Day 2 of the Loi Krathong Festival…

Get to know what Loi Krathong actually celebrates here in Thailand and witness one of the MOST INCREDIBLE NIGHTS EVVEEERRRR!!!!

PS: This was on my List of Things To Do Before I Die. Swish!

Part 2 of my island getaway. I’m genuinely excited to share this adventure with you.
So much more to come…
Peace and love, peace and love.

Das ist eine tall German!

Michael‘s back!

Once I got back from the island – and linked back in with the digital world – I got a message from Michael, a German traveler that we first met in Bangkok at the hostel we were staying in. For me, he and another friend made there called Nydia, were the best part of our brief stay in that rough city.

It’s brilliant how two people from seemingly disparate backgrounds, contexts, and continents can connect so effortlessly. We’ve only been hanging out a couple of days here in Chiang Mai, but each day is filled with laughter, intelligent and open discussion, and constructive personal insights as we continue to connect with and meet other new friends. I believe that all true friends inspire one another and live with abundant love – Michael is one of those friends.

It all reminds me again how we are really all just one human family, and when it feels right it’s just golden!

My Paradise island crew (minus 1 swimming Frenchie.) We roll deep.

The Universe conspired to make my sojourn on this unknown island one of cosmic proportions.

Each natural element aligned and shone unabashedly before me in a myriad of forms. The life force of the pregnant moon breathed awe-inspiring life into me and my Paradise companions each night. Even days away from completing its monthly rotation, it appeared as though each night we were all on some other planet where the moon is always full. It’s affect was extra-humanly.

At night, phosphorescent light glowed and swirled between the undulations of our fingertips in the salty sea reminding us once more how connected we are and how much life is teeming all around us, even if it just takes a wave of a hand underwater to see. The feeling is nothing short of pure joy.

The “we” and “us” I refer to is the community of friends I made on the island. Each residing in our own wooden bungalows on the beach, we came together to eat, drink, marvel, and discuss the merits and challenges of this life of travel and this world we navigate. Choosing to lead these lives independently of one another, it amazes me just how seamlessly we connected. It’s as though the constellations converged on this small stretch of beach – which I hadn’t even really planned on going to – connecting Thai, Australian, Italian, French, British, German, American, and New Zealanders in a cosmic boom that brought with it the most beautiful calm you can imagine. It was beautiful and I will cherish it forever as we all continue on our respective paths, knowing in my heart it wont be the last time our paths will cross.

Between us we’ve adopted so many new customs on all our travels and lives, seeing who knows how much of this beautiful planet and its people, speaking on average 2 languages fluently and learning new words in different dialects every day – the simple beauty and the monumentality of these endeavors begins to strike a chord. Seems like the more one realizes the need to carry on in this kind of life, the clearer is becomes that it’s not always just you achieving your dreams, but a whole Universe guiding you, illuminating your path and other seemingly disparate paths along the way. As one uncertain step connects with the other, I fully embrace the purity and the power of faith, trusting that everything is as it should be.

And everything, ladies and vagabonds, is beautiful.

Mine and Jeremiah’s new – and lovely – friend Ying orchestrated this trip for both of us and our other friend Hannah. We visited a Karen (kuh-REN) village and some friends she hadn’t seen in 3 years. Just a 2 hour, 1.50 dollar bus ride out of Chiang Mai City and we were threaded out in traditional Karen clothing, sliding down a waterfall, singing under the night sky, and learning a new language. (My favorite part: our host’s Mom kept on referring to us as her children. Awww!!)

The landscapes: breathtaking. The people: so warm and welcoming. The rice whiskey: a’plenty.

All in all, a phenomenal way to celebrate life, new friends, and the boundless beauty and peace in Thailand.

Going up a mountain to give you the low-down… 1 month in.

One day.

Wake up. Late morning. Light, cool breeze.

Take a walk. Rent a motor bike for the first time in your life. Lie and say you have ridden before. Take the fuck off on the open road with no direction. Learn you are quite skilled at riding said motor bike.

See live tigers interact with people. Crack the fuck up as they cuddle with the wild animals. Feed koi fish. Take off on said motor bike again. Drive indiscriminately into the Thai jungle with no sound but the music of said jungle.

Share some rice wine with your newly formed motor bike gang – “The Chicken Leg Gang” – and some new awesome friends at a dimly lit outdoor patio. Barefoot – as is the custom.

Get invited to a house warming party for an Italian expat. Revel with men, women, and children from all over the world and learn phrases in three languages, three dialects, and seven accents.

Get in a truck. Drive. See a fucking lone elephant! Scream and point. Witness your camera man eat shit as he practically fractures his coccyx on the asphalt after leaping from the moving vehicle. Witness his awe inspiring recovery as he then bolts to film the elephant. Cherish the 4 second clip he captures.

Take your motor bike to an awesome reggae bar. Meet more people from more places. Dance on benches with beautiful women. Listen to live music.

Drive motor bike back to guesthouse on a lone stretch of dark road, through an alley, past a Buddhist temple, and dismount.

One day.
Best day.

l-r: Michael of Bavaria, Nydia of Spain, and two Americanos

There are some things that are clear impediments. Some we can escape, some we don’t even know are there. For me, one thing that gets in the way of my own self is my computer. So far, every morning we’ve been waking up in this beautiful hostel in Bangkok and going downstairs and getting on our laptops. Every morning we just allow ourselves to get sucked right back in to the energetic vortex that is this damned machine, separating ourselves from the rest of the world – and we have every corner of the world traipsing around us at this hostel! People from Austria, to France, to Japan, and New Zealand, and for the most part, we don’t even acknowledge them. Yesterday I changed that. I got up in the morning and went upstairs to the roof. I took my shoes off and felt the texture of the gravel under my feet, I looked out over the city, took in its smells, its sounds and saw the people of Thailand waking up at sunrise to take their coffee, wash their motor bikes, and prepare the day’s meals. I listened to their quieted parlance, muted by the 5 stories under my bare feet. This is Bangkok, I thought to myself. It may lack the natural ecosystem of Northern Thailand, the smell of wet earth, and the textures of elephants’ skin, but this is real. I wanted more.

After I surrendered to the reality of this city I wanted to see more of it. I went downstairs and didn’t pick up my laptop, I picked up a book. I quietly sat and ate the local breakfast, not the standard Western fare they prepare for us all, and I got away from the crowd of laptops. I already felt freer.

After that a friend I had met at the hostel, Michael came down to the table I was sitting at. He’s from Bavaria and he’s been traveling for months throughout Thailand and Laos, with plans to go to Australia and Cambodia. He’s a social worker from Bavaria with an interest in aid work, social media, and scuba diving, so naturally we had plenty to talk about. No one talked about their financial straits, or about following up on connections, no one was “all business”, this was real human interaction. I can’t say that I have been able to get to know anyone else as well I got to know Michael yesterday  – or Nydia last night. (More on that lovely Spanish flower later.)

After Michael showed me his scuba diving video from his trip to the Thai island of Koh Tao – expect to see more soon – we decided to go to Khao San Road. Michael came along and directed us to the scenic route. We took the sky train to the slow boat and rode with Buddhist monks in their orange robes and the rest of Bangkok down the river, watching all the Hindu and Buddhist temples reflect the sun off their gilded roofs. It was beautiful. It was just what I needed. Once we got to Khao San Road – which is admittedly a tourist trap strip of asphalt, reminding me strangely of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – we made friends with most everyone we saw. The man from Nepal selling three-piece suits, the old woman selling bracelets from a tray around her neck, and Nam, a little person with the sweetest smile I had seen in a long time. (I think I bowed to her and said thank you simply for meeting her about three times before walking away.) Oh, and Jeremiah and I totally made our own Pad Thai on the street. That was pretty awesome. I asked the woman making it if I could and she just let me jump behind the cart she cooks the noodles on and instructed me in Thai (and by signing) how to make a meal I had only ever had served to me or microwaved. That was her life probably every day – cooking Pad Thai for foreigners – and I gave her a break and a few laughs. Totally worth it.

By the time we got back to the hostel across town it was night and everyone was relaxing in the main room, which is where I met the lovely Spanish flower that is Nydia. Her smile is the first thing that reaches you – and then her accent. I asked where she was from and I immediately sparked up a conversation with her en Español. She’s been traveling solo through Thailand for about a month and will be leaving in just a couple days. (It’s amazing how within one night you can connect with someone from clear across the planet and know you just made a friend for life.) We talked about Thai landscapes and culture, fear and the media, love and family – mostly in Spanish over Thai beer with Jeremiah from Louisiana and Michael from Bavaria. At that moment, we were all connected. (This is why I travel.)

Soon we wont be at this hostel anymore, and who knows if I will make it to Australia or Oktoberfest to meet up with Michael or to Madrid or Formentera to relax with Nydia, but I know I made two friends in less than 12 hours that will last a lifetime… here, in Bangkok.

So, here’s the deal.

Jed (the editor) and I (Brian) are heading down to NYC this weekend to attend TBX (the Travel Blog Exchange).  Well not attend really since we didn’t get tickets, but at least hit up all the parties and lunches.  Anyway, point being that we do not actually have a place to stay.  That’s where the awesome friends part comes in.  If you live in NYC have an extra couch or floor you don’t mind us using Friday and Sat night and are a fan of new friends, well then, drop us a line (brian@jetsetzero.tv).

Here are things that we’ve got going for us as guests:

• Not sketchy
• Awesome
• Filled with stories of adventure
• Courteous, Polite, and well mannered
• We will bring a couple six packs of tasty beer or a bottle of wine for you as a token of appreciation (your choice!)

Pretty good deal if I do say so myself. 

As time is of the essence, let us know soon (brian@jetsetzero.tv). 

Your new friends!  (Brian: Left, Jed: Right)