Sitting on a bench

Just this afternoon I was sitting on a bench on market street reading a book. Now, although today is technically a holiday (International Worker's Day) that doesn't really affect me too much. As this semester I don't work on Thursday or Friday, every weekend is a four day weekend for me. I didn't travel anywhere this weekend, mostly because I didn't make plans early enough and had agreed to watch some dragon boat racing on Saturday. So, it was a book on the bench for me.

Back to the subject, I was enjoying the very pleasant spring weather (albeit a month late) and just minding my own business. I noticed in the corner of my eye a man parking his bicycle and among the seven other sections of the bench, choosing the one next to me. He sat, opened his Pepsi, took a drink, and then just stared straight at me. Having a Chinese person (usually an adult male) sit conspicuously close to me while saying nothing and keeping only flittering eye contact is pretty common. I know they want to talk to me, but I'm pretty neutral on beginning the conversation, so I leave it up to them. (There are ~4.1 million people in Changzhou, and ~2 million in the city, but only 2,000 foreigners (according to my advisor) so sitting down next to one of us is a rare opportunity.) As his stare became even more awkward I looked up and he took the bait, and asked me, in stuttering English "what's your name?" I answered, and it only took him three times to understand. I could see he was struggling to say even the most basic phrases, so I just sat there in patience. He was able to ask me next, "which country is yours?", now while I don't pretend to own America, I know that this is a pretty literal translation of the Chinese way to ask where one's from. He did not understand my answer of America, nor the USA, nor the United States of America. I tried saying America as slowly and clearly as I could, but we got nowhere. I could have switched to Chinese, but he was clearly looking to practice his English. Well, he gave up, and asked me, with a thick accent, if I could speak Chinese. I answered yes. (Side note-I say thick accent, because I am blessed to do almost all of my conversations with my students, who have studied standard Mandarin in classes, have all their classes taught in standard Mandarin, have to pass a standard Mandarin test, and usually use it with each other-as they are from areas with many different dialects). This man clearly had not had much instruction on standard Mandarin.

We then had a short discussion, in which he realized that he had known how to say America in English, and just forgot, and then asked me many questions. Most interesting was his question of how long he thought it would take for Chinese people to achieve the American level of wealth. He was very unsatisfied with my answer of a long time but probably never, so he kept asking the question again. I don't have nearly good enough Chinese to explain my answer to him. He also later asked me if I was a "real, real American" as he thought that my eyes and nose did not qualify me to be one. I have no idea what person he is using for as his reference point for the "real, real American" but being white and brown haired I am the most common hair/skin combination among Americans. I didn't even began to explain to him that in America (and many other countries) nationality and ethnicity are two different things. (Side note-with China's huge number of ethnic groups this should be the mindset here, but it definitely isn't). As I was struggling to get some points across to him a campus security guard walked up and started talking with the man. The guard was very kind and patient, and mainly just asked him what the man was doing, where he was from, and kindly suggested he leave. It was a very calm interaction, but the man got up and left. I don't know if some of the store owners told the guard that the man appeared to be bothering me or if they just suggested that he was a migrant worker-and that a lowly migrant worker certainly shouldn't be talking to the esteemed foreign teachers. I'd bet on the latter. Either way, as always, life's full of curveballs in China.

Thailand: Day 23-25 Back in Bangkok

Danthemanstan and I met up with Sean and Sarah, who had gone south to the beaches during our stint checking out ruins. We had a nice evening out accompanying them to sign up for an ultimate Frisbee tournament (Sean is a big ultimate enthusiast) at a Western bar. We ended up, in Bangkok, getting an almost personal musician. We were the only people that really seemed to care to make requests to the singer (as we later found out, a guy from California living and working as a bar singer there). I kept it real and requested Free Bird, which he played after only laughing a bit. For more entertainment, the walk home included walking by many street bars: literally a card table and picnic chairs on the sidewalk with a flashy display of liquor. It was mostly young Thais that were frequenting these bars that weren’t doing much to create any atmosphere. Even more entertaining, and telling of Bangkok’s role as a major sex tourism destination, were the street vendors selling Viagra and Cialis (or rather, some knock-off version).

As Danthemanstan flew back to China, and Sean and Sarah were playing ultimate, I spent my second to last day in Thailand getting another massage at the place I had gone the first time, finding a hostel, and wandering around the streets of Bangkok-which is one of my favorite things to do in a foreign country. I filled in for Sarah at the ultimate tournament party-which meant drinking for free for much of the night. Luckily, even though I didn’t know anyone except Sean, ultimate players tend to be open and laid back, so I had a good enough time, although was disappointed as we Americans did not do well in the boat race drinking game. It was a costume party, but luckily Sean hadn’t had room to fit anything into his backpack for the trip, so we both just got hassled the whole night for not having outrageous costumes as almost everyone there did. I was equally impressed by how much everyone was drinking, considering they had to be up at 8 the next morning to play ultimate in muggy Bangkok.

I met up with them the next day, and joined Sarah in watching Sean play (Sarah’s team didn’t do nearly as well in the tournament). We spent the afternoon checking out yet another Buddhist temple (this one atop a hill, providing great views of the city). We then took part in the tuk-tuk gem scam that is quite famous in Bangkok among Western tourists. The basic scheme is they will take you to your destination for 10 Baht or even free, as long as you’ll stop at some merchants along the way. We were well aware when we got into the tuk-tuk of what were getting into. We had some time to kill, and weren’t near any convenient or cheap transportation, so went ahead and did it. We visited one gem shop as well as three tailors. One tailor was pretty curt with us and seemed upset we didn’t want to buy anything. I was just honest with him and told him we were trying to get a cheap tuk-tuk ride. We were kind of surprised at his anger, as we didn’t see what else he expected from being part of the scam. We eventually made it to a snazzy riverside bar and restaurant to catch the sunset over Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn). I didn’t find that we were there at dusk too problematic. It was beautiful and a great way to spend my last evening in Bangkok. At dinner, I was able to convince Sarah and a very reluctant Sean to go get a massage. It was now my third time back at the massage parlor and I realized maybe I should have asked about a frequent visitor card. We had some laughs with Sean’s masseuse, who was unable to work out some of his kinks after two days of ultimate.

After almost a month in Thailand, there was still much more I would have loved to see. I didn’t even get to the most visited part of the country, which are its tropical islands and endless white sand beaches in the southern part of the country. As I have mentioned, there are plenty of reasons (current political crisis not one of them) to visit Thailand. It’s generally good weather most of the year, save the rainy season, and is filled with gorgeous tropical forests, lumbering elephants, smiling and helpful people, amazingly diverse and tasty food, screensaver-esque beaches, awe inspiring temples, and well-preserved ancient ruins. A great place to visit and a spectacular trip.

Thailand-Day 22-Lopburi

Our bus trip from Ayuthaya to Lopburi was one of the reasons I like to do so much traveling now when I’m young. It’s not that I think I am more tolerant, I just think that because my body is in good shape and I’m maybe still a bit foolish, I tend to take situations that might infuriate others with a few jokes and sarcastic comments. Our bus was a local bus which in this case meant that it never went above maybe 30 mph the whole trip, even when on the highway, and was stopping ever so frequently to pick up anyone on the side of the road that might be flagging it down. I remember that it took considerably more time for the bus to cover the ground from the bus station back past our hotel than we had covered on foot going there. Added to this, the seats lacked much legroom and our driver was quite the dance music enthusiast and he kept some super-poppy Thai dance music at full blast the entire ride. Add the enormous collection of Buddhist trinkets adorning the inside of the bus, and it was almost like an amusement park ride.

We went to Lopburi for one reason, which was because the guidebook noted it as monkey town. Both Danthemanstan and I have agreed that when traveling, we really enjoy seeing anything out of the ordinary. This town was reputed to have troops of monkeys roaming its streets. Now, stray dogs were everywhere in Thailand (linking it with Greece and India as countries that need more Bob Barker PSAs), but monkeys are just a whole different animal (pun intended). We saw some random monkeys climbing on the electrical wires and store awnings as we made our way through a crowded street market to an absolutely fabulous dinner. After dinner, we made a very misguided decision to go grab a beer at one of the maybe two bars in the town. The fact that there were only three of thirty tables occupied should have maybe been a sign, but we sat down and ordered a beer. Then the band came onstage and played some Thai rock music ten times as loud as the already loud music had been. I don’t really know what clientele they were trying to reach with deafening music to no crowd. Even at a skeezy booth in the corner farthest from the stage, Danthemanstan and I could barely hear each other speak. Needless to say we drank our beers quickly and escaped back into the lazy peace of a small Thai town settling in for the night.

After getting up the next morning, and walking towards the part of town that supposedly would have some monkeys, we saw that the guidebook wasn’t messing around at all. As we turned a corner all we saw was a big troop of maybe thirty macaque monkeys fighting over a bag of sugarcane that had been thrown out or more likely, left for the monkeys. Some were still fighting, but most were voraciously eating the sugarcane. It was pretty weird indeed to see monkeys walking along the streets, hanging from telephone poles, chilling atop roofs or street signs, and generally ignoring people unless they were offering food. Most of the vendors selling food had sticks or whips at their side to keep away the town’s most famous residents. We checked out a set of temple ruins, which actually turned out to be more monkey lounge than ruins. It was simply teeming with monkeys. The ticket vendor even offered a bag of snacks to feed the monkeys, but judging by those I had already seen; I don’t think the monkeys were having much trouble getting food. We also went by another temple (which you can only look in) that really advertises itself as the place to see monkeys. It had ropes and lots of trees along with all sorts of signs warning about the monkeys, but not a single monkey. It seemed hilarious that maybe the monkeys don’t really want to follow the set-up that the locals have arranged for them in order to make tourism easier. The town was pretty easy to cover in an hour or two, so we headed to a pleasant outdoor restaurant with some nice shade, took out some books, and ordered beers. As weird as the monkeys were, after watching them for a good part of a morning, we started to treat them like the locals and weren’t surprised as one crossed our path.

Thailand-Days 20-21: Ayuthaya

Ayuthaya was the capital of a Thai kingdom from the 14th to 18th century, and thus is full of ruins. We rented bicycles from a travel agency around the corner, and after denying all her offers for excursions, we were on our way. The bikes were a great way to get around town, it’s incredibly flat as it is surrounded by rivers. We even had to stop twice for lines of elephants to cross the street. It was a bit hot out during our day and half in Ayuthaya, but the perfect antidote to the heat were the incredibly delicious fresh fruit shakes that are about as common as pictures of the king in Thailand. I made it a habit to order two or three with most meals, I’m sure the wait staff was a bit surprised, but then again Thailand gets lots of tourism, so maybe all of us coming from colder, temperate climates go overboard.

As you can see from the pictures in this post, the ruins in Ayuthaya were truly gorgeous and very well preserved. I also love that you can walk among many of the ruins, apparently they don’t think there will be enough tourism to do too much wear and tear to statues that have lasted for 500 years already. I enjoy going to ruins and other historical places a lot. I think I can gain a small (very small) amount of insight about how a people lived, how they thought by their major monuments, places of worship, government buildings, and so on. Going to, from, and all around the ruins (almost all of which were images of Buddha) and a visit to a temple that had (gasp) a giant gold statue of Buddha got me to thinking. It just seems like all the concrete, real money, time, and effort that goes into building and maintaining the idolatry in order to maintain their place in a not so secure afterlife.

We had a nice dinner one night at a restaurant owned by a guy from Pittsburgh. He was very friendly, and almost seemed excited to have some American customers to talk to. He had traveled to Thailand to study or experience something related to Buddhism and at some point “fell in love” and was now running this restaurant. It was nice to meet a bit more personally one of the many Westerners (mostly men) that have settled in Thailand.

Thailand-Days 18 & 19 Bangkok

Our trip back to Bangkok from Cambodia was cheaper, faster, and easier than the other way. It helps to be going to the capital city and the hub of all travel in Thailand (or Southeast Asia for that matter). We headed to watch some muy thai boxing right after getting back. The English speaking “guides” at the gym were quite eager to help us buy the (clearly overpriced) ticket for foreigners. After perusing the crowd, it seems that the nightly matches seem to exist solely for betting and entertaining foreigners. From what I could tell, catching good muay thai action requires one to be in a city during some sort of festival. As for betting, immediately upon entrance, we noticed a swarm of men clutching up to ten cell phones per person. They were very active during the matches, some of them yelling into the numerous phones they had on a clipboard. All of the bookies made the matches even more exciting to watch, as their reactions were quite lively.

By far the most notable think at the fights was the size and probable age of some of the fighters. The early rounds were pretty normal sized fighters, but the last fight featured the 90-95 pound range. To be that small, they pretty much had to be young teenagers. They were pretty fun to watch though, as they were really springy and pretty raw, as their techniques weren’t too refined.

We ended the night walking along Khao San Road, the famous tourist/bar street in Bangkok. It was bustling, loud, and in your face, as any good tourist district should be. The most fun thing that they sold there was fake IDs and fake diplomas. So, apparently, if you can’t get your cousin’s old ID or you don’t feel like going back to college after your Christmas break. We met up with John Thao for a final goodbye, he was in town attending a conference with some coworkers.

The next day consisted of basking in the beautiful Thai sun while browsing souvenirs or reading books and drinking beers at a café near our hotel. I spent maybe the best eight dollars of my life and got a Thai massage at one of the massage parlors recommended in the guidebook. This is one place where the (in my opinion) overly politically correct guidebook came in hardy. Massage in Bangkok is generally an innuendo for any manner of sexual services provided by the “masseuses” sitting outside every hotel and bar. So, the big “No Sex” sign in English and Arabic was a good sign when I entered. My massage experience is pretty limited, but this was by far the best I have ever had in my life. Having the guidebook direct me to a legitimate massage parlor was really valuable, as this parlor really didn’t look any different from any of the other ones on the street.

Camdodia-Siem Riep (Day 17)

We took the first tuk-tuk we could find, and joined the throngs of tourists heading to Angkor Wat (there is absolutely no other reason to visit Siem Riep-and maybe anywhere else in Cambodia). Angkor Wat is not just the famous eponymous temple seen in pictures, but is a massive park filled with numerous ruins in various states of disrepair from the ancient Khmer city of Angkor. It was built in the 12th century in honor of a king, head to Wikipedia if you want more information. We hit up the main temple (Angkor Wat) first-it was huge, outstanding, and stunning. Almost every inch of the temple was covered in ornate carvings supplemented by sculptures and huge friezes on every large wall. It has been amazingly well preserved and restored. What is pretty crazy about it is that it really is just right in the middle of the jungle. If it weren’t for all the roads built between the different ruins, one would have to bring a machete and hiking boots to explore them all.

Our next stop was the Bayon of Angkor Thom, the center of the ancient city. It may have been the largest pre-industrial city in the world. I liked these ruins even more than those of the temple. I felt like Indiana Jones wandering around the ruins-as they look like they are just out of a movie. You can climb and wander through all the twists and turns of the ruins-which includes hopping over fallen stone beams more than a few times. There are hundreds of interconnected hallways. Around the top of the city (the buildings all come together and rise up in the center) there are a bunch of four sided phallic columns, with faces carved on each side. The faces, despite being hundreds of years old, maintained a fairly intense stare. I wandered around the structures in awe of the incredible manpower (read: slave power) it must have taken to build such a structure.



We met up and had lunch among the ever-present hawkers. Now, at most tourist destinations, hawkers are a minor, tolerable nuisance. At Angkor Wat, they are a huge part of the experience. Our first encounter was some ladies trying to sell us water when we walked in, we had some with us, so said “no thanks” to which they responded with various responses about us being mean, bad, or something equally disrespectful. I never thought that insulting customers was a good way to garner sales, but it’s the modus operandi at Angkor Wat. Many of them are very young, which is never good to see-it was a Saturday, so I can’t say whether they go to school during the week. Their English was pretty good-it just seemed odd that most of them chose to use it to harass or insult the visitors instead of charm them. Relentless does not even begin to describe them. In the afternoon I had a great time climbing on the royal palace ruins and walking along the roads between some of the ruins. I caught a glimpse of the sunset from a ruin on top of a hill-with every other tourist that visited that day.

Taking the short diversion to Angkor Wat was definitely worth the time and effort. Siem Riep, aside from the fancy tourist hotels, is pretty run-down. There were lots of barefoot kids running around begging and the men sitting on motorcycles offering weed, coke, beautiful girls, and massages didn’t indicate that where was much a rule of law there or many industries producing much wealth. But, the park was amazing, very well kept and one could easily spend two to three days wandering the ruins.

Jane in China

Well, quick update from the present (the backlogging of the trips to Thailand, Cambodia, and India will commence soon). The blog's been inactive because Jane visited me last week. I misread the itinerary (which was reasonably confusing) so arrived a day early to meet her at the airport, and after frantically searching for her and making multiple announcements, realized I was an idiot and killed a night in Shanghai. The first day of visiting class and walking around campus went pretty well. But, with a headache, cough, and some fever like symptoms-Jane didn't sleep much more than a wink on the overnight train to Beijing. She was a real trooper during the whole trip though. Combine jet lag, sickness, the craziness of tourist crowds, and the pretty different culture in China, and it makes for a very challenging trip. Luckily she made it home in one piece, and I am really stoked to have walked along the Great Wall, walked through the Forbidden City, moved through the crowds on the Bund, and strolled through the Suzhou gardens with my sister. Even though living in China has come to be pretty normal for me; having her here, and the both of us walking along the Great Wall was an experience that I won't soon forget. It's a pretty long way from 90th Court in Clive, IA.