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42 imagesMongolia’s biggest festival takes place throughout July and August every year. The largest one happens in the capital, Ulaanbaatar, at the beginning of July but smaller more accessible ones take place in towns and villages throughout Mongolia at various times in July and August. It consists of three events, archery, horse riding and wrestling. I chose to go to one of the village festivals as getting anywhere close to the action in the capital would be impossible. The festival was held in a wide-open field. Cars, vans and motorcycles were all parked in one area on the grass. Vendors of food, souvenirs, and photo ops were scattered throughout the rest of the area. Wrestling is the main event that everyone wants to see. Wrestlers that win in the capital are famous throughout Mongolia with trading cards to prove it. There is no weight class in this event, which could make it pretty unfair, so not only strength is needed but tactic. It was not as fast moving as you would think. With four pairs going on at the same time, it was easy to keep track of all of them. There is no time limit on the fight, but all competitors have an “encourager” to boost and inspire the fighter and to give the supportive slap on the ass when the fight slows down too much. The next most popular event is the horse racing. Racing horses here is very different to Western racing. Here they race cross-country anywhere from 10-30 km. Jockeys here are also very different, they are children from age 5-13. The foremost reason of the race is to test the skill of the horse. The races are divided up into categories by the age of the horses and this determines the length of the race. They youngest are 2yr old up to 7yr old horses. There came a rumble throughout the crowd that the race was coming closer to the end, the crowds ran down and cheered at the finish line. In the distance you started to see some of the riders flying across the wide-open field with trucks randomly following along to keep track of the racers. As they come closer you heard them yelling encouragement to their horses and slapping them with their whip. The looks on these young jockeys faces is fierce and seeing most of them riding bareback was a sight to behold. This event was the most exciting to watch even if it was over in a flash since you only got to see the end of the race. The final event is archery. This event uses targets in the capital, but the one in the countryside was only distance. Competitors are given 4 arrows and try and cross the target line, which is usually 65-75 meters away. With few competitors here, I was able to see the lighthearted teasing they were giving each other. To be able to photograph these sports in such close proximity was so much fun. It was the best decision to come to a countryside festival rather than attending the main one in Ulaanbaatar where everything would be seen at such a distance. It was an adventure that I will never forget.
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31 imagesThere are many festivals in Myanmar, but the Ananda Pagoda festival in Bagan is feast for the eyes. People come from all around Bagan in cars, motorbikes, and horse and wagons. Concerts, parties and festivities lead up to the main event that takes place in the early morning of the last day. Families bring offerings to the hundreds of monks that are here. All the offerings contain some money and then various other items, usually food or everyday items. These offerings all get put onto massive tables set up in the main courtyard of the temple. The monks line up early in the morning outside the entrance. While waiting outside they get to socialize and are given a ticket to receive one of the offerings. There are a few vendors roaming around but the ice cream guys are the biggest hit. The monks go in one by one handing in their tickets and getting a bag of items and one of the offerings. It is all luck of the draw which one you get, but I think if you are thinking like a Buddhist the one you get is the one you are suppose to have. ☺ There are a handful of nuns that are at the back of the line. Nuns in Buddhism are treated like second class and this was displayed for me as after they have waited here for most of the morning, one of the main monks goes up to them and informs them that there is not enough for them and that they should leave the line. It is an unfortunate story for these women who have dedicated their lives for their beliefs.
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53 imagesThe Annapurna Circuit trek in the Annapurna mountains of Nepal started off at 700m and peaks at 5416m before heading back down. Armed with a guide, a porter, and my camera this trek lasted 16 days for me. We navigated through the many different environments this trek consists of. Starting off in the lush hot climate with lots of greenery, sweatiness and beautiful green covered mountains. Over the many suspension bridges we continue on to the forest and steep climbs towards the monster 8000m snow peaked mountains. The beauty of the mountains gave me the motivation I needed to continue trekking and it helped that the views got better around every corner. Some of the villages were made out of stone and it felt like I was in an episode of The Game of Thrones. Some sounds of the trail for me were: yak bells jingling, the noise of our feet on the trail, music playing through my earphones to get me up that tough hill and kids playing in the villages. Having a good guide was invaluable. Someone with the knowhow who made the decisions of where the best food was, the best tea houses, knowing the route and how long to trek for each day, who took me to places I wouldn’t go on my own, and who gave me a rundown of what kind of trekking day it was going to be so I could mentally prepare. I got to pet baby yaks, went to a village’s religious festival, heard about conversations others were having, ate my food with the host and my guide in the kitchen while watching them prepare it, and asked what the heck were the people on the sides of the mountains doing (searching for yarsagumba fungus which is more valuable than gold). After the Thorung La pass, the downhill begins. I personally think downhill is the worst as not only is it hard on your knees and feet but walking on loose gravel the chances of falling goes way up for me. Taking me a lot longer than most, I finally made it down the worst part and I was happy to see the backside of this day. We moved into the “desert of Nepal” where there were no snow capped mountains, or beautiful scenery to motivate me on each day. This part was sheer will as there was only dust, dirt and brown views. Wind was a big factor on this side. I love a good windstorm but I learned to hate it here. It started like clockwork each day at around 9am and it did not stop until we got to the coverage of our next village. It was not a light gentle breeze either, it was full on wind and we walked right into it. Good music helped a lot during this leg of the journey and the villages we came across here were beautiful little oasis’s that made me forget what I needed to do the next day. I was rewarded with going to the local hot spring pool on our last day. I knew this was exactly what my body needed before we hopped the bus back to Pokarah. This was the longest and hardest trek I have ever done. I was not sure if I was going to be able to complete it before I left, but I am proud to say I conquered the Annapurna Circuit.
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45 imagesThe end of June in Pokhara marks the start of the rice planting season. The Paddy Plantation Festival kicks off the season of plowing and planting work. This festival is not only tradition, but it is also used to bring tourists in to Pokhara during the offseason. It started off with beautiful traditional music with lots of horns of all tones, drums and hand cymbals. The music was very intoxicating as it was like nothing I have heard before. All the communities came here dressed in their village colours and then the dancing erupted with the music. Women danced with mounds of rice plants on their head without so much of a wobble of it falling off. The men were not left out, they brought their best moves and wowed the crowds. There was then a procession to walk to the paddy fields that were be used for the competition. The music didn’t stop when the procession started, they played all the way to the fields. The atmosphere was electric and calm all at the same time. Once we arrive I jockeyed for position to get photos of the ox plowing races. I got right up front, but careful not to be in a splash zone. Snuggled between the locals I was one of the few tourists in this area. As the contestants set up their ox and plows, I was getting excited to see how this all played out. Then without so much as a horn to start the races, they were off. Started off a little slow to get their rhythm, the mud and water quickly started flying and splashing anyone in their way. It was a heated race with one man definitely in the front running. It was amazing to see the way they move the ox. To turn the corners they twisted their tails in that direction. The crowd cheered on their favourite opponent while the competitors were yelling out commands. It all came to an uneventful end and the crowd slowly dispersed to other areas. I headed over to the food tent, got a plate and sat down on the grass with some friends. I saw a crowd forming around a tented area, I go closer to investigate and I heard the now familiar music. The musicians from that morning were on one end of the tent with a crowd gathered in a semi circle to make way for any people that needed to dance and there was not a shortage of these people. This day was as much for the tourists as it is for the locals. The festival had such a joyful atmosphere with everyone having a constant smile on their face that I would recommend anyone to make their way here for this occasion.
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33 imagesThe reindeer tribes of Mongolia are dying out. With the lure of modernization and technology it is much harder to survive in this tradition. These tribes were not easy to get to but the adventure was totally worth it. It took a two-day drive from Ulaanbaatar where we spent the night at our horse guides home. The morning brought an 8-hour horse ride, which we all thought was a joke as none of us were very experienced riders. To our shock, they were not kidding but according to our horse guides we all did incredible, as this was not a long flat trail. We were taken through rivers, up hills, down hills, navigating through rocks, mud and forests. Horses in Mongolia are not named so we all named our horses, laughed through stinky horse farts and sang songs to keep all of us entertained. When we crested our final hill and saw the teepee camps in the distance our asses were jumping for joy! Getting off and on our horses was getting harder throughout the day, but the accomplishment you feel having been able to complete this journey is empowering. The tradition in Mongolia, when staying with a family, is you go into their home for a visit. They offer you milk tea, and whatever they have on hand, which is usually a type of bread and some cheese. The milk tea is mostly hot milk, depending on their livestock determines the type of milk used, horse, yak, camel, reindeer, with tea leaves added to the milk and boiled together in a pot. Our camp had reindeer milk and yak cheese, a hard parmesan texture with a very particular flavour. We also had yak butter, which turns out is the most delicious butter I had ever tasted. Slathering it on fresh baked bread we thought it couldn’t get any better and then we saw the locals sprinkle sugar on top of the butter. Needing to try this I put sugar on top and OMG, Amazing! Not long after we settled into our new home a herd of reindeer came charging right into our camp. We all stood there in awe, it was a very surreal and amazing moment to be suddenly surrounded by reindeer. I don’t think the smiles left any of our faces! The herders and our hosts sorted out the herds of whose was whose. In the evening the reindeer slept just outside the teepees with a few of them snoring away. In the morning the odd one would poke his head into our teepee to check things out and then they would join us to brush our teeth outside. They reminded me of large dogs with antlers, as they were very docile and gentle After a few days here we packed up to make our final way back to our waiting vans 8 hours away. This experience was one that I will never forget. The absolute peacefulness of the whole journey, the slow and relaxed days to take in the view and lives they lead and being able to do something that not many will experience all combine to an unbelievable adventure.
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49 imagesFloating markets are dying out with the changes of the generations, modern transportation and the building of bridges. These floating markets have been moving to land markets to follow the more prevalent modern day shopper. Cia Rang floating market in Can Tho on the Mekong River is the biggest one in the Delta. It is at a fraction of what it used to be but it is still a great way to see daily life on the water. There were many tours to join, but those boats are usually bigger and don’t always get into the nooks and crannies of the market. I hired a small private boat and was able to spend as much time as I wanted in the market and direct when and where I wanted to move on. Being on a smaller boat I could also get into all the narrow areas to see all the action. At this market the vendors had tall bamboo poles secured to their boat with an item of what they are selling at the top that made it easy to find what they were looking to buy. There were also roaming boats selling drinks, coffee iced and hot, banh mi sandwiches, soup and fruit. The best is they come to you for all your breakfast needs. ☺ As I wove throughout the market I was able to watch people getting on with their morning routines, brushing their teeth, having breakfast and visiting with friends. The sellers and the buyers make up the rest of the views. Watching them haggle prices, load up the small boats with their purchases and relaxing until the next customer. For being the largest floating market in the Delta, it was smaller than I expected, but since I slowed down and took my time and watched all the goings on I could really get a sense of their daily life
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42 imagesI was standing on the sidewalks in Saigon in the sweltering heat, sweat dripping down my back and the air heavy with the smell of exhaust. I was in awe of the traffic patterns, the amount of traffic and what people carry on their motorbikes. The amount of motorbikes out numbers the amount of people here. There are around 8.5 million motorbikes to a population of around 8 million. The noise was deafening with horns honking, people talking and engines roaring. Sunscreen is not widely used here, instead you will see them covered head to fingertip to toes in clothes. Hats, masks, gloves, long pants/skirts, socks are all worn in the 39 degree heat and humidity. Crossing the roads here will give you a slight heart attack as you just have to step out onto the road when there is a break in the constant traffic and continue through to the other side without hesitation. The rule of thumb I used, I could walk out with motorbikes coming near, as they can quickly go around you, but do not step out with cars or trucks near, as they do not have the quick mobility and I am pretty sure they may run you over. All modes of transportation work well with one another on the road even when pushing carts. There are unwritten rules of the road because to the western person it can look like chaos. With motorbikes being the prevalent mode of transportation, the ability to carry things from one place to another becomes a balancing act. With no regard to safety, as long as they can secure it or hold it on the bike, in their minds, they are good to go. Who cares if something can turn into a rocket launcher if an accident occurs, or if you are carrying fuel, or if you can’t see around what you are carrying or if you can only use one hand to steer your bike. All of this is normal for everyone that lives here, which in turns makes it mesmerizing for outsiders to watch all day long.
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24 imagesI arrived in Myanmar January 1 and a few days in, I stumbled upon a festival. Thinking it may be New Year celebrations, I soon learned it was Independence Day festivities. The day is filled with games, all mostly soccer matches geared to kids. Down the road to where I was staying, a friend came to get me and told me to bring my camera. She had come across this scene and we started staring in amazement. Asking questions to everyone standing around, we were told that it was a competition to see who could get to the top of the bamboo pole, or the closest to, with the winner taking home the equivalent of $50usd. Now you would think that climbing a bamboo pole is hard enough, but they made it even more difficult. Before each competitor tries his luck someone climbs up a ladder to the top of the pole with a can full of motor oil. He then pours the motor oil down the inside of the bamboo and greases up the outside as well. Ready for the next competitor, each person got to use the wrap to help them up the unstable pole. The pole was put into the ground haphazardly and was held by onlookers intermittently in case of any big wobbles. The large crowd gathered around the pole watching with excited anticipation. With every wobble or small slip the crowd ooo’d and awww’d. It felt like I was watching fireworks! There was heckling from some and others helping “navigate” and encourage them on. In between each competitor I was ushered over to the massive tables of food set up in the street. The ever-friendly people here made me a plate of food and they excitedly watched me eat to see if I liked their food. Feeling obligated to eat at that moment, all I could think was, “oh god, I am going to get food poisoning.” Yangon is not known for their food prep practices and stories abound in the travel community of food poisoning. I ate some of the food, delicious noodles, and put the fear out of my head. I was part way through the food when the last competitor started. I dashed from the table to get in front of the crowd. I was watching in awe of him scurrying up the pole with only a couple slips and rests. It did not look like an easy task but he conquered the pole and arrived at the top with the crowed erupting into applause and cheering. He came down quickly and was able to collect his well-deserved winnings.