Hong Kong!

After a week of living the easy life in Thailand, we have now arrived in Hong Kong (November 22). Of course, our easy life never really ended. We are staying at The Hyatt, a really nice hotel in Sha Tin, on the mainland. The reason the Global Program stays in the Hyatt is its favorable proximity to the University, where the students take most of their classes. We're staying on the seventeenth floor of the hotel where the view of the skyline is fabulous. While the college students are taking a course on Chinese art history, Julia and I continue with homeschooling classes. I did take the first class with the students, an ancient world history class in Greece and Turkey, but now only take in occasional lectures.
 If you've never been to Hong Kong, let me describe it for you. It's very westarnized as far as technological development goes, and the skyscrapers in downtown Hong Kong look very similar to the ones in the US, some even more advanced and sleek in design. Another aspect of the city with which I was pleasantly suprised is how clean it is. There are laws in place that prohibit littering and spitting in the city with substantial fines as punishment. This was a huge improvement from India, where trash piled up everywhere and made for some depressing sights. Something else that probably won't suprise anyone is the fact that EVERONE is constantly on their smartphones. Riding on the train, walking down, the street, it's really ridiculous! Even smaller children are always walking around with their faces burried in their iphones.
Although Hong Kong is truly a gigantic city, it's also, supposedly, very safe. This is also in contrast to India, and I no longer feel the need to be so alert all the time. The public train system is very useful and well-integrated into the city. We actually have used it many times already, as there is a station only 200 meters from the hotel. It can get extremely packed, but not as bad as the train systems in Tokyo, according to my father who has been there.
Anyway, as I find myself looking at this trip as a whole, it stuns me to consider the fact that we are already more than half-way through with our global adventure. In the remaining months, we'll see a lot more of Asia. I'm very excited!

-Christoph Hodel

On the Island in the land of smiles

It's fall break!
After a day in Bangkok we drove south in a hired minivan to catch the last ferry of the day to the island of Koh Maak, just south of Trat province and the larger Koh Chang island. As we moved in our things, Christoph and I sat on the balcony overlooking the tropical scenery to take in the view.  All of a sudden a very loud, continuous, high-pitched whine sounding very much like an electric saw cut through the air.  At first we thought it was a saw. But it continued, on and on.  I became suspicious.  Figuring that Christoph was the more adventurous one, I told him to go check it out. He smirked, recognizing my laziness for what it was, and dutifully went down the steps and through the trees.  The noise stopped. Coming back up the stairs he announced, "It's just a bug." I've lived in Florida and spent time in other southernly climates but I have never heard a bug sound like this.  I thought, "We've come all this way for peace and quiet and have to listen to THIS all week?" It went on for about another 15 minutes and stopped again, this time for good.  We did not hear it again until the next evening at about 5:00, when the saw bug started its whine again, razing the air for about half an hour before quieting.  Whatever bug this is (and we've never been able to find it) has quite a job. For about 30-45 minutes every evening, almost like clockwork, it whines (actually "shriek" is a better description) loud and long.  Then it is done.  It seems to be about the loudest sound we've heard here, on an island that is otherwise quite peaceful, except for the other chirping insects and chattering birds which we expected to hear on a tropical island.  We did hear the most spectacular thunderstorm ever several nights ago.  Marty and I literally clutched each other in alarm as lightning cracked around us.
It's nice to have nothing more to think about than the sounds the bugs make or the lizards running into our room.
 Our travels so far have been rather smooth, but coordinating the details for the Global Semester program has kept us on our toes.  It has taken a degree of focus and attention to detail that has challenged both Marty and I.  In the early days of the trip I wondered why we would need a fall break in Thailand.  It seemed a little "over the top", especially since there are so many wonderful places already on the itinerary. Now I know.  Having the opportunity to spend time away from students (and them from us), has given us a chance to view the first months of our trip with some perspective and set course for the remainder of the term. We have been able to catch our breath and think more carefully about the coming months. Also, we are so grateful to have some family time with Christoph and Julia.
Yesterday we went snorkeling.  As we rode the boat over the whitecaps to the snorkeling site, I calmly prepared the kids for the fact that I may not "be up for" this adventure.  Frankly I have enough of my mother in me that I was pretty sure the boat would be my haven for the afternoon.  However, when we pulled into the cove and I saw the waves diminish and all the others jump into the water, I realized that if I didn't at least try it, I would be disappointed in myself.  I got outfitted with fins, mask and snorkel and awkwardly climbed down the ladder.  I lowered my face into the water and a whole new world opened up.  I didn't get back out of the water for an hour, and then only so we could move on to the next site.  (Actually, I did get out briefly to grab a lifejacket, which helped me worry less about tiring out in the water.) I was amazed at the variety of fish, coral, and other wildlife that I, with my limited skill, could see right in front of me! It was like swimming in an ocean-sized version of the MN Zoo aquarium. I have to say it is one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in my life.  I wanted to compose a psalm of the sea. I may yet, but when we got out of the water at the end of the day we were all so tired and sunburned I could hardly to anything besides shower, eat supper, and go to bed.
On another note, you may see that we (FINALLY) posted some pics to this site.  We do plan to post more to flickr and give the link so you can see Marty's amazing photo journal of our trip.  As I may have mentioned, the work of leading and coordinating the trip has not left as much time as we thought we would have for managing a blog. Keeping up with homeschooling for Christoph and Julia has also been a large part of our schedule.
Thursday we go back to Bangkok and Friday we fly to Hong Kong. Our long summer will come to an end and we will finally start to see some cooler temps. For the next two days we plan to soak up the sun and tropical breezes, taking in as much as we can to carry with us as we start moving north.  We will be remembering all of our dear friends and family as we near Thanksgiving. Travel around the world reminds us how much we have to be grateful for in our family, our friends, our town, and in our country.
The next entries will be posted by Christoph.  Keep your eyes open for his entries in the coming weeks.

Pictures

Pics from around India and Thailand

Where laundry gets done in Mumbai

A clay pot kiln in Dharavi slum, Mumbai

Dharavi slum in Mumbai

Elephanta Cave, on an island off Mumbai

Vegetable market in Bangalore

Global group pic at Soukya Healing Center

Global group pic with Karnatak Classical Dancers at the ECC

Silkworms being fed mulberry leaves at a rural farm near Bangalore

Cauliflower ready for market

Silk cocoons being unravelled into thread

Weaving silk into fabric for saris

Global group pic at a rural Mar-Thoma Church

Julia bedecked in her sari for Diwali

All the beautiful Global women ready for a celebration

Diwali, A Festival of Lights, at the ECC

Sparklers!

The Hodel family decked out at the ECC

Artist Jyoti Sahi at his art ashram outside Bangalore

How many people can you fit on a moped?

Beautiful lotus blossoms

A typical entry decoration in a temple: large brass bowl filled with water and flowers

The Art of Living ashram (or some might call it the "art of selling")

Julia and the monkey

Holy man on a holy mountain in Tiruvannamalai

Monkeys at the ashram

Marty, the Hindu high priest, and Rev. Dr. Cherian Thomas at the temple

Our Global group at the same temple in Tiruvannamalai

Sweeping up the flowers in the yard at ECC

A friend from the bus in the lane next to ours during a traffic jam

Beautiful friends at the ECC

Diwali!!

Jain statue in Shravanabologula

Bird of paradise

Shana with the head of housekeeping at the ECC, Susheela

Shana with children's books that we donated to the ECC library, with Marjorie and library assistant

Marty and Shana with the director of ECC and his wife at our farewell

Shana, Christoph, and Julia at the Taj Mahal

Global Semester 2013 at the Taj Mahal

Shana with her anniversary gift (for the next couple of years) in Agra at the marble inlay workshop

The doorman at our lunch stop in Agra

Beautiful flowers at the Agra fort

Contemplative monkeys

The memorial to Mahatma Gandhi in New Delhi

 The Global group (with Sara's parents) at the Grand Palace in Bangkok

Reclining Buddha in Bangkok

Monks chanting at the temple of the Reclining Buddha (below, fruit stand in Bangkok)

Pics from around Greece.