Home At Last

I just wanted to quickly let everyone know that I made it home safe and sound. The trip from Bangkok to St.John's went very smoothly and was at times enjoyable...thanks to the executive class upgrade certificates I had. ;)

I landed in St.John's around 1am Sunday morning and managed to get a few hours of sleep. This morning, Louise made an amazing breakfast, my first hearty breakfast in over a year. Then it was off to Aunt Marion's for a Burridge dinner. Delicious! Finally, it was back to Louise's for stuffed baked salmon. I'm beginning to understand how Meaghan has been able to survive without Thai food for the last 2 months.

Sean

Homeward Bound

In a few short hours, I'll be on my way to Bangkok's International airport. For the last couple of days, I've been frantically trying to see everyone before I leave. Meg and I made some amazing friends while in Thailand and it is extremely difficult saying goodbye, especially considering I don't know when I'll see them again.

A couple of days ago, Bryan, Tui, and I went to a friend's apartment for a Christmas party. Oddly enough, her apartment overlooks Soi Cowboy, one of the infamous red light districts of Bangkok. Granted, with all the ambient neon light filling the room there was little need for any Christmas lights. Bye Serena! We'll see you in Italy. ;) Afterwards, Angus, Oh, Eumin, and I went clubbing. It was one of those 5am nights at Scratchdog. There's not much else to tell besides there was excessive drinking involved.

Yesterday, I made my way to AIS for a final farewell with all of my close AIS friends: Gwyn, Tuggy, Gor, Un, Bon, and Pui 1 (Pui 2 was no where to be found). It truly was a pleasure working (and playing) with them. I'd consider working at AIS simply for the fact that I'd enjoy the people so much. Last night, Tui, Bryan, Eumin and I went to Angus and Oh's new apartment. We started the evening with delightful food and dessert, then we watched a Thai movie called "The Letter"...sniff, so depressing.



Today, I made my final rounds. First of all, Tui, Bryan, and I went out for my last Thai lunch just before Bryan had to catch a flight to Vietnam. As usual, we enjoyed 6 of our favorite Thai dishes. Damn, have I mentioned how much I'm going to miss the food here!? Next, I met my friend Pin to go see the latest Tony Jaa movie, "Ong-Bak 2". There was no way I was leaving Thailand without seeing it, especially since it was released today. Crazy awesome martial arts - Tony Jaa is amazing! Afterwards, I met up with Tui again to drop off the remaining stuff from the apartment that they're most graciously taking off our hands (shipping everything was not an option). Tui said she's going to meet me on the street when I go to get a taxi to the airport this morning at 4am...we'll see if she's able to pull herself out of bed. :)

Finally, what's a proper departure without visiting Santica. So, off Angus, Oh, and I went, to our favorite stomping ground. Since it's the King's Birthday (and also Father's Day), there weren't many people around but it was still a great time. Now, I am putting the finishing touches on my packing and will leave for the airport in an hour. Good-bye Thailand! Until next time.

Sean

Trapped in Bangkok

At the moment, I'm not very confident that I'll be getting out of Bangkok by December 6th. A court ruling just dissolved 3 political parties, including the one in power, and banned the PM from politics for 5 years over fraud charges. So, the protesters have gotten what they wanted and will leave the airports, right? Not quite. Seems they want the ministers banned as well. Regardless, even if they did abandon the airports, it could take weeks for inspections and re-certifications to be completed. If I wait around, I may very well spend Christmas in Thailand.

My good friend Dave W emailed me to offer his support writing "something like this happens to me all the time." It's true, bad things just seem to happen to Dave. So much so that I firmly believe Murphy's law should be re-written to "if anything can go wrong, it will (happen to Dave)". He always had the most interesting adventures when he'd travel for work to the US or UK, I suppose I'm getting a taste of it.

On a brighter note, I just finished packing up my apartment. It was a daunting task, squeezing everything Meg and I had collected in the last year into 2 carry-ons and 3 checked bags but at least it's done. Now, if only I was able to go somewhere....



Sean

P.S. Aunt Marion, if I can't made it to your house for Sunday dinner, save me a plate. ;)

Change of Scenery

Life sure is funny. Just over a week ago, I called my sister Melanie to tell her I had both good and bad news. The good news? I'd just gotten a raise! The bad news. My company went under 2 days later. Oh, we laughed and we laughed. Mel and I have always had disturbed sense of humours.

I'm sure most people are aware of what happened to my company. By now, most of my co-workers have accepted positions with new companies and I'll be joining them soon enough. For the past 10 days, I've been cluing up things here in Southeast Asia, meeting with clients and partners. It is very unfortunate how everything turned out but I suppose that's the way these things go sometimes and the only thing to do is move on.

I fly home to St.John's on December 6th but I'll be spending the remaining week exploring opportunities with partners and the possibility that they may continue some of the work with our clients.

I had considered taking a vacation to Cambodia but that idea was quickly dismissed yesterday when the anti-government protesters stormed the Bangkok International Airport and brought all services to a halt. Today, they took over the domestic airport so unless I want to travel by bus or train, I'm not going anywhere. Honestly, it's not advisable as they have interrupted ground transportation in the past.

Not to worry though, I'm sure all of this will be sorted out by the time I have to leave. Until then, I have a number of friends to visit so I'll simply hang out with them and enjoy my last week in Bangkok.

Sean

Khon Kaen

This weekend past, I decided to get out of the city and check out more of rural Thailand. At the invitation of some Thai friends (Ann, Art, and Bee), I decided to meet up with them in Khon Kaen, a province in Northeastern Thailand (a.k.a. Isan). It was a great time as Khon Kaen sees few tourists. I met with my friends for a Vietnamese lunch on Saturday, going out with Art's parents who, like most Thai people, are extremely friendly. Afterwards, we visited a temple called Wat Nong Want Muang which I explored and enjoyed thoroughly. We checked out a few other lesser known sites and then went for dinner at a streetside vendor that was serving Isan food , including a delicious barbeque fish. Finally, it was off to a crowded local club called U-Bar, where I was the only foreigner. I got to meet lots of people though and my spoken Thai is gradually getting to a point where I can have basic conversations. I really want to explore more of Isan now, especially the province where Meg and my's friend Tui is from, Si Saket.







Sean

One Year Later

Gee, time sure does fly. It's hard to believe that it has been one year since Meg and I left St.John's to move to Thailand. During that time, we've been fortunate enough to travel throughout Thailand (although we still have to explore more of the beaches), Japan (Toyko is crazy awesome), Mayalsia (the jungles probably being our favorite trip to date), Laos (the most kicked back country in the world), and Vietnam (it's with good reason Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site). Every time we discuss our next trip, we find it difficult deciding where to go. I know too much history about Cambodia not to go but Meg is determined to see Tasmania. Stay tuned....

With only a month left before I head home, there is a lot to do to prepare. For one, Meg and I are desperately looking for new homes for our kitties Gahnomee and Chochie but so far we haven't had any takers. Perhaps it's time to bring them to Thailand. But who wouldn't want to take care of these cuties (picture here investigating their new kennel)!?! ;)



Yes, it does appear that Meg and I will be returning to Thailand in the New Year but not before enjoying the comforts of home with family and friends for an entire month. If anyone is looking for me, chances are you'll find me at Don Cherry's for wing night every Monday and Tuesday.

Sean

Monsoon Season

Monsoon season in Bangkok might be drawing to a close but it is going out with a bang. For the past couple of weeks, we've had torrential rainfall, resulting in streets flooded with black, oily water and bringing out the vermin from the depths of the sewers. Most often, we stay in the cozy confines of our apartment and enjoy the incredible thunder and lightning show but Tui was in an adventurous spirit today so off Tui, Bryan, and I went in search of lunch.



It only takes 15-20 minutes before the side streets start flooding. Sandals are a must as you can't expect to get anywhere without wading through some water. The deepest it got was about a foot.





Had we the appetite for it, we could have snack on the numerous cockroaches making a run for higher ground. They tend to cluster on the walls, wherever they can find a dry spot. Of course, there's no shortage of them running around your feet either but it's not so bad that you can't avoid them...almost.



Sean

Sean's Saturday

With Meg back in Canada, my "habit" of constantly working went into overdrive. Without Meg being here to gently remind me that I have to take time to relax (or eat for that matter), I rarely saw the light of day unless it was to attend meetings (which, thankfully, is quite often). After a couple of weeks, I realized I didn't fancy the idea of dying from malnutrition in front of my laptop and have since been making an effort to step away from my hermit lifestyle.

So, instead of waking up at 6am on a Saturday morning to work the daylight hours away, I've been getting out more with friends and taking time to relax by myself (ok, maybe I still work for a few hours but gimme a break, it's a gradual process). For instance, yesterday I spent my afternoon reading (just started "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini), playing guitar on my balcony (pictured below: a bit of a poser pic, I know), and then went out with friends for dinner to celebrate Tui's last day of work.



We went to the Tawandang Brew-House, a large German beer hall with great Thai food and impressive stage performers - whether its traditional Thai music and dance or an elaborate break dancing show, they have it all. For anyone coming to Bangkok for a visit, I highly recommend the place. By 10pm, people begin standing up at their tables to dance. The Thais love of relaxing and enjoying life to the fullist never ceases to amaze me. It's a good environment for me to be in.



Anyway, rest assured that I am healthy and have forsaken the vampiric existence of living in my bedroom, void of all light. :)

Sean

Halloween in Bangkok

Halloween isn't exactly a popular event in Thailand. From what I understand, it was introduced here for commercial purposes, another holiday for the malls to promote and profit from. Nonetheless, I wasn't going to let that stop me from dressing up and going out, even if I was the only person to do so.

A quick rummage through the closet didn't leave me with many options, it was a choice between being a samurai or...a samurai. So, I broke out the kimono I had bought from Tokyo last December, picked up a plastic sword from the mall, and voilà, instance samurai! (侍 in Japanese)

I ended up going to Muse, a popular Thai club. Unfortunately, very few people were dressed in costume. I would have gone to one of the more popular foreigner hangouts but Muse is just such a happenin' spot.



Sean - (a.k.a. Samurai Champloo's Jin)

Bangkok Theaters

Ya just gotta love the Bangkok theaters. Tui, Bryan, and I went to see "Tropic Thunder" recently (yes, it finally made it to Thailand) at the Nokia Theater in Siam Paragon. There are reclining couches instead of chairs, pillows and blankets, and people to bring you any food or beverages you might want. It's so comfortable that halfway through the movie Tui nodded off for 5 minutes. As for the movie itself, I loved it, especially Tom Cruise's crude character. I think my favorite scene was with the landmine...gold!



Sean

สวัสด

I just finished my last Thai language lesson. Meg and I have been taking weekly lessons since May but we have definitely not practiced as much as we should (isn't that always the case). I suppose we do know enough Thai to navigate Bangkok, order food, and have very basic conversations - and I mean BASIC!

Being a tonal language, meaning pitch defines the meaning of a word, it took awhile to train our ears to identify the tone being used (it's still very difficult to distinguish when speaking to Thais in ordinary conversation as they tend to speak quickly). And using the wrong tone can cause some major misunderstands. For example, "klay" spoken in a medium tone means "far" while spoken in a rising tone means "near". You get the idea.

Nonetheless, the Thai we have learned has made life easier in Thailand and, more importantly, gave us better insight into the wonderfully unique Thai culture. Next up, written Thai....

ฌอน (Sean)

STAcKeD

In terms of Thai cuisine, there's practically nothing that Meg and I cannot or will not eat. We absolutely love the food. I'm not sure how Meg is coping back in Canada at the moment without it. We eat out all the time! It's rare that we'll cook something ourselves. Since Meg left 2 weeks ago, I have yet to cook myself a meal. That changed tonight as I decided to stay in and break out a classic: STAcKeD - a.k.a Stove Top And Kraft Dinner.

When I was living in Ottawa 7 years ago with my cousin Chad, we took two of our favorite dishes, combined them, and added a little BBQ sauce for flavor. We cooked STAcKeD so often it warranted the acronym. It's probably a good thing I returned to NL when I did or Chad and I would have died from malnutrition.

I don't expect a repeat of the STAcKeD-only diet anytime soon, especially not when there's so much delicious Thai food outside my door. However, there is enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow...mmmmmmmmmmmmmm....



Sean

Motorcycle Diaries

Though my motorcycle adventure wasn't quite as extensive or life-changing as the biographical film "Motorcycle Diaries" about Che Guevara, it was nonetheless blog worthy.

Despite being extremely dangerous, there is definitely no faster way to get around Bangkok than taking a motorcycle taxi. While all the suckers wait for hours in their cars and tuk-tuks in horrible traffic jams, a motorcycle taxi weaves in and out, violating just about every traffic and safety law to ensure you get to your destination quickly. Though hazardous, Meg and I will sometimes take the motorcycles to go short distances.

Today, I jumped aboard and headed off to the Thai Immigration Bureau. As we neared our destination, a policeman standing outside a police station waved us over to the curb where he was already in the process of issuing a ticket to another motorcyclist. Our offense? I think it was because I wasn't wearing a helmet which a driver is required to provide and ensure the passenger wears. The policeman handed a ticket to the other motorcyclist who, upon seeing the fine, tried desperately to give it back, pleading that it was too much (please note that all dialogue occurred in Thai and this is my interpretation of what happened). Meanwhile, the policeman began issuing our ticket, attempting to ignore the other driver. At this point, a crowd had begun to take notice of our situation and gather - I was feeling ever-more uncomfortable. This did not stop the other driver from taking out his wallet and trying to bribe the policeman...in front of the crowd...in front of the police station. I could see the policeman was getting annoyed now as he firmly dismissed the other driver who slowly retreated to his motorcycle, mumbling under his breath.

Then it happened. The driver just couldn't let it go and probably made some vulgar comment about the cop's mother. I guess I'll never know what was said but the policeman reacted swiftly, grabbing the driver by the neck and literally dragging him into the police station. My driver and I kinda looked at each other and shrugged, glad to no longer be the center of attention, we took off.

P.S. If anyone tells Mom that I wasn't wearing a helmet on a motorcycle, I will vehemently deny it. :)

Sean

Thanksgiving

Although I'm missing Thanksgiving at home, I did go out for dinner at a friend's house yesterday with a number of my Thai friends. Well, it's more of a resort than a house. Located an hour northeast of Bangkok, it is nestled away in a quiet gated neighbourhood. Over the course of the evening, we enjoyed various Thai dishes, swimming in the pool, and gossiping about the latest Thai news. My Thai is still not at the point of being conversational so Tui and Nu spent a lot of time translating.



I brought my guitar along and spent an hour relaxing poolside. It honestly was like going to a resort.

On a side note, our kitties Gahnomee and Chochie will be moving to new homes very soon. They're going to split up for awhile until we return to St.John's - which I'm sure is fine by Gahnomee who is tortured endlessly by Chochie. :)

Sean

Bangkok Dangerous

No, I'm not referring to the movie "Bangkok Dangerous", I'm referring to the fact that things are heating up here in Bangkok again. Last night, anti-government protesters clashed with police, resulting in a couple of deaths and a couple hundred injuries (some of them very serious). My impression is that things aren't going to get better anytime soon. There is talk that the government might impose a curfew, making it illegal for people to gather in public in groups of more than 4 people. We shall see....

Below is a picture from Bangkok Post's website showing a scene from last night's violence. Not to worry though, I am making sure to stay well away from any of the protests.


Sean

HOME

After weeks of dreaming and wishing and hoping I am finally HOME. It's not that there was anything wrong with Bangkok...but I was just seriously homesick and needing a break from the big city.

The trip started with an almost tearful goodbye to Sean (we'd convinced ourselves that I was just going on "vacation" in order to keep me from starting my long journey sad and teary-eyed) at 6am. I flew to Hong Kong first and then boarded the LONGEST FLIGHT EVER. 14.5 hours is far too long for anyone to be expected to sit still.

Once I arrived in Toronto the excitement set in. People were speaking English! They were cranky and unhelpful! I was back in Canada! When I got to my gate it got even better. Newfie accents! Oil rig workers on the way back from Alberta! Ahhh home sweet home.

After a scary moment when we all thought the flight would be diverted to Halifax, the plane touched down in St. John's. And as is the case on most TO - St. John's flights, the cabin erupted in cheers and "woo hoo"s as soon as we landed. But the best part of the whole thing was stepping off the plane and feeling COLD instead of suffocating heat! Yay!

I'm still super jet lagged and constantly tired but that hasn't stopped me from starting in on my list of "things to do when I get home". I had a hot turkey sandwich with fries, dressing and gravy today (drooool) and went for a brief shop downtown. Tomorrow will be all about a drive to the ocean, signal hill, more downtown shopping and then of course, some serious time on George St.

Now, like Sean mentioned, the countdown is on. C'mon Dec. 6th!!!!

The Countdown Begins

I just got back to the apartment after seeing Meg off at the airport. Meg is heading home to St.John's a month early for a few reasons: 1) extending her Thai visa again would be a pain, 2) her return flight cannot be extended beyond Nov. 4th so she would have had to leave by then anyway, 3) if we do come back to Thailand in January, some additional time home would go a long way in combating homesickness, and 4) she's sick of being around me 24/7 (kidding!).

My flight home is scheduled for December 6th so the countdown is on for my return to the Rock. Can't wait! I'll be in St.John's for a couple of weeks and will then head to McIvers for Christmas and New Years.

P.S. Have a safe flight Meg!

Israel - Hospital stopover

It seems Meg and I are destined to visit numerous hospitals during our travels. Saturday night, after just finished having a late supper, I decided to call it a night since I had meetings in the morning. I hadn't even had a chance to fall asleep when I began to feel extremely itchy. Initially, I tried to ignore it but then I began to suspect I was being eaten alive by bugs. I got up to investigate and discovered that I had a dozen or more "bites" over my arms, back, and neck. After a quick hot shower to help relieve the itching, I tried to go to sleep again, knowing the hotel was fully booked so I wouldn't be able to change my room and that I had to get some sleep for my meetings in the morning (it was now 2am). This time, I used the "cover every inch of my body with clothing" strategy. However, it did not work and I once again was forced to get up to investigate. Unbelievably, I had more "bites" and patches of my face, arms, and body were beginning to swell (I couldn't speak properly)! I was now beginning to suspect that these weren't bites at all but that I was having an allergic reaction to something - perhaps the bed sheets but I've never been sensitive to anything like that before. I notified the hotel staff who arranged to have a taxi take me to the hospital. Due to the swelling, the doctor thought the reaction was more likely due to something I'd eaten (I have no idea what it could have been though) and hooked me up to an IV to put steroids into me to bring down the swelling. By 7am, with my prescription of amoxocyllin filled, I was back at the hotel, just long enough to sleep for almost an hour (I slept in a chair - wasn't taking anymore chances with that bed). By 8am, I got up and got ready for an entire day of meetings. The swelling and itching were gone for the most part so, aside from the lack of sleep, I was in pretty good shape.

The office where my meetings were located was close to the West Bank border. You could easily see a number of the settlements and the fence that runs along the border. I thought it was very interesting that the Jewish and Muslim settlements were so close to each other. Also, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, was celebrated at sundown on Monday so the clients at the office extended an invitation to Trevor (my boss) and I to attend a company toast - it was welcoming to be a part of a Jewish tradition.

By the time I got to the airport for my flight back to Bangkok that evening, I was ready to drop. It did not help matters that I had to go through f@&king El Al security again, being asked the same questions by four different agents before I even got to the ticket counter. I'm all for security but you'd think they'd make it slightly more efficient. Anyway, after "politely" voicing my annoyance and cursing vigorously in my head for 3 hours, I eventually got to my gate. In the future, instead of the direct El Al flight between Tel Aviv and Bangkok, I will try a different one-stop airline, even if it takes longer (that just goes to show how much El Al pi$$ed me off and what 48 hours of sleep deprivation will do to me).

Despite my trip to the hospital and the difficulty with the airline, Israel itself is a very beautiful country. I regret not making it to Jerusalem and will be sure to make time for it the next time I'm in Tel Aviv. There are a lot of concerns over safety when traveling to Israel but I never felt the need to be nervous so if anyone would like to travel there, I would highly recommend it - just be sure to take the direct Air Canada flight from Toronto instead of El Al....

Israel - Flight with El Al

This morning I arrived in Tel Aviv, part of a last minute work trip. I caught a direct flight from Bangkok with Israel's national airline, El Al. Known for their tight security, I got the opportunity to experience it first hand. Even before getting to the check-in counter, El Al security drilled me for 15 minutes. Angus and Meg had dropped me off and were waiting for me, to which security asked, "who are they and how long have you known them?"

Once I got to my boarding gate, security brought me to a small room, privately searched all of my luggage, thoroughly checked my clothes/shoes, and drilled me with more questions. I guess I had a unabomber look going or something.

The flight was uneventful. I simply dozed in and out of sleep. It was a nasty 12-hour flight, I think it takes so long because El Al has to avoid the airspace of various Arab nations.

Currently, I'm settled away in my hotel. My room overlooks the beach on the Mediterranean Sea were numerous people are enjoying various water activities (kite surfing looks like SO much fun!). My first impressions of Israel? Let's just say that Adam Sandler's new movie, "You Don't Mess With The Zohan" is not as inaccurate as you'd probably think. Exaggerated, yes, but not completely inaccurate. Beach tennis ("matkot") is very popular here. :)

The Nutcracker

Bangkok's 10th annual International Festival of Music and Dance is now underway! There are a lot of performances that I'd love to take in (such as the Paul Taylor Contemporary Dance Co. from New York), but since I'm outta here in a week I only had time for one - and I chose a classic - the Nutcracker.

Although it was a little strange to be watching a Christmas show in the middle of September, the show was spectacular. Performed by the Russian Bashkir State Ballet Theatre and accompanied by a full orchestra, the music and incredible dancers certainly got me wishing for snow and presents under the tree. I was a little blindsided by the hot sun and heat when I left the theater!

It was nice to get a touch of culture here in the big city. As I've mentioned before there's not much to choose from in the way of music or the arts here in BKK. So, this interesting festival was a nice surprise. Of course, I attended alone - Sean couldn't handle 2 hours of ballet and it seems my Thai girl friends weren't much into it either ;) But regardless, I enjoyed the show and was happy to be able to catch an international festival like this before heading back home.