Seven countries in seven months (part 2)

The world really is a beautiful place

This post got too long to fit in one email, so I split it in two. I sent out the first half yesterday, so read that first.

Seven countries in seven months (part 1)

Yesterday, I left off right when we were dropped off at the monkey forest near Ubud in Bali:

Later that day, Budi dropped us off at the monkey forest. Interacting with monkeys up close in their natural habitat was so cool. But that’s when things took a turn for the worse.

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I got mugged… by a monkey. He grabbed my tote, and when I tightened my grip around the handle, he bared his teeth and I immediately gave it up. No guards were in the area, so Charlotte ran off to find someone. The monkey then went through the entire bag right in front of me while onlookers filmed. He taunted me, taking each item out, investigating it, and deciding whether to tear it up or toss it in the dirt. At some point, a tourist sheepishly suggested, “I think you should start yelling for help now.” Having already submitted to a much smaller primate, I did not want to debase myself any further, so I opted not to. Instead, I stoically watched as he downed a bottle of hand sanitizer and chewed up Charlotte’s lip balm. Eventually, long after I had lost my last shred of dignity, Charlotte returned with a guard. He brandished a slingshot, and the sight of the weapon alone caused the monkey to run off and leave our stuff behind. In a way, I can say I experienced ego death in Bali.

The apex predator

After two more days of exploring Ubud and eating good food, we headed south towards Seminyak. On the way there, we stopped to make silver rings from scratch. We had to melt the metal down from scraps, shape it, then carve and polish it. I made an “Adobo” pinky ring.

Seminyak was filled with resorts, and we stayed in a very nice one on the beach. We had food by the pool and surfed. It was a very relaxing time.

DPS 🇮🇩 ✈️ MNL 🇵🇭

Soon after Charlotte and I arrived back in Manila, Francesco and Ally visited.

MNL 🇵🇭 ✈️ TAG 🇵🇭

The four of us and Charlotte’s friend Cher went back to Bohol. We did all the same activities as with Alice, plus a few more. We went a little crazy on the ATVs this time, though. At some point, having gotten enough mud on ourselves already, we decided there was no point in trying to avoid the puddles, and instead started driving through them at full speed.

TAG 🇵🇭 ✈️ MNL 🇵🇭

Two weeks after arriving back in Manila, my dad came to visit. I had loved Hanoi so much I decided we should go back to Vietnam to see more of it.

MNL 🇵🇭 ✈️ SGN 🇻🇳

Together, we went to Ho Chi Minh (a.k.a. Saigon). Once again, food was great, museums were great. I learned more about the Vietnam War at the War Museum and the Cu Chi tunnels. Our guide gave us what seemed like a very balanced view of the war, telling us about some of the propaganda that still exists in the way America and Vietnam talk about the war to this day.

An experience that marked me was an interaction with a local in Ho Chi Minh that only lasted about 20 seconds. We were struggling to cross a bustling intersection. Anyone who’s been to Vietnam knows drivers don’t stop for you. You’re expected to cross the street slowly and hope the cars and motorcycles will do their best to go around you. We had been fine with street crossings so far, but this intersection was pretty daunting. Out of nowhere, a man on a motorcycle pulled to the side of the road and parked right next to us. He started crossing the street and motioned for us to follow him as he put his hand out toward the oncoming traffic to ensure they would notice us. We all made it across safely. The shocking thing was that he immediately turned around, crossed back over to his motorcycle, and went on his way. Despite all the traffic, he had noticed us struggling and went out of his way to pull over and help us cross. What a nice guy! I didn’t even realize what was happening until he was gone, and I didn’t get to thank him. Thank you, random Vietnamese man!

I love Vietnam.

SGN 🇻🇳 ✈️ MNL 🇵🇭

By this point, it was July, so it was time to return West for the summer.

MNL 🇵🇭 ✈️ TVC 🇺🇸

First, I went to Michigan to visit Charlotte’s family. I love it there. We waterskied and barbecued. I overcooked some steaks. While we were there, Charlotte officially launched her brand Sinaya in the US.

TVC 🇺🇸 ✈️ BOS 🇺🇸

Then, I spent ten days on Cape Cod with my mom, grandparents, aunt, uncle, cousin, and my mom’s dog Wilfred. I love it there, too. Wilfred, my mom, and I took a day trip to Martha’s Vineyard. It was very beautiful. This is the second place I’ve been to this year that Obama has also been to, and he has excellent taste.

BOS 🇺🇸 ✈️ CDG 🇫🇷 (6 countries so far)

At the end of July, I headed to Paris with Charlotte’s family for the Olympics. On July 30, we celebrated Charlotte and her dad’s birthday. We went to a traditional French restaurant by the Louvre and had great food. I had liver.

I saw three Olympic events: horseback riding (at Versailles), swimming, and athletics. I also saw the cyclists ride by on our street. It was such a fun time to be in Paris. The weather was great. It wasn’t very crowded. And the Olympic events were super exciting. 10/10.

ORY 🇫🇷 ✈️ LIS 🇵🇹 (7 countries so far)

Rosh, Charlotte, and I decided to go on a last-minute trip to Lisbon. It was fun to explore a new city in a very casual way. We walked around, drank coffee, and ate good food for three days. We took a train to the beach and a bus to a castle in the mountains. It was a very low-stakes vacation where we could enjoy the sun, fresh ocean air, and lovely views. It was beautiful.

I think I’ve described every place I’ve been this year as beautiful (with the exception of New Haven). It just goes to show that the world really is a beautiful place. Everything is so different and yet has beauty in its own way — even New Haven.

LIS 🇵🇹 ✈️ ORY 🇫🇷

With a few days left in France, we spent the weekend in Rubelles for Rosh’s birthday. It was great to see so many old friends — the perfect end to our summer trip.

Modeling for Sinaya in Rubelles

CDG 🇫🇷 ✈️ MNL 🇵🇭

It was time to head back to Manila and reunite with Adobo. Charlotte’s mom and sister came with us, and together, we traveled to Cebu.

MNL 🇵🇭 ✈️ CEB 🇵🇭

Cebu was awesome. We drove a few hours to Moalboal for a day of canyoneering.

The day starts with a ten-minute hike up to a zip line that brings you to the start of the river. After that, you hike for about three hours downstream, with ten cliff jumps and two rope swings along the way. The biggest jump was ten meters high! It was super fun, and I checked cliff jumping off my bucket list.

On the way back to Cebu City from Moalboal, we stopped in Carcar, the birthplace of Lechon (suckling pig). As you can imagine, it was pretty awesome.

Time to dig in

Back in Cebu City, we hopped on a boat to head back over to Bohol for another quick visit, where we went snorkeling again.

TAG 🇵🇭 ✈️ MNL 🇵🇭

And now I’m back in Manila again, writing this!

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I could have said so much more about each place I traveled, but for the sake of brevity, I’ll keep it at that. No wonder I didn’t write for six months. How was I supposed to find the time? I also left out a whole arc about Charlotte’s brand, Sinaya, which I have helped with a little throughout the year. I’m keeping that part of the story for a future newsletter, so subscribe if you’d like to hear about that!

Traveling is a privilege. Every trip exposes you to a whole new culture, with new music, food, and a complex history to learn about. You also get to know a lot about yourself. Traveling allows you to see alternate lives you could live and appreciate what you have already. Before I left the US, I could see myself traveling around forever, living a nomadic life with no one place to call home. I still want this to some extent, but traveling has shown me the value of living in a fixed spot surrounded by friends and people you love. Traveling makes it hard to foster community.

Moving so far from my two home countries has made the world seem smaller than ever. The 24-hour trip is daunting the first time, but it makes all other flights seem like nothing in comparison. It’s the same way I felt running my first 10K vs. running a 10K now that I’ve completed two marathons. The shorter distances feel even shorter when you have something to compare them to. Push the limits of what feels comfortable because that’ll increase your area of comfort.

Seeing this much of the world in one year also showed me how much I have yet to see. I’ve never even been to South America, Africa, or Oceania. There’s so much more I want to see!

Before I left the US, my friends gifted me a photo album filled with moments we shared since our Freshman year of college. At the back of the book, they all wrote me a note. Freddie’s note, in particular, hit me.

“Hope you find everything you’re looking for.” I wasn’t going to the Philippines with any clear goal in mind, so it took me aback. What was I looking for? There must be something I felt I was missing. Honestly, I still don’t really know what it is. What I’ve found is a whole lot of new life-changing experiences. I’ve learned about new parts of the world, become comfortable in new places, and had lots of fun. And I’ve found out a lot about myself as well. I still don’t know what I was looking for, but you can’t say I haven’t been looking!

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Thanks for reading this far! I’m fortunate to be able to travel and even luckier to have you reading my stories. If you aren’t yet subscribed, here’s the button to do so:

I’m going to try to post somewhat weekly going forward. My next post will be about Sinaya, the brand Charlotte launched a few months ago. Watching her build it has been inspiring, and I’ve helped where I could. If you want to receive that story in your inbox, subscribe!

My beautiful girlfriend Charlotte Renner edits all of my posts. This one was also edited by William Baird-Smith.