yes, a weird opening statement after close to three months of traveling and no update - but i can't get over it. i really believe 7/11 owns part of asia, it must. it's at least twice as worse as starbucks in the states ... but it's a reliable place to get toilet paper (i have not yet totally embraced the thai way of spraying myself clean - how do you know when you're done?)and water. that is another thing in itself, friends -- i have been going through so many plastic water bottles. ugh! i feel guilty but i don't really know how else to go ... you can't drink the tap, sometimes i see centers to fill up on filtered water for my kanteen but they are few and far in between -- and in this heat you can't risk it. any advice from any fellow travelers? asides from that it's a big shenanigan to just buy a bottle of water before they try to throw it in a plastic bag with a plastic straw ... and they look at you so strangely when you refuse!
but, other than that travels are going smooth enough. i've officially seen the biggest spider in my life, or should i say caught a glimpse of it before i closed and barricaded the bathroom door? or should i say before paul closed and barricaded the bathroom door as i was standing across the room next to the front door if it came to that. hopefully that's the end of those stories. the food has been great - strangely enough the weirdest thing i've eaten wasn't because of crazy ingredients or anything like that -- it was just plain weird. i thought i'd get a delicious smelling waffle for desert and i bite into it to find that it's filled with ... hot dog? eww.
there's so much to catch up on - and with a limited time to do it in, i can already feel the randomness of this passage growing and growing.
at the moment we are in a town called lopburi, famous pretty mcuh only for the fact that it is overrun by monkeys. apparently the monkey gang is lead by a half blind geezer, though i haven't had the pleasure of seeing him yet. it really is one of the strangest things i have ever seen - there are so many more than you would expect. this morning a monkey ran up behind us and grabbed half of our breakfast goodies and then proceded up the telephone pole to eat in in front of us out of our reach. yesterday paul was bending down to take a photo and before he knew it a monkey was on his head ... it's very surreal --
almost a weirder phenomenon than the elephants! how fun was that?! some of you have probably seen the photos but we did an adventure trek which included elephant riding, bathing and a camping trip to the waterfalls. such a beautiful couple of days - but so many mosquitoes. i was worried the elephant riding experience might be a sad one - but the elephants seemed happy tromping through the jungle and the river. i would have liked more interaction with them, the guides assume you always want to be riding them so you barely see their face -- but it was a great experience. very weird because you are thrown right in there and you just do it.
....
france! what a great month as well - marie was an amazing host, as i would have expected ... we saw so many beautiful places, met some wonderful people and ate SO much good food. i think the french food has officially captivated paul's heart ...
i will say this about france - apparently at parties they like to dress up like mice and sing about cheese? it's true, there is photographic proof.
...
the last couple weeks in australia were great and i'm starting to look forward to going back. we took a roadtrip through pretty much outback land -- very interesting camping and roughing it in the middle of nowhere ... and still i have seen the most beautiful beach of the trip there. our last week was spent with a couchsurfer (apparently an ex-pro bullrider of australia?) and his couchsurf-ees. it was amazing how quickly we all became so a close group.
...
somewhat of an update of a good amount of time - i know i'm missing tons of great stories. today we are on a train to phisanulok, and then to chiang mai. from there we fly to souther thailand, into phuket. then some of the crazy beach time will begin ...
at least, that's the plan ... we'll see how it actually goes.
<3
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
and so it goes ...
in two days time we will have been in australia for two weeks.
two weeks away from home. two weeks away from friends and two weeks away from family. two weeks of not really knowing at all what is coming when we wake up in the morning.
and it's going to turn into nine months!
at the moment i am sitting on a great friend's couch after a day of wondering the city of adelaide. i've developed a routine here-- get up, pack away my sleeping bag, wonder down to the library to check email and keep connected, jump on the free 99c bus down to the central market to grab whatever looks good, fresh and cheap! the central market is an awesome gathering of produce, bread, cheese and food stalls from around adelaide. when the market isn't open (sundays and mondays) we resort to mediocre grocery stores and asian markets. i'm writing this on a monday night and am so excited for the market to be open again tomorrow after a weekend of eating mi-gorengs (a slightly better version of top ramen) and random grains (which we acquired earlier in the week from the market) with the only vegetable that ever seems to look appetizing, bok choy.
right now we are kind of in a state of flux. by now we should have definitely been off of conor's couch, happily picking fruit and raking in cash in the countryside. unfortunately, it didn't happen. we ventured 3 hours out into the country to find the farmers are having a horrible season and work is slim. we could stick it out at the hostel and wait around for possible jobs, but no one knows when they'll come, and we don't really have the money to afford that. so, long story short we are back on conor's floor. (thank goodness for him!)
this week is planned to be spent looking for any type of job we may be able to find back in the city, in the hopes of saving up some cash to get to france. in any case, this evening we've decided we're buying our one way tickets to france soon and then figuring it out from there. if work doesn't present itself this week, we plan on catching a ride to perth (western australia) and escaping to live more cheaply in thailand until france comes along in june. such an adventure, eh??
even with all the uncertainty the trip has been great. we've already petted koalas and kangaroos, surfed in australian waters, seen plentiful beaches and rivers, eaten vegemite and fish and chips on the beach, learned some about local culture (bogans), and like the rest of the country have become wrapped up in a little reality tv cooking show called masterchef.
i knew starting out that the actual trip that happened would be drastically different than what we had planned. seeing it actually beginning to happen (and so soon!) is exiciting but also a bit scary. here goes to seeing where we'll be nine months from now.
cheers!
two weeks away from home. two weeks away from friends and two weeks away from family. two weeks of not really knowing at all what is coming when we wake up in the morning.
and it's going to turn into nine months!
at the moment i am sitting on a great friend's couch after a day of wondering the city of adelaide. i've developed a routine here-- get up, pack away my sleeping bag, wonder down to the library to check email and keep connected, jump on the free 99c bus down to the central market to grab whatever looks good, fresh and cheap! the central market is an awesome gathering of produce, bread, cheese and food stalls from around adelaide. when the market isn't open (sundays and mondays) we resort to mediocre grocery stores and asian markets. i'm writing this on a monday night and am so excited for the market to be open again tomorrow after a weekend of eating mi-gorengs (a slightly better version of top ramen) and random grains (which we acquired earlier in the week from the market) with the only vegetable that ever seems to look appetizing, bok choy.
right now we are kind of in a state of flux. by now we should have definitely been off of conor's couch, happily picking fruit and raking in cash in the countryside. unfortunately, it didn't happen. we ventured 3 hours out into the country to find the farmers are having a horrible season and work is slim. we could stick it out at the hostel and wait around for possible jobs, but no one knows when they'll come, and we don't really have the money to afford that. so, long story short we are back on conor's floor. (thank goodness for him!)
this week is planned to be spent looking for any type of job we may be able to find back in the city, in the hopes of saving up some cash to get to france. in any case, this evening we've decided we're buying our one way tickets to france soon and then figuring it out from there. if work doesn't present itself this week, we plan on catching a ride to perth (western australia) and escaping to live more cheaply in thailand until france comes along in june. such an adventure, eh??
even with all the uncertainty the trip has been great. we've already petted koalas and kangaroos, surfed in australian waters, seen plentiful beaches and rivers, eaten vegemite and fish and chips on the beach, learned some about local culture (bogans), and like the rest of the country have become wrapped up in a little reality tv cooking show called masterchef.
i knew starting out that the actual trip that happened would be drastically different than what we had planned. seeing it actually beginning to happen (and so soon!) is exiciting but also a bit scary. here goes to seeing where we'll be nine months from now.
cheers!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
clean slate.
i'm hurdled into one of the few spots of free space in my studio right now. clothes and belongings are strewn about around me, my knees are blotched with white paint ... and i'm realizing how easy it is to escape reality.
i never thought it would be this easy, but all you gotta do is pack up and run away.
that's kind of what i feel like i'm up to with this trip -- a chance at amazing experiences and life lessons, but also a chance to get away. maybe i'm just being a little too reflective, while painting my blue walls back to white -- but it just seems like such a wiping free of life and responsibilities i'm creating, such a clean slate.
such simpliflying! i really am purging myself of everything superfluous that i own. extra clothes, unneeded indulgences, old books that someone else can now learn from ... etc etc etc... gone! it feels great to finally be forced to do this -- i am already looking forward to the simplified life i will have when i return!
one by one i feel that i am unraveling life's deceptions. there is no right or wrong way to live. i don't work anywhere close to five days a week, i don't have any money saved up -- yet i live by the beach in a community i love and i am going on a nine month trip ... things can begin to happen if you're willing to think outside the box and just figure out how to do it!
i never thought it would be this easy, but all you gotta do is pack up and run away.
that's kind of what i feel like i'm up to with this trip -- a chance at amazing experiences and life lessons, but also a chance to get away. maybe i'm just being a little too reflective, while painting my blue walls back to white -- but it just seems like such a wiping free of life and responsibilities i'm creating, such a clean slate.
such simpliflying! i really am purging myself of everything superfluous that i own. extra clothes, unneeded indulgences, old books that someone else can now learn from ... etc etc etc... gone! it feels great to finally be forced to do this -- i am already looking forward to the simplified life i will have when i return!
one by one i feel that i am unraveling life's deceptions. there is no right or wrong way to live. i don't work anywhere close to five days a week, i don't have any money saved up -- yet i live by the beach in a community i love and i am going on a nine month trip ... things can begin to happen if you're willing to think outside the box and just figure out how to do it!
Saturday, February 6, 2010
today ...
... a woman at worked stopped me and said, "i have to ask you this. you seem so centered and relaxed. do you work towards being like this, do you meditate?".
it was an interesting question and gave me a little to think about. i don't really try to be anything. i think that i am naturally pretty laid back -- i can definitely get really excited about things, but never get too worked up. things don't really seem to get to me -- if you don't treat me well, you're not worth the time and i just don't deal with your issues. i don't really stress about it.
it was interesting actually being questioned about the way i act, rather than just being myself and doing it. things definitely get to me at work, dealing with the public, but today it was reinforced for me that everything is as big a deal or as little as you make it in your head. it was nice to hear from this woman that i may exude a calmness, and i was inspired to get in touch with that more.
i told her i have a lot of free time to myself, off of work, just to focus on life and being - which i think has a lot to do with my overall happiness ... but she didn't seem to take that as an answer. she replied, "just in general though, if you were in a stressful situation you wouldn't collapse, you would be gathered enough to deal with it."
i took our conversation as quite a compliment ... an observation from a stranger can be an interesting thing, what does this woman really know about me and how i will hold myself in a certain situation? but strangers many times have the most unbiased views of us ... i think they are important to take in every once in a while ...
it was an interesting question and gave me a little to think about. i don't really try to be anything. i think that i am naturally pretty laid back -- i can definitely get really excited about things, but never get too worked up. things don't really seem to get to me -- if you don't treat me well, you're not worth the time and i just don't deal with your issues. i don't really stress about it.
it was interesting actually being questioned about the way i act, rather than just being myself and doing it. things definitely get to me at work, dealing with the public, but today it was reinforced for me that everything is as big a deal or as little as you make it in your head. it was nice to hear from this woman that i may exude a calmness, and i was inspired to get in touch with that more.
i told her i have a lot of free time to myself, off of work, just to focus on life and being - which i think has a lot to do with my overall happiness ... but she didn't seem to take that as an answer. she replied, "just in general though, if you were in a stressful situation you wouldn't collapse, you would be gathered enough to deal with it."
i took our conversation as quite a compliment ... an observation from a stranger can be an interesting thing, what does this woman really know about me and how i will hold myself in a certain situation? but strangers many times have the most unbiased views of us ... i think they are important to take in every once in a while ...
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
a plan.
throwing it out, in hopes that it may materialize.
the schemer is back at it again .... get me started and crazy things can happen.
i think that perhaps i am going thru my 'mid-twenties' crisis. in october i will have been at the co-op for 2 years ... which is freaking me out a little. that fact combined with a lust for adventure and inspiring new friends has lit a spark inside me ... so, now on to the plan.
i guess it started out as making a pact with friends to celebrate new years eve this year in australia. that led to opportunities to work there, which led to visiting a friend in france, which led to opportunities to volunteer/teach english which has always appealed to me. also, with my limited funds ..... combining all those into one huge trip to save money on flights/be able to fly at cheaper times led to this crazy solution.
ideally, i want to be in france the month of june. the easiest way i've found to do that would be to go to australia first (?) ... haha. a round-trip to australia (returning jan. 2011) is only $600! so: australia in may, work for a month (they have amazing looking work hostels that are super cheap and pay loads just to pick fruit outside in the sunshine!) ... and then use that money to buy a super expensive flight to france ... because that seems to be the only thing available. after that, in july i would like to head to thailand, find either a teaching job or a volunteer job. either one would be amazing. i figure that will last at least 4 months ... and then i could return back to australia, and work again for the majority of nov/dec ... all leading up to the great new years eve celebration that started this all off!
anyways, it sounds amazing to me. i believe i can make it work. and i hope i'm not one of those people who is all talk and doesn't actually make it happen. i hope i'm not, but i'm not sure yet.
wish me luck.
the schemer is back at it again .... get me started and crazy things can happen.
i think that perhaps i am going thru my 'mid-twenties' crisis. in october i will have been at the co-op for 2 years ... which is freaking me out a little. that fact combined with a lust for adventure and inspiring new friends has lit a spark inside me ... so, now on to the plan.
i guess it started out as making a pact with friends to celebrate new years eve this year in australia. that led to opportunities to work there, which led to visiting a friend in france, which led to opportunities to volunteer/teach english which has always appealed to me. also, with my limited funds ..... combining all those into one huge trip to save money on flights/be able to fly at cheaper times led to this crazy solution.
ideally, i want to be in france the month of june. the easiest way i've found to do that would be to go to australia first (?) ... haha. a round-trip to australia (returning jan. 2011) is only $600! so: australia in may, work for a month (they have amazing looking work hostels that are super cheap and pay loads just to pick fruit outside in the sunshine!) ... and then use that money to buy a super expensive flight to france ... because that seems to be the only thing available. after that, in july i would like to head to thailand, find either a teaching job or a volunteer job. either one would be amazing. i figure that will last at least 4 months ... and then i could return back to australia, and work again for the majority of nov/dec ... all leading up to the great new years eve celebration that started this all off!
anyways, it sounds amazing to me. i believe i can make it work. and i hope i'm not one of those people who is all talk and doesn't actually make it happen. i hope i'm not, but i'm not sure yet.
wish me luck.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
blissed out.
i have just experienced some the 7 most amazing days of my life.
an amazing friend is something to be so grateful for in any circumstance ... but to discover a new one from the first moment you meet them is really quite magical. to discover 2 or 3 or even more is a little overwhelming.
and to have 7 full days to just enjoy their pure, genuine company is one of the most amazing experiences you can ever have.
the first day hanging out with these people i witnessed a sight i have never seen before. while all bonding in the water on our boards i looked up to discover the sun with a full circle of a rainbow enclosing it. it was an amazing sight and now that i think of it so appropriate for the week. whatever path we are all on in our own lives we can always come together to create something so beautiful and so connected ... as beautiful as the different colored rings of the everlasting round rainbow circle i was lucky enough to see.
as i type i tear up, smile, and burst into laugher (into laugh, according to marie) while thinking about this week. it was definitely amazing in so many ways, i really felt that this week i no doubt experienced true bliss. watching a friend sing an amazing song, laughing until your face hurts, surfing all day, spooning, cooking, bonding ... making pacts. so utterly beautiful.
this last week has convinced me that although i'm not sure where i'm going that my life is on the right path. a friend posted a great quote:
"coincidences are life's way of teeling us we are on the perfect path".
and i think that is so amazing. the fact that i even got to meet some of these people blow my mind ... i can't imagine what life would be like without them after knowing them just a couple months, much less a couple days! we were meant to cross paths and it IS perfect.
this morning, thanks to my dear friend conor, i was able to make some important choices about where my life is going to go this year. i can't wait ... and i can't wait to make a beautiful rainbow circle again with all my new 'forever friends'.
love to you all so much.
Friday, January 8, 2010
happy year!
2010 is coming along very nicely. i was blessed to be a part of one of the most amazing gatherings of my life on new years eve -- my heart still sings from it. it was very overwhelming in the most amazing way -- the company, the setting, the hugs!, the atmosphere, the music ... the sequins ... i could go on and on.
earlier today a good friend asked me what i'm up this new year and my answer was basically nothing. i don't know if it's a positive thing or not but right now i've decided that i'm happy just as i am. i embody simplicity right now: i'm working a couple days a week with good people, i have a ton of free time to surf, cook, hang with friends, take photos and start projects ... i don't know that i'm moving anywhere specifically, but i'm okay with that for the moment. it's challenging to just simply be happy i think. as silly as it sounds it's a struggle to just sit back and enjoy - without worrying about the future and progress and ... blah blah blah. it's strange, i've stopped pushing so hard for things to happen - but i think the positivity that's taking over is moving me along as much as ever. good things are swirling around in the atmosphere, on their way to me and my loved ones...
i love my new community, the sunsets of the new year have all been amazing, i have a new warm 4:3 wetsuit, i found disney scene it at the thrift store for $4, i painted my studio a lovely shade of blue, i'm coming up on 2 years presence with a lovely boy, i have photo and video and cooking projects galore (all for a good cause) ... to sum it up once again i'm overwhelmed with goodness ... and i'm sticking with that this year.
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