The End of Alice in Wonderland--the Final Days in HK

So I guess all good things must come to an end. Thus, I have left Hong Kong to return to the "real world." The real world in this sense being the US and law school. The real world to me also represents my long held desire to become a lawyer and represent the Maya of Belize and other underpriveleged people around the world. Finally, of course, it means returning to friends and family who I have missed dearly throughout my Asian saga.

Coincidentally and appropriately, I am reading Jean Paul Sartre's "The Age of Reason," which is about a man forced to face reality and the meaning of freedom. As he protests in the book, "The age of reason is the age of resignation"; in a sense, I agree with this statement, as leaving Hong Kong is, in a way, resigning myself to working a lot harder and getting to travel and do fun things like that a lot less. In another sense, working in Hong Kong, or anywhere for that matter, without working your way up or getting a degree means you have relatively little freedom due to financial and job induced time constraints. Thus, I am attempting to reach MY age of reason, however that may happen.

For the final Hong Kong hurrah, my good friend Peter and I decided to host an Alice in Wonderland themed party. Of course, I had to dress as Alice and all of my friends dressed as the characters in (my Hong Kong) wonderland. Much like Alice, I have recently felt like I just woke up from a very strange and amazing dream that is very far away. But I will never forget my wonderland or all of the amazing characters and places in it, and I will definitely return one day!

Cavorting in Kuala Lumpur

The first thing that comes into many people's minds when they hear the words "Kuala Lumpur" is Catherine Zeta Jones swinging on the bridge of the stunning Petronas towers. And in fact, the Petronas towers are quite astoundingly elegant in their jagged, elegant way.

Yet there is much more to this city than amazing architecture. The first thing you notice upon stepping off the plane is the staggering heat. This heat is not a humid heat like Hong Kong, just an overwhelming feeling. Definitely a tropical city, although it would do well to employ less concrete in its infrastructure, as that is what traps in the heat and creates an often stifling sensation. Hong Kong uses a lot of concrete too, of course, but the buildings are often made of other, more porous materials that make it more bearable, not to mention, a much more attractive city.





The first day I dared to take a taxi to the Batu Caves. I say "dared" because the taxi drivers in KL are notorious, and for good reason--they constantly cheat you and take you for rides. Anyways, I found a rather amiable taxi driver from Indonesia who taught me some of the local lingo on the way to the Hindu shrine. The Batu Caves is a limestone hill surrounded by Hindu temples, and the site is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India. Upon arrival, I stepped into the temple on the bottom of the hill and was beckoned by the Hindu priest. Being the only non-Indian person in the place, I sheepishly approached him, and surprisingly, he blessed me and put white paint on my forehead. After taking some pictures, I began the ascent up the 200+steps to the actual cave, keeping a watchful eye on the mischievious monkeys perched alongside. Indeed, I will never forget the time I was in India and a monkey snatched my magnolia necklace right off my neck!

Upon reaching the top of the stairs, I was taken aback at the sheer size of the cave, with its massive drooping stalactites and holes in the ceiling--I swear it was something straight out of Planet Earth. I walked inside the cave a little bit, and turned a corner to find a beautiful sight-- the sun shining down brilliantly into the cave, with last night's glistening rain dripping down like a shining curtain. It would have made a nice romantic kiss scene in Indiana Jones.






















That night my travelbuddy and exroommate Maxine went down to the Central Market to take a look at the local wares and textiles. Unfortunately, there wasn't a whole lot of novelty in that seeing as we live in Asia, and a lot of stuff seems to be made in China and exported everywhere! All was not lost, however, as we found a delicious local Indian place next door and I chowed down some amazing naan and tandoori chicken. After walking through Chinatown, we freshened up at the hotel and went out for a few drinks. We ended up at Zook, a very trendy nightclub chain which we had already sampled and liked in Singapore. After chatting to some Malay Chinese in my broken Cantonese, we went upstairs and were offered some champagne. All in a day's work!



The next day we decided to try the "other" side of KL--the colonial side--by taking high tea at the old governor's residence. Set atop a mountain (of course), the house was a breathtaking alabastar building with verandas galore. They had wicker furniture and even a harp with a harpist playing darling! After careful deliberation, we ordered a black tea and a white tea with our set. Our set was delightful and included rhubarb crumble, scones, egg sandwiches and more. Ahh the life of a colonial!






Unfortunately, the pleasant side of the KL story ends there, as about halfway during the tea I felt ill and returned to the hotel. Turns out I got food poisoned from the hotel breakfast! I am still recovering today :( Anyways, I would recommend KL over Singapore as far as Malaysian cities go, as it has a little more spice and culture, not to mention less rules and sterility!

Funky Style Full Moon Party (Thailand)

Ever since I started to appreciate techno-electro music in high school with the help of my German/Portuguese/Eurotrash friends, I have heard about the Full Moon Party held monthly in Thailand. Indeed, it is often compared to the debauchery that descends upon Ibiza during their parties, although it is more exotic, and therefore, kind of cooler in my book...

Having been to Phuket and Bangkok as a young child with my parents, traveling to Thailand was not on the top of my list of destinations, however. Thus, I put it off, and traveled to perhaps equally extraordinary sites in Asia these past two years. Then, about 6 months ago, an old friend of mine from Penn who I had kept in touch with told me she was moving to Thailand to teach. We excitedly assured one another that we would come see each other somehow/somewhere--being only 3 hours apart, after all, we had no excuse!

About a month ago, she finished teaching and started to plan her little backpacking tour around southeast Asia, and we decided we would meet in the small islands of Koh Samui, Koh Phangnan and Koh Tao to have a fabulous, funky reunion at the Full Moon Party at the beginning of April.

Now that the introduction is over, I can begin my journey:

Having arrived in the evening in Koh Samui (the only airport on these islands), the adventure began--I had to find a way to Koh Phangnan, the next island over, during the middle of a rainstorm. Armed with nothing but my backpack and some cash, I gathered my wits about me and recruited some wayward travelers to share the cost of a speedboat over. The 25 minute boatride was one of the longest of my life! The boat was all over the place amidst the Perfect Storm style waves, and I thought how lucky it was that my mom didn't know I was there hahaha she sure would not have approved.

Once on Koh Phangnan, I became engulfed in swarms of young backpackers frolicking around the town barefoot. Making my way through them, I got on a jalopy type taxi vehicle and made it to my lodgings--a charming bungalow hideaway on the water by the name of Green Peace Bungalow. I don't think I have ever been happier to see someone in my whole life! We celebrated our reunion by having some drinks and dancing on the beach in the rain. We didn't feel a drop.

To my great disappointment, the rain persisted through the following day, with us managing to squeeze in a wet elephant ride with some grumpy elephants (not recommended). We then enjoyed some delicious local street fare before preparing for the big night. Through her travels, Juliet had met many like minded young adventurers who we met up with to paint our bodies in bright swirls and patterns. Around midnight, we were ready to go, and so were all 15,000 people on that beach. What a night.

The next day around noon, we sluggishly ventured to Koh Tao, a small, quiet island to the north. Koh Tao provided a welcome respite from the chaos of Full Moon, from the calmness of the waters to the hammock at our bungalow to the pounding Thai massages that we received. After a quiet night's sleep, we had a leisurely meal of spicy Thai food (YUM) and proceeded back to Koh Samui for my last night.

Koh Samui was definitely the most commercial of the islands, despite the popularity of Koh Phangnan's Full Moon Party. Of course, it is not on the level of Phuket or Bali in terms of grotesque tourist trap gimmicks, and thus we could still enjoy a lush Thai dinner at low cost and drinks at some local clubs.

As I woke up the final morning to return and rested in the tropical airport surrounded by lush vegetation and poignant bird calls, I couldn't help but wish that I was staying just a little bit longer in this remote part of the world. But then again, vacations are always too short...

KOH PHANGNAN






Full Moon Party (KOH PHANGNAN)




KOH TAO







KOH SAMUI (Last night)