Ton Sai: Personal Remembrance of the 2004 Tsunami

I forgot how beautiful it is here.

Really, it is as pretty as any place we have been in these, and all, our travel. The water is clear and a crystal blue that is particularly beguiling when viewed from on high. The limestone cliffs that have brought us back here are all sorts of formations and colors, and higher than I remembered. The jungle that subsumes the bungalows and restaurants on our part of this rock climbing mecca are so green against the blue sky and azure water. Look at it!

We have come to Ton Sai beach to spend christmas, and it is charming. I am also acutely aware of the first time I was here for my christmas break while in grad school, an astounding 9 years ago. The same things drew me both times, the setting and stellar rock climbing. But now, I can't forget, don't want to forget about the intense and harrowing experience i had here 9 years ago to the day, December 26th. That is the anniversary of the horrific tsunami in South Asia that killed over 500,000 people.

These last couple of days, I have replayed some of the scenes in my mind. Be it the first wave smashing against the rock face with a climber dangling above on a climb Mu and I walked under just a few hours ago. Or climbing in the same crag that i was when the tsunami happened. Or taking an evening dip on christmas day, as the sunlight lingers for a few minutes to illuminate the Andaman sea and its limestone studded islands. Exactly as I did nine years ago. Or walking by the bungalows where Sean and I were staying at the time, now looking much better and upscale for the passing of time.

When thinking about the intervening 9 years, I think back to who I was then. Yes an adult in the eyes of the lay, and old enough to buy beers and serve my country - but not fully formed. Since then, I have married an amazing woman, picked up a couple of masters degrees, done the urban professional thing for a number of super enjoyable years in San Francisco and traveled extensively. I like how things have played out. While i was maturing and growing, the world was doing the same. At least that is one of my main takeaways from this time abroad. Are there many, many issues still to tackle? Absolutely.

Furthermore, I am very impressed with the development that has taken place on this formerly sleepy stretch of beach. The services back when I was here before were pretty bare bone, and the food options kind of limited. Now, there is a wider range of accommodations. There are also delicious food stands (Thai equivalent of food trucks), a yoga studio up the hill and a few internet cafes. Ton Sai is much busier, of course, with the rock climbing and transportation networks several orders of magnitude more trafficked. The long tails were zipping around the area constantly all day. But, as i mentioned earlier, this is an amazing part of the world and there is ample reason for all tourism.

For those that are interested, I have recreated the email I wrote to family and friends upon my return from Thailand 9 years ago about the tsunami and its aftermaths. I always try to read it on the anniversary of the tragedy and that compulsion is particular strong being back here. Honestly, it is sometimes tough to read and recall the powerlessness I felt back in 2004, and the fortune I felt then and now for not being hurt or killed.

We hope you had a wonderful holiday wherever you are in the world. Lots of love, peace, safety and happiness from us to you.

2004 remembered - written upon my return to the states

Well I am back and I would be lying if I said it felt normal to be here. Things have obviously been extremely strange and I want to thank all of you for the support and love that you have demonstrated over the last several weeks. It is wonderful to know that so many people in the world care deeply about my health and safety. I thought I would write to tell you about my time over in Thailand and what I experienced.

I went to southern Thailand to rock climb for my winter break (from my first year of grad school at duke). I was real excited about this opportunity since I had never been to Asia and it seemed like such a different place from everything i had read and seen. Also after a somewhat difficult and grueling time at school, the first semester is by far the hardest of my program, it was a chance to get out and do some traveling. I went with a college buddy, Sean McCarthy, who is taking a year off from corporate America to have some fun. All seemed right in the world.

We went to a province called Krabi, on the southern coast, where there are tons of huge rock-faces bordering the beach. These walls look out on (normally) placid tropical blue waters, which combined with the lush green forest and white beaches, make for an idyllic spot. There are no roads to the small beach where I stayed, the only way to get there is to take these small long tailed boats that are basically very large canoes with engines. We arrived on the coast and spent about 2 weeks leading up to Christmas climbing nearly everyday. The routes are tough and steep but the life was great - wake up climb until tired then go eat some food, swim and relax until it cooled down and then another climbing session. Christmas came and it felt far from the familial traditions I cherish back home.

On Boxing Day (Dec 26th) we woke up and headed out to climb, choosing between some beachfront climbing and two routes a few meters up a path from the beach, luckily deciding on the latter. After we had climbed one route a piece, Sean and I were sitting around catching our breath before another climb when I heard a massive roar, akin to a jet engine. Turning around I saw three walls of white water bearing down on the point where we were standing. It took a few seconds to register what exactly these walls were, and hours to really understanding their international scope. These waves moved steadily and powerfully across the sea. The sailboats anchored in the cove got rocked around like a jubilant child's toys in a bath, some rotating past 90 degrees and one ending up smashed on the rocks. The waves came in but broke before long after I saw them, probably 200 meters out from the beach. Then a secondary wave like thing, several meters high came towards the beach, it was unlike any other waves I have seen in that it was more a wall of water. I have heard it described as a large tidal surge more than a wave and that seems to fit, energy incarnate.

The waves came in a hit the rock faces with a deep crash that resonated on a guttural level. After one hit the next broke and I remember being transfixed in fascination at the sight. There were people on the ground below and one-woman rode the waves in after her kayak was pulverized or flipped. It seemed quite surreal and beautiful at the same time, before learning of the devastation throughout the region. Nature at its extremes, such as a tsunami or avalanche, is terrifyingly beautiful and this proved true.

After the initial three waves came through a lull of a few minutes took place and people started to deal with the aftermath. During this time the water in the cove was acting very weird, draining out and then filling back in every couple of minutes. There were several people with bad cuts from where the wave drove them into the sharp rocks. In addition there was one woman who had been on a sailboat that was in trauma.

After a few minutes more waves came, from a slightly different direction and a bit smaller but powerful nonetheless. In fact one of these waves broke around the west point of the cove and then tubed up and continued breaking for several hundred meters. It was probably the most beautiful single wave I have ever seen, then and since. These waves were a bit smaller but they still washed several meters high over the beach. One woman who had been kayaking (by far the most dangerous activity in my area when the waves came) rode the waves in through the turbulent waters and managed to get in safely. These smaller waves probably came in for about an hour, but time is quite fuzzy during the whole period - exacerbated by the complete lack of care for time during my entire vacation. I was also quite confused, this event was so out of the realm of expectations that I was unsure how to proceed. Also there was no way I could find out what exactly had happened and all sorts of rumors where rippling through the group of foreigners trapped in the same locations as me. There was talk of more waves on the way and bigger ones, a theme of talk around the beach for the next day or so.

Once it seemed stable Sean and I ran across the several hundred meters of beach, feeling quite vulnerable, to our cabins. We packed backpacks in a few minutes with the expectation of leaving the location forever, putting ourselves on fifteen second notice ready to go overland through jungle and cliffs from ton sai at a moments notice. Luckily this never became necessary. With our bags we went up the hill behind Ton Sai and sat in a restaurant and watch coverage of the waves on BCC. At this time, and for several days after, the scope of the disaster was not understood fully by the media but the coverage made me understand the global nature of my experience. I was lucky enough to call my home, back before SIM cards were disposable, ubiquitous and global. I woke mom up at 4:30 - saving immeasurable worry and grief - for a quick one-minute conversation to warn about the news and to let her know I was okay. After an hour of the coverage I started wandering around the beach and other areas destroyed by the waves. In terms of helping out I did a bit of first aid and cleaning up but not as much as I wish I had I done in hindsight.

On the beach the destruction was uneven, at some places total and others relatively unscathed, with the places escaping serious damage primarily protected by concrete patios. The waves had flipped boats and separated them from their engines, effectively eliminating the transportation network here. They had smashed buildings, destroyed walls made of wood and concrete, leaving roofs as the only reminder of the previous structure. It had washed up massive, multi ton rocks, into the area with the bars and restaurants. The entire beach was now covered with little rocks and debris. On other nearby beaches sailboats were flipped and buried deep in the mud, one large boat was a hundred meters from the shoreline, smashed against a rock face and upside down. The images from this time are unlike any I had ever seen in my life. My heart went out to the Thais who had lost so much effort and work and now had to begin rebuilding without any insurance or support. I also felt very guilty because in a few days I would be leaving on a jet plane for my life back in the States, where my house was still standing and my life intact.

 

The amazing thing was how quickly people started cleaning up the area as best they could. In reality the effort was not all that significant in terms of aiding the people who lost homes and businesses but it says a lot about the character of the climbers and Thais on ton sai. This effort to rebuild was starting in earnest when Sean I left the beach four days later. By this time there was some long tail boats going back and forth between our beach and the nearest place with roads, Ao Nang. After consulting our emails, we realized how worried so many were for our safety and knowing that they would not begin to feel better about our well-being until we had put some distance between us and the southern beaches. It was amazing how quickly we went from the affected area to areas unscathed, seemingly even emotionally, from the disaster. On a island on the other side of Thailand, Koh samui, the disaster seemed an abstract to the tourists from around the world, as far away mentally for most as their homelands. After a few days on the island in Thailand's equivalent to Cancun we took the sleeper train to Bangkok and finished out our trip.

I have never been so happy to return home from traveling as I was stepping off the plane in Washington and into my mom and dad's arms. The entire time in Thailand was quite grueling emotionally and it is wonderful to regain some sense of stability and semblance of normality back. I thought that as time went on I would think about this entire experience less but that has not proved true, I guess it will just take time. I continue to be amazed at the outpouring of support and relief from those I have been fortunate to talk with and see since I my return. From a personal perspective that is the best part of this experience, seeing the outpouring of concern for my well-being. So I guess I will end here, again thank you so much to all of your concern.

 

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Merry Christmas - be kind, be present and be on top of the world

The view is spectacular.

We are 64 floors above the sprawling and seemingly endless Bangkok streets. It feels like a different world, with its own climate and norms. The setting is a hotel bar on top of Bangkok, and we are among the many travelers that have made our way here for the sunset. This specific hotel and bar were prominently featured in Hangover II, if anyone is interested in recalling that disappointment of a movie.

Once we settle into our table, glad to have accidentally dressed well enough to meet the dress code, the vastness of the city comes into focus. For example, the Chao Phraya river that bisects the city is almost directly below us, and can be seen to head east a few miles south of our location. A few hours ago, we were on that river in a ferry, right at water level. Then the river seemed a bit ominous, with haphazard waves and long tail boats frittering all about with their enormous rooster tails. I got splashed a couple of times, even. Now, from on high it looks calm, quaint and cute.

Our drinks come and a second bowl of pistachios, making up for our skipped lunch today. The latter reminds me of Christmases back in Maine, as these nuts were prominently involved in the holiday throughout my youth. The pistachios were part of our holiday tradition, a big bowl to be munched on through the multi-day extravagance of opening presents. Overall, Christmas here in Thailand has been a mixed bag for us, with much to be thankful for and reflect on in the last year. Still, the tropical weather doesn't match up with the season of our memories and distance to our loved ones feels vast. I have noticed a little melancholy from both of us over the last couple of days and think that it can be traced to this dislocation.

Back to those drinks, which are much fancier than any we have had in months. Mu opts for an Australian Shiraz that has me thinking fondly of wine tasting in the Yarra Valley outside of Melbourne so many years ago. I went even fancier, with an aged bourbon drink that is served chilled in a ice cylinder glass that keeps the drink cold and delicious. This upscale experience is nice, i could sure get used to it. But, it does come at a price that really messes up our budget. For example, my drink costs about as much as our hotel room for the night. Another example is the night bus that we took last night from the Laos border to Bangkok, sleeping in our clothes as the countryside rolled along. Two tickets for the 10 hour bus ride cost about the same as our tab for these sunset drinks.

But no matter, it is the price of being in this amazing atmosphere and well worth it. As we are gawking about with our drinks and stuffing our face with more pistachios, Mu overhears a neighboring table talking about Tahoe, one of my most loved spots in the world. She professes our love of there and our plans to ski there this February and March and soon we are deep in conversation with a a lovely couple, the Brissendens, from Hope Valley, CA. They own a hot springs resort halfway between South Lake and Kirkwood Resort (a resort with some of the the best terrain in the country and an average of 600 inches of snowfall per year).

In short, they are in a great spot. Mu and I have never been to the hot springs resort, but we will in a few months. As the sun sets, we have a great conversation, ranging from schooling to skiing to traveling to climate change. They have lived a very interesting life and we are doing our best to pick their brains about living up in tahoe. How does it work? Is it as wonderful as it seems? They have just flown in from Krabi, where we are heading the next day and have been in thailand for about 3 weeks, enjoying a bit of respite before the heart of the ski season.

Every 15 minutes, one of us peels off to document the setting sun and take a few pictures. The sun seems to hang on the horizon for much longer than usual, lighting up the city for a quite a bit more minutes than seemed likely when we first walked onto the veranda. This is about as pleasant a way to take in a sunset in a huge city as i can imagine. The moments of diminishing light casually reaches and then exceeds its inflection point, we are now in more darkness than light. The temperature starts to drop and it is time to head back down the 64 floors and onto the teaming streets.

We get our bill and the Brissendens shock us by offering, nigh insisting, to pick it up for us. We are so touched by their unexpected offer and generosity. The bill is the largest we have had for drinks in 500+ days, and this sweet, cute couple is going to pick it up for us? We are touched and grateful for the unexpected generosity.

As we make our way to leave, the city below has changed as dramatically as the now empty terrace bar. The streets and their multitude of cars pop into the night with their head and tail lights. The biggest skyscrapers take on outsized importance with their bright lights and massive electronic billboards. The river that was so central to the urban built environment in daylight has blended into landscape, noticed, as if by chance, more for the absence of light and a sticky blackness than any distinguishing landmark.

We feel lucky to have this time on top of the world, and amongst this world. We wish we could be so many places at once, with our family and friends through the holiday season. The kindness in Bangkok touches us and recalls the many, many acts of kindness we have received throughout our travels. Our kindness and charity bank is at a deficit from 2014 and we will work hard to get back in the black in 2015 and beyond. The holidays are such a special time and we hope yours are amazing wherever in the world they find you.

Be kind, be present and be on top of the world.

 

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500 Days: What have we been up to?

500 is a pretty big number.

Which made it pretty amazing when we did the math a few weeks ago and realized that it has been 500 days since we hit the road. Honestly, we did not expect to be traveling this long. But the budget has kept up better than we anticipated and hence we are here, writing this post from Laos.

Back when we were 100 days into traveling abroad, we wrote a blog post about what we have learned.  Those 100 days were actually 125+ days after we left our jobs and moved out of our San Francisco apartment (the "steady state").  Because it has now been 500 days since we left that steady state, we got to thinking about the intervening time and came up with some stats that capture a bit of what we have been up to.

Before we get to the stats, I wanted to write briefly about the process of generating these numbers. First, it feels a little grandiose, even gaudy, to trumpet our stats. But it is our blog, and our stats. And in some ways, the numbers in this blog post were written as my (mu's) justification.  Justification that we didn't do anything grand like bike across a continent, bag some big walls in Yosemite, or write a novel.  But mostly,  I wanted to put numbers behind why I was not more selfless in the past 500 days. It is not an excuse just a choice.   The  next 500 days will hopefully reflect a choice of more selflessness.   And,   I am so grateful for all the selflessness of which I have been a recipient.

Mostly, thinking about the stats was a walk down memory lane. Trying to recall what cities, museums, crags, etc we visited, the rush of memories flooded back. Almost all positive and even those rough times were also worth the recall. Travel amplifies our engagement with this bountiful world. Both the good and the bad. Putting together these stats, we were able to walk through entire months on a day by day basis. Months ago we wrote about the frequency and stregnth of our memories from this experience, and that is just as true on the 500th day as it was on on our first. We have been living in this heightened state of awareness for so long that it feels much more normal than our lives prior to leaving.

The Stats

The breakdown: 315 days abroad and 115 days in the U.S.
In the U.S., we have visited 24 states and the District of Columbia. Abroad, we have travelled to 39 countries on 5 continents: Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, and South America.
Times passed through London: 4

Country capital cities visited: Washington, D.C., Tel Aviv, Amman, Istanbul, Athens, Lisboa, London, Nairobi, Dar Es Salaam, Lilongwe, Harare, Antananarivo, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Asuncion, Lima, La Paz, Quito, Bogota, Prague, Berlin, Bratislava, Budapest, Austria, Bangkok, and Ventiane.



Blog posts and blog visits: We have written 137 posts and gotten 15397 page views.

Photographs: North America (630); Middle East (316); Europe (552); Africa (1333); South America (798); Asia (242) = 3871
Weddings celebrated: 6

Ski days: 49 (W); 30 (Mu)
Snowboard days: 8 (Mu)

Days climbed outside: 49

• In the States: Alabama, Idaho, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia. Surprisingly, we haven't climbed outside in California since leaving the steady state.
• Abroad: Canada, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Laos, Namibia, Portugal, South Africa, Turkey, and Thailand.

Indoor climbing gyms: 6

And many many miles walked, hiked, biked, and ran through and around:

• works of antiquity and/or beauty such as the Acropolis in Athens, Familia Sagrada in Barcelona, and Cappadocia in Turkey;
  
• religious and holy sites, including the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, pagodas in Bagan, and grand cathedrals throughout South America;

• art and history musems;
  
• natural conservation areas domestically and abroad;
  

• and cemetaries, night markets, caves, and the Potosi mine.

Languages spoken: (sometimes only "hello" or "cheers"): Arabic, French, German, Kiswahili, Laos, Malagasy, Portuguese, Shona, Spanish, Turkish, Thai.
For these 500 days, we have been "homeless" except for the two months that we rented a condo in Blue River, Colorado to ski. So where have we slept?

• Nights camped: 58
  
• Nights backcountry camped: 16
  
• Nights air bnb'ed: 36
  
• Nights at Blue River condo: approximately 60
  
• Nights stayed in bungalows, hostels, refugios, & hotels: approximately 245
  
• And our favorite, nights stayed with friends & family: approximately 85
  

A big thank you to them and all of you as you have made leaving the steady state less risky and our "dream" full of memories and joy.

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