missing my peeps

Im having a hard time with my Australian friends being gone now and my tour being over.
I love that life gives you moments that are so glorious that you never want them to end. The last 3 weeks of my life have been absolutely incredible. Words cannot describe how hard I have laughed, how much I have laughed, the beauty I have seen, the freedom I have felt, the simple things to enjoy in life that make everything worth it.
I guess words cannot express how incredibly grateful I am. Thank you Hayley, Shannon and Kelly for the experience of a lifetime!

My friend Erin is here now visiting for two weeks, so Im excited to see the islands of Thailand and Chiang Mai with her!  More stories are waiting to be created...

Hell

My idea of hell might look a little like this:

I had to go to Jenn and I's aparment in Bangkok to gather my belongings because she is moving back home.  As I gather my stuff, of course it doesn't all fit in my bag and of course, it weighs 85 pounds.  So I am lugging my bag around, sweating the whole time, and trying to hail a taxi to take me to my hotel in the city.  I was turned down by 3 cab drivers who didnt want to drive that far and then finally got a lady to help me explain to the cab driver where to go.  He can't understand a lick of what I am saying, nor can I understand what he is saying.  We are driving down the highway and all the meanwhile, he is texting and the car is swerving.  I counted 3 times where a car almost side swiped us.  He is also calling the hotel because he has no clue where to go while Im fearing that at any moment he is going to drop me off on a corner out of frustration and leave me to carry my bags around Bangkok while no one understands anything I am saying....

Thank god my day got better after that...

Cambodia

I wrote this a couple days ago but didn't have internet access to post it:

Cambodia is rich in life, culture and heat. I have sweat so much since being here and my clothes are soaking wet at the end of each day.  

We went to phnom penh for two nights and one day when we first arrived. cambodia is much more rugged and not as advanced as a culture. there are still alot of dirt roads among other things that might symbolize a modern society.  

phnom penh is the capital and the city where Pol Pot did most of his brutal and heinous torture of the Cambodian people from 1975-1979.  We went to see the main S-21 camp.  The Khmer Rouge (Pol Pot's regime) overtook most of the schools and used them as prison/torture chambers for the educated people of Cambodia. They kicked everyone out of the city, and killed anyone that was educated and foreign. Seeing the S.21 camp where they found the last 14 bodies after Khmer rouge was kicked out was intense to say the least.   in each of the rooms, they had pictures of the bodies that were found there, all of them unidentifiable because of the decomposition and torture that was inflicted upon them. 

In the afternoon, we went to the killing fields where thousands of people were taken to be murdered and buried, sometimes buried alive. During the time, they would play loud speakers with fun music so that the areas surrounding these killing fields would not hear the cries of those being murdered.  The number of people murdered are unknown, but its somewhere in the vicinity of 1.5 million.

After Phnom Penh, we came to Siem Reap, where its most famous for the Ancient temple built by the Angkor people called Angkor Wat.  It took 37 years to build and it was all done by volunteers and people traveling through.  It is strictly a temple and not a place for anyone to reside.  It was absolutely magnificent. We arrived just in time for a Thai holiday so had to fight the thousands of tourists that also wanted to see the magnificence.  Words cannot describe how amazing it was, along with the several other temples we saw including that in the film "Tomb Raider."

All in all, Cambodia is a bit hot for my liking, especially when going around to temples all day.  They use the dollar here, so because you dont get a great exchange rate, its a bit more expensive than Thailand or Vietnam, which came as a surprise to me. 

Next, we are back to Bangkok again and my friend Erin arrives on Wednesday for a two week adventure around Thailand!

Accepting a beautiful thing

I find myself starting to adjust to the weird idiosyncrasies of Asia and its very uniqueness that makes it Asia, while at the very same time experiencing a parallel acceptance of myself.  As I walk through the crowded streets, dirty places and uncomfortable conversations, I have been willing to go to those places in myself.  The past week has been a beautiful distraction for me from the intensity life has thrown my way since arriving in Asia; but all at the same time, I have began to accept the beauty, laughter, and passion of me and everything else that goes along with me. 

Vietnam is a beautiful country, and as I leave Vietnam in a day and head towards Cambodia, I reflect on what Vietnam has shown me.  The people here are meek, gentle and friendly.  We have experienced the fog of Vietnam, the bicycles and motorbikes creating unbelievable traffic, the wine, the ocean, the rain, the awesome food, the tailors, dancing on the beach, the other travelers (met a boy named Adam!) the temples, the river boats, the overnight trains and found myself truly taking in each moment.  These are the moments to cherish for a lifetime and that most people never get to experience. 

Dear Vietnam, 

Thank you for being so good to me.

Love,

Hayley

Nha Trang, Vietnam Day 7

Wow, so much fun to be had, so little time to write a blog!!!  Its been a nice distraction from my introverted thoughts last week to be surrounded at all times and just having fun this week. We have done so much and had so much fun.

There are four of us on my tour, which is surprising but has turned out to be perfect.  Hayley and Shannon are a couple from Sydney Australia.  Hayley is also a hairstylist and we have so much in common.  Shannon is a really laid back guy that is really awesome about being with 3 girls all the time.  Kelly, my roommate, is a medic in the Australian Navy.  She has experienced alot, has alot to offer the group and has a little edge that is feisty and hilarious.

When we left Hanoi on Monday, we took an overnight train to Hue. The four of us brought two bottles of wine on the train to ease the pain of being in such a tight space.  It was fun to chat and hang out with each other.  The front of the train had a community area which we ended up finding ourselves hanging out with other travelers and some of the Vietnamese navy, who ended up singing us all their patriotic songs.  It was a picturesque moment.

In Hue, we went on a motorbike tour for the day and truly enjoyed the surroundings.  It was absolutely beautiful.  Hue was the capital of Vietnam at one time and so its updated, yet very quaint. We also went out dancing for the first time in Hue and had many stories the next day thanks to my roommate Kelly, who had WAY too much to drink. I think this was the night that we all really bonded. We have been laughing about it since...

From Hue, we went to Hoi An. Hoi An is known for their awesome food and great tailors.  I had 2 dresses, a suit jacket and a shirt tailored for me as well as some shoes made.  They are all so awesome; couldn't be happier!  The shoes are not how I described them, but thats what happens when you dont have a picture and cannot speak the language!!!  But they are awesome leather and very comfortable. We also took a cooking class in Hoi An which was a unique experience as well.

From Hoi An, we have found ourselves in Nha Trang.  Its the most beautiful beach in Vietnam.  Yesterday we went on a boat cruise around the islands of Nha Trang, but the weather was crummy, so we ended the trip early, came back and found ourselves at a french restaurant drinking wine and eating cheese.  Last night we went to the sailing club where they had dancing all night and it was a blast.

The accommodations have been absolutely lovely.  I have always been hesitant to come on tours because I felt like it would hold me back from what I really wanted to do, but it has been nothing but awesome for me.  It has been great to be around people my age, have all the details of travel taken care of for me and to get to have the experiences I dream of!

Tonight we are headed to Saigon on an overnight train for a couple days and then headed to Cambodia.  Its all going way to quickly...

Hanoi, Vietnam Day 1

heres a story for ya:

    I wake up this morning to the sound of my cell phone saying "its 4 am, time to wake up. its 4 am, time to wake up." this is after a girl came into the hostel last night at 1 am wrinkling every bag she could possibly find while proceeding to "organize" or whatever for an hour. 4 am to catch my flight to vietnam has come WAY too soon. 

     I arrive at the airport, waiting for my flight to find that im sharing a flight with a whole flock of asian travelers all wearing red hats from some tour company.  they are snapping pictures of each other left and right....so apparently they dont just do it when they are in the United States. 

     I arrive in Vietnam where I have to obtain my visa upon arrival to get in the country.  I have already been pre-approved, but just need to pay and get my stamp in my passport. I arrive at the visa office to find that I am the first of many in a line that is forming rapidly and no one is moving.  Come to find out that we had to wait for an hour because "the boss" wasn't at work yet. "So, you mean to tell me that I have to stand here and just wait for your boss to show up to work?!"  Good start to vietnam, eh?

      After the visa experience, I catch a mini-bus to Hanoi.  It is PACKED full of people.  I notice (since I am squished next to two men) that men here wear their fingernails long, especially the thumb nail. kind of a turn off...

The ride takes about an hour, but as we enter into the city by highway, I have never experienced such a shit-show (excuse my language) in my life. There are a tone of motor bikes around asia, but in Vietnam, there seems to be a ton more motorbikes than cars, and some of them go SO slow!!!  But since they can drive on the highway with normal traffic, you have cars winding in and  out of the motorbikes, some broke down on the side of the highway, people driving in the middle of the two lanes.  Point being, there are NO traffic rules and its a free for all!!!  And everyone is honking in the meantime, as if it actually does something. 

      As you come into Hanoi, its very much what you would picture Vietnam to look like; kinda misty/foggy, lots of rice paddies and you see all these people wearing those bamboo tent-like hats. Its got more of a european feel to it with smaller streets and cafes (makes sense being that they were colonized by the French).  Its very different than Thailand, but the people are very friendly. So friendly in fact that I had a guy come up to me today in the park first asking me to take a picture of him then proceeding telling me how beautiful I was and how he wanted me to meet his family.  The least it does is put a smile on my face for the next hour! and since i will be here for the next 10 days, I am sure I will be smilling from the many more adventures to be had...

yep, still sweating

I am happy to be back on the blog circuit and report of recent events:

1- Since I got back from Koh Samet last week, I have spent time at our apartment reading, reflecting, watching movies and enjoying some down time.  Although these are the times you usually feel the most lonely, I have really enjoyed this time and have come away with some important realizations.  Jenn and her mom, Kristy just came home for two nights during their travels and it was refreshing and fun to see them and hang out with them!  Now they left for Chiang Mai for a couple days...

2- I bought my plane ticket home for December 11. Yes, I am coming home in December.  After letting the situation play itself out here in Bangkok, it has worked out for the absolute best. I am traveling intensely, doing the things and going to the places I have wanted to go and then am going to make it home in time for Christmas and my mom's wedding!!!  The wedding was an event that I was having a hard time NOT being at, so I decided to come home early to attend. I am leaving on December 11 to meet my friend Jamelyn in San Francisco with her closest friends for a long weekend to celebrate her 30th birthday (which was ALSO an event that I didn't want to miss celebrating!) 

I am still having alot of moments where I struggle with this unique, different and exhilarating culture, but there are many more moments these days where I breathe deep and truly enjoy what this time of my life is offering me and teaching me. What an awesome experience I am taking part in!

I am leaving tomorrow for my trip through Vietnam, Cambodia and ending in Thailand. I am excited and anxiously awaiting what I will see, experience, eat and do on my 18 day adventure!!! and now i go on...