I love Hong Kong

So, I'll admit that Thailand is a really easy place to live and I'm certainly not "roughing" it in Bangkok. In many ways BKK is very Western, but it's still Asia, I can still get sick from food, fall in a sewer or trip on a sidewalk, feel the pollution, not talk to some people, etc. After living here for 9 months, I thought it would be nice to have a taste of Western living and spend my (golden) birthday inHong Kong. Also, the V-Day show was opening up the next weekend so I wanted to get out of town before a week of non-stop work.

I'd been to HK with my family about 12 years ago--we went for two weeks and it was my first big trip abroad and in Asia so I have very vivid memories of it and was obviously excited to go back.Hong Kong exceeded all my expectations--it is absolutely incredible! Even flying over the city on our way in--I could see the famous skyline, lit up, and the hills throughout the island and peninsula--the city amazed me.

I flew in with Julia and Amelia; Meg and Lindsay were going to meet us the next night. The three of us checked into our adorable hotel right inSoHo and then went out to dinner on one of the main streets in SoHo, filled with charming little restaurants, stylish boutiques and neighborhoody yet chic bars--I felt like I was in NY! Except the weather and hills and the general feel of the city is more like San Francisco.

After dinner we explored some of the nightlife, but wanted to head home early so that we could get some sleep for the rest of the weekend. Our first peak at the nightlife though astounded us. There's this area right night toSoHo called LKF (Lai Kwai Fong) that's basically 1 long street of bars and clubs, teeming with people--they're so packed that people spill onto and fill the street (a pedestrian street, no cars). And there were so many Westerners who weren't backpackers (those are the only kinds we see really inBKK )! It was all so overwhelming and was a bit of a culture shock (in the best way of course) at first--I felt like I was back in America. More on the nightlife later...

The next day the three of us walked around and did some sightseeing--we walked through SoHo and saw some of the amazing art and antique galleries in SoHo, the Man Po Temple near our hotel, and shopped in the cute SoHo boutiques that carried brands I recognized in sizes I could fit into. We walked all around Central, the downtown part of Hong Kong Island which is like the business district. The streets were so clean and the skyscrapers were so large and tall, just like in the States, it was such a novelty and all felt so familiar! Then we went to The Peak (Victoria Peak), one of the main tourist attractions inHK . It's this peak that overlooks all of Central, has a park up top and also is one of the most expensive residential area. We went up by tram to the top of the peak and even though it was incredibly hazy, we got great views of theHK harbor, Kowloon and HK Island. We also walked around the part and it felt like an early autumn day--crisp, fresh air, 60 degrees and sunny.

After the Peak, we caught a bus to take us to Stanley, a more residential area of HK about one-hour outside of Central. The bus took us through Repulse Bay and a bunch of other beach communities; it was one of the most beautiful bus rides I've been on, I kept wanting to snap photos! I felt like I was inSausalito , CA or Manly Beach in Sydney, driving along the edge of big green cliffs at the edge of an emerald-colored bay flooded with sunlight and the beaches looked nice too. I didn't realizeHK had this kind of natural beauty, I was stunned. People were sailing in the bay, others were barbecuing, there were cute houses steeped into the green cliffs; it was completely picturesque.

Once we got to Stanley, we walked around along the boardwalk, checked out some of the stores and found a quaint little restaurant for lunch. It was this small Parisian-style cafe overlooking the Bay with beautiful views and lots of sunlight. After we explored the Stanley market and headed back on our glorious bus ride to head back to Central. Once in Central, Julia and I continued walking around and shopping inSoHo while Amelia went to meet up with family friends.

Later, Julia and I took the famous Star Ferry over to the Kowloon side for dinner. The ferry had postcard views of the HK skyline. At night, the buildings are lit up and there are so many different colors, but it's not jarring like the visual pollution in Times Square (NY); for some reason, the colors and lights all seems to go together and fit well together. There were other boats in the harbor too, including some of the famous HK junk boats. Once on the Kowloon side, we headed to the Peninsula Hotel where we had a reservation at Felix, the Philippe Starck-designed restaurant on the 20-somethingth floor with stellar views of the skyline. The food was incredible, but subtle and the decor was nothing special except for the elevator pods and bathrooms (coolest bathrooms ever!).

Post dinner, we walked along Nathan Road (very sleazy, kind of gross, avoid!) up to the Temple Night Market. Compared to Bangkok's markets, this one was nothing special, except for all of the sex toys they sold, kind of strange--our markets certainly DO NOT carry those (they're illegal). After the market, we headed back to theHK side via MTR (subway) to meet up with Amelia, Meg and Lindsay to begin our night out.

So back to the nightlife and here I'll digress. Bangkok is a lot of fun. I have an awesome time, I have great friends, I really do love it here. However, there are a few things working against having fun "out": 1. Everything closes at 2am and my NYC programmed night schedule says things get started at around...1? 2. White women are kind of like lepers here so when you go out, it's more like you go out to dance and hang out with your girl friends. There isn't that element ofexcitement like, "What will happen tonight? Who will I meet?" 3. The clubs here aren't the clubs westerners are used to--there's only one of those and it's BedSupperclub . Don't get me wrong, I love Bed, but you can't go there all the time. So, needless to say, the nightlife is limited in certain respect.

Now, take HK. There are chic clubs galore: Dragon-i (the "in" club of the moment that "epitomizes" HK clubbing--models, cool kids, randoms), Drop, Volar (too many models...), Insomnia (live band, great 80s covers, feels like a college party) Lotus (chic lounge, good cocktails, older crowd), and many many others. Then there are fun bars that take you back to college days, serve jello shots, play top 40 and 80s hits, etc. Lastly, there are lots and lots and lots of Westerners--it's so easy to blend in, not stand out, have people look at you for reasons other than to gawk! Basically, we all were in heaven. We had a thorough night of late night partying till 5am and stumbled back to our hotel where we realized we had 3 twin beds for 5 girls...oops. Only inHK (real estate is too expensive!)

The next day we treated ourselves--High Tea at the Peninsula which is apparently "the tea" to do, guess there are still remnants of British high-culture, and then more shopping, walking and exploring. We decided to celebrate my birthday that night so we ate lavishly atNobu at the Intercontinental Hotel, another restaurant on the Kowloon side with great skyline views. The food was delicate and utterly delicious and the sea urchin ceiling decor was kind of cool too. I was surprised with a birthday dessert and singing and then another fun night out on the town; I even got to meet up with Princeton friends living inHK! All round fun times.

The next day was our last day in HK. We had a dim sum brunch--dim sum is a HK "must" so even though I hate Chinese food, I succumbed. They didn't really understand "vegetarian" though; to them, vegetarian means you just don't eat pork (they all eat pork, all of Asia!), butchicken and beef are okay. Needless to say, it was a light lunch for me, but I'm glad I experienced HK dim sum; I've since tried the dim sum restaurant in The Conrad connected to my office building and it was amazing, but probably not as authentic, but hey, I gave it another chance.

For our last hours, we took the hydrofoil to Macau. Tired, hung over and a bit rundown, we opted not to explore the tourist sights, but just explore The Venetian. Not that there are any tourist sights inMacau--I mean, I'm sure there are, but to me, Macau or seemed like Las Vegas 10-15 years ago--nothing but a few hotels, a lot of huge developmets in the works (so many cranes!!!) and nothing else nearby, but maybe I didn't see the right part. The Venetian though was incredible, it's just like the Venetian in Vegas, but bigger! You didn't think it could be any bigger, could you?! There was also a Four Seasons and a few other big hotels, but the Venetian seemed like the main player. We walked around the Canal Shoppes and eventually made our way to Morton's Steakhouse for a hearty dinner (no steak for me, just salad, still amazing and not easily found in Thailand) before boarding the plane home.

The trip as a whole was so so SO fun--one of my best weekends in Asia and one of the best birthdays I've had too, even though it wasn't my actual birthday. So yeah, I lovedHK, I think it's one of my favorite cities.

My actual birthday was spent with my cast in rehearsal and a big pink vagina birthday cake they made me, can you get anything more unique and memorable?!

Me and my vagina birthday cake...I think she's cutting the lip, clitoris still intact...

Phnom Phen: A city without waste management

I arrived in Phnom Phen a little bedraggled early Saturday morning after a big V-day club party the night before. Nonetheless, I made my flight, slept on the plane and was ready for a full day of sightseeing after meeting Julia at the hotel and dropping off my small bag. My ride from the airport was definitely interesting--Phnom Phen was nothing like what I expected it to be! It was a big, spread out city; I expected it to be small and quaint like Vientiane or even small like Luang Prabang, I guess because my impressions of Siem Reap were that it was small and quaint.

Phnom Phem was much different--there were many big street and traffic, but none of the roads were paved and the entire city seemed light brown, like the dusty clay road. There were huge piles of waste everywhere and as we turned onto my street, there was a street side barber shop, which was really 5 chairs of men getting their hair cut, the hair falling to the ground on the road.
Our street was very quiet and the hotel turned out to be very quaint--it was painted all in blue and white, making it have a French seaside feel. It was called "The Billabong" and had a lovely little pool and cafe for breakfast right by its side.

Julia had already been there for a day and had gone to see the Royal Palace, so I would do that Sunday when she left and we decided to go to the Tol Sulong Memorial Museum for those killed under the Khmer Rouge, and the Killing Fields. We had my taxi driver take us first to the museum. On the drive to the museum, we passed through a gorgeous neighborhood with big houses, lots of trees, nicer roads; it felt like we were in a totally different city! But I guess that's a developing nation for you, huge, astounding disparities in wealth, though I think the people who lived in these houses were government officials too.

The museum was a children's elementary school before it was converted into a prison. The barbed wire was still up and a lot of the cells were intact. There were photos, torture devices, chains--it was all very numbing and chilling. I learned a lot about the Khmer Rouge--for example, I didn't know that Pol Pot ruled for only 4 years, but the terrors continued through the early 1990s; I'd assumed Pol Pot was in charge the entire time. I also didn't know about The Khmer Rouge's hatred of Communist Vietnam (even though the Khmer Rouge was communist too) and their many clashes with them; nor did I know about the UN and the US's backing of the Cambodian government, or about the kinds of people the Khmer Rouge killed (intellectuals, urban city-dwellers, women, men, children) or why they killed them.

It's so sad that many people don't know about the extent of the atrocities; I know it was a very eye-opening experience for me. It's also sad to see the difference between Phnom Phen, the capital of Cambodia, and Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, it's neighboring country. The museum said that Phnom Phen was in a period of prosperity before the Khmer Rouge; looks where it could have been (something like Bangkok) versus the state it's in now (it's lawless feel with people peeing on the streets that aren't even paved).

Next we were off to the killing fields, the place where prisoners were taken to be shot and killed. For me, this wasn't as powerful as the museum, though it was shocking. About 10km outside the city, it's a big countryside area where there are huge pits--pit after pit--where bodies were put. The bodies have been removed so now all you can see are the pits, which are huge. It's daunting to think of how many bodies could fit in there (the Khmer Rouge killed about 1.7 million people). The only evidence of bodies is the huge glass-encased tower of skulls that stands tall in the center of all the pits. Julia and I each lit incense and made a small donation in memory of the victims.

After the killing fields, we had our driver take us back to town where we stopped quickly at Wat Phnom, the biggest temple in the city, and then headed to lunch, where we parted with our driver. The place we went to lunch was one of the many NGO restaurants in town; Phnom Phen is filled with NGO workers and NGOs (definitely a good sign I think) and many of them make money by running restaurants for tourists, this is like the famous Cabbages and Condoms in Bangkok. The famous one in PP is called "Friends," but we went to the smaller, sister restaurant which served Khmer food; all of the money went to a Cambodian NGO that takes children off the street and educates them, teaching them useful skills and also gives them hospitality training in the restaurants. I forget its name, but it was adorable--it was decorated all in Cambodian textiles and art and it had a light and airy feel to it. The food was also incredible; I remember thinking in Siem Reap that Khmer food wasn't anything special, just a plainer, less spicy version of Thai food, but I loved it! And not just at this restaurant, but also where we went for lunch on Sunday too, a small Khmer restaurant by the Tonle Sap River. I had some sort of curry called "amoke" served in a banana leaf, one time with vegetables, the next with fish, but both times and it was incredible and different at each place.

After lunch, Julia and I took a tuk tuk back to our hotel, admiring the French colonial architecture which stood in stark contrast to some of the shacks and piles of trash. We then walked to the Central Market and were amazed by the number of motorbikes, they were everywhere! Sometimes it was difficult to walk because we were in a sea of bikes! The market though was a shoppers treat and so cheap; I got a watch, sunglasses, glasses frames, a pretty glass bracelet and a few other small things.

For dinner that night, we headed to the Raffles Hotel for a happy hour cocktail--it's certainly a lux hotel that has the feeling of colonial life and leisure. We took a few photos in the well manicured garden and elegantly decorated bar. After we headed to a riverside restaurant near the Palace for dinner. In the tuk tuk, I definitely understood why so many people call PP a "lawless" city because it certainly has that feel--like I said, people peeing on the streets, no waste management, but you also get the sense that it's probably not safe, all the dark alleys make you wonder.

Near the restaurant was the Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC), a big expat hub. Next door was a cute little shop where Julia and I each bought some nice jewelry (a necklace for me). After we went to the "Heart of Darkness Bar," one of the big nightlife hubs of the city. We got "searched" before going in and this is where the lawlessness trickled back--my breasts, backside and ribs were all touched a little too much, and it made me uncomfortable; I was only wearing a cotton sundress, where was I going to hide a gun?! The bar had a bit of a tribal feel and we ended up not staying for too long.

The next morning after breakfast, I went to the National Museum which was very interesting--it was filled with Cambodian art and history about the Khmer empire and the previous empires. I tried to go to the Palace but it was closed because the King was in town!! Just my luck; it did look lovely. Instead, I went to Wat Ounamoun, the country's most sacred Wat. At the temple, there was a small man guarding the gate who opened it up for me to enter. I had to duck my head to go into the space where the shrine and Buddha statue was. He performed a ritual that involved blessing me and splashing my face with water; being in that small cave-like shrine was very peaceful and it did have a spiritual feel, minus the neon lights over the Buddha's head which made it look somewhat 70's-era Hare Krishna.

After Wat Ounamoun, I went back to meet Julia for lunch and then headed off to the airport, just in time to make my evening rehearsal for V-day after an interesting and unexpected Cambodian weekend. As I left, I was perplexed by Cambodia--many people often become obsessed with it or absorbed by its history, but Laos still remained my SE Asian favorite. I guess different strokes for different folks, but I'm happy I went all the same.

"Amazing Thailand"

In Thailand, they run these tourism ad campaigns with the slogan, "Amazing Thailand." To be honest, as much as I love Thailand, I have yet to be "amazed" by any of the natural setting; I'm probably just spoiled by New Zealand scenery. Granted, I've loved the ruins of Ayutthaya, the charm and culture of the North--especially Chiang Rai--the sweeping green hills of Khao Yai, but there was no nature that "stunned" me. That changed when I went to Khao Lak, the Similan Islands and the Phang-Nga Bay last month.

I went with Julia for 3 days to Khao Lak, a small resort town about 1 hour way from Phuket. Khao Lak was heavily hit by the tsunami in 2004 and it's been slower to rebound than Phi Phi and Phuket and other places, which was actually better for us. It wasn't flooded with tourists or overrun with backpacker hostels or huge hotel developments; it was very peaceful and serene. "Khao" in Thai means mountain, and that's what Khao Lak is, a gorgeously covered mountain, perched at the edge of the Andaman Sea. The mountain is very green and tropical and wonderfully intact; there's a national park just outside of the town with some great hiking paths that Julia and I did that lead you through the forest, right to the edge overlooking the water.

We got in late Friday night, took a car to our hotel, which was totally adorable and lined with palm trees with big wide leaves, was nestled at the foot of the mountain and our room had a lovely view looking out on it. We walked through the small town, mainly just one very nicely paved street, along which there were various restaurants, shops and a number of diving stores, all advertising trips to the Similan Islands, a national park and one of the world's top 10 dive spots. We had dinner and our waitress was a very nice Thai woman who had lived in the US so her English was great. She was excited to talk to us because she said that Khao Lak rarely got American tourists, they were mainly European, especially Scandinavian or German. She told us about the area and also about the Six Senses Spa that I'd read about in BK Magazine as one of Thailand's top spas and getaways. She said that is would take about 1.5 hrs to get there but that it was beautiful, so if we wanted to treat ourselves, it was the place.

So, the next morning, after an early morning hiking in the national park (we didn't get to see the waterfalls though, alas), and booking our Sunday and Monday excursions (more later), Julia and I set out for our adventure to Koh Yao (Koh means "island"), one of the many small islands in the picturesque Andaman Sea. First we took a bus, headed towards Phuket. We were told the bus was 1 hour, but it was actually 2, surprise surprise. It dropped us off in some random location at the side of a road, close to the Phuket pier where we could catch our ferry to Koh Yao (we had the woman at our hotel write our stop in Thai to give to the driver). We thought we could walk--we were told it was only 1km or so, but when I asked the motorbike drivers in Thai, they told me it was very far. After much haggling, we negotiated a decent rate and BOTH boarded the back of the motorbike--that's right, the TWO of us were on the back of the same bike, so this small little moped was carrying 3 full-size adults. It turned out that the pier was actually quite far (again, surprise surprise) and there was NO way we could have walked, it must have been about 4-5 miles. After dropping us off, we bought our ferry tickets and waited for the ferry.

Our ferry came and it was loaded with miscellaneous items and foodstuffs to bring to the island. Julia and I decided to sit outside to enjoy the views. Let me tell you, despite the strong sun, this was a brilliant idea because the scenery was incredible--it was like the Samui archipelago and the boat trip was in and of itself an excursion. The water was a gorgeous blue and there were so many small islands and limestone towers. After 1.5 hrs on the boat, we finally arrived in Koh Yao, only to board a tuk tuk to take us to Six Senses--in total it was about 4.5 hours to get there!

It was certainly a pristine little hideaway though, the kind of place you go when you don't want anyone to bother you at all, or even know where you are, but it was still luxurious, or rather, "rustic chic." All we had time for was a 50-minute treatment--I got the signature massage--but it was incredible! One of the best I've had, so I guess the 4 hr journey by bus, motorbike, boat, tuk tuk and hotel buggy (i.e., golf cart) was worth it :) We drank up the ginger tea and took apples for the road and headed back on our long journey to Khao Lak.

The next day was my favorite and certainly one of the most memorable and not just because of our katoey (ladyboy) tour guide, "Nancy," but because we spent a full day snorkeling in the Similan Islands. There are nine islands and are all preserved as a national park;our trip was going to take us to four of them. There are no hotels on any of the islands, all you can do is camp on a few of the select islands. They are also a prime spot for sea-turtle breeding, so there are some islands you can't go to at certain times of the year when the turtles lay their eggs on the beach.

The boat out to the islands was a bumpy speedboat, but Julia and I were happy to be outside. We got to our first island and I was totally taken aback. The sand was a pure white and so smooth and easy to walk on, I'd never been on a beach with such silky sand. When we started snorkeling, it was incredible, I couldn't believe how clear the water was! You could see 30m down and still see the ripples of the sand on the ocean floor in perfect detail. The fish were bright and colorful and the coral was also impressive; I could see why the Thai government wanted to preserve it. Nancy asked if we liked the first island and when she sensed my enthusiasm, she told me to sit tight, the next ones were even better--I couldn't believe it. But she was right, the next two islands--the coral and fish around them really--were even more dazzling, and I even saw a few sea turtles!

The clarity and the diversity, in my mind, makes this a far better snorkeling spot than even the great barrier reef! Although, I do think that the GBR has some nicer coral, but the Similans have such vibrant fish, it's fantastic! Sometimes I tire of snorkeling and want to go back to the boat early, but I think this time I was always the last person back on the boat--it was just so pleasant and truly enjoyable. We spent the entire day outside and in the water and I ended up with a mild sunburn on my back (Julia didn't fare as well, she got a full-body burn), but I didn't mind so much because the day was so great. At dinner, Julia and I were in such good moods and so hungry that we treated ourselves to good ol'fashioned ice cream Sundays.

The next day we headed off to our last planned excursion, a trip into the famous Phang-Nga Bay. We took a long tail boat in the bay and passed by one limestone tower/mountain after another; some had huge stalactites and many were covered in shrubbery--it was sublime. This was the first time after being in New Zealand's Milford Sound, that I was totally in awe of nature; it reminded me of a tropical version of the Milford Sound. I had my camera out the entire time, I couldn't peel myself away from it or dare to put it back--everything we passed had a grandeur about it that's difficult to describe. Sadly, my camera ran out of batteries once we arrived at James Bond Island, one of the touristy destinations in the Bay, but Julia took photos.

At the island, we got to go in sea kayaks and be taken around the bay by a guide. Our guide took us through a huge mangrove forest and we were right next to the huge roots that anchor the mangroves in the water. He took us through the limestone caves and grottoes and at times we were so close to the stone that we had to lie back--this provided a very interesting view of all those stalactites. There were some limestone islands that had interesting trees sprouting out of them too.

We were in the bay for about 4 hours, and then taken back on our long tail boats to the pier. We were then taken to a cave with a big reclining Buddha, which was interesting, but nothing like the rest of the trip had been. We were tired, a little sick of the sun, and ready to go home after a most memorable trip. I now see why people say Thailand has the best beaches in the world and why so many people flock to the South. I didn't understand before, even though I'd been to many Thai beaches, but this one most certainly takes the cake.

My oh my, how does the time fly...

After a one and a half month hiatus, my life has finally returned back to normal. February was a hectic month to say the least. I plan to write a blog entry for each of my travels, but here's the brief overview:

-I produced and directed my first play. The first night was a bit of a bomb, but thankfully, the next two shows were a huge success and everyone forgot about opening night...

-I oversaw 2 big events that also were a success, but one of them took a hell of a lot of time and planning

-I was away every weekend before the show, mainly to get away and keep my sanity. It was really special too because Julia, my good friend from college was going a big Asia trip so we got to meet up every weekend and she also came to BKK and saw the show

-I celebrated my golden birthday--23 on the 23rd. I spent the weekend before celebrating big in Hong Kong and then on Monday, my actual birthday, I was with my cast at rehearsal. They baked me a big pink vagina cake with a piece of chocolate as the clitoris...gosh that's a memory, don't think I can forget this birthday!

-Summary: I didn't have one free day in February (aside from my weekend travels), not one. Here's to sleep and a personal life in the month of March and beyond...

Stay tuned for travel updates and notes on Bangkok...