Biggest Cultural Differences
G: Daily routine in Spain. Even though we begrudgingly ate supper somewhere between 9:30 and 10:00 each night, we seemed to enjoy the two hour rest (insert nap time) after a 2:00 pm lunch.
P: The manual labour in Nepal. Roads were being built with pick axes. Rocks were crushed with sledgehammers. Asphalt was heated with a wood fire.
Most impressive
G: Paul's Sunglasses. I'm not sure which is more impressive. The fact that Paul broke/lost 7 pairs of sunglasses, or the fact that he's kept his last pair in tact for 8 whole weeks!
P: Nick’s Tools. I was able to play in the “tool sheds” at many places. Some had next to no tools or the tools were simply broken. Nick had every thing in his work shop- although I never did find the level. (So I made one from a hose!)
Nicest People
G: British Alice that we met at MRCI in Madagascar. She's pure positive, all the time. Need a boost, go chat with Alice for for a minute.
P: Terrie and Alan - our newest auntie and uncle. Pure salt of the earth people.
Generous Hosts
G: OMG is really all I can say about the generosity shown by Connie and Fernando, Ute, and Jay. Homes were opened, special outings were arranged, and lives were shared. I can't say thank you enough to my beautiful friends.
P: Agreed. Please come to Canada so we can reciprocate.
Hardest
G: Spotting geckos and chameleons during our night hikes in Madagascar.
P: Slowly, Slowly. In Nepal and Madagascar we heard this repeatedly. It’s taken a lot to adopt a slower pace.
Coolest Animal
G: Pablo from the Food Farm. Any dog that can open the door to let themselves out is a gem!
P: Lemurs in Madagascar. These little beasts are very cool.
Greatest Effort
G: Trying to figure out what was being said. This happened in our home-stays in Nepal, at shops in Thailand, at camp in Madagascar, and at the dinner table at Can Ponet. It's fun to read body language and tone, but potentially dangerous too.
P: Trying to get Binoculars in Bangkok. I ordered them only for $8 to be delivered to a lock box. We walked about 5 km in the heat to the lock box, and they weren’t there. What a mess. They finally showed up at our Airbnb, not the lock box, 3 days after we left Bangkok.
Better Than We Found It
G: Despite cold and rainy weather, Terrie and Alan's gardens looked remarkably better after our time there. My rain jacket will never be the same. Sigh.
P: Oh, there’s a lot to choose from. Sarangkot homestay stands out because we fixed the tunnel houses, installed irrigation and dug trenches. All of these will lead to more food production for a long time.
Wicked Cool
G: Snorkeling at Tanikeli Madagascar. The fish and corals were SO diverse and SO colourful.
P: Blackwater rafting in the glow worm caves.
Hilarious
G: For me, it has to be the slow roll bus at Hari and Maya's that took 15 minutes to go 1 km while blowing its horn all the way.
P: Staying with all the young people at MRCI. It was funny be able to interact and also to sit back and watch their various levels of maturity.
Yummy Street Food:
G: This is a tough one but my vote goes to Nepal's momos, donuts, and samosas.
P: Has to be Phuket. We were always on a mission to get a $5 dinner and the options seemed to be different every day!
Scariest:
G: Sitting very close behind a stalled transport truck that kept rolling backwards towards us on a bridge incline in New Zealand. Yikes.
P: That huge spider in our room in Sarangkot.
Unique Experience:
G: Radio studio recording with Ute for her podcast. Who got to be guests on an Austrian friend's podcast? We did!!!
P: Framing the shed at the Food Farm. Measuring and buying wood in metric and being able to make my own plan.
Best Deal
G: Phuket Thailand - Modern Air BB apartment for $30 a night, cheap and delicious (or dangerous) street food, free snorkling off the beach. This place was a little piece of heaven.
P: The food cafe in the Grocery store in Bangkok. We got to try many things for just a few bucks. (And it was air conditioned!)
Peaceful Moment
G: Definitely swimming alongside giant green sea turtles in Madagascar. Wow. Graceful, strong and definitely peaceful.
P: The night sky in the South Island of New Zealand. It was truly beautiful.
Most Learning
G: It's a toss up. Can Ponet and woofing in Spain or MRCI in Madagascar. We milked goats, made cheese and yogurt, did a butterfly survey, and lived the day to day life of a Catalonian family. We also lived in a poor African country, in an island camp with locals and young volunteers from around the world and learned their social stories. As well we surveyed birds and lemurs, identified geckos and chameleons, planted tree seedlings, I'll while following the mantra "mora mora" - slowly slowly.
P: The Food Farm. This amazing couple has adopted the Permaculture Lifestyle and are delighted to share it with others.
Unexpected Bonus
G: When Connie and Fernando's car broke down in NZ, we were invited to spend the night at their friends, Fernando and Sonia's. Well, their lovely rural estate came complete with our own room, fresh pan de yucca for breakfast, and an indoor pool. Unexpected and a huge bonus!
P: Bangkok Airways Lounge. We arrived at the airport in Chiang Mai for our return flight to Bangkok and at check in we were told to go hang out in the lounge! What a treat. Free coffee, juice and snacks!
Grateful For:
G: PAUL. I couldn't ask for a better traveling/life partner. It will come as no shock that Paul was always super planned, well organized and always keen to do anything and everything. I'm grateful to have shared such memorable adventures with him.
P: GAYLE. Thank you for being curious and caring. You kept many conversations alive with so many people. And everyone loved you for it! You were always a hard worker and willing to do anything during our building and maintenance tasks. You never once even frowned about the sunglasses fiascos.