I cannot imagine anyone or anything being happier than Kootenay is when she in on the beach. Each morning we get up and walk along the seawall walkway here in Nazare. Kootenay walks beside me with her head turned to the beach for the entire two kilometers of the walk. It is almost as if she is afraid it will disappear if she doesn’t keep her eyes on it.
When we are about halfway home I let her off her leash.
When the leash drops off her neck she looks at me to be sure that she is allowed to be free. Then I give her the all clear. She jumps up in the air and twists in a circle. It looks like somebody electrocuted her tail and she is trying to catch them. Then she leaps off the seawall and barrels down the beach towards the water’s edge.
With her nose down and her tail wagging she chases the waves as they stretch up onto the sand as far as they can reach. She is always surprised when they disappear and gallops down to the water’s new edge to find them.
Her other great joy is joining the kids playing soccer on the beach courts. I have had to buy a small fake soccer ball to carry with us when we go near the kids. It comes with us or I will have to once again wade into a scrum made of giggling boys, a dog and soccer ball and try to separate Kootenay from the ball and the boys from the dog.
Two boys always want her to play goalie for them. My Portuguese is not good enough to explain to them that once she gets the ball she will bite onto it and the chase will be on. I have tired pointing to her teeth and pretending to bite the ball, but I guess my charades are only good for ordering food and finding gas to heat the hot water tank. Either that or the boys just want a laugh when I try to act out the whole ball/teeth/chase scenario. To avoid the acting, we bring the doggie soccer ball. And it has a magic squeaker in it. Now when she tries to launch herself into the soccer game I just have to squeeze her soccer ball. When the squeaker goes off she comes running to me.
Today one of the soccer dad’s came over to “talk” with me. Between my dictionary and his little bit of English we came up with a description for Kootenay at the beach. We decided that she is joy personified. And, that you feel that if watch hard enough you can finally figure out what it takes to be truly happy.
We stood there and watched three 11-year-old boys play keep away with a soccer ball and a dog. The sun was shining and the waves were crashing ashore
Friday, November 30, 2007
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Does Sexy Translate?
North American movie stars engage in endorsements abroad. It is no big secret, but it is surprising when you see the ads. They promote things in other countries that they would never been seen overtly promoting back home. Coffee. Shampoo. Watches. And they sell these things with their “sex appeal.”
George Clooney sells coffee in Europe. In the ad he finds himself amazed as women walk past him to get to a good cuppa and don’t seem to notice him. Brad Pitt was selling watches in China. As we were walking down a street in Chengdu a little girl looked up at a Brad Pitt ad and ran over to stroke my nephew’s hair and point to his blue eyes excitedly. Aiden is only ten and the attention was a little overwhelming. Seeing these ads has made me watch movies a little differently. The next time I see George or Brad in a movie I will be watching to see if these products end up in the movie. Maybe they are advertising stuff back home and we don’t even notice it?
One of my most disconcerting moments with this type of ad occurred in China. Treesa and I watched a grown man in a suit stroke George Clooney’s giant lips. He pressed himself up against a billboard and went up on his toes so that he could stroke a picture of George’s lips. Now don’t get me wrong I understand the desire to touch George’s lips, but if I’m going to do it I hope it is in private. And I hope it doesn’t stop with his lips. But it was bewildering to me that a grown man in what appeared to be an expensive suit, would stop in the middle of a busy sidewalk and take time out to stroke a picture of a “star”. I felt very much a voyeur watching this moment. The other remarkable thing was that my sister and I seemed to be the only people to find the incident peculiar. And like all places in China, there were literally hundreds of people walking by. No one even slowed down.
Tonight a woman at the movie rental store wanted to rent Richard Gere. She brought back a movie that he had starred in pointed to his face and asked the clerk something that my limited Portuguese could not understand. The clerk took her over to the wall and pointed to another Richard Gere title. But, the woman wasn’t happy. She took the box of the movie she had just seen and held it up to the other movie. She pointed to the two faces that were clearly different. In the second movie Richard Gere was playing a role that required him to adopt a character. She didn’t want Richard Gere the actor she wanted Richard Gere. Luckily my immense knowledge of romantic comedies came to the rescue. I pointed out Pretty Woman and Runaway Bride to her and the clerk. The woman happily left with the two movies. The clerk smiled at me and shrugged her shoulders. She watched movies for the movie. I am pretty sure I lost a few coolness points with her for knowing those titles, that and the fact that I went home with a Ryan Reynolds romantic comedy. Oh well. She still in awe that I am from Canada, don’t speak any Portuguese, and have a bonito cachorro.
And now me and my cachorro will go curl up on our sofa and watch our romantic comedy. Hope K feels like snuggling. How’s that for sexy?
George Clooney sells coffee in Europe. In the ad he finds himself amazed as women walk past him to get to a good cuppa and don’t seem to notice him. Brad Pitt was selling watches in China. As we were walking down a street in Chengdu a little girl looked up at a Brad Pitt ad and ran over to stroke my nephew’s hair and point to his blue eyes excitedly. Aiden is only ten and the attention was a little overwhelming. Seeing these ads has made me watch movies a little differently. The next time I see George or Brad in a movie I will be watching to see if these products end up in the movie. Maybe they are advertising stuff back home and we don’t even notice it?
One of my most disconcerting moments with this type of ad occurred in China. Treesa and I watched a grown man in a suit stroke George Clooney’s giant lips. He pressed himself up against a billboard and went up on his toes so that he could stroke a picture of George’s lips. Now don’t get me wrong I understand the desire to touch George’s lips, but if I’m going to do it I hope it is in private. And I hope it doesn’t stop with his lips. But it was bewildering to me that a grown man in what appeared to be an expensive suit, would stop in the middle of a busy sidewalk and take time out to stroke a picture of a “star”. I felt very much a voyeur watching this moment. The other remarkable thing was that my sister and I seemed to be the only people to find the incident peculiar. And like all places in China, there were literally hundreds of people walking by. No one even slowed down.
Tonight a woman at the movie rental store wanted to rent Richard Gere. She brought back a movie that he had starred in pointed to his face and asked the clerk something that my limited Portuguese could not understand. The clerk took her over to the wall and pointed to another Richard Gere title. But, the woman wasn’t happy. She took the box of the movie she had just seen and held it up to the other movie. She pointed to the two faces that were clearly different. In the second movie Richard Gere was playing a role that required him to adopt a character. She didn’t want Richard Gere the actor she wanted Richard Gere. Luckily my immense knowledge of romantic comedies came to the rescue. I pointed out Pretty Woman and Runaway Bride to her and the clerk. The woman happily left with the two movies. The clerk smiled at me and shrugged her shoulders. She watched movies for the movie. I am pretty sure I lost a few coolness points with her for knowing those titles, that and the fact that I went home with a Ryan Reynolds romantic comedy. Oh well. She still in awe that I am from Canada, don’t speak any Portuguese, and have a bonito cachorro.
And now me and my cachorro will go curl up on our sofa and watch our romantic comedy. Hope K feels like snuggling. How’s that for sexy?
Monday, November 19, 2007
Things Are Different Here
Coffee is a bit of an obsession in Vancouver, but it is nothing compared to here. I saw a few Starbucks in Germany, but now that I am in Portugal, I have yet to see one, although, I have seen coffee shops. Coffee and the pastries that accompany it seem to hold a very important position here. Every afternoon at about 1pm everyone leaves their jobs and goes in search of family, friends and coffee. And they find them. And they sit and talk, connect eat and drink. It may just be coincidence, because I have not seen a lot of the country, but here it seems that who visits which shop depends on where their relatives work. And here I am a tea drinker.
Central heating. Lets make some noise for that convenience. I will never take for granted the ability to turn up the thermostat. The first two days I was here were sunny and beautiful, that all ended last night. A storm steamrolled over the sun and replaced it with grey skies, clouds and thunder. The temperature in the house I am in went from snug to frosty. This morning I searched through the house for heaters to plug in. Everyone who is thinking of visiting me should wait until the spring hits. Cold undies in the AM are not fun.
Dogs here seem to have free run of the town. There seem to be no leash laws and the no dogs allowed signs are reserved for fearful tourist. I am the only person who has here their dog on a leash. When we walk out of our courtyard the dog from up the street runs down to greet us. Then as we head down to the seawall the neighbour dog follows us for a while and turns back home when he loses interest in us. During our walks we are approached by many free roaming pooches, who come up to Kootenay and sniff about us as if to commiserate with her about her lack of freedom. But, honestly she is not the most obedient of dogs. And the sea and beach here would test us too much. I am not ready to be the crazy foreign woman who had to pull off her shoes and run up and down the cold surf trying to get her dog to come back home with her.
Grass. Grass is in short supply here. This is not the west coast, with its ample rain and green grass. There are lovely winding cobblestone roads with little sidewalks. Each street seems to have it’s own bit of “old world” charm. Little stores dot the streets, each with it’s own specialty. There are places that only sell keys, or knives, tools, cheese or meats. The operator of the wine store down the street also sells rugs, but there are separate entrances and cash registers for each side of the store. All very charming for someone visiting from the land of Wal-Mart and Costco, but for a west coast dog it is confusing. How does one find just the right place to pee without grass? And what does a dog do with out a giant park to tromp about in? Kootenay is finding this very difficult. Sure we walk for miles every day, but she does this without finding that relief that comes with finding the just the right spot of grass. Hopefully the stones will one day seem welcoming or we will have some trouble. I am sure that the nieghbour will catch us using his ivy and explaining our situation in Portuguese is way beyond my vocabulary.
Central heating. Lets make some noise for that convenience. I will never take for granted the ability to turn up the thermostat. The first two days I was here were sunny and beautiful, that all ended last night. A storm steamrolled over the sun and replaced it with grey skies, clouds and thunder. The temperature in the house I am in went from snug to frosty. This morning I searched through the house for heaters to plug in. Everyone who is thinking of visiting me should wait until the spring hits. Cold undies in the AM are not fun.
Dogs here seem to have free run of the town. There seem to be no leash laws and the no dogs allowed signs are reserved for fearful tourist. I am the only person who has here their dog on a leash. When we walk out of our courtyard the dog from up the street runs down to greet us. Then as we head down to the seawall the neighbour dog follows us for a while and turns back home when he loses interest in us. During our walks we are approached by many free roaming pooches, who come up to Kootenay and sniff about us as if to commiserate with her about her lack of freedom. But, honestly she is not the most obedient of dogs. And the sea and beach here would test us too much. I am not ready to be the crazy foreign woman who had to pull off her shoes and run up and down the cold surf trying to get her dog to come back home with her.
Grass. Grass is in short supply here. This is not the west coast, with its ample rain and green grass. There are lovely winding cobblestone roads with little sidewalks. Each street seems to have it’s own bit of “old world” charm. Little stores dot the streets, each with it’s own specialty. There are places that only sell keys, or knives, tools, cheese or meats. The operator of the wine store down the street also sells rugs, but there are separate entrances and cash registers for each side of the store. All very charming for someone visiting from the land of Wal-Mart and Costco, but for a west coast dog it is confusing. How does one find just the right place to pee without grass? And what does a dog do with out a giant park to tromp about in? Kootenay is finding this very difficult. Sure we walk for miles every day, but she does this without finding that relief that comes with finding the just the right spot of grass. Hopefully the stones will one day seem welcoming or we will have some trouble. I am sure that the nieghbour will catch us using his ivy and explaining our situation in Portuguese is way beyond my vocabulary.
Things Are Different Here
Coffee is a bit of an obsession in Vancouver, but it is nothing compared to here. I saw a few Starbucks in Germany, but now that I am in Portugal, I have yet to see one, although, I have seen coffee shops. Coffee and the pastries that accompany it seem to hold a very important position here. Every afternoon at about 1pm everyone leaves their jobs and goes in search of family, friends and coffee. And they find them. And they sit and talk, connect eat and drink. It may just be coincidence, because I have not seen a lot of the country, but here it seems that who visits which shop depends on where their relatives work. And here I am a tea drinker.
Central heating. Lets make some noise for that convenience. I will never take for granted the ability to turn up the thermostat. The first two days I was here were sunny and beautiful, that all ended last night. A storm steamrolled over the sun and replaced it with grey skies, clouds and thunder. The temperature in the house I am in went from snug to frosty. This morning I searched through the house for heaters to plug in. Everyone who is thinking of visiting me should wait until the spring hits. Cold undies in the AM are not fun.
Dogs here seem to have free run of the town. There seem to be no leash laws and the no dogs allowed signs are reserved for fearful tourist. I am the only person who has here their dog on a leash. When we walk out of our courtyard the dog from up the street runs down to greet us. Then as we head down to the seawall the neighbour dog follows us for a while and turns back home when he loses interest in us. During our walks we are approached by many free roaming pooches, who come up to Kootenay and sniff about us as if to commiserate with her about her lack of freedom. But, honestly she is not the most obedient of dogs. And the sea and beach here would test us too much. I am not ready to be the crazy foreign woman who had to pull off her shoes and run up and down the cold surf trying to get her dog to come back home with her.
Grass. Grass is in short supply here. This is not the west coast, with its ample rain and green grass. There are lovely winding cobblestone roads with little sidewalks. Each street seems to have it’s own bit of “old world” charm. Little stores dot the streets, each with it’s own specialty. There are places that only sell keys, or knives, tools, cheese or meats. The operator of the wine store down the street also sells rugs, but there are separate entrances and cash registers for each side of the store. All very charming for someone visiting from the land of Wal-Mart and Costco, but for a west coast dog it is confusing. How does one find just the right place to pee without grass? And what does a dog do with out a giant park to tromp about in? Kootenay is finding this very difficult. Sure we walk for miles every day, but she does this without finding that relief that comes with finding the just the right spot of grass. Hopefully the stones will one day seem welcoming or we will have some trouble. I am sure that the nieghbour will catch us using his ivy and explaining our situation in Portuguese is way beyond my vocabulary.
Central heating. Lets make some noise for that convenience. I will never take for granted the ability to turn up the thermostat. The first two days I was here were sunny and beautiful, that all ended last night. A storm steamrolled over the sun and replaced it with grey skies, clouds and thunder. The temperature in the house I am in went from snug to frosty. This morning I searched through the house for heaters to plug in. Everyone who is thinking of visiting me should wait until the spring hits. Cold undies in the AM are not fun.
Dogs here seem to have free run of the town. There seem to be no leash laws and the no dogs allowed signs are reserved for fearful tourist. I am the only person who has here their dog on a leash. When we walk out of our courtyard the dog from up the street runs down to greet us. Then as we head down to the seawall the neighbour dog follows us for a while and turns back home when he loses interest in us. During our walks we are approached by many free roaming pooches, who come up to Kootenay and sniff about us as if to commiserate with her about her lack of freedom. But, honestly she is not the most obedient of dogs. And the sea and beach here would test us too much. I am not ready to be the crazy foreign woman who had to pull off her shoes and run up and down the cold surf trying to get her dog to come back home with her.
Grass. Grass is in short supply here. This is not the west coast, with its ample rain and green grass. There are lovely winding cobblestone roads with little sidewalks. Each street seems to have it’s own bit of “old world” charm. Little stores dot the streets, each with it’s own specialty. There are places that only sell keys, or knives, tools, cheese or meats. The operator of the wine store down the street also sells rugs, but there are separate entrances and cash registers for each side of the store. All very charming for someone visiting from the land of Wal-Mart and Costco, but for a west coast dog it is confusing. How does one find just the right place to pee without grass? And what does a dog do with out a giant park to tromp about in? Kootenay is finding this very difficult. Sure we walk for miles every day, but she does this without finding that relief that comes with finding the just the right spot of grass. Hopefully the stones will one day seem welcoming or we will have some trouble. I am sure that the nieghbour will catch us using his ivy and explaining our situation in Portuguese is way beyond my vocabulary.
How Did I Get Here
I am trying to figure out what I am doing here. I was not raised to live an unstructured life. I was raised to get a job, hopefully with good benefits and hold onto it. To go to work everyday doing what I’m told and work until I retire. I’m not exactly sure when I stopped believing in anything else. Maybe I thought that, given the miracle or good luck that had me live through my teenage cancer battle that that was my miracle and to hope for more would be greedy.
When I told my dad that I wanted to travel to Europe with my dog and try and write the storey of my cancer battle he responded by telling me that artist suffer. They get jobs as waitresses or taxi drivers and write. And if they are lucky they produce something other people want to read. I am not sure that was meant to encourage or discourage me.
Of course I heard it as a subtle condemnation of this. I constantly question my decisions and this is no different. Today I had to remind myself that this was only my second day here so trying to measure my accomplishments was premature. That deciding I had failed already, was a trifle self-defeating.
It is not surprising that people live so much of their lives in cafes here. With no central heating it is cold in the houses. Last night I was ready to leave. Then I got up, had some breakfast and Kootenay and walked along the sea edge. We watched the giant waves crash onto the shore and then sat on a bench and watched all of the town walk by us. Families, friends and lovers walked up and down the seawall meeting and greeting each other. If you watched this in a movie it would seem false and scripted.
The women here wear what is called the seven petticoat dress with black wraps that also wrap their heads. Many people mention this and question why they still dress this way. The fishing wife life seems to have been chased away from this village by the Mercedes, Alfas, and Peugeuts that crawl the streets now. I can only say that given the temperature of the stone houses the older people live in I can why. While not stylish the outfit looks like it would keep you warm.
Kootenay is adjusting to having a daily routine, I think she enjoys the fact that we have unpacked. Although, I think she liked the people in Lisbon better than here. In Lisbon people stopped us to pat her and treated her like a movie star. Often people stop and talk to us and while we didn’t understand it all, inevitabily the sentence would include the phrase “Never Ending Story”. And then everyone would smile. She looks like the dog at the end of the movie. Here people are more hesitant, and often shy away from us. After being a star in Germany and Lisbon, Kootenay is finding it odd. Rather than fawning she is treated with a mixture of awe and reserve.
When I told my dad that I wanted to travel to Europe with my dog and try and write the storey of my cancer battle he responded by telling me that artist suffer. They get jobs as waitresses or taxi drivers and write. And if they are lucky they produce something other people want to read. I am not sure that was meant to encourage or discourage me.
Of course I heard it as a subtle condemnation of this. I constantly question my decisions and this is no different. Today I had to remind myself that this was only my second day here so trying to measure my accomplishments was premature. That deciding I had failed already, was a trifle self-defeating.
It is not surprising that people live so much of their lives in cafes here. With no central heating it is cold in the houses. Last night I was ready to leave. Then I got up, had some breakfast and Kootenay and walked along the sea edge. We watched the giant waves crash onto the shore and then sat on a bench and watched all of the town walk by us. Families, friends and lovers walked up and down the seawall meeting and greeting each other. If you watched this in a movie it would seem false and scripted.
The women here wear what is called the seven petticoat dress with black wraps that also wrap their heads. Many people mention this and question why they still dress this way. The fishing wife life seems to have been chased away from this village by the Mercedes, Alfas, and Peugeuts that crawl the streets now. I can only say that given the temperature of the stone houses the older people live in I can why. While not stylish the outfit looks like it would keep you warm.
Kootenay is adjusting to having a daily routine, I think she enjoys the fact that we have unpacked. Although, I think she liked the people in Lisbon better than here. In Lisbon people stopped us to pat her and treated her like a movie star. Often people stop and talk to us and while we didn’t understand it all, inevitabily the sentence would include the phrase “Never Ending Story”. And then everyone would smile. She looks like the dog at the end of the movie. Here people are more hesitant, and often shy away from us. After being a star in Germany and Lisbon, Kootenay is finding it odd. Rather than fawning she is treated with a mixture of awe and reserve.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Strolling Lisbon
After having a little pity party I managed to organize a ride to Nazare tomorrow. Lufthansa makes me crazy. It is soooooo difficult to get around now that I am the owner of an expensive new crate that is as big as a Volkswagen bug. Every time I think about it I get mad. But, in the interest of sanity I must let go of it and trust that everyone who reads this will tell people about the story. Did I mention that I have to jump in the air to see over it when I am pushing it thru airports?
In Lisbon Kootenay and I have been staying at Residencial Florescente. Kootenay is sleeping out on the balcony now. Occasionally she stands up and surveys the street below wags her tail and lies back down. The Fado singer from the concert hall across the street comes out and sings her a song in the morning and a bedtime. At first I thought it was for me, but then we met him on one of our walks and he professed his love to K. At least I think that is what he was saying.
There was a big police bust up down the street this afternoon. We were coming back from walking along the Tejo River and were suddenly in a swarm of polica. They had three wagons and started filling them with people from the street corner and a housing complex. It was all very dramatic. This is when a better understanding of the language would have come in handy. The officer was yelling and waving at me, but I had not a clue what he wanted me to do. Luckily a little old man took pity on me and led me away down an alley. He talked to Kootenay in Portuguese as he led us down the block. I’m not sure what he was saying, but he was happy with Kootenay’s response so I just smiled and nodded.
Smiling and nodding has become my main action. People stop us pet K and tell me all sorts of things sometimes they even pull out pictures of their dogs to share with me, but mostly they stop to pat K. I think the fact that I don’t understand a word people say makes it easier for them to talk to me.
In Lisbon Kootenay and I have been staying at Residencial Florescente. Kootenay is sleeping out on the balcony now. Occasionally she stands up and surveys the street below wags her tail and lies back down. The Fado singer from the concert hall across the street comes out and sings her a song in the morning and a bedtime. At first I thought it was for me, but then we met him on one of our walks and he professed his love to K. At least I think that is what he was saying.
There was a big police bust up down the street this afternoon. We were coming back from walking along the Tejo River and were suddenly in a swarm of polica. They had three wagons and started filling them with people from the street corner and a housing complex. It was all very dramatic. This is when a better understanding of the language would have come in handy. The officer was yelling and waving at me, but I had not a clue what he wanted me to do. Luckily a little old man took pity on me and led me away down an alley. He talked to Kootenay in Portuguese as he led us down the block. I’m not sure what he was saying, but he was happy with Kootenay’s response so I just smiled and nodded.
Smiling and nodding has become my main action. People stop us pet K and tell me all sorts of things sometimes they even pull out pictures of their dogs to share with me, but mostly they stop to pat K. I think the fact that I don’t understand a word people say makes it easier for them to talk to me.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Big dog
My dog and I both have size issues. People these days seem to want dogs and people to be purse size. We are definitely not purse size, although I do have a weakness for purses. Now that we are travelling our sizes has become an issue. People are very welcoming to small dogs. They look cute and you can put them in your purse and carry them everywhere. Big dogs require a bit more room and a bit more imagination. To have a big dog in your life you have to commit to opening yourself up to their needs. Small dogs can be fit to your life. You can tote them in and out of stores unnoticed, and a five-minute walk can keep them happy. Big dogs can’t be snuck into very many places. Although, I will admit to sneaking her into a few motels, but a great deal of subterfuge was needed. Since Kootenay became part of my life I have had to face the world differently. We no longer go unnoticed by people. When we walk down the street people stop. They say hi; they want to pet her; they want to connect. I never expected this. So here we are travelling and trying to find space for ourselves in another language. We can be persuasive in English, but now we have to get by on our looks and personality.
Today we hit Portugal and had to use all our looks and personality to find a bed for ourselves. Like most people my age we have come to rely on the internet. So in preparation for Lisbon we got on the internet and researched hotels. Who allows pets? What is their policy? All good things to know before you leave. After a great deal of reading we found a place and had our travel agent book it for us and include information about the dog. The motel concept is not strong here, so I wanted to be sure upfront that we would be welcome. They took our deposit along with the pet info yeah!
Imagine my surprise when we get there and they do not accept dogs. Now we are in Lisbon with no place to stay.
Back to the internet. Fatima, the hotel consierge manned the phone and I trolled the internet for places that might take us in. We phoned every place we could find and things looked bleak. I was almost glad for the giant cage the German ground crew forces on us, as I could picture Kootenay and I comfortably sleeping in it. It is almost as big as my apartment back home. Then I pulled out the Rick Steeves guide to Portugal. We would read the guide for hotels that seemed to have personality and then contact would ensue. I would look on the internet for the hotel pet policy and Fatima would phone them. Finally we found a bed. Thank you Residencial Florescente. People on Expeida and Travelocity may complain about the carpets or the smell, but we are happy to put our heads down here. And we actually appreciate the 1800’s character of the building. Our Juliet balcony makes us both very happy
Today we hit Portugal and had to use all our looks and personality to find a bed for ourselves. Like most people my age we have come to rely on the internet. So in preparation for Lisbon we got on the internet and researched hotels. Who allows pets? What is their policy? All good things to know before you leave. After a great deal of reading we found a place and had our travel agent book it for us and include information about the dog. The motel concept is not strong here, so I wanted to be sure upfront that we would be welcome. They took our deposit along with the pet info yeah!
Imagine my surprise when we get there and they do not accept dogs. Now we are in Lisbon with no place to stay.
Back to the internet. Fatima, the hotel consierge manned the phone and I trolled the internet for places that might take us in. We phoned every place we could find and things looked bleak. I was almost glad for the giant cage the German ground crew forces on us, as I could picture Kootenay and I comfortably sleeping in it. It is almost as big as my apartment back home. Then I pulled out the Rick Steeves guide to Portugal. We would read the guide for hotels that seemed to have personality and then contact would ensue. I would look on the internet for the hotel pet policy and Fatima would phone them. Finally we found a bed. Thank you Residencial Florescente. People on Expeida and Travelocity may complain about the carpets or the smell, but we are happy to put our heads down here. And we actually appreciate the 1800’s character of the building. Our Juliet balcony makes us both very happy
Leaving Frankfurt
Frankfurt.
When I started to write this note last night it was going to be a love story. The city was friendly and Kootenay and I walked all over it and enjoyed every minute. Then we flew out and that is where the love affair ended abruptly. When we got to the airport the ground crew refused to transport K in her crate. They claimed it was not big enough, and just so handily happened to have a place there where I could purchase a new crate, at a grossly inflated sum. Only then would they put her on the plane. The only crate they would accept was enormous. So despite the fact that my crate was approved for the size and weight of my dog, and the fact that she had just travelled from Canada in it we had to shell out for the new crate. The crate should have cost about 180 dollars, but they wanted 300 euros. So I am warning all people with pets who plan to travel through Frankfurt DO NOT. The city is great, but it is too costly to be at the whim of the airport ground crew.
When I started to write this note last night it was going to be a love story. The city was friendly and Kootenay and I walked all over it and enjoyed every minute. Then we flew out and that is where the love affair ended abruptly. When we got to the airport the ground crew refused to transport K in her crate. They claimed it was not big enough, and just so handily happened to have a place there where I could purchase a new crate, at a grossly inflated sum. Only then would they put her on the plane. The only crate they would accept was enormous. So despite the fact that my crate was approved for the size and weight of my dog, and the fact that she had just travelled from Canada in it we had to shell out for the new crate. The crate should have cost about 180 dollars, but they wanted 300 euros. So I am warning all people with pets who plan to travel through Frankfurt DO NOT. The city is great, but it is too costly to be at the whim of the airport ground crew.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
day one
Getting on the plane was filled with excitement. When Kootenay and I
got to the airport it turned out that our instructions for getting the
dog to Germany were messed up. She had been booked as cargo, but she
was supposed to go on the plane as checked baggage with me. Luckily
after three or four frantic calls we were able to get her on the
flight with me.
got to the airport it turned out that our instructions for getting the
dog to Germany were messed up. She had been booked as cargo, but she
was supposed to go on the plane as checked baggage with me. Luckily
after three or four frantic calls we were able to get her on the
flight with me.
Thank goodness that dad took me to the airport. And thank goodness
for his cell phone.
Travelling with the dog seems so complicated, but it seems to be
easier that one would think. She is kinda like a roomie who eats your
food, doesn't pay her rent, and thinks her personality and love should
be enough for you to keep her around.
So after 8 hours in the air, we landed in Frankfurt. This was where I
thought we would have the biggest problems. I was concerned with the
papers for the dog, and as her microchip had never been scanned I was
nervous about it working. All the potential problems were playing out
in my mind. Included in my concerns were the difficulties of
travelling in a country where you don't know a word of the country's
language.
These concerns turned out to be for nothing. There she was in special
baggage sitting in her crate waiting for me to claim her. The
security supervisor went in search of a Vet to do her inspection.
While he was searching for the Vet I went and got the rest of my
luggage and came back. The supervisor couldn't find a vet so he took
a cursory look at our papers and send us on our way. It was
disturbingly easy. I guess that it was just to give me a break
because the hard work was just about to start.
Now I had the dog, two heavy suitcases, a carryon bag, and my computer
and camera bag, as well as the dog kennel to get to my hotel. The
first two cabs dismissed me with a sneer. There was an odd man smoking
a cigarette offered to take us in some sort of non-cab cab. We
stuffed all my crap in his Golf and he programmed my hotel into his
navigation system and off we went.
When we got to the hotel he evened helped me take everything up to our
hotel room. Kootenay hung out with the hotel staff, behind their
reception desk during this. So in the end I pay 35 euros for a 10
euro cab ride and was happy with the return on the "dollar".
Especially as it was about 4am by my body clock and I had only slept
fitfully on the plane.
Here we were the first leg of the journey completed.
Now we just need to go for a walk, have a nap and find food. How hard
could that be?
--
treena and kootenay
adogabroadayear.blogspot.com
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Fun Facts
Luftansa Airline November 9th... 10:30 for Koot and 3:15 for me...
Time has come for Kootenay and I to leave the country. We (and by we i mean she) has been shot tagged and inspected until no one could find any reason to deny her access to their country. That isn't entirely true, England would still have problems agreeing to let her in, but who need to leave rain and travel to rain? Not us. Our first stop is Frankfurt Germany. For anyone who is concerned we will be staying at the Best Western Plaza.
I have been shocked by the small amout of information out there about Frankfurt. Frommers guide doesn't even mention it. So Koot and I will be exporing the city for three days with photocopied sheets of city information. Weird that so few people write about it when it has one of the biggest airports in Europe. Apprently there is a grocery store at the airport. That is one way to keep people from exploring the city.
From there we are heading to Lisbon. Here we are hoping to stay at Hotel Mirapaque. It is in the center of town which can be expensive, but apprently if you don't mind staying somewhere with wood paneled lounges and simulated brown leather seating they are happy to have you and your dog. We are going to stay here until the 17th of November. Then we are off to Nazare.
My address in Nazare will be:
Rua Dr Jose Caborinho
Marques Da Silveira
Vila Mafra
10 Andar Dto
Letra C
Nazare
Not sure what the postal code is, but i will keep you posted... (get it? posted? ha ha)
Fr
Time has come for Kootenay and I to leave the country. We (and by we i mean she) has been shot tagged and inspected until no one could find any reason to deny her access to their country. That isn't entirely true, England would still have problems agreeing to let her in, but who need to leave rain and travel to rain? Not us. Our first stop is Frankfurt Germany. For anyone who is concerned we will be staying at the Best Western Plaza.
I have been shocked by the small amout of information out there about Frankfurt. Frommers guide doesn't even mention it. So Koot and I will be exporing the city for three days with photocopied sheets of city information. Weird that so few people write about it when it has one of the biggest airports in Europe. Apprently there is a grocery store at the airport. That is one way to keep people from exploring the city.
From there we are heading to Lisbon. Here we are hoping to stay at Hotel Mirapaque. It is in the center of town which can be expensive, but apprently if you don't mind staying somewhere with wood paneled lounges and simulated brown leather seating they are happy to have you and your dog. We are going to stay here until the 17th of November. Then we are off to Nazare.
My address in Nazare will be:
Rua Dr Jose Caborinho
Marques Da Silveira
Vila Mafra
10 Andar Dto
Letra C
Nazare
Not sure what the postal code is, but i will keep you posted... (get it? posted? ha ha)
Fr
Sunday, August 19, 2007
homeward bound
I don`t seem to be able to type without this keyboard reverting to Japanese so forgive me if the message is brief and messed up. We just left Hangzhou and now are in Japan. Luckily the typhoon was hitting the town a few hours after we left. When we got up this morning it was beautiful sunny and 36 degrees. By the time we left at 10.30 the winds and rains had started. We flew threw some of the storm on our way to Narita.
I am not sure if it was time to leave so i was losing my patience or i was losing my patience so it was time to leave. Yesterday dad and i were sitting enjoying a cup of tea when a "gentleman" beside our table decided to clear both his nostrils and his throat and deposit all the muckus on the carpeted floor beside us. Turned out I was done with my tea at that point. Then this morning it was all i could do not to stand on the table and shout at everyone "That`s right i am white, a little large, and not as stylish as you thought i should be, so please stop staring and just eat your stinkin` breakfast." So probably best if i come home before starting an international incident.
See you all soon.
t
Thursday, August 16, 2007
nobody puts baby in the corner
We cruised down the yangtze for three days. it was a little like dirty dancing only without the dancing part. we had an odd cruise director named Christof. He came to here from Germany 27 years ago and never left. He is about 5 feet tall and has a nice little mole on his nose. And, he loved Aiden, who got to go meet the captain privately and see the wheel house.
Early morning starts with afternoon naps and mai tais at four make it the most relaxing three days of our journey. Plus they did all our meals for us so we didn't have to try to decipher any menus.
We cruised thru the locks from the Three Gorges Dam. Man, do they need the power. When you see the country you can understand why they are doing the project. Shanghai needs most of the power they generate just to keep their neon working. Got some great shots. Seems like it is daylight in the night there are so many lights. The temperature gauge in the town square didn't dip below 29 for our entire time. We thought it might be broken, because with the humidity it didn't seem hotter than 35 or 37.
Drove the Hangzhoug and found a Starbuck right by our hotel. Must be closer to home. We all gave a little cheer when we noticed it, because they have nice potties as well as great smoothies.
see you all on sunday.
Thursday, August 09, 2007
chongqing
We are off to a new place tomorrow. Kunming was cool, but we did as much in three days as we could. Treesa, Jerry and I went out to buy some toothpaste for Kathy last night and promptly got lost. We ended up walking along a great river bank and had a lot of locals amazed. I don't think white tourists end up at local markets very often.
Today we went to a Minority Village. If you can imagine a bastard child of Epcot and It's A Small World you will be able to picture what we saw. Only we got to see Bai Nazi and a few other local minorities. It was neat to see the dress and find out a bit of the culture, but the "minorities" didn't seem all that happy there today.
One minority that got a lot of looks was the large white family. We had so many people trying to take our pictures and talk to us that our guide finally started to move us on every time he noticed someone noticing us. Jerry figures we will be sold in the night market on DVD tonight. Not many of us make it up here so we stand out especially when we group together.
Saw Diachi(spelling wrong) Lake today. It was a colour that does not occur in nature. I have never seen anything so polluted in my life. As we drove by Aiden asked "who cut the cheese?" very polite. Our pour guide thought he was serious and started to tell us that there was no cheese for lunch. Not all english translates. We will be out of touch for the next four days. We head down the Yangtzee. Looking forward to seeing it.
You cannot believe how many people there are here. It boggles the mind. Every inch of space is used for something. There are either growing something in the land or building something on it.
t
pandas
They are so cute. I just want to take one home. Not sure how the government would feel about it. Wanted to wrestle them, but the panda wresting program was closed the day we were there. Either that or our stellar tour guide could not figure out how to translate that and just told me that it was closed.
I think we may have seen a million bikes by now. The road we drove down today was two lanes and we shared it with cars, trucks, bikes, oxen, and people wearing crazy hats carrying goods to market on their backs. From all we have seen i would remind people to buy their fruits and veggies from local suppliers. The corn and pomegranites were grown beside the coal mine. We haven't seen blue sky since we climbed the Great Wall with half a billion chinese folks. Aiden is a rock star here. I think strangers have taken more photos of him than we have.
Saw the worlds largest sitting buddha today. We had to hike down 303 stairs and stares. Felt like we had landed in the wall less people zoo. I was waiting for someone to start throwing popcorn at me.
And let me tell you popcorn would have tasted pretty good. Treesa and I are engaging in vegetable porn. We imagine salads with dressings (and even naked sometimes), fruits that have not been grown on the side of the road and rice from a patty no one has peed in.
Off to kunming tomorrow. New adventures await.
t & t
I think we may have seen a million bikes by now. The road we drove down today was two lanes and we shared it with cars, trucks, bikes, oxen, and people wearing crazy hats carrying goods to market on their backs. From all we have seen i would remind people to buy their fruits and veggies from local suppliers. The corn and pomegranites were grown beside the coal mine. We haven't seen blue sky since we climbed the Great Wall with half a billion chinese folks. Aiden is a rock star here. I think strangers have taken more photos of him than we have.
Saw the worlds largest sitting buddha today. We had to hike down 303 stairs and stares. Felt like we had landed in the wall less people zoo. I was waiting for someone to start throwing popcorn at me.
And let me tell you popcorn would have tasted pretty good. Treesa and I are engaging in vegetable porn. We imagine salads with dressings (and even naked sometimes), fruits that have not been grown on the side of the road and rice from a patty no one has peed in.
Off to kunming tomorrow. New adventures await.
t & t
chengdu
We are here in Chengdu. It is great. We had the best meal we have eaten here. Turns out one of the dishes we ordered translates to Kung Pou Chicken. Who knew. When we were in Datong we had a soup made by boiling rabbit head. That seems to have caught up with me. I am now on The Pink. Here is hoping that everything slows down a little. We had a great time in the last city. Not sure what it is called now. I will have to follow up with that later. We saw a Chinese Tung Opera and some crazy bamboo flutes and drums. Then we had a dumpling dinner. The dumplings in Vancouver have been better. Although the pumpkin one was great. The city is Xi'an. I liked it a lot, but it was odd having read Confessions before made me more cautions about my opinions.
We saw a rock show in a park today. The band was excited about having tourists there and played a song in english. Dad was confused, because he could understand what they were saying. Then we all went to Starbucks. I hand it to globalization. It may destroy culture, but it brought a great toilet. Treesa went earlier and regretted it. Her experience included no walls, no TP, no dignity... I got my one stall and what could pass as a sitter (Yeah me). Mine was a 6 dressed up as a nine. Treesa's was a 0 dressed up as a 0.
Friday, August 03, 2007
china rocks
You will have to excues the typos as i am under extreme conditions here. I just finished seeing the terra cotta warriors and then saw how they made silk. There were not children involved, but they did put aiden to work pulling the silk out. Beijing was incredilble. They are not afraid to have their buildings stand out. And the number of people was overwhelming. Treesa got to see a kite being flown in the Square and then we walked and we walked and we walked. Oh yeah, did i mention we walked. Saw so many things don't even know where to start. After we headed up to Datong and visited buddhist caves. They may be a topper, but we will have to see. I just found out that i may be able to wrestle baby pandas. While it is a bit colonialist i think i might have to be done. Treesa is going to get my health paperwork up to date in case they turn on me.
The kids are doing well. Food has been good, but potties leave something to be desired. I will refrain from saying they are crappy....
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The Trip....
Jul 28 – Depart Edmonton/Calgary for Beijing via Vancouver with Japan Air Lines
Jul 29 – Arrive into Beijing in the evening with arrival transfer to the Grand Mercure Xidan Beijing Hotel. No 6 Xuanwumen Nei Ave – Xicheng District – Beijing Tel: 010-66036688 Fax: 010-66031488
Beijing has also been known as Peking and Yanjing. Just west of the city a tooth was been found that dates back 300,000 to 500,000 years, which, is how old I anticipate feeling with the heat and humidity. The fossil has been named the Peking Man.
Many different groups have captured Beijing. It has been ruled over by the Jin, the Mongols, and the Kithan, and soon Olympic tourists.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beijing
Jul 30 – Full day tour of Beijing visiting Tienanmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven and Summer Palace.
Tienanmen and the Square (this is not a spelling or grammatical error) translates to Gate of Heavenly Peace and once marked the outer boundaries of the imperial domain. The Emperor would rarely venture past the gate. When the Emperor would travel through the city all the shops and windows along his path would be shuttered and closed so that no commoner would see him. Now, Mao’s tomb lies here so that all the commoners can see. Traditionally this space is political rallies and proclamations occur, but not so much anymore. I will keep my mouth shut here, and hopefully Treesa will be able to accomplish her dream to fly a kite in the square.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tienanmen
The Forbidden City construction began in the early 1400’s and lasted about 14 years. It was easier to build a city in those days. They were able to use over 700,000 “volunteer” labourers and 100,000 artisans. I needed that power when I was getting my place ready to sell. By the way Bill and Tim… have you sold it yet?
I’m excited about seeing the Summer Place. It is almost 3km square and includes Kunming Lake. The Palace was twice looted and ransacked by Franco-Anglo troops. What they couldn’t carry off with them they smashed with abandon. The Empress Dowager tried to rebuild it after the Boxer Rebellion when it was destroyed by the international soldiers. She is often vilified in Western histories. Many use this rebuilding of the Palace as an example saying she did this at the expense of the Chinese Navy. Of course they ignore the fact that she actually had little power at the time as the Manchu court has been hijacked by isolationist princes. The Empress is also rumoured have her eunuchs swim around the Marble Boat, built in the middle of Kunming Lake on the palace grounds, and have them attach fish to her fishing line.
Jul 31 – Full day tour to Great Wall ( Badaling entrance w/ cable car ride ) and Ming Tombs via Sacred Way with lunch. Evening Peking Duck dinner.
The Badaling entrance to the Great Wall is situated amongst small hills and trees. Mao is credited as saying that “there is no great man who has not been to the Great Wall”. I guess we will be coming back to Canada with two great men and one great boy. Who knows what effect it will have on Treesa, Aisha, and I. The wall started as a series of small protective walls built by different states in about 7BC. The Qin emperor, who was the first to unify China, added to the wall until it ran about 10,000km. The Wall wasn’t much of a protection though. Since it was built China was overrun by Mongol Yuan dynasty and the Manchu Ming dynasty. Both came over the wall to establish their rule of China. It is wide enough for five horsemen to ride abreast atop it. So the helicopter I am going to need to get down shouldn’t have a problem. Up until this year there has been a Starbuck at the bottom to “welcome” travellors. They are everywhere those Starbuck’s guys.
The Ming Tombs, know as Shisan ling (Thirteen Tombs) are the tombs for thirteen of the sixteen Ming Emperors. Evil spirits are said to be able to fly only in straight lines. So, the road through the Tombs and gardens is curved to confuse them. The path is lined with carved columns and giant stone animals. By now we will probably all be in evil spirits. Hopefully the curved road won’t through us.
Aug 01 – Flight to Datong. Visit Yungang Buddhist Caves, Nine Dragon Wall. Continue on to Taiyuan visiting the Xuankong Suspended Temple. Overnight at Yuyuan Hotel – 148 Kaijua St. – Taiyuan
Datong is said to be the most polluted city in China and therefore the world. Dad brought us all small respirators, but I may be too vain to use it. I guess I will just blow sooty boogers for a while. Datong was once the center for trade with all of Mongolia and as it is on the border of the traditional Chinese kingdom it has been overrun frequently in its history.
There are nine Dragon Walls in China. The Datong one is the oldest and the biggest. It was originally built to obscure the view of a Ming palace. The palace has since burned down, but the wall still stands.
http://www.worldofstock.com/closeups/ADT4777.php Can you smell photo op?
The Wei, a fervent Buddhist trukic group, started the process of carving out the Cave Temples just outside of the city. There are fifty cave temples and they were carved out the sandstone wall starting some time around 450AD. According to history five Indian monks, who also happened to be accomplished sculptors started the work and it took about 15 years.
The Xuankong Suspended temple was built in the 6C. It contains 40 rooms and caves and houses over 80 Buddha statures from that era. Treesa is going to have a difficult day this day. Vertigo will be everyone’s enemy here.
http://www.china-on-site.com/pages/travel/1424.php take a look.
Aug 02 – Transfer to airport for flight to Xian with arrival transfer to Tianyu Gloria Plaza Hotel - 15 North Yanta Road – Xian – Tel: 029-8786 8855 Fax: 029-876 4577 ( www.gloriahotels.com/gloria_en/plaza/xian.asp ). Afternoon tour of Old Xian
Xi’an translates as Western Peace. It was the capital of China for most of the Han, Sui and Tang dynasties. The ancient city spread far beyond its modern boundries. In 1937 the Communist Party established is headquarters here. The book Confessions starts in this city. It is sad to think of all the history and architecture this area lost during the cultural revolution. Chaing Kai-sheck would often come to stay at the hot springs in the area.
Aug 03 – Full day tour visiting Terra-Cotta exhibits with lunch. Evening Xian Dumpling dinner followed by Tang Dynasty show.
The Buried Army is one of a number in the area. There about 8,000 terra cotta warriors in the first pit. The faces of the warriors are each individually modelled. There are archers, spearmen, infantry men, and chariots. The warriors were outfitted with swords, spears, halberds, axes and crossbows. Taking an army to heaven with you seems a little antithetical to heaven’s mission statement.
Aug 04 – Flight to Chengdu with arrival transfer to Louman Grand Hotel - No 22 Section 2 – Renming Zhong Road – Chengdu 610031 – Tel: 86-28-82929999 (www.lmdjd.com/doce/page1.htm ). This afternoon visit the Wuhou Temple, built in the 6th century followed by visit to famous teahouses in the area.
This is my type of town. It is know for its tea houses and being laidback. The waiters fill your teacup by pouring hot water from large kettles over your shoulder into your teacup on the table. So watch your hands. Often performers gather in the teahouses and you can catch an opera while sipping your tea at your table. While the rest of China seems to be quickly modernizing, Chengdu holds proudly to their reputation as relaxed and sophisticated. The relaxed reputation I will try to uphold, but I’m not sure the sophisticated part will apply.
Aug 05 – Full day tour to Woolong Panda Sanctuary with lunch.
You can see what we are seeing today. Remember that we are 12 hours ahead of you so tune in in the evening. If you see me in the camera, something has gone terribly wrong. They may be cute, but I think they would make a snack out of me.
http://www.oiccam.com/webcams/index.html?/panda/
Oh yeah. And having gone all this way I had better see a stinkin’ panda somewhere other than my meal.
Aug. 06 – Full day tour to Leshan to visit the Leshan Great Buddha, the biggest Buddha statue in the world, over 900 years old, via cruise.
Tonight we will need some pain relievers. The Buddha we are seeing is enormous. The locals have a saying “the mountain is a Buddha and the Buddha is a mountain”. His ears are 7 meters long. The legend has it that the monk who started this project gouged out one or both of his eyes to inspire potential donors. I don’t know if that dedication would inspire me or scare me.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leshan_Giant_Buddha
Aug 07 – Flight to Kunming with arrival transfer to Golden Dragon Hotel – 575 Beijing Road – Kunming – 6000011 – Tel: 86-871-3133015 ( www.gdhotel.com.cn ). This afternoon visit the Flower & Bird market.
Kunming is know as the “Spring City”, and is the capital of the Yunnan province. It has only been “recently” brought into the Chinese empire. It joined China during the Mongol Yuan dynasty (1279 – 1386). The French were the first western power in the area. They built a narrow gauge railway to connect Kunming to Hanoi. If you travel by rail to the area you have to change trains at Kunming because of the different rail gauge.
Aug 08 – Full day tour to the Stone Forest.
The Stone Forest covers an area of more than three hundred square kilometres. Scientists believe that the area was once a seabed and that for some reason the sea drained away leaving an exposed seabed that resembles stone trees and peaks thrusting from the ground. The legend has it that a strong immortal moved the stone forest here with a divine whip. The immortal planed to use the stones to block floods, but the whip failed and the stone stopped in their steps and decided to “live” here. I want a magic whip. Imagine…
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.uh.edu/~jbutler/kunming/stoneforest2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.uh.edu/~jbutler/kunming/stoneforest.html&h=316&w=470&sz=50&hl=en&start=3&sig2=ZmoFfG8eYUxXY7ExZ104tg&um=1&tbnid=RYm7iuYHRH9feM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=129&ei=J0WkRoCbBaH8gQOti6XaDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dstone%2Bforest%2Bchina%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26sa%3DN
Aug 09 – Full day tour visiting Yunnan Minority Village, Grand View Park. Visit Western Hill Park and ride up the chairlift for a panoramic view of Dianchi Lake.
This area has 75% off all China’s minority groups. The Minority Village is a live ‘Small World” scene. I will have to leave my cynicism in my luggage today.
Aug 10 - Flight to Chongqing followed by tour of Chongqing with lunch & dinner. After dinner, transfer to Victoria Cruise ( www.victoriacruises.com ) terminal to begin your Yangtze River Cruise.
Aug 11 – Yangtze River Cruise
Aug 12 – Yangtze River Cruise
We have a number of shore excursions here. This area I have done no research on. It will come as a complete surprise to me. Luckily I have a cabin with a deck, so I will be able to read and watch China float by. And, I hear they teach a fruit carving class on the Lido deck. I’ll be making fancy apples when I get home. Radish roses anyone???
Aug 13 – Morning tour of Three Gorges Dam at Yichang followed by disembarkation. Transfer to airport for flight to Shanghai with arrival transfer to Bund Hotel, No 525 Guang Dong Rd – Huangpu District - Shanghai – Tel 021-63522000 Fax: 021-63522777 (www.bundhotelshanghai.com ).
Aug 14 – Morning half day tour of Shanghai. Evening Acrobat show.
Aug 15 – Free day. Don’t tell anyone, but I am going to try to get them all to go see Zhouzhuang City. It is one of the best preserved examples of “old China” and is the Chinese answer to Venice. Luckily none of my fellow travellor will be reading this. They will be part of my audio tour. I’m sure that won’t get tiresome.
Aug 16 – Transfer via minivan to Hangzhou with enroute stop at Wuzhen, visiting its two-thousand-year history in its ancient stone bridges floating on mild water, its stone pathways between the mottled walls and its delicate wood carvings. Arrive into Hangzhou in the evening with transfer to Zhe Jiang Grand Hotel – 595 Yanan Road – Hangzhou 310006 Tel: 86-571-85056666
In 1860-62 the Taiping rebellion razed this city. Luckily there are a lot of accounts of the city’s past. Marco Polo called it the finest and noblest in the world, and who does trust imperial explorers’ descriptions of places.
Aug 17 – Full day tour around Hangzhou incuding cruise on the West Lake. Vist the Lingyi Temple with lunch.
The city was built with wood and the buildings are very close together. It has reconstructed and deconstructed many times. It was an important port city until the Ming dynasty when the port silted up. Luckily at that time it became an import silk city. There are “tourist” maps that were made from block printers dating back to 1200’s. They show ten and twelve story houses in the city at that time.
Aug 18 – Free day.
Whatever shall we do with a free day.
Aug 19 – Transfer to airport for flights home via Tokyo and Vancouver. Did you miss me???
Jul 29 – Arrive into Beijing in the evening with arrival transfer to the Grand Mercure Xidan Beijing Hotel. No 6 Xuanwumen Nei Ave – Xicheng District – Beijing Tel: 010-66036688 Fax: 010-66031488
Beijing has also been known as Peking and Yanjing. Just west of the city a tooth was been found that dates back 300,000 to 500,000 years, which, is how old I anticipate feeling with the heat and humidity. The fossil has been named the Peking Man.
Many different groups have captured Beijing. It has been ruled over by the Jin, the Mongols, and the Kithan, and soon Olympic tourists.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beijing
Jul 30 – Full day tour of Beijing visiting Tienanmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven and Summer Palace.
Tienanmen and the Square (this is not a spelling or grammatical error) translates to Gate of Heavenly Peace and once marked the outer boundaries of the imperial domain. The Emperor would rarely venture past the gate. When the Emperor would travel through the city all the shops and windows along his path would be shuttered and closed so that no commoner would see him. Now, Mao’s tomb lies here so that all the commoners can see. Traditionally this space is political rallies and proclamations occur, but not so much anymore. I will keep my mouth shut here, and hopefully Treesa will be able to accomplish her dream to fly a kite in the square.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tienanmen
The Forbidden City construction began in the early 1400’s and lasted about 14 years. It was easier to build a city in those days. They were able to use over 700,000 “volunteer” labourers and 100,000 artisans. I needed that power when I was getting my place ready to sell. By the way Bill and Tim… have you sold it yet?
I’m excited about seeing the Summer Place. It is almost 3km square and includes Kunming Lake. The Palace was twice looted and ransacked by Franco-Anglo troops. What they couldn’t carry off with them they smashed with abandon. The Empress Dowager tried to rebuild it after the Boxer Rebellion when it was destroyed by the international soldiers. She is often vilified in Western histories. Many use this rebuilding of the Palace as an example saying she did this at the expense of the Chinese Navy. Of course they ignore the fact that she actually had little power at the time as the Manchu court has been hijacked by isolationist princes. The Empress is also rumoured have her eunuchs swim around the Marble Boat, built in the middle of Kunming Lake on the palace grounds, and have them attach fish to her fishing line.
Jul 31 – Full day tour to Great Wall ( Badaling entrance w/ cable car ride ) and Ming Tombs via Sacred Way with lunch. Evening Peking Duck dinner.
The Badaling entrance to the Great Wall is situated amongst small hills and trees. Mao is credited as saying that “there is no great man who has not been to the Great Wall”. I guess we will be coming back to Canada with two great men and one great boy. Who knows what effect it will have on Treesa, Aisha, and I. The wall started as a series of small protective walls built by different states in about 7BC. The Qin emperor, who was the first to unify China, added to the wall until it ran about 10,000km. The Wall wasn’t much of a protection though. Since it was built China was overrun by Mongol Yuan dynasty and the Manchu Ming dynasty. Both came over the wall to establish their rule of China. It is wide enough for five horsemen to ride abreast atop it. So the helicopter I am going to need to get down shouldn’t have a problem. Up until this year there has been a Starbuck at the bottom to “welcome” travellors. They are everywhere those Starbuck’s guys.
The Ming Tombs, know as Shisan ling (Thirteen Tombs) are the tombs for thirteen of the sixteen Ming Emperors. Evil spirits are said to be able to fly only in straight lines. So, the road through the Tombs and gardens is curved to confuse them. The path is lined with carved columns and giant stone animals. By now we will probably all be in evil spirits. Hopefully the curved road won’t through us.
Aug 01 – Flight to Datong. Visit Yungang Buddhist Caves, Nine Dragon Wall. Continue on to Taiyuan visiting the Xuankong Suspended Temple. Overnight at Yuyuan Hotel – 148 Kaijua St. – Taiyuan
Datong is said to be the most polluted city in China and therefore the world. Dad brought us all small respirators, but I may be too vain to use it. I guess I will just blow sooty boogers for a while. Datong was once the center for trade with all of Mongolia and as it is on the border of the traditional Chinese kingdom it has been overrun frequently in its history.
There are nine Dragon Walls in China. The Datong one is the oldest and the biggest. It was originally built to obscure the view of a Ming palace. The palace has since burned down, but the wall still stands.
http://www.worldofstock.com/closeups/ADT4777.php Can you smell photo op?
The Wei, a fervent Buddhist trukic group, started the process of carving out the Cave Temples just outside of the city. There are fifty cave temples and they were carved out the sandstone wall starting some time around 450AD. According to history five Indian monks, who also happened to be accomplished sculptors started the work and it took about 15 years.
The Xuankong Suspended temple was built in the 6C. It contains 40 rooms and caves and houses over 80 Buddha statures from that era. Treesa is going to have a difficult day this day. Vertigo will be everyone’s enemy here.
http://www.china-on-site.com/pages/travel/1424.php take a look.
Aug 02 – Transfer to airport for flight to Xian with arrival transfer to Tianyu Gloria Plaza Hotel - 15 North Yanta Road – Xian – Tel: 029-8786 8855 Fax: 029-876 4577 ( www.gloriahotels.com/gloria_en/plaza/xian.asp ). Afternoon tour of Old Xian
Xi’an translates as Western Peace. It was the capital of China for most of the Han, Sui and Tang dynasties. The ancient city spread far beyond its modern boundries. In 1937 the Communist Party established is headquarters here. The book Confessions starts in this city. It is sad to think of all the history and architecture this area lost during the cultural revolution. Chaing Kai-sheck would often come to stay at the hot springs in the area.
Aug 03 – Full day tour visiting Terra-Cotta exhibits with lunch. Evening Xian Dumpling dinner followed by Tang Dynasty show.
The Buried Army is one of a number in the area. There about 8,000 terra cotta warriors in the first pit. The faces of the warriors are each individually modelled. There are archers, spearmen, infantry men, and chariots. The warriors were outfitted with swords, spears, halberds, axes and crossbows. Taking an army to heaven with you seems a little antithetical to heaven’s mission statement.
Aug 04 – Flight to Chengdu with arrival transfer to Louman Grand Hotel - No 22 Section 2 – Renming Zhong Road – Chengdu 610031 – Tel: 86-28-82929999 (www.lmdjd.com/doce/page1.htm ). This afternoon visit the Wuhou Temple, built in the 6th century followed by visit to famous teahouses in the area.
This is my type of town. It is know for its tea houses and being laidback. The waiters fill your teacup by pouring hot water from large kettles over your shoulder into your teacup on the table. So watch your hands. Often performers gather in the teahouses and you can catch an opera while sipping your tea at your table. While the rest of China seems to be quickly modernizing, Chengdu holds proudly to their reputation as relaxed and sophisticated. The relaxed reputation I will try to uphold, but I’m not sure the sophisticated part will apply.
Aug 05 – Full day tour to Woolong Panda Sanctuary with lunch.
You can see what we are seeing today. Remember that we are 12 hours ahead of you so tune in in the evening. If you see me in the camera, something has gone terribly wrong. They may be cute, but I think they would make a snack out of me.
http://www.oiccam.com/webcams/index.html?/panda/
Oh yeah. And having gone all this way I had better see a stinkin’ panda somewhere other than my meal.
Aug. 06 – Full day tour to Leshan to visit the Leshan Great Buddha, the biggest Buddha statue in the world, over 900 years old, via cruise.
Tonight we will need some pain relievers. The Buddha we are seeing is enormous. The locals have a saying “the mountain is a Buddha and the Buddha is a mountain”. His ears are 7 meters long. The legend has it that the monk who started this project gouged out one or both of his eyes to inspire potential donors. I don’t know if that dedication would inspire me or scare me.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leshan_Giant_Buddha
Aug 07 – Flight to Kunming with arrival transfer to Golden Dragon Hotel – 575 Beijing Road – Kunming – 6000011 – Tel: 86-871-3133015 ( www.gdhotel.com.cn ). This afternoon visit the Flower & Bird market.
Kunming is know as the “Spring City”, and is the capital of the Yunnan province. It has only been “recently” brought into the Chinese empire. It joined China during the Mongol Yuan dynasty (1279 – 1386). The French were the first western power in the area. They built a narrow gauge railway to connect Kunming to Hanoi. If you travel by rail to the area you have to change trains at Kunming because of the different rail gauge.
Aug 08 – Full day tour to the Stone Forest.
The Stone Forest covers an area of more than three hundred square kilometres. Scientists believe that the area was once a seabed and that for some reason the sea drained away leaving an exposed seabed that resembles stone trees and peaks thrusting from the ground. The legend has it that a strong immortal moved the stone forest here with a divine whip. The immortal planed to use the stones to block floods, but the whip failed and the stone stopped in their steps and decided to “live” here. I want a magic whip. Imagine…
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.uh.edu/~jbutler/kunming/stoneforest2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.uh.edu/~jbutler/kunming/stoneforest.html&h=316&w=470&sz=50&hl=en&start=3&sig2=ZmoFfG8eYUxXY7ExZ104tg&um=1&tbnid=RYm7iuYHRH9feM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=129&ei=J0WkRoCbBaH8gQOti6XaDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dstone%2Bforest%2Bchina%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26sa%3DN
Aug 09 – Full day tour visiting Yunnan Minority Village, Grand View Park. Visit Western Hill Park and ride up the chairlift for a panoramic view of Dianchi Lake.
This area has 75% off all China’s minority groups. The Minority Village is a live ‘Small World” scene. I will have to leave my cynicism in my luggage today.
Aug 10 - Flight to Chongqing followed by tour of Chongqing with lunch & dinner. After dinner, transfer to Victoria Cruise ( www.victoriacruises.com ) terminal to begin your Yangtze River Cruise.
Aug 11 – Yangtze River Cruise
Aug 12 – Yangtze River Cruise
We have a number of shore excursions here. This area I have done no research on. It will come as a complete surprise to me. Luckily I have a cabin with a deck, so I will be able to read and watch China float by. And, I hear they teach a fruit carving class on the Lido deck. I’ll be making fancy apples when I get home. Radish roses anyone???
Aug 13 – Morning tour of Three Gorges Dam at Yichang followed by disembarkation. Transfer to airport for flight to Shanghai with arrival transfer to Bund Hotel, No 525 Guang Dong Rd – Huangpu District - Shanghai – Tel 021-63522000 Fax: 021-63522777 (www.bundhotelshanghai.com ).
Aug 14 – Morning half day tour of Shanghai. Evening Acrobat show.
Aug 15 – Free day. Don’t tell anyone, but I am going to try to get them all to go see Zhouzhuang City. It is one of the best preserved examples of “old China” and is the Chinese answer to Venice. Luckily none of my fellow travellor will be reading this. They will be part of my audio tour. I’m sure that won’t get tiresome.
Aug 16 – Transfer via minivan to Hangzhou with enroute stop at Wuzhen, visiting its two-thousand-year history in its ancient stone bridges floating on mild water, its stone pathways between the mottled walls and its delicate wood carvings. Arrive into Hangzhou in the evening with transfer to Zhe Jiang Grand Hotel – 595 Yanan Road – Hangzhou 310006 Tel: 86-571-85056666
In 1860-62 the Taiping rebellion razed this city. Luckily there are a lot of accounts of the city’s past. Marco Polo called it the finest and noblest in the world, and who does trust imperial explorers’ descriptions of places.
Aug 17 – Full day tour around Hangzhou incuding cruise on the West Lake. Vist the Lingyi Temple with lunch.
The city was built with wood and the buildings are very close together. It has reconstructed and deconstructed many times. It was an important port city until the Ming dynasty when the port silted up. Luckily at that time it became an import silk city. There are “tourist” maps that were made from block printers dating back to 1200’s. They show ten and twelve story houses in the city at that time.
Aug 18 – Free day.
Whatever shall we do with a free day.
Aug 19 – Transfer to airport for flights home via Tokyo and Vancouver. Did you miss me???
Monday, July 23, 2007
China Reads
I am heading to China this week. In my usual, slightly crazy fashion, I took this as an opportunity to read books that could inspire me while I was there. Here is a list of what I have read.
Blue Guide - China
When China Ruled the Seas - Louise Levathes
Confessions - An Innocent Life in Communist China - Kang Zhengguo
Dragon Lady - Sterling Seagrave
The Soong Dynasty - Sterling Seagrave
Private Life of Chairman Mao - Dr Li Zhisui
The Adventures of Marco Polo - John Day
The Wisdom of Confucius - Lin Yutang
War Trash - Ha Jin
Waiting - Ha Jin
Lost Horizon - James Hilton
Journey to War - Christopher Isherwood and Auden
and a biography of Chiang Kai-sheck whose author i have forgotten
I now have a jumbled history of China that I wil try to apply to some of the places I will see. The books have inspired and awed me and made me realize how little I know of or understand the country I am going to see.
Oh yeah, and all the blogs I have read about the public toilet system there scare me a little. I am not a naturally tidy person, but i do like a clean bowl.
So stay tuned for my travel plans and dates.
Blue Guide - China
When China Ruled the Seas - Louise Levathes
Confessions - An Innocent Life in Communist China - Kang Zhengguo
Dragon Lady - Sterling Seagrave
The Soong Dynasty - Sterling Seagrave
Private Life of Chairman Mao - Dr Li Zhisui
The Adventures of Marco Polo - John Day
The Wisdom of Confucius - Lin Yutang
War Trash - Ha Jin
Waiting - Ha Jin
Lost Horizon - James Hilton
Journey to War - Christopher Isherwood and Auden
and a biography of Chiang Kai-sheck whose author i have forgotten
I now have a jumbled history of China that I wil try to apply to some of the places I will see. The books have inspired and awed me and made me realize how little I know of or understand the country I am going to see.
Oh yeah, and all the blogs I have read about the public toilet system there scare me a little. I am not a naturally tidy person, but i do like a clean bowl.
So stay tuned for my travel plans and dates.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
What kind of traveler are you? I know what type to traveler I would like to be. I just saw the traveler breeze through check in.
My travel preparations are complicated. First I worry about what to pack. Questions run through my brain like a ticker at the bottom of a cable news channel. How many days am I going to be away? What temperature will it be where I am going? Do I need a “good” outfit? What bag should I pack? I need to remember to take my lip-gloss out of my purse, leave some lights on, and feed and water the cat. Who should I ask to look in on the cat? Does anyone need to look in on him? Will he bite anyone who comes in? Will they sue me if he does? Does he have rabies or is he just that bad tempered? And this is all on the way to the airport.
Now that I am here I add a whole other layer to my worries. Do I have my ticket? What time is 21:10? Is it 8:10 or 9:10? Is today the 4th? What day is my flight for? What about the dog? Is this the time she goes crazy in the airport and runs away? Will she get in her crate? Will the crate make it through security? What about the time the screener found “chemicals” on it? What did that mean? Will they load her on the correct flight?
“Here is your ticket ma-am and the baggage handler is here to get your dog.”
I turn and there he is waiting for me to get the dog crate on the trolley and get the dog in it. This part goes well. I open the door and take off her leash and she climbs up into her crate. The crate door closes and the dog and I part. Now it is my turn to head off through security clearance, with the echo of the dog’s cries following me. Everyone within earshot turns and watches me walk away. They all know that I abandon my pet.
“May I see your boarding pass please?”
The traveler casually smiles at the security guard, puts down her soft leather carry-all, and gracefully juggles her belongings and pulls out her passport and boarding pass. She puts down here carry-on and it snakes its way through the x-ray machine.
“I am sorry ma-am, but you are not allowed to take liquids through this check point”
I would be wracked with guilt, but not the traveler. She reaches into her bag, pulls out the water bottle, opens the bottle, drinks the last of the water and then tosses the bottle into the recycling bin. I think I saw the security guard. The she gathers up her bags smiles at everyone and heads off towards her gate.
“Next”
“Please take off your boots ma-am”.
“Your belt as well.”
“Could you open the button on your pants please.”
“If you have a problem ma-am. We can step aside into a holding room and I can have a female screener come and search you.”
“Thank-you ma-am. I appreciate your cooperation.”
“Now we need to open your bag and do a swab test.”
“Thank-you ma-am. Enjoy your flight”
I can hear my flight being called at gate eighteen. With my boots under my arm, my belt looped around my neck, and my bag over my shoulder I run to the gate in my stocking feet. There is a lounge I pass on my way to my plane. I can see the traveler reading her novel drinking a glass of red wine. She looks up as I run by and I see her smile. There she is the traveler I want to be.
My travel preparations are complicated. First I worry about what to pack. Questions run through my brain like a ticker at the bottom of a cable news channel. How many days am I going to be away? What temperature will it be where I am going? Do I need a “good” outfit? What bag should I pack? I need to remember to take my lip-gloss out of my purse, leave some lights on, and feed and water the cat. Who should I ask to look in on the cat? Does anyone need to look in on him? Will he bite anyone who comes in? Will they sue me if he does? Does he have rabies or is he just that bad tempered? And this is all on the way to the airport.
Now that I am here I add a whole other layer to my worries. Do I have my ticket? What time is 21:10? Is it 8:10 or 9:10? Is today the 4th? What day is my flight for? What about the dog? Is this the time she goes crazy in the airport and runs away? Will she get in her crate? Will the crate make it through security? What about the time the screener found “chemicals” on it? What did that mean? Will they load her on the correct flight?
“Here is your ticket ma-am and the baggage handler is here to get your dog.”
I turn and there he is waiting for me to get the dog crate on the trolley and get the dog in it. This part goes well. I open the door and take off her leash and she climbs up into her crate. The crate door closes and the dog and I part. Now it is my turn to head off through security clearance, with the echo of the dog’s cries following me. Everyone within earshot turns and watches me walk away. They all know that I abandon my pet.
“May I see your boarding pass please?”
The traveler casually smiles at the security guard, puts down her soft leather carry-all, and gracefully juggles her belongings and pulls out her passport and boarding pass. She puts down here carry-on and it snakes its way through the x-ray machine.
“I am sorry ma-am, but you are not allowed to take liquids through this check point”
I would be wracked with guilt, but not the traveler. She reaches into her bag, pulls out the water bottle, opens the bottle, drinks the last of the water and then tosses the bottle into the recycling bin. I think I saw the security guard. The she gathers up her bags smiles at everyone and heads off towards her gate.
“Next”
“Please take off your boots ma-am”.
“Your belt as well.”
“Could you open the button on your pants please.”
“If you have a problem ma-am. We can step aside into a holding room and I can have a female screener come and search you.”
“Thank-you ma-am. I appreciate your cooperation.”
“Now we need to open your bag and do a swab test.”
“Thank-you ma-am. Enjoy your flight”
I can hear my flight being called at gate eighteen. With my boots under my arm, my belt looped around my neck, and my bag over my shoulder I run to the gate in my stocking feet. There is a lounge I pass on my way to my plane. I can see the traveler reading her novel drinking a glass of red wine. She looks up as I run by and I see her smile. There she is the traveler I want to be.
Monday, March 19, 2007
guilty pleasure
I love Costco! I can’t help my self. I know they put small independent stores out of business, they contribute to urban sprawl, encourage car culture, and ship their goods ungodly distances using up precious fossil fuel. All these things I normally find abhorrent. But, still I love to dive into my $7.99 giant bag of snap peas. And, don’t get me started about the giant bags of Cheezies, and corn chips, and the tub of salsa.
So, when you come to visit me and out of curiosity look into my bathroom cupboard don’t judge me too harshly, be comforted. Because I won’t run out of toilet paper and if you forgot your toothbrush and toothpaste, I will probably have one that you can have. Please don’t offer to replace them. Consider it my penance
So, when you come to visit me and out of curiosity look into my bathroom cupboard don’t judge me too harshly, be comforted. Because I won’t run out of toilet paper and if you forgot your toothbrush and toothpaste, I will probably have one that you can have. Please don’t offer to replace them. Consider it my penance
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Things I need to accomplish:
1 Renew Passport
2 Get dog to vet for shots / microchip / EU Pet Passport
3 Pack all worldly belongings into boxes (many boxes)
4 Find place to store all worldly belongings
5 Sell apartment (make huge profit to finance this folly)
6 Find place to stay in Portugal
7 Buy airline ticket for myself and the dog
8 Fly away to new adventure
9 Write great Canadian novel (or Harlequin Romance)
10 Have it picked up by Oprah and/or Ellen (book club or life story)
11 Rest on my laurels
Why, when I write this list does it seem so achievable? Yet, when I sit down with the forms to accomplish the first item I can’t seem to finish the task. I can watch a lot of really bad TV in an effort fill my time.
What if I go a whole year without TV and I don’t miss it?
It seems a little like breaking up with that boy. You know, the boy you know you don’t truly love, but he makes you laugh and keeps you company in bed. So. you stay with him because when you make yourself laugh people look at you oddly on the bus, and if you let the dog keep you company in bed you will end up with sand in your sheets.
1 Renew Passport
2 Get dog to vet for shots / microchip / EU Pet Passport
3 Pack all worldly belongings into boxes (many boxes)
4 Find place to store all worldly belongings
5 Sell apartment (make huge profit to finance this folly)
6 Find place to stay in Portugal
7 Buy airline ticket for myself and the dog
8 Fly away to new adventure
9 Write great Canadian novel (or Harlequin Romance)
10 Have it picked up by Oprah and/or Ellen (book club or life story)
11 Rest on my laurels
Why, when I write this list does it seem so achievable? Yet, when I sit down with the forms to accomplish the first item I can’t seem to finish the task. I can watch a lot of really bad TV in an effort fill my time.
What if I go a whole year without TV and I don’t miss it?
It seems a little like breaking up with that boy. You know, the boy you know you don’t truly love, but he makes you laugh and keeps you company in bed. So. you stay with him because when you make yourself laugh people look at you oddly on the bus, and if you let the dog keep you company in bed you will end up with sand in your sheets.
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