10 Best Things About Rarotonga

   

    1)    The amazingly friendly people
    2)    They don’t practice cannibalism ... anymore
    3)    The men are SO huge (arms the size of my legs) which in itself is not a reason to like a place, but given the first 2 reasons - it’s a good thing!

Yeah - Karen took this picture...

    4)    All the coconut you can eat. More than you can shake a grass skirt at.

Just another nut.

    5)    The fact you can get on the wrong bus in totally the opposite direction you want and still get to where you’re going (hint: no bus numbers - just “clockwise” and “anti-clockwise”)

Pic from the bus (how does she hang on??)

    6)    If you miss the said bus, there is always the back of someone’s truck (sort of the same as #1)

Mima's favourite mode of travel

    7)    Your back yard is an amazing natural aquarium - sooo many fish, and at the end of the day - they’re yummy
    8)    The nicest stray dogs in the world
    9)    The police ride scooters
    10)     The only country out of 26 we’ve traveled to that has a departure tax. $110 for Karen and I, but the kids are free ... So we’re sending them home and staying.
    11)     The  amazingly friendly people... : )

Do you think she is laughing at me?

See, more coconuts! Of course, Bernie took this photo.

Nearing the End - So Many to Thank

As we hit Australia and New Zealand and reintegration to cultural norms we have been without for at least 6 months, it is with mixed emotions that we think of heading home and the end of our year away. It is also a time where traveling is easy and the reflection on the year abroad has started, somewhat subconsciously. The first thing and one thing I continue to think about is how many people have contributed to making our year so wonderful and successful.  What will follow is more likely a list, because I am not sure how else to thank everyone... but what you will notice is the number of people on the list - it is truly staggering. Thank you to everyone - and please, we hope we can reciprocate the hospitality one day!

Throughout the year we have family and old and new friends to thank for a whole host of things - from looking after our own mail and whatever came up at home to  maps, advice, cars, meals, opening their homes, mail packages, books, medical advice, wireless, suggestions....

so here goes -
Mom, Liz, Granny Griz - keeping everything in order at our home including our mail, taxes, storing treasures and our car......
Rick and Kimm - storing the truck and making sure the boat runs ( regularly;)  )
Ma, Margarete, Oma - hosted us, amazing brunch we still talk about
Andy - drives to the airport, meals and a few laughs
Garth, Patricia, Logan, Alexander, and Marcus - for the loan of your car while in cowtown and the wonderful Waiperous hospitality (ie white water tubing!!)
Dad, Opa Rudi and Helene - yummy dinner out
Vic and Carolyn - Iceland maps and tips that were invaluable
Dad, Brian Grandpa B, Jayne, Granny Bird - a car for 6 weeks, hosting 2 action packed days in London, hosting us in Salcombe
Bruce and Mona - mmmmmm dinner and maps
Michael, Jackie and Joshi - so much fun in Brittany, hosting us in their amazing yard
Mike and Sue - Thanks for the use of the kitchen and not cringing too much!
Chris and HW, Michael and Stephan -  tour guide Michy, Footie games, Birthday bike rides and dinner, hosting us in Trier ....
Geronimo and Marina - what can we say  (Chris’ horses for those of you who don’t know!)
Chris and HW’s friendly neighbours - lending us bikes!
Paddy, Racquel and Tiego - fun at the beach and two amazing Portuguese dinners...and a jersey!
Uncle Bertie, Tante Gelli, and Karin -for offering your home and hosting us
Uncle Mundi - special care package (yummy!)
Hofmann clan from Austria - your generosity
Uncle Willy, Tante Crystal, Willy, Astrid, Christoph and Johannes- a wonderful day of sightseeing and getting to know you again......
The Lezzards - a fun ferry ride and a new card game - Honk honk...
Nathan - above and beyond in the now advice for visas to Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam and yummy thick shakes in Dahab... - watch out Nathan, we are coming to Kauai in March (for real)
Oma and Chris ( again ) - what a great two days in Alexandria together
Andrea - fun for the kids and wireless connectivity
Deanne, Mark and Felicity - 12 great days in your fabulous Capetown flat.
Mrs Koch - helping us with key logistics
South Africa Hwy Patrol - Bernie got his first speeding ticket - thanks!
Jill - cd’s and advice for South Africa travels
Dawn, Jackie and Aaron - package of books and goodies that arrived in Capetown - yay
Sterpins and O’Cosbeys - Vietnam leads and advice
Mennau, Ben, and Denni - super travel companions on a memorable part of the journey
Francois, Dominique and Alma Materre clan (Mayelle, Mattias and Alex) - fun days of homeschooling and trips around Chiang Mai
Dharma - wisdom and help planning our self guided, non portered trek in Nepal
Dindu and family - for showing us a level of hospitality equal to the beauty of the Himalaya.
Dave, Shelly, Cal and Mitch - your home being our home - even if it was a little longer than planned.
Anna - doing all our laundry!
Blu man Chu - Showing us Shanghai and being a great host
Friends of Shaun’s - hosting us for a great BBQ
Daren, Cynthia, Molly, Marcus - another crazy year off family to bounce stories and ideas off.  Also for giving the kids real kid time and the adult a break.....See you in Vancouver sometime!
Donna - letting us take over your home and giving Emilia a day of International School life.
Wes, Elise, Thomas, Analena and Sophie  - Hosting us in Singapore after a 5 minute meeting in Laos and days before your departure for the summer. Emilia has a special thanks for her American Doll too!  Come and visit us in Rossland.
Ian and Claude - you guys are amazing - not sure how we can ever repay the favours - sooo many!  But, hope we can.
Karin - for your medical advice via email
Helen and John, Keiran, Paula, Sammie, Gaby, Freesia -playing and feasting on the sapphire coast. Giving the kids “home” friend time. Sleepover time - woo hoo says Emilia.
Cyndi and Damien - great New Zealand tips
Richard - tips on places to stay in Rarotonga
Mark and Tracey, Ben, Kevin, LiLi - for our anticipated home invasion and reintroduction to Canadian ways.
sd20 - for allowing deferred salaries with general leaves - we are so much richer for the experiences

IF I have forgotten anyone - huge Apologies and we owe you double!

So as you can see, the list is long. The thank yous have been endless and have made such a huge difference to the success of our trip.

Japan - a Visit With an Old Friend

Well it has been about 3 weeks since we left Japan and we have visited Singapore since then and are currently in Australia. Still, I find my mind wandering back to the land of the rising sun every once in a while as our visit there was for me, in many ways, like visiting with an old friend.

Though I lived in Japan over 20 years ago, it was great to be back amongst so much that was familiar. From people's mannerisms, to fragments of language, to the food - it all came back to me with vivid clarity. Well OK, the language did not come to me with any clarity, but I did find myself remembering phrases that I never would have remembered out of the context of being there. In some cases I knew to use the phrase but needed to ask what it meant again - I just remembered to say it. Strange what gets stored in some unused corner of our memories. It was fun to eat Okonomiyaki with the family and especially to have it in Hiroshima - famous for their take on this Japanese dish. And I will always get a kick out of the politeness of the Japanese people who make "sorry" Canadians seem brash.

We went to some sites that I had experienced when I lived there, but it was especially fun to go back to Kurume -  the town I lived and worked so many years ago. We even checked out the old apartment - not much back then and pretty much the same now, but the kids enjoyed seeing where I lived. We also checked out the Dojo where I studied Kudo - the art of Japanese archery. I didn't see my sensei, but I was glad to hear he was still around and active in the dojo.

I don't really miss living there, it was an important part of my life at the time, but I also remember being ready to leave when I did. Japan had given me some great lessons and opened my mind to worlds beyond what I had known. That in itself was an incredible gift and likely one of the keys to our Four in the World journey decision.

In the end, like other old and good friends, Japan will always have an important place in my heart and in who I am. And again, like with friends, I will need to make sure I nurture that relationship to keep it fresh.

White Tiger

3 days ago we went to the Singapore zoo. At the zoo there were white tigers. They are one of the most endangered animals. There are less white tigers in the world than orange tigers. They were hunted for trophies originally but now they are hunted for their fur. In some countries that they have the tiger, if you are caught hunting them you can be executed. Sometimes people will sell tourists tiger meat and say that it is beef. The hide of a tiger can be sold for over a thousand dollars.

Single Male

A tiger can kill almost any species in its habitat.  Tigers will eat any animal that they have killed except for other carnivores that they may kill for less competition.  Elephants and Rhinos are the only two other animals that I know of that they won't kill unless they are injured, young, or really old.  At the zoo there was a case of a feeder who went in and put the bucket of food over his head and lay down. The Tiger killed him. It is a crazy form of suicide.

Two females

When we were watching them, I noticed that the male is bigger and stronger than the females (same as the orange tiger). I thought the white tigers were very cool and I hope everybody can help to save their habitat.

Bye,
Mattias

A Bomb

Today we went to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.  As you can guess it is here because of an atomic bomb (called an A Bomb) that hit in world war 2. Every thing was flattened in a 2 km radius . The temperature was 3,000-4,000 degrees celsius. Some people melted to death. Survivors say people were jumping in the river and after there were many dead bodies floating in the river. The US picked Hiroshima to drop the A bomb on because they had no prisoners of war.

The time the bomb exploded - August 6th, 1945

A photo of Hiroshima after the bomb (notice the dome)

The dome stands today as a reminder.

The origami crane is a symbol of peace. It originated from a girl who had cancer because of the A bomb and when she was in the hospital she made cranes for wishes for her life. Some of the cranes were so small she had to use a needle to fold them. She made over one thousand cranes. 8 months after she was in the hospital she died. Her classmates decided to make a memorial to represent all the children who died as a result of the A bomb.  I made an origami crane to put at the memorial. It was purple and white.

The dome through the Peace Arch

A monument to Sadako and all children affected by the bomb.

My crane (the purple one) amongst many.

Thanks for understanding the problems an atomic bomb can create and how two generations are affected by it.

Mattias

A Tale of Two Countries

The Tale of Two Countries...

Twenty-one years ago I traveled for a spell after living overseas and my travels took me to many wonderful places. Two specific countries I traveled to on that particular journey we have traveled to on this trip as well. And while it is one thing to experience a country for the first time, it is quite another to revisit a place after so many years - complete with faded memories and impressions. In Nepal and China this second experience cannot be further apart in terms of changes I’ve seen and impressions they have left on me.

Nepal, for most intents and purposes, would have ranked twenty-one years ago as one of my favourites. That did not change. The people are genuine and always quick with a smile, the towns and cities are chaotic and colourful, and the mountain experience is always exhilarating. China on the other hand I remember to be rewarding, but it was also incredibly hard traveling. It wore me down. The people were harsh, not overly friendly toward us and suspicious of foreigners. Many towns in China in 1990 seemed drab and desperate.

Happy playing - as kids should be.

In Nepal what struck me most on this trip was how little things had changed. Over two decades ago I had the impression that Nepal would go places. Granted, as a country it probably has little the rest of the world needs. But the people were so resourceful; able to deliver whatever travelers desired. Surely this could be extended to other areas like textile manufacturing and at the time this seemed to be happening. In the area of tourism they seemed progressive. On treks you saw a clear system of organization and even attention to being environmentally friendlier like incentives for locals to use less wood and more gas in cooking - the cost passed on to the trekkers.

A Nepalese bus...half full

I always wanted to return to Nepal partly to experience the magic of before, and also out curiosity. How had Nepal faired? Well, the magic is still there, but as a country Nepal has not faired too well. Since my last visit Nepal has gone through years of political instability and violence. The optimism that was evident then has lost it’s shine. The place felt pretty much the same as it did twenty years ago and maybe even had taken a few steps back. Sure there were more teahouses in the Langtang valley where we trekked bringing it on par with some of the more popular routes, but Kathmandu was more polluted, poor, and barely hanging on. Even electricity is regular rationed in the nation’s capital. The general feeling of optimism has been replaced with skepticism typical of places that have long ago seen better times (and the better times of Nepal where never really that good). Now often western tourists tout the places that haven’t changed - that town or country that time seems to have forgotten. I don’t really subscribe to that sentiment if it means people who can’t attain even their basic needs and whose rights are woefully neglected. Nepal, and especially Kathmandu, are like that.

China, on the other hand, is not. Given the above description about China twenty years ago, I do wonder how it made it onto our itinerary for the Four-eign the World trip? It could be that Mima or Mattias circled it on the map, but it also had something to do with the fact that we wanted to see what all the hype was about. Was life in China really on par with all the growth and changes we had been hearing? Well, whereas Nepal felt as if I was back there twenty years ago, China was totally unfamiliar to me. The same cities and spots I had been to were completely unrecognizable outside of a few key landmarks in Beijing. Major infrastructure projects are everywhere as building cranes proliferate both urban and rural landscapes. It seems as though apartment complexes are being built for 1.4 billion people to simultaneously move out of the Hutongs and villages and take up residence.

Shanghai skyline and smog

Xian - symbols of old and new

Even the people have changed - they are somehow softer, friendlier, ...they wear brighter clothes (though the fashionista side of me tells me they have some work to do here...). Sure, in lineups they push as well as they ever did, but they are different from what I remember. They are no longer the communists fearing the evil westerner. In fact, they have embraced more aspects of capitalism than I could ever had imagined possible in a short twenty years. I’ll ignore the ramifications (especially environmental) of this incredible growth, and China’s human rights record will still be questionable for a while yet. However, there are livable cities being built, food in the markets, and happy and fed children going to school.

15 seconds of protest and ???

If Nepal felt like time stood still and even slipped backwards, the contrast of China is one of a whole nation having been transported on their high speed trains. For different reasons, I will continue to think, maybe worry, and wonder about both.

Dun da da dah dah dun dun dahhhh....Disneyland

Dun da da dah dah dun dun dahhhh!

I am a super hero and I am here to tell you about Disneyland!

(He he he...)

Hi this is Emilia and we went to Disneyland while we were in Hong Kong.

The first ride that we went on was called Space Mountain. If you ever go to Disneyland you HAVE to go on Space Mountain. It is a roller coaster that when it starts going it goes into pitch black where you can't see anything. All of a sudden there are some flashing lights but still you can't see anything. In fact, you can't see anything for the whole ride. Then you start going up a steep hill and when you get to the top of the hill you can see lots of stars and planets, then suddenly - zooooom - you zip around the place and there are sudden turns and drops. The first time on it I was screaming. We actually went on Space Mountain six times because it was one of the only non-babyish rides.

Another one of my favorite rides was driving the Disney cars. It was pretty fun as I sat next to mom in a Disney car driving around the tracks. Luckily (because I'm a crazy driver) there were special things attached to the car and track that stopped the car from going off the tracks.

We also went to two shows. My favorite one, Encounters with Stitch, was really fun because Stitch picked me to tell a little about myself in front of absolutely everybody. He asked a few things like what my name was and how old I was. Then he asked where I was from and when I said Canada he said "Canada, Canada, yippee!! Canada... huh? ... Never heard of Canada". That made me laugh into the microphone which sounded quite awkward! The other show was Lion King and it was fascinating. It was well thought out and my favorite character was a flying bird.

I thought Disneyland was quite the experience and if I ever have the chance to go again I would.

Bye, Emilia

Just When You Think You Have Seen It All!

"Just when you think you have seen it all!" is now the family motto! While we were in Nepal hiking through the mountainsides full of blossoming rhododendrons, Emilia came out with this. How true it is. Nine months of seeing so much and doing so many different things and there seems to be endless more to do.

Hiking at 3000m

In Nepal we reached new heights, hiking to a peak of 4780m...in the beautiful sun - only to be socked in the next day and hiked out in 15cm of freshy. Timing was everything on summit day. Eating delicious Yak cheese made in the village at 3500m that we stayed in for 3 days, playing with the local villager children and stunning the other hikers and porters alike with our kids hiking 10 days with no porters or guides were just a few of the things we did in the Langtang valley. The kids felt proud and confident after that. We were proud of them.

Hong Kong was not new for Bernie or me, but it was fun to share our favorite haunts and to find a new one - HK Disneyland! What a blast and really we just got there in the nick of time for both kids to still appreciate the cheesy little kid stuff.  It is a small venue so we did spend a lot of time on Space Mountain (see Mima's blog). And thanks to Dave and Shelley for putting up with us for so long. Our rushed one day visa only took 7 days!

On to China where we became more the attraction than the attraction we were at. The kids tire of it at times but have been in lots of photos too.  Hanging out at Blu's place was great, the kids are ready to move in...good food, comfy bean bag enormous chair, pools, soccer fields, kids-this is a life of the rich and famous.

Sightseeing with Blu Man Chu

We volunteered at the panda research and breeding centre - yet another highlight for all of us ( see Mattias' blog). We battled 1.4 billion Chinese to see the terra-cotta warriors, hiked nature's stair master up one of China's 4 sacred mountains- the best part was getting high enough to be above the smog ( seriously), and then.....just when we thought life was good and we started to get a bit cocky about how easy travel was.... Our flight to Beijing went sideways. Really, we landed two hours west of Beijing for some unknown reason. We were held on board for three hours, fed dinner and then told the flight would get to Beijing, but perhaps not for another 3 hours or so, maybe.....so a new adventure of busses, fast trains, subways and taxi to get to Donna's. We have a few unknown 20 something helpfuls to thank for getting us here.  First on the plane, then at the train station and then at the taxi stand in the middle of nowhere at midnight! Our Chinese is non existent and we were hooped without their help.

And now after the Great Wall excursion - yet another icon on the world list checked off.... Mima has decided to go to school. She is joining a grade 2 class tomorrow at Western Academy Beijing. Who knows what she will see in the classroom?! She is converted and is trying to talk us into moving abroad to teach internationally. The three schools we have toured are state of the art, and all top notch in all they do, and our friends who work at them all live in pretty swanky places.  But not to worry, though she is sold, we are not. We love the fresh air life at home and think our schools are pretty good too, not to mention our home.

Great Wall image by Mattias

We had the luxury of traveling with some new friends for half our China visit - the Rahals: Daren, Cynthia, Molly and Marcus are on a very similar trip. We were sorry to say goodbye to them;) but hope to see them in Vancouver when we get back!

Hangin with the Rahals

Who knows what is left on our "just when you think you have seen it all" list, but we can't wait to see. And we will let you know as we see it!  

Racoony Bears

Yesterday we went to a Panda Breeding and Research Centre. We volunteered and helped clean up poop and their mess. The poo was very stinky and really really heavy. Did you know that only 20% of the bamboo gets digested? And they need to drink a lot of water even to get that much.

Scooping poop!

We were in charge of Ling Ling’s enclosure. Ling Ling’s poo from one day weighed 38 kilos - we scooped it all, separating it from the bamboo left over.  We had to clean up the one day old bamboo that he wouldn’t eat any more.

Their favorite foods are apples and Panda Cakes which are made out of wheat, corn rice and vitamins. We tried a little bit of one and it would be the last food option I would eat. They only get one cake about the size of a cupcake each day so they don’t get too fat.  We fed them the apples, cakes and bamboo shoots. They are very intelligent and are amazingly quick at stripping the skin of the bamboo.

Feeding Mei Lei apples

We fed one of the most famous Panda’s in the world, her name is Mei Lei. She was a very queen like panda bear and would sit with the cakes in front of her nose that we were holding while she ate her bamboo. Every now and then she would take a bite of her cake or apple. She is very lazy.

There are only 1600 pandas left in the wild in the world and they are only found in China.  Though the Chinese are trying to reintroduce them, the wild bears are stronger and will kill the reintroduced bears for food. There have been no successful reintroductions but they are making a new habitat for bears that is closer to the natural habitat - at the same altitude -  so they can hopefully have a successful reintroduction program.

The section of the center that we worked had nine bears. Three adults and six cubs two years old. One of the cubs won’t eat the healthy cake unless it is with a special formula so they have to do that so the bear gets its vitamins.  When we were feeding them the apples with special vitamins in them, the bears were so smart that they spat out the pills!

Ling Ling snacking on bamboo shoots

Panda or raccoon?

We also saw some red pandas. There are 5000 left in the world and they are found in a few countries. We didn’t clean their sanctuaries but we could observe them for an hour. They are really funny because they always lie in the trees. One time when we were watching them they were fighting for some weird reason. Our volunteer worker said that the red pandas are territorial and solitary like the giant pandas.

It was so fun I would definitely do it again if we could.

Bye Mattias

Third quarter done....wow!

As we travel on time seems to just go faster and faster. Already we are in our last quarter of the year. Here is the continued update per country. The countries are in the order that we went, the rest is in no particular order and is a mish mash of all of our thoughts.

South Africa
Best Food-Blts, but clts: burgers in Capetown
Best attraction -Sodwona Bay leatherback turtle laying her eggs; Kruger wild dogs; cape town African Penguins
Biggest Challenge- avoiding speeding tickets; finding lions in tall grasses

Thailand
Best Food: hocho at Niras; Mima's bday food; Bernie's buffet in AuNang; fishing village lunch Ko Chang; banana rolls
Best attraction- elephant bathing riding and feeding; spooning a tiger
Biggest Challenge-finding honest taxi drivers in Bangkok

Cambodia
Best food: Pot Ling;sugar cane
Best attraction-silk farm;trees reclaiming ancient wats
Biggest challenge-being pinned between seats on the sleeper buses

Vietnam
Best food-food we made in our cooking class with Blue Dragon
Best attraction- Hoi An; Hmong mountain people in Sapa ( we know the people aren't an attraction, this was a highlight); CatBa Island
Biggest challenge- dodging motorcycles in Saigon;staying clean in Sapa

Laos
Best food- chicken laap;night market eating in Luang Prabang
Best attraction- Muang Ngoi Nue; rope swing at the waterfall near LP
Biggest Challenge- pushing a bus one inch at a time through mud...11 hours and 120 kms later we arrived

Nepal
Best food-apple momos from Woodland; savory pumpkin pie at KC's
Best attraction- climbing to 4780m to the top of Kaijing Ri and looking at the glaciers and snow covered peaks surrounding us
Highlight : Nepali people are amazing
Biggest challenge- seeing the rivers in Kathmandu, they are an environmental disaster; breathing while playing with local kids at 3500m!

Here Kitty Kitty Kitty

Hi a lot of jealous people,
Four days ago we went to pat tigers at a place called The Tiger Kingdom. My sister and I could only pat the smallest size (3 or 4 months) because otherwise we would get eaten alive by tigers (interesting experience it would be).When Mima and I patted the small size we realised the fur is like a cheetahs and the black fur is softer than the orange fur.

"Can I get one of these?"

Mom and Dad patted the biggest type as well as the smallest one. When they patted the biggest size tiger, we sat outside and watched a tiger that was in a napping cage. Her name was Summer flower. She was a year and a half old and she kept jumping at the fence trying to eat us. Even a 3 month old was eyeing Mima. Summer Flower was watching a chubby guy in a blue shirt who was crouching down and watching her. When he got up to leave, Summer Flower was jumping at the fence with her claws out.

"Always watching"

The Tigers have a trick that they do when they hunt. They walk back and forth (pacing) as after a while as you watch them you feel queasy. Summer Flower was doing this to Mima and I and then it walked up to a different napping cage behind us and started to stalk us. CREEPY! When the tigers get to the age of two they get too aggressive and strong so they put them in a different cage and will sell them to zoos. They had one ten year old male tiger which we think they use for mating.

Just yawning - phew!

The tigers were one of my Chiang Mai highlights.

Bye, Mattias

photos coming.....

Two T's (one for Trek and one for Tigers)

Hello everyone!
We are in Chiang Mai Thailand (pronounced Chang My.) Yesterday we came back from a three day trek. The activities we did are visiting a longneck tribe, elephant riding, white water rafting, hiking in the mountains and alongside a river, and bamboo rafting!!! My favorite part was white water rafting because you get splashed a lot and it's really fun when you go down gigantic rapids!!!!!! Me and Tias didn't paddle though, we just HELD ON for our lives!!!!!!!!!! We couldn't bring our camera white water rafting or bamboo rafting so we have no photos of that.

About 14 years of 'stretching' to go

Time for a swim

Tiger part now.
Before we left for our trek we went to the Tiger Kingdom. It is where visitors/tourists can pat tigers. Me and Mattias, since we are kids, were only allowed to pat the smallest tigers. Not the small ones, not the medium ones, not the largest but only the smallest. It was very cool. We figured out that the tigers' black fur, like cheetas, is softer than the tawny fur around the stripes.

On the prowl

Being in Chiang Mai has been really awesomely cool.

From,
 Emilia