tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88796312008-05-08T08:15:28.387-07:00jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comBlogger245125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-11252684768368813532008-02-28T10:58:00.000-08:002008-02-28T13:48:30.810-08:00

Since Starbucks has been in the news lately--both because of the three-hour training shutdown and, a few months ago, the tragic closing of the Forbidden City Starbucks (covered on my blog here, among other places)--I thought I'd post the following article. Not just because I don't really have anything else to post, having been gone from China for over a year at this point (although I really don't

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-58930373191064194162008-01-16T15:12:00.000-08:002008-01-23T18:29:53.347-08:00

Yes, I'm back. Like LL Cool J in "I'm Bad," or the ghosts in Poltergiest. Or, I suppose, Poltergeist 2, if you want to be technical about it. And, let's face it, if there's one thing you can be sure of, it's that the Internet is full of people who do indeed want to be technical about it ... Anyway, onto the matter at hand. Or, to be technical about it (you know you want to be), the Fook Hing

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-47205018982526632792007-09-06T10:41:00.000-07:002007-09-06T10:44:49.593-07:00

After we got back to the US after our five-week "leaving China the long way" vacation, I remember thinking something like: "You know, I was going to end my blog, but we saw a lot of cool stuff on our trip that I can blog about, so I think I'll post some vacation stuff and THEN end the blog. I should be able to do it in a month or so, I think." Turns out, I was just a bit off on that estimate. (

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-65788960664102439682007-06-08T15:08:00.000-07:002007-06-29T10:55:54.194-07:00

Much like Shanghai and Beijing, when you walk around a city as big as Bangkok for any length of time, you're going to see some weird stuff. Whether it's whole roasted pigs for sale, people fishing in garbage, funny signs (everyone give it up for the Fook Hing Coffin Shop!), or just the ever popular public urination, you're bound to see something worth taking a picture of. If, you know, you have

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-5109389849577085112007-05-31T16:29:00.000-07:002007-06-03T17:16:49.549-07:00

Well, it's been a while since my last post. Possibly a record amount of time, but I'm too lazy to go back and check. Anyone else should feel free to do so, however--but just don't tell me about it. In my defense, since we last spoke (that is, since I last blogged) my wife has had twins, so I've been slightly busy. And yes, that is reverse hyperbole, thank you very much. Some might call it

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-60102388803929725392007-04-30T20:00:00.000-07:002007-04-30T20:00:20.567-07:00

After watching the sun rise of Angkor, what do you think we did? Go back home and fall back into bed? WRONG. No, like good tourists, we had something else booked post-Angkor, so rather than the aforementioned bed option, we headed to a cafe next to our hotel and drank cup after cup of instant Nescafe, a coffee-like substance that apparently contains caffeine, which is all I was really after--like

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-66000562124069454642007-04-15T13:31:00.000-07:002007-04-15T13:36:24.113-07:00

I've said it once, and I'll say it again: if you are ever in the general vicinity of Cambodia, you need to go to Siem Reap to check out the Angkor Temples. I know that sounds crazy--oh, I was just in the general vicinity of Cambodia last week!--but come on people, Thailand is right there so why wouldn't you go? It's just like Mexico, but cleaner and with better food. And the beaches aren't bad,

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-10226584472507675222007-04-03T15:37:00.000-07:002007-04-03T11:21:16.112-07:00

After resting for a few days to recover from the murderous hill climb (described in more detail in the previous post), we flew off to Cambodia to see the Angkor temples, mostly because we loved marching through the hot, sweaty jungle so much in Ang Thong Marine Park that we decided we should probably just do that for three or four more days. And, rather than do it for free, we should pay money--

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-77999059882732330772007-03-26T14:17:00.000-07:002007-04-03T11:23:43.299-07:00

After completing the Bataan-Death-March-like hike to the top of the big hill in Ang Thong Marine Park, I did more than take some pictures. Before that, I sat down for a few minutes to catch my breath and drink the rest of my water so I would have the energy to swear about the walk/death march we'd just finished. Then I swore about the walk/death march. Then I took the aforementioned pictures,

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-14828809490986607802007-03-19T14:01:00.000-07:002007-04-03T11:35:46.616-07:00

Like I said last time, there's not a lot to do in Koh Samui--apart from sitting on the beach, at least, which is, in general, more than enough for me. After all, tanning in that sort of weather is hard work: you have to put on suntan lotion (or sunscreen if you are a wuss: part wimp, part puss. Well, a wuss or Irish, either one) every time you get into and then out of the water, which gets old

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-8204922864037964842007-03-09T09:15:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:34:52.991-07:00

What to do after a three-week vacation in Vietnam, full of walking, sweating, sightseeing, and traveling? Why, take a break, of course! A vacation within in a vacation, if you will. Very Shakespearean, play-within-a-play, don't you think? Of course, in Shakespeare the play-within-a-play usually illuminates something within the play itself, so maybe the comparison doesn't quite apply. (Imagine

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-66154000384317253862007-03-02T11:55:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:34:24.581-07:00

Traveling through Asia as much as we did, we saw some pretty strange stuff: either things that people were doing, things that people had built, things that people were selling, and so on. However, I think it's pretty safe to say that the most bizarre thing I saw during my entire time in the Far East was the Cao Dai "Holy See" in Tay Ninh, a little town about fifty miles or so outside Saigon. The

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-80900919531414310002007-02-21T12:10:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:33:48.998-07:00

After hitting the Mekong, our next touristy side-trip was to the Cu Chi tunnels. And yes, "Cu Chi" is pronounced "coochie," for those of you (AKA all of you) who were wondering. As I've mentioned before, the official name of the Vietnamese currency is the dong, and if you suspect that might have led to some jokes about the number of dongs it took to get into the Cu Chi tunnels, well, you'd be

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1171484131812011352007-02-15T17:13:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:33:07.859-07:00

After spending our first few days in Saigon wandering through war-related museums and trying pretty much every Saigon beer to try to figure out which one was best (turns out, they all taste the same), we spent the next two days doing that most time-honored of tourist activities: the side trip. Yes, because spending 48 hours in a capitol city of 6 million that's hundred of years old is more than

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1171058921843519932007-02-10T18:11:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:32:30.874-07:00

If you walk around any big city for a significant length of time, eventually you're going to stumble across something that's strange, random, or just downright weird. Naturally, big cities in Asia are no exception. In fact, what with the millions of people crammed into them and all the crazy stuff they do, like peeing on sidewalks and drinking snake blood--calling the every day things other

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1170710402428045552007-02-05T13:17:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:32:00.091-07:00

After seeing the War Museum, we took a quick trip down the street to the other big Vietnam War site: Reunification Hall, AKA the former presidential palace, AKA the building that had its front gate bashed down by NVA tanks during the Fall of Saigon. Or at least, we tried to take a quick trip down the street to see Reunification Hall, but the random hours (it's not open from 11:30 AM to 1 PM for

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1170189233493102142007-02-02T16:18:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:27:52.965-07:00

After settling in to our hotel in Saigon, our first stop was the "War Remnants Museum," which is the new, more tourist-friendly name for what used to be called the "American War Crimes Museum." A subtle name, no doubt, but effective in conveying its point nonetheless. (It's called branding, people!) Anyway, as you might imagine, this museum was all about the Vietnam War. Or, as they like to call

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1169240837710974312007-01-24T17:07:00.000-08:002007-04-03T11:24:34.241-07:00

Our last stop in 'Nam--and yes, now that I've been there, I can call it that, thank you very much--was Ho Chi Minh City, ne Saigon, ne ... I have no idea, but something in Vietnamese, I suppose. Whatever. After seeing the rest of Vietnam and spending four days in Hoi An (which, as I said, is very pretty and quaint, but a little, well, Podunk after spending a year in Shanghai), I was excited to

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1169077899842749002007-01-17T15:48:00.000-08:002007-01-17T16:38:57.270-08:00

At long last, it's the last Hoi An post. Of course, there's a ton more posts from Saigon than there are from Hoi An, but since they include guns, bombs, and a religion that considers Victor Hugo a saint. really. (For those of you who didn't pay attention during English class, Les Miserables.) (The book, not the musical.) (Seriously?) Anyway, what better way to end Hoi An than with a lovely sunset

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1168921996266059342007-01-15T20:29:00.000-08:002007-01-15T21:47:34.266-08:00

So what is there to do in Hoi An besides stroll around the town for about two hours to take in pretty much every site and then get a few shoddily constructed suits or dresses or shoes made? Go see My Son, of course. My who now? My Son, which--for those of you who don't keep up on such thing, and you know who you are!--is the name given to the remnents of the Hindu temple complex in Central

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1168461625443532762007-01-10T12:39:00.000-08:002007-10-28T16:31:54.076-07:00

So, back to Hoi An. As I mentioned in my last post, it took me a few days before I started to warm up to Hoi An, what with it being overrun by obnoxious, unwashed backpackers all wearing the same Vietnamese flag shirt (bright red with yellow star on the chest) and talking about how great, cheap, non-touristy "Lao" was, which just pissed me off. It's LAOS people, not LAO. I don't care if the

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1168030616123748392007-01-05T12:47:00.000-08:002007-01-05T13:23:33.286-08:00

From Hue, we took a short ride (maybe 2 hours) to Hoi An, which was notable mostly because we drove over a mountain pass that gave us amazing views of the South China Sea, and—once we hit the top of the pass—Da Nang and it's amazing-looking beaches, including the famous "China Beach." (Famous from the Vietnam War. And TV. Probably more the latter these days, oddly enough.) Actually, the most

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1167690178951937992007-01-01T14:12:00.000-08:002007-01-01T14:23:11.606-08:00

Having gotten used to sketchy xeom (motorcycle) rides in Hanoi, we had no problem taking more of them in Hue. And of course, I had no problem videotaping it. I mean, as long as you consider riding on the back of a motorcycle driven too fast and too aggressively by some 15 year old Vietnamese kid while holding on with only one hand so you can hold your camera in the other to be "no problem," which

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1166736232680752042006-12-22T08:44:00.000-08:002006-12-22T10:28:18.153-08:00

So, as we were traveling down the Perfume River in our non-Dragon Boat dragon boat to see the various tombs and temples that line the water's edge, we kept seeing boats like this floating--barely floating--past us. For the record, that's sand, which, according to our always-foppish, occasionally-lisping guide, was used in construction somehow (concrete, I suppose?): Anyway, the interesting

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8879631.post-1166641698553947132006-12-20T11:03:00.000-08:002006-12-20T12:57:27.430-08:00

What else is there to see in Hue besides the poor man's Forbidden City (AKA the Imperial Palace)? Funny you should ask, because I just happen to have a bunch of pictures of the other major attraction: the Imperial Tombs. (I bet you never would have guessed from the title of this post!) So after spending our first day checking out the Imperial Palace, we fulfilled our touristic duties (which

jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12324715131020588214noreply@blogger.com