inner universe 

HUH?!

shoot! i just found out that my last article of Banff did not get published
Raaaaaah!

ANT-snif-1
(sniffing yellow gas-bubbles that is, after a good bear-meal, entirely prepared with my Opinel, of course...)

2 weeks already?!

Heya
ok, don't get mad at me for writing so little!
first off i've been bussy... and second: internet is really expensive... wait till i get back 2 Vancouver, than i'm gonna (ab)use the public library 4 that!
last article got messed up since they seem to think here that shutting you out before asking to pay more is more effective... don't get me wrong: Canadians are nice people!
alright... i don't know where i stopped last time, so if there are holes in my story-line, 4give me!

Right now i'm back in Banff, a little mountain city / ski resort.
i,ve already spent a few days here, but am now on my way back to Vancouver, since i'd like to see Vancouver Island, maybe do some whale -watching...
Last time here in Banff i met this guy who had started psychology, but not finished it. He told me that there have been extensive studies on the forming of ice-crystals: if you take a bottle of water and write hate, war, .... on it, thyan freeze it and than study he crystals, they will be ugly or something like that! Buuuut....if instead you write love, forgiveness, ... on it than the crystals will be extremely beautyfull! the same goes for lake water pure versus lakewater with people holding hands around it.... Beautifull-of-sh!t, if thou asked me
God forbid i should wind up like him!
So instead of listening to whiner-crap, i decided to walk up Sulphur Mountain. A 5 km one way walk, steep uphill... under a gondola... ( well at least not all the way) The weather was ideal 4 it: little drizzle with some peeps of the sun! bread tastes really better after sucha hike! And yes, so far i haven't been to a McDonalds yet, although i decided i would after that hike!!! yeeeaaaaayyy... ;)

The Way to Jasper (another little mountain village / ski resort) was absolutely gorgeous! Spiked and layered, snow covered mountains with different glaciers along the trajectory. Glad i got a window seat!
The first night in Jasper was in a Spartan hostel without running water, run by a woman from near Liege, Belgium! Oh the cheer irony of it all! B) So in order to eat, you needed to pump up ground water and boil it. Brushing of teeth was spicifically forbidden outside, since toothpaste attracts bears. Going to the can was quite litterally taking the proverbial 'dump'.
i used the first day in Jasper to rest and get to know the village... and find another hostel....
also i went to see The Da Vinci Code ( waste of time everyone!!!).
The next day i went white water rafting. Not as spectacular as one is led to believe, i still had my glasses on despite sitting up front and therefore being a wave-braker, but i was real phun nonetheless!
the third day i went hiking with a small group. It's really nice to be all of a sudden in the middle of a group of deer, shame i didn't bring my camera. ah well, they'll send me some pictures. Long live the digital era!
today will be a short hiking day, gotta give my blisters some credit, right? ^_^
what follows will appear here later.

Thank y'all for waiting and writing!
Take good care of yourselves,

ANT-1

Vancouver

hi everyone!
i did make it up until here, Vancouver that is (Red;)
i just booked a ticket for the western mountains of canada: tomorrow i'll be leaving for Whistler, the volcanic mountains
it' hard to say more now,realy except that i do feel the 9 hours of difference with the mainland of Europe... Yawn
the flight went well, but it's always a relieve to be able to stretch your legs...
I hope you're all doing well and that i'll have a load more inspiration and things to talk about, next time!
Forgive the shortness of this log, next time i'll log in the "morning"
Take care,

ANT-1

part two

OK
the 10th i'll be leaving for Vancouver, Canada, as some of you already know.
I did like Vietnam, but the country didn't provide the peace of mind i was looking for. i hope the new destination will do so.
I still need to put my tent up a coupl'a times, just to get the hang out of it.
and, of course, i still need to pack. The single most important thing i already learned up untill now is that there are 2 types of bears: the gryzly (brown fur) and the black bear (....i think its fur is yellow, No, wait! green! yeah, i remember now...). Upon encountering the first PLAY DEAD! the mammal can run up to 30 miles per hour and can climb a tree faster than you can say Nahasapeemapetylan); Upon encountering the latter MAKE youself TALL an also make A LOT OF NOICE (you can actually buy a "bear-bell" for that purpose (no joke). Oh, wait! for the latter: you should first try to back away slowly and silently, and play a hero when the black one doesn't under'stand your act of courtesey.
...why do i remember stuff like that anyway?!
Well, i guess that concludes my wild campers 101 for today.
hope i'll never need to test it...

ANT-1

Back to B

Saigon Airport
if you give some1 bakshish in order to check in your overload of luggage without complain make sure the collegues don't see it... next time... ^_^
Paris CDG, don't forget your passport on the plane... especialy not if you still have to pass customs still ^_^
and after more'n 2 weeks of gut-fever, wherein i tried to be of control of my visceral self, when do i see, hear and ... smell some-one puke?! 5... FIVE!... minutes before my train enters it's final destination
back home now, but asia will be done again and that includes China and Kampuchea and/or Laos! Singapre and Malaysia are also on the list... help me out here (KL-1?)
but right now i need cold mountains (either green or rocky) instead of hot jungles (either green or concrete)
But -to quote the governator- i'll be back!
Canada, here i come,
ANT-1

Reset

"Hello!"
it's the word i hear most. also, "motorbike sir?" and "come eenside we hav deefrent color"
well, i do like the country and it's people, you just have to get used yo the fact that your white butt tells them you ain't no vietnamese and therefor it is their civic duty to ripp you off, or at least try to. you're but a dirty capitalist in their realm where everybody should share their wealth... ask the cab-driver that tried ripping me off by counting weekend-fare on the weekday! i got out before he knew, paid what i deemed ok and called his company to complain about it... ah well, mehbe he's rippin' some1 off right now just to get back at me... i'm sure he has an excuse for it N-E-way.
Hanoi is worth wile also, especially if you encounter this painter artist who pours this translucent brew, with snakes and salamanders in the bottle, and the next day you don't understand you didn't wake up in the hotel you checked in to ;)
i'll be back for a two-weeks leave (landing in paris the 18th) only to travel further. i hope i'll be seeing you! or hearing, or mailing or...
and for the record: y'all were right! i should have been more carefull with the food here ^_^ well, at least i'll be bringin' something back from this country. So, Red, Intubator, you've been right all along! Ouch, that hurt... :)

see y'all in a coupl'a days
ANT-1

High in Da Lat

High every-1,
this makes it a week, and yes, the lot of y'all were right by telling me 2 watch out 4 the food... beuh! but every-1 here ewants you to join them during the meal. I cannot insult these kind people, now can ?! ...wait a minute, yes i can! well 2 late now... beuh! :')
Ask for only something cooked or steamed and i guarantee they'll put raw vegetables on top of it all to make it more appealing to you... snif
The beaches here are indeed very nice. So are the sunrises above 'em... at least one advantage of jet-lag!
now i'm in Da Lat, hight in the mountain, lookin for some refreshment. Ill let you know how the sunrises above the mountains are ^_^ I hope 2 chill out from the former hot days. Mudbaths and morningdive in the sea were already cool though

Thanks y'all for stickin' with me and the good advices - keep 'em comming, intubator - as well as the language-advices - red butler, whoever you may be - :)
Take care

ANT-1

PS: beuh!

dot com(munist)

this country declares itself as the Socialist republic. wel, i'm not a political figure, but a country where you can eat for 10 Euro-cent, because the mean wage of the commoner is about 50 Eur/month, where the police can walk in anythime and declare your property to be property of the state, and where bureaucrats make at least 10 times the wage of the working class, is not my defenition of socialism.
But than again, what do i know about politics.
So far i only stayed in Ho Chi Minh City, named after the self declared freedom-bringer of the people. you can see him on the bills, on TV with a karaoke of the national anthem and an aura around him, on billboards....You get the picture
it,s hot and moist, but than again: i hAd to choose the hottest month when even locals complain about the temperature... but than again, what do i know about seasons.
a country full of contradictions, maybe excactly where i needed to be ^_^
i'm afraid you have to experience it for yourself, cause words can not relate it , not even remotely, neither can pictures
i hope i get out safe and sound after this writing. :-P
the food is delicious... don't think of the way they make it! don't think of the way they make it!...
D'OH! (insert picture homer)
tomorrow we're headed for the beach, after buying souvenirs for the lot of you...
Butterflies, anyone?!... anyone...?!
cheap DVD's, anyone?!... anyone...?!
crocodile-leather, anyone?!... anyone...?!
Breitling-watches, anyone?!... anyone...?!

Goodnight in Vietnamese? Xiao, Pronounced quite similar as the Italian ciao! No! I'm not kiddin'

Ant-1

HCMC formally known as Saigon

it,s really hot here!
Paris - kuala-lumpur was 11hours or so
kuala-lumpur - HCMC give or take 2 hours
im the tramsit of kuala lumpur i saw a book named
'shut up, quit whining and get a life'
i should've bought it... ^_^
almost read all of Paulo Coelho's the alchemist
i like it
and than you walk om the airport
it,s like entering an oven
and you're the meat...
i stay at a friends place
in a residential area
where every1 wonders how a tourist could stray that far from the beaten path
well, gotta sleep my jet-lag off
see y'all real soon when i cought up with the local place

ANT-1

one fine day, we'll fly away

ok, stress is upon me now...
good or bad, doesn't matter
i don't know what too say
it's funny in a way:
it feels like an end,
but actualy it's a beginning
cliche, i know
it's only when you finally face it
that you realise what it means
and i'm sure it will change during the trip
i'll keep you posted
that's what this virtual room is 4, right?
take care,
enjoy your Easter-hollidays... if you have em ;-P

ANT-1