perth, britannia on william youth hostel 'compuda' - one of several, $3 AUD / hour. raining - still, not bad weather all things relative (to michigan).

i played a little guitar in this trendy outdoor mall yesterday. i saw other "musicians" doing their trade there in the afternoon, but the only thing they really succeeded in doing was habitualizing the pedestrians to ignoring street performers. no luck. anyway, persuaded by the sudden onset of boredom and bad weather, i've decided to jump a last-min. flight to cairns! i should be on the great barrier reef by the end of the week!!

tonight is my big chance to hit the town with deborah and her friends, we'll probably check out the infamous brass monkey bar just down the street from here~

lazy-ass kangaroos 

lamas love my mom~ 

deborah's petting a koala! 

st. cat's - deborah's school is BEAUTIFUL and so close to king's park and some natural bush (wilderness, that is). i'm in a hostel, here i go! 

bus sign! check it out- the sub~ 

perth, australia. deborah's obnoxious, pushy little powerbook.

dude~ that was a solid week of living it up in southwest aus! It was cool to hang out with mom and deborah and we did all the kinds of things a family does on vacation (and that I usually don't do when I'm traveling alone on-a-count-a the cost). we stayed a few nights in margaret river at a super cute bed and breakfast called the noble grape. we did wine tastings and ate great food. we visited animal parks and looked out for whales from the southern cape - didn't see any, unfortunately. one cool thing we did was go on the "bush tucker" river tour. our guide was the most aussie bloke you can imagine - blond surfer, barefoot, tan, and floppy hatted. he canoed us to a shmorcusboard of 'edible' and 'medicinal' plants that can be found in the bush. for lunch he provided a feast of pestos and chutneys that he prepared using ingredients he plucked from the wild! it was great - we made kangaroo and emu sandwiches with them - what a trip~ i didn't try the 'witchity grub'

we were so busy with all the fun that we all conked out early most nights. but we had a good time seeing the sights and there was lots of singing in the rental car and chilling on the beaches. it's unbelievable that so much of that coast line is undeveloped! it was amazing.. just thinking about that same coastline if it were somewhere in america makes me cringe. it would be condos or high-rise hotels as far as the eye can see. let's hope they don't screw it up, huh?

i'm blaming the powerbook on my lack of picture posting. maybe tomorrow.

perth, australia. deborah's dorm room, deborah's cute little powerbook.

oi - only 3 flights and 18 hours from phuket to perth~ deborah and her friends greeted me at the airport!

my last days in thailand were spent going backwards through my travels via return-ticket. i did get a chance to try a few more new foods and spent the last of my bhat on some mekong whiskey to share with my guys (the next time we're all together, dudes - let that day be soon). so much more to see - so much more to explore. i can't really put my finger on what i like so much about thailand. there's entertainment and natural beauty in limitless abundance, but there's something endearing about the place - an otherworldly charm that sucks people in so completely that they never leave! lucky i got out when i did, but i want to go back someday.

i've seen a little bit of perth - not much yet, but it seems like a chill city with some sweet beaches~ today we went to this animal park that had fallen into total disrepair. there were giant dinosaur statues scattered around the park and the animals had FREE REIGN!! it was kind of sureal, actually. we saw lamas, kangaroos, peacocks and variations on those themes. then we got to pet little koalas! i'll upload some pics.

ko phi phi, internet spot, waiting for ferry back to phuket.

well - bad weather continues, it's just that time of year. i woke up early because they were chainsawing the trees that had fallen, smashing some of the tin roofed neighboring guest houses. i was hung over but i decided to go ahead and join the isrealies for a snorkeling and secluded beach boat tour~ i'm glad i did! i saw some wild stuff and got to try snorkeling for the first time - LOVED IT! wild fish, jellies, and all the crazy aquarium plant/animals that are freaking crazy! we had some rough water and the isrealies (in the military, i'll remind you) chickened out and demanded to be picked up by a water taxi. later, i climbed around on bamboo beach i found a clam shell the size of a football! it was totally unreal! sadly it had to stay on the island and my camera was on the boat.. so it won't be featured..

not it's back to phuket with an early 3 flights to perth! a week is not NEARLY enough for thailand - there's a lot to see and do - i'll just have to come back someday. off to AUS!

viewpoint on ko phi phi 

fire 

ko phi phi, harmony guest house internet 2 bhat / min.

man - the weather has been wild! fronts of wind and rain come in like the world's freaking ending and as quick as they come, they go. the sidewalks are flooded and people get drenched, but it couldn't bother me less. people on the beach drinking buckets of booze (literaly) and dancing like man people in the rain! it's been fun, but it bothers me how predictable i am as a tourist.. i like all the shit they're selling me; parties, iced coffees, bob marley on the beach, fire shows. and it's got nothing to do with the thai culture.

there was massive tsunami damage on the island last year - but most tourists seem to be pretty fucking insensitive to such things. here's a short conversation i overheard as a was walking along a cobbled road to the beach. buildings no longer line the street, only a mess of rubble and debris.

idiot girl: ".. and he was like, 'if i snore just elbow me in the ribs and i'll stop', so i did and he DID stop but he stopped BREATHING too and then he started coughing and he'd wake up and then go to sleep and just start snoring again!"
moronic girl: "i know~ and i pretty much couldn't sleep at all. i think it was the red bull."
idiot girl: "i know! i was so wasted~"
moronic girl: "well - i hate to add to the mess, but.." THROWS AN EVIAN BOTTLE INTO A PEICE OF BROKEN HOME
idiot girl: "well - it looks like this is where they throw all their garbage anyway."
moronic girl: "yeah - what a total dump." WONDEROUS BEACH LOOMS AHEAD
idiot girl: "and boring - nothing to freaking do here."
moronic girl: "yeah - three days was definately enough for ko p.p." PASSES THE TSUNAMI MEMORIAL GARDEN WITHOUT A GLANCE

ass clowns. all of them. no one should have the priviledge of such ignorance and total arrogance. it's painful.

nighttime 

chick'nz 

phuket, hotel internet cafe 2 baht / min.

a flight to phuket - why not, it was cheaper than some of the other islands. on the plane i met these isreali girls who adopted me as a travel partener. it's amazing how completely they can cover a room with all varieties of lacy girly things~ lucky me. the clubs here are really out of control! so many tourists have turned thailand into a wretched disneyland of sorts; the ladyboys are a something to see.

today it's off to the nearby island of ko phi phi - it's going to be a little more relaxed and after a few wild nights i'm ready for that. i'm in full vacation mode, man - wish you were here~

some wild sights in bangkok! 

McThai 

bangkok, hotel roof-top internet cafe. 10 bhat / 20 min.

wow - i'm that guy. i showed up at narita airport with passport and ticket, bright and early for a 9:00 flight to thailand. small problem, i was a day early.. who makes mistakes like that anyway?! if i had been a day late they could have rescheduled, but in my case it made for an uneventful 24 hours of time to kill in a little place near the airport.

anyway, i did it all again the next day and now i'm in swinging bangkok! holy crap! i was greated at the gate by a host of con artists who have been following me around ever since. everyone wants my money. it's a major problem and i don't like it much at all. it's become impossible to meet and make friends with thai people because of the tourism that comes into bangkok. things are cheap, though! i ate and drank with other backpackers from the same cheap hotel and last night hired a tuk-tuk and driver (three wheeled transport) for some joy riding~

tomorrow i'm flying on a little puddle jumper to phuket - any island whould have done but the flight was cheap. it'll be good! right now i'm the whitest person in thailand - practically glowing - and i've seriously got to get some sun so the guys on the street leave me alone and go for some other fresh face. anybody back home need 3 suits for one low price?


 

the emerald city, SAPPORO!
 


okayama city - my old place - my computer. home? raining outside with mild conviction.

it's over!! my journey to the great north island is complete! wahoo!!
it was all business in hakodate, just a stepping stone really. i did see a pretty intense fish market though - HUGE crabs wriggling on scales and people slurping down bowls of fish eggs on rice. none for me, thanks.

i reached sapporo in the most perfect warm weather just as the flowers were beginning to open for the assembled masses! i did the last of my blue-sheet performances and brought in a couple bucks in the early afternoon. then i met up with lorraine, my friend from akita - it was golden week, so it was just good timing that she was on holiday in sapporo with a friend. we went to the sapporo brewery and beer museum because we had to, didn't we? after that we had something not unlike mexican food - pretty good actually - and i ran off to catch a ferry back to the main island. would you believe that i was on that ferry for 22 hours and nothing worth mentioning even happened - what a tragedy that wild romances don't find me in airports and on passenger ferries like the should..

it was a few busses and one more night in a capsule - when i got back to okayama the world was lush and green! i hadn't seen full-on leaves yet and it really knocked me out - i was riding the bloom, the edge of spring, and okayama was hot - bordering on summer already. i walked along the river to my old place in a t-shirt, if only i could call the place home, i would say that i'm happy to be back. but sadly, i'll be on my way. tomorrow: tokyo, and friday begins a week in thailand~

tour in review:

6 weeks on the road, 31 cities, more than 40 free rides. i brought in about 79,000 yen busking and selling cds (about $690), covering 40% of my expenses. throw in some party crashing for food and drinks and that only put me back about a thousand dollars for 6 weeks of traveling in japan - not too shabby. besides that, i've got a few new friends, a few good stories to tell and i think i saw some truth out there. for the record, i'm glad that i did it, but i'll think twice about doing it again. i'm looking forward to relaxing (and eating) in thailand and even more so for the upcoming tour of australia!

wild sakura and the end of the world! 

mark and chainsaw! 

aomori city, same fancy shopping center free internet corner, hungover.

i rolled into the park on a fine day in aomori! there were all the usual attrations, food stands and the like. but what's this huge crowd gathered around?

i met mark in mid show - in fact at the part where a little girl from the audience throws him his third fire club. he was running his show in japanese and he wasn't half bad. he made fun of the unhappy looking old men and got a few laughs. he then proceded to juggle a chainsaw and finished by eating his fire. he pulled out a huge bag and standing on his big filthy suitcase had it filled with money. youch - i wouldn't be working aomori with a pro like that around.

"that wasn't even worth doing!" he said - what a lousy hat! it was his 5th and last show for the day - he had only made a lousy 800 dollers.. "what shit - i used to really clean up in the good old days". i hung around and talked to the guy for a while (he reminded me so much of eric, even looked quite like him). he stopped me to make occational advances on passing highshool girls. he'd been working street fairs, trains, pitches all over the world for the last 16 years. man, over dinner i got all kinds of advice and expert knowledge on how to turn my act into a real money maker. he had lots of wild stories, as you can imagine.

besides mark, there was a team of old men in yukata rolling a giant karaoke machine around on a cart. they were loud and anoying as all fuck, didn't think twice about setting up right next to mark in mid show or me busking on the street. there was lots of angry fist shaking from me, but it did no good at all. mark got ran off his pitch by a mean old lady with a sweet potato cart. i made some money when i felt like it and then met some cool people and joined there party. off the clock, i even invited over the cowboy-hatted karaoke guitarist, labamba/stand by me/country road, etc. he and i had been in silent competitiion in 4 cities and it felt good to help him do his thing.

when i got back to my capsul last night those pan-pipe fuckers were just getting in and changing out of their super ethnic panchos! haha! i hate them so much and thankfully hadn't seen them since iwakuni. but i was friendly and gave them the lowdown on the pitch. i'm leaving today anyway - i'm off to catch a ferry to HOKAIDO!!! i'm almost done, baby!! 2 more cities to go and i'll be at the end of my road!!

aomori city - fancy new shopping plaza, 4th floor, "inta-netto.ko-na" - free.

one more rainy night in akita was all she wrote. didn't see the friends again, but that's the nature of this business. i caught 4 rides and a train to get to hirosaki in aomori prefecture - the top of the main island, at last! i took a bus from the train station to get to the hostel and got some attention from some junior high school girls (the root of all evil) - nothing good ever comes from that. when i got off the bus i walked a block to the hostel and got slapped in the face by this big-ass mountain just sitting there in all it's snow-covered glory!! holy crap!! maybe it's being from flat-land michigan, but mountains never fail to knock my socks off, especially when the fuckers sneak up on you like that.

the hostel moma was nice enough and sent me on my way to the park. i rolled in to see the biggest, wildest ohanami spot yet! the castle itself wasn't all that impressive, but the garden paths and rivers cutting through the grounds were a dream in breaking bloom. there were a million people there, taking pictures, braving the chill.

hirosaki also boasts the biggest, loudest midway i've seen yet. you could really call it that too - there are always food stands and the odd goldfish-catchery/moon-walkery - but in hirosaki there was a dune buggy ride, a haunted house and an assortment of rigged games with stuffed prizes. for once the competition drove prices down ever so slightly and i took advantage - ate me a 5 banger of cheese balls on a stick and a roasted chicken leg, hell yeah. the damn place was so big and wild that it had attracted a few other random traveling musicians including one old guy from detriot who claimed that he "came from alabama with [his] banjo on his knea." (nothing but LIES!) and another that i had seen in akita.

i played for a little while before getting dragged into an office and made to sign up for permission to play. it cost me 204 yen (why?!?!) for my permission card and i was given a map of the areas i would be designated to. namely those places with no people or cherry trees. screw that.

i left and talked to a travel agent who finally solved my flight to aus. via thailand problem buy throwing my money at it until it went away. it was the day that i walked a 2 mile round trip to save myself a buck and a half on bus fiar just to spend a small fortune on a jet-powered stop-over in a third-world country. let me tell you more about my life as a (hipocrite) homeless hitchhiker.

my per$pective got all screwed up and i spent an unheard of $10 on a dinner set menue and it was good and 10 bucks felt like nothing. by the time i got back to the hostel i was feeling so guilty about the dinner that i ran back into the park and rounded up a night's work in tips and beers. *$igh - all was right with the world.

this morning i got out to the main road and was picked up within a minute! the man in the passenger seat was getting dropped off at the train station by a freind, but was also going to aomori and insisted on paying for my ticket! we talked on the train he was a nice guy, going to a wedding (his brother's wife's sister's). i gave him a cd. when we got to aomori he slapped me on the back and stuck a hundred dollers in my chest pocket before jumping in a cab. and i used to understand money.

whatever - another capsul tonight - i sleep in a drawer.