WHEN YOU GOTTA GO!

If blogs had been around when I took my first big international trip to Peru, I could have started writing then (and taking pictures) about all the many different “toilets” (and outhouses and holes in the ground) I have experienced in my travels.

It really wasn't until 2006 when I spent 22 days in China and Tibet that I learned about “holes in the ground.”  That trip took me to some off-the-beaten-track locations with pit stops at gas stations that can only be described as extremely disgusting!  But when you gotta go you gotta go!!!

Japan had the most extraordinary Western toilets I have ever seen (and used).  Every toilet had various symbols to show what function it performed.  I'm one of those people who must press every button to see just what it does.  You could get a wash and blow dry while listening to the sounds of a waterfall.  Some of the hotels I stayed at had toilets that knew when you approached the bathroom door in the middle of the night.  The lid would open and light up, and when you were done and left the bathroom the lid would close.  Other than being in the hotel rooms in Japan, there were usually only one or two Western toilets and the rest were porcelain holes in the ground everywhere I went.  And of course there was always a picture tutorial on the wall to show people the proper way to squat over the hole.

I have found the different toilets around the world interesting and sometimes entertaining.  But my experiences in Africa are by far the most memorable.  

WARNING…….you may consider this TMI!!!  

Before my trip to Africa I bought the small pink “Go Girl” contraption that allows a woman to “go” like a man when out in the African bush (or anyplace you have to squat).  Without going into detail I will say that after my first day in Africa using the Go Girl I put that thing away and have never used it since.  Much simpler to just squat and go and be done with it!  

And that brings me to a humourus incident that happened one day when I was in Africa.  Our group of 16 travelers were split up into three different safari Land Rovers to explore the bush each day.  On one of our outings the vehicle I was in, as well as our second vehicle, stopped so we could all “go.”  Five women made there way to the other side of a bunch of bushes and proceeded to drop their pants and do what needed to be done.  Mind you we were in the middle of the African bush and there are no other vehicles around except for the occasional game warden or safari vehicle.  While we five women were squatting facing the bushes, our white fannies were facing a small dirt road.  All of a sudden out of nowhere we heard a vehicle approaching.  Five women hastily tried to pull up their pants as our third safari vehicle arrived with the remaining people from our group.  Everyone was in hysterics laughing!  The people that had just arrived said all they could see were a bunch of white behinds as we scrambled to get dressed.  

I recently sent a link to a U tube video to a friend of mine who had never squatted in the bush and was planning a trip to Africa.  It’s amazing what instructions you can find on the internet these days.  She said she was going to buy a pink “Go Girl.”  I laughed and wished her good luck with that! 

WHEN THINGS GO AWRY

One of the things I’ve learned about traveling is to be flexible, and realize that things can go wrong, plans can quickly change, and not everything happens the way it should.  When those events happen they often end up being quite memorable after the fact.

When I was planning to write this story, I had no trouble remembering many different things that happened on trips that weren’t planned, were not always pleasant, or were often uncomfortable.  Yet, those are the things I can laugh about now, tell stories about, and easily remember.  Maybe my endurance was tested, or I conquered some fear, (like spiders or heights!).  

Some of my friends wonder why I go to some of these far flung places and do what I do there.  Sure, we have mountains and deserts and the beach here.  But that’s only part of the big picture.  I want to be immersed in the culture of a country, be among people so different from me, yet very much like me in so many ways.  I want to eat their food, learn as much as I can about them, and come away with a deeper understanding about the world we all live in.  And in doing so I have to face whatever might happen and learn to deal with it.

NEPAL - Luckily I went to Nepal two years before the big earthquake.  I stayed in Kathmandu and Pokhara, two of the major areas hit hard.  I also went to the historic city of Bhaktapur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which also suffered severe damage in the earthquake.

On this trip two things that happened quickly came to mind.  One was that I got motion sickness from being in the back of the bus going through the mountains to our next destination. Our group of travelers were dropped off in the mountains at a small roadside building that sold misc. items and some food.  By then I wasn’t feeling well at all.  We all had a boxed lunch before we were to begin our hike and I tried to eat something despite my queasiness.  

The 2 mile hike was up and down along a winding trail, part of the Annapurna Circuit trek.  Thank goodness sherpas carried our duffel bags for us.  I remember feeling like I was going to be sick at any moment, but I just kept putting one foot in front of the other to keep going.

Well, I made it to Sanctuary Lodge, where we were staying, and it sure was a sanctuary to me!

The other thing that happened on this trip was more comical than anything.  After a day of white water rafting on the Seti River, we all stayed in tents at the Seti River Campgrounds.  Water for the camp was heated in a boiler, but by the time I got in the shower the water was icy cold.  I remember shivering as I dried off, and laughing as I said to my husband, “We must be crazy to pay good money to do this!”  But we both knew we wouldn’t trade the experience for anything.

MOROCCO - I went to Morocco in October (2015) thinking that it should be Fall and not as hot.  The weather seems to be most unpredictable no matter where you go these days.  And sure enough it was hotter than usual in Morocco.  Part of this trip was to go in 4 wheel drive vehicles across the Sahara Desert to a tent camp.  The tent itself was adequate with a bathroom on the back portion of the tent.  The camp was close to the Algerian border and in the early morning we hiked to the top of a sand dune to watch the sun rise over Algeria.  In the evening we hiked to the top of the same sand dune to watch the sunset to the west.

The first morning we were there we were out and about in the hot desert sun, first hunting for fossil rocks, then visiting a nomad in her small, hot tent.  The afternoon was hot as blazes so everyone stayed in their tents and rested.  Our tent had a front and back zippered screen entrance, so we tied the screen flaps open to allow better ventilation inside.  It was much too hot to do anything but lay on your beds and read.  Pretty soon we had dozens upon dozens of flies everywhere, making it impossible to read.  We untied our screened flaps hoping to keep out the flies, but making it unbearably hot inside.  Within minutes the thermometer on my travel alarm read 102 degrees!  I was not a happy camper at all!!   At dinner that night I joked that I was close to running out of the tent screaming!

JAPAN - While traveling through Japan in 2010 I stayed in the mountainous town of Hakone, part of the "Fuji-Hakone-Izu-National Park" and close to Mt. Fuji.  The small OAT group I was traveling with were driving through the mountains on a two lane narrow road when it started to snow.  Within a short span of time it was snowing very heavily.  The compact cars driving through the mountains were not made for this kind of weather, and soon cars were stalled on the road, making it impossible to move.  As a southern Californian I thought the snow was beautiful to watch as it fell faster and faster.  I was on vacation and I wasn't driving so no need to get stressed out.  Our Japanese guide surprised all of us by putting on some music and leading us in singing karaoke.  What a memorable event!

Eventually the men got out of our minibus and also some of the cars. They worked together to move a few cars out of the way so cars could pass, and before long we were on our way.  But that's not the end of the story.

When we returned to Hakone the bus tried to drive up the hill to our hotel but it kept sliding and was unable to make it.  The driver finally pulled into a parking lot and called the hotel to send a van to pick us up.  Four or five of us at a time were driven up the hill to the hotel until we were all safely there.  The next morning I looked out our window and the snow was absolutely breathtaking to behold.