Weird trees and bootlegging

My car has been enveloped in this weird, sticky, mini-drop mess. Apparently Berkeley and Oakland are plagued with "Yellow Leaking Sap Trees" or something awful like that, and they are attacking the poor, slow, defensless and now dirty Saturn. It is really quite exciting.
Sidenote: I just had some breadsticks and they were fabulous...and now I am going to watch "50 First Dates" - the non bootleg version**- and then sleep lots and lots.
**For those of you who have not watched proper bootleg DVD's (like from Chinatown in NYC), you can totally tell that someone videotaped what you are watching from the back of the theater - people actually get up and their shadows walk across the movie, sometimes they cough, and if you are lucky, they make ridiculous comments!

Durian, its nastiness, and the fam

During our exciting work training, Jessica announced today that she had the grossest candy ever last night: Durian Sucky Candy. Haha. Then we engaged in a conversation about just how disgusting durian is and debating if people can ever really like it, or if they are just confused.
Other news: My mom just sent me that picture and since I am becoming tech savvy, it is online here now. Say hello to the fam!
More other news: School starts in a few days and I really have no clue what I am doing yet....moreover I am not worried about it. What is up with that?

tech savvy and loving it

So I finally have gotten my pictures online from my travels, have begun online banking, got all the music Leslie and Vicky gave me into Itunes and have learned how to use a mac.
In other news, Joyce (my next door neighbor growing up) was out here for an interview and we went out for a wonderful sushi dinner. I've also been working the past 3 days at a program for our 7th graders and the kids are pretty tough....the year should be interesting! Lastlu, Ben came up and Leslie and Bryan met us for drinks which was great - I love where I live now! We walked all over and found a great little bar and cheap Mexican place for dinner. Today I am going into my classroom to set up. Exciting - I know you are all jealous :)

Saturns, Kayaks, and Hiking Boots

Jay, Vicky and I have been busy touring California and the unfortunate city of Reno. Conclusions:
Yosemite is goregous, but hiking up mountains poses challenges unmet in the Midwest.
The lack of humidity is loved by all (me escaping Asia, them escaping the Midwest)
Cold water or pop is the best thing after hiking.
More Europeans travel in our parks than US citizens.
It is really hard to Kayak on Tahoe. It is necessary to befriend rich people with boats (anyone....anyone???)
Good times were had by all. We toured around SF today and said hello to the Golden Gate, sea lions, Ghirardelli chocolate and vats of ice cream, the lovely Pacific Ocean and Redwoods, and the random crazies around the city. Tomorrow we are going to the great city of Sebastopol with Johanna and Ry to experience the greatness that is the apple festival.

Yosemite!

Today Jay, Vicky and I embark on our cross-California journey to the lovely Yosemite National Park. Things to look forward to:
good car snacks
ipods galore
weird company (my family isn't normal...me included...)
goregous views
The adventure begins soon - I have to shower and then we are off!

Faux Pas

Some of the funny things I didn't mention yet were as follows:
In Cambodia, it was necessary to educate people about condoms since the average family has 5 kids and 60% of the population is under 15. Volunteers educated village people about condoms by using bananas and, well, condoms. All of the people practiced, and it was certain that they were ready to use them accordingly. Well, what happened was that they thought they needed to put a condom on a banana to prevent pregnancy...they didn't realize the true use :) Needless to say, more than one lesson was given.
Secondly, a friend of mine was trying to buy tampons in Vietnam and couldn't really act it out (acting is a crucial skill for travelling to Asia...) so she showed one that was in a bright pink wrapper to a pharmacist. The pharmacist thought it was lipstick and acted out putting it on her lips. We all looked at her in a sort of weird manner cluing her in that she was wrong. Then she figured it out, screamed "oh...." looked at us in a horrified manner, and said "Oh....you won't be able to find them anywhere here....on no..." She was clearly horrified and it became quite clear that it was seen as a taboo to use such objects.
Now that I am home, culture shock has set in a bit. Johanna has been my princess in shining armour and is helping me get used to cars, sidewalks, no bikes, drinking water from taps, non-Aussie/European language, and all TV channels in English! Woo hooooooo! It is nice to be back :)

Bikes and Fortunes

Yesterday we all rented taxi motos and got a lovely tour of Hue - the Perfume River, rice fields, a monestary and nunnery for buddhists, a rice hat making home, and we got to have lunch - monk style - at a temple. The food was spectacular - all vegetarian and tons of it - tofu, won tons, veggies, fruit, juices, and they make you take a nap after! There were 2 novice monks (probably 6 years old) who were adorable with their mandated haircut that actually looks like a haircutting mistake - were making fun of one of the guys in our group who was snoring during the nap time. They kept pointing and laughing while trying to make snorting noises. The temple takes in orphans and takes care of them - it is nice that even though they have so many problems already, they still goof around and act like kids.

Then, we all went to the fortune teller who is dons a huge smile that shows her missing teeth, is no more than 4 feet tall, weighs about 60 pounds, and is older than time itself.
This woman predicted that I would be married by the time I am 28, will have 5 children, and will make a lot of money in the next 2 years. Watch out world, all of that sounds a little scary (aside from the money bit). Anyway, it was good fun and she really got some people's past right on the spot.

In other news: the women here are obsessed with my skin - they love that it is "white" and really wish their skin was so great. They also love that my eyes are not brown - I have been told I am beautiful for these reasons more times than I can count. I swear I have more wrinkles than 80 year olds, but it is the color they want! To protect their skin from the sun, women wear face masks, rice hats, bandannas all over their face, and long elegant gloves just to go to the market. If they only knew how much money there was in tanning products in our country...it reminds me of Dr. Seuss' Sneeches.

Today we are off to visit the citadel and then onto the night train to Halong Bay and then onto Hanoi. Only 4 days left - Viet Nam is a goregous country. You should all visit.

Pacific Love!

The Pacific Ocean is warm enough here for you to swim in and there are not millions of people on the beaches (unless you count the women in tons of clothing from head to food, donning rice hats, trying to sell you crap). To say the least, the beach in Hoi An is goregous. We (my Aussie friend) and I had lunch and swam for a while yesterday and it was really relaxing. The two of us piled onto a female run moped (making 3 people on a one person bike), paid about 1.00, and got a round trip, door to ocean drive.
We took a cooking course last night which was fun I learned how to make pork in banana leaf (aluminum foil will suffice), vegetable spring rolls - fresh and fried, papaya salad (they use unripe papaya so it tastes like cucumber), and won ton salad. It was good fun :) I also managed to get some artwork that will hopefully be in my home one day and ordered more clothes. Johanna, watch out, I may come off the plane in something a little crazy!
We are leaving today for Hue, another beach town, and I have heard it is really nice. There is a woman who tells fortunes there and I am really looking forward to hearing what she has to say! While I am loving Asia, I think that I am preparing for going home as I am getting sick of people in these countries thinking I want to buy everything....they say "Madame" and follow you around, ignoring your pleas of "No, thank you" and bothering you for far too long. I am also sick of the mopeds here. They honk all the time and I have been hit by 2 so far (they drive everywhere - market, sidewalk, buildings, etc.)....none of my hittings were great and I didn't even get bruises, but it is annoying. Oh well, I will probably wish to be back soon enough!

Penis', Rats, Cockroaches, and more!

I almost forgot to tell you:
The restaurant we went to last night had the following items on the menu:
goat penis
she-goat breast
rat
cockroaches
scorpion
cow penis
intestines
eel

People in my group ate: scorpion, eel, rat.
I ate: rat.
It actually wasn't that bad and tasted remarkably like beef jerkey. Sorry Lizzy..I know you keep them as pets...I promise it wasn't related to Taz, Taz II, or Taz III.

Hoi An - the Beach Town!

After avioding getting run over by 30000000 mopeds this morning, we boarded a flight from Saigon to Hoi An - a lovely town on the enormous ocean. This town is really quaint, more quiet, and full of tailors and great restaurants! Nearly everyone in the group was fitted for clothing today and I am having more things made. I figure it will keep me out of US malls and truly I think I won't be able to handle them for at least 2 months for fear of culture shock. It is really cheap - for 120.00US I am having the following made (and the fabric ranges from linen to silk...)
2 pairs of pants
1 dress
1 asian-style jacket
1 asian-style shirt
1 skirt
3 button down shirts
Got a massage, ate some good tofu, read some Harry Potter (100 pages to go....), and walked a bit around. Tomorrow we'll go to the beach and visit some of the old homes on a tour. Leyla - Vietnam is definitely the Durian Country - it is everywhere :) Glad you are enjoying Ireland!

Cute Kids and Crazy Driving!

Chau warned me against adopting a cute Cambodian child...and I laughed telling her not to worry...but after visiting an orphanage full of the most adorable, loving, sweet kids in Phnom Penh, I seriously considered adopting a cute kid some day from here. I can't wait to share pictures of these kids with you - one of the boys just latched on to me and wouldn't let me go! We danced to Cambodian music and they gave us a traditional dance show which was captivating.
We also went out to a club in Phnom Penh which was an absolute riot. First of all, before midnight, there are shows to Western songs that incorporate hideous costumes and crazy dancing with some awful singing. Secondly, the men dance like they are on crack and shake your hand to ask you to dance. A good time was had by all :)
On a sad note, we visited the Killing Fields - where Pol POt and his army killed massive amounts of people for fun and raped many women and went to the torture chambers which were a school at one point. It was awful and very upsetting that so many people were hurt for no reason.

Vietnam is a crazy place. Two men were seriously fighting over me to ride in a little cyclo thing with them and that was scary. There are over 4000 motorbikes in Saigon and you just have to cross the street with 100's coming at you and hope they weave around you. There are 40 fatalities each day on motor bikes alone! The city is really pretty and the French influence is intersting - there is actually a Catholic church here and it has some nice Virgin Marys that are surroded my neon lights (they really like those here....). The coffee is fantastic and the rice paper rolls are phenomenal - finally the food is healthy and not fried! I have yet to see any obsese people that are not white in Vietnam and to date have only seen one fat Asian and I think she may have been a tourist :)

Today we visited the War Remnants museum which made me very unhappy about the US involvement in this country and felt physically ill because of all of the photos and information about the hideous tortures. In addition, we went to Chu Chi - the tunneled city that the Vietnamese lived in for 10 years and was crucial to them winning the war. It was amazing and extremely scary in the tunnels - they were TINY and smelly but included a school, hospital, kitchen, etc.
Sorry for the long post - internet has been spotty here. Tomorrow we leave for Danang and I am getting excited to resume a non-travelling life and see Johanna and other people I miss :) Mabel and Em - good luck with the marathon - Woo hoo!

Crocs, Ruins, Sunsets and rises, and Land Mines

Today I was up at 4:30 getting prepped to watch the sun rise over Angkor Wat. The sky was full of purples and pinks as it engulfed the beautiful outline of one of the seven wonders of the Ancient world. We spent the day toodling around many different ruins- the most beautiful, in my opinion, the ones that are the most ruined by trees and random earth shiftings.

We also visited the most unique restaurant - The Stinking Fish - which unfortunately did not serve rat, worm, or cat (it explained this on the menu) and had a lake full of crocodiles ready to attack any drunkard that accidentely fell into their swarming, seething, evil territory. Food here is pretty good....similar to Thai food, spicy if you so choose, and always full of meat or fish. I was completely misconcepted thinking that I would find tofu wherever I went as I try to aviod meat when travelling.

We also visited the Land Mine Mueseum which is actually more of a center for victims of land mines. It was harrowing arriving there as you pass a basketball court full of goregous Cambodian children missing limbs - arms, legs, faces cut up, etc. because of land mines the US and Vietnam left here during our conflicts. There are still over 6 MILLION land mines and 3 casulaties a day here because of them - generally the most poor people are hit by them and there is not much they can do about them because they pose such a threat to all involved in finding them. The Museum has volunteers who educate the children by teaching them how to read, write in numerous languages since most of the victims are beggars. Unfortunately the US, China and Russia are still producing massive amounts of these mines and no one seems to do much about it. There are 3,000 surrounding many villages in Iraq apparently....democracy what? Anyway it is upsetting and innocent people are being maimed by devices that are made to do just that.

To end on positive notes:
I was in the same place as Angelina Jolie in Tomb Raider today since she filmed here in Cambodia and we are on our way to have dinner at a woman's home....apparently she is a great cook and I am starving so it is really exciting! I feel very safe here and find it to be more beautiful than Thailand.

Oh Dear Me!

Greetings from Cambodia...a country that is full of interesting juxtapositions and that I am still quasi-getting accustomed to.
Our day yesterday was spent in a long line of Thai people and ourselves at Poi Pet - the border of Thailand and Cambodia. Parentless Cambodian children were fanning us and holding umbrellas over our heads in hopes of getting food or water. Thai people (who had been nothing but nice) were shoving, pushing, and ready to step on you since the line takes 2 hours to get through and the line is in the sun (temps here are not low...).
It was crazy and scary and just got a little more daunting. You see, Cambodia doesn't really have paved roads and the recent rains mean there are red-dirted pot holes the size of a modest home you have to forage through. To go 100 miles, it took us 10 hours. Along the way, there were homes with cute naked children running around, little stores, rice farms, and people on mopeds.
When we stopped for water, kids came running up to us, speaking perfect English and I danced the macarena with one little boy. They are selling anything - books, jewelry, water, etc. and are charming and very street smart (they operate scams of getting foreign currency and exchanging it with foreigners for more in their currencty).
Okay...so that is depressing...but it was a depressing experience. I can't even imagine what it was like under Pol Pot here and how anyone managed to get by.
Today we went to ruins that were absolutely goregous and watched the sunset on the top of one set of ruins. On one side, there was the setting sun...on the other, a newly festering thunderstorm. Words can't describe the ruins - they are tremendous - and I can't wait to share pictures with you!!!

An American in Bangkok

Status: Lost in Bangkok
Update of things done:
--Subway and Sky Train rides (nice, surprisingly easy to navigate, airconditioned system!)
-- Changtuk Weekend Market (you can buy fishies, underwear, lights, furniture, smelly food, shoes, paintings, jewelry, purses, bride dresses aka anything you could ever want!)
-- Ate dinner with Noi (a friend's Thai host sister) and her friend - food was great and they are very nice. Sarah - she says hello and is very curious why I didn't bring you :)
-- Met a Michigan fan - wooo hoooo - and talked football (real football...not soccer)

I have tried to get my pictures online but it isn't working....Check out Leslie's blog - we have the same pictures basically - and enjoy! www.puddledog.blogspot.com

okay...time to find Jim Thompson's house. Wish me luck :)

King and Queen Bling Bling

Another interesting thing about Thailand are the King and Queen - interesting in the sense that their pictures are seriously everywhere and the people loooooovvvveeeee them. At first glance, it seems that people are brainwashed or something (especially since 50% of our country loathes our leader), but it is a genuine like and the king and queen have done a lot of good for this country. They have helped the hill tribes out, aided refugees, acted quickly in times of tsunamis and floods, and tried to remedy the financial situation that is pretty sad at the moment.
Today, I did go get fitted for a cute silk jacket and 3 pairs of cashmere pants...thanks for the address mom :) It is amazing how much cheaper they are here. Currently, I am getting a little weirded out about Cambodia - just because they have no ATMS and it is always dangerous to be a place with no access to money. I am sure it will be fine, just a little unnerving.
Yesterday I went to the Royal Palace - talk about bling. There is so much gold there it is crazy. Overall, it is goregous and I especially enjoyed the guards who I thought for sure would murder me with their machine guns. Thankfully, I took off my shoes at all the right times (you have to take off your shoes to go nearly anywhere here...keeps the floor clean) and was wearing respectable clothing (shoulders and knees = unseen).
I also went to the Golden Teak Mansion which was really quite astounding - very Victorian - and it won my heart because the whole thing was air conditioned! At the mansion, I saw a dancing show that was funny and they took kids from the audience as hostages (well...you would have thought as much at the little one's resistance). THere were seriously 10 schools of kids and all of them had to wear flourescent pink shirts - I gathered the pink color on boys isn't a problem here as it is at home!
I still have yet to meet another American person (aside from the cocky East Palo Alto boy Leslie mentioned). I don't think there are any more. Just me. The Thai people ask me often where I am from...it is funny because if I say USA or United States, most look blankly. It is essential to say "America" followed by "California" and then they smile and say how pretty it is there. Sorry about the rambling....I am waiting for my pictures to get on a CD! Check Leslie's site www.puddledog.blogspot.com for a link to her pictures - she's home!

Dogs with Running Sores

Dogs are prevalent in Thailand and I don't think any are neutered. This means there are tons of weird looking dogs that mate with other odd looking dogs and come up with the most hideous of beasts that just roam around cities. Of course I avoid the dogs at all costs, especially the ones with open sores, but it amazes me at just how many dogs are on the prowl. Absence of nasty dogs: a benefit of living in the US.
Leslie left us this morning after a crazy night out that involved drinking out of buckets that were filled with some crazy mixture that still has my head spinning. To celebrate our last night, we effectively got our tour guide drunk and all 5 of us climbed into a tuk tuk since it was pouring when we left the bar. Leslie introduced us to the Stephen Hawking dance (you don't even want to know...) and our guide danced in a teradactyl like fashion if he wasn't doing MC Hammer moves.

I have a few days alone in Bangkok and I am going to run around - go to the zoo, the Royal Palace, read my new book (that is actually used and falling apart) - Gone With the Wind, enjoy cheap Thai food, go to the Teak Mansion, and of course get another massage (all of this while avoiding the mangy dogs of Bangkok). Hopefully I will be able to get my pictures up onto a CD and online - email me if you want to be added to the album!

24 is the lucky number

So our visit to the Golden Triangle, where Burma, Thailand and Myanmar meet wasn't so exciting...BUT we did get to ride in a pick up truck with 22 people - 19 of which were locals - smashed in the back. That is the limit of students I will have in my classroom next year! Ideally I will not have to smash my students into a pick up truck, but thankfully I know it is possible to do.
We are now just chilling in Chaing Rai - a city in the North - with not much to do. We are enjoying AC and I am having my first mocah since leaving the USA. It is great :) On our way to get some massages and mom - we will finally eat the pad thai you say is so great at the Dusit Island. Hopefully it is better than the disgusting Durian I forced all to try!!! haha!
Tomorrow we stop by Chaing Mai for lunch and then board a night train for an overnighter to Bangkok where I will be staying for a few days before leaving on a crazy trip to Cambodia and Vietnam.

Berkeley!

I didn't get a chance to tell most people before I left - I am living in Berkeley next year! College and Derby are the cross streets and it is a large, nice home built by Julia Morgan. My room is yellow with a balcony! Exciting. I will have to get some plants to grow off of it.

Showers!

Something is really odd about most of the showers here...there aren't bathtubs or little enclosures for showers. No, that would make too much sense. Rather, here in Thailand, most places just have a spout on the wall facing the toilet that shoots out water all over everything. You could take a shower while sitting on the toilet if you so chose. Some places even forget drains which means that they bust a hole in some corner and the water finds it way out eventually. So, after a shower, the toliet is covered in water, the toliet paper is decimated and full of water, the floor is a complete hazard, and you are clean. We feel really, really special if we go places that have a bathtub shower...one of the many comforts of home.
Also, another odd thing: whitening creams. I ran out of deodarant which is something you desperately need here since you are in a constant state of hottness (and by that I do not mean a high level of attractiveness...). It took me a while to find any that didn't whiten your underarms...all of the skin creams are whitening too. Johanna - quite the opposite of what you have been scouting, no :)
Everything is good here - we are in the Northern part of Thailand near the Burmese border. My travel guide thinks I am weird (I was acting like the coneheads - you know "We come from France" and he just couldn't handle me anymore :) and I was worried about accidentally crossing into Myanmar or as it is still called here, Burma and getting killed. We are going to the Golden Traingle tomorrow - where Burma, Laos and Thailand form a peaceful (or not...) union and will be taking some sort of boat along the Mekong River there. Should be fun! We miss you all and hope you are well!

Durian and Drag Queens

Leyla, Leyla, Leyla....how you find Durian at all appetizing remains one of the seven mysteries of my world right now. I talked this fruit up to everyone in my group - and they were a little sketched out from the start because every hotel has "NO DURIAN ALLOWED INSIDE ROOMS OR HOTEL" signs all over. I told them the smell was a decoy and that it tasted like pudding. When we got the "king of fruits" we disregarded the smell (which was repulsive). No one even swallowed it and their hands couldn't scrape the fruit out of their mouths fast enough. EEEWWWW! Haha! I got pictures of everyone eating it - you will enjoy them :)

On another note, we went to see the "lady boys" (the Thai term for Drag Queens) last night. The Thai men dressed as women are prettier than most women. Of course not everyone emerged from the show unscathed (remember Mike....the queen danced with you) Tim in our group was mauled by 2 of the queens and emerged from the show with huge red kisses all over his face. The lip syncing of English songs was amusing, especially for the people who did not speak English at all and at there were an alarming number of foreign kids in the audience. Good times were had by all.

Finished cooking school yesterday - Leslie and I are now culinary artists. The class itself was a lot of fun and we even got to play with fire. Pad Thai, green curry, sticky rice with mangoes, stir fry veggies, tom kum soup and more were our dishes and we ate them all :) It was a nice way to spend the day! Today we leave for Chaing Rai on a great city bus equipped with dirty people, buckets of sweat, fans that do nothing, and ... no air conditioning. Lovely. Bet you are jealous :)