Photo posts via Facebook

Some snaps of first few days in Bangkok
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=71660&l=b040c&id=579190831

Trip to the island of Ko Samet
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=71656&l=c816d&id=579190831

I've also added descriptions and 20 more photos to the South Korea set.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=70503&l=1d210&id=579190831

Cheers, D

"Do you want MASSAGE!?"

I just got finished with my fourth Thai massage in the last week, albeit this one lasted for only half an hour (for 100baht/$3 US.) My travelers tension was pushed, kneaded, stretched and lightly pummelled away. I'm in such a relaxed state, I'm going to try and encapsulate my limited massage experiences ;)

There are basically three authentic kinds offered here in Thailand, and one "special" type that I'm guessing you can find in the redlight district of Patpong. I've only endeavored to try the former three.

Traditional Thai massage (200 baht or $6/hr)
I've gotten this one twice, and interestingly both times were sort of different, but I guess generally same-same (<-- a popular phrase amongst Thais). It involves, kneading, pushing, pulling and using their entire body weight at times to drum the tension out of your body. It's done fully clothed, sans your shoes and socks. At different times you are asked to lie flat on your back, on your belly, sitting up, and parts where they literally do hard stretches for you, by leaning on you hard. They start from the bottom of your feet and methodically work their way up the rest of your body, eventually massaging your neck, face, temples and scalp ;) I have liked this one the best, so far.

Thai oil massage (250 baht or $7.25/hr)
I got one of these while lying on the beach of Ko Samet. This one seemed to be pretty similar to the traditional massage, except it's more a sliding motion more than kneading (utilizing the reduced friction of the oil.) They also use aromatherapy that is worked into the oil. I was told for mine, they used tiger balm. There also seemed to be some type of mentholy smell too. It did feel good, and the scents definitely helped with the relaxation. For mine, they rolled my pant legs up as high as possible and had me remove my shirt. But, to be honest, I felt kind of sticky for the rest of the day. Thus, feeling like I had to take a shower immediately afterwards. Perhaps they allow you to shower in the actual pro massage establishments?

Thai foot massage (200 - 250 baht/hr)
This has been a real saver after walking for an entire day with a backpack on. As the name suggests, they strictly focus on your legs and feet for this one. Since it's a much more limited area, they really go deep and intesive. Sometimes, to the point of painfully applying pressure to certain points. They hit every toe and in-between at least a couple of times, and they thoroughly utilize seeminly about a dozen different massage processes to make you almost fall asleep. I definitely had my eye out for this type of saving grace on the days I was walking around on my wickedly flat feet. I am sure I will be getting many more of these in the days to come.


So, which one are YOU wanting right now?

- D

Don't worry, i'm not lost in thailand..

though, it felt like it on some days in bangkok. i just haven't had much of a chance to get an internet connection for very long. i've been staying at some new friends' places and also have been on an island (Ko Samet) for the last three days and it has very sketchy and expensive internet cafes -- probably because they know you have no where else to get it!

over the last five days since i've arrived in thailand, i've met up with some really great friends of friends of a friend (thanks audrey ;) i've explored bangkok both with them for a day, and then on my own. i saw a guy almost get bit by a giant king cobra, squeezed my way through a huge maze of human hawkers, fed baby sea turtles, met many international travellers and drank myself into a nice hangover with the infamous thai whiskey + coke buckets (1 liter) on ko samet.

it's been a lot of fun. a lot of frenzied "what do i do now?" moments. a lot of adventure and exploring, and best of all, feelings of being outside my comfort zone. to the point where i feel like i'm moving the boundaries of my various bubbles. the first day in bangkok, not knowing anyone was crazy. the second day, i made three new friends, and comfortably shadowed them on their day around town. the third day, i explored the train lines and city on my own and really enjoyed creating my own day out of nothing.

the fourth day i decided to find my way here to ko samet, about 4 hours south of bangkok. it was one of the easier and most cost efficiet places to go visit. it's great, and i hooked up with 3 different folks from england (laura) and sweden (peter and charlie). we were all traveling solo and i met laura and peter on the boat ride over and charlie at a bar. the island is pretty sweet. it's not that big, but there are lots of little resorts spotted along 3 stretches of beach. the white sand is super fine and the water is warm. when i have more time i'll post some photos.

i'm actually feeling a slightly woozy right now. it could be from the fish we caught and cooked on the boating tour around the island today, or maybe it was the scooter ride i just took up the pothole-ladden dirt road back to our bungalows. ugh. either way, i'm going to take a shower and take it easy. i'll post some updates hopefully when i get back to bangkok this weekend.

cheers!

Thailand began with the taxi ride..

i got to bangkok a few hours ago, safely and soundly, albeit a little sweaty ;)

it was an "interesting" adventure from the airport to khao son road (a well known backpacker's area), and finding an available hostel. the Thais highly revere their royal family, and apparently the mother of the queen or something passed away earlier in the week, so they were holding a funeral ceremony around the area i was trying to get to. my taxi ride was already supposed to be long from the airport and it kept getting longer, being blocked after waiting in long ques of traffic jams, and turned around by police and streets full of people wearing black.

it was all of a sudden midnight. add to that, once we figured out a successful detour, my driver then didn't know where the hostel actually was exactly (even though i showed him on trusty little Lonely Planet map.) we finally arrived, but New Siam guesthouse was full. i went to 3 other hostel places on the same street while carrying my huge hiker's backpack, laptop bag and two 50lb suitcases. locals were looking at me pretty weird. my nervousness grew, as all of the places were booked full, before i arrived at my current place. how fitting it is called Happy House. cuz i was definitely happily relieved. for the most part. i know THEY must be happy, because they charge twice as much as the one i was originally planning to stay at (still i'm now only paying $15 for a clean aircon room with private bath). cheap by american standards, but a little pricey for backpacker-style accomodations in thailand.

needless to say, during my first two hours in thailand i was sweating a little bit, both physically and figuratively. but hey, that's what i signed up for, right? and so the adventure begins.. ;)

now, time for some sleep...

- D

English Tutor... or Dating Guru?

My friend Sean tutors written English to top high school students to prepare them for their huge senior year test that's crucial to them entering an American or European university. The students in Korea have extremely high societal expectations for excelling in school. The resultant tutoring industry is probably a billion dollar/won business.

Sean tutors his students twice a week. On my second day visiting him, he invited me to lunch with them after they had his lesson. I learned some Korean and they practiced their English a little. I guess they enjoyed the interaction, because an hour before their next lesson they asked Sean to bring me and if they could change the grammar lesson to a conversational session with me. I was flattered and not sure what I would say, but told him, "Sure, why not!"



The "lesson" format was very casual. We picked a theme: Visiting Seoul. They pick me up from the airport, greet me, ask me where I want to go, what I want to do, and offer suggestions. After that, we talked about America and what it's like for kids over there. They offered some comparisons of what they do in Korea.

What I found out is that studying is pretty much all kids know here once they reach high school. Very little outside school time and hobbies. They are basically there from 7:15am to 10pm. Yep, you read it right. 10pm. They eat both lunch and dinner there. Then, AFTERWARDS, most of them get outside tutoring from 10pm to midnight, getting home around 1am. They usually get many different tutors, including on weekends.

No complaints though, when I talked to these kids. That's pretty much all they knew. It's just part of the country's norms. It's competitive, and definitely driven by parents desire to boast about where their kids go to school and ultimately what kind of job they have.



I guess this 'redlining' pace of studying sort of transfers over into the work world once they graduate. Or, at least, that's the sense I got from talking with Sean about how people work their asses off for companies here, much like people know of Japan. It also reflected the 24/7 hurried pace of people in the business district of Seoul and even the surrounding suburbs. Everybody seemed like they were anxious trying to get somewhere, rather than enjoying themselves or the journey.




Still, all that being said. These kids were awesome. Yes, I got a long silence and blank stares when I asked them what their hobbies were "outside of school"... (eventually, I got "shopping", "music", and "internet.") But, when it came down to it, they wanted to talk about the same things most kids do when they're in high school. Clothes, phones, college, friends, games, and... Dating.



I spent a whole 30 minutes talking to them about this subject, per their request. "What is the way Americans ask for date?" Oh boy, asking dating advice from me. Haha, I tried to give them the best advice a historically 'dating-shy' guy like me could give...

Haha, this pic looks like they're really enjoying my advice, huh... ;)

I just got spanked... and I kinda liked it.

Following the best meal of my stay so far (Kal-bi/BBQ beef), I'm at a typical Korean spa; this one's called S.p.a.o.l.e. It's my first time going to any kind of spa, period. So, I'm not sure if what I've been seeing and doing here is anything out of the ordinary. But, I have a feeling it is, atleast a little bit.

From the start, I got nice and intimate with the locals in the bathing area, sans clothes. Unfortunately, or fortunately, it was not co-ed in the baths (which consisted of no less than five different types of giant hot and cold spa tubs, some with TVs and some with super massagers -- where you lie down and get your shoulders, buttocks, and jewels tickled by very laserlike jets of water, while you hold on to dear life. Actually, it's really a lot more enjoyable than I just made it out to be ;)


I then went up stairs to a sort of entertainment/sauna center. Sean spent the first 10 minutes touring me around. There are 4 different sauna rooms of different temperatures (from balmy to crispy bacon) and different types: salt, mud, crystal and something I can't remember. There is also giant plasma TVs everywhere, portable mats where you can take to sleep anywhere on the floor, masseuses, an arcade, snack bar, restaurant, workout room, internet cafe, and a second secluded floor for sleeping only.



Oh, and about 4 different machines that will rattle you, pummel you, massage, tickle and spank you into blissful submission. Hence the title of this post. (I had spent 15 minutes spewing out curses of both pleasure and pain)

All this for only $10 USD. Korea is not nearly as cheap as Thailand will be ($6 for a one hour thai massage), but I think we still get a pretty darn good deal for all of the above. Now, if you'll excuse me... I think I'm going to go ask the sweet machine next door on another date.

Wish me luck ;)
- D

Photoblog #1: Korea is best seen in November...

These awesome yellow trees are everywhere on the street.
November is apparently the most beaufiful time of the year here...


And these red ones are seen everywhere, side by side the yellow ones.
It makes for a picturesque, artistic feeling when you're walking down the streets.






This traditional Korean achitecture is found in many of the old parts
of the cities. This one happens to be a general's fortress atop a mountain.

Does EVERYONE wear North Face in Korea..!?

They've gotta be knock offs. Old ladies, old men. It seemed like 1 out of every 10 people we saw on our outings sported North Face jackets and hiking sticks. I was surprised to see that. I guess the fact that about 70% of the country is made up of some type of mountain has something to do with that. During my second and third day, Sean and I jumped on the activity wagon and hiked up two mountains of our own. One small one and one slightly bigger one.

The first was named Pardalsan. It's the equivalent of maybe Twin Peaks or Mt. Tam back in the Bay Area. It's surrounded by a fortress wall which protected the old city of Suwon. It surrounded the highest part of the city to protect the vantage point from outside attackers.

The other one, Gwanaksan (the suffix "san" refers to mountains in Korean), is a national park in Gwanak. With some directions from the online climbing community, Korea on the Rocks (KOTR.com) in hand, we set out on 45 minute trek up the mountain side to find some granite climbing.

I could make this a long epic story, but I'll try to make it short. Let's just say about 2 hours later, we finally deciphered the cryptic directions successfully, after hiking up and running down and back up the mountain. We finally stumbled onto the crucial tiny goat trail (which led to the hidden crag, but that was covered in leaves) after pulling our hair out and almost strangling Dan and John, the nice guys we had randomly met up with from KOTR.

We made an executive decision to climb, even though:

1. There was only 20 minutes of daylight left
2. We were an hour hike up on thin trails and rocky descents
   
3. We had no headlamps or lights
   
4. The anchors consisted of semi-rusted bolts with a steel cable loop & ghetto hook, running in an nice american death triangle formation
5. We had no guide book to identify routes

By the time we had set up the anchors (we decided to toprope it), it was dark. We managed to get our butts kicked on what we guessed was a 5.10d-ish climb that had a very awkward and bouldery start. We climbed it anyways by moonlight. It was an ugly climb effort on our part, but I felt somewhat vindicated from the wild goose chase searching for the crag earlier.

SEOUL Brothers - First Day in South Korea

i just got up a few minutes ago. it's 8:36am Korea time. sean picked me up from the airport lastnight and we didn't get to his town until about 10pm (i found out he lives in a suburb of seoul, 40 mins south)

sean is one of my closest friends from college, when i went to san francisco state university. he and i were in an international co-ed business fraternity, delta sigma pi, and in the same pledge class together. he moved back to seoul about 5 years ago and i haven't seen him since. i always told him that i'd visit him one day in south korea. today was apparently was the day. he couldn't believe it ;)

i was somewhat still tired from the plane ride, but hungry. so we went to eat after taking a quick walking tour around his neighborhood. it was about 50-55 degrees out. the streets are narrow and the atmosphere was a dichotomy of quaint and busy. there are lots and lots of small restaurants and bars in korea, overall. sean says that all koreans do is eat and drink. they work and study such long hours and so hard that that is all they have a chance to do. according to him, many don't have the energy or luxury of time to fully develop other types of outside-work activities, like running and hiking, biking, playing soccer, etc. i mentioned the hardcore climbing i've heard about, and he said that's an exception, rather than the rule. the majority leave work late and go out to eat... and drink soju!

so, when in rome...














we walked by about 8-9 korean bbq places within only a two block radius in his neighborhood - and that's not counting the other types of food establishments. he chose a restaurant that specialized in pork bbq. (apparently, how they differentiate themselves in a highly competitive field of dozens of the same types of restaurants per block.. is by specializing in very specific offerings, such as oysters and crab vs. fish, steak and eggs, korean sushi vs. japanese sushi, pork bbq vs. beef bbq, korean beer vs. american beer vs. german beer, etc! there seemed to be many of each.)

they started up a small grill plate over a stove top and slapped on two slabs of 1/2 inch pork cuts and brought a liter of beer, and all those small appetizer dishes that usualy come with kbq. it was really good. it included a bunch of pork slabs to bbq, two liters of CASS beer (korean beers are generally "softer" flavored - i.e. tastes less bold than american or european beers. think slightly watered down flavor), and a bottle of soju korean rice wine, which is 19% alcohol and has an easy tasteless first sip, but can be followed by a bitter or sweet aftertaste, depending on your mood. seriously. apparently, depending on your mood, it can alter the the way it tastes! i took this in mind when i tried my second sip and imagined sweeter, and amazingly, it was! it was only $15 for the meal for both of us. i guess that's the benefit of having 5 restaurants competing per building here in korea - affordable food! (though, i'm sure thailand will blow that out of the water)

btw, i felt like a baller with all the korean won i exchanged for some of the US dollars i traded in at the airport. the exchange rate right now is about 1,260 won/ $1 USD, so i have a pimp wad in my pocket (the largest bill they have is 10,000 won, which is only about $8).


sean has a lunch appointment today with two highschool students he is tutoring in written english and he invited me to come along and meet them. he already told them that i was coming, so they're excited to meet an american friend of his. so, i'll get my first experience meeting some international english students. should be interesting ;) not sure what else we will be doing today. i'm sure we'll be exploring around either seoul, or the surrounding area, but i'll make sure to bring my camera.

Taking a Rock Climbing 101 Class

My climbing bug was born out of taking a beginner class with Austin Rock Gym. I had climbed a few times before with my old roommate Hong, but for some reason I wasn't into it then. It conflicted too much with my schedule and mass building workouts. Then, for some reason in October last year, I decided I'd give it a shot again, and I wanted to do it right. So, I looked into some guided sessions, classes and gym memberships. The South Austin Rock Gym offered a Climbing 101 class and an Adult Training Program.

After careful consideration of all the options, including price, convenience, follow up, and content/instruction (and talking to Russell, the main instructor at ARG), I decided to enroll in the Rock Climbing 101 class. It's offered at the beginning of every month, meets once a week on Monday nights 7-9pm, and includes a one month rock gym membership so that you can go in and practice what you learned. Note, it only "makes" if there is enough interest (usually they need at least 3-4 people to conduct it; otherwise, it's postponed to the next month. There's supposedly a max of 8; only one instructor.)

Anatomy of a Beginner Climbing Class

Getting Outfitted

During the actual class sessions, you're covered for climbing harness and shoe rentals, but during your own practice time you'll have to rent. (I'd recommend just going to REI and buying your own shoes. For beginners, I'd recommend something that fits comfortably but a somewhat snug, like the Evolv Defys. Different shoes fit different feet, so try them all on. Don't worry or splurge too much, you'll end up buying another pair down the line in 6-9 months anyways if you take to climbing regularly)

The Instructor

Russell is the man if you're green to climbing, want to have a solid foundation, and really want to get juiced about it (btw, he's the long haired dude hanging off the above photo). He is the one teaching the 101 class right now. He is 100% energy and enthusiasm for climbing and for teaching. He wants you to excell and the energy in the class starts out high, and maintains for the entire month. It is incredibly fun, and he works with the class really well. I actually had bought a couple of books and had read a lot about climbing before joining the class... so I thought I'd know most of it in this beginner class. But, to my surprise and satisfaction, there was a lot of stuff I didn't get to before, and some I just have to be exposed to in real life to truly get it ingrained. Where ever you decide to go, it's a nice plus to meet your instructor before signing up just to get a feel for them.

Vocabulary

The class starts out with an intro to the crazy climbing vernacular. You go over all the terms you need to know about holds (e.g. crimps, gastons, slopers, underclings, jugs, etc), body positioning (edging, toeing in, drop knees, knee bars, etc), and tie-in and belay techniques. It then progresses into actual practicing of belaying, then body positions, straight arms, etc. Each class builds on the next, with a homework practice assignments to hone technique or ingrain the theory which you do between the next class, such as practicing traversing and matching hands or practicing precise foot placement. In the last class, you get a taste of twist locks, using momentum, dynamic movements (dynos), and some other beginner-intermediate stuff to think about as you decide what's next for you.

I highly recommend this class for anyone wanting to get a good foundation to start and who hasn't had much experience climbing or is not as familiar with the terms and body positions. Though, this is a beginner class, I had been in a gym as well as outdoors a few times before and had read the first few chapters of a couple of climbing books. I still found this class to be super worth it. Plus, I made some friends that I could climb with and belay me. One of my climbing partners, Charles, I met in that class and we've climbed together, been down to Mexico, and may even try some mountaineering (Colorado 14'ers), which he is really into.

If you have been climbing for more than a month or two already and very comfortable with tieing in, belaying, and body positions, this may be a little remedial. The next step would be to take a lead class after a couple of months of climbing if you want to get on the sharp end of the rope. Some folks will be slower or faster at this step, and for some, just top roping (where you risk falling the least) is fine. Alternatively, to learn to lead (and clean), find a good teacher you can trust to teach you and walk it through with you again and again before trying it live. Which brings us to...


Find Experience to Learn from

The next thing I'd recommend once you have a decent understanding of terminology, tieing-in, belaying, and have some climbing either indoor or outdoor... find more experienced people to climb with. I'm a member of the Yahoo ClimbingBuddies group, from whom I was introduced to outdoor climbing and have learned a lot from guys like Brenton, Joel and Karl, as well as most of the other incredibly friendly members, like Chris, Neil, Jen, and Russ. I've also learned from a great new friend and self-described climbing addict, Di (and her great Crew*), thanks to Captain Morgan (who you can frequently see flying between far reaching bouldering holds at SARG ;)

*Annette, Anthony, Ana, Kit, David, Jason




Other companies/classes out there: (Coming soon..)

Climb On..!!!

Hey, my first blog ;) How's it going!?


If you know me and have seen me recently, you're probably aware that I currently have a new passion: Rock climbing! I've thrown myself into it for the last 4.5 months, and have been loving every second of it. I climb every week, all over locally (Greenbelt, Reimer's Ranch, Enchanted Rock, Monster Rock*soon*, Austin Rock Gym, Main Event), and make it down to El Potrero Chico, Mexico, pretty frequently.


People around town have been so awesome and I have loved the learning process every step of the way - I thought maybe perhaps this will help some other folks steady their hands and feet on their first forays on the rock around Austin, or elsewhere... I figure I'll record some thoughts and journal a few of my learnings here. It should be interesting. Or maybe not?!

I doubt I'll get a whole lot of people visiting. But, hey, if you do... Drop a comment or say hello especially if you see me out on the rock. And man, let's go climb!

*Places to spot/climb with me in Austin:

Greenbelt
Reimer's Ranch
Enchanted Rock (ERock)
Monster Rock
Austin Rock Gym
Main Event

(I will probably add more links, once I start bouldering!)

Cheers!!
Danny