Slackers

End of a wonderful vacation in the warm lands will finnaly come to an end tommorow. Tommorow is my last day in Asia and i'm already missing it.

TO ALL MY SLACKER FRIENDS: FAMILY NOT INCLUDED

i spent all day getting super cool presents for you lot so you all bets go traveling so i can get some goodies, and i don't mean a mug from Ft.Lauderdale or a paper Guiness coaster from McFaddens.

Election Day Hardcore

Forget about the second Tuesday in November, this is where the big boys come to play. So tommorow is election day in Kolkata, for all your geographically retarted people, it's in India.

My uncle had to miss the wedding and 3 days of nothing but election work a week before the actual election itself. Since he works for a government agency it is mandatory duty. He went around and trained people how to work the booths at the booth center. He got a walkie talkie and a shiny laminated badge with his name, the name tag was nice, and it was funny cause he was wearing it around the house when he came back. He's a character.

So proceeding to the actual day. Every gets off from work, i wish that happened for us. Then the busses are taken to transfer all the "documents" and sorts to the polling booths. I want to go and see all this but i have to go to yet another wedding ceremony thing and then visit my cute nephew. Also today i saw a truckload, litterly a huge truck filled with police officers in the back. They are preparing for some dangerous voters i guess. I find this whole thing so elaborated such as all thing in this city are. Supposidly it gets crazy so my grandfather told me to come quickly. i so want to see what all the hoo haa is about. Not to mention carzy communists are trying to take over. I am still flabergasted too how a democratic country can have 2 communist states. It's like haivng America, and florida and New York be communist....freaking wierd or should i say OII!

Quick note: Man, bengali tv shows are as exciteing too watch as the self esteem videos in health class in high school. How can a show purely revolve around wedding jewelry and trying to find the expensive sari amongs 9 bags. Your husband plays too. I WANTED TO EAT MY FINGERS watching it. it was so embarrisingly boring.

Love to all My friends

This is what you look like after the thai new year!
I have been getting lots of emails from friends I have not heard from in a long time asking when I'll be back. I'm not sure, but I know I will definitely be back around May. I just wanted as a whole to tell you how I feel now:

I feel dirty, sad, happy and much much more. I love you all so much that I have uber excited to come back to the states as I was leaving it. I have learned that home is what home should be a place where you always want to come back no matte how bitchy the woman on Septa are, or how crappy the Eagles are, or how come the WB exists (small joke for preeti). I miss Philadelphia like I miss a good Thai massage. It hurts like hell but in the end you want some more.

(Patriotic Bullshit comings up)
Truly and utterly I think America is one of the most wonderful countries on earth, despite some issues AKA BUSH! It is a place where I can leave the comfort of my house and get a burrito if I want and another day go out for some fiery Japanese haruki or whatever that thing is that chefs cook in front of you.

its where you can kareoke till your voice shrills up and can't go no more. Its where I have the right to tell someone to shut up and call the police where the music is too loud. It's where I can have an argument about religion and abortion and politics and then have a drink afterwards.
the only country that came close to being perfect and magnificent for me was infect Bangkok. Where they're world revolves around opposites. Where prostitution is as free as candy but they are ashamed to wear bikinis.

All in all for all those that think your world sucks that you don' have money and blah blah blah, cause I'm guiulty as well. But we all have money for a beer and fries at Burger King. I'm going to quickly do a summary of why places suck and Philly is okay in listing of Country I've been too.

England: rains and is retarded cause I have to watch English movies with subtitles, and no decent kareoke machine, and no nice public pools. Also my money is worthless there.

Denmark: The most expensive freezing block of land I've been too. Also not very friendly people, and US $8 beer pints.

South Africa: Not much bad things really, the government is trying, still a wonderful place if you can stand the annoying English expats that talk like they are actors in Harry Potter movies. "By golly George, I do find this wine exquisitely marvelous" And to quote this woman who told me "My dear no one neeeeeeeeeeeds diamonds" emphasis on the nasally N.

India: I don't know where to start

Singapore: Culutureless lego shaped buildings with clean roads and no football team but lots of karoke machines, and death penalty for everything including peeing on the streets.

Malaysia: A beautiful country with lots of oppression, not as much as most Muslim countries. But enough. Also no Mexican food.

Thailand: I love this place, but is has way too make skinny chicks so trying on cloths is like being in a GAP kids. I HAVE AN ASS, ACCOMMODATE! Not a place to shop for clothes if you are a homegrown Philly mama who normally wears color coordinated MOOMOOS.

So the next time you want to hate on your city, think off all the memories that make the US a decent place.Hating on the coat lady for not giving your coat till the end cause you lost your stupid piece of paper, or how if you are a bad employee (Jason will know who I'm talking about) you do get fired. And you can get ice cream and tropical fruits year round.

America is not that bad really. Cause I say so.

weddings and ceremonies

Okay not to dis the bengali population or anything, but we sure know how to turn a supposed fun time bad. Lets face it if you have an option to go to a indian wedding make sure it is not bengali, i'm not kidding. It's so not fun. From what i have seen my wedding is going to be a smashing time.

Wedding Pros and Cons:

Pros:Cons
Ceremony is nice and fun : looking for a viewing area wearing a sari amongst 50 other hot sweaty people is not a good time, especially when i sweat from places i didn't know i had.

Bride and groom have to sit around and be looked at : Can't avoid people you don't want to see, cause everyone comes over to you and gives you a long hard stare and then some presents.

Big family : Don't know anyone and people keep comming up to you and telling you to come over to their house and i have to ask them to point themselves on my make belief family chart.

Good food: vegetables are banned substances, only fried food for vegetarians.

talking to lots of people : no dancing or singing or music or anything fun allowed, it's like being in detention without the books or the whole quite thing.

i asked this man to turn the stereo on and he looked at me like i ate his first born or something likee that, he gave me an evil look and then sa-shayed away.

overall it was okay and i think i would like to change some things around at my wedding including introduction of veggies and also maybe a slip and slide, cause you never know when people might want to slide on a wet sheet of vynyl on a bed of gravel wearing a fine silk sari, hell i would!

Chinese people

I rarely dislike a certain sect of people depending on their ethnicity, but i have to set some things straight.

The chinese, from what i've experianced, are the worst socialy apt group i've encountered so far.
How can one group of people be so uncaring, selfish and over all wierd i have no idea. I have never been to china but from what i have gathered in singapore, here goes.

Not all but a rare few:
My amazement all started in the airport in singapore and went all the way to bangkok and back to singapore. In singapore the meanest place i went to was in the chinatown food court. The women there was mean, looked at me like i took a shit in her noodle bowl, and also proceeded to yell at me cause it took me forever to sign language to her that i was a vegetarian. Then at the juice counter i also got a strange look while i tried to decipher what was the clear thing that everyone was eating that was placed on top of a large mound of shaved ice.

To note, i did meet a really nice man that gave me lots of nice vegetarian food.

Proceeding to my trip from KL to penang. I was in a bus where 2 chinese couples thought it would be a pleasureful idea to scream really loudly to one another across the bus and place their mouth right to my ear. If i understood anything i would have laughed or smiled with them, but considering i knew next to nothing in chinese, it sounded like someone was screaming in my ear in different pitches just to make my skin fall off my head.

I forgot all my chineses experiances for a while till my flight from Bangkok to singapore. So today i got more stories. Asians as a whole do not understand the meaning of personal space. I got to my terminal and what do i see, a huge line of people standing and not moving anywhere. Usually in a normal world people would proceed to line up when it is time to collect the ticket and board the plane, nope not here. Everyone was in line pushing and farting and picking their lovely nose and mining for wedgies and taking on thier phones. Did it not occur to any of them that it would be easier and faster if they all just sat down and waited to be called? Okay so the plane was a budget airline and no seats were given, but frankly i don't understnad what the big deal is. It's a 2 hour journey, and on a crappy airplane, all the seats are identicle and noisy and crammped, did it really make a difference where we sat? well it seemed too to them.

So after a long bout of squirming and making faces i just sat their and watched them stand in line. Finnaly it was time to board the plane, and all hell broke loose, people were raising voices, pushing each other through, i couldn't believe what was happening!

I was the last to get on the plane, and sat right in the front in the middle of 2 women. The other wierd thing about asians is that they would rather pull their legs really close to the seat than get out to let someone out from the window seat. So i watched all these people fighting to figure out where to put their feet when they are trying to move to the aisle. The women sitting next to me didn't even move when i tried to practically climb over her legs and place my entire upper body onto the seat infront of me to finnaly sit down. And as soon as i sit down the women to the right of me in the window seat needs to get out. Since i'm in the middle and can't get out cause i can't move, she climbs over me, and then steps on the seat while there is another girl still sitting there and starts to open her package in the overhead bin. Classic!

After finnaly getting some candy out, does it over agian the other direction.
the flight was fine and boring and i slept uncomfortably on my tray table.
Comming close to landing i had to teach and sign to the women next to me how to get the pressure out of her brain by blowing out through your nose. i think she got it, but i'm not sure, cause i can't speak chinese, and her signing wasn't so good.

getting out was even more fun, cause no one wants to let you out, funny as it sounds, i was sitting in the second row of seats and it took me 10 minutes to get out, people in isle 30 got out before me. You have to really get an appendge in to get anywhere.

Back in singapore, i watched a tiny petite women eat her noodles in the most amazing way. She took some noodles, about 5 feet in length out it on her spoon with her chop sticks, and litterliy sucked in and ate them all in one go. It was amazing. i wish i had a camera cause they were the longest noodles i've ever seen, she was eating and sucking in noodles like almost mechanically. TALENTS!

that is all i can think of with my experiance with singapore chinese. I do not want to offend anyone, these are only a few i've come accross and not the entire world of chinese.

New blog about veggie food

I have also started a new blog on the recipies i've learned and were lucky enough to get from lovely people.

http://vegg.blogspot.com/

Wet clothes and powder laden faces

HAPPY THAI NEW YEAR.

or better yet, buy a hose! A brief explanation about what i've been doing lately.
WET, more wet, dirty, powder face, and more wet.

Kids on the back of pick up trucks wielding buckets full of water on the look out for dry souls like my self. Then comes the innocent ladies who own food stalls that smile at you when you walk past and then out from nowhere comes out the biggest water projecting gun i've seeen in my life, let alone wandering how much of thailands water supply is in there. Then next thing you know you are so drenched even the sun is laughing at you. I couldn't take any photos cause my army purse belt could only accomidate my triple plastic covered money and my lip balm which i lost in the crowd of wet 20 something thais. This is the strangest new year celebration ever.

There must have been like 6 drunk thai kids bored out of hell on there new year party and thought that if they took loads of water and chucked at people on the street for 3 consective days they would be having so much fun. Okay so it was a lot of fun on the first day, and i even wielded my water cannon and got a lof of old ladies and babies in the face. yeah das right even babies are game for it all, cause god knows they cant speak and say i shit my self but they know who is dry and needs a soaking!

The water is not sooo bad, what is bad is the gooy mixture of old pancake batter they slather on your face, i think it's part flour and part bangkok rain water they have saved for a year. But it smells and people carry buckets of it and plaster it on you. All you can do now is actually ask someone to spray water on your face and get it off from your face.

It's all good fun, and it lasts all day and night, and then the techno music starts blaring, next thing you know your in a thai rave wet, soaked and plastered, and wanting so bad to take a shower. You look around and there are police men getting sprayed with water guns while they try to do some dance moves on the streets they should be trafficing.

The sad note is that there are a lof of accidents that happen on these days. 71% of all moter accidents happen on these 3 days. It is easy to see why, since thais are mad and they ride their motor bikes like maniacs and when you have people chucking water at your face going 60khm i can see why it is so easy to i don't know fall off your bike and come crashing down on your pancake face, i think the ones that invented the water fun also thought this would be a great way to kill off those jerks on the motor bikes.

on my way to center bangkok wielding my water gun in the taxi, the taxi driver was a lot of fun and would drive really slowly and let me open my window down a bit so i could hit some people on the street, bless him.

i'm soo glad it's over now.

Dermotoligical Enviroment

So today we took a break from all the cooking and went for an adventure. Due to the lack of navigation skills of Lindsey, no problem. We took a wrong turn to try and find a waxing place. So we walked for a while and no luck. Our plan was to go there and then to the water park that is close by. After walking about in the sun for an hour we finnaly decided to try the mall near us. Soon after entering i realized that i was surrounded by the most strangest places. It seems that Thai people are incredibly vain, or so it seems. Inside the mall, it was medium size. There were about 10 salons on each floor (5 floors). Also there were a lot of skin care, and dermatologist care, cellulite, wrinkle treatments. Loads of them. I couldn't figure out if people actually went there since most thais are incredibly tiny. I'm like a triple XL here, non of them have any butts or hips, so buying clothes is a nightmare! So we kept walking and i came across a nail place and got my nails done. Inside everyone was getting acrylics done, like 3 inch nails on these really tiny hands, it was similar to edward scissor hands, without the creepyness.

The other observation i noticed was that in the bathrooms, the girls stand there and apply their makeup for minutes and minutes. I couldn't beleive, i know amerian chicks are into their makeup, buts it's high time here. In the stores and boutiques the workers would just stand their with their straighting irons and straighten their hair while you look around. I really have only noticed it in this country, and it seems that if you go to a mall where there is no tourists, there are more salons and hair iron people.

we left that madness and had our first ever sushi and boiling veg lunch. There is a gigantic conveyer belt things all across the resturant in all sorts of windy ways. You just pick up what you want, and if they are veggies you drunk them in a hot boiling soup infront of you. Loads of fun. The funny part of all this is that there is a time limit. Just as we were about to dig into our green tea ice cream...DOH the time was up.

We got out of the mall and headed to the amazing Tesco. I wanted to see what a Wal-mart like store looked like in thailand. On our way i got my legs waxed at a random place where they were doing demonstrations. I even let some thai people feel how smooth my legs were, and they were. IT was just so random in the middle of the mall, but the job was good.

Tesco in Thailand is jsut as bad ans tesco is england. it's huge filled with awful florecent light and as everything EXCEPT FABRIC DYE. After lots of explaining and hand miming and speaking somewhat broken thai i managed to explain to 5 people what i was talking about. Lots of thinking and encrypting i get a "oh noooo, so sorry no have". DOH!

yes tesco is thailand don't carry fabric dye so don't go in there looking for any.

took a bus back which was nice, cause people hold your bags when you are standing up, (same as in india). A random day i suppose but it seems the random ones are the best ones. Leaving the Santi Asoke in 2 days. Oh i also bought a water gun for the Thai new year, you get to spray watter everywhere. People have buckets on the streets to try to get you wet. i will not be wearing white!

Belief and Reason

It has been around one week since I've been here, and it's really got me thinking.
I'm not yet ready to give up some luxuries such as a pillow and maybe an inch of cushioning for me bed. I don't find my self incredibly materialistic except when it comes to the beauty counter, okay so maybe on some things. This life that I lived in for a week was very very confusing and yet understanding.

PROS AND CONS:
To the weastern eyes these people may seem a little institutionlized, but in reality if you compare there life to some villagers especially women, you would see how nice this really is. The morning wake ups are a pain but as all things become a routine, this is also the same. The days are long and hard and you sleep well, but to sacrafice the night life, i'm not yet ready.

The women and men here wear a blue outfit that says that they are within the community and are also following the 5 precepts. Some things are never true good to be true. As I was reading the material on what it means to be in the community i found that some of it was a bit hippocritical. In the material there are a lof of harsh words that differentiate the main stream monk like to the Asoke monk life. One of the first precepts is to have a neutral mind and to not take favors or dislikes about anything. They compare a lot about the 2 and very confidently display how they are slightly superiour of the two.

Another one of hte precepts is to not have passion about eating, you must always be neutral. Yet they are leading a protest about the government and are very passionate about this whole ordeal.

Shoes:

In the material ot also states that main stream monks wear shoes and that Budda never wore shoes, but budda also never lived in dirty ass bangkok were this is dog shit all over the place, and not to mention swear water streaming by. I hail the mainstream monks for being idealists and tending to simple hygene.

Bowing down to Monks.
I being a hot headed person that thinks of everyone has equal find this practice a little strange. When you see a monk on the street within the commiunity you need to get down on your knees and bow down to them. Monks also always sit above you, and you have to sit in a manner that does not offent them, ie always have feet facing away from them. That i can handle but just because they gave up there life to live a very simple way does not by any means mean that they are more superior beings than me. They are just as human as I am, and if i don't read my dharma book all day and sleep in a little place does not mean that i'm not as important. They are treated almost godly here and i feel that confuses the reality of the fact that they are just flesh and blood, and they take shits, and also like to eat sticky rice and mango.

I'm not going to state all my points, but it is something to consider, even if you are being a traditionalist, this world is always changing and you can't live as though you were still in the beautiful medows of heavely lush fields in the 9th century BC. People tend to relate there lives to what it was like 20 years ago, but 20 years ago was a long time and this is now.

I spoke to a monk when i first arrived to the temple and she said live your life in the present and think about your future, but live in the present. I find this very ironic now, since becoming a monk is the ultimate heiarchy in achieving reincarnation as a human in your next life. Yet becoming a monk you give up the excitment that this world has to offer such as good mexican food and traveling to see what is near and far. To be living in the present you have to allow yourself to feel the world and not to restrict what it has to offer. I'm sure if Buddha had PS2 and had a Singha beer in his hand on a hot day he also would say 'This world I live in is bang ass fun".
And then he would go to a gay bar with karoke and sing Maddonna songs(really really badly), which is what i did last night, and it was a jolly good time i say!

BANGKOK MADNESS

Wonderful women, Ohy, who was an inspiration to me
Beautiful bangkok from the river taxi
Me being a bad ass protestor, the bandana says "Thaksin Get Out"
Me, Ohy, Lindsey, and some random monks we picked up
Lindsey and her Thai boy from Chang Mai
on the protest bus to madness
our beautiful sheet bed and clothing pillows
Me chopping up some bamboo at the veggie restuant
Buddist funeral, monks are circleing for i think 4 times.
Ma lady and ma big bad Chang beer for one. I look so incredibly large compared to her, i'm really not that big.

Protests and Deep fried tofu

So i missed my morning wake up of 2 and settled for 5Am this morning. i missed my soy milk making but i'm waking up at 3 to learn how to make vietnamese spring rolls. SWEET!

today i got to make some more food and cut up some mushrooms, my sun-sleepyness made me really really tired and i had to go take a nap. woke up and got myself together for some protesting.

a little on my sweet home.
i'm living in litterly a room. there is no kitchen. imagine a hotel room with nothing in it. my bed is a sheet on the floor and my pillow is a fist full of clothes wrapped up in a scarf. the first night was a total pain! but i'm being acustomed to the situation and making the most of it.

so at 3 this afternoon not morning we went on our little bus ride to the city and had ourselves some protesting. it was really strange. it was more like a party but i didn't understand anything that was going on. my thai is getting better i know all the numbers but everything else is a bit bad. there were loads of people at the protest. they are still protesting since Thaksin is still in government even though he stepped down from the prime minister position. I'm a little confused about it all, since i've only heard one point of view.

for those that are confused. a lot of people were confused at the buddist army.
they just call themselves the dharma army. they are a non-violent sect that holds peaceful protests. they are mostly self-sufficient and are vegans. even the monks are different.

so there is your info for the day.

rathir sawat (good night)

3AM wake up calls and funeral

So bring on the vegans and there buddism!

i woke up at 3:00AM to go to work in the resturant. started the day peeling shallots and then cutting up veggies. i've been promoted to frying and also made my first dish. it was so wonderful getting all amongst it all. i have such a wonderfful oppurtunity to cook in the society of vegetarians resturant. they are a bunch of them all over thailand and they make wonderful fresh cooked food. i have also started only eating twice a day, which is tough at times but i'm sticking to it.

this morning i also gave food to the monks, since they are not allowed to cook everyone in the town provides them with little food presents. i gave them some custard things wrapped in banana leaves. the other thing you have to do in thailand when you see a monk is pay respect to them, meaning bow down on the ground where ever they are. it was wierd at first but i'm starting to get into it.

i also attended my first buddist fueneral. it was kind of sad the girl that died was hit by a tuk-tuk going to the protest 2 days a go. It was a very strange funeral they seem to be not so worried about anything. since they belive in re-incarnation there is no reason to get upset since her soul will be in a better body after death. this belief is very strong and great for people with a disease. our friend Oh is battleing breast cancer and she is soo strong. she is not taking any medication and is not afraid of death, she embraces it. I have so much respect for her. the girl was only 21 and at the ceremony you place a paper rose on her and then are handed some nice gifts for her memory. such as a balm, scents and a cd. it was very interesting, and there was some yelling in thai.


tommorow we get up at 2:00AM to make fresh soy milk. i'm excited to see what it's all about, but i'm not happy about the waking up part. i can't believe i even was functionable today and it has beeen sooo many hours. it is hard to sleep on our very basic furnishings, actually my bed is only a sheet and a sarong as a blanket. my pillow is all my clothes folded and wrapped in scarf. SIMPLE LIFE BRING IT ON!

i will have to post the pics i took today.

Mangos and chillies

My first day as ameture cook and peeler.

i started the day with peeling green mangos for this dish called i think lasa?
it required a lot of peeling and shredding. i was working with an older woman
and we struggled to communicate but it was wonderful because it was the first time ever
that ive been able to not think about anything. and i've caught myself several times not thinking at all. which is a good thing for me.

after peeling some mangos i spoke with Oh the woman who joined the community 6 years ago. she was trying to explain what the purpose of the protest was and there reason for existence. i have fallen love with these wonderful people, and many others should understand the purpose of life through them. i've leaned more in one day with them than ever in school.

i then went on to some mushroom cutting and shredding which was taxing and we got yelled athe by the main chef for not being faster.. not our fault cause Oh was brining us wonderful dishes to try.

i then started to make my own dish adding hte shredded manogs with chilly and vegetarian sausgage. it was lovely and the man with the speaker was telling everyone to try the stuff i made.

but soon the fear began when the police started to move in. since the elections are done, they are scared that the police will ask them to leave the premise. which was ironic since an hour later i took a photgraph of a police officer eating the food that we made.

there life is very simple and loving. i'm going to live with them for the rest of my time here. they live in a village 50Km from bangkok on there own land that they take care of. i'm going to work in the kitcehn in the community and try to learn some thai. i'm so incredibly lucky to have run into them.
i will be away from the internet so i will not be able to write anything for a while.

Buddist sects and mango peeling

I had a splendid day today and yesterday.

the most random days seem to be the best in my ways. i started off with a stroll through the weekend market up north in Bangkok. I love this city it has all that i want and even more... i can't describe here due to discretion...
anyway.........so i was saying i sarted the day with some market walking. this place has all and more. you can sell anything and everything. even minuture baby turtles that have just hatched from there eggs. the lanes are dark and the goods are good. we stumbled upon some magical beans and puppies that were sleeping.

it was all great untill i was being adventurous and ordered some ccrab dip thing. it turned out to be some wierd soup thing with about 10% crap and the rest some mince. i asked the waitress about a million times to see if there was some kind of meat there, so she says

"uh no. no meat"
are you sure?
"yeah no no"
no meat?
"yah no meat"
chicken?
"yes"

mother F-ER. after some fumbling she finnaly said it had chickin and pork in it.. who the hell writes crab dip and ends up having 95% of the "crab dip" to be meat

anyway enough of that. we then went on our journey to find the granc palace. we happened to not find it and find the place where the king lives now. (Thais love there king, and they should i hear he is a wonderful man). we couldn't see anything cause of hte trees and gaurds standing in the middle of the road. there is even a moat.... oooo so 12th century.

the moat also contained a turtle and a gigantic iguana.

we then decided we were going to take a shortcut through the zoo. it was a tiny zoo with lots of kiddes. went to the zoo and had to pass the mass crowd to get to the marble temple.
so we ran into the red cross fair. it was filled with great food and extra small clothing i could never fit into. in this country i'm considered an XXL. ARF!

we finnaly got to the marle temple and it was beautiful. it was during sunset so the gold was sparkling and hte monks were chanting. we then took a shortcut through the monks houses and came across the most wonerful thing i've experianced since being on this trip.
i ran into the Santi Asok. they are a sort of army for the country a peaceful sect of buddists that are vegetarians and grow their own organic food. they do notbelieve in money and do things to help the community. they were offering wonderful vegetarian food to anyone that wanted, and invited us to join them. i spent some time talking to one of the members of the community and i offered to help the next day.

my day in the community tommorow.