Cabin, Backwaters, Dirty Laundry and Underwater Buddhas

There is a lot of stuff in my cabin. The cabin is tiny – maybe 4 meters by 2 1/2. And none of the stuff is mine. My roommate, a wonderful girl, has a ton of stuff. Sometimes I feel like I’m drowning in my own cabin. The stuff does bug me. Sometimes I put something down only to have it swallowed up by the cabin and I can’t find it again amongst all the stuff. I sit there and stress about out stuff intermingling, and play game where I mentally circle my stuff.

Here it is – our cabin. I have circled all my stuff in pink. It makes me feel better. You can enlarge the pic by clicking on it. Is it my imagination, or does she really have a lot of stuff?
(The huge red heart that says “We love you Stacey” is MINE!)

This is the kind of thing I do on a day at sea. There is nothing else to do.
I put a new bell on my fold-up bike. That was exciting. Here is a picture of the broken old bell.

There is a crew tour tomorrow in Cochin, India. “The Backwaters of Cochin.” It sounds kindof unappealing, and I am sure there will be a lot of great photo ops.

They closed the laundries on us a couple days ago. There is nowhere to get fresh water ashore, so the ship has been making its own water. They are trying to conserve this water so they won’t let us wash our clothes. Finally they decided to open the laundry, and at that point something in the main laundry broke and now they are using the crew laundry machines to wash all the guest linens. Now that is something amazing.
Everyone is running out of different items. I am picking gym clothes out of my dirty laundry pile. Some guys are out of socks, and some are out of tee shirts. Luckily I have a lot of clothes to wear still.

This is the most kitschy thing I have ever seen. $7 at the Shewedagon Pagoda, someone has taped Buddha images over one of those revolving fish tank lights. It’s like the Buddhas are underwater.

I just noticed this image in a picture I took in Honolulu. Do you see the bird flying through the fence? I don’t remember noticing this before, but I think it is beautiful.

Shewedagon Pagoda – A Myriad of Buddhas

Here it is – The most sacred of all Buddhist sights in the country and one of the wonders of the world, it’s 2500 years old and 98m high. Of course it wasn’t always plated in gold.

Around the top are 1,110 diamonds, 278 carats. 1383 other stones such as rubies also decorate the top, and on the very tip is one 76 carat diamond. Of course you can barely see them, except at night, if you stand at a certain place the light catches them.

You could walk in a circle (clockwise only) around the main spire, and there were Buddhas and Buddhist stations of the zodiac on the right and around the structure on the left as you were walking there were many houses containing any number of Buddhas. There was even a tree grown from a clipping of the actual tree Buddha sat under when he became enlightened.

You must remove your shoes before entering the Pagoda. The ground is hot.

I bought flowers at the entrance, only to find out they had a purpose. We were approached my a man with a book, asking what day of the week we were born on. We didn’t know. I gave him my birth date and he looked it up and said I was born on a Saturday. Then he led me to my own special shrine for those of us born on Saturday. I gave my flower to the Buddha and then had to wash the Buddha’s head and the corresponding animal symbol beside him.
My animal was a mythical dragon-serpent

Everyone was doing this – at their particular birth day, washing the Buddha and lighting incense.

Here you can find out your particular animal sign

——————————————————————————————
Day Direction Planet Animal Sign

Wed am south Mercury tusked elephant (same as Buddha)
Wed pm northwest Yahu (?) Tuskless Elephant
Thu west Jupiter rat
Fri north Venus Guinea Pig or Mole
Sat southwest Saturn Naga (mythical dragon-serpent)
Sun northeast Sun Garuda
Mon east Moon Tiger
Tue southeast Mars Lion
—————————————————————————————-

You are not allowed to point your feet at a Buddha when sitting. But there are so many Buddhas in every direction, I think it is impossible not to hit one with the virtual trajectory of your toe.. That’s why it is probably best to kneel sitting on your heels with your toes pointed towards the earth.

I loved that people were taking naps all around the Buddhas.

This was the technicolour Buddha. Seemingly the most popular one, you can see an electric light display in the centre. It was a little strange. Some of the Buddhas looked like slot machines, they had so many lights.

Kipling called the Shewedagon Pagoda “A golden mystery.. a beautiful winking wonder.”

Offerings in a shrine for luck in businesses

I went back again at night, just to see it in the evening. The ground was soaked with rain, and I had to walk carefully.

It was more peaceful at night, the wet ground was cool on my bare feet and there were mostly locals.

A Day in Burma

Myanmar, (Burma) was absolutely beautiful. It was totally different from any place we had been so far. So far apart from the Orient, from India or Thailand, it was something completely its own.

From the ship we caught glimpses of little farming villages that blended into the landscape of the muddy river we were in. Gondola style boats floated by, and every once in awhile the spire of a golden pagoda could be seen rising in the distance out of the mud and flooded farmlands.

It was so humid outside that my poor camera had a hard time of it fogging itself up constantly. So you will have to picture in your mind a golden spire rising in the distance..

Such a wealth of riches rises out of such a poor landscape. But more on that tomorrow.

Here we are. We docked at 6pm on Saturday evening, and it was announced that the crew were to have a curfew of 10pm. Since the gangway was busy with departing tours for a good while, none of us had a chance to go out the first night. There was nothing on the pier, and the air was thick with insects as night time fell. Well, one did fall, on my head, a gigantic beetle as I opened the door to outside (on a dare, upon hearing of the total infestation) Beetles and grasshoppers were everywhere, outside and squished down the staircase.
It reminded the crew of the Amazon, since we have all been, the scenery of the river with its flooded farmlands and the bug infestation, the lit ship being such a magnet for these critters.
The sign in the hallway the next night read “Crew Bar on Deck 6 aft will be moved inside due to bugs!”

Here is our port. They must have a big logging industry. I saw men in skirts loading logs onto cargo ships.

Speaking of men in skirts – yes, that is what they wear. They are called Longees, and actually, (maybe I have been at sea for too long?) are quite attractive on the handsome men. The people here are good looking.
Here is an example of the typical wardrobe. Skirts for both, a dress shirt for the man and a sleeved shirt for the lady. And flip-flops.

The women paint their face with a white paste. They make different patterns on their cheeks, from circles to spirals to a leaf imprint. It looks nice.
This woman had her own special pattern.

First, we went to the Pagoda. But that was so fantastic I will give it its own separate entry.

Then, we hit Scott Market.

First, we were approached to change money. Ok. And Indian guy did the transaction from out of his shirt! $30 gets me… Wow, that’s a heap of money, a small fortune. 3 600 Kyats.

A nun comes up asking for money. “Sorry, I’ve got none!” I joke.

I pocket it. A mother comes by with a baby, the baby is eating a huge cake and drooling. “Give me money, my baby’s hungry!” I point out that her baby is eating right now. Oh yeah! She laughs.

We looked at fabric. The guys (entertainers…) wanted to buy skirts, for the big fancy dress part coming up, of course.
I found some really nice Japanese fabric for quite cheap.

Paintings were ridiculously cheap. From $7 to $50, if you want a giant one. You could get a nice medium sized one for $12.
This is a Buddhist nun posing. They come around asking for money, all the time, and I gave some to this one on the condition that I take her photo amongst the paintings.

A man was selling these tasty snacks, it looked like crunchy dried shrimp cakes.

Yes, more fruit pics.

I found my beloved Mangosteens and loaded up on them. Which reminds me, I have one right here… mmmm

And, right in the open, the offensive Durian fruit. I should have bought one to set my roommate straight

This man sold tobacco leaf cigarettes, and coins

I think I am beginning to be a coin freak. $2 for some old coins.

The guys were ready to go home, but I was keen on seeing the lake, so we took our self-appointed tour guide and patiently waiting Taxi driver and went to the lake.

The lake, right by the Zoo, was so popular with the locals.

What photo-ops as well, except for the humidity.

The boardwalk goes around the lake, to this thing.
I was here 6 years ago, this is the place where I got food poisoning! But whatever it is, it is beautiful.

Inside it, I get my picture taken, in the same place it was taken 6 years ago, taken by people I barely know and probably will forget or mix up with other people in my memories.

And we all sat down outside this spectacle, on the lakeside and had a Myanmar beer with the Taxi driver, Self-appointed tour guide, and the 2 entertainers that I barely know and probably will forget.

This menu is unforgettable (as long as there is a photo of it)

You can see they are cheap, 1 000 Kyats is $1 US.

I had to circle my favourite menu item. 70 cents! I should have ordered it.

We sit there as the bugs come out and evening falls. The spectacle lights up at night. Can you see the golden pagoda in the distance? It holds 8 hairs from the Buddha.

More about that tomorrow.

Bathing with the Elephants in Thailand

The elephant village was the best part of my time in Bangkok.

This was a tour for the crew only, and our guide was relieved to see such a young bunch. Our bus looked like the one from Priscilla Queen of the Desert.

The Elephants used to be used for logging, but since elephant logging was banned the elephants have been unemployed. They are so domesticated that they can’t be released into the wild, and it costs so much to feed an elephant that the only way they can support them is from tourism.

No elephants were harmed in the writing of this blog.

We arrive at the elephant village. Yay! As crew members we are excited just to step off the ship.

The elephants line up and we get to feed them banannas.

“Don’t tease the elephants,” they instructed us.
Here I am, feeding the elephant. Doesn’t he look happy?

It’s so cute how the elephants take food with their trunks!!

But are you brave enough to feed him with your own mouth?

Next the question was, “Who wants to take a bath with the elephants? We need five volunteers!” I greedily put up my hand. People were reluctant to volunteer. We took off our shoes and emptied our pockets, climed the fence and clambered up onto the elephants.

We waded into this swamp on the backs of our elephants. The others took pictures from the shore (I have to get those pictures!) I watched Barbera clinging on for dear life as her elephant sat his rear end down in the water.

Here is my souvenir picture of my elephant bath.

Next, they let everyone else take a turn riding the elephants. It’s funny, because you kinda have to sit on the elephant’s neck.

Next, the elephants demonstrate their logging techniques.

There is a basketball hoop nearby and a bag full of basketballs and we wonder if the elephants are going to shoot some hoops.

They didn’t.

They bring out the male elephant. The girls are awestruck, the men, disgusted.

This wasn’t the grand finale though.

They marched out a little band and some sword fighters.

I hope they don’t fight to the death. Watch out for that huge pile of elephant poop!

And finally, we get to ride atop the elephant in one of these things.

Two people will fit in one of these things. As always, excursions with the crew feel like a highschool field trip. “Barbera, will you be my elephant buddy?”

This is what the view is like from atop an elephant in Thailand. Ciao!

How to blow your nose on horseback at the Great Wall of China

How did the Great Wall of China tour come to this??
Well, first I think I have SARS. Or at least I need a SARS mask so I won’t infect anyone else.
It’s the sudden change in temperature that always does it to us – we went from 30 degrees plus in Hong Kong to hovering around Zero since Shanghai.
Although you could probably see my red nose from the Moon today (because we all know you can see the Great Wall from the Moon), I’m not too shabby for someone with SARS, eh?

China (at least what I’ve seen of it) is very industrial and polluted. The sky is always hazy and the view from the bus window looked like this:

It was a 3 hour drive to the wall. We made a pit stop involving the usual confusing toilets, and a gas station type convenience store which we flocked to and gleefully bought all sorts of sweets of origins we had no idea. Mmmmmm….

On the way we saw some strange sights out of the bus window.
A flooded village was one.

Actually, the above Moon fact is false. You can not see the Wall from the Moon. It has been an issue of much heated debate around here, and the resident Astronomer wins.

See, you can barely see it from the road! But it’s there.

So who was it that climbed the wall and said “take a pic of me by the sign that says don’t climb the wall!”
Well, not me, I had SARS.

The Wall turned out to be one hell of a climb.

We climbed as high as possible, until the Wall itself disappeared into ruins.
You can see the newer, renovated part in the front. The top section is older, yet also renovated.

Some Chinese graffiti on the wall

The older section looks a bit Giraffe- like.

It took an hour to climb to the top.

From the top, you can see bits and pieces of the wall all over the hilly countryside.

At the top there were horses you could ride down a path for under $2. Feeling tired from the climb (remember, SARS..) I took a chance. The horses weren’t as scary as they looked. And I got a great vantage point of the wall on the way down.

Shanghai, Day One

I found it very hard to get a feeling for Shanghai.

The tree lined streets were very pretty

A lot of bicycle traffic

And a special lane for bikes and scooters.

Lucia asks them directions to the old Gardens

Laundry hangs everywhere on the streets.

And a woman washes her delicates on the street laundry mat

Rabbits for sale (or rent?)
He has a bag full of lettuce on his back.
There are a lot of pets sold here. I know most people would probably think it’s for food, but I do get the impression these people love their pets.
Though, the Rabbits may be dinner!

Some street food

We walked to old town, to see the Very old Chinese Gardens from 1559.
This here is the Dragon wall

Wheeee! followed by… ho-hum… The gardens are such an emotional roller coaster.

“We don’t know her..” said Lucia, as I played my newly acquired chinese flute-thing all over town. “Rolex, 5 for 10 dollar!” cries a hassler. “pfoooooot!” the Chinese flute says, in his face.

What is up with the Goat? Or what is that thing? A mountain Deer?

You can buy fish food to feed the Koi in the gardens.

Leaving the gardens we spot a 3,000 year old Starbucks from the Ming Dynasty..

Is there an instruction manual for these things, please?? Starting with which way do you face.
I did attempt to use one on a ferry in Istanbul, but wearing pants makes it a whole different game. And don’t forget to take the tissue paper from the counter as you pay.

A dumpling restaurant had a lineup around the block.

I spent a fortune on green tea

And later on.. we go to the tallest bar in the world, overlooking the city. It’s on the 82nd floor of the Jinmao building.

And of course a girl like me shouldn’t go without a date – this is Martin from, well, somewhere near Berlin.

We met some other travelers and went bar-hopping with them. “Shanghai is one of the greatest cities in the world,” one guy says to me. “Uh-huh,” I reply as I navigate through a huge pile of garbage on the sidewalk that is being circled by a hungry kitten.

This bar was filled with Westerners. What are they all doing here, I wondered.

Here is the night scene from the ship. The city turns off its flashy lights at 11pm.
On the left you might notice the Oriental Pearl TV tower.

The tower is described in my guide book as “unsettling.” They got that right! Here is is up close. The lights change colour.

Kagoshima, Japan

Kagoshima is in the South of Japan. It is said to be the Naples of Japan. I have seen Naples, and wasn’t expecting much.
It lies in the shadow of an active volcano.

The reception we got from the city was very friendly. They put on a free show for us onboard in the morning. They had a booth outside the ship with free samples of the local cuisine. Fish cakes, bean cakes, green tea and potato wine. All were food. I mean, good. They set up a huge drum outside the ship and had a big show as we were about to leave.

From the sights we saw on the shuttle bus to town, we all agreed that it was indeed like Napoli.

Huh?

The shuttle bus stops at the mall.
A guy stands in the mall ringing a bell. I guess he is begging?? What is the costume he’s wearing? I put money into his bowl and he gave me a newspaper. I have no idea what it said.
Two policemen help a little old lady.

I was starving, and excited about eating real Japanese food. I found a restaurant popular with the locals.

The food looked even better than the plastic food outside. It was delicious. Seaweed salad, noodle soup, and a sushi bowl. The sushi bowl was surprisingly cold.
I was given a pair of chopsticks and I eyed my soup dubiously. I watched the lady beside me out of the corner of my eye, to see how she handled her soup.

I have noticed they haven’t been serving soya sauce with the food since I’ve been in Asia. Is it a western thing?

They say Japan is expensive, but my meal was 800 yen – just under $7 USD. I wouldn’t get that at home for $7!

I didn’t have enough time to see the botanical gardens. Instead I sought out the more subtle wonders of the town itself. I sent some postcards home. I scoffed at the picture of pink cherry blossoms. “This town does NOT look like this!!” I thought to myself, as I sent the postcard.

I soon come across a park. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom.

In the park there is a vending machine. I love wasting coins in the machines, just to see whay I can get. There is a surprising selection of iced coffees. I see one called “Deeppresso.”
It’s so sad!! This drink will put you right over the edge.
I grab the can. It’s hot!!! What the?? Hot coffee in a can? I keep the can for a joke. I pick another flavour. Cafe au Lait. I put the coins in the machine, and out comes the can. Ice cold. Huh??

I take a closer look at the machine. It takes me awhile – but I realise that the cans with blue price labels are cold, and the ones with red price labels are hot! Just think, if I hadn’t bought the Depresso as a joke I would have never known.

Koi swim near the park

And near the Koi is a Shrine. I don’t know what kind of shrine. Shinto?

I take a look inside.

First wash your hands here.

Walk inside..

Is he some kind of Monk? A drum sounds every couple of minutes. People walk up to the gate, put a coin in the wooden box (you can see that here) and clap their hands!

A woman in a Kimono with a new baby gets her photo taken by the shrine.

It said 100 yen. I put a coin in out of curiosity.

This is what I got. I will keep it, maybe I will figure out what it’s for.

Outside, I see where they go. On the string on the right of the picture.

I unfold it. I get a paper cut. Maybe I shouldn’t be doing this. I tie it around the string.

On my way out I see others have tied theirs around trees. Like Edson did in Taiwan.

A similar thing, I am guessing. Perhaps prayers on wooden tags?

Kagoshima turned out to be quite beautiful after all.

Way Too Many Pictures of Taiwan

I went a little photo happy in Taiwan yesterday. I wasn’t even supposed to be able to go ashore that day. But S said he really needed to catch up on his needlepoint, and would stay onboard in my place.

So I took these two crazy clowns and went to see whatever the town of Keelung had to offer, since Taipei was a little bit too far away.

Meet my new roomie Paula from Argentina, and Edson from Brasil.

Don’t mind Edson, he’s a night worker and gets a little loopy in the daytime.

One thing we did know about Keelung was that it’s famous for its food market. Apparently each vendor strives to have their very own specialty, a kind of food found nowhere else.

Edson was on a mission, and he was the only one armed with local currency, so he bought us tastes of everything.

The original Wasabi Pea?

I’ll take the big juicy tentacle on the right, please..

She throws it on the barbie. I picture myself walking around with a barbequed tentacle on a stick. Before I can do that she cuts it into a bag for me to eat with a toothpick. We all try it.

Paula gets some kind of corn with sweet candied stuff on top. It is good and sticks to our teeth.
(not shown – I have to edit my pics somehow!)

We run into two of the Butlers.
Glad I can be of amusement..

Edson gets some mini-eggs on a stick. Perhaps they are Quail eggs?

Candied fruit

The one in the background is a candied sour apple (too sour for me)
The one in the foreground is candied fresh cherry tomatoes and plums. It was surprisingly really good!

Some kind of bean cake. This is a delicacy. They say you can’t even find it in Taipei.
We all got a piece. It was marshmallowey and not very sweet.

Some more oddball food from the 7-11 (Of which there were many here as well as Hong Kong)
Mmmm, hot pot full of strange eggs (actually, I would have liked to try one)
Look at the English on the pot. OPEN!

Asparagus juice. It was sweetened. I had a sip, forcefully, just to say I did.

There was a temple at the food market. Paula and Edson get insence and start worshipping. I think I’m going to die!! I’ll wait outside..

Of course there was lots of cheap fashion. We sniffed around the stores. It was hard to leave them.
I hear the no pants look is coming back in this Spring..

Scooter madness..

One of the big attractions was supposed to be a huge Buddha on a hill.
This was not him. But that kid looks like the statue. It was at the first temple we came to.

And what exactly was going on at the first temple? We each got a free stick of incense as we entered. Please don’t encourage them!! They ran off to worship, again. “Get pictures of me worshipping!!” Sure…

While they were busy I noticed they were selling things. You could buy a basket of fruit for the Buddha, or some Avon shower gel. Take your pick.

We met a wonderful Buddhist Nun. I was so relieved to see that girls can be monks, too. She was friendly and spoke English. She explained that it is a kind of All Souls Day for the next two weeks. Every temple will be crowded with people honouring their ancestors, for they are not buried in the earth but cremated and put into urns in the temple.
She also said that to be a Buddhist vegetarian you don’t eat garlic, for it it too offensive.

Meanwhile, Edson is on a mission. He recieved a red and white bracelet from a Bulgarian, and in some kind of custom you wear it for a while, then there is a two week period to remove it and put it in a tree. It symbolizes peace.
What better tree than one right here in the Temple. I’m sure Buddha didn’t mind.

The Nun gave us directions to the Big Buddha. We walked up stairs and a windy path that seemed to go from temple to temple.

Yay, a huge bannister!! (sorry..)

Here comes a temple.. There are some strange sounds as we approach it.

Karaoke?? They dance for a couple of numbers.

Finally, we find him.
It is like a circus up there. I pose for a picture and almost get run over by a toy car.

Ring toss, definitley a circus.

We take turns ringing the bell

And we all take a ride on the motorized bear, whose nose was falling off.
We are not the only crew members on the hill. Everyone sees us driving the Bear around like maniacs.

Look, you can see the ship from here!

That’s all for now!! See you tomorrow in Japan!!

PS, yes, there was a tsunami somewhere today and we are expecting 40 foot waves!

Hawaii at last

We sailed into Honolulu at 10am on the17th, a whole day late. I was on the bow waiting, along with a bunch of others. As we sailed in, I pointed out Waikiki beach to the Philipino guys, to much excitement.

This ship hasn’t been in Hawaii in 7 years or so, and I was one of the few people who had been there before (in my days on another cruise line)

As the other cremembers climbed to the front of the ship, I sat with my feet in the crew pool.

After an easy coast guard drill at 2pm, they let us ashore.

Us three multicultural girls hit the town. Canadian, Uruguayan and Japanese.

The Sheraton on Waikiki is very fancy..

This was our first stop, for a drink and a snack.

Cheers! Real flowers garnished our juice.

Mayumi wanted to say she has floated in the ocean in Hawaii. I put on my suit and went with her, while Valeria watched from shore.
(whoo-hoo! bikini shot!)

This surfer dude is doing my favourite Yoga pose!

We sat and watched the sunset. Mayumi went back to work – she has many Japanese guests to take care of this cruise

Tiki torches are lit all around Waikiki. I feel like I’m on Survivor.

Valeria was obsessed about finding a flower for her hair. She bought a plastic one.
Later she found some real ones being made into leis.

Of course I had to get one, too. Us single girls should wear the flower on the right ear.

Later on, when I left Valeria to go shopping at 10pm, I switched ears so as not to get any trouble. This did not work. What is it with American guys and their obscene cat-calling?? “Read the flower, jerk!”

Hawaiian shirts were on sale

Come to America and shoot a real gun!

Waikiki is beautiful at night. I braved the St Patrick’s day crowds and a sudden rainstorm as I went back to the ship. I arrived home soaked and happy. We all celebrated with fish n chips on the back crew deck in the open air as we sailed away. I think we all fell in love with Hawaii that day.

Rope deck Birthday!

It was formal night, and we were all backstage getting ready for the big production of the evening. “Does anyone else smell barbeque, or spicy shrimps?”

Yes, it was another rope deck birthday and the smell of barbeque wafted through the backstage door. I wondered if the Guests in the front row enjoying their Bellini martinis were wondering where the smell of spicy shrimp was coming from.

After the show we decide to crash the party. “Who’s birthday is it?” I ask some guys. “The Bosun!”
“What’s his name?” I ask

“I don’t know, ‘The Bosun’?”

Great! What’s cooking?

Gerome cooks up some shrimp and squid on a grill. Cooking appliances are so illegal, I wonder how they get away with it!

Help yourself to fish..

Pancit, or Rice! The noodles are really good.

The rock band was playing. They have been practising lately, and now I realise it was for their big gig tonight!

These are just regular guys who have a rock band in their spare time – the ship is nice enough to provide equipment for a couple of bands like this. The rope deck is their working area so they can rehearse there whenever they want.

Some guy showed up and did a tribal dance. Was it serious? I am not sure what was going on.

Eric and Becky consult song choices – when the band stops it will be Karaoke time!

And I congratulate Bong the Birthday Boy!