Bangkok.... again

"On the road again ....". oooops, not quite so fast there little lady. Poovar to Trivandrum to Mumbai to Delhi to Bangkok: sounds easy, doesn't it. Well, it was hell. But I did meet an interesting young man from Paris (he's Cambodian) and had some good chats while we were waiting for flights and then I was put in First Class Delhi to Bangkok, for some strange reason. They must have seen the dangerous look in my eyes from having been travelling for so many hours and no food or wine. It was heaven, although no lobster or steak in sight, just chicken chicken chicken. But loads of good red wine and a HUGE seat, and movies. It was over all too soon. Then Bangkok. But Iceland stepped in and my connecting flight to Qatar and Milan was cancelled so back to the Atlanta Hotel. And for those of you who haven't had a chance to follow international conflicts there is basically a civil war ratcheting up here in Bangkok. So I've been here 5 days (seems forever when you're stuck) and last night I heard the first explosions. 3 people killed and over 75 injured in the center of Bangkok, where the "Red Shirts" or Maoists have been staked out for weeks. They're not sure who fired the granades with shoulder-held grenade launchers but fact is, the terrible violence has really started. The huge tragedy is that the majority of people that are involved in this uprising are poor people from the countryside that have been bused in as "soldiers" of the power factions and they set up home in the streets, complete with beds, food stalls, clothing stalls, music. And many of them came with their children, with nobody to look after them back home. So the carnage is even more a tragedy and hopefully tonite they're not going to be more battles with grenades. The Maoists have set up roadblocks with tires and bamboo spears and look as if they are in for the long haul. The place is swarming with international journalists, with flak jackets and helmets: a real war zone. I just hope I get out on my scheduled flight on Sunday through Qatar to Milan. The world is truly a shaky place right now, and my daughter-in-law Clarissa from Kathmandu told me yesterday that the situation is very similar in Nepal and they are just waiting for it to explode. Even the more sad since the ones that get caught in the middle are the vulnerable poor.

boating through the canals

Here's some photos from a pole-pushed outrigger going through the canals, and my Kerala traditional bungalow house (all teak and wild jackfruit tree wood... wow)

Kerala, India

Hot hot hot. Muggy muggy muggy. And stickly spectacular: white egrets and eagles chasing each other out of the natural pools and canals of brackish tidal water water meandering through and around this manmade island. This is the first time I've seen palm trees growing in the water: 2 - 3 feet of it. A few years ago someone dug up sand from the canals and made this island, which has become the base for a number of resorts: Poovar Island Resort, Isola di Cocco Ayurvedic Resort (where I am), Estuary Island Resort, etc. All more or less luxurious, but in this season, the "low" season prices are half what they are during the winter months, or high season. They are also down to bare bones personnel and I still haven't had hot water since I've been here, but there is AC, TV a minifridge and WiFi so it's great. Yesterday I went to the veggie and fruit stand and bought some fresh stuff which I'm going to give to the kitchen here so I will have something to eat besides overboiled beans, carrots, and cauliflower... yuck. But it's all very healthy and the other women here are all doing Ayurvedic cures and I've had my blood tested for $8.00. Everything great... a little high on the cholesterol 198... but what the heck, at my age.... yoga every morning for free on a platform overlooking the river... I love it here but I'm sort of getting anxious to get to Italy and see Eugenio and friends... I've been offered a number of properties to buy and if I was in the market this place would be a great investment. Kerala is very popular among wealthy Indians (who are now by far wealthier and better tourists than westerners....) and will only become more and more valuable... If anybody is interested I will send photos. Love to you all!

:.( it was just a matter of time

Yep, actually I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner, given that I eat and drink everything, even street food since the way and the time I am travelling for makes it unfeasible to do it differently. I'M SICK! Boohoo and I feel crappier with every minute... achy, nauseated, headache, belly sounding unreal: the stage is being set for a major uncomfortable to say the least, gastroenteritis. I recognize the symptoms and given my location it is probably bacterial rather than viral. So thank you Daddy: I headed for the Ciprofloxacin that you bought for me just before I left on my trip. Actually the Tamiflu saved my derriere once (and he got that for me too) since I was SURROUNDED by people with bad flu and I didn't get it. So thank you Daddy, again. I expect to feel alot better in a few hours, hopefully in time for my flight to Delhi. Right now I'm laid out and will stay this way until it's time for the taxi to take me to the airport, around 7 pm. Oh God, I HOPE it starts working: my ears are ringing, my skin is beginning to feel really irritated and my muscles and bones HURT. I hope I didn't get Dengue Fever which is very prevelant in all the countries I have travelled in and there is no vaccine for it. Let's just say I hope it's a regular E.coli based gastroenteritis... or even salmonella. Since I'm alone and a major fever would be a major bummer right now, although Everyone in the hotel, both here and at the Hostel in Delhi are very helpful and extremely nice. Where's my mommy?! Ouch. I'm open to any expressions of compassion, well wishes, blown kisses.

Amritsar and outlying village

I'm really starting to dig this place: You can feel it's a frontier city, growing so quickly, striving for wealth, struggling in poverty. The people are circumspect, but immediately friendly when you just smile at them. I wore my punjabi dress last night to visit the Golden Temple and had many compliments: they love that I am dressing in the local traditional way and don't find it awkward. I visited my rickshaw driver's village and family today, and was treated to lime soda and chips: they live in one room (a very small room) where they cook, eat and sleep. The 4 of them all together in one big bed which serves as a couch and table during the day. A beautiful shade tree in the small yard and what more could you want? Well, actually Kuldeep would love his own rickshaw (he rents his daily for about 125 ruppees) a new rickshaw costing 10,000 (about $200) and I am considering gifting him one. It would make it easier to make more money to send his kids to school. We went shopping for a few new clothes for him, his wife and kids and they were so happy: it was such a treat to see them so thrilled with such small things. We also went around the local temple and saw some large painted statues of different Hindu gods. a small donation earned me some rose petals and marigold petals to nibble on... delightful. Then I was back to Amritsar to the best Dhaba restaurant for a small Thali, any number of things but in this case a mixed dish of potato pancake, with bowls of yoghurt, chick peas in sauce and salad: all strictly veg. A hot milk tea to finish it off: as you can see, it agrees with me! Back to the hotel for a rest, some AC and TV and WiFi. Cheers! Tommorrow back to Delhi on a short plane ride for $80 and back to the Nirvana Hostel in South Delhi to plan my next move. Maybe Kerala.... I'll miss Amritsar though.

My rickshaw driver, his family and village

Amritsar, Punjab

Reporting from the crossroads of Muslim and Sikh faiths and cultures... wow. It's amazing here: chaos interlaced with oasis of peace, extreme poverty, gilded in gold and beautiful colors of the saris and tunics, turbans and veils, jeans, scooters, horse carts and bicycle rickshaws. This morning I got picked up from my little hotel by my favorite bicycle rickshaw driver, one of the few with a smattering of English and didn't look as if he was going to die of fatigue, and we headed for the goldem Temple, the maximum expression of Sikh devotion. A Golden Temple floating on an enormous pool of water, teeming with huge koi and catfish, where the men do daily ablutions and cleanse their children to bless them. Turbaned men clean constantly the marble walkways and stairs... it's beauty is beyond description so I have attached some photos. Some say it rivals the Taj Mahal. I returned this evening to see it in the night lights, thousands of people milling around, eating, sleeping, chatting, praying, strolling and singing. I bought a Punjabi tunic with pants and a head scarf so I wouldn't stand out so much since I seem to attract alot of attention, for a couple of reasons: 1) I'm a foreigner and there are not many here; 2) I'm a woman alone and there are NONE of them here. Tomorrow I will go with my rickshaw wallah to his village (10 km of cycling but he insists) to meet his wife and children.

Ko Surin then Ko Phayam - Thailand

After having investigated a number of alternatives, from Phuket to Phi Phi to Samui I settled on Ko Surin, also given it's proximity to Burma where I could get another visa for 15 days. If you overstay your visa it's expensive: I overstayed 4 days and it cost me 2000 Baht or about $70... I could stay 2 weeks in a guest house here for that. Anyway, with a friend of mine from Baja, Kate, visiting Bangkok with her husband Gordon (who stayed in Bangkok for some medical stuff), we came on the bus (VIP fantastic - we could all learn something from the buses here! We even stopped for a nice, warm chicken rice soup and veggies at 1 AM at a clean and efficient roadside restaurant on the way on the 12 hour bus ride from Bangkok to Ranong and all for about $20: including the ticket!). Then a two hour ferry ride, the "slow boat", to Ko Surin: the most spectacular snorkeling I have ever done in my life: hard and soft corals, fish of every dimension and color, warm water, great visibility. It is a National Park so we camped in our own tents on the beach and used their facilities, a very inexpensive and beautiful stay. We made our own coffee in the mornings on a little fire stove that we bought in Bangkok and watched the sunrise. Lemongrass tea in the evenings watching the stars before sleeping. And to digest the horrible park food.... be warned if you go there, bring your own food. The park staff was uncooperative, to say the least. We think it was because we were independents and not part of a "tour group". We were bucking the system and the Thais like to think that they are very organized... they didn't approve of our "wildness" but being two older women they didn't dare say anything to us about it. And we had a blast. Back to Ranong overnight in a seedy hotel, then Kate went on ahead and I got in a longtail boat and braved the wild seas in between Burma and Thailand, arriving in Burma and within 10 minutes had the needed entrance/exit proof to return and get a new visa in the Thai port, braving the high waves in the very sketchy longtail boat, with an engine that sounded as if it was going to explode any moment. Then on to Ko Phayam, which is a budding Goa sort of but still gorgeous, covered in palm trees and cashew trees and we zoom around on scooters (there are no other vehicles and the path crossing the island is only wide enough for 2 scooters to pass each other). We have a nice, basic little bungalow on a quiet beach which also comes with a great restaurant and provides us with mango shakes in the evening that we add rum to. Well, since I'm running the risk of causing some jealousy here I will desist and post in a few days again, with photos, from Bangkok. There seems to be some political unrest so I will keep you all posted on that too. The RED SHIRTS ARE COMING!
I'm looking at tickets to Milan to visit Euge and some friends.

Just a few last photos from Surin including the extremely large elephant "parked" under our little house (which the mahout and family vacated so that we could stay there in their two little rooms... bathroom is outside) There is also a cute photo of monks in a pickup truck, and a really cool tuk tuk or sort of motorcyle rickshaw. He didn't want to sell it... I'm now back in Bangkok at a very basic hotel or "guest house" (what do you want for $8 in Bangkok anyway!) and just went to see Avatar in 3D IMax at the mega mall, with some friends from Baja that I hooked up with. It was fantastic and I recommend it to all (although it could be a bit much for kids under 8 or 9 years old since there are a few scary creatures and 3D makes it seems as if they are landing in your lap). It's 1 AM and sweltering so I'm going to try to get some sleep in the big city. Ooops, I just ripped through the threadbare sheet but at least there aren't any blood spots from bedbugs, although the small bathroom smells like a promising place for all sorts of mutant bugs... After the gigantic jumping spiders (Huntsman) in the small bathroom of Surin however anything will look like smallfry in comparison, and luckily there is a screen on the window so no mosquitos, yay!

last few days in the Surin Elephant Project

Still in Surin, eastern Thailand, with the elephants (if you read the blog you will see that we have one parked under the house). We will be here for about 3 more days then on the bus 7 hours to Bangkok, then who knows how many hours to Ranong then another bus south for a few hours then a boat out to an island off the coast of Thailand and Burma called Ko Surin where there will be some relaxing time, doing some diving. It has been very challenging here and tiring: we wake up at around 5:30 am, breakfast then scooping elephant poop and mucking out their areas, then going to cut elephant grass or sugarcane with machetes, then lunch, a short rest and then on to a school to teach english or to the elephant poop paper factory or taking the elephants for a bath after a 2 mile walk to the river. It was 37 degrees centigrade in the bedroom at 2 pm today. Then it's bucket shower time and then on for dinner, where tonight we had a special treat of fried crickets and super spicey fried pork and some boiled morning glory greens.... all washed down with the local Chang (elephant) beer. I'm "nackered" as the Aussie and English volonteers that are here with me would say, so it's off to bed at 9 pm and up to do it again. Last night was very noisy with growling elephants (that sound just like lions) and fighting wild dogs so I'll sleep well tonite, even though the mattress is as hard as the floor and the geckos are barking

Hard Lessons

So, my thoughts about elephants has been totally turned upside down, except for the fact that they are awesome: they are WAY smarter than I thought, capable of training me in a few minutes to constantly feed them goodies and NO SLACKING. But the most important lesson was a very hard one to learn at first because I had to be witness to an unbelievable amount of cruelty, most specifically in a short movie that I saw on how baby elephants are "trained" to obey, for the rest of their lives, IF they survive the incredibly high mortality rate for babies and the very common result of insanity (in elephants! who ever suspected). The movie in question regarding most specifically elephants that supposedly "paint" wonderful pictures, sort of prodigies. But in essence they are cruelly beaten with metal hooks (the classic instrument of the mahout). My dream of becoming a mahout has dissappeared and now I realize that NO elephant should ever be made to work or perform, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. This is the same with any wild animal show, where the animals never do things because they want to but because they are forced, through cruel programming as babies. Anyway, moving right along, this knowledge was obtained by living closely with them (and I mean closely since there is one chained under the hut on pilings that I am staying in, and in the late afternoon now he is scratching his butt and shaking the whole building very alarmingly) and it has been an amazing and beautiful experience. I will be here a few more days and then move on to the coast perhaps. Anyway, hope you enjoy some photos and I will attempt to include a video... Love to you all.

so i have returned to Chiang Mai to collect my extra clothes and stuff from the Tai Lai Hotel and will return tomorrow to the Elephant Nature Park. This place has been a total eyd and mind opener for me, even after a few days. We are about 59 volunteers that for for the last days from early morning to early night we are split up into work groups which do eveything from preparing the food for the elephants (cutting grass and corn stalks with machetes, mucking out elephants areas, bathing the elephants in the river with buckets and mostly happely splashing each other, scooping out their mud hole every day so they have fresh, not bacterial laden mud (what's tha all about! but it's fun and mud fights ensue). I am probably the oldest person partaking in this elephants melee and I'm thouroughly enjoying it. Our rooms are mostly wooden huts and have cold bucket showers, up on stilts since the elephants roam at will around the park (around 33 of them) as do an incredible amount of dogs which bark and howl at night and keep us all company in the day, jumping up on the tables and licking the leftovers. It's quite.... basic and wild and fun. We awake at 7 am, breakfsst until 7:39 and then it's off to do chores, divided into groups of ten or so.
this park is very different because there are no elephant rides or whatever and the only raison-d'etre of the park is to be a refugs and rescue for abused, old, sickly, traumatized elephants *you can see by some of the photos how crippled and old some of them are from abuse and malnurimente, to let them spend out their days in freedom and joy in an open and loving environment. This is the brainchild of a Thai woman named Lek (small in thai and she is SMALL but a barrel of energy and works among us and all of the thai workers constantly. I would like to start some kind of network for her on Netbook and will work on this when I return to civilsation. I am going to a more remote area, Surin, in southern eastern Thailand to work at a more hard core park which is less organized but you really get down and dirty with the elephants, over a hundred of them for a week of sleeping in huts on the ground and getting up at 6 and working all day to make shelters for them. A huge project, but more about that later. Hopefully I will have learned some real mahout skills, of positive feed back teaching, not the unbelievable cruel ways they have of training the young elephants which I will go into some other time, perhpas sending you a link of some filming. look for it. Then I will go to southern Thailand to some very remote islands and will keep you posted if possible.
much love to you al
giula

and then the flower market: absolutely amazing what they are able to do with the flowers: from orchids to frangipani from bamboo to jasmine.... most of the plants I''ve never ever seen