This morning I went to a cooking class to learn Thai food. The group met at the market and learned all about different Thai ingredients before heading to the class. In the class we made 5 different dishes, eating each one after making it. The food was amazing, the company was good and the price was reasonable at about $40 Canadian for the whole affair. We were even given recipe books at the end of it all. A very good cooking class and I would easily do it again.
This evening I had a different cooking class. It really began last night with going to a local hole in the wall restaurant that had several locals in it. I quickly realized that it was run by a family and they live in the back of the restaurant (which is common). My meal was so delicious that I asked the young boy of about 13 if I could learn how to make it, he had the best English skills. He asked his aunt who is the main chef and they said I could. I was eager to learn.
Upon arriving this evening I was instantly recognized and I placed my basil chicken order, same as yesterday, thinking I would be allowed to watch the aunt prepare the meal and I could maybe ask a few questions. I was wrong. Instead, I watched the aunt prepare dish after dish, each time the boy explained to me what the dish was she was cooking. I asked what certain ingredients were and was shown every time. To my surprise the aunt started leaving one spoonful of food in the wok as the food was going out and started giving it to me!
I didn't even care that I wasn't getting the food I asked for. I was watching a Thai woman with more than 20 years of cooking experience make authentic dish after dish of Thai cuisine and then was getting me to try everything! this was bliss. After about 7 dishes I realized that I was simply going to be waiting for a time when the customers slowed to a point where I could be shown how to cook, not just watch the action happen. In the waiting I sat down and chatted with a girl from Quebec who was on the last night if her own 3 month travel adventure. Knowing I was simply waiting didn't bother me a bit.
Eventually the customer traffic slowed and a couple of the young boys (using Google translate) told me it was almost my turn and that I would be doing the cooking. Wait, so after being fed multiple dishes, I'm now going to be coached step by step through this process by this amazing Thai chef?! Ok! Well, my turn came and I was up for the challenge.
At this point there were only 3 "customers" other than myself left in the restaurant. The remaing about 8 people in the shop were family, all linked in with the shop itself. I popped up and was extremely animated about cooking. As an aside, I was extremely animated throughout the process as it helps when there is language barrier and also sets a friendly energy people gravitate towards. I began cooking and was told by both the aunt and the boy what to do and how to do it. It was amazing and the type of moment that solo travellers are always wanting to experience. In my animated state I shot a bit too much fish sauce into the wok and was told that other than that I had done well. When the dish was done being prepared and plated 2 of the young boys took photos of me with the aunt and the grandfather even had fun giving me 'bunny ears' as we posed. The other customers were even laughing at this exchange.
I asked the aunt to try the dish I had prepared and asked her opinion. "too salty" was the response. I had put too much fish sauce in the wok. I was told it in the moment and now was tasting my mistake. It was salty, but not inedible by any means so I sat down and began eating. The family watched me take a few bites wanting to watch my reaction (the way I had reacted over the top to other dishes previously) to which I didn't really have much of one after about bite number 3. I thought the fun was over and now it was time to eat and let them get back to running their restaurant. I was wrong again. The mother then told me that they would make me another one and the one I made was free. I told them it really was fine and that I've already been treated far too nice. Nevertheless, about 5 minutes later I was brought a fresh plate, prepared by the aunt. I thanked her multiple times.
Eventually I finished the meal and had enjoyed my interaction so much and simply being around this family I just leaned back and took in the moment. To my surprise I was spoiled once more. The boy came by with a dish saying that it was his favorite and wanted me to try to see what I thought. Of course, I tried and gave another animated reflective expression. Moments later another of the boys, maybe about 11 years old, had made a dish and once again I was encouraged by the family to eat. There was nobody left in the restaurant at this point except me and the family. The younger boy hid his head as I tried his food. Apparently I was the culinary critic whose opinion was sought after. The dish was good and when I expressed as such, the boy was relieved.
Eventually, a clean up was being started and I knew that was my sign to leave. My meal, the one I ordered, cost 50 baht and the pop I had was 30. The total of this bill was about $3 Canadian. I knew I was going to give extra, for the experience, the hospitality, the patience, the laughs. To me, it was priceless. I handed the aunt 300 baht ($12 Canadian). She refused it and the boys in the restaurant told me my bill was only 50 baht. They were giving me the drink for free. They took 100 baht and gave 50 back, refusing to accept any more than that. I pulled out Google translate once more and explained that I wanted her to have to money, that I had fun, and that I would remember this meal. She accepted. Time to go
What followed was a series of bows, hands put together as a sign of thanks, and an invite from the family to come back tomorrow. I walked down the alley way on a way to buy an ice cream (which has become a bit of a nightly ritual for me) feeling so grateful about how my day had gone.
I was full.
Sunday 31 January 2016
Friday 29 January 2016
What a photo doesn't capture.
Cambodia has been completed.
Although the nation has some major issues such as a culture of littering and infamous corruption at every level of society, Cambodia was one of my favorite countries this far.
Everywhere we went there were people who were smiling and going about their daily business with little seemingly weighing them down. Cambodian people have a certain lightness about them that is hard to find elsewhere. In my 2 weeks I saw hundreds, maybe even 1000 children, and not one time did I see a Cambodian child crying. Not once. Everyone was always so friendly.
To look back on my time I of course have the many pictures I took and the memories but typically the pictures serve to trigger the memories. Pictures tell but a fraction of the story. There are many elements that the picture doesn't capture. A picture can't tell someone why a particular photo was interesting or what the person you photographed said right before or after. A photo can't tell you what the humidity felt like, or how the air had a mix of lemongrass, incense, and garbage. A photo can't tell you how you wanted to take a different photo but you had to line up your shot this way to avoid another tourist being in the shot. Really, pictures just don't do it justice.
But years after a picture was taken, if some of those memories can be triggered just by looking at that image, then maybe a picture is just fine.
Although the nation has some major issues such as a culture of littering and infamous corruption at every level of society, Cambodia was one of my favorite countries this far.
Everywhere we went there were people who were smiling and going about their daily business with little seemingly weighing them down. Cambodian people have a certain lightness about them that is hard to find elsewhere. In my 2 weeks I saw hundreds, maybe even 1000 children, and not one time did I see a Cambodian child crying. Not once. Everyone was always so friendly.
To look back on my time I of course have the many pictures I took and the memories but typically the pictures serve to trigger the memories. Pictures tell but a fraction of the story. There are many elements that the picture doesn't capture. A picture can't tell someone why a particular photo was interesting or what the person you photographed said right before or after. A photo can't tell you what the humidity felt like, or how the air had a mix of lemongrass, incense, and garbage. A photo can't tell you how you wanted to take a different photo but you had to line up your shot this way to avoid another tourist being in the shot. Really, pictures just don't do it justice.
But years after a picture was taken, if some of those memories can be triggered just by looking at that image, then maybe a picture is just fine.
Friday 22 January 2016
The bangkok experience
I arrived in Bangkok the night before my tour was to start. I got in late and after a couple weeks of dorm rooms I thought I would splurge and pay for a hotel room, the hotel the tour was to start out of. All prearranged, complete with airport pickup, it was all very easy. The next morning, feeling rejuvinated by having a large comfortable bed and all the hours I could want to lounge in it I eventually got out of bed and killed time. I had a breakfast, worked out, spent some time on the internet etcetera. When all that was done I had about 2.5 hours until the orientation meeting to start the tour. I figured I'd go explore Bangkok.
It started like any other stroll. "Where should I walk?" I thought to myself. Naturally I pulled out the phone and looked up Google maps. On it I saw "grand palace" about 4 km from the hotel and thought 'seems like a place worth visiting' so I set out. After starting my stroll and walking for about 20 minutes I consulted my phone again. I didn't have an offline map so all I could use was a rather broad picture of the city, but this would be adequate because the palace was right by the river, which I would surely notice on my walk. I kept talking thinking I should see a landmark soon. Shopping centres are often in Google maps and I hadn't seemed to cross any. After about 15 minutes more walking I figured I should actually figure out where I am. In doing so I realized that out of the hotel I took a left and not a right and as a result, was walking east instead of west. I was going further away from my intended destination.
'Oh well' my brain said 'now you get to see more of the authentic Bangkok. When youve walked far enough just turn around and walk back.' So I kept walking. Like any major city, there are many transport options and Bangkok is no different. Train, boat, taxi, tuktuk, and motorcycle taxi are all viable options here. The more I walked the more I thought about going far and simply getting a tuk tuk back. I have a soft spot for tuktuks. As I was walking and watching the traffic I saw that the majority of people in the tuktuks were white tourists. By contrast, the majority of people on the motorcycle taxis seems to be locals. 'I could take a motorcycle taxi!' The more I walked and watched the motorcycles the more I wanted to take one. It's not everyday you get to ride on a motorcycle in Bangkok.
I turned around in my walking and thought several thoughts about safety, how nobody on earth knew what I was doing, how fun it would be, questioned if I could be fearless enough to have this experience etc. Eventually I just thought 'fuck it' and approached a motorcycle stand. I walked up to the guy and he didn't speak English. Nothing point at my phone couldn't solve. Upon looking at the phone he started up his motorcycle.... Only to give me the snub. You see, a young girl probably about 16, approached wanting a ride. I didn't exist anymore and he told her to hop on. She made a look at him and a look at me that clearly indicated 'but he was here first.' She laughed and hopped on, I laughed because I'm a foreigner who doesn't speak the languege as opposed to a teenage girl who does. So I kept on my merry way and saw another motorcycle stand a block up the road that had more than one driver. Game on. Quickly, I was surrounded by 3 bangkokians (is that a word?) None of which spoke English, but all of which glad to give me a ride for a price that is more than a local would pay, but far less than what I would pay at home. I didn't care. I was going to go in a motorcycle and haggling and extra $3 wasn't going to stop me. The fellow who agreed to drive me had no idea where I needed to go, but his colleague told him so he seemed confident. We were on our way. Before long, I was riding in the back of a motorcycle riding around the streets of Bangkok. It was awesome.
Amongst my joy and excitement and having this experience we soon pulled into a freeway and were zipping many kilometres to get to the grand palace. In my mind the trip was about 10 kms. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Excitement turn to curiosity 'why is this taking so long?' 'where is he taking me' 'this is way further than I expected'. About 25 minutes into the ride I realized my driver was lost. ' Oh well, more ride for the money.' We pre-negotiated the price.
After about the 35th minute my driver pulled over and gestured to a place that looked palace-ish. Ride was over. I didn't get off the bike. Something was wrong. I consulted my crappy zoomed out Google map, not being able to read the street names and read the street signs. I knew they didn't match. We weren't at the grand palace.
I pointed to grand palace on the map. He pointed to the palace we were parked near and put his hands together and bowed. As if to say ' this is the grand palace'. I knew I shouldn't get off the bike, because then I could be stranded and I had NO IDEA where I was. Instead, I did some quick thinking and asked him to take me to the national museum (less than 100metres from the palace). Well, we drove around another 10 minutes or so before we finally did arrive at destination. My thoughts confirmed that I was not at the grand palace originally. Here I was though, made it to the grand palace. In spite of my enthusiasm for doing the motorcycle cab and navigating what could have been a bad situation I looked at my watch and saw that I only had about 1 hour until my meeting started. I arrived, and it was time to turn back.
I didn't know the exact distance but I figured that was walkable in one hour. Upon checking the Mao I realized that in all my internetting earlier in the day, and Mao referencing on the motorcycle that I had no battery left. I decided to turn the phone off in an attempt to preserve the battery should I need it. I knew I had to walk east, I knew it was a few km, and I knew what some of the buildings near the hotel looked like. I could do this right? 'we'll see' my inner thoughts said.
I started walking. In my walking I did end up seeing the real Bangkok. I saw markets, shops, people arguing, a girl pee in the streets, a polluted canal, and much more. I was getting the authentic experience I wanted. So I kept walking. One thought was about how I wanted to know I was walking in the right direction, another thought looking at the clock wondering if I could make it back in time. I didn't want to show up late for the meeting and be " that guy". So I kept walking, the guessing of myself growing, the thought that I might not get there in time increasing. All I had was the sun as the compass. 'Ok' if I can't figure it out by 5:30 then I will get a cab.
I kept walking in what I thought was sort-of-kinda-maybe east. Well, 5:30 came and went. I asked a traffic cop where it was using the hotel key to show the address. He pointed me in the direction I was going. I was right! Then he said in very broken engligh "take cab, far". Rejuvinated with navigational confidence I simply thanked him and started walking. Well, 10 minutes later, not just 20 minutes from the meeting time I couldn't see any of the landmarks I took note of earlier in the day to guide me back. This was a problem because the landmarks were 30 storey apartment buildings. If I couldn't see them by now, I was never going to walk back in time.
I approached another motorcycle taxi stand. With much less enthusiasm and thrill I asked to be taken to hotel. Guy I asked didn't know where it was, his friend didn't know where it was, some guy in the area trying to be helpful didn't know where it was, so evenntually the driver asked wheat I'm assuming is a young university student if they knew. She did not, but did look up the address, and when that failed... Called the hotel directly. Wow! I just had 4 people try and help, one of which went way above and beyond. I was partially laughing at the situation and pleased for having this local interaction. I was also very aware of the time. 14 minutes left.
We negotiated the fare and we were off, first driving in the wrong direction so the driver could do a U-turn. It took a few minutes to get sorted but as we drive along the freeway I realized that although I had my direction correct, I wasn't even close on distance. It would have taken a good couple hours to walk it. I got to the hotel at 5:57. Paid the driver, ran up to the room to grab my necessary paperwork and then came back down to lobby. I sat in the chair before the time switched over to 6:31.
I was in time. By seconds.
"Welcome everybody." The meeting started.
It started like any other stroll. "Where should I walk?" I thought to myself. Naturally I pulled out the phone and looked up Google maps. On it I saw "grand palace" about 4 km from the hotel and thought 'seems like a place worth visiting' so I set out. After starting my stroll and walking for about 20 minutes I consulted my phone again. I didn't have an offline map so all I could use was a rather broad picture of the city, but this would be adequate because the palace was right by the river, which I would surely notice on my walk. I kept talking thinking I should see a landmark soon. Shopping centres are often in Google maps and I hadn't seemed to cross any. After about 15 minutes more walking I figured I should actually figure out where I am. In doing so I realized that out of the hotel I took a left and not a right and as a result, was walking east instead of west. I was going further away from my intended destination.
'Oh well' my brain said 'now you get to see more of the authentic Bangkok. When youve walked far enough just turn around and walk back.' So I kept walking. Like any major city, there are many transport options and Bangkok is no different. Train, boat, taxi, tuktuk, and motorcycle taxi are all viable options here. The more I walked the more I thought about going far and simply getting a tuk tuk back. I have a soft spot for tuktuks. As I was walking and watching the traffic I saw that the majority of people in the tuktuks were white tourists. By contrast, the majority of people on the motorcycle taxis seems to be locals. 'I could take a motorcycle taxi!' The more I walked and watched the motorcycles the more I wanted to take one. It's not everyday you get to ride on a motorcycle in Bangkok.
I turned around in my walking and thought several thoughts about safety, how nobody on earth knew what I was doing, how fun it would be, questioned if I could be fearless enough to have this experience etc. Eventually I just thought 'fuck it' and approached a motorcycle stand. I walked up to the guy and he didn't speak English. Nothing point at my phone couldn't solve. Upon looking at the phone he started up his motorcycle.... Only to give me the snub. You see, a young girl probably about 16, approached wanting a ride. I didn't exist anymore and he told her to hop on. She made a look at him and a look at me that clearly indicated 'but he was here first.' She laughed and hopped on, I laughed because I'm a foreigner who doesn't speak the languege as opposed to a teenage girl who does. So I kept on my merry way and saw another motorcycle stand a block up the road that had more than one driver. Game on. Quickly, I was surrounded by 3 bangkokians (is that a word?) None of which spoke English, but all of which glad to give me a ride for a price that is more than a local would pay, but far less than what I would pay at home. I didn't care. I was going to go in a motorcycle and haggling and extra $3 wasn't going to stop me. The fellow who agreed to drive me had no idea where I needed to go, but his colleague told him so he seemed confident. We were on our way. Before long, I was riding in the back of a motorcycle riding around the streets of Bangkok. It was awesome.
Amongst my joy and excitement and having this experience we soon pulled into a freeway and were zipping many kilometres to get to the grand palace. In my mind the trip was about 10 kms. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Excitement turn to curiosity 'why is this taking so long?' 'where is he taking me' 'this is way further than I expected'. About 25 minutes into the ride I realized my driver was lost. ' Oh well, more ride for the money.' We pre-negotiated the price.
After about the 35th minute my driver pulled over and gestured to a place that looked palace-ish. Ride was over. I didn't get off the bike. Something was wrong. I consulted my crappy zoomed out Google map, not being able to read the street names and read the street signs. I knew they didn't match. We weren't at the grand palace.
I pointed to grand palace on the map. He pointed to the palace we were parked near and put his hands together and bowed. As if to say ' this is the grand palace'. I knew I shouldn't get off the bike, because then I could be stranded and I had NO IDEA where I was. Instead, I did some quick thinking and asked him to take me to the national museum (less than 100metres from the palace). Well, we drove around another 10 minutes or so before we finally did arrive at destination. My thoughts confirmed that I was not at the grand palace originally. Here I was though, made it to the grand palace. In spite of my enthusiasm for doing the motorcycle cab and navigating what could have been a bad situation I looked at my watch and saw that I only had about 1 hour until my meeting started. I arrived, and it was time to turn back.
I didn't know the exact distance but I figured that was walkable in one hour. Upon checking the Mao I realized that in all my internetting earlier in the day, and Mao referencing on the motorcycle that I had no battery left. I decided to turn the phone off in an attempt to preserve the battery should I need it. I knew I had to walk east, I knew it was a few km, and I knew what some of the buildings near the hotel looked like. I could do this right? 'we'll see' my inner thoughts said.
I started walking. In my walking I did end up seeing the real Bangkok. I saw markets, shops, people arguing, a girl pee in the streets, a polluted canal, and much more. I was getting the authentic experience I wanted. So I kept walking. One thought was about how I wanted to know I was walking in the right direction, another thought looking at the clock wondering if I could make it back in time. I didn't want to show up late for the meeting and be " that guy". So I kept walking, the guessing of myself growing, the thought that I might not get there in time increasing. All I had was the sun as the compass. 'Ok' if I can't figure it out by 5:30 then I will get a cab.
I kept walking in what I thought was sort-of-kinda-maybe east. Well, 5:30 came and went. I asked a traffic cop where it was using the hotel key to show the address. He pointed me in the direction I was going. I was right! Then he said in very broken engligh "take cab, far". Rejuvinated with navigational confidence I simply thanked him and started walking. Well, 10 minutes later, not just 20 minutes from the meeting time I couldn't see any of the landmarks I took note of earlier in the day to guide me back. This was a problem because the landmarks were 30 storey apartment buildings. If I couldn't see them by now, I was never going to walk back in time.
I approached another motorcycle taxi stand. With much less enthusiasm and thrill I asked to be taken to hotel. Guy I asked didn't know where it was, his friend didn't know where it was, some guy in the area trying to be helpful didn't know where it was, so evenntually the driver asked wheat I'm assuming is a young university student if they knew. She did not, but did look up the address, and when that failed... Called the hotel directly. Wow! I just had 4 people try and help, one of which went way above and beyond. I was partially laughing at the situation and pleased for having this local interaction. I was also very aware of the time. 14 minutes left.
We negotiated the fare and we were off, first driving in the wrong direction so the driver could do a U-turn. It took a few minutes to get sorted but as we drive along the freeway I realized that although I had my direction correct, I wasn't even close on distance. It would have taken a good couple hours to walk it. I got to the hotel at 5:57. Paid the driver, ran up to the room to grab my necessary paperwork and then came back down to lobby. I sat in the chair before the time switched over to 6:31.
I was in time. By seconds.
"Welcome everybody." The meeting started.
Tuesday 5 January 2016
Big decisions
"I love that the biggest decision of my day is which direction to walk on the beach."
I heard this line 10 years ago sitting in a first year social work class. My professor, a woman in her 60's with the energy of a teenager, was talking about self care. She was explaining its importance and how her biggest method is retreating to a beach every year where nobody else is around. Peaceful solitude.
The line resonated with me and continues to do so. As someone who is usually quite busy and with multiple ongoing commitments this seems like a dream scenario. Just decide which way to walk. Since landing in New Zealand I've been traveling 100% solo and so have had no schedule to adhere to or commitments to hold. The other day I was in a small tourist town called whitianga. I had intentions of going to a place called cathedral cove on a neighboring beach. When I woke up in the morning the weather was not going to cooperate and not going to make a beach day much fun. I thought of alternatives but in a beach town with a small population when the weather doesn't cooperate your options reduce drastically. I found myself thinking about potential ways to spend my days, but after examining logical possibilities I found myself with an unexpected question "which direction would I like to walk?"
I headed east. I decided to hike an old historical site which also acts as a viewpoint and nature reserve. Midway through my walk it hit me. I had a sudden wave of peacefullness that would be hard to describe. I tried to think back to when I had felt like this before and couldn't recall a time. It wasn't that I was overly jovial, I was simply at peace. I had my moment where what direction to walk became my biggest question of the day. I think that the moment I realized it I probably had a huge grin on my face. I spent the next 3 hours slowly strolling through the coastal forest of new Zealand absorbing the beautiful nature around me. It was wonderful.
I have slowly been able to feel the honey moon phases of the trip dissipate and it's a far cry from every single moment of every day being amazing, but unexpected moments of contentment sure are wonderful, especially when they resonate back into your past of a phrase and a time that fuelled imagination.
I heard this line 10 years ago sitting in a first year social work class. My professor, a woman in her 60's with the energy of a teenager, was talking about self care. She was explaining its importance and how her biggest method is retreating to a beach every year where nobody else is around. Peaceful solitude.
The line resonated with me and continues to do so. As someone who is usually quite busy and with multiple ongoing commitments this seems like a dream scenario. Just decide which way to walk. Since landing in New Zealand I've been traveling 100% solo and so have had no schedule to adhere to or commitments to hold. The other day I was in a small tourist town called whitianga. I had intentions of going to a place called cathedral cove on a neighboring beach. When I woke up in the morning the weather was not going to cooperate and not going to make a beach day much fun. I thought of alternatives but in a beach town with a small population when the weather doesn't cooperate your options reduce drastically. I found myself thinking about potential ways to spend my days, but after examining logical possibilities I found myself with an unexpected question "which direction would I like to walk?"
I headed east. I decided to hike an old historical site which also acts as a viewpoint and nature reserve. Midway through my walk it hit me. I had a sudden wave of peacefullness that would be hard to describe. I tried to think back to when I had felt like this before and couldn't recall a time. It wasn't that I was overly jovial, I was simply at peace. I had my moment where what direction to walk became my biggest question of the day. I think that the moment I realized it I probably had a huge grin on my face. I spent the next 3 hours slowly strolling through the coastal forest of new Zealand absorbing the beautiful nature around me. It was wonderful.
I have slowly been able to feel the honey moon phases of the trip dissipate and it's a far cry from every single moment of every day being amazing, but unexpected moments of contentment sure are wonderful, especially when they resonate back into your past of a phrase and a time that fuelled imagination.
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