Some of the Small Things

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So we're still on Ko Tao, our island in Thailand. It's pretty cool... just been doing your standard relax at the beach type of thing. Sadly, I think I'm officially bored of it now. I'm in another part of the world, and I feel like there are lots and lots of things to get done and lots and lots of places to go. I have the itch to actually be traveling. Unfortunately we have already booked all our transportation for the 13th, so we're pretty much stuck here until then. Oh well, I guess there are worse places to be stuck than Ko Tao.

Definitely the highlight of our time here and really the only thing worth writing about was a snorkeling trip we went on two days ago. I've never been snorkeling before (at least not somewhere like this), and it was pretty incredible. I kept thinking to myself that the best way I could describe it is all the visuals of the movie Finding Nemo but in real life. I really had no idea that it could be that entertaining just to float around in the water looking down.

A side effect of the snorkeling, though, was a pretty bad sunburn on my back - probably part of the reason why I'm getting a little bored. Beaches aren't as fun when you're too burnt to enjoy them.

Anyway, since I basically have nothing remarkable to write about from here, I've decided I'm just going to write about something random. I've kind of been keeping an ongoing record of some of the small things that happen while traveling that make me happy/interested, so now I'm going to share some.

I like learning at least the basics of the language of the country I'm visiting. So many people never even bother, and I love seeing people's expressions light up when they see that I know a few words in their language. Even though my attempt is probably a total mutilation of what the language should be, the effort is appreciated, and probably one of the best ways to get a smile.

I love people walking around selling coconuts everywhere you go. Anytime you're thirsty, just stop somebody and ask for one. They'll whip out their cleaver, hack open the top, and stick a straw in it. Fresh coconut juice. Yum.

It's interesting seeing people just standing around doing meditation/yoga. It'll happen pretty much anywhere: the beach, a park, on trains, in the middle of the business district of Singapore. Definitely a bigger part of culture here than in America.

I enjoyed taking a taxi to the airport in Saigon and having the driver jamming to some classic American tunes. Celine Dion comes on, and Rachel and I can only look at each other and try to conceal our laughter as much as possible.

One of those moments that just makes you think - riding the train in Thailand and driving through all of the Bangkok slums, the housing stuck next to the tracks. Hardly even houses, trash everywhere, a definite odor... and then seeing a shrine set up in what would otherwise just be a pile of trash.

A random cultural observation that also makes us laugh a little... while sitting at the Bangkok train station and watching all the music videos they showed on the big screen, we couldn't help but notice that almost every music video somehow involved tragedy, particularly people dying. A little morbid, and once again all we can do is look at each other and laugh.

Something I wish we could find more of in America (unlike death in music videos): restaurants doing a BBQ every night with fresh food, particularly seafood, where you just walk over and pick out the size and type of meat/fish you want cooked, and they throw it on the grill for you. Season, cook, and serve with the awesome Thai condiments. If there's fish jumping in the ocean right next to you as you eat, all the better. Fresh? I think so.

I loved sitting around waiting for a ride at the dive shop after our snorkeling trip and having the ~2 year old son of the dive shop owner coming over to play with me. After a while he even got a water bottle and brought it out to me - quite the host. It also gave me some vision as to how important the family/community is here. As I was playing with the kid out on the little terrace, it seemed like every single local that walked by knew who the kid was and stopped by to play with him for a minute or so. It was pretty cool... like he had the whole little town as a family.

A little bit of mixed feelings... how traveling makes you appreciate some things at home. All the comforts of home are great I guess, but I'm more than willing to trade them for the excitement of traveling. A little different, though, is how much it makes me appreciate everyone back home. And how much just a short conversation with someone you haven't talked to for a while can make your day so much better.

Along the same line of people making your day, it's so cool to meet people and make connections while you're all the way around the world. Like a Vietnamese student at a university in Singapore I talked to for most of the flight to Vietnam. Or a couple from South Africa who kept us company on our snorkeling trip. You can gain so much simply from talking.

That's all I've got for now I guess, hopefully I'll have more to say once we got off this island.

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Comments

[Angel]

Josh, you are just simply amazing. That's really the best way I can put it! Your writing is vivid, poetic, and as close as I'm ever going to get to SE Asia! Though I would love to kidnap you to my little St. Louis suburb, roaming the world is where you truly belong. : D