travelinglight10-blog

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Thai Adventures With Bubba

Bubba had been telling me for months that he was coming to visit me in Thailand, even before I left last year we talked about it. He had to work to make it happen, starting with getting a passport. After that he just needed to save up enough money for a plane ticket and a little extra to spend while here. After a while it seemed like he wasn’t going to make it, but I kept my hopes up and prepared for him to visit by saving up my allotted vacation days. Bubba does things in his own way and in his own time and I was trusting that he would figure out a way to come visit me. At the end of June, he sent me a picture of a receipt for an expedited passport and finally, in July he bought a ticket to Bangkok. I was so excited.

The trip started off with his flight being delayed, which meant he would be landing in Bangkok sometime in the wee hours of the morning. I live about an hour from Bangkok International Airport, so originally, I was going to pick him up and take a cab home that night. Which meant, I would be able to make it to work the next morning. However, as Thailand has graciously taught me, plans often go awry. Instead, I booked a last-minute hotel near the airport and called in sick to work the next day. Because his flight was delayed, he missed his connecting flight, so I had no idea when he would be arriving. I fell asleep, not knowing when he would be landing, but figured he would be able to call me when he arrived. Turns out, the international plan he signed up for was for texting and calling only, and the plan I have here, is for data only, so our phones both worked, but they didn’t speak the same language. Around 5 am I received a call on Whatsapp, from my mom, telling me that Bubba had landed, so I told her to convey to him the instructions to get a cab to the hotel I was staying at. Shortly thereafter, there was a knock on my door and my brother was there! It was so good to see a familiar face. After such a long journey, he was eager to shower off the grime of travel. Showers are a bit different in Thailand, but I assumed he would figure it out. I was wrong. To my amusement, he told me how he has used the little hose that hung near the toilet to shower. What he thought was the shower, was actually the bidet or what some refer to it as, the bum gun. I wonder if anyone else has ever made that mistake before…

We started our adventure together in Krabi Province, in the South of Thailand, where we stayed on an island, spending most of our time lounging on the beach and meeting fellow travelers and Thai’s, alike. Because August is considered low season, especially for the islands, I scored a cheap room in a nice hotel on the island. Normally, I stay in hostels or share cheap bungalows with friends, so it was quite the treat. Our first night on the island we decided to grab dinner at an Indian restaurant. In order to get to the restaurant, we had to go to the other side of the island. There are three ways to do this: 1) a 45-minute trek through the jungle, 2) a 15-minute hike through the mountains/jungle that is sometimes blocked off when the tide is high, 3) walking along the shore when the tide is low, around the mountains/jungle. To go to dinner, we took the second route. We ate dinner and ended up going to a bar on that side of the island, where we played a few games of Jenga and filled each other in on what we’ve been doing over the last 10 months. Soon after, were both ready to crawl into those cozy hotel beds and pass out for the night, but mother nature had a different idea. When we went back to the shore, we realized the tide had risen so high that we couldn’t get to the entrance of the path to get back to the other side of the island. We were essentially stranded, at least until the tide went back out. We asked a local when the tide would be low enough for us to get to the path and he said around 1 or 2 a.m. So, we headed back to the bars. On our way back, we passed a couple playing music together on the beach. Bubba said we should join them, but I told him I didn’t want to intrude. We ended up at a reggae bar and 5 minutes later, the couple from the beach came and sat down right next to us. We ended up talking and we all decided we should go back to the beach to jam, but after 5 minutes, it began to pour. We sprinted to the nearest shelter, which was a little restaurant that was closing up for the night. We stayed there for about an hour, adding our voices to the sound of the rain pounding on the roof above us, until we were kicked out. At that point, the rain was still coming down in buckets and the tide was still too high to cross over to our side of the island. The lovely German couple we were with, took pity on our predicament and offered to let us sleep on the balcony of their hotel room. They even pulled the cushions off the couch in their room, so we could sleep on them. If it wasn’t for their kindness, we would’ve been stranded on the beach in the rain all night. After a few hours of sleep and 50 bug bites later, we quietly left their room to attempt to get back to our beds. It was around 4 am by the time we left and the tide was finally low enough for us to cross over. We grudgingly trekked our way along the shore, up into the jungle and back to our hotel. We slept in late that day and when we woke up we went to a cute little teahouse, where a kind elderly woman made us fresh ginger tea with lime. We spent the majority of our time in a bar on the island, where we chatted with the owner and other backpackers, played ping-pong, and listened to music. The rest of the time we spent on the beach, taking in the scenic views. We were fortunate to be on the islands during the full moon and lunar eclipse. That night, I stood staring up at the sky, basking in the glory of the moon and the beauty of nature.

After a few lazy days on Tonsai, we flew up north, to Chiang Mai. After checking into our hostel that night, we went to the night Bazaar, a huge night market. Bubba got some dinner, we did some window shopping, and then found a bar with live music, where we ordered some hot tea.

At our hostel, we met a guy from Turkey and ended up spending a lot of time with him. We rented a motorbike for a few days and drove into the mountains to explore with our new friend. The first day with the bikes, the three of us went to Doi Suthep, a temple with a beautiful view of the city. Then we drove further into the mountains and found a little coffee shop, where we for stopped a pot of tea (Bubba and I both have an affinity for tea) and watched storm clouds roll through the mountains in the distance.

 We continued our journey and found a village higher up in the mountains. There we found a beautiful flower garden and a waterfall. 

The next morning, we woke up early for a cooking class on a little organic farm. We were picked up and brought to a local market, where we sampled a few different Thai fruits and bought a few ingredients we would need for our dishes. When we got to the farm, we picked the rest of the ingredients ourselves and then made 5 traditional Thai dishes. Needless to say, we were very full by the end of the class! 

That night, we went to North Gate Jazz Club with a few other people we met at our hostel. The following day, we drove into the mountains again with another friend, a girl from Austria. As we were driving, it started to rain, so we decided to pull our bikes over. Luckily, we happen to stop at a waterfall, where there was a gazebo and benches to stay dry. While we waited for the rain to stop, we ended up doing some spontaneous yoga poses, meditation, and even “omed” together. As always, Chiang Mai treated me well. I’m so happy I was able to share the charm of such a wonderful city with my brother.

A few days in Chiang Mai and then we were off the Pai, a hippy, mountain town, about 3 hours from Chiang Mai. This time, I was prepared and took motion sickness pills before getting into the van. In Pai, we shared a cute little bungalow surrounded by rice fields.

We went on a hike and found a few temples and a huge white Buddha. 

There was an amazing vegan restaurant down the street from where we were staying. They had buy 2 get 1 free kombucha, vegan waffles and ice cream, an array of vegan desserts, and some of the most delicious food ever. We were happy campers (:

I don’t know what it is about Pai, but it has a powerful energy. There’s magic in the air there. Those few days there were transformative.

After a truly wonderful two weeks, it was time to fly back to Bangkok to send Bubba back to the states. I was sad to see him go, but knew I would see him again soon, along with the rest of my beautiful family!

If you’re reading this familia, I LOVE YOU! 

[travelinglight10-blog]

When Everything Goes Wrong

I’m very open about my anxiety, because it is a part of me, something that I’ve dealt with my entire life. Although, now, I have much more control over it. I’ve learned that I may not have control over intruding thoughts and dark images that come into my mind, but I do have control over how I react to them. I have the choice to either let those thoughts affect me or to simple observe them as they pass through my mind like any other thought-form. As my contract was coming to an end, I began to stress about the upcoming months. I thought about every little thing that could go wrong as I transitioned from teacher to full-time traveler and eventually to being back home. I was worried about things I couldn’t control or do anything about until the time came, so I was stressed out for irrational reasons, but that didn’t make the anxiety any less real. What if I run out of money? What if I lose my passport or my debit card? What if my phone breaks? What if I miss a flight or book the wrong one? What if I can’t fit everything I need in my backpack? What if something happens when I’m traveling alone? What if I forget to book a hostel or get stranded somewhere? What will it be like to travel long-term with no home-base? What will happen when I get back to the states? You get the point…

My brother came to visit in the beginning of August and my last day of work was August 23, so the weeks leading up to his visit, I was especially stressed out. To show me that I was completely capable of handling myself when things didn’t go as planned, the Universe/God/whatever name you give the universal, all loving, source of energy, had a few lessons to teach me. To show me that everything would be okay, the Universe made a bunch of things go wrong, in succession…

1)      My debit card disappeared, well, I probably left it in the ATM, but didn’t realize it was gone until I was on my way home from work to change before heading to Bangkok to wait for Bubba to land.

2)      In my haste to get a new debit card, I dropped my phone on the ground, which somehow broke the battery so it would no longer charge.

3)      I somehow lost my headphones on the way back from Bangkok after picking Bubba up.

4)      We got stranded on the wrong side of an island.

5)      My shoes broke while hiking back to our hotel at 4 a.m. after sleeping outside on the balcony of someone else’s hotel room.

6)      My pants got soaked on my way to dinner because a huge wave crashed onto the rock I was climbing over.

7)      Bubba mixed up the dates for his flight home, so I had to change our flights from Chiang Mai back to Bangkok.

All of this happened, stupid things that I had laid awake worrying about, but guess what? They were all easily fixed. Yeah, I had to spend a little extra money or go a little out of my way, but the world didn’t end! I didn’t freak out and give up because of some stupid little hiccup. Instead, I took action and simply fixed the problems as they came. After the first few misfortunes, I began to laugh at myself and then politely told the Universe I got the lesson and asked it to stop breaking my shit. Writing this a month later, it’s funny to think that I was stressed about the future and things beyond my control. To get to where I am now, Chiang Mai, I waited until three days before to book an overnight bus. I didn’t book a hostel, but a friend of mine happened to have booked an Air B&B for the month, so I asked if I could stay with her. Some of the best opportunities come at the last minute. You never know who you are going to meet or what you are going to experience, so as a reminder to myself, and anyone else with anxiety, or anyone stressed about things beyond their control, RELAX. A big take away from living in Thailand is the Thai attitude towards life. The phrase “mai pen rai” meaning “no problem” sums it up pretty well. Most things we worry about, aren’t really problems at all. So, thank you Thailand, and thank you Universe, for teaching me to sit back and enjoy the ride.

[travelinglight10-blog]

Force of Nature

The other day, I was running sprints on the track and was struggling to find energy and motivation. I was debating on whether to run the last sprint and was convincing myself I had already ran enough. I don’t NEED to run another… But another part of me was unsatisfied, because I set a goal and I wanted to reach it. If I didn’t hold myself accountable for one last sprint, what if the next time I didn’t feel like running the last 2 or 3? It’s easy to talk yourself out things that make you uncomfortable. The hard part is pushing through that. As my stopwatch was inching closer to the time of the next sprint, I looked up at the sky and saw a beautiful rainbow of colors. It wasn’t a typical rainbow, it was going straight through the sky like a normal sunbeam passing through the clouds. I was in awe of nature’s ability to create such beauty and it filled me with new energy. If nature can create a beautiful rainbow in the sky, as well as, intricate designs throughout all life forms, including humans, I could run one more 30 second sprint. After all, I am a part of nature, a force of nature; fully animated, fully conscious and filled with an internal power that I can draw upon for strength, even when the weakness of my human mind believes it cannot go on. Across religions, is the belief that people hold within them, the divine. If you can learn to tap into that power, you will find you will be able to push yourself farther than you can imagine.

[travelinglight10-blog]

Just Be

Sometimes we forget to take a step back to be in the present moment, to think about who and what we have in our lives. So often, we are rushing from one thing to the next, always thinking one step ahead. We can end up going through the motions of life without truly living. I can't even begin to count the amount of airplanes I've been on in the last 10 months.  Somehow, getting into a giant machine that FLIES can become mundane; just a part of a new routine. It's mind boggling. As humans, we are blessed with the ability to adapt to new stimulus, new situations and new environments. We have prospered as a species by adapting and continuously striving for something better. However, this ability to quickly adjust, can make things that once seemed novel and exciting, the norm. This can sometimes lead us to under appreciate what we have. This is no new concept, but sometimes we need to be reminded to stop and smell the roses.

On my flight back from Malaysia, I looked out the window at the sun setting over the watery landscape below and was in awe of the beauty of this world and the marvel of modern technology. It's times like those that create a moment of clarity, where you don't need to think about where you're going next, what you need to do that week, or whose call you have to return later. Instead, you stop, and just BE.

Continue to take on new challenges, work hard to better yourself, and embrace change when it comes. Do all of this with intention and awareness, and try your best to be fully present in every thing you do. Appreciate what you have now and know that your present actions will define your future. Be here, now, in this moment, because this moment is all you have.

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. I write, in hopes that my experiences might resonate with others, and maybe help them on their path, as I travel mine!

Sending out so so so much love and gratitude to the universe!

Peace and blessings,

Erin

[travelinglight10-blog]

In the Face of Evil

I traveled to Cambodia in July and have been putting off writing this blog entry because it is such a heavy topic. Every time I would open the word document and begin to write about my experience visiting the Killing Fields and S-21, and relaying the atrocities that occurred in those places, I had a hard time doing so. Reading about evil is different than being in the space where the evil took place. For weeks, I couldn’t get the images out of my head. Pictures of tortured, starved bodies. The terrified eyes of a young child in a photograph, taken before she was brutally murdered. A tree in a field, whereupon, babies were repeatedly smashed into the trunk before being thrown into a mass grave. The 3 million people who were systematically killed from 1975-1978 under the rule of Pol Pat.

With the amount of hatred being portrayed in the media, in my own country, especially the events that recently took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, I felt compelled to complete this piece. I want to share with others, what can happen when we begin to dehumanize our fellow countrymen, our fellow human beings.

When I was a child, I remember when I first learned about the evils that human beings are capable of committing. I wanted to learn as much as I could about topics like, slavery, the holocaust, and other tragedies in human history. I couldn’t even begin to fathom how anyone could be so cruel to their fellow humans, so I wanted to understand how these things were allowed to transpire within civilized societies. The older I got, the more I learned, and the I realized there were many evils in the world, perpetuated by evil human beings, but carried out mostly by normal people blindly following the orders of someone of a higher rank. To me, that is the most terrifying part. It’s easier to accept that some people are evil, but it is harder to accept that a seemingly normal and moral person will participate in horrendous acts of violence, solely because they are told to do so. As we face the hatred currently being spewed about our own country, let us remember to stand up for our beliefs and the rights of those being threatened. Let us think for ourselves and refrain from blindly following any one group or ideology. We need to stand together and protect the rights of the marginalized and oppressed groups.

I honestly can’t remember when I first learned about the Cambodian genocide, but I started to look into it more when I came to Thailand. Before living in South East Asia, I’ll admit that I didn’t know much about this side of the world, aside from the beautiful landscapes and the flavorful food. When I traveled to Phnom Penh in July, I had to take the opportunity to further educate myself on the atrocities that took place a little under 40 years ago.

During the Vietnam War, the United States pounded the Cambodian country side with bombs, aiming to cut off the supply route from Cambodia to Vietnam. This ravaged the country and forced people to flee from the devastation of the bombings and into the cities.

When the war ended, many Cambodians were looking for hope, for someone to fix the country that had suffered greatly during the war. So, when Pol Pat and the Khmer Rouge came into power after the Cambodian Civil War, and began evacuating people from the cities, some people rejoiced when they saw the soldiers, believing they were there to help them.

The Khmer Rouge wanted to form a new agrarian socialist society, starting at “Year Zero”, based on the principles of Stalinism and Maoism. They believed that Cambodia, and its citizens had been contaminated by Western ideals and, to address this problem, the Khmer Rouge persecuted the intellectuals in their society, including doctors, lawyers, policemen, those who served in the military. They persecuted anyone who wore glasses because glasses were thought of as a symbol of intelligence. They targeted minorities, including ethnic Thai’s, Chinese and Vietnamese; anyone living in cities, Buddhists, Muslims and Christians. Those who lived in cities were forcibly moved out into the countryside to work 12 hours a day in rice fields, with almost no food or rest. These people who referred to by the Khmer Rouge as the “new citizens” because they had accepted the ways of the Western world. The peasants of Cambodia, were called the “old citizens” and from this peasant class, came many of the Khmer Rouge soldiers, mostly teenage boys.

While in Phnom Penh, I first visited the Killing Fields, where thousands of people were systematically killed and thrown into mass graves. I was given a map, and headphones to listen to an in-depth audio-tour, which described the significance of each area or building on the premises, along with accounts of those who survived living under the regime. Being in the physical space, listening to the history, seeing artifacts of the atrocities committed there, and staring up at the thousands of human skulls, neatly stacked inside of the memorial building, caused overwhelming feelings of despair, horror, anger, empathy, and sadness to settle over me. I tried to wrap my head around the vast number of people killed in that space, where I then stood. I could only begin to imagine their fear, their pain, their agony as they endured what no person should ever endure.

People were piled into trucks in the middle of the night and taken to the Killing Fields to be executed. They were told they were being relocated, but when they arrived, they were blindfolded and forced to line up along the edge of pits to be beaten to death or have their throats slit. The mass graves filled with dead and dying men, women, and children were then covered with chemicals, such as, D.D.T. to combat the smell of the decaying bodies. These hellish acts of violence were committed while music was blasted through speakers hanging in trees to cover up the screams of the dying.

An especially horrific site that stood out to me while visiting the Killing Fields was a tree the Khmer soldiers used to bash in the heads of infants and children in front of their mothers before throwing them into a pit. The mothers were executed shortly after. I remember standing in front of the tree, now decorated in memorial to the children viciously murdered, completely frozen, listening to the audio-tour describing the unconscionable acts. It was hard to take in then. It is hard to write about now. I can’t begin to fathom how those mothers must have felt as they watched their babies being murdered. My heart bleeds for them.

After the sobering visit to the Killing Fields, my Tuk Tuk driver drove me to S-21, an old high school that was converted into a torture prison under the rule of Pol Pat. I walked through the rooms used for torturing victims into confessing to crimes they didn’t commit. Each room had a metal bed frame in the middle, where prisoners were strapped down and cruelly tortured. While they awaited interrogation, prisoners were kept in cells, connected to one another by the ankle with iron manacles.

The Khmer Rouge kept meticulous records and photographed each victim before they were tortured and later sent to the Killing Fields to be executed.

In 1979, the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia and overthrew the Khmer Rouge, which had been slowly crumbling over the years. It is difficult to understand how something like this could occur just under 40 years ago. While trials took place in 2001, for crimes against humanity, many of those responsible have not been put to justice. The person who started it all, Pol Pat, died shortly after the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge and up until then, he denied his part in the killings of millions of his fellow countrymen.

While it was difficult to visit these sites, I believe it is of the utmost importance to educate ourselves about the history of tragedies, such as this, and to try to understand how and why they can, have, and will continue to, happen. It is our job, as fellow human beings, to take a stand against hatred and those who strive to dehumanize others based on perceived differences. We need to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves and not standby idly as others are persecuted. We are all one human race. Our differences are what make us so beautiful, and instead of using these differences to drive us apart, we should rejoice in the beauty of diversity.

Even in the face of hatred, remember there is always hope. Goodness exists in abundance in our world, despite the evils.  Sending out some extra love today!

Erin

[travelinglight10-blog]

Cambodia | July 4-11

Somehow, I’ve been in Thailand for almost 9 months now. Time has flown by and I can’t believe I finish working in one month! With every day bringing me closer to the end of my contract, I realized I should take advantage of the vacation days that I am allotted for the year. Before going to Cambodia, I had only used 1 of my 10 vacation days, so I decided to extend a 3-day weekend to a full week vacation.

Amanda and I went to the airport after work on Tuesday afternoon and flew into Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. We stayed in a hostel there for one night and woke up at 6:30 the next morning to take a van down south to Sihanoukville, where we caught a ferry to the island of Koh Rong. It took us about 7 hours to get to Koh Rong and once we got off the ferry, we walked about 20 minutes down the beach and through a path in the jungle to get to our hostel. After sitting for most of the day, the walk was nice, but it would’ve been more enjoyable without my backpack strapped to my back.

We stayed on Koh Rong for 5 nights and 6 days and for most of the time we stayed at our hostel, lounging on the practically private beach it was built on. The hostel had a kitchen, a bar, and tons of card and board games to play. I spent a lot of time reading my book, swimming in the ocean and playing games with other people staying at the hostel and with the people who worked there. There wasn’t much reason to leave the hostel because it had everything I needed and town was a 20-minute walk away. We did venture into town a few times, where we had dinner some nights. There was a vegetarian/vegan restaurant, the Rising Sun, that had really good falafel, but for most of the trip, I just ate rice. 

One day, we decided to go on a hike through the jungle, to the other side of the island. To get to the path, first, we had to walk up a bunch of stairs to a bar, then walk to the back of the bar and into the jungle. It took about an hour and a half to get through the jungle to the other side of the island. It was a fun hike and towards the end we had to climb down the “windy rock,” a windy path of boulders and rocks, to get down to the beach. We were towards the end of the hike, when I turned around and saw Amanda had somehow ended up with a stick in her leg. She was okay, but we wouldn’t be able to hike back. This side of the island was virtually empty, and from what I read online, used to be a long stretch of beautiful beach, but when we got down from the jungle we happened upon a construction site. They were building a dock and the promise of a beautiful stretch of beach was gone. The beach in front of our hostel was much nicer, but I was still happy we went on the hike. We stayed on the beach for a few hours, swimming and collecting shells, until we were able to find a boat to take us back to the other side of the island.

On Saturday night, there was a beautiful full moon and a full moon party to celebrate it. We went to the party with everyone at the hostel and basically, everyone else on the island. The next day, we had to check out because we had only booked the room until Sunday, but we wanted to stay one more day. Unfortunately, all the beds were booked for the next few nights, but they told me I could sleep outside in a hammock that night, and so I did! It wasn’t the most comfortable, but it was a beautiful night and I got to listen to the sound of the waves hitting the shore while I drifted off to sleep.

We left the next day to return to Phnom Penh, where we visited the Killing Fields and S-21, memorials and historical sites of the horrors of the 1975-1979 Cambodian genocide. I have decided to write a separate post about my visit to the Killing Fields and S-21 because I believe it is important to delve deeper into the topic of the genocide and give respect to the millions of people who lost their lives under the Khmer Rouge. 

 Peace, Erin

[travelinglight10-blog]

Bali, Indonesia | June 3rd-June 17th

Where do I start? I was in Bali for two weeks, the longest vacation I’ve had since moving to Thailand. And yes, I live in Thailand, so you might be thinking, “Erin, your life is a vacation…” but I do work Monday through Friday and my vacations usually include a lot of traveling to spend a short amount of time at my destination. In no way am I complaining about this, but having two weeks off was a welcomed change of pace. I didn’t feel rushed, rather, I felt I really had time to enjoy myself without worrying about being at work a few days later. Since this was quite a long trip, I’m going to try my best not to go into too many details and give you some of the highlights.

When my friends and I were booking flights, we decided to take a 6 a.m. flight to Bali and a 12 p.m. flight back to Thailand two weeks later. We had been searching various flights, hostels, and things to do in Bali, and somehow in the midst of that, I booked the wrong flight there. I realized this a week later when I was looking over my itinerary, and saw that I had purchased a ticket for the 12 p.m. flight both ways. I lost a few extra hours in Bali, but gained a few extra hours of sleep and all was well! After a 4-hour flight, I arrived in at Denpasar International Airport around 5 p.m. Saturday night (Bali is one hour ahead of Thailand) and went in search of a taxi to Seminyak. That night, we all went out to the bars and ended up at a club called La Favela. We drank and danced all night then hit up the 24-hour grocery store across the street for snacks (genius placement for a 24-hour grocery store). I bought a bar of Balinese chocolate. The following day, we woke up and headed to Potato Head Beach Club for the day, where you could grab drinks at the swim up bar and relax poolside with an incredible view of the massive waves crashing onto the shore. There were some wonderful vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Seminyak, including a place called Divine Earth, which had a huge selection of delicious, raw vegan dishes. Most of my time in Seminyak included lounging by pools and eating delicious food.

We made a day trip from Seminyak to Canggu, a town crawling with surfers, and spent the day on the beach there. We also got breakfast at a beach bar called Old Man’s, where I got a huge bowl of oatmeal. After a day of roasting in the sun, we grabbed lunch and headed back to Seminyak to grab our things from the hostel before going to Ubud for the next five days.

Because we were traveling in a group of 5, we were able to afford a family sized room at a nice resort in Ubud. It was one of the nicest places I’ve stayed while traveling in SE Asia and it felt good to have more than a bed in a hostel to come back to after the day. The resort had three beautiful pools, one of which over looked over the jungle. We spent 5 days in Ubud. One day was spent visiting the rice fields, where we had a nice Indonesian lunch overlooking the rice fields, before driving to see a waterfall. We also took a yoga class at Yoga Barn, walked around the city center, ate, shopped, and went to bars. At one of the bars, a man started playing guitar and singing at the table next to me so I joined in and started harmonizing with him. We ended up jamming to a few songs together and another girl at the bar harmonized with me on a few songs. It was awesome! Later that same night, we were at a different bar and were trying to catch a ride home. It was raining and the taxis were trying to rip us off. Side note: In Indonesia, they have what the locals call a “taxi mafia” who will beat up Uber and Grab drivers if they see them. Sketchy, I know. Anyway, we were looking for a taxi when a car rolls up and drops someone off, so we run up to it thinking it’s a taxi. It ended up being the guy who I was singing with in the previous bar and he recognized us. We asked him for a ride home and learned that he was actually the owner of the first bar! He drove us home and we gave him some money and thanked him.

One night we went to a Kecak Fire Dance performance, which consisted of a large group of shirtless male performers sitting around a fire chanting to accompany the story being acted out by other performers in elaborate costumes. I was impressed by the vocal control and stamina of the performers.  During the performance, I honestly had no idea what was going on and the chanting almost put me into some sort of trance. I later looked into the origins of this type of performance and discovered that Kecak originates from a trance inducing dance…. and that the drama being portrayed was a battle from the Ramayana, an ancient Indian poem about the battle between a prince and an evil king. It was quite the experience.

We celebrated Darian’s 25th birthday with a 2.5 hour hike up an active volcano. To do the hike, we woke up at 2 a.m. and hopped in a taxi for an hour from Ubud to get to the volcano. Once we were there, we met our guide, a 23-year old Indonesian man who made a living as a guide to help support his wife and 3 children. I can only imagine what his sleep schedule is like. When we were researching this hike, we read it would be cold at the top of the volcano, but the warmest thing I brought with me was a light cardigan and a pair of leggings. Luckily, you could pay to rent used jackets (that smelled like B.O.) to wear on the hike. When we got to the top of the mountain, I was very thankful for that smelly orange thing, even though I had worked up a little sweat on the way up, it was cold at the top. We hiked up the volcano with the light of the full moon shining down on us. There were at least one hundred people doing the hike, separated in small groups with their own guides, and you could see the light of their flashlights on the path, behind and in front of us. When we had reached the top, we sat down to wait for the sun to rise. There was a small shack selling food and beverages and people ate while they waited for the sun to come up. As the sun began to rise, the monkeys started to creep out in search of food. I was thankful I didn’t have any food, because if you’ve read any of my other posts, I am not a fan of monkeys. They were running around snatching sandwiches, opening water bottles and drinking out of them, and taking any other form of food they could get their hands on. I prayed they would stay away from me. They’re super cute from afar, but that’s it. They are creepy, small human-like creatures, with no moral compass, that stare at you with knowing eyes and steal your belongings. I was able to keep my person away from the monkeys and waited for the sun to fully rise. It was very foggy at the top of the volcano, so the sunrise wasn’t the best, but once it was up and shining through the clouds, the view was breathtaking. The view, coupled with the feeling of accomplishment from hiking to the top, made for an unforgettable experience. After hiking/half running down because of the steep path, we climbed back into a taxi and asked to be dropped off at a restaurant in the center of Ubud, where I downed some coconut banana pancakes before heading back to the resort to shower and pass out for the next 5 hours. When I woke up it was time for dinner, Yay!

After spending five days in Ubud, we took a taxi to Uluwatu and from there, Gili Air, one of three smaller islands off the coast of Bali. We spent two nights in Uluwatu, another surfer destination, where I ran into a childhood friend, who was there to catch the huge waves the area is known for, and discovered we were staying at the same hostel. Talk about a small world! The first night everyone went out to the bars, but after week of traveling and being out, I was in need of some “me time” and went back to the hostel after dinner to lay down and listen to my audio-book. The next night, we grabbed dinner then headed back to the hostel to hang out for the night, where I ended up jamming with some Brazilian guys who had a guitar. The next morning, we woke up early to make the drive to the pier where we were taking the ferry from to get to Gili.

When we got off the ferry and stepped onto the island, I noticed a bunch of horse-drawn carriages. The only means of transportation on the island were horses and bicycles. So, we walked about 20 minutes almost to the other side of the island to get to our hostel. Out of all the places we stayed on our trip, Gili A was my favorite. We had been staying in nice hostels and a fancy resort for most of the trip. At the hostel on Gili A however, I slept on a mattress, outside on a platform, next to a bunch of other mattresses, each with their own mosquito net. I loved it. Being there felt like having an island almost to myself. It was so quiet, peaceful and serene. There were even organic vegan restaurants! More than one, on this tiny little island. I didn’t want to leave. I’ve added it to the list of my favorite places on earth.  Overall, I loved Bali and the Gili islands and hope I will be back soon!

I tried to make this short… I’m going to list some of my favorite restaurants, bars and places we stayed while in Indonesia. I talk about food so much, so I feel I should give recommendations of the magical places I go to eat, just in case any of you take a trip to Bali anytime soon!

As always, thanks for reading! Peace and love <3

Restaurants

Seminyak: Zula’s (middle eastern, veg/vegan/gf), Divine Earth (raw vegan/gf), Nalu Bowls (smoothie bowls)

Potato Head (beach club), La Favela (bar/nightclub)

Canggu: Old Mans (beach bar/restaurant)

Ubud: Atman Kafe (veg/vegan/gf), The Elephant (veg/vegan/gf), Tukie’s (amazing coconut ice cream)

Happy Buddha (bar, live music)

Gili Air: Pachamama (veg/vegan/gf), Green Earth (veg/vegan/gf)

Accommodations

Seminyak: Kosta Hostel

Ubud: Beiji Resort

Gili Air: Begadang Backpackers

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Songkran Festival (Thai New Years!) Chiang Mai | Pai | April 13-17, 2017

A little bit about Songkran…Songkran Festival is a three-day New Year celebration and nationwide water fight. “Songkran” comes from a Sanskirt word meaning change.Thais go to the temples and pour water on the head of the Buddha, which represents a cleansing of sins and bad luck.

Chiang Mai

I took the overnight bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai on Wednesday night. To get to the bus station in Bangkok, I had to take a bus to a mall near me, then a van to the station. I was nervous there would be a lot of traffic because of the holiday, so I left my place early just in case. I arrived at the bus station about 3 hours early so I had plenty of time before departure. I got my ticket, found the gate my bus from leaving from and went to look for the bathroom and a snack. On my way to the bathroom, I saw there was a massage place in the bus station. I decided an hour-long foot massage would be a great way to kill some time in an overcrowded bus station. Where else can you go to a bus station and get a $6 foot massage? Just one of the many reasons I love this country!

I arrived in Chiang Mai around 6:45 a.m. the next morning, April 13th.  From the bus station, I took a songthaew (song = two, thaew =row, “two rows”), a pickup truck with a roof and benches in the back, to my hostel. It was still very early so I wasn’t able to check in or shower so I cleaned up in the bathroom and got ready to go the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary for the day. At the sanctuary, I had plans to meet up with my friend Michelle, who is studying abroad in New Zealand and came to Thailand for her spring break. It took about 1.5 hours to get to the sanctuary and because it was the beginning of Songkran, people were already lined up on the street throwing water onto passing vehicles. I was a sitting duck in the back of a songthaew with no way of defending myself. By the time I got to the sanctuary I was soaking wet, but that was okay because I would be playing in the mud and bathing elephants for most of the day anyway. I had a great time at the sanctuary with Michelle; feeding, bathing, and playing with the gentle creatures. We gave them a mud bath, but I think we got more of a mud bath than the elephants did. It’s good for the skin, right?

After the day at the sanctuary, I was shown no mercy on the way back to Chiang Mai. I was, once again, a sitting duck and people were out in full force, with buckets, hoses, and water guns. I was completely soaked and feeling gross by the time I got back to my hostel. All I could think about was a hot shower and a warm meal! I was so thankful for hot water (a luxury here) and clean clothes. Once I was changed, I went out into the madness in search of food. I almost got to a restaurant unscathed, but was ambushed in an alley of party hostels and ended eating my dinner soaking wet, oh well!

The first thing I did the next morning was buy a water gun. The squad and I went out in the streets, armed with our water guns. However, we were no match for the hundreds of people with buckets and hoses and bigger, better water guns. We stayed out for most of the day until it started to get cold and I started to get hungry. I went back to the hostel to shower and change, and this time I put on a poncho before going back out. I met up for dinner with my fellow vegan friends, a lovely couple, Ryan and Grace, who are also teachers here. I even managed to stay dry, and it was raining! After dinner, we went to North Gate Jazz Club for a few drinks and live music. We had all had a long day out in the streets, fighting the good fight, so we called it a night around 10 p.m.

Pai

The next day (Saturday), I got on a van to Pai, a small town 3 hours’ drive from Chiang Mai, up in the mountains. The roads there are so windy I was extremely close to throwing up all over that van, but I made it without incident. The last time I was in Pai was New Years’, in January, and I had fallen in love with the quaint, little, hippy town. My friend Michelle made the trip to Pai the day before me, so I met up with her when I got there. We went to a cute little café/bar for dinner and spent the night at a bar in town before going back to hang out at her hostel. Pai is a great place because it’s slow paced and just super chill. It’s so hard for me to describe to people why I like it so much, but the vibes there are just great. Being there feels like being at a music festival 24/7. The people are nice, the food is delicious, and you’re completely surrounded by mountains. What more could you ask for?

I stayed in Pai until Monday afternoon, then took the van back to Chiang Mai to take the overnight bus back to Bangkok. Luckily, I live an hour north of Bangkok, and because we were coming from the north, I was able to get off the bus on the highway in my province. From there I took a taxi back to my apartment around 4:30 a.m. As soon as I got home, I showered and got in bed to sleep until I had to be up for work that day. Like most of my trips, it was a lot of traveling, but totally worth the hassle.

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Pathum Thani | Chiang Mai | April 5-9, 2017

The Thai public holiday, Chakri Day was on April 6th, a Thursday, which meant I had the day off. A few weeks before I decided to take off the following Friday as well, and turn it into a little vacation. Sione and Darian did the same and we began to plan our trip. We originally wanted to go to the islands, but the weather was not corroborating, and so we bought a plane ticket to Chiang Mai. I knew I would be there the following weekend for Songkran (Thai New Years), but I also knew it would be madness then.  

Home (Pathum Thani)

Our flight was on Thursday, so we decided to take advantage of our free time on Wednesday night and go to a Muay Thai gym in our province. A co-worker had mentioned the Muay Thai gym he goes to in the past and offered to bring us with him, so I reached out and asked if we could accompany him that week. I was excited to try a new sport and for a fun workout! The gym was a traditional Muay Thai gym, nothing fancy, just an open building with a boxing ring, surrounded by punching bags are some other equipment. There were a few young boys sparring in the ring when we arrived. We paid 100 baht ($3) to be trained in the gym. Our trainers, 23-year-old girl and a man, who looked about 30, showed us the proper way to punch, kick, elbow, and knee our opponents. Needless to say, I felt like a total badass, especially when we were in the boxing ring.

Afterward, I learned that the man who was training us was a two-time world champion and had competed in the states. Also, he wasn’t 30, he was 40. Thai people really don’t age. I had such a great time, learned some new moves, and got a great workout in the process. I will definitely do it again.

Chiang Mai

On Thursday afternoon, we took the bus to the airport and got on the hour-long flight to Chiang Mai. After checking into our hostel and relaxing for a bit, I changed into leggings and a tshirt to go to a yoga class with Sione at 6 p.m. We walked about 20 minutes to the yoga studio and did an hour and a half of Yin Yoga, which consists of holding yoga poses for 5-10 minutes at a time. It’s all on the floor and seems like it would be easy, but holding poses for so long, means your muscles start screaming at you, while you attempt to focus on your breathing, clear your mind, relax your body, and continue holding the pose. Despite some discomfort, after the class, I felt relaxed and refreshed. As much as I liked doing Yin Yoga, I was eager to do the Vinyasa yoga class the following morning. Vinyasa is the type of yoga most people may think of when they think of yoga. I woke up around 8:30 a.m. on Friday morning, drank some tea and walked to the studio. After working up a bit of a sweat, I was feeling great. I decided to take a walk around Chiang Mai and grab something to eat. I walked about 30 minutes to a place called Free Bird Café, where I stopped to eat lunch. Free Bird Café is a vegetarian restaurant that serves deliciously healthy vegan/vegetarian food. It took me forever to decide what I wanted, everything on the menu looked so good. I ended up getting a Chocolate Smoothie Bowl (LITERALLY OMG AMAZINGNESS). It was a delectable explosion of chocolate-y goodness and hit the spot after a morning of yoga and walking in the hot sun. When I was finished eating, I looked over and saw they were selling big bottles of kombucha as well. I took a bottle to go and started on my journey back to the hostel. The walk back took about 45 minutes because I had walked all the way to the other side of the city to eat at Free Bird. I walked home, drinking the kombucha right out of the bottle, smiling to myself because I couldn’t imagine a more perfect day.

Later that day, I went on a run around the city while Sione and Darian got massages at a place down the street from our hostel. That night, we went to the Night Bazaar, a large market and nighttime attraction, lined with shops, restaurants and bars. I bought a passport cover and found a blues bar, where I stopped to listen to some funky tunes. I had a long day and headed back to the hostel before 10 p.m. to relax in a comfy bed and listen to podcasts before falling asleep.

On Saturday morning, I woke up early to grab a smoothie and head to yoga again. After yoga, I went to a restaurant, Cat House, for lunch and got a warm bowl of oatmeal. YUM. They also had kombucha and a vegan/gluten-free brownie. I obviously got both. The remainder of the day consisted of exploring the city with Sione and Darian. We went to an ice cream place called Ice Love You, where they have over 100 VEGAN ice cream flavors. I was super pumped because ice cream is probably my favorite thing in the entire world and it’s not very easy to find vegan ice cream out here. It may seem like all I do when I go anywhere is eat, because that’s basically what I do. For dinner, we had “Mexican,” aka Thai food in a tortilla shell. I really miss Mexican food. Who’s taking me out for Margaritas and unlimited chips and guac when I get home?!?

 On Sunday, I woke up to go on a quick run before flying home in the afternoon. I was sad to leave, but knew I’d be back Thursday for Songkran!

I love you Chiang Mai ❤

To whoever actually takes the time to read my ramblings, I hope something or someone brings you as much happiness as vegan ice cream and kombucha bring to me! Peace, love and blessings to you all.  

[travelinglight10-blog]

Vietnam

| Ho Chi Min City | Hội An | Sa Pa | Hà Nội | March 17-25, 2017

In March, I had a 10-day break because of graduation ceremonies that were taking place on my campus. This graduation ceremony fell in the middle of the semester because the ceremony was for the class of 2016, not the seniors who are in classes now. I was confused by this at first and wondered why the class of 2016 waited an entire year for the ceremony. The reason for the delay, was that the princess of Thailand was not available to hand out the diplomas until March 2017. I teach at Rajamagala University of Technology, which is the main campus, located about 30 miles north of Bangkok. There are a total of 9 RMUT campuses throughout Thailand. Graduating students and their families traveled to my campus for the graduation ceremony, to receive their diplomas from the princess.

On March 17, I, along with my friends, Amanda, Sione, Darian, MC, and Ally, flew into Ho Chi Minh City, formerly, and remains informally, known as Sai Gon. This was the first time I had stepped foot outside of Thailand since arriving here in October, a place I was now very comfortable in. It was weird not being able to speak any of the language in Vietnam and I kept wanting to say, “Thank you” or “Hello” in Thai.

One of the first things I noticed about Vietnam upon arriving, is that they honk… a lot. It was sensory overload, especially in the big cities. I hadn’t realized until then that, although the drivers in Thailand are crazy, drive on the wrong side of the road, and on the shoulder, they rarely beeped their horns, even in the madness that is Bangkok traffic. I learned throughout my trip that the Vietnamese people use their horns almost like you would use a blinker, as a way to say, “I’m here.” This may seem like an insignificant piece of information to write about, but it’s something that really stood out to me.

Being that this was a 10-day trip, and because I don’t feel like writing a novel, I’m going to go over some of the trips highlights, starting with a short story about the first night in Ho Chi Minh City.

Ho Chi Minh City

After settling into our hostel, we all decided to go out to dinner to try some Vietnamese cuisine. We found a restaurant that had both non-vegetarian and vegetarian options, as half of us are vegetarian/vegan and the other half are not. I ordered spring rolls, which were delicious, and something I would continually order throughout my time in Vietnam.

After dinner, we walked around and were heading home down a dimly lit road, which in hindsight probably wasn’t the best place to be walking, when suddenly, a motorbike drove up and snatched my friends bag. When I turned to look at what was happening, it seemed like everything was happening in slow motion. I was confused and a little shocked as to what was happening and so was Ally, the one whose bag was snatched. By the time we all processed what happened, the motorbike spend off with her bag containing all of her money and credit cards, her cell phone, and her passport. We immediately starting thinking of what we had to do to fix this problem. She needed to get money and most importantly, a new passport. While we were talking through what we needed to do next, Ally remembered that her passport hadn’t been in her bag. By a stroke of luck, the hostel had kept it when she checked in. This was a huge relief. It’s much easier to get money wired and to cancel credit cards than it would be to get an emergency passport.

I commended Ally for being so chill about the incident, but it put me on edge and I told myself I wouldn’t let it color my perception of the country. Bag snatching is very common in Bangkok, as well, and I felt safe enough there. We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, for the remainder of the trip, I kept some of my money and my passport in lockers at the hostels we stayed at. I also kept a hand on my bag at all times when walking through the cities.

Hội An

In contrast to our first night in Ho Chi Minh City, Hội An was a breath of fresh air. Hội An is located on Vietnam’s central coast and is known for its Ancient Town. It’s easy to see the remnants from the French colonization of Vietnam, in the architecture of the buildings in the Ancient Town. In addition to French influences, there are Chinese temples and a Japanese bridge.

I spent most of my time in Hội An relaxing, shopping around the Ancient City, and drinking coffee. One of the days, Amanda and I, took a motorbike tour through the city and rice paddies. The views were wonderful and I saw a lot of water buffalo, baby cows, and some puppies! We also stopped for coffee. The coffee is Vietnam is so good, especially compared to the instant coffee I normally drink in Thailand.

Sa Pa

After two days in Hoi An, we flew north to Hà Nội  and immediately got on an overnight train to Sapa. Sapa is a town in the picturesque Hoàng Liên Son Mountains that overlook levels of rice paddies, and is home to Vietnamese hill tribes. It was cold there, especially at night. Because we had limited time on our trip, we weren’t able to do any real trekking in Sa Pa, but we did walk down the mountain to see the rice fields and into the villages where the hill tribes live. Sa Pa is one of those places that is so beautiful that words could never accurately describe the seemingly never ending mountains and green rice paddies. I would have loved to spend more time there, but I guess it means I just have to go back. After a short stay in Sa Pa, we got on another overnight train and headed back to our final destination, Hà Nội.

Hà Nội

When we reached Hà Nội, Amanda and I stayed in the train station to wait for the 2 hour train to Tam Cốc. There, we went on a row boat on the river, through rice fields and caves. The lady rowing our boat looked like she was at least 70 years old and was rowing with her feet. Everyone who passed us took out their phones to take pictures of us. It’s hard to be blonde, or simply, not Asian, in Asia without having your picture taken almost everywhere you go. When our boat ride was over, we got something to eat and headed back to Hà Nội. I’m not sure how we were functioning at this point since our overnight train had gotten into the station around 4:30 a.m. and we then had to wait for the 6 a.m. train to Tam Cốc. But, somehow we made it there and back in one piece. When we got back to Hà Nội, we checked into our hostel and went to a vegan restaurant nearby. Surprisingly, there were hundreds of vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Hà Nội and I spent the rest of my time in Vietnam exploring the city and eating.

 Until next time, Vietnam! I miss your coffee, your food and your views already.

[travelinglight10-blog]

Vietnam | March 17-March 25, 2017

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Pictured above: Thailand’s way of fixing a hole in a bridge. Whatever works right?

How to Trick Yourself into Believing You Have Your Shit Together

Step 1: Wake Up a Little Earlier 

I hate waking up in the morning. Getting out of bed is always one of the more difficult parts of my day, but once I am up, I love it. There is something so peaceful about the stillness of a new morning and taking a few minutes to really enjoy it can make a big difference in your day. 

 Step 2: Make Your Bed 

I make my bed as soon as I get out of it and it only takes a few minutes. It's so nice coming home to a clean room after a long day. 

 Step 3: Do Yoga/Stretch

You don't have to do an intense routine, even 5 minutes of stretching or a simple flow will help your body wake up and so you can take on the day. This time also allows you a few minutes to quiet your mind before you start thinking about all the things you have to do that day. 

 Step 4: Eat Breakfast 

Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day! You are literally breaking the fast you’ve been on while you were sleeping. Breakfast kick-starts your metabolism and gives you fuel to take on the day ahead. Don't have time to make breakfast in the morning? Make something the night before! Not only does it save you time in the morning, but it also gives you something to look forward to. 

So far, you've accomplished 4 tasks before even leaving the house! These simple practices can make you feel better physically and they can also help you feel an automatic sense of accomplishment, which is good for your mental well-being.

Step 5: Tell Yourself How Awesome You Are

Positive self-talk is so important. Give yourself some credit for your accomplishments. Whether it be waking up a few minutes earlier in the morning, or reaching a bigger personal goal, you should be proud of yourself. So often, we are our own worst critics. We tear ourselves down to the point where we can actually inhibit our own success.

 Step 6: Pretend Like You Know What You're Doing 

 Step 7: Exercise

Try your best to exercise at LEAST 30 minutes a day. Go on a walk, go to a workout class, go to the gym and lift weights, do yoga, go running, swimming, biking, hiking etc. Just get your body moving. It’s good for your body and the endorphins released during physical activity are great for your mood as well. Exercise can reduce stress, keep you fit and elevate mood.

 Step 8:  At the End of the Day, Reflect on Everything You’ve Accomplished!

 Step 9: Tell Yourself You Have Your Shit Together!

 Step 10: Repeat Steps 1-9 

 After a while, you might actually have your shit together. Or maybe you won't. Does anyone really have their shit together? 

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Hello All, 

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything to my blog. I’ve been busy/lazy/preoccupied lately and haven’t had the chance to catch up!

Tomorrow, April 22, marks 6 months since my arrival in Thailand. I can’t believe how quickly time has passed and how much I have experienced from October until now. It’s crazy to think that I still have another 4 months left in my contract, which seems like a lot of time, but know will fly by as quickly as these last 6 months have. After my contract ends, I plan to remain in SE Asia for a while to travel more before I return home to the states. And then… I’m not sure what my next move is. It’s a bit overwhelming to think about returning home and having to decide what the next step in my journey will be. I know going back home will be an adjustment, just as moving here took some adjusting at first. One of my problems is that I have SO many different plans; so many ideas of what I want to do and where I want to be. In my heart, I know I can do whatever I put my mind to, but some endeavors will require more effort than others. I have long term goals that I know I will one day reach, but that seem so distant to me now. For now, though, I am taking one day at a time and enjoying living and working in this beautiful country! Thank you for joining me in my brief existential crisis, now I will tell you about some of my adventures since my last recap.

Krabi | March 11-13, 2017

After traveling to Krabi in February, I loved it so much that I booked a flight back as soon as I returned to my home. One month later, I was on my way back to Krabi and this time, in addition to lounging on the islands, I had plans to hike, rock climb up a mountain, and then jump off a cliff.

A few nights before leaving, I had a dream (more of a nightmare I guess) that I fell backward off a cliff and immediately jolted awake. I have a fear of heights and it was terrifying. I thought about how I was planning on voluntarily jumping off a cliff, attached to a harness (hopefully not plummeting to my death), a few days later. My anxiety, that annoying little voice in my head that tries to control me and take away my happiness, started saying, “What if this is a premonition?” “What if something goes wrong with the equipment and you die?” Horrible images flashed through my brain of everything that could possibly go wrong. I pushed these thoughts aside and knew I would not allow these irrational thoughts to deter me from something I wanted to do.

Darian, Amanda, and I arrived in Krabi on Friday night and took a longtail boat to Railay East, the island we were staying on for the weekend. The next day was spent on the beach, sunbathing and taking in the views. After a day of relaxing, we were ready for our adventure the following day. We woke up on Sunday morning and took a boat to the mainland to be picked up by our guide for the day. When we arrived at the base for the excursion, we were fitted into our harnesses and helmets and were then given an overview of what the experience would entail. We were also provided with backpacks to carry our harness, helmet, and any other personal item we wished to bring on the hike with us. We began traveling up the mountain by hiking 30 minutes in the humid jungle. The hike included more than just walking up a mountain, we traversed obstacles, climbed up wooden ladders, and pulled ourselves up steep slopes with the help of a rope. By the time we reached the main landing, I was drenched in sweat, but feeling good. The hike was over, but in order to reach the platform we were jumping off of, we had to climb up the side of the mountain, zipline across to the other side, to then climb further up that side of the mountain and finally, down a ladder that was built into the side of the mountain leading to the small platform. We strapped into our harnesses and put on our helmets, leaving our backpacks behind on the main landing. We climb was fun, challenging and really high up. After hiking, rock climbing and ziplining, my adrenaline was pumping and I was excited to jump, although my anxiety was still attempting to plague me with doubts. When I finally reached the platform and they gave me the “Okay” to jump, I didn’t hesitate, I just looked straight ahead and stepped off the platform. The feeling of freefalling was absolutely exhilarating! My rational mind was like, “Take that anxiety, I’m still alive!”

I’ve been dealing with anxiety my entire life and the best way I’ve found to deal with it, is to scare the shit out of myself, by putting myself in situations that provoke my anxiety and challenge me, and giving myself no choice but to get through them. Anyone who has anxiety knows that it is a never-ending battle. Some days it’s worse than others. Some days, I feel anxious for absolutely no reason. Some days, I feel anxious about something as simple as whether I will get enough sleep that night. It is irrational and has interrupted my life in the past and still attempts to do so. Even though my rational mind knows there is no true danger, my heartrate will begin to accelerate and my mind will begin to race. Despite all of this, I will continue to do things that scare me because I have realized that I am capable of so much more than my anxiety wants me to believe. Truly amazing things happen exist on the other side of fear!

Wishing everyone a sense of peace and calmness in all that you do. Thanks for taking the time to read about my life.

Sending out my love and good vibes, Erin

[travelinglight10-blog]

Three Day Weekend in Krabi | February 10-13, 2017

After work on Friday, I got on the 538 bus from Pathum Thani to DMK Airport to fly to Krabi with Amanda and Darian. Compared to my usual travels, this journey was a breeze. It only took a 45-minute bus ride to the airport, an hour flight, a 35-minute shuttle and 10-minute boat ride to get to the islands. Paradise was a mere 3 hours from my little box back in Pathum Thani.

We stayed in Oa Nang Friday night and went to a Reggae bar with a live band. The female vocalist had an incredibly powerful voice. It was funny because she hit the notes perfectly but you could tell she was singing the sounds, rather than the words. I wondered if this was how I sounded when I had to sing pieces in French or Italian when I was studying voice in college. We had a good time at the bar, but left around midnight to get some much needed sleep after working and traveling all day.

On Saturday, I was awoken by Amanda telling me I had to get up because it was a beautiful day.

I replied with a reluctant groan and “Mom, please, just 5 more minutes!”

The guy in the bunk across from me found this amusing.

After Amanda succeeded in dragging me and Darian out of bed, we left the hostel and walked towards the beach to catch a boat to the Railey. On our way, we made our usual 7-11 stop to re-up on water and snacks for the day. We spent the entire day relaxing on the beach surrounded a lush landscape, with marbled mountains sprawling out of the blue-green waters that stretched as far as the eye could see. Later that night, we went out to dinner and ate delicious Indian food, but were unable to go out due to Buddhist holiday that restricted the sale of alcohol for the night.

The next day we went out for a late breakfast before going on Krabi Sunset Cruise, which included island hopping, snorkeling, lunch, drinks, jumping off the top of the boat and a bunch of awesome people. Words really can’t explain how beautiful everything was. When I was in the water looking around me I couldn’t understand how what I was seeing could be real. It had to be a green screen, it had to be fake. That’s how breathtakingly beautiful my surroundings were. After a fun filled day on the boat, we went back to our hostel to shower, change, and go out for the night. The next day we spent our time lounging on the beach, soaking up the sun and taking in the scenery because we had to fly back home.

The fact that I have the ability to be on an island in paradise and at work teaching the next day, is one of the many reason why I love Thailand and am extremely thankful for the life I am living!

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