6.8.2004
MINI-BUS TO CHIANG KHONG
Solitary golden spire rises from emerald forest
> > >
Man in wide-brimmed hat bicycles past
> > >
Another man in green rubber boots stands with camel-colored cow
> > >
Vehicles beep and pass quickly - an incomprehensible dance where 2 lanes become 3 and then back to two without incident
> > >
Dogs recline on the pavement, aloof and seemingly unaware of the traffic speeding by their heads
> > >
8 saffron-robed monks in the back of a pick-up
+ + + + + + +
SLOW BOAT TO LUANG PRABANG (LAOS)
First day packed in (us and maybe 25 other Westerners), Viv and I on the floor in back, Erik and Lonny way up front, each half a cheek on wooden benches designed for Asian-sized behinds. We pass up their lunches, they pass back the electronic Scrabble.
We were advised to take the slow boat, and now I know why: helmeted passengers bounce past in little speedboats -- deafening mosquitoes. More than a dozen of these passengers die each year. We may be sore, but relatively safe.
The Mekong -- swirling cafe au lait -- boiling eddies and whirlpools swallow volcanic rock. On either side, jungle drips over itself and climbs up steep banks to cloud-covered mountain tops.
It rains, we unroll plastic sheeting to cover the windows. Erik and Lonny may have seats, but no plastic, and hold a pink umbrella to avoid being drenched.
6 hours later we arrive in Pakbeng with numb butts and new friends. Dozens of local boys scramble to grab our packs, hoping we'll pay them to porter up the muddy slope to the guest house 500 yards away.
We are relieved our hotel has the luxury of bathrooms in each room, and towels to boot (not to mention a restaurant with a fantastic open-air view of the Mekong at sunset).
> > > >
Second day, a larger boat, some people even have a seat to themselves.
We pass limestone cliffs > > > a cave with stairs leading to a Buddhist temple > > > Naked children wave and do flips on shore -- vying for our attention > > > Pink water buffalo sip and flap soft ears.
8 hours later, we arrive in Luang Prabang.
+ + + + + + +
SCRABBLE POETRY
(of course, Lonny won, score mercifully undocumented)
wanton
power boner
lofty lover
sledges in mire
aqua idiom
+ + + + + + +
PHYSICS CORNER (I'm obsessed)
You might remember (and I like contemplating), that in 1905 Einstein suggested that time should not be regarded as completely separate and on its own. Instead, it was combined with space, in a 4-dimensional object called space-time. Additionally, gravity, instead of being some invisible force (like magnetism) is the result of a objects following "straight" paths through a space-time curved by objects of mass. Mind blowing.
AND
If you consider quantum mechanics -- objects (particles) do not have just a single history, but all possible histories. I don't know yet what this has to do with gravity, but I know that it relates, and it's fascinating.
Solitary golden spire rises from emerald forest
> > >
Man in wide-brimmed hat bicycles past
> > >
Another man in green rubber boots stands with camel-colored cow
> > >
Vehicles beep and pass quickly - an incomprehensible dance where 2 lanes become 3 and then back to two without incident
> > >
Dogs recline on the pavement, aloof and seemingly unaware of the traffic speeding by their heads
> > >
8 saffron-robed monks in the back of a pick-up
+ + + + + + +
SLOW BOAT TO LUANG PRABANG (LAOS)
First day packed in (us and maybe 25 other Westerners), Viv and I on the floor in back, Erik and Lonny way up front, each half a cheek on wooden benches designed for Asian-sized behinds. We pass up their lunches, they pass back the electronic Scrabble.
We were advised to take the slow boat, and now I know why: helmeted passengers bounce past in little speedboats -- deafening mosquitoes. More than a dozen of these passengers die each year. We may be sore, but relatively safe.
The Mekong -- swirling cafe au lait -- boiling eddies and whirlpools swallow volcanic rock. On either side, jungle drips over itself and climbs up steep banks to cloud-covered mountain tops.
It rains, we unroll plastic sheeting to cover the windows. Erik and Lonny may have seats, but no plastic, and hold a pink umbrella to avoid being drenched.
6 hours later we arrive in Pakbeng with numb butts and new friends. Dozens of local boys scramble to grab our packs, hoping we'll pay them to porter up the muddy slope to the guest house 500 yards away.
We are relieved our hotel has the luxury of bathrooms in each room, and towels to boot (not to mention a restaurant with a fantastic open-air view of the Mekong at sunset).
> > > >
Second day, a larger boat, some people even have a seat to themselves.
We pass limestone cliffs > > > a cave with stairs leading to a Buddhist temple > > > Naked children wave and do flips on shore -- vying for our attention > > > Pink water buffalo sip and flap soft ears.
8 hours later, we arrive in Luang Prabang.
+ + + + + + +
SCRABBLE POETRY
(of course, Lonny won, score mercifully undocumented)
wanton
power boner
lofty lover
sledges in mire
aqua idiom
+ + + + + + +
PHYSICS CORNER (I'm obsessed)
You might remember (and I like contemplating), that in 1905 Einstein suggested that time should not be regarded as completely separate and on its own. Instead, it was combined with space, in a 4-dimensional object called space-time. Additionally, gravity, instead of being some invisible force (like magnetism) is the result of a objects following "straight" paths through a space-time curved by objects of mass. Mind blowing.
AND
If you consider quantum mechanics -- objects (particles) do not have just a single history, but all possible histories. I don't know yet what this has to do with gravity, but I know that it relates, and it's fascinating.
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