Monthly Archives: December 2009

To Your Adventurous 2010

prayer flags in tibet

“With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow – I have still joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.” Confucius

Before we began our Asian tandem bicycle adventure, I read Confucian quotes and often couldn’t relate.  This I chalked up to lack of depth on my part, and perhaps the enigmatic (to us) nature of Eastern thought.

Muddling my way through jet lag on our return, and as one friend opined, postpartum depression at the end of another adventure, I pondered the above Confucianism anew, and discovered I suddenly understood. Oh, I had known the surface meaning, from earlier adventures involving discomfort, danger, but not the full depth of his thought. I suddenly noticed that he says, “…have still joy…”  not “…still have joy…” as I had first read it. His meaning was hidden from me until I had eaten enough coarse rice, drank enough wood smoke infused water and slept sufficient times with my bended arm for a pillow.

To have a still joy, a quiet joy, a joy devoid of external condition, of riches or renown, is to have a profound joy, a lasting joy. I will look back on the past four months for as many years as I have left. I will remember the struggles, the discomforts, the challenge of the unknown, even the moments of  near panic, and I will smile. Confucius traveled China, seeking knowledge, seeking deep understanding. And Claire and I did also.

On this blog we have shared the light moments as well as the challenges and discomforts. I hope in coming months, as we integrate the lessons learned and share them, that you will be enriched through our seeking. And then I hope some of you will open a new path for learning, and seek out the adventure that fits your nature and capabilities. We all have the desire to continue to grow, to explore the previously unknown, no matter our age or condition in life. To suppress that desire is to suffer loss.

Here’s to your adventurous 2010, and beyond.

Happy New Year

Christmas Card from Bangkok

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Happy Christmas from Bangkok

Happy Christmas from Bangkok

Happy Christmas from Bangkok, from Bob and Claire and Lucky. P-bear, Lai Lai and Foster send their best wishes from Tucson.

We’ll celebrate by crossing the International Date Line on Christmas Day. Does that mean we get Christmas twice?

Happy Christmas

Claire and Bob Rogers

PS. See a video of us having a look-back at our Shangri-la journey from Bangkok, Christmas Eve day.

Bangkok; a Shangri-la among World Cities

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Guardian Figure at Wat in Bangkok; Scary eh.

Guardian Figure at Wat in Bangkok; Scary eh.

Claire: With so many temples and shrines around Bangkok, a poor tourist can’t go wrong visiting any one of them–they’re all beautiful. The best part is that the less famous of them still stand apart from the hustle-bustle of the city and provide a welcome relief of quiet and reflection without the crowds to interfere. Morning is a good time to observe Thai acts of generosity and devotion. Put down the camera, pocket the map, forget the time and just take it all in.

Golden Stupa

Golden Stupa

Bob: This is the second long tour we have ended with a stay in Bangkok. After 11 months cycling around Australia, we spent 10 days here, and this time we cycled from China and will spend eight days here before flying out on Christmas Day.

It’s very easy to lose a week in Bangkok. It is more Western than it was when we were here last nearly 10 years ago, but still exotic, still endearing in so many ways. The people are beautiful, the traffic reasonable, compared to China, and the food, the food, heavenly, and inexpensive. Oh, the weather is not bad either, after you become accustomed to sunshine and 90f.

The air quality has improved, or perhaps it is the season, with reliable winds each afternoon; there are fewer motorcycles and more cars, a bad thing, but the motos and tuk tuks are now mostly four-stroke and cleaner.

Bangkok is a great city for your first taste of Asia. Among large cities of the world, it is a Shangri-la.

Longtail Boat on Chao Phraya River

Longtail Boat on Chao Phraya River

Fertility Linga Among the Fish at a Neighborhood Market in Bangkoki

Fertility Linga Among the Fish at a Neighborhood Market in Bangkoki

Orchid, one of many found all over Bangkok

Orchid, one of many found all over Bangkok

Stupas and Offerings in Bangkok

Stupas and Offerings in Bangkok

Most Important Buddah In Thailand

Most Important Buddah In Thailand

Woman Making Offering At Market Shrine in Bangkok

Woman Making Offering At Market Shrine in Bangkok

Beautiful Wat architecture in Bangkok

Beautiful Wat architecture in Bangkok

Peppers In Bangkok Market

Peppers In Bangkok Market

Bangkok, Stupa in Wat

Bangkok, Stupa in Wat

World's Largest Reclining Buddah

World’s Largest Reclining Buddah

Monitor Lizard in Bangkok Cana

Monitor Lizard in Bangkok Canal

Thailand: No Baht, and Asia Roads

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Claire:
Our first night in Thailand was spent without any Baht, the Thai currency. Crossing from Cambodia, we breezed through so easily that we bypassed one ATM, then found another, but it was out of order. We weren’t worried, because most places in Cambodia took U.S. dollars anyway. Not here. After having a drink vendor every five kilometers in Cambodia, Thailand seemed almost vacant. When we finally found a place to stay, it was a peculiar resort/bottled water producer/truck stop all in one. After several phone calls, the motel agreed to take our dollars (at an advantageous rate). We also ate dinner and breakfast there. The food was great and we were just glad to have a place to stay and food to eat.

Thai Tour Bus

Thai Tour Bus

Bob:
This tour bus/truck accident had to be fatal. The truck was
destroyed, and from the looks of this bus, the driver and tour leader were killed, and no doubt some passengers.

The wreck was probably less than an hour old, and I almost felt like I knew someone on the bus. We had dinner with a Dutch tour guide, Fritz, who was cycling through Cambodia on holiday, but he wasn’t to be back to work yet.I think the feeling came from the way the Thai busses have such spectacular and individual paint designs. It makes them feel almost personal to me.

We have seen the immediate aftermath of many, I repeat many, accidents on this 2854 mile tour. We saw an accident the first day out of Chengdu, China, and it didn’t let up.

Motobike Wreck Scene Painted On Pavement in Vietnam

Motobike Wreck Scene Painted On Pavement in Vietnam

In SE Asia they mark the pavement with white paint, showing the outlines of where the victims, and their vehicles came to rest. The first few of these fairly fresh markings were a bit shocking, but we became accustomed to them. The bent bicycle, with a person lying motionless in a rice paddy of Yunnan Provence, China, was more personal.

The majority of the accidents were motorbikes, with bicycles coming in a close second. In most of SE Asia, motorbikes outnumber autos and trucks 50 to 1, but bicycles are just on the bottom of the food chain.

Zippy is now safely in Left Luggage at the airport. He is a bit the worse for wear, but the great Thai food to be had in Bangkok will, over the next several days, repair us sufficiently for the flight home.

This is our second extended visit to Bangkok, the first being after our year cycling around Australia. It’s a facinating city, and we will be sharing pictures and hopefully some videos.

We fly home Christmas Day. After the New Year we will take time to reflect on the journey in search of Shangri-la, what we found, what we learned, and what it has meant to us.

Lucky’s Blog: Monkey Business

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MonkeyBusiness

Monkey Business

There are some funny things in the jungle. I don’t know what this thing was about. Bob stop him from grab me. I was scared. I don’t care to be used as a model for Bob’s camera thing. But this time I think I was got carried away to some tree and ate. I don’t want to be ate. I not taste good anyway.

I still enjoy visits to the fallen down old rock buildings. There’s lots  in the jungle. Some of them are getting eaten by big trees. It’s spooky sometimes. Bob and Claire like to climb up to the top on little tiny steps. I hide in Bob’s camera bag; pandas don’t climb high.

Lucky from Angkor Wat

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Lucky from Angkor Wat

Lucky from Angkor Wat

We took Zippy to  ride yesterday to some place said Angkor Wat. Claire told it was a  important place. It is made of rocks people carved and piled up to make temples to a bunch of gods.

They have scary demons for gods to fight, or something. There is big snakes, elephants, and too, a crocodile carved into walls, and other stuff too.

There are whole armies fighting and different of their big important gods, including Buddha. I’m can’t know how they remember all these gods, but they must have been important for them to do hard work.

Oh, there are 1876 dancing nymphs carved there too, and Bob took a lot of pictures of them.

We went to several other temples that were just as interesting. Claire says we’re going to more today and tomorrow. I’m getting tired, and Bob wants a nap, but Claire says we’ll only be here once, so we gotta keep up to go.

Zippy and me liked the ride back best. It being dark and we no lights. Bob and Claire pedaled fast. We passed bicycles and tuk tuks and even cars. Then me and Bob talked to a little girl selling postcards while Claire got food.

Bob says they’ll put up some more pictures when he finds something called bandwidth. I don’t know what is, but he always grouches about it.

I having fun!

bye,

Lucky

Morning in Kompong Cham

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Mekong

Mekong

Nice Frogs For Sale; Want Some Frogs?

Nice Frogs For Sale; Want Some Frogs?

Helper

Helper

Silver Dollars

Silver Dollars

Selection

Selection

fruit

Modern Cambodian Market Woman

Modern Cambodian Market Woman

Sunrise over the Mekong and a morning spent in one of our favorite Asian markets; wonderful coffee and spring rolls at a market stand started our day off right.

We leave the Mekong for good soon, and we will miss it. The river is the lifeblood of SE Asia, and the people use it fully.

We were not far from the river’s source in the Tibetan lands of the Himalaya and enjoyed it in Laos and the delta in Vietnam. It is truly one of the world’s great rivers and we are privileged to have seen so much of it, and it’s people.

The Mekong: Life Along a Slow River

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The Mighty Mekong braids its way across Cambodia and Vietnam and supports a huge population. There are many islands with no bridges or ferry services. At the Cambodia border we took a slow boat up the river for a good look at river life from water level, and then a 108k ride the next day beside or near the river in Cambodia. Here are some photos of those two great days:

Panorama of Cambodian Life (click for full size, its big)

Panorama of Cambodian Life (click for full size, its big)

 

Man throwing a net on a backwater of the Mekong in Cambodia

Man throwing a net on a backwater of the Mekong in Cambodia

Sunset over Phu Chau

Sunset over Phu Chau

Workers

Workers

Patient horse in Cambodia. They reminded me of Turkish horses in their size, ability to haul large loads at a beautiful trot.

Patient horse in Cambodia. They reminded me of Turkish horses in their size, ability to haul large loads at a beautiful trot.

Cambodian bus; the ultimate in appropriate technology.

Cambodian bus; the ultimate in appropriate technology.

Washing His Tractor

Washing His Tractor

Protecting Her Face From the Sun

Protecting Her Face From the Sun

Learning the Trade

Learning the Trade

Not Much Freeboard

Not Much Freeboard

Language Lesson

Language Lesson

Home and Business on the Mekong

Home and Business on the Mekong

On the Mekong life is Smiles

On the Mekong life is Smiles

Slow Boat to Cambodia

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[httpv://youtu.be/Qk9mA51jhE8]

After taking the wrong ferry to the border, we finally found our way to a the most laid back border crossing yet. However after we started riding to the Cambodian border station, we discovered the nice small paved road turned to a dirt path, and would be like that for up to 40K, and we didn’t have much water.

After another easy time with our visas into Cambodia, we discovered a small wood boat at the dock and found we could take it four hours to a town with accommodation for $10: both of us, Zippy and Lucky; such a deal.

Lots of photos from our first two days in Cambodia next post.

Haircut and Ear Wax Removal, All One Price

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Ear wax removal at the barbers

Ear wax removal at the barbers

One reason you should get away from the tourist avenue and explore the nearby local’s alley. Near China Beach in Vietnam, I got a haircut, and a scary but effective, ear wax removal for a grand total of  about $1. Now the loud truck and bus horns will really hurt!