Welcome
To My Blog
Postscript: In December, 2010 I hung up my Driver's cap for good. The road had taken its' toll. I was no longer willing to drive 180 days a year, regardless of the money and the ability to work when I wanted. I had seen America. I was tired of being gone from home for 9 months a year. I needed a rest. In 2011 I sold my truck and trailer and was unemployed for the year. However, I wasn't inactive. I traveled overseas to Asia and South America for several months. In the fall I enrolled in an online course to to become certified in Oracle, the world's preeminent database. I want to go back to work sometime in the near future as a software developer or administrator. Even though I programmed for 20+ years, my skills are dated. Fortunately, I have a little flexibility as to my future.
RollingOkie OKC, Jan 1, 2012
"114 Countries"
I've Visited
Albania
Andorra
Antigua
Argentina
Aruba
Austria
Bahamas
Bali
Barbados
Belgium
Belize
Bermuda
Bonaire
Borneo
Bosnia
Botswana
Bulgaria
Canada
Cambodia
Cayman Islands
China
Colombia
Costa Rica
Crete
Croatia
Curacao
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
England
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Gibraltar
Greece
Grenada
Guatemala
Guernsey
Herzegovina
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
India
Ireland (Eire)
Ireland (Ulster)
Isle of Man
Italy
Java
Japan
Jordan
Jersey
Kenya
Kosovo
Laos
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau
Macedonia
Malawi
Malaysia
Martinique
Mexico
Montenegro
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Netherlands
Nicaragua
Norway
Panama
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Rhodes
Saba
San Marino
Sarawak
Scotland
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Srpska
Sumatra
Sweden
Switzerland
Tanzania
Thailand
Tortola
Turkey (Asia)
Turkey (Eur)
Turks & Caicos Islands
United States
Vatican City
Vietnam
UAE (Emirates)
U.S.A.
U.S. Virgin Islands
Wales
Zimbabwe
Hostel Bunks Posted: October 5, 2010
We had two bunk beds and four lockers in a small room. Two people couldn't dress at the same time. You had to hope the guy above or below you was having a restful night. You had to hope that no one would come in drunk in the middle of the night. Four bed dorm rooms cost more than six bed dorm rooms. Six bed dorm rooms cost more than eight bed dorm rooms. Eight bed dorm rooms cost more than 10 bed dorm rooms. By the time it gets to a sixteen bed dorm room, you can be virtually guaranteed that a good night's sleep isn't achievable. The largest room I've ever slept in was a 36 bed co-ed room at Vondlepark Hostel in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Sleeping in a room with that many people is a form of Hell. Even the military doesn't put that many people in a room. Outside of a hostel, I think that only refugee camps house that many people in one space.
China Pavilion Posted: October 2, 2010
I talked to a lot of people about Expo 2010 and many of them said the same thing - that the China Exhibition was almost impossible to get into without a reservation. That's probably because 95% of the attendees were Chinese. That issue aside, it's rather obvious that the China Pavilion was the biggest pavilion at the Expo and the Chinese splashed the picture of the pavilion all over Shanghai. Imagine that...
Ordering Breakfast - Beijing Posted: September 24, 2010
It's me. I'm in a McDonald's in Beijing. I've got my Mandarin phrasebook in hand, trying to order breakfast. It's something of a challenge. It seems that the percentage of Chinese who speak even a smidgeon of English is virtually miniscule. Lucky for me I've go the phrasebook, right? That's really funny. But, somehow I manage. At least I don't seem to be loosing any weight. At least not so far.
Train Station - Beijing Posted: September 24, 2010
I was told that the first thing I needed to do was to try and find a way out of town as soon as possible. They say overnight sleeper berths are in limited supply and the best time to get one is NOW for sometime in the future. I got one for five days hence for the overnight to Shanghai. They say Shanghai is worth seeing. They also tell me there is some kind of Expo there at present. We'll see...
Crowded - Beijing Posted: September 24, 2010
I've been a few places in my day. The majority of my trips were to urban environments. I like to learn about mankind and the various cultures that people create. They interest me.
Beijing Itinerary Posted: June 12, 2010
Yes, I am going to Beijing. Glad you asked. I'm going in mid-September for about 30 days. I didn't want to go in the winter. Too cold. I didn't want to go in the summer. Too hot. I would have preferred to go in April, but I had just gotten back from SE Asia. Too soon to be catching another 15 hour plane ride. From Beijing I hope to get to see Shanghai and Xian. Did I mention that I also want to go see the Great Wall as well, but who doesn't. While it won't be, technically, my first trip to China, it will be my first trip to mainland China. I'm all excited.
Students 2 Posted: March 8, 2011
There was one whole day when I got interviewed by about five groups of English students who were instructed by their teacher to roam the streets of Medan, find a native English speaker, capture them and do an interview. I was about as obvious a native English speaker as you could get in Medan. This was one of the groups that captured me. They were really nice and I'm glad I got to participate, but by the end of the day I felt like some sort of celebrity and it wasn't as much fun as I might have imagined. The first two interviews were stimulating, but by the end of the fifth one, I didn't need another one.
Mekong Overlook Posted: February 22, 2011
This is what makes Luang Prabang so special in my mind. It's the sidewalk cafes that are everywhere. This town just operates on a totally different set of biorhythms than so many other places. Sidewalk cafes like this one are so inviting. They just lure you in. This one overlooks the Mekong River and I can sit for hours and watch the river roll by and the boats go up and down the river and the tourists and townspeople walk by. That's the trouble with Luang Prabang. It just sort of sucks you into that lazy lifestyle. I get up in the morning for that Lao coffee and a late breakfast at a sidewalk cafe. I walk around a little. See some stuff. Then I go back to the guesthouse a little after the noon hour for a cold shower and a nap during the heat of the day. I go back out on the streets in the late afternoon for a little more sightseeing and then dinner at one of the stalls at the night market and end the day with a few Beerloas and some good conversation at another of the local sidewalk cafes. I got out of that city as soon as I could.
Lao Cyclists Posted: February 22, 2011
I didn't get to talk with them. They were having lunch in a restaurant. I wish I could have heard about their trip but I didn't want to be a bother. Touring cyclists have the greatest of stories. They're the real adventurers of the world. I think bicycle touring is so cool. So why don't I do it? Primarily, it's because you have to be prepared to sleep out "in it" almost every day, whether it's cold or hot or wet or whatever and I just don't see that as a really comfortable way to travel. Granted, I don't always sleep in the most serene of places, but at least I stay dry most of the time. Maybe some day I'll get up the nerve to try it.
Me and Princess Posted: January 31, 2011
This little girl walked past me wanting some money. She was dressed up as a Hindu goddess and she was cute-as-a-button. I asked her if she would take a picture with me and she said yes. That cost me 10 rupees, but I don't get too many opportunities to be photographed with Indian goddesses. I asked a British guy who was passing by to take my picture with her and he responded "For fifty pence," He'd been in India way-too-long. My question to the little girl would have been "Does your mom know you're out on the street begging?" But, who am I kidding? It was her mother that dressed her up so cute and put her there.