Friday, October 13
Travel Memories
As I struggle to complete my reflections on my trip to Costa Rica in 1996, we just received an email from South Africa. About a year ago, Kirk and I were interviewed about our Round-the-World Trip on episode 10 of the Amateur Traveler podcast. Apparently, people are still listening to it!
In addition, we still occasionally hear from people we met on our trip. The memories are full and still, after three years, quite vivid!
"I am a new subscriber to the Amateur Traveller Podcast and I took a listen to the around the world episode where Chris interviewed yourself and Donna about your travels. I was especially glad to hear that you included South Africa, esp Cape Town in your itenary.
I am busy reading your journls on what you got up to down here and it seems like you covered many of the major attractions. It seems like you guys didn't manage to get to the winelands which is one of the most beautiful parts of the Cape. Towns like Stellenbosch, Paarl, etc come to mind.
I hope that you do decide to come back one day, but in the meantime, I'd like to invite you to listen to our podcast called The ZA Show (pr: The Zed-A Show) where we (my wife and) talk about all things South African from news, soundseeing tours, interviews, play SA music and keep listeners up-to-date on SA preparation for the 2010 soccer world cup. The address is http://www.thezashow.com.
Take care
Regards
~Glen"
In addition, we still occasionally hear from people we met on our trip. The memories are full and still, after three years, quite vivid!
Labels: Podcasts, Reflections, RTW, Travel
Sunday, September 24
Thailand (Part 2)
Shortly after I posted my last message about Thailand, this article appeared on Boing Boing:
"Saturday, September 23, 2006
Bangkok Coup: Media clampdown in Thailand
Snip from the Bangkok metblog:
Starting [Saturday], all media operators, including Internet media companies, face immediate closure if any news articles or comments, which could be deemed a threat to Thailands national security and monarchy, are published.
The Information Ministry invited all companies and operators to discuss cooperation methods in helping the government "to restrict, control, stop or destroy information deemed to affect the constitutional monarchy".
Chief internet inspector Kritpong Rimcharonepak told reporters: "We seek their cooperation not to present articles, remarks, or information that will infringe the democratic reform under the constitutional monarchy. They can still present political comments on their media, but if anything goes wrong, the caretakers of those media must take responsibility."
"Saturday, September 23, 2006
Bangkok Coup: Media clampdown in Thailand
Snip from the Bangkok metblog:
Starting [Saturday], all media operators, including Internet media companies, face immediate closure if any news articles or comments, which could be deemed a threat to Thailands national security and monarchy, are published.
The Information Ministry invited all companies and operators to discuss cooperation methods in helping the government "to restrict, control, stop or destroy information deemed to affect the constitutional monarchy".
Chief internet inspector Kritpong Rimcharonepak told reporters: "We seek their cooperation not to present articles, remarks, or information that will infringe the democratic reform under the constitutional monarchy. They can still present political comments on their media, but if anything goes wrong, the caretakers of those media must take responsibility."
Saturday, September 23
Thailand
While Kirk and I were on our RTW, we spent a good bit of time in Thailand. Much in the North (up near Chaing Mai), but we also made several trips to Bangkok (we used it as a sort of base while we traveled around Southeast Asia) and one trip to KoLanta in the South. I've tried to keep up with current events in the various countries we visited by periodically reading the newspapers from each country.
I find the recent military coup (it happened on my birthday! ack!) in Thailand rather hard to grasp. There has always been some unrest in the South - it is mostly peopled with Muslims while the majority of the country elsewhere is Buddhist. But when the tsunami hit, attention was turned to rebuilding and, while the tensions never went away, they were at least sidelined for a while. But this coup is quite a different story.
The Thai papers were, of course, rather silent about the changeover. One radio station in the North was shut down after disseminating "inaccurate" information about the coup. In the days leading up to the coup, military leaders spent much time trying to quash rising unrest in the South (including bombings and arson). Now they are discussing the appointment of a new Prime Minister.
Thailand has, in recent years, made many advances. While some particularly odd things (at least things that I, as a US citizen, would never deem to be concerned about in the USA) have happened over the last several years (e.g., the "war on drugs" that had people being shot in the street by police if they tried to run from impending arrest, the treatment of some hilltribes as non-entities), in general, the country has become quite "Western". It certainly has moved from third world status into something more advanced. Does this coup signify a return to dark times? Only time can tell, but certainly anything that usurps the democratic process does not bode well.
I find the recent military coup (it happened on my birthday! ack!) in Thailand rather hard to grasp. There has always been some unrest in the South - it is mostly peopled with Muslims while the majority of the country elsewhere is Buddhist. But when the tsunami hit, attention was turned to rebuilding and, while the tensions never went away, they were at least sidelined for a while. But this coup is quite a different story.
The Thai papers were, of course, rather silent about the changeover. One radio station in the North was shut down after disseminating "inaccurate" information about the coup. In the days leading up to the coup, military leaders spent much time trying to quash rising unrest in the South (including bombings and arson). Now they are discussing the appointment of a new Prime Minister.
Thailand has, in recent years, made many advances. While some particularly odd things (at least things that I, as a US citizen, would never deem to be concerned about in the USA) have happened over the last several years (e.g., the "war on drugs" that had people being shot in the street by police if they tried to run from impending arrest, the treatment of some hilltribes as non-entities), in general, the country has become quite "Western". It certainly has moved from third world status into something more advanced. Does this coup signify a return to dark times? Only time can tell, but certainly anything that usurps the democratic process does not bode well.
Saturday, September 24
Interviewed!
Kirk and I were interviewed recently for a travel show. You can listen to the latest Amateur Traveler online.
Labels: Family, Podcasts, RTW, Travel
Tuesday, August 16
MudPai
I just read an article from the Bangkok Daily Post that saddened me:
"River of mud buries scenic Pai, but town's spirit undampened
SUBIN KHEUNKAEW
Mae Hong Son - Flash floods brought on by heavy rains over the weekend buried the scenic resort town of Pai under a sea of mud. But the weather has been unable to sink the spirit of townspeople. Rainwater, mud and logs flowed down the surrounding mountainsides, knocking down trees, sweeping away homes and buildings, causing severe damage to more than 50 riverside resorts and submerging the entire town of Pai. Streets are littered with logs, broken shutters, bricks and metal debris. About 1,000 soldiers are helping with the clean-up, expected to be completed in seven days. Full rehabilitation could take more than a month. Damage was estimated at 200 million baht. Many families are homeless and tourism businesses badly hurt. But residents can take comfort they still have each other. Ket Sriboontha, 70, of Ban Na Jalong, which was flooded, did not let his own struggles stop him from helping others. Mr Ket enlisted residents in nearby Ban Na Toeng, which is on high ground, to prepare food for their ``friends'' in Pai. 'Each house can help prepare one or two boxed meals. Altogether we can have 300 boxes a day,' he said. Patcharee Rattanatham, owner of Tawan guesthouse on the Pai river, which was destroyed, said 20% of operators believed they could recover on their own. 'We want the government to help poor, homeless flood victims first,' she said. About 700-800 tourists, most of them foreigners, left town after the floods receded. But about 200 have stayed to help soldiers and townspeople with the clean-up. Ms Patcharee blamed the heavy flooding on encroachment of the Pai river, which blocked water from draining, and construction of a bypass road which flattened forests, allowing the water to carry logs from the project site to downtown Pai. She called on the government to restore order in the resort town, dredge the Pai river and take tough action against forest and river trespassers. Pai, with its scenic beauty, is a popular destination among foreign tourists."
Kirk & I spent several days in Pai; we truly enjoyed ourselves and the relaxation we found in that beautiful little town. I sincerely pray that they are able to rebuild quickly and maintain the same environment and feel that the town had when we were there 2.5 years ago.
"River of mud buries scenic Pai, but town's spirit undampened
SUBIN KHEUNKAEW
Mae Hong Son - Flash floods brought on by heavy rains over the weekend buried the scenic resort town of Pai under a sea of mud. But the weather has been unable to sink the spirit of townspeople. Rainwater, mud and logs flowed down the surrounding mountainsides, knocking down trees, sweeping away homes and buildings, causing severe damage to more than 50 riverside resorts and submerging the entire town of Pai. Streets are littered with logs, broken shutters, bricks and metal debris. About 1,000 soldiers are helping with the clean-up, expected to be completed in seven days. Full rehabilitation could take more than a month. Damage was estimated at 200 million baht. Many families are homeless and tourism businesses badly hurt. But residents can take comfort they still have each other. Ket Sriboontha, 70, of Ban Na Jalong, which was flooded, did not let his own struggles stop him from helping others. Mr Ket enlisted residents in nearby Ban Na Toeng, which is on high ground, to prepare food for their ``friends'' in Pai. 'Each house can help prepare one or two boxed meals. Altogether we can have 300 boxes a day,' he said. Patcharee Rattanatham, owner of Tawan guesthouse on the Pai river, which was destroyed, said 20% of operators believed they could recover on their own. 'We want the government to help poor, homeless flood victims first,' she said. About 700-800 tourists, most of them foreigners, left town after the floods receded. But about 200 have stayed to help soldiers and townspeople with the clean-up. Ms Patcharee blamed the heavy flooding on encroachment of the Pai river, which blocked water from draining, and construction of a bypass road which flattened forests, allowing the water to carry logs from the project site to downtown Pai. She called on the government to restore order in the resort town, dredge the Pai river and take tough action against forest and river trespassers. Pai, with its scenic beauty, is a popular destination among foreign tourists."
Kirk & I spent several days in Pai; we truly enjoyed ourselves and the relaxation we found in that beautiful little town. I sincerely pray that they are able to rebuild quickly and maintain the same environment and feel that the town had when we were there 2.5 years ago.
Thursday, June 10
What's in a Name?
From the time I first took a legal position (I was still in Law School) until very recently, I used an excellent word processing program called "WordPerfect". It was truly an excellent program. Initially, it ran on DOS and had a large number of wonderful quick keys to do some of your most used functions. With the popularity of Windows, it migrated, incorporated features that allowed its old-time users to continue to use their familiar quick keys, instead of having to learn new ones or resort to using the mouse (which is quite a bit slower).
Along came MS Works and then MS Word. Because it was a MS product, it touted itself as bigger, better and badder than anything else out there. They gave away the program for free with many computers and with Windows. They snapped up marketshare left and right. But they did one thing wrong - they didn't truly build a user-friendly program. Sure, they put in the basics, and eventually added a few bells and whistles, but essentially, the program doesn't hold a candle to the features offered by WordPerfect.
Today, after accidentally almost deleting my file for the third time while trying to change the formatting using quick keys (sometimes, my fingers type faster than I form thoughts - I've been using WP for a long time), I decided to do something about it! I was trying to both arrange my computer and its settings to something palatable, and fix a lot of the settings in MS Word (with which I am stuck at the moment), including using keyboard scripts and quick keys. In the process, I found an excellent website that compares the two programs and the features of each. To my dismay and severe disappointment, I discovered that not only can I not get the keyboard to do exactly what I want and am used to, I can't change it at all! Repeat after me, MS Word is useless!
I finished my first week of work today. The week went by terribly fast, but enjoyably. When I returned home from work, I found that someone had been here to repair the floor in our hallway - there had been a "soft spot". Well, the "repair" job now means that the floor is lower than it was in a much larger area than before (previously the soft spot had been right up against a wall, so we didn't notice it that much). Sigh.
Kirk is back to driving the Spit again for a while. He needs to replace the brake pads on his motorcycle before he rides it again. I drove him to work this morning (since the Spit was parked up there). I think he's glad that, since we got the Jeep, I am no longer using it as a daily driver. It should be a busy weekend!
FYI, I've decided to write a series of articles called "A Look Back", reviewing our trip and the lessons learned there. Coming soon!
Along came MS Works and then MS Word. Because it was a MS product, it touted itself as bigger, better and badder than anything else out there. They gave away the program for free with many computers and with Windows. They snapped up marketshare left and right. But they did one thing wrong - they didn't truly build a user-friendly program. Sure, they put in the basics, and eventually added a few bells and whistles, but essentially, the program doesn't hold a candle to the features offered by WordPerfect.
Today, after accidentally almost deleting my file for the third time while trying to change the formatting using quick keys (sometimes, my fingers type faster than I form thoughts - I've been using WP for a long time), I decided to do something about it! I was trying to both arrange my computer and its settings to something palatable, and fix a lot of the settings in MS Word (with which I am stuck at the moment), including using keyboard scripts and quick keys. In the process, I found an excellent website that compares the two programs and the features of each. To my dismay and severe disappointment, I discovered that not only can I not get the keyboard to do exactly what I want and am used to, I can't change it at all! Repeat after me, MS Word is useless!
I finished my first week of work today. The week went by terribly fast, but enjoyably. When I returned home from work, I found that someone had been here to repair the floor in our hallway - there had been a "soft spot". Well, the "repair" job now means that the floor is lower than it was in a much larger area than before (previously the soft spot had been right up against a wall, so we didn't notice it that much). Sigh.
Kirk is back to driving the Spit again for a while. He needs to replace the brake pads on his motorcycle before he rides it again. I drove him to work this morning (since the Spit was parked up there). I think he's glad that, since we got the Jeep, I am no longer using it as a daily driver. It should be a busy weekend!
FYI, I've decided to write a series of articles called "A Look Back", reviewing our trip and the lessons learned there. Coming soon!
Labels: RTW, Software, Transportation, Work
