Through the Klongs

Today, I went exploring the klongs (canals) of Bangkok to plan a route for one of the clients of my Bangkok private tour company. I hired a boat and driver to take me through Klong Mon and Klong Bangkok Yai. I've been through quite a few klongs in Bangkok, but these two are my new favorites. With the water so high from the rains up north, when you go through the klongs, it's like taking a boat through a flooded city.

This picture captures the feeling of motoring through the klongs:


I love this overgrown house. Looks like something you'd expect to see along a bayou in Louisiana.


As we were motoring through the klongs, my boatman starting yelling "Mahon! Mahon!" I realized he was talking about this gigantic monitor lizard that was sunning itself on the banks. I've seen some huge monitors in my time, but this one took the cake: it was pushing two meters. I don't know about you, but I'd find it hard to live in a house where there was a danger of a "mahon" like this slithering up the front steps.

Another Day on Khao San

Every time I come to Bangkok, I make the obligatory pilgrimage to Khao San Road. A big part of it is nostalgia: like almost every other backpacker who's ever done an Asia trip, I spent my fair share of time on Khao San back in the day. By visiting Khao San, I can almost taste the feeling I had when I was a lot younger and just starting out on my first big trip. That was back in 1994. Needless to say, the road has gone through some serious changes since then. I mean, when I was there, the only people who had heard of the internet probably worked for NASA. We used to cram into little telephone booths at the back of travel agents to call Mom and Dad and say, "Guess what: I'm in Bangkok!" Still, the vibe of Khao San is essentially the same.


Just when you thought Khao San couldn't get any more developed, well, it gets twice as developed. Here's a picture of the way it looks now. I can't understand how, but in two years or so, it will be twice as developed as this. Perhaps they'll figure out a way to combine Starbucks, an internet cafe, a travel agent, a pad Thai place, a tattoo parlor and a bar. Actually, I bet if you looked hard enough, that place probably already exists on Khao San:


There are several places on the road where, for a modest fee, they will put braids, extensions and beads into your hair. These folks never cease in their tireless task of making white women look ridiculous. Note to white women: the only white woman who ever looked good in corn rows was Bo Derek.


In my more cynical moments, I find myself thinking that there is nothing lamer than sitting on Khao San in the afternoon drinking beer with all the other punters. Then, I have to remind myself: I sat in that same restaurant and drank that same Singha beer and, you know what: I had a blast. I mean, let's face it: a bad day on Khao San is better than the best day at the office.

Back in Bangkok

I'm in Bangkok for a few days with my wife and son. It's wonderful to be back in the city I consider my second (or third?) home. I've been working on the routes for my private walking tours.

Here's a picture of me with Kay, my best guide in Bangkok. I'm carrying Kieran, my son, in a sling here.


Here's a shot of me, Hiroe and Kieran (hidden in the sling):

Hong Kong: Peak Views and Dim Sum

I spent a few days in Hong Kong recently with my family. I was working on routes with my main guide there, Jim. As usual, Jim amazed me with his knowledge of Hong Kong. We also took a trip over to Macau to work on our Macau route. My private walking tours of Hong Kong and Macau can be found here. We flew from Japan to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific and we were really impressed with their service. We would recommend Cathay to anyone traveling with children - they really went out of their way to help us with Kieran and to make us comfortable.

Here's the classic view from the Peak:


Here's a typical Hong Kong street scene:


My wife and I blundered into a classic local dim sum joint while exploring one day. Our son really enjoyed the mango dessert here:


Here's a picture of me and Jim, with my son Kieran:

Stop the Kyoto Aquarium Kiyomizu Protest

The Committee to Protect Kyoto got together with two local Kyoto groups today at Kiyomizu-dera Temple to protest the planned Kyoto Aquarium. Today, mayors from around the world were visiting Kyoto as part of the World League of Historical Cities meeting being held in Nara. Kyoto Mayor Kadokawa hosted the delegates. Just two days ago, he gave a speech in Nara boasting about how much Kyoto is doing to protect the environment. Needless to say, he didn't mention how much CO2 his planned aquarium will produce, nor how many trees have been cut down to build it (nor, for that matter, how he and his staff commute to work by car on Kyoto's famous "no car days").

Mitokusan Mountain Temple in Tottori Prefecture

This past weekend, I headed up to Tottori Prefecture with my friends Paul, Anthony and Mike. We stayed at Mike's vacation house in the onsen town of Misasa. The highlight of the trip was a visit to the mountainside temple complex of Mitoku-san, which is said to date back to the pre-Nara era. It's HIGHLY recommended for anyone heading to Western Honshu.

Here is a picture of the famous "Nage-ire-do" hall at the top of the complex. The name means something like: "They just threw that temple up onto the cliff." No one seems to be able to figure out how they built it up there.


Here's the strong hiking team that made the ascent:


Here I am at one of the temples midway up the mountain:


Here's Paul at a garden lower down on the mountain:

Eat Well Shanghai

The other day I had the good fortune to meet Julie Meyer here in Kyoto. She's a licensed nutritionist who lives in Shanghai. She's written a brilliant new book about how to eat healthy food in Shanghai. The book tells you where to shop for good ingredients, how to prepare healthy food based on these ingredients, and it lists lots of great restaurants that serve healthy food in Shanghai. You can find out more about the book here.