Feb 18. Siem Reap, Cambodia. Caught an early bus to Siem Reap home of the Angkor ruins. When I arrived I ran into some South African girls I had met in Phnom Penh. We agreed to meet up for drink and discuss splitting a Tuc Tuc for the next days ride around the ruins. At their guest house I ran into Tom who I hung out with at 4,000 islands (Don Det, Lao). Got a few drinks and heard about every ones travels. Off to bed early so I can get up for the 5am ride to sun rise @ the ruins.

Feb 17. Phnom Penh. Rented a moto bike and driver. Stopped first at Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21). Caught the 10am video about S-21 and the killing fields. Very power full experience and somber start to the day. I split my shorts during the bus ride yesterday so I stopped at the Russian market and got some new digs. Next up the National museum. Forgot to pay the entrance fee but I didn't feel bad. Not worth my time. The Palace turned out to be closed until 1pm so I got some lunch and checked out the Mekong river side. Checked out the Palace after it opened up. The highlight was a replica of Angkor Wat and a gold and diamond encrusted Buddha. Happy pizza.

Feb 16 - Laos to Cambodia. Left Pakse today for a marathon bus ride to Cambodia. Almost missed the bus and earned a morning jog up and down 4 flights of stairs. A mini bus took me too the Laos border. Which closed a few years ago when Laos stopped offering visas on arrival from Cambodia. Here we got stamped for exit and changed mini bus to a over capacity mini van. Plus an unofficial stamp fee. Next stop the new Cambodian border crossing. Here we change mini's again then pay for our visas and extra unofficial stamp fees and charges. The rest of the ride to Strung Treng I had a little Laos guy sitting on my lap due to the cramped bus. We shared fish chips. Got on a bigger bus with even less seats for everyone in Strung Treng. Found Bjorn from my trek in Luang Prabang sitting on the bus. We regretfully shared a seat. He's about 6'5" so between me and him we didn't even get close to fitting in the tiny seats. It would have been ok if leg room existed in the isle. Unfortunately a group of drunk English guys were passed out there. Finally the trip ended at Bueng Kak lake in Phnom Penh. Got a cheap room some dinner and passed out.

Feb 15 - Coffee served us breakfast of pastries and fresh fruits. After what seemed like a dozen cups of coffee we headed to the first farm. Coffee taught us the fine details between Farm trade and Fair trade. The methods of coffee production and plant productivity, natural fertilizers and much much more. After the farms and nursery we headed back to the coffee shop to hand roast our own beans. This was the most exciting part to me. We got to cook the beans in a wok then taste them all afternoon. When the sun was getting ready to start falling we left for Pakse to return of already late bike rentals. About a mile out of town my front brake locked up. The only way we could get the brake to release was open the bleeder valve and manually open the brake. So I rode home with no front brakes but at least the brake wasn't rubbing the rotor. When we got to Pakse we returned the bikes and retrieved our bags and passports before they found anything wrong with my bike. I've heard horror stories about getting over charged for problems with motor bikes. Close call.

At night we meet up with the Belgians, Curt and Tom. Bought a bottle at the Pakse Hotel which has a great 360 deg view of the city. Stayed till closing time and moved to the hotel. Said our good byes, in the morning we all head our separate directions.

Feb 14 - Continued the ride to Paksong today. Even longer stretch of dirt road then the second day. I ended up being covered from head to toe in road dirt. Great views from the road and no mishaps today. Got coffee in Paksong from a guy named "Coffee" who runs tours of the plantations and coffee production. Decided to take his tour the next day and also convinced some Belgians who showed up to come along. The 6 of us got dinner at a local restaurant. Just about cleaned them out of Beer Lao before the end of the night.

Feb 13 - Continued on to Tad Hua Khon. Good long stretch of dirt roads today. At some point I hit a pot hole and laid out my bike. Didn't get hurt at all but it sheered of the front brake handle. Got that fixed in the next town for a mere 3 dollars. The Lao guys had that bike apart and back together is just a few minutes. After arriving we went for a swim in the waterfall and enjoyed the secluded nice guesthouse.

Feb 12 - Finally decided its time to leave this amazing island getaway. Time to take a motorbike trip into the Bolaven plateau with Jake and Kristine. After arriving via mini bus in Pakse we rented motorbikes and left for Tat Lo. Tat Lo is a waterfall and village with guesthouse accommodations. Found a great place with a view of the water and eat a big dinner. Then headed to the high class Tat Lo Lodge for desserts and wine.

Feb 10 - Went for a morning run with Kristine. Rented a bike again to checkout more of the falls and beaches on the islands. Eat/drank my first coconut. At least that I can remember having ate. Later we collected wood to have a bonfire on an island. Ended up being to much work to find a boat driver. Watched sunset from an island and swam back after dark. Eat some food with Mama and family. Usually you don't eat at Mama's unless you have several hours available to wait. Food always good though!

Feb 8 - 9.
Spent two solid days doing nothing. I read, I swam, I went to a bonfire and I ran into Melodie who I met in Vang Vieng.

Feb 7 - Went to breakfast and eat with Chen. Swam out to some islands for a morning workout. Ended up getting uninvited sit-up lessons from a some old German guy. Turns out he was actually there to play Frisbee with some friends so I tossed the bee for a while. Spent most of the day reading a book in between swims. Ended up finishing my book and trading for "Off The Rail". Its about to Australians that bike across Russia.

Saw a bunch of mullet dreadlocks today. Anyone know what the deal is with that? I saw a few in Seattle but WTF?

Meet Chris, Jake and Kristine from California and Minnesota that stay at the same guest house. Then I found Tom to go get a world famous Don Det pumpkin burger.

Feb 6 - Awoke to a great sunrise over the Mekong and islands. Before it got hot out I ran the perimeter of the island. Ran into the Swedish couple I climbed with and a couple other people I meet in Vang Vieng. Got a great breakfast with Chen and Tom at the cafe Rouge then moved my stuff to "Mama's" place on the sunset side of the island. Two reason for the move. 1. Closer to all the action on the island which isn't much. 2. The swimming is better. Rented a bike for the day and rode to the island of Don Kon and the waterfall and beaches. Later went to dinner with the Tom & Chen as well my climbing buddies Hanna and Martin. Chen lead us in a Jewish prayer to start the Shabbat. Ended the night with Reggae bar.

Feb 5 - On the road again. This time to Si Phan Don (4000 islands). Took a ferry ride on the Mekong to the island of Don Det. While trying to find a hip bungalow I met Tom who was looking for a room as well. We found a nice place with cheap rooms on the sunrise side of the island. The place is a bit far from the town area so we decided to walk around the island in search of more ideal accommodations for tomorrow. The whole loop is probably 3 miles. Afterward went to dinner with two Germans Tom knew and Chan a pretty Israeli girl. For after dinner drinks the Reaggee bar is the only real option. So I hit that up with the Germans until the islands generator power shuts off at 11pm.

Feb 4 - Headed across the Mekong from Champasak today to an island called Don Deange. At first the people seemed nice and I got the usually hello from everyone. I rode the perimeter of the island which amounts to about 12 miles. During the ride my bike pedal fell off. Nothing a little sports tape couldn't fix. Then the begging kids started. First they would demand money then pens for school work. I don't mind donating pens to a school. I think it's a great idea. But don't give them to the kids! They get the idea that all foreigners own pen factory's and give out samples from bikes. On my trek in Luang Prabang Cathy and Scott brought books for the school. The guide said you always give a gift like that to the village leader. So follow that example and give your pens to the students teacher. After that experience a local guy started following me around asking for money because his rice crop is dry. I informed him that it is the dry season in South East Asia and all the crops that are not irrigated are dry. He stopped following me after that. By this point I was ready to leave when some kids road by on bikes. I decided to chase them down and started a race around the island with the kids how were just getting out of school. My bike pedal completely disintegrated so I had to head back to Champasak.

Feb 3 - Moved on to Champasak. Took a fury across the river with a guest house owner. Seemed like a nice guy, always laughing. Turned out he runs a great operation so I got a room. Next I headed to the Wat Phu ruins. The road is a solid 45 minute bike ride which seemed to take forever on an ancient fixed gear bike. To start off I viewed the little museum they have set up. The exhibit kept mentioning the Linga. So I asked a girl who worked there. She got all embarrassed and didn't really answer my question. Turns out to mean phallus. So that's why she was giggling. The Ruins were neat but I hear nothing compares to Angkor Wat. On my way back to town I took the back roads. Little kids always yell "Saba di!" or hello as you ride by. Spent the night planning my trip in Cambodia.

Feb 2 - Showed up in Pakse to late to watch the super bowl. Turns out no one had the game in Pakse anyways. Found a guesthouse and rented a motorbike. I wanted to take the bike up into the hills. Ended up seeing a few small waterfalls and some local swimming holes. People had mention finding neat villages in the hills but I didn't have any luck. Went to my first Laos 7-11. Turns out once you leave the tourist areas pricing is completely different for locals. The smallest bill I'd used was 1000. They lady behind the counter didn't know what to do so I just rounded up the bill. I think she said something about foreigner not being allowed to shop there.

Did some joy riding around the city before returning my bike. Took a few photos and was reminded of how much the tourists in Luang Prabang could get on my nerves. This was one of my reasons for heading south. It seemed to me that hordes of amateur photographers swarmed that city and got in the locals faces a bit much. Especially the Buddhist monks. Pakse was devoid of that kind of tourism.

Feb 1 - Long day of bus rides. From Vang Vieng to Vientiane was a regular bus. From Vientiane to Pakse is a sleeping bus. This was my first sleeping bus ride. I had no idea what to expect. How it works is you get a to share a little sleeping area with another guy. I figure each person gets a sleeping area about 5"11 long and width just smaller then my shoulders. I felt bad for the poor Australian who had to sleep next to me. I woke up drooling on his pillow a few times. Not to mention the one speaker that worked on the bus was directly over my head. The driver had it cranked to the max so he could here the music. After he refused to turn it down I rigged up book over the speaker in an attempt to muffle the Thai pop. He was kind enough to turn the music off between midnight and 5am.

Jan 31 - Back on the rocks! I've been wanting to climb again ever since I left Tan Sai. Vang Vieng is known for its lime stone walls that compare in difficulty and quality to Krabi. The main differences I found are the routes tended to be shorter. The rocks are sharper and less polished since less people climb there. And the views once you get up aren't of the ocean and beaches. During the day I made friends with Flow and a Swedish couple. To end the climb we went up a route that had just been made by one of the local guides. I was lucky enough to be the third person to climb it. It was cool to see how sharp the fresh rock can be. Also the weak rocks are still breaking off the wall so your hand or foot hold might just disappear.

Got dinner later by myself and was joined by some Welsh guys and a French girl. Turned out I had heard about them earlier on my trip from other travelers. Small world. Long story short, very entertaining dinner.

Purchased a ticket to Pakse for an afternoon departure.

Met up with my climbing buddy Flow for a drink. Went to Smile Bar and met Flows friend Melodie. Learned a bit about French culture over drinks.

Jan 30 - Missed rock climbing since I still felt ill and hadn't much sleep. Took my daily malaria pill and felt even worse. Side note: its cheaper to buy pills in Bangkok than the states so wait to buy them if you go to South East Asia. Took it easy all day with plenty of nap time.

Jan 29 - Hopped on a bus back to Vang Vieng. I've decided to head back south eventually landing in Cambodia. As soon as I arrived in town I headed for the tubing. This time with no tube and the intention of trying all the swings and madness. Had a good time swimming around and drinking some cold beer. Two things only Laos would encourage doing at the same time. Later I signed up for rock climbing on the 30th. In the evening I played pool with some Brits. I awoke in the night sick as a dog. Wretched my guts out till sunrise. I think bad food again. No more street vendors for me...

Jan 28 - Time to hike out of the woods. On the way we passed through another village and eat some lunch. While there we ran into another trekking group. It turns out the areas aren't that remote and roads seemed to lead to all the villages. That aside it was a great experience. After we got to the road a few of us checked out the river and watch some gold panning on the banks. By the end of the trip our group Cathy & Scott, Kelly & Tim, Bjorn and I all got to know each other. In the evening we got together for a drink at a rare (in Laos) wine bar.

Jan 27 - Left early for two days of hiking to some hill tribes. The guide and guide trainee did a great job leading the group of 6 through the woods. Our first stop was lunch. A great selection of Laos food laid out on a banana leaf. Next we headed to the first village Mon(sp?) people. Afterward we hiked farther to another village. Where we meet some kids who taught our trekking group how to play a bad mitten like game. You use your hands to hit a birdie. Which is made of feathers tied with woven leafs. Then you try and volley with the kids. After play time we headed to the top of a hill for the sunset. Some village kids came to meet us and help navigate the slick hill side. In the evening we rested with another good meal and some "Lao Lao" or homemade rice whiskey.

Jan 26 - Rented a Bicycle again today. Made plans to take a two day hill tribe trip with Green Discovery while cruising around. Leave tomorrow @8:30am. Got interested in going to a good ride to get some much needed exercise so I headed to the mountains near by the city. Found a dirt road that looked like fun and took the little fixed gear bike to the top. I must look funny on it since all the bikes here are designed for shorter people. The views were not spectacular but I had fun. The wheels were so out of true going down the mountain that they looked like they might just fall apart. Oh and the brakes didn't barely work. Oh and the road was under construction. The Beer Laos I got at Tee's restaurant afterwards was spectacular. Took some pictures of the night market and the sun setting behind clouds over the Mekong river.

Jan 25 - Rented a bike looking for a waterfall that Lee told me about. Ended up not able to find it. Something got lost in the language barrier and no maps show it. Ended up getting sick of drunk college student and left for Luang Prabang by mini bus. Meet a Laos guy on the bus Bodnthanh. He claimed to be a teacher and headed to his house in Luang Prabang. He spoke some English so he practiced and taught me some Laos. He invited me to dinner at his house. I figured it could either be awful or a great experience with some Laos people. Turns out he wanted a free tuc tuc ride to his Sisters place. Who apparently didn't want him there because he's a rice whisky drunk. When he started asking me for money I high tailed wave down a taxi. Got to town and found a guest house with the help of Tee a local kid who runs a restaurant in town.

Jan 24 - Rented a bicycle to be mobile while checking out some local caves. On my way around I got to see the surrounding mountains better. Also got to check off seeing rice patties from my list of things to do. Turns out this is a bad time of year to go rice patty watching. Since they dry up and brown this time of year. The caves are great here. You can walk every where with out restriction. No safety measures at all. I had fun exploring with other cavers first time I've meet people I couldn't see first. On my ride back to town I meet Lee a nice Laos girl that invited me to lunch with her and friends. My first taste of truly Laos food. Much spicyer & more lively then the Laos food at restaurants in town. Lee got to practice her English skills for a while. I tried to pick up some Laos word and phrases. Spent the rest of the night on the Internet updating this blog - 40,000 Kip -

Also found out what the happy menu is all about. The rumors are true...

Jan 23 - Vientiane appeared not to have to much to do so I didn't stay long. For some reason I didn't feel like touring the typical sights there. Took a taxi to the bus station and headed to Vang Vieng. It took 4 hours. The road was not bad but no foreigners wanted to chat. After arrival I headed into town to find a guesthouse. Which was easy since people seem to come and go from here often. All I've heard about Vang Vieng is tubing tubing tubing. All the traveler i talked to are right. Buckets of rice whiskey for a 1$, 20oz Beer Laos 1$, zip lines, slides and swings. How it works is you rent a tube and get a ride to the "start" of the river trip. Then you stop at all the bars along the way. 6 or 8 bars I think. I went to the ones with the best activity. I liked the swings. After you pass the bars that are all in the first 1km the river trip goes for another 2km down the river. I found it to be cold, slow and shallow. The first km was much better. Afterward I got dinner and watched friends episodes. Most restaurants in town have a TV show playing non stop all day. Later checked out the local scene at Smile Bar.

Jan 22 - Woke up after a tough night of sleep. All I could dream about was someone stealing my stuff so I kept waking up. One of the guys who worked on the train didn't help. He had police tearing through peoples packs looking for his hat. Which he ended up having misplaced. When I got off the train I headed for an ATM for one last try. No luck. So I went to a Bangkok bank and got cash from my credit card. I had to sign my life away and give them a copy of everything but a birth certificate and finger prints. It didn't help that I was sweaty from the long search for the bank and nervous that they wouldn't do it. I finally got to the boarder with Laos just across the friendship bridge. Got there just in time for the Laos border police lunch break. So I chatted with every foreigner I could find to pass the time. Short taxi ride to Vientiane. Nice little city. The people seem super friendly. The food was great and cheap. And Beer Laos is one of the best beers I've had! Its the only choice in Laos for a reason. Had a long talk with a Buddhist monk while wandering the city. Also got a hold of USAA and my debit card is working! Thanks for the help Mom.

Jan 21 - In the morning I took a bus to the train station and left my baggage with the left baggage people. Whom tried to get in my bag at some point during the day with no success. Due to my nifty pack safe device. I recommend a pack safe to anyone traveling with valuable gear (camera's, climbing gear, etc). One of the experiences I wanted to have in Bangkok was to ride the Subway and Sky train system around the city. So I went to a couple different park close to the train stops. On the way I stopped at MBK a hug shopping mall. I wanted to get a polarizing lens for my camera. Turned out my debit card still wasn't working and i hadn't brought my credit card with me. In the end I got a polarizer but the cheapest one I could find.

Got on the sleeper train to Nong Khai headed for Loas. First time on a sleeper train riding second class. Got the top bunk with very unsocial lady below me. A few Aussie got drunk into the night. I had to conserve baht till the debit thing got worked out.

Jan 20 - Took the early morning slow boat to Ranong with Jit and Rob. The island has spotty internet access and no ATM just a money exchange with hefty fees. I didn't bring enough dough so Rob loaned me a few baht. When we got to Ranong I found out my debit card no longer worked. So I exchanged some US dollars to pay rob back and get me on by a few days while I work this out. Before I left for South East Asia I warned USAA (my bank) that I would be in Thailand, Loas and Cambodia. Then before I left I called again just to make sure. Didn't work. The important part is decided to stay in Bangkok for the night to deal with the bank thing. Initally I was to catch the night train Loas direct from the airport.

Caught a plane to Bangkok and got a room near Th Khao San. Played some ping-pong and had a few drinks at Khao San the world famous backpacker hangout. When the 13 hour time difference from my bank enabled me to call I did so(9:30pm here). Which did not end up working for my debit card but I found out later that my credit card worked.

Jan 19 - Morning run and swim. Got done just in time for American football. This is when all the Americans on the island gather at the one bar in town with satellite TV and watch a replay of the 3am game around noon. Turned out three of the fans are from upstate New York like myself. Good game, I've already forgot who played. But they are going to the super bowl. Good for them. Went to dinner with some more of Robs's friends. Had fresh caught fish with Thai food at a private party. Afterwards jungle party on the beach where we play volleyball. I think everyone on the island turned out. It was great.

Jan 18 - Went with Rob on a morning beach run. Finally realized how out of shape I've gotten traveling. Going to have to hit it hard when I get back to the states. Later after some morning yogart and muesli I cruised the island looking for more beaches and some landscape photo's. Hangout with Robs girlfriend a bit Jit (means spirit) is great. Thai's tend to have names with similar types of meanings are Native Americans. She was nice enough to do my laundry. Thanks Jit! In the evening I played volleyball with the local pro's. I had no idea I was that bad at volleyball. Beach bums take it seriously.

Jan 17 - Moved into Rob's place. He's house sitting for a friend and has plenty of floor space. Rob took me around on his motor bike and showed me the high lights of town. Lots of great hidden coves with small beaches and great snorkeling. I found out that you can't breath salt water today. First time snorkeling in a long while. Today I got to meet some more of Rob's friends. One of whom is Rich a bar owner in need of some pirate flags from the states. The one flying over his bar was brought over by a Gila hotshot a few years back and is in need of replacement. I've emailed Alex who's headed to Phayam in February about acquiring a new flag or two. After the island tour I rented a motor bike for the next three days so I can cruise the beaches on my own.

Jan 16 - Ko Phayam - First things first you can spell Ko Payam any way you want. It seems to not matter. I got a free ride from the hotel owner who was so happy to have his first customer. Got a morning ferry ticket on the slow boat. When they say slow they mean sllooooooooooowwww. First we got shuttled via Toyota hilux truck bed to the ship yards due to low tide. The dock workers were cleaning shell fish which was great to take pictures of. Waited several hours here for the boat. Then road the boat for a good 3 hours. Took almost all day to get to an island that is reached via speed boat in 30 minutes. Met a guy on the boat who recommended the Joker bar as place to stay. While at the bar that night I met a guy who is friends with Rob and called Rob's girlfriends cell phone. Since I didn't bother to tell Rob I was coming he was caught off guard. Rob came down to the bar for a few minutes and I got to meet his girlfriend Jit.

Jan 15 - Ranonge Province - Good time to leave Tan Sai. I figure I can recover during the bus ride north to visit fellow Gila hotshot Rob in Ko Phayam. I didn't want to leave since I meet good people and was having a blast climbing, kayaking and sun bathing. One thing I noticed is small wounds heal very slowly here and tend to get infected fast. Climbing is a great way to get cut up. Anyways, long boat to Ao Nang, Bus to Krabi, Bus to Ranonge. Meet some great people on the bus rides. Wish I had meet them while still around Railey. Found a brand new hotel that just opened. I was their first guest. Only 250 Baht I got AC, my own bathroom, great bed and a TV. At night I explored the streets. Not much of a night life.

Jan 14 - sick as a dog - Rock climbed again with a different guide "Dee". Out of Tansai Rock. He seemed a bit hungover or maybe high. But he let me climb challenging routes all day. Which is hard for the guide since I'm not a lead climber they have to go up first. I cut my day short. Something with my guts wasn't right. By dark I was puking in my bungalow. As I was laying around trying to rest it off I could hear other people puking. I figure it was bad food at the resort.

Jan 13 - Long boat adventures - Got coffee at the best shop in Railey. Made plans with Ten to rent a long boat for the day and beach hop. Due to the full moon tides are extreme and beaches get bigger. Some even have sand bars that connect only during the full moon. Rough seas today rumors of a storm out at sea. Hit up Chicken island among others. Swam off the boat out at sea which was fun. Lots of fish swimming with me. Also found a tree hammock which was a good chill spot for a while. Waited to long to get back to the boat and had to walk on sharp rocks due to low tide.

Jan 12 - Climbing - Tried out a new climbing guide since Joe was booked. Wee Climbing School and guide Nan. Fellow climbers included a guy from Spain who had a good amount of experience. He ended up teaching me more then the guide. We climbed Panange Beach wall and crawled through a cave and belayed down to Railey East. Worked on getting up 6a and 6b climbs. Got dinner & drinks with Mel and Ten.

Jan 11 - Railey - Explored the Lagoon in Railey today that is hidden down a rough trail in the center of the island. Took 3 hours down and back. With some stops for view points and chill time at the lagoon. Meet some people on the hike but very few. Most wouldn't brave the tough hike. Turns out I'll run into one of the people I meet a week later on Phayam. Walked a jungle trail from Railey to Hat Tan Sai. and spent a couple hours with a book on the beach.

Jan 10 - Full Moon Party - Kayaked all day with Mellisa and Ten (Austin TX). Ten is part Thai so everywhere he goes locals ask "are you from Thai?". During the Kayak trip we checked out island caves and a beach called Poda. Poda is few km away but seems farther then the sea are rough! Mellisa stepped on a Sea Erchant(sp?). The Thai solution was to pee in a bottle for her and pour it on the wound. Mel said it worked and the Thai's got a good laugh. Meet some fellow kayakers who took a long boat back from Poda. Turns out they had no water or money and were afraid to ask us for help. Bummer. Full moon tonight so everyone was out partying. Live music, dancing and fire!

Jan 9 - Hat Tan Sai - Left from Ao Nang beach on a long boat. Long search for a room on Tan Sai. Everything was booked solid until people left around 11am. I found a place that would hold my bags and a room if one opened up. That freed me for some rock climbing. I got a signed up for a class with On The Rocks. My guide was Joe with fellow climbers Melissa(Spain) and Guro(Singapore). Climbed two walls "1,2,3" and Railay west. When to dinner and drinks with my new climbing buddies. I'm finding slack rope walking and fire dancing very popular on the beach @ night.

Jan 8 - Krabi - Only took an hour to fly into town. Took a bus to Ao Nang. I figured that last boats to my final destination Tan Sai beach had left for the night. Little did I know you can charter a long boat at anytime... Anyways, I got a room in Ao Nang which is a very touristy beach packed full of European vacationers. I took pictures of moneys as the sun set over the ocean.

Jan 7 - Ko Kret - I found a little island with no cars in my guide book. It looked like a nice break from the city so I took a local bus for 5 baht to Pak Kret and a 5 minute ferry to the island. Ko Kret is known for its Mon people who in turn are know for their pottery. The island had cement walk ways that encircled the perimeter of the island. Lots of cool Wat's. Let in the afternoon for Bangkok. Decided to hit up Wat Pho which is home to the famous reclining Buddha. Took my first Tuc Tuc ride (three wheeler). It was great! Purchased a plan ticket to Krabi for the 8th. Only 2300 baht last minute! Krabi is in the south of the country on the Andaman Sea or West side of the country.

Jan 6 - Bangkok - Didn't sleep well last night. Still dealing with 12 hours of jet lag. Did a little calisthenics in my hotel room to wake up. Nice rooms for the equivalent of 13USD$. Shared bathroom with a fan in the room. Today I did some sight seeing. Saw the Emerald Buddha and Grand Palace. Checked out the famous backpacker ghetto Th Khao San. Walked a ton and in the process picked up a knock off Lowe Pro bag for my camera and to act as a day pack.

Bubba, a fellow Gila hotshot recommended that I buy everything when I get to Bangkok. He is right, do it! Cloths and everything else are cheap. You can get anything you need and its fun to bargain with the Thai people. Next time its just me and my camera.

I'm slowly learning some Thai words and phrases like hello and thank you. I can think in terms of Baht most of the time. Also, I'm figuring out the toilets here...

First impressions? Smoggy, noisy, touristy at times and I think I'm going to get sick of Wat's (Buddhist temples).

Jan 5th? - I think this day got lost in the Pacific Ocean somewhere. I get it back on my way home Feb 26. 54 days later? Something like that...

Jan 4 - Stayed up all night and got to see Chris and Fiona for a few hours before I took a late night train from Queens to JFK airport. When I arrived at the airport there was a quarter mile line at the security screener... I didn't panic since I had too hours until my departure. Then American Air lines informed me that I was staying in Thailand too long without the proper visa. Which is true but shouldn't be a problem or so I thought. They refused to issue my tickets. At this point I got pushed to the back of another line and I started to panic a little. They decided to issue my ticket to LAX and let Asiaona Air deal with me. Situation getting better. I arrived at LAX and had to got through security again. No problems with getting my tickets this time. However, I set my watch back 2 hours instead of 3. So I rushed to the departing gates with only minutes to spare. I got this strange look from the representative before we realized my mistake. On the flight to Soul, South Korea I meet a Dylan from LA. He's been going to Thailand for a while and gave me some tips. One of which was to get a room in Bangkok during the layover in Soul. Arriving at around 2am and looking for a room is no fun. On arrival in Bangkok I split a cab with Dylan. He showed me how to bargain with cab drivers and Thai people in general. Proved to be very important! Now I'm in a world where 1 US dollar = 35.2 Thai Baht. BRILLIANT!

Jan 3 - I'm in NYC planning my travels. The idea is to stay vague with just a few set plans. By doing that I have the flexibility to stay in one place the whole trip or just travel everyday to a new town. I have a feeling that I'll do a combination and be drawn to places other travelers recommend. I'm bringing two Lonely Plant guide books "Thailand" & "Vietnam, Cambodia, Loas & Greater Mekong". Another must do during my travels is pack light and stay light. Here is my inventory. All of which fit into a day pack size bag.

Inventory: Passport & copies of important documents, notebook, security wallet, 3 zip lock baggies, Compass, ImodiumA-D, Floss, Q-tips, nail clippers, tooth brush & paste, eye drops (no more contacts!), first aid, iodine, bug spray, sunglasses, pack towel, 2 pair socks, 1 shirt, 1 shorts, 1 pants, 2 trash bags, head lamp, tons of camera gear(canon 5D, 24-70L F/2.8), shoes, flip flops, novel, stuff sack, dry bag, pen.

I had decided not to keep my blog while traveling. Yet here I am changing my mind. Pictures will still have to wait. Its just to time consuming and I don't have my computer with photoshop and stuff to edit images. Here it goes! When I'm done I'll post how mush Kip (Laos$$$) this cost.

Crab Camp 2008. The legendary event that takes place in Newport OR. Home to the Rogue brewery and temporarily a bunch Gila IHC's, Hotshots, friends and girlfriends. Unfortunately the seas were to rough while I was there for crabbing off the boat. Instead we opted for crabbing off the pier. If you want to know more about Crab Camp you'll just have to go next year and find out!

Brief visit to the North Cascades. Thanks to Andy who picked me up in Seattle and put me up. We tried a hike but ran into snow deeper than we wanted to post hole through. The clouds rolled in and very fully burned off during the day. However, Andy knows the area well enough to still find some good views. Next time I'll visit in the summer or fall and bag some peaks in the national park.

Seattle city streets.

Recently I traveled to Seattle to visit friends Laura and Rob. Thanks for putting me up! I walked the city for a couple days getting used to my new camera and figuring out what I need to bring to Thailand.

The cider lives on! With only one gallon of hard cider left from batch one its time to consume for Christmas. Luckily another 5 gallons are in the works. You can see in the one picture how clear the cider gets once the solids settle out.

More turning! Two more bowls complete. Just yesterday I cracked a walnut bowl in half just as I was getting ready to sand. Grandpa thinks we can fix it. I'm not as optimistic but its worth a try.

Its snowing in New York. I'm still thawing out from a jog to the YMCA.

Check out this link about President Elect Obama's stance on wildfire management.

www.barackobama.com/pdf/issues/Fact_Sheet_Wildfire.pdf

Bubbles are rising! The yeast is working on making alcohol after only two days. Hard cider is almost ready to be racked. That is when I get the sludge out of the bottom of the jugs. I guess that will be time for a first taste test. With luck it will be ready for thanksgiving.

In other news... My new thing is splitting wood. Its fun and I get to use my chainsaw on occasion. Also a great time to listen to bluegrass. Its just fitting.

Other new thing: Rowing at the Pittsford rowing club. They have indoor tanks for rowing practice. Dad and I go Tuesday and Saturday.

Keep up the PT. Fire season is never far away. Run, lift, Row, bike, chop and swim.

First wood bowl! Thanks to Grandpa Feather's instruction/lathe and Dad's finishing technique its complete. It took a few hours but here it is. You can see the worm holes which create some character. The wood type is Cherry. Images of my next bowl will be posted shortly!

Hard Cider. My friends at BFA brewery inspired me to do some food science. After awkwardly buying 5 gallons of apple cider in old glass jugs I've began my own brewery. Mom Passmore who conveniently has a BS in food science has helped me get started. Thus far 2 pounds of sugar and a small amount of wine yeast have been added and mixed in too assist in the fermentation process. Will it be drinkable???