Sunday, September 03, 2006

In a Word

How do we describe Asia in a word? We just can't think of ONE word, so instead we decided to put together a list of our top places, sights, and cultural moments. We've documented some little known tidbits, quotes, and strange foods all wrapped up to entertain you and to remind us of these moments for years to come. Enjoy....

Mike's Top Places
(It is soooo hard to decide or categorize the best places we've seen, but I've summarized ten places here)
- Mt. Everest
- Mt. Kailish
- Potala Palace and Lhasa
- Angkor Wat
- Terra Cotta Warriors
- Koh Tao
- Sapa
- Teman Negara
- Kashgar
- Geongju

Kendra's Top Places
- Terra Cotta Warriors
- Mount Everest
- Angkor Wat
- Guge Kingdom, Tibet
- Mount Kailish
- Laos
- Potala Palace/ Lhasa
- Sapa, Vietnam
- Ko Tao, Thailand
- Phuket, Thailand

Mike's Top Highlights
- Standing on Monestary's step at Mt. Kailish at 6:00am with one of the monks; Tibet, China.
- The monks kitchen in Bampa Monestary; Tibet, China.
- The Bell at the Bulguska Temple; Geongju, Korea.
- Snorkeling in Mango Bay; Koh Tao, Thailand.
- Diving the "Chumphon" and "Southwest" pinnacles; Koh Tao, Thailand.
- Waiting for the stars at Rowak Lake; Tibet, China.
- Haggling at Kashgar Markets; Xinjiang, China.
- Jumping off Bamboo Contraptions into the river in Vang Vien, Laos.
- Wondering the old town of Lijiang early in the morning; Yunnan, China.
- Watching the sunsets in Railay; Krabi, Thailand.
- Sunrise at Everest; Tibet, China.

Kendra's Top Highlights
- Reaching the 5650 m pass of Mt Kailish and realizing I could hike anything (if I want to, and NO I do not want to hike the Anapurna Circuit!).
- Staying at Mount Everest base camp.
- Diving with the fishes... 30 times.
- Finding the "end of trail" sign after our lovely "walk" in the leech infested jungle of Teman Negara, Malaysia.
- Climbing down a dark tunnel in the Guge Kindgom by myself and discovering hidden rooms in a mountain, China.
- Thai massages on the beach.
- Walking through the rice fields in Chang Mai, Thailand on our way to the Karen Village.
- Kayaking in Luang Prabang, Laos.
- Understanding the meaning of pain, suffering and endurance when I visited the Killing Fields and S21 museum of Phenom Phen, Cambodia.
- Playing with a restaurant owner's children after exploring Kumbum Temple; Gyantse, Tibet.

Best Quotes
- "Poo can make your day." Warren
- "Jody, I dropped my undies in the Dunny." Warren
- "Como Manzo, Laba." Everybody on the way to Lhasa
- "Your the longest person we've travelled with so far." Mike
- "We've got F'n Shitty ass wine, but its free!" Tour operator, Vietnam
- "I am not going to Mt. Kailish." Kendra (5 min before signing up for the Mt. Kailish overland tour)
- "Freddie don't do it." N/A
- "Your staying for a month and not doing your DMT?!?" Everybody in Koh Tao
- "Its only another hour hike." Just before our ordeal in Teman Negara, great advice :(.
- "Where are you from,"...Canada...", "The capital of Canada is Ottawa...." Every kid in Vietnam, and Cambodia
- "Great to see you, you couldn't have picked a worst time to come." Renee

3 Things we didn't know about each other
Mike
- How quickly Kendra adapts to any situation.
- Once Kendra starts to hike, she doesn't stop until she's there
- Kendra loves Caves, and Museums.

Kendra
- Mike loves to throw boulders/rocks down hills.
- Mike doesn't like sand to be on him, although he prefers to lay directly in it rather than use a towel at the beach.
- Mike has an amazing ability to learn foreign languages quickly (thank goodness!)

3 things we didn't know about ourselves
Mike
- I can't stand when people overcharge for admission prices in China...doh!
- It is OK, and sometimes actually fun, to get lost.
- I really enjoy markets; looking around and shopping at them.

Kendra
- I can survive without showering for 5 days straight
- I am a less pickier eater than I thought... although I still don't like onions, and green peppers, oh and tomatoes,
- I am a backpacker (although I will always love a good ol' resort!)

Top 5 "Critter" Experiences
1. The leeches of Tehman Negara Jungle
2. The cockroach that walked across Mike's *cough* unit; Ko Tao, Thailand
3. The poisonous spiders dangling in our paths; Halong Bay, Vietnam
4. The Ants in our beds at Railay, Thailand, and along the walls at Hoi An, Vietnam
5. The Titan Trigger Fish attacks, Koh Tao, Thailand

Average weight of our Laundry: 5kg
Longest distance we've carried our bags: Big Bags 4.5 km; Small Bags 22 km
Average Cost of Beer: $1.25 Canadian (including the big 750 ml bottles :) )
The Favorite Traveller we've met: We didn't like anybody (just kidding).
1 Thing we miss most about home: My own car (Mike); My Bathtub (Kendra)
Strangest foods we've ate: Fly Larvae, Sampa, Kimchi, Minnows
Most expensive drink: Singapore Sling, $15 Singapore Dollars
Most Expensive place we've stayed: $36 CDN; Koh Tao, Thailand
Least Expensive place we've stayed: $3.5 CDN; Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Least favorite place: Ali, China

# of times we used overnight transportation: 18
# of Car Accidents Seen: 15+
# of Car Accidents Involved in: 1
# of Countries Visited: 8
# of Scuba Dives: 28 Mike: 30 Kendra (I was legitamately sick one day)
# of Can's of Shaving Cream Mike used: 1/2 of 1, barely shaved at all.
# of different cities we've slept in: 59
# of times Mike got angry at admission prices in China: Too many to count
# of World Heritage Sites we've visited: 12
# of engagements announced since we left: 6
# of significant fights between us: none, we never fight...owww, Kendra, OK 3.
# of Parcels Shipped home: 9
# of times we've cooked for ourselves: 0 (Does instant noodles count?)
# of Injuries Mike's had: 0; YESS!!
# of days travelled (up to Sept 1): 221

Cheers,
Mike and Kendra

8 Comments:

At 5:54 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mike / Kendra: After you get back home, Write a book about your journey to other side of Globe. am sure it will be a hot seller.

Aslam Durrani

 
At 7:34 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Kendra & Mike,

I love all your updates with the wonderful pictures, but especially enjoyed this one as it seems so much more personal and revealing.

Love,

Kendra's Mom

 
At 8:42 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh my god...I am still laughing! Kendra did you really eat all those nasty things! Unbelievable!

We miss you lots! Come home soon! XOXOOXOXOXOXOXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOOXOXOX

Carrie, Jeremy and Kylie

PS I think that everyone deserves a shower at least once a day, no matter where you are! Ever heard of a whore's bath....wetnaps!

 
At 6:42 a.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

WHAT!... leaving ASIA?... you can't do that. Where are we supposed to go for our weekly fix of travel stories!

I loved the last update... as your Mom said Kendra - very personal.

...TJ

"The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see."
~G.K. Chesterton

(I think you two definitely qualify as travelers!)

 
At 6:01 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

You guys are awesome!

Can't wait to hear what Australia/New Zealand brings!

TTFN

Laurel

 
At 1:32 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow, your experiences sound amazing. I am very jelous. Thought I would give you an update and add to the engagment announcements. Shannon and I will be getting married end of Sept next year.

Cheers,

Bully

 
At 6:05 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Guys
Your experience sounds great,wish I could be there, especially the diving part. When you finally get home I want a Thai meal (SPICY). Looking forward to seeing pictures and hearing more about your journey.
Love Dad

 
At 1:54 p.m., Anonymous Anonymous said...

Kendra/Mike,

Another great update. I'm especially impressed with Kendra's backpacking abilities through Asia. Mike, I knew you would do o.k. as you can slob it anywhere.

Keep the updates coming.

Kei

 

Post a Comment

<< Home