I have been back since before Christmas, and had a few more stories and random travel thoughts to share. These serve as a supplement to my journal, and of course I don’t care if you don’t wish to take the time to read. Also, I attached a Word document of this e-mail and the previous 3 since some people didn’t get these. Ignore the attachment if you've already read my last e-mails.

The night before I left for Vietnam, my father called (a somewhat uncommon event) to say good-bye. “Thirty-five years ago,” he shared with me, he was trying to avoid getting sent there. “Times have changed.” He recalled some information from his friends who had drafted around the time I was born, and warned me to watch out for large snakes that eat monkeys. “Sometimes, snakes just appear in a rice paddy and grab you,” he warned me. Fortunately (I guess) I didn’t come across any.

One hotel I stayed in had a nice restaurant with aquariums with all different sized snakes. I have an irrational fear of snakes, so the thought of everyone eating fresh snake grossed me out, but I worked through that quite a bit. Not enough to order it.

Things were generally clean, and after a few days I learned to take most everything in stride. Very small ants in my hotel room, no soap in the restaurant bathrooms, stains on the sheets... There were also an unlimited number of low hanging hazards, making a walk down the sidewalk a test of agility and alertness. Foot level hazards too.

There were, challenges. Many. After ordering my dinner one night, I got up to go to the restroom, which was through the kitchen. When I stepped into the kitchen, there was a rat on the sink. I kind of shrieked, which scared the rat under the sink, but another one jumped in it’s place. The staff laughed at me. As I walked through the kitchen 3 scurried across the floor in front of me. I realized that all of the restaurants were in the same boat since everything is so open. There are no doors to get into the restaurant, just an open entryway, so rats can come and go in any restaurant. I suppressed the memory and ate my dinner.

I told the "rats in the kitchen" story to some English girls that were also backpacking. They told how they were just about to start eating their food at a restaurant, when a rat fell from the ceiling onto the middle of their table.

Fellow backpackers often had better stories than mine. Many were in their early 20’s, and were traveling for 3 to 18 months. Mostly Europeans and Australians, some Canadians, few Americans. And they smoked incessantly, sometimes even during dinner.

The traffic and regard for traffic laws were a great source of excitement and amusement. The rule is, when crossing the street, never stop or change your speed. Just keep walking, and the drivers can estimate where you are going and will compensate, though often not with much room to spare. On my first day, I was literally too afraid to cross the street, and after waiting for the right time to cross which would never come, a motorbike and driver convinced me to be driven where I wanted to go. I ended up in an entirely different destination than I was intending, but it was pretty cool too.

I came to realize that we in the west are way too concerned with safety. How could there be such a huge disparity where we have laws like kids in car seats, when there they seem to do OK with an infant holding onto the parents shoulders while they ride on a motorbike? Drivers here are way too uptight.

The people in Vietnam and Thailand were incredibly clean, and their clothes were new, free of stains, and pressed. It was impressive to see a woman dressed head to toe in a meticulous white satin outfit riding a motorbike.

There was always a major challenge with the language, particularly in Vietnam. That is, the locals speaking good enough English for me to get my questions answered. Often, I didn’t quite know what was going on, even when there was a tour guide. Vietnamese uses vocal chords that are significantly different, so while their grasp of English was often good, their pronunciation was rough, and I lived in a world of wonder.

I was often highly energized by the buzz and stimulation everywhere, and found it hard to get to bed early or sleep late. Also, drinking was a big part of the backpacking culture, and eventually this caught up to me and I caught a cold, which turned into a sinus infection after I continued to operate on High. Fortunately, my doctor in Denver was 1 step ahead of me and equipped me with antibiotics for just such an occasion. I had some travelers diarrhea the first week too.

My ATM card expired while I was there, and my credit card got turned off at one point. Fortunately I found places to give me cash advances and there were no major inconveniences.

My trip ended in Singapore, and I had mentioned meeting a girl named Thana in the last e-mail I’d sent shortly after arriving in Singapore. We hung out everyday while I was there, and I couldn’t have asked for better company. She is a beautiful soul and has taught me much. She has big beautiful eyes and a wonderful smile. We keep in touch.

I regret not staying longer. I was traveling on frequent flier miles, so I was not able to extend my return flight. Two to three months would be a good amount of time to spend doing a loop around SE Asia, starting in Bangkok or Saigon, and going through Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. I was quite close to Angkor Wat, which is apparently a must-see; some of the most impressive ancient temple-ruins in the world, but I ran out of time and didn’t get to visit. Next time.

A note on the child sex industry: There was a billboard in Cambodia that read something like “Exploit a child sexually, go to jail here or in your country.” So, at least someone is trying to combat this. Cambodia is a country with lots of needs, and I seriously think about living there and finding my niche. I just might.

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