khmer dreaming

taiwanese schools had a month off for chinese new year this year. i joined my friend steph in cambodia for half of that time. during those two weeks, a whole world opened up to me. i came back to taiwan with a shifted perspective, new eyes, and strange new pains in my belly...

steph is a fantastic person. she and i met way back in the midwest, when i lived in minneapolis. our bond was initially cemented over antibalas, and then put to the test and exalted when we walked 500 miles of the camino de santiago together. steph is a spanish interpreter in a pediatric hospital; needless to say she has a soft spot for los ninos. cambodia was a hotbed for sweet, savvy, and occasionally sassy youngsters. steph had a knack for drawing a crowd.













along the way, we experienced some very strange and wonderful modes of transportation. the aisles of my first long-distance bus (center) were crammed full of families, livestock, bulging bags of produce, and 3 motorcycles. armrests came in handy for the obstacle course of getting on and off. we also enjoyed the built-for-25, filled-with-70 river boat (left; not pictured) that finally ground to a halt on the banks of the sangkae river after a valiant 10 hour struggle. before it got stuck, it gave us an unbelievable view of floating villages where children boat to school and bodegas bob past. tuk-tuks (right) proved to be the most comfortable and reliable public transportation around. motorcycle drivers hook their bikes up to rickety carts and then drag passengers around town (or take naps in back).












the best, very most special part of cambodia was not the fresh peppercorns, or the lychee-flavored fanta, or tiny from kep, or the wild irrawaddy dolphins, or the jungly temples. mr. sinan and sarom's wild ride was by far Le Top. through a distant connection, we met these two gentlemen who took us on an extraordinary tour of cambodia's most remote, backroad, unbelievably difficult to reach temple ruins. thanks to them, we saw not only angkor wat, but also sambor prei kuk, preah khan, koh ker, preah vihear, and beng mealea. no ox-cart trail was too bumpy, overgrown, or sandy for them. 4 dusty days, 3 nights without electricity or running water, 2 jugs of palm wine & beer, and 1 crucial drinking mantra later, we emerged from the outback covered in red dust and saddle sores. "drink for drunk. drink not drunk, drink for what?" -- sinan from kompong thom












photos: the queen & king of motocross (steph & sinan); steph's kids at sambor prei kuk (l) and on the road to kampot (r); boat kids in prek toal floating village; bus to kratie from kompong cham; batman (who beat spidey, fyi); sinan & sarom at preah khan; a high-end road; sunset before ta seng homestay; apsara dances; bayon faces; blissful elephants

GONG XI FA CAI

long, long ago, in rural china, a group of villagers found themselves in a very uncomfortable predicament. an unruly monster named nian'shou would visit them each year on the chinese new year and mercilessly harass them. they did their best to defend themselves, but he rejected their attempts at pacification and continued on his rampage. he even ate their friends and family members.

one year, a wise villager named vicky reached the end of her rope. she was sick and tired of nian'shou's evil ways. as she considered her options, an unwittingly fabulous boy named jonathan came frolicking to the foreground. it dawned on vicky that jonathan had been the lone adolescent survivor of nian'shou's repeated attacks... and that his sheer fabulousness was what set him apart. she hatched a plan.

taking inspiration from jonathan's avant garde wardrobe, vicky mobilized the villagers to deck the halls in red. she also suggested that they light explosives, as an added precaution. this time, when nian'shou sauntered into town, the villagers were ready. they shook him to his core with their fearless scarlet trimmings and rampant use of gunpowder. nian'shou ran for the hills and was never to be seen again. to this day, in the fight against mythical chinese beasts, red is the color of choice, and firecrackers the sound of music.

*gong xi fa cai & xin nian kuai le*
*happy year of the tiger!*

the little alligator who loved pizza

the little red hen is a cherished barnyard folktale about a carb-craving chicken and her entourage of slothful companions. the little green alligator is a taiwanese adaptation of said folk tale, with an alligator subtituting for a chicken, pizza filling in for bread, and an octopus, fish, frog, and rabbit standing in for the dog, cat, and duck.

for gaoshu elementary's 3-day winter break english camp, we decided to focus on the little red hen. we liked the theme of "no free lunch." we taught the bare bones of the traditional folktale, emphasizing key vocab such as "will you help me?," "no way," and "i don't THINK so!" then we had the kids pick their own animal principals & food craving, and voilà: the little green alligator who had to have a slice. by day 3, the last day of camp, the kids were ready to roll some dough and confront their protagonist in my backyard.

we rolled dough, we spread sauce, we added toppings (dried fish was a big hit & i was the only one surprised), we baked our personal pies... and waited... and finished illustrating our mini books... and waited... and performed... and then ate it all up.


as a surprise grand finale to the winter camp experience, i took everybody on a field trip to my house-- to check out the 3 alligators who live in my backyard! i'm not sure if the kids were most thrilled by the alligators, or by coming over to my house, or by the giant bottles of soda that they brought along for the walk.

photos: alligator creeping in for a closer look; leah's pizza masterpiece; the first batch; sophia's pizza pattern; fun with toppings; eva patiently waiting; the ensemble cast; justin and the gaoshu gator; 20 kids + sarah at my house

little friends

"xiao pengyou" is mandarin for "child," but it translates literally as "little friend." this term of endearment can be almost as charming as the little friends themselves. and the little friends have been gushing charm lately.

last week, gaoshu elementary had its annual 4k fun run. grades 3-6 followed a beautiful course through the farmland that surrounds our school. the teachers shot a pistol, and the great mass of little friends took off at a full sprint. 2 minutes later, half of the runners were good and tuckered out. they stayed the course, though, and through an admirable combination of full sprinting & bedraggled limping, made it to the finish line. i was the only teacher/inspirational jogger on the course.












gaoshu's little league baseball team is officially #1 in pingtung county. along with today's special assembly featuring 2 members of kaohsiung county's La New Bears professional team, the team has enjoyed such accolades as having their picture in the paper AND appearing on a nationally televised game show.


it's the end of the first term here, and that means heaps of junk food, empty desks awaiting 2nd semester workbooks, and pixar short films during english time. pixar is currently on exhibit in kaohsiung, so it seemed appropriate to show the kids some of their short films. turns out these films are genius in more ways than i could ever have predicted: at least 8 of the 13 tell riveting stories without a single word of spoken language. i couldn't get over the kids' reactions, even after 10 repeat screenings. they laughed so hard that some (warren on the left) nearly gave themselves concussions. brian, one of my 5th graders (as seen on tv), dropped everything to re-enact one film-- "geri's game," where geri (geriatric?) plays the most beautiful and solitary game of chess. one difference is that brian played go, but he also won the game.

photos: sarah's class stretches; pink sweater runs past lettuce; banana boys; frankie must pose by taro; mvp on channel 26; gaoshu cheers; warren's pain; 5th graders chortle; brian's game

your patience is requested

happy 2010 and welcome back, etc-roc'ers! we're experiencing some technical and logistical difficulties here at etc roc. not only has mike left the island, but my trusty 2005 ibook is no longer to be trusted. it has crashed, taking with it the last 5 years of photographic, musical, and text-based history. fortunately, i am viewing this only as a temporary setback and not a permanent catastrophe. in the meanwhile, i'll be scaling back my adventures to better complement my tiny, school-issued Eee PC "notebook" computer. tonight's big adventure: getting a library card and checking out books from a high school surrounded by colossal soybean fields and putrid duck farms! coming soon: riveting tales of sweatpant-scouting, mochi-making, and data-stalking.

Guest Blog: Mike's Typical Gaoshu Day

Hi! Mike Long here. I've been visiting Eileen for about three weeks now and have totally fallen in love with Taiwan, and in particular, her lovely town of Gaoshu. I thought I'd take over Eileen's blog for a day and show you my typical day in Taiwan's beautiful south.

First thing most days, I eat a ton of delicious fruit. Taiwan has introduced me to a variety of fruits that I had never seen or tasted before, and many are grown right here in Gaoshu. It's tough to keep up with all the bags of ripe, beautiful fruit that people seem to give us every day. So far, my favorites are Dragonfuit, Starfruit, and Wax Apples (not pictured, but still delicious).

Many days, I hang out with Shu Shu, Eileen's host father/landlord. He's super cool. He has a huge garage where he fixes many of the gigantic trucks that roll through town. When he has free time, he welds the spare parts into sculptures.

One day after welding, Shu Shu and I did some local campaigning for the upcoming election. It wasn't quite what I expected. Apparently shooting fireworks in Gaoshu is a very casual activity. To be performed anywhere - if you have a lot of big ones to launch, the best place is from the back of a small truck. Smaller fireworks can be launched from your driveway or garbage can.

Meanwhile, Eileen is at school, monitoring the scooter dropoff zone, or being mobbed by her adoring fans. I have to say, all of the kids in this town are super cute, and they all totally love Eileen Laoshi.



After school is when the real fun begins. Eileen picks me up on her scooter for our afternoon exploration. Often her co-teacher, Edward, will be our tour guide. Riding scooters is the most efficient, and most fun way to explore the local area .

We take trips to other towns, trips to waterfalls, or sometimes just go for a bike ride.


When evening comes, it's time for music. Whether it's laying down some jams while teaching the local fire department English, or auditioning for Gaoshu's number one metal band, we always try to shred late into the night.



Then after some more fireworks, and perhaps a late night snack of a sausage stuffed inside another sausage, it's bed time. Gotta rest up for the next day of Taiwanese adventures.


Thanks for all the good times Taiwan!