like the tracks of birds in the clouds

Happy & friendly Ramona

2011-01-25T22:54:00.001+07:00

Ramona's first time at the beach

2011-01-25T22:52:00.000+07:00

Three years in Thailand

2009-07-26T11:47:00.004+07:00

Just a couple of days ago, Jane and I celebrated the anniversary of the day I arrived in Bangkok when we met for the first time in person. We checked out a restaurant that we've never been to that is close to our home. The food was nothing special, but the deserts were pretty good. It's hard to believe three years has already gone by! I was hoping that I would be a proficient Thai speaker by now, but that hasn't happened.

Things have been a little stressful lately for both of us. I've been really busy at school lately and have been assigned more homework than normal, and Jane has been dealing with a pretty challenging work situation. Hew boss treats her and others in a very condescending way. She recently put in her notice that she's quitting and will be looking for work elsewhere, most likely as a freelancer until she is able to get a new full time job.

I know I haven't really been updating this blog much lately. I've been so busy lately that I rarely have the extra energy to write. I do have a lot to say though, and I'm sure that I'll get back to posting blogs regularly one of these days (probably after I graduate).

BCC Championship 2009

2009-03-11T02:01:00.007+07:00

A couple of days ago I finished my last game in the BCC Championship. I have to say that although my results were poor (1 win, 2 draws, and 7 losses), it was a great learning experience. It's nice to have gotten my feet wet a little bit so that when I'm ready to try again, I won't feel so nervous.

I am now more determined than ever to improve my game! For the past few days I've been absorbed in my chess books. I know that I need to work on improving my tactics, but I seem to gravitate towards learning the openings. What I think I need to do most is analyze my recent losses and try and correct my mistakes.

There will be a tournament soon in Pattaya with over 30 Grandmasters participating and Kai asked me if I wanted to volunteer to help with some of the work that needs to be done. It sounds like fun! I'm going to try and go, at least for a couple of days.

No more beer!

2009-02-11T19:18:00.002+07:00

I decided to just quit drinking beer, or any alcohol for that matter. I wouldn't say that I have a problem with drinking, but doing so is against the rules in Buddhism and I am trying to abide by these rules. I figure that it's not really that big of a sacrifice to make. I don't need alcohol. One of the goals in Buddhism is to have a clear mind, and this is much easier when you're not drinking. I think I am capable of sticking to it. Wish me luck!

Sharpening my chess diagnostic skills

2009-01-20T15:52:00.014+07:00

Since I've had a little break from school, I've been spending a lot of my free time learning about chess. I was watching a tutorial video the other day, and the instructor demonstrated his ideas on homemade chess diagram. I had mentioned to Jane that I would love to have something like that, and she suggested that I make one, so of course I agreed to it. As it turned out, she did almost all of the work because she is much more precise with the scissors than I am. It didn't cost that much to make; we found an inexpensive magnetic white board and some little magnets for the pieces at an office supply store. Thanks for your help Jane! I know I could have done it by myself, but it would have taken me five times longer to do, and it wouldn't have looked half as nice.

White to move. Can you find mate in two?

Why would I want something like this? Well, it's fun to set up puzzles and leave them there until you can figure them out. Sometimes before we go to bed, Jane and I compete, trying to solve mate in two problems the quickest (she usually wins!). The idea is to become more familiar with the fundamental patterns of chess, whether they involve checkmating or basic tactical ideas. I just bought this huge book titled Chess- 5334 Problems, Combinations, and Games by Laszlo Polgar, father of the famous Grandmasters Judith and Susan Polgar. He had this theory that genius could be created and went about trying to prove this by teaching his daughters chess when they were young. Both Judith and Susan went on to be very strong Grandmasters, so it seems that he was really on to something!

Black to move. Can you find mate in three?

The book is full of puzzles and the answers, mostly involving checkmates. It's nice to know that when you are trying to figure these problems out, there is a definite solution. The answer is there, waiting to be found. This is a luxury you don't have when you're playing a real game of chess! There have been many times when I've had positions that were similar, but I had no idea if I could force a checkmate. I figure that with enough practice, I will improve on my calculation skills and become a stronger player. If I ever get too frustrated because a problem seems too difficult, I can always check the answer in the back of the book.

Hopefully, after a lot of practice with these puzzles, the patterns will become easier for me to recognize when I'm playing chess. At the very least, this book offers some interesting challenges, which can be a lot of fun to solve- maybe you could liken them to sudoku or crossword puzzles. As long as it's fun, I think it's a worthwhile hobby to pursue.

For parents, I think that making something like this would be a nice way to bond with your kids. Watch out though, you might discover that they quickly surpass you!

Chess tournament

2008-12-22T13:56:00.018+07:00

As I had mentioned in my previous entry, I've been really getting into chess lately. I googled "Bangkok chess club" online and found that there is a place where chess fiends meet to duke it out on the chess board, and I've been going as often as I can. The guy who organizes it, Kai, is a really cool guy. He's always willing to offer instruction to beginners like myself, and also has a great sense of humor while playing- at least with me, and when he's in a winning position! He encouraged me to participate in a tournament that would actually give me an official FIDE rating. I was reluctant to do so because I am still very much a beginner and I didn't think that I would be able to really compete well, and also I would have liked to had a chance to study some things more before I really try to compete. I talked with Jane about it, and she said that I should do it anyways. I decided to play in it because even if I lose every game (which so far has been the case), it will be a good experience for me and give me an opportunity to prepare myself for future tournaments.

In my first game I had the white pieces and decided to go with an opening I knew very little about, but that I am extremely interested in. It's called the King's Indian Attack, or KIA for short. I was really nervous (probably because it was my first tournament game) and I left a crucial pawn under protected. My opponent, a seventeen year old Thai guy named Piyapon whose rating was over 1700 (which is quite a bit higher than I imagine mine to be), seized his chance and took the very important e5 pawn. From there my position deteriorated quickly. I panicked and made some other bad moves, trying to gain some kind of initiative, but they were not carefully thought out, and eventually he was able to win from a material advantage. I resigned the game, seeing that it was only a matter of time that he would advance his pawns to promotion and find an easy checkmate.

I learned a lot from that game; I suppose that you probably learn more from your losses than your successes. First of all, I knew how important it was to control that important central e5 pawn, but somehow I had let it slip my mind for one move. Also, I learned that I have to not make impulsive decisions like that when I panic. One more thing I learned from this was that it was unwise for me to go into an opening I did not understand very well. I thought that maybe I would find some inspiration at the board, but in hindsight I think it would have been much better for me to play an opening that I had more experience in.

My next game was again with the white pieces. I have actually been focusing lot more on black openings lately, so I was not quite as ready to open with white, but it was alright. I decided to go for the Queen's gambit, an opening with tons of history that I just love to play, though it can be challenging for me. My opponent, Abner, chose to accept the gambit and take my c4 pawn. I had previously lost some online games to people who used this defense, and so I had checked out some of white's possible replies, and prepared myself for this important possibility. He later made some mistakes in trying to keep his advanced pawn, and I was able to take advantage of this and develop my pieces while putting enormous pressure on his queen side. I was so stoked that I had made it through the opening with an advantage, but made a miscalculation and lost an exchange. Instead of attacking right away as I had done, I should have simply castled. If I had done this, I would have been able to keep the initiative and keep the pressure on. I really thought I had this one in the bag though, and my overconfidence was a factor that affected some careless moves that I made. He was able to take advantage of a pin that I had walked right into. Oblivious to his threat, he then attacked my pinned rook. At that point I realized he had me beat. I could not believe that I would have let myself get into such a bad position when my position had so much potential from a successful opening! After the game he acknowledged some of his early mistakes and told me that he thought he had lost. Later, another player who was in a higher rating class than us, commented on a crucial mistake I made and gave me some advice on how to deal with similar situations in the future. So yes, I lost the game, but I don't think I will forget the lessons learned from this game, so once again, I feel very happy to have decided to play.

I may have a new game on Tuesday, and I feel like I'm a little better prepared this time. The priority of all of this is to have fun, and to have a hobby that constantly challenges me and helps me to improve my concentration and analytical abilities. If I improve my rating, that's great, but it's not the reason I'm playing chess. If playing chess ceases to be fun for me, I think it's time to give it a rest. That hasn't been the case, even with my losses. There are times that I get discouraged by repeated losses, and feel like I'm in a slump, but at the same time it seems that it's during those times it seems that I learn the most because it forces me to look at what I did in the game that caused the loss, and then to work on improving it.

My new addiction

2008-12-04T15:16:00.006+07:00

Recently I've gotten back into playing chess. It's a lot of fun and helps me to concentrate. As I get older, my memory seems to be getting worse and worse, so I'm hoping that something like chess might keep it active. My grandfather had a pretty bad case of Alzheimer's and/or dementia (still not exactly sure what the difference is) and I'm afraid that I might be susceptible to it in my later years. From what I've read, chess is supposed to help prevent it.

I'm not that great of a player really. I don't expect to become a grandmaster or anything like that, but I would like to be able to hold my own against a strong player. It does get pretty complicated though, and there are times I'm not sure what direction I should be moving in. I think that to achieve some of my goals in chess I'll have to do a fair amount of studying. I am lucky to have technology on my side, and there are lots of good chess tutorials available that can help you in all aspects of the game.

Thailand has it's own version of chess called mak look, but it's rules are slightly different. I've been reading about the history of the game, and it seems like the rules for Thai chess are closer to the original chess than the international version has become, but I think that this newer version is more fun. One big difference is the queen. She is far more powerful in chess than in mak look. Still, I would like to learn mak look so I can put up a fight against the motorcycle taxi drivers down the street. I played them once and was thoroughly beaten!

It might seem strange that someone who is against war as I am would be so interested in a game that has been traditionally associated with it. I don't think it has to represent war from a military standpoint. It is a battle of ideas, and is bloodless (unless your opponent is a really sore loser). It is all about making good decisions. I really don't think of the pieces in terms of symbolizing things like the military, soldiers, etc., but I think of them more as abstract mathematical ideas. Each piece has a value that is constantly changing. More than anything, it is about trying to outfox your opponent. I think that it's possible to be against war and still love this game. I'm really curious if there are others who feel this way about it too....any comments about this are of course welcomed!

Crazy busy

2008-08-20T19:34:00.003+07:00

Life for me has been really busy lately and quite stressful at times, but overall things are very good. Sometimes I'm really worn out trying to keep up with all of my responsibilities, but I'm doing it somehow.

Switching to Dvorak

2008-07-18T13:47:00.006+07:00

I finally decided to do it. I recently bought a new keyboard and stuck a bunch of stickers over the standard QWERT keyboard layout, configuring it to Dvorák right hand. I tried out the standard Dvorák configuration at first, but wasn't too keen on having the s where my pinky was. That's why I opted for the right handed alternative. I'm not used to it yet and writing only these few short sentences has been quite a task, but I figure that once I learn it I'll be able to type faster than I do now. You probably won't be seeing many blog entries from me in the next few months!

*********************************************

Heh, it's now about a week later. Dvorak right hand is even worse. According to my brother Chad, the standard Dvorak is where it's at. I'll just have to get used to typing the S with my pinky. I tell you though, trying to switch over is frustrating. I've already learned the standard way, but it feels really clumsy, so I've gotta make the switch eventually. Why not now?

I've got this free typing trainer that seems pretty good. We'll see how it goes!

So busy!

2008-07-01T12:14:00.003+07:00

I haven't really been blogging much because every day I have so much to do, leaving me little time to write. I'm just worn out every day. I have been busy, but things are going well for us here in Bangkok. I have been homesick and I really miss Idaho and Washington at times. I'd love to make a trip back to the states, but there is no way we could afford that right now. I'll just have to wait, maybe until I've finished school.

Mai seh bai

2008-05-21T17:51:00.000+07:00

Last night I felt that itch in my throat that spells sickness the next day, and sure enough, this fever has been a doozy. I slept all day long. When I finally did get up at about 5:30pm, my sheets were soaked with sweat. Oi!

So there goes my A in "Foundations of Thai Culture". Oh well, mai pen rai, krup.

My computer was stolen

2008-05-04T20:24:00.007+07:00

Today, while I was taking a much needed nap, someone broke into our home and stole my laptop and my brother in law's camera. There were three people in the house at the time and since we were all taking naps, none of us noticed the intrusion. Afterwards, we saw that the lock on our front door had been tampered with and was damaged in the process. Whoever came in went upstairs into our computer room and quickly took my computer and Jun's camera. To our surprise, they didn't take Jane's purse or my camera, which were right next to the computer. My mother in law was in the adjacent room, sleeping.

Not that any time is a good time to have your computer stolen, but now is a particularly bad time for it to happen. We just paid for my summer term tuition, and we're both pretty much broke. Still, no one was hurt, so it could have been a lot worse. It just makes you realize that something like that can happen at any time and there's very little you can do about it.

Freedom of speech in the United States

2008-05-02T23:09:00.006+07:00

I was raised with the notion that people were pretty much allowed to say whatever they wanted in my country. It's right there in the Bill of Rights, which says:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the government to redress grievances."

That seems pretty straightforward and like it's a pretty good idea. If this is part of constitutional law, how then could the Sedition Act be approved? And how did the Espionage Act also make it into law? These are both in direct violation of the first amendment. Then of course, we have the FCC, that wonderful agency that tells you what you can and cannot say over the airwaves. Do we really have free speech? Obviously Congress, at some point in time, made laws abridging this freedom.

Reflecting upon Hiroshima and Nagasaki

2008-04-10T15:19:00.021+07:00

This morning, while on my way to school, I was listening to Howard Zinn speak about the horrors that resulted from the United States dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He argues that this did not need to happen and that the United States knew that Japan was about to surrender. This act, he claims, was more about America displaying its power. Later, I got into a conversation about it with my professor, who claims to be Buddhist, and he said that that the bombings were necessary to end the war quickly. He said that if it hadn't been done Russia would have invaded China, and the war would have dragged on and on resulting in even more loss of life.

I asked him "What does dropping atomic bombs on these two cities have anything to do with Russia from invading China?" His answer was that since the war would then be over, that Russia wouldn't have any excuses to invade, but if we hadn't done that, then Russia would have seized the opportunity.

I don't understand the logic here. He claims that a number of historians share this view and that ultimately dropping those bombs was their best choice. I don't accept that.

This discussion has made me very interested in researching this period of history. I want to hear what every side has to say, look at all of the facts available, and formulate my own conclusion. Yes I have biases, but if the facts contradict what I believe, I must change my course. So far though, I have not been persuaded by any facts that this mass slaughter needed to happen.

Once very important thing I've learned about this from Howard Zinn's article entitled The Bombs of August is that Japan did agree to surrender before the bombs were dropped, but it was a "conditional surrender". The one condition they asked for was "the retention of the Emperor as symbolic leader". Truman could have accepted this term and prevented this terrible atrocity from happening, but instead insisted on "unconditional surrender" and of course decided to drop the bombs. Japan wanted some degree of dignity in its defeat, and America was too proud to give it to them. The fact that Japan was already talking about surrender showed that the war was almost over, and that dropping the bombs was not necessary.

Looking back at all of this brings up a lot of emotions, and I can see why a lot of people simply would rather not think about it, or just go on accepting the prevailing rationalizations for Truman's decision. It's not an easy thing for a patriotic American to look at. That is why they always feel compelled to say that if it hadn't happened, many more lives would have been lost. How do they know? As Howard is always pointing out, why is it that violence is the only option they give you on this multiple choice test?

(Above) The woman drinking the water died shortly afterwards.

Jane was telling me last night that feeling angry about all of this is being as un-Buddhist as my professor. I admit, she's right. I'm upset about so many of the terrible mistakes my country's leaders have made and continue to make, but I'm not sure about how I can take what I've learned from history and apply it in a way that does not foster anger. Here again I run into a paradoxical little phenomenon where it seems that "outrage" is essential to the true understanding of certain things. It's never easy to resolve these conflicts, but I'm sure I'm not the first Buddhist to have experienced it.

It's now been a couple of days since I wrote what is above and I've had some time so think about my internal conflict. My conclusion is that I've just got to accept that everyone is responsible for their karma and that I should focus on the good things I can do. I should speak out against the horrifying things that are done in this world, but not feel angry about things that have already happened, which I can't change. If anyone reading this disagrees, please tell me what you think. I'm very curious about what others have to say about it.

A People's History of American Empire

2008-04-08T23:32:00.002+07:00

It looks like his new book just came out. I've got to find this one!

Music Appreciation

2008-03-28T12:51:00.007+07:00

I just finished my music appreciation class, which has been the most interesting one I've taken so far. Our teacher is from Germany and has a great love of music, particularly opera, and her enthusiasm for it has rubbed off on me a little. I still don't really like opera, but I can see why people do. She was truly successful at was reviving my interest in Classical music.

Fifteen percent of our total grade in the class was based on our attendance of a concert where the music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven was performed. I was not looking forward to it, thinking I'd be bored out of my mind. As I listened to them perform, I realized that all of it was very interesting actually and that it took great effort and skillful coordination to play the music they were playing. Also, it sounded so much better when it filled every nook of the room.

As much as I enjoyed most of the class, there were aspects of it that were daunting. She had given us these handouts with names of people who had made important contributions to musical development over the centuries, which was gigantic. I already have a pretty good sense of the names in Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical music, and her list blew me away. I stayed up till 3:00am the night before the final trying to label each person with a century and a brief description of what they did and I still didn't finish them all.

I was talking to one of my classmates, and we agree that she should have focused more on the musical terms and styles instead of names and dates. I understand that there may be a few important names and dates in musical history, but what we got was information overload! Thankfully she didn't test us on many of those names and dates, so all is well, but I was pretty stressed trying to remember all of that trivial information.

Still, even with all the needless cramming and memorization, I enjoyed the class. No teacher is perfect. Music happens to be one of my favorite subjects, so I didn't mind too much. I may even check out an opera that looks interesting one of these days, especially if it was one done by Mozart. I can't promise that I'll enjoy it, but I might appreciate it.

Howard Zinn on the iPod

2008-03-22T20:44:00.035+07:00

Lately I feel like I'm learning more from listening to audio I've downloaded onto Jane's iPod then from my actual college classes. I think it's because this is what I'm really interested in learning. Most recently, I've been listening to some lectures by a man named Howard Zinn. He's brilliant, and I recommend that you immediately search for whatever you can find by him and spread the word!

I first heard of him when I was a senior in high school. I remember a friend of mine was depressed out of her mind, saying things to me like "I don't know how I can reconcile myself to this world." I looked reconcile up in the dictionary and finally got the gist of what she was saying, but still it was hard for me to understand why someone like her would feel that way. I had never seen someone so low before. She told me that there was a book she had been reading called "A People's History of the United States" which revealed some of the things that the history books leave out. She said that upon learning these things, she felt ashamed and disgusted by so much of what we had been taught to revere in our country and that she felt she had been lied to all this time in her history classes.

I went searching for this book, found it, and learned about what Columbus actually did when he got to the Americas. I'm ashamed to say that I didn't really continue to read the book at the time. Although I was interested in the subject matter, I always found some kind of distraction, and the book mostly just sat on the shelf. Maybe I just didn't want to learn any more about the horrifying events of my country's past... I don't know. Still, I never forgot about what Christopher Columbus and his men did to the Arawak people in their obsession for gold, and every time "Columbus Day" would roll around I'd feel like vomiting.

I enjoy reading a lot more these days and I really wish I had that book here with me again. Luckily though, I have the internet, and I've been able to download some of his lectures. I love the way he just lays it all out on the table for you. He talks about all the stuff that you've probably never heard about like "Shay's Rebellion" and how it was what led to the founding fathers' creation of the Constitution. He also points out that this document, which most Americans treat as sacred, actually legitimized slavery. Howard Zinn is not interested in portraying history as a fairy tale or presenting history without his point of view. By the time you've finished listening to what he has to say you know where he stands.

Most importantly, he's helped me to look at history from the perspective of the people who the United States have bullied around. They're the voices you never seem to hear when you open up a typical history book. He argues that the most dangerous kind of thing that can happen when it comes to history is to leave something out, and that this is even worse than lying. He tells us that at least with a lie, you have something to research and you can uncover the truth if you get all your facts in order, but when something is left out, you simply have no idea what happened. It is the continuous repetition of these omissions in history books that distort the truth of history more than anything.

Everything he talks about is fascinating, so do yourself a favor and check him out! I guarantee that you'll never look at history the same way again. More importantly, he'll show you that democracy is not voting for candidate A or B. True democracy is when people come together and act by demanding change. He says that it was during the civil rights movement in the sixties that democracy finally started to come alive in America because large numbers of people acted together. I think this is a message that is so important to Americans today, and not just them, but people everywhere!

Oi (ouch in Thai)

2008-03-14T13:30:00.004+07:00

Well, the final for General Psychology was not what any of us had expected. Our professor decided to test us on things that he never once brought up in class and that weren't even in our book. My guess is that he was just too lazy to write up a new test that had to do with the topics he covered and instead opted to use one of his old tests. I don't know what he was thinking, but if I end up with a poor grade in the class, someone's going to hear about it. I was one of the few people who actually listened to his lectures and read the book.

Now I've got a music appreciation class that I'm really enjoying-all except for the Opera part. I really want to like Opera, but I just don't. There are a few songs that I like from some of them, but the main problem I have with the art form is not being able to understand what they're singing about, even if it's in English. That, and I think that they're just too long. Maybe it is the invention of television that has shortened most people's attention spans, I don't know, but it seems like Opera has "had it's day" as one of my classmates put it. My grandmother loves Opera though, so I'm not going to abandon the art form completely. Who knows; maybe it will turn out to be one of those acquired tastes.

Finals

2008-03-06T19:58:00.006+07:00

I've been really busy lately studying for finals. I took one today and I think I did very well. It was for my Information Technology 105 class, a subject that I actually have an interest in. I'm sure that helps.

Tomorrow I have the final for my General Psychology class, and I'm feeling a little apprehensive about it. My teacher is a good speaker and I enjoy his lectures, but most of the people in the class I've talked to are nervous about the test because he'll often get sidetracked when he lectures, and sometimes it's hard to remember just what principle of psychology he was trying to illustrate. Part of it may be just that psychology itself is such a vast subject with so many varying schools of thought, and it can be a little overwhelming for the newcomer. We'll see how it goes. I really do listen to his lectures, and what he says seems to make sense. I just hope his test does!

At last!

2008-01-31T15:44:00.019+07:00

Jane and I are married!

The ceremony was Chinese and took place on January 13th, 2008. That morning I woke up early and got ready in my brothers' room at the hostel they were staying at. I came to Jane's house with them, but we were supposed to wait for a while before we could go in. I had to walk in the door at 9:39 am exactly, because that was the time the fortune teller said would be the luckiest for us. When I finally did walk inside the house I tried to make my way to Jane's room, but I had to bribe my way through three different barriers! I felt like I was taking part in a kind of play, and it was a lot of fun. Luckily I had Pi Toy there to help me out. She's a shrewd negotiator and unafraid to demonstrate her Muay Thai skills if she feels you're being unreasonable!

After I made my way into Jane's room, I took her by the hand and walked downstairs with her. We then paid our respects to the house spirits by burning some incense and giving offerings of food and tea.

(Above) This is a shrine that represented Jane's father in the ceremony. He passed away when she was just four years old. We paid our respects to him during the ceremony.

(Below) Before the traditional Chinese tea ceremony, Jun asked my Dad to conduct a western style ring ceremony. None of us was prepared for it, but we managed!

(Below) Grandma was the first to have tea. The ceremony begins with the eldest and goes to the youngest. We gave our elders tea, and they would give us a little red envelope with money in it. The younger family members would give us tea, and we would give them money.

(Above) Jane seems happy about all the money donated to us!

(Above) It is a Chinese custom for both of the families to prepare this traditional Chinese desert the night before the wedding. After the tea ceremony we all had some. Aroi!

(Below) Here Jun is burning paper that is supposed to symbolize money. Doing this is like giving the money to our ancestors. This is also done at other ceremonies that involve ancestors or Gods, such as Chinese New Year.

After the wedding we had lunch at a nice Vietnamese/Thai restaurant that is close to our home. There I was called upon to sing a love song to Jane, which I was completely unprepared for, but it turned out alright. I decided to go for "Love Me Tender" as the guitarist suggested. While I was singing, Jane walked up to me with a rose.

(Below) Jane blushing after she gives me the rose.

(Below) Food from the Vietnamese restaurant. Yummm!

Later in the evening we rented a river boat and had the reception while we cruised down the Chao Phraya River. The reception was mostly Western style, but with a few Chinese and Thai elements included also.

(Above) Jane's friend Ploy designed the stickers for the little bags of gold, chocolate coins we were giving out. Notice who the Captain is?

(Above) Jane's energetic high school friends!

(Above) River Sun provided us with some garlands, which are worn in Thai weddings by the bride and groom. Dad put them on Jane, and Mama put them on me.

(Above) It is a Chinese belief that to have knives around during a wedding is bad luck, so we opted for some small but tasty cakes from See Fah. The lighting on the boat around the stage reminded me a little of a disco!

After the wedding we traveled to Khaoyai, Phuket, and Krabi with our families (I'll describe that in a later blog). That was a lot of fun, but we really felt like we needed to get away by ourselves for a while for our honeymoon, so after my family flew back to the states we chose to go to Chiang Mai and Chiang Dao in the north.

We took the express sleeper train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. This was the first time I'd been on a sleeper train, and I was impressed! It's a very comfortable way to travel, and you get to enjoy some nice views of the countryside.

When we arrived in Chiang Mai we checked into the Suan Doi house. We were a little disappointed when we saw our room, so we decided to only stay there one night. There was a Vietnamese restaurant on the premises that we had read good things about in the Lonely Planet, so we decided to check it out. The food turned out to be very good. The atmosphere was really nice there as well, so the Suan Doi house wasn't a total let down.

Here is a little sampling of some of the delicious Vietnamese cuisine we tried at the Suan Doi house.

We both really liked Chiang Mai and Chiang Dao. The weather there was much cooler than what I'm used to in Krungthep, which was a welcome and refreshing change. It was really nice to have finally had the chance to visit this wonderful and scenic part of Thailand. The temples were beautiful, particularly the one we went to along the mountainside in Chiang Dao. It had been raining a little before we hiked up there, and we were worried that we might not get very nice pictures, but as you can see the sky was just breathtaking by the time we made it to the temple.

The temple is actually partially in a cave. If you continued up the stairs, it led to a room with an image of the Buddha and a panoramic view that was indescribable.

(Above) Still a little sleepy, but very much at peace.
(Below) Here you can see just how beautiful this area is. Of course all the really amazing pictures were taken by Jane!

(Below) Jane getting ready for breakfast at Malee's Nature Lover's resort in Chiang Dao.

(Above) We were both a little confused about the message on the shirt!

(Below) The name of this place is very appropriate, Malee's Nature Lover's resort. We highly recommend this place. It has gorgeous view, and Malee is a really cool gal.

(Above) My heart went out to this stray puppy just outside of one of the temples. If I had a home with a big backyard I'd probably have taken this poor little thing home with me.

(Above) Jane inside a cave located in Chiang Dao.

Jane has also written about our wedding and honeymoon...to read hers just click here: A Creature Called Jane

A free alternative to Microsoft Office Suite

2007-12-24T11:16:00.000+07:00

I found a great open source program called Open Office that is totally free to use and, from what I've heard, it's more stable and less annoying than Microsoft Office Suite. I like the idea of breaking free from Microsoft's unrelenting grip, so I recently installed it. So far it seems like a great program. One nice aspect of this program is that you can create and use Word files in it, so those of you who still have to operate in the world of Microsoft have some flexibility. They have versions for Mac and Linux as well.

I'm liking this whole open source movement. It's always better when people give up selfish motivations and work together to create things that are truly innovative. I don't know anything about computer programming, but suddenly I have an interest in it!

Plain deal love wood

2007-12-20T21:14:00.000+07:00

While looking through DVDs in China, we happened upon a Seinfeld box set with one of the funniest English translations I've ever seen :-)

Dancers in the Stone Forest

2007-11-06T17:02:00.000+07:00

Here's a video clip I took from some dancing we saw at the stone forest just outside of Kunming. I would have liked to have recorded more of it, but we were busy moving from one place to the next.

Lucky Mama

2007-10-22T17:52:00.000+07:00

At the Dragon's Gate temple in China there was this large bowl of water, and inside the bowl the mouth of a dragon. It is believed that if you can drop a coin into the mouth, you are a lucky person. Jane and I were never able to get the coin in, but Mama did. She actually has been quite lucky lately. First of all, she has me for a son in law...

Ha!

Second, she's won the lottery three times in the past two months. No huge payouts, but one of them was ten thousand baht. Not bad!

The best part of all this is that I was able to record it on Jane's camera. You too can witness Mama's extraordinary luck!

Visiting Kunming and Singapore

2007-10-12T16:01:00.001+07:00

Lucky us!

Jane was able to get two free tickets to China from her frequent flier miles, so we decided to make a trip to Kunming, China for four days. We really wanted Mama to come with us, so we bought a ticket for her as well. This was the first time for each of us visiting China, and we were all really looking forward to the trip. It has been my dream for so long to visit this land and I couldn't believe that it was actually going to happen!

I've had a kind of fascination with China, Japan, and Korea for about as long as I can remember. My Aunt Connie and Uncle Van went on a mission for their church to Korea for two years and would often show me pictures and tell me stories of what life was like over there. They both love Korean culture, and my Aunt Connie would sometimes cook Korean dishes for the family. I loved those meals!

Many years ago I had dreams that I was in Asia (it seemed like China in particular) and I was with a group of people visiting the temples there. It was such a fantastic dream, and I can still recall it vividly to this day. One of my favorite authors, Deng Ming Dao, wrote a book called Chronicles of Tao that captured my imagination unlike any other book I'd read before. He was the one who really sparked my interest in Chinese culture, and from then on I've been in awe of the music, art, poetry, and philosophy that comes from this incredible country. I was really surprised to hear that Mama had never been there before, since she speaks 3 different dialects of Chinese. It was so great to have her there with us. Without her, we would have found it far more difficult to communicate.

From stunning mountainside temples to ancient stone forests, there was no shortage of amazing places to visit. We decided to get the most out of this trip, so with our accommodations we bought a tour package. Our guide Tony was awesome. He was really friendly and smart, giving us a lot of interesting and useful information about the area that would have been difficult to find out on our own. He could communicate in Thai or in English and was often going back and forth, translating for us. It was funny, in the van there were three languages being spoken. We are truly an international family! We liked him a lot and we've even exchanged emails, inviting him to come visit us in Bangkok sometime so we can have the opportunity to give him a tour.

(Above) Jane the navigator!

(Below) I have no idea what this means, but the writing sure is beautiful! Rich, please help me out here! Do you have any idea what it says?

The first night we tried out a restaurant that is well known for its chicken dishes. We had a kind of chicken noodle soup, which was really good. The meal also included goose, which I'd never had before, and pickled vegetables. The restaurant served food in the tradition of one of Yunnan's many ethnic minority groups (and sadly, I can't for the life of me remember their name...DOH!). It was nice; they had a large stage for performances and did some traditional singing and dancing while we ate.

I noticed that these people had some similarities with American Indian cultures. The artwork in this restaurant I thought was of a similar style to some of the rock carvings and cave paintings I've seen in the states, and they also make totem poles in a similar way. They also smoke tobacco, but I'm not sure if it carries the same significance as it does with American Indian culture. One unique aspect of their culture is that they believe crows and crabs are gods. I'm not sure if there are American Indian cultures that have similar beliefs about these animals, but I do know that the crow is important in many nations and is known as a trickster... I was fascinated by the many similarities and I really want to learn more about them. According to our tour guide, they love to wear the color black and believe that it offers them protection.

The next day we went to see the stone forest. It was unbelievable! I've seen old Chinese paintings that depicted this kind of scenery, but seeing the real thing was nothing short of extraordinary. The stone forest is a large area of towering stone where you can hike through and admire the stunning landscapes. We happened to go on the day of a national holiday, so the area was just crammed with people. There was also some kind of festival going on there with another of Yunnan's ethnic minority groups. Tony told us that there are close 40 different minority groups in the area. He told me that their customs are different from most of China regarding marriage, and that this group doesn't have arranged marriages. The way they select a mate is through dance! I think that's pretty cool.

Above you can see the "men's entrance" at an area within the stone forest. According to Chinese superstition, the men and women from a married couple are to enter from two different places. Whoever emerges into the open area first is the one who makes all the decisions in the household. Jane made it there first, which is about right!

Here are two of my favorite women in the world!

Later we visited some of the Taoist temples, which were just amazing and enchanting places. We weren't allowed to take pictures of the inside, but they let us take some pictures just outside of the temples. Inside you really get a sense of the history. These temples were truly inspiring, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of them in different parts of China and learning as much as I can about Taoism.

Am I in heaven?

They're as light as air!
The translation: Playing music in the springtime.

The temple I liked best is known as Dragon's Gate in English. This temple is a famous place for students to go for good luck in their future studies because at this temple there is a shrine devoted to Kuixing, the god of literature. I couldn't have picked a better time to visit!

Just click on the image to enlarge it.

These places are so old they are often associated with legends. I took a picture of this one just in case you were curious and want to read about one of the legends of Dragon's Gate.

The most famous of China's mythical creatures is the Kirin. This creature has special significance to me since one of my best friends is named Kirin! It is the half-dragon, half-deer animal you see in the picture below.

We also visited a tea factory, which was pretty cool. They let us sample all kinds of teas and gave us some advice for brewing them. Their specialty is Pu Erh tea, which is aged in mountain caves from 1 to 5 years. We were so impressed with the younger Pu Erh (aged 1 year) that we bought a brick of it.

After the tea factory, we visited a place where they produced Chinese medicine. They were trying to sell all of us some kind of remedies to our ailments which they diagnosed simply by looking at our hands and eyes. Our doctor was surprisingly accurate, at least with Mama and me, but when we heard he wanted to prescribe bear bile to help my liver, we passed. I'm sure there are cheaper and less cruel ways of promoting good health.

We tried some good and not so good food. On the whole, I really enjoyed the food that I tried. I won't go into too much detail about that since food is what Jane loves to write about, but I will tell you about some of the more memorable dishes. Below you can see a street food vendor selling grilled goat. I was daring enough to try it, but I wasn't really impressed. It was extremely chewy and seasoned with lots of cumin, which is something they seem to really like there. Another vendor sold squid with the same kind of seasoning, but that I liked. I was surprised because this style of food reminded me more of Mexican food than Chinese.

Kunming is famous for its mushrooms, so we had to try out one of the restaurants that specialize in them. Below you can see some soup that was made with them. It was so delicious. I couldn't get enough of it!

I also learned a little about Chinese manners at that restaurant. Apparently it’s extremely rude to sigh during a meal. I was worn out from visiting so many places in one day and made the mistake of doing just that. Our guide let me know and said not to worry since I didn't know...but just to be aware of it. Duly noted!

Chad, I wish you could have been there! I would have pinched you to confirm you weren't dreaming!

When we first arrived at Kunming and were walking down the street, we noticed that there was this potent, foul smell that lingered around some of the food stalls. At first we thought it was just garbage in the alley or something like that... I secretly thought to myself that someone needs to get a hose or something, and wash the streets, dumpster, whatever it was that caused this unbearable stench! We just forgot about it and moved on, but later we noticed the same smell in other places. Finally Mama said something about it to our tour guide, and he said that it was from fermented tofu that certain street vendors sold.

Immediately Mama and I decided we wanted to try some.

Anyone who knows me well can attest to my love of kimchee. That's fermented cabbage, and although I don't find the smell of it offensive, I know that many people do. I thought that maybe, just maybe there was a chance that this putrid smelling stuff might have a unique and sublime flavor, since kimchee often does when you get a good batch.

Tony brought us to one of the vendors, and we mustered every ounce of courage we had in us to try it. We all wanted the authentic, local experience, so this was a must. I put the stuff in my mouth and noticed that the flavor was pretty much the same as the smell. Jane asked me what I thought about it, and I said "It's definitely strange." I was trying to be polite and that's all I could think of at the moment. There was a slightly different and unique flavor beneath the foulness of it all, but honestly I have no intention of trying the stuff again. I felt like I was literally eating garbage. Below you can see what it looks like.

Jane wanted to try some of the Peking duck, so we had some of that at the restaurant. It was alright, but there is a place here in Bangkok that makes it much better in my opinion. The best part of it is the skin...you wrap it with that bread you see below, put a little sauce and rice in there with it, and enjoy the deliciousness that abounds within your mouth.

Kunming was great, but I was happy to be returning back home to Bangkok. Every time I leave this country and come back, I get this feeling. I've come to really love it here, even amidst the traffic and pollution. Krungthep (Bangkok) is such an incredible city! It's beginning to really feel like my home.

We took a break for a day, and then on Sunday got right back on a plane and went to Singapore for my visa. This time I was getting a student visa. I'm really looking forward to continuing my education here in Thailand. The cost of attending a university is much cheaper than in the states, which is a huge benefit. I want to major in education, but that isn't offered at the school I'll be going to, so I'm going to be getting my bachelors of arts in English instead. I'm really looking forward to fine tuning my English skills and being able to answer any question about the English language that my future students might ask. I'm sure it will be a challenge, but it's one that I welcome wholeheartedly. Later, if I want to get my masters in Education, I'll have that option.

Visiting Singapore was really nice, but entering Singapore was a little intimidating. Military officers with automatic weapons stood at the arrival terminal in strategic locations, holding their guns in a position of readiness as if they might spring to attack at any moment. Once I was in the city, or country actually...whatever you want to call it, I noticed it was a very clean place. I could tell that Singaporeans really seem to care about aesthetics. Departing from the airport and heading towards the city, we saw attractive landscaping obviously designed to make a good first impression. Pretty smart (Boise's city planning should take note). On the downside, I was surprised to discover that Singapore has some really weird laws. Some, like the ones that make it illegal to be gay, are downright ignorant (see these links for details: Singaporean Laws and Travel Advice for Singapore).

Some laws are simply strange. One example of this is the prohibition of chewing gum. The idea behind that is that it's messy habit, and Singaporeans would prefer to go without the luxury of chewing gum if it means keeping the streets and subway clean. Seems a little harsh, but OK! The fact that it's illegal to sell there has me wondering if, within the underbelly of Singapore, there's a black market for chewing gum...I've got this image in my head of someone desperate for some hubba-bubba walking into an dark alley inconspicuously where they apprehensively make a deal with the local gum dealer.

From what I understand, there isn't much food that is unique specifically to Singapore as it's a melting pot of Southeast Asia, but the dish you see below is. It's a soup made from boiled pig bones and seasoned with an assortment of Chinese herbs. There is a history behind this dish; it was popular among Chinese laborers because it was inexpensive, but very nourishing to the body. I absolutely loved it and wish I could find it here in Bangkok! PY gave us a book of Singaporean recipes as a gift, so hopefully we'll be able to recreate it here.

By the way, "Oh yeah!" means the same in one dialect of Chinese as it does in English!

One of the coolest things about Singapore that we saw was the performing arts center called the Esplanade. It's very modern with outstanding acoustics and from the outside the building really catches your eye due to its resemblance to a couple of spiky durians. Inside there is a great library that focuses only on performing arts! I know that if I lived in Singapore that place would be my second home. They have an extensive selection of music that you can check out from most all kinds of genres, particularly traditional music from around the world.

Below you can see the Fullerton hotel, which is hands down the nicest hotel I've ever seen. I wish I could have stayed there, but that's not something Jane and I are going to be able to afford any time soon!

Below are a couple of interesting sculptures we saw while were I've never seen a bird quite so...voluptuous? Is that the word I'm looking for? The tail feathers look more like a hand than feathers (too bad I didn't get a shot of it).

I really don't know what to say about the next one. I think I'll just let the picture speak for itself.

For a native English speaker like myself, Singapore was an especially nice place to visit since English is the main language spoken there. We had a chance to meet some of our blogger friends, which was supremely cool. Thanks PY and Mistipurple for showing us around!

Bloggers unite!

Although short, the trip was a lot of fun. I hope PY and Mistipurple will visit us in Bangkok someday! Here is a painting we saw at the Esplanade which I thought was very appropriate for us and kind of summed up our experience in Singapore... it was all about kindred spirits coming together.

Where I've been and where I'm going

2007-07-31T21:32:00.001+07:00

20 years ago I...

1. was an awkward little junior high school kid with a high voice and a mullet.
2. was seriously addicted to my Nintendo.
3. went through a phase of intense fascination with all things relating to ancient Egypt.

10 years ago I...

1. was recovering from Chrone's disease.
2. worked at a coffee shop in Boise called the Dreamwalker.
3. met some of my best friends to this day.

5 years ago I...

1. had moved to Olympia, Washington
2. worked as live in staff with developmentally disabled adults
3. started dreaming about traveling to Asia

3 years ago I...

1. decided that I should move back to my hometown in Boise, Idaho to be closer to my family again.
2. was becoming more and more fascinated with Taoism and Buddhism.
3. was ready to learn from my mistakes and put the past behind me.

1 year ago I...

1. arrived in Bangkok and met my soul mate.
2. took a TEFL course and started learning what it was like to be an English teacher in Thailand.
3. felt extraordinarily lucky that finally my dreams seemed to be coming true!

So far this year I...

1. have gotten engaged.
2. have traveled to Cambodia, Laos, and several parts of Thailand.
3. have been happier than I've ever been in my life.

Yesterday I...

1. came back from an awesome trip to Khaoyai national park.
2. ate some delicious Japanese food with Jane, Natalie, Vics, and Amy.
3. relaxed around the apartment with my sweet Jane.

Today I...

1. daydreamed about our future life in the Thai countryside.
2. read about the life of Milarepa.
3. enjoyed an extremely relaxing Thai massage with Jane.

Tomorrow I will...

1. listen to Kristen Hersh on Jane's iPod.
2. continue to rest as I recover from this chest cold that is still with me.
3. probably write some emails to my family.

In the next year I will...

1. get married to Jane!
2. live life and love it.
3. work on getting back into school so I can get my degree in education.

Our first anneversary!

2007-07-22T15:14:00.000+07:00

Today marks one year of meeting Jane (in person) and living in Thailand!

We were going to celebrate by having dinner at a romantic Thai restaurant, but Jane got call for an assignment in the North East as a fixer. The job will offer pretty good pay, and right now we need the money for our wedding, so we'll have to celebrate next week. I feel so lucky to have met this incredible, wonderful woman. The year I've spent with her has been without a doubt the best year of my life. I can attest to the fact that an internet relationship can actually work. It has brought me to my true love!

Mai sa bai

2007-07-15T17:12:00.001+07:00

I had a rough couple of weeks. It started out with a root canal, then I got a nasty cold. Just as the worst of that was over, I started feeling a pain in my big toe that kept getting worse and worse. As it turns out, I've got gout. I wasn't too surprised about it since some of my family members have had it in the past. It means I'm gonna have to change my diet around, but that's alright. Aside from all of this, things have been going well. I've just been learning a lot, and enjoying life here in Thailand.

Jane and I are thinking of having our wedding on a boat along the Chaophaya river which has a nice view of the royal palace. We're not 100% sure about it, but it sounds nice to us.

Heeeeeee!!!! Horrrrr!!!!!!

2007-06-04T16:41:00.000+07:00

One day while taking a taxi, we saw this advertisement on the seat (click on the picture to enlarge it).

Doesn't this sound like good, wholesome fun? Not only that, but the free drink charge is only 2500 to 3000 baht per person! For those of you with unrealized dreams of "tank drives" and "automatic fire", look no further!

Now, I don't want to be too critical. The English used here is FAR better than my Thai usage (and those of you who read my blog know my English aint perfect either). Seriously, I have nothing but respect for people who can read and write in another language. I can do neither in Thai. That being said, this kind of thing is still very amusing to me. I wish they would've consulted me before they printed their advertisements!

Bad English is everywhere in Thailand, so I've decided to start documenting my favorite examples. It's an endless source of entertainment!

Graffiti along Tong Lor

2007-06-02T19:36:00.000+07:00

Here is a sample of some of the graffiti we see while walking along Tong Lor. Some of the stuff I see here in Bangkok reminds me of something Miyazaki might have drawn up as a young lad.

Here is one of the strangest ones I've seen. It's a man in a bunny suit wielding a knife. I wish I had a better understanding as to what the message is here...I mean, on the top it says "UNDERCOVER CRIMINAL", and below it looks like it was supposed to read "Criminal is one of Bangkok's street problems." Something to ponder. It looks like it was slapped over some graffiti, so maybe it's a warning from the police to the graffiti artists, but if that were so, wouldn't it be written in Thai? Could it be someone promoting a comic book they're working on?

Compassion for AIDS Victims in Thailand

2007-05-28T20:17:00.000+07:00

On Saturday Jane and I went on a trip to Lopburi with her friend Ann's family. We wanted to visit a temple that's famous here for helping AIDS victims. There was a bus filled with people going, most of whom were relatives of Ann.

We all gathered in a room with some monks and did some chanting. Since I'd never learned any Pali, I couldn't really join in that part of it. I just sat there listening, keeping my hands in the wai position. We had all donated to the temple, and some people from Ann's family had fashioned a kind of tree with all kinds of things dangling from it. I remember seeing things like sponges, toothpaste, money, soap... whatever you can think of that would help them there. With each of us donating what we could, we managed to raise over 100,000 baht! Some of Jane’s friends weren’t able to come, but they sent some money along with us to donate for them. Some members of Ann's family had actually gone door to door to help raise funds! It was really cool to see people taking it upon themselves to contribute to those in need. From what I understand, AIDS victims don't get much government support in Thailand, if any. The Buddhist monks have been doing it, but it's very difficult for them to afford keeping it up. It's only because of donations that they are able to continue doing what they're doing.

After the chanting, we walked around a bit. The houses that the patients lived in were really small. Each one was made up of a single room large enough to fit a bed, and that's about it. I remember one of the patients walked out of his room and smiled as he waied us. His wai was one I think I'll always remember; he seemed so sincere and thankful for our help. Jane told me that most of the people who go there have nowhere else to go. She told me that they're often exiled from their families and that they're usually in the final stages of the disease when they arrive there. According to her, one reason for this is that there are so many poor, uneducated people who don't know much about the disease, which causes them to be afraid of it. She said that they feel like it brings shame to the family, and that they think it's a disease only prostitutes and drug addicts get. Sadly, after the patients pass away, only 1% of the victim's relatives even come back to collect their cremated remains. It's a really sad situation for so many of these people. They're abandoned by their families at the time they need them the most! Below you can see a picture of some of the uncollected remains. You can also see some artwork that was actually sculpted from some of these remains.

While walking back to our bus I saw a museum that was called the "Life Museum". Jane told me she didn't want to go in there, and I couldn't understand why. When I walked in, I was not at all prepared to witness what I was about to see. There in front of me were the preserved bodies of some people who had lived their last days at the temple. I had my camera with me, but I couldn't get myself to take any pictures of them. They seemed so lifelike to me, almost as if their spirits still remained there, and to do so would be disrespectful. Below you can read what was displayed in English about the museum (just click on the image to enlarge it).

I'm very glad to have had the chance to go with Ann's family to the temple. I have so much respect for what these monks are doing. I wanted to get an address in English for any of you who would like to write to them to get information on how you can help, but I wasn't able to find anything. However, if you have any interest in donating, I was able to find some telephone numbers that you can call. They are in desperate need of money to continue funding everything. One of the largest costs they have is for the medication they give to their patients. Those numbers are:

(66)08-1451-6193, (66)08-9742-0728-31, and (66)0-3641-3805.

The images below are some pictures from the information packet they gave us. As you can see, there's a lot of suffering going on there, but at least it's in an environment filled with compassion and love. Going to Lopburi and seeing this place has really inspired me to try and do more for these people, and it has also showed me that if everyone gives what they can, it can really add up.

My first Songkran

2007-04-14T22:54:00.000+07:00

Yesterday was the first day of Thailand's Songkran holiday, which was a prelude to the beginning of the Thai New Year. The actual New Year begins on the 14th, but the holiday runs from the 13th to the 15th. You may be surprised to know that here it is actually the year 2550. Since Thailand is a Buddhist country, the year is based on the time of Buddha.

If you haven't heard of Songkran before, I'll try and describe what it was like. Approximately 2 million people leave Bangkok, and visit their families in the countryside. I thought this might ease the traffic here a bit, but from mid afternoon till sunset it was actually worse than what we're used to. This might be due to the hordes of people with high powered squirt guns, buckets of water, and hoses drenching anyone who comes in their path! That's right; Songkran is perhaps the world’s largest water fight!

At first it wasn't too bad. We ventured outside, and while waiting for Mama to take a shower, I surprised Jane with a little harmless splash. Later, I lightly sprayed some people with a hose as they were driving by. They would smile, and it was all in good fun. I was a little confused about the do's and don'ts of Songkran at this point though. Later a motorcycle stopped in front of our house, and a child got off the back of it, walking towards me with baby powder of all things. I instinctively stepped back, and he seemed puzzled, so he just went back to the motorcycle, and they all laughed as they drove off. I didn't realize that you're supposed to let them cover you with that too!

As we walked toward the main road, we stopped by a really good Somtum (spicy green papaya salad) stand where a mother was trying to teach her young daughter how to participate in Songkran. It was pretty funny, her mom kept telling her to splash me, but she couldn't get herself to do it. Finally the mother said for me to put my hand out in front of her, and the little girl managed to get my hand wet. Everyone laughed, and then Mama (Jane's mom) poured water over her, showing her the way it's really supposed to be done. We continued down the road, and sure enough, there was a group of people with water, just waiting for us. We simply walked up to them, and they proceeded to pour the water over us, smiling.

We were heading towards Chok Chai 4, a place where you can go at any time to get a bite to eat. A lot of people seemed to have chosen this spot as their destination; the traffic was really bad leading up to it. I quickly found out that being a farang (white person) made me a prime target! Sometimes you'd see a truckload of people with one or two garbage cans filled with ice water, and you knew you were in for it. Sometimes they were on the street. Sometimes it was a simple child with a squirt gun; sometimes it was a paste of clay that they would smear all over your face! We even had somebody come up to us and coat our faces with "Prickly Heat". When my eyes started burning, I was thankful when people continued to soak me, so I could wash it out! There would be times that I was feeling like an icicle, and would be thankful when someone would soak me with warm water. If the traffic had been moving more, it wouldn't have been so bad, but in the unmoving traffic we were like sitting ducks.

There was a lot of loud music playing, people young and old dancing, and just living it up. It was the biggest street party I've ever seen, and our little part of Bangkok was just a tiny fraction of it. It was nuts! You would see police officers with the clay or baby powder on their faces, smiling, and getting sprayed by the people driving by. There were many of them, and military personnel too. It was inspiring to see so many Thai people taking over the streets on such a large scale.

There were a lot of people drinking, and sometimes they would come up to us. When the traffic was at a standstill, one guy, who was clearly plastered, was trying to come into our tuk tuk and put more clay on our faces. Just then, the traffic started moving, and he was only halfway in. He slammed up against the tuk tuk and fell on the ground really hard. We were concerned because it looked like he might have been really hurt. When we looked back, we saw some of his friends picking him up off the street. Other obviously inebriated people were drumming, and singing Thai songs jubilantly!

Finally we arrived at Chok Chai 4. What should have taken only 20 minutes was an hour and a half! I was chilled to the bone, so we went looking for some hot soup to warm me up. The food was good, and we bought a bunch of fruit too. I had one of my favorites, mango and sticky rice. Also, Durian season has begun, and we picked up some of that too!

The ride back was much better. After sunset, people weren't quite as apt to spray us. When we finally got home, both Jane and I were totally worn out. I felt like I was coming down with some kind of fever. The constant ice cold water that was dumped on me for hours might have had something to do with it. When I went to bed, I couldn't sleep...I had a high fever, and was burning up! Then, when I woke up in the morning, I was icy cold, shivering, with my teeth chattering. I also had a terrible headache that just wouldn't go away. Jane was kind enough to take care of me, and got me some hot water, and a hot water bag, which helped me a lot. Today I've just been resting, trying to recover.

So yes, Songkran was definitely an experience. I've decided that, as enjoyable and interesting as it was, I'm going to stay inside for the remainder of this one. I just don't feel well enough to go through that again! Next year when Songkran comes around again, I'll be ready for it!

What happened the year you were born?

2007-03-22T13:59:00.000+07:00

In 1975 (the year you were born)

Gerald Ford is president of the US

Evacuation of US civilians from Saigon as Communist forces complete takeover of South Vietnam

FBI agents capture Patty Hearst, who is indicted and convicted of bank robbery

Teamster Jimmy Hoffa disappears without a trace

Marines rescue the crew of the American ship the Mayaguez near Vietnam

First Lady Betty Ford says in an interview that she thinks her children have tried marijuana

Natalie Imbruglia, Drew Barrymore, David Beckham, Enrique Iglesias, Angelina Jolie, and Tiger Woods are born

Cincinnati Reds win the World Series

Pittsburgh Steelers win Superbowl IX

Philadelphia Flyers win the Stanley Cup

Production begins on Star Wars

Jaws and The Rocky Horror Picture Show are the top grossing films

Soul Train premieres on television in the United States

"The Way We Were" (performed by Barbara Streisand) wins the Grammy for best song

Saturday Night Live and Wheel of Fortune premiere

What Happened the Year You Were Born?

To whom does the gift belong?

2007-03-21T21:39:00.000+07:00

Jane told me a story once about the Buddha that I think is very true and powerful...the tricky thing is to actually apply this teaching in one's life. Today I thought a lot about this story, so Jane helped me find it online. To read more, check this website out: Love In Buddhism

A Rude Man

The Buddha explained to skeptics how he was able to maintain his compassion.

One day Buddha was walking through a village. A very angry and rude young man came up and began insulting him. "You have no right teaching others," he shouted. "You are as stupid as everyone else. You are nothing but a fake."

Buddha was not upset by these insults. Instead he asked the young man "Tell me, if you buy a gift for someone, and that person does not take it, to whom does the gift belong?"

The man was surprised to be asked such a strange question and answered, "It would belong to me, because I bought the gift."

The Buddha smiled and said, "That is correct. And it is exactly the same with your anger. If you become angry with me and I do not get insulted, then the anger falls back on you. You are then the only one who becomes unhappy, not me. All you have done is hurt yourself.

"If you want to stop hurting yourself, you must get rid of your anger and become loving instead. When you hate others, you yourself become unhappy. But when you love others, everyone is happy."

The young man listened closely to these wise words of the Buddha. "You are right, o Blessed One, "he said. "Please teach me the path of love. I wish to become your follower."

The Buddha answered kindly, "Of course. I teach anyone who truly wants to learn. Come with me."

Alcohol in Thailand

2007-03-06T16:44:00.000+07:00

Here in Thailand you'll notice at bars, or wherever you see alcohol being advertised, there is often a little Buddhist warning (much like the surgeon general's warning on tobacco in the United States) that says it is against the fifth rule of the Buddha to drink. From what I understand, this is one of the most important precepts to follow for this reason: if you are drunk, you're more likely to break the other four rules. To a Buddhist, being drunk is the opposite of being mindful. This mindfulness is something that is to be cultivated, and will be like an antidote to the rising of afflictive emotions.

Here there are two times each day when it's illegal to sell alcohol. The first is from 2:00pm to 5:00pm and the second is from midnight to 10:00am. Also, there are certain days when it's illegal to sell alcohol. Last Saturday was one of them, which was a holiday celebrating a time when monks from all over coincidentally knew to travel to the place where the Buddha was. Upon arriving there, they heard his first sermon after becoming enlightened. The other day that alcohol cannot be sold is on the King's birthday.

In the picture below, you can see the warning on the top of the advertisement. The 5 you see indicates that it is the Buddha's fifth rule. The five basic precepts are as follows:

1. Do not take life
2. Do not take what is not given
3. Do not distort facts
4. Refrain from misuse of the senses
5. Refrain from self-intoxication through alcohol or drugs

If you want to learn a little more about the five rules, go here: http://www.katinkahesselink.net/tibet/panchasila.html

Painting pagodas

2007-01-27T15:47:00.000+07:00

A little while ago Jane, Mama, and I had a chance to go with her friend Nui to paint Pagodas at a temple in Saraburi, which is close to Bangkok. The day we went happened to be the day that they lifted the Buddha's bones to the top of all the pagodas! It was fun to be there, painting, listening to some cool live music, and watching people dance as the event was about to begin. We'll be going again tomorrow, it should be fun! Here are some pics we took:

The the pic above is of Nui, our friend who has all the contacts for these Buddhist projects. She and her brother are always donating their time and money to help in them. They both have a great love for Buddhism!

Above is Mama...

and here a sleepy, but diligent Jane...

and here I am baking in the hot Thai sun!

Above you can see the yellow primer, and the gold finish. The sky was particularly beautiful that day, adding a lot of contrast to the bright gold color. We all can't wait to see it completed; it's going to be so beautiful! The really fantastic pictures here were taken by Jane of course! She has quite an eye when it comes to taking pictures! Mine never turn out quite like hers :-)

There are lots of great sculptures of the Buddha there :-)

The New Year

2007-01-18T20:12:00.001+07:00

I realized that I hadn't posted a new blog in a while...I've been really busy and haven't had much free time. I've got several ideas just a simmerin' in my head of what I wanna tell ya'all about, but until I can find the time that's all they're gonna do. If you haven't heard, there were several bombings here in Bangkok on New Years Eve. That was a real downer. One of the bombs went off where the big countdown was scheduled to take place. Luckily this event was canceled due to the previous bombings earlier in the day, so it could've been a lot worse, but one woman was killed from it, and two others were killed from the earlier bombings. It is believed by many Thai people that the ex-prime minister may have had something to do with it, but no one really knows for sure who was behind it.

This weekend our family is traveling to Petcheburi, a province famous for its sweets! I'm really looking forward to this trip, I love spending time with Jane and her family. The following weekend we'll be painting pagodas again where the Buddha's remaining bones were laid to rest. We painted some of the pagodas there already on a trip we took last month. I'm looking forward to doing it again. I am excited to see it when it's finished; it's gonna be so beautiful!

A message from Leonard Peltier, from the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee

2007-01-13T16:41:00.000+07:00

Here is a recent message from Leonard; its definitely worth reading. It will be 31 years that he was extradited from Canada on February 2. If you want to help out, there is a link at the bottom that will bring you to Freedom Walk, which is run by the LPDC (Leonard Peltier Defense Committee). Here you can donate something to his cause. Every little bit will help!

To: Leonard Peltier Supporters

From: Leonard Peltier Defense Committee

Subject: A message from Leonard Peltier

"Much of the government's behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and in its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed."

BACKGROUND

For over 30 years I have sought justice from the United States Courts which have failed to provide me with any relief despite acknowledging numerous acts of Government misconduct. For example, after my trial, my lawyers issued Freedom of Information Act Requests ("FOIA") and discovered that the Government fabricated the ballistics evidence which it used at trial to argue that I shot the agents in cold blood. Once we revealed this egregious misconduct, the Government has had to admit on several occasions in open Court and before the Parole Commission that it could not prove I shot the agents and that it could not prove who shot the agents.

Despite the Government misconduct recognized by the Courts, I remain in prison. When we exposed the Government misconduct, the Government stopped arguing that I "shot the agents," and began arguing that my conviction should be upheld on aiding and abetting grounds, even though the only two people I could have aided and abetted, Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted on self-defense grounds. In the Robideau and Butler trials, the Court allowed them to present evidence to show that they where shooting in self defense at unknown assailants who were shooting at houses occupied by women and children. In contrast, my case was moved to another Judge, Judge Benson, who prevented me from introducing evidence of self-defense and evidence of the war-like climate that existed on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation because of marauding groups of vigilantes hired by a corrupt tribal government, supported by the United States government.

Just as significant, no Court has ever explained how my conviction could be upheld on aiding and abetting grounds since I could not aid and abet myself, and I could not aid and abet my co-defendants since they were acquitted. So, just who did I aid and abet to warrant two consecutive life sentences? The Courts and the Government cannot answer that question. Yet, I remain in prison.

My case demonstrates the illegal means which our Government will utilize to ensure that I, a native American, am punished for the death of two FBI agents, without regard to whether I did it, which I did not, and without regard to the deprivation of my rights. All the Government cared about was that someone was punished for an incident provoked by the FBI, the corrupt tribal government, and its private police, known as the GOON squad. And yet, I remain in prison.

The United States Government keeps me imprisoned to justify the continuing abuses against, not only Native American people, but anyone who seeks to fight criminal abuses such as those committed and/or aided by the FBI on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation between 1973-1976. This Country has waged, and continues to wage, war not just against native Americans but against any form of domestic political dissent. Secret domestic intelligence programs, such as the well documented Cointelpro program and the Patriot Act, have eroded and destroy the constitutional rights and liberties of all peoples of this Nation. But, most people would rather ignore injustice, then take a stand against injustice and face the wrath of our Government. What I was not allowed to introduce into evidence was the indisputable evidence that United States Government and a corrupt tribal government committed war crimes against the Oglala people during the so-called "Reign of Terror," from 1973-1976. Yet, these crimes have never been uninvestigated, and, if anything, they have been ignored and certain propagandists have revised history to say they never occurred, similar to those who espouse that the genocide of Native American people never occurred in the Americas. The one exception is the murder of Anna Mae Aquash which the United States Government began pursuing earnestly nearly 30 years after her death, in order to smear me to harm my chances at parole through the use of hearsay testimony and unsubstantiated innuendo. I unequivocally deny that I had anything to do with the murder of Anna Mae, and I condemn those who murdered her and those who seek to smear me and make me a patsy for the crime they committed.

The indisputable Government misconduct which led to my wrongful conviction represents a threat to the liberties of each and every one of us. Perhaps this is what ultimately struck the conscience of Judge Heaney (a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit who despite the glaring evidence of Government misconduct, wrote a strained and legally embarrassing decision to deny my first habeas petition), and compelled him to write a letter supporting my request for presidential clemency.

As recently as the fall of 2003, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit stated: Much of the government's behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and in its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed.

As my lawyers wrote in a recent brief, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has repeatedly recognized specific instances of FBI misconduct in my case: The Eighth Circuit found that the FBI withheld critical ballistics evidence which raised questions "regarding the truth and accuracy of [FBI agent Evan] Hodge's testimony." The Eighth Circuit

acknowledged that the FBI withheld critical evidence which was "newly discovered evidence indicating [that the government's ballistic's expert] may not have been telling the truth," and that the evidence withheld by the FBI created "inconsistencies casting strong doubts upon the government's case."

The Eighth Circuit also addressed the government's coercing of witnesses and extracting perjurious affidavits including the three fabricated affidavits of Myrtle Poor Bear which were used to extradite me from Canada. The FBI knew that Ms. Poor Bear was mentally incompetent. Yet, they had her sign three fabricated affidavits which falsely stated that she was my girlfriend and that she saw me kill Agents Coler and Williams. Poor Bear never

knew me, and she was never at the Jumping Bull Compound on June 26, 1975, or any other date that I am aware of. The Eighth Circuit described the Myrtle PoorBear episode as follows:

In February and March, 1976, Myrtle Poor Bear signed three affidavits which related her eyewitness account of the murders of the two agents on June 26, 1975. Two of these affidavits were considered by Canadian officials in the extradition proceedings. In testimony given outside of the presence of the jury at the trial, Poor Bear disclaimed virtually every allegation contained in the affidavits. She testified that she had been forced to sign the affidavits, which were prepared by FBI agents Price and Wood, under threats of physical harm.

The Eighth Circuit court recognized that "[t]he Poor Bear....testimony was certainly consistent with [my] theory [that the FBI framed me by manufacturing evidence and inducing witnesses to testify in accordance with its theory of the murders.]" Even in the face of this fraud, one of the prosecutors, Lynn Crooks, belligerently stated on television in 1990 that, even if he knew the affidavits were false, he still would not have hesitated to provide them to the Canadian prosecutor.

THE FBI'S ILLEGALL TACTICS IN ITS WAR ON THE AMERICAN INDIAN MOVEMENT AND ME

I was a member of the American Indian Movement who, like many others, was subjected to a number of Counterintelligence (COINTELPRO) type activities by the FBI. "COINTELPRO" is the FBI acronym for a series of covert action programs directed against political domestic groups. This program was investigated and condemned by a Congressional hearing in the 1970s. With this unauthorized program, the FBI engaged in covert actions designed to 'disrupt' and 'neutralize' target groups and individuals," engaged in political dissent. One of the COINTELPRO type tactics used by the FBI and, in particular against AIM, was the infiltration of the legal defense by paid informants, violating attorney-client privilege. We have recently discovered evidence that the FBI did this in my case.

RECENTLY DISCOVERED EVIDENCE

In the face of Court expressions acknowledging and condemning the Government misconduct, the Courts continue to allow the FBI to engage in wrongful behavior by allowing them to withhold more than 140,000 documents which are located in FBI Field Offices throughout the country. Despite the passage of over 30 years, the Courts have justified the FBI's behavior by ruling that the Informant Files in my case must be protected because the release of such documents could impact the war on "international terrorism." Such a

ludicrous and unfathomable reason can only undermine any remaining confidence we could possibly have that our system is based on justice and fairness.

With respect to AIM, and me in particular, we now know that the FBI used confidential informant sources to compromise attorney/client communications they illegally used to develop strategies for conviction. We recently discovered FOIA documents establishing that the FBI utilized Douglas Durham, a paid FBI confidential source who infiltrated the highest levels of AIM and was exposed on March 7, 1975, in my extradition proceedings from

Canada. As one Court recognized, "Mr. Douglass Durham, infiltrated the American Indian Movement under instructions of the FBI, won the confidence of Dennis Banks and other leaders of the movement, occupied a series of high level positions in the organization."

These FOIA documents show that the FBI utilized Durham not only to provide information to William Halprin, the Chief Prosecutor from Canada, against me in connection with the extradition proceedings, but also as an "expert adviser on AIM." Halprin requested Durham's involvement "to enable him to utilize the source [Durham] to refute statements made by Peltier's defense. “To purportedly avoid legal liability, Durham was told by the FBI not to

execute any affidavits or to travel to Canada. "Durham has been instructed to provide information requested by Crown Attorney [and] … If recontacted by Halprin, he would cooperate fully and would keep Omaha [FBI] advised of developments."

As my attorneys recently wrote, the Courts have indicated that this type of conduct crosses the line: The informant, Douglass Durham, had worked in various undercover capacities prior to the Wounded Knee incident. His relationship with the FBI began in March 1973 when he supplied the FBI office in Des Moines, Iowa, with copies of photographs he had taken in a one-day visit to Wounded Knee. He later served in various leadership positions within AIM, including national security director and national administrator. He became a close companion of AIM leader Dennis Banks during the period including the Banks-Means trial in St. Paul. Throughout this period of intimate affiliation with AIM and its leaders, he was supplying information to the FBI.

In analyzing this issue, the Eighth Circuit described the troubling conduct by the FBI:

Were we concerned on this appeal with the question of whether the convictions of Dennis Banks and Russell Means, tried in St. Paul, could be upheld, we would have another case. There is evidence in the record and FBI files to indicate that Durham was privy to numerous conversations between Banks and his lawyers, that he was present in St. Paul during the

course of the trial, and that he was in constant communication not only with Banks and the other defendants during the trial, but with the FBI. As the record here is devoid of that type of close proximity to the defense of these appellants and as no prejudice has been shown, we refuse to set aside the convictions of the appellants because of the activities of the informants.

The FBI permitted informants to attend both my trial and that of my co-defendants. In an FBI internal memo, the FBI discussed the circumstances under which informant sources could be approved to go to our trials: "If approved by FBIHQ, sources should be specifically instructed to refrain from being parties to Defense Litigation strategies. Furthermore, they should be instructed that in the event they are unexpectedly placed in the position of being parties to such discussions, they should, where their informant status will not be compromised, leave such discussions immediately."

Durham himself acknowledged that this caution was little more than a wink and a smile. In the Wounded Knee Trials, Douglas Durham was similarly advised by the FBI not to engage in any activity that would violate confidences of the defense, nor to engage in any activities or relate to the FBI any information that had to do with defense tactics, or any legal aspect of the operations of AIM or the defense at that point. In spite of the advice he allegedly received from the FBI, Mr. Durham testified in the United States Senate about the 1974 trial of AIM leader Dennis Banks: "If Dennis and I were sitting in a room and an attorney would walk in and start talking, I couldn't jump up and say, 'I can't be here, the FBI won't allow it.'"

In a Teletype dated July 7, 1975 from the Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of the FBI to the FBI Director and Mr. Richard Held, Special Agent in Charge, Pine Ridge, South Dakota, The FBI indicated that a confidential source, much like Durham was allegedly advised by the FBI not to engage in any activity that would violate any confidences of my defense. The FBI however refuses to produce the name(s) of their informants and has been given unfettered discretion by the courts to keep this information from my legal team.

Despite our discovering this information, the Courts have let the Government be the arbiter of what documents to produce and what they can withhold. As such, the FBI has unfettered discretion to withhold documents from which it can be determined whether it engaged in misconduct, because it will not acknowledge it. As it is, the FBI deliberately failed to produce any documents from the time period of my trial in the exemplar of documents which it recently produced to the Court to allow it to determine whether the informant documents should be produced to me in an unredacted form. It is clear that it did so to prevent me from finding information they have hid that could affect my due process rights.

Indeed, a document recently produced by the FBI and recently introduced by my lawyers to a Magistrate Judge established that the FBI intentionally took actions to try to avoid producing documents in discovery in my case. But again, this seems to have had no impact on the Court. The United States Federal Courts have recognized overwhelming evidence of FBI misconduct in my case which has already been revealed, yet it has continued to allow the FBI to use exemptions under FOIA to shield its illegal tactics in this case, depriving me of my rights to a fair trail. I urge all of you who believe in justice to join my fight and cry out for the production of all documents related to my case. Why is the FBI still with holding documents? Why won't they produce all documents to me? To me the answer is obvious. I believe the answer is obvious to you also.

Leonard Peltier

# 89637-132

U.S.P. Lewisburg,

P.O. Box 1000,

Lewisburg, PA USA 17837

Leonard Peltier Defense Committee Website:

http://www.leonardpeltier.net/

E-mail: info@leonardpeltier.net

Dancing Elephants

2006-12-24T18:45:00.000+07:00

Here is a video Jane took at the Sampram Crocodile farm on the outskirts of Bangkok (Nakorn Pathom). It was the funniest thing to watch! The elephants definitely have a sense of humor! They've quickly become one of my favorite animals. Jane told me that some elephants in the North can even paint and play music! After seeing this, I believe it!

Dancing Elephants

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Visiting Laos

2006-12-13T17:19:00.001+07:00

I visited Laos recently, which was great! I didn't know what to expect; I knew very little about Laos before I went. I really enjoyed the time I spent there, and I'd like to go back. The people there were friendly, and the capital city of Vientiane had some very old and historic temples, and was fun to explore.

Below are some pictures from Hophrakeo temple, it was my favorite of all the temples I visited there. One cool thing about this temple in particular is that it's where the Emerald Buddha (a famous Buddhist artifact) was housed from 1564 to 1779, when Thailand reclaimed it.

The Mekong river runs through Vientiane, and if I walked down towards the river I could actually get a Thai signal on my cell phone, so I didn't have to pay international rates. That was nice...

Below are some pictures from a temple in Nongkai, which is in Thailand, but just across the bridge to Laos.

It was just after our trip to Nongkai (see the post Stairway to the Heavens) that I went to Laos to get my visa.

The food I had in Laos was really good, and from what I understand, this is where somtum originated. Their version is different from Thai style. It's saltier and less sweet, but still delicious. There is a large French influence there because they had been colonized by them in the past. I went to a museum, and learned a little more their history. I had no idea that the United States bombed Laos. I don't remember being taught about that in school. They fought in Laos from 1962-1975 in what is known as the Secret War, and is also known as the Laotian Civil War. Pretty messed up.

I loved Vientiane, and I highly recommend going there if you ever have the chance. It is a very tourist friendly place, and it's a charming little city. Jane and I really want to go there together sometime. Maybe we'll get the chance to go when there is a break from school in April.

More cultural differences

2006-12-03T18:07:00.001+07:00

I've been thinking more and more about some of the cultural differences between Thailand and the United States, and here are a few more to add to the list:

First, if you're asking someone to come towards you using a hand gesture, it is considered very rude and it's like taunting someone to fight with you if you do it the American way with the palm up. Instead, the palm is down, and you move all of your fingers up and down if you'd like someone to come towards you. It's not something I do very often, but if I ever do, I usually forget about it. I also forget how rude it is to point with my feet. I had no idea that I did this so much! Bad Jeremy!

Also, here in Thailand the swastika doesn't really seem to be offensive to the Thai people, and it is in fact considered fashionable to some. I've seen T-shirts worn by regular looking people with a swastika and the word "Destroy!" on the front. Maybe they can't read the word because it's in English, or maybe they can, but they just don't care. I don't know. I asked Jane and Jun about it, and they said that Thais just don't think about it as a symbol of racism, and that the symbol has been around in this culture for a very long time in Buddhism with only positive connotations. Jane and Jun were also telling me about commercials here in Thailand that encourage the youth to become monks, saying that as a monk you'll look stylish, like a skinhead! I couldn't believe it, and that is one of the biggest cultural differences I've seen here so far. Every time I see a swastika, particularly when the colors red, white, or black are used, it makes me think of racism and bigotry. Here it doesn't seem to be regarded that way at all. It's not something I see very often, but every now and then I do. In the picture below you can see an assortment of wristbands I found in Chinatown. You can take your pick of ones decorated with Che Guevara, Slipknot, or a swastika. This one is a left facing one, which is not the same symbol the Nazi's used, but the color scheme used in it makes me think of Nazi's anyways. If you look over to the left a litte, you can see one with a smaller (sloppy looking) right facing swastika, and someone flipping you off.

Another difference I've noticed is how Thais love baby powder, and use it far more than Americans do, especially when it comes to their children. I asked Jane why and how this obsession with baby powder began, and she said she didn't know, but when they have enough of it on they're ready to go to school. Jane told me that she did this when she was young as well. She says she has a picture of her covered in the stuff, and when we find it I'll post it as an example, it's pretty funny.

Pirated movies, music, and software are big business here. Everywhere you go you can find someone selling them, and at a fraction of the price you'd find the original. In the United States lots of people do copy music, movies, and use pirated software just like any other country, but you would never see it sold out in public as it is here.

Here's an obvious one...there are so many more motorcycles here! The way they drive can be crazy (Jane says Vietnam is far worse, which is hard to imagine), and as a pedestrian you definitely don't have the right of way. When Thai people drive, they honk their horns all the time to let the people around them know they're there. People cut each other off all the time, and motorcycles are constantly driving between cars, and sometimes even in the oncoming lane. That's what really makes the constant use of horns necessary...otherwise there'd probably be a lot more accidents. While walking on the sidewalk it is a common occurrence to have motorcycles driving on it with you! Usually they are considerate in this kind of situation, and don't drive too fast, but there have been times when I didn't realize one was coming and I was taken by surprise, and had to rush out of the way.

That's all that's come to mind at the moment, but I'm sure there will be more to come as I keep thinking about them.

The nature of prayer in Buddhism, and it's differences with Abrahamic traditions

2006-11-19T13:31:00.000+07:00

A little while ago my Mom sent me an email with a question from a colleague of hers at work. He teaches a comparative religion class, and was inquiring specifically about the nature of prayer in Buddhism. She sent it to me thinking I might be able to answer the question, but honestly it kind of stumped me. When I have read Buddhist texts, there was nothing I could recall that specifically talked about prayer. I knew that there is chanting, and I knew that many people go to the temples to "pray", but it did seem different to me than the way Christians prayed. Being new to Buddhism, I'm still learning about the many different elements within the various sects.

My practice of Buddhism so far has been based almost entirely on accepting the four noble truths as universal truth, and understanding that the noble eightfold path is the way to end suffering. This is something that every sect of Buddhism seems to agree about. The Buddha, being supremely wise and compassionate, outlined this method to reduce (and eventually cause the extinction of) afflictive emotions, and promote positive ones. This is known as the noble eightfold path. It is is the core of Buddhist practice. Still, there are other aspects of Buddhism I know little about, such as the nature prayer to a Buddhist, and the nature of Buddhist deities, so my Mom's question really got me thinking about these particular issues. After doing a little search online, I came across this site:

http://www.cloudwater.org/index2.html

If you scroll down to the bottom, you will find a little section called "Ask a monk". I thought "Perfect!" Here is what I wrote to Venerable Shih Ying-Fa:

I have a great love of the Buddha's teachings, and I consider myself to be Buddhist. His teachings have made a very positive impact on my life. Buddhism is such a vast religion, and there are still elements of it that I do not fully understand. My Mother, who is Mormon, recently wrote me an email which questions the nature of prayer in Buddhism. Here is her question:

"If, in Buddhism, there is no deity, then what is the nature of prayer? What is hoped for? For Christians, prayer is directed to God, with the hope that divine intervention will bless, help, protect, or alter one's life. Is there a similar form of worship or expression in Theravada Buddhism?"

From my experience when we go to a temple to make merit, it feels like we are given blessings. Is it more of a blessing of karma, and not bestowed by deities? I know that some forms of Buddhism talk about deities, like Tibetan Buddhism for example. Is Mahakala considered a God, or is he symbolic of our awakened mind? Is he capable of divine intervention? What about Jambhala? Or Vaisravana? I am very curious, and would love to be able to answer my mother's question, so any insight that you may be able to offer would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much,

Jeremy

.................................................................................................

I didn't have to wait very long for a response. Here is what he said:

Dear Jeremy,

It is always gratifying to hear that one is benefiting from the Buddha's teachings. In reading my reply please keep in mind that I am a Mahayana Buddhist, so my views may differ slightly from either the Theravada or Vajrayana perspectives.

Your mother, like many who may be unfamiliar with our tradition, probably sees it through the eyes of her own faith tradition. This being the case, she may feel that there is a so-called "prayer" element in Buddhism. As I'm sure you are aware, so-called Buddhist "prayers" have only a passing similarity to the prayers and prayer dynamic of the Abrahamic traditions.

Since there is no deity figure in Buddhism that correlates to the figure of God/Yahweh/Allah, then there is no one to pray "to." This could not happen in Buddhism because it would imply that there is a separation between sentient beings and the ultimate. Buddhism teaches that we exist in an interdepent, interrelated multiverse, and that the infinite is inherent in all sentient beings. The realization of this, of course, is what we are working on. It isn't that we aren't all enlightened beings, it's just that we don't fully realize this yet.

Our blessings (and our curses) are indeed karmic in nature. We are the agents of our own suffering and the agents of our own liberation. Buddhists, unlike some others, do not see karma as determining our life situation. We see karma as conditioning our life situation. This means that we can change the course of our karma, even purify it, by utilizing our energy, sincerity, patience and concentration. This is what the Noble Eightfold Path is for, the transcendence of our karmic circumstances and the subsequent liberation from the round of birth and death, a liberation we call Nirvana.

By way of speaking to your mother's specific concerns, the nature of "prayer" in our tradition is that of calming and focusing the mind so that our true nature may be perceived, and more importantly, actualized in our daily existence. It is also an effective learning tool. What we hope for is the transcendence of the Samsaric realm of birth and death. This is pointed out in the Third Noble Truth, which says that our suffering in life can be alleviated. This is a very hopeful message. In Buddhism the heavy lifting is on the individual; it is our ultimate responsibility to walk the Buddha's path and so go beyond the realm of suffering. We may receive a little help on the way from beings more advanced on the path than we are, but even those beings who are great spiritual masters such as Bodhisattvas and even Buddhas themselves will not give us so much help that it weakens us or makes us totally dependent upon them. Each of us has the potential to transcend suffering on our own, and so any help directed toward us by enlightened beings is governed by that fact. We should also realize that while Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and others are indeed living beings, they also represent our own enlightened nature. Each of us IS a Buddha, a Bodhisattva, a Mahasattva, etc. This is our True Nature.

I can't speak to some of the beings you mentioned, as I'm not a Tibetan Buddhist. I'd never heard the names you mentioned until you mentioned them so I'm unfortunately unable to comment on them, but I'm sure what I mentioned about Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and such would apply to them.

I hope this has been of help to you. Be well.

With palms together,

Ven. Shih Ying-Fa, Abbot
CloudWater Zendo, the Zen Center of Cleveland

His response was definitely of help to me. I'm still very curious about the deities in other forms of Buddhism, but I can understand what he means when he says that they are representations of our own enlightened nature like the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas (because in Buddhism it is taught that there is no seperation of "self"). The main question regarding the nature of prayer in his sect of Buddhism was answered in a way that I clearly understand. I will try to find out more specificly about the other deities later on from people who include them in their traditions. I am very thankful for the time he took to answer my question, and I am very interested in learning more about Ch'an/Zen and Traditional Pure Land Buddhism, as well as the Theravada and Vajrayana sects.

Stairway to the heavens...

2006-11-18T16:51:00.000+07:00

Before I went to Laos to apply for my visa, Jane and some of her friends invited me along to Nongkai to make merit by helping to build some stairs. When I first heard about this I thought it would be a small project, maybe some stairs in front of a temple. When we arrived at the monastery we discovered that it was a huge project, and that what we were building was a stairway that went up a mountain! It is really an incredible project. The monk who was responsible for it had a dream where a voice told him he must build it. We actually had the chance to meet him, and he talked with us for a little while before we began. He had a very kind and peaceful presence to him; he even taught me a little Thai!

The workers weren't used to seeing "farang" (white people). It was funny, I kept hearing them say "farang", and wondering what else they were saying! We all stood in a line and would pass buckets of cement to one another, up to where it needed to be deposited. It was a good workout for the arms and shoulders! I would really like to go back to help again, hopefully I can get the chance. They've spent quite a bit of money hiring laborers for the project and they hope to finish within the next few months. The view up there is beautiful. The monk told us that on the top of the mountain sometimes the clouds are below you, and you feel like you are in the heavens! On the other side of the mountain are some pagodas and another mountain which is even more beautiful, according to the monk. Maybe we'll build stairs on that mountain in the future as well. I hope so!

What Pseudo Historical Figure Best Suits You?

2006-11-18T10:08:00.000+07:00

You scored as C.G. Jung. You are more of a spiritualist than would be immediately apparent. Some of your notions are questioned by the cynical, but deep down you know the human consciousness is more than the flesh and tissue can account for. You tend to take a scientific observationist look on matters the average person wouldn't even begin to analyze. You personally are responsible for most of the ideas that are floating around in modern psychologist's/psychic's paltry little skulls. On the down side, you tend to be associated with that asshole Freud.

C.G. Jung

100%

Dante Alighieri

83%

Friedrich Nietzsche

83%

Mother Teresa

58%

Stephen Hawking

33%

Miyamoto Musashi

33%

Sigmund Freud

33%

Jesus Christ

25%

O.J. Simpson

17%

Steven Morrissey

17%

Adolf Hitler

Charles Manson

Hugh Hefner

Elvis Presley

What Pseudo Historical Figure Best Suits You?
created with QuizFarm.com

2006-11-17T18:34:00.000+07:00

Peace is Every Step : Meditation In Action

This is a trailer to a move I'd really like to see. I love Thich Nhat Hanh, and have read a few of his books. I highly recommend them.

Spelunking in Phang-nga

2006-11-12T12:33:00.000+07:00

When we visited Phang-nga we had the chance to explore a very cool cave called Tham Phung Chang which means "elephant stomach" in English. There is a legend behind this cave, here is what the sign in front of it said about it:

Tham Phung Chang is a cavern on Khao Chang or Chang Hill (Elephant Hill) within the Phang nga Municipality. The cave has two entrances, one on the west, and one on the east of the hill, inside Wat Tham Phung Chang (Wat Praphat Prachim Khet). The cave houses beautiful stalagmites and stalactites of various shapes, and also contains sparkling calcite crystals on some parts of its wall. A stream flows through this cave all year round with deep water in some parts. The distance from one end to the other is approximately 1,200 meters. According to legend, a wanderer sought refuge at Changdong’s house. The couple moved out of the house to establish their own family, earning their living by farming. Towards the harvest season, a herd of wild elephants trampled their crops. Disappointed and infuriated, Yomdung got a spear and pursued the herd. He encountered an elephant that belonged to a man called “Ngum”, and mistook it for the one in the wild herd. He speared the elephant to death through its belly, gutted it, and cooked the guts for food and also cut the tusks, unaware of the animal’s innocence. The dead elephant became Chang Hill, and the speared belly became “Tham Phung Chang”, the elephant’s belly cave.

In the picture above is Jun (Jane's brother), Mama, Jin (Jane's sister), and of course, my sweet Jane :-)

When you go inside the cave you'll notice that there are many stalagmites, stalactites, and rock formations that resemble elephants. We really wish we could have taken pictures there, but they wouldn't allow it. Also, it might not be very wise to bring a camera anyways because at times you are wading knee deep in water, and floating on rafts through the deeper parts. There was one amazing formation that they called the "elephant pagoda" which looked like hundreds of elephants stacked on top of each other. Another formation resembled an elephant's ass! It was very interesting to say the least, and definately worth visiting (but it helps to have someone to translate for you because the guides don't speak English). Apparently, in the past there were monks who would meditate in the cave. It was really peaceful in there actually, and when you turn off your flashlights it's pitch dark. You can see bats that hang above you also. I've heard there are other caves in Phang-nga, I'd really like to check them out too!

Making merit

2006-10-31T20:48:00.000+07:00

One of the best parts of visiting Phuket was the chance to visit some beautiful temples, in the midst of some incredible scenery. The temples we visited were truly magical places! The first one we went to in Phang-nga was at the base of a steep mountain. It was during the vegetarian festival, so we all had some delicious vegetarian food while we were there. Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures, we were too spellbound by the place! When we go back, we will take some for sure. After lunch we all "made merit", which is donating some money to the temple, and burning incense and lighting candles at different places throughout the temple, paying respect to the Buddha, Kwan Yin, and other spirits of the temple. Jane's family recited certain chants (which I was unable to really do since I don't speak Thai yet). It was cool, and I'm happy to help support the temple and the monks.

Later on we went to two more temples to make merit, and they were located in Phuket. One was fully Buddhist, and the other was a blend of Buddhism and Taoism. I liked them both very much. The architecture is beautiful, and there is amazing artwork everywhere you look! The fully Buddhist temple had firecrackerss going off about every five to ten minutes which I thought was strange; it seemed to interrupt the tranquility you would expect to find when going to a temple. I asked Jane about it, and she said that there was a reason for it; they do this when something is prayed for, and the prayer is answered. One thing that I found a little peculiar was that there was someone selling lottery tickets on the temple grounds! Jane told me that many people feel that the good karma brought about by making merit will bring them luck, so they will buy lottery tickets there. There were other vendors lined up near the temple as well selling food, t-shirts, souvenirs, that kind of thing. It's interesting to me to observe the differences that Buddhism has with Christianity, and this is certainly one of them.

We went to go have dinner at the Vegetarian festival in Phuket, and I had some vegan Somtum! I really liked it, and I would get it all the time if I could! You know that a vendor is selling all vegetarian food if you see yellow signs. The streets are lined with yellow banners and yellow flags, which is a sure sign of delicious vegetarian food nearby. There were all kinds of dishes offered, and lot's of imitation meat that was very convincing. I just wish that there were more vegetarian options in Thailand all year round. The vegetarian festival lasts for 10 days, and includes some intense body piercing near the end of it. This is done for spiritual purposes, but I'm not exactly sure what they are. If you want to read a little more about it and see some pictures of it, a guy I met in Laos said he will be posting them on his site...go here to check it out: www.L-A-M.com.au We didn't get the chance to see that, maybe next year!

After we ate, we went to the Taoist/Buddhist temple that was by the beach. I loved this one. It was open air inside, and the sea air could come right in and mingle with the scent of the incense. There were these elaborate carved dragons inside that I wish I could have photographed, but that wasn't allowed. I did get some nice pictures of the artwork on the outside of the temple. The rituals were a little different that what I had seen at strictly Buddhist temples. According to Jane, when the tsunami hit Phuket, the small piece of land that the temple occupied, and the beach in front of it were the only places that weren't hit! Was it divine protection? I can't say that I know, but I do know that we left the temple with a feeling of enchantment. I want to go back!

Delightful Phuket

2006-10-25T13:37:00.000+07:00

We just returned from a trip to Phuket and Phang-nga, and it was a blast! I was lucky enough to meet Jane’s Grandmother, and also her sister Jin. Mama has been there for the past couple of months, and I’ve missed her so much! It was really great to see her again. I really feel like I am a part of their family, it’s so nice. I’m very lucky; Jane’s family is wonderful!

Above is Jane's sister Jin (on the left), Jane's Grandma (middle), and Mama (on the right).

Above is Jane's brother Jun, helping Grandma walk up the path.

My first impression of Phuket was how clean it was compared to Bangkok. It’s very well kept. It’s one of the top tourist destinations of Thailand, so it really needs to be! The scenery was great, beautiful beaches with turquoise waters…just like the pictures I had seen. The waters were crystal clear, very clean. We didn’t actually go swimming because we had heard that it wasn’t the best time of year for that, but it must have been alright because there were many people in the water.

We stayed at the Kata Poolside Resort, and we were impressed with them. The price was reasonable, and the service was excellent. They were very hospitable, and were kind enough to let Mama stay with us for a night without the usual charge of 500 baht. The pool was nice (although I would have preferred one with a deep end), and the food at the restaurant was really quite good as well. Breakfast came with the cost of the room. It was a buffet that included some Thai dishes and typical western breakfast foods like bacon, sausages, and eggs. There was also lots of fresh fruit, juice, and coffee. The only thing I didn’t like about the restaurant was that they didn’t have a separate smoking section, and the people around us were smokers. Other than that, it was great.

A word of caution, the hotel is wonderful, but don’t use the tour service that’s housed there. It’s operated by a different company, and they really disappointed us. We had made arrangements with them on Sunday night, and when we showed up on Monday morning they told us that they would not give us the price they quoted (because I am a farang!) The prevailing attitude there is that since farangs make more money typically than Thai nationals do, they should pay more for things. Jane and her family tried to convince them to honor their original price, but they refused. So foreigners beware! If you are a farang (white foreigner) you can expect to pay quite a bit more than a Thai person, especially in a tourist town like Phuket.

One drawback of Phuket is that things are more expensive than in Bangkok. Sure, Bangkok has lots of high end shops and restaraunts too, but there are so many more people living here and it's easier find cheaper options. In Phuket it's harder to find them because it's so much smaller, and it caters to tourists. If you are dillegent you will find some good places with reasonable prices. After going from restaraunt to restaraunt, and finding only high end restaraunts, we talked to a local masseuse who recommended a great spot that was right next to the beach. We were really happy to find they served food that was much more reasonably priced, and very delicious.

The taxis are much more expensive there than in Bangkok also. I was lucky because I was with a family of native Thai speakers, and they were able to talk the drivers down to the Thai price, or close to it. There were times when we would be quoted one price, and when they found out I was part of the group, it was jacked up considerably. Mama claimed me as her son in law (which was very sweet of her), and that helped most of the time. It really bothered me that solely because of my race I was always expected to pay more. It was quite frustrating at times, but just one of those things you've got to get used to here, even in Bangkok. That being said, I think Phuket is a beautiful place to visit, and I highly recommend it for anyone who is traveling to Thailand.

Bug Eater!!!

2006-10-17T20:46:00.000+07:00

On Saturday 7th, when I was waiting for Jeremy to extend his Visa in Cambodia, I took a walk exploring the market around that area on the Thai side while Jeremy was doing his Visa procedure in Cambodia.

What I found was quite interesting...well not for me but for Jeremy! So I decided to take some pictures to show him later when we would meet. It's a street vendor that sells "Deep fried bugs", many kinds of bugs...whatever you can imagine! Oh! They do have little frogs too! All deep fried... and it seems like their business going very well.. many customers when I was there.

I didn't ask for the price, so I don't know that it's expensive or not! I hope not!

Well after Jeremy got his new visa for another 30 days, we stopped for lunch at a restuarant there before taking a tuk tuk back to the town to catch a bus back to Bangkok.

We took a better bus that was run by the government! We were so happy to get a better seat that was bigger and more comfortable. I was sleeping almost all the way..until the bus stopped somewhere... Jeremy woke me up and asked "What happened? Where are we?" I woke up... looked around and saw that the bus wasn't moving! (That's why I slept so well....cuz the bus wasn't moving at all -- I thought it's because the better seat that made it so comfortable!!)
"I don't know" I said... I thought they just stopped for more passengers... but I was wrong after 15 minutes... the bus was still there.. not moving! And then the staff came up to us and said "We're so sorry, the bus broke down. We're working on it, don't worry."

Hmmm.... ok... I told Jeremy what happened and we waited... daylight... sunset... no light.. all dark!!!

After awhile, the same guy came up and said "There is a bus, who needs to go to Bangkok urgently, please proceed to that bus."

We were among 15 people who changed to that new bus, it was full of passengers. We had not choice... only going to the back of the bus..and sitting seperately. Then the bus stopped at a bus station, some passengers got off... we found 2 seats together, so we moved to those seats!

Once we sat there... we both knew why these seats were available, because they stink! they are just right in front of the toilet! and... oh.. no.... you don't want me to tell you about its smell...

We had to sit there for like... 45 mins to 1 hour before we found 2 empty seats in the front... we rush there and we're safe!!! You can breath now.. no need to hold your breathe!

We were safe and sound back in Bangkok... it was tiring, but it was another fun day to remember. I love traveling with Jeremy... even it stinks... I still love to do it!

The original version...

2006-10-11T17:02:00.000+07:00

This is Chamillionaire's song "Ridin", the song Weird Al Yankovic did the parody of.

Weird Al's flow

2006-10-09T20:40:00.000+07:00

A friend of mine on myspace posted this, and I laughed so hard the first time I saw it! Enjoy! Weird Al is one versatile dude!

Columbus day

2006-10-08T13:45:00.001+07:00

Here is a clip from a documentary I really want to see, but probably won't for a while since I'm living in Bangkok. I really doubt that it's playing anywhere here. It talks about Columbus, and the quotes you see in this clip all come from either the journals of Christopher Columbus himself, or a Catholic priest by the name of Bartolome de Las Casas who was there during Columbus's tenure as "governor" of the island Columbus supposedly "discovered". To learn more about it, I suggest reading an essay from Howard Zinn's book "A People's History of the United States". It is horrific what was done to the native people, and it's equally horrifying that to this day Columbus is glorified as some noble explorer who "discovered" America. He was an agent of genocide, and yet he is still celebrated and revered by Americans! I don't understand why the United States continues to have a holiday celebrating this sick, sick person.

>The Canary Effect - The Movie

Get this video and more at MySpace.com

Cultural differences

2006-10-01T20:30:00.001+07:00

Every day I find myself learning about some little cultural difference between Thai and American culture, so I thought I'd write a blog about some of them. There are so many, and it would be impossible to name them all here, so I will just continue to write about them as they come to mind.

Thailand is a constitutional monarchy, and the people here truly love and respect their King. The more I learn about him, the more I like him. His name is Bhumibol Adulyadej, and he's a really talented and creative man. I remember walking through the subway and hearing some beautiful blues guitar music, and I commented to Jane that I really liked it. She told me it was written and played by the King! I also heard from my classmate Rob that the King played with Benny Goodman back in the day when his big band came to Thailand. He also paints, and is very good at that as well. He actually lived the humble life of a Buddhist monk for a while, which I think is great. His picture is everywhere you look here in Thailand; there are some skyscrapers that even have his picture covering the entire building! Although he stays out of "government", he is the moral leader here, and it is him and the Queen that keeps this country unified.

One of the main differences is in the way Thais greet their friends. In English it is normal when greeting someone to ask "How are you?", but here they don't do that. Here, when you are greeting a friend, you ask "Where are you going?” From what Jane and Jun tell me, it is not uncommon for people to pry even deeper by asking you your marital status, how much money you make, where you work, that kind of thing. Apparently this is completely normal small talk here!

Another thing I've noticed is how the Thai's tend to conserve their resources far more than Americans do. For example, when I buy a Thai iced tea or a soda with lime, it's served to me in a plastic bag instead of a cup. These plastic bags are much cheaper and they serve the purpose just as a cup would. The vendors do this also with food like curries, or whatever. It is minimalist packaging, but it's all you need. When you go to a grocery store and walk towards the beverage isle, you rarely see "six packs" of anything! They don't seem to do that here, or at least anywhere I've seen. Every can of soda or beer is sold individually. I don't know if it is to save plastic or cardboard, but it's another one of those many little differences I notice.

When Thai's eat together at a restaurant or at home, the food is almost always shared, which is also very different from what I am used to. It's really nice actually because everyone enjoys many kinds of food. I love it! In the United States it is far more common to order your own, separate dish when you go to a restaurant. The appetizers may be shared, but generally the dish you ordered as your main course is not, unless it is just for someone to try. I like the Thai way better, and going out to eat with Jane and her family is one of my favorite things to do here!

The differences in the language are many, and now I can see why people always say that English is so difficult to learn as a second language. There are a lot of things in English that simply don't make sense, they go against the "rules" and have no logic to them, and if you don't remember them, your English is incorrect. I had no idea just how many exceptions there are, and how many things Thai learners could get hung up on because it is so much more complicated than their native language.

The Thai language uses tones to indicate the meaning of a word, and often times this difference is very subtle. If you get the tone wrong, you might really start confusing whoever you're talking to! This is what makes Thai so difficult for me. English is a tonal language too, but the tones used in English perform a different function than in Thai. Instead of conveying meaning, it conveys ideas like when a sentence is a question (with a raise in pitch at the end), or a statement (with a drop of pitch), or it may just emphasize what words are important with stress, which is a raise in pitch of the word being stressed. My problem is the habits I have of using tones in English, because they don't work in Thai. Questions in Thai are indicated by words at the end of the sentence, and not tone. On the other hand, Thai is much more simple in some ways than English, like the lack of tense and different verb forms, so maybe it will level out the difficulty a bit!

Another thing that is different is the ways Thais regard feet. It is unthinkable to wash your socks with anything other than shoes because the feet represent the lowest spiritual part of the body. This one has been hard for me to get used to. I have never worried about separating my socks to be washed by themselves, but that's what you do here. Also, it is considered extremely rude to touch someone with your foot, or point at someone or something with your foot. I didn't think this would even be an issue, I mean really, how many times to you see people pointing with their feet? It surprised me though, I actually do point with my feet! It's like this subconscious thing that I don't think about, but it's a little bit of a habit that I am now taking notice of, and of course trying to stop. :-p

Certainly there is a lot more to talk about, so I'll keep writing about them as I think about them. I will say that Thai people seem friendlier overall than Americans, and perhaps less cynical, although I can't really know for sure about the cynicism because I am unable to understand most of what they say. It just doesn't seem to me that they are expressing very many negative views about people, or at least not as much as I'm used to, being an American. That is one benefit about not understanding a language, if someone were saying rude things to me, I wouldn't even know it! Maybe it's true that ignorance is bliss sometimes :-p Hehe, really though, I would much rather be able to understand what is being said, even if it were negative.

Martial Law on the day of my graduation!

2006-09-20T19:41:00.001+07:00

Last night at 10:00 pm there was a military coup d'etat here in Thailand. Tanks came in to Bangkok and martial law was declared. Jane had actually known about this in advance, her station had been tipped about the story. She had to be there live to cover it(she took these pictures), and I was really worried about her safety. Luckily there wasn't any violence, and there still has not been as I am writing this blog.

I arrived home from my Muay Thai class, and immediately turned on the television, but the local media had been shut down by the military. I talked with Jane's brother Jun about it, and he was anxiously awaiting any news also. All the TV stations were repeating a segment about the King, with brief messages about how martial law had been enacted. Thaksin Shinawatra had made a statement around that time saying that there was now a curfew in Thailand, but the TV stations later came on with a statement saying there is no curfew, and to go about doing whatever you needed to do! The messages were being brought to us by a group called “The Council for Political Reform", and went on further to say that the Military is now in control, and that Thaksin Shinawatra no longer had any authority. Then the TV would be blocked again for a while, so Jun took this opportunity to give me a brief overview of what has led up to the Prime Minister being ousted from power. We stayed up, talking about it until about 2:00 am, and I realized I needed to get to bed because I was graduating from Text-and-Talk's TEFL course the next day.

Jane woke me up at 3:00am, and she was trying to get some sleep, but she kept being awakened by sms news updates. She had to go back to work at 5:00 am, she only got two hours to rest, and it wasn't real sleep because she was constantly interrupted. I hopped on a tuk tuk and made my way into school just like I always do, and everything seemed like normal. I did notice more people around the newspaper stand than usual, and I was tempted to pick up a copy of the Bangkok Post, but I was in a hurry so I just kept on my way to school. There we all relaxed, and talked a little about the current situation, and were all given our TEFL certificates. Later on we met at one of my favorite restaurants nearby, and enjoyed a delicious lunch. Our teacher Ted had paid the bill for us, which was really nice of him. I'm really gonna miss all of them, I really hope they stay in touch!

Charlene's life sketch

2006-09-19T16:50:00.000+07:00

Steve, Charlene's brother, has sent me a life sketch that he wrote, and read at her funeral. Thanks so much for sending it to me; I really wish I could have been there. He also sent me a picture that I had requested from my Grandma's house that I remember from when I was young, of her when she was a senior in high school.

Some of my earliest memories of Charlene are from Grandma's old house in Star, Idaho. Her room was this cool shade of purple, and every time I see that color I think of her! She was a lot of fun to be around, how can I describe her best? She had a lot of attitude, a great sense of humor, and was always real with me. She definitely took after Grandma in a lot of ways (although I doubt they would ever admit that), probably most in their stubbornness (hehehe) and great sense of humor. I used to love listen to both of them tell stories, they'd always crack me up! When I first moved back to Boise after living in Olympia, Washington for 8 years, I stayed with Grandma for a little while and had the chance to catch up with Charlene a little. That was really nice; I have some great memories of her from that time of my life. I would go have coffee with her early in the morning, and it always tasted so good! She would go out of her way to make me feel at home in her trailer, and told me to help myself to whatever, whenever. I remember watching the movie "Guru" with her, and we both laughed our asses off. I also remember taking a trip up to the Owyhees, and seeing how beautiful the land is up there. She was always looking for nice rocks, feathers, whatever she could find to decorate around the trailer. She was one of a kind, and I'm gonna miss her so much!

Here is Charlene's life sketch. Steve, you did a great job with it. Thanks again for sending it to me!

Charlene Ray Tucker was born in Salt Lake City, UT on January 17, 1952 to Ranulph R. Tucker and Fern E. Tuckfield Tucker. She was the second of three children and had an older brother, Stephen, and a younger sister, Connie. She walked early in life, and started running soon after, and we never did catch up with her. Mom had to use a harness on her to keep her from running in the streets. The harness had to be hooked in the back because she quickly learned how to unhook it in the front. One time she unhooked it she ended up floating, diaper up, down a ditch in Granger, Utah. Older brother Steve found her and held her up until their mom heard his screams and rescued her.

We moved to Butte MT where mom was a Cub Scout Den Mother. Charlene was highly offended that she couldn't be a Cub Scout so she was made a Den Sister. She loved to help with the den meetings and the boys welcomed her and took very good care of their little den sister.

She was very helpful and, when the little neighbor boy's mother wasn't looking, Charlene cut off the hair that curled over his forehead. That curl was the pride of the neighbor boy's father.

Charlene loved the out of doors and, as a girl; the family went camping a lot. She loved to hike, swim in the rivers and float the rivers in a life raft. Her father and she would go fishing in the streams. The fish were always a little startled at her constant chatter. Mom would take a dry change of clothes for her but she would usually come home wrapped in a blanket with two sets of wet clothes. Winter time didn't keep them from camping. We would go camping in the snow and, after sledding down the hillsides, we would burrow under the pine trees, out of the snow and open thermoses of hot chili and cocoa. The family dog was always under the tree with the family, enjoying the day.

In Butte, she started tap dancing lessons and loved to be center stage. This was true throughout her childhood. She performed in many church plays and pageants and always padded her part.

Dad then took a job in Pocatello, ID and the family moved there, where Charlene kept snakes in coffee cans. There wasn't a stray animal or kid in the neighborhood, because she adopted them all and brought them all home. One of her favorite things was to gather all the neighborhood children and bring them home for her mother to take to Primary. Charlene was just about to be baptized and had a friend who had not yet been baptized, so Charlene marched up to her friend's mother and insisted that they have her baptized at the same time Charlene was. So the mothers got together and had the girls baptized together.

When dad bought a business in Star, the family moved to Ustick for just enough time to find a home in Star. The big old house had a huge old Sycamore tree that Charlene and I would climb to unbelievable heights. Once she followed me up and I thought that I would keep climbing higher until she got sacred. She never did and we both went higher than I care to think about today. She attended Star Elementary School, Eagle Junior High School and finished High School in Meridian. While going to Star elementary, she and some friends built a submarine out of a wooden crate. It was built with very tight wood joints, but was waterproofed with mud just for good measure. The door was hinged and had a hook and eye catch --- on the outside. She just fit if she curled up. They hauled it in a wagon down to the old bridge abutment on the Boise River and launched it with Charlene in it. In true submarine fashion, it sank immediately. Andy Records, a friend of Steve's, dove in and rescued her.

After high school, she married John Allen and had her only daughter, Rachel. She loved to take Rachel camping and climbing and all other outdoor activities in her truly rugged individualist vehicle, a VW Thing. With all of her activities, hobbies and pastimes, Rachel was the highlight of her life.

Charlene worked in the print shop at Albertsons for several years printing the bakery labels for all the Albertsons stores. She ran her own printing machine and was the only one who knew the right words to make her machine work. The machine could sense that she had an attitude.

Charlene was a natural artist and had an eye for design and color. She painted scenery for productions in the Star Ward LDS church in the 1980s. When Connie got married, Charlene designed the invitations and later drew a pencil drawing of the couple for a keepsake, which is still treasured.

Charlene was willing to try just about anything. She started skiing in high school and went spelunking, snorkeling, hang gliding with her cousin and sky diving.

She married Ron Hemry and loved his son, Brad as her own. They lived in Star where she started a business making leather belts, coats and chaps. Then she started a successful housecleaning business that lasted for many years.

Later, she was attracted to Middle Eastern dancing and joined a dance troupe. Many times, she performed for festivals and other occasions.

She loved music and literature, both modem and classical. Several books on varied subjects were always open in her home. Her collection of records covered heavy metal to opera and symphony. She loved reading Shakespeare but enjoyed anything that she could get her hands on.

During the last several years of her life, she lived in Marsing Idaho next door to her mother and her sister. A silver streamlined Sparton Mansion became her eclectic home. She loved the rural life, where her goats and dog could run free. It was a good base for exploring the desert and dragging home all sorts of rocks other unique desert finds. Her family never knew what would be waiting for them at home.

Earlier this year, she met an old friend, Richard Christensen, and they became very close. He stayed by her side through her illness and was with her when she passed.

Deliciousness abounds!

2006-09-15T11:59:00.000+07:00

Here is the delicious fruit called lamyai in Thai. In English it is known as longan or "dragon's eyes" because of the seed inside that make it look like an eyeball! This fruit is one of our favorites, and there are a few different varieties. This kind is called E-dor Lamyai, and it's the kind we usually get. It's not too juicy, but it's sweet and has lots of meat. Another kind is called Lamyai si chompu (si chompu means "pink color" in Thai) which is extra juicy, and has a pinkish color inside. There is another kind called Lamyai kalok (kalok means "skull"), this one has more meat but is not really juicy, but from what Jane tells me it has a different texture than both of them. It is crispier than all the others. I haven't tried it, but I really want to! The flavor of lamyai is a little sweet, but different than most fruit. When I first tasted it, the flavor reminded me a little of a radish, in a very subtle way, but when I said that to Jane, she laughed at me! So maybe not, and I really can't describe it. I think they're a little like grapes in a way too, but with a much firmer texture and a much harder seed.

Next we have long-gong, which is also quite delicious. It looks a lot like lamyai, but is in fact quite different. It has a citrus like taste to it, and like lam yie, the bunch may be good or not so good. One way to tell is the black marks on the outside, if it has the black marks that means it is probably good. This is a sign that insects were interested in it. If they are all unmarked, that means the insects didn't like it (and most likely you won't either). Also, you always want to sample the one at the top of the bunch first because if that one is ripe, then all the ones behind it will be too.

And finally we have pomelo which is a big citrus fruit that is really good. The closest thing I can compare it to is a grapefruit, but it's much less bitter. It has a nice sour edge to it, a little sweet, and a slight bitterness. The texture is more firm than any other citrus fruit I've had. When you get a good one you'll know it, they're the best!

To Cambodia and back

2006-09-11T23:08:00.001+07:00

Once again I have visited the kingdom of Cambodia, this time only for about 10 minutes. Why? In order for me to stay in Thailand I have to travel to a bordering country every month. Doing this renews my tourist visa, and I have another 30 days here. It's a little annoying, but it's something I have to do. It's not that I don't like Cambodia, actually I do very much, but at the moment I have so much going on with school that it just isn't a convenient time for me to make the trip. Sunday Jane and I got up early and spent about 10 hours going to and coming back from the border. Not the ideal way to spend a Sunday, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Here is a picture Jane took. I think it's funny, it looks like the border entrance is balancing on my head. I have another 30 days here, I hope next month that I'll be able to tell you a work permit is being processed, but I don't know... we'll see... wish me luck!

I love you Charlene!

2006-09-09T21:26:00.001+07:00

Two nights ago I found out that my Aunt Charlene had passed away. It was really difficult for me because I didn't have any idea that it was coming. I was pretty close to her, and I really wish that I could have made it to the funeral, but I simply didn't have enough time to make it there, and even if I did have the time I couldn't have afforded to go. I'm sure she knows I would have been there if I could have. She was happy that I was getting the chance to finally travel to Asia. Charlene, I'm going to miss you!

I'm over 2/3 of the way done with my course at Text and Talk Academy, and I have a final coming up in about a week. It's been a really good learning experience. I've been really busy and haven't had much time to update my blogs, but soon things are going to slow down, and I'll get back on track. This week I taught my third and fourth classes, and each time I feel more and more confident. Still, it seems that when I have made improvements in one area I slip behind in others. It can be like a juggling act sometimes. I do feel that things are coming more naturally though.

Tomorrow Jane and I are taking a bus to the border of Cambodia so I can leave Thailand, and come back to renew my 30 days tourist visa.

Somtum (spicy green papaya salad)

2006-09-03T18:00:00.000+07:00

Here is my favorite Thai dish, Somtum. It's shredded green papaya with chilies, lime juice, peanuts, dried shrimp, fish sauce, tomatoes and I'm not sure what else. It is a little sweet, they use a sugar cane paste to sweeten it. It's also sour and salty, with such a delicious blend of flavors. Also, it is usually served with morning glory (a a very common vegetable here), string beans, and a little cabbage on the side. I'm gonna see if they can make it for me without the shrimp or fish sauce to keep it vegetarian, but I'm sure it won't taste as good. Jane tells me that it is actually a Lao dish, and that Thai people have adapted it to their palettes by making it sweeter. The Lao version is not sweet, and much saltier. I could eat this everyday!

This dish is known for its heat, and is usually eaten with lots of chilies crushed in there, but when they make it for me they usually make it mild. I think it’s because I'm a farang and they don’t expect me to like it very hot, which is fine, I actually prefer this dish a little milder than they normally serve it (which is still really hot). While they're making it, they smash it in a mortar and pestle to soften it up, and get the juices to blend together. This only cost me 20 baht, and it’s made fresh by a vendor right in front of me. That's about .50 cents! There is a green mango somtum also, but sadly I am allergic to mangos. I have had green mango before, and they are delicious! I can only imagine what they would taste like in somtum!

Free Leonard!

2006-08-27T15:35:00.001+07:00

This is from the myspace profile "Free Peltier" (http://www.myspace.com/freepeltier). This is just a little information for those of you who have not heard about his case.

FREE Leonard Peltier!

Political Prisoner held for 30 years by U.S. government!

Leonard Peltier is a citizen of the Anishinabe and Dakota/Lakota Nations who has been unjustly imprisoned since 1976, even though government attorneys and courts acknowledge that the government withheld evidence, fabricated evidence, and coerced witnesses to fraudulently convict him. Leonard is recognized worldwide as a political prisoner and a symbol of resistance against the abuse and repression of Indigenous people. To many Indigenous people, Leonard Peltier is a symbol of the long history of abuse and repression they have endured.
This year marks the 30th year of Leonard’s imprisonment. Despite the fact that the government has admitted that the trial was a fraud, Leonard is still behind bars because the U.S. doesn’t want this vocal defender of indigenous rights to be free.

........................................................................................

Day of Mourning message

by Leonard Peltier

Aho, my relations,

I again write to you on this day of mourning as I approach the end of 30 years of deprived freedom. I am here to appease a vengeful government that has come onto our lands, committed genocide and continues to rob us of our history and culture while giving away our land, murdering and torturing our people.

I am held here because of the corruption of two countries, Canada and the United States, which illegally extradited me, leading to my illegal conviction and imprisonment. Despite the incessant claims of this being a country of laws and an example to the world of justice, freedom and democracy, it is obvious that this government protects whoever it wants and imprisons and kills whoever it wants.
My imprisonment is one key example of what lengths this government will go to in order to achieve its goal of repressing indigenous dissent. The United States government continually seeks to imprison all indigenous peoples on our land.

The U.S. government has been increasing its oppressive and tyrannical tactics. All people’s rights are being eroded and fears are heightened as a tool to keep the war machine alive and increase the destruction of Mother Earth. Innocent people are dying, not only in this country, but all over the world in the name of “democracy and freedom.”
My elders before me said, and I tell you now, “The earth does not belong to us; we belong to the earth.” And I want to say, this earth belongs to Tunkashala, the creator of all that is. There has already started a time of great cleansing upon the earth, and this government has begun to crumble. The fabric of the Constitution is soiled and torn.
We as human beings can give thanks or mourn, but if all that happens is no more than lip service, very little will happen to correct things. In the traditions of my native people, we barely had words of thanks. It was something that was shown by action of giving or doing.

We all breathe the same air, are made of the same earth and drink of the same water. We are all more relative than we sometimes acknowledge. We need to do more than just what is right. We need to join together and right what is wrong.

It is time we all unite to stop the madness threatening the whole planet and stand together with those who go beyond words and deliver on the promise of freedom and justice and against those guided by greed, arrogance and prejudice. Stay true, work in unity, confront the traitors, don’t be afraid, and don’t let our struggle die.

And finally, I mourn the loss of so many of our relatives over the past year and especially my brother Steve Robideau. I appreciate you each and every one. Now, please organize and set out to correct the wrongs so that this day of mourning will become a relic of the past.

In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,

Leonard Peltier Mitakuye Oyasin

If you would like to write to Leonard Peltier, write to:

Leonard Peltier
#89637-132
USP Lewisburg
U.S. Penitentary
PO Box 1000
Lewisburg PA 17837

Leonard can only receive letters, cards, postcards, photos (not polaroid), and postal money orders for his commissary account. He loves to hear from all of you. Write. Write often! He will respond as he has time and materials.

......................................................................................

Why won't the FBI release Peltier files?

("First published in Socialist Worker")

By Joe Allen

LEONARD PELTIER, one of America's longest serving political prisoners, will turn 62 years old September 12. He has spent 30 years of his life behind bars for a crime he didn't commit-in one of the most infamous cases of political persecution in modern U.S. history.

On September 8, Peltier's lawyer Barry Bachrach will argue in federal court for the full release of all files maintained by the FBI's Minneapolis office relating to Peltier.

Peltier was an active member of the American Indian Movement (AIM) in the 1970s. He was framed for the murder of two FBI agents on the Lakota Sioux Pine Ridge reservation in June 1975.

AIM was a major focus of the FBI's notorious Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) of the 1960s and '70s, which attempted to "neutralize" the leadership of civil rights and revolutionary political organizations.

Two other AIM members, Bob Robideau and Dino Butler, were also indicted with Peltier, but were found not guilty after a federal trial in July 1976. Peltier, who had fled to Canada to avoid prosecution, was later extradited to the U.S. and stood trial separately-he was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Peltier's extradition from Canada and trial in the U.S. was rife with coerced testimony, manufactured evidence and prosecutorial misconduct. Lynn Crooks, one of Leonard's prosecutors, admitted in 1985, "We can't prove who shot those agents." Yet Peltier remains in prison because of the determined-even fanatical-efforts of the FBI.

So far, the FBI has released, partially or fully, 66,594 out of 77,149 pages related to Peltier's case. The other 10,555 pages were withheld from Peltier's defense team and could potentially provide crucial information in the campaign to free him.

The FBI has refused to release the additional pages on the grounds of "national security." Why a 61-year-old grandfather who has been behind bars for three decades and is plagued by chronic illness is a threat to national security has not been fully explained.

A look at the Minneapolis FBI's Web site gives an idea of the agency's strange view of the world-many times more space is devoted to Peltier and AIM than to Osama bin Laden.

In the waning days of the Clinton administration, when an effort was made to secure a presidential pardon for Peltier, hundreds of FBI agents responded by picketing the White House. Clinton backed away from a pardon. Since September 11, federal prison authorities have refused media access to Peltier. He has been unable to give an interview to the media in over five years. Only his legal counsel and a small number of supporters and family members can meet with him.

The FBI's latest actions are symbolic of its 30-year persecution of Peltier and his supporters-and are perpetuating a terrible injustice.

Note: Article by Joe Allen and "first published in Socialist Worker"

Leonard Peltier Defense Committee

Visiting Cambodia

2006-08-18T17:36:00.000+07:00

On Monday we arrived back in Bangkok from Siem Reap, Cambodia. Rather than repeating everything that Jane has said in her blog (http://enja.blogspot.com/2006/08/long-ride-home.html) I'll just give you some observations from my perspective. I really don't know much about the history of Cambodia, but after taking this trip it's something I'm very interested in learning about. I do know that there has been some extreme violence in it's recent past. There was a civil war in the 70's that led to a Khmer Rouge takeover from 1975 to 1979 resulting in approximately 2 million Cambodian deaths. There were approximately 1 million more if you add up the deaths from civil wars before and after this period. Also, there is a terrible problem with landmines throughout the country, they are everywhere. Here is a website that kind of gives you an idea about what a problem it is:

http://www.mekong.net/cambodia/mines.htm

It's really really sad to think about.

When Jane and I first stepped off the bus in Siem Reap we had people swarming around us, touching us, trying to get us to use their tuk tuk or taxi or whatever! When we did arrive at the hotel I looked at my bag and the back pouch zipper was open, the one I usually keep my passport in! I went through everything and it seemed like I had it all, so I was lucky. The feeling I got from many of the people was one of desperation. It was very different from what I have seen in Thailand so far, but I haven't really been to extremely poor parts of Thailand, so it could be similar in some places.

While walking to the downtown area to get some dinner we had children coming up to us with souvenirs, all of them reciting the same kinds of things in order to get us to buy from them. Most of them asked us our names, where we were from, and then would proceed by trying to tell us the capital city of the state or Country we're from. I say try because nobody seemed to know Idaho's capital, so I would hear them tell me California's and New York's. The kids seem quite smart and at first it seemed nice to talk with them, but we soon realized that by being friendly we could not get rid of them! One girl introduced herself by bumping into me, and it felt like she was trying to pick my pocket. I didn't have anything in the pocket anyways, luckily. When she did that another kid told me she was trying to steal from me, and they started arguing with each other. They all want to make the sale, and compete fiercely when they see fresh tourists! So we're just trying to be on our way, not buying anything because we are both on a tight budget, but as we try and walk away they keep following us saying "You buy, ok...You buy from me. I will give you best price ok...." Jane was saying she wasn't interested, and I told the first kid who introduced himself to me that maybe tomorrow I might be interested, but definitely not today. They would not accept this and continued to follow us, so we would keep repeating "No, we're not interested." or "No we will not buy anything from you today." They would still follow us, but by this point only the very diligent were still with us. I think there was just a boy and a girl with us by now. We're looking at restaurants with the sound of the kid's still trying to sell to us as we're reading through menus. Finally it was down to one girl, and we firmly told her that there is absolutely no way that we will buy anything from her and she left after saying as many rude things to us as she could think of in English, and then added some Cambodian curse words for good measure. In between all of this we have tuk tuk drivers trying to persuade us to ride with them and beggars come up to us also just begging for change.

We finally sit down at an open air restaurant to have a meal, and to just relax after a long bus ride, and the food was really good. I'm enjoying a Khmer vegetable curry with rice, drinking a Cambodian beer, and Jane is trying this coconut orange dish with shrimp and chicken, thinking we're in the clear. Think again! Once of the original kids who we thought we had lost way back by the bridge was there with all his souvenirs, once again trying to sell to us, and this time in the restaurant while we're eating! We just kept repeating "No, we won't be buying anything." over and over again. It seems that they perceive all foreigners to be very wealthy, and certainly by their standards we are, but as Jane says, the moment we buy something from one of them everyone will flock toward us and it will only make the situation that much worse. That and I really don't have the money to be buying things I don't need! I'm going to school and have no income, so it would be irresponsible of me to just give my money away in handouts to everyone, but it did get me thinking of how I would like to help these people, or people in similar situations. My heart really went out to them, there is so much anger everywhere, and if you look into Cambodia's past you can easily see where it comes from.

We had several encounters where it was obvious that they didn't like tourists, sometimes they're super nice trying to get you to buy something in a market, but if you don't buy it you hear the Cambodian profanity being yelled at you as you're walking off. We bought some lom yie at one of the markets, and not only was it really not that great, but she only gave us about half of a kilo instead of 1 which we paid for. I saw it on the scale and I know how much a kilo of lam yie feels like. Rather than making an issue of it I just conceded, and we walked off, once again to Cambodian curses. I wasn't sure exactly why we had angered her; maybe it was that we could not speak in Cambodian. Not everyone was rude however; there were quite a number of very kind and pleasant people we met there. Our tuk tuk driver, Mr.Chamnan, was great! He was quite the contrast to the pushy "Buy my services!" type that we had seen so much of. He was the one who picked us up from the bus station. This was arranged by our hotel, and when he arrived he nicely asked us if we had arranged for a tuk tuk driver for the temples tomorrow. We noticed that he was really different from most of the tuk tuk drivers, and had a really peaceful quality to him, so of course we wanted him to take us! The people at our hotel were very friendly and helpful to us also. Overall it was a good experience, but really an eye opener to the problems Cambodia is currently dealing with. Kirin's mom, Linda Rose has mentioned that if I ever want a job teaching there that she has some contacts. I think it would be a good experience, and I would love to help out in the communities there, particularly in places like Siem Reap.

We woke up really early to see a sunrise that wasn't anything special due to the overcast skies. It was alright though; it was good to get an early start on things in the cooler part of the day. The sense of history you feel there is extraordinary, I kept thinking how amazing it would have been to have witnessed these temples when they were thriving. There were way more temples than I thought, and we didn't even see all of them! It was actually very tiring walking around to as many as we did, but very interesting. I think next time we should look into a getting a tour guide, to get an even better sense of the history behind these great stone buildings. We did have a tour guide at one temple, and his commentary was actually very informative. It was sad to see that so much of the temple he showed us had been destroyed by landmines. You could see rubble piled up all over the temple grounds. There were places where giant trees grew over the temples! The trees themselves were old, but the temples were older! You really just have to see it to fully appreciate that kind of history. It is something I really recommend seeing, and if you do go try and give yourself at least two days. Your imagination will soar!

Muay Thai boxing

2006-08-10T09:50:00.000+07:00

Jane is a member of this cool gym called "Fitness First" that offers Muay Thai boxing classes with membership, so I decided to go check it out, and see if it was something I'd like to learn. Her colleague at work, Pi Toy has taken the class for about 5 months, and is getting pretty good at it. I'm really glad she's there because she speaks good English, and is able to help translate what my instructor is telling me. It was cool, when our teacher walked in the room he began by turning on some droning traditional Thai music, and did this ritual called "Wai Kru" which is where he shows respect to his teachers before him, and concentrates on those dear to him. Pi Toy told me that he is a very accomplished fighter, and that he is was a triple belt champion. His son is also a triple belt champion. After he did the "Wau Kru" we got out some weighted punching bags, and started practicing. Pi Toy showed me a few basic strikes, and I warmed up with those, and eventually the intructor came around, and helped me refine my form and situate exactly where my hands and feet need to be. It takes a lot of concentration to keep good form, and to return to it after a strike. It's easy to forget to guard your face, and while I was learning from him he caught me off guard a couple times, giving me a soft jab to the face revealing that I was leaving myself open. I have to say I really enjoyed the class, and I'm glad I chose to learn Muay Thai because from what I have seen it is very straightforward and very effective.

I learned the one-two punches, how to kick, knee, and elbow, and how to guard. I know it will be challenging, to keep the proper stance and posture is the most difficult aspect of it for me so far, but I am really happy to have begun. While waiting for my instruction I would watch other students who were really good practice with him, and I want to get to that level. There was this one girl who began a year ago, but her kicks are stronger than his son's kicks are, and his son is a professional fighter! Everyone was amazed at her abilities, she is a complete natural at the art, and when her set with the instructor was finished, everyone gave her a loud applause! There were other really good students too, like Pi Toy, so it gives me hope that in time I might also become good at it.

More strange fruit

2006-08-07T12:37:00.001+07:00

Here is some more fruit from Thailand that I love. The picture on bottom is another one of my favorites, called Noina. It is very sweet and delcious, but it falls apart very easily. There are lots of hard black seeds inside. You peel the outside of it off, segment by segment to get to the fruit.

Above the pic of the Noina is Geawmungkorn, and is known in English as dragon fruit. It is one of the more bizarre looking fruits. It's what I imagine might grow on one of the moons of Jupiter, if fruit grew there. To eat it you just slice it in half, and then into fourths, and peel away the bright pink skin, eating the white polka dotted center. The flavor is subtle, a little bit tart and a little bit sweet, but not strong at all. I really like this stuff.

The pic on the top is Mafueng, known in English as starfruit. This is a little tart and crisp. All you do to eat this fruit is slice off the edges, and then chop it into little starshaped pieces. Aroi mak!

There is more to come, I've barely scratched the surface!

Strange fruit

2006-08-06T17:21:00.000+07:00

Here is a picture of a Durian, one of the most bizarre and delicious fruits I have come across here in Thailand. I first heard of this while talking with Kirin at a Thai restaraunt in Boise. He told me it had a strong odour to it, but that it was in fact quite delicious. He said that he really really wanted to try a fresh one, but that they just aren't available in the states. On my first day upon arriving in Bangkok, Jane, her mother and I went to a market where they were selling them, and it happens to be one of Mama's favorites! They are really sharp and prickly so you have to kind of be careful not to prick yourself when you're handling one. Jane doesn't really care too much for them, and neither does her brother, but Mama and Tungearn (the dog) love them, as do I. With Mama, it was an aqcuired taste. I can see how this could be, I mean the smell is really strong when you first cut it open. When you actually taste the fruit though, it is quite different. The texture is creamy, almost like a custard sometimes, and the flavor is sweet, tasting unlike anything I've tried before. According to Mama, it is very yang, and you must be carefull not to eat too much of it, or especially to drink alchohol while eating Durian. Some people have had to go to the hospital, or have even died from this. There is another fruit named Monkud which I will show you later that shares the same season as Durian, and is a Yin fruit, so often times after eating Durian, people will eat the Monkud afterwards to balance the extreme yang a little bit. Monkud is very delicious also, and is one of my favorites. I don't have a good picture of it yet though, so I'll show you that later.

Grasshoppers and silk worms!

2006-08-03T16:59:00.000+07:00

Last night Jane, her mother and I walked to to a nearby market where there was all kinds of good food, and quite cheap! We bought a delicious Durian and some vegetables for some of Mama's amazing Thai style home cooking. I love the markets, and every day there is a new fruit or vegetable that I learn about! As we were walking home we saw a street vendor selling fried insects, and Jane dared me to try one. At first I was really a bit reluctant, but really I'll try most anything just to say I've tried it...so they talked to the vendor and he agreed to let me sample a grasshopper and a silkworm. He had a big grin on his face, knowing this was the first time I had tried them. I didn't think the flavor would be good, but I was wrong! It actually tasted good...I mean, if I didn't know what they were, I'd probably be snacking on them all the time! I was really surprised. Heh, anything fried tastes good though! :-) They were telling me that their favorite one is a bamboo worm. I am curious to try it now!

Sense of nonsense!!

2006-08-02T15:41:00.000+07:00

I found this on nitu's blog http://nitubagga.blogspot.com/ , and I thought it was interesting...read it, and let me know what you think!

I Cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.

The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

Just chillin' with some tigers

2006-08-01T11:46:00.000+07:00

The tigers were great, they are such beautiful creatures. Sometimes they would growl and you'd have an adrenalized chill going up your spine because they're only a few feet away! I have a new respect for these creatures, and for the Buddhist monks that took the orphaned cubs in when no one else would. It just goes to show how powerful compassion can be! There was one tiger in particular that seemed a little agitated. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe it was just the feeling of being a spectacle for tourists, but he was pacing around nervously when we got there. Later on the monk who had raised them walked up to him and calmed him down. You can see the picture of him doing this, it's really amazing. At one point he even had his hand in his mouth, just smiling like it was no big deal! He had a very powerful presence there, one of kindness and good heartedness. You could really see he cares for these animals.

Vassana taking us up a hillside trail

2006-08-01T10:57:00.000+07:00

Here we are riding elephants in a small Karen community in Kanchanaburi province. This one is Vassana, an 18 year old female who likes to go off the beaten path. Later on we took them down to the river and bathed them. As you can see, we farangs are in desperate need of some sun! After that we took them back to up to where we began, and fed one of them green bananas. Look at that gigantic smile!

Weekend in Kanchanaburi province

2006-07-31T13:44:00.000+07:00

Saturday morning Jane and I got up bright and early to catch the train to Kanchanaburi. We weren't sure if we would make it on time, but our taxi driver was a good one. At times I felt like I was in a high speed chase, but I'm becoming more accustomed to this feeling here in Bangkok! The train ticket was 100 baht, which is about $2.50, not bad for a 3 hour ride! I got that price because I am "farang" which is the Thai name for guavas and white people! If you see the inside of a guava, it is white, or maybe a little pinkish, so that's how "farang" became the name for Caucasions. Jane is Thai, so she only paid 25 baht for the ticket! That's about 50 cents! It's really unbelievable. The train ride was nice, we had this big window open, and you could enjoy the fresh air from the outside. The scenery was good, with temples, and little ponds with lotuses in them. The seats were made of wood, and not the most comfortable, but for that price I won't complain!

When we arrived Jane talked with one of the locals, and got a recomendation for a place to eat lunch. I had the pad thai, and she had rice with crispy pork fried with basil leaves and chili. The cost for both meals came to 40 baht, which is about 1 U.S. dollar. The food was very good too! After that we felt like relaxing so we went to a Thai massage place, and that was really nice, and also inexpensive. For 300 baht each (about 8 dollars U.S.)we had a one and a half hour massage, including the use of a hot herbal compress, which I highly recommend! Very relaxing. Later on we found a cool place that offered tours to some of the nearby attractions, so we decided to travel to the tiger temple. (www.tigertemple.org) It is a place where Buddhist monks have raised tigers from cubs, and tourist can come hang out with them. They are trying to raise money to build a park there. It was really a cool experience, some of the tigers were just relaxing, while others seemed annoyed at all the tourists, and maybe a little grumpy about the hot weather! The main monk was great, and I think that he was probably the one that raised them. To see him walk up to them with no fear, and talk to them was so cool. Tigers are such beautiful creatures! I really enjoyed hanging out with them for a little while.

Later on in the evening we went to this restaraunt that was near the water, a very charming little place. The only drawback was that there were lots of mosquitoes swarming around us, but this was quickly resolved when we had the light turned off at our table. We had some great food there, and my favorite dish was yum takrai. It had lots of lemongrass in it, I can't remember really what else was in it but I do remember it had such a good flavor, I couldn't get enough of it! Later on we went to a night market and I bought a yellow shirt to wear on Monday. Thai people do this out of love and respect for thier King. He was born on a Monday, so many people wear yellow on Mondays, but any day is a good day to wear yellow to show your respect.

The next day we got up early again to go visit a nearby Karen community and ride elephants! It was great, we started out on a hill trail, and ended up taking them down to the river, and bathing them. They are such powerful, yet gentle creatures. Ours was named Vassana and was 18 years old. She was funny, she didn't really want to stay on the trail. Sometimes she'd go back and forth, and once she took a little side path instead of the main one, and started eating! We ended up taking them to the river, and bathing them. The water was warm, and they were trained to do things like go under, and spray water! It was a blast! I really enjoyed the time spent with the elephants, they were so cool. It was a very memorable experience, and one that I recommend for everyone!

After the elephant riding our tour truck took us to a little place back in Kanchanburi for lunch, with a nice view of the water. We were with some other tourists as well, and we all shared several dishes, my favorite being Massaman curry and the Tom Kah Gai. Aroi mak! After lunch our driver was nice enough to give us a ride to the bus station where we took a bus to Bangkok for 99 baht, about $2.50 U.S. I had such a good time! It's nice to know that there is a place like this relatively close if you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok for a weekend, and a trip there is not really very expensive. Our hotel was 600 baht, which is about $16 U.S. dollars, and it was a good one. Thanks Jane, I had an awesome time, and I am really looking forward to traveling more with you!

Coconut custard

2006-07-28T15:47:00.000+07:00

Check out this delicious Thai desert! It is a kind of custard that is made inside a coconut, it's really good! There is a special aromatic herb that is used in making it, but I'm not sure what it's called. This is just one of the many wonderful things Jane's mom is capable of cooking up!

At last!

2006-07-25T14:23:00.000+07:00

Allright, I'm here in Thailand now, I arrived on July 22. As the plane was landing I got that nervous feeling in my stomach, knowing that the moment I had been waiting for was so close. I was a little confused about the whole visa thing, and I ended up standing in the wrong line to get my passport stamped. When I did finally get to the baggage claim area I was thinking that it would be coming from #2 because that is what was on my little baggage sticker... but after a while of seeing that my luggage was definately not coming from that one, I found the monitor that had all the flights posted with the correct belts. I went to the one it said, which was still the wrong one! I asked the guy who was there in the back, and he told me to go down to 10, which is where I eventually found it. The whole time I was so nervous, not knowing when I would meet Jane. I asked a nice older gentleman where I might find a payphone, and he let me make a call with his cell. I talked with Jane, and she said that she would meet me outside. I loaded up all my luggage, and my guitar, and walked to the entrance, and there she was in the crowd of people. I was stunned at how beautiful she was, I mean I always knew that she was gorgeous, but to see her in real life simply took my breath away! We scurried off to a place away from the crowd, and I dropped my luggage and nervously asked her for a hug, which was nice. Keep in mind that I was on a long flight, and not at all being accustomed to this kind of humidity. I had been cooped up on the plane for such a long time, then there was the jet lag! I was sweaty and tired, not the ideal way to make a first impression, but that was ok, Jane understood. One of the first things I noticed about Bangkok was how different the drivers are here from the United States. It's not just that they're on the other side of the street, but compared to the United States, it's pure madness! I've never experienced it before, the driving style is very aggressive. You just go! People cut each other off right and left, and that's normal, in fact, that's what you have to do. It will take some getting used to, but at least people don't seem to get too angry about it. That's just the normal way you drive.

We got home and I met her mom who is a very sweet, wonderful lady. She also happens to be a phenomenal cook. Her English is poor, but she speaks 5 other languages! I hopped in the shower, and felt much better after that. Instead of going to sleep I decided to stay up, and reset my sleep patterns. I was so stoked to be in Bangkok, it kept me energized enough to stay awake. Jane's mom prepared a delicious lunch for us, it was like we were eating at a top notch restaraunt! I am amazed at her skills. I want to learn as much as I can from her! There is this sauce that is her specialty called "nam jim" which literaly translated means dipping sauce. It is so good! You can put it on everything, and it will compliment the flavors. It is made of ginger, garlic, chilli, soysauce, a little sugar, vinegar and lime. The flavor is so good, especially with rice and thai dishes.

We walked around and I got a little tour of this area. I love this place! There was this market we checked out where all these fruits I have never seen or heard of before were being sold...like durian and mangosteen. "Aroi mak" means "very delicious", and I say that so much! I had this fresh coconut drink from the market, and it was so good...only 10 baht! Later on we went to a nice restaraunt where we had seven dishes, and four of us ate until we were totally full. It only came to about 11 US dollars, I couldn't believe it! One of them was the green papaya salad, which is one of my favorites. Jane's family likes spicy food too, which is good. They make thier dishes really hot here, and I love it! I am so happy to be here, I just hope that I can stay as long as possible!

Here comes the Sun(shine)

2006-07-24T16:25:00.000+07:00

On Saturday 22nd July... I woke up around 10 am... I was so tired from my jet lag and busy day at work, but I had to wake up!!
Why?
Because I had to go to airport... picking up someone!
Who?
You know who!!! It's Jeremy!!!
His flight was supposed to land at 11.05 Thailand time... I arrived Thai International Airport Terminal 2 arrival hall at 11.15 and looked at the screen, it said "BR 211 from Taiwan landed at 10.55"
Shit!!! I was late!!!
Well.... I was not. I was waiting for more than one hour there before I saw Jeremy walking out with his suitcases and his guitar case.
...
...
...
...
...
What else should I say here?
Here comes Jeremy...

3 weeks to go...

2006-06-29T14:34:00.000+07:00

My vacation is coming really soon... I'm going to Europe next week! First I will fly to Amsterdam to attend a wedding, I am maid of honour, it's such an honour to be!!

Only 3 days in Amsterdam then I will fly to Milan, Italy... the most fashional city in the world but I'm not going there for shopping. It's just a stop...before I go to Venice, so romantic right? Yeah! But as I'm going there alone, seeing couples in Venice having a very romantic times together would make me jealous! So I will stay in Venice only 2 nights before heading to Rimini, a beach town on Adriatic sea coast... To give myself a chance to see hot Italians in bikinis!

Then I will take the train to Florence...many things to do and to see in and around Florence like Siena, I hope I have enough time to enjoy these beautiful and again the romantic cites!!

On my last 3 days in Italy, I will be in Rome and Vatican city... many more to see! I will walk walk walk to every places (just to save money)...it'd be an effective intensive diet course for me!!!

I'm so exciting about this trip as it'll be my first time traveling alone in Foreign countries for 2 weeks (not the first time to go alone, not the first time to foreign countries and not the first time for 2 weeks but first time for all together!!), but if I could, I would love to go there with someone. If it's Jeremy, it'd be much better!!!

And right after I come back from my trip, Jeremy will be arriving in Bangkok!! Isn't that cool? It's 3 weeks++ from now... that I will meet Jeremy in person! in real! I'm a little nervous actually... but I think it'll be fine, we seem to get along very well.

I know this blog is created by Jeremy to tell about his trip, his life in Thailand... as I'm a co author here, I will just put some more stories between the lines or some exclusives...hehe

It feels so good when I know there is someone having the same dreams as me and that someone also wants to make those dreams come true. I don't know what to say now...we will have to wait and see. Oh! and we don't have to wait for long!

2 Year Old Djembe Drummer...

2006-06-29T04:17:00.000+07:00

hehe, ok, I had to blog this one too! It makes me so happy to see children who play music at a young age, I think it's great. This kid is so cute, and for two years old, he's got some skills!

4 Year Old Plays Djembe Again...

2006-06-29T04:10:00.000+07:00

This video is amazing, it really makes me think that reincarnation might really exist. How can someone so young have such skill at drumming like this? I wanna see what he's doing 20 years from now...I hope you enjoy!

When you feel blue...

2006-06-21T15:27:00.000+07:00

When you feel blue, sing along....This song is called "Blue Sky" and you know that sky blue is our favourite colour, right? Blue is not bad... especially when the sky is blue!
-----------------------
Walk along the river, sweet lullaby, it just keeps on flowing,
It dont worry bout where its going, no, no.
Dont fly, mister blue bird, Im just walking down the road,
Early morning sunshine tell me all I need to know

Youre my blue sky, youre my sunny day.
Lord, you know it makes me high when you turn your love my way,
Turn your love my way, yeah.

Good old sunday morning, bells are ringing everywhere.
Goin to carolina, it wont be long and Ill be there

Youre my blue sky, youre my sunny day.
Lord, you know it makes me high when you turn your love my way,
Turn your love my way, yeah.

ahhhh, my weekend

2006-06-17T11:54:00.000+07:00

Today was a nice relaxing day. I woke up and talked to Jane for a while which was awesome, she's all getting ready for the TOEFL test. I hope she gets a good score! Later I took a nap to make up for my lack of sleep during the week, which was very nice, I feel recharged now. I went and saw Nacho Libre which I enjoyed, and while I was walking home I had lovely Mexican music swirling around in my head, so I was all inspired to make some music, but wasn't able to come up with anything quite as lovely. I did a few rough recordings, but the tone just wasn't right, I don't know if something's wrong with my mic, or what, but it sounded pretty distorted (not intentionally). It's allright though, it was good practice, and it got me thinking of new ideas. I really want some more words to put to my music, I know I can find some good melodies to sing.

So it's official, Jane and I are definately an item, and we're not being shy about it anymore. Everyone is telling both of us to be cautious, and my family is looking at it with skepticism. I mean yeah, it's an internet relationship, but it feels pretty real to both of us, so that's what really matters. Normally I would never get involved in something like this, but since I am traveling to Thailand it seems different, like it could work out. We talk so much, on Skype with webcams, on msn messenger, on the phone, with text messages, she's become a big part of my life, and it's wonderful! She is everything I've ever looked for in a partner, it's just crazy that she lives on the opposite side of the globe. I met her on ICQ one day, which is a free, and somewhat outdated chat program, but it's cool because you can meet people from all over the world with it. It's funny because she told me she rarely used it, but just happened to have it on... I'm so glad she did! Once I started talking with her and reading her blogs it was over with, I was in love! She is so warm hearted and sincere, creative, beautiful, and everytime I see that she's online it's like the sun coming out from behind the clouds! We both agree that we should not rush into anything, and we should spend a good amount of time being around each other to know if it will work. We both have a really good feeling about each other, and when I'm talking with her I can totally be myself. We can talk about anything, and with her everything is so comfortable. It's really cool, I think this is the beginning of something great! Time will tell...

This blog is going to like a travel diary, and I think it will be cool to look back and see how our relationship develops. At the moment it's like a seed that has just sprouted, and is just popping out of the ground. We both gotta care for it and water it well, and I think it will be healthy and strong in no time!

Why do songs about "Jeremy" always involve guns?

2006-06-14T00:12:00.000+07:00

I love the band The Magnetic Fields, and they have this song called "Jeremy" which I thought was a little strange when I listened to the lyrics, but I liked it. I never noticed at the end in the lyrics that she sings about a gun, and "it's all over"! The only other song about a Jeremy that I know of is by Pearl Jam, and thats about a kid who goes to school with a gun and kills a bunch of people. Why?? I have a challenge for anyone reading my blog, please try and find me a song about a Jeremy where there is no violence! I wanna hear it!

Cloudy Day in Bangkok

2006-06-13T11:04:00.000+07:00

Just a cloudy moment before the sun shining again... It's to remind you that after a cloudy and rainy day, the sun will shine on you!

Hugh? I like chocolate, but it's not my favorite!

2006-06-10T07:51:00.000+07:00

You Are Chocolate Ice Cream

You have a flair for the dramatic and love to party.
Your personality is super strong and unique.
Many people crave you constantly - while you turn a few off.

You are most compatible with coffee ice cream.

What Flavor Ice Cream Are You?

I think that if I were ice cream Id's be Ben and Jerry's Pistachio, or Coconut Almond Chunk...but chocoloate is allright, as long as it's got chunks of chocolate in it too!!

Thank you...

2006-06-10T02:27:00.000+07:00

Thanks to Jeremy...to let me be part of this blog (I forced him to)
Well... I have nothing to say much here (I'm a bit drunk)
I will post more when I'm sober...
Thanks again Jeremy...
- Creature Called Jane

let's see if this works!

2006-06-01T08:52:00.001+07:00

Ok, this is my second try at this! I've ran into some frustrating complications, and I just gave up on my last one. Jane's blog is so cool though, so I decided to make a new account and see if any of the glitches that were preventing my old blog from working might disappear. We'll see!

Today my weekend begins, I'm very happy about having the next two days off. I think I'll keep working on music, I've been feeling more inspired lately to do this.