Friday, December 05, 2008

List: Asia Memories

I wrote this list while the memories were still fresh. That's the problem with experiences--if you (or specifically, if I) don't write them down immediately, everything fades into a dull grey from which significance disappears

- wax apples
- Asian pancakes filled with cabbage & thousand island dressing
- vending machines
- Ding Tai Feng
- Jendow Veggie Buffet
- scooters
- new highrises in shenzhen; old China in the underwear lines
- arcades
- Home Inn (lodging suites)
- Guangzhou shopping
- fish skins, vinegar, peanuts, chives
- Xinshijie Shopping Centre
- Wuhan busses
- Songshuyu
- Muguaxueha
- foot baths & massages
- Zhou Hei Ya (duck wings)
- sleepy Kunming
- dinner, show, & pissy dancers
- second cousin's Ford
- fungi hotpot (shrooms?)
- XiaoWang in the airport
- Lijiang old town
- fear/anxiety/etc.
- Haba Village and bitterly cold in snow
- snowing in mountain passes
- dirty bus; 101 Dalmations bus seat covers
- Shangri-la not so Shangri-la
- [fake?] North Face gear
- fever
- sleeping bags need to be light and negative 17 degrees centigrade
- recovery in internet cafe
- oxygen bottles
- Haba Village, redux in lush green
- climbing crew: YiYue, XiaoYang
- beasts of burden
- XiaoJiuZi: guide extraordinaire
- FREEZING NIPPLES; SLEEPINESS; WANTING TO DIE
- summit above the clouds; accomplishment; surreality; reality
- sliding down mountain (do not try at home)
- taking five hours to descend on rocks
- freezing in sleeping bag
- Tibetan mountain dogs (2x white; 1x black)
- sore-everything
- angry drivers want to beat us up
- Shangri-la, redux
- delicious baozi for less than 1RMB
- yak hotpot
- Meili Xue Shan covered in clouds
- trekking, again to Upper/Lower Yubeng
- self-sacrificing teacher
- German dude
- more trekking
- fear of falling to my death off a cliff
- water buffalo crossing
- beautiful Yubeng River Gorge
- Beijing service (HeiDiLao hotpot)
- Silk Road requires better bargaining skillz
- The Egg is beautiful; The Bird's Nest is Ok
- Dartmouth Beer Pong prodigy
- old vs. new; poor vs. rich; fuck you
- art in Factory 768
- to do: Planet Earth while stoned

Not covered in this list: Shanghai + Korea

Monday, November 24, 2008

Hot Diggity Doug's

My arteries got a work out this weekend. After numerous failed attempts, I finally made it to Hot Doug's. The 40 minute wait in the sub-freezing temperatures was more than worth it.

If you are ever in Chicago, this is an absolute must. Bring lots of cash, and probably call ahead to make sure they're open. The insane popularity of this place means Doug can pretty much close shop whenever he wants for however long he wants and there will still be a long line of suitors waiting anxiously for his return.

Waiting in line for our dogs.

Famous duck fat fries (Fri. and Sat. only!)

My dog: brandy infused Portuguese chorizo with saffron rouille and boucherolle cheese

Other notable mentions:
  • cilantro-chipotle smoked chicken sausage with mole and cotija cheese
  • onion pork sausage with bacon-garlic mayonnaise, duck grand-marnier pate, and truffle-balsamic cream
  • antelope sausage with cassis creme-fraiche and Danish fontina cheese
  • chardonnay and jalepeno rattlesnake sausage with ancho-lime mayonnaise and smoked gouda cheese

And of course, there is a wide selection of your 'regular' dogs served up Chicago-style or any way you like. Drool. A whole world of encased meats is waiting for you!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Back in the USA

In Chicago. Note: Don't wear floating, loose tops when flying; or if you do, prepare to be "randomly searched" at every possible place. Homeland Security guy told me so when I was poopooing getting searched for the umpteenth time.


No matter what the streets in London say, always look both ways.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Mind the Gap

In London. Thank you Oyster Card. £4 for a one-way trip is anything but pleasant. £1.50 is a lot more reasonable. £20 for a $5 Thai Green Curry is also unpleasant. No more group dinners for me. Drunkorexia here on out.


Pre-Kensington Roof Gardens


During Kensington Roof Gardens


Day after called for serious hangover food (and hair of dog in the form of Magners)

(Ok. I really don't ONLY have Asian friends, I promise. I can't help it, though, if they're just the coolest ones. Heh heh. Am definitely considering moving to London. All the cool people are here! Boohoohoo.)

Sunday, October 12, 2008

I ate Thumper

At the local large grocery chain (Carrefour, E.leclerc, etc.), you can find: rabbits and horses. In the fresh meats section. That is, dead and ready to eat. Oh those French.

I had some rabbit tonight. Surprise, it tasted like chicken! If no one told me it was rabbit, I would have assumed it was extra tasty chicken. I think I'll pass on going out of my way to eat a hunk of Mister Ed though.

Official list of meats that taste like chicken but better:

  • Rabbit
  • Frog
  • Guinea pig


Upcoming:
My Dopplr is poorly managed. I finally head to Bordeaux on Tuesday. I am not currently "home in Chicago"--still in Toulouse.


Although I'll be heading into strict oenophile territory, I really miss these German radlers! (Some organic radler beer served at a vegetarian restaurant, Berlin, Germany)


Incidentally, the Barcelonans drank them too under different names. The Barcelona brewery, Estrella Damm, actually makes its own version of the much enjoyed lemon+beer mix. Really, it's awesome. I'm going to start mixing bitter lemon soda with beer all the time now. (Panda enjoys some lemonised Estrella Damm with tapas at the cerverzeria, Barcelona, Spain)

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Food is good


I love baguettes. Yummy, yummy baguettes. All day long. Yum, yum, yum.


At first I thought these were oddly shaped limes... until I opened one! I can eat through a whole box of clementines in a couple of days, no problem. It's a good thing these were quite affordable in Spain. €0.99/kg.


My little French cousin, Thomas, in front of some tartes. J'aime beaucoup les tartes!

Since my last update, I made a little trip to Biarritz (France) and San Sebastian (Spain). The Atlantic looks infinitely more charming than my last memory of it in Atlantic City. Perhaps it helps that these cities aren't tainted with dilapidating casinos and the crackhos who love 'em. I mean, hos are great but the ones in the AC.... eh... eh.......

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

America is numero uno

[Hi, hello, apologies. I'm getting lax with the blogging because quite simply blogging here kind got boring now that Facebook is pretty much every possible blogging, photo sharing, video sharing web 2.0 website rolled into one. But, I will try to persevere! Keep on bloggin! Blah, blah, blah.]

Partying with Spaniards is effin' exhausting (perhaps slightly less exhausting than the Argentinians). One night a week is all I can possibly handle, and now I am back in the south of France.

So, back to the subject of this post re: America is numero uno.... while in Barcelona, a group of us went to one of the popular clubs, "Razzmatazz"--well, it was one of the stops of that night's tour. Despite its unquestionably lame name, the place was one of those huge multi-level, multi-room establishments, and it was absolutely bursting at the seams with people looking like they stepped out of an American Apparel advert. And you know what all those multitudes of people were giddily dancing away to? American indie rock, bay-bee. I was feeling quite smug with a healthy dose of American arrogance as I leaned into my Aussie mate and screamed, "Everyone wants to be American," over the roar of the music. He gave me a "whatever" look (but he knows I am right, heh heh).

Anyway, they can make fun of the falling financial markets all they want, but no matter how hard they want to deny America and American culture, it is effin' pervasive.

Aside from partying, there is much to see and do in Barcelona (such as see Jason Schwartzman eat and not do anything about it).


The fountain is magic thanks to me. ("Magic Fountain", Barcelona: choreographed fountain entertainment like the Bellagio, but better)


Steph & I outside the Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's famous temple. Also, this is why people bring tripods instead of asking a passerby to snap a photo--chances are the passerby is an idiot and clearly this called for PORTRAIT as opposed to LANDSCAPE framing. Gaw-duh. Incidentally, if you ever see me passing by and want a photo taken, I actually know how to do it properly.


And no trip to Barcelona is complete without overdosing on seafood in the form of fried tapas or paella. "Black rice" paella--rice is black from squid ink! Yummay.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Pandas don't mix with movie stars

I think I sat next to Jason Schwartzman in Barcelona at a teeny tiny tapas bar. Actually, I am 99.9% sure. That, or his more attractive doppelgänger. Then again, my memory of Schwartzman is forever etched as the nerdy kid in "Rushmore". He certainly looks very handsome in his more recent IMDB photos--and also at the bar.

This marks the second time I have failed in connecting with the stars while on the European leg of my trip. The first time was my almost best-friending James Franco in Berlin thanks to Eliot... that's another story.

(Am totally kicking myself for not going to say hello)

Monday, September 22, 2008

In Toulouse and resting

I'm in Toulouse with family now. My second cousin lives here with her family. Her eight-year old son, Thomas (en francais, Toe-ma), speaks French fluently, can count in English, and is able to to even manage some mandarin, but with a French accent. It's one of the funniest things I've ever heard. Imagine mandarin with a French accent--seriously, it's hilarious. Also when he speaks, he sounds wise beyond his years if you ignore all the childish giggling.

I've decided that the thing about the French language is that even when a child speaks, they sound indefinably old. Perhaps this is why the French aren't a particularly funny people--even when they're young they sound--and subsequently are--so serious. Of course, this is all purely speculation on my part based on a sample size of one. So uh, yeah.

Life in the south of France is lovely.

Oh, since my last update I did a quick tour through Pisa, Monaco, and Nice before gunning for Toulouse. I meant to visit Aix-en-Provence, but sweet thoughts of kicking back and relaxing in a family home in Toulouse were too strong.


With Steph... it's the Fake David!!! (Florence)


It's the leaning tower! (Pisa)

Blah blah. Ok, so heading to Barcelona for a few days on Thursday. Woohooooo. Tapas, sangria, siestas on the beach here I come!

On books and how they're crappy

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

List: Books 2008

Books I've read or reread, 2008 edition. The list is REALLY short as I've not really been reading while travelling. Mostly my free time is spent catching up on current events (oh, so far behind!). But, I will continue documenting my books... * denotes it's highly recommended (which isn't to suggest that the ones without *s are no good--they are.) strikethrough denotes I couldn't finish it (these are probably no good)

  1. The Red and the Black by Stendahl
  2. The Wars Against Saddam: Taking the Hard Road to Baghdad by John Simpson *
  3. Sweet Valley High: Ms. Quarterback by Francine Pascal (haha)
  4. Bel-Ami by Guy de Maupassant *
  5. Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote *
  6. Letters to a Young Contrarian by Christopher Hitchens (last few letters are v. good)
  7. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (classic or not, it ain't for me)
  8. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote *
  9. JPod by Douglas Coupland
  10. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
  11. The Long Tail by Chris Anderson (one paragraph thesis is more than enough)
  12. Narcissus and Goldmund by Hermann Hesse
  13. Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella (awful chick lit)
  14. Atonement by Ian McEwan
  15. The Entire Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer (awful YA for market research--heh heh)
  16. The Crazed by Ha Jin
  17. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
  18. Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There by David Brooks
  19. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga *
  20. CURRENTLY: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
  21. CURRENTLY: The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Updates to demonstrate the blood is still running through my veins.

Having a lovely, albeit unusually wet, time in Florence (Firenze). As such, haven't been much in the bloggin' mood. Saving the rest of Italy for another trip. Heading to the Tuscan countryside tomorrow for a day trip before departing Italia for the south of France. Nice is calling. /end quick update.

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Spreadin' my Nu-t-ella, ella, ella

While admiring my miniature single-serving containers of Nutella (perfect for travelling) this evening, I had the brilliant idea to parody Rihanna's "Under My Umbrella" with something far more clever relating to Nutella. But before getting all crazy rewriting lyrics, I did a quick google and discovered--to my dismay--two YouTubers who already had this stroke of genius. (Here and here)

Damn youz!

Anyway, too bad none of them know how to freakin' pronounce NU-tella!

Get with the program doods: it's NU-tella not NUT-ella.



(Upcoming itinerary: Leaving Dubrovnik in the AM and heading back to Split. Taking the ferry to Ancona, Italy on Thursday.)

Sunday, September 07, 2008

Back to the tropics

In the "Pearl of the Adriatic" at the moment: Dubrovnik, Croatia. Not much time to update. Photos will suffice.


(Trogir, Croatia)


(On the ferry to the island of Vis; view of Split)

Monday, September 01, 2008

European identities

Europe is very old and very white. It's not the new world where pretty much everyone is from everywhere. In Paris, I have a couple of non-white friends who, while they freely say they are French, always add to it with, "Oh, but I am Madagascarian" or "Oh, but I am half Lebanese" or whatever as the case might be.

Personally, I've never felt the need to add an addendum to the response, "I'm Canadian." Of course, that doesn't mean people won't further ask, "Oh, but what's your ethnic background?", however they usually do this out of curiosity and not as a way to demonstrate how I am not a real "Canadian". You can tell it is an awkward question for them to ask based on how long it takes for them to formulate a politically correct way of phrasing the question and how embarrassed they are to ask it--or at least, I've felt this is the case. Point is, I don't just offer up the Chinese part of my identity because I do identify myself more as a Canadian. And usually, when in North America, people just accept the answer.

I will have to see how my relatives in Toulouse identify themselves. Wish I had some Asian friends in Paris to interrogate!

Oh, et je suis malade. Quel dommage. Je pense qu'il a commencé à Berlin où j'ai mangé des barre-arachides. Comprends? C'était stupide. Toutes les personnes savent ces arachides sont malpropres. Je ne sais pas si le mot "malpropres" est approprié ici. WHATEVER!

Oh, French doesn't have a translation for "Whatever" exactly. But some variations: "On se branle"... hehe. Sam, if you're reading this: it's so you!

Friday, August 29, 2008

American Apparel for the WORLD

Now that information and popular culture spreads so easily over borders and onto our computer screens, everyone in the whole wide world looks like they stepped out of an American Apparel advertisement.

I am sick of it. Admittedly, I sometimes look this way as well. But only sometimes!

Je suis à Paris! Ce soir, je visiterais Le Louvre parce qu'il est gratuit le vendredi soir pour des jeunes et jolies filles comme moi--teehee. Ah, alors; c'est gratuit pour les hommes aussi.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Foods of the Czech Republic

Eating (and drinking) much? Oh yes. Animal lovers may want to avoid this post as the food staples are: HUGE hunks of meat, potato dumplings, and cabbage. Photos from Praha.


Firstly: REAL Budweiser. Drinkers of the American crap have no idea what they're missing. For more info on the brewery and the imbroglio over the Budweiser trademark, head to good ol' Wikipedia.


Half of a roast duck, some potato "dumplings", cabbage


Potato dumplings stuffed with ham, bacon, etc. with cabbage.


Roast pork "knuckle" -- the fatty knee of the pig. It is served with some mustard and a few greens for colour.


Pork ribs with some tangy sauce, mayo, and garlic bread.


Cannabis Ice Tea is big; obviously, only the tourists are buying this stuff out of curiosity.


I <3 Czech "dumplings" and cabbage.

Note: cabbage makes you seriously gassy.
Note 2: The Czech Republic is still relatively cheap! Head there whilst they've still got Kcs as the currency of choice.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Wien, in brief

Still in Berlin... enjoying myself immensely with the knowledge of the local chow and booze courtesy of Eliot and co. But, again, feel like I need to quickly review before we get too far ahead. This instalment: Wien (aka, Vienna).


Wien's public transpo: very clean and efficient--unlike someee cities we know. Ahem.


All the streets are super cute even if recently rained upon. This is a photo from the tram stop (Line D) on Porzellangasse where I was staying.


So while in Wien, I saw a lot of museums--I mean a LOT. The Leopold Museum, however, was my favourite as it houses the largest Egon Schiele collection in the world. I LOVE Egon Schiele.


(Example of his work. I particularly love his sketches as he does excellent figures from varied perspectives. And also, I--much like Schiele--don't particularly care for drawing hands and feet. Many of his sketches and works will surreptitiously avoid those parts of the body.)

Aside from the Schiele collection, the Leopold and MOMUK museums in MuseumQuartier do an excellent job of tracing the Vienna School of early 20th century art. Good stuff.


View of Wien from Belvedere Palace/art museum. The Belvedere houses the one painting adored by young, femme collegiates the world over: The Kiss. Yeah, I'm not such of fan of it, but seeing it up close I must say: it's spectacular. Just don't ever own a poster of it. Please! I beg you!


Stephansplatz Cathedral in the centre of the city. Gorgeous gothic structure and inspiration for artists the world over. Again, it's not hard to see how artists get their inspirations in Wien.


Panda climbing the Stephanplatz tower.


View of Wien from the top of Stephansplatz Cathedral. Also, notice the gorgeous tiled roof of the cathedral in the foreground.


Schönbrunn Palace. Mind you, this was only a summer home. Ah, to be a Royal.


Lastly... I was really craving Asian food and stopped here not noticing its logo. Yeah, clearly Austria didn't get the memo.

Oh, and there was my Sacher torte photo from earlier... the recipe is still going to get posted, eventually!

Ok and gutenacht!

Friday, August 22, 2008

Romania, in brief

Hi. Currently enjoying Berlin, but I kind of wanted to do a photo/info dump before I got too much further ahead in my travels. These photos are fairly unremarkable; that's what happens when you've got no one to pose with/for--lots of photos of buildings!

Looking through my photos, I kind of wish I took a few more in Bucharest. Truth be told, I was kind of frightened of the place and didn't want to draw extra attention to myself by pulling out my camera. Of course, perhaps I am being too quick to judge and frankly all the locals I spoke to (with the exception of one crotchety old man and some younger hoodlummy-types) were all beyond friendly and helpful. It's definitely a place I think would be fun to explore with a local, but as a single, female, Asian traveller, it was kind of like... uh, yeah. Plus, the stray dogs there definitely did not come from the same strain of friendly strays found in much of South America. In fact, was chased down by one--

And so, the only real photos I have of Bucharest involve the Palace of Parliament: Ceauşescu's vision come to reality--almost (still only 90% complete!). Apparently he had the idea to bulldoze what was historic Bucharest and replace it with this monstrosity after a visit to PyongPyang. Dictators are all the same, huh?

So some trivia about the PoP: it is the second largest building in the world based on square footage (Pentagon is the largest). It's got chandeliers, marble, and handwoven carpets up the wazoo!!!!! Construction began in 1983 and is made almost entirely of Romanian materials. Ceauşescu never actually got to use it before he was executed for all his shit in 1989. And lastly, walking around the perimetre of the PoP property at a reasonable pace took 40 (FORTY!!!) freaking minutes in the barely tolerable heat & sun & no trees. Yeah, it's pretty damn big.


Near the Palace of Parliament there were tons of tires on the street. Odd.


Wall surrounding the Palace of Parliament.


Here she be! It may not look that big, but once you're inside--holy crap. Like every room we visited had a square footage over 3,000sq. ft. That's like every room is bigger than my entire freaking house.


A view of more parliementary buildings from the balcony of the Palace of Parliament. I am not sure why they didn't centre this; I mean, putting some flag posts in the middle would have been fairly simple, I feel. (And yes, I was standing in the middle of the balcony).


Outside of Bucharest, Romania is entirely different--though still kind of obviously home to that tacky Eastern European taste (oops! No offense! heh heh). For example, Braşov and nearby Raşnov both have Hollywood-esque signs for their town names. Here is a photo I took standing behind the Braşov one.

The Transylvania region of Romania is definitely worth seeing, and as I mentioned previously, it would be great to rent a car there and drive through it because: there are tons of small towns off the beaten track; everyone out there is exceedingly friendly and hospitable; there are also a lot of great mountains for trekkers and nature lovers; and the architecture is unique with its Saxon influences; oh, and the pizza is surprisingly tasty.


Peleş Castle near Braşov is off the chain! Ok, I've never actually used that expression before and never intend to again. But yah... no photos of the interior b/c you had to pay to photograph (as is typical in Romania, it seems). If you can only visit one castle in the area, skip the "Dracula Castle" (Bran Castle) and visit this one! Bran Castle isn't even Dracula's real castle, anyway. It's all just a tourist trap.

All right. That's enough of my informative update. Good night from Berlin (where I almost met James Franco--HOT--but that's another story.)

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Vienna, Prague, and onwards

Last I updated, I was in Vienna having some world-famous Sacher torte:



Yes. They are really deserving of their fame. Initially, I was highly disappointed by my seemingly small slice of torte. Clearly, I would not be getting a dessert the size of my head like I would have been at TGIFs for the €4.80 ($7+) I was paying. But, by the time I finished that thing off, I really could not have taken another bite. Mmmm... torte dreams in muh head.

So when I was at the gift shop of the Schönbrunn Palace and saw a recipe book for Sacher Hotel, I naturally took photos of the cake recipe. The disclaimer in the book says, of course, that the REAL recipe is top secret but that this one would be as close as you could reasonably get. That tart flavouring? Apricot preserves apparently. I thought it was cherry when I had the torte at the hotel. I'll post up the recipe soon (or never, as I am a bad, lazy blogger).

Now I am in Prague in an empty room at the Yasmin Hotel (cute place; horrible, snooty service) that two of my other friends had sprung for (thanks Brad + Ronnie!). Empty room as they have just departed for their early flight to Amsterdam! Meanwhile, in a few hours, I will be checking out and into another hostel before leaving for Berlin the day after. Such is temporary life of the backpacker.

So, thoughts on Prague: lovin' it! In comparison to Vienna, Prague is almost as pretty but seems to be infinitely more lively. Whilst in Vienna chiIlling at a cafe/bar, a cute waiter/bartender chatted me up and gave me the lowdown:

"Vienna is beautiful, but I hate living here. Aside from buildings and museums, the people are rude, the places are tame, and it's expensive" - or some such phrasing.

And I must admit, I did get that feeling while I was there. Of course, I didn't really venture out to enjoy Viennese nightlife as I was too tired from exhaustive museum hopping during the days.

Friday, August 15, 2008

/Begin short update

Arrived in Vienna earlier this afternoon. Beautiful place. Makes me wonder if European cities are just adult fantasylands; they all seem unnaturally pretty. Unfortunately came just in time for the thunderstorms. Had my first real meal in ages (as opposed to the fruit and chips I'd been eating the last couple of days). €2 sammich at the train station; for €2 euro, that thing was awesome--first cheap thing I've encountered in Europe, frankly. Paying through the nose for my hostel. Booking a flight to Toulouse via Paris ASAP so I might enjoy free lodging once more. Planning to be in Prague 18th-22nd; Berlin 22nd-27th; Toulouse thereafter.

/End short update

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Picturesque Braşov

This afternoon I was sitting in the courtyard of the nearby St. Nicholas Church thinking, "Ahh, so this is that provincial life of which artists write and paint about." I can't wait to see the French countryside.

The feeling I have of Romania here in Braşov could not be more disparate than the one I had upon arriving in Bucharest. I don't feel like uploading my photos so you can visit this guy's flickr album to get a sense.

Tomorrow I do a lightning speed tour of the nearby castles and fortresses before heading off on the night train to Vienna. Skipping Budapest for the time being as there is some music festival there causing all prices to be exorbitantly high.

Tips for Travellers: if you come to Romania, I highly recommend renting a car and driving through Transylvania. There are too many places you just can't easily see without your own set of wheels.

Next up: Vienna, Prague, Berlin...

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Hostel Tina, Bucharest--well meaning but fails

What the heck, MAN. My "hostel"-keeper and his mom left for the day. He said he'd be back by 10am so I could leave this wretched place, but he's not back yet! It's already 11:10am! I have things to do! GAH. So my Bucharest experience is summed up in this coral-coloured leather living room set, stale pretzels, and rowdy dogs.

I just realised I am in the birth country of the beloved ISC.ro. Scrabble fans, rejoice. Now that I am here, it's not surprising that ISC should have been formed here. Aside from being outside the HASBRO sphere of influence, a lot of people here speak English surprisingly well.

Meanwhile, I am annoyed.

Monday, August 11, 2008

23 hours later (Istanbul to Bucharest via train)

The Bosfor Express from Istanbul to Bucharest cost me 82 Turkish Lira and my sanity. Well, actually, it was better than I expected despite being disgustingly hot during the day and 4 hours longer than anticipated; but, when you've been on a train sweating profusely for 19 hours, an extra sweaty four don't seem to make much of a difference.

The main errors of my trip was that a) ate a farewell plate of kofte earlier in the evening causing some unpleasant stomach rumblings; b) aunt flow came in her full gory glory (ha, tmi!)

Then there was the inexplicable rat-tat-tatting at all hours of the night: first by angry customs officials while crossing the Bulgaria border; then randomly every couple of hours by the train-ticket checkers. We were all sleeping blissfully soundly when they'd come barging in demanding to see our train tickets. Literally, this kept happening every couple of hours all through the trip so consecutive hours of sleep were hard to attain.

Shared my 6-person sleeper cabin with 3 other tourist girls so all was good on that front. The two Dutch girls shared some bread crumbs with me after I'd finished all my pitiful rations for the trip. For that I was quite thankful.


Bulgarian countryside - sunflowers galore!


It's muh foot on the window.


Crossing the Danube (Bulgarian-Romanian border)

And thus: I am in Bucharest and can't wait to get out. My "hostel" is in a residential apartment building; it's run by a single dude and his mom. Tonight, I am the only guest. Finding the place--a non-descript communist era apartment bloc--was pretty much impossible especially when it was already dark outside. Also, I came face to face with Bucharest's stray dog problem as one nearly chased me down while I hunted for my hostel. Finally, a kind older man helped me to the apartment.

From what I've seen, the city is bland. Ceauşescu certainly did a good job of ridding the city of all character. Tomorrow, I will do some laundry here at the "hostel", take a quick peek at the Palace of Parliament, and get myself on a train to Braşov and the rest of Transylvania!

In the word's of Ceda mimicking the Count (a la Sesame St.):
One brothel, ah ah ah
Two brothels, ah ah ah
Three brothels, ah ah ah...

(The "BORN INTO BROTHELS" joke lives on.)

Saturday, August 09, 2008

I scream, you scream, blah blah

I take back all the vitriol I spewed with regards to Turkish ice cream (dondurma). I had one scoop today in a cherry flavour: heaven! Gave Argentinian helados a run for the money, no doubt.

FYI: dondurma is made from goat's milk and has a slightly stickier texture than traditional ice cream. It's almost like mashed up frozen tapioca.

Bipolar travel; last day in Istanbul

The girls have all left, and now I am booked on a 19 hour train ride to Bucharest departing Sunday, August 10th at 10:00pm. Although going via bus is cheaper, more comfortable, and faster, they don't run on Sundays. Lack of planning = screwed Pandas.

So, I am waiting nervously to see what this train is like. I imagine it can't be far from the long distance busses in China. It'll be like reliving Pop's and my bus trip from Shangri-la to Kunming all over again--multiplied by two:


(The old man squeezing into his "bed" on board the overnight busses in Western China. Even I, at 5'5", barely fit into the bed.)

So we go from the VIP floor of the Hyatt to 6 person "kuşet" sleeper trains to Bucharest. "Only toilet", said the ticket sales clerk.



Walking back from the train station just now in the midday heat, I suddenly remember that trains likely do not have air conditioning. Some quick googling upon my return to the hostel confirms my suspicions. Shit! Let me go back to the Hyatt!!!!

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

More panoramas courtesy of Ceda

Thanks to Monkey, we are blogging from the VIP eighth floor of the Hyatt Regency, Istanbul. Life is good.

While I can rough it like the best of them, living in the lap of luxury definitely has its perks... like toiletries.


Panorama lounging in the Hyatt pool


Panorama jumping on the Black Sea (in Siles, beach town outside Istanbul)


Panorama mirroring of our HERO in the Topkapi Palace

Istanbul and its people are wonderful. Chinese people need to take service lessons from the Turkish. Werd.

And Turkish men are hoooooot! Mmmm.