Bali, Singapore, Thailand

A lot has happened since I last posted.

I went to Bali for 4 days, and spent a day in Singapore on the way back. Bali was AWESOME. I didn't do the beach/surf thing. I stayed in a home stay in Ubud (cultural center) and stayed really busy. The first day, I took a tour to Tulamben, and went scuba diving for the first time. It is probably the coolest thing that I have ever done. The ocean was so full of life. Approaching the wreck of this ship (USAT Liberty) was amazing. The water is pretty clear; once you are within 50 ft or so you can sense a massive dark shape in front of you. Being able to move so freely in three dimensions is amazing. The ship was covered in rust, corals the size of monster truck tires, neon-colored eels, and brightly colored fish. On our way back to the beach, were were surrounded by a tornado of jack fish trying to confuse a predator. Amazing.

The next day, I hiked a volcano caldera (starting at 3 am to make it up there), and toured a hindu temple, as well as a coffee/spice farm.

One the way back, I met up with Lauryn. We did a lot of tourist-y things, including drinking a Singapore Sling in the place where it was invented, at the Raffles Long Bar.

The next weekend, I went with Amy to Bangkok. On the first day, we took a bike tour of a rural area. This was probably the highlight of the trip. Our guide bought us lotus seeds, green mango, and gelatinous rice cooked in banana leaves on the way out. The rice paddies were really beautiful, and we ate probably the best lunch of the trip at a farmer's house.

The next day, we went to the Bridge over the River Kwai, which had a beautiful war memorial and museum. I bought my dad a hat and a book since he's really into WWII stuff. We were also able to feed a baby leopard by the bridge. We then rode elephants, rafted down a river, visited a beautiful natural waterfall, and went to the tiger temple. The next day, we went to the national palace and different wats.

Bangkok has terrible traffic, and is home to the most vile form of transportation known to man: the tuk-tuk. These are essentially 50cc scooters with a tiny passenger area built on back. They are open air, so the engine exhaust comes right back to hit you. They drive like Kamikaze pilots - incredibly aggressive. Tuk-tuk drivers will always try to lie to you-- to tell you that the places you want ot visit are closed and only open later, or will intentionally give you wrong directions, so that you will take a ride with them instead. They usually take you to a tailor shop or a souvenir shop instead of your destination so they can get a kickback from the owner. They're rude and try to cheat you. Dislike.

So this week I am working here. Next week I'm going to Bangkok for debate, and Beijing the week after. Woohoo!