The Buy/Sell Dance

Although backpacking around SE Asia is pretty darn amazing, it takes a lot of logistical work on a daily basis. This can be uncomfortable, tiresome and embarassing at times.
Anytime you want to buy an item, not including perishables, you need to bargain for it. SE Asia isn't a region of hard-core bargaining and offense can easily be taken by locals if you start out with what they consider an outlandishly low price. In the land of not losing face, it is important not to cause a loss of face.
Also important is not beginning the bargaining process unless you are serious about buying. Nothing pisses of a vendor more than that. Stephen was literally kicked out of a store while trying to bargain for some t-shirts. The woman thought he wasn't serious, althoughhe was, and she yelled at him and told him to leave. The customer is NOT always right in these parts.
I find the buy/sell dance the most uncomfortable when looking at hotels and guesthouses. It goes something like this - you walk in, see if there is availability, get a price, you get a key to look at a room, usually accompanied by the proprietor. While being stared at by the person holding the key, totally put on the spot, you have to decide if this room will be the place you'll hang your hat for the night.
Often at this point, you are sweaty, hot, smelly and very tired of carrying all of your worldly possessions on your back. The proprietors are aware of all these mitigating factors in your decision-making process.
When there are two of you making the call, you don't really get a quick minute to huddle and make an informed consenual decision. Instead, you either say no if the place is too awful or sort of shake your head and agree to it. If you say no, you must face the walk of shame back to the lobby and leave, usually mumbling something like we may come back after looking around. You and the proprietor both know there isn't a chance in hell that you'll be back, but hey, it's all about saving face.

Tubin' Laos, Dude

Throughout our travels, we've been told about the wonders of Laos - cheap, beautiful, fun, outdoorsy & how SE Asia used to be. It seems to be the #1 destination on the established backpacker trail through Asia, which is fed intravenously by Lonely Planet books (see future blog entry).

No matter what else anyone said about Laos, without a miss, they all mentioned tubing in Vang Vieng. We had even seen backpackers proudly sporting their "tubing Laos" t-shirts in S. Thailand. Who are we to buck backpacker tradition in Laos and not go tubing?

Here's the drill - you go to the tube shop, give them $10, with $6 of the $10 a deposit, returnable if the tube is back by 6 PM. The giant tractor inner tubes are then loaded onto a tuk tuk and off you go to the river.

Let Spring Break Laos-style begin. Bob Marley is pulsating up the river valley and the first bar can be visited before even dipping a toe in the water. Nothing like a little beer or cocktail to get you situated for your day of tubing, sans life jacket. This is Asia after all.

Signs at the put-in say "Dont tip the children as it encourages them to skip school." We weren't exactly sure what this meant, but we would soon find out.

We set off with an Irish trio, a Finn & a Swede in the fast-flowing brown river in a light rain. Not 200 yards into the tubing experience, while our butts were still relatively dry, we spotted the second bar. Small children stand on bamboo pilings at the shore and throw water bottles on strings or pass long bamboo rods to passing 'tubers' to reel them in like giant fish. This can be both difficult and comical as the river is flowing quickly with lots of swirling water close to shore.

Each bar along the way is essentially the same rickety bamboo structure on the side of the river cranking Bob Marley, selling Beer Lao & giving away free Lao Lao shots, Laos rice whiskey, something akin to moonshine. Some of the bars even have second story towers with trapezes to swing out into the water.

It is utterly surreal. The Farang (Asian name for foreigners) are eating this up. Drunken Farangs are falling out of their tubes while being pulled to shore by 75 lbs. grade school children. After successfully landing on solid ground and having a drink or three, Farangs are then swinging from trapezes, narrowly missing the originating bamboo towers when they hang on too long.

Prior to tubing, we had noticed quite a few limping, bandaged backpackers around town and now we figured out why.

We decided to pull over at the third bar. Stephen and I got off the river with relative grace, although the two third-graders pulling me to shore almost gave themselves a hernia.

Not so for our Irish friends. The first Irish lassie pulled a child into the drink who was attempting to reel her in and a second child aborted his rescue mission after he too was pulled into the river. We were to see her eventually way down river. The second Irish lassie lost her tube while being pulled to shore, but her husband was able to dive in and save the tube.(see photo) Complete and utter hilarity.

After drinking the requisite Beer Lao and doing one swing from the trapeze, we set off down river with no other stops at the eight plus bars offering refreshments to the parched tubers. About 7:30 that night, we saw a barefoot girl in a string bikini stumbling around town in the dark with her tube. We don't think she got her $6 deposit back.

After speaking with many experienced tubers in our travels in Laos, we heard horror stories of near drownings, people stuck in reeds in the river until midnight and about many a trip to the hospital in Vang Vieng.

AS THE TUK TUK SPUTTERS...
We are back in Luang Prabang, having just spent some time in a remote area of N. Laos. We trekked to a hill tribe only accessible by foot through mud, rice fields, mountains and jungle. We overnighted in the village with a family and had the unique opportunity to learn more about the culture of the various tribes. We leave for Vietname on Saturday and are still having a fantastic journey.

Notes On Turning 42

42 - double the legal drinking age. If that doesn't make you feel old, I don't know what does.
However, spending your 42nd day in Laos is definitely the way to go.
We woke up in Vientiane, the sleepy capitol of Laos. Laos is a former French colony and it retains some of the old world European charm, including good coffee and baguettes. A plus in the land of rice and nescafe.

After slurping down a creamy cappuchino, Stephen and I took a tuk tuk, basically a motorcycle pulling some enclosed seats, to the bus station. The buses consisted of small Toyota pick-ups with a covers and benches in the back. This was our transport for the next several hours. the pick-up was loaded down with more produce than your average Safeway sells in a week, including 20 lbs. of green onion inside the passenger area. Stephen got to snuggle up to the onions for the journey.


Riding in the truck, called a sangthew, is close quarters at the best of times. At one point, we had ten people in the back and four up front, plus the driver. Our 'neighbors' were so gracious despite the complete language barrier; they shared fruit and baguettes with us and we shared baby wipes and gum with them.

After a few hours, we left our new friends to hook up with our kayak guides. We paddled in inflatable kayaks on the Nam Lik River. The river was brown due to the monsoon rains that seem to pull down half the riverbank everyday. The riverside was jungle - green, luscious & wet.

After a great day on the river, we were driven to Vang Vieng in the back of another pick-up truck. Vang Vieng is a former military airstrip turned into backpacker central. Think international Spring break.

Restaurants all serve the exact same menu of international greatest hits - pizza, burgers, fried rice and the potent Beer Lao. Each of these places plays episodes of ''Friends" repeatedly throughout the day and night. You can be at one restaurant and literally hear four episodes of Friends at other places, all different episodes, all with the same annoying laugh track.


Vang Vieng is famous for 'tubing'- more on that in a future blog. What the town itself lacks in charm, the setting more than makes up for it. After a dinner, had a three dollar massage and then settled down for the night in a riverside bungalow with a couple of Beer Laos and took in the view. Not bad for an old lady!

AS THE TUK SPUTTERS...

We are in Luang Prabang, definitely our favorite place in Asia. It is a charming, French colonial town set in the mountains of Laos right on the Mekong river. It is littered with Buddhist temples, beautiful architecture and excellent food. We've trekked to hilltribe villages, shopped for handmade Laotian goods in the night market and just relaxed in this beautiful setting. Tomorrow we are off further North to spend a few days living a treehouse surrounded by Gibbon monkeys.

Climbing in Thailand

First word - SWEATY.
Imagine being blinded by water pouring off your own eyebrows while reaching for a hold. Think of coming off a climb and literally needing to wring out your shirt. Picture chalking up simply to stop the water flow on your palms.


Second word - MOSQUITO

Imagine belaying with mosquito coils burning at your feet with the sweet toxic smell burning your nostrils. Think of being bitten while hanging on for dear life. Picture coming home at the end of the day covered in itchy red bumps.

Third word - POLISHED (as the British climbers would say)

Imagine reaching for a nice big hold only to have your fingers slip off it because a thousand other hands have been on that same piece of limestone. Think of shiny, pretty rock that is hard to hold. Picture an area filled with Thai guides while white clients sweat all over the climbs.

Fourth word - MONKEYS

Picture starting to climb only to be stopped by a pack of monkeys scurrying up the rock wall with ease. Imagine jumping out the way to avoid being peed on by a monkey thirty feet over your head. Think of monkeys literally blocking your path to a climbing area.

Fifth word - GARBAGE
Imagine arriving at the climbing sight to see a pile of styrofoam to-go boxes, water bottles and cigarette butts. Think of Thai guides belaying with cigarettes in mouth and casually tossing the butts aside. Picture random bottle tops, mosquito coils and glass around the belay station.

Sixth word - PARADISE

Imagine jaw-dropping views of crystaline turquoise waters with limestone cliffs in the backround. Think of living in a $9/night bungalow on stilts with the sound of monkeys in the background. Picture swimming in the sea after a challenging climb.

Climbing in Krabi at Railay and Tonsai beaches was absolutely our favorite part of the trip thus far. We met amazing people from around the world, challenged ourselves mentally and physically, and loved the outdoor playground we spent seven days exploring.

AS THE TUK TUK SPUTTERS...
After 10 plus days in Southern Thailand, we are now in Northern Laos. Laos is amazing. It is really mountainous with lots of rivers. The people are super-chill. They call themselves lazy. We have been kayaking and tubing so far in Laos. Tomorrow we head to Unesco World-Heritage site, the city of Luang Prabang.

Two-Wheeled Vehicles

So many people, so many places to go and so few cars in SE Asia. Seems like moped/motorcycles/scooters outnumber cars at least 5 to 1. We have seen some interesting sights cruising by on two wheels.

Here are a few of our favorites - family of five on a scooter; man, woman & chicken on a moped; moped driving past elephant on road; scooter with a sidecar selling ice cream; scooter drivers wearing jackets backwards on arms only; moped pulling over 1/2 ton of sugar cane; and motorcycle taxis in Bangkok (where for a small fee you can be whisked across the city, avoiding much of the traffic that hold up regular taxis).

In big cities at red lights, all the mopeds et al pull in front of the cars and take off ahead of the cars as soon as the light changes. It is something akin to moths going to a bright light and then dispersing when the light goes out.

Since you can't beat 'em, join 'em. We are currently enjoying our second scooter rental of the trip. Stephen is the trusty driver and I'm the back seat navigator. My biggest job is to remind him to stay on the left side of the road as Thailand uses the British system of driving.

We've had a few adventures so far. Our biggest accomplishment to date is to ride with our backpacks & all gear from our hotel to the bus station, over 30 km away. I felt like a turtle on the back of the bike about to humpty dumpty backwards. We've visited beautiful temples, waterfalls, remote beaches and city centers by scooter. Stephen feels like he is in a video game and as he improves his skills, he enters higher levels, hoping one day to be good enough to take on a major Asian capital. You gotta have dreams!

We've even had help from a local pseudo-taxi operator by putting the moped in the back of his truck when it was raining and taking us to the gas station.

AS THE TUK TUK SPUTTERS...
After a few days in Bangkok visting ornate Wats, reclining Buddhas, space age malls, and eating amazing street food, we are currently visiting my step-brother outside Phuket in Southern Thailand. It is a beautiful beach on the Andaman Sea. We are heading to Krabi soon for a week of rock climbing right on the beach. We are really enjoying Thailand.

Sawatdee and Lah Gorn (hello and goodbye in Thai).

rachel & stephen

Water parks & Muslim Countries

Some would think that you travel to get away from your own culture, to see new sights, traditions and customs. However, when it is 90 plus degrees and 100% humidity, we seek out sources of water. When in a big city, these sources of water come in the form of water parks. Yup, water parks with slides, inner tubes, laughs, screams, coca cola & berkas, of course. We managed to squeeze in a few hours at a water park in Jakarta, Indonesia and one in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

As the only western (aka white people) at the water park in Jakarta, we were an anomaly. Add to that, the fact that I was wearing a bikini, we stuck out like the proverbially sore thumb. Put a beer in my hand and the locals started taking our pictures. Stephen was the king of the park, because he had the bikini babe at his side who could ride the slides much faster than anyone else. It seems no one else understood the proper technique of laying out and riding high on the curves to maximize velocity.

Okay, we digress. Berkas at the waterpark. Totally unaerodynamic, somewhat dangerous and certainly not attractive. They came in all types & colors. Some were just one piece lycra suits with a hood. Others had draping with a scarf type piece wrapped around the neck. Don't get us wrong, not all the women had on berkas, just no one else was wearing a bikini.

We've dubbed Indonesia "muslim lite" as it didn't seem required to wear a berka at the park and they did sell beer.

At the water park in Kuala Lumpur, where it was part of a resort hotel complex, there were lots of other westerners, wearing a variety of outfits, including bikinis. Despite the fact that Malaysia appears to have a stronger Muslim culture, the park seemed more liberal - maybe because KL is a more cosmopolitan city.

AS THE TUK TUK SPUTTERS...

Our travels have taken us from Portland to Seoul to Jakarta, Indonesia. We spent a few days in central Java gazing at 8th century temples and then flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After two back to back overnight trains, we ended up in Kanchanaburi, Thailand. The home of the famous Bridge over the River Kwai. We are spending a week at a 'resort' here and will visit lots of waterfalls, cemetaries, temples and national parks. We are healthy and having a blast.

Sawatdee and Lah Gorn (hello and goodbye in Thai).


rachel & stephen

SE Asia Warm-up

In order to prepare for our three months traveling in SE Asia, we decided we needed a warm-up trip to get in the groove of traveling. When some friends organized a trip on the Owyhee river, we jumped at the chance to go on this 'must do' river trip.

We spent almost a week paddling the Owyhee River in Eastern Oregon with an amazing group of friends. (Pictures to come when we figure out these Indonesian computers!). The river is in the SE corner of Oregon, about 8 hours from Portland.

The Wild and Scenic Owyhee River is described in many ways; Grand Canyon of Oregon, the loneliest river in the U.S., bizarrely beautiful, and more. The Owyhee River is almost unmatched in its remoteness and beauty. The river travels through magnificent desert canyons with walls towering over a thousand feet overhead and is home to a wide array of wildlife and birds. Petroglyphs and hot springs are sprinkled along the way.

The trip highlights include incredible scenery, amazing food, wigs, star-filled nights around the fire, skit night, camraderie and the crazy five raft tow across Owyhee lake. Thanks so much to all the folks on the trip for making it such a memorable send off. I'm still laughing at so many things from the trip, especially the fashion show.