Unpacking is tiring!
March 20, 2014
Game over
You know that feeling of anticipation you have when you watch someone playing a video game - when it looks like a lot of fun and you can't wait to try it...but then you do and you suck at it, and it's the most exasperating feeling? Well that's how I felt most of the time I was in Tokyo! I was constantly lost and frequently overwhelmed. I'd like to give it another try, but like those video games, it's going to take practice to master!
The kindness of strangers
While eating my sushi breakfast, I chatted with two men seated next to me. They wanted to know if I had any suggestions for exploring Tokyo, turns out they were only there a few days as well. I gave them a few suggestions and told them I was down to my last hour, as I would be heading straight to my hotel to grab the shuttle to the airport. When my bill came, I was told it was cash only. The bill was 4000 yen, and I had 1000 yen and $2. The waiter told me the nearest ATM was 10-15 minutes away. I had 15 minutes to be at my hotel. A wave of panic hit me. One of the men asked, "How short are you?" "Quite a bit" I replied. The man took out a 5000 yen note (around $50), handed it to me along with his business card and said, "Here. You can mail me money from NY." I was shocked. I told him I had never had a random stranger do something so nice for me before. Between the friendly man at the fish market and this generous man, I felt incredibly fortunate! It was certainly a lesson in generosity!
Tsukiji Fish Market
On my last morning, I woke up at 430am and headed to the Tsukiji Fish Market, the chaotic trading place for all variety of sea creatures. I didn't watch the tuna auction (which required arriving before 4am) but I did get a free tour. When I entered the market, a man insisted I jump on the back of his motorized delivery cart (I was the special delivery) and while I hung on for dear life, he zoomed around, pausing to point out different sections and to have me pose for pictures! When I got off the cart and thanked him, he sped off before I could offer him any money. Talk about an enthusiastic local!
I followed up my whirlwind tour with the obligatory sushi breakfast of the freshest fish!
March 19, 2014
Directions
The concierge confirmed what I had already (painfully) learned: "we don't use addresses here". (!!!)
March 17, 2014
Food coma
Ate at Tokyo outpost of my favorite place, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon!
The menu:
Langoustine
Fois gras
Wagyu beef
Cheese
Chocolate
Plus wine (ahh Bordeaux !) and Japanese whiskey.
Heaven!!!
March 16, 2014
Tokyo
Transitioning from an idyllic, deserted beach to one of the world's most frenetic metropolises. And I am completely unprepared. This should be interesting ....
A reluctant farewell
Myanmar was enchanting. I had an incredible guide, Cho, a smart 32 year old that mixed lessons in Buddhism with local legends and witty jokes. We ate tea leaf salad, bargained in the markets and got pedicures together. I give her a lot of credit for making my trip so memorable.
The people here were a big part of making this a wonderful experience. I don't think I've ever experienced such genuine friendliness. I would catch someone staring at me, and wave, and their face would break into a huge smile and they would wave back enthusiastically. People are still curious about visitors and don't yet see them as walking wallets. Some of the most fascinating moments were when Cho and I would wander through a village, dropping in on whoever happened to be home. We stopped and talked with an old woman hand rolling cigarettes and asked her about business (she lamented that people aren't smoking enough these days). We visited a man whose family had been making pottery for generations, who showed us how the pots were made and then showed us around his small home. (He had daughters my age and thought I was very brave to travel alone). An elderly woman beckoned us into her bedroom to show us her prized piece of lacquer furniture. None of these people wanted anything from us - they were as curious about me as I was about them. How many years before that changes?
The tourists are arriving, mostly older Europeans. I saw plenty of people engaging in the kind of obnoxious behavior that ruins it for the rest of us. (I want to learn how to say 'you are a disgrace to your country!' and 'cover your flabby body' in every Western language....). At a monastery, a monk confessed to us that he wanted to welcome visitors, but felt very uncomfortable with the hordes of paparazzi. Cho joked, "we went to see 1000 monks, but we found 2000 tourists!".
Elections are in Nov 2015, and we will see how that affects the country...
The under 25 set is heavily influenced by Korean culture, and is giving up their traditional clothing for the ubiquitous western style club look. In 10 years, a lot less people will be wearing the longyi or painting their faces with thanaka.
So if you're thinking of going, go now! The sites are stunning, the infrastructure is modern and the people are lovely. As I was departing, the customs officer have me a huge smile and said "So nice to meet you!" For the first time ever, I smiled at a customs officer. "Thank you for sharing your beautiful country."
March 14, 2014
Perfect day
I hired my own boat (for a whopping $30), went snorkeling, went fishing, then ate my catch on a white sand island. Life doesn't get much better :)
The Sea
"And slowly, as I grew older and raised my eyes from the sand and beyond the conventional weekend pleasures...I heard a new voice speaking to me, not in any language I had ever learned, but in the secret language of my heart.
It was the sea. Its come-hither murmur, its seductive roar. That was the music that could wash my soul. The lure of a different element, its promises of elsewhere, gave me my first intimation of something hidden within me that would pull me across the water, leaving my parents stranded. The sea, the wine-dark, the fish-rich. The lap and suck of waves dying on sand. Rumours of mermaids. Touch the sea and at once you're joined to its farthest shore, to Araby...Suez...and Europa beyond. Perhaps even- I remember the thrill of the whispered word on my young lips- America. America, the open-sesame. America, which got rid of the British long before we did....My dream-ocean led to America, my private, my unfound land."
- Salman Rushdie, The Ground Beneath Her Feet
Inle Lake
Inle Lake is a beautiful area known for its scenery, fishing and handicrafts. Boats are the sole means of transport. I spent a day visiting the market, a weaving center, a blacksmith shop, a cigarette rolling shop, the monastery and breaking for avocado lassis and pork curry.
The sticks you see here are holding floating gardens in place. The hut is used during harvest season to watch over the produce while it's picked and loaded into boats.
Heading into town
What day of the week were you born?
This is a very important question in Myanmar. It dictates what you can be named, where you pray and who you should marry! Since I was born on a Tuesday, that is my auspicious day, the day of the week on which I should schedule special events (like Gotham dinners, ha!) or make major decisions. I should worship at the Tuesday corner of a temple and I should marry a man born on a Thursday (oops) but definitely not one born on a Wednesday afternoon (at least I got that part right). These sorts of superstitions are an important part of Myanmar life.
The Tuesday corner
March 13, 2014
Noviciation Ceremony
In Myanmar, every boy is expected to spend time at a monastery learning about Buddhism. The length of the stay varies, but must be at least three days. Orphans are raised by monks and sometimes poor families will send their children to live at the monastery, but for most boys it's a short stay during summer break. Families organize a noviciation ceremony for the 'novices' that are being brought to the monastery. All of the boys in the extended family will typically go at the same time, so the entire family participates in the celebration. Special outfits are ordered, there is a parade through town, and then each family parades through the monastery, the novices leading, the family following in their finest clothes. There is a lot of fanfare and picture taking. It reminded me of Catholic first communion and Mardi Gras rolled into one. I was fortunate enough to visit during the 'season'!
(Since the girls don't have to be novices, they get their ears pierced as part of the celebration!)
The parade through town
Both the men and women wear the longyi, though they tie it differently
Parading through the monastery
Each family has a different color of dress!
A young novice
Reclining Buddha
Complete with his own airplane hangar home!
The various poses of Buddha have different meanings. I particularly like this sedate pose, which shows the soles of Buddha's feet. Each symbol stands for a past life.
March 12, 2014
Asian Literature
My reading list:
No Man's Land, a postwar love story by dissident Duong Thu Huong, Vietnam
The Boat, short stories by Nam Lee, Vietnam
Burmese Days by George Orwell, inspired by his days as a British officer in Myanmar
Red Sorgham by Nobel Prize winner Mo Yan, China
Buying a Fishing Rod for My Grandfather, stories by Nobel Prize winner Gao Xingjian, China
Kafka on the Shore, a surrealistic novel by Haruki Murakami, Japan
Has anyone read any fiction from / about Cambodia or Laos?
Bagan
Allegedly millions of temples were built by the 12th century rulers of Bagan. Today, 3,200 remain. Yes, think about that - 3,200! Everywhere you look, there is a temple, a pagoda, a stupa - some white, some red, some gold. I climbed one temple for a sunset view. The vista was mesmerizing - one of the most fascinating things I've seen so far - my eyes swept across an endless expanse of ancient buildings so numerous they seemed like waves on the ocean.
Schwedagon Pagoda
This stunning Buddhist pagoda is 350 feet tall, covered in real gold and crowned with a 70ct diamond! It's the country's most important religious site.
Yangon
Formerly the capital, called Rangoon by the Brits, Yangon has colonial buildings and the bustle of a modern Asian city.
Landmines
Cambodia's recent history is rife with devastation. In the past 50 years, it has witnessed political upheaval, invasion by the Vietnamese, bombing by the US, Civil war and genocide. The Khmer Rouge and the US military left massive amounts of unexploded ordinance behind. I visited the Cambodia Landmine Museum, founded by a former child soldier that laid mines for the Khmer Rouge who has now dedicated his life to removing them. He has personally cleared thousands of landmines. Landmines were designed to injure rather than kill, and the museum has devastating pictures of people, especially children, who lost a limb or were badly burned when encountering a mine. In rural areas, people live in fear that when going about their daily lives (collecting firewood, getting water, tending animals) the ground beneath them will explode. Although NGOs and the government are making progress, it's estimated that there are still over 6 MILLION unexploded landmines / bombs in Cambodia.
Siem Reap, Cambodia
Siem Reap is where the tourists visiting the Angkor temple complex eat and sleep. It's an unremarkable town, full of hotels, restaurants, cheesy bars, generic souvenirs and of course, tourists. The Cambodians are laid back, the mosquitos are aggressive and the weather is sweltering. It was over 100 degrees F and close to 100% humidity. I was sweating at 6am. I'm pretty sure I've never sweated as much as I did in Cambodia! (Does that count as a detox?)
But one doesn't travel here for the weather or the town. Angkor Wat is the world's largest religious building. It was built in the 12th century as a Hindu temple. In its prime, the Khmer empire had a population of over 1 million, and built thousands of buildings. Hundreds of temples remain, and one could easily spend a week exploring them. I only made it to 4!
Cambodian royal costumes
March 10, 2014
Ta Prohm Temple
When visiting Ta Phrom, one can imagine what it might have felt like to discover these ruins hidden in the wilderness. The temple was not restored, so collapsed pillars have been left where they landed and nature is aggressively reclaiming its territory. Tree roots slowly pry away stones. The dark corridors and crumbling courtyards seem to harbor ancient secrets, sealed away from humanity and the encroaching jungle.
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