Lazy Man's Yoga...

After my last meeting yesterday, I decided to walk home (which turned out to be a long walk once I realized I was going the wrong direction and had to turn back...). It became longer when I ducked into a mall for some A/C since I was dripping sweat...and longer still when it started pouring and I ducked into a coffee shop. And then very long when I decided to get a traditional thai massage.

"Lazy man's yoga"is what many nickname traditional thai massage. Thai massage "generally takes place on a large padded mat on the floor. Therapists use a mix of massage, yoga, acupressure and stretching to open the body physically and energetically. Unlike other forms of massage, you wear comfortable, loose fitting clothes and although you're relaxed, you're fully involved during a treatment, breathing and communicating with the therapist [OR WOULD BE IF THEY SPOKE ENGLISH] as they gently [um...depending on your definition of gentlye...] contort and knead your body."


This picture is definitely something they did yesterday. But actually, it was great. I chose a spa connected with a thai massage school so as not to end up anywhere sketchy. I told them soft-to-normal pressure since it was my first time. Parts definitely hurt and were tough but I enjoyed it and certainly counted it as my workout for the day :) 1 hour, all for 400 bhat (about $15 USD).

Unfortunately the weather delayed my getting home even more. It was raining (okay pouring rain and lightening) and no taxi's would take me because my hotel was on the other side of the big street and there was no way to get there on the road without going miles out of the way (whoever designed this main street did not do a good job). As I walking down a side street I kept ducking into places and looking for somewhere to stop. I happened upon a bar, saw that it was all white men and Thai women so kept going. Then I came to an alley with a wood bar, a few stools, with the name "cheap charlies" Perfect. Grabbed a stool and bought a cheap beer which came in a koozie (even better). Started chatting with a British woman who was in Thailand teaching at an international school and we waited out the storm. (You might be wondering why I did not stop and buy an umbrella...I thought about it but since I was leaving so soon it just seemed like a waste of money...and much too practical).

So, bags are packed and we are heading out for our last night in Bangkok. Flight leaves at 7am...6 hours to Tokyo, 13 hours to Chicago, 2 hours to DC. Big question is how much to sleep tonight before getting up at 4:30am...little to none most likely so as to hopefully sleep a lot on the trip.

Will post remaining pics of Bangkok once I get homes.

Thanks for reading during the whirlwind month (time flies!)

Until next time...

Yum

The main activities is Kuala Lumpur are shopping and eating...because Chanel, Gucci, Hermes, etc. are not really places I frequent these days, we spent most of our free time walking around and tasting the tastes of KL. Malaysia is interesting because its a mix of people, which makes it a mix of food as well. Chinese (thanks to commerce), Indians (thanks to the British colonization), and Malay (the ethnic population) all make up Malaysia. They have a chinatown, little india. It was so great seeing so many Indians and made me miss India!! This mix of cultures means there is great food of each of these populations, in addition to neighboring countries (Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, etc.). The city, according to my colleague, is a lot like Toronto. Its totally modern with lots of buildings...but not so many people. The Twin Towers (below) are the big attraction in the skyline.






The Food...my favorite is this malaysian dessert that is really just a mound of ice, ice cream, some sugar, corn, and I'm not sure what else...





We went to the KL Birdpark which is the biggest in the world I think - it was neat to see birds so close up, but I had preferred if they were flying out in the world :)







The rest of KL. I had a cold last week which zonked me out and I was sneezing constantly, so that was not fun at all - probably not helped by our hotel being right next to a popular street of nightclubs, which meant I heard club music despite being on the 23rd floor! It rained everyday at exactly 3pm. Work...the Malaysian government is not the most forthcoming, they have a law that says everything is secret until the government says otherwise. After meetings with our embassy, meetings with their government, we are on our way to getting what we need (fingers crossed). Their government complex is quite amazing, really beautiful buildings.

Below are some more pics, including a cool nightspot that was a bar with a pool overlooking the Towers. I'm fairly certain patrons must fall in this pool every night after a few drinks.







We are back at home sweet JW Marriott. I'm currently in the club lounge with what seems to be a large population of US Army dudes or some branch of the military. As well as BP and Chevron execs who met in our hotel today...we thought about crashing the meeting with picket signs but decided against it. Things are winding down here as we finish up a last meetings in Bangkok!

Went to the Mall for Lunch Today...

Which is were Malaysians go because there are the most amazing food courts ever, this one has stalls with food from Malaysia, Thailand, Korea, Japan, China, and um...Subway.

When we walked in we saw a stage and lots of purses and pictures of Paris Hilton everywhere.

Apparently she was supposed to be there...except when Japan turned that poor girl away she canceled her trip. Darn, because I really love Paris Hilton.

Welcome to Malaysia

Truly Asia, as their motto goes...

Viet Nam Food Diary

Dedicated to Jenna and other foodies out there (most of these are from the cruise)



Delish Fish



I'm pretty sure these are mussels...big juicy ones



Shrimp cocktail...and no those are not real flowers, actually its carrots, cucumber, and onion



Squid, so good. The boat fit in well with my "vegetarianism" in Vietnam.


Vietnamese Iced Coffee with Milk...so yummmy

Viet Nam

We finished up meetings in Hanoi, all of which were fairly productive. Some pictures of Hanoi below...












THEN...because we had all our meetings early in the week, we decided to take advantage of our location and do a "junk tour" of Halong Bay, which is about 3 hours from Hanoi. Halong Bay has about 2,000 limestone islands and we had heard, absolutely beautiful. Its a big tourist thing, and there are tons of boats ("junks") that you can take with all basically the same itinerary. That is our ship in the picture, called "Oriental Sails." You get there around noon, board your boat, have lunch while crusing, go see some of the caves, go kayaking, swimming, have dinner, sleep on the boat, and visit a "floating" village in the morning before returning. The floating villages are pretty unique, they have been there for generations and are obviously very poor. The people are usually fisherman and go into land to sell fish and then get needed supplies, like food and water. They have a floating school but it only is elementary school. There were also dogs, which I did not quite understand in terms of the bathroom situation...

Its a quick trip but SO beautiful, the pictures do not do it justice and I'm so glad we got to squeeze this in. The food was AMAZING, see next post.

We are not at the JW anymore...

My hotel room in Hanoi smells a bit like pee...

But I also just paid 50 cents for a beer.

Guess you win some and lose some...go with the flow. That goes for traffic as well, many motorbikes and cars, not so much on the lanes and traffic lights. We almost got taken out by a motorbike but you really have to just commit and go for it -- luckily my time in India has prepared me well for this type of situation.

Hanoi is certainly a developing city, closer to India, whereas Bangkok was certainly closer to the US. There is still a huge French influence here and we are staying in the French Quarter...around the corner from Gucci and Hermes and the Meteropole Sofitel, nicest hotel in the city and definitely reminds of New Orleans and Paris! All a few blocks from the Old Quarter which is pure Vietnam and pure Asia - like two different worlds! Hanoi is celebrating its 1,000 year anniversary this month so there is lots of buzz about that. At the center of a city is a beautiful lake, will post some pics soon.

We are having productive meetings (albeit slightly adversarial with the Vietnamese) and have been working a lot in a ex-pat coffee shop filled with people working for the UN or other organizations. My stomach has not been totally agreeing with the food here and I have been pure vegetarian (they eat dog here and have no problem hanging various meat products from restaurant windows or gutting chickens in the street...). My colleague on the other hand "experiences culture through food" and is all about trying the dog. I have asked him to do that when he is not with me! Eeeew.

Bangkok

I ran out of time to really finish Bangkok properly - an amazing city! So diverse, and such a mix of culture and modernity. Not to mention amazing food. On Saturday I really got a good overview. I hired a tour guide and we hit up all the major spots. We started by taking a boat to the Grand Palace. The Grand Palace is really amazing, definitely one of the most beautiful temples/palaces I have ever seen, the colors are so brilliant, its pretty indescribable. Its a bunch of different temples/buildings that create almost a little village. Its known for the 'emerald buddha' which is actually quite small but very holy. (I will not mention the pig's head that was on display as an offering to the buddha).

Since I really got to make my own tour, the next stop was to take a boat to a floating market. I was debating doing this part because it was an extra 1,200 bhat (about $33 dollars), I debated about 30 seconds before deciding Yes, of course I am going to do this, I'm in Thailand, and I'm so glad I did, it was such a highlight. We cruised through the backwater canals (which used to be all of Bangkok and that was how they got around). People still live right on the water, and the houses ranged from very nice to very poor. Since its rainy season the water was extremely high and we kept having to stop in between these gates that were down to keep water out. We stopped at the floating market, full of women in boats preparing food, different stalls, which eventually turned into a street market. This is where I returned my eel to its rightful home, ensuring myself a long and smooth life. I also had the most amazing lunch of spring rolls and some other street food, that cost about $1.

From here we took the boat to Wat Arun, a tall temple that is a little different style than the Grand Palace. I got to climb up it and got amazing views of bangkok. I also got blessed by a monk here.



Then we went on to Wat Pwo, very famous in Bangkok and home to the second largest Buddha in Thailand, called the Golden Buddha. Here is where I bought some good karma with the coins.

Finally we saw Jim Thompson's House. Jim Thompson was an American who lived in Bangkok for many years before "mysteriously disappearing" in the 60s never to be heard from again. There are rumors he worked for the CIA. While in Bangkok he really invested in their silk industry and made it world famous. Jim Thompson silk products (scarves, ties, pillows, bags, etc) are now very popular. Anyway, his house is now a museum because its a bunch of different Thai houses (really rooms) put together, all on stilts and in a beautiful lush area. I've also included a picture of a "spirit house" found all over Bangkok and meant to protect houses from evil spirits (Thais are very superstitious). The houses also have high steps in between doorways



I completed my day with another Thai foot massage, apparently this is more like the "real" thai massages, meaning: painful, but good for you. I have signed up for a full Thai massage when I return to Bangkok that I am now very much rethinking...

There are still a few things I want to do so I'm I glad to have a few days at the end of the trip there.

Karma Build-UP

Today I did the following things to ensure my future (yes its not a 401K but it can't hurt):

1. Splash holy-water blessed by a monk on my head and shoulders with a flower (brings good luck)
2. Buy an eel and release him back into the water to "ensure a smooth and happy life" (potential problem: my eel was quickly swarmed by a million catfish so I'm hoping he survived)
3. Get blessed by a monk in a temple (comes with a bracelet and brings good fortune)
4. Put 180 coins into 180 buckets to signify the past 180 lives of Buddha (again with the luck) (potential problem: I might have missed some buckets and ended up with a few handfuls of coins at the end...)

In fact, only one of these was "free" so I guess what I am really doing for good karma is donating money to the Buddhists.

Great day touring Bangkok today - will write more later. Must pack, leaving hotel at 4:45am for flight to Vietnam!