Where in the world?

A long overdue post - maybe the final one (is anyone still blogging or has the convenience of Facebook taken over? Seems I've missed a lot being on the road.) And I've got some explaining to do. For those who don't know, we're not in Berlin anymore. We're not even in Germany anymore! For a variety of reasons which I won't get into here (Matthias' green card status among them) we decided to come back to the States again. We are currently in.......drum roll, please.......Portland, Oregon!

Lots of rain makes for pretty waterfalls

Long story short (just the fun stuff here), we took some time to visit with the family in Florida and then packed up the van (thanks for the use of the van, mom and dad!) and drove out west. So, before I get into what we might or might not be doing here in Portland, I get to describe another escapade!

Matthias on the beach in Biloxi, MS

The experience driving across the U.S. actually turned out to be right up there with our other adventures. We took the southernmost route to try to avoid some of the nasty winter storms, and ended up going through (and stopping in) Biloxi MS; New Orleans, LA; Austin, TX, San Antonio and the Rio Grande Valley; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Davis, CA; and up the Northern California and Oregon Coast.

Austin, TX

We took about three weeks to make the journey, staying in cheap motels and campsites (when it wasn't too cold) along the way. Throughout the trip, the scenery - even from the car - was fantastic. New Orleans (of course) was a highlight, although it was below freezing when we were there. And we were absolutely WOWed by Austin, Texas, where we had a fun night out on the town listening to live music. Naturally our tour of Texas also included a stop in the BBQ capital of Texas (and therefore the world, some would say) where we feasted on simply awesome BBQ. As a matter of fact, we really enjoyed just about everywhere we went in Texas - Matthias being a huge fan of the wild west culture, I often caught him in a dreamy-eyed look, and I knew he was imagining himself riding through the countryside on horseback, meeting up with Judge Roy Bean on the Pecos River or Davy Crocket at the Alamo....

Judy and a real "Texas Toothpick" (and I thought food was big in Bavaria!)

Matthias feeling right at home west of the Pecos

After quite a bit of time in Texas, we stopped in Phoenix to see our good friend Patrick and had a fantastic visit (thanks, Patrick, for taking us around!) Then it was on to Vegas, which was...well....Vegas, and then California. We missed seeing Sue in Davis, but got to visit with Lisa, Noah, Eli and Michael, which was great (but I forgot to take pictures, dammit!)

Matthias, Keith and Patrick next to a typical Saguaro cactus


View of Sedona from the car

After Davis, we drove up the breathtaking Northern California coastline, through the Redwood forest and along the Oregon Coast. At long last we arrived in Portland and have found a temporary place to stay until we can settle in. And Portland hasn't disappointed either! It's everything we expected: it's an extremely bike-friendly city, it's laid-back but still interesting, they love their beer, and yes, it rains all the time. Just like Germany!

California Coast


Oregon Coast

So now we would like to stay here but I guess you never know with us. Our first step is to find work...not an easy task in this day and age. And that's one major reason I've come out of the dark and let people know where we are - I'm going to be bugging my work contacts soon for references and the like. Yes, Stu is helping me out with the latest job search/networking technology like pointing me toward LinkedIn. Being out of the workforce for so long, I guess I missed that one - so look me up if you don't hear from me first!

And for the full online trip photo album:

X-America Trip

Hello Stranger

Not sure if this is the longest stretch without a blog post, but as I read the last one, I realized we've come a long way (though not in distance) since then. We are now in Berlin. I can't yet say for sure whether our world travels are officially over, but it looks like we're about to settle down here. If we can survive the winter, that is.

Concert at the Brandenburg Gate

After the bike tour, we went to Matthias' home town of Gommern to take care of Oma (his grandmother) while Matthias' parents went on a trip to America. I hope I don't sound too glib when I say that we failed miserably, as Oma died after a week on our watch. It was indeed a difficult time, but I have to say, I think Oma was ready to go (for the last year, actually) as she was 95 years old and not able to do what she wanted anymore (as compared to just two years ago, when she cooked, baked, entertained, etc.!) And, she died in the comfort of her own home (in bed) without any pain or suffering, with her (favorite) grandson at her side. Almost kind of beautiful. Of course, I feel bad for Matthias' parents, who felt guilty about going on vacation (after 20+ years of taking care of Oma), and then had to hear about her passing so far away. But we were able to schedule the funeral, which was lovely, for their return, and I think all went smoothly. Oma will be missed!

Two special people we lost this year: Oma and Harry (at our wedding!!)

So that was our September - small town Germany and family. But Matthias (and I) did have some excitement finding mushrooms during what turned out to be an "excellent year for mushrooms" in Germany. For the most part, Matthias did the mushroom hunting (and all of the cooking.) But I was thrilled to find so many Steinpilz ("stone mushrooms"), the best-tasting, cutest looking shrooms on the planet! They actually look like tiny little elf houses! And I can now totally understand how Hansel and Gretel got lost in the forest - they must have been looking for mushrooms. So, September was also the month of Steinpilz soup, steak with Steinpilz sauce, sauteed Steinpilz, Steinpilz omelets, etc., etc.! And now I'm on a serious diet!

Steinpilz!!

But before the diet could begin, we had one more adventure. We met my parents in Budapest for a fantastic eating, drinking, thermal-bathing, and sometimes-sightseeing bonanza! It was great to see the parents, as always, and (also as always) great to be in Budapest! We had a blast! And then it was time to get down to business.

In Budapest!

Before we left for Budapest, we rented an apartment for four months in Berlin, so that we could try our luck here and (hopefully) find a longer-term place to live. Fortunately, the apartment and neighborhood turned out to be pretty fabulous. That's important, of course, as the weather is starting to turn nasty, and so are we, as looking for work is no fun! And not fun to write about either, so I'll stop here....

High Water and Oktoberfest Lite

We're back in Germany without internet access, so I'm not sure if I ever uploaded the last post from Austria. I've got a lot to do whenever I find the next internet point.


I feel like Alice in Wonderland - everything's bigger here!

We've had a lot of rain lately, and I must say I still prefer the rain to the intense heat. It was one of those days in Deggendorf when it was raining early in the morning and looked like it was about to rain all day, so we decided to stay. Of course it didn't rain from the time we paid for another night at the campsite, until later that night when we were walking back to the campsite from the Volksfest in Deggendorf. But the Volksfest made our staying worthwhile - drinking beer under a huge tent listening to a great band play German music. I actually recognized some of the songs from the radio station Matthias' parents listen to. There must have been over a thousand people in the tent, and Matthias said that's what Oktoberfest in Munich is like....only bigger and more expensive. We had so much fun we didn't mind the rain pouring down on us as we were walking back.



Or the fact that it was still raining the next morning when we woke up. Hell, the Volksfest was on all week, and we could stay if we wanted. But then it stopped raining, and as we were deciding whether to stay or go, the camper that was parked between our tent and the river packed up and moved, revealing that the river threatening to come over the bank! The little beach that had been there the day before was underwater and it looked as if the water could actually rise up and wash our tent away (at least to me). So, we packed up and left, at which point (of course) it started pouring and continued to rain all day. Actually, the rain stopped just before we reached the next campsite, so we had a chance to sort of dry out before we set up our campsite. Then again, nothing would really dry out for the next couple of days.



The next day, although it didn't rain much, we rode through a lot of mud, and had to take a lot of detours as the bike paths by the river were flooded. Fortunately, our campsite near Kelheim was open and relatively dry, so we set up our tent and went out to the local beergarden. As we were enjoying our beer under the shelter, the sky opened up and let out a downpour! We rode back to our tent to find that all was still dry inside, but we were on the edge of a huge flooded area. I persuaded Matthias to move the tent a few meters toward higher ground, which was a good thing, because within the next hour, the entire area where our tent had stood was flooded. But on the bright side, that marked the end of the rain for a few days. We've enjoyed cloudy, cool, but dry weather as we ventured into the Altmuehl Valley, what will probably be the last leg of our trip. It's really beautiful, but I've got to say that at this point, I'm nearly immune to beautiful. I'm just about ready for a real bed...after 60 days in a tent.

More pictures online. See link to August 2010 photos.

Real Summer

Stein (Krems) on the Donau

Rain day: We are in a campsite in Krems, Austria, in the beautiful wine valley known as the Wachau. We arrived here yesterday just as it started to rain, and fortunately, the campsite happens to have a "rec" room with tables where campers can sit and relax and get warm. So, I have no excuse not to plug the computer in and write a blog entry. Unfortunately, there's no internet here, so I have no idea what I wrote for the last blog entry! Hopefully, I won't repeat myself too much.


Packing up after the rain day in Krems

So...the heat wave has finally broken to what we are accustomed to as summer in Europe: Cold and rainy (and/or windy)! But we're still at the point where we'll take this weather gladly over the intense heat. And before I continue by tirade about the weather, I have to to mention the two great people we met at the campsite near Vienna - Bob and Sue - who were on their way to Budapest and beyond. I told Sue about my blog, and she said she never reads blogs, as they're usually all about the weather, what the author ate, and how much everything costs... so of course, now I'm mortified that I gave her the blog address! Forgive me, Sue, if you ever bother to read this.


This was full of people swimming a week ago....now Matthias needs a jacket!

Yes, we were in a campsite near Vienna, and we actually went into Vienna for the day and saw some of the sights. What a beautiful city! This time, we visited the Schönbrunn Palace - the summer residence of the Hapsburgs - the Naschmarkt (for food, of course), and a traditional Viennese cafe (for more food - Kaiserschmarm, to be specific. Yumm!)



At the cafe in Vienna

The Markt square in Vienna

As we enjoyed Vienna, I was also looking forward to heading back along the Donau trail through Austria at a more leisurely pace (now that we don't have to hurry to Budapest for Matthias' birthday and since we don't have any real destination in mind!) Krems (where we are now) was our next stop on the trail, and I suppose it was lucky for me that it rained because we decided to stay an extra day here and I got to try marillen knodel (apricot dumplings - they taste way better than they sound) in the old town (yes, Sue, mention of food and weather in the same sentence. Fortunately, it wasn't too expensive.)


Stein on the Donau

Now that we're back in Austria, I'm thinking of our time in Hungary and how much we really enjoyed it there. We had originally planned to ride past Budapest but he heat got to us and changed our plans ( I bet it's nice and cool in Hungary now!) But we did enjoy our ride back to Austria. Funny, but I always prefered to travel in circles, or circuits, instead of traveling 'there and back'. I forgot that when you travel in a different direction (even on the same path) your view is almost completely different. So, on our way back through Hungary, it was like seeing new things (or old things from a different perspective - nearly as good) but without the stress of having to find our way. Grossartig! (I think that means "FAB!" in German, but without my online dictionary I can't be sure.)


Matthias, enjoying salami like a good cigar!

So....one more thing while I'm in the mood for writing (and without anything else to do right now) is to talk about some of the "stuff" we've seen along the way. One of our (my) favorite things to do in campsites is to watch the other bikers put up/take down their tents, and we always comment on their gear - is it better than ours? lighter? as comforable? On this trip, we've seen a lot more bike trailers like ours ("Bob") and a lot of different bikes. These include recumbent bikes (where riders are reclined and look like they're riding an exercise bike) to mini-folding bikes to tandems. Can you believe people actually travel long distance on tandem bikes? On tandem bikes with trailers? On tandem bikes with kids in trailers? With two kids and/or dogs in trailers? I'm not kidding! I just watched a Dutch family cook and eat dinner and put their three little kids to bed in a tent in this very campsite, and I was exhausted just looking! And on a totally different note, we met a couple from Andorra yesterday. I was psyched about that - I mean, how many people actually live in Andorra? Not many, I suppose (or not many more than those who actually know where Andorra is.)


My favorite Jause (snack) bar on the trail

So, the tour goes on, and I'm loving it. And I'm going to have to remember that if it keeps on raining....

Same Same....but Different

Matthias' birthday in Budapest

Hello again from Hungary. We're on our "Same Same, but Different tour" as this marked our third time together in Budapest, where we celebrated Matthias' birthday. Actually, we stayed in a campsite outside of the city and took the train in (easier than riding with all of our stuff in the heat.) We had a great time walking around the city and visiting Matthias' favorite spot....the Central Market. Budapest is really a great city. We plan on visiting again some spring or fall (when it's not so hot.) Just before the big day, we got a short respite from the hot weather, but it's back again. It makes the riding really tough - hard to enjoy what would normally be idyllic riding through small Hungarian towns when I'm sweating to death, but easy to enjoy the campsites with swimming pools, or those close enough to the Donau for a swim.


Matthias at the Central Market

Like I said, the riding in Hungary hasn't been so great because of the weather, but they have made improvements to the bike paths since we were last here four years ago. And one thing that didn't change is the campsite on the Donau (Duna here in Hungary) where we stayed on our way to (and from) Budapest. The best part is a snack bar where you can drink a beer and watch the ferry cross the river. Beautiful.


View from the snack bar in Domos

So now we're on our way back to Austria where we want to spend more time in the wine district (Wachau) there. Then we're thinking of taking a train up into the Alps and riding back down to Bavaria. Ouch...did I mention the mosquitos? Just got bit - like I have every night. It's a big problem this year - lots of water in spring and hot temps now. Lovely.


Enjoying one of the evening thunderstorms that cool things down for a bit.

Too Damn Hot

Hello from Hungary. I just looked back at my journal and counted 10 days of uncommon heat here in Europe. Yes, hot and humid...just like New York...so not so fun for camping. But anyway, it still gets cool at night....but now around midnight! Today (17 July) is supposed to be the last day of the heatwave. I can't believe I'm looking forward to rain!

So, since the last time I wrote, we rode through Austria and Slovakia. We had done the route before, but liked it so much that we wanted to do it again. And it didn't disappoint us. Our favorite campsite in Passau, Germany is still great (though a bit more expensive, but with upgraded bathrooms) and the ride from Passau to Feldkirchen in Austria was just as spectacular as we remembered. But this time we knew what Jause (pronounced: Yowsah) was, so we stopped at all the "Jause Stations" for delicious Austrian snacks and apple wine spritzers. Then we kind of rushed through Austria so we could make it to Budapest for Matthias' birthday, which we have pretty much done. We're about 60 km from Budapest, and 30 Km from the campsite where we're going to stay (instead of riding into Budapest) so unless there's some kind of hailstorm tomorrow (which I wouldn't rule out at this point) we're going to make it. After a few days of touring Budapest, we're going to head back along the Donau toward Germany (more slowly this time) and try another bike route...we're thinking of catching a train from Linz to Innsbruck (Austria) and riding along the Inn river back into Bavaria. We'll see...

Deggendorf an der Donau

We received some sad news while we were on the road - one of our favorite people in the world - cousin Harry - passed away after a fierce battle with cancer. It's one of the times that it's hard to be away from friends and family, but we're lucky to have so many wonderful memories of Harry (and Charlene), especially when they came to see us last year in Germany. Harry will be terribly missed, but I'm going to do my best to make him proud. As a Spanish teacher, of course Harry was so good with languages. I'm going to do my damndest to become fluent in something other than English. As a matter of fact, Matthias and I are only speaking German to each other. Not that it gives me much practice, as he doesn't speak all that much anyway...

So, we are now in Deggendorf on the Donau (Danube, for those not paying attention.) We've ridden a total of about 1,400 km so far. We've had great luck with weather and our equipment seems to be holding up pretty well. We've met some other cyclists (three from Canada!) and enjoyed comparing stories. We're about 100 km from the Austrian border, but the World cup is screwing up our plans. It's so fun to watch the German team play here - every game is like the superbowl, and there are huge celebrations after each win. We did make it to Regensburg for the last match and had a blast. So, we're going to stay in Passau (near the Austrian border) an extra day to watch Germany play Spain. We've been planning to ride along the Donau to Budapest, where we want to celebrate Matthias' birthday. But if Germany wins, we might have to change our plans and hang around in Bavaria for a few more days. We'll see.

There is a link to photos on the left hand side of the page.

Off (and back on) the beaten path (Dillingen, Germany)

So....off the beaten path (without a prescribed bike path) in France was do-able, but not easy. Actually, it was kind of fun to find our way from town to town on the backroads, but it was HILLY! Eventually, though, after a night in a small-town campsite, we found our way to the Marne Canal and Saverne - a beautiful city in Alsace. We arrived in time to catch part of the USA/Algeria World cup match (actually, I thought the French would be showing the England match instead, but I forgot how many Algerians live in France!) We went back into town later to watch the German national team beat Ghana.

The way to Strasbourg from Saverne was easy (and even a little boring) along the Marne canal. It was actually more difficult to find the campsite in Strasbourg than it was to get there, but with all that accomplished, we hunkered down for two nights and got ready to explore the city the next day. We rode our bikes downtown, stopping first at the site of the European parliament, only to find out that they have no services for visitors. Oh well - we parked our bikes and walke around the old town centre and got something to eat (in an actual restaurant!) We atetypical Alsacian food, which turned out to be just like German food. But the city was lovely. I'll post pictures as soon as I get a good internet connection (which I haven't has since Strasbourg.)

Leaving Strasbourg, we rode back into Germany to Offenburg, where we got a train to Donaueschingen - over the hills of the Black Forest to the source of the Donau (or Danube) river. The next day, we started off on the Donau radweg (Danube bike path) with a short ride to Tuttlingen, where we stopped to watch and celebrate Germany's win over England - and luckily for us, there was a town festival going on at the same time (not that they needed another reason to celebrate.) The next day's ride through the Donau valley was hilly, but absolutely gorgeous. We've had really good weather for the last two weeks, except for one day of rain, but it's getting pretty hot here (no, not like at home...it actually still gets COLD in the evening, and as long as you stay in the shade, it's quite nice.) And they say it's just going to keep getting hotter until next weekend. Our aim is to get to Regensburg on Saturday (03 July) to watch the next big World Cup match (Germany v. Argentina). And my next big aim is to find a campsite with wifi - which we haven't has since France. Hopefully then I'll be able to post this along with some pictures.

Jetzt geht's los! (Let's go!!)

The FIFA World Cup in S. Africa is underway and so are we. We're back in Germany on our bikes (at the moment at a campsite) with our new netbook, and we actually stayed in a campsite with wifi (but unfortunately this one doesn't have it.) But before I get to this trip, I've got to say something about our last great trip....down memory lane.

We were back in the US for about three months, and during that time we got to see and spend time with friends and family. Unfortunately, we couldn't see everyone, but it was fun to catch up. Our goal was to spend time with family, specifically Charlene and Harry, and to help my father celebrate 70th birthday (wow.) But we were also pleasantly surprised when Sue flew in from California on a last-minute trip! We were happy that we were finally able to get up to Albany to see Linda her family (and were also graced by a visit from Lara and hers.) And it's always great to see Stu and Howard - thanks Stu for letting us use your apartment so I could visit with old friends Keith, Barb, Matt, Dean, Andrew, Amy, and Steve (yes, I put his name last because I know it bugs him.) So fun to see everyone!

And now for the bike trip. We left Gommern by train after spending a week there looking after Matthias' Oma (grandma) so that his parents could take a short trip. We took the train pretty much across Germany to Duesseldorf on the Rhein, where we set up camp for the first night, took in some of the city, and watched the US play England. The next day we rode to Koeln (Cologne) where we watched some local soccer matches and then the big Germany Australia game at a restaurant near the campsite. Then we continued down the Rhein to Koblenz, where the Mosel river ends and the Mosel bike trail begins. We decided to ride the trail because it would bring us to France, but we found it absolutely beautiful and charming - it actually puts the Rhein (which is somehow more famous) to shame. We had been here before in a car, but the scenery is much more dramatic from a bike somehow. We even had excellent weather for our first four days of riding, with the exception of the day we rode 90km to Trier. It rained quite hard in the morning, but it fortunately didn't start raining until after we packed everything up, so our stuff stayed dry, and we were pretty dry by the time we reached Trier and checked into the campsite for two days.

We stayed in Trier to watch the world cup action (USA and Germany play on the same day...yay!) It was sad when Germany lost, but the US game was pretty exciting. But enough about the obvious. The next day we took a short ride to Remich in Luxembourg and stayed there because, well, I've never been to Luxembourg before. It was nice, but the campsite left a bit to be desired.

The next day we rode to Thionville (another short ride) and stopped there because we didn't have a map to take us further. It's in France, by the way. It was a lovely city, but because it was Sunday, everything was closed, so we couldn't find a map to go further until the next morning. Plus, we had to wait 4pm for the campsite to open. Bienvenue!

On Monday morning we bought a map and traveled on to Metz - another short ride, but it was our first ride that was not on a prescribed bike trail. We found our way pretty well, although Metz is a pretty big city, and not too conducive to bike travel (especially with matthias' bike trailer!) So, although the ride was a bit stressful, the city is lovely and the campsite is fabulous - right on the banks of the Moselle, with clotheslines and picnic tables (we used both.) Oh, and of course they have wifi, which is why I'm posting this hastily-written entry. Tomorrow, we head into the French countryside, again without a prescribed bike trail, so it's up to me and the maps I got at the tourist info office to get us to the next campsite. stay tuned....

Taking the long way home

Linville Falls, NC (Blue Ridge Pkwy)

Back in Highland Falls, NY after a long beautiful drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Really beautiful, and nice this time of year (May) because there was hardly a soul on the road. Sure, most of the campsites were closed, but the ones that were open were lovely and pretty much devoid of people. We took five days driving up from Florida. Definitely the best FL-NY trip yet.

Campsite by Linville Falls


Campsite in Georgia

So here we are enjoying gorgeous views of the Hudson River and visiting family and friends until our flight to Germany on June 2. We are going to be in NYC for a few days starting on May 23rd (so anyone who reads this and wants to catch up should definitely send me an email - otherwise, we'll most likely be at "1849" on Bleecker Street on the evening of Sunday the 23rd so Matthias can get his fill of 25-cent wings.) So, I guess I'll find out if any NYC buddies still read this thing.

Better late than....

Matthias on the bus between Soppong and Pai

A lot of time has passed since the last post - I'm sitting here in Florida on my new netbook not knowing where to start. I left off in Chiang Rai, Thailand (February 2010) from where we continued on to Pai. We relaxed for about a week in Pai and Matthias took another fruit-carving lesson there (he wanted to learn how to make an orchid.) We then made our way southward toward Bangkok, stopping for a short (sweaty) stay in Ayunthaya. We rented bikes and toured the town with its ancient structures, but we were longing for the cool, comfortable evenings of northern Thailand and Laos. Then it was one night in Bangkok before our flight to Berlin (where we then found ourselves longing for the heat again...)


Temple ruins in Ayunthaya


We stayed about two weeks in Germany, visiting Matthias' family and (sort of) celebrating his mom's 60th birthday (we were there on the actual day, but she had the big party after we left for America...oops.) We did get to spend a few days in the Harz area, where there was still lots of snow and I could try (unsuccessfully) a little cross country skiing. We also got our medical appointments taken care of. Is this thing getting boring, or what?!! See why I haven't written?



We then flew to NY and spent a lot of time visiting family before driving down to Florida to see my parents. And we've been here ever since - for about a month. We're having a nice visit and Matthias is putting his fishing license to work.





Next update from up north.

Chaing Rai Surprise

Another bike ride in Luang Nam Tha

So, we made it to Chiang Rai, Thailand from Luang Nam Tha in less than a day, using various modes of transport: taxi/pick-up truck to the bus, a bouncy bus over the mountains, a tuk-tuk to the river, a motor boat across the Mekong, a motorcycle taxi to the bus station, and a local bus to Chiang Rai. All in all it took about 7 hours, but we arrived unscathed and checked into a nice hotel near the bus station and night market. The night market was key, because that’s where Matthias planned to eat a nice grilled fish that night, which he did…and then some.


Matthias' beloved fish at the Chiang Rai night market

We really only stopped in Chiang Rai to break up the trip to Pai (and because Matthias liked the night market) but as we set off the next day on foot, we saw some nice temples, checked out the river, and made our way to a nearby cave with a temple in it- along a road that we decided would be great for bike riding the next day (which sealed our decision to stay an extra day.) We also stopped at a great roadside noodle/rice place where Matthias had noodle soup and I had Kao Soi – yummy noodles in spicy yellow curry with chicken. It was a long day of walking, so Matthias decided he deserved another fish at the night market. This one was steamed.


Inside the Buddha cave outside of Chiang Rai

The next day, we rented bikes and set off past the river and cave we saw the day before only to come across more caves with Buddhas in them – part of a lovely park on the river. Theride was so nice that we continued down the road where we passed a local festival with a market, food and dancing. Of course we stopped for some roast pig and beef.


Pig and cow roast!

On down the road, we came to a touristy but cute Karen (local tribe) village that operated elephant rides by (and in) the river. We stopped to admire the elephants and the handicrafts for a bit before heading back to town. It was almost a perfect day until Matthias’ chain came off, and while trying to fix it the back wheel somehow became bent, so not only could he not ride the bike, he couldn’t push it either. He actually had to lift one wheel up and walk for quite a ways before we found some friendly tuk tuk drivers who had the tools to fix it. Fortunately, we were done with our ride anyway. So, one more trip to the night market and back on the road to Pai.


Cute elephant

Our trip to Pai went smoothly (about 6 hours in all) and despite my fears of high-season (coupled with Chinese New Year) prices, we found a decent room at a great price in town. The only drawback – no wifi. But, Pai is the kind of place where one shouldn’t mind not being connected, and I can’t complain too much as I sit on our front porch in the guesthouse garden and write this. And now that I’m done, I’ll head over to a café that has wifi, order a fruit shake, post the blog entry, and see who won the Superbowl.

Links to more photos are now updated on the left of the page.

Climate Change

Balmy New Year's Day in Xi'an

Back on the road and back to the blog. We are now in Laos, on our way to Bangkok and then Germany and then the US. I finished teaching on January 22nd – one week before my students had to take their end-of-term exams. It really was an interesting experience, and perhaps I’ll write about it someday, but now that we’re traveling again, I’d rather write about that! But first I have to mention the great New Year's/birthday weekend we spent in Xi'an with Katie and Laura. Although New Year's Eve was a bit anti-climactic, the highlight of the weekend might have been the three-hour New Year's Day lunch at a Tibetan fish restaurant with Frank, Laura, and new friends Trisha and Graham. I also shared birthday cake (though we each had our own little cakes - thanks Laura!) at the hostel cafe with Katie, who is also "cursed" with the dreaded day-after-New Years birthday.



Our Tibetan Fish feast!

Sooo....the day after my last class, we took an overnight train from Baoji (about an hour and a half from our village of HuaiYa) to Chengdu. The train ride was fine, except that we had to share our compartment with a guy who snored really loudly! Still, we managed to sleep a bit and arrived in Chengdu bright and early at 5:30 AM, where we got our free ride to Sim’s Guesthouse, which was nice and cozy. After checking in, coffee and showers, we took the local bus to the center of town and visited the “Tibetan Street”, where we ate lunch (Matthias once again had his favorite pulled noodle soup dish – Muslim style.) Then we walked through the “New Ancient Street “ – a recently-built shopping and eating complex made to look like an old Chinese village. Chengdu was a bit warmer than what we were used to, so it was nice for walking around, but it was still quite cold at night. We had dinner at the Guesthouse, which wasn’t so great except that we met Pat, an American who’s teaching English in Shanghai.


Old and new together on the "new/ancient" street

The next day it was off to see the pandas – one of our main reasons for visiting Chengdu. Unfortunately, Matthias was quite ill (but made the trip anyway like a real trooper.) We booked the excursion through the guesthouse, which was convenient and the Pandas were adorable! We were back at the guesthouse by noon, so we were able to grab some soup and dumplings on the street, change some of our Chinese money into dollars, and then Matthias could go to bed while I got a haircut. That night, Matthias was too sick to go out so I went with Pat for Sichuan hotpot. It was spicy, but not any spicier than some of the food in Shaanxi.



Fabulous panda!

The next day we got the train to Kunming. It was an overnight train and then some, but we were lucky to have a compartment to ourselves, and Matthias was feeling a bit better. We arrived in Kunming the following morning and checked into a rather expensive (30 USD) and nice hotel near the train station. The weather, at last, was spring-like and lovely. Warm and sunny. We went for lunch at a restaurant we passed (up) the last time we were in Kunming. We ordered Beijing Duck (which was good, but not nearly as good as the one we had in Xi’an with Katja and Simon) some spicy noodles (delicious!) and some vegetables. After lunch we walked around, changed more money, and went back to the hotel to rest up for our bus ride to Jinghong the next day.


View from the bus to Jinghong


The next morning, we got to the ‘pseudo bus station’ in Kunming just before 8AM to catch our minibus to the actual bus we were taking to Jinghong. Apparently, they moved the long distance bus station some 15 km away from the city, so you either have to get public transport out there and buy your ticket, or get it through an agent like we did. Anyway, we got to our regular bus just fine and we were on our way as scheduled by 9am. The ride was nice – along a new highway with breathtaking views – until the highway ended and we had to take a smaller road (also with fantastic views) where we got stuck in some sort of traffic jam for well over an hour. Still, at around 5:30 PM we pulled into the Jinghong (south) bus station and got a decent (but somewhat shabby) room at the hotel there. From there, we found our way into the center of town for some delicious noodle soup!


Matthias in Jinghong

Jinghong is a nice city – it’s still China, of course, but one starts to get that laid-back Southeast Asia feeling there. We spent the next day walking around in the glorious sunshine (weather is getting really warm by now) and trying to figure out how to get to Laos. We were told (we think) at the bus stations that they couldn’t sell tickets for the next day’s bus until the night before. So, after exploring the city, drinking a couple of local beers, and eating one last delicious Chinese dinner, we went back to the South bus station and got our tickets for 10:40AM the next day to Luang Nam Tha. The bus was pretty empty, except for five other tourists, a couple of local people, and lots of boxes. It seems since they don’t have a lot of people making the trip, they use the buses to transport goods as well. Hey, at least boxes of juice and sacks of flour don’t spit or throw up! The bus made a lot of stops, but the ride was nice, the border was pretty painless (except for the visa fees), and we arrived in Luang NamTha before 5pm.


My first Beer Lao

And here we are! I’m writing this from our guesthouse in Luang NamTha, which doesn’t have internet access (I’ll post it later). We are soooo glad that we came here! We had considered taking the boat down the Mekong directly to Thailand, but besides being much more expensive, we’re glad we didn’t miss out on Laos. It’s wonderful here! It’s a pretty small town (although it’s the provincial capital) with lovely trails for biking, a good local market, and fabulous food. It’s a great time of year to be here as well – mornings and evenings are cool, while the days get pretty hot yet still nice in the shade. We’re in heaven! We’ve been here for four nights, and now it’s time for us to go to Thailand. We hope to make it to Chiang Rai in one day – we’ll see how that goes. Until then…


Scene from one of our bike rides

Last ditch effort

I thought I would try to get a blog entry in before the start of the new year. It's been quite a long time, but between feeling that I didn't have much to write about, and the fact that I spend a lot of my time on the computer trying to do lesson plans, I just haven't made the effort. But let's see if I can drum up some interesting tidbits as I reflect on the past year (or at least the past two months.)


Matthias checking out the kiwis that grow around here.

Teaching in China has been a really interesting experience. The students are great, and although I get frustrated trying to manage a class of 70+ students, trying to motivate them when all they really care about is studying for their next exam, and trying to keep the chalk dust out of my computer (and my lungs), I think it's been pretty rewarding so far. I suppose I'm learning more than my students, and exhausting as it is, by the time I get to the 14th rendition of my lesson plan, I think I'm pretty darn good at it.


All of the English teachers on Teacher's Day in September

But enough about me - what can I say about my students? They're marvelous, but it's hard to get to know them when I see about 1,500 of them just once a week. Most are shy when it comes to speaking English. I know they can read and comprehend at a pretty high level (judging from their English textbook and exam papers), but when I speak to them, the majority just stare, say "sorry, I don't know," or "yes" despite the question. Sometimes there's a breakthrough, though, and I get them to laugh about something I said (or just laugh at me!) Then there are a handful who have had the benefit of extra English instruction (small group workshops during spring or summer break) so they can communicate pretty well and are probably just bored in my classes. The students are most interested in learning about western culture - they're dying to know what American students their age do (wish I knew so I could tell them!) And they love to sing! This week we sang Jingle Bells as a warm-up activity, which was fun. But I'm saving the best for last: next month I'll teach them a Michael Jackson song - something at least one student asks for every week. Speaking of the most famous MJ in China (Michael Jordan probably a close second) I've got to say I've developed a new appreciation for the King of Pop while I've been here. But we'll see if I still feel that way after 18 sessions of teaching a lesson plan based on MJ's "You are not Alone."


Class 12, Grade 1

Matthias and I made a few trips to Xi'an over the past couple of months, where we were able to buy some western comfort food for our kitchen, including butter and cheese, which have had the unfortunate effect of reversing the weight loss I experienced after getting here, but also made us feel a bit more comfy. We planned to make some additional side trips, but between a snow storm one weekend, and seperate bouts of the flu (the normal/seasonal kind), we never made it. I still have intentions to visit a nearby temple in January. Hopefully we'll be able to make it.


School campus after the snow in November

Our last trip to Xi'an was particularly special, as we met Matthias' cousin Katja and her friend Simon there for Christmas. It was a blast. We braved the cold and rode bikes along the city wall (something I always wanted to do but could never convince Matthias!), visited the great Mosque (another thing Matthias wouldn't have done without the peer pressure) and ate some amazing Beijing Duck. It was fantastic! And now I can look forward to New Year's in Xi'an. Our school actually has a day off for New Year's (or what they call the Solar New Year.) We're leaving for Xi'an tomorrow afternoon (New Year's Eve) and will meet some other Buckland teachers there, including Katie, who shares my birthday. And I'm betting that Xi'an is one place that doesn't actually close down on the second of January! Yay!


Riding on the Xi'an city wall with Katja and Simon

More photos online at Picasa:
November Photos
December Photos

Zàijiàn!​ (see you!)

The Lost Weekend

Yes, there's still a blog.  Even though I can't see it (blogspot is blocked here), and even though whenever I have time to write, I don't feel like it.  But I'm making myself now, as I indulge in downloaded General Hospital on our awesome dvd/mp4/avi media player.  Yes, technology in China allows us to play all sorts of ill-gotten media, not to mention the dozens of DVDs stashed in our apartment – including 5 seasons of Desperate Housewives, 3 seasons of "24", and 20 seasons of the Simpsons!  I'm in pirate heaven!  Argh maties!

Oh yeah…and I'm an English teacher! I've been teaching, on and off, for a little over a month now.  I say on and off because here in China, the one constant is that things change.  I didn't teach for most of the first week of classes because my students had military training.  Then, I worked through the weekend last week in preparation for the Mid-Autumn holiday, during which (I found out a few days before) I got about 10 days off.  So, about teaching.  It's challenging and exhausting, yet somewhat rewarding.  I might have mentioned that there are around 80 students in each class.  They range in age from about 14 to 16, and although they are quite well-behaved, it's pretty hard to manage the class, or teach in a meaningful way.  I teach 14 classes in what they call Grade I (about 9th grade in the US) and 4 Grade II (or 10th grade) classes.  So, I really only have to do two lesson plans a week (one for each grade), but repeating the class 14 times is a bit trying.  I can't complain, though, as the experience is pretty enjoyable.  I might have mentioned that the students live here on campus (as do we) and are involved in studies from before 7AM until after 10PM, when we still see them in their classrooms!

Being in a small town in China can be challenging, and I suppose we are both experiencing some culture shock.  Matthias is suffering a bit more from his "celebrity status", as it really bothers him when people stare, point, or call out "hello!". And they do…every time we go out!   He said it makes him feel like a monkey in a cage - like they're trying to make him dance.  And, despite having to work so much, the students here all want to be my "friend".  They call (I made the mistake of giving my number during the first few classes) and some even stop by the apartment.   Apparently, the last teacher – who was here by himself and also quite a bit younger (closer to the age of the students) made a lot of friends among students.  So, to make myself at least a bit more available, I eat lunch nearly every day in the students' cafeteria.

So, we just got back from our somewhat last-minute-planned holiday (since I wasn't sure how many days I would have off until just before.)  We decided to go to Xi'an for a few days, and then when we found out I had more than a week off, we added a city called Xining to the mix.  Our goal was good food, which we knew based on previous experience we would be able to get in Xi'an.  The food here in HuaiYa is pretty limited (or at least our ordering ability is.)  They make lots of noodle dishes, which we love, but they add some kind of red hot chili oil to everything, which seems to upset Matthias' stomach.  Now, I don't mind spicy food, but everything here tastes just like the red chili oil, and if you ask them to hold the chili oil, the dishes don't taste like much at all.  Actually, there's an exception – a guy near the market makes a great vegetable/tofu noodle soup (sans the red stuff), which Matthias eats for lunch every day.  And there are dumplings and steamed buns.  Oh, and this yummy pita-like bread stuffed with stewed meat (or veggies.)   Actually…what am I complaining about?    

Now, back to Xi'an.  It was a combination of China's National Day (the 60th Anniversary of the People's Republic to boot) and the Mid-Autumn Festival, so we were worried about travel.  We were able to get a reservation at a nice hotel (just a bit more expensive than usual) and although the streets of Xi'an were pretty crowded, we didn't have any issues with travel, or with finding good restaurants!  There are a few pictures on the web album from our favorite place near the south gate, where we ate ribs, veggie dishes (with plenty of garlic!) and good dumplings.  We also found another place that specializes in dishes that they grill in the window, where we had a few beers, some grilled scallops and meat kabobs, and grilled eggplant (again with lots of garlic!)  And, when some other foreign teachers (with placements in other cities around the province) saw us through the window, they joined us for a few more beers and talk of school life in China.

Of course, we did a little bit more in Xi'an than eat.  We walked a lot around the City, spending some time in the Muslim Quarter and around the city walls.  We even tried to go to the local history museum, but the line to get in was overwhelming (probably due to the holiday.)  

Our next stop on our Mid-Autumn odyssey was Xining, in Qinghai province.  Going here from Xi'an didn't really make sense, since we had to backtrack past our neck of the woods to head west into the Himalayan plateau.  But we chose it for a few reasons.  First, we thought it would be interesting to see an area close to Tibet (actually traveling to Tibet requires a special permit and a lot of money.)  Second, at 2000 meters high, it might be too cold to visit later.  And, third, since my passport is still in Yangshuo (where they are processing my work permit) I needed to find a hotel that I could contact in advance – in English - to see if they would allow us to check in using a copy.  

Xining actually turned out to be a great choice.  The city itself isn't beautiful, but the mix of cultures there was interesting and refreshing. After being in a small town where we're the only ones who look different, it was a nice change.   Tibetan Buddhism originated in the surrounding area, and the current Dalai Lama was born in a village not far away.  So, in the bustling and colorful markets you could rub elbows with Tibetan monks, Chinese Muslims, as well as people who looked more like Mongolians than Chinese (at least to us.)  And did we eat??  We feasted on lamb, Mutton, noodles, stews, and even a yummy leg of pork.  Our favorite place was a large food court, where you could order dishes from various stalls, sit inside (where it's warm) and drink beer, and (for a small fee) use the not-so-overwhelmingly-disgusting bathrooms.  The weather was pretty lousy during our three days in Xining – rainy and chilly most of the time – so we didn't make the side trips out to the countryside, but we still managed to have a nice time.  

Now we're back in HuaiYa and waiting for internet access to resume.  We've been without internet at home for a few weeks while the school is in the middle of upgrading its network.  We've been told we'll be back online next week – obviously, this won't be posted until we're back online, so it may be a little dated by the time it's there.  Oh, one more thing – I've lost all access to Facebook (my way around the firewall is no longer working), so my apologies to anyone trying to contact me that way.  Email is best.  

I'm posting this via email and am not sure how to post links, so I'll include a link to the latest photos (October 2009) and hope for the best:
October photos:  http://picasaweb.google.com/jrosenyc/100910#

Cool Change

Hello from HuaiYa! We have more or less settled in to our apartment on campus at HuaiYa Senior Middle school, where I will be teaching "oral English" to Class 1 students - equivalent to 9th graders in the US, I think. Anyway, I don't start teaching until the day after tomorrow (as I understand it) so I'll be able to provide more information about that soon. We arrived here on Tuesday (25 Aug) and have been getting things together, cleaning, and exploring the environs. I haven't posted pictures of the apartment because Aaron - the foreign English teacher from last year - posted them on his blog. I'll include the link below.


One street in HuaiYa, with mountains in the background

We flew up to Xi'an from Guilin on Monday, arriving too late on Monday night to do anything but grab some dumplings and a beer at a nearby night market just before midnight. The next morning, we were picked up by the school's Foreign Affairs Officer (FAO) and driven to the school, stopping for lunch at a great restaurant at the foot of TaiBaiShan. The FAO ordered about six delicious dishes for the four of us, and although we ate until we were stuffed, it looked like we didn't put a dent in the dishes. Also, conversation was a bit slow and awkward. That night, the school's headmaster and a bunch of other VIPs took us to dinner at the same restaurant. Still delicious, and a teeny bit less awkward as the guy sitting next to Matthias was very interested in Germany ("how many people have cars there? How old do you have to be to drive? How are the roads?") It was a room full of men, and since I don't know much about the NBA, I wasn't of much interest to them. Still, each one toasted our arrival with Baijiu (strong Chinese liquor), but we were able to maintain our sanity by taking small sips each time...


Tangyu - nearby scenic spot

HuaiYa is indeed a small village. However, it seems to have everything we need - a small supermarket, a bustling street market, and a number of stalls/restaurants selling hand-pulled noodles and other delicacies. We have already taken the bus to the next town, which has a couple of bigger supermarkets, a bigger street market, etc., etc. And, the weather here is much, much cooler than down in Yangshuo, to my great relief. This morning, we took the bus to TangYu the tourist town at the base of Mt. Taibai (where we had lunch and dinner on Monday.) Nothing so fancy today, though....just a bowl of noodle soup, of course. Tomorrow is the first day of school, but I don't think I'm teaching a class until Wednesday. Supposedly, I find out tonight. By tracking down Lily, an English teacher who brought us shopping on our first day here, I found out that there's 'a meeting' tonight. Not sure if I'm supposed to go or if I'll just learn my fate afterward. Anyway, I'm now reachable by cell phone, internet, and land line. They'll just have to let me know.

Link to Aaron's (former teacher's) blog with photos of our apartment and HuaiYa