Public Transit - A Convenient Way Going to Downtown Lisbon, Portugal from the City's Airport

Leaving Cambodia, we boarded Air France going back to Canada via Portugal where we stayed for a few days to unwind and relax a little Lisbon, Portugal didn't disappoint us, we spent the morning strolling along the waterfront, being awed by the huge square and its manificent statutes.before heading home. The first time arriving in Lisbon, Portugal, we landed at 630 a.m and our connecting flight was at 10p.m. With a whole day to kill, we were going to stay in the airport, read and do some computer work. But the gentleman at the airport cafe was friendly and he encouraged us to explore downtown Lisbon as the airport was only 20 -30 minute bus ride. With his encouragement, we locked up our lugguage in one of lockers located outside the airport building and took a bus from there to downtown Lisbon.

There were numerous cafes and restaruants in the downtown area. It seemed in every alleyway, there were always neighbourhood restaurants setting out small tables draped in colourful tablecloth beckoning visitors to sit down and enjoy a drink or some food.

We did! We coudn't resist the temptations of soaking up the sun outside and enjoying some local seafood while at the same time marvelling at the beautiful Moorish mosaic tiles and colourful windows on the ancient buildings around us. We had a nice, slow relaxing lunch and spent our great first day in Lisbon, Portugal! Thanks to the city's public bus system which made it easy and very affordable for travellers like us to get to the downtown area without breaking our bank on taxi. Taking the bus ride, we could relax and enjoy the city scenery. On top of that, there were no traffic jams which might have delayed us from catching our connecting flight in time at the airport. A great stopover day in Lisbon, Portugal! RT, Lisbon, Portugal 01232024

Returning to Cambodia Again to Support Young Teachers and Youth Workers

During the first week we were in Cambodia, we met with H, the principal of the school. She introduced us to the staff and arranged us to visit some schools and charitable organizations helping girls and women to learn more about their work and their clients' needs.

During our stay in Cambodia, we visited two schools, a community centre, a girls and women shelter run by some Christian charitable organizations providing them with educational and skill training programs.

We also met with the heads of these organizations and made some great connections with the admin and staff. I discussed at length with H. the principal of the school, together with the social worker and other committed volunteers, who all gave me a lot of information about the students, staff, the community and the past and future planned goals and projects of the schools.

The meetings were productive as we gained a lot of insight and made a few connections with the community. With this useful information at hand, we would be able to come up with a long term plan to support the professional development of the school and staff.

The best part of our Cambodian trip this time was meeting and getting to know both the admin and teaching staff.

I did some presentations for the teachers and they liked what they were presented. I also enjoyed the part when I did a demonstartion lesson with the students and got to work with them.

The teacher in me could not be happier - being back in the classroom!

The city of Phnom Penh has changed somewhat. We noticed there were a lot more nice shops around.

We were delighted to find a few nice coffee shops around the neighbourhood. The weather was hot, hovering around 30 to 35 degree F. everyday.

In order to have some relief from the scorching sun and hot temperatures, we often seeked refuge in these nice coffee shops. We also noticed there were quite a few young professional men working on their computers in these coffee places.

They looked like they were employees working remotely from home. The only downside of our stay in Cambodia was the night when both my husband and I were sick after eating a very small amount of raw cabbage salad. I threw up so badly and violently that I thought I might die in Cambodia. I prayed all night and cried out to God to heal me and stop my violent vomiting. I kept praying and God listened to my prayers as I got better and was able to sleep. Praise the Lord! We thank God for this opportunity to once again experience His love, grace and mercy in Cambodia. RT, Phnom Penh, Cambodia 022024

Taking an Alternative Route from Guangzhou to Hong Kong for a Flight to Cambodia

I went to Cambodia for two mission trips more than a decade ago. Our mission teams were there to help run some summer camps for disadvantaged children while I was providing some training for youth leaders and young teachers. Since then, Cambodia has always been on my list of mission service work.

  Going from Guangzhou to Hong Kong would have been easy and simple by the fast train. Unfortunately, there were so many people travelling before and after the Chinese New Year that we were unable to get the fast train tickets to Hong Kong. We had to look at the other option which was taking the bus back to Guangzhou from where we were so that we would not miss our flight to Cambodia.

  After some thirty hours of bus ride, we just made it back to Guangzhou well after 10 p.m. Due to the time lost casued by the delayed bus ride, we needed to ensure we could catch the flight from Hong Kong to Cambodia the next morning. However, the trains were fully booked to HK too. The alternative was to get to the border city of Shenzhen, China so that we could cross over to Hong Kong early in the morning.

We did just that. After picking up our suitcase from J.'s place, he ordered us a Didi which took us to Shenzhen where we slept overnight at a hotel ( much cheaper than if we stayed the night on the HK side). The next morning, we took a bus specifically for taking passengers from Shenzhen to the HK airport. The company looked after our luggage and delivered us to the airport. No hassels at all.

We boarded the plane and flew to Cambodia without any incident. Eliz. arranged for us to stay at J's house which was closer to the school. J. and her roommate came and picked us up from the airport.

  It was nice having someone familiar with the local schools and area who could provide us assistance should we require any. We purchased a SIM card for easy communication with our local host.

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The next day was Sunday and we went to church where most expat. attend their Sunday service. It was a real blessing for us as we were staying in a house where there was a young Cambodian teacher was living. I was scheduled to do some teacher training and I had my PPT prepared already.

However, I would like my PPT to be presented in both English and Cambodian as there might be some teachers who might not understand me completely. I asked this young teacher to help me edit the Cambodian language of my PPT. She happily agreed and did an excellent job translating it which helped me tremendously in my training presentation. Looking forward to working with the Cambodian teachers and learning more about their schools.

  RT, Phnom Penh, Cambodia 02172024

Travelling to Guangzhou, China After Lunar New Year - Worst Possible Time

Our visit to China was lovely as we got to see many new places, meet our friends and the most important thing - being reunited with our loved one even for a short period of time. How we wished we could have spent more time in China. However, we were expected to be in another country by a certain day and needed to be in the Hong Kong Airport to catch our flight.

We knew ahead of time that travelling around the Lunar New Year would be extremely busy therefore we bought our fast train tickets from Chengdu to Fenghuang way ahead of time. The fast train was comfortable. We enjoyed our ride as we could talk, work on our computer or just relax on the train while the staff came by with food carts. But going back to Guangzhou was a completely different story.

Since we were not sure to where our friends would take us therefore we didn't purhase our return tickets back to Guangzhou where we started our China trip. It was an impossibility trying to get any plane or fast train tickets back to Guangzhou right after the Chinese New Year as everyone was getting back to work in the cities. J had been trying extremely hard to book tickets as soon as we found out where we would be after Fenghuang. Despite his almost non stop diligent efforts attempting to secure our return tickets, it was to no avail. The only option we had was taking a 13 hour bus ride from Jishou to Guangzhou, then to HK for our flight. That was exacty what we did. Though most Chinese prefer riding on the fast train these days while travelling in China, they still have the option of riding on the bus to their various destinations. However, the bus is much less comfortable and much slower than the fast train.

We were fortunate to secure three seats on the bus. But instead of the scheduled 13 hour ride, the bus took more than 30 hours to reach our destination. There were huge traffic jams everywhere on everywhere, ie. on the highways, on the streets leading out of cities, towns etc. There were times when the bus was at a snail pace or at a complete stop for hours. We had never seen such serious traffic jams and extended periods of delay. There was very few breaks during the bus ride. However, for passenger safety, Chinese laws do prohibit the buses from being driven for a few hours past midnight so that the drivers could have some proper rest.

It was a nightmarish experience we do not ever wish to experience again. However, we did see some beautiful scenery riding on the bus to Guangzhou. We passed by many rural villages and were surprised to see many recently built nice houses with cars parked in front of them, a sign of the economic growth for rural people.

But we learned our lesson and we will remind ourselves - avoid travelling or visiting China during the Chinese New Year when the world's biggest migration takes place. RT, Caught in the traffic jam right after Chinese New Year time 022024

A Day Trip to a Heritage Village in the Jishou Area, Hunan Province, China

We left FengHuang after our two day visit there and continued our holiday in the Hunan region. Travelling around the Chinese New Year, all fast trains were fully booked. Therefore, we called a Didi, an equilant to our UBER in North America, and it took us to Jishou, our next destination in China.

We arrived Jishou late in the evening and checked into a hotel booked ahead by our friends for us. We were surprised by the sheer size of the lobby, the dining area and the modern design of the hotel. Having stayed in a number of hotels in China on this trip, we were not disappointed by them at all. We found that as passport holders, we could only stay at hotels with a special license issued by the Chinese government to receive foreign visitors. This makes sense as these hotels are always staffed with personnel who could speak English and have facilities meeting the needs of the foreign tourists.

We were grateful as our friend Weiwan, her husband and friends welcome us warmly to their home province. They arranged our accommodation, transportation and also acted as our tour guide. The next day in Jishou, they arranged their friends to come and picked us up in two cars for a tour of the area close by.

We were introduced to Weiwen's friend and family who drove us to visit another old town. On this trip to China, I noticed that there seemed to have been a revived interest and enthusiasm in heritage villages across this land.

We have visited a heritage village at every city we have visited so far. China has fifty six different minority ethnic groups with diverse customs, traditions, cultures and building designs. There are much to learn about them.

After our lunch at a local restaurant right in the village, we visited the site where three provinces met at a point. we enjoyed the scenery of the heritage village located right beside a river.

Though the lineup was long for the boat ride. we did manage to persist waiting in line and took a boa ride on the river running through the middle of the town.

Our second stop was up to the top of the moutain to view the newest bridge built connecting the two cities over a steep valley. There was a recreataion park where visitors could choose to take part in some gliding activity. Our friends treated us to dinner at a local restaurant. We got to know Weiwan's friend, a retiree, having served in the Chinese army.

This was our first time meeting and listening to a veteran soldier recounting some of his war stories. He got quite emotional after I asked him some probing questions about his army days. We are grateful to have wonderful friends like Weiwan who introduced us to her good friends while we were visiting China. We learnt so much today of China's past. It seemed like we had a history lesson from this great veteran soldier. Our friends also helped making our visit to this region of China a marvellous experience, thank you, Weiwan! RT, Jishou Area, Hunan Province, Chin 02132024

Becoming a Guest at a Traditional Miao Tribe Wedding at a Heritage Village in the Fenghuang Region OF China

As we were strolling around the ancient city of Fenghuang, China, one of the representatives from a local tour company approached and chatted with us. Since we only had two full days in this region, we decided to take advantage of the time and bought a full day tour of the area close by. FOR our third day in Fenghuang, we went on a tour and visited a few places.

Our tour started bright and early with a local lady tour guide giving us some very good information about the area. Unfortunately, we couldn't understand her due to our very limited Mandarin.

We arrived at a relatively new model village and we were given sometime to explore on our own. This Miao tribe village was modern, clean and very pretty but we didn't see a lot of residents or activities there. During our trip in China, we observed and saw that the Chinese government has been working hard to alleviate poverty from rural China by promoting tourism in smaller cities and towns. So far at every town we have visited there seemed to have a reasonable new ethnic hertiage village which showcase the traditions and cultures of a certain enthnic group in the area. The heritage village somehow becomes a tourist attraction bringing in visitors to the area.

At the same time, these heritage villages help to enpower the many ethnic groups making them feel proud of their own cultures and traditions. After lunch with our tour group, we visited such a heritage village. We were treated to a live interactive show introdcuing us to a traditional wedding ceremony and way of life of the Miao tribe people.

The show was lively with lots of audience participation as many were invited as guests of the wedding party performance.

The second part of our day tour afforded us the opportunity of visiting a real Miao village inhabited by local residents. We learned that before entering a Miao village, we needed to sing a song asking for permission and as a blessing to the village. Our tour guide taught us a traditional Miao song and we sang it at the gate before gaining entrance to the village. How interesting was that! At the real Miao tribe village, we could peek into some homes briefly and respectfully. Some residents were selling their arts, crafts and dry food items right outside their homes. Some stations were set up to introduce us to the Miao way of life and cultures. The tour was very interesting. However, one of the presentations was going on a bit too long.

The third part of the tour was a visit to a beautiful lake where we took a boat ride enjoying a nice scenery of the lake.

At the end of our 1 day tour of the Funghuang area, we had dinner at a local restaurant specialized in serving fish. A great culinary experience and we loved how healthy the dishes were. It was not easy getting a taxi in Funghuang at this time of the year as many taxi drivers went back to their hometowns for their annual holiday. We stood by the street corner trying to hail a taxi for more than 45 minutes before getting one. We also observed the street vendors creative idea in setting up some games for kids and making a business out of them during the Chinese New Year celebrations.

A busy day of touring of the region; we enjoyed the day and learned a lot about the Miao tribe people of China. Highly recommended to anyone visiting this area. RT, Fenghuang Area, China 022024

Fenghuang, China - We were wowed by this Unique City of Lights

After meeting up wuth J and spending almost a week in delightful Chengdu – known for its relaxing life style, we said good bye reluctantly to this fabulous city. Hopping onto the fast train, we moved on to Feng Huang where we were invited to spend a few days with our friends from Canada.

We arrived in the evening and stayed in a hotel within a stone throw to the old city. We never heard of Feng Huang before . Having learned about our visit to China, Weiwan and her husband extended their invitation to us to her hometown in China. We were excited about meeting up with them and their friends in her childhood town.

We ventured out the next morning on our own to explore this old town. There were cultural performances already underway when we got to the square. China is made up of fifty-six minority groups and on this visit, we have learned about and met a few of these ethnic groups.

There were a few different ethnic groups each dressed in their colorful regalia showcasing their songs and dances in this special Chinese New Year celebration.

We met up with Weiwen, her husband and her friend for a late lunch and really enjoyed getting to know some local people and listening to their childhood stories in this famous city.

Our local host accompanied us to see the night view of the city in the evening.

It was spectacular! We have never seen anything so pretty and unique. It appeared as if the entire town was lit up and had been transformed into a magical town of light.

We took a stroll on the main street taking in the sight and sound of this famous ancient town. There were visitors from all parts of China and the place was humming with energy. Being confined by COVID and unable to travel overseas, millions of Chinese have been staying home and travelling within China instead. We could feel the difference in crowd sizes between our pre and post COVID visit to China.

So grateful that we could travel and visit Fenghuang in China, an absolutely enchanting old town! RT, Fenghuang, China 02 2024