This is Where I’m At.

This is just a picture for your entertainment: Shan State, Burma.

I’m currently in Wuhu, China.

The blog is back. I’m back. Here’s the update.

 

I was going to simply restart the blog and let you read through to the end[which has not come yet, so not even I can spoil it for you (I’m still on the road)]

But too much time has passed for me to simply pop back into the blogosphere and not at least give you a general update, the bigger picture.. my overarching plan.

We last left off on the day before my entry into Burma.

Many things have happened between then and now.. and the journey’s continued.

 

Regarding my trip: 

 

Here’s what I’ve done, since my last post.

10/20-11/16: Burma

11/16-11/19: Passed through Thailand back to Laos

11/20-12/2: Southern Laos

12/3-12/23: Yunnan, China

12/23-1/23: USA: Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Marin, Philadelphia, New York..

1/24-1/28: Shanghai, China

2 days at sea

1/30-2/15: Japan

2 days at sea

2/17-3/1: Shanghai-Qufu-Beijing-Shanghai, trains

3/2-now(3/12): Back on the bike. Shanghai-Wuhu

 

Regarding my Flexible-Going-to-Change-Plan:

After a month at home. I went to Japan as a counterweight to all the underdeveloped places I’ve been, to gain a balanced perspective. Post Japan, I though about North Korea, for the same reasons I saw Burma, it’s unconnected, unintegrated, underdeveloped and different.. But with some research, it looks like most of the tour is people reciting government propaganda scripts to you. And $1000 for 4 days to see people recite scripts doesn’t seen economical right now.

 

Winter riding is no fun, and I can’t get to the Himalayas too early..so I killed some time visiting old friends in Shanghai, Qufu, and Beijing. 

 

I started cycling again, from Shanghai, on 3/2.

 

I’m a planner. I just can’t help it. I set out from Bali, Indonesia with an intermediate goal of making it to China. Not a strict goal, more of a direction, an aim.

 

During my trip, last year, I realized I want to go further than China. Its been fascinating, fun, challenging.. Earlier, I’d say intentions are to head westward to Turkey, where I’d decide to go into Europe, Africa, both? Another 1-2 years. And then come back to China to settle down a while, but each time I say it, it doesn’t come out the same as it did when I said it four months ago or even one month ago.

 

I’m not ready to end the trip, but I’m also not ready to set my sites another 15,000+km, 10 months, further down the road. Maybe another 5000km will do.

 

In Singapore, a friend Christophe asked me; is biking your means or your end? It’s a great question. For me, its my means. It’s a tool to explore/experience/travel/learn. Whether or not I ride from here to South Africa in 147 days, I don’t care. Nor am I going to force myself to get there, in any time frame.

 

It’s raining today, and if I had this strict rule, I’d be on the road right now. And riding in cold rain sucks! I wrote all day, instead of rode all day. (HA. What a pun. I’m giving myself a pat on the back for that one)

 

Now, I’m aiming a bit closer: Western China/Central Asia. It wouldn’t feel right to not ride China. Sure, for a few more thousand kilometers, and a few months, I will not have added another country to the list..but that’s not my purpose. I wouldn’t ride a bike if it was. 

 

Though, China is “one country” it yields a vast amount of ethnic/lifestyle/language diversity.. It has over a billion people(!!) Not too mention, it’s the world’s second largest economy, and has experienced the most tremendous growth in the past decades. China is still changing so much/so fast (you’ll see once my blog gets to China). It’s important.

 

And as riding gave me a much deeper understanding of Southeast Asia. Riding across China offers such valuable insight for whatever I might do here after. To set off on a trip seeking to understand the global economy, and development and not see China(I mean ride it) would be.. silly. So I will keep going, from Shanghai. 

So let’s say a month to Chongqing. A month to Qinghai and then two weeks-one month to Central Asia. Add an ish to these three time frames just mentioned..  and maybe I’ll pop into Krygyzstan for a peep.. maybe Tajikistan too.

 

Aha, we’ll see when I’m there. 

I’ll keep you posted.

Regarding my blog:

 

Obviously, I haven’t blogged in a while. But don’t worry, I do keep logs for everyday: a journal, expense sheet, and data spreadsheet. It is from these that I actually write the blog that you read.. I copy and past my days’ writings and then edit from there.

 

I partially blame my previous computer. Two crashed hard drives and a broken trackpad really set me back. I kept up on the journaling, but the next step of writing the blog(which doubles my writing time) is a habit I couldn’t keep up with after falling behind. I’ve switched out technology and things seem to be working much better. My computer hasn’t crashed, yet, and just opening a picture doesn’t take 2+ minutes

 

Aya. I have a lot to write. But it seems to be an easier pill to swallow on this set up(macbook air).

 

Regarding My Trip/Blog’s Theme:

 

My friends and family say they love the blog. I like writing it.

 

For my own personal satisfaction there are things that I want to do a better job of pointing out. Certain themes of economics, development and culture are an undercurrent, but I want to bring them to the forefront. It will help myself flush out my own observations/thoughts.

 

I started the trip with many questions: How does the global economy actually fit together, what does that look like? Does development’s rising tide “brings up all ships” or are some places ships.. and some water? How does it shape our lives, for better or worse? What the hell is development? I mean really, really, what is it? Before I the trip. It was honestly just a word, and these concepts were intangible. I learned from a very very distant perspective: reading an essay, a data sheet, quarterly reports, percentages.. I don’t mean to discredit education at all. It’s so valuable and Berkeley is an amazing university, truly amazing. It stoked my desire to learn, and I studied along side amazing colleagues and professors. But, at a certain point, theres only so much reading and discussing one can do. I was too distant from these concepts/places.

11 months of riding, has given me some insight, and shit, it’s also spurred a ton more questions.

 

Certain questions have been nagging at me: What do we lose with development?

 

I’m not sure if its cause I’m romantic/simple/nolstagic but somewhere that’s less developed looks/sounds/smells/feels different. Traditional culture/lifestyle/aesthetics? Where does that feeling go? Is there any way to keep these traditional aspects of culture/lifestyle after developing? Does it even matter if it goes?

 

And it is with these questions that I’ll reintroduce my blog.. Burma is next, then Laos China and Japan. And if I have time, I may go back.. to write some more on previously traveled countries.. But one thing at a time. I can’t bite off more than I can chew.

 

Next country(on the blog): Burma