Dubai of the Desert....

Tuesday, June 30, 2009. 12:59. Dubai, UAE

Dubai Emirates airport lounge. Heard the Call to Prayer here in the airport. V. cool. Glorified layover: checked in to the hotel at 2am last nite and have a 230 flight today to Istanbul. Saw camel riders on the beach from the hotel. Desert haze clutches impressive skyscrapers in a 113 degree F, dry-death-hot grip. Note to Lawrence of Arabia (P. O’Toole and Mr. Lean): Larry would have died from heatstroke out there in a matter of hours...no long treks on foot across the dessert….

Must come back in winter….perhaps...

Hummus, dolmas, etc deelish….

Last Bangkok morning...

Monday, June 29, 2009. 8:30am. Bangkok

Above: Elephant topiary at the Summer Palace...

Yesterday’s trip to Ayutthaya was spectacular...the giant gold Buddha was amazing and completely overrun with the faithful... lighting candles, making lotus and garland offerings...I was delighted by the giant Ganesha also…and intoxicating incense everywhere...

The whole area was tourist-free and the ruins were completely deserted...

I think the highlight of our trip here has been meeting and spending tea time with Mr. Hong and his family at the antique shop. We stopped by yesterday on our way back and he gave us a large package of chinese tea to take home!

Today will be mostly resty day --- this eve we leave for an overnite stop in Dubai en route to Istanbul...

Tea in Thailand

Sunday, June 28, 2009. 7:07am Bangkok.

We spent some of yesterday afternoon with Hong, again, in his antique shop drinking tea. He’s my new adopted grandfather!

Surprisingly, the search for Thai silk has been less fruitful that I’d hoped.

Off to Ayutthaya today...

Ah, another nite in Bangkok!

Friday, June 26, 2009. 6:13pm. Bangkok.

Amazing, amazing Bangkok. The river culture is astounding and the Grand Palace far outshines Versailles (so sorry my Frenchie amis!). Visited the Reclining Buddha today too, and meditatively dropped coins into the long long long line of pots along one wall of the temple. Love the temples and altars everywhere. And the bowls of water with cut lotus blooms next-to for blessing yourself and each other.

So much fun taking the tuk tuks and river boats...

Last eve we spent wandering the locals’ flower market and river back alleys. Piles of veggies in baskets, both mysterious and intoxicating. Roses bound in newspapers, jasmine offering wreaths...huge cut bird of paradise...Stray cats and dogs, altars, Buddhas, scooters, rock music, tattoo stalls…..Stumbled upon a tiny bar of teens drinking some very strong rice-wine like concoction.

Amazing food. Amazing people. Spent the better half of the afternoon today with a lovely family and their passionate patriarch in his colossal antique shop.

HEAVEN!

Now to B-day dinner with D…

Bangkok!

Thursday, June 25, 2009. 5:03pm. Bangkok Thailand

ZANY boat ride through the canals on super crazy scary skinny boat! YIKES!

Flight

Stardate: Thursday, June 25, 2009. 1:06 pm - Leaving Brunei Darussalam

Now aboard the Royal Brunei Air 2.5 hour flight from Brunei’s capitol city, Bandar Seri Begawan, to Bangkok. Once onboard, before departure, a Muslim prayer was sung for safe travels. I totally loved that. 

Last nite we strolled around Bandar Seri Begawan in the evening...I’d never heard the Muslim Call to Prayer before, and was really, completely, transfixed...so very, very beautiful against the dark and quiet of the small city…

I will not miss the conservatism of my first visit to a (liberal!) Muslim country -- kinda made me want to run around like Joan of Arc…I am strangely relieved to soon disembark in a nice, old-fashioned, hedonistic culture, thankyouverymuch. And I’m looking forward to a deep glass of red wine upon arriving. Brunei is a “dry” country, and though the Empire Hotel was a lovely delight, a glass of wine would have been welcome in watching the crazy-spectacular sunsets. But, having finally discovered the array of available teas, I pretty much kept nice and caffeinated.

We hadn’t really expected to stop in Thailand (had been talking about it)-- we don’t really have an itinerary -- and I’m super exited to see the city.

Not sure if I will maintain my blogging. Before I left, I fancied flexing my travelogue muscles, but find too much pressure in the commitment to post! As we head into Thailand, our activities will surely escalate with the hustle and bustle, leaving less time for writing. However, dealing with photo organizing is a must, regardless of how tired I might be at the end of the day: I still have 10 (of 20) full discs that I have not gone through from our summer trip to France two years ago -- I don’t want to face that, so I’d rather cull and post as we go along.

Hallelujah High Tea!

Ah...Brunei's Colonial past reached forth and calmed us with most exquisite tea! Hurray!

Brunei

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

7:39am (slept til 6, instead of waking at my recent norm of 3am. And happily not obsessed with the itchy certainty of imaginary (I hope!) bugs in the bed, as I was nite before last!)

Morning in Brunei Darussalam. Brunei, Abode of Peace…

We left Labuan yesterday afternoon in a whirlwind, barely making the last ferry (“death machine” scary boat) of the day to Borneo’s Brunei, and with no hotel reservations, though we knew where we wanted to stay. We really did have every intention of calling the hotel before we left Labuan, but the 430 ferry was cancelled and the last ferry out was 330. We made the boat, had no problems getting in at the wildly opulent (in a bit of a Vegas kinda way) Empire Hotel, and witnessed the most amazing sunset I’ve ever seen, sinking over the South China Sea.

Brunei is a sleepy Sultanate on Borneo, somewhat full of expats (which I am beginning to feel a lot like, as nearly the only Anglo anywhere, in our travels so far). Peaceful, perhaps because His Highness has his pleasure with caning and zero tolerance drug death penalties, in a tiny country rich on oil sold to North Korea -- but nonetheless, (relatively) ecologically pristine, tax free, with (for native Bruneis) free education, health care, free land for homes, and interest-free loans. But I digress, I’m not here for the politics!:

The views of the ocean are glorious, the surroundings, tropical rainforest, the absurdly sumptuous buffet last nite saved me from my previous Labuan starvation, and yet, I subsist, in (marginally) The Orient no less, on Lipton tea. Help! Perhaps serious tea awaits at our next port of embarkation!

Adventures today to be determined...

PS. I was previously remiss in telling the tale of the mall pharmacist in Labuan who, after I broke his door, happily sold me all sorts of bandages and meds for my little blistered feeties. Perhaps not much of a tale after all... 

PSS. And don’t even get me started on the delightful presence of the bidet! Oh! And the dragon fruit! More on that later!

Note from Labuan...

Labuan is a sleepy, relatively idyllic, industrial port with a tiny downtown replete with a KFC, merchant market, and a large dollar store-like mall, full of (mostly) junk from China, some traditional medicine folks, massage therapists, salons, travel agents, and a food court. The downtown shops are a ghost-town because all the successful merchants have moved into the mall. Interesting that it seems trade is what is doing in indigenous cultures, taking away their arts and crafts and replacing them with cheap consumer crap. D’s here consulting for a firm that owns a power barge right across the bay from the hotel (I can see it from the window). 

I’ve been, well, “challenged” the the food...I think I’ll write a book about weight loss and exposure to SE Asian cuisine!

Trekked through the small town's market in the hot, hot, hot. Skipped the fish-sellers, thankyouverymuch. Scored an awesome multi- string (mostly real!) fresh water pearl lariat necklace and a trad Malaysia outfit.

D’s wrapping up work obligations and thus, we’re moving on soon...

Malay Jet Lag, etc...

After 23 hours flying and layovers in Moscow, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, we are finally on the small island of Labuan, just off the northern coast of Borneo. Dave is here on business, I, however, am not! This is my first morning here and although sleep was iffy (melatonin is a jet lag life-saver), after a workout and copious amounts of tea, I am feeling pretty darn good. Much exploration to do, more travel plans to make, and pics later!