Reality TV | GRRRL TRAVELER

Video: “Sunrise on the Ganges”, Varanasi

Filed under Photo Essays, Religious by Christine Ka'aloa on June 10, 2009 at 5:03 pm {no comments}

GrrrlTraveler’s Postcard Diaries: Sunrise on the Ganges, Varanasi, India
(2min video)

…My boat cruise down the ganges at 6A felt beautifully special …and not, with reason that at least a 100 of other tourist boats were out on the waters racing to make the length of the Ganges before sunrise! By boat is the only way to see the overall bathing ghat life, morning sun salutations, chanting, meditations, yoga postures and people washing their clothes on Ganges. Man, woman and child are there- a dip in the Ganga water is considered holy and purifying, so many lather up and take a baths in it too! Most are so devout and absorbed in their water ritual, they can be nonchalant about the 100+ tourists boats observing and photographing their every move.
[Excerpt from "Varanasi's Humorous Underbelly"-- Click here for actual blog...]

Filming ‘MTV’s True Life’ and it’s Go-Go Lives

Filed under Off-beat, Weird... Reality!, Others by Christine Ka'aloa on January 15, 2009 at 12:49 pm {no comments}

It’s about an hour and 45 min drive from my apartment in New York City to “Philly”. Our shoot is in the South Street district, the southern part of Phildelphia in a neighborhood characterized by a lot of 3-story residential apt buildings streets and cute nookish bars and restaurants.. Cozy and quaint, the neighborhoods in this area seem reminiscent of college towns or the West Village in NYC. Our shoot location is a 5 min drive from our Marriott Courtyard hotel in the City Center (aka “downtown”) district which rings of Liberty Bell architecture and Americana statues. The downtown “nut” streets like Walnut and Chestnut have a string of fusion restaurants ranging anywhere from creative, healthy, popular and fast food. There is everything from vegetarian wrap and smoothie joints, to contemporary Thai, Philly steakhouses and Dunkin Donuts. I am not without my vegetarian food options here ( if you can find street parking and can manage ultra tight east coast parallel parking!).

I am on a shoot for a MTV True Life Presents show about women and their breasts. The girl we’re shooting here is a Go-Go dancer so the peek into her life supplements for my lack of sightseeing Philadelphia proper. Sometimes, working as a camera person can be glamorous work with travel perks and sometimes, its WORK where my touristing turns solely into sightseeing into other peoples’ private lives. This shoot is the latter and while my crazy boot camp shoot schedule has currently disappointed my expectations to actually sightsee/experience Philadelphia, there is still the “privilege” of gaining access into windows I would not normally think to scrutinize. (more…)

Iowa: Cedar Rapids & Suriving Last-Minute Business Travel

Filed under Off-beat, Weird... Reality!, Others by Christine Ka'aloa on December 8, 2008 at 12:30 pm {no comments}

My day began at 5:30A when my XYZ Car service picked me up at my apt to shuttle me off to La Guardia airport to meet up with my D.P. and catch a flight to Cedar Falls, Iowa for a last minute 2-day shoot for MTV’s Engaged & Underage.

Rule #1- It is NEVER advised to schedule someone on a connecting flight with only 1/2 hr leeway to get to their gate.

a) you never know how far the airport terminal of your connecting flight will be &
b) have to allow for possible delays and weather
(*especially if you’re traveling during winter!)

The connecting airport- Chicago O’Hare. CHI-O’Hare is an airport which I’ve frequented through several touchdowns and generally like. It won me over several years back with its self-cleaning plastic rotating toilet seat covers (to make me feel like they have my sanitation concerns at heart), but my one rant is that this is a big airport and the terminals can be a hike…even if your connecting flight is on the SAME airlines carrier. Hauling camera equipment on your back while running a mile to your gate with your overnight rolling duffle, because your plane got delayed in taxi due to “snow & ice” weather conditions, is not a cheerful start to getting to your shoot. Carriers these days, have gotten to touting haughty attitudes to customers and some will close their doors 10 minutes earlier than the ticketed departure (with the reprimand that you were supposed to have gotten there 2 hrs earlier!) Needless to say, we missed our flight and had to take the next one out. (more…)