Spirit of days past - Baga Gazriin Chuluu

One of the first stops we made on our little tour thru the Gobi was near the rock formations of Baga Gazriin Chuluu.  Legend says that this is where Ghengis Khan grazed his horse, but then again, Ghengis must have grazed his horses a lot...

Roads in the Gobi

Anyway, even though for us tourists the 'roads' in the desert were not always obvious, it was obvious that many people travelled to this spot by the number of ovoos. (More info in this post)
Baga Gazriin Chuluu is also where the Delgeriin Choiriin Khiid monastry used to be. Before the Russian occupation of Mongolia, most of Mongolia held Buddhism as it's religion: in a land of a nomadic people and thus mostly temporary buildings, there were over 3000 temples in the early 1930's.

Looking down at our minivan

That all changed during the Purge, and by the late 1940 only one temple was left. The number of monks had dropped in two decades from more than 100.000 to a mere 100. 
This is the reason that Delgeriin Choiriin Khiid was abandoned and had fallen into ruin.

The abandoned grounds

When you walk onto the grounds of Delgeriin Choiriin Khiid the feeling of sadness is overwhelming. There are still many (small) trees there, a rare sight in the desert. Remnants of a past life.
It feels like a sacred site. A place to ponder.

A place to ponder

An occasional scarf is tied around a tree, to emphasize the sacred purpose of this site. When I googled, I found out that since our visit in 2009, reconstruction has begon of the temple, like many other Buddhist sites. For now a temporary temple is set up in a ger in the plain in front of the original site. Visitors can stay overnight in surrounding gers.

Something fishy - Tsukiji Market Tokyo

When you google at 'top things to do in Tokyo' you can almost be sure that Tsukiji fish market will pop up, most notably the tuna auction.
Being a food market lover myself, I really wanted to go there. But... the tuna auction starts at 6 am. And only a limited number of tourists are allowed to attend, so you have to queue at around 4 am. There is no public transport at that time of night (oddly enough Tokyo's public transport stops around midnight?!) so you have to either walk there, take a cab, or wait over a few drinks at one of the nearby pubs.  We opted out of attending the tuna auction, bad tourists...I know!

One of the small stalls

At around 8 am the rest of the inner market opens up to visitors, so there we were. Surrounded by tour groups, we entered the public space.

And now I hear you wondering...How was it??? First impression: way more tourists  than expected, and at the same time less of a tourist trap than expected.  First and foremost, this is a place where people work, no signs which way to go or defined routes. This also means that you have to be carefull not to be overrun by one of the funny, and very fast, carts. Even  though there is hardly any room to walk in between the stalls, the carts race past!

Tuna waiting for a buyer

The fish and seafood they sell is simply amazingly fresh and varies from extraordinary to bizar.  And it is a lot.  The sheer number of sea creatures on sale was mindblowing. It really made us wonder how much longer it takes to empty the oceans.

Super size mollusc

Of course there was an abundance of tuna. Al tuna arrives deeply frozen. Did you know that those beautifull slices of sashimi are precut in to blocks, while frozen, with a industrial band saw? I didn't!

I saw the biggest mussles I ever saw: at least 3 times the size of my hands. Crates of roe, alien crustaceans, unknown molluscs, vibrant octopi and fish in alls size and sorts inlcuding some wiggly, still alive, skewered fish.

Sawing sashimi blocks

The traditional thing to do after visiting the Tsukiji Market is to eat fresh sushi. Most people try to do that in the inner market, but the outer market makes a good alternative if you want somwhere (slightly) less busy.  We didn't do that either... we were such lousy tourists, I know! But the massacre we had just witnessed satiated or need for animal protein.

Vibrant octopi

Supercity - Shanghai

We had already spent 4 weeks in China at that point, mostly visiting ´culturally interesting´ sites such as Xian and Pingyao, when we arrived in Shanghai. And I loved it.  I was in need of some city life....

Pudong skyline

If you have read previous posts , you know I love the emptiness of deserts, or that humbling feeling when you encounter an animal in the wild. I think what really appeals to me, are extremes. Natural or man made. Like when you move through a vibrant metropolis like Shanghai. It reminded me of my first visit to Bangkok in 2003.

One of many little streets

Shanghai in 2009 was full of life and one massive construction site. Combine a superb metro system, chaotic train station and gigantic fly overs with futuristic highrise, traditional temples and labyrinth like residential quarters and you get the basic idea.

Bike ride: Love the contract of old and new buildings

Of course it is absolutely impossible to see all ( or even most) of the city in a few days, so we stuck to the obvious. We went to the Bund, that was under construction, with the Oriental Pearl Tower, the French concession, a few temples, some gardens, little eateries and markets.

French concession

We did a half day bike tour, a dim sum workshop, and wandered. We ate some really good and some not so good food. I love the contrast that was all around. The little boutiques and cafés in The French concession. The Chinese markets, cockroach fights and soup with indistinguishable ingredients in the traditional neighbourhoods. The incense and monks in the temples. We had a blast!

Rooftop bar at the Bund

Island impressions - Bali

Going to Bali has never been on top of my travel list. Bali is a more touristy place than our usual destinations. But as it happened, in 2005 we went there for a family visit.  Now, who am I to complain about a destination.... right?

Dark clouds over green paddies

We slept in a local's house south of Kuta.  This gave us the chance to share the day to day life of  the extended family there. And a few house rituals were explained to us, like the mandatory daily offerings .

Temple offerings

Being Dutch, we borrowed bikes to get around town, and to go to nearby (upscale) Sanur. The bike ride to Sanur took us about an hour, and we spent a lovely afternoon with a yummy cocktail at the picture perfect beach there.

Sanur's picture perfect beach

To have some private time, away from the family, we stayed a few days in artinasal village Ubud, in the middle of the ubiquitous rice paddies.  At night we could hardly sleep for the crickets and quacking ducks. That was something different!

Rice paddy in Ubud

Every visit to Bali needs a trip to a Sacred Monkey Forest, and so we did.  We went to  Padangtegal near Ubud. The monkeys have no fear for humans whatsoever, and are used to being fed: so beware! But having food in abundance also means lots of infants, and lots of photo opportunities.

Monkey life

To see a bit more of the island we went on a roadtrip for a day, and one of the places we visited was Gunung Batur.  Gunung Batur is an active volcano, and the black land surrounding the crater is an impressive sight.

The slopes of Gunung Batur

Water colours - Bako

Not too far from the city of Kuching on Malaysian Borneo, situated on a peninsula, is Bako National Park. The only way to reach it, is per boat, and so we did. First we took a bus to Kampung Bako (about an hour and a half), where we chartered a boat for the last few miles.

Local  fisherman

In a teeny tiny boat we went. First out of the village, past the houses and then on to open water, where we crossed paths with local fishermen going back with their nights catch.
We arrived at Bako NP beach at low tide. This meant we couldn't moor to the pier, but had to wade the last few meters.  Of course, the water was warm enough, and only the next day we discovered the HUGE jellyfish.

The arrival beach at Bako NP

At Bako you can spend the night in very basic rooms, and so we did. We spent 3 nights in the park, which gave us enough time to leisurely explore the park. There are a some well-marked trails in the park, and you are allowed to walk the trails independently. As a safety measure, when you go out on a hike you sign in and out at the central register. In this way, if you are away for far longer than estimated, help can be sent.

Start of our hike

We did one 4-hour circular hike. It started at see level, on a wooden boardwalk underneath the trees. Then a bit up over soft soil and then climbing rocks towards the panoramic vistas. Utterly sweaty we reached the plateau of the peninsula, formed by lava, with small springs and streams cutting into the black ripples. A bit further the ground was more sandy, even dune like. The environment gradually became greener, small trees appeared and it became more humid again.

At the plateau

Then down we went, to a small secluded beach. We stayed a while, swam, washed off the sweat off, and had a snack. Then up again, back to the trail. The last stretch was steep down again, climbing down over ladders and boulders until we reached the main path around the park headquarters, where we passed a drowned forest. 

The drowned forest

On this particular hike we didn't see a lot of large animals (we did on other hikes!) but were amazed at nature's diversity at such a small patch of land: Insects, plants, soil, even without the mammals, this was a really good hike!

Pitcher plant at the plateau

People of the forest - Semenggoh

When we decided to go to Malaysian Borneo there was no question about it: we would visit one of the wildlife rescue centers in the hopes of seeing an orangutan. We chose the city of Kuching as a base for the 2,5 weeks we spent on Borneo. One of the main reasons we chose Kuching is it's proximity to Semenggoh Wildlife Centre.

There are a few different spots on Borneo where you can see semi wild orangutans. We opted for Semenggoh because it is not included in most organised tours (they tend to go to Sepilok in the east) but still accessible enough by publing transport (as opposed to Matang).

Mother and baby sighted

Semenggoh is a rehabilitation centre and the orangutans living there are thus semi wild. They are used to humans and no longer wild enough to be set free. But they can move about within the conservation area as they please.
Twice daily food is placed on feeding platforms in the reservation, but this is no guarantee the apes will show.
If there's enough food in the forest, they usually do not come to the feeding platforms. We were aware our trip might be in vain, but wanted to at least give it a try.

Mother and baby coming down to feed

From Kutching we took a bus to Semenggoh, about a 40 minute ride, so we arrived in time for the afternoon feeding session. From the bus stop it is about 20 mins walk on a paved road to the feeding platform.
In the past you were allowed to walk ther over paths through the forest, but since the current alpha male is too aggressive the paths have been closed to humans. I think that's a good sign for the apes, don't you? The rules are set to make the orangutans more comfortable, not the humans.

Aplha male Ritchy on the feeding platform

As we waited near the platform, we could read a bit on the individual history of each ape and the family relationships. Within the reservation the apes are comfortable enough to breed!
We had good hopes of spotting an orangutan since it was past the fruit season, which means less food to find in the forest. We were not dissapointed! Our first sighting were a mother and child! Still fairly high up in the trees, but who cares?? This was more than we had hoped for!

Edwin had so many facial expresions!

As the rangers placed some food on the platform, they came further down and started munching. But suddenly then she went up again!
It soon became clear why: the trees started swaying... and Ritchy came down! Ritchy is the current alpha male, and an impressive sight, even from the safe distance we kept.
We stayed another hour or so to watch the apes eat and interact. A few more oranutangs came down, including the comical Edwin. Utterly satisfied with our sightings we went back to Kutching.

Enjoying lunch

But before we left Borneo we decided to try our luck again... so a fortnight later we visited Semenggoh for the second time.  An even more impressive visit.
This time we saw another mother and child, both a bit older than the previous visit. The youngster was happily eating his banana inside 'our' viewing hut. And because visitors have to keep their distance from the residants, this meant that the humans were standing in the blazing sun, while the apes were enjoying a lunch in the shade: imagine that!

Ritchy: 150kg of muscle

Then suddenly the mother started walking, and the rangers appeared very concerned. Another visit by Ritchy! But this time not on the feeding platform. He followed suit and decided to have lunch in the hut as well.
And if Ritchy does that, you show respect. An adult male orangutan can litteraly rip you apart. So the humans were hoarded out of his way, while leaving room for the moher a child orangutan that were leaving. (We learned that since she had a young child to care for, she did not want to be impregnated and therefor stayed away from the alpha male.) It was a very crowded  parking lot! Even more so when Ritchy decided to follow the others...

Mother and child hurrying away

Luckily all went well in the end, and the rangers made sure to keep as much distance between the human and apes as possible. The only thing was that Ritchy decided to sit down right next to the road, and do some people watching. The same road we had to walk to get to the bus stop.....
After some time, we knew we had to start walking. The last bus of the day would be there in half an hour. But what about Ritchy?
After strict instructions from the rangers, do not look at him, no camera sounds, no photos, no talking etc. we walked passed him, as far to the other side of the road as possible, but still only 6 meters away!  Equally impressive as scary if you ask me, but what an experience... Definitly a top 10 visit!

Ritchy near the road, seeing us off

Pilgrim for a day - Kii Peninsula

It's been a while since my last post. I've spent a month in Japan and of course that should mean I've got more stories to tell! But somehow it's been hard to get my mind back into working order since I came back. Harder than usual that is ;-)

I decided to just start with the 'easiest' story from Japan to get back into blogging . So this post will be all about the Kumano Kodo...

At 9 am we were walking under tall trees

Kumano Kodo translate roughly as 'the old route' and is a network of ancient pilgrimage mountain trails on the Japanes Kii-Peninsula, south east of Kyoto. (click here for more info)

We like to mix some nature activities into our trips, and when read about this area, we decided to go there. There are many hiking possibilities, but we walked just one day on the Nakahechi route. We chose this trail because it was fairly accesible, looked not too touristy, and you can fairly easy book accomodation through the tourist office.

Some steep climbs...

We walked from Nonaka-no-Ipposugi to Hongu, a 22 km hike. Since it was quite hard to get information on exactly what to expect, we were very happy with the walking schedule on the tourist information website.
Like all things Japanese, it was very detailed: You were supposed to start at 7am(!) and the whole hike was devided into sections. For every section a distance and a time was specified. To the minute. As did every point of interest.
Very funny, but very informative as well!

Part of the hike information provided by the tourist office:
we had 5 minutes to look at the tea house remains....

So we decided to start as instructed, and monitor closely for the first hour or 2 if we could keep up with the schedule. If we could, we would walk on, if we couldn't, we would turn back and take the bus. This was quite important, as the trail would mostly pass uninhabited areas and it wouldn't be possible to stop halfway through.

Around noon we walked trough a lovely valley

We spent the night at a nice minshuku (Japanese style B&B) and our hosts were so kind to drive us up the first hill (a very steep climb bout 200m up).
At 7:05am we started walking. The first hour or so we welked over on paved roads but then we entered the woods. After 2 hours we were still on schedule, so we decided to proceed. And what a lovely walk it was!

We were pleasantly surprised by the diversity in terrain. From majestic cedar woods, past small shrines, to fairytail like mossy paths, some very steep ascends and panoramic vistas. It was a strenuous hike though. But well worth it.

At 1 pm we walked an old paved section

We encountered about 10 people on the trail itself, so we could really enjoy our surroundings. The only downside: there weren't a lot of places to get water (that sounds like a weird thing to say, but when you go to Japan, you get used to vending machines every 100m very quickly!)

Some nice views around 2 pm

The last 1,5 hours, near the Honshu shrine, was in a more populated and area, so that was busier.  We arrived at the Honshu shrine around half past 3. And pretty much exhausted...
And we finally met some Japanes hikers, at least they wore a proper hikingoutfit even though we only saw them at the shrine

The Japanese prepare a bit better for their hikes than we did

The whole hike was very clearly marked, including the detour caused by a landslide.
We spent the following night at Yumomine Onsen town, where we could ease our muscles in a very hot, and rather smelly, thermal bath.

A well signposted trail