The first phase...

Oh hello there and welcome to my blog. If you weren’t aware Teagle is my nickname from college and these are my travels. Join me as I chronicle my journey through SE Asia and down to New Zealand as a drastically underfunded entrepreneur of unemployment. I’m not sure what to expect from this journey so you’ll have to bear with me as it unfolds. My postings will be sporadic as they will be inversely related to internet availability and the price of beer.

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Let me just give to you some quick background about this whole event. It occurred to me a while ago that while I have always enjoyed traveling I was finding it difficult to cross off the many destinations that I desired to visit in any reasonable amount of time. Then around a year ago my coworker and friend of a similar age had just quit his job to explore New Zealand. As it turns out it is quite easy for someone under 30 to obtain a Holiday Work Visa for one year from NZ and that is exactly what I’ve done; with a few more stops along the way.

My destinations are rather flexible and even up until the last week my original jumping point was somewhere entirely different. SE Asia was chosen as a starting point because of its low costs although the specific countries themselves are ever changing. As of right now you should be able to follow me from Hong Kong to Nepal down to Thailand, at which point there is a big question mark, ultimately finding me in New Zealand. Once I get there I intend to work in some capacity but surely you will not hear me narrate what a Kiwi cubicle looks like. I have little desire in replicating my 9 to 5 in the Southern Hemisphere, perhaps I will pick grapes or sheer sheep to bide my weeks and earn enough to continue along.

If you’re still wondering why I’m doing this the short answer is because I can. As of yet I have kept myself free of a wife, child or mortgage and figured now was as good a time as ever. My goal is to travel until I feel as though I’ve thoroughly found myself … or until the 10K I saved has run dry. Either way it’s going to be a one hell of a ride. Please feel free to join me at any point, literally, come find me in the flesh and share in the experience. Going solo has its advantages but there is plenty fun to go around.

Tuesday May 3^rd

I begin by crying with my chauffer as she drops me off curbside at PDX. I’m sad, nervous and excited as we kiss goodbye. I have found myself in love and am wary to remove myself from such a beautiful emotion. We are both curious about our future, but having had decided to go travel before we had met it seemed right, to us both, that I fulfill my desire and depart.

It is but moments later and my emotions change as I suddenly realize I have forgotten my power cord for my netbook. I am merely 30 minutes into my journey and already something has gone awry; admittedly it is my fault. Although I recall my Toshiba boasts something like 37 hours of battery life this does little to allay my disgust. The first of many expletives are shouted as I consider turning around although I know better and instead am lucky to pay $20 for one in the terminal. I cross my fingers that this will be the worst I am to experience on my travels.

Given my unique association to a friend of mine I have been upgrade to Business Class and I settle for the best I’ll get for a long time. To be fair, it’s more difficult than you think to drink champagne before even stowing your carry-on luggage. And surely you don’t presume that a 4 course meal is little more than an exercise in exercise? For me the real pain is knowing that in a few hours after finishing dessert and taking a nap I’ll be forced to do it all over again, only this time it will be breakfast. But in all fairness during the next 12 months I will likely be eating, sleeping, and traveling with little more than backpack big enough for a weekend getaway and fewer possessions than a 5 year old.

later that week..

Thursday May 5^th

My taxi driver from the Hong Kong airport to the condo where I am staying was quite sociable and spoke highly of the USA (with decent English I might add). He made note of the recent news concerning the death of Osama bin Laden and he exclaimed that this was very good news and that HKG was quite happy to have learned of this. As I sit there and listen I think to the future and I am interested to see how the opinions may change as I travel throughout SE Asia. For now though it is comforting to know that most of the citizens I will be surrounded by hold our country, and indirectly me, in high regards. I guess we’ll see if I don’t yet tarnish our reputation!

I become instantly aware in the change of climate. It is noticeably warmer and considerably muggier here as I change from the average rainy doldrums of Portland to the balmy humidity of southern China. It was a difficult task to buy and pack enough clothes for nearly all seasons and I am sure I have left myself shorthanded on both ends. Alas, I will purchase along the way and learn to “use and dispose” or become very good at removing entrenched pit stains with little more than a pale of water and some highly concentrated detergent.

Friday May 6^th

I am noticeably the only white person in this restaurant. It is crazy, zoolike to me but I’m certain this is a standard day and nothing seems chaotic to the workers. Strangely I have not been served my food yet, as if I have been singled out as my quail egg and BBQ pork dim sum is prepared with extra spit. The small irony being that the previous afternoon I was stopped by a student and asked to fill out a lengthy questionnaire. One section in effect asked that “If when attending a restaurant it took a noticeably longer amount of time for me to be served, what would I think was to blame.” At the moment I blame the girl for giving me the survey and tempting fate to torture me. Truthfully I think it is an honest mistake but still stops to make me wonder. At this point I am in no hurry; yes I am hungry but time is no longer an issue for me. Outside of arriving for flights and trains I do not feel any real pressure of time….although my stomach reminds me that there is still yet a deadline that ought to be met. The food arrives and it looks to be wrapped in a giant leaf. I look at it quizzically especially since the picture I had pointed at did not include this green and steamy wrapping paper. I look across the table to another patron who looks up, smiles and remarks that I’m not supposed to eat the leaf. Thank God.

I’d like to make a comment here about the dining habits in Hong Kong. I can’t speak for high class establishments but the restaurants I entered were in a business to serve you, feed you and see you on your way. To help with this they will seat as many people as they can at a single table. You stand little chance of dining alone and at one point I found myself eating with 3 other pairs of people. This will be one of many things that I will notice and mention that at first glance seems odd, but in fact, although it is different, there is little reason why it couldn’t work back home. Unless of course you’re closed minded and prefer to dine like a grouchy hermit.

A little summary...

Sunday May 8, 2011

Let me quickly recap the last few days for us. Beginning on Friday night I met up with some friends of the people whose condo I have been staying in. They are all pilots for Fed Ex and seem to live in the same building complex. It was good to finally speak with other people after going over 3 days without speaking more than “thank you” to an occasional citizen. It’s amazing the amount of time that seems to exist when you have no one but yourself to converse with. Friday night we went to the Temple Street Night Market. It’s a short walk from the condo but entering a whole new world. It’s an open air event in the middle of a street market where you can sit outside and eat. I let the pros handle the ordering process, but essentially they just order lots of dishes and we all had a sample. And of course, beers were ordered as well. It sounded from them that this is something that they always to whenever anyone comes into town and I was lucky enough that one of their children came to visit. No, it wasn’t me that they were all going to get together for. In fact they weren’t exactly clear as to who I was but they figured I was a cousin of the people’s condo. Apparently it’s run almost like a hotel and nearly all the time someone is staying there and I was lucky enough to be granted a whole week!!

On Saturday I was supposed to join with some of those folks and go to Lantau Island but due to some technical problems I didn’t make it. So, nursing a headache from what I can only assume was the previous night’s affair, I instead headed out to find 10,000 Buddhas. I was told what train station to get off at and that I should be able to follow the signs after that. So about an hour after arriving at the correct train station I find myself at what I thought was the 10,000 Buddhas, except, I don’t think I saw more than 3 or 4 of them. The place ended up being some sort of cemetery / mausoleum of sorts as there were many rooms with a bunch of cubbies with people’s pictures and words written in Chinese. I saw many others come by and leave food and flowers, even opening beverages and setting them down but never eating or drinking from them. It must have either been the deceased’s favorite meals or the cheapest thing at the grocery store that day. I ended up coming back home and attempting to take a nap that morphed into a 14 hour sleep-a-thon. Clearly my body had not yet fully adjusted a good night sleep was certainly in order.

On Sunday I ventured off to find this giant Buddha that I had heard so much about. To get there one must take the MTR (Hong Kong’s subway) out to Lantau Island until the last stop. It is also the same direction as the airport and the Disneyland that has been built. Once departing the subway you have the option of taking a bus or cable car (gondola) to the top where this giant Buddha sits. I, as did many tourists, opted for the cable ride up. Although it was a bit of a tourist trap, it was worth the cost ($110 HK for round trip with return on bus). The ride up was impressive and lasted for roughly 15 minutes, constantly climbing and expanding the view out over the bay. Finally, a glimpse of the Buddha as you round another tower, and sure enough, he sits quite large.

Let me speak briefly on some general topics concerning the great city of Hong Kong. It is definitely a world mega city with an amazing transportation system, surprising fashion and becoming an esteemed financial district. Yet all this seems to be put in its place as you tour the city by foot as I have had the great opportunity to do over the past few days. After taking the ferry to Central Hong Kong I boarded world’s proclaimed tallest escalator up whereby I made my return on foot. While meandering along the stairway I cut back and forth through side roads and it strikes me that if I remove the people I see, then I could be in any number of places across the globe. The narrow streets, constant clash of poverty and wealth, seemingly unrestricted traffic all combine into a familiar location. And let us not forget the smells, not just of food, which is a gracious treat, butut also the smell of construction, urine and congestion. If anything at all serves as a reminder as to the contrast of where I have been raised. I must say that I feel surprisingly safe walking the streets as though I were in any other American city. I am aware that as I continue through Asia I should not expect this touristic serenity but for the time being it is welcoming. Culture shock over the past week was strong enough and although I was constantly on guard it’s always nice to worry a little less.

Tuesday May 10^th

It is literally my last day I Hong Kong. I have worked out, packed, cleaned the apartment and probably quadruple checked that I have everything. Alas, I left a pair of shorts hanging on an obscure door handle. I can only venture to guess that through the course of my travels I will leave something behind somewhere. It’s only a matter of time.

I have elected to take the bus back to the airport. The first reason being the cost, at $33 HK it is by far and away the cheapest mode of transport to HKG. In fact, they are so nice here that my Octopus (transit) card was $5 short and he still let me board without paying the balance in cash. Another advantage to riding the bus is that, like Britain many buses are double decker, and I have elected the upper deck. Frankly this is a tour of HK unto itself, driving through the main streets of Kowloon at the pace of an energized snail. I’m sure night time would be the only further enhancement to be made to such a journey, as the lights emanate with vigor over the crawling pedestrians.

My first week here has been wonderful and I’ve come to learn a few things both about Hong Kongan (?) and myself. I give the people here a pretty high rating, knocking them only in that they never seem to be aware of their surroundings. They are constantly walking, stopping and backing up or texting and not paying attention. It is with an alarming consistency I am forced to be aware for myself and those around me as I attempt to avoid clipping my shoulder in the hundreds of local faces that seem to be magnetized to it. Surely I could let them run into me but there are just certain battles you’re better off avoiding.

As for me, despite being fully aware that it existed one cannot truly understand the breadth of the significance of traveling alone until it is done specifically when you know you will be traveling for an extended period. The thought of having some normalcy to return to i.e. a home in USA, would allow someone to feel quite free to be gone as a single unit for say one or even two months. The way in which the psyche works I believe, is different than when it is preparing to endure such rigor over an extended period of time. So I, as I have begun a lengthy journey began to notice the “highs and lows” of a solitary sojourn. Such recognitions come as no surprise but I am certainly interested to see how they manifest as I press on.

Photos of Hong Kong

Riding up the tallest escalators in the world, right out in the middle of a street basically. It’s in sections that you walk in between; impressive nonetheless.

I never made it back when it was open but I heard it was the best bar in town.

I stopped off at a park in Kowloon. It had an aviary and swimming pool and gardens and was buried in the heart of the city. Some nice locals took my photo.

Just some unique architecture in the heart of Hong Kong.

One of the buildings inside the Nan Lian garden.

Views from the Kowloon side of the island facing the Hong Kong skyline during the day.

Dinner at the the Temple Street Night Market.

Me with a giant statue of who knows what.

Views from the cable car on the way up to the Big Buddha

Gateway arches near the Big Belly Buddha

Night shots of the skyline

Panoramic contrasts of the skyline

These are a couple of street shots down some fairly average roads. You’ll notice it’s quite

crowded and there are more signs than necessary.

If you can read the menu than you did better than me. I ended up walking away with some fresh pear and kiwi juice. It wasn’t chilled but it was delicious.