tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.comments2010-05-02T05:31:20.881-07:00Michael Meltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06929840820192251935noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-41201227183625464852010-05-02T05:31:20.875-07:002010-05-02T05:31:20.875-07:00The worst thing about Lonely Planet is that you go halfway round the world AND KEEP BUMPING INTO PEOPLE, all following the &#39;off the road&#39; tour suggestions itinerary.<br />You change itineraries. You rent a jeep. You climb a vulcano at 3am to watch the sunrise.<br />Sun comes up: you&#39;re with the same people you started with!!!!<br /><br />Francesca Maggi<br />http://www.upyourbottom.com<br />Collecting your hilarious foreign language horror stories.Francesca Maggihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15104487411073849736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-68386777381027986872010-02-14T00:27:37.918-08:002010-02-14T00:27:37.918-08:00My biggest worry when we get home is how to get rid of lots of the stuff that&#39;s waiting for us. Life in our simple little sparsely-furnished house is so easy and enjoyable--there&#39;s hardly any housekeeping, and only a bit of materials management, and that&#39;s great by me.Amy Houchenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05341422522845209644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-68444545607541457552010-02-14T00:17:37.778-08:002010-02-14T00:17:37.778-08:00Glad to see you back on the blog! Interesting comments and observations. I hadn&#39;t thought about some of that stuff but it makes sense. And you are so right about the joys of living simply. I need to keep remembering that. Sounds like time for a return to Asia!Rickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15470516040452025032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-43189360012814776982009-03-16T20:51:00.000-07:002009-03-16T20:51:00.000-07:00I think the LP is like anything, you get out of it what you put into it. when we went to cambodia the guide was really helpful in letting us know what to expect &amp; how much to pay for a taxi etc. <BR/><BR/>We went to Angkor Wat but there wasn&#39;t a lot of information at a lot of the sites, so again the guidebook at least told us what we were looking at. And on the 6 hour bus ride down to Phenom Pehn I read about the Khmer Rouge &amp; the French protectorate-ship, so I felt like when we got there I had a better understanding of &#39;where I was&#39;. Yeah, following the LP to a T gives you a very narrow view of a place, but if you&#39;re short on time it can help you make the most of a trip.<BR/><BR/>That said, if you want to find someplace free of tourists come to Rayong. It is fucking DEAD here. The only time I see other white people is when I go to work, the supermarket or the island. It&#39;s about as &#39;authentically Thai&#39; (whatever that means) as you can get.<BR/><BR/>And I agree, taking the CELTA in Chiang Mai was an awesome experience and introduced me to some pretty awesome people. I highly recommend it.Rebelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12835352917180439099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-20590776025413120502009-03-16T08:01:00.000-07:002009-03-16T08:01:00.000-07:00Welcome back! Hope this is the beginning of more regular updates to come. So I'm picking up on the concept that you are a tad down on Lonely Planet Guides...Kinda reminds me of talking to someone following a Rick Steve's guidebook and going to some out of the way place and running into hordes of similar folks with the same guidebook. <BR/>I like the idea of taking something like a language or cooking course in the local area.<BR/>Keep us up to date on your experiences!pdxdocnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-37507721438000564372009-01-26T06:16:00.000-08:002009-01-26T06:16:00.000-08:00I am currently looking into getting a Tier 1 visa as well. What was the outcome of your application?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-36478384247118153022009-01-21T22:10:00.000-08:002009-01-21T22:10:00.000-08:00So, by the way, how tasty is a $2 bottle of whiskey?<BR/>Is it true that once you get 4 houses worth of Jesus points in Bible monopoly that you can build a hotel? Agree it rates at least 4 exclamation points.<BR/>Chiang Mai sounds a lot nicer overall, at least less crazy than Bangkok. Best of luck on the job hunting and the new classes!Pdxdocnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-51022648100249905212009-01-21T17:33:00.000-08:002009-01-21T17:33:00.000-08:00Admit it, you are a sissy! :)<BR/><BR/>I love the photo in the header of your blog.<BR/><BR/>Keep on with the stories. I'm loving reading them. :)emdothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12430053380347679707noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-79287898678015481382009-01-14T07:26:00.000-08:002009-01-14T07:26:00.000-08:00Glad you made it and let the adventure begin!!! Reading your posts will be a real highlight as you guys explore. Keep 'em coming so the rest of us back here in the US can at least experience some of the excitement vicariously!pdxdocnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-68875107425469400722009-01-14T00:08:00.000-08:002009-01-14T00:08:00.000-08:00Yay!!!! I love reading &#39;just landed&#39; posts because it&#39;s exactly what I went through initially. The whole &quot;WTF am I doing??&quot; phase to the &quot;succesfully obtained food &amp; shelter&quot; phase to, you know, the endless discoveries of weirdness and awesomeness that follows. Good luck!Rebelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12835352917180439099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-42272701072987954492008-11-16T20:01:00.000-08:002008-11-16T20:01:00.000-08:00My 9th grade science teacher was a belt-buckle fan, they were all wildlife related, a whale, a dear, a couple others I don't remember. My bench-mate and I would keep track of which one he wore every day - I think he favored the whale buckle. <BR/><BR/>Good luck on your quest!Rebelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12835352917180439099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-42046478548555922282008-11-12T17:59:00.000-08:002008-11-12T17:59:00.000-08:00I like the first and second.Ms. Houchennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-65292229381267239272008-11-11T14:08:00.000-08:002008-11-11T14:08:00.000-08:00fish. definitely fish.Catehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04986818638521144674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-22026213432538612072008-10-25T13:58:00.000-07:002008-10-25T13:58:00.000-07:00Gee, Mike, this is very educational. I intend to watch and listen every day.Ms. Houchennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-30916876232757707712008-10-24T16:17:00.000-07:002008-10-24T16:17:00.000-07:00what a charming picture. mmm bucket drinks.Catehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04986818638521144674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-2210530846815487642008-10-23T14:55:00.000-07:002008-10-23T14:55:00.000-07:00what a funny picture... lol; and to hear your comments about it is even better. <BR/> I love that you are keeping a blog-- its gives me the opportunity to hear your thoughts about the day to day conversations we never get to have anymore.Diana Collinsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-34793435172595591842008-10-23T00:51:00.000-07:002008-10-23T00:51:00.000-07:00You may be interested in KiasWorld (http://www.kiasworld.co.uk) - check it out.Kia Kanpahttp://forum.kiasworld.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-21401860928629046322008-10-22T13:32:00.000-07:002008-10-22T13:32:00.000-07:00It's definitely okay. Let me know how it turned out.Mike Meltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06929840820192251935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-3148226093950314682008-10-18T12:09:00.000-07:002008-10-18T12:09:00.000-07:00Your profile inspires me.<BR/><BR/>You are discussing Daniel Quinn and living your dream as an expat. Very appealing getting off the mainstream grid.<BR/><BR/>Tomorrow I'm doing a short show around Daniel Quinn's The Story of B over here... http://is.gd/4jTO<BR/><BR/>That link will continue to work after the event... the link turns into a replay link.<BR/><BR/>I hope its ok that I posted hereBen Mackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05759180467125362965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-5745152047796087962008-10-15T12:35:00.000-07:002008-10-15T12:35:00.000-07:00Yeah, Cate talks about Raro all the time. I'm beginning to feel like I need to visit the island so I won't feel left out when it is referenced.Mike Meltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06929840820192251935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-27719705100015642292008-10-15T12:29:00.000-07:002008-10-15T12:29:00.000-07:00Ishmael is definitely a book I think about all the time. Especially the bit about humans stopping their own evolutionary process. If you have some time, check out the Douglas Adams clip from UCSB, he touches on the same subject.Mike Meltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06929840820192251935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-28679855327960062202008-10-14T18:10:00.000-07:002008-10-14T18:10:00.000-07:00I enjoyed it a lot--a very interestng premise, and definitely thought-provoking.Ms. Houchennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-91339040908032176312008-10-13T21:45:00.000-07:002008-10-13T21:45:00.000-07:00So many choices. I also love Ireland. I'd probably have to say Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. I've been there twice and it is my dream picture of a classic south seas island. If you have never been there, it is definitely worth checking out (and the New Zealand dollar, which it uses, is down quite a bit these days against the US dollar.pdxdochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16262821967184159481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-87019925504071099212008-10-10T16:59:00.000-07:002008-10-10T16:59:00.000-07:00Hmm can't decide. Hopefully the RTW trip will help me!Catehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04986818638521144674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6186956386841516363.post-32191465524728168102008-10-10T13:36:00.000-07:002008-10-10T13:36:00.000-07:00My wife is getting her teaching credential in the states. After that, we are taking a RTW trip, then...Ireland here we come.Mike Meltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06929840820192251935noreply@blogger.com