Report: Frequent Power Outages Mystify Jaipur Engineers

East Asia Photo Set

East Asia

Taj Mahal

Report: Delhi Bazaar Idlers Just Want To Chat

Loiterers in the Paharganj area of Delhi are dismayed at your curt dismissal of their attempts to strike up a friendly conversion on such light-hearted topics as your country of origin, perception of India, and future travel plans. Also, in the event that the topic does arise, the conversation could address the merits of a nine-day houseboat vacation in Kashmir which could then be immediately arranged at this nearby business. Unfortunately, your rude response has denied both parties the opportunity for an enriching exchange of viewpoints and experiences and also the chance to discuss the merits of a nine-day houseboat vacation in Kashmir which could then be immediately arranged at this nearby business.

India

Bangkok and Hong Kong

Bangkok is dirty, muggy, and full of political protesters. To escape, I pop over to Hong Kong for an entirely-too-quick visit with Elisa and Ryan. You could click here to look at a picture of us or here for a picture of us looking at you.

Beijing

My hostel is in the Workers Stadium. It is Sunday afternoon when I arrive and the parking lot is the setting for an array of Sunday activities: kite-flying, soccer, jogging (foward and backward), dancing practice, some sort of hacky-sack like game, etc...

Enrico and I start at Tiananmen Square. I am a bit disappointed -- it is clearly a rectangle. One gets the sense that the sheer scale of the area would be really impressive if not for the Mao-soleum that was added in the 1970s. Our visit is plagued by locals trying to practice their English, specifically the phrases related to inviting you to a tea ceremony or an art show. At one point Enrico tries responding in German only to have the local respond in kind.

We return the next day to visit the Forbidden City. The city is impossibly large for the area that it seems to occupy from the outside. You could read about it here.

On the way out, we meet these fellows who introduce themselves as businessmen from another city. They advise us on things to in Beijing, suggest a good restaurant, help us order food and pay the reasonable bill at the end, then guide us to a local market area and show us an esteemed pharmacy that sells (among other things) a ninety-year-old ginseng root with a retail price of USD125,000. They then make the mistake mentioning that they are thirsty and are considering getting some tea and we hastily and probably rudely anounce that we have to go. In retrospect, there is no chance that they were up any trickery.

We spent the next day exploring the hutongs in the middle of Beijing. I buy somes shoes and learn that a great deal and buyer's remorse are not mutually exclusive.

The next day, I take a bus trip to the Great Wall. The bus drops us off at one point and picks us up at another, allowing about four hours of hiking on the wall in between. The walk has more than its share of ups and and downs and almost takes the full time allowed. A giant bottle of beer goes for about a dollar at final tower. Dave takes the fast route from the this location to the parking lot.

On my last day, Helen guides me around the city center and introduces me to a restaurant about one hundred meters from the hostel that is clearly superior to every one that I had visited up to that point.

China

I can still add new posts, but for some reason I am suddenly unable to read my blog. Hopefully I will figure out the problem soon. Bear with me...

Report: China Censorship Bureau Staffed With Dunderheads

A recent audit by a leading researcher revealed that the government agency responsible for determining which Internet content will be available to China's growing web surfing community is completely full of numbskulls and boobs. The bureau could not be reached for comment.

Muikamachi

Regular readers will be aware that navigational error is a frequent element of the reports here, therefore it should come as no surprise to these readers that Rob and I are unable to locate the expressway entrance. We are unconcerned as Highway 17 appears to be a reasonably direct and toll-free substitute. Five hours and less than one hundred kilometres later, we are actively seeking the first available on-ramp. Once on the expressway, we fare much better and the timely discovery that Adam lives in Muikamachi rather than Nii-gata helps further still. In all, the 240 kilometre trip takes seven hours and completely exhausts our interest in ever hearing another Death Cab For Cutie or Jack Johnson song.

The next day we hit the ski hill. I am hopelessly rusty but it is fun nonetheless.

That night, Hnin Hnin (who escapes my camera) joins us and we attend the Naked Man Festival. The pictures are here. Be warned that Flickr allows me to know not only how many times each picture was viewed but also who viewed it and how much they enjoyed it. To summarize this festival, the participants get drunk, disrobe, then chant and march about the temple grounds while non-participants watch and eat octopus balls. Naturally, it is a huge success.

The rest of the time is spent on disagreements on the relative merit of Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky, jam sessions, basketball and far too much eating, important activities indeed...

Question 4

If Rob lives near the Kudanshita station, what Tokyo Metro line should he take to get to the Maple Leaf Bar in Shibuya?

Value: 126 blerns less 6 blerns for each day that the question remains unanswered.

Dave T: 88 blerns
Andrew B: 73 blerns
Gord B: 36 blerns
Brian K: 10 blerns
Shaun H: 10 blerns
Hugh L: 10 blerns

Who says that you can't choose your own name?

Tokyo

In an attempt to catch up to the present, I offer the following high-speed update of my time in Tokyo.

Japan grants me some early victories. I determine from my ticket that the seating on the airport train is assigned, then I successfully find my assigned seat, and finally I find the meeting place that Rob suggests. Sadly, these are also among the last of my victories. In retrospect, the relatively untaxing but important mastery of ordering a Mocha Frappuccino may have been my only subsequent scalp.

Rob tends to work long hours but on my first full day he escapes and we find a Canada-themed pub that is showing the Olympic hockey tournament. The game is on tape-delay and we both know the outcome but it is still has appeal. Chihro joins us and we move on to a more authentic lounge. There Rob attempts to advance my language skills by telling the Japanese required for some specific restaurant transaction then immediately summoning the waiter, and directing their attention to me on their arrival. We disagree on the effectiveness of this teaching technique. My argument is that it requires a willing student.

Rob forgets his bag at the pub so there is simply no alternative to returning the next night for the quarterfinals. Rob has trouble getting off work early. Canada doesn’t.

The next day, Rob and I visit the Tsujiki Fish Market. We arrive far too late to see the activities at full throttle but not too early for sushi. That afternoon, Chihiro guides me around Asakusa and Ueno.

On Saturday, some of Rob's friends have arranged to go to dinner where Yumiko takes these pictures before runnng off. The rest of the group goes to the foreigner-nightlife enclave of Rappongi where we can be found until the first subway train starts running in the morning.

On Sunday afternoon, we visit Harajuku but rain keeps most of the coz-players home.

Tokyo keeps you moving, constantly shooing you along but not to anywhere in particular. I spend the following days endlessly exploring the neighbourhoods of Ginza, Shibuya, and Shinjuku partially because they offer few places to stop.

I drop in on the Tokyo Dome and watch some exhibition baseball between the Chiba Lotte Marines and Taiwan. If you ever wondered what happened to Benny Agbayani, the answer is that he became very fat.

In Shinjuku, I pick up Death Cab For Cutie and Jack Johnson so that we have some fresh music for our road trip to Nii-gata.

The food is too hot and Rob’s hastily chosen relief does not deliver. “The sake does nothing!” he cries.

Tokyo

South Korea

My flight to Tokyo has an overnight layover in Seoul. I stay in a hostel by the airport – the room is small but the floor is heated. The operator offers me to the terminal in the morning but fails to mention that he will be dropping off six or seven of his neighbours at their workplaces first. A ten minutes trip takes forty-five minutes but at no expense as thick fog delays my onward flight. The delay last long enough to me to enjoy this muffin.

Here are the top five most viewed photographs of individuals appearing on this blog:
1. Maike
2. Dave Tuckey
3. Jen
4. Adrian
5. Talc Alf

Y'all better lookout, though. Here comes the hotstepper.

Australia Photo Sets

Adelaide to Alice Springs
The Southwest
The Top End
Tasmania

Escape From Tasmania

At Lake St. Clair, an opportunistic possum makes a bold jelly-bean raid on our parked car. We flee to the safety of Adelaide, where I spend my final days in Australia.

Devonport to Lake St. Clair

The towns in western Tasmania all seem to be in decline. Zeehan once had a theatre that seated a thousand people. Now it just has the thousand people. The only photogenic thing that I can find in Queenstown is the road out.

There are some nice spots on the way to Lake St. Clair, however. Nelson Falls is a quick walk from the highway. Donaghy's Lookout is a longer, wetter walk.

Cradle Mountain

Cradle Mountain is part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and offers some of the better hiking in Tasmania. The weather bluffs rain, but folds once we are on the trail which takes us past Crater Lake up a steep climb to Marion's Lookout. An alternate return route takes us past the Wombat Pool and finally past this wombat, who seems happy to offer unlimited photo opportunities some of which are better than others.

Animal Spotlight: Echidna

An echidna is a tiny animal that lives by the side of the road. An echidna will not eat a Pringle.

St Helens to Deloraine

The weather in Tasmania is like the kid who owned the ball in street hockey. He'd let you play, but he'd never let you forget that the game could end immediately if he felt the whim.

We visit the southern end of the Bay of Fires, then move on through Launceston to Deloraine.

Deloraine is a bit of a rough town, we are told by a young Australian engineer that we meet in the town pub. Given that he makes this assessment while peering over John Lennon's biography, it takes a disturbance at the nearby pool table me to accept this as true. We play cards and watch Tillekeratne Dilshan lead Sri Lanka to victory in the first game of the VB Series final. If you haven't already, you can (and should) read the account of this great win on www.lankaweb.com.