travel.jenny

2008-07-15T16:50:00.000-07:00

While I am grounded for the time being, teaching a composition course with a local trade college in the Portland area, please view the stories and pictures of my traveling friends (see list to right).

I've decided to live my life as an international traveler every other year, and a domestic traveler between. So far as I'm aware, this year's "in-house" journey will be only to Neskowin, Oregon, but I see 2009 pending nothing but wild and far-off adventures. Stay posted.

Return to Portland

2007-08-04T09:03:00.000-07:00

While it's unclear if I took the long way home, the most complicated way home, or the perusual Jenny way home, I, in the end, am damn happy to be here. The 2 buses, 3 planes and 27 total travel hours comprised quite a final finish to this adventure, but in the end, I think it was the extra challenge I needed to feel proud of myself and my 60 day 'round the world journey.

On this trip, I've been blessed with excellent window seats and interesting seat mates. During the whole time in South and Southeast Asia, I did not get sick. Halfway over the Atlantic, Sweet Irony descended upon this fact, and while I don't know whether to blame the beef & vegetable dinner or the cheese pizza for breakfast, I statistically am now one of the 70% of travelers who experience food-related sickness abroad. The 8 hour London to Chicago flight, I again helped my seatmates, this time an old couple from Lyon, France headed to Lima, Peru via Miami (imagine that pronounced Mi ah mi). I tried as best I could to coach them through the confusing and crass Chicago airport as Amelie had coached me. Due to a bomb scare, gate-change and delayed flight, several members of my plane missed or almost missed their connecting flights. I ran, McCully Culcan style, through the Heathrow airport searching for my plane. Upon approaching gate H10, I saw a computer with Portland, OR printed above a little picture of a covered sun, which was pictured above the well-known PDX phrase, "Partly Cloudy". I smiled, for how else would this city welcome someone home?

My week long visit to Frankfurt was a nice transition from East to West. Amelie and Boris are very special, old friends of mine. After spending my first three days in Frankfurt enjoying great food, sparkling water and quiet walks throughout the city, Amelie and I drove up to Boris' hometown of Braunschweig. As photographers and sandwich/blueberry muffin makers, Amelie and I helped Boris host a bachelor party for his good friend. Prior to the sans-female late night events, the bachelor party involved a ropes course, go-kart races and giant mugs of beer. Back in Frankfurt, we had a wonderful Italian dinner to see off Boris' parents, who are touring Oregon and the Northwest this month prior to the big wedding next year. On Tuesday, Amelie and Boris had a dance lesson, my Frankfurt hosts sent me out with Boris' friend, a German banker, on the the kind of date only strange circumstances can bring about. The whole time I've been in Europe, I've felt that I've carried much of India with me, in the smell of my hair and clothes and purse and sandals. I've felt colorful and uncoordinated and distinctly out of place. While I was the only one not wearing a black suit at this swanky upper-story after work party. Letting it go, and I think in that moment letting all the haggled, tired, grimy, clueless traveler fears go, I had a great time in my surreality, drinking free Italian house champaigne, eating from the 5 euro buffet and talking about the Turkish lira.

So, this is the end of travel.jenny until my next journey. Thank you all for reading this blog-- your comments have given me motivation and validation for choosing this experience, and it's been such a pleasure to share it with all you. I look forward to catching up on phone or in person. Keep me posted on your own travel adventures, and take care. All the best,

--Jenny

Frankfurt in the morning

2007-08-04T08:20:00.001-07:00

IMGP2085
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Cranes are everywhere in this fast-growing city of skyscrapers. The church pictured is Kaiserdom, and this photo was taken from my roadside table at a small bakery. In the Let's Go Europe guidebook, Frankfurt am Main (Frankfurt on the Main River) is described as "Main-hattan," for its many successful business people who move with haste and authority throughout the walkable city limits. I would agree, and this sleek, monocromatic city was quite a change from South Asia. After 1.5 months in India, it was nice to take several solo walks throughout this camel-free, cow-free, waterbuffalo-free, honking-free, pollution free, pedestrian-friendly city.

Vineyards of Ruedsheim

2007-08-04T08:18:00.001-07:00

These vineyards are planted in rows along side the Rhein river and just past the city. After walking through the charming little town, Amelie and I took the Ruedsheim tram up to the top of a hill which had a small roman gazebo and a very large German statue made to intimidate the French. From here, we walked down through the vineyards and drove up the highway along the river, seeing several old castles on both sides of and in the middle of the river before sharing a glass of wine in Loreley, a small cliff town.

bahrain

2007-07-26T00:30:00.001-07:00

bahrain
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

The Kingdom of Bahrain. When I close my eyes, I still see all the sand. This place was a new kind of beautiful to me. More pictures of Bahrain, including a beautiful bridge, if you all attend my tea party / slideshow.

Old Fort in Pune City

2007-07-26T00:28:00.001-07:00

Old Fort in Pune City
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

The Univ. of Pune creative writing class attended this fort as part of a writing in the city fieldtrip. It housed some of the first protectors of pune city, and used to have a fountain on its grounds in the shape of a lotus with 16 arching water petals.

Coppersmith Colony

2007-07-26T00:27:00.001-07:00

Coppersmith Colony
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

At the coppersmith colony. copper pots are used for water storage. these large pots are shaped by a machine, and the man in the photo is making small tap marks in a line across the entire pot, all the way up the pot, for decoration. the chink chink chink of copper and soft metal tapping is the sound of the coppersmith cology.

View of the Western Ghats

2007-07-26T00:24:00.001-07:00

View of the Western Ghats
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

We all took a drive one sunday to a High Places camp sight to have masala chai and see the mountains. the western ghats are quite beautiful--- imagine black basalt rock with the brightest spring green, and waterfalls-- seasonal monsoon waterfalls-- everywhere. many other people were on the road, and when we werent seeing mountains and canyons, we were seeing families picnicing and drunk youths dancing in the waterfalls.

Pottery Studio

2007-07-26T00:22:00.001-07:00

Pottery Studio
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

This was the view outside our pottery studio. the kilns here are all wood fired, the clay is dark grey, and i learned how to make coil pots ( an advanced form of the pinch pot) and beads with intricate designs.

mehendi tattoo

2007-07-26T00:20:00.001-07:00

mehendi tattoo
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Mehendi Tattoo, otherwise known as henna. In the state of Maharashta, which is the state Pune is in, the mother tongue language is Mahrati. Shraddha gave Jamie and I mehendi and we took photos for her photobook.... she is starting a side business in mehendi arts. Indian women get mehendi done when attending weddings.

2007-07-25T01:23:00.001-07:00

2007-07-25T01:23:00.000-07:00

Pune City, and the Kingdom of Bahrain

2007-07-25T00:22:00.001-07:00

Hello All; I hope this posts with a picture of the Kindgom of Bahrain in the left corner--

Sorry not to post for awhile. Truth is, I had been dissapointed in our trek, had a breakdown in Thamel, and thus lost interest in the blog because I didn't want to share the difficult parts of this journey. Or rather, it's easy to share the cultural difficulties than my own challenges I face no matter where in the world I live. I had elevated the trek into a quest for personal answers, and when I found few, if any, I felt that this world I'm circling had let me down. At Tangeboche, we did see the clouds part, Jamie shared her classroom preparatory reading from the previous evening, an old favorite by Annie Dillard. "I cannot cause light, I can merely place myself in the path of it's beam." The prayer gongs came at 6 AM from the Buddhist temple to the left of us. And we left. Hiked to Lukla.

Flew out the following morning.

Returned to Thamel. (KTM, Nepal)

Jamie & Sameer had a fight.

And I lost faith in my journey.

I lost faith in my own journey and to some extent, also lost faith in our universe's ability to offer answers when the seeker believes they're desperately needed. If you're in the dark about this, imagine spending a lot of time, money and energy on a trip when you're an out of work English major-- it might make you feel like you need to "get" something from it. I allowed myself to feel dissappointed, and as I let these expectations go, I let Pune in, for exactly what it was.

I had my first real teaching experiences with Jamie. I was quite scared, but by my last day, the students all wanted to keep in touch with me, and I am going to read their batch of creative nonfiction essays about place and home. For the junior college, it turned out that ours was their first ever creative writing course. Knowing that, which I think is unsatisfactory, helped me get the courage to teach them something new, and something that matters. Our class was taught with the idea that writers who focus on place can bring big issues home: think technology, global warming, globalisation-- the local writer can see affects and small ripples, good or bad, that scientists and journalists don't see.

Outside of challenge of it, living in Pune for 20 days was a nice break, breaking up our lack of routine. I went to a pottery class with Hema two times, we watched Hindi films on the LCD projector we'd been hauling around for Sameer's projects in Nepal and Jamshedpur. We had mango barfi, which is like fudge w/out chocolate, lots of healthy meals and wonderfully lazy mornings over masala chai. Cafe Coffee Day reappeared in our lives as a planning site for the courses. Jamie and I attended a Hindi classical music concert--- it was amazing; the theme was ragas and rainbows (ragas are chord sets that songs are created from, like a painting with only 4 colors, these ragas are songs with a certain range and set of notes). I gave a standing ovation and got to meet the performers onstage afterward, thanks to Rahul, a freelance journalist for the Times of India's, connections. We also visited a coppersmith colony, a fort in pune, and a very intersting art museum depicting Pune warriors and Pune's hero, who plowed the first of the land himself with a golden plow. I had Iranian food, which was brilliant, and danced to more Bryan Adams and Elvis than I care to be honest about.

And then, all of a sudden, I was leaving. It seemed to drag, and then happen so fast. Hema, a beautiful soul there in Pune, was instrumental in making me see how people trap themselves, and I have to say, of all the things I saw in India, here are the things I've learned the most: I love my family so much. And I'm no longer thinking about limits and can't. I started just asking myself what I want to do in my life, and I realized that question is worded incorrectly; sometimes it's more useful to ask, what can I do, what can I offer the world? There is a way in which I feel quite enlightened, and I attribute it to Pune. When I wake up in the morning, I no longer ask myself what time it is. The sky is in your forehead.

In Delhi, I met a great guy named Chris; he and Sameer and I had a wonderful time walking in the rain in the city. I spent the night alone in the seedy tourist part of New Delhi. I don't know much about termites or unstable walls, but bits of the ceiling were dripping down on my head. I'm a light sleeper anyway, but this made jump every time I felt it on my face, so Harry Potter and I had a nice flash-lit night together instead. The following morning I flew to Bahrain, where Gulf Air kindly gave me free food and lodging, and I got to see the amazing Middle East.

The Kingdom of Bahrain is surrounded by green water; it's an island off the coast of Saudi Arabia. It's known as the Pearl of the Arabic Sea; the island's visual landscape is composed of three things: sand, asphault, and condos. It was such a beautiful place-- I don't know exactly what was so attractive about the immensity of the mosques, the women in burkas and the streets and sand and arabic script, but I loved it. I wish I could have been able to see some of the graves and villages and much more of the city. I was in Bahrain from 9 AM to 1 AM. On my flight to Frankfurt I met a guy from Mississippi who works on an oil rig outside Saudi; they work 28 days on, then 28 days off. It was quite interesting to hear about the lifestyle and job duties of this man. It all just happened yesterday, but I felt it was such a gift to be able to see the Middle East and add this perspective to my journey, if only for a couple of hours.

I'm now safely in Frankfurt, looking forward to time with Boris and Amelie and finding a way to get the smell out of my sandals.

So until next time, which will probably be a Deutschland report from good 'ole Oregon country.

Thanks for sticking with me, all of you. It's hard to write when you've no time to edit, process or make sense of it all, but like my new friend Chris said, sometimes that's the best time to take a word and share.

Namastae --- From Nepal

2007-07-04T21:08:00.000-07:00

Hello all! I had no idea everyone was so interested in the photos-- so I did a little photo documtentary of Nepal. Just scroll down and then read your way up to the mountains. We're heading to India later today, which I'm very excited about. This experience has been as varied and emotionally splitting as I ever could have believed possible. Thanks for all your everything; and I hope you all enjoy the 4th of July.

The Himalayas

2007-07-04T21:07:00.001-07:00

IMGP1509
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Here are the mountains. Amu Dablam is pictured in the right, and everest you can barely see, and even then, it's covered by the Lhotse face. I woke up at 5 am every day to take photos-- this was taken on the way down, when we hiked from Tengboche to Lukla. That was on the 4th day, going from 14,469 ft back to about 9 or 8,000 in 12.5 hours of hiking. We took three days to hike up, and one day down. I was surprised how difficult it was, for me, to do this hike. I've always considered myself athletic, but this just flatlined me. So that was humbling. The scenery was so beautiful, and while we are hiking during the rainy season, we still were able to see the tips of some great mountains.

Sherpa communities

2007-07-04T21:03:00.001-07:00

IMGP1317
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

After visiting the village and spending a few days in crazy Thamel, the tourist area of Kathmandu, we set out to hike toward Everest Base camp. We flew from KTM to Lukla, which is a small airstrip town. On the trail, you hike through small villages. Right now I'm reading Into Thin Air, by Jon Krackauer. He does a good job explaining the communities, but unfortunately doesn't capture the beauty of this landscape (if you've ever read his non-fiction book). This is a photo of someone's house I hiked past. Sherpa is an ethnic group. Porter is the job of carrying things up everest. So as you hike, you go through these communities,w hich are profoundly affected by tourism. In Namche Bazaar (a very popular stop that has hospital services), you can see people digging at rocks to create more guest houses and others carrying up baskets of San Miguel beer and boards of plywood on their backs. But I'm not going to say it's good or bad- this is what it is. The valley is beautiful though-- this was one of the most scenic hikes I've ever been on.

Swayambhunath "Monkey Temple"

2007-07-04T20:57:00.001-07:00

IMGP1234
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Just another photo-- there is a great stairway leading up to the temple. on the way up, there are several statues of buddha and other figures.

Swayambhunath "Monkey Temple"

2007-07-04T20:55:00.001-07:00

IMGP1132
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

I visited this temple with Frank and Shrijana--friends of Sameer and Jamie. It was beautiful at night-- the whole temple is lit with gold floodlights. IT's called the monkey temple because, well, there are a lot of monkeys here.

View from Dalchowki Village, 7 am

2007-07-04T20:53:00.001-07:00

IMGP1227
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Instead of hiking to Everest Base camp, Jamie and I decided to help Sameer with his research in Dalchowki village. The village was about 3 hours from Kathmandu by SUV. Here we worked with school children in a Himalayan information and technology exchange program. Sameer's research is in learning systems. We slept in the grange (which is like the community center). The school had no electricity, but inspite of this, the exchange went quite well.

Heading up

2007-06-23T02:02:00.000-07:00

Hello all,

We're back in Calcutta now, after spending the week in Jamshedpur, a smallish mining town in the plains of India. This was our second rural Indian town, much different than Almora, which was a rural town in the Himalayas. Jamshedpur was a new town-- new sidewalks, fountains, even new autorickshaws that have some get-up-and-go. Yesterday we logged our fastest auto ride ever. In Jamshedpur, our days consisted of teaching WISE camp and prepping for WISE camp / becoming regulars at Cafe Coffee Day, an excellent coffee chain with strong black coffee. WISE Camp is a program funded by grant money that connects 16 and 17 year old female students in the science and technology stream (think career field) in India with students of the same interest and age in America. Technology (weblogs) and photos from digital cameras are these students' communication tools that should enable them to discuss everything from careers to culture. The Indian students were very bright; we had some great discussions about the two cultures, technology and the idea of development itself (here's a clip): "if an iPod is placed in a car in India, can that be called development?" One student replied "no, that's only luxury." Just using technology can be misinterpreted as development, so what makes the use of technology development (I guess I'm asking you). On our last day of camp, in the paper (The Calcutta Telegraph) there was an article about a young man who killed himself because of a computer glitch that affected the outcome of his high stakes exam to be a doctor. These students are under such pressure to succeed, and while that's true the world over, it was strange for me, age 23, to see these students, 16, so focused and driven toward careers and success, whether that's personal or parental. I see the advantage and disadvantage of being pushed to decide what to do at such a young age. The camp was quite a new experience for me: I never imagined I would be the one teaching other people how to use technology. Quite frankly, it was a surprise to find out how much I knew and how much I've learned, just as a result of preparing for this trip.

It's nice to be back in Calcutta. It's not that I missed the incessant sounds of honking or the water buffalo and cows parading down the street. It's not that I missed the street vendors and the advertisements and the smell of fish and rain and the crush of people. I think I just enjoy being in big foreign places, and it's not like home, but Calcutta is homey to me because of the friends we have here, like Gitangali. Tonight it's Indian classical music and a movie preview. Tomorrow, I'm hoping to see the 6 am flower market and then we fly to Nepal.

And then we shall hike to Everest base camp. Which means no pictures, posts or emails for awhile, but then you can expect a surge. Little Pentax and I will do our best to bring the beauty of the scenery back to you. For me, seeing the mountains is a big part of the trip, and part of why I had trouble with the fog and rain in Nainital and Almora. I think the mountains be amazing; I'm looking forward to seeing them, and to having to work for it on the hike. As far as my own development goes, I'm thinking a lot about all kinds of things, but no major epiphanies to report. Traveling is what you make of it, just like any other average day. So far, I love my family very much. That I know for sure. This experience is making me a tougher person and tougher woman; that's what I want to believe.

If you didn't know, China wants to build a road to Everest base camp. Is that being reported in the American news, and how are Americans reacting?

Miss you all; Thanks for all your emails, encouragment and enthusiasm.

For D.B.M.S. English school students

2007-06-23T01:56:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much for your enthusiasm and participation in WISE camp 2007. I have more pictures for you and your teacher that will be available on the same flickr account as the technology photos by Sunday, June 24. If you wish, copy the URL and add the new photos to your posts for the American students.

I will keep up posts about Jamie and Sameer and my travels until July 24th. Check back for pictures of Everest. The three of us had a great time working with you, and best of luck with your stream choices and high stakes exams!

Keep in touch, and I'll respond to all your posts; go ahead and leave them here. =)

2007-06-20T08:48:00.000-07:00

Jamie, Sameer, Principal of D.B.M.S. English School, and Jenny; photo taken for WISE camp 2007 (Women in Science and Engineering). We are here in Jamshedpur teaching 16 and 17 year old young women about technology. These young women have created blogs so they can communicate with young women in America, and share information and create contacts in the field of IT (Information Technology). We have been teaching for three days now; these women have taught me a lot about expectations for young people in India, as well as their feelings about technology vs. luxury and why or why not India feels it should keep pace with the U.S. I think they've taught us more than we have taught them. Our class concludes Friday, when the three of us return to Calcutta.

Nainital (tal means lake)

2007-06-17T05:38:00.001-07:00

Nainital (tal means lake)
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Nainital Lake-- fog and the cuts in the line of the hills. the row boats are for tourist purposes. In the foothills there are several relatively small, natural lakes such as this.

Buddhist prayer flags

2007-06-17T05:36:00.001-07:00

Buddhist prayer flags
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Buddhist prayer flags are strung between the trees. If you scan the hillside from the lake, you can see the colorful flags among the green of the trees.

Reclining Buddha

2007-06-17T05:34:00.001-07:00

Reclining Buddha
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

For Arista: Reclining Buddha, Bangkok, Thailand, housed inside Wat Pho (see June 11 spire picture).

Langoor monkeys

2007-06-17T05:32:00.001-07:00

Langoor monkeys
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Langoor monkeys on a side street in Nainital, which is a small lake town buried in the foothills of the Himalayas. Monkeys are everywhere-- these monkeys get quite tall, like about 3.5 to 4 feet (it seemed) and are extremely well groomed.

Red Fort, Old Delhi

2007-06-17T05:29:00.001-07:00

Red Fort, Old Delhi
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Jamie and Jenny at Red Fort in Old Delhi, New Delhi. Red Fort is where Old Jack (the Bristish Flag) came down Aug 15 1947 and the first flag of India was raised. The fort was built by Persian Kings, and was later used as a fort for the British.

Streets of Calcutta

2007-06-17T04:40:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

Well, right now Sameer and I are in a cyber cafe in Kolkata, and all the directions for this blog are in Chinese. I can't figure out how to post pictures, and we'll how well I do guessing the "post" button based on characters, pictures, and font colors. I have great pictures and hope to be posting more photos, as fate and my fortune will have it.

A week, for a traveler, is quite a long time. We have traveled from Delhi, the capital of India, to Nainital, a small lake town buried in the foothills of the Himalayas and covered in fog. Jamie and I spent our time in Nainital just the two of us, and we learned alot about traveling as two white women. In some ways, we became part of the tourist attractions wiht our large backpacks and Jamie's blonde hair; in other ways, I think we're just something to be curious about and stare at. It is uncomfortable at times, but also part of the job description of traveling to a place that sees few white skinned people. We encountered a lot of rain in Nainital, where monsoon rains were just beginning. We took in more tea and conversation than sights, but watching the rain was enjoyable, and Mom, a monsoon rain sounds like a plane taking off over your head, if you happen to be inside. It is a rain that stops traffic and demands to be viewed. Since we had done most of the activities we were interested in doing (hikes and mango icecream), Jamie and I decided to leave Nainital and take up Sameer's invitation to join him in Almora, which is a rural village to the north. The taxi ride there was beautiful and exciting, and the town of Almora was stunning--like a horseshoe of color and clean, flapping clothing rimming the ridges of these bright green, jagged himalayan foothills. We visited Jageshwar, a Hindi temple, in the rain, and we spent time at the Center, which is where Sameer and his coworkers base their work for the Mountain Project. G.P. and Anu, who run the Center, were very generous to us, and we met several young women from Kashmir studying food processing who happened to be at the Center for a study trip and conference. I gave away my conditioner, and had an interesting talk about boyfriends. G.P. taught me about changing mindsets, and that a person really gains nothing with a new culture until first the mindset is understood. So I have endeavored to change my mindset to better understand this vast place I am guest to.

On the overnight train back to Delhi, we met two Nols leaders with their group of students-- this was enjoyable for me because I finally got to hear an American accent, which to me sounds Australian. I've been curious about what my accent sounds like since I began talking to people in Bangkok.

...and if you're still with me and this post, here I am now in Calcutta, which is the old British way to spell Kolkata. I like it here; I've enjoyed Delhi and Calcutta the most. Calcutta is impressive to me for its enviornmentalism. Here, Indians grow corn on top of landfills. There are also no to go cups, pastries off the street are packaged in newspaper, and all glass bottles are saved, recapped and rebottled. At a Bengalise restaurant (Bengal is the state Calcutta is in), we had an excellent conversation with Gitangalee (our hostess here) about white people who come to India to institute change. In me, this conversation raised the question of cultural exchange--where is the reverse peace corps, where people from this side of the world come to our side, and teach conservation. I've been showring with only one bucket of water; it is surprisingly easy and takes less energy than a shower. I've appreciated India for it's lessons in the difference between necessary and excess baggage.

I spent part of this morning face down on my knees, dry heaving in the streets of Calcutta. (travel tip: don't take malaria pills before breakfast). This experience put me in an contemplative mood. Posibly because last night, returning from Oceans 13 at the theatre, we walked the streets to return "home". Seeing people sleeping in the humid night air created a different relationship than in the day, when people who beg approach and you just keep walking. These people really look sweet, and young, and homeless, when asleep; and at night, I was able to take it in and not feel defensive or like I couldn't stop walking. And really take a look for once. In Calcutta, Mother Teresa did a lot of her work with street children. And this morning, I was on my knees dry heaving, sharing these same streets. I don't think this entry is quite composed, or fully explored, but this is India for me. In some ways I feel it is a physical hazing--flea bites, mosquitoes, malarai pills, prickly skin conditions, the feel of a woman brushing her baby's hand on your leg as you sit in the autorickshaw and wait for the light to turn. In many other ways, India is an emotional hazing-- confusing, consolidating, and like a great introduction to something important I want to be part of.

Lots of love to you all, Today is my one year graduation from UO, so special hello to class 06 readers and the interesting feelings this date may raise. Take care, and keep up the search! -Jenny

2007-06-11T03:37:00.000-07:00

I'm still learning how to use this blog-- if you click on the pictures, I added some information about what I've learned. Next time I'll post near the pictures, but I'll always try and include an informative photo tag (as best I can). I am going to try and update this once a week; I left Monday, June 4th, and today is Monday, June 11th. So keep checking in, and thanks everyone for their help!

The trip so far has been incredible. I was nervous to leave, but was oddly comforted with my layover in Tokyo-- I was able to speak some Japanese with my seatmates and help an old Japanese man order coffee. Thailand was an incredible, fast, personal experience. As the plane approached the Bangkok international airport, a lightening storm with lots of visible cloud-to-cloud contact turned the whole sky this purple-fried white color. Once landed and in the queue for the public taxi, the dry lightening storm was still going overhead, and as I approached the city, it started gushing rain. This too, was oddly comforting. The Wendy House, where I stayed, was superb-- I recieved lots of help and good advice from the guests and staff there, and even someone to talk to and listen to pop music with at 4am when I couldn't sleep. I was only to be in Bangkok for a day and a half. On Tuesday morning, after breakfast of boiled rice, on recommendation from a Canadian round the world traveller, I took a fast, narrow boat up this channel to an area with several wats (thai word for temple). I met an Australian couple who gave me a lift on a tuk-tuk, which is a colorful, vespa like vehicle with ample seating in the back and some serious traffic-navigation deftness. I met several tourists, saw many beautiful statues and spires, saw the Grand Palace and the Emerald Buddha, which I recommend if anyone wants to sit and be quiet with their self. My favorite part of Bangkok were the transportation options: this small boat up the channel with tarps and ropes, the tuk tuk, and the public boat, which operates like a city bus with stops at certain docks along the way. Using this public boat and no words, one Buddhist monk helped me find my way to the Skytrain, which runs around the city, and which I was able to take back to the guesthouse. The next day I walked in the city, but wasn't able to do as much as I was on my way to India.

India. While waiting in the Bangkok waiting area, I could tell I was traveling to India. I felt I was adopted by the entire plane and many families in the wait area. I'm having such a lovely time here: The food is great. So great. I haven't been sick at all. We're eating vegetarian, and drinking lots of tea boiled with condensed milk. The heat is strong-- Dehli, where we have spent the last few days, was experiencing a heat wave. The Dehli Times paper had "stairway to hell" written across the front page, followed by a graph of the rising heat. It was 48.5 degrees celcius. In Delhi, we adjusted to the heat and purchased tickets for our next busy month of travel. We saw Red Fort, which, while built and used by Persian Kings several hundred years ago, Red Fort was the place where Old Jack (The name for the British Flag) came down and the Indian flag was raised on Aug. 15 1947. The following day we went to Lotus Temple, a place of worship for the Bahai'i faith. It was shaped like a lotus. Last night we took a train from Delhi to Nanital, a small cute lake town nestled in the foothills of the Himilayas. And I mean nestled. We slept at the Delhi train station last night because we arrived too late for a taxi. Mostly, we spent the night outside, though we did have a super hot temporary lodging place. I watched the sunrise this morning and heard the Muslim call to prayer and Hindi prayer music broadcast from someone with a boombox in the station. It was amazing. At 5 am this morning, we took a cab up through the foothills to get to Nanital (the train station was just a stop and not connected to a town). We kept the windows down until the first Monsoon rain. The smell of wet eucalyptus I will never forget, nor the fog or winding roads nor the Bollywood slow jams.

I'm a little unsure what to say on this, or how much it is possible to share. I'm realizing that loving a place is not like loving a person; it is a stranger thing. I'm grateful to be in India right now. My travelling companions-- Sameer and Jamie-- are wonderful.

Here is my travel schedule until we reach Pune, which is south and west of Mumbai (Bombay). Pune is where Sameer's mom Hema lives, and this is the place where Jamie will teach her creative writing class.

June 11-14: Nanital
June 14: overnight train to Delhi, fly to Kolkutta (Calcutta)
June 15-17: stay in Calcutta
June 17: Jimshedpur to assist Sameer on projects (more details to follow)

Then back to Calcutta, and a flight to Kathmandu, and a trek to Everest base camp, provided the weather holds.

Take care, all of you. I'm not sure how this blog will change as I do, or as the trip does, but I promise to keep it as informative, inspiring and interesting as my life here seems to be! -J

Wat Pho, Thailand

2007-06-11T03:34:00.001-07:00

Wat Pho, Thailand
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Autorickshaw in Motion

2007-06-11T03:32:00.001-07:00

IMGP0865
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

Dog Mountain & Leaving Home

2007-06-04T08:59:00.001-07:00

Dog Mountain
Originally uploaded by travel.jenny

This is a photo from a hike last Saturday on Dog Mountain. Go-- the flowers were beautiful and I've never seen Mt. St. Helens look so bright.

I am leaving home this afternoon to see a small piece of the Kingdom of Siam, otherwise known as Thailand. Bangkok is said to be the city of angels. I'm looking forward to a short stay in a funky guest house and to taking the Skytrain and the express boat to see the Emerald Buddha.

I'm going to try and post once a week. Bye to Portland and all my friends.