Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Pictures
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Day 2 - Myanmar Madness
As I haven’t had breakfast anywhere else in Myanmar I can’t really compare, but I think it will do. The eggs and toasts were good; the 100% real fruit juice was delicious; the bananas were a little too sweet for my tastes; and this fruit-like/cheese pastry was interesting to say the least. All in all, I’m definitely looking forward to breakfast tomorrow.
After breakfast I headed to the Shwedagon Paya (pagoda). It was simply amazing. I can’t even describe it in words, so I hope the pictures give you a small taste of the magnitude of its AWESOMENESS. God willing you should see some great pictures soon. I decided to hire a tour guide for the entire morning; so he not only gave me a tour of the Shwedagon Paya but also of the surrounding sites. To give a little background information on this pagoda, it is an active site of worship and yes it is made with real gold. One of the really cool things I was able to do while there was wash Buddha. There are eight Buddhas, representing each day of the week – Wednesday for some reason has two, one for the morning and one for the afternoon – and you’re suppose to wash the Buddha according to the day you were born. My tour guide had a book that contained calendars for like the past 50 years or something so we were able to find out that I was born on a Sunday. After, I invited him to lunch to eat some authentic Myanmar food – which was similar to last night, nothing extraordinary.
After lunch I headed back to the hotel. Currently, I’m sitting in a lounge-like room enjoying the shade and cool breeze. It’s a nice place to relax and take a break from the searing sun; also perfect for conversing with the other guests. I’ve actually met a fellow American named Richard from Washington DC. He’s a crazy travel-holic who has been to over 100+ countries. What’s somewhat surprising is he didn’t even get his college degree. He seems to be in his early 60s, retired, worked as a train ticket operator and loudspeaker announcer at Union station.
Later I’m probably gonna head out and get some dinner and maybe check out the Yangon river. I think I forgot to mention, but I’ve booked an overnight bus ride to Mandalay for tomorrow. Tomorrow I’m probably going to do the Yangon train. The route makes a circle around Yangon in around 3-4 hrs. It should be an interesting opportunity to get a little taste of local life.
After I left the lounge I realized that the sun should have started setting so I decided to go all the way to the top and get some pictures from the roof. Up there I met another American and fellow New York, actually quite close to me in Peekskill named Eric. I got distracted in conversation and forgot about the sunset. The pictures I took aren’t the greatest and there’s a building in the way. But at least Eric pointed me into the direction for dinner. He told me how to get to the Indian Quarter so that’s where I’m heading. I ordered fried catfish and curry, but was a little disappointed in the curry. It just didn’t really taste like Indian curry, but then again I haven’t had authentic Indian food from India so I guess I shouldn’t criticize just yet. I guess I need to put India on the list of countries I need to visit.
Well I’m back in the lounge just finishing up writing today’s events. Even though most of the stalls and shops close by 8pm, the city itself is still pretty noisy. The sound of the city is pretty interesting. It has the same feel I would imagine a Muslim country to have – or at least the ones in the movies we watch. What I mean is that throughout the day loudspeakers are constantly saying Buddhism prayers. Sort of like how I imagine the Koran being read in Arabic. It’s nice to listen to during the day, but the morning prayers are a little annoying – or a little too early haha.
Final thing before I go. I found out today that I would be in Myanmar for their Union Day. I think this is similar to what we consider Independence Day. I wonder if anything interesting will happen. If things work out as they are in my head, I’ll probably be in Bagan – home of numerous amounts of temples but very little social life… We’ll see what happens I guess. Night.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Day 1 Myanmar – The Tropical Oasis in the Freezing Desert
What a great day. I finally got out of China, a much needed break. As the day progressed my joy continued to exponentially get larger. I feel like I’m finally setting off on my own adventure. I discount China, to a degree, because I have Danny. Danny is terrific and a life saver; nor am I sure how I would have survived without him. But that’s just it. There was someone there is to assist me. Myanmar marks my first real adventure because there are only two things for certain: I have a plane ticket to Myanmar and I have a ticket out of Myanmar. Everything else is an unknown. An adventurer’s dream and a mom’s worst nightmare. There were two defining moments where I just cracked out a smile. The first was in China as I was preparing to board walking down the long platform towards the plane. The second was after we landed in Myanmar and I walked off the plane. First thoughts were that Myanmar felt like a nice tropical sauna. Just what the doctor called for after spending so much time in Coldville.
But the more I experience the heat, the more I worry. It’s hotter here than expected, probably in the 80’s – this is their winter temperature. I’m a little worried because all I packed – in regards to pants - for the duration of my journey were two pairs of jeans. I didn’t know before leaving Dalian if I would be able to get out of the country so only packed for winter in China. Even still, I probably just of been more prepared. Oh wells, I guess keeping cool is going to be tough. As I write this though I can say at least in the evening and early morning it gets quite a bit cooler.
One thing I forgot to mention was that I was traveling with a couple that is friends with my friends in Kunming. I’m only mentioning them now because of customs. As two custom agents came up to us and started filling out the forms for us, the couple took the liberty to offer them both “gifts” or bribes to ensure getting through customs wouldn’t be a problem. I might do that while leaving Myanmar because I was thinking of smuggling some of the local currency out – which is illegal.
After customs I parted with the couple and took a cab to the White House Hotel. Apparently, this is the number one hotel in Yangoon by a few reputable sources. After paying a $10 USD cab fare, freaking expensive, I found out that rooms were available and was able to score a room for $10 USD a night. I even got a room on the roof, which I thought was a good idea until I found out there are like nine floors and no elevator… The room is actually a triple I think because there are 2 ½ (3) beds – one is broken which is of course the one I’m sleeping on because the other two beds are in an enclave with no windows, fan, or a/c – no thanks. The bed I’m sleeping on is outside – which is getting an excellent breeze this evening. After checking my room I must say I have my doubts about the quality of my accommodations, but supposedly their breakfast is the best in Myanmar for hotels. And no, I did not choose this hotel for their breakfast this time.
After changing into the most appropriate clothes I brought I decided to stroll around downtown and also exchange some money. During the exchange and after reminded me very much of a movie I watched called Lord of War with Nicholas Cage. I don’t remember the exact quote right now, but when I get back I’ll be sure to look it up. But it goes something like “selling a gun for the first time is a lot like sex; you don’t really know what’s going on and before you know realize it’s over.” I felt my feelings very accurately resembled that quote. I had no idea what I was doing or what I should be saying and before I knew it I was walking away with a huge wad of the local currency (Kyat).
For dinner I found a fairly busy restaurant that had pictures and an English menu. I ordered chicken with rice. It was really delicious, reminding me of Indian food. Which does make sense seeing as there is a fairly large Indian minority, the proximity of Myanmar and India, and Myanmar’s history of Indian immigrants.
Myanmar is a melting pot of various different ethnicities. There is also a significant Chinese and Japanese presence. For those who don’t know anything about the Burmese (people from Myanmar), they are quite dark skinned – resembling Indians; making it quite easy to distinguish Burmese from other ethnicities. What I’ve found really interesting is the mix between Orientals (Chinese, etc) and Burmese. Their children are dark-skinned, yet their facial appearance maintains the Oriental look. Or in other words they look Chinese, Japanese, Korean but with really dark skin. This has made me wonder what the cultural future will look like in Myanmar. In China, at least, there is a strong cultural norm to make yourself look as white (Caucasian) as possible. I’m not sure if it is true for Myanmar or if it’ll ever pick up, but an interesting theoretical question and some food for thought.
This brings me to another interesting topic. My own personal experience with my appearance. This is probably one of the most important topics I’ve wanted to discuss but have failed to even mention or talk about it in my blog yet. This is because I’m not sure how to proceed and tackle this nitty-gritty topic. Yet I think it is about time I at least address and get it out in the open. Perhaps this will help me in the future with how to write and cover this completely. But let’s begin. As I went for my walk earlier in the day, I was continuously stared at. I’m not completely sure if it is because of my ethnicity or the way I dress – because I’m not wearing a longyi or basically a skirt like nearly everyone else. Initially, as I left China that’s exactly what I wanted. I wanted it to be known that I was a foreigner for various reasons. In China, I’m considered Chinese until I talk. Which I like; but it is the reactions that come after that annoyed me to no end. This was another reason I wanted to get out of China. But now after experiencing what I wanted, I’m not sure I want it anymore. I’m not sure what’s worse right now, being seen as a local or being stared at and looked at as a foreigner. It is only day one. I think I need to experience this feeling more and hopefully time will tell. I think that’s it for now. See you tomorrow.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
The Lost Days
As I write this on the plane to Myanmar, I’m attempting to reflect on my stay at an authentic Chinese family. This will be the only section that will be written in a strong past-tense. So I’m sorry because it doesn’t flow like I want it to. I’m not even sure where to begin because so many thoughts and frustrations are going through my mind while I write this. I guess I’ll start out by saying I didn’t get to do anything I thought or expected to do while in Kunming. First, my initial plan to go to Yuanyang fell through because we couldn’t attain a bus ticket. So I tried to be flexible and opted to do a few days trips in and around Kunming. But those, however, fell through as well for two reasons. One I got sick so I had to remain inside for a few days. And second, was their lack of faith in my Chinese language abilities to travel or explore on my own.
Now to be fair, from their point of view there was a certain unspoken rule that they were liable and responsible for me because I was staying at their house and the fact that my camera was stolen didn’t help my case.
However, that isn’t to say that I didn’t get out of the house. The first day I arrived I was ushered out of the house to meet some friends of theirs who were going to take me to the Myanmar embassy. Turns out these friends actually own and run a travel agency which specializes in groups tours to Myanmar. Not only did they help me get my visa, but they also insisted on helping me get my tickets to and from.
Now before I continue on my rant on Chinese culture and thinking, let’s take a break to discuss more positive aspects of my stay in Kunming. First, omg, the weather and temperature was amazing there. As close to perfect as possible. I think it was actually colder inside than outside – in a bad way, unlike during summer when you want it cold inside. The local food was good. It resembled something closer to what I’m used to back home. Some of the more famous things I tried here was erkuai and cross-the-bridge noodles. Things to try if you ever in the area.
Now unfortunately because I wasn’t writing daily all the negative things have overshadowed all the good things and I can’t seem to think of anything else I want to talk about…So, we move back to negative things. All the negative things seem to stem from Chinese culture, so I think, no, I know that I need to get out of country and thank god I am. So there are two events that made me explode inside.
First is traffic awareness. We decided to try and go to Dian Chi a famous lake at Kunming. However, as we neared to the lake, there was only one road into and out. Of course, instead of waiting to enter like any most people in America would do; a good number of the Chinese motorists thought it a good idea to drive on the other side of the road. What ensued was that eventually this road was clogged up because no one could enter or exit the lake. After like ½ an hour of not moving, we called it quits. But the driving escapades don’t end there. We entered a turning circle and what do you know but there’s an accident. Instead of the cars and people involved to drive out of the turning circle where they wouldn’t disrupt traffic, they stopped and got out exactly where the incident occurred. Thus making it nearly impossible for everyone else to use the turning circle…
This second event isn’t directed at Chinese culture, but is more of a sad story of my trip to the local Kunming zoo. Let’s ask ourselves a question, what’s the purpose of a zoo? I believe the answer is to educate and promote preservation. Well, going to this zoo – or any zoo in China – with that outlook, will bring a lot of disappointment. First off, people were littering everywhere and everyone was illegally feeding the animals when there were clearly signs in Chinese and English saying not to. On top of that they were making attractions off of animals. Why put the whack-a-monkey machines right next to the monkeys…like really? None of the exhibits had anything to say about what the animals were or any of their information, etc. It just completely lacked any form of trying to promote conservation of the animals in there zoo – probably something closer to zoos when they first opened in America: a place that holds exotic animals.
But we’re about to land in Myanmar, and I’m really glad to be getting out of this country. Hopefully it’ll be as pleasant as I hope. I’ll let you know soon.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Day 4 - The Day the Earth Stood Still
After beating myself up, I resolved to put in time and effort to try and find it. I decided to go to the Public Security Bureau (PSB) to report the theft and file a claim in the rare offshoot that they find it. I got an interesting perspective of how the PSB works now. For better or worse, I an unfamiliar with our own US police force procedures; but I think that it is safe to say that the PSB is more bloated and bureaucratic that our own system. It took about 2-3 hours to complete the entire process. First I went to one police station, where I luckily found someone who spoke English. After a few phone calls, she escorted me to another police station where I filled out one form. After that was done and a few more phone calls I was shuttled to another, even larger, police station – about 25 floors of pig country. There I filled out basically the same form and was finally on merry way.
Instead of being emo and depressed in my room, I decided to continue with my plans and decided to check out the Muslim Quarter – even though I wasn’t really in the mood. I got a few snacks, Muslim bread and lamb is super delicious, and then left. I just couldn’t really get into the right mindset thus diminishing the magic of the Muslim Quarter, guess I’ll substitute it for visiting a Muslim country in the future. For dinner I decided to treat myself to some American food and went to the Hostel’s restaurant and received a fairly delicious BBQ chicken sandwich. Oh how I miss the starch-based foods.
After dinner, I was able to skype with my parents and let them know what happened. I’m going to take a moment to embarrass them. Because true be told, I felt quite miserable after losing my camera, unsure of what I should do, thinking about returning to Dalian. But from comforting and encouraging words from my folks I was able, and decided, to persevere and continue with my trip. It was a pleasant, and welcoming, surprise that instead of anger, disappointment, and/or the “teasing jests” I was received with anxiety and worry. It is quite difficult to express in words without teasing my folks, but it was one of the few times I appreciated everything my parents said – not that I don’t appreciated the constant nagging and whatnot, though I know you mean well…
In better spirits after comforting words from my parents I just chilled in my room and watched some of the Australian Open. The Chinese star Li Na is making waves and history, it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out. Tomorrow to Kunming we go.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Day 3 - Baked earth and a glass of water
It was an early morning, the tour group planned to leave at 8:30am. The terracotta soldiers were amazing, the detail was incredible. What was quite interesting that I didn’t know was that the site is actually an ongoing archeological dig site. The workers apparently come in around 6:30pm when everything closes to the public and continue to dig up a never-ending supply of soldiers from the ground. The tour was nice and I’m glad I decided to take it. It gave me a chance to converse with other people in more substantive material, something I haven’t been able to do in a while it seems. Our tour guide was also able to give us some interesting facts about the soldiers which I probably would never have learned on my own.
A few of the facts include:
- Upward curled shoes indicate your ranking – the higher the better; if they didn’t curl at all it meant you were nothing, just an ordinary foot soldier
- Big bellies and mustaches were in at the time representing how handsome you are
- A nail in the sole of your shoe was a sign that you were married
- The ribbons on the archers indicated if you were left or right handed
After we got back I took the rest of the afternoon off to recuperate. Around dinnertime, I headed out to the Big Goose Pagoda – one of Xian’s most pictured landmarks. The area was gorgeous, at night was even better with all the lights. It was already too late to climb up the Pagoda when I arrived, but the real reason I came was because every night they do what is considered the biggest water foundation show in the world. From my comprehensive background in watching water foundation shows, I can guarantee you that this was by far the largest I’ve ever seen. It started at 8:30pm and was still shooting away when I decided to call it a night at 9. All things aside, it was actually really amazing; I think I managed to get a few good pictures and video clips. It’s on every night and free –something quite rare and unusual for China – so this is a must if you’re ever traveling in Xian.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Day 2 - N-n-now that that don't kill me; can only make me stronger
Breakfast wasn’t horrible. They had the three staple foods: eggs, bacon, and potatoes. Drinks were still served Chinese-style. Meaning that they were served hot – so a delicious glass of hot apple juice to start off the day yum yum. I guess I might think differently once I get outside, but my thirst is not thanking me right now.
After a quick trip to the St. Sophia Cathedral and a stroll down Zhongyang Dajie (the main street in the downtown area) it was back to the airport I go. It seems that Chinese New Year is beginning to take effect on transportation. All day at every airport I was at the loudspeaker kept going nonstop announcing delayed flights. Luckily it seemed that my flight wasn’t affected this time around.
So to be very blunt, Chinese travel culture has been frustrating and annoying to no end; and I kinda want to punch someone (Chinese) in the face. I’ve talked about Guanxi briefly before about how Chinese people only help out people they know and are in their circle of trust. But lately, through traveling, I’ve felt that it has moved further and that the Chinese are just plain rude to anyone who they don’t know. Traveling in China will definitely throw away any notions you have of Chinese culture being extremely polite. For instance, when I was attempting to get my carry-on from the overhead compartment, no one could wait 10 seconds and kept pushing me aside so they could move forward into a line that wasn’t even moving yet.
On top of that Chinese people don’t seem to listen. Like is it that difficult to turn off your phone, put your seatbelt on – after the flight attendant has told you 5 times already – wait for the plane to come to a completely stop before getting out of your seat and retrieving your carry-on from the overhead compartment, and not put your carry-on in the overhead compartments in the front of the place. All of this information is said multiple times in CHINESE, so there is without any doubt that they understand. To the Chinese, traveling is like a race – who can be the first one on the plane and the first one off – everyone trying to get ahead of the next person, pushing people down to get on top, etc. I shudder to imagine what would happen if there was ever a crisis like the landing in the Hudson River – I feel like everyone would die because no one would be listening and everyone would be fending for themselves.
Anyways, I arrived in Xian safe and sound at least. I’m staying at the Shuyuan International Youth Hostel. It’s literally right next on one of the Southern gates of the city wall. The building is an authentic ancient Chinese housing complex. There’s a courtyard and everything. In the morning I’ll take pictures.
After settling in I decided to do a little exploring. Inside the city wall is like the downtown shopping area. I was hoping to find a cheap small local flavor restaurant but no luck. Everywhere around me there were McDonalds, KFC, Dairy Queen, Western clothing stores, and the list goes on. I felt like I was back in America.
The only thing of interest that happened was that I got to witness my first Chinese fight. I didn’t even realize it at first. There was a minor car incident in the parking lot; they were still touching together and making a really awful noise. I was curious as to why they hadn’t moved their vehicles at least and decided to walk closer. It took me a moment, but then I noticed something strange. Driver A was in Car B punching Driver B in the face…They were starting to garner a small audience, yet no one in the crowd was doing anything about it. I thought it best to continue on my way. Ironically, at the end of the road there was a cop, but he didn’t have a clue in the world what was going on a few minutes away from him.
I returned back to the hostel and am calling it a night. Apparently, the hostel is offering a tour to the Terracotta soldiers. I think for convenience I’m going to do that tomorrow.
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Quick update of the happenings of Dalian. All the new students have arrived. For official BCA students we got 3 new male students, bringing our total to 6 – 5 guys, 1 girl. None of the new students are from my school. It is a much older group this semester. Two of our new members are 27 years of age. One is actually ex-green berets (Special Forces for those who don’t know) who decidedly got married to a Chinese women – making our final total 7. The other is from Colombia but who decided to do his higher learning study in America. The third is my age and goes to Manchester College. Our semester is finally starting – on Monday to be exact. I’m actually quite excited to get this show on the road. I think that’s it for now. I hope you’re enjoying the travelogues.