Life's a Stitch

Japan: Day 3 & 4 Osaka

The bullet train from Kyoto to Osaka took 14 minutes and cost around $55 for the two of us. That sounds expensive, but considering the distance covered, it was OK. 

We checked into our tiny room at the SmileOsaka hotel.

The afternoon was spent at a nearby mall where we had lunch in the seating/dining area of a nice grocery store. In Japan we learned two important things: you must not eat while walking. Children are trained at a young age to sit while eating. It is a way to be respectful of food. Second is that there are no trash cans as there is the expectation that you will haul your garbage with you to dispose of properly at home. When visiting North America, the Japanese must think we are quite uncivilized considering the garbage that ends up on the street.

After lunch we shopped at Daiso. In Canada the base price at Daiso is $2.50, in Japan the same items were $1.

On the way home the goal was to figure out how to get to the Expo site, about a half hour ride away. There were three choices: shuttle bus (only one every 30 minutes, requiring a reservation that was sold out for our 9:00 a.m. entry time, trains with three transfers, and a cab for $75. Taxis are expensive in Japan and Uber is not the same service we’re used to, it’s a means to book a cab company. Turns out the fare included an Expo toll for a direct road through the city, built specifically for expo. We took the taxi there and the bus home.

Expo was impressive site-wise, but they were not ready for the crowds. The app for advanced pavilion tickets was not working and lines were long.

We were lucky that the Canadian pavilion gave preference to Canadians, and of all the countries we saw, it was the most impressive. I suppose I’m biased. You entered a room with large iceberg shaped sculptures, while holding a tablet on a handle. As you aimed your tablet at the icebergs, scenes came to life. 

The site was surrounded by a raised wooden walkway, this section along the reflecting pond with a fountain show.

We also visited Poland, the Nordic Countries, the UK, a multi-national marketplace, and a corporate pavilion featuring nature and medical technology. It was there we tried the bed of the future.

We snacked throughout the day: my favourite pastel nata at the Portuguese pavilion, pizza from Japan’s famous 7-11 (where you can buy acceptable food including noodles, soup, and chicken, there’s one on every block) and at the food court I tried a curry bun, basically a delicious deep fried donut filled with curry.

The Portuguese pavilion had a nautical theme, hence the ropes decorating the outside of the structure.

After a long day of crowds and queuing we were more than ready to get on the bus back to town.

We decided to return to the restaurant of last night’s dinner, a steakhouse called Buff, two blocks from the hotel. We had lamb chops for an appetizer, followed by delicious steaks. The quality and price were excellent. Tonight we wanted to try the 100% beef burgers. Big disappointment, we thought the 100% referred to the amount of meat in the burger, when it really referred to the fact that the only meat in it was beef. There was a lot of filler, more like a meatloaf and gravy.

Next will be the trip back to Yokohama for one more night in the Grace Hotel prior to boarding our ship the following morning.

Another adventure done: Day 1 & 2 Yvr to Tokyo, Yokohama to Kyoto

Check another one off the list. We choose our adventures primarily based on value, then location, so this time we were led to Japan for a cruise to five Japanese ports, six days at sea (including two May 2nd's as we crossed the dateline) then five ports in Alaska prior to arriving in our home port of Vancouver. Having only a one way flight adds to the value factor.

A direct flight to Tokyo was only ten hours, fewer than it takes to fly to Europe, which always requires layovers. The airport limo bus into Yokohama was reasonable and easy, dropping us off a block from our hotel, the Yokohama Grace. We spent the night, then checked our larger suitcases for four nights and travelled to Kyoto and Osaka with one carry on and a backpack. The bullet train was easy to negotiate if you get on the correct train. We didn't. It was still easy, going to the same place, just a few minutes earlier, but it required giving up our reserved seat on the side of the train in order to see Mt. Fuji. We caught a peek-a-boo glimpse through the window across the aisle. When travelling at 300 kilometers per hour, most views are brief. 

We spent the day walking, our destinations being the 400 year old Nishiki Market, lunch and the Uniqlo store at the train station. We have Uniqlo here in Vancouver, but the $56 hoodies are only $26 there and I stocked up with three different colours.

For lunch I had the premium Japanese short ribs and vegetables that you grill at the table. 


The next day we booked a ten hour bus tour, hitting many of Kyoto's highlights:

Kiyomizu-dera Temple:

Sanju-san-gen-do Temple with tour guide Mai:

Sagano Bamboo Forest and Tenryu-ji temple:

Kinkaku-ji Golden Temple:

Fushimi Inari Shrine:

Turns out we were "those" people on the tour, jetlagged and exhausted, who didn't listen carefully and missed the last meeting spot and the bus back. Good thing we weren't going back to a ship that would leave without us. A wonderful woman, a guide from another company, came to our rescue. Long story short: we were handed the equivalent of $10cdn (as there was no time for a bank machine) and told to run to the local train to ride two stations where we could meet our guide and recover our personal belongings. You can be sure we paid attention on the remainder of our tours!

We decided on a stop at a grocery store for dinner in our hotel room. This is what $37 will buy in Japan, pretty reasonable considering the decent Spanish wine. Fruit is a luxury there, the least expensive apples we found were $2.95 Cdn each. And we never tried the $50 cantaloupes. 

Next will be Osaka and our visit to Expo 2025.

Rocky Mountain National Park continued

Note: delays due to further issues with Typepad's ability to upload photos. I have a new goal: this summer when Mari is here to hold my hand I will migrate this blog to a platform I can manage myself. 

Day 3: started with crab cakes eggs Benedict, of course, then headed to the downtown Estes Park Visitor Center area to grab a few geocaches. A walk around Estes Lake reminded me of my trips here in the 70's and 80's.

Our afternoon adventure was a drive on the white knuckle one way single lane Trail Ridge Road, complete with many hairpin turns and steep dropoffs, only accessible during the summer. Our destination was the Alpine Visitor Center. The views were spectacular ascending, at the top. and driving down to complete the circle. 

 

Given the long day this was the night for our dinner out. I can highly recommend Sweet Basilico Cafe, but make a reservation or expect a good wait. We had the good wait.

Day 4:  What did I have for breakfast? As we would say in 7th grade: I'll give you three guesses, the first two don't count. Crab cakes eggs bennie of course, not wanting to deviate from that 90% statistic cited in my previous post. 

We started with a walk around Sprague Lake as we couldn't find a space in the park and ride, intending to bus to the parking lot for a hike to Alberta Falls. There were many beautiful spots that will turn into future paintings.

We drove directly to the trail parking lot and successfully found a spot. The trail to the falls was a breeze as compared to our Day 2 adventure. 

Our last stop was the YMCA Camp so I could do some geocaching. I inadvertently chose the long route to the cache, but the views from the outdoor chapel were outstanding. 

Back at the condo we grilled steak for dinner and packed for the journey home in the morning.

Turning back the time machine

And now we're in August 2024. As I've been able to post pictures, still with effort but not as much, I've decided to go back in time to post some missed experiences. In August I had the opportunity to meet up with long term (not old 😉) friend, Nancy, from my days living in Omaha in the early 80's. We decided on four nights in a location between here and there, which ended up being Estes Park, Colorado, a place I hadn't been to in at least 45 years. It's as beautiful as I remembered, but not a teensy mountain town anymore, invaded by the usual suspects you can find anywhere: Safeway, McDonalds, Dollar Tree... 

Day one: Nancy drove in from Omaha and picked me up at the Denver airport and we continued the hour and a half into the mountains. The location of the airport, far out of the city itself, made for easy driving in light traffic. We arrived at our pretty condo on a babbling brook and made plans for our visit while punting for dinner with the snack foods we packed and the Costco run Nancy had made. 

Day two: The decision was made to have breakfasts out, pack our lunches and cook at home for dinner for two nights and go out for one. Our condo had a complete kitchen and a brand new gas grill on the deck. First stop of the day was Estes Eggs where I discovered crab cake eggs bennie. I know a good thing when I taste it and had it three days in a row. Just call me a creature of habit. I read some research that said something like 90% of people eat the same breakfast every day. If I could have those crabby eggs benedict every day I would. Next stop was Safeway for grocery shopping and a quick stop home to unload the groceries.

We stuffed our backpacks with food and water and headed up to one of the visitor's centers at Rocky Mountain National Park. Times have definitely changed with its popularity necessitating of a timed entry system. We had the advantage of Nancy having already been up there on a family trip and was well versed as to the ins and outs of the system. We watched the visitor center's movie, something I try to do at all national parks. We took the shuttle and had an easy walk around Bear Lake.

After lunch we headed up the trail that passes two lakes, Nymph and Dream and ultimately ends at Emerald Lake. This was an over enthusiastic decision considering it was our first day, we started at an elevation of 7500 feet and 90% of the trail was uphill. At several stops we talked to people who were having difficulty acclimatizing and a couple who were turning back. But up we went. The views were spectacular.

Nymph Lake was covered in lily pads and had a nice bench for a break.

We continued our uphill climb alternating with rest stops until we reached Dream Lake, which wasn't too far and had a great view of Hallett Peak. 

We decided, given the long first full day coupled with altitude, we'd head back to the condo for a Salmon dinner. It was a perfect day. The word of the day: incline.

More to follow

Cairo, again

We arrived early, back in Cairo for the what is considered the main event of the trip: the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Sphinx and the Egyptian Museum. Today however, it was a stop at the Khan el-Khalili bazaar, originally a historic caravanserai and centre of trade in mid 13th-16th centuries. Now it is the district that houses the massive bazaar, home to souvenir shops, artisan workshops, clothing booths, really anything you want.

In our younger days we might have shopped til we dropped, but this time we are not interested in accumulating stuff and were there for the atmosphere. 

Afterwards we were taken to the suburb called "the 6th of October" to a five star resort, the Movenpick Media City, for our last few nights. We passed by neighbourhoods where the pyramids appeared to be in their back yards.

We ubered across the highway for a couple of dollars to see the Mall of Egypt where I stocked up on family gifts of local spices.

In the morning we boarded the bus for the short ride to the Great Pyramid, the history of its construction still under speculation, but we were guaranteed it had nothing to do with aliens.

 

Mack and Rika went for a camel ride and Rika had the unique experience of being kissed by a camel.

The sphinx was just down the road.

Next stop was back in downtown Cairo, the Egyptian Museum, which felt like a scene from the computer game we played with our kids - the Dagger of Amon Ra.

Back at the hotel the food was delicious, the breakfasts were the best of the entire trip. Each afternoon at 4:00 there was a chocolate happy hour.

When we travel with this company we chose the accommodati0n in the "charm" category along with all but one couple. Those who choose the superior category as usually on their own at different hotels and we like the camaraderie of the group. Charm on our trip to South America exceeded our expectations. On this trip it was average or better and we believed they saved the best for last. We enjoyed a last dinner with some of our travel mates.

The next morning we started our long journey home. I have no complaints about the organization of the trip except for the flights. Today we travelled Cairo to London, London to Dallas, and Dallas home to Vancouver. The flight to Dallas on British Airways was exceptional - the service in particular was outstanding and we were lucky to have upstairs seats.

In between Dallas and YVR we were treated to a spectacular view of the Northern Lights. A magnificent ending to a special trip.

I was today years old when I learned that when an image on this blog appears as a question mark, you can click on it and the image appears. Lifesastitch has been here for over 20 years and I just figured it out. Granted, Typepad, my blogging platform has experienced major technical difficulties in uploading photos only in the past few years. One of these days I'm going to host it myself, but it will take a supreme act of bravery to migrate over 20 years of posts.

Upper Nile

Another hot day with a tight schedule. We started at the enormous Edfu Temple of Horus, built between 237 and 57 BC. Another example of solid construction and intricate carvings withstanding the test of time despite being buried 12 meters deep under blowing desert sand and silt from the Nile. During our stay in the country we were accompanied by a Master's level Egyptologist who did a good job explaining the stories from the Hellenistic period depicted in the etched walls.

The Temple of Horus was built to honour an Egyptian god and the protector of the pharoah. Horus is represented by a falcon.

Many in the group suffered from tummy issues. That combined with the heat, we decided to take the afternoon off for some R&R and played cards with Mack and Rika in the covered area on the pool deck of the ship. That evening included an interesting ask me anything session about Egyptian culture with our guide, that focussed on politics and culture. This was combined with the ever present sales pitches from merchants, this time from the ship's gift and jewelry store. The prices were reasonable and the quality was assured by the cruise company. Rika and I bought rings that depicted our names in hieroglyphics. 

In the morning we started with a tour of Aswan'e quarry and the unfinished obelisk. Commissioned by Queen Hatshepsut, 1508-1458 BC, it was to be the largest obelisk in Egypt. It was carved on its side directly from the bedrock and cracks were discovered during the building process putting an end to the project. If finished it would have stood 137 ft high and weighed over a thousand tonnes.

In the afternoon we boarded a felucca, a traditional Mediterranean sailboat that was introduced to Egypt in more modern times.

We transferred to a two level motorized tour boat for a private tour of a family home in a Nubian Village farther down the Nile. On the way we could see where tourists could slide or snowboard down the dunes and there was a quick stop to wade in the river, which appeared surprisingly clean and clear. People think of crocodiles when the hear the Nile, but in reality they are below the Aswan Dam, nowhere near our location.

The family we visited introduced us to their captive pet crocodiles, fed us tea, hummus, cheese and fresh homemade bread, and entertained us with music and dancing. I happily paid baksheesh to have my picture taken with the family weaver at his loom. It was a typical small group tourist stop.

Before returning to the ship we were taken to a tea and spice shop. Beware of such stops on tours. The prices were very high as they pay baksheesh to guides and/or drivers who bring them customers and similar items can be bought more reasonably elsewhere on your own. 

We returned to the ship for dinner and the Lower Nile appropriate daily towel decoration in our cabin.

It was a short night with a 4:00a.m. wakeup call so we could visit the Aswan Dam on our way to the airport for our flight back to Cairo.

Local dogs enjoying the view:

Stay tuned, the journey continues…

 

Luxor, Egypt

After yesterday's hours in the heat, C elected to skip the evening tour of Luxor Temple. I went as it was only a five minute ride away and temperatures would be dropping with the setting sun. Built starting in 1400BCE, the temple is located in the current city along the banks of the Nile. In ancient times the city was known as Thebes. Legend has it the god, Amon, was reborn here during the yearly reenactment of the pharaoh's coronation. 

During the Roman era, some of the hieroglyphics were covered over with frescoes of Christian saints.

Luxor’s temple is connected to the Karnak temple by the Avenue of Sphinxes.

The next morning we toured Karnak, the huge complex that covers 247 acres. Built over a period of 1500 years, starting in 1971BCE, it is a series of elaborate temples and holds the honour of being the largest religious structure on earth. 

The sphinxes turned into rams that symbolize the Egyptian god, Amon. Each is protecting a statue of a king between its front legs.

Rika and I participated in the ritual of walking around the scarab statue for luck. You walk a certain number of times for different intentions such as marriage, longevity and wealth.

It's here we learned an important lesson on the custom of baksheesh, the act of tipping that is expected by everyone. We experienced this at the airport as we were standing in the lineup someone came up and moved C's suitcase four feet forward and extended his hand for a tip. If you ask anyone a question they expect a tip. Today we were trying to locate a particular statue for a geocache and decided to ask a uniformed police officer. He lead us to the excavation site, and with nobody around asked us for a tip. We complied and he told us it wasn't enough. This is a cop in uniform. It was generally an uncomfortable feeling. Another example: you expect to tip for services rendered in public washrooms, sometimes by unofficial attendants. I asked in advance what was considered acceptable. We visited a large shopping mall one evening and  noticed there were no attendants present. The next day we returned and a woman was there. I was not prepared and dug up what change I had left, the average expected amount. After Rika and I left the ladies room she followed us yelling loudly, presumably that we hadn't given her enough. It's a poor country and people are coping the best they can I suppose.

We returned to the ship to set sail. We were followed by men in a small boat trying to sell tablecloths and blankets to the passengers.

I spent the afternoon sketching the views from the ship, as I packed my watercolours and paper, but forgot my brushes and pouch of art supplies. I was able to pick up a pencil at one of our tour spots at a perfume factory and Bob's your uncle, as they say here in Canada.

Popped into a small matt it made a good birthday gift for our travelmate Mack. 

We went through the locks at night and even the blanket peddlers hitched a ride through with us.

The next morning we were greeted by this amazing sunrise on the Nile.

 

Amman to Cairo

We flew from Asia to Africa in an hour and a half.  It was a 40 minute coach ride from the airport to our hotel, by some very depressing areas of dilapidated apartment buildings that looked to be in ruins, but there was evidence of people living there. 

We checked into the 900 room Ramses Hilton where we had a spectacular view of the Nile accompanied by the roar of traffic paired with the nonstop honking of horns. As we pulled up to the hotel the bomb sniffing dog gave our vehicle the once over. Acts of terrorism at international hotels are not uncommon. We have experienced similar security in Bali, where there were hotel bombings at two sites in 2005. What a world. 

I had planned on walking to an art store as I discovered that although I brought paint and paper with me, I forgot my brushes and pouch of art supplies. Turns out this was not a good walking area so we hung out at the hotel with our new friends waiting for a room. I was glad this would be a one night stay.

We were invited to a fellow traveller's room. Mary from Florida, well into her 80’s, had more energy than any of us. She treated us to tiramisu from the Starbucks in the hotel lobby. The group headed off to a hotel restaurant for dinner.

It was a quick night with an early flight to Luxor. We landed and were immediately put into in tour mode, first stop  was the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut



We learned that statues with crossed arms depict deceased individuals, while uncrossed depicts them in life.

Next stop was the Valley of the Kings, home to tombs of 65 members of royalty and nobility including Tutankhamen  and the sons of Ramses. Elaborate artwork told the stories of the culture in hieroglyphics and lined the tunnels to the tombs. Going deeper into the earth would make you think the temperature would be cooler, but that wasn’t the case. It was hot and still and limited the amount of time we could remain there.

.

By mid afternoon it was time to board our Nile River cruise ship.

The accommodation was a bit dated, but comfortable enough for a four night stay.

The sunsets and night time view of the tombs of the nobles were spectacular .

Seventh day in Jordan - Jerash and Aljoun Castle

The week has flown by. Tomorrow we head to Cairo for the Egyptian portion of the trip. We had a 45 minute ride to Jerash, referred to as the "Pompeii of the east." Covering 200 acres, that translates to 8,712,000 square feet! Be prepared for hot weather and hilly uneven terrain while you trek through well preserved ruins that met its demise in the 700's due to earthquake and were eventually buried in blowing sand. The city of Jerash has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, but the ruins are from a walled Greco-Roman settlement with the typical columned architecture: the Hadrian's Arch built in the second century:

the temple of Artemis:

the oval plaza, the only one if its shape found in a city of this style and era: 

and the Cardo-Maximus, the main colonnaded road.

Some of the additional attractions include a 15,000 seat amphiteatre, the Temple of Zeus, a nymphaeum (public fountain), two theatres, and three Christian churches.

We met a nice vendor at a souvenir stall who took some great photos of Rika and me. We bought some beautiful small pottery bowls from him.

We had lunch onsite, a step up from the typical tourist buffet, and at $21, less than lower quality more expensive one we previously had. I have no sweet tooth, but the warm luqaimat (tiny doughnut balls with sugar syrup) were irresistible. 

The afternoon took us to the 12th century Ajloun Castle, high up on a hilltop with a spectacular view. A narrow road led us to the top and it was the first time we witnessed our excellent drive lose his temper at other drivers.

Upon arrival back in Amman we said goodbye to our amazing knowledgeable guide, Adnan. Trained as an aircraft engineer in the US, the job market was not good  for him in Jordan, so he's been a professional guide for 26 years. On these tours it is traditional to tip the guide and driver at the end of the trip. We were surprised that not everyone did. There is plenty of online information with suggested amounts for the people who take care of you and get you safely from place to place. 

An early morning wakeup call got us going for the trip to the airport and our flight to Eygpt. The highlight was an airport Middle Eastern McDonalds brekkie - a Halloumi McMuffin.  The delicious full meal was $8 cdn. I bet it would be a good seller back home in Vancouver.

The flight was smooth and we got a sneak peak of a couple of the pyramids. 

 

Three castles in the morning and the afternoon at the Dead Sea

Qasr al-Asraq was out first stop, about 60 miles from Amman. To give you and idea of it's location, these were the choices at the main crossroads.

On the way we passed a UN refugee camp that housed 40,000 Syrians in a model consisting of four villages of prefabricated buildings, not the tents you see frequently in the news. Families live together in one room. There are schools with classrooms of 75 students, a hospital, health clinics, a solar power plant, 390 shops, and community centres. 100 babies are born there monthly. There are income generating programs for refugees as well as the availability of 1300 work permits for employment outside of the camp. I'm sure it's not as rosy a picture as the one painted on the UN website. After a career in community social services I found it fascinating.

The Asraq fortress was built by the Romans and was in use in the 13th-16th centuries and again in 1917-1918 where the real Lawrence of Arabia based his operations. It was strategically located geographically and had access to water from a nearby oasis that no longer exists.

The second stop was Qusayr 'Amra, built in 743 A.D., as a royal retreat including a bathhouse. The amazing feature of this castle was the extensive artwork - the frecoes covering the walls and ceilings.

Next up was Qasr Harrana, a 60 room castle built in 710AD, and there is debate as to its use: accommodation for caravan travellers, military fort, a Crusader's Castle, and the one use all historian agree upon, a meeting place for Bedouin leaders. 

It was interesting to visit three castles each with unique architecture. At all three stops, though, our guide noted the lack of tourists as ours was the only bus in the parking lots that day.

On to the Dead Sea. Again, the location was disconcerting given the state of the world, 6 km from Israel. We noticed hazy skies and suspected drifting smoke from Gaza or from farther away Beirut, but tour guides assured us it was "the hot weather."

We floated in the Dead Sea and slathered ourselves in the mud. You would think that the high salt content would dry your skin to a crisp, but the mud was very moisturizing. Our photos aren't very good as they were taken through a plastic bag. Afterwards we spent time at the pool prior to heading back to Amman.