Sunday is the day of rest...

in Paris - I remember Sundays being the day of rest when I a kid - shops were closed - there was a certain peace around that was understood and respected - it was as if you knew Monday would start the cycle all over again and this one day, you could get a break from it all ... truly - no getting the last minute ingredient for a meal, no shopping for shoes, no movies (well, I guess you could go to the movies on Sunday, but I never did), etc. - it was peaceful - and so it is here and I really got a whiff of memories walking along the streets - OK, so here are more bullet points

• apparently, even without a map in my hand, I look like an English speaker b/c Muslim women come up to me asking if I speak English - then hold up a note explaining their brother was killed in Iran and she needs help for the rest of her family - hmmm... - why not write in French as well and really rake in the dough? - the answer seems obvious - it's a weird scam
• saw the catacombs - pretty cool - met some people in line and since we had to wait for a very long time, life stories were shared - met a guy who's entering college - he was with his mom and aunt - he, by accident, took pics with a flash despite it being forbidden - they came out great - my pics are pretty dark as are everyone else's - he's going to email the, to me - cool guy
  
• ate at the place where Hemingway wrote in his youth - good and overpriced
• many museums and lots of walking - statue of Napolean at the Hostipal de Invalides - the place for injured soldiers
  
• Notre Dame is magnificent
• the wine and cheese and everything else is superb - trying everything - had lunch on Rue du Marbeouf ("sea beef"?) - and the set menu was meat - and more came out when I finished my first helping which was medium size already - the mustard sauce was excellent
• definitely sitting outside is the place to be - great people wathcing opportunities
• I've noticed the French speak with their mouths only - no chin up and down - so, the face is alwyas the same shape - my theory as to why the language is nasal - I tried not moving my face and the sounds stay up in the head - speaking, using the whole head, allows for the diaphragm to be engaged - or maybe I'm new and this is a stupid thing ... that being said, it's interesting to notice that their chins stay put - and those gorgeous faces stay gorgeous -
  
• enough with the capri pants!!!
• so many cool things I've stumbled upon - concert in some plaza - man playing piano near the area where you can get a 10 minute free massage, midget family, people dressed in golden Egyptian costume with their arms inside the costume and a typical Egyptian mask and people just sit next to them on the benches and snap pics, itty bitty cars parking craazy close to each other, art and statues in subway stations, chanting bikers of all ages at midnight - saw two guys in drag in the gruop, parade of cool cars beeping, Petit Palace which is anything but small, the Grand Palace, French flags everywhere,
  
• Nat'l Museum of Art is very cool - saw Kandinsky exhibit - gave me ideas for my geometry class - as is everything I see here (the mosque and especially Notre Dame),
  
• The Louvre is free the first Sunday - lucky me - got in line an hour before opening which was a good thing b/c by 9AM, the line was staggering - thought about the whole Louvre adventure as a microcasm of cities - at first, with few people, people were polite, letting you snap a pic before walking in front of you, people smiled and walked at a pleasant pace and then, as more and more people entered, the place becme a mad house - people vying for the perfect pic, their piece of the pie, it was loud and congested and people no longer smiled - instead their was rushing to this and that, making sure they got there (whereever "where" was") first - pushing and shoving and being indignant - made it difficult to appreciate the art sometimes - at those times, it was best for me to have a seat, look around, gather myself and move on - and, by the way, I've often heard the Mona Lisa is a small thing of a work of art - it's not that small at all - what do people expect anyway? -
  
• Natural History Museum was the coolest thing I've seen in years - the way the displays were situated was stunning - unbelievable
• I love the Metro - with a map, you'd never believe I'm geographically challenged
• heard this song "Mexico" - very camp but awesome and people sing along in the bars - have to find it
• listening to Americans whine - this woman just a minute ago asked the guy at the desk of this internet place if he could check here email for her b/c "I'm not from around here and the keyboards are different" - the other day the mom in a family of fourwas freaking out in the line on the 2nd level of the Eiffel Tower - "I donùt like all these people around me" and they promptly left - "people can smoke here?" this guy asks while he and his cronies are sitting in an open area and the whole time I can see him looking around for another place to sit while his wife is trying to calm him down - eat fucking inside if you don't like the smoke - these two guys and a son were sitting at the beef place at lunch and one guy says "bahnjer" and at least the accent is on the correct syllable "ya got sauce?" and he means steak sauce - "Do y'all got choc'late cake?" - no sense that maybe you could cater your speech to the place you're visiting - by the way, the guys were fat and one was disgusted that the other's son who was about 11-12 didn't eat meat and kept badgering the porr kid and even when they were served, he placed some meat on the kid's plate -
  
• thought of Tunisian woman at the Eiffel Tower who asked me if I spoke French ( she does) and, after I said that I do not, she so innocently asked, "Why?" and I felt stupid and silly and I know it's silly (I can already think of Brian K.'s retort as to why Americans don't need to learn other languages, one poignant response prefaced by a funny one)
  
• got my laundry back - was seriously nervous I'd have to buy clothes b/c the woman said they'd be ready in 4 days - won' even tell you how much it cost - come to Paris with clean clothes

well, that's it for now - having a blast but tired - needed to get up wuite early to get to the Louvre and I drank a bit last night - oophtah - have a great day everyone - peace

the skinny

• metro in Paris? need to pull up on a lever to open doors - stupid me was waiting for the doors to open and, when they didn't, I entered through open doors and found people giggling to themselves - then, the next stop, a guy gets on, introduces himself, and plays the accordion - I smiled and felt like that was a French moment
• I'M glad I'm a word guy - I'm actually getting by, somewhat with my accent and knowledge of etymology - it's fun and for the first time I get to see if my French accent I've been feigning for years actually is OK - hunh hunh hunh
• lots of boobies and penises and angel-like vaginas around Paris - no wonder the people are always in love - sculptures and magazines and ... - lots of PDA here too - it's nice to see people with no inhibitions - it's lovely
• lesbians are even fat in Paris - saw a pair at the Natural History Museum today which is spectacular - the museum I mean - the displays are unbelievable - I kept saying to "WOW" to myself - magnifique
• I went to the top of the Eiffel Tower - a long day in lines and such but totally worth it and though I almost put myself in a dizzying tizzy, i talked mself out of it and it was quite freeing and the views are specatuclar - WOW - met a cool Tunisian woman in line - talked for a bit since we were in line for a bit
• the subways have been interesting - have gotten lost underground - getting above ground is not as easy as you'd think - luckily I'm resourceful and tenacious
• the food is fantastic even wehn I get a baguette for a snack ( ham and cornichons or chevre and tomatoes or salmon and somethiing) - I'm learning how much food is revered here - perfect for me, right?
• after 10:30PM, on the 6 channels I get in the hotel room, dirty Tv with 2 women and one unsuspecting guy - if nothing else, it's amusing - every day looking people having sex - I laugh because it's so silly and then sleep
• stomach is better - had a half bottle of wine the other night and stayed out til 2:30PM last night - having fun - met a fellow last night and since I missed the last Metro train, he walked me to the taxi station - whoever said French peole are rude never came here - that's you, Peter W. - anyway, I can see people light up a bit when I speak my broken French but they get it and it's nice - tonight, this guy said to me, "OK, OK, just speak to me in English, it's OK" and he laughed because apparently I was too slow for him - we both laughed and all was good -
  
• very differnt than China - CHina? no "please" or "thank you" - here it's all aboutthe please and thankyou's - I like that - it's respectful and that's nice - to me anyway
• French breakfast? tea, baguette, orange juice, cigarette - beautiful
• .... will return b/c my internet time is up - of course, I have more to say - bye - peace
  

if you think I'm misspelling ...

so, I'm in Paris now - it's a beautiful day - OK; this is going to drive me bonkers - on the French computer keyboards, a, z, q, w, m, ',' and a load others are in different positions so if you see a 'q' when you think an 'a' is more appropriate, insert in your mind - it's a little crazy - hmmm... - so far, it's very cool - the weather is great - the people are all beautiful although I did a woman with an outrageous lower bite but even her skin was flawless - I need a fashion makeover damnit - the Chunnel (English Channel Tunnel) is fast and efficient - the hotel is great and nicely located - I dared have a gruyere baguette with tomatoes and so far my stomach isn't retaliated - I want a glass of wine so bad - I'll have just one tonight - ease back into it - the Luxemburg palace and surrounding park zhere people lounge on the grass or on benches is beautiful - that's where I'm going after this - the Pantheon is cool - I saw Voltaire and Pascal's crypts - Marie Curie and her husband's ... and many more - the architecture is incredible - the geometry is specetacular - then there's a church of St. Genevieve - just beautiful - so, I'm practicing my French - for some reason I'm nervous about it - in fact, it took me a bit to feel comfortable walking around in London and I couldn't understand why and I thought about it - Vietnam and Cambodia seemed easier for some reason and you'd think in a place where they speak English, I'd feel super comfortable, right? I felt like they were judging me - they have an edge that I haven't and I felt out of place - in Asia, style is travel clothes ... comfortable travel clothes - I didn't look like a slob, but I didn't look like I was attending the theater either - here and in London, I feel frumpy - I know it's sad but that's the truth - hence the makeover comment - having fun so far - walking around a lot already - missed the catacombs as the doors close at 4PM and I arrived in Paris and got settled around 3:30PM - something to do tomorrow - I'm so excited - so I read "A Movable Feast" by Hemingway per Sahngmie's suggestion - eh ... that's all I have to say - not a fan of the writing style except toward the end of a few of the chapters - enjoyed the stories of the other folks - Gertrude Stein (weirdo), Ezra Pound (seems like a cool guy), Scott Fitzgerald (sounds like someone I would've liked to punch in the face), etc. - and he writes a bit about writing and his process and, of course, it got me to thinking about - wrote some stuff at this nice Indian restaurant I dined at last night - yeah, I know I'm pushing it with the stomach thing but I ordered the non-spiciest dishes on the menu and they were STILL yummy - I'm nervous that I'm going to have this new keyboard in my head now though the 'z' and 'w' are still messing me up - I have 4 more days here in Paris and I'm so excited I just stumbled on this cafe though it's not close to the hotel - I found that, in London, internet cafes are certainly not as prevalent as they are in Vietnam and Cambodia - it's the same thing here - go figure - well, take care

I'm still alive

Well, for some reason, I didn't update this damn thing while in the states - had a great time - Ian and Catherine's wedding was great - I saw everyone I wanted to see - had a blast at San Elijo with the Bakers et al - Henry and Finn are huge which makes sense since it's been a year since I've seen them and they were about 4 months old when I left - everyone looks great - ... OK, got to say, recapitulating the past 3 weeks is incredibly overwhelming so I won't - I can't - all I can say is I finally found an internet cafe here in London - I got a hotel for two nights - was supposed to stay with a friend of a friend but my tummy has been on the fritz so I figured I didn't want to deal with all that - something happened in CT and I've been crappy ;) for the last 5 days - I feel OK today - I'm off on the EuroRail to Paris - going through the Chunnel - I just saw a documentary about it last night - it's fairly new - 51km - quite psyched about Paris - London? people are chic - I like it here - so incredibly international - I really like it - great vibe - now, I know it's only been 2 days and one of those days was cooped up in a room - yeah, that's right ... I didn't go out but once to get water, bananas, and rice cakes - I felt blah - so, today, I got out and it's been good - took the subway to the London Eye which is a large ferris wheel which rotates slowly and gives a spectacular view of the city - I actually was OK with the heights - jumping out of a plane just might have worked - went to Westminster Abbey - quite interesting - brilliant - that's the UK version of 'awesome,' I suppose - I'm so friggin' hungry right now - it's almost 8PM -

well, I'll be back and fill you in on the last 3 weeks in a piecemeal fashion - I really did have a great time - thanks for Adam and Jen and Santos for hosting me in San Diego and Deb and Greg in NYC and the Kelly's in CT and JVB and Anda is Boston - you're awesome - bye

HCMC again

I'm in the Phnom Penh airport, awaiting the plane that will carry me to Ho Chi Minh City - again - and then to California - WOW - so, I saw S21 this morning - I did not have time to go to the killing fields but people told me S21 is a better thing to see for 'more of an impact.' It's a school set in the middle of the city that housed the victims of the genocide - pretty intense - there were stories and pictures and torture devices - maudlin to say the least -

I feel like I need to return to Cambodia for a more thorough visit - only 1 day to Phnom Penh - like most big cities, it's dirty and there are lots of people looking to cater to tourists - on the way to the airport today, I noticed a completely different part of the city - the clean part - how interesting that the tourist areas are the dirtiest - hmm... - will have to think about that one later

so a few things I think are interesting that I forgot to record - in Sapa (Vietnam), our tourguides, young girls dressed in traditional clothes, using cellphones - and monks on cell phones - I don't know - the juxtaposition if that's the right word I found interesting - and then I think a bit and, of course, they're going to use cell phones - the modern world and its technology has reached far and wide - the New Zealand couple I hung out with got a call from their sons in the middle of the trek through the hills of Sapa - they were amazed saying that they didn't get that good of reception even back in NZ - hmmm... -

I'm hoping to see the Mekong Delta tomorrow - I have a whole, July 6th, before I start my 3 plane journey back to San Diego - that's one thing I didn't get the chance to do - we'll see - staying at Happy Inn again - it was nice and centrally located - can't beat that -

by the way, I think I fixed things with people's ability to write comments - I'd like to hear from people - yes, this blog is for me but also for you and I'd like to get your comments whatever they are - have a good afternoon - finished "The Life of Pi"- interested in talking to someone about it - good book but I'm confused about a few things - take care - peace

bats and monkeys

So, I arrive by bus in Phnom Penh this afternoon - been up since 5:30AM, did my thing, got picked up in Siem reap to go to the bus station, and the bus left around 7:20PM - some fuckhead charged me more than expected - I could've walked to my hotel though I didn't know it and had the gall to ask if I wanted his services tomorrow - he claimed he had no money to give me change in either Cambodian riel or dollars - surprisingly, here, you can pay with dollars - does he think I'm an idiot? apparently so - I said I will not need his services further explaining he can't be trusted and that he is a cheat - this is the first time I was upfront with a local - I was softspoken but stern -

so, I checked in, got settled, and ventured out - I needed to count - by the time I walked less than 1 kilometer to Wat Phnom, I was asked by 23 tuk tuk drivers if I needed a ride, 3 guys offering to shine my sneakers, 2 guys with sunglasses, 6 guys with at least 1 limb missing for money, 2 women with children in tow looking doleful, 5 children two of whom held my leg for a few seconds and two others walking into me and making me veer my direction lest I knock them over, and 2 women asking if I wanted to buy their fruit - oh, and 1 guy who, after I refued a tuk tuk drive, asked if he could have a cigarette and then asked if I wanted marijuana - holy fuck - it was quite a good exercise to count and keep track - I had to write down a few things at lunch -

saw an elephant at the wat in the middle of the city - strapped on to each of its lower legs were rubber soles - it was a young elephant, restless and seemingly docile, there were hundreds of large bats, whose brownish diaphonous wings fully spread looked ominous, and they were yapping and flying around this one tree - only one tree among many - and then they settled in their typical upsidedown resting position - I took a picture but I don't think it same out so well - a large tree with dark green leaves packeed together and in its upper parts a mass of brown weighing it down - there were monkey eating things from the wat grounds and there was a small one precariously maneuvering across strands of thick black wires about 10 meters overhead - it's mom, possibly, was waiting at the other end, sitting atop a green box that most certainly contained enough potential voltage to knock its red ass sky high - it, too, was eating things -

the wind gusts became more violent and the thunder clacked loudly and the Cambodians shuddered - I've since found out that over 100 people have died here - hit by lightning - playing by the river's edge - playing in the football (soccer) fields - 3 people died in the stands at a football match - apparently the monsoons are unaccompanied by lightening ... until recently - the guy who told me this confused the sound of thunder with lightning - I wanted to go into the physics of it all but that wasn't the point - statistically speaking, 100 deaths in a year seems astronomical - I've since read news reports and it's true - they've compared the deaths by lightning to deaths by landmines and are surprised the lightning deaths are higher - either way you're screwed I suppose - apparently, 27 people died by landmines in 2007 -

did I tell you I went to see the landmine museum ?- it's a small little place with loads of pictures, not of people who have suffered, but of the founder of the museum, a former soldier for the Khmer Rouge who changed his ways and now he disables mines and has been doing so for quite some time with the help of a small albeit fearless team -

well, the rain began to fall - I held out as long as I could and eventually ran into the nearest bar with a street patio - interesting place - cheap beers and prostitutes as waitresses - who can wear high heels when there are divets in the sidewalk - they look retarded when they walk and they are constantly looking at the ground when they walk - all for the visual appeal - how sad - $2 for a massage -

I came across the place in which blind people give massages - I'm going to get a foot and hand massage tonight - they're open til 9PM - there are a lot of organizations that claim they help the less fortunate - the blind, for example, HIV+ adults and children, landmine victims, those who don't know English etc. - organisations that teach them English or woodcrafts or cooking or tourism - the woman today on the bus told us this was her first day in the job - I personally don't think she'll last - even if yoúr English isn't that great, at least have some personality - she was drab - it came across even when she spoke Cambodian - our bus almost killed a bicyclist - it definitely was the bicyclist's fault - but the woman was speaking and fell into the large dashbaord of the bus - I can imagine that would be traumatizing for your first day - but she had already proven her lack of mettle - a guy, maybe her mentor, took the microphone from her because she flubbed her lines so many times - now, he had flair - I'll give her credit, for sure - I hope there's another line of work for her though - well, that's it for now - I'm sweaty - I think I smell of beer and I'm a little delirious - not really but I could use a nap - an air-conditioned nap = peace

wat temples?

Ok, I suppose that's a stupid title - I suppose I'm not feeling very clever today - in fact, I'm pretty tired - I've been walking a lot these past 3 days - it's been awesome, seeing all these temples, being able to climb over here and leap over there - the sites are spectacular - I went to see the floating village today a little south of Siem Reap in Cambodia - kind of weird - this whole trip so far has tired me a little - not physically but mentally - I am really tired of being seen as a dollar bill - there are many poverty-stricken countries and I've been in a few - no matter, people were respectful - "Ah, my friend, you buy from me." - that's a phrase I really don't want to hear again - people are nice with ulterior motives and I'm naive to think they're being nice for the sake of being nice - that being nice is a good thing to be in and of itself - fucking tourism - thing is, they're very clever - kids know how to count in 10 languages - they know the population of California and can even struggle with the governor's name - they know that Sacramento is the capitol - they've got an answer for everything you say - "I already bought from her.'" - "Yes, but mine different, mine better." - "I don't need a big colorful bag"-"you buy for your friends back in America" - they ask your name and then shout it from far away when they see you return from a temple - "Remember me? - you Allan - remember me? - you buy from me?" - durian! (see past post for the use of this word as an expletive) - I get it but it gets old and there's no escape - you're eating, they're there - you're writing your blog, they're here trying to sell me sun glasses - I want to say "Listen, you dumb fuck, I'm inside and I don't need sunglasses inside AND I'm already wearing glasses" - just like I want to tell the guy who wants to shine my flipflops "Are you retarded? they're flip-flops!!" -but I don't - and I really don't think these thoughts all the time - just after the first 10-15 of the day - that being said, my driver for the past three days, Mr. Yin is a cool guy - he is studying literature - he wants to be a teacher or a tour guide - everyone wants to be a tour guide - he's 28, lives alone, has a good head on his shoulders and has NOT treated me like a dollar bill - he teaches me many things and he feels comfortable to ask questions also - it didn't start off like this - I suppose when you deal with tourists all the time, you find nice ones and not-so-nice (pushy) ones - that's life - so, Mr. Yin was reluctant to talk - anyway, we had a nice time together - he's a cool guy

I met this Australian guy at the hotel who has a little bevee of little boys - they are over 18 - it's a huge crime to have sexual relations with minors - it's written on brochures - anyway, this guy was a douche - he was condescending to these guys - yes, he paid for one's teeth cleaning and helped him get his own place with kitchen utnesils - he's hepling another kid go to school so, in that respect, it's a cool thing - but he treats them like they're stupid and makes fun of them and their English and tells them if they want to amount to anything in the tourism industry, they better say "BBQ" instead of "BB-chew" - they look up to him - he's in his sixties, he's fat and he's got money - the guys invited me to a BBQ and I accepted - the food was great - the conversation was overwhelmed by the Aussie and I just wanted to get the hell out of there .. which I did - I bought the guys some beers, they were happy - the Aussie kept throwing around comments like "this meal cost me $9 so he better get it right" - "I gave you $3 earlier so you better still have it right?" - like he was their father or boss - maybe, I dont understand the dynamics of their relationships - I certainly don't and I know I am being judgmental but I makes my skin crawl - it really does

in fact, it's only been the latter part of yesterday and this morning that has really soured me a bit and I really need to get over it - I really am having a good time ... when I'm not around people - and it's not everyone - Mr. Yin has been very nice - Sol, the bartender, Visna, the assistant bartender, and another guy whose name I can't remember - they make the experience human and not about "this for that"

well, that's about it for now - sorry if I'm a downer - maybe it's the heat getting to me - maybe I am just tired and need a really long sleep - going to Phnom Penh tomorrow - 6 hour bus ride but it's supposed to be nice - we'll see - at least I'won't be asked to buy big, colorful bags fo 6 hours - life is good, yes?