Jean-Paul started a journey, a world travel in 2003. It was for the adventure and I'd hoped some where along the way I would find some soul related answers. I followed the yellow brick road you could say, and I met many characters along it.... Some of them have even left messages on this website. You can too.
And the journey became longer than expected. You can see this in my Archives.
Yet somewhere along the way I lost that 'yellow brick road', but in essence I am still on that journey.
This website was about my travel, in all its aspects. A World travel with an Inner travel. The story of the walk.
" Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness...." - Mark Twain
" Travel also happens to be fatal to your bank account and forget that career.." - Jean-Paul
"Not all who wander are lost.." - J.R. Tolkien
[A Personal Look]
Reason to Travel- To avoid working for a boss!
Favourite Country- Turkey and Thailand
Why So Much India- Cos I got 6 month visas, the Himalayan mountains, the motorcycle I had & most importantly, as I hadnt worked in ages, it was one of the more affordable countries in the world
Most Want to See- Japan, but I will need to have a real income first
Hobbies- Motorcycling, Mountains, Tennis, Spiritual teachings (travelling is more a lifestyle than a hobby)
Favourite Books- "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle. The wisdom of life and other minor insights...
It started January 2003.. Fly from Holland to
-> South Africa
-> Namibia
-> Botswana
-> Zimbabwe
-> Zambia
-> South Africa
-> Tanzania
-> Kenya
-> Egypt
-> Jordan
-> Syria
-> Turkey
-> Berlin (Germany)
-> Turkey
-> Greece (Island Hopping)
-> Turkey
-> Palestine to Israel
-> United Arab Emirates
-> India
In 2004 -> Nepal
-> India
-> Australia
-> Singapore
-> India
In 2005 -> India
-> Thailand
-> Holland (live in Holland)
-> Belgium
In 2006 -> Holland (live in Holland)
-> Zuirch, Switzerland
-> England
-> India
In 2007 -> India
-> Nepal
-> Tibet
-> Nepal
-> India (travel motorbike)
-> Thailand
-> India (travel motorbike)
In 2008 -> India (travel motorbike)
-> Nepal
-> India (teach English)
-> Thailand
In 2009 -> Thailand
-> Laos
-> Cambodia
-> Thailand
-> India (travel motorbike)
-> Nepal
-> India
-> Thailand
When I started, this blog was to be about my travels during my year or so away. I am still away so to speak but no longer traveling. Sure, short trips away during school breaks but not the real gritty back packing stuff any more. Now I can afford air-condition rooms when I stay away for the weekend. :-)
So its ended. In the film "The Wizard of Oz" (from which the above picture comes from) the main character Dorothy is lost and goes on a long journey to find her way back home; only to wake up in her bed and realise she never actually left.
In some way, I can sense the poetry in this; everything has changed but really nothing has.
Like most festivals this one originated as a Buddhist ceremony. As part of the ceremony water is 'sprinkled' on the Buddha statue and probably in time over the participating monks.
It doesnt take alot of imagination to see how this ended up in a huge water fight..
Chiang Mai is known through out Thailand for celebrating Songkram to the max- for 3 days straight. Can you imagine a whole city playing a water fight... amazing, such a great community spirit too (lots of alcohol offcourse adds to the mirth.)
I also just discovered there is a video clip of myself playing Songkram last year in my street (Soi 7) on u-Tube. (I come in on the left, wearing a blue jacket with yellow stripes)
My friend's (Yaai) family live in the small city of MaehongSong, in the north west corner of Thailand. I drove her car there (6hrs) and back from Chiang Mai; a win win situation. She doesnt like driving the car through the mountains, and I dont get to drive much these days as I dont own a car. (They claim over 1600 corners between Chiang Mai and MaeHongSong, better on a motorcycle ofcourse..!)
We spent 4 days of luxury in a guesthouse owned by her cousins, who really took care of us splendidly. On the way home Yaai's 2 children came back with us (to spend their summer holidays with mum in Chiang Mai), but I felt sorry for them because they got car sick. (imagine all those corners; one was sick more than 5 times...)
This arrangement of children not living with their mum or parents is so typical in Thailand. Very often children grow up with their grand parent/s.
Yaai's former husband runs a boat service to the local Long Neck Village. It was quite fascinating to see, not so much to see the women who have these neck extensions but to visit such a rural place. The only transportation out there is by a shallow boat so the village is very much in nature (also very close to the Burmese Border) and the inhabitants traditionally earn a living off the land. Ofcourse these days in high season the tourists flood in.
I didnt understand why some women have a neck extension, which starts when they are a child. But not every woman can do it; for instance one must be born on a Thursday.