Scribbles Abroad

Surfing The World

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loves to surf, loves Hawaii.

  • Our gateway to Southeast Asia and a Wave Pool along the way

    International flight at 2 pm, aim to be at the airport around noon, pack up in the morning, heck…….there’s enough time for a surf! With the sun risen and a drone pilot ready to shoot a quick one hour tow boogie session, I zipped out from the dock at our house and set out for what I thought would be an epic session. All was going absolutely perfect until I fucked up and BANG! I got run the fuck over by the boogie as a result of negligence due to rushing. The controller switched from auto-summon mode to manual mode as I dunked it under water while swimming to my board. I’m honestly very lucky it wasn’t worse. At first I was wondering if I could keep surfing. With all the blood gushing out, I realized my session was over. I booked it home as fast as I could. Applied a bunch of ace bandages and headed for the closest ER. Kapiolani ER was rad. No line and out of there in under two hours. I actually made it back home to finish packing although Louise had already done 95% of it.

    Since there isn’t a direct flight from Honolulu to Vietnam, we needed to get as close as we could with Hawaiian Airlines. In this case, it was to South Korea. Our family loves Korean food and in an exciting twist to the stopover, Korea has one of the better wave pools in the world too! But I had 29 brand new stitches that were put in 4 hours before getting on the plane! I know doc told me not to surf, but she already knew the reality.

    You already know but Louise is the best, she booked me up front in first class and I lucked out and got it. Flying standby can be very stressful, but it can also be quite rewarding at times. This being one of them. With the merger of Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines, we are not sure how many more opportunities we will ever get to fly First Class and we’re hoping this merger doesn’t effect that. Challenge is, it most likely will.

    Landing at night, after a 9 hour flight, we figured we’d grab an apartment close to the airport with ambitions to take the public transpo to the Wave Park in the morning. After grabbing some local Korean food we called it a night, it was around 3 am Hawaii time so the kids were losing it.

    The next morning we were up early ready to go thanks to some solid jetlag. After checking the price of an Uber versus the public transpo, we realized it would be cheaper and faster to just grab da Uber. We headed towards the Wave Park but decided to stop at the local Oido fish market first to do some exploring since our reservations to surf weren’t till later in the day.

    Fish Market pretty cool, but the visuals of fish in tanks and the occassional shark really turned us off, especially Zo. She’s really does not vibe with that. While in that zone I bought more waterproof bandages in preparation for the surf later that day. Once that was secure, off to the wave park we went.

    If you want to experience the Wave Park in Korea, here are a few tips.

    Make reservations for the “Advanced” setting ahead of time. Especially if you want to surf the right. We didn’t get to surf the right because it was booked out.

    The intermediate wave looks fun enough, but we didn’t surf it.

    The beginner wave was still too challenging for our kids. But they did let them surf it and Louise pushed them into a few. After missing a few waves and one solid wipeout each, the kids were embarrassed and relegated themselves to the inside zone they call the Bay. All good. Something to look forward to in the future as they get better at surfing and we travel back.

    To get all your family into the park, they all need to buy entrance tickets. But if they’re not surfing, you can buy multiple sessions for yourself and have them use one of the sessions as their entrance…..I think.

    There is a height limit for surfing. You gotta be at least 150 cm to surf but you can avoid this limit for your kids by submitting video of them catching their own waves. At least that is what we did and they were cool with it. Also, you might not need to rent a wetsuit. We were cooking in ours. This was September 30th. Boardshorts and a top should suffice for water above 70 f (20 c)

    The area was kinda a ghost town. Lots of construction going on but no people! Of the handful of restaurants that were open, all were empty. There was a scattering of locals coming and going with their surfboards but everything else was like a surreal simulation that had not been populated with humans yet. I’m sure this will all change in a few years, but at the moment, in 2025, there was an eerie dystopian vibe. Regardless, we made the most of it, let the kids run wild, and truly enjoyed our time despite the odd vibes.

    My conclusion on the Wave Park, hey it’s not bad! But it is also not great. As an avid surfer, the settings they allow the general public to use without booking a private session are lackluster and borderline boring. But as a beginner or intermediate, what a great way to quickly improve. That being said, if you need to hone in your hacks, I can’t think of a better way to get your reps in. In one hour you can get up to 18 waves if you have the stamina. I was absolutely exhausted and even ended my last session 10 minutes early because I was pooped…..and also I was getting a little worried about the 29 stitches freshly sewn into my flesh and the failed waterproof bandaids that were falling off. In total, I did two advanced sessions. The best wave setting they allowed us to have was T2, so aim for a session with that.

    We headed back to the hotel for a solid sleep and then it was off to Danang, Vietnam! We chose to start in Danang because of the price of flights. It was half the price to fly into Danang versus Hanoi. These things fluctuate so do your research and be flexible. Once you’re in Vietnam, it’s easy to get around.

    Our upcoming blog posts will feature comparisons from when we visited in 2009 versus now in late 2025, this time with kids.

    Quick tip regarding Vietjet AIR, review this video and make sure you list your whole name, including middle name in the first name block of the reservation.

  • Sri Lank(brah)

    We got to Sri Lanka just in time for the New Year.  Landing at 12:30 AM on New Years Eve meant that we had to stay the night in Colombo and we tried to make our lives easier by using Hotels.com to arrange lodging and a shuttle to the hotel from the airport.  We were expecting the good ‘ol dude with our names waiting for us at baggage claim.  We wanted to arrive in style like stars at Colombo Airport but the Sri Lank(brah) wasn’t there!  After catching a cab to the hotel we found out that Hotels.com screwed up and didn’t let them know we needed a shuttle even though I had confirmed a shuttle with them.  Lesson?  Screw Hotels.com.

    Mix of random rolls and buns filled with curries and meats.  You only pay for what you eat.

    The next day was New Years Eve.  We caught a mini-bus to Midigama from Colombo which took around 6 hours.  The drive cost about $100 USD, but on the way back up only $70.  On the way down we stopped at a local eatery where they spoke no english and just asked them to bring us what they thought we’d like, using charades.  The mix of pastries was good and they just charged us for what we ate.  Sri Lanka is cheap and if you like curries you get cheap curry!  They also let me plug in my camera charger or at least we thought they did.  When I asked the Sri Lank(brah) if I could, using charades, he gave me a head waggle.    The most confusing thing a first time visitor to Sri Lanka will run into is the way they answer questions.  It is this weird head waggle which makes them look like bobble heads.  You’re not sure if the are saying yes or no because its a head gesture mixing the two.  We took it as a “kind of” or “maybe” and I’m pretty sure it means “ok”.  It takes some getting used to and frustrated us at times but overall it made us giggle.  Read this blog about it that we found.  Also this little vid kinda explains it too.

    This is an example of the waggle:

    After our feed we were back on the road and every few kilometers we’d (or at least I) see a fireworks stand and I couldn’t help myself.  We stopped at one and I went ballistic buying as much as I could!  I bought a bunch of rockets and home-made bombs!  Midnight would be explosive.

    On our way down we got to see a good portion of the country.  The devastation of the tsunami is not fully apparent until you see a boat washed far inland or look closely at the homes left near the ocean.  The foliage has grown back and overtaken a lot of the destruction.  Nearly 40,000 people were killed in Sri Lanka alone.  The coastal zone is pretty flat allowing the tsunami to track inland pretty far.  Despite the destruction and ongoing civil war the people still seemed to have a pretty happy go lucky demeanor and were really nice.  The war with the Tamil Tigers in the press seems to be all but won and we witnessed no hostility, but we did see many many road blocks with sand bags surrounding big guns just in case.

    When we finally got to Midigama we found that the place where we wanted to stay was almost fully booked.  They only had one room left and it was really close to the road.  We decided to look around a bit but Rams place remained the best choice so we went back.  Rams is situated right in front of the best break in the area and came highly recommended by our friends Rainbow and Lot from Holland.  We met them in the Philippines and when we were traveling so were they.  After spending months in Sri Lanka they said we had to go check it out.  They liked the place so much that they were actually on their way back to Rams place a month later!  The food is great, the surf is perfect for the beginner to intermediate surfer, its cheap, Ram and his staff are great hosts, and its fun.

    Curry Rice Plate for breakfast, lunch and dinner!  The stuff was the bomb!

    If you go to Rams, try to get a room as close the ocean as possible because the noise from the road is drowned out by the lapping of the ocean on the shore and the breaking waves out on the reef.  But the rooms near the road had the ocean filtered out by the crazy busses and cars honking their horns and using their close to non existant brakes.  Sleep was not peaceful unless you had earplugs in and with the heat, if you did have your earplugs in, your ears sweat and you got that nasty wet earplug feeling.

    After unpacking and jumping in for a quick surf it was time to figure out what to do for the New Years.  We decided to go to a beach called Marisa down the coast a bit where there are a bunch of hotels and restaurants on the sand.  Our taxi drivers were locals from across the street of Rams and were hilarious.  When they found out that I had fireworks they promptly grabbed a few and started throwing them at cars and buses on our way to Marisa.  They were lighting them in their mouth like they were ciggarettes!

    When we got to the beach we just had to decide what party to go to.  We crashed a Russian party and after a giant Lion beer we were asked to leave.  I guess we didn’t look Russian.  The Russians congregate to this beach and the locals seemed to speak more Russian than English.  Anyways we just hopped to the next party and had a great time.  Our drivers were getting a bit tipsy so we bid them farewell and enjoyed the rest of the night party hopping without them.

    Lion Beer best served ice cold and with a roar of attitude.  That white bracelet I have on was from a Buddhist monk that came by Rams during a parade.  It stayed on for two months and it was just a piece of string!

    Our tuk-tuk drivers

    We found a sober taxi to catch home because the roads here are deathly.  Two days before we got to Rams place a bus crashed into their wall.  Accidents were an hourly occurrence and when you traveled on them it was easily to understand why.  Of all the places we traveled I think the bus drivers here were the worse.  They pack the buses to the brim, the roads are only two lanes, and they just pass and if you are the smaller car you are expected to pull over or be mowed over.

    Our sober driver, we think.

    The next few days we spent surfing fun Midigama rights.  It’s the only wave we surfed while in Sri Lanka.  The reason was that this was pretty much the only wave we found worth surfing.  The other waves in the area we found were slopey and slow.  At least this wave had a bit of consequence, was hollow, fast and fun!  Louise got tossed on one wave and landed on the reef butt first.  She now has a nice scar on her ass crack.  On our first surf some of the visitors thought we were crazy for not wearing booties, but you don’t really need them.

    Getting some shade, Sri Lanka is hot!  So is the water which is barely a relief.

    The wave has a fun barrel section on the beginning and the end. Really easy to make it out of them.

    The little local kid was surfing with a board missing a fin, I hooked him up and he was very thankful.  They don’t get much in the way of surfing materials down there.  Bring and share.  He was surfing the best out of any of the locals and was only 14 or so.

    The beach at Rams.

    We got kind of antsy while in Sri Lanka.  With only a month left in our travels we had planned to spend 3 of the 4 weeks here in Sri Lanka.  But the surf was just mediocre and our sleeping arrangment was lackluster and the nice rooms weren’t emptying out for another week.  We found some internet in someones living room down the street and you paid them what you felt was fair, no set price.  There we spent our time trying to arrange how to get back to Bali.  We found really cheap tickets from Colombo to Kuala Lumpur then KL to Bali on Air Asia.  For $150 USD each we pulled the trigger and were leaving in two days.  We had spent 4 days in Sri Lanka and were headed to one of our favorite places in 2 more.

    With just two days left in Sri Lanka we decided to make the most of it.  We surfed our brains out in order to get ready for Bali and to do some shopping to practice our bargaining.  The locals were really inviting and we got to visit many locals houses.  They would invite us in, offer us food and drinks, show us pictures, and ultimatley take pictures of and with us.

    Taking pictures of Louise.  Everyone had camera cell phones.

    Hanging out on Rams little beach was nice and some of the guests did just that.  Many of the visitors at Rams were from the UK and were on tanning missions.  Check out this lady, she was lobster red but didn’t give up.  I think they were looking for the first sign of blistering and then they would stop.  A perfect tan.

    We spent some days just reading our books on the beach.  I was rocking out to Speaker of the Dead, I’m a small time Sci-Fi geek.  Louise also honed in on her coconut frawn hat making skills.

    Don’t know what these fruits or nuts were but they had all kind.  I think they were called the swollen left nut.

    On our last night in Sri Lanka we decided to try out Marisa one last time but thats not what happened.  While walking around the locals area of town a man approached us and asked us if we spoke English.  When we responded with a yes he became ecstatic.  He bought us some bread that we were trying to buy and then insisted that we go to his house and have dinner with his family.  We were a bit timid because we didn’t really trust him.  When traveling you have to have your guard up and trust is something earned.  This has kept us out of a lot of trouble but at the same time makes you miss out on opportunities.  Its a fine line to walk but on this occasion we decided to take the risk and it was well worth it.  We jumped into a tuk-tuk with him and we stopped at a vegetable stand where he bought some veggies and then we stopped again at a fish stand on the beach where he had us pick a fish.  Then we went to his house up a dark dirt road.  I had my guard up just in case but the more we learned about him and his family the easier it was for us to relax.  His kids gutted the fish and his wife cooked it in curry while he took a shower.  His drunk buddy enteretained us with his attempt at english and his infatuation with Bob Marley.  Bob is a huge influence here, ganja is easily available and cheap although its shitty weed.  Reggae music blares from stereos and all the young kids sing Bob songs for you.

    His drunk buddy:

    Dinner was served but they refused to eat with us.  They just sat there and watched us eat.  With no utensils we ate as much as we could.  When our plates were emptied our host placed more food on them.  Finally we were allowed to stop and I was just waiting for the drugs inserted into our food to drop us but thank god they didn’t.  Our hosts were honest to goodness great people and we really did have a good time.

    Our host in the market showing us a pic of him and a giant sail fish he caught.  He just randomly carries this pic around.

    We left Rams at midnite and arrived at the airport at dawn.  There was a lounge open that accepted our Priority Pass card so we waited for our plane in style.  While walking to our gate we snapped these two photos of ads that looked just like my sister.  If she came to Sri Lanka or to India she’d be a movie star, or at least a billboard commercial model in Colombo airport.

    My sis getting her hair done, now compare to the shots above.  She just got married!

    Lou passed out early morning in the lounge at Colombo Int’l.

    Sri Lanka was a cool country but it didn’t rate up there with our favorites.  I think our biggest gripe was the fact that the main highway followed the coastline therefore degrading the laid back beach lifestyle it could have.   We kind of felt bad leaving Sri Lanka without exploring more, but we did score Midigamas Right really good, met a bunch of locals, had many laughs, and were now on our way to Bali!  If you are an intermediate to beginner surfer this place is perfect for helping you step up to the next level because there are very easy waves and then some that a bit more difficult but not very life threatening plus we didn’t hear of or see any sharks.  We will go back……..when they make a highway inland away from the beach, or we’ll go to a different part of the country.

    Look closely, they sell SMAK right on the street here.

    Check this kids head bobble action!

  • Bangkok Powershop

    Tiny street market near Khao San Road

    On our way to Sri Lanka we had an 8 hour layover in Bangkok.  To some this would be an annoyance.  Who wants to spent 8 hours cooped up in an airport?  I on the other hand was looking forward to this 8 hour opportunity to shop till I dropped in Bangkok.  Follow these simple steps to make the most out of your ridiculously long layover:

    Step 1: Take any belonging that you don’t want to drag with you through the city to the Baggage Storage area on the second floor of the terminal.  They’ll keep your bags safe and sound while you rummage though the city.  It cost around $3 a bag for 24 hours.  Or check all your bags through to final destination.  We did that with our surfboards.

    Step 2: Head down to the ground floor and buy a ticket at the Airport Express counter for the shuttle bus, number AE2.  This bus will drop you off a block away from Khao San Road and near the large open markets.  Keep in mind that there are many shopping areas thoughout Bangkok but of the ones we visited the Khao San Markets had the best selection.  Remeber where you got dropped off because this is where the shuttle will pick you up to take to back to the airport.  The bus ride into town takes ~45 minutes and cost ~$5 one way.

    Airport Express, AE2


    Step 3: Now that you’re in the main shopping area you have some options.  Walk though the streets and shot till you drop.  Remember to negotiate.  Take whatever they say and cut it at least in half.

    One of the street markets

    If you’re not into shopping there are many famous sites within walking distance from Khao San Road.  Check out the Grand Palace (Wat Phra Kaew), Wat Pho, Sanam Luang (Royal Grounds), Wat Rajanadda and the Golden Mount (Phu Khao Thong).

    Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew

    Golden Monument, Phu Khao Thong

    You can also go for a ride down the Khlong (canal) ferry which is a great way to see more of the city.


    Kahi and I spent the first couple hours walking though the steet markets buying all sorts of goodies.  Here I am like Santa Claus.


    These little ladies try to get you to buy everything and anything watchout they’re really good at sales.

    Kahi made a new friend, her name was Frank.

    Step 4: After shopping for a few hours its time to unwind.  Enter one of the many spas in the area and treat youself to a $5-10/hour long back and shoulder massage.  These spas are everywhere and offer a wide range of services ranging from full manicures and pedicures to full body massages.  They’re very affordable too!

    So cheap the whole family can afford a little pampering

    Fish foot spa, all the rage throughout SE Asia.  Sit back and relax while these little fish nibble the dead skin and bacteria off your feet.


    There are also quite a few dental clinics that offer a wide range of dental treatments.  While I continued to shop Kahi got is his teeth whitened.  It was $150 for the whitening treatment plus a free cleaning.  The treatment took one hour and the results were great.

    The lovely ladies that took great care of Kahi’s teeth

    Original tooth shade on the right and the whitened on the left.


    Step 5: Now its time to head back to the airport to mail out your box of newly purchased goodies and catch your connecting flight.  The Airport Express shuttle picks you up where they dropped you off.  At the Airport Express kiosk they have a list of departure times.  The ride is ~45 minutes back to the airport.

    Airport Express kiosk near Khao San Road

    Step 6: Once you get back to the airport head to the fourth floor of the terminal.  There is a post office in the far right back corner.  I want to say its open 24 hours but I’m not 100%, check with them before you leave the airport to begin your journey.  They have boxes for sale or you can try to get a free box from one of the vendors.  It cost us around $70 to mail 20K or 40lbs to the US.  They don’t take credit card so make sure you have enough cash, there is a cash machine right next to the post office.  Now all you have to do is catch your flight

    You no longer have to pay the 750batt airport departure tax at the airport, they have included it in the price of your ticket.

    In the end we were able to make the most out of our ridiculously long layover.  A little sight seeing, a little pampering, and a whole lot of shopping.  Everything got shipped off and we still had some time to relax before boarding our connecting flight to Sri Lanka.  Now we just cross our fingers the box makes it to Hawaii.

  • Ninh Binh

    We were on our last days in Cambodia when a typhoon ripped through Ninh Binh and Hanoi, the second major typhoon since we’d gotten to SE Asia! Being cautious as a result of the fires in Lahaina, Maui and the following pushback on visitors by the locals, I wanted to make sure that we were not going to be a burden to the community and that the locals actually wanted visitors. I was able to call our homestay and they said all was fine and that Ninh Binh was open for business. I also jumped on the reddit forums and the sentiment seemed the same. Slightly worried and willing to pivot if we needed to, we took the gamble and decided to go.

    We had a late flight out of Siam Reap and landed in Hanoi with not enough time to get down to Ninh Binh so we spent the night in Hanoi at a little hotel without an elevator. We had to walk up 6 floors. Thank goodness the host carried our bags. The next morning we negotiated the two hour drive down to Ninh Binh for 1,000,000 dong. We’re millionaires in Vietnam!! Our drive was pretty gnar. We though it was only a one hour drive but it was 2. The driver was super eggy, driving nuts and yelling at other drivers. Then trying to justify to me why he was yelling. At the rest stop, bruddah man drank coffee and ripped the tobacco bong. It was an interesting experience to say the least. When he offered to drive us back to Hanoi at the end of our Ninh Binh experience, I gave him the “maybe” that meant “hell no”. Haha!

    Pulling into Ninh Binh was a trip. I had seen pictures before but they didn’t do it justice! The place is mind blowing! There are places on earth that you gotta wonder at the potential divine creation of geological features. As if pulled from the ground, these limestone cliffs mimicking dull dragon teeth just don’t make sense! The scenery in and surrounding Ninh Binh was breathtaking and our home for the next few days was in the thick of all this beauty. Like a Tahitian bungalow, but on fresh water, our unit with its giant windows, gave us a 180 degree view of pure gorgeous.

    One of the best ways to find out things to do is through asking others, and when we arrived, we met another couple traveling with kids and asked them what’s good! Their advice pointed us to a hidden gem that we visited on day one and we ended up being the only guests on the river.

    I guess goat is a big thing in this part of Vietnam so being adventurous in all that we do, we tried their specialty. The goat meat was actually very good. It’s a rich meat that has a unique savory flavor but you get to a point where it can be a little overwhelming.

    When in Ninh Binh you can explore on your own, take tours, or do a bit of both. The latter is what we did. We mixed exploring on our own via our motobikes, but then engaged in a few standalone tours not part of any package and got to experience a more authentic experience by not being tied to a timeline.

    Trang An was my favorite boat tour. We strategically decided to go at the end of the day, catching the last boats allowed out for the day. There was ZERO line and the lovely woman paddling our boat was delightful. This chill AF stroll on the water took you through a world of enchantment mixed with cool pagodas and other features like the set of King Kong. This is a must, but go super early or late in the day. Otherwise it can get very crowded.

    Buffalo Cave was the spot my wife was super keen to go to. I was in a shitty mood for some reason so I was over it, but my wife and kids loved it. The kids got to fish and feed/hold the baby ducks. The cave itself is a meh. But the spot is chill and worth checking out. But for me, it lands at the lower end of things to explore.

    Mua Cave was pretty mental. Kinda touristy but still worth it. The hike is fun and I felt it for days after, not because I’m not in shape but rather, Louise forgot her phone at the top so I ran back up from the bottom, and then ran back down. My legs were shaking once back down and then they proceeded to hurt for the next few days. But I got some solid brownie points for it. Win!

    Van Long was a bit out of the way, but not that much. This was another cool boat tour that I’m on the fence to as to whether it is worth it, but if you have time…….do it. It’s beautiful and provides a bit of a different vibe than Tam Coc or Trang An. Much more nature vibe and less touristy.

    Bai Dinh Pagoda was like Disneyland built a giant Pagoda. It was really cool and relatively empty, but if I were to visit Ninh Binh again, I’d give this one a skip.

    We skipped Tam Coc because it looked super touristy and similar to Trang An. It was in the heart of the madness of Ninh Binh. Seemed like a tourist trap so we avoided it. Who knows, maybe we missed out, but I don’t think we did.

    Our favorite part of Ninh Binh would have to be riding around on our motorbikes with the kids on the back. The freedom to explore provided a unique experience that can’t be matched. Your day exploring is the only one like it. You have the freedom to go where you want, when you want. Drive slowly through villages on unknown roads or engage with random locals in their towns as you navigate from one end of Ninh Binh to the other. Motorbikes are the way and learning how to do it safely in a place like Ninh Binh is ideal.

    Now that we have been to both Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay, we can provide our thoughts in comparison. Many people consider between the two and although I’d suggest checking both out, if it were a time issue and you could only choose one, I’d choose Ninh Binh. My main reasons would be in authenticity and diversity. You can explore a huge amount of area without restriction and interact with a plethora of local Vietnamese. On the boat in Ha Long Bay, you’re kinda stuck. It’s beautiful but your on the tour’s itinerary. You don’t have the same freedom. So, in conclusion, if you can do both, do it. But if you have to choose only one, head to Ninh Binh.

  • Angkor Wat is still amazing

    We were afraid tourism over the past 15 years would have changed Angkor Wat, but I’m happy to report, although it’s changed in Siam Reap, the experience in Angkor Wat is still well worth it as an unforgettable component of any SE Asia trip. The opportunity to see the “eighth” wonder of the world, which in my opinion is way cooler than a bunch of the other seven, is a bucket list item well worth the journey. So much so that this is our second time here! And you know what? We’d come again for sure!!!!

    Here is our blog post from our first trip there 17 years ago in December 2008. Have a read and compare it to this trip. Pic below of Liz, Louise and myself from that trip.

    When planning a trip to Angkor Wat, consider the time of year and give yourself 3 days. We’ve found that by the 3rd day, the glittery wonder of the magnificence of the place starts to fade but when returning again at a later date, that glitter is reignited! Better to make multiple trips with years between than trying to see it all in one extended trip. Also, the weather! We visited our first time in December 2008. It was a little chilly and downright cold early in the mornings for sunrise, but by midday very comfortable. This time October 2025, the weather was sunny and partly cloudy with thunderstorms mixed in for excitement. The heat was nearly unbearable from 10:30-3:00PM. You’re drenched in your own sweat within 20 minutes. If we had our choice, we’d only come back in late November to mid February because of the heat. I can only imagine summer time in Cambodia. It would nearly be unbearable!

    Now, quick unpaid plug in hopes that you can leverage this opportunity like we did and ball out for a moment. I’ve got this one credit card, the American Express Platinum, that although it has an annual membership rate that is one of the highest in the industry, it has one of the best collection of perks. If used correctly, you can get many multiples of return on your annual fee. Staying at Fine Hotels or IHG Hotels is one way. Every six months they give you $300 credit on your stay, $100 to spend at the hotel, an early check-in, a late 4pm checkout, free breakfasts, and a free upgrade. Therefore, twice a year, we try to use this perk. It’s not always possible because hotels can be so expensive, but in places like Cambodia, you can make it work! The Park Hyatt was $200 a night, so in the end we paid $300 for three nights in a Park Hyatt after our credit, plus got all the other perks! Staying bougie also had some other great perks like daily massages, amazing pool where we played capture the rock, and just an overall amazing property and staff. Highly recommend this credit card and this property. If you want to get this credit card, do me a favor and use this link. We’ll both get a bonus. Ok, now back to Angkor Wat.

    Our Grab driver from the airport was also a certified tour guide at Angkor Wat. Tourism is down sharply from the peak prior to covid and there are over a thousand tour guides not getting the work they used to. They’ve had to resort to other opportunities and in this case, a Grab Driver to earn additional money. We really liked our driver and when we got to know him, towards the end of the long drive from the airport, he offered his services as a guide. Not pushy, just offered. After comparing prices at the hotel and elsewhere, we decided to hire Mono. WhatsApp him: +855 69 311 605.

    Mono was a great guide and a solid way to start your Angkor Wat experience. He helped us get our tickets and drove us around in AC to the temples. But it was so damn hot that we only made it half a day before the kids melted. That means, we only got to see one temple that morning. It was partially because the kids could give two shits when they were uncomfortably hot, despite our encouragement to listen about the details of the different eras of Angkor Wat. I was loving it, but caved in and we went back to the hotel for a few hours to cool off, eat, and relax. Then Mono picked us back up and we returned to visit Angkor Thom (The temple where the filmed Lara Croft Tomb Raider). We checked out a few more temples and then watched the sunset over the moat of Angkor Wat. It was beautiful and a surreal end to day 1 of temple exploring.

    The kids weren’t into the guided tour and we didn’t really need it after day one. We now had our bearings, knew the basics of temple navigation, and a basic understanding of the history. It was now time to go on our own. That being said, we are extremely grateful for the guided day 1 and would recommend that for sure for others or those that don’t want to ride bikes.

    On day two our hotel rented us two bikes that had seats on the back to pack the kids. The ride to Angkor Wat from our hotel in central Siam Reap would have taken us at least 25 minutes and in this heat, Louise and I would have melted. So we found a Remork (large Tuktuk) driver that was creative enough to tie up our bikes to his ride and take us all the way there, hang out for a few hours, and then bring us back in the dark at the end of the day. This might seem sketch in some countries but we felt safe and trusting. That is something we’ve felt more of here than other parts of the world. Granted there are scams, but Vietnam and Cambodia have felt safer to us then most parts of SE Asia, and the US for that matter.

    So off we went, bikes tied up on the trip to Angkor Wat for day two. We waited till 2pm to go in order to avoid some of the heat, and we aimed for shaded temples as much as we could. The ability to explore with the flexibility of a bike made the trip so memorable and it brought back memories when Louise, Liz and myself explored here in a similar fashion in 2008.

    Day 2 was such a success that we did it again on our third day! Louise figured out how to get us up on top of the wall at Angkor Thom and we explored zones that few got to see. While riding up on the wall, it was like an elevated jungle trail. We didn’t see anyone else the whole time we were up there!The freedom to explore by pedal bike surpassed even the motor bike. We could pick our bikes up and carry them through tricky spots, ride through some temple areas, and access zones that would have taken to long to walk to. When you go, make sure you take one day soak in the intricacies of this magical place through the lens that only a pedal bike can provide.

    Pic of us from 2008

    Pics of us, same pose kinda from 2025

    Child labor was a real thing, just like the last time we were here. Kids were working everywhere. Not just in their family shops and restaurants, but also begging in the streets, and selling Knickknacks. It’s really hard to say no to the cutest of kids begging or selling a bracelet for a dollar. But giving in to this action only creates more of it. In the end, I continue to struggle with this one. It’s a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation.

    Eating dinner down by the river each night was a great way to taste authentic foods and integrate with the local community. I would avoid Pub Street which just seemed like a massive tourist trap.

    In closing, we really couldn’t come this far from Hawaii to Southeast Asia and not revisit Angkor Wat. With that being said, I’d come back here again in a flash! Next time we’re gonna aim to come in December or January when it’s much cooler. To reiterate what we said earlier, now in early October, our shirts were drenched in sweat by 9:00 AM and they stayed that way till just before sunset. The last time we came in December, it was actually cold in the mornings and then comfortable for the rest of the day.

    Coming back to Cambodia was an epic decision.

  • Hoi An

    Returning to Hoi An was filled with anticipation. Last time we were here in December of 2008, Louise and I were falling deeper in love with each other and also now had a friend in tow. Louise’s college buddy Liz joined us for Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. Unfortunately she couldn’t join us this time as she recently had a baby. Maybe we can all come back together when her kid(s) are a little older.

    17 years ago us in 2008 with Liz in tow

    The Hoi An of 2008 was a quiet sleepy town that felt like a wanderers paradise. Not many people around and minimal tours to take. Just grab a bike and explore, and that is what we did. Hotels were less than $20 a night, bikes were free, a beer was a dollar, and meals were around $2. I’m glad to say some of this still intact. But what has for sure changed is that this sleepy town is now fully awake. High on the caffeine rush of Tourism, Hoi An is now an economic engine sucking in tourists, and spitting out tourists with bags full of custom clothes, lanterns, and other Vietnamese items.

    2009 Then

    2025 Now

    Despite the changes, we still found Hoi An to be amazing, worth it, and charming. Granted there were about 100x more people there, but you could still find your solitude and peace amongst the madness. Slow down and chill between your fittings for your custom clothes and enjoy a coffee or 10.

    This time around, Hoi An is where I discovered salted coffee. A coffee that has a salty cream on the top and turns your morning coffee routine into a savory delight. So hence, I had a lot.

    While in Hoi An here are the following things we did and my rating as to whether they were worth it.

    Get custom clothes made: Recommend

    The tailoring of Hoi An is world renown and their ability to turn around custom outfits quickly makes the process work for a traveler. Prices have gone up by double, maybe triple, but compared to the western world, this is still very affordable. I would suggest taking an article of clothing you like and getting it replicated. Or having photos of exactly what you want from multiple angles to allow them to make them. We got Louise and Zo two matching outfits and one other for Louise. I got three pairs of slacks and a linen shirt. For price comparisons, my tailored pants with very high end fabrics cost me about $55 and it took three fittings to get it perfect. I’m a bit worried though as I am currently fat for my body and am hoping to lose some weight. That being said, they tailored all of our items to be adjustable if needed, by a professional tailor that is. But you know Louise would probably be the one to take a stab at it.

    PICS FROM THEN – 2009, Kahi 29 and Louise 24

    Getting Clothes made in 2008

    NOW 2025

    Getting Clothes made in 2025

    Coconut Basket Tour: Highly Recommend

    These baskets (boats) were created during the French occupation of Vietnam due to the French’s excessive taxing of the Vietnamese. They had this one specific tax for boats but defined them as water craft with a bow and a stern. The creative and entrepreneurial Vietnamese created a circular boat to circumvent this tax and the move stuck. These boats are now prolific in the Hoi An and Danang area. Not sure if they’re elsewhere.

    Taking a ride in them is fun and affordable. Some tours actually have them included in the tour, which we found out on our cooking tour. Therefore, we ended up doing TWO circle boat tours.

    They take you out and you get to see how they work, explore the river waterways, fish a little, and if you’re up for it, go for a spin! They’ll literally spin you until you’re very dizzy. Don’t fall out though, the water doesn’t look safe to fall in, not because of some giant creature that will eat you but rather microscopic ones from the mediocre sewage and run off systems that empty into the waterways.

    In the end, we loved this tour! We did it twice! Great for the kids.

    Cooking Class: Kinda Recommend

    Hey, the wife and kids loved it, but me, I was mixed on it. If you got kids and are looking for something to do, then this is actually pretty cool. Great bonding experience and it came with the extra coconut basket tour. Don’t expect a deep dive into spices and techniques. The class we took was very basic but the food we cooked tasted great. If you’re looking for a deeper dive into culinary processes, then the standard tour is not it. But if you’re looking for something fun, good for the kids, and affordable, then this is it. Our tour cost us $20/each for adults and $10/each for the kids. It ran from 8 AM to noon. They picked us up from the hotel, took us to a local market, then we did the boat tour, and finished at the cooking school.

    Spa Day: Highly Recommend

    Zo has been squawking about getting her hair dyed for ages and with the pricing in Hawaii, it just isn’t feasible. But here? Heck yeah! So we spent a late afternoon into the night at the Hair Salon/Spa where Louise and Zo got their hair done while Ko’a and I got side by side massages, I got a shave, and they cleaned out ears! The stuff they were pulling out was shocking!

    In the end, Zo’s hair turned out great. Louise’s a week later now, is gorgeous but a little off. And Ko’a and I can hear everything now like it’s our new superpower.

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    Cruising Around Town on Bikes: Highly Recommend

    Most places that you stay at will have bikes that you can rent for free or for a small fee. There are also lots of places to rent them. Another option is to rent a motorbike, but be warned, riding motorbikes in the busy cities is pretty advanced riding. Practice in the countryside before attempting it in the city.

    Head to the rice fields and get out of the town. Ride through the little villages on the outskirts. Stop to say hi to the locals. Go exploring!

    Walking around the Old Town: Highly Recommend

    Granted it’s pretty crazy now a days, but the vibe is still a vibe. The gorgeous architecture, lanterns lit at night, and boats on the water create a surreal environment that makes you feel like you’re living in a movie. Don’t skip Hoi An.

    Now let’s move on….time for Danang!

  • Da Nang Delivers

    We pulled up to Da Nang with the goal to connect with a buddy that had flown up from South Vietnam. Our buddy Olly, originally from Aotearoa, now calls Vietnam home and is one of the few foilers in the country. He was stoked on our visit and a bonus was that we timed our trip perfectly for the best surf window of the year.

    The quick 45 minute drive from Hoi An had us in the heart of Da Nang in a nice enough hotel just a few blocks from the beach. A hotel with a pool was a must for our kids and many of these hotels had them up on the roof. It’s so darn hot, so if the ocean isn’t appealing, the pool is usually perfect. After heavy rains, or a typhoon, the ocean gets pretty churned up. But the rest of the time, the ocean was pretty darn clean!

    After unloading our stuff, we headed straight to the beach and quickly found our buddy Ollie. The brown guy with the foil! Sounds a lot like me. The ocean is so warm, you can keep swimming late into the night. Parts of the beach get lit up with lights making night swimming appealing. You could even surf if you wanted!

    We spent the next three days surfing, foiling, eating, contemplating, exploring and just soaking in the beach vibes we didn’t realize even existed in Vietnam. The beach vibes seemed similar to Rio de Janeiro except this place was extremely safe and less crowded. Maybe a bit like Waikiki really.

    The stitches are still in. No infection. The bandages suck. Didn’t work. Probably shouldn’t be going in the ocean, but the waves were perfect! Couldn’t help myself. HAHAHAHA!

    Swimming was confined to a smaller area but surfing was fair game anywhere outside of the swimming area. The surf was super fun and we got a mix of knee high to overhead glass that was fun for all levels. The bigger sets closed out easily but I know that there are some spots that had to have been lighting up. Not necessarily a surf destination, there is still a ton of potential if you happen to find yourself here while traveling around SE Asia.

    We planned on going to Ba Na Hills but after seeing the cost for the whole family, we decided against it. The company VinWorld creates lots of attractions around Vietnam and they all seem to be tourist traps. For some reason, you get drawn to them and this company is raking in the dough from the visitor industry. They’re kind of like a Disney/Disneyland deal. Regardless, we tried to dodge their attractions but still got stuck going to a few. In Da Nang though, we dodged Ba Na Hills and were happy to have done so. We ended up saving about $200 as a result. Money we got to spend in the community more. Instead of Ba Na Hills we went to the Buddha Statue and Monkey Forest up on the point on the north end of Da Nang. Other than the $5 taxi rides, there was no cost to explore the temple and surrounding area. At sunset it was beautiful and when the lights turned on, the place to on a whole new vibe. Kids were stoked, wife stoked, me stoked.

    The night time vibes in Da Nang are epic. We luckily timed it with a weekend where they activate the dragon bridge. Highly recommend. The area around it comes even more to life and the kids absolutely loved it.

    Strolling around one night, we stumbled upon a little festival. As they saw us being curious, they encouraged us to come in and join! The result? A great experience for the kids and the whole family in general.

    We really enjoyed our time in Da Nang. Here I discovered the next coffee addiction…..Coconut Coffee. It was like a slushy coconut ice cream on the top of Vietnamese coffee. Absolutely addicting and full of energy. Loved it.

    We had originally planned to head up North from here but another typhoon changed our plans and we decided to book it to Angkor Wat in Cambodia while the next typhoon landed in Northern Vietnam. That’s the beauty of traveling with flexibility, move with the flow of the weather, prices, crowds, and other variables to increase your successes of happy traveling.

    We left in the early evening, said goodbye to our now good friend Olly, and headed to Siam Reap.

  • Dubai is plastic

    Layover: Turkey sandwich in Turkey, had to do it.

    One of the difficulties of planning our journey around the world was choosing destinations, but I always knew that I wanted to check out Dubai.  Luckily Louise had no qualms and we were slated on spending a week there in order to find out what it was all about.  But as our traveling progressed, we realized how much we preferred destinations away from large cities where we could surf good waves at a relatively low price.  We also took advice from other travelers that had visited Dubai and slowly our week was trimmed down to a simple 2 days and 1 night.  The main reason I wanted to check out Dubai had to do with my Developer background, but as my past work faded into the past, so did my desire to relish in concrete.

    The second most iconic building in Dubai, the first (The Burge, tallest in the world) opened to the public a few days later.  This hotel is stupid expensive and ironically not worth talking about.

    We got into Dubai at around 6 AM and had no sleep on the plane.  We checked into our hotel and passed out.  Louise actually found affordable accommodation.  Don’t be fooled, you can do Dubai on the cheap!  Although our room wasn’t cheap, we could have gone the couchsurfing route or stayed at shadier accommodations for around $40USD/night.  The room was actually an apartment with a kitchen, living room, and even included breakfast ($72 USD).  We slept pretty much the whole day and then got up in time to do some exploring.  After a much needed rest we took the metro which is extremely efficient and headed for the Dubai Emirates Mall.  We had a nice meal and then decided to go snowboarding.

    Thats right folks, probably as far as you can get from a legitimate ski slope, we found SKI DUBAI.

    It’s an enclosed climate controlled setting that actually snows……..artificially.  It’s freezing in there and since the slope isn’t long enough for you to break a sweat and the lifts are not high speed quads you get pretty cold.  We were dressed up in our rented snowboarding outfits and many of the people in there were locals in their own gear.  Its funny because on a real mountain the people in the rented gear look silly, but here it was the people in their own gear.  I can only imagine what a season pass must cost and is a season pass a whole year?  They didn’t rent you gloves so if you do ever go, bring extra socks for your hands or look on the ground and you’ll find some gloves. 

    We had never snowboarded together.  One of the things I have witnessed teaching and working for two seasons in the mountains as an instructor is to never teach your girlfriend/spouse how to snowboard.  It will turn into a fight guaranteed!!!!!!  Luckily for me Louise already knew how to snowboard and was actually very good with a smooth style much like her surfing.  We had a great time that night and rode till they closed down the place.  It was too late to catch the metro back so we caught a cab and surprisingly it wasn’t too expensive.

    You can see Lou’s trademark smile!  If you didn’t know, she smiles when she surfs too.

    I couldn’t find a toilet.

    The next day we got back on to the metro and headed for the water park.  We had heard that there was a flowrider (an artificial wave) and we were anxious to give it a go.  Before we went we decided to walk around a bit and check out the beaches.  We knew that people surfed but we were glad we decided not to break our boards out.  The waves we saw were what I expected, knee high ankle slop.  We’ve surfed worse, but taking boards on the metro is never easy.  After hanging out around the beach we made it to the water park just in time to get the afternoon discount.  We ran to the flowrider and to our disappointment, it was mega-gay.  They didn’t let you stand up and the barrel was tiny.  When I tried to stand up they yelled at me and in this part of the world you don’t want to get in trouble.  Especially at a water park.

    Wild Wali Waterpark……weak sauce.

    We got back to the hotel which we had checked out of and stored our bags.  They had no problem allowing us use their facilities still, so we took nice hot showers and got ready for our next flight to Bangkok.  We got to the airport with plenty of time which allowed us to kick it in the lounge.  The lounge at Dubai is great.  The food was more like a full buffett, the beer freezing cold, and the service immaculate.  We had a good time in that lounge and I boarded the plane nicely lubricated.

    The Lounge Open Bar.

    Dubai was what I expected.  Similar to Las Vegas without the gambling.  The cultural aspect is pretty non-existant but it is cool to see the locals in their outfits.  The men wear white robes with a sheet looking thing on their heads and a rope looking type thing around that.  The women are all in black but they are allowed to expose their faces.  In order to differentiate themselves they accessorize.  The add Gucci purses, jewelry, and lots of make-up.  It is an extrememly materialistic place and we were glad to be moving on.  Its definetly worth checking out but no need to set up your second home.

    We only have 12 hours in Bangkok so our next post is all about the best power shopping mission in History!

    The bus stops are air conditioned

    They rake the beaches for big rocks from the imported sand.

    The surf is epic.

    They serve BJ soup!  Heard its creamy.

    Posing in a parking lot.

    We rode horses in the city.

  • morocks2

    Another amazing swell was predicted to hit Morocco in a couple of days.  The Fiz knew it was going to be epic and a road trip to the south was our best chance of scoring.  We packed our bags, piled our boards on the roof of the car, and began our journey south.  The Fiz drove the whole way, around 5 hours, to Essaouira where we stayed for the night.  As you enter the city guys jingling keys at you, this is their way of asking you if you’d like an apartment for the night.  Traveling with Fiz was so easy.  He spoke the language and knew all the ins and outs.  He had a guy find us an apartment for a good price and even found a guy to watch our car overnight.

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    The first camel we spotted.  It’s eating the little fruits from the argon tree which are used to make oil and this awesome stuff called argon butter, similar to peanut butter.

    Our guest house was within the walls of the Medina.  The Medina is the old city and is enclosed by walls.  There are usually no roads for cars but only narrow alley ways filled with all sorts of shops, restaurants, and guest houses.  I loved the medina.  The vibe is very different from the newer parts of town.  You are free to wander down the maze of allies while browsing the different vendors selling a variety of Moroccan crafts and goods.

    The walls of the medina

    Our little room in the Medina of Essouira

    I would have liked to spend more time in Essouira but we were on a mission to surf so we continued our journey south.  Stopping at a tiny village to check out a wave but in order to reach the break you need to have a four-wheel drive vehicle, which we did not have.  Luckily we met up with Karim  and Sylvan, the Fiz’s friends.  We squeezed the boards and ourselves into Karim’s truck and made our way to the break.  It was about a 10 minute drive over sandy rocky roads, no way our little car could have made it.  When we got to the point it was a little disappointing.  The swell wasn’t as big as predicted and was barely breaking.  The set up was perfect though and we’d keep our eye on the radar for a bigger swell..

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    We spent a night in this tiny village at one of the locals homes.  It was a very simple accommodation but thats all we needed.  It was Friday and in Morocco, Friday is couscous day.  Our hosts prepared us a delicious feast consisting of a huge mound of couscous covered in a heap of vegetables and chicken.  This was one of my favorite Moroccan meals.  It is tradition that meals are served family style and you eat directly from the main dish.  It’s also a rule of thumb that you only eat the portion of the dish that is in front of you.  Think of it like dividing the dish into slices like a pie, one for each person.  Meaning if there’s a really nice piece of meat on the opposite side of the dish, it’s not proper to reach around and help your self to it.  Unless that person is done eating of course, then you are more than welcome to treat yourself.

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    Karim, Sylvan, Kahi and the Fiz feasting on Friday couscous in our humble room

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    The next morning Karim took us to his secret surf spot at Rock Beach.  It was a beautiful bay with what seemed to be an abandoned fishing village.  We set up a little tent to protect us from the sun and spent the day surfing, and kicking it in the shade.  The beach break was fun with a few small hollow barrels but the point break wasn’t working.  It was nice to surf with only our buddies and to kick it on the beach all day.

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    Rock Beach


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    The Fiz, Sylvan, Karim, Kahi and I kickin’ it at Rock Beach

    Rock Beach chill spot.  This is where we’d hang out after surfing, have some lunch, and maybe even take a nap.

    Rock and clay homes are built into the hill-side with tiny verandas overlooking la Catedral at Immsoune

    Beach side bungalow Moroccan style

    Kahi catching a few waves at the point on the alaia

    Later that evening we continued heading south to Insouamme, a long right-handed point break.  The wave wasn’t as hollow as J-Bay but it did have some really rip-able sections.  The Fiz and Kairm reminisced on the good old days when there was nothing out there except for a few fisherman houses.  This little town is stating to buzz.  Thanks to the internet this place is no longer a secret and people pour in from all over the world to surf this wave.  There are still many unknown waves in Morocco but the locals are trying their best to keep it hush-hush.   Throughout our travels we have seen what happens when a good surf spot is over exposed.  The hoards of people, followed by those who want to make money off of them.  Some argue that the exposure is good, bringing money into the town.  Sometimes I think it ruins the town turning them into tourist havens, stripping away the culture.

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    A nice wave at Insuamme

    A little tube

    Crazy scary slab at Insuamme.  We didn’t get to see any one surf it but heard stories about a few guys who towed into some insane barrels.

    While in Insuamme we stayed in a little guest house called Chez Hassan.  It had a mellow vibe with a relaxing outdoor lounge area.  Conveniently, next door was the only bar in town.  The point break only works at low tide which was early in the morning, leaving us time to get another session at Rock Beach in the evening.

    The owner of our hotel, Hasan, is a fossil finder of some sort.  He hooked us up with a couple fossils from the surrounding mountains.

    These are all pieces of fossils.  This is where they clean them up and put them back together.  Then they ship them to France and sell them for $10,00o+ a pop.

    We went for a walk along the ocean cliffs.  There were quite a few tiny fisherman shacks built out of rocks along the coast.  The guys fish out there all night sometimes days then return to the village in the morning with their catch.

    During our walk we spotted a camel and decided to get a closer look.  She was very friendly but a little intimidating because she was so tall.

    The bar was conveniently located next door to our guesthouse.  We spent a lot of time here.

    Who needs a worm bin where you have a couple of goats

    The next day the swell was picking up again and it was time to head back to that small village to see if we could score that wave.  It was late in the night when we arrived and the local family wasn’t expecting us.  Luckily they had a room for us but they were preoccupied with a wedding and weren’t sure if they were going to be able to provide dinner.  Since there is nothing in this village, we began eating our snacks which consisted of a few bananas and chocolate cookies.   When we were finishing up with “dinner” our host walked in with an entire chicken on a silver platter.  It was so good, we ate the whole thing.

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    A super secret surf spot somewhere in Morocco


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    The Fiz is an amazing photographer.  He was just messing around and took these cool pics.

    Early in the morning we packed our surfboard bags and began walking out to the surf break.  It was about a 20 minute walk, but totally worth it.  At first the break wasn’t working, but an hour later it started cleaning up.  We did two surf sessions and barely made it back before the sunset.  The spot was unreal reeling along the point sideways.  Hollow sections with quick breaks for a few turns then more barrells.  This secret spot wave was almost as good as the other secret spot wave in the previous post.  It was getting late quick and we, or I should say The Fiz, still had to drive 5 hours to Casablanca.

    The next couple days we kicked it with our buddy Sammy at his house near Bouznika.  There was a fun looking left right in front of his house and a scary looking slab just around the corner.  The surf potential in Morocco is insane.  You just need to know the right people or be motivated enough to do some real surf exploration.

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    Sammy and Sadd battling it out at ping pong

    An average day at Da Point

    A strange and surprisingly delicious egg, ham, cheese, tomato and onion omelet thing.

    Mrs. Zniber invited us over for lunch at her home in Rabat, so we took the train.  It was easy.  Sammy dropped us off at the train station and an hour later we were in Rabat.  Beef and vegetable couscous, prune beef tajine, zaalouk (a delicious eggplant salad), and tuktooka (tomato and bell pepper salad) followed by fresh fruit and chocolate for desert.  The food was delicious and we ate way too much but it was totally worth it.  I have to say Moroccan food is definitely one of my favorite foods.  I absolutely love it.   Always beautifully presented and so full of flavor, you just can’t beat it.

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    Couscous!!!

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    On our way back home we got on the wrong train.  It was one of those express trains that didn’t stop at the Bouznika train station.  We ended up in Casablanca then had to catch another train back up to Bouznika.  We met some cool people on the train heading north.  They didn’t speak any english, we didn’t speak any french or arabic, but we all spoke a little spanish.  People in Morocco rock!  They are some of the most friendly people and are filled with aloha.

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    Our new friends

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    We had a few days left in Morocco so we rented a car and decided to head south.  There was a good sized swell about to hit, but a huge storm was also predicted to hit the country in a couple days.  The car we rented was through a friends company and was only around $20 a day.  We first stopped back in Essouira for the night, then continue Insuamme in the morning.

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    Overlooking the medina in Essouira

    Fresh seafood spread.  Pick what you want and they grill it up.

    Moroccan pottery,  intricately painted and gorgeous colors.  I wanted to buy it all, pack it up and take it home with me.

    Shops and food stalls in the medina

    Berber (Moroccans from the south of Morocco) musicians playing Gnaowa music, slaughtered the spelling I’m sure.

    Argon butter and oil from the fruits of the argon trees.  Argon butter is similar to peanut butter but has a rich nutty flavor.  I love the stuff.  The oil is extracted from berries collected from the shit of goats and camels after they are digested and pooped out.

    It had just started to rain when we were pulling into Insuamme.  This was the first big rain in a LONG time and the debris that had collected over the months began it journey down the river beds into the ocean.  As soon as we got there we unloaded our bags and headed straight for the surf.  The surf was fun but challenging.  The current was very strong and after catching a wave it was almost impossible to paddle back out.  You would have to paddle in, run back up the beach, and paddle back out.  Talk about exhausting!  There was a brown waterfall that began flowing down the cliff and into the bay and a rim of chocolate brown pooh water formed along the beach.  There was no way to avoid it when getting out of the water.  All you could do was keep your head above the water and keep your mouth shut.  it was nasty!

    Insuamme after a crazy rain storm.  You can see the light blue/dark blue gradient caused by the influx of fresh water.

    The next day the wind was totally wrong for Insuamme, so we headed further south in search for a surf-able wave.  There was a part of the coast that faced north and was sheltered from the stiff south wind.  The waves were massive and we were very under gunned.  We stopped along the coast to admire a few insane slabs that were absolutely crazy.  Further south the winds were back on shore and messing everything up.  We decided to pack up and drive back to Bouznika..

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    As we were leaving Insuamme we could see the massive storm moving in.  The roads in the south are windy, muddy and prone to flooding.  Not the safest in a rain storm.  We were about 30 minutes ahead of the rain storm and were spared from the rain while driving the most dangerous roads.

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    The crazy rainstorm moving in on the left.

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    All the rain turned the road into a swampy muddy mess and our entire car got covered in mud.

    We spent the night in Bouznika and the next morning we were off to Chefchaouen, a city in the north of Morocco.  Chefchaouen is a popular tourist destination known for its beautiful handicrafts but is also renowned for its kif.  Kahi and I wanted to go on a tour of the fields in the surrounding countryside but it was raining cats and dogs.  One of the parking attendants helped us find a nice place to stay fin the medina and watched our car during the night, for a small fee of course.  Since it was raining we didn’t get to experience the town as much as we would have liked.  The power went out in the city while we were eating dinner and it was difficult finding our way back to the hotel in the dark allies of the medina.  Since it was still pouring rain the morning we decided to head back to Bouzinika so that we could spend our last couple of days with our friends.

    The fancy hallways of our guesthouse in Chefchaouen

    Flooded fields in northern Morocco

    Our friends Saad, Nashla, Damya, Omar after eating a fabulous meal prepared by Nashla.  It was nice to spend our last couple days with our friends.

    A cool tortise we found in front of Saad’s house

    On Christmas it was our friend Maha’s birthday and they threw an amazing birthday.  The food was unbelievable and the people were too funny, we had a blast.

    Yummy sushi at the party!  We love love love sushi!!!

    Kahi and I in front of the giant mosque in Casablance.  It’s huge and the mosaic tile work in unbelievable.

    Our time in Morocco seemed to fly by.  We could have spent more time hunting for waves in the south and explorting the mountains in the north but the clock was ticking.  Morocco has been one of our top destinations.  Not only did we score some of the best waves here, we also got the opportunity to spend a lot of time with friends.  The people in Morocco are amazing.  Caring, loving, and friendly.  They are filled with what we call the Aloha Spirit.   I want to give a thousand thanks yous to The Fiz and his beautiful wife Maha for opening their home to us and making our time in Morocco so special.  We couldn’t have done it without you.  Also to all of our other friends who showed us such an amazing time.  It was so hard to leave and say good bye, but we’d be back.  We love Morocoo.  Plus i still need to ride a camel.