Creative Think

Vietnam Sunrise

After Hanoi, we headed off to Hoi An, the ancient trading port city on the central coast (it's about 40 kilometers south of the famous Vietnam war era R&R area "China Beach"). It's a great place to relax, and the countryside is wonderfully bucolic.

Below is a Pacific Ocean sunrise (unusual for us; most of our colorful sun activities in California are sunsets). Those are fishing boats on the horizon.

This was also Wendy's birthday, and we celebrated all day long — capped off with two cakes. What a joyous time! Shown below are Wendy, me, and two Vietnamese friends.

Today we're off to Hong Kong to talk with our Ball of Whacks people.

Where John McCain Was Shot Down and Imprisoned

Wendy and I are in Hanoi now (my second trip to Vietnam, her first). It's a vibrant, thriving place that reminds a little of Paris.

When I was here before, I realized that the Vietnamese had long ago moved past their wars of independence (1945-1975). Indeed two-thirds of the Vietnamese population has been born after 1975.

But I was curious about the American pilots that had been shot down and imprisoned in the infamous "Hanoi Hilton" — in particular John McCain.

Above is a monument at Truc Bach Lake which the Vietnamese put up to memorialize the shooting down of John McCain. The text reads (in Vietnamese) along the lines: "On October 26, 1967, Lt. John McCain in his A4 B1 was shot down in this lake." The image at the center shows McCain (hands raised) surrendering.

McCain was fortunate. After he had bombed a power station in downtown Hanoi, his plane was shot down and he crashed in the Truc Bach Lake (shown behind the monument in the above photo). Had he crashed on land, he would have been killed. North Vietnamese civilians went out to the center of the lake and pulled McCain out of the wreckage.

McCain was badly wounded. Shown above is a North Vietnamese doctor treating the surviving crash victim.

McCain then was put in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison. This ghastly, brutal place was built by the French in 1896 to incarcerate and torture Vietnamese felons and subversives. If you've seen the 1973 film Papillon, you've got an idea what Hoa Lo was like. The colonial French were good at prisons. Hoa Lo even had its own guillotine (which was used often).

Between 1964 and 1973, Hoa Lo was used for imprisoning American pilots who were shot down. Shown above is a cell door.

Shown above is a typical Hoa Lo cell which would have been shared by four or five American prisoners.

John McCain spent five and half years here, and was released with the other POWs in 1973.

In the spring of 2000, he returned to Hoa Lo. There are photos of his return on display at the prison. Having put his POW experience long behind him, McCain did not seem bitter at all.

That was another era.

Postcard from Laos

We're in Laos, a country about the size of Great Britain but with a population of only six million. It's one of the world's most undeveloped countries.

Above is a section on the Mekong river east of Pakbeng.

Four days ago, we crossed over from Chiang Kong in Thailand to Houeisay, Laos. We hired a private boat and spent the next two days leisurely traveling 400 kilometers down the Mekong River to Luang Prabang (where we are now).

The high point of the river trip was visiting various hill tribe villages (that are only accessible from the river, i.e., there are no roads). Shown above is a Hmong village. The woman (a mother of thirteen children) is grinding corn for animal feed. She had a strong right arm.

Above, Wendy and I are inside a Hmong home with some of its eight residents. The cooking area consisted of two fire pits, one for human food and one for livestock food. The house had no windows.

At a Khmu village, we met with a group of boys under a house (the houses are on stilts there). It was mid-day and this was the coolest place. We asked them where their fathers were, and they said, "In the rice fields, a hour's walk away."

Here is a hopeful Khmu man prospecting for gold in the Mekong. If he's lucky, he'll find enough gold in a week to earn about $6 for his efforts.

For the past two days, we've been enjoying our time in Luang Prabang (a UNESCO World Heritage city). Here I am with six Buddhist monks (they live at the Wat Visounalat temple monastery). These boys were 16-17 years old and will spend anywhere between six months and two years as monks (this is something most young men here do).

We consider ourselves very fortunate to have visited Laos.

Postcard from the Golden Triangle

For the past three days, Wendy and I have been in northern Thailand in the "Golden Triangle" area, (where Thailand, Burma, and Laos meet, and home to the formerly quite lucrative opium trade).

This is our second trip to Thailand, and again we've been impressed by the warmth and friendliness of the Thai people. Shown below are some two-year olds eating chocolate and bread sticks.

We stayed at Anantara, which has an elephant training camp (the elephants were domesticated and used in the now illegal logging industry). A high point was riding the elephants at sunrise, and also watching them bath in the river, and then feeding them. What personalities these gals have!

One day we toured a number of hill tribe villages where things have changed significantly in the last 15 years with the arrival electricity and good paved roads. Below is an Akha woman with her five month old baby (in front of her house). She seemed very happy.

We also toured Doi Tung, a mountain with spectacular views of the surrounding hillside. Most impressive was the extensive Mae Fah Luang flower gardens with floral species from the world over. These were built by the Thai Princess Mother to create economic opportunities (jobs) for the hill tribes. I've never anything quite like these gardens (this photo shows just a very small portion of the grounds).

We also visited the Opium Museum (Hall of Opium built for the Thai royal family) which graphically details the history, benefits, and horrors of opium use from the ancients on through to today. Especially moving is the long semi-darkened cave-like entry way which is filled with bas-reliefs depicting the agonies and hallucinations of the opium experience.

One of the most peaceful hours we spent was at this Buddhist temple in a forest monastery near the historic old city of Chiang Saen.

Getting Purified at the Ganges (Varanasi)

One of my all-time favorite places to visit is Varanasi (formerly Benares), the "holiest of the ancient Indian holy cities" that sits on the banks of the Ganges River. I was there in 2004, and I took this shot just after sunrise (I'm in a small boat looking back at the ghats).

Many, many Hindu pilgrims come here every year to purify themselves in the river. Incense fills the air and so do the sounds of chanting and celebration. Off to either side (out of view), four open-air cremations were taking place. Flowers float on the rivers. Incredible scene. The whole spectrum of life: birth (sunrise), renewal, and death.

We went back to the river later that evening. What a sight! Music, singing, chanting, swirling lights. Flowing colorful robes. Happiness. Frenzy. Delight. A feast for the senses!

Chinese Flotsam or Modern Art?

China's Three Gorges Dam has been in the news lately. It seems that soil erosion upriver on the banks of the Yangtze has been greater than the engineers had predicted, and that perhaps an additional one million people will have to be relocated.

In 2004, my wife and I took an idyllic three-day cruise from Chong Ching down-river to just past the dam. It was delightful.

My favorite photo Three Gorges Dam photo is this one: it is a huge reservoir right next to the dam and it shows some of the debris that has been captured by the dam. Modern Art indeed!

Thinking About Burma

The recent harsh government crackdown in Myanmar on pro-reform demonstrators has saddened me. I hope significant pressure can be brought to bear by the world community (especially China, the regime's primary enabler) to open this beautiful country.

Two years ago this month, my wife and I spent eight days in Burma. This was one of my all-time favorite trips. We found the people were warm and out-going, and the country quite beautiful. We were in Bagan, Inle Lake, and Yangon (Rangoon). Here are a few thoughts and photos.

I loved the ancient holy city of Bagan (formerly Pagan). It's home to 4,000 Buddhist temples and pagodas. It's said in Bagan that if you close your eyes, spin around, and point your finger, you'll be pointing at a temple, We tried this a number of times and it always worked.

One of Bagan's most famous temples is Ananda. Inside it are four thirty foot tall statues of Buddha (one of which is pictured below left). Below right are two Burmese children.

The high point of our trip was Inle Lake in the Shan state. The lake itself is quite large, and is laced with canals at its edges.

Here (below left), our ferryman takes us to our lodge. Note that he's using the customary Intha method of paddling with his leg. Not only does this give him greater propulsion. it also free up his arms if he wants to fish. Below right is a local woman carrying wood on her head.

Every village has its own temple. One of the villages on the southern part of Inle Lake has a monastery in which the monks have taught cats to jump through hoops. The monk told me that the calico (below left) is his "number one" performer.

Burma's most famous temple is the Schwedagon in Yangon. It's a vast complex of pavillions and pagodas. The place buzzes with families, visitors, and pilgrims. Here I sit with four young monks (below right). I joked with them that we could be a basketball team (I'd be the center). Lots of fun.

Governments come and go. People endure. This current repressive government will have to allow reform or be replaced.

I hope to return to Burma within the next few years (perhaps to go deeper into the Shan state).

An Aspen Getaway

Celebrating My First Blogiversary took a lot of energy, so Wendy and I have taken off for four days in Aspen (Snowmass) Colorado.

It's quite invigorating! The aspen trees are turning, and there's bright autumn color everywhere we look.

It snowed several days ago, as you can see on Mt. Daley. A good time to be alive!

"Are You Happy?"

Whenever I travel abroad, the first words I learn in the language of the country I'm visiting are:

Are You Happy?

I've found that when I say these words to complete strangers in their native tongue, they almost invariably open right up. Why?

First, they're surprised that an aging white guy is trying to talk to them in their own language.

Second, they're amazed that a foreigner is directly asking them such a personal question.

And third, they think it's really funny. And then it's possible to have a little dialog with them.

I do this wherever I go: Vietnam, Morocco, China, Egypt, Burma, Peru, and India.

For example, I was just in Russia. My magic words there were: "Tay shahs leaf" (my phonetic spelling). When the person would say, "Da," (yes), I'd follow that up with: "Ya oychen shas leaf." (I'm really happy). Then they try to teach me a few more words. It seemed to open a few doors.

I was also just in Sweden. It's a national law there that Swedes aren't allowed to say that they are really happy (their joke), so it was fun to tease that out of them: "Are du yetta glad?" (again, my phonetic spelling). Lots of fun all around!

For example, on a boat to Vaxholm, one man responded to my question with a discussion of his sex life since the birth of his first child ("my wife is now more interested in the result of the sex, i.e, the child, than in what created it"). What was curious was that he explained this (in English) to me as well as to the ten Swedish women standing around me, and they all laughed.

Question: What are your special words to connect with people when you travel?

Small World Swedish Swim Greetings

"Stanford Masters?" the man behind me asked.

I was standing at the entrance to the Eriksdalbadet pool in Stockholm this morning. I turned around and it was Tony Svensen, once and future Stanford Masters swimmer and tri-athlete.

Small world indeed! What fun. Tony's been on special assignment in Sweden for the past two years, but he looks forward to returning to Palo Alto and swimming with his Stanford Masters buddies.

Eriksdalbadet is a classic 50 meter outdoor community pool. We figured that (Stanford Masters teammate) Par Arvidson must have held all the pool records here in the late 1970s. (Par is from Sweden and won the 100 meter butterfly at the 1980 Olympics.)

Above is a photo of Tony and me. We swam in the "Bana for snabbsim" (or fast lane). It was a lot of fun!