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senorjosh.com → journals (archive)
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10 over 100
it'd make me happy if you guys all checked out 10 over 100, a website i've been working on pretty furiously these past few weeks. i think it's one of the better things i've done with myself so far, and if you like what you see tell your friends! ... and for now, just ignore that I haven't posted in 13 months :)
where things stand
it's been a while since the last post, partly because i've been using my computer as little as possible since i got back, and partly because the things i'm doing these days are not nearly as interesting as the things i was doing a couple of months ago. or at least, not nearly as photogenic.
basically, i'm sad that it's over, and happy to be back. spending a year away from everything was fantastic, but tough. having a car, a bed, a music collection, a guitar, a toothbrush with bristles -- it changes everything. but i miss trying to force thoughts into other languages, my beijing buddies, biltong and shebeens.
safe and sound
i'm back at home in berkeley. i am still trying to figure out what the last year means. when i do, i'll say something about it here.
yellow mountain
huang shan is the one place in china i vividly remember from my visit eleven years ago. thankfully - despite the addition of a few hundred hotels and a few million tourists - not a whole lot has changed. i mean, a whole lot has changed, but the mountain is still there, the views are still pretty nice and the sunrise is still impossibly perfect.
yellow mountain is also the place where they filmed crouching tiger hidden dragon. if you didn't immediately recognize it from afar, there are plenty of billboards to remind you. only in china would they obstruct your view of a mountain with a picture of that same mountain with a movie actor on top.
jiuzhaigou
after the trip to tagong i went north to jiuzhaigou national park, about twelve hours from chengdu. it's full of lakes and whirlpools and waterfalls and other contortions of water, all of which are in an amazing shade of blue that water isn't usually shaded. i think the best thing to do is just put up pictures. here they are:
p.s. if you're like me and are always sadistically looking for reasons to pillage and burn the offices of the lonely planet (but use the book in every new town regardless), the jiuzhaigou section will make you drool. prices, maps, phone numbers, locations of major bodies of water, and -- most insidiously -- information on the legality of staying overnight in the park, are all wrong.
china's wild west
western china feels, in many ways, more tibetan than tibet. the plateau isn't as high and the air isn't as thin, but the people share the same traditions and are, if anything, a lot easier to talk to. all the travel permits and army checkpoints made tibet a pretty unfriendly place to travel; i was whispered stories of microphones in monasteries, undercover monks and blacklisted tour guides. In tibetan-dominated Sichuan province, by contrast, the main difficulty was deciphering the erratic bus schedule; people welcomed me to their homes and eagerly showed me pictures of the dalai lama. these pictures are from tagong, as well as a nearby panda reserve.
two choice encounters
a bunch of people have asked me what it is that i've been doing for the past year. at one point i posted something about my typical day in cape verde, but my typical day has changed a lot since. recently - partially due to the fact that i've been moving around so much - there haven't been many typical days. so, rather than posting 'typical day, pt. 2', i thought i'd instead write about two recent encounters related to my watson project. though a far cry from what most people would call "academic research," these are pretty good examples of what has come to constitute my "watson research."
monkey pictures: this had less to do with computers and the internet than it did to do with my digital camera. in tsongkappa's meditation cave, along the pilgrim route around ganden monastery (about 2 bumpy hours from lhasa - see first two pics), i met my first holy photographer. he was a young monk - late 20's - who had been stationed outside the entrance to the cave to collect alms and ensure that people didn't mess with the sacred murals.
outer china
over the past three weeks, on an epileptic tour of china's wild west (see map), i went to too many places to digest in words. so, this is a pictures post. this first set is from tibet, which is a place that was made to be photographed. (though i just found out that neither kundun nor seven years in tibet were filmed in tibet…)
photos of tibet are easily recognizable because you can see forever. i was told it's all the holiness that makes the land so beautiful. i can believe that. the next few aren't as majestic, i guess, but i like them anyways. these are of some uyghur and kyrgz people in xinjiang province:
some maps
Here's a quick sketch of where I've been and where I'm going - click on the small images for larger versions. The original maps were taken from worldatlas.com and the cia factbook.
bye bye beijing
after nearly two months of language classes and regular internet access, i've finally left beijing. it was a great place to be for two months, and for the first time in the past year i was able to establish a quasi-life, complete with a quasi-routine and quasi-friends. and poof, now it's gone. bye-bye favorite dumpling store, bye-bye yellow bicycle. well, i'll be back in july, and it looks like edward middleton tilghman will be there to meet me. trouble.
the china scene
one thing i discovered a few days ago - which i really wish i'd seen sooner - is the China Scene section of The China Daily, one of the government-sponsored English language newspapers. i'm not sure if they're trying to be funny when they write these blurbs, but they're as good as the onion (reproduced verbatim):
Drunkard drinks boiling water: A drunk man in Nanjing drank boiling water directly from a thermos bottle and seriously injured his throat, neck and chest, reports Yangtze Evening News. The man surnamed Liu, 35, likes drinking spirits very much and is always getting drunk, according to his wife. Liu had a gathering with several of his friends and got drunk again one night last month. When he returned home, he shouted that he was very thirsty. Before his wife could offer him water, Liu took the thermos and started drinking from it.
only in china?
these pictures have been floating in and out of my inbox, so i thought i'd put them up. they're not my pictures - if i've trampled your copyrights let me know and i'll give you credit or take them down.
what's china like?
china is crazy. i think china seems so different because the differences are hard to point to. i mean, cape verde was Different. it was obviously different, and that was that: the roads weren't paved, there was ocean everywhere, the whole country housed fewer people than oakland, etc. and cape town and buenos aires were different too, but they were big cities, and "big cities are the same everywhere".
argentina chile brazil berkeley
again, i don't think there's any hope in catching up, so i'm just going to put up a bunch of pictures. the first one is by far the coolest. it's from day 4 of an 7-day circuit i did with my dad southern chile. that's me leaning into the wind, which was strong enough to support my weight (which was considerably higher than normal after 2 months in argentina). picture #2 is with sam, my partner in crime at podestá. we weren't as drunk as we appear to be. the third picture is from mar del plata, which, if you can see past all the people, is a beach.
the safari scoresheet
for me, at least, it was easy to romanticize the idea of an african safari. i pictured guns and dust and lizards roasting on open fires, and lions eyeing me over gory impala-guts. it was the discovery channel by day and the wild bunch by night.
demographics
i find the following statistics very interesting. it's strange how the context makes them interesting. the content comes from this post on Rajesh Jain's website...
If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south
8 Africans
site b
last thursday i was given permission to take a new digital video camera into one of Cape Town’s poorest slums, to make a short documentary film of one man’s efforts to “bridge the digital divide”. at 9am friday i squeezed my head into a helmet and climbed on the back of my subject’s motorcycle. twenty minutes earlier, having realized that i had no idea how to make a documentary (other than “using the camera”), i had taken the advice of an online guide on “video for change: a practical guide for activists” and tried to make a storyboard. this is what i ended up scribbling in my notebook:
- talk to andy [the motorcyclist/digital divide bridger]
- talk to other people
- take pictures of the school
- do other stuff
afterwards i drew a bunch of arrows to show how i could creatively reorder 1-4 for dramatic effect.
first quarterly report
submitted to the watson foundation 10/29/03
“What is the point of the Watson Fellowship?”
I hate that question. Everyone asks; everyone gets a different answer. The truth is, I don’t think a good answer exists. No answer is the right combination of informative and vague. Yes, I am here to learn – but what about? About the digital divide, about other cultures, about adversity and ingenuity, or just “about myself”? All of the above, I know. However, in deciding how to spend my time, all of the above do not always point in the same direction. So far, my biggest “progress, difficulties and triumphs” have been in deciding what to do with myself, and in deciding what I want to get out of the fellowship.
Continue reading "first quarterly report"
creature comforts
i am in south africa. i should have said that a long time ago. i have rented a room in a student house near the University of Cape Town, and have been living very well for the past two weeks. after two months of bouncing from room to room and hostel to dingy hostel, having some space to myself is irrationally refreshing. i have a desk, a bed, a broken fireplace, a dresser, a bathtub, a washer AND a dryer. at first i got a little overzealous with the creature comforts and searched the classifieds for a cheap used car. at one point i found an ad for an ‘84 toyota tercel, US$500, with the disclaimer, "body needs attention." all that mattered to me – i thought – was the engine, so i called the number. the engine, he assured me, was "ship shop. though i must warn you that the body is missing. you will, of course, need a way to transport the engine – that is not included in the price." i didn’t respond to any more classifieds.
i was told last night that "the city in the shade of half a mountain can steal your soul." it sounds like a clue in the mystic novel i’m reading ( the eight, by the way – thanks ooh $.35), but i can feel it undermining my desire to be a vagrant traveler. apparently, cape town has become a cliché place to enjoy; i will risk sounding cliché and say that i think it’s a wonderful city. i haven’t taken many pictures yet, but here are a few:
the picture on the left is of the interior of my room; on the right is a view of table mountain (and the city if you look closely); in the center is a naghty baboon from cape point national park. that baboon’s cousin ate my lunch.
Continue reading "creature comforts"
miss cape verde 2003
tickets were only $5 a head. thinking it would be formal, i wore a tie and loafers. everyone else showed up in shorts and soccer jerseys. most people brought red and yellow slips of paper, which they mercilessly waved in the air when they thought the contestant was “foul”. not my pun. as the night wore on – thanks largely to the cheap bear provided by Sagres, proud sponsor of Miss Cabo Verde 2003 – the red cards were accompanied by uncouth gestures and slogans. my nice clothes and white skin fooled the “security” into thinking i was a reporter, so i got a few pictures:
Continue reading "miss cape verde 2003"
barlavento
after leaving fogo (and cha das caldeiras), i went back to Santiago for a week of back-to-back interviews. among my victims were representatives from the UNDP, Peace Corps, RAFE, CV Ministry of Education, ACDI/VOCA, US Embassy, Piaget University, and Cisco Systems. with the help of these people, i have put together an annotated list of digital divide resources, which i will be updating regularly. other watson-related observations and analysis will soon be posted to the front page of senorjosh.com. in other matters, my time in cape verde is rapidly drawing to a close, and i’ve been squeezing in a lot of sightseeing. i will let the pictures do the talking this time:
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| porto novo drive |
kids in fogo |
prainha beach |
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| santo antao hike |
tarrafal sunset |
hunting wild chicken |
chã das caldeiras
this past weekend i climbed a big volcano. i don’t know anything about volcanoes, but this is what the Bradt travel book says: “Of all the volcanoes in the world, I know of no other where the evidence of a giant lateral collapse, involving hundreds of cubic kilometres of rock, is so spectacularly preserved. Even for professional vulconologists, this is an awesome place.” considering the grueling 4,000ft ascent (with an average 35 degree incline), the book’s description strikes me as anticlimactic, but conor gately may beg to differ. here are some pictures of (1) the volcano from horseback the evening before the ascent, (2) looking northward (at me) off the rim, and (3) descending the south face:
Continue reading "chã das caldeiras"
a typical day
Back when I was preparing for the interview part of the watson application, I was advised to prepare an answer to the question, “What do you imagine yourself doing on a typical day?” They ask this question, I am told, to make sure the applicant has envisioned himself doing what he says he will do, down to the mundane details. So, back in November, I closed my eyes and tried to conjure up an image of Josh in South Africa, Josue in Cape Verde, Zhou Xuehua in China, etc., and did my best to imagine what I would be doing from day to day. The problem was, (1) I did not really know what any of the countries were really like, and (2) I could never quite see how I fit into the picture. When the interview came and he did, in fact, ask me that question, I stumbled through something about haunting the local community centers and internet cafes and talking to users about yahoo, ebay, maybe even globalization – I can’t really remember.
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chefe
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hernando & felix
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graduation from
computer class
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me & some peace corps
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Continue reading "a typical day"
catch-up
i am still experimenting with the frequency with which i will update this page. right now, it feels like a lot has happened without comment, so i will do a quick catch-up. this entry is, in other words, destined to be particularly boring.
Continue reading "catch-up"
premature reflections
what is the point of my watson? remember the coke bottle that fell from the sky in “the gods must be crazy”? well, that’s what i expected to find. except that this time, computers would be falling, and they would be crushing totem poles and other very symbolic objects. i would use the watson, i thought, to seek out that sagacious monk on nigh precipice. this man would open his heart to me, and wistfully shake his head as he mourned the loss of traditional culture. down in the prairie, silicon valley crusaders would be hurtling mice through monastery windows.
Continue reading "premature reflections"
Posted by senorjosh at 04:17 PM
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raging bulls
the day before i left Portugal, i went to a bullfight. over the course of the evening, seven bulls were ‘fought’. the first bull, however, was a pacifist. it was pretty funny, actually. the matador kept hollering at the bull, “hey! ho! huh huh!” but the bull just turned his back on the matador and wandered around the arena. at one point he started circling like a dog does before it lays down to sleep. the matador was not amused. “huh! huh!” cape-man didn’t look so brave right then.
Continue reading "raging bulls"
Posted by senorjosh at 03:10 PM
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red moon over lisbon
i didn't manage to get a picture of it, but the moon last night was dark red. does anyone know why this happens? i asked a bartender and he laughed at me. i'm pretty sure he laughed because he didn't know. right?
i got poop on my arm while taking the picture on the left, but i still think it was worth it.
Posted by senorjosh at 03:49 AM
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back from the pacific northwest
two weeks in a car with four large guys, two sprained appendages, a volleyball net, and a blue frisbee. We went: crater lake, olympics, seattle, vancouver, north cascades, oregon coast, redwoods. These are nice:
Posted by senorjosh at 07:53 PM
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the final days at wesleyan
i would say this pretty much epitomizes my feelings about leaving wesleyan.
Posted by senorjosh at 09:31 PM
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the nuances of trip planning
I've spent the better part of the day looking into travel insurance and plane fares for next year. This has been the most boring day of my life. There are two things that have kept me sane. 1) this guy:
and 2) ridiculous exclusions for travel insurance, such as:
Continue reading "the nuances of trip planning"
Posted by senorjosh at 06:15 PM
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on wealth
A few weeks ago I wrote about the treacherous path of making money in order to use it for good purposes. Bill Gates, for instance, is doing some mighty good things with his money. Here's what Einstein says: I am absolutely convinced that no wealth in the world can help humanity forward, even in the hands of the most devoted worker in this cause. The example of great and pure individuals is the only thing that can lead us to noble thoughts and deeds. Money only appeals to selfishness and irresistibly invites abuse... Can anyone imagine Moses, Jesus, or Gandhi armed with the money-bags of Carnegie?
Mein Weltbild, 1934
Posted by senorjosh at 03:39 AM
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overhaul iminent
So far, this website has been a disjoint jumble of random thoughts and formal projects. That won't change anytime soon. However, I've decided to do a better job of separating the random thoughts from the formal projects. So, if things aren't where they used to be, that is why. Also, I'm going to follow john's lead (as always) and migrate to movable type in the next couple of weeks, so things could get very ugly for a little while. Lastly, I took a crash course in Flash and threw together an animated itinerary of where I'll be next year, and I'm quite proud. Unfortunately, Flash seems to require quite a bit of patience, which isn't my strong suit, so the map is (and forever will be) sloppy. Posted by senorjosh at 01:23 AM
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two cool links
Posted by senorjosh at 11:56 PM
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driving the trans-can
After nine days and 4,300 miles, I'm back home in California. in case you were wondering.
...um, anyone know why the animation is so small? It's supposed to be 450 px wide. anyhow, click on the microscopic green button for a demo...
Posted by senorjosh at 12:36 PM
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Putting cancer on the run
E. Coli causes diarrhea, and may fight cancer as well
MANY a stalwart man trembles at the mention of the word “colonoscopy.” Odysseus braved Hades and defied the dreaded Scylla, but never did he confront the neighborhood proctologist. Yet colorectal cancer, the fourth leading cause of cancer worldwide, claims tens of thousands of lives each year, and is not a disease easily wiped aside. Maybe, suggests Dr. GianMario Pitari of Thomas Jefferson University, we can flush it out.
Continue reading "Putting cancer on the run"
Posted by senorjosh at 12:31 PM
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music of my mind (short story)
Sailing in seizures of laughter, crawling out from under the heel of love, tearing down a dirt road away from Salvador, the bus shakes and I can't sleep. I'm exhausted, just want to drift away, but as my head bounces against the window all I can think is Paul Simon. Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Al Green, they fill my aches with words and sighs with song. Here, on the bus, the lyrics seem out of place. But so am I, and why censor? Paul was right: some stories are magical, meant to be sung. This is what filled my head then and now; this is the story of how I begin to remember...
read more...
Posted by senorjosh at 01:12 AM
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two incredible brazilian albums
If you know me at all, you know I'm a little obsessed with brazilian music. There are two recently-released albums that justify this obsession. Both are somewhat unusual, coming from the 'new wave' of brazilian music. In other words, it's not samba or bossa nova, and it's not Marisa Monte or MPB.
The first is the self-titled album by Naçao Zumbi, released on Trama Records. This group, originally run by Chico Science, released a few albums that were more or less emblematic of the Mengue Beat music of northeastern Brazil ( history of the band). The music was very hard, with a large and loud percussion section and alternating rap and rock on top. The rhythms were raw and heavy, and some people really liked the Chico Science stuff. However, the new release on Trama is much tamer, and I like it a lot more. The rhythms are still creative and deep, but the vocals and other instruments work together much better on this album. The album is cohesive and strong, with plenty of funky beats. Best of all, it was released in the states. UOL has a review, with snippets of the songs available for download, here; there's also some info on the Trama/Zumbi collaboration here. The second album, also on trama records, is orchestra klaxon, by max de castro. Apparently it's his second album, though I never heard the first. orchestra klaxon sounds like a semi-electronic version of Djavan, though less cheesy and less polished. De Castro came into the scene as a DJ and arranger, but his melodies are good and catchy. The only review I've been able to find is in Portuguese and fairly bland, located here. They called the album samba-jazz electronica. I guess that works. Check out the second and fourth tracks.
Posted by senorjosh at 05:38 PM
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Iguaçu Falls (short story)
The thunderous waterfalls drown memories of Carnaval, of Amazon bugs, of triumphs and trifles. Mountains of water collapse from three countries into an airborne ocean of mist, drenching the rare mix of jungle and civilization for miles around. Little black swifts fly into the cataracts to their nests behind, as sweaty tourists slip on saturated walkways. This place is Iguaçu, the great water of the Guarani, the devil’s throat, the natural wonder of the world, the end of the road for conquerors of old.
read more...
Posted by senorjosh at 05:24 PM
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website complete
I've finally taken down the large "under construction" signs from each of these pages, so in a sense, the website is now complete. It'll still probably change a lot over the next few weeks, but the framework is safely in place. I also (finally) figured out how to let people leave feedback and comments, which can now be done by clicking on the "comment" link at the bottom of each message. This was done with the opensource dotcomments, which was probably more pain than it was worth (though you could prove me wrong and leave a message). For those interested, the weblog (on this page and in the projects section) is done using blogger, hosted by webstrike. If you need someone to host your website, webstrike is inexpensive and reliable). The picture with the rocks is courtesy of tom sullivan; I took the rest of the pictures in salvador around Carnaval time in 2001.
Posted by senorjosh at 07:20 PM
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letter to bill gates
In a couple of weeks, my new life supposedly commences. I've spent some time thinking about what I want to do with it, but usually end up getting distracted by any one of the hundreds of related questions that arise. Recently, the distracting dillemma has been: if I want to do something useful (in the most austere sense of the word), how can I best position myself? My natural inclinations and talents are in particularly useless (except in the practical sense) disciplines - computer science and physics. One option is to try and make a lot of money and then do good things with it, but that path is extremely suspect. Last weekend, my friend alex and I got into a long 'meaning of life' discussion about this dilemma. So, when I got home, inspired and inebriated, I sent the following to the head of my favorite software monolith...
Dear Bill Gates,
Last summer I interned at Microsoft Research (BARC lab) under Jim Gray and Gordon Bell. That is my only qualification in writing you – I hope it is enough to warrant the 45 seconds it will take for you to read this email.
I was at the intern BBQ at your house in August, but as you were constantly swarmed by interns more eager than I, I never had the opportunity to ask a question of you. My question is: what keeps you going? Do you see a ‘higher cause’ in your work, or is the challenge enough? I don’t believe that you’re in it for the money or the power, though perhaps you are now so vested in Microsoft that its success is your own and my question sounds ridiculous. If you were motivated by a desire to do good for the world, you have more than enough money to change the world in magnificent ways… but perhaps you truly believe that better technology is an end in and of itself? Are these questions relevant anymore, or did you ask them 30 years ago and find answers that satisfied you?
I don’t honestly expect you to reply to this email, but please do! At least take me seriously, I’m asking only from personal interest. I won’t ask for a job and I won’t publicize the information – there’s no strategy or agenda – I'm just having trouble wholeheartedly following a road where you are the light at the end of the tunnel, the ultimate achievement towards which to strive. If you’ve answered this question publicly, send me a link; otherwise, I’d really like to know what you think.
Sincerely,
Joshua Blumenstock
and this was the response I got...
Hi Joshua - I am sorry but Bill won't be able to respond to your email given his current schedule. Thanks for your understanding.
Christine Turner
Exec. Assistant to Bill Gates
and my editorial...
I can't say I'm either surprised or annoyed by the response. Their email is cute, but my questions were completely ridiculous. Mostly, I feel (1) a little stupid for sounding so naive (If I really wanted a thoughtful response, I probably could have hid it better), and (2) a bit compromised for forsaking my intention to not 'publicize the information'. As for the first feeling, I knew I would feel foolish even as I wrote the thing. I sent it immediately because I knew if I thought twice it would never survive my better judgement, namely the sober scrutiny of the next morning. Why I'm advertising my naivete on my website, I haven't quite figured out. Luckily this weblog will let me delete postings. Which brings me to for the second sentiment. Though I have a tinge of guilt in posting their response, I really don't feel too bad because, after all, I'm mainly publicizing my own confusion.
Posted by senorjosh at 11:45 PM
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what else is on this website?
Regarding the more practical reasons for this website, the career-oriented content will be contained in the projects section; this frontpage will remain career-unrelated. By career-oriented, I mean resume. If you have a job for me, tell me because I'm unemployed as of May 25. Some people have requested copies of my honors thesis and watson proposal; if this is you, download them here and avoid the wrath of ITS incurred when I email these large files. At some point, maybe I'll make the formatting of the other pages consistent, and even retroactively weblog some content into the archives (if such a thing is possible), but I'm not making any promises.
Posted by senorjosh at 02:21 PM
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leaving feedback
I'm pretty much operating under the assumption that fewer than 50 people will ever lay eyes on this webpage. The counter in the bottom-left corner keeps going up, but I think it's all due to me - you'd be amazed how many tries it takes to get the layout to look right. However, If you're reading this, and have something to say, I'd really like to hear it. Unfortunately, I don't know how to allow other people to easily leave feedback or comments. I've spent an unseemly number of hours trying to create a guestlog and/or enable a commenting tool like dotcomments, but the php isn't compatible with the server-side indexing I've been using, and I don't think I want to start over. So, until I figure it out, please email me and I'll post your unadulterated (promise) comments here.
Posted by senorjosh at 02:19 PM
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Why a website?
I've been meaning to make a website for a long time now, but it always seemed like there was no point. I wanted to post my resume and some other stuff online, but other than that, why would anyone (my parents don't count) want to visit my website? There were two things that broke my inertia. The first was my friend John Gordon's inspiring example, online as of March 28. I love reading John's site, so I figured there was a chance that, if I tried hard enough, someone else might enjoy reading this one. The second impetus came from my "Ethics of Leadership" class. If you're reading this right now, chances are you're in that class. For those of you not in the class (hi mom, hi dad), the point of the project is to explore the idea of leadership, in any imaginable sense of the word. Though a mediocre website is a far cry from leadership, I liked the idea of creating a space in which to share thoughts, ideas, etc. It's a hesitant step into the public realm.
So, this is a place where I'll post thoughts and ruminations. More formal than a journal, but not necessarily more conclusive. For now, I'll be writing about some of the more leadership-centric ideas that have been running through my head, but that's mainly for now. I imagine in the future I'll write about anything I think someone else might be interested in reading. I've been working on some creative stories, which I might post here if I end up liking them. And next year, I'll (hopefully) update this regularly with news of my travels, so I don't have to impose large mass emails on unwitting friends. Anything else you want to see or hear, let me know.
Posted by senorjosh at 02:12 PM
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wandering brazil
Opa,
so i'm wandering around brasil, and out pops Gabe, ye olde roomate from Nic 7. what?!? He's with Irulan, and it's the last night of Carnival, in the streets of Salvador. Don't ask me how this happens when there are 3 million people vying for enough space to breath normal amounts of oxygen, but there he was. and then gabe disappeared and I drank a strange drink that had too many undisclosed powdered substances from unpronouncable regions of the amazon, and then when i woke i got sentimental and wondered how all of you were doing, and of course i re-felt like a bastard for not having written.
and here I am, in case it wasn't evident, in brasil. "sailing in seizures of laughter, crawling out from the heels of love, reaching through the darkness"? it's been about 2 months, and it'll be maybe 1.5 more if i'm able to extend my ticket for a third time tomorrow. i'm in Sao Luis, in the state of Maranhao, as if that means anything. it's hot, and lots of water, and good reggae and cheap hammocks, and really weird fruits that maybe taste good or maybe taste like seafood, which isn't necessarily bad except that it's fruit, not seafood.
life is very good right now, and I've settled into relaxation mode for the last couple of weeks. I started out the trip a bit edgy and fidgety in Rio, and was totally flustered when I realized Portuguese and spanish weren't then same language. and then i went to salvador and played and listened to large amounts of samba, pagodôUaxôUand forro, and then I pretended to be a drummer with Os Amantes to Reggae, bought a drum and case (which i am now shlepping lord knows where). about this time i realized i could converse, so i went to some nice national parks and islands, and then along came Carnival and it was absolutely insane. That's a lame description i guess, but really the only other words I could use to describe it would be synonyms for insane, so I'm going to postpone the effort. and besides, some stories are magical, meant to be sung. or at the very least they require pictures. but since carnival i haven't done a damn thing. i rented a cottage in the little town of Jericoacoara for a week, and really all i did was eat sleep eat, backwards and forwards.
And now I'm in Maranho and next is the cool cool river, the Rio Amazonas, and it's still kind of dreamy in my mind. to sail up a river wide as a sea, sleep on the banks on the leaves of a banyan tree. there's a 5-day boat ride into the amazon that I start on friday (?) and then a five day canoe/hike trip, and then 4 more days on a boat going out the opposite end. i've got my deet, hammock, mosquito net, and malaria pills, so i'm now indubitably qualified. although as of today my friend who was going to do the whole kabob now has Dengue... which brings up my main complaint, that in addition to being a dark shade of black, my skin has a full layer of mosquito bites. and my left foot has been privvy to two burrowing insects. and cockroaches are really a pain in the ass, i know they don't bite or sting or spit, they're still a pain in the ass.
but enough of that, it's time to go see Hanibal, which'll be my first movie in a loooong time. hope all is well northside, sorry for the defects in this email... i'm sleepy. and what else? i'm very relaxed and happy, and at times a bit lonely - but really only after strange powder drinks or long bus rides - and also i've come to the realization that really I'm Japanese, not Chinese, or at least I might as well be because no one here has heard of China and no one believes me when I say I'm not japanese. and i guess that's it.
tchau tchau, e beijos pra todos.
-josue
Posted by senorjosh at 01:54 AM
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