09/28/24 and 9/29/24- Waited almost a year for this trip since we originally booked, and four and a half years since Covid cut it short and almost left us stranded in Thailand. Finally, we’re set to embark on the 2nd half of that journey.
With our flight not leaving until 1:30am, we had all day to dwell on last minute preparations. Once 9pm comes we drive to the long stay parking area of JFK, drop off our car to a very shady individual located next to a weed store (hey, he was wearing an orange vest so why not trust him at this point), and take a free shuttle to Terminal 8, which that same guy drove.
The late hour allows us to breeze by any kind of line whether it be check-in, security, passport, whatnot and arrive at our gate with almost 3 hours to spare (taking in the art scattered around in the process). Let the games begin!
Our flight is only thirty minutes late and it’s a long one. Fourteen hours on Japan Airlines flying to Toyko is not my idea of fun, but it’s a means to an end to get to our final destination of Kuala Lumpur.
Luckily, I am so exhausted that I fall right to sleep after the meal service, only waking up periodically to find the “time left before arrival” clock dwindling faster than I could’ve imagined. There are no new movies on the flight worth anything to keep me awake as our plane continues to chase the night sky, leaving us in complete dark for the entire journey.
09/30/24- With around four hours left before landing, the dome lights illuminate and the final meal quickly is served. The time change places us just after midnight local time as we virtually skip over Sunday the 29th. Always crazy to cross that international date line.
Unfortunately, the last few hours go very slowly as I’m now fully awake and ready to tackle our first layover.
Our plane lands around 4:30am and we dart to get our bags (which are waiting for us to pick up and recheck). Unfortunately, we need to change to the Domestic terminal for our next layover in Osaka. It quickly dawns on me that we’ll have to go through full customs and fill out a landing card with declaration, even though we have connecting flights out of the country.
We race through the lines once more, take several moments to locate the free shuttle to our next gate, drop off our bags at the departures desk, and feel déjà vu with security once more. Luckily we have a two and a half hour layover as we still manage to get to our gate with an hour to spare before boarding.
This flight to Osaka is on a smaller plane; however, we have the entire three seats to ourselves. Less than an hour later we land quicker than expected, wait for the doors to open and hope that the next gate will be close. Again, we are not so lucky as now we are expected to leave the airport area once again to go to their International terminal for our last leg of our flights.
We are fortunate that our bags will continue to Malaysia without us having to retrieve them again, so we skip the departures desk, go through security and customs for a third time, only to find we have to still take a shuttle to our gate. Ugh! Our layover time is much shorter this time, but still arrive with about fifteen minutes to relax.
The flight is bumpy for the first hour. Flight attendants are told repeatedly to not serve anything and take their seats, which doesn’t calm my nerves any. Maybe I actually shouldn’t have picked Malaysian airlines for this trip (considering the famous MAH 370 flight which disappeared over ten years ago). Lightening couldn’t happen twice, could it?
As the turbulence subsides, I dig into my supplied blanket and catch a bit more sleep during the 7.5 hour journey. The meal is also very good and we enjoy a two-seater (window and aisle) to ourselves making the flight bearable. As we are landing, the sky is a perfect blue with nice puffy, white clouds but quickly goes dark as the rain beats on our window like a drum. Eerily, it feels as if we are entering Kong Island.
Once on the ground in Kuala Lumpur, we are thankful to finally be done with our 26 hours of flight time. Our elation doesn’t last long as we power through the entire airport it seems to exit, take a shuttle to get our luggage, and once again walk through immigration. The good news is our bodies are still in one piece. The bad is that our minds may not be. We still have an hour long taxi ride to our AirBnB in the KLCC area, which is at least made easy and affordable by using the GRAB app (similar to UBER), and exhaustingly follow the self check-in instructions to our room on the 11th floor.
Once inside, we feel all the emotions of traveling hit us at once. Tired, hungry and anxious, we manage to settle ourselves in and check out the 51st floor infinity pool that overlooks the city and the Petronas Towers. The fog continues to roll in making the view not the best, but still a reprieve from being in a rain storm which was predicted.
We retreat back to our room to wait for dark, and around 8pm trek back to the pool for a completely clear shot of the city and towers with everything lit up. Now this is the view I was hoping for. We waste no time getting into the infinity pool (cold at first but warms up quick) all while dodging the many other tourist who have the same idea we do. Luckily, everyone was respectful. I do have to protect my camera in the pool as I carefully make my way to the opposite end. Wasn’t going to miss the opportunity as this is what drew us here in the first place.
Now the exhaustion is weighing in as we board up in our room for the night. The host only provided two towels, so we’re careful to air dry as much as possible. They have a washer/dryer in the unit but don’t trust that option just yet.
10/01/24- Officially our first full day of our trip and it starts at 6am. Not because we have a timed-ticket; just eager to get our one and only day here started. Due to the long travel time we already feel flipped to the twelve hour time difference, which is a plus. We check the weather to see full clouds at the moment and rain around noon, so don’t want to waste any more time.
We call a GRAB from the lobby which takes us twenty-five minutes to get to the Batu Caves. As we enter the elaborate gate, we’re immediately met with an astonishing view of a golden Buda statue standing tall in front of a mountain that seems well out of place. Venturing further in, we notice a large, colorful stairway situated right next to the statue that goes up quite a bit. We did our research on the area beforehand and not keen to climbing two hundred plus stairs for a few cave photos, however. Instead, we enjoy the temples (which we have to remove our shoes, leaving them unguarded outside) and watch tourist feed the numerous monkeys roaming around. Very surprised those monkeys don’t run off with people’s shoes out of sheer boredom.
The sun comes out, baking us further than we’d like this early in the morning, so we find a place to eat (burgers will do nicely) and call a GRAB to take us to the mosque, Masjid Jamek.
Of course the driver would have a harsh, lingering smell of cigarettes in his car, making the twenty-five minute ride not that enjoyable. And once we exit the vehicle we find the mosque just closed for a two hour break. At least I’m able to snap a photo from the gate area.
Not to be dejected, we walk ten minutes to Sri Mahamariamman Temple. It too is about to close for a three hour break, but luckily we arrive before they do. This temple is beautifully laid out with colorful animal deities spread around every which way. The outside looks just as sharp, which makes it stand out from the old looking buildings that surround.
We now are facing the decision of walking back to the mosque and waiting for it to open or continuing on with the day. The oven-baked heat made our minds up for us as we call another GRAB to drop us off at the KLCC center. Seconds after leaving the car, we’re met face-to-face with the Petronas Twin Towers themselves. For those that may not know or remember, these towers were featured in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol as Tom Cruise climbed them.
KLCC Park is also close by with a large Bellagio-type fountain to boot. Definitely, a nice view as the sun reaches back out to us through the intermittent dark clouds. We venture inside the mall area for the free air conditioning and look to buy tickets to go up inside one of the towers, but it’s sold out for the day. Not a huge loss as it’s an afterthought, besides our bodies are wore out from the excessive heat exposure to go much farther. We buy a few items for breakfast tomorrow, some drinks to rehydrate and take one last GRAB to our AirBnB. Did I mention how cheap they are here (this one literally cost me under $2).
Shortly after going up to our room, loud thunder booms through the air as the rain crashes hard against the side of the window. Thirty minutes later it clears up again. Gotta love the tropical weather so close to the Equator.
Side note- People here are very pushy (which we’re use to in New York) but they don’t like to slow down or stop for anyone. If a group of people are walking toward you, they don’t even try to maneuver out of the way. Instead they gun straight for you like they have the right-away.
10/02/24- Up around 4am for our early flight to Bali, Indonesia. Somehow, we survived our first location without our bodies falling apart and now it’s time for some relaxation. First things first- an hour GRAB ride to the airport.
Our ride picks us up shortly after 6am and of course he is coughing quite a bit. He does have a mask on but so far we’ve encountered many people around us hacking repeatedly, whether on the plane or other drivers. Makes me wonder if a strain of COVID or something else is becoming prevalent again.
There’s a line for baggage drop, which takes about twenty minutes, and off we go into the wild, blue security… wait, how’d we get through without having to take our electronics out of our bag and phones from our pockets? We soon find the answer as the full security check is at our gate. We’ve encountered this before at other airports and boggles my mind that they would allow this as you can’t buy drinks at the airport and take them onto the plane. At least I’m able to exchange my left over Malaysian cash for Indonesian.
The flight is with Batik Air, which is Malaysia’s budget airline. No frills by any means, even for an international flight. Not even the screens on the back of the seats are on. Our only entertainment is a couple seated behind me arguing back and forth for the first hour. Food and drinks are offered for a charge and not even water is provided. It’s at this time I remember the announcement of Business class being available to switch to for a fee and I’m about all in at this point. However, the plane ride is very smooth and we get to Bali in one piece. That should actually be their slogan, “We may suck, but we’ll get you there.”
Immigration is not our friend here. First, we have to fill out a health card electronically and the weblink on my phone keeps crashing. There are some computers set up that we have to wait for which allows us to get into the next phase of this process. Then we stand in line with everyone else for about five minutes before realizing it’s the VISA line and we already have ours done beforehand.
We skip through customs and are met once again with another weblink on articles to declare. I input the information on their computer but before I could copy the QR code, it restarts. Frustratingly, I have to put in the information again before we’re let through. And after all of this, our luggage is still not in baggage claim for our flight. I think twenty minutes goes by before we retrieve both bags, making us late for our scheduled private shuttle pickup. Luckily, they allow time as they know their airport is probably crap on timing, so no worries there.
The shuttle ride takes forty-five minutes or so to get to The Grand Hotel Nusa Dua. By the way, the roads here are insane with moped riders slipping through pockets and vehicles sliding around the lanes like they’re not even painted. I would absolutely hate to have a rental car here.
At the hotel, we check into our room and find it somewhat dated but interesting all-the-same. We love the pool access from our balcony and plan a dip soon, but we haven’t eaten since early this morning and ready to stuff our faces. We decide to hit up our hotel restaurant and notice their prices are very reasonable, considering.
Feeling quite full with our minds clear, we dive into our pool and enjoy a nice relaxing evening as the sun comes down. Already this has been an adventure and we are only a few days into it. Going to be very interesting to see what the next few days brings in Bali and hoping the weather holds up as it has so far.
10/03/24- Went to bed early so of course we wake up feeling pretty refreshed. At 8am we enjoy the free breakfast, which is a buffet of all sorts of options to choose from with omelet, ham, chicken and rice, porridge and even an espresso machine, all while taking in the view of the garden and pool area.
With the day still ahead of us, we use this time to research what we want to do. It takes about an hour to settle on a booked tour for later in the week. We also want to do a SeaWalk excursion but am having trouble finding one available. Luckily, our hotel comes to the rescue and sets one up for 12 noon. I’m very impressed with the Grand Bali Hotel as the atmosphere is quite nice and the staff very friendly.
Our hotel driver drops us off at the shore where we promptly throw our belongings in a locker, are given safety instructions, jump in the boat and head out into the open water. It doesn’t take long to get to the docking point and soon we are heading underwater with a big helmet over our heads, weighing us down to the sea floor.
Wow, what an adventure this is. They have an underwater eco system set up with plenty of marine life. Our walk on the sea floor last over twenty-five minutes but it’s plenty of time to enjoy the fish nibbling at my fingertips and hidden statues buried like treasure. The water temperature is also very lukewarm, which is much to our liking. I’m not going to sugar coat it, the price is a bit steep at $160 US total (sticker shock when I see over 2 million IDR charging to my card).
We get back to shore and realize very quickly how red we are getting from the hot sun and blistering sand that’s tearing up our feet. We did think about doing another activity like parasailing or snorkeling, but I think the pressure got to my GoPro underwater camera because it stops working. We are so glad we paid extra for the divers to take photos of us otherwise I may have been quite bummed.
They drop us off at our hotel’s private beach where we enjoy some rest and relaxation under umbrella cabanas, order drinks and a pizza from the bar and quite simply enjoy the moment to the fullest. The water is unfortunately at low tide so not ideal for snorkeling, but we do walk around the nearby peninsula to check out the cliffs. While exploring, I stumble upon what I think is a pathway but turns quickly into a dried lava field. The deeper I go into it the sharper the edges become, making me very keen on not slipping and cutting myself. Did I mention I’m in flip flops?
I reach the other side to the cliff’s edge and wait for Sharece to meet up with me (who smartly takes the long way around). Turns out, there’s a paid admission price I was supposed to pay to get into this area. I guess they figured most people are not dumb enough to challenge the knife-like lava rocks to save a few bucks. Well, they haven’t met me yet.
The sun is now beginning to bake us to the point of ridiculousness, so we chill out at the cabanas for another hour before our shuttle takes us back to the hotel. We cap off the night with another dip in our pool and go to bed early again, as we have a 4am pickup for another excursion tomorrow. Stay tuned for some epic photos.
10/04/24- Somehow, we are wide awake at 3am and ready for the day to begin. Our driver picks us up at 4am and our hotel has a box breakfast waiting for us. This is very much needed as it will be a long day.
The drive is quite crazy, even for this early in the morning. Our driver is whipping around mopeds and trucks like he’s on a motor speedway, all while going around curves in the dark. Strangely, it didn’t make me ill and am able to nod off here and there. I grab pieces of my breakfast throughout the two hour journey (croissant, muffin, little sausages, pastries and juice) and arrive at our first destination of Lempuyang Temple. We get our tickets and pick out a sarong each to wear, per its customs and culture. Feels weird wearing a dress-like wrap, but at least everyone else is doing it. I’m just part of the cool kids. Sharece even picks one out for me. Never thought I would ever hear her say, "You look better in the red dress."
Situated high above sea level, the temple area has a perfect view of Mt. Agung as the clouds slowly part to reveal its top half. It’s a most tranquil sight to see (wow, sounded like Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure there).
The temple itself is small, but there are already many people waiting for their turn to take their photos in front of the Heavenly gates. Our number to be called is #67 and they are only on #5, so we have time to stand in line on the other side of the temple to get some shots there. Not as glamorous but feels like a trial of poses before the big event. Some of them even feel engagement photos as we walk up the long stairway, laughing and enjoying the moment. Our guide (same as our driver) helps us get our photos together and then promptly finds a corner to take a nap while we continue to wait.
Finally, over two hours later, our number is called. I hand the person sitting in front of the gate my phone and Sharece and I both walk to the opening and pose several times. I then step away for Sharece to take photos by herself and then jump in for my shots before the whole ordeal is done. Takes only a few minutes but feels like we just got off a rollercoaster.
The pics they take are unique as they place a mirror under your lens to give off the illusion of a reflection of water in the photo. So glad the cloudy skies parted, giving us a magical view behind us.
Next on the tour is Tirta Gangga. Named after the sacred river Ganges in India, it is known for the Karangasem royal water palace, bathing pools and its Patirthan temple. The flat stepping stones in the pond allow you to skip to the middle and feed the fish along the way.
Approaching 11am, we stop for lunch with an awesome view of the rice fields in the valley (Mahagiri Resort & Restaurant). It’s buffet style with good food and all-inclusive with our paid private tour, with only drinks not included. What a fantastic place to take a break and so very happy with this tour so far. If in Bali, look for the Gate of Heaven Temple Tour and thank me later.
We are now scheduled to hit up a secluded waterfall where we would need to change into our swimwear, but there’s quite a hike and not sure it’s worth the energy, so we opt to skip it for the sake of saving our legs. This brings us to the Tegalalang rice fields and swing. Situated high above the jungle below, they harness you into the large swing, pull you back and sling you out over the trees below. My stomach turns with the initial drop but soon settles with each rotation. Sharece is given a red dress with a very long tail that drapes across the sky as she flies into the air. A very cool effect.
Last up is Tegenungen Waterfall. Our driver substitutes this place for the one we skipped earlier as it has a bird’s eye view and no hiking involved. Also, this is one of the better places for souvenirs, which we find several.
With the tour complete, it takes another hour to get to our hotel where we exhaustingly crash in our room. A full day of very cool stuff feels overwhelming to us now, but the photos are very awesome and the experience very rewarding.
10/05/24- Sleeping in until 6:30am seems weird to say, but that’s exactly what I do. We spend the morning at breakfast and utilize the downtime by going over pictures. Our tour today is not until 2pm and it’s refreshing not to worry about anything beforehand. We had an option of going to Kuta Beach (which is mostly shops if you don’t want to lie in the sand) but no need to add too much. I mean we are on vacation.
As the hours pass, we order a pizza from the hotel kitchen, eat it quickly and then go off with our driver to the first temple Taman Ayun. The drive is over an hour (which seems to be the theme around here from our hotel) and hard to find parking up front with the celebration of Galungan & Kuningan holiday. This is unique to the Balinese calendar and celebrates triumph of good over evil.
We walk through a small street market and cross a mini bridge over water into the temple. Here, we put on the sarong wrap around our waist, picking green this time around, and walk leisurely through the complex. The split gates separate it into the outer courtyard, middle courtyard and inner sanctuary (which include several shrines ranging in different heights from two to eleven tiers).
What also catches us is the artwork spread throughout some of the buildings, the garden areas and the water surrounding the complex. All combined to form a perfect union of peace and serenity.
Leaving the temple around 4pm, we experience the brunt of the sun bearing down on us. The temperature shows 86 degrees, but the humidity brings it well close to 100. Luckily the vehicle has very good AC allowing us to cool off during the thirty minute ride to the next location.
We arrive at Tanah Lot Temple at 4:30pm. Meaning “Land and the Sea” the temple is located just off the coast and is one of the most visited places in Bali thanks to its awesome sunsets. And that’s why we chose to take this sunset tour.
There is a bit of a walk from the parking area to the main split gate, walking through rows of souvenir shops along the way, but as soon as we go through we spot the shore line right away. The sky couldn’t be any more beautiful as the sun rays poke through the clouds perfectly. It’s at this time that Sharece starts to feel woozy and needs a break.
Figuring it’s something she ate, she takes a breather in the shade, but it soon becomes apparent that her sickness isn’t going away so quickly. Nausea, sweat, dizziness… I soon realize these are symptoms of heat exhaustion (not just sickness) and make sure she has water to help calm her body down. Even though the sun is setting the heat is still present, so we gingerly walk back to the vehicle to get some cold air.
The drive back to the hotel is a long hour and a half, but it does help her recover. It’s not until we get to the hotel room that she starts feeling like herself again.
Side note: Had two different couples approach me at the temple to take a photo with them. Our guide didn't even ask me if it was okay and offered to take the photo for them. Very interesting.
10/06/24- Another morning of sleeping in and buffet style breakfast. Our hotel is allowing us to stay in our room until 1pm, which helps as we have a pickup scheduled for 2:30pm to take us to the airport. Our last few moments in Bali, so sad I know.
Waiting in the lobby, I take a bite of the croissant I kept from breakfast only to find a swarm of mini-ants all over it. Unfortunately, I didn’t see them before I probably inhaled several so I guess I’m getting extra protein today.
Our driver picks us up just before 2:30pm (which cost under $8 USD) and get to the airport within thirty minutes as traffic is extremely light. Maybe it’s because of Sunday, or maybe due to the celebration yesterday and everyone has a hangover. Who knows. We also zip through check-in and security, arriving at our gate #3 an hour before boarding.
Knowing our flight won’t serve us food on the plane, as it’s another super budget international flight, we get a Vietnamese style hoagie sandwich and wait patiently. If you ever had Pho, that’s the type of beef it taste like and its quite good except for how small it is, and that is looks nothing like the photo on the menu.
Shortly before we are to board our VietJet flight, there’s an announcement that another airline is using our gate #3. Strage as the terminal board shows our flight hasn’t changed gates, but also states “boarding closed” next to it. With no place to really turn, I know something is about to go down, just don’t know when. Sure enough, a VietJet attendant comes to the gate announcing our flight has moved to Gate #7. And here we…… go!
We take our time knowing the plane is not taking off without the passengers scrambling down the hallway. We did receive a message this morning by email stating our departure time has been delayed by thirty minutes, so not too much of a shock to go through this. While getting situated, I notice the bar connecting the seat in front of me separated from the base. Well, this is not a good sign.
The flight last just under five hours and as expected no free meal service, no screens to watch and no power to charge our phones. We do try to purchase a drink on board but its cash only. Other than a twenty minute turbulence area where the plane sways back and forth for a bit the flight is overall decent, and we land just after 10pm in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Immigration is a bit of a line, but our luggage is one of the first ones on the belt, which is nice. We go to the ATM to withdraw some Vietnamese cash, purchase a ham & cheese croissant and locate our pre-booked driver to take us to The Chi Boutique Hotel. Along the way, we see the streets full of people at midnight and restaurants open like its Vegas.
Side note: For those curious, Sharece is already feeling better today. Unsure how the next few days will go with temperatures in the 90s but at least the humidity is lower.
10/07/24- It’s been just over one week since we left New York and we’ve already taken five separate flights. We still have two more countries left to hit after Vietnam, but first it’s time to tackle Hanoi.
Our hotel provides us a free buffet breakfast with traditional Vietnamese dishes that aren’t much different than the Balinese ones. The best part is the view from the rooftop on the 8th floor that overlooks the city. The staircase leading up to the rooftop is also quite elaborate, and one of the selling points for us on choosing this place.
We retreat to our room and look up train tickets for tomorrow. It takes a bit to research as the websites I have no longer show the dates available. I contact the hotel to assist but they only want to offer a shuttle, which I’ve been warned the roads are not very friendly at all. In fact, one of the shuttle options I find online actually strongly suggests we get the insurance. Huge red flag! Finally, I come across an official site and snag two seats, and we’ll leave the rest of this for tomorrow’s adventure.
Our day starts out around 11:30am. We first walk by St. Joseph’s cathedral (which is literally steps away from us) for some outside photos, and then duck inside a souvenir shop to scope out what they have. Next, we walk around Hanoi, making sure to watch ourselves as the sidewalks are mostly blocked by parked mopeds and the streets are full of speeding cars. Remembering the game of Frogger, we just hold out our hands and cross the street when necessary.
Twenty minutes later, we locate the entrance to Train Street which is a narrow alleyway full of shops and bistros. Every so often trains come through, sending the patrons scrambling to put up their tables to allow room, and after the train passes they put them back out again. Unfortunately, the next train is still less about two hours away, and the heat is already starting to bake us.
Contemplating going back to the hotel, we decide to part ways during the break. Sharece stays on Train Street to enjoy a drink at one of the bistros and I walk ten minutes to the Prison Museum (Hoa Lo Prison Relic). Originally used by the French colonist in Indochina, and later by North Vietnamese for U.S. POWs. I only have a short amount of time so I briskly walk through, but it’s quite interesting to view the Vietnam war from the other side.
I make it back to Train Street with time to spare before the next train arrives. Sharece and I park ourselves at a table near the tracks, order a blueberry soda drink and wait. Soon, we hear a whistle blowing and see all of the shop owners pushing tables out of the way while yelling for patrons to step back. Not long after, the train roars down the track and whizzes by as my face is a mere foot from getting pelted. It’s a truly awesome experience.
With the show now over, everyone grabs their belonging, pays their bill and continues on their way. I’m not sure how they can allow this to go on daily without people getting seriously hurt, but they make it work so power to them.
Our day out is coming to a close, so we call a GRAB to take us back to our hotel (Only $1.20 USD), get some burgers, pick up the souvenir we saw earlier and enjoy the rest of the evening cozying up in our room. There is a strange broadcast going on outside that plays music periodically but basically just a woman speaking for five minutes straight. Not sure what that’s about and don’t intend to find out.
10/08/24- Ugh, another 4am wake up time as our train to Ninh Binh, Vietnam leaves at 6:10am. Even though we are only going to be gone for the one night and will be back at this hotel tomorrow night, we still need to pack our bags to check out. Our hotel in Hanoi is storing our bags for the night so we don’t have to lug it along, and provides us both with a box breakfast for the journey. I tell you, everyone we’ve met here in Vietnam has been very nice so far. Very hospitable environment.
Our GRAB drops us off at the station and our train is the first in line to board. We find our seats, which are numbered on the back so a bit hard to find initially, and soon realize in horror that we are seated smack in the middle of a group of 10 people who are already very loudly talking back and forth. It’s 6am and Jeffery needs his sleep.
The ride is a very long two hours with the constant yapping, coughing and bathroom smell seeping through the cabin, but we arrive in one piece to Ninh Binh. Not wasting any time, we scurry outside the station only to be hounded by drivers practically tackling us to take their taxi service. We continue right past and call a GRAB. Ten minutes later we arrive at Lalita Boutique Hotel & Spa.
Not knowing what to expect this early in the morning, we’re pleasantly surprised when they say our room is ready. We were fully prepared to drop off our bags and go, but this allows us to relax in our room, eat our box breakfast and unwind from the journey for a few hours.
With a bit of rest behind us, we call a GRAB (who happens to already be seated in the lobby at the hotel so very convenient) and take it to Bai Dinh Pagoda. The trip takes about thirty minutes and as we arrive, the driver rolls down my window in the backseat to pay the attendant. I have no idea if this is the entrance ticket or what but it’s only 30,000 VND so I pay it. Turns out, it was for parking. Now why would a person dropping someone off have to pay for parking? That just sounds dumb. But when you’re in a communist country you learn not to ask too many questions.
At the ticket counter, we are presented with a few options. The first two involves only a single round trip ticket to the main property area and back. Realizing the complex is quite large, we opt for the more expensive all-inclusive ticket including unlimited electric car rides to each location as well as the top of the thirteen-story tower. Funny how the upsale on the tickets (which includes a foot message if we so choose to accept it) only cost us a total of $10 USD.
With tickets in hand, we also purchase a conical hat for Sharece (which is the traditional pointed hats worn by locals) before taking the electric car to the first location of The Three Gates (the entrance to the land of Buddha).
We take the transport to the Three Periods Temple housing three large golden Buddha statues representing the past, present and future. On the wall shelves hundreds of smaller Buddha statues enclosed in cases like trophies. We have to take our shoes off to walk inside the temple and be silent for those who are praying. A very surreal moment regardless of what god you adhere to.
From here it’s a short walk to the tall pagoda tower. There are shoe booties to put on at the entrance and an elevator to the top floor (however, we still need to walk up a few flights to the second level for that), but once we exit the 12th floor we are enamored with a vast view of the area. Despite the haze, we can see multiple smaller pagodas surrounding the area as well as the entire layout of the complex.
It’s now 2pm and the 90+ degree heat is out in full force. Leaping from shadow to shadow as best as we can, we take the electric car back to the front ticketing area (having to switch cars each time it stops at a location) and call a GRAB back to the hotel. I did try to look for a pagoda souvenir but they are all too tall and only accept cash.
Back in the room, it has a slot to put in the room key to turn on the electricity so of course the air couldn’t blow while away. It takes quite a bit for the cool air to circulate but the bed is comfortable enough to rest for a few moments before venturing down the street for some food. Surprisingly, we find a Mexican food place called Happy Wind that is excellent.
Feeling unsatisfied with the souvenir catch, we take another GRAB down the street to the local market area (did I mention how much I love this car service here as it’s so cheap and fast), and unfortunately do not find what we are looking for. I mean, the pagoda is one of the main things to see in Ninh Binh so why not have it as a souvenir? A bit dejected, we head back to our hotel, which does provide a stand-up fan for us tonight.
Side note: I can feel my throat a bit sore right now so hopefully I didn’t catch anything on the train ride here.
10/09/24- We get plenty of sleep as the day should be a light one for the most part. Our train back to Hanoi leaves in the afternoon but still have half a day to explore.
Breakfast is not as plentiful as previous hotels but they do have Pho. Usually, I like to grab some extra pastries or a banana to take with me on the day, but they don’t seem to have any on the menu. The view of their pool and outside is also nice from the rooftop, despite the low lying clouds.
I get about thirty minutes to rest before getting a GRAB to the Lying Dragon Mountain. Sharece opts to stay at the hotel to take full advantage of the spa services (I don’t blame her), while I go on a hike. Seems fair.
The ride is about ten minutes and drops me off at the parking lot, which doesn’t look like a hiking area. There’s tourist buses parked, vendors outside and have to pay 100,000 VND ($4 USD) to enter. I pay the amount and start walking with everyone else, passing a few restaurants and a hotel along the way.
At the end of the trail lies a steep staircase with a Dragon as a handrail. Yup, this is definitely it. With no time like the present, I march up the stairs like I own them… that is until I tire out half way up the first set. Wow! My legs are already spent.
The angle of the steps don’t allow you to see how far up everything is, but the outward view is quite awesome as I continue going up. It takes about twenty minutes of powering through, and stopping for shade when possible, but I reach the top with some water to spare. What a fantastic view. I’m going to pause this blog for a moment just to reflect. Ahhhhh!
Taking a breather as the cool wind kills the heat, I climb up the last few steps, or notches in the rock, and find little room to maneuver with several others in the way. A dragon head, seemingly made of stone, is inches from my face, with its long tail bouncing on the mountain top, and I’m here holding on for dear life hoping my cell phone doesn’t fall out of my pocket and my camera doesn’t bang against the rocks.
It takes a bit but soon the others clear, leaving me a nice view for a photo. Within a minute, more people start to climb, so I make my way down practically skipping to the bottom, take a GRAB to the hotel and jump into the shower. Thankfully we have our room until 1pm allowing me time to freshen up. I meet Sharece in the room after her massage and after a bit of rest we go back to the Happy Wind restaurant for a late lunch and to kill some time.
Our train leaves around 4:12pm and already feels less noisy than the previous. That is until after an hour passes and a family of six boards, with a toddler that they let run up and down the aisle, screaming high pitch sounds. The parents actually encourage this while the lights were low and people were trying to sleep. Then, the lady behind us starts coughing non-stop and the lady in front keeps playing her instagram videos out loud for everyone to hear. What is with this country and their noise?
7:12pm doesn’t come soon enough as we exit the train, get a GRAB and check into The Chi Boutique Hotel once again. They bring our bags that we had stored with them, go up to our upgraded room (very nice of them) and finally can enjoy the cool air conditioning. I do venture outside for a few night shots of the cathedral next door. I also go to the rooftop for a photo, and as I enter all three employees jump to their feet to greet me. This is definitely a “service first” hotel and appreciate all the little things they do to make a guest feel welcomed.
10/10/24- Get up feeling phlegm in my throat. I knew that train was going to hit me somehow, but luckily I’m not feeling any other symptoms yet as I enjoy a cup of tea with breakfast to help.
This is our last day in Vietnam before flying out later tonight. Unfortunately, the hotel doesn’t have a late check-out option, so at noon we have them store our bags and walk around the area a bit more. Strangely, they ask us about two missing hand towels from our room which we know nothing about. Nothing came of it but it does provide for an awkward moment as we don’t want to be branded towel thieves for the rest of our days. They also hand us a survey to fill out regarding their hotel… as they stand in front of you… watching you fill it out.
With a few hours before our trip to the airport, we walk around the corner to Hoen Kiem Lake (also named “Sword Lake” due to the legend of a sword being returned to the Dragon King god after fighting off the Chinese). The breeze and shade provide little relief from the sun trying to find us, but we don’t plan on being out long. Especially since we don’t have an actual hotel room to go back to.
Currently, Vietnam is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its independence from France, and quite a few have shown up around the lake, dressed in traditional dresses and garments, to take photos. It’s easy to see that this is a very important time.
Out in the water, we see Turtle Tower sitting all alone on a small island. The abandoned structure seems so isolated from the chaotic picture takers and gawkers roaming around, which makes it feel peaceful as we dodge the hoard of people clogging the sidewalk.
Just ahead we see The Huc Bridge, which is very red in color and expands over to another island temple that comes with an admission charge. Just taking a front facing photo of the bridge is difficult as they have barriers around the entrance, but we manage to take a few through the gate opening.
Our last location we want to hit is the Old House. It’s only a six minute walk away, but the wind has suddenly died down, leaving us in a mini pool of sweat. Also, the calmness of the lake area is overtaken by the roaring of mopeds and cars slicing down the road. It takes us a moment to find the correct building only to find it’s closed for lunch for another twenty minutes. An oasis of air conditioning is seen nearby at a vegan restaurant where we order a strawberry smoothie in the meantime.
Twenty or so minutes later, we walk across the street as it’s now open and very interestingly walk through the ancient house built in the 19th century. There’s a modern feel to the layout but overall something different to explore before taking a GRAB back to our hotel.
We now have less than an hour to freshen up before another GRAB takes us to the airport. The flight leaves on time around 6:25pm, and a short and smooth ninety minutes later we land in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We fly through customs, grab our bags and locate an ATM that only wants to give me US dollars. Seems weird but find out the country takes US cash everywhere. We then locate our driver who has my name on a sign and he speaks English very well (a little too well). This is where it gets interesting as he soon asks what hotel we are going to. Hmmm, didn’t the booking service provide that info already to him?
Scrambling a bit, I quickly message the booking service to confirm the driver is indeed the one who was supposed to pick us up. I can imagine a scenario where he beats up our driver and poses as one to lure us to be kidnapped. Now his perfect English is looking a bit suspect. I’ve seen the movie Taken I know how this goes down.
After a few miles he begins to cough, and all I can think about is him using this as an excuse to pull over for water while a van takes us away. Sure enough, he pulls to the side of the road and says, “I need to get some water.” Ummmmm.
Around this time, I receive a message back from the booking service confirming the person is our driver and they have now relayed our hotel info to him. Whew! I have more to sightsee and prefer not to do that in a watering hole somewhere.
The drive takes forty-five minutes to Koulen Hotel, which is very nice as we have an apartment suite with a balcony. However, with the late hour, we don’t spend much time going through anything as sleep is mostly on our minds.
Side note: Our bathroom has a see through window in it. Where do people get off wanting all of their business shared. I just don't get it.
10/11/24- Another good night’s sleep as I wake up feeling refreshed and not sick. It’s now 9:15am and we’re about to go to breakfast when there’s a knock on our door. I open it to find five housekeeping staff staring at me. I state we don’t need our room cleaned and they look at each other with grim faces like I just told them they couldn’t ride the pony at the fair.
Then, at breakfast, the staff are all waiting on us, complete with praying hands as we enter. Anything we go towards they immediately assist, and if we tell them we can do it ourselves they have a confused look on their face. Very strange servitude thing going on here. I’m actually quite disturbed wondering if they’re fattening us up for something. Maybe we’re the main course of their ritual later. Btw, the waffles and syrup here are amazing… just say’n.
Noon comes around and we enter the lobby ready for our driver to pick us up, which we arrange with the hotel. For $34 USD, we have a driver for the day that’ll take us to several temples while waiting for us to return. Knowing how hot it’ll be we welcome the personal driver and a/c van.
First stop is to the ticket office, which looks like a palace itself. They take our picture and put it on the ticket (to avoid others of using them). The cost is $37 for a one day temple pass and $62 for a three day pass. This will be Sharece’s only day out as she plans to enjoy the hotel spa coming up, but I’m feeling more adventurous. I’m also able to get actual Cambodian cash from the ATM.
Not far down the road is the Angkor Wat Temple. Built in 1150, it’s considered one of the largest religious structures in the world. Our driver has to park a ways from the entrance, meaning we have to walk quite a bit to the entrance. At first the trees provide some shade as it feels like it may be manageable, but as soon as we enter through the temple gates we realize what we’re in for.
There are long sections of openness as we cross a lake and grassy area with the sun knocking at our shoulder. Before long that knock turns into a punch with each step in the direct sunlight we take. The temple walls are of little relief as the no wind effect creates an oven, practically cooking us from the inside. You think I’m exaggerating but this is exactly what it feels like.
Putting my mind back on the task at hand, I roam through the temple walls finding statues and relics along the way. Further up, we finally come to the pillars that gives Angkor Wat its awesome appearance and it doesn’t disappoint. Several pillars reaching high into the sky and not very many people around to get in my way.
The challenging part is going up the stairs to view inside those pillars as the steps are pretty steep, but I power through, bound and determined to see what I can find. By the time I make it out of the complex I’m literally pouring with sweat from head to toe. Others are staring as I trot down the path back to the van, unsure if it’s because I’m American, have long hair or look like I’m about to fall flat on my face. Perhaps a mixture of all three.
I barely make it back to the van, with a souvenir in tow (which I use all of my Cambodian cash for). Funny thing is when I ask if they take credit card for the souvenir and she says no, but she soon sees the Cambodian cash in my hand and practically takes it from me stating this is enough. Wearily, I calculate in my head and realize it is a better deal, but also feel a little bad as the cash is drenched in sweat.
Bayon Temple (net on the list) is pretty easy to maneuver as the driver is able to pull up close and park. Takes me twenty minutes to walk through and take photos, maneuvering through the corridors like I own the place. The faces etched into the rock towers are very awesome to see, but not much more to this place as half of the temple seems to be under restoration.
This brings us to the last temple of Ta Prohm (aka Tomb Raider temple, aka Angelina Jolie temple). This was, if you can guess, featured as the backdrop in the 2001 Tomb Raider movie. Sharece stays back at the air conditioned van as she accepts her fate of defeat for the day. I, stupidly perhaps, charge through the temple on a mission.
Firstly, I almost miss the guy checking tickets at the gate as he flags me down. Then there’s a long tree lined clearing I have to walk just to get to the temple walls, but once inside it’s magical. Immediately, I’m greeted by a large tree with roots twisting around one of the temple doorways. As I go further, I see pockets of open courtyards and more maze-like corridors to explore. I’m leaping over stones off the beaten path, avoiding the tourist groups in the process.
Once I hit the other end of the temple, I take a final look to reflect before making my way back toward the van where cold water and a washcloth are waiting for me.
Back at the hotel, we peel off our clothes and throw them into a laundry bag before putting on our swimwear for the pool. We take the laundry to the front desk who states they charge by the kilo and it’ll be $25 USD. Expensive but okay, but before I can nod she corrects herself to $35 USD. Nope, nope… this is feeling like a bad drug deal with kilos involved. We retreat to our room, take some clothes out and drop off only what is needed.
The pool is excellent by the way. Perfect temperature, not too hot or cold, and so relaxing. You can tell they take good care of it as the water is crystal clear. Not a bad way to cool off.
We check the prices for happy hour but are not happy with the selection, so we look at our GRAB app and low-and-behold we find food delivery. Thank you again GRAB, we’ll never forget you.
10/12/24- Breakfast is very good, although no waffles this time, only pancakes. The staff seems mellow this morning as well, not as jumpy.
Researching which temple to go to today, I find one to my liking and walk to the front desk to ask about cost for a driver. They originally quote me around $35, but when I let them know I plan on only going to one temple and won’t be long that price drops to $20. I mean, I could take a GRAB for a little less but I feel better with the hotel driver if possible.
I’m still ten minutes from leaving as the driver is finishing his lunch, so I walk down the road to an ATM. There are two there, one is broken and the other doesn’t want to give me Cambodian cash. Luckily, my driver is okay taking me to a bank where I withdraw some. As we go, I notice he is not in a good mood as I feel a bit queasy from his driving. Relax dude, this will be a short day for you, I promise.
It’s a twenty minute drive to Pre Rup Temple. Built around the year 961, it’s made from brick and sandstone and most likely used for ceremonial burials. The grounds are small; however, the height is quite massive as it takes a toll climbing the tall steps to the top.
The sky is a beautiful blue with few clouds, which means it’s sunny and hot, but somehow I manage to roam around without the downpour of sweat I felt yesterday. With this in mind, I continue on to find the pond of water near the temple where I can take a reflection photo from. Having trouble, I ask for assistance and find that the pond is dried up with only a small amount of water left.This is a bit of a downer as its the main reason why I chose this temple today, but I make the most of the photo opp.
Back in the parking lot, I use my Cambodian cash to purchase a drink and bracelet before climbing into the air conditioned car. The ride back to the hotel allows me to cool and dry off, but notice this time the driver doesn’t offer me a cool towel or water. He definitely isn’t too happy driving me around for the discount price.
The rest of the day is spent enjoying down time and chillin’ at the pool. Surprisingly, drinks are not expensive here so we order several and a New York Sicilian pizza to boot. I feel good about what we’ve done here in Cambodia. Sure there’s more I could do, but the temples were the main draw for me and it didn’t disappoint.
Side note: Our son was also on a plane in the US that experienced a failed landing at San Diego due to bad weather and diverted to Los Angeles. Thankfully, they rerouted back to San Diego a few hours later and he’s okay. All of this was going on while we were sipping on Long Island Ice Tea’s at the hotel pool. Feel bad for the kid.
10/13/24- Officially two weeks into the trip with one week remaining. Time has definitely flown as we enter the home stretch. Great weather so far, considering no rain, and feel very fortunate that all of our flights have been on time.
Breakfast this morning is interesting as the staff don’t greet us as promptly as before. There’s also quite a bit of chattering between them and we figure perhaps it’s Sunday, and the head honcho is away at church or something. Either way, we enjoy the waffles, chicken and rice and pastries.
At noon, we settle our hotel charges and book a GRAB to the airport. This reminds me of the driver we had a few days ago from the airport. Over the course of our stay he contacted me daily to ask if we will book him again for the return ride. I have no plans to book anyone directly as that’s how Americans don’t come home, but also the fact that he said, “Have a sweet dream” to me in the text makes me feel extremely uncomfortable.
SIA Airport in Siem Reap looks very new and clean. After going through security we’re treated with a cool view of a statue, but weirdly the entire place seems deserted. It’s hard to get over how quiet it is as you can hear a literal pin drop. Strangely, the check-in counter spent quite a bit of time going over our passport information and visas to make sure everything matched. I guess we look like people who are trying to sneak into their country.
Our first flight boards on time, however, they split Sharece and I up on our seats (even though we purchased together). At first this seems like a scam as they want to charge to have us move, but once we board the plane we find some empty seats and got the entire row to myself, thank you very much.
The flight is a decent hour as it lands in Bangkok, Thailand. Here, we have to go back through security (dumping our water again) but this place looks more like a mini strip mall with Starbucks, McDonalds, Subway and even Dairy Queen restaurants lined up on the way to our gate.
As we board, the flight attendant asks us for our visas again, which never happens at a gate, but we board without a problem. Can’t say the same for the flight attendants as they practically wrestle with the heard of people not following directions. It’s like everyone on board is a child and they have to explain over and over again how to properly board the plane and find your seat.
During the flight, the three guys across the aisle from me are chatting in their Indian language the entire time, so it’s bittersweet when we hit some turbulence that shuts them up for maybe five minutes. This goes on for over four hours straight. I kid you not.
Finally, we land in Jaipur, India after 10pm local time (weirdly is an hour and a half time difference from Cambodia. I mean why the half hour?) During immigration, there’s a delay in getting through due to their finger printing machine not working properly, and after getting our bags we set out to find an ATM. Guess what, the ATM machine doesn’t like my CapitalOne card. Of course.
I was thinking of going with a taxi to our hotel, but since the ATM is being a jerk we just order an UBER. Funnily enough it’s actually cheaper at only $6 USD. Loving that exchange rate.
Ride takes twenty minutes and arrive at Jaipur Hotel New around midnight. The front of the hotel is located down an alley (doesn’t look inviting) and through a small door that leads to a not so pleasant looking courtyard. The room doesn’t provide much comfort either as its pretty small, looks dirty and doesn’t look like the photos when we originally booked. And I don’t even want to know what the buckets in the shower are about.
Very tired from the long journey to get there, we settle into bed and will reconcile everything in the morning.
10/14/24- I wake up to Sharece typing away on her phone. Apparently, she found a new hotel for us to move to in Jaipur, as this one obviously is not ideal. I take a quick look, trust her judgment and book it without thinking twice. We’re on vacation, we need the stuff!
We check out of our hotel around 11:30am, much to the confusion of the hotel staff who are wondering why. We tell them our plans changed and leave it at that. Then we book an Uber to take us the fifteen minutes to The Fern Residency Hotel. Just looking at the lobby makes us very happy with the choice, and luckily they have our room ready.
Man oh man, what a difference as we’re on the top floor with a gorgeous view of the city. There’s a rooftop bar, a pool and the place looks like a castle from the outside. Sharece did an excellent job.
After spending only about ten minutes putting our stuff away, we are eager to get the day started. First is food, and seeing that we are in India we opt for something familiar… Burger King. Hey, it’s just down the road- sue me.
We get to the mall entrance and have to walk through a metal detector to start. Weird but okay. Then we get to Burger King and I’m confused with the menu as the burgers state Veg (which I’m assuming is Vegetarian) and No Veg. The credit card machine is not working so the worker assists, charges our card an extra couple dollars for sundae’s we didn’t order (not a big deal) only to find out that No Veg means chicken. What! Where’s the BEEF!
Researching, we come to find that India (with their mostly Hindu population) doesn’t serve beef as it’s against their religion. Well, someone could’ve put that on the Visa label when we entered the country. They bring our Veg burgers and of course it’s spicy. I ask for a non-spicy kind and they say everything is spicy. Ugh, just give me some chicken nuggets and we’ll be on our way.
Finally, we’re off to the City Palace. Our Uber, for whatever reason, takes the long route through the narrow market streets turning a ten minute ride to almost thirty. The chaos outside is absolutely crazy with bikes, mopeds, cars, busses, rickshaws and people crowding the streets as blaring horns ring out constantly. Out of nowhere, two large elephants cross through traffic like it was nothing. A truly unique experience.
Once there, we’re in awe over the pink palace of the Hawa Mahal. Built in 1799. Its built almost entirely of red and pink sandstone with many small windows throughout. It’s tough fighting the vast amount of people and the sun to take a photo, but we manage. Did I mention there are people everywhere here?
Tickets to get in are GooglePay or cash only, but there’s an ATM around the corner. Still doesn’t take my CapitalOne bank card but my Bank of America works just fine. With Indian cash now in hand, we pay for our tickets and walk around the grounds. The Palace consists of four levels, each with its own small courtyard space and view. An interesting introduction to the world of India.
Next, we walk toward the City Palace. The buildings trap you like a maze and our internet and GPS don’t seem to work for whatever reason, so we do our best to maneuver without asking for help (as that would encourage the people trying to get our services for a guide). Somehow, we stumble into the ticket counter and low-and-behold they take credit card.
Walking through the gate, we see a wide open courtyard showing off the palace grounds and architecture. There’s a mini museum in the middle building with elaborate clothing attire throughout each room and a gallery of artist selling their work in the front building.
To the side, there’s another gate that leads to an open area where the palace guides quickly line up to have their photo taken for us. They offer for us to be in the picture and we decline.
The last place on our list is the Jantar Mantar, which is a collection of 19 astronomical instruments built in 1734, and features the world’s largest sundial. Not much to the area as it feels like a park, but the a/c in the souvenir shop is well worth the price of admission.
With the day now complete, we call a Uber and wait by a busy intersection for it to arrive. Ten minutes turns to twenty as we dodge people, vehicles and a handy man, but we get the whole “just walk across the street and cars will stop” thing down. Key is to keep walking forward.
10/15/24- I’m glad we opt for the hotel breakfast, which is served buffet style. I try several different dishes as a taster to see what I may or may not like and surprising find it quite good for the most part. They even have ice coffee (well “cold” coffee as they put it).
We spend a few hours this morning going over our next hotel change, as we don’t want a repeat of what we call “The Jaipur Incident” and find a very nice one for our next destination. Excellent!
At noon, I get an Uber to go to Amer Fort while Sharece stays back at the hotel. As I get in, the driver insists I sit up front, which should’ve been my first red flag, and on the way he repeatedly tries to sell me on him as a guide or stopping at places along the way. I show him the destination on Uber and state that is all I need, thank you.
Once we arrive, he practically demands 500 INR from me for whatever reason. I show him the app again and say the amount I paid to Uber is for this location, I owe you nothing. He continues to ask when I say I’ll call Uber to sort this out as I leave the car. Not a moment later he drives off. What is it with these drivers?
Walking toward the entrance, I’m hounded by Tuk Tuk drivers begging me to use their service to get to the top. As I continue on I hear one mention it’s too far to walk, but I know better as it’s only ten minutes (although upstairs). Good thing Sharece isn’t with me for this.
The Fort is quite large, which is why it may be a good thing that guides are plentiful, but I’m in no mood to be slowed down. After buying my entrance ticket, I brave the heat, charge up more and whip out my camera for whatever shots I can take. Surprisingly, I don’t have to wait too long for people to move out of my way for pictures and there’s plenty of shade around to escape the 90 degree heat. Hey, at least it’s dry heat.
Turkish baths, elaborate doorways and views out to the mountains are all on display as I follow where my camera leads me. I spend a good two hours roaming around before finding the exit (not before asking another to take a photo of me since my travel partner in crime is not here).
Upon exiting, I call an Uber to take me back and realize quickly that it’s the same guy who dropped me off earlier. Was he waiting this whole time for me to come out? Not dealing with that I cancel the ride, find a Tuk Tuk, negotiate a fare and take it twenty-five minutes back to the hotel. I’m quite impressed with how cool the breeze feels as he passes others (even an elephant) as if on a mission.
Back at the hotel, we order room service (cheap) and go to the rooftop to enjoy a nightcap. I have to admit, Jaipur is quite interesting to me as a whole. Once you get past the culture shock it really is a beautiful city to explore. Just need to be mindful of the many, MANY people who try to take advantage of you.
Side note: Our ride tomorrow from Jaipur to Agra cancels on me last minute stating they can’t pick us up. I contact the booking agent for a refund and while going through this ordeal the driver contacts me again stating he made a mistake and can take us now. Sorry bud, refund will be coming and already booked with another company for cheaper.
10/16/24- We prepare for our driver to pick us up at 11:30am. I’m a bit nervous since we booked late last night and haven’t really heard from the tour operator. We go to breakfast and shortly after we finally hear back 45 minutes before our pickup time. At least there’s that.
We check out and the driver arrives twenty minutes late. Not good as we have plans in Agra tonight and need to be there by a certain time. Also, he has no room in the small car for us and our luggage to fit comfortably, so he puts our suitcases on top of his car (in a rack at least) and grabs a strap from the trunk to wrap around. This does not make me feel at ease but I trust that he’s done this before. Of course, not even ten minutes into the drive, the strap comes loose and he has to pull over to re-tie.
Sliding, honking, zooming and swaying every which way seems to be the theme in India, and this driver is no different. I come to wonder if their horn stops working then perhaps they consider their car disabled.
Two hours later (half way into the drive) we make our first stop at a restaurant. Sharece and I are okay with the scraps we brought from breakfast this morning but it’s obvious or driver is hungry, so we take this time to stretch our legs.
It’s now 3:45pm and we reach Fatehpur Sikri (one of our scheduled stops for this drive). This town was founded as the capital in 1571. The complex is quite interesting as we have to pay for a separate driver to take us there and pay for a guide to show us around as it’s easy to get lost, and we only have thirty minutes to spare. It’s a nice fort; however, it definitely feels like this is the hobo hangout. At least they take credit card.
We finally arrive at Radisson Hotel Agra at 6pm. We tip the driver, thank him for the interesting but fun ride and proceed to have our bags scanned through security so we can enter the hotel. This is a very upscale place so I’m sure security is at the utmost importance, and they take every precaution (even sweep under our car).
With one hour before our taxi (arranged by the hotel), we quickly get ready for our night viewing of the Taj Mahal. Our tickets are not until 8pm; however, we have to show up thirty minutes early for security check. This is also a rare event as they allow a limited amount of people once a month or so to view it at night and it happens to be while we are here. Go us!
Our driver takes us to the entrance where we wait for security. It’s at this time when we’re told that cell phones are not allowed (didn’t know that earlier) and have to coat check them in. I am a bit worried about my main camera as it can record video, but they have no problem with me bringing it along, so that’s a huge relief.
We then take a trolley to the main gate and walk a short ways before seeing the archway with the Taj Mahal just on the other side. Wow! It’s not lit up at all, but the full moon illuminates it just enough to take some photos. The entire experience lasts only thirty minutes before we’re escorted back to the main entrance to retrieve our phones. Our driver (who was waiting patiently this entire time) drives us back to the hotel.
10/17/24- We maybe get only three to four hours of sleep as we have early tickets to see the Taj Mahal at sunrise. Last night was a good trial run to see how things work, so hoping all goes as well as can be expected.
We grab our box breakfast from the hotel staff and eat what we can in our room, as no food of any kind is allowed at the site. Then we book an Uber, which takes us five minutes to get to the East Gate (same as last night so we are familiar) and walk briskly to the trolley, avoiding the guides hocking their services. All we hear is, “My friend, get tickets here” or “Come to my shop” or even more boldly “You’re going the wrong way, let me help you”. Turns out we are going the wrong way for a second, but it all works out.
Once off the trolley, we head for the security line and see how long it is already (at 5:40am). I calmly walk toward the front and mingle in as Sharece waits back in line (not going to wait behind hoards of tour groups). After a moment, I find some white people who seem to speak English and ask if they can hold my place for a moment while I grab my friend who just showed up. After a nod, I get Sharece and bring her up front with me. There is a guide who stated that we need to go to the back of the line and I tell him I was already here, just getting my friend. That satisfies him as he leaves. Easy peasy!
Security is simple enough as we already know the drill, and this time they allow cell phones since it’s during the day. Soon we are off to the arch gate once more to see the Taj Mahal looming in the distance. Beautiful!
We walk along the water, hand in hand, enjoying the moment as we capture photos along the way. The sun rises to our right, illuminating the Taj Mahal in a light pink hue as the blue sky overtakes the backdrop. Finally, after ten years of wanting to see this magnificent marvel, and four years after our plans were originally thwarted by Covid, we can finally say we are here.
The morning continues as we make our way to the mausoleum. Built out of ivory, white marble, the Taj Mahal was commissioned in 1631 to house the tomb of the emperor’s wife. To walk inside the tomb area, we are given booties to wear over our feet and continue in a line that stretches the entire way through.
Feeling accomplished, we exit, buy a souvenir and take an Uber back to the hotel where, interestingly enough, breakfast is still being served. Changing clothes, we eat to our hearts content and enjoy the rest of the day basking in the glory of nothingness.
Side note: Our hotel room comes complete with a view of the Taj Mahal.
10/18/24- These few weeks just flew by it seems. At points it went by slow and then suddenly it’s time to check-in to another hotel. Today is no different as we have a pre-booked pickup scheduled for noon today to drive us to Delhi.
The breakfast is as nice as before, however we stay away from any Indian dishes before the road trip just in case. That also means no cappuccino. When we get back to our floor we find our room key no longer works, yet we are still two hours from check-out. Luckily there’s a worker on the floor who lets us in without having to go to reception.
Noon is almost here and our driver is already waiting, which is a very good sign, and guess what? Our luggage fits “inside” the car. Of course only one in the trunk and the other in the front seat, but still. Win!
The drive is supposed to be three hours, and we seem to be making pretty good time until we get to Delhi. Suddenly I see the time add ten minutes and realize we are going the wrong direction. Keeping track of the directions on my phone, I notice the driver try to turn around in a very busy area, Yup, he must’ve missed a turn and realizes it now. It’s chaos trying to get back on the main road, but luckily it only adds twenty minutes to our journey.
Checking in to Bloomrooms@Janpath is quite interesting as they email us the check-in information to confirm and have us type our information on their computer. The entire building is pretty much sun-colored yellow as well.
We go up to our room to find a free mini-bar lounge area on our floor with snacks, drinks and books available (Note: I tried the chips and some are extremely spicy). In our room there’s a living room area, bedroom and white walls- not yellow, whew! It does have a dorm room feel though.
I did ask the front desk about a late checkout in a few days as our flight is very late; however, it looks like we need to wait until the day of to see if it’s available. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there I guess.
Side note: Anytime we are outside we get stares from almost everyone like they’ve never seen white people before. I can’t tell if we seem like royalty or outcast to them, maybe it’s a bit of both.
10/19/24- Wow, we get over ten hours of sleep and feel ready to tackle our last city of Delhi. Breakfast is more simplistic then previous stays but still enough to get us a good start and take a few pastries with us. Of course the lady at the next table is coughing quite a bit. The sickness is trying its hardest but somehow we keep dodging. Did I mention our hotel is yellow?
Our first place we want to go to is the Qutub Minar. Mostly built around 1199, this tower is part of several historically significant monuments in the complex. It takes forty minutes by Uber to get here and the ride itself cost us only $3.25. I don’t know how these drivers make any money but I definitely doubled the fare in a tip.
We get dropped off at the wrong gate and walk around to the ticket counter. There’s a line forming to get in, but since we are in the foreign line we are able to get right through (foreigners pay quite a bit more than locals). They hand us a token to scan at the gate and soon we are walking through history.
At first glance, it feels as if we’re entering the Roman Forum with the ruins quite large and spread out (including one of the first mosques built by the Delhi Sultans). With the heat index around 95 already, we dance from shadow to shadow the best we can to avoid getting baked from within.
While strolling around the complex, we get stopped by a group of young men wanting to take a selfie with us. We oblige with a smile and carry on, but so funny how often this happens. We stay perhaps an hour before calling an Uber to our next location.
Fifty minutes through heavy traffic later (filled with locals knocking on car windows to sell their stuff), we finally arrive at Humayun’s Tomb. This is the tomb of Mughal emporer, Mirza Nasir al-Din Muhammad, and is one of the first of its kind built in 1558.
Other tombs as well as a garden surround the complex (which later was the inspiration for the Taj Mahal almost 100 years later).
The steps to go up to the mausoleum are quite high, but well worth the sweat as the inside is quite striking. It’s now closing in on 3pm with the sun out in full force, so we book an Uber back to our hotel.
Feeling hungry, and knowing we aren’t going to find beef anywhere, we use a delivery app to order some chicken sandwiches. Mine actually says “Chicken Surprise Burger” on the wrapper so hoping for a good outcome.
Tomorrow will be our last day on this trip before heading back to New York. Not sure if we plan to do anything else or just call it early on account of exhaustion. We’ll see how we feel after breakfast.
Side note: The surprise in the chicken sandwich is spice. Of course!
10/20/24- The dawn of another trip is upon us as we soon embark for our journey home. A true bitter-sweet moment as my mind would love to do more but my body has said enough is enough. We’ve seen temples, tombs, backdrops from movies and some weird, crazy crap that you just have to witness to believe, but overall I feel very good with how it all went down.
Our hotel can’t give a true answer on how long a late check-out could be, so we book another hotel next to the airport. Even though we won’t be staying the night, having a place to relax in until 9pm or so seems more than ideal… and for only $22.95 USD (with my discount).
I consider going out this morning, but it’s very smoggy and feel I’ve done enough (even though there is more to explore in Delhi that looks interesting).
We check-out at 11am, pay the bill and get an Uber XL to take us to Hotel Shanti Palace (we actually have luggage space). It takes only twenty-five minutes, however, there seems to be quite a bit of police presence on the street.
Once we settle into our new place, we turn on the tv to find that an explosion happened this morning at a school in Delhi that may have been from a crude bomb. This coupled with the 70+ bomb threats for Indian flights have authorities on edge. Luckily, all have been hoaxes but something to pay attention to as the day develops.
We spend the entire afternoon in the hotel room catching up on things and watching a movie, then at 8pm we call an Uber to the airport (literally right around the corner but cost more than the forty minute trip yesterday. Go figure!). Still only $3 USD though. You’d think going to the airport 3.5 hours early would be plenty of time, however, as we arrive we see the line just to get into the building already forming.
After they look over our passports at the door, we check in at the airline counter for American Airlines and proceed to immigration, which is literally right behind it. Our mouths drop as we see the incredibly long line for this. Overall, it takes us 1.5 hours just to get through security (which they have me take every little cord known to man out of my bag for inspection) leaving us with just under two hours left to get to our gate. No problem right? Wrong. The gate is far away and since it’s a US bound flight we are told to be there two hours early for check-in and further screening.
At the gate they allow no food or drinks beyond the screening point, so we have ten minutes to find something and scarf it down before they let us in. Finally… FINALLY we can relax a bit before our flight.
AA 293 takes off on time and is a long 16+ hours straight to JFK. I have to say, New York traffic has nothing on what we just witnessed in Asia. We are more than happy to pick up our car and drive the hour back to our place without constant honking, swerving and dodging going on (even if the shuttle from the airport is in a white abduction van).
To add- here are some things I figured out in India: Every lane is a turning lane regardless of how many cars are in the way. A horn is for letting others know you are there while flashers are used to tell others to get out of the way. Every local is a guide, and beef is outlawed due to their practicing religion. Just in case anyone missed it before.
END OF BLOG
