Tandem cycling in Australia, Backpacking in Tasmania and New Zealand, Kayaking in the Whitsundays, Eating Sushi (and going to Onsens) in Japan, Weddings back in Cali, Hiking in Nepal, Rock Climbing in Thailand, Scootering around Lao!!!
in chinatown in bangkok... 5 rings for 100 Baht (35 baht = 1 US$)
You betcha'... stronger than a beer bottle cap...
Here's some pics from the first day in Bangkok... got in late, so we stayed with a CouchSurfing.com host... worked out great... and had a fun day the next day with some other surfers.
FYI, we're in Kathmandu now... and headed to trek the Annapurna Circuit tomorrow... or the day after, so we won't have interweb access for a little while.
We arrived in Kathmandu a few days ago on the 26th... luckily 2 days + 6 months before my passport expires (the passport needs to be valid for 6 months for the tourist visa). We admittedly didn't know much about the place, but it's fascinating. From the hindus, the nawali, and other ethnic groups (over 60 in Nepal) walking around in their traditional garb, to the 100s of kites fluttering high above the city, and all the temples strewn about town, it's quite a change from the places we have visited thus far.
The first morning, I woke up to the rooster about 20 feet away at 5 am... couldn't go back to sleep and went on a morning run around town. Because of Dashain, the most important hindu holiday in Nepal there were loads of people waiting in line to give food to the gods, and already people sacrificing their chickens, pigs, and goats... If you ever have a chance to run around in Kathmandu... I recommend 5 am... after that you'll probably get run over by a motorcycle.
Butcher on the street...
And if it's during Dashain, as it's a time of sacrifice (giving blood to the gods) you probably don't want to wear your brand new sneakers... unless it's red.
Cows are spotted in random garbage dumps throughout town... like India
Woke Kimbo up and went on a nice morning walk... got a fresh squeezed OJ from the man in the rainbow umbrella.
Then Kimbo got a Tikka...
There are Hindu and Buddhist temples in and around the city... we visited the monkey temple (Swayambhustupa) first... for obvious reasons... which gives you a view not only of a day in the life of a monkey (kinda like this blog...) but also a grand view of the city below. It's also 2000 years old and just the architecture would make it a fascinating place to walk around. I've got some great videos, but unfortunately the connection here is a little slow... so maybe later.
I heart monkeys...
We went to see the sunrise on the Himalayas and over Kathmandu Valley at Nagarkat (2195 m) this morning. There's a bamboo swing at the top while you wait... there are swings like this all over the city, all with long lines at hours of the day... but this one was the first one we've seen free...
SUNRISE!!!
Some mtns...
Oh, and the motorcycles are crazy here... they are definitely "family" vehicles, often with 5 folks on one...
Step 1... go to Bangkok... to Wat Intharawihan (it's worth it if ... there's a really big standing buddha) most likely in a Tuk Tuk from Khao San Road after the driver takes you to one or two places which has the "best of Thai fashion"... which ends up is a place to buy suits or dresses (the Tuk Tuk drivers get commission and free gas voucher).
Step 2... buy a bird and free it! Yay! ...you can start feeling that profound sense of bliss welling up.
Step 3... watch it meet it's fate... and figure out that you just paid for cat food...
... well what did ya expect? The birds have been sitting in a tiny cage for who knows how long... they probably forgot how to fly... I mean that bird was staring right at it's predator
... I think I'll just stick to backcountry skiing for my slice of eternal happiness.
... but before we go... I wanted to share a few pics from the last month in the US... it wasn't really part of our "travels" so laid off the blogosphere for a bit...
Matt & Elena driving off to their honeymoon...
Next week, headed back up to Mendo for Lincoln & Amy's wedding (gotta get as many Mingie pics as possible)...
On top of Pilot Rock... near Ashland, OR
The next day, we met up with Smitty (on tour with Albino!) and went rafting down some class IV rapids
After one night in Berkeley, I headed down south to explore a canyon... here's funk flying in... the entrance to the canyon is a 50 ft jump...
A group shot....
Taken from here...
The rainbow room
...and the exit jump...
...and rode up to Tahoe with Nick to retrieve my neglected car... a new battery was all it took.
I stuck around a few nights and did some mountain biking during the day...
after finally getting back to Oakland, I found time to do some mtn biking with Funk.
... all the while Kimbo went to a bachelorette party, power to the peaceful, and sailing...
We decided to head up to Portland after visiting Ashland and hearing that Jasper had an extra whitewater kayak, Louis has hops growing in his front yard (and a home brew on tap), and because we're on vacation.
We also found a reason to go back to Portland...
Home of the Cheesus Burger
... need I say more? And you eat inside a converted school bus...
Since we planned to go whitewater kayaking the next day, we borrowed Lou's neighbors canoe from his shed... where he was incidentally curing ham...
And took it out on the slough... that's Kimbo wearing a neoprene hoodie... NOT a ninja trying to steal Mingus.
... and taught Lou how to roll. He did get it once before he got too cold and we turned around to head back.
That's a dry suit Lou gave me that he had found at a garage sale...
We also had dinner with one of Kim's friends, Molly from Cornell, who started a winery in the area.
The next morning we loaded up the Volvo (4 people, one dog, and three kayaks... Mingus wasn't too happy.. as you can see).
And went to White Salmon, WA. On the way there, Jasper was thinking... maybe I'll do Husum Falls (class IV)... but when we arrived, this is what we saw...
Mingie ready for the class IV
... but we suited up and peer pressured Jasper into going...
... and he nailed it.
Lou managed to stay upright through some of the class III rapids, but fell over in excitement right after.
Jasper and I playboated in the last wave for a while...
... you can click here to see what happens next...
... then met up with Kimbo for the ride home... BUT the adventure didn't end yet. As after we went to a brewery in Hood River, we stopped to look at some fish some Native Americans were selling on the side of the road.
We went to the first stand, looked at their biggest salmon, and they said 30$... we didn't really say much for a bit... then he said 20$. The rest is history.
It's hard to pass up a 35+ lb salmon for 20$... especially when your neighbor is an amazing foodie with an professional grill.
We ate some sashimi style, grilled, saved some for smoking.... and here is Lou preparing lox with the other part. We even saved the head, tail, etc. for making broth later.
On the drive back from Portland, we took a detour to one of my favorite swimming holes... About 0.5 seconds after this picture was taken was the last time I had my wedding ring on my finger.
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