Music Monday

Today we end our month long Sufjan Stevens Silver and Gold Christmas album. I hope you enjoyed the songs this month!

Two songs again today. The first has been significant in our culture for nearly two hundred years. I first heard this album the day before we left for globetrotting adventures. Perhaps you can imagine how this first song felt significant to me as we stepped into the unknown. We felt hopeful and excited for dreams come true and adventures and yet we felt nervous to leave our comfortable life and we grieved at losing the presence of friends and family. The reality of leaving our friends and family dawned on us quickly. I suppose choices we make in life hold these realities; we seem to be always in motion.

This is Auld Lang Syne which can be translated to mean "days gone by".

The second song today I put in as a time to reflect on the year gone by and the time to come. There is an element of comfort as watching the sunrise on a snowy morning and an element of mystery. I always think of walking in a grove of cedar trees when listening to this song: is that weird?

This is Sacred Harp (Morning)

Until next time lets all take a cup of kindness.

EO

Music Monday

Happy Christmas!

Today's music monday features two songs by Sufjan that examine life in general and life through the lens of the Christmas event. Sufjan seems to love fifteen minute songs or so but if you can handle it, do so. I can also note that the second song (the child with the star on his head) changes from lyrical to ambient at about the 5 minute mark.

Until next time Happy Christmas.

Music Monday

Hi. Welcome to Music Mon Thursday!

As always in December Sufjan Stevens is the key note Mondain. Last week I tried to give two songs that exemplify 1. Sufjan's take on traditional christmas songs and 2. The use of pop Christmas songs in the album. Sufjan's Christmas albums are fun and spunky and weird and loud and quiet.

The next two songs I hope to show Suf's original Christmas music creations. A more contemplative music Monday.

The first song is called Christmas Woman.



Next is called Barcarola (You must be a Christmas tree).



These are two of my favourite songs on the album. I hope you enjoy them too.

Until next time keep your Barcarola's folky.

EO

December days

December has come quickly and seems to be holding the same speed and busyness. This is the first time in over three months that I have had a moment to spare and I unfortunately feel like I should be doing something more productive.

School ended in November for me which was a welcome relief. Over 9 weeks I read roughly 2,700 pages and wrote over 30,000 words. How am I ever supposed to retain anything at that rate? I have one text book for next quarter that I have started reading but I am finding it hard to maintain the resolve to make it through the chapters. I found the courses entirely interesting and I am very excited about my next two courses as well.

This past quarter we focused on very foundational elements to counselling including basic skills and components of counselling, the makings of a collaborative therapeutic relationship, multicultural considerations and worldview assessment, and important elements of why counselling works. I am happy to have had time to examine these as I think they can sometimes be overlooked. Though it was an extremely busy quarter of learning and I felt like I had to be at top speed to keep up I strangely felt that I had the opportunity to slow down and examine my own foundational assumptions of counselling. I also recognize the importance of continually checking in and adjusting throughout life.

As winter comes I have dropped my expectations of jogging three days per week and adopted my winter regime of ice skating and hiking (it would be snowshoeing except we just had our first snow fall yesterday… and I don't own snowshoes). I have been skating close to twice per week and I as always enjoy learning a new skill and tiring myself out. This year I am working on transitioning to skating backwards, skating backwards, and stopping on my left edge. I have a goal to skate well enough to start learning to play hockey. I think I have a long way to go.

I have also been exploring our backyard. There is housing development called Wilden which surrounds a couple large ponds up the hill from us. It is a strange place. It motto is "Nature inspired living" which means that they use expensive beams for finishing the houses and that the proximity to a wooded area is close but the houses are gigantic and crammed onto tiny lots. Yards are small but pools are huge. It has a perfect walking trail that takes about 45 minutes to complete which I enjoy but I have been exploring the hills beyond.

I have been on a couple 3-4 hour hikes behind the woods and have discovered some interesting things. The first is a system of ponds that I believe were made to collect water to develop agriculture in this area. I recently read a newspaper article about the systems that were made in the early 20th century. This area used to be called "the valley of death" because of how dry it was. Now it is home to orchards and gardens… and the dump. I also discovered that we are only a few kilometres from the lake; maybe 3.2 or 4.8k (2 or 3 miles). So exciting…

Double Music Monday

Hi. I missed last week which means I will be posting two songs this week!

As you know I greatly enjoy Sufjan Stevens music. You also may know that he enjoys making Christmas Albums. Last year he released a second 50+ song Christmas Album called Silver and Gold. Like his previous album he explores culture and spiritual themes surrounding Christmas. Unlike his previous folky album he incorporates an eclectic style using a lot of synthesized sounds. Its a little louder, a little bigger, a little messier than the last album but still good.

Enjoy.




Until next time keep haulin' out the holly!

Music Monday!

Hi all. Sorry I missed last week but I was on the verge of mental breakdown. I don't even remember listening to music last weekend at all, that's how bad it was.

This weekend was a different story. I made sure to take time to recover sanity.

This is The National with their song Pink Rabbits:




Here's a sneak peak for next week. As you all know it is December and some of you know the theme for December is Christmas via S______ S_______, one of my most favourites



Until next time… SNOW MACHIIIIIIIIINNNNNNE!

Music Monday

Hi. Welcome back.

Well. I've got a real doozy for you this week. I said that I would post what I've been listening to and this time its a real doozy.

Boiler room is a youtube presentation that features DJs doing their thing. It is based in the UK and has many videos. I randomly stumbled on to it because I saw Thom York featured. Then I saw more and more names that I recognized. I listened through Four Tet, DJ Shadow, Thom York and finally Bonobo. Though others put in some interesting sets (especially DJ Shadow), Bonobo was the most fun to listen to. I really enjoyed the entire 50 minutes of the show.

My favourite part of the video is watching the 30 to 40 minute mark when everyone in the room realizes that they have been doing the same movements for the past 30 to 40 minutes and begin to tire. Musically I love the first 4 to 5 minutes. This set has been my constant study companion this week. Whether it is reading or writing I find it very beneficial.

Here he is: Bonobo

Until next time, keep your nobo bo.

EO

Music Monday

Monday's come fast don't they?

Ever had a song stuck in your head so badly that it wakes you up during the night? There are pros and cons I suppose. Con, waking up in the middle of the night. Pro, waking up with a good song in already in your head. Some nights I wake up with my feet moving to keep the beat. Does that qualify as restless leg syndrome?

This group you may recognize for they are indie legends and have a number of hits. This song is no exception. This is Daft Punk with Instant Crush.

Until next time, keep your friends chained close but your enemies chained closer.

EO

Music... Tuesday?

Hi. I did not have time to write this up yesterday because I was doing school work all day. I don't actually have time to write this up today because I am doing school work all day until I go to work. I am greatly enjoying school but at the same time I am frightened that I will be unable to maintain the demanding schedule. I am currently employed for 30 hours and as I count I am putting in between 30 and 40 hours of school work each week. Like I said I am really into what I am learning but that's a lot of time focusing. Also now that I add it up and factor out eating and sleeping time there is still 28 hours per week that I spend doing other things. Where does that time go? 28 hours per week writing this blog?

 Here is the current breakdown for schoolwork. I guess I am a fact kinda guy? Reading: 210+ pages per week Should be reading 300+ including research Writing: 3,000 words minimum per week Does not include two 3-5 page papers and two 8 page papers That's the life I chose for now. I am sure many of you can relate from some point in life.

That is the nature of things. I may have posted this before but I think it applies now.

 The Books- Take Time



Fino alla prossima volta, tutto è santo, ricordo che!

EDO

Music Monday

Oh my goodness. How time flies. Another Monday and I'm way behind. Due to this I am forced to do a minimalist post starting...

Now.

Rediscovered.

Only good loud.

Synth and Beats!

Gorillaz- Rhinestone Eyes


Until next time, keep those factories far away!

EO

Music Monday

Good day. I have had a terribly busy week and it is lucky that I have an opportunity for music on this fine Monday.

Typhoon! Remember them? Well this week is a refresher and I dare you not to like this song. Seriously try it. Its got a good beat, a good build up, and a fantastic refrain!

Enjoy!


Until next time keep the devil from your home.

Music Monday

This week my song choice reflects my activity. Reading. Forever reading and then reading more. School done right takes a lot of time to do.

What is the perfect reading song for you? Does it have to be a certain style? Can there be words? Does it have to be upbeat and energetic or calming and ambient?

For me it doesn't have to be any one thing but I have some pointers none of which, I am happy to say, has any empirical data to cite whatsoever.

1. It must be fluent.
           -Herky-jerky does not... worky. Any type of music works as long as it does not have a lot of staccato or sudden starts and stops.

2. Its all ambient.
            -Volume does wonders for different genres as well as activities. Reading is no exception. If you find lyrics distracting or drums too much try turning the volume down a little bit at a time. Some music that I never thought could be good reading music turns out to be with the volume down.

3. You know best what you need.
             -I find that I know intuitively what music to pick to reading that day. Sometimes I don't realize that I am tired and needed an energetic playlist or that I'm a bit frazzled and I need a calming ambiance for a learning backdrop until well into a study session. Sometimes I choose something and feel an unease about it which is usually confirmed a short while latter when I give the artist the hook.

I have found many music websites helpful for a variety of activities. My favorite right now is Songza.com which is where I found today's selection.

This is the Icelandic ambient composer Olafur Arnalds with his song Poland



Until next time keep your ambiance at the correct volume.

EO

Music Monday

Uhh. I was trying to avoid this but...

Pat Jorache with "Get it"
Does anyone remember when I said I don't always like the best music? I don't. I know that but for some reason some songs just get stuck in my head. I have no information on this band, this song, or how I heard it but for unexplained reason... I like it.

Until next time, I know you're gonna get it.

EO

Music Monday

I listened to CBC radio's "The Signal" yesterday and within 20 minutes I stumbled upon the following song and band. I have hardly stopped listening to it in the past 24 hours; whether playing it over the computer or in my mind I have hardly stopped listening to it. I forgot that The Signal does that for me, that I can be innocently killing time by listening when suddenly I am thrust into full blown song mania. Love it.

The band Typhoon is an Oregon based band with a unique and unfortunate quality; the lead singer is dying. As a child he contracted Lyme disease and spent his entire adolescence unconscious, in hospital, medicated, etc. His father donated a kidney to him and now that is failing too. A quote from a letter the lead singer wrote to his fans:

        When we started working on White Lighter, I had reason to believe that it would be the last

        thing I ever did. It is now six months since being finished. I'm still here and there is still work

        to be done.

The reality of the lead singer has lead to a driving and introspective style. The intensity of lyric, pace, and imagery is impressive and, to me, a joy to listen to. It is refreshing to hear.

This is Typhoon with Artificial Light:

Until next time, keep getting bigger too. EO

School again

I attended a school orientation this weekend in Vancouver. I felt very encouraged. The program is focused on creating successful clinical counselors and has a very good reputation for this in the community. All faculty are required to be currently practicing counselors and many of the current faculty we were introduced to are prolific within the counseling community. I was impressed to see the variety of personalities, interests, and specialties the faculty and alumni possessed as well as the individuals in my program. The school shies away from the student/professor ideology of teach and prefers more the trainee/supervisor model with the end goal of being colleagues once we graduate. I thought this was a good way to look at it.

Another focus of the program that I thought was very good was the quality of peer to peer learning. We were encouraged to heavily invest in the other program participants during our time and after. This of course comes with a degree of difficulty as many students know the chaos that group projects bring but I think it is a good learning tool, especially in a field that is highly focused on human relationships. There are about 13 people in the group and there were funny connections between some people. I knew one ladies husband from my time at CBC and others knew this person or that person etc.

I my first day of classes will be on September 28. I am still not quite sure to expect but I am excited to get going.

Music Monday

Hello again. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Mine was action packed and excellent.

James Blake anyone? This song is a synthesized dream with a good beat. Speaking of dreaming; have you ever had a recurring dream that continues to wake you up throughout the night? I experienced that last night. I woke over and over and over again. At first it was because we had a major storm blow through starting at about mid-night but in the quieter ours of the morning I dreamt of black widow spiders crawling in the bed. Creepy.

Anyway here is James Blake with Retrograde

Until next give your Retro's an A+ EO

Employed!

I was offered a job this week. I will be a key worker at a transitional housing facility in town. It will basically combine my employment at KGM. Part of the job will consist of being a presence in the building with the other part doing some casework with ten individuals. The goal of the casework is to help and individual advance toward independent housing. I am excited to get to work.

I am very pleased. It is nice to know that I have an income and employment that is advantageous to my schedule in what I am seeking to accomplish in the next few years. It is nice to be a financially productive member of the household again. Very pleased.

The only downside is that it will be shift work. Back to evenings. The nice thing is that it rotates between days and evenings so I will not always be gone at inconvenient times. All in all it isn't the worst downside.

Our summer is slowly dwindling. The evenings are starting to cool down and the mornings are chili. Being directly in the sun is still hot and the beach is still an option but it is not scorching throughout the day which I find quite pleasant. With the change in season I am hoping that we will actually have some time to be at home. We haven't had a day at home since we moved in. It is nice to be busy but I do look forward to slowing down, getting into a routine, and knowing what to expect from the time I have.

I have some things planned for the fall that I would like to accomplish that include making my own beer, bread, and sauerkraut. I'd also love to be able to read a few books outside of school. I've been feeling really guilty lately because I have not been reading at all. I went from reading daily to reading nothing and I don't have the discipline right now to get back into it. I really hope it does not continue.

Music Monday

Wow. I don't think that Ashley and I stopped moving since last Monday. What a week. We have been busy with moving but this time we were unfortunately helping our friends to move away. They are a huge part of our lives here and it is sad to see them go.

At these moments in life, when I feel taxed in so many ways, that a song or an artist seems to come back to my memory. I like how music does that for me. In some circumstances a song just will not do. In others it is a perfect fit for what is needed. This week, right now, the need is to slow down just a moment and yet continue on. There is always much more to do.

Yet again Radiohead provides a musical interlude to a busy week. An interlude to insanity; a break from busyness; a pause.

This is Radiohead with their song Codex


Here's hoping that whatever is going on, this song provides you with some fresh air. Until next time keep your water clear... and innocent. EO

Music Monday

Now is the time on Sprockets when we dance!

I don't remember how I heard this song but it was very recent. You've probably known about it for years but to me it is brand new. I enjoy Peter Gabriel's music; he always has a way to make it different and interesting. Perhaps its the synthetic drums?

In particular I like the driving beat to this song. It is provided by the drums but accentuated by the synthesizers at the end of each line.
This song was written by Peter regarding a "spiritual experience" he had on top of Solsbury Hill. Sometimes I wish my life was exciting.

Until next time, keep your heart boom boom booming.

EO

Our Fifth Anniversary!

It was our fifth anniversary yesterday. Five! Time continues to show its dynamic qualities. When I look back at our five years it seems to have passed by fast but, when I think hard and squint my eyes just enough, I can think back to when I was looking forward from five years ago. I can remember thinking of five years from then as unfathomable; not in quantity but in experience. There was potential for every possibility. Nothing was clear because there were so many possibilities clouding the path as if each were a pane of glass placed one behind the other slowly distorting all vision.

Now I have a unique view of the past five years. I can see both the future from the past and the past from the future. I can look from all points to one point and from one point to all points. Each of these informs the others with its own unique texture and they are all linked together like keys on a ring. Each softly and continuously repeats its story to me, waiting for something to push my attention toward it.

Today my attention is pushed to the past five years. I examine the events individually and I feel the textures they possess both pleasant and painful, significant and menial. I hear the stories and they collectively affirm that, in Ashley, I made a good decision.

Music Monday!

Hi. Do you know about music Monday? Its been traveling the world but its back for more.

This is Mumford and Sons... also a number of other bands, all singing "Wagon Wheel" by Old Crow Medicine Show... actually its really by Bob Dylan but he never actually released the song and then Old Crow Medicine Show filled in the blanks and made it big.

I like this song for precisely the reason this video is so much fun. It is almost made to be sung collaboratively. Everyone can pitch in and it is so so catchy. I think its a little weird to hear an Britain sing American twangy folk but what they hey right?

Until next time keep your wheels greased!

EO

Keeping busy

I am mostly unemployed at the moment. It has actually been almost a month that I've been back without a job and it is quite nice to be a house husband with a "sugar mamma" taking care of me. I run errands, go shopping, cook meals, do the laundry, make lists. I'm a great list maker. The trouble with the lists that I've been making is that it requires final decisions to be made and there are a lot of them to do. What color towels, what kind of furniture, which vacuum, where can we find that at, what happened to our... how much have we spent already? Decisions seem to digress quickly into variables and these are all like little stop signs on the path to getting things done.

There are little tricks to making a house more comfortable. I never knew them until our most recent house sitting adventure. The house was very well organized; everything was in the most practical place that it could have been in. If we needed anything all we had to do was think for a minute of where it should be and low and behold there it was! There were also little tricks like finding a plastic tray for underneath the toaster. Here I've been getting crumbs all over the place for years when all it takes is a tray. Floor mats too make a huge difference not only for feet but also in keeping the place clean. Putting one in front of the fridge, at the stove, by the sink, etc. makes the spills from going on the floor. I believe these are called "life hacks" and I am sure that I will keep my eyes peeled for more.

Yesterday Ashley and I went on a walk up a hill. We discovered a lake (pond really) up the way from us. It is a gorgeous walk but there has been a lot of recent development along with what is obviously planned for the future. Most of the area is in some stage of building. The houses are huge, the yards are little, and the pond is full of mosquitoes. Non-the-less, it is still a gorgeous walk. There are even signs that say "turtle crossing april-sept". I hope to see a turtle or two before our time here is over; in fact I did see one but it was squished flat and dried out on the side of the road. Sad.

An interesting tidbit, today I went to check my email at yahoo and saw what looked to be a picture that Ashley took on our trip. It was in fact a picture of the island of Koh Tao at the very beach we frequented on our trip. The article was entitled "cheapest places to retire" and was all about the permanent residence policies of Southeast Asia Countries. It was fun to see that picture.

Lion Air

Funny ol' world ain't it?

This is a news story about Lion Air whom we flew with while we were in Indonesia. They had just had the landing incident that the story references when we were there and now they've had more issues. I am glad no one was injured but I chuckle at the story.

In other news Ashley and I have been busy moving, at weddings, visiting family in Washington, working (Ashley), and moving, and moving, and moving. We unpacked boxes and ran errands for essential household needs yesterday. When we were ready to take a break we realized that we had no furniture to sit upon. Annoying! We got rid of a many of our belongings when we left for traveling and now we need to fill the space. We do not want to buy the first things that we see but we also need a place to sit. What a conundrum.

If you hear nothing from our end of the world in the next few days do not panic, we do not have internet connection yet. Hopefully this will be taken care of soon but you never know.

Bristol Bay part 2

In part one I gave a very brief overview of Bristol Bay and how the fishery operates. Part two I want to give an idea about the boats of Bristol Bay.

The Predator is the boat that myself and three others live on through the fishing season. She's a thirty two foot by fifteen foot fishing boat. The department of fish and game has limited the size of Bristol Bay salmon fishing boats to thirty two feet from the corner of the stern to the bow; some boats are shorter and fatter, some are longer and thinner. We're a stern picker which means the deck and workspace of the boat is mid-ship to the stern and the house of the boat is towards the bow with a fo'c'sle (which means forecastle and is pronounced "folk'sel") at the very front end.

The deck of the boat is broken up into three spaces: the holds, the box, and the deck. The holds sit below the drum (which is a giant aluminum spool that is mounted on deck that we use to wind our nets onto via hydraulics). There are three holds on the port and starboard side of the boat and two in the middle (one of which we do not use because it accesses the engine room). In the holds we hang brailer bags. Brailer bags are the invention of a genius because without them we would have to pitch all of the fish we catch both into and out of our holds which would be the stuff of nightmares. The box is a small area between the holds and the deck that is separated by the raised aluminum of the holds and three one by eight boards stacked on edge. We use the box to contain fish, separate nets, and we straddle the boards to help us keep balance on wavy days. The deck of the boat holds the hydraulic controls and the "roller" which is an hydraulically controlled spinning rubber drum with horns on either end that is designed to contain the net while it is being pulled back into the boat.

The house of the boat contains the cabin, the fo'c'sle, the bilge and engine room, and on top rests the flying bridge. In the cabin we have a small table with bench seating, the controls for the boat, a pesky diesel stove, a sink, cabinets and a few drawers for storage. In the fo'c'sle there are four bunks of varying sizes due to a storage cupboard and the head. The head is the bathroom which has a shower and toilet in it but we only use it for storage space due to the inconvenience of operating a shower and toilet on a boat and the general lack of storage space. The bilge and engine room are accessed by a removable section of the cabin floor and a removable section of the bench seating. The flying bridge contains controls for the boat, a diesel fuel tank for the pesky stove, and a small amount of storage space; it is where the skipper of the boat commands the boat and his underlings during a fishing opening.

The Predator is only one type of many in Bristol Bay. It is a 1985 aluminum Curry 32: mid size (though when it was constructed it was mind bogglingly large), with space to work and live, and can pack a lot of fish (I've seen 20,000 pounds at once but it could probably double that safely). A Curry 32 means that it was built by Jim Curry (who is based in Bellingham) and it is 32 feet. Some boats are built out of fiberglass which makes them more comfortable and less noisy. In an aluminum boat you can hear the sound of the water splish splashing all the time and they are not great at keeping heat in or out; fiberglass boats are noise dampening and non conductive of heat which gives them an edge for livability.

Boats are a special thing. They are usually built by someone that is interested in building them. Sometimes they work wonderfully and sometimes they just plain don't work. We spoke with guys in the boat yard who had a brand new boat built by a company that usually builds research vessels. The builders didn't understand what requirements a fishing boat would need and so there were many components that were useless or rendered the boat useless. Another brand new boat blew through two engines before they realized that they had to redo the entire engine room because the length of the shaft was putting too much pressure on the engine (imagine $500,000 on a new boat and another $200,000-$300,000 to fix it right away. Ouch!).

Another fun thing about boats is, although they are designed to be in the water, they are built on land. Strange things occur out on the water that cannot be accounted for. Boats get window blow-outs due to waves coming over the bow but if the windows are angled with the top toward the bow and the bottom toward the stern they are less likely to blow out due to natural deflection. It doesn't matter how well your boat is designed if the wind is blowing you will get water inside and if it is wavy it matters little how well everything is secured, you will have things rolling all over the floor including yourself or other crew members at times; these occurrences usually prompt a mid-season freakout from myself which is totally justified and equally embarrassing.

These boats take a pounding out there. In the weeks that they are used they can be beaten by waves and other boats, loaded heavily, run aground, and stressed to the limits. When they are not in use they sit through Alaskan winters. I do not envy them. Luckily the Predator has always been a sturdy vessel and has required little emergency repairs. Other boats we've seen are not so lucky. Usually there are boats that are towed in every year due to some sort of crippling incident. Sometimes an engine blows and once in a while a rudder inexplicably falls off. In the water they are quite buoyant. They provide an odd set of sea legs because they are short and stout. They don't really pitch and roll as much as herk and jerk; when there are waves mobility becomes difficult.

It takes a lot for most of these boats to sink (although I've seen boats that seem to take a lot to get them to float). Awkward or unforeseen circumstances are usually the cause of sinking.
 I once looked up from picking fish to see a large brush floating by, then a bucket, and a few other items. When I searched for the source of these I saw a boat with its entire deck submerged and its crew trying desperately to keep it from entering the cabin. They were unluckily and luckily in a very shallow spot. They had a lot of fish on board, got caught on the bottom and took a wave at the same time which submerged them but they couldn't actually completely submerge; they were however in danger of getting knocked on their side with another big wave. I believe that someone threw them a line and towed them to get their bow above water so that they could pump the water out. Scary stuff but as someone once said "when people ask me what I would do if the boat sank I tell them; 'I'd stand up and walk to shore'." Still, sinking would be inconvenient because the stove would probably go out. Pesky stoves!

Foraging?

I have to admit that I am impressed. Yesterday I did some foraging. That's right I wandered around in the woods and looked for edible plants. It was part of a course that some friends of mine found out about here in Kelowna. The individual who runs the class has been picking mushrooms for many years and has recently begun selling his foraged goods to restaurants around town. He stated that mostly restaurants are interested in what he sells only for garnishes except, of course, mushrooms. Apparently he spent some time in Europe where foraged goods are more widely accepted and desired by restaurants.

I was very surprised by 1) the amount of edible plants there are and 2) how many are considered useless or pests. One I was particularly surprised about was pineapple weed which is in the chamomile family and strangely tastes of pineapple. It can be gathered and eaten or made into tea. There are wild varieties of mustard whose leaves and flowers give a horse-radish type kick to the nostrils. There is a pesky weed called mallow that can and has been used to make marsh mallows or to thicken soups. A plant called Sheep's Sorrel tastes exactly like a granny smith apple and the berries of the Sumac tree give a lemony zing and can be used to make a fine sumac-aid.

The first half of the course was gathering plants while the second consisted of prepping and cooking. We ate a salad made of lamb's quarter, sheep's sorrel, dandelion leaves, and pineapple weed with ricotta cheese, pumpkin seed and orange vanilla vinegar. Our guide made a creamed watercress soup that was quite tasty. I was surprised at how mild the bitter flavors became in the food but I was informed that the bitterness can be balanced out with the addition of base foods to the acidic bittering agents.

Where will I go with this information? I have no idea. I now know that I could easily survive from spring to summer without purchasing any leafy green vegetables, that it wouldn't take much effort to learn more about plants and eventually to learn about berries and roots. Soon I could go an entire spring, summer, and fall without purchasing veggies or fruits. Is this likely? No. Perhaps, in time, I will work out a system to incorporate some of this into life.

Foraging, who'd have known?

Bristol Bay part 1

I've been thinking of how to put Bristol Bay into words. I have tried to think and think but nothing has really come to mind. I suppose I should start very basic and the rest will take care of itself.

Bristol Bay is in southwest Alaska. It is bordered by mainland Alaska to the east and north, the Alaska peninsula (which holds the Aleutian mountains and the Aleutian islands) to the south, and the Bering sea to the west. The average water temperature during the summer months is 3-5 degrees Centigrade (39-46 degrees Fahrenheit) which makes a big difference between Washington's coastal waters which sit at 12c or 54f.

There are a number of river systems in Bristol bay but there are six that are fished. These are the Naknek, Kvichak (pronounced Qwee-jack), Nushagak, Egegik, Ugashik, and Togiak rivers. The Nushagak is the most famous due to its King Salmon run which brings in sport fishermen from all over the world. The rest of the rivers are less known. Every year the fish come back to the rivers they were born in to spawn. The entire bay produces between 20 and 30 million Sockeye salmon each year. They are also home to king, pink, silver, and chum salmon as well as herring which are all fished for throughout the summer.

The entire fishing industry in Bristol bay is highly regulated by the Alaska department of fish and game. The fish are counted both coming into the rivers in the summers and going out of the rivers in the spring. Each year a prediction of how many fish will return is set and the amount of fish that should be going up river is calculated. This is called escapement. The Egegik river's escapement (which is the river that I fish on) is set from 800,000 fish to 1.2 million fish. They count and estimate how many fish are going upriver each day, make estimates as to how many fish are close to going upriver, and estimate how many fish are going to come still; from those estimates the department of fish and game determines if the fishermen are allowed to fish and how long they are allowed to fish for.

Fish and game gives updates to fishermen every day via radio announcements at 9am, 12pm, 3pm, and 6pm; these are called announcements. In these we are usually given information such as catch and escapement from the previous day, cumulative catch and escapement from the season, and opening times for the following day. Usually there is just one announcement per day but it gets repeated throughout the day.

I am proud to be a Bristol bay fisherman. It is one of the most prolific and well managed fisheries in the world. Both its fishermen and its managers are dedicated to sustainability and its location is one that protects it from excessive development.

Still there?

Hi. Remember me? I recently decided that, even though Ashley and I are no longer wandering officially, I can still write these blogs. I enjoyed writing about our adventures and I would like to continue. If you are still interested I would be happy to have you. I don't exactly know what shape or form the blog will take, how often I will be able to update, or what I will even write about. I am sure it will come together eventually.

I have been back in Canada for roughly ten days. We are house sitting for a couple from our church until August at which point we will be moving into a top floor suit that was recently occupied by other friends of ours who are moving into a home they have just purchased. We are happy to have everything settled and a plan in place. I am looking forward to having a home and settling in. Since last year we have been living in a state of constant transition. It will be nice to be stationary.

Kelowna is beautiful. I feel very happy that, throughout our travels, we became more and more aware of the beauty of where we reside. We've been up to all sorts of summer time fun. Camping, swimming, Frisbee-ing, motorcycling, etc. and loving every minute of it. Mixed in between these activities Ashley has started full time at the hospital again. As for me, I'm chipping away at a massive list of things to accomplish before September but I've mostly only had time to squeeze productivity in between leisure. It's all fun and games until someone gets work...

And so I bid you happy trails until we meet again in the hopefully not-to-distant future. There is sunshine to enjoy outside.

Whirlwind

The past ten days have been exceptionally busy for both of us. I have been taking care of business in Kelowna and am now on the brink of my Alaskan adventures for this year. Ashley is in Australia exploring and enjoying the northern scenery. We have been so busy that we have only spoken to each other twice in ten days. It has been a bit of a switch going from seeing each other every day to not.

There have been many adjustments in the past week; traveling to not, accompaniment to none, reading to not, free time to responsibilities, etc. It is all in transition. One thing I am happy about is that I feel neither regret nor grief towards any of it. I am content to have experienced what I have and to be where I am now.

Six months is a long time. We traveled far and long and accomplished every goal that we set out to do. I did not go on this trip to find myself but I did find out about myself. I found more about what I value, my strengths, and my shortcomings. I am very thankful to have had so many opportunities in life. I return more experienced and more resolute to live a mindfully and responsibly.

Here's to the future...

Thailand Review

I finally get to write a bit of a Thailand review. I have held off as we have been in and out of Thailand a few different times in our travels. We did not spend enough time to go everywhere in Thailand. Perhaps that means that I should be writing a Thailand reflection?

Thailand is unique in our travels because of its location. It is the hub for travel in Southeast Asia. If you want to go somewhere different you pretty much have to go through Thailand to get there. From what I have been told the tourism industry is responsible for the same amount of income as agriculture but 70% of workers in Thailand work in agriculture while tourism employs only 10%. The cash flow from tourism is very visible with specific areas highly developed and others paid little attention. Thailand is a rapidly developing country with stark contrasts in culture and development.

Northern Thailand is predominantly Buddhist. It is mountainous, somewhat temperate, and agriculturally focused. Southern Thailand is predominantly Muslim. It is flat and coastal with scattered large limestone protrusions, beaches, and many islands. The islands are especially magnificent. Both of these regions are run at a charmingly laid back pace of life. In one small town Ashley and I found ourselves at a large park that was more active than any other park I've seen. In each corner of the park there were aerobics courses open to the public with hundreds of people attended. The center of the park was crammed with families walking, joggers, men playing a unique game, and of course people exercising on the outdoor workout equipment provided.

Bangkok is the center of Thailand but it thankfully does not represent the country and I would say contradicts the rest of the land. If I have not expressed before I will now, I did not like Bangkok at all. We visited, like Thailand itself, only a small portion of what we could have seen but what I saw I did not like. There were two main reasons for my dislike. The first reason is the busy, crowded, hot, heavily rubbished streets of the city. The second reason is that these streets reflect and magnify a very ugly truth; scams, sex, drugs, and all sorts of unacceptable behavior is glorified in these streets. Not that it is approved of or officially advertised but the signs of it and the unspoken knowledge of it is everywhere. The wanton destructive behavior both towards self and others affects me in a similar manner as the Cambodian Genocide museum. It all reminds me very much of a description of Tom and Daisy in The Great Gatsby "They were careless people, -- they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made." This description is perfect for what we saw throughout our trip and, unfortunately for Thailand, is typified in Bangkok. Its not that anyone is bad, it is that they are careless and being away from their lives allows it.

I think Ashley and I spent more time on trains in Thailand than anything else. And why not? Thailand's trains are actually very nice, especially the overnight sleeper trains. It is fabulous to travel 9 or 10 hours in your sleep! The best part is that they are some of the most affordable trains that we came across. Usually trains were out of the question for us but in Thailand they were very accessible. Some advice for future travelers though is anticipate but do not expect the trains to be on time. They are regularly a few hours late. This can work in a traveler's favor though because you will regularly get one or two extra hours of sleep. So good!

 Chances are you will go through Thailand if you go to Southeast Asia. You can enjoy both short and long stays in Thailand; mountain getaways and bustling beaches are both easily accessible. Please though, travel responsibly.

Away we go!

What a whirlwind. I did not have time for proper updates this week and I don't have any now but I can tell you we are heading to the airport for our flights. This trip is coming to a close for me and moving quickly for Ashley. In a month it will all be a dream.

Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur was a few days ago but I remembered today that I wanted to talk about its City Center. I am a big fan. We spent two days walking around it and I was impressed. Specifically there are two items that I was impressed by; its transit and its layout.

First of all you can walk around the city center in the daytime and not realize that you are in a major international city. There are so few people around and hardly any cars. The actual city center is a large park with beautiful landscaping, fountains, a gigantic playground and water-park. There is also a 1.3 kilometer walkway surrounding it that has a built-in track for jogging. The track isn't just flat but goes up and down some mild hills and there is a lot to see while jogging making it an interesting place to jog.

Surrounding the park are the Petronas towers (which are stunning both in the day and night), the convention center (which houses the aquarium) the central shopping center (which is connected to the convention center by an underground walkway), the national Mosque and a number of interesting and beautifully designed buildings. From there the rest of Kuala Lumpur spreads out. I do mean it when I say spreads out because the city goes on for a long ways but I also mean that it is spread out in that the skyscrapers are not clumped all in one section of the city but several and there are patches of green that are just undeveloped; not landscaped or turned into parks, just wild growth. There are also other large parks placed sporadically throughout the city with bird and butterfly sanctuaries to go to. It is delightful to see.

KL's transit system is also awe inspiring. There is a monorail and buses covering a vast expanse of destinations. There is also a free bus system for the city center which was very handy for us. My most favorite part though is that in the city center connecting the major destinations is an above ground, air conditioned, security patrolled, walkway. It made everything more convenient on our trips into town. We did not have to worry about crossing the street, extreme heat, heavy rains, or getting lost. What a great idea.

Though it doesn't feel crowded during the day, at night the city starts bustling. People and vehicles come out in multitudes, the city is lit up, the restaurants are packed full. It has been like that in many SEA countries; during the day it is too hot to go out but at night the cities come alive.

The grand scheme

It has been an exciting week. We gained two new nephews only a few days apart. The nephews are closer to each other than we are to them though so photos have had to suffice. Still very exciting,

We have only one week left after today and we are planning on revisiting Koh Tao. I could say that we are going back because we know it and love it, and because we know how to easily get to there and then to Bangkok from there, and because it will be a good place to end our travels but the truth is that we are going back because it has the best chicken sandwiches that we have ever had. Seriously imagine two full breaded chicken breasts with lettuce, cucumber, tomato, and onion on a delicious baguette with mayo and mustard (mustard being in short supply in Southeast Asia). All this for $2, how could we pass that up?

Our time in Tanah Rata has been pleasant. I get to wear my jeans and sweatshirt most mornings and evenings which makes things extra exciting. I haven't worn my jeans since Scotland and for some reason they came out of their stuff sack smelling like nachos. I don't know if that is good or bad but it made us both crave mexican food. In the afternoons we have spent most of our time reading or walking. We have gone on a couple of short hikes/walks; one through the town garden park which was very nice and one to some water falls that weren't very impressive.

We are moving on tomorrow to Butterworth (yes that is a real city) and from there we intend to take the train into Thailand and then a night train to Chumphon where we will eventually cross over to Koh Tao. It will be more than 24 hours of travelling by the end but it will be the last big stretch before our flights out. Here's hoping for straight paths.

"No problem, except you stupid."

If you ask someone who knows me you will find out that I have a high tolerance for people. Poor behavior, especially directed at me, usually makes me curious rather than angry. This is okay when I am alone but sometimes I wonder what my role is when I am with my family. If someone where to act poorly towards my wife or child what is an appropriate response especially in regard to physical action.

I know people who would never take physical action toward anyone at any time. I also know people who are ready at any moment to take action for any challenge to their or their families honor. The spectrum is broad.

I have spent a good chunk of my life in the wrestling room. This has taught me my way around a body and some neat tricks too. It has also taught me that there is always someone stronger, faster, quicker and that sometimes it comes from unexpected places. I am confident in my abilities but aware of the dangers of physical interaction. 

There are other factors involved with physical action other than my experience in martial arts, especially when children are involved. There are questions to consider: Does this deserve a physical response and if so to what degree? Am I putting myself or my family at further risk? What are the physical and legal consequences of this action?  Is this the role model I want to be? What if I fail?

The question is continually posed: "If someone had a gun to your spouse's head and you had a gun in your hand would you shoot?"

It blew my mind when someone posed the question "what if you missed?" to me. It further blew my mind when I shot a handgun for the first time and seemed entirely unable to hit anything that I was aiming at. Another question posed to me was "would your spouse want you to pull the trigger?"

Ask questions later right? Wrong? I have read a few stories in the last year that involve young inebriates killing another person by a punch to the head because the other person was trying to calm them or something. There are stories of people defending themselves or their family and going to prison because their defence became offence and they ended up maiming someone. Even one of my high school friends was killed by a bullet to the back from a shop keeper whose store he was attempting to rob. He died in a field after crawling some distance.

That is why the man at the mall who continued running into me after I apologized for cutting him off was not harmed even after he repeatedly called me stupid while going up the elevator. I merely looked at him and gave my conflict face (usually a perfect blend of confusion, empathy, and passiveness expressed in a smirk). I suppose if the only issue is that I am stupid then I can live with that.

I have been thinking a lot about this in the past few days due to this situation. It made me think of the "heroes" I always see from Hollywood who risk everything to save themselves or their families or who throw punches to defend honor. The movie Taken comes to mind (Liam Neeson blows up half of Paris and kills foreign diplomats and VIPS and comes out in the end with no legal or political backlash). Even though there is an alarming degree of impossibility, impracticality, and downright terrible choices, I still identify with Liam and cheer for him as he gets out of the hospital (the day after he is shot, stabbed, and beaten). I suppose a movie about a person having something terrible happen and then waiting to hear from the police regarding the incident is more of a drama than a thriller but seriously what should I do when a group of Albanian's abduct my daughter in Paris? Someone's got to know.

This post was supposed to be solely a critique of the movie Taken but it got a little bit out of hand. I apologize.

Tanah Rata

Today we took a bus journey to a town called Tanah Rata. It was a four hour ride two of which were navigating unfriendly mountain roads. It was well paved but narrow with many twists and turns. Vomit bags were provided by the company and utilized by the patrons; I will say no more.

The cameron highlands is famed in Malaysia for its tea production. Other attractions are its strawberry and honey farms as well as its beauty and proximity to Taman Negara national park. Many Malays come this way as an escape from the lowland heat. It is temperate here, though still warm, and at night  it can even get chilly. Maybe I'll have an excuse to wear my sweatshirt that hasn't seen action since Scotland.

We are excited to have a few relaxed days here. There are pros and cons about our hostel. It is inexpensive and has a book exchange with books I actually want to read but the rooms are quite bare and the city parks garbage trucks in a lot close by. The hostel owners told me that there is no garbage smell at the hostel so I suppose that I am conditioned to smell garbage when I see garbage trucks. Oh Pavlov, if it weren't for you it wouldn't smell bad around here. 

Another con is that, within an hour of our arrival, we have been mumbled at by an inebriate who stopped at our table and then became instantly confused at why he had stopped. "I'm just trying to figure out which one..." he said as he stumbled away. It isn't actually an issue except that it is the third awkward event in three days for me and I'm hoping it stops there.

Tomorrow we will explore the town and surrounding areas. Maybe we will even have some tea and strawberries with honey!

Indonesia Review

Ashley and I very much enjoyed Indonesia. It is probably our favorite out of all the Southeast Asian countries that we visited. It fit what we were looking for perfectly and gave a little extra as well. It is definitely in the top three countries we've visited on this excursion.

One of the main reasons I found Indonesia so pleasant was that it is a good mix of freedoms versus development/infrastructure. The roads are developed and mostly safe but you can drive a scooter with a surfboard strapped to the side around without being in breach of safety laws. Don't get me wrong I think that safety laws are important but it is nice to experience personal responsibility as opposed to third party regulation. It is what allures us to travel; to feel the breeze while sitting on top of the bus instead of being regulated to be inside it. It is important to note that it is taking a risk as every year there are stories of unfortunate tourists perishing in their acts of freedom.

Indonesia is one of the more inexpensive countries. A good meal can be purchased for under $2 and other expenses such as hostels and transportation are not overwhelming as in some other countries. This is good for us as we near the end of our trip and the end of our funds.

Indonesia has delicious food. We were very pleased with the variety of dishes and their deliciousness. I never thought I would crave rice but someone when we ordered other foods we always experienced a twinge of sorrow to not be eating the usual dish. Nasi goreng and Nasi Campur (fried rice and mixed rice) were our two favorites. These are the basic, every day meals of the Indonesian people and we definitely learned why. Don't worry though, my love for sandwiches remains steadfast.

Water activities were mainly what there is to do in Indonesia (makes sense considering Indonesia is made up of thousands of islands). Surfing, snorkelling, diving, swimming, and fishing are main activities. I am happy for the water because it gave some relief to the heat. One highlight for us is that we were able to see and swim with a turtle while snorkelling. We watched it forever while it slowly swam and ate but it was a lot of fun to see.

There is only one thing that I regret about Indonesia; we did not get the chance to go to Komodo island. I had no idea it was part of Indonesia and it would have been amazing to see but unfortunately factors such as distance and timing came into play. It would have been fascinating to see the island and the dragons but I suppose National Geographic will have to be good enough me.

Overall Indonesia was the most affordable, relaxed, and diverse of the SEA countries we've visited. The people were always friendly and helpful and there was always something interesting to see and do. There was also plenty of opportunity to take a day for relaxing, reading, and laying in the sun (if that's what you're into).

Kuala Lumpur

Another day of travel yesterday and another day recuperating. Well deserved I should say as we did not arrive at our hostel until around 3am. Being in limbo has become second nature to us in both the smaller and larger pictures. Recovering from a long stretch is a little more challenging though as staying in hostels limits ones freedom to complete tasks. Nap times can be hard to come by due to noise from others, heat, restlessness, etc.

Once we are rested we hope to explore Kuala Lumpur. This city is massive with many attractions. Botanical gardens with butterfly, orchid, and bird sanctuaries, History and Islamic art museums, and markets are all on the radar for visiting and within walking distance of our hostel. The Petronas towers are the second largest buildings in the world and supposed to be an impressive sight; you might say that I expect to Petronas. This will make for a few days of wandering and figuring how this city works.

We also hope to see more of peninsular Malaysia. The oldest jungle in the world is in Malaysia and can be accessed via Taman Negara national park. There are also the Cameron Highlands which hold tea plantations and spectacular scenery. We will see where we end up. Our plans now have to be mindful of time which is a factor we haven't had to deal with much in the past six months. Our grand finale.

Ugh

Here is one of the most difficult parts of travelling. When I am tired and want to lay down or relax I may not be able to because my bed might be 30 minutes drive away and I may have to wait another couple hours before the shuttle comes to pick me up. Now becomes buying something at a restaurant and hoping the owners don't care if I sit for a few hours.

I learned something today; uneven sidewalks can lead to disaster but if you reduce your pace and take it slow you can navigate the sidewalks and look around while doing it without tripping. Genius! I am actually very focused on the way that I walk lately. I read a book called Born To Run which was amusing and informative. It is a fascinating story which presents a theory that humans are uniquely built for distance running. From that theory the author looks at different cultures, statistics, historical data, and present trends giving a surprisingly powerful argument. 

One aspect that I found very intriguing is how our walking and running has changed since the implementation of pavement, shoes, and especially running-shoes. The authors argument is that the implementation of these (especially the running shoes) has allowed us to take longer strides and in turn has us landing on our heals. Landing on the heal disrupts the foots natural design of shock absorption, weight distribution and path finding essentially leaving us weak in the feet and prone to injury. While I'm not tossing out my shoes I am examining my own stride and making some minor adjustments.

It also has me thinking about our travels in a new light. When Ashley and I walked the streets of Lima, our first stop in our travels, we may easily have been mistaken as inebriated by how much we stumbled. It turns out that smooth sidewalks are as much a luxury as traveling to eleven different countries is. It only dawned on me how much better we are at walking and how much slower we go while we are doing it. The curse of walking while sight-seeing is stubbed toes, rolled ankles, and jammed heals. The cure it seems is walking at a ridiculously slow pace or stare at your feet the whole time. 

I hope this has been informative if not entirely useless. Either way I am saving a space on my resume for this new found skill. "Learned to walk slowly over rough terrain" is surely a job securing skill.

A quick update. Tomorrow we are flying from Bali back to Kuala Lumpur where we start the final chapter of our travels. The last leg.

Lemonchello, Reading, Transition

Lemonchello. Ever heard of it? It is a lemon liqueur made in Italy and served after a meal as a digestive. I tried some yesterday because of all things on this tiny island there is a couple from Italy that owns a restaurant. I'm usually not too fond of Italian restaurants. The food is usually either too greasy or just a boring tomato-based concoction that brings only one flavor to my taste buds. This was different. This was delicious. So much so that it changed my perspectives.

After our restaurant experience we walked back to our guest house in the dark. We met a confused looking Englishman who asked us how to get to the water. I found it to be a curious question because we are on a tiny Island. Ten minutes walk in any direction leads to the water here. "How do you get lost on a tiny Island" I said to Ashley. Ten minutes later... we weren't lost, we just didn't know where we were. It was actually uneventful as we just followed the path our road turned into south until we popped out into a field we recognized not five minutes from our guesthouse.

In three weeks I will be on a plane to Canada while Ashley flies to Australia. This time frame has provided a degree of motivation to keep going. It is strange to think of our time as moving toward and ending instead of moving away from a beginning. It will be a welcome change to begin again. Ashley and I are both very happy with the fact that, despite where we have been and what we have seen, it has only shown us how much we enjoy life at home. Though I lament being removed from the opportunities travel provides, I am content to resume a less mobile life. I have no fear in the transition.

I suppose I will also regret losing the freedom to read without interruption from other responsibilities. In the past two months I have read: Hard Times, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Ciderhouse Rules, The Old Man and the Sea, The Quiet American, The Fallen Idol/The Third Man, The Imaginary Girlfriend, For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Catcher In the Rye, Born To Run, and The Great Gatsby as an audiobook. Thats more than I have ever read before and I am enjoying every minute of it. I don't want it to stop actually but I know that my ability to do continue such a pace will meet head on with life responsibilities and distractions. I have also learned that I need to add some contemporary books in between my friends in classic literature. It actually helps build momentum.

It is now too hot to write.

Gili Air

Wifi is hard to come by on this island. Our guest house does not have it yet and there are only a few restaurants that advertise it. This post may never see the internet. It depends on how long we are trapped in paradise.

Gili in Indonesian means island in English. We are settled on the northernmost of a grouping of three islands off the northwest short of Lombok: Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno, and our present location Gili Air. All of the islands are without fresh water (it is boated over from Lombok), without motorized vehicles, and without dogs. Meno is least developed and most tranquil, Air is focused on diving and snorkelling, and Trawangan is famed for its magic mushrooms. Gili T's mushrooms have spilled over to the other islands as well. At almost every restaurant here you can purchase a "Bloody fresh magic mushroom shake". Add a number of expletives before the word bloody in that sentence and you'll know the rest of the signs. I am unsure if that is just the lingo that has developed around them or if the name of the variety of mushroom is "bloody fresh".

Our guesthouse is a beautiful mix of white colonial concrete villa and bamboo bungalow with thatched roof. Its stone paths lined with green grass and beautiful plant. At the center courtyard there is a restaurant style seating area and a small but effective pool. Every morning we wake to the roosters, walk as far as we please around the island (it takes an hour and fifteen for an island loop at a leisurely pace), eat breakfast, and then lay up pool side until we feel like moving on.

There are beaches on this island but none are worth sitting on due to bits of sharp coral piled up. There are beach side restaurants with shaded, padded seats that are built facing the water. Our lunch and afternoons have involved getting lost in the sounds of the ocean, in a good book, in the actual ocean or in a delicious lime shake.

At dinner time the restaurants set up tables on the beach, light lanterns or candles, and turn on their music. The music is anything from blues to Metallica (a soothing dinnertime musical treat). Two days ago we enjoyed a marlin bbq skewer. I have never had marlin but I recently read The Old Man and the Sea which has a marlin for one of its main characters so I was tempted to try it. I was not disappointed but I will be if I learn that I ate an endangered species once we get the internet again. I have been worrying a little bit.

With a some good books and a small amount in the bank one could survive here for weeks on end.

The surf

Today marks the second time surfing here. It was disappointing. The waves were large; too big for my skill level and there were too many people in the water trying for the same space. I also chose the wrong board; too short and narrow for my skill level, not that having a longer and broader one would have helped much.

In the end the tally stood at one surfboard lost, one scraped and bloodied shin, two tumbles in the white wash without a board, one long swim back to the boat, one recovered board, six tumbles in the white wash with a board, and three attempted waves that I could do nothing but cling for dear life on. I suppose a shorter tally would look something along the lines of Ocean 15 Erik 2. A somewhat crushing defeat.

To sate your obvious curiosity I'll explain. The waves came in a broad horseshoe shape and I was attempting to stay on the edge of them where the crest was less powerful and it was less crowded. Unfortunately I was pushed closer to the center with each set of waves rolling in. Eventually I was in the thick of it. I took a wave because the only other option was to get crushed. Instead I was pushed towards another surfer who did the only to do when another surfer is hurtling towards you, dive. I caught the back end of his board on my shin and it also managed to hook the leash attached to the same leg. The leash popped off although I didn't feel anything other than the power of the ocean and remorse for deciding to surf that day. Once the wave had crested and its power had diminished I decided I had better try to stand up. I fell while attempting this and at this point, when I did not feel the usual pull of the surf board on the leash, I realized the leash was no longer attached to me. I found my buddy in the water and we shared his board while looking around for mine. It was no where to be seen. At this point two of the local instructors who came out with their trainees on our boat told me to get back to the boat and search for it from there. I have only ever swum that far in the open water one other time in my life and I have the same opinion of both events; unpleasant. I ended up finding my board, scooping it up and I headed out for another try only to be crushed by the powerful waves again but this time I had a board with me.

One good thing happened while I was out there. I learned how to duck a wave a little better. In fact, by the end of the session, I even ducked a wave successfully without getting caught up in it. I also learned when to paddle for your life and when is a good time to pack it in. Another good thing is that I still have my leg and no one has any stab wounds. So it wasn't all bad.

I will surf again and hopefully it will be a successful day.

Indonesia

Indonesia is a wonderful place. So far one of our favorite in Southeast Asia. The food is delicious, plentiful, and inexpensive. The sun shines on a beautiful blue ocean. The people a the friendliest we have met throughout our travels.  It is as close to paradise as one could imagine.

We stayed two days in Bali; one of many Islands of Indonesia. It was crowded, hot, and hard to get around. We rented scooters on of the days and ran into the most traffic we have driven in yet. A huge tourist population is crowded on to Bali with many hotels and resorts to accommodate. We stayed for two days and moved on to an island further east of Bali called Lombok.

Lombok is what we have been searching for. The island is small. It is mainly agricultural with rice fields growing all over. It also has a number of beaches which attracts many surfers and not many partiers or tourists at present. I am sure the island will become more developed as time passes but for now it is an uncrowded gem.

We have been surfing once in three days and hopefully tomorrow will make a second time. It is much different than Canoa. There are few places with beginner waves that break on beaches. We visit a beach called Maui today and saw waves that would have crushed me; a brother to a brother and a cousin high. On account of this when we surfed we took a boat to a spot off shore that had smaller waves. 

The waves were larger than anyone had expected for that day and I can say they were larger than what I saw in Canoa. I sort of accidentally caught the first wave I tried for perfectly and was very proud of myself but it was short lived as it was my best performance of the day. At about the mid way point in our trip there was a particularly large group of waves that snuck in and crushed most of the surfers in the water. Surf borders went flying. Surfers tumbled through the churning white wash. I got water in my ears. It was glorious.

We have also been enjoying scooter rides on this island. There is one main highway and there are few vehicles on it. We have been exploring more and more finding beaches and small villages. Today Ashley gave high fives to four children while sitting on the back of the scooter; they were pumped. We met a group of sixty children all in uniforms walking in a line on the side of the rode. When we rode by they started waving and continued to do so all the way down the line. The price of fame? Everywhere we go we are greeted by exuberant half clothed or non clothed children. Ashley's dream come true.

Typical

Want to know a secret about budget travel? Here it is; nothing goes as planned.

Observe:

After a day of lounging poolside at our hotel we decided to explore Penang. We woke up ready to start our day at 7:30am. We left the hotel at a quarter to eleven. Our plan was to take a taxi to the Penang National Park and from there hike an hour and a half to monkey beach where we would spend the afternoon.

We found a taxi by the mall who said he could take us to the national park. We found it to be a reasonable price so we hopped in. Thirty minutes later we arrived at a park. It was a pleasant looking place with a botanical garden and an extremely steep hill with a paved walking/biking path. We asked the driver which way monkey beach was and he pointed up the hill. It was at this point through a series of loud bursts we discovered that the other building on the premises was a rifle range. We went to a booth by the hill where a park ranger informed us that Penang national park was very far away but we could walk up the hill for 3 hours to get a nice view of the city. We decided to amble around the park enjoying the sounds of nature and rifles. We did find monkeys and fed them until one charged the girls fangs exposed.

We found another taxi drive to take us to real national park. It was only an hour further. When we arrived it was roughly 1:30. I found some sort of soup with fish heads in it for a quick lunch (it was only $0.33 and we started our 1.5 hour hike. We were told that the park closes at 6pm and that we should started walking back at 5:30. We were also told there were boats there that could take us back to the entrance for $25. We hoped to not have to take the boat.

The hike was lovely. It only took us an hour and it ranged from concrete boardwalks to sandy beaches to jungle paths. The beach was nice too and it was entertaining to see groups of monkeys going through the garbage, drinking from pop cans, and stealing from tourists as they helplessly stood by. I came prepared with sticks because we had heard tales of practically whole tourists being stolen by monkeys.

One pleasant surprise was that a boat taxi came to ask if we wanted a ride back and told us he would only charge $5. We took him up on the offer and earlier than we thought too because within 45 minutes of being there it threatened rain and within an hour the threat turned into a promise. We were back at the entrance by 4:30.

Our return journey consisted of a 2 hour public bus ride a search for a taxi and a half hour taxi ride. In the end we spent 4 hours in transportation and 2 hours outside. Not quite what we expected the day would look like.

In the end it did not work out how we expected or would have wanted but from this side of the day it was wholly enjoyable. Nothing goes as planned!

Penang

George Town is a sea port on the island of Penang. We are staying in a hotel close to the airport which is about thirty minutes from George Town, from the beaches, and from anything remotely touristy. Nearby there is a mall which is 6 stories of insanity. When I say insanity think no layout, no rhyme or reason for anything, duplicate stores like crazy, and half of them are closed at any give point in the day. We have eaten 90 percent of our meals in the mall food-court because there are no restaurants close by. As terrible as it sounds the food-court is just mom and pop restaurants inside accompanied by KFC and McDonalds.

Our time here has mostly been spent in the hotel which sounds terrible like the aforementioned food court but it has also been nice. There is AC inside which has been a welcome relief from the heat and humidity. Tomorrow we are moving on from here to Kuala Lumpur and from Kuala Lumpur to Bali. There we shall surf, hike, snorkel, eat, and sleep. Life is hard these days.

On Sunday there is a general election in Malaysia. The big one. There are many campaign posters around advertising for the two major parties. What is most impressive are the flags. There are hundreds of thousands of flags flying each with the insignia of the different parties on each. There are flags hanging from apartment buildings, lining the streets, flying from restaurants, in yards, etc. It is not so much one flag flying in these places; there are flags and flags and flags all tied together sometimes hundreds at a time. It is kind of incredible to see. Today I saw a sign with one of the candidates faces on it and the words "Too Lazzzzzy" written underneath. I'm happy that the smear campaigns are so sophisticated.

Langkawi, Malaysia

After almost two entire days of travel we reached Malaysia safely. I am actually very proud of our little group for how well we travelled. We made wise decisions, made sure we were not rushed into anything we did not want to do (a common tactic with the tourism industry workers in Thailand), and stayed well fed and happy along the way. In the end it took probably three hours more than if we had made hurried decisions and we arrived safe and happy. Good for us.

Langkawi is an island in the Northwest of Malaysia. We crossed the border on the mainland in Thailand and entered Malaysia through the border on the island which means we spent a good hour and a half in no-man's-land. The island is actually a cluster of 99 islands with Langkawi being the largest and most developed. It is also the most touristy but there is good news; it is almost completely void of tourists! There are half empty resorts, beach chalets, hotels, motels, and guest houses everywhere. Unfortunately none of these places is willing to give a discount for what appears to be the offseason.

Yesterday we shared a beach that stretched 2km or more with maybe 30 people. We sat under rented umbrellas, the girls enjoying the heat while the boys longed for some sort of ball or activity to keep busy. While the sun was going down we went for dinner and ate huge rice, veggie, and chicken dishes for under $2. While we were eating we saw a place serving shaved ice which sounded like a wonderful idea. One of our friends stepped up and ordered what was on the picture. As it turned out it was not shaved ice but ice cubes in a bowl with sugar water, fruit salad, peanuts, tapioca balls, chia seeds, lychees, jello (maybe?), and other ingredients that were completely unknown to us. It made a thick fruit soup with sugar water broth. I fulfilled my role as garbage disposal unit and found that it was quite good, the peanuts were the strangest part for me.

Malaysia is one of the most stable economies in Southeast Asia. It has huge import and export capabilities and many companies have factories here that create products and distribute them all over SEA. Its tourism industry is also quite large attracting visitors from India, Australia, Japan, and China. Malaysia's "Ringitt" trades at 3.3333R to $1. It is a switch from Thailands 27 Baht to $1 or Laos 7,700Kip to $1.

Malaysia is predominantly Muslim having been highly influenced in the past by muslim traders and settlers coming from India. There is also Buddhism and Hinduism mixed in from Chinese immigrants. This mix is also makes for a unique experience to us as the locals dress reflects muslim beliefs and we are not quite sure how to be culturally appropriate to that yet, especially on the beach. Yesterday we rented chairs and an umbrella from a local woman and at the end of the day she and four of her women friends (or family) went for a swim in the ocean, in full dress! There they were splashing and laughing with long pants, sleeves, and headdresses.

Our next step here will be to rent scooters and explore the island. There is a cable car that spans the mountain range in the north that we have been told not to miss at sunset. There are also a number of black sand beaches that are begging us to pay attention to them. This morning it is raining which could mean anything from a morning shower to a steady drizzle all day to a build up and downpour to a full on lighting and thunder extravaganza. The rain is welcome though as we are all nursing sunburns.

Next steps will be travelling to another Malaysian island called Penang which is supposed to be beautiful, after that Kuala Lumpur and a hopefully cheap flight to Indonesia.

Cambodia Review

Our time in Cambodia was unique to our travels. We did not stay in the country very long and we mainly stayed in two different cities. We did not travel very much in Cambodia but we enjoyed our experience.

Something to know about Cambodia is that its infrastructure is not quite there yet. Siem Reap is probably the most tourist friendly city due to Angkor Wat and even it is not entirely what you might expect of a place with tourists pouring through each year. Cambodia has been beaten down time and time again in the past hundred years coming to a head when the Khmer Rouge took power and systematically executed 2-3 million people. The Khmer Rouge also liquified all of the countries assets destroying its banks and industry; anything with western influence was destroyed. The country has had to completely rebuild from the ground up for the past 40 years. Considering that they lost a third of their population including most of the intellectuals, business owners, teachers, and medical professionals I think they have done a very good job. The country has seen steady growth and political stability while dealing with some very heavy trauma.

The growth that Cambodia has maintained is partly due to other countries. I believe that when the full extent of the damage of the Khmer Rouge was revealed the world collectively gasped and began to send aid. Since then Cambodia has become a hotspot for charities and NGO's. More in quantity than any other country we've visited and definitely more visibly active. I think that this has definitely given the country a much needed boost and hopefully will continue to be helpful to Cambodia.

One thing that I found interesting was the amount of cattle and land for cattle that I saw. The entire northern part of our drive through Cambodia was devoted pastures for ox and cattle. It developed further south into rice paddies but still with cattle mixed in. Although we have seen many cows and oxen in other SE Asian countries I had not seen such a concentration of them and land seemingly devoted only for them.

For us Cambodia was a quick stop but well worth it. We were almost paralyzed with the unrelenting heat but we soon learned how to deal with it better (find a spot with a breeze and don't move from 1pm to 5pm). We were also almost paralyzed by the garbage smell. Some cities were terrible to walk through when the breeze was in the wrong direction. This hasn't necessarily been uncommon in our travels though and you learn to take something clothe to breath through.

We were pleasantly surprised by the delicious food in Cambodia. We had mixed reviews from other travellers but we found it superb, especially in Siem Reap. My favorite was a pad thai type of meal but crepes substituted for noodles and a thin honey and peanut sauce instead of tamarind sauce. Also on our radar was Amok, a curry vegetable soup. Yum yum yum!

Another unexpected part of our travels in Cambodia was the history. As I described in a previous blog this was very challenging but worthwhile for us. A horrific event that should both be remembered and never repeated. As one author I briefly read wrote; "They (Cambodians) deserve better than what they have received."

Koh Tao

We have spent the last two nights on Koh Tao; a beautiful island off the coast of Thailand. Koh Tao means turtle island and it is famed for its beautiful beaches and dive sites around the island. It has the best beaches we've seen so far. We rented scooters for $5 per day and explored the island. One beach became a favorite due to its idyllic views, beautiful water, and a cliffside restaurant with delicious food and cold fruit shakes. We could have spent the entire day looking out from the restaurant except for the uncomfortable chairs.

At first our plan was to do a five day long dive course to get an open water dive certificate. It then changed to do a one day intro to diving course. Then we went snorkelling and saw so much that we decided we didn't need to dive at all. I could not figure out why I had never been snorkelling before until I realized that I wouldn't have been able to see anything due to murky water. Nevertheless we are moving on and I may have discovered a new hobby.

We are now sitting in a coffee shop waiting for a boat to leave the island. When we get back to the mainland we will find another place to sit and wait for our train. We will be taking the overnight train to Hat Yai. In Hat Yai will will be taking a minivan to a port where we will be taking a boat Langkawi Island in Malaysia. All we need to do is take a plane and we will have a complete transportation experience.

We are excited for Malaysia and intend to spend 10-12 days there. It is generally off the usual tourist path and there are many beautiful things to explore.

Safe and sound with friends around

We are back in Bangkok after a day of traveling; another unpleasant speeding cramped minivan. We met our friends Matt and Elaina at the airport which was a surprise we are thankful worked out. We did not arrive back at our hostel until 2am. We went to bed and an hour or so later we were awakened by a massive thunderstorm above the city but it soon went away.

Today we have been taking it slow, chatting, eating (we love pad thai), and planning our trip. We have made some needed purchases and are ready to move on. Tomorrow we will try our luck with Thai trains. We are heading far south with a final destination being A little island called Koh Toa. It is supposed to be surrounded by a great reef and is the perfect spot for diving which we are all hoping to do a little of.

We are very excited for this next phase in our trip. Travelling with friends is already a welcome change. We have also begun to count down the weeks until our return instead of the weeks we have been away. This was a sneaky transition but we are okay with it. Time is only a measurement but it is not the most important measurement that we have.

Sihanoukville Routine

We have been in Sihanoukville for the past four nights with two more to stay. We have been steadily discovering some enjoyable features of this town. It has been especially enjoyable since the end of the new year celebrations and the mass exodus of vacationers and tourists. In its wake it has left a sleepy rainy season tourist town.

The beach here is beautiful but it is not exactly ideal. The presence of garbage, both physical and aromatic, lessens our desire to hang around. We have adopted a hit and run method for the beach. We go, we swim, we dry a bit, we leave. So far it has served us well. Ashely even swims with me as the water is quite warm. I even started sweating in the ocean while swimming on a particularly warm day. I imagined that it was helping me to swim faster but I am sure this function was very limited.

Our days have been spent mainly reading. There is a book shop down the way that sells photocopied and used books. If you return a book purchased from there you get fifty percent off that books price toward the next purchase. I am on my third book in three days though I have intentionally been choosing books with fewer pages. I hope to buy a larger book the day before we leave to last me until we find another book store. It is probably no consolation but I have tried to purchase books of authors who are dead as xeroxed books are not exactly supporting those that write them.

We have discovered a way to beat the heat here. We are on the third floor of our hostel which backs onto a field which extends to the beach. There is a narrow open-ended hallway for room access with balconies on either side. The sun never shines on it so it stays cool and the sea breeze is channelled and intensified in the hallway. It provides the perfect place to sit and enjoy with a view and a breeze. Today we switched from a middle room to a room facing the water. We lost a second bed but we gained another window, a view, a table and chairs, and a sea breeze. I am very excited.

In two days time we will be meeting our friends in Bangkok to start a month of travel for them. We are so very excited for this. We have been on our own for four months now and to have established friends coming will be wonderful. They are also bringing vital supplies such as dinosours, books, deodorant, and pens. I am particularly excited about the dinosours but even more excited for sharing adventures with friends.

3,000,000

It has taken me a few days to process before writing about the following. We stayed in Phnom Penh for two days after Siem Reap. Our purpose for going there was to see the Choeung Ek and Toul Sleng monuments and museums. These words meant nothing to me until I understood the modifiers that went along with them; Choeung Ek killing fields and Toul Sleng Prison genocide museum. Here lay horrors of the past that should always be remembered and never repeated. Absolute horrors.

I will leave the the history for you to research on your own, though I think it is key to understanding, and focus on what we saw at these places. Thousands went through the Toul Sleng prisons. Originally a secondary school the Khmer Rouge turned it into the most secretive of their prisons. Thousands were interrogated for information and tortured for confession of crimes against the regime. Each person was catalogued both written and photograph. Chained and starved the prisoners would be sent to Choeung Ek.

Thirty to sixty people daily from 1975-1979 and in the latter years of the Khmer Rouges power around 300 per day were sent to Choeung Ek. Here they would be unloaded from a truck, catalogued to make sure none escaped, put in a holding cell, and one by one marched out to a shallow grave and bludgeoned or hacked to their death. Hatchets, machetes, garden hoes, bamboo poles, and other devices were used to kill saving precious bullets for fighting. After the murders the guards would spread DDT on the bodies and buried them. Twenty thousand people killed at one site and there were many more killing fields set up around Cambodia.

Walking into the killing fields the area was dominated by what looked to be a temple only it was too irregular. The roof looked similar to a temple but the structure was tall and narrow comparatively. As we walked closer I realized what it was; a monument to those who died at Choeung Ek. The skulls of victims are stored within its glass sides. Each one has been cleaned and preserved. The monument is the most gruesome and the most moving thing I have ever seen. Its terrible presence was impossible to ignore. I could not keep my eyes off of it during our visit and I have wept every time I think of it since.

Roughly three million Cambodian people died between 1975 and 1979; roughly one out of every four people. Celebrities, politicians, intellectuals, teachers, and even people with glasses were targeted for execution. Countless more died due to starvation, forced labor, and disease. The brutality of the Khmer Rouge is possibly the worst in history and the events leading up before and after it are regrettable at best, murder at worst, and shameful for other countries who continued to recognize the Khmer Rouge as the legitimate government even after stories of its crimes started to surface. It is not only Cambodia but the world who needs to learn from these events.

Emotion still runs high concerning this time period. The population is still confused, angry, and grieved but their is a very strong movement for reconciliation instead of vengeance. There is a strong push to bury the victims with reverence and remember the events that took place in order to never allow it to happen again. Anger is still present but many people recognize it at a motivator for a violence that they do not want to see again.

And that is all I have to say about that.

Sihanoukville

We are approaching the rainy season in Southeast Asia and we have already had a couple magnificent examples of it. This morning is one example. The rain is coming straight down with only a little breeze from the ocean. The road in front of us is a newly formed river. Unfortunately this river is incredibly polluted with all sorts of plastic and styrofoam containers. Lighting and thunder flash and rumble as if it is an overseer shouting for the rain to work harder.

I woke up because our power was out. The fan in our room had stopped working and the temperature in our room had risen to stifling. Fortunately for us the rain has a cooling effect. We propped the door to our room open like a sail and it is effectively sending a steady rush of cool wind through our room. At the moment we are sitting at a table in a covered balcony on the third floor of our guest house. We moved guest houses yesterday because our first one was a rickety, old, and smelly place that lost power for a few minutes every fifteen minutes or so.

Sihanoukville is in southern Cambodia. It is famed for its miles of sandy beaches and proximity to an island where the movie "the beach" was filmed. Apparently locals and foreigners alike vacation here but hoards of people come in during the new year celebrations. I have grown tired of new year as everyone from bus companies to guest houses to taxi drivers uses it as a reason that we should pay more for their services. At one point I asked when this holiday was over because I was so tired of having this extra tax put on.

The town itself has a few different sections. Cambodia's largest (and maybe only) port is located here which encompasses much of the west side of town. There is a downtown located away from the beaches that stretches back into the hills with the roofs of large hotels and guesthouses speckled between the trees. The beaches are the main attraction to the town and you can find four or five of different ones within walking distance of each other. The town is very much geared towards tourists with hundreds of restaurants and guesthouses to choose from.

Our first impressions of this town were very negative. We had a lot of trouble finding a guesthouse because every one that we stopped by had raised there prices to be four or five times the amount advertised due to new year. We finally bartered one down from a ridiculous price to an unreasonable one and settled in. To go with this food prices were up from previous areas and the beach across from where we were staying had thousands of people at it; it was standing room only.

We have since found a couple spots that we feel more comfortable at and a nicer hostel for less money. This coupled with end of the new year celebrations marking the exodus of many people has helped us form a new opinion. We still don't really like it here but it will be a good place to live the beach life for a few days before we make our way back to Bangkok. There is still some exploring to do and we can rent a scooter for five dollars or less for a day.