Houston to Dubai: 15-hour flight on Emirates Airlines. Food was good and plentiful, but not
very tasty. The service OK, not exceptional Dubai:
A very impressive, imposing, spacious airport, the best I've seen. Restroom facilities are good. Customs agent casually chatted with his girlfriend while inspecting my passport!
Wifi is free for an hour. Good reception.
Abu Dhabi, 90% of the land, the capital of UAE where oil is found. Population of the UAE: 8.5 million
Shuttle bus to the 5-star hotel JW Marriott Marquis, the tallest hotel in the world, 355 meters tall according to one of the luggage attendants.
Tallest building Burj Khalifa
opened in January 4, 2010 828 meters tall. Fastest elevator
Biggest shopping mall in the world. Dubai Mall.
Built in 2007. Boasting the biggest aquarium with 33,000 marine species. 50,000 car parking garage. 1,300 shops.
Dubai: 2.1 million. Natives: only 5%. Over 200 nationalities are guest workers. Indians, Chinese, and Filipinos are the most numerous. City of extravaganzas. Building construction is everywhere. No graffiti. No visible police cars which are often luxury cars: Lamborghini, Rolls Royce. Crimes are low. Response time very fast. Security cameras are everywhere.
It rains 2, 3 times a year. Every time it rains, the streets are flooded because the drainage is so bad. 90% of the water comes from desalination plants; 10% from aquifers.
45 C degrees and 85% humidity in Summer
UAE (8.2 million) was established in December 1971.
Dinner at the home of a wealthy Sunni Arab host who tried to propagandize how good true Islam is
Abu Dhabi: capital of UAE, meaning father of the gazelle. 80% of territory of UAE.
Dubai (from Hindi): meaning 2 brothers
Since 2010, Abu Dhabi has overtaken Dubai in construction activities. Massive building and road constructions are everywhere. Formula One racing takes place here.
A brand new, futuristic building complex (mini city called Masdar (Arabic for source) City) is being constructed (started 2006 and estimated to be finished in 2030 with estimated 50,000 inhabitants will live) where energy is powered by the sun, driverless autos move inhabitants around. Commercial, industrial, educational, and research institutions will be housed in this city.
Went Desert Safari. The desert was beautiful, but the ride in a Toyata Land Cruiser was highly dangerous because of the uneven terrain. The vehicles' tires were deflated to minimize the risk of tipping over. Still the risk of tipping over remained very high. On the scale danger of 1 to 10, the risk is somewhere between 9 and 9.5. The evening concluded with a BBQ dinner in a simulated campfire setting while watching traditional Arab dances which were nothing to write home about.
India:
Indian's last name indicates profession, region, and caste. 95% of the marriages are arranged. Brides live with the groom's family. People marry within their caste.
Favorite flower for the Indians is mums (bông vạn thọ) because it is everywhere. The Indians believe the saffron color (they don't call it "yellow") represent saintliness (the color of the robes of the Buddhist monks of the Hinayana sect) . Occasionally bougainvilleas were planted in wealthy areas, useful as boundary markers or gate adornment, brought in by the Europeans from the Mediterranean.
New Delhi and the environs (35 million inhabitants)
-International Airport is decrepit, poorly air-conditioned. Its restrooms are substandard. Outside of the airport is not good either. The government does not seem to care about creating good impressions. On the way to the hotel, oppressive poverty and public urination were in pull display, despite the country's being now 3rd in the world in GDP. In many ways, India looks poorer than Vietnam, despite having a touted reputation in advanced technology in weaponry and space. There are some enclaves of prosperity. We had lunch at one of the areas where the food was plentiful and good.
-Smog was very BAD. Dust was everywhere. Not a heathy city to live at all. One is very likely to die young of respiratory illnesses or traffic accidents. Stress is very high because of smog, noise, traffic jam, and poverty.
-There are 2 sides of the schizophrenic India: modern, technologically advanced India and the backward, squalid, dog-eat-dog Darwinistic India where caste and superstition and poverty rule supreme. Like is very hard and does not seem to be fun at all.
-Motorcycles were main means of transportation, but not as omnipresent as in Vietnam. Cars were small size and old. India has natural gas, but no oil. Oil is imported from Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
-No new constructions. There were several unfinished/abandoned bridges and buildings.
-Stayed at Sheraton, a 4-star aging hotel. Amenities were not much better than a 3-star hotel. Hotel service was good.
Food at the hotel restaurant was better than expected. So far no cases of food poisoning. Of course we drank bottled water or beer. The local beer, called Kingfisher, was very good
-Toiletries, dinner plates, and silverware were made in India, not in China as in other countries.
-Went to see a former mosque, designated a world heritage site. Its minaret was well preserved and boasting being the tallest stone structure in India. Construction materials were taken from destroyed Hindu temples on the site. Muslim invaders ruled India for about 300 years.
-Muslims (196 million adherents, second largest in the world behind Indonesia) and Hindus get along but not during election times when politicians stir up conflicts and old grievances. India has been attacked by Islamic extremists from Pakistan , both militarily and financially (counterfeited money being circulated very widely. That was why the government introduced new money bills replacing the old ones this week). Small branches of banks are everywhere, on every city block, sometimes several on the same block.
Jaipur (3.5 million inhabitants)
-Travelled on an old, uncomfortable, but air-conditioned bus.
-On the highway to Jaipur. Poverty was sill visible, but not oppressive. Cows wandered freely along the highway. Those which didn't give milk lived on the streets. They lived on garbage. Saw donkey carts. The whole scene was reminiscent of South Vietnam in late 1950's in terms of appearances of poverty.
-Came across rhesus monkeys, baboons, goats, camels, and elephants on the road side.
-Garbage is not collected or burned. It just sits there in heaps alongside the streets and highways.
-Traffic on the highways consisted mostly of trucks, buses, and motorcycles. Very few private cars. Indian drivers use horns frequently and usually disregard traffic rules. A majority of vehicles look old.
-The hotel was very elegant. The construction and decoration had Islamic motif. Jaipur is in the state of Rajasthan, a predominantly Muslim state in India.
-Trip to the fort/walled city.
-1728 Observatory was built. One of the monuments was a stone sun dial, telling time based on the shadow of the sun during the day, is amazingly correct, precisely recording the movement of the shadow by two seconds intervals. India had a long history of excellence in math.
Agra:
-Very elegant hotel. Islamic motif decoration was just absolutely beautiful and tasteful. Food was plentiful, but not very tasty.
-Taj Mahal: beautiful marble mausoleum. Security was strict, as India was being regularly attacked by Islamic terrorists from neighboring Pakistan. Left hotel at 6am for the trip to the Taj Mahal. The crowd was huge already. Surroundings were spruced up, but still dust and squalor, and indifference to hygiene and cleanliness of the populace was evident.
New Delhi Airport Redux:
I am at surprisingly posher domestic terminals area, awaiting for a flight to Chennai (since 1996, former name: Madras), India's southern cruise port and capital of Tamil Nadu This area is much nicer than the one I flew in from Dubai. So maybe domestic flights in India have much better business than the international flights, hence more investments in the amenities and shops. After all, the population is 1.5 billion, having surpassed China. And India itself is quite a big land mass. The economy has experienced strong growth during the last 10 years. The middle class can afford air travel. Train service in India can be overtaxing on the nerves and health of the travelers.
As seen elsewhere, Indian inefficiency at the airport is atrocious. The airline I'm traveling on, IndiGo, employs a lot of employees but the service is slow and redundant. Security is tight. It appears to me, in order to keep the population employed, 3 or 4 persons are hired to do various components of a job that in America only one worker would do. There are no ramps at the gate. I'm waiting for a bus that takes me to a waiting airplane.
For inflight meal, I ordered instant noodles chicken soup, cashew nuts (vacuum-packed and salted, but not roasted) and hot green tea from Ceylon. The soup was spicy but surprisingly very good, the cashew nuts were fresh but would be tastier if roasted (Indians prefer to eat them raw).The tea has a distinct flavor and was very good. I was hungry. I skipped breakfast in the morning because I had a big Chinese dinner on the hotel premises the night before.
Chennai:
A port. Capital of Tamil Nadu, a state of 78 million inhabitants. Speak Tamil and over 100 dialects! Don't speak Hindi. Against Hindi, the language of the Aryan invaders. The Portuguese, the French, the Dutch preceded the British. The British came for cotton, 20% cheaper than in England. A lot of churches, mostly Catholic. Not much Muslim presence. Streets are much cleaner than those in Northern India. Streets signs are in Tamil (different script from Hindi) and English. British influence pervasive in education and architecture.
Monsoon season in Oct, Nov, and Dec.
Movement to make the city green and clean. Many fine universities, mostly private. IIT (Indian Institute of Technology), India's equivalent of America's MIT, has locations here. Two Nobel winners came from Chennai.
High school education and supplies (books and laptops)are free.
Animals are banned in the city, unlike Northern India. Slums are being demolished. Dwellers are relocated in the suburbs, with much support from the government.
Some men wear sarongs. People generally look happier and friendlier than those in Northern India. Work ethic is better, too.
Work is emphasized here.
Industries: textiles, software, auto assembly, movie-making: over 300 films a year. A lot of movie stars get into politics.
Traffic is not congested. Not much dirt. Trees are plentiful and leaves are not covered with dirt as in Northern India.
A very long and wide beach. Swimming is not allowed because of strong undertows. Public beach. No hotels. Public swimming pools were built
Most former British buildings are used by the government.
Conclusion about North India:
For me, North India is a place to visit, but not to live. If you pay me to live in India, I would decline the offer because my health would be in danger and I wouldn't be happy interacting with the locals. I used to have a romantic notion about India being poor but highly spiritual. That notion was shattered by this trip. I grew weary and very wary of interacting with the Indians. Poverty and competition bring the worst of human nature in them. I bargained for an item that went from $50 to $4 that I was told later that it could be bought for $1. I bought a silver (92.5% in purity) bracelet that went from $100 to $40. I had negotiated to $35, but the seller refused to bulge, even after I had pretended to walk back to a waiting tour bus. So I knew at most I overpaid by $10. I ended up buying 2 bracelets. I bought them as souvenirs and as a minor "investment" in silver. Incredibly enough, luxury brand name goods are much more expensive in India than in America, because of taxes.
Food is OK. Spicy hot food does not bother me. So far I've been lucky not to catch gastrointestinal problems by avoiding street food stalls and fruits with skin. The Nan bread is somewhat better here than in the States, while the potato chip is bland and not tasty. Indian beer, Kingfisher, is very good: full-bodied and no ill effects in the aftermath of the consumption. I'm getting quite fond of it and will surely check of its availability once I get back on American soil.
Indian streets and highways are a living zoo where animals of all kinds (camels, water buffaloes, dogs, donkeys, goats, cows, monkeys, and pigs) cohabit with humans; and where garbage is not collected, and sewers are open and overflowing. India is the worst country I have ever been to, much worse than Vietnam or any Latin American Banana Republic. Smog is a very bad problem.
Littering reflects a lack of pride in who you are and where you live. It happens in the ghettos of America and here in Northern India. If everyone refuses to litter, the problem of littering will vanish at once.
North India is strictly for tourism because of historical monuments, but to enjoy life in India, especially for a Westerner, South India, especially Chennai, definitely a place to live because of the beneficial Western influences in education, religion, and environmental consciousness.
On a cruise ship Azamara to Port Blair, an island belongs to India. Food on the ship has been very good except for steaks, Vietnamese and French cuisine. Moroccan cuisine was superb. Unlimited wine and beer are included in the price.
The staff is heavily Indonesian. The ship is small (capacity: 600 guests) and tastefully designed.
The service on ship was good. The library was big and had plenty of books, predominantly in English, with a fair amount in German and other Germanic languages, but very few in French, Italian, and Spanish.
Port Blair:
More or less the same squalor and filth and stench as seen and smelled elsewhere. Many ethnicities, majority are the Bengalis. Served as a penal colony where Indian nationalists were jailed by the British. Capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a collection of 572 islands, of which only 38 are inhabited.
Myanmar:
90% of the population are Buddhists.
3,000 protesters were killed in 1988, resulting in 500,000 people forcibly relocated. In 2007 govt opened fire on monks. 500,000 monks in Myanmar.
Yangon (Rangoon) southern port. Renamed in 1989. Mandalay another important city up north.
68% of the population are Burmese. Mons were the original inhabitants by the Burmese who came from Southwest China. Battles with the Mongols and the Thais.
Corruption has been a tough problem from the past till now.
Gemstones: sources of income, friction, and fakes. Rubies, emerald, and jade.
Teak and rubber.
Yangon means "End of Strife" by King Alaungpaya in 1755.
War of independence against the British took 30,000 (?) lives.
Economy growing at 8% a year since liberalization.
Food spicy, a lot of curry.
Women and children's faces covered with sunscreen powders
Longyi, a kind of sarong, is worn. The folding of the longyi varies, depending on the gender of the wearer or whether or not he is a monk.
Rice with curry is a staple dish.
Peasants in Myanmar live in absolute poverty and squalor. Their huts cannot be better than those of their forebears thousands of years ago. In fact, they could be worse.
Large Indian community, growing Chinese minority.
Freedom of worship. Buddhists comprise 80% of the population. 135 ethnic groups. In terms of land, second biggest in Southeast Asia, after Indonesia. English is taught in primary school and beyond and widely understood. It is also a lingua franca in the country.
A lot of uncultivated land. Peasants live in primitive huts. The country looks poor and undeveloped.
Bicycle modified to transport 3 persons. So means of PUBLIC transports are bicycles (for 3: rider and 2 passengers: 1 in the back, 1 on the side) and motorcycles (rider and 1 passenger) for hire, taxis (everywhere), buses, and trains. Most vehicles were Japanese, predominantly Toyota).
Women are not pretty, in my humble opinion.
Souvenirs and clothing were still very cheap in comparison with other countries.
Visit to Pagoda in Yangon:
imposing, huge area, hundreds of structures housing statues of Buddha, with a golden stupa as the main attraction. Indian architecture and motifs. Wind chimes. All signs are in Burmese, different script from Hindi and Tamil.
Cultural Evening in the People's Park
A huge park in Yangon, the likes of which do not exist in urban areas in Vietnam, covering a vast area, replete with lakes, fountains, and gardens. I believe this was where the Burmese congregated in demonstrating against the military rulers a few years back. Democracy seemed to be blossoming. Cops were present but not overbearing.
The monsoon season was over. No mosquitos in the park.
There were traditional Burmese dances (including an exquisite elephant dance with various dancers impersonating an elephant) with dancers in traditional costumes. kerosene lights lit the way. Burmese snacks and desserts along with wine, beer, and soft drinks were served. Burmese were appreciative of the tourists. A memorable evening. While the tour guides on the buses didn't speak good English and were almost unintelligible, the organizers of the Cultural Evening spoke a cultured, beautiful English with hardly an accent.
Phuket Island, Thailand
Biggest island of Thailand.
Very clean and well-developed tourist resort, even though it was hit by a tsunami 12 years ago. Beer costs about 2.5 dollars. A lot of young Western tourists walking around. Many massage parlors with provocatively dressed masseuses standing in the doorway waiting for customers. Many international restaurants.
Once a tin mining town. Main cash crops are rubber and palm oil. Although there are bananas, papayas, and pineapples. Climate tropical. 500,000 inhabitants, 80% Buddhists with heavy influences of local animism. Muslims constitute a biggest minority group. The remainder is made of Christians, Hindis, and Confucianists.
No rice is grown on the island. The social greeting in Thai language, "Have you eaten rice?", as in Vietnamese, carries more than its literal meaning.
Visit Phang Nga Bay in a boat ride, an hour drive from Phuket
Similar lime rock formations like those in Ha Long Bay. Water is very salty. Shallow water. Otters and monkeys live in mangroves forests , feasting on tree fruits and small fishes and shell fish during low tides.. No sharks nor crocodiles.
Cave paintings on the cave roofs 3,000 years old. Muslims live on the islands in the bay. They were descendants of Indonesian fishermen settlers. Live on stilt houses over water next to shore.
The Muslim and the Thai women appear more pretty than Burmese women who all look similar: broad face and quite coarse features.
Definitely not as pretty and exotic like Ha Long Bay.
Georgetown, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
Very clean, prosperous-looking, and well-organized, even in older and poorer sections of town. A mixture of ethnicities: politically powerful Malays, economically dominant Chinese immigrants who came in 17th Century after the collapse of the Ming Dynasty, Indians brought in by the British as a source of cheap labor.
Port Klang and Kuala Lumpur
-Clean, orderly, free Wifi
-Big tall buildings. Clean. Wifi free everywhere. A lot of passenger crossing bridges.
-Houses smaller than American ones, but well-kept.
-Natives friendly and helpful.
Signs of public and commercial buildings in Malay and English. Signs of smaller shops in Malay and Chinese. Most street signs are in Malay. Some signs in Malay (always in bigger size) and Chinese or Malay and Arabic.
More cars than motorbikes in the streets.
7 Chinese clans originally lived on the jetties. Each clan couldn't live in another clan's jetty. The area (jetties) now recognized by UNESCO as world heritage .
Singapore:
-Clean, spotless, modern, prosperous. The port terminal world class. Plentiful high-rise residential buildings where 90% inhabitants live. A world-class city. There are ethnic areas: Chinatown, Little India, and Malay area. Plenty of shops. Singaporeans love to shop because they have money. Street and building signs are in English
-Free Wifi throughout the city state.
Conclusion:
There are certain things one must see with one's eyes in order to fully understand the phenomena. I have in mind the desert in UAE, the poverty and squalor in Northern India, and the prosperity and law and order in Malaysia and Singapore.
November 30, 2016
No comments:
Post a Comment