Wheeler Pass Camping

We just got back from a terrific time camping in the Wheeler Pass area. The plan was to go to a secret area by the Hilltop Campsite, but due to road construction and blasting we chose a different location. Our friends Jim and Myrna went with us to join in the fun and it turned out to be a very pleasant trip. The goal was to find some peace and quiet and leave the Vegas heat where it belongs, in Vegas.

The truck was fully loaded with the roof top box and all seats occupied. Traveling with 4 is a little tight, but packing light made it comfortable. While it was 108 in Las Vegas, our campsite was 88 when we arrived. The sun was setting and we were able to get some colorful photos. Katherine had made some experimental Pad Thai at home that we warmed it on the stove and Jim cooked up some glorious kangaroo burgers. For real. That is what he brought to contribute to the extravaganza. It was delicious.

We all just chilled in our camp chairs, talked, and took in the scenery. Our view to the NE was of the test range used for many nuclear tests. Both above and below ground shots were taken in this area very close to Las Vegas. I could only imagine hanging out at this camp area in 1955 when that stuff was going on.

The night was quiet and peaceful. Jim made a 3:30 am photo outing, which surprised me. I heard some rattling at the cooler and thought he was getting a late night beverage. That wasn't the case. He was using a rock and his hat to create a stand for his camera. To the east, Mercury was rising with the moon in the sky and he set up a long exposure to capture it. It kind of worked, but a real tripod would be nice. We both own them and managed to forget them on this trip.

This camp area is in wild horse country and we passed a few on the way up. There are no mosquitoes in the desert and the only pests are a few ants and flys during the day. They are quite manageable and don't bother you very much, which is nice. There was a pack of coyotes that came close during the night. They are mostly afraid and left us alone, but in the distance, we could hear their calls. It surely sounded like a party.

In the morning we continued over the pass in the truck. It was a little longer and rougher road than I expected. The new tires on the truck performed well and the erosion on the trail was minimal. I didn't want to get hours out to a place we could not pass.

After the pass, we cruised out to Pahrump, Nevada at record speed. The trail was much better and brought us to the main road. The crushed limestone trail kicks up a huge cloud of dust at 50mph. Surprisingly, the truck is smooth and quiet inside even though we were hauling it across the desert.

We found a local Mexican restaurant in Pahrump and ordered some real belly bombs. While in SE Asia, this was one of the meals that Katherine and I were craving. This place hit the spot. I could only eat half of my chili rellanos and felt dizzy from the stomach chaos. It was amazingly great!

On the return to town, we cruised by the cliffs of Red Rock. Being gone all summer, I really missed this place. I had to take a shot from the truck.

It was a great evening camping, even though it was only one night. Our friends were on their best behavior and the weather cooperated. I could not ask for anything more. I love our desert and the freedom we have to enjoy it.

Posted with Blogsy

SE Asia trip recap

To sit and write a recap of 2 months of travel will be some fun and force me to look back at the trip as a whole. We saw 4 countries in a part of the world I never thought we would visit. I had preconceptions about what I might see and feel, and I have to say, most of them turned out false.

In general things are less clean than the USA. Water is mostly unsafe. Stop signs are only guidelines. There is more to eat than beef, pork, and chicken. Stomach issues are commonplace. Napkins are a luxury. Car horns are used just to let everyone know where you are and not used as aggression. There are no full sized cars. It is funny that Americans think they need massive trucks and SUVs just in case they need the room when all you need is a 100cc moped to fit: a family of 5, 6 live full grown pigs, a dozen 5 gallon water jugs, full size doors, giant panes of glass, 4 forty pound rice bags, or just about anything else you can imagine, not to mention being a babe magnet. Electrical wiring is an impromptu art form. Black asphalt is used sparingly. American football is considered strange. Every tourist is an "expert" in American politics. Facebook is alive and well even in the most remote places. Generally, rich people are fat people. Americans are extremely wealthy. Everyone of us. "Poor" has a new definition in my mind. Plastic will take over the planet in due time.

One of the most surprising things was how positive and friendly everyone was, considering 3 of the 4 countries have endured horrible atrocities within the last 50 years. Even with the loud, crazy, dirty assault on your senses, we enjoyed ourselves more than expected. Hopefully, we can return in the future to see the progress that is sure to happen.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Bangkok, Thailand to USA

We left the LubD hostel at 4:30am in Bangkok, got a cab to the airport, flew to Seoul, refueled, flew to Los Angeles, flew to Vegas, then Jimbo and Myrna took us to our house. Not only did they get us from the airport, they were a wondful sight to see after a grueling day of travel. We came down to the baggage return level, and were in a daze. I heard Jim yell out my name as I was trying to reach him on the airport's wifi. At that point, I knew we were home with some great friends to take us to our house. I just talk a little too much (obviously) when I see friends from a long trip like this. Trying to cram 2 months of travel stories into a conversation is a little tough.

Being back in the USA is a little strange. People are huge! Cars are huge! Food is huge! And..... We can drink the water. I took a little sip from the fountain. Nice.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Bangkok, Thailand Day 1-3 again

We already had a Bangkok Day 1 weeks ago, so I thought a new name was in the works. It has been a while since we were last here with Michael, and it feels like home in a weird way. Coming from Cambodia is quite a change.

These days have been spent just strolling around Bangkok shopping. The giant MBK mall is across the street and never gets old. We tried going to the nicer Paragon and Discovery malls, but I quickly got bored with the same ritzy shops that were all brightly lit. We just left.

We had to get back to Bangkok to check on my tuxedo from Boss Apparels. I thought they might have forgotten about us, but when we walked through the door, there it was. My tuxedo was right in front of me. They totally remembered us and were ready for the next fitting. I tried it on and...... It blew my mind! It was perfect. So perfect in fact, I ordered some more pants and shirts. This took some time looking at fabric and deciding. I couldn't believe it, custom made pants and shirts? This is too much! Yes, please.

Katherine had the best idea ever to end the trip. Just sit around and relax. How awesome! It has been great to sleep later in the morning . When we get home it will be a fury repairing my car and getting ready for work.

We saw Batman, The Dark Night Rises, in the MBK movie theater for only 3 dollars a person. It was movie Wednesday with half price tickets. We had to see something. The Bangkok theaters are known for having some interesting movie options. There are regular projection screens, digital cinema, 3D, and this new thing called 4D. 4D is where they vibrate the seats, spray mist, and even blow fans at you. There is more.. Many places have sofas and a wait staff for you. At the Paragon mall, you can even get a foot massage at the top theater. What? It's for real. Please, someone start that in the USA.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Siem Reap, Cambodia to Bangkok, Thailand

This was the longest travel day covering the smallest distance. Ouch!

Only 150 miles across the Cambodia-Thai border. How could this happen?

We left Siem Reap in the morning crammed on a pick up truck. There were a few stops to cram on more people. Then, we got off and got on a full sized tour bus. It was actually nice. Good AC and clean. Except for more FEET! The girl behind me threw her feet up on the seat next to me and I had a conniption. So, I grabbed the only weapon readily available, the camera. I turned to my right, held up the camera and got this....

She said, "Oh wow. Everyone is always taking photos of my feet. I wonder why." Then it started.

I told her, "It's not the tattoos that I am interested in, but the way you just put your feet on the chairs in this nice bus. If you have paid attention to the culture around us, you don't exactly put dirty feet up on everything."

She didn't really liked this, at all. We went back and forth for a few seconds, and I left the conversation with, "I guess your mom teach you any manners." Her feet did not come off the chair, and they stayed up for an entire 3 hours to the border. Seriously, they did not move. I could only imagine the pressure points developed from the hard plastic arm rest from the chair in front of her. There was a guy, that we later befriended, sitting in front of her. He mentioned at the border crossing that her feet really annoyed him.

We got off the bus to get stamped out of Cambodia. This was fast and easy. It was the walk down the road to the Thai gate that was the mess.

There was a line about 100m long and about 4-6 people wide. At the end were the doors leading to the Thai customs agents. Little did we know this line would take us 4 hours! The only thing I can complain about is the line, as everything else was really nice. We had some interesting people next to us to chat with. The weather was nice and we were in the shade. Life was good. I had a chance to talk to a guy from Mexico City named Mario. He spent a lot of time in the USA and is well versed in politics between the 2 countries and within his own. It was interesting to hear the political insight from a city dweller in Mexico. He is a lot different than the Mexicans I know in Vegas. It's similar to talking with someone from New York City versus someone from Amarillo, Texas.

Behind us in this 4 hour line was an American English teacher. We talked to him for a while about teaching abroad and situations that he has been in. He loves his job and had some interesting things to say. I never got his name, but could see "Michael" on his entry papers. I saw a large camera bag with him and then asked all about it. He told me about his amateur photography addiction and I swapped info about my underwater endeavors. Talking gear and teaching could go on forever, which was great, since this line was going NOWHERE!

After chatting and sitting, we finally made it up to the guard. STAMP! STAMP! We were now on our way. It was just a short walk to the pick-up truck that took us to the minibus station. We got a quick lunch, as it was now 4pm. Ouch! We ate with Mario and then crammed into a 15 passenger minibus. I mean crammed. Katherine was next to a pile of bags that fell on her when we rounded a right hand corner. I came to the rescue.

The driver had a death wish, no doubt. Minibus drivers are the aggressors on the Thai highways. They are constantly overtaking other vehicles without a care for oncoming traffic. Lights flash and horns blair. People behind us in the minibus just slept while I wanted to keep my eyes forward to see when my life would end. Somehow, after another 4 hour drive, we came into Bangkok. We hopped into a cab and he magically took us right to the LubD hostel, even with a communication malfunction. Nice work!

It was a long day and we made it fun by joking and talking with people. Just keep your feet off the seat! Didn't your mom ever teach you anything?

 

Posted with Blogsy

Siem Reap, Cambodia Day 3

 

Today was spent with wonderful bicycles. Garner was happy. We rented the nicer Giant bicycles. They were a mountain bike set up with disc brakes and were much more comfortable.

We headed out again very early for a sunrise, but did not go to the popular spots. We went to a new place called Ta Prohm. Since it was not a famous place to see in the early morning, there were no people there. Actually, there wasn't even a guy to check our park tickets. Once we walked down the long path to the entrance, we were graced with a glorious view. This temple is quite overgrown with trees and moss. The more we traveled through the temples, this was what we were looking for. Everywhere you looked there were giant trees overtaking this human creation. The tree's roots go wherever they want, then expand and move the rocks. Once the tree dies, the rocks lose support and crumble. I could see the chain of events right in front of me. I saw new small roots, young trees, intermediate trees, full grown trees in grand glory, and the dead trees rotting. Not only do the trees destroy the temple while growing and decaying, but once the massive tree falls, it crushes everything. My life of maybe 80 years stands like nothing compared to these massifs.

Ta Prohm was used in the movie Tomb Raider. We were only reminded about this a thousand times. The little impromptu guides wanted to tell us this a lot. They would come out of nowhere and start telling you about the sites. If you let them, they would lead you all around and then expect you to pay them. One was a little girl that could not have been older then 7, and she was doing a really good job. They weren't real guides, but were funny to try to avoid. The vendors out front were little children and at some temples you had to fight them off with it's a stick. They don't give up easy, at all! We were constantly chased by a group of 5 or 6 kids yelling at us in their sing song voices, "Hey Misterrrrrrrr.....buy somethiiiiiiing.....postcaaaards......very niiiiiice.....10 for 1 dollaaaaaaar. Madaaaaaaam....buy beautiful scaaaaaaarf....3 for 2 dollaaaaaars....take to your frieeeeeeends......" It was actually very entertaining. Any excuse you would give, they had a counter argument for why you needed their product anyway. Some have gimmicks, like counting to 10 in English, French, Spanish, German and Russian, or playing tick-tack-toe with you. They were all smart, witty, multi-lingual and extremely hard working, and they were as young as 5 years old. Child labor laws definitely have not been introduced in Cambodia yet.

Back to Ta Prohm: Katherine and I whispered as we crept through the temple. We enjoyed the time to ourselves. At times, we even had to take out our flashlights to find our way. I snapped pictures of numerous small buddhas covered in moss. Those have turned out to be my favorite. After 45 min or so, the tours arrived. It got loud and lost it's serenity. That was OK since we knew that this would happen.

We saw a few more temples, but one of my favorites was one of the older ones we found, named Pre Rup. Instead of using laterite and sandstone, it was composed of bricks in the upper areas. Some of the construction has lasted longer than the newer temples and created a nice change from the ones that we had already seen. This one in particular gave a nice view of the surrounding area. The guide books recommend to see the temple at sunset. But, we were there at mid day and some surprising blue sky came out. That surely helped me with the photos. No more white wash from the sky! I was able to snap a few, and did my best.

On the comfy bikes, we headed back to town. We had to mail some postcards and get some food for lunch. All day, I think we rode 30+ kilometers. It was a nice little workout and well worth it. Seeing the temples by Tuk Tuk is nice, don't get me wrong. A driver makes you feel like you are living in luxury, but riding a bike is the upmost in freedom. Go where you want, when you want. It's quiet and you don't pollute.

Please let me go off about pollution. Don't read farther if you don't want to hear my rant. Plastic in SE Asia is everywhere. Of course water is unsafe, so people drink bottled water. The bottles have a safety sealed cap with the ring, but have an extra wrap over the entire top of clear plastic. This is to prove that the bottle is original, as some people have filled empty bottles with tap water to resell them. So, when you open the bottle, not only do you have the cap to worry about, but the plastic seal over the top. I like to pocket the seal and find a trash can for it, but most locals I have seen, just throw it on the ground.

Plastic straws are used everywhere too. You get a beverage in a can. The can is obviously dirty, so they give you a straw so your mouth doesn't have to touch the dirty can. This transfers over to all beverages. You might go into a store to buy some water and get a plastic bottle of water, with plastic cap, plastic seal, plastic straw, and plastic bag to carry it all with. Huh? That's a lot of plastic. And from the scenery that I have seen, most of it just gets thrown into the street, ditch, or anything but the trash can. There is a return on plastic bottles, which we have seen. While walking and carrying an empty bottle, a child has come to us many times to take the bottle from us. Of course we give it to them. They get some money for it. But the rest of the plastic is just thrown wherever.

My friend Ches, is just finishing a huge trip through India. There was a very impressive photo. He wrote about some dead cattle. The cows eat so much plastic, and it all gets caught in their stomachs. Once the cow dies, all the organic material goes away and decomposes. What is left is a giant pile of plastic. Quite impressive. I can only wonder how much of the stuff is in the rivers and going out to sea. It would probably boggle our minds.

By the way, check out Ches's travel blog. He has some great entries!

The Tuk Tuk driver Teewan, gave us a rice meal on the drive. It tasted great and was wrapped up in a banana leaf tied with some tree thread. Once eaten, you just chuck it out of the Tuk Tuk on the side of the road, and don't worry about it. It will decompose in a few weeks and nothing will remain. The plastic will be here with us for thousands of years. We had better learn to love it. It's not going away.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Siem Reap, Cambodia Day 2

After a day in the Tuk Tuk, we decided to brave the temples in Angkor by bicycle. Our guesthouse offers some bikes for charity. This sounded great and all proceeds go to a children's charity, for only 2 dollars. Ok, cool. So we got up early again for a 5am departure. The front door has a night guard sleeping. He hears you come down the stairs, opens the door, and sends you on your way. You normally leave the key and get going. This was all fine, until I jumped on my bike. Let me tell you, bike no. 5 was a dud. We pedaled off and my crank was a wreck. Every top stroke of the right pedal flopped out and then came back. This created a wobbly stroke favored by the left pedal. It was 5 am, and there was no way to get another bike, so we just kept going. For the rest of the day, the bike and I became good friends.


We went back to Angkor Wat, but went inside with all the people. After one look at the reflecting pool, and all the people, we decided on another spot to set up for the sunrise. I went right in front of all the people behind a wall. I thought that a picture of all the people taking pictures of the sunrise would be impressive. It really wasn't, but it humored me a bit. There was not as much color in the sky this morning, making it difficult to get the shots I wanted. You just have to deal with it, I guess, and find another way to capture what you need.

Once the sun rose a bit in the sky, we toured Angkor Wat for another 2 hours. Its 3 levels are massive! There are just way too many nooks and crannies to explore. Even though the large tour groups take away some of the adventure, it is still like being an explorer, if you let it. Katherine and I would leave the crowds in search of remote hidden places. This is where I found the best photo opportunities. The sky was white, killing most panoramic shots. The more we observed, we saw people cruising by at a fast pace, each armed with high end electronics, snapping pictures as quick as possible.

These temples have sure lived a tough life. The natural elements are straining them for sure, but the human impact is even greater. There have been looters, religious defacing, and political destruction. Going from Buddhist to Hindu and back sure caused havoc. Then came the looters, and recently has been the Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese. Lastly, are the hoards of tourists barraging the sites on a daily basis. I think that they are bound to crumble from nature, and sealing them off from the public is the wrong thing to do. They bring the country of Cambodia tons of money and people love them. We should enjoy them while they last. In another 1000 years, they will surely be gone.

After Akgkor Wat, we toured a few more temples. The Elephant Terrace was sweet and the Terrace of the Leper King was impressive. We also saw the temple called Bayon. This temple has the 4 sided face pinnacles. Inside was a maze with outlooks to the sky. We carried flashlights and I was able to find a deeeeep well. I had to sneak around to find it. Cool.

The bike ride back was tough with the gimpy bike. We took a nap, ate, wrote some post cards, and crashed after the long day.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Siem Reap, Cambodia Day 1

Teewan was outside the guesthouse waiting for us at 5am. We're happy he did not ditch us, and I am sure he felt the same, as he said he had to wake at 3:30am in order to drive into town to fetch us. It was totally dark and somewhat quiet. Not totally quiet since a lot of other people had the same idea as us. The sunrise at Angkor is not to be missed. The day before had gray skies all day, so we thought the morning sunrise might be poor. We thought we would give it a chance anyway.


The early morning air on the ride was cool, which was a surprise. Many Tuk Tuks were on the road, and we were all going to the same place. Teewan took us right to the front of Angor Wat. People were hurrying inside to get to the front reflecting pool. This is the most popular spot to take pictures. We decided to stay out away from the crowds at the exterior lagoon. This ended up being a great idea. The sunrise was beautiful and Teewan thought it was the best in a few weeks of gloom and rain.

After that, we headed to a few more temples. It is like going back in time walking around these epics. It feels old and part of another life, but what the temples actually are is something of today. They would not look the way they do without time. If you traveled through time, we would see them in their full might. Crisp, clean, and the way that they we intended. But, nothing lasts forever, and we are witness to what the Earth can do to something thought to me immortal. The construction is outstanding and the choice of materials was the best of the time, but weather and growth has devoured these structures. Today, people are trying to resurrect the temples from the ground in various ways. Many organizations are trying to do something about them, and have been for a hundred years. The French did a good job in the early 20th century, but today the groups are getting meticulous in their rehabilitation. What I like, is that some temples are heavily worked on, while others are left very close to the way they were found. Either way, I just like the vegetation cleaned enough to keep the big snakes out. I can also do without the spiders.

Teewan took us out to a very far temple named Banteay Kdei. This required a long drive on a country road that brought us past many homes and rice fields. This is where the Tuk Tuk is the best! Being in the open air really cools things down and it's really easy to take photos.

The last temple was small yet beautiful, in his words. It was really worth the drive and other people had the same idea. It was crowded. Oh well, I just waited my turn and still tried to be polite in a tourist sea of madness. Little did we know that it was Vietnam's independence day, so they were all here on holiday. I think all of Korea and Japan were here too. Everyone was really excited to be at these temples and getting angry at the crowds would only ruin our experience. We stayed sane, somehow.

On the way back, we stopped off by the Land Mine Museum. I knew of it from TV and had seen it mentioned in magazines. What a place! The bombs and mines of wars past are a continuing problem in Cambodia. As you travel through Cambodia you see people with limbs missing and faces burned off everywhere. Not a couple, more like 10 different people every day. Many countries are to blame, and not many are helping to clean up the landmines, which is expensive. This place gets donations from all over to slowly clean the land, which is the most mine littered in the entire world. They take the info from farmers and soldiers to find these explosives. But other times it takes a detonation to find where the mine is. This group at the museum has been set up by Aki Ra, and not only do they clean up mines, but they also help children and people that are affected by them. Out back is a bunch of rooms for children who are the victims of landmines and their parents can no longer afford to take care of them, or those that have been left orphaned due to landmines. The kids get a place to live, an education, and scholarships to go to University. This place is the essence of good being done in its purest form.

Please read a little about Aki Ra. Here a wonderful site.

AKI RA. The man!

MK 83 USA bombs

After all that sightseeing, and another emotional museum, we just returned to the guesthouse and took a nap. Dinner out front was easy and simple. We had to get to bed early for another early sunrise.

 

Posted with Blogsy