Our week in Istanbul has flown by and we are preparing for our visit to Rome. Although we had a few days of cool, wet weather, the sun is now shining brightly.
Istanbul is an easy city to visit. Almost all of the popular sites are grouped together. The apartment we rented provided great access to Hagia Sophia (Istanbul’s ‘Vatican’ for almost a millennium), the Blue Mosque, the Underground Cistern, the Grand Bazaar, Topkapi Palace, the Spice Market, numerous museums and scores of restaurants. The food has been great as well. We have enjoyed sipping Turkish Coffee and apple tea and eating the many different kinds of breads served with meals and sold by street vendors. Of course, we have had our share of kebabs and Turkish pastries as well. This is a great city to explore on foot but it also has an inexpensive tram system that makes getting around even easier. I have posted a short video with some of the local sites on the Istanbul page. Happy Easter from Istanbul. We tracked down an international church (which isn’t easy since the city
is 98% Muslim) and attended the Sunday morning Easter service. The adherents at this church come from more than 40 different countries. After that, we wandered up and down one of the main shopping thoroughfares (along with thousands of others). A couple of days ago Char spotted some friends from Regina, Gerry and Georgina, who we didn’t know were visiting Istanbul. We arranged to meet for supper last night and had a great meal at a wonderful restaurant overlooking the Bosphorus. We enjoyed our meal in Europe while we watched the moon rise over Asia. It was great to get together. The city is an easy place to explore on foot. We have quick access to the main sites from our apartment along with many restaurant choices. Check out the Istanbul page for some photos from around the city. We left Oman mid morning yesterday and after a short stop in Doha, Qatar we arrived in Istanbul,Turkey. The visa process was a breeze - you simply pay the required amount ($60 US for Canadians) and the next thing you know, you have a visa stamp glued in your passport. No questions asked or forms to fill out.
Our taxi had some trouble finding our apartment but we eventually made it. We have a great location on the top floor with a very large open area on both sides. We are in the old part of Istanbul so most of the sites are within walking distance. Although it is Good Friday here, because the city is largely Muslim, everythings continues to be open. We will likely head to Hagia Sophia this morning. It is now a museum but was built as a church in the mid 6th century by the Emporer Justinian I. Almost a thousand years later, after the Ottomons captured the city, it was turned into a mosque. One guidebook has described it as one of the most important and impressive structures on the planet. I have posted a video of some of the highlights from Oman on the Oman page. Happy Easter everyone! Yes, you can’t help but love Oman. We arrived safely on our Air India flight from Mumbai to Muscat, the capital of Oman. We are staying in a cross between a homestay and a small boutique hotel. The house has 10 rooms and they are all in use. We have a great view of the Gulf of Oman which is just across the street from us.
At breakfast on our first morning we met up with a wonderful European couple who live in Cairo and we set off with them to see Muscat with our driver Mohammed. The city is spotless and everything looks like it has just had a fresh coat of white paint. With the rugged mountains in the background and the Gulf of Oman in the foreground it is something to see. There is no public transportation to speak of and the city is quite spread out so you really need a vehicle to get around. It has been quite humid but not as bad as India. Normally it would be a little less humid but we are in the shoulder season and much hotter weather is on its way. Hopefully, it holds off for another week or so. On our second day we jumped on a boat and headed south to a tourist complex where there are hundreds of new villas and several five star hotels and a golf course under construction. One of the hotels is complete and you can use the pool facilities for free so we thought it would be a nice way to beat the heat for an afternoon. The ride there gave us chance to see some incredible vistas where the mountains plunge into the Gulf. The natural beauty of this country is something to behold. On day three we headed out of town to go on a trek in Wadi Shab. A wadi is the Arabic word for valley. A gorge might be a better word. We hiked for an hour in the heat of the day up the rugged terrain to our destination – a spot where you swim through a small crevice which has room for you to keep your head above water but not much more. On the other side is a cave with a waterfall. It was a great reward for the climb. We did the trek with a couple from the UK and our new friends from Cairo and had the place to ourselves. It was fantastic. At the end of the day we enjoyed a barbeque with all the folks staying at our guesthouse. I have posted some pictures on the Oman page. Click 'MORE...' above to find it. Ooty, or Udhagamundalum as it is technically known, is a great place to visit. It is cool and fresh in the morning, and the evenings cool off quite quickly as well. There are some wonderful views of the mountains and tea plantations. We visited several lookout spots – Dodabetta, Lamb’s Rock and Dolphin's Nose. All gave great views of the surrounding country side of south India which is very impressive. We also took the ‘toy train’ to a nearby town called Coonoor where Char went to boarding school. The train is called a toy train because it is a narrow gauge track. At Coonoor we were able to visit Char’s old school which is now an orphanage.
After seeing and doing nearly everything there is to see and do in Ooty (including a round of golf by Mark and I at the local course) we flew back to Mumbai. There we jumped on a ferry and headed to a nearby island (Mumbai is also on an island) to visit a temple carved out of rock sometime in the 6th century. Mark and Melissa then had a late night flight back to Canada. We really enjoyed seeing our kids and had a great couple of weeks touring around India with them. We are now enjoying a few quite days in Goa before heading across the Arabian Sea to Oman. The down time gives us a bit of a chance to reflect on some of the things we have seen. One of those things is the stark difference between India and China. While both have populations in excess of one billion that is about all they have in common. There was an editorial in one of the national papers about this issue a couple of days ago. The editorial concluded that notwithstanding the many advantages of China’s superior infrastructure and economy, having the right to vote within a democracy gave India the advantage. After seeing both countries side by side, it is certainly an interesting debate. Some new pictures have been posted on the India site and I hope to have a video up in the next day or so. Our first stop in the south of India was Kochi, a major port city on the west coast of India in the state of Kerala. We spent the first night at a wonderful bed and breakfast and enjoyed the hospitality of our hosts Diana and Jerry. The next morning we headed south by vehicle to rent a houseboat so we could spend time on what are called the Kerala Backwaters. The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways. This is one of the most popular tourist activities in the region and it is easy to see why. Slowly cruising through these canals is a great way to observe the daily life of those who live here.
We then headed about 250 km north to the state of Tamil Nadu to spend a couple of nights at a jungle resort. The resort is set next to a tiger reserve. We went on a couple of early morning hikes and a late day jeep ride. We saw many wild elephants, monkeys, peacocks, wild boar and deer. While we didn’t see a tiger we could hear them at night. Not seeing one in the day may have been a good thing. You feel much more vulnerable on foot compared to riding in a jeep. That was especially true when we saw a large male elephant the first morning on one of our walks. He was alone and that made our guide a bit nervous as elephants are generally social creatures. In any event, we survived the Indian jungle and made it to our final stop, Ooty, in south India. Ooty is a hill station established by the British so they could escape the summer heat of the plains. This is the area where Char grew up. Today we visited the grave site where her father is buried. He died in a motorcycle accident here in Ooty when Char was 15 years old. We hope to visit some of the surrounding highlights over the next few days before heading back to Mumbai. Check the India page for some recent photos. We spent a fascinating day yesterday touring the older historic part of Mumbai. We hired a tour guide who was articulate and frank about many of the issues facing Mumbai. It was interesting and challenging and a real eye opener to this great city.
I have finally posted a video with some highlights of our three weeks in mainland China. You will find it on the China page or you can access it directly at http://youtu.be/HmVZ9SXOMdw We fly to Kochi this morning to begin our trek of South India. We arrived without incident a day ago and spent the first day seeing some of the sights in the northern half of Mumbai near the international airport. Mumbai is similar to Shanghai in some ways - it is the commercial centre of the country and has a quick pace of life. The traffic is something else but that is true of most of India. It is sunny and hot and we finally have our blue sky back (sort of). The big thing in the local news is the lack of green spaces in the city.
Our kids arrived late last night (early in the morning, actually - they were delayed and we started to wonder if they made the flight). We are off to see the historic sites in the south part of the city. Tomorrow we head to the southern part of India. Our time in China has come to an end. After a week in Hong Kong and over three weeks on the mainland we have had a good opportunity to get a taste of what China is all about. Speaking of taste, the food has been great but meeting up with Chinese friends whose country this is, was easily the highlight.
Clearly, (no pun intended) we didn’t see the country at its best. The weather conditions and air quality issues meant we haven’t seen a blue sky for a long time. Spring has been delayed so the leaves aren’t quite ready to start budding. But, we have seen many of the key sights – the mountains of Guilin, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square to name just a few, and they have not disappointed. We have spent the last few days in Shanghai. While Beijing is preoccupied with politics, in Shanghai, it is all about money. This is the commercial centre of China and its largest city with more than 23 million people. It has an impressive skyline, especially at night. Because of its unique history as a key port during the colonial period, it also has some very interesting neighborhoods. One of the more curious things we have seen here has been the flower, bird, fish and insect market. You will find all sorts of odd things in this market, but the most common creature is the cricket. You can buy numerous types and sizes. They are primarily purchased for fighting, as the Chinese love to gamble, and betting on cricket fights can be big business. Check out the newly posted photos from Shanghai. I have a video ready to go with highlights from our time in China but it appears that youtube is blocked here so that will have to wait until our next stop. We have spent the last four days with 20,000,000 other people in Beijing, China’s capital and second largest city. The city is steeped in history and we have had a chance to visit most of the major sites. Our first stop was Tiananmen Square which can hold one million people (I think it might be a tight fit). Tiananmen Square holds special significance for Chinese people and it was fun to enjoy the festive atmosphere early in the morning.
Next door to the square is the Forbidden City. For 500 years it served as the home of the Chinese emperors and their households as well as being the political and cultural center of the Chinese government. It is no longer forbidden to enter so we were able to enjoy the incredible Chinese architecture that exists there. It was easily one of our favourite places. We also had a chance to visit the Great Wall. We spent a couple of hours climbing the many steps but never did make it to the top. While the historical sites were great, connecting with friends is always the highlight. We spent an evening with Song and Wang whom we met in Regina a couple of years ago. They took as out to a fantastic restaurant where we enjoyed a great meal and great company. I was able to connect the next day with Caleb who happened to be in Bejing after returning from a business trip to the US. I met Caleb while he was working on his business administration degree at the U of R. Caleb grew up in the south of China but still knows Beijing well enough to find one of its top restaurants - he treated me to the city’s most famous food – Beijing Roast Duck served in the traditional manner. It was awesome! We probably haven’t seen Beijing at its finest. After all, it is still winter here as spring seems to have been delayed. The average temperature has been between 2 and 5 degrees Celsius with a bit of rain and snow thrown in. Also, the city has some air quality issues so even though we have had a day or two with no clouds, you wouldn’t know it. New standards were just announced so the city is beginning to deal with this issue. Tomorrow we head to Shanghai via the high-speed train. It should be about 10 degrees warmer! Finally, check out the new photos on the China page. |
AuthorIn January, 2012, Curt and Char left their jobs in Canada to spend four months travelling around the world. Archives
May 2012
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