First and Second Day in Thailand

I didn't get a chance to post our adventures from the first day in Thailand; we were traveling the entire time. We arrived in Thailand by plane early in the morning. For me this was incredibly exciting because the only other countries I had been in previously were Paris, France, and Singapore, both of which are incredibly westernized. I've been waiting for the chance to explore another country and a rich culture unlike my own and Thailand was going to be it, or so I hope anyway.

Shortly after our arrival at the airport we realized we hadn't actually planned out what bus we needed to take for our 6 hour trip to Khon Kaen, Thailand. Tired and groggy from our stay in the Singapore airport the previous night we decided that the best course of action was to eat and then figure out our next steps from there. Plus, Rena looked as if she may want to devour my soul if she didn't get food soon so that was a priority. Our first meal in Thailand consisted of a green curry, honey-mango with sticky rice, and a frozen coconut drink.

Following our meal we ventured out into the city of Bangkok which was ripped at the seams with small markets and overcrowded side streets. Yet, in the hustle of the living city there was a welcoming feel to it. We dove into the crowds and worked our way through a market towards the bus terminal where we would eventually embark on a very interesting bus to Khon Kaen. In the meantime Rena wanted another coconut drink so we stopped at a small shop to find some. While we were there I inquired as to where we may find a bug vendor; we are here on research after all. Minutes later we were face to face with a vendor who sold grasshoppers, bamboo worms, silk worm pupae, crickets, and giant water bugs. Each was cooked and prepared in their own unique way and sold with a spritz of soy sauce and a mystery spice. We took a bag of grasshopper, silk worm, bamboo worm, and a giant water bug to share and we went to town (figuratively, literally we were already in town I suppose.)

 Rena devouring a grasshopper

Giant Water Bug

We took our time traveling through the market, there was so much to do it was easy to get distracted from our preset goal. Alas, the bus to Khon Kaen beckoned and we were off. Eventually after a few miscalculated overshoots of the terminal we finally made it and got a decent price for our trip. We grabbed a seat and eventually a double decker bus came to carry us away. Neither of us remember much of the trip...we slept for the majority. In addition to not having planned for a bus ride originally we were still lacking lodging in Khon Kaen. Luckily I had previously looked up costs and distances from the University we needed to travel to so at least we had an idea. In the last stretch of the trip we passed by a bustling night market, two hotels that I recognized and wanted to stay at, and a main town park or outdoor restaurant and bar of sorts so we knew the city was going to be exciting. Bold and prepared I thought of myself as we adventurously stepped from the bus and walked out into the city of Khon Kaen. It was only two turns from the terminal where we'd procure a bed and go off to experience the night life of the city. Two turns until we were safe and had a base to run back to if needed! Two turns!!! We made one followed by my leadership to which we followed for about 2-3 kilometers and were no where near where we wanted to be. Yeah, I'm an idiot. I finally asked a kind gentleman by the name of Jo(e) who owned or worked at a local restaurant. Turns out not only did he speak English but he was also one of the nicest people I've ever met (much like the majority of the Thai people I've had the pleasure of meeting thus far.) Jo(e) left work and took Rena and I a few kilometers back down the road we traveled and made the correct turn we should have made down to the Grand Leo hotel (our current place of residence.) I regret not having given him money, invited him for a drink, or at the very least taken a picture with him. Maybe we'll venture down to his restaurant and patronize his store. It's been an adventure so far and I can't wait to see what the rest of the trip looks like....although if I get us lost again Rena may actually kill me--to friends and family, if I don't make it home by January 15th please send help.

I'll post the adventures of day two in Thailand when we return. For now Rena and I are traveling to see some temples, a large lake in the southern part of Khon Kaen, and back to the night market!

Cheers!

Singaporeans have the best choice in airport furnishing...

This is the first post of my blog from Singapore- I plan to update this much more frequently now that I have things going on other than me simply whining about how much I hate being stowed away in an office or something to that extent.

It's 4:15 AM and I'm with my beautiful girlfriend Rena at the Singapore airport waiting for our flight to Thailand. We arrived at the airport last night because we thought of no better way to spend our evening than to get some over priced 'Popeye's' and pass out on a tiny under-cushioned chair.

I'm currently on alarm watch; I just woke up from my allotted nap as per the strict regiment of mien Fuhrer Rena. She's incredible at what she does and how much of it she can do, I'm hoping some of it rubs off on me; for now it just feels comparable to boot camp from time to time.

Regardless, we arrived at the airport and shoveled greasy disgusting Popeye's chicken into our jowls. During this process I was already so exhausted I had begun falling asleep mid-chew. Rena keeps me sleep deprived; I'd like to think that the reason for this is because she misses me so much that she wants to spend time with me but I think the answer is much darker. She may simply enjoy the faces I tend to make as a shoestring of drool escapes my half-gaped mouth and lands onto my open toed sandal or the sounds of my embarrassing snores which sound similar to the engine from Speed Racer's Mach 5; it's quite impressive to say the least.

Following our Popeye's excursion we plopped down at a local cafe where Rena allotted me sleeping rations and told me to get my sleep. Two hours later I'm awake and she's asleep and I'm watching the alarm clock to make sure she gets up right about....now!

More later, if you can't tell I'm delirious writing this so it's not very impressive. Cheers!

Sunny Days Spent in a Cubicle

Sunday Oct. 16th happens to be a beautiful day. It's about 70 degrees with clear skies and a nice breeze. What a beautiful day to go sit inside and study. It's almost midway through the semester so the studies are in full gear and it's grind time. I'm not exactly sure how students nowadays find the time they need to do everything. Even worse, students who hold part-time or full-time jobs and still manage to do well in school and hold some form of social life (outside of say, World of Warcraft) are almost guaranteed to be sleep deprived. If they're not I'm thoroughly impressed.

Anyway, back to me since that's what all of my 2 subscribers are undoubtedly here to read about (and who wouldn't right?) So I'm on campus right now and as I said it's a beautiful day and it seems as if there's some type of open house today so all of the prospective freshman are here, bright eyed and untouched by the demon hands that is a full schedule and lack of social life. Every instinct in me is telling me to go out and scare the crap out of these kids. The bright doey eyed look on their faces makes me wish I had never become so cynical and jaded. So logically the best course of action is to make them as miserable as I am. I'm going to go grab a few and show them how beautiful our campus is. I'll show them the lake which right about now is most likely a brilliant blue with a fantastic breeze blowing across the surface, introduce them to our wooded trails and allow them to breathe in the fresh air and finally for a simple walk around the collegiate buildings to let them gain a feeling of what being a Stockton student is. Then after they've had their fill take them back to my office, sit them down and slam them with a 50 page paper on what I showed them today, give them each a cheeseburger from McDonalds (to replicate the diet they are guaranteed to take on) and lock them in the room for the remainder of the afternoon. I'm sure their parents will worry when their children come back to them crying, but they'll be fine....

Welcome to college kids....man it's nice out...I'm taking a walk...after my paper....and homework....maybe I'll take a walk tomorrow...

First Blog Post

Not exactly sure how a blog works so I figure I'll just post something on here and whoever reads it is going to have to deal with it. After all, it is my blog. For the most part I'd like to use this blog to discuss the rituals of every day life for the average college student; school, work, love, slave labor (internships), and the slew of other things college students face on a day to day basis. In addition to the basic responsibilities each student faces every time they crawl out of bed, don't comb their hair, then walk to class in that ratty pair of pajama bottoms I also want to discuss the importance of higher education; because at this point some are arguing that it really is just a waste of time. In summary, 'The Paragon of Average' is for average college age people and my personal experiences as a last semester college senior about to run into the real world, get slammed with school loans, and try to find a job in a virtually nonexistent job market. Enjoy.