Ken Kruse
Hi All,Imagine All The People
I'm changing my intro. a little bit again. If you're reading this and you don't know me, I am a student at Arizona State (studying Sociology, Political Science, Gender Studies, and Spanish) who had a little must-get-out moment and decided the best way to do that would be to do study abroad for a year. But in four different places. SO.... Finished my studies abroad in Chile and China, and more than halfway through in Singapore. I'm basically done towards the end of November, then I go to Northern Vietnam and Laos for a week, the Philippines for a week, Tokyo for several days, Senegal for a week, Utah for two weeks, and then to Spain for Spring semester!!!
I Hope Everyone is Doing Well and Loving Life
Kenny
柯儒思- 想象人人
A quote I like to try to keep in mind:
"A man can wander round this planet and still not move an inch."
- Ben Okri in The Famished Road
Travel Blog Posts
December 1st 2006
My blogs on Vietnam, the Philippines and Tokyo are going to have to wait until I am back in Utah; everything is happening too fast for me to work on them now. But I leave Manila tomorrow morning to go back to Singapore for five more days and then I'm off to Tokyo.... read more
Where the Dragon Enters the Water
Published: November 20th 2006Asia » Vietnam » Red River Delta » HanoiNovember 20th 2006
Safely in Vietnam (even though Bush is here)... a day in Hanoi, on my second of three days in Halong Bay, three more days in Hanoi, and then back to Singapore for finals and goodbyes.... read more
Born-Again with the Bats and More Buses Than There Are Hours in A Day
Published: October 24th 2006Asia » Malaysia » Pahang » Taman Negara National Park
October 24th 2006
So... Malaysia was interesting. But now I'm safe and sound in my little plot of land in Singapore, and I'm liking it a lot better than I have in the past. I don't by any means ever plan on moving here, but it'll do for the next couple months. My classes are turning out to be pretty interesting- well some of them- well one of them. I'm taking a Gender and Sexuality in Japan class which I actually really like. I'm pretty excited to stop in Tokyo for two or three days after the semester is over. What is Singapore like? Right now it has been hazy and grey for about two weeks because Indonesia is burning rainforests over in Java. I have absolutely no idea why they are doing that, but it sounds like a ... read more
Not Enough Time In Paradise
Published: October 3rd 2006Asia » Thailand » South-West Thailand » Ko Phi Phi Don
October 1st 2006
Well, we didn't really get to do anything because of travel times- we had spent too much time in Bangkok and Cambodia to really explore Phuket, Krabi and Ko Phi Phi, so I guess I'll just have to do it the next time I'm over in this part of the world. Almost needless to say, but not quite needless enough for me not to say it, it was absolutely beautiful. I don't know if I agree with the statement that I've heard that it's the "most beautiful place in the world" because I think that Zion, Arches, Bryce, Glacier and Yellowstone are all gourgeous in different ways, but it was definitely amazing. We got there one afternoon, went to the Half Moon Party and stayed out until it ended- then woke up the next morning to ... read more
Learning to Meditate and the Military Coup
Published: October 3rd 2006Asia » Thailand » Central Thailand » Bangkok
September 26th 2006
So Bangkok. Supposed to be one of the craziest cities in the world, but we took a much more tame approach to it than most. Add to its reputation the fact that we arrived less than a week after the military coup, and you would expect our trip to have been crazy, but the two highlights of our three days in Bangkok were definitely the National Museum and Wat Mahathat. We did get the requisite photos of and with the tanks and soldiers, but it was not really that exciting. I am not usually a big museum person- I don't tend to like art that isn't photography that often- but this museum was amazing. We went for the Wednesday morning free English guided tour, and our tour guide knew a wealth of information about everything Thai ... read more
September 24th 2006
I went to Angkor Wat to see one of the seven wonders of the world, one of the best ruins of the ancient world, but, as usual, the things that I saw and learned that have stuck with me the most are not the temples themselves. I dropped my digital camera, and the lens on my Hasselblad jammed all within the same half hour at Angkor Wat, so I was forced to do something that tourists are rarely forced to do- look at the world for what it was worth- not how it would look in a photograph. You have to look at things a lot closer when you aren't able to take a photograph that you can examine later. When we were wandering around, we met these three kids- these three teenage monks. Two of ... read more
September 21st 2006
There a few places that really make you question the nature of human beings, that really make you question whether human beings are any different from any other species of animal; I think that some times, this feeling can be good. When I am in the middle of the desert or the mountains or standing on a deserted beach, I feel really insignificant and like I'm only a tiny part of the history of the world; I feel animal in that way. But seeing the killing fields of the Khmer Rouge and the torture devices of S-21 really make me question human nature. It was so hard for me to grasp that the bones in the monument had been actual people, that less than thirty years ago they had been walking and breathing. I actually don't ... read more
September 12th 2006
So these pictures are actually from last weekend when we went to Pulau Bintan which is an Indonesian island that is like an hour and a half by ferry from Singapore. It was so surreal to get out of the Permasmile Disneyland Island Bubble that is Singapore, and to be back in the real world. There were thirteen of us for the first day and a half, and we just snorkled, got way too much sun, etc., but once the other ten people left things got interesting. The place we were staying at (I don't know what to call it), was basically shacks on the beach run by a family. They cooked all of our meals for us (as there was nothing else anywhere nearby) and talked to us while we ate. Once the whole group ... read more
August 5th 2006
Well, I'm finally somewhere where I can relax a little bit. I miss China and my group a whole lot more than I thought I would. Something about China really grew on me and I know I'll be back for more time the next time around. Even though I've joked about just staying in my room and studying and not really going out while I'm here before, I think I may actually do just that. Clubs and bars are ridiculously expensive (even by US standards), and I am ready for some relaxing after Chile and China. I'm also going to try to stay on top of my schoolwork so that I can travel. I'm still taking Mandarin and I'm going to start taking Thai, which is great because I won't be entirely lost when I go ... read more
Sleeping In A Tea House on the Most Climbed Mountain in the World
Published: July 31st 2006Asia » China » Shandong » Ji'Nan
July 29th 2006
Well.... our little trip to Tai Shan was definitely one of the most interesting 24 hour periods of my life. Tai Shan... Taoist and Buddhist holy place, center of Chinese creation myths, and the most climbed mountain in the world. The plan went something like this... we would take the train to Jinan, take a bus to Tai an, hike Tai Shan all night, watch the sun rise, hike back down the mountain (eight hours of hiking in total), and then take a train back to Tianjin and be there for class on Monday. We rode on a sleeper train from Tianjin to Jinan on Saturday afternoon, and got in at about 10 to Jinan. The buses were all closed for the night, but our "friend" from the train promised to find us a taxi that ... read more
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