With tons to keep me busy getting things in order over the past week, I have not yet had the chance to sit down and jot down a brief update of my life over the past month...

After a long day of walking in the hot and humid weather that characterizes Singapore (now nearing the end of the monsoon season), I opted for a low key evening at my place (after a solid workout in the gym to end the day!) to catch up on my "duty" to keep this online journal up to date.

So...with that in mind - here goes...

After finishing a hectic week of exams on December 14 and packing up my life over the course of the weekend, I left Toronto with Jackie on December 17 bound for Bangkok (via Beijing). As hard as it was to leave all my family and friends behind for 4.5 months, I can't say that leaving Toronto in the wake of a massive snowstorm/blizzard bothered me too greatly! After over 24 hours of traveling (15 hour flight from Toronto to Beijing, 6 hour layover in Beijing, 5.5 hour flight from Beijing to Bangkok), myself and Ms. Rubinstein finally arrived in Bangkok at about midnight on December 18. Like most backpackers (especially first-timers to the city), we headed to the famous (or, infamous, depending on your perspective) Khao San Road (backpacker central - the street that never sleeps and a definite must-see for those first-time visitors to Bangkok) and after minimal searching, found a suitable accomodation on the strip. After dumping our bags, we headed for the street to explore (no, we did not shower after our ardous journey - it would have been a futile effort anyways, given the weather outside!). We ended up bumping into some friends of Jackie from Toronto and spent the night (at this point, it was the morning) getting acquainted with Thai alcohol and the famous "buckets" of Thai whisky, Red Bull and Coke -- definitely wa great first night and what a way to start out adventure. After crashing at 6 am, I was up at 7:30 -- my heart was beating out of my chest from the potent mixture of alcohol and copious amounts of caffeine! I took a stroll around the area until Jackie woke up an hour later and then we met up with Josh Charles, a buddy of mine who was visiting his father (who is teaching in Thailand for 2 years) and spent the morning touring Bangkok's temples in a tuk-tuk (Miguel, like a moto!) - a 3.5 hour tour, albeit with random, unwanted stops at tailors looking to sell us custom-made suits, cost us 33 cents each -- so no complaints!

After a 3 hour nap in our room in which we literally baked (air con was broken until we asked for it to be fixed!), we walked Khao San Raod again that night - knowing that we had to wake up at 3 am to head to the airport to catch a flight to Koh Samui, we opted for the minimal sleep option and crashed at about 1 am - so it was 2 hours sleep and then up again to head to the airport --- we were finally on our way to the beach (for those who know me, I become a little kid again when I am near the ocean, so this was a huge deal for me!).

We had a great flight to Koh Samui (somehow we lucked out with front row and lots of leg room -- yes, Jackie and I, we are both so big that we needed lots of leg room!) and saw a beautiful sunrise from the plane. Landing in Samui was a signal that our "vacation" was beginning (the "vacation" was part of the overall "adventure" and this trip was Jackie's first major trip overseas). We checked into our little paradise on the beach -- a beautiful little bungalow 5 seconds from the beach! It couldn't have been much sweeter -- and we were greeted by a fruit-filled breakfast (among other delicious goodies) looking out over the sea -- we has finally arrived in paradise!

For the sake of brevity, we basically spent the new 5 days enjoying the beach, touring the island on scooters, reading and relaxing, enjoying the local "cuisine" (my favourite place to eat was a little "market" with stalls offering the tastiest Thai dishes for ridiculously low prices and fresh fruit smoothies to accompany them -- couldn't have been better!).

During this time, we celebrated a great Christman (???) by heading to Koh Phangan for the night to experience the world-renowned full-moon party on Haad Rin in Koh Phangan -- needless to say, we had an incredible time partying together and taking in the experience of over 10,000 free souls on a beach --- really an incredible experience (although tainted somewhat by the failure of our ferry to arrive at 3:30 in the morning and fighting with hundreds of people to finally board the boat when it did arrive over an hour and a half late -- but that is a story for another time!).

We returned from the full moon party in the morning and immediately packed our bags, heading to the ferry, and continued on to Koh Tao. After some initial issues with some unpleasant odours emanating from our room, we found a suitable place for us to lay our heads, and we once again basked in the paradise that surrounded us. With some (minimal, actually!) convincing, Jackie agreed to take a Discover Scuba Diving course (basically one morning learning the skills in the pool and then a 12 m dive at one of the dive sites just off the island). This was a great opportunity for me to get back into diving (I got certified in Australia in 2003 but had not dived since receiving my Open Water certification). So, hand-in-hand (literally) for the dive, Jackie and I went scuba diving, and, despite poor visibility, had an amazing time. We visited some other beaches on Koh Tao via motorbike (mishap included, but also a story for another stime!) and really chilled hard and enjoyed the peace, serenity and amazing weather that greeted us in Koh Tao. I should also mention that our resort had 2 pools as well -- so we spent some good time reading and relaxing poolside and just playing in the water!

After 4 days in Koh Tao, it was back to Koh Samui for 4 days (back to the same place we stayed in before). Despite much effort, we couldn't get the room we had falle in love with on the prior trip to Samui, but nevertheles enjoyed a great room (although it was right across from the bungalow we loved -- a constant reminder of our previous time there and the fact that we were denied it a second time!). We enjoyed great new years with a couple from England who we met on Samui on the previous occasion (Carl and Vick, big shout out to you if you're reading this, and I look forward to seeing you in Singapore in a couple of weeks!) -- although we had considered the full moon party again for new year's, we couldn't find a place to stay on Koh Phangan, and since we were leaving Samui on January 2, we opted to enjoy a relaxed (and very chilled) new years on Lamai Beach in Samui.

January 1, our last day on the islands before returning to Bangkok.....it was gloomy all day. We made the best of it by sitting on the beach most of the day and hoping for the sun to come out --- either way, we soaked in every last bit of paradise together on our last day before heading back to the big city of Bangkok!

We woke up early on January 2 to begin a long journey back to Bangkok. First a taxi ride to the Na Thon pier - we were taking the 6 am ferry so were up at 4:15 to get our bags ready!). This was followed by a 1.5 ferry ride to Don Sak on the mainland. This, in turn, was followed by a bus ride into Surat Thani, where we were able to stop, grab a quick bite to eat, and then take another taxi to the airport. Finally, we took a 1 hour flight back to Bangkok and a taxi from the airport into the city. After much walking around (in circles!) looking for a good place to stay, we settled on a place we had stayed at during our initial time in Bangkok. We then hit the streets and completed some last-day shopping before enjoying our final night together in Bangkok.

The next morning, January 4, I accompanied Jackie to the airport for a very sad farewell for 4 months -- after a long goodbye (and then me standing and looking through the glass to make sure Jackie got through for 40 minutes -- the airport staff looked at me like I was nuts!), I left the airport solo (for the first time since traveling solo in Nicaragua in 2006-2007) and went to pick up my bags from my buddy's dad's place (where I had kept them while Jackie and I traveled) and headed back to my hostel.

I met up with som Israli friends of mine (whom I had met in Koh Tao) and spent the next 4 days chilling with them and exploring a bit of Bangkok. For those of you who know that Pat Pong (Ping Pong Show) is, I experienced it; for those of you who don't know what it is, for the time being, it is better that way! If you're interested, feel free to ask me personally, but who knows who is reading this, so it is better left to another time!

I left Bangkok on January 7 and came to Singapore. I was met at the airpot by my "buddy" (a local student who is tasked with showing me around and getting me acquainted with the school), who brought me to the campus. I checked into my room and then ran some errands to buy some supplies needed to the semester here. I have spent the past week meeting new people, exploring the city (which is extremely small, but is nevertheless full of different areas, each with its own charm, personality, and unique vibe. So far, it has been a great time in Singapore and there is plenty more to come. I will know more about my classes by the end of this week (needless to say, I am not excited to actually have to be in class, albeit occasionally!) and will then begin to get my travel plans in order. I am hoping to head to Northern Thailand, Laos, Cambodiam, Vietnam, India, Nepal, and Australia during my time here -- lofty, ambitious goals, so time will tell...

For now, you are up to date with my coming and goings of the past month. I will keep this site updated as my life unfiolds in this part of the world. Please keep in touch either through this site, or by email or Facebook -- it is always great to feel connected to the people I care about while I am so far away physically.

All the best for a happy (belated) new year -- I hope it brings you all nothing by the best of health, happiness and all other good things.

Peace and love,

Ev