Day 13 They are only pictures right?
I am pretty OCD when I travel to make sure I don't lose anything. Every time I leave a hotel or site or cab I look for my camera, passport, FRRO card, my glasses, wallet and camera memory card. Those are the things that are most important and if I check for them every time I leave somewhere I know the last time I saw it. Today was no different. I knew exactly where everything was.
It took an hour and a half to get to the King Hussain border crossing. We had to get out of the cab and transfer our stuff to another cab that is allowed to travel in no man's land. We take the car a tenth of a mile and unload our luggage to get it scanned. Reload our luggage and go a quarter mile. Get luggage out of car pay exit tax, get Jordan exit stamp, get a bus ticket to go to Israeli side. Wait half an hour load stuff in bus go a tenth of a mile. People go through the li e no problem. Not us.
They scan my stuff and ask if I packed my own bag, did anyone in Jordan give me anything to transport, why are am i flying out of tel aviv instead of Jordan (the plane tickets were an extra $750 for that). They tear my bags apart! Stuff everywhere. Why do you have a rug? What are you going to do with it? Etc. Once I got past screening it was ok and the woman stamped a separate piece of paper instead of my passport. Yea :)
We get a cab and we a go a little ways and I do my obsessive check. No memory card. The driver notices I am crying and pulls over and offers to call the border station. I talk to the lady and she said she'd look and call back. So while we waited I went through every single item methodically and checked for it. The driver felt so bad for me he started looking through the car even though we knew it wasn't there. The border lady called and said they didn't find it. I believed she actually looked for it because she seemed sad I was crying. The cab driver said I have memories of his beautiful country in my head and I can't lose those :) I know they are just pictures and I can get pictures off the Internet to show everyone the things I saw, but it isn't the same. I wanted the pictures I took - the way I saw things. And there were pictures of me in front of the Dome of the Rock, on a boat in the sea of Galilee, with my hand in Jesus's hand print on the wall. But. I still have my second card so I have Petra and my camel ride and Christmas eve night in Bethlehem. I guess I will just have to come back to Jerusalem in a few years! :)
We get to Ben Gurion airport and the fun begins.
Why did I come to Israel?
Why did I go to Jordan?
Where did I stay? What cities? What hotels?
What did I buy?
Do I know anyone in Israel? Jordan?
Do I speak Hebrew? Do I know anyone that does?
Why don't I have an israeli stamp in my passport?
Why do I live in Mumbai?
Where did I buy my dead sea salt scrub?
Where did I get my books? Did anyone else read them?
Did anyone ask me to carry anything across the border?
Where did I get my chocolate? Why did I buy it?
What is my father's name? Mother's name?
And probably other questions I don't remember.
Whew. Made it through without a stamp again.
Got to counter. Flight is delayed. Will probably miss connecting flight in Istanbul. Lady said Turkish airlines will pay for hotel in Istanbul and we'll take the same flight tomorrow. So I bought a Turkey guide book and we will see what we can. Even though we are out of money and my suitcase was exactly 23 kg. So i cant really fit anything in it. I worked for an hour last night night to get it under 23. Perfection!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Day 12 Madaba and Sweimah
Today we left our adorable hotel Edom at Petra and hired a taxi for the long drive. It was freezing cold when we stopped in Wadi Musa for an ATM. It took 2.5 hours to drive to Madaba - a town known for old churches a mosaics. It was on our way to Sweimah and I read in the guide book that there was a great place to buy rugs in Madaba. We were not disappointed. We both got two beautiful rugs in Bedouin prints. The guy was so nice and walked us to the post office and translated so my friend could ship one home. we bought some other thing from him to-he had gorgeous stuff.
We got back in the car and started heading down a winding road to the Dead Sea. We are staying at the Holiday Inn resort there. It is amazingly pretty but all the restaurants are so expensive we might starve and there isn't much nearBy to go to. We are on the very northern tip of the Dead sea and about a half hour from the biggest Israeli border crossing. We were stopped at two checkpoints and had to show our passports and we are still a half hour from the border!!! What's it going to be like at the actual crossing? Security at the hotel was much tighter than any of the others we have stayed at here. Must be because it is where westerners frequent.
I got to go in the Dead Sea again!! It was colder this time, but calmer-no waves. We lathered up with mud and floated like beached whales! Got cleaned up and had an amazing hamburger. Trying to get our fill of beef before we go back to Mumbai.
We got back in the car and started heading down a winding road to the Dead Sea. We are staying at the Holiday Inn resort there. It is amazingly pretty but all the restaurants are so expensive we might starve and there isn't much nearBy to go to. We are on the very northern tip of the Dead sea and about a half hour from the biggest Israeli border crossing. We were stopped at two checkpoints and had to show our passports and we are still a half hour from the border!!! What's it going to be like at the actual crossing? Security at the hotel was much tighter than any of the others we have stayed at here. Must be because it is where westerners frequent.
I got to go in the Dead Sea again!! It was colder this time, but calmer-no waves. We lathered up with mud and floated like beached whales! Got cleaned up and had an amazing hamburger. Trying to get our fill of beef before we go back to Mumbai.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Day 11 more Petra
The Jordanian hotel people seem much nicer than The ones in Israel. The street hawkers are much less aggressive than the ones in India. In general we like this place. I hiked back I to Petra early this morning. It was cold. Really cold. I hiked about an hour in until I got the trail that led to the place of high sacrifice which people said was 300 steps. From the business office at school to the fourth floor workroom it is 140 stairs. So i'm thinking 300 will be no problem. Part way up I realized they lied! On the way back down I counted the steps. 734. And that is not counting all the walking in-between the sets of stairs! It was a beautiful view though.
Now I was sweaty so I stopped for some water and thought about these people that live up here in these cold caves. I saw a book advertised about an Austrailian that married a Bedouin man. I asked this guy if he had the book available. He pointed across the way and said the woman was there. She has her own stand and sold me the book. It is really interesting - she gave up everything to marry this Bedouin and live in a cave. she converted to Islam and had three kids with him.
I trekked back to the hotel and took a nap. I woke up pretty sore from all my hiking.
Went and had pizza and hot chocolate at Mystic Pizza :)
We are leaving early in the morning to take a three hour drive to Madaba then onto Sweimah to lay around at the dead sea :)
Now I was sweaty so I stopped for some water and thought about these people that live up here in these cold caves. I saw a book advertised about an Austrailian that married a Bedouin man. I asked this guy if he had the book available. He pointed across the way and said the woman was there. She has her own stand and sold me the book. It is really interesting - she gave up everything to marry this Bedouin and live in a cave. she converted to Islam and had three kids with him.
I trekked back to the hotel and took a nap. I woke up pretty sore from all my hiking.
Went and had pizza and hot chocolate at Mystic Pizza :)
We are leaving early in the morning to take a three hour drive to Madaba then onto Sweimah to lay around at the dead sea :)
Day 10 Petra
Day 10 Jordan tuesday
We got up and had breakfast with Tom and then parted ways with all our tour buddies and headed off on our own. We got a cab to the border crossing ten minutes away from Eilat. We paid our exit tax of 101 shekels which was less than we expected. The border crossing lady was surprised to see that Gretchen had an Israeli entrance stamp in her passport so she put an exit stamp. Gretchen was surprised too. She didn't know they had stamped it. I was concerned and checked mine. Whew. No stamp. I just have to make sure I don't get one when we go back into Israel. The only trouble I had was I had forgotten to take my Indian residence card out of my passport. It isn't bad-just confuses people. We went through several checkpoints until we finally got to the Jordanian side. A soldier taught me how to say "I love you" in Arabic and the taxi guy offered me a thousand camels (a marriage proposal) I'll add that to the two proposals I've gotten from Indians. Ha!
The taxi drove us about 2 kilometers then pulled over next to another car and said that the car would follow us then we'd get in the new car. Gretchen was afraid this would be the last anyone ever heard from us and we'd be the fourth wife of a Bedouin. Ha! I had heard they give the borders a wide berth and that there a cars that only drive in no man's land and then you pick up a Jordanian driver. The new car we got into was much nicer and the driver was nice but talked a little too much. We drove about an hour and 15 minutes then he pulled over to a store to buy souvenirs. It was sooooooo cold!! Even inside we could see our breath!? 20 minutes later we were in the Hotel Edom which is a cute hotel with character and is very close to the entrance gate to Petra. The town of Wadi Musa has a lot of shops and restaurants and there are a lot more Christmas trees up here than in Israel which is surprising because only 7 percent of Jordan is Christian.
That two hour ride cost 75 dollars.
We settled into the hotel then ventured toward Petra. I had Shekels, dollars and rupees with me but no dinars so I had to change some money. A two day ticket to Petra is about 82 US dollars. Which is only 7 dollars more than a one day ticket :) We hired Muhammed to give us a tour For three hours - 75 dollars. Expensive but worth it. He shared so much information! There really aren't word for Petra. I don't even know how to start explaining it so I won't. We were about an hour into our tour when we heard our names being called. Bill, whom we had last seen on Saturday night' midnight Mass was standing right there! it was good to see that he was doing ok.
Our guide left us at the Byzatine church after the three hours was up. We walked the 40 minutes back out and had dinner. We found dr. Pepper again! We had it on Christmas day and thought it was a gift from God!
We got up and had breakfast with Tom and then parted ways with all our tour buddies and headed off on our own. We got a cab to the border crossing ten minutes away from Eilat. We paid our exit tax of 101 shekels which was less than we expected. The border crossing lady was surprised to see that Gretchen had an Israeli entrance stamp in her passport so she put an exit stamp. Gretchen was surprised too. She didn't know they had stamped it. I was concerned and checked mine. Whew. No stamp. I just have to make sure I don't get one when we go back into Israel. The only trouble I had was I had forgotten to take my Indian residence card out of my passport. It isn't bad-just confuses people. We went through several checkpoints until we finally got to the Jordanian side. A soldier taught me how to say "I love you" in Arabic and the taxi guy offered me a thousand camels (a marriage proposal) I'll add that to the two proposals I've gotten from Indians. Ha!
The taxi drove us about 2 kilometers then pulled over next to another car and said that the car would follow us then we'd get in the new car. Gretchen was afraid this would be the last anyone ever heard from us and we'd be the fourth wife of a Bedouin. Ha! I had heard they give the borders a wide berth and that there a cars that only drive in no man's land and then you pick up a Jordanian driver. The new car we got into was much nicer and the driver was nice but talked a little too much. We drove about an hour and 15 minutes then he pulled over to a store to buy souvenirs. It was sooooooo cold!! Even inside we could see our breath!? 20 minutes later we were in the Hotel Edom which is a cute hotel with character and is very close to the entrance gate to Petra. The town of Wadi Musa has a lot of shops and restaurants and there are a lot more Christmas trees up here than in Israel which is surprising because only 7 percent of Jordan is Christian.
That two hour ride cost 75 dollars.
We settled into the hotel then ventured toward Petra. I had Shekels, dollars and rupees with me but no dinars so I had to change some money. A two day ticket to Petra is about 82 US dollars. Which is only 7 dollars more than a one day ticket :) We hired Muhammed to give us a tour For three hours - 75 dollars. Expensive but worth it. He shared so much information! There really aren't word for Petra. I don't even know how to start explaining it so I won't. We were about an hour into our tour when we heard our names being called. Bill, whom we had last seen on Saturday night' midnight Mass was standing right there! it was good to see that he was doing ok.
Our guide left us at the Byzatine church after the three hours was up. We walked the 40 minutes back out and had dinner. We found dr. Pepper again! We had it on Christmas day and thought it was a gift from God!
Monday, December 26, 2011
Day 8 And 9 Negev Desert and Eilat
many of the people we've been traveling with parted way with us today. We aren't sad to se them go. :) except for the Indiana family that adopted us! All that was left was Gretchen and I, Tom, Anne, the Kims and the very strange Toronto couple. The man, Sam was driving me nuts today thankfully it was our last day with him! We joined up with another group who had been doing the Jewish heritage tour. Oh my. We stopped at the hotel and this obviously Jewish woman started yelling and complaining from the get go. Whining she was standing the the rain too long, it was cold and that we'd taken their seats in the front of the bus. Jackie the tour guide had been with them all week and in the first 10 minutes she hollered through the bus that we'd taken their seats. Tom said loudly " and we thought it couldn't get worse"has this woman made Andrea, this loud annoying Jewish woman we'd been with all week seem sweet and quiet! One thing positive about this group was that they were on time to things- no stragglers, no Betty Ann holding us up.
We visited the Israeli Air Force museum at Hatzerim. Mrs. Kim, Anne and I took this opportunity to take a nap on the bus. We were working on 4 hours of sleep due to the Midnight Mass excursion.
We got to have lunch at an authentic Bedouin tent and ride a camel. We didn't get to ride them far but it was my first time. It was two camels tied together and two people on a camel. The annoying Toronto couple were on the front camel and Mrs. Kim and I were on the second. Mr. Kim was videotaping of course. Thank goodness they were tied together. Our camel did NOT want to cooperate- she would have taken off if she could have and Mrs. Kim and I would have had to ride off together in the sunset! The camel was so bad the guy stopped using her and I got a great pictue of her climbing a fence and escaping. She was DONE!! Ha! There is a south African family in our group with two boys that are very... Whiny and cowardly so were some of the adults I. Their group. Wouldn't get on the camel and whined about walking short distances.
We visited Ben Gurion's hut and grave which had an amazing view of the Zin valley. We stopped briefly at Mitzpeh Ramon to see the Ramon crater. I personally though the site by Ben Gurion's grave was more impressive.
Next was a two hour drive through the Negev Desert. Beautiful and we saw groups of kids camping out there and tons of military camps and excercise fields where they were doing night training maneuvers. The Israel Army is pretty impressive.
We stopped at an ice-cream store for a bathroom break. There was a boy quoting the Torah and others with him. Not sure but think a Bar Mitvah was happening at the reststop!
Got to Eilat and were exhausting. Long fairly boring day. We drove around Eilat while Jackie pointed out some things. We dropped off the others and of course, Tom, Gretchen and I were the last dropped off in a hotel far away from everything. We are C class travelers.
Day 9
Most everyone went on a dat trip to Petra. Gretchen and I had a free day to read, nap and walk. We went to McDonalds. Mrs. Kim says it's the US embassy!!! Ha! We just wanted beef! Mr. And Mrs Kim did not tell us their first names because they said it is hard for westerners to
pronounce. Yesterday I heard mr. Kim looking for her calling out "Mrs. Kim" cracked me up.
Our hotel is ok but there are a lot of loud Jewish families with loud children. And the Internet that you have to pay for does not work in your room just in the lobby. Sigh.
The red sea is beautiful though :)
We visited the Israeli Air Force museum at Hatzerim. Mrs. Kim, Anne and I took this opportunity to take a nap on the bus. We were working on 4 hours of sleep due to the Midnight Mass excursion.
We got to have lunch at an authentic Bedouin tent and ride a camel. We didn't get to ride them far but it was my first time. It was two camels tied together and two people on a camel. The annoying Toronto couple were on the front camel and Mrs. Kim and I were on the second. Mr. Kim was videotaping of course. Thank goodness they were tied together. Our camel did NOT want to cooperate- she would have taken off if she could have and Mrs. Kim and I would have had to ride off together in the sunset! The camel was so bad the guy stopped using her and I got a great pictue of her climbing a fence and escaping. She was DONE!! Ha! There is a south African family in our group with two boys that are very... Whiny and cowardly so were some of the adults I. Their group. Wouldn't get on the camel and whined about walking short distances.
We visited Ben Gurion's hut and grave which had an amazing view of the Zin valley. We stopped briefly at Mitzpeh Ramon to see the Ramon crater. I personally though the site by Ben Gurion's grave was more impressive.
Next was a two hour drive through the Negev Desert. Beautiful and we saw groups of kids camping out there and tons of military camps and excercise fields where they were doing night training maneuvers. The Israel Army is pretty impressive.
We stopped at an ice-cream store for a bathroom break. There was a boy quoting the Torah and others with him. Not sure but think a Bar Mitvah was happening at the reststop!
Got to Eilat and were exhausting. Long fairly boring day. We drove around Eilat while Jackie pointed out some things. We dropped off the others and of course, Tom, Gretchen and I were the last dropped off in a hotel far away from everything. We are C class travelers.
Day 9
Most everyone went on a dat trip to Petra. Gretchen and I had a free day to read, nap and walk. We went to McDonalds. Mrs. Kim says it's the US embassy!!! Ha! We just wanted beef! Mr. And Mrs Kim did not tell us their first names because they said it is hard for westerners to
pronounce. Yesterday I heard mr. Kim looking for her calling out "Mrs. Kim" cracked me up.
Our hotel is ok but there are a lot of loud Jewish families with loud children. And the Internet that you have to pay for does not work in your room just in the lobby. Sigh.
The red sea is beautiful though :)
Day seven-Masada, Qumran, and bethlehem
Day 7 Masada, Qumran, dead sea, bethlehem
It was freezing cold in the morning! We drove along the Dead Sea to Masada-the last Jewish stronghold after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD. It took the Romans two years to breach it-there were 1000 Jews there. There Romans got through then went back to there camps at night and were going to take it in the morning. The leader of the Jews proposed they kill themselves. They picked 10 men to slay all the others then the 10 men drew the name of the man that would kill the other nine then fall on his own sword. Horrible. Two women and some children survived to tell the story. When we got to the top Joyce said this is where she's going when the zombies attack! Ha!
We went to Qumran where the dead sea scrolls were found. In 1947 a Bedouin shepherd boy looking for a lost goat and came upon a cave with jars that held the scrolls.
We had to be back early for people to go to the midnight Mass since it is Christmas Eve :)
Our last stop was the dead sea. We got to put mud our ourselves and float in the dead sea. So cool! Gretchen didn't come with the group today to I hung out the Bill, Joyce, and Aaron. Some people were having a lot of trouble trusting the water to hold them so they couldn't enjoy it. I Loved it! You just sit down and you float effortlessly. When you get out the water leaves this oily film on your skin. When it dries your skin feels amazingly soft.you stink though and I had salt in clumps in weird places like when I run marathons. Luckily the water wasn't nearly as cold as I thought it would be.
We headed back to Jerusalem and I took a quick shower. Our guide was Mollie who was great! Gretchen, me, Vivica, Anne, Bill, Donna, Bill, Joyce, and Arron all went in this group. We ran into Betty Ann on another tour. It was cold and rainy. we went to see the parliment building just from the outside. We went up to the Mount of Olives to see Jerusalem by night. We went throughh the Jaffa gate and went back down the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was much less crowded at night. We went into the church and got to go onto the place marked as His tomb. We didn't get to do that the other day. We had to drop Mollie off because she isn't allowed into Bethlehem. It was different tonight - soldiers everywhere! Our driver and guide tonight were obviously Muslim Palestinians. They kept emphasizing that we were entering another country, Palestine. We went back to the Olive wood store and had tea and I went back to the store for chocolate. I had also brought ginger bread men from Mumbai to celebrate Christmas :) I shared them with Gretchen and the Terra Haute family that adopted us! Aaron said we were taking his gig :)
We parked the bus and started walking toward Manger Square. Soldiers stopped us and said we couldn't go because the Prime Minister was on the move. We stood in the freezing rain for awhile until finally the soldiers found an overhang for us to huddle under. I heard soldiers yelling at someone near me-the dumbass had taken a picture of the Palestanian soldiers. I'd bet money they were American! Dumb dumb. Some of the soldiers covered the lower half of their face. Some people thought they were trying to scare us on purpose. I think they were actually just really cold. We were finally allowed to go to the Christmas Bells restaurant. It was warm and we got to sit In There and we could see the mass on the screen. We had hours to kill but we had a great time hanging out with our Adoptive family. I was the only one to venture outside to see if I could hear anything in Manger Square. I've seen guards in crowds before. They are usually standing a few yards apart from each other. In this case they were shoulder to shoulder with their faces covered and in full gear. It really was a little freaky. Once Mass ended and the Prime Minister left, the soldiers relaxed a little. As we were walking down the street many of them wished us Merry Christmas. Our guide got off at the border and we had no problem getting back into Israel. It was 1:45 am before we got back. I was exhausted and much of the night was boring, but I got to see the Tomb and I get to say I was in Bethlehem for Christmas Eve!
It was freezing cold in the morning! We drove along the Dead Sea to Masada-the last Jewish stronghold after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD. It took the Romans two years to breach it-there were 1000 Jews there. There Romans got through then went back to there camps at night and were going to take it in the morning. The leader of the Jews proposed they kill themselves. They picked 10 men to slay all the others then the 10 men drew the name of the man that would kill the other nine then fall on his own sword. Horrible. Two women and some children survived to tell the story. When we got to the top Joyce said this is where she's going when the zombies attack! Ha!
We went to Qumran where the dead sea scrolls were found. In 1947 a Bedouin shepherd boy looking for a lost goat and came upon a cave with jars that held the scrolls.
We had to be back early for people to go to the midnight Mass since it is Christmas Eve :)
Our last stop was the dead sea. We got to put mud our ourselves and float in the dead sea. So cool! Gretchen didn't come with the group today to I hung out the Bill, Joyce, and Aaron. Some people were having a lot of trouble trusting the water to hold them so they couldn't enjoy it. I Loved it! You just sit down and you float effortlessly. When you get out the water leaves this oily film on your skin. When it dries your skin feels amazingly soft.you stink though and I had salt in clumps in weird places like when I run marathons. Luckily the water wasn't nearly as cold as I thought it would be.
We headed back to Jerusalem and I took a quick shower. Our guide was Mollie who was great! Gretchen, me, Vivica, Anne, Bill, Donna, Bill, Joyce, and Arron all went in this group. We ran into Betty Ann on another tour. It was cold and rainy. we went to see the parliment building just from the outside. We went up to the Mount of Olives to see Jerusalem by night. We went throughh the Jaffa gate and went back down the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was much less crowded at night. We went into the church and got to go onto the place marked as His tomb. We didn't get to do that the other day. We had to drop Mollie off because she isn't allowed into Bethlehem. It was different tonight - soldiers everywhere! Our driver and guide tonight were obviously Muslim Palestinians. They kept emphasizing that we were entering another country, Palestine. We went back to the Olive wood store and had tea and I went back to the store for chocolate. I had also brought ginger bread men from Mumbai to celebrate Christmas :) I shared them with Gretchen and the Terra Haute family that adopted us! Aaron said we were taking his gig :)
We parked the bus and started walking toward Manger Square. Soldiers stopped us and said we couldn't go because the Prime Minister was on the move. We stood in the freezing rain for awhile until finally the soldiers found an overhang for us to huddle under. I heard soldiers yelling at someone near me-the dumbass had taken a picture of the Palestanian soldiers. I'd bet money they were American! Dumb dumb. Some of the soldiers covered the lower half of their face. Some people thought they were trying to scare us on purpose. I think they were actually just really cold. We were finally allowed to go to the Christmas Bells restaurant. It was warm and we got to sit In There and we could see the mass on the screen. We had hours to kill but we had a great time hanging out with our Adoptive family. I was the only one to venture outside to see if I could hear anything in Manger Square. I've seen guards in crowds before. They are usually standing a few yards apart from each other. In this case they were shoulder to shoulder with their faces covered and in full gear. It really was a little freaky. Once Mass ended and the Prime Minister left, the soldiers relaxed a little. As we were walking down the street many of them wished us Merry Christmas. Our guide got off at the border and we had no problem getting back into Israel. It was 1:45 am before we got back. I was exhausted and much of the night was boring, but I got to see the Tomb and I get to say I was in Bethlehem for Christmas Eve!
Day 6 Chuch of all nations, Yad Vashem, bethlehem
Day six church of all nations, holocaust museum,Bethlehem
It is Friday and still sunny out. We drove to The top of mount Olives for the panoramic view of Jerusalem. It was the most amazing sight! I didn't cry at the wailing wall or the Via Dolorosa, but tears started falling down my face the sight of the Dome of the Rock in the middle of this gorgeous view. "When He draw near and saw the city He wept over it" Luke 1:26 We could see the Basillica of the Agony or Church of All Nations. It was a really beautiful church. Twelve countries contributed to the construction of the church. It is over the rock Jesus prayed over in the Garden of Gethsemane. There is a wrought iron fence around the rock that looks like a crown. We also went to St. john's church where John the Baptist was born.
We went to the Israel Museum Shrine of the Book where some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept. There is also a really cool model of Jerusalem how it was during the Second Temple period. It was huge model with great details.
We went to Yad Vashem -the memorial and museum to the Holocaust. The children's memorial was amazing. 1.5 million children died. The memorial is in a circle surrounded by mirrors. There are five candles in the center and the lights reflect t endlessly in the mirrors. Entrance to the main museum is along the Avenue of the Righteous Among Nations which is lined with plaques with the names of people who put their lives on the line to help Jews. About 23,000 people are honored and Oskar Schindler is one of them.
The museum was in a triangle shape and you go to different eras of the Holocaust. They have artifacts from victims-burned passports and pictures, a pile of shoes. I was torn between just wanting to get out of there and trying to read everything and learn as much as I could. We ate in the cafeteria there. Lots of restaurants here are kosher and I think things are worse because it is Hanukkah. At this particular cafeteria there was one section where you could buy food with dairy in it and one section to buy meat products. If you got food in the meat section and your friend got food in the dairy section, you couldn't eat together.
In the afternoon we drove to Bethlehem. It is easy to get in to the Palestinian territory but you need your passport in case they stop you going out. Meir, our guide had to get off the bus right before the border. Jewish Israelis are not allowed to go in. When we get across the border a Palestinian guide gets on the bus. The driver is a Muslim Israeli so he can drive in. Adele, our new guide told us about Bethlehem and took us to Johnnys -a Christian store that specializes in Olive Wood carvings. I was done shopping and needed chocolate so i headed to cross the street to go to a store. adel rushed over to help me cross which cracked me up. I live in Mumbai. I can cross the street better than anyone! There are about 30 percent Christians and 70 percent Muslims in Bethlehem. We got to go to the Church of the Nativity where Christ was born. We had to wait in line for an hour to get into the cave. We got to touch the star that marks the spot where He was born. The church is gorgeous. There is a section run by Armenians, Greek Orthodox, and Roman Catholics (that is where the midnight mass is celebrated. It is right next to Manger Square which is all lit up with Christmas lights.
We headed back out of Bethlehem and saw a santa claus riding a bicycle! Israel soldiers stopped us at the border and just walked through the bus - the only people they said anything to was the Ethiopean family.
We went back to Jerusalem to spend the night.
It is Friday and still sunny out. We drove to The top of mount Olives for the panoramic view of Jerusalem. It was the most amazing sight! I didn't cry at the wailing wall or the Via Dolorosa, but tears started falling down my face the sight of the Dome of the Rock in the middle of this gorgeous view. "When He draw near and saw the city He wept over it" Luke 1:26 We could see the Basillica of the Agony or Church of All Nations. It was a really beautiful church. Twelve countries contributed to the construction of the church. It is over the rock Jesus prayed over in the Garden of Gethsemane. There is a wrought iron fence around the rock that looks like a crown. We also went to St. john's church where John the Baptist was born.
We went to the Israel Museum Shrine of the Book where some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept. There is also a really cool model of Jerusalem how it was during the Second Temple period. It was huge model with great details.
We went to Yad Vashem -the memorial and museum to the Holocaust. The children's memorial was amazing. 1.5 million children died. The memorial is in a circle surrounded by mirrors. There are five candles in the center and the lights reflect t endlessly in the mirrors. Entrance to the main museum is along the Avenue of the Righteous Among Nations which is lined with plaques with the names of people who put their lives on the line to help Jews. About 23,000 people are honored and Oskar Schindler is one of them.
The museum was in a triangle shape and you go to different eras of the Holocaust. They have artifacts from victims-burned passports and pictures, a pile of shoes. I was torn between just wanting to get out of there and trying to read everything and learn as much as I could. We ate in the cafeteria there. Lots of restaurants here are kosher and I think things are worse because it is Hanukkah. At this particular cafeteria there was one section where you could buy food with dairy in it and one section to buy meat products. If you got food in the meat section and your friend got food in the dairy section, you couldn't eat together.
In the afternoon we drove to Bethlehem. It is easy to get in to the Palestinian territory but you need your passport in case they stop you going out. Meir, our guide had to get off the bus right before the border. Jewish Israelis are not allowed to go in. When we get across the border a Palestinian guide gets on the bus. The driver is a Muslim Israeli so he can drive in. Adele, our new guide told us about Bethlehem and took us to Johnnys -a Christian store that specializes in Olive Wood carvings. I was done shopping and needed chocolate so i headed to cross the street to go to a store. adel rushed over to help me cross which cracked me up. I live in Mumbai. I can cross the street better than anyone! There are about 30 percent Christians and 70 percent Muslims in Bethlehem. We got to go to the Church of the Nativity where Christ was born. We had to wait in line for an hour to get into the cave. We got to touch the star that marks the spot where He was born. The church is gorgeous. There is a section run by Armenians, Greek Orthodox, and Roman Catholics (that is where the midnight mass is celebrated. It is right next to Manger Square which is all lit up with Christmas lights.
We headed back out of Bethlehem and saw a santa claus riding a bicycle! Israel soldiers stopped us at the border and just walked through the bus - the only people they said anything to was the Ethiopean family.
We went back to Jerusalem to spend the night.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Day five Jerusalem -old city
Day five - jerusalem old city
I try to take notes everyday so I can remember everything I saw and learned, but it just wasn't possible today. Today was THE day!
We had 9 new people join us so we had a big tour bus today and a driver, Muhammed. We started at the temple mount. It is traditionally where God formed Adam ( Gen2:7) and where Abraham was going to sacrifice Issac. This is also where King Solomon built the temple and the Ark of the Covenant was housed. The temple was destroyed and King Herod the Great built a more lavish temple and this was the one that Jesus taught at. We had to go through a lot of security to get to the temple mount. You have to be dressed appropriately and you cannot carry a Bible (the site is controlled by Muslims ) Men and women are not allowed to touch even shoulder to shoulder for a picture. The place is on Mt. moriah.The Dome of the Rock is a magnificent Mosque built by the Muslims over the rock where Abraham laid Issac (they believe it was Ishmael almost sacrificed though, not Issac) it is also said to be the place where Mohammed ascended into Heaven. Some of the stone from the original temple is still there. Jews are not allowed to go into the Temple Mount for fear they will step on the place where the Holy of Holies was. We got to stand where they think it was. According to our guide the Muslims offered the site to the Jews for their temple but it wasn't yet time because the third temple will not be made by man so that is why the Muslims have that spot. You can no longer go in the Dome of the Rock, but it is impressive from the outside.
We got to travel on the Via Dolorosa- the way of the cross. The 14 stations are marked- where he fell, where Simon was told to help Him, veronica who wiped His face, etc. There are chapels from a lot of faiths marking the points. There is a place where Jesus was said to ALMOST fall and He out is hand on the wall to steady Himself. The wall is worn where people touch it. The Via Dolorosa is lined with shops and people just living their normal lives.
At the end is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher marking the place of the crucifixion. It covers Calvary (or Golgatha),the crucifixion spot, the burial cave etc. The church is maintained by Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholics, and Armenians. I always pictured the cross being placed in the ground - dirt. But it is all rock here and holes where chiseled out of the stone to stand the crosses in. There is an alter like thing over the hole in the rock and you can crawl under it and put your hand in the place where the cross stood. There is a slab of Rock that is supposedly the rock His body was placed on to be prepared for burial.
We walked through the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian Quarters of Jeruselam. We didn't walk through the Armenian Quarter. We got to go to the Western Wall or Wailing Wall. People stuff prayers in the cracks of the wall. Men and women have to go to separate areas of the wall. People think the western wall is part of the first temple but it is a retaining wall built by Herod.
King Herod the Great was responsible for a lot of buildings - our guide calls him the Meshugena paranoid :)
We got to see the room of the Last Supper.
The Protestants believe Jesus was buried in the Garden Tomb just outside of the Damascus Gate. There is a hill with rock formation in shape of skull so it could be the place. It's a quiet place run by British Christians. It was the first guide talk we got that was strictly Christian. I like their thinking. So many people fight over "was this the spot Jesus..... Whatever or is it 50 meters from here?" That bothers me. I like these people's perspective on it. There are facts that point to the Church of the Holy Sepulture being the correct spot and evidence to support their place at the Garden tomb being the spot. But it doesn't really matter. They acknowledge that the amazing church is a great place for people to worship and revel in. But their ministry is proving a quieter garden spot that is more like where Jesus went off to pray. They seem content to give people different kind of place to reflect and not compete with the big site. I like that.
In the old city Jerusalem orthodox Jews were asking for donations for the poor and in return would bless you and tie a red string around your wrist. This Jewish man just grabbed me and started blessing me, my husband, kids, health, etc. Then asked me where my husband was in the crowd and looked utterly shocked to find out I was not married. He asked me somethign to the effect of "what's the problem?!"how do you not take offense to that ?!! They he started Lessing me and praying and says now I'll have a husband soon. Ok then.
We have noticed that people are not nearly as nice in Jerusalem as in Tel Aviv or other places we've been. They push and shove and yell at you.
I also saw my first begging today. Muslim women and the Temple Mount. Not nearly as bad as India though!
We ate the included dinner at the hotel -Leonardo Inn- tonight. It was better than last night :)
It was chilly today. I needed gloves and had to turn the heat on in my hotel room.
I try to take notes everyday so I can remember everything I saw and learned, but it just wasn't possible today. Today was THE day!
We had 9 new people join us so we had a big tour bus today and a driver, Muhammed. We started at the temple mount. It is traditionally where God formed Adam ( Gen2:7) and where Abraham was going to sacrifice Issac. This is also where King Solomon built the temple and the Ark of the Covenant was housed. The temple was destroyed and King Herod the Great built a more lavish temple and this was the one that Jesus taught at. We had to go through a lot of security to get to the temple mount. You have to be dressed appropriately and you cannot carry a Bible (the site is controlled by Muslims ) Men and women are not allowed to touch even shoulder to shoulder for a picture. The place is on Mt. moriah.The Dome of the Rock is a magnificent Mosque built by the Muslims over the rock where Abraham laid Issac (they believe it was Ishmael almost sacrificed though, not Issac) it is also said to be the place where Mohammed ascended into Heaven. Some of the stone from the original temple is still there. Jews are not allowed to go into the Temple Mount for fear they will step on the place where the Holy of Holies was. We got to stand where they think it was. According to our guide the Muslims offered the site to the Jews for their temple but it wasn't yet time because the third temple will not be made by man so that is why the Muslims have that spot. You can no longer go in the Dome of the Rock, but it is impressive from the outside.
We got to travel on the Via Dolorosa- the way of the cross. The 14 stations are marked- where he fell, where Simon was told to help Him, veronica who wiped His face, etc. There are chapels from a lot of faiths marking the points. There is a place where Jesus was said to ALMOST fall and He out is hand on the wall to steady Himself. The wall is worn where people touch it. The Via Dolorosa is lined with shops and people just living their normal lives.
At the end is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher marking the place of the crucifixion. It covers Calvary (or Golgatha),the crucifixion spot, the burial cave etc. The church is maintained by Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholics, and Armenians. I always pictured the cross being placed in the ground - dirt. But it is all rock here and holes where chiseled out of the stone to stand the crosses in. There is an alter like thing over the hole in the rock and you can crawl under it and put your hand in the place where the cross stood. There is a slab of Rock that is supposedly the rock His body was placed on to be prepared for burial.
We walked through the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian Quarters of Jeruselam. We didn't walk through the Armenian Quarter. We got to go to the Western Wall or Wailing Wall. People stuff prayers in the cracks of the wall. Men and women have to go to separate areas of the wall. People think the western wall is part of the first temple but it is a retaining wall built by Herod.
King Herod the Great was responsible for a lot of buildings - our guide calls him the Meshugena paranoid :)
We got to see the room of the Last Supper.
The Protestants believe Jesus was buried in the Garden Tomb just outside of the Damascus Gate. There is a hill with rock formation in shape of skull so it could be the place. It's a quiet place run by British Christians. It was the first guide talk we got that was strictly Christian. I like their thinking. So many people fight over "was this the spot Jesus..... Whatever or is it 50 meters from here?" That bothers me. I like these people's perspective on it. There are facts that point to the Church of the Holy Sepulture being the correct spot and evidence to support their place at the Garden tomb being the spot. But it doesn't really matter. They acknowledge that the amazing church is a great place for people to worship and revel in. But their ministry is proving a quieter garden spot that is more like where Jesus went off to pray. They seem content to give people different kind of place to reflect and not compete with the big site. I like that.
In the old city Jerusalem orthodox Jews were asking for donations for the poor and in return would bless you and tie a red string around your wrist. This Jewish man just grabbed me and started blessing me, my husband, kids, health, etc. Then asked me where my husband was in the crowd and looked utterly shocked to find out I was not married. He asked me somethign to the effect of "what's the problem?!"how do you not take offense to that ?!! They he started Lessing me and praying and says now I'll have a husband soon. Ok then.
We have noticed that people are not nearly as nice in Jerusalem as in Tel Aviv or other places we've been. They push and shove and yell at you.
I also saw my first begging today. Muslim women and the Temple Mount. Not nearly as bad as India though!
We ate the included dinner at the hotel -Leonardo Inn- tonight. It was better than last night :)
It was chilly today. I needed gloves and had to turn the heat on in my hotel room.
Day four Cana, Nazereth, Tiberias
Day four Cana, Nazareth, tiberias
We loaded up one van with our luggage and the other van with 17 people. We dove through Cana where Jesus performed His first miracle-turning water into wine. The were several shops with names like "First Miracle Wine Shop " then we drove to Nazareth. Mary grew up there and the Holy family lived there after their stay in Egypt. We went to The Church of the Annunciation over the site where Mary was told she would bear God's son. Meir was telling us about how people think that Mary and Joseph went to Bethleham to pay taxes during the census. He said if it was just about taxes they would have sent someone else to pay them. Mary went so she could be counted among her people of Judah so that prophecy would be fulfilled. The church was amazing!!! Mass is still held there and one was going on while we were there. Many countries gave gifts to the church with their version of the story and it was interesting to see what they gave. The one from Japan had a Japanese woman and child. :)
The church had these amazing doors with pictures depicting stories in the Bible. One of them was Noah and the dove bringing the olive branch. He said it was a dove because they can land on anything and it was an olive branch because they are nearly Impossible to break off if they aren't completely dry.
We also went to the church that is on the spot where the family lived -st. joseph's church. The family lived in the house above ground and his workshop was below that then there was a cave under the whole area for the basement. Nazareth has about 55,000 people that are 50/50 Muslim and Christian. Their is a new part of the town called Nazereth Illit that is for Jews. I saw the most Christmas decorations in Nazerethh and some one wished me Merry Christmas!!
We drive pass a lot of Kibbutzes. Kibbutz are like communes where people work the agricultue land together and don't get paid but get all their needs met. To join you must live there a year and then people vote. If the don't get a majority the first year you get another year. If you don't pass the second year- you are out!
We see a lot of Israeli soldiers on the roads and at bus stops. He said that they used to hitchhike all the time until terrorists started dressing as devout Jews, picking up soldiers and killing them. Soldiers are no longer allowed to hitchhike.
We went to Yardenit - the place where it is said that John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the river Jordan. There is also a site across the border in Jordan :)
Apparently it is a big deal to buy diamonds here so we went to a shop. Some of us were not into diamonds so we went looking for an ATM. I finally have shekels! We had lunch at McDonalds-real beef burger. No cheese because it was kosher-but it was still great!
We rode in this train thing pulled by tractor to Beit Shean or Beth Shean-very cool excavation site!! We are touring ruin and I feel something hit my head. Didn't know if it was a bug, debris etc. My friend checked it out it was bird poop! Twice in one week! She tried to get it out of my hair :)
We drove along the Jordan river to Jerusalem. So weird driving through the West Bank. Barbed wire everywhere. There is a fence along the Jordan border and another fence quite a bit away from it and the space between is a battlefield area. It is full of mines to stop terrorists from crossing the border that way.
The people in our group continue to entertain! The hong kong couple is on their honeymoon and are Super cute. When I ask why they chose Israel he aid because it is warmer than Europe :). Continuing to enjoy the terra haute family. Normally when I tell people I've eaten guinea pig and loved it I get looks of horror. Aaron said he has been to Ecuador too and enjoyed eating Guinea pig :) Alabama makes us laugh constantly. She sais Israeli men are so hot she wants to make a calendar. She said "i think it is impossible for Israel to make ugly men! She's not wrong!! mrs. Kim talked to me quite a bit they are Christians and live in France. Mr. Kim works at a nuclear facility- is from Korea so just says he is an engineer at boarder crossings :) Bill, the guy from New Zeland lost his wife unexpectedly 13 years ago. They had always talked about coming and now he is here. He is .... A little mentally impaired... It is sweet to see his reaction to everything here. He is so moved by all of it!
We loaded up one van with our luggage and the other van with 17 people. We dove through Cana where Jesus performed His first miracle-turning water into wine. The were several shops with names like "First Miracle Wine Shop " then we drove to Nazareth. Mary grew up there and the Holy family lived there after their stay in Egypt. We went to The Church of the Annunciation over the site where Mary was told she would bear God's son. Meir was telling us about how people think that Mary and Joseph went to Bethleham to pay taxes during the census. He said if it was just about taxes they would have sent someone else to pay them. Mary went so she could be counted among her people of Judah so that prophecy would be fulfilled. The church was amazing!!! Mass is still held there and one was going on while we were there. Many countries gave gifts to the church with their version of the story and it was interesting to see what they gave. The one from Japan had a Japanese woman and child. :)
The church had these amazing doors with pictures depicting stories in the Bible. One of them was Noah and the dove bringing the olive branch. He said it was a dove because they can land on anything and it was an olive branch because they are nearly Impossible to break off if they aren't completely dry.
We also went to the church that is on the spot where the family lived -st. joseph's church. The family lived in the house above ground and his workshop was below that then there was a cave under the whole area for the basement. Nazareth has about 55,000 people that are 50/50 Muslim and Christian. Their is a new part of the town called Nazereth Illit that is for Jews. I saw the most Christmas decorations in Nazerethh and some one wished me Merry Christmas!!
We drive pass a lot of Kibbutzes. Kibbutz are like communes where people work the agricultue land together and don't get paid but get all their needs met. To join you must live there a year and then people vote. If the don't get a majority the first year you get another year. If you don't pass the second year- you are out!
We see a lot of Israeli soldiers on the roads and at bus stops. He said that they used to hitchhike all the time until terrorists started dressing as devout Jews, picking up soldiers and killing them. Soldiers are no longer allowed to hitchhike.
We went to Yardenit - the place where it is said that John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the river Jordan. There is also a site across the border in Jordan :)
Apparently it is a big deal to buy diamonds here so we went to a shop. Some of us were not into diamonds so we went looking for an ATM. I finally have shekels! We had lunch at McDonalds-real beef burger. No cheese because it was kosher-but it was still great!
We rode in this train thing pulled by tractor to Beit Shean or Beth Shean-very cool excavation site!! We are touring ruin and I feel something hit my head. Didn't know if it was a bug, debris etc. My friend checked it out it was bird poop! Twice in one week! She tried to get it out of my hair :)
We drove along the Jordan river to Jerusalem. So weird driving through the West Bank. Barbed wire everywhere. There is a fence along the Jordan border and another fence quite a bit away from it and the space between is a battlefield area. It is full of mines to stop terrorists from crossing the border that way.
The people in our group continue to entertain! The hong kong couple is on their honeymoon and are Super cute. When I ask why they chose Israel he aid because it is warmer than Europe :). Continuing to enjoy the terra haute family. Normally when I tell people I've eaten guinea pig and loved it I get looks of horror. Aaron said he has been to Ecuador too and enjoyed eating Guinea pig :) Alabama makes us laugh constantly. She sais Israeli men are so hot she wants to make a calendar. She said "i think it is impossible for Israel to make ugly men! She's not wrong!! mrs. Kim talked to me quite a bit they are Christians and live in France. Mr. Kim works at a nuclear facility- is from Korea so just says he is an engineer at boarder crossings :) Bill, the guy from New Zeland lost his wife unexpectedly 13 years ago. They had always talked about coming and now he is here. He is .... A little mentally impaired... It is sweet to see his reaction to everything here. He is so moved by all of it!
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
day three Banias Springs, Golan Heights, and sermon on the mount
We had breakfast at the Kibbutz which included eggs and pancakes so I was happy. We were supposed to go for a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee first thing but it was really windy and the water was rough so they postponed it. It would have been interesting to see what it was like rough so we could understand the Apostles' fear and why they needed Jesus to calm the sea. But we probably would have all thrown up!
We went to Banias Springs first which feeds into the Jordan river. Yeaster I forgot to mention that we could see a piece of Lebanon from the gardens that we went to. Today we saw Lebanon and Syria! Who would have thout I be this close to those places! We drove by a town the is half in Lebanon and half in Israel. Line right down the middle. Crazy. We saw a lot of barbed wire fence with signs that say "danger-mines" left over from Syria and Lebanon. Our guide Mier says cows get loose and wander around sometimes and blow a mine and they have Israeli hamburger :) it was a depressing ride ther but at the springs there were wonderful ruins. There were pilgrims from south Africa there singing and getting crazy -it was a nice addition to the scene.
We learned that Israel grows a lot of wheat that is perfect for pasta so the export it to Italy. Then they import all the wheat they need to make bread and stuff in from the US. Weird.
Gas is 7 US dollars a gallon here!
We went to the Mount of Beatitudes where the sermon on the mount was given. It was one of the most gorgeous places on Earth. So beautiful with a great view of the Sea of Galilee. An impressive church was built at the site by an Italian designer who did a lot of churches in Israel. It was funded by Muselini. Weird fact.
Then we went to Tabgha -the place where the miracle of the fishes and loaves took place. The Church of the Multiplication is there. There is an alter over the supposed rock where he laid the food. Marvelous tile mosaics that depict it are still there.
We went to Capernaum and visited the remains of a second century synagogue. At a lot of there sites they keep the original foundation which can be one to three THOUSAND years old and then they put some kind of marking to show where the original part ends and reconstruct it higher so you can see what the structure might have looked like. There is a church over the place where peter's house was.
We went to this place right by the sea and had Shwarma for lunch. Then we got in this boat and went on the Sea of Galilee. The weather has been perfect! It was probably in the 70s today and blue skies. Pretty white birds flew alongside the boat. They turned on music and played Chris Tomlin songs ( and some others) seriously got to sing along to "how great is our God" on the sea of Galilee!!
We had a new couple join us today from Hong Kong -they are adorable and always holding hands. The terra Haute family still remains the most sane and I like to hang out with them. Alabama is late getting to the bus every time! She is entertaining though. In her thick accent she said "I think spiders are the most misunderstood creatures on Earth" ok. California lady is loud and argumentative and her husband is pompous. You can get Christian or Jewish focused tours. Our is lead by a Jewish archeaologist so he knows his stuff for both Jews and Chriatians. Well somehow California man and Alabama were talking about beliefs and the man said he didn't believe in any god - he was atheist. And Alabama in her great accent said "it isn't possible to be an Atheist. Every one believes in a god. Sometimes it is just themselves. That's why "I"is in the middle of sin!
We learned that the sand along the Mediteranian sea in Israel is sand from the Nile. Pretty cool.
It was a great day. The sea of Galilee was amazing. The mount of beatitudes and the site of the loaves and fishes were amazing. new Zeland guy said that today was a day he'd cherish for the rest of his life. We agree.
We went to Banias Springs first which feeds into the Jordan river. Yeaster I forgot to mention that we could see a piece of Lebanon from the gardens that we went to. Today we saw Lebanon and Syria! Who would have thout I be this close to those places! We drove by a town the is half in Lebanon and half in Israel. Line right down the middle. Crazy. We saw a lot of barbed wire fence with signs that say "danger-mines" left over from Syria and Lebanon. Our guide Mier says cows get loose and wander around sometimes and blow a mine and they have Israeli hamburger :) it was a depressing ride ther but at the springs there were wonderful ruins. There were pilgrims from south Africa there singing and getting crazy -it was a nice addition to the scene.
We learned that Israel grows a lot of wheat that is perfect for pasta so the export it to Italy. Then they import all the wheat they need to make bread and stuff in from the US. Weird.
Gas is 7 US dollars a gallon here!
We went to the Mount of Beatitudes where the sermon on the mount was given. It was one of the most gorgeous places on Earth. So beautiful with a great view of the Sea of Galilee. An impressive church was built at the site by an Italian designer who did a lot of churches in Israel. It was funded by Muselini. Weird fact.
Then we went to Tabgha -the place where the miracle of the fishes and loaves took place. The Church of the Multiplication is there. There is an alter over the supposed rock where he laid the food. Marvelous tile mosaics that depict it are still there.
We went to Capernaum and visited the remains of a second century synagogue. At a lot of there sites they keep the original foundation which can be one to three THOUSAND years old and then they put some kind of marking to show where the original part ends and reconstruct it higher so you can see what the structure might have looked like. There is a church over the place where peter's house was.
We went to this place right by the sea and had Shwarma for lunch. Then we got in this boat and went on the Sea of Galilee. The weather has been perfect! It was probably in the 70s today and blue skies. Pretty white birds flew alongside the boat. They turned on music and played Chris Tomlin songs ( and some others) seriously got to sing along to "how great is our God" on the sea of Galilee!!
We had a new couple join us today from Hong Kong -they are adorable and always holding hands. The terra Haute family still remains the most sane and I like to hang out with them. Alabama is late getting to the bus every time! She is entertaining though. In her thick accent she said "I think spiders are the most misunderstood creatures on Earth" ok. California lady is loud and argumentative and her husband is pompous. You can get Christian or Jewish focused tours. Our is lead by a Jewish archeaologist so he knows his stuff for both Jews and Chriatians. Well somehow California man and Alabama were talking about beliefs and the man said he didn't believe in any god - he was atheist. And Alabama in her great accent said "it isn't possible to be an Atheist. Every one believes in a god. Sometimes it is just themselves. That's why "I"is in the middle of sin!
We learned that the sand along the Mediteranian sea in Israel is sand from the Nile. Pretty cool.
It was a great day. The sea of Galilee was amazing. The mount of beatitudes and the site of the loaves and fishes were amazing. new Zeland guy said that today was a day he'd cherish for the rest of his life. We agree.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Israel day two-Caesarea, Megiddo, Haifa, and Acre
Day two
I had breakfast at the hotel with gretchen. Oh my. We were talking yesterday about craving eggs, they had boiled eggs and scrambled eggs! They had cereal with real milk. Cheese and bread and fruit. And mediteranian food like olives and figs and dates and Greek salad. Yum. The only thing they had that I eat regularly in India is dahi-which is yogurt.
There are 15 people on our tour.
A South Korean couple who live in the south of France right now- didn't get chance to talk to them today.
A couple from north of Toronto. The man seems ok. Not the woman :)
A couple from California-totally WT (David and Andrea)
A couple and their son ( in his 20s) from Terra Haute IN. We like them. (bill,Joyce and Aaron)
A man from New Zeland I didn't get to talk to
A man from Washington state who we like. (Tom)
A woman from Alabama who currently teaches in Japan. She has a great accent and says great things. I have a feeling many of my stories will be from her. We'll call her Bama. (Betty Ann)
And Ann who sat with me and we hit it off. She is Austrailian and is on a long trip -2weeks in New Zeland, 10 days in Istanbul, a week in Jordan, and now 2weeks in Israel.
We drove along the coast to Caesarea. We saw the Ampitheater, the Roman Theater, aquaduct, and other excavated ruins. It was so beautiful. The Mediteranian sea is so blue!
As we drove he would tell us about the region and history. In 1948 when the war started the Palistanian Muslims were told to take a vacation somewhere until the fighting stopped. When a cease fire was called no one allowed to cross the borders either way so all those people were stranded and became permanent fixtures in refugee camps in Egypt, Syria, Lebanon etc. The Muslims that didn't run away got to stay and become Israeli citizens. They are exempt from the mandatory military service all Israelis must do. Mostly because any fighting would be with Muslim nations and they'd have to fight relatives so they can't be trusted.
We saw the site where Elijah prayed and his sacrifice was consumed by fire while all the other people were praying to Baal and were ignored.
We had a lunch of falafels.
The coolest thing today was Megiddo. It was a very important place because it linked the three continents together It is also supposed to be the site of Armageddon-the final battle. What struck me about the valley of Armageddon is that it looks like it is ready for the battle. It is a clear, flat field- no buildings or other structures.
We went to Haifa and saw the Persian gardens at the Bahai shrine. The gardens were gorgeous! we then drove to Acre and saw a mosque and some typical alleyways with shops.
The weather is nice. In the 60s, sunny and windy. I have to wear a jacket! The roads are nice and smooth. Most road signs are in Hebrew, Arabic, and English.
We are all staying in the same Kibbutz- kibbutz Lavi. It is a lot bigger than I expected. we had a buffet style dinner that was decent.
Before we left, I looked up the electricity situation and it seemed Israel has same plugS India does. Well anything I bought in India that only has two prongs-my hair dryer and camera work fine. My cell phone which has three prong does not fit in the three prongs here. Neither does my powerstrip that works in India and should work here! I got an adapter I got in The gift shop that works for American plus like my I-pad, but not my phone so I won' t have an alarm clock once the battery dies!
I had breakfast at the hotel with gretchen. Oh my. We were talking yesterday about craving eggs, they had boiled eggs and scrambled eggs! They had cereal with real milk. Cheese and bread and fruit. And mediteranian food like olives and figs and dates and Greek salad. Yum. The only thing they had that I eat regularly in India is dahi-which is yogurt.
There are 15 people on our tour.
A South Korean couple who live in the south of France right now- didn't get chance to talk to them today.
A couple from north of Toronto. The man seems ok. Not the woman :)
A couple from California-totally WT (David and Andrea)
A couple and their son ( in his 20s) from Terra Haute IN. We like them. (bill,Joyce and Aaron)
A man from New Zeland I didn't get to talk to
A man from Washington state who we like. (Tom)
A woman from Alabama who currently teaches in Japan. She has a great accent and says great things. I have a feeling many of my stories will be from her. We'll call her Bama. (Betty Ann)
And Ann who sat with me and we hit it off. She is Austrailian and is on a long trip -2weeks in New Zeland, 10 days in Istanbul, a week in Jordan, and now 2weeks in Israel.
We drove along the coast to Caesarea. We saw the Ampitheater, the Roman Theater, aquaduct, and other excavated ruins. It was so beautiful. The Mediteranian sea is so blue!
As we drove he would tell us about the region and history. In 1948 when the war started the Palistanian Muslims were told to take a vacation somewhere until the fighting stopped. When a cease fire was called no one allowed to cross the borders either way so all those people were stranded and became permanent fixtures in refugee camps in Egypt, Syria, Lebanon etc. The Muslims that didn't run away got to stay and become Israeli citizens. They are exempt from the mandatory military service all Israelis must do. Mostly because any fighting would be with Muslim nations and they'd have to fight relatives so they can't be trusted.
We saw the site where Elijah prayed and his sacrifice was consumed by fire while all the other people were praying to Baal and were ignored.
We had a lunch of falafels.
The coolest thing today was Megiddo. It was a very important place because it linked the three continents together It is also supposed to be the site of Armageddon-the final battle. What struck me about the valley of Armageddon is that it looks like it is ready for the battle. It is a clear, flat field- no buildings or other structures.
We went to Haifa and saw the Persian gardens at the Bahai shrine. The gardens were gorgeous! we then drove to Acre and saw a mosque and some typical alleyways with shops.
The weather is nice. In the 60s, sunny and windy. I have to wear a jacket! The roads are nice and smooth. Most road signs are in Hebrew, Arabic, and English.
We are all staying in the same Kibbutz- kibbutz Lavi. It is a lot bigger than I expected. we had a buffet style dinner that was decent.
Before we left, I looked up the electricity situation and it seemed Israel has same plugS India does. Well anything I bought in India that only has two prongs-my hair dryer and camera work fine. My cell phone which has three prong does not fit in the three prongs here. Neither does my powerstrip that works in India and should work here! I got an adapter I got in The gift shop that works for American plus like my I-pad, but not my phone so I won' t have an alarm clock once the battery dies!
Day one Israel trip
Day one -flying to Tel Aviv
I try to make these things somewhat interesting but sometimes it just turns out like an online journal -which is what it is i guess :) we had a half day of school on Friday Dec 16th. I went to the doctor to show him the test results I got done on Monday. I went to the Hinduja hospital in Khar which is a section of Mumbai near Bandra where I live. khar is very different than Bandra! Dirtier, lots of oxen everywhere :) but they have a beautiful, brand new hospital there. Much more western looking than The one I went to on Monday h -it was filled to the gills with pushy Indian people! I like this doctor -he doesn't push meds. Quite a few of my lab numbers where abnormal but they weren't so severe that he's going to load me with meds. My sjogrens markers were high - which is causing severe dry eyes and mouth. My eyes feel like sandpaper and I wake up Choking because my mouth is so dry. Sjogrens can be really awful where it damages the eyes etc. Mine isn't that bad - i'm going back in 6weeks for him to monitor it.
On Saturday I went running for 3 miles which is so sad considering my half marathon is in ONE month and I have NOT trained for it :( I went home and packed then went for my body combat class! I love this class! It is mixed martial arts with loud upbeat American music. I also take body balance class which is tai chi, yoga and pilates. I am not very good at that one! Years of running have left me inflexible! But I give in my best!
I went to one of my favorite restaurants - Eat Around the Corner - to meet my friend Andrea. Then I ventured down to the craziness of Hill road to peruse the Christmas stalls. I'm really glad I decided to give myself a day in Mumbai before leaving on vacation -it would have been too stressful to leave the day school got out.
I went to bed around 8:30 because a school driver was going to pick me up at 2:20 am to take me to the airport. At 2:15 Darshan was out waiting for me -he's the driver that drives my morning bus. It's been a little cooler lately - like 80s in the mornings and Darshan was wearing a sweater!! :) We picked up Gretchen and off we went. Gretchen is a student support teacher and is in her second year here. It is always amazing how busy the airport is at 3am. The good thing about India is all the stores And food places are open in the airport in the middle of the night. I had a sandwich at 4 am. Bad thing about Indian airports? People pushing shoving all the time. Augh! It drives me insane! We are all boarding a plane To sit on for 7 hours - why are you pushing and shoving???!?? They also push and shove getting off a plane, in stores, on streets. I guess it is learned behavior from living in crowded spaces.
I watched 3 movies on the plane. One was with Steve Carrel and Ryan Gosling -Crazy Stupid Love I think. Funny. The I watched Contagion. Yikes! A little too realistic especially with there are Asian people on the plane with masks on! The I watched Black Swan and that was just disturbing.
We flew Turkish air to Istanbul. The airport in Istanbul was really nice. We walked through the shops and I got some Turkish delight. And bought some Popeyes chicken nuggets that were 9 Usd! This guy asked if I spoke English!! Then asked if I'd see if his wife was in the toilet. I've never been asked if I speak English! It is always assumed I do.
We were placed in the very last row of the next plane. One thing I do like about Indian airlines-they board from the front and back so it is quicker!
We were told so many horror stories about immigration here. I went up to the counter she asked how long I was staying, complied with my request to not have an Israeli stamp in my passport and I was literally through in 45seconds! People warned me not to bring my laptop. Now I wish I would have-they didn't even ask if I had one. Let's hope the land border crossings go as smoothly :)
Our hotel was the Leonardo Basel in Tel Aviv right next to the the Mediteranian Sea. It was an adorable hotel with a comfortable bed and hot water. We went for a walk by the sea and through the town. Everything and everyone is so nice. Families out on the streets, cute little cafes every block. Wonderful fruit stands where we got a great smoothy. Too bad we only get tonight here. I would like to explore more!
I try to make these things somewhat interesting but sometimes it just turns out like an online journal -which is what it is i guess :) we had a half day of school on Friday Dec 16th. I went to the doctor to show him the test results I got done on Monday. I went to the Hinduja hospital in Khar which is a section of Mumbai near Bandra where I live. khar is very different than Bandra! Dirtier, lots of oxen everywhere :) but they have a beautiful, brand new hospital there. Much more western looking than The one I went to on Monday h -it was filled to the gills with pushy Indian people! I like this doctor -he doesn't push meds. Quite a few of my lab numbers where abnormal but they weren't so severe that he's going to load me with meds. My sjogrens markers were high - which is causing severe dry eyes and mouth. My eyes feel like sandpaper and I wake up Choking because my mouth is so dry. Sjogrens can be really awful where it damages the eyes etc. Mine isn't that bad - i'm going back in 6weeks for him to monitor it.
On Saturday I went running for 3 miles which is so sad considering my half marathon is in ONE month and I have NOT trained for it :( I went home and packed then went for my body combat class! I love this class! It is mixed martial arts with loud upbeat American music. I also take body balance class which is tai chi, yoga and pilates. I am not very good at that one! Years of running have left me inflexible! But I give in my best!
I went to one of my favorite restaurants - Eat Around the Corner - to meet my friend Andrea. Then I ventured down to the craziness of Hill road to peruse the Christmas stalls. I'm really glad I decided to give myself a day in Mumbai before leaving on vacation -it would have been too stressful to leave the day school got out.
I went to bed around 8:30 because a school driver was going to pick me up at 2:20 am to take me to the airport. At 2:15 Darshan was out waiting for me -he's the driver that drives my morning bus. It's been a little cooler lately - like 80s in the mornings and Darshan was wearing a sweater!! :) We picked up Gretchen and off we went. Gretchen is a student support teacher and is in her second year here. It is always amazing how busy the airport is at 3am. The good thing about India is all the stores And food places are open in the airport in the middle of the night. I had a sandwich at 4 am. Bad thing about Indian airports? People pushing shoving all the time. Augh! It drives me insane! We are all boarding a plane To sit on for 7 hours - why are you pushing and shoving???!?? They also push and shove getting off a plane, in stores, on streets. I guess it is learned behavior from living in crowded spaces.
I watched 3 movies on the plane. One was with Steve Carrel and Ryan Gosling -Crazy Stupid Love I think. Funny. The I watched Contagion. Yikes! A little too realistic especially with there are Asian people on the plane with masks on! The I watched Black Swan and that was just disturbing.
We flew Turkish air to Istanbul. The airport in Istanbul was really nice. We walked through the shops and I got some Turkish delight. And bought some Popeyes chicken nuggets that were 9 Usd! This guy asked if I spoke English!! Then asked if I'd see if his wife was in the toilet. I've never been asked if I speak English! It is always assumed I do.
We were placed in the very last row of the next plane. One thing I do like about Indian airlines-they board from the front and back so it is quicker!
We were told so many horror stories about immigration here. I went up to the counter she asked how long I was staying, complied with my request to not have an Israeli stamp in my passport and I was literally through in 45seconds! People warned me not to bring my laptop. Now I wish I would have-they didn't even ask if I had one. Let's hope the land border crossings go as smoothly :)
Our hotel was the Leonardo Basel in Tel Aviv right next to the the Mediteranian Sea. It was an adorable hotel with a comfortable bed and hot water. We went for a walk by the sea and through the town. Everything and everyone is so nice. Families out on the streets, cute little cafes every block. Wonderful fruit stands where we got a great smoothy. Too bad we only get tonight here. I would like to explore more!
Monday, December 12, 2011
Hospital Adventure
I made an appointment over a month ago to see a Rheumatolagist and today was the first available appointment they had. The Indian hospital system is tough to navigate so I didn't really know how this would go. Carol, who is a colleague that has lived in India over 20 years agreed to go with me. She ordered a Cool Cab to pick us up at the school and she speaks Hindi so that was helpful. The driver took us to Hinduja Hospital where I had an appointment with Dr. Balakrishnan.
When we showed up at the hospital we were told he was at a nearby clinic. It was crowded and crazy. We found the doctor's office and went in. It was a teeny tiny exam room with just a bed and a sink and little consultation room. He came in and asked if I had a folder. Dozens of hospital staff had passed us/seen us and no one said I needed to do that. We find the counter to do that and fill out the papers. I had to pay 900 rs to be seen. (not quite $20USD) The doctor spoke perfect English and seemed to know his stuff. He took notes and said he doesn't think my Lupus is too active but ordered tests so we could see what we are dealing with. I could get them all done right there. So we went down to the first floor and stood in line to pay for the tests. Then we went to Radiology and waited to be called for the chest xray. Got the chest xray. went to the ground floor and waited for urine test and blood draw. They took SIX vials of blood!!
We asked the cab driver to wait for us - we left our stuff in the car with him - our school computers etc! We would never do that in the States! Carol got a cab to take her home and I went in the cool cab where he dropped me off at my door - the school van doesn't even do that!
The hospitals are not as clean or pretty as the ones in the US - they are very crowded and they make you deal with three times the paperwork as you would in the US. BUT I got to see the doctor and get 13 tests run for about $150. and the cab for 2.5 hours?? $12. yep 12. The results should be in by Thursday. Carol is going to have her diver pick them up Friday morning and bring them to school so I can take them with me to another hospital to meet with the same doctor about the results.
Hopefully the results are good, but he can do something to make me feel better!
This is our last week of school before Christmas. I had my sixth graders the last two blocks today and they were actually really good! They are doing a CamStudio project where they record their voice and their actions on the computer - making their own Khan academy video. I made one in class as an example and the kids were gracious enough to clap when I got done - they know my technology skills are LOW. They were so proud of me!
When we showed up at the hospital we were told he was at a nearby clinic. It was crowded and crazy. We found the doctor's office and went in. It was a teeny tiny exam room with just a bed and a sink and little consultation room. He came in and asked if I had a folder. Dozens of hospital staff had passed us/seen us and no one said I needed to do that. We find the counter to do that and fill out the papers. I had to pay 900 rs to be seen. (not quite $20USD) The doctor spoke perfect English and seemed to know his stuff. He took notes and said he doesn't think my Lupus is too active but ordered tests so we could see what we are dealing with. I could get them all done right there. So we went down to the first floor and stood in line to pay for the tests. Then we went to Radiology and waited to be called for the chest xray. Got the chest xray. went to the ground floor and waited for urine test and blood draw. They took SIX vials of blood!!
We asked the cab driver to wait for us - we left our stuff in the car with him - our school computers etc! We would never do that in the States! Carol got a cab to take her home and I went in the cool cab where he dropped me off at my door - the school van doesn't even do that!
The hospitals are not as clean or pretty as the ones in the US - they are very crowded and they make you deal with three times the paperwork as you would in the US. BUT I got to see the doctor and get 13 tests run for about $150. and the cab for 2.5 hours?? $12. yep 12. The results should be in by Thursday. Carol is going to have her diver pick them up Friday morning and bring them to school so I can take them with me to another hospital to meet with the same doctor about the results.
Hopefully the results are good, but he can do something to make me feel better!
This is our last week of school before Christmas. I had my sixth graders the last two blocks today and they were actually really good! They are doing a CamStudio project where they record their voice and their actions on the computer - making their own Khan academy video. I made one in class as an example and the kids were gracious enough to clap when I got done - they know my technology skills are LOW. They were so proud of me!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
The perfect song
My sister mentioned yesterday that it has been awhile since I blogged. I've been really busy with school and other things and nothing really spectacular has happened except for day to day stuff. But today was different.
I have an appointment tomorrow with a Rheumatologist. I started having Lupus activity awhile back and found a hospital in Mumbai that has a Lupus clinic :) I made the appointment over a month ago but tomorrow was the earliest they could get me in. I've been pulling out my medical files and trying to get the important stuff ready for the doctor. Looking through those papers reminded me of how sick I was. Lab reports for blood work where the normal was 1-99 and mine was at 564.
When I was at my sickest, I was hospitalized several times for days or sometimes over a week at a time. When I wasn't in the hospital I was going to dozens of doctor's appointments. When I would get bad news or no news (which in my mind was bad news because they couldn't help me) I would get in my car and cry all the way home and put a Matt Redman CD in and listen to one song over and over. I had to do a series of tests in the nuclear medicine department (gallium scans) they would shoot me up with this radioactive isotope (I was pretty sure I would start glowing in the dark) and I'd lay in this scanner and I would play this song over and over.
Today I was reminded that God knows what is going on in all our lives all the time. No one at my church knows I have an appointment tomorrow. No one knows what this song means to me. and this is what they played as the closing song at church today :) The first two stanzas is what I would play on a continuous loop. God is in control whether we are going through good times or bad. He is still soveriegn whether I am sick or well. and He should be praised in all circumstances because I know He is working all things out for the Glory of His Name. I don't need to worry about how long I'll be sick or how sick I'll be. I will either get better or I will go Home to Him. Either way I win. and eventually I will get a new body in Heaven :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qp11X6LKYY
Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be your name
Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name
Every blessing you pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name
Every blessing you pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord Blessed be your name
I have an appointment tomorrow with a Rheumatologist. I started having Lupus activity awhile back and found a hospital in Mumbai that has a Lupus clinic :) I made the appointment over a month ago but tomorrow was the earliest they could get me in. I've been pulling out my medical files and trying to get the important stuff ready for the doctor. Looking through those papers reminded me of how sick I was. Lab reports for blood work where the normal was 1-99 and mine was at 564.
When I was at my sickest, I was hospitalized several times for days or sometimes over a week at a time. When I wasn't in the hospital I was going to dozens of doctor's appointments. When I would get bad news or no news (which in my mind was bad news because they couldn't help me) I would get in my car and cry all the way home and put a Matt Redman CD in and listen to one song over and over. I had to do a series of tests in the nuclear medicine department (gallium scans) they would shoot me up with this radioactive isotope (I was pretty sure I would start glowing in the dark) and I'd lay in this scanner and I would play this song over and over.
Today I was reminded that God knows what is going on in all our lives all the time. No one at my church knows I have an appointment tomorrow. No one knows what this song means to me. and this is what they played as the closing song at church today :) The first two stanzas is what I would play on a continuous loop. God is in control whether we are going through good times or bad. He is still soveriegn whether I am sick or well. and He should be praised in all circumstances because I know He is working all things out for the Glory of His Name. I don't need to worry about how long I'll be sick or how sick I'll be. I will either get better or I will go Home to Him. Either way I win. and eventually I will get a new body in Heaven :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qp11X6LKYY
Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be your name
Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name
Every blessing you pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name
Every blessing you pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord Blessed be your name
Sunday, November 20, 2011
still much to be thankful for!
Some of you that have kept up with my facebook posts know I was horribly ill this week, but there is still much to be thankful for!!
- I am thankful my school is computer based so I could chat with my kids and answer questions if needed.
- My Lesson plans were all electronic too - no need for printed copies - and kids could turn stuff into me
electronically.
- I have a great teaching partner and he told the school I'd be absent and helped some of my low babies in
one of my classes
- the doctor at school sent a prescription home with a neighbor and she had her maid call it in and have
it delivered.
- at one point I had lost 7 pounds! now it is more like 5, but still :)
- I am thankful Indians deliver anything!
- I am thankful for friends that called to check on me.
- Thankful for my maid who cooked me food and took care of me.
- thankful I work for a school that allows us to leave if we aren't teaching. My last class tomorrow ends
at 1:30 so I can come home. I could also go in late if needed.
- thankful I have some "babysitters" who went with me places to make sure I didn't pass out :)
- thankful this is a short week also!!
I was expecting this week to be fairly easy - we had Professional Development on Monday so only 4 days with the kids :)
Wednesday was a rough day because I received several negative parent emails. I was bummed, but a friend reminded me of all the parents who do appreciate me and think I am doing the best for my kids. It was good to hear. I worked really hard on math stuff Wednesday night and was planning to be super teacher on Thursday and Friday :)
I woke up Thursday and went for a walk at 5:20 am like normal. I started to feel queasy half way through. By the time I got to my flat I ran to the bathroom and was so sick. For two hours I was violently ill- I couldn't even get to my computer to send lesson plans etc. I was texting a co-worker two words at a time in between getting sick trying to get things settled for being absent.
Jessie is my maid - I haven't laid eyes on her since the day I hired her (she leaves at three every day to work at another house). She came in to find me curled up on the bathroom floor :) She got me into bed, got me a puke bucket, cleaned up my bathroom and made me tea. Have I mentioned she is a saint???? I spent all day Thursday and Friday sick as a dog! I couldn't stay awake for more than an hour at a time. Just the thought of taking a sip of water made me gag. By Thursday night I was so dehydrated the doctor said if I didn't get some fluids in the next few hours I'd have to go to the hospital. Spending the night in an Indian hospital did not sound like fun!! so I asked for anti - nausea meds. My friend Madeline called a chemist and had the meds delivered. I took one and threw up less than a minute later!!! That was the last time I threw up so I guess it worked - sort of....
I spent Saturday sleeping - literally could not stay awake. Would get up to eat a cracker then have to take a nap!!! I asked Molly and Amanda to walk with me to Pali to get some yogurt so I could get out of the house for a few minutes. Those 15 minutes wore me out!!!!
Sunday was a little better - I could stay awake for a couple hours at a time - long enough to watch some Christmas movies :) My math teaching partner and i needed to do some school work and I thought this would be a good test run to see if I would be strong enough to go to school Monday. I go to school every day, you think it wouldn't be a big deal but today it was!
- I had to walk down the stairs to meet my coworker.
- We had to stand still a few minutes to find an empty rickshaw - i thought I was going to faint.
- Once we got to school I had to walk up three flights of stairs to my class room
- He did all the lifting and moving around. I just sat in a chair and did inventory and rearranged
bookshelves. I had to rest every 15 mintues or so. It was exhausting! I managed to walk
down the hallway to the bathroom without collapsing. but it was close so I decided it was
time to go home.
- this involved the walk down the three flights of stairs.
- ricks don't come up to the school so we had to walk a few blocks to a busy street
- the rickshaw ride was a little sketchy so I was a little queasy
- got home and had to walk up four floors to my flat.
Now I do all this without blinking every day, but today - it was a stretch. I was exhausted and nauseated.
but I did it!! and am confident that I can teach two classes tomorrow!
I am super hopeful I will be able to enjoy thanksgiving dinner Wednesday night!!
- I am thankful my school is computer based so I could chat with my kids and answer questions if needed.
- My Lesson plans were all electronic too - no need for printed copies - and kids could turn stuff into me
electronically.
- I have a great teaching partner and he told the school I'd be absent and helped some of my low babies in
one of my classes
- the doctor at school sent a prescription home with a neighbor and she had her maid call it in and have
it delivered.
- at one point I had lost 7 pounds! now it is more like 5, but still :)
- I am thankful Indians deliver anything!
- I am thankful for friends that called to check on me.
- Thankful for my maid who cooked me food and took care of me.
- thankful I work for a school that allows us to leave if we aren't teaching. My last class tomorrow ends
at 1:30 so I can come home. I could also go in late if needed.
- thankful I have some "babysitters" who went with me places to make sure I didn't pass out :)
- thankful this is a short week also!!
I was expecting this week to be fairly easy - we had Professional Development on Monday so only 4 days with the kids :)
Wednesday was a rough day because I received several negative parent emails. I was bummed, but a friend reminded me of all the parents who do appreciate me and think I am doing the best for my kids. It was good to hear. I worked really hard on math stuff Wednesday night and was planning to be super teacher on Thursday and Friday :)
I woke up Thursday and went for a walk at 5:20 am like normal. I started to feel queasy half way through. By the time I got to my flat I ran to the bathroom and was so sick. For two hours I was violently ill- I couldn't even get to my computer to send lesson plans etc. I was texting a co-worker two words at a time in between getting sick trying to get things settled for being absent.
Jessie is my maid - I haven't laid eyes on her since the day I hired her (she leaves at three every day to work at another house). She came in to find me curled up on the bathroom floor :) She got me into bed, got me a puke bucket, cleaned up my bathroom and made me tea. Have I mentioned she is a saint???? I spent all day Thursday and Friday sick as a dog! I couldn't stay awake for more than an hour at a time. Just the thought of taking a sip of water made me gag. By Thursday night I was so dehydrated the doctor said if I didn't get some fluids in the next few hours I'd have to go to the hospital. Spending the night in an Indian hospital did not sound like fun!! so I asked for anti - nausea meds. My friend Madeline called a chemist and had the meds delivered. I took one and threw up less than a minute later!!! That was the last time I threw up so I guess it worked - sort of....
I spent Saturday sleeping - literally could not stay awake. Would get up to eat a cracker then have to take a nap!!! I asked Molly and Amanda to walk with me to Pali to get some yogurt so I could get out of the house for a few minutes. Those 15 minutes wore me out!!!!
Sunday was a little better - I could stay awake for a couple hours at a time - long enough to watch some Christmas movies :) My math teaching partner and i needed to do some school work and I thought this would be a good test run to see if I would be strong enough to go to school Monday. I go to school every day, you think it wouldn't be a big deal but today it was!
- I had to walk down the stairs to meet my coworker.
- We had to stand still a few minutes to find an empty rickshaw - i thought I was going to faint.
- Once we got to school I had to walk up three flights of stairs to my class room
- He did all the lifting and moving around. I just sat in a chair and did inventory and rearranged
bookshelves. I had to rest every 15 mintues or so. It was exhausting! I managed to walk
down the hallway to the bathroom without collapsing. but it was close so I decided it was
time to go home.
- this involved the walk down the three flights of stairs.
- ricks don't come up to the school so we had to walk a few blocks to a busy street
- the rickshaw ride was a little sketchy so I was a little queasy
- got home and had to walk up four floors to my flat.
Now I do all this without blinking every day, but today - it was a stretch. I was exhausted and nauseated.
but I did it!! and am confident that I can teach two classes tomorrow!
I am super hopeful I will be able to enjoy thanksgiving dinner Wednesday night!!
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Slums are my Favorite Part of Mumai
Running has been a really big challenge here and I am in no way going to be properly trained for the Mumbai marathon in January. Since running the actual mileage I am supposed to is not feasible, the best plan I can come up with is to walk alot and on Saturdays I walk 3-4 hours continuously. That's how long I will have to be on my feet for the race so I am hoping that "training" will help some.
So on Saturdays I usually walk to Juhu beach which takes me an hour or so to get there, then I walk/run on the beach and walk home. Today's goal was to explore alternate/ shorter ways to Juhu Beach. that did not happen. On my exploration, I fell in my favorite experiences here in Mumbai. I wandered into a slum. and this one was FANTASTIC. It was one of the most disgusting ones I've ever been in but the people were great. Most people are shocked to find out my favorite parts of Mumbai are the slums. Most people avoid the slums :) Not me. I seek them out. There is a strategy to getting the best experience though.
When I start into a slum I get stared at. A LOT. They don't see white people in there often. If I continue and people are gawking a lot, usually a man that speaks some English will come up to me and ask where I'm going and why I'm there. They think I'm lost and are trying to help the poor, scared white girl out of the slums. :) I thank them and smile and explain I am there on purpose. Which usually leads to more staring. So... if I want to be welcomed I usually start showing interest in their livestock. Today it was a goat community. They had a lot of goats and they all wanted to show me which one was theirs. They immediately asked if I had a camera because they wanted picutres of them with their goats. I did not have my camera with me :( They didn't believe me - all white people have cameras :) They asked about my mobile - which they were shocked to find out does not take pictures!! My friend Andrea says that "If Bobbi Jo gets separated from the group, look for a large gathering of children - you'll find her there" so true. You gotta hook the kids first. If the adults see that the kids like you and that you'll invest time in their kids, they will warm up to you. There were probably 20-25 kids gathered around me all trying to show me their goat, tell me out their goat, tell me how they fight their goat and who won the latest goat fight :) They were very proud that they went to school and know English. I high fived all the kids who said they liked Math. :) They told me all their ages and says a man standing nearby was 100 ( He was probably in his late 30s) so they all laughed and I said he looked pretty good for being 100. That's when a bunch more adults joined the group and became for interested. I talked with them for a long time and eventually the adults told the kids to let me go. The "road" was a narrow pathway that seemed to end so I asked where the road is and how i get to Juhu. The path went behind a building and became far less than a path. I followed and ran into a couple of other kids who showed me where to go - the older kid said "watch out, very dangerous" the "path" turned into nothing and you had to walk sideways on these rocks. He proudly tells me has a goat and asks if I want to see it. Of course I want to see it!! :) so he leads me to another group of people.
They also want to introduce me to all their goats and tell me about the latest goat fight. The have a goat there that has his horns all decorated and they have me pet him. Some holiday is Monday and they invite me to join them for their festival. But I have to teach :( They also want a picture of their goats, I told them I'd come back next Saturday. They guy said that would be too late. Apparently this goat is part of the ceremony and will be dinner :) ha! I talk to that group for awhile. The kids are also very proud of their english speaking schools and told me their favorite subjects. I told them the words I knew in Hindi and they were appreciative. maybe I will bring my flashcards down there and let them help me with my Hindi. At some point in the conversation the goat totally butts me in the crotch!! They said that was his invitation to fight me. Ha! bet none of you fought a goat this morning!!!! ha!! They asked me if we had goats wandering around in America. Nope. So this kids asks about chickens, dogs, cows and when I say no to all of them he asks "not even buffalo" nope. especiallly not buffalo!!! Animals don't wander freely in america kiddo - that is why it doesn't permanently smell like feces there!!!!
I think I will go back tomorrow to take pictures before the goats meet their maker :) maybe I'll play some cricket and fight another goat too :)
Great things about the slums:
People are much more likely to talk to you and explain things (once you hook em)
They are very proud of their education and whatever they do for their livlihood
People are usually a lot nicer than in Banda - the wealthy part I live in
no begging - no one ever asks me for money
no cars or honking - generally not big enough paths for that
You realize that happiness is not dependent upon your income or social status - I meet some of the
funniest, happiest people in the slums.
So on Saturdays I usually walk to Juhu beach which takes me an hour or so to get there, then I walk/run on the beach and walk home. Today's goal was to explore alternate/ shorter ways to Juhu Beach. that did not happen. On my exploration, I fell in my favorite experiences here in Mumbai. I wandered into a slum. and this one was FANTASTIC. It was one of the most disgusting ones I've ever been in but the people were great. Most people are shocked to find out my favorite parts of Mumbai are the slums. Most people avoid the slums :) Not me. I seek them out. There is a strategy to getting the best experience though.
When I start into a slum I get stared at. A LOT. They don't see white people in there often. If I continue and people are gawking a lot, usually a man that speaks some English will come up to me and ask where I'm going and why I'm there. They think I'm lost and are trying to help the poor, scared white girl out of the slums. :) I thank them and smile and explain I am there on purpose. Which usually leads to more staring. So... if I want to be welcomed I usually start showing interest in their livestock. Today it was a goat community. They had a lot of goats and they all wanted to show me which one was theirs. They immediately asked if I had a camera because they wanted picutres of them with their goats. I did not have my camera with me :( They didn't believe me - all white people have cameras :) They asked about my mobile - which they were shocked to find out does not take pictures!! My friend Andrea says that "If Bobbi Jo gets separated from the group, look for a large gathering of children - you'll find her there" so true. You gotta hook the kids first. If the adults see that the kids like you and that you'll invest time in their kids, they will warm up to you. There were probably 20-25 kids gathered around me all trying to show me their goat, tell me out their goat, tell me how they fight their goat and who won the latest goat fight :) They were very proud that they went to school and know English. I high fived all the kids who said they liked Math. :) They told me all their ages and says a man standing nearby was 100 ( He was probably in his late 30s) so they all laughed and I said he looked pretty good for being 100. That's when a bunch more adults joined the group and became for interested. I talked with them for a long time and eventually the adults told the kids to let me go. The "road" was a narrow pathway that seemed to end so I asked where the road is and how i get to Juhu. The path went behind a building and became far less than a path. I followed and ran into a couple of other kids who showed me where to go - the older kid said "watch out, very dangerous" the "path" turned into nothing and you had to walk sideways on these rocks. He proudly tells me has a goat and asks if I want to see it. Of course I want to see it!! :) so he leads me to another group of people.
They also want to introduce me to all their goats and tell me about the latest goat fight. The have a goat there that has his horns all decorated and they have me pet him. Some holiday is Monday and they invite me to join them for their festival. But I have to teach :( They also want a picture of their goats, I told them I'd come back next Saturday. They guy said that would be too late. Apparently this goat is part of the ceremony and will be dinner :) ha! I talk to that group for awhile. The kids are also very proud of their english speaking schools and told me their favorite subjects. I told them the words I knew in Hindi and they were appreciative. maybe I will bring my flashcards down there and let them help me with my Hindi. At some point in the conversation the goat totally butts me in the crotch!! They said that was his invitation to fight me. Ha! bet none of you fought a goat this morning!!!! ha!! They asked me if we had goats wandering around in America. Nope. So this kids asks about chickens, dogs, cows and when I say no to all of them he asks "not even buffalo" nope. especiallly not buffalo!!! Animals don't wander freely in america kiddo - that is why it doesn't permanently smell like feces there!!!!
I think I will go back tomorrow to take pictures before the goats meet their maker :) maybe I'll play some cricket and fight another goat too :)
Great things about the slums:
People are much more likely to talk to you and explain things (once you hook em)
They are very proud of their education and whatever they do for their livlihood
People are usually a lot nicer than in Banda - the wealthy part I live in
no begging - no one ever asks me for money
no cars or honking - generally not big enough paths for that
You realize that happiness is not dependent upon your income or social status - I meet some of the
funniest, happiest people in the slums.
Friday, October 28, 2011
kerala day 4 and 5
Day 4
At 6:30am Andrea, Zach and I (with some other hotel guests) went on a wake up trek. Our guide was so enthusiastic and was wearing a Chicago marathon shirt a guest had given him. The hike was magnificent. We climbed all the way up a huge hill and took tons of pictures. I really believe these pictures will change people’s minds about India. It really is beautiful in a lot of places. I hope some of you will consider visiting me! Kerala has billboards all over that says “visit God’s own Country” The first time we saw it, I made a joke and said “oh, we’re in Texas” ha! I think if anyone visits Kerala they would believe in creationism. How could the “big bang theory” create this? We really enjoyed the hike! Andrea saw a leech before it actually attached to her so that made her happy that she could prevent it. Zach picked a lovely boquet of wild flowers for Nancy since she didn't hike with us.
We ate breakfast then waited for a jeep. We talked to a German family that was staying at the resort and asked what places they had visited in India. When they mentioned Mumbai we asked how they liked it. You should have seen their faces!!! Ha! The man uttered “it’s.. umm.. interesting”. Andrea told him it was ok if he didn’t like it- we live there and that’s why we are taking our holiday in Kerala. We took another bumpy, crazy ride down the hill and headed off to Thekkady. It takes forever to go even short distances here. We stopped at our driver’s cousin’s house and it was a lot bigger and prettier than I expected. It was off the main street on a quiet road. He invited us in and we all took our shoes off to enter of course and I realize one of my feet has a lot of blood on it. There is no blister or anything and it didn’t hurt but blood was soaked clean through my Teva. I thought maybe a leech that had fed had crawled in there and gotten squished, but there was no sign of leeches in my shoe. Several hours later Zach noticed his foot was bleeding and there was a small hole in his toe. I scraped all the dried blood off to see if I had a hole and it just started bleeding and bleeding. Good news is I am already taking the rabies shot and if it is a parasite maybe I can lose twenty pounds!!
We got to the Periyar Tiger Reserve that our hotel is in at Thekkady and found out that most things were closed. At 3 pm. Communism. We couldn’t go trekking, the boat ride was sold out and we couldn’t wash elephants because of the weather. We were really disappointed because we have to leave tomorrow and won’t get to see much. We are going to try to get the boat ride tomorrow morning. We walked around town and little then Nancy and Zach went back to the hotel to sit on the porch and take in the views. Andrea and I explored little traveled lanes – it is our favorite thing to do. My growling stomach led us on a hunt for food that wasn’t junk and we stumbled upon this man who had a restaurant. There were tables set up basically in his backyard and he cooked whatever we wanted in the house kitchen. He had an 11 year old son who came to talk to us and played his keyboard for us after my omelet and Andrea’s tea and toast. Food and a Show! The family was sooo sweet and the man made a point of telling us his place is mentioned in Lonely Planet J
Our driver knew we were disappointed that everything we wanted to do was closed so I guess he asked around because he called me and said the elephant washing was open from 5-6 so we could still make our massages at 6:30. I started getting a cold yesterday and it is getting worse. I went back to the hotel to rest while they washed elephants. They showed me video when they got back and it looked like so much fun!!! Bummer! I am also missing out on the massage – afraid it might make me sicker.
We went to dinner at a restaurant called Spice World. The food wasn’t that great and the power went off. Communism. We went back to the hotel and blew a fuse trying to put the key in the socket. In India, you have to use your hotel key to turn on the electricity. Then you remove the key from the socket when you leave and the electricity stays off while you are out of the room. The hotel guys came and fixed it lickity split and we went to bed.
The hotel we stayed at was Ranger Wood Nature Castle. I like to stay at hotels with royal names – in Kochi it was Fort Queen and in Aurangabad it was Hotel Winsor Castle J
Day 5
The power went off several times during the night and morning. The driver called at 5:40 and Zach went to go buy tickets for the boat ride in the park. The process to do this was so bizarre. Zach paid for the park entry tickets then we had to take a rickshaw to get to the ticket place for the boat ride. Rickshaws line up as early as 1am to get in line for the park opening! We were lucky to get one near the front. When the park opened everyone took off and we were in a rickshaw race!! India loves their speed bumps and normally ricks come to a complete stop and roll over them to protect their precious money maker, but not here. We were bumped and jarred at we hit speed bumps at top rickshaw speeds. I have never gone that fast in a rickshaw! The driver told us two people would have to get out to run to get to the ticket place. Andrea and I were on the exit side so when he stopped we ran. I thought it would be right there and we were running to get to the front of the line. No! We had to run like half a mile! Andrea tired pretty quickly and stopped running. I slowed down but ran at a steady pace. Indians don’t run much so I passed a lot of them. I ended up third in line for tickets! Proud of myself! But we got there and didn’t see anyone at the counter and they told us we had to go somewhere else so people caught up to us. By the time I got to the right place, Zach was there and we were herded into the fenced in line. Indians are famous for line cutting and pushing to get what they want so government officials here seem to try to contain them and eliminate some of it. You had to fill out these papers with your name and address and where you are from - they want account of everyone that comes. We looked at our tickets and they BUTCHERED our names. I was BobHiJo Staled - the others had some funny names too. The seats were assigned so you couldn’t get a seat by the edge to see anything and you couldn’t stand up, and you had to wear a life jacket even though we were going 2 miles an hour and we couldn’t stand up. We couldn’t complain about communism out loud so we had a code word “tiger state”. There were lots of people from Mumbai on the boat and they weren’t any happier than we were. We all said we should not recommend this park to anyone. We should have stayed an extra day in Munnar and then driven straight to Allepy. Live and Learn.
One good thing did come out of the ride. We met this family from Mumbai – they had the cutest daughters. The wife was a mendhi artist – the person that does the intricate henna art. The husband worked for Shell and was very intelligent, well read, and well travelled. He asked us how Americans felt about Obama and he said he didn’t like Obama – said Obama stood for Originally Born African who Manages Americans. Ha! Their daughters were adorable- one was five and one was eight. They asked us tons of questions and told us stories. The older one made the craziest face when I told her I taught math – she hates math! She did teach me how to count to five in Hindi though JThe little one is totally going to be an actress. I took a picture of her making a tiger face and her sister being an elephant. Since there was zero chance of us seeing real ones on this boat ride. We did see some pretty Kingfishers and some wild boar –but I can see wild boar along the Arabian Sea right by my house.
One good thing did come out of the ride. We met this family from Mumbai – they had the cutest daughters. The wife was a mendhi artist – the person that does the intricate henna art. The husband worked for Shell and was very intelligent, well read, and well travelled. He asked us how Americans felt about Obama and he said he didn’t like Obama – said Obama stood for Originally Born African who Manages Americans. Ha! Their daughters were adorable- one was five and one was eight. They asked us tons of questions and told us stories. The older one made the craziest face when I told her I taught math – she hates math! She did teach me how to count to five in Hindi though JThe little one is totally going to be an actress. I took a picture of her making a tiger face and her sister being an elephant. Since there was zero chance of us seeing real ones on this boat ride. We did see some pretty Kingfishers and some wild boar –but I can see wild boar along the Arabian Sea right by my house.
After the boat ride we walked back down to the car park to meet our driver. It was a much more civilized trip back – it did not involve me running or a rickshaw race. We grabbed some breakfast and got in the car for the very long trip to Alappuzha (Allepy). These winding roads were worse than yesterday I think. In India, drivers just honk when someone is their way and go where they want to even into oncoming traffic. I definitely think a blindfold is necessary for a car trip here, especially if you are just coming for a week or so and are not used to it!
When we got to Alappuzha our driver didn’t know where our houseboat was. He stopped multiple times to ask for directions. It’s hilarious to watch Indian conversations. He rattles off the question and they just grunt and wave their arm and apparently now he knows where to go! We finally found Ben’s tours and got on our houseboat. It is really cute with two bedrooms and a big living area up front. We have a boat driver and a cook who made us rice and fish for lunch. I do not usually eat fish, but this was delicious. We travelled along the backwaters for awhile and stopped at a shack to buy prawns. They were as big as lobsters and blue.
We sat up front enjoying the scenery when it started to pour and we had to put the flaps down. I took a little nap and when I got up we were docked and the sun was setting. I walked along the trail and found kids playing who wanted their picture taken and who wanted to take my picture. Andrea, Zach and Nancy came down the trail and we walked toward music coming from a temple. We found a little village and the people were so nice. They told us “happy Diwali” and let us take tons of pictures. The area reminds me a little of the bayous of Lousianna. Water and land mix here and most of the people grow rice and/or fish. I love the colors here. In the States there are ordinances that say everyone’s house has to look the same and can only be certain colors – here houses are bright pink, orange, blue, lime green and yellow.
We sat up front enjoying the scenery when it started to pour and we had to put the flaps down. I took a little nap and when I got up we were docked and the sun was setting. I walked along the trail and found kids playing who wanted their picture taken and who wanted to take my picture. Andrea, Zach and Nancy came down the trail and we walked toward music coming from a temple. We found a little village and the people were so nice. They told us “happy Diwali” and let us take tons of pictures. The area reminds me a little of the bayous of Lousianna. Water and land mix here and most of the people grow rice and/or fish. I love the colors here. In the States there are ordinances that say everyone’s house has to look the same and can only be certain colors – here houses are bright pink, orange, blue, lime green and yellow.
The cook said he had a surprise for dinner and made us turn out the lights. He brought out their prawns beautifully cooked with a candle centerpiece made out of onion and tomato. Dinner was delicious again. Traveling by houseboat is the way to go. It’s a floating hotel and we can ask them to stop where we want and we can watch the countryside go by. It was cool to see the small boats travelling by candlelight on the pitch black water. We played some trivia and black magic before going to bed. Andrea demanded to know the trick to black magic – I am still trying to figure it out J I checked my phone before bed and I had 10 missed calls! Apparently Sumesh, our driver, was drinking with his buddies and was drunk dialing us! When we talked to him, we tried to teach him what “drunk dialing” meant.
kerala day 3
Day 3
I had a good night’s sleep in the tree house. I took a shower and tried to get warmed up in the hot water, but there wasn’t an actual shower head, just one of the hose things. When I opened my contact solution it popped and hissed. Andrea laughed because I said “oh” - it surprised me. I hadn’t realized we had changed that much in altitude. When Andrea got done with her shower I heard a loud noise, she screamed, then started laughing. Apparently the talcum powder had issues with the altitude too and basically exploded when she opened it- the bottle shot across the room and sprayed powder everywhere.
We had a wonderful breakfast of omelets, toasts and Indian “crepes”. We walked around the resort and Zach found a lizard. I told the group I would approve the lizard to come with us (as opposed to the puppy) but they left him in the weeds.
We took the very bumpy jeep ride down to the town of Munnar so Zach could find an internet café so he could take his quiz for his college class. Nancy went with me to go to the hospital for my second rabies shot. The hospital was open air and all of the hallways were outside. Indian hospitals kind of remind me of the military hospital they showed in the movie Ben Affleck was in - Pearl Harbor. We went to reception and they directed me to go to casualty. We wait for about 10-15 minutes. I pay the nurse 60 rupees and she sends me to the pharmacy. We wait in line there and I pay 349 rupees for the medicine, then we wait in another line and I pay 10 rupees for someone to inject the vaccine. Each of these stops requires papers filled out and signed. Indians love their repetitive paper work. I guess it provides jobs? I can’t wait to have to have to do this again at a Mumbai hospital on Friday! At least it only took about an hour and cost less than $10.
We took the very bumpy jeep ride down to the town of Munnar so Zach could find an internet café so he could take his quiz for his college class. Nancy went with me to go to the hospital for my second rabies shot. The hospital was open air and all of the hallways were outside. Indian hospitals kind of remind me of the military hospital they showed in the movie Ben Affleck was in - Pearl Harbor. We went to reception and they directed me to go to casualty. We wait for about 10-15 minutes. I pay the nurse 60 rupees and she sends me to the pharmacy. We wait in line there and I pay 349 rupees for the medicine, then we wait in another line and I pay 10 rupees for someone to inject the vaccine. Each of these stops requires papers filled out and signed. Indians love their repetitive paper work. I guess it provides jobs? I can’t wait to have to have to do this again at a Mumbai hospital on Friday! At least it only took about an hour and cost less than $10.
We drove along curvy country roads to see a dam at a beautiful site. Zach got a head messager at the stalls along the dam. It has curvy metal spikes and you put in on the top of someone’s head and push down and pull up. We took turns massaging each other’s head. The driver didn’t like it at first, but then I saw him use it on himself J Poinsettia trees grow all around here and are in full bloom now.
We saw a huge snake on the side of the road and it made Zach very happy! We went to an Elephant park and I got to ride an elephant!!! Nancy and Andrea have already done it but Zach and I were really looking forward to it! They are such beautiful beasts. Andrea let me ride up front which was a little scary when we headed downhill and I pitched forward. We were really high off the ground and the guide looked really tiny. We didn’t get to walk far, but I did pay 100 rupees to feed the elephant pineapples and corn. He raised his trunk up to me and I leaned over and fed him. He was very agile with that tusk – he didn’t drop anything even though I did not do a good job of handing it to him.
We saw a huge snake on the side of the road and it made Zach very happy! We went to an Elephant park and I got to ride an elephant!!! Nancy and Andrea have already done it but Zach and I were really looking forward to it! They are such beautiful beasts. Andrea let me ride up front which was a little scary when we headed downhill and I pitched forward. We were really high off the ground and the guide looked really tiny. We didn’t get to walk far, but I did pay 100 rupees to feed the elephant pineapples and corn. He raised his trunk up to me and I leaned over and fed him. He was very agile with that tusk – he didn’t drop anything even though I did not do a good job of handing it to him.
We went to Eravikulam National park and ran into the people who had eaten breakfast with us in Kochi J there were tons of signs in the park about it being a plastic free zone, then sold cashews in plastic and water bottles. Weird.
National Parks in India have two fares – one for Indians and one for foreigners. Sometimes we can get in for the Indian price if we show our FRRO cards (resident cards). We sent Andrea up to negotiate because she can sell ice to an Eskimo, but there was no swaying this guy. We had read that Kerala is the first state in the world to be a Communist state in a non-communist country. We noticed lots of things that were different in Kerala opposed to our home state of Maharashtra. First of all we saw no signs of extreme poverty – no shanty towns, no beggars, nobody sleeping in the streets. You can hear public announcements over loud speakers in town. (Andrea said it was similar in Cuba). Shops are open only as long as the government allows. Access to state parks is limited. In this particular park we walked partway up and then there was a guard and a gate that said we couldn’t go farther. When we asked why, we were told “because that is all the government allows”. You aren’t allowed to walk off the roads or trek through the interesting parts of the park L In Maharashtra you see Indian flags everywhere, but you don’t see that here. I saw red ones and was told they were communist flags from Russia. The hills around Munnar are carpeted in tea plants. TATA owns all of it. Communism at its finest. I am assuming they sell it to Lipton, Snapple, etc because this is where a good portion of the world’s tea is grown. The tea fields are beautiful and they are harvested all year long. People go out and pick tea from an area and then do it a week later when new leaves have grown. Another thing that separates Kerala because it is Communist – women are much higher ranked here. They hold a lot of the jobs which you don’t see in Mumbai.
I looked it up and this is what i found In 1957 Kerala became the first state in the world (with the exception of the Italian principality of San Marino) to form a democratically elected communist government. In 1970 Kerala became the first state in India to abolish landlordism. Kerala is presently a democratic state, and is still under Marxist control. I'm not sure what reality is but we saw no Indian flags - only communist flags and it sure seemed communist.
I looked it up and this is what i found In 1957 Kerala became the first state in the world (with the exception of the Italian principality of San Marino) to form a democratically elected communist government. In 1970 Kerala became the first state in India to abolish landlordism. Kerala is presently a democratic state, and is still under Marxist control. I'm not sure what reality is but we saw no Indian flags - only communist flags and it sure seemed communist.
Zach has a habit of starting sentences with “BJ, I’ll give you 100 rupees if you….” 100 rs is about $2.25 and the bets usually involve me jumping off of things, eating something disgusting, or chasing tigers, elephants, wild boar, or snakes out of the forest so he can see them. Basically he’s trying to get me killed. But he did save my life when a bee landed on my neck so … I guess I’ll stay friends with him J He lies a lot too so we don’t generally believe him. We had to come up with a “safe word” so we would know when there is real danger and he isn’t lying. Our driver probably wonders why we say “pickle” so often.
We drove back to the bottom of the hill that our tree house hotel is on and waited for the jeep to pick us up. And waited. And waited. We entertained ourselves by asking each other riddles, playing “green glass door” and Zach was drawing inappropriate pictures on the windshield fog. We pile into the jeep with a driver and another man. The driver seemed ok – at least we didn’t plummet to our deaths in the pouring rain. But the other man was high. As. A. kite. We joke all the time that you could grow serious marijuana here amongst all the tea and spices. This guy must have mixed the weed with something though because he was out of control!! The others kept saying “BJ you have to put this in your blog.” There is no way mere words could give any reader the full experience. He was giggling at everything. He meowed. He barked. He cooed like a baby. He sang. He told jokes. He talked about Mr. Bean. We were laughing hysterically all the way up the hill which helped alleviates the frustration of having to wait for the jeep for over an hour. We got to dinner and they served more Indian food. It was good, but I am not someone who can eat Indian food for every meal for days on end. And they had no ice cream – only some Indian dessert that looked like worms.
I am starting to get a cold so I took some benedryll and slept like a baby.
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