San Juan Diquiyu is a small town in the sierra of Oaxaca bordering with Puebla, now San Juan Diquiyu Oregon is a town of immigrants living in Oregon where their main fiesta of honoring St. Juan Diquiyu is held every year just as in their old homeland. I was privileged enought to attend the ceremony which was majestic, folkloric and just a great time with my friends Eden and his fiance Maria. As explained to me by one of the elders in the village, in Oaxaca this party takes place for 3 days with continous live bands and people dancing and eating all the time. Muchas gracias to Doña Sarita without whom this post and a great weekend would not have been possible.... 1st course: Yiqui, Traditional corn soup made with goat fat and chile, partner dish of Goat meat Barbacoa which is cooked buried underground for a good 12 hours, this cuisine is Mixteca, meaning that it is at least around 1000 years old, now this one in particular was cooked right before I ate it... Eden, local Mixteco boy, obviously very hungry before he finished his Yiqui, Sangre (goat blood with spices cooked in goat stomach) and a good plate of goat barbacoa, all with a big healthy dose of Tortillas and Salsa.
My flight from Phnom Penh was cancelled then they told me that if I wanted to fly out the same day I would have to go through guess where... Bangkok! Anyway, after about 30 hours of travelling I was home in old Eugene OR... So the journey continues, this blog does not die here it shall follow me to ... Canada
Good by Southeast Asia, I know that I wil be back very soon...
In my last day in beautiful Cambodia after having to pass through the colon of Southeast Asian Poipet Cambodia and 50 km of a road paved with a mix of shit and mud I decided to stop being a cheap-ass and buy a memory card to film the streets where I walked in the capital that I love, sorry for the bad videotaping, the unsteady hand, the low res and the beads of sweat visible in my face throughout the whole thing...
Between the European prices for fried rice (6-7 USD) the overpriced hotels, the amazing numbers of go-gobars and the psychological environment that makes it seem as if the city is one humongous Brothel complex, panic struck me: Where am I? What am I doing here? Its obvious my money won't last me half a day here where drunk tourists with cash falling out of their camo shorts pockets drive the prices waaay up. It seems like there is a drunk English dude ready to start a fight in every corner after his first lesson in Muay Thai, a tailor taking your measures as you walk by while asking you where you're from, and throngs and throngs of vulgar barladys' screaming, "PSST,hello, hello, I go with you" and giving you that look that drives so many single and divorced older men to Pattaya.
I have to say, it is so different here from what I've seen of this country and such a contrast with the north, that and the possibility of a media driven coup-d'etat happening in the next few days, I believe its time to say bye to beautiful Thailand... for now...
Did I mention the food sucks? The sauce only makes the roaches a little less crunchy.
Jah Man! As I was wallowing in my sorrow, I met Chris: a Canadian gone crazy and Sophie and Caroline from France and Poland respectively. They introduced me to Chiangmaica, a lost island of bars in the heart of the old city playing exclusively reggae and Afrocuban music. I have to say, here I found my home among good music with a Thai accent that gives it much character, friendly people and the opportunity to take over the mike or the djembe drum whenever they play "Oye como va" or other familiar Latin songs...
Caroll Lynn, Sophie and a crazy riff going through Rodrigo before taking over the drum Bob never died, he just moved to Thailand...
The drunk Thai version of this song is just that much better
After 3 days of mostly eating Thai grapefruit due to a lack of funds and contemplating the idea of joining the monks at the nearby Wat due to poverty while I got a job, my very generous mother has agreed to lend me some dough making this blog (and living) possible for the remainder of the trip.
Now that its happening, I promise you my beautiful audience, I will not let you down...
You would have had to visit me here had my mom not lent me money. Not too shabby eh?
Because its not happening anymore (for a while). After a bad case of bronchitis and parasites requiring daily attention, medical treatment and medicine, my personal budget has dwindled to the limit. Internet in Thailand is cheap, but at this point, every Baht counts (all 23 of them) and doing the blog has become unaffordable. I will resume my mindless rants when the time is right. I shall see you all at the other end of the tunnel...
Thats right, in trying to deal with a bad case of bronchitis, I decided that the best thing for my health would be to take out all my repressed anger by singlehandedly defeating the military junta in Myanmar to let the aid in that has been stopped across the border and liberating its people, maybe even kicking it with Aung San Suu Kyi for a while.
Getting in was no easy task, but we managed.
3 km in to the country I decided that maybe the best thing for my health was to go back to Thailand before I got shot for being so obvious in my intentions. Even though I stopped feeling weird there because other men had beards and looked a little more like me, the air feels as corrupt as the political system and the squalor is the most impressive I've ever seen. Oh, and then my fellow co-conspirators told me that despite Talichek being a border town, it is VERY NICE compared to the rest of the country, no to mention Yangon is under a state of siege, meaning I needed to get better before I come back and kick some corrupt military behinds So, unfortunately to the beautiful people of Burma, I apologize deeply, I didn't overthrow your fucked up government today, but my Bronchitis is better...
These are the mountains overlooking Chiang Mai, one of the coolest cities in Thailand, atop of the mountain, you find a royal palace and a golden temple that is considered sacred ground and is barely visible from Chiang Mai
Yes, its true, I have seen macacques asking for change in Cambodia and then buying a beer at the local stall, but in northern Thailand, elephants are just as ubiquitous as the geckos. It really just takes being near an elephant to know that their hearts are much much bigger than our heads.
I met a traveller where I was staying in Bangkok, he said that after living in Fresno all his life and spending some vacation time in Vietnam he has been travelling for over 14 years through all of Southeast Asia and cannot fathom himself going back. He highly recommended the Phillippinnes as paradise and gave me a very good route to go back to Phnom Penh through Vietnam (by speedboat!). Anyway, I don't know if its my debts in the US or my share of bad experiences in there but I really do not want to go back . What I am thinking about doing is to settle the debts after working the oil rigs in Canada, earn some money and get a job there to place me in Southeast Asia.
By coming here I realized there really is no place for somebody like me in a country where people sacrifice their joy of life for money (no offense my US friends, I still care deeply about you, but its time for me to move on from your country).
Now Southeast Asia is a mixed bag like anywhere else. I like Thailand, its such a beautiful country, but my heart just stayed in Cambodia, from the food to the people to the family life, I know that if I was not born there, that is likely where I'll be buried...
Now, I do want to move east of here since Burma is very close and the sadness of the catastrophe can only be paralleled with that of the Tsunami in 2005 or the Pakistan Earthquake that same year, to top things off, there is another cyclone about to hit Burma again, the grief felt around these areas is like nothing else I have ever seen... My acupuncturist told me today that she believes that we have altered the equilibrium of the core of the earth and even though its a pretty metaphoric thing to say I have a hard time not believing her.
Enjoy this video, product of a military regime backed by the Chinese and US governments:
It felt weird and excellent to leave Bangkok, the Thai vortex of brutalist architechture, haggling and decadence. However it was after two hours in the train that I knew the party does not end on Thai railways were the kitchen kart becomes a disco around 8.30 with a disco ball and a ladyboy party starter that actually works for Thai Railways... Anyway, Chiang Mai is beautiful, its a 13th century city in the middle of the northern jungle surrounded by a medieval moat and equally crazy walls.
I must admit I was getting used to the perma-party lifestyle of Khaosan. Party until dawn, breakfast at 6, go to bed until late afternoon, but after too many adventures I have to leave, after all, I am in Bangkok and there are so many things to do!!!
This time I'll check in with the audience. Should I:
1) Stay in Bangkok, get a job as an English teacher, become Mr. Salsa in the land of left feet... 2) Leave for Chiang Mai and then Laos and Vietnam, I like this option the best so far... 3) Go back to Cambodia where I'll possibly get forced into marrying a woman with a very good heart and be happy ever after...
I'll tally the votes tomorrow. Sorry for the lack of pictures, my camera malfunctioned, I'll pick it up today from the repair shop.
So, I finally got sick, not from eating all that I've eaten, but from too much AC combined with too much heat in the islands plus I ran out of my travel medicines, in any case, I had been having fevers up to 41 degrees Centigrade (105.8 Farenheit). My sleep had been terrible because I would wake up drenched in sweat every three hours, and you must understand that going to bed in wet clothes and a wet bed is not easy. So, monday, I decided to go to the hospital and test out their medical system, I saw a doctor within minutes and they did not charge me anything, he gave me Tylenol and other common drugs but that did not remedy any symptoms. I asked the staff if they had acupuncture available, they said that today was May 1st and that they were closed but that tomorrow I would be able to see somebody for sure. So I came back the next day and asked for directions, they said "go out of the building, turn right, walk 100 meters then you will see a chinese house" I said "ok" without knowing what I might find, then as I walked out of the building I see this huge 6 story Chinese Medicine hospital, I walked in, service was great, first they took me to see a herbalist, then I asked for acupuncture. They charged me 60 Baht (2 USD) for 3 days worth of a concoction made especially for me that after the first try made me feel as if I had drank fire making my whole body very warm and dissipated my symptoms very quickly, today, I will go back for another acupuncture session...
Yes I have fallen in the ultimate tourist trap, a ferry to the islands.
Don't get me wrong this is beyond the definition of paradise with waterfalls and beautiful beaches everywhere, however there are a lot of things that I don't agree here with like the way the tourists push the drug trade since not too many Thai people do drugs, prostitution, animal abuse to Tigers, Bears and Elephants (however a lot of them get literally get fucked by their own disrespectful actions by getting wasted and then hiring the 3 prettiest "ladyboys" that their beer goggles and their wallet can afford them). I thought I came here to study and learn about the peoples of Southeast Asia, but the party cultures of the white people here suggest the need for a serious study.. I might start it at the half moon party tomorrow and leave it for somebody else to continue it the day after. Maybe someday I'll start the "wikistudy".
Quote of the day
"Oh, I don't like Asian women, they are ugly, have lots of problems, STD's, and don't like to do MDMA..."
Anonymous Swedish tourist who has been here a month and still doesn't know where the fuck he is at.
are just ahead and I just know it. It is madness and no I am not talking about the sex shows although I have heard they're pretty amusing. Thai people are very friendly, the prices are ridiculously cheap and this land has got to be one of the most pleasant countries of the world . Sorry to tell you but I don't think you'll ever see me again unless you come visit...
A city of undefined millions and hub of capitalism. Even though I was only a little past a week in Cambodia I am experiencing culture shock from leaving a third world country. However it seems like certain prices here are cheaper such as food and drink. I just finished a great Pad Thai with shrimp and fresh papaya juice for 5 dollars at a hotel where my room cost me 6 USD. In Bangkok, many travelers talk to each other, I have met a couple and so far I have gotten many great ideas...
Go to exotic Chiang Mai in the North or to the exotic Koh Islands in the south?
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Partying in Bangkok with Mr. Yugoslavia who was later escorted out of the club unconscious and by the limbs due to too much Tequila. Man, he really needed a mint
It is a long and winding road, 500 kilometers, about 300 hundred miles, still not renovated since the war ended although there is a project in place to do that...
Yes, this place already feels like home, from the amazing food to the natural way of life, I do not want to leave, but I know it is my destiny to keep you all entertained so I must head to Bangkok, Thailand by bus, hopefully another capital of good food and good people, oh and drunkenness...
I can not wait for the Cambodia -Thailand Border, I have heard the nailbiting stories ...
This place is beyond words. I apologize to you because my camara was broken due to excess sand in the beaches of Colima, then I fixed it here in Cambodia for very little. I have about a gig of pictures and video but the internet connections here are very slow, so I will have to wait until Bangkok to upload.
Yesterday I went to the ruins at Angkor Wat, you will not want to miss it.
Quote of the trip to Angkor.
"They should just build Angkor Vegas so that way we don't have to leave home..."
This has got to be the most amazingly surreal country I have ever been in. This country of 13 million still considers itself a unified kingdom, a country and a culture after thousands of years. To make a brute analogy it is like landing in the capital of the Roman Empire in 2008. These people take everything Khmer as a matter of self identity and for good reason. Khmer food, Khmer language, Khmer music and Khmer people are like nothing you can encounter outside of Kampuchea.
I know it sounds premature but leaving here will be an extremely hard desicion...
Meet Misteh Oun, cool like the "aircon" systems he repairs by day, as his brothers say, "he drink too much but he bery hansom"
Thats right, I am now in Taipei Airport where all prices are in NT, everyone speaks English and eats overpriced ham and cheese croissants like they are about to run out. Oh yeah, and the toilets are lets say, a tad bit smaller.. Its funny how people will be 15 hours from when you read this.
Just handed in my apartment, ready for the journey of a lifetime. Itinerary goes Seattle Taipei, Pnomh Penh and from there whatever the budget allows for.
Aiming for Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pai, Vientiane. We'll see if it happens.
Liberal journalist committed to his ideals, etching out a living from covering cultural and political events in Colima, softspoken, hard worker, good son to his mother, goes running every day, unintentional player, natural born poet, loves and lives good food, good beer and family almost as much as life because as in his own words "Besides from the good times, when we die, what are we really left with?".
Shrimp,Octopus & Clam, if you don't dig it you just don't deserve it... Any regular Friday When I grow up I want to be like him...
Today, I visited my late fathers grave in Colima for the first time since he died in December of 2006.
Surprisingly, it made part of my sorrow float away like a feather in the wind. In the words of my uncle Pablo described as "papa bear" by my good friend Jack : "To come here and see him resting so peacefully strengthens oneself". I know I will have to spend more time there kicking it with his grave and that of my uncles Gil and Juan who are at the same pantheon. And every time I come here I learn about the cycles of life. I met my cousin Euridice for the first time, she is 4 months old...
My bag is not here yet so I am becoming one with my shirt to the point that when I do change I know I will miss it, in any case I am loving Colima as always, especially the sunshine in peoples smiles and their inner warmth, I long to be like them again...
After several false starts 6 hour waiting time in Santa Rosa and LAX, terrible food, tiny rickety airplanes and Alaska Airlines losing my luggage, I am now in Guadalajara, world capital of Mariachi and drunkenness with one shirt . In fact, the governor of this state of Jalisco was so drunk the other day he decided to gift 9 million dollars to the catholic church out of the states budget .
In any case, this is the first leg of the trip where I am reacquainting myself with my uncle Javier, my aunt Lupe and their two sons, Adrian and Machete, I mean Javier Adolfo, but seriously, just look at him...
This blog was presented to me as an idea for documenting a projected stretch of travels through different places according to what my imagination and mostly my budget allow for. So far my projected travels include Colima Mexico on the Southwest of the Mexican Pacific Coast, world capital of lime production, a giant tropical grove and where my roots and family are from. In this first leg, expect a lot of pictures of fruit family and good food... Colima will only be the first leg of this journey and will serve as an experiment and testament of myself as a mobile documenter and will determine where we can and should go... I would like to make known that these adventures were in part motivated by the restrictions imposed on me for the last year working for an American state agency that although is not the devil, it completely gave me a great need to get out of my cube and do something else like kiss the sands of the beach for the next two weeks and start meeting people across the globe and then go visit them... and eat their food.
Thanks in advance to my good Friend Gabe S., Krang of gabesimagination.com for promising to "pimp out" my blog and serve as HQ through these sets of journeys through random countries... Also a huge thank you to my friends Jack and Leah for biking it down to Colima from Idaho and starting an eco-tourism blog, this is where it all began.
Advertisers are welcome in order to extend these trips. Paypal account to be setup shortly.
