Final post

Since I'm back in the States now, no real reason to continue this blog right? Seems silly. Therefore I will just say that after having the foods I missed (including sourdough bread, Mexican, family's spaghetti) I'm ready to return to Asia. Alas, I don't think I will be back in the near future (ie the next couple years). Oh well, c'est la vie.

Today I dropped off the family suburu to get some work done on it. I got some french toast at a popular breakfast place nearby- Momma's Royal Cafe. Afterwards, I walked down to BART. While doing so, an AC transit bus drove by. I saw it pull over to a couple stops to let passengers off and pick some up. It made me sad. The process was so clean and straight forward. I nostalgically recalled the beat-up Dhaka buses with the dudes banging on the sides, calling out the destinations of the buses. It is much more entertaining that way.

I then thought, "well Sean, you hated walking down the streets because of the lack of sidewalks and all the obstacles in your path." True. But then I thought, "How many times did i long to be walking in Oakland, or anywhere in the USA when I was in South Asia? Not one time." I might have been a bit unhappy, but the craziness overcame the frustrating parts of the experience. That was true for many aspects of life over there. So it goes.

So now I prepare to move down to San Diego and start my studies at UCSD. The biggest reason I'm in this program is to make it easier for me to live and work in Asia. This trip has served as a reinforcement of that goal.

I guess that's it. woo hoo.

Damn you united, damn you!

My first leg of my trip back to CA was supposed to be SIN to HKG at 6:45 this morning. Because I am a cheap bastard sometimes, I decided to take a late subway train to the airport last night, and just hang out at the airport until check-in started at 3:45 AM. Well I had a nice surprise when I arrived at the airport: my flight was cancelled. Sweet. Of course no United employees are at Singapore airport at midnight, nor anytime before 3:30 AM. As a result, I had a fun time hanging out.

Now you've probably heard what a great airport Changi is. Well here's the thing: all the cool stuff (free internet, movies, a pool, showers, etc) is in the transit area, ie beyond check-in and immigration. the only thing remotely cool in the front area of the airport is the 24 hr food court where you can get beer. Speaking of beer, that is another thing I like about East Asia: beer is so accessible. Not to sound like an alcoholic or anything (I didn't have a beer at the food court, but I was considering it I admit).

Anyway, once the United people showed up, they told me I would be taking a cathay pacific flight to HKG, then taking United to SFO. Here's the prob: I now leave SIN at 10:30, shortening my time in HKG to 4 hours, and therefore preventing me from carrying out my original plan of taking a quick trip to HKG harbor. bastards.

Adios India, Hello Singapore

Yesterday got up at 4:45 to catch taxi to Delhi's airport (Indira Gandhi International in case you were curious about the name). Taxi turned out to be a mini-van. Driver decided I needed one last reminder of what I don't like about India and asked for a tip. Apparently he wasn't content with 20 rupees, so I just left it on the car seat and bid him good-bye.

Delhi's airport is, to be blunt, a dump. The Economist always whines about how bad India's infrastructure is. During my travels through the country, I thought, "Well for a poor country, it isn't THAT bad. I've seen worse." I also saw numerous highway projects and other infrastructure construction, so at least the Indian gov't is aware it needs to do something. Part of that work is a bit of remodeling of the Intl. terminal at IGI. They should just build a new terminal. It is ugly on the outside and inside.

On the other hand, Jet Airways, the airline I flew to Singapore, is great. I paid about 70 bucks more to use them instead of Air India. Best move I've made on this trip. You have your own little private tv screen that has video and music on demand. It didn't have quite the video selection Singapore Air or some of the big players have, but its video screens were the clearest I've ever seen on a plane. The food was some of the best airline food I've had, and the service was great.

Jet is starting Mumbai-NYC service on August 5th (via Brussels) and is hoping to have a Mumbai-San Francisco (via Shanghai) service sometime next year. That would be pretty sweet. Good luck Jet.

And now I'm in Singapore. I had a pleasant surprise when I got off the tram taking me from Terminal 1 to T2: my former co-worker Wee. She had asked when I was arriving here, but I wasn't sure if she was going to meet me. When I came out into the arrivals hall and didn't see her, I figured she wasn't going to. It just made the post-tram encounter that much more of a surprise.

From there, we went to my hotel, called Sleepy Sam's. I have to say it is one of the more "posh" budget places I've ever stayed. Quite stylish. It is just down a bit from Sultan Mosque, the most famous mosque in Singapore. Highly recommend it if you need a budget place here (25 Singapore Dollars for dorm room). Had a decent shower for the first time in ages. I feel so clean right now.

Today's plan: go to the zoo! shop! eat! yes, the quinessential Singapore experience- well the last two at least.

Final Days in India and Delhi

Since I had two days to explore Delhi, I decided to devote one day to New Delhi and one day to Old Delhi. Well actually it turned out to be half days for both. Yes, I am the ambitious, go out and see everything type. Right.

So New Delhi... I strolled around Connaught Circle, checking out the variety of shops and whatnot. I got a sandwich at subway. Shame on me- I know. I then headed down a tree-lined street called Janpath. It wasn't too exciting. Janpath led me to Rajpath, which was a bit more impressive. It was Delhi's Mall pretty much. At one end was "India Gate" which is India's version of the Arc de Truimphe. It was built by the Brits in honor of the Indians who died in WW I fighting for the British. At the other end of the mall is the President's house. It makes the white house look like a joke; to say the complex is grandiose is an understatement. I should note that the President in India is like our VP: pretty much powerless. Right nearby was Parliament, which might have been quite pleasant, but it was pretty hard to get close to it. I suppose that is what happens when a building is attacked by terrorists (as it was a few years ago). I am pretty sure Bangladesh's parliament building is more impressive though. Congrats Bangladesh, you better India in one way at least.

And today Old Delhi. I was there for about an hour. Old delhi doesn't look so old. I felt like I was in old dhaka, except without my friends. In other words, I found it to be pretty dumpy and not worth exploring except for a) the red fort b) the Jama Masjid (pictured above).

I approached the mosque in the wrong direction. As I was walking down the street, and the mosque came into view, I thought, "This is the largest mosque in India?? This is a joke." Alas, by the time I walked around the entire place, I realized I had come in from the side. Gates 1 & 2 made the mosque look that much more impressive. The stairs leading up it were packed with people and the mosque itself was filled with guys just chilling out.

After exploring the mosque, I decided I wouldn't find any other better highlight of old Delhi, so I headed back to the Metro. I should note that the Metro sells ticket cards that you can quickly scan at the turnstiles, and your fare is automatically deducted. this is pretty much universal in asian metro/subway systems these days. WHY THE HELL ISN'T BART DOING THIS?? Well it just started last spring, but it is in a trial run. Bloody India, a country with a yearly GDP per capita of $3,800 (according to the CIA) has a city with a more advanced subway system than one of the most cosmopolitan metro areas in the USA. It's a disgrace. Oh, and of course my cellphone worked on the Delhi subway. Does it underground on BART? At about 4 stations in SF, that's it. well done BART, WELL DONE. OK, let's get back to Delhi shall we?

Following my brief tour of Old Delhi, I headed back to Connaught Circle to grab some dinner. I've been to McDonald's, Subway, so what does that leave? KFC! Just kidding, I didn't go there. No, I went to a restaurant called the Banana Leaf, which serves south Indian food. Before tonight, I had never had South Indian food. Well if tonight's meal is average (or even slightly above average) for south indian food, I have to say it some divine stuff. Why the hell didn't I try this stuff earlier?? I had a masala dosa with a coconut sauce and some type of chutney on the side. Fantastic stuff, best Indian food I've had in this country. I also had a chocolate shake, which was quite tasty as well. Great last meal to have in India, I can tell you that much.

Following that, I hung out in the actual circle of Connaught. It has a number of small lawns, trees, bridges going over some small bodies of water, and a sitting area. Quite pleasant place to spend on a warm evening. I just hung out there for about an hour people watching. I really do not think there is any country better for people watching than India. There such a wide range of people that one can pass the time quite easily just looking at everyone else walking by. The best place to do it is in a railway station. I think everyone should do that at least once in their life- seriously. I guarantee you it will be one of the most memorable experiences of your life.

Anyway, I knew that after a bit, someone would want to talk to me. This time it turned out to be a student of tourism who graduates next winter. After chatting to him for a bit, I decided I should bid him adieu and check my e-mail to make sure I have a place to stay in Singapore.
And I do. staying at a place called Sleepy Sam's. I will be sleeping in a dorm room. Haven't done that since Bangkok.

So tomorrow morning I'm saying adios to India. I am honestly a little sad to be leaving. It would be fun to explore it a bit more. I will try my hardest to return in the future and explore the south (and that was a decision I made before tonight's dinner).

That's all for now.. Oh, some Indian dudes have just whipped out tall beers here at the internet cafe. Sweet!

During most of my travels, I have been alone. I generally don't mind and its upsides include following my own plan and not having to care about anyone else. Also, I am more "accessible" to locals. While I cannot be certain, I have a feeling more locals have approached me because I am alone. If I had a companion(s), people would feel more shy and intimidated to approach. I know I have had a couple experiences here that many other travelers have not had. While I would like to think it is beause I am special and skilled, I am pretty certain my solitude- and perhaps my friendly demeanor- is the root cause (yuck, that's a favorite term of my former supervisor, God help me). I also tend to go with the flow and see where things lead me; well on this trip I have at least.

Anyway, the one part I hate about being by myself is eating. I hate eating by myself in a restaurant. I have done it many times but it still isn't any easier for me. Supposedly one gets over a fear after doing it over and over. That hasn't happened for me in this case. Here is the problem: every restaurant presents a new fear for me. That is, if I go to a restaurant and feel reasonably comfortable, I can go again and again to that one restaurant with no problem. That is part of the reason I had a restaurant "rotation" in Yemen, and went to a couple select ones while living in Korea.

The problem while traveling, however, is you are always changing locations. You might feel comfy at a restaurant but who really cares because you're adios in a day or two.

What fears pop into my head? If it is a local restaurant (ie no or few tourists frequent it) then I have these fears:
1. The "procedure" fear. Do I sit at a table? Do I order at the counter? Which counter do I order at? This is more of an issue in Malaysia with its ubiquitous food centers than elsewhere.
2. Menu fear. Will they have a menu in English? Do they know any English?
3. Price fear. Will they overcharge me? This happened frequently in Egypt, except there I could read Arabic, and "stick it to them." I know I've been overcharged here in India. They only overcharge you 5-50 cents, but when your meal is a buck or less, that is a big mark-up. Throw in the fact they are taking advantage of your ignorance and you have some unhappy times.

My one fear at tourist restaurants? That I look like a loser since I'm all by myself. It is a juvenille fear, but it is there.

That is why I go to places like McDonald's and Barista, although the former also brings out an insecurity of mine (people will think I'm lame and can't handle the local food). If I had a travel companion, I would never go to McDonald's (but I would go to Barista for its tastey drinks). How does having a companion erase all those fears? Because it is much easier to look like a fool with someone else. Knowing you're not the only idiot around can be very comforting.

That being said, nearly every time after I finish a meal on my own here, I get this gigantic high and feel like I can do nearly anything.

3 lists

While in Manali, I had a lot of leisure time, and came up with some lists.

Reasons I Like Sikhs

1. You can go to a service in temple wearing shorts and a t-shirt and not look like a freak.
2. Men have to cover their heads too.
3. They allow anyone to enter their places of worship (unlike some Islamic countries)
4. Have free food centers, most notably 24 hr service inside the Golden Temple complex.
5. They provide free accomodation to anyone and everyone in the GT
6. They aren't shy about alcohol. In West Bengal and UP, liquor stores were hard to find. Punjab? No problem! They're all over the place. The family I stayed with right outside Amritsar has to be the first hosts I've had that strongly encouraged me to drink at dinner time. When I sipped my scotch and water, the boys shook their heads and said, "punjabis do it in one gulp." Well good for them.

Reasons I Like Punjabi Food More Than Bengali

1. More dairy products consumed. I had yougurt with nearly every meal. Perfect fit with the curries and whatnot.
2. Less rice, more bread. Actually now after a couple weeks in northern india, I am no longer so anti-rice.
3. Use spoons while eating, so hands less a mess after eating.

Ways Asia is Better Than USA

1. Food.
This applies to East Asia, and not so much South Asia. I have never had a bad meal in Thailand. Food that looks awful ends up being delicious. It is just not the quality, but the prices. Even in Singapore and Hong Kong, two places as pricey as the USA, you can find cheap eating centers that serve great food.
2. Transportation
In nearly every country I have been in, buses and/or trains go everywhere and anywhere. Even in India and Bangladesh, it might take forever to get somewhere, but at least there is some type of vehicle that is going there.
3. Their embrace of technology
I'll just leave it at this: it is pretty sad when Indian telecom companies provide more features than their American peers. Granted, I have found Airtel (the mobile phone co. i'm using here) to be a pain and pretty shitty, but it does provide services that American companies don't.

Manali and Delhi

This morning I arrived in Delhi. Back in the heat, pollution, and noise. On the plus side, Delhi has a Metro system that, after one ride on it, seems quite nice. I have today and the next two days to explore it. So far I have gone to Connaught Circle to pick up my plane ticket, gone to Barista (Indian version of Starbucks I guess you could say) and gone to an internet place. Yes, I've really dived into Indian culture today!

Anyway, I found Manali to be quite lovely. I really have no good stories to tell. I hiked here and there, read quite a bit, and just soaked up the cool, temperate weather. The scenery was quite nice too: small rivers with ice-cold water, mountains covered with pine trees, and even some snow capped mountains.

Also, Kullu Valley (that's where Manali is situated) is the first place I can recall where I have seen cannabis growing all over the place. Apparently it is the 2nd biggest crop in the region; apples are #1. Maybe that is one reason why some travelers end up being there for quite awhile. One English couple I met had been there for a little over 3 weeks. In their defense, they were taking a yoga class.

Finally, I found the 16 hr bus ride to be all right. I got a "sleeper" seat which allowed me to stretch out. I think I was able to sleep as well; if not then my energy level right now is quite impressive. My guidebook said I would be dropped off by the New Delhi train station. I, and the other western travelers on board, thought we were close to the Main Bazaar road, which is where most budget lodging is. Therefore, when the rickshaw drivers were asking for 100 rupees, we were quite aghast. since no one was willing to go below that price, I hopped in with two Israelis and went with them to a hotel that they had heard about.

Well it turned out we dropped off in the boondocks of northeast Delhi. Took about 30 minutes before we reached our hotel; I joked to the Israeli girl that she had gotten a better price than we had thought. I should also credit the Israeli couple for knowing about this hotel. I'm paying 250 rupees (little over 6 bucks) for a room with its own bathroom, a tv, and an air cooler. Not bad for central delhi.

Probably should update this huh?

Well due to a few reasons, I have not been able to update my blog for some time. What are those reasons?

1. I got "kidnapped" at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. As soon as I walked inside the gates, I became mr. popular and memories of Bangladesh came back. By the time I left the Golden Temple, I received two house invites. I was rude and accepted the second (if I was polite I would have gone with the first). Why was I rude? The first person who invited me was quite annoying and his English was not very good. The 2nd invite was from two good English speakers who said they lived in Amritsar. Who are they? 2 18 yr old twins killing some time before they go to Australia for college.

Well turned out they lived about 20 KM (30 min) outside the city in a small village. The upside was his family was the wealthiest in the village. Their house was quite nice and I certainly didn't feel like I was roughing it. Since it was a spontaneous thing, I did not have any change of clothes, but my host was happy to provide a couple shirts and shorts.

Due to a really big rainstorm, I spent two days in the village. It actually was quite pleasant and peaceful. On the other hand, I was not able to connect to the internet, big surprise.

2. The twins helped me figure out how to get to Manali, a popular resort town in the Himalayas. I was on a bus for a good 15 hours. Well two buses actually. The first one went to the capital of Punjab called Chandigarh (I think). There, I had to find a bus to Manali. I went up to a ticket table, asked the man sitting. He said, "Manali? The bus leaves from there [pointing to a nearby bus slot]. It should leave around 5:50 PM. Stick around and I'll help you."

And he certainly did help me. The bus arrived and there was a mad rush to another ticket table. The man (a big ass sikh dude) went to the desk, said who knows what to that ticket man, told me to sit down next to the ticket man, who then got me a ticket and gave me a seat number. Turned out the seat was in the front row, which gave me a bit more leg room. Turned out to be very helpful. Why?

Well this bus became PACKED. Imagine a MUNI bus at rush hour. That kind of packed. Imagine being on that packed of a bus on a curvy mountain road with many switchbacks- for 3 or 4 hours. Sounds fun doesn't it?

3. got to manali a little before 4 am. Obviously I didn't have many hotel options at that hour since most were all closed up for the night. Found one, and then the next day I had a nice surprise: the broadband connection here is down due to some glitch back in Chandigarh, so they say. The first day it was down, all internet places said, "Eh sorry, can't help you." A couple days later they've resorted to dial-up. Woo hoo!

So there you have it. Just kicking it here in Manali for a couple days. Reserved a ticket to Singapore today via Jet Airways. Leaving on the 9th, so I'll have 2 1/2 days in Singapore before I go back to the USA. Now all I have to do is get a bus to Delhi, and arrive there before 6 pm Friday to get my plane ticket. Fun times.

Most random question yet

Before I get to the most random question I've been asked so far on this trip, I'll sum up my "taj experience.

The first time I saw the Taj was on the train. As it crossed the bridge entering Agra, I was able to look out the window and see the Taj in the distance. Even from there, it looked quite majestic.

I ended up staying at a budget hotel called Sai Palace. I highly recommend it. For 250 rupees (little over 6 USD) I had a large room, equally as large bathroom, and a small view of the Taj. I could walk right out of my room to improve my view, and if I walked up a few stairs, I had an unblocked view of the the Taj. Not bad at all.

Ended up going in around 4:30 PM. Even at that time of day, it was pretty hot. You have to take your shoes off and go bare-feet on the white marble. Thankfully they lay a carpet-like thing (not quite soft enough to be a carpet) for you to walk on. Anyway, I'll just say it is as impressive as everyone says it is, and is worth the 750 rupees (about 19 bucks) to get into the place.

If I were to do it over again, I'd go earlier and just hang out wherever there was shade. Part of the enjoyment of the Taj was just sitting around with middle class Indians, soaking up the surroundings. Oh, and Agra isn't so bad. The touts are pretty tame. Luxor, Egypt and Fez, Morocco still hold the #1 slot of most annoying touts in the world.

So let's move on to the most random question I've been asked. Yesterday I took a 14 hr train ride from Agra to Amristar, where I am now. As I'm sure you'd guess, a large number of people came and went during my ride. The last group was these 4 sikhs (pictured above). After asking where I was from, one of them asked, "What's the price of almonds in California?"

Now had he asked me the price of any other nut, I would have had to say, "umm I have no clue." Alas, I have been buying almonds from Berkeley Bowl for the past couple years. I know my almond prices. I remembered paying around 7 bucks/lb and so I told him, "Close to 15 dollars/kilo" but then I remembered that was the highest I paid. Sometimes I paid about 5 bucks/lb so I clarified: "Actually it ranges between 10 and 15 dollars/kilo." They seemed satisfied with my answer.

Why did they ask? They were sellers of dry foods.

And now I'm in amritsar. I have yet to see the Golden Temple. That shall be for tomorrow. I haven't really gotten a good read of the the city yet; I arrived late, slept a bit late, and walked around for 45 minutes this afternoon before I decided I better get out of the heat, so I took a nap. Nap turned out to be a couple hours longer than planned. So it goes.

My future plans

I suppose this is not too interesting, but just in case you're wondering, here is what I'm planning to do in the next few days.

June 24 (today): kill a few hours. Hop on train to Agra at 6 pm. I know you're jealous.
June 25: Arrive at agra fort station at 6 am. Find hotel. Go to Taj Mahal. Take pictures to document my visit there. restrain myself from killing touts.
June 26: 8:38 AM train to Amristar. Riding high class: a/c baby, a/c! This will be my first train a/c experience in India. Better be good since i'm paying about 2x what I would be in 2nd class sleeper. arrive in amritsar around 10:30 PM.
June 27: Visit the golden temple. I can stay there for free too.

After that, it is up in the air. I know I'm going to go to Manali but I am not sure yet what day. I might also go to Leh, but it takes two days to go there from Manali. do i have the time? i don't know yet.

An elaboration and final days in Varanasi

Ok, so here is the reason I was dredding Varanasi:

A couple people in Kolkata were telling me some rather unpleasant things about the place. One woman from NYC (there were 4 new yorkers in the hotel I was staying at, a little bizarre) told me men would come up, do this little ceremony on her then say, "I just blessed you, 10/20 rupees please." She'd tell them off and they wouldn't be too aggressive, but that still sounded quite annoying.

A guy from Hawaii (but grew up in Chicago) said Varanasi was the dirtiest, smelliest place he has ever visited. Considering he had been all over Latin America, southeast asia, as well as some big cities here in India, that did not sound very good.

Well I can tell you I have been to dirtier places that make Varanasi look half-decent. Fez, Morocco wins the price for the biggest dump I've been to. Marrakesh is only a little better. Parts of Cairo are most definitly worse than the old city of Varanasi. Yes, there is piles of cow excrement here and there. Flies love some areas too, but at no point did the smells make me ill. Can't say the same about Fez.

As far as the "blessers" go, the only people who approached me were those trying to get me to visit shops and/or buy drugs. Overall, it was not that bad.

That being said, all I did yesterday was hang out with a French guy. We first found a shady spot along the river and chilled out there for a couple hours. At one point, an Israeli man joined us and I became an English-English translator. Frequently the French man couldn't understand the Israeli and vice versa. They were both speaking decent English but I suppose in different ways. Consequently I had to rephrase what one was saying so the other would understand. So it goes.

After hanging out at the river, we went to the roof-top of our hotel, the Puja Guesthouse. The view is quite stunning, and you can see the entire riverside. The wind is quite brisk too, so it keeps you relatively cool. Up there, we met a Brit and a Canadian.

Eventually we went to the train station. The french man was off to Nepal and I was going to try to get a ticket to Agra. Well all tickets for yesterday were booked, but there was something available for 6 pm today. Another day in varanasi- yay! Actually I did not mind so much. I got a nice hotel room close to the train station and am able to bum around on the internet for a couple hours, so things could be worse.

Trip to Varanasi

So on June 20th I left Kolkata for Varanasi. Due to some information I heard at the hotel I was staying, I decided I should play it safe and leave signficantly earlier than my train departure of 7:10 PM. I was able to say good-bye to various people that I had met in my few days there. Two people that I clicked with the most was an American couple (previously mentioned in at least one entry below). One of them, Boris, said on that last day how he seemed to click with Americans the most out of various nationalities. At first I thought, "That sucks. I certainly don't" but then thought of who I had hit it off with best on this trip. I have to say it has been Americans. Quite a contrast to my trip through the Middle East. That being said, the person who drove me nuts the most was an American (but don't tell her that, she thinks she's Jamacian even though she's been in NYC since age 11). And that's the USA for you.

Anyway, i left my hotel and walked out to the main road. I found a perfect spot to flag down a taxi cab. First few either refused or asked for 100 rupees. I knew a pre-paid taxi would cost 80 from Howrah (the train station) to my hotel, so no way in hell I was going to pay 100 rupees.

Well I found one that was finally interested. He initially said 100, I started to walk away. He asked me how much. I said 50. He countered with 80. I said 70. He wouldn't budge, and another taxi pulled up behind me so I started walking away again. Of course he accepted. I felt good for negoiating a price, even though I knew he was still getting a good price. Better than 100 right?

After a couple minutes and at the first stop light, the car died. Yessss... We needed to be rear ended by the taxi behind us to get going again. I thought, "had I known this was going to happen, I would have stuck with 50 rupees." Thankfully that was the last of the drama en route to the train station.

I was stupidly blown away by the # of people at the train station. I say stupidly because well, duh, this is India, and Kolkata itself has millions of people. It was around 6 pm too, so what should have I expected? Anyway, traffic was not nearly as bad as reported by others, so I had a bit of time to kill at the train station. Around 20 minutes before the train was supposed to leave, I made way for my seat.

This might also sound stupid but I was also blown away by the length of the train. It had car after car, and seemed to never end. I was in sleeper car 7, which was packed with people when I boarded.

The train ride wasn't so bad. Unlike Thai trains, they actually allow you to turn out the lights in the sleeper cars. I was in a non a/c car, which isn't that bad since the windows are open and there is always a breeze due to the train moving or fans working from the ceiling above. I had the same type of conversations that I had in Bangladesh.

As we approached Varanasi, I was quite nervous. I had heard many things about how the touts would drive you crazy, how much excrement was in the old city, how much it stank, etc. Well I learned two lessons: a) locals don't know best b) don't believe the hype.

a) I became friendly with the father of the family sitting across from me on the train. They were from Varanasi. As we got off the train, he told me to hold on, and he'd help me out. Well some dude immediatly got on me and asked me where I was going. I said "Puja Guest House" and he said, "rickshaw 20 rupees." I knew he was full of shit because 20 rupees was 1/2 the price I would get after bargining hard with a rickshaw driver. I ignored him and followed the family.

Well the dude wasn't totally stupid. He started chatting it up with the father (named Utthman). When we got to the front of the station, Utthman said, "auto-rickshaw ok?" I said yes. He told me that the dude would be ok. Now my gut was saying, "no, this guy is going to try to pull something" but I went along with him.

I knew he wanted a commison from the hotel and it would come out of my pocket. I figured he'd park the rickshaw far from the hotel, walk me through the old city so I couldn't figure things out, then walk in with me into the hotel. Surprise surprise, that's what he tried to do.

What stopped him? signs, glorious signs. Thankfully Puja Guesthouse has signs near it directing people to it. As soon as I saw the signs, I handed him the money, said "thank you very much, I can take it from here." Of course he didnt like it and then said, "oh, well i thought you meant buddha hotel, which is much closer to hotel." I'm like yeah, uh huh. "So how much do you want?" I asked. "60 rupees, Indian price" he said. well i knew that 50 was the pre-paid fare, but hey, 60 to get rid of him? no problem. "Ok, 60. Got change for 100?" I asked him. He didn't- of course. So I went to the hotel, got change.

When I returned, he started to talk again. I stopped him short: "You said 60. Here's 60. Bye!" I said with a smile. He didn't reply.

Anyway, had I followed my gut and done my own thing, Varanasi would have been a real breeze. Want pain in the ass touts and people bothering you EVERYWHERE? Go to Luxor Egypt. Want to feel like spewing due to the smells? Go to Fez Morocco. This place isn't bad at all in those two areas.

Actually I'm glad I heard all that negative stuff. It got me hyped up and ready to deal with the hells of the tourist world. When it turned out it wasn't so bad, it was a relief. So it goes.

24 more hours in Kolkata

Ventured out of my hotel around 10 am with the goal of buying a train ticket to Varanasi tomorrow. The good news is I got the ticket, and it was not a hassle doing so. Unfortunately it took me over an hour to find the office due to the poor map in Rough Guide. Yeah, I thought I should have gone with Lonely Planet's guide, but cheap me had to save a few bucks and get the RG instead. So it goes..

It honestly wouldn't have been so bad had the temp not been over 90 degrees (high today around 35 celcius) and very sunny. Walking around in that weather ain't exactly heaven. Throw in the fact that my sinuses are acting like I'm being attacked by the other of all colds/flus/whatever, and you've got yourself one hell of a time. When I returned to my hotel, I drank about two liters of water and took an hour long nap.


Yeah, pretty dull times here, I know. I'm hoping getting out of Kolkata will help my health, but Varanasi is most likely even hotter and even more dusty. Yay. After that, my ass is heading for the mountains- enough of this flat land stuff.

Gotta love power outages

Yesterday I finally began the epic bangladesh summary. After an hour of writing, the computer shut off and I lost it all. Ah yes, the joys of the developing world. Maybe it was supposed to be a reminder that I should use gmail and not yahoo mail. I'm not feeling that inspired to write it all out again, but I have some time to kill in the next couple days so maybe I'll get around to it.

But enough about that... I had dinner with two americans last night, a couple from Brooklyn. The man mentioned how other travelers love to rant about Bush and the US gov't as soon as he tells them he's from the States. He then said how he didn't think highly of Bush but he didn't consider him a bad man. That got the ball rolling.. Iraq came up and we had somewhat of a heated discussion about it. I personally thought he was too forgiving of Bush. He kept on saying, "we all make mistakes." Umm yes, but how many of us CONTINUE to make those same mistakes? No one successful I'd wager.

Anyway, after dinner, we got beer, my first alcohol since May 12th. Kingfisher beer, don't really recommend it, but it was $1.25 for a big bottle (650 ml) so I really can't complain can I?

Highlight of yesterday: chilling with 3 guys in the middle of Elliot Park. I was walking through it to go see Victoria Memorial and they waved me over. I figured why not, and ended up hanging out with them for about an hour. Memories of Bangladesh came back, although they weren't Muslims. They also bought me tea, so my streak of free tea continued. I thought it was going to end yesterday, but they kept it alive. That being said, I'm pretty sure today it will come to an end. Oh well...

And today I am walking around in shorts. I feel naked in doing so. I wore pants the whole time I was in Bangladesh (minus a day at Cox's Bazaar) and it feels weird wandering around in shorts. My reasoning is I'm sick of wearing the same pants day-in,day-out and I already stand out enough, what are shorts going to do? Oh, and most other travelers wear shorts too, so crap, I might as well "fit in" with one group around here right?

Kolkata day 2

Checked out of my "expensive" hotel today and moved to cheap one. Part of the reason I moved to the latter was to meet other travelers. It would be nice to have a travel companion here in India.

So I checked into the Paragon Guest House. I found the cheapest room to be nicer than the slightly more expensive rooms. Yay. Anyway, w/in 5 minutes of sitting down at a table in the courtyard, someone walked by me then said, "Sean?" Bangladesh all over again! Except it wasn't a local this time. No, it was Marie, who I had met back in Bangkok. Last time I saw her it was April. Small world.

Anyway, after updating my journal (i hadn't written in it since June 7th, yikes), I headed out. You know I really do not have anything planned here, just like Bangladesh. I have some vague ideas but nothing concrete. I just end up doing things that are related to those vague ideas.

Today is a perfect example. I broke my glasses for a 2nd time on my last day in Dhaka. I thought, "oh, i will just get them fixed in India and maybe buy some new frames and/or lenses since they'll be much cheaper than back in the usa." Well I was walking down Park St and I came across a optical store. I walked in, asked them to fix my glasses. "You can see through these things?" the lady asked. Eh well, somewhat. I asked how much lenses cost. "1200 rupees [30 dollars] for the best ones" she said. Well hell, I might as well buy them. So I did. I then thought, "why not frames too?" I ended up getting an eye exam (free) plus one pair of frames and two sets of lenses, one for my old pair, one for my new pair. Cost? About $120. Not cheap, but at least 1/5 of what I'd pay in the USA.

Consequently, I might be here in Kolkata until Tuesday evening. They are trying to get the lenses today but they are not certain they can. If they do not, I'll have to wait a bit since tomorrow is sunday (and they are closed). Oh well... I only have 4 other places I plan on going and I have a little more than 3 weeks, so it isn't so bad. I'll get to know Kolkata well, that's for sure.

Oh, first meal in India: McDonald's... Yes, I'm sad I know. My excuse is I went over a month eating JUST bengali food (and fried chicken 3 times in local restaurants) so I deserve some kind of break from indian food. It wasn't very filling, so I "redeemed" myself a little by buying a paneer wrap further down the street afterwards.

McDonald's in India is a little different from back home (not to rip off Pulp Fiction or anything). Obviously there are no hamburgers for cultural reasons. There is a veggie burger available, as well as a tika chicken burger. They play music LOUDLY. When a Backstreet boys remix came on, I knew that was my time to leave.

Anyway, that's all for now. Just praying my glasses will be ready by the end of today.

One picture for you

All my pictures (about 430 right now) are still on my memory card. I have yet to do anything about it. Here is a pic of Shaffiullah, his wife, and one of his daughters from a couple years ago.

Kolkata

I used to have a personal term called the "Yemen effect." What is the yemen effect? It is when you goto such a bad place, that the next place you visit, no matter how bad it is, seems like shangri-la.

For example, I am probably one of the first foreigners to have landed in Cairo and thought, "wow, this place is very nice!" while driving from the airport to downtown. No likely it was due to the fact that I was in Yemen for the previous 5 months prior to that. Cairo is very nice compared to cities in Yemen. Over time. I came to realize that Cairo really wasn't that pleasant and that my perception had been distorted due to my time in Yemen.

Why do I bring this up? I believe the same thing is happening to me here in Kolkata. It has a reputation of poverty and being very dirty. Well I know this much: driving through the rich parts of Kolkata is a lot nicer thang driving through the high-class areas of Dhaka. The central business district of the former has decent sidewalks, stop lights, and a sense of order. Dhaka's main business district? A disaster zone for the most part.

This morning I was walking through Kolkata and thinking, "wow, this place is divine. I hear English being spoken, many signs are in English, yay. Where is all that bad stuff I heard about? Where are all the beggars? Where are the sites that make me sick to my stomach? BRING IT ON INDIA!" I had to remind myself that I will no doubt have my hands full of all of that elsewhere in the country.

It is also a little strange for me here. The local language is the same as in Bangladesh (bangla/Bengali) and a lot of the signs are in bangla script. The food is the same. The differences are the aforementioned English, the lack of rickshaws, the large # of cars (compared to Bangladesh), and the neatness of the place. It is a bit like going to a disneyfied version of Bangladesh.

I will end this entry with this: if you want a "easy" way to be introduced to India, Kolkata isn't a bad choice. The center of the city isn't that bad, the traffic isn't total chaos, and there is nothing to make you ill (well maybe the food, but so far so good). But remember, I came from Bangladesh and therefore the "yemen effect" is in full force right now, so perhaps my opinion is a little biased.

Tomorrow, if all goes well, I shall be finally composing my mass summary of Bangladesh.

Cheers.

Bye-bye Bangladesh, hello india!

Yesterday I got up at 5:30 am to catch a bus to India from Dhaka. For the gigantic price of about 11 dollars, I took a 12 hour ride in an a/c bus (well two buses actually). Now you would think in the span of 12 hours, one would go a looong way. Well I will put it this way: it would have taken less than 2 hours to fly between the two cities (closer to 90 minutes) and it took 2.5 hours to go about 75 KM here in India. Long live the developing world!

Anyway, I had a farewell party of four: Rizvi, his older brother, Shaffiullah, and Shafiullah's shop assistant. I stayed at Rizvi's place the last night since he lives 5 minutes away from where I caught the bus. Shafiullah and his assistant met us at the bus office. When I arrived, Shaffiullah was on the phone and handed it to me. Someone else wanted to say good-bye. After that brief convo, we went off to get breakfast. I couldn't eat a thing. I felt sick and I was getting teary eyed. They thought i was scared about going to India and was upset about that. Umm no fellas, I was just overwhelmed by the hospitality you all showed me. I have never had that kind of good-bye from any other country, that is for sure.

Normal for Bangladesh: the man sitting next to me struck up a conversation with me. He spoke very good English (not normal) and worked for the Japanese Embassy, helping process visas. He was returning to his family home in the city of Jessore, which is very close the Indian border.

Abnormal: He did not give me any food or buy me any tea. He had his opportunities. In his defense, he said he wish he could but in the interest of my health, he didn't want to give me food bought from the "road" so to speak. Had I not been feeling queasy (due to nerves primarily) I would have politely informed him that I had survived a month in his country thank you very much, and only had two bouts of stomach problems. He was probably the richest Bangladeshi I met in my travels. I do not regret not spending times in the posh areas of Dhaka. But anyway, let's get back to the trip.

Had no problems exiting Bangladesh.The crossing was about as dirty and bleak as other border crossings I have seen. Just something about them that makes them that way I suppose. Perhaps all the trucks and buses are the cause.

Welcome to India: Walked through a little gate and I was in india. As I was walking to the immigration building, there was a group of men just sitting around. One had a bunch of immigration forms, and I took one. Another asked me, "Do you have a bus ticket?" I said yes. "May I see it?"
I handed it to him.
"Do you have indian rupees?"
"Yes" I replied.
"85 rupees please" he requested.

Yeah dude, I'm just going to hand you 85 rupees and assume you'll give me a ticket here in the middle of this courtyard. Do I look that stupid? Instead of saying all that I said, "Uh yeah, can I have my ticket back? I want to get my passport stamped first." He handed it back and I walked away.

And so I entered the immigration building. As some of you know, my hand writing is messy. That being said, I put some effort into writing things out clearly on the form. Well apparently I did not write them out clearly enough. The immigration officer tore up my form and decided to fill out a new form himself. Doh. What is it with me and immigration people on this trip? At least they are amusing me and not creating problems for me.

After that, a bus employee (who actually had a badge) showed me the way to the bus office, and soon after that, we were off to Kolkata.

I'm still alive people

Due to a) the serious lack of internet facilities here in Bangladesh b) the fact I am almost never alone, I have not been able to be on the internet much. This is the first time I've been online in over a week. In the past month, I have been online 3 times, one of which was for about 15 minutes.

About 20 minutes ago, I bought my bus ticket to Kolkata. I am leaving the morning of June 14th. I could have left tomorrow (13th) but due to the whole 13 aspect, and the total opposite of June 14th (the day I graduated from HRS, friend's b-day, and last but not least flag day!)I thought the 14th would be better.

Originally I was planning to leave today since I left the USA on april 12, Malaysia on may 12th (and arrived in bangladesh the same day), and going home on July 12. Alas, the Bangladeshi people have "forced" me to stay here an extra couple days.

When I returned to dhaka 2 days ago, I thought I would just need 2 days to say good-bye to everyone. Alas, that was half the time I needed. In fact, I have had to be rude just to be able to leave here on the 14th. I will end this entry with the following story that I think sums up my experience well:

I am on the bus with my friend Shafiullah and a friend of his that I met 15 minutes ago. The friend has invited us to his house in the suburb of Mirpur. While on the bus, they are talking and I am sending text messages to friends (I will elaborate on my cellphone usage at a later date) while periodically Shafiullah points out a site. We come to a place I've been before.
Shafiullah: That is the national museum
me: yes, I know. I visited it last week
Shafiullah: Alone?
Me: Alone? Is one ever alone here in Bangladesh?

He laughed. And of course I wasn't alone; I had a companion who showed me around dhaka for 3 days. I will have been here in Bangladesh for a little over a month.
The number of days where I've been alone for the majority of the day: 3.

Number of meals I've eaten alone: 4 or 5 I think. Today is the first day in over 2 weeks where I've been alone for more than an hour (excluding one evening of sleeping).

# of houses I've visited: I'm guessing close to 50. Definitly more than 30. yesterday I was at 5 homes (although 3 of them I had previously visited).

# of houses I've slept in: 4

# of home cooked meals I've had: no idea

# of cups of tea I've had: probably averaged 3 a day. Yesterday I had 6 in a span of about 4 hours. Total # yesterday was at least 10. How many have I paid for during my month here? None.

OK, I have to go. I am going to meet Shafiullah and go with him to pick up his older daughter from school. I will be sending out a mass e-mail summarizing my experience here. I figure the # of readers has gone from 5/day to .5/day due to my lack of writing. Inshallah, I will be writing more frequently in India.

negative part- food

Before I get to the negative part I will let you know that I am in Sylhet. I am sure I am one of the first people to ever say this: Sylhet has been heavenly. What I was seeking in Srimangal, I have found here in Sylhet: peace and calm. It is clean by Bangladeshi standards and it seems rather chill. No god-awful buses spewing smoke, nor taxis. Most of the vehichles are rickshaws. There is a lazy river that goes through town. Amazingly, they have a nice little waterfront area in one part of the city. They actually have nice sidewalks here too. But enough of that, let's get to the bad stuff!

You're probably thinking I don't like the food due to the subject heading. No, that is far from the case. Here is my issues with food here:

1. Variety and Bangla food will never be in the same sentence unless "no" or "lack of" come in front of variety. I have had curry nearly every day I've been here. All the food seems to have the same type of spices. While it does taste good (20 times better than Yemeni food), it just gets tedious after awhile. I'm bored with it all.

Now had I just eaten in restaurants, I would think, "hmm, the good stuff is at home" like it is in many poor countries. Yemen was like that. Alas, I have been to numerous homes and had meals in them. Quite good, but same food I've had in restaurants. Blah.

Oh, and they love fried chicken just like the rest of the world. Fried chicken is the one universal food of the world. You might not find any western food in a country but it'll have fried chicken. Well except Japan for some reason. I don't recall seeing much fried chicken there (minus KFC).

2. Eating with the hands. Honestly, I don't mind. In fact, in the privacy of my hotel room last night, I had silverware but I said screw this, I'm eating with my hands. seemed weird doing it other wise. What is the problem then? Apparently I don't know how to do it. My first meal here, a kid laughed, shook his head and told me to give up. I'm not joking. While others have been kinder, the results have been similar. Come on people, does it really matter?

Consequently, my meals usually go as thus: I start with my right hand. The above happens, so they bring out a spoon. I try that. Or the reverse happens: i start with a spoon, but pulling the meat or fish off the bone becomes a real pain in the ass, and I revert to my hand. Things get messy and people smile, etc. Fun times.

3. That leads me to: the stares. People stare at me while I eat. I'm like, "yes people, I look silly eating with my hands. I don't grip it right, I know." And if it is a restaurant, it isn't just the person I am with. It is the waiter, the bus boy, and the people sitting nearby. I just play it off and whatnot, but it gets tiresome after awhile.

4. The unhygenic practices. I will just provide an example. I had lunch with some men. They washed the dishes by pouring water over them, then scrubbing the dishes with their right hands. Soap? Yeah right. What had their right hands been up to that morning? i really don't want to know. And I know that is normal and not an exception. So it goes.

This post is dedicated to Chris H. He asked me before I left, "what are you going to eat there??" He was refering to India, but I think he was also wondering about Bangladesh. Well chris, I eat curry, rice, bread, and dal. Oh, and fried chicken of course.

After this, I am going to try a chinese restaurant. Chinese restaurants in Bangladesh cook some weird ass shit, I'll just leave it at that.

one last blurb about the family

In hindsight, i should have just copied what I wrote my last night in Dhaka and posted it on here. It is a little more articulate and I think does a slightly better job of describing my feelings about it all:

It is presently 2 AM. I will be leaving Dhaka in 8 hours or so. I have spent 10 days here, much longer than planned. The reasons why are long and boring. Right now I cannot sleep. Why not? Various emotions.

Basically I've had one of the most remarkable experiences of my life. In a span of less than a week, a family has basically adopted me' well, as best as one can adopt an adult. The generosity and kindness they have shown me is out of this world.

You know how many meals I have paid for the past 5 days? Zero. You know how many cups of tea I've been offered and drunk? 50? Bus rides? Two. Pretty much all I have paid for is water, phone cards, and my hotel. The rest has been provided by people who make in 1 year what I make in about a month. The man who has been at the center of it all lives in a room with his 2 daughters and wife. 4 people in a room smaller than my room. Above them is his nephew (the computer genius) in a decent sized room and below them is his mother. Now that I think about it, my hotel room is probably slightly bigger than any of those rooms.

Anyway... The looks they all had was so wonderful. They always had big smiles and were so polite. Shit, I really cannot describe what it was like. Right now I am crying just thinking of my time with them all. They warmth they exuded was just so powerful. Even though only 2 of them speak decent English, I feel like they all would do whatever they could to help me if need be. If I were to pop up at anytime, they would just be all excited and whatnot. And why? Why are they so kind to me? That's the confusing part. Why do they like me so much? What makes them put all this effort into doing things for me? What about me brings out those facial expressions? All I did was follow around one of them because I had plenty of time on my hands and he spoke English. well ok, he also is quite bright and interesting to talk to, but still...

His younger daughter is so, so cute. I was so tempted to give her a big hug tonight. I wanted to just kidnap her and bring her home with me. I think she had a crush on me. 6 yr oldsgenerally dig me for some reason. Her older sister made a shirt to give to a future girlfriend. Lynn and Min are their names. Mother is Leena. Those are some of the easiest names to remember around here. The father is Shaffiullah.

Not sure if I wrote this in the previous entry, and blogger is super slow here, so too lazy to check if I did but my last night there, I met Shaffiullah's nephew, aka the computer genius.

The nephew goes to American Intl. University in the rich part of Dhaka. Takes him an hour or so to go from home to the university. He is a computer science major, so he needs to use his computer a lot. He has a desktop. Well on occasion, he would forget something on his computer back home. Obviously it was a big pain to go back home and get it. He thought, "if only I could access the info on my mobile phone." So what did he do? He invented a program to do it.

I asked him, "isn't there software already out there to do this type of thing?"
"Just windows. Mine also works for Linux, Apple, etc. It is universal."

So how does it work? I have no idea. All i know is I could see his computer screen on his mobile phone, and use the phone like a mouse. I could open up his media player on his computer and play songs on his phone. To say I was blown away would be an understatement.

That wasn't all. He developed a program where you can set up a webcam and get the images from the cam on your phone.

Not bad for a 22 yr old college student in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Oh, he was meeting with some Aussies earlier this week to discuss development of his software. A friend of mine has also strongly recommended he patent it abroad. I have passed along the info.

I've been adopted

Here is something I believe falls under the category of irony: so many more events and happenings have occurred here in Bangladesh than anywhere else in my travels yet I find it so hard to write. Before arriving here, I could daily write 2-3 pages about my travels in my journal. Now? If I write more than 1, I've done one hell of a job. On a couple of occassions I have forced myself to write down notes so I do not forget about some of what has happened to me here.

Now why is this the case? I think I am just overwhelmed. That is the easiest explanation. My mind is just dead after a day out and about. when I return to my room, i need to decompress and have my brain shut down for the remainder of the evening. Writing simply takes more energy than I have in myself.

So what have I been up to? Kicking it in Dhaka. Had you told me at the beginning of my trip, or even while I was on my flight here that I would spend 10 full days in Dhaka, I would have either said, "get off the crack rock" or "who am I going to fall in love with?"

Alas, it was neither, although the 2nd answer has a bit of truth in it. There are a variety of reasons, but they're boring and tedious, so I won't go into it. Now what is this love I've hinted at? well you could say I now have relatives in Dhaka. perhaps love is too strong a word, but the bond I have developed with this family has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

who is this family? A (lower?) middle class (by Dhaka standards) family that owns a little- and I do mean LITTLE- store around the corner from the infamous hotel yeameni. I went there to buy water about 3 days after arriving in Dhaka. the shopkeeper spoke a bit of english, which totally shocked me. The hotel employees barely spoke english, a dude going for his master's in english lit spoke rather poorly, yet here was this random shop owner who spoke clear english.

Anyway, 2 days later I returned to once again buy water. This time he was more out-going and asked if I would sit down with him and have some tea. I did. By the end of the night (it was only about an hour later), he told me that he didn't work the next day since it was Friday, and was wondering if we could hang out. i said sure, why not. so we did.

We wandered around old dhaka. We checked out a couple churches and the asitra (star) mosque. He then asked if i would like to stop by his sister's place to meet his wife and two daughters. once again: sure, why not, so we did. His daughters were quite shy but very cute (I think 8 and 11 yrs old).

from that point on, I would stop by his shop on a daily basis and go walk with him when he wasn't at his store. I met all 4 of his sisters, 2 of his brothers, who knows how many nieces and nephews. He bought me at least 25 cups of tea. It might as even be as high as 50, I really can't say.

The last 5-6 days in dhaka, I don't believe I bought a single meal. All my money went towards my hotel and phone cards. Transportation costs? I walked everywhere with this man except for an excursion to his friend's house in the suburb of Mirpur. His friend was as generous as he was and insisted on paying for our bus fares to and from his place.

I'll end this entry with this: I have never, and i mean NEVER encountered such warmth and hospitality. this family treated me like I was a relative while I have only known them for about a week now. Words cannot describe the looks in their faces and the genuine smiles they gave me while I was with them. I am a bit bewildered by it all since the only one I could really communicate with was the shop owner. that being said, I was touched by the fact that when I first met them, none of the women or girls would try to speak english (minus his wife, who tried a little) but my last night there they were much more "daring" for a lack of a better word.

If any of you happen to go to Dhaka (which I highly doubt, but you never know) please tell me and I will give you the phone number of Shafiullah. He would love to meet other foreigners and I guarantee you will have an experience like no other.

Anyway, I'm now in srimangal, the first place I've gone outside the dhaka area. It isn't as nice as Lonely Planet made it out to be. C'est la vie. Not to end this entry on a down-note or anything.

Dhaka baby dhaka

so I'm in Dhaka. Been here now for 4 whole days. 4 days plus an extra evening. It has been quite an experience.

First evening: arrive at Dhaka Airport (zia intl). Stairway up to immigration is crumbling. Not even sanaa airport had that lovely feature. Quite impressive.

Alas, immigration hall was remodeled and quite clean and well-lit. Sanaa can't claim to have that. the score is even between the two at this point.

Zia scores another point: funny ass immigration dudes. Guy looks at my immigration card, looks up at me and says, "First time to Dhaka?"
"Yes."
"Yeah, Hotel Yeameni, not good. Don't stay there."
"reallly? Zero stars?"
immigration guy next to him: "No [motions below zero]"
Me: "Negative stars?"
Him (laughing): "yes, yes"

Negative stars for dhaka. sounds like i'm in for quite an evening. Someone set me up with hotel room though, so I think i should be ok. Nevertheless, I ask for dude's recommendations. He writes out 4 hotels. I figure if Yeameni (it is yemeni so hey, it has to be good!) really is as bad as these two say, I will go to one of those 4 the next day.

I have been told to walk outside the airport, walk out to the main road, flag down a taxi or bus. Now I'm thinking it will be like a highway and quite big. Uh no. It is about as wide as Lakeside Dr, I am not kidding. The airport is basically surrounded by suburbs. It would be like walking out of Oakland airport and seeing the montclair shopping area across the street. I should have figured that when we were flying into the airport we went right over roofs before landing.

Flagged down taxi. dude used meter, YES! Dude only knew about 5 words of English: boss, drive, USA, love, hope. He kept on calling me boss and saying he hoped to go to USA and drive someday. Over and over- for an hour. Yeah, time really flew let me tell you. Actually my heart did beat pretty quickly due to the insane traffic. I won't even try to describe it right now. you haven't experienced crazy driving until you have been to Bangladesh.

Got to the hotel. tipped the guy BIG time. Not sure why. Because he was nice and didn't take advantage of the fact that I speak no Bangla and had never been here before. And hey, he loved america, so why not right? Ha...

Walked into hotel lobby. Well those immigration dudes must have high standards cause that was the nicest lobby I've seen since Japan, no joke. I have a/c and my own bathroom. For me, that is luxury. And it is cheaper than some places I stayed in Malaysia that were a lot worse. so dhaka immigration, fyi, some of us aren't high rollers like you are.

2nd day: Went to get phone # for here in bangladesh. Long story short: shop keeper showed me around the 'hood, took me to his family's house for lunch. WONDERFUL lamb curry, was fantastic. 11 people crammed into a 6 room apartment. Welecome to bangladesh sean.

It was also the first time on this trip a chick has asked me for my number. Yes, in dhaka of all places, a gal asks for my #. I thought that was supposed to happen in Japan, not in the land of muslims. We have since exchanged text messages.

The last couple days I have gone here, there, and everywhere in the Dhaka area. right now I am writing this from the largest mall in south asia. One hell of a view from the top.

And I will leave it at that for now.

Adios and Farewell- for now

Tonight is my last night in Southeast Asia. Since I am off to an Islamic country, I did what any intelligent person from the west does when embarking on a trip to a 90%+ Muslim country: DRINK! Yes, I had 1 big bottle and one small bottle of Tiger Beer in a span of an hour or so. I figured I won't be having a beer in a LONG time (ie 3 weeks minimum, probably longer) so I should take advantage and drink up. So I did.

Of course I didn't just drink today. I went to a really cool Chinese mansion. If ever in Penang (I doubt any of you will be, but oh well, who cares) I strongly recommend it. The guide really knew her stuff, I was quite impressed. For the remainder of the day, I pretty much just wandered around chinatown, which is an odd mix of ghettoness and coolness. Basically most of the buildings are in really bad shape, but they have character, and the ones that have been fixed up are very pretty. If they could do that to all the buildings, this place would be pretty amazing. Then again, the rundown part gives this area a bit of "character."

So tomorrow morning I am off to Bangladesh. A bit surreal, hard to believe I will be there in about 24 hours. Shall be an experience, that is for sure. Culture shock, here we come. And with that, I bid adieu.

Seinfeld time!

Ok, so the place I chose to stay at tonight was described by Lonely Planet as having "modern bathrooms." I assumed that meant they were sparkling clean, great shower heads, etc... Sounded like an ideal place to spend my last night in Malaysia. It is also located in Little india (and it is VERY little, let me tell you), so I figured it would be a good warm-up for the real thing (j/k there). Anyhoo, the place gave me Seinfeld flashbacks this morning. How so?

I think I might be (or was) the only person staying there. Flashbacks of the Abu/Seinfeld episode came flooding back. Jerry convinces Abu to change his restaurant to Pakistani food since his western-style restaurant only has Jerry as a customer. Abu takes up his idea and says how great Jerry is. Well I didn't have any suggestions for the owner of the hostel (although I do have a couple ideas, which I will share in a second), I did feel good about myself. I thought, "Yes, I am good. I am helping this place survive [just like Jerry and the restaurant]." yes Sean, 20 ringgit (6 bucks) really will keep the place afloat. How great I am!

So what are my ideas? Well the hostel's reception shares the same space as a mobile phone store. In the back is the reception, in the front is the mobile phone section. I figured that the mobile phone angle should be played up to the max. For instance if you stay 2+ nights, you get free airtime minutes on your cellphone. If you stay a week? FREE PHONE! My other idea was playing up the India theme by blasting Indian music, having a tout outside trying to convince you to stay here (cheap price! very comfy!), and a cow in the lobby. Ok, so maybe those ideas are a little stupid.. But hey, looks like their business couldn't get any worse, so what harm would it do?

Hello brothers and sisters!

Since arriving in Malaysia and seeing all these muslims, I've wanted to walk into a shop, restaurant, hotel, etc. and loudly pronounce, "Asalam Wulakium brothers/sisters" so I could hear them respond "Wulakium asalam." Alas, Malays don't seem to greet each other like that. Pretty disappointing to us Arab speakers.

Why am I mentioning this? Well yesterday in KL I got to do something about that urge of mine. I found an internet place that had Arabic on its sign. I decided to check it out. I walked in and who was behind the front desk? An Arab dude. Giddy up, time to step up: "Aslaam Wulakium!" I bellowed. The Arab looked up from the computer and mumbled, "Wulakium asalam" as did a fellow Arab nearby. So they didn't match my enthusiasm; c'est la vie. Mr. Moustache (dude behind the counter) told me to wait a second. When he told me I was good to go, I replied, "Shukrun [thanks in arabic]". He muttered, "Affon [welcome]."

After spending an hour doing my internet thing, I got up to pay. While Mr. Moustache handed my money back I asked, "Min ain anta?" (where are you from?). He blinked and said, "Iraq. Wa anta?"
"Amerika"
"Muslim?"

It literally took me 5-10 seconds to come up with the word for "no." Finally, that real tongue twister of a word popped into my head: "La. Atakulum arabi- shoya" (I speak Arabic- a little). I then asked the other Arab where he was from. "Phillistine" he told me. Shit, two places us Americans haven't treated so well. Guilt came over me. Mr. Philistine made some comment, laughed, and stuck his hand out to shake my hand. After doing so, I jokingly said, "I'm sorry." Mr. Moustache replied, "Welcome." Welcome for what, I have no idea. Nevertheless, I smiled and said, "Masalama" and went on my way.

While that interaction helped alleviate my urge a little, it still is there. Watch out Bangladesh!

And now I'm off to check out some Chinese mansion. I will be posting later about the place I am presently staying. Let's just say I felt like I was in a Seinfeld episode this morning.

A ho hum day and why I'm going to Bangladesh

Today has been rather uneventful but pleasant. Due to the "all-nighter" i pulled the previous night, compliments of that night bus ride, I slept for quite awhile last night: crashed around 11 pm, didn't get up until 10 this morning. When does my hotel stop serving breakfast? 10. Whoops. It was no problem though: I walked a block and got a much better breakfast for about 75 cents: roti canai and an iced tea. the tea cost as much as the two servings of the roti (which was a whopping 20 cents/serving) I got.

After that, I headed to KL Sentral to buy a train ticket to Butterworth, which is right across the water from Penang, my departure point from Malaysia. Now you would think there would be more than one train/day between Malaysia's two biggest cities. Well you would be thinking wrong. Not only that, but the one train leaves KL at 9 PM. Logically I wouldn't choose that, and would take the bus instead. Well logic goes out the window sometimes. See, I have this fault: when I get an idea in my head to do something, I HAVE to do it, regardless of how illogical it might turn out to be. This is a perfect example, as was the kuala besut-KL bus ride. There is only one "good" reason for me to take this train. Scratch that, two reasons. #1: it is very cheap: 5-6 bucks (yet it only saves me about 4 bucks, so not a huge gain). #2: I have never taken a train in Malaysia before, so it is a good way for me to check out the train system. Plus I enjoyed all my train rides in Thailand (a whopping 2 in my life), so I am sure I will get at least a little pleasure from this ride. Well that's what I keep telling myself.

Following that, I stopped by the Malaysia post office (much cleaner and nicer than the one I went to in Bangkok), then headed to the Islamic Art Museum, on the edge of the Lake Gardens. I was there back in 2002, and both times I've been there, the place has been dead. I realize it was mid-day on a Wednesday this time, but still, rather sad. It is a really nice museum too, I wish more people would visit it. Oh well. Part of the reason I went back is the first time I went, I was with a g/friend who had no interest in Islamic culture and was mad at me for taking a rather long way to get to the musuem, including falling down a small grass hill. Fun times.. Anyway, I spent about 2.5 hours there today and really enjoyed the two special exhibits. One was on the spice trade (do you know the difference between an herb and spice? I do now, woo woo!), and another on a dude named Lafayette and his photos of Indian and Malay royalty in the late 19th/early 20th century.

After that, I wandered around the Lake Gardens, a rather pleasant park on the edge of central KL. Highly recommend a stroll through them. And by the time I got back to the Golden Triangle (my hood here in KL) it was 5:45. How time flies when you're having fun...

So why am I going to Bangladesh: this dude's blog (the first part at least) is why.

I gotta get burned sometime

A trip of mine would not be complete if I did not get sunburned at least once. Well now I have that part of my trip covered.

My trip to the Perhentian Islands went rather well, even with the sunburn. As the previous entry mentioned, I stayed at Zeck's Traveler's Inn in Kota Bahru. Well mr. zeck was kind enough to give myself and a German a ride to Kuala Besut, where you catch a boat to take you to the Islands. Well he wasn't being super generous. For one, he charged us both 10 ringgit (vs. 30-40 ringgit for a taxi ride) and he was going to the the small island too, so he was going there anyway.

Regardless, we rode with him and his friends on a big speed boat. It was big enough that there was a storage area for our baggage. Apparently that was a good thing because I later found out that other travelers had their baggage soaked due to waves coming in and dumping on both the passengers and the baggage. Fun times.

I stayed on Coral Bay along with Zeck. Since he actually makes a decent living and isn't on a strict budget, he stayed in the nicest place on the beach (about 50 bucks/night). I, on the other hand, chose the one place that wasn't full and still had a decent rate (about 15 bucks/night). It was all right. Had my own bathroom, place was clean, couldn't complain except for one thing: the sporadic power.

Yes, the Islands brought back memories of Philo. Why? Everything runs on generators there. On the other hand, the power company is actually connecting the islands to the mainland power grid, and the generators will be adios by July, insha'allah. But we all know how rare utility companies actually follow the schedule. Anyway, back to my times on the beach...

First day: Zeck was kind enough to invite me to his bbq that evening. Before that, a 19 yr old Brit named Jeff convinced me that I should jump off a 12 ft. rock into the sea. I let him have the honors of jumping first. After we both jumped one time, he decided to dive; I decided my first dive in over a decade shouldn't be from a 12 ft. tall rock.
That evening the BBQ turned out pretty well. I stuffed myself on fish, squid, and "mutton" as the locals call it. Actually they might call it something else, but that is what they said to me. I was expecting really dry, tough lamb that one gets in the M.East all the time. Thankfully I was wrong- it was very tasty. Overall, a very good meal.

At the beginning, none of them really talked to me other than encouraging me to eat. As the night went on, they got more "daring" and asked me some questions. We conversed until 9 or so. At that point, I bid them good-bye.

Returned to my place, and who was right in front? Jeff. Was he looking for me? No. I would have been a little worried if he had been. He had been looking for a Swedish friend of his, and he wasn't having any success. He knocked on the door next to mine and he "discovered" a Dutch woman. She is by far the hottest neighbor I've had on this trip. While I should note that means VERY little (I think the # of women in rooms next to mine or sharing a dorm room with me is like 2), she was quite attractive. I thought, 'whoa, what are the odds of that?' So the 3 of us went out to search for others. We ended up spending the evening with a bunch of french people. Yes, more french people. I have a knack for meeting them, I swear.

Side note (french presidential election): I've asked every French person I've met (uh, so far about 15) who they voted for President. All but 3 said Sarkozy. The 3 were all French-Tunisian. Interesting that the French-tunisians voted for someone (royal) who more than likely would keep the status quo and change little in France. Also, one french woman asked me what Americans thought of the French election. I told her Americans didn't care at all, and probably few knew there was a Presidential election in France going on. She wasn't too happy to hear that, judging by her facial expression, but hey, I'm pretty sure I was accurate with my assessment. Anyway, back to beach time!

Day #2: i didn't do much. i checked out long beach. Walked around the small island a bit. Not much to report. A blah day.

Day #3: I went on a snorkling trip with 3 French-tunisian women (yup, more french people, woo woo). The highlight was being within about 5 feet of a big sea turtle as it reached the surface of the water. I followed it from the time it was at the very bottom of the sea bed until the point it came up for air. It was great watching it swim and glide upwards. Besides that, saw a couple small reef sharks.

overall, I'd say the Red Sea was better. More colorful fish and water was clearer. The perhentian islands were quite nice but didn't blow me away. Most hotels were full, not sure why exactly.

So now I'm in KL. I took a night bus from Kuala Besut to here. Arrived at the bus station at around 4:30 in the morning. Since public transportation doesn't start going until 6 am, I killed 90 minutes in the bus station reading a book and people-watching. Even at 4:30 in the morning, there was quite a bit of activity going. And unlike the states, it was perfectly safe hanging out at a bus station in the wee hours of the morning.

I really like KL. The newer part is very clean and pleasant. That's where I am staying this time (golden triangle to be slightly more precise). Back in 2002, I stayed in Chinatown, where I briefly walked through today. Much more of a dump. So glad I decided not to stay there again. Ok, this has gone on long enough. Cheers.

Hanging in the "Islamic City"

I'm presently in Kota Bahru, which calls itself the "Islamic City." Well I will tell you this much: outside Yemen, I have never seen so many women in hijab. Yes, I saw more women w/out head-coverings in Egypt, Jordan, syria, Morroco, etc than here in Northeastern Malaysia. I can in fact tell you how many Malay women I have seen w/out hijab: one. Yes, just one. And she was a teenager with her boyfriend- I think. Ah yes.. Already sick of seeing hijab. And where will I be going in a couple weeks? To another Muslim country. smart move bowman.

Besides that, I have no complaints. I am really happy at how easy it is to communicate here. Lot more English speakers. Hostel I'm staying is quite chill and the owner is nice. Zeck's traveler's Inn I believe is the name.

Bought a SIM card this evening as well. i now have had 3 phone #s in less than a week (my t-mobile #, my thai #, and now a Malaysian one). How much did it cost me to get a # here in Malaysia? about 3 bucks. Thailand? about 6 bucks. That includes about $1.50 in credit to use my phone for both countries. Question: why the hell is it so much more expensive and dificult to do this in the states? I got my SIM card and # from a freaking 7-11 in Thailand, and just a random cellphone kiosk here in Malaysia. Did I have to register? No. sign a contract? Ha ha, you're kidding right? Ok that's my rant for the day.

Anyway, my 22 hr train ride went all right. I was the only foreigner I saw on the train. I was in a train car with about 50 other people. It was amazingly silent during the night. Not one person snored; I was impressed.

For the last 1/4 of the trip we had soldiers with machine guns on board, and every station we went through had 4-5 soldiers with the same type of weapon. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have known we were going through a "hot spot." After the train, did about a mile walk crossing the border, then going to the bus station to catch a bus to kota bahru.

Tomorrow off to the Perhentian Islands. Don't think I'll be online at all there, supposed to be quite pricey. Adios for now.

Random postal charges

I have sent 3 letters to the exact same address while here in Bangkok.

First time: 28 Baht
Second time: 19 Baht
Third: 38 baht

Bizarre. And with that I'm off to Malaysia.

Wow oh wow.. and this and that

I was planning to write about the amazing meal I just had but I checked my e-mail first and had quite a shock: an inferno has shut down the bay bridge indefinitly. Bizarre. It is hard to believe. Not sure what else to say other than: wow.

So I guess I will move onto this and that, starting with tonight's meal... First I should note that it has been raining more in the week I've been here in Bangkok than the 10 days or so I spent here last time. No big deal right? Well I was here in the middle of the rain season last year and right now it is supposed to be relatively dry and hot. While it was very hot when I arrived, it has cooled down about 10 degrees and rained extensively, including tonight. Consequently, I ate at a restaurant instead of going to a food stand and doing the "one" routine again (works quite well I have to say).

I chose the restaurant where I met Mr. Japan a couple days ago. Fish sounded quite good to me, so I ordered "Fish in Garlic and Chili Sauce" and a tall Singha beer. I really wasn't expecting too much because the noodles I had the previous night were nothing special. I was merely there to have a roof over my head while I ate. Well I have to say the fish was divine. It really hit the spot. Wasn't too hot and had plenty of garlic. Parfait I have to say. Throw in the the ice cold beer, and I was in heaven. Yes, food is a big reason why I travel...

Other stuff:

1. I bought two airline tickets in the past two days. Yesterday I bought a ticket from Penang Malaysia back to Bangkok on May 12th on Air Asia. Today I bought a ticket from Bangkok to Dhaka that same day, several hours later via GMG Airlines. So I am definitly going to bangladesh now, woo woo.

2. I have to say Bangkok's subway is a pretty good deal. It is slightly cheaper than the Skytrain. The strange thing is police check your bag (well they're supposed to, they kinda do it half-ass) for the subway but not Skytrain. Umm why? They are both modes of public transportation, and the Skytrain a) has more passengers b)longer and more extensive. Not sure about the logic behind that one.

3. If you're ever in Bangkok and want a budget place to stay, I highly recommend Suk 11 Hostel.
Even though it calls itself a hostel, it has rooms with attached bathrooms (although I am staying in the budget dorm room). Wooden interiors, free breakfast, and pretty quiet. Also in central bangkok, and a 2 minute walk to the sky-train, 5-7 minute walk to the subway.

This and that

Today I went and bought a train ticket to the Thailand-Malaysia border. The arab neighborhood near where I am staying made me miss the Middle East, so I thought I should travel through an area filled with "insurgents." The train line I will be traveling on was shut down for 10 days so the thai gov't could beef up security and make it safer. That being said, no tourists have died on this train ride. I will not be hanging out in the town Sungai Golok for more than the amount of time it takes me to walk to the border.

Anyway, I went to the train station via the BKK subway, first time I have been on the thing. Quite clean, and seemed nice enough. I should note that my cellphone worked while riding the thing. Now why the hell can a cellphone work on BANGKOK's subway but not on any freaking subway in the USA? What the hell is going wrong in the USA? And while we are on the subject, Thais use the same types of cellphones as us Americans. Yes, the developing world is as technology advanced (and in some cases more advanced) than the good ol' USA. Sad times. Americans, we need to get our shit together.

And that is one reason I like the Far East: every country is trying to keep up with its neighbors. The other day Singapore's former PM told citizens that they need to keep paying its gov't employees well to keep singapore on top, and that people can't slack off. I have read articles in the Bangkok Post saying how Thailand needs to form an economic plan to make sure its growth keeps in line with Malaysia, Singapore, et. al. In the US do our leaders ever tell us to work harder to stay on top? No. Do you ever read articles or op-eds in American papers saying, "US needs to keep pace with ____"? No, other than articles of fear about China and India's development. we've become complacent. We think we're #1 but we most definitely are not in many ways. Americans need to wake up to that fact. Alas, our southern neighbor is even more behind us and our northern neighbor is similar to us, so I suppose we are isolated from global reality.

That's my little rant. Those thoughts were going through my head as I was running around Bangkok today. Got price quotes for a one-way to Dhaka. Not as cheap as I was hoping. Oh well. The dollar is weaker than it has in a # of years (previously was 40 baht/dollar, now 34/dollar), so that is one factor.

Highlight of the day was going to a random food stall. Went up to woman, said hello (one of two words i know in thai, woo woo) and just indicated I wanted one. One of what? Uh, one of whatever noodle dish she made. I thought she just had one option, but apparently not. She pointed to some noodles and said in thai (i'm assuming), "This?" and I said, "Hai." Uh Sean, you're in Thailand, not Japan. Oh well. Just a dumb ass farang/gai-jin.

So I was expecting fried noodles. Instead I got chow fun in a sauce akin to hot and sour soup. It had some boc choy and carrots. Was actually quite good and filling, so I was content.

Also enjoyed my time on the Chao Phraya Express. Love riding along the river here. Great mix of modern buildings, temples, and old decrepit shacks.

Ended my "hopping" through Bangkok with a stop in Lumpini Park. The aforementioned Marie told me that at 6 PM, they played the national anthem in the Park and everything stopped. Well I naturally had to see it for myself. I arrived around 5:45 and right at the entrance of the park there was a bunch of people do aerobics to some cheesy dance music. I went further in, walking around the park, and came across 2 other groups. It was fun to watch. And when I mean aerobics, I mean the western kind; I am not talking about Tai Chi or anything like that.

A night out on the town

Picked up my passport today with Bangladesh visa, so that is good to go. I am thinking of arriving in Dhaka on the 10th or 11th. That is assuming I can get a train ticket to/from the Malaysia border next week and chill out on a beach for a few days. If I can't get a ticket, then I might go to Bangladesh sooner.

Ok, last night..

So after checking my e-mail, I was hungry and knew I had to eat, so I went out. I was aware of some restaurant nearby that is always busy and full, so I figured I should check it out.

I get there and all the tables are occupied. One table by the doorway, however, only has one dude sitting at it, so I ask him if I can sit at his table. He says in English, "Sure, of course." I'm thinking, "interesting, random thai dude that speaks ok english." After sitting down, I see he is wearing a MIT t-shirt, so I ask him, "Did you go to MIT?" and he responds, "No, it was a joke of my friend's." Ok then.. A couple minutes later he randomly asks, "Do you like baseball?" At that point i figured he had to be from Japan since the only Asians into baseball are Japanese. Turns out he was an accountant from Tokyo.

So we chatted while we ate. While we were doing so, a French gal I met the previous night came strolling up. I invited her to sit with us, and she did, and then she got some food as well. After we had finished eating, the Japanese guy said, "Do you mind if I invite a friend?" Sure, no problem. So it became 4 of us. We had a couple beers at the restaurant, then had to go since it was closing. Next stop: Cheap Charlies, where a beer costs less than $1.50. There, i preceded to get a little drunk.

Around 10:30, Ms. France (aka Marie) bid us adieu and went back to the hotel. At that point, one of the Japanese guys asked, "would you like to go to another bar I know? The beer is 135 baht [vs. 60 baht where we were] but it is ok. Lots of girls, but you can tell them no." Sure, why not... I was thinking he meant it was a bar where hookers come up to you, and you politely decline their services. Umm no.

Where did he take me then? Well yes, it did have drinking, so I suppose it was a bar. There were two platforms with chicks in glow-in-the-dark bikinis and g-string bottoms. They were "dancing" and trying to look sexy. Meanwhile ugly chicks were in orange polo shirts and white ties serving you drinks. That kind of place bugs me out. I guess my feelings were obvious because both Japanese guys asked, "Do you not like this?" I was like, uh no, not really my scene. Total sketch.

The "highlight" of it was when some two western dudes bought a basket of ping pong balls. When I first saw the balls, i thought, "uh oh, time to see some nasty shit!" since I had heard of the infamous ping pong show (ie girl shoots a ping pong ball out of her vagina). Alas, it didn't happen. No, this ping pong "show" was just the two dudes tossing the ping pongs at the women, who all went crazy to get them. It was pretty lame. That being said, one of the men dissapeared soon afterwards. Maybe one of the ladies did too, but there was so many of them, it was hard to notice.

Regardless, after we finished our beers, we paid the bill and left. I bid my Japanese companions good night and went ahead and crashed into bed and fell asleep.

Thais like their action movies!

I am presently sitting adjacent to a common room with a tv in it. Some of the staff- all ladies- are watching a rather "interesting" action movie that was probably made in the late eighties, early 90s. Well they were really into it, cheering, gasping, etc. Made it much more entertaining. Alas, it has just ended.

Anyway, I shall be getting my visa for India on May 1st. Apparently India does not have May 1 as a holiday. Lots of countries do, but apparently not India nor Thailand. As for Bangladesh, I shall be picking up that visa tomorrow, insha'allah.

People are puzzled about me going to Bangladesh. I have to say I am a bit too. It'll make for an experience. I'm SO enthusiastic about it that I am looking into taking a week-long vacation to some malaysian islands after getting my india visa. we shall see.

Anyway, not much going on here. I met a french woman last night that made me feel a little dumb. She whipped through these puzzles in a matter of minutes. Me? I would rather not say. After she did them I inquired, "Engineer huh?" Indeed that was the case.

Presently raining with thunder and lightening. It rained for a bit last night, cooled things down. Hope the same happens tonight, would be nice.

That's about all to report.