Sihanoukville

So on the next morning, Panneth came to my hotel early morning, and found a shared taxi for me to go to PP, and the plan was then take a bus from PP to Sihanoukville (where all the beaches are). It was my first and last experience of Cambodian shared taxi. I never knew how one could call a taxi. There are no signs on the taxi, and no phone number to call. I think he just drove around and asked the locals... Taxi usually implies a more comfortable option, but not in Cambodia. Standard seating in a shared taxi is 2 passengers at the front seat, (not including driver) and 4 at the back, not including babies. In my case, there were 2 babies plus 7 adults including me and drivers, cramped in a 4 doors Camery for 4 hours, in which half of it were bumpy dirt roads! I have 2 conclusions: 1) Nothing is impossible. 2) Camry is an extremely reliable car!

The trip from Pailin to PP cost me $12 US and lots of time. The taxi stopped for breakfast, lunch, 2 pee-stops, 1 gas, and 1 complete car wash before going into the city, I'm talking about washing the car inside out, and under, took almost an hour! It's probably because washing it there cost less than in the city. That made me missed my bus to Shianoukville in PP! The only way left was taking a taxi again. The driver was nice enough to ask around for me. The other taxi drivers weren't so nice though when quoting price. Because it was late in the day, and I'm a foreigner, they upped the price dramatically. First one quoted $60US! second one quoted $20US and I had to take 2 seats! Out of desperation, I took the 2nd offer.

Panneth originally came from Sihanoukville. He told me that hotels are very easy to find, prices are all listed in the central bus station. I guess he hasn't went back home for a while. When I get there, I was tired, it was dark, and I couldn't find any signs at all, all I could see was dozens of moto drivers asking you where you're going. I then tried to leave the scene, but one guy kept following. After a while, I realize I had to take a moto because it doesn't look like any hotels are near by. After a competition came in, I was able to get $1 US until I could find a hotel room. Lucky I took that offer because all the guest houses were full! We drove around for more than half an hour, until we got to this very old looking basic hut which called Lovely Guesthouse. There was 1 room left, in the far end corner. Inside was everything but 'lovely', the walls and ceiling are pealing off which seems to be from heavy leaking during the rain season. The room cost $4, cold shower, no AC, no mosquito net. Again, out of desperation I took it, and also because I prayed about it when on the moto. I think the name 'lovely' though is used to describe the people working there. It looks like a family run business. They all seems very caring, and not because they wanted extra money, especially when they saw my legs full of mosquito bites. The mom taught me to use blankets to cover the windows to prevent mosquitoes, the older daughter (the only one knew English) cooked me dinner, and later arranged the bus for me to Siem Reap for $7, and even called the guest house at Siem Reap for me. At the Lovely Guest House, I just didn't wanna go anywhere else...

But of course I had to go out. The next morning, I've booked for a scuba diving trip. The very same moto driver was there waiting for me! I thought it was a nice karma, and he looked nice enough, so I hopped on without asking how much. Big Mistake! I made a mistake in the location so we made a longer trip, at the end he charged me $4! Later I realize, he probably wanted to get back the money he wasted on fuel driving me around searching for a room last night! Lesson learned. Always always ask how much first!

At the diving center, no more scams, however the water wasn't exactly nice. The water looked nice enough from above, but when you get down there, the visibility was only like 3 - 4 feet. I felt I had a better experience in HK! Luckily, there were only 1 other client that day, and since I haven't dived for a while, since when I first got my PADI 5 years ago in HK, I needed the extra care to relearn almost everything! I didn't realize this until I was putting on my gear and ready to go down. I know, I'm always like that! :P Luckily my guide from Germany and the other client Ruth from Switzerland was very nice and didn't show any faces. Ruth even taught me few tricks afterward because I looked like I was struggling :p I did miss some of the dive because in the first round I did something wrong with my BCD, I lost control of my buoyancy and floated back up. Lucky we weren't too deep! And since the visibility was so bad, I don't think I missed much. Anyway, it was nice for me still, at least it was a good chance to practice diving again, as I don't have much chance to dive, and it's too expensive back home.

After diving, I took quite a hike through the rocks went to one beach to another, and finally went to a more quiet one, called Independence Beach, and sat down and enjoyed the sunset. I think it's the first time I ever sat in a pure white sand beach looking out at the endless ocean, with a direct sunset view! It was very nice! Few things I've noticed though, the sand in the nicer part of the beach seems to be imported in as it changes color in different area. Also there were security guards, and seems that locals were kept off the nicer parts. I sat in a lounger, which looks like belonging to the hotel behind, but since nobody came ask me to leave, I stayed there until the sun went down. Almost completely down, as I still have to get back before dark, before the burglars come out...

Pailin - volunteering work

Pailin is the place where I did volunteering work for Alliance Global Serve. I guess I'm kind of a special case for them, because I think usually people go in a team, and people usually have some kind of subsidies from church. I had neither. I was able to get free lunch and dinner at Panneth's place because of that :)

I have to say that for me, it seems the trip to Pailin wasn't finalized until the very very end. I mean the very end, because all along I wasn't able to contact Ka Lun, and couldn't confirm that AGS has made all the arrangements for me, even when I arrived Cambodia. I was only able to contact some local personnel nearby, who English wasn't very good. Thanks the Lord, everything was fine at the end!

At the beginning, I thought I was going to just hook up some computers, and then I can g do my own things there, but because of some parts failure, and my own inefficiency due to the fact that I haven't fixed a computer for some time, it took me 2 days to hook up everything! At one point I was worried that I would only be able to finish 1 or 2 computers, and I wouldn't know what to report back to AGS. Thank God, everything was finished as planned at the end.

At first, Ka Lun has planed quite a bit of activities for me, but due to various factors, most of them didn't happened. However, at the end I did met her English class. Even though they couldn't speak good English, I was able to communicate most of the time, but of course couldn't go very deep. Some of them even helped me out to fix the computers. I feel many of them are smart, and want to learn more. However they lack the resources and opportunities. In the very last night, we gathered at the church to have a little gathering. Nothing was planned, we just chatted, and at the end they showed me a Cambodian game. Now when I think back, I wish I have done more that night, and more initiations.

I originally planned for 3 days in Pailin. However because of lack of activities there, when chatting with Ka Lun about my original plan to go to the beach, she suggested me to leave one day early to go there. After some thoughts, I decided to take her advice. I'm still not sure if I've made the right decision, because it seems that I've done so little in Pailin and I don't know if the Lord would have shown me more if I have stayed for 1 more day.

I do have to admit that at the end I was worried about my health if I stayed longer. My guest house room was full of little mosquitoes, I already had bites everywhere on my legs and I was quite worried about malaria. But then I could have just easily switched to another hotel...

Pailin

After Kampot, I took the bus first to Battambang, then to the small town Pailin. There I met Ka Lun, the missionary from HK, and Panneth, the local pastor there.

Ka Lun is a typical HK girl, just finished her hotel management degree. She has been in Pailin for short term mission a couple times before, but this time she's staying here for 1 year. Her living condition is same as Panneth. There's no running water. Water is collected into a huge jar during rain season, then using a bucket to pour out water for different uses, like washing dishes, flushing the toilet, or taking a bath. There's no air conditioning or hot shower. Those are OK when nothing happens. But when you're sick, those things could become very valuable. There lots of diseases, and medical care is not good. I thought I was tough going to Cambodia on my own, but living in Pailin for a year, or even stay here for life, is just unthinkable for me! On the other hand, Ka Lun is considering staying here as a missionary for an even longer term! It is incredible how the Holy Spirit can stir up a person to give up so much in HK to come to a place like this to serve Him! I'm completely humbled by her example.

Panneth, whom Ka Lun is working with, is a very quiet man. When you talk to him, his response is always very short, and often lack elaborations. When I talked to him the first time on the phone, I thought he didn't want to talk to me. Later I found out he was a former Khmer Rough soldier, that explained a lots of things. Later when I had more chance to talk to him, I found that he's just as friendly as any other people there. I didn't ask him about the war, or how he became a pastor, because I didn't have time to build up the relationship and I didn't want to be too intruding, but I'm sure he has gone through a lot of things!

Pictures from Cambodia

After much work, here are my pictures from Cambodia with descriptions. Merry Christmas! :

Phnom Penh
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=23700&l=7c979&id=545165722
Kampot
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=23794&l=dfd03&id=545165722
Pailin
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=23852&l=2b740&id=545165722
Sihanoukville
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=23965&l=55857&id=545165722
Siem Reap
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24101&l=f3380&id=545165722
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24102&l=58cf8&id=545165722
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24104&l=7a8ee&id=545165722
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24105&l=4f27d&id=545165722

Kampot

Even though Angkor is the highlight for most people going to Cambodia, for me I enjoyed Kampot just as much. In some extend, I would rather stay in Kampot for the whole week than to spend the same time around the temples in Angkor. I've spent only 2 days in Angkor, and toured most of the important temples. It's a "been there, done that" kind of thing. But for Kampot, I've spent the same amount of time there, had much less to do there, but I didn't want to leave when it was time to go. It's that lay back feeling that attracted me.

The guest house I stayed in was a big factor I think. I stayed in a small little guest house called Hang Guest House. It's a little house hide away in the back road, facing the river. In the morning I would go to the front porch area where the restaurant is. At 7 when nobody's awake yet except for a few workers sweeping the floor preparing for business, and the little doggy sniffing around, looking for a morning pat, I would sit at the table facing the river and do my daily devotion. 1 or 2 fishing boats would pass by quietly. A cow or 2 wandered into the front yard tried to eat the grass, but little doggy tried to scare them off.

Pastor Ng - always happy

Before my trip, I was concerned about the local condition, so I asked Raymond Chan for some advice. He immediately urged me to contact Pastor Ng there because he was worried about me traveling alone there. That's how I got hooked up with Pastor Ng. (Pastor Ng actually is Drew Gor's uncle)

When I looked at the picture he sent me in the email before I met him, he looked like a very serious man. But after the first hour we met, I started to realize he actually is a lay back person, very kind, and like to laugh. He always wanted to help me. He has actually called couple times when I was traveling with Hisar, to see if we were OK! He laughed so hard when we told him we took Hisar's little car up to Bokor Hill where the roads are usually only driven by 4X4! It was kind of awkward though when he called us while we were at the massage :p

Currently he's ministering at a church there. When I went to the church, I thought I was in the children worship. But in fact in Cambodia, the majority of Christians are younger ones. It was interesting to hear them sing Khmer version of "在耶穌裡我們是好朋友", and hear Pastor Ng spoke in Khmer in his sermon! Their praise & worship was really long, and music was really loud! Their main instruments were the synthesizer and the electric drum, plugged into big speakers in a small room. Well, Cambodian always like it loud, as I found out later. At the end of the service, there was a sharing time, and it was very touching to see people came out to share without hesitation! Even though most of the sharings weren't really big thing. It was more like a chicken got lost and God helped get it back.

Hisar - a special encounter

Before my trip, Pastor Ng has introduced me to Hisar, an Indonesia missionary in Cambodia. He said he'll be able to show me around and help me out in Phnom Penh. We exchanged a few emails and I found out he has a kid center in Phnom Penh. He also teaches people in need to drive tuk-tuk or sell other stuff so they can help themselves get out of poverty. He's 2 years younger than me, and already he's doing so much. I was fascinated about his work and was quite looking forward to meet with him.

First day in Phnom Penh, after my walking tour around the city, I called his number from my hotel room. He immediately said he'll meet with me. He came to my hotel in 15 minutes and picked me up to have some coffee. He was extremely friendly, and showed much appreciation when I gave him the gifts for the kid center. He started telling me his stories, one after another. Soon I realize this person is really no ordinary person. God has done so much in his life, and he's really surrounded by miracles. He's the kind of person you'd read in books and see in movies. I've never dreamed of actually meeting someone in person like him, and hear the story first handed!

Before I've arrived in Cambodia, the Lord has spoke to me clearly that I need to finish the GFA book. After half way through the book, I know that God wants me to support either the GFA or someone directly. As I talked more and more with Hisar, I felt, perhaps God wants me to help him, and support his ministries, financially. However in a place like Cambodia, you don't just give away money like that, there are scams everywhere. For a careful person like me, this is just too wild for me.

Right before the trip, I've started to read about a very small country called Bhutan. Because of its first election, it was on the news, briefly. And I remembered this country from the documentary "The Other Final". For some reason this country fascinated me and I started to read more about this country. The peaceful and simple people, the beautiful highland landscape, it's isolation from materials and technologies, have caught my attention over the fact that I was about to leave for a trip I've been planning for months. I thought to myself, it would be so cool if someday I can go to this country!

As me and Hisar continued to chat, out of the blue he mentioned this country. I thought I heard wrong. But he continued, that when his work is finished in Cambodia, he wants to go to this country, and do exactly what he's doing in Cambodia! Although this is just in his very early stage of planning, the fact that he has this tiny little unknown country in his mind, and at the same time in mine, I knew God has been planning for this!

Later on, God through different ways told me the amount I need to give, and the way I need to send the money. It's just an incredible feeling that suddenly God spoke to me so clearly and directly.

As extraordinary as Hisar is, he's still a person, and he has his down time. When I met him, he was just about to run dry and stressed out by all the hard works surrounding him, as he later shared with me. When he heard that I was going to Kampot, he immediately offered to accompany me. In the following 2 days, our friendship grew as we traveled together. In our adventure together, we had our tough times, and we had our fun times. We had times of worries and frustration, and we had incredible times laughing our butts off!

We went back to Phnom Penh late Wednesday, and I missed his English class in the kid center. I still regret it, but at least I know what God wants me to do now.

My Cambodian trip continued as we parted. As he went back to his normal life, and I continued on my adventure, this special encounter with Hisar seems to have ended for now. However, it is not for God. Incredibly, on my last day in Cambodia, as I flew back from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, ready to take the flight back to HK, I bumped into him in the airport! He was just picking a friend up from the airport! We were so happy to see each other! It seems like as if God wants to remind me that I need to remember this person as I go back.

Phnom Penh - the first encounter

I know many people are very eager to know what happened in my trip to Cambodia, but so much has happened in the trip that I really don't know how to begin. I guess I'll tell it bit by bit.

No matter how much I've read about Cambodia before, Phnom Penh is still quite shocking to me at first. Thanks to Pastor Ng who picked me up from the airport and shown me around the city a little bit, I was able to settle in with a boost.

After a few instructions about the traffic from Pastor Ng, I've learned how to cross the road the Cambodian way: "Walk calmly, don't run, even if cars are charging toward you, the bikes will see you and steer away." Sometimes I find I have to walk toward the oncoming traffic so that they can make a way for you, otherwise you'll never be able to cross! On the first day, I can't believe I actually walked around the city all by myself!

Knowing the country has gone through such a terrible history, I find that Cambodians are surprisngly friendly. People always smile at you, and not everyone are trying to squeeze money out of your pocket. Yes, in the Cambodian point of view, when you don't speak Khmer, you are rich. There's a big possibility that people being friendly to you just because they want something from you, but in most cases, Khmer people are just very simple people, the only barrier is the language.

However, the country has a very deep root in their idolism. For hundreds of years, it has been the same way. In front of many homes, you'd see miniature temples posted up, which supposedly housed a god who would protect their home. When you see Angkor Wat, it is just a super scaled up version of these little temples.

Before my trip, I felt very clearly that the Lord wanted me to finish the Gospel For Asia (GFA) book. As the book says, I know that the gospel can bring these people out of their hardship and poverties. However, there are still lots of work to be done in this place, as I discovered later on.

When I went to the national museum, there are lots of sculptures of different gods, some have missing body parts. However, whether the sculptures are intact or not, they are still continued to be worshiped. It is hard to understand why they would worship a god with missing head or arms, ..etc. Sometimes people would sell offerings to give to the gods. When I was walking around the national museum slowly, trying to appreciate the marvelous hand work on these ancient sculptures, an old lady with a very kind face smiled at me, and spoke to me with a very soft voice, wanted to sell little flowers to me to offer to the god. When I see her innocent face, suddenly I remembered what I've read in the GFA book, it suddenly made me feel really sad. Because despite her kindness, her soul is trapped unknowingly by the darkness.

Departure

Well, this is it. 4 hrs to lifting, and 14 hrs of brutal long hour flight ahead.
I can't believe I caught a cold right before I leave. I took a day off yesterday, seems like it was meant for me to have a day of quietness and rest before my trip.

Anyway, so long, see you all in a bit. Hopefully the next update gonna be an exciting one!

mission scariest

After many turns, my trip to Palin seems to be 80% finalized now. But now I'm faced with a very difficult task. Beside fixing computers, one of the tasks would be to "bring encouragement" to another short term missionary there! A person (me) who has never done any missionary work, or even brought anyone to Christ on my own, to bring encouragement to one of Lord's soldiers in the front line, this is really scary! Perhaps Raymond has spoken too highly of me! Anyhow, I've accepted the task.

I really need you guy's prayer!

This trip has really become much more spiritual than I anticipated!

1 week count down

At exactly one week from now this time, I'll be on the air, heading for one of my most ambitious trip ever! The fact that I'm heading to what used to be one of the most hostile places on earth hasn't quite catch on with me yet, 'cause I've been just crazily busy lately. With 3 P&W's coming up on the weekend, I don't think I've ever been so involved before!

Lots of people say that I'd experience God greatly in this trip, I guess that has boost up my expectation, even though I don't really know what to expect, since my itinerary has not even been finalized! I still haven't got a confirmation whether they would need me to setup computers in Palin, and another missionary has asked me to visit a kids camp in Phnom Pehn... As Wai Ho said, God's plan is always hidden until the very last minute!

I still can't imagine in a couple more days, I'd be in a totally different environment, dust everywhere, broken roads, poor neighborhood, hostile people, mosquitoes, language and signs I don't understand, ... etc.

decision decision...

Just finished talking with Raymond today about Cambodia,... Like all other people I've talked to, including my travel agency, he urged me not to go there alone! I was very disappointed because if going there in a guided tour, I'd rather go somewhere else on my own... But I really have to decide now 'cause I have to pay for the ticket in a few days or it'd be more expensive.
Reading Lonely Planet forum, seems many people go there by themselves, including females, they all had no problems... So who should I trust? Someone I know? or hundreds of comments on the net? I know people I've talked to are relatively more conservative...
I hope God can help me decide soon...

Bby -> Van bike trip

Somehow I always end up doing stuff on my own. I was planning to auto-x with my friend today, but decided it was too expensive, plus I feel I really need some exercise... So I decided to do some biking on one of my favorite routes from Burnaby to Downtown, which I've always wanted to do again. I know most people don't have their own bikes, but if you do, maybe you can join me next time! Anyway, biking from home to Downtown is always fun. It's really not as big of a deal as some of you might think! Driving takes 1/2 hour, but biking takes only 1 hour because we don't have long waits in traffic lights.

While I can't really describe exactly how the route goes, I can try to give you some idea here.

From home I rode up to Burnaby North Secondary School. There's an entrance point for part of the Trans Canada bike route right across Hastings. It's very easy to miss 'cause it's dark and you're riding into the woods. But, once you're in it, you'd just follow the gravel trail and the Trans-Canada bike trail sign. You'd have to ride on the road on some part, but eventually you'd go back onto gravel. The gravel trail is right beside the water North of Hastings, so it's not as hot, with some view points. At the end of the gravel trail you'd go under the Second Narrow bridge, and continue on some small paved back road, shared with cars, but traffic is really minimal. And then somehow you'd turn to a park and go back south until you reach Adanac Road where the Adanac trail starts. Then you can follow the Adanac trail sign until you reach China Town! Quite easy hey? Going to Vancouver is more fun than going back because it's mostly down hill going out. You might not notice when you're driving but Burnaby is actually higher altitude than Downtown.

When going back, you just have to take it easy. If you're too tired already you can always take transit back. But if you can conserve your energy, it won't be too hard. I chose an easier route going back 'cause I know I'm not in the best shape. I went Adanac all the way instead, then Union street / Fransis Street in Burnaby. Less interesting route, but need less energy since it's one straight road and all paved.

You don't really need a fancy bike to do these trails. My bike is like 20 years old, bought from the Bay or something. Just make sure your brake is good, 'cause there are some steep hills on the Trans Canada Trail. And lube your chain too.

So here you go, the cheapest, healthiest, greenest entertainment you can find!

In the picture is my favorite bench. It's right after the second narrow bridge. It's on a little hill, looking out to the Burrard Inlet. Somehow I always like sitting there. The memorial plate on the bench describes someone who loved nature. She died in the age of 40 something, and the plate was dedicated by her parents. Tragedies happen every moment, but I guess if we can enjoy and live the fullest every God given moment, that is a good life.


   

Willams Lake & Barkerville 07

Finally back. So tired from all the ridings! Now that I'm home, all the memories seem so far away.

Day 1 (June 30 Saturday):
(Times are aprox only)
10:30 am: Journey started! Headed toward east on Hwy 1.
12:00 pm: Oyster burger at Hope.
1:00 pm: Continue on Hwy 1, toward north. Average 120 km/hr. Didn't want to go too fast because I'm afraid the luggage at the back will fly away. Stopped at towns every 2 hours or so, to fill up and take breaks. Turned to Hwy 97 north. Hwy 97 is so boring, just a long straight road! My shoulder and wrist started to hurt badly, 'cause I have to stay in the same position for a long time. I started to take more breaks
6:15 pm: Finally arrived at Williams Lake! Saw 3 cop cars on the whole way, no tickets, no drama :) Kevin and Mayne just started to get back from fishing. Arrived at Kevin's place, after a short wait, Kevin & Mayne arrived.
7:30 pm: Headed out to Oliver pub to get dinner. Decent Prime Ribs.
9:00 pm: Kevin drove us around to check out the town, and stalk at other people's home :p Some people actually put their names in front of their house.
10:00 pm: Headed back to Kevin's place, drank beer, watched TV, and played with Kevin's fake flies! Took me a while to convince myself they are insects. Obviously the fishes have no problems identifying them as food.
1:00 am time to get rest

Day 2 (July 1st Sunday Happy Birthday Canada)
10:00 am: Tried to go to Kevin's church at WL, but found out all churches are closed for the Stamped! Instead all churches gathered at a park to have a cowboy church. Small town :) About couple hundred people attended. The speaker is also a country gospel singer. The service lasted couple hours, and all the time he just played his guitar and sang, with karaoke music at the back, messages in between songs. A different experience I guess... If I have to give a theme to the service, I guess it would be Christians against the world. Kind of a negative tone, but I guess it's true.
12:00 pm: Service ended. Kevin seems to keep bumping into people, what a popular guy! But later he explained, WL is a small town, everybody basically know each other. If you're from out of town, an old timers could probably tell you're an outsider!
After the service, we walked over to the next booth, and had free Canada Birthday cake and ice cream, and National flag water tattoo. I can't believe it's still on me now after 3 days! I have to rub it off tonite otherwise people would think I don't take bath everyday!
1:00 pm: Headed to Boston pizza for lunch. Mayne's treat. Thanks :)
2:30 pm: Tried to go check out the Stamped, but can't find a parking spot, so went for a short hike at Scout Island.
3:30 pm: Went to Stamped, but didn't really go in, 'cause didn't want to pay. Saw some horses and cowboys doing preps at the back stage, and got my cowboy hat!
4:30 pm: Headed to Cook Lake at a very secret location. Saw so many cows on the way, and saw a running deer. Went on Kevin's inflatable boat and tried our luck on the fake insects. The lake was so quiet, all I could hear was the birds sound, and Kevin's paddling sound. As sun started to set, more and more fish jumped up to eat the insects, but not our fake insects :( Only Kevin got 1. Anyway, I'm sure me and Mayne tried our best already. I saw a wild moose for the first time at the lake. And a loon kept coming back.
10:00 pm: headed back to town, luckily the casino restaurant still open. Food not bad, had a pork cutlet. Kevin's treat. Thanks! :)

Day 3 (July 2 Monday)
6:00 am: Got up super early, packed up and headed toward Barkerville on my bike, before anyone waked up.
10:15 am: Arrived at Barkerville, took me 2:15 hours, saw 2 deers on Hwy 26. I'm now in central BC. Elevation 1265 meters. It's hard to imagine there were once 100,000 people living in this ghost town, with 50% Chinese. The historic park now basically has only little more than 50 tiny restored houses surrounded by trees, but where the trees are now, once were all houses. Looking at the historic pictures, there was actually a town that were all Chinese. You see in the picture a rural small town in the middle of the forest just like the ones in China, but actually it was in Canada. This town has now virtually disappeared and taken over by the forest. Luckily we can still take a glimpse of what life used to be at Barkerville. As the tour guide explained, because of the Chinese exclusion act, most Chinese men came here to try to make money but never been able to bring their wifes and children here, therefore they never had any posterities to tell us their stories in Canada. I guess one of the reasons we have children, is so that when we pass on, our stories and the wonderful things we've done in this world, can continue to be heard, and pass on to generations, so that someone would know we were once here.
At the town there are many actors walking on the street dressed in gold rush time fashion, which created an interesting feeling as if you've gone back in time. I've talked to a few of them, and they all talked to me in strange ways as if you were really in 1800's. One disappointment though, even though there were 50% Chinese in the population, all actors there are Caucasians. Even in the Chinese restaurant, all the servers are white, dressed in Chinese clothings, except for the boss, she was the only Chinese I saw on site. I found out later, she is also the fortune teller across the street in the afternoon! 1 person 2 rolls!
5:30 pm: Packed up, and started to head back to WL. Quarter of the way out, disaster strikes! All along my trip things have been pretty smooth, but just when I felt I've finished everything here and ready to head back home, crap happened! I had my back pack wrapped on the back seat. I never had any problem before, even on the very windy Hwy 1! But perhaps this time I got too carried away and went too fast, and went over a few hard bumps, my bag out lose and flew away! Big deal, just my back pack, but my glasses were in the beg. I had a 1-day contact on, and if I lose my glasses, I won't be able to go to work, and ordering a new one take days. So I turned around to tried to find my beg. I have only enough gas to head back to Wells (a town right outside Barkerville), and I knew there is 1 gas station there, I thought, I'll just go back once, to try my luck to try to find it. If I don't, I'll just fill up and then go back to WL. I found my net, but my beg was no where to be found. Oh well, I guess I'd just fill up and go back. I pull up to the gas station, unbelievably, they were out of gas! They are the only gas station there! I'm stuck! They said gas won't arrive until tomorrow morning. (I found out later it never did) I didn't know what to do! With no other choice, I parked my bike, and wandered around, try to think what I should do next. Then I got hungry, luckily there was 1 restaurant still open in the town, so I went in. The special of the day was pork cutlet. (Same thing I had the nite before) This time though, it was stiff, and the mash potato was dry like dessert soil! But still at least I didn't have to stay hungry all nite! Then I decided I should stay there for the night and try to find my beg again the next morning. Even though I had my 1-day contact, I could probably preserve it with distilled water and wear it the next day until I go back to WL where I still have another pair. I went in the motel, asked for a room, an old man came out, I told him about the gas station situation, he didn't say anything, just quietly gave me room 13. I almost laughed out! I got stuck in a tiny little town, with population probably no greater than 50, in the middle of no where, next to a ghost town, and an old man gave me room 13 in a tiny motel, just a perfect scenario for a western horror movie! I took a bath, prayed, then went to sleep. It was only 9pm. I tried not to think about anything, not what would happen tomorrow, not the 18 century grave yard I visited in Barkerville, not the dead people story I heard from the cemetery tour there.

Day 4 (July 3 Tuesday)
Next morning I woke up, time to wear my contacts, and go search for my beg again. When I opened the case, with total surprise, the contacts changed shape! It turned to an almost square like cone shape! I can't wear them anymore! I have lost my eye-sight! I am now completely stuck! How can I go find my beg, most of all, how can I get back!? With 1000 degree, I cannot see a thing without my glasses! I sat on my bed, completely lost! Didn't know what to do at all! Out of desperation, I walked out to the motel office, carefully step up to the office, a lady came out, I asked her if anyone has turned in a green back pack. I'm sure it sounded so awkward, but I just didn't know what else to do. I didn't want to call Kevin 'cause he had to work and he is 3 hrs drive away. The lady said there's a police station right across the street, when they open, i can go over and see if anyone has found my beg. A new hope! Maybe this is it! Maybe I can just get my beg and get my glasses in the beg and head back! The police station opened, I crossed the street carefully, Officer Trainor came out, i told him about my situation. Complete disappointment, no beg has been found! He wrote down my info and said he'll contact me if they do get it. With complete disappointment, I headed back to my motel. With no other options, I called Kevin, hoping he can get my last pair of contacts, so I can ride back out. He can't come until 8pm. Then I went to the motel office, and asked the lady if I can stay till 8pm? At first she refused because she said she had to clean the room. But afterward she changed her mind and let me stay till my help comes. Then Kevin called me, he said he can take a day off and get my contacts and gas for me so i can leave the town. Ah, now I can be at least sure i don't have to spend another night there, and get back to Vancouver in time to go to work. But still, without my glasses, I just can't go to work 'cause my contact lense makes me feel too uncomfortable to work in front of the monitor for more than a few hours. and with my thick glasses, it would take days to get a new pair! And worst, just before I left, I was in the middle of a very important project, I cannot afford to take any more days off! With all the worries, I stay in the room, waited anxiously for the phone to ring. At around 11am, officer Trainor knocked on my door, I didn't want to guess what he was gonna tell me, then he said, someone has found my beg! I was so thankful! My problem has finally been solved! ... But not quite yet, the person turned it in another police station, 100km from the town. So I called Kevin's cell, he has just headed out to get gas for me, so I asked him to pick up my beg from the other town... Still I worried, wondered if that is really my beg, 'cause I called the other police station, they said another person has called earlier that (s)he has also lost a back pack. At 1:30pm, Kevin arrived, my hero! There he held my back pack, and 2 tanks of gas! I'm finally saved! I feel so sorry he had to take a day off to drive to middle of nowhere, and then just drive back! But just so thankful he was there! Also, million thanks to whoever picked up my beg, that person probably had no idea how important the beg was to me!
5:00pm: Finally back to WL. Such a relief! I decided to stay at his place for one more nite, and then just enjoy my ride back home the next morning. Originally I planned to spend an extra day at home to rest.
6:00pm: By now Mayne has already left, so me and Kevin headed out for dinner. We had pasta, this time my treat, it has to be! Kevin met a few people again, even a native lady on the street knew him!

Day 5 (July 4 Wednesday - last day - really)
7:15 am: Finally, headed back home! This time I decided to take it easy, and stop wherever I see a nice view. I went south on Hwy 97. Went to Green Lake to take a break. Saw 2 deers on the way there. Seems like no one was at the lake. Nice and quiet, such a relaxing feeling. Then I took a detour to Hwy 99, and go back via Lillooet and Whistler. First half of Hwy 99 was excellent, new pavement, really smooth. Then the road turn to worst half way to Lillooet, super bumpy, pot holes everywhere, completely different from when I went through couple years ago. On the same road, I saw a black bear on the road, I stopped my bike, he looked at me for a few second, then went away calmly. Stopped at Lillooet for lunch at the restaurant me and my riding buddy used to go to when we did the loop together. After that, the road continued to be bumpy all the way to Pemberton. Almost got into trouble again when I went into a small pot hole in the middle of a turn! Front wheel skid a little bit, luckily got back friction right away! After Whistler, it was hwy constructions all the way! 50km zone! Just stupid to have the entire Hwy turned into 50Km! Some part I didn't even see people working! Anyway, finally got back home right before 5. Overall the return trip was much more enjoyable, 'cause of the scenery and spent more time enjoying the view.

So that's my journey. Sorry if you read through the whole thing and found it's too long and too much details to read. I just got back home and just want to write down everything before I start to forget, and I'm too tired tidy up things. Anyway, hope you enjoyed reading...

Pictures albumn

Summer trip

Well, I guess a summer can't complete without a trip to somewhere. Inspired by Long Way Round, this coming weekend I'll be doing something I've never done before in my life. I'm gonna ride my motorcycle to Williams Lake. Google map says it takes 7 hrs 1 way, but I think it's gonna take more time. (OK, not quite Long Way Round, but the longest distance ever for me anyway) 7 hrs may be OK in a car, but on a bike, could be quite tough, specially for first timer, still not sure if i can make it, hopefully I can make it ...)

Anyway, the main attraction in this trip will be visiting the Bakerville historic town. There's a historic china town there, which shows how life was for Chinese back in the gold rush years. I think as Chinese living in Canada, it would be nice to see how life was for them so many years ago. Bakerville was the biggest city in BC.

I'll be also visiting Kevin, hopefully weather gonna be nice, so I can go fishing with him and Mayne.

travelers' ethics

I've been reading a travel book, and it included a section called Travelers' Code of Ethics, which is cited from the Christian Conference of Asia. I find it quite useful. I think I should put some of them here:

• Travel in a spirit of humility and with a genuine desire to meet local people


• Be sensitive to the feelings of local people and try to avoid offensive behavior...


• Cultivate the habit of listening and observing ...


• other people may have concepts ... thought patterns that are very different - not inferior - only different


• instead of seeing only the "beach paradise", discover the richness of another culture and way of life


• Get acquainted with local customs and respect them


• Cultivate the habit of asking questions instead of knowing all the answers


• Remember that you are only one among many visitors; do not expect special privileges


• Bargain sensitively. Realize that the "deal" you obtain is only possible because of the low wages paid to the maker.


• Make no promises to local people that you cannot fulfill


• ... Avoid enriching your experience at the expense of your host country or its people.

Cambodia!

Because of T&L's wedding, I'll go back to HK in December. To fully utilize the flight ticket, I also want to go to a nearby country. I've searched around, seems like Cambodia interests me the most. Weather also seems the best in December among other places.

I've been reading up on Lonely Planet's guide to Cambodia and different websites. The more I read, the more I want to go there. The mysterious temple and ruins in the forest, the dark history of their civil war, and elephant riding in the countryside, all excite me!

However safety is still the main concern. Having lived in a relatively safe country for a long time, not sure if I would be able to cope with it... A travel buddy or 2 would really be good, but still searching ...

Burnaby Lake Trail

Went to a short hike in the afternoon today, decided to go to one close to home, at Burnaby Lake. It’s the second time I’ve been there; it’s actually decent, despite that it’s right next to Hwy 1. It took me little bit less than 2 hours for a round trip. The trail ends at Cariboo, near the camp ground at the end of Government Rd. The trail is actually part of the Burnaby Lake round lake trail.

There are a few open areas with a refreshing view. Despite it’s close proximity to the highway, you do see some wildlife. I managed to see 1 squirrel, few ducks, a huge rabbit, and few horses. There’s a horse barn near Cariboo, so likely you’d see people walking the horses on the same trail. There’s a small dam at Cariboo and a few benches next to the river, facing west, so a nice area to rest and enjoy the sunset a little bit before heading back.

The goods:

• close by
• some interesting areas

The bads:

• traffic noise
• moderately crowded

How to get there:

Drive to CG Brown, and to the back road behind the recreational centre, which is the other part of Sperling Ave. Drive toward south, to the very end, and onto a twisty road, (which is not Sperling anymore). Eventually the road ends at the trail entrance and you can park your car there. Start by detouring into the woods right away, then you can walk to the east toward Cariboo. The trail also goes the other way, round the entire Burnaby Lake actually. It should just take a bit longer to do the whole lake.

Taiwan Sept 9-15, 06 / HK Sept 16-19

Originally posted September 26, 2006

So I'm back from Taiwan. Let me just say that, this trip was made all possible by God. Before I went, little did I know how under prepared I was, but everything just felt into places. Even though I've missed out many of the things people considered must do, at least I was able to visit most of the places I've planned. And for a first time solo traveller, I think it's pretty good already :)

As soon as I got off the plane and stepped on Taiwan's soil, unexpected things happed to me. At that time I didn't know Taiwan requires 6 months before the expire date of the passport to enter, I didn't have that and my passport was considered expired. The custom officer then called up the Cathy Pacific people, I thought they were gonna send me right back, after 13 hr of flight! Then a manager came, tried to understand the situation. Then he talked to some custom supervisor, and at last, they were able to give me a limited one time visa. I paid about 2000 NT for it, which almost used up all my cash at the time, and then told me never to do that again. While I was taking the picture for the visa, I overheard another couple having passport problem, saying some relatives were stuck in HK because her passport is expired. They were arguing with the visa officer, but they just couldn't seem to get what they wanted. I was very fortunate that I didn't have to say much and got the visa.

When I finally got pass the border, it was close to 12 am already! My luggage has already been taken off the pick up belt, and was placed in front of a Cathy Pacific counter, I think they were about to send it back, thought it was a lost luggage! I went ahead and grabbed it.

Now I need cash for my hostel, I can't believe a money exchange shop was still opened, so late at night! I went ahead and exchanged some traveller cheques, at terrible rate.

Then I needed to find out how the heck I can get to my hostel. At that time, all bus would have stopped operating already. As I stood there looking all confused, a person came up to me asked me if I was trying to get to my hotel. He immediately offered me a rate that he said is better than the hotel shuttle. I thought, this is just the perfect time to be ripped off, but I didn't care, I took the offer as I didn't want to take anymore risk at that time. He charged me 1300NT, which afterward when I checked my Lonely Planet Tour Guide book, that's exactly the average price they stated. I got in his luxurious Volvle escort, and went straight to my hostel. He knew exactly where my hostel was. We also chatted all the way there. He told me all about Taiwan, and I found out he also went to Vancouver too! He was super friendly, his name is Bill Kuei. I totally recommend him!

When I finally got to my hostel, the owner was already gone, but a resident there knew I was coming, and he kindly pointed the way to my room, and to the washroom too! That night, the bath just seemed like the nicest I've ever taken, even though it had some of the most basic facilities.

On the next morning, I finally met the owner, and paid my money for the room. After that, I realized, I'm all out of cash again! And worst, it's Sunday, all banks are closed! Fortunately 7/11's open 24/7, and my bank card works on their ATM, I got 10,000NT, and that was the last time I ever withdrew cash in Taiwan!

After a Taiwan style breakfast, I started to search for the church that I planned to go. It took me 2 hrs to get there because I'm such a terrible map reader! But God let me got there just in time for the service. As soon as I got in line to get in the church, it started to rain real hard! The worship was wonderful! Even though I was super tired, I was able to enjoy the service all the way! I knew none of the songs they sang, but the worship team was just great! I can say that was the nicest praise & worship I ever had! As well the surmon, amazingly I was able to understand 90% of it! After that, I stood up as a new comer, an old lady sat next to me started to talk to me. She was super friendly, she even bought me lunch! We chatted, she talked about her past, and I shared some of my stories... At the end we even exchanged address. We both knew probably we won't see each other again, but it was just nice to get to know such a nice sister in Christ.

After lunch, the time was just perfect to go see the protest outside the president building! It was raining real hard, but I still went. I took a lot of pictures, and experienced the unity of Taiwanese people! Then I went across to the Sun Yet Sen Memorial Hall, and read the scripture on the wall. I suddenly had a deep feeling. When Sun Yet Sen founded the new China, it was actually based on Christian faith that he deeply believed in. But selfishness, and other evil ways, just bought it so far apart from his ideal society.

Because of the pouring rain, and I was taking lots of pictures, exposing the camera to all the rain, my camera started to malfunction! I went to a few more places, then went back to my hostel disapointingly. I then tried to make some calls to my friends in Taipei, but I can get through to none of them. At that time, sunddenly, I became so depressed! I'm all wet from top to bottom; its the first day of my trip, and I can't use my camera anymore; and I can't find any of my friends! Suddenly it seemed like a cold cold city and i just wanted to go home. I continued to find a dinner place, I tried to go to Si Lum night market, but got off at the wrong MTR station, then I just picked a place nearby to eat, then went back to the hostel and sleep. I prayed to God: this is such a crappy trip, can You just try to improve it a little bit for me? Then I closed the light and went to bed, right when I did that, the owner came up and said phone call for me! It was my friend!

The next day, amazingly, after everything has dried up, my camera started to work again! So I went to check out some other places in Taipei, and at night went to meet up with my friend. I got on his scooter, and experienced the rush and the pollution of the Taiwanese traffic!

Tuesday, I went to Jiu Fen, a very interesting little place, which made famous by a chines movie. Lots of interesting little shop there, and I took lots of pictures. I've bought a little interesting looking clay flute, and the owner taught me a little bit how to play. I think that day was the first day I started to get over my jet lag, and I started to eat more stuff, just in time for the snacks there! One candy shop, which wasn't particularly crowded, called Law Ji, the owner instantly recognized me as a Hong Kong-nese, and started to speak to me in Mand-Cantonese which was quite hard to understand. She seemed very friendly, not the kind that only want to sell you something... She let me try all the samples. She said lots of Hong Kong people buy stuff from her... and then showed me something her customer sent back to her to thank her... then she started asking why I travelled alone, and stuff... and that I should bring my GF to see her next time if I have one...! Taiwanese people are just so friendly!

After that, I've met up with my other friend, and had dinner at Si Meng Ding. The next morning I began my journey to Tai Chung and Sun Moon Lake. By taking the train it gave me lots of chances to see different side of Taiwan, however buying the ticket was very complicated at first. There are different trains going on the same route but stop at different stops. Some are faster, some are slower. So you have to look at this complicated time table to decide which one you want to take. Luckily there were some very helpful volunteers at the train station helped me to find the right one.

It took me like 5 hrs to go to a town near Sun Moon Lake! I think next time I'll consider going there by air. There I stayed at a very old hotel. When I got in, I was the only person there! It reminds me of some scary movie. Lucily there were no weird noise at night, and I was able to get to sleep that night after some struggle. At the next town called ChiChi I had a chance to do a little bike trip and expeirenced the rural Taiwan. The weather there was ever changing. It was really sunny and beautiful when I arrived. As I headed out on my bike trip, I started to see black clouds covering half of the sky, and just as I reached the end of the bike route and tried to rush back to the rental place, the rain came pouring on me. It was quite an experience!

The next day I went to Sun Moon Lake and did a lot of hiking in the morning. The exact samething happened, gourgous weather in the morning, but pouring in late afternoon. In the afternoon, I began my round-lake tour by taking the round-lake tour bus, which has a very complicated time table, but with the right timing, it allows you to stop at different view points and pick you up after about an hour. I find that not many people took the bus, seems many people took the scooter instead. Anyway, for the entire day, me, another Japanese solo traveller, and an Iseral couple were the only customers! And all day the bus was operated by one bus driver. The bus driver was such a dedicated driver. Since there weren't many of us on the bus, he tried to help us to schedule where we should go! He even asked me to do English translation for the Iseral couple. That's when I started to chat with the couple. They are a retired couple, touring all over the world. They told me all the different places they went, and told me where I should visit in Taiwan too! Before that, they've spent 30 days to tour all over China! They didn't know any Chinese, but they made it through the trip and actually enjoyed it! Before that I always thought it would be quite dangerous to travel to China without a tour guide, due to all the theives, rip offs. and fake food! But this couple gave me a new light, maybe I should start planning my China trip!

During those days, I had a lot of chances to talk to different people, and they were all very friendly, and gave me lots of help. No one there ever tried to rip me off.

After that, I was off to HK. There I met many old friends, and had a lot of seafood. Also, I met with my aunt who had a stroke last year. I was so grateful to learn that my uncle has recieved Christ because my aunt made it through alive. Even though my aunt has to use wheel chair now, I can say that they are living a much happier life now. Everyday is a blessing for them.

My trip has finally ended, and I can't believe it's over already. Even though it's only a week and a half, it seemed like a long time. As I started to go back to work, to church, and see the same people I used see everyday, I realized that everything is back to normal again. I do hope that somewhere down the road, I'll go back there again!

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