Here are our favorite “nights” of sleep from our journey around the world:

The Good Sleep

It’s hard to narrow it down to just one night.  The best night of sleep I had on the whole trip was probably in Buenos Aires, in an apartment Danny’s parents rented – I was horribly sick and needed the creature comforts of home.  But the most memorable night of sleep?  I’d have to say it was camping in South Africa’s Kalahari National Park listening to the lions roar throughout the night. Earlier in the day they had wandered within a few meters of the camp’s electric fence while Danny was cooking dinner – a crazy experience to say the least.  Drifting off to sleep in the middle of nowhere under an African sky  listening to lions, it was like a surreal dream.  I won’t say I wasn’t a bit anxious about the whole thing, but I slept surprisingly well and it’s a night of sleep I’ll never forget.

The Bad Sleep

Have you ever been in a flooded tent?  When we pulled into the Malealea Lodge in Lesotho we set up our tent in an area that looked safe from water.  The caretaker told us we’d be find in water – perhaps it was a question lost in translation or perhaps the downpour was just unusual- but at some point in the night it began to rain.  A few drops turned into buckets, and we awoke soaked from the ground up.  We’ve probably camped hundreds of nights out in the woods, never have I ever woken up to inches of rain inside the tent.  Scrambling to a) get out of the tent and b) to save our worldly possessions we looked like a 1930s comedy act.  The two stooges.  Chalk it up to being half asleep, but we managed to get out of the tent, get into a small unlocked rondavel and crawl into two warm, dry beds.  In the morning we dried everything out on the grass- you can bet we didn’t stake up there the next night.

The Ugly Sleep

If you thing something small can’t have a big impact, think about the mosquito.  Our night in Harar, Ethiopia will forever be the worst night of sleep in my life.  Earlier in the evening Danny had suffered from some digestion issues that left him feverish, shaking and slightly delirious.  With the water out at the hotel, I spent the evening running buckets of water back and forth from our room to the cistern in order to force flush the toilet.  Without our mosquito net and first aid kit, we had broken the two rules of backcountry camping – we had left our survival gear behind.  Needless to say, Danny spent the night feverishly running to the bathroom to kill all assortment of bugs when the lights turned on, only to return to bed to be bothered by mosquitoes.  Zipping around the room all night it felt like we were at war and Danny was the walking wounded.  Getting up for a 3am is generally not easy, but that morning we were all too happy to evacuate and get out of Harar.

Ever had a truly memorably night of sleep on the road? What about a bad?  Ever suffered an ugly night of sleep?  Make us feel better about our GBU, share yours!

Interestingly enough, the tomb of Tu Doc doesn’t actually hold his remains – instead it is used as a temple to worship the Emperor.  At one time it was probably filled with art and treasure, now lost. Like all good royals, the Emperor left a mystery- the location of the Emperor’s remains are unknown because the servants involved in his burial and death ceremonies were beheaded to keep his final resting place a secret.  Likely, he’s somewhere on the tomb’s grounds… maybe near the concubine’s hang out.

This is actually a picture of the Stele pavilion at entrance to the tomb.  A stele is used to tell a story.  Tu Doc’s stele is enormous and chronicles his reign.  Perhaps most unusual about the stele is that it documents his illnesses and mistakes.  A shockingly honest ruler for a man that beheaded his servants.

Behind the stele are the remains of scaled down horses, elephants and soldiers to remain with him in the afterlife.

IF YOU GO: Vietnam makes a great choice for tailor made holidays as there’s a lot to see and unless you have unlimited time, not enough hours in the day to get it all in.  Until 1945, Hue was the imperial capital of the Nguyen dynasty.  Outside of Hue there are several royal tombs that are often combined into one day. We went to the tomb of Tu Doc, Minh Mang, Kali Dinh and the Thien Mu Pagoda, but there are plenty of smaller tombs and sites along the river if you feel the need to explore.  The tombs are a decent distance from the city, so unless you’re up for a long day of biking, skip the DIY bike rental.  If you’re looking for inexpensive souvenirs, there’s a small tourist market near the Thien Mu Pagoda that is worth a look if you’re up for bargaining.

There are a few famous dances: the Barong, Legong and Kecak. Each has it’s own characteristics of movement and characters. The Barong, for example, is named after Barong, a king of the spirits, who resembles a lion. This dance commonly depicts the struggle between Barong and Rangda – the evil queen.

The Legong, the dance of the girls, is performed by girls who have not yet hit puberty. Known for it’s expressive facial expressions, finger movements and very complicated footwork, the dance is somewhat of a pantomime of traditional stories.

Kecak depicts the battle between Prince Rama and King Ravana from the Ramayana.  Performed almost exclusively by men, a large group of dancers perform the dance in a circle, chanting and dancing in coordination with each other.  Interestingly, despite it’s religious origins – the dance is less than 100 years old! 

The picture below is from a Barong and Legong performance in Ubud. I love the fantastical costume of the performer as well as the painstaking detail of the set.

IF YOU GO: Bali is an incredible place for cultural travel.  It’s unlikely that you’ll come upon one of these dances in a village, so don’t gawk at booking the experience at a theater for tourists.  Ubud is a major art and cultural center so it’s made a name for itself as a stop for a variety of cultural shows, including Balinese dance.