a year ago...

It's really wild to think how much has happened over the past year. A year ago this week, Scott proposed to me at Orr hot springs. Wedding planning frantically ensued for 9 months. We then moved out of our house and got married (yes, in that order.) Next came: our 9 week honeymoon, our return to the bay area, a conference I went to in New Orleans and then finding a place to live. We got really lucky in the competitive bay area rental market and ended up in a super cute 3 bedroom house - Scott and I both have our own offices. We've been here for almost 2 weeks which is quite a long time for us to sleep in any one place since we've been married!

On Sunday, we'll go to a different hot springs for 2 days to celebrate the anniversary of our engagement and Scott's birthday.

Here's us on the last night of our honeymoon, in Bangkok.

Ayutthaya, Thailand

Ayutthaya is the former capital of Thailand. It's about a 2 hour drive north of Bangkok (or, as we did it, a 12 hour overnight train ride south of Chiang Mai) and is surrounded by rivers. Wats (Temples) and images of Buddha are all over the place. It's a very photogenic town.

in pictures

In the snow at Rotang Pass in Northern India


In a tuk tuk in Bangkok


Being hugged by an elephant in Pai


On the elephant

more cities we've been to

Vashisht, India - Vashisht was the first city that we settled into for a while. It's a neat little hill town in the North of India surrounded by the snow capped Himalayas. It's centered along one road which has shopping, hotels and restaurants. We had 2 favorite restaurants which served the usual tourist selection of foods from India, Israel, China, and Italy. Both restaurants showed movies in a living room setting while serving dinner.

Old Manali, India - Old Manali is across the Beas river from Vashisht. The restaurant food is better as is the shopping. The views of the mountains are not as good. Old Manali was definitely one of my favorite towns.

New Manali, India - We didn't stay overnight in Old Manali, but it's a town worth mentioning. It's a walk or rickshaw ride away from both Vashisht and Old Manali. This is where we did our banking, yarn shopping and ate more authentic Indian food.

We had a crazy travel day transitioning from India to Thailand. We took a 2 hour cab ride to Kullu and then a one hour helicopter ride (where they served lunch!) to Delhi. From Delhi, we took a quick cab ride from the domestic airport to the international airport and got on a plan to Bangkok.

Bangkok, Thailand - Bangkok is a wonderful city. The transportation system is well developed - there is a sky train, underground subway, water ferries, busses, taxis, and, of course, tuk tuks (auto rickshaw.) The shopping malls are wonderfully air conditioned - we mainly spent time in their food courts. Hopefully, we'll be able to explore Bangkok more at the end of our trip.

Chiang Mai, Thailand - We took an overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai which is another major city in Thailand. One of the big universities is in Chiang Mai. Educational opportunities for the traveller abound as well. There are courses in massage, yoga and cooking. Yesterday, I took a Vegetarian Thai Cooking class which I really enjoyed. Chiang Mai has a popular tourist night market which I wasn't wowed by. But, Scott found us the night market where the locals go to which was much better.

Pai, Thailand - Today, we arrived in Pai. It's about a 4 hour drive North of Chiang Mai. It feels like a relaxed hangout. I can envision us staying here for a while.

Thai Massages

Let me start with some American comparisons.

At manicure/pedicure places in the U.S., there are a bunch of chairs lined up; your service is done next to others having their services done. The clients sometimes talk amongst themselves - "that's a great polish color on you," or "I live right down the street from here." And, the providers talk to each other. Maybe they are gossiping about their clients or what they are having for dinner that night - I'm not sure.

In contrast, massages in the U.S. are done in private rooms with the client naked (or mostly naked). Quiet music is played and the massage therapist only talks to quietly say things like, "is this pressure OK?"

Getting a massage in Thailand is more like the experience of getting a mani/pedi in America. Massages are inexpensive and easily available. On street corners and in storefronts, rows of reclining chairs are set up next to each other. You tell them what service you want (hour long foot massage, head massage, back massage, or some combination), and they go to work on you while periodically talking to one another. During my massage today, my provider's cell phone rang; she answered the phone and continued to semi-massage me while briefly talking to her caller. Then she got back to giving me my wonderful foot massage.

some pictures we've taken along the way

Beautiful pool, beach and cliffs in Railay Bay


While trekking


In Mr. Singh's rickshaw in Delhi


In a yarn store in New Manali


Day Trek from Old Manali to Solang

Sunday Monday

After I came home from India 2 years ago, I was disappointed that I hadn't bought more clothes. Clothes here are inexpensive - some are also made of inexpensive materials and are put together badly, but others are of very good quality and many of the stores have tailors on hand to make any needed alterations or to quickly construct a completely new garment on request.

So, this time, I've been spending more time in the stores (more like roadside stalls than American stores), and have bought some dresses and shirts which will hopefully look as cute back home as they do here in the dusty mirrors which the store keeper holds up so I can see what the items look like on me.

A phrase that the sellers use is "Sunday Monday." It took me a while to figure this out, but it means that the item is reversible. You can show one side on Sunday and the other side on Monday. Today I bought a Sunday Monday purse.

more on Mussoorie, India

Mussoorie is how I envision Coney Island in my grandparents' generation. It is where middle and upper class Indians go to escape the heat of their towns for family vacations and it's known as a honeymooners' town! There is a carnival atmosphere here - there is a human powered Ferris wheel, and games where you shoot at balloons affixed to a cork board (one of the young boys touting this game told us that there were no prizes - it was "only for enjoyment.") There is a cable car that brings festive riders to a higher hill which has a better view of the surrounding hills, but to the people there, it seemed that the more important feature of this hill was that there are more carnival games and the opportunity to dress up in traditional Indian garb and get professional pictures taken.

where we've been since May 8th

The Hong Kong Airport - It's a really lovely airport with comfy reclining couches (which were much needed after a fitful night of plane sleep) and computers with free internet access.
The Bangkok Airport - We were treated to an amazing thunder and lightening show through the windowed roof of the airport which would have been neat if we weren't about to get on another flight. Nervously, I got on the next flight anyway.
The Krabi Airport - Small airport.
Ao Nang, Thailand - We were supposed to take a boat to Railey Beach and not stay in Ao Nang, but I didn't see the point of getting on a rickety boat in the rainy weather. So, we stayed overnight in Ao Nang.
Railey Bay - Lovely place on the beach with beautiful cliffs and many bugs who loved to bite me. We relaxed in the ocean, pool and got massages.
Bangkok, Thailand - Had a crazy cab driver and stayed overnight.
Kathmandu, Nepal - The climate is really great in Nepal. It's not too hot and not too cold. The people are very friendly and they are excited that tourism is somewhat returning to their country. There is a tourist area called Thamel which is packed with shops and restaurants. Internet access is not very good in Nepal.
Pokhara, Nepal - A smaller version of Kathmandu but it is alongside a lake and closer to the Himalayas. We had a favorite Punjabi Vegetarian restaurant here and stayed in a super cute room that reminded me of a ski cabin.
Trekking in Nepal - Beautiful countryside. More bugs who loved me. We met interesting trekkers along the way including Nepal's French Consul.
Delhi, India - Our goal was to fly into Delhi and immediately get a train or flight to somewhere more North. But, that didn't work - there were no flights or trains for us that day. So, we spent some time in Delhi - it's a busy confusing city where we felt like we were often being scammed.
Overnight Sleeper Train - Other than the chaos of Indian train stations, I love the experience of taking sleeper trains. Once we got on the train, we made friends with the people who would be sleeping above and next to us and communicated with them as best we could given their limited English and our nonexistent Hindi. There was a young woman we were talking to who said to me, "I'm feeling much happiness with you."
Haridwar, India - The train landed in Haridwar and we got in a rickshaw - we rode past points along the Ganges river and saw many people bathing and worshiping there. And, we saw monkeys.
Rishikesh, India - Rishikesh is another holy city along the Ganges with 2 pedestrian bridges that go from one side of the town to the other. May is a prime pilgremage month there, so there were many many people there worshipping.
Mussoorie, India - We came to this hillside town to escape the heat of Delhi and Rishikesh and to relax.
Tommorow, we're off to Manali, India.