Hobo TRAVEL TIPS - Danger in Thailand - Tip YOU ARE STUPID
Issue 93 Hobotraveler.com - October 09, 2002 http://www.hobotraveler.com/
A Hobo trip around the world. Year 5
CHAT WITH ANDY IN TARUTAO THAILAND
This is about 10-11 at night in USA.
11-1 AM BANGKOK THAILAND TIME http://www.hobotraveler.com/chat/
~ HOBO PHOTO GALLERY
VERY excellent photos of Muslim Culture.
~ HOBO STEW (A Dish of Meat and Vegetables)
Location of Hobo and opinions
Getting dangerous in Thailand for me.
~ HOBOGUIDE.COM (Go this way)
Waking in the morning to wonderful sounds.
of Muslim prayer call.
~ CBS SURVIVAL - A BACKSTAGE PASS
The true story of Survivor Thailand 2002
A behind the scene look at what happened.
~ TODAY’S TIP - YOU ARE STUPID
~ EXTREME HOBO TRAVEL -
Dennis & Scott Bike Around World
~ TODAY’S TIP FROM THE - “Peanut Gallery”
~ HOBO QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Good questions on people that want to
become writers.
~ HOBO GOSSIP and/or Jaded Remarks
-------------------------------------------------------------
Please HELP Newsletter.
FORWARD to 3 or 4 of your friends now.
I make plans and than they change.
Just another normal day of adventure.
An adventure does not have itineraries.
They have plans.
WORRY
I am the only foreigner in the Pak Bara Thailand Area.
I know there are some on the islands of Koh Lipe
and Koh Bulon, but here in Pak Bara I am alone.
There is “Safety in Numbers.”
When I was in the country of Colombia.
I stayed about 4 days in the beach village Manizales close
to the Darien Gap the strip of land between Panama
and Colombia. A village or pueblo where the narco traffickers
and Guerillas live. I was the only foreign person
in this small town This was OK, and does not bother me
normally, but sitting in my Hotel room in Colombia
and a person knocks on my door. This had to be the
manager of the hotel. I did not know anyone else in the
town. It was a policeman. He wanted to check my
passport and came to visit me my hotel room. He proceeded
to ask a lot of questions.
This was the only time in 5 years that I have had my
passport checked in this manner.
Yes they check it while in a bus,
or at any government office, and for other reasons.
But they do not come to my Hotel Room.
I was completely alone in Colombia.
Nobody in the world knew I was there.
If I died. It would remain a mystery to my family
and friends.
It gave me an eerie feeling to realize what could
happen, and how alone I really was. After this incident
I started to tell people more where I was, and my
plans.
POLICE SAID HELLO TO ME LAST NIGHT
or said,
“Bie Nie Krap?”
This is said about 50 times a day to me.
It is similar to saying in English,
“What’s happening?”
But literally means.
GO YOU PLEASE?
or
Where are you going please?
So I am coming into the mental target of
local police force. This is NOT good.
As a traveler the last thing you want is the
police to know anything about you, and
where you go, or what you do.
This can be EXTREMELY dangerous.
I will not go into detail why?...
But I will say the constitutional right to bear arms.
or have a gun has a lot to do with the
power of police or government and their ability
to abuse power, and the citizens having the
ability to protect themselves against that power.
A corrupt police force is dangerous.
RESEARCHING 3 DANGEROUS TOPICS
I am asking a lot of questions and trying to collect
proof and evidence on 3 dangerous topics for
future stories.
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
I will write a newsletter weekly until about Christmas
to let you know I am alive and kicking.
Quote from Mark Twain
"Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated."
- Mark Twain
I AM A NEWS REPORTER NOW
I am doing some Hobo detective work.
Real Journalism is dangerous.
If you do not think so...
Remember that reporter in Pakistan that
they kidnapped?
Colombia kidnaps 2 types of people.
Millionaires and Journalist.
LANGUAGE IMMERSION
I am immersed in the language of Thai.
This is a great benefit of being alone.
I can learn the Thailand Language 10 time
faster. I would say I am adding about 5-10 words
a day to my vocabulary now.
Immersion is difficult to achieve.
To be completely surrounded by people that
speak the another language. To be in a place
where English has no value. This is immersion.
Learning become necessary, and not a luxury.
I only achieved immersion in the Spanish Language
one time. This was while traveling and living with my
Argentina girlfriend that did not speak English.
(She also got very angry when I did speak English.)
This is called a “Sleeping Dictionary.”
And is ultimately the best way to learn a language.
Sleep with it.
This is a goal of mine when in a foreign country.
Find immersion in the language and culture.
To understand the culture of a country it is
necessary. To totally leave your country, customs,
language, and culture.
Now that I have accidentally achieve it.
I will refuse to leave immersion till necessary.
It is one of the most scary situations in life to enter
and at the same time the most rewarding
and enjoyable experiences you will have in
your whole life.
Life on a tight rope without a net.
The morning Muslim chant or call to pray has
just started. It is about 5:10 in the mornings.
A few roosters crowing, the sound of fisherman’s
motors, and a morning wakeup and call to
prayer.
IN THIS ISSUE OF NEWSLETTER
Survivor Thailand 2002.
I am not sure I will survive 13 weeks of this show.
Koh Tarutao is special..
Farang Bah
(Crazy Foreigner in Thai)
In the go this way section. I tell
of the sounds of Muslims waking for morning
prayer in Pak Bara, Thailand.
The tip is about why.
YOU ARE STUPID
Just another day in Paradise!
PLAN YOUR ESCAPE...
Be a Hobo, and leave your mark.
X Hobotraveler.com was HERE!
Life is good.
The Hobotraveler.com
Article written by Andy the Hobotraveler.com
On year 5 of Hobo trip around the world.
Budget Travel, Jobs, and Adventure, etc
Subscribe to Free Newsletter at: http://www.hobotraveler.com/
You may publish this article for Free
on the internet If this box stays attached.
Hello,
Pak Bara, Thailand is about 90 percent Muslim
to the best of my guess. I will slowly with respect and care
try to explain my feelings and thoughts.
The good and the bad.
PAK BARA MORNINGS
I wake very early in the morning.
Sometime between 4:00 a.m. and 6.00.
I get a cup of instant coffee.
Perform my daily walk around my room and do this
and do that. I start my day.
I will sit on this computer. Typing and clattering
away as a few of my neighbors have told
me...
Pak Bara
5:00 Am. more or less.
Still dark, and quiet.
Roosters are starting their war.
One crows, and then the other.
They exchange their calls.
I am crowing louder than you.
Listen to this. I can crow louder than you.
This proceeds till the sun decides
to step in and stop the discussion.
Soon the longtail boats will start their pilgrimage
to the sea carrying the fishermen to various waters.
As they leave the engine starts with
a with a roar, and the sound slowly moves out to sea and
leaves the land for the day.
In the quiet of the morning.
I hear another noise. Soft and gentle.
It is not a song, and it is not words.
It is a calling, a gentle and direct sound.
I do not understand the words.
I am told this is the first call to prayer.
Some, not all of the people will take start their
day by giving a little of their time to pray.
It is a good reminder.
Like church bells on Sunday.
Just another day in Paradise!
PLAN YOUR ESCAPE...
Be a Hobo, and leave your mark.
X Hobotraveler.com was HERE!
Life is good.
The Hobotraveler.com
Article written by Andy the Hobotraveler.com
On year 5 of Hobo trip around the world.
Budget Travel, Jobs, and Adventure, etc
Subscribe to Free Newsletter at: http://www.hobotraveler.com/
You may publish this article for Free
on the internet If this box stays attached.
Ooof, aah, hmmm
I am trying to write words of mumbling.
Talk of gibberish to you read between lines
and instinctually understand.
Last weeks show was a soap opera.
Watching arguments and staged emotional
trauma. I did not see anything real about this.
CULTURE READING
What has been of great interest to me is
the collection of cast members on this show.
After last weeks show I have decided to use the
word cast and not contestants. I think they are
acting an none of it is real.
Culture reading is necessary for survival as a world
traveler. If you want meander around the word and
stay out of danger it is essential that you read all the
signals that tells you who the people you meet are mentally,
emotionally, religion, and emotionally.
Example:
I am sitting talking in English to a friend.
There is nice dressed man next to him.
I greet him in Thai, and he answers in Thai.
He start to talk Thai. I do not understand a word.
So I shake my head, and mumble. I turn to my friend
and start a long conversation in English.
The Thai man does not join or attempt to talk.
Taking the position of being a person that does
not understand English. After about 10 minutes
of talking, plus a few time of saying things to him
in short Thai phrases to be respectful and to try
to let him know. I do not speak Thai. I am sorry.
I am trying to find some middle ground here.
These are not good situations.
If there is not a common language between all the
people at a table of friends. One or more people are
excluded from understanding.
In this situation you can make the decision to exclude
because the conversation is not important. Or
one person can translate to include the ones so
the understand the gist of the conversation.
Thai people mostly do the first. Nothing is important.
I brought up the subject.
“I want to go to Lipe.”
The man proceeds to talk in English and try to
sell me a boat trip to the island of Lipe.
I was angry.
This is deceit. He wanted to mislead me.
I know he is a mean and bad person.
He ask me in English,
“What do you think about Iraq?”
I said,
“I think it would be wise to not discuss this topic
with you.”
He did not understand.
But I purposely said a complex sentence.
Extremely accurate. But in a foreign language.
Difficult to understand.
The words wise, discuss, and topic are not
black and white words. I could have said,
“Me, stupid talk you Iraq.”
He would understand that perfectly.
I am saying,
“It is stupid for me to talk about Iraq.”
This is a dance of words.
But extremely dangerous for me.
He is a mean and dangerous person.
He wishes to argue.
I can tell by his accent. His choice of words.
How he says things, and how he is dressed.
etc. etc a lot.
The past history of my family tells you about me.
Small town Indiana. I have parent that go to church
every Sunday. My father like to watch Baseball, and my
mother like to read books. Lots of historical type
novels. Both worked in factories, and I went to
college.
Get the idea. You can stereotype me and make
assumptions.
STEREOTYPES
The producer and directors of Survivor have
chosen people that represent certain and specific
cultures of the USA. Sadly they are now exploiting
the ignorance of people to reinforce the stereotypes
and make us laugh at them. This is bad manners
and very dangerous if they was talking with local
Thai people.
The argument between the 2 black people is
too stupid and dominated the show.
It is staged, and not real.
The plot is too easy.
FOR FUN RESEARCH THIS WEEK
I have been listening to the accents of
the cast for 2 weeks now. Most use cultural
and language cues that tell a story of what
they will do in the future.
I assume CBS will throw a wrench in this for fun.
But for my research. I will find out this week where
the actors come from and live in real life.
I would bet the house, and first son that
they....
are from areas where they watch more free
TV and less cable TV.
CBS must is trying to appeal to people that
do NOT have cable television. So all the
actors have the culture of people that do not
normally have...
“CABLE TELEVISION”
Or the small disk.
There is no CABLE TV here in Pak Bara.
Only the small disk.
It cost too much money to run cable.
so they send signal to they baby disk
that look like the big satellite disk.
The show did not show any new parts
of Koh Tarutao. These people need the
special forces to come, or they will starve.
They are not survivors. They need babysitters.
PAK BARA LOCAL INTEREST.
I have explained the show to one person.
He worked on the show with CBS.
But doe not have any idea of what the show
is about. Go figure
2 months working with them, and no one even
explained what it was about.
I would say that Pak Bara has 1 percent interest.
1 in 100 even know the name of the show.
1 in 2000 know what the show is about.
SOAP OPERA PLOTS
I will say. I have only watched 2 shows in my
whole life of Survivor and I am sure I am not
understanding the whole story. But like any
good soap opera you can miss a few weeks
and upon returning instantly understand the story
line or plot.
Some guy bragged that reality shows originated
in Sweden the other day. I wander if he is knows
what he is bragging to me about?
The show is good. It causes no harm.
Other than being a very bad Eco-tourist.
They did more to help Thailand than they
hurt Thailand. So they achieved my goal.
In the ends.
A tourist helps a country by spending money.
I will keep snoop around. I am sure that I can find some
juicy tidbits for fun and future speculations.
Just another day in Paradise!
PLAN YOUR ESCAPE...
Be a Hobo, and leave your mark.
X Hobotraveler.com was HERE!
Life is good.
The Hobotraveler.com
Article written by Andy the Hobotraveler.com
On year 5 of Hobo trip around the world.
Budget Travel, Jobs, and Adventure, etc
Subscribe to Free Newsletter at: http://www.hobotraveler.com/
You may publish this article for Free
on the internet If this box stays attached.
This thought crosses my mind a
few hundred times a day.
I have also learn the same person is
extremely intelligent.
I have said,
“I do not suffer fools well.”
I realize how stupid this thought is about my myself
In reality I not only suffer fools well.
I am absolutely tolerant of them.
MARK TWAIN ON TRAVEL
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and
narrow-mindedness -- all foes to real understanding.
Likewise, tolerance or broad, wholesome charitable
views of men and things cannot be acquired by
vegetating in our little corner of the earth
all one's lifetime." -- Mark Twain
LIFE IS A COMPARISON
Life is about comparing.
I compare my car to yours.
You compare you girl friend to mine.
You go to college.
I get a job.
You do this, and I do that.
We compare to note the similarities or differences.
Then we say,
“YOU ARE STUPID.”
If the person is rich and successful.
We say,
“YOU ARE STUPID.”
We cannot believe the person does
not know where my state, country or
city is located.
We say,
“YOU ARE STUPID.”
I AM A JERK
I remembers an augment I had with a woman
a few years ago. She said,
I have not idea what to say, but this
girl is infuriated with me, and starting to
raise the temple. I know at this moment I need
to make a choice. Do I placate and try to calm
her or do I be an !!#!@# and egg her on?
She said,
“You do not understand.
You are stupid, and an !@#@!.”
MY 2 CHOICES
1. Destroy the obvious mental midget.
2. Look for a way to release her anger
and find common ground.
MY 2 DECISIONS.
1. 99 percent of the time I look for a way
for us to agree.
2. 1 percent of the time.
I teach them....
How to lose a war.
WALK AWAY
Sometimes this is an option.
But great care is needed to walk away from
some arguments. If the argument has not started
and you have not already engaged in the
battle. You can walk away easy.
If you really want to make the person angry.
Taunt them, engage them in an argument.
Bring it to a supremely high level of frustration
and heat.
Then say,
“I got to go.”
There is a book I read a few years ago called.
“The Art of War.”
OK... I am stupid. Not really. I am lazy.
I am not going to go waste my energy chasing
down the writer, and what not. If you really want
to know. You will do so.
Now.... The difference between being lazy and stupid.
(Plus I am in Thailand in a bungalow.)
This book is about negotiations or arguments and
how to win in war, but also on how to lose.
How to make your enemy stronger and fight
harder to the very end, or to allow them a way out
and still win the war.
My goal is always to find common ground.
To find a way to love you, and not say,
“You are stupid.”
Walking away is the ultimate comment.
I do not love you.
Staying is saying,
“I love you.”
So I stay.
I continue to travel.
I say,
“I love you.”
I think to myself a few hundred times a day.
“You are stupid.”
I need to say to myself,
“I am frustrated, tired, and angry.
Why do you not understand me?
I am trying my best.”
Sometime in life.
My best is not good enough.
I still fail.
A person can have no knowledge of history,
geography, and science, etc. Some people do not like
to sit around and read guidebooks, and other do.
So we end this tip.
Saying to yourself,
“Andy you are stupid, that was not a tip.”
I think it is, you think it is not.
It is a comparison.
I am stupid and I am smart.
I am both.
(That was the tip.)
A few of you will go and wonder
the planet like a nomad. Find love
and adventure, and find a lot of really stupid
and silly things.
Will you say,
“You are stupid”
and walk away?
Or maybe, you will really care enough
to try to listen and learn. To separate
your frustrations, feelings, and to find
the inherent good in all these
people, places, and things.
Just another day in Paradise!
PLAN YOUR ESCAPE...
Be a Hobo, and leave your mark.
X Hobotraveler.com was HERE!
Life is good.
The Hobotraveler.com
As always, these are suggestions. Please realize I am
giving guidance, and there are always other opinions.
“One mans paradise, is another mans hell”
This way we do not all go to the same place.
Article written by Andy the Hobotraveler.com
On year 5 of Hobo trip around the world.
Budget Travel, Jobs, and Adventure, etc
Subscribe to Free Newsletter at: http://www.hobotraveler.com/
You may publish this article for Free
on the internet If this box stays attached.
TODAY’S TIP FROM THE
“Peanut Gallery”
Fun tips - Here's a little tip from me, to you,
as an experienced traveler.
Respect your Mother and Father.
I am sure some of you think I am a Mama’s boy
or some other thought because I am sort of patriotic
and will make good comments about my family
and country.
I am also and ex alcoholic drunk.
Lost my drivers licensed for 10 years.
Spent 1 year on house arrest, and
needed in the end to file bankruptcy.
Bring shame on myself and embarrassing my
friends and family.
I am grateful to have my family, friends, and
to God to just be alive.
To deny or ignore them.
It to not give them respect they deserve.
And in the end....
They are the only ones that sends Hoboes money
to come home.
~ HOBO QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Just hit reply to this e-mail and you can send a question
directly to me... Andy the HoboTraveler.com
QUESTION:
Andy,
You want the USA to remove latrine barrels.
Why not have them remove the cluster bombs
they have left in other countries.
ANSWER:
I am sure all countries have been at war.
Most Europeans think it is our responsibility to
clean up the results of a war.
This is just too stupid. We pick you up our of
the crap of your diapers, and you want us to clean
you also.
We had the Marshall plan to rebuild Europe
after WW 2. The USA save peoples asses
and then we get to pay for it also.
I personally wish we would not help any of these
countries. The first place they call is the USA when
they have trouble. I think they all should be talking
German and in concentration camps. That is
what the world deserves and not what the USA
gave them.
The USA takes care of themselves.
The rest of the world think the USA should take
care of them I think they need to grow up.
People only complain about the people doing things
in life. The ones doing the complaining are lazy
and worthless. A complaint without a action
to rectify the problem is the talk of children.
If you want the bombs cleaned up stop being
a child and do it. I know which country you are
from and you killed a lot of people. I have not
forgotten.
I am a normal American. We are the only country
that feel we have a responsibility to monitor
our own people. When a country allows fanatics
to run around killing people. It is the responsibility
of the country to kill the fanatics. Not the USA.
YOU DID IT
This section is to poke fun at myself and others
to be a little cynical and to say we are human.
If you have read to this point in the letter your
life is probably relaxed and tranquil..
The majority have gone on to other task and
are just too busy being too busy...
Have a nice life.