Hey Folks, I'm writing from my Dad's house in Hong Kong this time. I'm here for a nice chill week of holiday thanks to Songkran, the Thai New Year.
Now let me tell you about Songkran - a wild 3 day party (April 13-15) where people take to the streets and have huge waterfights with you whether or not you want to get wet! I decided to get in on the best of the action at Khao San road, the infamous backpacker haven that is also home to the most packed chaotic waterfight in Thailand. The crowd was huge and it took 20 minutes just to finally walk our way to the entrance of the road (imagine the human traffic of a rock concert but slightly less crowded than cheek to cheek). One out of every 5 people had a watergun of some kind and many others had small buckets with white powder+water which they would use to wipe on your face with their hands (a perversion of a Thai tradition to sort of bless people on Songkran). Techno and hip hop music rang throughout the half mile long street as thousands slowly walked through or stopped on the sides to do some shooting. Anyway I was tired of getting soaked by so many people all around me while walking down the road so I got to the sidewalk, forked over 500 baht (about 14 USD) for the biggest bloody super soaker I could get, and it was ON. I let this bazooka fly and was blasting people in the face in no time. This was FUN, let me tell you. Someone would shoot me, I would wiggle my finger at them, then pull my monster weapon out and send them stumbling away. I felt like yelling 'THIS IS SPARTA!!!' I wasn't even drunk (and most people had SOMEthing to drink, despite it being 3 in the afternoon) but had so much fun just soaking people and getting soaked for 3 hours. You just pay 5 baht for a quick refill and it was definitely worth it. The farangs (foreigners) got targeted a lot, which was pretty damn funny. I hit this fat bearded dude in the face so many times and once a gang of us on the sidewalk pointed about 8 guns on him and I swear he almost fell over from the sheer force of this onslaught. At one point there were a bunch of ladyboys wearing white tanktops and no bras on their fake boobs running through the 'gauntlet' area where I was hanging out. They got hit so many times and frantically jumped up and down and screeched in the most flamboyant way possible. It was absolutely hilarious. Each of them even had a tiny 2 inch squirtgun which they helplessly tried to shoot blindly as their eyes were doused with constrant streams of water. All in good fun. I came back again two days later for a few more hours of mayhem. I feel bad for the folks that have to clean up though...there must have been an incredible mess...
Before that crazy few days last weekend I had made my second buisiness trip to Vietnam. I didn't go out much like normal because I caught a cold and didn't want to be knackered for Songkran. I got a lot done and my new projects there (having to do with the Promotional Girls and anti-counterfeit) are definitely interesting and challenging. On my flight back I saw my boss in the bus to the terminal once we arrived in Bangkok. I didn't even know he was in Vietnam or that he was on the same plane. That is just the nature of our business I guess. He kindly gave me a ride home in his mercedes.
And BEFORE THAT, I had gone to Phuket for 3 days on the weekend with some friends from Singapore. We stayed at a really nice boutique hotel in Patong Beach (a bit too touristy of a spot for me) and basically chilled out. I got to go sailing with Bernice on a gorgeous day with a 18 foot hobiecat, eat delicious food, and even tried my first proper foot massage. It felt so damn good I fell asleep in the middle for 15 minutes and woke up drooling. I had to go back again the next day! The Thais in Patong beach were quite aggressive salespeople due to all the tourists from Europe and America. I really didn't like their attitudes - a lot less friendly and genuine than Bangkokians. Then again I don't talk to a lot of Bangkokians that sell shit on the street. Oh well, they have to make money in the best way they know how. But sorry, I'm not paying 200 baht for a bloody 3 minute taxi ride or 600 baht for a red bull tanktop. By the way, Red Bull originated in Thailand. One of my friends told me it started in Hungary or something and I can now confirm they are full of crap.
I saw Borat finally. What a movie...I'm sure you know what I'm talking about if you've seen it. It was soo damn funny but I felt disturbed at times by what I was hearing from actual Americans and by what Sasha Cohen actually dared to do on camera.
Three days ago I had a dream about my friend Andrew whom I mentioned in my previous post. Him, a few other friends, and I went on some crazy adventure in a jungle somewhere (the details I can't remember now) and he was acting just as I had remembered him - spontaneous, silly, fun... anyway at the end of my dream I realized that Andrew was not suppossed to be around and I asked him 'Andrew...what are you doing here? Didn't you die?' He turned to me gravely all of a sudden and said something like 'Yeah...okay.' He then walked forward very quickly with his back toward me. I quickly caught up to him, tapped him on the shoulder and said 'hey wait!' When he turned around it wasn't Andrew, it was some guy with a different face and he didn't know why I had tapped him. I then woke up. Pretty crazy...I'm not really sure what to think of that dream. It did make me smile a bit in the end though.
Now that I'm in Hong Kong for 5 more days I plan to play with my little brothers a lot and just have some good conversations with my Dad. My little bro James (10 years old) had a birthday 2 weeks ago and I emailed him asked what he wanted from me. He responded with 'Whatever you want to get me is fine. I know it will be great because you are.' That email made my day! I bought him some cool stuff I know he would like and of course I had to buy some weapons and plastic crap for the little 5 year old Sam otherwise he would feel left out. Going to Toys R Us for the first time in 5 years was a trip...
I hope to go out a few times in downtown (Lan Kwai Fong and Wan Chai) with some old friends. Theres a short list of people that I need to get hammered with. Ahh good times. I'll talk about my coming adventures here in the next post, and I swear I'll put up some pictures to attach to this post soon. Check out my page on www.facebook.com too for a lot of photos.
Cya
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
"Jack talk Thai very well..."
Sawatdii krup! Sa baai dii mai? Yin dii thii dai ruu-jak.
Okay I've had two Thai 1 on 1 lessons in the past couple weeks and now I am obviously a master of the language. Actually I still don't know shit, but I have got the numbers down and some basic greetings/vocab. I can talk to taxi drivers sometimes without saying any English, but I am tempted to everytime. I just want to get to a very basic level, but it will take a lot of time and effort from me. The last thing I want to do after a long day of work is sit down and study Thai for an hour (or write more emails/update my blog) but I just have to do it every so often! Oh and sorry for the corny Meet the Parents quote title of this post.
I started playing rugby 1x a week two weeks ago with the Southerners rugby club. Good bunch of lads, mostly older, working in business or education here in Bangkok. I think the quality of competition was a notch or two higher back in school since it was so serious, but these guys have all played for a long time and I hope to continue for a while. They are just in worse shape and don't practice a lot every week than my team in Davis was/did. We also only play 10s, a variation of the game (normally 15 a side) that is half the time and moves much quicker. It is fun but holy crap in this humidity just 40 minutes can take a lot out of you.
Finally got my new personal laptop up and running and it is BADASS compared to my work cpu. It's actually better than my college PC! Vista is pretty cool, but nothing all that special. You know you are a geek when you get excited about an operating system.
Now I need to download some new music to get up to date. Some Thai songs are cool, but I have no clue what they are called. The western music they play here is usually a month or two behind the States. Anyone got some suggestions?
I saw the movie 300 a couple weeks ago in Singapore. Wow it was bloody and full of testosterone. A 2 hour battle scene, and well worth the 4 US dollars it cost. And that is expensive according to Singaporeans for a movie. Sure most everything else in Singapore is almost as expensive as in California, but movies are a damn bargain.
At the gym last week I actually got a free trial 1 on 1 pilates course. It was alright - not so challenging but definitely different and I can see the non-traditional exercise benefits that it can bring. I'm not paying $100 USD for 5 more lessons though! I WILL take out the instructor this week, haha. I love Thailand.
I'm going to Vietnam again next week for a few days to do some exploratory meetings regarding new projects I'll be driving there in the next few months. I'm looking forward to going back to that crazy place. Some stories I have heard....wow. For example, a guy waking up with 7, yes SEVEN women in his bed. Or two fellas playing the bored game RISK with a woman representing each country and when you conquer the country then that woman goes on your side. Hahaha, insane. That stuff is a bit overboard but still interesting to hear - only in Vietnam!
One of my coworkers used to work in Hollywood and he had some cool insights on a few actors: Meg Ryan and Julia Roberts are rude/arrogant assholes. Kevin Costner is a sleeze. Mel Gibson is actually one of the only nice and genuine guys he met in the industry that wasn't on drugs or a sex fiend. I guess he just has his rants every once in a while...go figure.
Last week was the 3rd anniversary of my friend Andrew Dang getting killed in Fallujah, Iraq. He was a combat engineer in the marine corps and his life was taken from him much too early. I knew him since I was 12 years old and I used to play football in his front yard with his brothers and we'd have sleepovers. It's been 3 years since he left but I still find myself thinking about him everyday and when I do it really hasn't gotten much easier. I was reading an article in Time last night about letters from America's fallen in Iraq and it got really hard. I remember his letters and words vividly, and I feel for all the families and friends out there that have lost someone to this obscure war. Sometimes Andrew gives me strength to face challenges I fear. Even when I decided to move out to Thailand I thought, well, what would Andrew say? He's probably call me a dipshit and tell me to get out there. So I did. I'll try to live my life in such a way that remembers him and his wild free spirit so that when I consult my friends for advice on what I might do, I don't forget to listen to his voice too. I find some comfort in the fact that whereever he is, I'll see him again soon. I think I'll always miss him though...All this said, don't take your friends for granted and don't be afraid to tell the people you care about how you feel every so often. Life is short even if you live 80 years - the things that matter, don't ignore them or be afraid to admit them. Well now I'm just rambling a bit. Miss you Andrew...
On a bit lighter note I am going to Phuket this weekend with some friends from Singapore for 3 days. I just want to relax on the beach and get away from the big cities I frequent. Maybe I'll go hobiecat sailing - yeah, just like in Fiji and Hong Kong. Love that stuff.
For all those that still take the time to read my posts, thanks, I do appreciate it. Please drop me an email every once in a while so I know you still think about me from time to time. I promise to have a bunch of pictures up next post so it isn't a chore to get through all this text in one sitting.
I am enjoying life, and I'm enjoying work (as much as one really can). Still miss you folks though and my life in the states. It was just different, but good. It's a bit depressing that I have so many good memories about the past 10 years that I won't ever get to relive. I suppose I'm also very lucky in that way.
All the best,
Charles
This kind of stuff goes on in the middle of malls in Singapore sometimes. The next show could be hip hop or pop!
A common street in Da Nang, Vietnam.
A friend exerting some calm Thai road rage!
A picture from my last night drinking in Davis. Vadim, Scott, Rufio, and I in Little Prague. Good times...
A pop club in RCA road, Bangkok. Places like this, plus their electronica and hip hop counterparts, are where the youth and heartbeat of the city congregate until 2 or 3 am and beyond.
From back when I visited with Till in December. Didn't know at the time that I would be living 2 blocks away from here later on.
Okay I've had two Thai 1 on 1 lessons in the past couple weeks and now I am obviously a master of the language. Actually I still don't know shit, but I have got the numbers down and some basic greetings/vocab. I can talk to taxi drivers sometimes without saying any English, but I am tempted to everytime. I just want to get to a very basic level, but it will take a lot of time and effort from me. The last thing I want to do after a long day of work is sit down and study Thai for an hour (or write more emails/update my blog) but I just have to do it every so often! Oh and sorry for the corny Meet the Parents quote title of this post.
I started playing rugby 1x a week two weeks ago with the Southerners rugby club. Good bunch of lads, mostly older, working in business or education here in Bangkok. I think the quality of competition was a notch or two higher back in school since it was so serious, but these guys have all played for a long time and I hope to continue for a while. They are just in worse shape and don't practice a lot every week than my team in Davis was/did. We also only play 10s, a variation of the game (normally 15 a side) that is half the time and moves much quicker. It is fun but holy crap in this humidity just 40 minutes can take a lot out of you.
Finally got my new personal laptop up and running and it is BADASS compared to my work cpu. It's actually better than my college PC! Vista is pretty cool, but nothing all that special. You know you are a geek when you get excited about an operating system.
Now I need to download some new music to get up to date. Some Thai songs are cool, but I have no clue what they are called. The western music they play here is usually a month or two behind the States. Anyone got some suggestions?
I saw the movie 300 a couple weeks ago in Singapore. Wow it was bloody and full of testosterone. A 2 hour battle scene, and well worth the 4 US dollars it cost. And that is expensive according to Singaporeans for a movie. Sure most everything else in Singapore is almost as expensive as in California, but movies are a damn bargain.
At the gym last week I actually got a free trial 1 on 1 pilates course. It was alright - not so challenging but definitely different and I can see the non-traditional exercise benefits that it can bring. I'm not paying $100 USD for 5 more lessons though! I WILL take out the instructor this week, haha. I love Thailand.
I'm going to Vietnam again next week for a few days to do some exploratory meetings regarding new projects I'll be driving there in the next few months. I'm looking forward to going back to that crazy place. Some stories I have heard....wow. For example, a guy waking up with 7, yes SEVEN women in his bed. Or two fellas playing the bored game RISK with a woman representing each country and when you conquer the country then that woman goes on your side. Hahaha, insane. That stuff is a bit overboard but still interesting to hear - only in Vietnam!
One of my coworkers used to work in Hollywood and he had some cool insights on a few actors: Meg Ryan and Julia Roberts are rude/arrogant assholes. Kevin Costner is a sleeze. Mel Gibson is actually one of the only nice and genuine guys he met in the industry that wasn't on drugs or a sex fiend. I guess he just has his rants every once in a while...go figure.
Last week was the 3rd anniversary of my friend Andrew Dang getting killed in Fallujah, Iraq. He was a combat engineer in the marine corps and his life was taken from him much too early. I knew him since I was 12 years old and I used to play football in his front yard with his brothers and we'd have sleepovers. It's been 3 years since he left but I still find myself thinking about him everyday and when I do it really hasn't gotten much easier. I was reading an article in Time last night about letters from America's fallen in Iraq and it got really hard. I remember his letters and words vividly, and I feel for all the families and friends out there that have lost someone to this obscure war. Sometimes Andrew gives me strength to face challenges I fear. Even when I decided to move out to Thailand I thought, well, what would Andrew say? He's probably call me a dipshit and tell me to get out there. So I did. I'll try to live my life in such a way that remembers him and his wild free spirit so that when I consult my friends for advice on what I might do, I don't forget to listen to his voice too. I find some comfort in the fact that whereever he is, I'll see him again soon. I think I'll always miss him though...All this said, don't take your friends for granted and don't be afraid to tell the people you care about how you feel every so often. Life is short even if you live 80 years - the things that matter, don't ignore them or be afraid to admit them. Well now I'm just rambling a bit. Miss you Andrew...
On a bit lighter note I am going to Phuket this weekend with some friends from Singapore for 3 days. I just want to relax on the beach and get away from the big cities I frequent. Maybe I'll go hobiecat sailing - yeah, just like in Fiji and Hong Kong. Love that stuff.
For all those that still take the time to read my posts, thanks, I do appreciate it. Please drop me an email every once in a while so I know you still think about me from time to time. I promise to have a bunch of pictures up next post so it isn't a chore to get through all this text in one sitting.
I am enjoying life, and I'm enjoying work (as much as one really can). Still miss you folks though and my life in the states. It was just different, but good. It's a bit depressing that I have so many good memories about the past 10 years that I won't ever get to relive. I suppose I'm also very lucky in that way.
All the best,
Charles
This kind of stuff goes on in the middle of malls in Singapore sometimes. The next show could be hip hop or pop!
A common street in Da Nang, Vietnam.
A friend exerting some calm Thai road rage!
A picture from my last night drinking in Davis. Vadim, Scott, Rufio, and I in Little Prague. Good times...
A pop club in RCA road, Bangkok. Places like this, plus their electronica and hip hop counterparts, are where the youth and heartbeat of the city congregate until 2 or 3 am and beyond.
From back when I visited with Till in December. Didn't know at the time that I would be living 2 blocks away from here later on.
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