Thrilla from Manila

I apologize for the long delay. I never anticipated the number of readers I’d get, or my sheer lack of writing-motivation. I think the burden of filtering out what’s unimportant has been weighing on me, and I’ve been avoiding the blog. From now on, I’ll aim for shorter, more frequent posts. Anyway, I’ll do my best to summarize my experience over the past few weeks:

1) After getting sick in Macau, I made the faulty assumption that my health would improve before traveling to Puerto Galera in the Philippines. It didn’t. The two-hour flight from Hong Kong to Manila was hilarious: the cheap tickets we bought afforded us seats in the back of the plane that boldly displayed “No Frills” stickers on the headrests. A 3-hour bus ride from Manila and 1-hour ferry ride from Batangas Port brought me to a beautiful resort in Puerto Galera. Unfortunately, it brought no one else, leaving my group stranded with the busboy/chef/bartender/concierge (same guy) and a French family fond of Speedos (and letting it all hang out). Two-hours after arriving, we decided to check out of the resort and try our chances at the notorious White Beach.

The sun set as we passed deserted islands with towering palm trees swaying in a warm breeze. A transcendental water taxi ride provided a stark contrast with the famous strip of bars and hostels called White Beach. While searching for decent accommodations on the tiny beach strip, we were bombarded with offers of “herb,” mushrooms, $5 happy-massages, and sexual advances from the island’s burgeoning transvestite community. Salty smoke rushed into my face as I passed raw meat stands and transvestite dance shows, exacerbating my already-sore throat. Finally, we checked into a hilarious hostel that provided dirty, Pokemon sheets, salamanders, and working plumbing! I really thought I had seen my share of crazy, having spent much of my childhood in the Haight-Ashbury, but San Francisco doesn’t hold a candle to the Philippines. For example, Manila apparently boasts a bar where customers pay to throw midgets (little people?) dressed in Velcro at a gigantic sticky wall. What kind of civilization permits that level of insanity? After describing the island as “hell on Earth,” “Apocalypse Now,” and “Alice in Wonderland - on crack,” I realized that in addition to the madness outside our doors, I had contracted pink eye! With my condition steadily worsening, I realized I wouldn’t get to take part in snorkeling, drinking, or dancing with the multitudes of aggressive transvestites, and, with the blessing of my parents’ checkbook, flew home the next day. What a bad trip (zing!).

2) My parents came! And it was great! For the first time in weeks, I actually gained weight (they broke my rice-only diet), and got to explore even more of this exotic metropolis. I hope they come back – their company was an excellent treat. Oh, and I got to eat at Aqua!

3) Last week, I decided to go to Macau at 10:30 p.m. with three friends. After pissing away almost $100 USD, and realizing that MGTO120 started before bungee jumping opened, I decided to head back to Hong Kong at 7 a.m. (college really improves critical thinking).

4) Why do I keep meeting 25+ year old women at bars?

5) I’ve almost finalized my spring break plans. I’ll give my fans the teaser-trailer version: Hong Kong to Phuket to Bangkok to Ayutthaya to Bangkok to Chiang Mai to Houayxai/Louang Phabang to Hanoi to Hong Kong. Say that ten times fast.

Ok, I think catches everyone up. Once again, I love emails/gchats/facebook messages/romantic letters, so feel free to send me love. To clarify, I did not throw any midgets (little people?) at a sticky wall in Manila.

-Alex “The Gifted One” Rosenberg

Macau Musings

Kung hei fat choi everyone! I write to you from the bottom floor of a two-story Deluxe Suite at Metropole Hotel in Macau. Don’t worry – I’m not breaking the bank (1280 HKD / 9 people, convert to USD: $17 USD!), but I just lost some big bucks gambling. A nine sq mile pre-Hong Kong Portuguese colony, Macau advertises itself as “The Las Vegas of the Far East.” After a long night of partying, I traveled with eight other HKUSTers by ferry to the small island, and our visit has been quite memorable. Highlights:

• A 1.5 hour ferry ride into Macau harbor, where the rumors were confirmed: This island boasts a manmade volcano! This is a weird place that, like much of China, is like a seventh grade girl (It can’t figure itself out), resulting in a pseudo-European, pseudo-Chinese, and pseudo-Las Vegas style.
• The realization that staying at a legitimate hotel is prohibitively expensive ($458 USD at the Wynn!), and the subsequent discovery of “affordable living” at Metropole Hotel
• A brief winning streak at slots, followed by a long losing streak. Judging from my gambling peers, I have a lot in common with Chinese grandmothers.

Unfortunately, I’ve been feeling pretty terrible for the past six hours (fever, sore throat, ineffective gambling), so I’m leaving the island early in about an hour.

The past two weeks have been incredible. Living and studying in Hong Kong is an exercise in controlled chaos. Everywhere I go, tens of thousands of Chinese pour in and out of subway stations, elevators, food stalls, bars, and bizarre street markets. In the past two weeks alone, I’ve:

• Partied at Lan Kwai Fong and Wan Chai with scores of other students and locals
• Visited Stanley Market on the Pacific side of Hong Kong Island
• Snapped a photo at Victoria Peak
• Witnessed infinity at Mong Kok and the Ladies’ Market
• Bet (and won!) on horse races at Happy Valley Racetrack in Causeway Bay
• Made tons of friends from various schools around the US and Europe
• Traveled to Sai Kung, where I saw more fish crammed into sidewalk tanks than I thought possible, and saw a group of seven year olds smoking cigarettes and fishing

If any of you feel restless, come to Hong Kong: it will beat the crap out of you.

Please leave comments and send emails, or G-Chat me! I have many travel stories that I couldn’t include in this post, for the sake of brevity and my public image. I’ll try to write more frequently, and look forward to future travels.

Sincerely,
Alex Rosenberg

Typhoid, Dengue Fever and Shallow Alto

"Look, the streets is about where you're from. It's not some school talent show. There's no spring floors. There's no spotlights to use what you got and... what makes you think you got it, huh?" 

                                       -Andie, from Step Up 2: The Streets

Welcome to my travel blog, in which I'll periodically write about my study abroad experience in Hong Kong, as well as my travels throughout Southeast Asia. I envision this blog including elements of serious journalism, mixed with witty one-liners, and a sprinkling of LiveJournal to keep you updated on my feelings. 

 

You may be wondering what prompted me to write a blog. What makes me think, I got it?

1. Studying abroad in Hong Kong ranks high on “The List of Alex Rosenberg’s Life Experiences,” so I imagine some of you might want to know what I’m up to while I’m away.
2. Provided you do care about what’s going on with me, a blog is the most efficient way for me to keep you informed.
3. If more than two weeks pass with no entries, it’s a safe bet that I’ve been thrown into a secret prison. Please look for me.

I’ll be studying at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) until the end of May, so please communicate with me via email, Facebook, Skype, g-chat, and blogging (or blog-battling). If I don’t answer for a few days, no worries – chances are, I’m traveling.

Right now I’m wasting away in Palo Alto. No one is home, so the only activities I’ve completed in the past week are: get a Typhoid shot, discuss with my doctor all the things that could kill me, and put off writing this entry.

I’m looking forward to being in Hong Kong; I hope to find something interesting while I’m there. I’ll let you know if I do. Wish me luck!

Sincerely,

Alex