Hello Everyone,
it is time for an building blog update.
I will make it short and let the photos do the rest. I know how precious time is getting.
It is funny Arvo's body is acing working all day physically on the workshop and my arms and back are hurting from being all day on the Internet ordering material and spending money.
I think we got a lot accomplished the last weeks. So all the framing is up, rough plumbing is in, building is wrapped and the windows are in. I was surprised how fast we installed the windows. It is really paying of not going with white vinyl windows. The dark brown is blending in with the cedar siding that Arvo started.
The metal roof was installed in 1.5 days by our roofer really fast. Makes you think how fast your money is going out of your hands.
But before we where able to start on the siding the stair needed to be completed. It was a long process but it came out great. For Arvo who has never done anything complicated like a stair- I think it is the most difficult part of framing- did a great job. No shortcuts and did not complain about my designer wishes to make it look nice.
The cedar siding is going on vertical after staining it on both sides. You can see for yourself.
Electrical wiring was up next. We need electrical inspection before we can do much more on the inside. Stopping on the siding Arvo had his hands full of cable salad. This is a German expression. What a difficult task. It does not go smooth through the walls. New tools have been invented like a plastic spoon feeding a fish wire through the Styrofoam. Lots of wholes needed to be drilled but he is not giving up-almost over.
We are hoping for inspection the end of this or beginning of next week and have our drywaller started on the interior. Home stretch I hope!!!
All the bathroom tiles are ordered, flooring and bathroom fixtures are here and lighting and paint colours are next. But these are the obvious things you will see later but there is just so much hidden items you need to buy I never thought of.
Sepit is in. The excavation crew was so lucky placing the tanks. Couple seconds after both tanks were in the sides collapsed on them. The hole is over 8' deep. Long trenches were dug and more lines placed underground. Don't fool yourself how much stuff is underground we don't even know about it.
The propane is next. We postponed our OC trip for a couple of weeks. End of May beginning of June. We need to close the building before we take off and move all our other belongings in there..
Please take a look at the photos.
Take Care and keep us updated on your lifes.
Hope to see most of you soon
Arvo and Christiane
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
MOVING ALONG
Greetings from Sequim,
It seems so long a go that I wrote the last entry and a lot has happened but when I look outside most of the work we have done is underground and not visible to the eye.
We laid power to the well and waterlines to the workshop so finally we have water. Finishing our overflow-drainage for the future pond and drainage for the roof to the dry creek.
Almost through with the drainage but not quite.
The footing and the stem wall were poured in two steps with compacting the fill in between. We had to make sure all the house connections are in before the stem wall is poured. It never hurts to have one or two empty sleeves to much. There might be always a service line you want to add later.
We had three building inspections of the footings and the last one delayed our slab by three days.
So far the weather was really good sunny but cold and of course today we had our SIP panels delivered and it started to rain overnight. Just a little muddy and wet in the morning but I was afraid about the delay of the concrete tomorrow. But we are still on schedule.
SIP are Structural Insulated Panels, just imagine pre cut pieces of Styrofoam with OSB laminated to it.
According to the manufacture it is easy to unload the 80' truck with a forklift. Sure if they would have done a better job of packing. Small pieces on the bottom and larger on the top. Anyone who was bad in physics will get that part, not the most stable way to stack large panels which are much heavier then expected. Of course the first one close to the ground tumbled and I had just enough time to jump away. We were so lucky our neighbour Kevin was driving by and did not mind to jump in and give us a hand. As well our friend Mark from Sequim came to help and it was much easier.
Now we have four large stacks of panels all are mixed, it will be like a big puzzle to put the workshop together. Hopefully that will start Thursday with Kevin and a friend of his.
In the mean time we had the base of the road extended all the way in front of the workshop. Almost out of the mud.
Windows are here as well and more wood.
We have not even started much above ground and the days are getting longer and busier.
Arvo and I have met in the last month so many nice people and everybody likes to help in one way or the other.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
It seems so long a go that I wrote the last entry and a lot has happened but when I look outside most of the work we have done is underground and not visible to the eye.
We laid power to the well and waterlines to the workshop so finally we have water. Finishing our overflow-drainage for the future pond and drainage for the roof to the dry creek.
Almost through with the drainage but not quite.
The footing and the stem wall were poured in two steps with compacting the fill in between. We had to make sure all the house connections are in before the stem wall is poured. It never hurts to have one or two empty sleeves to much. There might be always a service line you want to add later.
We had three building inspections of the footings and the last one delayed our slab by three days.
So far the weather was really good sunny but cold and of course today we had our SIP panels delivered and it started to rain overnight. Just a little muddy and wet in the morning but I was afraid about the delay of the concrete tomorrow. But we are still on schedule.
SIP are Structural Insulated Panels, just imagine pre cut pieces of Styrofoam with OSB laminated to it.
According to the manufacture it is easy to unload the 80' truck with a forklift. Sure if they would have done a better job of packing. Small pieces on the bottom and larger on the top. Anyone who was bad in physics will get that part, not the most stable way to stack large panels which are much heavier then expected. Of course the first one close to the ground tumbled and I had just enough time to jump away. We were so lucky our neighbour Kevin was driving by and did not mind to jump in and give us a hand. As well our friend Mark from Sequim came to help and it was much easier.
Now we have four large stacks of panels all are mixed, it will be like a big puzzle to put the workshop together. Hopefully that will start Thursday with Kevin and a friend of his.
In the mean time we had the base of the road extended all the way in front of the workshop. Almost out of the mud.
Windows are here as well and more wood.
We have not even started much above ground and the days are getting longer and busier.
Arvo and I have met in the last month so many nice people and everybody likes to help in one way or the other.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Sequim 2009
Happy New Year to Everyone,
We hope you had a great start into the New Year and exciting things are coming your way. Let’s hope the economy and the new president elect will do well this year.
As for us we left Southern California for good and moved shortly after Christmas our few belonging to Sequim WA. Our good friend Mark helped us driving our caravan north. At this point we have a FJ cruiser, a Ford Truck and our new Motor Home, currently our home.
We moved up from homeless to white trailer trash as we are kidding around.
Hiding the road just right we did not encounter much of the winter storms all roads and passes were free. But of course this is the coldest winter in Sequim since 10 year and we just arrived in it.
Freezing temperatures each morning but for the most part clear and dry. The blue whole holds its truth at least for couple of days. We had wonderful views of the surrounding Olympic Mountains. Hope the photos will show. One reason we decided to live here and bought this piece of property. We dropped Mark off at the airport in Seattle on the 31st but due to heavy fog his detour to Vegas turned into a layover. But he made it save and sound.
Just to give everyone a quick info on our construction:
We have a 5AC site here in Clallam County, City Sequim what stands for ‘Calm Waters’. We are planning to build a workshop first and after this is completed we are starting the main house shortly after. We applied a building permit for the workshop only. The main house is still in the works. The site is pretty much flat facing the Olympic Mountain to the south and west - Perfect for a passive solar house.
With just view days in town I picked up our first building permit, we got the shipping container on site delivered (storage for building materials), Larry our building contractor arrived from Blyth and Arvo started to put in the silt fence. For those and most are not familiar with those technical terms, a silt fence controls runoff from construction sites. I great idea in city and urban areas but on a flat site as ours the trenching did more damage to the land than good to the surrounding creeks.
After those nice frosty days it started to get warmer and the rain arrived. At this time it is raining 24h straight again really unusual for this area. Well we will make up our own mind and let you know what is really going on here.
The Public Utility Company arrived yesterday morning to install our transformer on site. The evening before we opened the road to get the power lines connected. We are glad not to encounter a high water table but of course after a big bang we cut through an old irrigation pipe. It wasn’t too much water in the trench but enough to make us worry.
I’m sure this will not be the last time just when you think something goes right for sure it will go wrong. No one in town had a stopper for this unusual pipe size and we just plugged it with a rag and a stone. Psst don’t tell anyone. To our luck no one is using this irrigation system anymore. But we needed to get up at dawn rent a pump and make sure the trench is dry. It was a muddy experience and as I mentioned the rain started and it got more down and dirty. To be honest there was not much to do for me but watching other people work from a warm motor home and this is just not my thing but better to get wet and cold just watching.
The next thing is getting water after having power. We need to hook up the well to the switch panel (already installed) and we are of for the next round. Not to mention more frequent showers.
So back to the rain. It might be not a bad thing that it is raining like crazy it shows us were our low spots are and what we need to do to stay out off them and preventing water to even get to our building pads. This will be the job for the next days. Digging drainage ditches.
Thanks for reading and staying in touch we will try to update as often as we can Internet and Fax is on the list.
Photos will be posted on the flickr site so don’t miss them.
2.nd entry
Due to Internet shortage I just continue to writing our building report.
After a short workweek with our contractor we decided to go different ways. It was for the better and we are moving on with local help which turned out to be really good with friendly people around us. No more head banging at least for now.
Some facts on the rain. We had this month 1.82” of rain and the normal average is 0.52”, more than 3 times as much. I just mention this again because we are still fighting the consequences of an open building pad with a high water table site. Unfortunately it is never good to over excavate more than you really need so keep that in mind, we are paying for it now. But it is getting dryer and we cannot wait to get out of the mud. The footings are next. Hopefully in two weeks we have a nice concrete building pad and can start the framing.
Lot’s of neighbors are coming by and wondering who is so courages or stupid to start this time of the year but if you are living in a motor home it gives you a lot of motivation.
Arvo is learning to drive the backhoe, digging trenches and learning all the verbage on different gravel fill. I cannot believe how many option you have. I’m trying to get material quotes and material coming and in the left over time to finish the design foe the Main House to get it to the building department.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
We hope you had a great start into the New Year and exciting things are coming your way. Let’s hope the economy and the new president elect will do well this year.
As for us we left Southern California for good and moved shortly after Christmas our few belonging to Sequim WA. Our good friend Mark helped us driving our caravan north. At this point we have a FJ cruiser, a Ford Truck and our new Motor Home, currently our home.
We moved up from homeless to white trailer trash as we are kidding around.
Hiding the road just right we did not encounter much of the winter storms all roads and passes were free. But of course this is the coldest winter in Sequim since 10 year and we just arrived in it.
Freezing temperatures each morning but for the most part clear and dry. The blue whole holds its truth at least for couple of days. We had wonderful views of the surrounding Olympic Mountains. Hope the photos will show. One reason we decided to live here and bought this piece of property. We dropped Mark off at the airport in Seattle on the 31st but due to heavy fog his detour to Vegas turned into a layover. But he made it save and sound.
Just to give everyone a quick info on our construction:
We have a 5AC site here in Clallam County, City Sequim what stands for ‘Calm Waters’. We are planning to build a workshop first and after this is completed we are starting the main house shortly after. We applied a building permit for the workshop only. The main house is still in the works. The site is pretty much flat facing the Olympic Mountain to the south and west - Perfect for a passive solar house.
With just view days in town I picked up our first building permit, we got the shipping container on site delivered (storage for building materials), Larry our building contractor arrived from Blyth and Arvo started to put in the silt fence. For those and most are not familiar with those technical terms, a silt fence controls runoff from construction sites. I great idea in city and urban areas but on a flat site as ours the trenching did more damage to the land than good to the surrounding creeks.
After those nice frosty days it started to get warmer and the rain arrived. At this time it is raining 24h straight again really unusual for this area. Well we will make up our own mind and let you know what is really going on here.
The Public Utility Company arrived yesterday morning to install our transformer on site. The evening before we opened the road to get the power lines connected. We are glad not to encounter a high water table but of course after a big bang we cut through an old irrigation pipe. It wasn’t too much water in the trench but enough to make us worry.
I’m sure this will not be the last time just when you think something goes right for sure it will go wrong. No one in town had a stopper for this unusual pipe size and we just plugged it with a rag and a stone. Psst don’t tell anyone. To our luck no one is using this irrigation system anymore. But we needed to get up at dawn rent a pump and make sure the trench is dry. It was a muddy experience and as I mentioned the rain started and it got more down and dirty. To be honest there was not much to do for me but watching other people work from a warm motor home and this is just not my thing but better to get wet and cold just watching.
The next thing is getting water after having power. We need to hook up the well to the switch panel (already installed) and we are of for the next round. Not to mention more frequent showers.
So back to the rain. It might be not a bad thing that it is raining like crazy it shows us were our low spots are and what we need to do to stay out off them and preventing water to even get to our building pads. This will be the job for the next days. Digging drainage ditches.
Thanks for reading and staying in touch we will try to update as often as we can Internet and Fax is on the list.
Photos will be posted on the flickr site so don’t miss them.
2.nd entry
Due to Internet shortage I just continue to writing our building report.
After a short workweek with our contractor we decided to go different ways. It was for the better and we are moving on with local help which turned out to be really good with friendly people around us. No more head banging at least for now.
Some facts on the rain. We had this month 1.82” of rain and the normal average is 0.52”, more than 3 times as much. I just mention this again because we are still fighting the consequences of an open building pad with a high water table site. Unfortunately it is never good to over excavate more than you really need so keep that in mind, we are paying for it now. But it is getting dryer and we cannot wait to get out of the mud. The footings are next. Hopefully in two weeks we have a nice concrete building pad and can start the framing.
Lot’s of neighbors are coming by and wondering who is so courages or stupid to start this time of the year but if you are living in a motor home it gives you a lot of motivation.
Arvo is learning to drive the backhoe, digging trenches and learning all the verbage on different gravel fill. I cannot believe how many option you have. I’m trying to get material quotes and material coming and in the left over time to finish the design foe the Main House to get it to the building department.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Greece
Hello everyone and greetings from Germany,
We have to admit it has been a while that we updated the Blog and the pictures. I guess we have been to busy with all the traveling.
We are currently in Germany and spending time with my family and friends. Due to so much time has passed I will divide our last adventures into Greece and later I want to report about our time in Africa. Otherwise the blog will be endlessly long.
So but let’s start were we left off.
After we left China taking off in Beijing from the new airport we arrived in Doha, Qatar for a stopover. Qatar is a desert state on the Arabian peninsula. We had a good hotel and food for free to our surprise. Qatar a 5 Star airlines keeps it promises. So I guess over 24 h later we reached Athens.
This time we had no guide book just our tips from the Internet. The next morning we started to explore the city, Acropolis and other historic sites and ruins that are scattered throughout the city. How much this city has changed. I have been here 15 years ago and couldn't wait to get out of it but today it is much cleaner, public transportation is good and all new. In this regard the Summer Olympic 2004 has helped the city tremendous to change for the better. The Euro of course was the only downside. The people are really friendly and the food was good.
We decided to rent a car for 6 days and took off towards the Peloponnese. We drove past Corinth famous for its canal built in 1893 between the main land and Peloponnese. We continued all the way to Sparta were we stayed two nights. We just hit the time of Greek- orthodox Easter and possessions were hold in the evening to late into the night. We explored the coastal areas and made the mistake to postpone the visit to the Byzantine Mistra to the next day. But we got rained in not just a little rain it was raining hard and impossible to get out. I was impressed and have to admit I did not know how much mountain region the Peloponnese have. We even saw light snow fall high up in the mountains after that big rain.
Greece has so many historic sites to offer that it is hard to make a pick. After visiting a historic site in the region of Messenia we continued driving further north and found a hotel in Olympia for the next nights. Due to Easter Museums and historic sites were closed the next two days. So we relaxed and enjoyed the warm days and blue skies. The historic Olympia finally opened and again we were impressed with so much history and old ruins.
We left early afternoon and drove all the way to Delphi. It was a special place in ancient times and considered the center of the known world, the place where heaven and earth met. This was the site on earth where man was closest to God. If you want to know more please visit
The site is located high in the mountains and the view is fantastic no wonder they were thinking to be closest to the gods. At this time of the year the tourist season is starting and a lot of tour buses arrived. It was nice, warm with blue skies that we missed for the last two month.
Our car rental time came to an end and we drove back to Athens that same afternoon we hopped on a ferry to Paros which is part of the CycladeIslands. We arrived after dark so we explored the town after breakfast the next morning. Parakia the town we stayed in offered beautiful and typical for the Greek islands white and blue houses that are connected with small alley ways. We rented a quad bike and explored the island for the day. Nice beaches, windy corners and small fishing villages like Naoussa with delicious fish was on the list.
I believe the next was the day the worth nightmare for a photographer can happen “ERROR 99 “ what ever that might be. Sure enough an error that Arvo could not repair himself and it needed to be serviced. But of course we were on an island 4 hour away from Athens and we had reservations for Santorini the most photographed island in Greece. The mood was down but nothing we could have done. The stores could not help. So we left for Santorini via ferry and Arvo had only my camera to take photos. It was sad to see him with a small camera.
We arrived sailing into the giant crater and it was a magnificent view from the sea to see the steep cliffs of Santorini. We liked the quads so much on Paros we rented one here for two days and drove around the island the next day. We arrived in Thira before the sunset. The most famous town and spot on Santorini. If you see photos from the island they are all shot here. Beautiful setting with a steep price for food and accommodations. Prices for a room at €300 is not uncommon. Tour groups arrived only for the sunset and the small village got crowded. Driving back on our quad in the evening was a cold experience. Jacket and long pants was a must. The island has more to offer than just Thira, the north side has beaches and restaurants and more historic sites. It was to bad that the water was still to cold to go swimming.
Of course we had to figure out what we wanted to do next. Continuing to Crete was out. We could not find any Canon repair center. So we decided to take the ferry back to Athens. We got the last overnight cabin and off we went into the night to Piraous the harbour in Athens. We could have stayed longer in Santorini but the photographers heart needed his camera which I can understand.
Back in Athens I cannot remember how we found the Canon center but they needed to long to repair the camera. So we left and Arvo though about buying a new one. Remember Dollar versus Euro not the best choice but Africa and safaris were on the next itinerary. We needed to solve the problem fast. Out of the blue we found a repair place and the next day we picked up the camera as it was new. Arvo was relieved and happy but what to do with the rest of the time. Going back to Santorini did not make sense. So we rented a car again at the same place and drove this time further north.
We had around 4 days and drove past the famous site where the Spartans fought against the Persians. I' m sure a lot of you have seen 300 and the scene is right next to the water but today the land is encroaching further into the sea around 2km away.
We spend two nights in Volos. The city of Volos is located at the foot of the peninsula of Pelion at the centre of Greece. We visit the next day the brick museum an old family owned brick factory. It was really interesting to see how bricks are made and especially the old kilns. Volos had a nice tranquil atmosphere and the promenade was lined with cafes and Greeks enjoyed their Sunday. Historic sites all around us but we decided to drive inland toward Meteora.
Meteora is famous for its Monasteries siting on top of outcropping rock formations. It is quite impressive if you consider the difficulty to built them. The area of Meteora was originally settled by monks who lived in caves within the rocks during the 11th Century. But as the times became more unsure during an age of Turkish occupation, brigand and lawlessness, they climbed higher and higher up the rock face until they were living on the inaccessible peaks where they were able to build by bringing material and people up with ladders and baskets and build the first monasteries.
Due to construction on the roads we were limited to visit only few monasteries but for sure the views were spectacular and we found a nice lunch spot.
Rain caught us again on a stroll though the town and the next day we left for Athens.
We drove past Athens toward Cape Sounion at the southernmost tip of the attic peninsula. It is renowned for the ruins of the ancient Greece temple of Poseidon, the god of the sea in classical mythology. Again a wonderful view over the Mediterranean sea specially in the evening light.
Spending our last night in Greece outside the city center of Athens before we caught the flight to Cape Town, South Africa the next day. Of course we were not looking forward to spend so many hours in the air but we were excited to start an other journey through the African continent.
But more about this later.
Take Care and see you soon.
Arvo & Christiane
P.S. We are on our way to the USA.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
China
Hello everyone again,
We are still in China and we have 10 days left before we are heading into Europe, Greece.
I have to say this will be the most difficult Blog to write for me. I have mixed feelings toward China and of course the Tibet and Olympia situation has added a twist to our traveling here. You have hopefully seen my photos from HongKong.
I have to admit it seems so long ago that we have been there. The city is divided by the Victory Harbor Kowloon on the main land and HongKong Island on the other side, of course not to mention the other islands around. The first nights we spend on the Kowloon side and moved later over to the HongKong island. The city has a wonderful night laser show across the Victory Harbor at night and not to mention the night skyline itself. Famous high riser bundled together, shopping malls, the longest escalator in the world that brings you to the higher levels of HongKong were you have a good view of the expanse of the island and the density that it has. Western food next to Chinese restaurant and markets in the smallest possible alleys and they are even supplied by trucks. The famous antique street that makes you wonder are those real antiques or fake copies. The city itself has to deal with smog issues as well as other high density cities and it is even more special when you can see the sun. By the way one of our only days in China with a fairly blue sky and we could see the sun. We visit the flower market, gold fish market and Lady market. The last one gave us a good idea how over priced the items are for tourist. On our last day we visit the largest Buddha in Asia on Lantau island at the Po Lin Monastery, a nice relaxing day away from the big city.
We are still in China and we have 10 days left before we are heading into Europe, Greece.
I have to say this will be the most difficult Blog to write for me. I have mixed feelings toward China and of course the Tibet and Olympia situation has added a twist to our traveling here. You have hopefully seen my photos from HongKong.
I have to admit it seems so long ago that we have been there. The city is divided by the Victory Harbor Kowloon on the main land and HongKong Island on the other side, of course not to mention the other islands around. The first nights we spend on the Kowloon side and moved later over to the HongKong island. The city has a wonderful night laser show across the Victory Harbor at night and not to mention the night skyline itself. Famous high riser bundled together, shopping malls, the longest escalator in the world that brings you to the higher levels of HongKong were you have a good view of the expanse of the island and the density that it has. Western food next to Chinese restaurant and markets in the smallest possible alleys and they are even supplied by trucks. The famous antique street that makes you wonder are those real antiques or fake copies. The city itself has to deal with smog issues as well as other high density cities and it is even more special when you can see the sun. By the way one of our only days in China with a fairly blue sky and we could see the sun. We visit the flower market, gold fish market and Lady market. The last one gave us a good idea how over priced the items are for tourist. On our last day we visit the largest Buddha in Asia on Lantau island at the Po Lin Monastery, a nice relaxing day away from the big city.
The next day we left for Mainland China. Guangzhou is the closest largest city to HongKong and it had to stop for our further excursions. We did not get a good start. To be honest we should have known better after so long traveling but we still got scammed even by the tourist office at the train station. We ended up in a hotel much further away from the location we planned to stay and were wondering why everybody is looking at us because we were not in a tourist area. But I have to say Guangzhou is not for tourist at all. The city is the third most polluted city in the world. The live expectancy is 52 and you never see the sun. We left that city with sore throats by train at the most crowded train station that we have ever seen. The train itself was nice even we did not have the soft sleeper (first class). As we email our friend the next day and told him about the city we were in he was quiet shocked because he knew the city himself. But we were off to Guilin and hoped for better. We had rain the next days and our trip to the world famous rice terrace was lost in fog. We stopped at a minority village. While I saw the traditional wedding Arvo wondered around to see the traditional food. All the dogs in the village were bred for meat supply. They were so cute – but other countries other traditions. We met Colin a nice Chinese guy who showed us the city of Guilin. Colin who was actually an owner of a tea shop. But as of today we are still not sure of his intention. We learned travelling in China that “Hello where are you from” means “I want to sell you something.”
From Guilin we took the Chinese Cruise boat to Yangzhou on the Li River. Again it would have been a fantastic cruise if we could have seen the mountains not just trough a thin fog layer. Arvo and I were the attraction on the boat because we took as mentioned the Chinese tour, a much cheaper tour because no English tour guide needs to be paid.
Yangzhou is a beautiful little town with small alleys surrounded by karst peaks that have all kinds of funny names. We hired Sherry a 19 year old tourist guide for the next day for a bicycle trip into the countryside. It was beautiful and even the rain stopped for us. Sherry helped us buying tickets for our other activities and we still don’t know how the price system works. Everywhere you get different prices for the same tickets and of course they are government regulated prices. So how does it work? I will leave that up to you.
Sherry our tour guide was only 19 and supporting herself solely from the tourists she finds on the streets-no doubt a tough business with a lot of competition. It was hard to get a smile on her face and sad to see how serious a 19 year old already is.
The light show at the lake was fantastic with around 600 actors in colorful traditional costumes. The cormorant fishing at night was as well a highlight. The bird is getting a string tied to its neck and cannot swallow the fish it catches. After a couple of fish the fisherman catches the cormorant and empties its throat, back in the water the fishing continuous.
We took the bus back to Guilin and an overnight train to Kunming, 18h. We stayed overnight just enough time to explore the city and to catch the night bus to Lijiang. At that time we both did not feel good I got worse every evening and I was not looking forward to the bus ride. It is hard to describe the bus journey. It was the worst journey in our travel history. The beds are stacked two high but built for midgets. People were eating all sorts of weird food that smelled terrible and believe it or not smoking and spitting. The road was bumpy and I had to hold on not to fall out of bed. I really felt like a giant. Arvo could not stretch is legs either do to his large camera bag he had to hold on to. But at least we arrived at 6:00 am in the morning. The weather was crisp and clear and we woke up pretty quick.
Lijiang lays in the Yunnan Province and is the main region inhabited by Naxi Group, one of China's 55 minority ethnic groups. It has the best preserved ancient town in China – the old town has been listed in the World Cultural Heritages by UNESCO in 1997. The Naxi Group is a matriarch system. Man and woman can live together and have children without being married but if they had children and the relationship breaks apart the mother is solely responsible for the child.
We needed to rest up and explored the town is an unusual slow pace. It was a beautiful little town with a lot of traditional houses and small alleys. Of course the Chinese tourists have found this place as well. Chinese are early risers and at 8:00 am the town is crowded with tour groups.
We saw the most western tourist in this little town. Unfortunately the day we left the skies were clear and blue and we were able to see the snow covered mountains in the distance.
We hoped to take the good weather with us to Dali 3h further south, another old historic and intact town surrounded by a city wall. The area is surrounded by mountains on the east, west, and south, and has the Erhai Lake in its center. Here you will find 25 ethnic minorities, which have created a unique cultural heritage amidst the area's picturesque surroundings. We took a full tour around the lake with our private driver. I have to say no need to plan to much in advance drivers and other tour guides are always waiting for you, even at the breakfast table. We had a nice day. Maybe I'm repeating myself but weather is really important for us and the sunny days are counted on one hand on our China tour so far and it will not change much. Lots of people are working in the fields. It is hard labor with no machinery everything is done by hand or by Ox. Each individual town relays on the sale of their produce to sustain the village like a coop system. Batik is famous for this region and we bought too many table cloth.
Back on the road again we took the bus to Kunming were we had to stay the night again before we caught a flight to Nanjing.
Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu Province known as the Capital City of Six or Ten Dynasties in China's history and has a brilliant cultural heritage. Our hotel which promised central location on the web site was too far out of the city and a minimum taxi ride of 20 to 30 minutes to the city center. Do not believe all you read in reports on hotels in China. There are not many individual tourists here and a lot reports are written by members of tour groups who have always transportation and don’t need to relay on their feet or public transport to much.
Here comes the part that will describe my view of a lot of China and its people. We were tired of a lot of things.
The weather for example. It is always cloudy, never real blue sky and the sad part about this, it the air pollution. I don’t think the Chinese even know blue skies anymore. I would have not believe it myself if I haven’t seen it with my own eyes. No city is clear and we are on our second round of soar throats and colds due to air pollution. It influences your mood more than I ever expected.
Next is the food. First of all it is challenging for us to order to due our lack of Chinese We can only blame ourselves for that but the dishes as well can be challenging. I don’t mind eating vegetable and rice even if it is not really warm but for Arvo it does not work over a long period of time. Most dishes include weird animal parts we don’t want to try but we have explored the chicken dishes in all the provinces. Our final result is not order chicken if you want to have only bones with no meat. The flavors are a different story. They are great and it is really tasteful but if you leave a meal hungry because you could not find any meat in the dish it will drag down you as well. Here are thousands of KFC's in China and we came to the conclusion if you do want to have chicken meat go to KFC's they are always full with locals. Oh yes I forgot to mention that the Chinese food is really greasy everything is deep fried or cooked with so much oil that our cholesterol level must be super high.
The next thing is that we are tired of being stared at. Everywhere we go we are looked at. Not just a short look long glaring lasting looks again and again including laughter. Of course we do not understand but what should we make out of. This gets very old quick, because they are not usually friendly looks and if you smile or wave you get no response. Maybe we stand out for some reason being not part of a tour group, but I do not think so since even in tour groups people have time to go on their own for short periods.
The crowds are tough. It is hard to walk side by side, every moment you have to step out of the way and find the best route possible. China has 1.4 billion people and we can feel it every day. It has been the most stressful traveling for us yet due to language barriers and crowds. They push and shove there way in lines on buses, train, everywhere. Its sad to say but we now do the same thing or we would not get anywhere. We will have to break this habit when we leave China. The last thing I have to mention before I continue with Nanjing is the Chinese habit of spitting. Maybe someone can explain to me why they have to spit everywhere they go. Do you want to have details? You have your own imagination but at this point I do not want to put any luggage on the ground or get close to a trash bin. I’m quite sensitive in this matter.
Next is the food. First of all it is challenging for us to order to due our lack of Chinese We can only blame ourselves for that but the dishes as well can be challenging. I don’t mind eating vegetable and rice even if it is not really warm but for Arvo it does not work over a long period of time. Most dishes include weird animal parts we don’t want to try but we have explored the chicken dishes in all the provinces. Our final result is not order chicken if you want to have only bones with no meat. The flavors are a different story. They are great and it is really tasteful but if you leave a meal hungry because you could not find any meat in the dish it will drag down you as well. Here are thousands of KFC's in China and we came to the conclusion if you do want to have chicken meat go to KFC's they are always full with locals. Oh yes I forgot to mention that the Chinese food is really greasy everything is deep fried or cooked with so much oil that our cholesterol level must be super high.
The next thing is that we are tired of being stared at. Everywhere we go we are looked at. Not just a short look long glaring lasting looks again and again including laughter. Of course we do not understand but what should we make out of. This gets very old quick, because they are not usually friendly looks and if you smile or wave you get no response. Maybe we stand out for some reason being not part of a tour group, but I do not think so since even in tour groups people have time to go on their own for short periods.
The crowds are tough. It is hard to walk side by side, every moment you have to step out of the way and find the best route possible. China has 1.4 billion people and we can feel it every day. It has been the most stressful traveling for us yet due to language barriers and crowds. They push and shove there way in lines on buses, train, everywhere. Its sad to say but we now do the same thing or we would not get anywhere. We will have to break this habit when we leave China. The last thing I have to mention before I continue with Nanjing is the Chinese habit of spitting. Maybe someone can explain to me why they have to spit everywhere they go. Do you want to have details? You have your own imagination but at this point I do not want to put any luggage on the ground or get close to a trash bin. I’m quite sensitive in this matter.
Okay back to Nanjing. We did not stay long. Travel tired we were searching for the oasis that we were looking for.
We left for Suzhou it is praised as the “Oriental Venice”. The city center is interwoven with small canals and historic houses. We liked it a lot and stayed four nights. Suzhou is famous for its embroidery work that has been given down by the women from generations to generation. We contacted a sales person and we spent a full day with him to learn more about this craft. He took us to the country side and we met the young women working on the fine embroideries. The work is incredible. The finest thread of silk is worked into a piece of art that looks like a photo from far. Of course we had to buy some for our house to be built. We past the Taihu Lake on the way, it is one of the four largest fresh water lakes in China, with East Hill, West Hill and other scenic spots in its vicinity. The government puts a lot of effort into the shore to make it visitor friendly and I think it will be a great place for the locals to stroll and enjoy the lake - the next tourist destination in the making.
Next stop Hangzhou with its famous natural beauty and cultural heritages, it is one of China's most important tourist cities. We had a hotel right next to the beautiful West lake. We took a full day walking around the lake and did not see all the historic building and sites it is just too large. Again we were the highlight for tourist groups specially the young teenage girls. We walked around the city and we found nice green niches for strolling around a change to other large cities.
We left the next day and arrived after a short bus ride into Shanghai. We just wanted to spend two days here because we knew we are coming back to meet our friend Mark who will be here on a business trip. We strolled around the city center with no specific place to go. We checked out the Bund late in the evening with the Pudong skyline across the Huangpu River. The next day we visit the historical area that includes the Site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China we located in the two two story brick buildings and had lunch at the famous German Hofbraeu Haus. Lots of Germans and foreigners were around us.
Writing this I have to admit we jumped around a lot and are already in Beijing. We booked ourselves into a nice hotel but too far away from the city center. We spend a total of 7 night in the Olympic city with construction and road improvements on each corner. The Olympic park was not much accessible and the construction is in full swing. I hope they get it done in less than 120 days. There is a lot of work still to be finished. Beijing is large and I mean really large. Nothing is close in walking distance. Taxis are a good alternative, the metro system is good but with this large amount of people using it it is quite challenging. We had a great time and did a lot of shopping that we did not get done in Shanghai. Of course we visit the Forbidden City and the Tienanmen square. For sure the large crowds get lost in both and it felt quite empty and spacious. The Forbidden City is incredible the palaces and the garden and the temples. It is just amazing what has been built for Emperors and their wife’s and concubines. Of course the temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace are impressive and falls into the same category.
The city is growing in every direction and so many great buildings are being put up in an incredible pace. I just hope the workman ship underneath is as good as the facades. We really can see why China is eating up the steel and other construction materials. We left out the Great Wall for next time in Beijing just one week later. We had to be back here for our flight to Greece. So off we went and got an early morning flight to Xian-Terracotta Soldiers. At 10:00 am we were in the city center and just had to find a hotel. It was the first time our strategy failed and it took quite some walking around before we found a hotel that we liked. It was nice and warm and the sun tried to come through. Xian is one of the birthplaces of the ancient civilization in the Yellow River Basin area. The next day we took the local bus to the Museum of the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses . Altogether over 7,000 pottery soldiers, horses, chariots, and even weapons have been unearthed from these pits. Most of them have been restored to their former grandeur.
It is really a sensational archaeological find of all times. It was listed by UNESCO in 1987 as one of the world cultural heritages. Excavation is still going on and it quite amazing how big the whole area is.
As well on our list was the Bell Tower the geographical center of the ancient capital, the Drum Tower as a counter part, the City Wall surrounding the entire old city and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda Square a well-preserved ancient building and a holy place for Buddhists. All site were part of the highlights of our trip in Xian. Our last week has started and we took another flight back to Shanghai to meet our friend Mark.
Late in the evening we arrived in Pudong International airport another outstanding piece of architecture. We took the fastest train in the world into Pudong itself and lodged our self in the apartment that Mark organized for us. The biggest place in all our travel history.
Unfortunately Arvo caught another sore throat and we took it easy. It was raining anyway. As Mark arrived we had perfect weather for a trip to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. We had a great view from the upper level and as far the eyes could see and pretty far that day we saw high riser on after the other. I have never seen anything like it in my life. And I'm still not sure if I liked it or I'm more shockt about it. New York is a small city in comparison. Our time came to an end here as well and it was good catching up on real life in Orange County and to see an familiar face after such a long time. Mark was our camel home he carried a big suite case of stuff we bought and did not need again. The night train took us into Beijing a second time. A really good way of traveling. We were lucky to check into our hotel at 7:00 am in the morning because it was down purring rain all day. But the next day we had to go to the Great Wall there was no way around. By the time we reached it late morning it cleared up and the sun came through. Due to the weather we choosed Badaling as the location. It is the most visit tourist location in the World. It has a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. And we felt like in Disney Land to get up to the wall. A little plastic bob sled like train pulled us up and down. We did not have enough time but we were still amazed of this site. An incredible workman ship in this mountain region. It was steep in certain parts and I believe other areas are even steeper.
So the next day we left for Greece or better that night. The flight left at 2:00 am in the morning. After long 24 hours in planes and airports we touched down in Athens. Hello Europe again.
But this is another story. I will keep you up to date.
Take care Arvo and Christiane
Thursday, April 3, 2008
2nd Part of South East Asia
Ni hao,
as they say Hello in Chinese. We have arrived in China two weeks ago but before I will comment on China let me try to search in my memories about our last days in Thailand and our adventures into Laos, Cambodia and Japan.
Thailand
We spend our last day outside Chiang May in the mentioned Nature park for rescued elephants. A highlight for us. The elephants were so cute and the stories behind them so sad. After feeding and bathing them we heard their personal stories. And today we have a better understanding how sensitive elephants are and how poor their are cared off. All the support for this organization is coming from private money and it is sad to mention that the Thai Government does nothing to help to protect the Asian elephant, an endangered species and their national symbol. If you want to know more here is the official web site http://www.elephantnaturepark.org/
Laos
So our next stop was Luang Prabang in Laos. A world Heritage town and a city with a wonderful atmosphere and warm light located at the Mekong and Khan River. Surprisingly expensive for hotels due to a lot of tourism from around the world.
We got up early the next morning to see the morning procession for the monks. At that procession we really saw how many tourist were in town. Tourist arrived by the mini bus load (Due to a UNESCO City no bldg taller than 3 levels and no big buses are allowed). Just after sunrise around 200 monks dressed in their famous orange ropes come to accept their daily offers. I think the tourist nubers in the 1,000's. We assume this will be the food for the day for them. It was one of the highlights in Luang Prabang. After strolling the rest of the day around town and climbing to the city hill top we were surprised again how many people wanted to see the sunset. We gave up of getting a good view and got diner in the town. The next day we decided to visit the 1000 Buddha cave. Not a bad idea at all but due to a weather change we spend two hour in a long tail boat in summer clothes. Everyone was an ice block after this trip. The cave was not worth it in my opinion but the boat trip was. Of course you never book a single trip at once so the bus was waiting for us in Luang Prabang after return for our afternoon excursion to the famous waterfall. Even with the cold weather and no sun in sight we were highly surprised. It was not just one large waterfall but many levels of water pools flowing into each other with turquoise water. We were reminded of Plitvitch National Park in Croatia. Defiantly a place to spend a whole day.
In our last day we saw a traditional opera play and spend our money at the night market. By the way US$ is the most liked currency. Luang Prabang was our only stop in Laos and we would like to come back and spend more time here. The people are nice and friendly and have a charm about them to bargain with you. Laos is a place we want to come back to and spend more time.The next morning we left for Cambodia by plane.
Cambodia
After a short flight we arrived in Siem Reap. I was already impressed by the airport and it showed us of how many tourist come here to build such a nice and modern airport. We had a total of five days in Siem Reap and were hoping that this would be enough time for Angkor Wat. We stayed in the heart of town and tried to get our bearings the first afternoon. Shorty we met Eng our Tuk Tuk driver for the next days. Almost everyone speaks good English and endless restaurants of local and western food are easy to find. Sorry I have to say we had Pizza that night and it was good after so many weeks of rice and noodles. But before we relaxed that evening we decided to watch the sunset inside Angkor Wat. There are three day passes available for a steep US$40 per person. Sad to mention the company who controls the entry fee is a petrol giant and only 25% or so goes to the restoration but it is more than it ever has been. Did I mention tourist in Laos but here were even a bigger crowds. In Siem Reap we have seen the most Chinese and Japanese tourists. The tour groups are always too big, too loud and sorry always in the way for photos. In some of my photos you cannot see the ruins because of the amount of tourists. Of course we are one of them. We had a wonderful first day. We started with Angkor Thom one of the temple ruins. It included Bayon the most famous part after Angkor Wat. The temple area with the many faces carved into stone. It is said to be a portrait of the features of the ruler and Buddha in one. It was just amazing. They are big and so many. Each tower had four faces all around. If I remember right I read that they are around 2000 faces in that temple complex alone. Soon we started to realize how big the whole area around Angkor Wat is. It is hard to fathom that such civilisation and culture existed in the beginning of the 10th century and we have never had any education in school. The workmanship and the sizes of each temple are massive. Each new ruler decided to built their own administrative and worship complex. That’s why today we see so many different sites of importance. It started to get hot in the afternoon and we enjoyed the end of the day at Angkor Wat including sunset. Angkor Wat covers such a big area as well with a giant mount around its territory. Inside the walls were actually living quarters and markets.
The next morning we started with Angkor Wat for sunrise. The crowds were already getting bigger for this spectacular event. Surprisingly after the sunset we had the grounds almost for ourselves. Maybe most of the people needed breakfast. It was nice and peaceful and again we were impressed by the workmanship of the Mural's facing all four compass orientations. We had to go and meet Eng for our short ride to Ta Prohm . Most people remember the movie Tomb Raider, it was the film location for the movie. It was hard to find your way through this spectacular ruin. Large tour groups explored the ruins as well. But the trees were just unbelievable. The places they grew in; on top of roof and the root system exposed and wrapped around walls . A guide told as in the beginning the trees were a hazard for the structure but today the root system is actually holding the building together. We moved on to other sides the afternoon. I will not describe every ruin we visit. I will lose you reading the travel report to quick. But at our last day inside Angkor, Eng our driver brought us to a much further ruin. The journey to get to it was rewarding. We had to wear face mask for the amount of dust we traveled through. Here we saw the real part of how Cambodia is today. A true third world country. Dirt roads, family living with no electricity and sharing a well as their water supply. Kids playing on the street and waving hands. I really enjoyed seeing this part of Cambodia.
Our plane was leaving in the late afternoon the following day and we had some time to visit the floating village on the Tonle Sap lake. Again we drove through the poorest part of Siem Reap. Later that day we found out that all the wells donated by westerners we saw did more harm than good. The wells were not drilled deep enough and the water is actually contaminated. We enjoyed the boat ride and were amazed how people life on the water. Each house was floating by itself. After leaving we visit the local children hospital which was started by a Japanese photographer. It is self funded and is supported by donations only. Cambodia has the highest infant and under-five mortality rates in the region, at 97 and 141 per 1,000 live births, respectively. The child death rate in Cambodia is as high as in parts of Africa. (http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/cambodia_2190.html)
We visit the local silk factory. Each meter of silk is handmade and takes an incredible amount of hours and labor to produce but the prices are still affordable. The same is to mention for the stone craft. Hand carved Buddha figures and more. The local crafts are trying to promote their skills for the tourist in order to sustain a living and a future for themselves. Young people are trained and provided a future through this programs. (http://www.stay-another-day.org/ or http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/mekongpsdf.nsf/Content/Feature12 for more tourist information on Cambodia and Laos.)
Because of our driver(Eng) we paid the fair prices that locals pay but even that I found expensive. For example four small baguettes cost US$1 but the average income of our driver is US$3-5 a day. A lunch meal for them as well cost one dollar. It is like a jackpot for any driver to get a couple like us who are paying around US$20 for a full day. The competition is high in any job and it is hard to find a good job if you do not have any connections at all. Eng was money well spent and we enjoyed him as our driver. Him and his wife are expecting their first baby. Eng driving us to the airport and said our goodbyes with warm hugs, we hope to keep in contact with Eng it will be hard as he has no internet, but we will try.
We are leaving Cambodia with a lot of different impressions, the incredible Angkor and its surroundings and the friendly people. And not to forget the children. Working during the day to make some money to pay for their school. They were so charming that it was hard to get by them without buying anything. At the end of the day Arvo emptied his pack and I discovered how much he actually bought. He was always surrounded by them and I guess he could not say no.
Bangkok
In the evening we arrived in Bangkok. Again I was amazed by the modern airport. It is just a year old and quite far outside the city. We had a hotel reserved close to the Bangkok river. It was a nice hotel. I just mention it because we used it as our sanctuary away from this crazy city. I started to get a real bad stomach bug that lasted for days. Bangkok was dirty, loud and crowded. We got around good but got fast annoyed by the constant approach from people trying hard to sell you something. To make it short we did not like it at all. We saved the Grand Palace for last and it was rewarding check out the photos. But we were glad to leave after three days.
Japan
Through the time delay we arrived early morning in Tokyo. We did not get a hotel in time so we used the airport tourist office to book one. We found a typical Japanese hotel a Ryokan. Japanese style rooms are large and like a living room with tatami rice mattresses and in the evening the tea table is moved aside and the futon is rolled out. Quite different and we liked it. We arrived by train in the city of Tokyo. We dropped off our luggage and started to explore. We walked to the Imperial Palace Plaza and the first thing I noticed was the atmosphere and the layout of the city blocks. It was cold and the wind was icy but is was so quiet in the middle of the city. Cars driving by and buses but is was still not loud. It was so relaxing after that chaotic city of Bangkok and the street edges gave a sense of order. Our three day in Tokyo were cold but the city is amazing. Tokyo has different city parts almost each area is a city in itself. The train stations are gigantic crossings points for millions of people every day. They include shopping centers restaurants and much more. The city is for sure for shopping and eating. The bad part was that after South East Asia and the dollar at its lowest point the prices are just really steep. We knew Japan is on the higher side but it is still a little shocking seeing it for ourselves. Nevertheless we enjoyed every day. We left for Kyoto. Of course the weather changed and we drove through white scenery and the next day we woke up with Kyoto covered in a thin layer of snow. We were not quite equipped for snow so we wore all the layers of clothes we had. The public transportation is great and we reached our first shrine of so many ‘The Golden Pavilion’. Kyoto has so many different shrines and pagodas from different dynasties that I will not list them all. Kyoto is like an open air museum even in two weeks it would be hard to cover all the sightseeing points. Old and new is city parts are close together and interwoven with each other. Behind a high rise building is hidden a temple and stepping into it will make you forget that you are in a hectic and large city a little oasis. We were too early for the cherry blossom season but we tried to imagine how it could look. It must be really special to see it. The cherry trees are large and so abundant especial at the Philosophers path along a little canal. We were lucky to see Geisha's strolling through the old streets of Kyoto and got some photos. The next stop was Nara only an hour train ride away from Kyoto. We spent two nighst in this smaller city. Nara is known for its wild roaming deer in the park. They know they are getting fed by the tourist and are quiet aggressive and even eat your sleeves, maps or anyhing they can get and ramming their heads hard into your butt to get your attention. We visited the giant Buddha. The building is a replica including the Buddha and only 2/3 of its original size. It is the largest wooden structure in the world but it is already really large. Another area of the park is covered with hundreds of lanterns and it must be a great sight to see them lit at night. It only happens for special occasions. The timing was right for a annual celebration that did not make alot of sense to us. It happened in one of the 700-800 year old completely wooden temples. It was at night and on the 3rd story of the temple they let these huge balls of straw attached to a pole on fire and then ran around the temple 3 stroies high with sparks and flying embers going everywhere. I could just imagine this historic building going up in flames. They said they have been doing it for several hundred years, sounds risky to us, but was a site to see. Our time came to soon to leave and we took the train back to Tokyo. The train system is incredible as well. Fast, efficient, clean and relaxing. We had only one night left in Tokyo and strolled around the shopping areas. I took a lot of great impressions away from Japan. Travelling in my opinion is to get inspired by people, cities and landscape. Japan inspired me in all aspects. The people are so friendly. Even with little or no English they talk to you as you could understand every word and are helpful as much as they can. School kids often approached us for practicing their English and giggling around you. The service staff was always friendly and all of them greeted you and said goodbye in a canon. Really funny. Of course the architecture, old and new was fascinating. The heritage was treated with great respect and kept up impressively well. So much detail in every corner. Starting from the entries to the gardens. Clean lines and a lot great workman ship. Of course the houses were small but that showed even more how use full every inch or centimeter is used. As well I was surprised of how much mountains are around Kyoto. The shrines were beautiful set into the hills. All of the impression that we have today from Japan just makes us wanting to go back and see more. I think I wrote enough and will let you go.
We hope you enjoyed my summary and we will let you know how our adventures continue in China.
I have to admit we are starting to miss talking to our friends in person after such a long time traveling.
We hope you had a good Easter Time.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
as they say Hello in Chinese. We have arrived in China two weeks ago but before I will comment on China let me try to search in my memories about our last days in Thailand and our adventures into Laos, Cambodia and Japan.
Thailand
We spend our last day outside Chiang May in the mentioned Nature park for rescued elephants. A highlight for us. The elephants were so cute and the stories behind them so sad. After feeding and bathing them we heard their personal stories. And today we have a better understanding how sensitive elephants are and how poor their are cared off. All the support for this organization is coming from private money and it is sad to mention that the Thai Government does nothing to help to protect the Asian elephant, an endangered species and their national symbol. If you want to know more here is the official web site http://www.elephantnaturepark.org/
Laos
So our next stop was Luang Prabang in Laos. A world Heritage town and a city with a wonderful atmosphere and warm light located at the Mekong and Khan River. Surprisingly expensive for hotels due to a lot of tourism from around the world.
We got up early the next morning to see the morning procession for the monks. At that procession we really saw how many tourist were in town. Tourist arrived by the mini bus load (Due to a UNESCO City no bldg taller than 3 levels and no big buses are allowed). Just after sunrise around 200 monks dressed in their famous orange ropes come to accept their daily offers. I think the tourist nubers in the 1,000's. We assume this will be the food for the day for them. It was one of the highlights in Luang Prabang. After strolling the rest of the day around town and climbing to the city hill top we were surprised again how many people wanted to see the sunset. We gave up of getting a good view and got diner in the town. The next day we decided to visit the 1000 Buddha cave. Not a bad idea at all but due to a weather change we spend two hour in a long tail boat in summer clothes. Everyone was an ice block after this trip. The cave was not worth it in my opinion but the boat trip was. Of course you never book a single trip at once so the bus was waiting for us in Luang Prabang after return for our afternoon excursion to the famous waterfall. Even with the cold weather and no sun in sight we were highly surprised. It was not just one large waterfall but many levels of water pools flowing into each other with turquoise water. We were reminded of Plitvitch National Park in Croatia. Defiantly a place to spend a whole day.
In our last day we saw a traditional opera play and spend our money at the night market. By the way US$ is the most liked currency. Luang Prabang was our only stop in Laos and we would like to come back and spend more time here. The people are nice and friendly and have a charm about them to bargain with you. Laos is a place we want to come back to and spend more time.The next morning we left for Cambodia by plane.
Cambodia
After a short flight we arrived in Siem Reap. I was already impressed by the airport and it showed us of how many tourist come here to build such a nice and modern airport. We had a total of five days in Siem Reap and were hoping that this would be enough time for Angkor Wat. We stayed in the heart of town and tried to get our bearings the first afternoon. Shorty we met Eng our Tuk Tuk driver for the next days. Almost everyone speaks good English and endless restaurants of local and western food are easy to find. Sorry I have to say we had Pizza that night and it was good after so many weeks of rice and noodles. But before we relaxed that evening we decided to watch the sunset inside Angkor Wat. There are three day passes available for a steep US$40 per person. Sad to mention the company who controls the entry fee is a petrol giant and only 25% or so goes to the restoration but it is more than it ever has been. Did I mention tourist in Laos but here were even a bigger crowds. In Siem Reap we have seen the most Chinese and Japanese tourists. The tour groups are always too big, too loud and sorry always in the way for photos. In some of my photos you cannot see the ruins because of the amount of tourists. Of course we are one of them. We had a wonderful first day. We started with Angkor Thom one of the temple ruins. It included Bayon the most famous part after Angkor Wat. The temple area with the many faces carved into stone. It is said to be a portrait of the features of the ruler and Buddha in one. It was just amazing. They are big and so many. Each tower had four faces all around. If I remember right I read that they are around 2000 faces in that temple complex alone. Soon we started to realize how big the whole area around Angkor Wat is. It is hard to fathom that such civilisation and culture existed in the beginning of the 10th century and we have never had any education in school. The workmanship and the sizes of each temple are massive. Each new ruler decided to built their own administrative and worship complex. That’s why today we see so many different sites of importance. It started to get hot in the afternoon and we enjoyed the end of the day at Angkor Wat including sunset. Angkor Wat covers such a big area as well with a giant mount around its territory. Inside the walls were actually living quarters and markets.
The next morning we started with Angkor Wat for sunrise. The crowds were already getting bigger for this spectacular event. Surprisingly after the sunset we had the grounds almost for ourselves. Maybe most of the people needed breakfast. It was nice and peaceful and again we were impressed by the workmanship of the Mural's facing all four compass orientations. We had to go and meet Eng for our short ride to Ta Prohm . Most people remember the movie Tomb Raider, it was the film location for the movie. It was hard to find your way through this spectacular ruin. Large tour groups explored the ruins as well. But the trees were just unbelievable. The places they grew in; on top of roof and the root system exposed and wrapped around walls . A guide told as in the beginning the trees were a hazard for the structure but today the root system is actually holding the building together. We moved on to other sides the afternoon. I will not describe every ruin we visit. I will lose you reading the travel report to quick. But at our last day inside Angkor, Eng our driver brought us to a much further ruin. The journey to get to it was rewarding. We had to wear face mask for the amount of dust we traveled through. Here we saw the real part of how Cambodia is today. A true third world country. Dirt roads, family living with no electricity and sharing a well as their water supply. Kids playing on the street and waving hands. I really enjoyed seeing this part of Cambodia.
Our plane was leaving in the late afternoon the following day and we had some time to visit the floating village on the Tonle Sap lake. Again we drove through the poorest part of Siem Reap. Later that day we found out that all the wells donated by westerners we saw did more harm than good. The wells were not drilled deep enough and the water is actually contaminated. We enjoyed the boat ride and were amazed how people life on the water. Each house was floating by itself. After leaving we visit the local children hospital which was started by a Japanese photographer. It is self funded and is supported by donations only. Cambodia has the highest infant and under-five mortality rates in the region, at 97 and 141 per 1,000 live births, respectively. The child death rate in Cambodia is as high as in parts of Africa. (http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/cambodia_2190.html)
We visit the local silk factory. Each meter of silk is handmade and takes an incredible amount of hours and labor to produce but the prices are still affordable. The same is to mention for the stone craft. Hand carved Buddha figures and more. The local crafts are trying to promote their skills for the tourist in order to sustain a living and a future for themselves. Young people are trained and provided a future through this programs. (http://www.stay-another-day.org/ or http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/mekongpsdf.nsf/Content/Feature12 for more tourist information on Cambodia and Laos.)
Because of our driver(Eng) we paid the fair prices that locals pay but even that I found expensive. For example four small baguettes cost US$1 but the average income of our driver is US$3-5 a day. A lunch meal for them as well cost one dollar. It is like a jackpot for any driver to get a couple like us who are paying around US$20 for a full day. The competition is high in any job and it is hard to find a good job if you do not have any connections at all. Eng was money well spent and we enjoyed him as our driver. Him and his wife are expecting their first baby. Eng driving us to the airport and said our goodbyes with warm hugs, we hope to keep in contact with Eng it will be hard as he has no internet, but we will try.
We are leaving Cambodia with a lot of different impressions, the incredible Angkor and its surroundings and the friendly people. And not to forget the children. Working during the day to make some money to pay for their school. They were so charming that it was hard to get by them without buying anything. At the end of the day Arvo emptied his pack and I discovered how much he actually bought. He was always surrounded by them and I guess he could not say no.
Bangkok
In the evening we arrived in Bangkok. Again I was amazed by the modern airport. It is just a year old and quite far outside the city. We had a hotel reserved close to the Bangkok river. It was a nice hotel. I just mention it because we used it as our sanctuary away from this crazy city. I started to get a real bad stomach bug that lasted for days. Bangkok was dirty, loud and crowded. We got around good but got fast annoyed by the constant approach from people trying hard to sell you something. To make it short we did not like it at all. We saved the Grand Palace for last and it was rewarding check out the photos. But we were glad to leave after three days.
Japan
Through the time delay we arrived early morning in Tokyo. We did not get a hotel in time so we used the airport tourist office to book one. We found a typical Japanese hotel a Ryokan. Japanese style rooms are large and like a living room with tatami rice mattresses and in the evening the tea table is moved aside and the futon is rolled out. Quite different and we liked it. We arrived by train in the city of Tokyo. We dropped off our luggage and started to explore. We walked to the Imperial Palace Plaza and the first thing I noticed was the atmosphere and the layout of the city blocks. It was cold and the wind was icy but is was so quiet in the middle of the city. Cars driving by and buses but is was still not loud. It was so relaxing after that chaotic city of Bangkok and the street edges gave a sense of order. Our three day in Tokyo were cold but the city is amazing. Tokyo has different city parts almost each area is a city in itself. The train stations are gigantic crossings points for millions of people every day. They include shopping centers restaurants and much more. The city is for sure for shopping and eating. The bad part was that after South East Asia and the dollar at its lowest point the prices are just really steep. We knew Japan is on the higher side but it is still a little shocking seeing it for ourselves. Nevertheless we enjoyed every day. We left for Kyoto. Of course the weather changed and we drove through white scenery and the next day we woke up with Kyoto covered in a thin layer of snow. We were not quite equipped for snow so we wore all the layers of clothes we had. The public transportation is great and we reached our first shrine of so many ‘The Golden Pavilion’. Kyoto has so many different shrines and pagodas from different dynasties that I will not list them all. Kyoto is like an open air museum even in two weeks it would be hard to cover all the sightseeing points. Old and new is city parts are close together and interwoven with each other. Behind a high rise building is hidden a temple and stepping into it will make you forget that you are in a hectic and large city a little oasis. We were too early for the cherry blossom season but we tried to imagine how it could look. It must be really special to see it. The cherry trees are large and so abundant especial at the Philosophers path along a little canal. We were lucky to see Geisha's strolling through the old streets of Kyoto and got some photos. The next stop was Nara only an hour train ride away from Kyoto. We spent two nighst in this smaller city. Nara is known for its wild roaming deer in the park. They know they are getting fed by the tourist and are quiet aggressive and even eat your sleeves, maps or anyhing they can get and ramming their heads hard into your butt to get your attention. We visited the giant Buddha. The building is a replica including the Buddha and only 2/3 of its original size. It is the largest wooden structure in the world but it is already really large. Another area of the park is covered with hundreds of lanterns and it must be a great sight to see them lit at night. It only happens for special occasions. The timing was right for a annual celebration that did not make alot of sense to us. It happened in one of the 700-800 year old completely wooden temples. It was at night and on the 3rd story of the temple they let these huge balls of straw attached to a pole on fire and then ran around the temple 3 stroies high with sparks and flying embers going everywhere. I could just imagine this historic building going up in flames. They said they have been doing it for several hundred years, sounds risky to us, but was a site to see. Our time came to soon to leave and we took the train back to Tokyo. The train system is incredible as well. Fast, efficient, clean and relaxing. We had only one night left in Tokyo and strolled around the shopping areas. I took a lot of great impressions away from Japan. Travelling in my opinion is to get inspired by people, cities and landscape. Japan inspired me in all aspects. The people are so friendly. Even with little or no English they talk to you as you could understand every word and are helpful as much as they can. School kids often approached us for practicing their English and giggling around you. The service staff was always friendly and all of them greeted you and said goodbye in a canon. Really funny. Of course the architecture, old and new was fascinating. The heritage was treated with great respect and kept up impressively well. So much detail in every corner. Starting from the entries to the gardens. Clean lines and a lot great workman ship. Of course the houses were small but that showed even more how use full every inch or centimeter is used. As well I was surprised of how much mountains are around Kyoto. The shrines were beautiful set into the hills. All of the impression that we have today from Japan just makes us wanting to go back and see more. I think I wrote enough and will let you go.
We hope you enjoyed my summary and we will let you know how our adventures continue in China.
I have to admit we are starting to miss talking to our friends in person after such a long time traveling.
We hope you had a good Easter Time.
Take Care Arvo & Christiane
Thursday, February 7, 2008
South East Asia #1
Sawatdee Kaa,
Hello from Thailand.
It is Christiane writing again and we have just reached the nothern city of Thailand Chiang Mai. But before I will tell you about our adventures in South-East Asia let me just finish with some things we saw at the North Island of New Zealand.
Yes, the North Island is different than the south but mostly due to its lack of high mountain ranges and rainforest dropping into the ocean. But it still has a lot of nature to offer and pretty sceneries.
After we left the rainy city of Wellington. We had a change to see the rarest birds in NZ. Sad only in controlled nature habitats. We took a Whale Rider Tour at the nothern Coast. For anyone who has not seen the movie it is woth while to watch. We had the opportunity to here the real story behind it and how Maori live today. After we got to smell the sulfur in Rotorua, a thermal area with active geysers that reminded us of Yellow Stone just a lot smaler we headed for one of the best day hikes in NZ. I'm sure almost everyone has seen "Lord of the Rings" and we hiked at the base of the Volcano that was Mount Doom and Mordor in the movies with spectacular turkois lakes. In the nothern part we hit a lot of the Kiwis traveling themself for their big summer/christmas break. It was packed and hard to find even a campground for a reasonal price. We left the crowds behind and spend some time in Auckland. And tried to lighten our pack for Asia. We knew we will not have a car and lighter is better in this case.
One impression to NZ I have to mention is that I have to say I'm disappointed of how much native forest is left in NZ. When people first arrived in New Zealand over 80% of the land was covered in native forest – and the 20% that wasn’t covered was mostly mountain tops. Now there is only about 23% of New Zealand covered with native vegetation. Not to mention the introduced mamals to are causing a lot of destruction today. NZ did not have any mamlas on the islands before even the Maori arrived. Today so many birds are endangered and lost their habitat. Just as an example the possum- introduced for their fur. In one night 70 million possums chomp their way through about 20,000 tonnes of vegetation - that is equal to about the same weight as 190 million burgers! That means that in one year 70 million possums eat nearly seven and a half million tonnes of vegetation.
So much to NZ.
We touched down in Singapore and for Arvo and myself it is the first time in South East Asia. I was excited to leave the english speaking countries behind. But english today is spoken everywhere. Singapore is a clean city. Already at the airport we saw people cleaning at 1:00 am louvers in doors with toothbrushes. Of course no chewing gum, spitting and so forth. We were impressed how close different coultures and religions life together and all the different ethnic groups have to speak english with each other. Realy interesting. We saw a Hindu temple next to a budist temple and not far away was a mosque. The city is a shopping paradise for shoppers with deap pockets. We could not fathom the size of the shooping malls, like little to big cities in itself. AND... I have to mention the food. Food smell is filling the air of the streets. So much different tastes of food. I heaven for me. I read that it is impossible to have the same type af meal in a whole year and you still would not have tasted all the different dishes available. China Town was in full colour for its New Year coming up three weeks away.
After 4 days in Singapore we headed to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia a 6h bus ride away. What a hussel and buzzel that city is. Traffic jam as we arrived and nothing moved. We reached our hotel and spend the first night with no water due to a public water pipe break. But luckly the next morning it was repaired. Of course our first stop were the Petrones Twin Towers. The highes "TWIN" towers in the world. A great destination for architecture, outdoor spaces, food and shopping-specialy at night. We were drawn like mooth to the shiny towers. I have never seen such a sparkling building. Stainless steell from the top to the bottum; a magnificant sight.
Leaving KL we headed to the oldest rainforest in the world. Part of the journey was a 3h ride in the traditional longboats up the river to reach the National Park. You are sitting just a foot above the waterline with your head and the boat is realy narrow and tipsy. Quite a journey. We saw all the weired insects like the stick insect up close at night that we only knew from the Zoo. The short dschungle walk the next day left us soaked in sweat. Impossible to keep up your hydration.
The next highlight and stop were the Cameron Highlands. A agricuture area for fruits and vegetable but for us visitors we are coming here to see the rolling green hills covered with tea plants. It looks like a gigantic carpet covers the hills. Spectakular. You can check out the photos. We had a short stop and night in Georgetown and decided in the next morning to jump on the ferry to Langkawi to relax at the beaches. Langkawi is the most nothern island in Malaysia on the western side close to Thailand. We meet so many nice backpackers along the way and heard so much about differnt places that we started to realize our time frame is just not long enought. We were torn what to do next. Everyday we wanted to go in different directions. It sounds kinda rediciolus maybe for you guys but it is hard to make a decision if you have so many oportunities to choose from.
We decided to travel into Thailand and see what will happen next. We had a wonderful time in Krabi region. We enjoyed the beaches with stunning cliff formations and did some island tours before we moved on to Bangkok by night train. Thailand has much more to offer than beaches and we needed to move on. Trains are not run like the ones in Switzerland and we had a 3h our delay. But that is part of the adventure. We only stopped in Bangkok to change train to head to Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya was a Thai kingdom in 1350 and had a lot of Wat (temple) and palaces. It was destroyed by the Burmese 1767 and is today a UNESCO Worldheritage site. Impressed by al the temples and ruins we did not stop sightseeing even the temperatuers were high and the feet tired.
Where to go next? That was the big question. The next day at the bus station we made up our mind to go to Ciang Mai instet to visit Sukothai. After 10h in the worsthed bus you can book we checked in into a nice hotel. It was a treat. After so many month we finaly had our own bathroom and a bed that we are getting lost in. Now we each have our own space but feeling lost being so far apart. You start realizing how many month your are traveling when you are running out of toothpaste and need to get a haircut.
Chiang Mai has around 127 temples and one is nicer than the other. I'm amazed of how much detail is in each building. The city is realy clean and one of the few cities in Thailand with a recycling program. And of course there is the night market. Even I become a shopper. Sometimes it is hard to bargain because the prizes are so cheap but this is part of the deal. I'm amazed how much colours are around us. The temples blinking in gold and colourful banners are everywhere and of course the thai dresses and fabrics. We are going to leave Chiang Mai on the 10th and decided to go to Laos, Luang Prabang and flighing from there to Siem Reap-Ankor Wat. We heard so much about it and I'm ecxited. It supposes to be jaw dropping special the sunrises and sunsets over the temples.
But before we leave we have a day spending time and taking care of elephants in a naturepark recommended by Joyce.
We will keep you posted on the next leg. After Kambodia we are arriving in Bangkok again for 4 days before our plane leaves to Tokyo.
Of course we are hoping everybody is doing great and please let us know what is happening in the rest of the world.
Take Care Arvo and Christiane
Hello from Thailand.
It is Christiane writing again and we have just reached the nothern city of Thailand Chiang Mai. But before I will tell you about our adventures in South-East Asia let me just finish with some things we saw at the North Island of New Zealand.
Yes, the North Island is different than the south but mostly due to its lack of high mountain ranges and rainforest dropping into the ocean. But it still has a lot of nature to offer and pretty sceneries.
After we left the rainy city of Wellington. We had a change to see the rarest birds in NZ. Sad only in controlled nature habitats. We took a Whale Rider Tour at the nothern Coast. For anyone who has not seen the movie it is woth while to watch. We had the opportunity to here the real story behind it and how Maori live today. After we got to smell the sulfur in Rotorua, a thermal area with active geysers that reminded us of Yellow Stone just a lot smaler we headed for one of the best day hikes in NZ. I'm sure almost everyone has seen "Lord of the Rings" and we hiked at the base of the Volcano that was Mount Doom and Mordor in the movies with spectacular turkois lakes. In the nothern part we hit a lot of the Kiwis traveling themself for their big summer/christmas break. It was packed and hard to find even a campground for a reasonal price. We left the crowds behind and spend some time in Auckland. And tried to lighten our pack for Asia. We knew we will not have a car and lighter is better in this case.
One impression to NZ I have to mention is that I have to say I'm disappointed of how much native forest is left in NZ. When people first arrived in New Zealand over 80% of the land was covered in native forest – and the 20% that wasn’t covered was mostly mountain tops. Now there is only about 23% of New Zealand covered with native vegetation. Not to mention the introduced mamals to are causing a lot of destruction today. NZ did not have any mamlas on the islands before even the Maori arrived. Today so many birds are endangered and lost their habitat. Just as an example the possum- introduced for their fur. In one night 70 million possums chomp their way through about 20,000 tonnes of vegetation - that is equal to about the same weight as 190 million burgers! That means that in one year 70 million possums eat nearly seven and a half million tonnes of vegetation.
So much to NZ.
We touched down in Singapore and for Arvo and myself it is the first time in South East Asia. I was excited to leave the english speaking countries behind. But english today is spoken everywhere. Singapore is a clean city. Already at the airport we saw people cleaning at 1:00 am louvers in doors with toothbrushes. Of course no chewing gum, spitting and so forth. We were impressed how close different coultures and religions life together and all the different ethnic groups have to speak english with each other. Realy interesting. We saw a Hindu temple next to a budist temple and not far away was a mosque. The city is a shopping paradise for shoppers with deap pockets. We could not fathom the size of the shooping malls, like little to big cities in itself. AND... I have to mention the food. Food smell is filling the air of the streets. So much different tastes of food. I heaven for me. I read that it is impossible to have the same type af meal in a whole year and you still would not have tasted all the different dishes available. China Town was in full colour for its New Year coming up three weeks away.
After 4 days in Singapore we headed to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia a 6h bus ride away. What a hussel and buzzel that city is. Traffic jam as we arrived and nothing moved. We reached our hotel and spend the first night with no water due to a public water pipe break. But luckly the next morning it was repaired. Of course our first stop were the Petrones Twin Towers. The highes "TWIN" towers in the world. A great destination for architecture, outdoor spaces, food and shopping-specialy at night. We were drawn like mooth to the shiny towers. I have never seen such a sparkling building. Stainless steell from the top to the bottum; a magnificant sight.
Leaving KL we headed to the oldest rainforest in the world. Part of the journey was a 3h ride in the traditional longboats up the river to reach the National Park. You are sitting just a foot above the waterline with your head and the boat is realy narrow and tipsy. Quite a journey. We saw all the weired insects like the stick insect up close at night that we only knew from the Zoo. The short dschungle walk the next day left us soaked in sweat. Impossible to keep up your hydration.
The next highlight and stop were the Cameron Highlands. A agricuture area for fruits and vegetable but for us visitors we are coming here to see the rolling green hills covered with tea plants. It looks like a gigantic carpet covers the hills. Spectakular. You can check out the photos. We had a short stop and night in Georgetown and decided in the next morning to jump on the ferry to Langkawi to relax at the beaches. Langkawi is the most nothern island in Malaysia on the western side close to Thailand. We meet so many nice backpackers along the way and heard so much about differnt places that we started to realize our time frame is just not long enought. We were torn what to do next. Everyday we wanted to go in different directions. It sounds kinda rediciolus maybe for you guys but it is hard to make a decision if you have so many oportunities to choose from.
We decided to travel into Thailand and see what will happen next. We had a wonderful time in Krabi region. We enjoyed the beaches with stunning cliff formations and did some island tours before we moved on to Bangkok by night train. Thailand has much more to offer than beaches and we needed to move on. Trains are not run like the ones in Switzerland and we had a 3h our delay. But that is part of the adventure. We only stopped in Bangkok to change train to head to Ayutthaya. Ayutthaya was a Thai kingdom in 1350 and had a lot of Wat (temple) and palaces. It was destroyed by the Burmese 1767 and is today a UNESCO Worldheritage site. Impressed by al the temples and ruins we did not stop sightseeing even the temperatuers were high and the feet tired.
Where to go next? That was the big question. The next day at the bus station we made up our mind to go to Ciang Mai instet to visit Sukothai. After 10h in the worsthed bus you can book we checked in into a nice hotel. It was a treat. After so many month we finaly had our own bathroom and a bed that we are getting lost in. Now we each have our own space but feeling lost being so far apart. You start realizing how many month your are traveling when you are running out of toothpaste and need to get a haircut.
Chiang Mai has around 127 temples and one is nicer than the other. I'm amazed of how much detail is in each building. The city is realy clean and one of the few cities in Thailand with a recycling program. And of course there is the night market. Even I become a shopper. Sometimes it is hard to bargain because the prizes are so cheap but this is part of the deal. I'm amazed how much colours are around us. The temples blinking in gold and colourful banners are everywhere and of course the thai dresses and fabrics. We are going to leave Chiang Mai on the 10th and decided to go to Laos, Luang Prabang and flighing from there to Siem Reap-Ankor Wat. We heard so much about it and I'm ecxited. It supposes to be jaw dropping special the sunrises and sunsets over the temples.
But before we leave we have a day spending time and taking care of elephants in a naturepark recommended by Joyce.
We will keep you posted on the next leg. After Kambodia we are arriving in Bangkok again for 4 days before our plane leaves to Tokyo.
Of course we are hoping everybody is doing great and please let us know what is happening in the rest of the world.
Take Care Arvo and Christiane
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
