Varansi, India

Day 1
To get to Varanasi we had to take an overnight train.  It was supposed to be a 12 hour ride but it took 17 because Indian rail has a policy that on time trains get priority and late trains get to be later. We were on a late train. I slept maybe 6 hours on this train. I luckily had a bottom bunk. It was air conditioned train. One of the people in our bunk had no clue about people or body language. She legit made everyone delayed in getting into their beds because she individually took out each item and hogged the aisle until she was done. The train ride was uneventful otherwise. Long but faster than a bus and likely more comfortable.

On the train I asked our guide why woman wear the veil over their face. Did you now it's so that they don't question what they are being told? I would not make a good wife in this country. I cannot blindly follow what my inlaws and parents tell me constantly. India has a population of 1.2 billion and 60% still live in villages. Those living in villages are more likely to veil up.

Hindu believes there is four stages of life. The first is childhood and education. Second is marriage and having your own kids. Third is grandparent hood. Final stage is about self time to meditate. It's all about credit and debit in karma. That's why family is so important to Hindu people.

I hit the post because we had no food for basically 20 hours that I could kill people and not look back. The child on our trip asked me a question and I had to tell him I can't talk I'm too hungry. Christina laughed because she knew I needed food hours before but we couldn't get to it. She knows once I'm starving the world needs to not talk to me and I go silent.

We had a night boat ride on the Ganges River. We saw the major crematorium. Varanasi is the holy city of India. There are over 12,000 temples in this city alone. Varanasi is the oldest city - it's older than all religions. Basically it's the centre for ending life. Indians believe that the Ganges River stops the cycle of birth and rebirth. It's a place of salvation. As such, Indians bring their dead bodies here to be cremated. There is dead bodies being carted down the streets on decorated stretchers. I had one go by me inches beside my nose. My entire body language screamed oh dear lord. We saw nine bodies just burning in public at the crematorium. People buy fire from there because the fire is about 1,000 plus years old. If people cannot afford cremation then they just dump the body in the river. I thankfully didn't see a floating body. There is also certain situations where people cannot be cremated in Hinduism: pregnant woman who died, those with chicken pox, and those bitten by snake, Eunich, and those in a coma.

Day 2
Christina got up at 430 am to do the morning boat ride. I opted out. I woke up dizzy from dehydration. She said it was pretty but definitely came back to nap. Upon her waking, we meandered to the observatory. It had a bunch of sundials but more interesting had informational posters. I learned a ton about the river and its history.

Ghat is a religious temple that is located on the water. You can find all Indian dialects spoken here and a shaman who speaks your language to lead you through a ceremony.

Today was a free day so Christina and I did our own thing. Group travel gets exhausting.

If anyone is in Varansi they need to eat at Blue Lassi. We did twice. It serves the best lassi in clay pots. I had a mango the first time and a mango papaya the next. It is in the middle of the old town. It's a maze in there but people can point it out to you.

Old town is one giant maze of market stalls. It's hot but the same trinkets over and over again. Christina and I wandered around it for a few hours. I bought the cutest hand carved stone elephants for my future house. I couldn't leave India without an elephant. We've seen elephants at Jaipur only. It's a shame.

We had lunch at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Ganges. If I figure out the name from our photos then I'd also recommend it. It was a recommendation from our yoga instructor. I was super stoked to do yoga but then got way too hot and dogged to go. The heat and lack of water got to us so we skipped out. I should have just pushed through.

After getting back to the hotel, City Inn, we immediately ran into the group who was about to do a silk tour. Snap decision and we joined in. It was lead by this small elderly Indian man who was missing most of his teeth. Super knowledgeable. Silk is still made by hand here. There are five qualities of silk whose names went in one ear and out the other. It was incredible to see the handwork that goes into making silk and the designs. The designs are still hand punched. There is an old method of weaving and an electronic way which still requires human to be there on each machine. Woman still trim the excess thread off the silk pieces by hand. Apparently a scarf takes about three weeks to make individually. Beautiful pieces can be created.

Once we got back to the hotel Christina said she wasn't hungry then maybe just a small snack then maybe let's have dinner in the span of 15 minutes. It's hilarious since I've travelled with her before, I know exactly when she needs to eat about a half hour before she does. It works well.

Day 3
After basically no sleep and a 335 am wake up, we headed to the train to go to Nepal. I was not a functional human. After getting on the train, we quickly discovered that Indian people are sneaky and fit seven people in three seats. The entire six hour train ride was filled with screaming children who kicked our seats the entire time. We learned from the last train to bring a ton of food to avoid snappy grizzly bear Brittany. Once we got to the end of our train ride our bus driver couldn't find us so we had to wait on he platform for about an hour in 36C heat with our bags on. Everyone was staring at us like we were zoo animals. I've learned the best way to get people from stopping and staring is to look them in the eyes. Unfortunately someone died on the platform and we watched it being carried away. That's the first thing of poverty that has actually torn at my heart strings.

Once our buss driver found us we stopped at a fruit market for water, oranges, and bananas. I have eaten so many bananas on this trip as they are one of two fruits we can actually eat. I got solidly bus sick so I took a gravel and slept the entire four hour ride to the Nepal border.  Customs was an interesting process since it's a walking border, you check out at the Indian side at this tiny customs office then walk across the border and check into Nepal. Kinda cool to walk over a border. Indian and Nepal passport holders can freely cross between the two countries. The border crossing we went to is the busiest land border in the world.

We got to the hotel just outside of Lumbini - Hotel Denovo, which is the best hotel we've stayed in yet as it had water pressure, hot water, air conditioning and wifi in the room plus the hotel was clean and had a pool. I'd highly recommend staying here. We didn't go to all the way to Lumbini as its not safe in Nepal to drive at night for tourists.

AFN 

Orchha, India

Day 5 - Orchha

This morning after another 5 am wake up, we boarded the train from Agra to Orccha. They "served" breakfast meaning two slices of bread and mystery deep fried finger looking things that didn't even leave the package. Christina and I split a quest bar. Who doesn't bring protein bars to a country where we don't eat the food? Happy to share but man today would have been nice to eat an entire bar without sharing.

That landscape of northern India is very much like Saskatchewan with more trees. It's yellow plains either from dirt or crops with trees sprinkled around.

I forgot to mention a while ago in a foreign city in India whose exact location I cannot remember is that the buses here for locals are packed and I mean packed. They fill the buses to way over capacity inside then stick people on the roof. These people then drive down the highway. Safety is not a word or concern here. I'm glad I came because it had allowed me an appreciation of what Indian people have come from and how they view the world. I take back my earlier harassment comments. I do believe that the people actually genuinely want to help you unless they are selling something. I'm tired of people constantly trying to sell me something. I've perfected my no go away hand gesture and tone.

Orchha is my favourite place thus far. It's a quaint little town of only 10,000 people. Orchha means hidden place. It used to be situated in the midst of rainforest. Now it's a barren wasteland with a river. The area is highly illiterate. In this area there is 22 temples, 2 mosques and 6 palaces. Not too shabby for a small town. People said hi but only because they were excited to see you. It was lovely.

I fell asleep the night before at 5 pm so I woke up at 5 am like usual. I needed the sleep badly. Christina, while I had sweet dreams of a steak and vegetables, went to a Hindu religious ceremony. She said it was interesting enough. No other detail though. Upon our early wake up I got to have the best pressure shower I've had so far with below zero water temperature. Id almost trade a good hot shower for this high pressure frozen one. Anyways, I had a calm breakfast buffet that included pancakes instead of mystery Indian food and toast like the rest of the places. I spent the rest of the morning trying to figure out who should be my principal and mentor while Christina talked to Mark. Still haven't decided how bold I should respond to my principal request or not.

Mid morning we headed off to the Raja Mahal. It was built over 62 years to completion in 1605 and the arches looked like peacock feathers. It is a Hindu palace. Dude had six wives. The Queen's bedroom had depictions of evolution dated 5,000 years before Charles Darwin figured it out. Interesting. This palace would have been so much fun to play hide and seek in. It had several sneaky staircases and multiple floors. Attached to this palace was another palace built for the son's coronation. It was only used for a single day. Took 22 years to build. Great use of money. It was called Jhansi Mahal but I am spelling that wrong.

Our tour guide told us that until 10th century, India was ruled by a single ruler. Fast forward a couple thousand attempted invasions later, they ended up with 600 princes until they achieved British independence. Basically how the singular monarch was overthrown is because some invader was smart enough to know that elephants would turn around if shot at. Basically the only way to invade is through the NW of India.

In this town people worship an idol that is a female vulva and part of a male penis. It is the God of fertility. If you are unmarried then you worship the bachelor God who looked like a monkey for celibacy. On Mondays the worshippers fast for a good wide or husband. Not sure if I'd give up food for praying for remaining celebrate.

More importantly, I got henna done! I have my entire left forearm done in beautiful henna. Henna smells like menthol when they put it on.

In our cooking class we made a six course meal. Masala chai. Bhruta baigan - eggplant. Spinach and potato curry. Allhn tomatoes. Cumin rice. Chickpea dumpling. Puri. Making chai from scratch is actually very easy and quite tasty. Bhruta baigan is an interesting dish. I've never seen so much fresh coriander put into a single dish with an eggplant that was fire grilled on a stove. I tasted this dish and fire came out of my ears. It has four green chillis cut up finely in the dish. My mouth was on fire. Spinach and potato curry is maybe my new butter chicken replacement. There was a ton of green chillis in it but the dish itself was amazing. I must saw noting we cooked looked pretty but it was all edible.

AFN 

Agra, India - Taj Mahal!

Did you know that feeding the roaming cows is good karma? So the people buy a bushel of grass to feed the cows in the morning. It's why the cows look healthier than the people here. Remember that cows are holy for the Hindu people. Cows seriously roam the streets here and are treated like pets.

Today we woke up for an early start to drive by bus from Jaipur to Agra. One of the girls was extremely sick to the point where they pre-called a doctor. It meant a ton of bathroom stops. It is slightly terrifying how sick people get in a quick time. I think this girl was being a little reckless with her showering skills. You cannot get water in your mouth or use it to brush your teeth. It's clear but it doesn't mean it's clean. I've been using bottled water to wash my face and brush my teeth. I really don't want to get sick. My stomach has been growly but I blame the lack of pooing and new foods for that rather than being actually sick. Christina do seems to be fine so far but we will see when it hits her. I think it will be Thailand for the runs but that's me betting one friend which is probably bad karma. She's paranoid about getting sick in India which makes me believe she's just telling her body to get sick in Thailand.

Regardless we got to Agra super late at 1 pm which meant we had to have a quick vegetarian lunch. I have a cheese and potato lentil dosai. It was actually really tasty. It's a giant thin pancake made out of rice with butter filled with potatoes and lentils with spice. I'd eat it again.

We went to the Agra Fort but everyone, including myself wanted to speed through so we could get more time at the Taj Mahal. The Agra Fort is another palace for royal families. It was built before the Taj Mahal and is massive. 75% of the land is controlled by the Indian army. The other 25% is a tourist location. It was built by the third Mughal king of red sandstone. The red sandstone is local. It is surrounded by a wet moat and a dry moat. Both historically held wild animals like Jaguars, crocodiles, and tigers. Not going to lie I want a pet jaguar. They just sound cool and look sleek. The entrance was curved road so that enemies on elephants could not ram the door from straight on. One of the Kings had three wives and 5,000 in his harem. Each of the wives was a different religion - Christian, Hindu and Muslim. Other random facts I remember is that there is an entire princess palace made of marble with inlaid precious stones. I saw the largest sapphire I've ever seen. It was three inches round. The women of the harem had strict rules and if they disobeyed then they were executed by two wooden spikes that pulled back and smashed her neck. Sounds a little bloody. The Fort was impeccable but at 43C it was hotter than a sinner in church. It had beautiful views of the Taj Mahal. When waiting outside for bathroom break time, tons of people asked for our photo. Our guide told us after my eyebrows raised and I told a small boy to scram that many of the visitors are actually from the country and have never seen a white person. My demeanour relaxed a lot and I took a few photos with small Indian children.

We then went to the Taj Mahal. It is absolutely amazing. There are four entrances - east, south, west and royal. The royal entrance, not surprisingly, to the white building the world knows as the Taj Mahal. The domes on the royal entrance indicate how many years it took to build the taj (17 years). The entire area is perfectly symmetrical. When you are he Taj Mahal, the building on the left is a mosque and the building on the right is a royal guest house. Taj means crown and mahal means palace.

It was built when the 5th Mogul king's wife died. She'd quested three things - that he never marry again, that he love and treat his children with affection, and that he build a memorial of their external love corner to be buried in. After eight days locked in a room he solicited engineers from around the world for this project. The design is actually Persian which makes the writing on the walls absolutely stunning. The entire white memorial is built out of 1.4 million tones of whIte marble. It is 90 m tall at the highest point and the four small drakes are tilted so as to not cause damage if they fell. It cost about $600 billion USD in today's dollars to construct. The king's son was extremely sick and banished to the Agra Fort until he died. Because of this, the king's dream of building a matching black Taj Mahal for himself was never started.

We went on a Muslim holiday which the name escaped me. As a double edged sword,  it was extremely busy but we were fortunate enough to have the actual gravesite tomb be open. It's only open for this three day holiday each year. The queen is buried in the centre and the king is buried on the left of her in a larger tomb. There is a tourist mock up on the main floor for the rest of the year. The intricate designs on the tombs in precious jewels was the prettiest I've seen yet. Only because it's India and this was a memorial, all outside pillars are set with precious stones. It sparkles in he sun.

We waited in line to go inside for about an hour. The line spanned the entire four walls surrounding the taj. We thankfully got to skip the line below because foreigners have their own line until the top line and bottom line merge. Indian people do not respect lines or personal space. They send their kids to sneak forward then the entire family goes to the kids. As one of a dozen white peoples in the taj that day you can't say anything but you can give them dirty looks.

Grandpa sent me a photo from when him and grandma came in 1992 and I recreated that photo. I completely understand why grandma never came back to India but grandpa came back a thousand times. The longer I am here, the more I fall into camp never come back to India. It's interesting but I found that Thailand and Laos are way prettier in terms of temples and palaces. India has a more rich history but it's dirty and not kept. I have found that no one takes care of their belongings or places. It's almost like they believe that it can just be replaced rather than maintained. I have yet  to see a building (other than tourist sites deemed by an agency to be important) not even broken or falling apart.

Anyways I digress but the Taj Mahal is a worthwhile see once in your life. I'm not sure the awe factor would be there for a second visit. My only regret is that I haven't seen a straightener in a while so I had my classic lion curls going on.

Dinner was at a BBQ place where Christina and I split chicken tikka and tandoori chicken. I'm a huge fan of tandoori chicken and probably will never eat chicken tikka again. It's a weird yellow green puke colour and kind of tastes like bad soap with garlic.

AFN 

Jaipur Round 2

Day 3 - the name of the game is commit

Fun bus facts of Jaipur:
- The royal family is not originally from Jaipur. They are from central India. In 1036 they left in search of better lands. Upon arriving in Ahmed, which is naturally surrounded by hills, they conquered it and proclaimed it theirs. The area used to be controlled by the Meena people who were tribal men. Chhipa were another tribe but super lazy but somehow created the press printing they have now. Upon a population boom they moved the capital to Jaipur in 1727. Royal family is from the sun dynasty.
- Jaipur was a planned city for 200k people. It's now 6.5m.
- Since the royal family is from the sun dynasty, there are Suns on all of the lampposts.

Our first stop today was the Palace of the Winds. It's a facade created for the royal women to be able to snoop on the markets without having to be fully covered. It is championed as a pride of Indian woman as such. Queen's and noble ladies were not allowed to leave the palace but had tons of windows to see the bazaar. I guess it's better to watch other people than be stuck inside without a source of entertainment.

We passed the Raj Hotel. It is Asia's most expensive hotel at $40,000 a night. It's a former royal house.

Our next stop was the Amber Palace. It's absolutely spectacular and overlooks Jaipur. It is fortified and has its own tunnel to the fort. Construction took over a 127 years. There are three courtyards each with distinct personalities. The first was built in 1592 and is a blend of Hindu and Islamic architecture. It was painted with precious stone waste after the cutting of the stones. The second was called the mirror palace. There was over a million concave mirrors imported from Belgium decorating the main square. Christina and I went on adventure in the upper walls. We found this amazing view of the world from there. Not a clue how we got there. The third courtyard was boring to look at but had a cool story. It was the 12 apartments of Ahmed the Great. Each unit was self sealed and each wife could not go into the others apartment but the king had a private set of stairs to each apartment. Sneaky bastard. The entire book of Kama sutra was painted in this courtyard. The main queen had her own jacuzzi tub where there was a giant tank heated by fire and pumped into her tub by a copper tube. Interesting to see the technology way back then.

We lost a member to sickness but she was plain stupid. She drank local tap water thinking she would be fine. She literally puked from last night until today. What's more embarrassing is she is mid 50s. She fainted mid way in the palace and no one could find her so we got to worry and stand in 48C heat waiting for her. Super impressed.

When crossing all roads the name of the game is commit. If you commit traffic finds a way around you.

Since it is Christina's birthday we stop to ride camels on the side of the highway. Such a touristy thing but a cool experience. My camel was Bubbly and we can't remember Christina's. Both of our camels had two humps. It was about 52C out when we were doing this activity. Hot hot hot.

The bad joke of the day: what's the difference between a camel and your husband? A camel only has one or two humps but your husband humps you. There's also a bad British colonel joke which is that the colonial visits troops in North Africa and wonders wonders why the men are not horny. The Sargent tells him they use the camel. The colonel comes back to visit this area again and then drops trough and jumps the camel. The colonel is beside himself laughing. The colonel orders the Sargent to tell him why. The Sargent responds the men use the camel to get to town.

The last stop today on tour was the Water Palace which had some history I wasn't paying attention to. If you care, google it. I don't.

Lunch was at a hotel with the doorman having the greatest moustache alive. He could curl the ends and look like a sultan. Lunch was roasted cauliflower and naan bread. Simple but tasty. We lost a lot of people to heat stroke after lunch.

The afternoon was spent at a textile factory and a jewelry factory. Very pretty things.

Tonight's dinner is at a vegetarian place so we will see the type of food eaten.

Tomorrow is an early start at 7 am to hit the road for Agra.

AFN

Jaipur, the Pink City

Day 2 - Jaipur

Today started at 5 am because our air conditioner kicked out. After a protein shake and a good complaint session we started the day with a group breakfast. I had toast and a banana. The traditional Indian breakfast was deep fried and not my cup of tea.

We then got on a bus for Jaipur. Thankfully we have a private air conditioned bus for our tour.

Random bus facts about Delhi:
- It has been inhabited since at least 7C BC.
- It is the capital of India since 1911. Prior to that it was Calcutta. The British switched the capital for management reasons.
- Delhi is known as the city of cities. Delhi in Indian means cluster of seven cities. The seven cities represent different empires and kingdoms that ruled India.
- August 15, 1947 India gained independence.
- It is a democratic country. Not so sure how that functions.
- Delhi used to be spelled Dilli, which in Hindu means loose - no empire was able to maintain foundation or control for long. Another possible meaning is gateway as it was the gateway for the silk and trade routes.

Our drive from Delhi to Jaipur was long - just about 5 hours. The entire scenery is like Australian outback without the red dirt and a freak load more ghost towns. It's like it's profitable to build and leave entire areas unfinished or populated. It's a vast sea of tan dirt with the odd tree or bush. The most exciting thing is the odd camel. It's super exciting to see camel drawn carriages. There were tons of shanty towns and burning garbage. People tended to have shops the size of storage units the entire way here.

Random facts about Jaipur:
- Jaipur was painted pink for Prince Edward's visit. It is a combination of terracotta on limestone. Terracotta is a welcoming or good luck colour here. The entire town is now pink.
- It is the most populated city in this state (Rajasthan). This state in Hindu means warrior. As such, Jaipur is surrounded by a fortification wall.
- Jaipur's only jail is attached to a university.

I've had butter chicken twice today. Everything else looks revolting or I can't eat it. I'm surviving on minimal food and protein shakes.

After an afternoon nap the group went on a stroll on the old part of Jaipur. It's basically rows and rows of market. There spices and grains and all sorts of clothes. The smell of this town if revolting. It's worse than Delhi. It's a combination of burning garbage and pee now. The only reprieve was near the flower seller's and the heavy spice seller's booths. Also every time the toilet flushes in our room there's a beautiful oder wafting through the the room.

It's  interesting to see cows being parked like cars and cows just roaming the streets. People treated the cows almost like pets. I know cows are holy.

Dinner was at some tacky tourist place where there was traditional dancing. Interesting but man I'm exhausted and tired of Indian food. I forgot how much I hate spicy food.

AFN

Delhi, India

Welcome to Delhi!

So Christina and I flew from Vancouver through Guangzhou to Delhi. Our flights were filled with colouring, movies and half sleep. It was interesting to be in Guangzhou as on the wifi Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat did not work. It took us a while to realize China had blocked them. I've never recognized how white and female I was until our flight to Delhi - we were the only white females on the plane. Indian men are very entitled as de,most rated by the sheer number of requests they gave the flight attendants the entire flight and how rude they were when I asked if he could put his seat up so I could get out.

In Delhi we were picked up by G Adventures. Thank god. This city is massive - 10 million people and vast. The highways have cars, trucks, tuk tuks, horse or Ox drawn carriages, bikes, motorcycles, and pretty much everything else. Lanes are not a thing here. They are constantly honking to let you know where they are. It's chaos.

This morning we went to Connaught Place just to see what it is. Plus we had a few hours before our trip. Not worth the time. It's just a bunch of American shops in two circles with a park in the middle. I think we should have done Old Delhi instead. Oh well.

It's 33 degrees, smells like pee and smoke and the food looks revolting. We're getting harassed constantly and I look like a troll. I'm in full capris and a long sleeve tee. The men here constantly are telling you where to go and trying to talk to you. It's funny to watch Christina in Asia for her first trip. She's learned the basic fuck off I don't want to talk to you hand. Two weeks of dudes telling me where to go and asking if I'm lost is going to drive me batty.

Update: we met our group. Not certain what I signed up for. I thought I agreed to a 18-35 trip but we have two families, one with a kid in Grade 7 and the other with teenaged boys. We also have 6 people over 45 easily. There are four lawyers, Australians and Brits with a majority of Canadians. It's a diverse crew.

On our Delhi walk, we saw the Indian Gate, which is spectacular. Whilst there Christina and I were bombarded to take photos with Indians. I guess it has to do with the blonde hair and blue eyes. Still bothers me that I get manhandled by strangers. Just don't touch me. The walk also included the Presidents House which spans 140 acres in the midst of New Delhi. It's host to 380 rooms and several extensive gardens. Only the president lives there not the Prime Minister. Not sure what the distinction in roles between the two is. Our final stop on our walk in 40C heat was this Golden Sikt Temple. Apparently the Sikh treat their God, as contained in a book like a person and put the book to bed and wake it up each morning. Their God is gender less and idol less. There is five things followers must do - not cut their hair or beards, wear a dagger, treat all equally, wear a metallic bangle and all temples have a comm unity kitchen.

For dinner we went out as a group and I had butter chicken and naan. Will let yall know if I venture out of that comfort zone - unlikely but you never know.

AFN 

I've got a travel bug...

Hello all,

To save myself some trouble next time I have to fill out a VISA application... Here is the list of countries that I have gone to thus far:

• Australia
• Austria
• Belgium
• Cambodia
• England
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Indonesia
• India
• Italy
• Kuala Lumpur 
• Laos
• Liechtenstein 
• Mexico
• Monaco
• Nepal
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Romania
• Scotland
• Slovakia
• Spain
• Switzerland
• Thailand
• Turkey
• United States 
• Vatican City 

India, Nepal and Thailand ... Oh My!

Hello all,

It has been two years since I last set out on a global adventure, which is far too long. Law school is coming to an end. I graduate in 24 days and will be on a plane in 30 days. I will never sit in a class room again, except for CLPED but I don't think that counts.  So, I am going to succumb to my wanderlust again and head out to India, Nepal and Thailand with my good friend Christina as a grad trip.

Our India trip starts out in Delhi, India and ends in Kathmandu, Nepal.  Like most trips I take with Christina, we sit on her couch, plan the trip in a span of hours, and book it the next day. Oops we did it again. I also tend to book trips where I need to move and pack my entire apartment then get on a plane less than 24 hours later. This year I am moving back home but shipping everything and disappearing to Asia.

This week we are going to get the vaccinations required and actually apply for Visas. I am not looking forward to anti-malaria pills again.

This post is more so that I have it when I start drafting abroad for the spelling of places than for actual substance.

AFN
Brittany

Ain't Nothing but a Wee Stroll in the Park

So after months of hard training and team effort to push each other to our limits, I finished the Edinburgh Tough Mudder. What I didn't know about this lovely race is that it is a HALF marathon and obstacles. When I signed up I thought, very naively, that this was a short 10 km run with obstacles. I was wrong - just under a half marathon with obstacles. Tough Mudder was created by the US Special Forces for the purposes of basic military training camp then it got popular and they commercialized it. My friend, Lis from Calgary noticed this in about February and asked if I wanted to do it. I didn't take much thought to it and signed up. Goals for training are always welcomed. Over the next couple of weeks, I convinced a few more law school friends going to the castle to join in so that we could have a solid team. In the end three of us trained together for three months. The other two decided last minute to join which was fine. Tough Mudder sent us a training program to do - hilarious but oh so necessary. It was an hour and a half program that ran 12 minute straight programs of cardio, arm strength, or leg strength with three minute breaks in between sets. I can now do man push ups, burpee, wall sits, and skipping for three solid minutes. Running in Kingston was actually nice to train for but I didn't train enough for the Mudder to be running full tilt the entire time. Kingston does not have enough trail running for that to be possible.

We came to Edinburgh on Friday to get settled and carb-load. It felt like the day before competitions - not too much walking, a little bit of shopping, and a whole lot of pasta and chicken. Saturday was an early morning. We got up at 5 to paint our faces, warm up, and head out on public transit to Dalkeith where the race was taking place. We got there and it was incredible to see. There teams upon teams dressed up in team shirts or costumes. After spray pairing numerous Canadian flags in ourselves we joined in the collective warm up (think step class like). The atmosphere was a little like what I imagine a football locker room to be - a lot of chanting, groaning, and war cries. Before we eve got to the start line you had to jump over an 8 foot wall, which I am proud to say I did without help. Always good to get muddy before you even start the race - why else would they call it Tough Mudder? They make you chant once you get over the wall to get into the spirit of the race. The entire race is ran in about 8 inches of mud that they create specifically for this race. My runners were trashed at the end. Our first obstacle was an army crawl in the mud with barbed wire above us - key to this was keeping your bum down and sprawling. Some of the memorable obstacles were climbing through pipeline in pitch black, climbing up a 30 foot wall by rope only, jumping into an ice bath then swimming 40m in it, being electrocuted a couple of times, and the entire mile of hip deep mud. We got electorshocked twice - you had to army crawl the first time through this 50m course then run the second one. Half the team ran together which made it 100x worse, this is the only time that team work did not pay off. I ran alone after seeing our guy hit the ground in pain because the girls with him got hit. The worst one by far was swimming backwards with only your face above water because you were in a cage. I hate small spaces and that just about made me cry... Might have made me cry, don't know and will never admit it either way. A lot of the course was grit to get yourself through the obstacle or the running. Running in mud is harder than it looks, your feet stick and they slide and its not like you can just power through on straight aways. The one nice thing about Tough Mudder is that you do everything as a team because you have to, which makes it a lot easier than a normal half marathon. There is no way you can sheer climb a rope without someone holding the bottom or even get yourself up to climb over a 20 foot wall without a little bit of help.

Our team was pretty good besides one girl who whined and gave up and ruined that team spirit. Fair enough you hurt but you do not give up in the middle of no where because you are muddy. We all scraped our knees and elbows and other body parts hurt but you do not give up and whinge about it. I have more bruises and scraps than is imaginable but totally worth it. I would totally do it again but I would just run a little bit more prior to. My muscles this morning are on fire. Everything burns.

AFN

Castle (aka Herstmonceux Castle, Hailsham, East Sussex, England)

By the end of the 12th Century, the family at the manor house at Herste had considerable status. Written accounts mention a lady called Idonea de Herste, who married a Norman nobleman named Ingelram de Monceux. Around this time, the manor began to be called the 'Herste of the Monceux’; a name that eventually became Herstmonceux. Essentially, the cast was reclaimed by Henry VIII from the Fiennes family until the time of Elizabeth I. Seventeenth century England was rife with uncertainty and social unrest, yet the owners of Herstmonceux appear to have prospered, carrying out renovations and even were able to avoid the extremes of the 1640s when civil war gripped the country. In 1933 Sir Paul Latham purchased the castle and continued the process of reconstruction, completing the remodelling of the northern half of the castle. Extensive work was also undertaken on the gardens and grounds, with the addition of a tennis court, a swimming pool, extensive plantings and the excavation and flooding of the moat. Further changes to the castle came during WWII when it for a brief time housed the Hearts of Oak insurance company which needed a place where its’ records would be safe from Germany’s Blitz on London. While Herstmonceux Castle did not see any serious action, it still felt the effects of the war and was on numerous occasions strafed by German planes. An RAF camp, part of RAF Wartling, was established on the estate and a large air-raid shelter was constructed immediately south-west of the drawbridge. In 1946 Sir Paul Latham sold Herstmonceux Castle to the Admiralty, which established it as the new home of the Royal Greenwich Observatory. From the early 1950s until 1989 Herstmonceux Castle remained a centre of scientific research and home to one of the world’s leading astronomical organizations. However, "light pollution” from the nearby city of Eastbourne, along with other factors, combined to make staying at Herstmonceux impractical and in 1989 the RGO was moved to Cambridge. The castle was sold to developers who planned to turn it into a hotel and golf resort. The idea was opposed by a group of local residents who formed 'The Society for the Protection of Herstmonceux Castle'. After a lengthy battle the castle and estate were saved from the developers. In 1993 the Castle was purchased by Drs. Alfred and Isabel Bader and donated to Queen’s University, with the intent to establish it as a centre of international education. Queen’s International Study Centre was born, and in 1994, after extensive renovations to transform bedrooms into offices and work areas into classrooms, the first students arrived. Since that time the Bader International Study Centre has continued to grow and today welcomes students from around the globe. (See Herstmonceux Castle website)

In other news, caste life is awful. It is British boarding school food on a timed schedule (8, noon, and 5). Typical meals are slop, stew, and potatoes. It means a whole lot of spinach salads for all meals of the day. I appreciate meals outside of the castle and raw crunchy vegetables a little bit more now.

The photos below are the castle and the set of girls at the castle. The "bros" are an interesting crew for sure. Nothing much else is to tell about the castle - we hang out in classrooms or the pub on campus. It is a tame lifestyle that is very moderated and scheduled.