Thailand

I wasn't really planning for it but then the opportunity came up and I went to Thailand by myself.  Glen was working out of town, flights were cheap, and I got cabin fever.  If you've ever traveled alone then you know it can be filled with anxious excitement of the unknown.  This same anxiety almost prevented me from going (almost).  Sometimes I think I pretend I'm tougher than I really am.  I didn't want to be held back by my fears so ahead I went and boy am I glad I did.  Once you allow yourself the experience, you will find that there are friends to be made and directions to be found.  I only wanted to stay in Bangkok for 2 days but it turned into a week.  To which I roamed the city by bus, taxi, tuk tuk, and water ferry.  A girl can see only so many temples before she goes nuts.  I had scheduled a yoga retreat to Koh Samui but for the 1st time in 6 years southern Thailand got unusually heavy rainfall that required evacuation of foreigners by Navy ships.  So I waited it out and thought I might still go....but there was too much destruction and a few people had died.  Instead I ended up booking a last minute trip to Koh Phi Phi and met my friend Traci.  Traci and I met here in Delhi but sadly (for me) she quit her job and moved back to the U.S.  So here I am back at home in Delhi...received with open arms by my honey and black boogers back in my nose....a new experience and a few friends richer!  Thank you Thailand for your hospitality, your disciplined society, your cheap, yummy food (minus the insects and random meat items), Singha, your beautiful temples, your cheap internet cafes, your mass transportation system, your dazzling markets, and your calming waters.

Tuk Tuk

Reclining Buddha

Lotus

Hungry anyone?

New friends:  Manita & John

Golden Mount

Water taxi

Cheers to new friends

Mystery meat

Floating Market

I thought I hired a bus ride...

Blue Lagoon

This photo is not edited

I'm only a foot taller...

"The Beach"

Bidding adieu to Traci

Disconnect

I've spent the last week on my own as Glen is away for work in Australia.  I've sort of reverted to my bachelorette days of quick and easy meals for one.  Macaroni and cheese with a glass of red wine anyone?  Oh except this time I'm having a healthier version of the meal by adding a salad.  Go Jenn!  It has also put my lack of independence in my face.  I hate that I can't just hop in my car and drive myself to the movies or for a hike in the mountains....like I used to do in Colorado.  Leaving a Jenn alone with too much idle time to let her head spin is not a good thing.  Sometimes solitude is a wonderful thing....but not when you are stuck in a city that still feels somewhat hostile.  Soooo I kind of booked a trip to Thailand.  We don't really have the money (freaking wedding costs!) but the flights were cheap.  And besides as soon as Glen comes back from Oz he is going to turn around and leave for work again for another 5 days.  So if I am going to have so much alone time I might as well do it in a happy place.  Like Koh Samui.  It's kind of scary traveling on my own.  I did it in Italy and it was a little intimidating.  I really like having a travel buddy and Glen is the best.  But it's time to put on my big girl pants and just do it.  I have an American friend that might meet me there the last few days.  We met at a yoga class in Delhi and connected right away.  But unfortunately (for me) she had to move back to California.  I'm not taking my laptop.  I might pop into an internet cafe here and there.  But ultimately I'm just going to disconnect from this place and go eat really good food, do some yoga, and relax on the beach.  


So here's to independent travel and new experiences.  I'll be back in a couple of weeks!      

Litigious

A day in the life of Jenn.  I was in the kitchen washing dishes when all of a sudden the cabinets took a nose-dive off the wall.  If this happened in the U.S.  I could totally sue somebody for this.

Holi weekend in Kolkata

We went to Kolkata last weekend to visit my friend JSD and his lovely family.  We stayed at their apartment complex where they hosted Holi festivities.  I think Holi originally was celebrated to welcome spring but the way it is celebrated is with all out water wars and colored dyes.  Social norms are set to the wayside as nobody is immune to participating in the fun.....men, women, young, old.  It was the most hysterical display of recklessness I've seen in a long time.  And it was a good way to bond with one of our new favorite families.

Holi war!

One of the sweetest families ever

      


We had a little bit of time to see bits of Kolkata.  Jeremy became Glen's new hero when he took us to Eden Gardens for a Cricket World Cup game.  And we did a quick stop at Victoria Memorial.  Good weekend!  Thanks to the Seelinger-Devey family!

Eden Gardens

Victoria Memorial

Amritsar

One of the things I have the luxury to do is to hop on a train and go see more of India.  My Dutch friend Dieuwke, her friend Fleur, and Dieuwke's 4 month old daughter Eva, and I  traveled up to Amritsar for a night to check out the Golden Temple.  The Golden Temple is a Sikh temple.  It is an all-inclusive religion so we were able to enter provided we wash our feet before entering and wear head scarves.  Amritsar is also fascinating because of the Jallianwala Bagh which we unfortunately did not get to see.  It is the place where 2000 Indians were killed by the British in 1919 during a peaceful sit-in demonstration as India was trying to gain it's Independence.  We were only 30 km from the Pakistani border so we put our brave hats on and headed over.  We arrived late in the afternoon to watch the flag ceremony, where Pakistan and India raise and lower their respective flags and the soldiers shake hands.  For those of you that might not know, there has been a huge rift between Pakistan and India, Muslim and Hindu's since the separation in 1947.  So to witness this handshaking was quite an event.  It was also quite amusing because the whole episode was like being at a major sports event with all the hooping and hollering.  The audience was allowed to participate at the beginning with the running of the flags and dancing Bollywood.  The whole thing was quite a spectacle.  Hindustan Zindabad!!!  (long live Hindustan)

Pakistan

Running the flag

The crowd goes wild!

Audience participation

Bollywood comes to the border

 

Feet cleansing