Around the world in 111 days

China- Beijing and Tibet

I woke up in Hong Kong, looked out my window and saw some of the largest buildings I have ever seen… “Hey look it’s the dark knight building!”… The people of Hong Kong believe in building up, not outward. Space is limited in Hong Kong, hence the massive apartment buildings that range from 80-120 stories… it is quite the sight. I spent very little time in Hong Kong… I had a flight to catch headed to Beijing, the first stop on a journey to Tibet…

                        Beijing is the capitol of China and of all the cities I have been thus far, it reminded me the most of Washington D.C.—maybe its just a capitol city thing…minus the communism. All of the flash that Shanghai and Hong Kong displayed, Beijing lacked. The city is older and a symbol of the communist influence through its architecture and infamous Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City.

            While in Beijing I explored Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and was able to walk the great wall. Both Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City were massive, crowded and intense, due to the strong military presence… I felt out of place. The Great wall was very cool… the most enjoyable of the sites in Beijing. Walking along the wall I passed a donkey and peddler… Asked if I might ride his donkey… He agreed under the condition that I buy a drink from him… So there I am, riding a donkey on the Great Wall of China… I’ve said it once before and will say it again…this cannot be real life, yet the second I pinch myself I’m staring Bruce the shark in the face, driving a rickshaw or riding a donkey on the great wall of China with a beer in my hand.

            After adventures in Beijing I found myself aboard a 737 bound for a connection in Chengdu straight to Lhasa, Tibet. Before we landed in Lhasa we were briefed on the altitude and how it could pose, as a possible health hazard. At 11,000 feet oxygen is scarce…I learned a lesson later on in the trip pertaining to… The first day in Lhasa we took it easy, senior citizen easy, the second we walked out of the airport the air was so thin, heavy breathing and lethargy quickly set in. Taking it easy is all one can do while acclimating to the new altitude. 

            Tibet is a beautiful region of China surrounded by snow-capped mountains, in parts by the infamous Himalayas. We stayed in the city of Lhasa, which is influenced heavily by the practice of Buddhism. The Potalla palace is located in Lhasa and was the home to the Dalai llama until he was exiled to India, not so long ago. The people of Tibet are incredible. Unfortunately, the people are currently struggling with Chinese occupation in Tibet and are protesting heavily against it. In a nutshell the people of Lhasa claim Tibet as Independent from China, yet China insists on it being apart of China, along with that comes communist rule…I would not be happy either. Walking through Lhasa one can sense something is awry… maybe it’s the group of four Chinese soldiers walking every city square and patrolling every block with machine guns and shotguns. The soldiers at first glance look like German firing squads, it was unsettling to be around. The Tibetan monks have protested this occupation through the act of self-immolation. Self-immolation is the act of lighting oneself on fire in protest…I have since found out that during our three day stay in Lhasa, two monks, including a 19-year-old female, self-immolated in protest of the Chinese occupation in Lhasa…I hope the best for the Tibetan people, they deserve their land.

            While I was in Lhasa we visited the Potalla palace, local monasteries and a holy lake 14,000 feet up. The palace and monasteries were incredible; words cannot describe the true beauty and power that make these places what they are. The holy lake…. a place where I had my first… “Holy” experience with altitude. At 14,444 feet, you breathe heavily, it is very cold and hiking five minutes at fast click without stopping can create quite the situation to a person un- acclimated to altitude. That describes the pickle I found myself in. I stopped to catch my breath, but could not… Each breath was less satisfying than the last… shortly there after I could feel my pulse… it went to my eyes…With each pump, vision came and went…I realized I was going to blackout from the lack of oxygen and anyone who was going to help me was along the shoreline, over 500 yards away. I had to calm my breathing; hyperventilating during the escalating situation would’ve quickened my unknown demise. It was like sucking air through a straw…scary as you can imagine. Relaxing worked, I made it out after 5 minutes of altitude shock… point being, don’t run up a mountain at 14,000 feet without allowing yourself time to acclimate. Other than that, the lake was surreal. The area was shrouded in prayer flags that are infamous in many pictures of Tibet.

            My experiences in China and Tibet were simply, incredible. I enjoyed every bit of my time in country and was sad to leave. I will, one day, return too explore-further the cities of Shanghai and Hong Kong, as I could only look, not explore.  The ship was docked in Shanghai where we met up with it the last day at zero hour before departure. If we were ten more minutes late they would’ve left without us…. Sweet. The lights, sights and sounds of China will stick with me forever.    

Vietnam, Saigon

Vietnam… I finally made it too my most anticipated port and it has been more incredible than I ever imagined. I say most anticipated, because for the past year I have had a deep interest in the history behind the Vietnam conflict and the differing viewpoints, both from an American perspective and Vietnamese. The city of port was Saigon, I was expecting tin shacks and little modern infrastructure…I was wrong. The people of Saigon have built the city up after the beating the city took during the war. The city reminded me of Cape Town in the sense of the wealth and disparity of Lower class. The city is very crowded with traffic… People drive motorcycles here and are some of the best drivers I’ve come across yet. The white- knuckle rides on the back of a cabbie cycle make you think that at any moment, the merging traffic or rogue cyclist will end it for you, but you always pull through… an experience everyone should have…Its awesome! Walking across a road in Saigon starts with one step… then the enjoyment of watching traffic literally form around you, take another step and the traffic adjusts accordingly…don’t flinch or double take… or it could be a bad day in the office. The Vietnamese are good at what they do when it comes to driving…chances are they have calculated your movement in advance.
    The city features a war remnants museum dedicated to the Vietnam War. The museum was very moving and powerful. The Vietnamese story of the war and what they endured was very interesting, as I have only heard of American involvement. If you have fifteen dollars you can catch a cycle ride to the Cu Chi tunnels, which is about an hour ride into the countryside. The Cu Chi tunnels are the vast underground tunnel system that the Viet Cong guerrillas used to covertly combat American GI’s during battle. The outdoor exhibit featured original tunnel networks, various booby traps used to maim or, sadly enough, kill unsuspecting American troops….  Visiting the tunnels was the most powerful historical experience I have ever had.  Our exhibit guide, a former VC guerilla during the war, was not censoring his description of the lives they took of my parents’ friends and family members. It was difficult to see an American M 41 tank in the middle of the jungle, destroyed by a VC mine explosion…. I realized that the troops that were in that tank did not make it out alive…. That was the reality of the exhibit. While walking through the jungle, I could hear gun shots in the distance…. it was very eerie, the exhibit featured a gun range to sample the weapons of the war including the M16, M1 Garand and M 60 light machine gun.  It was difficult to walk through an exhibit that was biased towards the cause of the Viet Cong and how they outsmarted our troops, I was angered at first…. then it hit me, it was a war… Both sides were doing what they had to do to survive…. Nothing in war is fair. So I ask myself, why do we engage in warfare to begin with? It’s a waste of money, tragic loss of life over pointless goals and boils down to people not taking the time to understand the “enemy”….    
    After experiencing the history and reality of the war in Vietnam, it was grounds to trek up to the city of Nha Trang located on the water, an hour flight North of Saigon. Nha Trang is a popular vacation destination for Europeans and features white sandy beaches and overpriced resorts…. While in Nha Trang I explored to ruins of Po Nagar, Buddhist temple and snorkeled the reefs scattered around the island. It was very relaxing and gave me time to think…. This voyage has been a mental overload; any chance to stop moving, sit and process it all was vital. I realized I needed to take into account both sides of a story when it comes to war. I had a skewed view of the Vietnamese until I saw and lived their side of the story. Vietnam is an amazing country, just through visiting it has given me a new perspective on all things history related and a new sense of the reality behind war. All history aside, I loved Vietnam… A country inhabited by great people, Cheap everything and a beautiful countryside. Let the good times roll on in Saigon.

Penang, Malaysia - Cameron Highlands

Malaysia was a breath of fresh air after India, in more ways than one. Other than strenuous customs routines, Malaysia could not have been more satisfying. Within an hour of being in the country, I was whisked off to the Cameron Highlands in the Parak region, North west of Penang. I signed up for a leisure trip to the Cameron Highlands that rests at a cool 6,000 feet. The geography features some of the world’s oldest rain forest and tea plantations. The combination of lush rolling hills and rainforest makes for an incredibly scenic landscape. For the three days we were in Cameron we explored the rainforests and tea plantations, which were…unbelievable. The Jungle is very dense; you literally walk a corridor made of moss and various fernlike trees. It is very slippery and if one falls… there is no need to worry, the organic material that makes up the ground is so thick that it is like falling on a wet mattress. It is a rain forest for a reason, as it rains every 15 minutes… stops, is sunny, and then resumes raining again. The Jungle was amazing but the true scenery lies with the tea plantations.
    In Cameron the local population men women and children make a living solely on the production of tea. The hillsides that make up the tea plantations are terraced in a way to produce the maximum amount of product for export. Exploring the plantations was very special; we were greeted with tea from the very land we studied in every town. The pictures I have taken from the area will bring the beauty to light. 
    The people of Malaysia are incredibly nice and welcoming. David our guide for the trip was a character. David has been doing the Cameron highlands trip for semester at sea for 16 years and is very knowledgeable on all things Parak. His humor was very dry and intentional, I wish for the day that he can be on an episode of “the office”…It would be phenomenal.
    The whole time I was in Malaysia I felt extremely comfortable. The trip was very relaxing, slow paced and enjoyable for all. I question if the relaxation was from the sole fact that we were not in India anymore or the overall chill vibe the Malay citizens radiate…. I think both. I could live in Malaysia. The scenery is top notch and making an honest living off tea production sounded perfect. Not once did I feel stressed or rushed while in Cameron, it is extremely…Relaxing. I don’t really know how else to describe it. If you are looking for natural beauty, adventure, good food and relaxation, I highly recommend visiting the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia. Crucial thanks to David, Land Rover, The Equatorial, Dean, Royal Stout, Tiger B, Cameron shakes, Handles gold and the people of Malaysia, you are all too cool.