...but not the last post about *being abroad*! I definitely discovered that it's much easier to blog and post pics and stuff whilst traveling when you have your own computer with you. And I'm definitely getting an EEE PC before my next big trip. Then I'll be posting galore! :)
I'm in my favorite net cafe off Khoa San Road in Bangkok now, fresh in off the sleeper train from Chumporn after taking a ferry from Ko Tao there. Had a blast in Ko Tao, did some great scuba diving, met some interesting people, drank too much and got a great massage. About all you could need really.
Today we're of to the Grand Palace and Reclining Buddha, as Sach hasn't seen them, then maybe a little shopping on Khoa San, and abusing our former hotel's pool facilities, we'll take showers and clean up before our long flight home. I tried to convince some awesome girls in Taipei to come say hello for my one hour layover there, but I'm guessing that's not gonna work.
But soon enough I'll be back home in Sacramento, and then I expect to see all of you out and about... Taco Tuesday, Second Saturday, etc. etc... Time to run. More stories and pictures coming soon!
02 November 2008
30 October 2008
Taipei (Finally)
So, I've got about 15 minutes that I'm going to attempt to write about Taipei with. Wish me luck!
I left off on the bus from Taichung at 5a, bleary-eyed and sleepless, realizing I had no clue if there were many stops in Taipei, or where I was going anyway. I slept briefly, then watched Oceans 13, though I couldn't figure out the sound. When we pulled into a random stop on teh street, the nice lady across the aisle from me (did I mention how posh Taiwan buses are? One seat per side, big, cushy armchairs for everyone) says, "OK" and nods to me, so I get off. Immediately, there are taxis waiting and I show my paperwork and hope they understand the address I just gave them to the hotel. He seems confused, but we pull up to the hotel only a few minutes later! Score!
I cehck in to the hotel and try to figure out if John has arrived yet. I'd booked him a transfer, but had no way of knowing if he was picked up or not. Finally I spot his bag tucked behind the counter, but no one knows where he is. I step out and survey the block, thinking WWJG - Where Would John Go... Strolling up teh block, I hear a shout, and the answer is obvious: 7-11. There he is in front of one, trying to get a SIM card. We chat for a bit, head back to the hotel, try to get on the day tour that day and fail, discover we can't check in for 5 more hours and decide to set off and see some city on our own. After a brief stroll, we head back to the hotel to get a map and directions to internet cafes, metro systems, and general info on where the hell we are! Now we can set out!
Man, out of time already! More updates soon!
OK, more updates, as promised!
We walked up the block, and stopped in a really high-end internet cafe. Each computer had a private booth and you could watch movies, read books, etc there. We quickly figured out we couldn't afford it, but the girl working there was hilarious! She was like anime! When she couldn't think of how to say something in English, she would smile big and scrunch up her eyes and wave her arms around and jump up and down and make noises! She quickly became my new favorite person in Taiwan, haha! Even though we didn't use the internet services, she ended up telling us most of the info we were after (like where to go out at night) and even looked up addresses and stuff for us. It was cool!
We headed out, found the metro system, and figured out how to work it. Since Taipei 101 wasn't on the tour we had set for the next day, we headed straight there. Walking from the metro station was a fair distance, and we ran into so much stuff! Starting with some simple street vendors, we crossed through a shopping area of classy stores, then found them setting up a street fair, complete with giant balloon arch urging people to not be depressed and to have a good attitude! We wondered what was going on, and then spotted a big warehouse door opening that we wondered into.
Having no clue what we just walked into, we discovered booths of people displaying products at some sort of convention. We walked to one booth and they were giving out rice samples! We walked 2 more down and were given another rice sample, as they told us about the region it was grown in, etc. A few more stalls down, more rice... We had wandered into a RICE CONVENTION!!!
Out of time again, more soon...
I left off on the bus from Taichung at 5a, bleary-eyed and sleepless, realizing I had no clue if there were many stops in Taipei, or where I was going anyway. I slept briefly, then watched Oceans 13, though I couldn't figure out the sound. When we pulled into a random stop on teh street, the nice lady across the aisle from me (did I mention how posh Taiwan buses are? One seat per side, big, cushy armchairs for everyone) says, "OK" and nods to me, so I get off. Immediately, there are taxis waiting and I show my paperwork and hope they understand the address I just gave them to the hotel. He seems confused, but we pull up to the hotel only a few minutes later! Score!
I cehck in to the hotel and try to figure out if John has arrived yet. I'd booked him a transfer, but had no way of knowing if he was picked up or not. Finally I spot his bag tucked behind the counter, but no one knows where he is. I step out and survey the block, thinking WWJG - Where Would John Go... Strolling up teh block, I hear a shout, and the answer is obvious: 7-11. There he is in front of one, trying to get a SIM card. We chat for a bit, head back to the hotel, try to get on the day tour that day and fail, discover we can't check in for 5 more hours and decide to set off and see some city on our own. After a brief stroll, we head back to the hotel to get a map and directions to internet cafes, metro systems, and general info on where the hell we are! Now we can set out!
Man, out of time already! More updates soon!
OK, more updates, as promised!
We walked up the block, and stopped in a really high-end internet cafe. Each computer had a private booth and you could watch movies, read books, etc there. We quickly figured out we couldn't afford it, but the girl working there was hilarious! She was like anime! When she couldn't think of how to say something in English, she would smile big and scrunch up her eyes and wave her arms around and jump up and down and make noises! She quickly became my new favorite person in Taiwan, haha! Even though we didn't use the internet services, she ended up telling us most of the info we were after (like where to go out at night) and even looked up addresses and stuff for us. It was cool!
We headed out, found the metro system, and figured out how to work it. Since Taipei 101 wasn't on the tour we had set for the next day, we headed straight there. Walking from the metro station was a fair distance, and we ran into so much stuff! Starting with some simple street vendors, we crossed through a shopping area of classy stores, then found them setting up a street fair, complete with giant balloon arch urging people to not be depressed and to have a good attitude! We wondered what was going on, and then spotted a big warehouse door opening that we wondered into.
Having no clue what we just walked into, we discovered booths of people displaying products at some sort of convention. We walked to one booth and they were giving out rice samples! We walked 2 more down and were given another rice sample, as they told us about the region it was grown in, etc. A few more stalls down, more rice... We had wandered into a RICE CONVENTION!!!
Out of time again, more soon...
27 October 2008
Downtime
So, SixQ.Net was down for a few days. Apparently the spammers attacked my domain and my hosts shut me down without warning. Jerks. But I'm back up now. If you emailed me anything in the last 3 or 4 days though, I didn't receive it, so please resend it!
I'm taking some downtime now as well, relaxing on the beautiful Thai island of Koh Samui, with literally nothing planned! It's a pretty great feeling really.
I think it's about time to go to lunch, so unfortunately, I can't write much of an update. But, my stomach is 1000% better now that I'm off of Balinese food and onto Thai food, so life seems much smoother now. I'll try this evening to add more to this blog, but I think we're going out tonight! :)
I'm taking some downtime now as well, relaxing on the beautiful Thai island of Koh Samui, with literally nothing planned! It's a pretty great feeling really.
I think it's about time to go to lunch, so unfortunately, I can't write much of an update. But, my stomach is 1000% better now that I'm off of Balinese food and onto Thai food, so life seems much smoother now. I'll try this evening to add more to this blog, but I think we're going out tonight! :)
25 October 2008
Short Update
Tomorrow I leave Bali and head to Thailand. I've got my stomach in a knot from some iffy food days ago. I've run out of conditioner and left my gel in the Philippines, so my hair's a mess. I've got a fair bit of bug bites and sunburn. My main camera broke finally. Battered as always, but having a great time! :)
I'm going to squeeze in one last massage before dinner, and relax for the final evening with my Intrepid tour. I think I'll just write a novel when I get home. But stay tuned just in case!
I'm going to squeeze in one last massage before dinner, and relax for the final evening with my Intrepid tour. I think I'll just write a novel when I get home. But stay tuned just in case!
23 October 2008
Too Far Behind!
So, I've been in Bali for like 6 days or something. I've got so many stories to write at this point that it's almost pointless to write this blog. I've got the story of Taipei, the story of the Philippines in Baras, and in Angeles City, the story of Malaysia - and what a story THAT is - and then all the adventures I've had here.
But internet access is rare out here, so it looks like this blog won't be full of those stories. Besides, it's 15 minutes to dinner, and just about happy hour too, so, no time to scribble notes now! I'm logging all this in my head, despite losing my notebook in Malaysia (maybe I'll get it back, beer-soaked and all).
This has been a wild and crazy trip. I'm exhausted, but it was all worth it. More stories to come... :)
But internet access is rare out here, so it looks like this blog won't be full of those stories. Besides, it's 15 minutes to dinner, and just about happy hour too, so, no time to scribble notes now! I'm logging all this in my head, despite losing my notebook in Malaysia (maybe I'll get it back, beer-soaked and all).
This has been a wild and crazy trip. I'm exhausted, but it was all worth it. More stories to come... :)
15 October 2008
The Story of Taichung
So, it's funny how our time in the Philippines is always all about relaxing and chilling out and no plans, but we always seem to end up with no time to get anything done. Been meaning to write tons of stories, but never seem to get the time to just lay here and type. I'll try to throw together a brief post on Taichung now while trying to upload some pics to flickr!
Well... I arrived in Taipei at 6a and strolled leisurely through baggage and customs. I really only needed to be to Taichung by 5p or so, leaving me 11 hours to accomplish a 3 hours task, so no point in rushing... After clearing customs I found an info desk, discovered the bus station was in the airport, just around the corner, and there was a free internet stand on the way! I spent about an hour catching up on emails and stuff, just 'cuz I could, then headed to the bus station and got my ticket with 5 minutes to spare. I waited outside for a few then tried to set the clocks on my phone and camera. I went back inside to check the clock in there and the staff thought I was lost, so they radioed someone to walk me out to my bus just as it was arriving, ha!
The busses in Taiwan are super-posh - frilled curtains, seats like plush easy-chairs, TV screens (I watched Oceans 13 on my way back to Taipei!) and I heard stories of Videoke on some busses even! I napped most of the way down and then tried to figure out the map as I realized we were in Taichung, much more quickly than expected. I got off at Sogo, a fancy department store, and wandered the streets a bit, looking for a way to contact Heidi, who was at work, but I would be staying with for 2 days. I wandered into a shop to ask about a payphone and bought a camera case for $1, then had some confusing point and gesture and smile conversations with the staff and gave up.
Watched the opening ceremonies of Sogo; it was wild! The big clock in front had 16 panels which flipped around into moving dolls like the Glockenspiel in Munich, while playing "It's a Small World". Then 4 women in kimonos came out and walked and talked in unison, then backed into the store and signaled everyone to enter. It was like the opening of the Wonka factory!
I spotted a 7-11 so I went for water and found a payphone outside. It only took prepaid cards, but I found one in 7-11, so I finally called Heidi, but it just rang and rang. My cellphone didn't seem to work either, so I wandered to a net cafe and figured I'd catch her online, which I did 1 minute before my time ran out. I raced back to the payphone, got Heidi on the phone and got directions to give to a cab driver, so I finally was able to meet up with her at around noon!
We chatted for a while and went for lunch at a cafe nearby and just caught up and chilled until she had to go back to work. I relaxed at her apartment, took a long shower and watched some TV, then fell asleep only a few minutes before Heidi was to get home.
The next chunk of hours were a surreal blur. I apparently slept through her ringing the doorbell and having the manager let her into her 23rd floor apartment eventually. I woke up slightly and saw her napping too, so I went back to sleep. This continued for hours and hours, me not knowing if I was napping for 1 hours or 50, until I finally woke up fully aware that it was definitely late at night now. I got up and thought maybe we could go hit the town now, well-rested and all... Then I looked out the window and notice the streets were EMPTY. I checked the time and it was 5a! I had slept for 12 hours! I tinkered around
online a bit, fixing a thing or two on SixQ.Net, and then crawled back into bed and slept for a few more hours! I guess I really needed the rest!
That morning, when we finally arose and laughed about how we both conked out, we headed down to a corner breakfast shop where I had dan bing, which was like a bacon and cheese omelet wrapped in a crepe and eaten with the most addictively yummy sweet sauce! We met a guy there from Germany Heidi knew and chatted a while and tried to bum a ride up to a monkey park sorta place, since Heidi's scooter is little and might not make it up the hills to the park. Sadly that fell through, but we still had a fun day!
We putted around looking for some shades for me and a spare/new helmet. not much luck on either, but we wandered to the market area to stroll around. I love Asian markets! We walked around and people watched - the kids hang out there like mallrats! - and I'd say hi to people and they'd giggle. In a back alley I found my shades - some imitation BluBlockers for $2. We ended up getting hungry and were right down the street from a special treat: The Modern Toilet.
Oh yes, I snuck a few pictures to give you an idea, but this was a bathroom-themed restaurant! The chairs were all toilets with fancy covers, the tables were 2 sinks with a slab of glass over them. There were showers and faucets on the walls and urinals filled with marbles and stuff in the hallways, plus loads of trippy mirrors and decorations. Meals were severd in miniature toilets with the base being little open-flame stoves and the bowl being, well, a bowl of food. Side dishes were served with covers shaped like poop, and some drinks were served in urinals. I paid an extra $1 and got my drink in a portable urinal with a straw in it. I got a lemon & kumquat drink, that had a pit still floating in it, so you can imagine the realism here! Some dishes were served in bathtubs, but I didn't get one. Dessert? chocolate and coffee soft-serve ice cream served coiled in a miniature squat toilet! It was amazing!!
After leisurely lunch, we headed back to the scooter and cruised around town for a bit, stopping at a lovely Confucian temple in the middle of the city, a quiet sanctuary where we found what appeared to be a fashion shoot and another couple taking wedding pics. Tired from our adventures, we headed home to relax and regroup before a night out. Heidi needed to chat with a friend online, so I headed downstairs and scored us some fried chicken and drinks and mixed a cocktail and did a crossword puzzle. Eventually we caught a cab across town to a club that usually had DJs and dancing, but tonight was chill with tables and posh ambience. We settled into a booth and ordered a few vodkas and a snack, listening to mostly The Cure's Mixed Up album and talking and having a good time. We got a bit buzzed, but decided to call it a night since it was already very late and I had a 5a bus to catch.
As we were about to grab a cab home, the loud, drunk people at the table next to us came stumbling out. One of them tripped and fell over the marquee, crashing it to the ground and causing quite a scene. We laughed and said they needed the cam more than us, so we walked down the street to a little shop where we picked up a little bottle of rye whiskey and mixer and headed home to chill, have one last cocktail and pack up to go.
By about 5a, I finally stumbled out of Heidi's place and caught a cab to the bus/train station. I went ot the counter and said "bus to Taipei" and he handed me a ticket for an hour from then, and charged me $375 Taiwan Dollars. I was a bit confused, so I wandered around and found a tunnel to the bus station. Turns out I just bought a train ticket! I walked to the bus station and asked about the bus. It was $260 and leaving in 7 or 8 minutes. I ran back to the train station and said, "wrong ticket. Not bus. I don't want!" and the guy handed me my cash back without pause. Easy enough, I raced back to the bus as it pulled up, hopped on, wrote a short paragraph in my trusty notebook of an essay I want to write about traveling, then drifted off to sleep with the hopes that one of the nice people who said hello while boarding would wake me up at the right station when the time came...
And that was pretty much Taichung. It's not the most action-packed story to tell, but the city has a great vibe, lively and friendly and fairly easy to deal with everything, and talking to Heidi, she made it sound so easy to live and work there, I started thinking about my long-dime fantasy of permanently drifting around the world for a few years picking up work as I go. I think the time is coming. Maybe I hope...
Now I've got to shower, pack up and wait for my ride to Angeles for my flight in the morning to Malaysia! I hope to have more updates soon, 'cuz the story of Taipei is a great one, and I've got loads of pictures to share. I did manage to upload a few while typing this, so Check them out!
Well... I arrived in Taipei at 6a and strolled leisurely through baggage and customs. I really only needed to be to Taichung by 5p or so, leaving me 11 hours to accomplish a 3 hours task, so no point in rushing... After clearing customs I found an info desk, discovered the bus station was in the airport, just around the corner, and there was a free internet stand on the way! I spent about an hour catching up on emails and stuff, just 'cuz I could, then headed to the bus station and got my ticket with 5 minutes to spare. I waited outside for a few then tried to set the clocks on my phone and camera. I went back inside to check the clock in there and the staff thought I was lost, so they radioed someone to walk me out to my bus just as it was arriving, ha!
The busses in Taiwan are super-posh - frilled curtains, seats like plush easy-chairs, TV screens (I watched Oceans 13 on my way back to Taipei!) and I heard stories of Videoke on some busses even! I napped most of the way down and then tried to figure out the map as I realized we were in Taichung, much more quickly than expected. I got off at Sogo, a fancy department store, and wandered the streets a bit, looking for a way to contact Heidi, who was at work, but I would be staying with for 2 days. I wandered into a shop to ask about a payphone and bought a camera case for $1, then had some confusing point and gesture and smile conversations with the staff and gave up.
Watched the opening ceremonies of Sogo; it was wild! The big clock in front had 16 panels which flipped around into moving dolls like the Glockenspiel in Munich, while playing "It's a Small World". Then 4 women in kimonos came out and walked and talked in unison, then backed into the store and signaled everyone to enter. It was like the opening of the Wonka factory!
I spotted a 7-11 so I went for water and found a payphone outside. It only took prepaid cards, but I found one in 7-11, so I finally called Heidi, but it just rang and rang. My cellphone didn't seem to work either, so I wandered to a net cafe and figured I'd catch her online, which I did 1 minute before my time ran out. I raced back to the payphone, got Heidi on the phone and got directions to give to a cab driver, so I finally was able to meet up with her at around noon!
We chatted for a while and went for lunch at a cafe nearby and just caught up and chilled until she had to go back to work. I relaxed at her apartment, took a long shower and watched some TV, then fell asleep only a few minutes before Heidi was to get home.
The next chunk of hours were a surreal blur. I apparently slept through her ringing the doorbell and having the manager let her into her 23rd floor apartment eventually. I woke up slightly and saw her napping too, so I went back to sleep. This continued for hours and hours, me not knowing if I was napping for 1 hours or 50, until I finally woke up fully aware that it was definitely late at night now. I got up and thought maybe we could go hit the town now, well-rested and all... Then I looked out the window and notice the streets were EMPTY. I checked the time and it was 5a! I had slept for 12 hours! I tinkered around
online a bit, fixing a thing or two on SixQ.Net, and then crawled back into bed and slept for a few more hours! I guess I really needed the rest!
That morning, when we finally arose and laughed about how we both conked out, we headed down to a corner breakfast shop where I had dan bing, which was like a bacon and cheese omelet wrapped in a crepe and eaten with the most addictively yummy sweet sauce! We met a guy there from Germany Heidi knew and chatted a while and tried to bum a ride up to a monkey park sorta place, since Heidi's scooter is little and might not make it up the hills to the park. Sadly that fell through, but we still had a fun day!
We putted around looking for some shades for me and a spare/new helmet. not much luck on either, but we wandered to the market area to stroll around. I love Asian markets! We walked around and people watched - the kids hang out there like mallrats! - and I'd say hi to people and they'd giggle. In a back alley I found my shades - some imitation BluBlockers for $2. We ended up getting hungry and were right down the street from a special treat: The Modern Toilet.
Oh yes, I snuck a few pictures to give you an idea, but this was a bathroom-themed restaurant! The chairs were all toilets with fancy covers, the tables were 2 sinks with a slab of glass over them. There were showers and faucets on the walls and urinals filled with marbles and stuff in the hallways, plus loads of trippy mirrors and decorations. Meals were severd in miniature toilets with the base being little open-flame stoves and the bowl being, well, a bowl of food. Side dishes were served with covers shaped like poop, and some drinks were served in urinals. I paid an extra $1 and got my drink in a portable urinal with a straw in it. I got a lemon & kumquat drink, that had a pit still floating in it, so you can imagine the realism here! Some dishes were served in bathtubs, but I didn't get one. Dessert? chocolate and coffee soft-serve ice cream served coiled in a miniature squat toilet! It was amazing!!
After leisurely lunch, we headed back to the scooter and cruised around town for a bit, stopping at a lovely Confucian temple in the middle of the city, a quiet sanctuary where we found what appeared to be a fashion shoot and another couple taking wedding pics. Tired from our adventures, we headed home to relax and regroup before a night out. Heidi needed to chat with a friend online, so I headed downstairs and scored us some fried chicken and drinks and mixed a cocktail and did a crossword puzzle. Eventually we caught a cab across town to a club that usually had DJs and dancing, but tonight was chill with tables and posh ambience. We settled into a booth and ordered a few vodkas and a snack, listening to mostly The Cure's Mixed Up album and talking and having a good time. We got a bit buzzed, but decided to call it a night since it was already very late and I had a 5a bus to catch.
As we were about to grab a cab home, the loud, drunk people at the table next to us came stumbling out. One of them tripped and fell over the marquee, crashing it to the ground and causing quite a scene. We laughed and said they needed the cam more than us, so we walked down the street to a little shop where we picked up a little bottle of rye whiskey and mixer and headed home to chill, have one last cocktail and pack up to go.
By about 5a, I finally stumbled out of Heidi's place and caught a cab to the bus/train station. I went ot the counter and said "bus to Taipei" and he handed me a ticket for an hour from then, and charged me $375 Taiwan Dollars. I was a bit confused, so I wandered around and found a tunnel to the bus station. Turns out I just bought a train ticket! I walked to the bus station and asked about the bus. It was $260 and leaving in 7 or 8 minutes. I ran back to the train station and said, "wrong ticket. Not bus. I don't want!" and the guy handed me my cash back without pause. Easy enough, I raced back to the bus as it pulled up, hopped on, wrote a short paragraph in my trusty notebook of an essay I want to write about traveling, then drifted off to sleep with the hopes that one of the nice people who said hello while boarding would wake me up at the right station when the time came...
And that was pretty much Taichung. It's not the most action-packed story to tell, but the city has a great vibe, lively and friendly and fairly easy to deal with everything, and talking to Heidi, she made it sound so easy to live and work there, I started thinking about my long-dime fantasy of permanently drifting around the world for a few years picking up work as I go. I think the time is coming. Maybe I hope...
Now I've got to shower, pack up and wait for my ride to Angeles for my flight in the morning to Malaysia! I hope to have more updates soon, 'cuz the story of Taipei is a great one, and I've got loads of pictures to share. I did manage to upload a few while typing this, so Check them out!
13 October 2008
Quick note from the Philippines
Hoping to catch up tomorrow, but we're partying it up tonight after a few amazing days in Taiwan. The Philippines is HOT! We're burning up here, but we have A/C for the first time, so that's quite nice. Tomorrow we will feast on Tocino and maybe rent a pool to swim in for the evening. Gearing up for Malaysia and the constant movement of Bali and Thailand, but definitely looking forward to a few relaxing days. we meant to relax in Taiwan, but we didn't actually go to sleep at night the entire time we were there!
So much to tell... I'll write more soon!
ps. Jezrel says hi! :)
So much to tell... I'll write more soon!
ps. Jezrel says hi! :)
10 October 2008
The Adventure Begins at your Doorstep part 2
...so I'm at security in the airport, a few minutes to boarding time of my flight, frantically emptying my pockets and my bag searching for my passport, which is nowhere to be found. I'm not freaking out, but already starting to plan where I could sleep for the night, how I can change my ticket to one day later, how to get to the passport office, how much of my budget will be sucked away on a new same-day passport.
I walk quickly back to the check-in desk, texting Michelle to wait, she may have my passport! The desk is deserted, but a woman comes running out thinking I'm very late to check in. I ask if anyone's turned in a passport, or if I left it there. She runs to the back to check around for me when suddenly a man in a T-shirt says, "Excuse me! Um, did you maybe lose a passport?!" I say "Yeah!! Did you find it?" He asks my name and nods and says to come with him. He jogs off and I consider telling him about how I don't believe in running, but think better of it.
Suddenly I'm sprinting across the long terminal back to the wrong wing I tried to check in at earlier while this guy is telling me how he found the passport on the ground and turned it in to the staff. It must have fallen out of my pocket when I went there, or when I picked up my water and banana earlier, or something. But I get to teh gate panting while he flags down the staff and tells them I belong to that passport he turned in. I fill out some paperwork claiming it, they match me to my picture, and off I go again, running to the security gate to my now-boarding flight! I thank the man and his family profusely and think about offering a cash reward but realize I have too little to give, so it would seem almost rude to offer $5 for saving my entire trip. Once through security I try to spot him to give him my card and offer to try and discount any future travel, but I didn't see him again.
And that's how I managed to get on a 13.5 hour flight out-of-breath, stinky and drenched in sweat! Next stop, Taipei!
But more on that later...
I walk quickly back to the check-in desk, texting Michelle to wait, she may have my passport! The desk is deserted, but a woman comes running out thinking I'm very late to check in. I ask if anyone's turned in a passport, or if I left it there. She runs to the back to check around for me when suddenly a man in a T-shirt says, "Excuse me! Um, did you maybe lose a passport?!" I say "Yeah!! Did you find it?" He asks my name and nods and says to come with him. He jogs off and I consider telling him about how I don't believe in running, but think better of it.
Suddenly I'm sprinting across the long terminal back to the wrong wing I tried to check in at earlier while this guy is telling me how he found the passport on the ground and turned it in to the staff. It must have fallen out of my pocket when I went there, or when I picked up my water and banana earlier, or something. But I get to teh gate panting while he flags down the staff and tells them I belong to that passport he turned in. I fill out some paperwork claiming it, they match me to my picture, and off I go again, running to the security gate to my now-boarding flight! I thank the man and his family profusely and think about offering a cash reward but realize I have too little to give, so it would seem almost rude to offer $5 for saving my entire trip. Once through security I try to spot him to give him my card and offer to try and discount any future travel, but I didn't see him again.
And that's how I managed to get on a 13.5 hour flight out-of-breath, stinky and drenched in sweat! Next stop, Taipei!
But more on that later...
08 October 2008
The Adventure Begins at your Doorstep.
So, here's how this trip started (because my travel adventures begin the second I book a trip, ha!):
I race out of work and walk to the train station, hop on the Amtrak to Richmond, barely staying awake already. Switch to BART and head to downtown San Francisco instead of the airport, as a last minute meeting with Michelle seems possible. Wander the streets a bit, calling and texting John and Sach about things I forgot, and calling and texting to various countries to set up rides and meetings, etc., until Michelle finds me and I hop into her car. We're late (go figure) so after driving towards the show we were going to try and pop into for an hour, we decide to go straight to the airport. We park, thinking of going in for some tea for her and breakfast for me, but that doesn't sound too appealing in an airport terminal. Instead I go check in and grab a coupla waters and a banana (cuz i'm oh-so-healthy)and head back to the parking lot, where we chat and catch up for an hour.
Finally it's time to go and I race into the terminal to get to the gate and wait to board. I went to the wrong wing first, and discovered I get to trek yet again across the airport to check in. Nothing like working up a sweat before boarding a 13.5 hour flight! I pause at the top of security to dump all my pocket stuff into my bag, pull out my boarding pass and my passpor--- um, wait. OK, tickets, boarding pass, notepad, pen, pencil, camera, phone, old passport... NO PASSPORT!!! Hmmm...
(OUT OF TIME... will continue the saga later!)
I race out of work and walk to the train station, hop on the Amtrak to Richmond, barely staying awake already. Switch to BART and head to downtown San Francisco instead of the airport, as a last minute meeting with Michelle seems possible. Wander the streets a bit, calling and texting John and Sach about things I forgot, and calling and texting to various countries to set up rides and meetings, etc., until Michelle finds me and I hop into her car. We're late (go figure) so after driving towards the show we were going to try and pop into for an hour, we decide to go straight to the airport. We park, thinking of going in for some tea for her and breakfast for me, but that doesn't sound too appealing in an airport terminal. Instead I go check in and grab a coupla waters and a banana (cuz i'm oh-so-healthy)and head back to the parking lot, where we chat and catch up for an hour.
Finally it's time to go and I race into the terminal to get to the gate and wait to board. I went to the wrong wing first, and discovered I get to trek yet again across the airport to check in. Nothing like working up a sweat before boarding a 13.5 hour flight! I pause at the top of security to dump all my pocket stuff into my bag, pull out my boarding pass and my passpor--- um, wait. OK, tickets, boarding pass, notepad, pen, pencil, camera, phone, old passport... NO PASSPORT!!! Hmmm...
(OUT OF TIME... will continue the saga later!)
Day 1
Man have I got a story for you!
But, not yet. I've just arrived in Taiwan, alive and well. It's 8a now and I'm about to board a several hour train to Taichung to meet up with Heidi, but I thought I'd stand at this free internet for a bit to stretch my legs after a 13.5 hour flight and a 6 hour journey to get there.
Just thought I'd leave a quick note announcing my arrival to Asia. You can imagine the horns and fanfare.
Now off to the bus!
But, not yet. I've just arrived in Taiwan, alive and well. It's 8a now and I'm about to board a several hour train to Taichung to meet up with Heidi, but I thought I'd stand at this free internet for a bit to stretch my legs after a 13.5 hour flight and a 6 hour journey to get there.
Just thought I'd leave a quick note announcing my arrival to Asia. You can imagine the horns and fanfare.
Now off to the bus!
07 October 2008
Yet Another Rebirth...
To even make a post declaring that I'm revamping and restarting this blog seems trite at this point. For those of you (none of you) that have been following the evolution of SixQ.Net over the past 11 or 12 years, you know that I've launched and relaunched this site almost as many times as I've declared I'd be updating more now (and then never updating). So... let's do this to NO fanfare.
Last update I made in this was from Shanghai in December. As you can imagine and assume, I did make it home from China. I did it penniless, and came home to chaos and drama and after a move and thousands of dollars down the tubes, I'm now fully recovered from all that noise (just in time for the US economy to collapse on me anyway).
But also, after China, I flew home via Hong Kong and LAX, have been to LA 3 times since, Palm Springs/Coachella, San Diego, Lake Shasta, Vegas, Monterrey, etc. etc... Oh, and I went to South Africa for a week and a half or so, and stopped for a day in Frankfurt, Germany. I guess you'll have to wait to read about that in Newsweek or something, or when my autobiography is published, once I find a ghostwriter that can scribble words down as quickly as I can babble travel stories.
Anyway, so... no big relaunch, but I am leaving the country again in less than 24 hours. This time I'm bouncing around Asia a bit more - off to Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. Should be good times; a month away is much needed. I'll update as much as I can, put notes on Facebook and MySpace maybe, upload vids to MySpace and photos to Flickr. Got the Google Calendar updated as well. And as always, if you're not reading this on SixQ.Net, you bloody well should be! I've got everything tied together there - contact links, MySpace, Facebook, Google Calendar, Flickr, etc., plus a buncha free mashup mixes for those who don't know.
So... I'm gonna sleep for 3 hours, go work for 10 hours, then train it down to the airport and start another wild ride! Hope you kids drop a note or 10 to keep in touch! :)
Cheers,
6Q
Last update I made in this was from Shanghai in December. As you can imagine and assume, I did make it home from China. I did it penniless, and came home to chaos and drama and after a move and thousands of dollars down the tubes, I'm now fully recovered from all that noise (just in time for the US economy to collapse on me anyway).
But also, after China, I flew home via Hong Kong and LAX, have been to LA 3 times since, Palm Springs/Coachella, San Diego, Lake Shasta, Vegas, Monterrey, etc. etc... Oh, and I went to South Africa for a week and a half or so, and stopped for a day in Frankfurt, Germany. I guess you'll have to wait to read about that in Newsweek or something, or when my autobiography is published, once I find a ghostwriter that can scribble words down as quickly as I can babble travel stories.
Anyway, so... no big relaunch, but I am leaving the country again in less than 24 hours. This time I'm bouncing around Asia a bit more - off to Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. Should be good times; a month away is much needed. I'll update as much as I can, put notes on Facebook and MySpace maybe, upload vids to MySpace and photos to Flickr. Got the Google Calendar updated as well. And as always, if you're not reading this on SixQ.Net, you bloody well should be! I've got everything tied together there - contact links, MySpace, Facebook, Google Calendar, Flickr, etc., plus a buncha free mashup mixes for those who don't know.
So... I'm gonna sleep for 3 hours, go work for 10 hours, then train it down to the airport and start another wild ride! Hope you kids drop a note or 10 to keep in touch! :)
Cheers,
6Q
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
