Category Archives: Travel

SEA: Day 60 – Chill Day

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Most of this day was just relaxing and prepping for the Tu Lan cave expedition. It’s a 4 day, 3 night, 34 kilometer hike going through multiple caves and camping out in the jungle coordinated by Oxalis. I’ve never done anything in my life remotely like this, and I was super pumped. The briefing wasn’t until 5:30 pm, so I had the afternoon to hang out until then. So I went on a short muddy bike ride through Phong Nha, chilled by the pool, took a nap, and then met up with my group and tour guide at 5:30pm.

Map I used to navigate the biking course.

There would be 3 of us tourists, 2 tour guides, 1 expert caver, and 5 porters. We went through some slide presentations, safety stuff, more safety, and then had dinner together. By 8pm, everyone had either retired for the night or went on to take care of other things. I was back in my room early as well and got ready for the next day. Since we’d be gone for 3 nights, we left the majority of our gear with the hotel. All I took were 2 pairs of boxers, 3 pairs of socks, 2 long sleeves, 2 pants, 1 pair of shorts, camera, gopro, phone, external battery charger, and my wallet (probably, I can’t remember).

Note: WordPress just removed the ability to look up things in Google Photos. I have to scroll backwards to find photos now? Takes forever. I hope this is a glitch.

Some views while biking.
Biking views.

SEA: Day 59 – Travel to Phong Nha

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Lately, before I leave the apartment, I’ve been making sure to a.) take a cold water dip in the pool and b.) write this blog. Normally I wake up around 7ish and can get these two things done along with a few other things off my checklist. I’m leaning on calling these “checklist items” my Actions List for one reason or another.

Well, today was daylight saving time. I did not know and woke up naturally at 7:30am, which is actually 8:30 now. This kind of threw my day off since it’s Sunday and I like to make it to the 9:15am service at Tapestry. I actually got into the pool within 10 minutes of waking up. Think that’s the fastest I ever made it. I decided I’d write this piece at church so I could make service.

I can’t recall being worried about daylight saving time while in Asia. Why does the United States, and societies in general, stick with outdated practices? I suppose as humans, we may like to stick with what we know, what is comfortable, what is routine. We don’t like change once the dust has settled. I believe this can become dangerous as “routine” becomes boring and dull. Our minds need stimulation to continue to function. And maybe that’s why some people, once they get stagnant in life, work, relationship, etc., decide on something drastic. Travel, quit, break up, move, … everything I have done, and other things I haven’t even thought of. To go look for stimulation to break out of this routine life. I believe others don’t need this because they have found ways to keep their brains learning and active. Their “routine” includes dealing with things outside the norm, which is ironically, not routine at all.

New experiences are refreshing for the soul, whether it’s physical or mental, good or bad.

During this trip, taking buses, being somewhat lost, and not knowing exactly where we were going became my routine. At first, it was extremely uncomfortable. It was difficult for me to give up control, always projecting what I expected next. It happened abruptly the first time I had an unscheduled bus stop. Okay, unschedule stop is fine. But when it includes a stop, getting off the bus, switching busses, in the middle of the night, on the side of the road, without an explanation, can be startling. When this first happened, I didn’t know what to do. But what can you do? You can’t NOT go. So you just go. It was both terrifying and quite liberating at the same time. I had one reasonable decision to make, and I went with it. Got onto the other bus, and fell asleep. That was my bus ride back from Sapa to Hanoi.

The bus ride from Hanoi to Phong Na was equally strange. Bunch of us were shuttled from a hostel meeting point into a van, dropped off somewhere, waited around for 15 minutes, shoved onto another bus, dropped off and walked to another location, waited around, shuttled onto a bus, waited on the bus for an hour, and then the bus ride started.

A few hours in, I was dropped off at another hostel and told to wait for another bus. For real? Why can no one tell me this was supposed to happen before it happened?! Why am I the only one being dropped off? And how come the hostel looks closed?? Oh, right. Because it’s 4 in the morning. A few busses did show up, people from the hostel came out and got on, I asked the driver if I should get on, I was told no, and the bus drove off. What an uncomfortable feeling. Also, I was cold. Being cold sucks. If it was sunny and I was toasty, this wouldn’t be as bad. Instead, it was dark, foggy, and lightly raining.

An SUV eventually showed up. The driver came out and asked “are you James?” I was so happy to hear that. She got me to Chay Lap Farmstay, the starting point for the Tu Lan Cave Expedition. By the time I got settled into my room, it was 5am. I had been on the road for the past 19 hours. Once I got into the room, I did immediately what you are all thinking. Got into bed and watched Archer. I eventually fell asleep around 6:30, which was good cause I needed to be awake by 9 to head to Oxalis Shop to do some last minute paperwork for the Tu Lan expedition.

WHEW, this one was long. I had a lot to say. Here’s some pictures for your reward for making it this far. I know, it’s just pictures, but take what you can get, right?

I mentioned yesterday that my last day in Sapa was beautiful. Here’s some night/day, cloudy/sunny comparisons. It was eye opening to wake up the next day and see entire mountains where I did not see them at all before. No mountains, then mountains. Same view. Wow.

SEA: Day 58 – Fansipan Mountain

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I’ve been in a pretty sour mood over the last few days, more so than usual. I was wondering if my present feelings impact how I write and view my past experiences. Could a potentially horrible present day ruin an amazing day in the past? Or is it possible that writing about an amazing past day make my present that much better? Honestly, and this is the shitty part, I think it depends on how you take it. You chose the path, which is extremely motivating or equally terrifying.

Let’s try both. Let’s actually try with the positive first, where I do not let today’s mood impact back then. Two years ago, I found myself in Sapa about to head up the peak of Fansipan Mountain. This peak, located near Sapa, is the highest mountain in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. It stands at 3,143 meters and is nicknamed “The Roof of Indochina.” There are several tours that you can take to hike up, but those all take several days. Recently, there was a cable car installed that took you almost to the peak. The views are supposed to be incredible, but the day I went it was really, really cloudy. See Exhibit 1 below.

Exhibit 1. Views were awesome. Look at those cable lines.

Every once in awhile though, the clouds would open and I’d stare out in awe forgetting to breath.

When the cable car arrived at the top, it felt like I was just walking through a cloud. You couldn’t see far at all, but it made the sights more intriguing.

Now, I could have complained back then about the horrible weather situation. However, I didn’t think of it that way. I thought how amazing and eerie and incredible the mountains looked in cloud and fog. I remember the strange feelings of being completely alone on a mountain top because I couldn’t see another person around me. I remember walking up stairs without being able to see too far ahead. It was an experience I’ve never felt. And I enjoyed every second of it. In fact, once I got to the top, I live streamed on instagram for the first time. Was afraid no one would join, but 3 of my homies from back home, HY, Andy, and Steve, were some of the firsts to jump on! It was really cool to connect with them live on top of a mountain on the other side of the world.

Figured I’d defrost a bit before heading back down, so I just rested in the cable car center. Really nice spacious areas with windows all around to show something amazing. My view was more of clouds, which I honestly, really enjoyed the feeling of sitting in the clouds.

There’s something out there. Or it’s just frosted glass and we’ve all been fooled.

Now I think if I swung negatively on this day, it could have been a really shitty few days. I spent 2 nights in Sapa and only on the third day (tomorrow) did the clouds part. Of course my bus left at 10am, but oh well. I’ll come back again when it’s sunny and experience the other side.

SEA: Day 57 – Sapa Treks

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Early this morning, I got to Sapa Centre around 4am, meaning I probably fell asleep somewhere between 4:30 to 5. Since breakfast was part of the deal, you can’t miss out on free food. I got up at 8 to eat and was out the door to explore Sapa by 9:15. I posted often to instagram this day, so going to cheat a bit and list links back there.

  • First stop: walking around Sapa to buy warmer socks. I spent an hour looking for the perfect pair. I should have just applied the 80/20 rule here. Nothing will stay “perfect” so just find “good enough” and don’t waste an hour looking for socks. But I did enjoy walking through all the different shops along the main street. And I bought a long sleeve. Yay.
  • Next up was Notre Dame Cathedral Nhà thờ Đá Sapa, Church of Our Lady of the Rosary.
  • Orchard Garden in Ham Rong Mountain
  • Garden Center of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Horses of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Cloud Yard of Ham Rong Mountain
  • Lunch and dry feet at Sapa Centre. Perfect socks mean nothing if you don’t have the right shoes.
  • Walking towards Cat Cat
  • My dog dog companion during said walk to Cat Cat
  • Witnessing the strength of women.
  • Dinner at Little Sapa
  • Chill at Corner Pub with Chung (the owner), his wife Tu, and Khung, his brother. Along with their pack of dogs who all know how to get home by themselves. Not sure of distance, but from what I gathered, it wasn’t walkable.

Majority of my day was simply just walking around. Sapa is known for its beautiful views, which I got to experience not even a little on this day. It was rainy and super gloomy. Visibility was limited. You know what though? I enjoyed every second of it and would do it again even if I knew the conditions would be the same. It was really calming. Most times, I was completely alone since it wasn’t a popular time for tourists and no one wants to walk around in the rain.

SEA: Day 56 – Decision

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A couple weeks ago, I had booked a caving expedition tour in Vietnam. It turns out that the week I chose was cancelled due to low participants (aka, I was the only one). I had a choice to make. I could go a week before, 2 weeks later, or the next time I come to Vietnam. The third option was definitely out and the second would have me rebooking flights. I went with the first which lead me to the next choice. Do I go to Sapa or Hanoi/Ha Long Bay? I chose Sapa. I suppose I like mountains over beaches. Ironically, that was a question on Hinge I had difficulty answering. I like both! I should have just thought back to this day.

Another input for Sapa was because I had read how Ha Long Bay had become overrun with tourists. I know, I’m just adding to that mess, but Sapa wasn’t as popular of a tourist destination, so wanted to get there before it became overrun. Plus, there were so many different tour options in Ha Long Bay. It was like looking at a restaurant that didn’t know what to sell so some genius said “put everything on the menu!” I don’t like going to these types of restaurants. It gives me anxiety just thinking about it.

Walking around Old Quarter

Sapa it was! I do not regret this decision at all, even though I’ve never gone to Ha Long Bay. The only way in 2017 to get to Sapa was via overnight bus. Once I flew into Hanoi from Singapore, I had a few hours to kill before catching this bus. I ate some food, walked around Old Quarter, luckily spoke to someone that said Sapa was cold, bought some long sleeves, a Northface puffy jacket (which I wear in LA like a pansy), ate a sweet potatoe roasted in a corn husk, then headed over to the bus station.

The bus ride was only 6 and a half hours. It departed at 9pm, which meant we got to Sapa at 3:30 in the morning. I slept most of the way and was fast asleep when we arrived. Apparently the bus driver does nothing to wake up passengers cause when I woke up, he was gone. The rest of us left on the bus tried to figure out how to open the bus door by pressing random buttons. It eventually opened and we got our luggage from the carriage and went our separate ways. Now, this doesn’t seem too bad, but Sapa is in the mountains and it was raining. Which means fog. Visibility was not great. And no one was on the street to direct us. There was a construction truck that looked like it was on, but there was no one there. A bit spooky…

But now that we have Google Maps, we can go anywhere. Whipped out my phone, looked up Sapa Centre, and off I went into the dark looking for this place.

Walk to Sapa Centre. Or it might be the building on the right, I can’t remember.

I wrote down that it took me 30 minutes from getting off the bus to checking in. I’m going to say that I don’t think it took that long. Maybe 20 minutes or so. Anyways, I found it! And the door was locked. Sweet. I did the only thing I could think of, and that was to cry.

Just kidding. I knocked and some poor guy who was sleeping near the door waiting for me woke up to let me in. Man, how nice of him. We go to the hotel counter where I see the piece of paper below. How nice of them! This place got great ratings from me.

Everything I need. Wifi and breakfast.

SEA: Day 55 – Thank You

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Chris and Ahnah, thank you for letting hosting me so often and letting me use your Singapore home as my home away from home.

Thinking back made me want to start with a line of gratitude. I may have said this in my earlier Singapore posts, but having a place to go knowing you can actually rest is really priceless. Their home was that for me. The best part was that they also lived in a city that I really ended up liking. And since Ahnah is a foodie, I just follow her around to eat and have the best stuff! For example, she recommended I get Tempura Kohaku for lunch. Delicious. I love, love udon and will eat so much of it when I go to Japan one day. (Side note: I actually should be linking Tempura Kohaku’s website or what not, but instead I’ve been linking to my instagram as if there’s additional information there. But really there isn’t. Having a link just makes it look more professional, yes?)

In the afternoon, I wrote down that I had gone shopping for electronics at Mustafa Centre. I have random pictures of iPad price tags, so I guess I wanted to buy one? Which I still have yet to do, because I can’t find a reason to get one. If someone has a good reason, please tell me so I can use it to buy another item that I will eventually use as a coaster.

In the evening, we headed over to check out the Marina Bay Sands observation deck (<-Link to actual information!). As far as observation decks go, wow (<-Link! … to my insta). One day, I’d like to get a room here so I can swim in their infinity pool. The views are wonderful, the deck is well made, and it wasn’t too crowded. Mood = berry good. Afterwards, we headed down and got the Marian Bay Sands buffet for dinner. Mood = very good and very full and happy.

You can see their apartment from here. It’s the one with the light on.
View of Gardens by the Bay
Not the best shot, but the only shot of all of us on the deck.

Now onto the most important event of this day, and possibly the entire trip… our fantasy baseball draft order. This year, done by none other than Chris and Ahnah’s dryer! Threw in 12 balls with names on them and voila! Best way to find draft order ever.

I came out as number 12. wtf

SEA: Day 54 – Travel Day

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Travel days are great when you spend most of your time just lounging around and it feels good to not always be on the move. Travel days are also great when you’re so tired and just want to sit and read a book while waiting for your next bus, airplane, ferry, etc. They are great when everything seems to line up just right for you.

They are not great when the lines are long. They are not great when hungover. Hungover and on a boat for 2 hours. It’s not great when you’re only on 3 hours of sleep. It’s not great when you can’t nap anywhere.

But I am grateful that I even woke up at 7am to pack and check out. I am grateful that I caught a cab and made the Oceanjet ferry. I am grateful that I did not miss my flight back to Singapore. I am grateful that the total travel time only took 13 hours instead of 23. And I am grateful that Chris and Ahnah welcomed me come back into their home even though they would just arrive from Japan.

Trying to put my past in perspective. When I look back, I want to remember the positives, find the silver linings in the negatives, and remember that I am still here.

SEA: Day 53 – Bohol Excursion

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I couldn’t stay focused to write anything yesterday. My head just wasn’t in it. I think the big reason was that I was trying to finish it late into the night. The first 50 days, I was able to have a post up on average before 5pm, but yesterday’s post went up past 9. I’m trying this new thing where I want to write this post before I head into work. That’ll make me stay focused and keep the material short and sweet.

On this day, I decided to rent a motorbike and cruise around Bohol and take a look at their some of their attractions. I actually posted a lot on Instagram, so I’m going to cheat today and just list out my activities, put in some comments if I have any, and link to my past posts. I also went out this night and visited Lionel’s friend, Andy, who was out in Bohol running a bar. Glad I met up with him cause we ended up having a pretty great time!

  • Rented the motorbike
  • Visited a Python sanctuary. In hindsight, I wish I did not go to this. The more I learn about animals, the more depressed I get thinking about how we treat these beautiful creatures.
  • Swung by Sipitan Bridge
  • Went to Tarsier Conservation Area, which was just so badly maintained. DO NOT GO HERE. I found several negative reviews online on how they treat these tiny guys, so left to another location that lets tarsiers stay in their natural habitat. Since they are nocturnal, you don’t get to see them in action during the day. Poorly managed zoos will force the tarsiers awake for tourists.
  • Visited the Bohol Tarsier Philippines Center. Much better for tarsiers. This location kept employees everywhere along the trail to make sure tourists didn’t wake up the tarsiers.
  • Saw the Chocolate Hills
  • Motorbiked around for another 3.5 hours
  • Had dinner at my resort
  • Head out to meet Andy. Met a bunch of his friends and their friends. Partied till 4am. Stumbled into a small market and found cup noodles plus other snacks. Do not regret this move at all.
Chocolate Hills
Cup noodles may have saved my life.

SEA: Day 52 – Scuba Duba Do

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The first time I ever went scuba diving was in Acapulco during spring break 2005 with my college homies. Memory isn’t great but I don’t remember receiving much training, or signing anything. Our guides probably weren’t even certified, now that I think about it. But being in college, we were young and dumb. (Now I’m older and not as dumb. Progress.) They took us out on a boat, threw some gear on us, tossed us in the water, and just dragged us around. Visibility was limited so we didn’t get to see much, if anything at all.

My experience with Philippine Fun Divers was very different. First off, I had to go through some reading material, pass a test (I could have made this up but I think I took a quiz…), walkthrough our gear, did some training in the pool, and then got to go out on the boat to the ocean. On top of that, I got my very own Master Scuba Diver Trainer, Frank Yamamoto, who was kind of a badass. Actually, come to think of it, everyone working at the scuba center was really cool. Maybe it’s a living on a beach thing.

Before we went off to the ocean, we did some training in the pool. Frank had me put on all my gear and taught me several basic things like swimming with flippers, regulating depth, and even something as simple as breathing. Having slow, controlled, and constant breathing was important. Things such as swimming was not as easy as I thought it would be. Took me some time to get used to swimming with flippers.

We eventually made it out to the ocean, where as soon as I got into the water, I started to freak out. Being only 10 meters deep wasn’t that bad, but looking up and seeing all the water above you just made me signal to Frank that I was not going to be okay. I wrote about this on Instagram, so won’t repeat myself.

I also ate a balut pinoy this day as well, so won’t repeat that either.

I don’t know why but I cannot write today. Let me just tl;dr this.

TL;DR: Went scuba diving. It was awesome. Ate balut pinoy, it was not as awesome. End.

SEA: Day 51 – To Bohol

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Not sure why but this day, I woke up at 2am. I was in and out of sleep until around 6:30 and decided to get up then. I spent the morning packing up, had some breakfast, chatted with a nice couple from Florida, and hung out with Manol and his family. Manol told me some stories, as his daughters and wife came in and out of the conversations as they went on their day to day, and his grandkids were running around asking us questions or doing whatever kids do.

Manol and his family

After a couple hours, Manol took me to a beach where I caught a ferry to Bohol. During the ferry ride, I actually thought back on my conversations with Manol and ended up writing a little blurb about him on my phone.

*****
Had a wonderful time in Oslob! A big reason was because of Manol and his family. He owns the MWR Pension House that I stayed at. He is a God fearing man and shared many of his testimonies. One such story was when he got hit by an 18 wheeler while on his motorbike. His helmet broke on impact and he was tossed 20+ meters without it. He said he felt someone holding him and bracing his fall. He walked away with only a broken arm, and not a single scratch on him. Another time, when he was serving as captain on a military ship, a thick cable on deck came loose during bad weather. It hit his shins, but he was able to walk away with only cuts. Most times, these accidents end with a lost life or limb. He also told me about his many angelic dreams. He truly believes he has an angel watching over him. I almost don’t want to believe some of his stories, but when a man shows you scars, and conviction in his eyes, you believe.

He is truly a great man and it shows through his family. They all treated me like family. I had dinner with them every night. I didn’t meet everyone (he has 8 siblings), but everyone I met was happy and chatty with me. 

Whenever he’d drive me through the town, many people would wave or honk to him. He says he just wants his community to be happy and lead a good life.

One thing I thought was strange was his hostel/home. It is not as nice as it could be. He owns the hostel, karaoke bar, and the only licensed cock fighting ring in the area. I wondered where his revenue was going. I wasn’t going to ask this but the answer came when sharing his story. He’s been building a shrine on one of his lots. He made a statue of Mother Mary and Jesus and had them placed there. He goes there every week for worship and is slowly building out the building. It looked huge in pictures. He says he’s also looking to sell the cock fighting ring. He says God told him to sell because it is money made from gambling. His friends think he is crazy since there is so much money in that business. He says he just knows this is what he must do. 

Meeting Manol and hearing his testimonies was very powerful. I am truly grateful to have met him.
*****

Selfie with the deep blue sea.

Hm. I wrote more than I remember. Well, the ferry ride was 3.5 hours long. Anyways, I was really moved by this man. I hope he’s doing well and I hope to be able to visit him again one day.

Land ho!

Once we got to Bohol, I checked into my hotel, the Lost Horizon Beach Dive Resort and grabbed a bit to eat before heading to get a hair cut. Afterwards, just hung around the resort reading by the pool and possibly took a nap. I had dinner on the beach at the resort, walked along the Alona Beach, smoked some shisha at Alia Hailey Reggae Bar, then hit the sack around 11pm and fell asleep watching Tremors. You can never get away from Kevin Bacon.

Dinner on the beach.