Showing posts with label heavy heart. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heavy heart. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Friday, June 6, 2014
Friday, January 20, 2012
RIP Etta James
What an incredible voice featured here in, "I'd Rather Go Blind" - Etta James 1938 - 2012. Ms. James died of complications from Lukemia.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
The heat is on in Saigon
From Phnom Penh we took a bus across the boarder to Saigon. The border crossing was pretty straight forward, particularly because the Vietnamese make you get your VISA in advance so there is very little hassle at the border itself. We were still traveling with Jaylene and Travis so the four of us got to share the bus ride experience. Well sort of, Jay and Travis are champions of Valium bus travel so the ride was definitely more enjoyable for them than it was for us. Saigon is only about 5 or 6 hours from PP so we had a day trip and got into Ho Chi Minh City by early afternoon. As usual we had to go through the usual headache of getting accomodation and settling in. By the time we were showered and ready to hit the town a storm was coming on so we hightailed it to the Rex Hotel to have a rooftop drink and celebrate our arrival in Vietnam.
This is a big deal for Justin and me because it is basically the last country we are traveling to before we go to Beijing to visit my parents, and then heading home. As of arriving in Vietnam we are entering the last hurrah of our whirlwind trip. It is pretty unfathomable. These past 6 months have been super exciting and they feel like they have flown by so fast. It is hard to believe that we will be home in a month.
Anyway, I digress, we arrived at the Rex at the exact right moment because within minutes of our being there the sky openned up and a huge storm hit Saigon. Monsoon level storm. We have been seeing quite a lot of rain the last couple of weeks. It has been good though because usually everyday is so hot and humid that we are practically begging for rain. We sat under the sunroof of the Rex rooftop patio and drank our outrageously priced drinks marvelling at the bustling and frantic city bellow us. ASnd the storm. While there someone had the brilliant idea (probably Justin) that this would be perfect movie weather and that Saigon probably had a movie theatre with English movies. So we asked the waiters for some advice and made a hasty depature to the nearest Galaxy theatre. The only thing playing at a convenient time was The Book of Eli so we went to see that. What a strange movie to be showing in a Communist country with Buddist roots and a healthy skeptisim of Christianity. But it was entertaining at least.
After the movie we went for dinner at the central market and then made our way home in a sort of semi-lost, round-a-bout kind of way. We didn't have a big night because we had plans to go to Southeast Asia's most famous waterpark at Dam Sen Lake, in the morning. And, let me tell you, the water park did not disappoint.
You may think it is lame to go to water park in Saigon, when we could have been out going to temples and war muesums etc etc. But actually we were practically the only foreigners there, so it was a cultural experience. I of course rate cultural experiences by how many other white people are there. The fewer the white people the more cultural it is. It was awesome to see all the locals with their families and huge picnics. And boy do they picnic right. I mean whole lobsters at the water park, now that is amazing. We had an absolute blast, and for the first half of the day there was practically nobody there so we didn't have to wait in any lines. But by about 2 we were spent and decided to head for home.
After a mild night out in Saigon, in which I failed to piss off no less than four gap yahs, by of course referring to them as gap yahs, and playing one absolutely dismal game of pool, we spent the next day searching for and being horrified by the War Remnants Museum. It is difficult to say which was worse the killing fields in Cambodia or the War Remnants Museum in Saigon. But knowing that America had a direct hand in the reality of both definitely didn't help matters. The War Remnants Museum, which was formerly and perhaps more aptly known as the American War Crimes Museum, is chilling. Many of the images of the war were familiar to me. But there were plenty of things there I hadn't seen before. I found the pictures of children born with birth defects from exposure to Agent Orange particularly sobering and in many cases difficult to look at.
We all left feeling pretty unsettled, and it took a while for us to recover from the days activities. But Since Justin and I had a bus to catch latter in the evening we tried to make the most of the rest of the day. The four of us went out for a nice dinner together and said our goodbyes. And Jay and Travis even gave us a parting gift. Valium! For the bus ride. And then we were off to Nha Trang. Just Justin and I, alone again to continue the last of our adventures....
This is a big deal for Justin and me because it is basically the last country we are traveling to before we go to Beijing to visit my parents, and then heading home. As of arriving in Vietnam we are entering the last hurrah of our whirlwind trip. It is pretty unfathomable. These past 6 months have been super exciting and they feel like they have flown by so fast. It is hard to believe that we will be home in a month.
Anyway, I digress, we arrived at the Rex at the exact right moment because within minutes of our being there the sky openned up and a huge storm hit Saigon. Monsoon level storm. We have been seeing quite a lot of rain the last couple of weeks. It has been good though because usually everyday is so hot and humid that we are practically begging for rain. We sat under the sunroof of the Rex rooftop patio and drank our outrageously priced drinks marvelling at the bustling and frantic city bellow us. ASnd the storm. While there someone had the brilliant idea (probably Justin) that this would be perfect movie weather and that Saigon probably had a movie theatre with English movies. So we asked the waiters for some advice and made a hasty depature to the nearest Galaxy theatre. The only thing playing at a convenient time was The Book of Eli so we went to see that. What a strange movie to be showing in a Communist country with Buddist roots and a healthy skeptisim of Christianity. But it was entertaining at least.
After the movie we went for dinner at the central market and then made our way home in a sort of semi-lost, round-a-bout kind of way. We didn't have a big night because we had plans to go to Southeast Asia's most famous waterpark at Dam Sen Lake, in the morning. And, let me tell you, the water park did not disappoint.
You may think it is lame to go to water park in Saigon, when we could have been out going to temples and war muesums etc etc. But actually we were practically the only foreigners there, so it was a cultural experience. I of course rate cultural experiences by how many other white people are there. The fewer the white people the more cultural it is. It was awesome to see all the locals with their families and huge picnics. And boy do they picnic right. I mean whole lobsters at the water park, now that is amazing. We had an absolute blast, and for the first half of the day there was practically nobody there so we didn't have to wait in any lines. But by about 2 we were spent and decided to head for home.
After a mild night out in Saigon, in which I failed to piss off no less than four gap yahs, by of course referring to them as gap yahs, and playing one absolutely dismal game of pool, we spent the next day searching for and being horrified by the War Remnants Museum. It is difficult to say which was worse the killing fields in Cambodia or the War Remnants Museum in Saigon. But knowing that America had a direct hand in the reality of both definitely didn't help matters. The War Remnants Museum, which was formerly and perhaps more aptly known as the American War Crimes Museum, is chilling. Many of the images of the war were familiar to me. But there were plenty of things there I hadn't seen before. I found the pictures of children born with birth defects from exposure to Agent Orange particularly sobering and in many cases difficult to look at.
We all left feeling pretty unsettled, and it took a while for us to recover from the days activities. But Since Justin and I had a bus to catch latter in the evening we tried to make the most of the rest of the day. The four of us went out for a nice dinner together and said our goodbyes. And Jay and Travis even gave us a parting gift. Valium! For the bus ride. And then we were off to Nha Trang. Just Justin and I, alone again to continue the last of our adventures....
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Capital, truly capital
The last week Justin and I have been capital hopping with our new friends Jaylene (not brown haired, from Calgary) and Travis, (from San Jose, yes we mourned the Sharks loss together.) We left Siem Reap and took a mid morning bus down to Phnom Penh. PP I have decided is my favourite city that we have seen so far. Which is not surprising since it is in my favourite country so far. Well India is still tops but considering we were only in Cambodia a week and a half it made quite an impression. And Phnom Penh is amazing. It is so easy to get around and the city is strikingly beautiful. There is a beautiful promenade along the convergence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers and it is easy to see why it is considered the loveliest of the former French colonial cities in Southeast Asia. Justin and I spent our first evening in Phnom Penh strolling around near the waterfront, and had a cocktail at the famous Foriegn Correspondents Club, which overlooks the bustling street and river front below. And then we planned on having a quiet dinner before heading back to the Okay Guesthouse for a well deserved sleep.
Well that plan got scrapped the minute we found out there was a Saturday night drag show in town. So we convinced Jay and Trav to come with us and hightailed it over there for perhaps the most laughable drag show in all of SE Asia. And that is saying something because they have all been bad. (Good bad that is.) I have always been a true believer that only mediocrity is to be scoffed at. Anything truly, devestatingly bad is usually very entertaining. And this was certainly entertaining. And at certain moments also very confusing. Gender confusing that is. Some of those drag queens are not really drag queens anymore, at least if their skimpy outfits are to be believed. Frankly, I am not sure I can support drag shows which don't feature actual drag queens. Although I suppose the trannies deserve the spotlight too. As a side note I think now would be an advantageous time to give a word of warning to any straight man traveling in Asia - ladyboys are everywhere and they will get you! Anyway the night turned out to be a real blast. And I ended up sleeping at Jay and Travis's place after a whirlwind and confusing depature in which I was purposefully seperated from my travel companion.
The next day after we tracked Justin down, the four of us decided to hire a tuk tuk for the day to take us around to all the sights in town. We ended up hiring the sweetest man, Lin, who unfortunately doesn't have facebook or even an email account otherwise I would highly recommend him to any and all travelers passing through PP. He even let us all take turns driving the tuk tuk. Yes! Amazing I know. (It was totally my idea.) We had a great morning seeing some of the sights around town. And in the afternoon, before having him drop us at the Hotel Cambodiana for a pool session we arranged to have Lin pick us up early the next morning to take us to the killing fields and S21, the former Khmer Rouge prison.
Since we planned to get out to the killing fields by 7am we all turned in early that night. I woke with an ominous feeling, which I suppose is not a surprise given that we had a full day of genocide on the agenda. And in that regard the killing fields and S21 did not disappoint. There isn't really much to say that can convey how devastating the sights and information we garnered was; but suffice it to say I felt nauseous throughout and needed a stiff drink when all was seen and done. It was a heavy day and one that will be with me forever.
We only spent three days in Phnom Penh but even in that small amount of time I felt profoundly moved by the people, and history of both the capital and the country at large. Cambodians are, in my humble opinion, the nicest and most open people in Southeast Asia, and considering everything that happened there under the Khmer Rouge and as a result of the US war in Vietnam it is truly amazing to see their resilience and grace. From the beauty of Angkor Wat and Siem Reap to the palaces and promenade of Phnom Penh my only regret is that we couldn't stay in Cambodia longer. But alas we had a date with Saigon and off we went....
Also, again program note about spelling. I can't check it here so you will just have to suffer through. And don't laugh at me too much because I am sensitive.
O and I almost forgot I totally ate a cricket! Not as bad as you might think kind of like a crunchy, salty chip.
Well that plan got scrapped the minute we found out there was a Saturday night drag show in town. So we convinced Jay and Trav to come with us and hightailed it over there for perhaps the most laughable drag show in all of SE Asia. And that is saying something because they have all been bad. (Good bad that is.) I have always been a true believer that only mediocrity is to be scoffed at. Anything truly, devestatingly bad is usually very entertaining. And this was certainly entertaining. And at certain moments also very confusing. Gender confusing that is. Some of those drag queens are not really drag queens anymore, at least if their skimpy outfits are to be believed. Frankly, I am not sure I can support drag shows which don't feature actual drag queens. Although I suppose the trannies deserve the spotlight too. As a side note I think now would be an advantageous time to give a word of warning to any straight man traveling in Asia - ladyboys are everywhere and they will get you! Anyway the night turned out to be a real blast. And I ended up sleeping at Jay and Travis's place after a whirlwind and confusing depature in which I was purposefully seperated from my travel companion.
The next day after we tracked Justin down, the four of us decided to hire a tuk tuk for the day to take us around to all the sights in town. We ended up hiring the sweetest man, Lin, who unfortunately doesn't have facebook or even an email account otherwise I would highly recommend him to any and all travelers passing through PP. He even let us all take turns driving the tuk tuk. Yes! Amazing I know. (It was totally my idea.) We had a great morning seeing some of the sights around town. And in the afternoon, before having him drop us at the Hotel Cambodiana for a pool session we arranged to have Lin pick us up early the next morning to take us to the killing fields and S21, the former Khmer Rouge prison.
Since we planned to get out to the killing fields by 7am we all turned in early that night. I woke with an ominous feeling, which I suppose is not a surprise given that we had a full day of genocide on the agenda. And in that regard the killing fields and S21 did not disappoint. There isn't really much to say that can convey how devastating the sights and information we garnered was; but suffice it to say I felt nauseous throughout and needed a stiff drink when all was seen and done. It was a heavy day and one that will be with me forever.
We only spent three days in Phnom Penh but even in that small amount of time I felt profoundly moved by the people, and history of both the capital and the country at large. Cambodians are, in my humble opinion, the nicest and most open people in Southeast Asia, and considering everything that happened there under the Khmer Rouge and as a result of the US war in Vietnam it is truly amazing to see their resilience and grace. From the beauty of Angkor Wat and Siem Reap to the palaces and promenade of Phnom Penh my only regret is that we couldn't stay in Cambodia longer. But alas we had a date with Saigon and off we went....
Also, again program note about spelling. I can't check it here so you will just have to suffer through. And don't laugh at me too much because I am sensitive.
O and I almost forgot I totally ate a cricket! Not as bad as you might think kind of like a crunchy, salty chip.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
My O Chiang Mai
... So there we were in the middle of the jungle when the batteries ran out on the flashlight (torch.) That's when I knew we were really in trouble. We had lost the trail hours ago and once the sun had set it was dark almost immediately. Luckily we had found a place to make camp. But without the torch and all the wet weather making fire impossible we knew we were in for a long night. It was then that I heard the soft patter of paws and rustling in the forest. But nothing could have prepaired me for for the adrenline rush when I looked out into the night and saw two glassy, enormous eyes looking back at me. From my position on my knees those eyes were over my head by about half a foot. And it wasn't thirty seconds before the tiger opened its huge mouth and let out a ferocious roar right in my face. Much of what happened after that I can't remember. But I do remember when it claw dug into my hand as I went to protect Justin's innocent sleeping body...
Or maybe...
I was swimming through the reef marveling at how warm and crystal clear the water was. And thinking as I breathed slowly through my scuba regulator that life might be perfect. Mariska my diving buddy was ahead of me by about 2 meters when suddenly the sunlight overhead was blocked out by something huge above me. I hoped it was a passing boat but still my breath caught in my throat. I didn't want to look up but there it was above me the huge shark circling over head. It was then that i noticed the blood on my leg. I must have bumped into some coral, I thought. I covered my leg with my hand and tried to steady my breathing. I looked around but found that I was suddenly alone. Just then the shark became incensed and I knew it had the scent. It began circling wider and swimming deeper until it was level with me. I deflated my BCD so I would have all possible power for the inevitable charge. We squared off and I tried to grab my weight belt from around my waist to wrap around my hand, but the shark was too fast and suddenly it was upon me. I pulled back my hand and gave it one solid punch in the nose. The shark began to thrash wildly and clamped down on my palm, before turning quickly and swimming away. And just like that it was over. I started to pass out when I saw several figures swimming towards me, and that was the last thing I remembered, until I woke up in the Koh Tao hospital...
Or ...
Everything seemed quite on Soi Rambuttri, in the heart of Bangkok's Bamglamphu neighborhood. After we finished our dinner we thought it seemed safe, sure there were less people out but it appeared to be business as usual. So we decided to go for a walk and burn off some of the dinner calories. But as we neared the end of Rambuttri the energy shifted. It was as if the winds propelling a huge fire suddenly changed and the blaze was coming right for us. Before we knew it we were face to face with the Red Shirts clashing with the police and the army. Riot geared men ran past and pushed us aside and the crowd encircled us. Justin and I lost contact and I was pushed forward by the momentum of the armed men. I tried desperately to work my was to the side, but then suddenly a can of tear gas that had been thrown from behind me into the crowd of Red Shirts ahead of me blew back in my face. I doubled over trying to avoid the stinging gas. But stumbled and began to panic. I wanted desperately to stay on my feet. It was then I heard the soft whimpering of a child nearby. I blinked through the tears until I could see the young girl within arms reach. I quickly grabbed her and swept her into my arms. When suddenly i heard shouts and the riot men all around me looked menacing and crazed. The pushing became more intense and I realized we were at the front of the line, right up against the fray. Suddenly a grenade came flying through the air. It was as if everything went into slow motion. I watched it sail like a baseball overheard into the crowd of police behind me and the young girl. All around I could see the crowds faces becoming grotesque and panic stricken. People pushed in all directions. But the police could only move backwards I saw this as my chance to escape into the crowd of Red Shirts. In less than a second I had pushed my way into the RS mob before me and threw my body on top of the young girls, shielding her from the immenent blast. When it came it shock the earth and sent debris flying in all directions. My hand flew up to protect my face. And I became unconcious of the next several moments. I watched the violence around me but the sound was muted by the deafening blast. I looked down to see the girl shaking but unharmed, and then I saw the huge piece of glass lodged in my palm. The Red Shirted men above me saw it too and they lifted us up and carried us like crowd surfers at a concert to the back of the mob...
OK fine I was at the pool after day two of Thai massage class. I had my empty Leo bottle in my hand and was heading towards the room when I stepped off the carpeted mat onto the slick tile and fell. I guess I thought it would be better to keep the bottle from breaking all over and making a mess. When I hit the ground with a thud I realized the glass bottle had broken my fall and I could feel the thick glass penatrating the skin of my palm. I dropped the neck, ( bottle still broke by the way,) in an instant and looked down at my hand. I don't want to disturb you with what I saw, but the inside of your hand is not sexy. Lots of layers of skin, tendons all over the place, bones etc. I was in shock so I was actually quite calm. I just held my hand up towards Justin and said, "that's gonna need stitiches." Thankfully Justin pretty much took over after that. He ran and got me a towel to apply compression and stop the bleeding and got me clothes so I didn't have to go to the hospital in my bathing suit. What a guy!
The Chiang Mai Ram Hospital is highly recommended. It was spotlessly clean, duh. But also there was nobody there. In fact I haven't waited once in the three times I have been. (I have had to go back for several follow ups. No new injuries to report.) Anyway, five nurses doted on me while I waited for Dr. Seree (Doc) to stitch me up. He was great, had studied medicine in Chicago so we talked about hockey, basketball and baseball while he made me good as new. I had 26 visable stitches and at least as many inside my hand. I didn't know but apparently for deep cuts you have to stictch the inside as well. Huh, learn something new everyday right! It did run me 10,000 bt. though (approx $335) which was a bit of an ouch in and of itself, but I guess it is better than having your hand hanging open right? Anyway I was very good, very brave and of course insisted that Justin document the whole thing. He has excellent pictures. So that is really the crux of Chiang Mai as far as I am concerned.
Actually not. We have been here two weeks and have really enjoyed it. The Thai massage course has been absolutely amazing, even with the injury. And the second week our friend Philip came up to meet us. It was nice having another traveler along for the ride for a while. And also made Justin and I appreciate traveling together when he left. We also rented bicycles, (pre-stitches.) I never even contemplated returning the bike, since I figured I can ride without hands at home. One-handed here should be no problem. I know, I am so bad ass to ride a bicycle with stictches in my hand. Tell me about it. I did rock a super sexy helmet though, so don't be too alarmed. Anyway that made getting around town easy and we got to see lots of areas of the city we wouldn't have seen on foot. Of course we missed out on lots of sights too because we were in class most of the day but can't win em all right? Anyway next up is Laos. We leave tomorrow after our final exam and then we have about three days of travel before we arrive in Luang Prabang. It is going to be amazing!
I will give you the Thailand highlights and lowlights in the next post, after we have offically departed! Also just a heads up that i know there are probably a ton of spelling errors in this post but I can't spell check it because I don't know how to reset the language on the internet browser of this computer. It is in German, or possibly Dutch. So forgive me.
Or maybe...
I was swimming through the reef marveling at how warm and crystal clear the water was. And thinking as I breathed slowly through my scuba regulator that life might be perfect. Mariska my diving buddy was ahead of me by about 2 meters when suddenly the sunlight overhead was blocked out by something huge above me. I hoped it was a passing boat but still my breath caught in my throat. I didn't want to look up but there it was above me the huge shark circling over head. It was then that i noticed the blood on my leg. I must have bumped into some coral, I thought. I covered my leg with my hand and tried to steady my breathing. I looked around but found that I was suddenly alone. Just then the shark became incensed and I knew it had the scent. It began circling wider and swimming deeper until it was level with me. I deflated my BCD so I would have all possible power for the inevitable charge. We squared off and I tried to grab my weight belt from around my waist to wrap around my hand, but the shark was too fast and suddenly it was upon me. I pulled back my hand and gave it one solid punch in the nose. The shark began to thrash wildly and clamped down on my palm, before turning quickly and swimming away. And just like that it was over. I started to pass out when I saw several figures swimming towards me, and that was the last thing I remembered, until I woke up in the Koh Tao hospital...
Or ...
Everything seemed quite on Soi Rambuttri, in the heart of Bangkok's Bamglamphu neighborhood. After we finished our dinner we thought it seemed safe, sure there were less people out but it appeared to be business as usual. So we decided to go for a walk and burn off some of the dinner calories. But as we neared the end of Rambuttri the energy shifted. It was as if the winds propelling a huge fire suddenly changed and the blaze was coming right for us. Before we knew it we were face to face with the Red Shirts clashing with the police and the army. Riot geared men ran past and pushed us aside and the crowd encircled us. Justin and I lost contact and I was pushed forward by the momentum of the armed men. I tried desperately to work my was to the side, but then suddenly a can of tear gas that had been thrown from behind me into the crowd of Red Shirts ahead of me blew back in my face. I doubled over trying to avoid the stinging gas. But stumbled and began to panic. I wanted desperately to stay on my feet. It was then I heard the soft whimpering of a child nearby. I blinked through the tears until I could see the young girl within arms reach. I quickly grabbed her and swept her into my arms. When suddenly i heard shouts and the riot men all around me looked menacing and crazed. The pushing became more intense and I realized we were at the front of the line, right up against the fray. Suddenly a grenade came flying through the air. It was as if everything went into slow motion. I watched it sail like a baseball overheard into the crowd of police behind me and the young girl. All around I could see the crowds faces becoming grotesque and panic stricken. People pushed in all directions. But the police could only move backwards I saw this as my chance to escape into the crowd of Red Shirts. In less than a second I had pushed my way into the RS mob before me and threw my body on top of the young girls, shielding her from the immenent blast. When it came it shock the earth and sent debris flying in all directions. My hand flew up to protect my face. And I became unconcious of the next several moments. I watched the violence around me but the sound was muted by the deafening blast. I looked down to see the girl shaking but unharmed, and then I saw the huge piece of glass lodged in my palm. The Red Shirted men above me saw it too and they lifted us up and carried us like crowd surfers at a concert to the back of the mob...
OK fine I was at the pool after day two of Thai massage class. I had my empty Leo bottle in my hand and was heading towards the room when I stepped off the carpeted mat onto the slick tile and fell. I guess I thought it would be better to keep the bottle from breaking all over and making a mess. When I hit the ground with a thud I realized the glass bottle had broken my fall and I could feel the thick glass penatrating the skin of my palm. I dropped the neck, ( bottle still broke by the way,) in an instant and looked down at my hand. I don't want to disturb you with what I saw, but the inside of your hand is not sexy. Lots of layers of skin, tendons all over the place, bones etc. I was in shock so I was actually quite calm. I just held my hand up towards Justin and said, "that's gonna need stitiches." Thankfully Justin pretty much took over after that. He ran and got me a towel to apply compression and stop the bleeding and got me clothes so I didn't have to go to the hospital in my bathing suit. What a guy!
The Chiang Mai Ram Hospital is highly recommended. It was spotlessly clean, duh. But also there was nobody there. In fact I haven't waited once in the three times I have been. (I have had to go back for several follow ups. No new injuries to report.) Anyway, five nurses doted on me while I waited for Dr. Seree (Doc) to stitch me up. He was great, had studied medicine in Chicago so we talked about hockey, basketball and baseball while he made me good as new. I had 26 visable stitches and at least as many inside my hand. I didn't know but apparently for deep cuts you have to stictch the inside as well. Huh, learn something new everyday right! It did run me 10,000 bt. though (approx $335) which was a bit of an ouch in and of itself, but I guess it is better than having your hand hanging open right? Anyway I was very good, very brave and of course insisted that Justin document the whole thing. He has excellent pictures. So that is really the crux of Chiang Mai as far as I am concerned.
Actually not. We have been here two weeks and have really enjoyed it. The Thai massage course has been absolutely amazing, even with the injury. And the second week our friend Philip came up to meet us. It was nice having another traveler along for the ride for a while. And also made Justin and I appreciate traveling together when he left. We also rented bicycles, (pre-stitches.) I never even contemplated returning the bike, since I figured I can ride without hands at home. One-handed here should be no problem. I know, I am so bad ass to ride a bicycle with stictches in my hand. Tell me about it. I did rock a super sexy helmet though, so don't be too alarmed. Anyway that made getting around town easy and we got to see lots of areas of the city we wouldn't have seen on foot. Of course we missed out on lots of sights too because we were in class most of the day but can't win em all right? Anyway next up is Laos. We leave tomorrow after our final exam and then we have about three days of travel before we arrive in Luang Prabang. It is going to be amazing!
I will give you the Thailand highlights and lowlights in the next post, after we have offically departed! Also just a heads up that i know there are probably a ton of spelling errors in this post but I can't spell check it because I don't know how to reset the language on the internet browser of this computer. It is in German, or possibly Dutch. So forgive me.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Mumbai is to Bombay as ...
When Justin and I got to India we flew in to Mumbai but all we saw was this.
well hello there
The Sea Link is the shit
Who wants to be a millionaire?
Bandra
"Mummy can we take a rickshaw?"
ps. I have illegally copied these images from the Internet without crediting the photographers. Just thought you should know.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Jim Croce - Operator
I would always jam out to this song when it used to come on KOIT 96.5 back in the day. Yea I loved lite rock with less talk, and proud of it! And then there it was, playing, while I was distracting myself with studying and cleaning. Sometimes a song just says everything, you know?
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Busted Flat in Penticton
Ok, so, we had planned to pick cherries in Oliver for at least a month. But we quickly realized picking was not all it was cracked up to be. We budgeted our last month of adventure based on making sixty dollars a day, minimum. But by the end of week two we noticed we were going to be lucky to make half that. And even though everyone kept telling us,
"oh don't worry the cherries aren't ripe yet," or,
"just wait till you are picking the good trees you will make tons of money," we were not feeling too optimistic. I don't know how you'd feel, but I found it difficult to get out of bed/tent at five am, for thirty bucks. Nevertheless, we soldiered on, until this...
Ash's hand post-op
And the leg
sexy staples.
Ashley, who, as I pointed out was the most accomplished picker, was also the most daring on her 12 ft ladder, (refer to previous post for a picture of said ladder.) Anyway, she ended up falling out of the tree and had to be rushed to, not one but two hospitals, before having emergency surgery on her left leg and hand.
The offending tree. I wont bore you with all of the details except to say that Ash's fall was the result of bad pruning, poor crop, and pushy, illiterate, (at least in English,) and under-informed supervisors.
Lauren pointing out the spot where Ash fell for her workers comp file. Just a side note, those amazing outhouse pictures in the previous post would never have been available for the Property Spot, if Ash hadn't taken her spill, so I guess there is a silver lining. Right Ash?
After Ashley got taken to the small hospital in Oliver, via ambulance, and had her initial x-rays, we were told that she would have to have immediate surgery in Penticton, forty-five minutes to the north. So Lauren and I, slightly spooked packed up our home in Oliver and followed Ashley's second ambulance of the day to lovely Penticton.
Well actually, Lo and I spent our first night camping in a sad little provincial park, our saddest camp since Loose Bay, near the town of Okanagan Falls, or OK Falls if you're a local. A small out-post half way between Oliver and Penticton.
I joked to Lauren that it was no surprise that they called this place OK Falls.
The local liquor store/bar/hotel... not a lot to do in OK Falls.
But Lauren and I did put on some make-up and skirts for the first time in weeks, so I'd say we made the best of our one night in town.
Ashley's social worker, (yes they give you one of those when you tell the doctor performing your invasive ortho-surgery that you live in a tent,) got us set up with some colleagues of hers in Penticton for the next couple days. So we left our OK campsite, and our odd Mennonite neighbors behind and headed to the big bad city of Penticton
Our sweet spot at Dale and Elmie's
O and surprise surprise Lauren was into the cat. By the way Bruiser, how appropriate, was the fattest cat I'd ever seen.
I am happy to report that Ashley is healing nicely and that our adventure will continue in Calgary, where Lauren and I have recently been employed at the Chinook Centre as members of the maintanence crew. Stay tuned...
"oh don't worry the cherries aren't ripe yet," or,
"just wait till you are picking the good trees you will make tons of money," we were not feeling too optimistic. I don't know how you'd feel, but I found it difficult to get out of bed/tent at five am, for thirty bucks. Nevertheless, we soldiered on, until this...
Ash's hand post-op
And the leg
sexy staples.
Ashley, who, as I pointed out was the most accomplished picker, was also the most daring on her 12 ft ladder, (refer to previous post for a picture of said ladder.) Anyway, she ended up falling out of the tree and had to be rushed to, not one but two hospitals, before having emergency surgery on her left leg and hand.
The offending tree. I wont bore you with all of the details except to say that Ash's fall was the result of bad pruning, poor crop, and pushy, illiterate, (at least in English,) and under-informed supervisors.
Lauren pointing out the spot where Ash fell for her workers comp file. Just a side note, those amazing outhouse pictures in the previous post would never have been available for the Property Spot, if Ash hadn't taken her spill, so I guess there is a silver lining. Right Ash?
After Ashley got taken to the small hospital in Oliver, via ambulance, and had her initial x-rays, we were told that she would have to have immediate surgery in Penticton, forty-five minutes to the north. So Lauren and I, slightly spooked packed up our home in Oliver and followed Ashley's second ambulance of the day to lovely Penticton.
Well actually, Lo and I spent our first night camping in a sad little provincial park, our saddest camp since Loose Bay, near the town of Okanagan Falls, or OK Falls if you're a local. A small out-post half way between Oliver and Penticton.
I joked to Lauren that it was no surprise that they called this place OK Falls.
The local liquor store/bar/hotel... not a lot to do in OK Falls.
But Lauren and I did put on some make-up and skirts for the first time in weeks, so I'd say we made the best of our one night in town.
Ashley's social worker, (yes they give you one of those when you tell the doctor performing your invasive ortho-surgery that you live in a tent,) got us set up with some colleagues of hers in Penticton for the next couple days. So we left our OK campsite, and our odd Mennonite neighbors behind and headed to the big bad city of Penticton
Our sweet spot at Dale and Elmie's
I loved that horse, even if he was more into the grass.
O and surprise surprise Lauren was into the cat. By the way Bruiser, how appropriate, was the fattest cat I'd ever seen.
I am happy to report that Ashley is healing nicely and that our adventure will continue in Calgary, where Lauren and I have recently been employed at the Chinook Centre as members of the maintanence crew. Stay tuned...
Friday, April 10, 2009
Sad Baseball News in Anaheim
Last night's game in Anaheim between the Angels and A's was cancelled due to the unexpected death of the young pitcher Nick Adenhart. Nick was tragically killed by a drunk driver after his season debut. Check out the Angel's official website for more information. RIP Nick Adenhart 1986 - 2009
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