In Regards to Tuesday 5/25/10

We got up early (ish...10am) to snorkel. Silas provided the gear and took us down to a beach he knew of. I've snorkled before but only in a swimming pool. The ocean is a whole different story. It was surprising to find ocean life so close to human habitation. I don't know, I expected wildlife to be scared off by tourists and cruise ships and all that crap but they were prevalent. I saw a bunch of tropical fish swimming about. I'm sure the locals see them all the time and find them pretty blase (how to type accent marks? This should be pronounced "blah-zay") but I was stoked to see them. All my life seeing fish in aquariums I thought they were boring organisms but in their natural elements they were...magnificent! I think part of the fascination was being able to witness the tidal forces interacting with things below the waters surface and seeing motile creatures deal with such forces. It was a little bit like the time when you first realize that birds are not only masters of flight but at the mercy of the wind as well.

We swam out pretty far, passing along a shipping channel and over a shipwreck (an old cargo ship or something, no treasure chests down there.) I kept thinking I was seeing whale bones, but no, more like corroded steel beams. At one point Silas anchored his diving bouey and showed us a little cave formed by the sunken vessel. I had difficulty diving to such depths, the pressure buildup freaked me out, I worked up the fortitude to descend. In the depths of the wreck cave Silas pointed out a cornet fish (weird creature, long body, bulbous eyes on the side) and at the very back, a white nose shark, maybe 5ft long.

Again I was getting exhausted. I'm out of shape. I haven't really swam in over a year and I certainly don't have divers lungs. On the return swim I saw a large box shaped fish with googly eyes on the side of it's head. I wanted to dive down and bother it but I was feeling too tired. Just as well. It turned out top be a puffer fish and almost certainly would have skewered me. We came across a shallow spot half way to shore. I put my foot down to rest, pain lanced up my leg. Blast! I pulled a spiny thing out of my heel. Just stepped on an urchin. My foot throbbed all the way back to shore. Upon inspection there appeared to be a good six spines embedded in my heel. Damn it. This unfortunate development put a gimp in my stride. What a way to start the week. Silas assured me that the urchins spines were of calcium and would absorb into my body in the matter of a day. For now I hobble about.

Little of note for the rest of the day. I changed some money at the bank without a shirt on. Now that's freedom! We drank lightly through the night and turned in early. Silas was to head back to Madison for some weddings while Chris and I were to get a ride with friends to the north shore the next morning.

In Regards to 5/23: Hawai'i Edition

Haven't written in a week. Here goes.

After passing through Incheon Honolulu Int'l was a big disappointment. I think Incheon was built sometime this past decade. It's so modern, vast, open and efficient. Everything is so convenient and intuitive, there was absolutely nothing confusing about getting to where I needed to go. I got there with 7hrs to spare mostly because I had to vacate my hotel room at 12pm and I had no other place to keep my luggage. However, with a handy internet lounge and lots of food available it was easy to kill time.

The only thing notable about the flight was the Korean style breakfast served. Rice porridge with dried nori flavor packets and a side of Kimchi flavored carrots. Always kimchi with these Koreans. I mean it's good but there are other spices on this earth. Take some lessons from the Tai. Seriously.

So as I was saying the Honolulu airport was a complete let down. The place was dark and blocky with low ceilings, looking to have been built in the 70's. They need to remodel. They packed a bunch of passengers on a shuttle bus but couldn't fit everybody so I and others were made to wait. I don't know, this just felt insulting.

It was nice to see my homey again. Chris Malkus, ThaChrizla, a dear friend from high school was waiting at the terminal to pick me up. I was to surf his couch for the week. After dropping my stuff off at his crib we took a quick tour of the area and had lunch at a Mexican restaurant. I haven't had Mexican in over a year.

So my friend lives in Waikiki beach area which is the main place that tourists come to. The thing that struck me about Waikiki was that there were tourists from all over the world who seemed to be trying to have a unique, authentic and personal piece of paradise as their vacation. There was this weird vibe as people tried to keep to themselves whilst being packed into the enormous confines of the accommodating buildings. There were chotchy motherfuckers everywhere. All the dumb fratboys from your college are drinking it up in Waikiki as we speak. Don't go there unless you have someone to visit. One thing I did like was all the open doors. Every establishment was just wide open allowing the perfect sea air to infiltrate. Air conditioning has always slightly bothered me, or maybe I should say the overwhelming abuse of it. But here in Waikiki people seemed content with the humidity, a welcome relief.

All over Waikiki are these vast malls and although I abhor consumer culture I did appreciate the layout. They were all built like massive caverns with the cave mouths able to accommodate elephants. It was a rather gaudy and probably wasteful yet ultimately satisfying use of space.

After lunch we met up with Silas, another high school buddy and hung out on the beach. We swam about the shore for a bit. I was stoked to learn that Silas was spending some of his free time volunteering as a docent at the aquarium. In high school he was so punk rock, funny as hell but just crass in a very teen aged way. I would never have expected him to participate in any kind of public service, but it was clear that he really appreciated the ocean and all the sea life around us. He could identify all sorts of creatures. We found a sea turtle swimming about the shore so I chased after it underwater. I tried to ride it for a few seconds but it clearly didn't like that. Ha! Funny dinosaur of a creature.

Later Silas showed me a part of the beach that had a massive shore break. Having barely ever been to the ocean before I had little understanding of the physics of the surf. In that short few hours I learned a great deal. Tidal forces draw masses of water towards the shore. Whenever the masses encounter a ridge on the ocean floor (such as a reef) the entire mass swells over creating what we perceive as a wave. As such waves reach shore they crash up on the beach creating what we know of as a shore break. (But you already knew that.) If you stand in the right spot and wait for the right mass of water you can swim so that the swell catches you and carries you rapidly to shore, dragging you mercilessly against gritty sand, then ripping you back again. An hour of this relentless assault left me exhausted. Thus my introduction, though rudimentary to surfing.

Afterwards we sat down to drinks which extended long into the night. Jet lag, shore break riding and alcohol combined to form extreme exhaustion. I passed out hard and was rendered completely worthless for all the next day.

Pix for 5/23

Reminds me of something...

Restaurants leave wax models of the menu outside to give you an idea of what's available. I like this.

Parks. Completely absent of underground Korean youth culture.

Public Art. Why are they rioting?

Upon further inspection it appears the people are enraged by the soldier blatantly fellating the man in public!

Good Name

Not Such a Good Name

Engrish Prease

In Regards to 5/23

Seoul walkabout proved...I dunno, inconclusive. Having made no plans and completely unfamiliar with the area I was at a loss in terms of what to do. I kept a map with me and did my best to follow the same techniques I use to guide myself in wilderness areas. The day is overcast and cooler than the day before. Humidity is high, several trees abound and the place seems quite clean. There's a mild odor of sewage everywhere but strangely fresher, less offensive than usual.

It appears the neighborhood I have landed in is a major shopping area. Boutiques abound, everything is cramped together for maximal efficiency with tall buildings everywhere. In a lot of ways this area reminds me of Seattle.

First order of business, lunch. I walk around the block to get a feel for the area and a sense of what's available. I settle on a place with live octopus swimming in tanks. Octopus are fascinating creatures, their brains are highly developed, they can solve mazes, their eyes are structurally similar to ours. They have a hydrostatic "skeleton" meaning they can fill their tentacles with water to create an erect appendage capable of puncturing soft tissues, or drain themselves until they can slip through slender crevices. One legendary octopus kept in a zoo allegedly lifted the top of it's cage, scuttled across the floor, deciphered the combination lock of the fish tank, preyed on fish and returned to it's cage on a nightly basis all under the nose of the zoo keeper. Clever beast. I'm gonna eat one.

I guess I ordered a delicacy. It's 20,000 Korean Won (about $15.) My plate comes out with hot peppers, garlic cloves and severed raw tentacles still writhing! Unbelievable! I had no idea these things could still squirm after death. Or is it even dead? And what do these strange creatures consist of? It's obviously dismembered, but no sign of blood vessels, no blood. Does this mean no muscle? Only flesh and gray matter? One way or the other the appendages continue to wriggle as I lift them to my mouth. Inside my maw the tentacles cling to my soft palette. How terribly unnerving. The bigger pieces cling tenaciously to the plate, one slips from my chop sticks suctions onto my lower lip. What a trip.

Even 20 minutes later they still have life in them. They go down well with the salty garlic sauce provided.

The rest of my day was largely uneventful. I hung out in parks, mostly populated by old people. That's one main difference between UB and Seoul. The population of 12-24yr olds in UB was extremely high. Here it seems like the majority are over 50. I suppose a steady diet of writhing severed octopus tentacle increases longevity.

Or maybe I'm just hanging out in the wrong area. I mean what kind of hip kid hangs out in the park on a Saturday? I'm turning into such a geezer.

In Regards to 5/22

It's down right humid in Seoul. I've lived in dry air for a year that felt like three, so the sensation is a welcome shock. Hard to imagine that a week ago I woke up to snow.

The day after my stay in the nice man's geir was filled with uncomfortable travel. I spent the whole night in the cozy confines intermittently between sleep and stoking the fire. When I awoke all my gear was dry. Nice. Through some more stunted communication my host assured me my driver would come directly to his property. No need to hike at all. So nice.

So when it came time to earn my keep I paid the man 10,ooo T (2,000 extra) and the remaining bags of food that I neglected to cook. If only I hadn't packed them my bag would've been so much lighter. But then no way to reward my benefactor.

Back in Khaatgal I was starving. The last thing I ate was a granola bar before reaching the man's ranch. The last meal had been a dinner of couscous on the 14th, the night before the snow. We stopped in arestaurant for plates of Khuushuur, the best I've ever had. Hunger is the best sauce.

The ride back to Muhrun was pretty fun. Battulag, my original driver returned for the trip. He's a talkative fellow, and with no one to translate I was forced to stumble blindly through communication. As we passed various grazing ruminates we made stupid animal noises which the Mongolians found incredibly entertaining. My sheep's bleat brought uproarous laughter, a sound my companions couldn't replicate. Later, at there insistence, I sang for them (from my typical tragically sparse repetoire) and after some awkward noises from my driver I intuited that some beatboxing was in order. This certainly won me some points.

About four hours of shit roads later we arrived back at Gambaa's geir in Muhrun. After a brief sit down of tea and treats I was informed that a Microbus was leaving for UB. I was ushered out and onto the bus with the quickness. All in all I'm glad. Although I really enjoyed my stay at Gambaa's geir it was in my best interests to return to UB. What's more, Boloroo was feverish so to spend the night would've been improper.

Once again, a ride from hell. I was packed into a microbus with 14 others. One guy was drinking vodka and speaking harshly. I thought, "oh shit, this is gonna be hell." Being the only pale face in the bus I was definitely the center of attention for a time, but it was a curious attention, without animosity. One young man introduced himself as Dalai (means ocean. Yes, this is the same name given to the leader of tibetan buddhism. The first Dalai Lama was named by a Mongol Khaan. It means "Ocean of Wisdom.") He spoke decent English so the ride wasn't completely scary.

At one point we had to be towed through a shallow stream. We then were obligated to tow the next vehicle, an autobus. Our little microbus couldn't handle it so we unhitched and a tractor pulled up. At first I was frustrated but I realize that all the MOngolians were looking out for each other and that's a good thing. Later on in the night our van got stuck on an incline. We all had to get out and walk as the poor thing putted up the slope. In the misty dark the climb took forever. I felt bad for the two old ladies who fell behind. "Hoyer busqui bakhwei!"

On into the night and into the next morn. It was raining everywhere and the steppe was beginning to turn green. We finally hit paved road. It stretched in a straight line all the way to the horizon, the most boring highway on earth.

We returned to a waterlogged UB at 11am on Monday 5/17, less than 24hrs after the old man's geir. I was immediately picked up by a taxi and whisked away. We had to take some back streets to avoid flooded areas, but it didn't really take much extra effort. The driver wanted to charge double for his pains but I adamantly refused. In the end I paid him an extra 2,500T and we parted ways, resenting each other.

With 2.5 days left in my apartment I spent the time cleaning. Mon. 5/17 was laundry. Tues. 5/18 was packing and cleaning. I moved things to Joe's place and Brent's crib, the two couches I'd be surfing. I made a point of visiting all of my favorite restaurants and sampling the best Mongolian beer before my departure. I found that I really appreciated seeing my friends once more. After a week of solitude, awkward communication and hellish transportation I needed the banter I'd come to know and love, and will most assuredly miss.

My last day in UB was a complete shit storm. The postman failed to site thee correct price for my package, so I had to get to the bank early and pay him the remainder. Then I took a trip to the travel agency because the lady fucked up my flight. I was given no assurance that my flight would go through. Back at the office I was told that there was no guaranteed ride to the airport for my early (6:45am) flight out. I couldn't collect my final paycheck and bonus until they settled my water bill which hadn't been paid all year. Would I ever leave this damn city?

5pm, water bill paid, final pay received, airport ride confirmed, flight guaranteed (for the time being.) Fuck it. I'm going to dinner. Order a steak at Dublin Pub, my third this week. As I'm waiting for dinner to arrive a call from the travel agency, I must speak with them. I eat and then walk over. The same incompetent harlot tells me she fucked up again. So now I have two options, leave that night at 11pm (6hrs) to arrive in Seoul at 3am, wait until 8pm that evening to fly to Hawai'i or fly out tomorrow 5/21 as planned and stay in Korea until an 8pm flight out on Sun 5/23. Fuck you! And all she can do is say "I'm sooo sorry!" No contingency plan, no retribution. She can't sacrifice anything from herself to make amends. I can't wait to leave this damn place. Poor customer service be damned!

Back at Dublin and my friend GG shows up. A fiery Indian/Canadian who listens to my rant. So often I feel that I'm in the role absorbing the woes of others, it's nice to be on the other side for a change. She's very accommodating, pays for my drinks. But she's off quickly to visit other friends. By and by others roll in. It's going to be a nice night. There's no way I'm going to take that 11pm flight. I simply can't miss my own send off.

Drunken banter, cigarettes on the roof. Bittersweet partings. Hugs. After the intense stress of the day it all shuts down so fast. I've been with these people so long, I still haven't processed the notion that I won't see much of them for a long time, if ever. Everything is so surreal. This is the strangest life I've ever known.

My transport out of UB went without a hitch. I arrived in Seoul without a clue of where to go or spend my extra time. A woman at the tourist information desk was extremely helpful in locating a hotel. Upon finding the place I plopped down for a long nap. 6hrs later I'm fully recuperated. I waste time watching TV, repacking things, preparing for a walk about the next day (5/22.) Haven't even left my room since 2pm. Didn't even go out on a Friday night in Seoul. Stupid stressed out foreigner.

Back to the Keyboard

Holla!

It's been too long. Sorry team.

I don't know what happened. That's a lie. I know exactly what happened. Being out in the wilds of north western Mongolia I had no internet access so I kept a journal which I intended to transcribe into posts for this here blog. My predicament continued as I made my way out of Mongolia. My return home trip consisted of an unintended lay over in Seoul, a pit stop in Honolulu followed by another in Seattle and finally a train trip home. Throughout this portion internet access was intermitent at best so I had no time to post. Now I've been back in Madison for about a month. I've gotten kind of carried away with enjoying life and settling back in. Unfortunately I neglected to write. I'm so sorry.

Read ahead for the missing story.