This summer, I spent a few months trekking solo across Eastern Asia. On this trek, I visited New Zealand, Australia, The Philippines, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, China, Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, and the US State of Hawaii. Here’s what I wrote during my trek:
The outdoor mall in downtown Kuala Lumpur. I’d been here before, but since I only had a few hours and the airport train goes straight here, I decided to stop by.
Clay pots are heated up on charcoal. Dry rice and water are put in first, and the rice is cooked up fresh.
Touring in Macau.
Looking out over Shenzhen, China from the top of the KK100 Building.
Dressed in anti-static gowns. Trendy!
Connectors of every shape and size, sold on-site by the bundle, or shipped anywhere in the world.
Each stall represents a different electronic supplier, factory, or component manufacturer. They’re divided up into sections and floors, depending on what they make or sell.
Every Wednesday during the hot summer in Hong Kong is Happy Wednesday down at the Happy Valley horse racing track. I went with a group of friends from the Check Inn Hostel, where I stayed during my time in Hong Kong. Owner Wincent is great!
Running at night in Hong Kong.
Learning to play Chinese poker with my friends on the train to Hong Kong. This family was traveling to Hong Kong to buy baby formula.
Riding the overnight train from Shanghai into Hong Kong, I made friends with my cabinmates, and ended up hanging out with them quite a bit during the long train ride. Lots of fun!
Man Mo Temple
Exploring the legendary Man Mo Temple, with coils of incense burning everywhere.
Fish are displayed in large tanks, with dramatic lighting throughout the many many many stalls.
Admiring modern architecture in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.
Volkswagen has a major plant on the outskirts of Shanghai. Although I didn’t have an appointment or any contact there, I showed up and managed to talk my way into a private tour of the factory.
On Sundays, a portion of the central park in Shanghai becomes matchmaking central. Here, parents post advertisements for their kids, with hopes that another passing parent will see the ad and connect their kids.
Personal ads are put on cards which are pasted to umbrellas for higher visibility, and assembled into large boards.
The practice is so huge that there are now even brokers who manage listings for lots of people.
A hopeful parent holds up information about his kid, hoping that another parent will have a suitable match.
I got addicted to this pounded, breaded, fried chicken, simply called “big chicken”.
My timing in Shanghai was perfect for the Shanghai Auto Show -which was horribly overcrowded. I lasted about an hour, and then had to leave – it was madness pushing through the masses to stand in line to see a random crappy car. And no models!
Couples taking wedding engagement photos are everywhere in Thames Town, a Chinese copy of a traditional British town. How many couples can you count?
Couples taking wedding engagement photos are everywhere in Thames Town, a Chinese copy of a traditional British town.
After being the more traditional cities of Beijing and Xi’an for a bit, I was ready to step into the more modern world of Shanghai. In the last few decades, like much of China, Shanghai has been on a building spree, with new buildings popping up everywhere. I took about a week to walk the city, and explore as many interesting places as I could.
Arriving in Shanghai, this is the classic shot from the Bund, looking into the main financial district.
As the sun fades on The Bund of Shanghai, orange lights illuminate the classicically styled buildings. It’s a beautiful sight, enjoyed by masses and masses of people strolling up and down the curved walkway. The bund is beautiful now, but given the speed at which things are being knocked down and rebuilt in China, I’d be surprised if the skyscrapers of Pudong didn;t start to creep into the Bund area and the Concession areas in short time. The Chinese seem to be on such a fast and determined building spree that they’re fine with buldozing away beauty, culture, and history in favor of new soulless office buildings and factories. It’s a sad reality of the new China.
In the business center of Pudong, skyscrapers are huge, and being built as fast as possible. Looming in the back of this photo is the Shanghai tower, the tallest building in China and the second tallest in the world.
The warriors are in various states of repair, and each face is unique.
The main hall of Terracotta Warriors. There are actually three excavation sites, but this one was by far the most impressive. The entire site is ringed by a tourist walkway, with lots of photos being taken at all times.
Terracotta horses, preserved in the musem.
Girls in the crowd all wearing the same uniforms, with matching allegiance pins.
A group of kids, with their supposed coaches, about to enter the stadium. These kids had a great energy, and I think they were more interested in my camera than they were interested in me. Everybody in the background is staring in my direction because I was on the side of the tourists – we were all checking each other out.
Here I am coming around a corner during my run of the 2015 Pyongyang Marathon. Both tourists and professional Korean athletes ran at the same time – so the entire time I was running, I was being passed by the pros!
With about a week of training, I finished the 2015 Pyongyang Marathon (26.2 Miles) in 3:34:47.
At the Pyongyang Victorious War Museum, I was led around by a well dressed tour woman, wearing a military-inspired uniform. She gave a tour to my entire group, including a walk through some relics from various wars, and of the US Navy Ship Pueblo.
AGER-2, the USS Pueblo. From Wikipedia: USS Pueblo (AGER-2) is a Banner-class Environmental Research Ship, attached to Navy intelligence, which was attacked and captured by North Korean forces on 23 January 1968, in what is known today as the Pueblo incident or alternatively, as the Pueblo crisis.
The seizure of the U.S. Navy ship and its 83 crew members, one of whom was killed in the attack, came less than a week after President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “State of the Union” address to the United States Congress, just a week before the start of the “Tet Offensive” in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, and only three days after 31 men of North Korea’s “KPA Unit 12” had crossed the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and killed 26 South Koreans in an attempt to attack the South Korean “Blue House” (executive mansion) in the capital Seoul. The taking of Pueblo and the abuse and torture of its crew during the subsequent 11-month prisoner drama became a major Cold War incident, raising tensions between the western democracies and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and People’s Republic of China.
North Korea stated that the Pueblo deliberately entered their territorial waters 7.6 miles away from Ryo Island, and the logbook shows that they intruded several times.[1] However, the United States maintains that the vessel was in international waters at the time of the incident and that any purported evidence supplied by North Korea to support its statements was fabricated.[2]
Pueblo, still held by North Korea today, officially remains a commissioned vessel of the United States Navy.[3] Since early 2013, the ship has been moored along the Botong River in Pyongyang, and used there as a museum ship.[4] Pueblo is the only ship of the U.S. Navy still on the commissioned roster currently being held captive.[5]
Inside the Pyongyang Military Museum, a giant statue of Kim Jong Un.
Before going to the the actual line, a guide explains the layout of the “Joint Security Area”, which is the neutral zone which surrounds a particular section of the “Military Demarcation Line” that is the actual border between the north and the south.
Another interesting propaganda poster, found in the DMZ gift shop.
Walking back from the MDL back to the north. The two guards facing each other in the background are standing right next to the actual line, a raised concrete strip.
This photo is of the North Korean guards inside one of the blue buildings. I had been in this exact room a few weeks prior, and in addition to the South Korean guards, there were also North Korean guards. However, the tone was completely different from the Northern guards. When I visited from the south, the North Korean guards wore completely different uniforms, with large korean letters on their helmets, imposing dark RayBan sunglasses, and an extremely stern, tense pose. This time, the guards were upbeat and friendly, and there was no sign of any guards from the south.
Strolling around the Koryo History Museum.
These epic paintings of the leaders were everywhere, and displayed proudly.
A mosaic in the Pyongyang metro of Kim Jong Il standing in a grassy field. Epic.
Each station has its fare share of epic mosaics, depicting the leaders in a variety of triumphant poses. This one of Kim Il Sung with common people was particularly grand.
Of course on each train car is the portrait of the dear leaders. Friend Justin Martell poses with them.
Riding the Pyongyang metro was a great opportunity to interact with some of the locals. Here, I’m sitting next to a group of school girls, who are getting nervous while practicing their english skills.
A typical scene on the streets in western North Korea. Of note in this picture is a the woman on the right hand side selling flowers on top of a cardboard box. This is a small example of the illegal North Korean Black Market – and although innocuous looking, there’s been lots of talk about private enterprises like this recently.
Another lunch. This time, after our servers were finished bringing out food, they all went to change into costumes, and then performed a very sweet, very weird song and dance karaoke routine. Entertaining for sure.
Inside the Nampho Dam (P’i Do) Lighthouse is another great portrait of Kim Jong Il, posing in front of the dam.
In Pyongyang, I made a stop with my group for lunch at a restaurant right across the street from the giant Ryugyong Hotel. I was scolded for having this picture taken of me, because it shows the shanty village that surrounds the giant uninhabited building.
Women wait for their bus in front of the iconic Pyongyang Ice Rink.
In the alleyway where my friend’s apartmen was, there were always these fun kids playing around. Fun making friends! Beijing housing subdivisions, although some more rundown than others, almost always seem like safe, fun, community-oriented places.
Arriving in Beijing was certianly a wakeup. As soon as I stepped out of the terminal, I was hit with dense, choking smog that could be seen from as little as 20 feet away. The air smelled like burning, and I could taste a fine grit. Certainly not great – but this was a 200 AQI day – mid-levels of pollution for Beijing.
Hiking all day up and down. Good thing I havd my Salomon XA-Pro-3D-Ultra2-GTX trailrunning shoes, Darn Tough socks, and Black Diamond Modernist Rock Jeans!
Playing cards in a public park.
Springtime means lots of beautiful blooming trees.
Folks playing in the central hutong area of beijing.
These meat skewers were really great! I’m still not sure what kind of meat, though..
Orange tiles protecting the roofs of the Forbidden City fro m the afternoon sun.
Finally, I made it inside the Forbidden City! I remember watching the film “The Last Emperor” in middle school, and seeing shots of this space. (as well as learning about it in history class) Cool to finally be there.
Entering the Forbidden City
Biking through the Hutongs of central Beijing. Entire families own blocks of these traditional styled homes. Some of them are actually very old, but lots of other subdivisions, like the one pictured, have been built in recent years to emulate the traditional style. They’re really brand new.
Descending the steps from the viewing deck of the Seongsan Ilchulbong. Dissapointed, but still had a good early morning hike.
A lighthouse on the way to Udo Island
Making it to the end of Gimnyeong Maze Park, Jeju
The cave is truly amazing. From UNESCO: “The Geomunoreum lava tube system, which is regarded as the finest such cave system in the world, has an outstanding visual impact even for those experienced with such phenomena. It displays the unique spectacle of multi-coloured carbonate decorations adorning the roofs and floors, and dark-coloured lava walls, partially covered by a mural of carbonate deposits. The fortress-like Seongsan Ilchulbong tuff cone, with its walls rising out of the ocean, is a dramatic landscape feature, and Mount Halla, with its array of textures and colours through the changing seasons, waterfalls, display of multi-shaped rock formations and columnar-jointed cliffs, and the towering summit with its lake-filled crater, further adds to the scenic and aesthetic appeal.”
The top of Mt. Halasan.
Inside the meeting room on the MDL Military Demarcation Line, the border officially separating North Korea from South Korea. In this photo I’m physically within the North Korean border, however the entire space of the room is considered a neutral zone, so I’m not officially in either Korea. Next to me is a north korea border guard. Interestingly, during my return visit to this exact room a few weeks later, coming from the North side, the North Korean guards were dressed completely differently, in more standard military outfits, and were much more relaxed and personable. They only put on this steely dress and demeanor when tours from the south are present. Photos of this exact room while i was on my tour of North Korea are coming soon. I would also sit in the seat pictured here during my subsequent tour from the north.
Hiking up Mt. Halasan, the well-worn trail gives way to slick snow on the higher half of the mountain. Avid Korean hikers are quick to strap on metal mesh grips to their hiking shoes in order to navigate the snowpack.
Of course, Korean BBQ is a must.
Walking around Hongdae, Seoul. There are lots and lots of areas in Seoul filled with shops, restaurants, and nightlife. Hongdae is one of the more youthful ones.
Seoul has magnificent and dramatic architecture. Buildings come in every shape and size, and modern masterpieces are squished right next to ancient heritage sights.
Lights and shopping everywhere. Never a dull moment in Seoul.
Seoul at night, seen from the N Seoul Tower. Seoul is electric, with colorful lights stretching off into the smog.
The statue of King Sejong, sitting outside of the seoul palace.
Yi Sun-sin looks into modern-day Seoul.
Saori and I were introduced by a mutual friend, and met up in Tokyo at the main Tokyo train station. To save on time, and have an awesome ride, we took a Shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo to Nagano – fast and comfortable!
Arrival in Nagano, site of the 1998 Olympic Games. From here, we got another slower train up to Yudanaka, and then walked about 30 minutes to Shibu Onsen.
Starting the hike up the snowy path leading to the Snow Monkey Onsen.
Macaque Snow Monkeys relaxing in the snow.
Snow monkeys love hanging out in the warm onsen. Only for monkeys though!
Snow monkeys love hanging out in the warm onsen. Only for monkeys though!
Stamping my 1st onsen.
After snow monkeys, we went back to our homestay and changed into comfy robes and not so comfy wooden flip flops, grabbed our keys, and went out to hit all 9 Shibu Onsen Onsens. The red pouch I’m holding has my onsen cloth, which has the names of all 9 onesns, and is stamped at each one. Saori is holding her key, attached to a piece of wood with a map of town.
Vending machines are everywhere, and this one brews fresh coffee on demand.
What to do after a long day of snow monkeys, onsens, sushi, meat skewers, and beer? Karaoke.
Coins and papers tied to a tree for luck at the Zenkoji Temple, Nagano, Japan
Photo courtesy of Photocreate Co.,Ltd at https://tm15eng.allsports.jp/photo/photo_list_tag_search.php?page_id=238626&tag=81479&tag_code=zekken
I finished in 4:31. It wasn’t my best marathon time, but it felt great to run, and was fun to see lots of neighborhoods of Tokyo.
Photo courtesy of Photocreate Co.,Ltd at https://tm15eng.allsports.jp/photo/photo_list_tag_search.php?page_id=238626&tag=81479&tag_code=zekken
Photo courtesy of Photocreate Co.,Ltd at https://tm15eng.allsports.jp/photo/photo_list_tag_search.php?page_id=238626&tag=81479&tag_code=zekken
I joined the Tokyo Gaijins group on my trip to Shiga Kogen. The group is a snow club, which runs amazing trips to the mountains every weekend in the winter. Bus transportation, lodging, meals, and great times are provided on each trip! Since our group was fairly large, we had an entire hotel to ourselves – complete with dining hall, onsen, and our own rental and gear shop. The base of the mountain was right across the street – perfect!
Getting ready to go down the mountain on my rental snowboard. Although the terrain at Shiga Kogen is nowhere near as challenging as in Colorado, the snow is great, and runs are wide open.
Snow Monkey Beer – tasty, especially after a day of snowboarding.
Making friends on the mountain!
One of the steeper sections of the mountain – still nothing compared to Colorado, but a fun time nonetheless – snow conditions were absolutely perfect.
A few of us got together before lunch for some big group runs. Skiing as a group is fun for a run or two, but gets annoying quickly as you spend half your time waiting for everybody.
With the mascot Okamin!
Brad, Talitha, and I flew from Manila to El Nido, Palawan on a charters ATR-72 with ITI Air, booked by El Nido Boutique & Artcaf
Naturally, we had to relax in the pool at the Mahogany Resort, where Brad and Talitha were staying.
After a day of diving, we decided to get some fresh air on the jeepney ride back to town.
Getting ready to dive Barracuda Lake, Philippines.
We had a great dive!
Triking around Coron.
Small fish swim in the shallow tidal pools of the hidden coves in El NIdo.
One of the hidden beaches – this beach is only accessible by swimming through a small underwater tunnel.
Local kids playing on a dry docked boat on the beach.
In Coron, we dove with Neptune Dive Center, which was great. Highly recommended!
Fish at the local market
The cutest little girl ever, riding with her father as he biked us around El Nido.
Ready for a day of sailing!
Sunset in El Nido, with outrigger dive boats anchored in the shallows.
The tides in Palawan Island are dramatic, and the area outside of where we were staying drained completely during low tide.
Brad and Talitha strolling on local beach at sundown. The small waves were perfect for bodysurfing.
Passing through local villages as we discover waterfalls, jungle farmlands, and hidden beaches.
