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Muslim Beliefs and Traffic Jams

10/31/2011

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First off, Happy Halloween to all!  Unfortunately we are not celebrating here, a Hamid did not even know what the holiday was!

So, the Japanese young man and myself are off to do some trekking in the mountains with Hamid!  We bought the food today at the local market!  It was quite an experience, witnessing all of the craziness of the streets.  The poor people selling the well-known Kashmir carpets, all the way to vegetable sales, and all kinds of funky characters to be seen amongst it all!  So after that we went to do some errands and entered Hamid's wife's family's house.  We sat down on the floor on a cushion and were given a blanket to cover ourselves for warmth (this seems to be the norm for Kashmiris).  We were then served the Chai (delicious and sweet!) along with a nice piece of sesame bread!  All worked out quite well there in the old town of Srinagar, and I felt a part of the culture.  The nice thing about staying with Hamid and his family is that he includes us (the Japanese fellow and myself) in almost all they do.  I have eaten with my hands - inside and outside, on the floor of the kitchen and in front of the TV with the family.  Tonight I may even take a Kashmiri Shower!  What is that you might ask?  It is where you take a bucket of water, fill it up and dump it on yourself!  ...more on that experience later!

So tomorrow we will be off to cook in the mountains and stay with a family which he knows for years and takes many of his guests to who lives in a local village.  When we come back, on days 6-8 we will celebrate the Muslim Christmas with his family.  We actually went with Hamid to check on the sheep (which were not there today) because during the festival the sheep are killed, but in a painless way - sounding almost identical to the kosher way of preparing meat.  The more time I spend here, the more I see how alike the customs and beliefs of the Muslims and the Jews really are!  Kashmir is predominantly Muslim, but as you make your way South through the country, the Muslims lose their ground and Hindus (and Sikhs_

A note about traffic in India.  We got stuck today in the city center for a bit.  I witnessed a minor accident, but without any information exchanged, paperwork filled out, hassle or stress, the incident was resolved in a matter of seconds with an exchange of a few words and minor vibes of frustration.  People seemed happy for the most part, yelling to one another in the street and in other cars, cracking jokes rather than yelling and threatening to take the other's life..There were even a few special people parading through the middle of the street sign-less and traffic-light-less roads...
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Ready, Set, Rupee!!!

10/29/2011

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I arrived two days ago into Delhi's airport.  WOW, what a culture shock.  Many things have happened all at once, overwhelming my senses so I will do my best to describe them:

Initially, I left the airport and when I wanted to go back in to exchange money and see about some tourist information, I was not allowed, blocked by a man with an automatic weapon claiming that for me to go back inside would be a security threat.  So, a nice Indian man explained the situation to him, and a kind Australian watched my big bag as I entered and did as I needed.  He nodded his head back and forth, as I was told means either "yes, no, or go f**** yourself"...only time will tell if I will be able to discern the difference as it is all based on the situation.

Nobody happened to mention to me that there was a festival going on in Delhi and that the prices for hotel rooms would be sky high!  I found that out on my own!  Some nice drivers took me around in cars and tuk-tuks (small vehicles with no doors, used for driving small distances) looking for accommodations but it had appeared that even the cheap street of hostels/hotels was blocked off by the police, most likely due to the festivals going on - an F1 Racing one, Divali and several others all combined into one...so much for my luck...

I visited a tourist agency which said that the best option would be to get out of Delhi for the moment and go up to Srinagar in the Northernmost region of India, called Kashmir.  After thinking about it and wandering into an old office, where I was told I could sleep (in Delhi) - the same staff from the initial tourist office came back and told me I had to leave!  The man who initially told me that I could stay was the gentleman who served tea.  So at the end of the day I could NOT stay, and then began my excursion looking for a cheap place to stay, which ended at about 3am when I decided to go back to the tourist office and book the 7-day home stay in Srinagar...a far better deal than paying around $100 USD a night...NOT quite as inexpensive as I had been told India was...

So I spent my first night in a decent accommodation (and I have a feeling I will upgrade from the word decent to INCREDIBLE via India standards by the end of my time here), in the morning was served some oily (yet tasty), fried bread to dip in some curry and have some onions, along with Marsala Tea.  Marsala Tea is sweet and DELICIOUS  Easily a favorite here in India - I am glad they drink their tea sweet, unlike the Chinese.

After breakfast, a driver weaved in and out of the crazy streets of Delhi to get me to the bus station, where I met a gentleman who spoke to me about life, and how life is more about family and friends, relationships, etc. than material things.  I concurred.  When we discussed the bus being late, he told me that there is a saying in India, "On God's time", or "Only God knows"...meaning let's see what happens, if the bus is meant to come, it will come....interesting and slightly worrying (though a few minutes later it arrived!) 

The bus itself was quite dirty, but not much worse than the ones found in China, and actually the dirtiest part was the sleeping quarters where I laid my head to rest, above the seats.  These people kept peeking out of the curtains covering the beds, and a man kept peeking in on a woman he appeared to be with.  I would later go on to learn that this was his daughter and find his "buscapades" slightly less creepy.  The people on the bus were quite friendly and most people in this country with whom I have conversed speak English.  Their English fluctuates in and out of understandability to me.  I will be understanding everything one moment, and then lost it all the next, sometimes just missing a word or two due to the accent.  My overall initial opinion of the people after having been here just a few days is that these people really APPRECIATE life, because most of them have less.  While many of us in the US are worrying about the size o the next television we will buy, many homeless people (Of which I saw a number) in Delhi are worrying about where they will sleep and if they will survive another night...

The guy was waiting in Srinagar to transport me to my houseboat (as promised by the program).  I arrived to Has family and they cooked myself and another Japanese boy a meal.   I have breakfast, lunch and dinner included every day for my stay here!  It was a decent price for US standards, but rather costly for Indian ones, the agency claiming it is a government-subsidized program...oh, and I have an ENTIRE houseboat to myself how crazy!  There seems to be somewhat of a "servant" or helper here who helps with issues and helps bring food and helped bring my things to the houseboat!   I have seen Ahmeed's wife and three daughters, but not his son because he works in Delhi.  Also around the residence are the two guys who were in the car with me, driving me here.

The family seems very friendly and we have already discussed how the Kashmiris and in particular how the Muslim community here does arranged marriages.  Ahmeed said his marriage was arranged and that he will arrange his daughters' and sons...they used to get married as early as 13 or 14 until a law here was passed!!  Now the woman is usually 18 and the man 22.  In some smaller villages (which I might visit) the men and women still get married at a young age!).  The food we ate for lunch was rice with some pickled lotus flower stem, sliced radish and another curry-type dish.  It has been easy to eat as a vegetarian so far, so I might have to stay on this track for a while.  Not that I will completely avoid meat, but the concept of slaughtering animals had been something that bothered me ever since a young age..we will see what happens. 

More updates to follow as the houseboat experience continues!   ...and before I forget, people ride inside of AND ON TOP Of buses here.
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Vegetarians, Buddhas and a 5-Star Experience!

10/22/2011

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I took the tram to Lantau Island the other day, in search of a large buddha.  Luckily, without any struggle, my friend, her mom and I found it!  It was most certainly large and quite an empowering site!  We were actually allowed a ways up the statue for purchasing a meal ticket.  The meal was completely VEGETARIAN and completely DELICIOUS.  This cant be rather difficult to find here in China as it seems that the Chinese love their meat...even if they don't know what specimen it happens to be that they are consuming...We had a delicious soup with some sort of veggie meandering its way away from my spoon each time I attempted to take a stab at bringing it towards my oral cavity :)  The spring roll, filled with sliced potatoes did a lot less escaping from me however!  The mushrooms were particularly "hao cher!" (delicious) and I thoroughly enjoyed the corn and other veggies mixed in with the tofu!

Later that day, we headed to Tai O, a small fishing village.  This experience was a great way to see how those outside the hustle and bustle of Hong Kong thrive and survive.  The houses stemmed right out of the water and we witnessed a family/friends having lunch on their patio overlooking the water.  Practically the only food in the village, and the biggest source of income for the locals is seafood.  You can see dried fish lungs, oysters, and many other types of creatures which, at one time were complacently strolling through their aquatic atmosphere, before being caught, killed, and dried.  Perhaps the neatest part of this experience was something my friend pointed out to me.  The size of many of the doors were so tiny, that I could not even fit in without hunching over!  I had a similar experience on the bus the other day, heading towards Victoria Peak to see the city at night!

The view from the Felix was another glimpse at the city at night!  Particularly, the view from the bathroom was fantastic!  The three urinals you would use should you have to relieve yourself were directly in front of an enormous window (which was the wall) overlooking some cool buildings!)  Fortunately, the design allowed for privacy from incoming views, while preserving the spectacular view!!  My table overlooked the harbor, the bread was clearly just freshly made.  There was one with fresh olive pieces in it, along with two other assorted types, one of which was a french roll I believe.  The ornately decorated tofu came in a rather compact, but filling portion (after having consumed the entire basket of bread) :)  The dish was so ornately decorated that I pondered the thought of not even eating it...of course I took a picture for the memories! hahaha.  One of the most interesting and stylish parts of the evening was ordering off a menu included in a Ipad.  An assortment of foods, appetizers, vegetarian meals, cheeses and desserts, wines, and more were neatly located in different pockets of this technological source of selection, all within a simple touch they could be accessed...WOW!  I have two wonderful cousins to thank for this unreal experience, so shoutouts to you Ev and Jen!!!
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Stormy Weather and a Change in Pace

10/17/2011

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So after cycling through Yangshuo's amazing scenery, it was time for a big city again - Guangzhou.  I spent only a small amount of time here, but enjoyed it!  I ended up at a gym, entering into a conversation with a magazine editor and a few moments later, was being photographed with a personal trainer in an attempt to add a little visual jazz to the latest article they were going to produce!  After being treated to a free workout (with some help from the personal trainer..."help" meaning whatever advice I could understand from his foreign langauge...) I went back and got ready for dinner.  It proved to be one of the most terrential rain storms I had seen, with cars stalling in the, let's swap the word "river" for "street" for this scenario.  People were practically up to their rear ends in water...a truly astonishing sight!

Fast forward to my current location:  Hong Kong.  Hong Kong is an interesting place; unlike mainland China where the government is all appointed, Hong Kong's is half appointed, half elected, (and Taiwan being a democracy, all elected).  You know you've left mainland China when you can get onto all websites you normally could, such as facebook and youtube!  Yes, now you know that my "forced" cyber social vacation has come to a close, so if I do not answer your message within 1-2 weeks I am ignoring you, in contrast to when I had no facebook access for weeks at a time in mainland!  You can also tell that you've left mainland China by the western toilets you find in bathroom, along with the ability for the toilets to handle toilet paperr.  You also encounter more American chains - Ruby Tuesdays, Mrs. Fields' Cookies, Burger King and a few other recognizable names show up.  The main area is known as the New Territories, and most commonly referred to is the area of Kowloon, a peninsula attached to the mainland.  Then you also have two other islands, Hong Kong Island and Lantau Island.  This place quite reminds me of China town, with the narrow roads overshadowed by the diverse and copious amounts of street signs (flashing at night) hanging from every which way.  The buildings and rooms appear to be small to me as well.  Another tell-tale sign of a new place - there are no parents hovering their offspring over the street, encouraging them to release their natural waste products...this is refreshing, as I worry less what I am stepping in when I encounter a wet surface on the street..

Lan Kwai Fang proves to be more than sufficient for a night out, with fun bars and clubs razzling and dazzling the street!  I even witness a man carrying a child with him outside the bar...couldn't find a babysitter sir?  Good idea, why go to bed, when you can BRING THE KID WITH YOU to have a good time??  Ironically enough, the child was asleep and didn't look to be waking up any time soon..

So I have spent 3 months now becoming somewhat conversational in Mandarin Chinese, only to find myself in   I came to find out that Cantonese is the language spoken here, although about 50% of people (at least) are able to hold a conversation in English.  The English-speaking is refreshing, but the fact that a new language sets in is not, as I want to improve the Mandarin base I have begun to build.  However, Cantonese and Mandarin essentially share the same set of characters (written language) but the pronunciations are different.  This proves to be a challenge as I have yet to master, let's use the word "grasp" the tones in Mandarin.

So as I sit here and reflect on some experiences I have had, stuffing my face with a chocolate muffin and a liter of milk in mcdonalds, I smile.  Why?  Because a minor change for most is a MAJOR change for me.  Hong Kong McDonalds allow you to get Egg McMuffins and Sausage McMuffins at ANY TIME, NOT JUST BREAKFAST!  For anyone who knows me well, breakfast is my favorite meal, so the ability to eat it at whatever time I want is a true treat!!

The next stop on this journey is unknown at the moment, but if the fatekeepers of my destiny, located in the Indian Embassy in Eastern Tsim Sha Tsui district of Hong Kong permit, India just might be calling my name..
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Yangshuo and Unexpected Activity!

10/10/2011

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So Zhaoxing was the final trip for the village-aspect of touring, and it was the largest Dong village that exists - quite cool!  I stayed in a place called the Drum Tower Hotel or the Drum Tower Inn...not too bad, except for waking up at 4am to a really scary face - not sure if it was a ghost or a dream...but I stayed awake for a bit because I heard some banging and footsteps in the hallway, when I was relatively sure that we were the only ones staying in the hotel and the owner was asleep.  That was my first experience staying in a place that had some paranormal activity going on; I am a believer.  

So after having enough of village-hopping, Guilin was on board!  It was the normal stopover point to Yangshuo,  Yangshuo is a place where it is WAY too easy to do absolutely nothing...(not that I have been doing this)...There is some absolutely stunning scenery here when you rent a bike and explore.  Most people's favorite sites are the karst mountains, viewed from rafting down the Li River.

So I finally counteracted my laziness (surprising most people I meet, that I enjoy living like a local as well as a tourist, not getting up at the crack of dawn each day to partake in touristy activities!)  I took a bus to a smaller village around Yangshuo called Yangdi and took a raft to Xingping.  As you are arriving to Xingping, you can see the picture depicted on the 20 Yuan note, and as most do I took a picture and a video of the beautiful scenery!  There were many mountains that looked like objects such as apples along the way!

Today I biked around Yangshuo, passing through some absolutely stunning scenery, viewing just about every natural fruit and vegetable that grows on this earth.  I passed through some smaller villages, and was able to see the Yulong River as well!  See what getting up before 11am can do?  Also, renting a bike for less than $3 USD is not bad!

I have met some amazing people in the bar/hostel where I am staying and have been helping them to try to bring in business and doing some "work" - which consists more of helping out with random things and giving my opinion and ideas about things...the bar has only been open for about 1.5 weeks now...and I've already managed to break the chord connecting any source of music to the speakers tonight....great...I should be getting my Employee of the Month plaque any day now....I will let you know when it arrives!

My next stop is Guangzhou, and after that, to Hong Kong!  According to my Visa, I will have technically left China once I arrive in Hong Kong.
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