go outside: photos from laos part I

well, i'm in my first english speaking country on this trip, the land down under, australia. i'm in sydney right now, which reminds me a lot of places in the usa. bondi beach, with it's surf and skate culture is a lot like southern california. the crisp clear air and temperate climate is a bit like san francisco. and british colonial brick architecture and proper english sounding street names remind me of boston.
so it's a lot like the states, you could almost say it's a mirror image. in fact, if you placed a mirror on the equator, and flipped it over, you'd get a reflection of the u.s.
for example, they drive on the left hand side of the road (almost runover only twice),
the toilets swish clockwise on the southern hemisphere (either way, it's a nice respite from southeast asia squatters),
they walk on the left hand side of the sidewalk (have gotten into two accidents).
it's a lot cleaner though than cities in the states. no grafitti, or street grime. interesting. people seem less stressed too, and everyone seems to like to party. since i want to be engrossed in the culture of the places that i visit, i've been more than happy to oblige.
anyway, i'm lucky since new friends of mine (courtesy of my pal alicia who had a hand in coming up with the 'global transmission' moniker) mellani and katrina, are letting me crash in their place. it's nice since it's a bit more expensive here than i'm used to, and it's nice to have a home to come to instead of a hostel or guesthouse. mel took me out with her friends on my birthday, and i had a great time.

yes i did.

anyway, here's the first photos from laos. will post a few more later, since blogger isn't playing nice with the rest of the photos.
dragon