Where in the World is HHM...

[HHM]

Greetings from Thailand...I arrived in Bangkok on Dec 20 and stayed there until December 26. I am presently in the resort town of Hua Hin where I will be crashing for a couple of weeks...after all the traveling around of New Zealand and the hecticness of Bangkok, I need some extended down time.

Bangkok is a facinating city, albeit, dirty, smoggy, noisey, and smelly. It kind-a-of remind me of the cities they depict in the films The Fifth Element or Blade Runner...The higher up you are, the better things are...street level is very noisey, smoggy etc, but as you go up, using the nice Air Conditioned Sky Train, and the elevated walkways, its much nicer.

Hope all is well.

HHM

[HHM]

Ok, I finaly found my update post.

Well, since my last post in this thread I have been to Hua Hin, a decent coastal resort town where I spent some time to decompress from all the traveling.

I am now on the island on Ko Tao (I got here Jan 6th), where I just completed my PADI Open Water Scuba certification course. Ko Tao is nice, laid back tropical island in the gulf of Thailand that is known for great diving. I had a great diving instructor and small class. If you ever go to Ko Tao and decide to get a Scuba Certification, I strongly recommend Seashell Divers, and ask for Paul to be your instructor.

However, from here I am off to Malaysia (my Thai Visa expires on the 18th). My first stop will be Penang.

I hope all is well.

HHM

[HHM]

Oh wow, its been a while since I updated. From Ko Tao, I made my way to Penang, Malaysia, then to Pangkor Island (Malaysia), then to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and I am presently in Singapore.

I don't have much time to post right now, but I will say this, if Bangkok is your quintisential S.E. Asian city, than Singapore is Walt Disney's interpretation of the quintisential S.E. Asian city.

[Danny234]

Hello, HHM - I sent you a private message. Thanks!

[HHM]

Well, the Internet connection here is spotty...its Satellite Internet and there is a rainstorm right now. In addition, the only Internet cafe does not maintain their computers very well, there are many spy ware "redirects" on their systems that have been preventing us from accessing many websites

Anyway, I had wanted to provide a few longer e-mails regarding our experiences in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, but that will have to wait for another time.

We left Singapore and we are presently on Tioman Island (the Island made famous as the setting of Bali Hi in South Pacific). We are staying in the remote village of Salang. There are maybe 40 residents and about a dozen tourists in the village right now, but there are enough accommodation here for tourist to outnumber residents by 6-7 to 1. We are supposed to be at the tail end of the monsoon season, but the locals say the monsoon season has shifted the last few years; it used to be from November to January, now its more like late December to February. Thus, its fairly quiet here right now, and yes, it has been raining on and off since we arrived and today it is has been raining non-stop since early this morning.

The first part of our adventure from Singapore was arriving in Mersing--the jumping off point for the ferries to Tioman--when we arrived on the 8th, we were promptly informed that the 3:00pm ferry was cancelled due to rough seas. The next ferry would be the following day at 6:30am. So we spent a quiet night in the sleepy town of Mersing and dreaded the early morning wake-up. We had been averaging waking up around 10:00am (I know, your jealous). The ferry ride, was, shall we say--interesting. The seas were pretty rough, easily 2-3 meter swells. I honestly thought the captain would turn us around, but he pressed on. There were about 120 passengers on a relatively small boat, and we did have waves crash well over the bow on the larger waves. I was lucky that I found a position in which I did not get too sea sick and I had the A/C vent blowing on me, its good to be tall. Nicole was a little less unfortunate, but neither of us succumbed. The ride took about 2 hours.

We have a relatively comfortable chalet and my spouse is currently doing her Open Water Scuba Course. She started today, we are both hoping conditions improve so we can both get some diving in. Weather notwithstanding, the Island is quite beautiful.

Some general comments about our travels:
One interesting point of comparison between Malaysia and Thailand; in Thailand, there are numerous stray dogs but relatively few stray cats; whereas in Malaysia, there are numerous stray cats, but no dogs. Also, I am not sure the idea of the "Ugly American" traveller is appropriate, because, I must say, the most insensitive travelers we have come accross are without a doubt the Germans, followed closely by the French.

[FilingOnMyOwn]

HHM. How do you travel so much? I assume as being a part of this site you have filed bk before? Then became wildly successful and traveled the world?

[robivi3]

I don't think that HHM is a BK'er. I think Todd (HRx) and HHM are affiliated with some University or Research Group. Possibly not, but they do not speak on the BK level. Their responses are factual, short and show some ivy league education where as most of us tend to be a little rough around the edges.

Of course, LOL, I could be wrong, HHM may be in Peoria, Todd may live in a trailer behind Publix and eat from the dumpster, but I doubt it... one day the "mystery" may be revealed. For now guessing is more fun.

I haven't read HH's latest post but will get back to it today.

[robivi3]

HHM, I imagine the Europeans to be the most "deodorant free" also. By the way, have you seen any French tourists attempt to surrender to anything yet?

Is Singapore as beautiful as is told? We have had two friends, one who visited, one who lived there tell us that they loved the place. The only person I have heard complain ever was Micheal Fay who for some reason will never buy spray paint in any Asian Country. All kidding aside i hope that you are truly enjoying yourself. Singapore comes up beautifully on Google Earth. Also, I hear that the defenses there are first rate. They have a very small but modern airforce and navy. i know they operate several modern frigates.
Canons, Forts? seen any in the Southeast?

You know, HH may be a Trustee... riding the high seas on seized assets... LOL. I'm baiting, because honestly I've been dying of curiosity for a long time.

[Minnymouth]

Robivi3,

Welcome to the world of the "quiet ones".............

Even I do not know who HHM, HRx, and Lazar are.......

I take them all to be men, very well educated men, in the field of law and bankruptcy....

Its possible, yes, that they do a poll, a survey, or a research program regarding bankruptcy issues. That would be a challenge for a new lawyer entering the bankrutpcy field.

And yes, one might even "think" they could be a Trustee (in hiding) learning what we think of them and seeing if we are "HIDING ASSETS"...... LOL - don't think so!!!!

If this forum is an educational tool for some one - SO BE IT!!! It's educational to all of us......... one thing for sure is your lawyer doesn't tell you a lot of things about bankruptcy.

I'm probably the only Mod that you really know anything about. I'm just "one of you guys"!!! Been there, done it!! And now am here to help if I can. Most know I'm a female (last time I checked), have dogs ("the Girls), and went thru a LONG AND DIFFICULT CHAPTER 7...... (was screwed by my attorney and the trustee both)......

My goal on being on this forum is to help those starting out their bankruptcy. Help answers questions that I can, steer them in the right direction to get other answers. Help calm their fears, anxiety, and help them realize what they are going to experience in bankruptcy and how to go about rebuilding their lives afterwards. I don't want ANYONE to feel as if they are alone in their bankrutpcy process!

I'm glad I found this forum, wished I had found it before I filed bankruptcy. My experience would have been a lot easier. I'm proud to be a part of it, like to think of myself as a even tempered and "fair" moderator... and hope I always treat everyone with the same respect and judgement.

[robivi3]

I suspect Min that one day they will ask the same of you. We are old timers now. Amazing how many "flash in the pan" and while in and out try to set the whole tone for the Forum. Some encourage, some dump on BK'ers for there financial issues and some bring good humor, odd stories, and even afew bring a season of jioking and bathroom humor. Takes all kinds... be a boring planet otherwise.

[HHM]

How dare you guys hi-jack my thread with speculation about who and what the moderators are.

I will say this, I am not a trustee nor ever worked for a trustee.

Anyway, I am back in Kuala Lumpur getting read to head to Cambodia. I will be in Siem Reap, Cambodia tomorrow and visiting the Angkor Wat Temples etc (if you don't know what they are, they were in the first Tomb Raider movie). I suspect I will be in Cambodia for about a week to 10 days.

Hope all is well.

HHM

[Minnymouth]

WELL IT'S ABOUT TIME YOU SHOWED YOUR FACE AGAIN...... WE HAVE ALL BEEN WONDERING WHERE ON "THIS EARTH" YOU ARE RIGHT NOW....

GREAT TO HEAR FROM YOU................ I bet the stories will be great that you can tell in the future, An Adventure for a Lifetime.......

We sure do miss you around here..............HURRY BACK!!

[AMISLANDER]

one of my condo owners ....

...left today for Peru...going to Marapechu? Looks like Peru here in FL right now...lots of fog on the Gulf coast.

[robivi3]

Machu Pichu, I think, City of the Gods and all that ya' know, verrrrrry "Von Daniken" and all that mystical Alien mumbo jumbo we all loved so much. Of course I bought a couple of acres in the desert in AZ because I love Tremors. Love all that Sou' west mystical stuff!

[HHM]

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Siem Reap is outstanding. I arrived with little difficulty, except that I had to get up early; Kuala Lumpur's International Airport is located a good 70km from the city, so it takes about an hour to drive there. (there is an express train, but its far cheaper for 2 people to take a cab than buy two express train tickets).

First, I cannot yet make any generalizations about Cambodia because I have only been in Siem Reap, but Siem Reap is great. Its a relatively small town and somewhat touristy, but that is not a bad thing. The first surprise is the use of U.S. currency. In the guide books it mentions that US currency is "accepted", but its actually the preferred currency, nearly all prices are denominated in US Dollars; but change is made with Cambodian Riel ($1 US = 4000 riel) and they do not use coins. The draw back to this, however, is that things are probably more expensive than they need be. Soda is 50 cents to a dollar, etc. However, things here are generally quite cheap.

There is also a whole host of accomodation options, from 5 star resorts charging $400 US per night and up, to guest houses giving rooms for as little as $5 per night. My place is pretty nice, actually, its one of the better places I have stayed in recently and has a very refreshing pool..which is great after a long, hot day exploring the ruins of Angkor.

The people here are quite friendly, they say Thailand is the land of smiles, but really, Cambodia has Thailand beat hands down. The best part so far has been the ease of getting around. You can hire Tuk-Tuk's for the "entire" day for $5-$8. Basically, you get your own personal driver for as long as you want. They wait around while you explore the sites, will pick up the next morning, etc. Its quite nice. (I hope this holds true for Phnom Pehn, but I doubt it, the personal driver may be a unique feature of Siem Reap because of the Angkor Temples.)

I have spent the last 3 days exploring the various Angkor ruins with my best friend Mike and his new wife Jenna who happened to be here. I will write more about the temples later, but they are quite fantastic; I have tons of pictures already and will hopefully try to share a few in the coming weeks.

Obviously, poverty is quite rampant here, so harrasment by children and hawkers is fairly intenst, but Mike and Jenna said India was far worse. Actually, harrasment is too strong a word, but it can get a little tireing. The children are great...but a few can get an attitude if you don't buy anything from them, but for the most part, its just gentle badgering. Also, we believe there must be some central place where the kids learn their sales pitches because they are identical from kid to kid. They start with, "you buy from me xyz widget (mostly post cards, guide books, or jewelry)", as you say no no no, then they ask you where your from, and they will endeavor to name the capital and some other fact (this has lead to our own internal game of trying to stump them by saying we are from other countries to see if they can name the capital, and amazingly, they can do it about 7 out of 10 times, the main stumper that works is Costa Rica).

The main challenge has been the HEAT...although I have been in S.E. Asia for over 2 months, there is a difference between the type of site seeing I have done elswhere and here. In other places, I am going from one A/C'ed location to another, or I am are on a beach. Here, you are exploring the temples for 4-6 hours at a pop, and in the heat the entire time. The only respite is the wind blowing through the tuk tuk as you drive from site to site. Thus, the heat really sucks your energy.

All in all, Siem Reap kicks ass.