InterEducator

We visited Besakih after our trip to Mount Batur. On April 9th, two days after our visit, the temple was due to have a huge celebration which only takes place every 10 years. We were lucky to see some of the worshippers bringing their offerings a little early. I quite enjoyed their "tupperware" - colorful cube-like baskets filled with food for the temple. And while these offerings were special, the Balinese create tons of miniature offerings every day. I don't recall seeing the same type of thing in India, so I wonder if this ritual existed in Bali before the arrival of Hinduism, or if it is a local expression of Hinduism. Whatever the case, the Balinese prepare their offerings in a little square basket made of banana-leaf or something like it, and then pile in ... read more

While Bali doesn't have the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen, it does have some spectacular views: volcanoes in the background sometimes, clouds that reflect in the sand, black sand composed of volcanic rocks...... read more

Religion is everywhere in Thailand. You can't walk three blocks without seeing some kind of shrine. There's usually some kind of food around - coconuts, pop, chicken!!! The gods have got to eat! - and beautiful gold colored flowers. Here are some photos of the spectacular Wat Pho.... read more

The kids are just phenomenal. When I bent down to say hi to one little guy, he reached out to the bush he was near, picked some flowers and offered them to me. Some of the kids followed us around town as we walked around, and one girl burst into tears when saw me coming over. I guess she hasn't had much exposure to falangs... but in general, people just kept doing what they were doing. In this particular village, their economy wasn't based on tourists dropping by, though the ones by the Mekong certainly were. They had shops set up, including demonstrations of how their products were made. Nevertheless, there were always some village members who just went about their business, like the sweet old monk having a cigarette on his balcony, or the elderly ... read more

To be honest, more than anything else, I ate Indian food and Nutella-peanut butter-banana crepes while in Laos. But, I did take a cooking course from a local restaurant run by Joy, a Laotian, and his Australian wife. Most of the food picture come from that day, because Joy took us to the market to show us some local ingredients and buy the materials for our class. The class itself was held in beautiful surroundings, with the sound of the rushing water from a spring just behind the clay ovens. Laotian food uses some similar flavors to the ones used in Thai cooking. Let's just say I enjoyed every dish we created, but, it didn't capture my heart like the Indian and crepes!... read more