Home

I'm home. These boots are sitting in the corner. Now they're those boots.

From Delhi, I flew to Hong Kong, where I explored a little, so long as I was within 20m of a restroom. I like HK; it really feels very, very different from the mainland. Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that 'manners' weren't systematically rooted out during the Cultural Revolution? Or perhaps it's just because HK has an effective subway. Anyhow, many layers... I'd love to spend more time there.

Then it was back to Beijing. I had to get a cheap flight, since that train I wanted to take so badly didn't leave in time. But it was nice to be in Beijing again, to see some of the folks back at WLE, to see the city in winter. I was shocked by how clear the air was, since I grown used to the two-block visibility the Fog of Mao imposed. And my Chinese seems to have deteriorated more than I would have hoped. Though much is quickly coming back, I was defeated while trying to order some "lu cha" (green tea). I think some tonal practice is in order.

The trip to the States wasn't bad. I had a good chuckle as I came back across Japanese prices at Narita; I couldn't help but shell out $7 for some noodles, but I managed to do without the single Bic pen I needed ($6).

I got into NYC and was out of the airport in a jiff, so I hopped on the airtrain to the subway. Now, I've just spent eight months working on a jargon-free, universally understandable English, so sitting between some local boys and listening to the thick slang was a treat.

I was off to visit my sister in her new apartment, way up on the east side, 101st. I met her at the subway stop and she began to give me a quick tour of her new neighborhood, "in the early stages of Gentrification". I find that a delightful phrase, thick with YUP determination and ambition. But I just thought it was neat to hear Spanish again.

So after briefly meeting my sister's crowd, meeting with a good friend from school in China, and chatting with the Chinese lady at the restaurant across the street, I was ready to go home, and home I am. I've been sleeping in my own bed, much too comfortable for my own good. I've been listening to music, which I've done without for all this time. I've even been so spoiled as to see my dog again, though she's pulled a Anna Nicole-Smith ballooning in the eight months I've been away. I'm also back to the thousand little draws on attention: Chinese to brush up before heading back to Duke; the shelves full of books that I've been so anxious to return to (or perhaps discover for the first time); the hundreds of classic, counterfeit Chinese films to watch; the workout regimen to pick up again....


But it's also a nice luxury to do nothing at all. It's my third day of, to use George's word,"decompression". I've been anxious to write something again. A debrief, then? If so, mightest thou forgive me if I wax?

I still have plenty to digest. I have lots of impressions and experiences to mine further still; a reserve from which to draw and produce more finished goods. But I've also got the future to look to, and I'm excited. I'm rather humbled by that wide world out there, but I'm more eager to be an active part of it. I can't wait to return to school, to the Navy, and to make more out of them than I ever could have without my wanderings. I'm excited for that. And I'm hungry, real hungry, to get back to books and to conversation and to friendships, and all those fine points that are missed in the rough.

I did start this thing as a medium for which to keep friends and fam informed. But I also had my own journal. As the journal fell by the wayside, I've been more and more tempted to add the personal, the randomness that's missing in a simple chronological travel narrative. Maybe I'll keep posting occasionally. I don't know. But there's certainly plenty to come, for me. If I can learn to open up more, than hopefully for you.

But this isn't the sort of episode one just walks away from, hanging up the boots on a rack. Those there boots have made an impression. So perhaps I shall be telling this with a sigh, somewhere ages and ages hence. I'm grateful for the loan, the opportunity that God, family, friends, and the world have given me. Now let's see if I can make a Difference.







P.S. Well I wanted to put up a final country list from the trip, but on thinking of that, I'd love to put up my reading list too. Really glad I finally learned to read.

Japan
China
Thailand
Mongolia
Russia
Belarus
Ukraine
Poland
Lithuania
Latvia
Estonia
Finland
Sweden
Norway
Denmark
Germany
Czech Republic
Austria
Switzerland
Leichtenstein
Slovakia
Hungary
Croatia
Slovenia
Bosnia-Hercegovina
Serbia (Yugoslavia)
Romania
Bulgaria
Makedonia (F.Y.R.O.M.)
Albania
Greece
Turkey
Georgia
Azerbaijan
Armenia
United Arab Emirates
Kuwait
India
Hong Kong *(S.A.R., this one count?)*
USA
_________________________
Total: 40




And the reading list. These Here Books:

Tracing Marco Polo's China Route - Wang Miao, Shi Baoxiu
The DaVinci Code
Foundation - Asimov
Men in Green Faces - Gene Wentz
The Battle of Midway
Into Thin Air - Jon Krakauer
The Lexus and the Olive Tree - Thomas L. Friedman
Adrift in China - Simon Myers
In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam - Robert McNamera
John Paul Jones: A Sailor's Biography - Samuel Eliot Morison
Heart of Darkness; Secret Sharer - Joseph Conrad
Moby Dick - Herman Melville
Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
Stupid White Men - Michael Moore
Around the World in 80 Days - Jules Verne
Collected Short Stories of Jack London
East of Eden - John Steinbeck
Red Sky at Morning - Paul Garrison (yeah, the wrong one)
Adventures of Huckleberry Fin - Mark Twain
The Aspern Papers - Henry James
German History Text - (Lost info)
Dracula - Bram Stoker
One Fat Englishman - Kingsley Amis
Life of Pi - Yann Martel
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Jules Verne
Lullabye - Chuck Palahniuk
Count of Monte Cristo - Dumas
Mother Tongue - Bill Bryson
Candide - Voltaire
Basics of Islam - Dr. Khaveci
The Qu'ran
Arabian Nights (Penguin Selection)
Digital Fortress - Dan Brown
Cities of Salt - Abdelrahman Munif
Teach Yourself: Meditation
Barber of Seville; Marriage of Figaro - Beaumarchais
The Zero Game - Brad Meltzer
Montaigne's Essays
Fathers and Sons - Turgenev
Rule of Four - Caldwell & Thomason
Hinduism: An Introduction - Dharam Vir Singh
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking - Malcolm Gladwell
The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
Islam: A Short History - Karen Armstrong
Preparing for the 21st Century - Paul Kennedy
Balkan Ghosts - Robert D. Kaplan


Praise be to Book Exchanges. Love yall.

Delhi

Delhi Belhi. I should have known.

Perhaps it was the wrath of the literary gods, striking me down for turning a daily-observation tool into simple chrono-narratives. Perhaps a chef just decided to toss some lettuce with his left hand. In any case, I was laid low for a pretty good period.

I got some reading in, and kept trying to make it to Agra (Taj Mahal's city), though my GI system's needs and the five hour trip weren't compatible for about a week.

I finally decided to axe Calcutta from my plan and just get a ticket to HK, though I made one final push to make Agra before leaving. I got in and found a room ($3) late the night before I was to fly out of Delhi, and I woke up around 6 to see the sun's first rays play on the Taj. That was really worth the trip. There were also tons of monkeys playing around in the pre-dawn light. Awww, there's a family of them looking for breakfast on a rooftop! Now look at curious George hopping off to go after something... but wait, papa goes charging after him to stop Georgie from touching the - *BOOM*

Little Georgie jumped into the power transformer. The monkeys and the humans all gather round to catch a glimpse of the results.

After breakfast I went to the Taj, which is twenty cents for Indians, or $5 (plus a $10 'tax') for foreigners. The Taj marble is way too white for my retinas, so without sunglasses, I kept stumbling around semi-blinded. There are no photos allowed inside, however, since the inside really isn't that cool. I guess seeing photos beforehand might dissuade folks from paying $15 entrance. The acoustics inside are pretty amazing, though; some guide sang a note that reverberated for about twenty seconds.

As for Delhi itself, I did some of the sights, and there was plenty of cool stuff, but having been (and still being) sick, I don't feel so effusive right now. I did meet one very cool rickshaw driver, though. I had a load of books, and when he learned some were on religion, he asked if I knew much about Sikhism (his religion). I didn't, but was still curious, so he took the afternoon off to show me his temple and share his faith. Nice guy.

I got robbed, too! Not the rickshaw driver. One day I was looking through my guidebook when some beggar kids came up and wouldn't leave. I had my backpack in front of me, and I just caught one of the boys sneaking my leatherman tool out of my backpack (there's one pocket that won't take a lock). I gave him a cough and a browbeat until he handed it back sheepishly, but as they walked away, a man nearby came closer and told me "They have! They have!" I wasn't really sure what they had, but I hopped the fence and took off after them. They ducked into an alley, I lost them, but after taking inventory of my stuff, it turned out they took my business cards. Hah. Now I can wear the badge of having been robbed in India, yet for a fraction of the cost.

Hong Kong was cool; it would be a nice place to live and work. I went around a bit, but I was still pushing it. Now I'm in Beijing. I'm writing from good ol' WLE, and catching up on all the stuff I've missed for the past five months. It's getting chilly out. Anyhow, I fly tomorrow, so I thought I'd make an update, despite my continued delirium. But I love having excuses for crappy updates.

Stick with until I can debrief yall.