travel

April 3, 2018November 25, 2019

The Heart of an Elephant

~ This story was first published on World Nomads. ~

“This is a story about my experience with the natural beauty of Thailand, Thai culture and people. But mainly this is a story about a beautiful creature named LD, a baby elephant I met while traveling in Thailand. She was just 32 days old when I met her, but held lifetimes of love and joy in her heart.

It was the end of November and I had been in Thailand for just under a week. Among other experiences, the week had been filled with a very long overseas flight, loud traffic in the streets of Bangkok, sketchy hostel stays and awkward attempts to properly request vegan meals from street food vendors. I had been reading about all the beautiful temples and breathtaking natural sites in northern Thailand for weeks and weeks prior to my trip. I had been looking at the all gorgeous beach photos shared all over the internet lusting to be there. I had even attempted to learn a few phrases in Thai, but the locals would just stare at me with a half smirk and what I first thought to be full on judgement while I’d end up finishing my statements in English. It had only been a few days, but I had experienced so much! And I was tired, so tired. I had not slept a full 8 hours length since I left home, that place that seemed so distant on the other side of the world…

I had made flexible plans to head up north from Bangkok, eventually making my way up to Chiang Mai. I had read so much about this place, supposedly being the hip spot in northern Thailand. And once I got there I found that it was, sort of… After an overnight train ride I made it there bright and early, with no set plans of where I was going to stay. Upon arrival I felt overwhelmed and a little lost among all other backpackers, mostly from northern Europe. Secretly I wanted to blend in and pretend I was local, but I sure did not. Deep down, all I wanted was to learn the culture, to better understand it and experience it.

After wandering the streets of Chiang Mai for 2 days, I decided it was time to make it up to the hill tribes, the place where the true locals were. And the place where the elephants were… After a lot of research I found a place that really cares about the elephants, and the native people there. My visit was a frozen day in time that I will never forget. I got to spend all day with the sweetest group of elephants caring for them, bathing them and feeding them. Words cannot describe how much love and happiness those creatures emit.

That was one day I will never forget. That was one day that when I felt most at home, away from home! ”

This place that I visited is called Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Chiang Mai Thailand. Eco-travel and animal rights is a topic of high importance to me so I always research places that offer encounters with wildlife to assure their ethical practices. From my research and personal experience I found that EJS does just that. Even though this post was in no way sponsored, solicited, or even asked for by the organization, I felt inspired to share it with the world to help other travelers and animal lovers in their research as well.

One of the most common issues that is encountered in Thailand and other countries with, what we may consider, exotic animals is the tourist entertainment offers for animal riding or circus type animal performance. These types of performances have a great negative impact on the health, well-being and longevity of the animals, hence they are highly non-advisable even though some places try to convince tourists otherwise. This is a topic of great controversy so I highly recommend doing your own research from various sources before making decisions and bookings. I was fully satisfied with my experience at this place, hence I decided to share this post. If it perked your interest you are welcome to learn more on their website.

I hope you enjoyed this sharing, and above all I hope that you explore our beautiful planet with a light foot and an open heart! The elephant story as well the rest of my experience traveling around Thailand and southeast Asia will be continued on other future posts…

With gratitude,

~ Erinda

February 20, 2018November 25, 2019

Demystifying Indian Food

DISCLAIMER:
This blog post may make you drool, so prepare yourself accordingly 🙂

Indian food feast – photo by Erinda Martin

I already loved Indian food before going to India. But while traveling and living there for three months, I quickly discovered how few dishes I had even tried from this vast and delicious cuisine. I vaguely remember way back when I first started going to Indian restaurants in USA and trying to understand the menu so I can decide what to order. Usually, I would end up confused and just order some type of curry with rice and naan bread, missing out on so many other dishes because simply I did not understand them or had not seen them before. This was before the time of “googling” your food. I bet many people have experienced this before, whether it is with Indian food or some other exotic cuisine. With this in mind, I prepared this blog post in attempt to simplify some Indian food staples for anyone out there who is curious to try it but is not familiar with it yet. Some of these dishes may not even be available in typical Indian restaurants outside of India. At least, this list of dishes with photos and explanations will give an idea of the variety and options there may be available when considering ordering something else in a restaurant, instead of some type of curry dish with rice, naan bread…. Are you ready for a delicious ride?

Breakfast Dishes:

Masala Chai, spiced black tea with milk. Traditionally this is made with cow milk, but I found places that offered plant based milk options as well. Visit my previous blog post here for the step by step recipe including the full list of spices.

Kashmiri Chai, spiced tea from the Jammu and Kashmir area of northern India

Lemon Ginger Honey tea, a staple in every eatery I visited across northern India

Paratha, a pancake type flatbread, with porridge and Masala chai

Paratha with poha, flattened rice mixed with spices, veggies and roasted nuts, served with sauteed vegetables and curd

Lunch and Dinner:

Thali, a buffet style dish typically served for lunch or dinner

Matar Masala, a spicy sauce dish with green peas served with rice and Chapati, unleavened flatbread

Khichri (or Khichdi), a dish made with lentils, rice and variety of spices and ghee

Dosa, an Indian style crepe made with spices and fillings, served with chutneys

Masala Dosa with sambar, a spicy stew, and coconut chutney served with chai

Dessert Dosa (Banana Chocolate) in the making

Street Food and Snacks:

Alooo Chaat, mashed potato cake with lentils, spices and chutneys

Pani Puri, also known as Gol Gappa, crispy puff balls served with sweet & spicy sauce

Momos, a type of dumpling, filled with veggies and served with chili sauce

Aloo Bonda, potato bread roll made with spices

Vada, a savory doughnut made with spices

Papad, crispy spicy and savory bread chips

These are only a few of the dishes and snacks I experienced (and loved) during my time living in India. Keep in mind how large of a country and vastly diverse India is, even though in the west we tend to categorize Indian food and culture as one size fits all. Each region of India has its own style of cooking, spicing food, and preparing as well as serving dishes. My experience was primarily in northern India, but I know for sure that soon enough I will experience the rest of this beautiful country and its cuisine.

I hope you enjoyed this read and feel motivated to experiment with your taste buds.

~ Erinda

January 20, 2018November 25, 2019

A Perfect Cup of Chai

Chai stand in India – photo by Erinda Martin

During my travels across India I got spoiled with delicious Masala Chai everywhere I went. Masala means spice mix, and Chai means tea. I find it funny that we usually call it Chai Tea in the west, because obviously we are calling it “Tea Tea” if you think about it. Anyways, whatever you want to call it, there are tea stalls everywhere in India and there is no shortage of spices or the will of Chai makers to prepare a fresh cup upon request. A cup of freshly prepared Masala Chai became a daily ritual for me, one that I knew would become challenging to maintain once I returned home in USA. I find that any Chai that I have tasted in USA is saturated with cinnamon flavor and aroma lacking on all the other spices. Realizing this quickly as I have just arrived back home in the U.S., I decided to make my own Masala Chai following the authentic recipe that my good Indian friend and fellow Yogi, Sumit, shared with me in India. Are you ready? Below I have listed all the ingredients for a spicy cup of fresh Masala Chai. If you are trying this on your own, I recommend testing out the amounts of each listed spice until you find the perfect balance for your own taste buds. Ready, go!

Dry spices for Masala Chai – photo by Erinda Martin

Ingredients:

Milk – whole or hemp milk for non-dairy option – half cup milk per one cup Chai
Water – half cup of water per one cup of Chai
Black Tea – English Breakfast type, unflavored – 1 table spoon per cup
Ginger – 1 inch or 2.5 centimeter piece
Nutmeg powder – half teaspoon
Cardamom pods – 2 to 3 pods
Cloves – 2 to 3 buds
Fennel seeds – about 10 seeds
Cinnamon stick – about 1 inch or 2.5 centimeter long stick
Whole black peppercorns – 2 to 4 or more for spicier Chai
Saffron – 1 to 2 pistols
Sweetener – jaggery, brown sugar, or coconut sugar for low glycemic diet – amount to taste

You will also need a mortar and pestle to freshly grind the spices, as well as a fine mesh strainer.

Preparation:

Peel and chop the ginger.
Break up the cinnamon stick to small chunks.
Crack open the cardamom pods extracting the seeds and discard the shells.
Mix the cinnamon, cardamom, clove, fennel and peppercorn and grind them with mortar and pestle.
Add the nutmeg powered to the ground spices, along with the ginger and water in a pot and bring them near boil over medium heat.
Add the black tea and bring them to quick boil.
Add the milk and bring them to another quick boil, occasionally stirring the mix to avoid over-boil.
Just before the boil add the saffron.
Remove from heat and pour over fine mesh strainer onto a container.
Double strain to remove spice residue, pouring directly to cup the second time.
Add sweetener of choice to taste.Here you have it, a delicious home made cup of Masala Chai, spicy and delicious to make your taste buds dance with excitement! Cheers!

Special thanks to my friend Sumit for passing on this recipe to me. I have tested it on my own and shared some homemade Chai with family and friends, with satisfactory feedback. I hope you all give it a try and enjoy it as well!

~ Erinda

December 20, 2017November 25, 2019

Memories from Southeast Asia

I wrote this post last year around this time when my husband, Seth, and I had just returned from an unforgettable trip to southeast Asia. I got to celebrate my big 30th birthday there scuba diving among many other amazing experiences… I never posted this entry anywhere, and I actually never finished telling the story. So, I’ll start by sharing the beginning of it this time. And hopefully in the near future I’ll finish sharing all the rest of it.

______________________________________________________________________

3 weeks. 3 countries. Big 30th birthday! No expectations. Just miracles!

Southeast Asia stole my heart. I absolutely loved it, all the ups, the minor downs, and everything else in between! From bathing with baby elephants to feeding monkeys, from sunrise at one of the ancient world’s wonders to scuba diving among beautiful marine life, along with endless ancient temples and gorgeous serene beaches, Southeast Asia provided more than I even imagined. I fell in love every morning waking up and stayed up late night after night as life in those moments was more exciting than the idea of a good night sleep.

We spent a few months planning this trip, although the real planning started just a few weeks before the departure date. This was certainly the trip of a lifetime, but only until the next one… Yes, the travel bug has inevitably bitten me and therefore more worldly adventures are in our near future horizon already. More on this later so stay tuned!

~ Erinda

To be continued…

November 3, 2017May 14, 2020

Hello from India!

Hello world, I am writing to you from beautiful India, filled to the brim with excitement to be here! I arrived in Delhi on November 1st and I am planning to travel around this fascinating country for three months. During this time, I plan on visiting sacred sites, explore forts and royal dwellings, advance my Yoga practice and teaching, experience and learn new styles of meditation, enjoy some beautiful nature, and most definitely eat the most delicious food, ever!

Words could not do justice in explaining the vastness of my joy right now. I have been wanting to make this trip reality for years, and so now it finally is. In my best attempt to showcase glimpses of this beautiful country and culture, I will continue on this post with photos instead, hopefully expressing a thousand words through them. I hope you enjoy! Make sure to check on my public Instagram feed here for regular posts as I move around the country.

Chalo Chale? Basically meaning “let’s get going” in Hindi 😉 I do love languages after all!

Traditional Indian dancers outside Red Fort

POST NOTE:

If you enjoyed these photos from my first few days in India, you may really enjoy the new Instagram account I created specifically dedicated to travel photography. Check it out here and show some love with your thumbs and words!

~ Erinda