Category: 2010 Asia/etc.

I met a traveller outside a café in Saigon who was strapping a variety of tools and parts to the back of an antique motorcycle. He told me it was a 1957 Minsk and he was riding it to Hanoi over the next few weeks. He had just bought it for $300 (USD) and had…

A few days ago in Saigon (nobody calls it Ho Chi Minh City), we were on a bus for a day tour, the kind of bus that drives around and picks everyone up at their hotel. The tour guide checked his list, and then: Tour guide: "Does anyone stay at the Riverside Hotel?" Tour guide:…

Robin and I are on a boat to the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. We passed a couple of days in Siem Reap, visiting the temples of Angkor. We visited Angkor Wat last and found it somewhat anticlimactic, mostly because it’s bandaged up with scaffolds for restoration and packed with tourists. Bayon, with its hundreds of…

Robin and I took the "VIP" bus to Louang Prabang a few days ago. It wasn’t a great ride – no aircon, twisty roads, an unscheduled stop when the bus in front of us hit someone in the middle of the road and waited (blocking both directions of the road) until the police photographed its…

Happy Herb’s Pizza Happy Angkor Pizza Ecstacic Pizza Happy Special Pizza (We were in Siem Reap Apr 4-7, 2010)

Robin & I have been in Laos for a while… we spent 2 days in Vientiane, 3 in Vang Vieng, and today we’re heading to Luang Prabang. The journey here was good. We took the sleeper train to Nong Khai and then a short connecting train over the Thai/Lao border. This train is neat: they…

Many years ago, I found a text file of "things to do when you’re bored", one of which was "Make up a language and ask people for directions in it." I got a taste of how that might go today. Robin and I decided to visit the Buddha Park, which is apparently a quirky ferro-concrete…

Robin and I are now on a train to Nong Khai, just across the border from the Lao capital Vientiane. After Tonsai I took a longtail boat to Ao Nang (the closest community with a road), a minivan to Surat Thani train station (actually in the neighbouring town of Phunphin), and a train to Bangkok….

The rest of my trip to Tonsai had: lots of great climbing, a rest day where Robin and I went sea kayaking (different muscle groups!), and Robin’s first grade 5 leads (including one onsight!) I led a 6b+ and toproped a hard 6c. I’m not ready to lead a 6c yet. If only I could…

After my climbing day with Mia, Robin took her course in lead climbing and I headed out for a day of deepwater soloing. As far as I know, DWS is unique to the area. The idea is simple: instead of using ropes to break your fall (free climbing), or climbing close enough to the ground…

So far, Tonsai is a tropical paradise. It has 1 high end resort, about 6 cheap resorts (like the one we’re using), a handful of mini marts and restaurants, about 10 bars, and 6 climbing shops (offering sales, rentals, and guiding.) It also has cats, cats everywhere: both strays and pets, tame and skittish. The…

We’re now in a bungalow in Tonsai beach. Getting here was quite the adventure. After our “donkey” (Malaysian train) ride to Wakaf Bahru, we spent the night in Khota Bharu. The guidebook was right – Khota Bahru accomodation is filthy (regardless of price.) But we found a place where the bed at least was clean…

"Enjoy the journey." That was a sign I tied to the back of my bike on part of my cross Canada trip as a response to all the RVers who seemed to hate the road and live for the rest stops and scenic outlooks. The jungle line was definitely a good way to do just…

I’ve been a bit busy since Robin arrived… that’s a good thing :) Last Thursday, we visited Kapabashi-dori, the kitchenware district of Tokyo, so Robin could see the plastic food. Many restaurants have plastic food in the windows (as advertising, but it also makes it relatively easy for foreigners to order) and it’s one of…

Robin is here! Robin arrived a few hours ago today. I took the train (Keisei Skyliner) out to Narita in time to see her 777 touch down from the observation deck, then headed down to arrivals. Yay! She’s now sleeping off the jetlag, so I have time to upload photos and blog entries…

On the last day of almost any adventure (long or short, awesome or fail) I just want to get home. Tokyo feels like home to me for the time being. It’s been my base in Japan and it’s the only place in the world where there’s an apartment rented in my name. I showed up…

This morning I said goodbye to Kyushu, Nagasaki, and the worst hotel in Japan (must write to Lonely Planet about that one too) and got on a train for Shimonoseki. Shimonoseki is the fugu (blowfish or globefish) capital of Japan so my mission was obvious. Fugu, it turns out, is delicious but also pricy (chefs…

Usuki was great. The stone Buddhas are worth a side trip if you’re ever nearby. One of them looked like he may open his eyes at any moment and say something. Not sure I’d understand a 1000 year old dialect of Japanese though so it’s just as well that he didn’t. Is Usuki worth a…

I’m on a trainset called the Hyper Saloon Inter City. Later today I’m taking the Sonic Limited Express 40. Japan has the best train names evar. Also the best trains, hands down (sorry Germany and France.) The only downside I’ve found (apart from the cost if you don’t have a Japan Railpass) is that there…