Saturday, February 26, 2011

Why in the World?!

I'm a runner.  I'm one of the crazy people who actually finds enjoyment from running.  Still, I've often wondered why in the world someone would want to run a marathon... 42.2km... 4 (or 5, or 6) hours.  It sounds crazy to me!  At least it used to.  I said it in an earlier blog post, and here it is again:  never say never.  Next Sunday Tom and I will be running the Barcelona Marathon.

What convinced us?!  Food!  I'm not talking about "if you run a lot you can eat whatever you want."  That's not even true.  I would have to run for about an hour to burn off just 1 small DQ blizzard.  What I'm talking about is the post long-run brunch with the Maadi Runners, our Egyptian running club.  We joined the Maadi Runners in September, after having some trouble making it out for runs on the busy streets of Cairo on our own.  The picture below is from our run to the Pyramids.  It's not everyone who can get up on Friday morning and jog from home to the Pyramids in about two hours.

It wasn't the Pyramid run that convinced us to stay with the group though.  As I said, it was the food.  The Maadi Runners are an international running group, most of whom live in a suburb of Cairo called Maadi (where we live).  The group trains for one marathon each year.  Last year they ran Milan, this year's destination is Barcelona.  They, or I guess I should say we, meet every Friday morning for the weekly long run.  Friday is the first and quietest day of the weekend in Egypt.  After the run, we meet for a potluck brunch.  It's a wonderful social and gastronomic event.  Some people cook or bake, while others stop at the grocery store on the way to breakfast.  It's always a feast.  The last weekend before we were evacuated from Cairo, Tom and I hosted the Maadi Runners brunch.

Although the job of the hosts is supposed to be simply providing a venue, and maybe some coffee, the hosts almost always prepare something good, often common in their home country.  Since we don't have any real maple syrup with us, we decided to stick with our Canadian greasy spoon favourites:  eggs and homefries.  It may not be original, but you want to be a little practical when having 30 people over to eat breakfast.  Let me tell you, we prepared a lot of eggs, and a lot of potatoes. 

We didn't need to make quite as much food as we did.  30 people arriving with food will provide quite a meal!  We could barely fit it all on our dining room table.  Aside from our eggs and potatoes, plus cheese platter and fruit and dip, there was a curry casserole, homemade lemon biscuits and banana bread, cinnamon rolls, pita, foul (Egyptian breakfast food), lots of bananas,  halawa (Middle-Eastern dessert), cakes, muffins, lentils, yogurt, macaroons, fresh pretzels, and more that I'm sure I'm forgetting. 

It comes as no surprise that Tom's home fries were delicious, and not even one was leftover.  Don't ask him for the secret ingredient though... if he told you, it wouldn't be a secret now would it?! There were plenty of leftovers of other items though, which came in pretty handy.  We actually took a bagful of goodies to the airport for our evacuation flight, since we figured (correctly) that we'd be at the airport for a while. 

Looking at the photos, you are hopefully getting an idea of what is going through my mind two hours into a Friday morning run.  "Get me to the brunch!"  This week's hosts were another Canadian couple, who DID have real Canadian maple syrup.  Another worthwhile run !

It really is a great tradition, not just for the food, but for the great company.  Beware to those of you living in or near Ottawa.  When we get home, I will likely try to convince you to join a running (and eating) club.  It's been really motivating and fun for us.  Thank you Maadi Runners and your brunches for pushing us to get to Barcelona.  The marathon is on Sunday, March 6, so watch for an update later next week.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Our Vietnamese Junk






Junk1: old iron, glass, paper, or other waste that may be used again in some form (www.merriam-webster.com)

Junk2: any of various ships of Chinese waters with bluff lines, a high poop and overhanging stem, little or no keel, high pole masts, and a deep rudder (www.merriam-webster.com)




Junk3: excess baggage in ass area (www.urbandictionary.com)

We just got back from a 3-day cruise on a junk (definition 2), which was anything but junk (definition 1), but certainly did add junk (definition 3) to my trunk.  We had a great time!

Ha Long Bay has been in Tom's dreams for about 8 years, and in mine every since he told me about it.  It did not disappoint!  Ha Long Bay is an emerald green bay with an estimated 2000 limestone islands poking out from the water.  There are so many of these islands that it often looks like layers of mountains in the distance.  It is a stunning area.


We arrived there after about a 3 hour ride through Vietnam's countryside of rice paddies and street vendors.  Our tour bus didn't stop in the long line of tour buses to take photos of people working the rice fields.  The Vietnamese people must think that it's really strange that big crowds of people would want to take pictures of them working in the field.  

We were immediately pleased with our junk, which we shared with 10 friendly tourists plus the crew.  Dragon's Pearl III was beautiful and clean, and our room was certainly the nicest we've stayed in since arriving in Southeast Asia.  Our ensuite bathroom small but very clean, and had a "rainforest" showerhead.  The bed was comfy, and the view from the two large windows was spectacular. 


The food on the junk was far better than we could have ever expected.  Each lunch and dinner (sorry, supper) had 8-10 delicious courses.  They catered to us "damn vegetarians" beautifully, and served lots of seafood to the others.  Each meal started with salad and ended with fresh fruit.  Tom and I have been trying to go back to eating normal portions.

Luckily we were able to get in at least a little bit of exercise.  We went kayaking twice: once exploring a lagoon, and the next time visiting a cave.  Although Tom and I are certainly more comfortable in our canoe than in a tandem kayak, it was fun to get out paddling.  


Another activity we did was a visit to a floating village.  Yes, you read right, the entire village is floating.  Some of the villagers took us there by paddle boat, to where we were greeted with tea, and taken to the school and to a house.  I was a little surprised that the house had a television.  We learned that the village has about 30 families to make about 150 people.  It was neat to watch the people get around from place to place, especially the three children going home from school on a styrofoam raft.  I don't think that their mode of transportation can be called a "school bus" in any context. 
 


The last night of the cruise was the most memorable for me.  We had supper inside a cave.  The cave was beautifully candlelit, set up like a luxury restaurant, and as always, the meal was fantastic.  It was really a dining experience like no other.  Even the couple from Paris said that atmosphere and food considered, it was the best meal they'd ever had.  



Next stop:  Cairo, Egypt.  Back to work.







Saturday, February 12, 2011

Thai Trekking

9:10am:  We ordered pancakes and hoped that they would arrive before the truck that was to pick us up between 9:00 – 9:30am for our trek.

9:20am:  We received our pancakes.

9:20:01am:  We started eating... quickly!

9:30am:   The truck arrived to pick us up for our trek. 

9:30:01am:  We breathed easy…..

After a hectic morning getting ready, our two-day trek in Northern Thailand was refreshing and relaxing.  1-hour of riding on benches in the back of a pick-up truck with 7 other travellers, 1 market stop for food, and 1 stop at the smallest village in existence brought us to the start of our hike.  We hiked for a mere 15 minutes before stopping at a picturesque waterfall for lunch.  The baggie of veggie fried rice would give us the energy needed for a more active afternoon. 


We hiked mostly uphill for a couple of hours that afternoon at what I’ll call a “leisurely” pace.  It turns out that not everyone is as used to walking through forests as we are.  We were so happy to be in the fresh air, surrounded by trees, with mountains in the distance.  This is not something we got do in Egypt.  The forest was a little reminiscent of Gatineau Park, with less pine trees, bigger leaves on the ground, and more bamboo.  We finished at a Karen Village, a quaint hilltribe village in which we would spend the night at a “7-Star Hotel” according to our guide Kik.  I’ll guess the scale is out of 20. 

Our evening in the Karen Village was quite nice.  Tom and I walked around the village to see the houses, animals, and rice fields before dark.  We even saw the three little pigs.  We bought a couple of souvenirs from the local craftswomen.  It was actually overwhelming and a little heartbreaking to have five women desperately trying to sell you the same things, and to have to choose between.  Still, we were glad to be able to support the local community. 





We ate delicious thai food for dinner (no pigs!) around a long picnic table, then the local children started up a campfire for us.  Many women and children from the village came to join the campfire, and the children performed many songs and dances for us.  It was about the cutest thing I’d ever seen.  We learned the “Elephant Song” and sang and danced with the children, before being asked to perform a children’s song from our countries of origin.  As the only Canadians in the crowd, Tom and I were on our own.  In a frantic minute of discussion, we passed on “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider” and “Pat-a-Cake”, and settled on “Skinna-Marinki-Dinky-Dink”.  I hope that I sang the song better than I wrote its name here.  We sang the song to the children, along with the movements, with many of the local children dancing along with us.  Once the Canadians, French, Koreans, and Austrians had all sang to the children, they sang us one last song goodbye, then shook our hands before leaving for bedtime.


Despite a sleep much disturbed by a dog who seemed to think he was a rooster, along with roosters responding to the dog, we got up the following morning excited for another day of trekking.  After a non-thai breakfast of toast and eggs, we hiked mostly downhill for about an hour to another waterfall.  Knowing now just how hot the day would get, I decided to go for a swim.  Tom was too busy taking photos to get in the water.Or maybe he was just too smart to get into the icy cold water…







We continued with another couple hours of hiking, until we reached our truck, well not our initial truck, but a truck for us nonetheless.  This one did not have benches, so the nine of us just stood in the box for the short ride.  In Tom’s words:  “safety first!”  The truck took us to the Elephant Park where we would ride elephants. 
Tom and I got to ride a mother elephant, which was neat since her baby followed us around.  We bought bananas and sugarcane to feed them, which they certainly seemed to appreciate.  Mom was especially hungry, eating two bananas at a time and moving her trunk right back up to us for more food as soon as the last bite made it to her mouth.  Baby was a little clumsy, having a harder time getting hold of the banana, then taking its time chewing it.  I guess elephant’s aren’t so different from people.

We soon ate lunch and headed out for our last activity:  bamboo rafting.  We may have to bear children, but at least women get the most relaxing spot on the bamboo raft.  Our guide made Tom help paddle while the French woman and I sat on the raft sunbathing.  It may have been sexist, but I wasn’t going to complain about the hour of floating down a stream on a beautiful day in Thailand.  When the rafting was over, we got back into our original truck, whose benches now seemed a luxury, and headed back to Chiang Mai.  Next stop:  Hanoi, Vietnam, with a layover in Bangkok.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Where Life Has Taken Us

 Never say never.  If someone had told me two years ago that I would be teaching in Egypt this year, I would have thought that they were crazy.  If someone had told me two weeks ago that I would be traveling in Thailand this month, I would that have sworn they'd lost their mind.  I should learn to "expect the unexpected" I guess.  Here I am writing about my travels in Thailand, on what should have been an exam day at my school in Egypt.


Tom and I arrived in Thailand on Saturday and have been loving it ever since.  We spent the first three days in Bangkok, shopping, eating (cheap and delicious Thai food), and getting foot massages (ok, one foot massage, but it was great!)  We don't typically shop when we travel, but when we left Cairo last week we planned on spending a few days in Frankfurt, then either going back to Cairo or Canada.  Neither of these options required summer clothing.  It's HOT in Thailand!  Luckily the purchase of three pairs of shorts, two pairs of flip flops, two sarongs, a bathing suit, and a summer dress cost just under $50.  Shopping can be tiring though, so I think that we deserved our $10 hour-long foot massages that evening.  Did I mention that I'm loving it in Thailand?!

We also visited the Grand Palace, former residence of Thai Kings.  It is in a complex with many Buddhist temples.  I don't think I'd ever seen buildings that are so ornate.  Unlike most Cathedrals or Pharaonic temples which are mostly grey or beige stone on the outside, these temples were extremely colourful, decorated with coloured glass, mirrors, and gold leaf.  It was quite unique to me, and very impressive.

On Monday night we took an overnight train to Chiang Mai, a city in Northern Thailand.  We spent the first few hours chatting with a couple from New Zealand, and turning down beer from the really enthusiastic Thai "train attendant".  Tom did have two, but he would have had a 2-4 if he`d have accepted each offer for ``beer, beer, beer, beer... wannanother beer?!``  We got a decent sleep on the train and arrived in Chiang Mai around 11am, giving us enough time to find a hostel then go out for lunch. 

We spent the afternoon walking around the city, in which there is an abundance of temples.  I think the only thing we saw more of than temples are "Sevies'"  (for those non-Corwallites, those are 7-Elevens.)  You wouldn't believe how many there are in Thailand.  We also booked some of the many tourist activities available in Chiang Mai:  a full-day cooking class, and a two guided day trek through the mountains around Chiang Mai, to ride elephants, bamboo raft, and visit many villages.


Thai cooking class was AWESOME!  Although the `menu` was very meaty, they offered a vegetarian option of every dish for those tree hugging backpackers like us.  Tom and I made 6 different dishes each.  We each got to make an appetizer, a salad, a soup, a stirfry, a curry paste, a curry dish, and a dessert.   We got recipe books for everything we made (and more!), and each tried to take notes.  Surprise surprise, Tom took pictures of each of our twelve dishes.  We`re not counting our dollars from his career in food photography yet, but I`ve learned not to discount any possibilities these days!  The food was delicious, with the highlights (for my palate) being the Chiang Mai noodles (a red curry), cashew stirfry, spring rolls, and deep fried bananas.  We`ve already talked about having dinner guests for some delicious and authentic Thai food when we get home to Canada.  We still have no indication of when that will be.


We`re headed out in about an hour for our mountain trek.  Whether you like it or not, the pictures will be coming soon.  I hope that everyone can now agree that we are not sad refugees, but instead we are happy vacationers.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Safe and Sound

Unfortunately this blog will not come with any amazing pictures or witty writing (I say this suggesting that it sometimes does).  Very fortunately, I am able to blog. 

As you have probably seen, there is some "unrest" in Egypt.  Thanks to Canada's evacuation flight, Tom and I arrived safely in Frankfurt, Germany about 8 hours ago.  We will be here for at least 3 days, watching for developments in Egypts, and deciding whether to return to work in Cairo (only if safe of course), or to head back to Canada.  We are with about 20 other people from our staff, and are being taken care of well by our school.  We plan to make the best of a bad situation and take the opportunity to see a little bit of Germany.

We will keep you updated as we get more information.  Thank you for all your kind thoughts.  It was a stressful couple of days, but we always felt safe, and are comforted in knowing that we can head home to open arms if need be.