World Tour

The first few days

2005-08-18T18:34:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone for keeping up with my last trip. You still can´t comment on this site, but thanks to everyone who has been making sure I´m not dead.

Friday/ Saturday: Nat and I drive up and see the Jack Johnson concert at the gorge. Very cool.

Monday: I leave for Peru

Tuesday: My flight gets canceled in Detroit and I get sent to Newark where I have a ten hour delay. I use the time to catch a bus into New York City and explore Manhatan. Woa. It´s like America on steriods- capitalism, ethnicity, and pop culture all to the extream. I had no idea we had someplace like that in the U.S. crazyness.

Wednesday: I arrive in Lima at 6AM, a day earlier than my dad. I check into my hostel in central Lima. It´s an old Mansion with huge statues and paintings everywhere, and it´s only two blocks away from the presidents residence.
After checking in I walk to a 16th century monestary, filled with paintings and text from the conquistador era. Down below in the catacombs the bones of 70,000 people who were burried there are lying everywhere.
Next I go the beach, which is not tropical, but more like the oregon coast. Afer walking around for a while I go paragliding over the ocean.

Thursday: I find my dad. Remember how my hostel was right by he presidents palace? Well, today there were massive protests (non-violent for the most part) about a block away from our hostel. Hundreds of police in riot gear backed up by tanks and other weaponry prevented things from getting out of hand, and kept the presidents palace (and consequently us) protected fromt he masses. Everythng is fine though, so no worries. Tomorow we take a 18 hour bus south to Arequipa. From there we plan on exploring some of the deepest canyons in the world.

Airport Hobo

2005-01-13T01:28:00.000-08:00

Tonight I was introduced to a new culture- the airport hobo. After wondering the airport in search of a place to sleep, I came across others like myself who had migrated from the desolate lands of terminal 3, all the way to the far reaches of terminal 15 in search of a better nights sleep.
After about an hour of finding nothing but single chairs,I found in the far reaches of the airport what I was searching for: long benches not seperated by bars. Unfortunatley all of the benches had already been claimed by other hobo's, and they guarded them fiercely, keeping a watchfull eye on the other bench hunters wondering about with all their possesion beside them in a lugage cart.
Finally I spotted my claim, the last in the area, next to a snoring english man, and behind a bundled up Asian. We clung to our beds like a hobo to fire, and I eventually feel asleep to the loliby of security announcements and maintanence calls. I woke up to a bustling airport, and, adhearing tot he hobo code, I left my spot for the next wave of unfortunate souls in search of sleep.

Well Worth It

2005-01-12T17:39:00.000-08:00

This evening I left France and now find myself at the Heathrow airport, trying to find a place to sleep, and having very little success. If I didn't think I would be kicked out, I would sleep on the floor.
France was a wonderfull experiance. While staying at the Delachenal's home over the weekend I was treated to authentic French food, as well as authentic French company. Her family puts our trip to shame. Nine years ago Mr. & Mrs. Delachenal, along with their four kids, set off on a year-long journy circling the globe in their R.V. (and not one of those huge buses either), and covering every country Patrick and I have been to, plus many more. This gave us a chance to compare notes, and more importantly discover a commen bond among fellow travelers. Reguardless of their trip, and the book they wrote which acompanies it, it was extreamly pleasurable to be embraced with such unconditional hospitality.
In contrast, leaving veinne and staying with Julie (for those of you who do not know, she is a 19 year-old french girl I met while she was on exchange in the U.S.) at her appartment in Lyon was just as, if not more, rewarding. We visited an exquisit art muesem that housed many famous french paintings, and just wondered the town. I even snuck off to Switzerland for a day.
Parts of my stay were admitabley less engaging then possible. Trying to communicate and find activities can be somewhat tiresome, but the moments of pure engagement into another culture make even the most tedious moments well worth it. For it is one thing to look into the window of another culture, but it is quite another to be apart of the scene. I see this last leg of my journy as a microcausim of the trip as a whole. While in France, as with the rest of the trip, there are moments when you think you are not getting enough out of such a grand oppertunty. But, sooner, more often than later, even the simplist moment can put a smile on your face for days, and remind you why you did this, and just how lucky you are.
For me, this came one night in Lyon while hanging out with jule and her friends, just eating, drinkng and being merry. The language gap vanashed, and for at least one night I saw, and participated, in the world of the French youth.

The French Conection

2005-01-09T08:12:00.000-08:00

I am finding it increasingly difficult to force myself to sit down and write an entry for my blog. Since my last entry I have visited London, walked the Thames, and left England.
I am now staying with a friend of mine in France, splitting our time between her appartment in the metropolis of Lyon, and her family home in vienne. Both cities are pleasant. At the moment I am in vienne, a Roman city that today is very much French. It is exactly what you might expect, small roads, numerous café's, and even more fashonable clothing stores.
Europeans seem to have a much more social culture than Americans. Everyone gathers at local café's just to lounge and chat. Perhaps this is due to the close quarters they keep, but in any case I enjoy their more personable lifestyle.
Yesterday I went out with Julie and her friends, which was fun but somewhat difficult to overcome the language barrier. After introducing ourselves with kisses for what seemed like an hour (you dont understand how long it takes for everyone to give and recieve a couple kisses from everyone else) we eventually sat around at a café for a few hours just talking and sipping drinks. Smoking is very prevelent among the french youth, so much so that Julie and myself were the only ones not taking part. The group sarcasticly joked, I am sure due to the presance of an American, about how they cannot stand smoking in public. It was a fun night and a good window into their culture.
Tomorow or the next day I plan on taking the train to either Geneva (switzerland) or Paris for a day trip. Then I will spend one or two days in Lyon with Julie before flying home. My trip home will leave me sleeping in Heathrow airport one night, and possibly JFK the next, depending if I spring for a hotel.
This will most liekly be my last blog untill I'm back in Eugene, so I am not dead if there are no more entres.

Seeing Cambridge

2004-12-22T13:10:00.000-08:00

Today we took a quick tour of Cambridge guided by Patricks aunt and cousins. The city, where a school built in the 16th century is considerd new, is so rich with history that, as an American, it can be hard to grasp. Nearly every building, from churches to Burger Kings, are in buildings older than anything you would see back in the states, or at least the west coast. The mid-evil structures gives the city so much charactor that every little cobble stone street or coffe shop seems to compliment the atmosphere. While the town is obviously built around it's haritage, it's modernity mingles in great compliment to it's proudly upheald history.
It is nice to come here and see that many environmental issues are not just important when used as campaign on-liners, but in practice as well. Recycling, mass transit, and most of all the urban growth boundry are upheald with great support here. Hopefully others take note.

Cambridge

2004-12-21T15:34:00.000-08:00

Our flight to London was better than most becuase it was nowhere near capacity, allowing us to claim our own row and lay across three or four seats to catch some sleep. Patrick rode " bathroom class" for a good while, but all in all it was a good flight.
After a 2 hour bus ride from the airport (we each got our own seat) we arrived in Cambridge, and eventually the home of Patricks aunt and uncle, Mia and Patrick. They are nice people who go out of there way to make you feel welcome, as do there young daughters. Both of us were quickley covered with gifts of stickers, and entertained with head-stands by the kids. After dinner we were shown the home where Patrick and I will live alone durring our time in Cambridge. Owned by a member of the Deer family (as in John Deer), the house defied all our expectations. Considering the places we have stayed on the trip we would have been happy with warm water and heat, but we are lucky enough to get a place right in the middle of downtown Cambridge, equiped with a computer, a t.v., movies, a c.d. player, c.d.'s, and our own beds! Mia and Patrick were even nice enough to buy us food for the house. We are off to a good start in England.

Leaving the 3rd World

2004-12-21T14:44:00.000-08:00

Well, were out. We can now drink tap water, eat meals without worrying about food poisoning, and take hot showers, not to mention pay ten times as much for everything.
After ten days in Goa Patrick and I booked an overnight bus for Mumbai (Bombay), where we would spend a night and fly to London the following day. After boarding the bus we were very relieved to find it clean, and well maintained. We each happily jumped into our own birth (overhead bed) and wated to depart. Although the birth was a little to small for patrick we were both satisfied- untill we were toled each birth was for two people, not one. After playing the confused foriegner we relented and laboriously crammed ourselves into an area no larger than 3 ft wide, and 6ft long.
Seeing that we would not be able to fit unless we each lay motionless on our sides, unable to lift our heads higher than a foot from our pillow, we resolved to take a couple of sleeping pills and hope for the best. The positioning was a little to close for comfort, and we agreed that we were in need of a "man barrier". Seeing that neither of us would be tramatized by our sleeping arangments, we both unexpectedly drited to sleep. At around 1am I awoke needing to needing to pee badly. I manuverd over patrick and was eventually out of bunk. Seeing that there was no bathroom I went and asked the driver if her could pull over for a minute. He acted very anoyed, and after sitting myself beside him for nearly a half hour he became aware that I was not leaving, and begrudgingly pulled over. Relieved over my soon to be relief I hoped out and began standard protocall- at least untill I saw the bus begin to drive away.
Faced with relieving myself or being stranded in the Indian countryside all night I chose the later, and ran after the bus before any significant achievments chould be made. Again, I crawled back into "bed" and tried not to think about afliction. Perhaps I was still affected by the sleeping pills becuase I miraculasly feel asleep, only to wake up at 3:30am with the problem now ten fold. Remembering the drivers irritation at my bladders previous insubordination, I desperatly waved all my extra rupees at him to stop the bus. Money talks, but my bladder was yelling. Again he took nearly 20 minutes to stop, durring which I searched for a bottle with no luck. Alas, pulled over, with me jumping off the bus before it could even stop. I was saved, and went back to be happier than I had been in a long while. (It should be noted I never did pay the driver, he was not in his seat when I returned, and I was not going out of my way to pay the "blatter hater"). The next thing I knew we were in Mubai, and after a few stops it was time to get off. Needing to put on my shoes and zip my backpack, it took me an extra minute to get off the bus, by which time bladder hater was already driving away despite me and his assistant telling him I needed to get off. He slowed to a crawl and allowed me to jump out, leaving my travel pillow in the rush.
Mumbai turned out to be a relatively nice city, especially in comparison to Delhi. Some areas even seemed almost liveable, and if you used your imagination it could even remind you of Portland. Yes, it was a nice city, and although I spent the afternoon throwing up, I enjoyed my stay.
At 2am we left for the airport. So long third world!!

Hitting the Road

2004-12-15T05:01:00.000-08:00

I have rented a moped and driven north to Anjuna, leaving patrick to guard the beach in Colva untill my return. In Anjuna the mythical hippy hangout reputation of Goa is actually true, where as Colva was a far more melow town, filled with more Indian tourist than westerners. Depending on my mood, or maybe just the time of day, I have seen the town in two lights. One is a relaxing hangout for "groovey" travelers looking to chill and take part in whatever they fancy. The other, is a town where people who have taken way too many drugs and spend the day (or their lives) avoiding reality. Either way it's an experiance.
Some people drink coffe in the morning to wake up- I drive a moped in Indian traffic.

Goan Life

2004-12-12T20:45:00.000-08:00

Palm-Tree silhouettes under the stars, listening to CCR as the sun sets over the sea, sipping fresh orange juice on the beach- all good things.

Beach Bums

2004-12-11T22:11:00.000-08:00

Patrick and I have always set goals for ourselves, and just becuase were in Goa it doesnt mean thats going to change. Our goal is to go to the beach in the morning, and not leave untill we go to bed. We'll try our best.
India still shocks me sometimes though, today I was reading a local paper and the personals were assorted by their according caste.

Goa

2004-12-09T04:23:00.000-08:00

After a night in Delhi we've arrived in Goa searching for palm trees and pineapple. The beach and the community have a different feel than in Thailand. Here, large paved roads take you nearly to the water, where as in Thailand you needed to pass through a wall of bungalows and shops. Tomorow we'll... I have no clue.

On The Run

2004-12-06T22:28:00.000-08:00

Our last few days in Tibet were spent driving west back towards the Nepali border. One evening we slept in a small town, and after sunset we discovered how glorious Tibetan nights can be, marveling at some of the brightest, most abundant, showing of stars we had ever seen. We spent the evening in a small park (frequented by more cows than people), staring up at the sky as though it was ourfirst time seeing it, which in a way it was.
The next day started before dawn, and had us quickly riding towards the border. Before we began some of our group met a distrout Indian man who, after having his driver throw out his money, passport, and list of contacts, was stuck in the small town cold and broke. We offered him a ride to the border, but his hopes lay in getting to Bejing, where his brother works. So, before realizing he would not be coming with us, our car drove off, with me wishing I had known we would be parting ways, and had used the oppertunity to offer him money.
As we drove we again stopped at local "resteraunts" to fill up on warm Tibetan food. Most of our group was not partial to the food, ( which in Tibet consists entirely of either: Yak, yak dairy, chicken, eggs, rice, vegitables, barely products, or sheep) but I enjoyed it. It seems as though due to what few ingrediants they have at their disposal, the Tibetans have mastered the small number of dishes that are possible to make.
We drove past Everest, over the border, and later into the nigh Kathmandu. Today we scrambled to find a way out, and booked a flight to Delhi for tomorow. Considering I am on a three-day visa that expires after tomorow, the timing was excellent. After one night in Delhi, we fly to Goa, a small state on India's west coast, that is almost void of Indian culture, instead giving way to the flocks of beach bums who come to relax. After living without heat in Tibet, and keeping ourselves sane with thoughts of warm beaches to come, Goa is very inviting wat to spen our last couple weeks in the third world.
After we get our fill of sun, we'll head up the coast to Bombay, where we will spend a few days before catching our flight to London. Our time in Goa will not be all daqueries and fine food. After the flight I'll be down to my last $150, which used over the next two weeks in India, should allow me to live humbly, and much closer than desired to living a TRUE Indian lifestyle.

Lahsa

2004-12-03T04:08:00.000-08:00

We are in Lahsa, Tibet's largest city at around 130,000 people. We have spent the past few days viewing monastaries, and the palace. The palace is a 1,000 room building on a hill overlooking the town, and also served as the dolly lama's winter home, as well as housing the tombs of the previous lamas. There are many temples within the palace, along with all the statues that acompany them.
Today we were informed that our company responsible for driving us back to Kathmandu cannot confirm that we paid for the return trip. Putting our heads together, Patrick and I settled in on a plan of inaction, based around drinking tea in our hotel. The fruits of our labor were soon shown when we got a knock on our hotel door. We found a former U of O student, along with a girl from minisota, and a nepali man offering to share a jeep back. Things are good and we leave the day after tomorow.

Camping, Kayaking, & Pokhara

2004-11-29T01:56:00.000-08:00

After taking in a little of Kathmandu, we caught a bus to Pokhara, in western Nepal. The ride was over 6 hours, but I had no complaints considering I was able to sit back and take in the scenery. The Nepaleas countryside is gorgous, filled with tall green hills, winding rivers, and tiney villages. Every so often our bus would come accross a village "fund raiser", which consisted of people stopping trafic buy stretching a rope across the road, and siinging by your car untill you give them money. I should of thought of that while saving for this trip. Other interesting sites along the unpaved road were overturned and chared buses, and even the dangling feet of someone on top of our bus who decided it was time to get off as our bus flew down the road.
Once in Pokhara, we found a reasonible hotel and set up camp for the few days before we left for kayaking. The first day there I paraglided around the area hills and mountains, getting a bNirds-eye view off the local villages, mountains, and the lake. Patrick saw much of the same biking around that day, and we latter met up for dinner.
The next day the town was very peacfull due to the fact that moter vehicles were not allowed as a result of a 2-day rebel strike. The locals seemed to take it in stride, taking it as a day off, but surelly all is not well when most don't dare risk opening their shops, thus risking damage to the whim of the soldiers.
Without worrying about traffic the local children played cricket in the streets, while the tourists lounged around. We spent the morning eating in a courtyard lakeside, and later rented a paddle boat to cruise around the lake. (It was especially cruising for me becuase Patrick was in a paddling mood, and I was not about to turn down a free ride). In the evening, with nothing else to do, we went to a resteraunt and watched a movie, then retireed to our hotel, needing to rest for our kayak basic training the following day on the lake.
Our other kayaker was a friendly Irishman, who had been traveling for over a year and had seen much of the world. Once on the lake, we discovered that kayaking was alot harder than we had thought. As a part of our training we practiced turning our kayak upright after a flip. It is an odd thing watching your friend again and again throw hiimself underwater, and being trapped and unable to right himself, and visably fear drownding.
The next morning we took a three hour bus ride to the drop in point, and headed down the river just as the rain and thunder began. Being an Oregon boy, I was more than pleased to take on what most would consider less than desirable conditions. It turned out to be anything but, the water turned a beautiful turquose-green, dotted with miniture little white erruptions of water, as a result of the rain hitting the river. Soon, after being in aw of my surroundings, we were setting up camp, eating a great meal, and getting some rest.
We woke the following morning to sunshine, and set off for a full day of kayaking. The waves were great, although only class 3, maybe 4 max, they provided plenty of entertainment between calm spots where we took in the scenery and practiced manuvers. After being knocked over in the rapids by our Irish friend, I soon lost any fear of tipping.

That night we camped on the shores of the river, along the edge of agrarain village, which like so many tohers we had seen, was all but cut off from the world due to the fact that there was no direct road to it. We walked around, taking in the housing and large expension bridge that crosses the river, and later ate by the fire and slept.
The final two days of the trip were more relaxed, although I had a great error that luckely ended well. I complacently got into the kayak without noticing my emergency release cord was not accessable. I only noticed the mistake after going through a few rapids which everyone but me and the guides flipped. I was luckey.
All in all the kayaking was well worth it, and we headed back to Kathmandu happy and tired, ready to wake up before 5am the next morning to being our trip to Tibet.

Tibet

2004-11-29T01:03:00.000-08:00

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Our trip into Chineese Tibet began well, with breakfast overlooking sunrise on the Himalaya's. Again, we are in a small group, consisting of Patrick and I, as well as a Finish couple iin their earl-twenty's.
Around noon we arrived at the Tibet border, ditched our bus and hoped in a landcruiser to guid us through Tibet. The Landcruiser was nessary, becuase roads in Tibet are little more than dirt trails, filled with pot-holes and large sized rocks that keept our headds bobbling for the entire drive. I came to the conclusion that the driver needed no map, he simply follwed the rocks to our destination.
Tibet seems to keep pace with a sort of one-upmanship between each country we visit. It is perhaps the only place I have ever been where something so bleak can be so amazingly brilliant. One minute your bumping along side a brown mountain, and the next your at the top, entranced by views of snow capped mountians with elevations exceeding 23,000 ft.
Tibet has done the best job of submergin us in it's culture. Stopping for luch we ussually find ourselves in small resteraunt/houses where farmers come in to grab a bite, and english is not spoken. The people are much more inverted than those of India or South-East Asia, with most keeping to themselves, although there are many outgoing Tibetens. I was extreamly relieved to see that their culture had not faded, instead it remains seemingly strong- seeing people working their yaks or sheep in traditional dress is commonplace.
It is becuase of that that I am greedily sadend that a rail-raod is going to be operational in four years, perhaps ending the isolation that that the Tibetan terrain provides. The Tibetens seem to fear this change as well, my guid worry's that the railway will bring in chineese, who are not exactly buddy-buddy with their occupied neighbors. Some people I have met have biographical cassets of the dally-llama, a crime which I am told would result in life in prison- no questions. In addition, nearly everyone here is not allowed to leave Tibet, leaving the imobile population at the whim of the Chineese.
Still I am loving my visit. 10 hour car rides followed by sleeping in hotel without heat (imagine a tibetan winter without heat!) might leave people heading for the beach, and not this magnificent country. And I am glad for that, becuase people who visit, respect and savor their time here.
Today we are in Tibets second largest city, shigatse, with a population of around 20,000. It is modern and in stark contrast to what we have seen for the past two days, we have even found a computer!
In the morning we visited a 6th century temple, which houses dolly-lama's 1-10. Large gold statues and thousands of small ones coupled paintings honoring Buddists of the past made our visit really plesent, and once again we were the only westerners, mixing in with the throng of worshipers.
Afterwords Patrick and I wanted to climb the mountain behind the monestary (a hill by Tibetan standards). Discovering that the hill was absent of trails we hiked up anyway. This would have been no small task even in Oregon, but coupled with high altitudes and lost of clothing, we shamlessly coongradulated ourselves at the top while eating oranges and staring off into the Himalaya's.
We still have over 9 days left here, and I'm looking foreward to seeing whats to come.

Bummed

2004-11-17T21:11:00.000-08:00

We are bummed. Aparently some people get a little uneasy with rebel activity, or they just don't have all the time in the world to hang around Nepal, becuase our exciting rafting trip did not draw enough people. They tried to sell us a conselation prize, which sounded like a float down the river for middle aged men who don't want to spill their beeres while they raft.
Tomorow we are getting up early and taking a bus west to Pokhara, where we will spend a few days hiking and what not before begining our 5-day kayaking trip on the 22nd. (The trip was postponed becuase, you guessed it, another rebel strike).After that we have about 8 hours in Kathmandu to sleep, then we begin our trip to Tibet.

Delay/ Schedule

2004-11-16T21:50:00.000-08:00

Our rafting trip has been delayed untill tomorow due to a rebel strike in the north. Once we get started, there will be little if any contcact from us, but WE ARE NOT DEAD.
Here's our schedule (In Nepali's dates):

Nov 18-22: Rafting
Nov 23-26: Kayaking
Nov 27-Dec 6: Tibet

Nepal

2004-11-14T23:23:00.000-08:00

Kathmandu-

After taking a baot ride on the ganges in Varanasi, we finally left India for Nepal. So far the country has been a cure-all for our ailments, with less polution and crowding it has really brought us back to life. We arrived on a national holiday. The local children go from store to store caroling, untill the store owner pays them to leave. IT's quit a racket
Tomorow we leave for a 5-day white water rafting trip on what is supposed to be one of the best white-water river in the world. It's all class 4 & 5, and should be alot of fun. Afterword were planning on organizing a trip to Tibet, and then maybe learning to Kayak. We'll be broke, and thats an understatement, but it should be fun.

Leaving a Tip

2004-11-09T01:21:00.000-08:00

Uttar Pradesh-

We made it out of Delhi sometime last week,packing and scrambling to the train station after missing our alarm. We spent a few days in Agra, home of the Taj Mahal, and are now in Varanasi, the Hindu holy city.
I tried to update my blog with a long entry in Agra, but the computer lost it. So here is the cliff notes verson of our agra experiance.

Friday:
*Arrive in the morning
*Patrick spends afternoon sick in hotel room while I explore the "Baby Taj"
*A monkey throws something at me, very very hard.
*I now fear monkeys
*In the evening we visit the red fort of agra- 400 years old, huge, menacing on the outrside, and stuffed with mosques and royal chambers on the inside.
*Seriously, a freak'n monkey!

Saturday:
*We sleep in, and I'm sure one of us was sick at some point in the day
* Early afternoon we see the Taj Mahal.
* At night we wonder the area surounding the Taj
* food and sleep. Sick and food. Sleep and Sick.

Sunday:
* The black hole of our trip. I have no clue what we did. Must have been memorable.
* We discover Rats or lizards like to chew through toothpaste tubes.
* We find out that no trains leave today, so we book for sunday.
* At night we eat at a restuant, and being the only customers, we get to chat with the owner. Nice guy.

Monday:

* I'm sick again. Whats new?
* We board a train to Varanasi at 1pm, we get there at 3am
* Patrick officialy becomes "hard core" buy throwing up on an Indian train
* We get in, we sleep.

** One cool experiance worth mentioning in Agra happened just before we left to catch our train. We were sitting in our cab in a parking lot, (dont ask why, just follow me) when a 15 year old kid, with the features of a 12 year-old came up to us and trided to sell us the standard worthless tin neckless'. I was not going to buy anything, and always looking for entertainment, pretended that I only spoke spanish. Using what little I knew I told him I had no money and I only spoke espanol. To our suprise he then began making his sales pitch in spanish (not before he responded in french becuase he thought that was what I was speaking. It was big suprise, and worth a laugh. We were so impressed that we each bought one necklace for about a quarter. He later asked if I was real mexican and I told him no, and we continued to talk in english for a short while. He apperantly took this whole heartedly and gave us a couple braclets for free. It was a nice interaction.

Now we are in the holy city, where we will explore the gahts, where people bath in the filthy, yet alluring,Ganges River (see picture) and other significant parts of town. Later this afternoon we plan on trying to book a flight to Nepal.

Earlier today I took a cab to the ATM. When I was returning to the car I witnesed a soldier, armed with an automatic, repeatidly punch my driver in the face, and then reach in and steal the keys from the ignition. After the soldier walked off, the cabbie turned to me and told me he could get me back to my hotel. After a couple looks over his shoulder he hot-wired the cab, and we were off. How much do you tip your driver for getting punched?
Oh, in case anyone is wondering, India has gotten no less crowded, dirty, or noisy since we left Delhi.Sometimes you litterally cannot breath becuase of all the exaust.It really is a place that needs to be approached with the right attitude.As strange as it is, I am still very happy to have come here.

India The Land of......Indians

2004-11-03T03:07:00.000-08:00

Delhi-
Yesterday, after an afternoon bought with stomach cramps, I was able to explore more of Delhi. Leaving the hotel is, as Patrick put it, "like a spacewalk" with all the physical and mental preperations you must make before going outside. There is no such thing as just going for walk here, instead your thrusting yourself into india (more like India is thrusting itself onto you). Before your first foot hits the ground your senses are barraged with the sights, smells, and sounds of India. If your wondering, India does have a smell (something like compost mixed with the most prominent aroma on the block- gas, sewage, dust, food, etc). People are yelling, horns are honking.
A game the locals like to play is "follow Stuart and Patrick." We have had dogs follow us barking for blocks on end, pick pocketers for even further, and beggers all the way to the hotel. They are all delt wih differently according to the situaion. Beggers we usually pay, especially if they are handicaped, however sometimes they are not satisfied with our "donations" I guess beggers CAN be choosers. For pickpocketers Patrick and I take different approaches. He likes to just ignore them, while I, prefer to let them know that I understand wha they are doing, hopefully discouraging them. I have come to find that curiously friendly street hawkers are the most fun of the followers. They will follow you for a block or so trying to pursuade you to buy something, "no" is not in there vocabulary. So, instead of just repeating a word they seem not hear, we just make smart ass comments (nothing offensive, or giving Americans a bad image) untill they get the drift (this is usually much more effecive, and keep in mind we do it with a smile and only after the 5th or 6th "no thank you").
Night comes early here (around 5:30), and that is when the streets are crowded with people ( keep in mind how cramped it must be to use the word "crowded" in Delhi, it's always crowded!!!). Cars are bumper to bumper, people elbow to elbow, and cows are hoove to hoove. If you walk the streets in Delhi observing the people or buildings is dangerous, if you space out or get distracted for more than a couple seconds you'll almost certainly nearly get hit by something ( I'm not exagerating, I was nearly gored by a cow).
Durring these nights we wonder around away from our hotel into the markets, which so far seems pointless to classify them as such becuase every street is filled with merchants. In these small crowded dirt streets the only non-Indian face I see is Patrick's, the rest is all locals out shoping, selling, and talking. The merchents at these markets do not pander to you, which is great, becuase they are selling to Indians. Instead, when you walk down an ally which sells produce, you are caught in a cross fire of Indian merchants seemingly compeeting to see who can yell the loudest and fastest to adverise there goods. Seeing it is amazing, indescribable,something film cannot capture (we have not taken one picture since arriving, parly becuase it would not be wise or practical to take out our cameras in such crowded places).
Last night was very special. After wondering home from seeing a 400 year old sun dial, we passed streets where merchents were selling mounds of merrygolds, some piles as high as my waste. By luck, we eventually found ourselves at a Christian cemetary. Crowds of people streaming in and out of the gated grounds, us being two of them. Inside we found thousands of canddles lit over he graves, acompanied by merrygolds and other beautiful flowers. White lights were strung above he dirt paths to each section of the cemetary, making the whole scene one of the most beautiful I have seen on the trip. Ornge flowers, visible by the flicking light of white candles decorated the area in every direction. It was a very peacefull, and refreshing way to see people deal with death, and life. We feared we were some what intrusive, one man came up to me, grabed me by both shoulders....and then welcomed me to the "festival". I have not ye found out what festival it was, but it fell on the same day ( I think) as Dia De Los Muertos ( the day of he dead) which has similar practices in mexico. Again, words cannot describe.....
Today we spent the morning and afternoon watching the election coverage, and later came to realize we are not sure how or when we are going to leave Delhi. Patrick could not find the train station ( I was of little help sick in the hotel room), so tomorow we'll hopefull make the appropraite arrangments. No worries though.
As much as I hate to say it, and love to experiance it, I think most of my experiances in this country will be like the past few days, impossible to fully communicate, so sorry. Use your imagination, and then intensify your imagery, then you might be close to what we are seeing
....and smelling.....and tasting.....and hearing......and......

Dudes Doing Delhi

2004-10-31T23:19:00.000-08:00

We arrived in New Delhi today, and all I can say is wow.
Patrick seems to be having a case of whatever I had yesterday, and is back at the hotel recouperating. I am having syptoms as well, and we have agreed to spend the day resting. In the two minute walk it took me to get to this computer, I have come to understand why people say India is an overwlming place to visit. Maybe this is just this neighborhood, but so far India has been an extream culture shock, much more than anywhere in SE Asia. Cars almost hit you everyblock ( at least in thailnd they would swerve out of the way, here you move or they move you), people are everywhere, and the genrall atmosphere is indescribable. Hopefull after spending more than five minutes here I will be able to articulate the experiance better. In the little bit I have seen I have been overwelmed and excited. A man randomaly let a Cobra out of a box by my foot, what an introductiont to the country!
Well, I'm still feeling a little ill, so I'm going to head back and recoup with Pat. If we feel better tomorow, we may take a train to the Taj Majal, but tomorow if a long ways away.
Oh, if you are worried that patrick and my illness is causesing us to enjoy our trip less, don't worry. As we talked last night we realized (again) what a good time we are having. We know this becuase even on the days that we are sick we still finsih the day by telling eachother how cool the day was.

Halloween in Bangkok

2004-10-31T22:55:00.000-08:00

I spent the afternoon on halloween the same way I spent the previous evening, lying on my hotel bed, doing my best not to feel any worse. I'm curious if all this really could be from eating to much penut butter. Patricks symptoms were less frequent, so he was able to move around our neighborhood, and bring me food ( bread and bannana's). By the evening I was feeling fine, and we explored the town. Our backpacker ghetto was crammed with people, foreigners and Thais alike, filling the streets in search of anything you can imagine. Soime blocks had over a thousand people, and would take over 20 minutes tog et from one end to the other. Since it was halloween, it was even crazier than normal- within a about 20 yards was people in cages wearing halloween costums posing for the crowds, a live dj, a big screen taking shots of the event, a man selling us t-shirts while he openly smoked pot, trendy Thais looking for fun, tourists just looking, homeless people on the street, anything and everything you don't need or want to buy, and thousands of others taking part in numerous activities.
It was a neat experiance to be in Bangkok, where the suprisingly modern city, intermingles a distinctly thai culture,amidst the backdrop of povery. Being there for halloween juist made it all the better.
Some people back home might expect the city to be full of slums and filth. While it has it's share of dispair, I found many areas extreamly western (with an asian falir of course). We walked Siam square, where the young and hip go to shop and be seen. It was nice to see that not all Thai are poor, many within the city enjopy comfortable lifestyles, although that is surely not the norm. Patrick and I even found ourselfves in a mall where we were the upper class drink wine and shop for designer clothes, which made us the poor ones for the first time in a long time.
Around 11pm we headed of the the airport to catch our 2:30 am flight to Delhi. ( the flight was delayed untill 4am).

Bangkok IV

2004-10-30T08:40:00.000-07:00

After missing our bus and hanging around a coastal town for the afternoon, Patrick and I are back in Bangkok.
After missing our bus we spent the afternoon wondering around town, eating by the beach, and reading the newspaper. When our "bus" finally arrived we discovered it was not what we had imagened. It was a small van packed as full as possible, and drove slower than most cars on the road.
Once in bangkok I got fitted for a suit, and then we ate dinner. For dessert we bought pennut butter and carrots, needless tos ay I was happy. A full jar latter I'm a little sick, but still happy. Even with all the hassle, it was another good day.

Ko Samet

2004-10-29T04:08:00.000-07:00

Patrick and I are on the island of Ko Samet, enjoying a vacation from our trip. The island is the most beautiful yet, so it is not hard to spend the day lounging around, which is exactly what we did. Today we swam, read the paper, and got hair cuts. We played frisbee in the gulf of thailand with a man from bangledesh, and patrick's blog proved to be right when he said it was as though we were on baywatch, I rescued the frisbee (the product of Pat's throw) from getting hit by a large boat, saving the frisbee while indangering myself.
Tomorow, after two days on the island, we are heading back to Bangkok for two days untill flying to delhi and exploring northern India and hopefully Nepal. That was a nice motivating factor for coming here, knwoing we'd be in the himalayas for a while makes the desicion of going to the beach pretty easy. But lounging around is only enjoyable for so long, after a day or so I begin to feel like I'm waisting the trip, and quickly look for a new adventure to tackle.

Jungle Trek

2004-10-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

Wow, I just read my lost posting, and if anyone understood what I was talking about they deserve a pat on the back.

Hundreds of yellow butterflys danced from flower to flower within the green meadow which our path crossed. The backdrop, rays of light obstructed by towering trees, provided such a great atmosphere even the most synical had to smile. Our jungle trek had all the making of a soap commercial, minus people who actually smelled clean.
Patrick and I have spent the past three days on a jungle trek, durring which we hiked the jungle and staying in a tribal village. Calling our tour a "jungle trek" implies there was more down and dirty activities than actually took place. It was, actually, a fancy name to make tourists feel hard core. We understood this from the start though, and had a great time.
We spent the first day hiking into the forrest untill we reached camp. Once again our company was great. We were joined by an Irish diplomate, two Spaniards, a Siberian, and a couple of Britts. We spent the rest of the first night talking and eating (lots and lots of eating). Nearly everyone there had traveled to someplace that I had always wanted to, so hearing stories of their travels was quite interesting, as well as eye-opening. It's amazing how much life experiance these travelers have, in contrast you realize just how young you really are.
The second day we hiked through the jungle again, stopping at a secluded waterfall to cool off and just enjoy the jungle. The hike was amazing, the scenery incredible. Our pictures will not do it justice. Although I said our trip was somewhat touristy, the hikes always felt authentic becuase you were in the real jungle, and you wre alone.
To understand why I consider the "trek" touristy, you need only to look at our next activity of the afternoon: elephant riding. We rode elephants to a village a few miles away, following a small creek throught he jungle. Just going in with the right attitude made the activity enjoyable ( that applied to the entire trip). Patrick and I were riding the mischievious elephent, who was to independent to follow the other elephants on the path.
After arriving at the village, again we talked and ate, then ate some more. In the evening the children put on a show for us, which is obviously the standard thing they do when groups come through to collect donations. Although they pander a little to tourists ( which is understandable), the experiance still had some authintisity. We learned about their culture, and were able to see them in their daily lives. It turned out half of the kids who sang for us were married and had there own children becuase it is their custom tog et married around the age of 12.
The next day we slowly rafted down a river in bamboo rafts which litterally fell apart on the way downstream. Afterwords we hoped in a pickup and headed back to chang mi.
So the trek was great, we got to see the jungle, learn about the rural culture, and were fed authentic Thai meals (with the exception of one lunch, where apperently in thailand "thai noodle soup" is translated into top ramen), we were fed so much that it was by far the most I have had to eat on the entire trip.
Now Patrick and I are trying to figure out what to do and where to go next, but no worries, it will all work out.

Chang Mi

2004-10-20T19:11:00.000-07:00

My time in cambodia is over Iarrived in thailand on tuesday, but I found experiancing the country was well worth the extra trip. The sites and, well, the smells were very engagiog, but I would have to say my interactions with others (both Cambodians and other traveler) was what made the experiance so mermorable. Since I last updated I spent one last day in Sihanoukville, where that night I sat around on the beach with a few britts, a man from Holland, and a few cambodians and justed talked. It was really nice and relaxing, and once again I was able to hear a more international perspective. The Europeans tell me that people of there have trouble seperating the American people, from the American government, which I find very concerning.
So saturday I traveled from Sihanoukville back to Phnom Penh. The following day I traveled back to Siem Reap. The next day I flew to Bangkok, and Imediatly went to the train station where I took a 14 hour train ride accross Thailand to Chang Mi, where I am today. I spent yesterday evening at a budhist templeon top of a mountain. It was very beautiful, many gold statues and structures overlooking a panoramic view of the city, I even was blessed by a monk! I was however, very disapointed by the lack of respect many of the other tourists showed. There were signs telling people that shorts were inapropraite, and to dress conservitly, as well as keeping your head lower than the monks and painting. All of this should be known, becuase it applies to the entire country, not just the temple, but yet many people treat the place like an ammusment park.
After the temple, I still had some time to kill, and my driver jokingly suggested bungee jumping. I laughed, but for whatever reason I though I may as well. I had always wanted to try it, but frankly never had, and never thought I would, actually get the balls to do so. With keeping the spirit of this trip in mind (living without regrets and following your dreams, you know, al hat bull) I decided now would be as good a time as ever. I checked the safety of the place, and decided I would do it, I eman, we had already drivin all the way out there right? The next thing I new I was at the top. It like high from the bottom, it is's nothing compared to being on the edge from the top. Suprisingly, I jumped on the first count of three (well to be fair, the idiot I watched (myself) jumped). So I survived and conquered my fear, I feel so manly that next time I won't even use a cord.
After conquering one fear, I decided to attempt to conquer another one- shopping. I didnt buy more than a t-shirt or two, but I spent the night walking Chang Mi's famous night market, and seeing all of the stands. I had dinner there ( chicken ball thingys, which is of course there correct name) and them took a tuk-tuk (a moped driven taxi, with a wooden carraige in back) home.
Patrick and I will meet tomorow, and plan from there.

I would like to appologize to the english language for my constant butchering of spelling, grahmer, and vocabulary.

Phnom Penh & Sihanoukville

2004-10-15T05:01:00.000-07:00

Earleir this week I spent two days in Phnom Penh, and my expectations of nearly every place I go continues to be dismantled. I was expecting to find a bustling city, dotted with sky scrapers and some signs of affluence. What I found was nearly the converse. The few "tall buildings"I did see were no more than half the size of Eugene's, and nowhere could I find any signs of middle or upper class (although I now they exist). The streets were less congested than Bangkok, Kuala Lumpure, and Singapore, and they were extreamly under maintained (I guess when your population has trouble feeding itse;f your priorities change). The town, like Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, was dusty and poor.
While there, I stayed at a guest house on the lake (see picture), which as nice as it was, was very odd getting too. It was nudged in an ally about a foot wider than my wingspan. I walked the streets to get a feel of local life, and generally wondered around. Entire streets were devoted to a single trade- a street for barbers, a street for electronics, a street for whatever. The markets were set up this way as well. I spent some time in one and was very relieved that I did not encounter the barage of shop owners hocking things to me, instead I could pass without so much as gesture. You have no ideahow nice it was to be able to simply look around, where as in Thailand you could not just look without dealing with the yelling and competing for your buck. It's somewhat ironic that that happens less often in cambodia, where the people are much poorer, but the country is not exactly a tourist hot spot, and those that do come are not Americans ( I read a statistic that Americans are not even in the top 12, and I have yet to meet another one while I have been here). So, in short, I was able to see all of the sections of the market- crafts, electronics, food, and crawling food, in peace.

While I was in the city, I also visited the Cambodian killing fields (On April 17th, 1975 the Khmer Rouge, a communist guerrilla group led by Pol Pot, took power in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. They forced all city dwellers into the countryside and to labor camps. During their rule, it is estimated that 2 million Cambodians died by starvation, torture or execution. 2 million Cambodians represented approximately 30% of the Cambodian population during that time. ), and the national museam.

Now, I am in Sihanoukville, a costal town in southern Cambodia. Today I took an two hour boat ride up a large river, and visted Ream National park. On the boat ride, I was luckey enough to catch a glimpse of some of the last fresh water dolphins in the world ( the boat operator said he had only seen 1 since he began working on the river two years ago, today we say four). At the park we ate and hiked into the forrest. It was really amazing to see the villages there. I had seen villages in other countries, but none in such a remote area. The houses were straw, and everyone was a farmer. In the middle of the forrest, we came accross a one-room Cambodian school house. Seeing that alone made the trip worth it.

As for now I will spend another day in Sihanoukville, and then begin backtracking back up to Siem Reap, where I will fly back to Bangkok on the 19th. From there, we are tentativley planning on going to Chang Mi, along the burmese border, and doing some trekking around the hill tribes of the area.

Angkor, Round II

2004-10-11T05:32:00.000-07:00

Today I once again went to the temples of Angkor, only this time I had a hired guide. He explained more of the heritage of the people and their temples, including any questions I had. (apparently the stairs were so steep becuase it represented the hard climb to heaven). \After walking the Temples for a good 8 hours, I followed a path up a large hill to watch the sunset from a hindu temple.
Atop the temple, I ran into a young cambodia, about 23, who wanted just to talk and practice his english. We spoke for about a half-hour and he was very enthusiastic about the meeting, he even wanted a picture with me. This is something I have discovered hear, the people are very friendly, and their goals seem to be similar. Last night, after updating my blog, I went to dinner in town ( the best food of the trip by the way). I ended up talking to two local kids for about 45 minutes (20 years old) and they asked me about where I live and told me about their lives. I was taken back by the fact that they both said they lived on $25 per month, and stopped working only to sleep. One said he was content, but the other was saving money for the university (which seems to be the goal of 2/3 kids I talk to). The university though, costs $300 per yea, with no lones given, and is way more than they can afford.
They did however, seem to think that $25 per month was enough to live on, and that it only seems little becuase I do not live here, people in the county live on much less. A few said they would love to travel, but it is simply not possible with their salery, which makes me more appreciative of my ability to have this trip. These interactions have made Cambodia very enjoyable. I have also found that the locals are very impressed by any attempt to speak Cambodian, so I try when possible.
Tomorow I take a six hour bus ride to Phenom Phenm, so I'd better get some rest to catch the early bus.

Okur & Lee-huh

(thank you & goodbye)

Siem Reap

2004-10-10T03:58:00.000-07:00

Today I visted the temples of Angkor, including the great Angkor Watt. They were interesting, but without more specific knowledge your left feeling like you could be more appreciative. I managed to slide in with a brittish tour group for one temple, and they and the tour guide were suprising fine with it (on a side note a met a Britt who was very excited to hear I was from Oregon, he said he plans to vacation in Astoria just to see where "the goonies" was filmed. Sounds like a great vacation). After one temple they had to hope on there bus and my cabbie was confused that I was going with them, especially for free, and I never cought up with them.
I scaled the temples (30m high) with "steps" less than half the width of your shoe length. I also spent some time talking to a few camboidans practicing there english. Most were teenagers, a few older, and we talked about simple things like home and what not. It really cemented the poverty here when they said my $2 hotel was very expensive.
There really is an army of beggers here. The venders yell at you tenaciously, much mroe so than Thailand (which was a reasonable amount), trying to buy their wares, and the children selling knick-knacks swarm you. The child beggers I do not consider, mostly becuase it's probabley someone else putting them up to it, and it's a bad field to enter as a proffesion. I did however, give a couple buck and a drink to a amputee, figuring he most likely has no real way to earn income, and he was extreamly greatfull and I think blessed me with a prayer.

Later in the evening I got to see more of the town (Siem Reap),where I found more 3rd world scenes. Small one-room houses made of straw, cows and water buffalo around the street, and genrall poverty. I was very tempted to take pictures of the local people, but understanding that this is not a "people zoo", I restrained myself, although I think seeing the people in their daily lives is the most intersting part of the trip. Hopefull I'll get some pictures of homes and city life in the next few days if it's appropraite.

Well, thats about it, I'm going to go get some food. I'm a little bummed that I missed the last presidential debate, but I'm in Cambida. What can you do?

Alive and Well in Cambodia

2004-10-09T04:23:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Cambodia this afternoon and I just though I would let everyone know I am alright. I ended u flying into Siem Reap instead of taking the bus, it cost alot more but by bus I would be crossing an area where the malaria is extreamly resistant to drugs, and with it being the rainy season I figured it wasnt worth it.
As for my impressions on Cambodia? Well, I have only been here a few hours, but so far it seems to be the type of place I had expected to encounter frequently on the trip: Dirty, poor, generally 3rd world. The first thing I was greated once outside my room was a 12 year old boy and his infant brother begging for money, followed by an amputee down the street. Speaking oof streets, the traffic here is insane! I thought Bangkok was bad, here they literally don't drive on one side of the road.
Tomorow I will hopefully be exploring the great angkor temples, I'll let you know how it turns out.

The Band is Breaking Up

2004-10-07T19:32:00.000-07:00

.....for a week or so. Patrick and I, both having different places in South-East Asia which we want to see, have decided to take a week or so to see them on our own. He will be traveling to Laos and possibly Vietnam, while I will be going to Cambodia, to see the ancient temples of Angkor. Angkor, long associated with a single civilization renowned for its art and architecture,was built in the first half of the 12th century (approximately 1113-50) by the ruling people (Kher Empire) of the SE Asia.
I am very excited to be visited a place with such historical significance, and the possible risks should be worth it. Today we leave by bus to Bangkok, which takes 16 hours, then god knows how long to cambodia for me. Ko Samui has been fun, but I think I'm ready to see more everyday Asian culture, as well as heritage. It is hard to find such things amidst Mcdonald's & Travel Agencys.
See you inCambodia!

The Streets of Ko Samui

2004-10-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was another great day, Patrick and I got a crash course in driving- Thai style. We rented mopeds for $4 and spent the day exploring the island, hitting the beaches, stopping at what appeared to be a Thai verson of Wal-Mart, and then exploring the rural interior jungle. The whole day was one of the most scenic days of the trip (although only two pictures were taken) mixing moutnains with beaches, and sand with jungle.
Patrick and I continue to fear going back to American food. Everything taste better here, especially the water (just kidding), our nightly ritual has become walking the main street at night looking for vendors for dinner.
After dinner and a movie, we walk the beach and headed home for our bungalow.

Ko Samui

2004-10-05T01:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, were in Thailand, and to save time you can check patricks blog to see how we got there. The Island is nice, but seemingly inhabited with as many tourists as Thai's. This is all well and good becuase I am past the day where I think of myself as anything but a tourist. Calling us anytihng else would be akin to calling a garbage man a " waste technition". Either way, we do travel a different route than most, avoiding simulated cultural and natural experiances, and generally anything degrading to us or the people here.
Today, after a morning swim, we biked up a large hill in the island, and then hiked some "trails" (following a sting up rocks and through the jungle) to see waterfalls and panoramic views of the island. On our way back into town we visited a couple temples, one of which has an un-decomposed body of a former temple patriarch, and then got some food.
I continue to be impressed by the international paradigms we have come accross. We have Watched the presidential debate with a New Zealander and a Singaporean in an ally on the same street as Singapores Largest Mosque. And just last night we went out with a 21 year old Isreali and a 19 year old German and listened to what they had to say on everything from Iraq to their own countries.
I am attempting to update the blog moe frequently, and I hope this will suffice. Thanks to everyone who has contacted us, and I hope all is well back home.

Week 1: Singapore

2004-10-01T03:17:00.000-07:00

Our trip started off schedule, and remains in a constant flexible state, which is very suiting for both Patrick and my styles of traveling, which in summery would be: "Hey, that looks/sounds cool, lets go do it."
Upon Arrival at pdx we were informed that our flight was over booked and we would earn ticket vouchers if we agreed to postpone our flight, and fly out of L.A. the following morning. The same thing happened the following day and once again we conceded, I mean what’s wrong with earning another trip for free while you relax in a fancy hotel? By the third day we had had enough of L.A. and took off to Singapore with a layover in Tokyo. After a good 24 hours on a plane or in the airport we finally arrived, at 2am local time. By six o’clock we were exploring the city, and quickly realized that this was not going to be a place we wanted to just pass through. The aesthetics of the city are grand, composed of a unique blend of new and old architecture, along with many flowers and trees that gives urban life a truly tropical setting.
We ran into a New Zealand man who runs a travelers “bed and breakfast”, although we had already checked into another hotel, we figured it was worth the extra money to stay some place with all the amenities (not to mention he took off the $12 we had already paid for the other place). The staff here has helped us find out where to go and how to get there, and the interaction with other traveler (some of whom have been gone for over a year) has made staying here a memorable experience.
We have spent our time here exploring the city, hiking and in nature preserves, and eating. Daily activities such as eating in the markets, and walking the town are both educational and fun in addition to our "planned" activities. It's an odd feeling to think to yourself, "wow, I'm hiking through the jungle!". Another interesting occurance was when we found ourselves on a street crowded with monkey's.
Our trip to Pulau Ubin ( a Singaporean island) has proven to be my most enjoyable yet. The island is the only rural village in Singapore, and after taking an old rickety boat tog et there we rented mountain bikes and spent four hours exploring the Island. We found a Buddhist temple in the center, and even stopped to have a drink at the house of a man who was selling pop from his home. ( Check out the sign he had on the smugmug sight).
The trip so far has been amazing, except for a broken camera, but no worries. Singapore, with it’s diverse population and blend of western and eastern culture, not to mention the abundance of cheap and tasty food, seems like a place I could see myself living for a year or so, but for now we are off to Malaysia and later Thailand. In Malaysia we plan on trekkingTaman Negara National Park, home to one of the oldest jungles in the world. After that the colonial Georgetown, and then on to Thailand. So things are great, and it’s been good hearing from everyone who has written us.