Visiting an Elephant Retirement Home: Elephant’s World

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After it became clear that I did not have enough time to go to Chiang Mai or Pai as I had planned, I decided I needed to get out of Bangkok and see something else before flying to Myanmar on Monday. I saw some nice pictures from Kanchanaburi so I got on a mini bus and headed west. I’m staying in the touristy part of town (along the river Kwai, as in The Bridge Over the River Kwai) which has it’s perks – clean rooms, amazing vegan/vegetarian food, easy access to booking things- etc. There is also that nasty downside, everyone is a foreigner, everything is overpriced, everyone is trying to overcharge you, there are bars with pot leaves on the signs…. horrible things that I suppose foreigners are supposed to enjoy.

Coming to Thailand, I had wanted some kind of experience with some elephants. I don’t know a lot about elephants but they are very significant animals in this part of the world, especially in Buddhism and Hinduism. Initially, I had planned on finding some kind of a sanctuary experience in Chiang Mai- where many elephants are. I didn’t want to do anything that would exploit the animals or abuse them as I’ve read that happens often, not only here but across the world. I wanted to visit a sanctuary, some place where I could be the tourist wanting to feed elephants where the elephants were being taken care of well and not abused. I was so wary of picking a place- when it comes to tourist things I really don’t trust anyone or anything anymore, but I bit the bullet and paid the 1500 baht ($50) and got on a truck this morning with some ladies from Holland. We were headed to Elephant’s World.

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Elephant’s World is a sanctuary where elephants can live and not work- the whole theme of the experience is that you “work” for the elephants instead of them working for you. There are mostly old female (cow) elephants with a couple males, only one young elephant (calf) who is 5 – Johnny. When we got there we fed them cucumbers and bananas. The first time an elephant takes something out of your hand is kind of scary and amazing, their trunks are so huge but strong! And dexterous! Then we went to the river to watch them wade around in the water, and watch the mahouts do backflips off the rope swings (pronounced ma-hoot, Thai word for elephant trainer- not sure if trainer is the right word, it’s the one person who knows the elephant the best and can kind of “know” it to guide it- traditionally this person spends his or her life with the elephant and they know each other very well). The mahouts at Elephant’s World were very young men.

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After watching Johnny, the 5 year old elephant roll around in the river (elephants are more or less infants/toddlers until they are 5, juvenile until 18) we chopped up some pumpkin to cook some pumpkin sticky rice for two of the really old elephants who no longer have teeth. Elephants have deciduous teeth and get about 6 sets over their lifetime. At around 60 years old they don’t have any new teeth so we had to make them some pumpkin sticky rice. The two oldest elephants were 70 years old and I think 64? SO OLD.

chopping up pumpkin

chopping up pumpkin

After cooking we ate our own lunch. Then we went on a different truck to go chop down some banana trees that someone donated to the sanctuary- we found some giant snails! We loaded the trees in the truck and sat on them for the ride back. When we returned we balled up the pumpkin stickyrice for the old elephants and fed them- this time we fed them straight in their mouths! They chewed it like anyone without teeth would- gumming it.

Then we went swimming with the elephants in the river. They like being in the water. I was invited to sit and ride on an elephant in the river, which I felt weird about at first (and still do somewhat) but I tried it. I asked the elephant’s mahout a lot of questions but his English wasn’t so good. The tone of voice they use with the elephants is kind of rough, but I think it’s actually mimicking elephant sounds (grunts, etc). We washed the dirt off the elephants and took lots of pictures. There was a wonderful Israeli family with 3 kids who made everything even more fun- doing all these things with kids is just better.

We dried off and fed the elephants again, more cucumbers and corn- apparently elephants have an amazing sense of smell (10 km!) and can smell if a cucumber is rotten inside even if you can’t see that it is from the outside. I saw an elephant examine a few cucumbers and throw them down when she disapproved of them.

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All things considered, I had the experience I wanted- I got to hang out with elephants- I think they have a pretty decent life from what I saw (there were lots of volunteers there who live there who very obviously care a great deal about animals) – especially compared to their previous lives as circus animals and work animals (logging in the jungles, being paraded around Bangkok). The organization seems to be run by two Danish women (not positive) but they were both there and seemed to care a great deal, also. I was a little concerned with how the mahouts treated the elephants sometimes but I’m no expert on humane elephant care. They will wander off looking for food, so to take care of them in one place you do have to tie them up.

I learned a lot about elephants, which is what i wanted, and I think it’s ok. For a tourist experience with animals I feel good about where my money went today, which in the end I think matters a lot.

Medical Tourism and Me (Elizabeth Goes to the Dentist in Bangkok)

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Before I left for these travels I visited a dentist in Columbia, South Carolina where I had a cleaning, x-rays, and I think 5 cavities discovered. It was the first time in about 3 years I’d been to the dentist (I have no shame at all, I love sweets). I do not have dental insurance so I used a groupon my mom got for me (paid for the cleaning and the X-rays and some whitening stuff) and paid out of pocket for I think 3 of the cavities. It ended up costing I think around $800? JUST for the fillings. I know it was more than $600. I left with the sting of the non/under insured of America and a toothache.

Fast forward two months later, I’m in Bangkok and that place in my mouth still hurts and seems to trap food in crazy ways and I’ve still got the other two cavities that need fixing. I decided to do some research and take advantage of the affordable dental care Thailand has to offer. I ended up at Bangkok International Dental Center- popular among foreigners. I met a guy who got major dental work done there and he had nothing but good things to say. I emailed them and got an appointment that day (!)

I took a taxi over to this giant building, I think it’s all the same practice. It was immaculate, white shining sterile looking interior with beautiful Thai women doing all the jobs, I think I may have seen one man working. Horrible soft-rock Beatles covers were playing in the background (heeeey back in Thailand…) and I my blood pressure and weight were taken (when was the last time your dentist did that?).

After being shuffled through another series of waiting rooms I had an initial examination, 2 x-rays (bite wings) taken, and after reviewing those (WITH ME!) we determined that I had two cavities and possibly a third on the tooth that has been bothering me so much- which I found out is having problems because the gap between the teeth that was created at the last dentist checkup is too big, so food gets trapped in there and compacted and just hurts. And floss doesn’t help all that much. ALL OF IT HAS TO BE REDONE.

FURIOUS

So I decided to get the two cavities filled and go home and make those idiots in Columbia fix my mouth. The dentist was so wonderful, the procedure was fine, I got some major major mouth numbing stuff (nitrous probably would have been fine but I don’t think they offer it) and I was done. Here’s the breakdown: cleaning – 1000 baht. bite wing x-rays – 250 baht each. cavity , 1000 baht per surface.

I walked out of there paying $112 USD. For incredible care and really good customer service, I could go on and on. I actually even wanted them to fix the problem tooth while I was there but they said I really should go home and make the dentist at home fix it.

Anyway- that’s my adventure in medical tourism. I am so happy about it, I don’t even have to go back in for them to fix the filling so the bite is right, it was right the first time. Hooray for Thailand! hooray for self care!

Sniffles and Salad in Bangkok

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I caught a cold as soon as I came back to Bangkok, so leaving for Chiang Mai got harder and harder, especially since I found out I missed the proper Yi Peng lantern release by 4 days (how I managed to miss this I am still flustered about, but oh well – major sad feelings going on about this). I sneezed and sniffled (or as my Czech friend said “snizzled”)  around the Siam Journey Guesthouse until Loy Krathong. We built flower boats to light up and launch into the river- along with the rest of Bangkok- it was SO crowded. We had a long walk from the BTS station to Asiatique- a pier / shopping area on the water. There were lots of fireworks and many many people with all kinds of boats decorated and identified by locks of hair and a fingernail (so the water goddess recognizes your boat and wish). We used these baskets attached to bamboo poles to lower our Krathongs into the river. There were lots of fireworks and some live music and traditional dancing-pretty neat to see Bangkok all decked out. There were lots of lights around the city up just for this celebration.

After we ate some dinner we managed to find some paper lanterns and light those up too, the second one being delayed by a power line and a bunting hung up over the parking lot where we were but eventually making it up into the sky.

 

Run BKK

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Just in case anyone was wondering, I’m back in Bangkok and it is full of awesome. I’ve been eating a lot (oh lord how wonderful Thai food is) and hanging with my pals here- trying to fight off a cold and get myself to Chiang Mai ASAP. Zoom here I go!

Adventure Time: Trust and Tea in rural Nepal!

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I packed up from Kathmandu (said bye to Sarita for real this time! Sad!) and sat around in the Kathmandu airport waiting on my flight to Bhadrapur. I was working on some postcards when I realized one had some Nepali writing on it so I asked the man sitting next to me what it said. He spoke surprisingly good English and knew exactly what it was. After that we continued to talk, the usual “Where are you from, what are you doing, where are you going, why are you alone, wow, you’re tall!” I learned that this man, Dilli (Deel-ie) was the CEO of a big tea plantation near Darjeeling but in Nepal. I told him about my plans to go to Sikkim, to Gangtok for more Himalaya ogling and mountain culture when he invited me, flat out, to change my plans and come stay in the guest houses he has on his tea plantation. He showed me pictures of his family (he had gone to visit them in Kathmandu  for Tihar) and then of other people visiting his plantation. It sounded like a fantastic adventure, he said I could stay for free and the more we talked the more I trusted what he was saying. I thought about his proposition on the plane and decided that I had no plan in Gangtok, I’d probably spend 3 days frustrated that I couldn’t go trekking (not enough time, not enough gear, too cold, no one to go with, etc) and that this was a way I could get to know some families that live on the plantation and how all this famous tea business works. I let Dilli know and we made plans. We got off at Bhadrapur and took a taxi to Birtamod, where I could get an extension on my Nepali visa (at Karkabitta) and Dilli could get back to his plantation. I would meet up with a friend of his who would help me find the right taxis to get to the plantation the next day.

Although this seems insane, and it is somewhat, travel is nothing without adventure. I’m schooled in cultural anthropology, where you spend time seeking out “gate keepers,” people who can unlock doors to other people who can help you have a better understanding of a culture. Sometimes my shy nature and worriation about “burdening” anyone gets in the way of me reaching out, – and honestly I’ve been really frustrated with myself and the lack of “authentic” cultural experiences I’ve had on this series of travels. I trusted my instincts and I trusted Dilli- I figured that if I needed to get out of a situation I’d find a taxi or find a family and figure it out.

So I waltzed into the Nepal Immigration office at Karkabitta (it’s always better to waltz into these places with a smile and lots of contagious energy, people are much more likely to do what you want when you are fun to be around). This is manipulative but necessary in bureaucratic situations. After several forms I was informed that this immigration office does not offer visa extensions (even though one of the forms I filled out was for an extension?) and that I would have to go to Kathmandu or Pokhara to get one. I had just come from BOTH of those places- so I told them, no way was I going all the way back! And I wasn’t going to go to India and come back in for a new visa because my visa for India was only a double entry, the second entry I had to save for when I came back to fly out of Bagdogra to Bangkok. I suggested that I overstay the visa and asked what would happen if I did. I was told that it would cost about $8 a day. ….. …………

so I left and took the local bus back to Birtamod to the hotel that Dilli had recommended to me, Hotel Heaven. This place might have been a paradise when it was built, maybe 15 years ago when there was some kind of tourism in Birtamod (I can’t imagine this at all). It was very obviously completely run by young men- I know this is sexist but sometimes you can really tell when there are no women involved in a business. Basically, the hotel was filthy- and every time I asked for something or had a question I was met with blank stares, even after it was clear that everyone knew what I was asking (after the language barrier was overcome). I think there is some kind of inferiority thing going on in India and Nepal about who should actually have to do certain types of work, I know the caste system is at work in both places and influences this- it’s just so strange how it comes up in everyday life- like toilets that I can only describe to you by making you watch an old episode of Ren & Stempy, and a hesitation in service type situations that doesn’t happen in other cultures. I’m being super judgey and white and snobby I guess, it’s not really commentary on the service as much as the culture around the entire job.

So I watched some Bollywood movies and got up the next day to meet Bharat (sounds just like Barack, I called him Barack Obama a couple times), a friend of Dilli who was coming up to Ilam and would help me find the right taxi to get up there. I got in a shared micro-bus (like the one I took to and from Pokhara) and made friends with a punk guy who was taking his electric guitar back to Ilam. He asked me where a lot of musicians were from, like “where are The Eagles” from? and “Where is Pink Floyd from?” things like this. There were only men on this micro bus and it was a really scary crazy ride up to and in the mountains. Several “I’m going to die” type thoughts but I’ve gotten pretty used to those with the transit situations in Nepal.

In Ilam another friend of Dilli’s met me at the bus park. Sonam was waiting for me and it was decided that I’d stay overnight in Ilam before going the rest of the way to Dilli’s tea plantation. I ate some vegetable masala and Sonam and I had tea while Sonam explained that he also worked with tea- he owns a tea export company out of Nepal that focuses on empowering small, independent tea farmers who grow and make speciality teas. I quickly realized as Sonam explained all the things he does that I had fallen into a group of Nepal’s tea big-shots, tea gurus, people travel all over the world to meet this guy and talk about tea. Sonam is a 3rd generation tea farmer (he’s originally from Darjeeling) but stopped growing tea to work with small farmers in a more meaningful way. It turns out that some of the tea I bought in Darjeeling (from small fair trade famers, I did my homework yo) was from a project that Sonam worked on.

Sonam invited me to stay with him at his apartment (his family lives in Darjeeling) and he showed me around Ilam a little. I immediately loved Ilam, there is something about small mountain towns that appeals to me in magnetic ways. Ilam is on top of a ridge, more or less, with tea growing all over it. I walked around the bazaar and found the most beautiful shawl with geometric designs, as I was fingering it I looked further inside the shop and discovered a huge LOOM WHERE THE SHAWLS WERE MADE BY HAND. This and more, rural Nepal.

I met back up with Sonam and he led the way to his friend’s house (a family, the mom and dad were there with their daughters and son, granddaughter, cousins, etc – about 8 or 9 people in and out) where we were welcomed into their kitchen and talked while dinner was cooking. Leftover sell roti was heated up (JOY OF ALL JOYS) though it’s not as good as when it’s first cooked. and I watched as the dad held a crazy looking knife under his foot and sliced up a long string of goat intestine to fry up as an appetizer (it was really good!) We drank roxy, which is home brewed rice “wine” – this batch had a major kick to it. Everyone was very curious about me and life in the USA. I explained my family (divorced and both parents remarried, no brothers or sisters, totally unheard of in Nepal). I was asked about my income, which we learned that I make as much in an hour as one of them makes in a month. People in Nepal were very interested in this kind of thing, always asking me how much my flight tickets were, how much iphones cost, how much I make, etc. We talked a lot about school, they talked a lot about people back in their village (where the mother was from, they spend a lot of time there visiting- called Jasbirey).

The husband of one of the cousins asked me why I thought the living standards were so different in the US and Nepal, all I could say was that I really didn’t know much about the history of Nepal, so I couldn’t really say. I’m not sure I could answer that even if I did know the history- this and more plagues me. I ask questions constantly in my head about why white people? why men? why the United States? how did this privilege get so out of control? I know some answers but not enough to make me feel any less guilt about it. I guess it’s very appropriate that I spent time with families / really immersed in Nepali culture over Thanksgiving to really beat it home about how lucky and privileged I am. I’ve never been hungry. I’ve never wanted for anything- I probably never will. I have so many choices that I am paralyzed. How did this happen to me? How can I make it right? How can I give this to people who don’t have it? Is this fair? Do I deserve this? What can I do in my life that will not only change this pattern but also assuage my own selfish guilt? Is it right to feel guilty? Is it right to eat these people’s food? Is it ok to take pictures and consume a culture in a place where half the people make under $1.25 a DAY? How can I take this experience and make it something bigger? Am I smart enough or strong enough to even start? It goes in a loop. People have said to me my entire life that going to India (and this applies to Nepal too) will change your life. I anticipated that and I think that’s what the draw was for me, I’m looking for something- meaning, direction, clarity, and trying to find it in the most culturally different (from me) places in the world. I often feel like I’m on a quest to get as far out of my comfort zone as I can to reach some kind of meaning, some kind of Buddhist (________) journey where I may find clarity if I suffer enough and put my brain through as many guilt exercises as I can. Of course, it’s looking in the wrong places, but by looking there I can see with some more clarity that the answer always lies within, not outside.

ANYWAY.

We ate in two waves, guests, men, and oldest eating first (dal bhat, traditional Nepali food- they eat variations of it every day)- a huge heap of white rice, lentil broth stuff, usually a vegetable like sauteed greens, potatoes, sometimes meat (rarely). It was delicious. I was encouraged to drink a lot of roxy but tried to maintain some form of sobriety in the most polite way that I could. It got colder and the men all went to watch TV in another room and the women and Sonam and I stayed in the kitchen and started a little fire in this portable stove. They started the fire by burning a plastic bag (!) and we finished our Roxy and said our goodnights. Sonam and I had a night cap and headed back to his place and went to sleep.

I got up early the next day and ate a pear and went for a walk through one of the tea plantations in town. I was very obviously the only white person in Ilam. People stared a lot but not in the usual way, in a more friendly way it seemed. It also dawned on me (only took 4 weeks) that people are staring at me not just because I’m white, but also because I’m so TALL. I’ve started not even noticing how short people are- I’m a good 6 inches on everyone, if not 12 inches. I’ve seen kids do triple takes to get a good look at me. If I return with a big grin and a “hi” or “namaste” it’s very much appreciated and thrilling for everyone involved.  On my walk I saw a tiny owl! I think that is probably one of my best animal sightings of the trip. I decided not to go to Dilli’s tea plantation, I was tired of long jeep rides and was enjoying Ilam too much.

Later, after Sonam cooked a great breakfast and went to work, I went for another walk and ended up on a mountainside talking to a Nepali guy my age. I didn’t really believe the whole “people in Asia think Americans are just like in American movies!” thing, but now I do. He asked me all about things he’d seen in American movies, he really thought that prostitutes were everywhere, everyone was beautiful, we all drive sports cars. Land of milk and honey to the max- I told him this was just like me thinking that everyone in Nepal was just like in a Bollywood movie, that I expect everyone to break out in song and dance in the middle of everyday life. I don’t think he understood that analogy, and I’m not sure if he understood anything I told him because he offered me gum and asked for a “kiss” when I decided I was going to leave and walk back to the apartment (even though I lied and told him I had a boyfriend!) I know I should be used to that by now but it’s so frustrating- the plague of being a woman and traveling alone. You never know who to trust – intentions are always cloudy. Dilli and Sonam (though MUCH older, married, etc) were perfect gentleman, this young guy interpreted an hour long conversation  about movies and customs as an invitation to make out (this is what I get for talking to someone who thinks American movies are real life). Also, getting on top of my poor sad feminist soapbox (weary looking lately), what makes people (men) think that they are so attractive and so great that I would be honored to be with them without showing any kind of interest? I know the answer to that. It’s just strange, I wonder if the propositions I’ve received in the past 5 weeks in India and Nepal would have been the same or happened at all if I was Indian or Nepali. I know they wouldn’t have. Fuck you. and fuck your “YOU NO LIKE KISS? JUST ONE KISS” no. NO. NONONONONONONO. Go to hell. Take your brothers and fathers with you.

I returned to the apartment and took a nap. I woke up and read for a while until Sonam came home, bringing with him the family we ate with the night before! They had all come over to cook dinner for a small thanksgiving party! I had told Sonam how I was homesick because Thanksgiving was happening at home. We all drank beer, I was not allowed to help in the kitchen, and we continued to talk.  There was chicken for dinner! WIth the usual dal baht- but poultry for Thanksgiving! I was so thrilled. Some of the girls stayed over that night, too.

In the morning I slept late and after I got up Sonam and I packed up and took a taxi to the village where the family has relatives (Jasbirey)- it is also where Sonam helped build a tea factory (processing facility) for small farmers to use. We stopped about halfway and ate momos and coke (I confessed about how I drink a lot of coke when I’m homesick, Sonam agreed that it was good and that it gives you energy) and then got in a jeep for the rest of the way up. Sonam warned me about the dirt roads up there, he was not kidding around. I have never, EVER seen roads that rough in my life. The only vehicles that can navigate them are old Land Rovers (my fantasy car from when I was a teenager), tractors, and a few big trucks. Sonam sprawled out in the truck bed and I managed a tight squeeze in the cab with 4 other guys.

Jasbirey was super small. It reminded me so much of the tiny villages I went to in Mexico when I was in college- in the hills of Oaxaca. In the part of the village in Nepal where Sonam took me too there were about 30 people living, with quite a few other families spread out around. I met a lot of the people the family I had eaten dinner with the nights before had talked about. Sonam took me to the tea factory and I saw some of the tea being processed. There was a room for storing the tea that was ready to ship and it had the most amazing smell. Like tea and warmth and love and safety, sweet and spicy at the same time, somehow a soothing smell. It really smelled warm. You have to go inside a small wooden warehouse full of tea in the middle of nowhere Nepal to understand. There are not enough adjectives. There are no adjectives. It smelled like a hug from your mom in the winter. It smelled like your first home. It smelled like cashmere feels on your neck. It smelled like holding hands. It smelled like watching a happy dog rolling around on a carpet.

I got to watch Sonam smell and taste some of the tea that the factory had been working on- it was like watching a master wine taster at work. You’re supposed to slurp. I got to try a type called “ruby” which was really good. We left and ended up in a kitchen with some 20-somethings who were making momos! A huge batch of them! I was thrilled. One guy, the other Sonam (he’s 19) taught me how to fold them and insisted that I keep making them until he approved of my technique. “Big” Sonam arranged for millet beer (another homebrew) that actually has millet in it. You add hot water to the fermented millet and you end up with a milky warm kind of sour “beer.” I loved it. I ate so many momos. We laughed and talked with everyone in that kitchen as they assembled and cooked all the momos over the wood stove (holy cow, all wood stoves in the village, I have no idea how anyone does anything on those- no temperature control at ALL. Talent. practice.

Little did I know that the momos were just a prelude to dinner and a giant plate of dal bhat was waiting on me in another kitchen. Nepalis really know how to put away food, I’ve never seen anyone eat that much rice in my life. I tried to finish but couldn’t- felt really bad about that.

The room where I slept contained a tv, a grandmother, mother, and little boy all watching the Nepali version of Madagascar. It was really fun watching it with them. After it ended, I went to bed. I woke up early to go for a walk with young Sonam to Mai Pokhari Lake, a very religiously significant lake where a goddess lives. While we were drinking tea before we left, I noticed a lot of the men of the village were excitedly talking about something. Sonam told me everyone was going fishing today (since it was festival time everyone had a day off) and he wanted to go too, he invited me but I told him I’m no good at fishing. I saw a few testing a generator in the road and one guy was carrying two wooden poles with metal running up the side of them. I asked Sonam what that was for and he replied, “fishing” – then he explained that they were going to stick the poles with the metal into the river and attach them to the generator and ELECTROCUTE ALL THE FISH. OH MY BUDDAH I laughed so much. Sonam told me they were going to catch a lot of fish. I was actually kind of sad I missed out on going fishing- but I wanted to see the lake and I had to get back to Ilam and on to Bagdogra to catch a flight the next day.

There were more people living and working near the lake and many people were preparing for a festival the next day. Young Sonam and I visited his mother and grandmother (who is 99 I think? really old!) and came upon a ceremony honoring 3 young girls. We walked around the lake and Sonam pointed out lots of the plants there, which was fascinating for me because I love learning about plants while walking around in the woods. We talked a lot about Nepali culture and what he was planning on doing in the future (biomedical engineering!) We walked back down to the village and young Sonam fixed me some dal bhat for lunch and I walked down a few miles to catch a taxi the rest of the way to Ilam.

The taxi from Ilam to Charali was another windy ride filled with carsickness (not me) and almost 50 people crammed into a ~20 person van. I will not miss those rides, even if the views were spectacular. From Charali (shar-a-lie) I caught a local bus to Karkabitta. I am somewhat of a spectacle on the local transit because foreigners generally don’t bother with the bus or with shared rickshaws- but if you have someone to help you it’s much more interesting than a taxi, and WAY CHEAPER- like 15 rupees vs. 500 rupees ($.18 vs $6.25). I was sitting up front because of my big backpack when the bus slowed a little and the driver reached somewhere and pulled out a LIVE CHICKEN and handed it to someone waiting outside. Oh, Nepal.

I made it to Kankarbhitta, though at this point I was really stressed out about getting to the Nepal and Indian immigration before they closed and getting to Bagdogra before it was too dark/late. The plague of solo female travel is darkness- traveling in Autumn makes everything difficult, it gets dark at 5pm! I got there and thankfully it was still open. I had overstayed my Nepal visa by 5 days (I had already talked to immigration about this before I did it- they said I just had to pay a fee for each day) but I FORGOT to go to the ATM before I went to immigration. The immigration officer told me the ATM was closed and Kankarbhitta only has one (hi, small town) so I just pulled out all the cash I had and showed it to the officer, also telling him I had to get a bus to Bagdogra that night as well so he couldn’t have it all. He made a deal, I owed $45 and he took $25, leaving me with about 220 Nepali Rupees… that’s $2.75. To get to India, get a bus to Bagdogra, and get settled. I was nervous but hey, what else could I do? So I took the deal and walked, on foot, in the dark now (sorry mom I know this is bad) from Nepal to India- across this long bridge. It was fine though, there are lots of police at the border.

I made it to Indian immigration and they were very friendly. When I inquired about where to catch the bus one man suggested I take a taxi because the bus was too crowded, I told him my money situation and THEN REALIZED THAT I HADN’T EXCHANGED MY NEPALI RUPEES FOR INDIAN RUPEES! God, one bad move after another. All you can do is laugh and hope someone laughs with you, which the guys at Indian immigration did. The head immigration officer exchanged the rupees out of his own wallet (!) and I thanked them all profusely. Now I had about 150 Indian rupees. I found a shared taxi to Bagdogra for 50 rupees and sat in the trunk with two other guys, my pack on top of the jeep (it always rides on the roof). I asked the driver (with some help) to take me to a hotel that Sonam recommended and was dropped off there. It was a paradise, a real luxury hotel that I was completely glad to pay the $40 a night for because hi, clean, nice, hot water, soft bed, happiness.

Review of Drukair (Bhutan) Airways after 2 glasses of Wine

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lunch on a 2.5 hour flight, hollaaaa

So I booked the cheapest flight i could find out of the closest airport to Kathmandu about a week ago- turned out that flight would be through Drukair (the main airline for Bhutan) out of Bagdogra airport (India). I had no idea what to expect. Let me tell you, I’m writing this from the plane. I’m about halfway through my second glass of wine (I always choose white wine on flights, I have no idea… classy trashy?) but really, if you give me enough white wine and speak in that magical British-English hybrid accent for your safety presentations and you offer drinks and meals on a 2.5 hour flight, I’m yours. All that runs through my head is “Royal Bhutan Airways, fucking class right here.” The seats are wide enough for there to be room (!) and my femur doesn’t touch the seat in front of me, ever. This is a goddamn miracle. I am really, really impressed. Mostly with the wine. America needs to step up the game. What gives with such bad service there? It’s the biggest contradiction to have such a clean nation that is so obsessed with service (like the tipping system for restaurants and other service jobs?) but the planes just suck. I want to visit Bhutan. I want to visit Bhutan right now.

Micro Bus to Kathmandu

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Today I packed up and hopped on a micro-bus back to Kathmandu. The road between Pokhara and Kathmandu has a stretch that seems to really make some people very very ill. On the way to Pokhara two women (Nepalese women, may I add) got really carsick and were throwing up. On the return trip, around the same place, I think at least 3 or 4 people were carsick enough to be vomiting. This is basically my number 1 fear in the world, I hate throwup and anything related to it. I am working on not being so affected by it but it’s hard. I spent about 6+ hours today on really terrible mountain roads surrounded by carsick people. I think this is also partly because of the mirco-bus, it drives a lot more crazy than the big busses so I guess there’s more jostling around. I was fine, though when people do throw up I get stuck in a horrible anxiety loop of thinking that maybe I’m sick too and I’m going to throw up too and then I make myself think I don’t feel good. I’m just glad the bus didn’t go over a cliff.

Anyway, I made it back to Kathmandu safely, I even took the local bus back to my favorite guest house (bonus points). I went to Thamel (the tourist district) because I thought I wanted a sleeping bag (so much outdoor gear here for SO cheap) but when it came down to biting the bullet I decided not to. My backpack is already SO heavy and I don’t want to carry a sleeping bag around for another month. I also did a search on ebay and verified my thoughts that I could spend the same amount and get a sleeping bag that isn’t so horribly counterfeit.

Tomorrow is a big travel day and I’m procrastinating on going to sleep because I do not enjoy travel days. They are days spent sitting around, spending money, negotiating with taxi drivers, dealing with visas and passports, etc. Just please speed up to be Wednesday already! Gangtok, India- here I come.

And you do the hokey Pokhara and you turn yourself around, that’s what Nepal’s about!

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I got up early on Thursday and hauled my now supremely heavy backpack to the bus station in Kathmandu (from my host family’s house), ignored the men telling me that there were “no micro busses to Pokhara today because of Tihar” and “the ticket stand is closed because of the holiday” (all lies to get me to take their busses) and with the help of a young man who looked like he had been clocked pretty bad the night before found where the micro busses were. 500 rupees later (almost $6) I was zooming out of Kathmandu and into some crazy mountains. Thankfully, I got the seat near the door that has infinite leg room (the driver told me it would be best) he was right. We took a 30 minute break where I ate some tiny bananas and I dozed. I woke up to the girl sitting next to me throwing up into a plastic bag from being car sick, then another girl up in the front of the van did also. grossssssssssssssss

We got to Pokhara in 5 hours, the road was really windy and scary. I found out later that the microbuses like the one I was on often go over the edge of the road/cliff because they speed so much. The tourist and local buses take 7 hours.  uhhhhhh

Pokhara is beautiful. Yesterday I felt kind of ill all day so I took it easy and took a nap and chilled out (sadly). I had such big plans but when your body cries, you have to listen to it. Last night I got a Facebook message from my favorite Australian family that I met in Kolkata! They were in Pokhara so we met up for dinner. They had just hiked the Annapurna Base Camp Trek (10 days?) and were recovering in Pokhara. It was THE MOST LOVELY THING to hang out with such a fun family. Today I met them for breakfast and we went up Sarangkot mountain (took a taxi up, walked down). It was stupid how beautiful the mountains are here. We had a great view of Fishtail mountain and all the paragliders flying around. I am sad to say goodbye to the family but I’m packing up and heading back to Kathmandu tomorrow- gotta get back to India before my Nepal visa runs out. Sad to leave! Pokhara is so nice, I would like to return here and do a long trek.