Vipassana Meditation

I survived the 10-day meditation course! For me, each day was a struggle. If you ask me whether the experience was worth 10 days of agony - the answer is possibly. It was definitely a surreal experience and one of the most difficult things I have ever done.

Each day began with a 4am morning call and a whole day of meditation sessions, either in group or individually.  In the afternoon, we were given the opportunity to schedule private meetings with the instructors for any questions or concerns that we may have. This would be the only time that we were allowed to speak.   The night ended with a recorded lecture which teaches us new meditation techniques and philosophies. As for daily meals, we were served vegetarian food twice a day, which were actually quite delicious. But my stomach had trouble holding in all the curries. Since our last full meal of the day ended at noon, I was usually hungry by bedtime. For me, the most difficult part was the lack of stimulation. There was no talking, no reading, no outside contact, I felt like a POW. However, I do understand the objective of these regulations.  The goal of meditation is to shut off the outside world, examine your internal self, and ultimately reach enlightenment.  But personally, I was not seeking enlightenment, but to experience the serenity and to learn the techniques.

A few things that I did gain from this experience:
1. An awareness to my physical body
By the 3rd day of meditation, I started to feel my fingertips pumping with blood circulation. By the 5th day, I became aware the movement of the little hair on my upper lip as I breathed in and out.

2. Flashback of moments from our wedding
It reminded me of how lucky I am to have E in my life. I imagined reuniting with E and Moo after this long retreat. 10 days can be a long time especially when I was cut off from all communications.

3. Memories of my dear grandma who passed away six years ago
She passed away in Taipei when I was living in Calgary. The last time I visited, she was clearly getting old but still seemed healthy. I remember my aunt telling me that it would likely be the last time I see my grandma. But I brushed it off, thinking that she would still be there when I visit again the following year. Unfortunately, my aunt was right. I never got a proper chance to say goodbye to my grandma. But memories of her were still clear in my mind as if she was with me throughout the course.

4. A sudden let-go of the grudge that I was holding toward a certain landlord from the past
When I was living in Calgary, I went through an awful experience with a landlord who was unemployed and just looking to make some quick cash from students.  Let's just say many clauses were broken in the lease and it almost ended in a law suit. For years, I held a grudge toward her. The mentioning of her name enraged me. But for some odd reason, that anger disappeared by the end of the meditation course.

5. A shovel comes handy in heavy snow
After 10 days, I was all meditated out and looking forward to going home. But there was no sight of my car in the parking lot.  I went around in search of my car and then spent more than 1 hour to dig it out with a shovel!

My accomplishment on the 10th day 

Adios Chile

Following the Habitat build, I returned to Santiago with my teammates and met up with Sa & Ed, who have now traveled from Brazil to Chile. The last few days in the city was a blur as I tried to cram in as much sightseeing as possible.

The Habitat group ended the build with a R&R day trip to Valparaiso and Vina del Mar, the coastal cities near the Greater Santiago area. Again, we hired La Bicycletta Verde for the tour and spent the morning wandering through the meandering streets of Valparaiso. The city has a long history and was once the most important seaport in South America, prior to the construction of Panama Canal. There are 2 distinct features in Valparaiso, graffiti and hills. The city has up to 45 cerros or hills that are accessible by short-haul gondolas. Colourful graffiti and adorable stray cats are at every corner. However, we were also told that certain parts of the city can be sketchy and dangerous at nighttime.

One of the cerros in Valparaiso

A cat chilling on the ledge

Leaping with my teammates in Vina del Mar

 The next day, I said my farewell to the Habitat team and moved in with Sa & Ed to a 2-bedroom apartment in Santiago. As always, we greeted one another with a big hug. It is always nice to see good friends in a different city.  We visited the trendy neighbourhood of Bella Vista, celebrated Theo's birthday at a local bar, joined a free tour around Centro, and went up Cerro San Cristobal. An interesting observation I had was the lack of information at the Museo Historical Nacional. The exhibit abruptly ended at 1980s, and I don't recall any mentioning of Pinochet or the military coup. According to our tour guide, this is likely still a controversial issue among Chileans.

Catedral of Santiago

View from Cerro San Cristobal

Traditional Chilean meal + jugo in Bella Vista

Farewell Habitat Chile

Today concludes our build with Habitat. The entire team was together at Cristobal's house. We spent the morning finishing the drywall and painting the house. Everyone was in high spirit with one common goal.  At the closing ceremony in the afternoon, Cristobal's parents expressed their sincere gratitude - a reminder to myself that this was an actual house we were building for a real family.

Finishing the exterior of the house

Break time, after a long day

The most memorable moments of this trip were the ones with the amazing people that I met - Cristobal and his family who strive for the best under difficult circumstances; the Habitat Chile staff who assisted with the building logistics and worked alongside of us; and of course, my fellow Habitat teammates from Canada. I met some amazing people - the 71 year old retired banker aka our daily entertainer, the Torontonian lady on her 7th Habitat trip, our fearless leader who tried his best to organize the activities despite his asthma attacks ... and the list goes on. Particularly, there are 2 individuals who are of great inspirations:

1. Theo lost her beloved husband to cancer a couple of years ago, but today lives her life with tremendous strength and a positive attitude.  We shared a teary moment on the work site when she told me about the best weeks of her life with her husband at the hospital and the surprise Valentine's Day present she received from him after the funeral. In the dusty air, I could feel the love that they shared. Since a dear friend/extended family member of ours is also going through similar chemo treatments for cancer, I was hoping to get some suggestions from Theo.  But the only advice she could offer was to continuously show our love and support for this friend.

2. At our last team dinner, Marty gave an inspirational speech accompanied with souvenirs of pieces of rubbles - The tale of Mother Teresa and finding our own Calcutta.  The message was that this 2-week Habitat trip may not be long enough to make a significant change, but this is only the beginning, the catalyst. Charity work continues at home. Marty is a perfect example - an active volunteer in his community, from Big Brother to Humane Society. He also recently ran for city council in his municipality. As a young person, Marty has the aspirations and the sincerity that are greatly admirable.

The Earthquake Zone

El Monte is a small municipality about 20 km from Melipilla.  2 of our build sites are located in this neighbourhood, where the houses were severely damaged by the Feb 27 earthquake. Our task today was to finish the living room addition to the house owned by an 80 year old man named Oscar.  Habitat Chile is presently working on 15 houses in this area as part of the rebuilding efforts.  Some of the repairs and additions were started last month in partnership with Delta Airlines volunteers.

In this house, Oscar lives with his 3 grown sons. There are holes and gaps in the roof. A shower stall is located outside the main house and can be accessed through the backyard. A toilet is located separately in an outhouse. Many of my teammates felt that the building approach was rather piecemeal, as we were adding a new living room to the existing dilapidated structure.

The kitchen/dining room of Oscar's existing house

 It is difficult to imagine how 4 grown men live together in a small house of such shabby conditions.  In comparison, Cristobal's house is much nicer. On the other hand, Oscar's house is still equipped with running water and sewage network, and is by no means a slum. It is all relative.

The exterior of the house with the new addition

An egg vendor going door-to-door in the neighbourhood

The Weekend Around Melipilla

The team had the weekend off for sightseeing.  Because of our remote location, the activities were limited.  On Saturday, we visited a cheese factory that was partner with the dairy farm where we were staying. Then we spent the rest of the morning in Pomaire, a pottery village very close to Melipilla.

Milking a Chilean cow - yeeks!

A craft shop in Pomaire

On Sunday, Habitat Chile hired La Bicycletta Verde, a tour operator based in Santiago, for a winery tour.  The destination was the Chocalan winery located in the coastal part of Maipo Valley. We biked up and down the hills through the vineyards, then sampled different types of wine and had a barbeque lunch overlooking the vineyards. It was a relaxing afternoon with great food and beautiful view.

Chocalan winery

Getting ready for the bike ride

Wine tasting at Chocalan

The winery building was recently constructed.  The cedar wood combined with large windows gave the interiors a bright and airy feel. It was quite a contrast to the Habitat houses that we have been working on. I suppose this is the disparity in wealth that is present everywhere.

Chile, Un Solo Corazon

Remembrance Day in Canada - an on-site cultural exchange. We started the day by handing out poppies to our Chilean friends and explained the significance of Remembrance Day. This was followed by 2 minutes of silence at 11am, which again the entire group participated in. As a token of friendship, the team gave Christobal's family a large Canadian flag.

Teleton, another local charity group was also on site to work on the house. They were conducting interviews with Christobal and filiming the building progress as part of the promotional material for the fundraising.At lunchtime, the 2 grouops shared food and dined together. The elderly man from our team said grace. It was a nice moment, but reminded me of the Norfolk County Christmas dinner, where the mayor said grace in fort of hundreds of employees.  This would rarely happen in a diverse city like Toronto.

Cristobal getting ready for the interview

Cristobal played with the computer as his mom was trying to feed him

Our tasks today included removing the cement in the living room for new tiles and plastering the walls in Cristobal's bedroom. The progress was unfortunately not as productive as I had hoped. However, it was still a meaningful day.  We interacted with the family and were included in the filming. At the end of the day, our Chilean friends taught us to say "Chile, un solo corazon" - Chile, only one heart! Canadians and Chileans, we were in this project together.  Our heart was with Cristobal's family and our goal was to complete this house!

With the fellow Habitat teammates

Our attempts at removing the cement in the living room

The shared backyard with Cristobal's grandma who lives next door

The rooster in the backyard

Santiago / Melipilla, Chile

I arrived in Santiago yesterday to begin my volunteer trip with Habitat for Humanity. The 4 hour flight from Lima to Santiago felt extremely long. I was sleep deprived and had severe stomach issues. The rain in Santiago casted a gloomy outlook on the city. I started to miss my travel buddies (E was on his way to Sao Paulo and Sa and Ed to Rio De Janeiro).

At the hotel, I met my Habitat team. It was a group of 13 Canadians of diverse backgrounds and ages. We were staying at the Windsor Hotel by Cerro Santa Lucia, a hill located in the centre of Santiago. Later in the evening, we had a team meeting and found out the details of our work site and accommodation. The introduction to our build and teammates was not exactly well organized. Most of us were still jetlagged and just wanted to get some rest.

The next morning, we packed a van and were driven to the build site in Melipilla, a small town about 2 hours southwest of the city. Another van dropped off our luggages at a farm in a remote secluded area where we will be staying for the next 2 weeks.

The farm where we stayed during the build

Snoopy, 1 of the 4 dogs at the farm

The house that we were working on belong to Cristobal and his family. Christobal is a 6 year old boy who was born without arms and with deformed legs.  The goal is to retrofit the house and to make it more accessible. We were told that Cristobal is actually quite well-known around Santiago as the poster child of another charity campaign called Teleton.  He has the sweetest smile and is very skilled in using his feet to operate his wheelchair or even to play video games. He roamed around in his wheelchair, as active as any other little boy.  He was just living his life like a normal kid.

The house of Cristobal and his family

The smiley Cristobal and I

Adios Peru

Our last day in Peru, a rather random one. E and I returned from Cusco to Lima in the early afternoon. Sa and Ed caught an earlier flight out. By the time we arrived at the airport, Ed was ready to negotiate with the taxi drivers. The standard rate to Miraflores is S/40. But Ed, with his refined negotiation skills tried to start at S/30 and offered the driver huevos (or eggs) in exchange. We were fortunate to find a nice, gentleman named Ricardo as our driver. He is by far the most patient, polite, and knowledgeable taxi driver I have ever encountered (if you are traveling to Lima and need a driver or a guide, I would highly recommend him).

The coastline bluffs by the Marriott Hotel in Miraflores

By the time we checked in and settled into the Marriott Hotel in Miraflores, it was nearly 4pm. As per the previous recommendations of our Peruvian friends at Radisson Hotel, we went to Alfresco, a seafood restaurant for our last meal together. E and I both had seafood soup/chowder and they were delicious. E also tried the ceviche while the rest of us watched with fear of potential stomach troubles.

Dessert platter at Alfresco

Our last meal together

After dinner, Sa and I decided that it was time for laundry.  But first we made a quick stop at Radisson Hotel to visit the 2 concierges that we met during our last stay.  Both Christian and Javier were on duty, and surprised to see us again. They have been extremely pleasant and helpful, despite of Javier's occasional stereotypical  comments about Sa and I - referring to us as "chinitas" with our small Asian eyes. Then he would proceed to call himself a "chinito" - Peruvian style, because he too has small eyes. Nevertheless, when we asked Javier for recommendations on laundromats, he immediately called a place for us and begged the worker to stay open later for our laundry as we were flying out the next morning.

We said our goodbyes and rushed back to our hotel and loaded all of our dirty laundry in a big bag. It must have been an odd sight - Sa and I carrying a 5 kg bag of dirty laundry over our shoulders and running down the hallway of a 5 star hotel. When we arrived at the laundromat, the workers indicated that they were closing in 30 minutes. With our broken Spanish, we tried to explain that we needed clean laundry tonight. I even made gestures of airplane takeoff to indicate the urgency. Then we pleaded with puppy eyes. Finally the workers acquiesced and called us "locos" (or crazy people), which we laughed and agreed. It was indeed a crazy situation. And note that all these took place while the guys were watching soccer back at the hotel!

For the rest of the night, Sa and I shopped in Miraflores. I bought plantillas (or insoles) for my work boots, which I accidently referred to as plantanas (or bananas).  We also had a random run-in with the participants of the 10k Nike race. By the time we picked up our clean laundry it was already 8pm, 1 hour past the laundromat closing time. I guess this is an example of working overtime in laundromats - when there are loco foreign customers like us.

Nike 10k run in Lima

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu, one of the new 7 wonders of the world. How to describe? Majestic! Magnificent! Breathtaking!

Machu Picchu

Due to our short stay in Cusco, the 4 of us signed up for a 2-day trek (as opposed to the regular 4-day trek) up the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.  In an effort to control environmental degradation, the Peruvian has recently placed a limit on the number of trek permits issued per day. To reserve our space, we had to book 2 months ahead. 

Early in the morning of the first day, we were greeted by the driver from Pachamama Explorers (a local tour agency owned by a South African woman). We caught the tourist train to km 104, where we met our guide and began the trek. 

Trekking the Inca Trail

Beautiful waterfall en route to Machu Picchu

We followed the path that the Incas once walked. Certain parts of the ascent were rather difficult and we had to make frequent stops of water (or in this case, oxygen tank for Sa). After 7 hours of trekking, we finally caught the first glimpse of Machu Picchu. 

Our first glimpse of Machu Picchu - worth the 7-hour of pain and exhaustion 

 According to our guide, there are controversies about the discovery of this ancient site. The formal record stated Hiram Bingham of Yale University as the discoverer in 1911. However, the locals indicate otherwise. Long before the Americans arrived, 2 Peruvian farmers had been living at Machu Picchu, but later mysteriously disappeared. 

We spent the night at the nearby tourist town of Aguas Calientes.  On the second day, we returned to Machu Picchu by bus and spent the entire morning exploring the site on foot. I was particularly fascinated by the llamas and alpacas that graze on grass of Machu Picchu.  They looked so gentle and adorable.  Of course, later that afternoon, E and Ed decided to order alpaca for lunch. This was followed by the feast of guinea pigs for dinner! They certainly had a taste of the local delicacies. 

Me and a llama

Cusco

Cusco, the historical capital of the Inca Empire, has a strong presence of aboriginal culture and tourism industry. Each year, tourists flock to Cusco en route to Machu Picchu. The mix of stone walls and colonial churches gives the city a unique character and makes Cusco a tourist destination in its own ways.

Getting oxygen to help with altitude sickness

E and I arrived at Cusco by Star Peru, a low budget Peruvian airline. We were met by our hotel driver, who swiftly loaded our luggages onto the roof of the car and took us to Hotel Andenes al Cielo.  The hotel is quaint and charming.  At the hotel, we were greeted by Sa and Ed, who flew to Cusco a day before us. Sa proceeded to tell us about her awful experience with altitude sickness when she first arrived. At this time, I was starting to feel sick as well, except I could not pinpoint whether it was due to the altitude or the few pisco sours I had the night before.

Before coming to Cusco, we were warned about the cold mountain weather by the people from Lima. But to the contrary, it was a beautiful sunny afternoon in Cusco.  Backpackers were roaming the streets in shorts and flipflops.  We walked around Plaza de Armas, visited a local fruit market, and took pictures of a Cusco woman and her alpaca (for a price of s/10 or $1).

Cusco woman and her alpaca

 Cathedral in Plaza de Armas

Plaza de Armas

Toward the end of the night, my altitude sickness/pisco sour hangover had only worsened. So I called it an early night, in preparation for our 2 day trek to Machu Picchu. 

Centro, Lima

The four of us woke up at 10am by E's snoring and frantically rushed downstairs to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. Hotel Radisson serves a good selection of fruits, cheese and most importantly, delicious chocolate caliente. After 2 or 3 cups of the chocolate caliente each, we were ready to embark on today's adventures.

Our first stop was Plaza de Armas in Centro, the historical downtown of Lima.  The district is known for the colonial architecture and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Plaza de Armas is surrounded by a number of government and religious structures that are dominated by orange and yellow colonial architecture. The Plaza is also a significant landmark where the declaration of independence of Peru took place in 1821.

Plaza de Armas

The Archbishops Palace

We followed the narrow the streets and arrived at Iglesia de San Francisco.  The church is an example of the Lima Baroque style of architecture. The vast catacombs underground are connected by tunnels and contain bones of 25,000 people. Inside the monastery, parts of the wall are covered with Moorish style tiles that reminded me of elements from the Moorish palace, Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

We finished the night with another birthday celebration for Ed, dinner at Astrid y Gaston, a gourmet restaurant with chains in other South American countries including Chile. The dining ambiance was classy but chic. The food was delicious and the presentation was exquisite. Again, cubierto was charged to cover the complementary appetizers and dessert. Nevertheless, this restaurant is worth a visit if you are in South America.

Appetizer at Astrid y Gaston

Travel Buddies

It is known that couples seek friendship in other couples. If there is a term that describes this kind of double dating friendship, we are fortunate to have our friends Sa and Ed as one of our closest couple friends/ travel companions. We have traveled together from Montreal to Vegas, and have always enjoyed our random spurts of group bickering or candid discussions of our bowel movements. In other words, we have fun together.

The 4 of us at Miraflores

Since we were all still jetlagged, the four of us took a group power nap and then headed to Huaca Pucllana, the ruins of a temple that dated back to the 4th century.  The temple is located within the residential neighbourhood of Miraflores and served as a ceremonial site and burial ground. Archaeological works continue to take place here with regular discoveries of human remains. The temple is comprised of mud bricks that were placed vertically with gaps in between them to absorb any tension from earthquakes. Our guide told us that the original bricks withstood the 2007 earthquake whereas the reconstructed bricks were completely destroyed.  I was impressed to hear about these ancient building tehnique that are even more effective than the current technology. 

Our guide also showed us the present inhabitants at Pucllana - a couple of Peruvian dogs. The dogs were hairless with bleached mohawks on their heads. They were not exactly attractive and reminded me of a couple of gangster punks.

Huaca Pucllana

A Peruvian dog,

 living on the site of Pucllana

Following another group nap in the afternoon, we decided to explore Barranco at night, a bohemian style neighbourhood to the south, about 10-minute cab ride. The taxi dropped us off at the Puente de los Suspiros, a romantic bridge that leads to a slopped cobblestone walkway toward the ocean. A number of restaurants and cafes lined the walkway. We settled at a table on the terrace of Javier Restaurant facing the ocean. The sky was dark, but we could still see the crashing waves. Glasses of pisco sour were served in the company of good friends. Pisco sour is a traditional Peruvian drink that is made with pisco alcohol, lime juice, sugar, and egg white, although there has been a long debate on the drink's origin as the Chileans also claim pisco sour to be its national drink.  

At the end of the night, we were finally ready to leave Barranco and headed back to the hotel. However, Sa reminded us that we still haven't eaten dinner and Ed reminded us that it is almost his birthday! So, the night continued in the Radisson Hotel restaurant and ended with cerviche (raw fish cooked in lime juice), homemade pasta, more seafood and la torta para Ed's birthday!

Miraflores, Lima

I arrived safely into Aeropuerto International Jorge Chavez in Lima. Immediately, my cell phone showed text messages from E with the hotel and taxi info. Having heard horrible stories about taxis in Peru, I was anxious to get to the hotel. I walked out of the baggage area and prepaid for the cab ride at the Taxi Green counter to Miraflores, an upper class neighbourhood where our hotel, Hotel Radisson, is located.


The taxi traveled through Callao to  San Isidro and then along the coast to Miraflores. The extent of poverty to wealth was evident. Some parts of Callao around the airport are still without running water and electricity. It looked like another typical weekday morning with early commuters jaywalking across the streets or waiting for buses on the sidewalks. As we approached Miraflores,decorated signage and street landscaping became more prevalent. I also noticed the increasing number of foreigners and tourists jogging or simply taking a stroll along the coast - with wealth comes leisure.

After meeting E at the hotel, we spent the morning strolling along the cliff that overlooks Pacific Ocean.  Because of the fog or maybe the smog, the view was unfortunately limited. To the south of Hotel Radisson is the renowned Marriott Hotel and Larcomar, a shopping centre built on a bluff.  To the north is Parque del Armor that has a statue of two lovers and Gaudi inspired mosaics.  The colourful winding bench in the park is reminiscent of Parc Guell in Barcelona.This morning, at Larcomar, we also had an opportune encounter with the Jonas Brothers or more like hoards of screaming Peruvian girls. It is interesting to see the influence of American pop culture

Parque del Armor

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In the evening, we made reservation at a restaurant called Senorio de Sulco, which is apparently owned by a celebrity cookbook author. On the way to the restaurant,  the sun was setting, the sky cleared up and was filled with paragliders.  The view over the ocean was breathtaking. When we finally arrived at the restaurant, I was surprised to see that only 2 tables were occupied.  Nevertheless, the food was still delicious and the price was relatively reasonable, at a North American standard. We started the meal with empanadas and pisco sour. For the entrees, we ordered chupe de amerones (a creamy tomato based soup with seafood) and arroz con pato (rice with duck). The only glitch was that cubierto or a seating fee of s/10 per person was charged.

Paragliders in the sky of Miraflores

Dinner at Senorio del Sulco

We finished the night with some vino tinto at the pool lounge on the 12th floor of Hotel Radisson.  It was too cold to swim but the posh atmosphere was relaxing to finish my first day in Lima.

En Route to Lima, Peru

A surprise ending to my last day of work yesterday - Multiple farewell parties that were unexpected, filled with support and blessing from my colleagues and boss. By leaving, it has given me the opportunity to reflect and appreciate. So, my journey begins...

Bro dropped both E and me off at the Pearson Airport. Same destinations to Lima, Peru, but I am flying with LAN and E is flying with AC.  My first stop - New York JFK Airport.  What can I do for a 6-hour layover? I examined my options - Manhattan? Flushing? After taking into consideration the commute time, I decided to stay put at Terminal 4 of the airport. The Airtrain connects all the terminals. However, I was told by an airport personnel that T4 is the most "happening" of them all.

Terminal 4 of the JFK Airport

I walked from one end of the terminal to the other, and then back again for 6 or 7 times. There are a few shops, selling the typical higher-end or mainstream North American merchandise like Diesel, Gucci, Guess etc. Nothing overly exciting.  Finally, I settled down at a table in the food court and grabbed a cup of tea and some soup from Au Bon Pain, since I could not justify having a $15 burger from the airport restaurant. 

I think the lesson learned here is to not book a long layover when traveling alone, especially when the husband is flying direct!