Traveling Trevor

Mom you probably want to skip this post.

When you are traveling around everyone who has been to Laos talks about tubing in Vang Vien. It sounds entertaining but I have been tubing in Arizona and it’s just sitting around in a tube floating on a river getting drunk right? Should be amusing but not that big of a deal right? I figured I would come here, go once to check it off that I did it, be annoyed at how touristy it is and leave. Wrong, wrong and wrong!

I met so many excellent people here I am not going to list them all, but I made some great friends in this town.

At burning man you hear the saying “Safety third!” yelled a lot. Well in Lao it’s not even in the top ten. Every time someone talks about tubing they talk about injuries. I met a group of four guys in Bali, two broke a rib and one broke an arm tubing, on the same day.

Every day several hundred people rent a tube and hop on the river. You are not even on the river for three minutes until you come to the first bar. They throw you a line and help you out of the water. There is good music playing loudly and a little distorted, beach volleyball going on, large (24oz maybe) beers for just over a dollar and bikinis everywhere. So you go up, order a beer, find some of your friends you met in town and chat. Then out of nowhere you hear this screaming coming from up in the air over the water followed by a splash. What’s that you wonder? It’s a trapeze (like in the circus) with drunk peoples swinging into the water. Oh and it’s around thirty to forty feet high. I can’t wait for the photos to upload for you to see this madness. I of course being crazy was doing fun things like learning how to make it swing even higher, until I bumped into the start platform, and I even learned how to swing hanging from my feet. Easier then you might think.

It’s now around eleven in the morning, there are several hundred drunk people who spontaneously decided it’s time to go to the next bar. Mass exodus! Bar two is about three more min of floating down the river. More beer and now they are dumping Lao Lao (50% alcohol rice whiskey) down your throat, for free. Here they have a zip line that dumps you in the water instead of a trapeze. A zip line is a handle you hold onto on a pulley that goes down a line picking up speed as you go. It drops you at about ten feet or so above the water and you make a nice graceful splash when you enter, no problem. That is unless you hold on at the abrupt stop at the end. The pulley hit’s a piece of metal and stops abruptly ripping the handle out of your hand flipping you over. Not a terribly pleasant experience so you have to pay attention and let go at the right time. Chris got a video of one guy doing a full flip from holding on, dislocating his shoulder. It’s spectacular, I will be certain to post it when he uploads it. If the ten foot drop at the end of your zipline is not enough for you, you can just jump right off the thirty foot tower into the water. Diving not encouraged, but not really discouraged either.

It’s one, time to float down to the next bar. While I was floating I realized I had actually only had one beer at this point, so I thought to myself it would be nice to float with a cold one in hand. So I sopped at a bar with nobody at it bought one. It had a smaller trapeze and they were encouraging me to go for a swing. The last one was so much fun and no problem so I could not resist. Boy do I wish I had. The water was maybe seven feet deep. That’s about a half foot deeper then I am tall. Way way to shallow. Fortunately since it was a new trapeze I just took a simple swing and landed on my feet. Unfortunately I landed really hard on my left heel bruising it badly and twisting that ankle pretty badly. Fortunately I have two feet and can hop around on the other! As of writing this it’s been four days and I still can’t really put pressure on my ankle. Lesson learned, don’t go to the bar with zero people at it and do something dangerous.

I was pretty worried as I could not tell how bad it was right away, so I grabbed my beer, crawled to my tube and floated five more minutes to the bar where my group of friends were. After about an hour of sitting there I was pretty sure it was just a sprain and a bruise. So I decided to take some pain killer (beer) and keep going. This bar had an even better zipline (with lots of people going on it promising they can’t even touch the bottom if they try) which I was not about to miss. It also has mud volleyball which was a blast. I will let the pictures tell the story of this phenomenon. Since I was now drinking to kill the pain sobriety went out the window in a big way at this point. Which is to say I caught up to everyone else. Back into the tube and on to the next bar, about two more minutes down river.

This place is the king of the bars on the river, it has it all. There is a huge slide that is designed to launch you way up into the air, a trapeze and a zip line, not to mention the great music. Realizing I was pushing it way too hard I took it easy here, I only did each one once followed by ‘dancing’ on one foot. The river is in the shadow of the valley so by about four it was in the shade and starting to get cold.

So it takes about an hour and a half to float all the way down the river to where you return the tubes. At this point I had been on the river for almost six hours and managed to float only fifteen minutes or so down stream. The last hour is pretty much un eventful but very pretty and very cold. Then there is the thirty min hike to turn in the tube, hopping on one foot at this point. When I got back to the hostel I was more then happy to sit and play cards for the rest of the night.

Day two… A large group of my friends were all going again… They offered to help me walk… I could not refuse! And who an resist the acrobatics? I wont go into details but it was more of the same. Suffice to say it was a phenomenally good time. Just like dancing in my kilt that night was. I met a large group of Japanese people who were awesome to dance and hang out with. I can’t wait for Japan!

Day three… I can’t walk anymore. Which is ok because I have a phenomenal hang over. A day of laying around was just what the doctor ordered. It’s now day four and I can hop around a little and the swelling has gone way down. So here I am at the WiFi place. Tomorrow Chris and I are going Kayaking which should not put any significant stress on my foot.

This place is the most fun party I have been to in a while. It’s so surreal that it’s in the middle of Laos. Almost everyone has some kind of injury after two days, but most of them minor cuts and scratches. Mine was the worst of my friends, but it was totally worth it.

This BTW is my third post today. The last one has a link to the Laos photos but they wont finish uploading for a couple days at least.

Some how we all just came together in Laoangphrabang at just the right time. I stayed there five days and during that time ran into people I have met all over the world. The only country I have been to on this trip that I did not run into people I met at is Fiji and I was there only a week. The most remarkable is a German couple that were the first people I met in Thailand, but I will get to them in a second. The second most remarkable are the two people I met at Burningman this year! One of them was one of the people who built the temple, the other is a girl I helped out while rangering. It’s pretty exciting to run into BM friends in other countries. The best part is we are often dressed like burners with kilts, leather vests, funky hats, piercings, hair dye, etc.

Chris and I took a cooking class one day in the city. While it may not have been the most successful cooking I have done, it sure was a blast. I did learn two new dishes that are very yummy and easy to make. I can’t wait to get back to the states and start cooking Asian dishes. Looking for which class to take we met two super fun girls from Wiscooonsin, Meghan and Shannon. They out did us on pretty much every dish we cooked but were nice enough not to run it in, too much. I ended up hanging out with them going to museums and temples and a Lao ballet. Another awesome day with awesome people. It’s really astonishing to me how many top quality people I have been meeting while traveling in Lao.

Back to the German couple from Thailand, Mary and I can’t even begin to spell his name. When I met them in Bangkok they told me they were eloping and looking for a place in Asia to get married. I told them to email me when and I would come take photos. When I ran into them they decided it was time to make it happen. So they spent a day and got a ceremony together, found me that night and invited me to join them. I am blown away that I am the only person in the world they invited to there wedding. It was a Lao style wedding / Bacci ceremony. We took a Tuktuk an hour outside of the city to a small village where the ceremony took place.

The wedding was about thirty minutes long and ended in everyone in the village tying strings around our wrists. While they are tying them on they say good wishes for us for things like health, money and happiness. You have to leave the strings on your wrists for at least three days, but the longer the better. It’s getting close to a week and I still have them. Three fell off right away though. I am pretty sure they were the wishes for health, as I can’t walk right now. But that’s the next post. At the end of the wedding was a big feast that was very tasty. I tried chicken feet, interesting… Afterwards we went to another amazing waterfall. The day was magical and one of the best experiences I have had on my trip.

After five days of awesome in Laoangphrabang it was time to head to Vang Vien. I’m only going to say this about the trip. I miss the buses in Thailand and if you have been following this, you know how I felt about those. This place is a whole different kind of adventure and deserves it’s own blog post. So it’s coming soon!

I finally finished uploading the Thailand photos and have started on Laos. There are over 400 photos to be uploaded so it might take a week or so. Here is the link to where they will live.

http://ellermann.net/gallery2/v/trevors-photos/WorldTrip/Laos1/

Multiple blog entries in the works.

First off Laos is more like what I was expecting to find all over SE Asia. Roads that have not been maintained in twenty years, buses/vans that don’t leave until they are way over packed, ATMs are hard to find and rarely work, squat toilets are everywhere, rarely is English spoken, mosquito nets, cooking over open fires in restaurants, electricity that only is on part of the day and the infrastructure for tourism is just starting to take hold. In short, I LOVE LAO! I can see how this place is going to be changed in ten years and am super glad to be here now.

I went trekking with Chris and a bunch of people we have met along the way into the NPA jungle in La Nam Tha and it was amazing. This is my first overnight trip into the jungle and my first time sleeping in a “primitive” village. The hike was great, it had been raining for many days before we went but we lucked out and it stopped for our trek. The result of the rain tho is supper muddy trails and leaches. I kept trying to get a good photo of a leach on my leg but no luck, sorry. When I started this trek leaches grossed me out, now I can honestly say they don’t bother me one bit. After you encounter so many you just get used to them. Pretty much everyone feel down in the mud with the exception of the guide, who managed to come out with clean dry shoes some how.

The village we stayed in was a very cool experience. The villagers make all your meals on the trip, even hike with you to make lunch. And the meals were the best I have had in Lao so far. They even butchered a live duck for us to make a spicy duck soup. They always cook over an open fire and fresh cut bamboo are what the boil soup in and bamboo split down the middle is what they serve it in. All the meals on the trail were served on fresh cut banana leaves and the food was just spread out on the leaves. You have rice and use your hands to eat.

The kids in the village love visitors, especially ones with cameras. They love to see photos of themselves. I even let a couple of them run around with me camera taking photos, tho they ended up mostly being of their own feet. The kids know that travelers all know the word Sa-Wa-de which means hello in Lao. So when ever you see them they all hell Sa-Wa-De at you and wave and when you respond they smile and laugh there heads off. This happens even if you just ran into them two minutes ago, it’s quite endearing.

My furry arms were a hit, when some kid pet my arm and I held my arm out to another looking curious, people swarmed me to pet my furry arms. Not just kids, adults came from other parts of the village just to pet my hairy arms. From then on I could not walk through the village without getting touched. It was quite amusing, with some of the people it almost became a greeting.

Other groups that we talked to with different outfits said they did not feel welcome in the village. I definitely did not have that experience. These people had huge grins every time they saw me and went out of there way to show me what they were doing. I now know the basics of how to build a house out of nothing but bamboo and palms. I also know the basics of how to stir-fry over an open fire, which is pretty cool and I cant wait to try at home.

In the villages it is tradition to give all visitors a massage when the come to the village. So at night after dinner the girls of the village came to give everyone a massage including the guide. By girls I mean between the age of twelve and sixteen. It was not so much relaxing as entertaining kind of painful and down right funny. They are all chatting and giggling the entire time and so were all of us. The girl who was “massaging” me decided to pop every toe and finger I have, and nothing was going to stop her. After pulling one of my big toes out of it’s socket the succeeded.

The woman of the village were all extremely shy. If you went in to a house and a woman was in it she would go to another room or leave. This is not tradition it was explained to me, just shyness. I was told that the would not even eat at the same table as me. So why do the young girls all so openly come rub strangers? After the massage I think I figured out what the massage tradition is all about. In Lao men ‘pay’ for there brides by giving the parents a cow or something similar. The girls who came to give massages were all of betrothal (lao style) ages and the older ones were all ‘massaging’ men. It occurred me like a tradition that started as a way to kind of advertise the women. That way you encourage out breeding which is very good in small tribes and the parents can add to there wealth which motivates them. The tribe had around 250 people in it so inbreeding is a problem.

The next day we took a bus to where we could catch a boat to Laoangphrabang. The boat ride was great, it’s definitely my preferred method of transport in Asia. It’s open air of course and the weather was perfect. Not a cloud in the sky and a cool breeze, the scenery was gorgeous and there was plenty of leg room. Laoangphrabang is very cool as well. It’s like the Chang-Mai of Laos with a night market and lots to do. I am going to spend a couple more days here exploring and chilling before I head south. Im still hanging out with Chris. He is a cool cat and a great guy to travel with.

Photos are being uploaded but it’s going to take a couple days to complete. I hope to finish Thailand today, here is the URL:

http://ellermann.net/gallery2/v/trevors-photos/WorldTrip/Thailand4

I love Chang Mai. There are so many things to do that four days is not nearly enough time, but that’s all that my visa allowed.

On my first day I went book shopping and found the best used book stores in Thailand. While I was browsing them I ran into Chris, the American guy I met in Ubud, Bali. I had a feeling I was going to see him again. We are now traveling together with Santiago, a guy from Mexico with a great sense of humor. That night we went out bar hopping and had a great time, involving a midnight foot massage.

After the massage I split from the people I was with to go dancing. I ended up in a club called something like hot spot that was awesome! If you have ever seen Thai music video it was just like that. There was a band playing electronic dance type music but with regular instruments. During the whole show between three and five people in the front of the stage in crazy costumes are taking turns singing and dancing around. The place was full of tables with people sitting on stools and barely a place to dance. After loving the music for a while I could not help it, I had to dance. I went up near the front in a walk way and started shaking it. Within a minute there was a gaggle of middle age surrounding me taking turns booty dancing with me and laughing there heads off, it was a blast.

At two the band was done and the place closed, so I headed off to the after hours I was told about. The club was a different world. As I walked up to the front there were about thirty girls around twenty years old dressed for high class clubbing or barely at all. I am kicking myself for not taking a picture because it was truly a beautiful sight to behold. At first I was worried I had ended up at a “strip club etc.” kind of place, but there were playing great music so I went in. This place was truly out of a fantasy for anyone who likes twenty something Asian girls. When I went in there were probably twenty girls to every guy. But there was of course a catch. Foreigners were obviously not overly welcome; I was defiantly the only one there. A bouncer came up to me and made it clear I was not to bother the girls. This was a club for local Thai twenty something’s were pervy foreigners were not welcome. I assured him I was just there to dance, and it was true. The music was great and the next morning my legs were terribly sore. The ratio of guys to girls eventually evened out which I was very glad about. Dancing in a kilt in front of forty girls who have nothing to distract them but watching you is a little intimidating. By the end of the night as I was walking out people were smiling at me and waving goodnight. This was one of my best nights out in Thailand.

My second day in Chang Mai was spent wandering around the city checking out all the sights and temples and day markets. I went out of my way to go to the Chang Mai woman’s prison to get a massage but sadly the power went out right as I got there, so they turned me away. I went back another day but they were full, so no massage from a convict for me… So I wandered randomly and came across a monk sitting at a table who called me over. There is a temple in Chang Mai where the monks sit out every afternoon and speak English to tourists. They will talk about anything you want and answer any questions. I ended up hanging out for about an hour and had a really interesting chat. He answered a bunch of questions about Buddhism for me but mostly we just talked about life. It’s interesting to get a monk’s perspective on society. He was encouraging support for Obama which I found amusing, I am sure he is happy today. That evening a huge crowd of us hung out on top of THC which is a bar overlooking the city.

The next day a bunch of British gals from my hostel and me went on an adventure into the jungle. We hiked to a waterfall, hung out in two hill tribe villages, rode elephants and went bamboo rafting. Quite an adventure all packed into one day. I will let me photos tell this story when I get a chance to upload them.

The final night I had in Chang Mai was pretty cool as well. I met a couch surfer at a Jazz club which was really pretty good. It was a little too loud to talk much but the music was a blast. Unfortunately I was super worn out from the previous couple days so I could not stick around.

Chang Mai was one of the busiest places I have been socially on my trip. There were a number of people I wanted to meet or spend time with and a ton of places I still want to check out, but just ran out of time. If I get a chance I will definitely come back here. There is also a noteworthy Thai dish exclusive to Chang Mai called Kaho Soi. If you are ever here you really need to give it a try, it’s awesome.

Today my visa ran out and Chris, Santiago and I crossed the border from Chang Kong into Laos. We did not make it in time to catch a bus from the border so we are just hanging out in the small border town in Laos. Tomorrow we are heading up into the national forest type area in NE Laos. We are going to take a three day trek into the jungle. There are laws enforced in the area that the hill tribes in the area can’t be visited more then twice a week by foreigners. It’s supposed to be one of the most well preserved cultural areas in Asia and I am really looking forward to the hike!

Just uploaded more photos for y’all to enjoy. Check em out at.

http://ellermann.net/gallery2/v/trevors-photos/WorldTrip/Thailand3

Cheers!

Note: Link fixed

Apple’s guest house was so nice I decided to stay an extra day. The people are awesome, the food is some of the best in Thailand and they offered it to me for free for helping them with their interweb stuffs. Of course I took ‘em up on it so I took a trip up to Ewan falls with my extra day.

It’s official, I have a thing for waterfalls and these were exceptional. Ewan falls are seven tiers of waterfalls, each more magnificent then the last. The night before I went to visit I got a demonstration of sheets of rain, so the falls were really flowing. So much so that they flooded the trail for a good portion of the way so I was trekking through mud and water was flowing down the steps you walk up. There was hardly anyone on the trail since it was still raining a bit and few of those made more then half way where you have to wade through water and mud. It only got harder as you went on after then. Making it to the top was a real sense of accomplishment and you were rewarded with an truly awesome waterfall at the end.

Mother nature just can’t be beat when it comes to awe inspiring beauty. Tier seven of those falls is now one of my favorite places in the world. Sadly I forgot my camera. This was one of the better adventures I have had in Thailand.

Several people have told me that buses are not usually as bad as I say here. On the way back from the falls on the bus I got to enjoy a drunk guy falling all over me for an hour.. Right… Don’t ever get on a bus with me.

So I headed out to Ayuthaya today and had a narrow escape from temptation. I talked to a number of people about this and swore I would not do it. So many people just told me again, just stay away from them, especially in Thailand. But when I came across those golden brown legs, just waiting for me and for such a cheap price, I really had to stop and re evaluate my morals. I wanted it so bad and the girl offering was super cute and so willing to give me exactly what I want. She even told me so! “These legs are all yours for cheap” she said. I was going out of my mind. Finally I just took a breath, got my self together and walked away. You have no idea what self control this took. Those KFC extra crispy chicken legs almost ruined my commitment to not eating at American restaurants while I am traveling. Fried chicken has never been so appealing. But I prevailed.

Another crisis has come up here as well. I finished all my books and can’t find more! This means I have a 9 hours bus ride in front of me tomorrow night with no book! After a couple of hours of asking around and looking I found the only book shop in town. It is a department store and has exactly one book in English. If only I was interested in breathing practices for pregnant women. Tomorrow I get to explore the hundreds of ruined temples here and take an over night bus to Chang Mai. Less then a week on my visa so I better get moving to Laos!

Sadly I left Koh Phi Phi. That island is truly paradise and I miss it already. I am going to stop describing the misery that is a bus in Thailand. Just assume every time I talk about changing cities that it was long, miserable and several things went wrong ;)

I am now up north west of Bangkok in Kanchanaburi staying at Apple’s guest house. I took a cooking class here yesterday and now have a basic idea how to make four different Thai dishes. I definatly need practice though. It’s a fun class to take and Apple’s guest house is great. I am now doing a little computer work for them and they are taking care of me.

Kanchanaburi is an interesting town with lots to do. It’s where “The Bridge over River Kuai” takes place and I spent all day today walking around looking at cemetaries, museams and the bridge it’s self. Over seven thousand POWs died making this rail line for the Japanese during WWI. I was astounded by that number. What a huge waste of life to make a railroad… It was a very somber day of introspection for me but I am glad I came here. It really put me into touch with what humanity can do.

Another thing that I have done over the last few days is read Time Enough to Love by Robert Heinlein. This is the third book of his I have read on this trip and he is quickly becoming my favorite author. He is a Sci-Fi writer with fascinating takes on love and sexuality. If you have not read any of his work I recommend you read Stranger in a Strange Land or Time Enough to Love. His writing has me often thinking about the people who I love and love me back. These people I consider family. I really am blessed that there are many people in my families and while I dont feel lonely, I really am starting to miss them.

On that note, who wants to come play with my for X-Mas or NYE in Asia? I am going to start pestering those of you I think might come personally soon. I dont have my heart set on any one country or city for the holidays. I was considering Tokyo, but I am open so if you are interested and have a specific place you want to be, let me know!

I am currently uploading the second batch of photos. Jessica very kindly let me borrow her underwater camera yesterday for my diving so there are about 70 shots below the sea. Unfortunately the visibility was sub par but there are still some cool photos. It is astonishing the diversity of life on the reefs here. In all my thirteen years of diving I have never seen such variety before. I even managed to find another cuddle fish!

It’s raining like it means business here on Koh Phi Phi today, so the net is a bit sketchy, it might take a day or two to complete. But photos can be found at..

http://ellermann.net/gallery2/v/trevors-photos/WorldTrip/Thailand2/

The Beach. It’s a silly movie based on a good book in a beautiful location. That location is Koh Phi Phi and the island lives up to it’s reputed beauty, if you can get away from all the people. I am here near the end of the low season and it already feels crowded. But I get ahead of myself.

The trip from Koh Tao was a mammoth thirty hour trip. The first part was over night on a boat with sleeping pads so full of people I could not sleep without having some kind of physical contact with at least two people. Often three or even four. After I arrived they loaded my luggage into the back of a truck, and has me stand on the bumper holding on to the rack to get to the bus. The “Air Con” bus had a few fans and three windows that went down. Some of the seats had padding, but unfortunately not mine. That would not have been too bad had it only taken the planned 5 hours to get across to Krabi. Unfortunately the bus broke down, twice. I have been told since then that my experience was the norm. From there it was a short wait and quick ferry to Koh Phi Phi.

As soon as I arrived on the island and discovered that there are no motor transports at all on the island, I knew I would love it here. Not having any motor transports on the island has several implications, all of which I love. I dream of living in a pedestrian city and with no motors, this place is the ultimate one at that. The lack of constant noise from engines passing by is also a huge blessing. The thing I think I like about it the most is the lack of people constantly harassing you at all times to get in there Tuk-Tuk or taxi. It’s amazing how tired you get of fending off taxis. There are still people selling you stuff at every corner, but the harassment is a lot less frequent.

I had got into contact with a Sweedish couch surfer named Jessica who is working on her dive master training (DMT). She is doing her training at Mosquito Diving, which is now where I am living and doing my Advanced Open Water training. It’s interesting living at a dive shop, you really get a good insight into the lives of dive masters and instructors. It’s a pretty nice life and I am more then a little tempted to go for my dive master as well. Scuba diving seems to attract the type of people who I enjoy spending time around. Jessica is a great example. When she is not forcing me to try salty liquorish she is really chilled out and fun to be around.

Last night I pulled out the trusty kilt, added a fresh coat of orange to my hair and went out with Jessica. I have said it before but apparently I need to say it again. I am swearing off buckets of alcohol. We spent about an hour watching Muy Thai (Thai Boxing). Well, there were “professional” boxers complete with knocking out the ref and throwing each other out of the ring, WWF style. Most of the rest of the fights were tourists fighting for a free bucket. Not real fighting, but pretty amusing none the less. Afterwards we went to a dance club on the beach and danced to the same ten songs you hear over and over everywhere in Thailand. All and all another great night with great company here in paradise.

Today after spending most the afternoon nursing my hangover I rented a kayak and found the true paradise of Koh Phi Phi. Today I was on the most gorgeous beach and quite possibly place in general I have been in my life. It was threatening to storm all day today but never did, which was perfect. The beach I went to is only visited by kayaks and since it was stormy very few of those were out. I was alone for nearly an hour which on this island is a feat and it was heaven. I took photos but I am sure they cant possibly capture the beauty of this place.

Speaking of photos after 4 days of uploading the first batch of photos from Thailand are up. They can be found at http://ellermann.net/gallery2/v/trevors-photos/WorldTrip/Thailand1/