58 days, 4 countries, 7 plane rides and over 12 hours spent at the Chicago O'Hare International Airport later, I'm finally HOME! My flight was delayed for about 6 hours getting out of Hong Kong causing me to miss my connecting flight from Chicago to Toronto. Then I spent 2 hours in US Customs and Immigration which caused me to miss the last flight out of Chicago and thus forcing me to spend the night at the airport. It was a very long night.
So this concludes our Asia trip 2008 but stay tuned because we still have a bunch of pictures that we have yet to upload. Oh and Kyle you gotta send us your pictures cuz alot of mine suck!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Can I go home now?
Staying true to the theme of our trip this summer which is 'Nothing is ever easy', there's a typhoon in HK right now and the fate of my flight tomorrow is uncertain. There was a typhoon on the day that Althea and I left for Thailand as well but our flight still managed to fly out even though we encountered some crazy ass turbulence.
Anyway this time its slightly different because this is apparently the strongest tropical storm that has hit HK this year and all flights out of HK were cancelled today which means that they are going to have twice as many people trying to get out of HK tomorrow. *Sigh* I wanna go home now please!
Anyway this time its slightly different because this is apparently the strongest tropical storm that has hit HK this year and all flights out of HK were cancelled today which means that they are going to have twice as many people trying to get out of HK tomorrow. *Sigh* I wanna go home now please!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Home Sweet Home
After 7 weeks, 3 countries, 9 cities, and over 40 hours of sitting in planes, I am finally back home. Actually, I've been home for like 5 days already; it's just taken me a while to finally post something. And while I'd like to say that I've been busy unpacking, settling in, and getting back to my life, the truth is I've spent the past few days downloading Japanese idol dramas and obsessively searching for J-Pop music videos on Youtube. (By the way, thanks, Lydia and Kyle, for introducing me to this stuff and turning me into a fob.)
Lydia is still in Hong Kong for another few days, and so we agreed that I would start updating the blog with more pictures and stories from our trip, now that I have free time and unlimited access to internet. So here I go...
On our last night in Japan, Lydia, Kyle and I decided to treat our malnourished little bodies to some fresh fruit. That peach in Lydia's hands cost us 6 bucks, but oh dear god, it was worth it. Without exaggeration, it was the best peach I'd ever tasted. Ever since that night, I have thought about moving to Japan just for the produce.
I have no idea what the hell this thing is, but we saw various incarnations of this statue all over Japan. It's like some sort of cross between a beaver, a bear, and a rat--it's kind of freaky. I really want to know what it is, but I don't think that even my Google-fu can crack this case. A cookie for anyone who can figure it out.
Speaking of freaky statues, these are what the mannequins look like when you go shopping in Bangkok.
When Lydia and I were shopping in Mong Kok (an area in Hong Kong), we came across a store selling DVDs of one of the greatest films ever made: Commando starring Arnold Swarzschuwhatever. It also happens one of Kyle's favourite movies. I highly recommend that you all check it out.
Finally, our last picture with Kyle before we left Japan. We miss you Kyle!!!
So that's it for now. Sorry for the crappy selection of photos. My good memory card is still in my suitcase somewhere. I'll start unpacking...eventually.
Lydia is still in Hong Kong for another few days, and so we agreed that I would start updating the blog with more pictures and stories from our trip, now that I have free time and unlimited access to internet. So here I go...
So that's it for now. Sorry for the crappy selection of photos. My good memory card is still in my suitcase somewhere. I'll start unpacking...eventually.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Phuket and Bangkok
We're back in HK thus concluding our one week trip of sun, non-stop eating and extreme heat in Thailand. Our one regret is that we didn't get to see a live Thai boxing match (so you can stop being jealous Luc) because you know no trip is complete until you see grown men beat each other up. Today is Althea's last day as she's jetting back to T.O. tomorrow morning while I'm going to visit some family (whom I have neglected this trip) for the next week. Enough babbling, here are more pictures!
Taken from the balcony of our hotel room. Those waves are the reason we can't swim in the water.
Althea getting a special Thai massage.
Getting a ride back to our hotel.
Feeling a bit nauseous on the speedboat.
Maya Beach, better known as the location of where they filmed the Hollywood Blockbuster "The Beach". Don't feel bad if you don't know which movie, most of these people on the beach don't know either.
Me jumping into a lagoon with beautiful aquamarine water. Those three guys in the background are also in our tour which I guess makes it less creepy that they're watching us.
Looking tan and "healthy".
Monkey beach: The tour guide (in the cap on the left) joked that the monkeys may bite and if we get bitten, we can't get back on the boat. We were a bit freaked out especially considering the monkeys then proceeded to jump into our boat to get food.
Althea's psyched to go snorkeling.
A market in Bangkok with vendors selling everything from clothes to pets to local delicacies. Deep fried crickets anyone?
A thrilling ride on the local taxis or tuk-tuks.
Seafood market where you choose what you eat and they make if for you on the spot.
The many chefs at the market looking "busy".
Saturday, August 9, 2008
PHUKET!
Lydia and I are here at the airport internet cafe, waiting for our flight. After 2 days of being in Phuket and hanging out on sunny beaches, we're off to Bangkok for some shopping, eating, and hopefully Thai boxing.
We stayed at a beachside resort here in Phuket and enjoyed what I imagine is the life of a rich person. We were constantly waited on by hotel staff, which is in stark constrast to the hostel hopping life we were living in Japan. Actually, being waited on was slightly uncomfortable since we aren't used to this treatment and it doesn't help that neither Lydia nor I have any suave tipping skills. We kind of just stand there, arms awkwardly stretched out with a bill in hand.
Funny enough, we got a lot of questions from tour guides and hotel staff about where we are from, most likely because we look kind of Thai yet speak perfect English. We used to just say, "Canada" but they always looked so unsatisfied that we modified our answer to, "Canada, but she was born in Hong Kong and I was born in the Philippines" which seemed more pleasing to them.
Anyway, some highlights:
A view of the beach at our resort
This is what you get when you visit a tropical island during monsoon season
Despite the clouds, Lydia and I managed to get tans...we're just that good
In response to a picture of me, my brother said I looked fat "healthy" so now I have resorted to doing crunches in the hotel room. Damn you, Luc, damn you.
You can't tell from the angle, but in that last picture, Lydia and I are actually sitting on top of an elephant. We may be smiling, but that was one hella scary ride.
The elephant riding was part of one awesomely tacky tour we joined that I can only describe as the poor man's Thai version of African Lion Safari. In the span of 3 hours and all within in a 1-km squared area, we watched an elepphant show, a monkey show, rode elephants, took an ox-cart ride, sat on an ox, watched a Thai cooking demonstartion, learned aboout rice farming, and watched three minutes of "Thai boxing" (two skinny teenagers laughing and play-fighting). Despite how kitschy that all sounds, it was actually really fun. There are a lot more pictures that we may or may not upload, depending on how lazy we are.
We also did a day tour of speedboating and snorkelling which was crazy fun, but alas, the pictures are still in our memory cards and I only have 5 minutes of internet left. So we'll save that for another day...
We stayed at a beachside resort here in Phuket and enjoyed what I imagine is the life of a rich person. We were constantly waited on by hotel staff, which is in stark constrast to the hostel hopping life we were living in Japan. Actually, being waited on was slightly uncomfortable since we aren't used to this treatment and it doesn't help that neither Lydia nor I have any suave tipping skills. We kind of just stand there, arms awkwardly stretched out with a bill in hand.
Funny enough, we got a lot of questions from tour guides and hotel staff about where we are from, most likely because we look kind of Thai yet speak perfect English. We used to just say, "Canada" but they always looked so unsatisfied that we modified our answer to, "Canada, but she was born in Hong Kong and I was born in the Philippines" which seemed more pleasing to them.
Anyway, some highlights:
You can't tell from the angle, but in that last picture, Lydia and I are actually sitting on top of an elephant. We may be smiling, but that was one hella scary ride.
The elephant riding was part of one awesomely tacky tour we joined that I can only describe as the poor man's Thai version of African Lion Safari. In the span of 3 hours and all within in a 1-km squared area, we watched an elepphant show, a monkey show, rode elephants, took an ox-cart ride, sat on an ox, watched a Thai cooking demonstartion, learned aboout rice farming, and watched three minutes of "Thai boxing" (two skinny teenagers laughing and play-fighting). Despite how kitschy that all sounds, it was actually really fun. There are a lot more pictures that we may or may not upload, depending on how lazy we are.
We also did a day tour of speedboating and snorkelling which was crazy fun, but alas, the pictures are still in our memory cards and I only have 5 minutes of internet left. So we'll save that for another day...
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Didja miss us?
Sorry for the lack of updates again! Althea and I are currently in HK and we haven't had a lot of time to compose posts. Here's an update of what we've done since the last update:
- Visited Kamakura briefly where we saw one of the largest Buddha statues in Japan and had lots and lots of ice cream.
- We hiked up (and back down) the highest mountain in Japan, Mount Fuji, with Kyle and Will. More on that later but lets just say that despite what other people say, it is NOT easy to climb Fuji-san!!!
- Arrived in HK with Althea where she got her first taste of how crazy HK people can get when they see Asian pop stars.
- Continuously got lost in HK. Just because I am from HK, it doesn't actually mean I know where the heck anything is!
Here are some pictures just in case you forgot what we look like:
- Visited Kamakura briefly where we saw one of the largest Buddha statues in Japan and had lots and lots of ice cream.
- We hiked up (and back down) the highest mountain in Japan, Mount Fuji, with Kyle and Will. More on that later but lets just say that despite what other people say, it is NOT easy to climb Fuji-san!!!
- Arrived in HK with Althea where she got her first taste of how crazy HK people can get when they see Asian pop stars.
- Continuously got lost in HK. Just because I am from HK, it doesn't actually mean I know where the heck anything is!
Here are some pictures just in case you forgot what we look like:
Ready to embark on our hike up Fuji-san
8 hours later, freezing our asses off near the top of Fuji
Sun rise
We made it to the top!
Starting the LONG trek down the mountain
Street eats in Hong Kong
Thats it for now! We're leaving for Thailand in a few days for some relaxation on the beach. Hopefully we will post again before Althea goes back to Toronto.
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