Reading Binge

I just finished reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, a new book that was recommended by my friend Margaux in Paris. This book has been creating a big buzz this year, selling more than five million copies around the world. Originally written in Swedish, copies have been translated into several languages, including English. Sadly, after writing the three books in this trilogy and delivering the manuscripts to his publisher, the author, Stieg Larsson, died of a heart attack in 2004 at the relatively young age of fifty. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo more than lives up to the hype; it’s a stunning thriller packed with plot twists and memorable characters, most especially Lisbeth Salander, the anti-social computer hacker/security specialist; a tattooed lady you don’t want to underestimate. I’m looking forward to translations of the other two books in the series.

I also just finished the new Paul Theroux book, Ghost Train to the Eastern Star, one that I mentioned in a post last week. As in Theroux’s other travel books, this one is full of funny, wicked, and accurate observations about the people and places that he visits. I don’t agree with all of Theroux’s comments, but if nothing else, he shares his opinions without glossing over anything. During this trip he takes the train from Bangkok to Nong Khai, and across the border to Vientiane, Laos. Theroux had visited the city back in the early 70s, when it was a “wide-open town” catering to US soldiers during the Vietnam War. But on this trip, he encountered “no more than a dusty riverside town, with warm weather and friendly people and a government with obscure intentions.” Theroux ends up leaving town “satisfied that the depraved Vientiane of whores and stoners I had known was gone, replaced by a Vientiane of budget travelers and backpackers.” Come on Paul, give the new Vientiane a chance! Granted, Vientiane is a sleep burg these days, but I think it’s unfair to stereotype it as nothing more than a boring backpacker ghetto.

During his train journey back to Bangkok, Theroux meets an American woman who is “unofficially” working as missionary in Thailand, “spreading the word.” Theroux tells her that, in his opinion, Thais have plenty of spirit already. “Not Christian spirit. They need Jesus” is the woman’s response. At this point, Theroux can’t contain himself any longer. “What is it with you people?” he challenges the sandwich-chomping Jesus freak. I certainly share his perplexed rage. Why do these missionary sorts feel the need to go around other countries (usually ones that they perceive as “Third World”) trying to “save” people who they think are heathens?

Another city that Theroux returned to was Yangon, then known as Rangoon, in Myanmar. In his description of the city this time around he writes: “Soldiers were everywhere, even in the sepulchral back streets. It looked pessimistic, unlucky, and badly governed. It had no bounce. It was a city without visible ambition: no challenge, no defiance.” No bounce? I would certainy debate that and some of his other observations. Each visitor no doubt has a different take on what they see, but to say that soldiers are “everywhere” is just plain wrong. Unless a vistor happened to time their visit during a rare public demonstration or the anniversary of such an event, they are not going to see troops in the streets. In fact, it’s quite rare to see a military presence around town at all. But Theroux redeems himself in the Myanmar chapter by detailing a very generous act he performed while in Mandalay. It’s a very touching moment, one of the highlights in the book.

In other travels, Theroux revisits his old stomping grounds in Singapore (he worked there as a University lecturer for three years) and is horrified by the changes that made the city “unrecognizable” to him. He lobs his biggest batch of verbal grenades at former Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yew. In one pargraph Theroux calls him “a cold and single-minded control freak, a puritanical, domineering know-it-all, oddly resentful in the things he says; and Singapore society reflects everything in Lee’s personality.” Later in the same chapter Theroux continues his tirade: “Lee is a vain and domineering patriarch, and with the passing years he sounds more and more like the head of a cult than a political leader. Theroux also takes aim at how Lee has aged: “He had … withered, almost simian features --- not the thuggish scowl of a Triad chieftain he’d had when I’d last seen him, but a pinched and unforgiving look that I associated with unhappy captives, like a caged thing scowling through bars.” Ouch! Theroux certainly sounds like he can’t wait to get the hell out of Singapore. But before the chapter is over, he notes: “And here is the contradiction. Everyone I met in Singapore treated me with the utmost courtesy. I was driven around by the sweetest most solicitous people I’d met on my whole trip.”

The rest of the book is full of more pro and con travel summaries: he likes Istanbul and Hanoi, but isn’t crazy about Phnom Penh or Kunming. He hangs out with fellow writers Orhan Pamuk in Turkey, and Haruki Murakami and Pico Iyer in Japan. All in all, this is another fascinating addition to the ouvre of Paul Theroux.

09:57 PM PDT Permalink |

Across the Border

I’ve been thinking about Myanmar a lot --- yes, once again --- this week, after a series of visits and e-mails from friends. My French friend Patrick is currently travelling in Myanmar with one of his pals from France. He was kind enough to deliver a repaired laptop to one of my friends in Yangon, in addition to a small package for another friend in Bagan, and some photos for waiters at a restaurant in Mandalay. Thankfully, Patrick has been a willing and cooperative courier, and has sent me progress reports every few days. After a week in the Mandalay area (including a trip to see the hill station town of Pyin U Lwin --- dubbed Maymyo by the Brits during their colonial occupation) he is currently in Bagan. He’s trying to get to the beach town of Chaungtha but has been told that there are currently travel restrictions in that area.

Bangkok resident Mick Shippen, another contributor the To Myanmar with Love book from Things Asian Press, is heading over to Myanmar this week also. Mick has travelled there before, wandering off the beaten track to explore pottery-making villages along the Ayeyarwady River. I’ll be looking forward to hearing about where his latest ramblings take him.

Another traveler I met recently, Michelle from the US, just returned from a month-plus (she ended up having to pay a small over-stay fine) trip to Myanmar. She mainly stayed in the Yangon area and took a meditation course while she was there. I met her last month, just a day after I had returned from my own Myanmar adventure. Michelle had been contacted by my friend Laurie Weed in California who wanted to send some money to Jyotish at the Growing Together preschool in Yangon. The school building had sustained damages after the cylone in May and Laurie wanted to donate some money for repairs. So, Laurie sent the money to me via Western Union and I picked it up the day I got back from Myanmar. The following day, Michelle met me at my bookshop and I gave her the money for the school. I also handed her another envelope with money, to give to another one of my friends in Yangon who assisting some upcountry schools. It wasn’t exactly high finance, and changing money from dollars to baht to (and back to dollars again in some cases) to kyat was a bit confusing, but we managed to get all the funds distributed!

But the books remain. About three weeks I received two large boxes of children’s books from Biblionef (www.biblionef.org) in the Netherlands. They aren’t for my shop, but are donations for the Kuthodaw Library in New Bagan. Now, I have to figure out a way to get them there. The plan is take them to Win Thuya in Yangon (he started this community library two years ago), who in turn will make arrangements to get them to the library in New Bagan. The problem, of course, is that there are a lot of books and we have to deal with the airline baggage limits. We can certainly take the whole lot over, but that would mean paying overweight bag fees.

From an online bookseller in Australia, this very detailed description of the condition of a secondhand book they are offering:
“Tan coloured boards with black titles to the backstrip. Bumping to the head and to the heel of the backstrip and a little rubbing to the corners. Browning and foxing to the top text block edges and browning to the other text block edges. Light browning to the internal text to the first two and last few pages. Illustrated dustwrapper (wraparound) with yellow and dark brown titles to the front panel and dark brown titles to the backstrip. Rubbing and chipping to the dustwrapper corners and to the head and to the heel of the backstrip. Rubbing either side of the backstrip region and a little rubbing to the top right-hand corner of the front dustwrapper panel. There is a 0.75" tear to the top right-hand corner of the front panel and a tear measuring 1" x 1" to the top edge of the backstrip. A faint hint of browning to the dustwrapper. More noticeable browning to the verso of the dustwrapper.”

That enough information for you? Well, you certainly would know what you’re getting. But if most people simply read that paragraph, without any preface, it’s likely that wouldn’t have any idea it was about books. After reading that description, I would hesitate to ask this bookseller the simplest of questions. Even something as innocuous as “How’s the weather today?” would trigger a flood of adjectives.

11:08 PM PDT Permalink |

Off the Rails

I found a copy of the new Paul Theroux book; Ghost Train to the Eastern Star at Kinokuyniya this week. I debated buying it --- it was one of those expensive hardcovers after all --- but decided it might be several months before I saw a used copy pass through my shop, so I forked out the baht and bought it. Ghost Train to the Eastern Star is another of Theroux’s train travel tomes, this one retracing the route (most of it, anway; he couldn’t get a visa to visit Iran this time) he took 33 years previously; a trip detailed in his landmark book, The Great Railway Bazaar. I’m only about a hundred pages into this one, but like most of Theroux’s travel collections, it’s entertaining and insightful. I’m looking forward to reading the latter chapters, in which Theroux travels though Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar. By the way, the author photo on the book’s dust jacket (inside the back cover) was taken by Yingyong Un-Aanongrak of the Bangkok Post when Theroux was in town last year.

In politics, the American presidential candidates were trying to demonstrate their moral credentials at a “Forum on Faith” earlier this week. The fact that such a forum was big news speaks volumes about the power that superstitious religion nuts have in American politics --- and in every realm of American society. It’s a shame, but that’s the reality of running for office: you have to profess your faith, and do so loudly, if you want the masses to vote for you. Here in Thailand all the candidates have to do is pay off the voters (and take care of the village chief!) and they are assured of getting elected. No messy religious ceremonies or prayerful declarations to a higher power necessary; just keep the whiskey flowing! People may ridicule the Thai style, but what about the method of electing people that is done in “sophisticated” Western countries? Think about the obscene amounts of money that the candidates have spent in the USA this year running for president. And don’t you think the winner will be indebted to a few special interest groups after the election is all over? And what about the voting process itself? It strikes me as utterly absurb that America doesn’t have a single consistent way of casting ballots. That’s right; it’s up to each individual state to pick the method (usually some sort of machine; some of which are prone to malfunctions) that is used. After the debacles in the last two US general elections (remember those “hanging chads” in Florida), you would think there would be a demand for international election observers to keep an eye on polling stations around the country. But no, that wouldn’t be the “American way,” would it?

Among the many books being sold or exchanged in my shop this week, there were a half-dozen old Mad magazine books from the 1970s. These aren’t the comics, but paperback collections of Mad favorites from the likes of Don Martin, William Gaines, and other zany contributors to the beloved humor publication. If you were an American teenage boy in the late 60s through the mid 70s, Mad was the coolest magazine (other than Penthouse or Hustler; but those were best kept under the mattress) to read.

Spam mail of the week: “The Incredible Pet Nail Trimmer.” I think this one has hit my inbox at least twice per day every day this week. Hell, at least it’s better than the flood of Viagra ads that usually appear. Are there any people on earth who would actually order a product like a pet nail trimmer? Then again, Bush got elected twice, so there is no doubting the gullibility or sheer stupidity of the general public.

It’s music time! Here’s a rundown of my recent CD purchases (yes, still buying real discs as opposed to downloading tracks online) and albums that are grooving me:
Ry Cooder – I, Flathead
Emmylou Harris – All I Intended to Be
Les McCann – Talkin’ Verve
Lamont Dozier – The ABC Years & Lost Sessions
Ryan Bingham – Mescalito
Death Cab for Cutie – Narrow Stairs
Terry Reid – Superlungs
John Fogerty – Revival
The Orchids – Good to be a Stranger
Mavis Staples – We’ll Never Turn Back
Tabu Ley/Rochereau – The Voice of Lightness: Congo Classics 1961-1977
American Music Club – The Golden Age
Toots and the Maytals – Reggae Legends
John Martyn – Sweet Little Mysteries: The Island Anthology
Foghat – The Definitive Rock Collection
Nils Logren – Back it Up Live! An Authorized Bootleg
Elton John – Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player
George Jones – The Essential
Pure Prairie League – Pure Prairie League/If the Shoe Fits
Webb Wilder – Hybrid Vigor
Rodney Crowell – Diamonds & Dirt
Artful Dodger – Honor Among Thieves
Bram Tchaikovsky – Strange Man Changed Man
Green on Red – Gas Food Lodging
Wild Swans – Bringing Home the Ashes

02:09 AM PDT Permalink |

Reunions and Travels

Things Asian Press has officially released To Vietnam with Love, as part of their exciting new Asian guidebook series. These promise to be much more than standard guidebooks, but collections of personal essays that are designed to give the “passionate traveler” an insider’s perspective of things to see and do in that country. One of my Bangkok friends, Jan Polatschek, has an essay in the Vietnam book. Jan will also have three articles in the next book in the series, To Myanmar with Love, a volume that also includes contributions from yours truly. That book should (I hope, I hope, I hope …) be published in November.
http://www.thingsasianpress.com/books.htm

Meanwhile, Jan is on the road again. Later this week he heads back to his hometown in New York for his 50th high school reunion. After that event is over Jan is planning road trips around the Northeast, one down South (order some grits for me, Jan!), and an additional foray into Central and South America. Eventually, he’ll return to Bangkok in early December, just before the King’s birthday. You can keep track of Jan’s wanderings on his “Travel with Jan” website. See the link on this page under the “Favorites” listings.

The Bangkok Post has several supplements during the week, such as their outstanding “Database” section (focusing on computer and other tech stuff), which appears every Wednesday. Their “Horizons” travel section on Thursdays is also good, but in my opinion is not nearly as interesting with the absence of Don Ross’s column. Other supplements, such as “My Life” and “The Magazine” are mostly a waste of precious newsprint. But the very worst of the bunch is the “Guru” entertainment section that comes with Friday’s paper. It appears geared toward teenagers or twenty-somethings who have nothing better to do than go “clubbing” every night. Ninety percent of the articles appear to have been written by the editor, a fellow whose sense of humor totally escapes me. Why is this drivel still being published?

Friends from the past keep tracking me down, and I’m delighted! Last month I heard from old pal Erick Rostad, who is now living in the Seattle area. He was one of the first customers I met when I opened my record store in Orlando back in 1983. After I moved to Thailand, we lost contact. I would Google his name every so often with no results, but luckily he did the same and found me here at Things Asian. An additional surprise “howdy neighbor” moment came from another past customer, Shannon Donn. She is now a mother and living in Charleston, South Carolina. She and Erick both game me detailed updates on what they’ve been doing this past decade, and I reciprocated with a report of my own. To top that off, Beth Hoefer, the daughter of one of my high school friends (Does this make me feel old? Yes!), David Hoefer, e-mailed me at my store, asking about a Steve Martin book she was looking for. From what I gather, David has done an outstanding job of raising his daughter: she not only reads books and listens to good music (She’s a Beatles fan, which gets bonus points in my book).

09:02 PM PDT Permalink |

Road to Ruin

What year is it again? In the past week --- well, maybe it’s been about a ten-day period --- I’ve seen five different people wearing “Ramones” T-shirts. Perhaps a Ramones revival is about to occur? Now, that would truly be a trend worth embracing. The music may be thirty years old, but it would it easier to digest --- in my opinion --- than the current crap offerings of deravitive hip hop and machine-produced pop. Gabba Gabba Hey!

I paid a visit to the book section of Chatuchak market last week. And no, I didn’t shop there on the weekend, as so many people do. I hate those congested crowds, so I made my excursion on a Wednesday when I didn’t have to deal with the sweaty throngs. Some of the areas of the market are open during the week, including one of my favorite used book vendors, Mr. Dilok. I go there three or four times a year to rummage through the stacks of old books, searching for anything I think will be sellable in my shop. This time around I was looking for more children’s books and I found a good assortment. I also found some other odd treasures, including a Huey Long biography and some old novels by the likes of Hermann Hesse, Iris Murdoch, Jim Harrison and the recently deceased Aleksander Solzhenitsyn. Always a nice mixed bag of treats at that market if you are willing to get your hands dirty (filthy with dust and dirt) and sort through the unorganized piles of books. For me, there are few greater pleasures.

On the way back from my book buying spree I had a particularly friendly taxi driver, one of those guys who was a sheer joy to ride with. He was a talker, but his spiel went beyond the usual “you like Thai lady?” drivel, plus he was very polite and asked good questions. I don’t usually tip taxi drivers much, but I made an exception for this man. Plus, his taxi smelled good, thanks to one of those jasmine garlands hanging from the rear view mirror. One of those “classic” fragrances that brings to mind my very first trip to this magical place called Thailand.

But, oh those wacky Thai nicknames! Is there any other county on earth where the locals use such silly monikors instead of their real names? I started making a list of Thai people that I know and their nicknames. In virtually all cases I only know their nickname, not the real name. Here are a few of my favorites: Beer, Sand, Golf, Palm, Ball, Bank, View, Top, Arm, Night, Ice, Benz, Mars, Off, Nut, Peach, and Boss.

02:00 AM PDT Permalink |

Olympics, Golf, and Politics

The Summer Olympics opened in Beijing this week. Surrounding the events themselves, there is lots of hype about security, pollution in the city, and of course politics. I’m a sports fan, but I’ve become bored and disgusted by the Olympics in recent years (hmm…maybe “decades” would be a better word). For me, the events lost some of their magic when they started allowing professionals, such as NBA basketball players, to compete. And these absurd hi-tech suits that swimmers are now wearing are totally ridiculous. Just give them a loin cloth and let them go. It disgusts me when apparel, “gear,” or other equipment becomes a crucial factor in the competition, giving the athletes a better chance to win.

Despite my disgust for the way that competition has changed, it’s still nice to see athletes from smaller countries winning medals. Thailand is excited today after female weightlifter Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakon (the foreign TV announcers must have done tongue flips trying to pronounce that one!) won a gold medal. Prapawadee is from Nakhon Sawan, a town famous for its many crocodiles. Now, the locals will have something else to boast about!

And in golf, Prayad Marksaeng tied for 15 at the PGA Championship over the weekend, the best finish ever for a Thai golfer in one of golf’s “Major” championships. Hell, it’s rare that a Thai golfer even makes the cut, much less ends up on the leaderboard, so this is big news indeed. Good show, Prayad!

Besides the horrible traffic jams, the other noteworthy blemish to Bangkok last week was the two-day visit by George W. Bush. Yep, America’s outgoing pres stopped off in the Big Mango to rub shoulders (and perhaps other body parts?) with the revitalized Thai government (now thoroughly embracing democracy, right?). Of course Bush couldn’t resist opening his mouth and offering words of “wisdom” and lecturing nearby countries, further inflaming the already open wounds that exist. This guy just doesn’t appear to have any diplomatic skills at all. Good riddance!

08:53 PM PDT Permalink |

Bad traffic and good books

Woke up to rain falling softly outside this morning. Once I was dressed and out the doro, the rain had stopped, but it had succeeded in making the already insufferable traffic gridlock even nastier. Rain or not, it seems like that the traffic jams in Bangkok have been worse than normal this month. One sign that my hunch is correct; I’m seeing lots of Thai people walking down the sidewalk in front of my store. Normally, I see a few stray Thais on the street, but not as many as I’m noticing lately. What’s happening is that traffic is so horribly backed up that many bus riders are disembarking down the street and walking the rest of the way to their destination in the area. My store is close to the Soi 26 intersection and the light can stay red for what seems like ages. Thais are normally very patient, but when it looks like your bus isn’t going to go further than one block in the next hour, many are opting to hoof it.

I was killing time on Monday evening before meeting a friend for dinner. And my number one choice for killing time in the area is visiting the bookshops in the Emporium. This time I was delighted to find the new novels by George Pelecanos and Don Winslow. The Pelecanos book, The Turnaround, was a hardover, but it was discounted enough that the price didn’t sting too badly. I polished off the Pelecanos in a few short days. Obviously I was eager to read it, but it was also a short book, less than 300 pages. I love this guy’s novels, and liked this one as well, but it felt like he rushed the ending or left out detail that could have padded the book or fleshed out some scenes a bit more. I don’t feel cheated, just a bit underwhelmed. Nevertheless, if you haven’t read any Pelecanos books, you are urged to do so. The guy is a great writer and has an uncanny ability to immerse the reader in different American cultures; specifically the Greek-American and African-American communites in Washington D.C., where all of his tales take place. The characters in the books themselves are able to bridge the racial divide thanks to shared interests in things like music and sports.

I just started the Winslow book, The Dawn Patrol, and already it’s hooking me. I’ve read about six or seven books by Winslow at this point and have liked each one very much. Most could be categorized as crime fiction as opposed to true mysteries. Great characters and razor sharp dialogue. This one is set in San Diego and features a bunch of ex-cops and other characters who would rather surf than work. It’ll be another one of those books I finish in a handful of days. Addictive stuff.

I’ve read two travel books by Jonathan Raban and enjoyed them both. The guy is simply a damn good writer. But Raban also written several novels and I just started reading one of them, Surveillance, this week. The novel is set in Seattle, a city in which Raban --- a Brit --- is now living. I’m about halfway through the book and so far I’m very impressed.

04:05 AM PDT Permalink |

Coffee Cravings

I had to make other provisions to satisfy my coffee cravings at my shop last week when our four-year-old coffee machine was getting serviced at the “coffee hospital” for four days. This meant going to the Black Canyon outlet in the nearby Phrom Phong BTS station first thing each morning, buying both an iced coffee and a hot coffee for takeway. I bought the hot one, not only for the extra jolt of caffeine, but also to help melt all the damn ice they put in the cold version. That seems par for the course in restaurants over here: they always overdo the ice, putting in ridiculous levels. My addiction to coffee is a fairly recent thing. I never touched the stuff until I moved to Bangkok twelve years ago. Before that I was strictly an iced tea. Now I have at least two glasses of iced coffee each day. But when I’m on the road, especially in Myanmar, I go back to drinking tea again, and never give coffee a second thought. Maybe it’s something about being surrounded by all these books that makes me want to drink more coffee!

Since our old coffee maker has been ailing, we checked into getting a new machine and were shocked at how expensive even buying a low-end machine has become. Hell, it’s cheaper to go out and buy a new computer, along with a flat screen monitor, than it is to buy a coffee machine. Is it just me, or that ridiculous?

Today got off to a good start thanks to a few nice customers in the morning. One couple from Toronto, making their first trip to Bangkok, dropped by for coffee (yes, the machine is back!). We had a delightful conversation, which included the wonders of street food, and comparing the pace of life in North America versus that in Southeast Asia. They are heading off for a five-day tour of Cambodia later today, followed by a return to Thailand and extra whirlwind week, visiting Chiang Mai and Phuket.

Another new face, Bill from New York, also paid a morning visit. He recently moved to Bangkok, after securing a one-year Non-Immigrant visa at a Thai embassy back in the states. Like the Canadian couple, he too is charmed by Thai customs and culture and loves living here. Like many veteran residents of this city, I can become jaded; talking about how good things “used to be” when I first came here. But despite the occasional unpleasant things (take the case of the idiot youth who knife a taxi driver to death yesterday, attempting to recreate a computer game he enjoyed playing), Bangkok remains an interesting and pleasant place to live.

Interesting and frequently very weird: yesterday we experienced our share of unusual customers and other locals. One old Thai lady sauntered with her basket full of bottled honey. She’s one of those people you hear before you see; loudly proclaiming the merits of her products and urging you to buy. She kept slapping me on the arm, calling me “Pee,” and telling me how delicious her honey tasted. Later that afternoon an elephant came trudging down the sidewalk, and an hour later yet another one in its wake. Before the sun had set, one very weird farang customer --- wearing a hat that looked like it belonged to the character in “Confederacy of Dunces” --- slithered in, spending the next two hours browsing the bookshelves, and buying nothing. To me, he looked one of those adult bookshop flashers, minus the raincoat.

12:37 AM PDT Permalink |

Wardrobe Update

I was excited to find the newest John Sandford novel available as a paperback at one of the local bookshops last week. This novel, Dark of the Moon, is not part of Sandford’s famous “Prey” series, featuring the Lucas Davenport character, but Lucas does play a bit part in this tale. The protagonist of this one, however, is Virgil Flowers, who works as an investigator with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the agency that Davenport heads. Flowers is equal parts goofy and charming; a fine addition to Sandford’s stable of characters, a list that also includes Kidd and LuEllen (in his other non-Prey series). I had one customer, however, who didn’t like this book at all. He’s also a Sandford fan, but claims that “this book is nothing like his other stuff.” The customer pointed out that on the “Acknowledgment” page in the beginning of the book, it says: “This book was written in cooperation with my friend Larry Millett, an architectural writer, local historian, and occasional novelist.” Well, that DOES raise questions: how much of this book did Sandford actually write? To my mind --- and eyes --- though, this book doesn’t read much differently than Sandford’s other novels, although it’s not --- and doesn’t claim to be --- a “Prey” tale. Despite my customer’s assertion, I think most fans of Sandford will like this book. I certainly did.

Congratulations to William Myatwunna of Good News Travels in Yangon. He was selected as one of the World’s Top Travel Specialists, in Wendy Perrin’s Ninth Annual list in Conde Nast Traveler. Good News indeed! William will receive his award at a ceremony in New York later this year. As someone who has used his services many times over the past three years, I can wholeheartedly recommend his company. Here is what the magazine wrote about him:

“When Lonely Planet writers decide that it's time to update their guide to Myanmar, the first call they make is to Myatwunna. Born in Yangon and educated in Europe, he is your key to this famously reclusive country. Not only does Myatwunna arrange for drivers, translators, river cruises, mountain treks, bungalows at beachfront resorts, private tours of hill-tribe villages, and hot-air-balloon rides above the ancient ruins of Bagan but he also keeps clients apprised of the latest news and trouble spots.”

While taking my morning walk on Tuesday, I was about to cross a foot bridge on New Petchburi Road when I heard someone yell my name. I turned around to see who was calling me. It turned out to be my friend Jay Werba, hailing me as he was passing by in a taxi. He waved, I waved, his taxi lurched throught the intersection, and I continued up the stairs. Jay and I go way, way back: he used to be a customer at my record store in Orlando, Florida over 20 years ago. And, by coincidence, while I was running around on this hot Bangkok morning, I was wearing my Murmur Records T-shirt, one that also dates back about 20 years. Or perhaps it was the 1990 design, I just can’t remember anymore!

Perhaps that T-shirt incident reminded me that I needed to update my wardrobe just a little bit, so later that morning I made the boat trip to the Mall Bangkapi for lunch and to do some therapeutic Thai style shopping --- or “chop-PING” as they love to say. I bought a pair of new trousers and a groovy new shirt, along with a few CDs that were on sale at the Jedi shop. One of the CDs was the new album by Mark Eitzel’s band, the American Music Club. I haven’t heard anything from Eitzel (who release a few solo albums too) or his band in many, many years, so I’m looking forward to giving this a spin. Is it okay to say “spin” in this digital age?

08:30 PM PDT Permalink |

Cleaning out the Vault

I intended to get back to “normal” today and post something about Bangkok. But I’ve been in a cranky mood lately, stressed out at work, and generally not feeling very inspired. Not sure what to attribute my lethargy and bad mood; the idiotic border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, the general moronic state of Thai politics, or simply the general morons on the street. In any case, to help put a smile on my face, I decided to clean out the photo vault from last trip to Myanmar and post a few more pics. Enjoy!

11:21 PM PDT Permalink |

Hungry Again

I’m thinking about food today, as usual! Here are some photos of various food vendors around Myanmar. The street food scene in Myanmar isn’t pervasive as it is here in Thailand, but there are still plenty of choices, especially in the heavily populated neighborhoods of Yangon and Mandalay.

05:54 AM PDT Permalink |

My Favorite Monks

They’re back! Those engaging young novice monks from Shwe Yan Pyay monastery in Nyaungshwe (just down the road from scenic Inle Lake) are the focus of today’s post. These Buddhist scholars (and yes, they DO study hard most of the time … just not during the break from classes, which is when I happened to drop by the monastery) certainly do love the camera. Besides posing with cats and wearing sunglasses, they seemed to get a big kick out of putting on my backpack, trying on my shoes, and shaking my hand. In the midst of one photo session, a senior monk wandered over to where the novice monks were gathered. My first thought was that he was going to lecture the boys for playing around. But, no; he only wanted to make some suggestions about additional poses they could do! Here are just a few fun moments from the hundreds of shots that I --- and in some cases the monks themselves --- snapped. It was fun to see them again, but I was seriously worn out after each day’s multi-hour photo sessions.

03:05 AM PDT Permalink |

21 Shots: Faces of a Nation

Here are some more photos --- 21 shots on the 21st day of the month --- of the delightful and photogenic citizens of Myanmar. I know I sound like a broken record, but please consider a visit to this amazing country and meet these people. For more information, contact one of the very helpful travel agencies that are listed under the “Favorites” links on this page: Enchanting Travel (ask for Jules or Myo Zin), Good News Travel (William Myatwunna), or Myanmar Travel Ltd. (Ko Ye or Myriam). They all will be happy to answer any questions and help you plan a trip that suits your needs.

04:00 AM PDT Permalink |

Sights to See

Taking a break from people pictures to show you a few of the many captivating sights around Myanmar. I didn’t get out and do much sightseeing this last trip, so I wouldn’t consider these photos to be a reflection of country’s best sights to see, just a few places I stumbled upon this time.

09:34 PM PDT Permalink |

School Dazed

I got the opportunity to visit several public schools on this last trip. Together, with a group of friends from Yangon and Bagan, we donated money, exercise books, English language children’s books, and pencil sharpeners to several rural schools. Despite what you may be told, it certainly is possible to visit schools in Myanmar, but it’s best that you get permission ahead of time from school officials, your tour guide or travel agent.

05:29 AM PDT Permalink |