Elephants and Foreigners

We saw ELEPHANTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is an orphanage that is very famous called Pinwalla Elephant Orphanage.  It originally started out as an orphanage but has since expanded to a tourist hotspot and Lonely Planet doesn’t give them the highest compliment.  But we went anyways because it was a must see and I really wanted to see elephants. 

We arrived a little later than expected due to unforeseen events but we were there in time to walk the elephants down to the river.  To get there, they must cross a street, go down a block through tourist shops that have sprung up from the amount of foreigners there, and down to the river.  It was really cool to watch them, especially the babies.  Once at the river, they go in and start bathing themselves.  Because it was not that hot and it was going to rain soon, they did not splash as much.  The trainers and keepers were going around splashing them with buckets and rinsing them off. 

The cutest part was the kid elephants! They kept rolling over each other and Parksie and I were pretty sure they were going to drown one another.  One would be underwater being rolled on by a second one when a third would come running in and jump on the other two.  At one point, we thought they were trying to make a pyramid but it didn’t work out so well for them.  Needless to say, it was adorable to watch.

As you can guess there were a lot of foreigners (ourselves included) that came to watch them.  There were also school groups and local tourists that came to watch them as well.  At one point, we are standing on rocks by the river and there is a group of school children sitting on some rocks watching the elephants.  I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but in my made up scenario they were doing the same thing Parksie and I were doing- giving the elephants voices and laughing at their movements.  They were wrapped up in watching the elephants that much was for sure because there was this foreigner white woman that kept standing in front of them trying to take their picture. It was one of the more annoying things I have seen foreigners do.  They were obviously there on a field trip and she had nothing to do with them.  She just wanted a picture of a local school child…

Side note: I have taken pictures of school children from foreign countries.  HOWEVER, and this is a big however, they either have been students I have interacted with or students I have taught in some form. 

It was so frustrating to watch this and to see how obnoxious this woman was being. The children were nice enough about it but then she would take their picture, show them the picture, and say (while miming) that is you! What the hell?!?! Who does that?

After we made fun of her for a while, we walked back to our tuk-tuk driver and headed on to other temples.  It was a fun day, minus the annoying foreigner.

While I am on the subject- I am jumping ahead in my blog a little bit but it fits the title. While we are on a beach in the south, we are laying near a fancier hotel/resort.  There are a lot of foreigner couples lying on the chairs.  We were hoping to steal some wifi, but that didn’t work out but we ended up lying near them. One of the days we were there, we saw a guy cleaning around the chairs and the general area.  All of a sudden, one of the foreigners takes out his camera and takes a picture of the guy cleaning.  Maybe there is a back story to this, maybe it wasn’t the guy he was taking a picture of and it was a butterfly or something, or who knows. I sincerely hope he wasn’t taking a picture of a member of the hotel staff cleaning.

Can you imagine the slide show later? Here is the beach we were at… here is the hotel… here is our room, notice the mosquito netting… here is the food we ate… here is the tuk-tuk that took us places… oh and here is the guy that cleans the beach… I mean, seriously?!?

It was such a sneak attack picture of a guy not doing anything special. He wasn’t cleaning it a special way, he wasn’t doing anything that doesn’t happen at a resort in America, Australia, or wherever he was from. I don’t understand why he would have jumped up to take that picture, it doesn’t make sense to me.

I have taken pictures of locals working at their jobs, like at a market or fishing or driving their tuk-tuk but I have either asked for permission or it was more of the fruit stand or the car that I was taking a picture of.  I also feel that intentions are everything. If you are trying to take a picture that will capture a memory for you, then taking a picture of a fruit stand or of a guy fishing is more understandable. It is also something that is specific to the country you are in, it may show daily living, or it may show a commonality between your countries… either way, it is more respectful.  Again, this is my opinion and something (as you can tell) I feel strongly about. Don’t go to a country and take pictures of the locals if you aren’t interacting in some way with them.  Don’t be that guy.

To end this blog on a better note and to return to the elephant topic, it was a lot of fun to watch them.  On the way back to the tuk-tuk and through the tourist shops, we saw a shop that was called Elephant Dung.  Intrigued, I continued reading the sign. Basically it is a shop that takes elephant dung, cleanes and starilizes it, presses it, and makes paper.  Because elephants mostly eat grass and straw, it is just like making recycled paper.  So guess who bought elephant dung paper? Hehe.  And if you picked up some of the dung and brought it in, you would save a dollar.  So guess who saved a dollar on the paper? Not this girl, we are not there yet with our finances!

Ok-Ok-Ok- Sri Lanka- Curries, Couchsurfing, and Cooking

After a ridiculous day in Dubai and being awake for 2 plus days, we flew into Sri Lanka exhausted and just wanting to be lying down with our legs straight.  But once we landed and got off of the plane, we knew we were no longer in Middle Eastern/ Mediterranean countries.  We were in South Asia! Between the colors, sights and smells, there was a mixed emotion of home and overwhelmness (I know it isn’t a word but it’s the only one that can works).  I can’t really describe it. I felt like this trip had really started for me.  I had visited Turkey before, even though some places were new, and I had a sense of the country.  I did not have a sense of Sri Lanka before coming here, although it did feel familiar to me.  It reminded me a little of Malaysia with the smells mainly. A lot of their food has similar influences and spices and a lot of the fruit is the same. 

After taking a free bus to the bus station, then another bus into Colombo, to get yet another bus to the neighborhood we were staying in, and then walking around for a few minutes to get our bearings and head the guesthouse, we finally made it.  Check in took a total of three minutes before we were in our air-conditioned and fan, beautiful room.  We took turns taking showers and sleeping.  We had grandiose plans to go sleep on the beach but that did NOT happen, we passed out in those beds for a few hours.  When we woke up we thought we should do something so we walked to the beach.  We definitely took a path different than what our guesthouse guy told us because we were walking through a train station and people’s backyards to get to the beach. But once we were there, the water was warm and the view was pretty.  From there we headed towards our first meal.  All of us are pretty adventurous so we picked the place with the most locals and a display of the food. 

Our first adventure with Sri Lankan cuisine was a huge success! For the low, low price of 3 dollars a person, we feasted on 3 different types of curry, rice, chicken pieces, roti- egg and plain, vegetables, and a few other smaller dishes.  We didn’t know that if they put it on the table and you don’t eat it, they don’t charge you.  So even though our meal was pretty cheap, if we stuck with the rice and curry dish, it would have been even cheaper! It is good to eat local! We even bought breakfast that consisted of roti and a mixture of the curry gravies.  It was amazing both times!!!

The funny part about our first experience with curry is the entire hand-washing/eating process.  Having a father that ate curry and rice with his hands, I had picked up the technique.  Eating with my hands is no problem, granted I might not have it completely down, but I am okay.  However, the process leading up to the eating is not something I am familiar with.  I knew they would offer you something to wash your hands but was not sure what.  On the table is a bigger bowl that has water in it that looks like it was already used.  But before we sat down at the table, there were already cups of water on the table.  And once we were seated, the waiter brought three more cups and a pitcher.  We thought they were drinking water.  Then he brought us three bowls that were stacked and the top dish had hot water and spoons in it.  We figured we would wash our hands in the hot water and then dump it into the big bowl.  What we now know is the cups of water are what we use originally to wash our hands over the big bowl. And the hot water in the serving bowls is just to show they washed them.  No matter how stupid we looked, it definitely was a wonderful eating experience!

The next two days, we had to deal with our Indian visa stuff.  It is a pain to get a visa to that country! And we still don’t have it in our hands yet! Oh man, oh man!  We ate at another local place but this had take-away only.  It was pretty good and spicy.

Once we finished with our visa stuff, we headed inland to Kandy.  We arranged to couchsurf in Kandy and that was a wonderful arrangement! It was not just one host but it was with a family.  Our hosts were wonderful and we were about the 220 plus guests! Their first surfer was on December 26, 2009 and for the past two years they have hosted 220 people.  They have had a person there at least once a week.   They keep a journal of the guests and each one has to write in it.  There are four kids, all older than us and doing well for themselves.  The mother, father, and the sister that lives at home were the main hosts.  They took care of us and helped arrange for us to go to the touristy places. 

One of those arrangements included setting us up with a tuk-tuk driver.  The whole time we were in Colombo, we were taking buses everywhere we went because they are ridiculously cheap.  However, in Kandy the bus system isn’t quite as easy so for most of our transportation needs, we walked or took our tuk-tuk. He was great! He laughed at us a few times and there was a bit of a language barrier but he got us around in a very fast manner. He seemed to know everyone and always was smiling at us.  Every time we would ask him something, he would shake his head and say ok-ok-ok.  We never figured out if that meant yes or no… but our cross culture skills worked and we saw and did everything we planned on and more!

The best part of the couchsurfing experience for me was that the mother taught me a few Sri Lankan dishes! I now know how to make hoppers- egg and plain, coconut sambal, chicken curry, an eggplant curry that is to die for, banana flower curry, and dahl- although I wasn’t able to write down the recipe.  Now all I need is to learn how to cook rice without over or under cooking it and I would be good to go! Ha ha! It was a wonderful experience being able to watch her in her kitchen. 

The first night I learned the curry and dahl.  The second night she wanted me to cook something for her while she taught me a few more dishes.  I decided I would cook a lemon chicken dish that my mom taught me.  It is really delicious but because we weren’t using an oven, I had to tweak the recipe to use it on the stovetop.  I was very nervous about the way it would turn out because she kept asking me if I wanted to put other spices in there.  She kept offering curry, curry leaves, red pepper, and a few others.  I felt bad having to say no because I am sure she knows better than I do but I stuck to the recipe pretty well.  She said she really liked my dish and would make it again for her family!!! Probably one of the highest compliments I have gotten about cooking. 

We went and saw elephants the next day but I will save that for my next blog! Such a great time and a wonderful couchsurfing experience!

Yes, Please. Istanbul.

Istanbul! Oh, Istanbul.  I love you! Your charm, your hustle, your sights, your people, your tourists, everything. I love how crowded it is and everyone is saying Yes, please, come in. Yes, please, taxi. Yes, please, carpets.  I love it! I am not sure why and I am not sure if it was just the mood I was in but I love it.

In Istanbul, we stayed with Parksie but since it was his baj-illionth time in Istanbul he opted out of the touristy sites.  Even though I went to them all last year, I couldnt let Dee go in alone.  So we went to Topkapi Palace, the Blue Mosque, and the Aya Sofia.  All beautiful, all amazing.

Good memory-
We decided to go to Topkapi Palace and knowing our timing, instead of getting there at 9 or 10 when we wanted to, we rolled up around 100.  Really good timing... not hot at all! The line to get the ticket was ridiculously long and no one really knew why it was taking so long. Some people were having to show ID and some werent.  It wasnt a tourist vs. local thing either and we never really got the answer.  Anyhow, while we are waiting in the sun, Dee and I start losing our mind. I am pretty sure we were dehydrated beyond the point of making sense.  A woman behind us was patiently waiting and not really talking with us or anything. Half way through the line and about ten minutes out of the shade, her husband came and swapped out of line with her. We didnt really pay attention because Dee and I were both doing that as well.  She would stand in the shade for two minutes and then I would.  One time when Danya was coming out of the sun and I was going in to the shade, the husband put his foot in front and said, no, no, out. Then he cracked a smile.  From there until we bought our tickets, we laughed the entire time.  Laughing so much our sides hurt and we were crying.  The three of us kept making jokes about what they were doing and the other people who were getting annoyed in the line.  People around us were laughing as well. It was a great memory and makes the statement, misery loves company that truer in a great way.  I love that memory and still laugh at it.

I am so proud of myself though, I didnt buy one scarf while in Istanbul. I did, however, buy a Turkish towel because I needed a towel, so why not. Plus I love them!

That was basically Istanbul. It was every bit as wonderful as it was last year! We flew from Istanbul to Sri Lanka with a day layover in Dubai... not really my style. While we were in Istanbul, I met a guy that works at an International School there. We talked about working overseas and if he enjoyed his job. He taught for a few years in the Carolinas and said he never would go back to teaching in America.  He sort of solidified my desire to work at an International School. He talked about working in the UAE and said he made pretty good money there. Not that I am in it for the money, but it would be nice to pay down school loans. However, after being in Dubai for a day, I know I will not be working there. Not my cup of tea, mainly because everything seemed so fake. Yuck.

Now on to Sri Lanka...

Selcuk- Ephesus- Bergama

First off, Ephesus is amazing! As is Selcuk. We arrived in Selcuk after leaving our beautiful Fethiye, very sad, but on to the next place. Last year in Turkey I did not make it to Ephesus which was a shame because that means that neither did my mom or aunt. And boy did we miss out! It was wonderful!

Danya and I have really good timing skills, we MEANT to go at noon without water... hehe. *sarcasm* We are still in some other time zone that makes us two hours behind anything we plan on doing. Every guide book and website will say to arrive early in the morning so that you can beat the heat and the crowds. While our intentions were good, our timing is not. We arrived at noon and walked around in the middle of the heat. It was hot and sweaty with very little shade or breeze but it was worth it!Ephesus is an ancient city that for many years was the second largest city in the Roman empire. (Thanks wikipedia!) It was huge and ancient and breathtaking! Every where you would turn would be something more astounding then the next. The Library of Celsus is beautiful!

While we stayed in Selcuk, we couchsurfed there.   It was a good experience and a great way to see Selcuk. We stayed with a guy who ran a carpet shop and we got to hang out there and watch them talk to foreigners and help them buy carpets.  It was fun just drinking tea and people watching.  We also walked around a little bit and saw a little bit of Selcuk.

The neatest part of couchsurfing was the other 'surfer' that was staying there.  She is a Canadian that is trying to find work and eventually move to Turkey.  I totally understand why too, while you are in Turkey, you fall in love with it.  The saying is if you drink the apple tea, you will end your days in Turkey. Well the apple tea is amazing and Turkey isnt a bad place to live. It has wonderful people, an interesting culture and feel of where the west meets the east.  It was a good time talking to her because you cant always have the conversations that we were having with people who arent into traveling.  We were sharing stories and she was asking us all about our PC service.  We also might be meeting her camel while we are in India! :)

The morning we were heading out from Selcuk, we stopped by St. John's Church.  It was really nice because we had the whole place to ourselves so of course we took photo shoots! There werent a lot of signs so we made up stories for the different rooms and areas, it was fun!

We headed up to Bergama after a slightly expensive breakfast and once in Bergama crashed from the heat.  Our really nice hostel had air conditioning and internet so we kind of zoned out for a while.  That night we walked around and went to the store but didnt really do or see anything.  The next day we made it a beach day and just about all of the transportation errors that could go wrong, did.  We got on the wrong bus going the wrong way only to get off at the wrong place. People could not give us directions and we got so turned around... frustrating and annoying.  We finally got on the right bus where a guy helped us get directions and made it to where we needed to be.  It wasnt the relaxing day we had planned it to be but it worked out.

The next day we walked around the city more and saw the Red Basilica and took even more photo shoots.  This time playing with the color options... fun times.

After Bergama, we went up to Istanbul and took an overnight bus to get there.  Uncomfortable and long but we made it!

Turkey- Fethiye

We arrived on the 20th with all of our stuff and officially out of the Caucasus region. It was a fairly smooth transition for us. It wasnt so smooth for the French guys that thought they lost each other at the airport only to be reunited on the bus to the plane, but that is neither here nor there. We were picked up at the airport by our hostel and driven to our place of residence for the next four, exhausting, luxurious days. Yildirim Guesthouse is where its at in terms of hostels in Fethiye, it was pretty great. Very close to everything we wanted to do, people were very friendly and helpful, and the breakfast did not disappoint.

The first day we arrived, we gorged ourselves on doner kebabs and later fish sandwiches. Cheap and delicious, street food is the heart of any country and Turkey does it pretty well. For about 4 dollars, you can get a chicken sandwich about as big as your head with all of the fixings and pickled peppers to boot. Later on, Ms. Dee and I found some for about 2 dollars that was even better than the first. And the woman that made it was super nice and friendly. Always smiling.

One thing I love about Turkey is the vendors. They are flirtatious and funny and play off of each other in hilarious ways. I think that at some point in my life I want to be a street vendor so I can harass strangers as they walk by. You may pick up sarcasm but let me assure you I am being completely serious. I already have a few lines to use on people. Although, I hate to say this and I dont mean to sound sexist but I am not sure a female could be as effective in the vendor department as these guys are. I also would need a team member that I could play off of... so many options for my future.

I am writing this blog as I drive along the coast. Well, I am not driving, the bus driver is driving, and it is beautiful! The green, brown and rocky hills with the dramatic blue sea coast is wonderful! Im not on the correct side of the bus to take pictures so I cant quite share with you the scenery, but trust me when I say it is beautiful.

Back to Fethiye. We had one day of relaxation and a beach day before we began our training. Our SCUBA training!!! On a Sunday stroll along the boardwalk, we met up with our boat crew- Maria, Can, and Michael from Dolphin Diving. They gave us a quick tour of the boat and our course and then gave us homework. A video and the manual, which we all watched and read without a single hesitation. I promise (now you can pick up the sarcasm). Monday our training started. Ms. Dee, Vin and myself were all going to start our certification course. None of us had been diving but we all snorkeled before. The first dive was pretty amazing! I had been having sooo many dreams about diving that I dont think it actually hit me that I was diving. It almost seemed natural to me, not saying I was the best at it, just saying it was exactly what I expected it to be.

I love diving already and after three days of studying and hard work, I am officially certified and once I fill out the paperwork and send it in, I get a card to prove it. Dont worry though, although we were on the boat from 9 am until 5-6 pm, it wasnt all hard work. In case you were concerned I was over-doing it with the stress and homework, there was plenty of time for swimming and laying out. Along with a delicious lunch, cooked by Maria, this was more of a cruise with a few minutes of instruction thrown in.

Between the sun and the diving/swimming, we were exhausted every night. We would take a stroll along the boardwalk and people watch and then tuck in for an early night. Every night when my head hit the pillow (around 11), it was lights out and no waking me up until the morning. I slept hard and I think it is finally catching up to me to relax. It has taken a while to realize that I am not working, I am just enjoying this adventure. Although within every adventure is a certain amount of stress and traveling is not a walk in the park. It can be exhausting but I enjoy this kind of exhaustion. I enjoy this kind of "work." I really should be a planner of some sort.

Well those are my random thoughts of Fethiye. I really enjoyed the town, the people and the experiences there! I had a wonderful time diving and even though it was a few dollars I didnt quite need to spend, I am glad I did. This is a lifetime certification and I know there will be many more dives after this!

Next up is Selcuk and Ephesus and after that who knows, possibly Istanbul. Hope you are all well!

Tbilisi Round 4

Tbilisi was a lot of fun! This was my fourth time going there and each time has been with completely different people and we have done completely different things. The first time was for a very short time and a few of my ladies and I went to a Turkish bath and drank good coffee while sitting in an old street car. The second time was for a night with my mom and aunt but I was sick so we went out and had delicious khajapuri and khingali but slept for most of it. The third time was with one of my ladies and we pampered ourselves and relaxed. This time I was with my girl and the two guys I traveled to Karabagh with. And it was wonderful!

We saw the fort, walked around a lot more, saw a lot more, and had experiences I wont ever forget. We tried to do couchsurfing and that didnt work out as well as planned. Our host was otherwise occupied and didnt quite inform us ahead of time. So we found a hostel that let us sleep on the floor for the first night. The second night we were able to move to a bed and on the third night we flew out. It was another quick trip but I accomplished everything on my to-do list. I saw the fort, took a bunch of photos, and ate plenty of delicious khachapuri! :) The Ajarian khachapuri is my favorite and I had a few really delicious ones (although that kind is better in Batumi).

Now on to Turkey!