G'day mates ! We couldn't resist :) Wow what a difference a day makes. One of the greatest gifts of traveling is the people you meet. While in Ubud at a Kecuck dance show we met Amanda from Australia. We shared dessert, dinner, a few monkey stories and her driver. Next thing we knew Amanda and Pete were picking us up from the airport, excited to show us around their home in North Curl Curl Beach, a short ferry ride from Sydney. We spent three days at their lovely home, where we so thoroughly enjoyed meeting their crew, Pete's mom Helen, son Nick, daughter Phoebe, boyfriend Matt and their "cheeky" grandson Marlon. Throw in a few friends, Brent and Mel, delicious home cooking, including steak on the barbie and we felt right at home. They took us to the northern most point in Sydney, we visited a national park and ate the best fish & chips at Pete's favorite lunch spot. From Amanda's house we took the ferry into the city, the perfect way to see Sydney for the first time. It's all right there in front of you, the Opera House, Harbour Bridge, skyline surrounded by water. We were a bit awestruck by the shear beauty, but no worries mates we got over it once we saw the prices. It's nice to report Sydney's economy is robust and flourishing. Highlights included a tour of the Opera House and our very first opera, walking across the Harbour Bridge, since we couldn't afford to walk on top and the Sydney Tower, couldn't afford the Sky Walk, but it looked great from the street. Loved the Royal Botanic Gardens & Art Gallery of NSW (New South Whales), Hyde Park, the Domain, Bondi Beach and the Fish Market, all FREE. What we really enjoyed was being on the water and taking the Ferry's to all the different neighborhoods and talking to the locals. The Aussie's truly are a friendly bunch. Now Mike can finally tell the difference between an Australian and British accent.
One side note to report. We survived an earthquake, 5.2 on the Richter scale in Bali and a dust storm in Sydney that turned the city red, sky orange and virtually shut everything down for a few hours. We're hoping not to encounter a Tsunami.
Shout Out Time;
- An, before you know it you will be in the blog and not reading about it. Can't wait to see you in Thailand. The Thai are known for their massage. Get ready!
- Wayan aka: Sharon, Maday aka: Michele and Momma aka: aunt Carol glad you're enjoying our stories.
- Liz & Rick, if you liked the monkey story you should have seen Mike wrestling with a surf board in Bali.
-Jan, your always our first responder. We can see you smiling as you read the blog, your beautiful notes always make Carin cry.
- J & H, love ya, miss ya, can't wait to kiss ya.
- A special shout out to our new friends Amanda & Pete. Save your money and we'll see you in Colorado.
KEEP THE COMMENTS COMING. We love hearing from you all.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
24 .... AND A LITTLE BIT MORE
A HUGE shout out to our little Jess on her birthday. As you begin your 24th year we are in awe of the wise little Buddha you have become. We left Rich and Hannah with specific instructions to shower you with tons of hugs and kisses. May your day be joyful and filled with laughter. We miss and love you so much.
A few stories as we sadly finish our travels through Indonesia;
In the small village of Tirta Gangga (Water of the Ganges) we met a young man busing tables at the Good Karma Cafe. His true love is taking travelers trekking through the rice terraces and villages that grace this part of east Bali. Like every hike it started with a steep ascent up a million steps to the most amazing view of green and lush rice fields that seem to stretch as far as the ocean . Komang, who goes by John, which sounded like Kong, knew everything about the plants, fruit and the people. He pointed out tiny red pineapples growing on the side of the walking path. There was coffee beans and cacao plants everywhere. Giant Jackfruit, some covered in bags so the birds wouldn't eat them, were twenty meters high in the trees. John showed us the ginger tree, snake fruit, (the skin looks like the outside of a snake hence the name), mangoes and pumpkins growing on trees ( yes that's right). Chickens, roosters and of course dogs ran about the paths. As we walked and talked, he shared with us his concerns for the very poor, elderly people living in the mountain villages, like the one he still lives in. There is no medical or financial assistance (ie. social security) in Indonesia. It seems to be left to the family to take care of their elders. In many cases these people have no family, therefore no assistance. John not only gives 30% of his earnings from trekking but tries to educate fellow guides and travelers to the challenges these people face. We saw it first hand when we stopped in a little village and met an 89 year old woman, partially blind and carrying a bucket of water on her head. She had just come from the river. Her hut, approximately 8' x 9' consisted of a makeshift bed, a small cooking area and a pot filled with rice, enough for two meals hanging on the wall. There is no indoor plumbing or electricity. With donations from travelers and his own money he provides her some food, medication, transportation to the doctors and anything else that she might need. There she stood bare feet, water on her head and the most beautiful smile, we felt privileged and touched at the same time. The human spirit is amazing. Sometimes it takes stepping into someone elses world to realize it. Spending this time with Komang and helping to support his "charity" was a gift.
Something else that we love about Bali is the name system. It's real easy because they only use
4 names, the same for boys and girls, Wayung, Maday, Komang & Ketut, in the order that they were born and then it repeats. This was a blessing for Mike because he always had a
1 in 4 chance of getting it right. (Not so good with remembering names) The only problem is if you're in a crowd you might get 20 Wayung's answering at the same time. They all have these American nicknames like Eddie, John, Eric .. which we found to be very funny.
We took a 10 hour trip to Meno Island, which could have taken 5 hours but Mike folded under the relentless sales pressure and bought the slow ferry, slow bus and slow boat ticket. Carin had to really let this one go as she was not feeling well, hot and hungry. She had plenty of time to let it pass on the white sandy beaches of the quietest of the Gili Islands off the coast of Lombok. No cars, no scooters no one older than 30 and no electricity half the time, but great snorkeling. Yes snorkeling again. Lovely and restful. Carin booked the trip back, much better!
Back to Ubud to finish eating in the restaurants we missed the first time, see another Balinese dance show, a little last minute shopping, motor biking and relaxing (yoga & meditation) at the Ubud Sari Health Resort. This was all in preparation for more relaxing at our final destination, the beaches of Seminyak in south Bali, where the beach is big and the waves are awsome.
A few "small" shout outs;
- Congrats to Corinne & Garrison on tying the knot.
- Doug, Thanks for telling me about your crazy brother after the fact. Anything else I should know?
- Britt, School first blog second.
- Mom & Joe, The place were staying right now reminds us of the Club. We keep looking around for Koko.
- Love Me aka Karen, Thanks for keeping mom part of our trip. Please get her on the Internet so she can see the pictures. Judy and Joe are willing to help.
-Ivi, We have resurfaced. Congrats to Michael the Bar Mitzvah boy or should we say man! Loved seeing all of you in the pics.
And last but not least Hannah - Your e mails and phone calls are such a source of happiness to us. Keep working on your booty pop.
A few stories as we sadly finish our travels through Indonesia;
In the small village of Tirta Gangga (Water of the Ganges) we met a young man busing tables at the Good Karma Cafe. His true love is taking travelers trekking through the rice terraces and villages that grace this part of east Bali. Like every hike it started with a steep ascent up a million steps to the most amazing view of green and lush rice fields that seem to stretch as far as the ocean . Komang, who goes by John, which sounded like Kong, knew everything about the plants, fruit and the people. He pointed out tiny red pineapples growing on the side of the walking path. There was coffee beans and cacao plants everywhere. Giant Jackfruit, some covered in bags so the birds wouldn't eat them, were twenty meters high in the trees. John showed us the ginger tree, snake fruit, (the skin looks like the outside of a snake hence the name), mangoes and pumpkins growing on trees ( yes that's right). Chickens, roosters and of course dogs ran about the paths. As we walked and talked, he shared with us his concerns for the very poor, elderly people living in the mountain villages, like the one he still lives in. There is no medical or financial assistance (ie. social security) in Indonesia. It seems to be left to the family to take care of their elders. In many cases these people have no family, therefore no assistance. John not only gives 30% of his earnings from trekking but tries to educate fellow guides and travelers to the challenges these people face. We saw it first hand when we stopped in a little village and met an 89 year old woman, partially blind and carrying a bucket of water on her head. She had just come from the river. Her hut, approximately 8' x 9' consisted of a makeshift bed, a small cooking area and a pot filled with rice, enough for two meals hanging on the wall. There is no indoor plumbing or electricity. With donations from travelers and his own money he provides her some food, medication, transportation to the doctors and anything else that she might need. There she stood bare feet, water on her head and the most beautiful smile, we felt privileged and touched at the same time. The human spirit is amazing. Sometimes it takes stepping into someone elses world to realize it. Spending this time with Komang and helping to support his "charity" was a gift.
Something else that we love about Bali is the name system. It's real easy because they only use
4 names, the same for boys and girls, Wayung, Maday, Komang & Ketut, in the order that they were born and then it repeats. This was a blessing for Mike because he always had a
1 in 4 chance of getting it right. (Not so good with remembering names) The only problem is if you're in a crowd you might get 20 Wayung's answering at the same time. They all have these American nicknames like Eddie, John, Eric .. which we found to be very funny.
We took a 10 hour trip to Meno Island, which could have taken 5 hours but Mike folded under the relentless sales pressure and bought the slow ferry, slow bus and slow boat ticket. Carin had to really let this one go as she was not feeling well, hot and hungry. She had plenty of time to let it pass on the white sandy beaches of the quietest of the Gili Islands off the coast of Lombok. No cars, no scooters no one older than 30 and no electricity half the time, but great snorkeling. Yes snorkeling again. Lovely and restful. Carin booked the trip back, much better!
Back to Ubud to finish eating in the restaurants we missed the first time, see another Balinese dance show, a little last minute shopping, motor biking and relaxing (yoga & meditation) at the Ubud Sari Health Resort. This was all in preparation for more relaxing at our final destination, the beaches of Seminyak in south Bali, where the beach is big and the waves are awsome.
A few "small" shout outs;
- Congrats to Corinne & Garrison on tying the knot.
- Doug, Thanks for telling me about your crazy brother after the fact. Anything else I should know?
- Britt, School first blog second.
- Mom & Joe, The place were staying right now reminds us of the Club. We keep looking around for Koko.
- Love Me aka Karen, Thanks for keeping mom part of our trip. Please get her on the Internet so she can see the pictures. Judy and Joe are willing to help.
-Ivi, We have resurfaced. Congrats to Michael the Bar Mitzvah boy or should we say man! Loved seeing all of you in the pics.
And last but not least Hannah - Your e mails and phone calls are such a source of happiness to us. Keep working on your booty pop.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
BITTERSWEET
Rachel believed that everyone has a creative side. Maybe that's why Ubud reminds us so much of her. This small city in the central mountains of Bali is an expression of art and beauty. Painters, woodcarvers, silversmiths, bead makers, sculptors and weavers line the streets and small villages surrounding the town. Balinese dance exemplifies the culture and traditions. Music streams from the cafes and restaurants. The countryside filled with rice terraces, gigantic palm trees, rivers, and temples takes your breath away. Even daily offerings to ward off evil spirits and thank the gods are a work of art. The true beauty of course, is in the spirit and open hearts of the people who live here.
A few funnies..
* rented a motor bike to get around with Carin on the back pinching and screaming all the way because Mike was driving like a local
* were " attacked" in the Monkey Forest Sanctuary when a gray monkey stole Mike's water bottle right out of his hand, opened it and quenched his thirst
* almost attacked again during breakfast in the hotel when a really big monkey climbed up the stairs to the outdoor dining area, where we were sitting and decided to have breakfast, more specifically our breakfast. Mike, the big protector, jumped up leaving me to fend for myself and hid behind the 5 foot, 90 pound waitress carrying a tray of food. When asked about his bravery (lack of) he blamed it on our dear friend Jan Snooks and her monkey story, which flashed before his eyes.
* We took a jungle hike led by Ketut our very cute, energetic guide. After a fairly challenging climb up to the top of the rice fields and then a treacherous decent down to the rivers edge, Ketut proceeded to remove his new sneakers and shorts informing us that the bridge hadn't been built yet and it was only waist deep. Carin's eyes perked up (like saucers), thought surely she heard wrong and asked very calmly, "isn't there any other way back?", mind you this is after 3 hours of trekking. Ketut all of 5'7, 140 lbs, smiled and offered to carry her across. Needless to say we kept our clothes on and had a refreshing dip.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
"WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"
In Jogya, short for Yogyakarta , it always starts with a big, friendly smile and then, "Hello, where are you going?". These are the words of the famous Indonesian becak drivers. We fell in love with these poor, gentle souls that stand out side of the hotels and line every street desperately vying for your business. They will take you anywhere, any time, no matter how far, for a meager 25,000 rupiah, a whopping $2.50. Shortly after arriving at the hotel Mike couldn't take it anymore and hired us a becak. Off we went to the Sultan's Palace, Water Palace, bird market, and the silver factories, which are a couple of miles outside the city , where it got a little hilly. On more than one occasion we looked back to find our driver off the bike pushing us in the becak up the hill. These guys are unbelievable! We were hooked. Over the next five days we became friends with every driver on our street spreading the business around as much as we could.
Our Top Three in Java
3. Prambanan Temples- These 9th century Hindu Temples, found in ruins, went through a hundred year restoration only to be knocked down again by the earthquake in 2005 and are now partially restored. Our guide, the foremost expert on these temples, he wrote the book, couldn't resist pointing out all the sexual innuendos carved into the stone base. He felt the women back then were quite aggressive. Check out the photos , do you see anything?
2. Four hour bicycle tour on the outskirts of Jogya through traditional Javanese villages- Our twenty-three year old university student guide took us all over the place. We were put to work in the rice fields, planting rice (which we're sure they replanted when we left), harvesting the rice, quite a challenge when done by hand and even making bricks from mud, which I must say Mike was pretty good at. If the elevator business doesn't survive we know he has a back up career here in Indonesia. Under a big shady tree we took a break, ate a homemade traditional snack and talked in depth about the people, economics, religion and culture of Indonesia. Loved it!!!
And here it is, number 1...
BOROBUDUR , one of the 7 Wonders of the World WOW! We got up at 4 a.m., that's right, because one of our travel experts, Dukie (Marcia) said it was a must to be there for the sunrise. The morning began with a little hitch when our taxi driver showed up 30 minutes late. After seeing the frowns on our faces he proceeded to finish getting dressed while driving, raced through the streets and turned an hour into forty minutes. Needless to say we ran with camera in hand, in the dark, up the not so well marked footpath, not to mention the plus or minus 250 steps to the top where the sun was just beginning to rise. We sat in awe with fifty of our closest friends. (Mike thinks that's funny, I don't get it). Absolutely breathtaking! Dukie and Gerri, thanks! Just for a little info, this Buddhist temple was built sometime between 750 and 850 A.D. from two million blocks of stone. The name in Sanskrit means " Buddhist Monastery on the Hill". The amazing part is that it was buried under layers of volcanic ash and not discovered until 1815.
To close, our 6 day stay in Jogyakarta, Indonesia, a place that Mike still cannot pronounce correctly was extraordinary.
One gigantic hug-filled shout out to Hannah and Jess who we love and miss everyday and of course our angel who is with us always.
Our Top Three in Java
3. Prambanan Temples- These 9th century Hindu Temples, found in ruins, went through a hundred year restoration only to be knocked down again by the earthquake in 2005 and are now partially restored. Our guide, the foremost expert on these temples, he wrote the book, couldn't resist pointing out all the sexual innuendos carved into the stone base. He felt the women back then were quite aggressive. Check out the photos , do you see anything?
2. Four hour bicycle tour on the outskirts of Jogya through traditional Javanese villages- Our twenty-three year old university student guide took us all over the place. We were put to work in the rice fields, planting rice (which we're sure they replanted when we left), harvesting the rice, quite a challenge when done by hand and even making bricks from mud, which I must say Mike was pretty good at. If the elevator business doesn't survive we know he has a back up career here in Indonesia. Under a big shady tree we took a break, ate a homemade traditional snack and talked in depth about the people, economics, religion and culture of Indonesia. Loved it!!!
And here it is, number 1...
BOROBUDUR , one of the 7 Wonders of the World WOW! We got up at 4 a.m., that's right, because one of our travel experts, Dukie (Marcia) said it was a must to be there for the sunrise. The morning began with a little hitch when our taxi driver showed up 30 minutes late. After seeing the frowns on our faces he proceeded to finish getting dressed while driving, raced through the streets and turned an hour into forty minutes. Needless to say we ran with camera in hand, in the dark, up the not so well marked footpath, not to mention the plus or minus 250 steps to the top where the sun was just beginning to rise. We sat in awe with fifty of our closest friends. (Mike thinks that's funny, I don't get it). Absolutely breathtaking! Dukie and Gerri, thanks! Just for a little info, this Buddhist temple was built sometime between 750 and 850 A.D. from two million blocks of stone. The name in Sanskrit means " Buddhist Monastery on the Hill". The amazing part is that it was buried under layers of volcanic ash and not discovered until 1815.
To close, our 6 day stay in Jogyakarta, Indonesia, a place that Mike still cannot pronounce correctly was extraordinary.
One gigantic hug-filled shout out to Hannah and Jess who we love and miss everyday and of course our angel who is with us always.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Surprise, Surprise
"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving"
Lao-Tzu
It's amazing what a chance encounter can do to ones travel plans. While sitting on the beach in
Ko Samui, Mike met a British family and got to talking, big surprise, and by the end was convinced that the best beaches & snorkeling were in Malaysia. Although not on the route we decided to take a detour.... and boy are we glad we did.
- Kuala Lumpur, otherwise known as KL, is a very diverse, modern, spacious city. There is an excellent mix of new and old including the Petronas Towers (tallest twin towers in the world), world class shopping (Carin was devastated, no room left in the backpack), great public transportation, Chinatown & Little India with vendors and giant woks lining the streets, a bombardment of aromas, all surrounding a giant open air market.
- Melaka, the capital of Malaysia a port city settled by everybody and their uncle including the Portuguese, Dutch, British, Chinese and Indonesians. One side of the river is Euro and the other Asian. You know where we went for the food.
- Palua Redang, WOW!!!!!! This is fantasy island. We snorkeled with the turtles, sharks and moray eels plus a plethora of coral and a million tropical fish. It was like jumping into a salt water aquarium. There were fish everywhere. The white sandy beaches weren't too bad either.
Ko Samui, Mike met a British family and got to talking, big surprise, and by the end was convinced that the best beaches & snorkeling were in Malaysia. Although not on the route we decided to take a detour.... and boy are we glad we did.
- Kuala Lumpur, otherwise known as KL, is a very diverse, modern, spacious city. There is an excellent mix of new and old including the Petronas Towers (tallest twin towers in the world), world class shopping (Carin was devastated, no room left in the backpack), great public transportation, Chinatown & Little India with vendors and giant woks lining the streets, a bombardment of aromas, all surrounding a giant open air market.
- Melaka, the capital of Malaysia a port city settled by everybody and their uncle including the Portuguese, Dutch, British, Chinese and Indonesians. One side of the river is Euro and the other Asian. You know where we went for the food.
- Palua Redang, WOW!!!!!! This is fantasy island. We snorkeled with the turtles, sharks and moray eels plus a plethora of coral and a million tropical fish. It was like jumping into a salt water aquarium. There were fish everywhere. The white sandy beaches weren't too bad either.
Not only does this lovely country have great beaches and sights it also has kind and helpful people. In K.L. there was Jenny and Nicole, our sweet travel agents, that we "employed" while waiting out a torrential rain storm. Not only did they answer a million questions about the islands, they offered to come in on Saturday morning so we could get the tickets. The trishaw driver in Melaka pedaled Mike and I around the old city, no easy task in 98 degrees and 99% humidity. He was amazing with his historical knowledge of the city which he loved sharing and his offers to "take a picture" at every sight. Great guide if you're ever in Melaka. Then there was the nineteen year old bartender who gave us a glass of freshly squeezed watermelon juice and offered us the key to his room after listening to our sad hotel story. How sweet is that! Our last encounter was in a small town close to the airport. We went looking for something to eat around 7:30 at night and stumbled across a little Malay restaurant where there was no English, written or spoken. That's where we met the "Roti Nazi-no roti for you!" A small Malay man with an attitude, scowling at the waitresses, while whipping up the best roti (flat bread similar to naan) ever. Only when we offered to take his picture and conveyed how "delicious " the roti was did he break out into a big smile. Turned out to be a real sweetheart. P.S. we went back for breakfast.
Just a few shout outs....
* Congrats to Grandma Sue and the Gilady/Street family on the arrival of not so little baby Owen.
* Lisa & Dave so sorry to hear about Angie. You were fortunate to have each other for a brief, but sweet period of time.
* Jennifer & Alice, we took a meditation class from a Buddhist monk in Bangkok and had a little lesson in walking and sitting meditation. See you both in India (Feb/March). Let us know the exact dates.
* Ed, our most loyal blogger keep the comments coming. Let Nicole know the universal sign works in Asia too. P.S. No one has asked me about my soccer skills yet.
* Marcia, I'm still lugging around the 10 lbs of product. I feel it's doing a great job styling my frizz. This could be the start of something big, literally.
* To everyone else we love hearing from you.
Just a few shout outs....
* Congrats to Grandma Sue and the Gilady/Street family on the arrival of not so little baby Owen.
* Lisa & Dave so sorry to hear about Angie. You were fortunate to have each other for a brief, but sweet period of time.
* Jennifer & Alice, we took a meditation class from a Buddhist monk in Bangkok and had a little lesson in walking and sitting meditation. See you both in India (Feb/March). Let us know the exact dates.
* Ed, our most loyal blogger keep the comments coming. Let Nicole know the universal sign works in Asia too. P.S. No one has asked me about my soccer skills yet.
* Marcia, I'm still lugging around the 10 lbs of product. I feel it's doing a great job styling my frizz. This could be the start of something big, literally.
* To everyone else we love hearing from you.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
KO SAMUI
We decided to do it the way the rest of the 20 something year old back packers do and travel at night by taxi, foot, bus and catamaran to our next destination, Ko Samui. 15 hours later and just a little worse for the wear we arrived at this lovely small island in the south China Sea. The Free House (luxury bungalow, ha, ha) has been our home away from home for the past 6 days. Samui is a crazy place where they drive on "the wrong side" of the road and motor scooters rule! We did the unthinkable and rented a jeep (which drove more like a tank) to maximize our beach hopping ability. Just imagine the steering wheel and manual shift opposite from what we're used to, motor scooters passing on both sides and bicycle carts everywhere, and then throw in a few pot holes and very narrow streets to boost up the excitement. Oh yeah I forgot to mention our maiden voyage was at night. Needless to say we had a blast. Not sure about all the locals we scared to death along the way. We found an open air market in the town of Lamai. It was a bit intimidating but irresistible, so throwing caution to the wind we dove right in sampling the local fare. Fresh grilled fish, grilled chicken, rice and banana wrapped in banana leaves and the most delicious Thai spring rolls. The rest of the days were spent going from amazing beach to amazing beach, listening to all the Euro's (mostly French) and of course eating. Even had the Thai version of a Margarita pizza (still waiting to see if that was a good idea although Carin has a bit of the Bangkok belly). Otherwise all is well from the Small Travelers. We love the comments so keep them coming.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
BIG BUDDAH
Bangkok is all about the Buddha, the people and the food. We started off going to visit the Grand Palace when we were immediately struck by the heat and humidity along with the smells and the food vendors scurrying about setting up for the day. Of course we had no idea where we were going but with Carin and her guide book in tow and no knowledge of the language we were ready. It wasn't long before a little, elderly Thai woman saw us staring at the map and offered to help with directions . The exchange went something like this. "where you going, see Big Buddha? We told her we wanted to go to the Grand Palace and she replied, "Palace closed 1:30pm Queens birthday (pointing north on the map), see big Buddha". After 10 minutes of her trying to persuade us (which Mike bought into hook, line and sinker) to see Big Buddha we remembered reading about the numerous scammers and tallied on until we ran into "Ar-may". I am Ar-may, you know Ar-may, (pointing to his uniform), where are you going?" and also wanted us to see Big Buddha. Eventually we realized his name was not Ar-may but he was in the army therefore we should believe him. Scammer! We did find the Palace which was open all day. Scamming is an absolute art form here and very well polished. Needless to say we did not see Big Buddha but were amazed by the Emerald Buddha, The Feathered Buddha and the tremendous Reclining Buddha.The rest of the day was spent sampling the street foods and trying to cross the streets with out getting run over. Aside from our "new friends", the people are kind, helpful and very smiley. We leave Bangkok tonight for Ko Samui.
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