By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Apr 15, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Part 2 of 4: FINDING A HOME. When we left home we left with the hope that we’d find the city for us. We’d walk the streets and feel comfortable. We’d savor the foods and feel fine if we got fat there. We’d see the homes and picture ourselves there. It would feel like home. After visiting more than 200 cities, where have we decided to settle? Follow us on the second Wednesday of each month to discover what traveling the world taught us about where we want to call home.
Click here to read Part I of Finding a Home: Living in a Developing or Developed Country
Having decided last month that the developed world is where we want to live, which country? Do we want to live surrounded with the history of Europe? Do we want to enjoy the culinary delights of Hong Kong and Singapore? Do we want to live in the Land Down Under?
HE SAID…
I have always seen myself as someone who would live abroad. I’ve dreamt of returning home for my 30th high school reunion to elicit envy for my globetrotting lifestyle. I’d call places like Monaco, Chamonix and Singapore home, maybe all at once. Most of all, I’d be able to say I went somewhere in life, somewhere exotic compared to Middle America.
Beyond the allure of living abroad I see some quantifiable benefits. I’d be freer to start new businesses with national healthcare instead of employer-based care. I’d be more easily able to quickly visit interesting places based in Europe or Asia. I’d be able to take public transportation instead of sitting in traffic. These lifestyle benefits can’t be discounted.
It’s easy to picture myself living in a modern metropolis like Busan.
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Matt & Erica Chua: Living Abroad vs. the USA
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Apr 8, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET The End Times are all the rage, ignoring the Mayan distraction, it’s still apocalypse now for many fundamentalists. A quick search of google reveals that “end times” has 2.6 billion results, compare this to a paltry 1.4 billion results for “God” himself and it’s clear that it’s a question on many minds. While the end of days can be debated until that very last day, what would it be like to know for certain that you’re living in the Book of Revelation? For Ephesus and Pergamon in Turkey, being part of Revelations isn’t up for debate, they are actually in the Book of Revelation.
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If the end of days is more figurative than literal, merely representing the end of all that we accept as permanent, Ephesus today could be exactly what John the Baptist envisioned for the end of the world. Standing as one of the world’s great cities for 2500 years, today it lies in ruin. The collapse of such a city could have been nothing short of the end of the world for those that see the civilization they live in as timeless.
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Erica & Matt Chua: Witnessing the End of the World
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Apr 1, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Going from the Middle East to Latin America was a breath of fresh air. While the sites and experiences of the UAE, Oman, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Turkey were wonderful, the constraints of daily life wore on us. Here’s what it felt like to escape the Middle East.
HE SAID…
The Middle East is different. While China may be different because of people’s actions, or India different due to hygiene, or Brazil different due to liveliness, it’s hard to put a finger on what exactly is different in the Middle East. It’s not so much an attribute, but a feeling. Being in the Middle East feels different.
No matter where I went I couldn’t get over one thing: half of the population is imprisoned in their clothing. While some places were “more liberal”, almost everywhere we went women had to wear a burqa and head covering. Claim all the “cultural differences”, “religious” and “historical” reasons you want, but to me it is wrong. While the burqa’s fashion disaster itself is reprehensible, what it represents is worse: that women are second-class, they cannot make their own choices. Imprisonment in clothing and culture is the only way I can truly explain it.
Argentina is the polar opposite. Women and men alike are free to choose what to cover and what to leave exposed. Women are allowed to act independently, travel freely, choose their education, and responsible for the consequences of their own actions. While the Middle East is about limits, Latin America is about a life without limits. The attitudes, personalities and styles of Argentina were a much needed break from the Middle East.
All day, everyday, I’d rather be in Latin America, full of it’s infidels and fun than the Middle East.
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Erica & Matt Chua: Escaping the Middle East
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Mar 25, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET (What do you do when you have something amazing and you don’t want to share it? You tell people it’s terrible so that you can have it all to yourself. It was along that line of thinking that original settlers of Sirince named it Çirkince, which in Turkish means ugly. The founders discovered their own slice of heaven and didn’t want to share, so they called it ugly and lived happily ever after…until 1926. The small hamlet was renamed Sirince, which means pleasant. Now the perfect side-trip from Ephesus this pleasant little city gets it’s fair share of visitors. Pleasant may still be an understatement, but will hopefully keep the crowds at bay and preserve the beauty of this place for a few more years.
Şirince was settled when the Greek city of Ephesus was abandoned in the 15th century, but the “pleasant” town you see today dates from the 19th century. The old brick and stucco buildings with bright orange terra-cotta roof tiles and deteriorating wood shutters lend a medieval feel to the town. As you wind your way through the cobblestone streets the cafes draw you in and the welcoming owners beckon you to sit down for a hot drink.
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Erica & Matt Chua: The Prettiest Ugly City in the World
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Mar 18, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Part 1 of 4: FINDING A HOME. When we left home we hoped that we’d find the city for us. We’d walk the streets and feel comfortable. We’d savor the foods and feel fine if we got fat there. We’d see the homes and picture ourselves growing old there. It would feel like home. After visiting more than 200 cities, where have we decided to settle? Follow us on the second Wednesday of each month to discover what traveling the world taught us about where we want to call home.
The biggest question of all was what do we need in a home? Do we need the creature comforts of the developed world, or do we want the daily adventure of the developing world?
HE SAID…
Developing vs developed says it all, one is present-tense, happening now, one is past-tense, as in finished. I can’t lie, I love the idea of the developing world, the constant change, the action, the loose liquor laws, but I don’t think it’s for me.
The reason to live in the developing world is simple: it’s where money will be made for my generation. As the economies grow, so will the prosperity, get in early, play your cards right, and wealth will be created.
Vietnam, one of the places growth is happening today.
The downside of the developing world is the lifestyle. Sure I can live great, have a driver to deal with the endless traffic jams, have a housekeeper to clean, and have assorted other staff that I’ll never be certain what they do. Within a walled house everything seems great, but living with the crappy infrastructure, having to send my children to pretentious private schools, and being part of such a vast wealth distribution doesn’t interest me.
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Matt and Erica Chua: Finding a Home
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Mar 11, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Are we going to see a bunch of sand? Do we have enough water? Why are we visiting the desert anyways? These are the questions I asked myself as the alarm sounded at an alarmingly early 7AM. The desert doesn’t have much to offer us humans, in fact, the word “inhospitable” comes to mind, inhospitable as in “stay out!” By the end of the day though I was glad we did some desert exploring in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.
Follow this guy into the desert? Seemed like the start of an Indian Jones movie…
Visiting the desert was high on our list of things to do in Jordan, but then we got there. It cost roughly 20 times more than we were prepared to pay, offered less than half of the things we’d want to see, and, to top it all off, seemed like it was going to be way more work than I was willing to expend to be dry roasted. When I saw inexpensive tours from Dahab in the Sinai I thought, “why not?” and signed up for the Colored Canyon and White Desert Safari.
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Matt & Erica Chua: Sinai Desert
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Mar 4, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Istanbul is a unique city where East meets West, Europe is connected to Asia by a bridge and the Middle East is just a short boat ride away. Nowhere is the cultural convergence of Turkey more evident than in their diverse and vibrant markets. The Grand Bazaar in the center of the old city and the spice market on the banks of the Bosphorous offer a glimpse into the past and the opportunity to travel without leaving the country.
Grand Bazaar
Construction of the Grand Bazaar started in 1455 and continued to grow as it first housed the textile trade, then included space for the slave trade within the area. As more shop owners set up their businesses an entire quarter dedicated to commerce was born. In the seventeenth century the area became the hub of Mediterranean trade, further proof of the power of the Ottoman Empire. It seems as if the history is still present within the vaulted chambers of the historic market, the diversity of vendors is incredible and the whole area has a wonderful old world charm.
Tea cups and tea sets for sale in the Grand Bazaar
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Erica and Matt Chua: Istanbul Markets
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Sailing the Nile for three days sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Sailboats conjure up feelings of freedom, relaxation and, let’s be honest, opulence. How often do you associate sailing with anything less than the high-life? My last multi-day sailing experience, yachting around the Galapagos, was exactly what sailing fantasies are made of. Sailing on a felucca for three days up the Nile though was not.
The idea of sailing from Aswan to Luxor as the ancient Egyptians did is romantic. Wanting to see the Nile, relax and enjoy a little more of Egypt’s scenery we signed up for the two night, three-day tour. Originally we had planned to do the five-day cruise, but people had told us that two nights was plenty, actually they told us one night was probably enough. Even with this advice we decided to spend a little extra time, hoping to see more of the Nile, little did we know that extra time didn’t equate to extra distance.
Getting on the boat around 1 PM we lazily drifted a couple hundred meters to what we presume was a police checkpoint. Waiting there for a few minutes, we were excited when the captain returned to start our voyage. After drifting downstream for another 20 minutes we stopped at a beach to “swim”. Only LOCAVORista took the opportunity to dive into the Nile while our two German shipmates and I read on the boat. After LOCAVORista finished her swim the captain continued playing in the water for another hour or so. When he finally returned we were excited to really get moving, maybe actually sail.
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Erica and Matt Chua: Sailing the Nile — Dream or Dull?
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Feb 18, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. For the uninitiated it’s known as the world’s biggest party. For those who have lived it there’s no way to explain it. Dozens of major streets closed for parties with thousands of bands playing filled with millions of people partying while drinking tens of millions of beers. Carnival is crazy.
As an Argentinian we met at 4AM said to us, “I came last year and it was so crazy I had to come again with my friends.” Next time we go we’ll do the same and bring friends because there will be a next time…here’s why.
HE SAID…
A five-day adventure like Carnival is hard to sum up. With days and nights filled with the unexpected it’s hard to remember exactly what happened, so let’s review the tape. Here’s the official replay of my Carnival 2013:
With temperatures around 90 degrees through the night, $1.50 ice-cold beers are an easy way too cool off…
Number one thing I love about Carnival? It’s everything “freedom-loving” Americans have outlawed. Imagine if nine drunken, tu-tu clad, men jumped on a city truck and used it as a dance platform in your city…in Rio, the driver just shook his head and kept on driving with them aboard…
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Erica and Matt Chua: Carnival Instant Replay
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Mon Feb 11, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET Jerusalem is a loaded word. I could preface that with “these days”, but the reality is that it’s been a place of dispute more than peace. ”It has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times and changed hands 52 times,” according to Wikipedia. If Jerusalem was a sporting event it’d be the must watch game of all-time. We’d be glued to the television wondering how it was going to end, cheering when our side gained the lead and screaming in dismay when control changed hands. The only thing everyone would agree upon is that the officials, those “independent” outside arbiters, were terrible. Sadly the sporting analogy is all too apt, religions are the teams, officials are foreign powers, and Jerusalem is the trophy. Why fight for this trophy? The agnostic doesn’t see a reason.
The golden Dome of the Rock on the right is one of Sunni Muslim’s most sacred sites along with the location of the Holiest of Holies for Jewish people. Just behind this is the Church of the Sepulchre one of Christianity’s holiest sites.
Jerusalem and Israel as a whole is a place where assigned value trumps real value. The value of these places isn’t real, there aren’t $2 billion plus gold monuments like Shwedagon Paya in Myanmar. The land isn’t productive like Iowa. The riches don’t lie beneath the ground like in Venezuela. The country isn’t a paradise like Palawan. There is nothing tangible worth fighting for in Jerusalem or Israel. The reality is that if all of Israel were to fall into the ocean the world wouldn’t be affected. The problem is that people believe that it would affect us. Jewish people believe that theFoundation Stone in the Dome of the Rock is the meeting point of Heaven and Earth. Both Sunni Muslims and Christians believe that their prophet ascended to Heaven from Jerusalem. While these places have limited actual value, for the three of the world’s major religions, Jerusalem is priceless.
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Matt and Erica Chua: An Agnostic Walk Through Jerusalem
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