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i learned that travelling alone is so damn nice, all you gotta worry about is yourself and your own belongings. the first grown up thing i did was fly by myself to canada to attend rushcon. i met up with my (then) boyfriend and another long time internet friend and i met lots of cool people who i'm still friends with. it was so weird to arrive in my hotel room, set all my shit down, and say "holy f**k... im in canada!" and my hotel was right next to tim horton's which was convenient.

 

toronto was awesome, 10/10 would definitely go back. if you're planning on visiting downtown toronto but don't wanna stay at a ridiculously-priced downtown hotel: the woodbine hotel is about 15-20 mins outside of the downtown area. one downside of that hotel is that the free breakfast sucks, but what else can you expect from a free breakfast?

 

Excellent post! Glad you enjoyed yourself up here! :cheers:

Travel is great whether it's done solo or with a pack of friends.

The more the merrier is often/mostly true, but sometimes it can be equally nice just kicking around on your own.

Hope you get to see more stuff soon!

 

"holy f**k... im in canada!" :LOL: :laughing guy:

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10 Safest Cities in the World

 

http://en.atlantida....0743000801.html

 

Hey, I made #3! :blaze:

 

I've been to the first four and felt no threat other than to my waistline.

 

Got drunk and staggered around god-knows-where in Tokyo from 2-5am with a buddy of mine who works in Ibaraki. It was awesomely awesome.

Had a terrific time sampling alcoholic delights from various "Sunkus", as well as pizza-mon (?) and those yummy seaweed triangles filled with rice and often tuna. Tokyo was quite beautiful in the wee hours.

And we made some friends along the way!

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10 Safest Cities in the World

 

http://en.atlantida....0743000801.html

 

Hey, I made #3! :blaze:

 

I've been to the first four and felt no threat other than to my waistline.

 

Got drunk and staggered around god-knows-where in Tokyo from 2-5am with a buddy of mine who works in Ibaraki. It was awesomely awesome.

Had a terrific time sampling alcoholic delights from various "Sunkus", as well as pizza-mon (?) and those yummy seaweed triangles filled with rice and often tuna. Tokyo was quite beautiful in the wee hours.

And we made some friends along the way!

 

#1-4 + #9 for me. The scariest thing I experienced in those 5 cities was an 80-something year old woman selling giant, gyrating flesh-colored dildos in that Hong Kong market. Asked my travel buddy David if he wanted one. He said, “Maybe. But that one's a bit small for my taste.”

 

Ah yes, the Sunkus conbini (convenience store), pizzamon (I’ll have one later today), and onigiri (tuna rice seaweed triangles)

Edited by JohnnyBlaze
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oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps then i'm gone for three months

oh lord

 

- "Stomach-flutterin' Blues"

 

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3w0uqB7KaBU/U4huNVuiJWI/AAAAAAAAAEs/byXMCQ1iO8A/s1600/guitar-dog.png

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i learned that travelling alone is so damn nice, all you gotta worry about is yourself and your own belongings. the first grown up thing i did was fly by myself to canada to attend rushcon. i met up with my (then) boyfriend and another long time internet friend and i met lots of cool people who i'm still friends with. it was so weird to arrive in my hotel room, set all my shit down, and say "holy f**k... im in canada!" and my hotel was right next to tim horton's which was convenient.

 

toronto was awesome, 10/10 would definitely go back. if you're planning on visiting downtown toronto but don't wanna stay at a ridiculously-priced downtown hotel: the woodbine hotel is about 15-20 mins outside of the downtown area. one downside of that hotel is that the free breakfast sucks, but what else can you expect from a free breakfast?

Travelling alone is indeed a very nice change. I went on a three day outdoors trip last year and very much enjoyed it. Similarly, sitting down alone to restaurants and my hotel room was interesting :LOL:

 

Myself and others are planning on going to Toronto in February. Hyped. Thanks for the lodging recommendation!

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oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps then i'm gone for three months

oh lord

 

- "Stomach-flutterin' Blues"

 

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3w0uqB7KaBU/U4huNVuiJWI/AAAAAAAAAEs/byXMCQ1iO8A/s1600/guitar-dog.png

 

The stomach flutterin’ will happen soon enough when you’re chowing down on SE Asian tasty delights but feeling peculiar but not sick the next day. The most commonly said phrase by my travel pals & I while in SE Asia: “It’s only 11am and I’ve shit 4 times already but feel perfectly fine. You wanna get something to eat?”

 

:P

 

You know how it is vt.

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oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps and i'm gone for three months

oh lord three more sleeps then i'm gone for three months

oh lord

 

- "Stomach-flutterin' Blues"

 

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3w0uqB7KaBU/U4huNVuiJWI/AAAAAAAAAEs/byXMCQ1iO8A/s1600/guitar-dog.png

 

The stomach flutterin’ will happen soon enough when you’re chowing down on SE Asian tasty delights but feeling peculiar but not sick the next day. The most commonly said phrase by my travel pals & I while in SE Asia: “It’s only 11am and I’ve shit 4 times already but feel perfectly fine. You wanna get something to eat?”

 

:P

 

You know how it is vt.

 

It's the pre-flight jitters, which will be followed by post-flight fritters:

 

http://www.stephanielaw.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Thai-Sweetcorn-Fritters.jpg

 

http://dinnerwithaura.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/007.jpg?w=1024

So greasy, so oily, so good. The banana ones are equally delicious. :yes:

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Heading to the airport in a couple of hours. Snowy day here, so hopefully will be able to get out!

Passage to Bangkok via London with a 12 hour layover. Might go see the Tate Modern or just walk around if the weather is reasonable. Never been to London before. I hope they understand English.

Should arrive in Bangkok on the afternoon of Christmas Eve. Supposedly to a balmy 33 degrees (91.4 F)! Ahhh!

 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, TRF! Stay warm, stay safe, stay sane! :cheers:

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2L_fp2oEwbk/UN5TC8bplpI/AAAAAAAAGmo/K5CAWIKhMpg/s1600/SCTV+Maudlin+seasons+greetings.jpg

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Heading to the airport in a couple of hours. Snowy day here, so hopefully will be able to get out!

Passage to Bangkok via London with a 12 hour layover. Might go see the Tate Modern or just walk around if the weather is reasonable. Never been to London before. I hope they understand English.

Should arrive in Bangkok on the afternoon of Christmas Eve. Supposedly to a balmy 33 degrees (91.4 F)! Ahhh!

 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, TRF! Stay warm, stay safe, stay sane! :cheers:

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2L_fp2oEwbk/UN5TC8bplpI/AAAAAAAAGmo/K5CAWIKhMpg/s1600/SCTV+Maudlin+seasons+greetings.jpg

 

By my calculations you should be just about now flying over the Atlantic with a head full of cocktails. :yes:

 

Have fun!

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Sawasdee (hello) from Bangkok!

Haven't seen the Thailand Express, unless that's the Skytrain...

 

So far, so good! Great food, fun times.

 

On the layover, I was surprised by London and its garbage problem. Not sure if it's tourists who are the litterbugs or if it's just something that people there do, but the streets that I saw were quite crap-strewn I'm sad to report. Maybe it's a Christmas tradition?

Memories of London: gum, graffiti, and garbage!

 

A cool and rainy day here. Started the day with excellent bowl of Thai noodles, and ended with an excellent bowl of Japanese noodles.

Found a kick-ass book store and picked up a couple of things to read.

 

Very easy to get around here. I'm next door to the Skytrain, and only 5$ (Canadian) for a day pass.

No big plans for Bangkok other than find all sorts of deliciousness.

 

My, this is a disconnected post. I'm rambling. Must be time for sleep.

Zzzzz

 

 

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Sawasdee (hello) from Bangkok!

Haven't seen the Thailand Express, unless that's the Skytrain...

 

So far, so good! Great food, fun times.

 

On the layover, I was surprised by London and its garbage problem. Not sure if it's tourists who are the litterbugs or if it's just something that people there do, but the streets that I saw were quite crap-strewn I'm sad to report. Maybe it's a Christmas tradition?

Memories of London: gum, graffiti, and garbage!

 

A cool and rainy day here. Started the day with excellent bowl of Thai noodles, and ended with an excellent bowl of Japanese noodles.

Found a kick-ass book store and picked up a couple of things to read.

 

Very easy to get around here. I'm next door to the Skytrain, and only 5$ (Canadian) for a day pass.

No big plans for Bangkok other than find all sorts of deliciousness.

 

My, this is a disconnected post. I'm rambling. Must be time for sleep.

Zzzzz

 

Are you messaging from Patpong again you pervert?!

 

Is Smitty with you undecided at the prospects of an Ayutthaya day tour or his she-male comfort zone?

 

Get thee to Lumpinee Boxing Gym and perhaps you’ll see fat boy Segal and JCVD checking out a Muay Thai match and reminiscing on decades past fight glory.

 

 

Signed,

 

Mental Bully divided by half the circumference of 2112 squared

 

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Sawasdee (hello) from Bangkok!

Haven't seen the Thailand Express, unless that's the Skytrain...

 

So far, so good! Great food, fun times.

 

On the layover, I was surprised by London and its garbage problem. Not sure if it's tourists who are the litterbugs or if it's just something that people there do, but the streets that I saw were quite crap-strewn I'm sad to report. Maybe it's a Christmas tradition?

Memories of London: gum, graffiti, and garbage!

 

A cool and rainy day here. Started the day with excellent bowl of Thai noodles, and ended with an excellent bowl of Japanese noodles.

Found a kick-ass book store and picked up a couple of things to read.

 

Very easy to get around here. I'm next door to the Skytrain, and only 5$ (Canadian) for a day pass.

No big plans for Bangkok other than find all sorts of deliciousness.

 

My, this is a disconnected post. I'm rambling. Must be time for sleep.

Zzzzz

 

Are you messaging from Patpong again you pervert?!

 

Is Smitty with you undecided at the prospects of an Ayutthaya day tour or his she-male comfort zone?

 

Get thee to Lumpinee Boxing Gym and perhaps you’ll see fat boy Segal and JCVD checking out a Muay Thai match and reminiscing on decades past fight glory.

 

 

Signed,

 

Mental Bully divided by half the circumference of 2112 squared

 

Weirdly enough, I thought of Smitty while in London.

Don't think I'll bother with tracking down S Seagal. He's probably sucking carrots at a Russian market.

I'm very much enjoying exploring the neighbourhood that I'm in (Bang Chak). So many cool little tree-lined streets and food-cart-lined alleyways!

Heading south tomorrow for sea, sand, and reggae bars! :P

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Happy New Year!

Landed in Jakarta last night, after a week of sea and sand and reggae bars in Koh Lanta.

Found a very secluded beach a few minutes from the hotel. Handful of tourists, no electricity, beautiful swimming, and a little place where you can order food and beer. Next to it was a tiny beach bar that had mojitos and weed on offer. I heartily accepted those offers!

Decent prices (for Lanta) and best of all, no reggae!

I don't mind reggae, but it can be monotonous and very limited in its timbres. One place at least played some dub. I'd rather sit and listen to the waves, but I guess I'm in the minority on that!

Right now there is a rebab (2 string transverse "fiddle") playing somewhere on the street below. It sounds beautiful and makes me want to get walking and check out more of Jakarta!

No plans for here other than make a few travel arrangements, eat some good food, and maybe go see some music this evening.

 

Blaze, you would've like Koh Lanta for its cocktails and other delights - especially the Muay Thai truck that drives around announcing upcoming matches and blasting Thai boxing music, which is pretty spicy stuff!

 

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Happy New Year!

Landed in Jakarta last night, after a week of sea and sand and reggae bars in Koh Lanta.

Found a very secluded beach a few minutes from the hotel. Handful of tourists, no electricity, beautiful swimming, and a little place where you can order food and beer. Next to it was a tiny beach bar that had mojitos and weed on offer. I heartily accepted those offers!

Decent prices (for Lanta) and best of all, no reggae!

I don't mind reggae, but it can be monotonous and very limited in its timbres. One place at least played some dub. I'd rather sit and listen to the waves, but I guess I'm in the minority on that!

Right now there is a rebab (2 string transverse "fiddle") playing somewhere on the street below. It sounds beautiful and makes me want to get walking and check out more of Jakarta!

No plans for here other than make a few travel arrangements, eat some good food, and maybe go see some music this evening.

 

Blaze, you would've like Koh Lanta for its cocktails and other delights - especially the Muay Thai truck that drives around announcing upcoming matches and blasting Thai boxing music, which is pretty spicy stuff!

 

Whenever I hear Muay Thai boxing music I start doing that little trance-like pre-fight dance (you know the one) and start kicking people in the ribs and shins.

 

What’s on your day trip plate today? Beach? Mind-altering happy milkshake? Happy Pizza?

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Happy New Year!

Landed in Jakarta last night, after a week of sea and sand and reggae bars in Koh Lanta.

Found a very secluded beach a few minutes from the hotel. Handful of tourists, no electricity, beautiful swimming, and a little place where you can order food and beer. Next to it was a tiny beach bar that had mojitos and weed on offer. I heartily accepted those offers!

Decent prices (for Lanta) and best of all, no reggae!

I don't mind reggae, but it can be monotonous and very limited in its timbres. One place at least played some dub. I'd rather sit and listen to the waves, but I guess I'm in the minority on that!

Right now there is a rebab (2 string transverse "fiddle") playing somewhere on the street below. It sounds beautiful and makes me want to get walking and check out more of Jakarta!

No plans for here other than make a few travel arrangements, eat some good food, and maybe go see some music this evening.

 

Blaze, you would've like Koh Lanta for its cocktails and other delights - especially the Muay Thai truck that drives around announcing upcoming matches and blasting Thai boxing music, which is pretty spicy stuff!

 

Whenever I hear Muay Thai boxing music I start doing that little trance-like pre-fight dance (you know the one) and start kicking people in the ribs and shins.

 

What’s on your day trip plate today? Beach? Mind-altering happy milkshake? Happy Pizza?

 

I'm being a good boy in Bandung, Indonesia right now. The beaches, etc. will have to wait a couple more weeks until I'm in Cambodia, and then look out! Happy everything! :LOL:

I haven't seen another Caucasian in days now, and I absolutely love being a "stranger in a strange land". People here have been very friendly to me, which is humbling, heartening, and somewhat embarrassing, seeing as how foreigners are generally treated back home - with paranoia and suspicion.

Last night I had supper at a little place across from my hotel. I was invited to smoke Indonesian clove cigarettes and drink spiced coffee with a table of hilarious locals, talking about everything from music to religion to ghosts! Ended up hanging out with them for a couple of hours. As I was leaving, they stopped me and wanted a picture with me before I left, and invited me back in a few days. I smiled myself to sleep last night.

Right now all the mosques in the city are sounding, which is an amazing sound that gives a kind of depth to the city, almost like a sonic map, if that makes any sense. I'm sure some people would roll their eyes at it, but it just sounds so incredible, even as they fade away and are obscured by traffic and the sound of kids playing.

No plans for the next few days except for walking, reading, and eating delicious things!

 

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Happy New Year!

Landed in Jakarta last night, after a week of sea and sand and reggae bars in Koh Lanta.

Found a very secluded beach a few minutes from the hotel. Handful of tourists, no electricity, beautiful swimming, and a little place where you can order food and beer. Next to it was a tiny beach bar that had mojitos and weed on offer. I heartily accepted those offers!

Decent prices (for Lanta) and best of all, no reggae!

I don't mind reggae, but it can be monotonous and very limited in its timbres. One place at least played some dub. I'd rather sit and listen to the waves, but I guess I'm in the minority on that!

Right now there is a rebab (2 string transverse "fiddle") playing somewhere on the street below. It sounds beautiful and makes me want to get walking and check out more of Jakarta!

No plans for here other than make a few travel arrangements, eat some good food, and maybe go see some music this evening.

 

Blaze, you would've like Koh Lanta for its cocktails and other delights - especially the Muay Thai truck that drives around announcing upcoming matches and blasting Thai boxing music, which is pretty spicy stuff!

 

Whenever I hear Muay Thai boxing music I start doing that little trance-like pre-fight dance (you know the one) and start kicking people in the ribs and shins.

 

What’s on your day trip plate today? Beach? Mind-altering happy milkshake? Happy Pizza?

 

I'm being a good boy in Bandung, Indonesia right now. The beaches, etc. will have to wait a couple more weeks until I'm in Cambodia, and then look out! Happy everything! :LOL:

I haven't seen another Caucasian in days now, and I absolutely love being a "stranger in a strange land". People here have been very friendly to me, which is humbling, heartening, and somewhat embarrassing, seeing as how foreigners are generally treated back home - with paranoia and suspicion.

Last night I had supper at a little place across from my hotel. I was invited to smoke Indonesian clove cigarettes and drink spiced coffee with a table of hilarious locals, talking about everything from music to religion to ghosts! Ended up hanging out with them for a couple of hours. As I was leaving, they stopped me and wanted a picture with me before I left, and invited me back in a few days. I smiled myself to sleep last night.

Right now all the mosques in the city are sounding, which is an amazing sound that gives a kind of depth to the city, almost like a sonic map, if that makes any sense. I'm sure some people would roll their eyes at it, but it just sounds so incredible, even as they fade away and are obscured by traffic and the sound of kids playing.

No plans for the next few days except for walking, reading, and eating delicious things!

 

Sounds like good stuff. I’d like to travel more in Indonesia in the future. (More of everywhere for that matter).

 

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Sand crabs...

hYaxaAk.gif

 

ORfie, the Banana King of non-sequiturs! :cheers:

 

Um, land lice? Lake Lobsters? Ice oysters?

Those all sound like pirate swears.

 

Whale tears. :(

 

Have yet to eat any Indonesian crustaceans or other creatures of the sea, save two small fish and a delicious squid. No crabs yet, sandy or otherwise! :LOL:

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Sand crabs...

hYaxaAk.gif

 

ORfie, the Banana King of non-sequiturs! :cheers:

 

Um, land lice? Lake Lobsters? Ice oysters?

Those all sound like pirate swears.

 

Whale tears. :(

 

Have yet to eat any Indonesian crustaceans or other creatures of the sea, save two small fish and a delicious squid. No crabs yet, sandy or otherwise! :LOL:

 

This is what my mind was picturing...or this is the picture I picked from the multitudes that came up from the Google...

4FmUnjF.jpg

DpKg2QN.gif

Edited by OldRUSHfan
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What I did last night:

 

http://www.auralarchipelago.com/auralarchipelago/jaipong

 

And it was pretty much what the article said, including having my name woven into several songs!

Kick-ass drumming, excellent singing, and painted ladies galore. And very curious and friendly people.

Unforgettable!

 

Bandung is such a friendly place, despite the language barrier. I seem to have been adopted by a group of local ghost hunters. Not bad for an "Unidentified Foreign Oddball"!

Off to Sumatra in a couple of hours.

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What I did last night:

 

http://www.auralarchipelago.com/auralarchipelago/jaipong

 

And it was pretty much what the article said, including having my name woven into several songs!

Kick-ass drumming, excellent singing, and painted ladies galore. And very curious and friendly people.

Unforgettable!

 

Bandung is such a friendly place, despite the language barrier. I seem to have been adopted by a group of local ghost hunters. Not bad for an "Unidentified Foreign Oddball"!

Off to Sumatra in a couple of hours.

:ebert:

 

Sounds awesome! I was invited to go to Colombia next month...reading your posts makes me think that really need to go!

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