...for real. Ever since I was a youngster and saw Point Break, surfing has been something that I always wanted to do. After being in Jakarta and Bandung for a total of three days, Brent and I hauled it out of those packed, polluted, and totally boring cities. We found ourselves in a small beach village in a bay on the southern coast of Java called Pangandaran. After a very packed six hour bus ride that we literally had to run and jump onto. It took me about a week to be able to pronounce/remember the name of the place. After seeing the beach and the waves the first night we arrived, I said to Brent "Those waves look surfable." To which he replied "Those waves are definitely surfable." Two days later I met a man named Full Moon (for real) at 10:00am for my first ever surf lesson. Full Moon, aside from being a very good teacher and nice guy, is a total and complete surfer bra'. He IS the Indonesian version of Bodhi (Patrick Swayze's character) from Point Break. Minus the bank thievery part of course.
Everyday since then I have been surfing. And getting better all the time. Surfing is very difficult. Gaging when and which wave to catch, predicting when the wave is going to break, getting the feel of when the board is moving sufficiently enough to stop paddling and stand, the rashes and scrapes that come in the first few days, and added on top of that is how incredible of a workout it is. Even just paddling out far enough to where the waves are. I started out on a long board which is a heavier board meaning that it moves slower thus making it easier to stand and maneuver. Then I switched to a short board, which is pretty much like starting from square one. Shorter boards are made of fiber glass, are slippery, and weigh almost nothing. Which makes it possible to catch waves on the slope before the break, turn quick and swiftly, and maneuver yourself easier because you do not want to be stuck underneath the barrel when it comes crashing down on you. Even that though is fun. It is truly an exhilarating experience to be thrown around by a huge wave. You come up out of the water after being flipped and turned every which way without any idea of which direction you're facing, where your board is, or if in the crashing you've lost your shorts. It is a humbling journey to be at the crux of something as large as nature. Of which all control has vanished. But all in all, surfing is something that I have set out to do for a long time now. And I can truly say that I do it. The first wave I caught (which was probably about 12 inches high), I felt like Bill Murray in What About Bob when he is tied to the sail of the sailboat screaming "Iii'mmm Saiiiling". Truly a magnificent experience.
That's all I got right now. Travelling is amazing. The places, the people, the smells, and the life in general. This world is truly remarkable.
Brent and I have parted for a short time. He is travelling east towards Bali (where we will be meeting soon to catch a flight back to Kuala Lumpur), doing awesome things like looking at incredibly old and beautiful temples larger than one could imagine, volcanoes, probably taking some wonderful hikes, and witnessing some outrages landscapes. I decided to stay in Pangandaran to surf as much as possible. I actually went out with the locals today. Sort of felt like a child again being taken along by my older brothers to do something cooler than I ever could have imagined. And I surfed very well...proving myself to the initiation of the surfing brotherhood.
hope you are all well and smiling
nate
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
sex shops...
...are all over the place in Singapore. Literally, it seems as though there was one on every block. Which is kind of odd considering that it is against the law to spit or chew gum in public. Singapore is a land of a booming economy, which renders it the means to be a very expensive place to be in. After traveling for so long in places where money is not such a dominating factor to the atmosphere of the area, it was kind of strange to be in such a place. It was very clean as well which is something that has not too often been the case. After talking to some local friends that we made on our last night there (we only stayed for two days), we learned that the people in Singapore are generally living in oppression. Singapore, in my opinion much like the U.S., is one of those places in which the government of the country wants it to appear to be such a good place to be. Clean, drug and violence free, and with enough shopping malls to give the Mall of America and Times Square a run for their money. While the people who make the interior of the country are repressed and ruled with a very strict hand. It's not that Singapore is without the crime and drugs that are a part of any large city. It's that the government deems it necessary to punish these crimes with outlandishly harsh consequences. Leaving the people in Singapore scared to live, and giving the tourist's who want to spend the money that it cost's to be there the illusion of a place that might not truly be. But all in all, it was a nice place and really, what society exists these days (or any days since the introduction of governments and laws) without oppression?
We hooked up with a guy named Star on the bus from Melaka to Singapore. He is a guy from Holland and pretty cool. Minus the fact that he is a know it all and will argue any point no matter what it is. We were in Chinatown talking to a guy who lived in Cambodia. The man was telling Brent and I that Cambodia was a very nice and cheap place to visit. Being that he lives there, this is something that I would not question, but Star was very quick to disagree with him and tell him that in fact no, Cambodia was quite expensive. "I was there so I know". It was another quite embaressing moment that Brent and I felt when being around Star. The man simply ignored him and continued his conversation with us. Being around a person like Star, who was pretty cool to us and other travellers but truly an arsehole to local people, it made me appreciate travelling with Brent all over again. We are, I guess in our hearts, truly and completely grateful to all the local people that we meet. And interested in them on deeper level than being served and helped. We don't expect to have everything made to be perfect for us. And we are never demanding or full of complaints when things may not be going the way we want or expect them to be. And we are willing to put in effort to work with them as well. Just eating with Star once and hearing him request discounts and complain that the food wasn't spicy enough, then seeing the smiles that usually seem to come so naturally from all the people that I've met so far completely disappear...it was depressing. Mind you, Star has been all over the place, so he has experience in travelling. I felt relieved that Brent and myself don't leave impressions like that on the people we interact with. But, some people who travel are just that way. Meeting them is just as much part of the experience as anything else so I was grateful to make his aquantance.
After Singapore for a couple days, we took a ferry to Batam. Which was our passover to Indonesia. And then a flight to Jakarta. Jakarta is a city with a population of 12 million people. Brent and I walked about ten miles of the city yesterday and concluded that there isn't much going on here except traffic and air that is hard to breathe. We are staying in a room that has too many mosquitoes in it. Probably going to be leaving today to go to Bandung. We came to Indonesia without a travellers guide so we are at the whim of doing more talking with people that live here to find our way. I am pretty sure that we are to find the train station at some point today and head out. Jakarta may not be the city in Indonesia that we are looking for, but holy shit...it cost's next to nothing to be here. One U.S. dollar gets you 10,500 Indonesian Rupees. Food costs about RP12,000-15,000. Our room cost's RP60,000. Apples and oranges cost RP2,500. I am finally a millionare!!!!! It is about 7am here and I have had trouble sleeping the past couple nights due to mosquitoes and bed bugs. But, I hope this finds everyone well and I hope that everyone can find the comfort in petting an animal, or getting a hug from someone soon.
word to yo muthas
nate
We hooked up with a guy named Star on the bus from Melaka to Singapore. He is a guy from Holland and pretty cool. Minus the fact that he is a know it all and will argue any point no matter what it is. We were in Chinatown talking to a guy who lived in Cambodia. The man was telling Brent and I that Cambodia was a very nice and cheap place to visit. Being that he lives there, this is something that I would not question, but Star was very quick to disagree with him and tell him that in fact no, Cambodia was quite expensive. "I was there so I know". It was another quite embaressing moment that Brent and I felt when being around Star. The man simply ignored him and continued his conversation with us. Being around a person like Star, who was pretty cool to us and other travellers but truly an arsehole to local people, it made me appreciate travelling with Brent all over again. We are, I guess in our hearts, truly and completely grateful to all the local people that we meet. And interested in them on deeper level than being served and helped. We don't expect to have everything made to be perfect for us. And we are never demanding or full of complaints when things may not be going the way we want or expect them to be. And we are willing to put in effort to work with them as well. Just eating with Star once and hearing him request discounts and complain that the food wasn't spicy enough, then seeing the smiles that usually seem to come so naturally from all the people that I've met so far completely disappear...it was depressing. Mind you, Star has been all over the place, so he has experience in travelling. I felt relieved that Brent and myself don't leave impressions like that on the people we interact with. But, some people who travel are just that way. Meeting them is just as much part of the experience as anything else so I was grateful to make his aquantance.
After Singapore for a couple days, we took a ferry to Batam. Which was our passover to Indonesia. And then a flight to Jakarta. Jakarta is a city with a population of 12 million people. Brent and I walked about ten miles of the city yesterday and concluded that there isn't much going on here except traffic and air that is hard to breathe. We are staying in a room that has too many mosquitoes in it. Probably going to be leaving today to go to Bandung. We came to Indonesia without a travellers guide so we are at the whim of doing more talking with people that live here to find our way. I am pretty sure that we are to find the train station at some point today and head out. Jakarta may not be the city in Indonesia that we are looking for, but holy shit...it cost's next to nothing to be here. One U.S. dollar gets you 10,500 Indonesian Rupees. Food costs about RP12,000-15,000. Our room cost's RP60,000. Apples and oranges cost RP2,500. I am finally a millionare!!!!! It is about 7am here and I have had trouble sleeping the past couple nights due to mosquitoes and bed bugs. But, I hope this finds everyone well and I hope that everyone can find the comfort in petting an animal, or getting a hug from someone soon.
word to yo muthas
nate
Friday, January 2, 2009
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!
New Years was absolutely amazing. So after being on the island of Langkawi for far longer than we expected, we eventually started talking about Indonesia and got itchy feet. We decided to leave on the 28th on a ferry to Penang in hopes to catch a ferry the next day to Medan on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. Like we have learned, it's never a good idea to get stuck on plans while travelling about.
We got to the ferry terminal in Langkawi and found that all the ferries to Penang were sold out for the next two days. We though quickly and decided to catch a ferry to Kedai which is mainland Malaysia, then catch a bus from the nearest bus station to Penang. We got to Kedai, took a taxi with some English people we met to the bus station and made it to Penang at around 7pm. The ferry to Medan from Penang only runs Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and since we had already spent a week on Penang we really didn't want to be there for more than one night. As soon as we started checking into getting to Medan we were told that the next day (Mon.) was a national holiday and no ferries would be running.
We weighed out our options and made a huge change in plans. We decided instead to catch a bus the next day to the capitol city of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. It was probably the best choice ever. After hustling around Sunday evening into the night in Penang trying to find a bus to Kuala Lumpur that wasn't sold out, we finally found a travel agency that actually decided to run an extra bus the next morning at 9:30. We were set. And very relieved as well.
Kuala Lumpur is incredible. It is the cleanest huge city I have ever seen. The parks there are gorgeous and the people are way nicer than those in most big cities. Being on Langkawi, we met a lot of people from Kuala Lumpur including our friend Pitt who currently lives in Penang and works at a bar called The Social in Bukit Bintang which is sort of a times square type of place. We got to K.L. and got in touch with him after finding a cheap room in Chinatown at a hostel called The Wheelers, which is run by a lady boy. After getting directions to his work, we made our way there and decided during the walk that his bar was probably going to be way to fancy for us. Which it was. But shortly after we got there, Pitt started pouring the beer and let us know that it was on the house. After this went on for a bit, his co-workers started talking with us, playing cards and what not, then his co-workers started pouring us beer too. People in Malaysia are too kind. And I am being completely honest when I say that. Three or four hours later we asked Pitt if we could PLEASE tip him and he just laughed at us and said "no".
We spent the next day walking around the city. In parks, Chinatown, Little India, the busiest parts and the prettiest parts. We realized that Malaysia is a wonderful country and we are completely confused as to why nobody seems to come here when they travel Southeast Asia. I mean really, I had not heard hardly anything about the country other than it was a Muslim country. Which is maybe why a lot of Americans don't feel necessarily safe to travel here. Anyways, it's baffling.
We went up the Petronas Towers the morning of New Years Eve...mind blowing those towers are. A sight to see for sure. They get up to somewhere around 900 meters high. And they are an amazing piece of architecture. And...if you get in line at about 8am (mind you that B and I have been sleeping until around 1 or 2pm for about six weeks now) you get to go up for free.
And now comes New Years Eve. I don't know where to begin since words cannot (at least none that come to my mind) describe. We began at Merdeka Square where there was a giant stage set up. On this stage the first thing that we saw was a symphony doing a medley of "classic rock". With a drum set, bass, keys, and guitar as well in the line-up. They kicked off with Enter Sandman. By the way, if that is classic rock I am turning into an old man quicker than I thought. It was so righteous. Then there was traditional Malay and Hindu dancing, more music, a couple rad Malay hip-hop acts, and about 3000 people gathered around dancing and celebrating. We hung out there until about 10:30pm when we decided to head to The Golden Triangle (which is pretty much the heart of K.L.) to catch the party at the Petronas Towers. There were people as far as the eye could see. Literally an ocean of people gathered. All people. Everyone from the age of 1-100. Every culture and walk of life. There was a beautiful music, light, and water show. And then it happened. The countdown. The fireworks. The people screaming and laughing and jumping for joy. Absolutely, hands down, the best celebration I have ever seen.
After the towers we headed to Bukit Bingtan and that was just crazy. Silly string, closed off streets, and thousands upon thousands of people walking and singing and dancing. We ended the night at about three in the morning dancing in front of a 24 hour convenient store with about twenty other sweaty people. Getting sprayed with silly string and doused with beer. It was the perfect way to start 2009.
The next day we caught a bus to Malaka at 1pm. Which after the walk home and passing out somewhere around four or five in the morning, felt very early. Malaka is my favorite city we've been to so far. That's the thing about Malaysia...it just keeps getting better and better. Malaka is the most charming, adorable, and inviting place...EVER!!!! Chinatown is the most authentic I have seen yet and the guesthouse we are staying in is by far the most righteous as well. It's a place called Tony's right next to the river and it is full of art and awesome people. It has a funky vibe and if we didn't have a flight booked for Jakarta next Thursday I think we would stay here longer. We found this place by trusting what a person with a Rough Guide to Malaysia that we don't know wrote down. Which was nothing but a map written in ink pointing to this place that we followed on foot from the bus station. We were not at all disappointed though.
Melaka is like a Disneyland that you don't have to pay for. I feel like every morning when we wake up the whole city is going to be joined together in the street signing the same song and doing the same dance moves. Seriously. It's a place anyone would love. And the night life is good as well. It's everything that anyone would want in a city. And I am going to come back here at some point. And I am going to come back to Kuala Lumpur as well. And I am going to go back to Langkawi too. I guess that what I am saying is that Malaysia is positively a place that one who is travelling should not skip over. No matter what!
On a more important than anything else I have mentioned side note. My little sister Jessica gave birth to her first baby boy on Monday, December 29th at 10pm. Ian Michael Lee Wright. 6 pounds, 10 ounces, and healthy. My wishes to be there are so strong but I know that my nephew and I will meet soon. And when we do, I am going to teach him the pull my finger trick, how to burp, how to rock out some air guitar, and who knows whatever else my obnoxious childlike side will bring out. All I know is that my heart is with him, my sister, and the rest of my family and friends constantly.
Happy New Year!!!
nate
We got to the ferry terminal in Langkawi and found that all the ferries to Penang were sold out for the next two days. We though quickly and decided to catch a ferry to Kedai which is mainland Malaysia, then catch a bus from the nearest bus station to Penang. We got to Kedai, took a taxi with some English people we met to the bus station and made it to Penang at around 7pm. The ferry to Medan from Penang only runs Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and since we had already spent a week on Penang we really didn't want to be there for more than one night. As soon as we started checking into getting to Medan we were told that the next day (Mon.) was a national holiday and no ferries would be running.
We weighed out our options and made a huge change in plans. We decided instead to catch a bus the next day to the capitol city of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. It was probably the best choice ever. After hustling around Sunday evening into the night in Penang trying to find a bus to Kuala Lumpur that wasn't sold out, we finally found a travel agency that actually decided to run an extra bus the next morning at 9:30. We were set. And very relieved as well.
Kuala Lumpur is incredible. It is the cleanest huge city I have ever seen. The parks there are gorgeous and the people are way nicer than those in most big cities. Being on Langkawi, we met a lot of people from Kuala Lumpur including our friend Pitt who currently lives in Penang and works at a bar called The Social in Bukit Bintang which is sort of a times square type of place. We got to K.L. and got in touch with him after finding a cheap room in Chinatown at a hostel called The Wheelers, which is run by a lady boy. After getting directions to his work, we made our way there and decided during the walk that his bar was probably going to be way to fancy for us. Which it was. But shortly after we got there, Pitt started pouring the beer and let us know that it was on the house. After this went on for a bit, his co-workers started talking with us, playing cards and what not, then his co-workers started pouring us beer too. People in Malaysia are too kind. And I am being completely honest when I say that. Three or four hours later we asked Pitt if we could PLEASE tip him and he just laughed at us and said "no".
We spent the next day walking around the city. In parks, Chinatown, Little India, the busiest parts and the prettiest parts. We realized that Malaysia is a wonderful country and we are completely confused as to why nobody seems to come here when they travel Southeast Asia. I mean really, I had not heard hardly anything about the country other than it was a Muslim country. Which is maybe why a lot of Americans don't feel necessarily safe to travel here. Anyways, it's baffling.
We went up the Petronas Towers the morning of New Years Eve...mind blowing those towers are. A sight to see for sure. They get up to somewhere around 900 meters high. And they are an amazing piece of architecture. And...if you get in line at about 8am (mind you that B and I have been sleeping until around 1 or 2pm for about six weeks now) you get to go up for free.
And now comes New Years Eve. I don't know where to begin since words cannot (at least none that come to my mind) describe. We began at Merdeka Square where there was a giant stage set up. On this stage the first thing that we saw was a symphony doing a medley of "classic rock". With a drum set, bass, keys, and guitar as well in the line-up. They kicked off with Enter Sandman. By the way, if that is classic rock I am turning into an old man quicker than I thought. It was so righteous. Then there was traditional Malay and Hindu dancing, more music, a couple rad Malay hip-hop acts, and about 3000 people gathered around dancing and celebrating. We hung out there until about 10:30pm when we decided to head to The Golden Triangle (which is pretty much the heart of K.L.) to catch the party at the Petronas Towers. There were people as far as the eye could see. Literally an ocean of people gathered. All people. Everyone from the age of 1-100. Every culture and walk of life. There was a beautiful music, light, and water show. And then it happened. The countdown. The fireworks. The people screaming and laughing and jumping for joy. Absolutely, hands down, the best celebration I have ever seen.
After the towers we headed to Bukit Bingtan and that was just crazy. Silly string, closed off streets, and thousands upon thousands of people walking and singing and dancing. We ended the night at about three in the morning dancing in front of a 24 hour convenient store with about twenty other sweaty people. Getting sprayed with silly string and doused with beer. It was the perfect way to start 2009.
The next day we caught a bus to Malaka at 1pm. Which after the walk home and passing out somewhere around four or five in the morning, felt very early. Malaka is my favorite city we've been to so far. That's the thing about Malaysia...it just keeps getting better and better. Malaka is the most charming, adorable, and inviting place...EVER!!!! Chinatown is the most authentic I have seen yet and the guesthouse we are staying in is by far the most righteous as well. It's a place called Tony's right next to the river and it is full of art and awesome people. It has a funky vibe and if we didn't have a flight booked for Jakarta next Thursday I think we would stay here longer. We found this place by trusting what a person with a Rough Guide to Malaysia that we don't know wrote down. Which was nothing but a map written in ink pointing to this place that we followed on foot from the bus station. We were not at all disappointed though.
Melaka is like a Disneyland that you don't have to pay for. I feel like every morning when we wake up the whole city is going to be joined together in the street signing the same song and doing the same dance moves. Seriously. It's a place anyone would love. And the night life is good as well. It's everything that anyone would want in a city. And I am going to come back here at some point. And I am going to come back to Kuala Lumpur as well. And I am going to go back to Langkawi too. I guess that what I am saying is that Malaysia is positively a place that one who is travelling should not skip over. No matter what!
On a more important than anything else I have mentioned side note. My little sister Jessica gave birth to her first baby boy on Monday, December 29th at 10pm. Ian Michael Lee Wright. 6 pounds, 10 ounces, and healthy. My wishes to be there are so strong but I know that my nephew and I will meet soon. And when we do, I am going to teach him the pull my finger trick, how to burp, how to rock out some air guitar, and who knows whatever else my obnoxious childlike side will bring out. All I know is that my heart is with him, my sister, and the rest of my family and friends constantly.
Happy New Year!!!
nate
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