Category Archives: Asia

India: Where culture, colour and faith collide (Part Two)

North Goa

On arrival in North Goa’s Mopa Airport, I felt the humidity hit me like walking into a sauna, and began to recognise the familiar scenes of holiday makers as we made our way through town. This southern region of India is known for being a holiday location for nationals and foreigners alike.

The North of Goa is much more commercialised for visitors with bars, shopping and large hotel chains, whilst the South is a sleepy, wild and undeveloped area. We stayed in the area of Candolim, right by the beach. I got to have my lazy day on the beach and a lovely shoulder massage on my sunbed with very little hassle at all. I’ve learnt that most of the Indian people I know do not actually like to go to the beach to sunbathe or swim, so by day it is pretty quiet there. Its only at sunset and into the evening when the crowds begin to gather. I have never seen so many people on the beach in the evening, it was hard to move around amongst the crowds.

The next day we hired a motorbike for the day for a grand total of £5! Motorbike transportation is really common in India, and I have enjoyed now a number of motorbike trips in different countries as a passenger riding pillion. Normally, from an unexpected new local friend, which always makes it extra fun!

My friend drove us around the area to see historic forts and a nearby lighthouse. I would say though that climbing a lighthouse in the high temperatures of South India is somewhat challenging, to say the least.. I was gasping for air by the time I pushed my head through the hatch door at the top! North Goa has a few attractions and viewpoints to visit, but the main activity is relaxation, and food it seems. This is actually the only part of India where you can find beef, because of the high volume of Catholic Indians rather than Hindu. I was advised not to trust it though, as you don’t know how long it has been sitting there and I was still suffering with Delhi Belly.

My friend arranged for a special river cruise to entertain us in the evening, with traditional dancing, and even I tried to do a little dancing, though I was not that good!

Next day, we were in a taxi this time, visiting the bigger attractions, including the famous churches of Goa. Goa was for a long time ruled by the Portuguese exclusively and so much of the heritage remains. Many people speak Portuguese, and follow the Roman Catholic religion and you can see scatters of original buildings and churches left behind and many still in use. Some of the main churches are all found in one conserved square that is full of visitors. This was a little strange to see a familiar piece of Europe, smack bang in the middle of one the largest countries in Asia. The churches looked very traditional and we were even lucky enough to see a wedding service.

We also visited the famous coloured houses which really only make up a few quiet streets, before finding ourselves at a known Hindu temple that was quite large in the area. Full of kiosks selling snacks and drinks on arrival at the parking area, then as we arrived to the Shree Mangueshi temple, shoes and socks had to be removed and I began the painful and embarrassing dance on my tippy toes, as my bare feet burnt against the concrete boiling in the sun outside. Inside was the opportunity to move clockwise around the temple and make an offering to the shrine. Many Hindus gathered in the centre of the temple to carry out their prayers. After a quick wiz around, I hopped about with my shoes half hung back on and headed back to the taxi to the next location.

The best thing of the day in my opinion… the Tropical Spice Plantation. We drove into the bush to a beautiful site, with a rustic wooden bridge over a river for an entrance. On entry you are greeted with flowers and herbal tea to enjoy before your guided tour around the forest, and the guide allows you to see, smell and sample the different plants that make up this treasure chest of spices that India owns. Amongst them was cloves, nutmeg, vanilla and cardamom.

The local guide brought it to life when talking about the different spices they use traditionally at home that come from these native plants. Something about being in the green foliage makes me very happy, and even though I was struggling with the heat, the natural landscape provided some shade and nourishment for me. The plantation provided a buffet lunch as well so I was able to taste the spices in freshly cooked recipes.

Throughout the day, it was really nice talking to our taxi driver as we were driven around. He told us about his background, and how he was part of one of the many native tribal communities. He told us his very sad story about how the societal views of a traditional India, is still negatively affecting so many young Indians today though. He told us that the girl he wished to be married to, whom he had been dating for seven years, was not allowed to marry him because they are from different communities. My heart felt for the guy, as it is not the first story I have heard of this.

Parents forcing their children into unwanted marriages, and casting them out for relations outside their community; in worst case scenarios, leading to violence and public executions for those who disobey. Political parties and local committees are regularly set up to monitor and address the relationships of young people. The systems dictating societies in India (especially in rural areas) are very complex and consist of castes (a class system), religion, geographic area you are from, wealth, and ethnicity. For many families, every tick has to be in the correct box for your potential partner to ever be considered. An unfair and outdated viewpoint in my opinion for what is a very fast growing developing country. The poor taxi driver had a hard road to go down to try to be with the person he loves.

Mumbai

This dark side of India played on my mind as we travelled from Goa to India’s modern metropolitan city of Mumbai. Formally known as ‘Bombay’, Mumbai is India’s largest city, and thankfully, the home city of my lovely friend that was happy to show me the sights.

We only stayed for a short time before our onward journey to the Philippines, and in that time we managed to squeeze in a collection of local sights and have a few laughs too! We took a night time sightseeing bus to the Gateway to India, Marine Drive, Taj Mahal Palace, and the train station. All huge spectacular buildings with people surrounding them like buzzing bees to a hive.

We also visited the science museum amongst other great collections in the city, but the astronomy show at the Planetarium was literally out of this world! They had shows in different languages at different times and I had never been to an astronomy show like this before so I was really impressed.

My friend took me for a delicious dinner at a famous restaurant, Cafe Modegar, where murals are painted around the walls, with themes of the city in good humour and western as well as local food can be obtained. The restaurant has a big menu, a jukebox and lots of chequered table-clothed tables squeezed back to back.

The funniest and craziest part of the trip had to be when we ventured to a local shopping mall to buy me a new suitcase. The taxi driver decided to place the bag on top of the taxi without strapping it down (against our instructions) and it went flying off and into main traffic going 70mph along the new motorway in downtown Mumbai! He then began to reverse back against the traffic to retrieve it and fought off another driver who tried to steal it before we got pulled over by the police. All very stressful but my suitcase survived and officially passed the hardiness test for travels to come!

Before our feet left the ground of India and went onwards to the Philippines, we enjoyed a delightful time at Mumbai’s airport lounge for a bargain price of £30 each, inclusive of food, drinks and a complimentary foot massage. I shall definitely use it again. It was a good way to say a temporary ‘alavida’ to India.

Overall, India was a whirlwind of sights and cultures for me to see in such a short amount of time. With many friends residing there, I know that I will be back again, and I want to see more of the rural areas of the South next time. India has a lot to offer visitors in beauty, history and diversity and it is a difficult balance to create. In the future, I want to learn more about the customs, festivals and people that call this huge nation home.

India: Where culture, colour and faith collide (Part One)

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After years of socialising with my Indian friends, I came across a cheap flight to India and decided to travel there, sometimes alone, and sometimes with friends. I was somewhat prepared for what I might find, but there were still surprises along the way, as I scraped on just the surface of one of the largest countries on the planet, with the largest overall population in the world.

The North – Delhi, Agra and Rajasthan

Dehli

I came into Delhi Airport and was met by a close friend that guided my through the madness and crowds to the city. We hired a tuk tuk for the day and the very enthusiastic driver drove us all around the main landmarks of New Delhi, the Capital of India. The India Gate monument commemorating those lost in the first world war. Surrounded in park and crowds, this looks similar to an ‘arc de triomphe’ in Europe.

As we jumped back on the Tuk Tuk we saw many more buildings that were government or national monuments like the Red Fort, but I hadn’t realised that as it was Monday (actually Easter Monday), most things were closed, but it was so so very hot, I was happy to see it from the outside and keep moving. With having the local driver I think we actually saw a lot more smaller places that I would not have expected, for example an old water reservoir which was particularly impressive due to its architecture.

I did manage to visit a few religious spots as well, a beautiful and busy mosque site, which was rammed with muslims for ramadan, and also the Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, or Golden Temple.

The golden temple site is an important location for Sikhs. This beautiful location took you away from some of the hustle and bustle and to a quieter place where it was my first experience taking off my shoes, washing my feet and walking around a sikh space. Outside you could see the impressive golden structure and also some sort of large pole with fabric which sikhs use to replace their turban everyday.

This religious site also houses a large community kitchen and dining hall, where several volunteers come everyday to make free meals for their community. People wait in crowds outside for their turn to take a seat and eat what has been provided. This was a really impressive operation.

There are four main religions in India; Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Sikhism. The popularity of the religion varies with the region of India you visit, and as I continued on my journey, I learnt more about the ancient and present day conflicts this still causes unfortunately.

At night, as the air cooled, the streets became alive with people selling their wears and street food being available. I was offered things at triple the price due to my obvious foreigner look, so my friend had to purchase what I wanted for me whilst I hide around the corner. He was very successful, coming away with some bangles and clothes for me. I am now all set for my next Indian celebration.

I tried to stay away from the street food, as I had three weeks away ahead of me, and did not want to have a bad belly. (Little did I know this would happen despite me being careful, and last from day 2 to day 12). I went to the best rated restaurants though, and had some delicious curries, and oh my god, I love cheese naan so much. The food in Delhi is supposed to be some of the best, and I would have to agree.

Agra

The next day we were up early in the morning to head to Agra, the home of Taj Mahal. India being a huge place, it takes ages to get everywhere, and this is no exception, Agra is a 3 hour drive from Delhi, and I arranged a private car and tour to take us there and see the sights. There was little to see on the route but that was fine as it started at about 3am.

On arrival at Taj Mahal site with our guide, we were seperated in to men and women’s security which is the norm in India, for scanning and privacy. We then went into the huge site and crossed through the impressive gates before our first views of Taj Mahal.

The romantic story behind the building is that it was built as a mouseleum by the Mughal Emperor in the 1600s for his favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal. We also found out that he had actually wanted to build one for himself opposite to the Taj Mahal, on the other side of the river, and it would have been a reflection of the original, but after construction started, his son put a stop to it, as he was spending too much money. His son later led a rebellion and captured his father, imprisoning him in Agra Fort and stealing his throne, eventually leading to the decline of the empire.

As we wandered the grounds, our guide told us many stories of the Emperors or Kings of the different regions and the different dynasties that held power. Many of the dynasties still exist today, and in their regions the royal families are without power but are still wealthy and well respected.

The gardens are well kept and there is a good order of security to allow people to follow the right paths and not allow them to wander all over, and consequently ruin the photos. I even managed to get a photo on the famous Princess Diana bench without too much hassle!

On approaching the mausoleum itself, you start to see the decoration of it. It is inlaid with many jewels that have been flattened down to look as if they were painted, but on touch you can feel that they are real. To my embarrassment, I learnt that the best jewels were taken by the British and one lies in our crown. I had to shake my head at this. Inside the building it is quite plain and small, centred around the tomb.

Visiting Agra Fort close by, the location of the emperors captivity, you can see that Akbar the Great, whom built it as a military fort and royal residence, had respect and tolerance for many of the religions. He decorated the Agra Fort with many religious symbols including the swastika which in Western Europe is known for a dark and twisted history but originally is the symbol for hinduism. He even married hindu princesses including Jodha Bai who famously was his favourite wife and his chief consort.

This huge great red coloured fort is vast in passages and areas that would have once housed royal rooms. In one location you can see a strange optical illusion. A view of the Taj Mahal where as you get further away, it looks larger. Completely confused me!

Rajasthan – Jaipur

The next day we were on the road to Jaipur. The pink city is the final part of the ‘Golden Triangle’, the famous tourist route, made up of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. The capital of the Rajasthan region, the city is famous for being the royal home of the region’s king and for its pink buildings making it very recognisable. In the city we travelled with our guide from palace to palace, through a fort and even to an interesting observatory park full of large sundial sculptures.

In the palaces, the royals were obviously big fans of mirrors, as there were rooms covered in mirrors, which also seemed to be used for keeping an eye on the other people in the room. Jaipur was obviously trying to keep the royal VIP feeling going as well, as elephants marched through the streets merging with modern traffic, taking tourists up and down the large hills to the palace.

Our guide in Jaipur was sadly not as pleasant as the one in Agra. He seemed to be a lot more bias in his views and heavily supportive in his stories to the hindu people, whilst quite against the islamic people, this did put a spoil on things a little as my friend is a practicing muslim, and I found the guide to be quite rude. This also extended to him, not acknowledging me fully as a woman compared to my male friend. This meant that we did ignore him a little and unfortunately gave us a bad taste in Jaipur.

Whilst the palaces and sights were beautiful, by the afternoon, I was suffering from the heat and struggling. Going at one of the hottest times of the year, was not my smartest move. I was taking lots of opportunities to rest and break, and by the end, I had to say enough was enough, and we made our way to the train station. This was the start of a ‘fast’ train journey of 8 hours to the lake city of Udaipur. My final destination of the North.

Rajasthan – Udaipur

Arriving in Udaipur late at night, I jumped on a tuk tuk to my hotel, Lake Pichola. A beautiful hotel on the picturesque lake and a room with a intricately carved balcony to sit in. It was a gorgeous hotel, with a charming building, beautiful views, and a flute player to serenade me during breakfast. What more can you want!

The other guests staying there were clearly very wealthy, and its no surprise as it was the most luxurious place I had stayed. I did end up in an amusing conversation with one family, when the father could not wrap his head around me being alone there, and kept re-asking me if I was with anyone, and each time I said no, he was shocked and his wife and daughter were laughing at him. I don’t think those girls had quite the same freedom… As I continued to discover in my trip, the women and young people in general in India are quite restricted.

I had one full day to enjoy, and so I took a boat trip of the lake to see more of the views around me, and saw the famous Taj hotel owned by the king, floating in the middle of the lake, and only accessible by boat. I then wondered the streets by myself, making connections with some of the people that called the city home.

I visited a hindu temple that was made of old stone and was covered in hundreds of carvings, depicting different people, gods and elephants especially. One of the caretakers of the temple showed me around and explained the manner in which I should enter. Shoeless and in a clockwise route. I gave a donation of flowers and thanked him for his time before I ventured into the old cellar home there where people lived and worked painting art with traditional minerals, stones and vegetables, and of course I bought one for my collection.

I met another man that invited me out to the hindu celebration that was taking place in the evening and showed me a walking route around the town that I could follow back to the hotel. Lastly, I visited the city palace and learnt a bit more about the royal family there. Apparently the current prince comes to work there everyday alongside everyone else to make the best of the attraction. I was quite surprised to hear that he works as another ordinary man.

The palace was another impressive sight and had beautiful rooms, and artwork, old elephant carriages, and I was even told about the event of elephant trunk ‘tug of war’ where people would come to watch and take bets on which elephant would be able pull the other forward when their trunks were tied together. This was a bit sad, but it did explain some of the art work I had seen and been confused about.

I really liked Udaipur and it was very romantic, I would love to return with someone special and stay longer. That was the North part done for me for this trip, and it was really culturally enriching with so much history, it was hard to not get confused by it all! But now it was time to fly South to Goa…

Vietnam: North to South – Part Two

Continuing my journey South from my previous days in North and Central Vietnam, I explored Hoi An, the Meekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City.

Hoi An

A shopping mecca, this city is well known for its markets, historic trading houses, and modern day fashion boutique stores. The best value shopping you can do is on tailor made clothing.

There are many tailors offering good prices on any design you would like made with a huge selection of fabrics and can make it in under 24 hours! Very impressive. They will also keep your measurements in file for three years in case you want more made and shipped home.

I could not resist the chance to purchase a new formal ball gown, and the price was a bargain. I gave them a photo of what l wanted and came back the next afternoon to find it all done, and looking beautiful.

On another day in Hoi An, I secured my bike helmet once again and headed onto a ferry to two main islands for a cycle tour. I had the chance to visit three local families and see how they made their living from the land around them.

One family showed us how they spent from 4am to 9pm using dried and dyed reeds from the garden to make floor, bed and table mats. I had a try at it and it was not as easy as it looked!

Another family invited us to sing together after showing us their in home process of making rice wine to sell to the people in their community. This was very impressive in its sustainability. For example the man (who was a one legged veteran – making it more impressive) kept pigs and he used the ‘pigshit gas’ as its locally known to fuel the fires that are used to run his operation!

Lastly, we got a chance to hand make our own rice noodles and enjoy a delicious lunch full of local ingredients.

The best thing was, in all of this, I never fell off the bike! Even when I thought I could pass out from the heat!

Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon

In the early hours of the morning we took a short flight with Vietnam Airlines to Ho Chi Minh City. The city is referred to by many as Saigon, as this is its former name. Since the end of the Vietnam War, the city was renamed after its victorious communist leader, Ho Chi Minh. There are many monuments and images of him throughout Vietnam, as his party still stands in place today.

In HCM City you can visit only a few attractions like the Independence Palace, former state home of the president, and the War Remnants Museum, which is an impressive and informative space to learn about the war history in Vietnam. It is really complex as many other countries have been involved in commanding the country and has left a lot of wounds behind.

I found the museum to be a little one sided but this makes sense as it will have been censored by the government, before publishing. The most striking elements of the museum was the information about the ‘agent orange’ chemical that had been used. It is now considered a war crime and has left many generations of people, severely deformed. I could see this on the street when some people may be passing or begging, and I suspected that they were victims of this.

Aside from these visitor attractions, HCM offers plenty of places to eat and shop, but it is very modern and definitely, for me, not the highlight of the trip.

In about two hours drive from the city you can visit the Meekong Delta. The most South I went, this wetland area offers plenty of boat rides to different islands where you can see different markets, temples and localised farming.

I spent the day visiting a few different islands by boat, and had the opportunity to see local coconuts being shredded up into coconut milk and turned into sweets and wrapped by hand. I did actually get carried away and bought 6 packets for the price of 5! I think I got a bit silly.

I also visited some local people’s garden and tried some of their homegrown fruits, including a Vietnamese Kiwi, that is a local delicacy, and tastes nothing like Kiwi from home! I also had a chance to play a monostring instrument that is traditional there, and much harder to do well then it looks! To finish off, I had a chance to enjoy a traditional wooden row boat ride through the bush before heading back to the city.

Overall, Vietnam was a great chance to dip my toe into Asia. The people have been super friendly; I always felt safe, and appreciated. The holiday was great value and I would happily revisit. In the Meekong Delta you can even take a boat cruise out there onto Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. This could be a lot of fun!

Vietnam: North to South – Part One

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Booked only a week before, after my trip to Israel was cancelled last minute, I decided to have my first go at Asia this month. Vietnam was on offer so I went for it and discovered a crazy and unique way of life with amazing food and very friendly people.

Getting there

The travel to Vietnam was very very long, whilst the flight duration may say 16hrs by the time we had travelled to Heathrow, and waited around in Bangkok and then traveled to the hotel we had stacked up over 24 hrs of travel. I had thought I’d planned out to miss my jetlag but it actually took 3 days of waking up at 3am to get over it.

We flew with Thai Airways which had tight seating but plenty of hospitality from the crew and the aeroplane food was some of the best I have had. On arrival to Hanoi airport, our taxi driver was waiting for us and we got to our hotel in about half an hour, after seeing some of the cityscape lit up at night.

Hanoi

We stayed in a hotel for our first few nights in Hanoi city. The hotel was immediately a relief with a welcome drink on arrival, a porter to carry our bags and a free upgrade to a very nice room. It was all going well, until my 3am visit to the bathroom…

That is when I discovered scuttling across the floor, the biggest cockroach I have ever seen. When you are already sat on the toilet half way through a wee too, the only choice is to throw your legs in the air! I found myself doing toilet balances at 3am to avoid it. Unsure what to do I spent the rest of the night with a light on unsure what to do and worried if I fell asleep I would wake up with a cockroach on my face. It took me a few days to get past this fear and just accept the potential for creepy crawlies around me.

Venturing out of the hotel into the city was another experience of taking your life in your hands. The traffic is some of the craziest I have ever seen. There is no pavement due to mopeds being parked all over it and to cross the road you must do what the locals do and just walk slowly and confidently over (like you’re sleepwalking) and hope nothing hits you! The roads here are so congested that they even have a street that is famous for a train that comes through as well as all the pedestrians and bikes and ends up about an inch from your face!

We cautiously took the steps from our hotel down to the famous lake which thankfully is pedestrianised around the edge and began to explore our first attractions.

First on the agenda was a few impressive buddhist temples, and also the St Joseph Cathedral. This gothic cathedral looks so strange with all the little asian shacks around it and motorbikes everywhere. I couldn’t go in unfortunately but I imagined it was similar to other catholic ones I have seen. A little bit of Europe in the middle of this crazy South East Asia whirlwind. I later found out from my guide that the french actually governed Vietnam for centuries and is the reason for some catholism here and that they now use alphabetic letters instead of chinese characters. Something to be grateful for as a tourist!

Another day in Hanoi took us on our four hour bus ride to Halong Bay, the famous world wonder that is an absolutely huge bay and once a very important port full of huge bouldering islands. We had a relaxing overnight boat cruise here where the service was amazing and we enjoyed an impressive selection of seafood and bar service on a boat all to ourselves in our small group of nine.

There are many local caves on the islands to explore and we ventured into one, and then towards dusk I had the pleasure of exploring an empty and calm section of the bay by kayak. The only thing that was man made around me was a small floating pearl farm where oysters were floating below growing pearls for fine jewellrey.

At night all the boats have to gather in one part of the bay so you can enjoy the sounds of distant karaokes and good times from your neighbours all around you.

We also got the opportunity to see some amazing charitable organisations on our route from Halong Bay. Two groups of crafters that were helping their community by making things to sell, one was doing it for the environment and the other for the disabled. I will touch more on this in a later blog.

Back in Hanoi, we had one more opportunity to look around. We tried for a third time to see the train on train street, but this time at night. The train schedules on the internet were all wrong, so we got there badly timed and when we tried to wait the police made us leave, even though we were half way through a paid meal. Overall, I would say only go to train street if you are happy to waste a lot of time and maybe only see the tracks.

Something that was well worth it for only about £6 and 1 hour was the Thang Long water puppet show by the lake. This show was a traditional artform telling folk stories of Vietnam in their language and with singing, using puppets within a big pool of water.

I wasn’t sure if it would be entertaining enough, but it was actually very funny at times and the show somehow managed to use smoke and fireworks on the water aswell which I dont even understand how. The best part may have been the music though. There was an orchestra of local folk musicians playing traditional and strange instruments and all in vietnamese formal wear. Overall it was super impressive!

Hue

Writing this section of the blog at 4am from a twelve hour sleeper train from Hanoi to Hue. Sharing a bunkbed in a room with three other travellers, I feel quite at home and I am enjoying the bumpy swaying of the carriage more than expected.

At night I can see the reflections of the train in nearby waters and marshlands and the odd distant light of a farmer or two working in the fields and by day the scenery becomes many small villages and plenty of rain!

The train has different classes, we are in a 4 berth, but there are 6 berth and then soft reclining seats and hard seats (for those true hardasses – literally). My room is quite good with a little mattress, space under the bed and a table with a selection of sweets.

The only thing that has been a horror is as expected, the bathroom situation. There is either a squat room for guess what.. squatting, or there is a western style toilet. The toilet started off okay but now I can tell you that by 4am it is not okay. Its a horror show. I am trying to figure out how I can not pee now until 11am. Note to self, must purchase a she-wee for travels!

Once we got to Hue and freshened up at our hotel, with an umbrella in hand, we were guided to the ancient citadel. Hue was historically the imperial capital and home of the kings of Vietnam. It still has the 21 metre thick walls surrounding it and many of the original buildings either still exist or have been rebuilt or are in the process of being rebuilt after collapsing from weather or war bomb damage.

The site is very pretty and a bit of a maze to walk around if you do not have a guide. It is mostly an outside visit except for a few locations where you can visit inside after slipping off your travelling shoes. I Particularly enjoyed the king’s gardens with many bonsai trees and bright green foliage. Obviously, due to all the rain, but green is my favourite colour so I’m okay with that!

The stories about the kings were interesting too. Kings were seen as Gods by the people, but for many centuries the kings were actually puppets for the french to put their influence over Vietnam. The kings ranged from 7 year old boys to a man that went from being a king to a french pilot. So random!

Later in the evening I had dinner with a local family that had been there for generations and the lady’s grandfather had been a direct servant of the king. The family now are well off in the area but still cannot afford to travel much and still work very hard. It is becoming apparent how hard people in Vietnam work to make a minimal living.

The next day in Hue, we ventured around the surrounding countryside and the town centre by motorbike. This thrilling experience was one I will never forget I imagine, it was an adreline rush full of beauty and culture. As I rode pillion to a Vietnamese man named (‘kern’) I explored a king’s final resting place, a local fresh market (where it is so fresh that the animals are still alive), and a local monk community. What a thrill!

Next day we move on to the South to Hoi An… in my part 2 blog.