One of my favorites... and I hope you like it too

Jay Aston  Uploads\cswig.mp3

 

Great Documentary! "The Weather Underground" a must see!

 

Le Ngoc Anh, Hao and I having some fun

"we took the flowers from our hair and tried to make them all aware... too bad... to late" (Sweet)

 

Below: The silliness that runs through my mind sometimes...

"The Cherry Blossoms, They're all perfect."

Possible side effects of PTB (Post travel blues) may include:

Blurred vision, bowel blockage, confusion, constipation, depression, dilated pupils, disorientation, dry mouth, fever, hallucinations, heat stroke, impaired memory, inability to urinate, listlessness, nausea, nervousness, numbness in fingers, painful urination, rapid heartbeat, rash, vomiting

"Teacher... slow down"

R. Curry of Sacramento asks:

R.C.: "Can you tell me, what were the biggest pitfalls or challenges of the journey?"

Deep: "Quite honestly Bob, coming home"

 

Sah sa sa sa Ssssssss Saigon... going back to Saigon!

Hmmm... what would be my least favorite question at the moment?  How about... What's next?

But... but... I wasn't ready yet

DEEP SPACE - Abandoned, any sign of the crew? Negative...

Mother ship... preparing to return home

Give a smile, get a smile!

"Perhaps it’s the absurdity and improbability that make it so attractive"

"The Chicken has the flu!!"

The good, the bad, The Traveler

Please don't tell me about Vietnam because I have been there

(above - Cool lil inscription on the back of a souvenir lighter at Cu Chi)

Don't ask me who sings that song cuz I don't know... I stopped listening to the radio when Grunge crap hit the scene.  Kurt Cobain, bite me!  radio died because of you.

"pick up these weary traveler's bones... while the road prepares to kick me in the ass again... my heart screams... oh, and yes... I want more... I'm electric.

Have you seen Ricky Martin? (for my Thai friends)

When I am 80... maybe I move to Pattaya

I'm not suggesting that we not do what needs to be done... let's just not let it always get in the way of what we want to do.  Balance... can anyone tell me the exact ratio?

"I caught a glimpse of Peter Pan one morning... whilst I was shaving - After getting over my initial shock, I asked Pee-tah, where will we go today?"

America, let's stop for a moment and think, what does it actually cost to flip on a light switch?

"It's my opinion that, Idealism, is the only true disability"

"Walk don't run... betta watch out! cuz that bad motor scooter gonna get chu"

"Getting centered in Ha Noi... head slightly tilted"

"Don't ask... just eat it ~ 80 million people can't be wrong"

"When in doubt... say Bac Choy"

Infected with a poison: travel bug!

"serious crowd surfing in a country of 82 million people on a strip of land smaller then the state of California".

"So many sub-cultures... how will I ever find my way back to the "main stream?"

My running list of things lost, misplaced, or borrowed:

Lexar Data Stick

Deepsworld T-shirt

Windmill Waterproof Lighter

REI Backpack cover

Money Belt, Passport, Credit Cards, Drivers License, Plane Ticket

(above - returned at a cost of $150)

$100 US

Pair of underwear... 3 pair left

USA Nokia Phone - all my US contacts

Voice recorder

Another undisclosed amount of cash

Why Vietnam? I'm about to tell you...

In brief: people, food, culture, adventure, sites, sounds, smells, spiritual... I will expand soon.

M O T I V A T I O N…

After sitting in the hospital with my mom and dad after me mum broke her hip I made my decision then and there.  It was those oh so gut wrenching words my mother spoke from her gurney, “Thank God your father worked so hard all his life so that we could be taken care of when we got old” Jesus! Is that all there is?  Was that what I was preparing myself for... old age?  I was spending the best years of my life working so that I could enjoy life when I got... ummm.. Too old to enjoy it?

Call it a vision quest…soul seeking… insanity… mid-life crisis…taking a break from the hamster wheel...  lust for life… humility 101 … survivor, Deep style…a death wish…how bout an urge to eat exotic foods in exotic places…seriously...I travel for food. Meow.

 BEHIND THE SCENES…

I do it with guidance from above and a fire in my heart.  I do it with the blessing of my parents, whom I love more than life.  I do it with the help of my good friends at home that keep me posted on life’s events; the person that opens my mail and answers my phones;  The person that is kind enough to stay in my house while I’m on this outrageous journey; the friends that maintain and manage this site.  The United States Government… oh to have a passport that’s blue.  God Bless America.

 INSPIRED?…

Ok, after being over here for a while, I see that what I am doing is nothing all that original.  There are loads of people here just like me that have taken some time out to live a little.  I met a man name Roberto on a boat from Koh Pah Ngan.  He and his wife are on a 10 month honeymoon.  It sounds like they are crossing all seven continents... how cool is that.  There are a lot of stories from the road where people have just made the decision to get out and see some of the world.  Way cool!

I do it for all the times I have said “gee, I wonder how the other side lives? Or gee, some day ill do that… or gee, that guy is so gutsy... or ahhh but I could never, I have too much holding me back.  I will see if it's as simple (not easy) as making a decision.

 EXPECTATION?...

Holy smokes… wasn’t ready to answer this one… I’ll get back to ya. 

 

Signs and "Stuff"

My simple thoughts on the obvious, and not so obvious?

This will be a spot for my own rude awakenings... ugh!  The "stuff" that holds value in my life today... most certainly will take a back seat to what's important to me in a years time.

Things that are nice

Tap water that is not brown

Shower drains that drain

White sheets that are really white

A good nights sleep w/ no mosquitoes or bed bugs feeding off of me

Mosquito nets

detergent that works (I hand wash my clothes every night)

Doors that lock

Air conditioning, that works!

Ice cubes

Neighbors that mind their own business

Cockroaches that understand boundaries

Anti-itching cream

a moment of silence

 

In honor of Vietnamese Liberation Day coming up at the end of April

Hoa Binh, khong chien tranh

English translation = Make love, not war

Freedom to speak

I can only imagine that war is hell and there are all kinds of justifications one can make for the actions that are taken when waging war.  That aside, the War Remnants Museum of Saigon is excellent and brutally honest.    While I was at the WR Museum I made deliberate effort to read through the many comments in the guest book left by people from all over the world.  Many of the comments were harsh and one sided, rightfully so.  What our Administration did then and is doing now was/is irresponsible and inexcusable to say the least.  But do they know about the war that took place in our country protesting the Vietnam conflict?  Or had they  forgotten or maybe never even bothered to research the many Americans that opposed the war.  Perhaps it might make a difference in the many opinions about us if both sides of story were told by the museum... maybe not.  Rather than write a rebuttal and minimize  what I and others had seen in the museum by defending us as a population, I had to bite my tongue and know that as a country, there are many of us who do not agree with war as a solution to dealing with what our so called elected leaders claim is a defunct government. 

I am an American... I wasn't in this war and any other war for that matter.  I am whole heartedly against war as a solution.  I am not a politician or a political person.  I feel the need to say this to any of my foreign friends or persons from another country who might be viewing this site.  I did not vote for Bush.  I do not support the two party government that currently exists in our country.  I am certainly not alone in my country in this opinion.  Because I felt so strongly about the importance of this election, I took the only action I knew how, I exercised my vote and voted for a party that I don't normally support in hopes that a vote for what I viewed as the lesser of two evils could make a difference. In the last election, I voted for Kerry.  It was my peaceful protest.

So with that said, here are my exacts thoughts that day after my second visit.

   "After two visits to the War Remnants Museum, only one thing came to mind: what kind of person/people think/s up and create/s weapons that cause the kind of damage to humanity and Mother Nature, that were used in the American/Vietnam conflict? What about the person or administration that gives the ok to use such weapons... could you imagine having the such over for dinner and having them describe the details and affects of their latest invention to your children.  Isn't that the kind of diabolical mind that we want tucked away in solitary confinement in one of our high security prisons? Do they sleep at night?"

I decide who I hate... do I struggle or do I collaborate?

"after thought... soldier be blessed"

 

Teacher... you speak to fast! How do these words translate to my everyday life?

I don't expect that much will change after everything is said and done... just me.

The reality is... I am not on a vacation.  Life can be a challenge over here... some days I am chock full of Asia... mosquitoes, horns, peddlers, tainted delectable edibles...etc.  I have decided not to focus on the negative, but rather the positive.  Many of you will never get the whole story.  Challenging? You can take my word for this... or maybe you can come partake in the adventure.  I can always use a shoulder to cry on.

Here's a thought... the next time I get the chance to do the right thing... I'll do the right thing.

12/3 A day in Hanoi "In life, what really matters? in a years time will it matter that I may be jobless and broke or is it rather, what matters now is that I feel like the richest man on earth... what does it mean in the now? For a moment in time "right now" my life has paused in this perfect place."

"Every 24 hours and a new beginning... while someone watches"