Getting what you pay for...

A recent conversation between a friend and a pharmacist in a country not to be named (it is not Thailand):

Friend: Do you have any cipro?
Pharmacist: Yes. Which would you want?
Friend: What?
Pharmacist: We have the Indian kind or the German one?
Friend: Oh. German, please.
Pharmacist: But the Indian is much cheaper.
Friend: I w.a.n.t t.h.e G.e.r.m.a.n v.e.r.s.i.o.n
Pharmacist: German very expensive!
Friend: That's fine!!!

Home, Sweet Home

More power to the people who can and do spend months or even years on the road. Me, I'm a there's-a-time-for-the-road-and-there's-a-time-for-home person. In other words, I believe in the expression "home sweet home." I've been on the road for months at a time, but trips like those simply make me appreciate the creature comforts of home:

- A kitchen
- A whole bookshelf of books to read
- Home entertainment system
- Dining table
- Down comforter
- Space

So, tonight, now that I've returned from a three-week trip, I shall be cooking a balanced meal, supplemented with a glass of wine from my collection, finished up with a brewed cup of tea. Then I'll play a few rounds of Wii boxing, catch up with my mail, and snuggle up in my own bed.

Home is what you make it. But when made well, it is something to look forward to returning to.

And the marketing strategy is..??

We're surrounded by abject poverty and very basic living conditions, if even that, but when this boat of kids pulled up alongside to beg, my only reaction is to laugh. Does that make me a bad person?



We were touring one of the floating villages of Tonle Sap, the largest lake in Southeast Asia, in Cambodia. The odd geological feature is that the water flows upstream to fill the lake during the dry season. Yes, I have actually seen the reverse current from Phnom Penh, a six-hour ride downstream.

"Floating village" to me conjures up images of houses on stilts on the water. But in reality, the "houses" are boats, boats that became homes. Dad, ever the traveling businessman he is, asked our guide if they have Internet on the boats. No, Dad, they don't. The wealthier, however, do have a television running off a salvaged car battery. Yes, whole floating on the water. No wonder why there's no OSHA here.

Courtesy, my a$$, indeed

My most recent airport passing:

Me: gratefully finding an opening along the baggage claim after a couple vacated their spot.
Me: felt someone grab my backpack- full strapped on my shoulders- as leverage to shove me aside.
Dude: Make room.
Me: annoyed at the rudeness and stepping back on my ground
Me: I don't think so
Dude: I have status (pronounced STAY-tis)
Me: So do I
Dude: Well, I flew in business.
Me: So did I.
Dude: (clearly not believing me) Is that right?

Dude's first bag snakes around and he had been so busy being rude he misses it and had to run down along the carousel snake to chase it. He picks out his second bag soon after.

Dude: (yelling down the carousel feet down from me) Thank you for your courtesy and politeness.
Me: (assuming my most bland affable tone) Likewise.

Yes, everyone around heard the exchange. Probably wondering in bafflement what the heck just happened.

The odd karma? I recognized him. A colleague and I saw him at our baggage carousel in Bangkok at the end of a trip last summer. He was throwing a full blown temper tantrum at an empty carousel that was slow in spitting out his suitcase, incense that as a business class traveler he had to wait for his bag even though no one else but the three of us have made it through immigration yet. I took a double take last week when I thought I recognised him in the immigration hall, chuckled to myself and took a mental note to tell my friend about the sighting. I certainly didn't expect him to be literally on my shoulder five minutes later. I am pretty sure he didn't recognise me since I'm so obviously beneath him but I sure didn't mistaken him since he made himself so memorable.

I was luckily armed with prior recognition. I am extremely proud of myself to holding my ground without sounding as stupid as him, not something I'm able to do when taken back. I was also livid and I couldn't at the time put my thumb on why. Yes, he was rude but it's not like I've never encountered rudeness before or that I've never been rude myself.

A analysis of the encounter on the taxi ride after made me realise why he made my blood boil. He had a clear tone of "I'm a white man so obviously superior to you." I was to take his statement of status (which is absolutely the wrong card to pull on me) for face value but his implication that I had to prove myself was a clear double standard. His being in Southeast Asia, a collection of supremely class-and-status-oriented societies benefits and undoubtedly fuels his sense of entitlement. The fact is foreigners are consider superior, ranking pretty much proportional to skin color and tone especially since those in the area are comparatively wealthy anyway.

I accept cultures like these are discriminatory, chauvinistic, and judgmental. I hate it. I enjoy seeing people's eyes widen with surprise when they realise I don't fit their stereotypes and preconceptions being a Westerner in most aspects except for skin color. I hate the pre-judging but I can cope with it if it's coming from a local because I realize that in their limited world that is all they know. But when it's a foreigner like aforementioned Dude, he had no right to be a jerk about it because he is as much a visitor as I am.

So if I catch any of you, people I consider friends, throwing the superiority complex, I will seriously punch your eyes black and blue and disown you.

Coffee, by country

Asia is not a coffee-drinking continent, at all. The prevalence and success of coffee shops in the region is more a bandwagon do-the-Western-thing fuel trend than a genuine growth of coffee drinkers. My breakdown of my coffee drinking

Thailand:
- Bangkok:
- Never had I imagine Dunkin' Donuts can be butchered up. I'm mortified.
- Starbucks actually tastes like Starbucks, even with the crazy soy-substitute, half-this, dab-o-that concoction you want.
- Chiang Mai:
- Coffeeshops are the center of social life in this city.
- But it all tastes like cream and sugar with a drop of coffee.

Philippines:
All American influences bedamned. They drink powered sugar drinks for coffee. It even puts the International Coffee tins to shame. For what it's worth, those powder packets are addictive. I think it's the sugar high that does it for me.

Indonesia:
The exception to the rule. After all Sumatra and Java carry meanings to coffee drinkers. Also, this home to the Kopi Luwak. Herein lies the new meaning to drinking "crap coffee," available in standard supermarkets all over the country, albeit expensively. The regular brewed coffee, it's enough for me. Strong, fresh, and fragrant, a good cuppa is a sure guarantee here.

Cambodia:
You're kidding, right?

Taiwan:
Home of many teas. Good fresh whole beans are impossible to find, despite the prevalence of $200 espresso and coffee makers and grinders. Coffee is seriously yuppy-tised to the point of making me cringe. However, in all fairness, the huge percentage of middle and uper class citizens being educated in Western universities has brought back a class of coffee drinkers who may not know how to get good coffee but do drink a cup in the morning at home and recognise a well-brewed cup when they encounter one.

Singapore:
They don't know what brewed coffee is. Coffee comes in some espresso combination- latte, cappuccino, mocha, frappe... oh, wait, that's the Starbucks menu.

All in all, we're seeing the Starbucks education of Asia. Personally, I dislike Starbucks. As a corporation, they impress me. Their coffee to me, though, is foul. Overroasted to the point of tasing like charcoal, the coffee is not worth the price the store charges. I love their cafe concept, with tables and chairs to lounge in, allowing a customer the choice of lingering over a cup like the Italians, or rushing with a tall cup to go like an American and I'm glad many companies have picked up that model.

But, what's a girl gotta do to get a nice cuppa joe around here?

Bare essentials

I just breezed through security with a full bottle of water in my backpack. Hm. I have yet to go to the gate so perhaps there's another security check-point. One hopes.

It's not that I think bringing a bottle of water is bad. I prefer to be able to keep it. But I went in knowing full well I would have to toss it if I didn't get thirsty first.

As a frequent traveler, I have the dilemma of trying to figure out what to carry on and what to check in. I long gave up on solely carry on, especially with the liquid restrictions and my tendency to bring some forbidden object such as tweezers, a pocket knife, or a leatherman.

Some seasoned travelers such as my father have it down to a science. I don't.

At the very least I will have on my being:
- a travel journal and pen,
- travel wallet with all necessary papers and documents
- cash in US dollars
- two credit cards
- chapstick
- two packets of tissues
- a point-and-shoot camera
- an iPod and headphones
- a sweater or jacket
- dental floss

For trips where I don't trust my suitcase to get there with me or where I know I can't get an easy replacement in the hotel:
- Base basics in toiletries
- Set of clean underwear and socks
- Fully charged mobile
- Writing paper
- Reading material
- SLR camera

A lot of it also depends on which airline I fly. I have huge confidence in Thai Airways. Singapore Airlines I know I don't have to even think. United is quite good with providing basic amenities to a business traveler.

With all the flack about air travel, the fact is airlines providing international travel so still provide an excellent level of provisions, all things considered. Blanket for the cold, shower facilities for long layovers if one has enough mileage status to access the lounge. Plenty of water refills in flight to the point I have to plead them to stop refilling so I don't have to keep going. (if you must ask why I feel obligated to drink it's because they top off the glass to the point it will spill when the plane hits turbulence.)

I consider it a matter of pride that I know and do go through the metal detectors without a beep. Some security checkpoints now ask us to not only lay out our laptops apart from the bag, but also our mobiles. I have yet to do it. From my engineering standpoint, I fail to see the difference between an mobile from an iPod or camera. And with all the times I passed through, they never called out my bag to dig out the mobile, validating my belief that the pointless exercise would not be worth my hassle.

Back to my bottle of water. I wonder if it will fly with me this afternoon. It's my first time departing from this particular airport, so I'll have to report back once I get through this leg of travel.

Above the sky

One of my many wish list items is to ski in New Zealand. I forget where and who I heard about it from, but it has been a long desired activity, one that I pursued this past NZ winter. And I have absolutely no regrets.

Most of my trip was overcast to rainy. Until I went to the slopes. Despite the mountains being much smaller in scale than the ones in North America, the view was just as spectacular. Perhaps better in the sense that while I was cold, I wasn't freezing my butt off to the point of chattering teeth. The climate was milder and the slopes proportionally gentler as well. Being above the clouds, though, I couldn't help but pretend that I was flying above the clouds as I swoshed my way downhill.

TP'ed!

I wish. I cringed at the thought of using public restrooms in Asia, because some places still use squat toilets, and in others I'd be lucky if one even flushes. Toilet paper? Don't count on finding a roll, let alone multiple back ups, stored on the roller. And there usually are rollers in the stall. Funny how that happens isn't it?

Maybe it's because people may abscond with a whole stash since disposable napkins, tissue paper, and the like are rare to find in Asian regions to begin with. Maybe it's because a lot of the plumbing systems aren't robust enough to flush any sort of paper, let alone the rough supposedly local toilet paper that probably isn't even engineered to disintegrate in the sewage.

In any case, toilet paper is not necessarily a stocked item. Of course, it depends on where you are and what kind of an establishment you are in. I've been to a five star restaurant in a modern building that has all the normal public restroom furnishings and decor; but it costs you a couple local coins to be given three pieces of toilet paper from the restroom attendant.

There are those adequately built and put the filled toilet paper dispenser at the entrance to the restrooms, vice the stalls, so if you didn't catch it or grab enough on your way in, you will find yourself half squatting with your pants bunched around your knee, wishing you have brought some of your own.

I'm lucky. I've been trained by my own mother from youth to anticipate these instances that are otherwise unexpected by many Western- or primarily North American- travelers. I still avoid squat toilets, but I never travel without a roll of toilet paper. The hotels that provide a miniature roll for the guests? I love them. As stingy as it seems to provide a mini-subset for the guest, those rolls are perfect for me to pack into my suitcase when I check out. Otherwise, I stock up on these. Charmin, for that alone, you have guaranteed my lifetime loyalty.

Men? If only you can appreciate how lucky you have it.

Borobudur

Perhaps one of the coolest places I had the opportunity to venture off to amidst my many work trips in the region is Borobudur, a Buddhist relic in the now Muslim country of Indonesia. Built in the 8th and 9th centuries, this shrine is old. I mean OLD. But obviously very much reconstructed by modern restoration, given the smooth and finished quality of most of the stones, although they haven't gotten around to the re-heading the mostly decapitated Buddha statues. I'm willing to wager those almost 500-strong heads were largely pilfered and probably floating around the world hidden or mistaken as cheap stone antique imitations.

Borobudur is enormous. Back then, the Asians in the region were tiny. More so than now. How they climbed up and down the steps is beyond me. Some steps were so steep and footstep depth so narrow, I felt like I ought to sit on the steps and scoot my butt up and down for safer movements. It certainly rings true to the meaning to "climbing" stairs. Despite the largely reconstructed nature of the temple, it still retains a strong sense of ancient to it, perhaps sped up by the humid wet climate.

Until death does stop you

Has anyone else noticed the prevalence of books telling you want you need to do "before you die"? Especially in the travel section?

Examples:

• 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, obviously one of the most notable examples
• 1,000 Places to See in the USA & Canada Before You Die
  
• Unforgettable Things to Do Before You Die
  
• Unforgettable Journeys to Take Before You Die
• Unforgettable Walks to Take Before You Die
• Unforgettable Places to See Before You Die
• 1001 Natural Wonders You Must See Before You Die
• etc etc

Seriously, this doesn't even encompass the books that are hobby related. Wines to Taste, Birding places, Sailing Locations, Places to Dive, Things to Do, Things NOT to Do, blah blah blah. Just do a "before you die" search on any online book seller like Amazon or Google Books.

Interestingly, a majority of the titles were published after the 1,000 Places to See Before You Die original. So much for originality here. Since it's been a while (2003), I can say those words have long faded in appeal and now has become such an overused cliché.

Look at two excellent books involving imminent death- Tuesdays with Morrie and The Last Lecture- are so much more dignified in their title selection. Now the dearth creativity has poured into the wealth of books aimed at huge demographic of mostly living active travelers.

In a short: I welcome ideas for travel but, seriously, give me a break and do some real writing work.

Work ethic or what?

What I don't understand is the lack of a sense of follow through here.

When the PAD protesters stormed the airport, the Thai Airways employees ditched the airport altogether. No contingency to get all the passengers placed in hotels. No system in place to make announcements. They put up "closed" signs on the check in counters that read "CLOSED. Contact _________" with the blank left, well, blank.

No one is picking up any of the customer service phone lines.
The airline webpage until this evening said nothing about the disruption in service. The current message now explains what had happened up to now, but not how to anticipate when to get back to the airport.

What cracks me up, though, was the initial announcement on Suvarnbhumi webpage: "Airport operations is closed due to leave." So that the reason the airport wasn't functioning was because people chose not to go to work, not because the protesters were there. They changed the page just tonight, now citing "for security reasons."

Sadly, now everyone else gets to experience what I had too much off: the Thai people's inability to respond to urgency.

Renaissance Woman

There I was, on a Thai Airways flight to Taipei, on my way to visit relatives.

I had laid in front of me, a French newspaper, listening to Italian opera on my iPod, filling out an immigration form in English.

The attendants started distributing breakfast. When they reached me, I seized the opportunity to practice my Thai. I registered the first selection as "omlette" and the second I didn't make out. I asked "ruu mii arrai?" Repeated when the attendant gave me a blank face. And repeated. And repeated, after each attempt lacked a proper response.

I then looked down and realized she was the one Chinese-speaking attendant onboard.