Fireballs

Ughhh, I'm sick of blogging about Thailand, and I'm sure you're all sick of reading about it.  Buuut, I have to write it all down or I will forget.  Don't worry, I'll make the rest of them short and sweet.

After we left Krabi, we headed to Nong Khai, a city in the Northeastern part of Thailand, for the infamous Naga Fireball Festival.  Nong Khai is on the bank of the Mekong river, with Laos just across the water, which is cool, but only because Laos is a country I haven't been to.  I hear it's not amazing, but I wanted to go over there anyway... my Facebook "Where I've Been" map isn't going to update itself, you know.

 

Laos, from across the river.  You don't have to say it - I know it's an amazing shot.  

So our whole trip to Nong Khai stemmed from a book of Danielle's called "1001 Natural Wonders of the World", which featured a section on "Naga Fireballs".  According to the book, these fireballs are supposed to be naturally-occurring glowing balls that rise up from the Naga (serpent god) that lives in the Mekong river.  I'm not describing it well enough, but it is really hyped up in Thailand and all of Southeast Asia.  To get a more detailed account of the fireballs (and to see why we traveled across the country to see them) click here.  Or you can just Google naga fireballs and read any or all of the numerous articles about it.  See, it's a pretty big deal.  

 

Naga

So, long story short, we got to Nong Khai the night before the fireball extravaganza, (which is traditionally held on the last full moon in October... You'd think it'd be hard to plan the exact date and time of a naturally-occurring event, but they do) and walked around the local festival and ate some weird street food, including, but not limited to a pancake-type thing hard-fried in loads of palm oil and covered in sweetened condensed milk.  It was delicious.  The next day we explored the town, ate some Vietnamese food and fed a baby elephant.  Just a typical day.  

 

Elephants love me.  It's a fact.       Photo by Mary P.  

To go see the fireballs, we had to take a bus to a different town not too far away.  However, in typical Asian style, we had to wait until the bus filled all the way up with people.  And that includes filling the aisles with standing passengers.  So between waiting time and driving time, we didn't get to the place until two hours later.  We were still in pretty good spirits, though... anticipation is powerful medicine (so is beer, and we may have had a couple on the bus ride over).  We waded through the crowd to find a perfect spot from which to see the fireballs (we didn't find one), and then we waited for hours for the fireballs to start.  They eventually did, but they were, shall we say, less than stellar.  It was a huge disappointment.  Click on this link to see a video of exactly what we saw.  Actually, that video is probably better than what we saw.  I think we witnessed maybe four "fireballs" in all, and they all strangely seemed to be coming from the Laotian side of the river.  We foreigners were not very impressed, but I can't speak for the Thai visitors.  Man, they go crazy for those things!  

 

A boat that came "coincidentally" just before the fireballs.  Each time.  Also, yes, my pictures from Nong Khai aren't very good.  Sue me. 

To get back to our hotel, we had to take another bus (standing room only by the time we got there... it wasn't very pleasant) and inch our way through traffic for two and a half hours.  We were all fairly disheartened by the whole experience, but hey, tomorrow is another day.  However, the next day started in much the same vein as the night before... Our flight out was early in the morning and our hotel was an hour away from the airport.  No one spoke enough English to help us get a taxi, and no one seemed to understand why we were going to the airport in the first place.  Why would we ever want to leave? (Remember, we are all well-seasoned travelers by this point... they were making it illogically difficult.  Not our fault.) The whole debacle took maybe two hours, with lots of stressful hair-pulling and kicking of things. It involved numerous tuk-tuks, a ride to the taxi station, a ride to the bus station, and then a ride to the airport in a tiny beater truck.  It was ridiculous, but we made it. 

Anyway, so that about sums up our Nong Khai trip.  Sorry, it wasn't quite as short as I had planned, but I wanted you to get the full effect of our experience.  Not all parts of the trip were good ones, but it was an unforgettable experience, to say the least.  

Matt is working late tonight.  Bleh.  

Scuba Steve

Before I get into my description of my epic scuba diving adventure, I'd like to share with you a few minor India details.

• I broke down and went to the new branch of FabIndia today.  It is much, much smaller than the one in Mumbai, but still relatively fabulous.  I bought nothing because after paying half of the balance on our carpet, we are kind of short on cash.  I'm not allowed to go to the ATM, due to reasons.  (Actually it's due to the fact that Matt gets per diem in rupees which are very hard to exchange into dollars, so I have been told to "wait it out" repeatedly on the money situation, as we will get a plethora of cash shortly.)
• While at FabIndia, I met a lady expat(riot) who invited me to the big weekly lady expat meeting next Tuesday.  We exchanged phone numbers, and she promised to call later with the time and location of the meeting.  We'll see.  I don't want to get too excited because I think I may have inadvertently given her the wrong phone number.  I'm still pretty excited, though.  I like expats.  Sometimes they drink a lot.  That's about the extent of my knowledge of expats.  See, sometimes shopping does pay.  
• I have decided to take the GRE (Graduate Record Examination) while here in India.  I looked it up online, and I think I can take it in Ahmedebad, which is only a couple hours away.  I haven't actually decided on a graduate program, or decided what I would like to study in graduate school... or decided if I even want to do graduate school or if I should just man up and get a job... but I figure studying for and taking the GRE can't hurt.  Well, it could hurt a little, I guess.  Especially if I don't do well. 

Anyway, I will keep you posted on the above happenings.  In the meantime:

 

                                                                                                 Photo by Mary P.

Kat and me in all our scuba gear.  Matt says I look good with my equipment.  I think he's running out of compliments.  

We did, in fact go scuba diving on our ExTRA trip.  I was told (and I kind of figured) that it wasn't the best diving trip ever, due to the bleached out coral and lack of fish, but it was still pretty awesome. (Sorry, I lied about the sharks and the sunken ships.  What can you do?  Sometimes I lie.)  Just breathing underwater was an incredible experience, as was trying to swim with flippers.  I'd never actually done that before, and I wasn't very good at that part.  I was good at the breathing, though.  Not to brag, but I've known how to do that for ages.

Anyway, we did see some cool stuff underwater, but I don't have any pictures of it.  We saw loads of jellyfish, of which I was initially terrified, but then grew to love after I got to dribble one on my hand like a basketball.  Also, I caught a fleeting glimpse of a seahorse that my instructor pointed out, which was pretty rad.

 

                                                                                       Photo by Danielle S. 

After diving, we stopped at this island for a breather.  No big deal, just a pit stop at one of the most beautiful places on the planet.   

Aside from diving, we also took an island-hopping trip to a few random islands off the coast.  No big deal, just visiting three or more exotic islands in a matter of hours.  All in a day's work.

 

                                                                                      Photo by Danielle S.

Hong Island. 

As a part of our island-hopping package, we got to go snorkeling (always a good time) and sea kayaking!  I'd never been sea kayaking before, and it was really fun, but definitely more taxing than I was prepared for.  I think maybe all that beach laying made my muscles start to atrophy (also not getting much protein or nutrients in general in India might be a factor).  On our sea kayak trip we went from Hong Island (above) to Hong Lagoon (below), which we had already visited once at high tide.  

 

                                                                                     Photo by Danielle S. 

Hong Lagoon, pre-kayak trip. 

By the time we got back to the lagoon in our kayaks, it was a dramatically different sight.  Almost all the water was gone, and there were hundreds (probably) of starfish lying around!  

 

                                                                              Photo by Danielle S.

Mary and I got a big kick out of the starfish.  Please excuse my hair.  It knows not what it does.  

Anyway, so that was about the extent of our Krabi extravaganza.  I know, I know, it was amazing and beautiful and possibly the best place on Earth, but fear not, it wasn't all fun and games.  I got violently ill on the longtail-boat ride back from island-hopping.  By violently ill, I mean I just got really insanely nauseous but didn't actually throw up.  See, it wasn't all good.   Anyway, I know this is long, and for that I apologize.  

Happy Diwali

 

WelcomTreat from the WelcomHotel.

Last week India celebrated Deepavali, or Diwali to the layperson.  In some places, Diwali is celebrated for three days, but in Gujarat, we do it up big: a five day celebration where virtually nothing is open and no one does anything but party.  My kind of holiday.  

As many of you may know, Diwali is the "Festival of Lights" (Deepavali actually translates into 'row of lamps' - thank you Wikipedia), so of course they have fireworks!  Also, you are supposed to light oil in clay lamps to signify the triumph of good over evil.  

 

Ain't that fine?  This was in our hotel lobby.  

Also, I read something about how Diwali is the commemoration of how Lord Rama returned after 14 years and vanquished the demon-king Ravana.  Obviously I should look further into this, because that sounds like a good story.  

Friday was the actual day of Diwali (the rest of the days have other names, but of course I don't remember them, and I threw out the WelcomScroll I got with the info on it), and the hotel, in its infinite wisdom, invited all the guests (only the foreigners are lame enough to not go home for Diwali) outside to watch the fireworks (they call them crackers.  Not firecrackers, just crackers.  I liked that) show.  And what a show it was!  

 

That's right, they don't mess around.  

Of course I got totally into it, but so did everyone else, so that's okay.  We mostly had sparklers (fun, but not dangerous), but there were also some sort of screaming roman candle-esque things (both fun and exceedingly dangerous.  

 

 

Me with one of the screaming roman candles.  Mostly I like this picture because I look like a crazy person.  

After the hotel ran out of fireworks, we went outside in search for more (our lust for crackers is insatiable).  Across the street, the locals were setting off huge hundred-foot rolls of crackers in the middle of the road (unbelievably dangerous).  While traffic continued to drive by.  It was quite entertaining.  

 

Tell me that's not terrifying.  I guess maybe you had to be there, but it was.  

Anyway, that was about the extent of my Diwali experience.  I have many many more pictures, but I've run out of time and energy.  Fear not, I'll be back tomorrow with more stories of Thailand (spoiler alert: we went scuba diving and saw sharks and sunken ships!  Maybe that's true and maybe it isn't.  Tune in tomorrow to find out).  

 

Ben, Matt and Chris being boys.  

Krabi

I've just spent an hour trying (unsuccessfully) to update the look of my blog.  And then I realized, everyone who reads my blog gets it as an email, so I should stop worrying.  I would be irritated at the time I just wasted, but hey, what was I going to do anyway?  Sit by the pool?  

In other news, I spent the afternoon sitting by the pool.  The weather has cooled off quite dramatically in India, but it's still around 90F during the day.  The pool water is very cold, but it's also very dirty, so I don't actually get in the pool.  I sit near it in a puddle of my own sweat, panting like a dog and chugging water.  Nice visual.  

 

This is the only picture I have from Krabi.  I'm posting it in honor of my sister, whose name just so happens to be Aura, thus the picture.  

Anyway, so after that entertaining weekend in Pattaya, we flew to Krabi, which is in the southern part of Thailand.  And it is incredible.  Way more than just amazing and beautiful, this is quite possibly the best place I've ever been.  With huge limestone cliffs jutting out from the Andaman Sea (yes I had to look that up), the islands that make up Krabi have the most amazing beaches I've ever been to - which is saying a lot because (not to brag) I've been to a lot of nice beaches over the last three years.  Thanks UOP.  Anyway, I'm no good at describing this stuff, and you wouldn't believe me anyway, so I'll post some pictures.  

 

                                                 Photo courtesy of Danielle S. 

 

                                                          Photo courtesy of Danielle S.

Phra Nang beach, Krabi.  These pictures really don't do the place justice.  (Which is in no way a reflection of Danielle's photography skills.)

We were in Krabi four full days, and surprisingly, only two of those were spent laying on the beach.  I could've easily spent the entire vacation (all three weeks) in some sort of a semi-coma on one of these beaches, waking only to get food and the occasional beer, but in retrospect, I'm glad we were a little more productive than that.  Mostly.  

 

                                                             Photo courtesy of Mary P.

Getting foot scrubs on Railay beach, Krabi.  Also, I know I was the one who said no swimsuit pictures on the Internet, but this one's from far away! And it so perfectly captures the moment! 

In an effort to make you even more jealous than you already are, yes, we got four simultaneous foot scrubs on the beach while drinking beer and listening to the waves. Yes, it was amazing.  It probably would have been more amazing if the lady scrubbing my feet hadn't kept pointing out all my disgusting dead skin to the others, but that's okay.  I'll take one for the team.  

 

                                                        Photo courtesy of Danielle S.

Phra Nang beach, Krabi.  I couldn't help myself.  I had to post one more.  

      

Dirty

Today I ventured outside of the hotel for basically the first time since I got back from Thailand.  I had forgotten how persistent those beggar kids are.  No, that's not quite true... I think maybe they forgot what a cold-hearted witch I am when it comes to giving them money.  They have definitely renewed their quest for "one coin" with vigor.  I know what you're thinking, and yes, I feel bad ignoring them time after time.  But not so bad that I'm willing to give them money, as I know this will only make the situation that much worse.  I had one small boy follow me across the busy street, through death-defying traffic, while holding an infant.  For real.  I would have been kind of impressed, but he was holding onto my arm the entire time asking for money, so that lessened my amazement somewhat.  Fear not, I have a grand plan for giving all of Baroda's beggars money, but I can't execute it until the day we leave.  (It's something along the lines of throwing money out of the car windows as we drive on our way to the airport. This way everyone's happy, see?)

Baroda seems to have made a lot of changes while I was away.  For instance, they finished construction on Trash and Potholes Road, so now I can just call it Trash Road.  It is still very dirty, maybe even more so now that the monsoon season is over.  Also, I have been told that my favorite store from Mumbai, FabIndia, has just opened a new location in the Centre Square Mall.  I have yet to look into it because I don't want to have all my fun in one day.  Gotta save something for the rest of the week.  I did however buy some granola bars today.  It was the best day.  Also, I am unsure about whether Diwali has started or if it is starting this weekend.  In any case, there are lots of shoppers and lots of traffic in town this week.  Shriram says the jewelry stores clean up during Diwali because everyone goes to buy silver to give as gifts.  I love silver!  Perhaps in the Diwali spirit I should buy myself some (more... I bought some in Thailand, too.)?

Speaking of Thailand (oooohhh, you see how I did that?  Segue is my middle name), I believe I was telling a story....
After Ayutthaya, we got that same taxi driver to take us to Pattaya, which is the city of Go-Go clubs.  Apparently it's billed as some sort of beachy resort area, but that it is not.  It does have a beach, but you can't really see it through all the prostitutes and ladyboys strolling the sidewalk in front of it.  Danielle's husband came and met us in Pattaya, and together they took us around the city, showing us things we had never before seen (and don't really ever need to see again).  Basically just lots of Thai girls (and boys, sometimes) doing unmentionable things.

 

                                                      Photo courtesy of Danielle S. 

Some of the aforementioned girls.  And Danielle!  She had unwittingly dressed in their uniform.  

Also, we went to a Tiffany Show to watch drag queens strut their stuff!  It was pretty entertaining, but the music could've been a lot better.  My favorite number was a little ditty entitled "I Enjoy Being a Girl".  Both clever and ironic.

 

Isn't she lovely?  Photo courtesy of Mary P.

Oh, AND we saw a Michael Jackson magician, and he used Danielle as his assistant for one of his more eye-catching illusions.  I quite enjoyed it, but I can't say that she did.

 

                                 Photo courtesy of Danielle S. 

MJ and Danielle.  He was trying to burn a hole in her shirt without actually burning a hole in her shirt.

So that was about all for Pattaya.  Pretty entertaining. In closing, I would like to apologize to Danielle for posting two (semi-embarrassing) pictures of her on my blog without her permission.  In penance, I will post one embarrassing photo of myself.  Fair is fair.  

 

                                  Photo courtesy of Danielle S.

This was at the dance club around 4 a.m.  Surprisingly, I was neither drunk nor having a crazy time, even though I look both.  

 Also, my power just went out.  Nothing like rolling blackouts to remind you where you are.  

Ruined

I'm pretty sure I've already used this title at some point, but who pays attention to these things anyway?  In any case, it's a good one and deserves repeating.

I'd like to take a quick moment to give my Happy Halloween shout out - belatedly, as is my style.  I hope everyone had a good Halloween weekend.  Matt and I had a good weekend despite the fact that it wasn't very festive.  We went to play paintball (again.  I know, my life is so rough), and then we watched a movie in the Res. Lounge, per usual, only this time, we dressed up!  Well, kind of.  Of course we didn't have costumes (no place to wear them even if we did), but we improvised and dressed up in my matching couples t-shirts I got in Thailand.  These are huge in Asia... surely I've mentioned them before?  Anyway, we were supposed to be Chinese tourists, but as neither of us are even remotely Asian looking, it didn't really work.

 

Yup, kind of lame.  But kind of cute, too?

 

Here's where we get really Asian:  socks and flip flops.  

Anyway, as many of you may know, Halloween is my favorite holiday, so it was kind of a bummer to be so lame about it, but what can you do?  This is Baroda.  We're legally and contractually obligated to not have fun.  Ever.  Also, as this is only the first of many holidays we'll be spending here (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, Valentine's, St. Patrick's Day, Easter.... Thanksgiving 2011...), it's probably important to set the tone of a boring holiday season.  

Now we can get back to business.  When last I posted, I believe I was in the process of describing the highlights of the Best Vacation Ever.   Our second day we spent in Bangkok and went to Chinatown (not my idea, nor was it my idea of a good time, but it was interesting... pretty much same same as China) and then toured the Jim Thompson House.  Old J.T. is something of a celebrity in Thailand due to his helping build up the silk trade, as well as his mysterious disappearing act in Malaysia in the '60s. 

The next day we hired a car and drove about an hour outside of BKK to the ancient city of Ayutthaya to tour around its ruined temples from the 15th and 16th centuries.  They were really (you guessed it) amazing and beautiful.  

 

Line of Buddha statues at Wat Yai Chai Mongkol, Ayutthaya.  

We spent the entire day traipsing around these different temples, learning little about the history, but loving it anyway.  I know I should probably make more of an effort to learn about these places before (or during, or after) I go, but I just don't have it in me.  Instead, I will give you some pictures to look at, and if you're interested, you can go to Thailand and learn about the history yourself!  Is that mean?  I don't mean for it to be, but you take it however you like.  

 

Buddha head at Wat Mahathat.  Danielle overheard one guide say something about how a guy was trying to steal the head but then dropped it so nature reclaimed it with her far-reaching tree roots.  See I did learn something after all.  So what if the facts are fuzzy... or false. 

 

Apparently this is beyond offensive, but in our defense, we didn't know it at the time (yes, I did it too, but Mary's picture is better).  

Shortly after we took these offensive pictures, we headed to another temple where I played this game where you shake a can full of numbered sticks until one falls out, then you take the stick up to a lady and she gives you a horoscope which corresponds to your stick number (still with me?).  I believe it was directly due to the above photos that my horoscope read as follows:  

You are in trouble and unhappy.  You face obstacles and interruption.  You might have to take the fall for other people's mistakes.  No luck, you have to be patient and seek it with wisdom.  

Are you kidding me?  What kind of horoscope is that?  I was depressed for the rest of the day... or at least the next five minutes.  I guess I had it coming, but still.  Come on.  

 

Wat Chai Wattanaram.

 

Oh how I love these shiny gold leaf-encrusted Buddha heads. 

I guess that about wraps it up for this installment of the Best Vacation Ever .  I am probably not doing this trip justice, but really, you just had to be there (don't you hate it when people say that?  I do, but I'm saying it anyway.  India makes me bitter and mean).    

Back To Life, Back To Reality

...Back to the here and now, yeah.  After weeks and weeks (just under three, to be exact) in Thailand, the prodigal daughter has finally returned back to her life and reality.  And the reality of my situation is best summed up with this little visual: as my plane from Bangkok was hovering over Mumbai airspace preparing to land, I looked out the window and was completely unsurprised (though no less disappointed) to see a hazy mess of brown cloud saturating the city.  Beneath this brown fog I glimpsed large clustered masses of bamboo and tin shacks, their aluminum roofs glinting in the weak sunlight.  Incredible India, indeed.

Now that I have your attention, let me just say that although my trip was amazing, I was more than excited to get back to India and my husband.  We had a not-quite tearful reunion at the Baroda airport, and he valiantly loaded my huge duffel bag into the auto rickshaw and squeezed in next to it for the long drive back to WelcomHotel.  What a gentleman.

Before I begin the long and arduous process of recounting all of my many great adventures in Thailand in appallingly great detail (false, I have no intention of doing that.  You will be lucky if I tell you any details at all... yup, Thailand made me hard in terms of blogging), I would like to share another little India story.  This morning, after a fairly sleepless night (that one-and-a-half hour time difference really gets you), I opened my curtains to look out upon the "garden", and what did I see but three little monkeys sitting on the ground!  They appeared to be eating something, maybe poop, and when they finished, the jumped up into the tree next to my window.  Lucky me, I had my camera handy, and of course I got pictures.

 

Indian monkey.  It's okay to be jealous.  I would be.  

Matt assures me that he sees these monkeys every day at the refinery and that it's nothing new to see them in town, but I've never seen them before.  Also, he hates them (I think they scare him).  On more than one occasion I've heard him utter the phrase "stupid monkey bastards".

Anyway, let's get down to business.  Thailand was amazing.  I don't think I'm the first person to feel this way, but I think having gone directly from India to Thailand made me appreciate the fantasticness of the country all the more.  Bangkok is a really beautiful and incredibly clean city - or do I just think that because I came from here?  Who can know?  Anyway, on our first full day in town we (in case you didn't know, I went with a group of roadwives, Mary, Kat and Danielle, who used to work for UOP and is now in sort of transitory state as she travels with her husband but is also doing some contract work) went to a bunch of temples around the city.

 

Kat, Mary, Me and Danielle.  Despite our best efforts, we were still inappropriately dressed for the Grand Palace, thus the borrowed skirts.   

Danielle and her husband basically live in Thailand (Chris's job is somewhere around the 2.5 year mark) so she acted as our tour guide for the entirety of the trip.  Thanks, buddy.  Anyway, I will not be detailing the history of the temples because I am a lazy mess, but if you want to read about it, check out Mary's blog.  She has done a much better job with the details.  I do know that first we went to the Grand Palace (I think the King lived there at some point in Thai history), which was really beautiful and amazing (I fear I will use those two adjectives in excess throughout my Thailand posts... you'll get over it).

 

Demons standing guard at the Grand Palace. 

Lots of the buildings are covered in tiny mirrors which gives the whole place a very bedazzled feel.  Also, there are tons of random decorative details everywhere, which makes for nice and interesting pictures, if I do say so myself.  

 

 

A mural on the interior walls.  Some of that is painted in gold leaf.  They don't mess around. 

After this, we went and saw a huge reclining Buddha at Wat Pho.  I think it might be the biggest one, or the biggest reclining one, or maybe the biggest reclining gold Buddha with spiky hair and mother of pearl-encrusted feet.  (They have lots and lots of categories for Buddhas in Asia.  I have seen many of them, and they never get old.)

 

See? I wasn't joking.  It's huge.  Look at those toes. 

Later, we took a ferry across the river to Wat Arun, the porcelain temple.  It is covered with a mosaic of random porcelain pieces, and is very beautiful and amazing (imagine that).  

 

Demons.  Or monkeys.  I forget the distinction, but it's something about the feet.  The demons wear shoes, maybe?

 

Ahh, how I love Asians posing for pictures.  The guy in the yellow is demonstrating my favorite: "standing far away from wall leaning with arm outstretched."  I utilize this one many times myself.  

I think that's about enough for the time being.  Fear not, I will return tomorrow with another installment of "Stories from the Best Vacation Ever".