Day 1: Walking into Asia, or: I Got Overly-Emotional Over "The Croods"

I didn't go to sleep the night before I left the country, mostly because we were leaving at 4:40 in the morning. Instead we waited, and that actually worked to our benefit.

First flight from Cedar Rapids to Minneapolis was barely an hour, which Mr. Freeze entirely spent sleeping while I just kinda sat there wishing I was asleep. Then we waited about four ridiculous hours in the St. Paul airport and sat lazily waiting for us to begin the huge stretch out of America.

Then, finally, we left.

My first few hours outside the United States were spent watching The Wolverine (the one set in Japan, so I could adequately prepare for the brief time we'd be in the country, which is apparently just filled to the brim with ninjas and Yakuza at every corner, and wow this parentheses is way out of hand), Despicable Me 2 (funny, but that's about it), Oblivion (which was only put on so I could have some white noise to sleep to), and The Croods (waaaaay better than I thought, holy cow).

At any rate, the flight from Minneapolis to Japan lasted almost twelve hours. Honestly I barely remember most of it at this point, if only because so much has already happened since.

I slept through most of the flight from Tokyo to Bangkok. So, finally, we made it to Thailand.

We've spent pretty much all of the day walking about, checking out the city and whatnot. Went out to the street vendors with a couple people, and I got a couple shirts. One totally not-tacky orange one and a grey shirt that might've been a tad expensive. Freeze tried to get a pink shirt, but every one we found had a political message on it, so that search ended up with nothing.

Then we took a long boat ride through slummy looking areas. It was really interesting to see that way of life and look at all the things that stood out. One example was a couple of women in small boats filled to the brim with various souvenirs and drinks, paddling alongside us and offering their wares. Another moment was when we saw a monk using a weed hacker in a monastery's lawn. And then we saw a couple monitor lizards lazily lounging (how's that for alliteration!) along the riverside.

The boat took us to an old temple that was more of a tourist attraction than anything, but it was still really cool to walk through and I also bought a couple gifts for people there.

The day ended with pretty good food at a restaurant, which involved pork, black bean sauce, and AMAZING fish with garlic.

So, first day in Not America was nice. I'm sure I had more to say but for the life of me I can't think of it now. Feel free to ask any questions below or via some other textual method.

Peace from Bangkok.

Grease and Goodbyes, or: Feelings, Friends, and Fatty Foods

Currently I'm sitting in the Sinfonia chapter room, forcing myself to soldier through the last few hours before we head to the airport. No one else is awake, save for James studying, Pounds playing League (something I'm sure he started doing since before recorded history), and Freeze. Everyone else is asleep and I will not see any of them for a very long time.

The thought both terrifies and excites me.

The last few days have been great. Eating and drinking with friends, relaxing, and tying up loose ends. Taking advantage of everyone's hospitality (as one particular concoction-brewing friend put it) helped me brace myself for the trip ahead. Didn't make the goodbyes that easy though. Or maybe that was just the Wendy's, Red Robin, Buffalo Wild Wings, Pizza Daddy, and alcohol making me uneasy.

At any rate, as much as I hate leaving my family, both the one I was born into and the one I chose, I'm ready to face a whole new culture and people. Until then, I'm gonna watch an anime movie about race car drivers that have illegal races through fascist military superpowers in space. That's the Japanese for you.

On that note, I have one last thing to say, quoting a hobbit that lived under a hill...

I'M GOING ON AN ADVENTURE!

First Post, or: Have Yet to Walk Into Asia and Still Not Sure of What Words I Capitalize on Titles

Oh hey I made a blog.

So, here's where I'll post stories and experiences about my time in Asia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam to be specific) so my family, friends, and whatever random people manage to stumble upon this blog can keep tabs on what I'm up to. Secondary purpose for this blog is to maintain my own sanity. Tertiary (I think that's the next level) purposes will be LOLRANDOM stuff like original fiction and whatever else comes to mind. Most likely Pokemon rap battles. Expect many pop culture references.

Anyway. I'll leave it at that for now. Peace, and all that.