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Many more moments

Posted in Many more moments, tagged on April 29, 2010| 4 Comments »

 

I left Chiang Mai, but not before I had a moment with a man. So I was buying a watermelon shake on the street. It was a hot sultry night, typical for Southeast Asia. I was waiting patiently for my shake and sensed this man’s presence next to me. I looked up, our eyes met and we smiled at each other. There was a big line-up, so we stood silently next to each other for many minutes. I was hyper-aware of his presence. His order came up first, he collected his drinks and got onto his adjacent moped. He paused and I could feel his stare. I started sweating and my heart began to beat faster. I looked up and smiled at him and WE HAD A MOMENT. I could see he wanted to stay, but I looked away and he left. And that’s when I realized I will have many moments in Southeast Asia. I am still smiling thinking about this guy and we never even exchanged a word.

I had a lovely beach vacation in Koh Lanta, Thailand. My best friend, Debora, was in Macau visiting family and flew down to join me. Every morning, we’d wake up in our beach bungalow to the sound of crashing waves (kind of made up for falling asleep to loud music from the other resorts). We’d eat breakfast on the beach, drink in the white sandy beach and crystal blue-green water, sigh and proclaim again that we were in paradise. I experienced hot yoga for the first time, but not like in the United States. In the mornings, we’d go to a 2-hour yoga class overlooking the beach in 95 degrees. We were sweating before the class even started, since we walked 20 minutes in the sun to get there. The class was pretty intense, and the sweat would just pour down my body. After the first class, I caved in, abandoned any vanity and bought a headband, like they wear on Survivor. It really works to keep the sweat from streaming into your eyes!

For 15 years, I’ve been wearing a bikini top and board shorts. I’ve grown really comfortable in these shorts because it hides my hips. But friends in Vietnam and Laos quickly told me to ditch the shorts. In Laos, women wear t-shirts and shorts in public swimming areas – not bathing suits and definitely not bikinis. One day, we were all going to a hotel swimming pool, and my friend made us all wear bikinis. The Lao women were horrified and I was as well. After I got over the initial awkward and exposed feeling, I was rocking that bikini! So I bought a bikini in Chiang Mai for $10 and felt so wonderful and free on the beach in Koh Lanta. Why was I hiding behind those shorts for so long? This journey is all about freedom and joy, and it’s amazing that even a bikini bottom can evoke these feelings.

I went scuba diving for the first time and it was glorious. It was a 2-hour boat ride to Koh Haa, and I got lucky with 1:1 instruction. Many of the other newbies were really nervous, but I just felt excited. Until I was about to jump into the water, and then my nerves got to me. There isn’t any time to chicken out, plus my friend told me I’m the most fearless person she knows. So I stepped off the side of the boat and plunged into the water. Okay so far. Then the instructor goes over a few lessons underwater, like removing my mouthpiece and letting water get into my mask. The mouthpiece was smooth sailing, but when I added water to my mask and tried to get rid of it, instead the water went up my nose and in my eyes and I was sputtering and burning. Even though I wanted to turn around and get back on the boat, I heard my friend’s fearless comment in my brain and worked through it. As soon as we dropped down deep, my breathing started to become slow and steady and I could really enjoy my surroundings. It was fabulous. So clear and fish and coral everywhere. I saw a turtle, octopus, barracuda, trumpet, clown, parrot fish, on and on. My first dive the instructor held onto me the entire time which felt safe and comforting. My second dive I was ready to break free and have full reign of the ocean – at least 10 meters deep!

Our first night in Koh Lanta, we went to a Thai cooking class on the beach. The instructor was a cute, sassy Thai woman and I was shamelessly flirting with her. We laughed a lot during every step. Pounding the curry paste evoked laughter. Firing up the wok and flash frying morning glory/ong choy/rau muong was quite an experience. I even think my pahd thai was better then the instructor’s! We returned a few more times for dinner and on our last meal there, my friend yells at my crush across the restaurant that I’m in love with her. I was so embarrassed and blushed below my tan profusely! She promptly ran over and jokes were made all around. And she even kissed me on the cheek – it was all very innocent and funny. I forgot to mention in Laos another one of my crushes also gave me a chaste kiss on the cheek. So now I’ve been kissed by straight women in Laos and Thailand, and shared a moment with a man. Who knows what is next for me?

Today, I fly to Danang, Vietnam for volunteer orientation and my one month placements in Tam Ky and Tuy Hoa. My deepest thanks to everyone that donated for supplemental items such as vitamins, medical supplies, snacks and notebooks.

 
 

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The best [blank] ever

Posted in The best [blank] ever, tagged , on April 20, 2010| 3 Comments »

My last week in Laos was amazing. Laos New Year (Pi Mai) officially lasts for three days but is celebrated for one week in Luang Prubang. Water is a major theme of their new year’s celebration. Water is used to pour over monks, elders and Buddha images. This custom has evolved more playfully into splashing people with water through any means necessary – squirt guns, hoses, bowls and buckets of water. Everyone joins in the fun and gets doused. If I’m walking on the street, I’ll be drenched. Driving on a moped, I’ll get a wet head. They will even open the doors of your car and pour water on you! So I succumbed to the madness and became a water douser, splashing and getting splashed for many hours on the street. And of course there was dancing too. And karaoke. And many toasts (I just drank water). At the end of the day, all of my friends starting washing their hair with the hose and I politely declined to shampoo my hair on the street. And then it hit me – I felt like such a dumb American.

For two weeks, I’ve been watching my friends wash their hair in the river. Most of my friends have squat toilets in their homes, and my one friend that has a regular toilet always apologizes that she doesn’t have running water in her house when I need to use the bathroom. She told me she stayed awake until 2am waiting for the water to turn on so she could fill her buckets (which is what she uses to flush her toilet, take a shower, wash her dishes). Everyone washes their hair in any available water source because they don’t have water – duh! My friends live in a city, drive mopeds and cars, look like supermodels, but they don’t have running water. I was relating this revelation to the owner of my guesthouse and he told me he also sets his alarm clock to wake up in the middle of the night to fill up his tank with water. I had no idea – I just turn on the faucet or shower and the water comes out, so I assumed he had a limitless water supply!

In addition to the water splashing and cultural ceremonies for new year, I was also invited to a friend’s house for their new year Baci ceremony. Baci ceremonies are performed at many times in Laos, for a wedding, new baby, housewarming, etc. The new year’s Baci is supposed to be the most auspicious. The living room was filled with elders and children, circling around the offerings. After some chanting, everyone ties string around people’s wrists. First one wrist and then the other, while offering blessings. In English, my friends wished me good health, good luck, happiness, success, love and out with the old and in with the new.

After extending my stay several times, I finally had to leave Laos and arrived in Chiang Mai, Thailand two days ago. Tonight, I had the best massage ever! Which is saying a lot since I’ve probably had over 100 massages. A few minutes into it, I realized it was the best massage in my life. It’s even better when as it’s happening, you know it’s the best _____ ever!

Everyday, I’m speaking in superlatives. Last night, I ate the best curry ever! In Laos, I had the best time! I just bought the best bikini! My mom sent me the sweetest email the other day. She said she can’t remember me telling her that I’ve been completely happy. And that she is so happy I’m happy now. My first reaction was to think that I’m a pretty happy person so a bit surprised by her statement. But as the days passed and I ladled out the superlatives, I realized I am the happiest I’ve ever been in my life. Sometimes, it feels almost sinful to be this happy. I get over that pretty quickly when I realize I’ve worked hard to get to this point in my life and I absolutely deserve every shred of happiness.

That doesn’t mean I’m not thankful for my life. Today, I went on a tour with a Danish husband and his son, and a Thai wife and her daughter. It was a weird Brady Bunch blended family. And they were all totally miserable. The woman was the same age as me but looked decades older. I wondered why she married her husband and about all the sacrifices she’s made in her life to create a better life for her daughter.

Tonight, I removed the strings from my wrists since it’s been three days since the Baci ceremony. I think this is going to be THE BEST YEAR EVER!

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The other side of Southeast Asia

Posted in The other side of Southeast Asia, tagged , on December 13, 2009| Leave a Comment »

The transition from Bali has been pretty rough. I arrived in Bangkok after 10pm, and got a bit lost before finding the guesthouse the guide book described as charming. Traveller hint, charming is code word for decrepit! Shared bathroom, the floor was wet from the shower (no separate tub, the shower is like an RV and gets everything wet), and no toilet paper. The 8 x 10 room was hot, dark, and there wasn’t even a top sheet! The next morning, I set off to find a new hotel and after going to 8 places that were full, I found a room with a private shower but it wasn’t available until later that morning. So I took a ferry, then the skytrain to a posh mall and watched a movie (New Moon, I needed something familiar). Hours later, I returned to the new hotel to check in and they told me it wouldn’t be ready for two more hours. They let me lie down on the couch because I was so exhausted and I turned my head and cried. What was I doing at this $10 night hotel and did the next six weeks include other horrid experiences like this (sorry, the question marks and punctuation are challenging to make work on a Khmer keyboard). Homesickness was hitting me hard!

The next day, I arrived in Pnomh Penh, Cambodia and decided not to be cheap and went to a hotel that was $27. When they showed me the room, I think I cried a little, but this time with happiness from a flat screen TV and separate shower. I was disturbed when I read the rules posted inside the room, since the first one was no sex with children allowed in rooms. At night, I coud see evidence of the sex industry on the streets. The next day, I went on a 25 kilometer bike tour that was billed as easy. Yes, it was flat the whole way, but very little paved roads so quite a bumpy experience! We took a ferry, and then cycled past Muslim slums. And then passed the Vietnamese shantytown with the streets lined with small homes along the river on stilts with corrugated tin roofs. We went to the zoo that had fallen into disrepair and they only have one lonely snake. As we walked along, the tour guide pointed out the palm trees, and then proceeded to tell me the Khmer Rouge used the jagged edges of the fronds to kill people during the war. There is so much sadness, poverty and despair in Southeast Asia. My heart breaks a little bit every day. But then there is also so much hope for the future. The tour guide told me his younger sister is the first person in his family to graduate from University, and he hopes to attend next year as well.

Yesterday, I arrived in Siem Riep, home of Angkor Wat and the renown temples. It is a lovely city, and feels quite safe and comfortable. I went to Angkor Wat last night during sunset, and it just takes your breath away. In a few days, I fly to Vientiene, Laos. Decided to splurge and spend the money since it’s a 30 hour bus ride from Siem Riep.

I know this isn’t the usual upbeat e-mail full of wonder and awe, but it is the real other side of life in this part of the globe. And it motivates me to want to continue to change the world. Attached are a few photos from paintings on the wall and ceiling in a temple in Pnomh Penh; and the South Gate to Angkor Wat.

Glorious painted ceiling and walls in a Buddhist Temple outside Pnomh Penh, Cambodia.
South gate entrance to Angkor Wat in Siem Riep, Cambodia.

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