The Barbo Baggins Blog

Alright, to be honest, Thailand was a long time ago. I didn't write at all while I was there, I was too busy being there. And while I remember it so vividly, the order of events is a little jumbled. I can't remember what we did for dinner that first night after exploring Khaosan  Road. I think I was pretty wiped out from the journey so nothing too outlandish, I might have even eaten on the plane? But I vividly remember breakfast the next morning, and every morning actually. Leave it to Ryan to find the closest thing to an American diner in the middle of Thailand. I was in a new country, a new timezone, and a new mindset of not knowing what was coming next, so the familiarity of scrambled eggs and toast was more than welcome. The proprietors of this cozy little hole-in-the-wall establishment welcomed Ryan like a son, something I'd learn to expect and thoroughly appreciate in all the Tai people I encountered. Unlike the Parisians I met during my time in the 5th  arrondissemen

During my semester abroad in New Zealand, I had the extraordinary opportunity to visit a friend in Bangkok, Thailand. I'll do my best to do it justice, but some places are too unique to be described second-hand. If you can, go there. It's worth it. The best way I know how to describe Thailand is to compare it to a carnival. A riot of people. A sensory overload that somehow manages the delicate balance of overwhelming and fun that makes you want to keep going every year. And if Thailand is a carnival, then Bangkok is the giant Ferris wheel in the middle of it all. Stay with me, I promise the metaphor makes sense.... My 10 days in this indescribable place taught me more about humanity than I have learned in my entire life. One such "the more you know" moment occurred when I had a conversation with a local about our national identities. I had been struggling with mine since I was often painted with the broad brush of ugly American tourist. I asked the local what the

This is the last blog post I wrote in 2012 while studying in New Zealand. Because of the emotional nature of some of the content, I chose not to publish it right away. Unfortunately, I didn't publish anything else after saving this draft, either. But I didn't stop writing. I didn't stop traveling. And I never stopped seeking my next adventure. SO, nearly five years later, I continue my story by picking up where I left off.  On living in Auckland: I was talking with a friend the other day (thanks, Alice!) about my blog and took some time to reflect on the whole experience of writing about and trying to explain what my day to day life is like here. It is easy to talk about things like my spring break trip, but how do I describe what it feels like to live in Auckland? On the surface everything seems really simple and beautiful (VERY beautiful) but there is a strange kind of complexity that is just under the surface that I can’t quite seem to describe... maybe it's becaus