Oh to be a swagman in Oz for yonks and crack onto each other! (Sydney, Australia)

Thursday, May 05, 2011 Shayna

The initial concept when planning our world trip was to spend at least a month or two in a few countries. We assumed that after visiting country after country with cameras slung around our necks and maps in hand that we would enjoy getting to know certain places in more depth. We loved the idea of finding an apartment, settling in and discovering a city more as a native would instead of a tourist.


Our first planned long-term stop we determined would be Australia. After months of traveling in dozens of countries, some of which were as far as you could get from the western world, we thought it would be a good idea to take a break in an English speaking nation.


We were quick to find that renting an apartment in Sydney was a formidable task. We had been dreaming of an apartment with a kitchen in central Sydney at a reasonable price and found quickly, that was easier said than done. If we found an apartment with a full kitchen it was miles away from anywhere we would want to be and would warrant a cab or train ride into the city every day we wanted to explore. And in the city we were shocked to find that one-bedroom prices were comparable to those in NYC.



After contacting dozens upon dozens of hotel and apartment owners Ofer stumbled upon a deal that seemed too good to be true. He had found a one bedroom apartment in Darling Harbor complete with a full kitchen, balcony, and a washer/dryer right in our unit! Needless to say we snatched it up as soon as we could.



We moved in right away and I did something that I never in my life have done in so much haste...I unpacked. Usually my suitcase will slowly lose contents over a week or two after being home from a trip, as if I want to hang on to the idea that I am still somewhat not back to the real world. But not this time. Every item was put in a drawer or on a hanger, I filled the cabinets and even organized our nightstands. It is amazing how quickly someplace can feel like home depending on how much you want it to.


Ofer and I spent about a month and a half in that apartment. We got a gym membership, found a few favorite restaurants in the area and even got addicted to some Australian television (Junior Master Chef). Ofer signed up with a Spanish tutor for biweekly lessons and I began a 3 week photography program.


We also began taking salsa lessons at a studio just a few blocks from our apartment. We had decided that we wanted to work on a salsa dance to perform at the wedding. The plan was to do our normal ‘first dance’ as bride and groom but later in the night to come out and surprise the guests with a dance we had choreographed. We had a fantastic teacher and he helped us to choreograph an entire 3 minute routine complete with dips and lifts. For those of you who were at the wedding you know how that dance actually went but check out the link below to see what it was supposed to look like.

We didn’t do too much site seeing while we were in Sydney since we wanted to avoid being tourists for a bit. However we did manage to visit the aquarium and zoo in Darling Harbor. We also discovered Sydney though our favorite medium: food. Some of our favorite dishes were Bugs (crawdad like crustaceans...yumm), steaks at a steakhouse I wish I remembered the name of, arugula, beets and goat cheese salad and yogurt with fruit and granola, something never had really tried but now can’t imagine living without.


After less than a week in Sydney we agreed that it was time we started seeing other people. Ofer joined a online network called A Small World. Once a member of the network you can arrange get-togethers in the place that you live or while you are abroad. It is a way to meet other professionals who happen to be in the same area. We hit the jackpot on our first Small World night out. The night was arranged by a man named Derrick and we were lucky enough to meet him amongst the crowd at his party. I don’t know if I should call Derrick a doctor who surfs or a surfer who happens to be a doctor.



For the first week or so of knowing him Ofer and I had no idea he was a doctor we just thought he spent all of his time on surf excursions around the world. But soon we discovered that he is an ER doctor with some of the most horrific stories we had ever heard. Through Derrick we had the absolute pleasure of meeting Laura, Moreno and Kate and a few other of his friends.

Ofer also experimented with a site called Meetup.com that has a similar concept. Once again Ofer and I met some fantastic people like Kim, Michelle, Matt and Sue-Ellen. We spent our first Thanksgiving abroad with Kim, Michelle and some of their friends, most of whom were also expats living in Australia. Ofer and I had some of our best nights and conversations with the people we met in Australia. It was a fantastic experience to see that no matter where we are in the world that we really can create friendships that prove to be incredibly fulfilling.


After a good amount of time in Australia here are some of the things we have learned. Australians have a deep need to shorten every word they can....breakfast: brekky, university: uni, present: prezzie, barbecue: barbie, and vegatable: veg...and this was not just in oral speech it was written on signs everywhere. Seagulls are the most aggressive free-roaming animal I have ever seen, they have no class and get right up in your face and squawk and nip at you until you leave their spot. And the Melbourne cup is my kinda sport: 3 and a half minute race that warrants time off work, organizing a beautiful outfit and massive amounts of drinking.


Ofer and I loved our time in Australia and will always see it as our home away from home and the first place we ever lived together!






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Singapore-ing its Praises

Thursday, March 03, 2011 Shayna


From one extreme to the other. After spending time in Cambodia, which felt like the furthest place from the overindulgence and self involvement of the West we headed to Singapore.

When we were just a month or so into our world trip I caught the tail end of a television program about the World’s most incredible hotels. My jaw dropped when I heard that they have a 150m infinity pool on the roof of the hotel. If there was anything that Ofer would love, it would be this. I went online and checked out the Marina Bay Sands Hotel.

It was clear after being on the site for under a minute, that this would not be a place that we would absolutely love to visit. It was gorgeous but it cost the same amount for one night that we had been spending on 5. I still had to show Ofer the hotel and he agreed that it would have been an over the top experience but that it probably wasn’t the best idea.

Little did I know that Ofer was just as interested in the hotel as I was and ended up booking two nights there. Once inside, Ofer and I didn’t leave the hotel for 2 days straight and we have to admit we don’t feel too badly about that. We were lucky enough to have been upgraded to a massive suite that had a king size bed, floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the city and a shower with 4 nozzles.

The hotel had restaurants, bars, coffee shops, a casino and a mall connected to it not to mention the incredible pool and hot tubs on the roof. We spent most of our time in the pool looking out over the city and completely relaxing. It was paradise smack dab in the middle of the city.

Ofer says to date that it is the most amazing pool he has ever swam in. So obviously we highly recommend at least one night at the Marina Bay Sands if you are going to be in Singapore.

After being at the Marina Bay Sands for two nights we checked into a different hotel for the remainder of our time in Singapore. I know it felt so small partly because of what we had just come from, but the switch was a total shock.

It wasn’t just that our room was small, we have no problem with small rooms. The issues were that our sheets were wet, we had NO WINDOWS and the only way to shower was by strattling the toilet seat. Joy. But we figured we only had a few days until we would be nice and settled in Sydney, so we didn’t mind at all.

In Singapore we visited the botanical gardens, checked out the popular sites during the day and spent our nights at Clark Quay, the restaurant/bar/club hotspot near the water. The entire area was filled with yummy food and hilariously themed bars like one that had everyone sitting in wheelchairs and you sucked your cocktail through an IV.

Our time there was short but sweet and both of us were feeling ready to get to Australia where we would be able to slow down and have something that closely resembles a residence and social life for a few months.

We both liked Singapore very much and it would be a place that we would want to explore more.





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Real Life Waterworld in Cambodia

Tuesday, March 01, 2011 Shayna
Ofer and I got settled away in our adorable bungalow and were extremely excited to explore Siem Reap and the adjacent town of Angkor Wot. I have to admit, I was quite apprehensive about traveling to a few of the countries we were planning to visit; Nepal, Cambodia and Laos being the most intimidating to me. But quickly Ofer and I recognized that our favorite places along our journey were the ones that were the most underdeveloped and dissimilar to the Western World. Looking back, Nepal, Cambodia, Laos, and Goa were top on our lists of favorite places we had ever been. We felt so fortunate to have the chance to discover in person such an amazing country rich in history, culture and family values.

Siem Reap is in Northern Cambodia which shares its borders with Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and the Gulf of Thailand. Cambodia has been through quite a bit of turmoil in the past half millennium as most of us are aware. Fortunately in 1998 a coalition government was formed and has created a more stable political system. Most of the Cambodian population lives on less than $350 a year. But certain regions such as Siem Reap and Angkor Wot are becoming tourist destinations which is bringing in more foreign money.

Siem Reap has a good sized downtown area with shops, hotels, a museum and a main drag called ‘Pub Street’. Pub Street looked like it was holding a backpacker convention. Almost every person on the street was visiting Cambodia as a part of a larger trip among it’s neighboring countries. Just like us, they believed if they had made the time to come all the way from Scotland, Australia, France or any other far off country they were going to see as much of the region as they possibly could. It was nice once again to talk with people who valued travel and long travel in the way that we do. However we still have yet to meet anyone to who is traveling for as long as we are planning to.

Ofer and I took one full day to explore Angkor. Angkor is about 400 square kilometers of temples, the most famous of them being Angkor Wot. The temples were built in the Khmer Empire of the 9th to the 15th centuries. Most of the temples were constructed in the shape of a tall mountain with large towers and most were filled to the brim with statues, carvings, lingas, and some were surrounded by moats.

Angkor was incredible. Some of the temples were in reasonably good shape considering their age and it was clear that there was great interest in protecting and restoring these relics as. Most of the temples consisted of long maze-like hallways that would open into smaller or larger corridors containing religious figures. They also led to open courtyard spaces that led you to different ways to enter the temple.

The sculptures and motifs carved into the temple walls were incredibly intricate, and it was fascinating to imagine how much planning and time it took to create such ornate and unique structures. One of my favorite aspects of the temples were the enormous faces carved into some of the stone pillars. At first I didn’t even notice the faces, they just blended so well into the rock, but once we saw them from the right angle we realized what we were looking at and found it hard to believe we had, at first sight, missed them! We heard that there are over 200 of these faces that cover the Bayon towers. There is a debate as to whose face they are but nevertheless they were peaceful and welcoming and the perfect backdrop for a few religious and philosophical conversations between Ofer and I.

The only thing slowing us down in Angkor was the scorching heat. We always had water bottles and took breaks to sit under trees and in the temples when we needed a break. But we were still incredibly dehydrated and exhausted after walking for very short times. But we continued on and saw the Elephant Temple, the Victory Gate, Preah Khan and many more including Ta Prohm best known for the trees intertwined with the stonework as featured in the Angelina Jolie movie Tomb Raider. The locals actually now call the temple the “Angeline Jolie Temple” since that is the name tourists commonly call it. While walking through some of these temples we finally had a good understanding of why areas like these are called ruins. Some of the sites of temples looked like they had gone through massive earthquakes and no longer resembled a building let alone a temple. Others still had a few doorways standing and sets of steep stairs mixed in among the rubble and huge slabs of stone. Ofer and I had fun exploring on our own through different passageways and across the ruins while still being able to see each other.

We were told by our tour guide that an interesting trip was to take a boat to see the ‘Water Village’. Ofer and I had no idea what he was talking about but we were both game for the experience. As we drove through the city and then into the more rural town we saw some incredible sights.

Of course there were families packed onto a single motorcycle and markets by the side of the road selling tiny bananas and dried fish. But we also saw fields of wild Lotus flowers, something I had been hoping to see in India. Also we saw makeshift gas stations that consisted of small racks holding liter sized bottles of gas. We heard that it was a dangerous place to visit because they commonly catch on fire and have even been confused by some as bottled water and proved fatal.

The further we drove we started to see hut like homes that had been built on sticks. Some were still right next to the road and as you looked out further they went out deeper and deeper into the water. Men and women were in canoes catching fish, kids were playing outside and mothers were inside the hut preparing the meals. It was one of the most humbling sites I had ever seen.

Our driver told us that if we were this elated at this village just wait until we really saw what the Water Village was all about. We boarded a small, covered, jet propelled boat and headed out to the river.

We were in a real like Waterworld. Huts were everywhere along the river right next to each other like little friendly neighborhoods and a few huts kept a good distance away from the others. We learned that the people who lived here depended completely on the water for their livelihoods.

Most of the residents will never live anywhere else in their lives than on the water. The huts are moved up to 10 times a year depending on the level of the river. They residents fish, play, raise pigs, cook, relax and even watch TV in their neighborhoods. We were shocked when we first drifted past the first hut that had a TV. What a crazy concept to think that there is a good chance that these people who are so far removed from the Western World have probably seen the same Friends episodes I have.

Tiny children manned their own paddle boats and waved when they saw us coming, yelling out the English phrases they knew. Women drifted by in their own boats going door to door and boat to boat selling food items and household goods. I had never seen so many people bathing in a river as I did in Cambodia. They did it right on the side or the stairs of their huts. They lathered with soap and used the river water to rinse off. Amazing. It looked incredibly refreshing and I found myself wanting to live in a Water Village hut for a few days.

We docked at a floating restaurant/bar/museum/store further down the river. There we were able to feed a huge tank of catfish, hold a massive python, get 10 feet from 50 or so crocodiles and watched the sunset. After the sunset we had to rush back to the boat and begin the trip home while there was still a little light left.

Over the next few days we spent time seeing more temples and important landmarks. We made it to a Luau type dinner complete with traditional Cambodian dancers (who were so beautiful by the way). We also decided to trek out to see a Water Village that was further away with very few tourists. Even though we had already seen something just like it days before we both felt like it was brand new.

Cambodia was a place that both Ofer and I would love to return to. From our experience it was a country filled with family oriented people who took great pride in their culture. They also seemed to find a beautiful balance between work and enjoyment of their lives. Every hut had a hammock and there were even bars set up right on the water where you can swing in your own hammock with a beer while watching the sunset.

Ofer and I decided that this was something the US is missing and that maybe one day we will create our own water restaurant/bar in a warm beach setting to highlight the lifestyle of the Cambodian Water Village. There was much we
didn’t get to see but we would like to think that someday we will make it back to Cambodia.









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