This pleasant surprise happened in Sydney and came in the form of Marc from Barcelona, Spain, or Catalonia as he would probably prefer I say. Marc is 26, a IT guy and in Australia for a year to better his English. We met my first day in Sydney on a free walking tour (because free is my middle name). And let me tell you since it was the last few days of my trip, I was pretty keen on keeping to myself and not meeting any new friends. What I am tired of most are the top three questions I have been asked 1,000 times : where you from? How long you have been traveling? Where have you been? Since its late it my trip, that means I would have to list 16 countries. Ok back to the story. Low and behold, I spark up a random conversation with Marc and we end up walking and talking pretty much the entire last half of the 3 hour tour. Mostly, I am helping him with this English words and trying to understand what the tour guide was saying. Oh and the tour was great too, we saw the old parts of Sydney (The Rocks), I took some pics of the Opera House and Harbor Bridge etc. Random fact: Sydney began as a British penal colony. Britain sent all their prisoners here to serve their time and they built much of the city.

To make a long story short, Marc and I hit it off and spent the rest of that day and the entire next touring around Sydney together. I love how when traveling you do things you would never do at home. Like meet some random person and spend two days traveling with them. Since I left Thailand, I have either been on a tour or solo sightseeing, so it was quite a blessing to have a buddy. A funny one at that, who just happens to LOVE old school hip hop. We sang many old school hip hop songs and compared our favorite artists.

We visited Bondi Beach — which is beautiful and absolutely full of people with perfect bodies and tans.

Million Dollar Question: How do you know you are in white western society?……………………….

Answer: People are jogging. I hadn’t seen joggers since Europe really and there were many of them as we took the 3 hour coastal walk to a few other beaches. There were many laugh out loud moments because Marc’s English is pretty good, but many things are still lost on him. Like when I pointed out all the joggers, he said “what is jogging? He was like a little kid, learning many new words, as we talked he repeated all the new phrases I would throw out there in fascination. My favorite explanation was the difference between “beach“ and “bitch“- Marc “What is the difference between beach and bitch?” Me — “Well, those are two VERY different words, do you want to know the difference in meaning or pronunciation?” “Pronunciation, when I try to say beach, its sounds like bitch” Indeed it did. We worked on that one for about 10 minutes and his beach still sounds like bitch. Oh, the subtleties of language. Its funny how mispronouncing one syllable and you can say something completely different. Marc told me a story of him talking to someone imitating a “rapper” and saying look “I am a “rape-r.” Ouch. Or what you learn from talking to people that you would never learn from a book. Like 100 bucks or 1 Grand or a G if you are urban or hip. There were tons of things that I suppose would make sense, but I explained that you would never say that in the US when talking to someone.

Anyway, the next day we went 2 hours outside of the city to the Blue Mountains. This is like the Grand Canyon of Australia. This included a 3 hour bush walk in the mountains to see the 3 sisters, which are 3 rock formations in the mountains. This included walking through mud, up and down stairs and looking over the sides of cliffs. The scenery was nice and interspersed with waterfalls and cascades. After much translation, talking, some poetry, hip-hop, food, a beer and much good conversation, I bid Marc farewell. We had different plans for the next few days. I’ll probably never see Marc again, but we had a really nice few days and he was such pleasant surprise that added a pinch of joy to my last few days in Sydney. And of course he is now my face book friend and I video taped him reciting the “Where I am from” poem.

That evening, I switched from my Hostel and stayed with a Servas Host. This is exactly what I needed, my OWN room and a double bed. Oh to be in a home/house. Isla made me a late dinner and then I was fast to sleep, and I think I slept for about 10 hours.

The next day, I was so tired after walking continuously for two days, that I couldn’t do much. I met up with another Servas Host (Ulli) that evening and went to the an event as part of the Sydney Festival. It was a free Symphony on the Domain (a big park in the center of the city). It was nice, you bring your own food and alcohol and camp out with friends. Thousands of people were there. I had a girls night out with Ulli and her 5 friends ranging from 30-50+.

Now, I am an a train coming back from Tea Gardens. I met up with Bek whom I volunteered with in Kenya. It’s a few hours away from Sydney on the train, but I would much rather hand out with someone familiar than roam around Sydney solo on my last few days. It was great finish to my trip. Her parents own a restaurants, so I had some fine dining for dinner and breakfast. We also went on a mini-safari, where I spotted about 10 Kangaroos (we even saw one with a joey (baby) in its pouch), a 3 foot long lizard (I forgot the name), a dingo and a few dolphins. Tea Gardens is small but very pretty summer town with a lagoon, lake and beaches. This morning we went canoeing and came within 5 feet of a pair of dolphins.

Ozzy Lingo Part 2

They say “Where abouts are you from?”

They say “hey” after a lot of things. For instance one might say “this meal is really good hey”

Chucking a Whoobly = Playing hooky

Lollie=any small sweet, not a lollypop

Biscuit=cookie

Singlet=Tank Top (or wife beater as we call it)

Brogan= now I am not exactly sure what this it, I asked someone and they said it was like a “chap” a word they use in England, which I also don’t know the meaning of. I think its like a showy guy who dresses a certain way, leisure suits and drives a pimped up pickup. I’ll let you know

Randomness

Australia has very colorful money(purple, reds and blue) and its made of some non paper/plastic material that you can wash and it very hard to rip.

Since I always have toilet commentary, I might as well continue. Australian toilets have two bottoms at the top of the tank. The smaller one uses less water and is for number 1. You can figure out the rest.

I forgot what the last entry I wrote was about, but to rewind for a second, my last few days in Melbourne weren’t anything spectacular. I went to a couple of Art Museums, watched a bit of the Australian Open in thee downtown Federation Square and learned a little more about Aborigines.

At some point what I learned will be turned into a poem, but its churning and I have yet to pen it. Just a few crazy facts:

How did they get to Australia? From what I have read, its thought that some 40,000+ years ago during the ice age, when the sea level was down, they walked over from somewhere in Asia. Who knows what the world was like then because they look far from Asian.

Fast forward to the 1800′s and 1900′s when Europeans arrived. Over a number of years, about 100,000 aboriginal children were taken from their homes and put into foster care as a method of forced assimilation and cultural genocide. The children were removed at 7 or 8 initially, but after it was learned that they could remember where they came from it was reduced to infancy.

Up until the 1960′s they were basically treated like children, many of them lived on reservations, they couldn’t vote and they needed special permission to do things like marry. Many of these injustices continued until the 80′s and 90′s. Until more recently, history books didn’t reflect that there were people groups inhabiting Australia before it was colonized. Because so many people were killed a lot of pre-European history is lost.

Aboriginals are pretty much assimilated into Australian society, but even today, while they are only about 3% of the population, they suffer from 31% unemployment, 66% poverty rate and only 30% of the men reach the age of 65 (50% for women). These are much higher than the national averages. Drugs and alcohol also have taken a toll on these communities. In Cairns, most of the people you would see loitering or drinking on street corners are Aboriginals. Again sad, but I just wanted to give you an essence of the not so bright side of Australia.

I think this maybe be my last or second to last blog readers. After flying 10,000 miles in 3 flights and 2 (4) hour layer overs for a total of 30+ hours of travel , I will arrive in NYC on the 26^th. I plan to hibernate in continuous sleep for 10 days in addition to celebrating my birthday, thanksgiving and Christmas with my family. I’ll be down to C’ville to sort out/unpack my life and then start work again. You will get a final trip update newsletter soon and if you want to hear all about my trip and see pics– Mark your Calendars for March 5^th, 2011 for an informal summation. This will be in c’ville and probably be early evening. Thanks so much for all who have been reading, all those who commented and special thanks to Danielle, Vashawn, Missy, Mary Joy, Evan, Tom and Khadija for making plenty of comments. Sorry if I missed anyone those are the names that come to the top of my head. God willing, I will see you all soon.

The Rainforest

Where I was up in Cairns is a world heritage rainforest area. I hung out with some Servas friends the other day and their house is literally in the rainforest. Their backyard is more like a jungle than anything. You can also hear a grand waterfall from their house. Which i also got to see. I also went on a rainforest walk in Victoria, which is where i am now. We saw some 2000 year old trees, i took a pic in the trunk of one.

The Great Open Road

The Great Open Road is Australia’s answer to the Pacific Coast Highway in California. The figured they had a better coastline and wanted to show it off.  Its a 240 kilometer stretch of road the boarder southern Victoria (the state Melbourne is in). I took a drive along it yesterday and visited some beaches, gorges and the 12 Apostles. This area reminds me of Capetown and the Garden Route in South Africa. Similar rock formations,crashing waves and vacation appeal. Similarly, SA has 12 Apostles, but there are actually 17 of those and Aus actually has only 8. Why people like to name rock formations the 12 Apostles, I am not sure.

Wildlife

I saw a Koala yesterday, couldn’t get a good pic though. It was too far up in the Eucalyptus tree. Not as cute as they look in pics and they are not actually bears, its closest cousin in the Kangaroo.

I am staying in the Funky/Trendy area of St. Kilda in Melbourne and at sunset you can walk to the end of the pier see penquins wabbling around. I must say that the sun setting never gets less magnificent. Penquins are ok too.

Things Australians Like: Vegemite, to travel, beer, avocado’s on sandwiches, smoothies, to be friendly and meet new people, to say “no worries”, eating asian food and uggs books (they make them, but iam not sure why they need sheepskin books in a country that doesnt have a real winter, things that mak you go hhmmmmmmmmm)…..(i’ll add more later)

I’LL BE HOME NEXT WEEK!!!

This country is expensive. A can of coke cost 2.50 to 3.50. And of course the dollar is in the dumps so its slightly less than the Aussie dollar.

Bucolic Chorus

Standing here on the edge of noon

The earth is playing a spring tone

In the key of color

Live in concert. Lovely and lavish perform on this lush landscape

Blades of grass wave in a tide of green sea

Words whisper in the wind from emerald leaves

Bushes bloom with beats booming evergreen

Forest Foliage stands up intone

with Teas, Peas, Limes, Olives, Pears and Mint

Rise, Dance, Frolic and Prance

Eating Pollen

Drinking Rain

Inhaling the smell of sweet sap and mossy terrain

Giving the sun a standing ovation

For the blessing of variation

Rejoicing in the sound of this scene that resonates in a chorus of green

The Reef Experience

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef, probably the best coral in the world. Just for instance the Caribbean has 900 species in its coral and this one has 1,200. It was amazing, except i was supposed to scuba dive but they wouldn’t let me because i a finishing up my Malaria medicine. Snorkeling was fine, you can see almost everything from there. They take you out about 1.5 hours to the coral and you jump in the water with a wet suit on, goggles, your breathing tub and a noodle if you want. All you need to do is stick you head in the water and below is oceanic paradise. A whole different world of multicolored fish with bright colors, strips, dots, two toned etc. The coral itself is full of color, electric blues, yellow, pink, purple, you name it. AMAZING!!! The water,when looking from the top is about 5 different colors of blue greens.

They briefed us on some of the history, marine life and wonders of the coral before we departed, so we would know what we were looking at. Here is a link to some pics of the area, since i didnt get to take any underwater. I did get to go in a glass bottom boat though and you can see everything without the work of snorkeling. I forgot my camera when we went there. Sad!!!

Because i cant swim, i had to go out with a staff member and two older ladies. She dragged the 3 of us along holding onto a life tube. After I got the hang of it, i went out with another snorkeler at the 2nd reef by myself. I LIVED!!!

I saw a turtle and a clam the size of me and a bunch of nemo fish among other things. Funny thing of the day, one of the staff members had it in her head that my name was Kathy. Proud that she knew my name she took every opportunity to use it. She was so nice, i didnt have that heart to tell her that my name is not Kathy.

The Aboriginal Experience

The day before I went to a cultural center to learn about one of the aboriginal tribes from this area, Tjapukai. They had a number of shows, talks and demonstrations. We learned about some of their folklore, instruments, hunting tools and home remedies. I got to throw a boomerang, which is a classic aboriginal hunting tool. They really come back to you. I also got to play a didgeridoo which is a long instrument made from a small tree trunk. Aboriginal art is popular here especially from there dream time stories – which are their creation stories. They had some on display there and i went to an art center earlier in the day was well.

Aboriginals are basically indigenous Australians. There were hundreds of tribes scattered through out the country in the places where most inhabitants live now and they are hunter gatherers for the most part. There were probably about a 250,000 to half a million before 1788 when Europeans arrived. And we all know what usually happens to natives when Europeans arrive – death from foreign diseases, land appropriation and marginalisation. Similar to the native American situation in the US.

They are around 2-3% of the population currently. In Cairns you will see many just out and about. This native guy on the corner thought I was one of his friends i suppose as he kept calling me “Teresa”

Their current social sitationdoesn’t look so good either. As stated by an Australia friendof mine “There is a real issue in this locality about Aboriginal – white relations. It is not unique to this locality. The Aboriginal people are generally very marginalised, have low self esteem and have lost most of their traditions, language and culture and many do not work. It is very evident in Kuranda. The Government’s efforts are mostly just words and throwing money at what they see as an Aboriginal problem, paternalistic. It is a real concern. Prejudice exists both ways but is generally notovertly violent (although high Aboriginal prison rates & domestic violence).”

One things is consistent all over the world, the indigenous people or natives basically get the short end of the stick and have to live in the margins. Its sad and disturbing.

Ozzy Lingo

On a lighter note, i will say that all over the world the two hardest people to understand are Australians and Brits. Their englishis so different, i was always like “what? what is that or what are you saying.”

Hows it going?=How are you?

They really do say G’day Mate

Friend=Mate

Jacket or sweatshirt=Jumper

Thanks=Cheers

Good job or good for you=Good on ya

Breakfast=Brekky

Dude (they way a californian would use it)=Bloke

Australians LOVE veggiemite. Its this nasty black spread they put on toast. Its salty and not good. You basically but way too much butter on a piece of toast and add a bit of veggiemite.

Because I have been around Australians by whole trip, i feel right at home. Its western, english and the food is similar. You can get a Kangaroo burger here. I’ll let you know how it tastes. My goals now are to see a Koala Bear and i am done. I already saw a Kangaroo as I was coming from the beach the other day. There were a bunch of them hoping around a field. And if i am lucky, i will get an Aboriginal person to do the “where i am from” poem with me.

Randomness

Sumo was fun on my last day in Japan. The famous leg stretching pomp and circumstance lasts longer than most fights. They smack each other around and bump bellies until someone is pushed out of the ring. Match over!!! It was entertaining though and you could see wrestlers walking around outside of the arena all day.

Cairns reminds me of Costa Rica but with not as nice beaches. I suppose thats because its a rainforest area too.

Next stop i Melbourne, one of my friends from Thailand who lives there will be picking my up from the airport.

The food here is diverse and there is alot of chinese and japanesefood. Walking by these places (well i kind of run by them) i want to hurl. No more rice or noodles. I want some good pasta. I am sure they have some here, but i dont want to chance it and be disappointed seeming that i havent had pasta in like 5 months.

I was at the Lagoon, this public pool on the Esplanade in Cairns (which is actually one of the best public spaces i have seen) comes up to me and says (with floaters on her arms), you see me floating, these make me strong. Really I say. “Yup, you know why I can float so well? Because i am a grownup”; I laugh at this because she is maybe 5. Kids are soo funny. She asked where I was from, when i said America, she said ” well i aint from there, i am from Cairns, i walked here, how did you get here? I flew around the world.

I did in fact go to the base of Mt. Fuji yesterday. Its covered with snow and beautiful. You can not go any further than the 1st station as they call it because it is the off season. Most people climb from June to August i believe.

What i didnt know is that Mt. Fuji (the Japanese Goddess as they say here) is actually a volcano. Albeit a dormant one.  To be more precise, she is actually 3 volcanos.  Two volcanos were side by side ages ago and the old one erupted and created the new Mt. Fuji. She stands almost 4000 meter tall and in the winter wears a blanket of snow. In the old days people would climb as an act of worship, but now for recreation.

Japan actually has many many volcanoes because it sits at the cross of 4 tectonic plates (or so my guide said). Its also a pretty mountainous place with 70 percent of its land covered by forested mountains. You can see this in many of my pictures. Last fact — and because of all of its volcanoes here are over 3000 hotspring resorts. Which is why the onsens are a very popular thing to do here. Pics of Me and Mt. Fuji below

After Fuji we went to Hakone to the 2nd tallest volcano in Japan. We rode up a cable car and you could see a view of a few lakes and even out to the ocean behind the clouds. Unfortunately at the top, it was completely white and cloudy so that was the end of that.

To top off the day of rising to new heights, i went 45 floors in 45 seconds to the top of  Tokyo, i.e. the Municipal Government Building Observatory. From above Tokyo was flashy, sheik and went on forever it seemed like.

To complete a perfectly good day, i had free Sake and Plum wine courtesy of my hostel.

Randomness

Today I am off to see Sumo wrestling on my last afternoon here before i fly out to Cairns Australia. I hope to swim with the fishes and see some Aboriginal people while I am there. More on the plight of the Aboriginal ppl in Australia later.

Tokyo is a cool city, but i can’t really say there is much in the city i was really itching to see. I went to Ginza, which  is like 5th avenue, to the Sony building to see floors and floors of their newest electronics and today maybe a museum or two. They have alot of Art Museums here and Shrines as well.

Last thoughts on Japan. I generally like it, its beautiful (outside of the city), people you meet are nice (besides those pushing/rushing on the subway), i love the way I am always greeted with a smile and head bow when i arrive and leave a store or establishment and the food is good. And its clean.Not bad.

Other thing, I wanted to do Karaoke but here you just order your own personal room with friends. Me and Naomi were going to go, but 2 people are no fun. I prefer embarrassing myself in a room full of strangers and maybe a few friends.

Oh and I made an origami Mt. Fuji.

Japan is probably one of the most expensive countries I have been in and definitely one of the most expensive places in Asia. For example a movie might cost you $1,800 yen which is essentially $22 dollars. A restaurant meal may cost you the same or more depending on where you eat, but you can get some cheap stuff as well. Like ramen at a restaurant my cost you 550 yen, sushi 1000+ at a restaurant, maybe 600+ at the grocery store. Sushi here tastes pretty much the same way it does in the US, there is just a lot more variety here I suppose.

What I have I been up to the last couple of days?

Instead of taking a trip to Nara (and visiting more shrines and temples) on Saturday, I met up with a fellow Japanese Couch Surfer that lives outside of Kyoto. It’s always nice to meet up with locals and actually be taken around with people who know the city. Very helpful. We basically walked the city and Naomi explained ALL thing Japanese to me.

Me: Why does everyone where those hospital masks?

Naomi (laughing): The Japanese are very germ conscious and do not want to catch colds.

We laughed at all the people wearing them we saw that day, which seemed like 1 in 4 people. I am actually remembering that at the airport, they had a quarantine station at immigration where they looked at peoples eyes and at their throat that looked sick I suppose.

Me: What is the proper way to hold/use chop sticks?

Naomi (showing me): Rest the bottom stick on your ring finger, use the pointer and index finger to move the top one and grab. Your skills are actually pretty good, we have to practice when we are kids. Picking up little beans. Nowadays a lot of the kids, go to second school (until late at night), miss chopstick lessons and do not use them properly.

Me (all day) why this, that and the other?

Me (At the market): What is the name of this, that and the other?

She graciously explained the names of things, what they are used for, when they are eaten etc.

The market was fabulous for pics and strolling!!! All things strange and Japanese. They loved pickled veggies. You can taste test them. I am not a fan. We also tried a bunch of sweet black and red beans. Good!!. Then we ate these gummy green things with sweet bean paste inside. I couldn’t get past the consistency. Its like gummy bears meets uncooked dough. We tried loads of other things, dried fish, dried fruit, crackers, cakes etc. Strange food of the day. They have these large dried fish that are dried so hard I looks like piece of wood. They then shave these fish to make what looks like thing wood flakes that are sold and used in soup. Another interesting thing: some rice dishes are served with a raw egg on top. Naomi had one of these for dinner when we ate at a beef bowl restaurant.

We went to an electronics store: I have never seen such a thing. There were like 100 different varieties of everything. Naomi was looking for a battery for her Iphone, so I was nearby looking at all of the different types of Iphone covers. You can get a noodle cover.

Next we walked downtown and stopped by a Shrine. In Shintoism – during the new year, there are are a lot of people going to the shrines and making wishing/offerings. All of the Shrines are crowded with people buying palm tree leaves with trinkets on them that I suppose represent things they want. There are also wood blocks with drawings and other things that people buy and hang or tie on pillars. I have pics of one of the most famous Shrines in Kyoto I took the next day.

We finished our evening off by going to an art center, having some Japanese beer and then a beef bowl. After a long hard day, I went to a Sento (bath house/sauna) that is across the street from my hostel. These are the cheapest things in Japan, only $5 for however long you want to stay a towel, shampoo and body wash. But, its too damn hot in these places you can not stay in there long. I lasted maybe 30 minutes.

The next day I went to the Fushimi Inari Shrine to witness the festival – i.e. thousands of people buying, selling, offerings and walking up this never ending path of orange pillars and stairs. Then I went to a quieter part of town hugging the mountains and walked through a bamboo forest. If you want to view all of my Japan pics, go to the Picasa link on the right of the main blog page.

Randomness

This whole blog was full of randomness, need I say more?

I have yet to write a poem about Japan, I don’t think I have anymore creativity in me so I will linger in that space until I reach the sun in the Outback. Consequently when I arrive in Australia it will be raining, sad. Oh well. I will post some old ones for you all though. Whats beautiful: scenery, culture etc. Whats broken: People seem to work too hard. Someone was telling me about how kids are in school from early in the morning and then after normal school go to second school til 10 pm and then do homework until late.

So I was talking to my mom and she asked me did I need anything when I got home. “Like what” I said. “I don’t know” she replied, “like underwear” (what is it with moms and underwear? do they ever cease to want to by you underclothes). Anyway back to the subject that was TMI. I said “no, what I will need is a card and a vacation.” “A vacation!!!” she said. “Isn’t this a vacation”. I laughed hard at that one. “This is definitely NOT a vacation, its an experience an adventure even, but not a vacation” By far its been on of the hardest and most tiring things I have done, probably the most incredible too. Such duality.

a response to William Meredith a Major Work

Marching Onward

Death is hard to live through

Life we cease to understand

Failure is something we fear

And how we loved is all we remember in the end.

But whether from a flash of inspiration

Or a divine hand

The heart, mind and soul converge

And the body marches onward

I’m over here on the other side of the world. The far far east where the sun rises. I read on the postcard that Japan is the paradise of the east. That may be true. Although it is cold (but about 20 degrees warmer than China), its still a lovely place. Or at least Kyoto and its environs are. But what do I know, i’ve only been here 3 days and 4 nights.

Japan

So lets go back for a quick recap. As i said in the last blog i think, Kyoto is mostly known for its  ancient Temples and Shrines. There are so many of them. Temples in the east are like Cathedrals in the west, there are many and they are beautiful, but after you have seen tens, you are a bit over them.  I am a bit over temples, so i decided to see two that are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.The Kiyomizu-Dera and The Golden Pavilion, both over 1000 years old and surrounded by a lush landscape, gardens, ponds etc. Impressive!!!

Yesterday i took a day trip out to Kibune and Karamba for a little winter hike.  I was only able to hike for about an hour because the path over the mountain was closed. It was nice walking alongside the river though it was picturesque. Afterwards i went to a Japanese hotspring called an Onsen. Its basically an outside sauna or bath as they call it. You have to get into these in your birthday suit. No bathing suits allowed and you have to shower before hand. The water is boiling. The constrast was stark from the neck up (which was feeling snow flakes and gazing at snow capped mountains) and the neck down (which was submerged in a sulfur sauna). It was nice and relaxing though. I am not sure if its my cold or i am just tired, but my whole body aches these days, so it was much needed. This Japanese grandma asked me where i was from and how did i feel being naked in the bath, since in the US we wear bathing suits. The other people being naked part is no different from people in an ACAC locker room, who are way too free with their nakedness. I didn’t mind it so much because for the 1st twenty minutes i had the place to myself.

Besides those trips

I took a self guided 5 hour walk around the city to the Gion (geisha district) and Higahiyama neighborhood. It was a bit of a wondering down narrow streets, up hills, into parks and shrines, shops and cafes. I tasted a bunch of snacks for free which is right down my alley. On one street, they give you a cup of green tea while you sample snacks. My favorites were these triangle dough things that are filled with psuedo jam. There is a pic of them in my album.

I saw about 8 Geisha’s walking around, some with men some in groups of friends. They are nice and take pics with people.

Green tea ice cream tastes just like green tea, it ok, but i will go for vanilla next time.

Mostly i’ve been eating noodles because they are good and cheap, but there are these triangle rice things with salmon inside that i love.  they are like sushi but shaped differently. There are a host of other snacks that i have eaten that i can even tell you the names of. The food is good and not as greasy as Chinese food, which i like. Today, i am having sushi with a couch surfer friend. I will go to the market probably tomorrow to take some market food pictures which is always the most interesting.

Japanese gardens are amazing. Thats really all that needs to be said about that.

People are generally pleasant, Kyoto is a more laid back city. Most people are interested to know where i come from and ask with a smile, followed by a “Welcome to Japan, how do you like it?”  Randomly i ran into an old man walking down the street twice. I think its funny all of the characters you meet traveling. He stops me in excitement and says “Welcome, Welcome, Where are you from?.” I say NY. He says he lived there for 7 or 11 years, i can’t exactly remember. Then he pulls out a piece of paper with Japanese and  english written side by side and asks me if his english sentences make sense. This goes on for 5 minutes. The next day, i see him again. “No sir, I am from NY not London and yes i do remember you from yesterday.” This time he proceeds to quiz me for 5 minutes with NY trivia to see if i was a real New Yorker. “How many Burroughs are there, why is it called the big apple etc.” Was he nice or just crazy? Maybe a bit of both.

Randomness

I could potentially come up with a new identity. Most people assume i am from Africa anyway and that i am younger than i am. So i could be 23, from say (lets pick a country that i like), Kenya and just finished University and taking a Gap year. No need to change my name (kenyans have english first names) or put on an accent (although i an muster one up for affect) because nobody here has probably met a Kenyan anyway. I think I will try this for a day. hahahahahaha. I crack myself up.

19 days until American soil. Yes, i am counting down and ready to come home, but not before i say hello to some of my Ozzy friends in Australia.

I wrote this poem, not on this trip (i am not exactly sure when i wrote it, i think i have a habit of burning myself out), but is appropriate for how i am feeling after 7 months of traveling. It called “Throw my head back and laugh”

Far beyond burned out

at the core of ash

the aftermath of a crash

thunder has roared

and lighting has flashed

a broken limb keeled over

and bruised reed with a gash

Left over scarps

The last crumb in the stash

Only thing remaining

is for time to pass

I must keep going

in pursuit of that moment

when I can rest my weary feet

relax my mind

and breathe at last

but for now

I am wishing this very moment

were the past

To be finally done with it all

throw my head back and laugh

—————————————-

Sayonara friends

First thoughts?

I forgot to mention this about China (but they are here too), but one in four people wear face masks like doctors wear. I am not sure if its to protect againt germs or the wind. They even have decorated ones. Its rather strange.

I had ramen noodles for dinner, which is a college snack in the US, but big here. The noodle place the hostel recommended was delicious.

The toilets here are impressive. The seats are heated and there are all kinds of push button controls. You can get some music, a nice refreshing bottom spray and it even emits air freshener. Best toilet in the world, hands down.

What is Kyoto known for? Its temples and shrines, the cultural essense of Japan (its the former capital and has an 1000 year old history) and architecture among other things. You can also still see Geishas or get some R & R in its bath houses.

Chinese Cuisine, Tea & Shopping

I am generally not a fan of Chinese food in the US and the food here is good, but not my favorite but I must say there is so much interesting foods to see and eat.

As I previously stated, they love meat or food on a stick. I’ve seen bugs, candied or fresh fruit, chicken, pork and beef on a stick. You will see people walking down the street chomping on one of these items.

I went to this snack market the other day and they had everything you could think of – sea food, octopus, fish balls, frogs, etc. It was an experience.

Dim Sum – which to the American just looks like dumplings. But according to Wikipedia dim sum is –is a Cantonese term for a type of Chinese dish that involves small individual portions of food, usually served in a small steamer basket or on a small plate. So here are all kinds of steamed buns and dumplings with everything from vegetables to meat inside.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of taking a dim sum cooking class and we made, wonton soup, siu mai and steamed bun with barbequed pork inside (The Chinese LOVE Pork). It was fun because we got to cook in the home of a Chinese person. Her house was in one of the nearby Hutong’s (lanes).

I almost got the change of eating “Peking Duck” a dish Beijing is famously known for. It was the best tasting duck i have ever had.  It is specially roasted and they carve it in front of you. You eat it with some special soy sauce, green onions and a thin pancake/torilla like thing. Its good, but pricey.

If you like to try strange looking food, here is the place for you

Second on the list is Tea. They drink tea like people in the US drink coffee. Unless you are drinking bubble/milk tea from one of the cheap places, tea can cost more than a meal. Rose Tea, Green Tea, Jasmine Tea, Chrysanthemum Tea. All delicious.

If you like to shop, generally you should come to Asia, because the possibilities are absolutely endless. Both here and in Thailand, between the Mega Mall, one after the other on one street and the markets, you can purchase anything you want. Almost everyday that I have been here I have gone to a different mall or market. In Beijing there are so many: The Pearl Market, Silk Market, Clothing Market etc etc. I don’t even like shopping but both mall and markets are an experience. In the markets you will here, “Hello, Hi Lady, do you want to buy ______” maybe 50 times during your time walking in the place along with people grabbing you by the arm. If you like to bargain and haggle, these markets are the place for you.

The People’s Republic

China is a Democratic Dictatorship, which to me sounds strange because those two words are opposed to one another in my mind. According to Chinese people I have spoken , the people, have little say in the “peoples republic” and the “people’s democratic dictatorship.” Seems ironic.

The censorship in China is interesting and surprising. As previously stated you cant access Facebook and a bunch of other website the government has deemed illegal and have banded. Some of them which are benign and I am not sure the logic behind. Like I can check my google account, but I cant access google documents. I feel rather restricted, but besides the police in green coat everywhere, it doesn’t really feel much different from other western places I have been.

The Gardens

Besides the milk tea, one of my favorite things about China are Chinese gardens, they are beautiful and I have never seen anything like it. They almost seem unreal like you are in a model of a Chinese garden, ponds, rocks and the serene sound of running water, but its real.

Randomness

KFC is huge here and they are everywhere.

After 2 weeks in China, I am off to Kyoto tomorrow for a week in Japan. Its expensive, so I cant stay long.

Riding the subway and bus in China gives me a real whiff of the reality that the Chinese are more than 1/6^th of the world. There are just masses and masses of people all bunched together in crowded train cars. Soooo many people. Nothing says “I AM IN ASIA” like being cramped in a subway car with hundreds of Chinese people. You have to elbow you way out when its your stop as well.

All and all, besides the cold, I have liked my time in China. Beijing is a nice cultural capital and I would highly recommend it. If I had to do it again I would go down south to Guilin/Yangshou to see some more scenic areas and where it is warmer. It would be interesting to see rural China as well, since most of the country is rural, but that’s not an adventure I want to undertake on alone.

There are so many interesting places in Beijing. The other day I visited the 798 Art District, which is an industrial area that has been redeveloped and now it is lined with art galleries, exhibits and public art. You can go around for hours and hours in this place, its huge and just browse the galleries or the craft shops.

I had the opportunity to experience Tai Chi Reggae – it was basically reggae by Chinese artists. It was actually a really good show. They threw some Bob Marley in there. I do not think I have gone anywhere in the world on this trip and not see a Bob Marley t-shirt or some reference to him. With the addition of Chinese Reggae, I think I done seen it all.

Although at the present moment, you all are in 2010, I am 13 hours ahead and have broke into 2011. Its 11 am on New Years Day. For the last day of 2010, I decided to climb the Great Wall of China. It was AMAZING!!!. I literally almost froze and the wind did a number on me as I was climbing up and down hundreds of steps, but it was awesome. It seems like the wall goes on forever in each direction. The line up the middle of my pics in the Wall snaking up and down the Mountains.Pics below.

As a city, Beijing is a pleasant surprise, besides the blistering cold, there is much to do and see. I am staying in the best Hutong in the city. Hutongs are  old alley ways, but mostly lined with shops or restaurants now adays. I’ve gotten the Forbidden City and Tianamen Square under my belt so far. Tonight, I hope to go see a chinese reggae band. That should be interesting.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

For my last two days in Shanghai, I had hopped to visit the cities of Suzhou and Hangzhou (two supposedly heavenly cities full of gardens, temples and canals/lakes). I guess the other half of heaven will have to wait because on Monday instead of getting on a bus to Suzhou, I got on a bus to Xitang. How did this happen? Well the day before I decided I wanted to go on a tour of both cities instead of going by myself and roaming around for the day. The cheapest option was to take a one day bus trip from the Shanghai Tour Bus Station. Simple enough, but the tour would be in Chinese. That was fine with me, I really just wanted someone to take me to the important places and hang out with some Chinese people. I specifically told the lady, Suzhou and Hangzhou. I guess Suzhou sounded like Xitang. Perhaps both of our tongues and ears betrayed us that day. My ticket said Xitang (in Chinese characters). I didn’t even realize it until they dropped us off at Xitang which is an ancient (700 year old) water town, kind of like Venice, where you get around by canal and bridges over waterways. This Chinese American woman looked at my ticket and said “that says Xitang.” Oh well, Xitang was a pretty cool place. I basically roamed around its shops, bridges and canals. I had some of the best fried dumpling and potatoes from a street vendor and some good milk tea. The museums were crappy, but what do you do. There were some Chinese American people on my tour that helped me out at least, like letting me know the important fact of what time to be back at the bus. All in all there was some good photo opportunities. These water towns are quite famous in this area and there are a number of them. I am glad I got to go to one.

 Smile, Your in China!!!

I was sitting down writing out a postcard (passerby’s were stating over my shoulders because I was writing in English and with letters I suppose) and the next thing you know there is a person sitting very close to me, with her arm tightly around my shoulders and in front of me was her friend pointing a camera in my face. WTF!!! At least in India they asked, here they just appear next to you (or grab you) and start taking pictures. Its kind of jarring, before I can even say yes or protest the camera has already flashed. What else can I do but smile and laugh. Thailand has thought me to smile more, everybody smiles there in any and every situation, which just makes life more pleasant. I probably smiled more there then half my life. You can only smile back when people are smiling at you. So I smile at the bad-mannered Chinese people. Smile, You’re in China!!!

The day after made up for the previous day’s mishaps. Blessing number one – I did indeed get on the right bus or better yet my ticket was correct. Number two – there are a few people that speak English, so I can at least know where we are going on. I also made two lady friends and had two Chinese mothers for the day…Thali and Kris.

When Thali sat next to me, she waved smiled and asked (via gestures) was I alone. “Yes just one”

Then, she gestured that it was cold outside. Then she looked at my jacket, felt the fabric as if to say, this is all your have, not warm enough. I showed her that under my Northface shell was a fleece and cardigan and a shirt. She was pleased, as a mother would be. Then seeing that I was drinking tea with nothing else (I had already eaten my bread snack), she took out some of her raisin bread and offered it to me. Tasty raisin bread, my favorite. Later, she offered me an orange, and some other candies. When we needed to leave at any point during the tour, she would pull my arm or point, making sure I kept up. I spent the day with her and her friend Kris, who spoke good enough English. Thali was from Taiwan and Kris from Malaysia. Also on the bus was a Chinese man from Singapore, who spoke English very well. He had worked in Oklahoma for 2 months and said in a surprised manor that Americans are hard workers. He liked the country but thought there was a lot of waste and was baffled that it seemed that many people had two cars. “Lots of buffets” he said “$9.99”

The three of them were very helpful as we went to lunch, took a cruise around beautiful West lake and visited the scenic area of Lingyin. I had the pleasure of spending the day with Chinese people from all over China and a few other countries. In fact, I was the only non Asian person on the tour. Can you imagine, me and 25 Asian people. What a sight. Of course, like everywhere, everyone wanted to know where I was from and was my hair original/how did I make it like that. Next time I travel the world (not that there will be a next time) remind me to cut all my hair off. Or maybe I should be happy that I am intriguing and mysterious. Again, all I can do is smile. When people stare and nod towards my head, I make a palm rolling motion with my hands. The hear a “oohhhhhh” instantly.

We also visited a silk factory and saw the process of making silk, which is impressive. A silk worm’ss cacoon can basically be stretched out to the size of a double bed. Then we went to this green tea village and had some tea. There were tea bushes all around the hillsides. It was overall a great day, indeed a bunch of perfect moments. Half of heaven was not so bad who can complain about that.

Randomness

Facebook is blocked in China. Can you believe it?

I have come to the conclusion that for the most part, Americans probably would not like real Chinese food very much. Some of it is very good and normal looking, other stuff is like the strangest food ever. They eat eel, snails, every part of the pig, chicken feet, livers, some stuff that looks unidentifiable stuff, bull frog, congee (a porridge looking white dish). In the tea village there was a string of roasted duck hanging from what seemed everywhere. On top of that there was also fish and draw duck hanging outside too. On my list to try though is Dim Sum, which is meat and rice wrapped in a lotus. All the teas are good and you kind of cant go wrong with noodles, dumplings, vegetables and rice.

The pilot just announced that there are some crosswinds at the Beijing airport, so now we are going back to Shanghai. Great!!! who knows when I will get to my destination. I am really not moved by this announcement, just think its interesting….I just wonder oh a twist in plot, how will this day unfold. “I dont know what is going to happen, that’s alright with me, I open up my aim and embrace the mystery. Just for today” Words from India Arie that just happen to be playing in my ears. What happened, well we flew back to Shanghai, stayed there for one hour and then few back to Beijing. Just a 3.5 hour delay.

In the morning, as I am walking to the train station, see ladies in their 60′s doing Tai Chi outside. This makes me smile.

I think this month will be the hardest, as my trip is almost over so I have started to count my blessings.

So far, I have traveled almost 30,000 miles

met hundreds of people from all over probably from 30+ countries

50 cities/villages/towns in 15 countries

Visited sites like Machu Picchu, the Colosseum, The Cape of Good Hope and Taj Mahal to name a few

Seen the French and Swiss Alps, rainforests, volcano’s, waterfalls, cruised rivers and lakes, went on Safari, tasted some of the best wines in the world and paraglided

I can say hello in 7 languages

I read about 15 books

Rode an elephant 3 times

volunteered for 4 months in 6 countries

Dipped my foot in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans

All in one trip

Things I am looking forward to:

1. The great wall of course – sleeping there or hiking from one portion to another (which is like a 4 hour walk)
2. Maybe a cooking class in Japan and they also have sumo wrestling tournaments going on in January – I must find some Karaoke as well
3. Riding a bullet train – how fast is it? – an 8 hour trip driving from Kyoto to Tokyo only takes 2.5 hours on a bullet train.
4. Scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef – one of the natural wonders of the world in Australia with all type of fish and plant life down under.
5. Visiting some of the Australian people I have met in other places
6. Coming home

Half of Heaven

In Heaven

there are no doubt splendor all around

On Earth

there is Suzhou and Hangzhou

two twins of magnificence

Who would not be eager to enter their bliss

Yet, In this instance

I was deceived by my own tongue into visiting Xitang in ignorance

Upon the second day

I did reclaim my fate

To take in the great West Lake and

scenic settings of Hangzhou

That’s good enough for now

I’ve seen half of heaven

Can I ever complain of having to do without?