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Saturday, 22 March 2008

I'm bringing Xanga back - drop a comment if you're with me!

Tuesday, 26 December 2006

Back in Rainy Seattle...

...and the rest is history. Al found a picture in the new Entertainment Weekly. He's like the better looking twin that got pampered when we were separated. I really do believe that.

Thursday, 14 December 2006

all night on the beach 'til the break of dawn...

yeah...it's been a while since i've been back to the States...Will Smith's music is still ringing in my ears...
Rich and I left Bombay last week and have been spending the week in Goa...the beach state of India...I never liked the beach before, but this changed my mind=)

views from our beach idyllic beach in Panolem with local fishermen pulling in their catch...

the beach is crescent shaped with an island out in the middle...it was awesome esp. at sunset. Yeah, the monk man in the first picture is me.

We took a cooking class while we were there, so I can theoretically cook for you guys when I get back to Seattle. The last fried dough is for Kyrgyzstan.

Views of our humble domicile that we stayed in for a week. Perfect!

We also went hiking one of the days. Met a guy names Ed Yu. It was crazy...he was UW grad class of 2005. Taiwanese and lived in Northgate...it's funny because we didn't know any of the same people though. Great to finally talk to someone from back home though.
Beach was nice...but off to Bangalore before the prices get expensive. Oh, btw, prices for rooms one night: 150Rs ($3.5). It's awesome.

Thursday, 07 December 2006

party in the city where the heat is on...

Mumbai has been really eye opening...we got here the first night and stayed in a dingy, run-down hotel before Feyon and Austin (missionaries from my church back in Seattle) came and rescued us. They brought us to church on Sunday and showed us around, and gave us a real home-cooked meal. It was nice to go back to church again...it's been so long, but just the familiarity and closeness really never leaves you...Feyon also brought us to the slums...basically her work place where she has set up study centers for the kids who recieve little or no education. You hear about the slums in India, but really seeing them is something else. I have to say that Indian little kids are the cutest little kids I've ever seen...such big eyes...but yeah, other than Feyon and Austin's hospitality, seeing the slums, and talking about the amazing things that God's doing here, Mumbai is just a huge city...totally overwhelming...in every way. Here are some pictures though...enjoy...we're heading off to some beaches soon in a little place called Goa. Off to be reckless once again with no helmets, riding motorcycles...

Mumbai's beautiful gate facing the water...hanging out with Feyon and Austin at the Buddhist caves in Mumbai's park. They date back to Christ era

The sea of tuk tuks, up close and personal (and counting), and roaming around on the bus

The beautiful food they cook for us...so good...

Visiting the study center in the "posh" slum...kids were so cute and well behaved...

The area surrounding the other slum...yes, little pigs taking a bath! It's interesting to see the tall Mumbai skyline and the slums right outside. You'll see five-star hotels here and then people living in shacks right across the street.

Some of the kids at the 2nd study center from the surrounding area

Friday, 01 December 2006

motorcycling...

So it was pretty stupid, but Rich and I got choppers to cruise around here yesterday. We both had no experience driving motorcycles...didn't know how the gears worked...never rode on anything more than 100cc...these things were sweet though. We rented them for $5/24hr and just went cruising around to all the small villages around this area. I almost killed myself at least 3 times and almost ran into an old Indian woman and a sweet old man (tried to pass the guy on the left...Indians drive on the left...whoops). But yeah, after 24 hours, I got some nice scratches to remember the awesome time...(skidded on sand...crappy)...anyway, heading out of Pushkar...going to take a 12 hour + train to Bombay...maybe get some seafood...my tummy's been aching for some meat...until I see all-you-can eat buffet signs for $1.25. Oh yes, our cab driver Amit. The guy is awesome...out of 9 days, he was trashed 8.