A Backpacker's Journey to Harvard

My traveling stats

2011-09-06T21:43:00.003-05:00

So there's a program where you can enter all of the cities that you have travelled, and it gives you some interesting facts like...

For my travel:

- 1 year, 2 months, 29 days

- 99000 km or 66000 miles

- equivalent to 2.5 times around the world

- 25 countries

- 4 continents

But now that I have safely arrived and settled into Boston, I think this will be my last post for now. Maybe I'll update once in awhile or if I go traveling again :)

- Ryoji

Last city on the itinerary

2011-09-06T21:37:00.003-05:00

By the time I had arrived in Bogota, the Colombian capital, there was only one thing on my mind: going home. After such a long time being abroad, I could not wait to settle down. Apartment lease started, a full size bed bought and delivered, ideal smartphone shopped for, Zipcar activated, I had every reason to be excited about starting a new life in Boston, not to mention my studies.

The last 2 days in South America were a bit of a bore. Always looking forward, not much attention paid to the present. I spent the days wandering around the historic center, La Candelaria and visiting some of its museums. Both Museo de Botero and Museo del Oro (gold museum) are definitely worth visiting. By anybody's standards, the Museo del Oro is painfully thorough and educational as it is considered the world's most important gold museum.

From what I saw, Bogota seems to be another sprawling city where the historic center, entertainment district, and the financial center are miles apart. But as any capital, it's a starting/ending point for many people's travels.

- Ryoji

I wish I came HERE with a girlfriend

2011-08-16T21:28:00.002-05:00

An absolute GEM of a city, Cartagena on the Caribbean Coast of Colombia just seems like a romantic getaway for love stricken couples. No wonder there are so many weddings around here - its surroundings gorgeous, the architecture charming, and the atmosphere vibrant.

I generally just spent the days wandering around the historical city center, the nights going out with these 2 guys from the hostel. Many of the colonial buildings are from the 17th and 18th centuries - still standing thanks to the wall all around the city. I decided to skip the beaches as I felt like I was becoming a beach snob, and I didnt feel like traveling 4 hours roundtrip only to be disappointed. In reality, it was hard to believe that the beaches are more captivating than the historic center.

I do believe that Cartagena is a Top 3 city in South America, and I would LOVE to come back here sometime.

- Ryoji

City with the worst reputation

2011-08-16T21:17:00.002-05:00

...But one of the most pleasant cities now, Medellin. When most people hear that name, they conjure up images of Pablo Escobar, cocaine, guns, kidnapping, FARC, you name it. But in reality, those dark days when drug cartels ruled the city are over. Now, its a city with proud people, an efficient metro system, and (apparently) a great nightlife. Coming from Quito, I felt like I was in a sanctuary.

The first full day that I was there, I went to the one must-see museum of the city, Museo de Antioquia. Its famous for the Eduardo Botero collection, Medellin s famous son. He is probably the most famous international artist from Colombia. Any sculptures or paintings of fat (or voluminous, as he calls them) people or objects, probably a Botero. The city center, though noisy and bustling with activity, has a calm, clean feel. I really thought it was a nice city.

The second half of the day was spent on the Pablo Escobar tour, Medellins second famous son. During the 80s, he became the first drug dealer to export cocaine into the US. He became so rich that he was even elected to the congress before people found out where that money came from. At one point in his political life, he offered to pay off Colombias debt. He was quite the humanitarian as well. He built houses for the impoverished community in Medellin, the people of which still love him to this day. He also never did drugs, drunk alcohol, or smoke, and neither did he allow his family members.

Actually, I learned all of this one the tour. All of what I knew about Pablo Escobar, I knew from Entourage. Though expensive, the tour was wholly worth it. It started at his cemetery. Then the rooftop where he was killed (or committed suicide, some believe). But most of the tour takes place at the current house of Pablos brother, Roberto Escobar. Everybody gets to meet him, and he shows you around the house of memorabilias while personally answering our questions. Roberto used to work for the cartel as well, and at one time, the US government had a bounty reward of $10 million for Pablo or Roberto. Though a sweet old man now, he definitely went through a lot, as indicated by the bullet holes around the house.

The next day, I went to Guatape, one of the most charming villages I have seen. Not sure if pictures can do justice...

Close to the village is the El Penol granite monolith seemingly jetting out of the artificial lake. Its a nice walk there, and its an even nicer walk up to the monolith. 650 steps high, it offers the tired hikers a chance to look over the whole Antioquia region. All in all, Medellin was a great introduction to Colombia. I definitely got a sense that I will enjoy this country as much as all of the travelers I have met have attested. The food is really good, both in restaurants and on the streets, the people are really nice, and tourists are still few and far in between.

- Ryoji

One hell of a dodgy city, Quito

2011-08-16T21:08:00.004-05:00

After 5 days of paradise on the islands, it was time to face reality again. No more prepared meals, professional guide, or being absolutely carefree. And of all of the places Ive been, I thought the Mariscal district (where most hostels are located) in Quito was the most dangerous. And many people I have spoken to share the same sentiment. After 6 or 7pm, the area is absolutely filled with crackheads and junkies that are roaming the streets yelling god-knows-what. Especially on Sunday when it is absolutely DEAD.

But the colonial old town of the capital is rather picture-esque and photogenic. Like many towns in South America, colonial houses painted in playful colors, begging for a postcard opportunity. Its a wonderful part of the city to wander. It is also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The center also houses a plethora of small churches as well as a basilica that rivals those in Europe. One amusing aspect of the basilica is that the gargoyles on the facade are actually blue-footed boobies. And the Last Supper hosts a roasted guinea pig in the center, a favorite dish in Peru and Equador. Those built by a French architect, the local flavor was not completely lost.

Most of my time was actually spent thinking about how to get to Colombia. Apparently, the border crossing between Equador and Colombia isnt too safe, especially the bus between Pasto and Popayan. So instead of taking the risk, I spent a good chunk of money to fly to Medellin in central Colombia. With only one week left in my trip, I consider it a money well spent.

- Ryoji

Losing a staring contest against wild animals, only at Galapagos

2011-08-08T19:36:00.004-05:00

Wildlife takes on a whole new meaning at this group of islands off the coast of Equador. It's truly a unique place. Galapagos Islands. It felt like I returned to nature for a mere 5 days as civilization was restricted to only a handful of cruise boats. Furthermore, it was as if the wild animals did not care at all about human presence. We were not part of their food chain. We didn't pose a threat. So they calmly blink at you, only with curiosity.

It was expensive though. I had orgaized the 5 day/4 night cruise months ahead of time and had already paid the total in full. Even for a basic cheap cruise, it ate 1/3 of my budget (or whatever budget I used to have). But unfortunately, a cruise where you sleep on board is the only way to really see all of what the islands have to offer. I chose the more "wildlife oriented" route, which included the Floreana, Espanola, Santa Fe, and North Seymour Islands. Each island offers a drastically different landscape and species though only a few km away.

For this entry though, I think it's much better to just let the pictures do the talking. Nature was and should be the highlight of this trip.

- Ryoji

The first beach of the summer

2011-08-08T19:33:00.001-05:00

On the border of Equador and Peru lies a tiny "paradise" called Mancora, where most Peruvians can only hope to go one day. But frankly, it's incomparable to the pristine sands of the Pehrentian Islands in Malaysia, the party scene of Koh Samui in Thailand, or the beautiful girls in string bikinis on the Ipanema Beach in Rio. Mancora is rather tiny, not too clean, and the sand is hard and gritty. I'm not trying to be a spoiled brat, but it's hard not to compare. As much as I absolutely loved the South of Peru, I can't find many compliments for the lackluster North. But that's just my opinion.

So after a few hours of sunbathing in 2 days, I was ready to go. It was still a nice time to relax, read, and update the blog. The day before the flight, I hurried to Guayaquil in Equador to make sure that I will be on time for my flight. After a bit of a hassle, I was ready.

- Ryoji

Making myself up north - Lima

2011-08-08T19:21:00.005-05:00

By the time I was leaving the South of Peru, I was already down to 4 days left before I needed to catch the flight to Galapagos Islands from Guayaquil, Equador. And it was still hundreds of miles away through the crazy mountain terrain. Unwillingly, I said goodbye to Cusco, and I started my 20 hour bus ride to Lima, the capital.

Though known as the City of Kings, it failed to impress me. It was the first founded by the Spanish Conquistadores, who were not so keen on staying in the Andes and the high altitude. They desperately needed a city by the sea to become a major port for South America. Lima thrived as such. However, nowadays, aside from the Plaza del Armas with its beautiful cathedral and royal court, it is a beach city without the glitz and glam of Rio or Buenos Aires and is overcast with clouds half of the year.

Unfortunately, the central Lima is known to be a bit dangerous so most people stay in a district called Miraflores, 20 minutes outside of the city. A nice port district, it features everything a gringo could want - a shopping mall, park, and various fast food chains. Other than that, the food is supposed to be really good, especially the seafood.

As soon as I got into town, I decided to do the mandatory (if there is one)free city walking tour. I figured as the City of Kings, it must have a pretty interesting history. And it did. But I didn't have the most credible or knowledgeable guide, which unfortunately ruined the tour. I'm sure she could get much better with experience, but reading a script doesn't really count as a tour. Much of the tour focused on Francisco Pizzarro and the Spanish occupation of the continent. The one interesting site in Lima is the San Francisco Church. It used to be COVERED in silver obtained from the Petosi mine in now-Bolivia. Thousands of miners and builders perished in the process, and the church has an underground catacomb that you can visit, which displays all of the bones. An entirely eerie sight.

Aside from the tour, I just walked around the city center before it got dark. It's a sprawling city that didn't hold my attention for too long. Even Miraflores was, blah. Most of my time was spent looking for The Origin of Species without much luck. So I opted for The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown, which I absolutely devoured in less than 3 days.

The nightlife was interesting, though. I stayed at Loki, which is a party hostel chain that is all over Peru. But the bar was absolutely dead except for this Belgian friend I went to dinner with and a couple of American guys. We quickly ditched the hostel bar and headed for a club on the beachfront. At first, it was charging each of us 100 soles ($33!!) cover charge. Absolutely ridiculous. After some negotiation, we got it down to 25 soles each, which we regrettably accepted. But frankly, I'm starting to realize more and more that I don't enjoy glitzy mega clubs, and this was no exception. Just a different crowd.

But yeah, I guess that's about it for Lima. Nice as a passing point. Maybe nice if I put more time into it. But for somebody lacking time, not the most pleasant city.

The next day, I got on a bus and booked.

- Ryoji

Highlight of anybody's South American trip

2011-08-08T18:44:00.003-05:00

Recently recognized as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu doesn't disappoint. It is advertised in countless postcards, documentaries, books, it is breathtaking, mesmerizing, and full of wonder. But it's important to know that it's only one of many ruins across the continent.

I knew that I had ample time to spend in Cusco. So naturally, I devoted the first 2 days for going out (it was a weekend) and wandering around the city. And as I found out the next day, the first available tickets for Machu Picchu wasn't for another 5 days (a new rule, only 2500 ppl per day). This was great as I had a lot of things I wanted to see around Cusco.

I had been reading a pretty comprehensive book on the Incas called The White Rock by Hugh Thomson for a few days now so I was really excited to see the ruins NOT called Machu Picchu. A bit of a history lesson: The Inca civilization really came into its own in the 15th century whe Pachacutec took the reins. He is most likely the figure that ordered the construction of Machu Picchu, Ollantaytambo, Saqsaywaman among others. He also started expanding the empire from now-Argentina to now-Equador. But contrary to popular belief, the Incas were not the only empire that conquered South America, just the LAST before the Spanish Conquistadores arrived in the mid 16th century.

With the German guy I met in Puno, we did a self tour of the 4 closest ruins to Cusco. Of these, the most important and interesting is the Saqsaywaman (or Sexy Woman as people like to call it), the imposing fortress overlooking Cusco atop a hill. When the Spanish first arrived and saw this wall, they thought that it was a land of giants. What really makes the Incas stand out from other civilizations is their masonry. They perfected the art of carving polygonal stones that fit absolutely perfectly between other carved masterpieces. Much of their most prized architecture is built without anything between the stones.

Saqsaywaman also has historical significance. After the Spanish takeover, Manco Inca was crowned as the new Inca to appease the people. Although he was only supposed to be a puppet king, he secretly gathered troops and started a revolution. After setting fire to much of Cusco, he and his troops came to Saqsaywaman to fend off the Spanish. Knowing that he would be defeated without action, the leader of the Conquistadores, Francisco Pizzarro, made a gamble. He led his troops to the top of the hill and faced the giant fortress. Though outnumbered by thousands, the superior-armed Conquistadres vanquished the revolution, but Manco Inca was not finished yet...

The next day, I did the full day Sacred Valley Tour. Interesting ruins, absolute shit tour. For some reason, in a city of thousand gringoes and thousand tour operators, I got on a tour as the lone English-speaking person. The first stop was Pisac and its fortress/village Intihuasana. First example of an Incan structure that precisely takes advantage of the geological terrain. But the second stop was the real gem of the tour - Ollantaytambo. Multi-functioning as a fortress, temple, and agricultural terraces, this Inca ruin ceases to amaze tourists.

Back to the story of Manco Inca. After his defeat at Saqsaywaman, he and some of the troops managed to escape and set camp at Ollantaytambo. Knowing that the Spanish will follow them here, they devised a plan to send the Spanish back. Naturally, the Conquistadores arrived at the base of Ollantaytambo, riding their mighty horses. However, as soon as they arrived, the Incas opened the thoroughly built irrigation system and flooded the base while "hired" jungle tribes shot poison arrows from behind. The Spanish retreated, and the Incas won their first battle! ...Only to be demolished a year later when more Conquistadores from Europe came overseas in search of gold. Manco Inca again escaped and had to find a new home for the Incas. This continued for a few generations until th last of the Incas were captured.

Unfortunately for visitors, most of the ruins near Cusco are 80% restored. That is, except Machu Picchu, which was largely unknown to the world until Hiram Bingham "discovered" it in 1911, exactly a 100 years ago. The Spanish Conquistadores had a practice of burning everything that was owned by the people they conquered. But the Spanish did not know about the existence of Machu Picchu.

When Machu Picchu was publicized by Bingham in 1911, it was depicted sa a religious sanctuary without much evidence. As The White Rock makes clear, there is a wide separation between explorers and archeologists. Bingham was more of an explorer. He was led by a local boy who know of a stone ruin on top of the mountains. When the ruin was being inspected, many of the rooms were named by Bingham from the "feel" of the place (like the Room of Princesses), and the whole Machu Picchu was sold as a religious temple, which is still being touted by tour guides. Although it may have had religious purposes, a theory also states that it was a winter pleasure ground for the nobles. The evidence are as follows:

1. As everybody probably knows from pictures and videos, it is absolutely BEAUTIFUL up there. The location is more for aesthetics, fitting for Inca kings.

2. Machu Picchu has a milder climate in the winter than Cusco.

3. It is possible to obtain high and low altitude crops at Machu Picchu, and the Inca nobles were gluttonous people. The emperor would sometimes order his people to fetch the freshest fish from the sea and bring it back to him, walking 1000 km. So much so that the Spanish were absolutely stunned at the variety of food that was stored in Cusco.

4. Machu Picchu was abandoned before the Spanish came. If it were a religious center, it would be much harder to leave. As Pachacutec's pleasure center, another one would be built by the new Inca emperor as was customary (Around the Plaza del Armas in Cusco used to be lines of huge burial grounds, one for each emperor. The emperors did not like hand-me-downs).

5. The Spanish did not know about it as the locals did not know about it. If it were a religious ground, everybody would've talked about it.

6. Looking at the skulls found at Machu Picchu, there seemed to be a lot more girls than boys - maybe as sacrificial virgins. But upon further research, it was found that these smaller craniums belonged to nobles whose head binding customs prevented heads from growing. Inspection of pelvic bones revealed an equal proportion of boys and girls.

As I was reading the book and listening to tour guides, you really get a sense that there is so very little known about the Inca civilization. So much so that when a friend of mine went on an obscure tour to an obscure site, the guide remarked, "Come back in 40 years, this will be the new Machu Picchu." That's the thing about Machu Picchu and a lot of Peru. I felt like Machu Picchu is just one of many incredible ruins, and I only scratched the surface. It's just that it's the m ost famous, most recognizable. And although the scenery and the setting are gorgeous, the ruin itself is no more spectacular than say, Pisac or Saqsaywaman. And I didn't even go to Choquequirao or Llactapacta. And considering how relatively young the archeology in South America compared to Europe, Egypt, or Asia is, who knows how many Machu Picchus there are! I mean, the terrain of Peru is insane.

So how did I get to Machu Picchu? You can pay $300 for the luxury train from Cusco. Or $120 backpacker train. Or a bus for $90. Or like me and the rest of the cheapos, you can spend $20 round trip. Here's how for future reference.

1. Wake up at 7am
2. Catch bus towards Otallabamba.
3. After an excruciating 6 hours, get off at Santa Maria.
4. Take a collectivo to Santa Teresa Hydroelectric plant.
5. From here, there's a train to Aguas Caliente (aka Machu Picchu village) for $18. Or, it's a pleasant 2-3 hour walk along the train tracks. It's a beautiful stroll.

I got on a taxi to the hydroelectric plant with 4 Argentinian girls. We started walking together along the tracks, just chatting, taking pictures. But what happens when you put 4 South American girls and an American guy on a walk? Needless to say, I got fed up with their pace and after about 90 minutes, I left them and went on my own. It still took 3 hours (on the way back, I was by myself and with a bit of jogging, the same walk took 1.5 hours).

With the 2 Brazilians I met at the hostel, I woke up to go to Machu Picchu at 4am. We got in line at about 4:30am for the bus. We got on the 3rd bus and waited for the entrance to open at 6am. We hired a guide who showed us the site - some of the "facts" believable, others not (this stone is a puma. See the tail? NO. If they were such great masons, they would've made a much more realistic puma). I spent 5 hours up there, but most of the time was spent picnicing at the top with the Brazilians - eating chorizo, cheese, crackers, chips, drinking beer, chatting like old friend. Once in awhile, you look up and realize that you are at one of the 7 wonders of the world. Some people come to enjoy the view. Some the stonework. Some the tours. But I think I'll enjoy Machu Picchu as the Incas once did - eating, drinking, enjoying life above all existence below.

- Ryoji

Puno...eh

2011-07-31T13:29:00.004-05:00

There seems to be a lot of "est" in Peru. Deepest canyon, the most pristine rainforest, largest high-altitude lake, Lake Titicaca next to Puno. As a town nestled atop a hill 3800m above sea level and next to a large lake, Puno is a freezing destination. And it did NOT help that my budget hostel had no heating, no insulation, and worst of all, no hot shower. I knew this was going to be a short visit. Hell, on the 2nd night, I had to resort to sleeping with all of my clothes on and holding a large bottle filled with hot water.

Most people generally make a stop in Puno to visit the 3 islands on Lake Titicaca. I did a tour of 2 of them - Isla Uros and Isla Taquile. The first is the famed floating islands. But unlike the legit floating islands in Cambodia, where people actually live and are self-sustained, the people on Uros are just for show. All they do is wait for tourists to come and show their merchandise that could be bought anywhere in Peru. The Isla Taquile was much more worthwhile, as a UNESCO World Heritage site should be. These islanders live by fishing and agriculture, but their claim to fame is their textile weaving, which apparently is on par with the best in the world. It was a true pleasure to watch the men and women neatly and precisely weave with 5 needles.

Aside from the islands and the cheap food, Puno serves as a hop on, hop off point for Cusco or Bolivia. For me, I was headed northward - to the capital of the Incas, Cusco!

- Ryoji

Great city, greater people

2011-07-29T13:02:00.005-05:00

So I arrived at the Arequipa bus station, and the Lonely Planet warned about how corrupted the taxi drivers in this city are. I knew I had to be careful. The area around the station was a mess. Dirty, noisy, run-down. Regrettably, I hailed a cab (I always like to walk) to the city center, Plaza del Armas. And helllooooo Peru! The town center (aka tourist hub) was absolutely gorgeous! Large, white colonial buildings surround the plaza, and it's rightfully called the White City. I also booked a hostel near the bar district, right by the center called Wild Rover. I would recommend this hostel for anybody going to Arequipa, Cuzco, or La Paz.

I met some peeps in my room and at the bar in the hostel. As a huge tourist country full of backpackers, it was rather easy to meet people here. Actually, it really reminded me of Thailand. Many people in both countries fly in and out without venturing farther because of either time constraints or that country is just THAT awesome. But they're both countries steeped in rich, interesting history, great parties, and cheap! Compared to Argentina and Chile, I thought that the travelers in Peru are crazier and more about having fun.

After 2 nights of going out, it was time for Colca Canyon! Oh wait, backtrack. With some people I met from th nights before, we had a nice lazy sunday afternoon. I really need to recommend the Ice Princess, Juanita, museum. The Incas used to sacrifice virgins on top of 6000m mountains to appease the mountain gods. One of the most well preserved virgins is on display at this museum with all of the offerings around her in the sacrificial cave. A well spent 20 S./

But this really makes me think about the ethics of archeology. Of course, I appreciate the information, and it is very interesting to go to a museum full of artifacts and mummified bodies. But who are we to dig up these sacrifices to the gods - it clearly was not their purpose. Is it right for us exploit these centuries old culture for our sake?

Well, anyways, after a looong coffee break and a stroll around town, we went for a cerviche, a classic Peruvian dish. Raw fish, seafoods, mollusks, yam, maize, drizzled with lime and onions. Kind of like sour sashimi.

Ok, so th 2 day, 1 night Colca Canyon trek. It's the deepest canyon in the world at 3191m deep, twice as deep as the Grand Canyon. The only question I have is - what is the distinction between canyons, valleys, gorges, etc? Because this one seemed more like a valley. But in any case, it was beautiful, saw a lot of Andean condors, the biggest birds in the world, met some nice people, with whom I went clubbing after the trek.

By the time I finished the trek, I had already been in Arequipa for 5 days, and as nice as the place is, it was time for me to get a move on. Next stop: Puno.

- Ryoji

The driest desert in the world

2011-07-29T12:51:00.003-05:00

Sitting 2500m above sea level, the Atacama desert is known to be the driest desert in the world. And most fittingly, it is the site of the largest telescope in the world. San Pedro de Atacama, an oasis in the middle of the desert, is a nice 24 hour bus ride away from Santiago. But having traveled quite extensively, 24 hour bus ride just doesn't faze me anymore, it's actually quite nice to sit back and do nothing for awhile. Well, it's actually not the doing nothing part that's great, but more of the fact that I CAN'T do anything part that's a relief when traveling. Just read, listen to music, sleep, repeat.

I arrived at this tiny village at noon, and man, was it touristy! I guess an oasis attracts travelers. I had come to this place just to chill and absorb the great expanse of the desert. I got myself a small, rather bleak single room on the main road. As soon as I put my bag down, I rented a mountain bike - sunscreen in one hand, water bottle in the other.

I set out for a 12th century fortress ruins that were a few km on the outskirts. Traveling on a half stone/half sand path, I was really worried that the tires would punctures in the middle of the desert, leaving me to face the terrifying consequence of naure. On the other hand, it's hard to worry when surrounded by other-worldly scenery, as all you can do is stare and admire. Similar to the time on Easter Island, you can't help but to feel the insignificance of the human race.

The next day, I signed up for a tour of the Salar de Atacama (Atacama Saltflats) and a small traditional pueblo (village). This was my consolation prize as I had to give up going to Bolivia and its (apparently) beautiful Salar de Uyuni because as an American, I need to pay a $160 reciprocity fee (as in, a fuck you America fee) and a yellow fever vaccination certificate that I did not have. Salar de Atacama was interesting enough, quite different from the salt flats n Utah or the pictures I've seen of Salar de Uyuni as it is much drier in Atacama. The main tourist attraction was definitely the 3 species of flamingoes that nest in the area. Outside o zoos, this was the first time I had seen these elegant creatures. And all I could think was how their bodies can possibly be supported by those sticks called "legs." I was absolutely mesmerized.

The tour didn't take long, and I felt like I had accomplished most of the things I wanted to do in San Pedro de Atacama - desert and salt flats - so I got on the overnight bus to Arica, then Tacna (a Peruvian border town), and finally to Arequipa in Peru, all in one day just to make it to Arequipa's supposedly wild nightlife on a Friday night!

- Ryoji

Graffiti & Mugging

2011-07-29T12:45:00.003-05:00

Valparaiso is a beautiful port town 2 hours northwest of Santiago. It's famous fr its 40-something hills and colorful architecture, often decorated by professional graffiti artists (at least I think they were professional).

But it will forever be remembered as the first place (and hopefully the last) that I got mugged by knife point.

So let's backtrack. Valparaiso is a kind of city that wanderers dream of. Every street, alleyway, every hourse, they are a marvel - no wonder it's a UNESCO World Heritage site. So a Swedish guy I met at the hostel and I, this is exactly what we were doing. But unfortunately, he was carrying his large expensive-looking camera around his neck, and 3 young hoodlums with tiny knives (still, knife is a knife) came to mug us. My first instinct was to run, so I did. And I knew that I could outrun most people. But my friend froze up and had his camera snatched away from him. And then, just like that, the hoodlums were gone.

It definitely made me realize that South America is more dangerous than other countries, and I need to be more vigilant. And now, I only carry around a few bucks with me when I go out. No camera, no iPod, no debit card.

BUT, I really don't want this to deter anybody from coming to South America or Valparaiso as it is still a beautiful place.

- Ryoji

An island that should be on everybody's bucket list

2011-07-29T12:32:00.003-05:00

3000 km west of Chile lies this small island, Rapa Nui, or more commonly known as Easter Island to most people as it was "discovered" on Easter Sunday. Famed for its gigantic Moai statues, the island attracts tourists that come to marvel at the remarkable mysteries dotting the island.

As soon as I stepped off the airplane, I could just smell the difference in the air. And compared to mainland Chile, it must've been 5 - 10 degrees warmer and perfectly sunny. I was welcomed by the hostel with a lei and a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice at the airport! That alone made the trip worth it. The short tour of the town square ended in about 2 minutes - 2 banks, some small food stores, one museum, a few internet cafes - and that was it. I fortunately had a dorm room to myself. Perfect for a chill island like this.

On the first day, I booked my full day tour to the famous sites, and I visited the museum of Rapa Nui, as an introductory course since I knew very little about the culture. As I found out in the subsequent days, this island was formed when 3 nearby volcanoes connected over the years. It was first inhabited by Polynesians centuries ago, and these people built these Moai statues for ancestral worship. Each statue is one generation of the clan, which were scattered throughout the island.

A half day bike trip, along the Western coast and up the volcano was incredible, save the weather. Since it's in the middle of the ocean, the wind is quite strong, and this brings about unpredictable weather. I thought I was back in London! The Rano Kau volcano is famous for its crater lake and the Orongo village, where people performed the birdman ceremonies. This religion took over after people stopped creating Moai statues and celebrating their ancestors. As the culture shifted towards this religion, a very interesting ceremony was born: A native bird to Rapa Nui nests its eggs on this tiny island on the coast of Orongo village. Numerous men risk their lives to be the first one to fetch the egg and return to the Orongo village, where he is celebrated as a hero. In this village, one can see the petroglyphs of their god, Make-Make carved in stone. Nearby, one can also see colorful cave paintings of birds.

The last day was the tour day. I was picked up in a van early in the morning to go visit the sites of Ahu Akahanga, Anakena, among others. The first one is arguably the most impressive site with 15 standing Moais, thanks to the Japanese government. On Anakena stands 3 Moais on the backdrop of a beautiful beach, one of only 2 on the island. We also visited the other volcano, Rono Raraku, where the moais were dug in the quarry. You can still see the unfinished Moais in the quarry, a clear indication of how these gigantic statues were made.

Although I was the only English speaking person on the trip, I befriended some French people, which made me really miss speaking French. That last night, I headed to a restaurant that was showing a traditional Rapa Nui dance, which was quite a spectacle.

Although it's been the highlight of the trip so far, the only negative of the island was the price. Everything was comparable to Swiss prices, even for the locals because everything needs to be imported from the mainland. And LAN airlines has a monopoly for the flights so it's quite expensive to get there as well.

I would still say that people that love culture and history should visit this place at least once in their lifetime.

- Ryoji

4300 km in length, 200 km in width, welcome to Chile

2011-07-21T21:45:00.003-05:00

Protected by the Andes to the East and isolated by the Pacific to the West, Chile's geography is more like that of an island. And since it stretches so far south-north, the country provides the bone-chilling Patagonia in the South as well as the drist desert in the world up north.

Arriving in Santiago, it's easy to see why it's the most developed and unfortunately, expensive country in South America. An army of towering skyscrapers line the orderly streets while businessmen hurry in and out of buildings. Universities are on every street corner, and I got a sense that it really is a young city. Especially because I was staying in an area known to be the university/bohemian/party district.

As soon as I got on the metro to go to my hostel, I was approached by a guy from Alaska, mostly because I was carrying my Lonely Planet guide in my hand. An easy give-away. So just like that, I had my go-to guy for the next 2 days before my flight to Isla de Pacqua or Rapa Nui or Easter Island. The guy was staying in a hostel very close to mine so we decidedto meet up for dinner that night. We went to a grundgy little place, and I ordered my first (and probably the last) Chorrillana! It's beef, sausage, chicken, caramelized onion, and 2 eggs on a bed of french fries. It's heart attack city. As great as it is while eating, you can't help but to regret it after. It is the best pub grub though.

And since I arrived in South America, the Copa America (soccer tournament) has been going on, and Chile was playing Bolivia that night. Fortunately, they won. I say fortunately because the city was in an uproar of frenetic celebration. Zealots honked their car horns relentlessly, and even the police seemed to be having a good time.

As a city, I thought it was much more manageable than Buenos Aires. And it definitely helped that I did the free walking tour the first day. I learned about the city's history, the indigenous people, quirky facts, but one institution absolutely blew my mind: coffee with legs. Apparently, because the coffee in Chile was so bad years ago, coffee shops needed a way to sell this shit drink. Someway, somehow. So this guy came up with the ideato have cladly dressed women be their waitresses. No chairs, just tables. And of course, it became a huge hit. Nowadays, these coffee with legs dot the business district, and men in suits frequent the place during business hours (it's closed at night). But seriously, some of these places literally look like a club - with light up floors and discoballs.

...and apparently if the customers are lucky, the girls briefly shut the curtains and flash everybody inside.

Also afterthe walking tour, my group wentto a popular Chilean restaurant to try some Pastel de Chocle, Parrilladas, and bottles of Carmenere wine. The first dish is a corn pie stuffed with chopped beef, other meats, and onions. The second is a meat bucket of chorizo, ribs, steak, pork chop, blood sausage, etc etc. But I had to really hurry to catch my winery tour!

Instead of cheaply going by myself, I stupidly decided to do a tour of Cocha y Toro. It's one of the biggest in the world and probably one of the most well known in South America. The tour through the vineyards and the cellar was interesting enough, and the 2 glasses of fine wine helped me cope with the money foolishly spent. Well, at least I got one winery tour while in Argentina or Chile, two big wine countries.

And after an eventless night, I woke upat 4 am to head to the Santiago airport. I was off to the midle of the Pacific!!

- Ryoji

The Iguazu Dilemma

2011-07-21T21:42:00.002-05:00

Apparently it's a place that one must see before dying. It's breath-taking and worth the whole South American trip.

But I didn't go.

Why? Mostly due to time constraints and money. A round trip ticket by flight costs about $400 from BA. A round trip bus ticket costs about $200, and it takes 24 hours one way. And if I had gone after BA, I would've had to spend Friday and Saturday nights in a small town.

So in the end, it just didn't seem worth it, and I like to say that I'll come back to it later in life. So we'll see. If anybody wants to go see this natural wonder with me, hit me up.

And now... off to Chile!!

- Ryoji

Mendoza? Was I really there?

2011-07-21T21:18:00.003-05:00

It was already the 2nd of July when I arrived in Mendoza, and I had a flight to catch to the Easter Island from Santiago on the 6th. There had been problems to cross the Andes recently so I was not sure if the Mendoza-Santiago route was even open. I knew I had to get to Santiago ASAP.

Which meant that I had one day to experience this city that many people rave about. Should I go paragliding? Winery tour? Skydiving? There were plenty of options, but having arrived on a Saturday night, my first order of business was to find people to go out with.

So that's how I started talking to these 3 Germans that were in my room. If you guessed that the title to this post was a foreshadow, you're completely right. The Germans somehow knew a local that goes to the university here and were invited to a student party. So I was indirectly invited as well. So at an adequate Argentinian party time (2am), we arrived at the house.

A few hours passed, and the remaining German and I found ourselves at a girl's apartment having tea. Well, it was the girl that the German had been hitting on the whole night. When he forced me to come with, I was just absolutely dumbfounded. Maybe it was that wonderful German loyalty. Or maybe he just had no chance with her. Whatever the case, we went back to the hostel mid-morning, just in time for breakfast!

I think I would love to live in Argentina. But as a tourist, it's very difficult to get the bearing straight. So here's a typical day in Argentina (at least Wednesday to Saturday).

6pm finish touring as it's dark (winter)

10pm start dinner

12pm finish eating / start drinking

2am clubbing

6am-9am start going home & bedtime

3pm wake up

...which leaves me with, oh wait, 3 hours of daylight!

And this is exactly what happened in Mendoza. My day was pretty much over by the time I woke up. I walked around the unremarkable city for a few hours before it got cold and dark. Oh, and everything is closed on Sundays.

So I guess I'm being really harsh on Argentina. It's definitely not a country to be rushed, considering it's the 8th largest country in the world. If you only have a week or 2 for the country, skip it. The cities are underwhelming, it's expensive, and not exactly backpacker friendly. But with ample time and with moderate temperature (go in the summer!), you will probably be rewarded. And I hear Patagonia is other-worlyly. The parties are wild and the women beautiful. It's a place definitely worth visiting.

- Ryoji

Uni Life

2011-07-20T21:48:00.003-05:00

I love student cities. From Lausanne to Boston to Utrecht, student cities are vibrant and alive - especially at night!

Arriving in Cordoba on an overnight bus from BA, I got into this petite wonderful hostel at about 7 am. Fortunately for me, they let me check in early, and I was just in time for pastries. Over breakfast, I had met a group of Brits on gap year, ready to go skydiving! Cordoba is known for its adventurous spirit whether its skydiving, paragliding, or rafting. It's got a nice town center with some plazas and churches, but like BA, nothing remarkable to marvel at.

What I really came here to do was to party with the Uni students! Actually, I feel like that's why I came to Argentina, looking back. The first night, a big Thursday night. I went out with the group of Brits and Aussies to a nightclub by the university.

Other than the party scene, I'd say Cordoba was a rather normal town. Good superpanchos and empanadas though. I've definitely enjoyed the street food in Argentina than at a sit-down restaurant. I was excited about Argentinian steak that everybody talks about, but I've had much better at home. Overall pretty disappointed with the cuisine...though it's a quick judgment based on just 8 days in the country. But so that's that.

And I lost my guidebook, Spanish book, and a normal reading book from the theft in BA, so I had to search for an English book store in Cordoba. With some luck, I found the same Lonely Planet guide, a pocket Spanish learning guide, and after much thinking, I decided to buy the Motorcycle Diaries by Ernesto Che Guevara. I realized that I'm doing a similar south as him, and it's kind of interesting to compare his image of South America in the 50's with mine.

And as for my spanish, it's actually not THAT bad. It's very close to French and Latin, and having had a Spanish girlfriend, it really helps (though I gave up on my Spanish lessons from her). She always told me that my Spanish doesn't like that of a gringo, just like a little Spanish boy. At least it's an easier language than French to comprehend.

BUT! Now that I'm in yet another country where I can't speak the language fluently, I really miss French. At least I could kind of converse in Lausanne as opposed to here...yet :)

...and that's Cordoba with an extra side of grumbling and tangents.

Half-assed Europe

2011-07-20T21:24:00.003-05:00

Maybe it wasn't a great idea to come to Buenos Aires on a Monday. The party capital of the continent unfortunately wasn't exactly in the mood on Monday from what I saw. I stayed at a hostel in Palermo for its wide range of bars. but I'll get to that later.

The city. It's hard to say anything about this city. It's apparently the most European city in all of South America. But from my opinion after mere 3 days, it was like Paris without the Eiffel Tower, like London without the Big Ben, like Rome that was not the capital of the Roman Empire. Maybe I'm just ignorant. It's true, I hadn't taken a history course of South America like Europe or Asia. But monuments like the Eiffel Tower and the Colisseum have been overused in movies and TV shows that they are blatantly recognizable.

Not the same for Buenos Aires (or BA). Its famous sites are...the cemetery in Recoleta or...maybe the giant metal flower in the UN park? The phallic obelisk on Avenida 9 de Julio? And I even had a half Argentinian girlfriend! Having just come from London, Brussels, and Amsterdam, this city just did not compare.

But! Reasons why I'm being unfair:

1. It was only 3 days
2. I still miss my friends
3. For a party city, I came on the wrong days of the week

It wasn't all bad though. I enjoyed walking through Calle Calminito with its brightly colored houses. According to my ex, Boca area has been historically been the poorest neighborhood, and decades ago, people decided to paint these run-down houses really brightly colored as to mask the wear and tear. But now, it's too touristy.

And on Tuesday night, with some Aussies I had met at the hostel, I went out to a club, where I partied until 4 or 5 am. That was good times though my jacket was taken.

Oh yeah, and my little backpack was stolen on my way to Cordoba at the metro station. Apparently it's a century-old trick. Some guy sprayed some paint thing on my back and told me that I had shit on my back. Flustered from catching my bus and lack of Spanish, I put my little backpack down to clean myself at the station. And before I realized it, the guy (presumably with my bag) was gone. On a positive note, all I lost were some socks, boxers, and some shirts.

But in the words of Eminem, “If I ever saw him again, I'd probably knock him out.”

What really pisses me off is not the petty things that he stole, but the fact that he freakin fooled me! But I guess it's all about the learning process.

Oh yeah, and it's FREEEEEEEEEEEZING here!

- Ryoji

Journey to the south of the world

2011-07-20T21:16:00.002-05:00

As I waved goodbye to Europe, I quickly realized how different the next 2 months will be. For 9 months in Switzerland, I was constantly surrounded by people, within my comfort zone, speaking English (mostly), always around familiar faces. But now, I was all alone. Just me and my backpack. I guess I was more melancholic than anything. On the plane back to the US (an 8 hour stopover in Miami), I couldn't help but to think about all the people that I've met, looking through all of my pictures on the camera But don't get me wrong. There was some excitement as well. I felt free. I felt adventurous. I had been reminded of the crazy times in Asia, and how fun it was.

So there I was. Air Berlin. A 48 hour journey to the other half of the globe.

When I arrived in Miami, I had one goal in mind: get me some fabulous baby back ribs. So I headed towards South Beach, and the first thing that I noticed: English! Oh how wonderful it was to speak English in America again! It's something that most of us take it for granted, but when you're away for over a year without visiting an English speaking country save a few days in Ireland and the UK, you realize how nice it is to be a local.

Not a whole lot to say about South Beach though. Just seemed a little bit trashy, but it was only 8 hours. Except those wonderful ribs. Mmmm....

So a few hours later, I was again on a flight to Rio, and then finally to my destination, Buenos Aires!

- Ryoji

Traveling (sometimes) sucks

2011-07-11T22:17:00.003-05:00

Whaaaaaaaa!? Yeah, I know. Traveling is exhilirating, addicting, and mostly wonderful. But I'm not just talking about traveling. I mean internships, study abroad, etc etc, as well. Maybe it's just me, but we are coming to an age when most of us don't stay in one place for all of our lives.

I mean, after high school, here's been my life. Started long distance (4 hours by plane) relationship with my high school girlfriend, started U of I, lived in San Francisco for 3 months, lived in Baltimore for 3 months, both summer internships. Made tons of friends. Had to say bye. Left Champaign after college. Said bye again. 4 months in Asia, made many temporary friends. 9 months in lausanne. Met so many great people, one of them being my recent ex-girlfriend. Painful, very very painful last few days. 2 more months in South America. Again, in the words of Tyler Durden, Single-Serving Friends.

Of course, all of these have been my choices, nobody was forcing me. But thinking about how I'm completely homeless (my family is in Japan now), it just kind of makes me long for stability. Relationships where the end is not in sight. A place I can call home.

As great as traveling is and has been, I can honestly say that I'm looking forward to starting a new life in Boston.

..........And now that all of that has been said, here's Argentina!

Oh the Dutch, the lovely lovely Dutch

2011-07-11T22:10:00.004-05:00

How I love thee. Could not have asked anything more from my last European destination. The people, the culture, the city - no wonder why people love Holland so much, aside from pot. And let me take back what I said about Venice. Amsterdam is the most beautiful city in Europe. And it most certainly is the most tolerant city.

So I stayed in Utrecht for 4 days with a friend I met in Vietnam (connections connection, thank you Facebook). I made the short 20 minute train ride to Amsterdam almost everyday, and I was able to see much of what the city has to offer. The Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank's House, the city walking tour, and the Red Light District tour.

Btw, thats the bookcase door behind which the Frank family was hiding.

Being with a local also made the experience that much more special. knowing all of the right places, a very comfortable bed, and meeting other locals. It really sucked to say bye again (and again and again and again, yeah it sometimes suck to travel), but I know that I'll able to see them again, just a matter of time. But well, I'll talk about this later.

Some notions that I found out or been reconfirmed about the Netherlands or the Dutch people.

1. Bikes. Bikes everywhere. I mean, everywhere.
2. On average, they're the tallest people in the world.
3. Everybody speaks perfect American English - most probably because movies and TV shows are not dubbed into Dutch.
4. Every inch of the city smells like marijuana.
5. Some prostitutes are REALLY hot.
6. Dutch (the language) is kind of cute - compared to German.
7. People get off work really early on Fridays (I mean, really early) to go to pubs.

A shop dedicated to condoms and the first ever Coffee Shop.

But yeah, Holland rocks.

Clams and Fries

2011-07-11T22:05:00.003-05:00

I guess Brussels was nice enough of a city, I guess. The one thing that I can say is that it's a really random city. The main attractions are a peeing boy and a giant metallic Iron (Fe) atom enlarged 165 billion times. The people (apparently) do not dress to impress, just whatever it comfortable. Many homes on the street talking nonsense. Beer and chocolate (huh?) as national claim to fame. Ziggy Marley and Martin Solveig at a street fair for free.

3 days, 2 nights. I came away more confused than the first morning when I arrived at the city at 5:00am.

But that's enough about the city. Let's talk about more important aspects of these 3 days. Friends and beer. In the European Capital (hah!), I met up with 2 friends I met in Cambodia, a guy from liverpool with whom I went to Munich, and a girl from Portugal doing an internship in Brussels. A bit of a Siem Reap reunion (sorry Megan, Australia is too far, and dammit Mark, you should've come). Basically all we did was go to Delirium Cafe to try out several of the 2004 beers that they sell (world record).

So what am I trying to say about Brussels? Random city, great friends, and a lot of beer. What else can I ask from the capital of Europe?

European cities, my very subjective rating

2011-07-11T22:01:00.002-05:00

I thought it'd be fun to give some kind of a star system to the major cities in Western Europe that I had visited. Of course, it's really subjective and it REALLY depends on the people I was with or met there.

So here it goes... lowest to highest.

Innsbruck 2/5
Geneva 2/5
Strasbourg 2.5/5
Brussels 3/5
Munich 3/5
Milano 3/5
Lyon 3.5/5
Granada 3.5/5
London 3.5/5
Venice 3.5/5
Koln 4/5 (at least from what I remember...)
Dublin 4/5
Stuttgart 4/5 (I think it was a nice city...)
Zurich 4.5/5
Barcelona 4.5/5
Rome 4.5/5
Amsterdam 5/5
Paris 5/5
Lausanne 5/5 (I told you it was subjective)

Man, that's quite a few cities...
Maybe I'll do one for Asia and South America soon.

...and the rest of Europe

2011-07-11T21:45:00.004-05:00

So I had said goodbye to all of my friends, packed my backpack, shipped things home, closed my Swiss bank account (unfortunately), and I was ready to go explore again. For the first 10 days of my trip, I decided to hit up the remaining major cities in Western Europe - London, Brussels, Amsterdam!

So first up, London.

It was an intimidating city, just from the number of sights and museums that the Lonely Planet had listed. Of all of the cities that I had visited in the world so far, I think London has the most recognizable must-sees, as popularized by novels and movies. So the first obligatory wander-around of the city on the first day...oh wait, yeah I can't get anywhere without getting on the tube. Problem #1. At least it was sunny...oh wait, it's raining every 30 minutes. Problem #2. So these were my first 2 sentiments about London. But maybe I was being a Negative Nancy because I was sad to leave Lausanne and was just taking it out on London.

To be completely fair, looking back, the 5 days I spent in London were rather spectacular. I met up with a friend from U of i who is now studying in London, and I met all of her friends at a lovely picnic - in the city center! So many huge parks! And it's absolutely fantastic that all of the museums are free. Hell, I even went to the National Gallery just to pee one time.

And another side note. Mom, Dad, if you're reading this, I want you guys to know that A LOT of childhood memories flooded my mind when I saw the painting at the National Gallery that used to hang in our living room growing up.

As always with many of the European cities, the Free Walking Tour turned out to be the highlight of the trip. Though disappointed with the city tour (can't really walk the city), I was very pleased with the old city tour. The London was we know it now is a congregation of small districts, and only a part of the city is really London. This was much more copact and do-able in 3-4 hours. I learned a lot of random facts about the Millenium Bridge, the Beefeaters, the London fire, the Bank of England, etc etc.

The nightlife was so-so. I went out 2 of the 4 nights, one of them being a great pub crawl. It was just so damn expensive! But I'm glad to say that I partied at the Ministry of Sound until the wee hours of the morning.

Oh yeah, and I found some guy in a Star Wars costume planking.

All in all, it was a city of extremely highs and lows for me. Loved the museums, hated the weather, loved the atmosphere, hated the enormity. I'd give the city a 3.5/5.

St. Patty's Day in Dublin

2011-07-11T21:44:00.001-05:00

So I guess I forgot to talk about St. Patrick's Day in Dublin before so here it goes...

Goodbye Switzerland

2011-06-24T07:50:00.003-05:00

Now that my fellowship is over, the time to leave Lausanne has regrettably come. The last 9 months absolutely flew by. A lot has happened. I've made many great friends, with whom I shared a lot of laughs and even some tears. Research proved to be fruitful - we are submitting our manuscript very soon. I became addicted to skiing. I partied hard. It was absolutely gorgeous everyday.

Ali and Alister left first. Then Lauren. Now, I need to leave people behind. Thank you everybody for coming out for my last night. I'm in London now, soon Brussels, then Amsterdam, before I fly to South America. I'm missing all of you guys, and I'll always remember you guys for giving me a wonderful year. Sante!

Family Reunion part II

2011-06-24T07:38:00.003-05:00

The Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci, the Medici Family, Michaelangelo, the David, the place where every Italian dreams of living, just happens to be the city, for which I took a whole semsester course at university to fulfill a General Education requirement and turned out to be one of my favorite courses at U of I. Florence. Of any other city in Europe, not Paris, not Rome, not London, I wanted to see and smell the real Florence. This was my top destination. And man! did it fail to reach my lofty expectations. Yes, the duomo is nice, yes the Uffizi has some renaissance masterpieces, and yes, you can kind of imagine the Medici family in the Palazzo Vecchio. But overall, you can hardly picture this city as the place where Europe revived itself during the 16th century and became the center of great thinking. I guess it's pretty hard to imagine being in the center of great thinking when you are queuing up for everything with a bunch of tourists. And that's all I need to say about Florence...

Now, Rome is a whole different story. Of course, there were more tourists here than anywhere else that I've ever been. But as someone who is very impressed with ancient monuments and buildings, I couldn't have asked for more from a city. The first day, we headed towards the Vatican City. Though I wasn't very impressed with the St. Peter's Basilica (seemed like any other grandiose church in Europe), the Vatican Museum was a sight to behold. Going through the complex with an audio guide, it seriously took half a day just to see the mains. And the finale of Sistine Chapel was stunning. I had only known about the Adam and God section of the Genesis so seeing the whole thing was a revelation.

And when I was walking through the streets, just wandering on my own, the first day, I cam across the Pantheon, which quickly became my favorite world monument next to the Great Wall of China. Just the fact that I was wandering through the streets and BAM! A 2000 year old, perfectly preserved structure. An interesting fact about the Pantheon - if we build the same structure with our technology using concrete 2000 years ago, it would have crumbled a long time ago (thank you Lonely Planet!)

If I mentioned everything that I had seen in 5 days in Rome, it would take awhile. The one other favorite remain of mine in Rome was the Roman Forum, not really the Colisseum or the Palatine Hill. Maybe because I took 5 years of Latin, but everything I read in Latin came back as I was standing in front of the Temple of Saturn. I knew that taking a dead language for so long would come in handy one of these days!

On Saturday, my parents had to leave Rome to go back to Japan while I had another day to hang around rome. Some of the people in my hostel (yeah I know, back to reality) and I went out hard to several places during the night.

Overall, I was very pleased with Italy, even though Florence was a bit disappointing. It was great to see my parents again, and I can't wait to travel with them again - even if they can sometimes be a pain in the ass.

Family Reunion (kind of) part I

2011-06-24T07:25:00.003-05:00

I had been waiting for my parents to come to Switzerland for a few months now, considering we speak on skype every week, and the major topic is the travel itinerary. The only thing is that they only want to see Lausanne for half a day. So we decided to go to a country that none of us had gone before and is only a short train ride away - Italy! A chance to enjoy both my parents' company and their wallet!

So the last weekend of April (I know, it's June already, I've been busy), my parents accompanied by our family friends arrived in Lausanne. After a long plane ride, all they wanted was to go shopping and eat fondue. I escorted my mom through the city center to look for that one Swiss gift for herself - a watch. Without going into gross details, let's just say that I felt like I was with some royal duchess going for her routine shopping spree. Fortunately, she found her watch of choice, and we enjoyed a nice night out with fondue and wine.

The next day, I showed the university, and as always, my lab even though labs generally always look the same. i also took them to the world-renowned Rolex Center on campus. Before we left for Milano, we took in the beauty of Lausanne from atop the cathedral hill. They were very impressed as I was the first day when I arrived and even now to this day.

As always with my family (and our friends), when there is a chance to drink, beer or wine, they snatch the opportunity. So after a few cans and bottles, we were falling asleep on our way to Italy, sometimes missing the beautiful scenery. I had already been to Milano, and I was insisting that it's a waste of time,k but like the first time, I absolutely LOVE the first sight of the Duomo as I emerge from the metro station. That was when the first real impression of europe matched my imagination.

Another reason for coming to Milano was to go to a world-renowned restaurant, Cracco's, that I had reserved for months. With all of the extras, we must've had about 20 courses, and man, was it delicious. The only problem was that everybody else was still jet lagged and with 3 bottles of wine (150 bucks a piece), they were falling asleep before the desserts rolled around. But all in all, I was more impressed with Cracco's than Sendrens in Paris.

The morning quickly approached, and it was the ladies'turn to satisfy their reason for coming to Milano - shopping! Although I don't really remember if they bought anything in particular...

This Italian journey gets more impressive after Milano. We've only scratched the surface. Next we took a 2 hour train ride to Venice - a must see before it completely sinks in 2 decades. Known as the most beautiful city in the world, it certainly did not disappoint. But as everywhere else in Italy, the city is riddled with tourists and very few locals. The best thing to do in Venice is meandering through the maze-like paths to only find yourself in the same place that you started. As for historic sites, the Piazza San Marco contains the beautiful Basilica di San Marco and the historic Palazzo Ducale.

Now here is where it gets tricky when traveling with other people, including your parents. The men don't exactly fancy waiting in line (read: they hate it) and would rather rest and have a nice cold beer. And for whatever reason, my parents started fighting (read: bitching) which resulted in an awkward tense mood. And frankly I don't really care about the fighting, but they better not ruin my travel. So I just went with my mom to the palace, and that was that. All was well after. And did I say that I was taking advantage of their wallet? I hadn't eaten and drunk so decadently in over a year. And you should've seen the hotel that we were staying in! Oh love you parentals. After a nice gondola ride through the narrow streets of Venice, we headed southward - to the Renaissance capital, Florence!

Partying in Cologne!!

2011-04-17T10:01:00.003-05:00

The big parties of March

First destination: Cologne!

The Karneval in Cologne, Germany is known to be one of the biggest parties in Germany, and oh my, was it! As soon as we arrived in the city center, the esplanade around the famous gothic cathedral was full of people, young and old, dressed in ridiculous costumes and make-ups. The fun thing about the Karneval was the fact that it wasn't just a bunch of college students drinking all day long until they puke on the streets. Everybody in the city was celebrating, and the city definitely had a sense of community that weekend (Although I met an old lady on the train to Dusseldorf after the parade who said that she left Cologne for this weekend because it's too loud and crazy).

The first day, I hung out with Caro's friends from Spain, and her friend that lives there was gracious enough to house us for the weekend. To be honest, I didn't do any sightseeing in Cologne. I really got to know the bars of the city, but I didn't even have the chance to enter the cathedral. On the second day, I hung out with my friends from Lausanne, all dressed as a bunch of Waldo's (or Wally in German, Charlie in French). Shouting KAMELLE (candy!!) repeatedly, pretending to sing German songs, drinking beer on the streets...

So no more words, here are some pictures!

Valentine's Day in Paris!

2011-04-10T11:24:00.009-05:00

Ever since I had my first taste of French haute-cuisine, I've always wanted to go to Paris and splurge on a beautiful dinner at a 3 star restaurant. So back in December, I thought it would be the right time to make my dream come true, now that I'm in Europe (Paris is only a few hours away by train) and I have a girlfriend, to go to Paris for Valentine's Day. Afterall, it's the ville d'amour.

Since Valentine's Day fell on a Monday this year, I decided to book the train and the restaurant for the following weekend. That Monday though, I surprised Caro with the tickets while she surprised me with a wonderful Mexican dinner. Then on Friday, we were all packed up to go to...

PARIS!!

A pleasant ride on the TGV for 3 hours, Caro and I arrived at Gare de Lyon in the heart of Paris, just a few metro stops away from all of the famous sites that I had been hearing about for years - the Eiffel Tower, Champs-Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, Cathedrale de Notre Dame, etc etc. Unfortunately, I only had 3 days to see this giant city so we knew that we had to move. We stayed at a nice little hotel right by the Moulin Rouge, near Montmartre.

In a flurry, I visited the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, Hotel des Invalides, and the Champs-Elysees. The weather wasn't fantastic, but I really enjoyed the hustle and the bustle of the city. It seemed like everywhere, absolutely every square meter of the city, had some kind of monument along with rich history. As for these famous sites that I had listed, I'd have to say that I was expecting something completely different. I thought that the Champs-Elysees would be more green with trees and lawn and less brands and rich people. As for the Eiffel Tower, I can kind of understand why it was supposed to be torn down after the International Exhibition, if it weren't for the fact that it was a good location for antennaes.

That night, we ventured out for a dinner and a night-out in the infamous district of Montmartre, famous for being the birthplace of cabarets, though nowadays, sex gift shops line the streets. Although already highly recommended by Lonely Planet, I would have to say that this little cozy restaurant near Moulin Rouge called Chez Toinette has been one of the pleasant surprises from my time in Europe. A great atmosphere and food, and above all, it was so cheap (around 15 euros per dish)! Of course, this may just be reletive to Swiss prices.

The next day, we ventured out to the Cathedral, Saint Chapelle, and of course, the Louvre. Although Caro made me wait over an hour to go to the Saint Chapelle, I have to agree with her that it is the most impressive church I have seen - it may not be as grandiose and famed as the Cathedral, but the array of stained glass in the Saint Chapelle is absolutely breathtaking. At the end of the day, we made our way to the famous (or infamous) glass pyramids, the symbol for one of the most visited museums in the world. But I had no idea that the place was so huge. I had allocated only 3 hours for the museum, which needless to say, was not even enough for one of the 3 wings. So we scurried though the various paintings and sculptures, making sure to get a glimpse of the "essentials."

Then at night, it was time to dine at Senderens, the restaurant that I had reserved for 2 months in advance. A night to make us smile and my wallet cry. Senderens is known for its superstar celebrity chef, Alain Senderens, who had previously headed the restaurant, Lucas Carton, arguably the finest restaurant in the world. But he decided to shut down the restaurant and open a new one - Senderens - that is a bit more casual and affordable (relative, I guess). Though he didn't want any stars from Michelin, the company had insisted that the star system is theirs, and forcefully gave the restaurant 2 stars. The place was so chic that we had a difficult time finding even the door to the restaurant (it was just a blank white door with a tiny "S" on it). It was really funny to watch Caro freeze up for the first 10 minutes, though. It was an 8 course menu with a wine pairing with half of them. After this fantastic dinner, though, we were a bit tipsy and couldn't help but to venture out into town for a "classy" evening at Hard Rock cafe, an American restaurant with a converted strip club upstairs, and an Australian club. All class, all day.

The last day in Paris, we took the walking tour of Montmartre from the same company that I had enjoyed in Barcelona. Montmartre was first known as the cheap area to live outside of Paris, a reason why so many artists flocked there in the beginning. An illustrious group of artists that include Van Gogh and Picasso had lived and painted on this hill. And as lower class and artists flocked, so did cabarets. The first cabaret, called Lapin Agile is also the cafe that Picasso had frequented and was served in exchange for his paintings, exclaiming that he would one day become the most famous artist in the world.

On top of the hill, there's the Sacre Coeur, a marble white church, but I preferred the story of St. Denis more. He is the patron saint of Paris, and he is known for having walked with his head to the top of the hill, preaching along the way, for 10 km after his decapitation.

This tour definitely made the city more enjoyable, up to a point where I think it's my favorite European city so far. The depth of history, plethora of monuments, and the cuisine makes this city very special for me. After the tour and a final crepe, we took the train back to Lausanne.

A memorable Valentine's Day in a memorable city.

- Ryoji

Spanish Adventure

2011-03-10T15:10:00.016-06:00

So this new post is all about my mini backpacking trip through Spain, the country in which I know many people now, thanks to Erasmus. But since my holidays are limited to about 20 days, I have to use them wisely, which is why I chose to take 5 days off, which allows me to actually go on a 9 day vacation (well, I was going to take 17 days off and actually cross the canal to Morocco, but I'll explain that later). Seems like a short time, but I definitely packed in quite a bit in those 9 days.

I first flew from Geneva to Barcelona on a Friday night, just checking into the hostel (in a street full of prostitutes), having dinner (in a bar on the street full of prostitutes), and talking with a strange drunk old man from Romania. The next day, I woke up early to start my sightseeing, and I knew I had to hurry because well, people would think that I'm crazy to do all of Barcelona in 2 days. At first, I headed towards the...of course, La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's still unfinished masterpiece of a church with 18 soaring towers (like 6 of them are done so far?). It's apparently set to finish by 2050.

Other points of interest on the first day were La Rambla, the famous street with crazy street performers, tiny little shops selling everything, and of course, pickpocketers. I also went to 2 of Gaudi's apartment buildings, La Pedrera and Casa Batllo.

At night, my whole dorm room and I (8 of us) joined the hostel pub crawl without paying, which turned out to be a great way to get a glimpse of Barcelona's supposedly bumping nightlife. This may have been the first time in which everybody in a dorm room went out together and became friends. Fantastic! But I also didin't want to go out for too long because I knew that the next day was when I was going to see the last bit of Barcelona and take the train to Madrid to see my girlfriend!

Buuuuuuut, before that I need to give a shout out to the Free Tour of Barcelona for making this city so wonderful to me. We went through the tiny streets around La Rambla, where history and interesting facts were waiting around every corner. I don't want to ruin anything, but here's one great story: In the picture underneath is the art school where young Picasso used to attend, but also true was that he used to frequent the brothel that was just across the street. Now, fast forward a few years in Paris when he drew his first cubism painting - Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. From the title, it sounds like this is a painting of women from the French city of Avignon. However, as the tour guide told us, and as you can see in the picture, the street on which the art school and brothel was located, was called Carrer D'Avinyo. And not surprisingly, the original title for the painting was The Brothel of Avignon. Bizarre.

After the fantastic tour, I headed over to the train station to take a nice long ride to Madrid, and believe me, the anticipation was killing me. By this point, I hadn't seen Caro for about 3 weeks so it was getting rough to say the least. If Barcelona was the city of design, then Madrid was the city of grandiosity. Everything just seemed big and grand. The street of Gran Via and adjacent roads (seemed like this city only had roads as opposed to little street and alleyways of other Spanish cities) contained huge government buildings and intimidating statue fountains.

Caro and I also visited the city of Toledo, a few km out of the city. What makes this city particularly interesting is the mixture of Roman, Visigoth, Jewish, Muslim, and Christian cultures and architecture (although much of the city has been overtaken by McDonalds, H&M, and souvenir shops by now). It is also a city famous for sword making as well as being home for many famous Spanish artists like El Greco.

At night, I followed Caro like a puppy being shown off to her family and girl friends most of the time. But of course, I did my part, and I think I held my own. They were all great people, and that's exactly what made Madrid special for me. I may have enjoyed the city of Barcelona or Granada more than Madrid, but streets and history don't make a city come alive, the people do.

The next stop on my itinerary was the fabled Granada and its La Alhambra! The last Muslim city in Spain to be conquered as well as the Muslim capital for hundreds of years, this Andalucian city has everything a city needs - history, a UNESCO heritage site, a diverse student population, a great nightlife, and of course, free food! Yep, if you buy a drink in Granada, you get free tapas, and some student bars give out heaps of food for every drink so you come out of the bar drunk and full. In Granada, I stayed with my Lausanne roommate, who is from Granada, and his girlfriend. Although I didn't get to enjoy the nightlife as much, I wholly enjoyed La Alhambra, the Muslim fortress from the 11th century. The details on every wall were absolutely breathtaking.

And although I understand that this was a very touristy thing to do, I went to a Flamenco show (Caro insisted that Flamenco is something that just spontaneously happens at a bar). And trust me, it was worth every penny. I am obviously not sure, but I have a feeling that these professional Flamenco dancers put on a show with more skill than anything that's spontaneous. And here's a reason why people absolutely ADORE Japanese tourists. There was a Flamenco clapper seller going around the room selling them for 3 euros each. Some people buy one, maybe two, most of us, none. And obviously the old Japanese couple buys 20 pairs. I guess we like to receive nothing better than Flamenco clappers in Japan.

My last stop in Spain was Cordoba, another Andalucian city, and also where my friend, Dan, from University was living. I made sure to go to Cordoba on a weekend because I desperately wanted to go out with Dan. Like Granada, Cordoba is a city drenched with sunlight, streets lined with *fake* orange trees, and THE one historic site in Mezquita, a gigantic Muslim mosque from the 8th century with a gigantic cathedral build in the middle of it (which I think makes the Mezquita that much more interesting).

As intended, I enjoyed the bar scene of Cordoba, as well as the day drinking on the restaurant patios - a stark difference from Switzerland in January. Dan's friends/cousin joined us the next day for a wonderful time in the sun.

Now, the originial plan was to take another 8 days off and cross over to Morocco. I had already bought the ticket from Marrakesh to Geneva, but when I was in Granada, I started pondering. If I use 2 holiday weeks back to back, then I will only get 16 days off as opposed to 2 nine day holidays (5 days + 2 weekends on both ends). I had really wanted to see Morocco, but I thought it would be much better spent in Greece and Turkey for example (which I already bought tickets for in late May) or 9 days in Italy (which I already have tickets for as well). .....And I missed my girlfriend :)

Oh yeah, and my research is going very well too.

Soon, I'll update on my trip to Paris, Koln Karneval, and Dublin St. Patty's. Oh and skiing every other weekend. Jealous yet?

- Ryoji

Winter Vacation!

2011-02-21T15:29:00.010-06:00

Now it's the middle of February, and I have A LOT to update since December - especially because it was the holidays. Again, I've been doing a lot of traveling, starting with Lyon, Munich for New Year's, and a backpacking trip through Spain, Swiss alps, Swiss alps, Swiss alps, and Paris just now. But I'm going to break them up into pieces...

Going to Lyon before Christmas was more of a spur of the moment kind of thing, as my girlfriend (Caro) and I wanted to go somewhere before she went back to Madrid for the holidays. The closest city that was do-able for one weekend happened to be Lyon, and it was fantastic. The morning of departure started off rocky as misconfusions after misconfusions left me pouty and upset (almost not going at all), but after much reconcilliation from Caro, we were on the train to France!

Lyon is known for its cuisine (in France!) as well as its charming UNESCO listed old town, but what I loved most about this city were the myriad of frescoes dotted around the walls of buildings known as Trompe l'Oeil. Here are some of the murals, with one of them containing a drawing of all of the famous Lyonnais people, including the author of Le Petit Prince.

Much of our time was spent walking around aimlessly through the old town, which had nothing in particular, but also everything wonderful. Little narrow streets where you hope to get lost, only to find yourself across from St. Paul's Church or the statue of the Sun King, Louis XIV.

For Christmas Eve, my American friend took pity on me and invited me to have a nice dinner with her and her family so that was delightful. Unfortunately, I didn't have the merriest christmas as most of my friends were gone for the holidays, and so my other friend who was left alone in Lausanne, well, we went to a Chinese restaurant on Christmas. But I knew that I was leaving to go to Germany and Spain in a few days so I didn't really care all too much.

I left for Munich on Thursday, the day before New Year's Eve with 2 of my English friends that I had met in Cambodia and live in Liverpool. They asked me if I was interested in joining up with them for New Year's in Munich, and I said, Hell Yeah. So I hopped on the train, an easy 6 hour ride to the capital of Bavaria, I go! Sadly, most of the time with my friends was spent partying until the wee hours of the night so sightseeing was left on the back burner.

Of the sightseeing that I managed to do, I quite enjoyed the museum, Alte Pinakothek, one of three world-famous museums in an art cluster of Munich. I chose to spend time in this one for its Renaissance paintings, Italian, German, French, and everything in between (not geographically, that would be Switzerland)

Now that I have enjoyed 2 Free Tours (Barcelona and Paris, more on this later), I wish I had done it in Munich, but I guess I just need to come back to this blue-and-white city once more. Marienplatz is the most prominent square in the center of the city, and the main tower houses the moving German figurines that kick the Austrian's ass at the end.

To the north of the city is the premier Nazi headquarters in the beginning of the reign, and some of the buildings are still intact. This is the city where Hitler tried a coup at the famous Hofbrauhaus (which is just a jolly good ol' drinking tent now)and tried to seize power, only to fail until a decade after. I visited the famous beer hall, not really to investigate the dark history, but to be greeted by liters of beer and sauerkraut, and drink with singin' Italian men (I'm not sure if true Germans ever come here...)

And of course, on New Year's Eve, we partied until 4 am in the city center where young hooligans were chucking fireworks at people (it was quite dangerous now that I think about it) and drinking champagne. It was strange to not be by a major body of water for New Year's for the first time.

And this is how I welcomed the year 2011. 2010 was a crazy, fun, marvelous year, and I hope this new year will bring as many adventures and surprises!

I promise I'll update very very soon.

- Ryoji

Italy, Austria, France, and obviously more Switzerland!

2010-12-15T15:51:00.015-06:00

It's been 2 months since my last post, but it's been really hard to find the time to upload pictures, think about what to write about, and actually sitting and writing....especially now that I have a girlfriend.

But anyways, here's a very condensed version of what's been going on in my life since the last time I've written. I've been able to travel to different cities every few weeks, thanks to my lack of responsibilities on the weekends. The first stop in this post is Milano, Italy. Why Milano of all the places? Well, it's close...and it's cheap. I'm trying to go to all of the places I can easily go by train before I make longer journeys via Easyjet. As for Milano, I just called up my friend from U of I, DK, on a Wednesday, asked if he wanted to go to Italy, he said yes, and 2 days later, we were meeting up at the central station of Milano! It's that easy. The main purpose of this trip was to have a good time, more so than sight-seeing. Aside from the Duomo (which is incredible), there's not much to see, except for the painting of The Last Supper, which you needed to book ahead a few weeks in advance. Of all of the Europeans cities that I had been at that point, I might've enjoyed Italy the most, mainly because of the apertivo (sp?), the cheap pizza/pasta, and the wine. So for two days and nights, my friend and I wandered around the streets of Milano, drank wine on the streets, ate huge, delicious pizzas, and danced around clubs. In my books, that's a FANTASTIC weekend.

And then another week goes by in lab...

A few weeks later, I went to Interlaken, probably the most touristy city in Switzerland, and I don't blame all of the Chinese photo-shooting wanderers - the area is absolutely gorgeous...though my friend and I didn't really get to experience it. That's mostly because we spent the Friday night in Zurich with DK, and we went HARD. So much so that we didn't catch the train until the afternoon and missed the prime hiking hours in Interlaken. Nevertheless, we enjoyed a nice train ride, and we met up with our friends in Interlaken for some nice Thai food. Then we went to a club that was in the basement of our hostel, and again, questioned the purpose of this trip. To make the journey worthwhile, we all decided to go "hiking" around the lake even though it was gloomy and freezing. But the sandwiches that we had in the lobby of a random hotel in the middle of nowhere was one of the best meals I had ever tasted! So I guess it's all good that ends well.

Before I go on further about my travels, I feel like I should talk about Lausanne so far. I'll start by saying... it's been a BLAST! My people in lab are great, my research project is interesting, I could get published as long as I get positive results, and the city itself is so international and student-oriented that none of us has a difficult time finding a party on a given night. I've been hanging out with mostly Germans and Spanish people, though I feel like I know somebody from every country in Western Europe. I generally go to a dormitory called Falaise before going out though I sometimes wish that my dorm was as open and fun. But since my girlfriend lives there, it's basically my second home. Unlike most other big cities in Switzerland, there are loads of free-entry clubs in Lausanne, some favorites like Darling, Buzz, Jagger's...I'm gonna miss this place when June rolls around. Every Wednesday is a pubnight for the Erasmus students, every Thursday is reserved for departmental parties (which I don't really go to...because I don't take classes), and the weekends are...well, they're weekends. Play hard, work hard.

We've also celebrated Halloween and Thanksgiving with class.

The last weekends, I've gone to Innsbruck in Austria, and Strasbourg in France. They were both very beautiful cities with rivers transversing the city, and again, wandering was the main objective of these trips. Innsbruck was made famous perhaps by the Winter Olympics while Strasbourg lures 3 million people during each December with its Christmas Markets and the illuminations. Enjoyed some schnitzels in Austria, Flammenkuchen in Strasbourg.

Last weekend, I went skiing in the Swiss Alps at Les Diablerets, and WOW. I would have to rank this experience among my favorites so far...in life. The idea of skiing in the Swiss Alps alone is just incredible, and add the fact that it was a beautiful day with stunning views, among all of my friends (about 25 of us signed up for the same weekend), and having an apres-ski wine in a chalet was unbeatable. It's hard to justify my feelings with words so here are some pictures to make you jealous :)

But now that it's getting cold, it's time to go more south, towards Spain, Greece, Italy. It's almost Christmas, and unfortunately for me, I'll be stuck in Lausanne at lab while all of my friends are going home to their family :( Eh, whatever. For New Year's Eve, I'm going to Munich with some of the guys I met in Cambodia, who are English and making a trip to Germany to party the year away. And after a week, I'm going backpacking to Spain and Morocco for 2 and a half weeks, so I can't really complain. The next time, I'll write will probably be in 2011. What a year it's been!!

Bienvenue a Lausanne!

2010-10-03T15:59:00.010-05:00

Now that I have somewhat settled down and have some time on my hands, I'll give an update on the last 2.5 weeks of my hectic life in Europe.

First of all, thanks to everyone that let me stay at their apartment in Chicago and Champaign during the one week that I was there to get my visa. I stayed in the US for 6 days because the Consulate General of Switzerland in Chicago told me that the process after authorization would take 3-5 days, but as I soon found out, it took about 20 minutes. Anyway, it was great to see my friends for the last time in probably awhile. I actually tried backpacking a little bit in Chicago, but when I found out that the Art Institute cost 18 (?) dollars for entry, I said, forget it. I did manage to wander through the streets of Chicago and tailgate for a U of I football game that nobody had tickets for.

On the 15th of September, I flew from O'Hare to Switzerland. With a bit of fear and a bit of excitement, I disembarked the plane in Geneva and headed for Lausanne, a 30 minute train ride. And of course I knew this, but WOW was everything in French! I could pretty much tell then that it was going to be a rough year with my limited capacity for French. Nevertheless, I arrived in Lausanne, and I was able to find my apartment without much problem. On the same day, I went into lab to discuss my project, and by the time I had finished, it was already around 6:30. The strangest thing about Switzerland is how everything closes at 6 or 7 and definitely on Sundays. Not having known this, I was forced to sleep that night with a towel over me, freezing to death.

Here's my room now:

For the next couple of days, I had to get a residence permit, open a bank account, go see my scholarship officer, buy a metro card, get a phone, buy all of the bed stuff, buy groceries, and of course, I had to find people to hang out with. It was the weekend! Fortunately, I had bumped into one of the other Fulbright scholar at the immigration office, whom I had met at the Harvard interview. Ever since then, we had been hanging out with a bunch of German Erasmus students along with several other people at the dorms. This particular weekend in Lausanne was a big music festival with several stages in the city center. My roommate (another German) and I went out to the festival, eating kebabs, drinking beer, and we met up with the others to go out. Ever since then, it's been about 3 or 4 nights of going out per week. Feels like senior year of college all over again.

The sunday of the weekend, My roommate and I, along with 3 others, drove to Annecy in France, supposedly known as the most beautiful city in France to the natives. And wow. I was first incredulous about taking a day trip to South France. I was absolutely floored by the beauty of the city, and it definitely helped that it was a beautiful, sunshine-filled day. It's hard to capture the beauty with pictures, but I tried my best. We just strolled around town, sat down at a creperie, drank wine on the porch of the restaurant, and just relaxed. What a wonderful introduction to Europe!

My lab work consisted of reading and designing experiments for the first few weeks so I wasn't that busy though I'm sure things will start picking up. But right now, the anticipation for the weekend overrides any scientific paper or a to-do list (I still like science, I promise). My friend in Zurich from U of I had been in touch with me about going to Oktoberfest in Germany, which started in September. So it was nice to hear one of my German friends suggesting we go to Stutgart's Beer Festival, the second largest Oktoberfest in Germany, and she will drive and we can stay at her parents' house. Talk about a sweet deal. After a few hours of driving, we crossed the border to Germany (we didn't even get checked), ready to taste the finest beer that Germany has to offer. On Saturday, we went to the tents at around 3 o'clock, where people were already completely plastered. Knowing we needed to last until midnight, we decided to take it slowly, but this plan had been completely demolished after the first two 1-liter mugs. Priceless, priceless moments. Then of course, some of us somehow stumbled our way towards a club until 4am when the day/night finally concluded.

By week 2 of my stay, everything had kind of started to settle down, and I finally became somewhat comfortable in this French speaking environment. I'm far from being able to have a normal conversation, but I have been taking measures to improve my French: listen to French music everyday, watch French cartoons, take a French course, and talk to friends in French. Even after 2.5 weeks, I feel a little bit more comfortable speaking to natives. This weekend, I finally walked around Lausanne with a Lonely Planet in hand, trying to memorize the winding streets, looking for nice restaurants, pubs, etc, and of course, sight seeing. The 800 year old Cathedral of Notre Dame is the highlight of Lausanne along with a small castle and the cobblestone city center. Down by the lake, my friend and I had bought white wine, chilled it in the Lake (or tried to), and people-watched for hours.

And just today, a bunch of students hiked up a beautiful mountain, and it was absolutely exhilirating...even if I only got 3 hours of sleep the night before. The clear skies, pure air, and a wonderful view combined for an amazing day trip out of Lausanne. It's the end of hiking season right now, and soon, skiing season begins. My roommate is going to get out his fondue set soon enough, and I'll enjoy winter like I have never before...

So obviously I had been keeping myself busy, and I'm absolutely exhausted. I only sleep a few hours a night so tonight, I'm going to bed at midnight and get a full night of sleep for the first time in a week. So goodnight. Sweet dreams.

- Ryoji

Family Reunion and the rest of Japan

2010-09-11T12:18:00.014-05:00

I'm already back in Chicago for the moment as I write this post. I didn't really have any time to write in Japan - it seemed like there were better things to do than sitting down and typing. So this is what happened in the last 2 weeks of my Asia trip:

After spending a week with my parents in Osaka, I returned to my old form as a backpacker and ventured out to Kyoto, the cultural center of Japan. Staying at a hostel, I realized how expensive lodging in Japan is: while it cost $5 in SE Asia for a dorm bed, it cost at least $25 in Japan. Of course, the amenities and cleanliness were unmatched, and the staff made my stay very comfortable. Kyoto used to be the capital during two dynastic periods, and as the treasure chest of Japan, it is home to 17 World Cultural Heritage Sites, from the renowned Kinkaku-Ji to Kiyomizu Dera, there is more history here than anywhere else in the country.

Although the temples in Kyoto were in the running to become one of the 7 New Wonders of the World back in 2007, I was a bit disappointed because most of the buildings are reconstructions for a few centuries back. Coming from China, where everything is authentic, much of Japanese history seemed to be burned down to the ground. Nevertheless, being Japanese and having grown up with these images, it was great to actually see these famous sights in person.

After the temples and shrines of Kyoto, I headed to Takayama, a remote village in the middle of Japan. It's famous for retaining some Gassho-zukuri houses like these:

Gassho means praying hands, and this type of houses was named so from the resemblance of the roofs to praying hands. The town also had an old school charm to it, with wooden shops, sake breweries, and cobblestone streets. And as a day trip out of Takayama, I headed to Kanazawa with a French guy and a German girl, and we took a nice stroll through Kenroku-En Park, one of the 3 most beautiful parks in Japan. Patched with greenish-yellow moss and century-old Japanese pine trees, this park really made me appreciate the beauty of Japan, and I think I'll buy some Bonsai once I get my own place (although I would love to have some of these Japanese pine trees in my backyard).

My family had made a plan to have a family reunion in Tokyo over the weekend so I had to make sure that I got there on time. I met up with my parents in Ebisu, Tokyo to check into a very nice hotel, and we took the train to Ginza, where my sister, her husband, my brother, and his girlfriend were waiting for us at a fancy Japanese restaurant. My family hadn't had a real reunion like that for about 4 years, but it's the craziest thing about families - it was as if we had been living together. We didn't miss a step. This was also 2 days before my birthday so I was glad to have spent it with my family for what may be my last time.

The next day, my parents and I had a day to kill before we went our separate ways, so we went to Nikko for its famed Tosho-Gu, a famous Japanese temple and also the resting place of Tokugawa Ieyasu, one of the most famous Shogun of Japan. Like the temples of Kyoto, Tosho-Gu was filled with familiar images from TV and movies - like the No Hear, No Speak, No See Monkeys and the Sleeping Cat - but as a historic site, it was a bit of a disappointment. Maybe it was hyped up a bit much.

Because my mom had bought a 1 week JR pass, she wanted to travel with me through Tohoku, the northeastern region of Japan, where neither of us had gone before. Obviously, I was more than delighted to travel with her. From Tokyo, we went up to, in order: Sendai, Matsushima, Hiraizumi, Tazawa-Ko Onsen, Kakunodate, Hachinohe, and Towada-Ko Onsen. Although the region does not boast much history or amazing sites, this trip was special because I got to spend time with my mom. I was able to relax for a long time at Onsen, or Japanese hot springs, where you where yukata and sleep on tatami mattresses like this:

We also went on a small hiking trip alongside a river to Towada-Ko Lake, and it was absolutely beautiful.

And also, one advantage of traveling with a parent is the fact that I could eat whatever I wanted without really worrying about money. So we definitely ate well, and it was great because this region has very unique cuisine.

Having said goodbye to my mom, I went up to Hokkaido, the northern most island of Japan. I first went to Hakodate, a port city with a charming western influence, evident from the churches that dot the city. This is where the last soldiers from the bakufu took a stand in the Goryokaku fort against the Bakumatsu (end of the Bakufu) army. Known for its seafood, I could not resist the urge to spend 20 dollars and get a decadent seafood donburi, with fresh sea urchin, shrimp, crab, salmon roe, scallops, and squid, all on a bed of warm white rice. The city is also well known for its skyline at night, as it was ranked the best in Japan.

My last destination in Japan was Sapporo, famous for its beer, ramen, and jingisu-kan, a lamb barbecue. It doesn't have very many historic sites, but it has a nightlife that I had absolutely loved. Although I took a day trip to Otaru - the Venice of Japan - and Poroto Kotan, an Ainu village, my main interest of the region was going out. For two nights, I went out with some of the people from the hostel, and I was finally able to party righteously in Japan for the first time. I don't think I got more than 3 hours of sleep each night.

I had to go back to Tokyo for the flight home, but since I had gotten there a few days earlier than expected, I slept over at my sister's place for 2 nights. We went to Kamakura, the capital of Japan 700 years ago, and the Ghibli museum. I guess this gigantic statue of Buddha is an appropriate ending to my Asia trip:

And now, I have a week in Chicago and Champaign, getting my Switzerland visa and catching up with friends. I'm also getting back into research shape by reading articles and such. As I bring the first chapter of my blog to an end, I am getting ready for my new adventure in Europe!

- Ryoji

My Home Country...

2010-08-28T08:09:00.011-05:00

I had been anxiously counting down the days until I could fly to Japan and see my family. I wouldn't exactly say that I was homesick, but I was definitely ready for some comfort, some constant in my life, and of course, the free food and accommodation couldn't hurt.

I arrived in Osaka, one of the major cities in central Japan, where my parents had just permanently moved and owned a condo. I had met up with my mom who had come to the airport to greet me - my dad was away for business until the next day - and we went back to their condo, definitely the best place that I had stayed in the last couple of months. The one thing that I had realized, or was reminded of, was the fact that Japan has arguably the best food in the world; this I had taken notice after eating some leftovers from the day before. After some reorganizing, I knew that I only had 3 weeks in Japan so I started sightseeing right away. The great thing about traveling in Japan is this one particular transport: the bullet train. It's very very easy to take a day trip to cities that are 500 km away, and come back in time for dinner.

From Osaka, I first headed to the old capital town of Nara - one of the most important areas in terms of Japanese history. Nara was the capital of Japan during the Nara Period (710-794) when many of the famous Buddhist and Shinto Temples were built, under the guidance of such emperors as Shomu and Kanmu. Dating back 1200 years, the impressive Todai-ji, the largest wooden building in the world, houses the largest bronze statue of Buddha in the world. A bit off the town center of Nara is the Horyu-ji, one of the oldest wooden buildings in the world, built by Prince Shotoku, the author of the 17 articles of the constitution in the 8th century.

I definitely started off my trip with the largest bulk of historic sites - namely Kyoto and Nara - which may hinder my appreciation for the rest of Japan (it's like starting Egypt with the pyramids). The biggest disappointment with Japan so far is the fact that everything, and I mean every castle, temple, shrines, etc., is a reconstruction because most wars and battles leave towns and opposing castles in ash. One of the best preserved castles in Japan is that of Himeji, built in the 14th century. Of course, when I was there, the castle was being repaired... Nonetheless, there were many inside secrets that were on the castle grounds that were interesting.

On the way back home, I stopped by the southern part of Osaka, headed to a strip called Dotombori with its bright neon lights and famous scenery. Here are some of the stranger sights of Osaka:

As a last day trip out of Osaka, I took the bullet train to Hiroshima, the city that conjures up only one image in most minds - the atomic bomb and the 80,000 deaths that it had caused during the last few days of World War II. The famous monument at the peace memorial park is the dome that still stands today, but it is a stark reminder of the damages that the bomb had caused, as the skeleton of the building was one of the few buildings standing near the epicenter of the blast.

And at the peace memorial museum, here's one of the displays that really struck me. This is a small portion of the number of letters that the mayor of Hiroshima had sent to ambassadors and world leaders of countries that possess nuclear weapon every time a test bomb has been detonated. Unfortunately, the number of letters had reached an unforgiving amount...

The next few days, I will travel to Kyoto and actually stay at hostels. I hadn't spent a dime yet in Japan because of my parents, but it's a little bit scary to imagine how much I'll be spending compared to SE Asia or China. In 5 days, my whole family will reconvene in Tokyo, this time with my parents and my siblings. A little bit of family, a lot of familiarity.

- Ryoji

A Historical Trip through the Heart of China

2010-08-19T05:35:00.009-05:00

Xian, historically known as Chang'An, was the capital of China during the Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang Dynasties, which span from around 200 BC to 900 AD. It has arguably more ancient history tourist spots than any other city in China, which is saying something. So in the four days that I was there, I was busy visiting the Drum and Bell Towers, the Muslim Quarter, Big Goose Pagoda from the Tang Dynasty, and of course, the Terracotta Warriors. Of all the sites, the warrior statues in the tomb of Emperor Qin were the highlight of my stay. Although 2 UK guys and I started the journey to the tomb with a rather dull headache (some might call it a hangover), by the end of the day, I was sincerely astonished, not because it was 2000 years old, not because there were over 6000 statues, but mostly because I could not fathom what was possibly going through the Emperor's head when he decided, "Ok, before I die, I'm going to make thousands of people build thousands of sculptures, so that I am ready for battle in the afterworld. Yes, that'd be a good idea." Of course, I guess I can say the same about every other tomb and pyramid in the world...

As for the nightlife in Xian, this is when I started realizing that the backpackers in China are of different breed compared to those in SE Asia. The people in SE Asia are mostly in their early 20's or they're on their gap year, and most of them come to Asia to party. In China, it seems like most of the travelers are Chinese, and the foreign backpackers are a little bit older, a little bit calmer, and more about culture and history. By the time I was in Xian, I had kind of accepted this fact, and there were many times when my group of friends was the only Westerners in the whole club. It's all about different experiences, I guess.

Before heading to Beijing, I decided to stop at an UNESCO World Heritage Site called Pingyao, which is the best preserved walled town in China. Many of the buildings show a great deal of age and character, a charming change from the restored historic sites of Xian. Although the town was touristy as hell, it was still nice to sit on a porch, drink some tea, and watch the world go by.

I also took a day trip to the Wang Family Palace from the Qing Dynasty, and I guess all of the Wang's that I know in the United States are descendants of this family?? Anyways, the more interesting part of the day trip was the castle that dates back from the 7th Century, and the underground tunnel built as an escape path for a possible invasion, although never used. The underground castle contained even stables, prisons, and intricate traps. Places like this really make you realize how old China's history is.

After Pingyao, I headed for my last stop in China, the massive capital that is Beijing, the municipality of which covers as much area as Belgium. Home to 3 World Heritage Sites among various other historic sites, the city required every minute of my 5 days, not to mention the 10 million inhabitants and many more summer holiday tourists. Although I was a bit disappointed with the Summer Palace and the Forbidden City, I would have to admit that the Great Wall is one of the greatest wonders of the world. It helped that I went to a rather remote area of the wall called Mutianyu, and the weather was absolutely wonderful. It was a 3 km stretch of ups and downs, but I was able to traverse the whole length twice in a matter of 3 hours, drenched in sweat, completely out of breath. But it was one of the most fulfilling days of the trip. These pictures really don't do justice:

In Beijing, I also enjoyed going to an acrobatic show, trying out strange food in the night market, and of course, engulfing a whole Peking Duck.

Unfortunately, I was so sick of the crowd by the last day that I couldn't wait to get out of the city, and the country all together. After all, it was my day of homecoming - home to Japan! I had a plane to catch at 9:30am, I left the hostel at 7:00am, but with the Beijing transportation system, I still managed to almost miss the flight. The only thing that missed the flight, though, was my bag, which I had to retrieve later. Frankly, I was so overjoyed that I was going to Japan that it really didn't matter. 3 weeks left, 1 more country, hoping for more adventures...

- Ryoji

The Most Beautiful Places on Earth

2010-08-06T06:13:00.003-05:00

I had 5 days before my Vietnam visa ran out. I had to get out by Aug. 1st. So while in Hanoi, I had to decide if I should cut Vietnam short and give myself more time in China, or spend as much time as possible in Vietnam. I chose the latter, and it turned out to be a fantastic idea. By the time I got to Hanoi, I would bump into the same people over and over, familiar faces all over, and it felt like home sweet home. And it definitely helped that I stayed at a very social hostel called Hanoi Backpacker's Hostel (highly recommended if you're going to Hanoi) and made many friends in a span of five days.

I signed up for the all-famous (if you're in Vietnam) Ha Long Bay Tour, which takes you to a bay on the NE corner of Vietnam with limestone peaks and phosphofluorescent water. A little geography lesson: Ha Long Bay is home to around 2000 limestone karsts, many of which have taken over 500 million years to form. It is also one of the finalists for the 7 Natural Wonders of the World. It was a 2 day, 1 night trip on a sleeping cabin, but it turned out to be more like a booze cruise. During the day, the 36 of us from the hostel swam in the bay, kayaked through the limestone peaks, and explored a cave. After 2 months of traveling in SE Asia, I thought this was the most beautiful place that I had seen, and I think that's saying something. But by 9 o'clock, we hit up the boat bar and played a massive game of Ring of Fire, Vietnam style. By the next morning, most of us just wanted to get back to the hostel and pass out. Work hard, play hard, I guess.

The next few nights, I had met up with some of the guys I met in Cambodia, some of the girls I met in Ho Chi Minh City, and we all hit up the city, which tends to die out around 1 am, unfortunately. EXCEPT, this one shady place on the top of a hotel, which has successfully drawn the foreigner crowd by staying open until the wee hours in the morning. By August 1st, I was ready to move on to...CHINA!

I'm not gonna lie. I was petrified about going to China. Such a huge country. Nobody speaks English. Don't really know where I should go. So little time. With a backpack and Lonely Planet in hand, I got on the bus and headed to Nanning, the closest city in China from Vietnam. And WOW. I had imagined a small quaint town, but to my amazement, it turned out to be a metropolis of millions, with McDonalds and Walmart in the city square. I didn't stay there for a long time, but it was a nice introduction to China - maybe it wouldn't be too bad after all.

The first real stop in China was Yongshuo in the Guanxi Province. Although massively touristy, the bustling town had kept its rustic charm and the backdrop of the limestone karsts in the countryside was absolutely magnificent. My oh my. This place was like Ha Long Bay, only on land. I had never seen any scenery quite like this. I only stayed there for 3 days due to time constraints, but I managed to go on a solo biking tour through a 25 km stretch of the countryside, an absolutely wonderful experience. On top of it all, the town had a great nightlife, a strange juxtaposition of nightclubs and the countryside, but for a traveler, it's got it all.

Since the train to Xi'an was booked up for the next 8 days, I chose to go to a city that was in between the two cities - Chengdu in the Sichuan Province, known for pandas and spicy hotpots. Another bustling city like Nanning, with a population of 4 million, Chengdu has a reputation to be one of the livable cities in China although I disagree. On the first full day, I went to the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base, one of the few places in the world where you can see giant pandas and red pandas in "captivity." They say that it's for breeding purposes, but it seemed more like a zoo. But nonetheless, it was something I had to do in Chengdu.

Then, 2 Dutch guys from the hostel and I went out to eat at a Sichuan hotpot restaurant, which is like Shabu-Shabu, only the broth is boiling red with all kinds of spices and herbs. I'm not sure how the Dutch guys handled the spice, but I thought it was fantastic.

Tomorrow, I'm heading out to Xi'an on a 15 hour train ride, the only problem being the fact that I was only able to get a seating train, instead of a sleeper train. Cheap, at the cost of comfort. But these days, comfort is a luxury I can't really afford (or really care about). 10 more days until Japan!

- Ryoji

Good Ol' Vietnam

2010-07-27T09:08:00.007-05:00

It's been 12 days since my last post. It's not that I haven't had the time, but most of the days in Vietnam were spent on the beaches. So the whole blog post would be..."slept on a beach, went out. Repeat." So I waited until I have enough material to make the post a little bit interesting.

Since Phu Quoc, my first destination was Ho Chi Minh City, or Saigon as it used to be called, and this is the second largest city in the country. After much frustration with a local bus and incessantly naggy motorcycle drivers, I finally made it to the center of the backpacker's area, which was bustling with activity in the ever-so-bright neon lights.

An excursion out to the Cu Chi Tunnels was the main attraction of the city. These 250 km winding tunnels in the city next to Saigon was the last line of defense against the Americans during the Vietnam War (or American War as it is known here). Being American, it was hard to watch the propaganda video that repeated the phrase "Killing Americans" at least 10 times. Nonetheless, our tour group crawled through 60 meters of a tunnel, a dire claustrophobic experience to say the least. In addition to these tunnels were underground kitchens, hospitals, etc.

Throughout Vietnam, I've been traveling with a UK girl named Natasha that I had met back in Cambodia because it seems like everyone has the same tourist destinations as Vietnam is a narrow country. I had met up with her in Saigon, and we went to Mui Ne and Nha Trang, 2 beach towns, with the former being the calm serene beach town and the latter being the loud, party mecca of Vietnam. In Mui Ne, we pretty much did nothing but eat, go to the beach, sleep, and enjoy the sunlight. On the second day there, we went to the red sand dunes that it's famous for, and managed to do a little bit of sand sliding (which was actually PATHETIC).

In Nha Trang, I met a lot of good people through the hostel, bars, restaurants. It's supposed to be a big party town, but it doesn't compare to anything in Thailand or even Cambodia for that matter. The good thing about going out in Vietnam is that it seems like everybody goes to the same bar and moves in a pack to the next bar and has an after-party at the same place. I also went scuba diving in Nha Trang as I'm diving at least once in every country. The dives in Nha Trang were a bit disappointing as the current was so strong and the fish hid away in various crevices. The corals were still beautiful, and the visibility was great.

And then there was Hoi An. By far my favourite town in Vietnam. Unlike the other places, this town has a very charming, old town feel to it, and it is home to 400 tailor shops! Girls go to Hoi An to get 6 tailored dresses, 3 tailored boots, while guys get 2 tailored suits and 4 tailored shirts. This is probably average. I bought 1 tailored cashmere suit, and 4 tailored shirts for 125 dollars. It's amazing how fast they work too - they can take your measurements in the morning, finish the trousers and shirts by the afternoon, get them fitted, and finish the jacket by night. Other than that, the town had the best nightlife in Vietnam so far, and there's a very nice beach nearby, easily accessible by bike.

I'm in Hanoi, the capital, right now, but I'm a little sick. I caught a cold (hopefully it's a cold) on the 20 hour bus ride from Hoi An to Hanoi on an overpacked sitting bus. That's another thing about Vietnam: traveling takes A LONG time. Here's another thing about Vietnam: The food has been the best here compared to other countries. There's not much special about the food here, but I have absolutely loved the rice stalls and the french bread sandwich stalls here.

In a few days, I'm off to China! A little bit of fear, a little bit of excitement. We'll see how that ends up...

- Ryoji

Phnom Penh, Beaches, Beaches, Beaches!

2010-07-15T06:56:00.001-05:00

I was supposed to leave Siem Reap everyday, but I stayed for another night every time. I kept on telling my friends, "I'm leaving tomorrow," only to find myself in the same town, same hostel, same bed. That's how comfortable Siem Reap was. I finished the tourism stuff in the first 2 days. But I stayed there for 6 days. Why? Not exactly sure. Except that, unforeseen circumstances came up everyday. So I ended up staying there taking pottery classes, going to the night market, watching traditional Aspara dancing shows, getting a fish massage, eating crickets, etc etc.

When I finally got up and left the town, I said goodbye to a bunch of the people that I've met there, only to find myself in a cramped bus to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. I had started reading a book called First They Killed My Father, a story about a family that was torn apart by the Pol Pot Regime. I had bought this book from one of the numerous boys and girls wandering the streets of Cambodia selling postcards and books. Here's what Pol Pot and the Red Shirts had done in the 1970's: This government decided that it would be a great idea to kill all doctors, businessmen, teachers, nurses, and anybody else that had any type of education. They put everybody in farm villages to become a self-sustaining country, free from Western influence. As I was reading the book on the bus, I found myself crying a little bit, a sight that had to be hidden away by my book from the strange faces on the bus.

In Phnom Penh, I met these 2 Chinese girls from Toronto at the hostel that I was staying. We decided to go out to eat at a traditional Khmer restaurant, and we ended up bumping into some of their friends from Vietnam. With an army of about 15 foreigners, we stormed into a bar, asked for a discount, sat down, and had a merry ol' time (although a group of 3 guys ended up spending about 30 dollars on beer, which was 75 cents each). As we were walking back to our hostel, it was kind of early still, and I distinctly heard hip-hop music being played. I looked around. I saw a lounge. I went in. I danced. And then, something interesting happened, which I'll keep to myself.

The next day, the Toronto girls and I went to the S21 prison, a converted high school that Pol Pot used as a torture prison, the Independence Monument, National Museum housing Angkor statues, the Royal Palace, and the Wat Phnom. The reason I wanted to come to Phnom Penh was for the S21 prison, so here are some pictures:

And a picture of a boy coming to pick up some schoolkids. A pretty normal sight in Southeast Asia, but still amusing:

After 3 days in Phnom Penh, I headed for the beaches of Sihanoukville, the closest thing to a beach resort in Cambodia. Unfortunately, the beach was a bit ugly, touristy as hell, and you could not read a page before some little girl comes up to you and asks if you want a bracelet (NO!). Fortunately, the nightlife was pretty good, and I met some interesting people, one in particular. I also spent a day going on fun dives, which was surprising good with nice visibility considering it was storming on the surface. On the trip, I met a wonderfully amusing and talkative Dutch family, who at the end of the day, invited me to have dinner with them. They took me out to a fantastic restaurant on the other side of town, and the sunset was just picturesque.

After a week and a half in Cambodia, I headed to Vietnam, to an island called Phu Quoc. I only have until August 1st in Vietnam, so I kind of need to hurry up (I'm not used to schedules and deadlines anymore). Phu Quoc was a beautiful place, with great beaches, and I practically did nothing but sleep, sunbathe, swim, and listen to music. I didn't talk to anybody. I made no friends. And that was quite alright with me because I needed this time alone. After all the bustle and socializing in the last 2 months, it was good to reflect and look back.

Next up, Ho Chi Minh City. I don't think I'll have much self-reflection time there!

- Ryoji

Trekking in Chiang Mai and Angkor Wat!

2010-07-06T04:29:00.007-05:00

After a few enjoyable nights in Chiang Mai, I signed up for a 3 day, 2 night trekking tour. Chiang Mai is in Northern Thailand, and it's known for trekking although the treks revolve around not just the scenery or the wildlife, but more for the hilltribe villages. Unfortunately, I decided to go out on the night before the trek, even though I had to wake up at 8am the next day. I was meaning to go home at around 11 or 12, due to unforeseen circumstances, I went home at 6am, only to get one hour of sleep. Lets just say that it was not a pleasurable walk towards the top of the mountain, where the Lanu village people lived. Because a large number of tourists come and go from the village, I found the village to have lost its indigenous nature.

On the second and third day of the trek, we went to 2 waterfalls, where we took nice showers, went elephant trekking, white water rafting, and bamboo rafting. Elephant trekking, though it's a bit sad for the elephants, was a unique experience that is special to Thailand.

White water rafting was a bit of a disappointment because it was only about Grade 3, but the bamboo rafting proved to be the most challenging and the most fun. Three of us got on a bamboo raft that is not properly tied together so our feet were sinking every second, and we fell into the water several times before we got the hang of it.

After the trek, the guys in the trekking group and I went out to go see Thai boxing in the sketchiest strip of shady bars and lounges with lady-boys. It was a pretty surreal experience. After that, we went out to a more kosher establishment, where I had a blast. Chiang Mai was one of my favorite towns so far, and I would go back there if I ever came back to Thailand.

After a few days in Bangkok again, I crossed the border to Cambodia via coach bus to a town called Siem Reap, the town closest to the ancient ruins of Angkor Wat. I met a group of girls on the way to the town, and we stayed at the same hostel for a few nights. I've met a lot of nice people at the hostel; although it's expensive, it has a big pool, loads of amenities, and a cleaning service. I can't really complain. The first night out, the hostel had a pub crawl, and I got introduced to the relaxing, but fun bar scene in Siem Reap. The next day, I followed 2 girls I met on the crawl to the Floating Villages, which is basically a collection of houses and boats on a lake for people who can't afford to live on land. They have their own schools, churches, temples, hospitals, and anything else that a normal town might have.

The next day, I went to the all famous, Cambodia's 8th wonder of the world, Angkor Wat at sunrise. Waking up at 4am, my friend and I headed for the ruins, only to find that the sun is covered by the clouds. Nevertheless, the ruins were quite impressive, and architecturally truly amazing, considering it was built in the 12th century. I also went to several other temples and ancient walled cities, the most memorable being Ta Phrom, where Tomb Raider was shot. A jungle surrounds the temple, and tree roots and trunks gnarled itself into the stones - an incredible site to see.

I'm going to stay in Siem Reap for a few more days because I like the atmosphere, but next I'll head to Phnom Penh and Sinhoukville in Cambodia before going to Vietnam.

- Ryoji

Bangkok, Ayutthaya, and Sukhotai

2010-06-27T06:55:00.005-05:00

After a long journey on an overnight train, I arrived in Bangkok at around 6am. I was still with the group of backpackers from the islands as they had one more night before leaving for Bali. I headed for a street called Khao San, which is known for being a backpackers' haven with an endless selection of bars, clubs, cheap restaurants, and street shops. When I got there, I sat down at a restaurant with a girl I met on the train, but drunkards were still finishing their beer towers, belligerently yelling and screaming, trying to start a fight with each other. So I said fuck this, I'm going to get a cheap hostel and sleep until I'm ready for all this madness. So I did.

The first day in Bangkok, I walked around the massive city, just to get a sense of what's where and get settled in. The first day in a new city is always the hardest because a lot of the times, you don't know anybody, you're lost, and you kind of want to go back to the previous town, where you were more comfortable. This sentiment was especially true in such a big city like Bangkok. Anyways, aimlessly wandering, I came across one of the main temples of Bangkok, Wat Pho, its premier attraction being the Reclining Buddha, a 50 meter gold-plated statue of Buddha entering Nirvana.

The first night, I met up with the people from the islands again for a last supper as they had a flight to catch really early in the morning. It was really nice to be able to see familiar faces for a few days so it was actually really sad to say goodbye to them. Brushing my tears away, I met up with a friend from Koh Samui and some other people for a night out in Bangkok. As I found out, street drinking is the norm on Khao San, and it's definitely the cheapest option. So we started feeling pretty good after awhile, and we headed to a bar so that we could dance (although we were probably the only ones dancing in there. Not that it really matters).

The next day, I went to the Grand Palace of Bangkok, which is the holiest temple in Thailand, and wow, was it extravagant. A lot of the times, I was wondering if this garish display of golden temples was necessary or economically viable, but for 350 Baht to get in (10 dollars, but it's also like 10 meals), I guess the tourism pays itself for it. Here's a picture to get a sense of what I'm talking about:

Another night out, I found my friend from Koh Samui again, and we just bar hopped until I wandered into a club by myself and had a grand ol' time. The wandering kind of reminded me of Champaign... which I miss quite a bit.

After my stint in Bangkok, I headed north to the cities of Ayutthaya and Sukhotai, which were the capitals of Thailand 500 years ago and 700 years ago, respectively. I wanted to get away from the madness of Thai beaches and Bangkok, so it was relaxing to go to a place where there aren't many things to do except go sight-seeing and sleep. I also kind of wanted to be by myself for a few days - just to regroup a little bit. The ruins of Ayutthaya and Sukhotai were very impressive, and they're known to be little Angkor Wat, which is the grand Khmer temple ruins of Cambodia. I was by myself for most of the time in Ayutthaya, but in Sukhotai, I met a lovely couple (although they weren't dating, supposedly) from Australia, and we went to the ruins together. It was great to chill out for a few days and see these amazing ruins:

Now, I'm in Chiang Mai, the trekking capital of Thailand, and I'm embarking on a 3 day, 2 night tour tomorrow through the forests, to a waterfall, hilltribe villages, etc etc. We'll see if I'll make it out alive.

- Ryoji

Koh Tao and off to Bangkok!

2010-06-20T06:44:00.004-05:00

It hasn't been too long before my last post, but I have some time to kill so might as well catch up.

After my time on the second island of the chain, I headed to the last one, Koh Tao, which is the smallest of all of the East Coast islands on the Thailand Peninsula. There are numerous dive resorts and shops on the island as it is known for its beautiful corals and wide array of fish species. When I got there, as always, I decided to stay at a hostel dorm to meet some people, and it's the cheapest option. There was a nice pool nearby (after all this time on these islands, I preferred the pool) with a bar attached to it. Just as a representative of the places that I've been staying, here's a picture of my room. This one, I considered to be a luxury because of the A/C.

So on my second night on Koh Samui five days ago, I met a group of package travelers at a club, but except for the casual "where are you from"s, we didn't really talk, we were just dancing. The next night on the island, I met them at the same place, but the same story, we didn't talk much, although I was able to get some of their names while they knew me as "Chicago." On Koh Pha Ngan, we ran into each other again, and this time, we all actually had a conversation (probably because the night was early). And we said goodbye at the end of the night, probably because we weren't going to see each other again. But as luck would have it, when I was eating with some people that I've met on Koh Tao, they all walked in at the same restaurant! We all went out together, and I managed to friend one of them on Facebook so I got to friend the rest of them.

The next day, I went on 2 dives, one at White Rock, the other at Twins, which were supposed to be two of the world's best dive sites. Unfortunately, because the islands didn't get the winter monsoon last year, the ocean didn't get enough fresh water, which subsequently heated up the ocean. So algae was abundant, and the corals were bleached. Needless to say, I was disappointed with the visibility although the marine life was incredible and the coral reefs were absolutely stunning.

The next day, I left for Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, with the tour group as they had the same destination, and it's more fun to travel in a group. Scary story (amusing now): As we were waiting for the boat, with 20 minutes left until departure, I'm not sure how but I realized that I forgot my waist wallet with my passport and debit card! Without thinking twice, I went over to the hoard of taxi drivers waiting for foreigners (like predators), said "here's money, now step on it!" I don't really want to relive that experience, so let's just say that I got my belongings in less than 10 minutes, and I almost died like 4 times.

- Ryoji

Into Thailand and island hopping

2010-06-16T08:13:00.004-05:00

Three days ago while I was in Koh Samui, I lost my camera (or it got pickpocketted) so I don't have images from Panang to upload here. I don't care too much about the camera or the fact that I had to shell out another 300 dollars for a new camera; what I do care about is the 200 pictures that I had taken in the last 3 weeks. But on the upside, I like my new camera much more...

It's been over a week since I last updated so a lot has happened in that span. I traveled to Panang on the west coast of Malaysia, very close to the Thai border, with Garlef, the German guy I met in Taman Negara. Panang is the second largest city in the country, and many of the buildings boast an impressive array of colonial architecture, which is a little bit funny because Chinese noodle shops or Malaysian curry places own these buildings. Garlef and I stayed there for 2 nights. On the second day, we rented mountain bikes to explore the island, which turned out to be difficult as we had to ride between the thousand motorcycles on the road (no sidewalks, really). Nevertheless, the it was good to get some exercise, and we were able to go to the Kok Lok Si Temple, which houses the largest statue of Bodhisattva.

To cross the Thai border, we decided to go through Langkawi Island because road crossing in Southern Thailand is dangerous due to racial violence and political uprisings. So we woke up at 7 am, hopped on a boat, got to Langkawi, got on another boat into Thailand, rode a local bus for grueling 5 hours to a stop off point, and finally an A/C coach bus for 3 hours into Krabi, which is right by Phuket. Here, Garlef went to Phuket, and I decided to go to the East coast islands of Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan, and Koh Tao. In the morning, we said farewell and went our separate ways.

These east coast islands are known for all-night parties, especially Koh Pha Ngan, which hosts the world famous Full Moon Parties (and half moon, black moon, pretty much any excuse for a party) each month, where upwards of 10,000 people come to the beaches to party. On Koh Samui, my first destination, I was surprised to find how developed the island was, with McDonalds, Starbucks, and numerous resorts lining the main street. On one of the days, I rented a motorcycle to explore the island and go to the mall to get a new camera, which was a little dangerous now that I think about it. There was basically no Rules of the Road, no stoplights, and they ride on the left side of the road. Nonetheless, riding down the curvy coastal roads was exhilarating. Each of the three nights I went out with some of the guys and girls I met on the island. They were interesting nights, to say the least...

After 4 days, I hopped onto another island, Ko Pha Ngan, where I'm at right now. It's a quaint little island, but packed with raging tourists from all over the world in this one area of the island called Haad Rin. Last night, I watched the world cup (which is GREAT to watch in a country other than the US) then headed to the beach to meet up with some of the people I met on Koh Samui. We had a grand ol' time. And today, I just slept on the beach, reading, listening to music, pretty much doing nothing.

Tomorrow, I'm going to Koh Tao, which is well-known for scuba diving as there are over 40 dive operators on the tiny island, servicing divers from all over the world. And now, I'm gonna go catch the Spain-Switzerland game. Go Switzerland!

- Ryoji

The Jungle and the Beach

2010-06-08T06:00:00.003-05:00

After hanging out in 3 cities, Singapore, Melaka, and KL, I headed to the Taman Negara National Park in the center of Malaysia, where conservation efforts have kept the rainforest intact against thoughtless urban development efforts. On the way to the jungle, I met Garlef, a German guy, and Andy, a British backpacker, at the bus stop. Along with 2 other girls, we stayed at this dingy, airless hostel, where we slept with lizards, huge spiders, and a praying mantis by our side throughout the night.

Garlef, Andy, and I signed up for a 2 day, 1 night overnight trek into the jungle with our guide, Imra. The walk wasn't all that bad because it wasn't that much of an up-down terrain, and the only thing that got to us was the humidity. At the end of the day, we spend the night in this giant cave in the middle of the jungle. So we collected firewood and river water to start cooking our dinner - chicken curry, rice, and vegetable soup - which was all delicious. Throughout dinner, we had noticed that our guide wasn't eating all that much, but we didn't really think twice about it. But about 2 hours after dinner, he digs into his backpack, and with a sly grin, he takes out a kilogram of some steak meat. He proceeds to split a logwood in half, place the meat between the wood, and cook it in the fire. The whole time, he's laughing out loud and pointing at us. But at the end, he shared it with everybody (although it wasn't all that good) though I'm still not convinced that it was beef.

After the trek, we came back to the hostel, where a bunch of us drank cheap whiskey and sang cheesy American songs while our guide played the guitar...

Garlef, Andy, and I decided to travel together to the Perhentian Islands on the East Coast of Malaysia, and we bid farewell to the girls, who were going in the other direction. For no apparent reason, we decided to take the Jungle Railway, which is notorious for its slow pace and loud children on board. And after much scenic meandering and 8 hours of shouting children, we arrived at the port city, where we took a 30 minute boat ride to the islands.

The Perhentian Islands consist of 2 islands, and many beaches, but we stayed at the most popular area, and we failed to leave our little comfort spot even with 4 days of doing nothing. We stayed in a chalet, which we had called our dungeon, our shithole, basically a home away from home where we would rather sleep on the beach if it weren't for the damn mosquitoes (although the chalet, mosquito net, and insect repellect didn't help us from being eaten alive). Basically, the days went like this: wake up, go to the beach, burn, eat, swim, burn, sleep on the beach, eat, eat, "party" (it wasn't that lively of an island). To say the least, we had a very relaxing time, but 4 days on the island was more than enough - we were itching to do things, something, anything at all.

Andy went his own way, but Garlef and I are still traveling together, and we are heading to Penang tonight in an overnight coach bus. We are planning to travel to Thailand in a couple of days.

- Ryoji

Melaka and KL, Malaysia

2010-06-01T09:43:00.003-05:00

It's been almost a week since my last post from Singapore, and as I had predicted, I only stayed one night there. I took a bus ride to Melaka in the southern region of Malaysia, where I spent 4 days hanging out with other backpackers - going to a karaoke bar, watching Sex and the City... Melaka was a fantastic city with a rich history. It used to be a major port city, by far the biggest in Malaysia, and perhaps all of Malaysia, until it was colonized first by the Dutch, then the Portuguese, and finally the British. Just like Singapore, there's a mixture of Malay, Chinese, and Indian cultures, but with a Western taste, like the St. Paul church. Anyways, I was planning on spending only 2 nights there, but when you don't have a plan, it's hard to tear yourself away from a friendly environment with great people.

My next destination was Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, and as the capital, skyscrapers, shopping malls, and glitter donned the city. The famous Petronas Towers, the tallest building before 2003, was quite impressive, especially at night.

I also walked around the city for almost 6 hours on the first day, going from the National Museum to the National Mosque (where I had to wear a pink robe to enter) finally finishing at the Chow Kit, where they sell literally anything. But my biggest reason for coming to KL wasn't for the mosque or the Petronas Towers, but I met up with Zharif!! For those of you that don't know Zharif, he was my best friend from 3rd to 8th great when he moved back to Malaysia, and I haven't seen him since. We hung out for two nights with his local Malay friends along with his brother, smoking hookah, playing counter strike and eating until 4am in the morning. I felt like I got a sense of what some of the locals do at night. Also, Zharif's family took me out to a really nice Thai restaurant and stuffed me with great food. All in all, I had a great time in KL, and it was great to catch up with an old friend of mine.

Tomorrow, I am going on a 2 day, 1 night jungle trip in the Taman Negara national park, which I'm sure will be interesting.

- Ryoji

First destination: Singapore

2010-05-25T03:37:00.004-05:00

After a grueling 19-hour trip in a cramped unknown chinese airline, with one of my contacts bathing in a water cup, and watching The Phone Booth with no sound and only in Chinese subtitles, I finally arrived at Singapore...at 5am. Just as a precaution, I waited until sunrise to make my way to the city (because some people are really worried that I won't make it back alive from this trip). The first thing that I noticed about Singapore, and probably all of SE Asia, was how HUMID the place was, almost like swimming through air. I had to make several pit stops during the day in some of the sprawling shopping malls located on every corner of the city.

Having been told that I can only check in at 3pm at the hostel, I had good 8 hours to kill before I could rest. So lugging my backpack, still with only one eye contact, I trekked throughout this small city-nation. A little background on Singapore: It was first founded by Sir Ruffles from Britain in 1819, and before colonization, the city was merely a small fishing village. It soon became a booming port town with European, American, and Asian trade ships going in and out, day in and day out. So even today, English is one of the official languages (though most people aren't very good at it), and three distinct races occupy the city-nation - Chinese, Indian, and Malay. What's most interesting about Singapore is the fact that it's an amalgamation of colonialism, high technology, and a strange mixture of races that don't seem to mix at all. They live together, side by side, but they don't have a common language so it doesn't seem like the different races interact at all.

As a backpacker, I've found that Singapore doesn't have too much to offer considering I'm not going to be shopping at Cartier or Burberry any time on this trip, their idea of nature is a zoo, and outdoor activities are limited to running and cricket. One great thing about Singapore is the numerous food courts that offer Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, and Indian cuisine for a very affordable price. I'm not exactly sure how long I'll stay, but don't be surprised if I'm in a different country by my next post.

- Ryoji

Start of the journey

2010-05-21T19:27:00.005-05:00

I'm starting my backpacking trip tomorrow! I'm going to LA first and spending the night there because it's much cheaper to fly from LAX to Singapore than from Chicago. I've pretty much thrown away everything that I own - furniture, clothes, random gadgets - so that I'm down to 2 cardboard boxes, a backpack, and a guitar. My parents are actually moving back to Japan, going back to their home country, which means that I don't have any family obligation to stay in Chicago. It's a great feeling to have no strings attached.

It's a bit scary right now as I'm beginning to leave my comfortable bubble with my high school/college friends, my family, and throwing myself into a complete unknown. I'm actually kind of homeless now. It's a lot stranger than the time I went backpacking in Central America over winter break because I knew that I had a place to come back to when I was done. But now, I don't really have a place to return. Just like the other trip though, I need to wait until I have that "fu*k it" feeling where I stop caring what happens next. Then, just then, will backpacking be truly exciting.

So I guess this is the first and the last post with my own laptop. I'll frequently update this (hopefully) at internet cafes around Southeast Asia.

- Ryoji