The Golden Horse Monastery - Finding a Piece of Thai Legend

Chiang Rai Province, Thailand

You're a traveler, not a tourist, gosh darnit, and you want to do something unique.  Tripadvisor?  Pfft...that's for beginners.  Lonely Planet?  Gimme a backpacking break.  I wouldn't be caught dead
with one of those books!

I'm not actually above any of that, but I was in Chiang Rai, Thailand with very few recommended sights to see!  Chiang Rai is known for its White Temple, which is impressive, and will be saved for another post, but other than that?  Not much going on in these parts.  I would find something awesome and off the beaten trail to do.

Where is it?

Chiang Rai is the northernmost "large" city in Thailand.  I mostly stopped here due to a recommended ceramic site, and its proximity to Laos - I would be traveling there the following day.  As is my favored custom, I rented a motorbike in town and researched my options for the next day.  I don't even know how I stumbled upon what I ended up doing.

The Golden Horse Monastery 

There is legend.  There are documentaries.  There are no reviews and hopefully there never will be any.  You won't find this place on Tripadvisor or Lonely Planet and you will get lost getting there (or at least I did.  Severely).

Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng - Belly Flips and Gorgeous Views

If you get vertigo, or motion sickness, or have anxiety with hairpin turns, overtaking vehicles on blind turns, or narrowly avoiding dogs, motorcycles, coach buses and cars, then the road from Luang

Prabang to Vang Vieng is not for you.

If you are excited by hairpin turns, enjoy seeing some of the most beautiful rain forested mountains, don't mind getting a little close to travel companions and don't eat too big of a breakfast, the road from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng is most definitely for you.  Through potholes and narrow passes, the road twists and winds up and down mountain passes for about 6 1/2 hours, churning the bellies of even the hardiest of backpackers.  For my Vietnam buddies, just imagine the Hai Van Pass, but even more turns, and for six hours.
There are a number of ways your vehicle can get delayed: punctures, collisions, suicidal cattle, landslides, murphy's law is in full swing and spares no one.

Kuang Si Waterfall and Bear Rescue Center - Luang Prabang, Laos

Sometimes there are several options for eco-tourism in one city, and other times, there is THEE thing to do in a city.  For Luang Prabang, THEE thing to do is the Kuang Si Waterfall and adjacent Bear Rescue Center, housing several Asiatic bears.

Free The Bears fund has rescued almost 1000 bears from poachers and other threats preying on them in Southeast Asia.  Laos' center is within the grounds of the beautiful Kuang Si waterfalls area.  When I heard that this was the thing to do in Luang Prabang, I was a little disappointed.  I hadn't heard much about the bears, but having seen some of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world (and admittedly not the biggest waterfall fanatic anyway), I was hesitant to shell out the kip for the tuk tuk ride out there.  Meeting two other solo travelers wanting to see the falls, I decided it was worth it to split the cost of the hour-long ride out and back.  I'm so glad I did!

So strange and awesome

Tat Kuang Si Bear Rescue Centre was established by Free The Bears Fund Inc. in 2003 after local authorities confiscated three bear cubs and asked for assistance to help look after them.  The rescue centre has continued to provide care for these bears and also accepted further bears that have been confiscated by the Lao authorities.  Most of the bears at the centre are Asiatic Black Bears (Moon Bears) that were illegally captured from the wild as young cubs – it is likely that they were destined for use in the traditional medicine trade.  -Freethebears.org

Last summer I took a trip with my mom down to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in TN/NC, America and I got to see a black bear up close.  He was nothing like these bears, which were also black but sported a clear boomerang of white hair near their neck.  There are other differences between these bears and American black bears as you can see in the photos!  Yes that bear is standing on his two hind legs.  Like a human.  You aren't seeing things.

First Impressions: Luang Prabang, Laos

No more Bangkok johns.  Back to squatting!

Luang Prabang, Laos.  I've finally made it.  Worth it?  The jury is still out.

As the last country I'll visit in Southeast Asia, it's hard not to compare.  The coffee was better in Vietnam.  The food was better in Thailand.  Cambodia had more interesting eco-tourism.  What's it gonna be, Laos?  You're already more expensive than any of those three.  Even renting a motorbike is $20/day!  What gives?

While changing some Baht into Kip, I received a 5000kip note at the bottom of the stack when I should have received a 50,000kip note.  It would have been easy to take what she gave me and dash off but I noticed it, so I said "shouldn't I get..." and she quickly smiled and said "woops!  Sorry about that!" And gave me the 50,000 note.  Just avoiding scams left and right!

What I have enjoyed about Laos is the laid back atmosphere.  I still haven't seen anyone give a hoot about anything except bottle cap checkers and lunchtime dramas on the tube.  The vendors don't even care when you walk away from their booth after talking to them for five minutes.

No cops, security guards nap in front of ATMs, and no one yells at you to buy things.

The night market in front of Haw Pha Bang Temple

A definite highlight of Luang Prabang happens at 5pm every day.  The night market is one of the best I've seen, with art, crafts and souvenirs unique to Laos.  There was only one item that I had already seen in a different country, everything else was new and tempting.  I kept my purchases rational, picking up a traditional Laotian-style skirt and a bracelet.  There are sooo many other things that I wanted, though.  Scarves, dresses, necklaces, notebooks with hand-painted covers - they're all so beautiful.


Another thing Laos does well are yummy fruit shakes and crepes.  I ordered a mini lime shake and a  banana-nutella crepe.  Drool.  Perhaps I haven't given Laos enough of a chance.  I may stay in the country a little longer than planned and re-route my way back down to Bangkok.

80 Amused Passengers and One Baby Monkey. Mekong Slow Boat Day 2

Pakbeng, Laos

Remember when I almost didn't get a seat yesterday?  That wasn't happening today.  Bleach blond girl was still in bed when I cinched and clicked my pack tight and headed out for an early morning at the dock.  I stopped by a bakery on the one main road through Pakbeng and made it down to the boats at
7:30am.  We were scheduled to leave at 9:30am.  You can't be too prepared for these things... today was going to be a potentially grueling 8 1/2 more hours of slow boat on the way to Luang Prabang.  So for about 30 minutes, it was me and ten other overly prepared locals, hangin' out on the boat.  The rest of the passengers slowly started rolling down the hill to claim their seats.  As some of the travelers were settling around me, someone mentioned "yeah...she's bringing it on the boat!"

I look up and a girl about my age is stepping into the boat and what is riding tightly on the back of her neck?  A baby monkey.  The girl-half of me was melting in sheer cuteness and the other logical-half was thinking... I've seen "Outbreak," I know how these things end...

The Jungle Cruise...Fo Real. Mekong Slow Boat Day 1

In Khmer language "Mae" meaning "Big, Mother, Boss or Large" and "Kong" is a short word of "Kongkea" and it means "Water". In the Lao-Khmer-Thai toponymy, all great rivers are considered "mother rivers" signalled by the prefix "mae", meaning "mother", and "nam" for water. (Wikipedia)

Of course I'm behind on some Thailand posts but I figured, since I'm ON the Mekong right now, I might as well post about it.

I don't know why, but I'm always a little nervous about border crossings.  There's just something about official men in official uniforms giving you that official look as they scrutinize your passport.  Their eyes tell you that you've done fifty illegal things in the previous country.  Gives me the heebie jeebies.

So, I was prodding my wonderful guesthouse owner for advice and logistics of everything that was to happen today.  I loved the guesthouse I stayed at in Chiang Khong.  It's the border town on the Thai side of the Mekong and a popular one-nighter for people crossing into Laos.  My private room with fan was 150 baht ($4.80) and her cooking was to die for.  Not to mention she fed me sticky rice with mango which is like Thai crack.  So, I was going to listen to everything she told me.

She saw my nerves and said that I could just book the slow boat tix through her (like another guest was doing) and I wouldn't have to worry about the ferry, tuk tuk and ticket office.  This man who would take care of all of that was her long-time friend and I could trust him.  The offer sounded pretty attractive and I would have a buddy doing the same thing, so I agreed, against all the advice I read online to just do the routine on your own.

Oh, Chiang Mai!

One particular stop in Thailand was sure to be a hit – Chiang Mai.  I knew I was going to like this Northern town because all of the specs were similar to my former home in Vietnam, DaNang.  Medium sized, cooler and less traffic-jammed than the big urban cities, and great eco-tourism to get you out and about.  The only major difference is that Chiang Mai is a well-known city in the backpacking circuit, and for good reason.  A friend of mine who I met on the bus ride over from Cambodia flew into Chiang Mai on the same day as me, so we decided to do a day of awesome together, and awesome it was.  We booked a tour with Untouched Thailand and two very fluent English speaking guides picked us up at 6:30am to head north.  These guys (named Pon and Tom) were great conversationalists, and had a unique back story – they grew up together and spent 18 years as monks!  This came in handy while we were visiting temples, as they knew so much about monastery life. 

Our first stop was at the Elephant Training Center.  There were many options for elephant interaction in Chiang Mai, some charging 58000 Baht ($187) for one day.  We didn’t know much about this place as we booked a tour and everything was prearranged, but we might have done this portion differently in hindsight.  Riding an elephant through the forest is an amazing experience, but something about it just didn’t feel right.  Riding a horse seems fine, but riding an elephant - an animal three or four times the size of a horse – brought on some guilt.  Afterward, it was very cool to feel the elephant’s skin (so rough!) and feed him a whole bunch of bananas.  It was warming to hear about the relationship the elephants have with the mahouts.  Our guide told us the mahouts rarely take any holidays, because having an elephant is a full-life job.  One mahout and one elephant are together until one of them dies.  After speaking with my host about our unease in the situation, he explained that they could be logging, which isn’t allowed anymore, so this life is much better and easier than the abuse loggers once put them through.  After we saw the mahouts give the elephants a bath, we jumped onto a bamboo raft and floated down the river.  It was a wonderful and peaceful ride. 

After leaving the elephant camp, we headed over to a cave, which was nice, but nothing compared to what I’ve seen in the last year.  I’m pretty sure Vietnam takes the cake for caves.  Sorry, Thailand.  Can't win 'em all.

Playing in the Mud - Thailand (Chiang Mai)

I’m researching and visiting as many ceramics villages as possible on my route through Southeast Asia.  

So far, Vietnam and Cambodia both offered traditional handbuilding techniques unlike anything I’ve ever seen.  Thailand, however, takes the cake for innovative wheel throwing processes. 

The village doesn't make too much of a variety of vessles.  They make very big pots/vases, very small candle holders, and a specific type of medium sized genie-like bottle.  Every artist was open to me visiting their home and taking photos or videos of their process.  The village was free to enter and there was absolutely no pressure whatsoever to purchase anything.  That was a first.  I actually wanted to purchase something, but the type of work they made wasn't exactly conducive to backpacking.  

Genius!

On the Move

Bangkok Traffic

One of the biggest parts of continuous travel is the transport that takes you in and out of countries, through puddled city side streets, and out into the countryside. 

For me, figuring out new kinds of transport (which happens often) is a little stressful.  Do I need a token or a card?  Am I getting ripped off majorly right now in this taxi?  Oh you need that token or card that I’ve lost now that I’m at my final destination??

BUT, when I do figure out whatever system is taking me here and there and I finally get on it, I really, really, enjoy using it.  

Vietnam

In Vietnam, there were mostly xe oms.  “Xe” means motorbike and “om” roughly translates as “hug,” which is a cute way of calling (often) haven’t-showered-in-three-days men with no official uniform asking if you want a ride.  Having my own moto, I didn’t accept their offers too often, but when I did, it was a fast, cheap and friendly way of getting across town.  If you didn’t use the xe oms, you had to take a fancy taxi car, which was usually painful to negotiate and quite expensive as there were very few cars compared to the moto traffic. 

 

Cambodia

In Cambodia, I was so amused by their tuk tuks!  Once a bicycle and cart operation, Cambodian auto rickshaws are a three-wheeled sensation, and an essential form of urban transportation, especially for 2-4 person groups.  There were also moto taxis of course, for even cheaper than the tuk tuks - but no helmets!  (I discussed these more at length in this post)

Queuing in Vietnam was practically nonexistent.
Look how these skytrain riders file in from the arrows
on the sides!  Crazy!  

Thailand

In Bangkok, moto taxis were again a transport staple, but they wore official orange vests.  There were SO MANY CAR TAXIS.  For such a huge city, I figured most people would rely on public rail transit - and many do - but looking down on a jungle of stagnant traffic, there were multiple colors of taxis as far as the eye could see.  If you didn’t want to take a taxi, you could hop on the Skytrain or the underground mass rapid transit – MRT.  I used the skytrain every day that I was in Bangkok.  It was so intuitive and conveniently connected to many attractions in the heart of the city.  Plus – on those hot muggy days (every day), the Skytrain was the coldest place in the city.  After five minutes, we were wishing we'd brought a sweater. 

I have to go to the bathroom. Or rather, I GET to go to the bathroom. Terminal 21, Bangkok

I wish I’d kept a bathroom diary of all the wonderful ways people ask you to go to the bathroom.  It would be such a brag sheet of endurance.  I've slipped and fallen on wet bathroom surfaces, squatted in a hole on tumultuous train rides, fended off rats in back-restaurant johns, and conquered a number of other less sanitary obstacles.  Needless to say, when I see that a stall comes with a) a toilet seat and b) the less common toilet paper, I am a beaming queen on her hopefully disease-free throne.    

Cambodia was actually a step up in sanitation but still pretty similar to Vietnam unless you were in a nice restaurant or store.  Tourism helped. 

Then came Bangkok. 

This throne washed and dried your bum. It even had controls to get juuust the right angle.  You might think "euwww, you touched the buttons?" fear not novice restroom user, the stall was also complete with hand sanitizer and wipes, which you could use even before washing your hands in the sink area.  Swanky.   

On a recommendation from my couchsurf host, I went to a shopping mall called Terminal 21.  Apparently they are known for their creative bathrooms and after an hour or two of meandering around, I was about to leave when I realized I had to go to the bathroom.  Or hang on – I HAD TO VISIT THE BATHROOM!  I almost forgot to check out one of the main attractions of this joint.

Travel Mistakes with a Side of Stress to go, Please

US Dollars, Vietnam Dong, Cambodian Riel, and Thai Baht

Even well-seasoned travelers make mistakes from time to time.  If you’re lucky enough to witness them admitting them, you may find yourself in a high place, smirking at their misfortune because even you would never forget or do that.  That was me, reading a blog about a year ago when one of my favorite bloggers admitted her international money woes due to careless mistakes.  I wouldn't categorize myself as well-seasoned in the travel department but I have learned the essential dos and don’ts when it comes to staying out of serious trouble abroad.  Today was a bad day.

All Templed Out? A Walk on the Crawly Side

Since I was enjoying myself so much, I allotted an additional day in Siem Reap to splurge one last time on what ended up being the most fun day of my trip.  After temple trekking, there aren’t too many activities advertised to do, especially in town, so I started exploring other eco-tourism outings.  Through a random tripadvisor link, I happened upon a beautiful picture of a caterpillar.  So entranced, I read through the description and reviews

Dani Jump in his playground

(all of which were five stars).  It described a nature tour, led by Dani Jump of Bees Unlimited to explore the creatures and forest life of the Angkor Archaeological Park.  Through very prompt email correspondence, Dani and I arranged a tour that would depart from my hotel at 7am and return some time mid-afternoon.  At this point I was feeling pretty strapped for cash, but it was a private tour with a Cambodia nature expert so how could I resist?

The tour was $35 itself and $10 for the tuk tuk driver, which would have been waived if I had found another participant. 

Morning Wholesale Market

We started out in the wholesale market, bustling with the sale of morning produce, meat and seafood.  Large silver bowls with all kinds of wild market food lined narrow, muddy pathways.  It was difficult to squeeze past hagglers and peek into every stall while averting the dreaded sandal slop of mud, but interesting to experience busy morning life.  

We enjoyed noodles with a deep fried something or other for breakfast and then taste tested a few other goods as we walked.  Finally, we came upon an insect merchant and Dani urged me to try the big red ants that had been biting me just the day before.  Payback time.  As he is vegetarian, Dani didn’t partake, but he assured me they were sour.  Why? Red ants eat mango leaves so their bodies taste like a squirt of lime.  Delicious!  ...Really!

Siem Reap to Bangkok, the Easy Way!

From my transport research (because these transitions tend to stress me out) the legs from Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) to Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and then from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap are relatively easy and hassle free.  It’s when you get to the Siem Reap to Bangkok (Thailand) leg where the fun starts.  The countless stories of near-death experiences and “I’ve never been more terrified in my life” statements start

 popping up.  I wanted to avoid feeling terrified while in Thailand, so I dug deeper.

VIP

Where’s the Hassle??

The problem with this route lies in the transfer over the border.  Many bus companies will take you to the border, and then when you cross to the other side, you then wait, sometimes hours, for smaller mini shuttle vans to pick you up.  These vans are on deadlines, and sometimes speed 130k and faster in an 80k zone.

These two problems – border thumb twiddling and mini shuttle vans from hell – are mostly solved with an bus company called Nattakan Co.  They have an office in Siem Reap just a few doors down from the only KFC in town.  I would recommend going a day or two ahead of time, just to make sure you get the bus/seat you want. 

The Beauty of Banteay Srei

Last night, I was wrestling for connection with the internet, so now, as the coach bus is gently bouncing through the rice paddies of rural Cambodia, I’ll detail the last of my activities while in Siem Reap. 

I really enjoyed Siem Reap, enough to stay an extra unplanned day.  Yes, there is an element of tourism, and many night markets with merchants chiming to the same tune of “hello, ladeee, buy something?  What you looking for?  Very good price!” And then there are the beloved tuk tuk drivers, starved of work in the slow season.  In the night markets, there are dozens of t-shirts with

No Tuk Tuk

Not today

Not tomorrow

Walking through History - Angkor Temples Day 1

Siem Reap is a tourism mecca, due entirely to the Angkor Archaeological Park just 6k away from town.  You can buy a one-day pass for $20, a three-day pass for $40, or a seven-day pass for $60.  When not temple trekking, there aren't many other activities to occupy your time, so I thought it was well worth a 3-day pass into the park.
June through October is the rainy low season, so mid June couldn't be a more perfect time for me to be here.  The temples are almost empty, it's not that hot (compared to DaNang) and every afternoon, there's a twenty minute downpour to cool the air and wake up the lush rain forest smells.

On my first day to the park, I arranged a sunrise tour of the major big temples on the near-side of the park.  This included Angkor Wat (the famous one), Angkor Thom (the one with faces), Ta Prohm (the Tomb Raider one) and the Elephant Terrace, among other smaller temples worth trekking around in.

Choeung Ek, the Killing Fields

During the last full day in Phnom Penh, another couchsurfer and I took a tuk tuk twenty minutes outside the city to learn about and visit the site of Choeung Ek, better known as the Killing Fields.

Through portable audio devices, the history of Khmer Rouge was explained as we walked past empty green spaces.  Without the history, you might wonder if this area differed from any other.  Most of the evidence of genocide has been erased from sight, but the audio narrator and voices of survivors allowed us to painfully recreate what happened just 35 short years ago.







There are several estimates of the number of victims, but during the Khmer Rouge rule 1975-1979, the tyrant
Pol Pot was responsible for the deaths of roughly 2,000,000 people, through execution, disease or starvation.  The population of Cambodia was 8,000,000, so if you can imagine one out of every four people in your country perishing, you can imagine the severity of this genocide.

Termites go Marching in Angkor Wat, Hurrah, Hurr..Ouch! Ouch!

It sure is nice knowing where you're going, but be sure to look down sometimes.  You may miss (or step on!) a massive but tiny moving world.  

I may have been bitten a few times during the filming of this video.  As it turns out, giant red ants hang on to your clothing and even continue to bite you hours later.

Worth it to pretend I'm a Nat Geo videographer.

Excuse me, but you have an Antenna in yo Teeth

Today was another long leg of the tri-country bus adventure.  I was going from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap (Cambodia) with Mekong Express (still highly recommend this bus line)  This leg was six hours and $12. Our fare included a bottle of water, a moist towelette and some bakery goods.  We also had a very sweet bilingual tour guide who gave us updates along the way in Khmer and English.  It always seemed like she spoke for a far lengthier time in Khmer than when she translated to English, but most of it was fluff anyway.  During our thirty minute lunch stop in Kampong Thom, I hopped off of the bus and walked over to a fruit and...insect stand where our guide was munching on something.

"What do we have over here?"

"Try it!" she says.  "You don't have any of this in your country?"

"Only for pets."

I stared down at a huge pile of crickets, and realized that someone was asking me to eat something, so I'd better agree.  I asked her if she'd video me eating my first cricket and she happily obliged.  It definitely looked like she was filming me as I grabbed the two back legs of the cricket and shucked the body away from them into my mouth.  As I'm chewing, I notice her fumbling with my camera.  A look of confusion replaced her smile.  ..Sigh..

Playing in the Mud - Cambodia

Today was definitely a highlight for my short stay in Cambodia.  I took a day trip to the province known for pottery, just two hours via bus from Phnom Penh.  I would have just continued on to Siem Reap afterward, but there are two main arteries out of Phnom Penh - Hwy 5 going to Battambang and hwy 6 going to Siem Reap.  Kampong Chhnang (the province I was visiting) was on Hwy 5.  So, early in the morning, I said goodbye to the other couchsurfer staying at the movie house and snagged a tuk tuk to the Sorya bus station near the Central Market in Phnom Penh.  I bought a ticket for $4.00 and again, assuming the worst, boarded the bus going toward Battambang.  My fears were put to rest with decent seating – no, I didn’t want to touch anything, but this would definitely do.  There was a young western fellow sitting across the aisle from me and whaddya know, he was also going to Kampong Chhnang and hailed from Palatine, IL - so close to my home town!  Sometimes I wonder how these things happen. 

One thing that I really loved about getting out into the countryside were all the palms that filled the vast, flat stretches of land.  Through these, the baby blue sky reflecting in the rice paddy fields.  A Cambodian pastor sitting near us informed that this province was also an area known for sugar, which is extracted and boiled from the palms.  After a slightly longer than quoted bus ride, the other American and I got out in the middle of a very small town, with one central monument.  I swear every single child –and some adults – said “hello!” as we passed, looking for a tuk tuk to our respective destinations.

On the road in Phnom Penh

I told myself I wasn't going to compare Vietnam with the other countries that I visit in SE Asia, and I'm conscientiously not stooping to some backpackers' generalizations to culture or a people as a whole!...God forbid, BUT, I must quickly note, that I am loving the transportation in Phnom Penh, in contrast to Vietnam.  Not only is it cheaper, but much more comfortable and appears slightly more sane on the daredevil motorbike aspect.

Pimp my Phnom Penh Ride

My Ho Chi Minh couchsurf host

Today has been an exhausting but fun day of transport.  At 6:10 (ten minutes before my alarm was scheduled to rattle me awake) I rose from my host's couch and prepared for the bus ride into Cambodia.  She generously drove me to the ticketing office where the most recommended bus company was to pick me up at 8:00am.  We said our goodbyes, I helped her kick-start her bike (it had been having problems), and then she was off to work!  Walking into the ticketing office, I froze with panic.  I had left my purse inside her bike seat because she had warned me about moto-theft.  The bus was leaving in twenty minutes and it would take her at least ten minutes to get to work and open her seat, realizing my purse was in there.  Of course my phone was in my purse so I couldn't call her.  All I could do was wait on the curb and be calm, because there was absolutely nothing else I could do to get my purse faster.  Playing through all the possible scenarios of what I would do if I missed the bus, I turned my head to the right and there she was, thirty meters away, walking her bike toward me.  With my two backpacks, I awkwardly started waddle-running toward her in an epic romance fashion, yelling, "I knew you'd come back!" 

Kelsey.  Seriously.  No more of that.

A Fastpack through the Big One

DAY ONE!!!
I'm going to TRY to blog SOMETHING every day while traveling.  Sometimes it might be small, sometimes it might be a ramble, and on some nights, I may have more time to put some decent effort into a post.

This morning started early with my darling roommate zipping me off on my last DaNang motorbike ride to the airport.  I tried to soak in the trip as much as horn-honkingly possible, but I knew I would be in HCMC soon anyway and get a good dose of motorbike terror on the backs of random nice-smelling xe-oms (moto taxis).  Sitting on the hard steel chair in our dinky airport, I tried not to be too sentimental.  I gave my roomie a giant hug, and some of the people from the restaurant I volunteered at showed up at 6am (bless them!) at the airport to give gifts and see me off.  They and the rest of my DaNang family were on my mind when our boarding call sounded throughout the terminal.  I slowly stood up and stood in the chaos of an attempt at a queue for plane ticket ripping.  Being a temp resident in Vietnam, I knew better than to expect a line - this is the closest I get to unintentional moshing these days.

The flight was fast!

Ho Chi Minh has some beautiful parks, right in the middle of urban life

Today I wanted to take it easy because a) no offense HCMCers, but I'm not huge into big cities and after living in VN for nearly a year, I'm excited to see other countries!  So I'm visiting a select few museums and calling it a day!

I might have started my day in a more cheery place, but my couchsurfing host was working in District1 and she said she'd look after my rucksack while I meandered around.  Her work was walking distance to the War Remnants Museum so that's where I started.

Finding Zen in Đà Lạt

During travel, what you see and do can leave a lasting impression of your trip, but often not as permanent as who you meet.  During my recent trip to Đà Lạt, I was able to spend some time with some folks you often don't see due to their lifestyle - monks and nuns.  

Đà Lạt is rich in abundance of pagodas and the landscape provides a sort of fairytale land backdrop for their archways, buildings, and statues to be nestled into.  The first one I stumbled upon, I was with Dyanne.  It was high up on a hill off of a main road outside of town.  After a few exchanged "hello"s and "we're from America"s, we started looking around at their own small plot of coffee plants, a building for community activity and one for worship, I heard someone say "Canada! Canada!" and we looked over as a beautiful girl with freckles all over her face and a shaved head approached.  With almost no Vietnamese accent, she greeted us in English and continued to explain that she had studied in Canada for a few years and that this pagoda was strictly for nuns.  We were visiting during a time of confinement - they would not leave the pagoda for three months.  Whew! That's a lot of time together.  

Getting Lost in Đà Lạt

My last trip in Vietnam was to the southern part of the central highlands in a popular destination for lovers called Đà Lạt.  My friend Dyanne (TravelnLass) helped me obtain a motorbike within an hour of arriving and I knew that I was destined for fabulous rambles over my four-day-stay.  This bike was more powerful than my DaNang steed -a whole 125CCs!

With Dyanne working at her language school in town, I hunted down a map of Đà Lạt, stuffed it into my bag and proceeded to drive down a street I didn't know.  (There were many of them at this point).  

Culinary Adventures in Vietnam

While living in Vietnam, I made a promise to myself to become more open with areas in my life that were too guarded.  One of those was my culinary variety.  Being from Chicago, my friends (who are not vegetarian), family and I are used to eating and loving delicious, tender BEEF.  There isn't a lot of great sea food in the Midwest that seems edible, or, I decided that if it smelled like seafood it wasn't edible.  So moving to Asia was a strong introduction to many types of food.  I tried "typical" food like shrimp, crab, muscles and other eats for the first time but in this post, I'll detail a few culinary adventures worth noting...

Everybody's Gone Surfin...[Part Two]

Our next surfer wrote me one of the most unique and personal couch requests I've ever read.  With hers being the exception, most requests are pretty short, and the occasional nimrod will copy paste a standard request without any personal connection (take note new surfers - not desired).

She talked about what she was doing in Vietnam and what we had in common and why she wanted to come stay with me.  She even included my secret word indicating she had read my entire couch description (I noted it in the end).  Most surfers are of the 20 to 30-something variety as this is the golden era of traveling to faraway lands before commitments ground you to a home base until you're retired.

Everybody's Gone Surfin... [Part One]

If you're a traveler and you don't know what Couchsurfing.org is by now, you are missing out on one of the most brilliant programs invented since Craigslist.  Why is couchsurfing even better than Craigslist? It's free!  I know, I know, there is an inherent danger in sleeping near people you don't know.  Of the million people I host or surf with, the one rotten apple wouldn't have allowed me to have a "well, I won't be inviting THAT Bundy over for tea again" reflection. But I made a conscious decision during this adventure to trust people that I don't know, and so far, it has given me a wealth of positive experiences, none of which I regret.

Extreme Team Building

(Not my pic) Here's what happens on the ramp

My HR person at my work (who is like my Vietnamese mom here) organized a team-building outing to..er...well... the motivations weren't clear but the flyer said rafting so I said YES!  As you no doubt have noticed in previous posts, things are done a little differently in Vietnam than in most western countries.  Planning is usually amiss, sanitation is not always a top-three consideration, and common sense safety is just about out the window for most activities.  These three conditions in particular should have tipped me off to the inherent risks a new rafting outfit may present, but as a full time employee, my company was willing to pay for the whole day and vouch for my general well being during the trip.  Let's go!

A Vietnam Run

9:00pm.... 91 degrees.

Just put your tennies on, Kelsey.

Surely 91 degrees is an unsafe temperature to run in.  

I'll just go tomorrow.

Check the weather report.  More 91 degrees for tomorrow.  

If you're a runner, you know the magic of that crucial step in suiting up.  If the shorts and tennies aren't on, there's still hope for backing out.    

This blog post isn't meant to be a humble brag.  I've enjoyed quite a bit of laziness here.  Compared to my schedule in the states, life in Vietnam has been full of available, unfulfilled running time.  This is actually the first time in months that I've felt the desire to pour out some thoughts and experiences. I haven't felt a lot of newness to report but during my runs, I see a different side of Vietnam that I will surely miss in the coming geo-transition.  

It's 9:00pm.  My mom, who inspires me in many aspects of my life, whispers in my ear that I should just go put my tennies on and see how I feel.  I do it.  Ok I'm ready.

Diversity Break

I am afraid of public transportation.  There.  I said it.  Not the people or the drivers or even the reliability.  I am afraid of my inability to navigate a new system.  Some of this unwarranted fear has been alleviated after my recent trip to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

After a travel guardian helped me get a skybus ticket on the plane, I reviewed my notes ten more times before we touched down.  I actually felt pretty confident, even though I couldn't picture how anything was going to look or how it would happen.  After a long line of foreign passport holders, I crossed to the other side - the side of busy travelers eating, duty free-ing and finding their ways home.  After some wandering and a few questions, I found the skybuses and boarded one bound for the city.  A little after an hour later, I was in KL Sentral - the main station.  From there I needed to get on the LRT (light rail transit) to the stop nearest the guesthouse.  To my surprise, the LRT map looked very similar to my hometown transit in Chicago (the "L").  I was taking the red line and instead of a ticket, I was given a token.  A quick swipe of the token over a sensor got me through the gates and I'm glad I held onto it because I wouldn't have been let through the doors of my stop without sliding the token down a slot which corresponded with how much I paid.  Check!

I hate being the one at a corner staring at a map at night, so I hid myself behind a bush studying my surroundings.  After a few street crossings, I stood in front of the guesthouse shaking my head and smiling at how seamlessly all of that transportation went.  I felt like I leveled up in traveledom.  Such a contrast from my ridiculous first night in Vietnam.

Guardians and Ax Murderers

I know one reason for American international absence: flight cost.  This is certainly not the case in Asia, and I'm pretty sure the planes here use the same fuel as the planes in the states.  It costs more to travel between US states than it does to travel between Asian countries (with comparable distance).  So with that being said, I was finally able to take advantage of this cost phenomenon during Vietnam's Tet Holiday.   Being a smaller city, Da Nang only has non-stop flights to a few destinations, and most of them are in Vietnam.  One of the only international options was Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - and why not?  I've never been there.  Booked.

Namaskar

My motorbike pulls up to the spaceship-looking building and a guard smiles and waves as if I’m a long lost friend he hasn’t seen in ages.  I enter the large opening in the building and directly opposite is a room full of mirrors and glass with about fifty sweaty bodies.  At first, I look away but I cannot avert my gaze for long.  They are wearing incredibly short spandex shorts and matching sports bras.  This must be a qualification for this room because the fit bodies and…developing…bodies are all wearing it.  The music is blaring and their hips are thrusting and gyrating.  Am I in Da Nang’s finest red light district?  No – I’m watching Zumba.  My roommate can attest to this suggestive workout as she is a bit of a regular.  I don’t realize I’m staring until one of them looks over at me.  My whiplash heel turn was probably pretty obvious.  I locate the dimly-lit room I was looking for and quickly flip my sandals off, spread my towel out on an unattended mat and assume the laying position everyone else is in. 

[Crap!  I’m late!] 

One minute later, the instructor speaks softly in Vietnamese and everyone rises in unison, grabbing their belongings to leave.  I’m not late.  I’m early.  And I just crashed this class’ meditation.  Awesome.

Anchor Yearn for A Mossless Stone

“…so many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day, to have a new and different sun. ”


Chris McCandless, ‘Into the Wild’

Playing in the Mud

Today was a very joyous day.  If there is one thing that I miss more than Mexican food - more than driving a car - more than game nights - it's pottery.  My life was consumed by clay up until the last week before leaving America.  I taught wheel throwing, I sold my ceramics, I had clay parties and get-togethers at my apartment - it's an understatement to give clay the name "hobby;" it was a big part of my life, and my happiness.
So when I moved here, its absence left a pretty big, muddy hole.  I'm ashamed to say that I didn't know that the Thanh Ha Pottery Village existed until a month ago, and that I hadn't visited until today.  Rain or shine, Andy and I were on a mission to visit.  (It rained).  The cold, wet day put no damper on our spirits!  We found the village 45 minutes away - just West of Hoi An.

Reconstituting clay with his feet!

At first, it didn't look like much.  We drove around until one woman waved and said hello from her yard.  "Why not?"  I said.  We parked our bikes and ascended the steps to her home.  There were molds everywhere and lots of greenware (unfired clay) piled on the ground and in rows on shelves.  Feeling slightly disappointed that this family only made mold duplicates, I was still appreciating seeing their process and their mammoth kilns.  Considering the amount of greenware waiting around, I'd imagine they only fire it up once in a great while.  Stepping inside their compound, I witnessed a woman sitting on a stool, carving holes out of a giant mold vase.  She didn't mind our presence and continued to carve after offering a smile and "lantern" explanation.
Stepping into the next room, I finally found what I had been looking for.  An unattended large disc on the ground with an accompanying squat stool.  I knew what I was looking at.  The most primitive wheel I will ever have the privilege to throw on.  The woman saw my smile and pointed with raised eyebrows.

"Dạ! Dạ!" (Yes! Yes!)

Are You Readyyy

There are certain things that are hard to imagine about living abroad until you're living abroad.  You know you will eat new foods and meet new people and maybe your shower will be strange like in Lost in Translation.  One thing I had not thought about was Total Peripheral Lingual White Noise Tune-Out (or, TPLWNTU - still working on a shorter name!)

It's natural to overhear other people's conversations when everyone around you is speaking your native tongue.  This gal is arranging a workout time...this guy is having a meltdown with his co-worker...this youngin is throwing a fit over the toy he's being denied... but when you have no clue what anyone is saying, the sounds all fall into the non-lingual grouping of motorbike engines, dog barking or car honking.

At first, this phenomenon made me nervous.  What if they're talking about me?  What if I'm about to be scammed?  But then I learned to love it.  If someone's talking about me in Vietnamese, they can speak as loudly as they like because I wouldn't understand or acknowledge it.  If I want to work and plan lessons in a cafe, I'm not distracted by any conversations that I can't understand anyway.

One area of particular tune-out has been neighbor interactions outside our windows.  We have permanent openings to the outside in most rooms and so neighbor noise is pretty common - especially in the morning.  No one around us speaks English, so the squabbles and singing and yelling and conversing is all Vietnamese... until yesterday morning.  I was getting ready to start the day when, out of no where, I heard a very clear and undeniable English question trumpeted outside my window.

ARE YOU READYYYYY!!!

And that was it.  

Fully Mended

Clichéd sayings don’t really feel validated until you experience them.  You know that popular one about valuing your health (especially when you don’t have it?)  I've never been so happy to feel healthy again.  After two bouts with flu-like fevers, food poisoning, infections, allergic reactions, and strep throat, my list of fun added another teacher favorite – pink eye.  Recognizing this really sexy infection the moment I woke up, I knew that I wasn’t going to spend the $60 to see a Western doctor.  I knew it was pink eye.  That left one other option: the Vietnamese hospital.  I figured I’d do it at some point, why not now? 

My very lovely Vietnamese teacher assistant went with me to the hospital that day. 

Big, white, and bustling with people even during nap time, the hospital visit felt like a field trip.  I was experiencing health care like VN residents.  I waited at the receptionist counter while several women in white processed paperwork and took my insurance card.  Then, I turned around and had my blood pressure and heart rate checked by machines right in the lobby.  After paying a small fee, we got into the elevator, but not without two technicians and a young girl, maybe 17, laying on a stretcher with an IV drip.  In the eternity it took to ascend four floors, I listened to this girl with her eyes closed and a barely-there labored breath, wondering what her condition was at such a young age.  My laundry list of recent illnesses suddenly seemed so trivial.

Promising myself, publicly

I've been thinking about the blog a lot lately and all the things I've meant to add... and then I don't just sit down and write.  This blog is still so new and developing, but lately I've struggled with what a blog should be and what it should express and who exactly I'm writing to and how extended writing (certainly must?) maintain a consistent style.  Or not?

Blogging is more complicated than I thought.

I've had bloggers guilt, without even reaching 25 posts... woah, hang on! I just realized that I've written over twenty bodies of text because I like writing.  Not because someone asked me to or is depending on me to or because I should.  The next five posts may not read as polished and they may not even appear to come from the same writer, but I've got stuff to write about and it's goin' down in the next five consecutive days.  Kisses to those of you who still read and support me challenging myself.  It means more than you know.

Chúc mừng năm mới!

New Years Eve, I started out workin' hard for my money - a four-hour block of classes, scheduled to end at 9:30pm.  A highlight was that only two adults showed up for the second class, allowing us to conduct a very personalized speaking-centered two hours.  After class, I rushed home, changed into a sparkly top (which I then covered up with a homely-looking sweater of course) and headed out to meet a great friend for drinks at one of the swankiest restaurants in town.

The Memory Lounge