Eat, Pray, Love

BY: Elizabeth Gilbert

At 32 years old, Gilbert was educated, had a home and a husband, and successful career as a writer. However, she was not happy; she was depressed with her marriage, often spending the night crying on her bathroom floor. She divorced her husband and entered into a relationship with another man, but this relationship did not work out either. She decided that she needed a change. She spent the next year travelling the world. She spent four months in Italy, eating and enjoying life (Eat). She spent four months in India, trying to find her spirituality (Pray). She ended the year in Bali, Indonesia, looking for "balance" of the two, and love (Love). Gilbert paid for the trip with an advance she received on a book she planned to write. Wikipedia

I loved her stay in Italy. The way she described her enjoyment through the simplicity of food, friends and a beautiful language blew me away.
Whilst in 'Pray', her writing isn't enough for a typical person to reason out her utmost dying need for spiritual awareness. She seems to go on and on about how everything in her prayers and mediation went wrong. It's almost as if she's the most amateur devotee among the rest of her spiritual partners. 'Pray' dragged me through and I almost felt like skipping the whole series just that I feared I would miss out some significant parts. I really should have skipped it, she goes on whining and whining about her failure. Extremely petty and fickle.
In the early parts of 'Love', it doesn't look too promising as well. Until the part where she starts mixing with the locals and making friends. It was intriguing listening to her conversations with the old medicine man. Puns made about the utterly obvious, adorable.

However, it seems as if her travel there was just for her self-absorbed being. When it's often better to compare yourself to every situation, every comment, every side-story so as to see how lucky you actually are - especially for the modern woman - ; she seems to point squarely to herself and her personal problems. How is it she seems to have lived in Italy, India and Indonesia for months like the locals and had not been affected by the poverty and corruption? I suppose if you are so caught up in your own petty problems and still be able to live in reasonable luxury that it's difficult to understand that other people around you have far worse problems. Maybe instead of looking to foreign lands for self fulfilment she should have been looking solely inside of herself. She was rash and simply went overseas albeit even knowing the roots of her own problems. It's almost as if she just expects a different setting to push her into self awareness yet ironically still living in uttermost comfort.

The book is completely a leisure read, the type you just read to keep busy.
Do not expect to be refreshed by it.

Warmth And Intimacy

I've a giant thing for wedding photos and photos of people kissing. Makes me want a 2 hour smooching session of my own.

(Untitled Post)

The statement.
"You're not super hot. I wouldn't go for a girl who's super hot. They're plastic."

The save.
"The woman I'm with looks more and more beautiful to me everyday."

The spoiler.
"But there's a limit of course."

Bye Krabi

Krabi, Thailand Trip: Day 5

I am left spellbound and mystified by Krabi. Sweet, simple and oh so relaxing. If I ever need a break from the corporate world in the future I'll take a two weeks stay in Krabi. I'm so impressed by this little city because the people seem to live their lives day by day, unbound by the gross fixations of the rest of the world.
No frills or spills, just utterly content with what they have. You can watch the locals, the long tail boat sailors sitting happily with the rest of his co-workers. There's always a laugh and always a story.
You do not even see 90% of the amount of beggars Bangkok has. I've only seen three or four throughout the trip.

Tips for those free and easy in Krabi:

• Bring your own deck of cards, entertainment at pubs is always Connect-4.
• Stay at a guesthouse.
• Research what is there to do so you'll never be left with nothing to do.
• There won't be any souvenirs to buy so unless your luggage could fit 40 hats for your corporate section and friends, don't feel so guilty.
• On your return trip, don't get stranded in an 'unsafe' country for hours during transit just because you didn't want to pay for your ticket and opted for the $0 ticket from tiger airways.
• If you do transit into Kuala Lumpur do not get a 'chop' or you won't be able to purchase any duty free alcohol - it's sadddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd.

Krabi Pools

Krabi, Thailand Trip: Day 4

Well we're back at Krabi town due to our self induced scare-a-thon. So we're off to the Krabi Klong Thom hot springs and Sra Morakot (Crystal/Emerald pool) for 1500baht (S$60) we had our own taxi driver who was going to drive us from one point to another. I felt it was a little pricey until we got onto the mini-van and there it was, worth of it; a really really long journey.
There we were the two Aznx kids talking about absolutely every single nonsensical thing there could be. Oh did I tell you I developed this natural accent starting from day 2 and it really went full swing on day 3, apparently I was not as annoying as I thought it was but Calvin thought it was good I could amuse myself easily.
It's a mix of Miss Swan (MadTV) and Russel Peter's Chinese accent.
(Seriously if you wanna hear it, call me. I brought it back to SG with me. Preetay khool)

On our way there. LONG TRIP IT WAS.

The hot spring wasn't that impressive... There's a 90baht (S$3) enterence fee as well.
"The water here comes from thermal springs, originating deep underground in volcanic chambers. Located in the jungle, this site features naturally hollowed-out 'bathtubs' in the smooth stone, filled to the brim with running spring water at a pleasant 35-40C. The mineral salts contained in the water are said to ease a number of ailments, including rheumatism, sciatica and skin complaints."
The walk was not too far in and the water was quite warm indeed, in fact you can tell from my pictures that my camera fogged up. It wasn't really fun cause it was too crowded and everyone knows how much I hate crowds.

Not many pictures cause the camera fogged and I looked horrendous in most.

We had lunch at this little eatery place, the tables were all individual little huts that were on stilts because of the uprising uneven ground. I refused to order any food for myself and went along with whatever Calvin ordered for me. It's a much better choice that way.

Here's me and my funny face and also my water soaked bikini seeping obvious boobage marks onto my tank top.

Here I am trying to cover up by drowning the whole chest area.

Oh this little guy came meowing along and we fed him shrimp from the pineapple rice (which didn't come in a pineapple). Calvin got a shock when he saw it, the eyes looked like the evil demonic eyes he had in his nightmare.
"Have to please the Spirits and gain good karma! (He's been watching My Name Is Earl on my ipod touch recently... Boys, believe everything they see on TV. HOW CUTE!)




Pineapple rice, Tom Yum soup, Sweet and sour pork and mixed vegetables.



This girl came and ate the last shrimp the cat left behind and she didn't beg she just sat lay there, I fed her some rice while Calvin went to get her a large drumstick for 40baht (S$2) and watched her swallow it down.

Emerald pool was a 800Meter walk from the entrance and it was so so beautiful!
"This is an rich-hued natural pool at the centre of the forest, filled with glistening clear spring water. The area is forested and shady and at different times of the day, the colour of the water changed to different hues. When the water temperature is high, the water turns greenish blue; when the water temperature is low, it is pale green."
Easily seduced by the sight, Calvin and I got changed and waddled our way into the pool, because of the high calcium carbonate deposits, the rocks around the pool felt very slippery. And I watched Calvin stumble around for a little.
The water was neck deep but it felt squishy and slimly at our feet because of the mixture of algae and sand. The water was so clear and relatively clean I could open my eyes in the water without feeling pain and watch some little sliver fish swim by as well.
Tour buses of people came in later while we were in the pool and took pictures of us, felt local eh? At the same time Calvin was hopelessly trying to get out of the pool but he kept falling in - even after I showed him the foot grooves that weren't as slithery compared to the rest of the rocky surface - because of his embarrassing lack of grace and balance. Well he did manage to get out of course only after a long period of time.

We hiked for a long long time in the forest to find the blue pool. And it's not everyday you get to hike in your bikini! And I have the rights because I have a foreign passport! (Trismugersaurous eh) It was a long long walk up hill to a tiny pool that disappointed...

National geographic?

Standing out from the rest of the tourists am I?

Okay the bikini is a UK size 8. Apparently my butt is not proportional with the rest of my body. It looks kinda huge...




NO SWIMMING SIGN. WHAT THE FUCK... ANNOYED

After the long long trip back, we at at P Guesthouse's diner which was unbelievably the best place to it and after the whole trip we realised the best was always under our noses. How crappy is that?
We walked along Krabi Town and passed through various night markets and what not. Made our last desperate attempt to find souvenirs for our friends which was very unfruitful. The only thing I bought throughout the trip was beers, sun hats and a tube of mascara (Cat eyes Maybelline for only S$9).

Food night market. Nothing appetising actually.

This must be the junction of all junctions. At this cross junction there were 8 different traffic lights.

Of course we can never not end the night without alcohol, went to a place called Fu Bar we passed by a couple of times that intrigued us, they really do love Bob Marley over here but the drinks were pricy and it seemed too dead for us since we went without weed. Yes we cannot believe that we did not have weed throughout this trip. It's unbelievable.
After a few beers we left and went back to Old West Bar, where we felt most comfortable and played Texas Drink'em again with a bucket of rum...

I want a library of my own looking as huge as that

That bucket entertained us for awhile. It's deeper than it seems!

Sun burnt bee.

Tag of the day:
Cheryl: "I tel you I tel you evareething."