I want to dance
With you

I want to feel
Your breath
Caress my neck
As we embrace
And spin
And spin
And spin.

I want to smell your perfume
Waltzing around me
That sweet scent of seduction
Innocently mesmerizing.

I want to feel your
Temperature rise
Your skin flush red
I want to see you close your eyes
Like a child on a rollercoaster
On an adventure,
With thrill, anticipation,
Of what will come next.

I want to feel connected to you
As you press your chest up close to mine
As we allow our spirit, our soul, our focus
To tango together.

I want you to forget about the steps
Head up
Look into my eyes
And smile your radiant smile
As we sway with the bachata
As we fall deeply into each other’s spell
And “you” and “I” are no more

I want you to trust
That I will lead you sensitively and safely
And that you will follow beautifully
Like we’ve been in this rumba for all eternity

I want to hear the music
The salsa
Passionate rhythm coursing through our veins
Like oxygen,
We breathe it,
Live it,
Become it.

I want you to lose your self
In ecstasy
And dance
Like nobody’s watching.

++

Today I am grateful for:

1. The opportunities that I presently have to make a difference, at the Sunshine School Laos, with My Positive Change and with friends (and strangers who will soon be friends);

2. The challenges that I am presented with because they allow me to think differently in my approach and discover that there is a better way to solve a problem;

3. The values that have been instilled in me through my parents and the Lao culture. For most of my adolescent and early adult life I thought that I was running away from them but now I realise the truth – I was actually running towards them;

4. Yet another beautiful cool and sunny morning in Vientiane. I can hear the roosters making their “wake up” call and feel a lovely fresh breeze brushing against my skin.

5. Love – of self, of other, and of all. For it is the most powerful force on Earth and it drives everything that I do, am, and feel.

First things first, I’m not one of those men who use the term “chick flick” in a degrading manner.

In fact some of my favourite movies are “chick flicks”. I’m just a sucker for good love stories. So who doesn’t love a good chick flick from time to time (especially when there’s a lovely female friend to watch it with – right fellas *wink wink*)?

So now that we have established my political stance on watching such films here’s a list of my favourite love-related films (in no particular order):

Before Sunrise

Before Sunset

Serendipity

Lost In Translation

How To Train Your Dragon
Blue Valentine
Let The Right One In
Chasing Amy
A Walk To Remember
Jerry Macguire (“You had me at hello!” *cry*)
Breakfast At Tiffany’s (There’s a reason why it’s called a “classic”)
Hitch
Music and Lyrics
The Wedding Singer
Never Been Kissed (Yes, I have a thing for Drew Barrymore…)
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
The Lake House (the Hollywood-ized remake of Korean film Il Mare)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Disclaimer: not all of the above films have happy endings, and not all of them are feel good films.

I keep hearing that The Notebook is great but I can’t remember watching it.

If you’re after other suggestions check out IMDb’s 100 best romantic comedies list.

So what are some of your fave chick flicks? I’d love to know!

By the time that I had arrived in Vientiane on August 18th I had already been toying with the idea of purchasing a motorbike. The idea had a lot to do with my previous experience in Vientiane where all my fellow teacher friends were getting around on motorbikes and I was the sole person cycling. Not that I mind being the odd one out; I quite enjoyed zipping around on the bicycle that I had borrowed from a relative’s neighbour. It had more to do with being considerably slower than my friends when it came to getting anywhere for social gatherings.

So the following day I went to a second hand bicycle dealer and after a couple of hours of examining the many used bikes in the lot and trying to find something decent I discovered that unless I wanted to buy a single speed bicycle I would be looking at paying $150 AUD plus. This was well beyond the budget that I had in mind. I figured that if I was going to pay that much I might as well add another hundred or so dollars and buy a used motorbike.

Enter Jack-Noy and Caroline.

Caroline is a lovely Austrian woman who had been traveling through South East Asia. She had purchased Jack Noy – a second hand motorbike – in Champasak and driven him all over Laos (1700km in 3.5 weeks to be precise). I met Caro through one of my house mates, who had been in touch with Caro earlier when she too (my house mate) was looking to buy a motorbike.

As the story goes Caro was leaving Laos in two days and she had to sell Jack-Noy quickly. She had considered shipping him to Vienna but it would have been an expensive decision. So after a couple of text messages Caro drove Jack over and here’s the cool part – we ended up hanging out for a while. It wasn’t long before I discovered how cool a person she was! So not only had I gained a new (used) motorbike but I had also gained a new friend. It’s funny how things work out.

Jack-Noy is a ’99 model Kolao (Korean made) with a Honda body. None of the electronic dash was working (so I could never tell how fast the bike was going or how much petrol was left in the tank), nor was the auto starter or front brake operational. So I bought the bike for 2.2mil Lao Kip. Caro explained that she had given the bike the name “Jack” because she would sing “Hit the road Jack, don’t come back” when she was on the road with him and the “Noy” was named after the Lao guy who had helped her find the bike. Now that’s just super cool in my opinion.

In the week following the purchase I had three accidents with Jack-Noy-Caro – two on the first day trying to ride Jack down the drive way (that left me with injured knees for a few weeks) and the third accident involved another motorist (no injuries or obvious damages thank goodness). I also had to take JNC to the shop to fix a leaking petrol tank.

Thinking that initial dramas with Jack were over (what else could possibly go wrong, right?) I parked Jack outside my friend’s place one Friday night and a couple of hours later when I came out to go home Jack was gone!

Two days later I ended up on a used motorbike hunt with a relative and I found a good 2nd hand Kolao motorbike for $400.00 USD (= 3,196,000.00 Lao Kip). I’ve yet to name the bike, but it’s blue and it’s a lot newer than Jack. My relative convinced me that it was worth the price point because anything less would probably mean that I’d be riding for a little bit before taking the bike to get something repaired again and again.

At the suggestion of my friend (the one that I was with when Jack went missing) we went to visit the Nai Ban (Chief) of her village. To date it was one of the strangest experiences that I’ve had in Laos. So as we sat there with the chief I recounted my story of how I was visiting my friend and how the bike was gone when I came out. The chief then asked for some very specific details, like whether or not my friend had given the village her passport previously (this is a requirement of any foreigner renting in Laos – apparently one must submit a copy of the passport within a few days of moving into a village or neighbourhood), how much she was paying for rent, who she was renting from, where we both worked and our nationalities. I really felt like I was being interrogated. I guess I was.

The Nai Ban wrote down all the details as we answered his questions. So I became a little uneasy, as if the conversation would lead us to some sort of trouble.

The Nai Ban then proceeded to tell me about the protocols for his village. For example at 10:30pm all the shop keepers are required to close, and alcohol can be consumed until 11:30pm or 12:00am. Noise is prohibited after that time. If any strangers are spotted walking around they are required to come to the Nai Ban’s office for questioning.

At one point I thought the questioning had ended and my friend was indicating that she was hungry. It was at this moment that the Nai Ban mentioned how he enjoyed the Thai music that was playing on the TV screen above us. I thought he was just makng casual conversation so I told him I liked the music also and I I went to stand up. The Nai Ban insisted that we stay for a few minutes. How odd!

It was then that the Nai Ban told us that I should stick around because in a few minutes my bike would be returned to me. Huh? Come again?

He went on to explain that for the safety of the residents if any unidentified motorbikes were seen they would be confiscated until the owner of the bike was identified. This was an apparent strategy to deter any kids from getting any stupid ideas. The whole scenario has a dodgy aspect to it – what if the owner of the motorbike does not know to check with the Nai Ban’s office? What do they do with the bike then?

So all of a sudden I was the proud owner of two motorbikes!

Jack-Noy-Caro has since been sold to a cool Danish guy. It didn’t take long at all, only a week after I posted a “for sale” notice up on the window of the Simeung Supermarket. I got to take Jack for a spin a few times before he was sold and he was still riding well. Though our time together was short-lived it was indeed memorable. You’ll always be my first motorbike Jack-Noy.

Dear Dad,

It was wonderful seeing you again.

Just to sit next to you, share a beer, and our favourite father-son meal – freshly sliced salmon sashimi served with Kikkoman soy sauce (low salt version of course) mixed with hot English mustard – and to listen to you share your knowledge of global politics, who’s fighting who and why (why would I ever need the news when I’ve got you?) — I could not have wished for anything more.

I may not be great at expressing it but I appreciate everything you’ve done for me – providing a roof over my head, cooking your delicious food, and doing the little things that you do.

You’ve taught me a valuable lesson that I carry with me until this day, and being here reminded me of it once more.

You don’t have to speak the words to demonstrate love.

It is through your acts of service, subtle as they sometimes are, that I can feel and observe your love for me and your family. From something as simple as cooking one of your delicious meals to repairing something that needs mending like the roof panels because the rain water was leaking through, I see it so clearly now. That is your language of expression.

The other night we had a disagreement about where I am currently with my life. It might have upset me at the time, and I may have appeared to shut down or rebelled in response to your words, but I was listening. I was listening beyond the words. I realise that my path is not conventional, and not at all what you expected or were taught to expect. So it’s no surprise that you are concerned, and I know that it comes from a place of love and you’re looking out for me. I thank you for that.

I ask that you believe in me, as you did four years ago when I first told you that I was moving overseas.

“Go. Do it while you can. Don’t live with regret.”

Those words are forever burned into my memory. It was because of your support that I released the guilt of leaving our family in Sydney and followed my own path to discovering who I was and what I stood for. You were the flame that lit the spark that propelled me forward. I will always remember this and will be eternally indebted to you.

I choose to walk the path that you had never walked, and despite all the uncertainty, fear, doubt that I may have inside I trust that I am equipped with the wisdom, passion and love necessary to continue onward.

There is still much to learn from you and I look forward to hearing more of your stories.

You wished me luck as we hugged and bid farewell this morning. I believe that I’ve been lucky ever since I came into this world with you as my father.

Thank you for being my personal superhero.

Love,
Your son.