May 13th, 2004 - Journey from Luang Prabang, Laos to Vientiane, Laos

Did you know that Laos is the most bombed country in the history of warfare. During the Vietnam war the U.S. flew up and down the Ho Chi Minh trail - which crossed into Laos - bombing both Vietnam and Laos. Aren't you proud to be an American :) Now with Afghanistan and Iraq it looks like we Americans can really pride ourselves at being exceptionally good at bombing the living s$%t out of the poorest countries in the world. What the hell is wrong with us??? If we are so tough let's go to war with a BIG country like China or North Korea - I mean we know North Korea has Nuclear Weapons - shouldnt we launch a "pre-emptive stike" against North Korea. Do we really want a "smoking gun" in the U.S. be a "nuclear mushroom cloud" delivered from Kin Il-
Jung? Come on America. Come on George W. Bush!!! Let's blow up North Korea!!!

These political comments are sarcastic.

Kerry 2004!!!

Also of note: The eastern portions of Laos are still littered with thousands of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) "left behind from nearly 100 years of warfare" - WW II, etc. There are about 130 casualties a year from these left over bombs. I wonder how many people a year have lost their limbs to these bombs that are hidden and scattered in the mountains and country side? Sad that a rich country like the U.S. doesnt do more to help the Lao people rid their country of all these bombs. Or maybe we left it all there for them as nice little X-mas presents? It looks like the U.S. and other powerful nations like to make a mess in other poor nations and leave it there. Didnt our mothers always tell us to clean up our messes?

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Now back to our story :)

I bought a $16 U.S. ticket for a mini-bus (its really a van) to take me from Luang Prabang to Vientiane. Now, in Laos, $16 is a lot of money. My mini-bus was supposed to be air-conditioned as well. The staff at the travel agency in Luang Prabang explained to me that the journey to Vientiane would take about 7 hours.

Well, I can tell you that my journey to Vientiane did not take 7 hours. Instead it took nearly 12 hours. And I didnt arrive there in a mini-bus. Instead I arrived there on the top of a truck roof drying up from a rain storm that soaked me.

This is what happened . . .

I waited outside my Guest House from 8:50 to about 9:20 for my mini-van. Two girls from Israel who were also staying in my Guest House were also waiting for the mini-van. The mini-van arrived soon enough and in we went with our bags tied to the top of the van. The mini-bus was full - 11 people total including the driver. I was the only one in the mini-bus headed to Vientiane. The driver explained to me through a Thai girl who was translating for me that in Vang Vieng - where are the travelers in the mini-bus were headed - I would switch to another mini-bus headed to Vientiane.

The ride to Vang Vieng was full of constant twists and turns. I nearly became car-sick. We were driving through the high mountains of Northern Laos and it was beautiful. At times some the the views we had from our car window looked much like the mountains that I had seen near Cusco in Peru. The clouds were everywhere and many of them were floating nearly at the same altitude as our mini-bus. And we saw dark storm clouds headed our way and before we were stuck by the rain we could see the heavy fall of the rain shooting down between the valleys of the mountains. It was absolutely beautiful. In the seat behind me was an American from San Francisco. He had recently turned 50 and was traveling through Southeast Asia for 3 months. And he wasnt alone. He picked up a Thai girl - simply said, a prostitute - in Chiang Mai to accompany him for the duration of his travels. He was a very nice fellow. Much like any professional you would meet in any city in the States. Now I had a face to put with all the books and statistics I had read and am reading concerning the Sex Trade and Sex Tourism Industry in Southeast Asia. As I have mentioned before the majority of the men I saw in Thailand with Thai prostitutes were in their 40's and 50's. Most of these men are either single or have come out of their first or second divorce. And so they come to Thailand in search of some sense of companionship to fill the void that they may be feeling at their age. This man from San Francisco - Ill call him Mark. Was very nice. He could have been your uncle, or neighbor, or bar buddy. He was a business man, well-educated, professional, and well-informed of current events. I was happy to find that he was anti-Bush. We spent most of our time talking about U.S. politics and the state of things in California. The Thai woman he was with was perhaps my age or a bit older - late 20's. She was very nice and would translate for me when our Lao driver - who spoke Thai - needed to tell me something. She was poor. You could see that in the way she dressed and the way she kept her multi-colored nails. I tried to be as friendly as I could with her for I felt a bit sorry for her. But, here she was traveling with Mark and Im sure for her this was pleasant - perhaps an escape for a moment from her life as a prostitute in Chiang Mai. Here she was with Mark - who seemed to treat her very well. But, in a month or two Mark will leave her and return to the U.S. and back she will be in Chiang Mai looking for her next customer not knowing if he will treat her well, if he will abuse her, beat her, or give her an STD if she doesnt already have one. I should mention that the majority of the men who employ the services of Thai prostitutes are Thai men not farangs - foreign men. I am currently reading about this so I will share more of this information as I read more of it.

In any case about 5 hours later we arrived in Vang Vieng which is really nothing of a town. All the buildings seemed again to have been built simply for the tourists. They were all Guest Houses and Travel Agencies and Restaurants. Most of the tourists that go to Vang Vieng go for the river rafting adventure fun to be had along the rivers there.

Well, we arrived and I didnt see any mini-bus for me to switch to. My driver looked a little worried but he continued on and dropped all the passengers off at their Guest Houses. I was the last one . . . the only one left. Then I saw Paul and then Tom and Sarah and Katie. I spoke to them very briefly for I had to go to the bus station area with my driver.

My bus driver told me to have a seat at the out-door bus station. I knew that something was wrong. On the way to Vang Vieng our mini-bus had a flat tire. We had to stop for about 20-30 minutes to change the tire. We stopped in a very remote local village. The children were all running around in filthy, filthy clothing if they weren't running around naked. But they all smiled and tried to approach us foreigners. But once anyone of us tried to approach them they quickly ran off. One girl in particular - she must have been 7 years old and she had an infant tied to her back - ran so far away that she was standing behind a house and peeking at us. Im sure we looked like aliens to them. I noticed that some of the girls would hit each other and an old man also hit one of the girls. I was taken aback by this. But, what was I to do. It seemed that they did this as if this as simply how they communicated.

Well, I believe that as a result of getting the flat tire - and arriving late in Vang Vieng - the mini-bus that I had paid for to take me to Vientiane simply left without me. It is times like this when I am really happy to be traveling alone for I simply go with the flow. Perhaps if I was with someone they would have gotten angry and started an argument with the driver that got me to Vang Vieng.

Well, the driver made arrangements for me to take a local truck to Vientiane. I hoped into the back of the truck with four other locals and away we went. There was a married Lao couple with their 3 year old boy. Their son was dressed in filthy clothes. God only knows when his clothes were last washed. But he carried on with little care. His parents fed him mango and lechee which he happily ate. As we drove sitting in the back of the truck which had two benches that we all sat on along the sides of the truck the mother of the boy became car-sick and began vomiting into the plastic bags that had carried the mangos she and her family had eaten. I offered her my bottled water but she did not want it. For the duration of the journey she would vomit from time to time. The odd thing was was that the people who sat in the back of the truck sat at a distance away from me. I felt weird - was there something wrong with me? And as we traveled we would pick up more locals but instead of coming into the back of the truck to sit they chose to stand at the back on a grill that they could place their feet on and hold on for dear life. About 2 to 3 hours later we arrived in Phon Hong. All of us had to get out of the truck for that was as far as the truck was going to go. One of the women in the truck asked me in Lao if I was going to Vientiane. I had no idea what the hell she was asking me at first but after her repeat Vientiane several times I guessed that she wanted to know if I was going there. I figured out that she was going there too. So we got out of the truck and waited for another truck headed for Vientianne. About 15 to 20 minutes later we found a truck that was headed to the capital. I threw my bag on the rook of the truck and stood at the back holding onto the truck from the back with several other men for the sitting area within the back of the truck was completely, completely packed! I thought that there was no way anymore people could fit in the truck but we carried on picking up more people until there were 8 men - including me - standing on the grill at the back of the truck holding on. I was worried that if the truck turned sharply or hit a bump that I would loose my grip and fall straight onto the pavement of the road. Luckily hanging on to the back of the truck was no bid deal. All the men around me chatted away but as soon as we saw storm clouds ahead of us we began to worry and then sort of laugh to ourselves that we were in for a fun and wet ride. I quickly pulled some plastic bags from a pocket in my backpack and covered my pouch that had my digital camera - I definitely didnt want that to get wet. Soon the storm clouds were over us and down came the ran. I held on and prayed a bit but I must confess that I did enjoy the challenge and the adventure of this trip. After we stopped for some gas we picked up more people! One individual was physically challenged and used a tricylce type of contraption to move from one place to the other. Some Lao men got onto the roof of the truck and helped lift the tricycle onto the roof. The Lao men then motioned for me to get onto the roof with them to make more room for them people who were getting on the truck. So from then on into Vientianne I road on the roof of a truck laughing at the fact that of all the things that had to be placed on the roof there was a tricycle. Now, here I knew that if this over-crowded truck flipped over I was surely going to either die, or lose a limbs or several limbs or crack my head open. I held on to the rails and simply enjoyed the adventure and the view of the electrical storm ahead of us that lit up the night sky with amazing flashes of lightening.

Then I made it. On the outskirts of the city we all got off the truck and took a 3 wheeled taxi into town. I was in a taxi with three other Lao women - one of home kept touching my leg - and another Lao man. Once inside town I got off and took another 3 wheeled taxi to Namphou Garden where I walked for a bit until I found a Guest House to stay in for the night.

And here I am . . . alive and well after my adventure in Vientianne :)

Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.bamromsai.gr.jp

May 12th, 2004 - Luang Prabang, Laos and Kuang Si Falls

Again this morning I had breakfast at JOMA Cafe and after I ate I sat for about an hour or more reading my book, Night Market. I believe around 11 or so I left the Cafe and then went to an internet cafe to get this journal up to speed. I felt like venting about the situation in Iraq and so I wrote a bit about that. At 12:30 I met up with Katie and Sarah and their friend Paul and Tom. The five of us then went to Paul and Tom's Guesthouse and hopped onto a truck headed south of Luang Prabang to the Kuang Si Falls.

If you would like to cool of from the intense sun then I recommend the Kuang Si Falls. It is a wonderful multi-tiered water fall that anyone can swim in. And if you take the trekking path to the falls from where your hired truck drops you off you will find a small zoo of monkeys, cubby bears and adult bears, and a bangel tiger. You can make a donation to the zoo to help feed these wonderful and very cute animals. Katie, Sara, Tom, Paul, and I all jumped into one of the pools of the falls. The water was a bit cold but it was a great relief from the heat. It was truly wonderful. Something for honey-mooners.

The ride back into town provided more incredibly views of the surrounding mountains and unbelievable clouds. I took some more fantastic photo's of these mountainous clouds that will cause anyone to believe in the Kingdom of Heaven . . . no matter what your faith may be.

That night Katie, Sarah, Tom, Paul and I all met up for dinner. I really enjoyed their company. Katie and Sarah have been friends since the age of 11 and they met Tom and Paul when they were living in Sydney, Australia. Tom seemed to tease Katie and Sarah like an older brother. I enjoyed listening to the jokes they all made with eachother. It was a very pleasant night.

I should mention that Tom and Paul warned me that they have been giving off bad luck to fellow travelers they have come across. They had story after story of travelers they came across and the horrible things that happened to them as soon as they went off on their way . . .

This should lead in nicely to my adventure on the 13th of May :)

Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp

May 11th, 2004 - Luang Prabang, Laos

I had breakfast at JOMA Cafe. In interior and general feel of the cafe was one nearly reflective of StarBucks. After my battle with severe diarrhea in Myanmar I will probably stick to foods that remind me of home. Im believe I am done with trying the local dishes in local food stalls along the streets. As a result a cafe like JOMA stands out to me as a safe and familiar place for my stomach. The clientele of the JOMA Cafe is composed almost entirely of foreigners for they really are the only one's who could afford the food and drinks. It isn't expensive by any Western means but for the locals Im sure it is ridiculously expensive. I had a bagel with eggs and cheese, and a coffee. After reading my book entitled Night Market I decided not to waste more of the morning and left to explore the small town of Luang Prabang. Most of the time a traveler spends in Luang Prabang will be on Thanon Phothisalat - which is a street. I believe Thanon means street in Lao. Thanon Phothisalat is loaded with hotels, restaurants, and tourist agencies catering to foreigners. Also along this street you will find the Royal Palace which is now a museum. The Royal Family of Laos was forced to leave into the North of Laos in 1975 and from what I understand they were all killed. I believe that a few extended members of the family are still alive but they are living lives no different than the other lowland Lao people.

I entered the grounds of the Royal Palace and had a nice walk around the Palace/Museum itself for the Palace/Museum was actually closed. I arrived at 10:30; the exact time the Museum closes in the morning. There is a row of incredibly tall palm trees on the path leading up to the main entrance of the Palace/Museum. The Palace seems to have been constructed in a French Colonial style. There is a beautiful Wat temple on the grounds as well.

Just in front of the Royal Palace entrance is the entrance/path that leads up Phu Si Hill. Luang Prabang as a town has been built surrounding this hill. At the summit you will find a few small temples. The view is incredible for you can see the stretch of the town of Luang Prabang die off into forests of palm trees. There are magnificent mountains to the South and East and the sky is filled with clouds so large that the appear like mountains themselves. I have never seen a sky so magical as the skies that I have come across in Laos. The clouds are unlike anything you will ever see in your life. Many of my photo's are just beautiful in most part because of the incredible cloud formation that begin where the mountains end and continue up and up and up.

After I descended Phu Si I returned to Thanon Phothisalat and continued walking east toward the end of the peninsula where the Nan Khan River meets the Mekong River. All along Thanon Phothisalat there are Wat's that compared to the one's in Thailand are much smaller and a bit less impressive. There are plenty of young monks - all male - living and working in these Wat temples. Along the road I came across an elementary school. I arrived just as school had let out. Fathers sitting on their scooters waited for their children who ran at them with tremendous joy. Some of them would hop on the back of the scooter and fly off down the street with their fathers. Others were treated to drinks and treats that their father's would buy for them from local vendors.

The life in Luang Prabang is very quiet and peaceful. There are no arguments heard or the honks of cars for there are simply few cars to begin with. And there are no traffic lights at all within Luang Prabang. You will see women riding on their bikes or scooters steering with one hand and holding an umbrella in the other to block the afternoon sun. I must say that although the weather in Luang Prabang is a bit more pleasant than what I came across in Thailand for it is dry, the sun is much more intense. In the afternoon most locals stay in the shade of their homes and lay down on a mat on the first floor napping or looking out. The "middle=class" houses in Luang Prabang are usually two-storeys. The first floor can either be the living area or the living area/store area. As you walk down any street in Luang Prabang you can easily look into people's homes for their doors are wide open and see people lounging around. You make feel like you are intruding on their privacy with your eyes but do not worry. They simply could care less of what you see them doing in their own homes.

Also, what you may see are boys and or men playing checkers with bottle caps in the late afternoon into the late evening.

Once I got to the end of Thanon Phothisalat - which actually becomes Thanon Xieng-Thong - I walked down the steep of the hill a bit toward where the Nam Khan River meets the Mekong. I saw fishermen on their long boats and children - usually naked - playing in the cool river waters. I then went north along Thanon Khaem Khong and came across Wat Xieng Thong. I walked up the steps and quickly noticed a Lao woman looking through a Lonely Planet book. I was a bit curious about her but I continued and paid my ticket entrance and then went into the Wat. The same Lao woman I saw before entered the Wat and I - from the corner of my eye - watched her. She kneeled on her knees before the shrine dedicated to Buddha and prayed. I pretended to be interested in the designs on the walls. Once she stood up I approached her and asked where she was from. She explained that she was from France but that her parents were from Laos and Vietnam. We then began to talk and soon enough we agreed to have lunch together. Her name was Estelle and for the duration of the day she sort of served as my unofficial guide to Lao culture. For lunch she ordered for me a typical Lao salad with sticky rice and explained how to eat it in the traditional way. One my plate were three or four red peppers. I simply popped one into my mouth thinking I could brave the spicy pain. I soon regretted my gamble and found that the pepper was so strong that I began to tear and turn a bit red. I will never do that again.

From there I walked a bit with Estelle exploring Thanon Phothisalat. She then decided to rest in her hotel and we said our good-byes. Before we departed she informed me that at 4:00 that day all the monks in their Wat's would begin playing drum music to mark the phases of the moon. She told me that on the day of a quarter moon, half moon, three-quarter and full moon that the Wat's at 4:00 will perform their drum music.

I walked around a bit and cooled off in the shade provided by the trees along Thanon Lim Khong which is the road just along the Mekong. The winds gradually became strong and the sky dark. A storm looked like it was approaching. As I sat along the road a branch from a palm tree fell on me due to the strong blows of the wind. I then decided to keep walking and I walked south along Thanon Kitsalat which then turns into Thanon Sethathirat. I then went east and then north again and found the old iron bridge that I had crossed by three wheeled local taxi the day before from the speed boat pier. I decided to walk across it and took a few pictures on it. Again, as I said in my previous journal entry I felt like Indiana Jones crossing the bridge at the end of the Temple of Doom movie.

I then went to Wat Wisunalat and watched as a boy monk who sat at the top of a very, very tall palm tree cut something from it. Im actually not sure what he was doing up there. Then I began to hear drums - it was 4:00. I went toward where I heard the music and watched the monks perform. I loved it. And then I saw Estelle walking toward the monks. We continued our explorations of the town until about 6:00. I enjoyed her company very much. We took a break at JOMA Cafe and chatted more. I learned a bit about her life in Paris and what she does for a living.

Then we parted again and at 7:00 I met up with Sarah and Katie and two Americans that I saw back at Huay Xai. We found a restaurant to eat in and talked and talked and talked. I enjoyed the company of the two Americans, and Sarah and Katie so much. I hadnt laughed so much in so long. It was fantastic as well to be in the company of fellow Americans.

Later that night I sat with the two Americans I had met and a couple from Wales and we sat in a outdoor bar drinking and talking. I was very content and pleased.

Smiles from Luang Prabang,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp

May 12th, 2004

It is the common belief that if aliens from another galaxy were ever to make contact with human beings on Earth that they would surely be peaceful for if they had achieved the "high" technology to travel across the universe to reach our planet then they must be of a "higher" intelligence with beliefs allied to harmony, solidarity, peace/non-violence. Why do we even think this? It is foolish to abide by this logic. If aliens had achieved the technology to cross the great expanse of space to reach Earth it is my belief that they would see us Earthlings as primitive, crude, backwards and in need of being civilized by their standards of civilization and/or religion. Outer-space alien missionaries, adventurers, colonizers, and armies will flock upon our planet and colonize it; and they will kill, enslave, rape, pillage, and destroy anyone of us Earthlings who do not go along with their "higher" plan.

The West (the United States in particular and Western Europe and any First World nation) possesses a higher standard of living, technology, "a perfect God", and so forth. Does all of our technology truly refelct our "higher" intelligence? Not really. Are we any different from the Empires of the past? No. After being educated on the "evils" of warfare by our teachers, museums, movies, and books how many of us really stand up against the wars we wage abroad? Not many of us. The masses simply go along with the strong political power of their nation, and those of us that speak up against warfare find that we have been asked to leave from our jobs, that the television program that you produced has been taken off the air, that Disney will not distribute a certain left-wing documentary by Michael Moore, that you should be careful of what you write on the internet for your "freedom of speech" government is watching you.

How different are the American occupying forces in Iraq from the regime of Sadam Hussein? There is one major difference which I will discuss in just a moment. When we went into Iraq the U.S. prided itself in "freeing" the Iraqi people. Images of the dungeon chambers used by Sadam to torture fellow Iraqis were shown on T.V. as were interviews with Iraqi's who had suffered in those chambers. Now, we see that the U.S. military is no different in the treatment of Iraqi prisoners than the former Iraqi regime. Now Ive read in the papers that the images and stories we will soon hear about concerning the treatment of Iraqi prisoners will get worse, "rape and murder" is what is coming up next!

This is a very sad moment in U.S. history. Can we really parade our delluded image of a U.S. nation devoted to equality, peace, freedom, and democracy?

Although there are many of us Americans that are ashamed of these images that our national military has been torturing Iraqi prisoners we must also remember that in our nation no one is above the law. Not even our President. And that is something that we should be proud of. Those responsible for these crimes against the Iraqi prisoners will be brought to trial. Rumsfield may loose his job because of this - he should of lost it a long time ago along with George W. and Cheney and the whole administration as far as Im concerned - all Ive ever heard from them are lies, lies, and more lies. Although I am sure that the U.S. government and military will try to protect "certain" high officials that were and are directly responsible for the crimes against the Iraqi prisoners most - I hope - will not be able to escape the law.

These words are of my opinion. If I had the time I would properly research the news of recent weeks to formulate a more accurate view based upon hard facts. But, I am traveling and much of what I learn concerning current events is from quick glances through newspapers and CNN.com. This BLOG is simply a mental release at my disappointment with individuals within our U.S. military forces in Iraq. I dont expect anyone to agree with me. I simply ask that you respect my opinion - which will change over time - as I respect yours. I believe very much in the United States and I am looking forward, very much, to returning to my country after living in Asia for nearly 4 years to exerise my right to vote in our next national election and to work in my own way as a musician and writer in educating and entertaining people in my own country as well as outside of it.

Kerry 2004!!!

May 10th, 2004 - Chiang Khong, Thailand to Huay Xai, Laos to Luang Prabang, Laos

I left my hotel after having breakfast on the old wooden terrace of my Guest House that overlooked the Mekong River and Laos at 8 a.m. I took a Tuk Tuk to the Chiang Khong pier and handed over my passport to the Thai authorities to properly exit Thailand. Once I was done I along with Sarah and Katie - two British girls I had just met - walked down to the river and hoped on a very narrow boat to cross the Mekong over to the Lao side. On the Lao side I walked up to the Lao border patrol and filled out the paper work for my Lao visa. I handed over $30 U.S. dollars as well and in five minutes I had my Lao visa. Right in front of the boarder patrol office was a Lao money exchange office. I handed over 1,500 Thai baht and got over 360,000 Lao Kip. The teller handed over my very high stack of cash and all the foreigners around me could do nothing but laugh. It was funny to hand over such a small amount of Thai money and get so many bills back - no coins, there are no coinage in their currency system. After waiting for the other foreingers to get their visas and so forth we headed just a block into Huay Xai - the Lao town across the river from Chiang Khong in Thailand. Already, the difference between Thailand and Lao became apparent. Yuay Xai was tiny with only a few sparse locals walking along the streets. And it was quiet, nearly sleepy. There is no road between Yuay Xai and Luang Prabang - my destination for the day. As a result you must travel along the Mekhong by either slow boat or speed boat. I was not interested in the least in taking the slow boat for it takes two days to reach Luang Prabang. The speed boat takes only 7 hours.

So Katie, Sarah, and I along with a Japanese man who had volunteered in Iraq before and after the war, along with two other American men who had just finished college got into a jeep in Yuay Xai and made our journey to the speed boat pier. The speed boat is a very narrow boat that seats only six passengers and the pilot plus all our baggage. When we got into the boat we were all a bit shocked to see that the space we had to sit in was incredibly tiny. We had to sit with our knees tucked up right up to our chests. Before we knew it we were off speeding at unbelivable speeds on the Mekong. If a boat was coming toward us the waves it created would at times cause our speed boat to lift off its crests and back down on the water with a hard punch to out bottoms. When the river was devoid of ripples our speed boat would easily glide across the river - Im sure if the boat had wings we could have taken off and flown for several meters before gravity retook out boat. But, if there were ripples in the river the ride was a rough one as we continually bounced on the waters. About 2 to 3 hours later we stopped to rest be either relieving our bladders or having something to drink and eat at a pier that had locals gambling and foreigners resting who had either had come from down river or from up it. At around 2:00 we began our journey again but this time we had to switch boats - and the boat that would not complete our journey to Luang Prabang was even smaller in terms of the seats we had to sit in. We all complained to ourselves of how painful the rest of the journey would be.

An hour later we stopped at another pier/home to get some gas. In the middle of nowhere was this pier but there in this little thatched home on the Mekhong was a fine selection of soft drinks ranging from Pepsi to Coke to fanta. It seems that no matter where you go in the world - no matter how remote the location you are in - you will find someone ready to sell you either a Coke or a Pepsi.

Laos is nearly the same size as England but has only 8% of the population of England. Laos only has about 20 people for every sqaure mile. And the population is divided between those who live and survive along the Mekong and those who live in the highlands and hills. As we journeyed along the river I saw a small village here or there or simply a single thatched home in the middle of nowhere. There were jagged rocks piercing up above the river along the sides and cliffs of sand and beaches and palm trees and so forth all the way up the hills and mountains.

Laos is also the poorest nation in Southeast Asia. The average annual income is about $250 U.S. Which is not much at all but from what I have seen the people seem to be living well - meaning that they have enough for food, a home, and so forth. I have seen more severe poverty in South America than I have in any part of Southeast Asia that I have explored.

The speed boat landing in Luang Prabang is several kilometers from the center of town. When we arrived at the pier I was surprised that it was simply a tiny bamboo pier with nude children swimming all around it. There was a staircase leading up the hill from the pier. I couldnt believe that we had arrived in Luang Prabang. It seemd as if we had arrived literally in no where special at all. After we grabbed our bags and ascended the steps we were approached by touts trying to influence us to go to the Guest House that they were recommending us. After agreeing to take a look at one of the Guest Houses we got onto a small truck and bargained the driver down from 600 baht for all 6 of us to 300 baht. We were still ripped up but what difference does it make to a traveling foreinger. We drove and began to see the town of Luang Prabang slowly making its appearance to us. We had to cross an old iron bridge that appeared like the bridge that was used at the end of the movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Luang Prabang as a town is small!!! I believe that the smallest town in Montana is bigger than Luang Prabang. You can see all that a traveler needs to see in Luang Prabang in an afternoon by foot. I had the constant feeling that I was in small town in a small island in the Carribean. The whole down is blessed by scores of cocconut palm trees and old French colonial buildings. It is a quiet, safe, and pleasant town. Unfortunately Luang Prabang is being run over by tourists. At night it seems like the locals retire to their homes and the foreigners parade about in search of a restaurant or bar that caters specifically to tourists. One friend that I met here said that he was a bit baffled that at night it seemed like the "tourists outnumbered the locals 2 to 1."

This is a bit upsetting to find that the "isolated" nation of Laos is really not so isolated anymore. Tourists are taking over causing towns like Luang Prabang to be heavily dependent on the tourists for their economy. As I learned from Estelle - a French woman with Lao and Vietenamese roots - that the number of Americans traveling to Laos has decreased tremendously after September 11th causing the amount of money to be made from American toursits to go down significantly for the locals dependent on them for business. This is what my concern for Lao towns like Luang Prabang. It is a dangerous thing to be so heavily dependent on tourists for their economy for if there is another September 11th scare they will suffer tremendously in the decrease of tourists that frequent their nation.

All right . . . I must go . . . I will write more soon,

Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp

May 9th, 2004

I woke up at 6 a.m. and left my hotel at 7 and got on a bus headed to Chiang Khong at 8. A six hour bus ride later I am here in Chiang Khong.

Chiang Khong is a sleepy little town right on the Mekong river. This is the first time in my life to see the Mekong. And right across the river is Laos. My guest house room looks right over the river and straight on to Laos. Tomorrow morning I will cross over into Laos and take a speed boat to Luang Prabang.

There is one road that cuts through Chiang Khong and after checking into my guest house I walked up and down it finding only a few more guest houses and out door restaurants offering Thai to Mexican food while also offering to show movies in the evening. There is simply nothing much to do here so I guess Ill end up in one of these restaurants tonight and watch a movie or two before going to bed.

That is all for now,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp

May 8th, 2004

After I bought my bus ticket to Chiang Khong and having breakfast (pancakes, toast, and tea) I returned to Ban Rom Sai (www.banromsai.gr.jp) for my third and final day.

I spent most of the day with Surachai (10 years old), Nat (11 years old), and Pond (10 years old). They are the three oldest boys at Ban Rom Sai. We spent most of the afternoon with Nanako who is the art teacher at Ban Rom Sai. The art room is on the second floor of a wooden building built on high stilts. The first floor is all in the open air and is where the staff at Ban Rom Sai work on dying the Thai style clothing that they make by hand and sell to raise funds for Ban Rom Sai. Nanako's room is on the second floor and just in front of her door is a low table and shelves of art supplies as well as a sink. The boys wanted to work with paper clay and I watched them mold their clay into the shapes of various animals. I believe Surachai made an airplane from the paper clay and it sparked my creativity to begin work on making an aircraft carrier for the plane. With the help of the boys we all began cutting up cardboard and forming them into boxes that we painted and put together to make the aircraft carrier. Surachai and Pond also made a few more paper clay airplanes to complete our decoration of the aircraft carrier. After that Surachai decided to grab some paint markers and began tattooing my arm with a very colorful design of a ships' anchor. I returned the deed when he was done by painting his bicep with a smiley face and a skull. I painted a few other designs on his forearm but Surachai later washed it off out of fear from the Thai staff scolding him.

Gen, who is six years old, also came up to do some art with Nanako. He is the weakest child at Ban Rom Sai. He has skinny arms and legs and coughs from time to time. But, Nanako told me that he has been getting gradually stronger. She explained that he has been having difficulty adjusting to the medicine he has been taking and that he needs to change his prescription soon. They have no records of the medication he took before he came into the care of Ban Rom Sai and so it is feared that the medication he is currently on was possibly the same medication that he took before he came to Ban Rom Sai. Ban Rom Sai receive their medication from the Thai government for free but this causes a problem. The paperwork done to change prescriptions for the children takes months and months. As a result a child like Gen must suffer as all the bureaucratic steps are followed. This type of situation is frustrating for the Ban Rom Sai staff for they are at the mercy of the civil servants who process this paper work. They feel helpless in their ability to alleviate the children from their suffering since they simply have to wait and wait for the government to finally okay the change in prescription and to provide it for them.

After the arts and crafts I went to the pool and watched Nat and Pond swim with the Japanese staff. They were working on several different swimming strokes.

From then on I played super kung-fu fighter with the younger boys. They had various weapons (toys) and attacked me - the Evil Giant. My secret fighting ability was the paralyzing finger attack to the under arm of the boys - the most ticklish area of the human body. It was fun to grab them and tickle them until they were laughing so hard that they could no longer breath. I remember that my father used to do that to me when I was young and how painful but fun it was to be tickled under the arm - right in the arm pit.

Soon enough it was dinner time - 5:30 - and I sat down with the infants and youngest children to encourage them to eat, eat, eat. I spoiled a few of the kids by spoon feeding them and making dog garble garble noises as they bit down on their spoon and chewed their food. I was most impressed with the youngest child at Ban Rom Sai. He is maybe two-and-a-half to three years old and there he was with his spoon in hand feeding himself rice and bits of chicken. He was so, so, so young. I thought that someone would help him eat but no, he was completely independent, determined, and able to eat by himself. I took several pictures of him. He was my little champion.

I then had some fruits with the boys and then sat out on a porch with Asama and a few of the girls. Asama is 20 years old but does not have the HIV virus. Technically she is apart of the Thai staff at Ban Rom Sai. She is an orphan. And she is beautiful. Because she was too old for the previous orphanage that she was in she was then adopted into Ban Rom Sai to help care for the kids and serve the girls as an older sister. The girls sat out on the porch with Asama and talked their gossip as they complimented each other on the gorgeous hair cuts the all got in town earlier that day. When I pulled my camera out the girls quickly posed for me and pointed to their hair reminding me that they had had their cut and stylized.

Soon it was nearly bed time and the children and to have their shower and dress into their pajamas. Surachai, Nat, and Pond all called to me to wait near their rooms as they finished their showers and exercises. They wanted me to tattoo more paintings onto their arms. I decided to join them in their nightly exercise routine which consisted of meditation, breathing exercises, and stretching exercises.

Nat really serves Ban Rom Sai as an older brother for all the boys. Who always looks out for them and disciplines them. In one case one of the younger boys threw a stick into the air and it fell back on his head. The boy began crying and pouting. I ran up to him to see what was wrong but Nat told me not to help him. He explained to me what the boy had done and that he had to learn from his mistake to not do such a thing again. I was immediately impressed with Nat.

One boy I must tell you about is Muu. The first time I met him he was busy peeling cucumbers in the kitchen. Nanako explained to me that he loves to cook. As a result I decided to call him "The Chef". The kitchen staff does not ask him for his help. He simply appears in the kitchen and helps out in anyway he can. The funny thing is is that he loves to eat dry ramen noodles. Not the type of snack you would expect "The Chef" to eat.

After Nat, Surachai, and Pond finished their exercises we all went to the art room and I tattooed their arms. Nat, wanted me to paint "I Love You" on his right arm and a flower on his left. I also painted the Yin/Yang Chinese design on both his ankles. On Surachai's left arm I painted another skull and on Pond's arm I painted a skull and spiderman's head. Then the boys led me to the TV room to watch Treasure Island with all the other children.

I had only watched about 10 minutes of the movie before one of the Japanese staff approached me and told me that they could drive me back into town.

This month two of the Japanese staff will have their birthday and so that night all the Japanese staff and a few of the Thai staff were going into town to celebrate. They invited me to join them and together we all sat around a large table eating, drinking, talking, and laughing.

The Ban Rom Sai then went to Kareoke after dinner but I departed for I had to get up early the next morning to grab a bus to Chiang Khong.

I will miss the kids and the staff at Ban Rom Sai very much. They are all so amazing and so full of life. I will hold them all in my thoughts for the rest of my travels and I will work hard when I return to the U.S. to create the English website for them and to promote their cause throughout North America and Europe.

If you haven't already please have a look at their Japanese website at http://www.banromsai.gr.jp

With Love,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com

May 7th, 2004

Now, I have a bit of time to catch up. Ive been in Chiang Mai the past three days but before I get into Chiang Mai let me explain first that on the 4th of May I took an overnight train from Ayuthaya. The train ride was 12 hours and very pleasant for I bought a ticket for the sleeper car. The sleeper car has upper and lower beds. If in Thailand, and if you are going to travel by overnight train in a sleeper car I recommend the lower bed. The sleeper car was air conditioned and as soon as I got on the train I hoped straight into my bed and pulled the curtain to give myself privacy from the other passengers. Since my bed was already pulled out and made I simply sat on it with my legs crossed beneath me and spent about an hour staring out the window into the dark night as I listened to my M.D. player. I felt like I was in a little nest or a cocoon. Eventually I layed down and stared out the window unable to see very much through my window. I slept pleasantly - althought my body was rocked back and forth with the movements of the train and the metallic door at the end of the car kept banging against its door frame. But, other than the rocking sensation - which actually felt nice at times - and the banging door I slept very well.

The next morning - May 5th - I awoke by the light of the morning sun for I had no curtain to pull over the window. I sat up again and stared out the window watching the thatched homes of rural farmer Thai's pass by. I saw men working along the train tracks as well. Soon enough a train assistant came by and converted my bed back into a proper seat. I spent my last hour on the train sitting on my seat staring out the window.

Funny enough, just as we were about to stop in Chiang Mai, the train assistant sat on the arm of my seat and placed his hand right on my lap as if it was quite normal to do so to a total stranger. Im sure for him and most Thais that this is proper behavior but for me I was very uncomfortable and I assume that he felt that and soon enought removed his hand and carried on.

I got off the train and met up with a Finnish man I had met before boarding the previous night. Together we made for the exit of the train station but we didnt get that far. We were immediately attacked by local Thais trying to whisk us away into their mini-van and to their hotel or guest house. A particular lady did not give up on us and before we knew it we had agreed to take her offer of a ride into town and to see the guest houses she had in store for us. A French-man - who was still waking up - also joined us for the ride into town. The French-man and the Finnish guy both agreed to stay in the same guest house where as I went off to another hotel that my driver took me to.

As soon as I washed up I began my walk into town in search of breakfast but I came across a fellow traveler who was from Mexico. He name was Juan and he was very friendly. After sitting down in an outdoor restaurant he told me about his life and family and Mexico and his travels and adventures in India. It seems that India too is beginning to call to me. I believe that perhaps in a few years my next big journey will be in India, Bhutan, and Nepal. We shall see. Juan loved to talk and I enjoyed listening to him. The best part of what he had to say was that of how much he loved and admired his father. We talked about family and saw eye to eye on many things ranging from spirituality to family to love and the importance of loyalty and respect. We both ended up going off on our dislike of certain Presidents and politicians from the U.S. and Mexico.

Later that afternoon I was able to make contact with the Japanese volunteers at Ban Rom Sai (www.banromsai.gr.jp). Ban Rom Sai is a Children's Home for Thai orphan children who were born with the HIV virus. I made an appointment with Nanako - one of the Japanese volunteers at Ban Rom Sai - to meet at the Tha Phae Gate in Chiang Mai the next day.

In terms of Chiang Mai itself as a travel destination . . . hmmm . . . well. To be honest I did not come to Chiang Mai to see the sites for they do not interest me in the least. I came to work with Ban Rom Sai and begin the process of developing an English website for them. Chiang Mai is a popular destination for many tourists because it is a stepping stone to visiting the northern hilltribes of Thailand as well as going on elephant rides and trekking in the surrounding moutains. It appears that Chiang Mai caters solely to tourists and because of that I dont care for this place at all. There are a few streets - particularly Loi Kroh, Chang Klan, and Thai Phae that look like streets in Wisconsin Dells or Niagara Falls. Tourist travel agency after travel agency abound in all directions here offering package tours of all the over-exploited sites and sounds of northern Thailand as well as package journeys to Luang Prabang in Laos. Prostitution and sex tourism is alive and well in Chiang Mai. There is not a moment that goes by as I walk through Chiang Mai where I dont see a lone Western man on the prowl for a nice young Thai girl. And at night you see western men of all ages either with a Thai girl or two or being sought after by a Thai girl. And it sadly seems that all the restaurants and bars and dance clubs here cater specifically to tourists. There are plenty of shops that sell an array of ethnic Thai, Cambodian, Burmese, and Lao clothing and jewelry. Everything here - I mean everything here - is for the tourists. I think the only great thing that has come of this is Gecko Used Book Store which has been a wonderful heaven for me. I have never seen so many English used books before in Southeast Asia. And here on my desk before me are a few purchases that I have made at the book store. Im sure I will be back tomorrow to buy another book or two.

If you want to come to Chiang Mai and do something that is not so typical of what the tourists come here to do then I recommend that you volunteer your time at the many orphanages that are here in Chiang Mai.

Well, today is the 7th of May both yesterday and today I spent time at Ban Rom Sai (www.banromsai.gr.jp).
As I said before Ban Rom Sai is a Children's home for Thai orphan children who were born with the HIV virus.

It is estimated that about 1 in every 60 Thai's have the HIV virus. It is estimated that more than 50% of all Thai prostitutes are infected with the HIV virus. Tourism brings 4 billion U.S. dollars to Thailand every year and is directly responsible for the economic miracle that Thailand has achieved in the past two decades. Since the beginning the the Vietnam war Thailand had become known as a Sex mecca for G.I.'s and now Sex tourists from the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan, Malaysia, and other Asian and Western countries. Oddly though the Thai government says very littly publicly about their AIDS crisis. And you may ask why? Well, to be honest they do not want to scare away the Sex tourists that come here to fulfill their sexual fantasies with little Thai girls and boys. Sex tourists bring in a large portion of the 4 billion dollars that are made in the Thai tourism industry. All over Thailand I have come across offers and shops that offer sex, sex, sex. It is impossible to travel through this country and not be confronted with the vibrant prostitution industry here.

And the result of all this. Simply said AIDS is spreading like a wild fire in Thailand and Southeast Asia. And Western and Asian Sex tourists are coming here and getting infected and taking the HIV virus back to their home countries - to their wives, their girlfriends, and even their future children.

Since there is a fear of HIV/AIDS among Sex tourists there is a high demand for incredibly young girls who are bought by Thai pimps for ridiculously little amounts of money from their parents in the rural poor areas of Thailand. The younger the girl and the more likely she is a virgin the better she will sell for a night's pleasure to a middle class Western man. What does this say about the West? I should also mention that Burmese girls are also in demand by Thai pimps and are smuggled into Thailand from the Golden Triangle (the northen border of Thailand). Since Burma is so politically isolated fromt the rest of the world HIV/AIDS has not had a chance to have a strong foot hold in the country. As a result Burmese girls - who are all believe by the Thai's and the Sex tourists - to be devoid of any STD's are in high demand.

And who is to pay for all this? Children. "Every year over 7,000 HIV positive Thai women give birth and 30% of their babies are born with the virus. The typical child born with HIV in Thailand will be orphaned by the age of two and can expect to die by the age of 5. The consequences of poverty and insufficient medical care in Thailand make their time on earth very brief."

I have spent these past two days at Ban Rom Sai learning from the Japanese volunteers there about their organization and playing with the children. There are 27 children at Ban Rom Sai. All of them are HIV positive. There are five infants between the ages of 2 to 3, 11 kindergarten kids between the ages of 4-7, 11 middle school children between the ages of 9 to 10. The children live in a small paradise provided by and cared for by the Ban Rom Sai staff. There are three buildings where the children sleep in rooms for 3 to 4 children. They all have their own beds and closets and clothes. But, they do not have many toys to play with. But, they have plenty of outdoor space to play around. And they have a pool. Nanako - one of the Japanese volunteers who has been working at Ban Rom Sai for the past three years - explained to me that the children used to go to a public pool to swim in and play in. But, when it was discovered by the pool staff that the children were HIV positive they were officially banned from coming to the pool. Luckily Giorgio Armani Japan Inc. donated funds to Ban Rom Sai to build their own private pool where they children are free from fear of discrimination. Nanako also told me that they try to keep the fact that the children are HIV positive from the schools that they attend for fear again of discrimination agains the children for the virus that they carry. I learned that the children were not admitted into a local school due to fear of the virus they carry. As a result the Japanese staff has to drive the children to a school that is farther away than the local one.

There is a Ban Rom Sai office in Tokyo, Japan that organizes events and awareness and raises funds and aquires members to donate to the organization. Right now the majority of the people who donate to Ban Rom Sai are from Japan. This is due in part to the fact that their website is only in Japanese. As a result I will work with friends of mine and any of you out there who may be reading this in the States to begin the process of building an English website for them. I have already bought the domain name for the future English site of www.banromsai.com. I will be returning to the U.S. in August and I will be contacting many friends and family for their support and help. There are many things that the children need to medication, to toys, to clothes, to computers, etc.

They are wonderful children and so well loved by the Japanese and Thai staff. I have taken many pictures of them. It is a wonderful thing to be with them and to play with them and enjoy their laughter, smiles, and hugs. They have so much joy and I am so honestly proud of the Japanese volunteer staff who are working with these children everyday. They are amazing people and true hero's. I have come back to my hotel after working at Ban Rom Sai completely exhausted. I dont know how the staff at Ban Rom Sai keep up their energy and strength everyday. They are amazing and I love them for all the work they have done. They are making a wonderful difference to these children. They have given them a home and a sense of family and a sense of possibility and wonder. Please have a look at the Japanese Ban Rom Sai website. I know you will not be able to read the text but you can search and find the pictures of the staff and children.

Their website is www.banromsai.gr.jp

With Love and Magic,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com

May 6th, 2004

I arrived in Chiang Mai, Thailand yesterday morning via overnight train. The train ride was 12 hours from Ayuthaya and a very pleasant one at that. I bought a ticket for the sleeper car and made sure that I got a lower sleeper for it is more spacious than the upper and has a window which the upper does not. As soon as I got on the train I hoped into my bed which was already prepared for me and sat with my legs crossed staring out into the dark night as the train began its journey into the north of Thailand. All was quiet within my sleeper car. Many of the passengers had boarded the train in Bangkok and were fast asleep or quietly keeping to themselves behind the curtains that provided them some privacy while they either slept or read a book.

I highly recommend travel in Thailand via overnight train as long as you stay in the sleeper car(s). After watching the night view and listening a selection of progressive rock music on my M.D. player I laid down across my bed and allowed my tired body to fall into a deep slumber - which was a bit difficult since the train would rock my body this way and that as it moved along on its tracks - it also didn't help to hear the train door at my end of the car bang heavily and repeatedly against its own door frame.

Regardless of the train rocking and the door banging I slept very well. The rising sun woke me up the next morning - for there is no curtain over the train window. I laid in bed looking out seeing the tops of trees pass me by. Soon enough I sat up and watched my window-vision which was permanently stuck on the moving landscape channel. I saw small villages of thatched homes on stilts - much like the homes that I saw in the rural areas of Myanmar and Thai men working along the tracks clearing land or burning dried grass.

About an hour before arriving in Chiang Mai a Thai train attendant converted my sleeper into formal train seats. I sat and awaited for my arrival to Chiang Mai. And then, just as we arrived, the same Thai train attendant say on the arm of my seat and rested his hand on my leg as if it was completely normal to touch a stranger. Im sure it was normal for him but I was not comfortable with his hand on my leg at all and soon enough he got up and began assisting the other passengers unload their things.

As is always expected for a traveler arriving in a Thai bus station or train station - there were Thai men and women running up to all us backpackers - there were quiet a few of us that got off the train - trying to persuade us to go to their hotel. I wanted to find my guest house on my own but I finally gave into a Thai lady who would not give up on me. She promised me a nice hotel room complete with air-con and TV for 400 baht. She whisked me away to her driver and with a guy I met from Finland and France we were driven to our guest house's.

I reviewed my room first before agreeing to stay at the Winner Inn which is located beyond the South-eastern corner of the old Chiang Mai city. As soon as I began unpacking a bit in my room I received a phone call in my room, Odd?, I thought. I picked up the receiver and heard a male Thai voice that said, "Hello, Sir. I want to give you a map. Can you come down?" "Sure," I replied without thinking. After locking up all my important belongings again into my bag I went downstairs to see who this guy was.

He asked me to sit down at a hotel restaurant table and it was immediately clear that he wanted to sell me some tourist trekking tour or elephant ride just outside Chiang Mai. I could give a shit for I did not come to Chiang Mai for the very, very typical travel tours that tourists do of the surrounding Thai villages that are composed of the Thai ethnic tribes and so forth. I quickly shot down this Thai tour guide and returned to my room.

After taking a proper shower I left my hotel in search of breakfast and soon ran into a Mexican traveler named Juan. He approached me and after speaking a bit of Spanish he decided to join me on my search for breakfast.

We soon found a place and as I ate he told me all about the PRI party and the work his father does in Mexico. As he spoke I recalled bits and pieces of news that I had seen or read of certain events that he was referring to. I spent most of the day with him talking about everything from Yoga to his travels in India to my travels in Burma to our families to the importance of respect and loyalty in all relationships.

Well, today is the 6th of April and after spending the morning walking around Chiang Mai I must tell you that I am not impressed or pleased with what I see here. Thailand is being completely run over my tourists. There are streets here that look like streets in Niagara Falls or Wisconsin Dells in the States -super cheesy touristic shops and restaurants. All one one city corner block - just a block or two from the Tourist Information Center - there is a McDonald's, Starbucks, and Haagan Daaz Ice Cream shop. And if you look a bit down from this corner you will see a Pizza Hut and 31 Flavors Ice Cream Shop. There is also a strip along Loi Kroh road has several German restaurants complete with German flags, German beer, and Thai staff dressed like German hill people - its ridiculous!!! And there are tourists everywhere ready to shop at the many clothing stores here for exotic articles of pants and shirts that have a Thai feel to them, although all the clothing sold here has been completely altered from their traditionalness to the design needs of foreigners. But, Im sure there are a few shops that due sell the genuine article . . . but I doubt they sell well. And the restaurants. It seems that nearly all of them except VISA and MASTERCARD. There are Italian restaurants, Mexican restaurants, Japanese restaurants, and everything else. I am only getting the sense that this city thrives and depends heavily on tourism. And at night there is no shortage of bars that cater only to foreigners; complete with billiard tables, beer, and Thai women ready and waiting to be picked up. And there is no shortage of foreign adult men here in Chiang Mai. All morning all I have seen are foreign adult men walking into and out of their hotels.

To be honest it is my opinion that Thailand has lost itself in its quest for the tourist's dollar. Tourism brings 4 billion U.S. dollars a year to Thailand; and it is very apparent in Chiang Mai. There are tourist travel agencies providing one or two or three day journeys all around the northern regions of Thailand all over Chiang Mai. And because tourists have come and continue to come by the train/bus/airplane load the exotic essence which was the first reason why tourists began coming here is being lost. Soon Chiang Mai and the rest of Thailand will feel no different from a resort in Hawaii. So the tourists of the future will turn to others Southeast Asian countries in search of the exoticness that is being wiped away from Thailand. Soon, Laos and Myanmar will become hot tourist travel destinations. But, this is a sad thing to see. Foreigners here in Thailand are beginning to say that in 5 years time Laos will also begin loosing the "innocence" that makes it so special. It looks like Myanmar will be the last of the Southeast Asian nations to fall to armies of marching tourists who travel knowing very little about the country they are venturing off to.

Well, I didnt come to Chiang Mai for its tourist offerings. I came to visit an orphanage run by Japanese volunteers. The orphanage is a hospice for Thai children born HIV positive. They have a website at http://www.banromsai.gr.jp. The site is in Japanese and I am here to begin the process of creating an English website with the aid of my friend Pete Mitchell so that they can begin getting attention and help from English speaking nations and individuals. When I return to the U.S. I will begin the process of putting this English website together for Ban Rom Sai. If you would like to help in any way you may contact me at thedragonbone@hotmail.com

Sincerely,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com

May 4th, 2004

I'm in Ayuthaya, Thailand which is just north of Bangkok. I was in Bangkok for 6 days. A lot longer than I expected. I am fully recovered from my illness in Myanmar so now the journey to the north of Thailand begins. I must share with you an act of God - or coincidence - which ever you would like to call it - while I was in Bangkok.

The story goes as follows.
On my second day in Myanmar I met Manuela very briefly. She is from Hamburg, Germany and had been traveling in Myanmar for nearly a month. We exchanged emails in the hope of meeting up in Bangkok. As soon as I arrived back in Bangkok we emailed each other and met up and spent several enjoyable days together. On one particular day - Saturday - April 1st - Manuela wanted to go to the Chatuchak market which is north of Bangkok. The market, which is extremely large, is only open on the weekend. Manuela was on a mission to find and buy Swatch copies in the market in the hopes of selling them for a profit back in Germany on Ebay. We arrived at the market and discovered thousands of Thai's and farangs (foreigners) shopping for copy-cat brand names. We searched high and low for these Swatch watches with no luck but funny enough I ran into Angela Nichols in the market. Angela is a good friend of mine who I had known during my three and a half year stay in Tokyo. She is a wonderful artist and I am proud to have three of her paitings in my parent's and sister's home back in the States. Her paintings are very vibrant and up-lifting - just like Angela. We were both shocked and completely amazed to have found each other again in such a place as the Chatuchak market in Bangkok. Angela left Tokyo at the end of January and I left at the end of March. Both of us thought that it would be a few years before we ever saw each other again but there we were, standing before each other in this giant market in Bangkok. What a small world, ne?

Angela was with her friend Laura and I got Laura's cell number and later met up with them near Nana station and then for dinner in Little Arabia which is also near Nana station. After dinner we smoked from Turkish pipes in a Arabic styled cafe. I got buzzed from the tabacco and ended up beaming with a wide smile for most of the night.

Well, now, here I am in Ayuthaya. I am at this internet cafe killing time for I have to wait to take my overnight train to Chiang Mai. Ayuthaya makes for a great day trip or overnight stay from Bangkok. It was originally the Thai capital until 1767 when the Burmese invaded and destroyed it. The town is kind of on an island surrounded by a river and full of temples both on the island and off it. Many of these temples in one respect or another reminded me much of the temples that I saw in Bagan, Myanmar but also I saw some very unusual temples that looked like the type of temples that I would expect to see in Angkor Wat in Cambodia. The main attraction for me to come to Ayuthaya was Wat Phra Mahathat which is a giant red-brick temple ruin but curiously enought there is a stone Buddha head that was probably severed from its statue body during the Burmese invasion. The stone head fell onto the base of a Banyan tree and now, centuries later, the head has been embedded into the growing branch veins of the tree. It is quiet a remarkable site.

Well, let's see if I can finish up my Myanmar thoughts . . .

Inle Lake, Myanmar - April 21, 2004
The wonderful thing about Inle Lake is that it lies high up in the mountains where it is cool. It was a relief to be in a cooler climate from the heat that Aung and I had to endure on our journey there. I was staying at a pleasant and quiet hotel that Aung recommended over another hotel that he claimed was haunted in the town of Nyaungshwe.

After breakfast Aung drove me to the river where I met a man who was to be my guide around Inle Lake for the day. My guide and I got onto a very long and thing wooden boat and our boat driver manuevered the boat out of the pier and away we went south into Inle Lake.

Our first stop was Kaungdaing which was the site of a 5 day market (meaning every five days villagers from around the day would coverge on the site to sell, buy, and bargain). Before arriving at the market by foot, after we parked out boat, we saw men, women, and monks gambling. My guide explained that I should not take any pictures since it was illegal in Myanmar to gamble. There were two games that people were gambling on. The first was composed of three very large dice (perhaps the size of one's head). The sides of the dice had colorful paintings of animals on them. the dice were held up against a wooden type wall and after people had placed their bets the dice we released onto the ground and whoever was able to bet on the three correct sides of the dice won. The other game composed of a type of dice again that would be spun and then quicly covered by a bowl so that no one could see which side of the dice was facing up. People would bet on the side of the dice and then the bowl was lifted to reveal who won.

The market itself was very interesting to see. A lot of different foods and spices were being sold. There was fresh fish, skinned chickens and pigs, grounded red peppers, mounds of a very salty paste, dried fishes for snacking on, tofu, and everything else your mind can imagine at an out-door rural market. There were also hygenic items beign sold such as soap and the branches of the tree bark that women used to make the cream that they would apply to their faces everyday. Weights and measures were always being used in the market. It was a very curious and wonderful site of activity.

From there my guide and I hoped back onto out boat and went to a village of homes that were built on stilts over the lake. The village I believe was called Seko. There I met two blacksmiths that were working with several other boys in fashioning tools used by villagers all around the lake. They produced knives, fishing spears, hoes and other equipment for farming, and gongs and tea kettles. I was very intrigued by their work of cutting scrap metal, heating it, molding it with the aid of the boys who would hammer down the red hot pieces of metal, and so forth.

From there we hopped onto our boat again and headed south down the lake to Inbawkon. Along the way I saw fields and fields of tomotoes being worked on and attended to by farmers. These fields sat on the marches of the lake and farmers would sit on the boats gliding from one row of crops to the other. There were also farmer out near their fields and in the middle of the lake racking up the underwater plants from the lake and piling them onto their boats. These plants they would use as natural fertilizer for their crops. I also saw these farmer paddling their boats employing a curious technique of wrapping their leg around their paddle and paddling and steering their boat with a single motion. I got this on film show :)

In Inbawkon I went into a silk weaving factory. Everything was made by hand and I spent quite a bit of time simply looking at the women work their looming machines trying to see exactly how the created the patterns in the cloth they were making. I also saw a girl cutting open lotus flower stems and spooling a natural thread from them with the aid of water. I was absolutely amazed by this and later saw a lovely scarf made from these lotus stems.

From there we took our boat on a slow cruise through another village built on stilts over the Lake to observe the daily life of these people. I smiled at them with fascination as they smiled at me with wonderment. Some of the pictures I took here I am particularaly fond of, especially one I took of a very young girl sitting on her boat with a beautiful and slightly chubby smile.

From there I believe I had lunch and then we stopped in Nampan to see natural paper and umbrellas being made. I didnt really care for this for I have seen paper being made in the traditional fashion before but I was amazed to learn that they used a specific berry to waterproof their umbrellas. Amazing that everything we need for our tools and products can all be found in our natural surroudings without the aid of chemicals and factories. This waterproofing berry simply blew me away.

From there we went to Phaung Daw U Kyaung which is a famed temple in Myanmar for 5 golden Buddha statues that they have. But, what you will see are not 5 golden Buddha statues but 5 golden balls. In all the working temples in Myanmar a devotee can purchase paper thing slivers of pure gold - the size of a U.S. quarter coin - and press it onto a Buddha statue. What happened to these 5 golden buddhas is that over the centuries so many of these thin layers of gold have been pressed onto them that they no longer appear as statues but as golden balls.

My guide led me up to the 5 golden balls to see them up close. Then he ran down toward some women and tok their offerings of gold and placed them onto the statues for them. Women are not allowed to approach most Buddha statues and holy sites. I guess Buddha wasnt much one for the feminist movement. I also saw a boy all dressed in pink garments and with a face painted up in make-up. I first thought that he was a boy and then assumed that he was a girl because of how he was dressed. But my guide explained that indeed it was a boy. They boy was at the temple with his family celebrating his journey into monkhood that would commence the next day. They family was so proud of him and I later saw him on his own boat that was decorated and blasting traditional Burmese music. He sat in the middle of his boat on a throne of a chair.

From there we stopped by a monastary where I was able to play a bit of football (soccer) with some fellow monks who were all half my age.

Then we made it to our last stop - Nga Phe Kyaung, which is also known as Jumping Cat Monastary. The temple was dark and relaxing inside. A nice breeze off the lake would flow in and men and women sat or laid lazily all around the temple as children played outside. Soon enough a monk threw dried fish crumbs to a group of temple cats and then held out a metal ring that the cats would eagerly jump up and through.

Later that night Aung took me to the home of his friends. He was dressed up - which was unusual - and full of joy. I later learned that he had been in the markets shopping and cooking for me for most of the day. It was a very kind gesture on his part. We arrived at his friends house and I saw a table with candles laid out on it. He poured me some Burmese rum - ? - and then the feast began. This is the beginning of the end for me. The Burmese family was incredibly nice - it was actually the family of the guide who took me around Inle Lake. I learned from my guide that he had lived and worked in Malaysia and in Thailand, in Bangkok to be exact. He had lived independently and enjoyed his life but his father had passed away and he had to return to Myanmar to care for his mother. He confessed that he missed working in the factories in Malaysia and Thailand and wished to return for he did not like working as a guide around Inle Lake. He also confessed that his brother had died five years ago from a heroin addiction and that heroin was a big problem in the Shan state.

The eastern portions of the Shan state are not fully controlled by the Myanmar military government. There are independent drug lords who police their own areas and opperate independently of the Myanmar government. They export their poppy seeds turned into heroin products into China and Thailand. Unfortunately Thai pimps also buy Burmese girls in this area and sell them to brothels in Chiang Main and in Bangkok.

The Shan state also has 5 distinct ehtnic groups: The Inda, Pao, Shan, Danu, and the Wa head hunters. I saw a few Pao women in Inle Lake. The Pao always where black garments with any color headware they desire. The Pao women I must confess are beautiful.

Getting back to dinner. The Burmese family I was with kept filling my plate with fish, rice, and all other dishes they could find to give me until I was simply beyond stuff. I felt so sick by the time I ate my last spoon-full of food. I ate and ate so as not to be rude to them. I constantly told them how good the food was. But, that was a mistake. They took that as a sign to keep feeding me. Finally, dinner was over and Aung dropped me off at my hotel and I told him how happy I was to eat what he had prepared. I then went into my room and tried to rest but my stomach was very upset. To make a long story short I spent most of the night either on the toilet or vomiting into the sink. Thank God no one was there to see or smell the horrors in my bathroom that night.

April 22nd, 2004 - Inle Lake to Bagan
This was a long journey by car, about 8 hours or so. It was on this journey that I came across beggars for the first time in Myanmar. Aung and I had lunch in a town along the way (I couldnt eat much) and when we approached our car I saw an very old woman come up to me holding out her hand. Then a boy came and I thought the two were together. I gave some money to the boy and he ran off. The woman kept holding out her hand. I told her that I had nothing left to give her and the boy, now across the street, called up with pride making fun of the old lady and her inability to get any money from me. I then got into the car and we left.

When we arrived at our hotel in Bagan I simply went straight to my room to rest. I was still very sick and suffering from severe diaherrea.

April 23rd to 24th, 2004 - Bagan
During these two days I explored as many of the temples as I could bare to see in the desert landscape of the Bagan region. There are over 2,000 temples and chedi's dotting the area in literally all directions. Anywhere you walk or drive in Bagan you see temple after temple. Many of these temples were built nearly 1,000 to 800 years ago. The beginnings of the temples started with the King Anawrahta who conquered the area in 1057 A.D. and imported as many artists, artisans, builders, monks, and Buddhist scriptures as he could afford. I have a mountain of pictures from Bagan and will simply put these pictures up when I develop a site to this journey. There were simply too many temples that I saw for me to go into any detail about now.

But, I must saw that Bagan is a place of magic. Especially during sun set. You can climb one of the numerous temples and sit and relax barefoot - for you are not allowed to set a single shoe onto the temple grounds - and look out into the horizon to see temples dotting the area. Bagan is a ghost of its former self and it is said that many of the temples are haunted. In fact I saw a ghost! Well, not personally but funny enought Dhammayazika Paya (Temple) there is a photo that a Frenchmen took only a couple of years ago and right there in the photo there is an image of a man that should not be there . . . it was a photo of a ghost. And it was a bit frightful to see this image.

All right. I am pretty much caught up on Myanmar. After Bagan Aung and I went south to Pyay for a night and then back to Yangon.

There are thousands of little moments that I had in Myanmar that I will one day put down to paper.

For now stay tuned for my travels into Northern Thailand . . . and soon Laos.

Sincerely,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com

May 2, 2004

I can't believe it's already May 2nd. I need to get moving. I will depart Bangkok tomorrow (the 3rd) and continue my journey home. I just read an email from my friend Aaron who is currently living and working in Switzerland. He offered some very true comments that I would like to share.

" . . . I've heard recently that Cambodia and Vietnam have changed a lot. Backpackers wearing dumb shirts saying, "Beware of Landmines: Cambodia," as if that's cool. Well, I think you'll enjoy those places anyway.

"I felt the same way as you at times. Why does everything have to be homogenized, globalized, and americanized? Well for better or for worse, people want prosperity and security, so right now that means skyscrapers and McD's. Nevertheless, the cosmetic changes that happen in a society are often only skin deep though. Thais will always be Thais and do Thai things, even in big shopping malls with Gaps and Kmart. Just like Japan- a very Americanized country, but it's stilll very Japanese- the Japanese pysche remains strongly in place, even in little Japanese boys and girls want american stuff, they will be Japanese, and their parents have enjoyed the postwar prosperity- and when Yankees like us step off at Narita, the familiar signs of 7-11 are not really enough to make us feel at home."

What Aaron said is true and now that I have been in Bangkok for nearly a week I'm not as despised by it as when I first arrived here from Myanmar. Currently I'm reading a book entitled Night Market by Ryan Bishop and Lillian S. Robinson. The book takes a very strong and sharp critical look at the Sex Trade in Thailand and the effect it has had on the Thai economy and its own people. It is impossible to walk through this city and not see farang - foreign - men in their 30's, 40's, 50's, and 60's with a Thai prostitute attached to their arm. It is simply everywhere. What is the attraction for these men to travel half-way around the world to have their sexual fantasies fulfilled. How pathetic are they? And considering that about 50% of all Thai prostitutes are HIV positive how much of AIDS is being spread in the West by these western men who come to Thailand for sexual bliss? But there are also Japanese men and Malaysian Muslim men here as well pouring millions of dollars into the 4 billion dollar tourism industry here in Thailand. They come for sex tourism. And how many of these foreign men who come here for fun are married and get infected with an STD and bring it back to their wives, girlfriends, and spouses? Will Bangkok reach sky-high HIV infections just as South Africa? They are sure on the way. And the sad thing is is that since HIV is such a problem here among the prostitution rings, Go Go bars and such the demand for young (ages 12 to 14) virgin country Thai girls is extremely high. And the Burmese, living in a closed country, have women that are strongly sought after by Thai pimps because Burma - to them - is a land devoid of HIV. So health problems will be a major issue in Thailand in the future. It is obvious that HIV here will become epidemic - out of control - and taking its toll on the prospering Thai economy which is due in most part to Sex Tourism.

The local Thai's despise the Sex industry in their country. If they could have it their way they would shut it down for it does not reflect proper Thai thought and behavior. But, do the politicians and government officials really care? Corruption is here as in any country. As long as the BIG bucks continue to flow in from pathetic foreign men flying here for a sexual joyride the Sex Trade will continue to thrive here. But, the Sex Trade is much bigger than just Thailand. The Japanese yakuza - mafia - have been long patrons of the industry in both their own country and throughout Asia and Southeast Asia. The yakuza imports Thai, Russian, Eastern European, Chinese, girls from the Philippines, and where ever else into Japan for their own red-light districts.

What an interesting world we live in.

Taungoo to Inle Lake, Myanmar - April 20th

The ride from Taungoo to Inle Lake was a rough one. The journey was a long one - about 8 hours if I recall. And along the journey I began to see the landscape change drastically from a dry green into a vast desert. Cactuses, shrubs, and scattered trees dotted the terrain. The road to Inle Lake was only one lane and falling apart from years of neglect. And if there was a small pond or body of water we were sure to see Water Buffalos bathing lazily and staying cool.

Along this path there is a community of Indians. The style of dress began to change among the locals we saw from the traditional Burmese longyi (sarang) to bright and beautiful Indian clothing. This is something I have noticed on my travels; strong economic countries encouraging their citizens to wear boring colors of clothing. Go to New York or Tokyo and everyone is in a suit of black and white and grey. But, go to a poor country like Burma and you will see that people wear bright and vibrant clothing. Why is that? Why have we westerners repressed the bright and vibrant colors from our wardrobe. In ancient times vibrant colors were strongly sought after by Kings and Queens and nobles. Odd, that we Westerners, with the power and money to import whatever dyes needed for interesting colors do not. We settle for blue, black, grey, and white.

Aung soon enough pulled the car over to the shoulder of the road so that we could stop and have some Toddy juice. Toddy trees look like tall palm trees and Burmese farmers extract juice from them and leave them out to ferment. In a day or two the juice will ferment into a light alcoholic beverage preferred by all Burmese farmers. I had three glasses and felt a slight buzz that gave me a nice smile for a portion of the journey north to Inle Lake.

Inle Lake lies in the eastern mountains of Burma. Aung drove our taxi slowly through the constant and dangerous curves of the mountains. Then, we began having car trouble. The car kept stalling and stalling. I wasn't really worried for some reason. I was curious to see - if we did get stuck - how we would get out of our situation. But, we didn't. Aung pulled the car over twice and worked on the engine. We still had a bit of trouble but then luckily we came across a Nat shrine dedicated to cars and safe travels on the road. Aung immediately pulled the car toward the shrine and advanced and retreated the car from the shrine as he chanted. Then we heard the caretaker of the shrine begin howling her chants behind our car. She then approached us and Aung gave a donation to her. She then explained that there was a Buddhist monk that needed a ride. Aung and I both jumped and said that we would be more than happy to have the monk ride with us - we were both selfishly thinking that a Buddhist monk in our car would only bring us good luck and cease our car troubles for the day.

The monk was a curious old fellow. He was perhaps in his late 70's. His skin was a very dark brown and he only had a few teeth left in his mouth. He had a pleasant smile. Who knew what he thought of me. I must have been as curious to look at as he was for me.

Then we were off and we did not have any more car troubles for the day. About 30 to 40 minutes later the monk told us to stop and we dropped him off. Aung and I decided to allow the car to rest under the shade of a tree. We had stopped in a small village. All the children soon gathered around me. I pulled out my digital camera and began filming them and then showed them the images that I had recorded. They were absolutely fascinated by my camera and all they could do when they saw themselves in the small monitor of my camera was laugh hysterically. I then decided to begin making them all paper airplanes. And before Aung and I left I gave them the pad of paper I was using to make the planes and a few pens and breath mints.

Aung and I arrived in Inle Lake before night fall. We checked into our hotel and later had local Myanmar food.

I will be departing Bangkok tomorrow so I will continue to discuss the journey through Myanmar in the coming days. For now I must go.

From the East,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com