Texas Roadtrip

We are a little more than half-way through our roadtrip through the South. We started off driving to Denver and staying with a friend and his brothers from Ethiopia. It was good to spend time with an old friend, and I was able to see an 'auntie' who also lives there. From there we drove to Oklahoma City to spend the night with one of Charlie's cousins, Terry. Finally we arrived in Arkansas, our first major destination, to visit and go camping with Clare, Charlie's sister. Chuck Koelling and his wife came over and together with Clare, her boyfriend Kyle and a few other of their friends we drove two hours north of Conway, AR to the Buffalo River. The water was cool and green and the whole experience was peaceful and beautiful. From there we spent some time in Tyler, East Texas, then on to Longview to see Adam, Charlie's brother, and his new baby Abbott Clare Koelling, born on July 23. Now we are in Dallas, and have been hanging out in Chucks nicely landscaped backyard drinking beer, eating good food and enjoying the misters and swamp cooler that made it more-than bearable to sit outdoors. Today we head down to Austin, to listen to some live music and see some more of Charlie's lifelong friends. After all this, we head west to Las Vegas to see some friends perform in Cirque de Soleil and then on to Oregon for a while. Much love to everyone.

Life in Missoula

As we live our days in Missoula, we are always trying to find ways to grow and progress in our own lives.
I have been working more and more on the river, teaching kayaking almost five days a week and enjoying every minute. The Women's Paddling Club that I created has taken off beyond my expectation and I am so excited to have so much support for the program. The group of women that attend the weekly lessons are just the type I was hoping for. Each is determined to learn how to kayak and plow through the many challenges that are inherent to the sport.
Everyone is so supportive of each other and openly thankful to me for my presence on the river. This is as much success as I could hope for. I am realizing more and more that I truly enjoy teaching in general, and am continuing to think about attending an Adventure Education graduate program- something I have researched and thought about since I finished my undergrad last year.
I am also taking a grant-writing class online and am looking forward to exploring the world of nonprofit work and service. I would like to travel again, but this time with a service-oriented goal in mind. Grant writing will be allow me to fund service projects that I come up with myself, for example helping our new friends in Cambodia, or to join up with international organizations already in place and doing some good. Who knows where this will bring me, but I find it an inspiring field.
Our house is still lovely and our 'flower-pot garden', in our backyard, is growing into healthy plants of tomatoes, basil, peppers and strawberries.
Charlie is working hard in his new shop making new wall pieces, many of which were dreamed up in Asia, and doing metal work on the side to earn some extra money. He is moving forward with the startup up of his business and we are slowly working out the kinks of building a website. When it gets up and running, we will certainly fill you all in on the details. Since this is new territory for both of us, it is taking a little longer than we had hoped to work out the logistics of starting a business and getting over those first hurdles. Thankfully, Charlie has many friends who are Craftsmen and many own their own small businesses, so he is receiving a lot of advice and encouragement.
Nonetheless I am glad to say he is plugging away at both making art and creating a business through which to sell it. I am very proud of him for sticking to his dream despite challenges that can sometimes be discouraging.
Thankfully Montana has provided us with a situation where we can live simply and plug away at our goals and dreams.
We are living, and happily so.
Much Love.

Elements Tour

Since we have been back in Montana the white-water scene has been in full throttle. Our friend Seth Warren and his nature propelled fire engine, "Baby" have been touring around helping headline many events in Missoula and elsewhere in Montana during this time. Oriana and I amongst a few others hopped in "Baby" and joined the Elements Tour for a long weekend. We headed north through the Flathead Valley and continued the slow journey around the magnificent Flathead Lake until we reached Big Fork, MT for the annual White-Water Festival (pretty big deal in these parts). Big Fork is a place we often drive through or past on alternate routes, but this was our first time making it a destination. Each year the dam is released and the "Wild Mile" flows rapidly along the Swan Rio, furthermore giving all us redneck, river rats another excuse to camp out and run the rio. When we weren't held up at "Baby" relaxing, we were embarking in many other adventures such as hiking up stream to get photos or just watch the carnage. It was just a few days, but like many events of this stature we were able to see many old friends and make new ones as well. Along with many other things happening on the Elements Tour, Seth and Kavu brought in a couple of Japanese artists from Tokyo to do some live murals at a few recent events. We got a chance to hang out with these guys and take them for a booze cruise float down the Clark Fork in Zootown. Later Oriana, Ashley and I invited all Seth and his friends from the Tour over for dinner and drinks. Here are some pics!

Back in Missoula

We are back in the lovely town of Missoula, MT after our many adventures. This last month has been full fledged Missoula style settling in. I have been on the river almost everyday training for work, having fun and running new rivers and creeks every week. Charlie has been setting up his shop, expanding his network in Missoula and getting jobs set up around town. This Friday he has a wall piece in a downtown art show for First Friday in Missoula, which is an event every month that promotes and shows the work of local artists.
Our new house is in the northern part of town and has access within two blocks to a creek, a wildland park and a trail system that can take us the mile upstream to the Rattlesnake Wilderness that sprawls just north of town. We have been fortunate to have beautiful weather, and have been enjoying the wilderness by running, hiking and biking. One of our goals this summer is to explore the Rattlesnake Wilderness as much as possible.
We live with our friend Ashley that we met on Tonsai Beach in Thailand, she is originally from San Francisco, and two river-guide friends of ours that are mostly on the river but their addition to the household makes our bills incredibly affordable. In Missoula we have many family-style friendships and often get together with our friends to cook meals, drink local beer and play sand volleyball by the river in Kiwanis Park.
At the beginning of May we were able to go on a seven day trip down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River just southwest of Missoula. It is a world class section of river through one of the largest wilderness areas in the United States, the Frank Church Wilderness. We went with a group of 15 close friends, both rafters and kayakers. It was completely self-supported, and because we had so many professional river guides on the trip, we had a full kitchen and gourmet food every meal. We paddled a few hours a day through some of the most rugged country I have ever seen. This part of Idaho is an alpine forest, with many pine trees clinging to rocky mountains. We had one day, about half way through the trip, where we didn't pack up camp, but stayed another night and explored the meadows, mountains and hot springs that surrounded our Loon Creek campsite.
On this day we made friends with Tyrel, an authentic mountain man who worked one of the few remote ranches that were grandfathered in when the area was made a wilderness. Tyrel ended up offering to take us all on a trail ride back into the mountains, an offer that we immediately took him up on. So we saddled up the draft horses and took of for a three hour ride through the amazing sights of Northern Idaho.
We can't help but feel blessed to live surrounded by beautiful country and amazing friends. We are so happy to be back in Montana, and look forward to a healthy, productive summer.

Koh Tao

After spending a little over two glorious weeks on Tonsai Beach, Charlie and I made the plunge back into the outside world. It was sad to leave all of our new friends back in Tonsai, but some came with us on our adventure that took us from the Andaman Sea over to the Gulf of Thailand, to Koh Tao, aka Turtle Island. Our friend Justin, from Australia, that we met in Vietnam and have traveled with on and off for a while has joined us as well as a new friend from Tonsai (a San Francisco girl named Ashley) for some excellent snorkeling, sea kayaking and overall beach time. The beaches on Koh Tao are much more developed that our dear little Reggae Rasta Tonsai experience, but the waters around the island- which is the farthest from land in the Gulf- are crystal clear and full of beautiful creatures. There are tourist shops and Scuba Diving courses every few feet, something that we aren't used to because we have made such an effort to stay off the beaten track. The party's are insane, so much wild electronic music pulsing down the beach, people drinking and smoking to excess, swimming in the ocean, and socializing with people from all over the world. It is quite the spectacle to see. Charlie and I often make some friends and observe the chaos with ameusment. Today we head to Koh Phagnan for an international half moon party in the jungle. We are meeting up with some friends and putting together a crew to head out for one last big night on the beach before heading back to Bangkok on Friday. Then, we shop, dine and prepare for our journey home.
We will keep it updated.

Thailand therapy

So, we begin the grueling journey back to the states in three weeks. We have been bad about keeping this updated recently and know it. We are in Tonsai, a small bay outside Krabi town on the southwest side of the peninsula. It has been about 10 days since we arrived and we have not made it far beyond our hammocks. It's pretty nice! Thailand is so easy and there are no worries - everyone is so chilled out. Tonsai is apparently a top destination for rock climbers which brings many many people, but not too many. And they are always climbing. The bay is a small area consisting of a plethora of Thai rastas (I'm writing this in a glass Internet joint overlooking the sea and a big storm is occurring. The sky let out an enormous burst of thunder and the night lit up - at the same time my computer shut down. It was electric...So now I continue)and little bar/shacks to compliment. Oriana and I are quite enjoying ourselves. A couple days ago we did motivate and make our way several bays down, through the jungle and up a steep hike to an overlook where we could see for out over the landscape below us. Our next mission was to find a heard of lagoon. We did. The hike down into the lagoon was ridiculously vertical with three different levels. Nonetheless we made it and just lay around in our hammocks eating fresh pineapple. Today we rented kayaks and set out to sea. We explored some beautiful surrounding islands with perfect white sand beaches. We got extremely sunburned, but luckily, made it home to Tonsai before the evening, intense, thunderstorms rolled in from all directions- right on time.
For now we will make the dash home to our little bamboo hut in the jungle. The rain has let up a bit, so this is our chance.
Much Love.

It's been awhile...

Sorry for the lack of posting, friends. Charlie and I have been on the move up Vietnam. From Dalat we took a 15 hour bus up to Hoi An, which is famous for the 500 Tailoring shops that don the quiet streets of this town. Charlie and I were only there a few hours before picking out fabrics and styles for our new attire. I got a beautiful wool pea coat made, and Charlie got a silk-line pinstriped suit- all for a total of $170. To say the least we are very happy with our purchases.
From Hoi An we decided to high-tail it up to Hanoi, the northern capital, so we could spend our last two weeks in, what has turned out to be, the most beautiful part of Vietnam. We have run into our Canadian buddies in many random places, met new friends to travel with, and spent some whiskey-ridden days kayaking through the grotto's and limestone peaks that loom in and above Halong Bay. Famous for its Islands of sheer cliffs and lush jungle, this National Heritage site was one of the most impressive sights yet on this trip. We took an organized tour, one of the few we have done on the trip, through The Hanoi Backpackers Hostel. The trip took us, and eighteen other young travelers, on a cruise through the Bay on an old fashioned, pirate ship. This mahogany boat was our home for 36 hours of drinking, fine dining and socializing as we cruised through the massive limestone islands. Our accommodation on-board was beautiful and romantic, some of the nicest rooms on our trip. The second night of the three day tour was spent in a three star hotel on the largest island in the bay- Cat Ba Island. This island, which is also a national park, had many quaint villages and one seaside town with many hotels and little Vietnamese restaurants. A group of five of us decided to stay on the island a few extra days to enjoy more scenery and the slower pace of the place. Another detail is that it is quite cold in Northern Vietnam. Coats are necessary and it has been raining on and off for about a week. This has made the scenery even for mysterious, with fog blanketing areas around the island reinforcing the local myths that the islands were once sea dragons that protected the villagers from harm. They settled on their stationary spots to provide protection from the sea and any enemies in might bring. We drank beer at the local climbing bar and stayed in immaculate $6 sea view rooms, only going back to the first hotel to utilize the top floor Spa. For $12 we got one hour massages and full use of steam bath, jacuzzi and sauna for two hours. We ordered beer, sat in the jacuzzi, and enjoyed luxury that we haven't had once on our trip- or perhaps ever.
After hopping on our ship, that comes every day for those staying longer on the island, we made our way back to the mainland, and eventually back to Hanoi. So now Charlie, Justin (our Australian friend whom we have been traveling with since Hoi An), and I are just enjoying the local Pho (Vietnamese Noodle Soup) before Charlie and I fly back to Bangkok the day after tomorrow.
Oh, and on a family note- MY SISTER HAD HER BABY!
Golden and her husband Sean welcomed in their son, Zayden Clark Rogers, into the world yesterday. He is a healthy 9 lbs 2 ounces and a pretty good looking baby (as far as newborns go). My family is so happy and proud, and I am very excited to get home to meet my new nephew.
Much Love.
Oriana and Charlie

p.s. We will post pictures soon.

The Lovely Vietnam

We have been in this wonderful country for ten days now, and have found it to be most enjoyable. Many travelers had told us that Vietnam was their least-favorite country while traveling, and it almost discouraged us from coming at all. But now that we are here, Charlie and I can't understand why this was such a popular notion. Our first few days in Saigon exposed us the modernity of this flourishing country. Though it is officially a communist country, capitalism is booming everywhere. The quality of service here is much higher than that of Cambodia, and is on par with Thailand when looking at the variety of activities and ease of travel. Though it is a bit more expensive here than anywhere else we have gone, the rooms are always well-kept and include all the amenities (Having hot water is a beautiful thing if you haven't in months). Coming from Cambodia, it feels more like a first world country than another country recovering from war. While Cambodia doesn't have the resources, and too much corruption, to develop strong infrastructure (i.e. good roads, efficient transportation, healthcare etc), Vietnam has accomplished all of this.
The bustling city of Ho Chi Minh is as modern as any in the states. With garbage trucks, city maitnence workers, and a booming tourism economy.
After spending a few days in Ho Chi Minh (formerly known as Saigon before the communists took over) Charlie and I headed for the white sand beaches of Mui Ne.
Mui Ne consists of one long road that runs parallel to the South China Sea. Guesthouses, hotels and restaurants adorn both the beach side and inland side of the road. Palm trees line the tiled boardwalk that stretches the 3.5 km stretch of beach that is Mui Ne. The most noticeable thing about Mui Ne is that it is an international mecca for Kiteboarding. This awesome-looking sport combines wakeboarding with extreme kite-flying. We spent a few days watching hundreds of tanned, athletic people soar through the air doing tricks and stunts similiar to wakeboarding, or snowboarding. We were enthralled.
Of course we wanted to do it, but it turned out to be a rediculously expensive thing to learn on this touristy beach. To consol ourselves we hired a Jeep, with an Australian couple, and took off for a day of exploring the many white and red sand dunes in the area. This turned out to be the most incredible combination of desert and tropical ecosystems. Deep red creeks running through the most brilliant white sand dunes and palm trees looming overhead. The contrast was unlike anything we had ever seen.
We decided to leave the next morning, because it was a bit painful to sit on the beach and watch everyone else out in the water having fun. Especially because we had the desire but lacked the money to try. We decided, anyway, that we were definitely mountain people who had been on the beach too long.
And this is how we ended up in the wonderful mountain town of Dalat.
This is one of my favorite places we have been in Asia. It has the cool breeze of higher elevation, fresh pine scent and a French influence that is hard to ignore. It feels like we have dropped out of Asia and into a small European mountain town. The buildings have the destinct French style of architecture, with lots of whitewashed walls, tall vaulted ceilings, plenty of arches, pillars and even a miniture Eiffle Tower. There are little cafes everywhere, sometimes four or five on a block. And this isn't even the best part. It is what lies just outside town that has captured our hearts- plenty of mountains and freshwater.
Charlie and I met the coolest Canadian couple, whom are very much the Candian version of ourselves. They too have been traveling together for about three months and it was nice to hear and be around another couple that have spent so much quality time together. Together, without offending anyone, we could lighheartedly vent about the little quirks that we all find a bit annoying in our much-loved traveling companions. To say the least, we hit it off and were glad to actually have some friends for a few consecutive days.
Our first full day in Dalat was spent on rented motorbikes touring around the countryside. Dalat is well known for its good climate and soil for growing every kind of familiar vegetable and fruit out there(The wine made here is delicious, and only costs $1 to $2 a bottle). As the four of us drove through the cool mountain air and looked out over acres of organized farmland full of flowers, cucumbers, tomatoes, grapes etc, we realized what a fertile pocket of the country we had found. All the food here is fresh, farmed in an efficient manner and compare greately to the farmland around Missoula. People live really well here. They eat well, they drink well, and they live in a beautiful forested, waterfall and lake ridden area of Vietnam.
We found some impressive waterfalls, swam in the first clean freshwater lake we have seen in Asia and ate fresh fruits and veggies in the countryside markets. It was amazing.
Yesterday (our second day in Dalat) Charlie and I went to the market to purchase cucumbers, tomatoes, cream cheese, fresh shredded garlic, baguettes and, of course, some local wine to take on a romantic picnic by one of the many mountain lakes we had found. We drove our bright red motorbike the 15 minutes out of town and to the lake, set up our beach mat and chess board, and settled into the bush-ridden shores for an afternoon of relaxing. We made delicious fresh sandwhiches, which we haven't been able to find in Asia prior, and enjoyed the cooler temperatures of the mountains. It felt like home. Enjoying nature in the daytime and drinking wine with our new down-to-earth friends in the evening.
Though we could stay much longer, we have decided to leave in the morning to head north, as we only have two weeks left here before we fly from Hanoi back to Bangkok. We are off to see Hoi An, known for it's fine silk and plethora of tailors, for a day or two. Then we will see a bit of Hue, another older beach town with much history, before heading deep into the Northwest to some mountains that are said to be "The Alps of Asia' which sounds right up our alley.
For now we will continue enjoy ourselves and the romantic air of this quaint little town. It is so nice to be in a place that smells like home.

Much Love.

To the Village and Back Again... and Then to Vietnam

After our days in Siem Reap we thought we would go back to Phnom Penh for a few days while we waited for our Vietnam Visas to go through. We thought that on Valentines Day we would be spending the day riding a bus for seven hours from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Instead we ended up packing our bursting backpacks and climbing into the back of a Tuk Tuk operated by a driver, and new friend, named Seng Thy- or as we somehow began calling him, Cha Lee Cho. He is one of the five Tuk Tuk drivers that operates out of Happy Guesthouse, the place we had returned to after spending five days there earlier in the week. Him and his three brothers worked in one way or another at the guesthouse. Cha Lee and his brothers were all easy to smile, and charming- as it helps to be in a tourism-based industry. These brothers, along with almost everyone else that worked at Happy, all came from a small village of about 1,500 that stood 50 km southeast of the city. Over our time in Phnom Penh, we had made friends with each one and developed a friendly and familiar repoire with them. On our last night before our expected departer, Cha Lee said he was going home to his village the next morning and that he was sorry we couldn't come with him.

Well, Charlie and I looked at each other and shrugged our shoulders- why not?
Cha Lee assured us his offer was genuine and couldn't stop smiling. We felt that this was the kind of thing it would be silly to miss out on, considering we trusted him and felt good about the prospect of leaving the city and driving out into the countryside with him for a few days. And so, on Friday we threw our bags in the motorcyle-pulled chariot and braced ourselves for the bumpy ride. An hour and a half later we pulled off the pavement and dusted our way down the dry dirt road to Cha Lee's village.
Charlie and I were a bit nervous, as we were completely out of our element and didn't really know what to expect. But as soon as we pulled up to the modest house that was lifted over ten feet off the ground, and saw the smiling faces of Cha Lee's wife and four children sitting underneath the house on (yes, on) the dinner table, we relaxed. Soon after we arrived and were ushered under the house to sit, Cha Lee's wife - Mum - went into a shed-like kitchen and began bringing out bowls of rice, of pickled mango, of the raw pork we had just bought from the market and a salad of basil and cucumbers. It looked beautiful, except for the meat that had been hanging outdoors all day before we pulled up to buy it- and we're pretty sure it was the face of a pig, bones and all. We descretely avoided the meat and behaved most entheusiastic about the meal- especially considering that the whole family wasn't eating, but standing around us in a semi circle smiling. More relatives, neighbors and friends began showing up to meet us and watch us eat. As did the director of the local school, because Charlie and I had decided to buy all 400 students a book for learning English. Cha Lee had first mentioned this idea on the eve of our departer to the countryside. We had investegated at the main markets in Phnom Penh about prices, and the book most recomended for the task, and Cha Lee had his wife did some investegating at the local market by their village. In the end it would cost only $200 total to buy the entire school books. Charlie reasoned that it was a small price to pay for us but it may actually be a chance to do some good in the lives of these children. And of course, I agreed.

The next morning, Feb 14th, we spent our Valentines day at a rural Asian market searching out these specific books that were rumored to be there. Cha Lee and Mum helped us with negotiations and we efficiently purchased our humble gift. But, before we could go to the school and present them to the Director, the ingredients for our next few meals had to be bought. So Mum softly, but firmly, held on to my elbow as she towed me through the crowded market of women. While Cha Lee and Charlie browsed other school supplies, I was led through a sea of vegetables, live eels, fish, other animals, as well as many things I did not recognize. As we walked down the aisles between women parked on their blankets piled high with their products, all eyes were on me. I saw as everyone in front of us stopped what they were doing to look, some smiled and some didn't. But Mum seemed to know everyone and smiled her way through the crowd picking out vegetables, sauces and such. The deal of the trip was that Charlie and I would pay for our food, as Cha Lee's family (and the whole village) is very poor. So I gave Mum a ten dollar bill that paid for a weekend of feasting for the whole family. As she toted me toward the exit, past the whole (I mean totally whole- head, eyes, feet and all) skinned chickens, I thought that we might have escaped buying meat. It was a relief. Mum collected Charlie and Cha Lee, the books we had purchased and the food we had bought into the Tuk Tuk before placing her hand under my elbow once again to steer me across the street, much to my dismay, to a meat stand. Legs, hinds, and organs of a freshly slaughtered pig hung from hooks. Chopped bits of unidenifiable animal parts lay on a platter in front of a cross-legged woman holding a bloody butcher knife. With flies buzzing around us, Mum chose a chunk of meat and an organ to take with us. Seeing that I am not much of a meat lover, and eat mostly vegetarian, I was trying hard to keep a polite face.

The heat was intense and the smell of raw meat wasn't any less to bear, so I was happy when we all hopped in the Tuk Tuk and headed to the school.

As soon as we arrived the director and one, of the two, teachers for the school came up and thanked us again and again. Charlie nor I speak any Khmer, and these men didn't speak a lick of English, so our mutual feelings of gratitude were expressed largely through body language. It is rare to have the chance to give something directly to the place of need. Charlie and I had been talking about finding a volunteer oppurtunity for weeks, as Cambodia is the most in need of all the countries we are to visit. This was an oppurtunity for us to give a simple gift to happy, smiling children that we could actually meet. As Cha Lee eloquently put it when he suggested the donation: "You could buy yourselves some souvenier's, which is perfectly okay, or you could spend some money on the children, and that would be good for them and for Cambodia."

We spent most of the morning playing games with these beautiful children. Each one wanted their own picture taken and the camera caused a frenzy of about 100 little kids pushing each other frantically to get to the front of the crowd. They all wanted to be in the very front waving their peace signs wildly with smiles on their faces. And they had no idea who we were, or why we were there.

It was the most loved I have ever felt on Valentines Day.

Charlie and I were such a team that weekend. Through hairy meat and much attention we stuck together in our will to be openly polite, kind and friendly. We were able to give a few small gift's to our generous hosts without allowing ourselves to be taken advantage of (which is possible in a country that needs so much, and has so little). We re-affirmed our ability to do the right thing when presented with the oppurtunity and to gracefully get ourselves in, and out, of another eye-opening experience.

We have now been in Ho Chi Minh City for three days and already spent a long, alchohol-filled night with a group of Chinese guys who didn't speak more than two words of English, spent an entire day hung over in our hotel room (thank goodness for air-conditioning), gone to various fine art museums and galleries, and explored the modern and booming streets of this city. It is beautiful, international and full of colorful people that co-exist in a wonderful way. So far, we both very much love Vietnam.

Till next time...

Oriana and Charlie

Ancient Angkor

We have officially hit the two month mark which signifies our midpoint here in Asia. The last several days have been spent in Siam Reap, home to Angkor Wat. It is fascinating to see the enormity of these ancient wats. We had an exhausting Sunday exploring multiple sites where ruins and history run thick, dating back to the 12th century. These were all "smaller"temples surrounding the area near Angkor Wat. Today a couple hours were spent observing Angkor Wat, itself. Though crowded with hundreds of tourists, the experience was spectacular and somewhat surreal. Trying to comprehend how these temples were constructed struck me odd. Oriana suggested slaves, but then even it would be near impossible. The magnitude of these sites with their intricate carvings, statues and engravings are nearly as magnificent as one would imagine the pyramids at point of encounter. Angkor Thom was one of the most impressive, beholding glorious trees with intense root systems that grew along great stone walls and over massive entrances. This is also where Tomb Raider was filmed for you movie buffs! The days were miserably hot and unfortunately expensive, but we endured as one should in such matters. We didn't do much else as this is what Siam Reap revolves around and thrives on. Angkor Wat must reel in some heavy dough with the prices and number of people pouring in and out daily. We have been informed that Angkor was bought by an oil company, not American, thankfully, but where the money goes we are not sure of. Some of the temples have or are being restored on a small level, but it seems that most of that is happening from individual groups. For instance, the restoration at one sight is being carried out by a group of Japanese (maybe university?). We also heard that of the income a small percent (like 10) goes to restoration, another small percent goes to the oil company that purchased it all and the rest of about 80 % goes into a black hole (say the government). Anyway that's word on the street. Speaking of the street, none of the money appears to go to the people because there are thick, pesty swarms of children clustered everywhere as you approach and leave each sight trying to sell you postcards, books, sodas, anything and everything. I had a guy today try to sell me the hat he was wearing. Nonetheless, everyone seems pleasantly happy and some restoration is taking way. To sum it all up, Mindblowing. Tomorrow we head back to Phnom Penh to work out our visas for Vietnam where we will be heading in a few days. First to Saigon and then working our way north to Hanoi at which point we will fly back to Bangkok for one more month of fun in the sun along the southern coast. Much love ya'll...

Delving a Little Deeper

After visiting the prison, formerly a high school, where the Khmer Rouge tortured- before killing- just under 20,000 people Charlie and I were seeping into a mellow state of sadness for this country. Then we visited the place of execution. The main 'tourist sights' in Phnom Penh are a) Tuolslen Genocide Museum and b) Choeung Ek Memorial, also known as the Killing Fields. The first is the place where the Khmer Rouge imprisoned and tortured many innocent people, and the second is the place they took these people to kill them with axes, garden tools and anything else that was a low-cost weapon (of which bullets are not). The impact that 9,000 skulls make on a person is great. These 9,000 excavated skulls (that were able to be found whole) are contained in a monument placed over one of the mass graves in the killing fields. They are separated by age- 10-15 yrs old, 15-20 yrs old, 20-45 yrs old and over 45 yrs old. There are 12 stories surrounded by glass, showcasing the young to old, low to high. The clothes of those 'excavated' lay under the youngest skulls on the bottom. It is a very chilling sight. After a day like that, you either want to drink alot or wander aimlessly- both of which we did.
Today we wandered even more, taking Tuk-Tuk's to different parts of the city and eating and drinking and talking with the steet people and Tuk-Tuk drivers. They especially love Charlie, he has a way with them. First they love his name, and then his jokes and then his willingness, and want, to stop and chat for as long as they like. Almost every Taxi driver, Moto Driver or Tuk-Tuk driver has given a shortened version of his life story and shared a few jokes with Charlie before we move on. Everyone is very friendly, but many tourists tend to stare straight at the sidewalk and don't answer anyone when they ask, again and again every two feet, "Tuk-Tuk Madame? Moto Sir? Where are you going? Can I assist you?"
It can be overwhelming, but we are adjusting nicely. The trick is, as Charlie discovered, to just make friends with everyone. To smile, and joke, try to sell them something back, or just ask them how they are, where they are going etc. They find it quite funny. So today we just wandered Phnom Penh, making friends and eating local fruits and drinking local beer- which is cheap, by the way.
In the morning we leave for Siem Reap, and to see the famous Angkor Wat. Then, we have decided to leave for Vietnam a few days after that. We are reaching the half-way point in our trip, and we have one more month before we head back to Thailand for the last month of beach-status in the South.
We will post a bit more when we have things to report. For now we are just living.
Much Love

Going with the flow, back in the city...

We are in Phnom Penh currently and realizing once again the intensity of crossing a city street in Asia. After being on many beaches with low traffic and islands with no more than foot traffic making adjustments to the craze and disfunction of traffic flow is more than dazzling. In Thailand we became accustom to looking right then left, but here in Cambodia they drive on the right side of the street like at home so we are quickly relearning to look left then right. Honestly it is pretty much irrelevant which way you look in either place because there are absolutely no apparent traffic laws so every time I step off the curb I feel like a jack popping out of the box, my head bouncing to the right, back to the left and then all over the place as if it really were spring loaded. You learn to do this while dancing between moto-bikes, tuk tuks and anything else moving. It's quite a thrilling experience, every time. What I really mean by going with the flow is much broader than crossing the street.

Everyday is something new so you have to be flexible, patient and understanding with every step. Fortunately for us, we usually are or can at least balance one another out. Island life is easy and time seems to stand still, but entering a different country can be frustrating and exhausting for reasons ranging from language and currency to transportation and food. It was mind boggling when we first entered Cambodia. We were becoming pros with getting through Thailand and dealing in baht. 100 baht is approx. 3 dollars - no sweat. In Cambodia 4000 riel is 1 dollar - a bit more units. In Cambodia they except baht, riel and dollars interchangibly so you quickly need to get use to using all three currencies interchangibly. We didn't, because that's insane - and why dollars in Cambodia? No problem we're American; maybe the only two in the world without any US dollars. That's how our first few days went and then it was off the mainland - Ko Ru bound - that's Bamboo Island - and we posted up for 6 or 7 days. No resorts, no power until after 5:30 pm, no roads or vehicles and hardly any persons - that's where we spent the celebration for my 28th birthday (please send gifts to 801 kemp st. or deposit directly in bank account; thanks). The day prior to the most important day in the world was capped with an evening fishing trip off the island in which we accompanied an Aussie couple and a couple chaps from England. Pretty chill sunset fishing excursion - we were all reeling them in. Some colorful fish referred to as cucumber fish. I should mention we are fishing Khmer style which means you have the line in your hand, a hook with some squid and a plastic spool to wrap the line around. Pretty basic we thought which is why we were not expecting what happened next. Jane is pulling in another one, no big deal until she is taking an aggressive stance and racing time to get her line pulled in, suddenly she is working her way, like she had done this before, around the front of the boat and on around. Now she seems like the catch. She continues her battle while our two Khmer guides make it her way, fishing net in hand, to help out. Within minutes there's a shark in the boat. SHARK!... in the boat... The looked like a great white, but it was only a few feet long. They said it was a crazy shark - like that's the species and that is about as big as they get. They also said they had never caught one so this was new for everyone. The following day, most important day in the world, was my birthday. Oriana, the ever thoughtful Queen that she is, was full of surprises. First a couple of mystery bottles of red wine emerged. Wait that's second. First a bottle of whiskey, a book, some balm and a package of my favorite slims were revealed. The wine was later. I spent most the day completing my sand fortress which turned out after a couple days. A little later on while eating dinner the bottles of red were opened and flowed about. Now, you are all probably thinking 2 bottles of red wine - cool, but there was no wine on the island - it had to be specially delivered from the mainland. Good work baby! So we are having a good time, all the other guests are wishing me well and who would of thought, a cake came out. CAKE...there isn't cake on Bamboo island and definitely not a bakery - where does cake come from? The mainland where like the vino, was carefully and discretely boated an hour over to the island. Good work baby! So we had a little celebration and enough cake for all the guests present. I thought I was excited, but you should have seen the Swede, Marvin sitting next to me. When the cake came out he lit up like a little boy. It was great. To top everything off the staff rolled me a quite large khmer cigarette which put a grin on everyones face. So we left the island the following day and arrived in Phnom Penh yesterday. We are staying at a nice guesthouse on the lake and like I said before, getting use to the city again.

Tomorrow we are going to see some sites which I think will be a heavy load. We will see the killing fields and torture chambers where hundreds of thousands were brutaly murdered under the reign if the Khmer Rouge. In a few days we will head north to Siem Reap and Angkor Wat, then back this way to head into Vietnam. We are lovely and miss all of you. We know we need to load more pics but we lost our camera charger so until we resolve this be patient. much love-

This Kingdom of Cambodia

From the moment we crossed the border we realized, very immediately and intensly, that we were indeed in a new and foreign country. From minute one we were hustled for money, for 'help' that later turned out to be not of goodwill but for an expensive 'tip.' No one likes to feel taken advantage of, especially if you go out of your way to be compassionate and kind to every person in your path. Charlie was, in this instance, a very calming presence in it all.

Cambodia is just emerging as a tourist destination in the last decade. In the seventies a repressive regime, known as the Khmer Rouge, dominated Cambodia with violent and unthinkable practices. Cambodia is the most heavily landmined country, leaving many thousands of men, women and children without limbs, or without thier lives. Even still the effect of these bombs are seen everywhere you walk. Between 1975 and 1979 hundreds of thousands of people were brutally executed for being educated, speaking a foriegn language, wearing glasses, begging for much needed food or, in some reported cases, just crying over lost loved ones. The brutality of this regime went beyond the actual acts of unthinkable violence, the people in this country starved by the thousands each day and an estimation made by the CIA reported 1.3 million died in those four years of disease and malnutrition on top of the estimated 50,000 to 100,000 that were executed during that time. The Communist Party of Vietnam finally drove out the Khmere Rouge, lead by Pol Pot, in 1979 and took control of the country for fourteen years. During this time aid was allowed into the country. The UN soon passed a settlement instigating free elections in Cambodia, and in May of 1993 the first democratic elections were held, with 90 percent of the Cambodian population voting.
This marked the beginning of Cambodia's move toward democracy. With a growing number of tourists coming to Cambodia every year, the locals clearly see this as an opportunity to make whatever money they can, however they can. Having read about all this awful history before coming into Cambodia didn't quite prepare me for the intensity of the hustle here.
Despite the initial chaos of the border town, Cambodia is still full of beautiful and friendly people. We are becoming more savvy everyday we travel, and are continuously seeking the balance between getting a good price and being fair. We are also trying to keep our compassion alive and find ways to be open to the strife that Cambodia has been through. We are guests in this country and are determined to be kind and discover the beauty it beholds. We feel safe and are keeping our wits about us. From what we hear this is the intermediary step before going to Vietnam, where they are a bit more abrupt and aggressive. We will keep you updated on what we learn.
For now we are staying in Sihanoukville, on the southern coast. Our 'budget accommodation' consists of a dorm room in a shack on the beach, a hip and happening backpacker hangout called 'Chiva Shack.' There are many other foreigners staying in this low-key beach scene and we have made many friends already. We plan on staying here a few days (it is only $2 a night for our room) and then take a boat to Bamboo Island off the coast and rent a low-key bungalow for a while. It is hot, but we are keeping our spirits up and continuing to enjoy our experiences.
Much Love.

Elephant Island

We are still on Ko Chang, and today we saw why this is truly Elephant Island. My sister, Charlie, Jamas and I went on a two hour elephant trek through the jungle (and a rubber tree plantation, which was also and interesting sight to see). We were able to ride bareback, Charlie and I on our own elephant, for most of the way. We were also able to swim, wash and play with these lovely, calm and enormous creatures. I was truly amazed by thier grace and agility for being such a tremendously large animal. 'Our' elephant, named Rambo, was a 34 year old youth with a knack for getting destracted by tasty leaves and bushes along the way. His trainer kept him in line with a series of pokes, prods and nudges with his feet, random sticks and a large steel hammer- which he didn't need, thankfully, on our ride. Rambo was very playful when we took off the huge, carnival-like saddle and climbed on bareback as he lumbered into a freshwater swimming hole. We tried our best to stay on his back as he rolled, submerging himself in the cool water. He kept sucking up water in his trunk and spraying himself, and us, to cool down. Once we got over the initial intimidation of such a massive creature, and realized that elephants - and ours in particular - have such a mellow energy about them, we became more comfortable with swimming in such close proximity of multiple elephants. Luckly the trekking company we used seemed to feed their elephants well and take care of them, so they were healthy looking and had friendly behavioral habits. It was amazing. Neither Charlie or I have ever been so close to an Asian Elephant, let alone been able to ride one. I was just as excited as my eight-year-old nephew was about the whole experience.
Tomorrow we leave to Cambodia. We will post some more pictures soon, when we get around some computers with the right connections.
Much Love.

The Sun and the Sand

We are on the beautiful island of Ko Chang, meaning Elephant Island in Thai. It is a huge, mountainous island with a variety of beautiful beaches, monkey's and tropical birds singing in the palm trees. Charlie and I have been 'traveling' with my sister, Wren, and my 8-year-old nephew, Jamas, for about a week now. By 'traveling' I mean that we traveled to one island- Ko Samet- relaxed and played on the white sand beaches for a week and then 'traveled' to the island next door, Ko Chang, where we presently reside. Ko Samet was picture perfect, but small, and having had walked in every direction to the sea, and relaxed on the beach for five or six days we decided to see some new terrain. Here on Ko Chang we are staying in simple, but beautifully crafted bamboo huts with nice sheets, and comfortable pillows- something both Charlie and I have come to realize is quite the luxury. This island has less of a resort feeling about it and more of the reggae-rasta vibe we are so comfortable with. Here people are just living thier lives comfortably, island style. And we fit right in. We have purchased a hammock each, and it has proven to be the best money spent yet. These durable, comfortable contraptions can be taken with you anywhere to create the best scene possible. Charlie, especially, has taken to his. He carts it with him on walks on the beach, just in case there is a perfect spot.

Today we rented Sea Kayak's, for about six U.S dollars, and paddled out and around a few small islands that lay off the shores of Ko Change. We saw some picturesque Asian jungle scenes from our boat- complete with many kinds of blooming, delicate trees sprawled up steep cliffs. The palms, the teak and many other massive, equally stunning and impressive, trees and foliage. Having my sister and nephew with us has inspired us to do more guided activities, as it is 'fun for the whole family.' We might go on an elephant ride- something Jamas did and is itching to do again, or some sort of jugle safari into the interior of the island- which is 75 percent untouched, pristine jungle. We woke up to monkey's playing on the deck of the hut next door and were so awe-struck that we realized not one of us had ever seen a wild monkey- let alone playing outside our door. This made us want to get in to the jungle and observe some more exotic (to us) wildlife.

We only have a few more days left in Thailand, and we are sad to leave, but our days will continue to be full of exotic adventure and relaxation.

Ko Samet - Our White Sand Paradise

So we have traveled all the way across Thailand and found ourselves in heaven. After meeting up with my sister, Wren, and my nephew, Jamas, we have taken a ferry across a small stretch of the Gulf of Thailand to rest, recoup and relax in the sun and sands of Ko Samet. This island is a postcard for paradise. We have found ourselves in a small grass hut with the ocean, literally, right out our front doorstep. Though there are many white sand stretches of resort areas, Charlie put in the extra effort and walked beach after beach until he found a small family-run bungalow operation with a private bay and the biggest, best turquoise waves to body surf and swim in. And we have posted up. Our days consist of playing soccer on the beach and soaking up the very potent rays of sunshine. Time has slowed and we are in island mode- no worries to speak of. We might stay here a few more days, move to an even more secluded island toward Cambodia, Ko Mak, where another
Aunt and Uncle of mine are staying. Then we suppose we will take a boat to Cambodia and move along the beach, slowly, for a while. The waves wash right up to the many dinner cafe's on the beach, and paper lanterns glow softly along the shoreline. This is truly an Asian dream like neither of us have ever experienced.
We are safe and happy, as usual, and we are sending much love to all of you.
Sincerely,
Oriana and Charlie

Caves!

And we thought it couldn't get any better. After our lovely trip through the jungle of the Nan Province (NE Thailand) we were excited to move on from Chaing Mai and continue our travels. We made a group of good friends there, so it was bittersweet to leave, but we knew that if we didn't set a date and move on- we might never leave the "Old City." Our river trip was full of exciting whitewater, scenic views and total removal from the bustle of Chaing Mai. Our guide, Jason, has since become a good friend and showed us parts of Thailand we would never have seen otherwise. His fluent Thai took us to a Thai Hip Hop Club, called Channel X, in the small town of Nan where hundreds of Thai locals gathered on a Monday night to drink Sang Som (Thai Rum) and dance to the beats of a live band, DJ and rotating vocal entertainers. As we drank our share of Rum, Charlie - of course - made many friends and, at one point, was offered the microphone by the Thai Hipster singing on stage. We were the only Farangs (foreigners) in the place, and recieved much attention- all positive. The next day, with hangovers and little sleep, we all piled back in the van to make the six hour drive back to Chaing Mai. When we arrived we booked a guesthouse in the heart of the city and relaxed, trying to recover from the entire experience. Our guesthouse, in which we stayed for two nights- the second being New Years, had a beautiful in-ground pool, many beautiful and tropical murals, and best of all, an open roof-top living room complete with a sun-deck, a pool table and couches. We had a mellow New Years Eve. We walked about town with our friend Gora- the Russian Monk- and witnessed the celebrations that were happening all over. Hundreds of paper lanterns were lit, and floated through the sky over the city. Charlie and I both agreed we had never seen a sight quite like that of the sky filled with hundreds- perhaps thousands- of soft lights. To boot, there were fireworks going off everywhere, in the sky and on the ground. We spent the countdown at The Northgate Jazz Co-op, a place we have hung out many times to see Joshwah play music and meet our many new friends. We went to bed shortly before three a.m., as we were planning on traveling early the next day. And so we left Chaing Mai, riding a packed full bus eight hours to the small village of Sappong. By the time we got there, it was dark and approaching eight o'clock. Our lodge - Cave Lodge - where we had reservations had instructed us to get a motorbike taxi the nine km from Sappong to the lodge, but because of the hour there was no taxi in sight. We were just happy to have been dropped off in what looked like an actual town. The bus had stopped a few times before, just on the side of the dark highway, and we were both praying that it wasn't Sappong. When we saw a small market and convenient store, the bus driver turned to us - "Sappong here." We thanked him and were relieved to see people out on the street and a few guesthouses nearby. After negotiating with the clerk behind the counter at the convenient store, Charlie and I hopped in with a local Dad, and for 300 baht rode with him in his truck up, yet another, small, dark and winding road. Signs for Cave Lodge started to appear, and our faith that we were actually going somewhere was restored. The Dad dropped us by the river, near a lighted path to the lodge. As we walked up the stairs, removed our shoes- as is custom when you enter any private building- the scene unfolding before us was reassuring. A large open veranda spread out before us, with hammocks and swings hanging from the tall rafters, and an open fire pit in the center. There were travelers sitting around the fire, reading, writing and talking with one another. All eyes turned to us as we stepped up to the kitchen. The owner, John, an Australian who has lived there on the Thai-Burmese border for 30 years, asked us if we had a reservation, which thankfully I had made earlier in the day. We ordered some much needed food and walked down the stone walkway to our creekside bungalow. It is a lovely place, with many activities around. We have decided to stay there five days, and explore the surrounding villages, mountains and caves. We hitched a ride into Pai this morning - about 50 km away - with a nice Thai family on vacation. We are going to rent a motorbike, so we can be self-sufficient, and carefully explore the surrounding waterfalls that are in this beautiful and rural paradise. One of the cool things about this area, and this time of year, is that there are more Thai tourists than foreign ones. Truckloads of Thai families have pitched tents all along the rivers from Pai to Sappong, as well as up in the mountains where we are staying. The Thai style of camping is much like our own- tents, boomboxes radiating beats, booze and couples looking for romance. They are all very interested in us, and where we are from. They are always snapping pictures of us from the distance- or in some cases not. Yesterday we hiked to the top of a mountain called "The Big Knob." It was only about an hour and a half up, but it was thick forest and steep rocks twined with vines. The last ascent was steep and full of volcanic rocks, that helped us climb the last verticle feet. Once we reached the rocky point- we truly were on the very top of the mountain - we sat and enjoyed the view of the surrounding valleys. There was a bamboo flag pole with a weathered Thai flag, and makeshift benches of wood set on two rocks. As we sat there on the top our little mountain in Thailand we were, yet again, reminded of how blessed and thankful we are for our lives, and each other. As there is no internet at our lodge, don't be alarmed if we don't check in for a few days. Tune in soon- we got all of our pictures from our river adventure on disc and we plan on uploading them soon. Much love to you all, our family and friends.

Chohk dii pi mai - Good luck, happy New Year!
Oriana and Charlie