Birthday in Thailand

This morning I wake up to some sort of animal chewing at the trail mix in my room. I hike down to the beach and climb Schlingel Moritz 6A in Dum's Kitchen. Afterwards we meet up with the rest of the crew at Yum Yums and spend the morning eating tuna melts, potato wedges, drinking shakes, and playing sudoku. Afterwards I go to The Nest and climb Banana Hammock 6A with Cindi and Britney. After climbing I meet up with Kristina and she treats me to a 1hr thai massage. It's a full body affair with deep stretching. I feel amazing afterwards. We meet the crew at Tina's restaurant and have another feast: spring rolls, onion rings, shrimp curry with young coconut, shrimp pad thai, mint chili chicken, masaman, and beer.



After dinner we chill out on the beach and drink a bucket of sang som (thai whiskey), red bull, and juice. It's been a great birthday in an incredibly exotic place and with really great friends.

Rockclimbing again

I'm staying in a private bungalo that's pretty rustic but has all the basic amenities: bed, mosquito netting, lights and electricity, toilet, shower (cold water), and sink. All for 300B a night ($10). After breakfast Kristina introduces me to all of her climber friends, and we hike over to Railay to climb at Diamond Cave.
It's been 2 years since I've climbed so I get back into things slowly with a couple 5's (french grading system), and a 6A (Keep the Jam, Man). I'm a bit rusty and it'll take a few days to develope my lead climbing skills again.



After showering at the bungalo back in Tonsai, we meet for dinner to celebrate Jodi's birthday. It's my birthday tomorrow so it's a kind of double bill. I band together with all the vegetarians and we share our dishes. We have a huge feast of steamed rice, tofu salad, red curry, green coconut curry, yellow noodles, sizzling seafood hotplate, curry seafood in a pinapple, and I get a pineapple banana coconut shake. The food is amazing and cheap (about $3 per person) and I'm stuffed. Kristina brings out a banana cake and we sing happy birthday to Jodi. After dinner we go down to the beach and and drink beers in the cool ocean breeze.


from left: Derek, Curtis, Cindi, Jodi, Gary, Alex, Kristina, Me, Michelle, and Britney.

Ao Ton Sai

Today I fly from Hong Kong to Bangkok and then to Krabi and catch a taxi to Ao Nang.



I go through the taxi service at the airport and the cost is 600 Bhat ($20). In the cab I pull out my Lonely Planet Phrasebook and practice my Thai with the cabbie: sa-wat-dee krup (hello), kop koon krup (thank you), chai (yes), mai (no). And I even try a thai tounge twister with him: ta-hahn teu beun baak boon bai bohk deuk (don't ask me what it means). When he drops me off at the beach and leaves, first thing I discover is that he's taken me to the wrong place! This is not Ao Nang, it's Ao Nammao, 10 mins closer to the airport. I guess all my practicing indicated that I had never been to Thailand before, and that I was an easy target for scamming. Now I have to take two longtail boats instead of one and I have to hike across Railay.

Ao Nammao is where it says shell cemetary on this map

When I finnaly get to Tonsai beach I make my way over to the Andaman Nature Resort and look around for Kristina. I find her friend Jodi and we wait for her to get back from climbing. When she gets back we have a nice reunion, eat dinner together, chat and reminisce over old times

Hong Kong for a day

After sleeping on the floor in their tiny apartment, Mom and Dad take me out for a day of shopping to outfit for Thailand. It was great to hug again when they picked me up at the airport; we all had big smiles on! It's been 6 months since I've seen them.

First we go out for dim sum and have a huge feast. They've gotten pretty proficient at ordering food. Mom tries to teach me some of the Cantonese that she's learned and starts with PLEASE: 'mm goi say.' Dad corrects her and says, "no, it's 'mm goi saai.' What you said means PLEASE DIE." I guess she still needs some more practice on her tones and phonemes? :p


You might be able to see me in the mirror here.

Last Day in Japan

This morning Shoko takes me over to the other side of the house to meet her parents. The house is split in half with Brent, the kids, and Shoko on one side, and her parents on the other. Their side is traditional Japanese style, beautiful, simplistic and minimalist.



We do a photo op with Shoko and the kids:



Shoko's mom makes us lunch and we picnic in the garden and watch Akira and Sasuke play in the gravel before I go to the train station and then the airport. I spend too much time filming the kids in the sun with my super 8 camera and, once I enter the station, I realize that I don't have enough time to catch the Narita Express to the airport at Shinjuku. An incredibly kind Japanese lady helps me change my ticket and then shows me the right train to catch. She tells me that she's going to be fired at the end of the month and that she's going to a job fair to look for work as a systems engineer. I thank her for helping me and she explains that she had once been travelling and in need of help and she's glad to return the favour.

Menji Shrine, Obikubo, Kiyosumi Gardens, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Roppongi

Today Adam takes me to Menji Shrine. There is a huge gate in front and we stop for a photo op. Outside of the shrine we wash our hands and mouths as a form of ritual purification and then enter the temple. We throw some coins into a wooden container and pray for a few minutes. This place is very serene and peaceful. I could get used to this! There is a beautiful zen garden and monuments where people write prayers on wooden plaques.











Afterwards we go to Shibuya, a crazy, hip, really crowded shopping district full of young people. I pick up some gifts for family and friends and then look around for a place to get my hair cut. I find a place called ROOTS hair make and get the chop from a really cool Japanese dude. He doesn't speak any english and I have to look through magazines and point out a style that I like. All of the styles are crazy Japanese haircuts so I pick the one I like best and he gets to work. Here's some before and after photos.

After I meet up with Adam and we check out the crazy intersection from Lost in Translation and Baraka and then head back to Ogikubo.



In Ogikubo we meet up with Brent and he takes us out to Yakiniku, Japanese Bar-B-Q. Brent orders serveral plates of thin sliced meats in sauces, vegetables, and a head of romaine lettuce with teriyaki and mayonaise sauce. We roast the meat over the BBQ that they bring over to the center of the table and drink beers. This is a real treat and an amazing way to spend a last night in Japan. Afterwards we go back to Brent's place and watch Kendo High, Brent's film about a group kids in kendo school.

Roppongi, Shinjuku

Today Adam took me to the Kiyosumi Gardens. I've been really looking forward to seeing an authentic Japanese garden. Every plant is tended to the minutest detail. We get to watch workers pruning the upper balcony of pine trees on tall ladders. Many elderly Japanese people stroll through the garden soaking in the serenity.
















After the garden we head to Roppongi Hills, a classy, rich shopping district with incredible towers boasting designer stores. We find a quaint restaurant and I eat an omurice (an omlette fried with rice in the center), and we drink Asahi beers. After dinner we go to the Ababu Juban Onsen, one of three traditional public bath houses in Tokyo. After removing our shoes at the entrance, we receive a towel and soap to cleanse the body before bathing in the theraputic waters. Adam gets into the bath first but jumps out from the heat. The old lady at the entrance comes running out to him yelling at him in Japanese. We find out that she's trying to tell him about the cold water tap to mitigate some of the heat. Adam sits under the cold water tap the whole time but I venture onto the "man's" side and into the jets. The water is a rusty caramel colour. Afterwards we feel incredibly relaxed and rejuvenated. I try to get a photo but the old lady says, "no photos!" I guess because of all the naked people?

Afterwards we go to Shinjuku Station, reportedly the busiest train station in the world. There are people everywhere and towering skyscrapers. We buy some beer and sake at a convenience store and drink on the sidewalk.

First Day in Japan

I have arrived in Tokyo after a very long 11 hr flight. After navigating the train system, I made my way to Ogikubo station and hooked up with Adam and we headed over to Brent and Shoko's house, who are kindly letting me stay while I'm here in Japan. Their two boys, Akira (6) and Sasuke (2), are a handful of fun and also responsible for the many holes in the rice paper walls of the house hahahah! Adam and I go out for beers at a jazz bar and they play New Orleans tunes. Later, we go to Bar Bitch, adorned with images of Che Guevara and only 6 seats at the bar. The bartender finds out that we're Canadian and plays Neil Young all night. After talking with one of the locals, he gives me a photo of a sunrise that he took on Jan. 1st as a tribute to my first day in the land of the rising sun.



In the morning I wake up and go for a run on the streets of Ogikubo and then we have a breakfast of fruit and Mister Donut. I go to the Imperial Palace to see the gardens but I'm turned away because they close at 3:30. I meet an old man who is out walking and we talk for half an hour about Canada, Japan, toilets, bicycles and various other things. He took this photo of me outside the palace.