# 10. When your boss brings back the files from the office, not only have the files been packed away, traveled half way across the world, and gone through customs – when they arrive  you have to cut down the paper because it is bigger than your standard 8-1/2” x 11”.  

# 9. You hear the phrase “Sorry I make confusing”  and “To make clare” – and you know exactly what that means.

# 8. You have to look up the country code to call someone back – Soemtimes I Google the phone number to find out what country I’m calling. Sometimes I just call and then try to guess where I’m calling by listening to the accent of the guest on the phone.

# 7.  Your son sees a golf cart and he asks you if he can go for a ride on the “Tuk Tuk”

# 6. You refer to cities by their airport code -  So if I ever ask you how your time was in BKK or REP or LPQ – feel free to remaind me that you don’t speak airport code.

# 5. It’s 7pm in California and you say “good morning”.

# 4. You realize you have a lot in common with Angelina Jolie -  I’ve been to the Angkor Temples in Cambodia, she filmed Tomb Raider there. She gets her picture taken everywhere she goes, people in Southeast Asia took many pictures of me and my family. Ok, I guess that’s about all I really have in common with her – but here’s to dreaming J

# 3. You receive documents in Word and the cursor moves from Right to Left instead of Left to Right.

# 2. A passport, jet lag, elephants, vaccinations and Thai Iced Tea are all included in a days work.

# 1. You’re never shocked to hear that someone couldn’t get back to you because- it is some president’s or royal’s birthday, the electricity turned off, or they were just taking a needed hammock break.

The rocket festival is a uniquely-Thai celebration. It takes place annually over 2 days in May in a region called Yasothon in Isaan – the northeast of Thailand. This is an ancient tradition where rockets are fired into the sky as offerings to the gods in hope that there will be plenty of rain during the coming rice planting season. Nowadays, there is also a competition between neighboring villages as to who can build the rocket that stays in the air the longest and the festival is also associated with a lot of fun!

The rockets are fired into the sky from a wooden structure that acts as a launch pad. The rockets themselves are huge - it takes 5 or 6 men to carry one and secure it. The thrill and excitement you feel watching them fire into the sky is worth the journey alone! If any rocket fails to ignite then the team who built it is carried to the nearest mud pool and thrown in as ‘punishment’, but it’s all in good spirits.

There’s also a parade dancing competition and each village enters as a team. Each team performs a dance to the sound of their village musical band and around 50 dancers from 3 generations take part so everyone in the community is involved. The dancers follow a route and make 4 to 5 stops along the way to perform the dance to a different set of judges. At the final stop the band join in the dancing and everyone goes a little crazy – including the crowd! It’s great fun to watch and listen and be a part of the festival. If you’re ever in Thailand around this time then I’d recommend you make the trip.

Hope you enjoy the photos and videos!

Jeab.

Guide Training! Bangkok 2008

This review is not perfect,  because there is no way I can describe how much I enjoyed this year’s guide training! The only way it would be better is if next year we could all travel to Cambodia or somewhere else (hint hint !!)

How lucky I amto be able to work independently here in Bangkok! I wish Andrea could come visit more often (how many people say they want there boss to visit more? – no one else – just me!)

I had a chance to talk to each of our guides and here is what they had to say when I asked them to attend guide training:

Guide Kie says : Training again? I will come for training, but can I please skip the dinner cruise? That way I don’t feel like I’m working ;) I always try to give our guests the very best service.

Guide Ron says : Yes, confirmed – I will be there. (Guide Ron never refuses work…he always there for us.)

Guide Bee says : Yes, I’ll be there. But how about this year we have the training in Cambodia? J

Guide Well says : I am so happy to see Andrea, I miss her so much. (Guide Well’s baby is just 8 weeks old now, so she will stay with her baby most of the time, but she will come by for some of the training)

 Jeab : I had a dream that Andrea was a scary boss! Now I’m scared to go to training!

Finally, I received everyone’s response and everyone is confirmed for training. The training went really well. We learned new things and even got gifts, and some guides received special “Quality Service” awards.

After training it was time for the party J Jeab and I took the guides and the rest of the Journeys Within team who joined in on the training (Kristina, Narla, Mom and Reat) out to a fun Bangkok dance club. Meeting these other team members I felt like I met my new brother and sister.

After all was done I said “Bye.” to my little bosses Callie and Couper. Hope to see you all next year.

Waew.

May 5th I started my very first journey to Southeast Asia. Although I had an itinerary in hand and what I thought was an extensive knowledge of the land, there was no amount of books or movies that could have prepared me for the beauty of this part of the world. The people’s warm attitudes and kind smiles are the only thing that could over out shine the surrounding scenery. I have completely and utterly fallen in love with Southeast Asia. I could go on and on and on about each and every incredibly amazing detail, but I don’t think the space in this blog would allow for it. Below is a highlight from each city my family and I toured.

Bangkok, Thailand- The phone rings. I look at the clock 06:00 - is it morning or evening? The room is dark and I’m exahusted after a long flight and a busy day touring the city. The phone rings again. “Hello?” I answer. “Hi April it’s Waew.” “Hi Waew - is it morning or night?” She laughs. I assumed that meant night and remembered that I was supposed to meet her for dinner. I basically sleep walk to the elevator to meet her and Jeab in the lobby. Too tired to really talk, I lazily apologize for my jet-lag hang over and slow footed, follow them down busy Silom Road for dinner. By the time dinner was finished and a bowl of ice cream was in front of me I had woken up from my daze and began to chat away like my normal self. Waew and Jeab giggled a couple times and I know it was because they were humored by my ability to talk non-stop. I was even laughing at myself at times.  We all continued laughing and chatting thoughout our walk to the hotel. This get-together was extended as we all were having so much fun getting to talk in person. It truly felt as if I was sitting down with best friends from long ago. As the hours grew later I needed to go back to sleep and recover from the jet lag. I was sad to say goodbye, but knew I would be coming back to Thailand sometime to visit my new friends again. 

Chiang Mai, Thailand – It is a tradition in the Buddhist culture for the monks to walk the streets in the early morning for the community to give them food. I did not understand why this happened until I witnessed it for myself. Our guide, Tui, explained that the monks need to make a selfless commitment as an act of faith and get up early the weekday of their birth and walk throughout the community. The local community makes the same faithful commitment to give to the monks on this day. In turn both the monks and the local people are committed to their faith and each other and continuously perform selfless acts. This astounded me. What an incredible way for people to join together in their faith and community and work to better themselves and the world around them. As my family and I took part in giving the monks food I felt I was included in a very special part of their lifestyle and I was honored and moved. I was certainly one of the most memorable parts of my entire trip.

Siem Reap, Cambodia - The moment I stepped out of the van and was standing face to face with Angkor Wat I literally lost my breath. It is quite simply the most beautiful and awe-inspiring place I have ever seen. I was a bit overwhelmed by the magnitude of its beauty and deep history. No amount of books or pictures could ever describe the true wonder of this magnificent place. I felt I could have visited every day for years and still discovered new things.    

A second favorite moment in Siem Reap was our tour of a local village. We were taken away from the hustle and bustle and tourist scene of Siem Reap city and shown the true and marvelous Cambodia. At one point an older woman came up to me and held my hand and smiled and said something in Khmer. I asked my guide what she said and he said that she was thanking me for visiting Cambodia. It was truly moving. The boat trip to Baray Lake and exploring ruins without tourist guide signs and walkways was the moment I was waiting for on this trip. I felt I had the opportunity to view the temple in their honest form. No improvements, nor renovation – just the ruins. Seeing the quiet peace of the lake and the ruins was a moment I was able to sit back and absorb. It was easily placed up on the top of my favorite moments. 

Krabi, Thailand - If you knew me, you would know that my husband is a major inspiration in my life. Yes, he challenges me in many ways to be a better person, but to be honest one of the reasons I love him so deeply is his fun and excitable approach to life. In Krabi he successfully reminded me why I adore him so. The moment the sun rose on our first morning in Krabi I awoke to see Chris sunscreen on and skim board in hand. “Are you ready to go?” he asked. I knew there was no way to convince him to wait for me to have my coffee. I grabbed a cup of joe to go and we were off to the beach. I’m sure you are wondering what the heck a skim board is – well, it’s a board that is meant to “surf” the wave break or shore break on the beach. From sun up til dusk, Chris was catching the waves breaking on the beach. Seeking more of a challenge Chris rounded up a large piece of driftwood and created a rail to ride on. Picture this – a wave comes in Chris runs, drops his board into the inch deep water, jumps on the board then somehow manages to get the board up on a giant piece of wood on the beach slides across the wood then spins around in the water. This is the type of entertainment my husband provides all the time! Of course I attempted to skim board myself. While I wasn’t brave enough to “hit the rail” I did manage to ride a couple waves and had a great time doing it.

Koh Lanta, Krabi, Thailand - While most special moments are described as an action, the island of Koh Lanta itself stands alone as a precious memory. Quite simply, I was whisked away to paradise and never EVER wanted to leave. Secluded white sand beaches, lush tropical rain forest, the sound of Gibbon monkeys hollering in the distance—Koh Lanta was paradise found and a place I certainly plan to visit again.       

One of Siem Reap’s many squatters’ villages is a short walk from the Journeys Within B&B.  JWOC built its first wells there and I went to check it out with Brandon and some volunteer students from Loyola Marymount University. Brandon wants to get a business started that the JWOC scholarship students can run themselves, so we went into the village to research business ideas and assess the need for different services.  

There are places blocked off where potential roads will go if they’re ever built, but for now the village is connected by a sequence of dusty tan trails. Some structures are built with corrugated metal or wood and seem relatively sound, while others are thatched with palm leaves or draped with tarps.

Because of the nonprofit projects most of the villagers have seen Westerners, but it’s still a treat for them when we arrive. They all know how to say “hello” and as soon as they spot you a harmony of hellos hits you from all angles. Groups of kids rush over wanting to show you things, while the shy ones gather to watch from a distance. I was just another giant white lady with a camera, but with this kind of welcome you would’ve thought I was Brangelina. 

The kids love to get their picture taken and they’ll follow you around in hopes of getting their chance. Their favorite part is seeing themselves on the photo playback screen and they run away giggling as soon as they see their faces on the monitor.

As we walked back to the B&B—a short distance from poverty to luxury—I tried to imagine living without a toilet or electricity and what it must be like to put what little money you have into a “house” that could be destroyed any day.

What really resonated with me was the overall mood of the village. For all their hardship, the people were in great spirits. Everyone was smiling, the kids were running around and playing in the rain, the adults were chatting and playing cards. I expected it to be a bit more somber, but it was actually pretty upbeat.

Maybe they’re making lemonade, or maybe it’s just a Cambodian thing.  I don’t think I’ve witnessed a happier, friendlier group of people anywhere.  Each country has a different draw: gorgeous beaches, great food, beautiful sights, and although Cambodia has all of those things, the real draw is the people.  Their smiles and good hearts are the reason you want to return.

Our Vietnam guide training got off to a bumpy start this year. As Brandon pointed out, the positive side was we got to check out the response to an accident at the Siem Reap airport and we got to try out the SOS clinic in Hanoi, the negative side was why we got to try these out.

We arrived at the Siem Reap airport nice and early for our big trip. We loaded up the luggage carts and I checked us in while Narla and Brandon got ice cream with the kids. As I was paying the departure tax Callie came running up, singing her “we’re going to Vietnam” song. She grabbed the back of our luggage cart and swung. With all the luggage now out of it and only hand luggage on the top basket it was top heavy and crashed down on top of her. I was there first and pulled the cart off her, only to see blood everywhere. My heart literally stopped. I grabbed her and immediately put pressure on her eye where most of the blood seemed to be coming from. Narla, was right behind me and had a small towel in his fanny pack which he gave me. I was able to push this on the cut and slow the bleeding, but I had seen how deep the cut was, just above her left eye. In the meantime Callie was screaming, I mean really screaming, she has my low pain tolerance and that, coupled with the blood everywhere, was just too much for her. I sat down in the middle of the airport with her on my lap and held her as tight as I could. Even Brandon, who is always calm in situations like this, looked scared. We started to discuss who was going to stay and who would go, but neither of us wanted to be the one that left her. Meanwhile the airport had called their EMT crew and Narla had gone to get me some ice. The EMT crew was fantastic. They helped stop the bleeding and then put a cleaning solution on the cut (they will forever be known as the mean men with the spicy stuff). Callie had calmed down slightly and the bleeding had stopped so we were able to get a gauze bandage over the cut and Brandon and I decided that a clinic in Siem Reap and one in Hanoi were going to be about the same so we might as well just get on the plane. We were escorted through security and then taken to a private medical room while Narla (on his first trip out of Cambodia) got all our passports through immigration. Poor Callie was still pretty upset, but was pulling herself together. We were able to get on the plane and she seemed to forget about her boo boo for a while.

In Hanoi we were met by Van and Loan, our Vietnam directors and despite it being 8pm they kindly went with us to the SOS clinic. In my years here I have recommended this clinic to a couple of guests who got sick in Vietnam so this time I got to really inspect it! The doctor was great and all the nurses were really kind. They couldn’t give her stitches because the cut was too close to the eye so they said they wanted to glue it. They said she would have to hold still for 2 minutes while they held the cut closed and the glue dried. I tried to explain that under the best of circumstances Callie didn’t hold still for two minutes and that pain actually would make it the worst of circumstances. I asked if there was anything they could give her and they agreed they could give her some valium anally (forever knows as the tickly in my booty). The valium took a while to kick in, but finally she was asleep on the table. They bundled her in a sheet and the doctor leaned over to put the glue on. That first drop hit and Callie was up. It took three nurses and Brandon to hold her down and still the doctor couldn’t hold it for the full 2 minutes. At the end of it the doctor just shook his head and said, “you right, she an active one”. He told me not to get it wet or let her run around…I asked if I could take a tub of valium to go, he didn’t get it.

We went back to our hotel and Callie was like a little drunk person, trying to walk and falling down. She was having so much fun on the valium I finally had to just hold her on my knee, turn all the lights off and not let her go until she was asleep. Inevitably the glue came out, I couldn’t stop her from bouncing and it’s Asia, we all sweat, so it ended up getting wet too. The scar isn’t too bad and as everyone keeps pointing out, at least she’ll have a good story. We went to pick someone up at the airport the other day and she kept her distance from the luggage carts! All in all it was a horrendous experience, but from the EMTs in Cambodia, to SOS in Hanoi we couldn’t have asked for better help so at least I can go on with my recommendations feeling secure that I don’t just know ‘of’ the clinic, I know it well!

People often seem to think that I am making up some of the stories I tell about Brandon. I am always talking about how he started the non profit and how he is now teaching at the local university and how we have more staff than we know what to do with because he likes hiring people. When you meet Brandon it is actually pretty easy to miss his sensitive side. He makes fun of people, he is highly opinionated and as we all agree, just a bit weird. I thought Brandon’s Valentine’s Day present to me shows the kind of person he is beneath the grumpy guy who hates being woken up and whose favorite hobby is getting kicked in the head. This is what Brandon values:

Hello my little valentines,

So what do you get the girl that has it all, what’s the one thing all women want…how about a bike repair business that supports a family of 9!!!! Yay!!!!

If you count the number in the photo you will see its only 8 because number 9 is on the way. And No, the girl in the front is not huge, she just is standing closer to the camera and on something higher than the rest. I am a bad photographer but I told them I needed photos because my wife was supporting them. They are very happy and just in the short time I was there did good business. For now the only round object I have for you doesn’t go around fingers, it goes around wheels. The man told me he tried to get everyone to loan him money but no one would give him a fair shot. His older kids go to school and help him when they finish classes. He told me that he thinks if he does well enough he will send his kids to learn English near his house. So there is the fact that a whole family is thankful that you are such a good wife and let me spend the money you work so hard to earn in crazy ways and….

The profits from your new business can all go to buying a huge ring. This gift truly is the gift that can keep on giving!!!!

Thanks for being such a fun wife and helping me sort out my crazy ideas and my ADD view of the world. Love you tons and wish you were here.

Love you,

Brandon

So yes, for Valentine’s Day he gave me a bicycle repair shop that he has invested in. The owner needed more than our microfinance project allows so Brandon decided to make it his own personal project. He has a big heart and isn’t that what Valentines Day is all about? That and chocolate, but I can buy that for myself! Here is a photo of me with my repair shop partner…

It’s 3:00 in the morning, we’ve just finished the last leg of our 18 hour journey, we’ve landed in a foreign country, our minds are as disheveled as our bed head and Jet-lag has become a new four letter word. The thought of smiling was as foreign as the country we were now in – but that was all about to change. Waiting for our bags at the Bangkok Airport my soon to be 2 year old son Gavin had decided that the middle of the walkway was as good as a place to take a nap as any. While I was mortified and trying to maintain some sort of composure, an unusual thing happened. The local staff began surrounding us and smiling saying hello and asking “Can I take a picture?” . “Huh?” I asked. A sweet girl then said – “Of the baby.” I had to giggle, these people we all deeply entertained by my son and his choice to lay down on the floor. Not ten minutes after we had landed Gavin had acquired a fan base. The laughter began to uproar as soon as he realized that if he made a funny face or performed some sort of trick people would laugh. And this was just the start of our journey. Everywhere we went at least 5 people asked if they could take a picture or hold him. While at our hotel in Chiang Mai the girls there came just short of knocking on our room door and asking if Gavin could come out and play. As we drove up the entire staff would run to the van “Gavin!!” they cheered. He would then be whisked away and given candy and toys and delight as the girls all smiled and laughed when he’d perform one of his silly tricks. Not only was Gavin’s picture taken, and gifts were constantly bestowed upon him, he also received three surprise birthday parties! We had cake and candles in Cambodia, cake for breakfast in Krabi and cake for desert in Koh Lanta. Everywhere we went girls surrounded Gavin, I felt like Justin Timberlake’s mother (but much younger!) Now that we are back home Gavin can not quite understand why he can’t illicit the same attention while wandering through the market – although I think he’ll continue to try.

It’s all fun and games until the gecko eats the baby!

Living in Cambodia you get to love geckos: they eat mosquitoes, they are pretty cute and they make a cool sound that reminds you that your life is different. In fact, in our bedroom we have an accidental terrarium that I love. When they house was built at the top of each wall they built vents, areas for air to move in and out. When we took over the house we glassed these in so we could use the AC. The glass still lets out the light so at night bugs gather here and so do the geckos. It’s essentially an all you can eat buffet for geckos and we get some large gatherings sometimes. There are love affairs, fights, naps, in fact I often find myself ignoring the TV and instead watching the Gecko Soap Opera. Anyway, we had heard one particular gecko on our back balcony for a long time; he often made his chuck, chuck, chuck, ge-cko, ge-cko, sound while we were having drinks with guests. I had commented that he sounded big, but Brandon had laughed at me, saying it was just a gecko! Then one night, when Callie was about 3 months old I went in to check on her before bed. As I glanced around the room I saw a huge shape on the floor. Grabbing Callie I ran screaming from the room and into ours. Bursting in I screamed at Brandon that there was a crocodile in Callie’s room!

Brandon leapt out of bed and ran to see what I was talking about. His reaction might surprise you, most husbands would probably say I was imagining things and roll over, but you see the possibility of a crocodile in our house wasn’t as far fetched as it sounds because we lived next door to a crocodile farm. They raise them for meat and the skin in Cambodia, we actually have our own farm…but that’s another story). Anyway, though unlikely, it was not as improbable as in some of our past homes. Brandon rushed into Callie’s room and spotted the culprit, not a crocodile as it turns out, but rather our extremely large back balcony gecko. Turns out I had been right and it was big, huge in fact, the Godzilla of geckos! Brandon closed the door and headed off to fin reinforcements. My dad, who was visiting, was quickly drafted, and Brandon also rounded up our two nighttime security guards, Puan, a Cambodian kick boxer and tough guy and Samboon, who we affectionately referred to as Jungle Boy and could have weighed more than a buck ten with his clothes on. All four men (you are always a man when dealing with reptile or rodent issues) headed upstairs and opened the door to peek inside. The gecko still lay in the middle of the floor staring back at them. With a scream Puan turned and ran. Not just out of the room, but out of the room, down the stairs and out the front door, only stopping when he reached the end of our driveway and the main street. Having just lost his biggest “man” Brandon once again closes the door and goes to figure out why. Turns out Puan was deathly afraid of geckos and not even Brandon threatening his job could get him back into the house. Puan had thought he was being called upstairs for one of my regular spider or mouse requests, both of which he was happy to oblige, but a giant gecko was a whole other story. Down to three my dad, Samboon and Brandon went back in and cornered the beast before throwing a blanket over it before carrying it outside to freedom. I like to think that it was a bit Crocodile Hunteresque with Brandon holding the head down, my dad straddling the body and Samboon being whipped back and forth by a giant tail. They assure me that it was nothing like this, but I think they’re just being humble. The gecko was released in the back yard and we all went back to bed, but every now and then I still think I hear him and I keep the kids close!

Writers Note: Even gigantic geckos are not dangerous and no B&B guest has ever been harmed by one, we look forward to having you to stay =)

I have always wished that I could have a job that involved shopping. I have taken it as far as applying to be one of those mystery shoppers, I know nothing about it, but it sounds so cool and you get to shop, but not lose money! This week my dream came to reality, no, I didn’t get to go to Target and buy detergent, I didn’t even have to keep the fact I was a buyer a secret! Nikaya, our new craft project sent me on a shopping spree! Alex, our Nikaya director, had made contact with a variety of different fair trade companies in Phnom Penh and I flew down Wednesday morning to start shopping. We went to many different stores seeing all the different things being made here in Cambodia. There is so much and a lot of it is incredibly beautiful. Many of the products aren’t just made here, but are being designed by Cambodian designers so they have a new and unique style to them. We looked at purses and jewelry and home décor, enough to make your head spin (with delight!). Alex has designed some beautiful scarves, table runners and pillow cases that are going into production this week so we got to sit down with the designs and pick the silk for each. It’s incredibly scary…what if no one lies what we make!?!? But also incredibly exciting to be taking advantage of the beautiful fabric and talented craftsmen we have here. I am now in the airport on my way home, carrying a couple of bags worth of samples we picked up. Though it will be a few months for everything to come to fruition we have definitely made a big step and I could get used to this professional shopper gig!

Here are some photos of my favorite finds, though you’ll have to wait until August to have them for yourself at www.nikayahandcrafted.com.