the habberjams

Today was my first day out and about in Bangkok with my mum. We had to go to the National Museum in Thailand so my mum could scan some photos from a book for a presentation she is making at the museum on Monday.

We left the Marriott on the hotel’s Tuk Tuk (pictured here), and journeyed along Sukhumvit until we came to Siam Paragon, a high-end shopping mall that links to the Sky Train.

We hopped on that, and rode all the way out to the major Chao Phraya River. Here, we got on a water taxi down to the end of the river (snaps of which I’ve posted here), until we reached the area of the National Museum, and the Grand Palace where demonstrators from the Northern Provinces are attempting to make it known their dissatisfaction with the current political leader here in Thailand. (We didn’t see any of that going on, we only heard it in a well-hidden – by tents and other temporary structures – square opposite the National Museum.)

I’ve done the ride along the river when I’ve been here in the past, but this time I actually took photos as I felt it was interesting to document the contrast between the extremele poor and the obviously more well-off, if not downright filthy rich, domiciles intermixed along the filthy waterbed. Some of these dwellings one is amazed are still standing in the face of the sometimes harsh wind and rain storms that batter Bangkok frequently during rainy season.

When we got off the ferry, we got another tuk tuk – a much older and less well-kept one – and drove around some crazy streets until we got to the museum. We did our business there, then headed back to Sukhumvit through the river ferry again. This time I got to observe the water, as I stood leaning against the side towards the rear of the packed boat, watching the putrid greenish-brown water swirling, wondering just how much e.coli must reside in there, not sure I even wanted to conceive of the sort of filth that must be hidden beneath the murky depths. The smell coming off the water wasn’t too strong, but when it hit my nose, it was like sewage. I wondered how bad it was now compared to 5 years ago when I was here, and then compared to the 20 years ago when I was here the first time. The whole thing left me somewhat sick to my stomach, though that could have been the heat getting to a very tired me as well, considering I woke up at 4:30 am this morning and only slept fitfully for about another hour before I got up at 6:30 am. It also didn’t help that the poor Thai man standing next to me had the most horrible deformities – his face was swollen to about twice the size of a normal person’s face, making him look like a cartoon character. On top of that, he had large bubbles of skin emerging all over it, and what I saw of his left hand was swollen and misshapen. I don’t know what he had, but I struggled between wanting to stare and figure it out and being so sickened I had to look away. I can’t imagine the kind of life he must have led in a country like this, where human compassion is limited and in small supply. but this kind of thing is everywhere in Thailand.

Once back at Sukhmvit, mum took me to a knitting shop she’d found here – Big Knit Cafe. It was cute – full of interesting, novelty yarns, pattern books and some of the same types of needles I buy back home. The prices, however, aren’t that great – they’re approximately the same as the exhorbitant ones I pay back home in Toronto. Maybe a few dollars cheaper here and there… I recorded some yarns I liked, and have looked them up for pattern inspiration on Ravelry. So far, I have yet to come up with much, but I’ll spend some more time on that before I go back to purchase anything. If I’ve realised one thing about knitting, it’s about as expensive as any other hobby you pretty much can’t make any money off.

Well, that’s it for today. I’m now completely wiped out and looking forward to a very good night’s sleep, before mum and I take off to the National Museum again tomorrow for a course she’s taking on how to give tours there.

For those readers who may not know, I’m currently visiting my parents in Bangkok, Thailand for 18 days. They returned there at the end of February for the last 3 months of my dad’s contract with his work. At the end of April, when they return, that’ll be it – my dad will be officially retired!

The flight out here was long and grueling. I left on an afternoon Air Canada flight to Narita Airport in Tokyo, Japan that lasted 14 long hours, during which time I got about 1/4 of the way through one of my knitting projects ( a cute halter top), made loads of mistakes and decided to tear it all out so I could start again, and then realised I didn’t bring the needles I needed to start the project itself. At that point, it really sunk in that this was going to be a long flight filled with terrible, mostly cut films. I did watch many movies… the best being, I think Creation, about the struggle Darwin went through to write On The Origin of Species. I also watched Couples’ Retreat, which I thought was such a kitschy piece of Hollywood drivel. I think I kept watching merely for the beach resort, a similar one to which I went to late last year. It made me think of the upcoming trip to Thailand, and was worth it merely for that. There was one scene in it that made me cringe. There are 4 couples in the film, and in one scene, they are required to undress in front of one another, all the men lined up facing their women in the opposite line. The men are all pudgy and bulgy, chubby, as to be expected in middle-aged men who don’t care one shred for their looks. The women, on the other hand, were all pre-pubescent, almost (young) male in their statures – no curves, no fat to speak of, completely unfeminine – all of them staring fearfully at their partners, most likely thinking “Aaah! This is the least I’ve ever had to wear in front of the camera! Oh my GOD, I hope I look skinny enough!” (they were wearing bikinis)… Is this what our society has come to? That we can have chubby, even obese men nearly in the nude on screen, and the women looking like terrified praying mantises? That doesn’t even make sense, at least praying mantises have the good sense to eat the heads off their partners once done coupling with them! It’s really quite ridiculous and disturbing. I’m not advocating that people be fat or obese. But a little bit of curve is perfectly natural, and in fact very healthy for a woman, especially one who wishes to be fertile (and therefore attractive). Anyway, this isn’t meant to be a rant about the portrayal of women in the media…

I arrived in Tokyo not having slept a wink, having been awake for just over 19 hours. My head was swimming, but I managed to have a beer at the bar I always go to when I’m stopping over in Narita. That was pleasant, but then I noticed a hunger pang and didn’t want to waste the opportunity to eat some delicious Japanese food, even in the airport. I wound up in the sushi restaurant, ordering a bowl of miso soup along with a 5-piece plate of salmon sashimi.

After eating it (it was delicious, though only slightly better than some of the best sashimi you can find in Toronto), and paying the bill, I got online to find that the yen I’d just paid worked out to about $18 CAD. For five pieces of salmon sashimi and a small bowl of miso soup. Do NOT order sushi at Narita airport unless you have money to throw away!
Our United plane to Bangkok was 1/2 an hour late. We boarded, I fell asleep in many truly uncomfortable positions as the seats on this flight were about 1/3rd smaller than the ones on the AC flight had been, and roughly 7 hours later we landed. I was tired, but slightly rested and managed to stay awake until I got to my parents’ apartment-hotel, a Mariott along Sukhumvit Rd (a hub for ex-pats working from overseas). Mum was trying to sleep but got up when we came in, obviously terribly excited to be reunited with her incredibly amazing only daughter. We chatted for a bit, they showed me around the place, and I got into bed, grateful for a flat, open space with sheets and a pillow to finally lay my head.

I want to take a moment to expose the complete inadequacy of the response from the Canadian Government’s online customer service for passport inquiries.

I sent the following very short and specific note to them through the Passport Canada website:

I am a Canadian citizen with dual citizenship. My parents are British. I am flying from Ontario to New York on May 10th – am I able to use my British passport? I am in the process of getting a new Canadian passport but not sure if I’ll have it in time.

The convoluted, general response came back. I still could not glean an answer of whether or not a Canadian will be allowed to travel to the US using her British passport, or whether I’ll be hassled. I have been before… and I’m worried it’ll be worse now that travelling to the US has become… we’ll just say, even more difficult.

This was the email I got in return (stuff in bold are my remarks):

Thank you for your message of April 16, 2007.This was the first line of the message, where I’d expect to see some kind of greeting. This whole line already alerts me that this is very obviously a form letter spewing back information to me that I don’t even need.

Though passports are the document of choice for travel, Canadian citizens do not currently require a passport to travel by land or sea to the United States. However, Canadians who are traveling outside Canada are encouraged to obtain a passport, as it is the most widely accepted proof of Canadian identity and nationality. Gee, that was helpful considering my question was about flying.

The United States Government have announced the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) requiring all visitors to and from the Americas, including Canadian citizens, to present a valid passport to enter the United States by air since January 23, 2007. Slightly more helpful. Are dual citizenship passports accepted? Will they harass me at the border because I don’t have a Canadian passport? More information would be much appreciated.

Therefore, a passport will be required for all air travel to or from Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda. I think you just said that in the paragraph above.

The passport must be valid the day of your departure from the United States. Apparently people need to be told this.

The second phase of the WHTI will be implemented as follows:

January 1, 2008 – The passport requirement will be extended to all land and sea border crossings as well as air travel. Actually useful information! Nice warning half a year in advance.

For further information on United States policy, you may consult the US State Department website at www.state.gov. Completely useless information for Canadian citizens going to the US temporarily.

You may also obtain more information on the following Canadian Border Services Agency website:
www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/agency/whti-ivho/menu-e.html. Didn’t even bother visiting that site.

We trust this information is of assistance to you. Yeah, thanks. It wasn’t.

j What is this? Is this their attempt to look like a real human is actually answering my question (it so obviously isn’t)? Lower-case j. It’s not even a name. I’m completely baffled as to what this is doing at the end of the email, as if it’s a signature. Weird.

And this is why I am usually loathe to send inquiries to companies or organizations through their websites.

I found out that I can travel to the US using my British passport, as a Canadian citizen. I do have to bring proof of Canadian citizenship – in my case, my Canadian citizenship card (which I had to get when I was 15, because my hand-written, photocopied birth certificate issued in Quebec wasn’t cutting it as proof that I was a real human being anymore).

How did I get that information? I spent 30 minutes waiting on the phone to talk to someone for 2 minutes. The above email took 3 days to come to me, and was far less helpful. The Canadian Government is losing an opportunity to inspire its website users when they respond like this through email. At least hire real people to write real answers, or else don’t even bother to offer submitting a form through their website as a method of communication. All of this information is already on the Passport Canada website, which I had to go through in order to send this question in the first place. I’ve already read this. It’s completely useless and a waste of everybody’s time.

It’s funny how as I get older, I’m starting to like the phone more and more…

July 12, 2007 Edit: FYI, when I got to customs at the airport, the officer gave me a hard time. After muddling through his rather rude manner of telling me how to proceed through customs with a non-Canadian passport, I had to go get a Green card and fill it out as an immigrant. So… make sure you do that before you get in line if you’re traveling to the US with a non-Canadian passport. It’ll save you time, and a fair amount of grief, once you reach the customs stand.

I recently went on a wine tour, courtesy of my place of work. Niagara on the Lake was our destination, and we stayed at the Pillar & Post, an absolutely gorgeous hotel. We enjoyed a day of wines produced by three separate wineries, of the total of sixty that exist, in the region. They ranged from small to large, and included the medium-sized, old-fashioned Strewn Winery, the more modern and industrial Jackson-Triggs and a final stop at a more home-grown type of winery, the name of which escapes me.

We were taught the proper way to evaluate a wine, which I’d never really been through before and found quite helpful. I didn’t know you could actually “release” the flavours so much with so little effort, and that the first sip must be the one that cleanses your pallette, rather than the one by which you evaluate the flavour of the wine.

My favourite that I tasted all day and stays with me even now was a Shiraz at Jackson-Triggs. This surprised me, as I don’t usually like Shiraz. But this particular one was delicious – smooth, fruity and the after taste was delightful – like almond paste, also known as marzipan. I was in love; I bought a bottle and hope I can find it in The Wine Store at some point (they indicated how a lot of their wines aren’t available in the LCBO or The Wine Store).

I left with a greater understanding of wines and how to identify the varying flavours that can be found in them. I particularly liked the emphasis that, in the end, it really doesn’t matter what kind of wine you like – cheap or expensive. Whether you enjoy a wine or not depends entirely on you.

I’d love to go on another winery tour, particularly because many of the wines available through one aren’t available in the stores in Toronto. It’s the perfect opportunity to discover new wines I otherwise would never find.

I’ve been remiss in my postings so far in August. Most people are away on holidays now anyway, so perhaps it will be barely noticed.

In any case, I have many reviews of various events and locations I’ve attended lately, so expect a few posts to come.

I’ll start with my recent trip to Algonquin park over the August long weekend.

Nine of us went on this journey that lasted four days. We took only our canoes and our packs, and enough bare, dried out food to survive, and set out Friday evening.

The following is a summary of all the portaging and canoeing we did (ah, the numbers game) put together by our good friend Ilia (thank you!).

Day 1 (Aug 04) – Magnetawan Lake to Daisy Lake

Route Paddled: Magnetawan Lake (Access #3), Hambone Lake, Daisy Lake,
Departure Time: 7pm
Arrival at Campsite: 9pm
Distance Portaged: 135m + 55m + 420m = 610m
Distance total (aerial): 5.5km (that double portage makes it 6.5km)

Day 2 (Aug 05) – Daisy Lake to Misty Lake

Route Paddled: Daisy Lake, Petawawa River (West of Misty), Little Misty Lake, Misty Lake
Departure Time: 10:45am
Arrival at Campsite: 3pm
Distance Portaged: 135m + 450m + 935m = 1520m
Distance total (aerial): 17km

Day 3 (Aug 06) – Misty Lake to McIntosh Lake

Route Paddled: Misty Lake, Petawawa River (East of Misty), Mcintosh Creek, McIntosh Lake
Departure Time: 10:30am
Arrival at Campsite: 4pm
Distance Portaged: 850m + 155m + 195m + 160m + 80m + 200m + 745m + 510m = 2895m
Distance total (aerial): 19km

Day 4 (Aug 07) – McIntosh Lake to Magnetawan Lake

Route Paddled: McIntosh Lake, Timberwolf Lake, Misty Lake, Little Misty Lake, Petawawa River (West of Misty), Daisy Lake, Hambone Lake, Magnetawan Lake
Departure Time: 10am
Arrival at Exit: 6pm
Distance Portaged: 405m + 765m + 935m + 450m + 135m + 420m + 55m + 135m = 3300m
Distance total (aerial): 23km

Weights

Canoes: in the range of 45-55lbs each
Backpacks: ranging from 15-40 lb
Food Barrel: unknown; shrank daily

The trip was incredibly refreshing. Though it was often tough to keep rowing, I tried to focus on putting the paddle in the water just one more time, just one more time, and that’s what kept me going. You don’t focus on how you have to row for another three hours; you focus only on that next dip into the water.

It was beautiful, and serene, and loads of fun. We saw only one large animal; a moose right at the end of the trip. It must be quite used to people, as we came close and stayed a while as it drank from the lake and ate the talls weeds surrounding it.

All in all, a great trip, with lots of hard work and a great feeling of accomplishment at the end of it.

I will post some pictures later.