Tuesday, October 30, 2007
PraBANG!!
It's been a while i know! But i've been busy!
After Da Lat i moved to Nha Trang, Vietnam's equivalent of Miami. I damaged my liver there for a few nights, made some good travel friends (Jack from Bath and Pete from Sidney), got raped by a prostitute and worked on my sexy tan. Good times.
Moved to Hoi An for a nights and enjoyed their Unesco World Heritage Old Quarter. Then spent the afternoon in Hue before taking the sleeper bus from hell to Hanoi, the northern capitol.
From there we organized a few trips. The first one was a 3 day trip to Ha Long Bay. The scenery is too incredible to describe so i'll let the pictures to the talking! We trekked up a mountain on Cat Ba island and enjoyed to best beach in Vietnam! The water in Ha Long is a lot more polluted than i thought it would be though...too many boats...way too many tourists...but well worth it.
Then we did a day trip to Tam Coc in the Ninh Binh province, a few hours drive from Hanoi. It is known as Ha Long Bay on land and it didn't disappoint! We took a two hour boat ride along a winding canal between and even through giant limestone cliffs.
Then came Sapa. Gorgeous Sapa. Neverending rolling hills and mountains, filled with rice fields. The locals over the centuries have carved the fields into the mountains themselves giving the impression of giant green and yellow staircases. Not the easiest thing to describe and sadly the pictures won't do it justice. But my 5 nights in Sapa were unforgetable. I will remember my two days of trekking, the great curry i had at our posh hotel, the little old local women, all dressed up in their colourful clothes, trying to sell me blankets, bracelets and opium.
From Sapa, we decided to use the newly opened border near Dien Bien Phu to cross into Laos. Although our initial local bus tried to screw us over big time ( we ended up getting off and walking down a mountain back to Sapa!), our second try went by without a hitch. Jack left Sapa to go to Thailand, but our international travelling trio was once again made whole when we met Jonathan(from Northern Ireland) on the bus to Muong Khoa, the Laos border town.
From there, we hitched a ride to Odomxay. We sat on rice sacs in the back of a bus for four hours. It was the best bus ride ever. Completely the opposite of the next bus ride where 42 people were crammed into a 19 person bus. All fully grown adults. There were people sitting on people who were sitting on me. All the while travelling on a crappy bus with smoking brakes, and smoking passengers, along a dangerous mountain road. Not cool.
Laos is incredible by the way. My favorite so far i think! Vietnam, after a month, got pretty annoying. It seems that the vietnamese have it engrained in their psyche from a very young age to take advantage and screw over foreigners every chance they get. Staying on your guard 24/7 gets tiring and Laos has been a great relief from that.
My first week was spent way up north in this tiny village called Muang Sing. We did a 2 day trek of the surrounding area and stayed in a village (11 houses, 75 people) on top of one of the mountains. The scene was straight from one of those world aid informercials. Chickens, pigs and water buffaloes walking around the houses, or rather straw shacks. Dirty children playing around, their bellies swollen from malnutrition. But these folks were happy none the less and everyone had a great time. (Leeches, blisters and sore muscles aside.)We even ate a snake that night that our guide caught on the way up to the village!! Surprisingly good, tastes a bit like fish.
We also rented a bicycle one day and made our way to the Chinese border, 10 km away. Officially, we weren't allowed in. But unofficially, just between us, we walked up a big hill a few hundreds meters from the border, and before we knew it, we were in China's Yunnan province. I walked a few steps in China. And you know what? It bared a striking resemblance to northern Laos.
That brings me here. Luang Prabang. Awesome. A lovely city, set along side the Mekong, filled with charming cafes and markets. Possibly the best street food town in the world. You can buy a HUGE sandwich, i'm talking huge here, with REAL chicken breast meat and filled with vegees for 1$. Subway would sell this sandwich for 24$, i kid you not. There's also this 50 cent fill your plate thing. It's vegetarian, but basically you fill your plate with as much food as you can, pyramid style, all for half a buck. Then there's a street filled with barbecued everything, all for less than a dollar. mmmmm...i'm getting hungry now.
Yesterday we visited a nice waterfall near town. There's a black bear shelter on the grounds and even a big tiger! I touched a tiger yesterday. I touched it through a fence, but still, i touched it. You didn't. So there.
They also have these mini falls there where you're allowed to swim. I have never before seen that shade of blue before. I was expecting murky brown water but no way. The water was bright turquoise aqua bluegreenish. I would have to consult my home depot color chart, but i think the color was "Heavenly lotus". Sounds nice doesn't it? It - was - crazy.
Tomorrow i'm heading to Vang Vien, party town. You do some tubeing and kayaking and drinking and for people whose ankles aren't shite, you can even rock-climb.
After Da Lat i moved to Nha Trang, Vietnam's equivalent of Miami. I damaged my liver there for a few nights, made some good travel friends (Jack from Bath and Pete from Sidney), got raped by a prostitute and worked on my sexy tan. Good times.
Moved to Hoi An for a nights and enjoyed their Unesco World Heritage Old Quarter. Then spent the afternoon in Hue before taking the sleeper bus from hell to Hanoi, the northern capitol.
From there we organized a few trips. The first one was a 3 day trip to Ha Long Bay. The scenery is too incredible to describe so i'll let the pictures to the talking! We trekked up a mountain on Cat Ba island and enjoyed to best beach in Vietnam! The water in Ha Long is a lot more polluted than i thought it would be though...too many boats...way too many tourists...but well worth it.
Then we did a day trip to Tam Coc in the Ninh Binh province, a few hours drive from Hanoi. It is known as Ha Long Bay on land and it didn't disappoint! We took a two hour boat ride along a winding canal between and even through giant limestone cliffs.
Then came Sapa. Gorgeous Sapa. Neverending rolling hills and mountains, filled with rice fields. The locals over the centuries have carved the fields into the mountains themselves giving the impression of giant green and yellow staircases. Not the easiest thing to describe and sadly the pictures won't do it justice. But my 5 nights in Sapa were unforgetable. I will remember my two days of trekking, the great curry i had at our posh hotel, the little old local women, all dressed up in their colourful clothes, trying to sell me blankets, bracelets and opium.
From Sapa, we decided to use the newly opened border near Dien Bien Phu to cross into Laos. Although our initial local bus tried to screw us over big time ( we ended up getting off and walking down a mountain back to Sapa!), our second try went by without a hitch. Jack left Sapa to go to Thailand, but our international travelling trio was once again made whole when we met Jonathan(from Northern Ireland) on the bus to Muong Khoa, the Laos border town.
From there, we hitched a ride to Odomxay. We sat on rice sacs in the back of a bus for four hours. It was the best bus ride ever. Completely the opposite of the next bus ride where 42 people were crammed into a 19 person bus. All fully grown adults. There were people sitting on people who were sitting on me. All the while travelling on a crappy bus with smoking brakes, and smoking passengers, along a dangerous mountain road. Not cool.
Laos is incredible by the way. My favorite so far i think! Vietnam, after a month, got pretty annoying. It seems that the vietnamese have it engrained in their psyche from a very young age to take advantage and screw over foreigners every chance they get. Staying on your guard 24/7 gets tiring and Laos has been a great relief from that.
My first week was spent way up north in this tiny village called Muang Sing. We did a 2 day trek of the surrounding area and stayed in a village (11 houses, 75 people) on top of one of the mountains. The scene was straight from one of those world aid informercials. Chickens, pigs and water buffaloes walking around the houses, or rather straw shacks. Dirty children playing around, their bellies swollen from malnutrition. But these folks were happy none the less and everyone had a great time. (Leeches, blisters and sore muscles aside.)We even ate a snake that night that our guide caught on the way up to the village!! Surprisingly good, tastes a bit like fish.
We also rented a bicycle one day and made our way to the Chinese border, 10 km away. Officially, we weren't allowed in. But unofficially, just between us, we walked up a big hill a few hundreds meters from the border, and before we knew it, we were in China's Yunnan province. I walked a few steps in China. And you know what? It bared a striking resemblance to northern Laos.
That brings me here. Luang Prabang. Awesome. A lovely city, set along side the Mekong, filled with charming cafes and markets. Possibly the best street food town in the world. You can buy a HUGE sandwich, i'm talking huge here, with REAL chicken breast meat and filled with vegees for 1$. Subway would sell this sandwich for 24$, i kid you not. There's also this 50 cent fill your plate thing. It's vegetarian, but basically you fill your plate with as much food as you can, pyramid style, all for half a buck. Then there's a street filled with barbecued everything, all for less than a dollar. mmmmm...i'm getting hungry now.
Yesterday we visited a nice waterfall near town. There's a black bear shelter on the grounds and even a big tiger! I touched a tiger yesterday. I touched it through a fence, but still, i touched it. You didn't. So there.
They also have these mini falls there where you're allowed to swim. I have never before seen that shade of blue before. I was expecting murky brown water but no way. The water was bright turquoise aqua bluegreenish. I would have to consult my home depot color chart, but i think the color was "Heavenly lotus". Sounds nice doesn't it? It - was - crazy.
Tomorrow i'm heading to Vang Vien, party town. You do some tubeing and kayaking and drinking and for people whose ankles aren't shite, you can even rock-climb.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Da Lat !
So you didn't like the hat!?! You should know that it's suprisingly light and comfortable...and that it's not a tourist thing...a lot of vietnamese people still wear it. A lot!
I've been in Da Lat now for 3 nights. Located in Vietnam's central highlands, Da Lat sits on top of the mountains at around 1400 m. I love it here. I went out to look for a job here today but the english schools weren't looking for teachers and the travel agencies didn't need more rock climbing guides. Oh well...i'll try my luck elsewhere soon enough.
Yesterday i went on an Easy Rider tour. People all over had been raving about this so i gave it a try. Basically, you hire a guide for a day or two, or weeks even, and ride around on his motorcycle visiting the so-called "real Vietnam".It...was...sweet.
I saw sooo much stuff yesterday! A few waterfalls,a few pagodas, a minority village..and of course the beautiful mountains! I also visited coffee plantations, tea plantations, silk factories (with silk worms and stuff!), a mushroom factory( yes because they kinda make mushrooms), flower gardens and other things i've already forgotten! Vietnam is the world's number two exporter of coffee and on its way to passing Brazil apparently...so i had my first taste of real coffee ever. And, unfortunately, i really really enjoyed it. Damn you coffee!
The minority village of the Lat people was also quite interesting...mostly because my guide, Mr. Hai, spoke french exceptionally well. We toured the village together and discussed the village's history and traditions. He wanted me to tell everybody that the women ask to men in marriage there. :) He sang some traditional songs to me which was fun...we even sampled some rice wine!
And i learned a lot about coffee...there's so much of it here...it's not black when it's on a tree. :) Oh, and same for pepper (as in salt and pepper). That grows on a tree and is green before it dries and turns black.
So here are a few pics!
Crazy pig in Dragon pagoda!
Sampling the fermenting rice wine...i wasn't too sure about this because that vase was still filled with rice...but the wine was really good!
In front of the Elephant Waterfalls!
Happy Buddah with neon halo ! I would've loved to have seen this at night!!
Views from the mountains around Da Lat and of their famous vegetable farms!
This is a picture of the Crazy House. It's like Alice in Wonderland on drugs. Extremely weird. The architect has a PhD in architecture apparently...but the whole thing is sooooooo tacky!! But it's still fun to walk around the house though...
And these are the Dalatlan waterfalls..at least i think that's what they're called...i'll double check later. :) They were smaller but nicer that the Elephant falls i thought...
I should be leaving for the tropical beaches of Nha Trang tomorrow...i'm not sure because a typhoon just hit there so it might not be the best time for sun bathing.
I'll keep you posted!
:)
Friday, September 28, 2007
Mui Ne part.2
So i've been in Mui Ne for 3 days now. It's been a lot of fun but it's time to move on! I leave for Da Lat, the mountains in the central highlands of Vietnam, tomorrow morning.
Yesterday i rented a motorcycle for the first time. I...loved...it. The coastline here is amazing...kinda reminded me of California actually..which was a bit weird..but then you see bulls towing wagons filled with hay and you remember that you're actually in Vietnam.
I visited the white sand dunes after getting lost a few times on the way...really beautiful...my first sand dune experience..kinda makes me want to go to the Sahara now! Then i moved on to the Red Canyons, which looked like a miniature version of the Grand Canyon..nice for few minutes but not that impressive. Any rock formation that you can't climb does nothing for me! (it was basically hard red sand...)No not sand stone...hard sand. Then, i went to the red sand dunes which were nice but not as big and impressive as the white ones. And it was so hot by then that i spent the rest of the afternoon chilling poolside at my guesthouse!
I've been living in luxury for the past few days. Usually i can find 3$ a night guesthouses. Those are usually pretty basic. :) But here, i pay 6$ a night!!! I get my own room, with my OWN bathroom, no hot water but no freezing water either, AND they come and make my room everyday and i get a new towel everyday as well!!! A new towel!! Luxury. The guesthouse is super clean and it's directly on the beach...but the food here sucks. :)
Today i walked all the way to the Fairy Stream, which as you may have guessed, is a stream. You walked in it for about one kilometre and it leads to small water falls. A nice way to spend an afternoon. :)
I was going to put some nice pictures of all of this but my camera just died!! So more pics coming soon!
Yesterday i rented a motorcycle for the first time. I...loved...it. The coastline here is amazing...kinda reminded me of California actually..which was a bit weird..but then you see bulls towing wagons filled with hay and you remember that you're actually in Vietnam.
I visited the white sand dunes after getting lost a few times on the way...really beautiful...my first sand dune experience..kinda makes me want to go to the Sahara now! Then i moved on to the Red Canyons, which looked like a miniature version of the Grand Canyon..nice for few minutes but not that impressive. Any rock formation that you can't climb does nothing for me! (it was basically hard red sand...)No not sand stone...hard sand. Then, i went to the red sand dunes which were nice but not as big and impressive as the white ones. And it was so hot by then that i spent the rest of the afternoon chilling poolside at my guesthouse!
I've been living in luxury for the past few days. Usually i can find 3$ a night guesthouses. Those are usually pretty basic. :) But here, i pay 6$ a night!!! I get my own room, with my OWN bathroom, no hot water but no freezing water either, AND they come and make my room everyday and i get a new towel everyday as well!!! A new towel!! Luxury. The guesthouse is super clean and it's directly on the beach...but the food here sucks. :)
Today i walked all the way to the Fairy Stream, which as you may have guessed, is a stream. You walked in it for about one kilometre and it leads to small water falls. A nice way to spend an afternoon. :)
I was going to put some nice pictures of all of this but my camera just died!! So more pics coming soon!
Mui Ne
Okay!! Picture time!
First one is of Chau Doc, my first stop in Vietnam.
Claire and I in the crazy small Cu Chi tunnels!
Eating with friends at Asian Kitchen is Saigon!
Relaxing on a rowboat on the Mekong Delta
Martin and I...cheers!
Andre the bad-ass snake handler!
First one is of Chau Doc, my first stop in Vietnam.
Claire and I in the crazy small Cu Chi tunnels!
Eating with friends at Asian Kitchen is Saigon!
Relaxing on a rowboat on the Mekong Delta
Martin and I...cheers!
Andre the bad-ass snake handler!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Saigon!!!
Hello!
It's been a while since my last post! And i really wanted to show you lots of photos but the internet place here won't let me connect my camera to the computer..so the pics and stories will have to wait a day or two!
Long story short, i've been in Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh city depending how old you are)for the last 6 days. Vietnam...is...awesome. I did a day trip on the Mekong Delta where we visited a coconut candy factory...we also learned how rice paper and rice crispy is made! I visited the famous Cu Chi Tunnels and have mixed feelings about it. The tunnels themselves are interesting/scary/fun but the whole place had a weird theme park vibe to it. Inapropriate is a word that came up often. The guide made too many jokes, there are disneyesque robotic puppets everywhere, there's a shooting range!!! But i did love going thru 100 metres of tunnels, 3 feet high and less than 2 feet wide in some places! (up to 10 metres deep!!) We ended the tour in Ving Long in a cool market with lots of weird stuff for sale..the highlight of my day: Being the first brave guy/idiot to grab a bunch of lives snakes from a cage. Picture to prove it coming soon. :)
Besides that, i've just been walking around the city..visiting lots of museums. (Fine Arts museum, War Remnants museum, Ho chi Minh museum)I went to a zoo/botanical garden today! There's so much to do around here!!
But i have to move on so tomorrow i'm leaving for Mui Ne where sand dunes and beaches await!
I'll write more when i can put some pics up!
:)
It's been a while since my last post! And i really wanted to show you lots of photos but the internet place here won't let me connect my camera to the computer..so the pics and stories will have to wait a day or two!
Long story short, i've been in Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh city depending how old you are)for the last 6 days. Vietnam...is...awesome. I did a day trip on the Mekong Delta where we visited a coconut candy factory...we also learned how rice paper and rice crispy is made! I visited the famous Cu Chi Tunnels and have mixed feelings about it. The tunnels themselves are interesting/scary/fun but the whole place had a weird theme park vibe to it. Inapropriate is a word that came up often. The guide made too many jokes, there are disneyesque robotic puppets everywhere, there's a shooting range!!! But i did love going thru 100 metres of tunnels, 3 feet high and less than 2 feet wide in some places! (up to 10 metres deep!!) We ended the tour in Ving Long in a cool market with lots of weird stuff for sale..the highlight of my day: Being the first brave guy/idiot to grab a bunch of lives snakes from a cage. Picture to prove it coming soon. :)
Besides that, i've just been walking around the city..visiting lots of museums. (Fine Arts museum, War Remnants museum, Ho chi Minh museum)I went to a zoo/botanical garden today! There's so much to do around here!!
But i have to move on so tomorrow i'm leaving for Mui Ne where sand dunes and beaches await!
I'll write more when i can put some pics up!
:)
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Sihanookville to Saigon ?
So the weather is still really crappy. Everybody is thinking of leaving tomorrow and i think i might do the same. A few people have told me to take the boat to Vietnam and spend a few days in the Mekong Delta before going to Saigon...sounds pretty good to me!
The only bad part of that plan is that it's the raining season pretty much everywhere for the next month...sooooooo i don't know what to do..i change my mind every hour.
Sometimes i feel like going early to Australia...or straight to Bali to surf...oh how hard my life has become.
good times.
:)
The only bad part of that plan is that it's the raining season pretty much everywhere for the next month...sooooooo i don't know what to do..i change my mind every hour.
Sometimes i feel like going early to Australia...or straight to Bali to surf...oh how hard my life has become.
good times.
:)
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Battambang to Sihanookville
Salut!
I spent a nice few days in Battambang...for Cambodia's second largest city, the night life is absolutely dull though! Restaurants close at 10 and the one bar that doesn't play Cambodian music has a last call at 11!
I've been traveling the last few days with Claudia from Holland. We met on the boat ride from Siem Riep to Battambang and have been getting along very well. We went to the Killing Caves which are half way up a small mountain a few kilometres from town. Quite disturbing but it was nice to be in the mountains...our guides, Puong and Sopa (pictured below ), were lots of fun and we learned a lot about the local history.
We also went to visit another temple on top of another small mountain. After walking nearly 400 steps in the afternoon heat, we were met with an Angkor-period temple and lovely views of the country-side. I think that's what i enjoyed most about my time there, the moto drives in the country-side. Beautiful. Your arms get tired because you're constantly waving to all the excited children! Fruit trees, rice fields, narrow roads, small villages...beautiful.
The next day we went for a ride on the bamboo train - basically a bamboo mattress on rails. Lots of fun and the breeze was very refreshing! I also recommend to anybody travelling through there to have a fruit shake at The White Rose...by far the best i've had so far. :)
Last night i arrived in Sihanookville after a painful 10 hour bus trip. Painful because they played reaaaaaalllly loud Cambodian karaoke the whole way. For those of you not familiar with it, Cambodian music sucks. Cambodian karoake is worse. At one point during the ride, i almost snapped. Almost.
But it wasn't all bad...we met a really nice couple from Holland - Ruban and Claudia. We spent the entire morning just talking and drinking tea today. At the moment, we are sadly not at the beach because the weather is crap!!! The wet season is indeed wet now. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better...
So far my plan is to stay here for 4-5 days...that may change if the weather doesn't get any better so i'll keep you posted!
I spent a nice few days in Battambang...for Cambodia's second largest city, the night life is absolutely dull though! Restaurants close at 10 and the one bar that doesn't play Cambodian music has a last call at 11!
I've been traveling the last few days with Claudia from Holland. We met on the boat ride from Siem Riep to Battambang and have been getting along very well. We went to the Killing Caves which are half way up a small mountain a few kilometres from town. Quite disturbing but it was nice to be in the mountains...our guides, Puong and Sopa (pictured below ), were lots of fun and we learned a lot about the local history.
We also went to visit another temple on top of another small mountain. After walking nearly 400 steps in the afternoon heat, we were met with an Angkor-period temple and lovely views of the country-side. I think that's what i enjoyed most about my time there, the moto drives in the country-side. Beautiful. Your arms get tired because you're constantly waving to all the excited children! Fruit trees, rice fields, narrow roads, small villages...beautiful.
The next day we went for a ride on the bamboo train - basically a bamboo mattress on rails. Lots of fun and the breeze was very refreshing! I also recommend to anybody travelling through there to have a fruit shake at The White Rose...by far the best i've had so far. :)
Last night i arrived in Sihanookville after a painful 10 hour bus trip. Painful because they played reaaaaaalllly loud Cambodian karaoke the whole way. For those of you not familiar with it, Cambodian music sucks. Cambodian karoake is worse. At one point during the ride, i almost snapped. Almost.
But it wasn't all bad...we met a really nice couple from Holland - Ruban and Claudia. We spent the entire morning just talking and drinking tea today. At the moment, we are sadly not at the beach because the weather is crap!!! The wet season is indeed wet now. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better...
So far my plan is to stay here for 4-5 days...that may change if the weather doesn't get any better so i'll keep you posted!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Battambang baby!!!
Ok so the internet is painfully slow here so i won't be able to put too many pictures. Angkor is too awesome to describe so have a look at the pics!
Today i took an 8 hour boat ride to Battambang, Cambodia's second largest city. We passed through small floating villages and narrow forest passages. Very beautiful!
Tomorrow i'll probably hire a guide to take me to the Killing Caves ( on top of a small mountain here) and a few temples as well. The city seems nice enough so far, i couldn't walk around it much because the heat was a bit too intense. The city is know for its colonial French architecture, but from what i've seen, it's pretty much all delapidated.
Enjoy the pics and i'll talk to you soon!
Today i took an 8 hour boat ride to Battambang, Cambodia's second largest city. We passed through small floating villages and narrow forest passages. Very beautiful!
Tomorrow i'll probably hire a guide to take me to the Killing Caves ( on top of a small mountain here) and a few temples as well. The city seems nice enough so far, i couldn't walk around it much because the heat was a bit too intense. The city is know for its colonial French architecture, but from what i've seen, it's pretty much all delapidated.
Enjoy the pics and i'll talk to you soon!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Angkor What?
Hello All!
just wanted to say that i'm still alive and well! The temples of Angkor are absolutely incredible and everybody should go while you can still walk through them!
Pictures to come soon!
:)
just wanted to say that i'm still alive and well! The temples of Angkor are absolutely incredible and everybody should go while you can still walk through them!
Pictures to come soon!
:)
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Cambodia --- Phnom Penh edition.
Hey hey!
I'll be blogging in english while in Cambodia so I can properly make Tony jealous! :)
I kept hearing that Cambodians were among the friendliest people on earth, and i have to say that so far i agree!
I was sitting next to this Cambodian guy on the airplane shuttle and we started talking for a while...before we got off he offered me his business card ( Long Beang- Attorney at Law ) and said to call him if i had any questions or troubles or wanted to go out for coffee! And when we got off the plane, he even offered to drive me to my guesthouse! I gladly accepted. He even called the guesthouse and arranged for the manager to come pick me at the street corner. So as far as friendliness goes, Cambodians are on the top of my list.
I'm staying at the Floating Island guesthouse. A nice enough place in backpacker central. It's right on the river and has a spectacular sunset view. The staffers are in their early twenties and are super friendly as well. The pool table is free and you get to plug in your ipod to the sound system...so all in all, a great place.
Yesterday i went to the "Killing Fields" and to the "Tuol Sleng a.k.a. S-21" Museum. Needless to say, not a very cheerful day. S-21 used to be a high-school and was transformed by the Pol Pot regime into their main prison/interrogation a.k.a torture center. Gruesome. The place is filled with horrible pictures and mug shots of many of the victims. ( they used to document the lives of every prisoner with pictures and biographies)The place is seedy and dirty and scary as hell.
Then i went to the Killing Fields where all the bodies ( thousands upon thousands) were buried. Quite the creepy vibe as well let me tell you. You can still see old clothing and bones scattered everywhere. The mass graves have been dug up and the landscape is left littered with huge crevasses. A big stupa has been built to commemorate the genocide and is filled top to bottom with skulls.
I can't really express how you feel when you walk around a place like this. It's intense to say the least. But my brain had the hardest time wrapping itself around such evil. Evil. Evil. Evil. Farmers, peasants, intellectuals, bi-linguals, doctors, men, woman, children. There was even a special tree they used to beat children to death against. And another tree they used to hang speakers from to bury the screams during the exections.
Yeah. Great place. But it was worth seeing. And unfortunately for me, guides weren't available at either place so i'll have to read a few books to get to know a little bit more about the Khmer Rouge.
Oh, that's an interesting fact that i didn't expect. French is a bit everywhere still in Cambodia. Especially museums and govermental facilities. I'm told that some elders can still speak pretty well but for most of the population,french is their third language. But this kid at the guesthouse is getting pretty good...
So far on my trip, i would have had no problems bringing my mom to any of my destinations. Bangkok is soooo bland now. But Phnom Penh, a bit more hardcore. ( Don't worry mom, i'm totally fine.) But the first time i left the guesthouse at night, we hadn't walked for 20 seconds and we were offered every single drug you could imagine! Yes, even that one! And apparently, 95% of the massage parlours come with happy endings, so you need to watch out.
But it's not all bad. The tuk-tuk drivers don't piss me off as much as they did in Bangkok. You get offered a ride every 4 seconds, don't get me wrong, but they seem to take rejection better. :)
Today i went to the Russian Market, a smaller, hotter version of the Chattuchak market in Bangkok. I didn't buy anything. Having a hella-small backpack is saving me tons of money. Then i went to the National Museum. It was smaller than expected and a lot of the stuff repeated itself along the way. But the peaceful courtyard filled with coy-ponds was worth it. I sat down and enjoyed the rest of my book ( Breakfast of champions is officially the greatest book ever- everybody go read it now please so we can talk about it!!!) while it rained outside.
Speaking of rain, there hasn't been much of it considering it's the rainy season here. Hopefully that won't change when i'm in Angkor!
Guess what i had for lunch today!? No! Guess again! POUTINE !!!! hahaha I laughed when i saw that on the menu in the Lazy Gecko restaurant. It wasn't really good, but surprisingly, it wasn't the worst poutine i ever had. Well done Cambodia.
I bought my ticket for Siem Riep leaving tommorow morning at 7 o'clock. 6 hour trip for 3 and a half dollars. Oh yeah and Cambodia deals mostly in american dollars. You only need Riels for tuk tuk or moto drivers. ( the moto-drivers are a lot better and less scarier than in bangkok! Don't be scared to try if you ever come...)
So that's pretty much been the last 3 days...i've met some nice people - Chris, Gabs, Rianna and Zoe from England. And a nice guy from finland with whom i've just enjoyed supper with whose name i can't pronounce so i won't even try to write it down.
Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!
p.s. you also hear a lot about how Cambodia is a country of intense contrasts - good
and evil, beauty and ugliness and so on. These last pictures give you an idea of just that.
I'll be blogging in english while in Cambodia so I can properly make Tony jealous! :)
I kept hearing that Cambodians were among the friendliest people on earth, and i have to say that so far i agree!
I was sitting next to this Cambodian guy on the airplane shuttle and we started talking for a while...before we got off he offered me his business card ( Long Beang- Attorney at Law ) and said to call him if i had any questions or troubles or wanted to go out for coffee! And when we got off the plane, he even offered to drive me to my guesthouse! I gladly accepted. He even called the guesthouse and arranged for the manager to come pick me at the street corner. So as far as friendliness goes, Cambodians are on the top of my list.
I'm staying at the Floating Island guesthouse. A nice enough place in backpacker central. It's right on the river and has a spectacular sunset view. The staffers are in their early twenties and are super friendly as well. The pool table is free and you get to plug in your ipod to the sound system...so all in all, a great place.
Yesterday i went to the "Killing Fields" and to the "Tuol Sleng a.k.a. S-21" Museum. Needless to say, not a very cheerful day. S-21 used to be a high-school and was transformed by the Pol Pot regime into their main prison/interrogation a.k.a torture center. Gruesome. The place is filled with horrible pictures and mug shots of many of the victims. ( they used to document the lives of every prisoner with pictures and biographies)The place is seedy and dirty and scary as hell.
Then i went to the Killing Fields where all the bodies ( thousands upon thousands) were buried. Quite the creepy vibe as well let me tell you. You can still see old clothing and bones scattered everywhere. The mass graves have been dug up and the landscape is left littered with huge crevasses. A big stupa has been built to commemorate the genocide and is filled top to bottom with skulls.
I can't really express how you feel when you walk around a place like this. It's intense to say the least. But my brain had the hardest time wrapping itself around such evil. Evil. Evil. Evil. Farmers, peasants, intellectuals, bi-linguals, doctors, men, woman, children. There was even a special tree they used to beat children to death against. And another tree they used to hang speakers from to bury the screams during the exections.
Yeah. Great place. But it was worth seeing. And unfortunately for me, guides weren't available at either place so i'll have to read a few books to get to know a little bit more about the Khmer Rouge.
Oh, that's an interesting fact that i didn't expect. French is a bit everywhere still in Cambodia. Especially museums and govermental facilities. I'm told that some elders can still speak pretty well but for most of the population,french is their third language. But this kid at the guesthouse is getting pretty good...
So far on my trip, i would have had no problems bringing my mom to any of my destinations. Bangkok is soooo bland now. But Phnom Penh, a bit more hardcore. ( Don't worry mom, i'm totally fine.) But the first time i left the guesthouse at night, we hadn't walked for 20 seconds and we were offered every single drug you could imagine! Yes, even that one! And apparently, 95% of the massage parlours come with happy endings, so you need to watch out.
But it's not all bad. The tuk-tuk drivers don't piss me off as much as they did in Bangkok. You get offered a ride every 4 seconds, don't get me wrong, but they seem to take rejection better. :)
Today i went to the Russian Market, a smaller, hotter version of the Chattuchak market in Bangkok. I didn't buy anything. Having a hella-small backpack is saving me tons of money. Then i went to the National Museum. It was smaller than expected and a lot of the stuff repeated itself along the way. But the peaceful courtyard filled with coy-ponds was worth it. I sat down and enjoyed the rest of my book ( Breakfast of champions is officially the greatest book ever- everybody go read it now please so we can talk about it!!!) while it rained outside.
Speaking of rain, there hasn't been much of it considering it's the rainy season here. Hopefully that won't change when i'm in Angkor!
Guess what i had for lunch today!? No! Guess again! POUTINE !!!! hahaha I laughed when i saw that on the menu in the Lazy Gecko restaurant. It wasn't really good, but surprisingly, it wasn't the worst poutine i ever had. Well done Cambodia.
I bought my ticket for Siem Riep leaving tommorow morning at 7 o'clock. 6 hour trip for 3 and a half dollars. Oh yeah and Cambodia deals mostly in american dollars. You only need Riels for tuk tuk or moto drivers. ( the moto-drivers are a lot better and less scarier than in bangkok! Don't be scared to try if you ever come...)
So that's pretty much been the last 3 days...i've met some nice people - Chris, Gabs, Rianna and Zoe from England. And a nice guy from finland with whom i've just enjoyed supper with whose name i can't pronounce so i won't even try to write it down.
Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!
p.s. you also hear a lot about how Cambodia is a country of intense contrasts - good
and evil, beauty and ugliness and so on. These last pictures give you an idea of just that.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Phnom Penh tomorrow!
Je devrais arriver au Cambodge demain soir vers 7PM !! J'ai hate de visiter un nouveau pays...je vais faire de mon mieux pour vous tenir au courant de mes nouvelles aventures..en esperant que l'internet n'est pas dispendieux!
A part ca pas grand chose..j'ai passe les derniers jours a lire et a ecrire. Suggestion de lecture :
"Thank you for Smoking" de Christopher Buckley. Vraiment drole, y'a un film aussi si vous preferez.
"Breakfast of Champions" de Kurt Vonnegut. Je l'ai pas fini encore mais j'ai l'impression que ca va etre un de mes livres preferes. Completement tordu.
A+
A part ca pas grand chose..j'ai passe les derniers jours a lire et a ecrire. Suggestion de lecture :
"Thank you for Smoking" de Christopher Buckley. Vraiment drole, y'a un film aussi si vous preferez.
"Breakfast of Champions" de Kurt Vonnegut. Je l'ai pas fini encore mais j'ai l'impression que ca va etre un de mes livres preferes. Completement tordu.
A+
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Photos take 2!
Bon excusez moi mais mon site de blogger ici est thailandais donc c'est pas facile de cliquer sur les bons boutons!
Voici la petite ile Perhentienne nommee Kecil (Malaysie)
Quelques vues de notre fameux bungalow! ( Je m'ennuie tellement deja!!)
La vue de notre resto sur la plage!
Le plus gros reclining Buddah au monde au Wat Pho temple a Bangkok! Ce temple est aussi reconnu pour avoir la meilleur ecole de massage thai au monde! J'ai pas eu le choix d'avoir mon premier massage! Trrrrres cool.
Voici la petite ile Perhentienne nommee Kecil (Malaysie)
Quelques vues de notre fameux bungalow! ( Je m'ennuie tellement deja!!)
La vue de notre resto sur la plage!
Le plus gros reclining Buddah au monde au Wat Pho temple a Bangkok! Ce temple est aussi reconnu pour avoir la meilleur ecole de massage thai au monde! J'ai pas eu le choix d'avoir mon premier massage! Trrrrres cool.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Malaysia ---- true Asia !!!
hahahah
Le gars au douane en rentrant en malaysie nous dit : Welcome to paradise! Holy crap was he ever right!!
Dans les jours a suivre, je vous montrerai des photos de ou on restait sur la petite ile Perhentienne . C'est de loin le plus beau paysage que j'ai jamais vu!! On etait sur une plage relaxe et notre hutte etait directement sur la plage...pas a une minute de la plage ou 20 metres de la plage comme la plupart des endroits abordables...mais sur un petit rocher directement au dessus de l'eau...attendez de vois les photos, je ne peux pas decrire assez bien le paysage!!!
On a passer la semaine a manger des bons repas de poisson sur le BBQ, on lisait au soleil, on nageait dans la belle mer turquoise, du snorkeling quelques fois par jours a tous les jours. J'ai nage avec un requin!!!! AU moins 5 pieds de long et massif!! Freakin SCARY!!!! Black-tip reef shark...harmless..but still scary :)
Dans le border-town de Malaysie, on a rencontre Jeffrey (un malaysien)au restaurant..il etait tres sympa et nous a invite a le joindre dans une discoteque. Je vais garder le souvenir de mon entree dans ce club le restant de ma vie. C'etait un club avec un band de techno et des petites pop star thai qui chantait...c'etait plein. Mais ce qui etait plus drole, ou moins drole, c'etait le niveau du son. J'ai quand meme de l'experience en ce qui concerne la musique forte, mais la, c'avait juste pas de bons sens. Pis du techno, les chansons finissent jamais!!!!! On a ete capable de rester la une heure, mais j'pense que mes oreilles ne seront plus jamais les memes.
La je suis de retour en thailande, a Hat-Yai plus precisement. Tres belle ville avec du bon magasinage. Lydie nous a quitte ce matin. Je vais donc me rendre a Bangkok en train plus tard dans la journee avec Leah.
Oh! et Nicolas: Non ma brosse a dent ne perd pas de poil!! hahaha Vas-y moins fort peut-etre! :)
L'internet est cher dans ce coin ici donc je vais essayer de vous montrer des photos demain!
Ciao!
Le gars au douane en rentrant en malaysie nous dit : Welcome to paradise! Holy crap was he ever right!!
Dans les jours a suivre, je vous montrerai des photos de ou on restait sur la petite ile Perhentienne . C'est de loin le plus beau paysage que j'ai jamais vu!! On etait sur une plage relaxe et notre hutte etait directement sur la plage...pas a une minute de la plage ou 20 metres de la plage comme la plupart des endroits abordables...mais sur un petit rocher directement au dessus de l'eau...attendez de vois les photos, je ne peux pas decrire assez bien le paysage!!!
On a passer la semaine a manger des bons repas de poisson sur le BBQ, on lisait au soleil, on nageait dans la belle mer turquoise, du snorkeling quelques fois par jours a tous les jours. J'ai nage avec un requin!!!! AU moins 5 pieds de long et massif!! Freakin SCARY!!!! Black-tip reef shark...harmless..but still scary :)
Dans le border-town de Malaysie, on a rencontre Jeffrey (un malaysien)au restaurant..il etait tres sympa et nous a invite a le joindre dans une discoteque. Je vais garder le souvenir de mon entree dans ce club le restant de ma vie. C'etait un club avec un band de techno et des petites pop star thai qui chantait...c'etait plein. Mais ce qui etait plus drole, ou moins drole, c'etait le niveau du son. J'ai quand meme de l'experience en ce qui concerne la musique forte, mais la, c'avait juste pas de bons sens. Pis du techno, les chansons finissent jamais!!!!! On a ete capable de rester la une heure, mais j'pense que mes oreilles ne seront plus jamais les memes.
La je suis de retour en thailande, a Hat-Yai plus precisement. Tres belle ville avec du bon magasinage. Lydie nous a quitte ce matin. Je vais donc me rendre a Bangkok en train plus tard dans la journee avec Leah.
Oh! et Nicolas: Non ma brosse a dent ne perd pas de poil!! hahaha Vas-y moins fort peut-etre! :)
L'internet est cher dans ce coin ici donc je vais essayer de vous montrer des photos demain!
Ciao!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Yo Yo!!
Le soleil est finalement revenu a RaiLay!!! Alors qu'est ce qu'on fait^?? On s'en va aux iles Perentienne en Malaysie!! J'fais pas confiance au soleil ici...labas au moins c'est la saison seche...
J'me rends la avec Lydie et Leah...on pense rester a peu pres une semaine...ca devrait prendre 8 heures d'autobus pour y aller...pas si pire.
J'ai hate de faire du snorkeling!
Et j'vais souhaiter que l'internet coute moins cher pour pouvoir vous en dire un peu plus!
Ciao!
J'me rends la avec Lydie et Leah...on pense rester a peu pres une semaine...ca devrait prendre 8 heures d'autobus pour y aller...pas si pire.
J'ai hate de faire du snorkeling!
Et j'vais souhaiter que l'internet coute moins cher pour pouvoir vous en dire un peu plus!
Ciao!
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Nothing exciting!
Salut!
Je donne pas beaucoup de nouvelles parce qu'il y a toujours rien a raconter! Le soleil n'est pas sorti depuis au moins 5 jours...donc pas d'escalade, pas de kayak, pas de plonge, pas de snorkeling....
On fait juste manger, boire et lire...
J'me promene pas mal avec mes amies Lea ( canadienne qui vit au Taiwan ) et Anya ( Autrichienne qui habite en Belgique ). Si vous ne le saviez pas deja, j'adore les filles avec des accents, et celui d'Anya va etre dur a battre! Melangez de l'allemand avec l'ecossais! Completement fou. Je l'ecouterais parler toute la journee :)
Bon la pluie viens de recommencer!
J'ai fait de la fievre y'a quelques jours mais ca c'est replace...je devrais etre completement en forme d'ici deux jours...juste a temps pour accueillir le soleil j'espere!
Bon..j'a toujours pas de photos pour vous...j'attends qu'il fasse beau pour les prendre!
A bientot!
Je donne pas beaucoup de nouvelles parce qu'il y a toujours rien a raconter! Le soleil n'est pas sorti depuis au moins 5 jours...donc pas d'escalade, pas de kayak, pas de plonge, pas de snorkeling....
On fait juste manger, boire et lire...
J'me promene pas mal avec mes amies Lea ( canadienne qui vit au Taiwan ) et Anya ( Autrichienne qui habite en Belgique ). Si vous ne le saviez pas deja, j'adore les filles avec des accents, et celui d'Anya va etre dur a battre! Melangez de l'allemand avec l'ecossais! Completement fou. Je l'ecouterais parler toute la journee :)
Bon la pluie viens de recommencer!
J'ai fait de la fievre y'a quelques jours mais ca c'est replace...je devrais etre completement en forme d'ici deux jours...juste a temps pour accueillir le soleil j'espere!
Bon..j'a toujours pas de photos pour vous...j'attends qu'il fasse beau pour les prendre!
A bientot!
Sunday, August 12, 2007
La bonne bouffe!!
La bouffe est trop bonne ici! Aujourd'hui j'ai mange un gros pad-thai, une grosse omelette avec plein de legumes et riz, 2 sacs d'ananas frais et une couple de bouteille d'eau...tout pour 2.50$ a peu pres!!!
Y'a plein de ptits marchand sur la rue avec des fruits frais...genre mangue, cantaloupe, ananas, pomme et des trucs que je reconnais pas...ca coute genre .25$ pour un gros sac! J'pense que c'est l'affaire que je prefere de Bangkok.
L'affaire que j'aime le moin c'est les pimps de tuk=tuk! Y'essaient de te faire la jasette au bout et te suggere plein d'endroit touristique a aller voir...et apres y'essaient de te pousser dans un tuk-tuk avant que tu dises quoi que ce soit...
Anyways...la j'ai chaud et je profite un peu du cafe internet avec air climatise.
times up!
:)
Y'a plein de ptits marchand sur la rue avec des fruits frais...genre mangue, cantaloupe, ananas, pomme et des trucs que je reconnais pas...ca coute genre .25$ pour un gros sac! J'pense que c'est l'affaire que je prefere de Bangkok.
L'affaire que j'aime le moin c'est les pimps de tuk=tuk! Y'essaient de te faire la jasette au bout et te suggere plein d'endroit touristique a aller voir...et apres y'essaient de te pousser dans un tuk-tuk avant que tu dises quoi que ce soit...
Anyways...la j'ai chaud et je profite un peu du cafe internet avec air climatise.
times up!
:)
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Verre moitie plein --- de marde.
On voit que jsuis quand meme quelqu'un d'optimiste...y'en a qui dirait que je suis completment pourri a bargainer. Mais moi je dis plutot que je suis super bon a me faire fourrer! :)
Mais ici, ce faire fourrer, c'est payer 5$ au lieu de 4$ pour un tshirt ou des trucs comme ca...c'est pas si pire!
(en passant, je m'excuse si c'est difficile a lire desfois, mais je pas de clavier francais pour les accents!!)
Aujourd'hui jsuis alle acheter mon billet de bus pour Krabi (au sud du pays). Ca va prendre a peu pres 11 heures se rendre - j'ai achete un billet pour un bon bus! Ensuite j'suis alle magasiner dans un enorme marche exterieur. Vraiment trop gros, mon cerveau a de la misere a comprendre a quel point c/etait gros! Y'avait de tout!! And i mean everything. J'ai mange mon premier plat thai, un super bon pad-tai!! Ils font de la bonne bouffe thai les thais. Le vibe etait cool au marche, meme s'il y avait des milliers de boutiques, le monde te laissait regarder en paix et te criait pas apres pour rien acheter.
J'ai essaye la plupart des modes de transport aussi! J'ai pris le skytrain (tres propre, facile a comprendre, air climatise!), le tuk-tuk (genre de scooter avec deux places en arriere et un toit),ET j'ai meme pris un scooter!! oui, jsuis fou. Fallais que je l'essaye par exemple. Pong, mon chauffeur, a fait bien attention. C'est tellement le free for all sur les routes, c'a n'a juste pas de bon sens.
Je reste encore cette nuit sur la rue Khao San. J'suis certain que vous pouvez trouver des photos sur l'internet. Moi j'en ai pas pris aujourd'hui parce que je trouve que se promener tout seul et prendre des photos ca l'attire trop d'attention...
Demain c'est la fete de la Reine et c'a l'air que ca va etre un plus gros party qu'a l'habitude! j'vais essayer de prendre des photos:)
Bon ca doit commencer a me couter cher...j'vais aller prendre une biere! Y'a plein de band de cover dans les bars..j'en ai croise un bon tantot..ils jouaient du Eric Clapton..
bye!
Mais ici, ce faire fourrer, c'est payer 5$ au lieu de 4$ pour un tshirt ou des trucs comme ca...c'est pas si pire!
(en passant, je m'excuse si c'est difficile a lire desfois, mais je pas de clavier francais pour les accents!!)
Aujourd'hui jsuis alle acheter mon billet de bus pour Krabi (au sud du pays). Ca va prendre a peu pres 11 heures se rendre - j'ai achete un billet pour un bon bus! Ensuite j'suis alle magasiner dans un enorme marche exterieur. Vraiment trop gros, mon cerveau a de la misere a comprendre a quel point c/etait gros! Y'avait de tout!! And i mean everything. J'ai mange mon premier plat thai, un super bon pad-tai!! Ils font de la bonne bouffe thai les thais. Le vibe etait cool au marche, meme s'il y avait des milliers de boutiques, le monde te laissait regarder en paix et te criait pas apres pour rien acheter.
J'ai essaye la plupart des modes de transport aussi! J'ai pris le skytrain (tres propre, facile a comprendre, air climatise!), le tuk-tuk (genre de scooter avec deux places en arriere et un toit),ET j'ai meme pris un scooter!! oui, jsuis fou. Fallais que je l'essaye par exemple. Pong, mon chauffeur, a fait bien attention. C'est tellement le free for all sur les routes, c'a n'a juste pas de bon sens.
Je reste encore cette nuit sur la rue Khao San. J'suis certain que vous pouvez trouver des photos sur l'internet. Moi j'en ai pas pris aujourd'hui parce que je trouve que se promener tout seul et prendre des photos ca l'attire trop d'attention...
Demain c'est la fete de la Reine et c'a l'air que ca va etre un plus gros party qu'a l'habitude! j'vais essayer de prendre des photos:)
Bon ca doit commencer a me couter cher...j'vais aller prendre une biere! Y'a plein de band de cover dans les bars..j'en ai croise un bon tantot..ils jouaient du Eric Clapton..
bye!
Friday, August 10, 2007
Bangkok !!!
Ok. C'est mongole ici. Vraiment mongole.
Y'est une heure du matin et j'suis finalement arrive dans le coin ou je planifais coucher. Les vols etaient correct et j'ai pas eu trop de misere a me rendre ici.(2 bus et 2 heures plus tard)
Ben c'est ca. J'voulais juste vous dire que j'me suis bien rendu! A date c'est moins pire que j'pensais les avances des prostitutes :) J'suis peut-etre pas dans le red-light district non plus...mais bon. Y'a du monde en masse pis y fait vraiment chaud a cette heure ci...ca sera pas beau a voir demain!
J'ai juste hate d'etre tranquille a la plage la!
Ciao!
Y'est une heure du matin et j'suis finalement arrive dans le coin ou je planifais coucher. Les vols etaient correct et j'ai pas eu trop de misere a me rendre ici.(2 bus et 2 heures plus tard)
Ben c'est ca. J'voulais juste vous dire que j'me suis bien rendu! A date c'est moins pire que j'pensais les avances des prostitutes :) J'suis peut-etre pas dans le red-light district non plus...mais bon. Y'a du monde en masse pis y fait vraiment chaud a cette heure ci...ca sera pas beau a voir demain!
J'ai juste hate d'etre tranquille a la plage la!
Ciao!
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Départ demain matin!!!
J'ai finalement pu m'arranger pour aller en Thailande. Ca s'enligne pour être un peu compliqué le fait que je n'aurai jamais de billet de retour et seulement des one-way. Mais bon, j'ai trouvé une bonne agence de voyage ici et j'ai même acheté un billet pour le Cambodge pour le mois prochain! ( J'pourrais me le faire remborser si je veux, c'est pour faciliter l'entrée en Thailande)
J'ai hâte d'être sur la plage et rien foutre.
J'espère que je ne serai pas assis à côté de quelqu'un de gossant sur l'avion parce que le vol est très long!
en t k, j'vous donnerai des nouvelles de Bangkok!
J'ai hâte d'être sur la plage et rien foutre.
J'espère que je ne serai pas assis à côté de quelqu'un de gossant sur l'avion parce que le vol est très long!
en t k, j'vous donnerai des nouvelles de Bangkok!
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Assurances de marde.
bon ben le MRI n'était pas couvert. J'ai passé 2 jours à l'hopital pour rien. On s'entend tu qu'une cheville cassée et un ligament déchiré a la cheville c'est aussi pire?!? Un ligament déchiré s'est pas urgent ca l'air. Une cheville qui disloque quand tu marches dessus c'est pas urgent. Ca surment rien à voir avec le fait qu'un MRI coute 4000$ ici. Rien pantoute.
Pour une petite idée de comment jme sentais cet avant-midi : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDU0EUxe-js&mode=related&search=
Global Excel Management c'est de la marde. Passez le mot.
A part ca, ben il faut que j'appelle le consulat Thailandais pour vérifier si je peux bel et bien rentrer au pays sans avoir de billet de retour. Une fois que ca c'est fait , j'achète mon billet! Je devrais partir le 9. Un vol de 24 heures genre. Ishhhhhh
A+
Pour une petite idée de comment jme sentais cet avant-midi : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDU0EUxe-js&mode=related&search=
Global Excel Management c'est de la marde. Passez le mot.
A part ca, ben il faut que j'appelle le consulat Thailandais pour vérifier si je peux bel et bien rentrer au pays sans avoir de billet de retour. Une fois que ca c'est fait , j'achète mon billet! Je devrais partir le 9. Un vol de 24 heures genre. Ishhhhhh
A+
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Bishop and California road trip
Booya! , comme disait la saoule dégeulasse au bar !
Oh la la la lala qui s'en passe des choses dans une semaine. Des choses le fun pis des choses pas mal moins le fun.
Commençons par le commencement. La premièrement péripétie se déroule lorsque Nicolas est certain que l'adresse de Budget pour le char loué est 295 tandis qu'il se trouve réellement au 495 Bay Street. Ca nous a prit genre 1 heure avant de trouver. Tout ca pour se rendre là et voir que notre char c'est un PT Cruiser...ou plus précisément un HHR de Chevrolet. On l'a baptisé le "Party Cruiser". Petite paranthèse ici pour dire que c'est de loin le pire char qui n'a jamais été fait. Sur tout les niveaux, c'est de la vrai marde.
La ride pour se rendre à Bishop était vraiment cool. On traverse les Sierras par le Yosemite National Parc...super pittoresque. On s'élève jusqu'à 9000 pieds...on passe proche de scrapper les breaks du char en descendant! J'étais un peu nerveux :)
Bishop c'est vraiment le paradis pour les grimpeurs de blocs. Y'en a partout. Des beaux. Des gros. Mongole. Mais il fait chaud l'été. Il faisait genre 40 celcius de 10AM jusqu'a 7PM. Mais à l'ombre c'était bien suportable et c'est une chaleur sèche...pas mal moins pire que ce qu'on a chez nous.
Notre camping était super beau sur le bord d'une rivière entouré de montagnes. On a même pas vu de rattle snakes ou the tarantule géantes ou de puma méchant. Mais on s'est fait visiter tous les soirs par des ratons laveurs curieux. Ils sont même rentrés dans l'auto à Delphine un soir!
Et maintenant le moins drôle. Le premier matin à Bishop, on se rend au Buttermilks, reconnus pour les blocs gigantesque. Et il fait juste 35 là a la place de 42 donc on s'est dit que ca serait un bon bet. On voit des blocs célèbres et classique qu'on voit toujours dans les films et revues. On se réchauffe sur des ptits problèmes pas rapport. La plupart des blocs sont trop haut pour nous, et les autres qui le sont pas n'ont pas de dégrimpe sécuritaire. Mais après quelques heures on trouve un ptit problème cool. V1 max. Je l'essaye une couple de fois avec Nicolas, je tombe au crux; monter ma jambe droite à côté de ma main, pointer l'orteil et tout mettre mon poids dessus pour me lever. La quatrième fois que je me rends là, ma cheville craque. Littéralement. Comme une brache d'arbre sec qui casse. C'est fini l'escalade. Je pense que c'est un ligament déchiré ou du moins étiré. Ma cheville débarque si je mets du poids sur le côté de mon pied. J'vais aller à l'hopital demain pour passer des radios pour en savoir plus. Comme c'est la , je peux marcher correcte mais pas plus. J'ai réessayé une fois de regrimper et la cheville a disloquée instantanément. Complètement dégeulasse. Là j'ai vraiment peur de voir qu'est ce qui va se passer. J'avais planifié de grimper partout dans le monde, mais là j'sais pas si j'vais pouvoir grimper cette année. Un ligament étiré c'est long pas à près à guérir.
Anyways, on en a profité pour faire un beau road trip à travers la californie. Je peux officiellement dire que j'ai visité la Californie! On à traversé le Mojave Desert pour se rendre jusqu'à San Diego et La Jolla Beach. On s'est fait griller à Malibu et Santa Monica. On a vu les jeunes riches à Laguna Beach...on a vu les montagnes, les vallées, les déserts, la mer,les tacos et les burritos, Sillicon Valley....on a pas manqué grand chose! On à même passé la nuit à Solvang, une ptite ville Danoise à côté de Santa Barbara. Trop weird. Checkez ca sur le web, ca vaut la peine.
On a aussi suivit le chemin des vins comme dans le film Sideways. J'm'en viens pas pire connaisseur dans le domaine. pfffffffff. Tellement pas! Mais c'est très cool les "tasting". Tu paye genre 5$ et tu goute a tous plein de vins.
Booya!!
Oh la la la lala qui s'en passe des choses dans une semaine. Des choses le fun pis des choses pas mal moins le fun.
Commençons par le commencement. La premièrement péripétie se déroule lorsque Nicolas est certain que l'adresse de Budget pour le char loué est 295 tandis qu'il se trouve réellement au 495 Bay Street. Ca nous a prit genre 1 heure avant de trouver. Tout ca pour se rendre là et voir que notre char c'est un PT Cruiser...ou plus précisément un HHR de Chevrolet. On l'a baptisé le "Party Cruiser". Petite paranthèse ici pour dire que c'est de loin le pire char qui n'a jamais été fait. Sur tout les niveaux, c'est de la vrai marde.
La ride pour se rendre à Bishop était vraiment cool. On traverse les Sierras par le Yosemite National Parc...super pittoresque. On s'élève jusqu'à 9000 pieds...on passe proche de scrapper les breaks du char en descendant! J'étais un peu nerveux :)
Bishop c'est vraiment le paradis pour les grimpeurs de blocs. Y'en a partout. Des beaux. Des gros. Mongole. Mais il fait chaud l'été. Il faisait genre 40 celcius de 10AM jusqu'a 7PM. Mais à l'ombre c'était bien suportable et c'est une chaleur sèche...pas mal moins pire que ce qu'on a chez nous.
Notre camping était super beau sur le bord d'une rivière entouré de montagnes. On a même pas vu de rattle snakes ou the tarantule géantes ou de puma méchant. Mais on s'est fait visiter tous les soirs par des ratons laveurs curieux. Ils sont même rentrés dans l'auto à Delphine un soir!
Et maintenant le moins drôle. Le premier matin à Bishop, on se rend au Buttermilks, reconnus pour les blocs gigantesque. Et il fait juste 35 là a la place de 42 donc on s'est dit que ca serait un bon bet. On voit des blocs célèbres et classique qu'on voit toujours dans les films et revues. On se réchauffe sur des ptits problèmes pas rapport. La plupart des blocs sont trop haut pour nous, et les autres qui le sont pas n'ont pas de dégrimpe sécuritaire. Mais après quelques heures on trouve un ptit problème cool. V1 max. Je l'essaye une couple de fois avec Nicolas, je tombe au crux; monter ma jambe droite à côté de ma main, pointer l'orteil et tout mettre mon poids dessus pour me lever. La quatrième fois que je me rends là, ma cheville craque. Littéralement. Comme une brache d'arbre sec qui casse. C'est fini l'escalade. Je pense que c'est un ligament déchiré ou du moins étiré. Ma cheville débarque si je mets du poids sur le côté de mon pied. J'vais aller à l'hopital demain pour passer des radios pour en savoir plus. Comme c'est la , je peux marcher correcte mais pas plus. J'ai réessayé une fois de regrimper et la cheville a disloquée instantanément. Complètement dégeulasse. Là j'ai vraiment peur de voir qu'est ce qui va se passer. J'avais planifié de grimper partout dans le monde, mais là j'sais pas si j'vais pouvoir grimper cette année. Un ligament étiré c'est long pas à près à guérir.
Anyways, on en a profité pour faire un beau road trip à travers la californie. Je peux officiellement dire que j'ai visité la Californie! On à traversé le Mojave Desert pour se rendre jusqu'à San Diego et La Jolla Beach. On s'est fait griller à Malibu et Santa Monica. On a vu les jeunes riches à Laguna Beach...on a vu les montagnes, les vallées, les déserts, la mer,les tacos et les burritos, Sillicon Valley....on a pas manqué grand chose! On à même passé la nuit à Solvang, une ptite ville Danoise à côté de Santa Barbara. Trop weird. Checkez ca sur le web, ca vaut la peine.
On a aussi suivit le chemin des vins comme dans le film Sideways. J'm'en viens pas pire connaisseur dans le domaine. pfffffffff. Tellement pas! Mais c'est très cool les "tasting". Tu paye genre 5$ et tu goute a tous plein de vins.
Booya!!
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