Day 208 - The Eight Hour Bus Ride from Barcelona to Madrid

It's been a while since I've had to ride on a bus for 8 hours...I think the last time was in Turkey, but it wasn't too bad, given the conditions of the bus and the fact that it wasn't packed full. It makes such a difference if you get the whole row to yourself! We headed out at 10:30am, and made three stops along the way to Madrid, twice for food breaks, and once to pick up new passengers. I was unlucky to have to sit in front of a baby (why do they always cry and kick the seat in front of them???), but I slept much of the way there anyways.

Upon arrival in Madrid, I headed to my hostel, which was right in the center of the city near the "Sol" Metro Stop. The weather was much colder here compared to Barcelona, since it is right in the middle of Spain, where Barcelona was near the Mediterranean. I noticed a lot more Christmas spirit in the city too. Everything was lit up all around the city center. There were Christmas trees in the plazas and lights hanging through all the major streets. The cold weather added to the festive atmosphere as well. For some reason, prior to my arrival, I assumed Madrid would be less cosmopolitan than Barcelona and maybe a lot older, but walking around, those feelings definitely changed. Tomorrow, I will actually do some sightseeing.

I've only left four nights in Madrid, and secretly, I think I've been too focused on the excitement of coming back home that I might not really appreciate the city than if it were a visit in the middle or beginning of my trip. I hope I give it as much attention as I can...A friend back home said that the high of coming home wears off pretty fast...we'll see...

Day 175 - Hop On Hop Off Roma

I got advice from my sister as well as the Lonely Planet guidebook to purchase a “Roma Pass,” which offers tourists free admission to the first two archeological or museum sites and around a 30% discount for each ticket thereafter. The pass lasts for three days and includes unlimited transportation on the metro and local buses. They can be purchased at newsstands, hotels, and at the sites themselves, but for some reason, we couldn't get are hands on any of the. Everyone kept saying they were sold out and that they wouldn't get a new batch of passes until after the weekend.

Without enough of an idea on what we wanted to visit in the next 4 days, we ended up taking one of those typical double-decker “hop on hop off” buses that you find in every major city in the world. We purchased the 2 day option just in case we wanted to use it as a means of transportation tomorrow. I felt it was actually a great idea to get a mini tour of the city to acclimate with the layout of the city since it was our first day.

The tour included a fresh pair of earbuds to listen to a recorded tour guide, giving information about each stop, and including a little bit about the history of the city itself, which was formed before the Common Era. We ended up stopping by the Santa Maria Maggiore, The Colloseum/Roman Forum/Palantine Hill, Circo Massimo, Piazza Venezia, and the Vatican before getting a ride back to our hotel.

For lunch, we had our first taste of Italian pizza. We shared slices of a mushroom/bacon combo and a mushroom/tomato combo – a bit too greasy for my taste, but it was a fast food stop, so maybe some of the fresher options will be better at a sit-down restaurant.

Afterwards, we headed back on the bus to catch a ride to the Colloseum to take some pictures around the perimeter of the archeological site. We walked towards the Piazza Venezia, taking a look at some of the ruins that remain around the city and are continuously being preserved and restored.

One of the most famous and recognizable sights in Rome is the Fontana di Trevi, which is a fountain made popular because it was featured in the classic movie, La Dolce Vita. They say that you should throw a coin in the fountain to guarantee your return to this beautiful city. I didn't throw a coin in...so we'll see what happens. I hope I didn't end up cursing myself!

While headed back to Linh's hotel, we found a tourist office that actually sold the Roma Pass, so we managed to snag a few to use tomorrow. We'll probably visit the Colloseum first since it includes entrance to the Roman Forum and Palantine Hill together. We aren't really sure what else to see just yet...

Fontana di Trevi

Termini Stazione

You'll find many people painted in gold or silver near famous tourist spots, hoping to get some quick cash.

Saint Angelo Castle

Riding the Hop on Hop off Bus

Constantine Arch

Colloseum

Day 157 - Fethiye and Oludeniz

I took an early dolmus from Kusadasi to Aydin, where I bought a bus ticket to Fethiye, another seaside town, but on the Mediterranean Coast.

It would be my first time at a hostel in all my travels in Turkey, since the Couchsurfing community is so large and available here. I would be on my own for the next couple of days without the help of an experienced local, who could suggest where to go and what to eat. Luckily, I had a clue on where to go because my Lonely Planet Mediterranean Europe book listed Oludeniz as the number one sight to see in all of the Mediterranean countries combined.

Upon arrival here, I noticed the large number of British people here. Like the Koreans and Taiwanese in Boracay, or the Russians in Pattaya, this was a very popular spot for the British to come and vacation at this time of the year. The city wasn't too crowded this month, but I could still see the touristic appeal in the area. Since I planned on being in Fethiye for 2 nights, I was initially planning on visiting Oludeniz tomorrow, but I arrived early enough to grab another Dolmus to take me to the beach and lagoon area.

Again, Lonely Planet has over-exaggerated on its praise of something, because I didn't really see why this beach should be the number one spot in ALL of Mediterranean Europe. It was a nice, pebbly beach to spend a day at, but I really didn't see that much appeal in the location. The weather helped though, as it was finally sunny enough to go shirtless and "tan" on the beach, which I quickly took the opportunity to do before the cold Winter came.

I spent the rest of the night exploring the touristy area of Fethiye, where there were the typical restaurants and souvenir shops to browse. I decided by the end of the night to catch another bus tomorrow to another city to see more of Turkey. Next stop...Kas

Fethiye Marina

Fethiye Roman Theatre

Oludeniz Lagoon/Beach

Day 153 - Canakkale to Manisa

Another long bus ride that took about 8 hours to get from Canakkale further southwest to Manisa. I didn't expect the ride to be so long, especially when the bus company said it would take 6 hours, so those last 2 hours were somewhat agonizing. Still, it was a very comfortable ride, but all I could do was listen to music and sleep sleep sleep. I wasn't able to find a decent English book to read in Canakkale since I finished my other one.

 So far, people have told me to read "40 Rules of Love" by Elif Shafak to get a greater sense of the Turkish culture in a more contemporary perspective. Hopefully I'll find a book soon since my Kindle decided to die on me while I was in Nepal.

I arrived at my CS host's place at around 6:30 and the day was already almost over. We had dinner and conversed the rest of the night, planning what we would do tomorrow in Izmir and Manisa.

Breakfast - Borek (thin, flaky pastry stuffed with meat) and Turkish Tea

Lunch - Juicy Chicken Kebabs (definitely a favorite)

Day 133 - Sauraha back to Kathmandu

It's been a while since I didn't have to wake up in the early wee hours to catch a bus! We had time for a comfortable breakfast before heading on a bus back to Kathmandu at 9:30am. The bus was rather comfortable for Nepalese standards, a notch above in quality compared to the other two buses I'd already taken.

The only problem was the accidents that caused traffic jams a couple times on our journey. What should have taken maybe 4 hours took 7 hours total. The drivers in Nepalese are pretty wreckless, even though most of the buses have slogans on their bumpers saying “drive safely.” Cars try to pass other vehicles on windy roads around mountains and end up crashing at blind spots when they don't anticipate another car coming along ahead. There was one head-on collision that I saw with a compact car and a bus. Hopefully nobody got hurt!

The entire day was almost completely spent on the bus. When we arrived in Kathmandu, we headed to a backpacker hostel about 30 minutes away from Thamel, the main tourist area. It was a good decision to get away from the noise and pollution in the area. It was also nice to get away from all the touts trying to sell us guesthouse rooms, taxi rides, trekking tours, hashish, and marijuana. The hostel, called the Sparkling Turtle, was Canadian owned, and just opened 2 months ago so the place was pretty spotless. The best thing about it was that one of the owners was a former master chef, and every night, cooks special Nepalese dinners. I had some of the best food in a while. A good meal really makes me smile afterwards, and I don't think I smiled as big as I did today in over a month! We had a buffalo stew with pasta and a cucumber salad. So delicious!

Rainbow over the Swayambhunath Temple 

Head-on Collision with a Bus

Day 130 – Pokhara to Sauraha (Chitwan National Park)

We caught a tourist bus from Pohkara to Sauraha, which is a city near the outer areas of the Royal Chitwan National Park, the first national park of Nepal. The park is located in southern Nepal, bordering India, and spans over 900 square kms. It's one of the very common touristic stops on any Nepalese tour where people book jungle walks, elephant rides, and other outdoorsy adventures.

The bus ride took about 4-5 hours, and I'm beginning to think it takes 4-5 hours to get anywhere in Nepal! 

There weren't too many tourists in Sauraha, and I think we were the only ones at the lodge we stayed at. It seemed the hotel workers were desperate to get us to book some sort of package with them, but we decided to head to the visitor center to get more objective information on what we should do. We met with a guy dressed as a park ranger who suggested different activities. In the end, he was just another guy trying to sell us a package, but we ended up booking a 1.5 day jungle walk with him, a canoe ride, and a night in a lodge, all starting tomorrow morning.

There is opportunity to see tigers, elephants, rhinos, sloth bears, and other animals. We'd be walking with two guides, who would make sure we didn't get lost. It's funny because there's a whole section in the Lonely Planet that explains the different ways to remain safe if you see any of these animals, from climbing a tree, to running in a zig zag, to gathering together in a group, to throwing your clothing somewhere and running the other way. It'll be interesting what we will come across tomorrow.

Tourist Bus Stop with the Annapurna Mountains in the back

I'm not sure that Camels are supposed to be in Nepal..

First Day in Sauraha and we Already saw a Rhinosaurus!

Day 119 - Kathmandu to Pokhara

Another early day wakeup to catch a tourist bus to Pokhara. The ride was bumpy and the bus had weak suspension as we climbed up and down the mountains and valleys to Pokhara, which is lower in elevation compared to Kathmandu. The drivers here are pretty fearless as they pass each other on the roads, and I saw a couple accidents on the ride there.

Upon arrival in the city, we met with a guy from Finland who was also planning on doing the Annapurna Base Camp trek. Since he was alone, we asked if he would like to join us. Other people on the bus were already in groups or had hired their own porter and guide. We were told we wouldn't need a guide on this trek since it was fairly easy to navigate and the locals were more than happy to help us with directions.

The city of Pokhara itself was a lot more calm compared to Kathmandu, as expected. It is located next to a huge lake called Fewa, where most of the tourist area is located. Similar to Thamel, there were tons of trekking shops, restaurants, and guest houses, but since we came right before the busy season (which starts in October), there wasn't much activity in the shops.

We spent the day relaxing before having dinner at a Japanese restaurant, which was a little pricey, but it was the first Japanese meal I'd had in a while. We met up with our new trekking buddy, Aki, who was in a similar situation as both Niels and me. We all quit our jobs and were on a 6-month traveling excursion. Niels was nearing the end of his trip, with Nepal being his last stop, and Aki was just starting his own journey in southeast Asia, with Nepal being his first stop. Tomorrow we'd all get our Annapurna Conservation Permit and TIMS (Trekkers' Information Management System) Cards before we begin our trek.

Early Morning in Durbar Square

Drink like a Gorkha Soldier?

Day 89 - Nuang Shwe back to Yangon

The rain decided to come all last night and throughout the day today. Good thing we went on our trek when we did, or else we'd be traversing through even wetter and more slippery terrain than we did the past three days!

I caught a pick-up truck to the bus station about 30 minutes away to get a seat on a bus headed back to Yangon. The bus ride would be 16 hours, but I was reassured that the quality of buses would be much better than the one from Bagan to Kalaw.

The bus was similar to the one I took from Yangon to Mandalay, with the air conditioning turned to maximum, but thankfully I prepared for the chill with some socks, a jacket, and some pajamas. The buses were all second-hand buses previously used in Japan, as was evident by the old sign on the side of the bus that showed what stations the bus used to stop at in Japan.

I was running out of kyat currency and had to really think about where to spend it, as I knew I would need a taxi from the bus station in Yangon to the hotel I planned to book. Dinner was skipped to save money and it would be a hungry night with an unhappy stomach.

Day 85 - Worst Bus Ride in Myanmar

So far the worst bus ride in Myanmar today! I woke up at 3am to catch a 4am bus ride from Bagan to Kalaw, a city in the mountains with many trekking opportunities. The bus was a minivan without any air-conditioning, and again, they packed the bus with as many people as possible, both inside and on top of the bus.

All of this would have been fine, had I not gotten stuck with the WORST seat on the bus...I was in the middle seat in the back row, without a headrest, and no handrests to hold onto while the bus traversed up the rocky and windy roads towards Kalaw. There was little room to move, and my feet couldn't reach the floor when I sat up straight, so I had to slouch half the time. The whole ride took 10 hours...!!!

By the time we arrived in Kalaw, I just took a fatty nap for about 3 hours before heading to town to grab some Nepali food, finally some good food! You may have noticed that I have not been posting too many food pictures from Myanmar, partially due to my disappointment with most of the food I had eaten so far. Everything is oily and bland... The curries are usually meat dishes soaked in oil, with a little bit of curry at the bottom of the dish. I ended up splurging on imported Thailand knock-off Pringles chips because I didn't want any of the other food...

I ended up just taking it easy today. The climate was cooler than Pyin Oo Lwin, which is a nice change from the heat in Bagan.

Tomorrow I head on a 3 day/2 night hiking trek through Kalaw, headed to Inle Lake, and stopping at local villages, monasteries, and guest houses.

Day 73 – Rain in Yangon, Myanmar

The rain really puts a damper on your plans to explore the city. Today was no exception, as it continued to downpour all morning and afternoon. Instead of heading to a restaurant that was recommended to me by the students I met yesterday, I decided to head back to the Strand Hotel to get some Western Food, use the internet, stay dry, and break a $100 bill that no one else in the city would break for me.

I ended up meeting with another couchsurfer and a friend she had met, who both also arrived in the country the same day as me. We were all headed by bus to Mandalay at night, so we had dinner together and planned the guesthouse we'd be staying at once we arrived.

I'd heard many different stories about the buses to Mandalay, some decent and some horrific, so I was planning for the worst. People commonly switch modes of transportation from bus to air after experiencing it.

The bus actually wasn't bad at all! In fact, it was one of the newest buses I've been on throughout my travels, which is strange since almost every other car in the city is beat up and from the 1980s... I took the last bus out at 9PM, which was recommended by the receptionist at the hotel because the later buses didn't stop at smaller towns to pick up more passengers and would arrive at Mandalay faster. Lucky for me, there was also a new road that was recently built that would get us there quicker. Crossing my fingers for a nice, sleepful night...

Near the bus station was a place with replicas of some of the most famous sights in Myanmar

My Western Lunch

Day 58 - Muy Thai Boxing in Chiang Mai

Went to the bus station to catch a ride to Chiang Mai. There were two bus terminals in Chiang Rai, so I had to take a tuk-tuk to get to the correct one. I took the first class bus, which was a double decker with a bathroom. The seats were pretty spacious, although there was a problem with the A/C condensation dripping on the two people sitting in front of me. We took the whole bus trip trying to figure out how to keep the water from dripping onto them. It was sad...and I hope they asked for their money back!

The entire bus ride was abour 3 hours, which was not bad at all. Once there, I took a motorbike to the Night Market area to look for a hotel. Settled on a guesthouse with a fan (no A/C!) in a room that resembled a 12 year old's room. It was nice, since there was an actual theme...unlike some of the other hotels I'd been to.

Walked around after settling in, and went to the Wat Buppharam where I took some pictures of the temples and stupas. I was approached by a Buddhist Monk, who brought me into the Thunjai Buddha Temple and he asked me to pray with him and wish Buddha for things I wanted. He wrapped a rod of string that was wrapped around a golden lotus (?) around my neck and I held the two strings in my hand as I prayed, and he held the strings as well and chanted a Buddhist Meditation prayer for me. It was an interesting experience as I'd never done this before. He also took a bunch of incense and dipped it in water and splashed me numerous times with it. I'm not sure what this procedure is called. At the end of the chanting, he gave me a bracelet and said to wear it for a year as it would be used as protection. He was a very jolly monk and was very encouraging and optimistic about my life. He said it was my lucky day... I thanked him and made a donation, feeling a little more confident and hopefully safe on my journey.

Afterwards, I went to the Wat Saenfang before closing and saw monks meditating and chanting in the temple. I sat for a good 5-10 minutes trying to meditate as well, unknown if I was actually successful. It was difficult to clear my head as I just continued to talk to myself in my mind... it was like I was an only child talking to myself.

Went into the night searching for the night bazaar. There was everything you could imagine to purchase there. I bought some food and got a foot massage for about $2.50 before heading to my first Muy Thai boxing match! I got front ringside seats and it was really exciting to see the fighting. It's brutal as they can use their legs and knees to kick anywhere...without padding, and the only padding is on the hands (except for the last fight, which was bare hands fighting). There was a women's fight and an international fight with a guy from France (although it looked fixed). Also, there was a filler blind boxing match and topless ladyboy dancing as well... Many of the Thai Ladyboys have already had their operations, so there were real breasts on display... I wonder if it is affordable in this country, compared to the United States? I'd think it would be a very expensive and timely process to get a sex-change in the states...

I found Disney at Wat Buppharam

Wat Buppharam

Thunjai Buddha Temple

Wat Saenfang

Pre-Fight Dancing Ritual