Curry for Breakfast

This might be my last chance to update for a while (like weeks). I am in Kendari, in the far southeast of Sulawesi, and son we get on the super jet (6 hrs) then the long haul freighter (12hrs) and then the live-aboard research vessel (4 hrs), so with a little luck and no long connections we should be on Hoga by tomorrow (26th of June) for a late lunch.

This mornings breakfast was curry, with coffee so black you could stand a spoon up in it.

I am looking forward to having a swim.

Joel

Kuala Lumpar - Hotter than ever

Successfully navigated the Portland->Boston->Newark->Stockholm->Kuala Lumpar leg of the journey, and despite not having slept in 24 hrs, I feel pretty good.

Pictures and updates as they become available.

Hot Showers and Cold Weather

So today is beautiful and sunny in Seattle, 64 degrees and I am wearing a stocking cap and down sweater. Just not used to the weather, but I love it, oh, and today was the first hot shower in 32 days.
Pretty nice.

The temples of Ankor

Today I treaveled around the some of the smaller and oldest temples that form the complex know as Ankor Wat. It was brilliant and I must have drank 5 liters of water.

Our 90 Km bike ride to the old Casino

The sign says "Danger Do Not Enter"

Don Tong, Lunch and Transportation

Khmer New year

day one: Leave Kampot on Joe's motobike ( driving them in the rural areas is way way safe, not like Phenmom Phen where the density is +324%) after a super pretty drive (early in the cool air) we arrive for breakfast in the market, breakfast was only partly identifiable, awesome coco curry over noodles with (the unidentifiable) veggies underneath, probably lotus, basil, some type of fennel/cabbage/ruffage mix. breakfast was completed with a bunch of gnome, little fried things - gnome really means pocket/dumpling/potsticker type thing, and you can put in them what ever you (they) want. I like the sweet bean curd ones.

then bike ride out to this fantastic Wat (temple) where we tour the caves and see all the pictures of Budda, one interesting thing was the pictures all depicted Caucasian buddah's and monks all of which bore a striking resemblance to Joe cause he has his head shaved.
oh, and I have cat eyes - i.e. colored blue because cats are the only animal here with colored eyes. after the wat we headed to lotsa different peoples houses (we were with Lauren and her Khmer friend) and had tons of mango's and coconuts everywhere we went, just a nice new years visit out in the middle of nowhere. Pretty fun and we came home laden with jackfruit and coconuts and mangos and 3 kinds of bananas.
made it back just in time to receive (catch?) the angles, who apparently come at dinner time, which was cucumbers, boiled chicken and tons of rice. pretty good. Then I had my first durian. which tasted like sauteed celery with caramelized onions and sweet custard all mixed together in a sticky goo. Yeah you can see why people go nuts over this.

Day two of New years started with breakfast in the market again (again with the same lady named Ma Mop) and this time I had fried egg omelet on more weird ruffage/sticks (try eating shaved lemongrass/loutus stalk -that is the consitency) and a like a pork sauce on top, it was killer. then Khmer Iced coffee later at another friends food stall, then back to get the lunch prepared for the Monks, the four year old LeDie and head to the temple, where we offered up money (equivalent of like $0.50), got blessed, burnt incense in a couple of places and then sat and watched the monks eat. basically the monks eat super plain food daily in the morning and fast in the afternoon/evening. On holidays the community brings them tasty food, which we did, and then when they were done everyone sat around and has a potluck. which is what we did, we sat with Ma Mop the breakfast lady and had a ton of really good food, pork, beef, chicken and fish in all kinds of noodle/curry/rice dishes that I am really going to miss when I leave this hemisphere.

After too much food, good blessings from the old ladies (not monks per say...but old women who live at the Wat and have given up their material ways, devotees.....like nuns, who sit around and have old lady's group, most are widows).

then we repaired to the hammocks to drift away the heat of the day.....after dinner back to the wat for fried bananas and wat games (which were really just supervised flirting between all the unmarrieds) and then dancing. more incense/praying and offering money spreading sand and group rituals. Then home to sleep a deep sleep, the sleep of the just, just plain tired. this heat zaps me, seriously zaps me. I have no problem sleeping 12 hours.

Now we are back in Kampot, most places including Joe's restaurant are closed, which means I can cook! I haven't made my own food in six weeks, isn't that weird?
I am thinking tuna melts for lunch and chicken/coco/lotus/ curry for dinner with lots of wine and whiskey. The whiskey really helps the GIT stay healthy, seriously i had forgotten how much that is important.

Tomorrow is a trip up the Bokor Mountain and through the Jungle.

The reef

The coral reef was absolutely amazing.

Hoga......

Wow, back now in the capital of Sulawesi, Makassar which is a bustling dirty port -the complete opposite of Hoga which was serene and tranquil and exceptionally beautiful. We arrived hot and sweaty after a flight and two boats, two days of travel all told. A hot shower and cold beer never were as good as last night. We took off a bit early because the boat schedules got complicated (basically the country shuts down for parliamentary elections tomorrow) ....that and I got as much done as possible until I return. So I am back off traveling, to KL tonight, and then Ankor Wat.
I'll post pictures when they are available.

Indonesian Fisheries........

So all of the photos below are from today's day trip around Macassar, Sulawesi. I went with Martin, one of the English scientists that I'll be working with for the next few days. We saw some fish farms, the remains of some mangrove forests (most are being cleared for housing as the city grows), and lots of fishing boats.

One of my roles here will be to analyze data collected over the last few years and attempt to figure out which management measures (increasing mesh size, outlawing fish fences, implementing size limits.....) would be most effective in reducing fishing pressure over the long term and also which measures (bylaws) would be least harmful economically and nutritionally over the short term.

Okay so from here, we catch a flight tomorrow to Bau Bau, and then an overnight boat (the word is to get a spot on the deck as the cabins all have rats) and then another boat (watch out for pirates) and touch down on our site, so we should arrive on Wednesday afternoon, to a sandy beach which was uninhabited before the scientist guys set up shop. The word on the street is that the beer is expensive, and the food is great, as long as you like fresh tuna and rice every day.

Dried Fish for sale in Macassar

Fishing net, note the small size of the mesh, almost nothing escapes

Pretty boat.

Traditional Fishing method where you wait for fish to swim into the net(whilst lowered) and then lift the net trapping them, and then paddle out and get the fish.

KL, Malaysia

Pictures from a 22 hour layover in Kuala Lumpar

Photos from Kampot by the river

Photos of Fishermen and Mark, Jasmine and Hannah lounging in the afternoon sun.

Makassar, Sulawesi, Malaysia

Arriving at night in Makassar you notice first that the airport is nice but spartan, and then that even though the sun has been down for hours, it is hot, and during the day it is even hotter. Splendid country so far, although finding a beer in the Muslim part of town was a challenge last night.

Kuala Lumpar (Malaysia)

Made it to KL today, am a bit tired and hungary, but the biggest difference is that this place is like a different planet compared to Cambodia.....just in the terms of cleanliness and development to say the least.

Kampuchea (Cambodia)

I have fallen in love with Cambodia, and it really only took one day. Now that I have been here for a little bit I really appreciate the generosity and warmth that Cambodians have, people are so nice here. And the food is amazing.

I have a favorite roadside snack, it is called Gnome W'ow. These little delicious treats are about $0.50 per one, about the size of a tennis ball and three usually suffice for lunch. They are about the consistency of a dumpling or won-ton, and have sauteed onions, pork, garlic, spices and hard-boiled egg in the middle. All surrounded by a slightly sweet rice dough. And they come steaming hot out of the cooker, so you know that the risk of getting any sicker is really minimal.

Last night we watched some American television and also some Cambodian propaganda films from the early sixties that had been smuggled out of town by the nationalists before the Khmer Rouge took over. Phenom Phen looked like Paris (not surprising given the French experiment in colonialism). The capital was a huge brilliant city that was clean, functioning and apparently called the pearl of the east for its cultural wonders. Now 50 years later Phenom Phen is still attractive, and functions, but just on different, scale and set of terms. If you ever wanted to study long complicated histories of tortured nations, this would be the place.


So tomorrow I am off to Malaysia, and then after a day to Indonesia, where I will hang out for a few days on the main island of Sulawesi before heading to the island of Hoga which apparently looks like this. Yeah, it will be rough, I already went and bought new flip flops and a hammock, which will be crucial to getting the data analysis, newsletter and reports all completed before the end of the first week of April.

Weddings, Curries, and Coffee.

One week in Cambodia has passed all too quickly with lots of fantastic experiences. I have been staying with my roommate from Seattle, Joe and his host family in Kampot town, a "sleepy river side town" with lots of old French colonial charm, dusty roads and genuinely nice people.

We spent most of the week going to the school Joe has been working at for the last 2 years. In the morning we would drink coffee and then after lunch head out to help the students with their English lessons.

After class it was generally time for more coffee at the riverside bungalow in between the school and town (separated by about 6 km).

Then we went to a traditional Khmer wedding, with lots of food, music and a plethora of exciting wedding costumes. I think the bride and groom changed 5 times each, though the brides sister mentioned that there were 15 dresses for the whole 3 day ceremony. Lots of fun, lots of dancing food and toasting.

The food here is fantastic, and Joe's host mom is a excellent cook, I am really lucky to have been here for this, Joe's last week with his family (and last week in the Peace Corps).

We are off to the river for a bbq and some swimming. Photos when I find a better internet connection.

Sharp Rocks and Big Rain

Headed out from Tonsai today towards Cambodia. It is a mix of sadness and relief leaving here, this place is idyllic in lots of ways, but still, a tourist destination that exists only because of (mostly) westerners coming to climb and sunbathe.

And that is what I did, yesterday I climbed a 5 pitch route that went up past the prominent dark spot on the main cliff in the photo. The dark spot was actually a big (gigantic) stalactite which at one point the route transfers onto, and than off of again. A really fun, good climb.

Okay, some noodles and then I am off to the airport.

Hot sun and fantastic climbing

Today is a rest day, after a couple of days climbing and one day kayaking I am sore and ready to sit on the beach and read my book, drink from a coconut and eat some grilled chicken.

The climbing down here is fantastic, and hard given that it had been a few months since I had been climbing outside. The cliffs are limestone, fantastically featured with pockets, stalactites other natural holds. The routes are all fairly athletic, with lots of high steps and big reaches, but well protected and lots of fun. I've been out with a few different people, but mostly with a couple from Austria, I will climb with one of them while the other watches their kids, and then we switch in the afternoon.

Yesterday I made it kayaking with the Austrians to a n island a few miles away where there was good snorkeling. It was almost like an over written script where we kayaked to a fantastic white sand beach and stepped just a few feet into the water to find an awesome array of beautiful tropical fish schooling around you in the water. Time to sit on the beach, relax and drink my 5th liter of water today. Man is it hot here.

a few pictures can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/Joel.Rice.13/Tonsai#

Heat like a Minnesota Summer

I touched down in the land of the blazing sun. As far as days go this is an amazing one. Headed to the beach, this will be the last update for a bit. Fantastic fruit and food so far, pretty intersting to travel somewhere I don't speak the language....haven't done that in years.

Hong Kong International Airport

In Hong Kong, on a foggy Saturday morning. I am super excited and despite minimal sleep over the 14 hour flight feel really good. Maybe the shrimp porridge for breakfast has something to do with it. About to catch a couple more flights and then reach the destination (Railay, Thailand) and climb for about two weeks. Updates with photos coming later.

Two hours on the train, and six in the air get me to Seattle. Alina picked me up and took me back home. For a moment I missed the warmth, the damp and the green. Today headed out to get some essentials (batteries, chalk, Pho) and then off. I feel giddy and excited, a bit like I am at the head of the rapids, committed, and heading down.