Hello from South East Asia!!

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We're finding we pay way more than the locals do (because the merchants know we have more money!) but when we barter in Thai, the price miraculously comes down - I guess "falangs" (foreigners) who speak Thai are mostly ex-pats and therefore considered almost countrymen.

If there's one thing I've learned already it is that I will not travel to another developing country with a full backpack. I've bought a whole new wardrobe that is much more appropriate than what I brought for approximately 40 Canadian dollars.

The food is ... spicy and in many cases of questionable health-risk. Our budget requires that we eat at outdoor or street stalls. Sure, all the guidebooks warn against this but quite honestly, it's impossible to avoid. It's amazing what a yummy meal you can eat for less than a dollar though. Everywhere you look there is street food, many stalls proudly displaying ducks and various entrails hanging dubiously from hooks above mounds of noodles and veggies. I've learned how to pronounce "I only eat vegetarian". I would suggest everyone learn this whether they are veggies or not.

Basically, the city is hot and muggy and not terribly nice. It's been a huge blessing to have Justin's family here to stay with. They've cushioned the initial culture shock, and they happen to live in a relatively nice and clean area. I think we will head south to the islands very soon. We need to cleanse ourselves of the pollution and the bustle of the city. We're looking for a quiet (ha!) island somewhere to bliss out for a while.

We're staying at Au Nang beach: Andaman Inn. It is impossible to reach our beach without taking a small long-tailed boat. This makes it nice and quiet. Today we went on a really cheesy tour but saw monkeys, and James Bond Island (Golden Gun was filmed there). The island was covered in tourists and stalls selling paraphernalia from the movie and such... quite depressing really. - We also visited a gorgeous cave /waterfall in the jungle. The bus tour is an institution here. I don't know how it happened but we ended up on a bus with mostly European retirees. We'd be let off the bus for 20 minutes in each place... just long enough to take pictures and buy souvenirs. The tourists are unbelievable - they love it!

Met two English lads, Ben and Nathan, who suggest a move to Phi Phi Island (Pee pee) where "tourists" are banned (ha). We'll see what happens.

(After checking and sending this email Nathan & I returned to Au Nang only to find that there were no more boats. Some wonderful people gave us some food and drove us back to the town on their motor scooter. We ended up spending the entire night in a bar as all of the guesthouses were full. Pulling all-nighters in bars is one of the best ways to get a good feel for a place. We met some of the local colour here. A German who ran the bar almost beat an obnoxious Swedish man to death over some sort of language debate. We also met a man called Raphael who claimed to be from Tanzania. He also claimed to speak fluent Swahili but could only come up with some common phrases any Disney fanatic would know. He told us his life story, cried, and at the end of the night - in the morning - asked us for money. The "locals" say he's been around forever and don't know where he comes from... he sounds Jamaican.)

Hi it's your favorite movie star here... ha! Well the first night of filming was last night (for our part anyway). Saw Leo up close and personal shared a moment with him even... I was nonchalantly videotaping the filming process, getting a good lensful of Leo-action (nail-biting, nose-picking, waiting waiting waiting... etc) and he obviously saw me there as most of the audience had left already (3:30am). He yawned and looked over at me, I caught his yawn... he smirked at me. Then I rolled up a cigarette, he saw me, turned to his "assistant" whispered and before I could finish rolling he had a beautiful (American no doubt) taylor made cigarette in his hands. He smoked as I finished rolling... and smirked again. Hm. Cheeky.

Doing the rest of the filming tonight and get paid (next to nothing) tomorrow. After that I'm heading to Hat Yai where I hope to meet my new boss. If everything works out (if we like each other) then I'll start work around first of May.

The nightlife is intense. There are heaps of travelers here to party it up in the pubs after a long day of climbing or swimming or sunning. I was introduced to the Sang Thip bucket. This is where a pint of the evil Thai whiskey is added to a bucket of ice and a 750ml bottle of sprite. For good measure and assured headache, a bottle of Red Bull is added (this is an energy drink made up of mostly caffeine and sugar and tastes of cough syrup). Five or six people then insert straws into the bucket and on the count of three, suck until the bucket is empty. What results is a very long evening of increasingly loud, boisterous chatter, singing, dancing and sometimes a dangerous midnight dip in the sea.

After the filming (ha, how pretentious!!!) I came straight here to Hat Yai where I've met with the people who have offered me work. I have yet to accept. The people are wonderful, I love the organization. They took me to the school and it is wonderful! I even had the honour of attending a Chinese New Year feast. It was amazing with a dragon dance and many courses of food, most of which I couldn’t or didn’t dare eat… but that’s not the point. I tried jellyfish… ew! Never again. Unfortunately, the city is not the greatest, it’s a bit of a hole actually. Hat Yai is where the Malay tourists come for sex and drugs because it is so close, imagine if you will, heaps of Islamic men scuttling about the city trying to get "some". Tomorrow (Wed.) I leave for Pinang (Malaysia) and from there I may make a quick trip to Sumatra (Indonesia). I love it! A "quick trip" to Sumatra... hee hee!

I auditioned for a speaking roll but doubt I'll get it because (if for no other reason) I don't have an accent that is exotic enough. I will however appear prominently in the movie as "girl buying cigarettes" (the back of my head at least) and girl getting splashed (along with 55 others). La dee dah!

Justin has left me for greener pastures. We decided that we had different journeys in mind, but are keeping in touch in order to see if our paths may cross again. It's difficult being alone again - it's been a long time.

I just rented a motorbike and drove around the island (about 120km). How amazing, jungle, beaches, monkeys, BIG SPIDERS...

My few days here have been fabulous. I would love to find a job teaching English here but everyone's English is so good already!

The food here is amazing! The whole atmosphere is incredible. There's Thai, Malay/Indonesian, Chinese, and Indian... all of this religious diversity and no turmoil whatsoever. Pinang is a microcosm of South East Asia all living together in perfect harmony.

My first day I had a difficult time adjusting to being alone and having Indian and Muslim men leering at me, approaching me and following me down the street. I think I'll have to reconsider some of my wardrobe.

I'm now traveling with an American/Italian named Joseph. Tomorrow, we have decided to head for Sumatra for a week or so... I hope to visit an Orangutan rehab center (I doubt its anything like the rehab we know). I've met some fabulous people, and continue to do so every day.

Oh yeah... in case any of you are considering a trip but thought you couldn't afford it....

Joseph and I just had huge rice dinners with veggies and paid under a dollar (Canadian) for both of us! Our double room is expensive for these parts... $3.00.

Lake Toba is an interesting place in that it used to be a huge tourist destination. Suddenly, with the crash of the rupiah however, the tourists stopped coming, and the resort owners are now forced to give rooms away for a pittance (2-3$ /night). The people are extremely friendly, but are desperate. We are really rich here. And we are treated as such. The 1000$ in my account is two years wages for the average Indonesian. Everywhere you go you are told: "Please, my friend - you help me. My baby has no rice, only one dollar...". It's very difficult, but I know that the way to help these people is not to give them money. In fact, in my experience and opinion, the Batak people of Samosir, Lake Toba are not starving... nor will they ever. The island is not overpopulated, the entire island is covered with rice fields, papaya trees, bananas, coconuts and rubber trees. The water is fresh - not salt, and can probably be easily treated. I think Lake Toba poverty is a case of people becoming used to a standard of living brought on by a tourism trade that is no longer thriving. I hope that these people may learn to sustain themselves once again, or less ideally, that people will once again learn what an incredible place it is and bring in some more money to the area.

Tomorrow I head for Bukit Lawang slightly north/west of here. This is where the orangutans are being detoxed (er, I mean rehabilitated!).

In about an hour I leave for Pulau Wei which is one of the "north-est" islands in Sumatera. Back to the beach.

Bukit Lawang was magical. An excerpt from my journal yesterday, March 14th, 1999

"The jungle breathes big heaving sighs in the moist heat. Faeries live here but I haven't caught up with them yet. Across this "raging stream" there is an impenetrable wall of vines, ivy, ferns and guarding its secrets are the gentle orangutan, the python, deadly spiders. Among its secrets: tigers, rhinos, some funky version of a black bear, and elephants. All I can see of this is a wall of green and the occasional monkey playing in the branches. But, they are there, those elusive faeries - and I think they're waiting for me."

Bukit Lawang is also the main Medan tourist destination. It's interesting to see how the rich Indonesians spend their vacations. The main feeling I get from it is pretty good. But it's a small little village that cannot sustain the popularity. In direct opposition to Lake Toba, Bukit Lawang has TOO MANY tourists and travelers! The jungle-boys here are like mosquitoes. These are young Indonesians who have it in their heads (probably from experience) that white women are easy. And, I suppose, compared to their Muslim sisters, we are. In any case, these mosquitoes will buzz about you at any opportunity and will not take "I'm married" as an excuse. You cannot spend even 3 minutes siting alone in Bukit Lawang. There are jungle boys watching you bathe in the river, sitting across from you while you eat, interrupting your conversations with offers of jungle treks and ganja, and mostly just hovering about when you're trying to enjoy the peace and serenity of your surroundings. The writings in my journal above were done with frequent interruptions: inquiries as to what my name is, where I come from, how much money I have, if I like Indonesian men, etc...

The evenings are filled with jungle-boy serenades from guitars. The pubs are full, the drink of choice here is Bintang (star) beer, or Banana Brandy (Mmmmmm yummy!). Mushrooms are a popular choice, as they are not illegal here.... "Hello miss, you want buy ticket to the MOON?". The strains from their guitars are familiar tunes, with some original verses. A popular version of Jingle Bells: "Jungle Trek, Jungle trek, in Bukit Lawang; See the monkeys, see the birds, see Orangutan!" The joke is on us. Orangutan is the derogatory term Indonesians use for westerners. It makes allusion to our light, abundant body hair. Orang = person; utan = jungle.

The rehabilitation center was quite interesting. They take orang-utans from their "homes" in rich-folks houses and teach them to be orangs again. Recently, they’ve been bringing Borneo orang-utans to save them from forest fires. Poor babies! They stay in cages and are taken out once a day to learn to climb and build nests. Volunteers teach them to climb and older, wilder orangs teach them to build nests… it’s quite amazing. I was offered a job as a volunteer but, I think I was expected to "befriend" the lovely jungle-boys in order to get the job. Hey, Mr. Mosquito, I’m not lying on the casting couch for a PAYING job, let alone volunteer work!

Justin was in Pulau Weh when I arrived. He stayed through my birthday and then was off again toward central Sumatera. It was really nice to see a familiar face again. It was still quite clear that we were on different trips though. I can't wait to see him again to hear how his turned out.

Spent a crazy evening watching the only television on the island (maybe?). Justin, Scott and I watched Le Grand Blue, which was perhaps a more surreal experience than it should have been after a big mug of tea.  After a short trip to the Emrald City through the enchanted forest we played with the glowy phosforesents in the water.  Then Scott and I were nearly attacked by a GIANT PIG down on the beach. Or were we??? hm

My birthday party went off really well. One of the Mama's cooked me a big fish and a birthday cake. We had music and dancing on the beach. I met a great English boy called Simon who dances with fire too! And he did a little show for us.

I almost got hit by a falling coconut (2000 deaths in SE Asia each year apparently) and it changed my outlook on life! I'm having it carved into a necklace.

Had a bit of a Typhoid scare. A friend, Jim, from England got both Typhoid and Malaria all at once! I spent a few days in the hospital visiting him. There were 4 others in there at one point with either Typhoid or Malaria, but poor Jim got the worst of it! The "hospital" and nurses were a scary, scary thing. The nurses didn't speak English, which is fair enough, but they wouldn't even try to understand. Unfortunately, my Indonesian is not good enough yet to get by in that situation. The western patients got no food at all except what we brought them - I'm not sure about the local patients. It took 45 minutes and 8 or 9 tries to get the IV in the right place, each time it had to be changed... OUCH! We were all very happy when that was over!

The Typhoid undoubtedly was a result of the poor sanitation at Iboih beach. The "toilets" were right beside the mandi well, which put the sewage right next to our washing water... not a good situation.

I'm very much enjoying Pulau Weh though. It's so nice to live such a simple life, and for so cheap! If I spend 3 dollars a day, I'm splurging. Sometimes, I crave the modern conveniences: electricity ?(no, not really), running water… (what?), chocolate? (oh, yeah!) but for the most part, there is nothing I'm wanting for. I could imagine staying right were I am for a very long time.

Malaysia again. Pinang Island. I'm not sure if I'll go up to Laos next or check out Malaysia a bit first. The prices are shocking here! (Well, similar to home but the ringit is worth less than half) Compared to Indonesia it's outrageous! SO, maybe I'll decided to skip out of here quickly. I am considering Kuala Lumpur though. Can't very well miss it can I? Singapore would put another stamp on my passport (that's what it's all about isn't it?)

As you can see... I'm pretty much at a loose end here. My Worcestershire friends left me today and I'm once again on my own (this is the story of my life... and all travelers I imagine). I'm faced with many choices... what to do next... I guess I should figure out when the rainy seasons are and make a bit of a plan.

Two nights ago I was in Medan (the arm-pit of the universe) in Indonesia, and I went all-out and spent TEN WHOLE DOLLARS on a room for the night in a 4 star luxury suite! Beautiful. There was carpeting, Air-conditioning, Cable television, VCR.... and, get this.... a HOT SHOWER! I had a shower, watched the war on CNN, had a bubble bath, watched a video, ordered room service and had Pizza Hut delivered, and had another shower. I am a new woman! I hadn't had a hot shower since I left Canada, and it's been 6 weeks since I've seen running water aside from a fast flowing river or two).

I've been trying to decide on my next move and I've been missing Sumatera and the beach more and more every day...

So... seeing as I spend approx. 100$/ month there, why not go back!?!

Friday is Beltane... and I will be dancing around the maypole with the faeries of the rainforest and swimming at sunrise with the dolphins and manta rays. I've met a wonderful tribe who I've convinced to accompany me.

In the last few days, I've had some little adventures. I ran into an old friend from Sumatera, Billy the Scot. He and I went to Lankawi (a tourist resort Island here in Malaysia). It was a nice getaway, but really expensive. The ride there was one of the scariest boat trips I've ever taken. The waves were so big we were practically flying over them. Every time the boat crashed down I thought the hull would break. People were being sick all around us. Whoooee! I hate sea travel! We stayed in a resort next to a HUGE resort where these Cruise ship university students were staying. This sounds great! A university where you attend classes while traveling from port to port in several fun and exciting places. Unfortunately, these kids all seemed a little on the "poncy" side. They treated the locals, and the hotel servants like garbage, yelling racial slurrs at them. Apparently, they always land in highly touristed areas of these developing countries, and with this experience, will undoubtedly return to their parents with a well-informed sense of what the world is really like. I commented that the parents should realize that it's just an excuse for rich kids to party and shag in exotic places... but Billy pointed out that this way, at least they are shagging the right people. Hm, how true.

Next door to us was a sweet little boy, the son of a couple who worked for the resort. We spent a lot of time playing with him... what a cutie.

Billy introduced me to the fine art of kite flying... I love it and apparently, I'm a natural (or maybe he was just flattering me). Billy has one HUGE kite that will pull you through the water at a pretty good clip. How fun!

We returned to Pinang and Billy left me for Bangkok, where he planned to leave for Holland. I was going to go meet him but I met this new tribe I mentioned I'd be spending Beltane with. Tribe members: Marc (French), Flow (Austrian), D harma (German/Indonesian), and Robbie (German). I'm expecting we will have a fantastic time together in Sumatra. I miss it so much!

We had an adventure in Pinang before leaving. Flow's mission is to travel the world without money. Helping him on this part of his journey is the loveable Marc from France. Marc ran into a financial difficulty and couldn't finance Flow's trip to Sumatera. So, I did. It wasn't so expensive, and I reckon that if it's going to make my trip more fun to have someone along, then I'll spring for it. I have to remind myself today that there are no regrets in life and that - though things didn't turn out as planned, I've learned some important things that I wouldn't have learned had I been tightfisted.

Anyhow, we went to Wind Long beach, where I knew we'd have a beautiful secluded ceremony... what we found superceded all our expectations of seclusion. The beach was closed. After a tretcherous hike through the dark jungle and Darma getting attacked by a wild pig, we found the owner of the bungalows and she let us stay in her loft for the night. Apparently, the beach disappears in the off-season leaving only jagged rocks. The others hardly believed my stories of beautiful white sandy beach when morning came and we saw that there was none. So off we went to Iboih... it was like a homecoming for me. The Dolphin girls Ellie, Emile, and Ecca, and the other Ellie were all happy to see me - and Mama Mia nearly knocked me over with her big hug. My kittens were being well taken care of too.

We got ourselves two nice big bungalows between the five of us and set off for the secret beach for Beltane. It was good fun but Flow was a bit pouty and disappointed that he didn't get to play Pan.

Off we all went to Lok Nga which is on the mainland near the popular Aceh Bungalows at Lampu'uk. Jon, however had left Sumatera to renew his visa - he will either come back to Aceh and travel with me down the west coast, or, go off with his surfer friends to Niace.

Right now I'm waiting to find out my fate. We're both interested in seeing the non-tourist version of this beautiful country, but he is the eternal surfer. It will also depend on whether he can get his visa renewed (not so easy as he is South African) or not. If I'm not meant to do this then I will begin some serious planning to get to England...

The girls Dharma and Robbie left for Malaysia where they are meeting a friend and my wonderful brother Marc left us yesterday. It was a sad occasion. We'd all moved to Lampu'uk after the girls left and are living in a big bungalow with a kitchen with a French/Japanese boy called Sebastien. Marc and Sebastien got on super-well and Flow, well... as I've said, it's difficult to write about him at this point, sorry. Sebastien and I do ok, except he seems to be afraid of getting close to anyone, and Marc and I - well, I just love him what can I say? We hiked to a beach called Langhee and camped in a cave - good fun but a strenuous hike (for wimps like me)

Our wonderful mother-goddess arranged a beautiful sunset for his departure - the most amazing I've ever seen. It was truly magical. (... this isn't it in the picture, it was BETTER)

I've told Marc that I will meet him in Paris soon... but that was before I thought I might go see Indonesia with Jon. We'll see what happens, I know it will all turn out as it should.

I'm still staying in the little hut with Sebastien. Flow has left us to head back to Austria - a strange turn of events that is best for him in the long run, I think. We are being looked after by a wonderful Indonesian family. To come to town today I had to put on a gilbub (Muslim headgear for women) in order not to get harassed as a tourist... My blue eyes don't lie though; if I let anyone get a good look at me I hear choruses of "Hello Miss, Where you go, what you want buy, where you come from" Really hard core on the nerves.

I'm beginning to pick up the language... I have to! My mama Jamailia doesn't speak much English - nor do the townspeople. I'm also becoming more accustomed to the, shall we say, "hygene practices". There are no toilets. When I asked Zul laughed and said "Ah, Very BIG TOILET!" and pointed to the great expansive outdoors. I might also mention that coconut trees do not offer a great amount of shelter/ privacy. I'm quite used to it now. I'm quite used to the practice of "using the LEFT hand", and quite honestly... if you are "using the LEFT hand", it becomes quite natural not to do ANYTHING else with it (like eating, or passing/ receiving things for example). Our shower is the typical "Mandi" well with a bucket... it's a bit chilly but refreshing. Soap is a rarity (except for on the left hand), so sea salt normally cleanses us and the Mandi rinses the salt. To be perfectly honest... I don't think I've ever been cleaner - with the possible exception of my hair, which insists on trying to tie itself into natural dreadlocks.

People may ask: "What do you do all day?" And I would have to reply saying that there are not enough hours in the day in which to sit and do "nothing". "Nothing" consists of: scouring the beach for interesting shells, swimming, hanging out with the family, walking to town to buy food, cooking, doing some more visiting, and well, that's about it... oh yeah, reading and writing too. You have to remember that the day is considerably shorter "on the equator" and that, without electricity, there is little that can be done after dark (approx. 18:30). After dark is when our friend Mr. Bob "Bruce Lee" Gila would visit. Bob for Bob Marley, Bruce Lee cause that's what the locals call him, and Gila = crazy in Indonesian. He and Sebastien have some kind of bond that supercedes language (Bob doesn't talk in any known language), culture, religion or any other of the million differences they share. They sit and whistle at each other, Bob doesn’t really like me. His Islamic sensibilities are offended, I think, by my exhibitionism (SHEESH, hide those shoulders, young lady!!).

Sebastien and I have become quite close - that is, as close as he will allow. He is a beautiful person both inside and out, we talk for hours about love, magic, and faeries and whether any of these things exist. How anyone can spend as much time as we have in this magical place and not believe is beyond me. He's a cold person but is slowly opening up, I think (hope). He's teaching me so much about myself, and I believe I'm teaching him a thing or two. It's difficult to decide what to do next.

In two days I have to decide whether to: a) go to Thailand and Laos with Jon from South Africa who can't get a visa for Indonesia. b) go to India with Sebastien and then to Europe c) go straight to Europe to make money

It should be a liberating and wonderful feeling to be able to walk in to a travel agent and have the time and money available to just throw a dart at a map. Unfortunately, it's just making things harder for me. The world is my oyster! I should be happy with my position, it may never happen again. I can't help feeling that my decision though could impact the rest of my life drastically. But, I truly believe that even the smallest decisions do that.

I have ripped myself once again away from war-torn Indonesia. Sumatra was never much of a danger but things are heating up with the first "democratic" election imminent. Decision made, travel with Jon and then meet Sebastien in Bangkok to (maybe) go to India.

I'm in Malaysia and on my way to Thailand (finally) tomorrow. I'll be attending my first Full moon party (for those who have been...eat your heart out) in two days. Then northward... maybe to run into Justin again on the way to Laos??? Plans are still sketchy as usual. I'll keep you all up to date. Have some great pictures that I'll try to scan when I get the chance next.

This time in Pinang is quite different. Jon has a friend who lives in a condo... hot water, nice bed, etc. Yippee! I guess you can take modern comforts away from a person, and they don't realize they miss them until they have them again.

As expected, Jon and I ran into the German girls: Dharma and Robbie at the party and visited on the northern part of the island at Coral Bay. We hired motor scooters for a day and ran into a bit of trouble. Jon's bike lost a wheel coming down one of the most treacherous of hills. The island is infamous for bike accidents and I think this is probably a result of the road conditions. Anyhow, we were lucky that he wasn't hurt. We both had to hop on my bike to get back to our beach... but, we got lost in the dark, and chased by dogs, and it was really scary. By the time we got "home" Jon was a little stroppy, and I was pretty cranky as well. It didn't help, I suppose, that I am terrified on the back of a bike so he had to ride on the back for quite a bit while I drove... that's enough to exhaust anyone!

Just to throw a little wrench in things. I’ve had a strange lesion-like thing on my face that was really beginning to worry me. It got bigger and bigger every day as the skin around it just seemed to rot off. Just as it was beginning to take over the side of my face, I stumbled upon a medical clinic. The lovely doctor took one look and said "Fungus" and handed me a cream, for which I paid $1.5 . Now, two days later, it’s almost gone. YAY! I really didn’t feel pretty with half my face scabby. I guess I picked it up in Indonesia or something… I should really stop kissing puppies and kittens.

Tomorrow we leave for Bangkok and will spend only one day there before going to explore the north of Thailand. In about 2 weeks I'm meeting up with Sebastien and we will probably go to India together for a month or so on my way to Europe to work.

I'm now in Northern Thailand. In Chiang Mai now, headed by motorbike to Chiang Rai, Pai and maybe to do some elephant trekking and bamboo rafting near the Burmese border.

Bangkok was hectic as usual but the city is growing on me... for a big city, I like it a lot. I bought a much needed new wardrobe for 40$. We only spent one night and left our big bags in storage so as not to be burdened for out moto-trek.

Mid-way through my biking experience and enjoying it immensely.

Got on our little bikes and drove about 160km to Pai, a beautiful little village with a nice feel to it. There aren’t a lot of tourists and the travelers are mostly there for the trekking. Most of the guesthouses offer trekking packages – but we have our bikes so didn’t go for it. We did ride elephants, and see Hill tribes...although that was really disappointingly contrived for the tourist trade.

We had been trying to reach the Wilderness Lodge – we’d heard it was really nice and secluded, and, the German girls were supposed to be there. BUT, in that special way the universe has of working things out, we drove around Pai, searching for a guesthouse with "the perfect energy", we stumbled upon the Golden Bungalows, where – Dharma and Robbie were sitting "waiting" for us. They say they were sending us vibes to find them… spooky!

You'll notice that I did (however moral I try to be) climb on to the back of a poor defenseless elephant and let her cart me around for a couple of hours. Well, you have to draw the line somewhere and have SOME fun!

We did ride to the Wilderness Lodge for a night. It’s beautiful but terribly secluded – which would have been perfect if we’d brought some food! The restaurant there was outrageous! Imagine asking 2$ for a plate of rice and veggies!!! Spent a lovely evening on their swing overlooking a deep valley with a stream – watching faeries (fireflies actually) dance in the dark jungle.

Here in Chiang Rai there is a night market where we just had a disgusting overpriced meal… then we found the yummy cheap stuff – doh! Not much else here in Chiang Rai, really.

Tomorrow I do a VISA run... those of you who travel will know exactly what that entails... A little bribery, and a quick skip into a new country which gets you a pretty new stamp in your passport (so you can show your friends and say " look where I've been!"), and presto! 30 extra days in Thailand!!! I'll be going to the "Golden Triangle" where I will be able to see Burma, Laos and the MeKong River all from my little perch in Thailand.

Back from the N. Thailand adventure and in Bangkok AGAIN – ugh! Our lunch in Burma was interesting. It’s very… Indian there. This man was intent on trying to sell us "anything you like – good stuff". Everyone in Myanmar wanted to take us on a one hour tour of the country… we just went shopping and ate samosas (2 bhat each! =8 cents!).

We rode down to the "triangle" and had our photos taken where the Mekong joins the 3 countries. Very much a tourist trap – but exciting to see the river. The ride was strenuous but beautiful, many winding hills and jungles. I would recommend this mode of travel to ANYONE! . Chiang Mai was pretty uneventful our last day. We were a bit worried about our deposits on the bikes.. I "dropped" mine a couple times – oops! There were some pretty obvious scratch marks and dents but they gave us our money and we ran – YAY for us! We stayed in Mr. John’s guesthouse which is right next to Sarah’s which we didn’t like at all – the hospitality was terrible. At Mr. John’s we were treated much better – there was a very suspicious sweet smell wafting up from the room under us… I think it was opium – but I wouldn’t know, yet.

So, here we are in Bangkok, we’ve found the German girls again and we all went to Pat Pong. Pat Pong was an interesting experience. We all reacted quite differently to it. For those who aren’t aware, Pat Pong is the sex-tourist district. I’m told that you don’t know Thailand unless you’ve been to Pat Pong. I’m not sure about that, but I do know that you won’t find anything quite like it anywhere else. Pat Pong is about four closed-off streets with a night market down the center and bars on the sides. As you walk along the sidewalk or through the market, men and scantily clad women will forcibly try to drag or entice you into their establishments. Usually there is a "Menu" thrust under your nose with various "specialties" (eg: ping-pong show, blowing out candle show, laying eggs show) enthusiastically pointed out by the tout. There’s nothing sexy about what goes on at Pat Pong. These bars are not strip clubs, because there is no stripping. All the women are quite naked already. The draw, I suppose, is the "show". The women perform various "acrobatic" routines similar to the Ping-Pong trick from "Pricilla Queen of the Desert". That’s all I want to say about it at this time. I’m not sure what my audience is here…

The German girls were disgusted and upset… probably the most understandable reaction, Jon was grossed out, I was a bit bored, one of the other guys with us seemed to enjoy himself, and the other two guys seemed confused and uncomfortable. I tried to see it as an anthropological study, and it became more interesting. These women are doing quite well for themselves (relatively speaking) and most of them are supporting children. Some of them seemed alarmingly young however… and you were never quite sure which of these women was actually born female (guessing can actually be an interesting game though you never really know when you’re right).

I’ve met up with Sebastien again. He happened to run into a couple of friends he spent time with in Lake Toba (Sumatera) They’re really great girls. It’s a bit strange with Jon and Sebastien here. I’ve missed Seb a lot – he was like a brother in Aceh.So, I’m happy to see him. I’m going to miss Jon though, so I’ve got mixed emotions about the whole situation (ah, that emotional roller-coaster that’s all to familiar to travelers!)

Met this Ozzy guy called Wayne who’s studying Thai Massage… lucky for me, he happens to be looking for guinea pigs to practice on. He and I and the girls went to a Thai boxing (Muay Thai) match together. It was really cool.

I have just applied for my visa to India... so, it's set, if I get it, I'm on my way to India in the next two weeks.

HOW SCARY IS THAT???!!!

Ha! Here I am in Bangkok, waiting to get my visa to India, and I feel a bit strange about the whole thing. India is calling to me loud and clear. I really want to go. But.

And there's always a "but" isn't there...

Sebastien, the guy I was going with was beginning to weird me out a bit. My internal psycho -meter is blaring. He wants to go up into the mountains and my vision of India was of deserts. He was even talking about Kashmir... and well, I left Indonesia when I got a bad feeling about it, and now they're at war. I have a bad feeling about Kashmir, and about Sebastien's way of travel and in short, I've decided I should be patient and go to India when I feel like everything is perfect. This will most likely be next Christmas when I hopefully meet Erica there.

SO, Here we go again eh? I've been in turmoil... what to do next. I'm going to go to Laos for a while to get Bangkok out of my system. I'm sure I'll have some elaborate plan come to me in a dream. For now, that's my plan. I'll go to Laos and then to Chiang Mai where I remember seeing many advertisements for schools looking for teachers with my qualifications (ie: none).

Anyway, It'll be Thursday before I get all my visas in order and then I'm off to Laos.

I've finally got my ticket out of this pit called Bangkok!! It's really a fun city for a couple days but 2.5 weeks have gone by and I'm really tired of it here. The pollution wipes you out and the heat is unbearable sometimes... heat stroke is just a way of life here. (The upside is, it only takes one drink...)

So, I'm off on my own again to Laos, I take the bus tonight and arrive in the morning. This position is always exciting. In 24 hours I'll be in a new country with a new bunch of friends (hopefully!).

There! A little more concrete are my plans, no? (So many times Phantom Menace I've seen; like Yoda I speak!)

Hi all, I'm here and safe, just a quick one to let you all know.

On schedule and following my plan for a change… I’m in Luang Prabang, capital of Northern Laos. It’s strange that this is a French colony. I’ve eaten great baguettes and "vache qui rit" cheese… which is a real treat, believe it or not! Yesterday I went to the doctor to get some cream for a brand new fungus that’s appeared on my arm… (eeew!). For about 45 minutes I wandered around the hospital asking for a doctor who spoke English, only to have the poor nurses and orderlies run away shaking their heads and whimpering "no, no English… no!". Finally, it dawned on me. I said "y-a t’il un docteur francais??" and they happily took my hand and led me to the doctor’s office where I relayed my problem and got my prescription – all in French… of course.

When I arrived in Laos, sharing my bus was a Dutch guy named Richard who’s still with me now. He’s such a character! He’ s about 6 foot 6 and weighs about as much as I do. The little Asian beds and bus-seats are a real challenge for him! He gets pointed at and laughed at by kids and adults alike. He has this nasty habit of waking up screaming in the middle of the night, and falling out of bed. I must say, that I seriously doubted my internal psycho-detector after the first night in our shared room. You see, now is a good time to explain how traveling alone works…

Traveling alone is more expensive than traveling in groups, usually rooms are rented at a flat rate, regardless of how many are in them. So the more the better, obviously. SO, being a girl, I have to be sure to have a good internal psycho-detector. Often (as in the case of Richard…) I decide after a few moments whether I can trust someone enough to share accommodation. So, when I woke up to this giant in the bed next to mine screaming "Help help help!" at 4am, I was a little concerned… but surprisingly little. He’s a really funny guy – probably the most pleasant strange-person I’ve run into on my trip.

In Van Vieng, I celebrated Canada Day with two Canadian guys called Dave and Conrad, an Ozzy couple (brother and sister actually), a hilarious Swedish guy named Henrich who talked incessantly about China, and Richard. What a great night!

Here in Luang Prabang we’ve seen an incredible waterfall, walked almost all the way up to a temple –we were stopped by some guy who wanted money from us, had a steam bath and Swedish Massage, and eaten the best Indian food I’ve ever tasted. Richard has found Valium. I’m not sure if he’ll make it up north with us or not. I’ve met Jamie, Scottish and Jo, English who are going to head North with me to try to cross the Chinese boarder near Muong Singh, (opium capital of SE Asia).

Laos is amazing! It’s about as cheap as Indonesia, and if it weren’t for the fact th at there is no coastline, I’d like it just as much. This is how I imagined Thailand to be when I was still at home.

Just got back to Thailand from Laos and realize once again that I really dislike Thailand.

Oh well! Developing countries are more my style I think.

Laos is beautiful... not sure why I left come to think of it... I had 2 weeks left on my visa. Thailand depresses me a bit because of it's total consumer-based society. Lao was full of smiling happy people, Thailand is full of smiling merchants eager to get your hard earned bhat. Lao was very much like Indonesia without the beach... which still keeps Indonesia at #1 on my list for now. India looms in my future, it's calling me and I can feel its pull but I'm putting it off until I am completely financially, physically and spiritually fit to undertake it.

After leaving Luang Prabang we undertook the tedious journey to Muang Singh. I was sitting on a bag full of some sort of carcasses… chickens I think. The guy sitting next to me leaned over me and thew up out the window. We got stuck for a night in Udom Xai which is an eerie little place that would be nothing if it weren’t for the fact that people always get stuck there.

In Muang Sing we had a fabulous time, exploring and relaxing. I cycled to China with Jo, the English girl.. they didn't let us in. No surprise there, but they did let us walk on Chinese soil ! Oh-la-la!

Richard, Jo and I had a great day cycling through the tribal villages. We stopped and entertained a family of little girls in their home with magic tricks and photos. The people are so sweet outside of the main village, they don’t really know what cameras are, and so they are not bothered by photo-taking. In the village, on the other hand, you are constantly hounded by the hill-tribe ladies in all their costumes, trying to sell you their wares. They won’t allow you to take a photo unless you pay them. This kind of makes me sick. Obviously, tourists have bought them over at some point and they consider their image a marketable asset. Fair enough, but I’m not paying for it. Besides, it’s much nicker to go to the tribes yourself and see (and photograph) the real thing for free.

The opium trade is even bigger in Muang Singh than it was in Van Vieng. The dens are as you would imagine them… seedy. I wanted to take a photo but, sadly, I felt a bit awkward about it. I know you’re wondering… so I’ll tell you: opium goes for about 2000 kip/ pipe which works out to about 20 American cents. Three to five pipes is an evening’s worth.

Today has been hectic to say the least. We left Muang Sing by pickup truck and took a dirt/mud road to the Mekong river on the boarder of Myanmar (Burma). Our group was split in two because there was no room on the boat for all of us. My friends left on the first boat without me… I haven’t seen them since. Then we took a very scary speedboat journey down the Mekong to the Thai boarder, finally after crossing the boarder we got a "bus" to Chiang Rai, which is where I sit now... typing away into Saturday night because there's really nothing better to do.

Heading to Bangkok again to get my Cambodia visa. I'm planning to go for about one week only to see Anchor Wat. I've spoken with heaps of travelers who have done this journey and the biggest danger has been a bruised bum from the 10-hour pickup truck journey. Anchor Wat is one of the 7 wonders apparently. Maybe it will be a goal of mine to see them all.

Here in Bangkok, just long enough to get my Cambodia visa worked out. I’ve run into the Canadian boys, Dave and Con from Laos. We went out for a drink tonight, actually, it was a couple or a few (many) drinks… Sang Thip again… or was it Mekong whiskey? Regardless, it’s EVIL. It’s times like this that I crave my nice comfy bed at home, completely devoid of bedbugs, and other creepy crawlies. I’ve decided not to go to bed because my guesthouse is a scary little place that I’m sure will give me some sort of pest to carry with me … it’s really late or early, actually, I’ve got to catch the bus to Cambodia in about an hour. WOW! Cambodia. I’ve had too much to drink. But, I will try to relay the events of this evening, because it’s entertaining… to me at least.

Went for a drink (I think I mentioned…) with the Canucks and ran into Henrich, the Swedish guy from Laos, and also, Richard. Richard had a "funny" story to tell about getting a ride to the hospital in an ambulance. He apparently passed out in the train station in Chiang Mai, some guy put him on the train and an ambulance was waiting for him when he reached Bangkok. The hospital didn’t know what was wrong with him so they sent him back to the Kho Sarn Rd. where he ran into us. He was very pleased that he didn’t have to pay to get from the train station to the Kho Sarn. He spent most of the evening trying to decide whether to drink with us or not – he didn’t… against his better judgement. Anyway, it was a lovely little Canada Day reunion… although Henrich insists Canada day never happened… he doesn’t remember it at all…!

We’re sitting there drinking (did I mention…) and this guy comes up and talks to me… he knew my name and that I was from New Brunswick… I thought "ew, how creepy!" Then, he introduced himself and it turns out that we went to University together and he’s been in Bangkok ever since teaching English (and drinking apparently). The Captain, how strange. It’s a small world after all - la la la...

Then, the owner of our little drinking establishment attacked the owner of the one next door with a machete. And in retaliation, the "victim" hurled a chair at his aggressor. The wives were screaming, and trying to convince the patrons not to leave,we were nonplussed, and passers-by were indifferent. Eventually, things calmed down. We all went for a bite to eat, losing Henrich (Swedish guy who’s been to China) and Captain Ron along the way.

Outside of the 7-11, we met a lovely "Swedish" man who had a strong Russian accent. He was with his Thai wife and explained to me through tears that he had to send her off to do jiggy-jiggy for money when they first got married. He yelled at us and told us to get out of HIS Thailand, we are apparently ruining it with our drug smoking and parties (I could actually relate to him on this). Then he asked us for some drugs, and when we said we didn’t have any, he said "I hate you all, and if I find out you are Russian, I will kill you all!"  Finally, his antics were no longer entertaining to us so the boys went to bed and I came here to waste time before my bus – to Cambodia. WOW Cambodia.

At least I’ll sleep on the bus!

Hi, here I am safely back from WAR TORN CAMBODIA (imagine the CNN reporter ...).

Angkor Wat was magnificent though not the best of all the temples. It was, however the biggest and best preserved.I only spent a day at Angkor Wat itself, and it rained all day. Needless to say, I didn’t have a fair chance to explore it properly. There are some amazing features, like the carvingsaround the outside walls. These tell stories of ancient Hindu battles between the gods.

I had a strange encounter with a monk in Angkor Wat, however. I am hesitant to share the details here. Suffice it to say, I was hit-on quite shamelessly and consequently was slapped into the very harsh reality that monks are men too. To be fair, in many developing countries where money is short and education a privilege of the rich, boys will join a monastery simply to take advantage of the free education. These poor boys have no real desire to be monks and especially to take on all of the rules involved. What a sacrifice for learning!!

I spent most of my time exploring the other ruins (there are over 100 temples in the area) and fell in love with one called Ta Prohm. This temple was completely in shambles and surrounded by jungle. In many cases the trees had come bursting through the temple walls, their gigantic root-systems slithering through the rock and stone. It was inspiring to see Mother Nature "taking back" the land which is/was obviously so sacred to man as well. I couldn’t help  hoping (wishing) that in another 100 years somone would discover the Empire State Building in the same condition.

Cambodia is a very strange place. In order to explore the temples you have to hire a driver who will take you around on the back of his motorcycle. I think I mentioned earlier about my fear of BACKS of motorcycles… Than (Tan) was the name of my driver. He was fantastic. He drove really carefully and he sang traditional Cambodian songs as we drove along. He knew exactly what I would like most, and made up the perfect schedule for me. It seems to me that the Cambodians are extremely paranoid and over-helpful. Than would insist on driving me to dinner or to the market even though it was only a couple blocks away. They seemed nervous about you going out at night. There was always a guard posted beside the gate to the guesthouse all night.

Our days were spent exploring temples as Siem Reap has little else of interest. After exploring the temples for the day, we would return to the guesthouse and discuss theology… to the best of our broken English ability. Than laughed heartily when I tried to explain that "my" religion made "god" a mother figure and that she was everywhere: in the trees, the flowers, the geckos etc. He would occasionally point out any living thing and say "Look, it’s your god!" We tried desperately to get to a sunset that wasn’t clouded over. The sunset over Angkor is spectacular! Finally, on my last day I asked Than if he thought it would be a good sunset. He said it wouldn’t "Because, no sun". So I told him I’d ask my god to remove the clouds for one hour of sunset. I did this silly little dance around a shrine of flowers and a bug carcass and sang a verse of ‘Au Claire de la Lune’ (for the exotic touch). Then I proclaimed that there would be the perfect sunset. Within 2 hours the clouds had cleared above us (Whew! – how lucky is that?) Than of course, was speechless… but he laughed a lot.

Before I left he took my tape recorder into the bathroom with him (for the acoustics) and recorded three Cambodian songs for me.

Nights were spent drinking and chatting with my new friends: Heleen from Sweden, Marc (who’d been in Laos), Dan from Russia, and three Oxford – English lads.

The beggars around Angkor are a testament to the fact that there remain a fair number of land mines in the area. Everywhere are people with limbs or eyes missing, asking for a dollar.

All along the road are bridges that have somehow fallen (or blown up). At these bridges, there are usually "out of work" Khmer Rouge officers armed with AK47’s ready to help you across by placing planks down and directing you over them. All for a nominal fee of course. Sometimes, these ex-officers will just stand in the middle of the road and demand money to let you pass without "incident". The truck drivers are all pretty used to this, and they have a stash of small change ready to hand out at each "checkpoint". I must admit, the first time was a bit frightening…

Next, The Bridge over the River Kwai for a few days with my new Russian friend

I'm in Chiang Mai again just for a few days to check out the teaching situation more fully. Kanchanaburi was interesting and beautiful. We cycled around for a day in the rain and of course, visited the Bridge over the River Kwai. It’s obviously been restored (a few times) since it was blown up.

We returned to Bangkok and met up with the Canadian boys Dave and Con, again! We decided to take Dan to PatPong for a real Bangkok initiation. He met a nice "girl" in one of the bars who took to him quite nicely too. I am embarrassed to say that once again, I became somewhat inebriated. It would seem to be a consequence of running into Dave and Con… Hm.

Dan left me to go to Laos, he missed his bus though and so I decided to come up as far as Chiang Mai with him. We had good fun here shopping and motorbiking around. Once again, we had to make a quick getaway from the rental place, as we had dropped the bike quite badly and scratched it "a little". We saw a nice temple on a hill and had a wonderful dinner out together (big splurge- thanks Dan!). I’ve been having trouble eating though, because of my most recent … acquisition (see photo). Dan has been very patient with me while I recover. The pain, as he will tell you – is unbelievable! He had his ear pierced and hasn’t moaned once about it… what a hero!

Dan’s left for Laos now, so I’m pretty much on my own again. Back to Bangkok to catch a flight… HOME.