be nice weather for walking as long as it wasn’t actively drizzling. Besides, Buenos Aires is beautiful at night, just like during the day.

At 6:34 PM I walked past plaza Italia.

There was then a beautiful, tall sculpture at the roundabout.

Continuing my walk, at 6:40 PM I passed by parque Rosedal and Plaza Holanda, followed shortly thereafter at 6:46 PM by Plaza de la Shoá. Then at 6:52 PM there was the Hipódromo Argentino. You see so many more neat things when you go walking!

Finally at 7:15 PM I arrived to Beatriz’s in Barranca de Belgrano, having just enough time to pick up a bottle of Trapiche Malbec (my favourite Argentinian wine) so I wouldn’t show up empty handed. The card reader wouldn’t work for my card, so that’s a reminder to always have some cash along just in case, which I did, so there was no problem. Then at 7:30 PM sharp I was back at Beatriz’s door

We had a wonderful visit: myself, Beatriz, her daughter Paula, and her son-in-law Roberto. The conversation was great, as was the choripan, empanadas and brownies.

As Paula had to get to work early the next day and I also had a ways to travel to get back to San Telmo, we wrapped up at 11:05 PM and by 11:35 I was waiting for bus 130, which finally arrived at 11:40. The bus was mostly empty at this hour and with no significant traffic, I was getting off the bus near my apartment at 12:18 AM.

Given my early mentioned issue with judging bus stops, I had again got off the bus a couple stops too early, but also as mentioned in earlier blog entries, that doesn’t really bother me, so it was all good. Finally, at 12:30 AM I was in the apartment, and thus

So folks, that was my last full day in Buenos Aires. My fight tomorrow isn’t until late afternoon, but as of now I don’t have any concrete plans. However, I still have several more days coming up in Argentina, so I invite you to keep reading to see how things go. As always, thanks for reading along, and feel free to leave your comments and questions in the area indicated below.

Argentina trip: Day 6 (20 June)

Hey there loyal readers, welcome back to Day 6 of the Argentina trip. So today I had put a couple of free concerts on my calendar, but then sort of late last night I saw that there would be a special Feria de mataderos activity starting at 11 AM but with the main events kicking off at 1:00 PM. I had no idea what this would be like, but I figured that if it was bad, I could just come back for the two free concerts.

At 9:58 AM I left the apartment to grab a bus to the fair, but as I had used my public transport card more than planned yesterday, I first wanted to add more to my SUBE card. As this was a national holiday, Flag day, the nearby national lottery stand where I had recharged yesterday wasn’t open, and I quickly discovered that pretty much all of the recharge points were closed today. As such, I ended up walking to the closest subway station in order to recharge, not being able to do so until 10:35 AM; I put 4000 ARS more on the card.

The tiny yellow sign is the entrance to the subway where I was finally able to recharge.

At 10:40 AM I was finally on a bus going to the fair. One issue I have discovered is that when you get on the bus here, they usually ask you the destination before scanning your card. Today he just asked me if it should be the minimum amount, and I said yes because I didn’t know the stop. It was 300 ARS.

I had to do a bus change, so at 11:00 AM I was off the first bus. I had actually got off the bus a bit earlier than I should have; this wasn’t really a choice, but I seem to be bad at judging the correct stop on buses in Buenos Aires. Still, at 11:02 AM I was already waiting for the 130 bus. Here on the standard street, it didn’t look particularly festive despite being a national holiday. In fact, up until now, the only thing I had noticed that was different today was that I had a hard time finding a place to recharge my SUBE card 🤣.

At 11:08 the bus arrived and this time I properly gave my destination, again with a cost of roughly 300 ARS (ducted from the SUBE card). By 11:38 I was getting off the second bus; again I was off a bit sooner than I should have, but I don’t mind walking since it gives me more opportunities to see things.

At 11:44 AM I walked past plaza de los Mataderos. It’s a very nice, big green space.

Then at 11:48 AM, unsurprisingly, I noticed a bunch of butcher shops in this area (mataderos means “butchers”), and it actually does look like it would be a great place to buy meat. Separately, it seems that this is clearly a lower middle class area, but still a nice looking place to live.

Then at 11:57 AM I saw that parque de los mataderos had a bunch of stands set up. I wasn’t sure if those were supposed to be part of “La Feria” or not, but it was still definitely an area I thought I should check out. This was right next to the arch announcing the Feria de mataderos.

At 1:09 PM I was barreled over! Obviously I’m not Argentinian, but they did such a great job with the genuine street dances and the ceremony that even I felt like an Argentinian patriot! Really, they did an amazing job: video 1, video 2, video 3.

At 1:49 PM there were traditional dance performances and at 1:54 PM I was so happy that I had come here. While this was clearly an activity today primarily meant for local people, it was also outstanding for a tourist like me. All the open air entertainment was nice, and it wasn’t so crowded that you couldn’t easily see.

While I was enjoying things there, at 2:15 pm I decided to go see what was going on in the park. It was obvious that this was clearly the more “common people” feria. For instance at 2:24 PM I noticed lots of clothing was also being sold here. I assumed some of it was used, but it all looked good. Yes, Parque Alberdi was interesting, but at 2:36 I decided to go back to la feria.

Initially I couldn’t handle standing in the huge line, but at 3:04 PM I bought 1 vacío, 1 choripan and 1 glass of wine for 13,000 ARS cash. Then after that I had to get in the line to pick up the food; I guessed it would take me at least 30 minutes. While waiting, I could hear the traditional live music playing behind me.

Finally at 3:30 PM it was my turn at the counter. The food was very good, but it would have been nicer to have someone to eat with. Despite the absurd amount I had bought, at 4:09 PM I finished eating.

I then moved back to the front stage area to continue enjoying the entertainment.

Again at 6:14 PM I was overwhelmed by how great the emcee for this event was. For this sort of patriotic thing he was just phenomenal! Of course all the amazing live music groups were also a big plus. I’m sure it was all carefully prepared, but the way he also recited poetry at different points. . . It was just perfect. I was so very glad I went there.

All amazing things come to an end, so at 6:21 PM I was 18:21 exiting the Feria, having stayed until the absolute last moment. Then at 6:26 PM I was waiting for bus 126, being able to get on at 6:53 PM. It was quite full but we were not smashed together.

Then at 7:38 PM I got off the bus near my apartment, but rather than going back in right away, I wandered around the area until 8:00 PM when I decided to eat at Mostaza, which is essentially a local burger joint. The cost was 6499 ARS (456 INR with my Indian credit card) for a junior double cheddar + chocolate Sundae + coke zero. The restaurant itself was like a slightly upscale McDonald’s, and the food was pretty much exactly what you would expect from the same, except the bun on the hamburger was a bit nicer. If you like McDonald’s, I’m sure you will also like Mostaza.

Spoiler alert, while eating I bought a 4 day tour package in Salta for 15317 INR on Get Your Guide, a service which I’ve used in other countries, generally having good results. Continuing with the theme of slow eating in Buenos Aires, it wasn’t until 9:00 PM that I left Mostaza and wandered around a bit before finally entering the apartment at 9:36 PM.

Despite having entered relatively early, I didn’t go to bed until 12:17 AM since I spent a lot of time working on blog entries. . . I hope you enjoy them, because they take a lot more time than you might imagine.

So, once again, a hearty thank you to the Facebook group Baires Free for having directed me to another incredible free activity. I don’t know if the regular weekend Feria de mataderos is usually this incredible, but for flag day it was an unforgettable, absolutely amazing experience. Let me know what you think about all of this in the comments section below.

Argentina trip: Day 5 (19 June)

Hey there everyone I hope things are going well. For today, I had asked Beatriz if she would like to go to Tigre with me. Tigre is a nearby satellite city that a lot of people like to visit.

Surprisingly (for me anyways) when I woke up at 7:22 AM, it was completely dark out. I mean I know it’s Winter here, but it was still a surprise. Unfortunately, it was also drizzling a bit, so Beatriz thought it might be better to not go to Tigre today. However, she said that she would check the weather, and get back to me a bit later.

Fortunately, at 9:00 AM she sent me a message indicating that it had cleared up a bit and that the forecast was favorable. As such, at 9:15 AM I left the apartment searching for a place to add money to my SUBE card. At 9:20 AM, I found a national lottery place near the bus stop that would add money, but the system was down. It drew my attention that the worker in the shop appeared to be at least 70 years old, and I wondered if these jobs might be reserved for older citizens who didn’t have adequate pensions; something similar happens with lottery jobs in many Latin American countries. Finally at 9:28 AM the system came back up and I was able to add 3000 to my card. Perhaps I should have added more, but public transport cards tend to be a bit of a money suck for tourists, since we never know how much is good to put on, and we usually end up at the end of the trip with a worthless card which still has credit on it.

Anyways, at 9:30 I was waiting for bus 130 headed to Barrancas de Belgrano (most tourists who make their way here will be going to Chinatown), and I was able to get on at 9:35 AM. The bus ride was fine, and at 10:15 AM I arrived, and sat waiting for Beatriz on a bench in front of the tourism office. This seemed to be a middle class residential and commercial area, not too fancy, but also definitely not depressed.

At 10:40 AM Beatriz arrived, and I happily relinquished control of the day to her.

Nearby, we took a train (also using the SUBE card), with departure at 10:53 AM. The train was very nice and not crowded at all; Beatriz acknowledged this but also said that this was probably the nicest train line which departed from the city of Buenos Aires, so I should keep that in mind should I consider visiting other nearby cities. As we traveled on the train, at around 11:20 AM I clearly noticed when the scenery seemed to be changing from “city” to suburbia. I didn’t take pictures since they would not have come out well through the window. I was feeling extremely happy that I had made this trip, and even happier that my dear friend Beatriz was also able to accompany me once again.

At 11:45 AM we were off the train and started walking what Beatriz described as the standard tourist walk. Honestly, it was incredibly beautiful. It had cleared up completely and the scenery itself was amazing. While Buenos Aires is great, I suspect that if I were to live there, I would be making frequent day trips to Tigre.

At 1:44 PM we finished the standard circuit and we decided to have a coffee in McCafe. Our two cappuccinos and a piece of “decent” cheesecake had a total cost of 6350 ARS ($5.29 USD) cash. We stayed there chatting until 2:43 PM.

From there we headed towards the Puerto de Frutas (Fruit port) which these days is more of a kind of fancy tourist area. No, there didn’t appear to be either an active port or a particular abundance of fruit. However, it was certainly a pleasant place to walk around with plenty of nice things to buy.

At 3:57 PM I saw some very fancy pastries. Evidently these are typically made for national holidays, and as tomorrow is some sort of holiday, they had a good selection. Primarily on the basis of their appearance I bought two. I think it was either 2000 or 2500 ARS total for both, but I forgot to make a note of the cost.

Then at 4:04 PM we decided to eat in a shop that Beatriz likes, el Tandillero. I also thought it looked like a very picturesque place to have lunch and chat. We ordered two local beers, a matambre sandwich and a jamón de ciervo sandwich. I suggested that we split the sandwiches, to which Beatriz readily agreed. They were both very good, as was the beer, but if I had to choose only one, I think I preferred the matambre. I forgot to note down the amount in ARS, but I paid 1946 INR with my Indian credit card, which was roughly $23.30 USD. Considering the ambiance and the quality of the food and beer, that was a bargain.

At 5:34 we left, and Beatriz asked if I would like to try a different train route back, the coastal train. As that stop was closer and she also said the stains were a bit more picturesque, I agreed. By 5:55 PM we were on our way in this two car train, having used our SUBE cards to gain entry. Again, this train was not at all crowded, and the train stations really were quite beautiful. Unfortunately, I couldn’t take many photos since I thought they would not come out well through the window.

At 6:10 PM I could see the San Isidro cathedral in the distance. At least from the train, it looked very fancy. Maybe I will try to get out there to see it before I leave. Our train ride came to an end at 6:27 PM when we got off at Avenida Maipú. I decided to stick with Beatriz a bit longer since so far I had not seen a proper supermarket in Buenos Aires, and she was headed towards one to do a bit of shopping before returning home. As such, at 6:42 PM we got on bus 59, then getting off at 7:15 PM at the Luis M Campos 300 stop.

From there we walked to Jumbo supermarket, arriving at 7:29 PM This supermarket definitely lived up to its name! Not only did this place have everything, but it was also very clean with a good layout. We were there just until 7:52 PM and then we went to another bus.

This final ride with Beatriz was only from 8:03 to 8:11 PM. She then walked down with me to Barrio Chino (Chinatown) where we parted ways since I wanted to explore a bit.

While it was nice, at 8:48 I was ready to head out to find my bus back to San Telmo. As I was walking, at 9:00 PM I bought 4 empanadas in Costumbres Argentina (This appears to be a “commercial” cheaper bakery chain) for just 3600 ARS cash, and then at 9:08 PM I was in the mostly empty bus 130, arriving near the apartment at 9:45 PM, finishing my final walk back to the apartment at 9:51 PM.

I had a couple of the empanadas, not near as good as the ones that I had bought near my house, but still an okay evening snack, and then headed to bed.

So what did you think of Tigre? I thought it was an incredible, easy day trip from Buenos Aires, but you might not think the same. Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Argentina trip: Day 4 (18 June)

Hey there once again everyone. As you’ve seen, things continue to go well with my time in Buenos Aires. Today I have a couple rough plans in my head, but it will be okay if they don’t work out as expected.

Anyways, I took my time getting out of the apartment in San Telmo, not departing until 11:46 AM. I set off walking and came across Bar Seddon. It was a very picturesque place, so I decided to have the menu del día (Daily special). Incidentally, this is a good tip for visitors, if you want to eat in actual sit down places, you will generally do better with the menu del día since it tends to be more affordable and many times includes several items. Also, unlike some other countries, you usually have a choice of at least two options, so there should be something you like. Honestly, I don’t know the name of what I ordered, since I tend to just pretend that I know what I’m talking about when they give me options, but the starter was a nice vegetable soup, and the main course was done sort of lightly breaded beef. The food was good, but after having had this sort of breaded beef thing a couple of times, I could see it quickly getting old. The meal also included either a simple dessert or coffee at the end; I opted for the coffee since I had already eaten way too much of the bread which also typically is served at these sit down places. The entire meal, including a Pepsi, was just 9500 ARS which I paid for with a card and then left a 1200 cash tip.

At 1:15 PM I departed and headed towards la basilica de nuestra señora la Merced, as I had seen on a Facebook group called BAIRES free that there would be a free organ concert there. I arrived at 1:35 PM and shortly thereafter they were announcing the concert. As expected at that time of the day during the week, few people had come and they were mostly retirees but the short program which began at 13:51 was great! I recommend that Facebook group for anyone visiting, or even residents of the city, because they constantly announce nice activities which as you might have guessed . . . Are completely free.

The concert finished at 2:37 PM and I immediately headed over to catch a bus to la Recolecta cemetery. At 2:48 I was on the bus, arriving nearby at 3:03 PM. It was a short walk, and at 3:17 I was paying my 8270 ARS (590 INR with my Indian card). As I speak Spanish, and the weather was nice, I decided to hang out near the entry in order to have the free tour in Spanish which happens every hour.

Right at 4:02 PM the free tour began and we were off. The mausoleums here were incredibly over the top. While I’m no history expert, I thought the free tour was great. The guide was very responsive to questions, and I learned various tidbits along the way. First of all, many of the cruise crypts are actually open, since for various reasons, the remains of the deceased were later on taken to a different place. The crypts themselves can be sold and remodeled, but the front of them have to stay the same. Women in Argentina were first able to vote in 1952. Oh, and wealthy Argentinians used to take a cow with them on the boat when they would go to Europe so that they could continue to have fresh milk. Finally, as was incredibly obvious just from looking around, the families with crypts here either were or still are crazy rich.

The tour ended at 5:05 PM, but we were welcome to continue to wander around on our own. Without a guide, while the crypts were still amazing to look at, there didn’t seem like too much of a reason to stay for a long time. So, at 5:23 PM I was already walking outside, passing plaza Lavalle at 5:44 PM.

I continued walking, and arrived at the apartment at 7:00 PM.

Then at 7:48 I decided to go back to Cosas Ricas to get more of those amazing empanadas. When I got there, I realized they also sold takeaway pasta, so I also ordered Raviolis with Bolognese sauce. The total was 9600 ARS ($8 USD) in cash, and it was way too much food! I hadn’t realized how big the pasta serving would be.

So, at 8:20 PM I was back in the apartment having dinner. I however decided to leave the empanadas in the refrigerator, having them in the morning for breakfast. And thus ended my fourth day in Buenos Aires.

My key takeaways for the day were: (1) Free cultural events can be amazing, so try to find it about them wherever you are going. (2) Buenos Aires does generous takeaway pasta dishes, or at any rate Cosas Ricas does in San Telmo, and it’s really tasty and filling. (3) If available, opt for the Menu del Día.

Despite being Winter in Buenos Aires, so far the weather has been great. I hope it stays that way for the next few days. Tomorrow I think I might try to visit a satellite city which is highly recommended, but you will have to keep reading in order to find out whether or not that worked out. As always, thanks for reading along and let me know if you have any questions; you might also scroll further down and check out some of my other trips I’ve made over the past couple of years. For now, I hope your travels are at least half as great as mine, and I look forward to seeing you again for day five.

Argentina trip: Day 3 (17 June)

Hey there everyone. I hope things are going well for you wherever you are. For my part, as many of you would already have read, so far things in Argentina have been going great. Still, whereas day 2 and 3 had quite a bit of structure to them, day 3 was really just me wandering around the city. . . And boy did I wander, by the end of the day having walked more than 21000 steps, which equates to more than 16.5 km (10 miles).

Despite how much walking I did, I actually had started the day rather late, waking up at 10:30 AM, puttering around the apartment and also washing some clothes, not actually leaving until 12:24 PM. As I had not eaten anything yet, my only real plan was to find something to eat, but I was in no hurry to do the same. For those of you who wonder where the apartment is, it’s in front of the Santander building, which is just one block away from Lezama park. Anyways, I just set out walking for awhile, letting my feet take me where they would.

It wasn’t actually until 2:05 PM that I finally decided to eat at Bernardo Café. I opted for the plate of the day with a Quilmes beer. When asked if I would like a small or large one, I responded that I would like a large one, figuring that was probably 500 ml. As luck would have it however, it was a full liter! I know where you are thinking this is going, but amazingly, while I’m sure that I was in some way affected by the alcohol, it was very smooth drinking, and I definitely did not obviously feel tipsy when I finished. The food while not “amazing” was certainly decent, and the total bill was 11800 ARS, which I paid with my Indian credit card, being charged 850 INR. Separately, I left a cash tip on the table of 1440. So for those of you trying to figure out things in USD, including the tip, it was about 11 USD.

Note the cooler on the bottle. This is a simple, but good idea to keep a bottle cold, and it worked quite well.

As with other “sit down” eateries I had encountered here, nobody tried to rush me out despite me being a single person at a table for four, and I didn’t actually leave until 3:28 PM.

From there, I continued walking until about 4:00 PM when I saw a rather impressive plaza/park and building, which I later realized was the national Congress. To the side, there was also an independent movie theatre which looked interesting, but I figured that was more for residents than for a tourist like me.

Continuing on, nearby at 4:40 PM I saw a church which intrigued me, so I went ahead and entered. It was the San Expedito church. From what I could tell, this San Expedito is a really big deal for residents of Buenos Aires.

Once again strolling up and down the streets, I found myself in the once de diciembre area. This seemed to be a slightly lower income area, but it still felt completely safe. I was really excited when I saw these little green parrots eating with the pigeons.

From there I continued to the Cromañon area, or at least from the different signs I saw, that was what I thought it was called. Clearly at some time in the past there had been some sort of disaster here? Or at any rate, that was what the street memorials indicated. Later on in the day I checked online and saw that in 2004 there had been a nightclub fire which killed 194 people, and had injured at least 1400 more!

Walking along from there, at 6:13 PM I was then in Monseñor Miguel de Andrea Plaza. I was really impressed by how many people of all ages were actively using/enjoying the park. I think it is wonderful when public spaces like this are actually valued by the local residents.

From there my walk continued, and at 6:51 PM I was at the corner of the Recolecta mall, where there was live street music! Again, I was happy to see some local residents clearly enjoying the performance.

At 6:55 PM I realized that I was starting to feel a bit tired, so I sat down on a bench to see the best way to get back to San Telmo. My original idea had been to walk back, but upon further consideration, at 7:29 PM I was waiting for the 10A bus to take me back to the apartment. However, the bus didn’t actually arrive until 7:48 PM.

I didn’t really notice the time when I got back to San Telmo, but at 8:35 PM I bought three very nice looking empanadas from Cosas Ricas, a simple shop two blocks from where I’m staying. They seem to only sell takeaway pizza, and empanadas, but I will go back again later on to see if they have other stuff. The empanadas were large and tasty, and the total for all three was 3600 ARS cash, or $3 USD.

At 8:45 I was back in the apartment with the empanadas. My original thought had been to only eat one or two, saving the rest for breakfast, but they were so delicious that I ended up eating all three 🤪. Then I went ahead and checked some news, and went to bed at 10:00 PM.

So while I didn’t actually have any obvious activities today, I still had a good time exploring the city. For now, I’m a bit tired, so will close, but don’t hesitate to ask any questions or leave comments in the section below.

Argentina trip: Day 2 (16 June)

Hey there everyone, thanks for continuing to follow along. Today will be my first full day in Buenos Aires, so I’m hoping it’s a good one.

Despite not having slept until 1:00 AM, I woke at 6:20 AM this morning, but then resolved to try to sleep until at least 8:00 AM. That didn’t really work out as planned, but at least I stayed resting in bed. The previous evening Beatriz had suggested that we meet up again at 11:00 AM, so I left the apartment at 9:46 AM and headed walking in the general direction of Plaza de Mayo.

Mostly because I didn’t want to deal with the difficulties of figuring out breakfast, at 10:12 I stopped in at a McDonald’s along the way and got a small breakfast sandwich and drink, paying with my Indian credit card at a cost of 281 INR ($3.36 USD). Incidentally, they didn’t have “Mcmuffins” but rather a less dense local bread which was similar in size. Regardless, it tasted fine and served its purpose.

I departed at 10:41, walking through Plaza de las Armas.

I then arrived to the Plaza de Mayo at 10:49. The plaza itself is a bit smaller than I had imagined, but it’s much the same as other city plazas. There was a statue no doubt of someone very important on a horse, and around it people had placed stones with the names of people who died during the pandemic. I thought that was a nice symbol, especially since in other countries I’ve been, society as a whole seems to be intent on just completely forgetting that it ever happened.

Beatriz arrived shortly thereafter and we went walking across the plaza towards the Catedral de Buenos Aires. Beatriz and many locals were quite excited to see that the changing of the guard was taking place. For tourists, the main attraction of this cathedral is the tomb of San Martin, Argentina’s national hero. The tomb itself was quite impressive, but as I discovered a couple of days later, Argentinians with money definitely don’t scrimp on tombs. Still, it’s one of those places you definitely should visit if you are in Buenos Aires.

By 11:19 AM we were heading into the Calle de la Defensa market which takes place on Sundays to supplement the San Telmo market which is near the end of it. Going to this Sunday market is always mentioned as one of the “must do” activities of visiting Buenos Aires, so I was happy to be doing it. To be sure, there was a lot of interesting stuff to buy, but I’m not much of a casual shopper; although, I do still like to see it.

At 12:18 we were in Plaza Dorrega. As far as I can tell, they have a more or less permanent installation of stalls there. It was similar stuff to what one finds on the Calle la Defensa Sunday market but with the difference that they seem to be there all the time.

At 12:36 we stopped into Mercado San Telmo itself, but it was so crowded that I didn’t actually want to go in.

Evidently a lot of people go here to eat, but I’m not sure. We wanted a bit more, but by 12:56 we were already in a bus headed towards la Boca, where we arrived at 1:03 PM.

The first landmarks I saw were puente nueva and puente vieja. Essentially just two bridges next to each other. The area itself was pretty enough, but there wasn’t really all that much to see. It seems that for the most part this is another general area where people go to eat and do some souvenir shopping.

As Beatriz is a local, she recommended that we eat in Cafe Proa, a rather elegant cafe on the upper floor of a museum there. It must be quite popular because we didn’t have a reservation, and thus almost didn’t get in. However, there was an early departure, so at 1:29 PM a table unexpectedly opened up.

There we stayed eating and chatting until 3:30 PM. This sort of “slow dining” seems to be the norm in these cafe/restaurants and it’s nice because they don’t try to push you out quickly. The total for both of us was 28000 ARS, with them easily allowing us to split the bill, both paying by card. I separately left 3000 ARS in cash as a tip.

Beatriz asked if I would like to see part of the north of the city, and as I had nothing planned, I agreed. By 3:36 we were on bus 64, arriving to Palermo Norte at 4:21 PM. This part of the city was very different from where I’m staying, much fancier, and it was nice to just walk around and continue to chat with Beatriz.

After a couple hours of exploring, at 6:11 PM I was waiting for bus 130, which did not arrive until 6:30 PM, but it was a pleasant bus stop, so I had no concerns. The bus trip was very fast, and at 6:42 PM I was at the bus stop near where I was staying.

So that was my first full day in Buenos Aires. Certainly I got lots of great pictures, but more importantly I had another nice visit with a dear old coworker and friend from when I used to work at UWC Costa Rica. I have no definite plans for tomorrow, but I’m sure it will be another interesting day. Let me know if you have any questions, and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Finally, as always, thanks for following along; I hope you enjoy reading a bit about my adventures. See you next time!

Argentina trip: Day 1 (15 June)

Hey there followers, it’s been some time but I’m finally back to chat with you about another trip. After 27 hours of flights and another 6 hours of layovers, I finally arrived at Ezeiza airport in Buenos Aires at 11:25 AM. It looked sunny outside, and according to the information screen, it was 15 degrees Celsius outside.

Getting off the plane and doing all the formalities was incredibly easy, and by 11:44 AM I was already through immigration and out in the arrivals hall. I had several tasks to get done before leaving the airport: change a small amount of dollars to Argentinian pesos, get a local transit card, and hopefully also get a local prepaid SIM card.

Paying attention to advice I had read online, I avoided the local exchange house, and headed over to the Banco de la Nación branch which was to the right, just as one enters the main arrival hall. If you have problems seeing it, just ask someone, and they will be happy to point you in the right direction. Also, remember to only change the MINIMUM amount of money you will need to get from the airport to your lodging. While the exchange rate at the bank is better than what you will get at the currency exchange counter at the airport, it’s still much worse than what you can get at an exchange house downtown. The line was short, and I exchanged $20 USD for 17,640 ARS (exchange rate of 882).

Then at 12:09 PM I bought a SUBE (public transport) card at the Open25 shop which was to the left as I walked into the arrival hall. Again, if you get turned around, just ask someone for help; however, it’s fairly easy to manage. I paid 5000 ARS total in cash for the card itself and 4120 ARS of transport credit. So far, things were going well. The next order of business was to find a prepaid SIM card.

I had read a lot of conflicting information about this online, so I wasn’t too surprised to find that you can no longer buy cards in the airport. However, if you have an ESIM enabled phone, you can scan a QR code and start the process of activating a local personal flow card. The whole process is easy, but seems odd, since you do it via email rather than through an automated system. The only problem is that they don’t tell you how long the activation process will take.

So, not knowing whether it would be 30 minutes or 3 days, I went ahead at 12:52 PM and got an Airalo data ESIM online with 1 GB of data and seven days of validity for $6 (I actually only paid $1.73 USD since I had Airalo points) before heading out to find the bus to the center. Incidentally, taking the public bus like this only makes sense if like me, you only have a medium size backpack; mine is maximum size carry on. Most travelers will either opt for a private car costing about 30 USD or a shuttle which costs like $10 USD. The public bus is clean, comfortable, and less than $1 USD, so that’s what I had decided to use.

At 1:40 PM the bus departed from the airport. I didn’t pay attention to exactly how long it took but it was about an hour. Part of the reason I was distracted is that while on the bus I discovered that my personal flow eSIM had already been approved at 1:30 PM. Given that I had sent the activation request at 12:32, that’s a pretty impressive turnaround time. However, I couldn’t activate it on my own, since they had ironically sent a QR code which has to be scanned with your phone camera in order to activate. There’s probably some way to make it work, but I couldn’t figure out how to do it by myself, so since I already had the Airalo card active, I decided to wait until arriving at my AirBnB to take care of activating the local eSIM.

Again, I wasn’t paying close attention to all the times, but the bus let me off fairly close to my apartment in San Telmo, and the owner of the place quickly helped me to take care of getting the local eSIM installed. While it’s still much cheaper than the data only eSIMs like you get with Airalo, as with most prepaid plans in Latin America, they go out of their way to make it a complicated choice as to which plan to choose.

Since I was going to be in the country for 15 days, it looked like the best option for me was a 2 GB of data (unlimited Whatsapp) plus unlimited calls and texting plan which was good for 30 days; it had a cost of 5 ARS, which when I paid online with my Indian credit card was about $4.07 USD. So, now with all of the initial needs taken care of, it was fine to get started with the vacation!

My first order of business was to change some money. On a Facebook page I had seen a couple of recommended places. The one I decided to go to was at Florida 656. It seems like many of these places aren’t “official” but are generally considered safe. Most people online at least also seem to prefer these less official exchange houses. I left my apartment at Avenida Colón 13800 block, at 4:04 PM, and by 4:42 I had already completed the 3 km walk and was walking into the locale. There was no clear sign, but someone noticed me looking and directed me to a little closet office which seemed to be formally set up for financial transactions. The place was well lit, and “seemed safe”. They offered me 1200 ARbly close to the Blue dollar (unofficial dollar exchange rate) which I had checked earlier. I gave him one of my crisp 100 USD bills and he pushed me over a stack of Argentinian 1000 peso bills. Noting the “check your money before leaving” sign, I counted that I only had 112,000 instead of 120,000. I indicated this to the cashier, and he quickly corrected the amount with no complaint. Given the nonplussed manner in which he recognized the error, I suspected that this type of “mistake” might be common, but as he immediately fixed it, I wasn’t upset. Whereas the bank at the airport had asked for my passport and boarding pass, here they asked for nothing.

From there I walked nearby to Buenos Aires tickets to get two tickets to tonight’s showing of Brujas, as I had invited my old coworker and friend Beatriz to go with me. I had tried to buy the tickets online ahead of time, but as is the case with many countries, it seemed impossible to buy the tickets online ahead of time from outside of the country, using a foreign card. The good news though is that while it’s an overly complicated system, buying the tickets in person at Buenos Aires tickets is significantly cheaper than buying online. Had I purchased from the official site, it was 23000 ARS for a ticket, but doing it this way it was only 14800. However, as indicated, it was a weird system in which one first pays 3300 to Buenos Aires tickets and then walks nearby to the theatre and pays 11500; note, the second payment had to be done at least one hour before the show. In summary, for the sake of convenience I can see why many people buy online ahead of time, but the savings are significant if one can do it this way. Of course, not all tickets have the same cost, but I imagine that the percent savings is similar for all tickets.

I had bought the second part of the tickets at 5:15 PM and then decided to quickly go back to the apartment before the show, as I didn’t want to have my passport and all that cash with me. At 5:35 PM I was on a bus headed back to the apartment. I left my things and headed out again, but had problems getting the bus back to the area so ended up taking an Uber for 4000 ARS at 6:40 PM, just barely arriving at the theatre at 6:50 to meet up with Beatriz and enter for the 7:00 PM show.

It was amazing to see Beatriz again after 14 years! While the show was nice, they frequently spoke so quickly that I at times had problems following along. I suspect they were also at times using some local slang. If not obvious, the show was in Spanish, which in itself is not a problem for me. Most of the audience seemed to think it was very funny, but I just thought it was pleasant; however, I recognize that it is more a function of my understanding of the local slang and local accent than of the show itself. Still, I was happy to have gone.

Departing the theatre at 8:46 PM, Beatriz and I continued hanging out until 11:43 PM at an elegant, very picturesque bar/cafe called Petit Colon which was nearby. For my very large sandwich, a beer, and two teas, the total cost was 26400 ARS. Based on the cash rate I had got at the second exchange house, that means it would have been $22 USD. It gets a bit tricky though since whenever possible I’m paying with my Indian credit card, which was 1901 INR; this is equivalent to $22.75 USD. Still, you get the general idea. Regardless, we were at the bar/cafe for more than 2.5 hours, without being hassled at all to give up the table, so it seemed like a good deal.

I then decided to walk the three kilometers back to the AirBnB apartment I had rented for 12276 INR ($147 USD) for 7 nights, finally finding myself in bed at 1:00 AM.

So wow! It’s been a great time so far, and I’ve discovered many things along the way. I don’t have an exact plan for these next few days in Buenos Aires, instead choosing to make decisions along the way and to slowly start to get a feel for the city. Keep following along with future entries, and you’ll find out how things went. As always, thanks for reading along and feel free to put any comments or questions in the comment section below.

Malaysia trip: Day 6 (28 Mar)

Hey there fellow travelers and friends. I hope you all enjoyed my first full day in Melaka. I know that I certainly did.

Despite the generally pervasive heat I discovered this morning at 8:15 AM that it can actually be very pleasant earlier in the day. At 8:00 AM with the windows open I could hear the soft sound of popular Arabic language music in the background which accompanied the cool breeze through the window.

Then at 8:23 AM we headed out for the day in search of an ATM. This was actually more difficult than you might think, which is odd, because many smaller shops and eateries seem to only want cash. Fortunately, there were some interesting things to see along the way.

Finally at 9:00 AM we were able to locate two banks with open ATMs, which were ironically right next to each other. Fortunately there was a simple eating joint nearby called Sisbuay Delight, right in front of the Grand Star Hotel. The cost of breakfast for two people was 25 RM ($5.29 USD).

While simple, the food was good. However we were not inclined to hang around a lot longer, so at 9:24 AM we finished up and continued exploring.

While within easy enough walking distance, this was clearly not a tourism sector of the city. However, the temperature was quickly rising, so at 10:10 PM we decided to duck into the Melaka Mega Mall. At first we thought it was another one of those oddly abandoned shopping centers, since there was almost nothing nor anybody on the first three floors of the building, but as we were exiting, we decided to go through a non-descript entryway into the lower ground floor where we discovered an entire small city of vibrant shops, albeit still with few customers. It’s hard to tell in the pictures, but the partially underground area really was huge.

At 10:40 PM we went out the other end of the mall, emerging back into the land of neverending museums. We initially weren’t particularly keen to visit the Independence Memorial Museum, but entrance was free, so we figured we may as well check it out. Once more, the air-conditioning was going full blast with doors and even some windows open throughout. I can only assume that electricity here is incredibly cheap.

Then at 11:40 AM we walked across the little plaza access headed into the People’s Museum. The cost per adult was 10 RM. ($2.11 USD). There were actually several different sections here. the first one had lots of stuff about kites and traditional games.

By 12:10 PM we were ready to head upstairs to the beauty museum. This seemed less about beauty than it was about showing off cultural practices that most of the mainstream world would find to be ugly. They seemed to be especially interested in lip, nose and very large ear plugs.

Of course more time could have been spent here, but at 12:43 PM we started down the stairs and almost immediately came across a very engaging stamp and coin collectors shop.

These seemed to be mostly geared to the casual collector, since prices tended to be between 10 and 50 RM. Nevertheless, they did a good job of presenting things, but I just didn’t want to buy anything.

Back down on the ground floor was the Meteor gallery. This was mostly like an upper elementary school science class, but with the important distinction that they actually had several meteorites on display, some of which you could even touch and pick up; that was new for me! They also of course sold jewelry made with meteorites and even meteor cologne; who even knew that existed?

After leaving the building at 1:07 PM we headed back to the nearby Megamall where we had earlier seen a nice looking Thai food place called Johnny’s Restaurant.

The food was very satisfying, and the total cost for both of us was only 71 RM ($15.15 USD. The robot delivery of the food was a bit silly, but an interesting gimmick. We finished up here at 2:29 PM and decided to go across the aisle to check out “Brands Outlet”. There are no pictures because the clothing was just plain horrible. We did however finally find a bathroom in the mall; for some reason these are very few and far between.

I wondered if this sign really was. . . . Evidently it is a common enough issue that they had stickers made.

By 3:03 PM we were back to museum land, this time the Melaka Heritage Museum. Entry here was free.

While pretty much everything covered here had earlier been seen in other museums, I felt that they had done a decent job here. My only criticism would be that they were way too detailed with some of the information. I felt that even a serious history student would at times have been overwhelmed.

3:50 PM came and we rushed over next door to the final museum, Stadthuys. It had a cost of 20 RM ($4.22 USD) per adult, but we would have to finish and be out by 4:45 PM.

This museum had a lot more actual artifacts than the others, but there were also a lot of recreations. I would have liked to spend more time here, but I know I also would have quickly gotten overloaded. Thus, it was probably for the best that I had to just rush through. We were pushed out of the museum at 4:40 PM, and then we immediately went to a traditional Malaysian Chinese coffee shop at 4:45 PM.

Despite having no signage of any sort, this place was very busy. I was the only non-ethic Chinese person in the place. It was 18 RM ($3.81 USD) for a cold, long coffee and a tiny piece of tasty cheesecake. We stayed here at 5:20 PM and were once more out on the street.

While this had not been planned, at 5:40 PM, we found ourselves outside the Malaysian knife gallery, and they had the largest knife in Malaysia right in front of the shop!

This place was actually way cooler than it sounds, so I would highly recommend that you stop in. We stayed walking around inside until 6:18 PM and even bought a few items. The lighting outside was amazing when we exited.

Next, at 6:54 PM we went into this vegetarian Chinese restaurant called Chin Hua vegetarian food. The absolutely delicious food was 30 RM ( $6.35) for two (including two coconuts). They even cut open the coconut for me afterwards AND scooped all the coconut off the husk so I could easily eat it; what a bargain!

Departing at 7:33 PM, it was then an easy 30 minute stroll back to the hotel.

And then my last full day in Melaka was finished!

If it was tiring for you to read all that, just imagine what it was like for me to actually do it. Still, I’m glad I packed in as much as possible, since while I might come back to Malaysia, it’s rather unlikely that I’ll ever be back to Melaka. Yes, it was a very nice place to visit, but the world just has so many other amazing places waiting to be discovered.

As always, I hope you’ve enjoyed following along, and I look forward to seeing your comments and questions in the space provided below. For now goodbye to all of you faithful readers, family members and friends.

Malaysia trip: Day 5 (27 Mar)

Hey there everyone! I hope your adventures from today were as great as mine. If yesterday was all about random weirdness, today was mostly a perfect combination of storybook tourism.

Everything started at 8:30 AM when we left the hotel in search of breakfast. With just a quick walk over the bridge, by 8:45 AM we found ourselves at Heart and Lova Cafe.

While the outside dining experience was “okay,” this is probably not the spot I would recommend for most travelers. Our meal of 44 RM ($9.32 USD) consisted of a Hershey’s chocolate drink, a liquid egg, canned baked beans, a slightly stale croissant with a single slice of cold cut chicken garnished with spray can cheese and a medicinal tasting “juice”. Yes, or could have been worse, but there are clearly many better options available.

On the plus side, when we exited at 9:18 AM, we were able to walk immediately into the Malaysian Architecture Museum which was right next door. The cost per foreign adult was 5 RM ($1.06 USD).

The building itself, built sometime in the 1700’s was well cared for and there was abundant air conditioning throughout despite the doors remaining wide open and there being no attempt to close obvious open spaces around the windows. Separately, the exhibits themselves, while “attractive,” primarily consisted of well lit cardboard cutouts and models. It was of course incredibly educational.

At 10:24 AM we exited and walked up to the ruins of St. Paul’s church.

The views were nice, and there were various grave markers which were lining the walls, thus giving a bit of insight to the Dutch and English colonists who had been here before. Mostly, visitors treated this as a favorite site to get a good Instagram pic. Next walked over to the nearby, still fully functional Christ Church.

I couldn’t figure out the purpose of these structures.

The seating design was very practical for this climate. It was comfortable and had good air flow.

Right next door was the Melaka Art Gallery, which had a cost of 10 RM ($2.11 USD) per adult when we entered at 11:26 AM.

Fortunately, at 2:35 PM we found ourselves entering the non pretentiously named Jonker Street Chicken Rice Ball restaurant.

The ground floor was this very informative, but perhaps overly detailed chronicle of youth movements in Malaysia since the time of independence. Would the next floor be the same?

Woohoo, this was more along the lines of what we had expected.

This Allen Tan was clearly considered a big deal, with this entire hall dedicated to him. The temperature inside was very comfortable, and the polished parquet flooring was gorgeous. Yes, the dusty plastic flower arrangement in the corner seemed a bit out of place, but maybe that was intentional . . . some sort of contrast point to the paintings and polished wooden floor? No doubt they didn’t want to encourage sitting, so there were no benches here.

I noticed that much of the art was for sale, so why do they charge admission? I was just wondering . . . Anyways, onto other rooms.

Now this group of artists had the same parquet flooring, but in stark contrast to the previous room, a single simple wooden bench was right in the center of the room. Perhaps I was being overly analytical, but I once again found myself asking if there was some special artistic intention here?

Around the corner, another dusty fake flower arrangement served as a contrast point to a painting . . . Once again, coincidental or intentional?

While not everyone will find this relevant, I think it’s sometimes also worthwhile to report on the state of the restrooms.

No, there was no water on the floor. Rather, this seemed to be some sort of special flooring which at first glance always looks wet. My hotel room actually had the same thing, but with a different color.

A lot of the paintings seemed to be student work from the last twenty years. Maybe high schools could do this with really good work? I mean anyone who works in a school knows that lots of times students don’t want their creations at the end of the school year. However, I thought it was odd that none of the works by UTIM students listed the name of the creator; whereas, Koleksi Tetap which also had a lot of representation, always put the student names. Also none of the sculptures had any sort of information: creator, year, title?

At 12:46 we exited the museum, once more on our way to gather further cultural enlightenment.

The Cheng Ho cultural museum was high on the list of must-see sites, and we arrived at 1:09 PM. Some of you will already know about him since he’s a big deal explorer and cultural ambassador from China, but this was my first exposure. While I attempted to treat the visit with the solemnity and respect it deserved, I may at times have failed.

Don’t be fooled though. I did learn a lot. It turns out that in this part of the world, a lot of older mosques have strong Chinese architectural influences, and that’s because of the influence of Chinese Muslims. However, the model of Guamchang was at times incredibly comical with all the different sized figures and the inclusion of different artistic styles. It reminded me of Christmas nativity scene in Latin America when little kids help set things up with their toys.

The last exhibit hall was very eclectic. It seemed almost like a random collection of stuff from various grandmas. Many items weren’t even labeled.

Really, it was a bit of a marathon of learning, but at 2:35 PM we finally exited in search of something to eat for lunch.

Presumably this gentleman had also been doing a marathon of various museum visits.

Our meal for two was 70.9 RM ($14.99 USD). The food at Jonker street chicken rice ball restaurant was decent, but not amazing. Still, I would feel comfortable recommending it to fellow travelers.

We continued here until 3:07 PM and then trekked off to our next obligatory Melaka destination, arriving at the nearby Baba & Nyonya heritage museum at 3:17 PM. Here the per adult entrance fee was 18 RM ($3.80 USD).

I wasn’t really sure why it was precisely 3 more RM than the last one, but I was sure there was a logical reason. Maybe it was the cost of the “self guide book” we were given to read while visiting?

The book actually did a very good job explaining things. But, I figured this out without the guidebook, the people who used to live in this house were seriously rich. This is just a family home which is no longer lived in by the younger family members. . . Presumably they prefer big city life. If you want the details of everything, you will have to visit on your own, or alternatively just read their website. Next we went upstairs.

Again, everything was very well laid out and very beautiful. It turns out that being super rich means that you have a beautiful home. Let’s see if it still continues like that when we go downstairs again.

So honestly, I really found this place to be very informative and even enjoyable. I learned so much about the Chinese immigrant community in Malaysia, or more precisely, the rich Chinese community. If in Melaka, go ahead and take the time to visit this place. Finally at 4:25 PM we were ready to head over to the Geographer’s cafe.

After a relaxing snack and coffee, at 6:00 PM it was time to once again check out sites on the street.

We wandered beyond the tourist district.

And then at 7:22 PM, down a wide side alley, we came across the amazing Capital Seafood food stall.

Our amazing food had a total cost of 62 RM ($13.10 USD) for two people and I was so satisfied with the entire delicious experience. Unless you are a vegetarian, if you only eat one place in Melaka, eat here. We finished up here at 8:23 PM and walked back towards the hotel.

Right in front of the hotel I decided to get one of these absurdly tall soft-serve ice cream cones for only 10 RM ($2.11 USD). The ice cream itself really wasn’t that tasty, but the whole idea of eating such a tall ice-cream cone was irresistible.

Despite the heat, there was so much water in it, the ice cream actually held up fairly well, but it was still a bit of a rush to finish it before it melted or worse, fell over. Still, I’m happy to report that I finished the whole thing, and no doubt because of the high water content did not even feel bad later on as a result of eating so much ice cream.

By 9:00 PM we were back in the room, but the nearby off key karaoke continued until 12:15 AM. The singing from the previous evening had been quite nice, but that was not so much the case this evening.

So friends, that was my first mega museum and culture day in Melaka. Let me know which part you liked the most in the comment section below.

Malaysia trip: Day 4 (26 Mar)

Hey everyone, I hope you are doing well. Today was a bit of an adventure as it was time to go to a new city called Melaka. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but the area where we had planned to go is a World Heritage site, so some people think it’s pretty special.

The important events of the day started at 8:50 AM when I once again used Grab to summon a car from Mont Kiara to TBS station. The car arrived at 8:57, and by 9:37 we were pulling up in front of the station. The total cost of the 19 km ride was 22.5 RM ($4.77 USD).

The station was much larger than I had imagined, but it was also very organized. The day before I had used easybook.com to buy two direct bus tickets to Melaka for a total of $5.32 USD. After grabbing some snacks, I was quickly able to approach the appropriate counter and pick up my tickets. Except for the lack of any obvious security measures, there was a very airport vibe, and by 9:54 AM we were at the waiting area in front of our gate.

Just as the ticket had indicated, at 10:30 AM sharp we entered the comfortable bus and started on our way. The seat and the trip itself was very comfortable, and at 12:31 PM we pulled up outside the Melaka bus terminal.

My first impression was that it was very hot, but also a nice enough looking place. I once again got a Grab car at 12:37 PM, with the car arriving almost instantly.

At 12:58 PM I was paying 9 RM ($1.90 USD) fee for the 4 km trip. And that was when we had our first hiccup. The Heeren house lodging which I had booked for three nights ($150 USD) on booking.com appeared to be closed. When I was able to contact someone on the phone numbers posted outside, they said they had no record of our booking.

A bit of further investigation revealed that there are several hotels called Heeren, and we were at the wrong one. Fortunately, the right one was only about 15 meters away, so it was easy enough to walk right over to that one, Heeren by the River hotel. Unfortunately, that one was also closed. On the plus side, some random guest let us get in from the sun into the lobby, where we were finally able to get ahold of someone on the phone who told us to just stick our bags behind reception and to come back in about 45 minutes.

So at 1:28 PM, we left our bags and headed out walking. The sun was very strong and the heat relentless, but there were several interesting shops, including a place called a flea shop, which actually assisted appeared to just be a discount store, kind of like a “dollar store”.

Then at 2:35 PM we tried to get some food at the highly recommended Jonker 88, but there was no obvious way to order food and the staff were rather rude. So, we decided to head back towards a Mexican restaurant we had seen a couple of blocks earlier called Mamasita Melaka. This seemed like a bad idea, but we were hot and the place had nice decor.

Amazingly, the Mexican restaurant was surprisingly good. I’m not willing to say it was outstanding, but I would definitely recommend it. The food was decent, the decor nice, and the service good. The cost for two people was 88.6 RM ($18.78 USD). We stayed there until 3:24 PM and then walked back to the hotel, arriving two minutes later.

Again, the door was locked, and we had to go through the whole process of calling and asking someone to help, but by 3:48 PM we were already in the room. Despite having already paid $150 USD on booking.com, we had to separately pay a 6 RM “heritage tax” in cash. It all seemed like a scam since the money went into the same register as everything else, but it was only the equivalent of $1.27 so I didn’t care.

The room looked alright and the bathroom was huge. Furthermore, once the air conditioner was going for a while it was a tolerable temperature. The room definitely should also have had a pedestal or table fan as well, since the air conditioner didn’t do a very good job of distributing the cooled air throughout the room. I decided to rest a bit until the day cooled down

At 7:05 PM it was fully dark and a bit cooler outside, so I decided to go out exploring.

At around 7:36 PM I had already walked through “little India” and then found myself in a strange mall called The Shore.

Contrary to the name, there was nothing electronic about this store.

At first I thought the issue was that it seemed to be mostly abandoned, but then I realized that the issue was not that there were no shops, but that there were almost no people. Most of the spots had the lights on, doors open and even plenty of merchandise, but there were just no people . . . Basically, it was like a movie set, but the actors and film crew had not yet arrived with any of the equipment. I considered calling out, but decided against it . . . What if someone answered and it wasn’t what I was wanting? Better to play it safe.

Anyways, I left the abandoned movie set at 7:44 and continued my walk.

Continuing with the theme of strange shopping centers, I then at 7:54 PM found myself in yet another one.

However, as can be seen, here the issue was that almost all the locales seemed to be either empty or shut up. All in all, this second one seemed less creepy than the first one. I did however start to wonder what was going on. Where were the people, and where were the stores? Was I unknowingly skipping through alternate shopping themed dimensions?

On the whole though, inter-dimensional travel seemed unlikely, so I simply excited the shopping center and continued walking.

At 8:02 PM I breathed an easy sigh of relief as I turned a corner and saw a few people. There weren’t a lot, but there were several cars moving, and I could see what reasonably appeared to be humans in the distance. I seemed to now be in some sort of a night market.

Similar to the “flea shop” and earlier “e-mart” which only had convenience store items, some of the store names in the night market also seemed randomly assigned, like the “Secondhand store” which was only selling beans new shoes. Still nothing particularly nefarious seemed to be happening in the night market. There were just very few clients.

At 8:29 PM I finally exited the very organized and clean, yet still sort of depressing night market, once again determined to make it back to my familiar, reasonably populated shopping dimension. There were several nice night sites along the way, and I actually did make it back to my land of capitalistic success at 9:31 PM.

In celebration, I figured the most appropriate thing to do would be to get some dinner at McDonald’s. Scorn me if you will, but few places were open, and I’m not afraid to admit that living in India, I actually do miss the occasional beef hamburger from McDonald’s. In case you are wondering, yes, the food tasted exactly the same as in either the USA or Costa Rica. Furthermore, the price was right at only 16 RM ($3.42 USD) for a double cheeseburger, medium french fries, medium soft drink and a strawberry sundae!

At 9:52 PM, I then left to go walking back to my lodging, arriving back to the room at 10:08 PM.

While I will admit that the day was a bit odd, it was certainly interesting. I was also confident that my first full day in Melaka would be a textbook tourist experience with plenty of culture and classic historical sites.

Anyways, for now I will close. I wonder, have any of you ever had hotel and “shopping” experiences like these while on vacation? If so, let me know about it in the comment section below.

Malaysia trip: Day 4 (26 Mar)

My first impression was that it was very hot, but also a nice enough looking place. I once again got a Grab car at 12:37 PM, with the car arriving almost instantly.

At 7:05 PM it was fully dark and a bit cooler outside, so I decided to go out exploring.

At around 7:36 PM I had already walked through “little India” and then found myself in a strange mall called The Shore.

Anyways, I left the abandoned movie set at 7:44 and continued my walk.

Continuing with the theme of strange shopping centers, I then at 7:54 PM found myself in yet another one.

On the whole though, inter-dimensional travel seemed unlikely, so I simply excited the shopping center and continued walking.

At 9:52 PM, I then left to go walking back to my lodging, arriving back to the room at 10:08 PM.

Anyways, for now I will close. I wonder, have any of you ever had hotel and “shopping” experiences like these while on vacation? If so, let me know about it in the comment section below.

Malaysia trip: Day 3 (25 Mar)

Hey there everyone. I hope you are enjoying my most recent travels. I certainly am! So anyways, here’s what happened on day 3.

At 10:29 AM I again ordered a Grab car. I feel like I should also try some other ride hailing service, but so far this one is working well, and since I’m only here for a week, I figure it’s probably better to just stick with what works. The car arrived at 10:35 AM, and we were on our way from Mont Kiara to Chinatown.

After a short, comfortable ride, at 10:52 AM we arrived and I paid the bill of 14 RM ($2.97 USD). I understood that there were plenty of things around here to see, so with no particular expectations, we set off walking.

Keeping in mind the name of the neighborhood, I was happy to quickly come across the Guan Di temple. It wasn’t particularly fancy, but if you are in the area, may as well check it out.

We were here for about 15 minutes and then at 11:18 AM, right across the street I saw that there was also the Sri Maha Mariamman temple. As I live in India, I felt a bit silly checking out an obviously Hindu temple in another country, but I was actually glad that I did. This looked very different from what I’ve become accustomed to in both Maharashtra and Karnataka.

There weren’t too many people, but there was a lot going on, so I stayed here until 11:54 AM. They were still playing ceremonial music when I left, but I thought I had seen and heard enough. I mean without too much effort, I can probably easily find something similar in Bengaluru. Following these two temple visits, I figured I should now just look around a bit.

The wandering was fine, but I wasn’t really keen on buying random stuff, so at 12:50 PM we decided to get a tasty lunch at Chef Ma BBQ. The food was reasonably priced, and while the ambiance wasn’t fancy, it was comfortable enough. We paid a total of 77.5 RM ($16.24 USD) for two people.

At 2:15 PM, we decided to exit the restaurant and go over to the nearby Central Market.

It was a leisurely stroll, and we arrived at 2:30 PM. If gift shopping is your thing, then you will love this place, but I suspect that you can get most items for cheaper prices elsewhere. It was certainly a comfortable place, but I was more than ready to leave at 3:13 PM. As Huixian was feeling a bit tired we decided to get some tea or coffee somewhere nearby.

At 3:20 PM we decided to try our luck at Secret Recipe. It was a pleasant place to sit and chat, with attractive dessert items, but neither the cake nor the drinks were particularly impressive. As such, I felt that the bill of 24.35 RM ($5.15 USD) was a bit much, but then I guess we weren’t really paying for the food or drinks, but rather for the setting.

At 4:11 PM it was time to walk towards Merbaka Square. It was a good spot to take pictures and just rest a bit, but I would have liked to be able to look inside some of the buildings.

When the afternoon rains started at 4:53 PM, there was fortunately a sheltered spot to sit right across the street, next to the river.

I couldn’t really figure out the intended purpose of this shelter, but it was perfect for a small group of people to get away from the downpour. Maybe it was actually made just for this reason, since I understand that it rains like this almost everyday, and people do need a protected spot. However, I’m not sure.

Right at 5:35 PM the rain stopped, so we figured that we should try to do a bit more exploring.

Nothing was particularly amazing, but this nearby neighborhood seemed to have a more down to earth character than other places I had so far seen in Kuala Lumpur. As we were a bit far from Mont Kiara and it was starting to get dark, at 6:13 PM I once again activated my trusty Grab app, and at 6:33 PM was back in a comfortable car headed towards Mont Kiara 163 retail park.

We arrived at 7:04 PM, paying 26 MR ($5.51 USD) for the transport, and then browsed the shops and restaurants before choosing QingHeGu Korean BBQ at 7:52 PM.

Even though our meal of Pork shoulder for two was a bit pricey with a cost of 104.9 RM ($22.10 USD), I felt that it was completely worth it. Besides, when on vacation, it’s important to indulge a bit unless one is really counting pennies.

At 9:05 PM we were done at the restaurant and it was just a short walk back to the apartment. All in all, it was a great day, and I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s trip as well. As for you, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope you are also making the most out of every moment! Finally, as always, if you have any questions, just drop a note in the comments below.

Malaysia trip: Day 2 (24 Mar)

Hey there friends, I know that yesterday’s entry wasn’t all that exciting, so if you are still reading along, I promise that today had much better traditional tourism activities to get you excited about visiting Kuala Lumpur.

We went ahead and headed out of the house at 9:30 AM here in Mont Kiara. Just a cross the road. There’s a rather fancy restaurant called Kanteen, but then to be fair, almost everything in Mont Kiara seems to be a bit fancy. The ambiance was nice, and our breakfast for two had a cost of 66 RM ($14.06 USD).

We finished up at 10:12 AM, and I used Grab to ask for a car to take us to The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia. The very pleasant sedan arrived at 10:22 AM, and for the modest sum of 11 RM ($2.32 USD) for a 9 km trip, we were pulling up in front of the museum at 10:37 AM. Having come in from India just the night before I was really impressed with how nice the roads were and how it seemed that everyone on the road was being very respectful; in general there didn’t seem to be a lot of cars, but that might just be because it was so orderly.

The cost per adult to enter was 20 RM ($4.22 USD). As the building is very elegant, I had very high hopes. We started out our visit with a temporary exhibit which highlighted more recent creations.

I was intrigued by a lot of this, because much of it was a bit different than what I had come to expect from Islamic art. I think though that this is positive, because it shows that like everything else, it is evolving over time. Around 11:05 PM we headed up a floor to the second special exhibit hall and then on to the permanent collections.

I was rather surprised to see the section dedicated to Chinese Muslim art, since I had no idea how developed this was.

There was quite a lot to see, and I probably did not really do justice to the museum. While I appreciate art galleries and museums, even under the best of circumstances, I tend to find it hard to stay focused for too long. Ideally, I feel like most of these places should be visited with a good guide, several times, with each visit taking no longer than 90 minutes. However that’s not to say it wasn’t impressive.

These weird light blue ones in the background are evidently tear catchers; who knew that was even a thing?

At 1:14 PM we decided to depart for our next destination, which was about 1 km away on foot. The heat and humidity was terrible, but by staying in the shade as much as possible, we managed alright.

There was almost no traffic on the road.

While it had not been our original intent to eat again so soon, upon arriving at the Hornbill Cafe at 1:38 PM, we thought it would be best to have something else to eat asking with a cool drink before tackling the KL Bird Park. This was clearly a bit of a tourist trap, but the food was admittedly very nice, as was the general atmosphere of the place despite being an open air restaurant/cafe. For two people the bill was 126.9 RM ($26.79 USD).

Connected to the Cafe is a gift shop where one can pay and directly enter the park. The cost per adult was 85 RM ($17.94 USD). We paid and entered at 2:32 PM.

No these aren’t birds, but they were still cool to look at.

Guests receive a surprisingly useful brochure which basically just repeats the information on this map. We decided to just keep going left until we had completed the circuit.

While we were wandering we saw that there was a bird show at 3:30 PM which we decided to check out. Still pictures don’t really do it justice; it really was a nice addition to the visit.

We then finished up our visit over in zone 2 of the park.

As to be expected, there was another gift shop at the exit.

While we probably could have spent at least 30-60 more minutes at the park, we heard a lot of thunder in the distance, so decided to exit at 5:05 PM. The entire 2 hours and 45 minutes we were at the park was time greatly enjoyed.

I once again used the Grab app to hail a car, and by 5:31 PM we were back at Mont Kiara, having paid the same amount as before.

So in summary, while I personally found the museum a bit tiring, I would still recommend it. And as you have probably guessed, I think the Bird park is a must see destination in Kuala Lumpur.

As always, thanks for reading along, and please put any questions or comments in the space indicated below. Of course, If you are interested in what I got up to on day three, then you will just have to keep following along.

See you then!

Malaysia trip: Day 1 (23 Mar)

Hey there readers, I hope you are doing well. I know it’s been some time since I last wrote and also know that I left you hanging on the rest of my recent trip to China in December-January. I do still however have plenty of notes and pictures from that trip.

So, I may still get around to writing some more about that soon. However, it’s now time to look forward to Malaysia.

I’m not really sure what I will do once I’m there, but I’m sure I will have a great time since I’m once again visiting with a good friend. Before I get too far into my writing, I’ve actually had a recent hiccup already, because I didn’t do my research ahead of time. Evidently it is now a requirement for almost all visitors to Malaysia to register for the Malaysian Digital Arrival Card before arriving. The process itself is simple, but it doesn’t seem to be instantaneous.

I filled out my application two hours before departure, but when I boarded the plane had still not received either a confirmation nor the document itself. I even tried it with two different emails. Anyways, I’m writing this while on the plane, and will see what happens once I arrive. I’m not too worried though since I’m traveling with my USA passport, and the Malaysian airlines staff told me before boarding that it shouldn’t be a problem even though the official website seems to indicate otherwise. I guess worst case scenario I’ll get sent back to India or maybe even USA?

So like most of these trips departing from Bengaluru, I once again opted to use BluSmart car services to get to the airport. As in the past, the service was punctual, the driver courteous, and the car comfortable and the price reasonable. Do note that it’s generally better to book the car between 24 and 48 hours when you need it since the fleet is limited. The cost today was 759 INR ($9.08 USD). With the entire 25 km trip taking 38 minutes. My only complaint would be that the seat coverings are a bit uncomfortable.

While easy to clean, the lack of breathable fabric can get uncomfortable.

Also like all my trips the last several years, I once again opted to use an ESIM service. While I used to blindly recommend Airalo, I now do some quick comparison shopping beforehand. Similar to my recent trip to China, this time Nomad seemed to be the best option for my needs. As a minimum though, I suggest you always compare Airalo, Nomad and Holafly before choosing. I did however have a problem purchasing the ESIM this time. This seems to be an India only problem, but I thought that Nomad wasn’t affected. Yes, I was able to open the app, choose the plan and even add payment options, I couldn’t pay using my phone in India. I tried two Indian issued cards, a Costa Rican card and then PayPal. I also tried using a VPN even with GPS spoofing, but no.

As a last resort I tried to purchase using my PC, without a VPN, while in India, using an Indian credit card, and this time I had no problem. Does it make sense? No, but if you get stuck, the same trick might also work for you. I bought a 30 day 10 GB data ESIM through Nomad for only $12.75 USD. I had been a little worried that there might be a problem installing the ESIM on my Google Pixel 7 since I had bought it through the PC, but when I scanned the code on my computer screen, the installation went as smoothly as always. I’ve written a lot about ESIMs before, so won’t repeat too much again. Suffice to say, this is the best option for international connectivity when traveling to most destinations and it’s easy to check online ahead of time to see whether or not your device is compatible. These days, most flagship devices are, and it’s even becoming common with midrange phones.

Going to the airport was in some ways a different experience for me this time around since I usually have horrible travel times which require me to either depart very late at night or in the wee hours of the morning. This time around however, I was able to score a direct flight on Malaysian Airlines with a scheduled departure time of 12:00 PM. The round trip price was only about $275 USD with both flights getting direct! So anyways, what was it like traveling at this time.

For the most part when traveling out of terminal 2 in Bengaluru, I’ve had very good experiences, but I had been worried that this time around might be more difficult due to the more convenient travel time. However, that was not the case. From the time I arrived at the drop off point, It only took me a total of 27 minutes . . . Even with having a bag to check! Now I know that a lot of you are no doubt gasping to hear that I was traveling with a checked bag; I normally do trips all around the world with a single piece of 7 kg hand luggage. No, I haven’t gone over to the dark side. It’s just that I really love a lot of Southeast and East Asian food which is either very hard or impossible to find in India. So, since my short work trip to Bangkok in September, every time I head this way I try to buy a bunch of foodstuffs to take back; I especially love all the dried meats. So if any of you want to surprise me with something special, you know what to get!

Anyways, even though I really wasn’t hungry, once I was in the departure terminal at 9:35 AM I headed straight to the 080 lounge armed with my recently upgraded Regalia Gold card from HDFC. As most of my Indian readers know, lounge access on Indian cards has been cut back drastically in the last year. Similarly, airport lounge service, while still a nice perk, seems to have greatly decreased over the past two years. The 080 lounge in Bengaluru airport terminal 2 has always had a more exclusive level of access, so I was hoping that it would also be a step up from my recent experiences. Wow! It definitely was.

Don’t get me wrong, as most people will say, terminal 2 already has a very pleasant general ambiance which I hope will not decrease as it becomes more and more utilised. But the 080 lounge really accomplishes it’s goal of being a place of gentle relaxation and rest. The pictures really don’t do it justice. The decor, comfort and general atmosphere was a breath of fresh air. Furthermore, while I didn’t use them, my lounge access even included two standard alcoholic drink vouchers. Finally, the food variety was also very good with a nice selection of both Indian and continental dishes including a mound of pork bacon! Did I eat way too much? You be the judge. . .

So, do I feel a bit elitist writing about my fancy lounge access? Yes, I do. However, it’s taken me a long time to get here. Furthermore, if you are going to charge for a lounge program, whether it be to the individual traveller or through a group Bank card access program, the 080 lounge in terminal 2 does it the way it should be, and other lounges in India should take note.

So I stayed in the lounge as long as I thought it was safe, going down at 11:15 AM to wait for the boarding call of my 12:00 PM flight. It turns out that I could have stayed up there longer and maybe enjoyed one of those drink vouchers, since the flight was delayed. We didn’t actually board the plane until 12:13, with the actual liftoff happening just under one hour later.

I would have liked adjustable headrests on the plane, a B737-800. However, the inflight entertainment options were decent and the food service decent.

It had been awhile since I had seen these on a plane.

The movie I chose was a bit of a disappointment, the latest Aquaman, but that was my own foolish choice. There were plenty of other great looking recent releases available, but I decided to opt for something lighter . . . Unfortunately, it was just dumb. Aquaman lovers please don’t spam me with your hate comments unless you also bring me back some tasty dried meat snacks from your next trip to this part of the world.

So it’s 4:13 PM India time (6:43 PM Malaysia time) and, they just announced the beginning of our descent into Kuala Lumpur. Up until now it’s been a good flight, with my only complaint being that it’s been a tad bit too warm for my liking. Supposedly we will touch down at 7:31 PM Malaysia time. The actual touchdown time was 7:26 PM Malaysia time, with being parked at 7:34 PM. So far so good. However, upon connecting to my Nomad esim I saw that the MDAC still had not arrived.

7:42 PM getting off the plane. While it is possible to understand the signage, it’s kind of confusing because they have you all out in the same area as both the transfers and as far as I can tell, maybe even people that are taking off, so it’s a bit difficult to tell where you’re supposed to go. You eventually get to the end of a hall, and then you have to wait to take a bus.

Like I said, it’s doable, i but a bit unsettling. To be certain, when I saw the bus at 7:50 PM, I actually thought that I had made a mistake and started to turn around; fortunately there was a worker there and seeing that I was hesitating, she told me that this was the right way.

7:59 PM the bus arrived at the next building. This one seemed a bit easier to navigate, but once again it wasn’t clear where I was supposed to go. There was a sign with the USA flag pointing to the right along with about 7 other flags, but when I went there they said that was wrong. The earlier sign had said autogate eligible this way, but I’m not sure what it means. Regardless, the official kindly told me it was the wrong place.

8:27 PM I finally got to the immigration office and they didn’t ask for the MDAC, which of course I didn’t have haha. The baggage claim was right there. At 8:31 PM I already had my bag.

8:41 PM I was on the KLIA Ekspres to KL Sentral. It was easy to buy the 55 RM ($11.61 USD) using tap to pay with my international card. I didn’t see any in the airport and I didn’t have any local currency. The train itself was clean, quiet and comfortable.

At 9:16 PM I arrived at the station, got out and was happy to see three ATM machines. Right there I also saw a taxi counter where I was able to pre-pay a ticket to Mont Kiara for just 30 RM ($6.33 USD). One copy is for the driver and the other copy is the customer receipt.

Within 15 minutes I was at my friend’s place in Mont Kiara.

Visiting good friends always makes for a great trip!

So anyways, I know today was a bit boring, but the travel itself is also an important part of the voyage. I know that this entry was rushed, but I also know that if I spend too much time on it, then I will never get it out, so in advance please excuse any egregious errors. As always thanks for reading along and I hope to offer some good tips on your next trip to Malaysia.

Fujian province trip December 2023 to January 2024: Initial advice based on week 1.

Hello there to my loyal readers and to those who are only just now discovering my travels . . .

These Fujian province entries will be a bit different from my normal travel logs, since this trip is more about visiting an old friend and former colleague than it is about discovering Fujian province itself. Also, unlike other similar trips such as when I went to Phuket to visit with my good friend Elisabet, here in Fujian province, especially away from a major city, I am almost entirely dependant on my former colleague, Huixian.

Since Huixian and other Chinese people I have met outside of China all speak quite good English, and I also knew that English was a required subject in school, I had just assumed that all reasonably educated people knew English. As a minimum, I figured they would be able to read without too much effort. Let me be clear right off, that is NOT the case, at least not in Fujian province away from the main city of Xiamen. So, if you do not know some basic Chinese, including being able to read, I don’t think that I can recommend that solo travellers attempt a trip to China away from very major cities. As I know English, Spanish and French quite well, this is the first time in more than twenty-five years that I have felt almost entirely lost when on my own.

Furthermore, all signs and notice boards are only in Chinese, usually only with Chinese characters (no Pinyin) and apps which you have come to rely on outside of China such as Google maps don’t really work here. Yes, there are high quality local equivalents, but they are only available in Chinese. In short, this is not a location for the inexperienced or meek solo traveller. Again, in my case things have been great, since Huixian has made sure that I am always taken care of, but on my own it would be incredibly difficult. No doubt tour groups have a different experience, because then there is someone hired to make sure you are always cared for and shuttled around from place to place.

Furthermore, most of us outside of China have come to rely on our debit and credit cards; good luck with that in Fujian province (and I suspect in most of the rest of China away from the mega cities). Unless you only go to very expensive places, almost nowhere here accepts cards for payment. Supposedly everywhere has to accept cash, but many travellers report that while shops and smaller vendors are in theory happy to accept cash, they never have change, since here almost everyone pays with either WeChat or Alipay.

WeChat is the local equivalent of WhatsApp or iMessage and is by far the preferred option of the two major payment platforms used on a daily basis in China. Like WhatsApp, people use it for messaging, but it also has a payment option built in which is similar to Apple Pay, Google Pay or in the case of India (where I live most of the year), UPI payments. The first hurdle many will encounter, especially if coming in from India such as I did, is how to get a WeChat or Alipay account; again, I recommend WeChat since it seems to be more universally preferred here in China.

This snack at the train station represented my first struggle with payment in China. I had already added my Indian card to Alipay before departure, but then I couldn’t get it to work. After 35 minutes I was finally able to pay using WeChat pay . . . But later on my Indian bank blocked my card 😥

In India, the WeChat app is blocked on both the Google and Apple stores, so you will have to sideload the same. This is a fairly easy process for Android devices, but I believe it is significantly more difficult for Apple users. Once installed, you will not be able to activate your account with an Indian number, but it shouldn’t be too difficult for most other countries. This is not because WeChat nor China refuses to verify Indian numbers but rather because India blocks the process. In my case I was able to verify my WeChat account using my Costa Rican number. However, initial verification is only half of the battle, because you will then need a mainland Chinese friend to complete the second half of the verification process. Probably if you have already decided to travel to China, you will have someone available to help you with the second part of account verification, even if it is just your tour guide, but if you don’t, then you can’t use the non-Chinese language version of the app. It may be easier to do if you get a local SIM card, but like many countries, this is a rather onerous process, so most international travellers will prefer to either use an eSIM (my recommendation is Nomad esims but Airalo is also a decent but more expensive option). Of course, eSIM will only work for you if you have an eSIM enabled telephone . . . while this is increasingly common, it is still not a given for most budget or mid-tier devices . . . So, let me go back to before my trip started and give my step-by-step advice for those who are interested in doing a trip to China.

First, unless you have a good local friend who is waiting to receive and take care of you, this could even be an experienced local expat, you might not want to attempt to do this trip as a solo traveller. Linguistically and financially, it can clearly be very challenging. My friend Huixian has told me that it is much less of a problem in a mega city like Shanghai or even Beijing, but it would still be quite frustrating. I assume though that reputable group tours will be just fine.

Second, it is extremely likely that you will need to get a travel visa. This may take several days or even weeks to get. For me, this was quite new since I generally travel with my United States passport, which means I mostly enjoy either visa free or visa on arrival travel. As far as I could tell, the process for getting a Chinese visa is similar to the process for getting a visa to either the United States of America or to most European countries. So, if you are experienced with that sort of situation, you will find it to be annoying, but familiar. For me however it was a first-time experience, so it was very stressful. In summary, don’t expect this to be easy and don’t leave it for the last moment. I would say that you should probably at least start the process of figuring out what you will need to do no later than three months in advance, even though in your particular case it may be theoretically possible to do everything in less than a month.

I know that some of you are already thinking that you can’t be bothered to take on the challenge, but there is such great food, and an incredible variety of the same.

Third (this is a big one), prepare ahead of time for how you are going to stay connected with friends and family outside of China while you are visiting. Do NOT assume that your previously used methods will work flawlessly. Both iMessage and WhatsApp currently seem to work in China for text messaging. iMessage seems to be fully featured in China but features such as video and voice call and sharing videos/pictures are blocked on WhatsApp. So, for Android users, I suggest you also get Skype ahead of time for your friends, family and of course yourself. While I assume this is not that big of a deal for the average tourist, do NOT assume that ANY of these are either properly encrypted or private while using in China. For your personal use with friends and family, I would say there is no concern, but assume that government entities can see any of your communications.

I didn’t attempt to buy a high-speed train ticket on my own, but Huixian assured me that more official places such as this would surely be able to accept CNY cash. She also seemed to think that I would not have a problem making them understand where I needed to travel. The problem though is that once you are in the train, again, all the announcements are only in Chinese . . . so missing your stop is a very real possibility. Also note that when more than one person buys a ticket, it is very common for them to not be seated next to each other. Assuming that one is able to get past all those hurdles, the trains are incredibly comfortable, fast and generally on time.

For those who are interested in going beyond basic communications, you will need to explore VPN options. You will need this if you intend to access MANY common foreign websites and services such as Google services, Facebook, Instagram etc . . . or even to see many basic websites in other countries. Again, there are Chinese versions of all of these services, and they are GOOD options, but they will not be much help when trying to communicate with those outside of China. Furthermore, most of the Chinese options are only available in Chinese. For the common tourist who simply intends to use their smartphone, by far the easiest option is to get an eSIM ahead of time from Nomad or Airalo. These eSIMs use an automatic VPN which will allow you to easily access all of the services which you are accustomed to when outside of China. Buy MORE data than you think you will need, since I understand that you will NOT be permitted to top up your plan while in China. However, even though the Nomad eSIM option in particular for China is affordable, you may want to consider a plan B.

Plan B means actually paying for a separate VPN service. I already had Surfshark which supposedly usually works in China, so I thought I would be covered. Spoiler alert, NO, it did not work. Through my nomad eSIM with the already built in VPN, I bought a month of ExpressVPN, which according to almost everywhere on the internet is the best option for China . . .once again, NO, it did not work. Finally, in an obscure post on Reddit (which of course I could only access using by Nomad eSIM) I found out about a Chinese VPN provider called LetsVPN; this is a reasonably affordable option, and it seems to work fairly well on all the Chinese networks where I have tried. I assume that my communications are not actually protected from being monitored by government entities while using it, but as I definitely have no nefarious intentions, I really do not care. To be clear, like most of you, I simply want to back up my photos and videos to Google photos, post to Instagram, Facebook and here on WordPad, and maybe see a bit of Netflix. Notably, there is another VERY expensive VPN provider called Astrill which many recommend, but I cannot speak to the same. Once more, for ANY of these, if you do get lucky and find that they work for you, assume that they are perfectly good for personal use including having more secure banking when on a public network, but do NOT assume that they are secure from possible monitoring by law enforcement agencies. Still, if you are a simple, honest tourist like me, this really should not bother you.

Moving along to the fourth point, I will assume that you took my advice to get a Nomad eSIM. With that in mind, make sure to turn off background update and backup services ahead of time so that you do not burn through your valuable data. I myself made the mistake of not turning off my daily WhatsApp chat backups and ended up wasting 9 gigas of my 20 gigas of data over a period of four days. I did however want to do daily cellular data backup of my photos before I got LetsVPN activated. If you are REALLY looking to economize your data use, turn off ALL background updates and back up services except for on wifi, and assume that your wifi backups will be blocked (when not on a VPN) with the noted exceptions of anything to OneDrive or iCloud.

Fifth, if you don’t already know Chinese, in which case you probably will not be reading this blog entry, get very familiar with a translator app that you are comfortable with BEFORE embarking on your trip. Also save yourself some headaches by advance downloading any languages you think you might need to use. For China, one of these would be “simplified Chinese” and the other would be whatever you feel most comfortable using. The good news is that Microsoft translator actually works extremely well with Chinese, and since Microsoft services are not blocked, even if you have to use an internet only feature, you will have full access. Google translate also works quite well with Chinese, but remember that it will be blocked if you aren’t using a VPN and need any network only features. In a pinch, I think I could completely manage my actual “needs” with just Microsoft translator, but it would make for a potentially lonely trip if doing solo travel. While you will figure this out on your own, the audio translate features of both of these are good, but only if there is not much background noise and the speaker enunciates well. Also, it does take a bit of patience to have a conversation this way, sort of like doing a walkie-talkie conversation.

So, should you come to travel around China on your own? If you are fully aware of these challenges, and are still interested, then stick along with me for the next few entries. Again, my first experience has been VERY protected due to the incredible support of my friend Huixian, but I am already fully convinced that I now want to try another trip on my own, and I think that my experiences could help you to do the same, while also convincing you that it is worth the effort!

As always, thank you for reading along, and feel free to put any questions in the comments section below, and stay tuned for more details about some lesser-known amazing sites in southern Fujian provinces that you might want to visit.

In case you are still wondering about why you might want to travel outside of the major cities . . .

Siem Reap trip: Day 6 (17 Nov)

Hi there readers. For those of you who read Day 6, you know that today I didn’t have anything planned until the evening. As such, I didn’t set me alarm.

However, as I was well-rested, I still got up reasonably early, ate some cashews and canned tuna which I had bought earlier and wanted to finish up before leaving tomorrow, and then once more headed out to a local gym, this time choosing Angkor fitness, where I arrived at 9:55 AM. Similar to Gold Gym where I had gone a couple of days earlier, the cost of a day pass was $5 USD. However, despite the lack of a pool here, which I had no interest in using anyways, I thought this was the nicer of the two gym options. No doubt much of this was due to the time of the day, but I also found the temperature much more tolerable here than in Gold Gym. Finally, while it was not a huge difference, the resistance training area seemed to be slightly better.

I finished up at the gym at 12:16 PM and went out walking with no particular destination in mind.

Along the way I came across this shop with rather beautiful wooden carved statues. I didn’t enter to look at anything closer, since I had no intention of even considering purchasing anything, but from the street it looked impressive. Then at 12:46 PM I stopped in at a random restaurant which seemed to specialize in serving only dishes with duck. From what I could understand, at this time of the day there were only two options: duck with noodles or duck with rice. I opted for the rice dish which arrived at 12:48 PM.

The food was simple but pleasant, and with a price of only 10,000 Riel ($2.43 USD) there was certainly no reason to complain. By 1:21 PM I had finished and then walked back to the apartment, arriving at 1:35 PM. As I did not have anything planned until 8:00 PM in the evening, I decided that I should try to still do something else nearby here in town in order to not “waste the day”.

On day 1 it had originally been my intent to go to the Angkor National Museum, but then I had just felt too tired to do it, so since it was rather close to where I was staying, it seemed reasonable to go there today. I took a quick shower, changed clothes, and then headed out walking from 2:00 PM, arriving at 2:18 PM.

The standard cost to enter was $12 USD for adults and $6 USD for children ages 6-11. There was no mention made of special prices for residents vs foreigners. For those without cash, it was possible to pay with a bank/credit card. There is also an audio guide service which I decided to get for an additional cost of $5 USD, but in retrospect I really do not think it was particularly helpful, since it just seemed to generally restate the same information which could easily be read throughout the museum. While this was not a big deal, it was also the one place I encountered where it seemed to be a slight disadvantage to pay with local currency. My total was 71400 Riel ($17.34 USD).

The museum is pleasantly designed with a spiral walkway going past a soothing pool of water as you head up to where the visit begins.

Unlike many museums where you just sort of choose your own adventure, here they definitely want you to do things in a particular order, and there are abundant staff throughout who helpfully direct you along to the next prescribed area. As directed, my visit began with a short briefing video, and I was then pointed to the first Exhibit Hall, aptly named the 1000 Buddha gallery.

I did use the audio guide throughout, but as mentioned earlier, if you actually read things, the English and Khmer explanations prominently placed throughout already do a very good job of explaining things. Some might argue that they do too well of a job explaining. In summary, this was a very educational museum, and I think it would have been much better for me to visit BEFORE my Angkor Wat visit, as had been my original intention. However, while it is very clean, informative, and well-organized, this is definitely not appropriate for most children nor a place for those who are not really very genuinely interested in a lot of the historic background of the ancient civilization around this area.

At 2:57 PM I moved on to the next section which was specifically all about Khmer civilization, religion and the great Khmer kings.

I felt like much of this museum would be extremely interesting for art students, but I will admit that it was hard for me to stay properly interested, even though the explanations were very well-done. For instance, I learned about how Khmer artists would use arches and intentional support structures to give their sculptures more strength and stability. However, similar to what happens in many museums, it could quickly become sculpture and history overload.

Again though, I did pick up quite a few bits of knowledge, such as the importance of door lintels in a lot of their traditional temple and palace architecture. Furthermore, I was surprised to tell that historians could ascertain the age of a building simply by looking at the design of the lintels. While this made sense to me, I also wondered why some architects didn’t ever decide to intentionally create a different type of a lintel or perhaps purposely copy a lintel style from the past?

Even though it is hard to appreciate in the picture, I was particularly impressed by the carving of this final lintel which I saw. To think that such detail and depth had been carved into sandstone and that nothing had accidentally broken off was truly amazing.

In case you are curious, pretty much everything on the lintel has easily understood meaning, and yes, I did learn about it, but no, I will not force you to also read about it. As I write that, I realize that maybe the audio guide DID have a bit more extra information than what was simply posted everywhere, but I think most visitors would still be fine without paying the extra $5 USD.

Coming out of the rooms with the A-C exhibits there was a welcome display of Batik art, not so much because I thought it was particularly amazing Batik, but mostly because at least it wasn’t just more sculpture.

At 4:30 PM I was in room D, which was all about Angkor Wat. Except for the recreation of sunrise on Angkor wat in this room, I was not particularly impressed, but that might simply be because I had already spent two full days at the real Angkor Wat ruins.

At 10:49 AM the hallway which led to and then the next E room was full of Asura and Deva sculptures as well as many more of Buddha. I was once again struck by the similarities of the relationship between Asura (frequently translated as “giants” or “old gods” or even “demons”) and Deva (the new or “current” gods) and the similarities with other systems of religious mythology/tradition in Greece, Nordic countries, and other parts of the world. Unsurprisingly, the Asura seem to always be depicted as having sort of pouty faces; whereas, the Deva are serene.

There was plenty more to see and discover, but I confess that I was mostly historied out by this point.

Believe it or not, in Khmer Hinduism, this is the second incarnation of Vishnu

The last G room was all about ancient clothing which could be seen in the sculptures, but as I said earlier, at this point I was no longer really paying attention, so lucky you, there are no pictures and no commentary on that room.

At 5:30 PM I exited the main museum and was unsurprisingly directed into a rather upscale gift shop. The museum itself only covers a period of about 1000 years when the Khmer empire was supposed to be the most influential and powerful, finishing up around the 13th century. As mentioned earlier, while it is well laid out and there are good explanations throughout, the place can get a bit tiring. Furthermore, the audio guide really is not necessary for most visitors, but I think it did have a BIT extra information; still, most would probably be happy to skip it. Finally, if you were thirsty, right after the gift shop there was a slightly overpriced, rather under inspiring cafe.

At 5:43 PM I was outside the museum where I found the temperature was very pleasant. With that in mind, and even though it was a little under 4 km to walk there, at 6:09 PM I decided to start walking over to my final activity of the day, planning to stop for some food along the way.

There were two different groups doing Zumba in the park.

At 6:24 PM I stopped at Sros sokleap Restaurant to get fried frog, fresh spring rolls, fried mixed vegetables and an Angkor beer for 34000 Riel ($8.29 USD).

The food was “nice” but I think I preferred the stuffed frog which I had eaten earlier in the trip. At 7:11 PM I was out walking once more. While this route still felt completely walkable for me, it definitely took me outside of the main pedestrian areas of the city, and I could see how some solitary travellers might think it was better to take a tuktuk.

Regardless, I arrived at 7:36 PM, and since I had bought my ticket online ahead of time, I was directed into the gift shop, which then allowed me to arrive to my seat along with my complimentary metal water bottle, already filled with chilled water, at 7:43 PM. Note, my entry experience was maybe a bit different than that of many others, since I had bought the most expensive VIP reserved seating ticket for a cost of $38 USD ($18 USD for children 5-11). For those really wanting to spend more, there is also the VIP + backstage pass which costs $63 USD which includes a 30-minute escorted tour before the show starts. On the other hand, adult tickets can be had for as little as $18 USD, and as long as you arrive a bit early, I think it is still a good experience for everyone, even some sections of the “cheap seats” are partially obstructed by poles and/or subtitle screens.

Pretty much every review you will read about the Phare Circus and everyone who has visited will tell you that you absolutely cannot miss this show when you are in Siem Reap. I will be no exception to that rule. The pictures do not begin to do it justice. My only complaint was that the seats were rather uncomfortable despite having thin cushions, but the show itself was just amazing, and pictures cannot begin to do it justice.

As mentioned earlier, I was very happy that a coworker had strongly suggested that I leave this as my final evening activity in Siem Reap. Yes, like with many “artistic stories” whether they be in painting, music or dance, the obvious connection between the supposed story and the actual act was rather tenuous, but that in no way detracted from my enjoyment of the overall experience. By 9:16 PM I was out the door and once again walking back to my rented apartment for my final night’s sleep in Siem Reap.

As for the walk back, I probably would not recommend it for most solitary travellers. While the temperature was very pleasant, much of the walk was through rather poorly lit more “authentic” residential areas, and I could see how some people would not have felt safe. I was perfectly fine myself, but most people would probably prefer to either take a tuktuk or a taxi away from the circus at this time of night.

Nevertheless, I arrived back safely with no incidents to report at 9:51 PM, and that was my last full day in Siem Reap. I will confess that I was not exactly feeling melancholy, but I did wish that I had a bit more time. So far, this has definitely been a good vacation, and I guess that’s the way you want to feel at the end of a visit. If you are eager to go back home, then you probably did not have a very good time . . .

My final view of the street food stalls which were set up each evening near where I was staying . . .

Siem Reap trip: Day 5 (16 Nov)

Hey there again readers! I hope you found some useful information in my Day 4 entry, and I also hope that Day 5 will help you make some better choices on your next trip to Siem Reap.

Those of you who have been following along regularly already know that I did not get into bed until a bit late last night, so you will not be surprised to know that I did not set the alarm to go off until 11:AM today. I’m happy to say that I once more had slept extremely well in my highly recommended Airbnb apartment.

I did not actually leave my apartment until 12:02 PM, but I did want to make sure I had enough time to have a leisurely lunch before getting together with my upcoming tour operator for the day. A couple of days ago while looking for somewhere to eat and had read an entry for an eatery called Arun restaurant. The Google review which popped up had specifically mentioned that the place was well-known for their frog legs, so I figured it would be something interesting to check out.

Do you remember this guy from last night?

My leisurely walk finished at 12:22 AM when I arrived at the restaurant. While the sun was rather unforgiving, I had my trusty sun hat and even here in the city there was generally a nice breeze. So as long as I kept to the shadows whenever available, I did not find the heat to be overly oppressive.

The menu was much more extensive than I had anticipated, and there were actually two different frog options: fried and stuffed. As I had never even heard of stuffed frog, I decided to give it a chance. I paired this with mixed vegetables, the obligatory bowl of white rice, and Ganzerberg beer which surprisingly had a pull tab! Yes, I know I was way too excited about the pull tab, but it has definitely been more than 30 years since I have actually seen one of those,

I was extremely happy with this meal. I felt that both the meat and the vegetables were well-seasoned, and the stuffing was amazing; although, I couldn’t figure out what was actually in it. Similar to what you would do with a bird, the stuffing was in the chest of the frog. Also, for those familiar with quail, the majority of the bones seemed meant to also be eaten, or at any rate that was what I did without any bad effects afterwards.

I let myself linger a bit longer than probably was prudent, paying the bill of 38000 Riel ($9.21 USD) at 1:16 PM and doing a VERY fast walk back to my apartment, where I arrived at 1:30 PM. This barely gave me enough time to grab a couple of things I meant to take with me today, and at 1:40 PM Saro was right outside my apartment building in a nice white van, waiting to pick me up. Today I would be going on a “floating village” tour.

This was one that I almost had decided not to do. Despite the relative popularity of these tours in Siem Reap, there are also an incredibly large amount of very negative reviews of the experience. The most negative comments are connected to the following: it smells incredibly bad, the trips seem to be a scam to get you to donate additional food and bags of rice to dubious recipients, the trips themselves are incredibly exploitative “poverty tourism” of the local populations, and other providers such as boat operators, drivers and guides hassle you for more money once you are on the tour. So no, this was not looking like something I would generally recommend.

However, there was no denying that it was popular, so I had earlier asked my high-quality guide Sah Yon from Day 3. He said that yes, much of the year, it smelled very bad, but that right now would be a good time to visit. He also agreed that many of the tours were basically scams, but he knew of at least one organization that did a really good job. Unfortunately, he could not remember the name of the operator, but he was sure I could find it if I just carefully searched for “responsible tourism” operators that organized “floating village” tours. I am not going to lie; this was NOT that easy to do, but I finally found the one which I suspected he had been referencing: Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours.

While they have a few private tour options, these are clearly meant for slightly more affluent travellers who are already travelling in a group. Regardless, from the beginning I had been primarily interested in their all-inclusive small group Kompong Khleang and Tonle Sap tour which had a cost of $35 USD per person, with a reduced price of $25 USD for children under 12. While this is quite a bit more expensive than most other providers which do these tours for around $21 USD, but as much as possible, I wanted to make sure that I was not promoting exploitative tourism, and frankly I also did not want to get guilt tripped to periodically shell out more money during the trip. So selecting this charitable organization was a win-win situation both for the projects which they support, and also for me as a tourist.

As always, the scenery as we were riding along outside Siem Reap city was beautiful, but it was not really until 2:15 PM that I would say that the actual “tour” began. Saro gave us some general background on his organization, all of which I would encourage you to read by referencing the earlier mentioned links, but he also shared some of his own background information, including the fact that his parents had been forced to marry by the Khmer Rouge, something which evidently had once been a common practice.

At 2:38 PM we made our first stop right along the side of the road. It is hard to appreciate in the picture, but there are at 30 different roadside stalls, all selling the exact same thing: bamboo sticky rice.

As mentioned earlier, this was an all-inclusive tour, so no, this was not a ploy to get us to buy sticky rice. I am not sure if they always would stop at the same place or if they change it up each time. I have to say that I was actually far more impressed with the bamboo sticky rice than I had anticipated. It was only very mildly sweet, a rather pleasant afternoon snack. Evidently it is actually made in their homes, but then they bring it here to sell. Once made, it is good for two days. The fire is not to actually cook anything, but rather to keep the bamboo a bit warm and also to burn the hollow bamboo once the rice has been eaten. While I found that I actually liked the snack, I couldn’t help but think that it really did not make sense for them to all be selling the exact same thing, made with the exact same ingredients, but evidently, it’s a business model that works for them.

At 2:51 we were back in the car to continue along our way. At 3:00 PM we were passing through Dom Daiy community, which is evidently where people from the floating villages come to do most of their buying and selling.

At 3:02 PM we once again stopped at a local bakery. There we tried three different types of local treats which this family evidently sells wholesale to many other vendors in the region. The tiny little doughnut things were basically baby buñuelos, whereas the yellow chips were dried jackfruit chips. The ones which looked kind of like fingers were crunchy, slightly sweet, with a bit of garlic taste. According to Saro, this little shop actually makes and ships an average of 100 kg of the little doughnut things each day. I was wondering who actually eats so many of these snacks, but I thought it was nice that there were local, family business manufacturers evidently managing well instead of everything being multinational companies.

At 3:24 PM we were once more back in the van, with some intermittent light rain starting at 3:31 PM. As we continued, I noticed that many of the homes were already on stilts.

Then we arrived to a stopping point at 3:37 PM where we were advised to use the bathroom. I think this is basically like a “boat stop” since it seemed like Saro was paying for our passage and then unsurprisingly, we were led onto our boat at 3:45 PM. For those concerned about practical matters, the bathrooms were reasonably clean and had western style toilets but no toilet paper.

The boat itself had rather comfortable seats which appeared to essentially be padded folding chairs. Maybe I was just being foolish, but I felt that it was a completely safe setup. As we were heading out, Saro told us that most of what we were riding on was actually rice fields, but at this time of the year they were completely flooded. Regardless, it was all very interesting to see as we traveled on the water.

Then at 4:10 point we arrived at a dock which was right next to a Buddhist temple. Evidently this is “the capital” of the villages along the lake. We walked around a bit and he told us a bit about the water filtration system, the school which they support, and the upcoming local water festival which many in the community were currently preparing for. He said that a local fisherman here can reasonably earn as much as $25 USD a day, which I though sounded like quite a bit considering the way things looked, but maybe that was not taking into account daily expenses which might be quite high, or maybe they can only earn that a few months out of the year?

Then at 4:36 PM we were back on the boat for ten more minutes before arriving at the pre-primary school of Bridge of Life. This is evidently the main school they are currently working on supporting.

Getting into this place was the first time of the day that I felt a bit insecure. It is not pictured here, but going from the boat into the school was a bit precarious, and I could easily see how someone without sure footing would feel nervous. Yes, Saro did a good job of helping everyone, but I was thinking this might not be a good idea for people who have some minor issues with mobility.

Despite being a “pre-school”, the students here are from 6-8 years old, and they currently have 45 students. Many people in this village do not actually start first grade until they are 12 or even 13. The hope with this pre-school is that they will be able to get younger kids into school earlier. Given the current number of students, and the space in the building which is actually dedicated to “classroom” this seemed like it would be an incredibly cramped place to give and receive lessons. They only have classes from 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM, since the teacher goes out to do fishing in the afternoon. Surprisingly, the teacher also lives here, right inside the schoolhouse. Evidently, they used to also have sewing lessons in the afternoon, but they currently do not have a sewing teacher, so that part has been put on hold. Finally, this particular school has been operating since 2008.

At 5:15 PM we went back onto the boat, headed towards a conglomeration of “true houseboats” which float on the water year-round. Both most of the stilted homes and the houseboats get their water directly from the lake, using black sand and activated charcoal water filters. However, whereas most of the stilted homes have electricity from the main power grid, the true floating homes get all their electricity from solar panels.

On a side note, one bit of humanity that drew my attention throughout the entire daytrip was this late middle-aged French couple who held hands almost the entire trip. I wondered, is this how they go through all of life, or was it just because this was a special trip? Also, how many years have they been together, and will they still be like this in fifteen more years?

While there was little to indicate it for the casual viewer, at 5:39 PM we were finally out on the actual lake of Tonle Sap. Supposedly this is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, and it has approximately 50,000 people who either live on it in year-round floating boats or around it’s edges on stilted homes. It is an extremely productive and biodiverse lake, and recently steps have been taken to maintain the sustainable emphasis on artisanal fishing rather than more industrial methods. We hung out just looking around until 5:47 PM, ostensibly waiting for the possibility of seeing a sunset, but cloudy conditions put a wrench in the works. Still, it was very beautiful.

As we were heading back to our land transport, even at 5:52 PM it was already very dark on the water. Although it was hard to take night pictures on a moving boat, it was a very beautiful return to the dock, where we arrived back at 6:25 PM to get back in the same white van as before.

We had a quick bathroom break at the same place as before at 6:36 PM and we arrived right outside my apartment at 8:00 PM. I decided to shower and have a quick rest before walking out at 9:38 PM to explore some of the restaurants in a different area near where I was staying. There were actually quite a lot of nice-looking places, but these were clearly meant to be places for larger groups of people. My food which had a cost of $9.95 USD was perfectly adequate, but I think it would have been much better to have had a traditional Khmer barbeque with a small group . . . one of the issues of solo travel.

At 10:05 PM I headed back home, arriving about five minutes later. I quickly got in bed, and gave myself to sleep without any alarm, since I had not planned anything for Day 6 until much later in the evening.

So, I know that today was rather laid back, but I am still happy to report that it was a very good day. I am glad that I went out to see the “floating villages” and also glad that I did it with a much more responsible tour operator. The whole day had more of a family trip in the car feel to it than many tours, and that was not actually a bad thing. No, it didn’t smell bad at all during the entire trip, and while there were some very poor communities, I did not feel that our visit was at all exploitative. So, if you are in the area and are thinking about doing something similar, first make sure as I did that things will not smell bad during that time of the year, and then make sure to go with a very reputable tour operator like the one I used.

Thank you for continuing to follow along, and please let me know about some of your adventures as well. Until next time, may all of your experiences be as fulfilling as mine have been over the last few days.

Siem Reap trip: Day 4 (15 Nov)

Hey everyone, as you have already no doubt guessed, elephants are a big theme for day 4 of my recent Siem Reap, but there are also some interesting cultural elements which came up later in the day.

I first found out about the possibility of visiting an elephant center on Get Your Guide when looking for activities to do in and around Siem Reap city. However, as the cost which appeared was a bit expensive ($128 USD for a 5-hour experience) I kept looking around until I found the same thing on AirBnB for 8238 INR ($98.86 USD); AirBnB was where I actually booked it, but had I been a bit cleverer, I would have booked directly with Kulen Elephant Forest and would have only paid $90 USD for exactly the same experience. Evidently it is possible to get this for as little as $80 USD for bookings made at some hostels in the area, but I cannot officially confirm that. Regardless, no, it was not cheap; in fact, this was easily the most expensive thing I did on my trip, but visits to responsibly run elephant preserves/conservation/rescue centers tend to be expensive anywhere in the world. That is because these places usually subsist entirely on the money they charge tourists, and if they are doing it responsibly, they generally can’t have many people visit per day. Whether or not you think it is a fair amount to pay is really up to you.

As I had the chosen the morning visit option, I was once again up early, and headed out walking from the apartment at 6:52 AM. The meeting site was a bit further away, so I had the opportunity to see some pretty views along the way.

At 7:19 AM I arrived at the office from where I had been told I had to be NO LATER than 7:45 AM sharp, but there was nobody there yet, so I backtracked a bit to get breakfast at a nearby small restaurant called Tevy’s Place. I ordered the Beef Lok for $4 USD.

The food was pleasant enough, but I unfortunately didn’t really get to enjoy it, since it did not arrive until 7:34 AM, and I was very worried about arriving late. So, I gulped down my food and was back outside the nearby office at 7:45 AM sharp. At 7:47 AM the guide/chaperone, Seth, arrived but it was not until 8:01 AM that the car finally arrived, and then not until 8:03 AM that we actually got into the car. While this was not a huge wait time, I was quite annoyed, since I had been repeatedly told that if I were not there at 7:45 AM sharp, I would miss the transport. To be fair, most of my annoyance was because I had not had time to properly enjoy my breakfast, but that would also have been easily resolved had I simply left the apartment fifteen minutes earlier.

Regardless, we five tourists were in the minivan at 8:03 AM, finally departing at 8:05 AM. There was not a lot of information given, but Seth did tell us that there were ten elephants at the sanctuary, nine adult females and one adult male. However, he said that the male was never there on tours, since he was too aggressive. The vehicle itself was comfortable and the drive had plenty of nice scenery.

At 9:08 AM we arrived at the entrance where they already had some small cups of coffee waiting for us.

We kitchen area was comfortable, and we sat there visiting until 9:38 AM when things really got started. Seth gave us some background about the center, including the fact that they had opened in 2018 as a sanctuary for elephants which had previously been used for tourist rides. As far as I could tell, elephant rides are now illegal in Cambodia, but I may have misunderstood that. Seth also told us that Cambodia only has between 400 and 600 elephants left in the wild, with another 70 in captivity, including the 10 at this local sanctuary. I don’t know if this is true or not, but he said that most elephants which were previously used in the tourism or logging industry cannot be reintroduced to the wild. Next, as I had guessed, he told us that maintaining elephants was quite expensive since each adult eats about 250 kg of food per day, and they also need quite a bit of space in order to wander around and get a reasonable amount of exercise. Finally, we learned that the elephants here were all between 38 and 55 years old.

Once we had received the introduction, we were sent to thoroughly wash our hands before helping make a small number of elephant treats out of sticky rice, tamarind, rice bran, banana, and a tiny bit of salt.

That’s Seth explaining why these ingredients are used and how to make the snacks.

At 10:02 we finally went down to see the elephants, also feeding them whole bananas, pieces of sugar cane and of course the aforementioned treats. It was funny to see that most of the elephants were clearly not that interested in the sugar cane, since they would take it and then throw it on the ground before reaching for something else.

After the feeding was done, we went for a short walk in the nearby forest.

At 11:29 we walked back with the elephants to their pond area where we watched them a bit more.

At 11:44 AM it was time to head back to the seating area for a simple but pleasant lunch which was served family style; this was also included in the cost of the tour.

At 12:29 PM it was time to head back to the bus. With a short walk we were back in the vehicle at 12:32 and once more on our way back to Siem Reap.

I know that some of you will object to me participating in this activity, but I really do think that it was done ethically. Yes, tourists were allowed to both feed and touch some of the elephants, but we definitely did not ride them or bathe them. Furthermore, this center not only cares for these aged elephants, but also provides work for many local community members. In an ideal world, there would be enough government money or simple private donations to take care of these animals, but that is generally not the case. I feel like this sanctuary has struck an appropriate balance of providing responsible care for the elephants while also giving tourists a once in a lifetime opportunity to be up close with these amazing creatures. So, if you can afford it, yes, I recommend that you visit Kulen Elephant Forest in Siem Reap.

At 1:35 PM we were back at the office where we had started, and everything was done.

I had earlier been on the fence about going to an Apsara show, since most of them take place in very large buffet halls where diners more or less ignore the dancers, but with a bit of investigation I had discovered that the Apsara Theatre, while still pairing a dinner experience with a show, was considered to be a much smaller, more serious venue where audience members were much more respectful. However, it was not possible to buy tickets online, so when I noticed that the same office which managed the elephant tours also could help with Apsara theatre reservations, I figured I would give it a try.

Due to another even that I had earlier scheduled, my only possibility to see the show would be tonight. As such, I was very sad when they told me that there was no more availability for night. I expressed sadness that I would miss it, since it was my only chance, and was ready to head out, but then one of the attendants in the office asked if I could wait for a minute while she called to check. Fortunately for me, one of the attendees who had earlier reserved had called in just an hour earlier to report that she was not feeling well, and could give up her spot, so I was able to get the last seat available. I paid $31 USD for the Khmer tapas package which included a lite dinner and of course the show. I probably would have opted for the slightly more expensive “traditional Khmer” dinner, but it had shrimp, and I am allergic. Yes, this was more expensive than other Apsara show options in Siem Reap, but I figured I was paying a premium to get a better viewing experience.

From there I once again headed out walking from the office back to my apartment. At 2:03 PM it started raining rather heavily, but I was able to duck under an awning, and believe it or not, but 2:06 PM it had already completely stopped raining. This sort of mini downpour happened several times while I was in Siem Reap.

I was back at my lodging by 2:20 PM, and as I was feeling fully rested, I decided to make use of the gym gear I had brought along, once again heading out on foot at 2:34 PM. There are quite a few gyms in Siem Reap city, and evidently most of them have day passes available with a cost of between $1 and $5 USD. As luck would have it, the one closes to me, Gold Fitness, had a cost of $5 USD.

I arrived at the gym at 2:44 PM. The place was alright, but $5 USD seemed a bit much for someone only planning on using the weight room. As other reviewers had written, this was a HOT place to work out, but there was plenty of space with good equipment, including a decent looking pool, fully adequate free weights section, a very complete weight machine area, as well as some spaces for group classes. The daily visit fee also includes locker rental and two towels. I worked out there until 5:05 PM, then once more walking back to the apartment, arriving at 5:22 PM.

I showered and took advantage of the apartment’s washing machine and included detergent and fabric softener to do a big load of laundry which I was able to put up to dry before once more walking out the door at 6:50 PM as I headed to the theatre where I arrived at 7:22 PM. In all honesty, I had my doubts about this whole Apsara show thing, since it all seemed excessively touristy, but I also wanted to see what it was all about, and definitely did not want to miss out on the opportunity to experience something unique.

The theatre itself was quite cozy yet elegant, and the food was MUCH nicer than what I had expected. Getting the “tapas” menu was definitely more than sufficient and did not at all make me feel like I had a downgraded experience.

I didn’t actually count people, but I think the maximum capacity of the theatre is probably around 125 with most people seated family style at long tables where the food was served by elegantly dressed workers. As an unexpected plus, I was seated with a very pleasant group of people from Grace Fellowship who very kindly included me in their conversation. Given that I was greatly enjoying the company, I forgot to note down times, but the amount of time allowed for eating and visiting before the show was just perfect. As a result, everyone was completely quiet and focused on the dancers when it was their turn to perform.

They did six different performances with a short intermission during which time dessert was served.

Like many reviewers have commented, these sorts of shows can be “a bit slow” but I felt that it was worth it. Furthermore, whereas I had been very skeptical about the entire dinner theatre concept, I found that at least here it was handled extremely well. All in all, I was very happy that I was able to get a spot. I am not sure if I would go again by myself, but I would definitely happily accompany another fellow traveler who wanted to have the experience.

At 9:49 PM as I was exiting, I heard three women talking about a drag show at a nearby bar called Barcode which evidently had started at 9:30 PM. Since I was already out in the area, I figured I may as well check it out, especially since it was only a three-minute walk from the theatre, and I would have passed it on the way back home anyways.

While there was no cover fee at the bar, the drinks were quite expensive by Siem Reap standards. Pretty much, any drink had a cost of $5 USD a drink, be it a beer or a standard cocktail, and this was the only place I entered the entire time I was in Siem Reap which accepted credit cards. The bar itself was actually very small, and the service was excellent. Furthermore, while elegant may be an exaggeration, there certainly had been an effort to decorate the place in a more upscale fashion. Furthermore, the presentations themselves were rather cultured, even if the presenters themselves were not always incredibly accomplished. In total, there were perhaps maximum 20 clients in the establishment, but it did not feel empty.

Especially given that I had not even planned to do this, I felt that it was a very nice way to end the day. Do I think that this is a “must do” part of a Siem Reap trip? No. However, I was happy to stay until 12:26 AM when the shows ended and then I did a meandering walk back to the apartment, arriving at 1:25 AM.

So, how do you think Day 4 compared to Day 3? If you had to choose one over the other, which would you do? Fortunately, as I had planned for six full days in Siem Reap, I didn’t have to choose; I was happily able to do both. And yes, there is more to come in Day 5, so I hope you will keep reading.

As always, thank you for your time, and do let me know in the comment section below if you have any questions or even if you just want to share your thoughts.

Siem Reap trip: Day 3 (14 Nov)

Sah Yon was our amazing guide from today; he really made Siem Reap come alive for us.

Hey everyone, I know that day 2 of my Siem Reap trip was not as great as I had hoped, but as you can already guess from the introductory photo, day 3 was a huge improvement which really made me incredibly happy to have elected to spend two days doing temple visits at the Angkor Wat temple complex. Since I really appreciated the extra details he shared, a lot of you may find today’s entry overly educational, but it was just perfect for me.

After another peaceful night of rest in my AirBnB apartment — Thank you again Chhay! — I woke up at 8:30 AM, fully resolved to be a bit better prepared than yesterday. Despite yesterday’s very early departure, the heat was very tiring yesterday, so today I decided to take along my $25 USD neck fan (JisuLife Bladeless Neck Cooler). This neck fan which I bought two years ago has been a life saver in other overly warm situations, so hopefully today it won’t disappoint.

I walked out of the apartment at 9:11 AM, and by 9:18 AM had already arrived at a restaurant which was just down the place from where I was staying. I forget the exact name of the soup I ordered, but it was some sort of delicious beef broth with three different types of beef in it and some filling noodles. Remember how tired I had been at the end of the day, I also opted for an iced coffee americano.

The total cost was 18000 KHR (Cambodian Riel) or $4.38 USD. Incidentally, I noticed that while the savings were not huge, it was consistently a bit more cost effective to pay for things with local currency, even though pristine US dollars were also accepted pretty much everywhere.

At 9:58 AM I walked over to the same nearby petrol station as yesterday, arriving at 10:01 AM and found a spot in the shade where I waited until 10:13 PM where I was picked up by a guy on a motorcycle who said he would take me to meet the rest of the group. This might seem weird, but he knew my name, so I was not at all concerned. He even had a helmet for me, which is not as common as you might expect. Regardless, he was a careful driver, and by 10:17 AM I was waiting in the lobby of a hotel for the arrival of the rest of the group. I was offered cool bottled water here, and the waiting space was comfortable.

At 10:34 AM all six of us had arrived, and we headed out in a minivan with our guide Sah Yon. Right away, it was clear that today was going to be a different type of experience. Sah Yon explained to us that we would be visiting six temples today, and he gave us each a simple paper map of the route we would be taking and also sent us each an electronic copy. At 10:45 AM we once again had to make a stop to get an Angkor pass for one of the members of our group, but he was able to quickly purchase his pass, and we were once again off at 10:52 AM.

Some people might not like this, but I appreciated that while en route, Sah Yon asked us each to introduce ourselves, including where we lived, where we came from, and why we had decided to come to Angkor Wat. He also gave us important safety instructions: don’t touch the monkeys, no climbing on broken stones, and don’t touch any snakes.

At 11:21 AM we arrived at Ta Som temple. There are some conflicting opinions about whether this Buddhist temple was primarily dedicated to King Jayavarman VII’s father or if it was dedicated to his teacher. There used to be five towers, each representing a different Buddha, but one fell down. It was built in the late 12th century. It may not be obvious in the pictures, but the temple is not as high as the Hindu temples from the same period, since Hindu temples were meant to represent Mehru mountain; whereas, the Buddhist temples do not. Note, the same as yesterday, at every temple, there were guards who required that we show our Angkor Passes.

The stone used to construct the temple came from Kulen mountain. While not obvious in the pictures, Lava rock was used for the base of most of the temples because it was strong, but the external rock is almost always sandstone, because it was easier to carve. Many of the carvings in Angkor Wat were intentionally damaged during the religious wars between Hindus and Buddhists in the 12th and 13th century. Later on, heads of many statues were taken by looters, with even more removed by the Khmer Rouge as a means to discourage worship at many of the temples. We explored this area until 2:18 PM, and then got in the van to head to the next site, where we arrived at 12:25 PM.

East Mebon temple, which was originally known as the Shiva Loka (world of the god) was originally created as a Hindu temple, but later on was repurposed as a Buddhist place of worship. Given its origins, like other Hindu temples in the area, there are three different levels to the temple, with certain levels being restricted to different types of people. Interestingly, this temple has only been open to the general public since 1992. Here you will notice many holes in the walls; according to our guide, those originally had precious gemstones, but like so much from ancient sites, that has been looted over the years.

Note all the holes which previously would have been filled with precious gems.

The smaller towers were built to honor ancestors of the king; whereas the five large towers were for the five main Hindu gods which were generally honored in Cambodian Hinduism. Here, it was easy to see how bricks were used for construction. While I am not sure how that worked so well, according to our guide, the mortar used to join the bricks was a mixture of tree sap and sand. In contrast, stones were joined using a mixture of honey and palm sugar. No doubt a bit of research would reveal more of the particular details of the formula which they used.

At 1:09 PM we departed for the next temple, Pre Rup, where we arrived at 1:15 PM. Similar to the previous temple, this was originally a Hindu temple, but this one was quite a bit larger. The guide did not give us as much instruction here, since he indicated that most of what he had said earlier also applied here. Here the main draw seemed to be to climb up to the extremely high towers.

Yes, it really was as steep as it seems . . .

If you use your imagination and look for the black shirt, that’s me with our tour group and guide.

We left Pre Rup at 1:50 PM and at 1:55 pm had arrived at the same restaurant as yesterday. Upon the recommendation of the server, I ordered the Khmer Kor Kou with chicken and pork, for a cost of $6 USD.

It wasn’t very pretty, but it tasted great.

At 2:55 PM we were back in the vehicle headed to Neak Poan temple, which means entwined snakes temple. We arrived at the footbridge across the water at 3:15 PM. This Buddhist temple was specifically created to be a medical healing center, and it was created on an island found within a beautiful man made lake.

I found this to be particularly fascinating, because I had always been taught that the entwined snakes symbol for medicine was from Ancient Greece, but I have not been able to find a year reference. As this temple was made in the 12th century, that begs the question of how did this symbol make it to Cambodia or did it actually originate somewhere other than in Greece?

Although this is no longer a functioning Buddhist temple, and technically speaking no religious functions/ceremonies are allowed here, many Buddhists still leave offerings at one of the shrines. I assumed that maybe once a week a monk would come to collect them, but our guard said that the offerings are actually taken by the park rangers who are in charge of this particular area.

While I am not Buddhist, I feel that this was wrong; as a minimum, there should have been a sign clearly indicating that any offerings at the shrines would not be taken by a monks, but instead by park staff. Again though, as I am not Buddhist, maybe I am misreading the situation.

The pictures don’t do it justice, but this was an incredibly beautiful site. Unfortunately it was hard to see much of it well due to barriers which had been put up to protect the structures from further casual damage by visitors.

If you look closely you will see the horse facing the snakes; evidently the horse symbolized the king.

By 3:50 PM we were already back in the car heading on our way to Preah Khan temple, which we arrived to at 3:55 PM. This temple was unique in that it was specifically built to have three separate purposes. It was built to honor the king’s father, to pay homage to Buddhism, and to pay homage to Hinduism. Also built near the end of the 12th century, the king intentionally had elements of Buddhism and Hinduism mixed as a means to try to reduce religious conflict.

This was one of the best Garuda at any of the temples.

At 4:51 we were once again back in the car headed to our final destination, Phnom Bakheng. We arrived at the entrance at 5:05 and then began a frenetic speed walk up the very steep hill, more or less ignoring everything we passed, since evidently the only reason people come to this site is to see the sunset. I mean we almost RAN up the hill, and it was NOT easy.

I irrationally feel sorry for temple. It was very beautiful in its own right and there was clearly much to see and explore, but people only flock to this place for the sunset. It is not as absurdly crowded as the principal Angkor Wat temple where people go to see the sunrise, but it is the same idea. Yes, the sunset views were beautiful, but I felt that we had been missing something by only rushing here for this sole purpose.

The four of us were together for both days of the Anglory Wat tour. Katarina and Maria from Germany, Mario from the USA and I were kindred spirits. It was only two days together, but I miss them.

5:37 PM was official sundown time and the light started to fade quickly. Our guide asked us to stay in the middle of the rather wide path on the way down, since he said that many snakes would come out near the edges of the path at this time of twilight.

At 6:05 we were back in the vehicle headed back to Siem Reap city. I have already mentioned four of my tour mates for the day, but I wanted to mention that Kevin and Chris, who completed our small group today were also wonderful companions. I had originally planned on heading straight back to the apartment, but the three Germans (Katarina, Maria and Kevin) asked if I would like to get dinner with them, and I was very happy to accept their invitation. We arrived at the Pub street area at 6:30 PM and said our goodbyes to the rest of the group, including our excellent guide, Sah Yon.

We shared five different dishes, and we each also had the equivalent of two bottles of beer, with a total cost of $6 USD per person. At 8:13 PM, having shared delicious food and great conversation, we parted ways and I had a leisurely walk back to the apartment, arriving at 8:40 PM.

Wow, today was everything I had imagined that my trip would be! No doubt many of you are thinking, how will he top that for day 4? I am not sure that I would say that either day 3 or day 4 was better, since they had entirely different types of itineraries. However, maybe you will think differently.

In order to find out, you will just have to keep reading! As always, thank you for your continued interest and your kind words of encouragement. If you have any questions, just leave a note in the comments section, and I will get back to you right away. Until next time, whether it be a simple walk around the neighborhood or a year long voyage around the globe, I hope all your travels are just as enjoyable as mine.

Siem Reap trip: Day 2 (13 Nov)

Hello again friends. As promised, today will be much more in line with what you were expecting from a trip to Siem Reap. The day began with me awakening to my alarm at 3:00 AM and getting ready for the day before heading out to the nearby pickup point at 3:50 AM.

I was quite excited because I could actually see stars! It has been so long since I was in a place where I could easily see multiple stars in the sky.

The street which I had to cross was unsurprisingly completely deserted at this time of the morning.

As soon as I arrived at the gas station at 3:55 PM which was roughly 350 meters from my lodging, there was already someone waiting with a tuk-tuk to take me to meet the others. I had earlier booked this two-day Angor Wat tour for a cost of only $23.85 on GetYourGuide, not including the cost of food and the entrance fee to the Angor Wat protected area. For entry to the Angkor Wat protected area, which is quite vast, you have three options: $37 USD for one day, $62 for three days, and $72 for seven days. There are other admissions policies for Cambodians and long-term (minimum two years) foreign residents of Cambodia. For most people, I think the three-day pass is the best option, as one day is definitely not enough time, and seven days of temples would probably be mind-numbing for the average tourist.

By 4:10 AM I had been deposited in the minivan with our driver Nick, and then we started heading around to pick up the rest of our group. By 4:38 PM we had a total of 12 tourists in our group, a guide, and our driver. Since a couple of the participants had not bought Angkor passes ahead of time, we had to go by the visitor center to get their tickets before entering the protected area.

The big draw for Day 1 seems to be the sunrise pictures, and there were A LOT of people waiting for this even at 5:30 AM. Evidently pre-pandemic there would be like 3000 people here for this, but today there were “only” approximately 700.

Personally, I didn’t really care that much about getting sunset pictures, but since everyone else was clearly into it, I started feeling that I was missing something, so I also took several pictures from different angles.

Don’t get me wrong, YES, it is pretty, but the whole sunset thing seems a bit overrated. Nevertheless, if you are here, it is sort of an obligatory experience. I am certainly not upset that I was there for it, but I didn’t share the fervor which seems to be the standard expectation.

If you are hoping for an unobstructed picture of yourself with Angor Wat in the background, especially at sunrise, that isn’t going to happen. However, as you will see later on, a bit of Google Pixel magic eraser was able to get rid of the most annoying inclusions in the background. No doubt those proficient with Photoshop could make the picture even nicer.

Honestly, I don’t have much to say about the temples themselves today, since the guide for day 1 wasn’t very good. To be fair, it was a very cheap two-day tour, so what was to be expected? However, the day 1 guide was much more of a chaperone than a “guide”. Still, as I knew nothing about the temple complex beforehand, I did learn a bit. For instance, the main Angor Wat temple is actually originally a Hindu temple which was built around 900 years ago during a 28-year period. When Cambodia later became Buddhist, many Buddhist elements were incorporated into various of the structures. I also learned that most of the female figures found all around the structures are called Apsara; these are supernatural “celestial beings” but not deities. I think the guide also said that there were 37 steps many places, and that this has some meaning. Anyways, here are some more pictures.

The Ta Prohm temple, which is shown here in several pictures, is what brought the Angor Wat temple complex to most westerners, since there was a tomb raider film short here. Evidently there is a lot of conflict associated with the trees; many argue that they enhance the beauty of the temples, but over time they also destroy them. We were at Ta Prohm from 7:24 to 7:56 AM and then headed out to get breakfast, arriving at 8:08 AM.

My Khmer sour soup with beef and rice had a cost of $6 USD. This is a bit expensive by Siem Reap standards, but you are paying for the air conditioning and the proximity to the Angor Wat temples.

At 9:02 AM we were back in the bus headed towards Takeo temple. We arrived at 9:10 AM. Evidently the construction of this temple was never actually finished. It was nice enough looking, but after a bit, but we were not given any additional information. Still, once again, plenty of nice pictures.

Throughout the temples, it was relatively common to find these helpful inscriptions which have been extremely important to understand the original purpose etc . . . of each building.

At 9:50 AM we were back in the bus headed to the next spot. Honestly, I couldn’t understand the name. The closest I could get was Prparilay temple. I know that there were many trees there and that is also where you can see the king and queen swimming pool. I also know that the temple’s construction was never actually finished. We arrived here at 9:56 AM and left at 10:40 AM.

We continued walking from there and at 10:41 AM we arrived at the Elephant Terrace.

As far as I can tell, the Elephant terrace is just this one wall. From there were continued walking to Bayon Temple, where we arrived at 10:49 AM. This was actually a rather impressive looking site, and I would really have appreciated some actual guiding, but “the guide” just told us to wander around on our own until 11:40 AM, and he went to wait at the bus.

At 11:40 we were back in the bus, with a quick picture stop at the Buddha bridge at 11:43 PM.

By 11:50 AM we were back in the bus, with me being dropped off near my apartment at 12:21 PM. When I was dropped off, the guide told me to meet at the same place tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM. As I was quite tired and very hot, I headed directly to my lodging, arriving about 7 minutes later.

It had originally been my intent to go to a gym this afternoon, but sometime around 2:00 PM I fell asleep and did not wake up until 5:30 PM. Then after an hour of procrastination, I went out at 6:30 PM since I wanted to pay the remaining dollar of last night’s dinner and also to see a bit of the city at night.

Having wandered around a bit, including walking near the famous Pub street, at 9:04 PM I finally decided to get some food at some random restaurant near my apartment for a cost of $8 USD.

At 9:42 PM I walked back towards the apartment, arriving at 9:55 AM. I quickly showered and get into bed.

So, while day 1 of Angkor Wat was nice, I think it didn’t fully live up to my expectations, whatever those were. To be fair, much of that was because today’s guide was not especially impressive, but I was hoping that tomorrow would be better. Anyways, I guess we will soon see.

Again, for all of those who have been loyally following along, thank you for your continued interest. As always, should you have any questions or comments, just leave a note in the space provided below, and I will make sure to respond as soon as possible.

Some judicious use of the Pixel magic eraser made this photo look far better than the original, but I don’t feel too guilty, since all I did was remove some annoying background elements. Regardless, I at least now have my obligatory Angkor Wat sunrise photo!

Siem Reap trip: Day 1 (11-12 Nov)

Spoiler alert . . . yes, I finally made it to Cambodia!

Hey there friends, family and loyal readers! No, it is not that I haven’t traveled at all since March, but I did not feel that those were really “tourist trips”. This last one however was an unabashed tourist extravaganza.

As is normal in Bengaluru, the trip started at night, in this case the evening of Nov 11, 2023. Having seen them as an option while making a quick work-related trip to Bangkok in September, I decided to try a new all-electric car service call BluSmart in order to get to and from the airport. I had booked ahead with a special introductory offer, so my 25 km trip only costed 454 INR ($5.45 USD). The care arrived ahead of when it had been scheduled, and I entered at 6:51 PM.

The view of my housing complex as I was getting into the car.

My first impression was that it was a very comfortable car with an extremely professional driver who even tried to open the door for me. Upon sitting down in the back, I noticed right off that there were SOS buttons strategically placed throughout the car, not only for the passengers, but also for the driver. Happily, the ride itself was also smooth, which was good since traffic was horrendous and it took us 61 minutes to arrive.

My AirAsia flight was scheduled to depart from terminal 2 which only just recently started to be the main airport for international flights out of Bengaluru. However, there are also, quite a few domestic flights, so to save yourself time, remember that international departures need to enter from the right.

Non-Indian flyers might think these are Christmas decorations, but this is just the way it always looks at terminal 2.

As my AirAsia app said that I could head straight to security, that was what I did at 8:00 PM, but was promptly turned away, being told that I needed to have a physical boarding pass. I really shouldn’t have been surprised, as that is quite common in India. The line for AirAsia was long, but as I had arrived with plenty of advance time, I was not concerned.

I had read ahead of time that they were VERY strict with the 7 kg luggage allowance and while waiting I noticed that several people ended up having to check their carry-on bags and also pay a hefty fee for the privilege. While I had weighed my bag several times ahead of time, I started to get worried, so I stuck my heavy-duty umbrella in my pocket (covered by my shirt) and my power bank in another pocket. Oddly enough, when my turn at the check-in counter came at 8:31 PM, my bag didn’t even get weighed, so all my subterfuge was for nothing, but I resolved to do the same on the return flight just in case.

Having read that U.S. dollars were almost a default currency in Cambodia, I tried to buy some using my Indian bank card before heading through security, but I was told that this facility was only available for Indian citizens. However, I could have changed Indian Rupees in cash, but I had few of those on hand so didn’t bother. By 8:44 PM I was through immigration and by 9:02 PM was also through security. As is the norm, my bag was selected for an additional check, but things went quickly so I didn’t really care.

I think these fancy ceiling lightings in the hallway after security are new.

As mentioned earlier, I had been through this same airport on an international flight in September and had already ascertained that there were very few food options, and those that are available tend to be on the expensive side from the Indian viewpoint. I did check just in case to see if I could get into the lounge, but none of my cards were accepted, and I definitely wasn’t interested in separately paying for access. Thus, just like last time I was here, I ended up at the La Madeline restaurant.

The food is not especially inexpensive, but the decor is pleasant.

I ordered the chicken Madeline with an add-on Caesar salad for a cost of 943 INR ($11.32 USD). While the food was nicely presented, the chicken was a bit dry but the broccoli was pleasantly crunchy. I took my time here and did not leave the restaurant until 10:23 PM.

At 10:37 I was boarding the plane. There were no entertainment screens, and the seats also lacked the adjustable headrests which I had become accustomed to which make sleeping much easier on the flight. Furthermore, it might have been my imagination, but the seat space itself seemed a bit more cramped than the norm. Thankfully though there was an adjustable air vent, since it was a bit too warm for my taste. My goal had been to attempt to sleep the whole four-hour flight to Bangkok, but as I realized at 11:30 PM, it was just too uncomfortable. I did still try to rest as much as possible; however, I was very thankful when we touched down in Bangkok at 4:00 AM Bangkok time on November 12th.

By 4:38 AM I was already through security in Bangkok and out in the terminal area. It was pleasant enough here with ample food options, but there was little else to do.

Nothing else particularly got my attention, so I went ahead and used my Priority Pass at 5:00 AM to enter the Miracle lounge. This lounge is not especially nice, but since I already had the benefit as part of my credit card package, I figured I might as well go ahead and eat and hang out in this space. Note that Priority Pass members can only use the lounge for a maximum of two hours.

I stayed till the absolute last minute, exiting the lounge at 7:00 AM and going to wait near the gate with a projected departure time of 9:55 AM. At 8:00 AM they announced that the flight departure had been rescheduled to 10:32 AM. While I was tired, sleeping was not really an option, so I used my waiting time to watch series which I had downloaded to my phone before departure. Finally, at 10:30 AM we started the boarding process.

In contrast to the first flight, this one was too chilly, but shutting off the air vent helped. Furthermore, as this only a 60-minute flight, I figured it would be bearable. Once on the plane, I had to fill out both an immigration and a customs form, in addition to the $36 USD e-visa which I had processed ahead of time rather than waiting to do visa on arrival upon touching down in Siem Reap. The flight touched down at 11:43 AM, and my Airalo e-sim which I had bought and installed ahead of time for $13.50 USD (30 day validity with 5 gb of data), connected right away. By 11:54 AM I was already off the gangway and into the recently opened new Siem Reap airport.

It was a quick walk to immigration, and at 11:58 AM I was in line with only 5 people in front of me. I noticed that they had 24 counters, but only 5 were open. In a different area there was a long line of people waiting to process their visas on arrival. Once I was finally up to the counter, the whole process took only three minutes; note, they required me to show BOTH of my boarding passes, so I was glad that I had not thrown away the first one. It then only took me two more minutes to get out of the airport and be in line at 2:14 PM for the bus which goes into Siem Reap city at 12:30 PM.

When it was my turn to board, the driver told me that I needed to go get a ticket, but the ticket counter was nearby; so, it was not a problem. Finally, at 12:35 PM I was in the bus and on my way to Siem Reap City!

At 1:25 PM we arrived at the CDF market. Supposedly there are three separate stops in Siem Reap city, but it looks like there is actually only one. My AirBnB host suggested that I take a Rickshaw for a cost of $1 USD to the apartment, but I figured I would be happier walking and seeing a bit of the city.

I arrived at the Airbnb apartment, near Kesararam school, for which I had paid $116 USD for six nights at 2:04 PM. The check-in process was fairly simple, and I am happy to report that the apartment was just amazing, exactly as it had been reported in the listing. The location was also great, reasonable walking distance to restaurants and places of interest within the city itself. Should I return to Siem Reap, I will definitely book here again.

Before arriving, I had the idea that I would visit a museum my first actual day in Siem Reap, but I was just too tired, so I turned on the blessedly quiet air conditioner and slept until 5:00 PM. At 5:00 PM I headed out walking towards the Made in Cambia market, where I found a random eatery where I ordered food by pointing at what was in different pots. The total for my food was $3 USD, but I only had two USD in good condition, so surprisingly the older woman who ran the place told me to just come back another day with the other dollar!

I won’t say that this was “the best” food I had in Siem Reap, but certainly nothing else was better!

I highly recommend this spot with the green awning. It is right around the corner from the Made in Cambodia market.

After eating, I went ahead and checked out the Made in Cambodia market which was just around the corner. It was rather small, and also pleasant. However, it was also a bit expensive. Still, if I had been in the mood to buy anything, I probably would have bought here, since most of the stalls were intentionally run by people with some sort of a special need. Another nice thing about the market was that nobody hassled me constantly to buy; browsers were welcome. Still, by 6:30 PM I was heading back to the apartment, because the next day I would have to be up by 3:00 AM.

I took a rather leisurely stroll back, and by 7:16 PM was back in the apartment, and by 8:00 PM was in bed. I had my doubts about going to such a hyped-up tourist destination as Angor Wat, but I was hoping that the two-day tour I had booked to start the next day would be worth it.

For those of you who have followed along before with my travels, I apologize for this rather boring entry, but getting there is also half the battle whenever you take a trip, so it’s important to not leave out that part. Regardless, I promise that days 2-3 will be much more in line with what you were expecting from this trip. As always, thank you for reading along and feel free to leave any questions or comments below. See you next day at 3:00 AM!

Here’s a sneak peek from day 2 to keep you interested . . .

Nepal trip: Days 7-8 (24-25 Mar)

Hey there readers. I’m sorry I left you hanging there for a few days. Once I got back to India, I had very little time before heading back to work, and then predictably, I was too busy to finish up the posts on the Nepal trip. Since I’m writing this a few weeks later, the details are no longer as fresh in my mind, so this will probably be a bit shorter than usual and also a bit less exact with some of the information. So anyways, let’s go ahead and finish up this Nepal trip!

On day 7 we got up a bit later and headed out towards a nearby breakfast place that Dorothée had found online. The seating was quite limited, but the server asked a couple of solo travels if they would mind moving so that the three of us could sit together.

The food was quite good and the ambience was pleasant. As we weren’t in a hurry today, we hung out here until 10:31 AM.

Maria was all about finding the UNESCO World Heritage sites, and while we were eating, she had found the last one which was nearby, that we had not yet visited. By our estimation, it was about 13 km away by car. As we had nothing else planned, we decided to talk to random taxi drivers to see how much it would cost to take us there, wait an hour, and then come back. At first he said, 4500 NPR but then agreed to 3000 NPR ($23 USD). With our cultural fix for the day all planned out, at 10:40 AM we were on our way to Changu Narayan Temple. The ride was fine, and at 11:36 AM we had arrived to the area.

Several different artisans were working on their crafts within their small shops.

Maria and Dorothée were in shopping mode, but like all good shoppers, they looked around and compared before making any commitments.

Entry to the temple area was 350 NPR ($2.67 USD) , but it seemed that maybe 250 NPR could be paid by SAARC members. It was all rather informal and a bit confusing. Nevertheless, there weren’t any problems getting access to the area. It is however worth noting, that like most of these sites, it definitely wasn’t wheelchair accessible. Although at this particular place there wasn’t a ton of walking to be done, throughout the trip I had frequently thought it might be good to have sedan chairs available for those with impaired mobility; this would allow more people to visit and also protect the traditional architecture while additionally giving more job opportunities. Perhaps during high season they already do this? If not, I feel like it’s a missed opportunity for everyone.

I was happy to see that a local school group was visiting.

There was a lot of restoration work going on.

While it was comparatively small, I really enjoyed this visit. It wasn’t at all crowded and at least to my untrained eyes seemed very “authentic”. The temple area itself only took about 20 minutes to see, but the attached village makes this easily an hour visit or more, especially if one is interested in doing shopping. If considering purchasing something, I suggest checking out the shops on the way up the small hill to the temple and then making purchases on the way back down. That is what Dorothée and Maria did, and both seemed very happy with the arrangement.

I was really impressed with the loads these women were carrying up to the temple. Who still dares to say that women are weak?

After quite a bit of friendly bargaining, Maria and Dorothée had their purchases.

At 12:45 PM we were once again in the car headed back to Kathmandu.

UDue to increased traffic, this time it took a bit longer, so we didn’t arrive back to our lodging until 2:23 PM. Given the added trouble, while there was no pressure to do so, we gave the driver a couple hundred extra NPR as a tip.

Dorothée spent a bit of time talking to the guide near our lodging who had arranged our transport on day 6. She’s thinking she may go to Everest base camp soon!

After putting things away in our rooms, at 2:58 PM we headed out walking to find a place to have lunch. I had found a place called Hotel Nepalaya Rooftop which looked promising. After a leisurely stroll, we arrived at 3:21 PM.

We were all three quite pleased, and the total bill for everyone was 2470 NPR ($18.86 USD). We stayed there until 4:40 and then headed back towards the cafe where we had eaten breakfast in the morning, arriving at 5:10 PM.

We had a nice chat, shared a couple of delicious desserts, and Maria and Dorothée both bought some fresh ground coffee beans to take home.

At 6:46 PM we had our last evening walk in Kathmandu as we headed back to the homestay, arriving at 7:07 PM.

We couldn’t figure out initially what these people were looking at.

The photo really doesn’t do it justice, but this sparkling planet just under the crescent moon was just breathtaking. It was a completely unexpected but much appreciated end to our last evening in Nepal.

Once we arrived, we cancelled our bill, since we would be leaving rather early. As I had a single room, it was $15 USD a night; whereas, Dorothée and Maria paid $20 USD a night for their double room. Shortly thereafter, we all went up to our rooms to quickly pack and go to sleep, since we would have an early departure the next day.

Upon departing from the homestay at 7:30 AM on day 8, our hosts put these satin scarves on us. I remember something similar happened when I was leaving a homestay in Sikkim last year.

The trip to the airport was only 17 minutes, but like many airport taxis was comparatively expensive given the short distance. There was no traffic, and we paid 900 NPR ($6.87 USD).

Once inside at 7:50 AM we had to scan all of our bags, including my passport pouch which was hanging around my neck. The Indigo line was very short, but it still took 20 minutes to get to the counter. By 8:20 AM we were in the immigration queue. There were more people but things seemed to move quickly with little fuss.

At 8:50 AM we had cleared both immigration and security. The waiting area only had one shop, but the seating was fine near our gate since it wasn’t overcrowded. I took advantage of the little shop to buy some dried yak cheese as gifts and a very unremarkable chicken club sandwich. Despite the slim pickings, the shop did not gouge people with the prices.

At 9:52 AM we were boarding the plane. While boarding was very fast, there was an additional fake security check in which they didn’t actually seem to be doing anything meaningful. Then at 10:05 AM I was on the plane in 13D. For the return flights I had opted for the more expensive exit row seats. While these spots were not particularly luxurious, the added legroom was much appreciated, especially since I had been so cramped earlier on. I hoped they weren’t saying anything important during the departure speech, because the volume was so low it was impossible to hear anything.

The flight to Delhi was uneventful and it was only 15 minutes to clear immigration. In a show of welcome efficiency, our bags were already waiting near immigration at 12:36 PM. It was at that point that all pretensions of efficiency ended; although, we maintained a positive attitude throughout.

There is no point in attempting to explain the process of transferring from one terminal to another in Delhi. You just have to keep asking people along the way and hope for the best. The bus is rickety, and it actually goes on the main highway. The driver, at least in our case was careless, and a couple of people including myself nearly fell over as he took curves rather abruptly. Men must have “a ticket” to use the transfer bus, but for some reason women do not. The ticket is free, and no, it’s not obvious where to get it. Again, you just keep asking. The entire process took 45 minutes; this is one of those situations where you just have to keep calm and maintain a good attitude.

Once in the new terminal, we had to recheck our bags and go through security again as if we had bought separate tickets. However, we got through it just fine between the three of us encouraging each other and all three asking people as we went along the circuitous route.

Finally we were through to the next gate waiting area where we had a mini meal and a coffee.

At 3:13 PM we were getting on the plane to Bengaluru; although, we did not actually take off until 3:44 PM. Again, the seat with more legroom was much appreciated, since this flight was very crowded. During the flight I did my daily Hindi ANKI review and then listened to an episode of American Hysteria. At this point things were going very smoothly, and the plane touched down at 6:15 PM; at 6:46 PM we already had our bags.

Taking a tip from Dorothée, I decided to just grab an airport taxi which is right at the exit. It’s a bit more expensive than getting an Ola or Uber, but the added cost is generally justified by the convenience.

At 6:51 PM we were all in our taxis and the Nepal trip was over.

This trip to Nepal was not one which I had initially planned to do right now, and many things did not go exactly as planned. However, it was definitely a great excursion. Of course, having excellent travel companions was an important plus that helped smooth over any inconveniences. Unlike Dorothée, I don’t think I’m keen to head to Everest base camp anytime soon, but I could definitely see myself making another visit to Nepal in the near to mid future.

And on that note, the trip notes for Nepal finally come to an end. Once again, for those who have followed along the entire time, thank you for your patience; I know the last entry was very late. And for those who have just joined for days 7 and 8, feel free to go back to earlier entries and see what happened beforehand. You might even be interested in previous trips? Do leave any questions or observations in the comments section, and until next time, I hope all of your travels are as enjoyable as mine, whether they be trips around the world or even just an afternoon spent exploring a long overlooked neighborhood park.

Nepal trip: Day 6 (23 Mar 2023)

Hey everyone, if you have kept reading since day 1, then I’m very impressed. The good news for those who have had the stamina to keep going is that today was a very classic tourist day, so there’s lots of stuff which would probably be of interest to the average traveller.

At 8:06 AM we departed in a Suzuki Liana which we had contracted for the day. The total cost for the same, including the driver, was $90 USD plus any tip we would decide on for our driver Sunil. Yes, this was only a standard mid size sedan, but it was quite comfortable and more than adequate for our needs when heading to locations within a few hours of Kathmandu.

By 9:22 AM we were driving through Panauti. We didn’t stop to explore here, but I can say that despite looking a bit run down, it looked like it would probably be an okay place to live, or even just a quirky place to hang out as a tourist for a couple of days.

At 10:06 AM we had arrived to the Thrangu Tashi Yangtse Temple area. It may be that memory is failing me, and I’m also certainly not the world’s most noted temple expert, but this seemed to be the most modern Buddhist site I’ve ever visited. Everything was very clean, in good repair, and easy to navigate. The only obvious downside for such a modern temple complex is that they didn’t appear to have made any provisions for people with obviously impaired mobility. It’s important to note that there was also no admission fee nor anyone attempting to pressure visitors into making donations.

No, photos were “not permitted” inside the actual shrine areas, but they seemed to be far more concerned about people filming Instagram Reels or Tiktok videos than with people discreetly snapping photos when no religious ceremony was actually taking place.

Dorothée made a special effort to always do the requisite seven clockwise turns around all of the smaller stupas.

At the very top there were a couple of small shops selling reasonably priced souvenirs.

This tiny spot right at the top was supposedly where the Buddha prince willingly sacrificed himself to feed a hungry tiger and her cubs.

We had a simple drink at one of the very basic cafes near the entrance of the complex and then took the car down to the actual village of Simalchaur Syampati which was less than a kilometer away. I think some visitors would actually find this village to be more interesting than the temple complex itself; since although it was far less exquisite than the temple, it had a lot more “character.” There were also several complete, but still very reasonably priced restaurants where one could eat a proper meal here.

At 12:37 PM we were once more in the car and headed towards a waterfall which Dorothée had read about.

The nature site was about fifteen minutes away from Changunarayan by car. While we had a very athletic and certainly memorable visit here, including a rather tense 20 minute period in which Maria and I were in the process of convincing ourselves that Dorothée had fallen off the side of the mountain, we never actually found the intended waterfall. Yes, there were several more or less obvious trails through the forest, but there were neither signs nor clear indications of how to get anywhere. With that in mind, I would not suggest this area for solo visitors, but small groups should get along just fine.

Here Maria and I had been discussing how much longer to wait before contacting emergency services about our missing friend Dorothée, but then decided maybe we would just take another smiling picture instead. Fortunately we made the right decision, as about ten minutes later Dorothée appeared.

At 3:20 PM we were once again in the car en route to the Peace Garden Restaurant and Cafe. Along the way we stopped at an interesting statue and army installation where one of the guards kindly told us a bit about the significance of the statue etc. . .

Finally at 4:12 PM we arrived at the peace garden where we had a very nice meal along with a couple of drinks, costing us just 2110 NPR ($15.98 USD) for the three of us. It really was a beautiful late afternoon, and the workers at the restaurant were extremely pleasant hosts.

As is obvious from the pictures, in the 30 minutes it took us to get there, the sky suddenly became rather cloudy. So there were no Everest sightings for us today, but we still enjoyed the area.

At 6:28 PM it was already dark, so we took the car back to Kathmandu, arriving at our lodging at 7:55 PM. After a bit of quick discussion, we agreed to give Sunil a 3000 NPR ($22.72 USD) tip for the day. He was an excellent driver and it had been a very long day of work for him.

We ourselves were also very tired, so rather than go out again, we all decided to retire to our rooms for the evening. All in all, it really was a perfectly delightful day. I wonder what will happen tomorrow? In order to find out, you’ll have to be on the lookout for Day 7.

Once more, thank you for sharing in my adventures and don’t hesitate to ask for any additional information in the comments below.

Nepal trip: Day 5 (22 Mar 2023)

Hey there once again. So if you read day 4 you already know that the whole village trip thing did not go as planned, and I am now back in Kathmandu. This is not a setback, but rather a simple change of plans. Let’s see how things went.

We met up in the garden downstairs at 9:40 AM and then headed out to a breakfast place near our lodging called Rosemary Kitchen and Coffee Shop.

School girls walking to class in the morning

We sat in the pleasant garden for breakfast, with the total cost for the three of us coming to 2007 NPR ($15.20 USD). The food was very nice, as was the ambiance.

While eating, Dorothee suggested that I check to see if I could find a “free walking” tour; I found one which was starting at 2 PM on Guru Walk.

This “free” model honestly makes a bit more sense in the European context, since the webpage makes it clear that there is a general expectation that each participant will “tip” at least 10 Euros, with a maximum group size of 5. Obviously, one can pay more. Putting things in perspective, a highly skilled trekking guide who in essence is responsible for your life, is generally only paid about $30 USD a day. In our particular group, there were four people and certainly each of us paid at least $10 USD, and I assume the fourth participant paid similarly. So, for a four hour walking tour, this “walking guide” earned more than double that which was paid for a full day to a trekking guide. I am in no way suggesting that the payment is “unjust” but seeing things from the Nepalese viewpoint, it doesn’t make as much sense as it does in Europe or other cities which are far more expensive. However, the walking tour did not start until 2 PM, so we still had some exploring to do on our own.

Dorothee was quite keen on visiting the Garden of Dreams, so at 11:15 AM we departed from the cafe and headed over in that direction. Along the way at 11:46 AM we briefly stopped in to visit the Tridevi temple.

Our time at the temple was very short, and by 11:55 AM we were entering the garden. The entry fee was 400 NPR ($3.03 USD) per person. While this is certainly not “expensive,” it is clear that this is meant to be more of a resting place for residents of the city than a must see site for tourists. So, if you are short on time, even though there are many great photo opportunities, international visitors can definitely skip the garden.

Certainly we could have spent more time there reading a book or something along those lines, but by 12:35 PM we were ready to go back to our lodging which was only a ten minute walk away. There we rested a bit and left once more on foot at 1:35 PM, arriving to the meeting point at Chaya Center Thames at 1:50 PM. Our guide Santhosh Pandey was reasonably punctual, meeting us at 2:09 PM. There we were joined by another pleasant woman from the United Kingdom, but I am afraid that I did not think to ask her name.

By 2:53 PM we had reached Hanuman-Dhoka Durbar Square. There are several different World Heritage Sites here. The entry fee for non SAARC visitors is 1000 NPR ($7.57 USD) and 150 NPR ($1.14 USD) for SAARC visitors. While this is a minor point, this is potentially important for “Anglo-Indians” visiting, because if you do not “look South Indian” you will be required to show either your voter identification card or your passport; AADHAR and PAN cards are not acceptable. Similarly, if you “look South Asian” just say that you are (The British woman in our group did this.), then they will charge you 150. Still, this is probably the “most important” heritage site in Kathmandu, so it’s definitely worth the entry fee regardless of the amount. There were many interesting things to see, but it is worth noting that some of the buildings and historical artifacts were obviously maintained much better than others; in particular, I noticed that the palace which had been used from the 13th to 18th century seemed rather shabby. We stayed in this general area until 4:22 PM.

Here were were waiting to see the royal Kumari. She appeared at one of the windows for 3 seconds at 4:13 PM.

Yes, a particularly adventurous traveler with plenty of time on one’s hands could walk to the Swayambhu Mahachaitya Buddhist temple complex from the site where we were located, but for the sake of expediency we took a taxi ride for 13 minutes, also asking the driver to wait for us so that we would have transport back to our homestay afterwards. According to our guide, it is MUCH better to make an arrangement like this, because it can otherwise be hard to get transport from the site. We paid a total of 1000 NPR ($7.57 USD) for this service; given that we did not get back to our rooms until 6:04 PM this seemed reasonable, but I suspect we could have bargained for significantly less had we really been in the mood to do the same.

A large amount of our time at this site was spent at the Buddha Thanka Treasure painting showroom. Given that they allowed us up on their rooftop to take pictures; this seemed fair. I should begin with saying that I am definitely impressed with the art created by those whose work was on display, but I was somewhat skeptical about some of the details given to us by the people working there. According to the sales people, every roughly A4 size painting they have there takes between 10 days and 3 months of work for an artist to complete. They furthermore stated that 40% of the artwork created by their 650 artists is shredded, because it does not meet their quality control standards. Finally, they indicated that all of the artists were on salary: 258 full-time artists and 392 part time (3 hours a day for five days a week). These paintings on canvas could be purchased for anything from about $50 USD to $500 USD. Certainly the artwork was impressive and I in no way dispute its value, but the total numbers did not seem to add up given the standard Nepalese minimum wage (one hopes that many of the artists also make more than minimum) and the information we were being given. Again though, I believe that my traveling companions would color me as being overly cynical on this particular point. Regardless, the artwork is beautiful and at least on the surface it seems that this organization is working to provide gainful, practical employment to many aspiring young artists while also preserving a valuable and beautiful art form. I have provided their website above should you wish to buy from them directly.

This was a clandestine picture taken within the art showroom, but given that I’m publicizing their work, I feel okay about the same.

This site (like many others) is also called “The monkey temple” so unsurprisingly there were several monkeys. However, there really weren’t that many, and they were in no way annoying, so it’s safe to visit here if you are afraid of monkeys; just don’t have any food available and they will leave you alone.

Our guide Santosh, Dorothée, Maria and I when we were saying our goodbyes.

As we had been quite satisfied with our breakfast and it was nearby, we decided to meet for dinner at Rosemary Kitchen and Coffee Shop at 6:30 PM. It took about 30 minutes for our food to be served, and I was reasonably pleased with my Beef Choela; Maria and Dorothee seemed similarly satisfied with their main course choices. I opted to skip dessert, but Maria had the truffle cake which she stated was “nice” and Dorothee had the yoghurt cheesecake which she pronounced to be “very good;” however, she was not at all impressed with the strawberry syrup that had been served on the side. The total for the three of us was 4792 NPR ($36.30 USD).

My pretentiously artistic photo at the end of our dinner . . .

By 8:25 PM I was safely back in my room resting and getting caught up on correspondence. Tomorrow we have no guide, but have booked a driver for the full day who will take us to a couple of recommended locations which are between 1 and three hours from the city. Given our success today, it would appear that we are fully back on track to have a successful and very enjoyable experience here in Nepal. Of course, there is still much to come, and the only way to find out will be to keep reading.

As always, should you have questions about anything I have mentioned so far, just let me know in the comments below and I will try to help as much as possible. Wherever you are, I hope your day was also as great as mine. See you soon . . .

Nepal Trip: Day 4 (21 Mar 2023)

Welcome back my frozen friends! Oh wait, that’s just me who is still frozen, not you. Ah well, certainly still a very interesting cultural experience.

Using night sight, view from the window in my room at 5 AM.

Not that I needed a number for confirmation, but at 5:10 AM it was between 1 and 2 degrees Celsius (34 degrees F) both inside and out. I can still hear raindrops on the roof, but they might be dripping from a tree rather than still actively falling. Getting up to go down to the bathroom, with every step, the wooden floor, stairs and then door creaked in such a way that I am almost certain that the entire house hears me. One thing is for sure, when all those kids I met yesterday hit adolescence, there will definitely not be any “sneaking out” at night; the whole house serves as an alarm system.

By 6 AM, based on my own imagination, I was cautiously optimistic that the rain would have stopped by 8 AM, giving us at least 2-3 hours to walk around a bit before it would start again. Checking the weather report on internet seemed to reaffirm my guess.

At 7:15 AM it was still very foggy, but not raining. I put on three shirts, plus my fleece jacket as I was getting ready to go down for breakfast. I topped off the ensemble with my ear warmer band from Ladakh, and yes, I was still cold. However, I tend to handle the cold fairly well, so no major complaints. Nevertheless, upon meeting up with Dorothee and Maria at 7:30 AM, the consensus was that we would head back to Kathmandu today.

This might simply be a case of “be careful what you ask for,” because you might just get it. We had said that we wanted to get to know about authentic village life, and it looks like that this might be it. Our hosts seemed no less cold than we were, and no less enthusiastic about wandering around aimlessly outside, especially in the rain. The difference of course is that most of them don’t have the choice of escaping back to the comforts of the city when things don’t go as expected. Even in the possible freezing rain, the kids would still be walking to school, and there would still be chores which had to be done outside, as well as all of the day to day tasks of cooking and cleaning inside. This is life.

Fortunately though, the driver would not be able to arrive until about 10 AM, and it looked like it wouldn’t be raining until at least 10:30 AM, so if we were to eat quickly and get out into the street, at least we would be able to see a bit of what could be seen in the immediate vicinity before once again embarking on a ten hour journey.

While there is electricity and even wired internet service in the village, firewood is the main source of both heating and cooking fuel.

I am not sure what this is, but I saw two different women soaking it in water and then leaving it to dry as was shown here.

We even had some time to be silly. We got some odd glances from a few of the villagers, but everyone seemed to chalk it up to “crazy foreigners” and simply left us to our own devices. I was sad that we did not get the chance to actually know any of them beyond the immediate family where we had been staying, but there was nothing to be done. Incidentally, Hit told us that this village was MUCH more developed than the other village which we had originally planned on visiting on Day 5 after a 3-5 hour trek on back trails.

Botka arrived with the transport at 9:41 AM. After having a quick tea, we were all set to embark on the ten hour trip back to Kathmandu. After some experimentation, we finally decided on the least uncomfortable (equal levels of possible discomfort) for everyone. Maria would sit in front, I would sit behind Maria, and Dorothee behind the driver. It still wasn’t super, but definitely better for my knees than yesterday’s trip.

The same as yesterday, approximately every 30 minutes we had to register our distance and time.

I know you are thinking. . .. Hey, this doesn’t look rainy, and you are right. As is often common in the mountains, there are many “micro climates” here, especially with changes in altitude and even relatively small distances of 25 or so.

At 12:19 PM we were having lunch at the same place as yesterday, this time costing 1350 NPR ($10.22 USD) for the five of us. We dawdled quite a bit and did not depart until 1:15 PM. Going both ways, we had seen several hanging pedestrian bridges which crossed over the river, so we asked Botka if it would be safe to stop for a couple of minutes for us to try one out, and at 2:20 PM he finally spotted one which seemed to make sense. Dorothee, Maria and I were all extremely impressed by how well they were made. They did not shake at all, evidently also being made strong enough to bear motorcycles. For many isolated hamlets, aside from taking a boat across the river, this is their only connection to the main road. Of course, we took advantage to snap some photographs, some less silly than others.

More idyllic scenes abounded as our journey continued until we once more stopped at 3:40 PM to get a drink at Jhangajholi, Ratma Sunshine Food Cafe to let the driver rest a bit while we had coffee.

Maria had this amazing “paper soap” which she had brought from Turkey. I’m definitely going to see if I can buy this back in India.

When we were departing at 4:20 PM, I decided to try to catch up with my ANKI flashcards in Hindi which I had neglected for three days. I worried it might not work well as the road was frequently bumpy, but the Android app on my phone worked great, and 48 minutes later I was all caught up and ready to appreciate the remaining views as we neared the city.

Finally at 7:25 PM we were back to Sunrise Cottage in Kathmandu. We said our goodbyes to Hit and Botka, deciding to pay Hit for the originally intended six days of guide services (around $30 USD a day) and once again paying Botka the same 19000 NPR ($144 USD) as yesterday for his incredibly safe driving services. After taking a couple of minutes to freshen up, I proposed to go to dinner at nearby Hangkook Sarang Korean restaurant.

This was a bit of a splurge, but I really need some feel good food, and I had read that the Korean food here was great. Maria wanted to take a break from dinner itself, but was happy to tag along for the company. The total bill for Dorothée and I was 4650 NPR ($35 USD). We decided to not make any set plans for the next day and by 9 PM I was tucked away in bed.

So no, things definitely did not go as originally planned for the villages trip, and we’ve decided to stick close to Kathmandu for the remaining days. Was it a bit disappointing? Yes, but sometimes that’s life. You can’t control the weather, and sometimes it’s better to make a change of plans rather than stubbornly pushing forward in the face of adversity. Perhaps we would have had an even more amazing cultural experience had we been willing to trudge 4 hours through freezing rain to the next village, constantly being extremely cold for four days but also constantly enlightened by these life experiences, but that’s not what we decided to do.

Do I feel bad about coming back to the Kathmandu area? Not at all. It’s an amazing place with plenty to offer, and I look forward to seeing much more of it tomorrow. Feel free to let me know what you think of our decisions, or even just leave a word of encouragement in the comments section. As always, thanks for following along; I’m sure there are more great things to come.

Nepal Trip: Day 3 (20 Mar 2023)

No there isn’t a problem with your screen, my hand was just unsteady at 5:25 AM when I took this photo while we were waiting for Hit to arrive with our transport for the day.

Welcome back readers. If all goes well, this will be our first day on the track to find out the little things that actually make up Nepali village life real, or at any rate, as much as can be see in four nights of travel.

It was definitely the right call to reserve an entire transport for ourselves. A ten hour trip with ten people would have perhaps been educational, but that is one lesson I am willing to forego as long as I have a choice.

By 5:33 AM our driver Botha was pulling out of the drive. As one might expect, the scenery along the way was pretty, and the road was constantly twisting and turning up and down the side of the mountain. For the most part the road was reasonably “good” but yes, there were patches where it was just dirt or where we had to drive though very small bodies of water. However, I certainly never felt unsafe.

I had originally thought that I would probably end up sleeping most of the way despite the beautiful scenery, but as a result of the still rather cramped conditions for my 1.82 metres and 90 kg frame, plus the often rather bumpy and swerving road conditions, that was clearly not likely to happen for much of the ride. By

Sitting behind the driver was a better option due to the softer back of the seat. The front seat had initially looked better, but my knees jammed into hard plastic unless the seat was put back so far as to make the back seat unusable for my traveling companions. While not “comfortable” conditions for me, it was fine. I think Maria and Dorothée, who are both a bit smaller, were actually reasonably comfortable the whole way

At 8:45 AM we stopped for breakfast near Khurkot. I forgot to ask the name, so I’m not actually sure exactly where we were.

The food was more than adequate and some would no doubt even say delicious. Certainly the server was gracious. The cost was 350 NPR ($2.66 USD) for each of the three of us. I assume we were also paying the cost of Hit and Botka in that as well. By 9:30 AM we were back on the road again.

Removing a bit of my feelings of road safety was this memorial marked by mirrors. Evidently a bus had gone off the road here killing 45 people. Still, the fact that there weren’t mirrors everywhere along the way seemed to indicate this was not a common occurrence.

As we were going along, Botka regularly stopped the vehicle to speak to someone near the side of the road. At first I thought maybe he was asking about road conditions ahead or perhaps even directions; although, in retrospect, as there was only one obvious “road” that was a foolish initial assumption. Hit then clarified that Botka was evidently registering time etc . . . with the official. This is a way that they use to keep people from going to fast along the twisting and many times rather narrow roads. At 12:05 PM we stopped for lunch in the town of Ghurmi.

The initial portion placed on ones plate is not very large, but then these people go around giving more if you want. This seems like a good way to ensure nobody leaves hungry without encouraging food wastage.

The tasty momos we ordered was separate from the standard lunch.

While obviously seen as more of a decoration than an actual food item, the spinach was delicious.

The cost for all five of us including the momos and two beers (no, neither was for the driver) was 1950 NPR ($14.76 USD). And by 1 PM we were once more in motion.

The road started to climb upwards again and we arrived by 3:37 PM we had arrived to our first village destination, Siddhicharan. It was raining, and rather cold, but our hosts were kind.

Dinner was around 7 PM and then we played cards with the kids. Again, our hosts are very pleasant, but it was also 5 degrees Celsius and rainy with a not very encouraging forecast for the next few days.

Before going up to bed, we chatted and decided that the best course of action would be to see how the weather actually looked tomorrow morning, but probably we will try to head back towards Kathmandu on Wednesday rather than walking for four hours to an even more isolated village. It’s just too chilly and rainy and we don’t have adequate clothes. Hopefully, we will be able to get out a bit in the morning to see something of the area around the local village. The forecast seems to indicate that would be reasonable for a few hours, but we will have to see. As I got in bed at 9:30 PM, the rain was still coming down and it was 2 degrees Celsius both inside and out. . ..

What will tomorrow bring?

Nepal trip: Day 2 (19 Mar 2023)

Hey there again. Day two had a lot more to see, and fortunately for you my intrepid readers, a lot less to read.

I was up at 7 AM to finish my blog post for Day 1, and then at 8:40 had tea with Dorothee, Maria and our guide, who is called Hit.

I had hoped to have a bit more clarity about the rest of the trip after speaking with him, but that was not the case. This was making me still feel very uncomfortable with heading off to a village in the middle of nowhere tomorrow, but then I realized that I needed to reframe the situation.

I had been viewing Hit as a travel agent or trip planner who was also doubling as a guide/translator. However, that is not his role; rather he is a travel facilitator when we attempt to do tourism in a couple of villages which are not actually setup to handle tourists. He can give us a general idea of what it will cost to negotiate being paying guests in the homes of local villagers for four days as well as the cost and methods of travel to them. In this way, one could see him as the “old school version” of a guide. Yes, this requires a great deal of trust, but if we want to have this experience, then it is what we have to do. The only point I actually did continue to feel a bit odd about what his insistence that he not have a daily set payment, but rather at the end, we would pay him whatever we thought made the most sense.

This is of course silly because he DOES work as a professionally contracted modern guide, so there is clearly a set minimum amount he is expecting. As is the habit with guides all over the world, if you want to give a tip, then you do it, but there is still the general expectation of an absolute minimum percentage for the tip when one has an individual or small group guide. So, after a bit of debate amongst ourselves and some online investigation, Dorothee and I found out what is actually generally the standard daily rate for a highly qualified guide in Nepal, and we simply decide to go with that amount once we had confirmed the plan with Maria.

We did have one tough decision to make though. Would we travel as “standard travelers” in the vehicles which they call jeeps, but I assume are more like land rovers (will see tomorrow), each paying 2200 NRP for the ten hour trip tomorrow, or do we buy out all ten seats in one of the jeeps, and travel just on our own? Given that two of us are rather large; I am 1.82 meters tall, we decided to bite the bullet and pay around NPR 7300 each for the one way trip. This would also give us more flexibility for stopping to take pictures etc . . . Along the way without inconveniencing other travelers. So that will be roughly $56 USD per person for transport to the first village rather than $17 USD. Based on how things go heading towards the first village, we will decide what to do when we come back to Kathmandu from the final village.

A bit after this we decided to head out to find breakfast and then continue on with the two temple visits we had decided that we wanted to do today.

I have no idea what these tiny little duffel bags are used for, but we’ve seen them all around the “foreign tourist” section of the city.

After wandering around for about 20 minutes trying to find an “amazing breakfast place” which we had read about online, going to the place where we told it had been moved, and then giving up when it was not there either, we decided to just go into the very next place we saw, which turned out to be a very fancy place called Kathmandu Guest House. The breakfast buffet was decent if perhaps a bit overpriced at NPR 1500 ($11.50 USD) per person, but the gardens were beautiful and the ambience is of course what we were really buying, not the food. I of course obstinately insisted on going overboard with the food amount in order to get my money’s worth. Regardless, if you want a pretty place to have breakfast, I would recommend them.

At 10:38 AM we started off walking towards Pashupatinath temple complex, which Hit had told us was about an hour walk away. While this was accurate information, Maria and I at least had imagined a far more leisurely walk than Hit had in mind, but we certainly did see a lot of interesting things along the way. Separately, we made a mental note as to what Hit thinks of as “standard walking speed” so that we can refer to the same in the future when he tells us how far we have to go until reaching any additional destinations.

I had thought there were lots of motorcycles on the roads in India, but Kathmandu at least seems to have the average Indian city beat on that score.

For some reason I can’t quite pin down, I keep having concerns about the electrical installations in Kathmandu.

By 11:30 AM we had arrived to the Temple complex, which had a cost of 1000 NPR ($7.68 USD) to enter. I really had no idea what to expect, since I was just going to where Dorothee had suggested. Still, I am happy to report that it was money well spent. We were there for almost 90 minutes and easily could have stayed much longer without being bored.

This is a family preparing for the cremation of an older relative. We saw much of the process including the beginning of the open air cremation. Contrary to what you might believe, it was not really particularly shocking to see; although, having such a private moment out for random tourists to see seemed a bit odd.

There seemed to be some sort of a wildlife preserve for a few grazing animals on the site. This fellow had been far away, but evidently he understands Spanish, because I was able to talk him over to stand right next to the fence so we could all get pictures. One little local boy was particularly pleased with my deer whisperer skills.

Whether or not it’s true, a local man explained to me in a mix of broken English and broken Hindi that on a yearly basis, family members return to pray for their loved ones who were cremated here.

In case it was not obvious, this first temple complex that we visited was a Hindu site. Again, we easily could have stayed there for several hours, especially if we had been traveling with a specialized cultural guide, but at 12:45 PM we decided it was time to walk over to the next site. As none of us had had the foresight to take a proper sun hat or even sunblock today, I found myself resorting to comical attempts to stay in the shade and/or cover my head and neck with my fleece jacket. Note to self, always take the sun hat, even if the the day is supposed to be very overcast.

Arriving at roughly 1:15 PM to Shree Boudhanath Area, it immediately struck me that this temple area seemed more like a bustling town square with an impressive religious symbol in the middle, rather than an area normally visited for actual religious purposes. Cost for entry, which I assume was not charged to locals, was 500 NPR ($3.84 USD) but only 100 NPR ($0.77 USD) for SAARC citizens. I had my Indian Aadhaar card with me, so I greeted the ticket seller in Hindi, showed my card, and only paid 100.

Of course pictures were strictly forbidden in the Buddhist shrine area, but you know me . . . A “no photos” sign is always a challenge to be undertaken.

While photos were prohibited, apparently sleeping is just fine.

Having first assured ourselves that there were sun awnings, at 1:45 PM we went to the rooftop area of Hello Cafe to rest for a bit while having a drink and chatting. We paid 970 NPR ($7.45 USD) for three glasses of local Gorkha beer and a lassi drink. This local beer was actually quite decent, so if you are open to trying local beers while traveling, go ahead and give it a try; there’s a good chance you may like it.

From 2:45 to 3:15 pm we were in a cramped taxi headed back to the homestay, paying 500 NPR ($3.84 USD) for the privilege of being smashed together in order to NOT spend more than an hour once again walking while enduring the unrelenting sun for which we had not properly prepared. All in all, we definitely agreed it was a bargain.

Maria was quite pleased at how slim she looked due to the smashing process. I’m not sure how it would work, but there’s a definite business opportunity here for some enterprising young entrepreneur in the beauty industry.

From 3:15 PM to 5:45 PM, I rested a bit and then packed for tomorrow’s trip. When Maria came back from her short shopping trip outing at 5:50 PM we went to a nearby restaurant for a quick dinner before heading out to get water purification tablets and cash for our village adventure which would begin at 5:30 AM the next morning.

Yes momos are a stereotypical Nepali food, but they really are a tasty addition to almost any meal.

Evidently we will be drinking river water in one of the villages, so it’s best to take reasonable precautions.

So that’s where things pretty much ended for the day. I’m cautiously optimistic about tomorrow’s ten hour road trip to the first village. I’m not adventurous enough to try such a thing on my own, but with two great travel companions and our local guide/facilitator/negotiator/translater Hit along, I’m sure it will be a great time.

If you want to find out what happened with village life, you’ll have to wait until day three’s post. As always, thanks for following along, and don’t hesitate to ask additional questions in the comments section.

Nepal trip: Day 1 (18 Mar 2023)

Hey everyone, I know it has been some time since you last heard from me, but I am once again on the move and eager to share what is happening with my latest adventure.

Those of you who have been following along since the beginning will remember Dorothee, with whom I visited Ladakh last year. This year when I was telling her about how my trip to Cambodia was looking like it was going to fall apart, she was quick to mention that she had separately been planning a trip to Nepal and wondered if I would be interested in tagging along. Long story short, as you can tell from the title of this entry, I ended up saying yes. For those of you who are not keen to know all the details about my actual travel to Nepal from Bengaluru, India; feel free to skip ahead, but there is some really good info about what happened once we arrived to the airport.

So once again, I ended up on a crazy early morning flight. I had booked a round trip ticket on IndiGo to Kathmandu from Bengaluru, with a cost of 20,000 INR ($240 USD). With a departure at 5:30 AM, that meant I would have to leave from my place in New Yelahanka (about 22 km away) at 2:45 AM. While recently it has become more difficult to get easily get cars from my area, using Ola (similar to Uber) I was able to be in a car by 2:50 AM with plenty of time to spare. Incidentally for those who may be coming to India to travel, despite the fact that both Uber and Ola supposedly accept all types of electronic payment, at least with my experience in Bengaluru, in the last couple of years, most of the drivers only want to take you if you can pay cash; this takes away part of the convenience of cash free travel, but at least it is still “reasonably easy” to get a car . . . Certainly it is easier than trying to flag down a cab or even a rickshaw.

While there was much more traffic on the road at that hour than I would have expected (at any time there were at least 20 other vehicles easily visible) travel was smooth and I had arrived to terminal 1 of the airport by 3:18 AM.

Also, unlike my other recent flying experiences in out of Bengaluru in the last year, there were comparatively few fliers, and by 3:22 AM I was already inside the airport trying to get the IndiGo automated check-in machine to work. Regular flyers with this airline will not be surprised to learn that the machines were not working, but again, amazingly the check-in line went amazingly fast, and by 3:38 AM I was already headed up to security.

While no disrespect is intended, going through security in an Indian airport is frequently a bit of a comedy. While I have no doubt that officials are honestly trying their best to keep us safe, the process often appears to be arbitrary and at times even nonsensical. Nevertheless, things again seemed to be going amazingly fast, with me walking through the metal detector at 3:46 AM. Of course the detector beeped (I have never had it NOT beep in india) and they proceeded to move the detector wand all over me. Interestingly, it seemed to be that almost all of my body was registering metal except for my chest where I have surgery staples. Fortunately the official chose to believe his hands from the pat down rather than the wand, and I was completely finished with the process by 3:48 AM.

Shortly thereafter, Maria and Dorothee who had arrived separately, also got through security.

By 4:10 AM we were at Jones the Grocer having a fascinating conversation about religion and its relationship to the workplace. Perhaps not everyone wants chats like this while on holiday, but I was extremely happy for the high quality “non-work” intellectual engagement. I think that we will be a very good travel trio.

My croissant, which was reasonably good, and large cappuccino was 512 INR ($6.20 USD). Dorothee and Maria also seemed satisfied with their selections.

Right before 5 we headed over to our Gate, and at 5:06 AM we were on the bus to the airplane. Readers from the many parts of the world, in particular the USA, will find it odd that we took a plane to the airplane, but in many countries this sort of boarding arrangement is the norm rather than going down a jetway. Again, so far everything was going great. So what about seating?

Many of us over the age of 35 remember a time when those who travelled together were almost always automatically seated together, and while a preference could be expressed for window or aisle, it was just sort of luck how things would actually turn out. However, this was the norm, and you certainly did not expect to have to pay an additional fee. In fact, this was one of the “rewards” both of arriving early to the airport and then later on for doing online check-in ahead of time. As a “budget airline” this is certainly not the case for IndiGo.

To be fair, their seats are not especially uncomfortable, but if you are allergic to the middle seat like I am, and furthermore have a special preference for either aisle or window, you pay ahead for your seat selection. In my case I chose the second cheapest option (middle is of course the cheapest) and did standard aisle seating for a cost of 400 INR ($4.85 USD) per flight. Interestingly enough, on IndiGo, the most expensive option is not the most comfortable if you are a taller person — I am 1.82 meters. Rather the second most expensive option (exit row) is where you get the most leg room; although, you sacrifice being able to recline. That having been said, with so little space, what sort of animal reclines their seat anyways if there is a standard sized human seated behind oneself? Pro tip: the absolute BEST IndiGo seat, if you can get it, is the exit row seat that has no seat immediately in front of it.

Anyways, by 5:38 AM the plane was in the air and I was doing my “daily” ANKI flashcards for Hindi. I have for the most part kept up with these perfectly since completing the three-week Hindi course I did in Dehradun in December and January. However, as I had skipped the previous day, I had 298 cards to do, which took me 47 minutes. Yes, I was tired, but I wanted to take advantage of this alone time to study, since later on I knew I would either be exploring with Maria and Dorothee or trying to churn out this daily entry to my travel blog. By 6:35 AM I was ready to turn on sleep sounds and try to get a bit of rest for the remainder of the flight; the sleeping didn’t work out so well but we arrived safely and on time to Delhi by 8:15 AM.

If you have been skimming through until now, this is where you need to start actually paying attention, especially if there is any possibility you might have to do a transfer to an international flight departing from Delhi at some point in the future. Dorothee has an almost visceral dislike of the Delhi airport, but I tend to be more ambivalent. That having been said, her dislike is not without reason. I know it’s amazing how many people this airport handles on a daily basis, but they frequently do not make it easy nor intuitive to navigate.

While it’s not always the most easy place to navigate, the Delhi airport has some very beautiful elements of design.

Shortly after entering the terminal, we saw a very large area labeled “International Transfers” which amazingly, while properly staffed, seemed to be almost empty. It looked like once again we were going to get a quick and easy transition to the next part of the trip . . . If you have spent much time in Delhi airport, you know that is not what happened.

For some unknown reason, this relatively abandoned transfer area is only for Air India customers. There is no sign to indicate this, but rather someone in their infinite wisdom has decided it makes more sense to hire a full time person to individually tell the thousands of daily non Air India flyers making international transfers that they have to go somewhere else which makes no sense whatsoever. While you will not remember it, and the process will likely have changed anyways by the next time you do it, this is what you have to do.

First you have to exit the secure area as if you were departing the airport, doing so near baggage belt 4. From there you turn left and go to the end of the hallway (it is easily manageable for a normally healthy person, but it is still a bit of a walk) then up the escalators which you will see, into the main check-in area of the terminal. IF you have boarding passes for the next flight, you can then head directly to immigration, which is to the left. If for some reason you do not have the boarding pass, you will have to get in line as if you were checking in from scratch; most of the time this is not the case, but it does frequently happen, so do not freak out if before transferring through Delhi you are told you will have to get your next boarding pass at the terminal in Delhi. If this all seems like a way too confusing process, just do what we did . . . Walk one minute, find someone to ask what to do next . . .walk another minute . . . Ask again until you get to immigration.

Despite all of this, amazingly things were still going much faster than most of my air travel experiences through major airports in India. So while it may seem odd, at least today, I couldn’t really complain that much, because the system seemed to be “working”.

By 8:27 AM we were in line for immigration, which yet once again, amazingly had relatively few people and a line which was moving along at a rather brisk pace. Do note that many of the lines do not have larger trays to put your electronics etc . . . So you may have to hunt around like I did to take larger trays from another line. Also, if you are new to traveling in this part of the world, note that there are lines for men and separate lines for women. It is easy to see, because the women’s lines have these curtained off areas for the security pat down; no, I don’t know why. Unlike in Bengaluru, for this security check you were required to keep your boarding pass in hand, and it seemed to be an issue for many people since there was no signage to indicate the same. Again though, the system still seemed to work quite well today, and by 8:45 AM we were through and looking for a place to eat something a bit more substantial.

This was not where I would usually have chosen, Dorothee suggested the Irish House. The server was very friendly as she kindly told us that more than half of the items we requested from the menu were not actually available, and I ended up with a fairly decent chicken Cesar salad for 609 INR ($7.38). By 9:40 AM we headed towards the gate, where I was happy to learn that Maria is a dog person. So we had some pleasant chat and shared pictures of our fur friends.

Let’s hope the pics continue to look this happy as the trip progresses.

By 10:52 AM we were on the plane and then we were taking off at 11:15 AM. As I had already established that sleep was not going to work on these planes, I decided to listen to my audiobook Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin This was a short flight, with us touching down in Kathmandu but at 12:51 PM.

Those of you who follow along with me on a regular basis know that I am a big fan of e-sims, generally recommending Airalo, but this time around that did not seem to be the best fit, with international roaming on my Airtel connection actually being a better fit for my needs, costing me about $36 USD for 10 days of service, including 5 GB of 4G data and 100 minutes a day of outgoing standard local and/or calls to India. Furthermore, all incoming calls are included. Getting a local SIM in Nepal I think would have been a bit cheaper, but form what I had read, it would have been more of a hassle with all the paperwork. Whether it is cheaper or not, this time around I am actually happy with my international roaming option, so keep it in mind that it may be worth comparing before selecting options when traveling.

There was one unpleasant surprise when we got off the plane and started heading to get our luggage. There was a line where they were demanding that we show either a negative COVID-19 PCR test or a vaccine record. According to the online information we had found beforehand, this was no longer being requested. Yes, I had thought it might still be good to have, but I could not find my previously downloaded electronic copy, and the Indian Cowin site seemed to not be working the previous two days, so I didn’t have it. Keen-eyed Dorothee however noticed that they did not actually seem to be looking at the papers, so she just palmed me her certificate after she had it “reviewed” and I used her certificate as well to get through the line. Yes, it is just as comical as it sounds . . .but hey, it worked, so no complaints from me.

Yeah, they accept Visa . . . But what about MasterCard?

Next we were on to immigration. As we were all three doing visa on arrival, we had printouts of sheets to present along with our passports so that we could pay our fees. It seems that it would have made more sense to pay online when applying, but the system is that you have to pay in cash. Furthermore, you evidently have to pay in foreign currency, but not all currencies are accepted. It all seemed rather random: Dorothee was told to pay in Euros, Maria in British Pounds, and me in US Dollars. No, we could not use a card and we could not use Nepali Rupees. Having been warned ahead of time of this oddity, I had US dollars with me to pay my $30 USD. However, Dorothee did not. Dorothee being Dorothee, somehow convinced them to take Indian Rupees for her payment even though it was not one of the listed “accepted currencies”. Anyways, I was glad we were able to get it done.

We then tried to get Nepali rupees out of the cash machine in that area, but it appears to only work with international Visa cards, not Mastercard. Incidentally, I have noticed that most of the ATM machines here only take international Visa cards, but there I did notice a couple today that had the Mastercard symbol, but I did not have a card along to try. This DID seem to be a problem for many other travelers who only had a MasterCard card with them, so keep that in mind if you plan on using at ATM here with an international card. I am not saying MasterCard is impossible, but Visa is definitely more accepted.

By 1:42 PM we were through immigration and straight on to get our bags at 1:44 PM which were already waiting. Again, all oddities still existing, so far most things were going very quickly today. I hope it continues like that. We then made our way over to the prepaid taxi counter, which was closed, but then when we asked at a separate booth next door, they told us to just go downstairs. Upon arriving there, again, this one appeared to have nobody working, but once again upon asking, someone came to help us, so we paid just 900 NPR ($6.91 USD) for our 5 KM ride to Sunrise Cottage Guest House.

Dorothée was very excited about this temple!

Despite having an extremely aggressive driver and very little traffic, it took us 32 minutes to get to our lodging, since the driver had a hard time figuring out the directions, even when speaking by phone with the front desk at the cottage.

Still, we finally arrived at 2:27 PM and were greeted with cups of tea by Rishi. After getting settled in and looking around a bit, we decided to head out walking at 3:35 PM.

As luck would have it, it seemed that it was going to rain, so despite already having bought a Poncho in Ladakh which I never used, I ended up buying another one here for 1500 NPR ($11.50 USD). Last time I went with a serious dark blue, but this time we all agreed that something brighter was more in order. If nothing else, it would keep Dorothee and Maria from losing me in a crowd. Furthermore, as long as I was wearing it, it seemed to have the magical ability to stop the rain from actually coming down. One way or another, it seems to be serving its purpose.

At 4:30 PM we decided to check for some local restaurant recommendations online, and we decided upon Legendary Food Kitchen, which we all three agreed was nothing fancy, but certainly reasonably priced and completely satisfying food. One important point in its favor was it was clear that everything was actually made fresh once it was ordered.

So, if you are looking for wholesome local nourishment at a fair price, this is definitely worth checking out. We then continued on walking.

By 6:20 we were ready for a dessert, but most of the recommended places seemed to be closing at 6:30 PM, so we went ahead and just walked into The baking factory. To be honest, the drinks and pastries were mostly unremarkable, but I thought my “brownie” (actually a chocolate cake) was acceptable, and Maria actually quite enjoyed her chocolate danish.

Finally, by 8 PM we were back to the guest house to take some rest before day two. Looking back, I see that this entry was perhaps too wordy, but as few people read all the way through anyways, I decided to err on the side of including all the information which might be useful. If nothing else, maybe you liked the pictures. If you were one of the intrepid readers who made it all the way through, the wow!

As always, thanks for following along, and I look forward to sharing my further adventures in the coming days. If you have any questions or comments, just stick them there below. For now, it is already 11:30 PM and I need to get to bed, so see you tomorrow!

Phuket trip: Day 7 (29 Oct 2022)

Welcome back everyone!

For those of you who have been following along, you know that I was a bit uncertain about this “island hopping” tour, but it was actually really amazing. Several companies do something similar, but mine was organized through The Wilderness Phuket (Tel 0835565006221) and the tour itself was directly managed by Andaman Surprise (Tel 081-4266623). In my particular case, everything was setup by my guide on Day 5, Maria Wanpen Ngan-khang. Our main guide for the day was Tuktuk, but he had an impressive team of several people. I think that Maria had worked out some sort of a discount, so for the two of us (Elisabet and I) the cost was only 3400 THB ($89.85 USD) but it definitely would have been fair for it to be more expensive, so even if they quote you a bit more, I would still encourage you to go if you can’t get a better price.

We were picked up at Elisabet’s house in Koh Kaew at 9:00 AM sharp and taken to the meeting point where they had plenty of snacks and drinks available while we were waiting for other participants to arrive. All of this was included in the cost of the tour.

We waited maybe 30-45 minutes for everyone else to arrive, but it was a comfortable spot and we could also walk around in the immediate area, so it did not feel like unpleasant downtime. This also gave people the opportunity to either change clothes or even buy some extra reasonably priced swim/snorkel gear in the shop area where we were waiting. The area itself was very beautiful.

I opted to buy some swim slippers for 400 THB ($10.57 USD), since I have “baby feet” and knew that I would be uncomfortable walking on rough or hot sand. Then we received some basic instructions and the group was divided into two so that there would not be too many people in a single group. I didn’t count the actual number of participants in my group, but I think it was between 15 and 20; certainly, it never felt like there were too many people as there was plenty of space. We then headed to our boat.

I had been expecting something MUCH simpler, so I was extremely impressed by the boat and also very appreciative. The seating was comfortable and the tarp helped ensure that we did not bake in the sun while travelling around from island to island.

The first “stop” at 11:35 AM was viking cave. We were not allowed to actually enter, but evidently there are 2000 year old paintings inside as well as some sort of special bird. Even from the distance it was impressive.

I didn’t fully understand, but I think that originally the organizers had planned for us to do snorkeling somewhere else, but they had received word that the area there was very crowded, so they put down anchor and told us that we would do snorkeling here. For those of us who were not strong swimmers, they suggested that we use life jackets since we would be in the water over 30 minutes and there would be nothing available to hang onto nor stand on given the depth of the water. Both Elisabet and I decided to go with the jackets, even though the sea was very calm.

Like me, this was Elisabet’s first time snorkeling

I had been diving once before in Goa, and while I had liked it, had not been especially impressed with what I saw. However, I was certainly game to try. Incidentally, for those concerned about hygiene, we were each given new mouthpieces to use; although, I hope they were simply well-sterilized and then reused since they seemed like very sturdy, potentially costly bits of equipment.

Unfortunately, I had no way of taking any pictures, but it was absolutely amazing. The best was I can describe it, is that it was like swimming in a giant tropical aquarium. The variety of fish was stunning, as was the coral, even though much of it was bleached. As the water was crystal clear, it was easy to see all the contours of the nearby seabed as well as the fish, even though due to the life vest I was of course not able to dive down further to get a closer look. There was one type of blue fish which I would say was the size of a large trout which kept drawing my attention; it had several shades of blue, as well as a bit of green and yellow. Once I got a bit more used to breathing through the snorkel tube, I was having an amazing time. Words really do fail me, but this was definitely one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

We continued with snorkeling until about 12:20 PM. Despite how much I liked it, I think this really was the right amount of time. Even with the life vest, moving around in the water could be a bit tiring, and many people of didn’t have the extra support.

They had a handy freshwater shower system when we got out of the water so that we wouldn’t be itchy from the dried seawater back on the boat.

We then continued onwards until 12:35 PM where we had another stop. I forgot to ask where we were, but based on the map, I guess it was probably Pileh cove. Wherever it was, it was very beautiful.

There we had the option of going out on traditional wooden long boats which had an additional cost, paddling around in a clear acrylic rowboat, taking a try doing paddle boarding, more swimming, or just lazing around on the boat while appreciating the beautiful surroundings. We decided to just hang out on the boat and chat, also taking advantage of the plentiful included drinks and snacks whenever we wanted. We were there until 1:07 PM, which again, seemed like the perfect amount of time. Then we were off again.

We arrived to Maya bay at 1:15 PM. There it is prohibited to swim, but it was nice to walk around, and it was okay to wade in the water. This area had been completely closed to the public for many years due to excessive tourism, much which was the result of it being the main filming site of the movie “The Beach”. Even without the popularity of the movie, it was easy to see how the place had been overrun with tourists due to its amazing beauty. I was happy that the Thai government had been willing to take a stand on the conservation and recuperation of the site and even now was still strictly limiting which activities were permitted.

We were back on the boat at 2:05 PM and then had a short trip to Phi Phi island, arriving at 2:17 PM. Here was where we would have our buffet lunch and if time permitted, wander around until 3:20 PM.

From 3:20 – 3:27 we did a short jaunt to monkey beach. The name is of course self-explanatory.

We only stayed there until 3:36 PM and then continued onwards to Khai Mai island.

We arrived at 4:30 PM. The primary function of this island seems to be that of “island bar”. So far, it was by far the most stereotypical representation of Phuket area beach life which I had seen. Still, for one hour it was fine, especially since our tour organizers setup a table with multiple drinks and snacks which had no additional cost. Of course, many opted to buy alcohol and rent one of the beach chairs, but for the most part Elisabet and I were just content to wander around a bit, even though there really wasn’t far to go. Supposedly this island had lots of cats, and I was eager to see the same, but in total I only saw five, and none of them particularly drew my attention. Despite the later afternoon hour, the sun was now quite intense, and the beach also had lots of broken coral and shells which made it uncomfortable to walk without special slippers like those I had bought earlier. Still, we were only there an hour, and like everywhere else we had been, it was still in its own way a very picturesque place to hang out for a bit while on vacation.

At 5:30 PM we headed back to where we had started from in Phuket. The last boat trip was only 28 minutes, and with the stunning cloud formations and the beautiful sunset, it was a perfect ending to our outing.

Phuket trip: Day 6 (28 Oct 2022)

Hey folks,

So this entry is less than a “Day 6” than it is an evening 6, and it’s mostly just a recount of our trip to Phuket FantaSea. In order to use funds from my PayPal balance, I bought the tickets through Trip.com, but the cost was about the same as buying direct from FantaSea. To be certain, the main website states that all resellers are obligated to sell tickets according to the official stated rate. I opted for the show + buffet with theater gold seat upgrade. So for two people it was $116.78 USD; paying at the park would have been 5100 THB. That does make it look like I got a bit of a discount, but I suspect it was just due to a favorable exchange rate issue.

In addition to the theater and buffet hall, there is a connected small, but beautiful “night theme park”, and entrance to the same is free with theater tickets. The park and buffet opens at 5:30 PM, with the show starting at 9:00 PM. Elisabet took care of the round trip transport via inDrive, paying a total of 740 THB ($19.42 USD). It was 14 km (8.7 miles) each way, taking about 35 minutes each way, mostly due to intermittent rain and rather twisty roads. We arrived at 6:30 PM.

From the moment we arrived, everything went very smoothly with the process to first exchange our electronic voucher for tickets and then to go through into the park area itself. Due to the light rain, not everything was fully operating, but there were still beautiful displays and nice shops with prices reasonably comparable to what one would pay elsewhere.

This area is clearly all about the pictures and of course the shopping. As we didn’t do any shopping, we focused our energy on the photos. It would have been nicer without the light rain, but it was nevertheless a magical experience. At around 7:40 PM we went through to the buffet hall.

The buffet was very well organized in order to minimize any long lines. The food was “decent” but not amazing. There was a fancier “seafood upgrade” pack we could have bought, but as I’m allergic to shellfish, that didn’t make much sense. Around 8:45 we made our way over to the theater entrance where I snapped one last photo of Elisabet before we got in line.

Cameras and recording devices were strictly prohibited within the theater, even to the extent that we were required to turn in our cellphones before entering. While this was initially disappointing since even the theater itself was very beautiful inside, I have to admit that this was a good idea on the part of the organizers since lighting played a very important role in the show. With such a huge theater, I have no doubt that people would otherwise have regularly been destroying the atmosphere with the light from the their screens.

The entire show itself was only a little over an hour, but it was so incredibly well done that I in no way felt that we had paid too much. Words really don’t do it justice, but that’s all I can offer. It was a mix of several different mini shows which kept us entranced for the entire time. They began with some sort of traditional Thai dancers. They then transitioned into a very elegant shadow puppets story which was followed up by a comedic magic show. Following that were the four black light lit trapeze artists with the final show being a mini play of a love story where the “princess” was captured by a demon and then of course triumphant battle to get her back.

The show itself had at least fifty (I think more like a hundred different people), several water buffalo, a flock of chickens, a group of goats, flying doves, a tiger, and of course elephants . . . All of which appeared on the massive stage. Our gold seats put us squarely in the middle of the stage at a perfect distance to still appreciate the immensity of it all. The only thing that was a bit difficult for us to fully appreciate were the trapeze artists, since they were almost immediately above our heads, so we had to strain our necks a bit to see. Despite the trapeze part, I’m definitely very glad I paid the gold seat upgrade.

Certainly, if you are ever in Phuket, you should definitely see if you can go to the FantaSea show. I’m almost certain that you’ve never before seen anything like it. Yes, I can understand why some people would have misgivings about the animals in the show. I didn’t have enough expertise to notice the same, but Elisabet thought that some of the elephants’ ears looked “mistreated”. To be fair, I didn’t think the elephants themselves actually added that much to the show; they could easily remove them and it would still be an amazing spectacle, but then I suppose that would also sort of undermine the whole “elephant theme” which was definitely dominant throughout the park.

While not impossible, it did take Elisabet some time to hail us a car to return. As soon as we got back to the house, we immediately headed up to our rooms since upon Elisabet’s recommendation and with Maria’s (My guide on day 5) help, we had planned a full day island hopping trip for day 7.

As I don’t tend to be much of a beach/ocean person, I had my doubts about a full day in the sun, but I was certain that with Elisabet along I would have a good time. Our trip to FantaSea had far exceeded my expectations, so I was starting to have the hope that the same thing might happen with the various island visits.

As always, thanks for following along with my travels and hopefully I’ll see you with day 7.

Phuket trip: Day 5 (27 Oct 2022)

Welcome back everyone!

Day 5 was a bit different as I had opted to go on a “full day” guided tour. As such, much of this entry could be read as a review. I first discovered the GetYourGuide app in Barcelona, but have since then referred to it several times. The app itself seems to be an aggregate of quality tours from different local providers in a given location. The prices there are always comparable or a bit less to those found elsewhere. I paid $58.50 USD for the From Phuket: Khao Lak Highlights Full-Day Tour and it was definitely worth that and more. I think the actual company that did the tour was TripGuru and my guide was Maria Wanpen Ngan-khang.

I was picked up at Elisabet’s house in Koh Kaew at 7:20 AM (10 minutes ahead of schedule) in a full-sized tourism van. I’m afraid that I neglected to write his name, but Maria said his name would translate as “chicken”. After about 5 minutes we picked up Maria, and that was when I discovered that I was actually going to be the only one on the tour; I had known that this was a maximum 10 person tour, but I was surprised (yet gratified) that they would still run it with only one person. The first stop en route was the Sarasin bridge which connects Phuket to Phang Nga province on the mainland.

We were fully across by 8:35 AM and continued on our way. The roads were excellent and the scenery beautiful. At 9:20 AM we arrived to the Royal Thai Navy Sea Turtle Conservation Center Phang Nga.

Volunteers clean both the tanks and the turtles on a daily basis (or at any rate, that’s what I understood)

Turtles are placed in different age groups, not being released until they are considered to be large enough to have a much better chance of survival.

I looked around at the conservation center until 10:03, and then we had a short trip to a Tsunami memorial center, arriving at 10:20 AM.

My guide Maria and the police boat which was left stranded on land to serve as a memorial for those who died trying to protect others.

It was a sobering experience to read some of the experiences of the survivors, including my guide Maria who had been on Phi Phi island that day. Now she is able to happily appreciate the beauty of today day as a survivor, but she remembers fleeing to the hills with her young son and the horror at knowing that so many others would not make it to high land on time. There wasn’t that much to actually see there, so by 10:40 we departed for the rafting center, arriving at about 11:15

I wasn’t really sure why we had to go this last little bit in the back of a pickup truck, but it was fine, just another addition to the whole experience.

The bamboo rafting experience was basically just me sitting while a very nice man pushed us along with a pole. Certainly the water was very clean looking, and the trees along the bank were pretty. The man managing the pole also kept an eye out for snakes etc in the trees and tried to point them out to me so I could take pictures, but with the distance and how well they were concealed, it was hard to capture them with my camera.

I was finished with the rafting by 11:50 AM, and Maria was waiting for me with coconut ice cream and an assortment of tasty toppings.

After eating my ice-cream with toppings I decided to go back to the restroom to change since I wasn’t planning on getting wet again that day. The bathrooms were very clean, and anyone would find them to be more than adequate.

By 12:25 we were back on the road headed towards Lampi waterfall, arriving at 12:50 PM. There were crystal clear pools of water around the waterfall where one could safely swim, but as I was traveling on my own, I didn’t see the point of getting in the water. Regardless, the area was very beautiful.

I was glad to see that the waterfall was officially declared safe for the day.

The bridge was sturdy but a possible safety concern were the bolts sticking out of the top of the wood where one walks. They were long enough to puncture through flip-flops and definitely could easily trip up an unwary walker.

I could have stayed longer and no doubt would have had I been accompanied by a friend or even just some other traveling partners, but by 1:30 PM I decided I was finished. Maria and the driver asked if I would like to go get something to eat, as they estimated that it would otherwise be 3:20 by the time I was back to the house. I told them that unless they were hungry, I would prefer to just head back and get something to eat at the house. They both agreed that it was fine to head back, and due to extremely favorable travel conditions, I was actually back at the house right at 2:40 PM.

Upon arrival I prepared a simple snack and wait for Elisabet to get back from work. I completely forgot to take down notes about times etc, but she suggested that we go check out Bang Tao beach which was relatively close by.

We had originally thought to have dinner at one of the beachfront restaurants there, but it started raining fairly heavily, so we opted instead to head back to the the house and eat something simple there. It was an absolutely wonderful day, and I was looking forward to all of the great experiences I would have during my remaining time visiting with Elisabet in Phuket.

I hope this entry has helped you see more of the outstanding adventures you can have while visiting Phuket. If you would like more information about anything I’ve mentioned just let me know in the comments section, and I will do my best to fill in any gaps.

See you next time!

Phuket trip: Day 4 (26 Oct 2022)

Hi there again!

As promised, today has a lot more action than the first three days and there might also be a bit of controversy about the way I decided to start out the day.

After a lot of internal debate, early in the morning I decided that it would be okay for me to go see the seal and dolphin 11 AM show at Dolphins Bay Phuket. Yes, I’m fully aware of the associated ethical issues and also fully aware that a lot of my readers will be upset that: (1) This show even exists, and (2) that I went to it. For those who are upset with me, if it helps, all I can say is that all of the animals seemed to be in very good health, and at least during the show itself, there was nothing that might remotely be interpreted as abusive behavior. With that in mind, once I decided to suspend my concerns, this was a really wonderful show.

It took me 45 minutes and 350 THB (9.26 USD) with inDrive to get there. I had “reserved” a deluxe seat online ahead of time, but that doesn’t really seem to be all that meaningful since you don’t pay until you arrive. Nevertheless, even though I barely arrived at 10:56 AM sharp, a worker immediately met me when the car arrived, quickly steering me to the ticket booth and ushering me smoothly until the performance area. I had a great seat, near the middle of the stage in the third row

I suppose ones luck may vary, but the only difference with the first two rows and the third row was that spectators were more likely to get wet in the first two rows. Also, I guess the most unobstructed pictures would also be from the first row. Regardless, I was happy with my deluxe seat which had a cost of 900 THB ($23.77). It seemed like the only way to pay was with cash, but they probably also accept local “Thai pay QR codes”.

The seal show was great, but clearly they were just meant to be the opening act. There was no doubt that the real stars here were the dolphins.

The show itself was only 35 minutes, but I definitely felt that it was worth what I had paid. Yes, there was a lot of shillling going on to get people to pay 400 more THB to have a picture with a dolphin but running a show like this, including the proper care of the animals and salaries of the trainers is no doubt expensive, and the crowd wasn’t that big. The 400 actually seemed like a reasonable amount given that a whole family could have a picture together rather than paying separately for each person. So IF you are the sort of person who would be okay with going to see a dolphin show, this is one which I highly recommend. If however you think I’m an evil person for going to see such a show, please just forgive my moment of weakness while on vacation.

Since it had been a very long trip to get to this area of Phuket, I decided to see if there was anything else reasonably close by that it seemed I might want to visit. I saw that there was another temple complex, Wat Chaithatharam, just three kilometers away. The temperature wasn’t too warm and it wasn’t raining, so I decided to walk.

Along the way, it started raining, so I decided “to shop” for awhile in a grocery until it let up. Unsurprisingly I didn’t actually buy anything, but I did like seeing all the different products. There were several snack foods that interested me, but I was afraid they might have shrimp byproducts in them, so I took a pass. Still, it was nice to see everything. Due to my shopping detour it took me 90 minutes to arrive to the temple complex.

The main tower of the complex can be seen to the left.

It rained intermittently while I was there, but my umbrella was more than adequate. Admission to the area was free, and there was a lot to see. No doubt I would have appreciated things more with a knowledgeable guide, but even wandering around on my own, it was a very good one hour visit, and I easily could have spent more time.

These seemed to be covered in gold leaf, much which was flaking, and I saw a couple of people stick little papers with tape on them. I assume that’s some sort of a prayer?

Here there were supposedly several Buddha relics. There was very little signage in English or Chinese, but there was quite a bit in Thai

It was 2:10 PM when I finished and then decided to return to Phuket town where I would be able to go to the Aquaria aquarium. I was a bit hesitant as I had already been to two different aquariums in Dubai less than a month ago. Still, it was more or less on the way back, so I figured that I may as well give it a try since my friend Elisabet would be busy at work until 5:00 PM.

It was 173 THB with inDrive to go to the aquarium, but I paid 200 ($5.28 USD) and by 2:30 PM I had arrived to the central Phuket mall, which is where the aquarium is located in the basement. There I paid a full price foreign adult entry fee of 890 THB (23.50 USD); I think I could have paid a bit less if I had bought the ticket through another online provider, but I wasn’t sure that I would be getting the “foreigner ticket” so I decided to just buy in person and go straight in. Again, as far as I could tell, it was either cash or “Thai pay” only; however, I didn’t ask.

The standard displays were nice enough but I was unfortunately comparing to my aquarium experiences from a couple of weeks ago in Dubai, so was not overly impressed. However, while the displays themselves were not outstanding as far as aquariums go, they did a good job with the two shows I saw, and that made it worth the visit.

The mermaid show which started at 3:00 PM was only a little over 5 minutes (maximum 10?) But they did a really great job with coordination of the music and the “mermaid’s” movements.

Then at 3:30 PM was the “feeding show.” In this case there wasn’t any music, but it still was rather interesting since for obvious reasons. The fish flocked around the diver, guaranteeing much better views, in particular some of the large manta rays. This went on for perhaps a full thirty minutes.

By 4:15 PM I had exited the aquarium and started finding my way outside of the mall. It is worth mentioning that if you are into that sort of thing, the mall itself also seemed quite nice, but I just wanted to get back to Elisabet’s house so we could visit once she was done with work. This time the quoted inDrive fare was 271 THB, but I again rounded up to 300 ($7.92) and was back at the house by 5:05 PM.

At 5:40 PM we once again went out walking, this time to The Boat Lagoon. It was a great walk and we had a wonderful time chatting, continuing to catch up with many different topics.

We then headed back towards Elisabet’s area for dinner, arriving at around 7:45 PM, this time eating at a tasty pizza and pasta place called Da Moreno Pizzería and Italian Restaurant; it’s definitely a place worth visiting if you are in the Koh Kaew area. A tasty, ample meal (truth be told it was probably too much food) for two was 750 THB (19.80 USD).

We were back to the house at 9:25 PM and both headed straight to our separate rooms. Elisabet was to have an extra long day at work the next day and I was to have a rather early start myself since day 5 was to be my special tour day.

I was a bit hesitant about doing a full day group tour to places unknown, but it promised to have many exciting adventures covering everything from sea turtles to water falls. While I was trying to keep my expectations in check, I really was rather excited to see what was to come. Spoiler alert, day 5 was even better than day 4! But, you’ll have to read the next entry to get the full details.

Thanks for continuing to follow along, and I’ll see you down the path!!

Phuket trip: Day 3 (25 Oct 2022)

Hi again folks,

I’m trying to churn these out a bit faster now so that there’s also the possibility of getting back to trips I had earlier neglected, so don’t be surprised if the next few entries come out very quickly.

On day 3 I really needed to sleep in, so didn’t actually wake up until 9 AM. To be fair, back home in Bengaluru it was 7:30 AM, so I wasn’t being incredibly lazy. I had a good shower, lazy breakfast of Kellogg’s Special K with almond milk and finally decided to get a car into Phuket town at 11:30 AM. Theoretically I could have tried the bus again, but it seemed rather unreliable, and I was already running late.

There are other types of local transport used by locals, but I feel like you need to know Thai to use those and even then you would need to know a lot more about your destination than I did. Elisabet had tipped me off that the Grab app was very reliable for car hailing, but also rather expensive. A much better option is inDrive; which seems to be a more democratic version of Uber. I didn’t want to mess around too much with price negotiations so I got a car for 246 THB but ended up paying 300 (8 USD) because the driver had no change. For Thai visitors this isn’t a problem because they have a ubiquitous payment system that works with QR codes, but visitors will need to keep lots of cash, preferably with smaller bills, since most places seem to not take cards. It may seem a little expensive for those who are used to prices in Southeast Asia, but it was 13 km (8.1 miles) and the cars seem to generally be very comfortable with good air-conditioning, which is something you are likely to value here. Anyways, by 12 noon I was in the historic part of Phuket.

I was rather excited to see these public telephones, both which appeared to be fully functional even though nobody was waiting to use them.

While everything was rather pretty, it was basically just lots of shops and places to get a bite to eat. I am not much of a random shopper, so endlessly looking in stores generally doesn’t do it for me. Also, as I had eaten breakfast rather late, I wasn’t yet ready to eat.

I got another possible “fraud alert” in my email from HDFC so decided that I needed to find a place to sit so that I could call and try to work things out with them. The reported charges had all been made by me, even using my passcode, but I was worried they might block my card. I attempted to follow the instructions given in their email to notify of my trip via Internet banking, but the instructions didn’t actually work since the webpage has since been redesigned. After about an hour of trying to call different HDFC numbers in India but never being able to resolve anything, I just gave up after sending a reply to the fraud alert email, hoping that an actual human would read it. Really, HDFC India needs to have a number where international travelers can call to speak to an real human when they are abroad. To be fair, this is the first time I had a problem with them while traveling, but I just hope they don’t block my card.

I then continued my wandering and found a small Buddhist temple complex. I forgot to get the name, but it’s right there in the center of the town, so it would be easy to find.

The instructions about the proper way to dress when visiting the temple were both helpful and easy to understand.

I wandered a bit more but noticed it was basically more of the same. There were a couple museums listed nearby, but I wasn’t really feeling up to museum visits, and today was some sort of a local memorial day, so I thought it likely they might be closed anyways. So at 2:30 PM I opted to go ahead and get some food at an open air eatery, Loktien Phuket local food, that seemed to have a few customers. The menu was mostly in Thai and the server didn’t understand English. Given both the obvious propensity of Thais to put bits of shrimp into food and my anaphylactic reaction to the same, I decided to play it as safe as possible.

Spicy pork, fried egg, rice and dragon fruit drink 80 BHT (2.12 USD).

The pork was good but yes, a tiny bit too much chili for me. Much later in the night I did have a bit of an upset stomach, but I think it was not because of any cleanliness issue but rather that I just wasn’t used to that much chili. The menu was quite inexpensive, for everything and I suspect the food here would be a real “authentic” treat for both seafood lovers and those who can handle/like a bit more chili in their food. As I was in no big hurry, I then decided to walk towards the bus stop and head back to Elisabet’s place in Koh Kaew.

See if you can appreciate the tree formation to the left

Here you can appreciate the tree better. I think it’s dead, but still it’s striking

After an hour of waiting for the bus and also noticing locals come, wait for awhile and then walk off, I decided it was a lost cause and once again took out my inDrive app. This time it was only 220 THB (5.83 USD) and I was actually taken in a VIP taxi. I didn’t think to take a picture of the outside, but it’s evidently a rather big deal. Certainly it was both spacious and very comfortable inside. I guess it’s usually more expensive, but if you were to have four people and it’s an option, I would definitely recommend the same.

The driver seemed great and the car was very nice, so I would recommend that you try him. Of course usually it would be with the meter rather than with inDrive rates.

It wasn’t until I arrived outside Elisabet’s house that I realized that arriving in a car like this was such a big deal. Several of the neighbors came running to look at the car and speak to the driver. Elisabet was also shocked and worried that I had paid too much, but she was quickly mollified when I told her the amount and also that I had used inDrive.

We chatted for a bit and then we decided to go for a walk around the area before it was too dark to start out.

As it was getting darker, Elisabet suggested that we check out the local neighborhood temple which she had not yet visited. As you can see, it was very nice.

We then had dinner at a nearby restaurant which Elisabet really likes called NaNa Healthy Cafe and Bistro. I would definitely recommend others to visit it.

The bill for both of us, including my coconut milk soup with chicken was 459 THB ($12.15 USD).

I really appreciate all the effort my friend is making to spend time with me. She has a full time teaching schedule, but she’s really making time to share with me every evening.

Next, we headed back to the house. It’s worth noting that Elisabet said she wouldn’t have been walking around in poorly lit areas like this by herself, and even with me, she steered us towards “more populated” areas. It may be that she is being overly cautious, but it seems like solo travelers, especially women, might want to exercise standard “reasonable caution” when wandering around at night in Phuket if they are a bit off the beaten path. It’s also worth noting that is not “normal” for people to walk around here, perhaps because of the heat and sun during the day?

We got back a bit late, had a little more chat and then Elisabet said she really needed to get to sleep, but that I would be welcome to stay up longer watching TV or something similar. However, I also wanted to get to bed at a reasonable hour, since I had quite a few plans for the next day while she would be at work.

As always, thanks for following along, and let me know if you want more information about anything I’ve mentioned. These first three days were a bit slow, but I think you will find both days four and five to be rather packed.

See you soon!

Phuket trip: Days 1-2 (23-24 Oct 2022)

Hey everyone,

I know it’s been ages since my last post and many of you know that I’ve actually done some traveling since then. However, I was just too occupied to update. I will however later on try to do at least an overview of my trip to the Bordeaux region of France

Catherine Viart (Friend and former colleague from Stonehill International School in Bengaluru and I near St. Astier in July 2022

and also my quick trip up to Dubai which was just a couple of weeks ago.

Annie, Kimmie and I taking a dinner break after the aquarium and before the dancing fountain in Dubai in late September 2022

For now though we are focusing on Phuket, where I went to visit with my dear friend and former colleague Elisabet Becerra. Elisabet and I worked together from 2016-2019 at DAIS school in Mumbai, where we both taught Spanish. I had previously tried to visit Elisabet and her husband Sergio in January of 2022 but the gift that keeps giving, COVID-19, once again put a wrench in my travel plans. At that time all three of us would have been free to travel and visit together, but it just didn’t work out. Nevertheless, I was determined to keep trying to visit as long as Elisabet was still happy to receive me.

My trip began at 7:30 PM on October 24th, with an 800 INR (9.70 USD) Uber from Purva Venezia in New Yelahanka to the Bengaluru airport which took right at 50 minutes.

Diwali decorations at my housing society had already started when I left on the 24th.

Due to reports of massive crowds in the previous days, I had wanted to make sure to arrive to the airport a full three hours ahead of time. Because of various drivers cancelling (which is incredibly normal in Bengaluru), even though the trip itself was relatively quick, I didn’t actually arrive to the airport until right at 9:00 PM. However, at least for international travel, the check-in process with Air Asia was very quick and there was also no line to speak of for security, so by 9:35 PM I was already at the entrance to the airport lounge. On that note, first special thanks to Dorothee Chareyron for introducing me to airport lounges in India and then to Ranmali Hapugalle for teaching me that I could always use my HDFC platinum debit card to get lounge access in India for only 2 INR, which is essentially free.

Perhaps the best reason to take advantage of the lounge pass is the buffet, especially if you have a wait longer than one hour. This was my first of two full plates of food.

I had the goal of eating a lot at the lounge so that I would sleep through my entire 4.5 hour flight to Kuala Lumpur which was due to leave at 11:25 PM. The seats on the plane were cramped and with a non-adjustable headrest, but I was jammed into a window seat where I could lean my head against the wall. So, I put on a sleep sounds app and was able to sleep about 3.5 hours despite the uncomfortable conditions. Upon arrival to KLIA at 6:00 PM security was quick, and then I made my way over towards my connecting gate area.

While the hall itself was very clean and reasonably comfortable, there just wasn’t enough to occupy me for a six hour layover.

While I had to admit that it was clever the way the bathroom mirrors were made to look like airplane windows, I nevertheless found it slightly disconcerting.

Considering the paucity of entertainment , at 9:00 AM I decided to cross the second security check to get over to the P gate area; I reasoned that maybe there was more to do on that side. In summary, I was completely wrong.

The gate area is exactly that and nothing more. There was nothing to do but sit and wait. There were a couple of very overpriced but simple eateries, one selling old pastries and instant noodles, and another selling slightly more presentable quick dishes. With nothing else to do, at 10:30 AM I bought a wonton noodle soup for 7.39 USD.

While I give them credit for at least attempting to make it more presentable, it was essentially just instant noodles with a couple of wonton thrown in. It tasted fine, but should have cost less.

Fortunately the gate opened right at 11:30 and the departure went smoothly with us taking off promptly at 12:30 PM. I was in a middle seat, and it was still incredibly cramped, but the flight was only 1.5 hours. As the flight was approaching Phuket, I had to admit that the view was amazing, with majestic small islands jutting out of the sea, and vibrant green landscape with plentiful bodies of water breaking up what otherwise could have become a monotonous green stretch of land.

Things went extremely smoothly with immigration and by 1:30 PM I had already withdrawn 3900 THB from the cash machine. I generally wouldn’t have bothered, but my friend Elisabet had warned me that many/most regular establishments in Phuket don’t take cards.

This robot cleaner was busy at work in the Phuket airport.

Maybe it’s just me, but I thought even the view from the airport window was quite beautiful with the vibrant green hilltop in the distance.

I was going to be staying with my friend Elisabet, and she would not be home until 4:00 PM, so I needed to kill some time before heading out of the airport. As I was also going to attempt taking the bus from the airport, per Elisabet’s instructions, I followed the signs to cross over to the domestic terminal. There were actually quite a few food options on that side, including a Burger King, but I opted for something more local since it was my first meal in Phuket.

Pork congee with soft-boiled egg and iced cappuccino 280 THB ($7.42 USD). It was tastier than it looks. I ordered it because I remember a character in a Thai drama I had watched was always eating congee.

I then asked around to see where I could get the yellow airport bus. It wasn’t “hard” to find, but you definitely won’t find it unless you are looking for it. Also, the bus schedule seems to be completely wrong. It was easy to pay the 100 THB (2.65 USD) in cash and tell the woman which stop I needed, and the seats were comfortable on the uncrowded bus. In contrast, a taxi would have been 650 THB direct from the airport or 450 if I were to have walked a bit away from the airport and then used a ride hailing app called inDrive. Of course taking the bus also meant I would have to walk some once I arrived, but I only had a light backpack so was fine with that since the weather was pleasant enough.

I had been warned that masks were expected on the bus, so I had mine available. Nevertheless I found it a bit silly that the woman went around checking our temperature five minutes after we had already departed. Still, I acknowledged that the ticket lady was “doing her job” well, since there was no obvious indication of the stops, and she made sure everyone got off where they had indicated upon buying the ticket.

I arrived to my stop by 4:08 PM and loaded up my Google map app with walking instructions to Elisabet’s house. The route was rather random and evidently not even the best way, but it was a nice walk with lots of interesting things to see along the way.

Woohoo! Together again with Elisabet Becerra after 3 years and 4 months!

After a leisurely 40 minutes I arrived and had a nice chat with Elisabet while getting settled into the guest room of her beautiful home. We went for a quick bite at a nearby restaurant, but we both agreed that the food although “fine” was uninspiring. Still, it was the company that mattered.

Tomorrow’s plan is to try to check out Phuket old town while Elisabet is at work, and then spend more time with her, exploring nearby after she gets home from work. Regardless of what actually happens, I’m sure it will be a great day. Thanks for reading along and feel free to let me know if you have questions about anything I saw or how to get around any of the places I’ve mentioned. I will immediately try to follow up with the next entries.

A beautiful background while I was walking to Elisabet’s house.

Virginia trip tidbits and a rant about modern day air travel fees: 3-14 July

Hey everyone, I know it’s been some time since I last updated. As with my recent post about Costa Rica, this entry is of a more personal nature, so feel free to skip it and wait for my upcoming excursion to France. However, in particular if you are not from the United States, you might be interested in some of the information about USA Independence Day, the oddly North American (I’m not actually sure if Canada also does this.) practice of selling off the worldly remains of dead relatives, and Busch Gardens amusement park! Let’s start though with the joys of modern air travel.

As my basic practice is to buy the cheapest air ticket possible, with some minimal allowances for time of departure and arrival, I frequently don’t have the most comfortable flying experience possible. Many people assume that means that I am mostly on lesser known “budget carriers”, but it’s actually just as frequent that I fly with big name airlines. Spoiler alert, well-known does not mean a nicer trip. But hey, if you want to save some money, that might also mean that you have to pay for it in other ways. Certainly that’s the approach taken by American Airlines (the company, not all airlines from the United States).

Don’t get me wrong. It’s still a safe (I hope!) way to travel, but they really want to punish you for daring to spend less. But don’t worry; they will do everything possible to get you to spend more. This is also by no means a characteristic exclusive to American Airlines, but they really seem to have perfected the art of punishing the budget conscious traveller, especially on shorter international flights within the Americas and of course pretty much all domestic flights.

It used to be that getting a decent economy seat was all about timing. If you wanted a good spot, you simply made sure to be one of the first to show up at the airport. Later on, when online check-in became a thing (I remember being excited about this in 2004, but also feeling a bit sorry for the less computer savvy). Again, you were rewarded for being the first to check-in. Even if you’ve never flown, you know the phrase; “Do you prefer an aisle or a window seat”? Heck, you could even score a coveted exit row seat with its additional leg room. All you had to do was be conscientious about doing things early. Notice how nobody ever asks, “Hey, would you like the cushy middle seat?” There’s a reason for that. Now, it’s all about the money.

If you dare to not pay more for a specifically chosen seat, even the dreaded middle seat, you are assigned to group nine purgatory (more on this in a minute). Frankly, this is just spiteful punishment. I’m not saying I like the “additional charges” we’ve all come to expect from modern day air travel, but at least some of them make some degree of sense. A little over twenty years ago, it was expected that your economy ticket price would always include the following: a full size carry on bag, a usually unappetizing but still present meal, and wait for it . . . TWO full sized pieces of checked luggage for no additional cost! As mentioned earlier, you could frequently express a window/aisle preference, but we also knew that we might not get it, especially if we showed up late to the airport.

Now not everyone will agree with me on this one, but especially for domestic flights, I always found the included two pieces of full size luggage to be a bit much. I mean it was great that it was included, but did we really need it? Was it really that big of a deal when it was reduced to just one checked bag? I didn’t think so. However, when they took away the included ONE piece of checked luggage, I was a bit annoyed. Still, in terms of reducing cost, taking into account weight and space, it made sense. You could still have checked bags, but you would have to pay. Furthermore, did we really need/want a usually tasteless, rushed meal on a less than a 2-3 hour flight? Especially if you could actually get something tasty, I was fine with eliminating the included bland airline gruel in favor of paying separately for something you might actually want to eat. It was when they started to charge for seat selection, even if you weren’t getting more space or something obviously more comfortable, that I just became disgusted. Regardless, even though I thought it was wrong, I understood the logic. It was nasty, but it made sense from a certain viewpoint.

So what exactly is Group 9, and why is it so absurd? If you dare to want to fly without paying for any self-selected seat assignment, even if like me you paid for a checked bag (because you were transporting something in a large glass bottle for a friend) then you are punished by being in group 9. American Airlines tries very hard to find the most unpleasant seat for you, and you don’t board until everyone else has gone onto the plane, regardless of where your seat is actually located. To be fair, once you are on the plane if some better seat is unoccupied, the flight attendants are usually happy to let you switch to a better spot. The reason this is absurd is the part where they make you wait until everyone else has boarded to get on the plane, even if you are in the very last row of the plane and they are only boarding from the front. This ends up slowing down the boarding process for everyone, including those who have paid to choose their own seats. In summary, it’s just petty bullying. But hey, thank you for choosing American Airlines.

Here however is a cost cutting idea which I thought made sense. Almost everyone on the plane is already accustomed to watching videos on phones or personal tablets so why bother to put in those clunky LCD screens. Instead, they have installed handy phone/tablet trays. You can connect to the free plane wifi and stream their video selection on your own device.

My flight arrived to Norfolk airport at 12:10 AM on the 4th. This was my first time here, as in the past I’ve always flown into nearby Newport News. Most travelers will already know this, but if applicable, always check nearby airports to see if you will get better prices and/or better travel times. While Norfolk airport was 14 miles further from my final destination, flying into here saved me 12 HOURS of travel and was 100 USD cheaper than flying into my regular airport. That’s what I call a big advantage!

The airport was smaller than I had expected, but quite nice.

There was a nice art display as I exited to the pick-up area.

It was easy to meet my sister and we were off to the house in Newport News. Unsurprisingly it had been more expensive to fly so close to July 4th in the USA, but it was important for me since for the last several years I’ve tried very hard to spend both Independence Day and my birthday (July 13th) with my family members. Obviously I missed two years ago, but otherwise had been going strong with this for 15+ years.

The morning and early afternoon of the 4th I helped my brother Chris with some woodwork.

It was great to see how well he was doing. We were all very worried after his two strokes in November of 2020. His recovery is still underway, but he is much better now.

For dinner we had this amazing ribeye, stir-fried vegetables and a mixed green salad.

After dinner Chris, Angie (my sister) and I headed to the nearby Independence Day celebrations in Newport News. Living in the United States can be very expensive, but the local park service here regularly has fun, free, wholesome activities which are open to the public. This was one of them, and I have to say that they did an amazing job.

First we got my sister settled in a good spot where she could both appreciate the concert and then the fireworks display.

My brother and I wanted to check out the concession stands.

There was a nice, orderly crowd eagerly awaiting the show.

I enjoyed the concert much more than I had anticipated. These musicians were true professionals, including a particularly talented female vocalist.

The unexpected highlight of the concert was a passionate original poetry reading/interpretation by retired Chief Master Sargent Rothwell. This woman is a national treasure!

The armed forces medley song honoring each branch of the armed forces was also much more moving than I would have thought. As they sang the song for each branch of the armed forces, current and retired members of the armed forces as well as their family members stood to be recognized for their sacrifice and service to the nation. With three siblings who are both current and honorably retired/veteran army members, I was the first to jump to my feet and and proudly stand both to recognize them and also to accept the recognition by association that comes from being a member of a family with so much public service to country.

Again, I was so thankful to be able to spend the holiday with two of my siblings.

Perfectly timed and starting out still being supported by music from the USAF American Heritage band, the fireworks started at 9:10 PM and continued without interruption until 9:40 PM. I know that human memory is imperfect, but I really do believe this was the best professional fireworks display I had ever seen. The pictures of course don’t do it justice, but take my word for it, they were amazing.

Oh the second to last full day of my visit, July 12th, we were off to Bush Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia.

On that note, professional displays like these really are much more impressive than the backyard ones many people in the USA like to do; they are also safer and probably cheaper. So if you are in the United States and have a high quality local parks service like Newport News does, rather than doing a backyard barbeque and amateur fireworks, just pack a picnic dinner and head out to the local public celebrations. You will find it to be an outstanding holiday celebration. Certainly that was our experience.

Rather than giving out sparklers, the parks service gave one of these plastic LCD wands to each person in attendance. While I was happy to have it, I also felt kind of bad about it as it seemed like the sort of thing which would only be used once a year. Certainly they CAN/SHOULD be saved for next year, but how many people will do that. Regardless, they were fun to play with.

The next day, July 5th, my brother and sister had to go up north to Fort Belvoir, so I used this time to visit my dear friend Janet and her husband Chris. I’ve known Janet now for more than twenty years, but only had the privilege of meeting Chris about 5-6 years ago. Janet and I first met doing English language community theater programs in Costa Rica and then continued getting together on a monthly basis to play charades, something which Janet always carefully organized for different English speaking friends in the San Jose, Costa Rica area.

Proving that it really is a small world, when Janet had left Costa Rica years ago, she moved to an area less than 20 miles away from my sister in Virginia! We visited for about 8 hours and every moment was great.

It was great to see that both Janet and Chris were in such good health. They are both really outstanding people.

Jumping ahead a couple of days, on July 8th my sister and I went to an estate sale. This may happen in other places in the world, but I’ve only seen it as a common occurrence in the USA. Sometimes they are auctions, but other times it’s more like a garage or yard sale where things are placed in and around the person’s home, with price tags attached. If you aren’t familiar with the concept, it’s fairly simple if somewhat bizarre for the uninitiated. I think they may also at times happen under other circumstances, but usually it’s when some family member dies and the remaining family members sell all their stuff that nobody wants. You can get high quality stuff for really good prices, but in many cases there’s a good reason no family member wanted the items. Most of the stuff here seemed to be of good quality.

All of these solid wood furniture pieces were priced at only 75 USD each and they were all in pristine condition. Some of the other stuff though seemed a bit pointless and other items was just sad, since it was clear they were items which had been of some personal significant to the deceased. I sort of understand with the large, more expensive items, but I think I would be more inclined to simply give away random dishes and trinkets. It would be very odd for me to stick pricetags on my dead loved one’s personal items. But then I’ve never really been in that position, so I don’t want to judge anyone else. Still, it seems weird.

The next couple of days were more or less uneventful with us just doing standard stuff around the house

My brother had things arriving from his old place on the 11th.

Yes, this piece of chicken breast from Bojangles really was that large. It’s not a camera trick.

On my second to last full day in Virginia, we went to Busch Gardens theme park in Williamsburg, Virginia. We were there from 11 AM to 7 PM. Yes, it’s a fun place to spend the day, but it’s also crazy expensive. Even though I suspect that few people ever pay the full official daily entry fee of 99 USD per person, they have things setup in a way that means as a general rule, you will probably spend at least 75 USD per person and it wouldn’t be strange to spend more like 150. Of course, people who live nearby and really like going can get special season passes, but one way or another, they’re gonna get their money, and it’s a lot. Of course it is POSSIBLE to spend less using special passes etc, but that also means you will constantly be monitoring every dollar (no pennies here) spent all day long. Once you’ve accepted that and still decided to go, you can enjoy your day at the park.

It had originally been my plan to wear this dorky neck fan all day long, but there was enough shade, breeze and inside air conditioned spaces that it wasn’t needed. It also had to of course be constantly removed for rides.

If I remember correctly, we rode five different roller coasters, but there was one we skipped, because my brother and sister said that their heads had been banged around on it before. Although they were all fun, especially when doing with friends or family, five was more than enough.

Lunch in the “German town” section of the park was tasty, but like everything else, very expensive. To be fair though, it was a comparable cost to eating in most kind of nice (but not “fancy”) restaurants in this area of Virginia.

I was eager to get these fifty-cent (limit two per person) glasses of Budweiser light beer, since a simple bottle of water was 4 USD

Chris really wanted this roasted turkey leg. He gave me a bite, and it was delicious.

Angie in particular really enjoyed the concert by Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr

And then our fun family day at Bush Gardens was finished.

The following day, my birthday (July 13th), my brother and sister took me out to eat at a nearby branch of the Olive Garden after we had spent much of the day visiting with our family friend TJ. For some crazy reason I didn’t think to take any pictures during the visit with TJ, but she did give me a lovely painting which her daughter had made.

The next day was my final day in Virginia, but I didn’t fly out until the evening, so I was still able to convince Chris to take me to the nearby SPCA petting zoo in the morning. I was a bit disappointed that the rabbits weren’t out, but for three dollars a person, and knowing the money was going towards a good cause, it was still definitely worth the visit.

Then we were back to the house for a nice lunch of salmon and mixed vegetables.

Of course there were many other great events during the visit, just as every single day has many amazing moments. Sometimes, we just forget to pay attention. For my part, I plan on paying attention to every special interaction and every beautiful sight as I travel through each day no matter where I am. I invite you to do the same. Until next time, thanks for reading!

Costa Rica trip insights and highlights: Part 1 (28 June – 3 uly)

Hey everyone, a lot in this post is of a more personal nature rather than a general travel blog post, so you might just choose to skip it. Furthermore, those of you who do not know me closely may not realize that I’m actually a Costa Rican citizen, so my experience traveling back to Costa Rica was primarily to see old friends and take care of various items of personal business rather than to have a typical travel discovery experience. Regardless, you still may find something of value, and you are certainly most cordially invited to continue following along with some of my adventures.

My trip back to Costa Rica started with a 5 euro bus ticket to the airport from Atocha station. I’m not really sure why, but my Madrid pass didn’t work for that one. However it was easy to tap my international card from India and we were on our way. People told me I was being overly cautious, but it was a good thing I got there three hours ahead of time. Both check-in and security took quite a long time, and had I arrived later, I would have missed the flight. Despite the slow progress, everyone was friendly, and I didn’t feel especially stressed.

As I was worried about the food on IberoJet, I bought a quick snack to take on board. There was no time to eat anything more since they were already finishing up with boarding when I arrived to the gate.

Despite the stringent travel rules listed on their website, for the future I’ll know that IberoJet actually seems to be far less restrictive with their luggage rules than they claim. They didn’t weigh anyone’s carry-on bag, and standard maximum size carry on bags seemed to be acceptable. Furthermore, despite being expressly forbidden, they allowed both a personal item and separate carry on bag to be taken onto the plane. Still, I was actually happy to be traveling with so little.

Boarding went according to schedule, but then we ended up sitting on the runway for a bit over 2.5 hours, once more due to passengers arriving late from other planes (They were only an hour late, but we had missed our runway spot so had to wait for ground control to find us a new spot.) As mentioned in an earlier post, this seems to now be much more normal than has been my experience with past years of international travel. So, it was actually 5:30 PM when we finally lifted off.

Even though it was such a budget travel option, the economy seats were reasonably comfortable and there was a full in flight entertainment system, albeit with mostly rather old movies and television series. Still, the selection seemed alright.

I watched two movies, Tides (2021) which was a bit predictable, but fine for an airplane movie and The Farewell (2019) which was actually very good. Honestly I had wanted to sleep most of the trip, but it just wasn’t happening. In retrospect, as I ended up arriving at 7:20 PM instead of 5:00 PM which had originally been programmed, it’s probably better that I didn’t sleep. That way I was more prepared to sleep properly at night.

Perhaps the most amazing thing on the plane was this woman who was intensely doing word searches the entire trip! Her ternacity was admirable. The way she went at it, you would have thought she was working out a solution to a complex equation. I wondered, would I get to her age, and if I did, would some guy in his late forties be examining me out of the corner of his eye? Would I still be happily traveling across the ocean as she was? I hope so.

Two hours and twenty minutes before arrival they did the complimentary snack service.

The snack which was served near the end of the flight.

The meal which was served shortly after take off. Notice the utensils; supposedly they weren’t plastic, but I couldn’t figure out their material.

During the snack, now resigned to not being able to sleep, I watched Charm City Kings (2020). I couldn’t actually decide if it was a good movie or not. Yes, it was impactful, but I couldn’t tell how much of it was supposed to be showing something real vs. how much of it was some sort of broken sad fantasy of life for a certain segment of the population in the United States

Upon arrival to Costa Rica and clearing immigration, even though it was already 8:00 PM, I decided to take two buses from the airport to my Airbnb in San Pedro. Doing this saved me roughly 45 USD but I would also have to walk roughly one kilometer through San Jose to catch the second bus. Metropolitan buses in Costa Rica are paid for using cash, generally not offering anything larger than a 2000 colon bill, but many times they will let you use a 5000. This was easy enough for me to manage and certainly possible even for someone who had never before been to Costa Rica, but I’m not sure I would advise it.

It works well if you only have a small bag, but would be very tricky with standard checked luggage. Of course, if by chance you are simply heading to the center of San Jose or Alajuela (only one bus) then it is even easier. While metropolitan area buses in Costa Rica are generally clean, affordable and efficient; the problem is that you have to either ask people where the stops are or already have a good idea ahead of time. Google maps won’t help you with the local bus lines and there are no reliable maps of the routes. So if you plan on using public transport in Costa Rica, which I highly recommend, you will have to be comfortable asking people for directions, and most of the time you will need to be able to do so in Spanish. However, Costa Ricans are generally very understanding of broken Spanish and will try to help you find your way.

It was right at 10:00 PM when I finally arrived to my lodging which was in a private home (Airbnb) about a half of a kilometer south of the center of San Pedro. My hostess was kindly waiting for me and I gratefully immediately crashed on my comfortable full size bed to sleep.

I woke up early the morning of the 29th to discover it was still drizzling, just as it had been the previous evening. I confirmed with my good friend Marco that we would meet later in the morning to have lunch. But before doing so I had an important errand, a visit to Paragüeria Rego!

The Rego umbrella factory is a Costa Rican institution. This is perhaps not surprising in a country where it rains heavily between 8-9 months a year.

They take umbrellas very seriously, and they even have a repair station. A properly cared for Rego umbrella can easily serve you for ten years or more.

Rego has a wide variety of styles and sizes. They are more expensive than cheap imported umbrellas from Asia, but they take deserved pride in their products, because they are high quality. If you buy nothing else in Costa Rica, I suggest you pick up a Rego umbrella. Take proper care of it and it will take good care of you for a lifetime. I paid 12,500 colones (18 USD) for my mini-golf umbrella which opens up to golf umbrella size but collapses into a size easily able to carry in a large purse or similar sized bag.

The company was great and the ambience pleasant.

Lunch for two at La Parrilita de Pepe was 14700 colones (21 USD). The food was “good” but I don’t think I will be going back. You can have much better in Costa Rica. But still, a lot of people like coming here.

After lunch, Marco had errands to run and I decided to wander around San Jose for awhile.

This statue, Al viento by Manuel Vargas M, marks the west entrance to the central avenue boulevard.

Costa Rica’s oldest continuously functioning hospital, San Juan de Dios, is diagonal to the Al Viento statue. This was the hospital I used to always go to in San Jose.

One block to the east of the San Juan de Dios hospital is the La Merced church.

It had been years since I had actually entered La Merced church (I think it officially has another name, but most people just call it the La Merced church), so I decided to see if I could go in to look around. It’s not one of the main “showcase” churches of Costa Rica, but it’s well known and has always been one of my favorites. The main doors were closed, but I was able to enter using the side entrance.

Notice the delicate, intricately hand painted pillars and the classic “mosaico” floors.

I actually find the rich wood ceiling slats to be just as beautiful as the heavily painted ceilings seen in many other traditional churches.

Then I continued my walk up towards the San Pedro bus stop, passing through the main part of central San Jose.

This sculpture to honor the work of street cleaners is found in Central Park.

Soon after, heavy rains started once again, and I headed back to my room for the night, getting in bed by 8:00 PM. I was tired!

The next day, July 30th, I met my dear friend Carolyn for lunch at San Pedro Mall. This is not really a classy destination, but most of Costa Rica is not at all wheelchair friendly, and Carolyn can now only go out in a wheelchair. We wanted some place nearby where we could get something to eat and also walk around a bit, being protected from the probable rains, as we visited and also looked for a few small items that Carolyn needed to buy. Her full time helper Guillermina, a woman with whom I was very impressed, came along to ensure Carolyn wouldn’t have any problems while we were out being sociable.

We were able to find all of Carolyn’s purchases, including size 42 women’s “smart casual” shoes! This last one was a particular treasure since Costa Ricans tend to have smaller feet, and anything larger than a 40 is extremely rare for women.

The only thing we couldn’t find was a new laptop computer which Carolyn’s daughter had asked me to look for; however, we were able to confirm that Carolyn would feel comfortable using a large laptop form factor. This was also important because Kathryn (Carolyn’s daughter in Texas) wanted to give her mom a new computer, but she knew Carolyn would need help transferring her old files etc. As such, I had agreed to find the computer for Carolyn, and help get it ready, with Kathryn transferring me the money afterwards. I was disappointed we couldn’t buy it right away, but I now knew what to look for on my own.

Around 4:00 PM Carolyn wasn’t feeling that great, so we decided to head back to her house. There we visited for a bit longer and she played some of her favorite hymns on the piano.

Afterwards I had a simple traditional dinner and a beer at a nearby “soda”, paying only 3800 CRC (5.5 USD) and then headed back to my room to sleep.

Yes, that’s a “double size” beer. Pilsen is one of the two main national beer brands.

Despite my best efforts to the contrary, I was once again up at 5:00 AM on July 1st. As it had been more than 15 years since I had visited the Jade museum, I decided to reacquaint myself with this interesting site. I entered at about 8:20 AM.

Whereas many people will tell you there is no point in visiting San Jose, I vehemently disagree. Removing San Jose from your trip to Costa Rica is the equivalent of treating the entire country of Costa Rica like an amusement park. Yes, Costa Rica’s natural beauty is the main draw for tourists, but the city of San Jose also has a good deal to offer. Most notably, especially for such a small country, San Jose has a vibrant performing arts scene. Additionally, San Jose also has some outstanding museums.

If you could only visit one, I would probably have to recommend the Gold museum. However, the Jade museum is also a great cultural addition to any trip, and it can easily be fully appreciated with just a couple of hours. The stated entrance fee for non-nationals is 10 USD, but as a citizen I only paid 5 USD. While they don’t publicly state it, special admission fees can be arranged for student groups. Similar to many museums worldwide, you can easily access an audio guide to the museum on your smartphone, but this one is completely free; it is available in born Spanish and English.

There is no advantage to starting your visit on the first vs the fifth floor, so I decided to start at the top and work my way down. I appreciate that the fifth floor is open to the public, but it is more of a tidy storeroom than an exhibit hall. This is primarily a space for researchers, but the general public also has limited access.

There aren’t many explanatory signs as this is primarily meant to be a space for researchers, but artists in particular would appreciate the convenient grouping which facilitates the recognition of key artistic elements from different time periods and geographic regions.

You can even open the many drawers, and I encourage you to do so.

Moving down to the fourth floor, you find that one half of the space is dedicated to honoring specific important women from Costa Rica’s history. The other half approaches jade and pottery with a focus on gender, similar to the other exhibition on this floor, highlighting the role of women in prehistoric Costa Rica.

In addition to the audio guide, throughout the museum there are these conveniently located video guides which give more information about specific sections. While the video guides are ostensibly for children, they are also useful for adult visitors. Audio is in Spanish with English subtitles.

Each of the other floors has a specific emphasis. I won’t go into all of the details since the museum webpage had extensive information which is easy to access. Still, there were some items which drew my attention.

While not “jade related” I was impressed with the work done by the curators to rescue and document the quality work done by female painters in Costa Rica. Without this effort, most of these artists would have been completely forgotten.

The gift shop was sad and seemed like an afterthought. It was also a definite missed opportunity to sell classy jade reproductions. This can definitely be improved.

I was finished by 10:15 AM and then tried to go by the social security office to check on some personal business. Unfortunately, almost two months later, they still aren’t taking regular consultations due to a massive hacking attack by two different Russian groups. Daily operations have been mostly restored, but they are still having problems with full administrative functions. As that didn’t work out, I decided to meet up again with my friend Marco so we could get some lunch and then continue on the hunt for a new computer for Carolyn.

We decided to get a simple, but ample lunch at the Bourbon market. For two people it was only 3000 CRC (4.30 USD)

Computer stores are now hard to find in Costa Rica, and I was starting to get discouraged. I had the option of buying online, but I really wanted a physical store as I thought this would be easier for warranty purposes and possible future repairs. I commented to Marco about this and he mentioned that he was very happy with the laptop he had bought from PC Store right in the center of San Jose, and the cost had also been affordable.

Success! I was able to get a brand new 17 inch HP Windows 11 laptop with 8 gb of RAM for right at 500 USD. It wasn’t particularly powerful, but more than enough for Carolyn’s needs and with a large monitor which would be greatly appreciated. Within 4 hours it was all setup in Carolyn’s home and she was very happy with the new gift from her daughter.

Carolyn had been worried about switching to a laptop from her old desktop with a CRT monitor, but she handled the transition like a trooper. She still preferred the old keyboard and mouse, but that was easy enough to leave connected via USB.

Guillermina prepared a wholesome meal which we all three enjoyed together.

I then headed to downtown San Jose to go to one of the many independent theatres. That’s one of the biggest things I love about this city. While most of the independent theatres have low brow comedy, even that frequently has deeper messages. Regardless, I think it’s amazing that so many theater groups are active in such a relatively small city. Shows are usually Thursday to Friday, so I figured I would be able to find something decent.

As I was looking at the offerings, I heard a voice call out (in Spanish); David, it’s me, David Josué. How have you been? David Josué was one of my two best friends in Costa Rica for many years, but due to various circumstances, we had completely lost contact for more than 7 years! There will be more about him tomorrow.

Some street art near a cluster of independent theatres.

I finally decided on Teatro Torres, even though it wasn’t actually a theatrical performance that night. It was a standup comedy night with four amateur comedians. It was a bit vulgar at times, but that’s typical of independent theatres in Costa Rica (and of much standup comedy everywhere), so it wasn’t that much of a surprise. Still, for only 4000 CRC (5.85 USD) with 2.25 hours of entertainment in relatively comfortable seats, it was definitely worth it. Also, given that they said upfront that most of them had never been on stage before, allowances had to be made.

Then I headed back to my room with the plan of meeting up with David Josué the next day at 1:00 PM at my favorite Korean restaurant in downtown San Jose.

On July 2nd I was once more up early and headed to the Curridabat branch of BNCR (National bank of Costa Rica), as it is open early on Saturday and I had some customer service issues to resolve. Since it was only about 1.5 km away and fortunately not raining, I decided to just walk over.

This space saucer looking place is called the national archive. I have no idea what is actually in there.

The streets were mostly empty at 8:30 AM

It was easy to take care of my issue with BNCR, but also a bit disturbing. The online banking system had been acting up the last several days and $1000 USD appeared to be missing from my account. Hopefully they get this problem fixed quickly since the entire point of online banking is that you shouldn’t need to frantically go in person! Still, at least in my case it got worked out quickly and then I grabbed a bus to downtown San José.

Yes, I know this photo makes me seem like a scary stalker.

WOW!, a bus driver who was a woman! I’ve never before seen a woman who was working as a bus driver in Costa Rica. It was the Zapote-San Jose route. Really, I was very excited to see that. Maybe it’s not a job that most women want, but it’s great to see that it now seems to be accepted fine in Costa Rica. Nobody seemed to be surprised to see her (except for me of course).

Once I arrived to the center, I walked towards the restaurant. On the way I passed by the national theatre and checked to see if there was anything on for the evening, but I didn’t notice any shows being publicized. Here there are frequently concerts, dance presentations and very occasionally a play. It’s been some time since I went there, but prices tend to be accessible to the general public. Unlike what happens at the independent theatres, productions here are understandably far more serious, with both high quality international and domestic presentations.

Like in most plazas across the world, there are pigeons galore. Even though it’s posted that feeding them is prohibited, there is clearly a reason that they still congregate.

Large student groups like these are super common during the period from June-July. This isn’t really considered “the best” time to visit Costa Rica, but it’s when they have long vacations.

View of the front of the national theatre

David Josué and I met at 1:00 pm for lunch at a great Korean restaurant called Fritos. The ambience isn’t amazing and the menu is limited, but everything is tasty and reasonably priced. It was completely packed when we were there.

We spent about two hours just catching up. Even after more than seven years with no contact, it was as if we had never been apart. That’s when you know that you are real lifelong friends. Ideally the lapses in time wouldn’t happen, but if you can pick back up right where your left with no awkwardness, then that’s an amazing feeling. Afterwards, for a change of scenery, we decided to head over to Mall San Pedro where we continued sharing until 9:00 PM! As I had mentioned earlier, this mall isn’t fancy, but it definitely serves it’s social purpose.

We finished up the evening with dinner at Revolución.

And with that the day was basically over and I headed back to my room for the last time. The next morning I once again easily took the bus to the airport and headed off to Virginia where I would be visiting with my brother Chris and sister Angie.

Again, sorry for the long post, and if you were hoping for a more touristy entry, then oops, but then you were warned at the beginning! My trip to Costa Rica (which will continue for a few more days after my visit to the USA) was probably very different from what yours might be, but I think you will still find it’s a great place to visit. If you have any questions or comments, just let me know in the space indicated below, and if your are really interested in what travels come next, just hit the subscribe button. Until next time, I hope your own lives are going well. See you soon!

View of Plaza de la Democracia (Democracy plaza) and the national museum in the background.

Spain trip: Days 4-5 (26-27 June)

Hello again. As there isn’t that much to say about day 4, I will put days 4 and 5 in a single post.

On the 26th I got up a bit late, showered etc, and then went by metro to Barcelona Sants station in order to catch my 11 AM train to Madrid. The cost of the train ticket was 88 USD one way, with a trip duration of 2 hours and 45 minutes. I actually could have caught a flight for slightly less, but by the time one has to arrive early to the airport etc, for such a short distance, it’s actually better by train. Usually one travels in a much more comfortable fashion, with nice scenery and definitely with much less stress. Or at any rate, that’s the case when traveling in Europe.

I had an electronic copy of the ticket, but just in case, I printed a cardstock copy here.

We arrived right on time at 1:45 PM and after buying a two day metro pass for around 15 USD (As I ended up walking most places, this wasn’t near as good of a buy as the metro pass I had purchased in Barcelona), I immediately headed out walking to the nearby D’ La Brasa restaurant to meet with my future Spanish teaching workmate Sonia and her family. This was to be our first time to meet in person, and I was very thankful to her and her family for arranging things so we could meet, especially as they were also dealing with a tight travel schedule. We had a wonderful extended traditional Spanish lunch and then all ran off quickly after two hours. Unfortunately we all forgot to take pictures, but we will once more have the pleasure of each other’s company soon. Unexpectedly, but much appreciated, Sonia picked up the tab, so I have no idea how much it costs to eat there, but all the food was outstanding.

Both the restaurant and my AirBnB were very close to Atocha station, so within 15 minutes I was in my room for the next couple of days. Lodging options are far less expensive in Madrid than in Barcelona, but I had still chosen an Airbnb due to the convenience of the location and yes, also the very good cost.

It drew my attention that despite the relatively few people of African origin I otherwise saw in Spain, everyone selling items on the sidewalk near Atocha station was a young man of African ancestry between 25 and 35 years of age.

The window had steel security blinds which are common to Spain. I couldn’t figure out how to lower them the first night and actually ended up raising them all the way instead. To sleep, I had to hang a blanket on the window.

The tiny housecat was incredibly friendly, meowing insistently to get attention from anyone foolish enough to listen.

After I had settled in, on Eventbrite I noticed a free dance exhibition called Dances of the Orient in a different part of the city. It would take 40 minutes to reach, but I only had an hour until the starting time of 6:00 PM.

Unfortunately, I got turned around two different times (on two different trains) in the subway and still wasn’t sure of how to get there, so at 6:05 PM I finally just gave up. It was much harder to navigate the subway in Madrid than it had been in Barcelona!

As luck would have it, I found myself near Puerta del Sol, which was undergoing renovations. The outing had been a bit of a bust, but it was still nice to see some of the architecture typical of the area.

I finished up the evening with an overpriced 5 euro beer and headed home for the evening.

Despite my improvised solution to the window problem, I slept well and was up by 8:00 AM on the 27th, determined to make the most of my only full day in Madrid. Lacking any other guide, I checked out the Lonely Planet top attractions for Madrid and decided to make that my general plan. I would start with the Basílica de San Francisco el grande and finish up the day at Parque el Retiro.

This time I figured out the subway lines okay, probably because I wasn’t in a rush. I still had to walk a bit from the subway station, but there were nice things to see.

I tend to not really appreciate street art of it’s where I live, but I like it when I’m traveling.

From what I could tell, this was some sort of a headquarters for some charitable work in Madrid. The historical plaque said the building was in honour of Juan López de Hoyos.

I arrived to the Basílica by 9:15 AM but it was technically closed. Fortunately I was still able to get in as there seemed to be some sort of small mass going on in one section. There were signs prohibiting photos, but I assumed as long as I wasn’t interrupting the mass and nobody stopped me, it would be fine. I’m sure this would have been a far more enriching visit with a guide, but honestly, I just wasn’t interested enough in all the specific details.

The big draw of this church is supposed to it’s painted interior dome, the third largest in Europe or something like that.

The picture in the middle is of a 70 kg (154 pounds) six year old girl, Eugenia Martínez Vallejo . In perhaps the earliest case of fat shaming, the then king had both a clothed and unclothed painting done of the girl.

As was expected, everything was beautiful.

All the masses I’ve seen in Spain have had less than ten people in attendance. That was also the case here. I think there were six people in attendance. I guess props to the church for still doing the masses, but it seems kind of silly and also sort of sad with so few active believers. No doubt there are big crowds for weddings, funerals and main holidays?

I then continued my walk towards the palace. It was only about 22 degrees Celsius (72 F), which was the general temperature for my whole time in Madrid. Although Barcelona had not been uncomfortable, it was definitely warmer than Madrid.

These rather simple looking apartments with nice trees in front were right across the street from the palace. I wondered what sort of people might live there. Given the central location, I imagine they are very wealthy, but I’m not really sure.

Having not researched very well, I didn’t know that there was another important church coming up before the palace, the Aludena church. I didn’t really think I needed more church visits, but I was in full on tourist mode and had plenty of time, so in I went. From what I could tell, this was a fairly modern church, but still quite nice. I quickly realised that it seemed to have a more important role in daily life than the earlier visited basilica.

I think this wasn’t the main entrance, but it’s where I went in. A 1 euro entrance “donation” was requested but nobody was actively enforcing this.

I didn’t understand why this was supposed to be more interesting than many of the other very beautiful paintings and objects in the church, but everyone was going up to see it, so I did as well.

There was very good natural lighting in the main hall.

I appreciated the mix of the ” modern looking” stained glass windows and the more traditional sculptures and paintings within the cathedral.

There is also a crypt below the main church where there were many “buried” people from the last 30 years. Besides all the tombs, there also seemed to be a general area for mass as well. Once more a 1 euro donation was requested, and while she wasn’t actually checking the coins, a rather severe looking older woman was making sure that something got put in the collection box and was also exhorting everyone to be quiet as a mass was in session. Understandably, the crypt area was more somber than upstairs, but still very beautiful.

I wasn’t sure of the rules/expectations but I was careful to not walk right on top of any of the tombs. Incidentally, this was quite difficult at times as there was very little space between the ones in the floor.

A close up picture of some of the column details

One of many side chapels, most of which had locked iron gates in front

The palace was right next door. It seemed to be closed to visitors, but that was alright by me. It’s not like visitors are shaking hands with members of the royal family or anything like that. As was expected, the palace was stately and also had nice gardens right next to it that were open to the public.

After all of my careful work to capture a picture of a Magpie a few days ago in Ladakh, this one was practically begging for pictures and allowed me to get very close.

All of these things were very close together, I wasn’t spending much time in each place, so it was only 11:30 AM as I continued my walk down la Gran Vía towards plaza España and El Prado museum.

The day was nice and I had plenty of time, so I just wandered around a bit and appreciated the scenery. I know many will see this as borderline sacrilege, but I simply wanted some cheap calories (so I would have more to spend on museums etc), so I stopped into McDonald’s for a simple cheeseburger and small fries before strolling around a bit more before arriving to El Prado at 1:15 PM.

I was happy to see that El Prado museum has a wide range of ticket options which would allow anyone to easily enter and appreciate its treasures. As well as free entrance for students, and unemployed people, anyone can enter for free everyday from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Due to my tight schedule, I just paid the full 15 euro entrance fee. However, if you are on a tight budget, you can still definitely visit.

El Prado had a strict no pictures policy, which I and everyone else ignored whenever possible, but unlike other places, guards were numerous and very unhappy if you got caught. Still, I snuck in a few pictures just to prove I could. Honestly, as long as I was not using a flash, I thought there was no reason for the no pictures policy. Probably it’s to keep people from doing selfies next to all the famous pictures. I admit that I would have been guilty of doing so had I had the chance.

I can’t say why, but I really loved this painting. I got a really good picture of it since I wasn’t being sneaky as I didn’t know better until a guard rushed over to tell me to stop

In perhaps the earliest well known case of fat shaming/fascination, the middle picture shows a nude Eugenia Martínez Vallejo, who at age 6 weighed 70 kg (154 lbs). There is both a clothed and unclothed life size painting of her in the museum.

The version of the Mona Lisa shown here is claimed to be a draft painted by DaVinci BEFORE the more famous version pictured in the Louvre

The photo doesn’t do it justice, but the reality of the Dutch still life paintings was amazing.

Paintings which I was able to see which truly impacted me were the following: Las Meninas by Diego Velasquez, Saturn and The third of May by Goya and of course the Mona Lisa. These were all paintings I had constantly read about and seen pictures of both in books and on television. It’s hard to explain the awe I felt at actually seeing them in person. Like with most art galleries, one could easily spend days exploring, but like most of us, I was a bit overwhelmed after a few hours, so by 3:30 PM I left.

Things had gone faster than I’d anticipated and I didn’t want to go to El Retiro until later in the afternoon. So, I just walked around a bit.

This is not particular to Spain, but I’ve always been flabbergasted at the verisimilitude of the food sculptures displayed at some east Asian restaurants

By 4:00 PM I was enjoying myself but also felt I should make more of an effort to still see something special about Madrid during my only full day. More high brow culture was out, but this IKONO place described as an immersive art experience for the five senses was highly recommended.

This was perhaps a bit expensive at 15 euros for an adult entry fee, but I have to admit it was great fun, and certainly it helped reset my brain after so much cultural overload. Definitely this would be a great place to visit with a friend or family member, but it was also a decent amount of fun by myself. I think it is unlikely anyone would spend more than 90 minutes there, but it is still a very good time and a unique opportunity to get lots of cool pictures.

Like I said, it’s basically an Instagram photo factory!

Finally at 5:30 PM I headed over to Parque el Retiro, easily arriving by 6:00 PM

There were lots of used book sellers along the way across the street from the park. They seemed to be “regular books” rather than rare or expensive special editions

Entrance to the park is free and I suspect it’s one of the regular highlights of life in Madrid. The park is huge and clearly widely used by locals. There are plenty of spots to relax, enjoy nice live music, or just walk around in peace.

Plaza de Costa Rica had absolutely nothing to do with Costa Rica, but it was still interesting to find.

I had a great time, but after two and a half hours in the park, it was 8:30 PM and it was time for me to leave. As the park is very large, with winding paths everywhere, it was actually a bit difficult for me to find my way out. I thought it might be nice to have some discreet exit signs posted, but I guess they don’t want people to feel rushed.

Since it was my last night in Madrid, I decided to get what I imagined to be a traditional dinner, not spending like crazy, but also not worrying too much about the cost. About 15 minutes away (walking) was a well rated place described as having down home cooking at a reasonable price: Restaurante San Román.

I can’t judge the authenticity, but the food was tasty and filling. With two bottles of 1906 beer, the cost was only 17.50 euro (18.50 USD).

With that, my time in Spain was basically over. I could have gone out on the town, but I had a 3:00 PM flight to Costa Rica the next day and had been strongly advised to be at the airport at least three hours ahead of time. With really only one full day in Madrid, I felt like I had made good use of my time. Certainly, I had many experiences which couldn’t be replicated elsewhere.

Since my upcoming trip to Costa Rica is mostly about visiting old friends and taking care of some personal business, I probably won’t post much while there, but who knows, maybe I will still have some interesting bits to share. So anyways, until I write again, I hope you also are having your own amazing adventures, even if they are only in your own back yards or just down the street from where you live. Thanks for keeping in touch, and goodbye for now.

Spain trip: Day 3 (25-June)

Hey friends, as was to be expected after my early morning arrival back to the room, I didn’t get up until around 11:30 AM, and even then I was about an hour more before heading out. I didn’t have a clear mission in mind today, but for the moment all I knew was that I wanted food, and boy oh boy did I find it!

Based on the cost, I thought that this chicken meal maybe had something like a leg and a thigh, with a few french fries as decoration. However, it actually appeared to be an entire chicken!

As I proved, it is possible for one person to eat all of this, but I think it makes more sense for at least two people to share, maybe even three would be fine.

I wasn’t sure about what to do today, but then I remembered that everyone says you are supposed to go to La Rambla, so I figured that I may as well tick that off the list as well. It was a short subway ride, and by 2:30 PM I was exploring.

I liked the way they had these waiting chairs. It was much nicer than benches.

La Rambla was nice and all, but I didn’t really understand why people say it’s so amazing. The trees did help make it a bit cooler, so I guess there was that.

I don’t know why, but I love taking pictures of clothes hanging to dry. I guess it just seems “real”.

So I had figured that I wouldn’t need much time to see La Rambla and I was right. Thus, before heading out I decided to take a chance and book a flamenco show for 5:30 PM at City Hall Theater. This was very close to La Rambla (It might even be right on the boulevard; I don’t remember now.) so I knew it would be easy to arrive after I was finished. The cost was about 25 USD, as I had chosen a mid-range seat. The cheapest would have been about 20 USD. Surprisingly, and happily, I think this was one of my best purchases for the trip. It was only about 50 minutes, but it was worth every penny and I highly recommend it should you get the chance.

Pictures alone really don’t do it justice. The combination of the live music, the intensity and precision of the dancers and the dramatic snap of their heels on the floor was mesmerizing. I can’t speak for other flamenco shows in Barcelona, but this one was spectacular. These were true artists, fully dedicated to their craft.

Exiting the theatre I noticed lots of people headed down one street and in the distance I could hear cheering and music. Like any good tourist, I once again decided to follow the crowd. It was a Pride parade and I was really impressed with both the organization and even the way they were immediately cleaning up as the parade finished passing by.

By the time the parade had finished going by, it was almost 9:00 PM. I didn’t want a repeat of last night’s desperate hunt for food so I resolved to just go into the first decent looking place I saw.

As luck would have it, I saw a fairly large restaurant called Wok Dao which had many people entering, most in modest clothes, so it seemed likely that the food must be both good and reasonably priced. The place was packed, and I was immediately seated by an efficient hostess. When I asked for the menu, she told me that it was only a buffet, but that it really was very delicious, so I should check it out. Having had such a large late lunch, I wasn’t eager for a buffet, but I also didn’t want to hunt for another restaurant. So I decided that 25 euros would be fine for my final dinner in Barcelona, and I went up to check it out. Clearly the biggest draw of this place is its seafood, and it DID look amazing, but I’m allergic (anaphylactic reaction) to shellfish, so all of that was out with me. However, the staff assured me that there was no cross contamination of food during preparation, so I guessed it was safe. Even without the shellfish, the buffet was definitely worth 25 euros. I ate way too much again, and enjoyed every bite.

From here, it was a quick and easy trip subway ride back to my lodging, arriving by 11 PM. I wanted to get a good rest as the next morning I would be traveling to Madrid by train. I hadn’t expected my final day in Barcelona to be all that interesting, but once again, fate kept me happily occupied all day long. Let’s hope that things in Madrid also go this well. Anyways, thanks for reading, and let me know if you have any questions. I’ll do my best to help with any additional details as needed.

This female dancer actually fell down near the end of her partnered dance, but she handled it like a champ and jumped right back up.

Spain trip: Day 2 (24-June)

Hey everyone, so if you’ve ever read or seen anything about Barcelona, chances are that you already know everything I’m going to share today. I guess some of the personal insight may be new, but everything else comes from a classic trip to Barcelona.

Classic selfie in front of the iglesia la sagrada familia (sacred family church). If you’ve ever seen a picture of a church from Barcelona, it was no doubt this one.

As mentioned in an earlier post, I was staying in a residential area not frequented by tourists. Nevertheless, Roquetes (where I was staying) is well connected via two different subway lines, so it was only about 30 minutes maximum to get to any main tourist areas in Barcelona. The extra 15 minutes of travel time was more than compensated by the significant savings in money. Like I’ve said before, if you are planning on visiting Barcelona, plan to spend a lot on lodging, but you can significantly cut costs by staying a bit further away. As long as where you are staying is connected to the subway, you will be fine.

As I had been advised to do, several days earlier I had bought a 9:30 AM entry ticket to the church, also opting for the self-guided (audio guide) option. The 9:30 AM option is supposed to be the least crowded according to recommendations from many people. Separately, the human guided tours have too many people for it to be a plus, and you end up having to use special hearing aids to understand the guide, so you may as well just get the pre-recorded option. I suppose it’s possible to pay a huge sum of money and get a truly personalized guide for a group of maximum 4, but that’s not what I saw happening in and around the church. My “self-guided” option had a cost of 45 USD and included access to the passion tower. The cheapest you can get is 33 USD. Again, if you are doing standard tourist stuff, Barcelona is NOT a cheap place to visit. Also, I almost forgot to mention, if you don’t buy your ticket ahead of time, most likely you won’t get in; this place is popular.

I paid a lot to get in here, so I definitely needed a selfie as proof.

So, is it worth it? Well, that’s a hard one to answer. If you’ve already specifically made a trip to Barcelona, this is pretty much an obligatory place to visit, so if that’s the case, yes, it’s worth it. Also, especially the inside of the cathedral DOES look different from other Catholic churches you probably have visited before. It’s extremely modern looking, almost like an upper class shopping mall in Asia. Yes, there are all sorts of special details such as the way the pillars are arranged, and the meaning of absolutely every single object in the whole place. However, would you notice the huge majority of these things if you weren’t directly told? No, you wouldn’t. I didn’t take that many pictures since this is probably the most photographically documented cathedral in the whole world. Still, there were a few things I found interesting.

For me, probably the most impressive thing about the church is how they handled the pillars. There is some interesting physics involved for those who care to investigate.

View of the main facade. I forgot the name, but you can easily find it anywhere you read about the church.

If you go up in one of the towers, an elevator takes you up, but you have to walk down. Chunky monkeys be warned, the passage can be very narrow. I imagine even some claustrophobic people would be unhappy with the tight spaces. Here was actually a very wide spot on the stairs.

I tried to drag it out, but the whole visit took about 90 minutes. While natives of the city will probably take issue, I found the whole thing to be a bit overrated. The outside of the church is far more remarkable than the inside, so if money is tight, you will do just fine walking by and admiring it from the outside. To be certain, you could probably spend a few hours carefully examining all of the external features, but you might need a good pair of binoculars since a sort of wall keeps the unpaid casual visitor from getting too close to some of the details. Still, if you have the money, you may as well go inside, since everyone will ask you about it later on.

Hard working street sweepers keep things tidy throughout the city. Like in Bengaluru, almost all seem to be women

My other big plan for the day was Parque Güell, but I had read that it’s best to visit in the late afternoon. So, I needed to still fill up the rest of the day. With my trusty 72 hour metro pass (worth every penny!) I was ready to go. I first explored a bit around the general area of the church, just looking at the normal sites/life of the city.

After wandering around for a bit, I decided to visit the aquarium. At this point, I don’t remember if I had to use the metro again or not, (it really is that simple to use that you quickly don’t even notice) I decided that a visit to the aquarium would be a good idea.

There was a bit of walking involved to get to the entry, but I found the temperature to be fine, and all around there were interesting things to see. Entrance to the aquarium itself is 24 euros for those who are 11 or older, 17 euros for children ages 5-10, and finally 10 euros for those ages 3-4. I assume entrance for infants and toddlers is free. If you want to skip the line, it’s easy to buy tickets online. I thought that this was a bit expensive, especially for those with families, but maybe they have special deals for locals.

A slowly moving sidewalk ensures that people keep pace through the tunnel, but it’s slow enough to still allow one to appreciate the views.

Kids were feeding the Koi with a special mixture in a small bottle

It was penguin feeding time, so it was easy to see the birds in action.

An adorable salamander which is native to Mexico

So while the aquarium was nice enough, I really can’t recommend it unless you either are trying to kill time or of course if you have plenty of money and younger children who would really be into the experience. Even really dragging things out, you would be hard pressed to spend two hours here. It’s fine, but not amazing.

If you are looking for an amazing aquarium in Spain, you would do much better to visit Oceanographic in Valencia. That one costs 32 euros for an adult and DEFINITELY is worth it. In fact, you might even be able to justify an entire two day trip to Valencia solely on visiting the aquarium there. Still, the aquarium in Barcelona was pleasant enough, but just a bit too expensive. In particular, I wish they had better deals for kids and younger teenagers, as they are the ones who are more likely to appreciate a place like this. For instance I was thinking of my brother’s family; the kids would love the aquarium in Barcelona, but paying entry for six kids and at least two adults would quickly become prohibitive. Again though, if you have extra money and don’t mind a quick aquarium trip, go ahead and head out to the Barcelona aquarium.

Since things had gone so quickly at the aquarium, I realized that I would still have time to get to Parque Güell for a late afternoon visit, even though it was already 5:15 PM. The ticket aggregators showed that there were no longer spaces available today, but by going directly to the Parque Güell website, I was still able to get a ticket for 7:00 PM. The cost was 10 euros. As is probably obvious, this is another place that you need to buy advance tickets online; otherwise, you are probably going to be turned away when you get to the entrance. Using my metro pass, there was still plenty of time to arrive, so I made a leisurely voyage in that direction.

The aquarium is right next to a harbor, so there are plenty of nice boat views

Another selfie, but this one is completely different because there are boats in the background!

The picture doesn’t show it well, but the park is at the top of a rather steep hill; you really have to want to go there. Those with mobility issues would probably need to find another way up from the metro station. Also as I was going up, many disappointed people who had not bought their tickets online ahead of time were coming back down.

The tree shown is a Jade tree which was about two meters tall. I had no idea they could grow so large!

Using my electronic ticket, it was easy to gain entry. Even though I arrived about thirty minutes ahead of time, they let me in without any problem. I wasn’t sure what I had expected , but it wasn’t this. I guess I thought it was actually more of a plaza with different sculptures, but it’s actually a very well designed, proper nature park. There were plenty of moments of pure tranquility with an abundance of birdsong in the background, as well as the more famous sections you’ve seen in pictures.

I actually spent about 30 minutes just sitting on a stone chair which was located up underneath these arches.

When I first came by, access to this area had been restricted due to excessive visitors, but a bit later it was wide open and again I could just sit for awhile and appreciate the park.

One of the more emblematic creations of the park

This could actually be easily viewed from outside.

So of the three “iconic” Barcelona sites I visited today, I would have to say that my favorite was the park. However, as it clearly was meant to be a regularly functioning park for the people of the city, I was once again a bit sad for the locals. I mean how annoying is it that you would have to pay 11 USD per person to visit your nice neighborhood park? Again though, maybe there is some special unpublished deal for local people which makes it more affordable to visit on a regular basis, just getting some nice relaxation time while they sit on a thoughtfully placed bench and chat with neighbours or read a book.

By now it was 9:00 PM, so I had to decide if I would head back to the apartment in Roquetes or do something more. I asked one of the locals if they could suggest anything, and they mentioned a free concert in Plaza España which would be going for most of the night, starting at around 10:00 PM. Evidently it’s fairly common for things like this to happen. Armed with my invaluable 72 hour metro pass, I headed that way.

The concert went well into the night, but I was rather tired, so I left a bit after midnight. Even though I had eaten a sandwich at the concert venue, that was actually all I had eaten the whole day. Given that the Spanish tend to dine very late, I was hoping that there would be something open close to the apartment. Regardless, I understood that the trains would stop at 2 AM, and I wanted to get back safely before then. Worst case scenario, I figured I just wouldn’t eat anything else.

When I arrived at 1:00 AM, the only thing open was this little 24 hour bar near the apartment. They actually weren’t serving any food at this hour, but when I expressed my regrets the owner hunted around and offered me this reheated plate of leftovers from earlier in the night which she felt she couldn’t sell, so she offered me these chicken wings and patacones for free! They were delicious, and no, I didn’t get sick.

These two men at the bar and the owner were very friendly. Some other guy even included me in a round of drinks before heading off for the night. So I had four beers, a plate of chicken and patacones, and great conversation for only 6 euros! I did however leave a 2 euro tip in recognition of the food which she wouldn’t sell.

Finally at 2:30 AM I was back in my room and already falling asleep on my feet. With no particular plans for the next day, I figured I would just pull the blackout shades and sleep until I awakened on my own, no matter what the time would be. It was a great first full day in Barcelona, and whenever I get up tomorrow, I’m sure I’ll still discover plenty of interesting things to do and see. Thanks for continuing to follow along with me, and I will write again soon.

Spain trip: Day 1 (23-Jun)

Hey folks, so I know that by immediately following up my Ladakh trip with a trip to Spain, it makes me look like some sort of glamorous world traveler, but that’s really not the case. It’s just that travelling home from India to Costa Rica is a really long trip, so if possible, I try to do at least a couple of days layover in western Europe before continuing on my way. In the past I’ve stuck to Madrid, but this time around I’m changing things up a bit by spending a few days in Barcelona.

In case you are curious, due to the distance, the combined airfare is actually usually cheaper this way, but yes, there is the added expense of lodging, food etc… I guess if I had someone in the city to visit with, that cost would also disappear, but for now that’s the case. Regardless, I’m still really excited to get to spend a few days in Barcelona; I’ve never been before, and there will be plenty to see. For sure I’m planning on visiting the Sagrada familia church and Parque Güell. Aside from that, I’m still not sure.

So anyways, my trip started at 12 midnight, as I got an Ola (It’s basically an Uber clone from India) from Yelahanka New Town (northern Bengaluru) to the KIA (Kempegowda International Airport). Although it’s frequently hard to get a car from there, it was very easy this time around, only costing 800 INR ( 10.20 USD) but I gave a 100 INR tip due to the time and the good driving.

Happily, things went very quickly with Qatar Airways check-in, immigration and security. This time around I’m traveling with very little luggage since my later flight from Madrid to San Jose, Costa Rica will be with the rather sketchy sounding IberoJet airline. I’ve never flown with them before, and their baggage allowance is tiny (with massive checked baggage fees) especially for a cross Atlantic flight. Still, I will make it work. Separately, this is also my first time to travel with Qatar Airlines, and I just say that I’m impressed!

Even in economy, the seats were comfortable and the service very good

I don’t usually care about these things, but the screens on the flight from Bengaluru to Doha were very large, I think at least ten inches, with an impressive array of entertainment options, including front and downwards camera views, a rather common inclusion now which I really enjoy.

I know it’s trendy to trash talk airline food, but this was an amazing meal. It’s hard to tell with the lighting, but there was a yummy frittata with lamb sausage, potatoes, fresh cut fruit, delicious creamy yogurt, and some sort of greens.

My flight was 4 hours and thirty minutes. With the exception of when I was eating, I slept most of the way. The adjustable head rest makes it easy to get comfortable. My only criticism would be that as is the norm on airplanes, the temperature was quite chilly. However, the sealed blankets provided were more than large enough and made for a comfortable cover as I slept through the majority of the flight.

This was also my first time to transit through Doha and I’ve got to say, it’s pretty amazing. I know this will make me look like some sort of a country bumpkin, but everything about this hyper organized airport seems to be constructed to transmit a feeling of serenity. Even going through security was a pleasant experience with incredibly polite attendants throughout. No needless screaming at people to hurry up here!

I only had a little over ninety minutes before boarding my next flight, so I didn’t really take advantage of most of the comforts of the airport, but still, it was such a pleasant ninety minutes. Layovers tend to be something to be endured, but this one actually added to the joy of the trip itself. In contrast, when I’ve previously transited in nearby Sharjah, I’ve felt like I was in a holding cell. Why can’t all airports be as nice as Doha?

Even the ride in the transit train to D gate area was super smooth and quiet

The chairs were comfortable, and there to the left you can see a bit of a video art installation relating to the upcoming World Cup in Qatar

Well, everything had been going so well. On the next flight I got my do gooder points for the week. I willingly gave up my aisle seat so that a mother could sit with her son. I wasn’t thrilled about this, but I figured that someone was going to get stuck with this, so it may as well be me. Like pretty much everyone, I detest the middle seat, but I figured I would live. This plane was notably less luxurious than the previous one, but I was sure it would still be fine. Happily, just before take off, they relayed that an alternative solution had been found, so I was able to return to my original seat. So I still got my do gooder points but was also able to return to my original aisle seat!

We were a bit late taking off, leaving at 8:55 AM rather than at 8:15 AM, because we were waiting for some other connecting flights which had not come in on time. This also happens in some other countries; it’s a bit inconvenient, but this seems to be a better solution than making a bunch of people miss their connecting flight due to no fault of their own. The flight itself went smoothly, taking just over 7 hours for us to arrive to Barcelona.

A tasty chicken snack which was served shortly before our arrival to Barcelona.

For a phone connection in Spain, I had decided to try something new based on a travel blog I had seen online. So, before departure, I installed the Airalo app and downloaded an esim which would give me 5 gigas of data for only twelve USD, with a validity of 30 days; the process for installation on my Pixel 4a was very simple. Yes, I could have opted for 10 gigas of data for only eighteen USD, but I figured that with WiFi, I didn’t really need that much data for a six day trip. Honestly, with phone data being so cheap and access generally very good in India, I’ve become very spoilt, not really having much of a realistic idea of how much people in the rest of the world use.

Right within the airport, getting a three day Barcelona pass was easy, but I wished I had purchased via the TMB app instead of on paper since all they give you is a flimsy sheet of heat printed paper. Later on I realized that you are supposed to use a code on that same sheet in order to get a more durable cardboard pass. One of the metro workers kindly helped me with that once I had gotten off the airport bus, but then couldn’t figure out how to use the paper to get on the metro. Overall, even though I was staying at an Airbnb outside of the more central part of the city (Lodging in Barcelona is expensive! Staying a bit further away but still well connected via subway helps reduce costs considerably.), it was still easy to get to my lodging using public transport and Google maps.

The neighborhood was clean and quiet, not at all a tourist area, but as mentioned earlier, it was well connected via nearby subway lines. For less than what I would have had to pay for a more centrally located bed in an eight person mixed dormitory, I had a very pleasant private bedroom with my own bathroom.

It was now around 5:00 PM, so I decided to wander around the neighborhood a bit. I was also a bit hungry and needed a better plug adapter as my normal travel one wasn’t working well. Since I wasn’t in a tourist area, I was able to get a delicious meal for only 5 euros and also find a better adapter for one 1.25 euros. I thought that maybe tomorrow I would stop in to one of the local bars for some tapas and a beer.

After I had confirmed that the new power adapter worked well, I rested for about 30 minutes before once again heading out to see what was going on with the Sant Joan festival. My host Victor had suggested that either Plaza España or Barceloneta would be ideal spots for the festivities. Since Barceloneta was a bit closer, I decided to go there. Evidently the party goes all night, starting at about 10 PM. However, since I was a bit tired from my travels and also had a 9:30 AM entry to La Sagrada Familia, I decided that I would only stay until 11:30 and then head back to sleep. Even with such a short time out, it was great to see how all the locals and many visitors were participating.

While not much of a crowd by Indian standards, there were quite a few people in the subway, so I just followed the crowd.

They led me to the beach where it seemed to be a sort of unorganized yet still orderly beach party with people talking, responsibly drinking, and setting off small fireworks.

Having just flown in from India, I found it funny that they were selling these Indian themed sheets to sit on while at the beach.

Some of the personal fireworks were quite large, but many were just small and rather annoying large firecrackers.

There were plenty of public toilets, including these open air urinals which can be seen to the left of the center of the picture.

Even though I was on my own and couldn’t stay out late, I was very happy for the opportunity to participate in this local festival.

At around 11:40 PM, I went ahead and headed back to the apartment where I was staying. Since this was a festival day, public transport was running all night. By 12:15 AM, I was in bed. Tomorrow will be my big “tourist day” in Barcelona, so I’m expecting to see all sorts of fascinating places. Of course, as has happened in the past, things might not turn out as planned, but I’m sure I’ll have a great time. Until then, thanks for reading and don’t hesitate to reach out in the comments section if you have any questions.

Below the fireworks you can see the outline of what I assume to be some sort of local iconic oceanside construction.

Ladakh trip: The end (20-21 June)

Hey everyone. While I didn’t actually leave from Ladakh until the morning of the 21st, the trip itself was basically over as of June 20th.

For the most part I slept quite well, no doubt partially because I was very tired. However, many would have been unhappy as the mattress was made of extremely firm foam. If you’ve ever laid down on a wrestling mat, that’s pretty much what it was like. Although it was 2 degrees Celsius (36 F) outside, it was much warmer inside than with my luxury tent experience last night.

Yes there was of course more tea. Not pictured here was a matching porcelain lid which served to keep the drink warm before it was actually consumed.

Breakfast was a thin “omelet” served on plain sliced white bread. I thought Dawa’s mom must have snuck in some cream or maybe a bit of cheese, as it was much tastier than plain egg, but then when I asked, she insisted that it was just high quality local eggs. When I expressed disbelief, she made me another one as I watched, and sure enough, she cooked with just a tiny dab of butter, and then directly beat the egg with no seasoning before adding it to the pan. Who knew that plain egg could taste so good?

As it had snowed again the previous night, Dawa indicated that we shouldn’t leave until 9:00 AM so that the sun would have melted most of the ice. The original plan had just been for us to hang around the house before then, but I mentioned to Dawa that I had been surprised to have not found the school the previous evening. He said he would be happy to show me, and that I probably had just not recognised it from the street. Sure enough, he was correct.

Kids were outside gathering drinking water to take into the school. Unfortunately you can’t see the water source here, but they were clearly enjoying being the early ones who were making sure to gather water for the day.

This was actually the same school where Dawa had studied as a child. I had indeed passed it the day before, but due to the plain wall which went around it, I hadn’t recognised it.

The building to the left was the preschool building and that to the right, the actual primary school.

They let me look inside, but I didn’t take any pictures since the rooms were rather simple, and I was worried that it might be seen as too intrusive.

The kids were very funny and some tried out a bit of their English on me. Just outside the school, Dawa also pointed out some of the detailed carving on a couple of large boulders right next door. I had seen these previously but didn’t really take the time to look closely. Dawa explained that this area has lots of ancient carving on the boulders and had been rather extensively studied by different historians. I had assumed that any carvings were modern, but he pointed out different languages and petroglyphs which indicated that the rocks had served as sort of historical markers over the centuries. Near the top of one of the boulders appeared to be pre-historic petroglyphs, but there was also a large variety of different scripts, including ancient Mongolian.

The modern central engraving near the base had evidently been a source of controversy since in the process of doing it, a good deal of ancient engravings had been destroyed. However, as the rocks were not formally protected archeological objects, the new carving had still been allowed despite protests by many of the locals.

While there is a sign, there is no formal protection of the carvings.

The casual observer wouldn’t really recognise much unless there was someone along to point out the different scripts etc.

Looking at the boulders, I started thinking about how many archeological sites all across India are sort of just like this. With so many pressing daily needs, there just aren’t enough resources to fund proper investigation, much less preservation of so many sites. So much historical information is constantly being lost. I imagine it’s much the same in other parts of the world.

Then at about 9:50 AM Dawa indicated that we really needed to get going. At first the road was very smooth, but things rapidly started to get quite bumpy once again.

I was quite pleased but also retroactively alarmed when I saw a sign that said, “avalanche prone area has ended” but then 20 meters later there was a new sign “caution, avalanche prone area begins”. So I guess it was nice to know we had the twenty meters of relative safety?

From about 10:50 to 11:25 AM we were once more stuck in stand still traffic as we were going over the pass. This whole stretch out road “was adequate” but all dirt and potholes. The worst part though was when we were behind a truck or bus, as pollution/exhaust controls for larger vehicles seemed to be all but non-existent, and we would have to constantly roll up the windows, sometimes even stopping the air intake from the vents.

I got quite bored with this and ended up falling asleep for about 45 minutes but then woke up again just as we once more reached smooth paved roads. At about 12:50 PM. From there on out.

At 1:45 PM we stopped at Kharu for a quick Paratha. Dawa had asked if I would be interested in eating at a local place where he usually stopped. He was a bit nervous that I might find it too simple, but I told him I was happy to try. For the two of us, it was only 160 INR (2.05 USD) and also very tasty!

A prayer wheel and sleeping dogs outside where we are in Kharu

We both had a plate like the one pictured.

Finally by 2:40 PM we were back to Gangba homestay in Leh, and for the most part, my Ladakh adventure was over.

It was nice to catch up with Dorothée and Betsy over the next few hours and then early in the morning the next day we were off to the airport which was only about 15 minutes away by car.

I’m not sure if I’ll ever make it back to Ladakh, but I’m certainly grateful for the great experiences I had and the outstanding people I was able to share with as I explored different areas. A special thanks of course to Betsy, as it was she who first suggested the trip. Things went quite differently from what I had originally planned, but I can happily report that overall, the trip was a great success. Until my next travelling adventure, thanks for reading!

Ladakh trip: Day 10 (19-Jun)

While the bed was admittedly comfortable, getting up required quite a bit of courage, since the whole massive tent sleeping experience just doesn’t make that much sense when it’s this cold. Staying only one night, I still appreciated the novelty, but I wouldn’t recommend it for a longer stay.

After a quick breakfast, we were off to Diskit monastery (yellow hat sect) complex, arriving at around 8:30 AM. It was drizzling for most of the visit, but it was still possible to get around alright. Most visitors to the complex just go to see this one large statue, but Dawa took me up to the actual temple area. It was good that I had him with me, since otherwise I would have thought that the space was closed.

When visiting the earlier monastery, I had not fully understood a lot of the basic information, so I appreciated Dawa being there to explain more. This monastery was actually founded in the 14th century, but much of the current complex is either restoration or even fairly modern buildings. However, the actual temple area is the oldest section of the complex.

This depiction which is found near the entrance to most older Buddhist temples is NOT as I had earlier thought a representation of different sections of hell, but rather a representation of the six different realms in which humans can live. Interestingly enough, in the most advanced realm, humans essentially live as “deities” but they still are not “enlightened”. It is only after one is enlightened that one can leave the cycle of death and rebirth.

Also found at the entrance to most temples are the four guardians, deities who originally opposed Buddha, but with time came to be defenders. They correspond to the four cardinal directions.

I didn’t actually take any pictures in the main temple building, because there was a big sign saying all photos were prohibited. Normally, since I’m not using a flash, I would have taken pictures anyways as long as nobody was worshipping, but Dawa was with me and he is obviously a devout Buddhist, and I didn’t want to cause offense. Still, if you do get a chance to see the temple room, it really is quite different from others which I’ve visited, and in particular if you have a decent guide, it’s definitely worth visiting.

Very near to the temple is the prayer room. While it’s not near as packed as the temple, it’s very beautiful. Again, ideally you would visit this with a guide. Dawa, was more than willing to go into great detail about everything, but I was already a bit overwhelmed, so I don’t remember most of the details.

After spending some time in the prayer room, we walked back down to the car. Clearly much of this area was currently in the process of being restored; whereas, other sections were similarly in need of the same. As we were very high up, there were excellent views of the surrounding area.

I wasn’t especially keen to head over to see the massive statue of a crowned Buddha, but we were already here, so I figured may as well have the whole experience.

It’s hard to appreciate in the picture, but this was clearly a monk off in the distance taking selfies.

This statue, which faces Pakistan was supposedly built to promote peace between India and Pakistan. I couldn’t help thinking that it might actually be counter productive to a peace process. Does a Muslim majority (overwhelming) country really see a huge statue of what for them is an idol, facing them, to be a gesture of peace?

By 10:10 AM we were headed towards Pangong Lake area. Thankfully the road, at least starting out, was not at all crowded and the weather was clear despite the rain from earlier in the day.

It’s hard to appreciate here, but the wall on the walkway headed up to the statue was full of various stacks of rocks which had been left by visitors.

I had hopes that the road would be like this all the way to Pangong.

At 11:20 AM, we hit backed up traffic again. Thankfully this was cleared up by 11:45, and we once again continued on through winding roads, which frequently were in rather good condition, but at seemingly random spots, the pavement would suddenly disappear and it would be all rocks with no obvious sign where one was actually supposed to drive.

At 1:40 PM we ostensibly stopped for a simple lunch, but more importantly Dawa was a bit concerned about the tires, so he took the car for a quick checkup. Here there was also another security checkpoint; I know, it all seemed a bit excessive and bureaucratic, but fortunately Dawa handled everything. Lunch itself could have been worse, but certainly it was nothing to mention beyond that.

By 2:15, we were once again on the road. The mechanic had indicated that yes, some work needed to be done before heading back up a mountain, but we could wait until reaching our final destination. The road here seemed to be in excellent condition, and driving was easy. Of course, there were the ever present mountain peaks in the background.

Finally at 3:25 PM we arrived to Pangong Lake. I had been warned that since the day was overcast, the lake would not look as spectacular as when it was sunny, so one should probably remember that as it relates to my comments. Yes, it was very pretty, and yes the water was crystal clear. However, I honestly thought it was a bit overrated, especially when considering just how hard it was to reach. Furthermore, civilians aren’t allowed to enter the lake, not even in a paddle boat or a row boat, so there just wasn’t much to do. So, should you go? I guess that depends on how much you like looking at lakes and how much time you are willing to spend to get there.

I did rather like these small bunches of flowers growing in the Sandy soil near the lake.

It was rather windy with a temperature of about 3 degrees Celsius (37 F) and my face was so cold I couldn’t really feel it anymore, so that also contributed to my less than ultra enthusiastic appraisal of the lake

There were at least a couple hundred visitors to this particular section of the lake, but as it really is very large, it was easy to find an area far away from everyone else and walk peacefully along the shore.

Yes, I am still happy that I visited the lake area. It IS nice, but I was certainly ready to leave after about twenty-five minutes. Other people seem to really love it and about 500 meters away from the shore there are several tent camps which from the outside appeared to be similar to where I had stayed the night before.

At 5:00 PM we arrived to Tangtse village. This is where Dawa grew up, and his parents still live there and have a homestay.

The kitchen seems to be the main social area of Ladakhi homes. There was a separate large sitting room, but I said I preferred to be with them where they would normally visit as a family. This made sense since I was the only outside visitor at this time.

Dawa’s aunt was washing some clothes in the mini canal next to the house. Most of the water was currently being diverted to nearby crops.

My bedroom was more than adequate with plenty of natural light.

Dawa needed to take the car to the mechanic, so after about twenty minutes, I decided to go out walking on my own to explore both the surrounding immediate countryside and then the village itself.

I absolutely adored the picturesque stream which flowed nearby, so I decided to just walk along it for some time to see what could be discovered.

The picture doesn’t do this pony justice.

There was a large rock formation next to the stream, and it had sort of a natural path that went on for about twenty meters

A view of the local monastery in the distance. Dawa said his mother would be happy to go with me, but I said I preferred to appreciate the town itself and the surrounding nature.

I then decided to turn around and head towards the actual village. I was really glad to be here. The earlier villages I had visited, while no doubt authentic, sort of seemed like romanticized attempts to hold onto the past. This village certainly still had its obvious historical influences, but I suspected that it was actually more representative of what most modern Ladakhi people hope to have. Of course this is my purely personal interpretation.

The entrance to what appeared to be a very nice and modern local government clinic

At 6:50 PM I headed back to the house. I had been a bit surprised to not see a school, since the village seemed quite large, but maybe I just missed it. Also, I was only exploring along the main road, so there was a lot left unseen. I wanted to see more, but it was really too cold for me to still be out walking, especially with the wind, but then I thought to use my surgical mask along with my ear cover and hat. This actually helped a lot.

Almost as I reached the house, I was very excited to finally get a close look at a sort of large black and white bird which I had several times seen from a distance in Ladakh. According to Dawa, it’s a Magpie. I had previously heard the name, but this was the first time I had really ever seen one.

I was back inside by 7:30 PM and ended up watching two hours of NHK World, which they had clearly chosen for my benefit rather than their own. I’m not sure why they thought that would be entertaining (Maybe because it was in English?), but I will admit that I learned quite a lot about “fresh freezing” and bottled green tea. There was also a bit of world news, but the “best Japanese inventions” section was way more interesting.

For a while I tried to keep being polite when Dawa’s mom kept refilling my cup with butter tea, but after refill #4, I just turned the cup upside down and placed it behind me. Anything less, and she just refused my polite protestations and hand gestures of “no thank you”. Since customs around offering and receiving drinks/food seem to differ so much from place to place, maybe we should all institute the practice of giving a short instructional card before someone enters a house. What do you think?

Dinner itself was simple but tasty. The company was wonderful.

As soon as I finished dinner, eating before everyone else because I was obviously very tired, I headed straight off to bed. It was 9:45 PM. I’m not really sure when everyone else ate, but dinner here, like in much of India seems to be eaten rather later than what is the norm for me.

As I stumbled towards the bedroom, Dawa warned me that the road back to Leh might be a bit tiresome since more rain and snow was expected that night, but he assured me that there would still be a way to get me back to Leh with plenty of time for me to get ready to leave the morning of the 21st. I wasn’t really sure how things would turn out, but I was completely certain that the next day would bring plenty more interesting experiences.

I saved the best picture of the lake for the end of the blog post. I hope you like it!

Ladakh trip: Day 9 (18-June)

I got up happily at 5:30 AM to quickly repack, decide what to take, what to leave behind, and ended up with only my small blue daypack for this three day trip. The plan was to leave at 8:00 AM.

While showering, I received several text alerts but assumed they were just messages from friends. I got out quickly, slathered on the moisturizer (without which my face and hands flake and crack in this cool dry desert clime) and discovered that the alternative route which we had planned on taking had now also been temporarily blocked due to some rain and snow on the mountain pass. Our preferred route had already been blocked by a big rock slide two days ago. As I left the room to head to the eating area, the shock of cold air and wet table and tiles confirmed the change in weather to which I had already been alerted.

According to Dawa (my driver and guide), the alternative mountain pass crossing should still be safe, but now our departure would be either 9:30 or 10:00 AM. I still wanted to do this three day trip, but I made clear to him that safety was first, both his and mine. Then stepping outside, I was hit with a shock of cold air, the sight of wet tile and stray raindrops. Assuming the weather is similar where Dorothée and Betsy are now located, I certainly hope they are okay. Even with my light gloves and fancy new rain poncho, I definitely wouldn’t want to be out on the mountain passes in this weather. Still, I trust Thinlas will keep them safe, but I can’t help remembering how slippery some of the paths were, even with ideal weather . . .

At about 10:30 AM, Dawa arrived and we headed off on the second highest motorable road in the world, Khardong mountain pass. Starting out, things seemed to be going well, with the first military checkpoint at 11:50 AM (have to make sure I’m not a terrorist). The travel was quite smooth as we headed further up the pass. Before that, traffic so backed up that we were frequently just parked. The road had two lanes and seemed in very good condition.

Then around 12:15 for some reason we were stuck again in a stalled line of cars. I guess it had to do with managing the mountain pass, perhaps only allowing a few cars at a time, probably only one direction at a time? Still, I suppose it was a good opportunity for some photos. At 1:43 PM, still mostly not moving, I asked Dawa what was the problem, and he said it was because mainland Indians (meaning those not from either the far north or northeast) all want to stop and take pictures at the highest point of the pass, especially when there is snow like now.

If that was really the case, then I don’t mind saying it was absolutely absurd. I am always very conscious that I’m a guest when visiting a country, but this sort of activity should be prohibited and if needed, there should be law enforcement officials stationed to make sure it doesn’t happen. This makes a massive problem for everyone and it’s also potentially a safety issue on a road such as this. But anyways, I certainly can’t change it;

Sure enough, it appeared that he was correct. As soon as we passed the top of the pass at 2:00 PM, cars were parked all over the place with people posing for their Instagram pics in the snow. After that, the road was wide open. Seriously, I know that for them it was important, but so many crazy people taking pictures and blocking the road at the top? There was noticeable but not heavy snow as we took the descending road. Happily, the road was clear and cars were now moving quickly.

At 2:33 PM we stopped because there was once again some sort of a checkpoint. How many of these are really needed on a mountain road with no other access points? Do they think someone is going to parachute in and then casually take the road? Enough complaining though. We were quickly on our way again and by 2:40 PM we had driven out of the snow, arriving to Khardung village a little after 3:00 PM.

There we stopped for a very simple lunch and then continued on, arriving to Diskit village in the Nubra Valley at 5:00 PM. Diskit is relatively large, so probably should be called a town. Around this area there are many “tent camps” and it was too one of these that we went to quickly leave bags etc… before continuing on the trip.

As you can see, a tent camp here is not what most people would be expecting. While the idea is initially novel, I figured that it would probably make more sense to build more permanent structures, and in the mid term might even make more financial sense . Regardless, that seems to be the thing here.

After having the obligatory cup of tea, I went into full on tourist mode. At the nearby sand dunes with the charming Mochu stream, there were quite a few people doing archery with rubber tips, ATV rides in a separate area which was far enough away to not be at all disturbing, a dress up station to wear traditional Ladakhi clothes and Bactrian (two humped) camels!

Like everywhere I’ve seen in Ladakh, the views themselves were simply beautiful (despite the throngs of people). I was also very happy to see that the young camels too small and untrained to be ridden were left to play as they pleased, sometimes just trailing along with their mothers. Dawa urged me to do a camel ride, and while I secretly felt I should be disdainful of the notion, I quickly relented and got in line to buy my 350 INR (4.50 USD) ticket for a roughly five minute camel ride through the heavy sand.

As is the norm in most of India, several people tried to push their way in front of us in the line. Whereas I generally patiently endure what I see as inconsiderate rudeness, Dawas was having none of it and politely but firmly instructed each interloper to head to the back of the line. The whole waiting process was only a few minutes (maybe 5?) And then I was greeting camels and getting on the back of one.

As far as I could tell, the camels were well cared for (no I’m not any sort of an expert) and were extremely docile, even allowing little kids to pet their faces. I’m not sure what I was expecting of an up close camel experience, but this exceeded expectations.

During this time of year, they are shedding, but their skin is thick and pleasant to the touch. Their fur was a bit rough, but also pleasant. Perhaps because of the cool temperature, there was no noticable odor. I’m glad Dawa talked me into the ride, since it’s unlikely I will ever again be this close to a camel (domesticated or otherwise) and I will certainly never have a practical justifiable reason to ride one.

After the ride, I spent a few minutes visiting with some of the calves.

If a friend had been along to tease me into it, I’m sure I would have played dress up. However, as it was just Dawa, my fake superiority won out and I walked by the “Be a Ladakhi ” stand with swift steps and my head high in the air.

Dawa thought I wouldn’t really be interested in the traditional dance exhibition tent, cost of 100 INR (1.25 USD), but I begged to differ and I’m happy to report I was correct. I was a bit disappointed that there were only women dancing, but Dawa explained that most Ladakhi men, while knowing how to do traditional dances, don’t usually participate in these sorts of events because there are few of them, and they are off doing better renumerated jobs.

By then it was already 7:30 PM so we headed back to the camp. Dinner started quite late, so we spent about 90 minutes with Dawa telling me his ideas about Buddhism and also the economic outlook of the region. The former was quite positive with the latter seeming rather bleak. Still, unlike many/most men from Ladakh, he expressed a strong interest in sticking it out, trying to be successful in the land of his ancestors. I wish him the best, but with tourism which is really only feasible 3-4 months out of the year being the primary private sector endeavor, the prospects don’t seem great. Of course there are multiple ways to define success and certainly numerous roads to happiness.

Dinner itself was unremarkable, and then at 10:00 PM. I headed to my tent. Without going into great detail, this was the first night I was genuinely COLD. I used all three blankets and was also thankful to Thinlas who had earlier explained to me how most Ladakhi people will position the covers for maximum warmth; I finally got a chance to apply that lesson.

Anyways, let’s see what tomorrow will bring. For now, bye everyone.

Ladakh trip: Days 7-8 (16-17 June)

Hey all, so I’m not sure if it makes sense to try this, but I’m going to do both days 7-8 as a single entry, and then I will be all caught up.

With some honestly heartfelt goodbyes, we had our last breakfast with the family in Ang and then at 8:00 AM headed out on the next portion of our trip.

As a special treat, they prepared butter tea for our departure. In case it’s not obvious, the preparation process is hard work!

Songba is not pictured here because she was taking the picture. Thankfully she has replacement shoes which won’t hurt her feet.

We all departed together in a small van. Upon reaching the most favorable connection to the mountain pass for the next section of their trek, we would part ways.

When we reached the Indus river, we said our goodbyes. The members of the original group were continuing on with their original adventure, and it was now time for me to make a new one for myself.

You will have to take my word for it. Songnam is the second from the right, next to Dorothée.

Thus, my solo Ladakh adventure began, albeit in a comfortable van as we started the 75 km drive back to Leh. Along the way I really started paying attention to the signs which had been put up by BRO (Border road organization). Obviously, someone had really put some time into coming up with various ways to say: “Don’t be an idiot while driving!”. Here were some I noticed.

More empty road. This is only significant of course if you’ve never experienced most roads in India.

You booze, you cruise, you lose
Drive like hell, soon you’ll be there
Be gentle on my curves
Down slope, check your brakes
After whiskey, driving risky
Stop accidents before they stop you.
Better late than never
Smooth roads for smooth ride
Start safe work safe finish safe
Fast drive could be last drive

Around 9:30 AM we arrived back to Gangba homestay where Betsy and Dorothée’s old room was waiting for me, but it would only be available for two nights. Keeping in mind that my departure ticket was for June 21st, I dropped off my bags and immediately headed out to see what I could put together for my remaining time in Ladakh. After a few rather unsatisfactory visits to different agencies, I reluctantly decided the best option would be to get an early return flight to Bangalore, departing either the 17th or 18th. I was hoping to just be able to change my ticket, but was prepared to pay up to 25,000 INR (320 USD) for a separate ticket if necessary.

Despite making it clear that I had just abandoned a trekking trip, this agency was trying to convince me to go on another, albeit shorter one!

It seemed though that I was not fated to leave earlier. There were no spots available on any flights for the next several days, even with theoretical one way ticket costs upwards of $500 USD! So with that in mind, I decided to first find a place to eat lunch and then once again dedicate myself to putting together some sort of a plan of activities until June 21st. Ladakh was not yet ready to let me go.

By chance I spied a tiny sign for the Ladakhi women’s cafe. I had earlier read that this was a recommended, inexpensive and very unpretentious lunch option. If you are looking for fancy decor, don’t try here, but my delicious lunch of Skyu and butter tea was only 170 Indian rupees. They accept UPI (it’s sort of like Indian Apple pay) payment, but mine was not working due to a poor connection, so I happily just paid 200 INR in cash. Certainly it was worth that and more.

Skyu is basically a stew made with tiny dumplings and a mix of root vegetables.

While eating, I remembered that my friend and co-worker Jenny had spent several weeks in Ladakh and another friend, Ranmali had suggested that if I were in a pinch. I should ask Jenny for help. As Jenny was currently vacationing in Himachal Pradesh, I thought it likely that she would be without a phone connection, but I figured it would be worth a try.

Success! Jenny was available and happy to share her contacts. The guide/agent that she suggested, Lamo, immediately understood both my physical needs, personal interests and my budget constraints. While it was still a bit more than I would have ideally paid – the solo traveller tax (beggars can’t be choosers and she was at least highly recommended by a trusted colleague), she quickly put together a three day itinerary to Nubra valley and Pangong Lake with a departure date of June 18th. At 3:00 PM I dropped off my passport with her so she could get the inner line permit and then headed directly to the nearby Central Asian Museum of Leh.

Despite its size, it’s unlikely you will find this unless you are actively seeking it out. The entry fee is only 100 INR (1.25 USD) and that cost is more than justified just by the building itself. The museum recounts a highly digested version of Leh and Ladakh’s history, doing a good job of making one appreciate its full breadth of various cultural highlights without overwhelming the casual visitor. I liked that it was not jam packed, since this allowed for one to comfortably navigate all the displays in roughly 60-90 minutes. Unfortunately, as seems to be the norm in India and especially in Ladakh, it’s definitely not accessible to people with special mobility needs.

The museum is basically just a small tower. On the left is a view of the same with a white mosque showing in the background.

Each of the four (I think) floors is a simple square with each floor dedicated to a certain period in Ladakh’s history. The first floor focuses on when Leh was at its height as an important stopping point on the old silk road.

Some visitors may prefer more complete descriptions of the display items, but if you want that, I’m sure you can just do a guided tour. I liked the concise labelling done off each item.

The top floor focuses on the important cultural contributions made by varying Muslim groups, which according to the museum, have mostly existed in harmony with the majority Buddhist population of Ladakh.

There are many great picture opportunities in particular on the top floor of the tower.

You take this little bridge as you exit. It leads to a planned garden area which is currently just a dusty square

It had been my plan to head straight back to the homestay, but then I noticed these 20 stands which had been set up on the main boulevard. They seemed to be drawing quite the crowd, so I decided to check it out.

Evidently these were science fair winners from different parts of Ladakh, or maybe it was only just different schools in and around Leh. Regardless, it seemed like a great initiative to have the stands set up in such a public place, and the general public really seemed very interested in seeing their work.

Ways to reuse disposable plastic bottles for construction

Solutions to blind curves which are common on winding mountain roads

I then finally made my way back to Gangba homestay where I had a delicious dinner before turning in for the night.

Vegetable sellers along the pedestrian boulevard were frequent, but the road was wide enough that they didn’t obstruct traffic.

Next morning ( June 17th), I went for a 8:30 AM Breakfast of smashed somosas with sweet and tangy syrup and curd, stewed chickpeas, admittedly uninspiring toast with some sort of a toxic jelly substitute and of course the ever present milk tea. There is a whole process to preparing the breakfast somosas but the end result is delicious.

Step 2, break the somosa into chunks with a spoon

Step 3, drizzle the sweet, tangy sauce over the somosa chunks

Step 5, add a bit of curd and eat! The end result is much tastier than you might expect.

Amazingly, the hookah smokers (at this hour reduced in number) from yesterday were still out, but they had moved to a different area closer to the main entrance of the homestay. I wonder if they came from central India to Leh, Ladakh for the express purpose of smoking hookah all day long? I mean it seems like a rather expensive undertaking, but maybe they just wanted the cooler weather?

Around 10:30 AM, I decided to head back to town.

After wandering aimlessly around the narrow alleys and ruined building, trying to find LAMO (Ladakhi media and arts organization), even though I had seen a sign supposedly pointing me in the right direction, I finally gave up and decided to just go by Lala’s cafe for a honey ginger apricot tea and maybe a small pastry.

Honestly the banana bread wasn’t the best, but the tea was great. More importantly, the woman working behind the counter gave me meticulous instructions on how to find LAMO. Even with her guidance, it was tough, but she had even took me up to the rooftop to point out the exact building, so I was able to find it just on that basis.

With an entry “donation” of 100 INR (1.25 USD) a visit to LAMO is worth it even if it’s just for the architecture. The building, which used to be the residence of the chief secretary to the king, has been lovingly restored and now primarily serves as an art gallery and a library.

I especially liked the collages which had been done by some local high school students.

A few of the rooms are dedicated to “special exhibits”. When I visited, there was a black and white photography exhibition. It’s not generally my thing, but a couple were very nice.

The library has two floors jni, primarily serving as a general reading collection focused on children and adolescents, but there is also a small section of art specific resources

While much of the building had been in relative ruins, in the background one can see some original painted woodwork from when it was still the king’s secretary’s residence and offices

A sculpture made primarily from yack skulls

Although I had read that there wasn’t really much to see, the old palace was right next door, so I figured that I may as well visit. It does seem that a lot of renovation work has gone on during the past couple of years. Entrance for foreigners without local identification is 300 but as I had my residence card, it was only 25. If you are tight for cash as a foreigner, it might not be worth paying the 300, but for a local, it’s definitely worth 25 INR (0.30 USD).

Some renovation work going on right next to the palace

Aside from the restoration work on the structure itself, the first main room has nothing to do with Ladakh. It’s pictures of famous sites in other parts of India.

Without a doubt, the most interesting part of the palace is the prayer room. Photos are strictly prohibited, so I of course took several.

Some beautiful butter flowers which had been left as offerings.

I’m assuming the painting on the high walls is original

To be honest, that’s pretty much all there is, but there are some nice views from the upper floors.

Some wall art which had obviously been damaged during an earlier poorly done “restoration”

When I exited the palace, I went back down through old Leh and then headed back to the center of the city. As always, I was fascinated by the different buildings and ruins.

I actually liked this relatively modern “real house” which was very close to the palace. Of course restoration proponents probably hate it. But I liked that this was a real family just trying to live in their regular home which happened to be in the middle of a mostly fallen down area.

I liked the doorway to the left of this image

It was quite late by now, almost 4:00 PM, but I decided to go back to the Ladakhi women’s cafe for a late lunch. As I came up the stairs, one of the women recognised me, and I was greeted with a huge smile of recognition. I had considered going somewhere new, but I had been so happy there the day before, I figured may as well return. This time I had another traditional Ladakhi dish, Chutagi.

Finally I headed back to Gangba Homestay to start packing again and also to rest a bit before dinner.

A rather large Buddhist temple in the center of Leh.

I think this is a cross between a domestic cow and a yak. It’s the second time I’ve seen one in Leh.

Assuming all goes well tomorrow morning, we will depart for Nubra Valley at 8:00 AM. I really have no idea what to expect, but I have an open mind, and I’m hoping for the best. For those of you who have been following along since the beginning, I hope you’ve been enjoying my journey, and for those who are just joining today, look forward with me, to great things to come!

Ladakh trip: Day 6 (15-Jun)

Hey all, it’s a new day in the mountains here in Ang, Ladakh.

I was wakened by the toddler’s laughs at 7:00 AM, quickly dressed, and went for a simple breakfast. At 7:45 AM Dorothée, Betsy, Thinlas and Songnam headed out for a half day hike.

The previous evening I had noticed that Dorothée’s hands looked very chapped and burned and had thought to offer her my thin gloves since I was no longer hiking. However, having travelled in the past a few times with Dorothée and knowing she could be a bit particular with the use of personal items. Certainly there was no way to wash and dry them before offering them. However, I was pleasantly surprised when she actually asked me if she could use them. I was delighted to lend them and so happy to know that they would be of good use to a friend in need. Next time around I should just offer; even if someone says no, it’s better to attempt to help.

Shortly after their departure, at around 8:20 AM I also decided to go out to explore. The plan was to just walk along the road, getting a better look at some of the nearby scenery and just appreciating the new environment.

Most of the houses had bundles of drying grasses on top. These are used for animal feed during the winter.

Ang is mostly in a valley, and they carefully manage their water through a simple mini canal system which keeps most of the village green during the summer months.

I think this is a juniper bush. They were all over the place in the village.

Within less than 20 minutes, even though I was walking right along the side of the road, there were no sounds at all of humanity. I closed my eyes for at least five minutes and just let the sounds of the mountain entrace me: there was the faint but constant sound of running water, two different types of birds, the wind, every now and again the intermittent sound of a fleeting insect and then finally, very faintly in the background, the sound of someone calling out to someone else . . . The voice so modulated and changed by the distance that it was more a song than speech.

I was fascinated by the small stone in the crevasse of this large boulder which was at least five meters tall.

Just what it looks like, a selfie with a floral background

It’s hard to appreciate in this photo, but at this point as far as I could see, there was no vegetation. Miraculously though, there was this one flowering bush, perhaps some sort of wild rose?

As I would come across different views, I loved being able to just pause and look, contemplate on the feel of the wind on my skin, the mixture of soft background sounds, the mixed types of beauty: both the barren and stark beauty of the natural world left to it’s own devices, and also the gentle landscapes which had been teased out by humans . . . All the while knowing I didn’t have to get to anywhere, nor was anyone impatiently awaiting so that we could continue on our journey.

Annoying, even in this barren untouched landscape, someone had thought to decorate with trash.

As there is a small natural stream here, the surrounding area is green. A little water seems to go a long way.

Although I wasn’t particularly eager to do so, one of the hosts had been eager that I would walk up to the new monastery which was under construction. So on the off chance that he would ask what I had thought, once I had decided to turn back, I walked up to the new construction site. Having previously seen several ancient monasteries, it was at least interesting to see a new construction. As it is still under construction, I couldn’t enter, but I could see through some very dirty windows that there were already three statues. Aside from the statues themselves, the building looked very modern with stark white walls both inside and out. Honestly, it looked a bit small to be a monastery; maybe it is actually simply meant to be a Buddhist temple or shrine, but he didn’t know the word. I suspect it’s just meant to be a place of nearby worship for the local village. Still, as construction is clearly still under way, it may look very different should I return in ten years time.

The “new monastery” far off in the distance

The view of the monastery as I approached

A large boulder with engraved writing. It was next to the new monastery.

After finishing up at the monastery, I decided to double back to the little oasis I had seen earlier. I was hoping to capture some birds on camera, but more than that, I just wanted to see what could be heard and hear what could be heard. It was a very peaceful resting spot, but the birds kept their distance, so while I was able to see and hear three different types, I couldn’t get any pictures. Regardless, I really enjoyed just reclining on a rock for awhile and basking in the gentle sun as it filtered through the precious tree cover. Then I noticed it was already 11:30 AM, so decided to head back to the homestay.

It’s hard to see here, but I loved the tiny yellow flowers on this patch of greenery in the oasis.

As I couldn’t get a picture of any birds, I decided that I would have to be the representative of the animal kingdom.

As I walked, far off in the distance I could see women tending the fields. As far as I can tell, this is subsistence or even more likely, supplemental agriculture. Maybe some excess is traded or sold at a local market? Upon arrival back to the homestay, my hosts confirmed that most of the local farmers buy their staple foods of wheat, rice and barley, using the vegetables grown both to supplement the household diet and also in some cases selling excess at a local market.

Women working in the fields. All the ones I saw were wearing the same red clothing. I’m not sure why.

Once I arrived at 12:15 PM, it was baby play time for awhile before having a simple lunch of rice, mustard greens and a hard boiled egg. Then pretty much everyone else turned in for an afternoon nap, but I wanted to stay awake since the previous night I had woken at 3:00 AM and had never been able to get properly back to sleep. I didn’t want a repeat of the same!

While sitting on my own, I began to think about what I might do with the 4.5 days I would have once I get back to Leh tomorrow. I think I would actually be just fine with only lazing about the homestay, but having come so far, it seems that for at least three of the days I should try to get out to do some activities and see some of the local sites. I don’t want to wear myself out too much since my muscles are still recovering from all the cramping a few days ago, but I’m sure there is much I can do that would not overly tax me physically. I wouldn’t normally be that concerned, but since I will have a more or less all day flight to Barcelona just two days after I get back to Bengaluru, I want to make sure I’m in good condition to fly.

Various green vegetables, apparently drying in the sun.

I wasn’t the only one who stayed awake. Here the grandmother was sitting outside the front door preparing vegetables for our meal later in the day.

Later on things continued much the same as they had the previous late afternoon and evening. The biggest difference was that we helped make momos. Believe it or not, even I participated and was actually quite good at it. Unfortunately I have no pictures of me, since I was the one doing the pictures. So, you’ll just have to take my word for it.

Tomorrow morning I will separate from the group and head back to Leh on my own. I will have many decisions to make. Regardless of what the future will hold, I’m eternally grateful for the amazing experiences I’ve had so far.

You see these mini collections of stupas all over the place in the countryside, as far as I could tell, usually in configurations of one, three or seven

Ladakh trip: Day 5 (14-Jun)

Hey everyone, after the events of the last 24 hours and the perhaps overly thoughtful interlude, you might be thinking that day 5 is going to be rather anticlimactic. While that may be true, I encourage you to keep reading. This is no longer the trip that I’d planned, but I’m still here, and there will still be plenty of interesting experiences along the way.

Around 7:00 AM I heard Dorothée and Betsy getting up, but I decided to stay in bed. We had already decided that there was no reason for Songnam and I to rush. Still, I didn’t want to miss saying goodbye, so when I heard them coming back from breakfast, I made sure to be up and out the door. We then discovered that Songnam, would actually be accompanying the others on the trek, but would leave Dorothée’s bag behind to be collected later on in the day along with me.

Betsy and Dorothée getting ready in the morning

This is all personal interpretation, but I felt that Songnam was eager to still make a good impression on Thinlas despite the problem with her shoes. As had been explained to us earlier, the porters are women who want to be guides, so they work as porters to get experience with the trails and also to improve their English. As her shoes were clearly hurting her, I thought it really didn’t make sense for her to do another full day of walking without properly fitted shoes, but it definitely wasn’t my decision. Still, I wondered about the sort of internal pressure that she night be experiencing. Meanwhile, I had just tossed at least $300 USD out the window in order to avoid further physical discomfort and that was even before whatever additional spending would come from my change in plans. There’s no denying it, while not near as much as many others, I have a privileged life.

So after some happy but for my part sort of poignant goodbyes, everyone else continued on with their trekc at 8:00 AM, and I stayed behind both with my and Dorothée’s backpacks. As today is some sort of a local festival day, it was unclear at what time I would be collected, but with both backpacks, I had no doubt that Thinlas would make it happen. I resolved to leave my things packed and ready to go at a moments notice and then settled in for the wait

From left to right: Songnam, Betsy, Dorothée, Thinlas and our Hostess (I’m sorry that I never got her name, as she spoke neither English nor Hindi)

After a short time, the husband suggested I leave the bedroom area and head over to the kitchen which is clearly the main social area of the home. I had a nice breakfast of, yes you guessed it, plenty of tea, more Ladakhi flat bread and a scrambled egg. Around mid morning, the husband made it clear that he had to go out to do errands, and I stayed behind with the wife. I’m sorry, but I never really got their names, since we couldn’t really talk.

One of the certificates proudly displayed in the center of the room

Shortly after the husband’s departure a friend and neighbour of the wife arrived and all three of us had a delightful conversation in which I understood nothing that they said and I understood nothing they said. Still, it was a surprisingly enjoyable interaction. I suppose at the end of the day it all comes down to intent. I was a bit cautious to ask for a picture since I feel that native and indigenous peoples are often objectified, but I really did want the reminder of our conversation, so I showed a few pictures of our voyage and then made clear a request to take a picture of the two friends together. They were both delighted with the end result. I will ask Thinlas if there is a way I can send them a copy, preferably printed, but electronic world also be okay even though the phone they used to show me pictures of their grandson is very small and would not do justice to the picture.

My delightful late morning conversation partners

After a bit, the pleasant visitor left and my wait continued with my remaining host clearly suggesting that I eat the lunch she had prepared for me in a tiffin, no doubt a twin to those which were taken along by the others when they departed.

At 2:30 PM there was television afternoon news. The news only took about 15 minutes and then we watched what was obviously some sort of a fictional program in Ladakhi. I couldn’t tell if the setting was supposed to be in the past, or if it was just a celebration with traditional ceremonial dress. Regardless there were at least twenty characters. Believe it or not, I actually enjoyed watching it with her. This is not something I would ever watch on my own, but in the relative comfort of her kitchen and dining area, it was my own special cultural moment which I wouldn’t have experienced if I had continued on with the trek.

Full disclosure, I have no idea what was actually going on, but she seemed to be greeting people when she came in.

These seemed to be important characters. They talked a lot.

I didn’t understand it either, but suddenly these women were outside dancing. Maybe it was actually a different show. Again though, it was still interesting.

Shortly thereafter, the husband returned home for lunch and we all three watched a Kashmiri cultural program. Once again, this was something which I would never have watched on my own. But in the comfort of their cozy kitchen, it added to what was quickly becoming a most memorable and enjoyable relaxing day at home.

I remembered more than twenty years ago in Costa Rica when I had a bad ear infection and had to stay home resting by myself. I wasn’t up to reading nor writing and I had already slept as much as possible. The television had only one channel, and I happily watched it all day long between intermittent naps. Now with thousands if not more of on demand series, movies and documentaries at my fingertips, I frequently struggle to find anything to satisfy me for even 60 minutes. Is there a lesson to be learnt, or is that just the modern world?

Around 3:45 PM I realised I was going to have to confront a new challenge. Up until this time I had managed to use the squat toilet only for pee . . . Now there were definitely other needs. This would be my third attempt to really use a squat toilet in my entire life. The first time, in a very sterile Korean public bathroom, I had resorted to simply sitting on the floor. The second time, in a rustic Turkish diner in Istanbul, the space had been small enough that I could sort of brace myself against the wall and hang onto the door knob for dear life. However, as can be seen here, neither one of these options would be available in my present circumstances.

The toilet room was quite large, at least 2.5 x 2.5 meters

With my still stiff and aching legs, I contemplated the room and decided to apply cold rationality. Even in the best of circumstances I would have been hard pressed to squat adequately and aim appropriately. However, since the floor was dirt anyways, I figured that the issue of poor aim could be dealt with by simply scooping everything into the whole afterwards. A larger concern was potentially falling over and/or soiling my pants and underwear. The solution seemed self-evident. Completely remove both pants and underwear. But there was still the problem of balance, since the walls were too far away to brace. Then I saw the shovel, which in this case seemed to be very sturdily made; I figured I could use that as a support. A couple minutes later and success!

You may be surprised to learn that these were very fresh smelling toilets.

And in case you are curious, there were no issues with aim. Finish up, toss down a shovel of dirt, use my handy travel pack of wet wipes for an obvious purpose, redress and I had conquered the toilet. To finish up the whole endeavour, I washed my hands in the glacier run off water, using a bit of environmentally friendly soap for good measure.

Having tended to my own immediate needs, I went out to see what my hosts were doing in the garden. At first I thought she was crazy the way she was more or less just sprinkling some seeds on the parched and dusty earth. How could anything grow in that? Plumes of dust came up as she walked around working in the field, returning from time to time to get additional seeds from her husband who appeared to be mending some sort of garden tool. I was able to convey my doubts to the husband, but the most he could communicate was that water would come. While I’m all for wishful thinking, frankly, in this case it seemed a bit fantastical to think that rain would suddenly come down when it clearly had not done so for so long. Then I had the most delightful moment of learning, which I’m not sure whether or not you will be able to understand from the pictures.

She first diverted the water from the tiny stream of water from above. This water then fell into the small canals she had already made. As the water reached the area that needed water, she removed the dirt wall, and waited as the water slowly covered the ground. She then closed the dirt wall and moved on to the next plot.

Very shortly thereafter Seitan arrived to collect me along with Dorothée’s backpack. Of course he was offered the obligatory tea, and then we were on our way. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Seitan spoke rather good English, and as we were going along for about an hour, I found out that he was not just a driver, but also the son of the woman who owns the homestay where I would be spending the next two evenings.

At 5:20 PM we arrived to the house where I was temporarily reunited with Dorothée, Betsy, Thinlas and of course Songnam.

We had a great evening playing with the baby, having a simple but pleasant dinner, finishing up with a bit of impromptu family dancing and then off to bed at 9:30 PM.

Choosing the music was a collaborative effort

Again, a surprisingly comfortable bed, even though I had to sleep diagonally.

Again, I’m not sure what tomorrow will bring, but as I settle into my comfortable mattress on the floor, once again placing myself diagonally, I find myself to be incredibly thankful for every experience I’ve so far had on this trip. Things have not gone as I had planned, but so far what I’ve been given instead have been wonderful experiences with outstanding people who have made every moment a valuable memory. Here’s looking forward to tomorrow!

Betsy was clearly the preferred playmate

Ladakh trip interlude – sort of deep thoughts from the early morning hours of June 14, 2022

Hey everyone, if you are wanting more pretty pictures and clever commentary about the trip, you should probably skip this one and wait until the day 5 entry. For those of you who have been faithfully following along, you won’t be surprised that I was feeling especially contemplative at this point. Fair warning, there is also some repetition of incidents, especially from day 4.

Lessons learnt so far . . .

A lot of these overlap, and some also only apply to me. Furthermore, I already sort of knew some of these things, but this experience has made them more clear.

1) Being strong/athletic as it relates to specific activities, or even being an overall athlete, does not mean you will be able to handle all “sporting/athletic” activities. Or at any rate, you might need some preparation before doing so.

2) Overland (relatively flat, even through “rough terrain”) trekking is not the same as mountainous trekking.

3) Start small and then work your way up. I think I would have been fine with a three day “trek” of 3-4 hour mountain treks. However, knowing that the plan was to end up with a couple days of 10-13 hours of trekking, this was just too much for me. I even think I would have been fine with seven days of 3-4 hour mountainous terrain “treks”, but again, not this.

4) Slippery terrain is scary, especially when the fall is potentially far down with plenty of jagged rocks along the way. Yeah, this one isn’t a big revelation, but it’s definitely a truth. Betsy gave me a tip that made it easier, especially when going down, but it’s still scary. I suppose it’s easy enough to also turn this one into a metaphor; we all have our own slippery terrains, and many times we have a very legitimate reason for being afraid.

5) Recognise your limits and don’t be afraid to communicate them. I did feel bad about deciding to stop with “the trek” after only one of seven days, but I also had to make a mature decision to not “ruin” the experience for everyone else. Furthermore, I didn’t want to needlessly put myself in harm’s way. My breathing was fine, carrying the backpack was fine (if not super enjoyable), and my leg strength seemed to be holding out. Furthermore, my feet actually felt great, and still do (This is only remarkable because, this is evidently the biggest initial concern for most hikers/trekkers. Additionally, my shoes were strictly speaking not ideal trekking shoes, but they didn’t seem to be a problem for me.

However, and those who know me well will not be surprised, the muscle cramps were not fine. Yes, I was cautious and didn’t let any of them grow into full fledged cramps. I’ve had plenty of raging muscle cramps and definitely didn’t want to deal with that while being in a mountainous desert, further than two kilometres away from a road. It started with intermittent cramping in my right quadricep, then a bit later I started to have twinges in my left mid back. One of those actually became a proper cramp, but not a rager. Connected to the same, many thanks to Betsy for staying back with me while that was happening, neither being overly solicitous nor disinterested, basically just keeping me company. After that calmed down and I continued at my slow, cautious pace, I started to feel mini cramps in my left hamstring. While this last one did not actually start until we reached the homestay, my forearms (which I had not used in any meaningful fashion during the day) also started to have mini cramps. In summary, the writing was on the wall.

As we started to reach a road again, I told Thinlas I was sorry, but I really didn’t think I could go down and up again. Her solution, which worked fine, was for her and I to stay on the road for the last kilometer or two; whereas, the others were on the road for awhile but then headed back down into the natural terrain. However, I realised that I simply couldn’t continue on. Maybe if it were just Thinlas and I, going there pace I could handle, it would work, but I didn’t want to drag everyone else down with me.

6) Having some disposable income is nice. Most people reading this blog fall into that category whether or not you realise it, and it might be worthwhile to contemplate on the same. Having a bit of disposable income means that we get to have more choices and that we are less vulnerable to adversity. I’m definitely not “wealthy” although I suppose by global averages I’m certainly “doing well”. Some of that is the result of life decisions I’ve made, but most of it is undoubtedly the result of underserved opportunities and support I’ve been given by virtue of birth . . . In summary, privilege. Deciding to “lose” what I had paid for the trekking part of this trip wasn’t really a big deal for me. Even realising that it might mean spending another 2-4 hundred dollars to occupy myself otherwise didn’t really matter. What mattered was getting out of what for me, had become a bad situation.

7) Maybe trekking isn’t for me. Now for those of you who love trekking, or even specifically mountain trekking, please don’t pile on with the hate. This is a possible personal truth, not something which applies to anyone else. Putting aside the muscle cramps, which clearly are some sort of a medical issue which I will once again try to address upon returning home, I didn’t really see the point of what we were doing. Yes, I appreciated the amazing natural beauty, but for the most part, I could see that just fine from the road. Also, once I’d gone down one peak and up another a couple of times, I felt like it all looked pretty much the same. Pretty, yes, something I wanted to do all day long, not really. I’m sure there are many places that can only be seen and experienced through trekking, so I will reserve my judgement about those particular locales.

Furthermore, assuming that I did take on trekking as a personal goal, doing a whole carefully planned training regime, gradually working up to longer treks over more difficult terrain, is that something I really want? Yes, I do think I could do that, and that I could be successful, but why?

What ifs?

(1) I don’t know if it really would have made a difference, but I’ve been wondering if maybe I should have had a porter. Dorothée decided to do that sort of at the last moment before we departed, and at least for day 1 of the actual trek, it seemed to be working well for her. I however considered it and for myself, decided that if I couldn’t do it on my own, I would just bow out gracefully along the way. I felt like if I couldn’t do it carrying my own things, then I shouldn’t be doing it. Note, this only applies to ME and is not meant to be a judgement nor advice for anyone else. Even though I didn’t really feel that the pack weight was that much, would not having to carry it have meant that I would both have enjoyed more the trek and also have been able to complete the whole seven days? Connected to the same, should I have checked with Thinlas about the possibility of doing a rest day, and then continuing, but with the added assistance of a personal porter? Would I have then had a nice time the rest of the planned seven days? I just don’t know.

(2) Should I have just tried to push through? Maybe the cramps would have resolved on their own once my body stopped thinking it was in crisis. Hell, maybe I was self sabotaging as I remembered other times I had been in crisis due to out of control muscle cramps. Maybe I would have had a positive life changing experience on day 6. Or more likely, and I really believe this is more likely, would I first have really annoyed everyone as they tried to accommodate me and then caused a crisis by becoming truly incapacitated by muscle cramps or some other unforeseen issue at some point, forcing Thinlas to get a rescue team to remove me to safety and putting a pall on everyone else’s trip for the remaining time? While I will admit to having some doubts in the back of my head, overwhelmingly, at least today, I firmly stand by my decision. But no, at the end of the day, I don’t know what the alternative outcome would have been.

(3) Since I had known about the trip with a couple of months of advance notice, should I have scrapped my current gym routine and instead done something which would have better prepared me for the physical demands of mountainous trekking? Would it have made a difference, and if so, how much of a difference? Again, I just don’t know.

A suggestion for homestay and tourism operators

(1) Asian toilets, are certainly legitimate waste disposal systems. Although perhaps not practical for widespread use in modern cities (I’m not really sure about this one), the uncomplicated composting toilets in Ladakh seem like a great idea; certainly they are less wasteful (no pun intended) and much more sustainable than the water flush systems which are the norm in most “modern cities” worldwide. Unfortunately, many (maybe most?) Visitors who did not grow up where these are common, will not reasonably be able to simply squat over an open hole to defecate. I get wanting to provide an authentic experience, but consider having a simple raised toilet seat available for outside visitors. It doesn’t have to be complicated, and could easily be made of locally available wood and would last a lifetime. It also would not at all detract from the outstanding composting system. When outside visitors arrive, I suggest first showing them the unaltered local option, but then showing them where they can get the raised seat if needed. Heck, although I’m not sure how this would work, you could even show visitors how to use the toilet without the seat addition. No doubt many would feel capable of handling the unaltered system, but many would appreciate the rescue option of the raised seat. I MAY be wrong about this, but I suspect a raised seat option might even be appreciated by some very infirm locals; maybe they already do this for sick/weak locals, but I don’t know about it. Again, I’m not in any way suggesting that people should change their own tried and true local systems, but if you want to accommodate outsiders of all types, this is something that would be so easy to do and yet would make so many people so very grateful.

Okay, it’s time to go back to sleep now. I will get this posted once I’m back to a place with internet. Again, I’m sorry if you found this interlude to be too introspective, but you were warned. Anyways, I promise that day 5 will get all of us back on track. See you there!

Ladakh trekking trip: Day 4 (13-Jun)

Hey there friends family and even random followers who may exist. Get prepared, because this a jam packed post: religion, nature, potential danger, some uncried tears, and more! Today was my first day ever of real mountain trekking. I had my concerns going into this, but was also looking forward to trying something new.

From left to right: Thinlas (our guide), Songnam (Dorothée’s porter and a guide in training, Dorothée, Betsy and Jay

Having finished a simple breakfast at the homestay, at 8:30 AM we piled into a van and headed off on a short road trip to Liker Monastery. As seems to be the norm in Ladakh, the landscape along the road was simply majestic. The plan was to begin our day with a visit to Liker monastery and then begin the actual physical trek from that point.

A typical view as we were driving towards Liker monastery

A view of the monastery as we were approaching

To a certain extent, just as if you’ve seen one traditional Catholic cathedral, you’ve pretty much seen them all, much the same can be said for Tibetan influenced Buddhist monasteries. Of course there are many differences which would be obvious to an expert or even just a very discriminating viewer, still, you pretty much know what you are going to see. However, as it had been several months since I had seen a Buddhist monastery, seeing this one was much appreciated, especially since Thinlas demonstrated that she is not only a high quality experienced trekking guide, but also a very more than adequate general guide of this particular monastery.

I understood that this was a representation of the different stages of “hell” and the cycle of rebirth. Evidently it is obligatory for the unenlightened to be reborn; whereas, the enlightened can CHOOSE to be reborn in order to guide others.

A gratuitous and unflattering selfie in the main temple hall

Behind Dorothée’s head is a representation of “the protector”. As I understood it, this is not a “god” but simply a standard artistic representation of “that which protects”.

The elephant on its stage to enlightenment. I had mixed feelings about the “unenlightened” being black, getting lighter as it became more enlightened, but I suppose it’s a standard if perhaps troubling metaphor.

All sorts of things are offered at the temple from beautiful flowers molded out of coloured butter to Fanta soft drinks

Further expounding on how valuable Thinlas was as a cultural guide, while I find guided tours with more than 4-6 participants to be pretty much a waste of time, an engaging guide can make otherwise meaningless sites come alive. So, if you have the money, and you are a small group, just pay for the guide. It really is worth it. I’ll admit that many times, even in the past couple of years, I have decided that I don’t really care enough to get a guide, but every time I’ve had one when I’ve been with a small group, I’ve definitely greatly benefited from the additional support.

A group picture from when the Dalai Lama had come to visit

A representation of Buddha and the founders of the monastery

Finally at 10:45 AM we set off on a proper trek. Starting out, while the ground was a little uneven at times, it was mostly flat. This was easy enough to handle. The terrain, while starkly beautiful as always, was for the most part unchanging; although, we did see a couple of isolated homes. Physically, everyone’s primary concern was to be protected from the Sun, and to a lesser degree from the pleasant but brisk air, which at times was dusty enough to warrant face coverings.

Especially as we started to go into the peaks, with what seemed to be a never ending cycle of going up and down relatively steep terrain, I could see the nearby road devoid of cars and wondered if that might actually be the wisest option. However, I also figured that unnecessary ups and downs might be the whole point of trekking. I suppose many people feel a sense of accomplishment . . . “Just did one more peak!” I unfortunately did not really feel this, but for the most part was doing alright.

Then we hit a couple of particularly slippery, at least for me and to a lesser degree for Dorothée, spots and I started to question (in a very tiny voice in my head) whether or not all of this really made sense. The prospect of unnecessarily tumbling or even just sliding down the side of a rocky peak in an uncontrolled fashion didn’t seem all that fun. However, I did still recognise that I was in a relatively safe situation all things considered. A bit later on Betsy gave me a tip on how to handle those slippery situations when descending, and it was both physically and mentally much better after that.

Unfortunately, it was also at that time that I started to get the first twinges of a muscle cramps in my right quadricep. I suspect that these first ones were brought on by the initial mental tension and associated unnecessary physical strain of the slippery descents before Betsy had given me the tips. So I figured, now that we have that out of the way, I’ll be fine. Up and down we continued.

This primitive painting was a welcome addition to what for me at least was quickly becoming a monotonous (if still very beautiful) landscape

Then we came to a partially collapsed bridge over a small stream. I was reminded of some of my tourism in Guatemala in the early 2000’s as a large group of us hiked all the way up to the crater of an active volcano where one of the guide’s brothers had been killed two weeks earlier as rock from an eruption had hit and killed him. However, Thinlas tested the bridge, and pronounced it safe as long as we would go over one at a time. Seeing my hesitancy and also recognising that I weighed at least 50% more than anyone else, she suggested that I cross without my pack and that she would make two trips, one with my pack and the other with hers. This seemed to work fine, and I had to admit that even though it was halfway collapsed, the other side seemed very stable although at a strange angle.

Once across we opened our tiffins and had what was the most appreciated meal I’ve had in a very long time. Three pieces of thick Ladakhi flat bread, a serving of boiled (I think) mustard greens, a hard boiled egg, a boiled potato, and a banana. I was feeling alright, but my body wanted a longer rest before continuing. When I went to put on my pack, my hat and straps got tangled, and I started to get a minor cramp in my left, mid back. However, with Betsy’s help I got it straightened out and we were off again.

A much appreciated green area next to the stream

I was clearly lagging behind the others. Within a very short time, my body started to rebel more actively, and I got a rather severe, but not crisis level cramp in my mid left back. This was when I started to question whether or not I could continue. As luck would have it, this was not the best time to question, since at this point, one way or another I was still going to have to get to a road. Still, Betsy kindly stayed back with me awhile while I worked through the cramp. While waiting, we were treated to a visit by a rock lizard about 30 cm long, something I wouldn’t have seen had I still been walking. Finally, my back calmed down and I thought okay, this will work out.

Me pretending that things might still be okay

More of the constant peaks that we had to first go up, and then down again. . .

Now I was still walking a bit behind the others, but for obvious reasons, Thinlas was walking near me. While this was going on, I started to get a cramp in my left hamstring. I wasn’t checking the time while walking so I’m not sure of the exact timing of events. I was walking slowly, my feet felt perfectly fine, the pack on my back was not at all uncomfortable nor heavy feeling, but my muscles seemed to be shutting down, as intermittent cramps started to now be felt across my left hamstring, right quadricep, left mid back and then most oddly, my right forearm. At this point they were intermittent twinges, but seemed to cycle through in a random yet recurring fashion.

Throughout the trip I had drunk plenty of water, already more than two liters, not counting all I had drunk in the morning. Certainly I had drunk much more than anyone else. So I don’t think a lack of water was to blame. Still, as we once again reached a point where a road crossed, I told Thinlas I was sorry, but I just couldn’t go down and up again. Should we somehow call a car or what should be done? Unfortunately, I thought I was finished.

Thinlas offered up a plan. She thought that if we were to stay on the road, I would be alright, or at any rate at least able to finish the walk for the day. There was a bit less than 2-3 km left if on the road. I told her that this was much appreciated, but I was clearly holding up everyone else, so should I simply go back to Leh, or what else did she think might be a viable plan? I was open to many options, but I didn’t think I could continue with the status quo, especially since future days were planned on being even more challenging, a couple days with 10-13 hours of planned trekking, much of it over more challenging terrain than had been encountered already. She then suggested that it might be possible to arrange for a car to take me to the next two scheduled homestays, and that I would even find nice ways to entertain myself with good things to see while waiting for the others to arrive from their treks, but after that I would probably need to decide to either return to Leh or whatever else I thought best, since they would be going to places no longer easily accessible by car.

After a bit, the others returned to the off-road trek, and Thinlas continued with me on the road until we reached Tashi Chosfail homestay in Yangthang village at 5:20 PM.

The homestay was pleasantly quaint and the hosts were incredibly welcoming. Had I not had the pall of knowing that this was both my first and last day of “the trek”, I would have found it to be wholly delightful. Pictures do a better job of describing than any of my inadequate words. Certainly I’m thankful I was able to get here.

Once we had all left our things in the sleeping area, we adjourned to the kitchen for several hours where we were constantly plied with two types of tea and a local type of homemade bread, permitted to help (in an admittedly small but still enjoyable way) with the preparation of dinner, and even watch the evening news (which we somehow convinced ourselves that we partially understood even though it was all in Ladakhi and then Urdu. Not having phone nor internet service, much less anything like a daily newspaper, the nightly news takes on an important function which has been lost for most of the rest of us. The food served was delicious, warming, and filling. Even though neither of our hosts really spoke much English nor even Hindi, they both managed to be incredibly welcoming. I think though that unless you speak either Ladakhi or Urdu, this is probably not the best place to come without a multilingual guide.

The oven and stove seen to the right uses for fuel

Everyone but me helped with the preparation of the noodles. I was just too worn out.

Betsy was particularly excited about the new noodle style

While I didn’t help cook, I was very pleased to eat!

Dorothée and Betsy agreed that the food was both filling and delicious.

The hosts manage all of the cooking and cleaning without any regular running water, but they maintain a very tidy, clean and most importantly extremely welcoming homestay. The food is good and despite initial appearances, the beds are comfortable. They even have a friendly, if rather insistent cat.

The only possible issue of concern/warning is about the toilet arrangements. Unsurprisingly, being a Ladakhi countryside home, they only have traditional composting toilets. These seem to be the norm throughout Ladakh. Certainly for low population areas, these seem to be excellent options. It would be good if the model could also be adopted to areas with a larger population density. The problem is that like many toilets found throughout Asia, these are squat toilets. This is fine if you know how and are physically able to use them, but many people who were not raised with the same either don’t know how to nor physically, without assistance, can’t use them.

This could be easily remedied by having some sort of a simple wooden raised seating arrangement over the top of the hole. It could even be something portable which could easily be placed and removed as needed. If you were being particularly fancy, I’m sure some sort of a portable, collapsible raised seat could be made, but it probably makes more sense to just have a solid wooden construction which can be easily placed and removed as needed. At this particular homestay, since they have two toilets that I noticed, maybe they could just permanently convert one of them to have a raised seat. I realise this sounds petty, but I assure you it is not if you have to go but can’t figure it out or are physically not able to do do. Still, this is probably something which only affects a minority of visitors. Certainly almost all visitors from anywhere in Asia would be fine with the arrangements.

There had been a slightly more “sophisticated” toilet earlier in the day at the monastery.

Forgive me for the whole toilet interlude, but I think it’s relevant for many of you. As a minimum, it’s something useful to know. Moving on, after dinner there was a bit more light social time with of course more offers to have tea. That having been said, it didn’t take much prompting from Thinlas to move us towards the bedrooms. We were all tired, and Dorothée, Thinlas and Betsy were planning on being up by 7:00 AM at the latest. Songnam, Dorothée’s porter, was going to stay behind with me as there was a problem with her shoes, so Thinlas thought it would be better to have Songnam stay back while Thinlas would solve two problems at once: transport me to the next homestay and get Songnam better shoes before she caused more manage to her feet.

There’s always time for more tea in Ladakh

As was becoming a familiar pattern, Dorothée took three heavy blankets and I reluctantly allowed a second to be thrust upon me, but then immediately left it unused on the extra bed once we all turned in at 9:00 PM. Hearkening back to the toilet issue, we discovered that there was a flush type western style toilet in the bedroom building, but no running water. So maybe the plan is to eventually have that up and running for the guests who can’t handle the traditional toilet system. Oddly, we also discovered that the washroom (no toilet in there), also without running water was huge! Maybe Ladakhi people bathe as a family? I don’t know, and didn’t want to ask as it seemed like a potentially touchy subject.

So anyways, we were all in our bedrooms by 9:05 PM. Happily, I found the mattress to be surprisingly comfortable; although I did need to sleep diagonal to comfortably accommodate my 1.8 meter (6 foot) frame. The one blanket was way more than enough, and I slept comfortably through the night.

Even though my “trek” is over, I still have several days left in Ladakh, and I’m looking forward to what each new day will bring. See you soon!