Jalbert Family Adventure

Cambodia May 27 - June 2

Cambodia was a surprise. We didn’t know what to expect and, from what we had read, our expectations were very low for this seemingly very uninviting country. Despite this, we maintained our plans to visit because we could not bypass the opportunity to see the world-famous Temples of Angkor while we were in this part of the world.

Our adventure began in Thailand where we disembarked from an overnight train from northern Thailand (no sleep) and jumped in a taxi and circled the city of Bangkok for a two hour scavenger hunt in search of the DHL office where our new Keen shoes were waiting. We successfully tracked them down (Thank you Keen!) and just made it back to the bus terminal in time for a 3 hour bus ride to the Thai-Cambodia border on a nice bus called the Mekong Express. The bus was run like an airline with “stewardess” service and on-board video (violent Asian gangster movies) and friendly commentary at significant sights. We ate the usual for these long bus and train journeys - whatever they were selling at the station. So, we had a well-rounded meal of Pringles, peanuts and Juicy Fruit gum for breakfast and snacks. At least it was more nutritious than the box of Scooter-Pies we had on the train!

We arrived at the border and managed to cram ourselves and our bags into a tuk-tuk who proceeded to take us to the Cambodian “Consulate” for our visas. The books warn you about make-shift offices and overcharging but what do you do when you have two kids, a bunch of bags and no one speaks English! You pay whatever they want, get your visas and go. While the boys raced their cars across the polished floors, we filled out the paperwork and in a few minutes we had our visas. We paid $120 instead of the “official” $60. This was the first indication of an “uninviting” Cambodia. Our defenses were up. Next, the tuk-tuk driver dropped us at the literal border where you must walk across. The handle on our pull-luggage broke so we were pulling it with a lovely rope. Our bags were starting to bulge as we became gun-shy to mail any packages after one of ours became lost enroute to America. The sun was beating down and we were running on fumes in terms of sleep. A couple of Cambodian fellows latched on to us promising a comfortable ride to Siem Reap from the border. We also read about the taxi and bus scams that abound at the border. We dragged our bags while playing the cat and mouse game with these guys. They promised an air-conditioned taxi for $60 to Siem Reap which is about 3 hours away (cheap by American standards but expensive in Cambodian). It was about 3:00pm. We wanted to pay $30. We filled out more paperwork while keeping an eye on the bags, the boys, the taxi guys and trying to read the guidebook at the same time to make sense of this chaotic border crossing. Dust was kicking up from the unpaved road, ox-drawn carts heavy with melons, bricks or textiles passed by to get to the cheap border market. It was getting late. We pretended to reject the taxi guys but, in reality, we didn’t know what alternatives we had. We boarded a “free shuttle” to the central bus and taxi station. We had no idea if this “free shuttle” was really going to take us anywhere legitimate. Lo and behold, the shuttle dropped us at the “only” taxi stand in town run by our taxi leeches. (uninviting) We offered $30 and settled on $45. Our driver didn`t speak a speck of English and he sported very long fingernails and looked about 15. (uninviting) The car was roomy at least and did, in fact, have air-con. Turns out that Siem Reap is not 3 hours away because of distance, it is 3 hours away because of the condition of the road. In other words, barely existent. For the next 3 hours, we felt as though we were in a video game as we swerved and ricocheted along the pot-holed dirt path. We dodged bicycles, ox-carts, motorcycles, oncoming crazy buses, trucks carrying road-building supplies, dogs, chickens, cows and children. Cambodia appears to be lightyears behind India in terms of development and is certainly not geared towards tourists. (uninviting) We wondered what we had gotten ourselves into. The driver made a few stops to make a few “transactions” with friends, brothers, fathers and any other English word he knew. It got dark very quickly which made traversing the road that much more…exciting. Blue fluorescent lights on rough sticks line the road. These lights are in front of every shack, house and then venture out into the uninhabited fields on either side of the road. Each light has a large white bag beneath it. We ascertained that it is a trap for catching some sort of insect. This would be considered clever and an earth-friendly alternative to pesticides had it not been for the small fact that they are not for killing insects but for trapping them to eat them. Crickets. (uninviting).

We arrived in Siem Reap unscathed and were transferred to a couple of tuk-tuks who take us to our guesthouse. We could not believe we made it. The guesthouse was full of friendly faces who scurried around us to serve us in the manner we`d become accustomed to here in Asia. So Cambodia is not only filled with blood-sucking opportunists as we had encountered so far. We crossed our fingers because we booked the guesthouse for the next night but had now arrived one day early because of our success in seamlessly making all of our connections (train-taxi-bus-tuk-tuk-taxi-tuk-tuk) over the past 24 hours (Why didn’t we pay to fly? Because we wouldn’t have this interesting story to tell!). The guesthouse was able to accommodate us (phew!) and our room was absolutely delightful as it is a converted mansion and has elegant details in the plasterwork and has lovely moulding but is also painted a cheery shade of plum to make us feel settled and happy. The place is run by an Australian couple and serves some western-style food and English is well-spoken. We were so relieved.

The first thing we noticed was that the guesthouse runs several down-to-earth tours of the surrounding area that take you into the lives of the local people. This was exactly what we had been looking for but, up until now, had not been able to find. Tours are usually of sights, temples, pagodas, museums, but never to the villages. We jettisoned our plans to only spend one day in Cambodia to tour Angkor Wat and instead extended our stay to 5.

We signed up for three tours: Day 1 - “A Day in the Life” tour of a Cambodian Village. We were very excited. We took a mini bus with our guide to a village that is financially supported by our guesthouse. We arrived and were to meet the village tribe leader but he was not feeling well and was asleep in a hammock. We had learned about how important it is for the village to have a well and a water filter installed for a mere $45 USD to support many families. We proceeded to a home where a teenage girl was busy making leaf shingles for her house’s roof. The leaf roof only lasts 3 years and it was time for a new one. We were there to help. We slipped off our shoes and sat on her bamboo floor as she and the guide showed us how to wrap the palm leaves around the bamboo and then sew the leaves to one another with a strip of bamboo with its end sharpened to become a natural needle. The boys were so happy to be participating in a traditional activity and were successful at it. We took a break from our shingle-making and headed down to the school for some English lessons. Turns out school was not in session on that day due to some administrative technicality but when the village children saw us coming down the dirt path, they jumped on their bikes with siblings dangling on the back and assumed front row seats in the ramshackle outdoor classroom and offered a synchronized, high-pitched “Hello” when we entered. We proceeded to teach this small group of children (ages 5-12) the ABC’s and the days of the week. We passed out some pens and treats and after our short lesson, these small children climbed back up on their adult-sized bicycles and headed home for lunch (maybe crickets were on the menu). We went back to the house to participate in preparing a typical meal and the boys helped our guide pick lemongrass and morning glory from the yard and together with some fermented fish, salt, spices and some other unknowns (no crickets), we made some soup. Luckily, the guide also brought some ham and cheese sandwiches and watermelon! After lunch we visited the local monastery where a group of children (some orphans taken care of by the monks) gathered to observe us. The monastery was decorated with paintings of the life of Buddha. The boys liked how the Buddha had long ears indicating longevity.

Day 2: We had a fascinating trip to a floating village so called because the local people set up their houseboats and shacks on the lake and make a living harvesting fish. Their situation is difficult and conditions are harsh. It is fascinating to see how schools, hospitals and even basketball courts float on the river. Unfortunately, children are often urged to “perform” tricks in order to earn some tips from gawking tourists such as ourselves. We grimaced at the floating crocodile farms in existence for the sole purpose of making bags, pocketbooks and shoes. This is a country struggling to earn a few buck as the countries surrounding it are well ahead economically. It was hard to pass judgement if they are not as eco-friendly as we would like them to be.

Day 3: We finally got to tour Angkor Wat. It is beautiful and has survived many invasions of this vulnerable country. The ancient carvings depict intricate details of battles between heaven and hell and tales of mythical creatures and gods. The boys found this very interesting (and learned what hell was) and were fascinated by people being decapitated and tortured for their misdeeds on earth (this may come in handy in the future). However, we were more impressed with the other-worldly Ta Prohm Temple that is in the midst of being consumed by the rainforest surrounding it. This was what we had come all of this way to see and it was hard to comprehend that so many years of uncompensated toil was now left to be destroyed, yet it was fascinating to watch it happen. It was scorching hot and we were happy to get back to our guesthouse as Henry searched for yet another newly made friend that he met the day before. These friends were usually 20-something girls who would give him unwavering attention like that of a babysitter and would be intrigued by his stories and his company. He proceeded to make dinner arrangements and we all went to dinner together at the Dead Fish Restaurant (a former fish processing warehouse rather than a description of the meals).

The next day we boarded a bus for the 5 hour trip to Phnom Penh where we would figure out how to navigate our way across the border to Vietnam. The bus was another airplane-like situation and we watched out the window mile after mile after mile the monotonous lives of people struggling to grow some crops and live a simple life from a small plot of land, a couple of goats and a bicycle yet having to avoid the surrounding tracts of land still peppered with landmines. It is hard to know where to begin to try to help a country like Cambodia get up on its feet. We were glad to have experienced the few different faces of Cambodia.

April 29 - May 26

After wrapping up a week in New Delhi taking care of administrative items such as securing our visa to Vietnam, contemplating whether to visit China, filling up on western fare, and booking hotels, we leave for Thailand. By a stroke of luck (and an error on their end), we are able to negotiate with American Airlines and secure a direct flight from New Delhi to Bangkok without having to take the long train trip south to Mumbai which we frankly didn’t have the energy to take on. We arrive in Bangkok ahead of schedule and snag a great hotel in the middle of the city.

Bangkok is very exciting and everyone is friendly and the men and women are exceptionally beautiful. Bangkok has modern stores, fashion, theaters, food, handicraft - everything! We couldn’t get enough. However, our first business was to book a train to south Thailand to head for the famous beaches. Despite low season, we still had to wait a few days before we could go so we enjoyed the city. We easily navigated the “Skytrain” which is a modern train that takes you high above the roads easily around town. We took the government ferries up the river to visit the 19th century stunning Grand Palace glistening with golden tiles, fierce warriors and religious temples. We watched our shoes very carefully. We visited the famous “Weekend Market” that stretched for miles yet we were melting in the heat but couldn’t resist scarfing up some colorful (and cheap) souvenirs. We heard that the movie theaters were like Carnegie Hall so we headed for the mall and saw a family movie. The theater was top-notch and popcorn was $1.00!

Thailand’s popular drink is fruit shakes! The boys slurped up banana, watermelon, orange and lemon shakes nearly 3 times a day. The overnight train to Koh Samui was fun. We slept in comfortable bunks, caught a bus the next morning towards the coast, took a ferry 2 hours to the island and then a taxi to the quiet north side where we stayed in a lovely bungalow owned by a French couple and which served great food! The area was dotted with authentic Thai fishing village homes turned into simple yet delicious restaurants and shops far away from the busy side of the island. We planned on staying 4 days but heard that the west coast was suffering from an early monsoon so we stayed put for 9 days just relaxing. We enjoyed massages right on the beach for pennies and the boys happily swam and built sandcastles. It was a vacation from our vacation. Everything was easy - we rented a jeep for the day and they simply hand you the key, ask you to put gas in it and say, “See you later!” We explored different beaches and tried to steer away from the rapid commercialism that is out of control on this once secret hideaway.

We reluctantly peeled ourselves away from Koh Samui and caught the overnight train back to Bangkok and then took a minibus 2 hours to Kanchanaburi with the sole intention of visiting the Tiger Temple. We headed straight there and got closeup and personal with a group of 15 or so tigers who are being taken care of by a group of monks. Monks are known for taking care of orphaned people and animals and one day someone left an orphaned tiger at the temple and since then more and more tigers have arrived. You would never be able to interact with tigers like this in America but we were able to here and under the monks’ watchful eye (and some sleepy tigers), we felt safe. We also visited Erawan Falls - gorgeous aquamarine waterfalls that fall from tier to tier each with its own swimming hole. We arrived very early in the morning and had the jungle to ourselves. We went on an elephant ride later in the day which included an elephant “bath”. This involved riding the elephants right into the fast-moving river where we learned that elephants can completely submerge themselves while artfully leaving its passengers above water (barely). We don’t think you would be able to ride elephants while they are completely submerged in a river or touch and walk with tigers anywhere in America! We are fortunate to have had the experience although we know there is a reason you can’t do these things at home. It was scary, yet exhilarating. On our way back to Bangkok, we visited a rare floating market - literally a market where the wares are sold by boat. The boat driver takes you up the meandering canals and pulls up beside different boats whose owners are selling souvenirs, melons, coffee, lunch, hats or coconuts. The market was initially created for all of the villagers who live along the canal and had no other way of transport except boat and the tradition continues (although today its filled with more souvenirs than daily necessities). We also got to see local arts and crafts and the boys got to help make brown sugar candies from coconut palm sugar.

We caught a bus back to Bangkok and hopped on an overnight train to the capital of the north, Chiang Mai. More Thai culture than international Bangkok, we got to relax in a nice hotel with pool and buffet for short money while we visited the Sunday night market (everything happens at night since it is so hot during the day) and the Chiang Mai Zoo to see the pandas that we forfeited with our abandoned China trip. We also made our way to the World of Insects Museum (boy stuff). It was quite cool. We visited a silk making shop - we never had any idea how silk was actually made as we watched the silk cocoons unravel and merge with other strands to form a single strong thread. We visited a monkey school (so called because they train monkeys to harvest coconuts but must also raise money to feed them) and we visited an elephant conservation center. In Thailand, it is all about the elephants - they are are built into the architecture and stitched into the fabric everywhere in Thailand.

We arranged a private van and driver (Mr. Wat) and set our sights on going further northwest into the jungle to visit the hill tribes - centuries-old hill tribes that have preserved their unique and colorful culture by settling far away from the modern world. However, they are not so far away that they don’t understand how to earn money from tourism. There are plenty of handicrafts to be had and we were excited to support these villages in any way we could. Several of the tribes are refugees from Myanmar (Burma). The Karen people have settled close to the border and we took a long-tail boat down a river which was the only way to access the village without a long trek (too hot). It was amazing to interact with these villagers when we had only seen them in picture books before and actually didn’t know that they still existed. Along the way Mr. Wat showed us much of the countryside that is famous for its extensive caves, waterfalls and rich soil as we embarked on a long trip into the hills zigzagging along the way as we had in India (and vowed we would never do again) but we couldn’t help but be drawn to the most authentic parts of Thailand.

Thailand was very friendly, very accessible and had it all - animals, beaches, culture, shopping and fantastic food. It truly was a land of smiles as its motto promises.

(click photo for slideshow)

April 7 - April 27

We had travelled for 10 days in India and after looking at the map we realized we only covered a very small portion of the country. We spent a few days in Delhi recuperating and a couple of nights at Pizza Hut while deciding where to venture next. Without a doubt, it would include our driver, Rajeev, and our nice air conditioned truck. Since our plans to Nepal and Tibet had been dashed, we decided to head north in an attempt to get as close as we could to catch a glimpse of the Himalayas and we read that Uttaranchal had some pretty scenery so, we headed north.

The state of Uttaranchal is mostly agricultural and the photo opportunities of life as it always has been were plentiful. Our first stop was Corbett Tiger Reserve. Rajeev had been there just the week before and had seen 10 tigers. He used his connections to successfully get us lodging deep in the middle of the park so we wouldn’t have to travel over an hour in and out of the park each day. We went on safari in the evening and in the morning and saw elephants, deer, birds, pointy-nosed alligators and jackals - but not one tiger. We heard a tiger roar, we saw tiger footprints but didn’t see one. But the boys got to stand up in the jeep while it was moving so that made up for the disappointment. They thought they were getting away with murder in the lawless Indian jungle! We decided that not seeing the tiger was a lesson for us because if we do not do anything to save the endangered tiger, no one will get to see them anymore and now we know what that would feel like (it appeased them at the time).

Next we headed into the hills to Nanital which is the vacation spot for Indians and includes all the typical relaxing activities one would partake if they were in, say, New Hampshire…boatride on the lake, shopping, playing in the arcades and horseback riding. We stayed in a hauntingly empty, old mountain villa in an oversized, chilly (higher altitude) room that Rajeev had arranged because it had plenty of grass for the boys to run around on (and they did). We saw old women carrying 50 lbs of firewood on their back down the mountain road and we saw maimed children begging for food (the boys “sponsored” one of them for the day) while we tried to enjoy the niceties yet really couldn’t as we observed how difficult it was for others. We learned to not notice the condition of the sheets nor whether the toilet was western or squat. We watched as women rolled dried cow dung into bricks to make fuel for the fire and watched as men labored to bicycle dozens of kilometers with heavy supplies piled high on the back. We learned to accept that litter is the last thing on the minds of India and that Indian people are the hardest working people we had ever seen. The food is incredibly fresh and oranges are known as sweet lemons and young men walk hand-in-hand because they are friends. We learned to pronounce our w’s as v’s and v’s as w’s (Oliver was known as Oliwer) and we learned to take pictures from a fast moving vehicle. We learned to appreciate vegetables in this vegan land and look forward to mattresses without lumps. And most importantly, children were regarded as gifts from the gods and treated accordingly.

We continued on the dizzying road northwards for hours and hours, we took time to contemplate life and the difficult questions such as, “Do snails dream?” and “Who invented infinity?”. At our next stop in Kausani we were rewarded during the dawn hours to a front row seat at our guesthouse of the Himalayas laid out before us 180 degrees across our view. Even the boys were impressed and gladly rose for the occasion. Our guesthouse clung to the mountainside surrounded by rice paddies and 15 member families living in one room amongst the rubble and debris of the harsh mountain lifestyle. Once again, for the boys, the grandeur of the Himalayas was eclipsed by the presence of two black labrador puppies. We are always reminded while travelling with our children that the world is full of things, great and small, foreign and familiar. While we tried to converse the boys simply befriended the neighborhood kids by creating a zoo from small plastic animals and cages made from a donated box of wooden toothpicks from our friendly waiter. They could not converse. This was a big deal for the local children who were seen playing with corn husks for entertainment earlier in the day. We took photos and everyone was anxious to see their image on the camera. We were promptly invited to the family “compound” to meet the elders. We climbed down the muddy, rocky “path” down to their string of rooms. The mother offered us tea and everyone was delighted to have us. The boys were excited to meet the brand spanking new calf and the grandfather of the clan who, with disabled legs, hasn’t walked since he was 30 was excited to have company.

We also went for a 6 mile trek through the hills with a local guide and passed through some remote hill towns with local villagers doing laundry in the river, scything the rice, plowing the fields and bringing supplies home by donkey or on their own backs. Children were tending the herds while groups of girls were taking refuge from the sun under a tree. It was a fantastic walk. We saw a lot of weddings on our adventure. April and May are the popular months for weddings. It was still phenomenal to us that the marriages are arranged and we saw many a somber bride having to leave the security of her family to start a new life with her new acquaintance, her husband. However, there were weddings in almost every town with adorned cars, horses and rented spaces with colorful gateways and streamers. The winding roads in the mountains were too much for our fragile stomachs so we changed our itinerary to head towards the lowlands sooner than originally planned and rested in spiritual Rishikesh and Haridwar. Here we observed the rituals upon the sacred Ganges (Ganga) river and witnessed the unfortunate throngs of people who migrate here for unconditional support from the spiritual sects. It was here that the boys studied those without limbs or eyes or food and tried to make sense of their situation. They rarely said a word but just witnessed and assessed. However, we did cancel our intended trip to Varanasi, the capital of spiritualism and poverty, because we felt that we had witnessed our share and didn’t need to have it intensified exponentially. The boys were quite eager to experience the goodness of the Ganges River and its healing powers and we were all drawn to its blue color and supposed purity. The boys were intrigued by the stories of how the river originates from the head of the god Shiva.

We were saddened by the unfortunate experience of having our shoes stolen. It is customary to leave your shoes outside places of worship and while 99% of the time they were tended by paid attendants, this one time we left our shoes unattended in an ashram. An ashram is a sanctuary for spiritual people who engage in daily rituals such as meditation, prayer and simple ways of living focused on the higher beings. Without hesitation we left our shoes while we went to sign up for a yoga class. 7 minutes later, we returned to only 2 pair of shoes belonging to the boys. The shock was overwhelming as the shoes were more valuable as a sentimental piece of our adventure rather than practical. They were the only possession that was with us every “step” of the way. Our only solice was that the boys still had theirs. We walked back almost a mile barefoot along the intimidating streetscape (you can only imagine). For some strange reason, we never had to walk around anything unsightly and it seemed as though the path had been made clear for us. Perhaps it was a lesson to “walk in someone else’s shoes” (or lack thereof as is the case in India) and take a second look at what is most important to oneself. This experience coupled with Peter’s new bout with “Delhi belly” and Oliver coming down with a 12 hour fever left us with mixed feelings. Perhaps our sins of the past were being detected by the conglomeration of spirits or we were just having a bit of bad luck. Either way we bottled some water from the Ganges for future keeping and mailed it home with all of our other treasures for remembrance of a poignant visit.

Rajeev would play classic Indian cd’s and the boys had their favorite songs that usually originate from religious chants but now are played to a catchy beat and sung about Krishna and others. They fell deeply in love with every place we would visit and would soak up the music, the dance, the vibe, the smells and the sounds. They would grow impatient as we sat for an hour or two participating in some ritual but would yell with excitement at a later date when they recognized a song or clothing or a statue that was part of the scene. It was the same as how they felt with all of the attention they got from Indian people - the petting, patting, pinching, ooohs and aaaahs, “Where are you from?”, “What is your name?”, “How old are you?”, “Are you twins?” They grew tired of it and complained on the side but, in the end, they know that the world loved them and wanted to know them and wanted to be with them and was excited because of them. Their experience, without exception, has always been them positive. They also had a positive effect on others and some people who at first glance were indifferent, bored or tired became excited, happy and eager to engage them in a conversation. Travelling with children has yielded a much more friendly, warm and true experience for us and our children.

(click photo for slideshow)

March 22 - April 6

We arrived in India from Hong Kong at a pleasant 2:30am. The boys easily bounced out of their cozy airplane seats and were as chipper as usual even at that ungodly hour. They were always very excited to see the next destination. We collected our bags and, as promised by our guesthouse, a taxi was waiting for us amid the rubble that we had to negotiate to reach it. The driver swiftly paid the young man who was guarding his seemingly illegally parked car and off we went. The Prem Sagar guesthouse was listed in our guidebook and we booked it via email as we felt lucky to find a place in the center of the city with four beds, hot water and A/C for a decent price in expensive New Delhi. The taxi let us out onto the everpresent rubble in front of a doorway whose fluorescently-lit bulb attempted to shed light on the dark alcove with scattered piles of garbage nearby and a lying dog or two which we were unable to discern whether they were alive or not. The smell of well-fermented centuries-old dust permeated the air. We are not sure what it is that arms you with the courage to arrive in a place that is so unlike anything that you had imagined it would be and still push forward around the dogs, over the manure, looking over your shoulder and then continue up the stairs hoping that there is a friendly face at some sort of desk up there. Perhaps it is hope or optimism, perhaps it is “We’ve been lucky so far…let’s go for it” or “We wanted an adventure - we asked for it” but whatever it was, we continued up the stairs with the boys not even blinking an eye at the surroundings (they were probably thinking of all of the things they could build with all of this stuff) and indeed, there was a friendly face behind a reception desk. We went right to our room and as Laura inspected the corners, and Peter looked for the right adapter to charge our batteries, the boys were ready for playtime. Every new hotel room was full of new and exciting contraptions to experiment with. After some coercing, and some prayers that India was going to be more exciting than this, we went to sleep until late the next day.

We had our bottled water with us - the boys knew the routine by now as we had trained them on the places where they should never use the tap water for brushing teeth. There was no distinction between the shower and the rest of the bathroom so the shower water would run all over the bathroom floor and slowly make its way to a drain somewhere in the corner. This made for slippery conditions but kept the floor clean! There was room service! We ordered 4 hot chocolates, bowls of corn flakes with cold milk and toast with butter. Little did we know that this would be our breakfast for the next 40 days. All dressed and ready to explore, the receptionist warned us not to go outside - it was dangerous.

We were in danger of getting colored. It was Holi. A religious day where everyone had free reign to protect you from evil by sprinkling, spraying or dousing you with brightly colored powder and it`s considered impolite to say no. After a few questions about the permanent nature of this coloring agent, we stayed in until mid-afternoon when it was supposedly safer. This gave the reception desk ample opportunity to try to sell us a car and driver deal to explore Delhi and outer regions such as Rajasthan. After converting rupees to dollars, it was too much for our wallet and we still were wondering how we were going to explore the country with no car and high temperatures and be able to break through India’s foreboding exterior. We ventured out. For a country with a billion people in it, there was no one on the streets because of the holiday. It was like we were walking onto the set of a disaster film where no one was left but us and the rubble from all of the explosions and the sun beating down on us as a few vultures soared overhead waiting for their feast. OK, there were no vultures. We declined an invitation to get “colored” and we made our way to a recommended taxi service where we may be able to hire a car and driver at a reasonable price. The office was closed. But suddenly, a non-descript man loitering outside chatting with the only other person in sight bounced up and gleefully lured us inside and assumed the position at the desk. The office was the size of a walk-in closet adorned with Hindi religious relics. The boys played with their Lego while we scrutinized this man and his suggested itinerary and his fair price. What kind of car? How big? Who is the driver? Does he speak English? Where will we stay? What is the quality of the hotels? He rustled through a few brochures and made a couple of calls and tried to assure us that we would be happy. It seemed like he was pretending to work there. Nothing seemed right.

But in India, nothing is going to be like other places, no familiar gestures or signs of trustworthiness. It was third world - business was conducted differently. They supposedly had a big fleet of cars, many drivers and years of experience and a recommendation from our guidebook. With not much to lose and plenty of time on our hands since we had canceled our adventures to Tibet and Nepal due to political turmoil, we agreed on a price. Just then the owner came in and splashed some holy water on pictures and sacred statues of Shiva and Vishnu in honor of Holi Day. There was a small gaggle of drivers outside and it was when we emerged from the office, that we met Rajeev. He immediately struck a conversation with the boys and he had a big SUV. We decided to upgrade to an SUV rather than a cramped car and because of that, Rajeev was our assigned driver since he was the driver of that vehicle. Rajeev made all of the difference from that point on. We could have been stuck with a driver who didn’t take pride in his job and who didn’t understand a foreigner’s perspective and who mumbled the minimum number of English phases as necessary. Instead, Rajeev was enthralled with the boys (he lacked children of his own), was eager to teach and our facsination with his country spurred him on to show us as much as he could off the beaten track. What was perceived as horrible became interesting, what was perceived as strange became familiar and what was inaccessible became close enough to experience.

We ate at a recommended restaurant nearby and with the English translated menu, we picked some safe options like tandoori chicken and chicken tikka and unleavened buttered bread. The next day Rajeev picked us up and we were now known as “Sir” and “Madam” and he took us to all of the major sights in Delhi. We went to temples, memorials to past kings and leaders and mega-tombs designed by those interred within but the most interesting sights were those outside the van window. Every few feet was another poignant picture of a life so different than ours. Some depicted poverty, some depicted back breaking labor, some depicted smiles, some depicted the hard way to get things done while others depicted simplicity that first world countries have traded for complicated, abstract lives. No matter what the scene, it was always made more magical by the sarees. The women’s sarees were bright, flowing and covered with a tens or hundreds of sequins. Every woman looked like a princess despite how mundane her circumstances were.

After our day in Delhi, we found the truck to be too hot. The air conditioner was weak and with the intense heat, we wondered how we were going to make it for 12 days. When Rajeev lifted the boys out of their seats, he noticed that their shirts were wet with sweat. Being that he would do anything for these boys, he announced that he was going to have the air conditioner repaired before we set out for our trip the next day. We asked how he was going to do it at night but he assured us that in India, anything is possible. Sure enough, he picked us up the next morning and there on the ceiling in the center of the truck was a brand new air conditioning unit that could reach the rear back seat where the boys sat and that we could control ourselves. Turned out that he stayed up all night to get it done.

We spent 12 days touring around the state of Rajasthan. We visited Agra-Jaipur-Pushkar-Udaipur- Ranakpur-Jaisalmer-Bikaner-Mandawar. Rajasthan was famous for its magnificent forts and palaces and the colorful sarees worn by the women. The Taj Mahal was very beautiful and larger than life. The palaces had intricate marblework that was created to make screens to hide the royal women from public view and was unlike anything we had seen before. By the end of our visit, the boys were quite adept in recognizing and naming the ubiquitous gods - Shiva, Ganesh, Krishna and the monkey-faced god whose name we only knew as monkey-faced god.

We had been gawked at in other countries and locals would not hesitate to approach us but in India, the fascination with us with exponentially greater. Indians would unabashedly stare at us with no expression nor words but as soon as we took the first step and looked them straight in the eyes, smiled and boldly said, “Namaste” (Hello), a whole group would be transformed from wary and quizzical to practically a bunch of giggling, shy toddlers. Even grown men. Once the ice was broken it was not unusual for them to form a ring around us and just look and be part of the sudden excitement that we created. Everyday we would feel either like martians or like royalty. They didn’t want anything from us, just wanted to be with us and talk to us but they didn’t know how to approach us. In this country, most people did not speak English so we often just looked and used body language or sometimes relied on a lone English-speaking person or Rajeev to translate. It was very cool. We posed for more pictures for other people’s cameras than for our own. We felt like Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt and their fascinating children (OK, use your imagination).

Cows - they were everywhere. It was actually amazing how quickly we acclimated to their presence and even their unsightly dung that was splattered all over the walkways. You simply went around it. Somehow it seemed to get cleaned up the next day. Cows were in middle of the road, they were in the alcoves between shops, and they were in the markets. They were like people. In India cows are very sacred because they provide people with so much to live on.

We got used to the perilous driving, sort of. Meaning, we allowed ourselves to be driven and were on the “wrong” side of the road as much as the “right” and drove closer to cars, trucks, cows, dogs, buses, camels, mules, people and rickshaws than we would ever dream of doing ourselves but we watched constantly trying to assess whether we were in danger which was difficult because, according to American standards, we were in danger of an accident 90% of the time but when in Rome…

We decided that we could not apply American standards of living here if we were going to try to explore India and have a positive experience. Rajeev had a sense of anticipation on the road that we never acquired at home - he knew what the other drivers were going to do and how much time he had before we hit head on. He knew which way a cow was going to walk as he nearly skinned its nose with his front bumper before he swerved to the right and the cow sauntered to the left. It was like a roller-coaster, you had to trust that the wheels were going to stay hitched to the track despite the mind-boggling curves. As a parent, we felt that our children were only in harms way if tried to fight what was normal in India. Even walking the narrow lanes to go to shops was risky as there were no sidewalks so you had to look down to avoid the cow dung, look straight to avoid the cows and look behind you to see if a vehicle was coming towards you. The boys never left our side and knew what to watch out for.

We had a few celebrations while we were in India. The Easter Bunny visited us the second day we were there and brought chocolates, jelly beans and Lego and left them at the end of Oliver and Henry’s beds during the night. Jelly bean filled eggs were hidden around our small room. The next day we arrived at the Taj Mahal to celebrate Henry’s 7th birthday. Henry picked out his own chocolate cake at a nice bakery (surprised to find chocolate in India). We decorated it with chocolate-filled eggs from our Easter stash and paper drink umbrellas that Henry picked out. We had carried our wax “7″ candle all the way from Greece where a bakery had given it to us at Oliver’s birthday. We always carried paper so that we could make cards and we picked up balloons along the way. Rajeev surprised Henry with a game and a matchbox car set despite only knowing us for a day. We celebrated Peter’s birthday while we were in Udaipur. We had dinner on the lake overlooking the palaces and listened to traditional Indian music. Rajeev covertly obtained a cake and we surprised Peter with it.

Unfortunately, Rajeev did something to his back and was practically a cripple a few days into our trip. He had to contort his body in order to even walk. He consulted with the locals who recommended a “back man” who could possibly help. We drove down a narrow dirt road and from inside a tiny nondescript “office” with a buffalo and a calf outside, Rajeev emerged 5 minutes later. This doctor would accept only what his patients could afford to pay him, usually the equivalent of 25 or 50 cents, and fixed Rajeev`s back 50% of the way at that moment and by the next day, he was 95% cured. If we hadn`t seen this with our own eyes, we wouldn’t have believed it. Rajeev introduced us to all sorts of natural concoctions that would make you feel better, naturally. Anise seeds after a meal to help digestion, rice and lentils for an upset stomach, cold yogurt lassi drinks for diarrhea and most of all, Cadbury chocolate bars once a day so the boys would feel their best!

Despite all of this good advice, we ran straight to a Pizza Hut as soon as we returned to Delhi but in the meantime booked another leg of the trip with Rajeev for 11 days in the mountains so we could get closer to the Himalayas and the hill tribes of pastoral India.

(We found India to be so full of poignant photos that it became a difficult task to pare down. Click picture below for full slideshow (179) or here for only highlights (77).)

March 18 - March 21

Our three days in Hong Kong were short and sweet. It was so impressive. The airport was so modern and gleaming and organized had every offering you could want. Bright color-coded taxis were neatly queued up and we were whisked across this other-worldly landscape to our hotel that we booked online while in New Zealand.

Seemingly brand new highways wound their way around lush, misty hills with a smattering of beautifully crafted bridges strewn across the interconnected bays like Christmas lights. Everything was so neat and perfect and colorful it was as we had been miniaturized and were driving on a brand new children’s road set. All of the dramatic hills were full of trees and untouched by development while paradoxically soaring mega-apartment complexes were carefully inserted into the scene without disrupting the beauty of the surrounding landscape. There were tens of thousands of apartments - stunning apartment buildings. The whole place was an engineering marvel as giant buildings were stacked higher, higher and higher.

The boys were concerned about the language. They felt that the language would be more foreign than anywhere else they had been. They thought that we would not be able to communicate with anyone. That has never been the case and certainly wasn’t in Hong Kong. It is incredible how prolific the english language is even among the older generation. We are so lucky that we speak English! After a rest in our hotel (oh yes, we forgot how nice a hotel was compared to motels), we ventured out. We had our Lonely Planet guidebook in hand and, as usual, tried to read it as fast as we could before arriving in the next destination. We went to Hong Kong because it was the only way we could get from New Zealand to India and it seemed like a great place for a long weekend. We made our way to the main part of the city by jumping on a city bus and stopped in to see the bird market. This was a market just like any other market except that they sold beautiful, tiny singing birds in carved wooden cages. Hong Kong loves its birds. Next was a visit to the flower market where all of the orchids and bonsai trees where being primped and trimmed.

The bustling streets were very exciting as they were full of signs and stores with everything imaginable for sale including cosmetics, freshly killed ducks, electronics, prickly fruit, pokemon-style toys, shark-fin soup and, as always, Coca-Cola. We made our way to the jade market and bought trinkets. We bought fresh fruit from the outdoor market and had a picnic in the main park next to the aviary containing fantastic large birds. After walking for miles, we finally made our way to the waterfront where all of the action was. Skyscrapers lined the bay and despite their blatant commercialism, it was an incredible sight. Each building was iced in neon piping with colors racing up and down each horizontal and vertical beam and changing colors as they moved. There was something very artistic about Samsung, Panasonic and Sanyo in this venue believe it or not.

We dined on noodles and dim-sum. The boys ate blueberries and sliced bananas and peanut butter sandwiches when the chinese food required too much bravery. We ventured to the highest point in the city by taking a bus, then a ferry, then a double-decker street car, then the longest escalator in the world and then a funicular. We saw most of Hong Kong along the way. It was a great day. We watched the skyline light up for its nightly light and laser show where the already spectacular buildings light up in sync with music.

The next day, we surprised the boys with a trip to Disneyland Hong Kong. It was great fun and we went on all of our favorite rides several times. We headed to the airport straight from Disneyland for late night flight to India.

(click pic for slideshow)

February 22 - March 17

We began the second half of our New Zealand adventure by heading towards the highest mountain in New Zealand, Mount Cook, standing at 12,316 feet. It was a bright sunny day and being that we were staying in the center of the island (New Zealand’s Outback), a little lift in elevation was a welcoming idea. The glacial lakes we passed along the way were thick with powder silt and the bluest color imaginable. We easily reached the mountain pass and we hiked along the popular Hooker Valley Trail over swing bridges and rocky pathways until we reached the base of the mountain and its massive glacier which produced the river that we had followed. We told stories, practiced spelling, boulder-hopped, held hands tightly along cliffs and dipped our toes in the frigid glacial water. We were very lucky to see Mt. Cook’s peak and glistening face on such a glorious day. This hike was one of the highlights of our trip to New Zealand. It was absolutely perfect. The famous New Zealander, Sir Edmund Hillary, had a mountaineering institute nearby and we viewed the photos and the poignant statue of the man who had recently passed on. The boys still think that we are going to climb Mt. Everest when we get to Asia.

Our next stop was idyllic Wanaka - small town, great cafes, beach on a blue lake, surrounded by mountains and forests and the great outdoors and no traffic. Alas, the place was booked and the helpful gentleman scratched his head trying to think of where we could go and remembered that a nearby campground had a few permanent tents that were new and roomy. We went across town where there was even less traffic, more lake and bigger mountains and found the tents to be better than we could have imagined. They were brand new, had three rooms with all the fixins and had comfy beds with mattresses. It was like a hotel outside! We all loved it and the boys were thrilled. They started right away gathering sticks to make forts and a table centerpiece out of pinecones. They took all of the dishes and played restaurant for hours. It was simple surprises like this that we were always thankful for. We wished we could have the stamina and where-with-all to camp more often on our journey but we never really had the opportunity to research renting camping equipment, etc. We stretched one night into four and made friends with the family in the tent next door and shared some stories and went on a couple of hikes together. The nights were so starry and crisp and the mornings so refreshing.

We headed towards the wild west coast and stopped seemingly every few kilometers to duck into yet another inviting rainforest with yet another waterfall and blue-green stream washing over boulders surrounded by ancient ferns greener than green. Besides rainforests, there were rocky and remote beaches to visit some sea lions basking in the sun and further along was the shadowy faces of the mountains that zipper their way down the coast with frosty glaciers to visit. Beach, Rainforest, Glacier and Meadows - it was all there for the taking in a day.

Surrounded by all of this gorgeous scenery we were inspired to skydive. This was the place to do it so we weighed the pros and cons for hours and hours and even contemplated whether we should leave the boys with the skydive crew and go together (could be catastrophic) or go one at a time (not as fun or romantic). Finally after confirming their safety record, we signed up to jump together the next morning. It is amazing how many scenarios you must analyze and conjure up before embarking on a skydiving escapade. What if…what if one of us…what if both of us…should we, shouldn’t we…kind of takes the fun out of it. Well, the fun was taken out for us when we woke up the next day to overcast skies and winds that did not make for a scenic nor safe flight. But, it was a good “What if” exercise. Probably best to do it when you are 20 or 80 and not in between.

We visited natural thermal springs in Hanmer Springs which was not only therapeutic but the fast waterslides made for great family fun (yes, we had to drag Peter away). We visited a vineyard owned by a friend of ours from Marblehead and his brother in NZ. The children learned all about the winemaking process while the parents carefully tasted as much as they could to discern the fragrances unique to Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

Along the way, we practiced our math and independence by letting the boys buy groceries on their own and ensure they got the right change. They loved it and would argue over whose turn it was to make the next purchase. We listened to the soundtrack of Dr. Dolittle a hundred times until they learned all of the words by heart. They still want to know if a Push-Me Pull-You really exists. Dr. Dolittle was a good choice for them as he was a great animal advocate and an inspiration to the boys as they journey around the world seeing all of these creatures in their natural habitat and truly appreciating their existence and importance. We are now reading the book which we purchased in one of the dozens of bookstores around the world that we lounge around in for hours. It is one of the boys most favorite things to do especially when they find some books that they recognize from their home collection.

We drove through mountain passes as we criss-crossed New Zealand from the middle, to the west, to the east, back to the west, back to the east and then back west to Abel Tasman National Park. We rented a cottage overlooking green mountains as far as the eye could see and took a speedboat to a trail deep inside the park and hiked the fantastic coastal trail for 6 or 7 hours back. It was another perfect place to hike and one of New Zealand’s 9 official Great Walks.

This was all on the fabulous South Island where we spent about 5 weeks and then we spent 1 week on the North Island. We explored the volcanic and thermal history of the north island and the boys were forever impacted by New Zealand’s Pompeii where we explored an outdoor museum where actual homes remain covered by volcanic soil and poignant remnants remain of those who perished. Smoking cauldrons of land and hot mud pools abound on the north island and volcanoes were no longer a mythical occurrence only seen in books and movies. The children had a deeper appreciation of Mother Nature’s abilities than before as did we.

We ended our trip with a coveted visit to a Kiwi sanctuary where we saw the comical birds scamper around their nocturnal house. They are so rare and are endangered by the import of weasel-like creatures in the last century that it was exhilarating to see them. It is very strange to see a bird with no wings! We ended our stay on St. Patrick’s day and the boys spent hours decorating the sliding glass doors of the hotel with shamrocks, pots of gold and rainbows (which they can now proudly recite the colors of in order). With a quick jaunt around Auckland, we felt we had been on familiar and comfortable lands long enough to drum up our courage to venture into cultures and environments very different from what we were used to.

February 9 - February 21

We arrived in New Zealand after a relatively short flight and after thorough scrutiny by airport officials looking for foreign matter that may affect New Zealand’s pristine and unique habitat. We pass and then have to agonize over renting a used vehicle as all of the big name brands with new cars were fully booked. Always worried about getting stranded with the kids, we get the used vehicle (1985) and figure that there are worse things then getting stranded somewhere in New Zealand. Our vehicle turned out to be reliable and cheap but paled in comparison with the ubiquitous flowery, hippie-era campervans so popular in this part of the world.

We drove into town and looked for a place to stay. There are hundreds in Queenstown but, alas, it seems to be the high season and also Japan’s tourist season. We finally found a nice motel and were so excited by the look and feel of Queenstown, we wanted to stay for a week. But, the hotel could only give us a room for 3 days so we had to move on but in our short stay we took in the formidable and craggy Remarkables mountain range, crystal blue lakes, watched extreme sports taking place in the air, on the water, from bridges, mountains and any other inhospitable location to increase the fear factor. The boys skimmed stones, sniffed out playgrounds and asked to participate in all of these extremely expensive extreme sports. In the end, we did not partake in any as the journey alone was the thrill of a lifetime and didn’t need any extreme punctuations (nor did we want to limp home early with a broken limb).

We tried desperately to capture New Zealand’s beauty and largesse in pictures but it was always a frustrating task. It was here that Laura was ready to sink some money into an upgrade but realized that seeing it is more important than capturing it. We were relieved to see a common motto on many t-shirts “Same Shirt - Different Day” as it depicted the culture here - relaxed, lots to see and no need to spend your precious time doing laundry. We were beginning to grow weary of the laundry and began to extend its wearing-power over a few days (Don’t study the photos too closely!). Luckily, the fabrics and colors we chose for our clothes made us always feel neat and clean even after a few days.

The boys seemed to struck by the beauty of New Zealand in their own subtle ways. Perhaps they looked at a scene a bit longer than usual or marveled at a dragonfly or remarked on the number of sheep in a meadow or were inspired to play hide-and-seek in a grove of inviting, fat trees. They did not hesitate to strip down and jump in the cool, sparkling water of a pristine lake and shrieked with excitement at the face of a baby calf or lamb. They would ask if they could take a picture of a sublime, snowy mountain peak or pick a small bouquet of wildflowers as a gift. Slowly but surely, nature’s bounty would have an effect on them and their compassion towards it would grow with each passing day as they voiced wanting to protect and preserve it when they grow up and be either a park ranger or cowboy (close enough).

New Zealand’s diversity was unparalleled in the proximity of seemingly unrelated rainforest, snowcapped mountain, ocean and dusty trail - all existing side-by-side. One can experience 4 different climates in one afternoon. We visited fjords in the far outreaches of the south island’s western wilderness and we explored a remote water-filled, pitch-black cave in a tiny boat that the driver steered with a pre-fastened pull rope so we could see the bioluminescent glow-worms displaying their blue constellations overhead. It was truly a gift of nature that these otherwise repulsive larvae could unknowingly create such beauty. We explored thick, green rainforests looking for young, not yet unfurled ferns - the symbol of birth and growth and the national symbol of New Zealand.

We drove along the most southern route of the South Island - the most south we had been on our journey around the world. The wind was furious and exhilarating. We found refuge in the tiny hamlet of Owaka. I knew we were in the country when I asked the waitress if they had kid’s milk and she shook her head and said, “No, only cow milk”. The environment was not good for humans and therefore, great for maintaining a safe environment for wildlife. As usual, we sought out wildlife and became up close and personal (relatively speaking ie: not a zoo) with sea lions, the world’s rarest penguins - the yellow-eyed penguin, and the world’s smallest penguin - the blue penguin. The boys played traffic cop while guarding the tiny blue penguins nightly arrival to their home conveniently located across a fairly busy side road. Our exciting encounter was with the Royal Albatross - a very large bird who nests on steep, windy cliffs which it must leverage for takeoff to support its heavy weight. We stood vigil alongside the cliff waiting to see these magnificent birds leave their nest in search of fish. Most of these animals are endangered thus reinforcing for all of us, the criticality of their protection.

(click photo for link to slideshow)

With our Great Barrier Reef adventure under our belts, we took a big sigh and headed for our long, long, long drive back to Sydney. 1,800 miles to go. There was heaps (Aussie for “lots”) to see on the way up but we were not sure what was in store for us on the way back. Our plan was to follow the Great Inland Route (there are only a handful of recommended, paved routes). It was not far enough inland to be truly considered the Outback but far enough inland to be considered The Bush. With all of the flash floods, heat warnings and huge expanses of deserted land, we opted to not venture too far inland.

Our first stop was at a town not far from Cairns that had a lot of shops and, more importantly, a bat rescue center. Our boys had grown quite fond of flying foxes during our adventure in Australia and were anxious to get a closer look. Down a small pathway, a generous lady houses dozens of bats that have either been injured or orphaned or stuck on fences. She rescues them and takes care of them until they are ready to be reacclimated to the wild. She held a variety of bats for us to look at closely. She held them upside-down, as they prefer, and fed them cookies. She explained that despite their name, their closes relatives are primates and that they are very smart. She walked over to the cage containing all of the hanging bats and called “Tilly!” and sure enough, one single bat eased her way from the middle of the cage rung by rung with her feet and walked, upside-down, over to the lady. The bat knew it’s name and the other bats knew they were being spoken to and didn’t budge from their hanging perch. The flying fox had the cutest furry face and deep, dark eyes and nudged around looking for cookies. It resumed it’s vampire-like position with its wings symmetrically covering its body. For us, all evil connotations were permanently thrown out the window.

We were impressed with the amount of recycling that Australia does. Wherever there was a public trash bin, right beside it was a recycling bin. All of the streets and sidewalks were 100% litter-free. All of the toilets used low flush and motels encouraged their guests to leave glass, paper, and cans aside for proper disposal. Australia being an isolated destination, needs to be careful of how it uses it resources and needs to vigorously protect its unique wildlife. The customs folks nearly confiscated our grass baskets from Africa as they may have contained miniscule mites but we got away with a good dousing of spray instead.

When we spied a group of kangaroos from afar at a golf course, we knew we might be in a good place to get up close and personal with these giant mice. Up until now, we had not seen them in the wild. We read about a good campground with cabins nearby so we headed for it. Tourism was low in these parts due to recent floodings but there was no rain in sight and we were one of only a few guests at this huge campground - or so we thought. After selecting our sight, we were surrounded by about 30 kangaroos and wallabies hopping around the campground. It was such a treat to be alone with these strange creatures. They were very cute and came complete with joeys to make our encounter that much more special. Kangaroos are big while wallabies are smaller and prettier. To further accentuate our outdoor adventure, Kookaburras were everywhere flitting from tree to tree overhead. We hadn’t seen one of these large birds in the wild either. We couldn’t believe our luck. We slept in strange pod-shaped plastic huts to the sounds of the Australian bush and woke to an outback-style breakfast outside where we cooked our toast over fire and sat on logs while eating our oats. The boys loved it.

We had to hit the road again and dodge the enormous “road trains” that barrelled past us every 20 miles. They were huge trucks hauling 4 cars carrying coal. The whole car would shudder and shake when they rolled past us. We think we counted 74 tires on these road trains. After the kangas and kookaburras, that was about all the excitement there was for a few days. Just the road and more road and more road. We did see beautiful parrots along the way and a flock of emus here and there but otherwise, the infamous long stretches of Australian highway was what we saw. There was lots of time for pondering so we had to answer some hard questions like “What are eyeballs made of?” and “Can people run faster than the wind?” and “Do germs have germs?” We listened to My Father’s Dragon and watched the beautiful country scenes pass by dotted with old windmills, purple fields, horses, crops, and towns that were a potpourri of saloon-style buildings, victorian hotels, and non-descript motels that we called home.

After spending a couple of nights in the Australian country music capital of Tamworth for some good barbeque and to watch a depressing Superbowl (yes, it was televised in Australia), we finally made it to Sydney and without reservations, needed to go around door to door looking for a place to stay in the outskirts in a town called Manley. Everything was extraordinarily expensive or booked so we ended up in a backpacker-style place (ie flimsy beds, old furniture, no soap, don’t look in corners) type of place. Ughh. We spent the days in Sydney returning the car, going to the museum, touring the Opera House and strolling through the botanical gardens decorated with flying foxes in the trees. We mailed home yet another box of collected trinkets and felt that our adventure in Australia had been successful and worth every mile.

Australia Part 3 - The Northern Tropics

We returned from other-worldy Fraser Island to picturesque Hervey Bay, the launching spot for Fraser Island, and felt the need to stay put for a while and we found a motel that was like a little home along the esplanade of the town with the beach right across the street. This little apartment had lovely decor and a dvd player with free rentals! We think the kids watched 4 movies in 24 hours! Having dvd players in the motel rooms was a novelty for us. We were ecstatic! We watched movies, caught up on schoolwork, watched the bats make their nightly foray towards the giant fig trees and indulged in some much missed Mexican food. Plus, they had wireless internet and a pool! This was beyond expectations! Who needs reservations? We felt like trying to slow down a bit and enjoy a home for a few days. Just like home, the boys would dump their entire cache of Lego on the floor and play for hours. School books would be strewn around, our world map would be hung on the wall, our clothesline would be precariously fastened to a kitchen cabinet and a doorknob and we would cook in our own kitchen. Most places we stayed were categorized as “self-catering” which meant that they had a full kitchen, table, chairs and cooking utensils. Australia had all of the foods that we were used to, just fewer options. It felt embarrassing to see that Australia would offer 15 different cereals where the US offers 40 or 50! It seemed completely unnecessary. Furthermore, ALL of Australia’s cereals were healthy and made from whole grain as were some of their yummy cookies. The boys had their favorite 2 or 3 cereals and we were able to get instant oatmeal - Oliver’s favorite. Things we missed as far as choices were concerned were a better variety of granola bars and snack foods. Australia specializes in potato chips. If you wanted Cheetos or Corn Chips, they didn’t exist. There was usually one brand of popcorn and one brand of pretzels offered in one shape. But the potato chips were practically a “meal-in-a-bag”. Some of the offered flavors were “Chicken, Lime, Chorizo”, “Proscuitto, Parmesean”, “Steak, BBQ, Onion”, “Sausage, Rosemary, Pepper”. They brought potato chips to new heights. We missed bagels, fig newtons, and miniature carrots (we looked like cartoon figures chomping on larger than life big carrots in the car!) Our car was usually stocked with nuts, trail mix, bread, peanut butter, jelly, parmalat milk, plastic utensils, plates, paper towels, crackers and leftover candy that was begged for regularly.

After Hervey Bay we headed north as the boys learned the words to songs on our Ipod such as “Peace Train” by Cat Stevens, “Wasting Away Again in Margaritaville” by Jimmy Buffet and “Crocodile Rock” by Elton John. We headed to Bundaberg near a sanctuary called Mon Repos which is a popular nesting ground for sea turtles. We were disappointed to have missed them in South Africa so perhaps this would be our second chance. We made a booking and headed over to the sanctuary at dusk as the turtles do not beach until nightfall. We were lucky to be here during the egg-laying season. After everyone arrives they get assigned to a specific group according to when their reservations were made. Later in the evening rangers scan the beaches and when they see a turtle come ashore they call the first group to come observe. If only one turtle comes in then only one group goes. One group per turtle. After a few hours of patient waiting, we were finally called and in the darkness we got to watch a turtle the size of the hood of our car lay over 100 eggs into a hole she dug with her uncoordinated flippers. No lights and no cameras were allowed but the boys sat right up front watching each egg drop into its nest. Then we watched her diligently bury them and attempt to make the beach look unaffected and then she made her way back to the sea never seeing the fruit of her labor. Because we were the last group, we were lucky to watch another turtle who came in beside ours and this time we watched her face rather than her backside as she decided to face the opposite way. These were loggerhead turtles and we learned all about the different sea turtles and why they are endangered and how nature urges these creatures to come back to the same beach they were hatched on 30 years ago and lay eggs for the first time. We also learned that the gender of each hatchling is determined by the temperature of the sand the eggs are laid in. Warmer sand produces females and cooler sand produces males. It was all very amazing especially learning that only 1 out of 1000 hatchlings will successfully return to nest.

The next day we celebrated with a visit to the Bundaberg Rum distillery. We were all interested especially after having driven by thousands of acres of sugar cane. It seemed that was all that was grown on the east coast. The boys were interested in seeing how this pirate grog was made and we were excited for the tastings at the end. Bundaberg Rum is very popular and a proud sponsor of many Australian sporting events - everyone drinks or sells Bundaberg. We all felt like having some refreshing rum drinks as the tropical latitude was becoming quite apparent. It was very strange to travel north and have it become warmer and warmer.

We arrived in Agnes Water with hopes of going out to the pristine island of Lady Musgrave, one of the southernmost islands of the Great Barrier Reef. We waited a few days but the wind and rain didn’t let up enough to allow for successful snorkeling. With the price tag associated with snorkeling the Reef, we wanted good weather. So we opted to move north and hope to get out to the Reef from up there.

On our way north, we stopped in an Aboriginal Cultural Center and got some hands-on lessons for throwing boomerangs. That was a blast! We arrived in Airlie Beach which is the launching site for excursions out to the fantastic Whitsunday Islands. The islands are famous for snorkeling, diving and sailing and are the most accessible islands comprising the Great Barrier Reef. The weather looked promising for the next few days (as much as it could be predicted in these unstable skies). We booked two different excursions and on the first day, although there was heavy cloud cover on the land, the skies on the sea were blue. Dolphins chased alongside the boat and the captain let the boys take turns “driving” the boat to a secluded cove. We tried to memorize the fish names on laminated identification charts before diving in to watch oversized Wrasse fish with giant lips dominate the water while clown fish and giant clams and an octopus completed the underwater scenery. Dad even took an introductory diving class and we watched him explore the ocean bottom while we hovered above him. We learned that Wrasse (as do other fish) can change from female to male should the males become scarce. We had donned our stinger suits because of vicious jellyfish that can hospitalize you yet are invisible to see. Nothing is free. It seems that most of our adventures involved looking over our shoulder for some potential danger. We suppose it wouldn’t be an adventure otherwise. On the way back, we enjoyed the seascape as the brilliant green Whitsundays floated atop the royal blue water and the white sea foam splashed the boys legs as they dangled them over the bow of each hull of the fast catamaran. After a day of rest and basking in the pool at our apartment and watching hundreds of cockatoos gather at dusk in their favorite tree, we headed back out to sea for another view of the underwater world. We slipped into our stinger suits. Peter and Oliver went first and Laura and Henry followed. The stinger suits came up to our necks as 95% coverage seemed sufficient, unless you are Henry. Two large typical jellyfish swam on either side of us with, what we thought, plenty of clearance. Their tentacles must have trailed farther than expected because Henry blasted out of the water grabbing his neck. “I’ve been stung!” he shrieked. He was familiar with the situation from his mother’s experience in South Africa. However, he was not prepared for the stinging that ensued over the next 45 minutes. This was not the type of sting that hospitalizes you but seeing the labyrinth of red lashings surrounding his neck like a turtleneck was startling as each serpentine strand swelled into long welts. Peter and Oliver were unaware as we were lifted into the dingy that we hailed to come to our aid. We sat near the back of the front of the boat so as not to alarm the other passengers swimming off the back as Henry’s wails were disconcerting. We tried to apply ice packs but Henry refused as he sweat from the sheer energy of crying. The welts looked gruesome on such a small person but we were reassured that it would only last a relatively short time. After what seemed like eternity, Henry began to settle down, especially when cookies were offered as snacks. Another little girl bought him a bag of potato chips to cheer him up and he got to drive this significantly bigger boat for a while. Later, he was fascinated to look in the mirror at his war wounds and became quite proud of himself after all of the reminders from the crew and passengers of what a brave snorkeler he was.

We took a little bushwalk on one of the islands and while we hiked our guide wondered if anyone had ever eaten ants. When no one raised their hand she asked if anyone would want to try one. Oliver and Henry were the first to put their hands up. She foraged for some particular ants with a lemony pouch on their lower body. She snipped off the pouch and fed one to each boy. They decided the first taste was not exciting enough and asked for a second. Thereafter, they were foraging around the trees gleaning their own snacks much to their mother’s chagrin (she was secretly glowing with pride in her brave boys). Next, we pulled into Whitehaven beach - a gem in the world of beaches. The sand is the purest in the world and tons of it were harvested to build the lens of a NASA telescope. It was as soft as silk and so bright it seemed it would glow in the dark. To walk the beach we would need to wade through the water from the boat. Henry was the first person to put his stinger suit on and jump in! Helicopters landed on the famous beach and we all frolicked on the sand before reluctantly returning to our boat. It was a glorious day to be out on the water.

We continued north to the towns of Townsend and Cairns. Both are nice towns with fabulous “lagoons” built at the waterfront. Because of the poisonous jellyfish in the water, towns need pools. The pools are so nicely incorporated into the landscape that they call them lagoons as if they were part of the natural landscape. The fabulous and often warm pools have helped improve the boys confidence in the water to include diving, cannonballs, underwater obstacle courses, somersaults and swimming long distances in deep water. The esplanades in both towns are so well laid out and each have a waterpark and playground. The one in Townsend includes water spraying out from guns, poles, mushrooms, sprinklers and a giant bucket that gets poured regularly on those below. Even Dad joined in the fun. On the way to Cairns we stopped to explore Wallman Falls - the tallest falls in Australia. Strangely (or not so strangely with our experience), we were the only ones there. We thought we could swim under them so we climbed down, down, down the face of a cliff on a zig-zag path through rainforest and timber and vines as brush turkeys flurried away at our approach. We got to the bottom only to see that there was no easy and safe access to the pools below. So, we took pictures and started our nearly vertical ascent back to the top. It was definitely a test of perseverance and our reward, besides personal gratification, was a package of melting Tim Tams - Australia’s favorite chocolate covered cookie.

We could not get enough of the tropical landscape and wanted to wander further and further until we could reach the tip of northeast Australia but, as it was, we had traveled 1800 miles - roughly equivalent to the distance from Maine to Florida and we still had to get back the same distance. So, due to time and dirt roads and a profusion of man-eating crocodiles living in the northern reaches, we only went as far as the lovely and UNESCO-protected Daintree Rainforest, home of the elusive and endangered Cassowary. The Cassowary is a flightless bird smaller than an ostrich with a remarkable bony mass protruding from the top of its head. It is like no other bird we have seen or read about. We saw one in sanctuary but its home is in Daintree. Unfortunately the harvesting of timber threatens the Cassowary’s life and, thankfully, most of the rainforest is now protected. Few people have seen the shy bird despite its size. We were always on the lookout from the road. We took sidetrips into green, green Mosman Gorge for a good look at the rainforest landscape and for a swim among the boulders where iridescent blue Ulysses butterflies eluded Mom’s camera and then we drove further towards Cape Tribulation to a recommended ice creamery where they dished out flavors-of-the-day. We enjoyed passionfruit, coconut, and black sapote (a fruit that resembles chocolate!) all made on the premises. We were far from our motel in Cairns when we headed back from Daintree. The sun began to set and all was quiet on the roads. As we turned down a sideroad to explore one more beach, a Cassowary emerged from the bush and crossed the road right in front of our car!!! We nearly jumped out of our seats and as Dad jammed on the brakes and Mom fumbled with the camera, we caught a glimpse on film before it blended back into the bush. To this day, Henry claims that this is his favorite unexpected encounter with wildlife.

After contemplating wind speeds, visibility, wave action, sunshine, jellyfish and the boys’ enthusiasm, we decided to give the Reef one more visit and booked a trip out the next morning (since Henry missed out on the last one). This trip took us out to the outer reef to a permanent pontoon to which a glass bottom boat and a semi-submersible were docked for activities besides snorkeling. We saw some more of what the Reef had to offer and although we never really hit the proverbial sweetspot of the Reef with oodles of fish and fluorescent colors and patterns, we feel that it was time well-spent on one of the precious natural wonders of the world and one that is in danger of becoming extinct due to the very imminent dangers of global warming.

It was time to start heading south again to return to Sydney.

(click photo for slideshow)

Australia Part 2 - The Coast Jan 2 - Jan 11

At this point, we believe that Peter has driven more miles on the left hand side of the road than the right, however, it still continues to be difficult crossing the street. We end up looking 360 degrees before attempting to cross despite the friendly reminders painted on each corner to ”Look Right’. We arrived at Hertz with the throngs of other folks who stayed in Sydney until the fireworks were over. We were lucky to secure a car and headed west towards a favorite Australian destination - the Blue Mountains. Our original plan was to see more of Australia than just the east coast but eventually it sunk in that it was a lot of land to cover and intra-continental flights would have been expensive for us. After covering so much territory in South Africa we figured we would focus on one area. As much as we would have liked to see Ayers Rock/Uluru, it would have been a very long haul with not much in between along with the worries of breaking down in the hot outback. We also decided not to go south of Sydney as we anticipated that the wilds of Queensland would keep us very busy for 6 weeks.

Outside of the city, we saw our first cockatoo squawking over our heads as we went in search of lunch. We also had our first experience competing with the other Aussies travelling on their summer vacation as we drove from one lodging to another all full with tourists and no vacancies. So far, we have always landed on our feet and have not yet had to spend a night in the car and we still prefer to travel with no reservations to have as much freedom as possible. The only time we attempt to make reservations is when we are heading to cities. It is easy to drive from place to place in a small town versus a large and confusing city. Campervans would have been a good fail-safe option but with minimum research, we couldn’t find anything that wouldn’t exceed our daily budget and, besides, tight quarters for 4 people 24 hours a day would have been hard. Instead, we had to pay a premium for the “last room” at the local motel. The Blue Mountains are known for their blue haze from the evaporating eucalyptus reflecting the sun. We walked a recommended cliff walk and viewed the “Three Sisters” which are three famous pinnacles of rock that attract a lot of tourists. We descended into the valley on the steepest rail in the world according to Guinness. We meandered through orchards and discovered Australia’s famous meat pies. Little four inch pies stuffed with meat, chicken, vegetables, spices and any combination of these. They are sold everywhere.

Once we left the blue mountains, the first matter of course was to see a koala. It wasn’t long before we came upon a koala sanctuary where we were able to mingle with a koala - up close and personal. In addition, we interacted with wallabies and crocodiles. Koalas are very soft and sleep most of the day. The sanctuary was only an appetizer for our coveted main course - The Australia Zoo owned by the late Steve Irwin and his family. We arrived at the zoo promptly the next day - an hour early actually because we didn’t realize that by crossing from New South Wales into Queensland, you gain an hour since Queensland doesn’t participate in daylight savings time. The zoo was phenomenal to say the least. All of the animals are in natural habitats and there is a wide range of interesting animals many which we had never seen including the fierce Tasmanian Devil, Dingos, Wombats, Cassowaries, Kookaburras, Galapagos Tortoises, and of course, meat-eating crocodiles and kangaroos. There was an undercurrent of sadness as Steve Irwin’s face was larger than life on various billboards and posters around the zoo enthusiastically wide-eyed while posing with a native Australian creature. The conservation message was loud and clear delivered in a friendly, inspiring way. One of the highlights for us was to arrive at the 12:00pm crocodile show and be wowed to see Terri Irwin host the show along with Steve’s best friend and director of the zoo, Wes. She hand-fed several gigantic crocs and got the crowd roaring with applause. We were lucky to catch her in town.

We continued to meander up the coast. We would just pull into a town and usually there was a plethora of motels to choose from. While the term “motel” in America has less than favorable connotations , the motels in Australia were so spic-n-span and well maintained that we wouldn’t choose any other lodging. Australia is chock full of motels- nice, clean, lovely motels. One of the first motels even offered us complimentary beer or wine upon arrival!. All motels provide a pint of fresh milk for your morning coffee or tea and most have wireless internet. They always had a refrigerator and often had kitchen facilities. They are extremely clean - extremely. This was the first place on our trip where motels were king! There were at least a dozen in every town, even small towns. We don’t recall seeing a single motel in Egypt or Morocco. So, we motel-hopped happily up the coast and the competition for vacancies weaned as we headed north into hotter and hotter weather which was unfavorable for summer vacation.

Our next exciting adventure was to Fraser Island. It’s notoriety is that it is the largest sand island in the world yet it boasts many diverse ecosystems. Despite the threatening forecast, we rented our 4-wheel drive vehicle which is required for driving on an all-sand island. The allure is that you can drive along the beach for 70 miles and camp most anywhere along it. The only thing to remember is that you can only drive on the beach during low tide. So along with rented camping gear, we drove onto the next morning’s ferry. Peter was happy to get behind the wheel of a Land Rover Defender, Laura was happy to be on a pristine island and the boys were happy to go camping. The sand tracks meandered through ancient forests and past florescent-blue lakes and over dunes until they spilled out onto the main coast long and desolate enough for aircraft to land on. The forests were filled with towering Satinay trees so water-tight that they were harvested for boat-building and for lining the Panama Canal. It was very exciting as we bump-bump-bumped along in our rustic vehicle watching downward to avoid the ocean waves and upward to avoid collisions with planes. We also were on the lookout for the elusive Dingo - a sweet-looking, honey-colored dog that lives in packs on the island. We found an isolated spot - just us and the ocean. No vehicles passed by as it was high-tide. We set up camp, ate and got comfy just in time for the rain that had been threatening all day. Well, we must have done something wrong because after a few hours, our sleeping pads were floating in no less than 1 inch of water! We migrated to the truck and slept airline-style for the rest of the night while the boys lay on the bench seat none the wiser. The next day we climbed sand dunes, waded in a spring-fed creek, built sand castles and forts and enjoyed our solitude. A Dingo paid us a visit as we were setting up camp the next evening and sniffed around and looked for some handouts but got none and his lean body scampered away. Oliver and Henry were elated to have been approached by a wild Dingo!!! We built a better house and stayed dry the next night. There were plenty of Dingo tracks the next morning telling us that they returned to see if we left any peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the sand. We took a dip in the idyllic Lake MacKenzie and headed back to the mainland. We didn’t have much sun but the overcast and windy atmosphere lent itself to the wild and uninhabited nature of this island and what life must have always been like along this windswept coast. While we waited for the ferry, we passed the time looking at slideshows from the earlier part of our trip trying to keep the memories alive in our heads and especially for the boys. The number of images, places, languages, music, vegetation and animal life must be so intertwined in their minds. To help, we play the “JFA game” where Peter asks questions such as, “Where were we when we saw the Blue Mosque?” or “What city did we eat chocolate crepes in?” or “Where did we sleep in a bivouac?” or “Which country did you drink peach juice every day?”

We were only 9 days into our driving adventure and had seen some beautiful scenery and animals. We couldn’t wait to see what else Queensland had to offer us as we traveled further north into the Tropics.