Tuesday Tales: Only in Vietnam

                                                                    Break My Stride

 Ain't nothin' gonna break-a MY stride!

Well, maybe something will.

Today, as I cycled home from my writing group, I took a corner too wide - avoiding two motorbikes riding side by side - and then saw a bicycle coming at me and over-corrected... right down the edge into a rice paddy.

It was bound to happen sooner or later. Narrow lanes, unpredictable traffic, and I was jacked up on delicious Vietnamese coffee to the point that I had the jitters. It was a Perfect Storm of circumstances!

At least I landed in the soft, muddy rice paddy, and not in one of the concrete irrigation ditches! 

That's it, really. That's the story. 

Several people came to help me out of the mud. Two men from the coffee shop I'd just passed helped lift out my bike, and one of the girls I'd avoided as I turned the corner rode next to me as I walked my bike home. People really are lovely and helpful here.

My bike seems fine, but my hip is out of whack for now. And I did something to my right big toe - a cut? a bruise? All in all, it could've been worse. I know one woman who lost a finger in an accident. Although, she was on a motorbike. (One reason I stick to the bicycle.)

Anyway, I'm limping around the house today. That little accident has, in fact, broken my stride!

What a Weekend!

Oddly enough, the next writing prompt was "bullet point your day," so I bullet pointed the whole two-day trip. But I think I'll use pictures instead of some bullets.

We met our group outside a subway station at 8:00, and were on the road at 8:06. Fortunately, most of them spoke English, so it was very easy to get along. It was supposed to be a 4 hour drive.

At 11:15, we could see the Great Wall and were heading into mountains. Nowhere near the grassland we were going to.
 

Yes, we were whizzing by in a van, but still, I love being able to get pictures.

An hour later, we stopped for gas and to get snacks. Little did we know there were 2 1/2 hours to go! So much for a 4-hour trip.

We arrived at 3:00 to our "farm house." In these rural communities, they use tourism for income, so this was a working farm - actually, several in close proximity - that had each added facilities to house and feed several guests at once.

They fed us almost immediately. Probably because we were supposed to have arrived at 12 and begin riding at 3.

There were 12 of us around the table. It was good. Nothing new that we hadn't tried in Beijing, but good, and plenty of it.

At 3:30 we started getting on horses and ... well, it was really a guided walk, so not too exciting for those of us who'd ridden before, but pretty cool, and the landscape was nice... reminiscent of South Dakota.

Just starting out. There were several farms before the grasslands.

Not people from our group.

On our return to the guest house, some of us gathered in the dining room to play cards while awaiting the lamb that was being cooked for us. Kebabs of lamb, tofu, and chicken, with many sides leftover from lunch, but they made a big deal of the lamb. Apparently it was tasty. I did not partake, but the tofu was awesome!

Fireworks

One of the neighboring guest houses was doing very loud karaoke and ended with fireworks.


I began to notice that my voice was fading. Now that I'm working for the publisher, my voice is very important! This week we will begin a social media group for parents to learn basic English to use at home with their kids, and I'm the voice to teach pronunciation. Plus, the next video shoot is this coming weekend. NOT a good time to lose my voice! So I determined to be careful not to speak too much the next day.

DAY TWO
May 1 is the May Day Holiday in China, and that is why we had the long weekend and took this excursion. Today was the Great Kahn Palace and Bashang Grassland.

Brett and I rose early - work time - and went for a walk.
After breakfast of leftovers from yesterday - they really don't separate what's "breakfast food" here - we all wandered down to a small convenience store to buy foods for lunch - there really were no "lunch foods" so it was all snacks. 

Then we loaded up and headed to the Great Kahn Palace. This was a summer, vacation palace of sorts, built by Genghis Kahn, and used for generations... so probably Khubalai Kahn used it, too. That's what I choose to believe. Anyway, here is a small sample...

The entrance gate

The first structure that wasn't a gate - there were several.

What the HECK is a creepy clown doing here?

Armaments. Non-functional.

And Americans think the eagle is OUR symbol!

Throne room? Audience chamber?

A bedroom. Maybe the Kahn's? His wife's?

A maze. For entertainment. Not sure how authentic it is.

That Creepy Clown again! With FANGS!!

I got a close-up from the roof.

And then we headed off for the grassland and ate our "lunch" in the van. It wasn't a long drive, and soon we were at Lightning Lake in the Bashang Grassland.

Entrance rock.

Too early for boats, I got this from a grounded boat.

I have more pictures, but really. It's a lake. Pretty, but all the pictures are ... a lake. Surrounded by hills. Under a beautiful blue sky. You get it.
 
And then we headed home. 

On the ride home. So pretty!

I was hoping that the near 7 hour trip up was primarily a miscalculation due to the heavy traffic of people getting out of the city Sunday to take advantage of the holiday, but no. It took almost 7 hours, again. The organizers were not very organized to be honest, but I won't get into that here. It was a good trip overall.

I was going to combine this with the next prompt, but I think this is long enough. Glad to be home and trying to get back into a routine.

An Exciting Trip is Coming! I Just Wish I Knew to Where

I'm combining the next two posts from this writing challenge into one. So follow along, it may get convoluted. 

Could I write two posts and just schedule one to go up tomorrow? Yes. But this isn't a moderated challenge and there's no prize. I'm doing it for myself, so if I can't write tomorrow, why pretend?

"But Red, Why 'can't' you write tomorrow?" you ask?

Because we have to meet the bus at 8am. Which brings me to Writing Prompt 1: Something I am excited about.

We are going on a two day (one night) trip out of the city! Yea! I'm very excited to see any part of China that isn't Beijing, just because we so rarely can do that. 

Which brings me to Writing Prompt 2: Five Blessings in your Life.

Blessing 1) I am blessed to travel so widely. Personally, I believe travel is a choice. Both Brett and I know people who express jealousy over our adventures, when really, before moving here, most "adventures" were within a day trip of home. It is not impossible to travel, but I do acknowledge that it takes planning and you have to make it a priority. 

Even moving to Beijing - also a choice - I understand is an easier choice for those of us with no kids, and no deep ties to place. Also because we are in good health. Leading me to...

Blessing 2) I'm in good health. I suffer from no chronic physical ailments, aside from having horrible vision. Nothing requiring complicated or expensive medication. Aside from the occasional cold, I'm fit as a fiddle. All my limbs function well, too.

I have often noted to myself since living here, how very very blessed I am that both of my legs function without assistance. Although, obviously, there are Chinese people who require wheelchairs or crutches or canes, to move as a foreigner to this city where walking is not an option would be an extreme difficulty I would not wish for. Legs are so very important here! If yours work, take a moment to be thankful! Which ties back into the story of this exciting trip...

This? Maybe!

Not only are we getting out of the city, we are going out INTO THE GRASSLAND! Something about a farm, and we will be horseback riding tomorrow afternoon! I'm very excited. I like riding horses, but have only done it about twice since middle school. Now I'm no expert equestrian, but I believe this activity would be nigh impossible without complete control of my legs! (see how I tied it together?)

Blessing 3) is that Brett and I travel well together. Ha! Obviously we made it halfway around the world! Seriously, though, we discovered this early in our dating, which has made our adventures even better. Enough said.

While on this weekend excursion, on the second day we will visit "The Great Kahn Palace". This is the first I've heard of it, and I don't have much time to do research in advance, so I'm grateful for...

Blessing 4) An inquisitive and intelligent brain. Holy crap, you guys, with little time this evening, a quick search for "Great Khan Palace" brings up "Kublai Khan" in the first mentions. THIS IS ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE POEMS! Not that I'm a huge poetry reader, but this one is it. "In Xanadu did Kubla Khan a stately pleasure dome decree..."

Not what I'd call a dome... but poetic license, yada-yada...

Xanadu = Shangdu according to my very quick search.

KHUBILAI KHAN

Kublai Khan, dubbed "China's favorite barbarian" by BBC.

If this is the right place, it was from the Mongol empire! The very people that caused the Great Wall to be built - to keep them out! I really need to know more Chinese history. But I think this is right.

GENGHIS KAHN - wait...what?

Just informed by our guide: It's Genghis Khan's palace. Still, Mongol!


And honestly, China is completely unlike anyplace else. It seems virtually untouched by the western world in its history and culture. Everything I see and learn here is 100% new and unique and fascinating. So Genghis, Kubla, whatev.

Blessing 5) I'm blessed to have this blog. Right now? How this ties to this trip? If I wasn't writing this very blog-post, I probably would never have done any brief research at all, and just gotten on with packing and eating, and resting because I'm getting over a cold.

I'm so freaking excited. The Mongols are coming!

Life Twists

The biggest transforming incident of my life, I am convinced, was when I chucked it all and drove east at 25. I didn't know where I was headed, but I knew I wasn't happy where I was!

"Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love-life's DOA. 
It's like you're always stuck in 2nd gear. When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year..."

Sound familiar? Besides being the "Friends" theme song, that pretty well describes the way I felt at that time.

WHAT IF... I hadn't moved?
What if I let the fear tell me I needed a plan?
What if I had actually talked to someone - anyone - before taking the plunge? I doubt anyone in my life at the time would have encouraged such a foolhardy choice.

I was stuck living out other people's goals for me, trying to do "the right thing" with my life, and going nowhere. 
Afraid to get a real job, I kept working on campus and going to school.
My "relationship" if you can call such a one-sided business that, was truly DOA. 

I was going nowhere fast... stuck in second gear!

This "what if" is one that has occurred to me so many times:

If I... never moved to Pennsylvania, I wouldn't have been transferred to Delaware - my home for the longest time, and a place I truly love.
If I... never worked for a state park, I would never have seen an ad for an Environmental Studies degree and gone to Grad School.
If I... hadn't lived in Delaware, I probably wouldn't have been so open and honest on The Transformed Non-conformist blog, and Brett definitely wouldn't have been so fearless in flirting with me... 900 miles away! 
IF WE... never met... never married... my life would be much less colorful.

I doubt I would have done much. I wouldn't have realized what I really can do! I had to fend for myself for the first time, and I succeeded! When people tell me I'm strong, or confident, or independent, the biggest reason is because I forced myself to do it.

I will always encourage people to take the scary option. Don't say you are stuck. 
Don't ever say that or think it. 
Your perfect option may not be available, but there is ALWAYS an alternative.

So tell me, what is something that makes you wonder "what if..."

Into the Abyss...

I just realized I know *nothing* about my life after September 27th. 

That is the day we arrive in Beijing. Apparently someone is going to put us up in a hotel...for that night at least.

At some point we will sign paperwork (I assume) with the schools who have promised to hire us.

At some point - hopefully the first day - we will look at apartments that have been selected as good options for us.

No idea how we will eat, what we will eat, where we will live, where we will work, or how we will get around.

We do not speak the language. 
We cannot read the language.

Imagine seeing the entrance to a very dark cave that you cannot see into at all. You step into the entrance and cannot even see your hands in front of your face. All you can hear is a friendly voice saying, "Come on in! It's awesome! You'll love it!"

You answer, "I can't see anything - give me some directions!"

They shout back...from way in the depths of the cave, "Don't worry about it - just keep walking!"
And then, "Oh! But try not to fall into the giant potholes!"

"...WHAT potholes? I can't see anything!" you say.

And the greatest reassurance you get it, "Meh. You'll be fine." 

That is the best description I can give for what this is like.

Planning New Adventures!

When I did the A-to-Z challenge, I focused on places I've been. Now I'm planning the next major jaunt, and it's a biggie. I don't want to post details until after the fact, partly because there's some political turmoil there, and partly because we had some major hurdles to jump to even get to the point where we now have tickets! So I recognize that things could still go wrong.

I have a brother who lives outside the U.S., and we are going to visit. 
That's my teaser: It's an overseas trip.

Actually, my niece is graduating from high school, so the primary purpose is to be there for family milestones (there's a birthday, too), but we will also be visiting some pretty exciting historical locations. More on that after we get back in June. This post is about planning.

You see, I'm a planner, and I married a "pantster" to quote Isa-Lee Wolf of A Bit To Read. My Brett flies by the seat of his pants. I used to think I did that. Sometimes. And I can, within the confines of the plan. On our last major trip - to Utah - we had a plan, but within that I let him run. The plan included: 

1. Flight to Denver
2. Staying the first night with his friend in Colorado
3. Wedding weekend events
4. Staying the last night with my aunt near Denver
5. Return flight

Within that plan, we took our time, picked up tourist brochures and found some out of the way gems. We even extended our hotel stay in Moab because it was a great hotel, at the bride's discounted rate, and we were having a fantastic time hiking and injuring ourselves.

For this overseas trip, I booked our tickets, got us travel insurance, and am currently researching which would be the most central place to stay when we are away from my brother's house - we'll take a few days on our own to do the touristy things they've done many times with every visitor. Oh, and car rental. We may need to rent a car. Then again, I'm told buses are pretty reliable. It's taking me some time to sort this out.

Brett scheduled our vaccinations, found us rides to and from the airport - it's cheaper to fly in and out of Chicago than Indianapolis, but we don't want to pay their long-term parking rate - and he has responsibility for getting us our visas.

Like the trip to Utah, some things are set:

1. Flights
2. My nephew's birthday
3. My niece's graduation

Between the birthday and graduation we want to see things outside of the city they live in. I'm trying to limit myself to getting one hotel for a few nights, sort of central to everything we want to see, and then letting Brett take over as we get there and decide what site is the most interesting to spend the most time at. We'll probably never be back there, so we want to make the most of it. Then again, as he reminds me, we've never been there before, so everything is interesting.

Oh, and just in case I needed a little cloud in the back of my mind about this trip, it was on the return flight from visiting my brother 4 years ago that my dad had his first "mini" stroke. Sitting still on a plane-ride that long, apparently, makes it easy for blood clots to form. And now I know that I have his genetic predisposition for cardiovascular problems. I'm not really worried 'cause I'm 30 years younger, but I think I'll try to do yoga on the plane. That'll be fun! (If I manage to do yoga on the plane, I promise to post a picture.)

Whitewater rafting - or not?

…or so we were told.

I was a chaperone on a Servant Event trip to North Carolina, and we had scheduled a day-off fun trip including whitewater rafting on the French Broad River.

However, this was a year of drought. We baked in the sun all week, out in that Carolina heat – You know the “Carolina Blue” color? It’s the blue in the Carolina Panthers logo, and I believe the same blue for the Tarheels team. Well, that was honest-to-God the color of the sky that entire week.

Sweat bees were biting us out in the sun. I realized they’re nothing to be afraid of.

Anyway, Saturday we drove a couple hours to the Nantahala Outdoor Center to rent gear and take a guided whitewater raft journey down the French Broad River – woohoo! I’d never done this before! There were a couple larger rafts seating (I think) 6 each, and a few of us took single-seater “ducks”. Kind of like a kayak, but inflatable. I’ve kayaked several times, so I took one of the ducks.

 

Well, the water was low, so it really was like kayaking down a river. There were some slightly bumpier sections, and one place where we all got out of our rafts and swam in a deep pool before continuing downstream. It was the perfect refreshing end to a week of hard work. There were still a couple days of work and cleanup, but most of the hard labor was past.

I don’t know if it can truly count as whitewater rafting, but I’m counting it! …until I do it for real some other time.

Moral of the Story: Get out into the water when you can!

M is for Moab, Utah

This is the story of how I ended up lost and dehydrated in the desert.

"Lost" as in, I (we) had gotten off the trail and didn't know how far we were from civilization, but we were in a National Park, we could hear traffic on a road - like a mirage, it was always too far away - so we knew we were... roughly in the southeastern corner of Utah.

"Dehydrated" as in, according to the sign in a park restroom, I was exhibiting the signs: headache, irritable, loss of focus, and we did not have much water left.

"Desert" as in, the high desert of Utah - glorious to look at, fantastic weather, high enough altitude that the air is thin and temperatures moderate, and arid enough that you never seem to sweat! 



THIS view. Was so worth it.

This is also the story of my "preparation" for a day of hiking: I had a 32-oz. water bottle (for the two of us) plus some homemade fruit jerky. I felt prepared.

This was the first time I "failed" at a hike: The trail was sort of an inverse horseshoe, so at the most distant point from the Nature Center there was a structure with a lovely stone wall overlooking the view, where people could drive up and get pictures, if they didn’t want to hike.

Drive. So, there was a road.

We rounded that point, and continued back the other side, listening to cars on the road just out of sight, hiking on the primitive trail marked only by stacks of flat stones.

It was exhilirating. It was beautiful. We took a million pictures. I started getting a little discombobulated, and kind of cranky about it. Was I dehydrated? Or was I just hangry? We had about a quarter of our water left, so I drank some of that and we kept going, trying to guess how much longer we’d be out here. It seemed never ending. 

I was SO exhausted.



There were signs all over in all the parks: STICK TO THE TRAIL! We tried, but finally got to the point where I could bear it no longer. We could hear the road off to our right, so decided to take a "shortcut" across to that road and take it back to the Nature Center. That must be quicker.

Wrong.

How could the road be so far off? We could HEAR it! Maybe the thin air makes sound travel farther.

We wound around cluelessly through the high desert, vaguely in the direction of the road until at long last we were there.  

Walking along the road seemed to take forever, though, too. At least we knew we were in the final stretch, so we finished off the water. At the Nature Center, I refilled at a water fountain, drank it all as we looked around, and refilled again. I think I was thirsty

I have since read that a general rule of thumb is to bring a quart of water for every hour hiking. (not counting altitude, heat, personal hydration needs, etc.) We had one quart between the two of us for some three hours of hiking at high altitude, in a desert. Oops!

Moral of the Story: Bring ample water and snacks into the desert!

B is for Badlands

The best advice I ever got was, “Don’t base your decision on the money.”

I was living in Delaware, agonizing over getting to two milestone events for two godchildren in separate states, two weeks apart. I’d done the math, and technically, getting on a plane to the first location, flying home for the intervening weeks, and flying to the next destination for the second event was financially reasonable. But I wanted a road-trip.

I did the math on the road trip and it was significantly more expensive than flying cross-country twice – first to Kansas City then to Detroit – even including car rental. Gas, lodging, meals, campsites… Could I afford it? Yes, but it would leave my bank account slightly anemic.

“Don’t base your decision on the money.”

I took the road-trip.

I drove, with several stops and visits, to the first event over near Kansas City, spent a couple nights, and headed north. Through Iowa, to South Dakota. Crossing the great prairies. Beautiful.

Some people go to South Dakota to see Mt. Rushmore. We did that when I was about seven, and during that trip we drove through the Badlands of South Dakota. Drove through, didn’t stop. It captured my imagination. This is the coolest  landform I have ever witnessed in all my travels around the world!

At seven years old, I couldn't stop the family vacation, but this road-trip was ALL MINE! I camped there for two nights.

Arriving in the evening, I set up camp as the sun set. Very windy on the Great Plains. I feel like a master-camper just for getting my tent up and secure in that wind, by myself!

The next day I hiked. And hiked. I packed my backpack with water, granola bars, trail mix, donned my hiking boots and bandana and chose the longest hike I could that didn’t require special equipment. 

Near vertical climbs through crumbly, clay-ey, sedimentary rock formations, followed by a relatively level hike through (presumably) snake-filled prairie, past other rocky formations, and ultimately downward along a winding road. 

SO GLAD I took the road-trip instead of the cheaper short trips! 

I felt exhausted, exhilarated and hungry when I got back to camp. I ate something, relaxed, and took another, shorter hike near the campground before bed.

In the morning, I packed up, and visited some of the other short “hike to see the view” spots that I passed while taking the long way out of the park. 

I would love to go back. I would love to take Brett and show him this favorite place of mine, and see which completely different elements of the Badlands might catch his imagination! …But he hates camping. We’ll have to get an RV if I’m ever going to get him there.

Moral of the story: Don’t base your decision on the money!