REI is fucking awesome

So, I went to REI in Concord last night to try to get a new daypack and get a new sternum strap for my big backpack... my Aries 55, which has been my companion for both Europe and S. America so far. After about half an hour or so of wandering around touching this and that, I came to the realization that #1- sternum straps aren't sold separately, and #2- nothing like my old daypack had been made since. I was starting to feel disappointed

But lo!

Tony, the supervisor dude for the floor, came over and asked me if he could help out. With his assistance, I not only found a killer daypack which will easily fit inside my bigger bag, but he helped me return my dirty 55 liter and get a more modest 50 liter (5 liters, it makes a difference, I'm tellin ya!). I also got 2 different types of mosquito repellent, a mosquito net, and my daypack for only 40 bucks, after getting my full refund from my old pack. Huzzah!

I'm so psyched about my new gear-, I can't help but run upstairs to zip and unzip, fold and unfold, and buckle and unbuckle it all up every few minutes.

First Monday of Freedom

Hello there, non-existent fans of this journal!

I'm starting in on my first Monday of freedom from a full-time job since I was 22. I finally quit my day job last Friday, and am using this last month to rush around in a blind panic trying to get everything done. Waiting for my landlord to come by and do my walk-through at the moment... eating microwaved broccoli in an attempt to get my fridge clean before moving day (Sunday), and eyeballing my bookcase for any last minute additions to my give-away pile.

27 days left.

The Premise

OK- now that I've ascertained that this thing works, I suppose I need to explain why I put it up in the first place... and stole all these catchy URL and site names (observe^). I am going on my round-the-world trip. Hence, the round-the-world blog. It's so cliche it almost makes me want to punch myself, but in lieu of trying to write out individual e-mails every week, I thought I'd make it simple for everyone. Of course, I'll still be sending out postcards and specific notes to people, but in the general "is Sam still alive?" category-- I think I've got it covered by signing on for my very first "Blog".

Except that I have to go now. I'll post more later. My last day of work is on March 6th- my schedule should clear then.

This is a test- I repeat, this is just a test

Testing, testing...

Indonesia Photos

I don't feel like I'm being quite fair by calling this "Indonesia Photos" since I only saw Bali and the Gilis.... but then again, I don't care. My blog, my titles.

Indonesia was a bit of a surprise. Like I said before, I know I've not

seen much of the country in total... but from what I DID see, it's

chock full of natural beauty. Look at this shit! Unlike

other countries (Burma, in particular)... the people left something to be desired, but what they lacked in hospitality and charisma- the landscape more than made up for. You can also see the disgruntled Peruvian that I met on the shores of Uluwatu who was pissed that you couldn't exchange nuevos soles for rupiah on this side of the world. Uluwatu, Bali, Indonesia.

So, for the first time since Europe, I travelled WITH another person. Corn Nut. Yes, I've had people visit, and maybe I've visited others (Marcelo, Nico-- I miss your warm houses!), but travelling WITH someone... I haven't done that since I was 21! It was an experience, and really a good way to learn how to compromise after 14 months of living only for myself. It was also a good reminder that sticking to a budget can be downright stupid sometimes. Taking a whole day to cross

an island by thumb when you can do it in an hour by reasonably-priced private car? A little dumb. Here we are on Gili Trewangan, Indonesia.

This photo doesn't have much to do with anything. Krisha took it

while we were waiting for a (sorry to say this Mark, but) shitty fire dance thing to start. It was WAY TOO LONG. Normally, I don't believe in globalization, but if the Indonesians would just learn a thing or two from Hollywood about the average human attention span... this would have been half the time, and included a lot more exploding shit. Watching a lady frown and rotate her wrists for 2 hours? Not so fun! Another thing that makes this photo interesting is that it's the only one I have of Mike where he's not pretending like he's about to sneeze. -sighs- South Africans are gorgeous. Uluwatu, Bali, Indonesia.

I'm not sure why this picture came out so fuzzy... but here's Corn Nut being measured for a suit. One of about 3 she bought in Indo. One thing I really regret about my time in Asia is that I didn't buy enough stuff. I'm about to go home, and I've almost no clothing to bring with me! Crummy. Now I'm in Latin America again, and I'm hard pressed to find anything that isn't either covered in rhinestones or lace. -shudder- Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.

Laos Photos

I hate to be predictable... but man I loved Laos. Like, I REALLY loved Laos. I´d damn near say it´d be in my top 5, except that I´ve been to Burma, Sri Lanka, El Salvador, India, and Ethiopia already. Hard to beat those. That being said, I´ll have to try to keep these limited...

I know this photo is bordering on gross... but I can´t help but laugh when I see it. Jesus Christ. We milked these buggers every morning, (and I think they milked them at night too), but for some reason, this particular one was always overflowing with milk. My god that looks so uncomfortable. Phoundindaeng Village, Laos.


Muang Ngoi is one of those places that you can´t explain, exactly. It´s not like there´s that much to do--- and for how tiny the village is, there´s actually kind of a lot of tourists. It´s cheap, but then again, what in Laos isn´t? And yet... there´s just something about it that keeps one reminiscing and thinking, and just MISSING it. Here´s an afternoon spent getting WHOOPED in dodgeball by some neighborhood kids. I looked like a total ass. I´m also not sure what Kevin´s doing in the background there, but it makes me giggle every time I look at this photo. Muang Ngoi, Laos.


After a delightful afternoon in the boonies, Lior, Kevin, Mandy and I began our walk home. Our 3 hour walk home. If we had only turned around when Mandy said we should. -sighs- At least we got a work-out and this sweet photo. Muang Ngoi, Laos.

OK, so I won´t lie-- I used saturation on this photo... but had I not, it wouldn´t have done Don Det justice! I´m irritated with myself for not having saved enough time to enjoy 4,000 islands properly. With only a day left on my visa, I had to scoot. But, I´m grateful that I was brave enough to fight my way through the clouds of mosquitos on the island to find this spot. Man, I wonder what it would have been like to be the first farang to see this. Paradise. Blissful paradise. Don Det, 4,000 Islands, Laos.

Israel Photos

Here's a photo of Rosh Hanikra, as promised. There were a lot of other great photos of the place, but this one shows the least of my underwear. Plus, you can really see the water. This place is going to make it to the top ten of places I've been on this trip.

Here I am eating Nutella with Avocado. Shiri and I discussed how Nutella is pretty much good on anything. Then we talked about how Avocado was good on anything. In the end, both of us gave it a try... not really to prove a point, but mostly to gross out Shiran.

This is a photo from Jerusalem. That patch of sky is apparently the exact spot where Jesus ascended to heaven. Underneath this spot is a box thingy that has a stone and a place to pray in it. The box was less impressive than the sky patch. Plus, a lot of people were crying in it.

It was awkward.

The Dead Sea and its mud. We were just being silly... but really, putting this black gook on does two things: makes you freaking hot, because the sun is beating down on you and you feel like you're going to faint... and secondly, makes your skin all slippery. A good kind of slippery.

These photos are really out of order, since my birthday was before most of this other hulabaloo. I just thought this was one of the best photos of the night. That is all. Best 25th I could have hoped for.

I'll post more photos later. I'm sick of looking at the computer.