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December 2023

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    Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Xmas & New Year’s 2023

    24 grudnia 2023, Anglia ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    We spent Xmas and New Year’s with my stepdaughter near London. She’s an amazing cook and spoiled us rotten with an array of tasty meals, including: pheasant and chestnut stew, clementine cake, juniper and lemon ice cream, cranberry ice cream, and much more!

    She lives by the Thames, so we also enjoyed strolls along the waterfron, as well as the occasional stop at the riverside pub, where we enjoyed half pints of pear cider and a proper plate of fish ‘n’ chips with mushy peas.

    I enjoy visiting grocery stores around the world, and England is no exception. I get a kick out of their cough medicine for example, Thanks to the descriptions, dry and tickly vs chesty, you know exactly which type is right for you.

    Naomi and I rang in the New Year on our own, alas, because Larry had to fly back to the states. Why? Because his passport ran out of space for new stamps!

    Up ‘til 2016, this would have been no big deal. Back then, you could simply get more pages stapled into your existing passport . These days, you are required to get a brand new passport.

    As you can imagine, getting one on such short notice was tricky. I’ll spare the details, but he managed to get an in person appointment in Dallas.

    The upside to all this, is that he got to ring in the new year with our Texas family, so all was not lost.

    He also dropped off a large suitcase of souvenirs and superfluous clothing at our house. This means we are down to one big suitcase and two roller bags.

    He put one of the roller bags into an empty big bag, so we’ve got plenty of room for souvenirs now.

    I must say that with each trip we take, we get better at packing.

    It had been roughly 20 years since my stepdaughter and I shared the holidays together, so this was a real treat.

    As always, our time together flew by and saying goodbye was hard. Still, I am very grateful for the time we spent together.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Singapore’s Changi Airport

    23 grudnia 2023, Bay of Bengal ⋅ 🌬 84 °F

    I had no idea that Singapore’s Changi Airport is so unique until my friend, SJ, told me that many people consider it a destination unto itself.

    We visited Changi with the express purpose of catching a flight to London, (at 15 hours, the longest flight either of us have ever taken) but after checking our bags, I was delighted to find that our terminal featured lush decor and a free butterfly garden.

    I had my first taste of Singapore style coffee here, too. Kopi Peng is iced coffee with evaporated milk, a lot like Vietnamese coffee, actually. So yummy!

    I’ve never had so much fun while waiting for my flight. In fact, I found myself rushing back to the gate for boarding because there was so much to enjoy.

    Since we flew with Singapore Airlines, it only seemed right to start our flight with Singapore Slings. I’d never had the drink before. Not only were they tasty, but they were on the house.

    As for the last photo, I had no idea there was a city called “Batman.”     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Java Country Drive

    18 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ ⛅ 86 °F

    Even though it was a two hour drive from Semarang to Borobudur, it was far from boring.

    To keep us from getting caught in traffic, we had a police escort.
    Our bus was the first one out of the port, so we heard short siren bursts along the way.

    Speaking of cars, near the temple of Borobudur, I saw a whole lot of VW Things. Not sure what that’s all about.

    I enjoyed learning that rice fields here keep owls in birdhouses to catch mice. During the day, farmers encourage wading birds as another form of natural pest control.

    When our guide pointed out groves of rubber trees, I was surprised how skinny the trunks were.

    At one busy intersection, I saw a woman dressed in red, who seemed to be wearing a monkey mask. Wonder what the story was with her?

    I saw several versions of the potbellied man with the white face. Our guide told us that businesses put those out front to protect from evil spirits.

    We had an excellent guide named Gundar. One of the first things he told us was that Javanese people only have one name. They have no middle or last names!

    I also found it interesting that men often keep songbirds. Not only are they pets, but they often enter them in songbird singing contests, which can have very big prizes.

    On the ride home, he taught us a cute little Javanese song about a cockatoo landing on a windowsill. I’ve had it stuck in my head for days!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Javanese Food

    18 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    We enjoyed some tasty treats in Java! For starters, I was thrilled to sip a cup of actual Javanese java whilst snacking on fried bananas.

    After we visited the temple of Borobudur, we were treated to a Javanese buffet. I appreciated that the items were labeled with their name and a brief explanation of ingredients.

    Everything was fresh and yummy, but I especially enjoyed something called “winkgko” which features rice flour and coconut milk.

    I can now add Javanese food to my list of favorite world cuisines.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Borobudur Temple

    18 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    From the port of Semarang, we booked a tour to visit Borobudur, which is the world's largest Buddhist temple.

    Built in the 8th century, it was abandoned soon after due to volcanic eruptions that frequently covered it in ash. By the 1800s, its existence seemed mere legend until Sir Thomas Raffles hired a team to explore the area and essentially rediscover it.

    These days it's one of Indonesia's UNESCO World Heritage sites, and is considered one of the wonders of the world (depending on whose list you read.)

    While not a burial site, Borobudur was helpful to my ongoing research due the many examples of mudras depicted here. Borobudur boasts 504 statues of Buddha, each of which displays a specific mudra which are the symbolic hand gestures of Buddhist teachings.

    In a field below the temple, I noticed a lot of black hair on the ground. Our guide explained that was due to a hair cutting ritual for young Buddhists when they reach adulthood.

    She also explained the stories behind the bas reliefs on the temple. Many are examples of good karma vs bad karma. I didn’t really find out the story behind the monkey/lion creatures that seemed to guard the entryways. I’ll have to look into that when I get some Internet access     Czytaj więcej

  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Kuala Lumpur

    14 grudnia 2023, Malezja ⋅ 🌧 81 °F

    We took a “highlights of Kuala Lumpur” tour today, which gave us a good overview of this Malaysian city.

    I didn’t expect to enjoy our free time at the Petronas Tower so much. Rather than ride to the top, we enjoyed a bento box lunch in the food court for $6.

    After, we tried a “salted caramel latte with cheese foam” for dessert. Apparently, cheese foam is made with cream cheese. In any case, it was delicious!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Orang Utan Island

    13 grudnia 2023, Malezja ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    Another gorgeous sunrise for us this morning as we made our way to Orang Utan Island. I even saw dolphins leaping in the sun’s reflection in the water!

    What’s great about this wildlife reserve is that the humans are in cages and the animals roam free. Visitors stroll along a caged pathway.

    Despite the cage, we still had to be careful. At one point, while angling my phone through the fence to get a photo of an orangutan, a Rhesus monkey hopped down from the trees and nearly swiped by sunglasses.

    The employees here shared the backstory for each of the rescued orangutans. Some of them can be released into the wild, but others cannot.

    The Queen, for instance, was once a house pet. Not only did she live in an apartment with her owner, but she wore a house dress and was addicted to cigarettes!

    She gets quite jealous of other females, even human females. When women would approach to take her photo, she’d spit at us.

    It was heartwarming to see that the employees clearly love all the animals here.

    Oh, before I forget: the cicadas there sounded high pitched metal machinery. I actually asked them what machines I was hearing were.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Cave, Bats, Fish & Eagles

    12 grudnia 2023, Malezja ⋅ ☁️ 82 °F

    We had a great time at Kilim Geoforest Park on Langkawi. We took a boat ride to a cave where we saw bats and the cutest crabs in the mangrove forest.

    On our way to the cave, a woman pulled out a packet of tissues and was instantly mobbed by a pair of monkeys. You have to be so careful around those cheeky little beasts!

    Next, we visited a fish farm where I fed a sting ray. My favorite part of the tour, however, was watching the sea birds fishing. I have some video clips of them diving into the water.

    We spent about 15 minutes marveling at them, but I could have easily watched them for much longer.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Welcome to Langkawi

    12 grudnia 2023, Malezja ⋅ ☁️ 81 °F

    While “Langkawi, the Jewel of Kedah,” sounds like the title of a video game, in reality it is a Malaysian archipelago. As we stepped of the ship today, we were met by locals in traditional costumes playing music. I didn’t take any video, alas, but just imagine typical snake charmer music for the guy with the chanter.

    It’s very laid back on this island. And check out that infinity pool. I could definitely envision a week of R&R on Langkawi.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Gardens by the Bay

    8 grudnia 2023, Singapur ⋅ ☁️ 86 °F

    After exploring Bukit Brown cemetery, we nabbed a cab via the Asian equivalent of Uber, which is called Grab.

    We were hot and sweaty from the intense humidity, so the cab’s a/c was much appreciated.

    No sooner did we reach Gardens by the Bay than the skies open up and a tremendous electric storm kicked into full gear. We sought shelter at a patio outside of McDonald’s before buying tickets to the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest.

    We were both drenched, so it was a little chilly at first. The Flower Dome was decked out for Christmas, and the Cloud Forest has an Avatar theme going on right now.

    We enjoyed them both, and all the walking kept us from getting cold. Our timing was perfect, too. We enjoyed a sodden sunset and then watched a light show in the SuperTree grove before catching a cab back to the ship.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Bukit Brown Cemetery

    8 grudnia 2023, Singapur ⋅ ☁️ 91 °F

    Originally owned by Chinese clans, Singapore’s Bukit Brown became a public cemetery in 1922. Even so, the 212 acre expanse has been largely untouched since the 1970s.

    The jungle foliage provides a much needed wildlife corridor for a wide variety of species. During our visit, we encountered wild boar, and numerous butterflies and birds.

    A troop of rowdy monkeys came and chowed down on some food that cemetery party-goers left behind. I stayed out of the monkeys’ way, but it was quite a scene!

    Bukit Brown had a lot of warning signs, too. I stayed especially alert for cobras and wild dogs, but I didn't expect to see a warning about ghosts! (Look closely at the sign and you'll see what I mean.)

    And talk about grave goods! I often see a bit of food and drink left at burial sites, but many tombs in Bukit Brown bore evidence of major partying.

    At one point, I heard music and chanting in Chinese. Turns out that some of the graves have solar powered music. (Click on the video to hear it.) That’s a first for me.

    It would be fun to come here at night and see the ancestor worship in action.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Lombok Island

    4 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ ☁️ 84 °F

    It’s not easy to shoot decent photos when you’re hurtling down a narrow road in a taxi with dirty windows and a cracked windshield, but I did my best today on Lombok Island.

    Compared to other parts of Indonesia, Lombok is slower paced. Mosques and temples abound.

    Our cabbie explained that they grow rice, tobacco, and corn here. There were plenty of roadside stands selling fresh produce, but the roadside pet store surprised me: a vendor selling little bunnies and goldfish in hanging plastic bags.

    We even saw a few cemeteries, but they were so overgrown that the photos I took from the car are not worth sharing. Vegetation is very lush here!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Water Palace

    2 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ 🌧 84 °F

    We also visited the Water Palace on Lombok Island. In 722, the island’s king used the nearby river to create several pools on the grounds of the home he lived in during the dry season.

    Locals still come here to swim, either in the paid pool, or in the free ones. I’m not sure what the difference is.

    Many statues, and even some trees were festooned with checkered cloth called “saput paleng.” The black and white pattern symbolizes balanced forces of the universe.

    I also saw “canang sari” which are offerings created to thank various deities. To create canang sari, worshipers use banana leaves and other natural fibers to create little baskets, then they add flowers and maybe some fruit and other items as offerings.

    Since preparing them takes time, the act of creating canang sari is considered a prayerful expression of gratitude. I like the idea of combining prayer with a task that lets your mind both wander and focus.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik
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    Weaving Village

    2 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ 🌧 86 °F

    On Lombok Island, our cabbie took us to Songket Village, where women weave beautiful cloth.

    I thought we would just watch the process. I didn’t expect to be given the chance to work the loom myself. It was so much fun!

    After that, they dressed me in traditional garb and took photos of me in my beautiful new home in the tropics. Haha!

    And, yes, I bought a piece of clothing, a colorful blazer that’s light enough for me to wear in Texas (at least when it’s chilly.) I will treasure it.     Czytaj więcej

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  • Tui SniderDecember 2023Podróżnik

    Komodo Dragons

    1 grudnia 2023, Indonezja ⋅ ⛅ 88 °F

    As you step ashore onto Komodo Island, you’re greeted by the scent of sea air and cloves. Local guides chain smoke clove cigarettes as they wait their turn in a shaded wooden hut.

    Buildings are elevated here to keep out t Komodo dragons. Little ones are venomous and can climb steps, but big ones are not as agile.

    The guides use forked sticks to protect visitors from dragon attack. Most of the time the sticks are not needed, but we saw them in action when a little guy came trotting towards our group.

    You don’t want to mess around with Komodo dragons, not only are they the world’s biggest lizards but their bite contains venom (for which there is no antidote), anticoagulants, and a host of bacteria to makes sure your wounds get nice and infected. A single bite can land you in the hospital for months, and that’s if you’re lucky.

    As cold blooded creatures, komodos spend most of their day regulating their body temperature by seeking sun, shade or even a swim at the beach. Like crocodiles and other cold blooded kin, they only eat once or twice a month.

    Our guide, Jack (who jokingly asked us to call him “Jackie Chan”) grew up on Komodo Island in a village with 2,000 people.

    “I am very happy,” he told me. “It is a good life here, with everything I need.”

    Before our hike, Jackie warned us that we might not see any Komodo dragons. “They are wild animals. They come and go.”

    Indeed, some visitors today only saw one or two of the beasts, and even then from a distance.

    Maybe it was because were the last group of the day? But for whatever reason, we encountered lots of lizards of all sizes on our trek.

    The biggest ones were basking at a watering hole. As newcomers approached, the Komodos would growl at them. If you watch my videos you can hear what they sound like.     Czytaj więcej

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