Eat

I had lunch with my students today for the first time. It made me think back to the days when I was in middle school. With how welcoming and warm everybody at this middle school has been, it makes me wonder... Was I a bad kid back in the day?

exhausted

This would be a great time for someone to put me on the "Physically Unable to Perform" list, as I am on the verge of collapsing due to fatigue. My daily routine involves waking up at 5:30 AM, getting to school by 6:30-6:45 AM, leaving the school by 3:30 PM so that I can make my 4:30 class at Towson, and then ending classes at 7 PM. I come home, shower, hop on SlingBox by 8PM and encounter the daily Tilt.

All in a day's work, or so they say. I do not foresee the light of day... At least not until May 2008.

Finally

Today was the first day of my internship, and it surely has been productively exhausting. I woke up at around 5:45, got to the school by 6:45, and did not leave the school until 4:45. The day was filled with awkward introductions, albeit friendly. I am utterly tired, and it doesn't help that my jet-lag weakness is an obstacle to robot-like efficiency.

Here are the long-awaited pictures from Bangkok. I stole them from my cousin, as I did not bring my camera.

Our Executive Level Bedroom and Bathroom:





Suan... something. I could only imagine myself as Chow Yun-Fat in Anna and the King on our visits to elaborately-decorated palaces:



The Grand Palace:


Needless to say, I miss being in Asia. With all of the relatives that live there, it is difficult to not consider it to be a second home for me. I haven't done this in a long while, but I thought I would share a song with everybody.

郭靜 (Claire) 范瑋琪 (FanFan) 張韶涵 (Angela) sing "仨人." While none of the three have the looks to blaze the cover of Fruits or KERA, their ability to produce and portray their musical talents is absolutely amazing - they are HOT in my books.

一個人的晚餐 無聊寂寞
兩個朋友能 開心的直說
三個人可以 給妳勇氣
可以安慰妳的失落 異口同聲的說

My Sleep's Demise

I have been back for a couple of days now; since the 17th, to be exact. However, jetlag has been crushing me. For two straight days, I have slept in the afternoon, woke up at midnight, and then chill till the sun rise. I have not made a serious attempt at getting back to real time, this shall change as I will begin my internship on Tuesday.

The emotional drop-off from leaving Asia and coming home has always been something of a challenge for me. It is as if I am torn between two worlds - not really American or Chinese. I've actually been thinking a lot about this for a while now. Who hasn't gone through self-seeking for one's identity? My latest viewing, Spider Lillies, portrays this in its theme. A strong recommend for those interested in internal conflicts.

Latest Movies:
Breach (2007)
Spider Lillies (2007)

The Middle Seat

I just suffered through 12 hours of disastrous claustrophobia. The flight from Taipei to LAX was completely packed, and I was unfortunately stuck in the middle seat between an International college student and a mother of three. The importance of going on a healthy diet and losing weight has truly dawned upon me, as I only got up twice to urinate in that long hiatus from the freedom of aisle roaming. I am now waiting for my domestic red-eye United flight back to BWI. This trip has been relaxing, I have recuperated, and am ready to begin my teaching internship. I did not take that many pictures, but will post what I can as soon as I retrieve them from my cousin.

See you at home.

Redefine Eating

I have been eating tons lately. How much? Well, let us say that I've eaten so much to not have any time to catch up with Jason. For the past four days, I started the daily eating adventures super early at 6:30, and do not finish the evening until well past midnight. Thus, on a short amount of sleep plus a bold food intake, I am sure that I am on my way in breaking the TWO-BILL mark shortly. Regretting this eating habit? Of course not. I have no qualms in juicing up like a balloon, starve myself on pathetic American cuisine, only to test the limits of nature in stretching my intestines every time I come home to Asia.

I have several more days of eating left on my schedule, as I will be returning home on Thursday. Honestly, I don't know how much more my stomach and insides can take. It surely doesn't help that the majority of toilets in Taiwan are similar to those that the Japanese use - super small size. It is uncomfortable for someone like me to fully enjoy the times spent on the porcelain. I am sleeping over one of my other cousin's house tonight. As he has a brand new home, I will be looking forward to the Canadian-imported john, and the English-imported urinal. We'll be partying like rockstars tonight. In fact, we'll be Bro-ing it up at the Natural Hot Spring Spas in Wu-Lai after taking my brother to the airport.

I'll close out strong unlike Chris Ray.

180 degrees

It is a damn shame that I'll be leaving Bangkok with such a negative, pessimistic, unfortunate outlook. Out of all of these past 4 days, I was cheated; I was absolutely lied to earlier today. The worst of it all is that I was lied to on more than one occasion. The immature me will not allow the previous grand four days to outshine this day. I am leaving Thailand in an infuriated and exhausted state. If I do ever come back, I will be sure to not trust anybody, no matter how nice and warm the general majority may be. It sucks that a few rotten apples really blew this trip. I am glad that I will be returning to Taipei tomorrow - family and food awaits. I will be trying out the Super First Class cabin on Eva Airways' 747 on the way home. Updates to come.

Latest Viewing:
Lucky You (2007)
Next (2007)

Movie Lines

What can I possibly say about Thailand? Let's see here... First, let us get the negatives out of the way. The weather during this time of the year, and the air pollution, is just pitiful. There is no other way to put it - it seems as if we are in a dutch oven... inhale that exhaust. Even in Southern California, at least we had the constant beautiful weather. Now, onto the most important... Thai people are extremely warm-hearted. The locals on the street genuinely seem as if they are worried for your well-being. Take yesterday, for example. My cousin and I went on a hike that essentially covered all of Bangkok. After rummaging our way through Khao San Road, we were evidently lost. We asked a stranger to direct us on the map. Not understanding/speaking a lick of English, he pointed, pointed, and pointed... We found our way, and that was that. In the afternoon, I spent some time in Nana, bargaining with street vendors - business was business, as I came to purchase some of the goods I wanted.

There is something peculiar about Thai people though. It seems as if they all follow the same script. Here is what I mean:

I am talking to the "butler/hostess" prior to entering the executive lounge, and ask her where she is from and how long she has been in Bangkok. She promptly responds:

"I am from Issan, and I have been in Bangkok for 2 months."

After bargaining with the street vendors on an assortment of goods, I begin to chat it up with the seller, asking her the same question. She answers:

"I am from Issan, and I have been in Bangkok for 2 months."

I go into the corner "7", purchase a bottle of coke and other personal items, and before I can even open my mouth, the cashier says:

"I am from Issan, and I have been in Bangkok for 2 months."

J/K. Not funny.
While I doubt I would ever live here, Bangkok is a wonderful place to take a side-trip whenever I come back to visit Taiwan. Strong recomend.

Latest Viewings:
Ratatouille (2007)
Meet the Robinsons (2007)
Spiderman 3 (2007)

American English in Thailand

I love to be pampered, there is no doubt about that. This side trip to Bangkok has been full of hedonism thus far. Our flight from TPE to BKK could have been better; the Premium Laurel Class cabin on EVA Airways isn't exactly one to fork the money over. The food was golden though, as they pushed the carts, dim-sum style, and we just ate continuously. My cousin and I landed yesterday afternoon; it took several hours to reach our hotel, as we decided to take the airport express bus. We are staying in an executive corner room on one of the upper floors at the Marriott. The view is rather intriguing, as we've got a circular window. We walked around the local Nana area yesterday, and ate at New York Steakhouse, which is on the second floor of our hotel. I am currently relaxing in the executive lounge, as I type this, overlooking Nana Entertainment Plaza. This morning, my cousin and I visited Suan Pakkad Palace and Victory Monument. We were the least impressed with this, but can only blame ourselves for picking the closest location to visit. The transportation, while not as convenient as Taipei, is safe and usable.

This afternoon, in deference to my 19-year old cousin's unsullied state, I decided to pay the premium, and we both had spa/massage/facial treatments done on the 6th floor of our hotel. The 2-hour relaxation session was absolutely amazing. I will never again mock those that choose to pay to relax.

For now, I shall tilt it. I'll post again tomorrow.

Travel It

I am currently on my "third" day of vacation, sitting at TaoYuan Chiang Kai-Shek International Airport in Taiwan, awaiting my 9:00 flight to Bangkok, Thailand. Things in Taiwan have been very pleasant thus far. On my first day of traveling, I spent nearly 30 hours being awake; sleep has been very difficult to find. I flew out of Dulles on the 1st, and waited for 7 hours at LAX, before boarding my Singapore Airline flight to Taipei. The Singapore experience is a golden one, and I absolutely recommend it for International travel to Asia. The service was magnificent, the food was above par, and the inflight entertainment is second to none. The only downside are the seat sizes and lack of internet access. However, not many Asian carriers have the in-between cabin class that Eva Air offers. On this flight to Bangkok, I will be testing out the Premium Laurel Class. I will definitely update once I arrive in Thailand.

Upon my arrival in Taipei, my Uncle, Aunt, and I went to Da-An park to walk and exercise. Following a simple breakfast, it was decided that I would have my cousin accompany me to Bangkok. Traveling alone can get monotonous, so I am looking forward to this experience. Aside from the weather, Taiwan has been great thus far. My plans, after returning from Taipei, will of course include gluttonous eating and hitting up natural spas/springs. I will do my best to meet up with Jason and do a guest-review on the hedonism that occurs in my motherland.

Until the next update, may the turn card be disastrous and the pots be shipped. Pack a lip.

Wait

Currently at LAX, waiting 7 hours for my flight to TPE. Thank goodness for wireless internet. I'll update later. In the meantime, check out Jason's site...

www.thecitythatmaths.com