“I figured out size does matter in the canine brain. Bill – golden retriever – very smart animal. When he was a puppy and I had to potty train him, if he pooped on the living room carpet, I stuck his nose in it. Three time later, he figured out ‘Oh, I am not supposed to crap here!’. Next two dogs, the same thing.

Now the little brain-dead Chihuahua comes along. She poops on the living room carpet, I stick her nose in it; three times later she thinks ‘Oh, I am not supposed to crap ever!’….. And that’s why they shake.”

The TSA did pretty much the same thing. On December 26th 2009, Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab tried to blow up a Northwest Airlines plane as it was preparing to land in Detroit. The usual noises followed ranging from blaming Obama for the incident to demanding that all Muslims be made to go through special security checks.

This incident could have been prevented if Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab was not allowed to board the plane in the first place. All the warning signs were there: Umar’s father had warned the CIA about Umar,  anti-terror chiefs were warned five months ago that an al-Qaeda cell in Yemen was plotting a deadly attack using “The Nigerian”. Disregarding both these (vital) pieces of information, here is someone who bought one-way tickets from Nigeria to Yemen to the USA paying only cash and with no baggages to check-in. This should have raised suspicions, and he should have been singled out for additional security and through additional scanners.

Metaphorically speaking, TSA pooped on the living room carpet and the Nigerian stuck their nose into it! One would expect a rational response to be better mechanisms to profile passengers, not according to race or religion (which seems to be what all the rage is about), but according to passenger behavior. In this case, someone on the “alert list”, paying cash for a one-way transcontinental flight, with no check-in baggage would qualify as suspicious behavior. That would be saying “Oh, I am not supposed to crap here!”.

Instead, the TSA chooses to think “I am not supposed to crap ever!” and decides to put ALL passengers through additional security increasing [Bangkok Post, EUObserver, NY Times].

Late in the evening, you can walk down to the falls to see it illuminated in rainbow colors. Its quite a sight. Also, there is the fireworks on some evenings. They are definitely worth a dekko, and you wont have to spend a

penny.

Firework display on the falls

The HI Hostel itself has something called ‘pub crawl’ on weekend evenings. If you are the kind who enjoys bars and pubs, you might want to go to that. Its also a great way to meet other people in the hostel.

That’s the end of day 1. Now day 2.

On day 2 go take you adventure pass and get an extra day’s people mover pass for $5 or so. You pass still has a free ticket to the butterfly conservatory. Its the largest indoor conservatory in the world, and is a great place to spend a good hour or so. Its swarming with thousands of butterflies that are all over the place. Here are a few pics to give you an idea of what to expect.

After the conservatory, although it really isnt much, you can take the people mover shuttle to the floral clock. But if you are running short on time, then dont bother. Here’s what it looks like:

On your way back, make sure to stop at the Whirlpool Aero Car. Here, the Niagara River makes a 90 degree turn forming the largest whirlpool in the world. The aero car ride itself in $10 or so, and its a fun ride to go to, if you can afford it. Else, you have be content with seeing the whirlpool from the sides.

Here, it worth taking a hike on the road around the whirlpool. Along the way you’ll see a hiking trail, take it and go down on the hike. It actually ends at the banks of the whirlpool. Its really calm beautiful and serene out there. If you are the kind who loves nature, this is definitely something you should do.

Now, if you love hiking and nature, then Niagara Glen is one place you definitely do not want to miss out on. It has really beautiful hiking trails that will not disappoint you.

Niagara Glen will last you the rest of the day, and be sure to get back and get some rest for day 3.

Money spend so far = $100 or so

Day 3, Check out in the morning, and I suggest you spend at Niagara-on-the-lake. You can take a shuttle to get there that costs a shade less than $20. Niagara-on-the-lake was the first capital of Canada, and has some beautiful architecture that is worth a view. You can also spend some time on the banks of lake Ontario, and even take a swim if you want.

And that concludes your 3 day trip to Niagara falls, all for less than $120! :)

But first, Bookings: All you need to book in advance is your accommodation. I recommend the Hosteling International youth hostel, Rainbow Hostel. Its cheap, and close to the bus terminal, train terminal, the Whirlpool Bridge (connecting USA and Canada), and close to the local bus shuttle. Cost for two nights stay: $55

Lets plan the budget itinerary for Day 1:

Arrival: Arrange to arrive in the morning. That works out best. You can still make it work if you arrive early in the afternoon. Arriving late in the evening is just paying an extra day’s accommodation at the hostel.

The first thing you should do, upon arriving at Niagara Falls is to buy the Discount Pass for the Niagara Falls attractions. It gives you tickets for four attractions: Maid of the mist, Journey behind the falls, White water walk, and Butterfly conservatory. It also includes a free one-day pass on the people mover buses. Cost: $44

The pass gives you two advantages: (1) you get a discount on each of the four attractions, and (2) you get free transportation to your youth hostel (Rainbow Hostel).

If you arrive later in the afternoon, then first check into the hostel. In order to get to the hostel, just get off at the White water walk stop on the people mover. The hostel is at a walkable distance from there. If you happen to come by bus, then walk to the hostel, it just a couple of blocks from the bus terminal. And yeah, you can buy the Discount Pass at the hostel too.

First, before jumping on all the rides/attractions. Take a good look at what you came to see. See the falls from above first! And best of all, its free to see them. I know it sounds absurd to have to pay to see the falls, but considering you have to pay for seeing everything else, this seems like a huge bonus. There are two falls: the American falls, and the Canadian horseshoe falls.

American Falls	Canadian Horseshoe Falls

Be sure to walk to the top of the falls to get a feel of the awesome power of the falls. 20% of world’s freshwater flows over the falls! Its quite a sight to behold.

Once you have has a chance to look at the falls for as long as you like, you can then proceed to the rides. The first one I’d recommend is the Journey behind the falls. In this ‘ride’, you go down an elevator for over 54 meters and see the falls from less than 9 meters away. The sheer size and roar of the falls is overwhelming at this point. This is followed by a walk into the tunnel behind the falls and you get to see from behind the falls. All you see is a white wall of water, but the roar is amazing!

The next ride that I recommend everyone take is the Maid of the mist. This is probably the most popular ride that everyone who goes to Niagara Falls takes; in part because it is offered from both the American and Canadian side. This boat ride is the oldest at Niagara Falls and takes you as close to the Canadian falls as possible without dangering either the boat or the people on it. It starts downstream at the Niagara river and starts moving upstream going past the American falls. It is on this ride that you experience the magnitude of the falls. As you go past the American Falls you are drenched in the mist that is generated from tonnes of water splashing on the rocks at the bottom of the falls. The ride then takes you upstream to the larger, and more impressive Canadian Horseshoe falls. It is virtually impossible to see through the mist generated from the water falling from a height of 54 meters on to the rocks below (hence the name ‘Maid of the Mist’. As you approach the falls, you cant help but be drenched in the perpetual rain from the mist. Its a good experience to do once. I don’t think you’d be too excited to do it again; but for doing it for the first time its a good deal.

American Falls, seen from Maid of the Mist	Canadian Falls, seen from Maid of the Mist

The above two are quite close to each other and together should take you no more than 2 hours. Adding this time to the 2 hours you spend admiring the falls from above the gorge, you will have spent about 4 hours. If you arrive in the morning, this will leave you with enough time to visit a couple of other places downstream.

Its time to ride the shuttle that you paid for in the discount pass. Ride on it all the way to the White water walk. If its later in the afternoon, then when you get off at White water walk, get to the Rainbow Hostel (its close by) and check-in.

Next, to white water walk. White water walk is essentially a walk along the bank of the Niagara river for about half a kilometer where Niagara breaks out into level 6 rapids. This is one of the most violent and dangerous rapids in the world. Though there are many stretches or rivers in the world where you will find level 6 rapids, this is the only one that you see from such close quarters. This stretch is considered virtually unnavigable, and many have lost their lives trying to make it across these rapids. It is definitely worth a dekko. If you haven’t seen rapids before, then this will definitely impress you. These rapids are as bad as they get.

At this point, its late enough to have your stomach growling. Time for lunch. Check into the youth hostel and take your groceries out. Help yourself to some quick fix TV dinner style lunch at the kitchen. Its not exactly home cooked food, but it beats having to pay $15 for lunch outside :)In the next part, we’ll talk about how to best spend the rest of the evening at Niagara Falls.Expenditure so far: $55 + $44 = $99

First off, lets see typically, how much a three day trip to Niagara Falls costs:

• Stay $50*3 = $150
• Food $20*3= $60
• Attractions = $50
• Tourist Traps = $40

That brings your total to about $300 or thereabouts. But I can show you how to bring that down to a manageable $120 or so. How? Well read on :)

For starts, the biggest expense is (obviously) accommodation, or stay. The cheapest motel casts over $50 per day, on the other hand youth hostels (like Hosteling International) are much cheaper. Lets debate the pros and cons of staying in a youth hostel.

Pros:

• The hostel charges on a per person basis. So if you are traveling alone this is much cheaper.
• The hostel has a well set up kitchen. This allows you to bring your own groceries and cook your own food bringing down the cost of the food to almost zero. So the saving is not just on the stay, but on the food as well.
• You meet people from all parts of the world at the hostel. This makes for an interesting group to hang out with. Also, if you are looking fro someone to see the place with, you are more likely to find a comrade in a youth hostel than a motel.
• Youth hostels often arrange for their guests to experience the nightlife, if any, in the area.
• The youth hostels are typically located close to downtown, or is in close proximity to the attraction you are visiting. Typically, a cheap motel is much further away, and you have to deal with the problem to having to get to where are want to go to every time. But with youth hostels, it is not an issue at all.

Cons:

• Rooms are smaller, much smaller, and you share it with strangers.
• They have common bathrooms and showers. Hence, limited privacy.

To me the Pros outweigh the cons, and I would definitely recommend a youth hostel to people (especially if you are traveling alone).

Assuming that you are staying in a youth hostel, the preparation for the vacation starts with the packing itself. Make sure you have packed some groceries or eateries for the three days vacation. Why? Because youth hostels have kitchens and you can cook in them! Get some Ramen noodles, breakfast cereals, oatmeal, etc. Stuff like eggs, juices etc. are available at grocery stores close to the hostel in Niagara Falls.

Since you are packing for just three days, its fair to assume that your baggage fits into a backpack that you can carry around with you without much discomfort.

The next part will focus on planning your itinerary for the three days, all within $120.

“Czech Museum, and here?”, I thought to myself each time, and told muyself that I have to see it sometime. That sometime took over 3 months to arrive. It finally did yesterday. It was mostly thanks to a good friend of mine who was so thoroughly bored with College Station that she was desperate for a change and not knowing what to do about it, she called me. If anything has to do with getting out of college station, I am always interested. In my infinite wisdom , I sugessted Caldwell, and she agreed.

Caldwell is just 25 miles from college station, so we set off late at about 1:00 in the afternoon. I saw the raod sign that said “Czech Museum” and promptly turned left. I was entered the interior of caldwell, and the sight it offered had me surprised, amused and pleasently so. Unlike College Station or many other towns in the state, this town had a personality. The business district (historical) looked like it was all frozen in time, different buildings at different periods. On every street, one saw architectures typical to the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and present day. Every building has a distinct style and unique taste. Almost like each one of them had a story to tell. They were only waiting to be asked. The ‘arrested development’ in time, the rustic set up, the laid back attitude of the people all gives the town a personality that one cant help but admire. One gets a feeling that the place is welcoming you with a whole hearted smile.

After about 20 minutes of fruitless search for the museum, we stopped at an antique store for directions. Nice lady at the store directed us to the civic (and visitors) center. The civic center had a small room full of czech artifacts from the beginging of czech settlers’ arrival to texas. The czechs first settled in texas in 1840s and developed into successful agricultural communities. The artifacts suggested that musical and theatrical performances played a central role in the culture, which was kept alive through folk songs from their homeland.

Caldwell hosts the annual Kolache festival. Kolache is a czech pastory made of bread, meat and fruits. Coldwell is famous for it and is called the ‘Kolache Capital of Texas’.

At the civic center we discovered that muesum is open only if a prior appointment has been setup. So, we set one up at the spot and were there in half an hour. The museum turned out to be a house that was set up in the traditional style of the late 19th century with period furniture and artifacts that reflected the czech culture of that time. At the museum we were greeted by Maria, an old lady who takes care of the place. She is a second generation czech born and raised in Caldwell. The place hosted maniquines with traditional dress worn by the czech community during the late 19th century. It was hard to believe that it was all hand done with croquet. Some of the designs on the dresses, gowns and quilts were too exqusite for it to have been done single handed. The glassware and porcelin on display had amazing decorations on them. The cut glass shone like diamond in the incandescent light.

The place had a lot of stuff from imported from Czech Republic to keep it looking authentic and genuine. I couldnt help but admire the effort that the curator was taking in trying to keep the heritage that they hold so dear to them. There were a lot of reproductions based on old sketches, designs and paintings of that period. The place was renovated with the style and colors as they would have been in a czech home in the 1860s.

We spent over 2 hours in an area no bigger than 750 sq.ft. Maria had a lot to talk about. She virtually traced the history from 1830s to present day with amazing details from her own life and that of her parents and children. She talked of the world war and how it affected her. She talked of life as she led during her younger days, before there was running water, before there was electricity availabel in caldwell. It is one thing to see inanimate objects on display, and something unreal to hear a first person account of what they meant to the people back then, to construct a mental picture of life during those times as described by someone who has lived that life and has come to treasure it.

There were suveniors for sale, all of them were imported from Czech Republic, and so too expensive for me to afford it. We I told Maria that I wish I could buy one of them, but couldnt afford it because I was a student, she was generous enough to give me a couple of cook books saying “I know how it is to be a student, I couldnt possibly take any money from you. I am just glad that you took the time to come a visit this place”. I didnt know what to say. I dropped some money into the donation box as a small thank you for everything.

We bid her goodbye and left for College Station. This is one visit I am not likely to forget in a long time. I will probably go back there again, soon. I am yet to have a Kolache from a restaurant there. My tryst with Caldwell couldnt possibly be over with that still pending :)

The trail was nothing more than white sand poured along a beaten path. There was nothing inspiring, serene or contempative about the place or the trail. It was, unfortuneately, one of the most disappointing hikes I have been to. The only saving grace was this snap below (and it isnt much, I admit)

Determined to make the weekend worthwhile we decided to go to the Natural Bridge Caverns near San Antonio. It is supposed to be the largest natural underground cave formation in Texas and growing! Going there, I definitely did not regret. We started late and reached the place only by 2 in the afternoon, bought our tickets (yes, it’s not free). I was looking for the natural bridge, but couldnt spot it, atleast I thought I didnt spot it. It was only later that I realized what the ‘natural bridge’ was… it wasnt much, just this:

Once we entered into the caverns, it was nothing like planet earth as I know it. Some of the limestone formations that I saw left me spellbound, speechless and awestruck. You dont need any speacial fx for sci-fi movies, it was all here. It looked unearthly, and creepy. The toughest part was to photograph them. The exposure for some of the shot was as long as 1″!! Ended up a bunch of blurred exposures thanks to motion. Without tripod, it is humanly immpossible to hold the camera still for 1″ :)
I did manage to get a handful of good snaps though.
Here is a photograph that I messed with, to get a decent view of how the chamber really looks.

The chambers are really HUGE. Quite a few of them were supposed to have been inhabited by the native americans. The limestone columns and the staligtites and staligmites are a sight to behold.
I will leave you with a few pictures of the place to give yo an idea of how bizzaire the formations look…..

Now that I have sacrilegiously butchered Chaos Theory, lets go back to what this blog post is supposed to be about.

It wouldnt be exaggeration, though inaccurate, to say that I havent been home (my apartment), for over two weeks now, it has been over two weeks of vacation. It was supposed to be a well deserved break, but I find myself saying “What have I done to deserve this?”. A break by definition is supposed to last for a short period of time… then again, short by definition is subjective. So, for me, right here, right now is the limit, the boundary of what I consider a short period of time. As the ‘break’ beings to last longer, it demands reclassification, as it ceases to be a break any more. To me that reclassification is Bohemia. A break from routine is becoming a break from reality. I realized that it is not a very smart idea to spend over a week in an island that has nothing to offer but the company of other people. That’s pretty much what South Padre Island is. There is nothing beautiful inherent on this island. People go here because everyone else goes there. If you were to take all human inhabitation of the island for a brief moment in time and freeze it, the vulgarity of the place would be stark and apparent. One would detest the place of what it has become. I guess vegas has streched the limits of how we much we can endure and how carnal and beastly man’s vulgarity can be. I have, but seen a glimpse of what it is. I but tasted the pleasure, swallowed a mouthful and spit out the rest of it.

And I sit here, longing to go back home, longing to go back to life, back to routine, back to a place from where I know I can move ahead. I sit here, at brownsville airport awaiting my elusive flight to take me back to where I came from. I sit here, half way between the gutter and the stars.

I told ya I live in Texas…. US is another country…

serpent and spidy

I am now officially authorized for roadkill on the american autobahn. I celebrated that by driving off to Austin. The visit was awesome with the harley convention on the E. 6th Street, Hike along the bank of Colorado River, Sightseeing at the State Capitol Building, a relaxing walk in the Zilker Park, and of course, a buffet at an indian restaurant. :)

Tx state capitol bldg – inside

bikers’ convention in Austin

Threshold to heaven.

If there is indeed a gateway to heaven, I’ll bet it cannot be anymore beautiful than this!

This is a spot on the hiking trail at Castle Rock State Park. DaKu and #if were with me on that hike…. one of the best I have evern been on!