Hello World!

Elf Sighting in the 831

2008-12-12T20:42:00.001-08:00

Latvia

2008-08-24T04:16:00.001-07:00

Just a short update. I've flying to Latvia in three hours. I'll be living in Riga for a bit. Now you may be a little confused since my initial Belgian training shouldn't end until NEXT week, and I wasn't supposed to fly anywhere until next month. Frankly, I'm confused too. I guess I got promoted. Anyway, just wanted to update y'all. I'm frantically packing and getting ready, so I don't have time to say anymore.

This just in...

2008-07-21T17:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, after a ton of im's and wall posts, I probably should update my blog with my newest job opportunity. I flew to Atlanta last week to interview for an international marketing firm. (They aren't based in Atlanta, that's just where the recruitment happened to be.) It also happened to be where Bonnie is living, so I totally got to visit her! (More on Atlanta fun times later.) After an information session, group interviews and a personal interview, they offered me the job! I will be moving to Belgium to start my two week training in the middle of August. The training will be at their offices in Overpelt, the Flemish part of Belgium, an hour from Brussels and 45 mins from The Netherlands. They own an apartment complex nearby, which is where I'll stay, along with the other newbies. I've actually been in contact with this company since last year. I really liked them, but I already had a job lined up in Greece, so when they told me of the recruitment this past weekend, I jumped!

After my training, I'll have anywhere from four to 12 weeks of on the job training, where I'll be placed with a team somewhere in the world. They have teams in most every country around the world, so the sky's the limit. After that I'll have my own team, again, in a country somewhere. I'm terribly excited.

So, you ask, what is it you'll be doing? Well, I'll be an International Project Consultant, which you're thinking doesn't explain anything, and you're probably quite right, so I'll give you an overview. I'll be creating, designing and writing reports on the country I'm stationed in for magazines and newspapers like the New York Post.

And now for something completely different. Fun times in Atlanta! After my interviews on Friday, Bonnie showed me around Atlanta. It's a beautiful city with no more than 10 square feet ever without a tree. It's so green and leafy. When we had just flown under the cloud cover to fly into Atlanta, all non-native Georgians gasped at the sight of all the trees. We could hardly see the roads and buildings there was so much foliage. One lady said longingly, it's like Northern California. We're so rain deprived here it's pathetic.

Anyway, Bonnie took me to The Varsity, a local favorite! I tried the Frosted Orange, the chili cheese fries and a chili cheese hot dog. The FO was like a dreamsicle in a cup. Absolutely amazing. It has such a fun atmosphere. And the workers wear the cut little paper hats and belt, Whata ya have? to those ordering. It's quite the place. I thought it was absolutely, insanely busy while we were there, with over 27 registers open and lines spilled out into the dining room, but Bonnie assured me it was quite slow!

After eating we went downtown to this way cute planned city-within-a-city. It reminded me of San Francisco as all the houses were smooshed together and painted pretty colors. I had my first experience at an H&M. It was a fun shopping center with local artisans setting up around the street.

The End of a Season

2008-02-29T10:28:00.000-08:00

The season is ending. The restaurants and hotels are closing and so is mine. The town has completely died. Where once there used to be bright and cheery hotels and restaurants are now only dark and empty shells of buildings. It's kind of creepy. And yet... I like to walk around at night because it's so peaceful. There is no one around. There are probably only 30 tourists in the entire town meaning, the beach is perfectly quite and empty. It's just me and the moon. And the moon is quite bright. I enjoy my late night walks.

Remember the colorful umbrellas and lounge chairs? Well they no longer line the beach. Now it looks like a regular beach, but I'm so used to it being covered with chairs and umbrellas that now it looks naked.

I was overlooking the beach taking the above picture, when I realized I was Queen of the Island. So I took a pic. Guess where the camera was.

And here is where all of the beach stuff went. Just piled up next to the side of the hotel next to us. It's odd and sad, but colorful!

Alpha Beach Hotel

2008-02-26T15:37:00.001-08:00

This is my new hotel. I have an entire apartment to myself. It's so fabulous. I'm now in another city on Rhodes called Kolymbia. This is a really sleepy town. It's so cute and quiet. At this hotel there are a lot more Greek people working here. There is one guy from Serbia who's teaching me Serbian, one chic from Poland, one couple from Bulgaria and one chic from the Czech Republic and then one Greek/American chic. She grew up in Maryland and then moved back to Greece when she was 14? or so. It's a fun group.

This is the palm tree lined walk down to the beach. I enjoy it.

This is the front of the Alpha Beach Hotel. Those bikes are for the tourists to rent. The first one is the one I use (although, I get it for free).

This is the backside of the hotel. We are situated on a slight incline, so the steps at the end of the pool go down to the beach, bar and activity center.

This is the beach from in front of another hotel down the beach. Check out the color of the umbrellas and lounge chairs.

Now here is the exact same beach looking to the right. Notice the color of the umbrellas here. I never asked how the colors work, if a certain company or hotel has dibs on a certain color, or if it's to keep the beach looking like a rainbow. Who knows. But I thought it was interesting.

The Brits Love Me!

2008-02-26T14:51:00.000-08:00

As my last night with my co-workers in Ladiko, we all went out for the last night. So as I was walking to the club with my Polish buddies, these two British chics starting talking with our group and when they realized I was American they absolutely loved it, and wouldn't let me stop talking. They actually said they loved my accent! Usually I'm the one fawning over theirs, but there you have it, they love me back. It was quite fun, although they didn't talk as much as I would have liked.

Meanwhile, clubbing with a bunch of crazy Polish co-workers is interesting. Not all of my co-workers were Polish, some were from Slovakia and Bulgaria, but they were all crazy. If you ever get the chance to go to Poland, or speak with Polish people, I would definitely recommend it! They sure know how to party.

Kos

2008-02-20T14:36:00.003-08:00

Kos is a really small island in the Dodecanese in the Adradic Sea. It is 4 miles from Turkey. On a clear day you can see the cliffs of Turkey! That is where I flew first. Then I went to the town of Marmari. It's a cute little town where the main mode of transportation is ATV. :) For the tourists of course. I stayed there for a few days until I wasn't jet lagged anymore.

This is the sign that greets you when you get off the plane at the airport. It's dark, because the airport hadn't even opened yet. And yet, I was there...

This is a pic from the dock to catch the ferries in Kos Town looking towards Turkey. That's how close Turkey is!

I could cry

2008-02-20T14:32:00.002-08:00

I figured out how to put the language back to English! Oh happy day. I have no idea how it changed in the first place! I figured it was because I was in Greece, but even when I came back to the states, it didn't go to English. So now I'll write about my time in Greece!

Help, Blogger's gone Greek too!

2007-10-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

So, I haven't posted for a while, because Blogger has decided to only display Greek. I'm still not sure why. When I said "Go Greek" I meant it purely as a fun headline, not literally. And I can't seem to fix it. Mclissa had the bright idea to just learn Greek, but that doesn't seem to be working. Anyway, I finally figured out which link to click on to post something, so I guess now I can post again. But it's a pain.

Get Ready, Get Set, Go Greek!

2007-09-01T10:54:00.001-07:00

I'm flying to Greece on Friday. I got a job at Marmari Beach Hotel on Kos Island. It's part of Greece, even though it is 4 km from Turkey. Go figure. I'm sad I'm not flying to England... Hopefully, I can save money, and go back! We shall see.

"New" Seven Wonders of the World?! I so don't think so...

2007-07-12T18:01:00.001-07:00

I just heard about the so-called "New" Seven Wonders of the World results. Apparently there was a grassroots, online voting thing, for new seven wonders; as if people were tired of the already proven seven wonders. Meanwhile, Angkor Wat didn't make the cut. It's a fantastic site of a dozen or more temples built long ago. It's amazing really. It's so old and full of historical facts and beautiful architecture. It's definitely worth the title of Seven Wonder of the World. But that's not what I need to vent about. It's the fact that there was a call to vote online for new wonders. I can understand if it was a vote for new wonders, with the operative word being new. However, most of the delegates were from olden times like the Great Wall of China. There were only a few new architectural designs. While other countries were voting two and three times for their delegate, Cambodia didn't stand a chance. For the most part, Cambodians don't have access to a computer let alone the internet! How can there be a world vote for new wonders of the world, if the world isn't allowed to have a say. Although, that brings me to another tirade. There should be no "vote" for wonders of the world! They just are! Angkor Wat is all the Cambodians have! I mean, it’s their entire flag for pete’s sake. Take the beauty and sanctity of Angkor Wat away and what do they have? Phnom Penh. (And we don’t want to go there…)

Sadly, Stonehenge didn't make the cut either. Hello, it took over 1,000 years to construct! I think that's pretty wondrous. People think Stonehenge is only what you see, however, it’s so much more than that! We only see two thirds of the stones. Another one third is stuck in the ground! Another interesting fact is where the stones came from to form the hanging structure. The stones weren't cut from around Amsbury, England. They were actually hauled in from Wales, several hundred miles away! To think of the absolute power and mystery surrounding Stonehenge makes the mind boggle. Stonehenge embodies endurance and intrigue. My only consolation is the fact it is still among the Ancient Seven Wonders of the World. Although, that spot might be taken away, if another group decides to have another vote.

As for the wonders they picked, I have no idea why Brazil's Christ the Redeemer statue, Italy's Colosseum or India's Taj Mahal made the list. The Great Wall of China totally deserves a spot. It is quite remarkable, and I don’t contest that decision at all. And I am not contesting the other ancient remnants of civilizations that made the list, as they are quite remarkable. However, what’s with the Colosseum? It’s half gone! What kind of wonder doesn't last the ages? I ask you. And why did Christ the Redeemer make the list and not The Eiffel Tower or The Statue of Liberty as well? They are pretty much all the same. They are just huge statues. Every country seems to have one these days. And I probably just seemed totally blasphemous with that last statement, but I’m not saying Christ the Redeemer is lame, I’m just saying it isn’t unique enough to be called a wonder. True, I have yet to see these three in person. With that said, I will probably eat my words when I experience them up close, but for now I'm incredulous. Whatever anyone, or any list says, Stonehenge and Angkor Wat will always be Seven Wonders of the World, ancient or otherwise.

I don’t really know why I have such strong feelings on this subject. I mean, who cares what people are voting about, especially since I didn’t even know this vote happened? Who cares what they picked? I guess it’s the fact that I've only ever seen two wonders of the world in my entire life. They both happened to be this year. The exact year this insipid vote took place. I wonder if maybe I may have tainted the two awe inspiring structures with my presence. I think I’m just sad that the only two wonders I’ve ever seen have been demoted. So what am I left with?

Now I’ve heard the results, I do remember seeing a sign while driving up to Angkor Wat asking people to vote for it in the election. But at the time, it was in passing and I remember wondering why there would be new seven wonders. There have been Seven Wonders of the World, for so long, how can that list be changed? And if it were to be changed, why would people vote? Wonders just are. A vote doesn't need to happen. With these thoughts, I forgot about it.

Stonehenge

2007-05-29T22:29:00.000-07:00

Yes, I saw Stonehenge! It is absolutely amazing! What they don't tell you in school is one third of the rocks are in the ground! So actually the stones are even bigger than they look! I couldn't believe what an absolutely gorgeous day it was. We had just come off of Bank Holiday weekend, which means rainy days, so we were scared. However, the sky was blue and as the day went on all the clouds in the sky left. I got some great pictures!

Stonehenge: with and without me.

After our walk in the past, we went to Longleat an estate near Stonehenge. It's a cool safari/attraction park. There are animals at every turn. They have a butterfly garden, a boat ride to see hippos and sea lions and a safari park with lions, tigers and... buffalo. It's a beautiful estate and the animals give it an extra something.

This is a picture at the bat mines. It was so cool having the bats soar around you in the dark! I took a ton of pictures, but it was too dark to see the bats in the actual picture. (Photography with flash is prohibited.) Sadness.

Friendly? An interesting choice of adjectives... Haha!

Where's Mr. Darcy?

2007-05-28T19:30:00.000-07:00

I visited Pemberley, the home of Mr. Darcy! In real life it's called Lyme Park. Sadly, I didn't see Mr. Darcy, though I kept watch for him the entire time I roamed the grounds. I kept thinking he would emerge from the lake in front of the house, and then I would get flustered and demand to leave the property at once. Meanwhile, he would help me into my carriage and ask my Uncle to fish with him. Unfortunately, he never showed up, so I wasn't able to recite that scene. However, I couldn't help saying lines from other scenes as I walked around, "And to think, of all this, I could have been Mistress." I think they used a different estate for the inside shots though. The inside didn't look anything like the movie.

British to American Dictionary

2007-05-25T14:13:00.000-07:00

I thought I should put a few of the words that translate differently. Most of these I already knew thanks to Vikki and Mark, but to some it might seem like another language!

Aerial - Antennae
Bangers and Mash - Sausages and Mashed Potatoes
Bin - Trash Can
Biscuits - Cookies
Bonnet - Hood
Boot - Trunk
Carriageway - Road
Chips - French Fries
Choc - Chocolate
Cloakroom - Restroom
Crazy Golf - Miniature Golf
Crisps - Chips
Crumpet - English Muffinish
Draughts - Checkers
Dual Carriageway - Road
Dustbin - Trash Can
Ensuite - Master Bath
Fizzy Drink - Soda
Football - Soccer
Footpath - Sidewalk
Hash sign - Pound sign
Kip - Nap
Lemonade - Sprite, 7-UP
Lift - Elevator
Loo - Restroom
Lorry - Semi (truck)
Mind the gap - Watch your step
Motorway - Highway
Nappies - Diapers
Pants - Underwear
Pear-shaped - To go wrong
Petrol - Gas (used in Taiwan too)
Pie - Meat Pastry
Pram/Push chair - Stroller
Queue - Line
Roasties - Roasted Potatoes
Rubbish - Garbage
Tea - Dinner
Trousers - Pants
Uni - University
"What you doing, nice?" - Hello
Windscreen - Windshield
Zed - Z

I know there are many more, but I can't think of them at this time. I'll post more when I remember.

Exchange rates suck!

2007-05-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness England is expensive! It's crazy enough with our dollar equaling two of theirs without me having the background I have. I've just come from Asia where one USD goes up to 16,000 of their money! It's like dirt cheap there, and of all places I go to England next. Sigh.

So far it is $7.50 per gallon of gas! Yikes! Although, California isn't too far behind! They add their tax into all the prices. Their tax is about 17%! And I thought an 8% tax was bad in Monterey!

Alton Towers

2007-05-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

I lost my voice today at Alton Towers! It's a great theme park with thrills and chills! Air is the Six Flags version of Tatsu and rocks just as well! Nemisis' claim to fame is flying over several red waterfalls! It was a fun day full of awesome roller coasters. Rita is the fastest one by far using magnets to automatically start the speed with no warning! Well, technically they give warning. A light turns green to let you know when the ride starts . However, the magnets hurl you so fast that the green light is already a blur the second the light changes to green! It's crazy fun!

This ride is called Submission.

Vikki and I on the swings. A classic.

Meet Rita, the Queen of Speed. She goes from 0 to 100 mph in 2.5 seconds!

My first double decker ride!

2007-05-10T20:12:00.000-07:00

Vikki took me around Birmingham New Street and Northridge. It's a fabulous part of town! It's always so green with tons of trees around. And there are plenty of parks and grassy areas as well.

I had my first double decker bus ride today! It was awesome! Although I'm not sure the other passengers enjoyed my camera-happy outlook. We went up top to the front of the bus. You haven't properly seen Birmingham, until you've seen it from the top of a double decker. I wiped out my camera and took a video. I didn't mind looking like a fool, however, I wasn't in backpacker land, so no one else was anxious to make memories on their trip and consequently thought I was silly.

Next stop: England!

2007-05-02T12:18:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving next Tuesday for Birmingham, UK. I'll be there for a month to visit Vikki and Mark! Hopefully I can make it permenant by finding a job. I have some interviews lined up, so we shall see how they go. I'll be in Birmingham and London for most of my time there. I'm excited to be in another country which speaks my language. This will be a first for me! I'm looking forward to communication wih words and not hand motions. Although, I think I might miss the eternal game of charades.

Getting into Cambodia

2007-01-16T07:17:00.000-08:00

Ah, Cambodia. If it weren't for the guy from D.C., I'd still be at the border town trying to get in. You may think I'm kidding. But I'm not.

Our bus ride over there was amazing. It was this huge, double-decker, spacious tour bus. I slept the whole way, which could be seen as not taking advantage of the fact that for once we had actual tables built into the floor, but really, it was the first really nice plushy bus that I could sleep in and be comfortable, so I condone what I did as taking advantage, and not under using it.
We arrived at a restaurant near Poipet, the Thailand/Cambodia border town to wait, for what, I still don't know. They said we would need to give them our passports, 1,200 baht (about $36) and they would take care of our Cambodian visas. Most everyone did just that, but when we said we would pay at the border so we didn't need their service, they got angry. Apparently we weren't going to pad their wallet, and they were expecting it. Everyone was done eating for at least two hours before the bus came back. Yes, that's right, the bus left us there. It was quite frightening for those who gave their passports away! There were a couple of scared moments as some of the passengers realized that this might be a scam to get passports and cash. Thankfully the bus came back and took us to the border, with the understanding that those with their Cambodian visas would be able to continue on the tour, and those who didn't take their service wouldn't (that would be me...). We were quite through with being taken advantage of, so we made our case why they should wait for us as we got our visas. We'd had to get visas in Indonesia and it took all of 10 minutes. We were worried, but not enough to take any scams! We got to the border and breezed through the Thailand side. When we got to the Cambodian side, things weren't so easy. A guy from the tour decided to go with us, since we almost rioted. He led us to the visa line. We asked for our visas, handed him our passports and our crisp $20 bill (all money must be new and crisp, or it won't be honored) and Kari gave him her picture, and I my 100 baht, since I forgot my pictures back in Taiwan. The guard said it would be 1000 baht ($30) plus 100 baht without a picture. We looked at him. We looked at the sign above the window. (Cambodian passports - 20 USD) We said it was $20, and if he would be so kind as to take our money and passports. Again, he said 1000 baht. We said no, $20. He looked at us, and shut the window. We laughed a little, knocked on the window and started the process all over again. By now another guy had joined us to get his passport. He asked us what was going on, so we pointed to the sign and said, visas are $20 and the guy wants 1000 baht. Each time, I took our documents to the window and each time I was rejected. I am sick of scams. I am sick of it! We tried several times, and I noticed he never touched anything I had in my hand. None of the guys in the office even tried to help, or look through our documents. I realized why, and told the guy to take our stuff and tell them what's what. They opened the window, took our documents and printed out our visas. I asked where I needed to go to get my picture taken, and a helper said to wait. After all that, our tour guide asked us how much we paid. I had quite forgotten he was there. When we said $20, for that is how much it costs, he said “Good” as if he was glad we didn’t get scammed, as if he cared! I thought it pretty shoddy he didn't help us at all. He knew it was $20 and yet he never said we could pay it. The guard gave our documents back to the guy from D.C. and I realized I was taken again. I never thought the money for the picture would be a scam as well. Sigh, I guess you can't win everything.

The first thing you see as you leave the Thailand debarkation line!

We then we went to the line to enter the country. It was quite long and we could see our fellow tour groupies at the front of the line. After all our hassle, they were only about 10 people ahead. When they all finished up, we got a little antsy that our group would leave us. We tried to hurry up the line by singing the Cambodian national anthem. However, we didn't actually know the national anthem, so we interchanged words with anthems we knew the theme too. (O Cambodia, how much we love this place... and so on) We finally got through the line and found our group around the corner standing around waiting for who knows what. Our D.C. friend told us of the money exchanging scam, so we luckily dodged that one, although, I bet we wouldn't have fallen into it, even if we hadn't known about it, especially after all we'd been through, and read online.

So here's the scam, just for kicks and giggles. A guy in a motorbike drives up and asks if you have Riel (the Cambodian money). You of course don't have it, and he says, the only money honored in Cambodia is the Riel, so you'll have to come along with him on his motorbike to buy the Riel, where they give it to you at half the price you would get at a bank.

We met another guy from Spain who we wanted to be our new Fab, and it all seemed like it was to happen. However, we had to part with our D.C. and Spanish friend as they were in another bus. After another hour of waiting (who said we wouldn't make the tour bus?) we finally got onto a bus and what a bus it was! Everyone told us about the horrible road to Siem Reap and the sad bus standards, but our bus was quite nice! We were amazed. We drove down the street for about two seconds, and then got to the bus station. We had to get off and into another bus. We fondly named it: The Pink Nightmare. It was small, with no A/C and the entire inside was done over in Pepto-Bismol Pink. The chairs, ceiling, walls and all were pink. It was weird. The road to Siem Reap wasn't really that bad. The road wasn't paved at all and consequently was bumpy, but nothing will ever come close to the train ride to Bangkok. I don’t' know why everyone talks about the bus to Siem Reap, but it probably has to do with the fact no one has ever had lows like Kari and I have. But it wasn't a bad ride at all. The only bad part was the dirt... There was no A/C on our bus, so the entire time all of the windows (except the ones next to Kari and me) were open letting in all the dirt stirred up into the air by the bus. Sadly, we were caked with dirt an inch thick when we arrived at our lodge... I really wish I bought a facemask in Taiwan. There aren't any towns from the border to Siem Reap except one, about two hours from Siem Reap. The ride was about six hours long, and yet there were some bathroom breaks. You might wonder how there were bathroom breaks, when I just said there were no stops or towns between the two points. Well, the bus just pulled to the side of the road, and all the guys got out. Yup, they made their own bathroom on the side of the road with the women in the bus a little confused as to why we stopped. It was an interesting ride to say the least.

Here's a video of the Pink Nightmare:

And here's a video of the "bathroom (and I use that term, very loosely) breaks"

The Cambodian countryside.

At the end of the day, we learned of another scam. We stopped at a restaurant at the town before Siem Reap and met up with our Spanish and D.C. guy. They told us they take as much time to get to Siem Reap as possible, so that we get in late. They don't stop at the bus center, or city center. They stop at an expensive hostel and offer discounts, to the weary travelers, knowing it is too late to get around. It almost worked; however, with Kari and I around, we were sure to keep everyone else honest! We rioted and got half the bus to refuse to get off until they dropped us off where they promised to drop us off. Ah, it's good to be mutinous. It worked and we got dropped off at the city center, where we walked to Jasmine Lodge. We asked for the cheapest room. Started to unpack, couldn't hack it in the community bathroom with no light and had to move. Yes, we couldn't hack it in the cheap rooms, and had to ask for a room with a bathroom!

I was so gross from our open window drive that I decided to shower and then moist towelette myself as well as my luggage! I swear, the water from my shower was so brown, even after standing in the shower for some time, it was just sick.

This is actually the sign on the border between Cambodia and Vietnam, consequently it was taken leaving Cambodia, but whatever.

Bangkok, Thailand

2007-01-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster! Temples, temples and more temples. We got templed out after two... Hehe. Greatfully, we had enough diversions to hold our attention. I got my first suit tailored at a cool shop named Oscars near Khao San Road! The tailor shops line the street one after another. It's rather odd. I had no idea they would be so numerous. Who would think to go to Thailand to get measured and fitted? I didn't that's for sure, but I fell for its spell. I never had a tailor before, but love the whole experience, and got used to someone doing everything for me! I got a way cute three piece suit in black cashmere with a black pinstripe variation.

Since we couldn't stand to do the temple thing for longer than three hours, we had a salon day instead. It was relaxing and oh so cheap! And yet again, I was subject to ridicule from the backpacker society. I was a backpacker getting a manicure and pedicure! I backpacked through Asia with a french manicure. That's bad!

This is us in front of the longest reclining buddha in the world at Wat Pho. It is 46 meters long and 15 meters high. The next picture is us outside of the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaeo about to create a riot. Heeheehee, after us, this tour group all had to take pictures in the pose.

This is the first falafel pita I've ever had. It was dang good! Actually it was the first falafel I've seen. I've heard about them before, but really had no idea what it was. We met some guys who told us what falafels are, but I still don't know, so don't ask. This is us doing the "wai" with Ronal McDonald on Khao San Road! Ah, the memories.

This is me showing off my fun suit! I had my skirt done with pleats in the back!

The A Place, Thailand

2007-01-15T02:00:00.000-08:00

We took a tour to The A Place for a day. I still don't know where I was, or what it's called! We had a great time, and it's not really because of the temples and ruins we saw. It's because that's where we met our first hammock! Hammocks were everywhere from then on, and we got into the craze. As we rejoined our group, they all asked what weird things we were carrying. When we said we bought hammocks, oh the funny looks we got. But I don't care. Oh, and we had a fun interview with the local school girls! We got bored after the the first 15 minutes after the first stop of the day... Instead of spending our time walking around and taking in the sites, we sat down in a gazebo and answered questions for groups of school girls needing to practice their English.

Oh, and I finally saw buddha's head in the tree roots! And we got some sacreligious pictures behind headless and armless buddhas. I drank my first soda in a bag.

Yes, that's my head. And my arms.

Therea re security guards around the ruins, and two right in front of buddha's head in the tree. No one's head is allowed to be higher than buddha's, so that's why I'm kneeling. That me and green Fanta in a bag! I think Kari got Pepsi.

That's my hammock! It's nice an Halloween-y. Those are the second group of school girls who interviewed them. The girl with the long hair is the one who gave me her cell phone hello kitty strap. I will always remember that.

We had a guy from Israel on the tour with us. We wanted him to be our next Fab, but he wouldn't have anything to do with us. It could be the fact that during the tour guide's monologues, we hung back and talked loudly through the entire thing, or the fact that we were scared of his dredlock sportin' friend. Either way, there was no Fab to guide us through the A place, which could be one reason after the second stop and all subsequent stops, we sat down on a curb the second we got out of the car and waited until it was time to go without getting up to see the ruins or sites...

Tiger Temple (Wat Pha Luang Ta Bua)

2007-01-12T19:00:00.000-08:00

The thing about Thailand that hooks people in and keeps them coming back is all of the many different tours available. All inclusive packages that span the entire tourist attraction world make it so easy for weary travelers tired of planning out everything from where to stay, what to see, where to eat and so on. The Thai people have turned tours into an art. We started Monday out with a Tiger Temple trip. Our tour company at the guesthouse also works with the Jolly Frog and a couple of the other guesthouses along the backpacker strip. We were lucky, because the VN is the hub, so we were always the first in the tour. Safari taxis are the thing in Kanchanaburi, so we rode another one around with a French family. We picked up two Australians, an English couple and Alex at the Jolly Frog and another English couple at another guesthouse. We had a pretty good group and got acquainted on the trip there and back. Here is a video of our tour group. We actually took it after our tour, but since I just introduced everyone in the beginning of this post, I thought I'd put it here.

The Tiger Temple is in a ravine near Kanchanaburi where Monks and volunteers take care of animals of all sorts. There are tigers, deer, peacocks, pigs and various other animals. It’s such a cool place and really the only place you can pet and hold tigers! Although, before you go in, you have to sign your life away or they won't let you inside!

We walked into these huge gates (all the better to hold the animals in) and down a dusty dirt road towards the tigers. The tigers are led to a little valley, surrounded by cliffs and a man made waterfall, in the middle of the day. Tigers sleep through the hottest part of the day, so it's the only time to visit. Once you arrive, it is made clear that you are to use whispers at all times, so as not to disturb the tigers. They keep them on a leash for tourist safety. I was never scared, or thought I had to be. It was more cool than anything else, and I was a little confused when others around me hesitated to get in the "meet and greet" line. There were a ton of volunteers there, so we chatted to one from Germany while we waited to take pictures. She was very nice and our efforts would turn out to be quite fruitful at the end of the day. When you get up to the front of the line, you give your camera to a volunteer who takes your arm into theirs and leads you to different tigers lounging about. Then they take pictures for you as you pet them! It's all very organized. Once you've seen them all, they take you back to the front to approach the next person in line. It was so fun! We stayed for quite awhile and got some good pictures and movies.

At about 4:30ish, they lead the tigers back into their dens. This is where chatting it up with the volunteers help. My German volunteer friend found me and led me to the front of the procession, where I was the second person to hold the tiger's leash and lead him! It was awesome!

After that we walked up to where they feed the other animals. They drive a truck down the road and throw out food, consequently all the animals run up to the road to eat. I should mention, this is the same road we walked up and were still walking on. We were all walking along, with no warning that random bulls would come running up from everywhere to eat! It was quite exciting. We never did figure out what the food was they feed the animals. It was quite big and light green. Craziness reigned for a few minutes as pigs and all manner of animals went charging about for food.

We went over to where they kept the tigers and were surprised to find two tiger cubs! They were in a cage for a long time, and we all took pictures. Then the volunteers took them out so we could get closer. Then, as if the day couldn't get any better, a volunteer asked me if I wanted to hold one! So then she gives me the cub, and I'm like dude, I'm holding a tiger! However, the cub didn't seem to take to me. As it squirmed, roared and tried to eat me, I quickly gave it back to the volunteer.

Sadly, I got the evil one. Kari on the other hand got the sweet cub who just laid in her arms happily.

I got a pic with the nice baby tiger once Kari finished holding it.We realized that we were the only ones left in the park (it pays to stay behind from the group, as we were the only ones to get to hold the baby tiger cubs, everyone in our group was so jealous!), so we rushed out, got lost and finally found the exit. It turns out our tour group had been waiting for 10 minutes for us. Oddly enough, making our tours wait for us turns into a trip theme, as we did it quite often.

Kanchanaburi, Thailand

2007-01-11T04:53:00.000-08:00

Oh Kanchanaburi, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways: riding and washing elephants, bamboo rafting, Tiger Temple, Erawan Falls, River Kwai Bridge, raft rooms, "flushable" toilets, banana and pineapple pancakes, beautiful sunsets on the river, Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and Alex (the new Fab). Yes, Kanchanaburi is awesome! Very worth a visit. It's so beautiful and chill and there are so many things to do!

Here are our berths on the train! It was really fun to sleep on the top bunk in a moving train! The next picture is Russ (the new Fab from Malaysia to Chumphon) showing us Fame (the premier backpackers joint in Chumphon).

Ah, here I am with the proprieters of the VN Guesthouse, and the magnificent chef who created the most amazing banana and pineapple pancakes ever. The next picture shows my contentedness as I eat a banana pancake at the VN guesthouse.

This is a "Thai-style" toilet. Notice it has no back. And yet, it has a strange bucket filled with water next to it. To flush a Thai-style toilet, one has to ladle buckets of water into the toilet until the toilet is clear. The second picture is our raft on the Kanchanaburi River (or the River Kwai, I'm actually not sure). We are the second room after the ramp.

We arrived at the train station in Bangkok at 5ish on Sunday. We then needed to find a taxi to the bus station to Kanchanaburi. After rejecting a taxi who wouldn't use the meter, these two guys gave up their taxi for us! We insisted on the meter, so he drove round in circles until he arrived at the bus station after an hour. It was a glorious bus terminal though. It looked like a stadium on the outside, with various bus company checkpoints on the inside. It turned out we went to the wrong station. No company had any more buses that night. After arguing with the information people, an English guy from Kanchanaburi overheard our plight and told us of the south bus station, how to say it in Thai for taxi drivers, gave us some pointers on a bus company to use and good places to stay. So we had to catch another taxi to the "south" bus station. After saying the Thai for "south bus station" fifteen times in different tones, we headed out.

We arrived at what looked like a tourist flea market! I never would have taken it for a bus station were I on my own. The contrast of the huge, orderly station we left was enormous. There were buses, to be sure, but it didn't look like a proper station, per say. It was this small building with hordes of people every which way you looked and buses parked wherever they could. We finally got a bus to Kanchanaburi! And true to all buses, it was a freezer. Our blankets saved us again! It was a nice, relaxing two hour ride to Kanchanaburi. After an hour, the bus kept stopping to let people off. We were unaware there would be more stops than the central Kanchanaburi city stop, so we got a little confused for a while, but after discussing with several other confused tourists, we decided to sleep until they kicked us off! Not a perfect plan, but what can you do?

When we arrived in Kanchanaburi at 10 p.m. We got a driver who knew the VN Guesthouse. As the guy pointed us in the direction of his taxi, I had a slight trip down memory lane. There in front of me were the well known safari taxis of the Virgin Islands! I never thought I'd see one again! I didn't realize how much I loved those taxis, until I caught sight of it in the dark. We arrived at the VN Guesthouse and were happy to get a river raft room! It has a personality all its own and therefore deserves its own post.

Malaysia

2007-01-05T20:48:00.000-08:00

Totally expensive and not asian at all. That's right. There are no Chinese people in Malaysia. I don't know how it happened, I mean they have that "sia" thing going with the end of their name. Was that just me? Was I the only one who though Malaysia would be like, well, Asia? With Asian people, and Chinese (or other asian languages) everywhere, scooters hogging the roads and four story buildings the only sight for miles. Malaysia was another India. It was weird. But we did go to a Snake Temple and see the Petronas Towers.

These are pictures from the Batu Caves. It's pretty awesome. It is in the mountains near KL (Kuala Lumpur). A massive statue of a Hindu goddess stands at the front. Can you see me at the bottom of the picture? And then there are 272 steps to get into the caves. That's me after nearly fainting upon arrival.

This is one of the evil monkeys we met on our trip up the stairs. I tried to take a movie close up of the monkeys, and it turned into a movie of one of them trying to eat me! Luckily a nice man saved me and Kari and told us to video them from afar.

This is the most degrading picture I could find of the wanna-be backpackers with wheelies. Look at us, such posers. The second picture is our garb at the Mosque we visited. It was quite hot out and yet, we had to dress for Winter.

Ah, the Petronas Towers. The are the second tallest buildings in the world (second only to Taipei 101). I got to go up to the skybridge and look out across KL. The second picture is of the funny looking contraption I had to rig up in order to use the outlets. First I need a wall socket adapter that looks like a face, then a voltage converter, then my recharger for my camera or iPod.

Midnight Train of Horrors

2007-01-04T16:03:00.000-08:00

This train ride was our new all time low. It was horrible in its afflictions. I laugh now, but I wasn’t laughing then. Well, I was, but that was out of exhaustion, not humor. We got on the train at 8:45 p.m. It all started with a family. When that new family walked onto our car and settled down in the seats directly behind us, I knew it would be a long night. Little did I know, it was just one of the many hardships we would have to tolerate. Before the train started to move, I decided to walk up to the bathroom. I got one glimpse of the bathroom and had to walk right back to my seat. It was just too scary to use. As we settled in, and the little kids started screaming, I really didn’t think it could get worse. When the train started going, I thought the lights would turn off. They didn’t. Those fluorescent lights bored into my soul the entire length of the journey. When the movie started to play, I thought I was just imagining it. Who turns on a movie on a night train? I looked for the button to turn down the speaker, and realized there was none. Of all the places surround sound is appreciated, it is not on a train in the middle of the night. The speakers were on the roof the entire length of the car. We asked a train engineer to turn the speakers down, but the speakers didn’t go quieter. I thought, maybe it will be a good movie I’ve wanted to watch for a while. It wasn’t. It was some National Geographic movie about animals mating. Of all the rotten luck, I would be stuck on the one train showing the movie of the mating rituals of rabbits. The train was frigid, but at least we were ready for that. I had the bright idea to keep the blankets from the airlines we rode to the Philippines and S’pore since buses are always so cold to me. We could alleviate only that one horrible thing. Meanwhile, the kids behind us kept pulling Kari’s hair the entire night. Luckily, they left my hair alone, but they kept jerking my arm, all the while laughing and screaming loudly. Meanwhile, I still had to use the restroom... That was possibly the worst night I have ever had.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

2007-01-04T02:01:00.000-08:00

We arrived in what looked like the scary part of KL at 5 a.m. Although, I think any part of town would look like the scary part of town at 5 in the morning. We had no idea where we were, where our hostel was, or even if we were in KL! We researched a hostel in each city in which we were to stay, so we knew the cheapest and centrally located places, before we got there. That was the best idea, because there’s not much you can do at 5 in the morning in a country used to ripping off tourists. We knew we picked a place close to the train and bus drop offs, so we didn’t want to pay extraordinary prices to take us a block. We found the general direction we needed to go and found the Backpackers Traveler’s Inn with no problem. The real problem started when we tried to check in. We woke up with guy at the desk to get a room. He told us to leave and come back at 9 when the guests would be awake. He didn’t want to check us in, as it would wake up his precious guests. So we left and sat down in front of another hotel. It took three trips up the steps, two hours and finally me using my PR skills to get us in at 7:30 a.m. As we walk into the room and the guy flips on the light we see two huge cockroaches that were so accustomed to their home, they didn’t even run at the turn of the light switch. You know you’ve gotten yourself into sad circumstances when the cockroaches who share the room with you don’t even care enough to run at human movement and light. This was too much for me, smug cockroaches?! I don’t think so. Kari killed one of them and I quickly got the guy to kill the other. After that, I had a new respect for Kari. Even with living in Disney World, Hawaii, the Caribbean and Taiwan, all hot, humid places, I’d only seen one or two cockroaches, and each time they reared their ugly head, our apartment complexes would spray again. I knew then that I was on my own devices and not on my company’s tab!

We crashed until 1 p.m. We found a water park on the roof of a mall on the net, so we wanted to go there first. What seemed like an easy and fun thing to do, turned out to ruin our entire Malaysia experience! It took us forever to get to the park. We took the LRT and then a taxi. It cost a fortune and as luck would have it, the park was closed for the school year. We were so ticked; we sat outside of the park for an hour taking pictures and videos of our hopelessness! We tried to call a taxi to come get us, yet the phones didn’t like us. We ended up going to the Petronas Towers and taking pictures of it at night. It was beautiful and amazing!

We stood in line for tickets to the Petronas Towers at 9 a.m. the next day. They only issue so many tickets for one day and since this was our last day in KL, we had to get tickets. We got tickets without a hitch, but others weren’t so lucky. We waited around until it was our turn (at 1:10 p.m.) to go up to the sky bridge. It was like out of a dream walking between the towers I had seen on Zoolander!

We went to the Batu Caves later on that day. The outside was cooler than the inside, but still cool to see. I would recommend seeing them if there is a festival going on. The cave is a limestone hill. There is a massive statue of Lord Murugan at the gate. To enter the cave, one has to scale the 272 steps, which are home to evil monkeys of doom. As Kari and I climbed up, we were scared of them, and ran every time they came close. Since they didn’t harm us, we had a different approach as we came down, much to my downfall. I really don’t like monkeys. They’re like cats, nasty and evil, yet I wanted a movie of them because they were there. So I went as close as I dared (which was still rather far away) to take a video of them, and one of them tried to eat me! Thankfully, a nice man shooed the demon away, so my stuff and I were saved. When we left, we looked and looked for the bus stop, only to have someone point out the faint bus stop written hastily in a small corner of a store’s façade! It was random, so for future Batu Caves travelers, the bus stop is real, just look for people congregated on the corner, and then look up at the small lettering on the building!

We left that night on the train for Penang, Malaysia. That train ride deserves its own post.

Singapore

2007-01-02T10:37:00.000-08:00

It's Fab! Merlion. Durian shaped theaters. Little India. A fabulous Fab tour guide. It's as clean as Walt Disney World. It is home to the world's largest water fountain. Singapore is awesome! I loved it! I was very impressed with this little country-state. It's an island, and yet we never saw any water as we walked over the border to Malaysia. But really, the topper is the airport!

Free Internet.
Free XBOX.
Free movie theater.
Free swimming pool.

I'm in love with the Sinapore Airport! It's amazingly fabulous! Meanwhile, we weren't staying in Singapore, so we had our junk with us all during the morning and afternoon. This was the worst idea ever, and we were actually laughed at as we stayed on the bus yet again, because we had too much stuff to get off the bus in the limited time used for a stop. Did I mention we had a backpack and a wheelie? Yes, I rolled my way through Southeast Asia. In the backpacker society, this isn't done. In fact, we were the laughing stock of the backpacker nation.

This is me kicking Kari's butt on the free XBox in the S'pore Airport! (Actually, she was kicking my butt, but this is my blog, so I'll tell it like I want, OK?!)

These are pics from the Botanic (not Botanical) Gardens. It's pretty, and free! Thus, we quite enjoyed it.

These are pictures of S'pore at night. So pretty. The first picture is dedicated to the country's weird obsession to Durians (spikey fruit found in Southeast Asia, looks cool, smells nasty when opened). They actually modeled a building after one! The second picture is of the Merlion (you'll get it, give it time).

The first picture is of me after I fell into the S'pore river trying to get "up close and personal" pictures of the Merlion. That's the guard who kept pressing me to see if I was ok, if I would sue, etc. He was so worried for his job, because he was the one on duty. Good times. The second is us in the middle of Skyscraper City.

We flew to S'pore from the Philippines on New Year's Day. We flew in and got onto (as directly as we could) a ferry to Batam Island, Indonesia. We stayed the night in Indonesia and then came back to S'pore on the 7 a.m. ferry. We decided not to stay in Singapore, but to take a train at night, so we were stuck with all of our stuff since we didn't have a hostel to check into. (Big mistake...) Our train didn't leave until 11:25 p.m. so we had a day to play in S'pore. We got on the SIA Hop on Buss (Singapore Airlines) to see the sights. Our first stop was the Esplanade. That's where we saw the Merlion and the Durian theatre on the bay. We each took turns walking down the steps to show how big the Merlion was in a picture. Kari did quite well, and took a nice picture with no glitch. However, leave it to me to turn the smallest moment into a two hour fiasco... I walked down the steps towards the river, wanting to have my picture with me wading into the water. The last step was green – covered over in moss and algae. I saw the algae and moss, and stepped anyway. I don't know what I was thinking, but I ended up falling into the S'pore river backside first! It happened in less than a second. I don't even remember falling. Kari and the security guard rushed to my aid and kept asking me if I was ok. The only thing hurt was my pride, but he was absolutely terrified I would be hurt and sue. He stayed to help me for about 15 minutes! Alas, my entire backside was wet and all mossy, so I had to change. Random story of S'pore number one.

We got back on the bus with intentions to get off at Chinatown and the Sri Mariamman Temple. Keep in mind we had our backpacks on our laps and wheelies beside us on the bench in the crowded bus. We stood to get up, grab our backpacks and steer our obstinate wheelies to the aisle and rear door of the bus, since people were getting on in the front. As we approached the back door, it closed on us. We tried to yell to the front of the bus to have the guy open the door again, but we weren't heard. As we tried to call again, the driver moved away from the stop to merge in with traffic. We were still pretty close to the stop so we tried to call again, but our plight became to comical and all we could do was laugh. The stop came and went, and yet we remained, weighed down by our blasted luggage. That was our all time low, not able to get off the tour bus, because our wheelies weren't quick enough. That was random S'pore story number two. We decided to get off at the Singapore Botanic Gardens stop. It was a few stops away, but we didn't leave our stop next to the rear door for fear of another pathetic failure. When we got off this French guy got off with us. His name is Fab. He stayed with us the rest of the day acting as our tour guide. We're still not sure why. Was it because we were fun? Or was he scared we wouldn't make it without someone looking out for us. Either way we had no idea, but he started a tradition of tour guides staying with us for the length of our backpacking trip. The Botanic Gardens were so pretty. I saw swans and lovely flowers and foliage. The Ginger garden was lovely as well.

Our next stop was Little India. We saw the Sri Krishnan Temple, which looked just lie the other temple we missed, so we were happy. Fab was kind enough to let us leave our stuff at his hotel, so we finally got rid of our junk for a little while. Kari and I realized immediately, never to walk around a city again without leaving our stuff at a hostel. (And we never did.) We went to Suntec City where the World's Largest Water Fountain is located. It's pretty awesome. And actually, Suntec City is made up of buildings located around a square to look like a hand. The water fountain is in the palm, and the five buildings rise out of the ground in varied heights to represent the thumb and fingers.

We had a great dinner and then watched the laser light show at the fountain. We met a group of students from the Philippines. Since we just left the Philippines and missed it, we had a good conversation with them. It was time to say goodbye to S'pore and Fab.

A train leaves S'pore for KL (Kuala Lumpur), but it's cheaper if you catch the train in Malaysia, so we decided to walk across the border to save money. We asked how to get to the border of S'pore and Malaysia to catch the train in Johor Bahru (Malaysia) to KL. We got on the MRT and bus to the border. As an evil end to our lack of planning, we got on the wrong bus to the border and missed our train to KL. In fact, we were still on the MRT in the middle of S'pore when the train in Malaysia left! We finally got to the border between S’pore and Malaysia and it looked like we were trying to escape prison. Barbed wire, search lights and electrocuted fences lined the land as far we could see. It was at 12:18 a.m. we finally got to the border. It was the first time I’ve ever seen a border between two countries before. I’m not sure if the lengths they took was because of the bad blood between S’pore and Malaysia, or if that’s how all borders look at night. Either way, when we saw the scariness we wondered if we accidentally stepped into something we weren’t supposed to! We ended up getting an empty luxury bus to take us the 5 miles to Johor Bahru for 5 ringgits and then another nice bus to KL for 30 ringgits. One dollar is about 3.5 ringgits. Sadly, that was twice the price of the train. We were taken for a ride, and we about had it. When we got on the bus to Johor Bahru, we thought it was going to take us to KL. We even bargained for the 30 ringgits price, the price quoted was 40 ringgits.

Indonesia

2007-01-01T15:44:00.000-08:00

Scary port on Batam Island. Scary hotel. Scary nights. Scary motorcycle guys. But totally awesome hair shampoo and condition in the supermarket by three really fun ladies! And one chic actually pocketed some of my hair... She had never seen curly hair before, and wanted to show her friends. One might say a little freaky, but she was quite funny.

This is the chic who pocketed my hair. She also thought I looked like Angelina Jolie.

These are the ladies who washed our hair! They are so sweet! The best part about Indonesia!

That's my motorcycle guy. He was scarier than Kari's guy. Notice that neither of us have a helmet on, and yet I'm smiling. And this is the ferry we went to Indonesia on!

This is my breakfast. So wrong. However, the hot chocolate had sweetened condensed milk in it, simply ingenius.

We got on the wrong ferry, both literally and figuratively. At first, we stood in the Penguin ferries line full of white people and other tourists. By the time we finally got to the ferry terminal from the airport it was 3 p.m. We were worried about the maximum time in Indonesia (a non-existent threat now that we’ve been there…), so we went into another ferry line with no people. We should have considered why no one was in this line, but on with the story. We finally got to Batam Island at 5:30ish. We ended up at a port on the locals side of the island. We took a taxi to Windsor Square Hotel that should have cost us 30,000 rupiahs, but neither of us had change, so he took my 50,000 bill and didn’t give change. We didn’t know if one is supposed to tip drivers, so we left it at that.

We arrived at this hole in the wall hotel and felt right away we needed to lock up anything we had. We checked in and wondered what to do. We read that there was a small bike road connecting other small islands and atolls, so we enquired about bikes and the location. A He/She took us under her wing and told us never to go out at night by ourselves and never to do the bike tour. She was a muscular woman, and she told us she is extremely careful at this port. We asked what there was to do, and she told us about some shopping centers. We went off to go, and she said we should only take hotel appointed taxis. When there was none available, she said it should be ok to go with these two motorcycle guys.

They took us to some obscure malls that were half-closed. We ended up at a Wal-Mart type store, but still no where near a mall where we could get touristy stuff. We were a little confused as to why there weren’t any tourist malls and shops, when these three hair care ladies for Sunsilk (an Asian brand of hair products) told us they would shampoo, condition and massage our hair and head for free if we bought their samples. An awesome time was about to be had! We bought some Sunsilk shampoo and conditioner and got ready for our wash and massage! It was awesome! They had this little bathroom set up near the front of the store. It was so random! For a little while, there was a group of people watching the only tourists get their hair washed. Those ladies were so sweet! Only two of them knew English, so we had good conversations with them. But the other one just smiled. She was cute, she would just laugh when we did! One of the ladies thought I looked like Angelina Jolie, so she kept taking pictures with her cell phone. She’s the one who took my hair and put it into her pocket when I asked where the trash was. She said it was the first time she saw and touched curly hair. When it came time to blow dry my hair, I wanted to make sure she didn’t treat the blow-dryer like a weapon, else I would have a huge fro on my hands. I kept trying to get her to understand that she needed to be careful with the blow-dryer and to only blow dry pointing down, but she totally got scared and hardly wanted to touch the dryer and kept pointing it away from my hair. It was a funny little end to the night. Next time, I’ll just not say anything, and deal with the consequences later. Those ladies really made Indonesia awesome. Our other experiences sucked, so I’m glad I met them, or else I wouldn’t ever want to go back to Indonesia. Now I know to go to the places where other tourists go…

The motorcycle guys stayed with us throughout the three hour wash and massage. They took us back to our hotel and demanded a ton of rupiahs. We didn’t quite understand though, because of the language barrier. They kept saying, too many zeros (what they meant was not enough zeros, as we came to understand). As we were standing in front of the hotel with our purses open, the He/She helped us again to get inside the hotel as fast as possible, and to never just let our purses open and out. Another lady from S’pore also ushered us into the hotel to get away from all the people staring at us. We sure learned the most in Indonesia probably because it was the scariest. And that’s the point when we decided not to let anyone else take advantage of us. We got on the first ferry out of Indonesia, which ironically wasn’t even with the same company with which we bought our round trip tickets!

Philippines

2006-12-31T22:21:00.000-08:00

Awesome times were had by all, in the only place on earth who really knows how to handle New Years' Eve. The festivities started four days before New Years. The non-stop fireworks began three hours before midnight. I don't think anyone else in the world partied as hard as the people of the Philippines do.

We went to Pagsajan Falls. We boated down the river to the falls, and then we took a bamboo raft to the middle of where the water comes crashing down! The water was totally cold, but fun. We went to a church that was buried in lahar from Mount Pinatubo, so the third story is now the ground floor. We also shopped in the pearl market, which lived up to Heather's hype! It was great because we would name a price, and they would say ok. It was the best bargaining ever.

We met Heather's quilting friends and had an authentic Filipino lunch. Tess made us the best meals. Benny drove us up and down the Philippines.

I met my first ham and cheese empanada and will forever be hankering for it. I loved the Philippines. It was beautiful, fun and cheap!

Hualien and Taroko

2006-12-27T04:15:00.000-08:00

I lost/got my glasses stolen on the train.

We got into a crash in a parking lot.

Our hotel was haunted.

Our Japanese style hotel was cheap.

The hot springs were the coolest hot springs ever!

The Water Curtain Tunnel hike ended in a poncho trip through a waterfall enclosed in a tunnel.

It had its ups and downs, but all in all Taroko is cool!

Embarking on a Tour of Southeast Asia

2006-12-23T05:43:00.000-08:00

I leave tomorrow on a backpacking tour of Southeast Asia, where if I all goes well, I will have met tigers, ridden an elephant, held a snake and shot an AK-47. I start out in the Philippines for four days. Then I fly to Singapore, where I hop on a ferry to Indonesia. Then I'll ferry back to Singapore and spend the day there seeing the sights and the biggest water fountain in the world. Then I'll walk across the border to Malaysia to get on a night train to Kuala Lumpur. We'll be in KL for two days to see the Petronas Towers and the Safari Lagoon Waterpark on the roof of a shopping mall. Then another night train to Penang, Malaysia where the Snake Temple is located. Next a train to Chumphon, Thailand where we'll catch a bus to Myanmar. Then on to Kanchanaburi, Thailand for four days where the Tiger Temple, Elephant riding, Erawan Waterfall and Bridge on the River Kwai is. Then off to Bangkok for four days, where one night makes a hard man humble. From there, we'll go down to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where Angkor Wat, one of the seventh wonders of the world is located. Then down to Phnom Penh where the Killing Fields are. Our last stop will be Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam for a week. Vietnam is where I'll get to fire some weapons. All told, our trip will take us six weeks, including some travel time in Taiwan. I am so excited to finally backpack across Southeast Asia! I can't believe it's finally here!

Shitou

2006-10-14T05:02:00.000-07:00

I went to the village of the Ewoks today. No really, I did. Ok, if the Ewoks village did exsist, the Sky Walk in Shitou would surely be it. This weekend's adventure took us to Shitou, the coolest place in Taiwan I've been so far. It's this cute little National Park, that's gone above and beyond your normal National Park fare. It's in the mountains, so it's green and lush and beautiful. You walk in and find yourself on a suspension bridge, standard at all Taiwan getaways. After crossing said bridge, you have the option to go left to see giant trees, or right to go on the Sky Walk. As you probably have guessed, we went directly right even though I'm sure giant trees would have been quite lovely. On the way to the Sky Walk we past beautiful scenery. It is so lovely there!

Alishan

2006-10-08T06:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the first away from Berhan, and as such will live in my memory as the best so far. A few of us went to Alishan on Thursday afternoon. We had arranged to sleep there to see the sunrise Friday morning. This is the premiere spot to see the sunrise in Taiwan, I am told. Alishan is a town high in the mountains in the middle of the island. I must confess, it wasn't anything compared to the sunrise in Haleakala on Maui, and I'll tell you why. There is something about seeing the sun rise over a bed of clouds, which seems to cleanse the soul. You are standing a full 100 feet above the clouds, surveying the world from a bird's eye view. It's magical really. Alishan is surrounded by other mountains, with only a little valley allowing for clouds. I'm quite sure had we gone earlier, the sun's position would be in that little valley, but as it was the sun came up over a mountain slightly to the right of the valley. The world was lighted and bright for nearly 10 minutes before the sun actually made an appearance over the mountains. Not as magical as rising from high floating clouds, I grant you, but worth the weekend adventure. And I got some beautiful pictures just the same. It was quite cold as anyone would imagine the top of a mountain would be, which reminded me when I was on another mountain watching the sunrise. In Maui, I was wearing my Mandarin style coat, while in Taiwan, as Mandarin as you can get, I wore a blanket from the hotel. I thought I was over my loss, but clearly I am not, for it was a somber time. I may even have shed a tear or two. It was a beautiful coat.

We stayed in the Alishan House. I loved this place, because it wasn't totally a hotel, but a cabin! It was great! We walked down to the closest mini-mart where we got some hot chocolate. They had some hot chocolate available in cans, and I got some. It was a Snoopy brand. I didn't know Snoopy had his own brand of hot chocolate, but it was really good. And in the morning, we all made hot chocolate to drink as we took the 45 minute long train ride to the top of the mountain.

After the sunrise we took a walking tour around Alishan. It is gorgeous. There were several hikes to see the forests of Alishan. We took the Giant Tree Walk. On the walk we past enormous tree after enormous tree. Each tree had a little plaque stating how old it was. Most were 1,000 years old. It was amazing, however, after Giant Tree No. 4, it got redundant, and all picture taking stopped. We saw a three generation tree. I really liked this tree. It was interesting. The second tree is growing out of the first tree, while the third tree is growing off of the second tree.

BSB(China)New Pepsi Song

2006-09-04T00:16:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, this is so dang funny!! My favorite part is when the guy puts on sunglasses to say, DA DA DA! Gets me every time. Oh and I love the soccer ball! Oh and don't miss the random guy in the background on the computer. The upside down chinese eyes are kind of scary. Oh and the floating across the screen is a riot! Dude. Good times.

Trip to Taipei/Danshuei

2006-08-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

I went to Taipei today. It was awesome! First we rode a bus from Feng Yuan (where I'm located) for 2.5 hours to Taipei. Then we got on the MRT (Like the BART in San Fransisco or the TRAX in Salt Lake City) to visit different parts of Taipei. Little did I know I was stepping into more than just transportation, but a whole other subculture of the Taiwan experience. The 80s is alive and well in Taiwan. I've experienced it surrounded by 80s fashion on the MRT. The first thing I see is a dog in a bag. Move over Elle Woods, the Taiwanese have it over you. I turn around and see a woman wearing a dog bag. As if to cement the Taiwanese cliche, I saw a woman carrying a bunny in a bag in Danshuei (one of the northern most cities in Taiwan). It was all so unexpected I collapsed into a fit of giggles each time I would see an animal in a bag. But that first dog in the bag. It was just so funny. It was all so unassuming.

This was the infamous first dog in a bag. It just looked like the bag was full of a sweater or something, until I noticed the dog lick its lips. I about died.

Then the dog made into a bag, on an Asian with crimped hair. It was just too much.

The bunny in the bag.

After the MRT ride to Danshuei we walked along the pier and checked out the sites and shops. There just happened to be a concert going on as well, which was pretty cool. We found these fun go-carts turned animal things. However, in order for them to move, you had to feed it some money. Ever the hooligans, we moved them around by sheer force.

I still don't know what kind of animal I was riding...

It was a fun little beach town, complete with a blow-up Winnie the Pooh dressed in a Dracula costume. I just don't know.

While we were waiting for the MRT to go back, it seemed everyone (and their dog, the phrase seemed appropriate here) had these weird blow up Vibo (it's a communications company here) things. Naturally I wanted one and asked aloud how so many people had one. Sergio said they were giving them out near the concert. How in the heck did I miss that?! Usually I hone in to the free giveaway stuff in a matter of seconds (seriously, it's a knack). A group of fun looking Taiwanese chics walked by and I jokingly asked Sergio, the only one in our group who knew Chinese, to ask one of them for their Vibo thing. I had no idea he would, but he did. And then I had no idea they would actually give me one! But the second he posed the question, one of the chics handed her prize over. They were so cute, I just had to take a pic. So here they are:

The cute group that gave up one of their hard earned vibo thingies. The chic who gave hers up is the one next to me in the black and white.

Hot Spring Fun

2006-08-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

This Saturday's adventure was going to Guguan to play in the hot springs! It was totally fun! Guguan isn't too far away from Feng Yuan. We took a bus ride for about an hour and a half east. It's this quaint, little town with natural hot springs. Resorts have sprung up around the hot springs, so they are well kept. We first went to the Hot Springs Cultural Center, which explained how hot springs occur naturally. Then we took a look around the Center. This is a picture at the Center. Guguan is a valley surrounded by majestically beautiful mountains. If you are confused at what I'm attempting to do, I'm trying to touch the top of the mountain. It's oddly higher than I am able to reach. Go figure.

After we walked around a bit we saw an awesome suspension bridge leading across a river. Here is a funny sign advising crossers to never "frolic" on the bridge, as clearly it is dangerous. Although, I'm not sure, it might be ok to frolic, just as long you didn't climb it first.

We walked around until we found a nice-looking hotel with pretty hot springs. We found a good one with several pools of different sizes and temperatures. There were even fountains, sprays and jets! It was so much fun running around from pool to pool, playing in warm water.

While we were there, we saw a chic wearing a cake. That's right. Wearing the cake. They have these underground walk-abouts where you can cross busy streets underground to not worry about traffic and lights. These underground sidewalks are another story in themselves. You can find all sorts of weird things happening down there from Tai Chi workout groups to, apparently, ladies in cakes. Here we are in the undergrounds of Taiwan, and there is a chic wearing a cake! I mean, come on! Randomness continues to abound here in Taiwan.

Celebration of 50 Years of Missionaries in Taiwan

2006-08-05T08:40:00.000-07:00

I went to a totally cool program tonight! As my title aptly states, this year marks the 50th year of missionaries in Taiwan! There have been many celebrations throughout Taiwan. We went to the one in Changhua. We got there a little early and had time to slide down this wicked cement slide at the front of the stadium. I'm not exactly sure if it was meant to be a slide, but we totally used it as one. The program started at 6:00 p.m. It was so interesting. It started out with a little bit of history of Taiwan. There were some cool Taiwanese dances. Then there was the story of how the missionaries arrived and started teaching the elders and then the students of Taiwan. It was amazing learning about what it was like back then. There was totally an interpretation section, so we understood what was going on. Plus, I sat next to a woman who was from Taiwan and spoke English, so I got an insider's look at things the interpreter didn't tell us (like why they performed certain dances and what those dances meant). It was so cool. Then we went to the other Teachers from Maryland school's apartment. Dude. I'm so jealous! They get their own room, three bathrooms to share (with only five people) and they have a dryer. Don't even get me started on the dryer.

Evil Sunsets

2006-07-26T00:21:00.000-07:00

All of the buildings are at least four stories high. Some buildings are higher and some are shorter, but the vast majority are about four stories. This poses a problem for me as I have been accustomed to watching the sunset everywhere I go. Alas, I haven’t seen any sunsets here. You’re probably wondering why I don’t just walk up to the roof. I have! However, an evil building sits smack dab in the middle of where the sun sets. Oh my life is a disappointment. And the worst part is that I know there are awesome sunsets here! The sky is always aglow with purples, pinks and blues when the sun sets! However, there are so many buildings here I can’t see much of anything, except the outskirts, and that doesn’t make for a pretty picture or quenching my thirst for an unspoiled view! Sigh.

You can see that were the buildings not there, this sunset would be fabulous!

Here's a sunset from my roof. It's still pretty awesome, but would be so much better had the Taiwanese the option of moving out and not up...

New Glasses!

2006-07-20T05:30:00.000-07:00

I totally got new glasses! You like? Heeheehee, just kidding, the story of these funny glasses will be told shortly. I went to Eyes World with Elizabeth (who went before). Only one of the employees spoke English, so she helped me. Her name is Debbie. She was totally cute and nice. They had an awesome machine where you put in your glasses and it knows exactly what prescription it is. But I think my eye sight was worse, so I had them test my eyes anyway. Sure enough, my eyes needed a different prescription. Oh, and they totally had these funny prescription-ready eye glasses! Aren't they so funny? I got to put them on with my new prescription and walk around the shop to make sure the new prescription worked for me. I looked so dorky; I couldn't help myself from laughing for a long while. I just had to put this picture up, so everyone could see me in all my dorkiness. Good times were had by all. When I got back home, I decided I wanted to go to the mall. So I went out again.

It started out innocently enough. I just wanted to shop! First I went to McDonald’s and had a McChicken Meal. (Yes, the McChicken that I know and love is here in Taiwan too. All is right with the world.) Ok, the mall is just right around the corner from McDonald’s I swear! So I went down the street some more and couldn’t find it. Then I turned down a different road. I still couldn’t find it. I turned down another street. Sigh, all the streets look the same here! And it just went downhill from there. I turned down so many streets, I couldn’t find the McDonald’s I just ate at to go home! I just kept turning down random streets with no luck. Then I found the river. A river runs past our school, so I followed it for a while until I lost it. It weaved its way under the street and then down a way with no sidewalk or road by it… So then I was really lost! I rode a little bit and found the train station! I finally knew where I was! I rode down the street and realized we live across the train tracks! So I had to climb the steps with my bike. I was trying to climb the stairs and not making much success with my bike when this Taiwanese chick totally picked up the back end of my bike and started to help me up! It was totally nice. The people here are so giving and nice. I love it! When we had gone down the stairs on the other side of the train tracks I got a picture with her. And here it is. I'm wearing my new glasses, so you can see them. It was funny, because she just got off work at McDonalds! Meanwhile, she didn’t know any English, and I don’t know any Chinese, so we were totally silent as we’re walking over the train tracks. I got back to the school safely after an hour and a half of being lost. P.S. I actually had to beg her to take a picture with me. She totally kept resisting, but I made her do it, because she was so nice! I don't know what she thought I'd do with a picture of her... So don't tell her I posted it on the internet!

Recycle, Reduce, Reuse and Close the Loop!

2006-07-14T01:49:00.000-07:00

Here in Taiwan, they have the best trash and recycle policies. Everywhere you go they have multiple trash bins with pictures of what to put in what bin. I know in the States, recycling is tried at certain places, but here, recycling is everywhere. There is no excuse for not recycling, because every park, street, business and restaurant has the correct number of bins.

At McDonald’s, there are three trash bins with pictures on them. One is for food, one has pictures of food wrappers, and one has pictures of bags. (Oh, by the by, the McDonald's here is three stories tall!)

In our kitchen, we have six trash bins (one for trash (wrappers, tissues, etc.), one for clean paper, one for paper and plastic that has touched food, one for Styrofoam and one for metal and glass), one little place for batteries, and a big plastic bag to put… plastic bags in. We have them all labeled for what goes in what bin, because it can get pretty confusing. (What do you do when you have a plastic cup holding juice with a wrapper on the top?! This is when the labels come in handy. The plastic cup goes in the dirty paper and plastic bin, while the sealed wrapper top goes in the trash.) Now here’s the best part. The garbage truck drives down the street very slowly, but never stopping. All along, it plays a nice little tune, akin to the ice cream man the little kids know and love in the States.

(Just imagine me, the second day I'm here, in a little meeting for my new job in a new country. We are all experiencing jet lag, culture shock ("Why are all the signs in Chinese?") and the realization we are going to have 18 roommates... When suddenly we all hear the faint sounds of cute little midi music coming from outside. "The Ice Cream Man!," we all shout, little tears of joy glistening in our eyes as we realize, barring the language barrier, we are all the same at heart. "No, that's the garbage truck," the secretaries say as they run past our room to give the garbage men the bags of trash from Berhan. That's the moment I asked myself, "Where exactly am I?")

The reason the bins are labeled, is everyone has to give the trash bags to the garbage men. The garbage truck doesn’t just pick up the trash bags; someone has to give them to the garbage men. The teachers don't actually do it; the secretaries do it. I did it once during training, and let me just say it was a thrill. You wouldn't think so, because the trash trucks smell like, well trash, but you have to haul the bags up on the truck, while the trash man opens it up and looks through it assessing its contents. Meanwhile, the trash men are spotting trash in the wrong bag, so the secretaries are haggling with them. It was good times. We've only had our trash bags rejected twice, but I wish I could have seen that scene. Then the garbage men open the bags and if they aren’t done correctly (metal in the plastics bag for instance) they will reject them! That's right; the trash men can reject bags of trash. Now remember that the garbage truck never stops in front of houses or businesses. This is all happening at a slight running pace. All these recycling and trash rules make it difficult to throw something out; however, I totally think the whole world should adopt this way of recycling, especially islands. I mean if trash men had the power to reject bags of trash then just think what the world would be like! I was so surprised there was no recycling plan set in place in Hawaii. There was a little recycling place in Maui, but there weren’t any adverts for it. Don’t even get me started on St. Thomas. Any trash program there would be nice. There was trash everywhere. The entire island smelled like trash… But that's another story for another time.

The Fun Has Arrived!

2006-07-13T04:33:00.000-07:00

Here is my first post! I hope everyone is excited. I sure am. Here I will share all of my adventures while in Taiwan, as well as my opinions, random tangents and favorite snacks. (Seriously, the Taiwanese know how to make some totally good eats.) It will be my own little show and tell. I always loved that part of the day in Kindergarten. It might have been my favorite part, if it wasn't for nap and snack time.