Day 59 and 60 One Stop, Two Shop, New Mosque, Blue Mosque

The Europe Istanbul from the ferry.

Hello! My abominable Dr. Seuss parody attempts non-withstanding, I´m good! I spent all day with Annika wandering around the Grand Bazaar before getting fed up with the constant pushing of the merchants and bailıng. The weather was gorgeous, though in the mornings it often seems like it´s going to be cloudy, so we caught the ferry to the Asian side of Istanbul, where the real Turkey is. After some hiking (it´s all hills...), and hilarious attempts to ask directions from locals who spoke only Turkish, we found a little bulk shop where I picked up loads of, you guessed it, Turkish Delight. I hope it makes me sick so I won´t want anymore, I swear it´s like crack. I actually browsed a book in Dubai that equates sugar with cocaine, so maybe I´m not far off! We caught the ferry back, and I ventured once more into the spice market. I grew bored quickly - same things, same faces, more candy - and we decided to stop at the nearby New Mosque, whose name is very misleading.

Me outside the New Mosque.

It was completed in 1663, and boasts over 60 domes and semi-domes. The inside is incredible, all the mosaics and painting is preserved, and it is still used by Muslims today, so we saw some prayers being conducted. It was really interesting to witness, and there is a constant reminder of one´s being in a Muslim country as the call to prayer sounds five times a day. They furnish tourists with scarves to cover your head and shoulders if you are without, and though I was dressed conservatively, I still haven´t adopted the hijab... I got over the fact that hundreds of other tourists wear the same scarves pretty quickly though.

The inside of the New Mosque.

We wandered back to the hostel, and I picked up a bunch of postcards to send to the lucky few over in Canada who gave me their post addresses before I took off. I decided to visit the Basilica Cisterns, an old Roman structure under the city comprised of many columns, two of which are famous for bearing representations of Medusa´s head at the base, though sideways and upside down respectively. Though the lighting was pretty bad for photos, the eerie atmosphere adds to the whole experience. I luckily just missed prayer time upon emerging, as they close the Blue Mosque to tourists for those times, and walked the short distance to the edifice.

Once inside (again wearing the ubiquitous scarf) I took a seat against the back wall and wrote a little in the quiet. It was busier than the New Mosque, but most people bear a certain respect for the building and it´s history. It really made me angry actually to see some tourists flippantly discard their head coverings and walk about. This is not a religious matter, it´s about respecting someone else´s rules while in their house! I don´t very much mind a silly scarf if it means I can enter another country´s heritage sites while showing my appreciation for the invitation.

one of the Gorgon heads.

I was pretty full from all my snacks, but that didn´t stop me from getting an amazing fish meal in the kumkapi district. Shrimp and starters went down quite nicely, and then I headed back to the hostel for a much needed rest - it was a long day! I passed many cats on the way, and noticed again how well-fed and sleek they look! Truly they take better care of themselves than most of the house variety!

The ceiling of the Blue Mosque.

Today I am going with two Down Under girls who I have met to a traditional hammam, where I´ll be dipped, doused and scrubbed raw by skillful attendants until I shine and feel like royalty. Ahh, this is the life! This evening I take an overnight bus to Goreme, a town in Cappadocia home to "fairy chimneys" and rock churches hidden in the many caves. I have a nice little hostel booked there for tomorrow night, and given my experience sleeping on buses, I´ll sleep like a rock. The whole area is a big draw for tourists, and I`m going to see where some more experienced travellers will encourage me to go after that. I´ll try to return to Istanbul  on the 9th to shop a little more and see the archaeology museum before my flight on the 11th to Krakow.

I think I´ll be a tired little bunny after all this bouncing around! I have a few local friends once I reach Prague though, so it will be nice to have them direct me around for a while!

The hammam was amazing! Kind of surreal, we walked there without knowing exactly what we were getting into. Once there the attendant, a huge Turkish lady, told us to strip down completely and emerge wearing a gingham towel thing. We kept our skivvies on, and were beckone though to a marble room with taps and basins on the wall, one cold one hot, from which you douse yourself with water. There were little bowls to scoop the water out, and it took some clever gauging to get the right amount of hot and cold in the same sluice! I burned/froze myself a little at first, but he contrast was kinda nice.

Next the woman entered (we never learned her name... She spoke no English!) and base me lie down on a slab in the middle of the room, where she proceeded to use a rough mitt all over me. This was my particularity hygienic, as she didn't switch it for us, but my go it felt amazing. A lot like being washed by a large cat, and it took a whole layer of grime off me. I watched the other girls go through he same ordeal, and then we were scrubbed in turn. She uses a large sheepskin-type thing and so much soap, which she massages into you as she goes. It felt so good, especially on my legs which are cramping from al the walking! At one point though she sat us up and worked our neck, but from the front, meaning my face was basically in her cleavage... She was also naked.

Rinsing off once more, she washed our hair for us, and left us to chill for as long as we liked. We wrapped up and dried off after about 45 more minutes, and were served water as we cooled down from the heat of the marble room. Ahhhh, Kenya is finally scrubbed off! We all walked back pretty tired and quiet, and I think despite the challenges of sleeping on the bus, I'll pass right out!

Day 56 to 58 Turkish Delight

Hello again!

I am now in Turkey, Istanbul to be exact, and it is beautiful here! The chance to finally put my university degree to use is a real treat, and seeing all the places I studied has been really cool. Aside from the history, Istanbul is a very large city of 20 million, and there is so much to do and see!

I got in fairly late on Saturday, and after paying my 45€ visa fee, caught the quick and simple metro system to Sultanahmet square, the old city, where I wandered around until I found my hostel. I wasn´t thrilled with the place, pretty bare bones, but a nice man from Singapore took me around the area and ended up buying me dinner - a lovely surprise as I was starving! There I had my first taste of apple tea, which tastes a whole lot like traditional apple cider (though not like the hard kind... which I am really missıng!). I had a good sleep there, but decided to switch to another accomodation. When you travel alone ambiance can make or break a city, and I wasn´t about to let Istanbul get ruined by boring surroundings!

I found then the Old City Esma Hostel, which was very close by. Though a little pricier, it has a bar and the staff is really friendly. There are also more travellers to meet up with! I wandered around the city areas, going into Taksim where I managed to land myself smack dab in the middle of a protest! The government has passed a law requiring the euthanization of all the stray cats and dogs in the city, which I can tell you is a lot. Thing is, the people (and tourists) like the animals! People still honour the belief that cats are favourited by the dieties, and they all look sleek and well-fed, almost as if they are the pets of the entire neighbourhood! I am of course loving the abundance of kitties, being the crazy cat-lady-in-training that I am!

I also hit the Spice Market near the harbour and the Galata Bridge. Going from Kenya to here has been a big adjustment, but not more so than in the area of the food. Here there are spices galore, and every kınd of dried fruit and nut imaginable! The array of Turkish Delight candy is incredible, and the amount that I was given for free is even more so! I picked up some apple tea, some cute little perfumes, and of course a pair of harem pants which I am thrilled with!

I got back to the hostel and was invited by the owner to dinner, which turned out to be in a really nice place. We had steak, which is cooked on a hot slab of marble, and was served with olives and a great antipasto plate. Afterwards we went to an old university to smoke the water pipe, and then exhausted I turned in. Long day for me! Especially when I am used to going to bed before 9 in Kenya! Dodo has promised to set me up wıth ceramics and scarf wholesalers so that I won´t pay tourist prices for all the goodies I want to get home, hooray!

I am going today to the Grand Bazaar with a lovely German girl who I met here. I am also going to spend the day researching buses around the rest of Turkey, as I really want to go to Ephesus, Kas, Olympus and Goreme! I have plenty of time, a fact for which I am grateful. I´ll return to Istanbul for 2 nights before I leave for Poland (laden with things I believe!) but in the meantime, I´m going to explore what I can. Tomorrow I´m hoping to visit a traditional hammam and get the full Turkish bath experience.

I hope everything is good at home, I´m starting to miss all my Canadian quirks, and even little things make me nostalgic now... ah well, two months down, two to go!

I´ll write soon, tata for now!

Day 54 & 55 Dubai Splendour and Luxury

I'm outta Kenya! I did it, survived the kids (and the lions), and I'm back to the touring part of my travels. Hopefully that means that I'll be able to update this blog, and keep everyone in the loop a lot more often than I have been recently... though I suppose 4 posts in 6 weeks isn't the hardest record to beat!

The "main drag" and skyline.

I arrived in Dubai late on the 26th, only to discover that I'd made ANOTHER travel mistake... I'd forgotten (silly trusting Canadian that I am) about the fact that some countries charge for the pleasure of touring their lands. Turns out that the U.A.E. isn't crazy about us Canucks, due to a failed deal with Emirates Airlines in which we screwed them out of a contract to fly into Toronto... so we have to pay a lot. If I had flown with any other airline, it would have been $1000 US, but luckily I did have an Emirates flight, so it was only $250. GAH! That's $100 more than I would've paid had I just done my bloody research - so I'm dubbing it (along with the money I spent correcting my Ryanair flight dates back in August) my "stupid tax". You live and you learn eh? If not with a slightly lighter wallet.

At the Souk in the Dubai Mall.

I met Shefali and David, my Dad's good friends, at the airport. Shefali is pregnant with twins, so they weren't hard to find, and we piled into the car and drove to their ace apartment. It's gorgeous here, and I get my own room with a double bed and an ensuite (GASP!). I'm in heaven... literally, they're on the 30th floor, and the view is the Burj Khalifa, tallest tower in the world - I know, they stole the title from us... maybe more hard feelings about the airline thing?

The next morning I was up and at 'em fairly early, and threw all my clothes into the washer to rid them of safari dirt... it's so nice to be able to forgo the handwashing! We went to the world's largest mall, which is very close by. There's a giant aquarium there, and some shops that you cannot find anywhere else, such as the only Bloomingdales outside of the U.S. They have an Ice Rink as well, and in a different mall, an artificial ski hill! I wandered around for a good three hours, and spent quite a bit of time in the biggest bookstore the Middle East has to offer. I stocked up on journals, seeing as I have gone through quite a few lately with my rambling about the world.

The Burj Khalifa.

This city is amazing, it's man-made largely, and very new. Many parts haven't been around for more than a decade, and the country itself has only recently celebrated it's 40th birthday. The ruler and politicians are all very young, and it's an up and coming city. The heat here is insane, and I'm told that it's getting cooler than it was in August, but it still feels like hitting a brick wall to come out of a/c and into 44 degree humidity! I went to the beach the other day and walked along in my tee-shirt and a breezy skirt, and found myself sweating profusely (attractive I know). The water feels like a hot bath! It's not as conservative as you would think, and due to the influx of tourism, it's quite common to see women in shorts and strapless tops, even as it remains a Muslim country and many do still wear traditional garb. Of course, these are all very fashionable, and bejeweled in many cases, as the yummy mummys of Dubai are prevalent.

Me with the Aquarium in the background.

I've been so well taken care of here. David and Shefali, as well as opening their home to me, have made sure I am well fed, a blessing after the repetitive meals of Kenya. Admittedly these were good, but man it's nice to have fresh veggies and fruit again! We went out for breakfast the first day, and on day two had gluten-free pizza for dinner! YUM! They are also egg, dairy, and gluten-free, which means we all like the same food luckily. Shefali and I went for mani/pedis, and with my bright red nails I feel part of the high-rolling world again. I think I could live here... if I was rich and wanted to pay no taxes, but premiums for everything except gas that is! So yeah.. I'd live here.

feet on the beach, maybe my last dip in the Indian Ocean!?

The skyline's gorgeous, and even though I miss the people I left in Kenya, and am looking forwards to the rest of my trip, I am going to miss the hospitality and atmosphere of the city. If I had more time I would do a tour into the desert, and also try to get a feel for the nightlife, which is vibrant. The city is very safe, and the hotels boast a wide assortment of classy and fun bars and lounges, which I'll have to try on my next venture. Hopefully they'll have lowered the price of the visa by then (C'mon diplomacy, get it together!).

At Jumeirah Beach, also known as the Palm for it's shape.

I'm off tomorrow afternoon, but I'm going to hit the pool in the morning for a dip and then take a leisurely amount of time to repack my bag before becoming a backpacker again. Ma'a salama for now folks!

Beautiful blue water and white beach of Dubai.

Day 50 to 53 Safiri Salama na Marafiki Angu

"Good Safari with My Friends"

The Masai Mara in the evening.

Hippos at the Mara River.

And what a good safari it was! We took off from the Junction mall after some initial confusion about which van we would all fit in (turns out none) and once reconciled to the fact of our separation from Katrina and Shayla, Lisa and I set about making friends. The drive was looooong, and though we stopped in Narok for lunch, we were pretty tired when we arrived at our encampment. To call the accommodations tents would be to grossly lie... These were canvas palaces with plumbing! We had hot showers, a luxury I have had to do without for these 6 weeks. I was thrilled. We dropped our gear and hen immediately headed out for an afternoon game drive in the Masai Mara.

Herd of Giraffes just hanging out.

Chilling out in the van watching the world go by.

In the two hours we were out we saw amazing things: a lioness, giraffes, elephants, buffalo and so many types of antelopes! Dinner was a little late but we sat around and drank tea to pass the time upon return.

a lioness and her baby cub.

Lionesses sunbathing.

The next morning was Katrina's bday, and we clapped her on the back at our 7:00 breakfast. We set out for a full day game drive and saw more incredible things! Giraffes mating and fighting, a lion cub, male lions, hippos, a mother baboon and her young baby, ostriches and crocodiles. A full day left us pretty tired and with a 5am wake up the next morning, I hit bed early.

Male lion!

My birthday dawned and we set out to see the sunrise. I got an amazing early birthday call from the boyfriend and discovered I have an iPhone of all things waiting for me when I get back! Holy eff ya!

family of elephants in the Mara.

Elephant... before he got a tad upset.

We saw the best thing on this day: two hunting cheetahs! We missed the actual kill, but returned to the hunters as they were feasting on an unlucky antelope. So cool! We were also treated to a family of elephants, one of which started to get antsy at our proximity, and almost charged the van! We left the game park in high spirits and drove along the BUMPIEST road to reach the other van and lunch. We who were doing the 4 day piled into one van, and drove further, to Nakuru. The scenery was amazing!!

Cheetah coming through the grass towards our van!

Our hotel was a proper establishment, and Katrina and I settled into our room for our last night together. Kind of surreal to think ill be out or Africa soon.

Cheetahs marking their scent.

Buffalo, the most dangerous of the big 5.

Sunset in the Mara.

Breakfast was a somber affair for me, as I felt really off. I think there was gluten in dinner, and though I still enjoyed the safari at Lake Nakuru, I felt majorly crap all day. We did however get to see rhinos, both black and white ones! The white rhino is actually a misnomer, coming from the Dutch word 'whit' meaning wide, which refers to its mouth. The black rhino was so named after the mispronunciation was widely spread already... Ah well, they're both amazing! We also saw baboons again and many types of birds. The animals were randy (not least of which were two of my safari companions who were cuddled up beside me), and we saw Thompson gazelles, zebras and buffalo all mating! The buffaloes however were batting for the other team, as after they fight with their horns, which we saw, the winner tries to mount the loser. Talk about prison politics and using sex as a power weapon! Yeeesh!

baboons hanging out near the garbage heap in the Mara.

Lake Nakuru in the background.

The drive home was relatively uneventful, and since I still felt under the weather I used the web and headed home for my last night in Kenya! It's been quite the ride!!

Flamingos and Pelicans on Lake Nakuru.

a white rhino at lake Nakuru.

buffaloes gathered around a tree at Nakuru.

three little zebra all in a row!

reds and oranges in the sunset.

Day 49 Part Two - Long Necks and Monkey Business

feeding time at the giraffe centre!

We decided to visit the giraffe centre where the endangered Rothschild is on display. It was really cool to pet and feed a live giraffe, and I learned that they have cloven hooves rather than round horse-like ones!

Being loved by some monkeys.

There were these adorable warthogs around as well, and they snuffle around on their knees for food, as they can't reach to bend their necks down!

Shayla and I went afterwards to the monkey park, and after a short time where we thought we had arrived (only to discover it was just a path TO the park...) we found ourselves surrounded by monkeys and feeding them with some bananas and corn that we were given by the locals. So cool to a haven them sitting right on your shoulder, an we also saw a little baby clinging to his mother's tummy as she foraged as well.

warthogs at the giraffe centre.

adorable monkey!

I returned to the place where we are bunked to wait for Kat and Lisa who had decided to eat out (I'm on a budget though!) only to find there were not enough beds! We relocated to the volunteer house where we passed a few hours on the first day, and I had a great sleep. The only problem is te amount of cockroaches that scuttle around in te ceiling and on the beds ... I tucked my mosquito net tight around me and put earbuds in to cut out the scurrying... Gross! Thankfully the bus ride the night before had me wiped!

pretty girl!

took a selfie with a monkey!

Shayla with the monkies!

adorable Mama with her baby!

Day 24 to 49 Adjusting, Adapting and Going on Safari

Mombasa is certainly an interesting spot! We spend a lot of time on beaches, which is of course amazing, and sometimes it really feels like a vacation! The kids are still great, and I hope we can make a difference for them. The orphanage is not very organized and consistency is practically non-existent, which detracts from their chances at a successful happy future life. More than anything we want to give them a little respect for adults, each other, and themselves while we are here.

Going out in Mombasa was pretty similar to home scenes, with booths to hang in and music to groove to while you slug back a Tusker beer, or a Guinness. There is however a marked difference in the Guinness here, which is 6.2% and has an even stronger taste... If you can believe it!

Shayla getting her hair done by Dinah and co.

I have got to shout out to my cousin Raelen, who got me an amazing small speaker for Christmas last year. The kids love listening to new music, and even before this trip I have been using it on beaches and in common rooms. The older girls especially like my selection of Rihanna and Beyonce, though maintain that both belong to a special cult called the Illuminati, in which you trade your soul to the devil for fame or money or influence. Obama also ranks highly as a member. I have been careful to be clear that this is not a widely held belief in North America, but they're pretty sure we've all been duped as to the real truth.

Mama Beatrice continues to feed us amazing food, and I guarantee I'm leavin Kenya with a few extra pounds... Who'da thought? I'm determined to start a workout/stretching routine before bed, and to get right back to healthy eating when I reach Dubai! I'm looking forward to having my own space to cook in again!

Gamaliel and I on Shelley Beach.

I met a really interesting woman at the beach while hanging with the kids name Faith. She is studying to be an accountant, and we had a great comparing-cultures chat. Though Kenya is much more outwardly religious, it is still common and fairly accepted for couples to live together pre-marriage, especially those attending college. She also explained some of the stereotypes that men ascribe to, such as an inherent polygamous nature, which leads some to believe stepping out is normal. I was glad to hear that the women's empowerment movement has taught many to call out these attitudes, rather than dole out the expected forgiveness. Aren't we all glad this doesn't fly back home, eh? Of course this is a huge generalization, and many are far more enlightened.

We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends and family who have donated to the website we started for the kids at gofundme.com. If you would like to be part of that as well, just hit up the Internet and search for the Likoni Aids Orphanage on the site. After less than a week we are almost double our initial goal, and there is so much we want to accomplish here. These kids really need so much and their home could use a lot of fixing up to make it more livable. Even when I leave Africa in a few weeks, my co-volunteers have their work cut out for them!

We all need our breaks though, and for us 4 travelers the weekend was a welcome time. We didn't get to sleep in though, as we had to catch an early matatu to Shimoni, a town about two hours drive down the coast and opposite the beautiful island of Wasini. Here we hired a motorboat and we dolphin-watching! We were incredibly lucky, and saw a humpback and three bottlenoses! They swam right alongside us and treated us to some fabulous jumps. What an amazing afternoon! We had decided to stay the night there, and the Mpunguti Lodge was an excellent choice. At 600/= per night (roughly $7) we got a bed, and balcony with an amazing view of the water front. The tide there is quite different at low and high points, and where we had once walked up to the property was now 2 meters of water in which we went swimming! A great guy named George who works there took us around the predominantly Muslim area, an brought us to the Coral boardwalk, an awesome initiative to support the town women. It's a beautiful big area with a kilometer log walkway set up between these huge coral structures, and the whole area fills with water at high tide. It was incredible and we took so many photos!

Being the only 4 guests for dinner, the staff at the lodge went all out. Our table was festooned with fresh flowers and we were treated to young coconuts and delicious fare. The conversation went on for 2 hours unde the stars, and turning in to bed without 5 incredibly noisy dogs (not to mention the blasted turkey and geese) was most welcome. The next morning was lovely and lazy, and though we were cramped on the matatu home, we made it back to Mama's safe, sound and hungry! What an awesome mini-vacation though!

Lately there has been some drama in Mombasa over the killing of a man high up in a fundamentalist Muslim group. We have therefore avoided he city center, but it has proven no heat inconvenience since we can get most everything on our side of the ferry. The situation seems to be calming down, but I think we are all more comfortable playing it safe anyways!

Cobra loving the beach and the freedom!

I was sad to leave when the time came, but I've got so many souvenirs to remember it by, plus a host of pictures and memories. The night bus was just as bumpy as usual, but Mama ended up traveling with us and she was my seat partner... Meaning I had less space! Ah well, im getting used to sleeping in foreign situations, so I got it covered. Hopefully safari tomorrow is will also have good sleep opportunities, it's so important! Funny how true it is that you never realize how important things are until their gone, and lemme tell you, all of mamas dogs were making that impossible!

The kids were sad to see us go, but I'm so pleased with how much we were able to accomplish while i was there. I think I'll volunteer again on another travel, perhaps with adults his time... Can't wait for my birthday and my next adventure! More frequent updates to come!