zambia: hanging out with a friend in lusaka

When I lived in Korea, one of the people I met is Amanda; we met through rugby and running. After both of us left the country, we kept in touch. Later on, I visited her a couple times in Istanbul, and she came to Kyiv. She now lives in Lusaka, Zambia. As soon as I knew I was going to southern Africa for my trip, I knew I would figure out a way to spend a couple days with Amanda.
I flew from Victoria Falls to Lusaka. It was a short flight, and a small plane. I was thrilled when they gave me a sandwich and some crisps.

The airport in Lusaka isn't very exciting, but I enjoyed a bit of people watching before Amanda arrived to pick me up. She brought her boyfriend, who is originally from Zimbabwe.
They figured out I was hungry, and Amanda is a foodie, so they took me to an Indian restaurant for dinner. Lusaka has a good number of immigrants from around the world. Dinner was fantastic, in that both the food and company were good.
We went back to where Amanda lives, and stayed up chatting for a little longer, then going to sleep.
Amanda had to work the next day, and where she lived was nowhere close to the rest of the city. Lusaka doesn't have a lot to offer, according to the guidebook. Normally I would still go out into a city, but I didn't really care, since I was basically here to spend time with Amanda.

I spent the next couple days hanging out in her flat while she was working. I watched episodes of various TV shows, looked at Facebook a lot, etc... I still had my Zambian SIM card that I bought in Victoria Falls, so I added a few photos to Instagram during that time as well.
One day Amanda's boyfriend didn't have to work until later in the day so he and I sat around chatting for a while. It was nice to get to know him.
One evening Amanda cooked dinner at home. SO GOOD. As I said earlier, Amanda is a foodie. I've never had a bad food experience with her, whether cooking at home or eating at a restaurant. Another evening we all met up with some other friends at a Chinese restaurant. Great food there, and nice to meet a few more people.

One afternoon while I was in Amanda's flat I saw a bunch of peacocks walking around, of course I had to take photos.
The last afternoon I was in Lusaka, Amanda left work as soon as she was finished. We met up with another friend of hers, then went for a girlie afternoon. Ashton got a pedicure, while Amanda and I got massages. Hands down one of the most amazing massages of my life.
Afterward, we went to dinner at an Italian place. It was a bit of an adventure to get there, since traffic was a bit wonky on a couple streets. The route we had originally planned to use would've taken us close to the house of the president. Since election results had been announced a couple days earlier, and many people weren't pleased, security people had blocked off access to the house of the president. Good food, and I'm glad I got to spend a few more hours with Amanda.
That night Amanda drove me back to the airport, and I flew to Johannesburg for the last few days of my trip.

ukraine: kherson

I'm still trying to visit all the oblasts in ukraine, and while I know it probably won't fully happen, I'm doing my best 😀...
Kherson is the capital of an oblast...lonely planet barely mentions the town, only saying that there are tour companies offering excursions to  various nearby areas...kherson isn't far from odessa, it's in the more russian speaking half of ukraine...
It was a long train ride to get there, around 12 hours...when I got off the train I headed to an ATM, since I'd forgotten to bring cash with me from my flat the night before...that's when I remembered I didn't have much left in either of my bank accounts, after emptying them while in Kazakhstan the previous weekend (I was able to get dollars easily there, so I took advantage)...ooops...

then I realized the debit card from my american account was expired...bigger ooops...fortunately I found a few dollars in my wallet, and was able to exchange those for griven...not to self: don't forget to take money with you when traveling!
I started walking down the big street in front of the train station...it was still Saturday morning, there weren't many people out...I saw laundry hung out to dry, a couple churches, newspaper/magazine kiosks, etc...I saw the place where a Lenin statue used to be located...I saw the platz where kherson might've had its own version of the Maidan encampment...
Eventually I came to a pedestrian street, and decided to follow that...I noticed a few people setting up their stalls for the day: some knick knacks, a few souvenirs, etc...it didn't seem like a big market type of area though...

I found the address to my hotel, and noticed it only had the name of a spa/gym on the building...I walked in and asked (in russian) where the hotel was located...the lady at the front desk looked at me like I was an alien, then picked up the phone to call her supervisor an told her a foreigner was at the front desk and she didn't understand what that person was asking...(I don't speak or understand as much russian as I'd like, but I can understand some)...I asked the supervisor lady (again in russian) where I could find my hotel, and she gave me directions...it turned out to be on the back side of the building...I never figured out whether I didn't speak correctly to the first lady or if she simply hadn't known how to respond to me, an obvious foreigner...

the hotel let me check in a couple hours early, yay! My room was big, and breakfast was included in the price...good wifi too...the lady at that front desk showed me the list of options for the spa, they were cheap...despite not having that much cash, I asked her to schedule a massage for me...(it's hard to turn down an hour massage for less than $10!)
I relaxed in my room for an hour or so, then headed out again...more wandering, following a general street grid...I saw more churches, including one that looked as if several people had started different styles of renovations, then stopped...the land around the church wasn't being cared for, but the interior was lovely...
I found a bakery, and took a chance on what I thought was cheesecake...not as good as I'd hoped...why do i keep trying stuff in ukrainian bakeries? it's very rarely as good as i want it to be...

I found a couple parks, one of them very small...I found a bus station, and the surrounding market, on a cul-de-sac...I looked at possible destinations, but nothing jumped out at me...I'm guessing the towns were mostly small...
Eventually I wandered back to the pedestrian street, and into a sushi restaurant...(there are a lot of sushi restaurants in ukraine)...I ate too much, but it was my first actual meal of the day, at 1500, so I didn't feel too bad...
After eating I wandered more, just taking in the feel of the town...it was very quiet, but patriotic at the same time...lots of benches and fences painted yellow and blue, flags flying, etc...entirely too many empty an abandoned buildings...I love to take photos of them, as they have a certain type of beauty, but I also know they don't mean good things for a local economy...

I got back to the hotel not long before my massage...AMAZING...a deep tissue massage, it felt wonderful...I was sore afterward, but it was sooo worth it...I drank heaps of water afterward, and feel asleep early that evening...
The next morning I was up early, and decided to go for a walk before breakfast...I found the Greek Orthodox Church and stepped in only briefly, as there was a service going on, and I always feel awkward in that situation...I always want to take photos and look around, but not in the middle of a worship service...aesthetically I couldn't see any differences between this church and a ukrainian or russian Orthodox Church...does any one of the three people who read this blogs know if there are style differences? Or are the differences just theological?

From there I walked toward the water, and found a monument to sailors...big, which didn't surprise me...it was super windy by the water, and chilly...during the summer I suspect there are plenty of boat tours, but not in mid March...
I made my way back to the hotel for breakfast, which was ready and waiting...(this is one of the places where you choose which breakfast you want the day before, and what time you want it served)...the restaurant was closed, so they served it in my room 😀
I relaxed for a while after breakfast, cleaned up and packed up, then checked out...I left my bag at the front desk, then went out for another walk...
At this point I was convinced lonely planet had missed writing about this town...I'd already seen spots equal to other places they write about, and I planned to see more that day...

I walked through Lenin park, which isn't big, but has a very small church, a few amusement park type of rides, and a burned down theatre designed like a castle...the fact that it had burned clearly didn't deter people from exploring, I could see rubbish everywhere...
I exited that park, followed the street for a while, passed another theater, then finally came to what was left of the former kherson fortress...earthen walls, a couple big gates...the area in the middle is mostly empty, and has been turned into a a park...st Catherine's church is in the area, there is a chair inside the church from a visit by Elizabeth...(embroidered letter E on the chair!)...it seemed to be both an active church with some history on display...just to be sure, i had a scarf over my hair...

The walls of the old fortress aren't very high, (were they always this height? or have they shrunk due to years of normal weather?) but it was nice to go walk along the tops...(have I mentioned the weather was awesome?)...this entire area was called Lenin Komsomalya park...(why are there two parks named after the guy?)...across the street is the so called alley of heroes...a pedestrian zone with memorials to those who fought in a number of different wars...there are quite a few memorials, and one end of this alley has big steps and decorated walls...quite impressive, but somewhat out of sync with the general atmosphere of the town...I still like it...
I went back to the sushi place again for another late lunch...as I was eating, a random guy came over and brought a plate of dessert sushi for me, his treat...then he sat and watched me eat...it was a bit odd, but I appreciated the compliment...

After lunch I went back to the hotel, charged my phone a bit, then walked back to the train station...my train left on time, at 1848...12 hours later I was back in kyiv...
I would definitely go back to kherson, I want another massage, and I'm curious where some of the excursions go...

czech republic: karlovy vary

karlovy vary was the last town mom and i visited during my time in the czech republic this summer...we arrived to a rainy town in a valley, after a bus ride from plzen...it rained as we walked to the information office to figure out where our hotel was located, argh...
mom was surprised when the taxi driver didn't know immediately where the hotel was located, the information office told us the name had been changed in the last few months, so it wasn't entirely surprising...that being said, you'd think the hotel would've made sure people like taxi drivers would know about the name change...

according to the little brochure map handed out by the information office, the legend of the discovery of the local springs happened when emperor charles IV went hunting in the area...allegedly one of the dogs along for the hunt fell into a hot pool of water, and instead of being hurt, his injuries were healed due to the properties of the water...when the emperor heard about this, he put his arms in the water, and his body was healed as well...then he ordered the area to be settled, and now we have karlovy vary...somehow i doubt a dog fall into steaming hot water and felt good afterward, but i bet at least part of the story is true...

karlovy vary is a spa town...back in the day, czechs from all over the country would come for 2-3 weeks at a time, to 'take the waters' and be cured of their bodily ills...these visits were state sponsored!! can you imagine anything like that happening now??? (i'd be the first to sign up)...now the town is filled with spas and businesses catering to the tourists spending time in those spas...
mom noticed she heard almost no czech being spoken while walking along the streets...i noticed most menu boards and signs were written in russian and czech, a few had english as well...booo...

back in the day, people we start their daily treatments in the morning, then spend the afternoon walking along the promenade while drinking water from the springs in special cups...there are benches all over, so people can sit for a while...obviously, this is a great town for people watching...
our hotel was in the spa area of town, and since this is the area mom wanted me to see, i didn't have time to explore anywhere else in the city...
after checking into our hotel, and relaxing for a while, we went for a walk...it was nice to see the famous springs for which the town was founded, and the areas along which people walk walk walk...

we stopped for a snack/drink at cafe hotel pupp, the oldest hotel in the area...it's an old hotel, but still quite glorious...some of the people who have stayed there are well known, of course they promote the names of their famous guests...(i think every business in this town promotes its history and famous patrons?)
dinner that night came from food vladka had packed for us, YUM...
the next morning mom and i were both slow about waking up...after finding our way to the breakfast area (we had to take the elevator down, then walk across the building, then take a different elevator back up...neither one of us understood why two parts of the same hotel aren't connected) and taking a while at breakfast, we tried to figure out how to sign me up for one of the spa services offered by the spa in the hotel...massage, mud wrap, baths, etc...some needed a medical check ahead of time, others were possible straightaway...all prices listed in euros...

this is one place where communist bureaucracy still exists...mom asked the front desk how to sign me up, that lady sent us to a room in the spa area...then that room said we should go somewhere else...since mom and i have both lived in the west, we were both annoyed by the total lack of convenience...if you want visitors to spend money, you have to make it possible for them to do so!! at the same time, because we've both spent time in the east, we understood that bureaucracy sometimes exists just to give people official jobs...(in which they don't always actually DO anything)...

anywho, i ended up getting a foot massage at another place in town...it felt sooo good...i wish i had a few days so i could take advantage of more spa options...we checked out of the hotel, then walked around for 90 minutes before heading back to the bus station for our bus back to prague...

ukraine: glibivka

easter is a national holiday in ukraine...the holiday is sunday, and everyone gets monday off as well...to celebrate easter, ukraine follows the orthodox calendar (for those in the west who are catholic, i don't know how it works, or maybe they celebrate easter according to the catholic calendar, then get another easter a few weeks later?)...most years this means we get a day off a few weeks after 'western' easter...this year, western easter and orthodox easter fell on the same day...i don't know how often that happens, but it probably isn't very often...it was a bit odd for me to see facebook posts of friends about easter and it matched up with 'my' holiday weekend...

i'd made plans a few weeks ago to travel with a couple girlfriends, we bought train tickets...our original plan was to go east, to dnipropetrovsk and zhaporhysia...unfortunately, political events made that travel plan seem like not the best idea...so we cancelled those tickets and figured out another idea...of course, we waited until the last minute to do this, so there weren't many options...
one of the girls found us a room in a cottage in a resort complex along the kyiv reservoir, a bit north of kyiv...there are a bunch of these resort complexes along the reservoir...they all have recreation options, conference facilities, etc...

saturday morning i was running late to meet the girls, i felt horrible about it...they'd booked a taxi for a specific time...the taxi took us to a complex about an hour from the city centre, near a town called glibivka...the town isn't known for anything, it's just a town...there are a bunch of these resort complexes in the area, all along the water...they offer  bike rental, horseback riding, sauna, massage, table tennis, etc...we checked in, and immediately scheduled massages and sauna time...
the weather was crap, so we sat on our porch, drank tea, and had snacks until it was time for our massages...

the massages were short, but felt sooooo good...the experience was not what i expected, but i would still do it again...when i walked into the room the massage therapist told me to get ready, and hop on the table...he worked on my back the whole time, it felt sooooo good...:) the girls each had their turn after i finished...
after massages we picked up the key to the sauna...we had our own private sauna for two hours, how awesome is that?!?! we tried to stay in the sauna for 15 minutes each time, then cool down out in the sitting room for a bit after each 'session'...i didn't bring enough water, i was a bit worried about getting really dehydrated...i love sauanas...after the sauna, i felt like a queen...

we had dinner in the restaurant of the complex...nothing noteworthy, nothing awful...the only bit of note was that the service was rather slow...all of us were tired after dinner, we all crashed early...
the next morning we'd planned to go to an easter service at a nearby church...we thought a service started at 0645 or so, the complex said they would transport us...it turned out we got the time wrong, we missed it by an hour...which means we woke up at 0600 on a holiday weekend for no good reason!!
instead of going back to sleep we made tea and took it to benches near the water to enjoy...the sun was showing itself beautifully behind clouds, everything was lovely...

eventually we decided it was time for breakfast...since it was a holiday weekend, and this was the holiday, this breakfast was included in the price of our room...easter breakfast...it ended up being quite a bit of food...i definitely ate more than i should've...
after breakfast we had another cup of tea out by the water, then figured out where to go to rent bikes...
after adjusting for size and adding air to my tires, we took off down the road...i think it was about 3 kilometers to the town of glibivka...nothing remarkable about this town, but susannah and i love seeing a 'normal' town...maryna must've thought we were crazy each time we got off our bikes to take pictures...

we saw an unfinished church, a giant wood pile, revolution street, chickens, tulips, wells, etc...as we rode over a bridge we saw lots of men fishing...
2 hours later, we rode back to the complex and turned in our bikes...another cup of tea out by the water to relax...then we went for a walk in the woods across the highway from our complex...maryna told us the woods are really really old...you can see plenty of places where trees have been cut down to be used for someone's dacha, but most of what we saw had been there for a loooong time...you can almost feel the history, it's awesome...i wish we'd had more time...

we loved the atmosphere...at times it was totally silent, at times we could hear various birds...awesomeness...
after we came back to the complex we decided to use the sauna again...this day was warmer, so susannah and i had a much more challenging 2 hours...we did 15 minute 'sessions' again, but it was much more difficult to cool down in between...we ended up turning down the temperature of the sauna, and even then it was really hard to stay in the sauna the entire 15 minutes each time...i think we figured out that we did 6 15-minute sessions...my face was sooooo red!

dinner was again at the restaurant, and again nothing remarkable...
the next morning we showed up for breakfast thinking it was included in our price again...unfortunately, it wasn't...oh well...
after breakfast we had another cup of tea and enjoyed some of our last moments of vacation...we had an extra hour, so after packing up our stuff, we went for one last walk in the woods...
after our walk a taxi took us back to kyiv...

thailand 4

layna and i met up again in chiang mai...it's basically the second city of thailand...smaller, more laid back than bangkok...still full of temples, shopping, guesthouses, and markets...chiang mai is a great town to take a cooking course, or a thai language course, or a massage course...there are tons of tour agencies, and tons of trekking options...unlike nepal, where we did all of our trekking independently, there is very little independent trekking in thailand...treks in thailand last anywhere from 1-7 days most of the time...you can go see mountains, hill tribes, waterfalls, ride elephants, etc...there are also TONS of temples in chiang mai, most of them still in active use...something like 300 temples, which is nearly as many as in bangkok...chiang mai is also fantastic for shopping...there is a night market at which you can buy nearly anything...there is also a sunday walking market, during which a few streets are blocked off to traffic, and become crowded with stalls and people...i thought the stuff available at the sunday walking market was more unique than at the night market, but still, it was all stuff i didn't need...
chiang mai was where i had to throw away one of my pairs of capris...the first item of clothing that has bit the dust...i had thread, and had already patched them once, but they were done...sad...
one of our days we went to prison!! there is a women's prison in chiang mai, and as part of the program to help the women learn something useful for when they get out, they have the chance to become massueses...the women in the program go through a 180 hr training course for thai, and foot massages...the women working in the salon are all w/in 6 months of being released...we loved the massages, and wondered how much the women received for each massage they do...

after chiang mai, we went to chiang rai...the guidebook says it's a more laid back version of chiang mai, which i thought was plenty laid back to start with...we stayed in a place 23km outside the town, and the best part was the truck ride to and from town each day...standing in the back of the pickup with the wind in our faces was awesome...i could live here, but it's not a great place to visit...there is one temple worth mentioning though...called wat phra kaew...yup, the same name as the temple in bangkok...legend has it that the emerald buddha (the one living in bangkok) was actually found in the chedi of this temple in chiang rai...apparently lightning struck the chedi, and it opened up to reveal the buddha...there is now a copy of the original buddha, just .1cm smaller in all dimensions...

our last chiang was chiang khong...it's the border town on the other side of the mekong river from lao...most travelers come here for a night, maaaaayyyybe two, before crossing the border...for locals, it's an important market town for hill tribes...we ended up loving our guesthouse, and wishing we had more time to spend here...the owner of the guesthouse is a woman who said she ran away from chiang khong for 19 yrs, before returning and opening the guesthouse...she worked in chiang rai first, then went to school in bangkok...it was fun to hear how she has expanded over the years, and how her dog loves farang (foreigners)...the lives of women in thailand are MUCH better than the lives of women in nepal and india...