I was a bit stressed out when I first got into Ho Chi Minh City (or Saigon, if you prefer). I blogged saying that I couldn't wait to get out. It was a little difficult arriving in that the people in Chau Doc ("chowdah") just gave me a paper with instructions of where I needed to go to show to the "bus waiter." No one spoke English; I don't speak Vietnamese. It's always so strange being the only person like yourself - also kind of fun, but mostly strange.
When I got to Pham Ngo Lao (the backpackers' district) the first hotel I wanted to stay at was torn down, as was the second one. I journeyed to a couple others before I found one with a good price. "It's on the third floor." Third in Vietnamese means fourth anywhere else I've ever been. Which was awesome when I stayed in Vung Tau and I was on the fourth floor. Tall stories. Oh, but the thing about this cheap room in HCMC was that there was no window. I thought it would be great for sleeping, but it turns out I don't like feeling like a rat in a cage, and believe you me I sang that song as I bounced off the walls, looking at the rose-covered ceiling and wishing I had a window. The next night I changed to a window room - cost me an extra $4. Four dollars for a window. That's what I'll think of when I think of Vietnam. And $2 for a beach chair. I know how they say nothing's free... particulary to Vietnam.
After dinner on the first night... Wednesday night... I went back to my room to watch 'Species.' (I know. I know!) The whole reason why I'm not exploring HCMC right now is cause I'm solo and not stupid to be struttin' around the city single @ night. One more CON. Sonouva! I'm adventurous, not stupid. I want to see. I don't want to die, and I'm not going to risk it given my chances of survival are severely slimmed just from traffic alone. So the needing someone thing plays mostly into part at sunset and after. Company-wise it's better than yourself - no matter how awesome you are [at getting 'turned around' in back alleyways - thanks, long-haired mole man for pointing me in the right direction]. Two pairs of eyes are better than one. And to be the voice of reason sometimes!!
Southeast Asia is totally for lovers. Especially Vietnam. Sheesh! Everything seems made for two 'round here. It was particularly bad in Vung Tau - romantic beach time.
On Thursday I went to the Cu Chi Tunnels, and while it was all well and good, it's really weird to see Anti-American slogans. We watched a video at the end that was pro-VC and talking about this or that soldier being awarded medals because the number of American dogs they killed. Very interesting/tricky things. We got to crawl around in some and I don't think I would've liked to do that very much. Afterwards I went to the War Museum, and again the place where we shouldn't have been we were... the agent orange pictures, the senseless killing, the details of this that and the other... it made my head spin. Then I went to the Reunification Palace, and it was pretty neat to see all the old control/situation rooms... that was about it.
Thursday night, I walked around on a busy road, through a park, and was flanked by this group of kids who wanted to practice speaking English with me. So, for twenty minutes I sat and answered their questions (one of the girls is moving to Washington State "Seattle City" for a month) about mountains, and gun control. Then one girl asked me who my idol is... stumped. I couldn't understand who she told me hers was... some band from what I could gather. One of the dudes from it went to Hanoi but not Saigon, and she was so sad she was so far away... They were just little babies 19s and 20s, and what trouble-makers, eh? Scouting the parks at night looking to practice English with unsuspecting strangers.
Mouth breating on the moto back to the hotel. I probably could've walked, but one experience on a moto in HCMC seemed necessary.
Crossing the street is mental! There never seems to be a lull in traffice and crosswalks are few and far between in some areas. (Trash cans are everywhere, though!) You just walk out there; disappear into the seas of woors and exhaust. Like George playing Human Frogger, but with a better ending.
Vung Tau was great, and I met some crazy people on the beach... I'll write on it... give me some time.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Under the Sea
I never imagined diving to be so wonderful and exciting - it always seemed so terrifying to me, like you might as well chum up the water around the boat, give me manila folder paper cuts all over my body and lower me into the water with a "SHARK BAIT" sign around my neck. But despite my morbid-disaster loving imagination, everything was smooth sai- scuba'ing!
Big Blue Diving in Koh Tao, Thailand was by far the best place to get certified. Perhaps there are others that are just as good on the island, but I highly doubt it. For a three and a half day Open Water Certification course it only cost me 9,000 baht, or roughly $290ish, icy air-con dorm room included (four nights, but I only stayed three so I could boogie on over to Koh Phangan for the Moon Madness). A good deal if you ask me! They offer both PADI and SSI certifications, and while both are great and offer the same certification in the end, SSI seemed to be more focused on the individual while PADI seemed very structured (and you had to buy a book). Obviously I went for the SSI.
Evening One
We watched videos and had homework(!!!) learning about all the equipment and general diving information. My group was comprised of a British instructor, Dan (incredibly knowledgeable, patient, kind and funny - really made the experience enjoyable), a German girl, Dutch lady, Indian man, and British guy. Very international, right? (I didn't meet one American during my time in the islands - weird!)
Day One
More videos in the morning. Trip to the equipment room to learn how to put everything together and then wear it. Always dive with a buddy (at least in the beginning - some people do solo dives, but I say "No, thanks!") and do a check of equipment before you go into the water. Buddy checklist:
Bangkok (Buoyancy Compensator - helps you float on the surface and keeps you hovering above the sand under water)
Women (Weight belts - to help you stay down)
Really (Releases - check all the clasps and clips on the BC)
Are (Air - make sure it's turned on and working properly. And Regulators - for breathing, and every time Dan said "Regulators in!" I couldn't help but think of this song.)
Fellas (Final OK - give everything one more check)
Funny acronym, but it's really true; there are a lot of lady boys in BKK.
We got in the water that afternoon (at the Japanese Gardens - very beautiful); practiced taking the regulator out and putting it back in underwater, and doing the same thing with the mask. Standard preparation stuff. Then we went a bit deeper and practiced hovering and swimming around.
Day Two
Last round of videos and then we took our SSI test. Everyone passed with 100% - woohoo!! Pretty cool. That afternoon was our first official dive, and we took it down to 12 meters. It was really awkward swimming through the water at first, getting used to only using the fins and not swimming with your arms, but we gave it a little time and we were basically pros. I felt like your regular Jacques Cousteau, and y'know, he died on my birthday, along with MJ and Farrah Fawcett, so if that says anything I'm going to be a bodacious babe singing and swimming my way through the seven seas. Dive sites for the day were: Twins and White Rock.
Day Three
Met at 6:30a. In the water by 8a, (at Pinnacle - basically in the middle of the sea, but only went to 18.5m) bubbles of divers below made it seem like volcanoes were erupting on the sea floor. I felt the pull from the great blue abyss that extended all around me, beckoning me to go deeper, further into the aquamarine unknown. How I wanted it! Safety and practice first; next time.
We saw a couple moray eels - a white-eyed one named "Cedric" and a blue-spotted one; stingrays, pufferfish, box fish, butterfly fish, angel fish, emperor fish, and so many others.
It was a trial getting used to the thumb-forefinger OK sign rather than a thumbs up (which means that you need to go to the surface, and if you do it accidently, you have to buy the instructor a beer!), but I really enjoyed the underwater language.
The sunshine scattering down from the surface made me feel like Arielle, and everything was perfect. Currents acted as underwater winds, the sea particles seemed like dust, and the schools of fish were wagon trains watching out for potential threats in the outward darkness... everything kind of felt like the Wild West... maybe it felt like that because my group was a solo traveler mash-up, and I dubbed us the "Lone Rangers" - also, we had horse races on the seafloor during the second dive (at Red Rock Drop-off), so that helped (I won, b-t-dub) the whole theme.
All in all everything was excellent, and while I wish I could've done the Advanced Course, I'm so happy to be in Siem Reap right now. I have a cooking class this afternoon, and then I'm possibly going to check out the floating villages just south of here, but I don't really want to pay for the $30 boat all by myself, so I'm hoping that I can talk some other folks to join me or perhaps just forget it... BAH! Then wandering around the Night Market and taking a night bus into Phnom Penh. Excellent.
Big Blue Diving in Koh Tao, Thailand was by far the best place to get certified. Perhaps there are others that are just as good on the island, but I highly doubt it. For a three and a half day Open Water Certification course it only cost me 9,000 baht, or roughly $290ish, icy air-con dorm room included (four nights, but I only stayed three so I could boogie on over to Koh Phangan for the Moon Madness). A good deal if you ask me! They offer both PADI and SSI certifications, and while both are great and offer the same certification in the end, SSI seemed to be more focused on the individual while PADI seemed very structured (and you had to buy a book). Obviously I went for the SSI.
Evening One
We watched videos and had homework(!!!) learning about all the equipment and general diving information. My group was comprised of a British instructor, Dan (incredibly knowledgeable, patient, kind and funny - really made the experience enjoyable), a German girl, Dutch lady, Indian man, and British guy. Very international, right? (I didn't meet one American during my time in the islands - weird!)
Day One
More videos in the morning. Trip to the equipment room to learn how to put everything together and then wear it. Always dive with a buddy (at least in the beginning - some people do solo dives, but I say "No, thanks!") and do a check of equipment before you go into the water. Buddy checklist:
Bangkok (Buoyancy Compensator - helps you float on the surface and keeps you hovering above the sand under water)
Women (Weight belts - to help you stay down)
Really (Releases - check all the clasps and clips on the BC)
Are (Air - make sure it's turned on and working properly. And Regulators - for breathing, and every time Dan said "Regulators in!" I couldn't help but think of this song.)
Fellas (Final OK - give everything one more check)
Funny acronym, but it's really true; there are a lot of lady boys in BKK.
We got in the water that afternoon (at the Japanese Gardens - very beautiful); practiced taking the regulator out and putting it back in underwater, and doing the same thing with the mask. Standard preparation stuff. Then we went a bit deeper and practiced hovering and swimming around.
Day Two
Last round of videos and then we took our SSI test. Everyone passed with 100% - woohoo!! Pretty cool. That afternoon was our first official dive, and we took it down to 12 meters. It was really awkward swimming through the water at first, getting used to only using the fins and not swimming with your arms, but we gave it a little time and we were basically pros. I felt like your regular Jacques Cousteau, and y'know, he died on my birthday, along with MJ and Farrah Fawcett, so if that says anything I'm going to be a bodacious babe singing and swimming my way through the seven seas. Dive sites for the day were: Twins and White Rock.
Day Three
Met at 6:30a. In the water by 8a, (at Pinnacle - basically in the middle of the sea, but only went to 18.5m) bubbles of divers below made it seem like volcanoes were erupting on the sea floor. I felt the pull from the great blue abyss that extended all around me, beckoning me to go deeper, further into the aquamarine unknown. How I wanted it! Safety and practice first; next time.
We saw a couple moray eels - a white-eyed one named "Cedric" and a blue-spotted one; stingrays, pufferfish, box fish, butterfly fish, angel fish, emperor fish, and so many others.
It was a trial getting used to the thumb-forefinger OK sign rather than a thumbs up (which means that you need to go to the surface, and if you do it accidently, you have to buy the instructor a beer!), but I really enjoyed the underwater language.
The sunshine scattering down from the surface made me feel like Arielle, and everything was perfect. Currents acted as underwater winds, the sea particles seemed like dust, and the schools of fish were wagon trains watching out for potential threats in the outward darkness... everything kind of felt like the Wild West... maybe it felt like that because my group was a solo traveler mash-up, and I dubbed us the "Lone Rangers" - also, we had horse races on the seafloor during the second dive (at Red Rock Drop-off), so that helped (I won, b-t-dub) the whole theme.
All in all everything was excellent, and while I wish I could've done the Advanced Course, I'm so happy to be in Siem Reap right now. I have a cooking class this afternoon, and then I'm possibly going to check out the floating villages just south of here, but I don't really want to pay for the $30 boat all by myself, so I'm hoping that I can talk some other folks to join me or perhaps just forget it... BAH! Then wandering around the Night Market and taking a night bus into Phnom Penh. Excellent.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
I Can't Help But Smiling!
I am OPEN WATER DIVE CERTIFIED!!! I passed the SSI test with a 100 score!! It wasn't that hard though, to be honest... 10 year olds can pass it. But still, exciting!
Yesterday was our first day in the water, and wow! Even though we were only kneeling on the beach (under water) practicing the skill sets (removing and replacing the regulator - breathing apparatus; removing and replacing the mask; sharing air; yada yada yada) it was still cool. Then, me and this German chick, Paula, each had enough air left in our tanks, so we were able to swim under back to the boat. A small taste of what was to come today.
We dove to 12.5 meters two separate dives. Saw moray eels, sting rays, all sorts of fish and coral. It was incredible!! I felt a bit like an astronaut bouncing around on the sand at the beginning, trying to get my bearings. A bit awkward, but wow! Yesterday I kept smiling - I couldn't help it - but then water would get into my mask, and although I'm used to it now, it's not my favorite part clearing out the water under water. You have to take a deep breath into your regulator then look up as you heavily exhale out of your nose to clear out all the water. And you can't rub your eyes, y'know?! That's what I usually do, but you just have to blink it away. Tough.
I want to write more, but I'm also exhausted and we have a 6:30a meet-up time tomorrow, so as you folks and friends are getting home from the old axe-grind and sitting down to dinner I'll be under the sea - at 18 meters this time! Hopefully see some turtles and stuff. (I'm still feeling like I'm riding in the waves which is real strange.) I wish I had more time in this region of the world because I'd really love to do the Advanced course where you can go to 30 meters and do a wreck dive or a night dive, but unfortunately (not so much) I have to get to BKK to get to India on the 5th of October and hit up Cambodia and Vietnam before then. Such a hard life, right?! Sheesh. I love it.
Here's a song about smiling, and not being able to help it:
Enjoy! Until next time...
Yesterday was our first day in the water, and wow! Even though we were only kneeling on the beach (under water) practicing the skill sets (removing and replacing the regulator - breathing apparatus; removing and replacing the mask; sharing air; yada yada yada) it was still cool. Then, me and this German chick, Paula, each had enough air left in our tanks, so we were able to swim under back to the boat. A small taste of what was to come today.
We dove to 12.5 meters two separate dives. Saw moray eels, sting rays, all sorts of fish and coral. It was incredible!! I felt a bit like an astronaut bouncing around on the sand at the beginning, trying to get my bearings. A bit awkward, but wow! Yesterday I kept smiling - I couldn't help it - but then water would get into my mask, and although I'm used to it now, it's not my favorite part clearing out the water under water. You have to take a deep breath into your regulator then look up as you heavily exhale out of your nose to clear out all the water. And you can't rub your eyes, y'know?! That's what I usually do, but you just have to blink it away. Tough.
I want to write more, but I'm also exhausted and we have a 6:30a meet-up time tomorrow, so as you folks and friends are getting home from the old axe-grind and sitting down to dinner I'll be under the sea - at 18 meters this time! Hopefully see some turtles and stuff. (I'm still feeling like I'm riding in the waves which is real strange.) I wish I had more time in this region of the world because I'd really love to do the Advanced course where you can go to 30 meters and do a wreck dive or a night dive, but unfortunately (not so much) I have to get to BKK to get to India on the 5th of October and hit up Cambodia and Vietnam before then. Such a hard life, right?! Sheesh. I love it.
Here's a song about smiling, and not being able to help it:
Enjoy! Until next time...
Monday, September 20, 2010
And the Imagination Runs WILD!!
(Currently in Koh Tao, and the internet pricing seems to be standard for all islands so I'm going to type this one out real fast.)
The imagination was running wild last night, blame it on watching (yeah! there was a TV in my overpriced room!) a violent episode of "Criminal Minds" (not even a good one, though I haven't seen any but this and another so maybe they all suck - there was no guessing whodunit because they showed you right off the bat... is that how the show works? d-u-m-b if you ask me.) right before bed and then hearing 7-8 consecutive loud bangs (gun shots?! fireworks? gun shots?!!) out in the distance. I imagined a group of rebel forces was sweeping the island, ridding it of all the tourists, and if that was the case, from the sound of the shots I only had 15 minutes - 20 minutes max - to make my move or hide. Because the door was one that had the padlock on the outside, they'd know I was there, and there was nothing I could do but wait because c'mon, if I ran where would I run? All hotels being targeted and all locals being suspicious of rebel allegiance. I prayed for my safety through the night - for my family's sake, and I supposed it wouldn't be so good for me either if I died. (Nothing like the potential threat of imminent doom to put the fear of God in a girl.)
I went to bed clutching my pillow and facing the door enabling me to act quickly if necessary - and that was sleeping on my left and I always sleep on my right, so you know the level of paranoia was high.
Sometime after midnight a massive storm started raging, enough to startle me awake, followed by another succession of loud gun-like bangs (fireworks in this weather - no way!) - dazed and confused, thinking it a part of a dream I went back to sleep.
A few hours later and the storm was still going strong and it seemed mightier as well. The power went out - not that it matter so much what with it being the dead of night and all, and me being used to no air con anyway. I just slid out from under the sheet and attempted to go back to sleep, but as my eyelids were fluttering closed I thought I saw - no I saw, I saw! - a shadow person pass by my window; I stopped breathing, my eyes widened and my mouth moved rapidly in silent prayer. I thought about my friend Sophie and how when she was staying on a beach bungalow during a stormy night a small Thai man had come to try and break in but she scared him away by going to the door and pushing it back on him. Wide-eyed and terrified she sat in the corner of her room, too scared to go to sleep when not more then 20 minutes later she heard him outside again. I forget if she had anything to hit him with just in case, but she did stand at the door and when he opened it she went on the porch and screamed bloody murder in his face. He ran away and neighbors came to the rescue.
My mind raced through my belongings for things I could use as a shield and a weapon, because I was the only one at my "resort" (read: motel) and screaming seemed useless with the howling storm still holding steady.
Needless to say, despite the rebels' activity around my location and them (not the storm, yo - shadow was too perfect on the timing) cutting my power and although I tossed and turned from a number of bad dream I came out of the night unscathed (physically).
All is well and good in the world. It's really hot here, really, really, and it's kind of nice because you spend all your time in the water, but then I wanted to read a book and I couldn't because I was sweating all over it. I even got the beads on the face sweat and that's never happened before. HOT - h-o-t!! I start my dive orientation this evening and the next three days will be spent learning and practicing, mastering and testing. BLAM!
The imagination was running wild last night, blame it on watching (yeah! there was a TV in my overpriced room!) a violent episode of "Criminal Minds" (not even a good one, though I haven't seen any but this and another so maybe they all suck - there was no guessing whodunit because they showed you right off the bat... is that how the show works? d-u-m-b if you ask me.) right before bed and then hearing 7-8 consecutive loud bangs (gun shots?! fireworks? gun shots?!!) out in the distance. I imagined a group of rebel forces was sweeping the island, ridding it of all the tourists, and if that was the case, from the sound of the shots I only had 15 minutes - 20 minutes max - to make my move or hide. Because the door was one that had the padlock on the outside, they'd know I was there, and there was nothing I could do but wait because c'mon, if I ran where would I run? All hotels being targeted and all locals being suspicious of rebel allegiance. I prayed for my safety through the night - for my family's sake, and I supposed it wouldn't be so good for me either if I died. (Nothing like the potential threat of imminent doom to put the fear of God in a girl.)
I went to bed clutching my pillow and facing the door enabling me to act quickly if necessary - and that was sleeping on my left and I always sleep on my right, so you know the level of paranoia was high.
Sometime after midnight a massive storm started raging, enough to startle me awake, followed by another succession of loud gun-like bangs (fireworks in this weather - no way!) - dazed and confused, thinking it a part of a dream I went back to sleep.
A few hours later and the storm was still going strong and it seemed mightier as well. The power went out - not that it matter so much what with it being the dead of night and all, and me being used to no air con anyway. I just slid out from under the sheet and attempted to go back to sleep, but as my eyelids were fluttering closed I thought I saw - no I saw, I saw! - a shadow person pass by my window; I stopped breathing, my eyes widened and my mouth moved rapidly in silent prayer. I thought about my friend Sophie and how when she was staying on a beach bungalow during a stormy night a small Thai man had come to try and break in but she scared him away by going to the door and pushing it back on him. Wide-eyed and terrified she sat in the corner of her room, too scared to go to sleep when not more then 20 minutes later she heard him outside again. I forget if she had anything to hit him with just in case, but she did stand at the door and when he opened it she went on the porch and screamed bloody murder in his face. He ran away and neighbors came to the rescue.
My mind raced through my belongings for things I could use as a shield and a weapon, because I was the only one at my "resort" (read: motel) and screaming seemed useless with the howling storm still holding steady.
Needless to say, despite the rebels' activity around my location and them (not the storm, yo - shadow was too perfect on the timing) cutting my power and although I tossed and turned from a number of bad dream I came out of the night unscathed (physically).
All is well and good in the world. It's really hot here, really, really, and it's kind of nice because you spend all your time in the water, but then I wanted to read a book and I couldn't because I was sweating all over it. I even got the beads on the face sweat and that's never happened before. HOT - h-o-t!! I start my dive orientation this evening and the next three days will be spent learning and practicing, mastering and testing. BLAM!
Sunday, September 19, 2010
North to South
I love Thailand. Plain and simple. I would tell you more about it, but I'm in Koh Samui waiting to head over to Koh Tao tomorrow and get dive certified!!
The Gibbon people never got back to me, but switching out zip lining through the forest (as much as that would've rocked) for getting dive certified (as scared as I am about Jaws - and perhaps it's an irrational fear when I'm in a lake, or a swimming pool, or my bath tub... it doesn't seem so irrational when you're under the water - ocean water) doesn't seem like such a bad thing to me.
Koh Samui from what I've seen is meh - at least the Chaweng Beach was algae-full and lackluster. Also expensive these islands!! Man. I'm paying 1baht/MINUTE!! PER MINUTE!! On the mainland it's 20baht/HOUR. Talk about rip-off. Maybe if I stay for a long time I could haggle with the guy, but seeing as how I haven't been doing a great job of that (read: at all) and paying the quoted price, I should stick to typing quick and getting out of here.
I know I have oh-so much to catch you up on like the beauty and chillness that is Pai (intended to stay 2 days and took it to 5) and the wonder that is Chiang Mai - Thailand's second biggest city, but it feels like a small town. So small town in fact that I ran into a dear friend of mine from college days... or rather he walked by as I was struggling to eat a falafel sandwich after imbibing a bit much the night before. Muay Thai fights and a cooking class. Thai massage and yoga taught by one of the strangest ladies I've ever met - her cat loves to eat "coln!" Corn for the cat! And bananas for her dog! More details to go into, but I have the time nor the money to tell all at the moment.
Off to go eat some massaman curry - ohhhh so tasty!
Peace and love!
The Gibbon people never got back to me, but switching out zip lining through the forest (as much as that would've rocked) for getting dive certified (as scared as I am about Jaws - and perhaps it's an irrational fear when I'm in a lake, or a swimming pool, or my bath tub... it doesn't seem so irrational when you're under the water - ocean water) doesn't seem like such a bad thing to me.
Koh Samui from what I've seen is meh - at least the Chaweng Beach was algae-full and lackluster. Also expensive these islands!! Man. I'm paying 1baht/MINUTE!! PER MINUTE!! On the mainland it's 20baht/HOUR. Talk about rip-off. Maybe if I stay for a long time I could haggle with the guy, but seeing as how I haven't been doing a great job of that (read: at all) and paying the quoted price, I should stick to typing quick and getting out of here.
I know I have oh-so much to catch you up on like the beauty and chillness that is Pai (intended to stay 2 days and took it to 5) and the wonder that is Chiang Mai - Thailand's second biggest city, but it feels like a small town. So small town in fact that I ran into a dear friend of mine from college days... or rather he walked by as I was struggling to eat a falafel sandwich after imbibing a bit much the night before. Muay Thai fights and a cooking class. Thai massage and yoga taught by one of the strangest ladies I've ever met - her cat loves to eat "coln!" Corn for the cat! And bananas for her dog! More details to go into, but I have the time nor the money to tell all at the moment.
Off to go eat some massaman curry - ohhhh so tasty!
Peace and love!
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Change of Plans.
Sorry I haven't been that good about updating these past few day; I've been busy!
This isn't going to be much of a post either because I'm going to go hop on a motorbike and relax at the waterfall, or something equally as awesome.
I was thinking that I wasn't going to be able to make it to Laos because I decided to go south and check out the islands and the Full Moon party (day-glo paint!) with some friends, but then I was talking to this American girl last night and she said "Go for it!" when I was saying how I wanted to do the Gibbon Experience (zip lining through the rainforest and staying in tree houses), so I am (that is if they get back to me and there are spaces available), and then I'll go south without getting dive certified because the party is on the 23rd and I need to make sure I can get a good room so I don't get robbed.
Everything is great! I am really enjoying my time in Pai, it's a very friendly environment, smiles on all of the faces you see sort of place. I'm a fan of Thailand.
Peace and love. I'll try to get a few posts before I leave this area, but we all know how that can sometimes go.
This isn't going to be much of a post either because I'm going to go hop on a motorbike and relax at the waterfall, or something equally as awesome.
I was thinking that I wasn't going to be able to make it to Laos because I decided to go south and check out the islands and the Full Moon party (day-glo paint!) with some friends, but then I was talking to this American girl last night and she said "Go for it!" when I was saying how I wanted to do the Gibbon Experience (zip lining through the rainforest and staying in tree houses), so I am (that is if they get back to me and there are spaces available), and then I'll go south without getting dive certified because the party is on the 23rd and I need to make sure I can get a good room so I don't get robbed.
Everything is great! I am really enjoying my time in Pai, it's a very friendly environment, smiles on all of the faces you see sort of place. I'm a fan of Thailand.
Peace and love. I'll try to get a few posts before I leave this area, but we all know how that can sometimes go.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Blah blah blahh, BKK!
I loved it. I hated it. I wished I had someone to share it with.
Bangkok ended up being a pretty cool place.
I stayed at Refill NOW, which was a really nice place but terribly far away from anything and everything you wanted to see and do. That's what you get when you book blindly and late. For as far away and expensive as it was it was also really nice, and they did anything and everything to help me get to the places I needed to go to. The hostel itself was really new and clean, very modern and it's whiteness and cutesy decals on the doors reminded me of Japan.
I really enjoyed spending an afternoon at the BACC (Bangkok Arts Culture Center?) which was FREE!! WOW!! The first few floors, spiral-y floors - apparently they "borrowed" the design from the Guggenheim - were full of individual artists galleries, but the top floors! The top floors were where it was! Wow! For being modern art it was beautiful and not all all head scratching, just very entrancing. I like spending time in art museums, and it was one of the few places I actually felt comfortable with being alone. (Oooh! I forgot to write about it, but I went to the Rodin exhibit in Seoul, and wow! That man. It was really pretty awesome seeing the plaster mold of The Thinker and getting so close to the statues that I could blow the dust off them. I never knew much about Rodin, and although everything was in Korean on the descriptions, I got a really good view of him through the variety of his works; a lot of sensual/erotic pieces, The Embrace really reminded me of Gustav Klimt's The Kiss... I wish I had more art history knowledge to compare the pieces and the artists and their lifetimes... parents would've come in handy as their both well-versed in their knowledge of the art world.)
After wanting to the entire time, I finally took a motorbike as a method of transportation!! Everyone rides motorbikes in Bangkok. It's as if the city is one giant bike gang! Mothers and fathers with their multiple children hanging on as they zip and zoom between the traffic. Everybody edging their way through the hustle and bustle to get close to the waiting line, and then - they're off! once that light turns green, or before. The traffic is horrendous in BKK, so it's essential to have a 'bike if you want to get anywhere before your hair turns gray from the stress of the wait.
For my experience, when I first got on the bike I started to wrap my arms around the driver's waist and asked the hostel guy, "Is this how I do it?" thinking back to my days of dating hairy Italian, Long Island Bill and climbing on the back of his bike, White Lightning. No, he told me laughing, you hold on here. Pointing to the handles on either side of the seat.
The ride was all well and good until I got off, stumbled against the curb and onto my arse on the sidewalk. Sonouva!! Super klutz! Oosh! I took another one back from the errand of getting a new memory card, and got a helmet that time. Safety first! It didn't necessarily fit, but it's the thought that counts, right?
That's about it for Bangkok. I'm hoping to go back and catch a Ping Pong Show (I know! I know! But I'm young and I'm in Thailand, and when in Thailand - go to a PP show, right? No judgments from you! I might not even have the time to do it. I'm just saying that I want to, that's all.)
Bangkok ended up being a pretty cool place.
I stayed at Refill NOW, which was a really nice place but terribly far away from anything and everything you wanted to see and do. That's what you get when you book blindly and late. For as far away and expensive as it was it was also really nice, and they did anything and everything to help me get to the places I needed to go to. The hostel itself was really new and clean, very modern and it's whiteness and cutesy decals on the doors reminded me of Japan.
I really enjoyed spending an afternoon at the BACC (Bangkok Arts Culture Center?) which was FREE!! WOW!! The first few floors, spiral-y floors - apparently they "borrowed" the design from the Guggenheim - were full of individual artists galleries, but the top floors! The top floors were where it was! Wow! For being modern art it was beautiful and not all all head scratching, just very entrancing. I like spending time in art museums, and it was one of the few places I actually felt comfortable with being alone. (Oooh! I forgot to write about it, but I went to the Rodin exhibit in Seoul, and wow! That man. It was really pretty awesome seeing the plaster mold of The Thinker and getting so close to the statues that I could blow the dust off them. I never knew much about Rodin, and although everything was in Korean on the descriptions, I got a really good view of him through the variety of his works; a lot of sensual/erotic pieces, The Embrace really reminded me of Gustav Klimt's The Kiss... I wish I had more art history knowledge to compare the pieces and the artists and their lifetimes... parents would've come in handy as their both well-versed in their knowledge of the art world.)
After wanting to the entire time, I finally took a motorbike as a method of transportation!! Everyone rides motorbikes in Bangkok. It's as if the city is one giant bike gang! Mothers and fathers with their multiple children hanging on as they zip and zoom between the traffic. Everybody edging their way through the hustle and bustle to get close to the waiting line, and then - they're off! once that light turns green, or before. The traffic is horrendous in BKK, so it's essential to have a 'bike if you want to get anywhere before your hair turns gray from the stress of the wait.
For my experience, when I first got on the bike I started to wrap my arms around the driver's waist and asked the hostel guy, "Is this how I do it?" thinking back to my days of dating hairy Italian, Long Island Bill and climbing on the back of his bike, White Lightning. No, he told me laughing, you hold on here. Pointing to the handles on either side of the seat.
The ride was all well and good until I got off, stumbled against the curb and onto my arse on the sidewalk. Sonouva!! Super klutz! Oosh! I took another one back from the errand of getting a new memory card, and got a helmet that time. Safety first! It didn't necessarily fit, but it's the thought that counts, right?
That's about it for Bangkok. I'm hoping to go back and catch a Ping Pong Show (I know! I know! But I'm young and I'm in Thailand, and when in Thailand - go to a PP show, right? No judgments from you! I might not even have the time to do it. I'm just saying that I want to, that's all.)
BAMBOOZLED IN BKK!!!
It happened!! When I least expected it. Damn, they're good! I was feeling so proud of myself that I hadn't been had in the 'kok when I heard so many stories from other people about their tales of trickery. They move fast, those movers and shakers, take all the money that you makers.
In the morning I was going to visit the Grand Palace, and after I got off the [free!] ferry, a man approached me, and cheerily informed me that the Palace was closed until 2pm because it was a holiday and people were praying. What?! Why didn't the guy at the hostel tell me? I was not happy about that, but I thanked him and told him that I was going to walk over that way anyway.
About 20 minutes later, another man approached me and told me the same thing, then he told me that I should take a private canal boat ride for an amount that I am ashamed I paid. I kindly declined and kept on my merry way. Then! A woman approached me and told me the same thing. Well, crap! Three people said it, it must be true. BAMBOOZLED!!! Darnit!! I went on that canal ride, thinking every place was closed. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I kept thinking that the whole way. I've been had! I've been had! I had totally and completely been had. The canal ride was nice and all, but I kind of wanting to go the Grand Palace and Wat Arun.
I got to see one of those giant lizards eat a turtle. That was pretty neat. After the canal, the driver was taking me to the SkyTrain and I saw people going into Wat Arun BEFORE 2PM! I turned around, pointed at the temple, pointed at the man, and said, "Oooooh! You're a liar. A tricky, tricky liar. It's OPEN!! OPEN!!" By then it was too late, and I turned around semi-furious and crossed my arms. It's Bangkok, it's bound to happen. That's the ONLY scam I fall for this trip. Fingers crossed tightly tight!
In the morning I was going to visit the Grand Palace, and after I got off the [free!] ferry, a man approached me, and cheerily informed me that the Palace was closed until 2pm because it was a holiday and people were praying. What?! Why didn't the guy at the hostel tell me? I was not happy about that, but I thanked him and told him that I was going to walk over that way anyway.
About 20 minutes later, another man approached me and told me the same thing, then he told me that I should take a private canal boat ride for an amount that I am ashamed I paid. I kindly declined and kept on my merry way. Then! A woman approached me and told me the same thing. Well, crap! Three people said it, it must be true. BAMBOOZLED!!! Darnit!! I went on that canal ride, thinking every place was closed. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I kept thinking that the whole way. I've been had! I've been had! I had totally and completely been had. The canal ride was nice and all, but I kind of wanting to go the Grand Palace and Wat Arun.
I got to see one of those giant lizards eat a turtle. That was pretty neat. After the canal, the driver was taking me to the SkyTrain and I saw people going into Wat Arun BEFORE 2PM! I turned around, pointed at the temple, pointed at the man, and said, "Oooooh! You're a liar. A tricky, tricky liar. It's OPEN!! OPEN!!" By then it was too late, and I turned around semi-furious and crossed my arms. It's Bangkok, it's bound to happen. That's the ONLY scam I fall for this trip. Fingers crossed tightly tight!
The Star Man
Sitting and waiting for the most ancient of buses in Bangkok (no bus fare up front, there's a ticket-taker on the bus who goes from person to person, asking them where they are going and telling them how much it will cost, shaking their cylindrical metal coin carrier and ripping tickets out in a don't care attitude), I watched a tall, dark and handsome Indian man approach the bus stop. I saw him seeing me, and glanced sideways, inconspicuously, but oh-so totally conspicuous.
He sits down on the bench. I feel him looking at me and then glancing away, and then he says "Excuse me" and he stands up. "Excuse me" he says again.
"Yes?"
"You have a very lucky face."
"Excuse me?"
"Your face it is lucky."
Silence.
"You have three lines in your forehead, and this means three good things will happen to you next month. In October."
"Oh, really?"
"You do not believe me? I know this. I study Astrology 11 years in Singapore, Malaysia."
Nodding.
"I do not know you. You do not know me. I do not call you. You do not call me. Three lines in your forehead is very lucky thing. I can tell you everything."
"How much do you charge?"
"Excuse me?"
"For this reading where you reveal everything to me, how much will it cost me?"
"I am not interested in money."
Scoff.
"Your face is very lucky, but your heart is sad. The last five years are bad. The last five year you go up and down. Someone is putting bad thoughts and wishes on you. You try for success, but never make it, only 40 percent - 50 percent success because woman with bad thoughts."
"So somebody has a voodoo on me?!"
"But your face is lucky. Three good things in October."
Not to be greedy or anything, but only three? Maybe he read my heart as sad because I was at the time, and lonely, too?
He was tall and slimish, wearing a black button-down with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow and dark jeans. His face was happy, and he wore his hair shaved close to his scalp. When he smiled he exposed a diagonally chipped front tooth that I imagine he ran his tongue across a lot as a child, trying to come to grips with the fact that it would never grow back and stay that way forever, as a result it's now so smooth.
He gave me his contact info, and was excited to hear that I'd be in India next month - so will he! He exclaimed as excitedly as an Indian Astrologer can be. He told me he would take care of me and that I would not have to pay for anything while there. And while that's all well and good, it'd probably be coupled with a marriage proposal at the end - not to be judgmental, but it's happened before on Daechon's beach in South Korea.
He sits down on the bench. I feel him looking at me and then glancing away, and then he says "Excuse me" and he stands up. "Excuse me" he says again.
"Yes?"
"You have a very lucky face."
"Excuse me?"
"Your face it is lucky."
Silence.
"You have three lines in your forehead, and this means three good things will happen to you next month. In October."
"Oh, really?"
"You do not believe me? I know this. I study Astrology 11 years in Singapore, Malaysia."
Nodding.
"I do not know you. You do not know me. I do not call you. You do not call me. Three lines in your forehead is very lucky thing. I can tell you everything."
"How much do you charge?"
"Excuse me?"
"For this reading where you reveal everything to me, how much will it cost me?"
"I am not interested in money."
Scoff.
"Your face is very lucky, but your heart is sad. The last five years are bad. The last five year you go up and down. Someone is putting bad thoughts and wishes on you. You try for success, but never make it, only 40 percent - 50 percent success because woman with bad thoughts."
"So somebody has a voodoo on me?!"
"But your face is lucky. Three good things in October."
Not to be greedy or anything, but only three? Maybe he read my heart as sad because I was at the time, and lonely, too?
He was tall and slimish, wearing a black button-down with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow and dark jeans. His face was happy, and he wore his hair shaved close to his scalp. When he smiled he exposed a diagonally chipped front tooth that I imagine he ran his tongue across a lot as a child, trying to come to grips with the fact that it would never grow back and stay that way forever, as a result it's now so smooth.
He gave me his contact info, and was excited to hear that I'd be in India next month - so will he! He exclaimed as excitedly as an Indian Astrologer can be. He told me he would take care of me and that I would not have to pay for anything while there. And while that's all well and good, it'd probably be coupled with a marriage proposal at the end - not to be judgmental, but it's happened before on Daechon's beach in South Korea.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
WAHMBULANCE ALERT!!
Bangkok was a serious set of trials and tribulations, but all in all it was pretty awesome. On the 9th... what was that, Thursday? I went to the Vietnam Embassy, but walked past it and ended up having to wait two hours because I got there five minutes after they went to lunch - two hour lunch break!! Nice for them.
I spent the meantime wandering around the area and headed into Lumphini Park. It was a nice and quiet area, and the farther I walked, the more the traffic hushed and the crickets chirped and the crows cawed. I still wasn't used to being alone at that point and some of the thoughts I was thinking came spilling out of my mouth in murmurs, and well, let's just say I can kind of relate to those crazy homeless people on the streets. Probably not a good thing to feel or confess, but it's out there now.
(Welcome to my mind. The italics are usually ramblings from my travel log. Best of luck deciphering.)
I hummed and sang to myself as I walked to and around the park, occasionally murmuring things to myself and constantly battling between suppressing the sadness in my throat and keeping a happy head on my shoulders.
As I wandered, I passed by an older man who called,
"Good afternoon! How are you?" breaking my silent sadness.
"I'm alright, and how are you?" I called back, my voice trembling.
"Come here. Sit with me, talk with me."
I walked over, obliging to his request.
"Hello." I said as I folded my skirt and sat on the stone bench.
"Hello. Where are your friends?" he asked, smiling. "Did you lose them?"
"No," I said, removing my sunglasses. "I'm here alone."
"Ooh!" he exclaimed, clasping his hands. "You are very brave."
I smiled weakly. "I don't feel that way."
"What. What is wrong?"
"I'm lonely and sad," I said softly, trying to quell the rising pinch in my throat.
"No, no. You should not be!" He said, his smile growing wider.
"You are in Bangkok! Welcome to Thailand! This city is full of friendly people. A pretty young lady like you should not be so sad. You should smile and enjoy. You are young. You are free!"
I did smile at this.
"Good! Pretty lady, go. Enjoy my city!"
Okay, so that didn't really happen, but an old man sitting in the shade really did call out a greeting, but I'm not so sure we could've had that conversation given that after I replied he called the same thing again... maybe he just had bad hearing, then again, maybe not. I'll never know.
I wish I had someone to lean on, laugh with and hold my hand, but I'll just have to make due with myself. If only "Multiplicity" were real, I would clone myself as a travel buddy.
I suppose it's good for me to be alone, to be my only company and comfort, (but that doesn't mean that it doesn't suck and isn't hard) because in life, though there are loved ones, we are the only ones we have from the beginning to the end.
(GROOOOOOOOOOOOSS!! I just looked down at my legs and my shins erupted into these disgusting heat bubbles or something from my Boracay roasting.)
I will be okay! As Doris Day and my father sang to me, "Que sera, sera."
Don't worry about a thing, cause every little thing will be alright.
CRAZY THING!! There are kimodo dragons, or some huge lizards in this pond/lake! I saw one in the water and thought it was a log, then a croc, but I followed it with my eyes, and it crawled up on the land and is now walking toward a man!
On the metro this morning it took all I had holding my hands together not to shake: a combo of nerves and too much coffee (brewed coffee!!!), I think.
Be brave. Be strong. The soul called to itself.
Later that day...
Wowzas!! I sure am being a wet blanket on myself today. Liz said the quote, "Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and you cry alone" to me. Well, if you're laughing by yourself the world will just think you're straight up ca-ra-zy!! Man.
Even later... on Khao San Road (traveler tip: you want to book a hostel here! I wish I had, but upon reflection, the loneliness was a necessity to endure.) = BABES GALORE!! Beautiful international men every which way, I'm reminded of the song, but applicable to me. Definitely creeping as I ate my pad thai (IN THAILAND!) and scribbled in my gornal (Paul Rudd, "Wet Hot American Summer" reference). Khao San is like the Boracay of BKK, harassing vendors to the max!
Amidst the noise and energy of Khao San Road, I found myself wondering how so many solo travels make it look so easy, wanting to approach each one of them, but drawing back at the last moment. Here's a list I made of the PROs and CONs of solo travel.
PRO: you can go where you want to, you can leave your friends behind, because your friends don't dance and if they don't dance well, they're no friends of mine.
CON: I miss my friends - and they're really good dancers, too.
CON: I need social interaction.
CON: friends are way better than a conscience.
PRO: you don't have to worry about who's got the next bill.
CON: no splitting room tabs and no shared sense of "Wait. Which way do we go?"
PRO: you can make new friends... somehow. Maybe through magic - I'm not really sure how this works.
CON: drinking alone makes one look like an alcoholic, or wannabe Ernest Hemingway.
PRO: you can sit wherever you want because you only need one seat - no arguing who needs it more, just go ahead and take it!
CON: no one to talk to/people think you're crazy when thoughts become mumbles.
CON: alone you look super sad (at least I'm sure I do, what with wearing my heart on my face and all)
CON: you feel like bursting into tears multiple times a day.
PRO: Indian men want to read your astrology, "You have a lucky face."
And the CONs take it by a landslide, folks!! And the crowd... falls into an awkward hush.
Oh! Woe is the girl who travels a portion of the world by herself. How unlucky! How cruel is this great wide world. WAH! WAH! WAH! They shout. Grow a pair of ovaries!! HAVE A GOOD TIME! Just try. For the love of God and all those living vicariously through you, just. try.
True story: I ended up crying a bit on the bus back to the hostel. I didn't mean to. It was harder than I thought it would be to approach people on the street. I tried on a necklace and this teary-eyed sad girl looked at me in the mirror, embarrassed and ashamed I put it back and went on my way. The bus cry was more of a few stray tears falling down my cheeks, the ones that I could not blink away. No weeping, keening or sobbing, just silent sadness.
It feel weird to write about all this sadness and loneliness, as I'm currently writing this in Chiang Mai - after I've met some incredible people at my hostel. But during those two days alone in Bangkok (day one more so than day two) it felt like it was never ending, and it was awful. Turns out that I like people, and I like talking. Who'da thunk it!?
I spent the meantime wandering around the area and headed into Lumphini Park. It was a nice and quiet area, and the farther I walked, the more the traffic hushed and the crickets chirped and the crows cawed. I still wasn't used to being alone at that point and some of the thoughts I was thinking came spilling out of my mouth in murmurs, and well, let's just say I can kind of relate to those crazy homeless people on the streets. Probably not a good thing to feel or confess, but it's out there now.
(Welcome to my mind. The italics are usually ramblings from my travel log. Best of luck deciphering.)
I hummed and sang to myself as I walked to and around the park, occasionally murmuring things to myself and constantly battling between suppressing the sadness in my throat and keeping a happy head on my shoulders.
As I wandered, I passed by an older man who called,
"Good afternoon! How are you?" breaking my silent sadness.
"I'm alright, and how are you?" I called back, my voice trembling.
"Come here. Sit with me, talk with me."
I walked over, obliging to his request.
"Hello." I said as I folded my skirt and sat on the stone bench.
"Hello. Where are your friends?" he asked, smiling. "Did you lose them?"
"No," I said, removing my sunglasses. "I'm here alone."
"Ooh!" he exclaimed, clasping his hands. "You are very brave."
I smiled weakly. "I don't feel that way."
"What. What is wrong?"
"I'm lonely and sad," I said softly, trying to quell the rising pinch in my throat.
"No, no. You should not be!" He said, his smile growing wider.
"You are in Bangkok! Welcome to Thailand! This city is full of friendly people. A pretty young lady like you should not be so sad. You should smile and enjoy. You are young. You are free!"
I did smile at this.
"Good! Pretty lady, go. Enjoy my city!"
Okay, so that didn't really happen, but an old man sitting in the shade really did call out a greeting, but I'm not so sure we could've had that conversation given that after I replied he called the same thing again... maybe he just had bad hearing, then again, maybe not. I'll never know.
I wish I had someone to lean on, laugh with and hold my hand, but I'll just have to make due with myself. If only "Multiplicity" were real, I would clone myself as a travel buddy.
I suppose it's good for me to be alone, to be my only company and comfort, (but that doesn't mean that it doesn't suck and isn't hard) because in life, though there are loved ones, we are the only ones we have from the beginning to the end.
(GROOOOOOOOOOOOSS!! I just looked down at my legs and my shins erupted into these disgusting heat bubbles or something from my Boracay roasting.)
I will be okay! As Doris Day and my father sang to me, "Que sera, sera."
Don't worry about a thing, cause every little thing will be alright.
CRAZY THING!! There are kimodo dragons, or some huge lizards in this pond/lake! I saw one in the water and thought it was a log, then a croc, but I followed it with my eyes, and it crawled up on the land and is now walking toward a man!
On the metro this morning it took all I had holding my hands together not to shake: a combo of nerves and too much coffee (brewed coffee!!!), I think.
Be brave. Be strong. The soul called to itself.
Later that day...
Wowzas!! I sure am being a wet blanket on myself today. Liz said the quote, "Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and you cry alone" to me. Well, if you're laughing by yourself the world will just think you're straight up ca-ra-zy!! Man.
Even later... on Khao San Road (traveler tip: you want to book a hostel here! I wish I had, but upon reflection, the loneliness was a necessity to endure.) = BABES GALORE!! Beautiful international men every which way, I'm reminded of the song, but applicable to me. Definitely creeping as I ate my pad thai (IN THAILAND!) and scribbled in my gornal (Paul Rudd, "Wet Hot American Summer" reference). Khao San is like the Boracay of BKK, harassing vendors to the max!
Amidst the noise and energy of Khao San Road, I found myself wondering how so many solo travels make it look so easy, wanting to approach each one of them, but drawing back at the last moment. Here's a list I made of the PROs and CONs of solo travel.
PRO: you can go where you want to, you can leave your friends behind, because your friends don't dance and if they don't dance well, they're no friends of mine.
CON: I miss my friends - and they're really good dancers, too.
CON: I need social interaction.
CON: friends are way better than a conscience.
PRO: you don't have to worry about who's got the next bill.
CON: no splitting room tabs and no shared sense of "Wait. Which way do we go?"
PRO: you can make new friends... somehow. Maybe through magic - I'm not really sure how this works.
CON: drinking alone makes one look like an alcoholic, or wannabe Ernest Hemingway.
PRO: you can sit wherever you want because you only need one seat - no arguing who needs it more, just go ahead and take it!
CON: no one to talk to/people think you're crazy when thoughts become mumbles.
CON: alone you look super sad (at least I'm sure I do, what with wearing my heart on my face and all)
CON: you feel like bursting into tears multiple times a day.
PRO: Indian men want to read your astrology, "You have a lucky face."
And the CONs take it by a landslide, folks!! And the crowd... falls into an awkward hush.
Oh! Woe is the girl who travels a portion of the world by herself. How unlucky! How cruel is this great wide world. WAH! WAH! WAH! They shout. Grow a pair of ovaries!! HAVE A GOOD TIME! Just try. For the love of God and all those living vicariously through you, just. try.
True story: I ended up crying a bit on the bus back to the hostel. I didn't mean to. It was harder than I thought it would be to approach people on the street. I tried on a necklace and this teary-eyed sad girl looked at me in the mirror, embarrassed and ashamed I put it back and went on my way. The bus cry was more of a few stray tears falling down my cheeks, the ones that I could not blink away. No weeping, keening or sobbing, just silent sadness.
It feel weird to write about all this sadness and loneliness, as I'm currently writing this in Chiang Mai - after I've met some incredible people at my hostel. But during those two days alone in Bangkok (day one more so than day two) it felt like it was never ending, and it was awful. Turns out that I like people, and I like talking. Who'da thunk it!?
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Alone in Bangkok...
I don't mean it to, but my heart breaks a little each time I write that I'm here by myself. I'm trying to be strong and tell myself that I'll meet someone to laugh and experience the place with soon, but my God I think I'm more scared than I've been in a good long while... or at least since I left Liz in Manila. It builds character, right? I am excited to explore this city, don't get me wrong, but company is always nice, y'know? Maybe I'm feeling all sad because the radio in the hostel keeps playing really mellow "I'm lonely" music... seriously, the first song was something about falling into pieces, the next was something about strangers and missing people, and this one has a pretty sad vibe too... way to pep me up, Bangkok. I think it will be better when I'm out in the sunshine and on my way, but as of right now I feel kind of like I did before I took the jump off the cliff in Boracay. I know it's going to be okay, the water might sting a little bit, or give me a nuclear wedgie, but it's the plunge that is terrifying, so I just need to look out at the horizon and go for it knowing it'll be so great to have done it.
I want to be out of here by 10am, so here are some scribbled journal notes from yesterday's traveling:
Eyes smoothly surveying the landscape with the curiosity and awe of a newly born traveler. Alighted with delight.
In San Jose at the Baliwag Bus Terminal, on a frigid bus waiting for it to depart to Manila. I just spent the last five hours zipping and snaking through the mountains on a bus with open windows; I can only imagine how filthy I look, covered in bus exhaust and dirt, hair blown to a new level of tangled frizziness and eyes blood shot out of sleep deprivation. I nodded off a few times, but was startled away with worries that I might miss my stop.
We drove south through North Luzon, honking a warning as we sped around motorized tricycles and pimped out jeepneys over forested mountains and across rain-swelled rice paddies with the gray clouds reflecting silver in the scarce areas. Green, green, green as far as can be seen.
On the plane en route to BKK... I've been sitting and traveling all day, taking turns from reading to trying to scribble notes, falling asleep without freezing, and just watching the world float by; I am exhausted, and also itchy because my dry, sunburnt skin is starting to peel. Ew.
Yesterday, the Banaue ("bah-nah-way") Rice Terraces - built by the Ifuage tribes over 2,000 years ago - captivated my imagination. I am always thrilled to be able to view something so old and yet so technologically advanced for its time. The Filipinos like to think of the Terraces as the 8th man-made wonder of the world, as people not only from the Philippines, but also Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, etc. helped to construct and farm the area.
We first traveled to a small village on the closest thing I rode that resembled a jeepney, but wasn't - and we got to sit on the roof!! Dodging low-hanging branches it was just liking riding that wobbly Michelle again. The area around Banaue is visibly poor (but I guess so is most of the country), slum-like almost, with the land serving as a trash can, which I found strange because the people are so dedicated to preserving the beauty of the place. Huh. Dogs roamed around the small villages and often laid in the road looking dead/like a cat would do in the sun in a home, warming itself; they were only swayed to move by the honks from out jeep-ish and sometimes not until our wheels were almost upon them (same with the roosters).
In the village we hiked down to, we passed out sweets to the local children (the guides suggested this) and I took a photo of a village elder dressed in traditional garb - he uses the money to by beetle nuts (sp) that stain the teeth red, and other sweets. Then a woman wrapped my in traditional clothes so I would have "great remembrance" of the place and them, forever.
It is said that if put end to end, the Terraces would stretch 1/2way around the world.
While the views were really quite lovely, I would've preferred more hiking, and this could've been an option had I stayed an extra day or two. Le sigh.
One thing that was pretty cool was when the older brother (and the one who knew more) of the two brother/guides took us to a mock traditional tribal village (though very much like the one we visited earlier w/o him) and explained about hunting and tribal warfare (which raged on until 1965) - you can tell how skilled a hunter, and how brave a man is by the number of bones/skulls he has hanging outside of his house. HUMAN SKULLS. While warring was going on, the eating on the enemy was not an uncommon practice.
Dude also told us that women are highly respected in the community. So much so that a man must obey her every wish and not refuse her, or he will face consequences by the village people. He told us that many women abuse this power, and that is why our hosts court women from elsewhere. It is still practiced that if a man beats/leaves his wife (I think it's those two things...) that he is beheaded... divorce is illegal in the PHL (or at least that area...) and if he cheats, they cut off his manhood. And if one is caught stealing, "Bye bye, hand!" Law enforcement doesn't step in because it's the way of the land.
The Terraces in Banaue are different from the ones in Batad because they are dug out of the ground and divided by these beautiful red flower-like plants, whereas in Batad they are stonewalled in. They are then filled in with rock, clay, sand and dirt to keep their form. Terraces are no longer built, the families just pass them down, and if people cut down a tree, they are required to plant two more.
The farming is organic, and therefore they only have one harvest a year so the soil can recover before the rice is planted again... and because of this Ifuago people do not export their rice and barely has enough for the people (to eat, make liquor and feed their animals) - in the off season, people plant corn and use the paddies as tilapia pools. No pesticides because of the trickle down effect would contaminate the rice and kill the fish, but as a result, these large earthworms are eating through and collapsing the stone terraces. People catch these worms and cook them as "ham" so be careful to eat ham in the PHL (at least that's what the dude said... then again, I'm the girl who believed in the jackalope when I was 10, so maybe I'm still just as gullible).
Misty mountain morning gave way to a cool blue afternoon.
I took my penguin picture this morning, or rather, walked out of my room only to startle two 20something Chinese gals and asked them to take my picture. In return, one of the girls giggly asked to take a picture with me. Still have to think of appropriate shots in all the places I've yet to go.
Alright, so now onto explore Bangkok, Thailand. It's a beautiful sun-shiny day, and I'll be okay. Fingers crossed.
I want to be out of here by 10am, so here are some scribbled journal notes from yesterday's traveling:
Eyes smoothly surveying the landscape with the curiosity and awe of a newly born traveler. Alighted with delight.
In San Jose at the Baliwag Bus Terminal, on a frigid bus waiting for it to depart to Manila. I just spent the last five hours zipping and snaking through the mountains on a bus with open windows; I can only imagine how filthy I look, covered in bus exhaust and dirt, hair blown to a new level of tangled frizziness and eyes blood shot out of sleep deprivation. I nodded off a few times, but was startled away with worries that I might miss my stop.
We drove south through North Luzon, honking a warning as we sped around motorized tricycles and pimped out jeepneys over forested mountains and across rain-swelled rice paddies with the gray clouds reflecting silver in the scarce areas. Green, green, green as far as can be seen.
On the plane en route to BKK... I've been sitting and traveling all day, taking turns from reading to trying to scribble notes, falling asleep without freezing, and just watching the world float by; I am exhausted, and also itchy because my dry, sunburnt skin is starting to peel. Ew.
Yesterday, the Banaue ("bah-nah-way") Rice Terraces - built by the Ifuage tribes over 2,000 years ago - captivated my imagination. I am always thrilled to be able to view something so old and yet so technologically advanced for its time. The Filipinos like to think of the Terraces as the 8th man-made wonder of the world, as people not only from the Philippines, but also Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, etc. helped to construct and farm the area.
We first traveled to a small village on the closest thing I rode that resembled a jeepney, but wasn't - and we got to sit on the roof!! Dodging low-hanging branches it was just liking riding that wobbly Michelle again. The area around Banaue is visibly poor (but I guess so is most of the country), slum-like almost, with the land serving as a trash can, which I found strange because the people are so dedicated to preserving the beauty of the place. Huh. Dogs roamed around the small villages and often laid in the road looking dead/like a cat would do in the sun in a home, warming itself; they were only swayed to move by the honks from out jeep-ish and sometimes not until our wheels were almost upon them (same with the roosters).
In the village we hiked down to, we passed out sweets to the local children (the guides suggested this) and I took a photo of a village elder dressed in traditional garb - he uses the money to by beetle nuts (sp) that stain the teeth red, and other sweets. Then a woman wrapped my in traditional clothes so I would have "great remembrance" of the place and them, forever.
It is said that if put end to end, the Terraces would stretch 1/2way around the world.
While the views were really quite lovely, I would've preferred more hiking, and this could've been an option had I stayed an extra day or two. Le sigh.
One thing that was pretty cool was when the older brother (and the one who knew more) of the two brother/guides took us to a mock traditional tribal village (though very much like the one we visited earlier w/o him) and explained about hunting and tribal warfare (which raged on until 1965) - you can tell how skilled a hunter, and how brave a man is by the number of bones/skulls he has hanging outside of his house. HUMAN SKULLS. While warring was going on, the eating on the enemy was not an uncommon practice.
Dude also told us that women are highly respected in the community. So much so that a man must obey her every wish and not refuse her, or he will face consequences by the village people. He told us that many women abuse this power, and that is why our hosts court women from elsewhere. It is still practiced that if a man beats/leaves his wife (I think it's those two things...) that he is beheaded... divorce is illegal in the PHL (or at least that area...) and if he cheats, they cut off his manhood. And if one is caught stealing, "Bye bye, hand!" Law enforcement doesn't step in because it's the way of the land.
The Terraces in Banaue are different from the ones in Batad because they are dug out of the ground and divided by these beautiful red flower-like plants, whereas in Batad they are stonewalled in. They are then filled in with rock, clay, sand and dirt to keep their form. Terraces are no longer built, the families just pass them down, and if people cut down a tree, they are required to plant two more.
The farming is organic, and therefore they only have one harvest a year so the soil can recover before the rice is planted again... and because of this Ifuago people do not export their rice and barely has enough for the people (to eat, make liquor and feed their animals) - in the off season, people plant corn and use the paddies as tilapia pools. No pesticides because of the trickle down effect would contaminate the rice and kill the fish, but as a result, these large earthworms are eating through and collapsing the stone terraces. People catch these worms and cook them as "ham" so be careful to eat ham in the PHL (at least that's what the dude said... then again, I'm the girl who believed in the jackalope when I was 10, so maybe I'm still just as gullible).
Misty mountain morning gave way to a cool blue afternoon.
I took my penguin picture this morning, or rather, walked out of my room only to startle two 20something Chinese gals and asked them to take my picture. In return, one of the girls giggly asked to take a picture with me. Still have to think of appropriate shots in all the places I've yet to go.
Alright, so now onto explore Bangkok, Thailand. It's a beautiful sun-shiny day, and I'll be okay. Fingers crossed.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
It ended, and now so it shall begin.
Korea and me are through. It wasn't him, it was me. I needed to go. The good-byes were heartbreaking, but in the end I think I'll be a better person for the things we experienced together. Oh, and The ROK still has my things, so I'll be back for a quickie in November after I give myself a good two months of traveling and spending time getting to know who I am before going back to get everything. After that, I'm out of there! For good? I don't know, I may go back to visit; I can't promise anything right now.
I am looking forward to spending quality time with myself. Actually, I'm a bit terrified; I go back and forth between panic and excitement - it's a very thin line.
Currently, I am in Banaue, Philippines, and I just spent the day roaming around the incredibly wonderful Ifuago Rice Terraces with a tour group comprised of an older French couple and an older Dutch couple (both early/mid-thirties)... talk about fifth wheel! Or maybe they thought I was an awesome, adventurous twenty-something... that, or incredibly awkward. Who knows?
I took an 8-ish hour "luxury" bus ride to get here (read: the coldest mode of transportation ever encountered - next time I'll think to stuff the vents with tissues!) and when we got off, me in my layers of everything warm I packed (not much, because who packs many warms things to a SE Asia/India adventure? Not this lady, that's for sure) our tour guide said to us, "The Philippines is hot, but the bus is winter." Too true!
It was a bumpy and windy ride through the mountains and we arrived in Banaue shortly after sunrise, groggy and sleepy-eyed. Coffee revived, along with oatmeal(!!!!) and bananas from the restaurant in my hotel, "Greenview" (single, cheap room is only 240/night... so like a little less than $6). Outside my room is a balcony overlooking a rushing river and the hill town of Banaue just below and intermingled amongst the terraces. "What a good way to start your day!" called a rooster from far away. I agree King of the Farm and Cock of the Ring. The terraces are more tan than brown (as it's harvest time) and compliment the rusting green tin roofs of the town quite nicely. Again, everyone here is fantastically lovely and reaffirming my ability of solo travel with the help of others.
Yesterday, Liz and I were in Manila, roaming the chaotic, dirty and noisy streets. We went to a super mall, of sorts (Greenbelt Mall) and I bought a travel satchel (only $4 - HOT DOG!!!) and we browsed the latest Filipino fashions. Then I stopped in an electronic store to buy a new camera because sand got in my old one when we were on the beach in Boracay and the lens won't function properly. Annnnyway, it was a good deal and it's underwater ready, but I'm not completely thrilled with it, it was mostly out of necessity, and I'm hoping that I'll be able to get my Nikon fixed (not likely, but... okay! Not the purpose of the post). It was really hard to say good-bye, mostly because she was really fun to travel with and I'm going to miss her, but also because I was/am pretty scared about doing all of this on my own, but I will make it, and it will be one of the best decisions of my life (thus far).
Prior to Manila, Lizzikins and I were in Taal in Batangas (southern area of Northern Luzon) and we went horseback riding up to Taal Volcano, which was awesome! Unfortunately, as we arrived on the island as the sun was setting we weren't able to go all the way up to the top, but what we saw was nice and foresty. So foresty in fact that when Michelle (my white horse! Like Princess Buttercup I was!) stumbled along the edge of the path I was assaulted by a number of branches and leaves. My horse guide, Felix (whose name I first thought was "Balex" - it's hard for me to understand this accent), kept tsk-ing Michelle and whipping her with the rope he was using as a guide and slapping her haunches. I wanted to say something, but didn't feel like it was my place, especially since I haven't ridden a horse since I was 12 and even then I've only been once. It was kind of creepy as the darkness started swallowing up the sky, and the shadows and my mind started to play tricks on my eyes as there were plants that looked like crouching island men that took me a few times to blink away. I mooed at one of the saggy-skinned white island cows and it started running after us and tried to cut us off at the path. Blocked by the bushes! They didn't moo but more like belched. It was strange. We took a homemade boat to and from Taal Volcano on Taal Lake, docked from San Nicolas. I think it was "Cap-i-tan" Joelle's boat, but again, I'm not sure on that name. We waited with the locals while the crew went to fetch fuel. It was really beautiful. (The whole trip, with transportation included from Mark and Tony [toothless, but oh-so jolly older man], cost 5,500 pesos for the two of us, or about $60 each - yikes! But at the same time it included a lot, and I didn't feel so bad about paying because it was local and you dealt with the people you paid directly.)
I liked the whole area of Taal. It was very quaint, and you could really get the feel for the Spanish influence in the architecture. We stayed at Casa Punzalan, which was wow! Only 300 pesos/each a night. The place was totally haunted, in a good way. There were no problems, but the way the place creaked and groaned... Liz and I felt it, but we're also very superstitious ladies. I did slip down the stairs on the way out in the morning though, and slid all the way from the top to the bottom on my bum. Thank goodness I had that massive backpack on, otherwise I would've tumbled. Sir Dingo (or Duingo... again, the pronunciation of the names and me isn't so good! Called "Sir" because he used to be a university professor, now a retired town volunteer to preserve) the innkeeper told us about the spirits and Taal and the surrounding areas; I enjoy a good history lesson.
We also walked around inside Taal Basilica, which is the largest Catholic Church in all of Asia, and by far the most awe-inspiring church I've ever stepped foot in. I think I needed a little bit of spiritually in my life at that time, given the fear I was feeling setting on my own later in the day. The sanctuary really provided me with the peace and comfort that I needed.
Tonight I stay in Banaue, and then tomorrow I head back to Manila via jeepneys and bus and hopefully make my plane in time! I think I will. Fingers crossed out there, people.
I am looking forward to spending quality time with myself. Actually, I'm a bit terrified; I go back and forth between panic and excitement - it's a very thin line.
Currently, I am in Banaue, Philippines, and I just spent the day roaming around the incredibly wonderful Ifuago Rice Terraces with a tour group comprised of an older French couple and an older Dutch couple (both early/mid-thirties)... talk about fifth wheel! Or maybe they thought I was an awesome, adventurous twenty-something... that, or incredibly awkward. Who knows?
I took an 8-ish hour "luxury" bus ride to get here (read: the coldest mode of transportation ever encountered - next time I'll think to stuff the vents with tissues!) and when we got off, me in my layers of everything warm I packed (not much, because who packs many warms things to a SE Asia/India adventure? Not this lady, that's for sure) our tour guide said to us, "The Philippines is hot, but the bus is winter." Too true!
It was a bumpy and windy ride through the mountains and we arrived in Banaue shortly after sunrise, groggy and sleepy-eyed. Coffee revived, along with oatmeal(!!!!) and bananas from the restaurant in my hotel, "Greenview" (single, cheap room is only 240/night... so like a little less than $6). Outside my room is a balcony overlooking a rushing river and the hill town of Banaue just below and intermingled amongst the terraces. "What a good way to start your day!" called a rooster from far away. I agree King of the Farm and Cock of the Ring. The terraces are more tan than brown (as it's harvest time) and compliment the rusting green tin roofs of the town quite nicely. Again, everyone here is fantastically lovely and reaffirming my ability of solo travel with the help of others.
Yesterday, Liz and I were in Manila, roaming the chaotic, dirty and noisy streets. We went to a super mall, of sorts (Greenbelt Mall) and I bought a travel satchel (only $4 - HOT DOG!!!) and we browsed the latest Filipino fashions. Then I stopped in an electronic store to buy a new camera because sand got in my old one when we were on the beach in Boracay and the lens won't function properly. Annnnyway, it was a good deal and it's underwater ready, but I'm not completely thrilled with it, it was mostly out of necessity, and I'm hoping that I'll be able to get my Nikon fixed (not likely, but... okay! Not the purpose of the post). It was really hard to say good-bye, mostly because she was really fun to travel with and I'm going to miss her, but also because I was/am pretty scared about doing all of this on my own, but I will make it, and it will be one of the best decisions of my life (thus far).
Prior to Manila, Lizzikins and I were in Taal in Batangas (southern area of Northern Luzon) and we went horseback riding up to Taal Volcano, which was awesome! Unfortunately, as we arrived on the island as the sun was setting we weren't able to go all the way up to the top, but what we saw was nice and foresty. So foresty in fact that when Michelle (my white horse! Like Princess Buttercup I was!) stumbled along the edge of the path I was assaulted by a number of branches and leaves. My horse guide, Felix (whose name I first thought was "Balex" - it's hard for me to understand this accent), kept tsk-ing Michelle and whipping her with the rope he was using as a guide and slapping her haunches. I wanted to say something, but didn't feel like it was my place, especially since I haven't ridden a horse since I was 12 and even then I've only been once. It was kind of creepy as the darkness started swallowing up the sky, and the shadows and my mind started to play tricks on my eyes as there were plants that looked like crouching island men that took me a few times to blink away. I mooed at one of the saggy-skinned white island cows and it started running after us and tried to cut us off at the path. Blocked by the bushes! They didn't moo but more like belched. It was strange. We took a homemade boat to and from Taal Volcano on Taal Lake, docked from San Nicolas. I think it was "Cap-i-tan" Joelle's boat, but again, I'm not sure on that name. We waited with the locals while the crew went to fetch fuel. It was really beautiful. (The whole trip, with transportation included from Mark and Tony [toothless, but oh-so jolly older man], cost 5,500 pesos for the two of us, or about $60 each - yikes! But at the same time it included a lot, and I didn't feel so bad about paying because it was local and you dealt with the people you paid directly.)
I liked the whole area of Taal. It was very quaint, and you could really get the feel for the Spanish influence in the architecture. We stayed at Casa Punzalan, which was wow! Only 300 pesos/each a night. The place was totally haunted, in a good way. There were no problems, but the way the place creaked and groaned... Liz and I felt it, but we're also very superstitious ladies. I did slip down the stairs on the way out in the morning though, and slid all the way from the top to the bottom on my bum. Thank goodness I had that massive backpack on, otherwise I would've tumbled. Sir Dingo (or Duingo... again, the pronunciation of the names and me isn't so good! Called "Sir" because he used to be a university professor, now a retired town volunteer to preserve) the innkeeper told us about the spirits and Taal and the surrounding areas; I enjoy a good history lesson.
We also walked around inside Taal Basilica, which is the largest Catholic Church in all of Asia, and by far the most awe-inspiring church I've ever stepped foot in. I think I needed a little bit of spiritually in my life at that time, given the fear I was feeling setting on my own later in the day. The sanctuary really provided me with the peace and comfort that I needed.
Tonight I stay in Banaue, and then tomorrow I head back to Manila via jeepneys and bus and hopefully make my plane in time! I think I will. Fingers crossed out there, people.
Thoughts and Actions
I find myself wondering about all the travelers (and friends, said shyly while fingers are crossed and my gaze is shifting towards my shoes digging circles in the ground) I'm going to meet. What are they doing? Are the already out, backpack bound, waiting for a train or a plane and hanging around? Or are the still in the pre-time filled with anxious excitement and thoughts of delight? Maybe they're lying on a beach or hiking up a mountain wondering about me. And when we meet we'll shake hands or hug, out of relief.
Also, it was so great traveling with Lizzikins, a kind-hearted, easy going, peaceful, loving and beautiful soul. I felt like she was my angel guide, helping me get started on this wild and bumpy ride. It's so exciting the crossroads we both are at in our lives, and I look forward to meeting the people we'll be at our next meeting. Definitely a friend for life. I was really sad to see her go, but I'm really happy and ready to grow; to see what I can do on my own, and just so I can spend some quality time with myself, and see who I meet along the way.
On that note: I totally had an Eat, Pray, Love encounter last night at a drugstore in Manila. Liz was at the counter and I was roaming the aisles, looking for supplies. I glanced up to see if she needed anything, jumping above the aisles to make eye contact with who I thought was her only to realize the friend I saw smiling back and gestering an offer of help was actually me. Funny, funny.
Also, it was so great traveling with Lizzikins, a kind-hearted, easy going, peaceful, loving and beautiful soul. I felt like she was my angel guide, helping me get started on this wild and bumpy ride. It's so exciting the crossroads we both are at in our lives, and I look forward to meeting the people we'll be at our next meeting. Definitely a friend for life. I was really sad to see her go, but I'm really happy and ready to grow; to see what I can do on my own, and just so I can spend some quality time with myself, and see who I meet along the way.
On that note: I totally had an Eat, Pray, Love encounter last night at a drugstore in Manila. Liz was at the counter and I was roaming the aisles, looking for supplies. I glanced up to see if she needed anything, jumping above the aisles to make eye contact with who I thought was her only to realize the friend I saw smiling back and gestering an offer of help was actually me. Funny, funny.
Michelle is Tempermental; She Bites!!
Boracay was awesome! Touristy to the max, but wow! I've never been to a tropical island before, so I was as happy as a clam, and Liz (my travel buddy, and a great one at that! How much fun we had together!) was happy to be back on an island after being away from Guam for a little over a week.
We went sailing two days; snorkeling once; cliff jumping at Arielle's Cove (and OY! I was going to go off the highest one, 29 meters, but on one of the lower jumps I landed weird and the bottoms of my feet stung like a mother and it honestly felt like I had been punched up my bum and I splashed to the surface gulping water and shout/whimpered, "OWWWWWWWWWWuch!! My ass!!!" Not a good feeling. It was pretty hilarious, but my goodness it hurt so bad. So, so, so bad. I actually did a lot better jumping than I thought I would as I'm debilitating afraid of heights. You just have to look out at the horizon, no matter how bad you want to look down, and even if you do look down just remind yourself that people do this for fun and then jump and scream, but for the love of god, make sure you keep your hands at your sides or straight up in the air and your feet together!!!
We also ate the most delicious sea food (Paradiso Grill) and Indian food (at True Food. OH! I canNOT wait to eat Indian food IN India!!!), they also had fantastic mango daiquiris! We ate mangoes every day for breakfast and sometimes had mango shakes, too. I can't get enough mangoes! I got two massages over the course of three days, and I can't wait until they are cheaper on the beaches in Thailand. The white sand beaches, and the pristine pool-like water blew my mind. What also blew my mind... get ready for it... A RAINBOW CLOUD!!! I kid you not, folks. There was a pocket of rainbow in the sky. Straight up cloud of RAINBOW! Yosemite Guy would freak out. I couldn't stop staring at it. Magical.
Riding in tricycles and jeepneys and being bombarded by blasted soft rock, being called "beautiful" everywhere, roosters running wild.
Oh, and Michelle was the monkey at Arielle's Cove who only likes men, even though I gave her not one but TWO bananas. She was kind of a bitch when I reached to get her piece of banana that she threw (ungrateful monkey) and she lunged at me! Fine, then! The entrance fee there was 400 pesos/person, and totally worth each one as we spent a couple hours there!!
We also stayed at Frendz Resort, a wonderful oasis of a hostel, and we met so many fun and fantastic people there and they made Boracay all the more better.
And Manana has EXCELLENT mango margaritas (you can take them to go!), and I guess the food is pretty good, too.
It was pretty awesome eating dinner sitting on the beach and digging and wiggling my toes into the sand. All in all, despite the expensive side of it (it shall be the splurge of my trip) I really enjoyed myself relaxing on the beach, interacting with the locals (even the vendors) and meeting new friends.
We went sailing two days; snorkeling once; cliff jumping at Arielle's Cove (and OY! I was going to go off the highest one, 29 meters, but on one of the lower jumps I landed weird and the bottoms of my feet stung like a mother and it honestly felt like I had been punched up my bum and I splashed to the surface gulping water and shout/whimpered, "OWWWWWWWWWWuch!! My ass!!!" Not a good feeling. It was pretty hilarious, but my goodness it hurt so bad. So, so, so bad. I actually did a lot better jumping than I thought I would as I'm debilitating afraid of heights. You just have to look out at the horizon, no matter how bad you want to look down, and even if you do look down just remind yourself that people do this for fun and then jump and scream, but for the love of god, make sure you keep your hands at your sides or straight up in the air and your feet together!!!
We also ate the most delicious sea food (Paradiso Grill) and Indian food (at True Food. OH! I canNOT wait to eat Indian food IN India!!!), they also had fantastic mango daiquiris! We ate mangoes every day for breakfast and sometimes had mango shakes, too. I can't get enough mangoes! I got two massages over the course of three days, and I can't wait until they are cheaper on the beaches in Thailand. The white sand beaches, and the pristine pool-like water blew my mind. What also blew my mind... get ready for it... A RAINBOW CLOUD!!! I kid you not, folks. There was a pocket of rainbow in the sky. Straight up cloud of RAINBOW! Yosemite Guy would freak out. I couldn't stop staring at it. Magical.
Riding in tricycles and jeepneys and being bombarded by blasted soft rock, being called "beautiful" everywhere, roosters running wild.
Oh, and Michelle was the monkey at Arielle's Cove who only likes men, even though I gave her not one but TWO bananas. She was kind of a bitch when I reached to get her piece of banana that she threw (ungrateful monkey) and she lunged at me! Fine, then! The entrance fee there was 400 pesos/person, and totally worth each one as we spent a couple hours there!!
We also stayed at Frendz Resort, a wonderful oasis of a hostel, and we met so many fun and fantastic people there and they made Boracay all the more better.
And Manana has EXCELLENT mango margaritas (you can take them to go!), and I guess the food is pretty good, too.
It was pretty awesome eating dinner sitting on the beach and digging and wiggling my toes into the sand. All in all, despite the expensive side of it (it shall be the splurge of my trip) I really enjoyed myself relaxing on the beach, interacting with the locals (even the vendors) and meeting new friends.
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