The Best

The great escape.
I'm laying in bed with Hoon and Phan fast asleep next to me. Finished watching the local news and now I'm stuck in that weird state between here and there.  

It's warm and we quickly jump in the back seat, say a few goodbyes along the way and hit the open road, lucky us, another adventure has begun.

Things are good, that's what we keep telling folks. I don't want to talk about Cambodia too much, people ask because they have to, it isn't Cambodia or even us that they are interested in, I think it's a glimpse at what's possible that most excites people.

Road is always a little bumpy, this one is filled with dips and bumps, twists and turns, dust flies, buses whiz by us appearing seemingly from nowhere in the thick red storm The dust has coated each small house in a light red glaze that shimmers and dulls in the mid morning sunlight. 

Soon our memories will be crystallized by the album that we had enough patience to upload. Answering the same questions or desperately filling in voids in conversations to whoever will listen about the amazing lamb in Sydney or the real sushi we had in Tokyo. Those most precious of moments that only exist in your memories are slowly being pushed aside.

It's blazing hot now, after a few hours, we refuel with a bowl of overpriced soup, Phan cuts her finger trying to get the bathroom stall to lock, now she's bleeding, after some discussion, we figure it'll be another 3 hours or so. Back in the car, a little beat up, but I guess I'm doing fine. 

The distance and disconnect are more pronounced. We realize how far we've gone. Emotionally, mentally something is different now, not better or worse, different. We are fundamentally the same, trying to reconcile who I am with where I am. 

Ahh, finally the hotel, we check in, I go a little over budget, maybe $35 for the night w breakfast and we spend the rest of the day napping and hiding out in A/C. We're super excited, after breakfast the next morning we skype with folks back home before taking the final leg of our journey.

What is my responsibility here?  Are these people really all that bad or am I just more sensitive to the change in culture? I'm struggling to put into words what I am experiencing. Maybe it's all too overwhelming. It's not one thing, but the sum of all the differences as a constant reminder of the contrast of these places.

Red eye leaves right around midnight. We are in line checking in with a bunch of ex military types from Idaho, we're talking like 100 of them. We make small talk and poke fun at the ones that have lost their temper in the face of Cambodian efficiency at its finest. We've been flying a lot lately and we're more matter of fact then giddy, did I mention it's midnight? 

These interactions are tough to get through, we're wanting a certain type of exchange and I'm even less interested in the problems these people are coping with, maybe all these people are really negative people, maybe we're just surrounded by a group of people that have forgotten their place in the world

After a few flights and about 24 hours we arrive at our final destination..sort of
We're changing things up and relying on a rental,car rather than taxis, buses or trains. The air is thinner here, the oppressive heat we've complained so much about has been replaced with a breeze and maybe even a gust of wind from time to time. We're smiling and laughing, not at anything in particular, but at the circumstances we find ourselves in, all that is left is to enjoy.

We're Home!

Surprise

Thats right, we left Cambodia a little earlier then expected to see our family and do some more traveling in the states before we had to go back to work. I informed my bosses at the school in Cambodia that I would work through the end of the third quarter of the year and they were sad that we were leaving, but things went so well that they left the door open for a return someday should we want to come back to Siem Reap. 

We were sad to leave our new friends behind, but I can honestly say that  while our Cambodia adventure has come to a close, being back has been a great gift. Reconnecting with friends and family and boy have we made the most of our free time.

We were driving the other day and Phan asked me how I would sum up the last year.

Simply put, it was the best year of our lives. 

What's going on in Siem Reap

I've been told that it is time for another blog post, although we don’t have any exciting new travel destinations to speak of, we are having a good time in Cambodia.

In a tragic turn of events, the 2-3 week break from the unholy heat of Cambodia is now officially over, gone are the days of marginal sweat stains as we once again dive pits first into a sea of perspiration. Note: I write a lot about it, because I want you to understand that it’s a hot place to live. They trick you with the words tropical climate, Hawaii has a tropical climate, Cambodia on the other hand has a stinking hot climate, so sweat on we will.

I've got my ghostwriter Hooner by my side as we have tucked back into our room avoiding the worst of the mid-afternoon sun. The A/C is on and we are chilling out.

Phan’s friend Skylar has been in town for about a week, they have been relaxing, getting massages, watching mostly bad romantic comedies, but we are both very happy to see friends from back home and catch up.  Skylar and her husband AJ have been on a traveling adventure for about as long as we've been gone.  AJ was in Phnom Penh for a week working in the Cambodian film archives restoring old films and making friends with a Japanese man who is serving there on a grant.  He has now joined us in Siem Reap and we've been eating and drinking to our hearts content, showing off our little city to friends from San Diego. Skylar picked Cambodia for her birthday, so we’re lucky enough to celebrate with them on her special day.

Skylar & Phan being silly 

In other news, I had my best day at JPA. Phan AND Hooner came out to visit the campus. It was something that I won’t soon forget. Phan spoke to each of my 3 classes. She talked about her experiences growing up, which many of the students related to. She answered questions about her life and family back home. While I can say time and time again the importance of continuing your education, having a real life Cambodian example to see and speak with and laugh with was invaluable to the students. Each of the 3 classes wrote thank you notes to her, they were so sweet! Their letters were so heart felt and genuine. Here is a little bit from one of them.

letters from the students

Phan was a hit with the kids, but her sidekick truly stole the show. Hooner was in top form, doing tricks at the end of each class, running around the classroom, basically having the time of his life and making all the kids smile. I had told some of my friends in the lower school that Hooner would be there and of course they wanted me to go and visit their class so that their students could meet Hoon.  Words quickly spread, so Hooner, Phan and I ended up making Hoon and Tell presentations to the entire elementary school. Some of the kids were afraid of him, but most just loved him. I had to promise one class that I would give their teacher a picture of Hooner to put up in their room so they don’t forget him.

Steve and Hoon on the bus heading to school

Phan and Hoon getting ready to teach

In action

We’ve been spending a lot of time with friends, eating out and trying to be more social. We’re still pretty boring, but we’re improving.

We recently had a 4 day weekend and spent it in town. It was nice to not have to worry about flights and taxis and luggage. We also got to spend a little time with some people we don’t always get a chance to. It was also Chinese new year, year of the goat I’ve been told. Great Parade in Siem Reap, music, dancing, floats, it was a great show with many of the local schools and NGOs participating and enjoying the festivities.

 

I’ve turned 33 since our last post and am celebrating with a challenge of sorts. I haven’t shaved since January 27, I am allowed to trim, but Phan doesn’t think I can make it until we get back. With hot season just kicking off, don’t know how smart I was on this one. One interesting note, I’ve gotten a lot of compliments about my beard, people seem to like the idea of me covering up my face with hair.

We were invited to a reception for the king of Cambodia, but decided it wasn’t for us.  We did go to dinner with a friend who generously treated us to a great meal at one of the fancy places in town. We both had a really tasty rib eye, paired with delicious wines from Australia, it was pretty good stuff. The place is called Abacas, and they reserved an entire room for us to enjoy a great meal and celebrate Lindsay’s birthday. Lindsay is one of our Australian friends that we met up with in Melbourne over Christmas.

We’re up to three runners in the morning, Elaine has joined Troy and I at 5:30 for our runs, she has little legs, so she takes a lot steps, sometimes it reminds me of running with Hooner. She can move though, she finished the half marathon in less than 2 hours. We even got CJ to run, he was good for the 1^st 2 miles, but then he hit a pretty substantial wall and the last time I saw him he was desperately searching for a tuk tuk to give him a ride home.

Missing home, but looking forward to some March madness. No big travel plans for spring break, I should probably get on that. By then it will be a full blown inferno here, so heading for cover somewhere will probably be wise. (Some random photos below for your viewing)

Phan and her sour mango lady

Young mangos and guavas

Hoon met a friend at the Royal Garden 

Had to stop for a photo

           

Superbowl Party

Us with Skylar & AJ

Phan waiting for sour mangos

More to come down the line. For now we are enjoying a visit from friends and making the most of our time.

Steve, phan, hoon

Hello from down under

Kiss goodbye, and within 30 seconds I can see the water, smell the waves and feel the cool sand. As the sun is coming up over Bondi (bond- I ) Beach I am off for a run. Bondi to Bronti is filled with runners, walkers, dog lovers, buff dudes and fit chicks, sunbaked tourists and plenty of selfies. About two miles each way, small climbs and a winding path carved out along the coast. A pod of at least 30 dolphins entertaining the masses as they clamor for a morning meal leaping and diving through the turquoise water.

Cool dogs

Phan on her birthday morning walk

Beautiful Bondi Beach

Steve + boobs to the right

We had to stop and see the dolphin show

Bronti

Bronti Beach

Manly Beach

Phan loving the clear water

Krispy Kream for brekkie

rocks along our scenic walk

Steve getting ready to jump into the water

It is in many ways unimaginative to boil Australia down to one simplistic phrase, but perhaps that is not necessarily a knock on the Aussies, but a tip of the cap to another place. Beautiful coastlines, white beaches, easiness in the air that reminds me of something.

Sydney is everything we were hoping for and more. The ease of moving through the city on trains, buses, and ferries makes the whole place a breeze to explore. Our routine for a few days was to stop at the mall, grab a “steak burrito” from Guzman y Gomez and head downtown. Think of the burrito like something you’d get at Chipotle, it will fill you up, tastes ok, but you feel pretty white from the experience.

Sydney 

Selfie

beware of tree failure

Bus 333 drops us at Circular Quay (KEY) and there is a boardwalk with some shops and a cruise ship has pulled into port. While they’re busily browsing through the brimming businesses, Phan and I are taking in the iconic Sydney Opera House. Pretty neat looking building that overlooks the harbor and is directly across from the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

Opera House

We decide that the contemporary arts museum will provide our culture for the day and are told that beverages are not allowed and that we’d have to check our bottle of Coke. Imagine being asked to check 5 fluid ounces of your favorite beverage and being given a ticket to redeem for your item after you had concluded your visit, in a word, Awesome. With our high fructose corn syrup secured in its cubbie, I turn to catch up with Phan who has already entered the first exhibit hall, she is in what appears to be a spirited discussion with one of the staff members about the art on the “art” (wood planks suspended at different angles) so I make my way around the room allowing Phan the opportunity to conclude her conversation with this old, but not elderly man who is clearly an admirer of the arts. Turns out this guy doesn’t even work there and Phan was being hit on, haha. I got a kick out of it, but we had to spend the rest of our time in the museum ducking around corners to avoid her new acquaintance.

Nearby is the Rocks, old part of Sydney, touristy cafes and shops, with signage about what old Sydney was like. Note that I mean what the British consider old, not the indigenous folks.

Just behind the Opera House is the Royal Botanical Gardens, a huge park with winding paths, ponds, a few cafes, and picnickers. Mature trees and flower gardens lead down to the harbor, a massive green space in the heart of downtown Sydney or CBD central business district. Flanked by museums and historic buildings leaves me reminiscing about another place.

The Rock neighborhood

Cool cars at the Rock

Back in Bondi now and looking for some beer. Not in the gas station, not in the grocery store, not even in 7/11(that’s when I knew we weren’t in America) You can only get booze from bottle shops, now the yuppies in Portland will keep the spirits or hard stuff in what normal people would call liquor stores, but sure enough they keep ALL of it under tight control. Wow pretty Dundee Australia, Beer is $4 a bottle for the cheapest piss beer, think Fosters, while a case will set you back between $50-$70, pretty pricey so I refrain in disbelief.

Heaven for Steve - San Diego Beers!

Meet up with my brother’s friend Lobo for a nice lunch at a local pizza joint. I did order a beer, Dad and Dave’s #1 Ale, pretty good along with my pizza. Had a great lunch getting to know a new friend, looking forward to repaying the favor the next time they make it to the mainland. (Ethnocentrism Anyone)

Trevor Lobo & us

Great little apt reminded us of a little place that we stayed in before where the planes seemed to fly right over your head, geeze this place just keeps doing that.

We ate: Subway, McDonald’s, some sort of famous meat pie, phan had lattes all day, broke down and paid for beer, went to a few cafes, etc.

Sorry, should have just skipped to this. Phan’s birthday, roamed around town, ended up at a grocery store and got some pretty exquisite shrimp to accompany a marinated leg of lamb and dined in, my only contribution was cocktail sauce made with wasabi and ketchup, best meal I’ve had since leaving the US. All around fantastic day.

Phan's birthday dinner (prawns, salad & leg of lamb roast)

Next day we decide that we’re going to pack a lunch and a dinner and head to the harbor early to get a spot for the fireworks to welcome in the New Year. The area we were trying to go to was closed by the time we arrived at 1:45 pm, so we settled for another great location, only drawback, sans alcohol. It made for a very grumpy bunch of people, not belligerent, but surely for certain. We slept, we ate, we slept, watched some low budget flying exhibition and alas the clock struck midnight, we had waited in the heat for nearly 12 hours what turned out to be a 12 minute fireworks display, somewhere I had read that it lasted for an hour, I really misread that one. After pushing and shoving, being stepped on, sunburnt and perfectly sober we welcomed in the New Year with 1.6 million others by watching the most incredible fireworks display either of us had ever seen. Well worth the wait. Seriously, that bridge was pretty cool. We spent the whole day trying to remember the last New Year’s and what we did, don’t think we’ll have that problem next year.

air show

nap time while waiting for the fireworks

Here's a link to the fireworks!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHcOoNCrAtY

Took a plane to Melbourne, think second fiddle, or perhaps the Portland of Australia, artsy hipsters, facial piercings, great fresh food though. We watched a movie, drank smoothies, went to the market every day we were there and ate and ogled at food we knew we would miss when we left. Met up with some Aussie friends and had dinner and saw some sights, went to the beach and a few more below average museums for good measure.

View from the river

owl, reminds us of Mabel

Some famous place

Cool wall art

Megan & Steve

Queen Victoria Market (Steve at the corner)

American, British & Australian 

Took a taxi, plane, bus, plane, plane, and a taxi and made it back home to our beloved four legged child Hooner, a little chubby, but otherwise ok. One semester down, second one starts Thursday.

So, while we didn’t see but a small fraction of Australia, the parts we did see were more similar to San Diego then different. It was comfortable and relaxing. We enjoyed our time there and have recharged our batteries for the rest of our Cambodian adventure.

Bright Lights Big City

Tokyo Impressions

Wow, what a great place. If you’ve been to New York or other big cities, they seem to have a unique vibe and palpable energy. Tokyo is on par with any modern mega-city I've had the chance to visit. There are so many people, but they seem to move smoothly through the extensive network of trains, subways, buses and taxis. You always hear about Tokyo as a vertical city, where everyone is cramped into small spaces, what I hadn't imagined was that you were just as likely to visit a restaurant, bar, store on one of several basement levels as you were above ground. We were able to get around on the trains or by foot and the occasional taxi when we couldn’t find our way. There are museums, parks, endless cafes, bars, restaurants, malls. It truly has all of the trappings of a major metropolitan city in the U.S., but it was so much cleaner or better organized.

The structure in Japanese society comes through in your interactions with people, who for the most part are indifferent to foreigners, but were very helpful at a moment’s notice. You can literally walk into any store and ask for directions and they will do their best to get you pointed in the right direction. In America, typically you can always find that one jackass who is cutting the line, or won’t let you in, or cuts you off, or treats the hunt for a parking spot like a life or death struggle. (Note: if you haven’t noticed this person, it’s probably you or me) The people there seemed more patient, not always, but overall there was a refreshing classy demeanor.

Speaking of classy, everyone….and their puppy were well dressed no matter what time of day. Your typical Japanese businessman would be in a custom suite, complete with cuff links and freshly polished shoes, the ladies wore outfits that seemed elegant and refined, the majority wore fitted skirts and blouses, covered by cute coats of every shade and texture. It was cold is Japan during our visit which was great, I had completely forgotten the concept of sweaters as we live in the sweaty armpit of SE Asia. This made it great weather for coffee, and good ol Starbucks didn't disappoint, plus they had wifi, which made our navigating needs that much easier.

I don’t know that Thanksgiving is a big thing in Japan, but Christmas sure is. You could not enter a 7/11, starbucks, café, restaurant, clothing store, mall, fast food joint without being bombarded by the sounds of Christmas carols (in English) mostly of the Mariah Carey variety being pumped through the sound systems. Frosted windows, and Christmas tree displays made the picture complete. I think we may have felt a bit homesick, had it not been November 4^th.

We saw the sights, had really good food. I was fighting a bug from Cambodia, but I wasn't going to miss out trying Japanese food. We had a great meal at a cool joint called Sushi Yasuda.

Anthony Bourdain stopped in there on one of his shows and it looked great, so we tried it. The chef was great, Heather and even CJ joined us (he took all kinds of medicine pre game, but still got sick). The chef gave us mouthwatering samples of 14 varieties of delicious sushi. The quality of the seafood was so good, the tastes, textures and flavors were really on a different level. I had a great conversation with the chef throughout the meal, which made the experience that much better.

Visited a robot show, I can’t really describe it beyond, pretty Japanese girls, Dinosaurs, Robots, the Phoenix Suns gorilla, power rangers, choreographed dancing, the eternal struggle between good and evil. Look it up on you tube, it is mind blowing, awesome, insane, stupid, funny, weird and everything in between. I don’t know man (jaw dropping for Steve throughout the show!).

Tokyo National Museum

 
Tokyo National Museum was cool. It was interesting to see Eastern art as the focal point of a museum, rather than a half-hearted exhibit tucked into a corner near the bathroom and vending machines. This particular museum had the largest and oldest collection of Japanese cultural artifacts.

One cool piece was a 1500 year old scroll that details a poetry contest that a particular emperor held. They would be given a choice of categories like winter, spring, summer, fall, romance and “poem battle” until a winner was selected.

Other notable pieces were the samurai swords and armor and an extensive collection of Asian antiquities from China, hmm wonder how that got there?

Paul Garrison

Visited a shrine and hopefully got some blessings along the way. The temple was in Yoyogi Park, its just cool to type yoyogi. The park housed military barracks during WWII and was hit hard during the bombing of Tokyo, so the temple is a reconstruction of the original, but was still very cool to visit and take in some of the sights and sounds. The park was also used as one of the venues for the last summer Olympics in japan in 1964. There were signs all over marking the 50^th anniversary of those Olympic games, and there is even more excitement over the redevelopment being done for the 2020 games.

Sake

Wishes written on cardboards

Blessing

For the most part, we generally stuck to the tourist track. We would tuck into little bars and restaurants here and there, drink a beer and eat something Japanese. There was a great park right outside our apartment, so no matter where we went we always got to walk through a park first. Parks are quite nice if you haven’t been to one lately, I’d recommend it. They are usually green, although I’m not sure about in San Diego anymore. We have 1 in our town, so it was a treat for us.

Yoyogi Park from above

Overall impression- We were both really impressed. To see a modern, well-educated Asian culture and a highly developed economy, that, while taking some cues from the West, is still very much forging its own path. I don’t mean to say that the ultimate goal of society should be to consume at the same level as the US, but the sense of pride that dignity that the Japanese people exude is something that I admire. It gives me hope for the future for countries like Cambodia, not a fair comparison at this point, but I can dream can't I?

On the beer front, I saw Blue Moon and some of the Kona Brewing company beers, otherwise it was asahi and sapparo and their close relatives

I think we would both definitely go back to explore more of the museums and check out other parts of the country. So far it is our favorite stop on our year of self discovery in Asia. Don't I sound evolved?

Best Pho we've had in Asia, Hanoi Airport

Chocolate filled Panda head pancake

Clock

Crouching tiger finding her Zen, Phan

some sort of Plinko game, it is quite loud in there

Buzzed

Cute dogs, costing around $2,000/each

Reminded us of Brad and Blacky (the sister)

Typical side street

Funny Story:(hope its not one of those you had to be there things)

We arrived about 7:00 AM and took the hour and a half bus ride into the city. By the time we wandered the streets and finally gave up and got a taxi to drive us the 2 minutes to our apartment it was pushing 10 AM. One of our travel companions, CJ (think awkward teenage years that never went away) has been sincerely looking forward to Japan for some of its western food option. CJ is allergic to seafood and so that means he can’t eat anything in Cambodia, because everything has some sort of fish sauce, crab paste or other aquatic extract that his system cannot handle. It’s 10AM and Phan wants to rest, so CJ, Heather (another teacher, AKA Partner) and I decide we are going to head out in search of one the great traditions in American culture, McDonalds breakfast. We figure out that we are 1.7 miles from the nearest location, but have absolutely no idea how to get there. We get some sort of directions from the lady at the front desk, she points us in the right direction and motions to her watch with a sense of urgency, so I knew that she knew of that dreaded 10:30 AM deadline that can crush your soul something fierce. Not to be denied, we decide our best course of action is to run in the direction that she has pointed. We run into a bellman from a hotel nearby and I ask him, which way to McDonalds. No chance McDonalds is not translating, I use his pen to scrawl the most recognizable logo besides Coca-Cola and instantly he starts talking and pointing, all in Japanese mind you. At this point a taxi shows up and bellman talks to taxi guy and MikaDongals and we pile in. Clock in the taxi says 10:26, oh man, we’re not going to make it. We see a sign that has the golden arches and an arrow inferring that we are close. We get out of the cab, scour the location and realize that the sign is pointing us onward and that there is a McDonalds 280 Meters ( like 1,000 feet) down the road. Cab is gone, so we gotta run.

We see it, run inside, the menus have been changed, the time has past, but hey, why not ask anyway, just in case. Yes, the deadline is 10:30, but the register guy says he can help us and gives us a breakfast menu. Its in Japanese, so it takes me a minute to order (this will have devastating results) I order up some Mcmuffins and this ultimate McHeartattack breakfast sandwhich, hash browns, OJ, you know American stuff. They gave me a little number and let me know they’ll bring my food out to me. I go to find a place to sit, while Heather and CJ order, Heather comes back first with her food and then CJ comes to the table with a to-go bag with this look of pure misery on his face.  I’m perplexed, what is wrong with this guy? Come on man, buck up! We inquire as to his profound state of sorrow and he explains to us as he was handing his money over to the cashier, the manager comes by and begins to berate him apparently because he has gone against the 11^th commandment and has served breakfast after 10:30 AM. He tells CJ that he cannot have breakfast and must order from the lunch menu, he tells us this as he pulls out a double cheese burger and proceeds to sulk the rest of the meal. Heather and I are stunned, I mean I love me some McDonalds, but this poor bastard has to eat Doritos and Cliff bars and has done so for the better part of the last 6 months.  Had he ordered 30 seconds sooner he would be enjoying the delicious artery clogging breakfast that I was. Imagine being that close, even after the buzzer had sounded, ad while handing over your money finally being denied, that's cold blooded.

I derived so much sincere joy from this event, I had to share it with you. BTW the Japanese version of McDonalds is legit. I’m Loving It, indeed.