wanderlust

The sky doesn't rain here, it angrily pelts water from the sky... and that is what has been going on much of today. But here's some photos for you. xo

My friend Dougie and I went out last night with these Thai lifeguards we met on the beach and what a strange night it was... First they took us to this restaurant/ bar where you catch your own shrimp (these things are MASSIVE) from their manmade pond for dinner. The pond was quite literally right in the middle of the restaurant in the middle of all the tables. After that we went to a local karaoke bar which I think might have been in a garage in someone's backyard, and pretended to sing cheesy songs in thai and make fools of ourselves. :-) Then we went on a ride through the island on a motorbike. I can't even describe how amazingly beautiful it is here. I'm hoping to go to Ko Phi Phi Island for the day tomorrow. xoxo

Please sign your name to all comments, or I have no idea at all who is leaving them! Thanks!!

I am deliciously bored in Phuket and slightly sunburnt. It's low season here and the beach is practically empty. I wish you all were here! I must admit it's kind of odd to be sitting exactly where the tsunami hit in 2004. This area was totally wiped out and rebuilding efforts are still taking place. The region has suffered from a serious drop in tourism since the event, and it's obvious in how they act towards tourists. They're sadly pretty desperate for tourism money. I got a ridiculously cheap rate on a hotel across the street from the beach, and a travel agency just offered me a full day tour of the area's islands for about $50, including drinks and lunch.

I am anxious to be back on American soil. I mis you all!! xo jamie

p.s. whoever said "your life is so badass right now" please fess up because you gave me a great laugh and everyone in the coffee shop turned to stare at me!! haha

Hello all!! I've arrived safely in Phuket. I have already made 3 new friends (a Scottish surfer and 2 American grad students) and I'm going to dinner and drinks with them shortly. Love you all!

Ok, so after we're through with the Grand Palace, Brandy and I start off for the ferry only to discover that it isn't running for the rest of the day because they are practicing for this big ceremony in 2 weeks. (In case you're wondering, all of Thailand is preparing for a celebration for the 60th anniversary of the King's reign.)

And we are nowhere even remotely close to a skytrain station. In the States, this wouldn't be a problem because you'd just hail a cab, but not here. The cab drivers only make money by turning over fares because they get so little for the mile, so they don't want to go too far before they drop you off. Three or four cab drivers told us the station was too far for him to take us.

So we walked. What mistake am I at, #4? Three hours later we'd had a confusing walking tour of Chinatown and after talking to about five 7-11 counter people, we found a subway station and made it back to the skytrain. By the time we made it back to the hostel, it was dark and the rest of the group had left for Thai boxing, which we missed. Boo. It was a looooong day.

On Wednesday we went to visit Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, which I was absolutely thrilled about because some of my favorite campaigns are by Ogilvy. We met with the managing director (she has a long thai name that I do not remember) and she was hilarious. We all kind of got the impression that she didn't like the Americans that work for Ogilvy, but other than that she was lovely. I was thoroughly impressed with their client base in Thailand and throughly disappointed to learn that they don't employ many expatriates because they're too expensive. And they have the coolest offices!! They have a room with a bunch of playground swings in it. The interior design reminded me a lot of Capstrat.

Later that afternoon Brandy and I did more shopping and went to get fitted for our new clothes!! The trench coat arrived last night and I'm in love with it. It needs better buttons, but other than that I think its fabulous. Now I just need the red BMW to match. ;-)

Wednesday evening, Brandy, Amy and myself met up with our friends from KL at a bar in the city. Brandy went home early, taking our room key with her. Our hostel has 2 night guards that are supposed to keep out anyone that isn't a guest, but they have been fast asleep every single time I've come in late so we just ignore them and giggle a bit. THAT night, they decided to stay awake. Ooops. Amy and I didn't have our keys because our roommates were upstairs, and the guards didn't speak a word of English, so we were stuck. They wouldn't let us up to our rooms. We went and got a room at the hostel where our other friends were staying and planned to wake up early to come back to Suk 11 to get ready for the day's meetings. I barely slept because I was in a strange place and I was worried we wouldn't wake up in time to make it back.

Unfortunately, we didn't exactly factor in rush hour traffic. We caught a cab, no big deal, then moved about 3 miles in 45 minutes... At this point we started freaking out. Kennan was going to KILL us if we didn't make it back in time for this meeting because it was our last one. We got out of the cab...walked a few blocks at a pace substantially faster than the traffic was moving...stood and stared at street signs...tried to use a pay phone... Finally some man who spoke English took pity on us, allowed us to use his cell phone to call the hostel, and hailed us 2 motorcycles to take us to the nearest skytrain station, which we would then take to our stop and walk to Suk 11.

A little note about the motorcycles in Bangkok. They seem to be the fastest (and scariest) mode of transport, because they help themselves to driving ON the center line, right through all the other cars. This might seem nuts to you, but you'd have to see Southeast Asian drivers. They are NUTS. So, needless to say, sitting on the back of a motorcycle in a skirt, going right through all the traffic... Quite the experience. Thank god the skirt was long. I still screamed quite a bit. (Mom, I am sorry about this because I don't like motorcycles either but I was stuck!)

We fiiiinally made it back to the hostel, 10 minutes late. Luckily, the group had not left yet. We were saved. Whew, that was a close one. This meeting was our last requirement for the course and this was my last course with Radford University, and I wasn't trying to go out in flames or anything. Haha.

So that morning we visited the public relations department at Bangkok University. We were thoroughly impressed with their facilities, faculty and students. They were so excited to have us and had organized a detailed schedule for the day. They fed us the most amazing lunch, and if I knew that any of it actually was I would describe it here.

This visit was immediately followed by a looong nap. I love sleep. :-)

Last night for dinner we all went to a restaurant called Cabbages and Condoms, where proceeds from the restaurant go to AIDS education and prevention in the region. Not only is that just really freakin cool, I had the most amazing lemongrass chicken. Probably the best meal I've had in Thailand. I had to save some for later. The restaurant gives you condoms at the end of the meal instead of dinner mints. Very funny. :) If any of you get postcards with condoms printed on the front, don't be shocked. Haha....

The official trip ended yesterday. Some of the group are on flights home right now and some of them already left for Phuket. Three more of the group are headed to Phuket today, and I'll be there tomorrow. I am staying there for the week to relax and recharge, while several of the others are traipsing around Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. I do love to travel, but the experience of traveling with 15 people for 3 weeks is... trying.

Do not be concerned about me in Phuket. I'm going to stay at a hotel with security (rooms are about US$15-$20 a night) and I will be careful. Thankfully, life next week will be boring!! I plan to spend a lot of time laying in the sun and relaxing. I probably won't blog much because there won't be anything to say. Haha...I fly back to Bangkok next Saturday, stay in an airport hotel for the night, and at 6:50am on Sunday morning I am headed back to the States!! My flight gets in at 6:41 p.m. on Sunday, June 11th.

I imagine I'll be severey jetlagged for 2 days or so, but I'll call everyone to catch up. I love and miss you all, of course.

Mom, Dad, Josh- I would deeply appreciate a fabulous American dinner after I get back. Steaks with Josh's marinade would be fantastic. :) I love you all so much!

Lexia- Keep consuming loads of authentic Italian food and wine for me. Please bring me something cool. :)

Boy- We're ridiculous. ;-)

Hello all :) Today marks the end of the official study abroad portion of the trip. But let's fill you in on the last few days....

I couldn't bring myself to write for a few days after my experience several nights ago. We all went out for Trisha's birthday and had a fabulous time at a bar down the street from our hostel. There might have been some bar dancing or something involved, who knows. ;-) I stepped outside to get some fresh air and this little boy, John, was outside of the bar selling flowers.

Let me first explain that I fully understand that children sell flowers on the street to take tourists' money, but it doesn't make it any less upsetting.

Here it was, 1:30 a.m. and this adorable little 6 year old boy is wandering the streets of this city, selling flowers. Now, my family doesn't even want me to stay in Bangkok one night alone, and I'm an adult. I can't imagine sending my 6 yr old out in the streets to support our family. That's desperation. Anyway, John had gotten one of those little toys out of the 25cent machines like they sell in American supermarkets, and he was very patiently trying to assemble a small red plastic airplane which probably cost about 1 cent to produce. But the kid was focused on this thing like it was the most exciting thing that ever happened to him, and he even let me try to assemble the plane (unsuccessfully). Well, thanks to the alcohol and the sheer fact that this was one of the cutest, sweetest kids I ever laid eyes on, I started crying. The rest of the group walked out of the bar to find me in tears on the sidewalk, playing with John.

Brandy bought the entire bouquet of flowers from him so he could go home and go to bed, and the bartenders walked us home. I cried the whole way. First time since we got here.

By the way, this is the same night we met an elephant on the street. You should see the pictures of my face when we saw her; they're hilarious. I looove elephants (I can't hold it against the species that they're the symbol of the Republican party, hehe).

Monday, I stayed in bed most of the day with horrible allergies. The smog doesn't agree with me.

Tuesday should be called "The Grand Adventure". Brandy and I decide, being the navigators we are, to head across the city to see the Grand Palace. Ok, no big deal. We get off the skytrain at the correct stop and catch a ferry (while quietly hoping this ferry is the correct one beause all the signs are in Thai). This is when my fabulous luck comes into play again, and the boat breaks down in the middle of the river. We drift ever so slowly to a dock and while the other passengers wait for another boat, Brandy and I duck off the ferry to walk the rest of the way to the Palace. This should be referred to as mistake #1. The first man we meet tells us that the Palace is closed for a ceremony until 3pm but we shrug him off and start walking to the Palace.

Then another person tells us the Palace is closed, and another. The last man draws us a little map of the other attractions we should go see and very helpfully hails us a tuk tuk to take us to these places.

We get in the tuk tuk. Mistake #2.

He takes us to the first temple, and my bullshit meter starts to measure a reading because there are NO tourists around this place is not on the map on my guidebook. I literally start throwing a fit and tell Brandy I insist we go back to the Palace. Mr Tuk Tuk doesnt seem ttoo enthralled about this idea, but we start heading back. He pulls over on the side of a major road and tells us we can't go to the Palace and we have to go to these attractions and shops because he is getting free gas. This is a common problem around here. This is also when it comes in handy to be a sassy little white girl. We get into an argument which I win by getting out of the cab and walking away.

The next man we meet on the corner tells us the same lies, but I've got it figured out now. We hail a cab with the oldest driver known to man, he takes us directly to the Palace gates, and lo and behold, the place is OPEN. They also have a sign posted, "DO NOT TRUST STRANGERS, especially tuk tuk drivers" which is signed by the Office of Public Relations for the royal household. Ironic much? We took a picture for prosterity.

At this point we run into some friends from our hostel in Malaysia, and they hadbeen on the same journey but actually made it to the shopping portion of the trip before they figured it out. My lack of tolerance for bullshit turned out to save us quite a bit of time.

The Grand Palace was breathtaking. If only we put such effort and artistry into our national building!! Walls and walls of murals and perfectly placed stones and glass.... It was really impressive. We also got to see the Emerald Buddha, the most revered religious emblem in Thailand. I wish I had pictures, but you can't take photos in Buddhist temples. There were large urns of holy water outside of the temple and we put 3 drops on our heads on the way out of the temple....

My endurance for storytelling over blogs is limited... We'll leave this one to be continued!!

By the way, I am heading to Phuket on Saturday with several others from the group. They will be there for a few days before heading to Cambodia. Meanwhile, I'll be laying on amazing white sand beaches with nothing to do but eat, sleep, and read. :-) More about those plans later....xoxo

Continued from below.... These entries are out of order so you might want to start a few down and work your way up. ;-)

So here we are at the Renaissane Hotel in Cota Bharu, where the staff brings you heated towels for when you get out of the amazing swimming pool and rooms are US$70 for 2 queen size beds.... Ahhh, and life is good. But we still have no idea how we're getting to Bangkok. Apparently we've gotten some incorrect information from, oh, 4 or 5 people, and we've ended up on the WRONG coast of Malaysia, opposite of Bangkok. "Oops" doesn't even seem to do this one justice, but hey, I didn't plan the trip.

So the following day we check out of the hotel, take one cab to the Malay/Thai border, WALK through customs on the border, and catch another cab to take us to Hat Yai, where we will catch a flight to Bangkok. This journey begins at 2 p.m. and we finally land in Bangkok around 11:30 p.m. But whew, we're here. Only two very full days of traveling later.

(In case you were wondering, Malaysia = eh... Nothing special. If you must go, spend one day in KL doing the Petronas and the Batu Caves, then abruptly leave. It's nothing special. I liked the rain forest in Costa Rica much more because we saw a lot more wildlife.)

At this point, we split into cabs at the airport and head off towards our hostel. Our cab ride was pretty standard as far as cab rides go, but one of the other groups had a veeery different experience. Again, I msis the exciting stuff. Read their story here: http://singaporesingapore.blogspot.com/

That's my Bangkok roommate Brandy's blog. You'll enjoy the story.

Anyway, we arrive at the hostel and it's by far the coolest place I've ever stayed in my life. http://www.suk11.com/ The place looks like a Thai hut, but it's actually a mid-sized hotel. The walkways in the hall are all wooden planks. Also, we're in double rooms with private baths so that's pretty nice too. ;-)

In short, I love Bangkok. Totally and completely. Even the things about it that I shouldn't love, I do. It has such a friendly, energetic vibe. It's like New York City in the blistering July heat. So alive and active. People are selling goods and food on literally every inch of the sidewalk. There's certainly no lack of things to look at.

Yesterday we went to the famous weekend market, which has 8,000 stalls selling everything under the sun. I got a few gifts for people from home. :-) That night we went one of the dozens of malls here and I got what might be two of the best knock off coach bags I have ever seen (shhhh, don't tell!!).

But TODAY, this was my day. Please refer to the title of the blog. Brandy and I pretty much had a girl's dream day today. We're still in fabulous moods from our adventures. First, we went to eat lunch the Hard Rock Cafe and listen to some authentic American music. Then we were walkng down the sidewalk when a random Thai woman stopped us to tell us we were beautiful (they do this a lot, it's odd) and were we from America? When we told her yes she got very excited and spent the next 30 minutes writing us a list of everywhere we should go in Bangkok for the best shopping. When Brandy mentioned that she was planning on having clothes made in Vietnam, the lady shook her head and wrote down the name of a great Thai tailor, lecturing us on how Thai tailors were so superior to Vietnamese tailors. She even did us the courtesy of hiring us a tuk-tuk driver and telling him where he needed to take us on our shopping tour of the city. This is a tuk tuk, by the way :http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuk_tuk.

Well, not only did she hire us the cutest 20-something tuk tuk driver we've seen yet in Thailand, but he spoke fantastic English and told us he'd spent 7 months training with the U.S. air force. He drove us to a place called Manhattan Custom Tailors, and we walked in, not knowing what to expect. 7-10 nicely dressed Thai men whisked us upstairs past hundreds of reams of exotic fabrics, to a table where they sat us down and brought book after book of custom clothing designs.

Ladies, they can literally make you anything you could possibly imagine.

Well, Brandy and I were like small children in a candy shop. We spent the next hour scouring books before we each decided to be modest (haha) and just get custom trench coats made. Sooo I am getting an amazing double breasted, belted, classic cut, fire engine red trench made to exactly my measurements and specifications in the best Thai fabric.

How much?? US$200. You can hardly buy a trench off a rack for that much in the States. Ahhhhhhhh!!

Next, our cute little tuk tuk driver took us to a 5 story electronics mall so I could buy myself a new camera because honestly I am fed up with the one I have. It's gone from bad to horrible on this trip. He proceeded to come into the mall with us and help us translate with the salespeople because their English is only so-so. US$200 for a 6.0 megapixel with free rechargeable batteries and a 512mb card. Definitely an amazing deal.

At this point, Brandy and I decided we needed a break from spending the big bucks and headed back. When we asked Mr. Tuk tuk how much we owed him, he said "Whatever you think" and we paid him B200... about US$5 and he seemed thoroughly pleased. We were originally supposed to pay B60. That's US$1.50.

Did I mention I love Bangkok?! We're off to dinner. Ciao!!

Anyway, where was I? We spent our next day at Taman Negara doing a canopy walk 45 meters (how many feet is that? i don't do metric) above the jungle floor, braving ridiculously steep hikes to beautiful mountain top views, shooting rapids on rickety wooden boats down the Tembeling, and finally swimming in the middle of the pouring rain in the oldest rainforest in the world.

A-m-a-z-i-n-g. You're allowed to be envious. It was exhausting ye exhilarating, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to experience it all.

The next day is where the story gets REALLY interesting. The company we booked the Taman Negara package with had set us up on a 6 hour "jungle train" to take us to another location in Malaysia where we could catch a 10 hour night train t Bangkok. The train was to be air conditioned and comfortable and would put us right where we needed to be to easily reach our next destination.

WRONG doesn't even seem like an adequate word to describe how strikingly DIFFERENT this whole train thing was from our expectations. It goes something like this...

1:03 We climb into the train and realize that not only is it not air conditioned, only 4 windows in the whole car will open.
1:05 The car starts flooding. A rather plump man walks dwn the isle throgh the flooded car, barefoot. Ew.
1:15 We realize that not only is the train about 125 degrees (actually I dunno but it felt like this), there are cockroaches of varying sizes living in the car.
1:47 Diesel fumes begin tseeping throughout the train.
4:32 First cockroach falls in my hair. I do not scream. ;-)
5:21 They tell us the train ride will actually last until about 10 tonight. We start to get a liiiittle annoyed.
7:56 Second cockroach falls in my hair. We make a new sport out of killing rodent sized cockroaches with our flip flops. Let me tell you, those things are quick.
8:30 We stop for 30 mins to eat and eat something that somewhat resembles a hamburger but after being cooked, remains the color of raw meat. Somehow, my stomach survives this encounter with little incident.
9:45 We arrive in Cota Bharu or however you spell it. The man look at us like they've never seen American women. Our cab driver laughs at su when we tell him we're trying to catch the 10 hr train to Bangkok. Informs us that aforementioned train journey will take at least 23 hours. Ouch.
10:15 We arrive at the Renaissance hotel and blow some American bucks for a good old night of pampering...

Please stay tuned for the next day's adventures.... It's 11:30 p.m. on a Saturday night in Bangkok and we have some things to do. ;-) xoxo

Good afternoon from Bangkok, Thailand!!! This is my first post in several days and there is much to say so I may split it into two entries. This past Monday, we left Kuala Lumpur for Taman Negara, the national forest of Malaysia.

We arrived on a bus at the banks of the Tembeling River, where 5 or 6 long wooden boats were tethered. Imagine the kind of boats you'd expect to see on a river in ancient China, and you'll have it about right. These boats took us on a 3 hour journey down the river to our "resort". Air conditioned double rooms, yesss!! It's amazing the things that will excite you when you'd been sharing a bathroom for 2 weeks.

We ate all our meals on floating restaurants on the river. Literally, all the restaurants for the small town (if you can even call it that) were on floating barges. Very curious experience. That night, we went on a walk through the jungle but we didn't see anything too exciting. Lots of insects, deer and some small mammal with an odd name that's escaped me.

Uh oh, I'm being ushered off to more shopping. How horrible. ;-) I'll continue telling you about the rain forest adventure and the looong journey to Bangkok a bit later. I love and miss you all!! I'm going to buy a new digital camera to replace te old one so new pics will be up soon. xo

Firstly, I apologize for the lack of chronology in my blog entries. I just write what's on my mind at the moment.

Saturday night we went to see the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra at their concert hall in the Petronas Towers (see below). First we had an amazing meal at a Spanish tapas restaurant down the street from our hostel. It's pretty amazing what kind of food you can get for US$20 in Southeast Asia. Wow. Homemade sangria, also. Double Wow. We have great group photos from that night, but I don't have any on my camera. I'll try to track them down.

The orchestra program was a collection of various contemporary works and we all really enjoyed the show. One of the pieces was entitled Frankenstein and it was basically a satirization or cynical rendering of idealistic children's fairy tales and heroes. It's rather difficult to explain. The piece was narrated by the actual composer and he was a real gem to watch. To those from Etown, he was a Tom Quimby type- he rivaled the best stage actors I have ever seen. We were giggling in the audience.

One of the other pieces, Tearless Moon, was written as a memorial piece for the conductor's wife. I really felt that there was grief in every note. Again, I was reminded of the 2 people I lost last year and I had tears in my eyes by the end of the song. Beauuutiful. I wish my equally music-obsessed friends from home had been there. You would understand exactly what I mean.

Anyway, today we visited a mid sized PR firm in KL. I don't have much to say about that. They were similar to smaller firms I know in the States.

We are off to Tamam Negara, Malaysia's national forest, tomorrow morning!! This means several days of jungle trekking, caving, and canopy tours. This should inspire Costa flashbacks, I imagine. (Speaking of which, I wish two of my companions from Costa were here with me--you easily know who you are.) This means I will not have internet access for the next several days. No worries, I will take loads of pictures and fill you all in. I'm bringing a disposable camera because I KNOW the rainforest humidity would render my pathetic camera absolutely useless. I'll develop the pics in Bangkok and buy a new digital camera (for dirt cheap, I might add) and then I can better demonstrate my adventures on this little page. :)

I love you all dearly. xo

My tempermental digital camera likes me today and I have been able to upload my pics, yay!! The other girls have great photos from dinner and the symphony last night as well. I'll try to steal a few. :)



At the National Mosque in KL, dressed as a Muslim woman... a very odd experience


This woman approached me at the mosque and wanted to take a picture with me, then proceeded to pinch my cheeks affectionately and say something in Malay to her friend... haha


Back in Singapore at the Southernmost point of Asia continent on Sentosa island.



Today has been lazy. I was able to sleep in for the first time since the beginning of the trip! It's still up in the air to what we're going to do when we leave KL on Tuesday. We were supposed to head to Taman Negara, the national forest, but we're having trouble making reservations. Sooo we might spend a few days on the Malay beaches, which are disputedly the best in the world. :) Jealous?!

Hello loves! I do apologize for not writing in a few days, but internet access at the hostel in Singapore was scarce and I got sick of waiting for computers. Anyway, let's catch up.

On Tuesday we went to the National University of Singapore and met with public relations students and faculty. We had a brief presentation on the PR industry and media environment in Sing., then a roundtable discussion with some NUS students. The students talked about their university, the PR program at NUS and the political system in Singapore.

Singapore is a semi-democracy. The same political party (People's Action Party) has controlled the government since the country became independent from Britain in 1965. Minority parties have had little success in taking over the government. Out of 84 seats in parliament, only 2 of these are held by minority party members. The PAP maintains its control over the gov't by fear. They are doing an extraordinary job running the "business" that is Singapore; in fact, Singapore is the success it is thanks to the PAP, but gov't control is strict.

Sing. recently held an election which was announced TWO WEEKS prior to the opening of the polls. They do this so the minority parties don't have enough time to organize campaigns, and they win by default in almost every constituency. Can you imagine if this happened in the U.S.??

The NUS students expressed a lot of resentment towards the PAP and clearly decribed their tactics for intimidating the population into re-electing them. Imagine this: voting is MANDATORY for all citizens, and each ballot is clearly printed with a serial number that is linked to your name. They know who you're voting for. What these numbers are used for is unclear and is not discussed, but the idea that votes could be tracked is enough for many citizens to vote for the PAP. The PAP also tells citizens that those constituencies that elect PAP representatives will have priority upgrades to their government housing (88% of Sings live in gov't housing). The gov't by no means mistreats their constituents, but still, this sounds like some perversion of freedom.

If that isn't enough to make you appreciate our freedom as U.S. citizens, listen to this-- media coverage of a controversy in the 1960s led the gov't to place an official on the board of the Sing. Press Holdings, which publishes all most ALL print media. A gov't official approves the budget(list of stories) for the Straits Times each day.

How's that for freedom of the press?!

Anyway, I love politics and I could continue but I'll spare you my liberal ranting. :)

The next few days were jam-packed. We visited the Singapore Press Holdings, which I mentioned above, and Bloomberg financial. I was less interested in these meetings, to be honest.

The next two were more interesting- the Southeast Asia headquarters of Edelman public relations, and the president of Institute of Public Relations Singapore.

I want to work for an international PR firm, obviously. Most of you that know me, know this already. But the meeting with Edelman furthered my interest in this field. It's quite the lifestyle. It often requires moving between cities every few years or so, but it offers the opportunity to be completely immersed in a variety of different cultures and learn, learn, learn. Expect me to be moving overseas within the next 5 or 6 years. I'm fascinated with different cultures, and PR is a great field to understand the nuances between them. Especially in diverse Asia. John Kerr, Director of Southeast Asia for Edelman, has the job I want. He talked about PR in Asia for 2 hours and he was so knowledgeable, he probably could have gone on all day. Anyway, I love this stuff, so I was fascinated with everything he had to say.

Our last meeting in Sing. was with the president of IPRS. Imagine this- she works for the government. I'm wondering if they had anything to do with her strategic position... PR professionals could make the difference in educating the Sing public and getting minority candidates elected, but that's a lot less likely if the IPRS president is a PAP member and controls the actions of that influential group... Just my theory, of course. But she was a charming woman and very welcoming and friendly. She slyly and gracefully avoided questions about gov't control, but that's a part of her job, I suppose.

AHH I'm sure those of you reading this who have no interest whatsoever in international communication are bored to bits right now, so let me continue on with more interesting topics!!

We traveled to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday. I think one of the best parts of traveling is the time in between on the bus, plane or cab when you get to look out the window, daydream, and admire the changing landscape. That was me yesterday. The countryside is beautiful. It reminds me a lot of Costa Rica with lush rainforests, plenty of palm trees, and locals selling produce in roadside stands. Drew was heavy on my mind. He should have had the chance to see all this. I miss you, my friend.

We arrived in the city and went to our hostel which we had found online, and to put it lightly, we were unsatisfied with the accomodations. Horrified might be a more appropriate term. Being the problem solvers that we were, the group split up and priced other places around the city, and found an adorable hostel with air conditioned rooms, bright murals on the walls and a pool table. :) Check it out! http://www.thegreenhut.com

Today has been, by far, my FAVORITE day thus far. We woke up at 7 a.m. to go stand in line for tickets at the Petronas Towers. http://www.petronastwintowers.com.my/internet/pett/pettweb.nsf/flash_intro?OpenPage

Remember the movie "Entrapment" where Catherine Zeta Jones and Sean Connery rob the building on the night of Chinese New Year and swing from the lights on the bridge?? Yep, that's the one. 88 stories high. Unfortunately, buildings don't thrill me much, but the building contains one of the best concert halls in the world, and I bought tickets to see the Malaysian Symphony there TONIGHT. :) I'm soooo excited. About 5 of the girls are going.

This afternoon we went to the Batu Caves, just outside of the city. Check it out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batu_Caves
There's really no good way to describe it. The caves were mindblowing, the temples colorful yet somber. I watched a Hindu woman in traditional clothing stand barefoot in front of the massive statue of Lord Murugan in prayer. I wanted to take her picture.

Now that we've caught up, that brings me to this very moment-- I'm sitting in an internet cafe across the street from the hostel. It's dark and there are dozens of teenage Malay boys sitting around me playing very loud and violent video games. I'm listening to Iron & Wine on my ipod, and I've almost lost this massive blog entry about 3 times, so I believe it's time for me to go. Off to shower, go to dinner at a tapas restaurant with the other girls, then to hear an amazing orchestra in one of the world's best concert halls in the tallest twin towers in the world. Life isn't too bad, I must admit.

I miss you all and love you dearly. Mother, though I do appreciate the comments on the blog, please e-mail me if you need anything (i.e. signatures from Miami & I took care of it, by the way). That's the fastest way to reach me.

Also, if any of you want postcards, please e-mail me your mailing address! I love writing them and I'll spend the $.50 to send you some love from Asia. :)

xoxo jams

Delirious from lack of sleep at the airport in Hong Kong



Meeting with comm students at the National University of Singapore



Meeting with Sheryl Ng from Pan Pacific Hotel




Sub par camera still not cooperating. More fun pictures later!! xoxo

Good morning :) I don't know what it is about this place, but the last two mornings I have woken up at 6:45 a.m. and could not get back to sleep. This is NOT characteristic of me at all, but I suppose when you're in a new place with so much to do, sleep doesn't come easily.

I'm really enjoying Singapore. On Sunday we went to the Botanic Gardens which includes the National Orchid Gardens, with over 60,000 orchids. It was beautiful. Orchids are so rare and expensive in the U.S., but here they are everywhere. I got some amazing pictures, but the sub par computer at the hostel doesn't like my camera (or it's the sub par camera, who knows) so I am unable to upload any right now. Refer to my traveling companions' blogs for photos, as they had better luck than myself.

Some basic observations about Singapore and Singaporeans: This is the cleanest city I have ever seen in my life, for the mere fact that littering, spitting on the sidewalk and other similar offenses are punished harshly with fines. The average Singaporean woman is 5', 95 lbs and has fabulous taste in shoes (really ladies, you should see the shoe stores here- they put us to shame). Singapore is a VERY luxurious, flashy place. Everyone is extravagant.

Yesterday we met with Sheryl Ng with the Pan Pacific Hotel. The hotels in Singapore are luxurious and extravagant, and this was no different. "Wow" has become my favorite expression in the past several days. She is in charge of all international media relations for the hotel. I was happy to discover that I could easily relate to and understand the things she said she did on a day to day basis, thanks to my wonderful internship at Capstrat (miss you all).

Yesterday afternoon included a trip to Chinatown and about 5 hours of shopping. :) I went to dinner at a restaurant on Clarke Quay (a touristy area similar to the Baltimore harbour) where I had chili crab, a Singaporean delicacy. Marylanders, imagine jumbo blue crabs smothered in a thick, spicy red sauce. Quite the experience. Easily one of the messiest meals I have ever eaten and my nose was running the whole time from the spice, but absolutely delicious. If you ever come here, you must try it. And the company was great- a fascinating new friend- a 25 yr old pediatrician from the island of Mauritius (I'm certain I spelled that wrong because I've never heard of the place in my life). Meeting new people is my favorite part of travelling. :)

Today we're headed to the National University of Singapore and tomorrow we're meeting with Edelman. I'm most excited about meeting people with international PR firms because they have the job that I want! I hope is well with those that I love in the U.S. Please leave me comments! I promise to try to post pictures later. xo

So after a grueling, tiring, exciting and sometimes slightly terrifying 50-some hour journey, we've arrived in Singapore. We should have arrived a full day ago but we had a little trouble during the flight to Hong Kong. In my usual fashion, I passed out as soon as we got on the plane. I woke up to an announcement over the intercom that we would be back in Chicago in an hour. WHAAAAT?!? Conveniently, no one around me spoke English and I was still disoriented from my nap so my first thought was "Wow, that was a quick month...are we in the twilight zone?!" haha... Anyway, I was soon informed that the plane had lost an engine and we were headed back to Chicago. First, we dumped massive amounts of jet fuel to decrease the stress on the remaining 3 engines.

When we landed on the runway, emergency vehicles flanked both sides of the plane, lights flashing. Scary.

Nonetheless, after a free night in Chicago at the Hyatt on United Airlines, we were off to Singapore the following day. I got about 2 hours of sleep over the next 24 hours, and then only 3 hours when we arrived late last night. I won't bore you with a synopsis of the 15 hour flight from Chicago to Hong Kong, but it wasn't pleasant. Hong Kong, by the way, is STUNNING. Mountains juxtaposed against the sea with skyscrapers scattered throughout... Wow. That might be the next stop on my list of places to go.

Still, I'm running on endorphins. Singapore is beauuutiful. The foliage reminds me a lot of southern California. Today's agenda includes going to an orchid garden with over 60,000 varieties of orchid.

Here's the rest of the group's blogs. Their accounts of the engine failure are more detailed than mine (why do I sleep through the exciting stuff?!).

http://www.doodlebraindesign.com/sites/r01/studyabroad_singapore.htm

I have sooo much to do today before I am ready to leave!! My flight is out of BWI at 9:14 on Thursday morning. My next posting will be from Singapore!! If you need to contact me, please leave me a message on this or on myspace or send me an email. xo