worth a thousand words...Laos

Laos was the country where I grew accustomed to seeing monks every day. These three rode with us on the slow boat from the border of Laos to Luang Prubang. At first I had urges to takes pictures of every monk I saw, but then I got used to seeing them around all the time. You begin to notice how annoying it is when everyone stops to take pictures of every monk they see. Yep, I was one of "those" people for about a week, but at least I can admit it. I also found it strange to see monks smoking; which I happened upon a lot. Weird, right? I learned that it is a common practice in Laos for men to serve in a monastery for two years and then resume their normal lives.
These are the type of boats we road in for two days to Luang Prubang. They are nicknamed slow boats for a reason! Luckily, the scenery during our boat trip was breathtaking! It was also a nice distraction to have a poker game going on in the back of the boat.
Sorry I can't rotate this picture. I uploaded this at a Korean PC room and I can't figure out the Korean word for "rotate". I tried, though, believe me! =o) These little girls are two of the many children that sell little trinkets and birds, to "set free" when you get to a temple, as a blessing to whomever you worship. What most people don't realize is that their wings are clipped and they are recaught after you leave and sold again.
Laos seriously was one of the most stunning countries in terms of scenery for me. This is the view I had from my hostel in Vang Vieng at sunset. Add a day of tubing, caving, or lounging in a hammock to this view and you can't go wrong!

The waterfall in Luang Prubang! I've seen quite a few waterfalls on my trip, but this one takes the cake! After hiking all the way to the top I jumped in the top pool for a swim. As I swam over to the edge of the first pool I was in awe as I saw the waterfall cascading down the mountain, forming 16 seafoam green pools as it fell. People were swimming in various pools and the sun was giving off the perfect light. It didn't seem real. This picture is at the pool at the very top of the falls.

Here is a another waterfall! I actually had another video of one more waterfall, but it didn't upload correctly. I'll try again soon.

So that's it for Laos. This task of 5 pictures gets harder with every country. Keep checking for Cambodia pics soon!

worth a thousand words... Thailand

Hey everyone! Since I'm feeling hopelessly behind on updating everyone on all my experiences with my travels in the last four months, I've decided to let some pictures do the talking. It became clear to me how much writing I would have to do to "fill everyone in" on my experiences while at dinner with a friend the other night. She asked me the simple question, "How was your trip?" I gave her a two hour answer! So, in an effort to make things "short and sweet" I'm going to post 5 of my favorite pictures from each country visited on this trip (which ended up being much harder than expected) and attempt to write a few things about them each. I also have some really random videos that I am going to try really really hard to upload in the next few days!
Sairee Beach in Koh Tao at sunset... the tide is going out and everyone is coming in for the day.
This is view Morgan and I woke up to from our bungalow at the organic farm we worked at in Pai. We got up at 5:45 a.m. everyday to help load soy bean hay from other farmers fields to use as fertilizer for the fields in our farm. It's not so bad waking up that early when this is what you see!
" "Making" rice at the organic farm. I never realized how much work it takes to shell/husk rice until I actually did it myself. It took 4 of us about 3 hours to prepare enough rice for a week or so. We did it the "old-fashioned" way, which obviously takes longer, but gives you much respect for the people that have prepared it that way for years, or who still prepare it this way for lack of better equipment. This lady is separating the shells of the rice from the actual grains. She throws the rice up and the wind takes the husks away, leaving the grains for us to eat!
I love parades! This was a special ceremony that we ran into on the street. I can't remember what it was for, but I know that all the little boys get dressed up in makeup. I really enjoyed all the random things I stumbled upon while traveling.

This is Pe, the owner of the Car Bar in Koh Tao. This was my favorite place on the island. His bar is made out of an old VW band. Everyone is welcome; to drink, play connect four, or just chill. I was lucky enough to get to Koh Tao twice and see Pe and stop at the CarBar again!
This is the truck we used to collect the soy bean hay. We've gotten that hay piled so high I was scared to ride on top at times! I've gotten to see a side of Thailand most travelers don't experience. Driving through the backroad farmland in northern Thailand and seeing how people lived was an insightful view of local life.

Saturday Night Fever

if only i had moves like this... =o)

just to lower your heart rates... =o)

Hello everyone! I know I've been M.I.A. lately in the blogging world. I'm just writing a quick post to let you all know I'm alive and well. The last month and a half has been a blur of activities and poor internet connections. I'm now back in Korea, working at my old school for a few months. I will do my best to update you all on the last month or so of my travels and post some pics and videos (soon, i hope!)

I'm subbing for the new Koala class at my school. Here we are at the Blue House, where the president of Korea lives.