Looking back, looking forward...

One of the pleasures for a traveller in keeping a journal (or a blog, as it may be) is the strange pleasure of looking back and seeing how much one's life can change in a matter of months. Just by opening this blog's archives to October's pasts reveals a strange succession of past lives...

I am currently a resident of Cape Town, working in a local market, more settled than I've ever been, yet looking back to Asia and the Americas for a possible escape...

One year ago, we were in Southern Thailand, writing guides for Travelfish on the islands of Trang. The setting was beautiful but the schedule was intense, with our task of one island per day requiring us to spend most of our time on boats and buses, rather than on the beach. We did at least get lucky now and then, like this incredibly generous meal of curry and rice that we shared with some locals on Ko Libong. We had already made up our mind to head back to America, and then on to South Africa, and were trying to make the most of our last days in Asia.

Two years ago, we were just getting settled in Bangkok, learning how to make the most of the metropolis, and recording our observations, like these mannequin legs we spotted in Patpong. I was still very new to teaching, hating the tie I had to wear, but loving the opportunity to explore Bangkok. It was a little hard for me missing autumn in a tropical clime, but I was constantly finding new foods to try, new sights to engage me, and new parts of the city to explore...

And it gets even stranger if we look back beyond this blog, to three years ago when I was living in Cape Town, working on my Masters in African Studies, still relatively new to my relationship with Bordeaux, and figuring things out. We had just made plans to head to Asia together, a new continent for me, and one that I could hardly imagine...

...and finally, to four years ago, when I was a recent college graduate, just about to leave Los Angeles. I was preparing for a trip through the Middle East, after which I would be on my way to South Africa. I had left my job, given up my apartment, and was preparing to say goodbye to my home, completely unsure of what the future looked like.

Anyone else notice a trend? Always moving, packing up, travelling. Always a little displaced. What sort of progress is made in this drifting? And is that even the point? It can't continue this way forever, surely, but right now I don't know that it can continue any other way. At the very least, all I can say is that I'm eager to see what the next year will bring, and the next...

Wittebrood.

It’s been about two months since I got married, so it’s about time that we actually got out of town on a honeymoon. We weren’t really expecting to take one—we spent the first three years of our relationship traveling, after all-- but the time seemed right to get out of town for a few days. We came really close to taking one retail space in August, and when we really decided that it wasn’t the right space for us and backed out, I think we were both pretty depressed for a few days. And a little traveling seemed perfect for lifting our moods. So on Sunday we’re leaving Cape Town to spend a few days driving around the mountains of the Overberg. I won’t be blogging next week, but hopefully I’ll be back the following week with some photos of beautiful South African landscapes, unusual small town architecture, and delicious Karoo food.

Cpt/LA

In a recent entry on Girl in Asia, Saigon based blogger Liz described some of the differences between her life in Asia and life back home, in Australia. She compares the standard of living in the two locales, citing things she misses back home, but noting the things she’d miss if she returned. I think it’s simply part of the innate difficulty in being an expat—unless you left your home because you really couldn’t stand it there, there are likely lots of things you miss. I have to admit that I kind of have a continuous inner monologue that runs “but in LA we had…” Really, it’s gotten to the point that I’ve probably given Cape Town an inferiority complex. That wouldn’t be fair-- because really, this is a pretty fantastic city too. So as an exercise in being happy with what I have, I’ve listed below a few of the things that Cape Town has over LA.

1) The Neighbourgoods Market at the Biscuit Mill—LA does have some great farmer’s markets (not just the big touristy ‘Farmer’s Market’, but also loads of little once a week neighbourhood markets)—but none quite compare to the market at the Biscuit Mill. It’s a combination specialty food market, gourmet food court, and young designer shopping centre. There are always delicious foods to try, fun new food products to take home, and beautiful people to watch.

2) Shopping vintage—I never got too into second hand shopping in LA; I don’t know if I just had bad luck, but I always felt like I was never actually able to find anything good. It seemed to me that the second a handsome vintage item hit the Goodwill or a flea market, it was snapped up by a designer to be marked up and put in his shop on Beverly Blvd. Add to that the fact that the better markets, like the Rose Bowl, charge a steep entrance fee, and that prices for goods seem kind of inflated. So it’s with some relief that I visit the Milnerton Market here in Cape Town, where I always go home with a few fantastic items, and all for next to nothing. My latest finds? A giant metal biscuit tin decorated with a 70’s painting of impala, a set of 4 retro French dessert bowls, and a stream-lined footstool that is now acting as a magazine stand in our living room.

3) Independent businesses—One frustrating aspect about LA is that if you go to different shopping neighbourhoods around town, you’ll likely find the same shops: Restoration Hardware, Gap, Pottery Barn, Barnes and Noble, and of course, Starbucks. Great independent shops and cafes do exist, but the city is definitely dominated by chains. I’m not always opposed to the chains (I wouldn’t be adverse to an Ikea, a Target, or a Peet’s Coffee opening up on these shores), but it’s refreshing how in the absence of chain store monopoly, independent shops, cafes and restaurants have been allowed to flourish in Cape Town.

4) Cape Town really is a Town—I’m not exactly sure about this, but I’m fairly certain you could fit the entire area of Cape Town within the dimensions of Candy Spelling’s Hollywood estate. So basically, where LA is massive and sprawling, Cape Town is tiny and manageable. This does have its downsides—less to explore, and I sometimes feel the small pond thing-- but it has some major advantages, as it makes everything within the city so much more accessible. While LA also has beach and mountains nearby, I almost never took advantage of them because with the traffic, distances, and crowds, it seemed like too much of a mission. If I felt like going to the beach, it would mean packing up, getting in the car, struggling for two hours on the freeways, parking a mile from the waves, and then squeezing into a space on the sand between two other families’ towels. Here, we often do make the impulsive decision to go to the beach or take a picnic up the mountain, because it’s always less than twenty minutes away.

But just for fun, what does LA have over Cape Town? Trader Joe’s, the milder winters, cheap Ethiopian restaurants, the jasmine scented air, taco trucks, art museums, palm-fringed hills, gorgeous 1920s architecture, Zankou… ok, I need to stop again.

The (im)perfect home.

To offer a bit of closure to last week’s entry, I’ll share that Bordeaux and I have successfully found an apartment. It was, however, a much more complicated process than we had anticipated. We encountered a few major problems. First of all, no one is buying right now, so everyone is renting—and we really wanted to live in the City Bowl, which is the most desirable area for renting. Secondly, as freelancers who have spent the last eight months traveling, we weren’t really seen as ideal candidates to most apartment agents. But perhaps the biggest problem of all was that our first viewing was at the most incredible apartment we’d ever seen—with high ceilings, wood floors, great views, tons of built in cabinets, and a massive kitchen—so how could any other apartment ever compare?

Along the way to signing the lease, we traveled all over the city, viewing about a dozen different apartments. We saw some sweet flats, some depressing houses, and a few pretty bizarre properties.

We visited one house that was, literally, a drug den. We showed up to the open house a few minutes early, and were welcomed inside by a rattled-looking German woman. As we stepped through the house, we discovered discolored mattresses and homemade drug paraphernalia scattered around the rooms. It should be a sign of our desperation at that point that we actually considered this house.

We later visited a three bedroom Victorian cottage that retained most of its original features—like the charming fireplace and architectural detailing, but also plumbing and electricity. The place was falling apart, the previous tenant told us, roof leaking, floor collapsing-- and the landlord never fixed a thing. When the landlord asked if we wanted the place, we pointed this out to him, and he assured us that he was going to get a ‘big bank loan’, then he’d take care of the remodeling in ‘drips and drabs’—he just needed a tenant there while he did it. So that they can pay rent to live in a gutted apartment, should he ever actually getting around to making any repairs?

Finally, answering a Gumtree ad with no photographs, we found our apartment. It was right in the City Bowl, in the perfect location. Two bedrooms, with a big lounge and an open balcony, at a surprisingly inexpensive rent. But looking it over, we were still infected by the first apartment we had viewed—so all of its flaws stood out. Ugly grey carpeting ran throughout. The walls were a glaring white. The mirror over the bathroom sink was too high for me, and the medicine cabinet awkwardly screwed into the opposite wall. And the kitchen, though charmingly retro, had a hideous brown countertop.

As a friend pointed out though, sometimes an imperfect apartment is better, because you can make it your own. We got permission to paint, and over this weekend we finished two rooms. We took down the too-high mirror, and are moving the medicine cabinet to its place (just a little lower). And while cleaning the kitchen, Bordeaux discovered that the countertop was just a tacky lining. He peeled it away, revealing the original counter underneath was still in great condition—in a brilliant shade of robin’s egg blue. And peeking under the carpet, we’ve discovered parquet flooring—though doing anything about that will be a much bigger project.

With that said, I’m once again settled, and will hopefully be getting back to more regular travel, food, and culture oriented entries—writing about Cape Town, detailing explorations in South African food, and sharing some images of Asia that I didn’t get to post while I was there.

Leaving Asia?

Well, I may be departing from Asia late this evening.

Then again, I may be stranded in Bangkok indefinitely, thanks to the efforts of the anti-government mob who have stormed the airport.

I am trying-- desperately trying-- to leave Asia on a positive note. Because, yes, there have been things that I didn't like-- the constant pollution, loose city sidewalks that splatter muddy water, nasty taxi drivers, agonizingly slow Lao buses, being called 'friend' by touts, the ubiquitous Korean mullets on teenagers, massive insects, tacky tourists who think that being in Thailand is justification for going shirtless on city streets and getting their hair done in hideous cornrows-- and now, also clapping-hand waving protesters.

But all of that is really insignificant when compared to how incredible my time here has been. The wealth of things I've seen, the flavors I've tasted, and the range of experiences I've had makes all of those problems really meaningless. That point become obvious to me when I tried to assemble photos for the above collage-- which in no way could possibly reflect what I've seen and done here. From drifting down the Mekong in Laos, to testing my chili tolerance in Thailand, to finally getting to see the ruins of Angkor in Cambodia, to sampling unusual foods in Taiwan, to admiring Penang's streets in Malaysia, to drinking rich drip coffee in Vietnam... it's been unforgettable. I know that, no question, I'll be coming back soon.

Then again, check back with me how I'm feeling if I do get stranded here this evening.

Will resurface soon.

I think this is the longest I've been quiet since I started PrimitiveCulture (hopefully I've still got one or two readers checking in), but I'll try to start posting regularly again. At the moment I'm at the Ho Chi Minh City airport, preparing to return to Thailand. The past month here has been incredible, and though we've been busy working, Bordeaux and I had a great time traveling from Hoi An to Phu Quoc via Saigon. Even though we covered a bit more of the country, I still feel as though I barely know it-- but as always, I got enough of a taste to make me want to come back for much longer some day.

There's a lot I still want to write about- delicious market treats, another cooking course, and --possibly the highlight of the trip-- a too-quick trip across the Mekong Delta (pictured above). But more on all of that soon...

On leaving Bangkok.

Last week, after a year of residency, Bordeaux and I packed up our belongings and handed in the keys at our Bangkok apartment. It was a change we'd been preparing for over the past few months, but it wasn't necessarily an easy one.

Over our last week in the city, we revisited a few favorite spots. We had dimsum at Vanilla Garden, shopped for t-shirts at Chatuchak, and sipped chaa yen at the Erawan Tea Room (pictured above). It served as a reminder that we had it pretty sweet in Bangkok. The food in Bangkok is unquestionably among the best in the world; the shopping is amazing; and the city has such a personality and a distinctive sense style.

Perhaps saddest of all was leaving our apartment behind. We'd found a great little space that suited our needs perfectly, was close to the BTS and a friendly local wet market. It wasn't perfect in every way- the kitchen was practically nonexistent, and the karaoke across the street was a pain- but it was our first home together, and we were both very comfortable there. We've packed up our favorite things (the lamp above, included) and shipped them on- so hopefully they can serve us where-ever we next call home.

For the next few months we'll be traveling nonstop- and while I'm excited about seeing new places and searching out new foods and styles, I am rather sad about what I'm leaving behind. Though there were certain things I didn't like about Bangkok- the pollution, namely- I didn't leave the city glad to be rid of it. The past year has been incredible, and I only hope I can take some of what I've learned and experienced with me.

Taiwan Treats: A Birthday Eggtart.

Never one to be thrown by having to celebrate my birthday in a different country, Bordeaux surprised me this morning not with a birthday cake, but with a two-tiered birthday egg tart. Along with the archaic name 'Isla Formosa', egg tarts are one of the few traces of lingering Portuguese influence on the island. They're also one of the tastiest confections available in Taiwan. We haven't had these ones yet- I'll update tomorrow to let you know how they were.

Editor's note: Thanks for the birthday messages! The eggtarts were great, and even had a little surprise jelly inside. So Taiwan!

View of Lion's Head #8.

Asia, you've been great, but I'm missing this view- is it time to think about heading back to Cape Town?

Craigslist Tourist.

I first learned of Craigslist as a senior in college, when a friend of mine was contemplating responding to an advertisement from a man who wanted to trade liquor for candy. I don't know if she ever took him up on his offer, but I will say that, without exaggerating, Craigslist quickly became one of the most influential websites in my life. I've found several jobs (including my current one) and multiple apartments through the site.

These days, Craigslist mainly serves one purpose for me: allowing me to imagine what it would be like if I lived somewhere else. Looking over apartment ads in different cities, I can calculate living costs, and get a peek into that city's domestic spaces. It also lets me consider what I like about my current apartment, and what I would like in a future apartment (a bigger kitchen, hardwood floors, a full sized oven, a garden).

Since I'm always have dreaming of returning to Los Angeles, I spend a lot of time browsing apartments there.

$1095 Slick 1920's pet friendly studio apt. w/ lots of characterThis would in many ways be a dream apartment for me. It's in Los Angeles, and the building itself seems to come with Hollywood charm built in. I love the hardwood floors, the large windows, and the glass-fronted kitchen cabinets. It's in K-town, which a lot of people dislike, but I think is an ideal location right between midtown and Silverlake/Echo Park. However it's been on Craigslist for awhile now, which makes me wonder what's wrong with it...

$1395 Front view oversized remodeled studio in Larchmont Village
Aside from the beautiful flooring, well sized kitchen, and architecturally interesting details, my favorite thing about this apartment is that it's so close to Larchmont Village. Though the neighborhood is a little generic, it has a delicious bagel shop, a friendly Peet's Coffee, and there's a great weekend farmer's market.

$1100 / 1br - Great quite Echo Park Apartment
Now this one has an ideal locale- overlooking Echo Park Lake. And I even like that rather outdated exterior with its flagstone trim. I'd even be willing to overlook the typo in the apartment's headline. But navy blue carpet? And they actually advertise that they just put it in! And why are so many apartments on Craigslist photographed so that they end up looking like crime scenes?

Or what if I were to consider living in Chicago?

$860 ~Great condition, desirable floor plan – heart of Lincoln Park!
The highlight of this Chicago spot is the building itself- I really like that mod exterior. The apartment itself is a little bleak- who ever decided slate was a great default color for apartment carpeting? The kitchen however looks rather fun, if a bit cramped.

$1145 / 1br - ~ Make this 1BR Your New Home
I'm starting to think the only thing drawing me to Chicago (aside from having a wonderful friend who lives there) are the beautiful brick apartment buildings. This one at least also has hard wood floors, french doors, and a tiny but decent kitchen. What it would be like to brave the midwestern winters here?

Or how about Singapore?

SGD9500 / 4br - Designer decor peranakan conservation shophouse- Little India
This might be the coolest apartment I've ever seen on Craigslist. It costs about as much per month as my current apartment costs in a year, but oh how worth it that would be. Aside from the idea of living in Little India, I'm rather taken with that exotic shopfront exterior, the beautiful wood floors, and the bamboo shades drawn low to keep the tropical sun out.

Neighborhood market.

Now that we're not working full-time anymore, Bordeaux and I have been able to more fully explore our neighborhood. One of the best spots nearby is the local wet market, where we've started going to do most of our shopping. Shopping at the grocery store was often a vaguely frustrating experience, as even groceries in Bangkok seemed not to stock the things we needed to cook Southeast Asian food. But at the market, we never have problems finding turmeric root, sawtooth coriander or lotus stems, as there are mountains of fresh local vegetables and herbs.

But perhaps the best thing about the market is the fruit. Tempted by the piles of colorful, cheap fruit, we often have the problem of wanting to bring home too much. We returned from the market yesterday with a papaya, two chunks of durian, a dragonfruit, a bushel of lychees, some egg bananas, and a huge bag of furry rambutans (below), which are currently in season- and only 15 baht (50 cents) a kilo.

Penguin Popular Classics.

Though most of the reading material I pick up in Bangkok comes from used bookstores, these cheap editions of Penguin Popular Classics have given me reason to buy new. Aside from the fact that they're a very affordable 100 baht (about $3US), I'm really taken by their simple, classic aesthetics, from the uncoated apple-green covers to the iconic 2 pound price tag printed in the corner. And for the literary traveler, there are a number of adventure titles, with works by Kipling, Melville, Verne, and Conrad.

LAndscapes: The Silverlake Reservoir.

In thinking about my next move and potential future homes (thanks for all of the suggestions- Istanbul and Nepal would be awesome, and Vietnam is actually right at the top of my list), my mind drifted to all the things I love and miss about my previous place of residence.

When I last lived in Los Angeles, my apartment was right at the border between Mid-Wilshire and Korea Town. Though I was a little skeptical of the location at first, I came to really like being centered there. It put me within easy driving distance of both East and West LA, was practically next door to the Farmer's Market, and was near great diners and shopping. But one of my favorite things was that it put me just around the corner from the Silverlake Reservoir.

The neighborhood around the Silverlake Reservoir has a relaxed, almost rustic feel, with wood houses peeking out among the tree-shrouded hillsides. There were several independent cafes and design boutiques in the area, so it was a great setting for spending a relaxed Sunday drinking lattes and window-shopping. Even while running mundane errands to Trader Joe's or the video store, it was always a treat to drive under the shadows of pine-trees as I curved around the placid emerald-green waters.

In transit.

We're getting used to living out of our backpacks.

In April, Bordeaux and I gave notice at work, and as of May 11, we left our jobs as English teachers in Bangkok. We decided to leave our jobs for a variety of reasons, but I think our decision reflected a desire to make some changes in our lifestyle. We were living in one of the most amazing cities in one of the most incredible regions of the world, and yet we were spending most of our time in an environment that we didn't like.

Surprisingly, we've been far busier since we left work. We've both had family visit, we've travelled around Thailand to Sangkhlaburi, Khao Sok, Krabi, and Ko Samet, crossed the border to Cambodia, and we've been swamped in work as we try to piece together a living from freelance writing, tutoring, and travel research.

And it seems to continue from here. Currently on the agenda for the future is spending July and August teaching in Taiwan. Once that is over, we need to decide how long we want to stay in Thailand, and where we want to go next. As much as I am tempted to return to Los Angeles or Cape Town (or to try a new part of the world), I still feel there's so much I want to see and do in Southeast Asia that I'm not ready to leave yet.

Bangkok Halloween

After searching out a symbol for Halloween, I eventually chose the above McPumpkins. I had considered going with something macabre, or something eerie, or something vaguely tropical; in the end, I went with something simple and nostalgic. As a child, the approach of Halloween was always heralded by a number of commercial events: the setting up of the masks and candy aisle at Walgreens, the appearance of Creamland Goblin Nog (actually just Egg Nog with a retro Halloween packaging) in the dairy section of Furr's Supermarket, and the arrival of the McPumpkin pails at McDonalds. So this simple watercolor of McBoo, McPunkin and McGoblin is my tribute to my childhood fondness for the 31st.

We've also been trying to recreate Halloween in the kitchen. We've cooked pumpkin in likely every dish possible: we've had pumpkin stir-fry, pumpkin shakes, and pumpkin soup; and, with the aid of our new oven, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin muffins (above), and delicious pumpkin bread. Despite our efforts at recreating the feeling of the holiday, I couldn't combat the sunny skies and tropical heat of Bangkok. This was not the season. In the end, I had to simply accept that I wasn't really going to get an Autumn Halloween here.

But Bangkok actually held a few surprises for me. After shopping on Thong Lor, Bordeaux and I decided to find coffee. We stopped in at After You Dessert Cafe, located in J-Avenue on Soi 15. There, among the unusual selection of desserts, we spotted this Halloween cobweb cupcake. I had it with a cup of warm spiced apple cider, which complemented it perfectly.

Over the past week, the nights have been slowly growing, swallowing the afternoon light earlier and earlier every day. Then this morning, we woke to an overcast sky, with a cool wind curving through our balcony kitchen. A soft drizzle was falling by the time I arrived at school. Bangkok had given me autumn just in time for Halloween.

So tonight, Bordeaux and I will settle in under early nightfall, enjoy some pumpkin pizza, have a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie or two, and watch a pirated Alfred Hithcock DVD that we picked up at Pattpong. I hope your Halloween is filled with as many unexpected turns as mine.

The Ethnographer's Messenger Bag.

The ethnographer lives in two worlds; he divides his time between academia, and life in the field. This valise, designed for me by Bordeaux, is versatile enough to fit both. The exterior is a serious brown suiting, while the interior reveals a bold exotic stripe. It's designed vertically, so that notebooks can be quickly grabbed from the divided interior. Though it has a stylishly thin silhouette, it's wide enough to hold my camera and a few choice paperback ethnographies. It even has a special slim pocket on the back, perfect for holding airplane tickets or folded maps. View more photos and read more about it at his blog.

Papaya soap.

One of my favorite things about living in Bangkok is the abundance of fresh, delicious, inexpensive tropical fruit. Lately I've really grown addicted to the flavor of papaya in my morning muesli. So it's no wonder that I was drawn to this Likas Papaya soap. Bordeaux pointed it out to me today, as we glanced over a sidewalk table of toiletries in Banglamphu. The hot, retro graphics on the bright orange packaging only further sold me. It even smelled good! Now, if only it wasn't a skin whitening soap...

Fish tote-bag.

With the current trend for going green (in appearance, anyway), it seems like everyone now has a tote-bag. Mine is an oversized recycled bag that Bordeaux gave me for my birthday. He bought it in Cambodia, though from the writing on the bag we've surmised that the original sack came from Vietnam. It has two big catfish swirling on the outside, which only adds more mystery to what the original bag might have contained. Aside from the aquatic print that I love, the best thing about this bag is how big it is. I've bought tote bags from Trader Joe's in LA, and Woolworth's in Cape Town; both had the problem of getting overly full on major shopping trips. With this one, I can make it back from the weekend market without any problems.

Birthday in Phnom Penh.

While the week before my birthday was spent among the jungled ruins near Siem Reip, the actual day of my 24th was spent in Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital. It was a chance to enjoy some urban pleasures, in one of the strangest capitals in the world.
Phnom Penh was a fascinating city, both more pleasant and more jarring than I had expected. After weeks in Southern Laos and rural Cambodia, it was a strange confrontation to be in such an urban space. There were hip cafes and trendy bakeries, serving tasty coffee and elegant pastries. There were leafy avenues, packed with traffic. And there were disturbing signs of poverty and misfortune: amputees sitting on sidewalk corners, mother beggers with sick children in tow.
For my birthday, Bordeaux woke me with breakfast in bed, and some gifts he had cleverly gathered. In search of coffee, we walked along the riverbank, peeking in at the disappointing cafe at the dismal Cambodiana Hotel. We found good lattes at Cafe Fresco, and spent most of the afternoon relaxing. For dinner, Bordeaux took me to the Foreign Correspondent's Club. While the Phnom Penh branch of the FCC isn't quite as sexy as the modern white branch in Siem Riep, the restaurant had a nicely casual atmosphere and a beautiful river view. We first visited the top floor, where we ordered cocktails. We then moved downstairs, into the pale-yellow walled dining room, where Bordeaux had reserved a table looking out over the river. I ordered a spicy crab curry, which was incredible. We even ordered wine (a rare luxury for us in Southeast Asia). For dessert, we had an unusual sticky rice dessert, served with melty vanilla ice cream. We also ordered more alcohol- two shots of a warming port that were the perfect end to a great day. The fact that my birthday was so pleasant is all credit of Bordeaux- who not only knows me so well, but was somehow able to plan an incredible day in a foreign city we'd never been to before.