Than has flown on to Bangkok, Thailand now and the
adventures of Chris and Than will have to continue on
separately from here out.  It was a great 10 months
and I think many people were surprised that we lasted
so long without killing eachother.  In fact, we got
along really great all considering.  Oh of course I'm
sure I got on Than's nerves from time to time, but
overall we had a most excellent time.

It was kinda strange when he left because for some
reason it just felt like I would be catching up with
him in a couple days.  I'm sure I'll feel the
difference after travelling around alone for a bit.

So hopefully Than has arrived safely in Bangkok and is
chilling out with his cousin Owen enjoying the far
less expensive surroundings.

Myself, I will be leaving for Guilin tomorrow morning.
 Unlike Than who had a nice and easy flight, I will be
taking a few buses on a 15+ hour journey.  Hey,
business as usual though.  

Hong Kong was a nice experience albeit a rather
expensive one.  Mostly we hung out with others in our
hostel and explored some of the nightlife.  We are
staying on the mainland side known as Kowloon.  The
big business district is across the water on the
island of Hong Kong.  We did venture over and wandered
through the beautiful hillside botanical gardens and
zoological park nestled right in the center of the
city.  Above it we took a tram up to the top of the
mountain to Victoria Peak.  From there we could get a
really excellent view of the city.

It has rained some days limiting our excursions.  But
otherwise, I wandered to Lamma Island while waiting
for my Laos visa where I took a short hike to the
beach and up the hills.  The huge powerplant kinda
spoils the view though.  

Today my friend James and I ventured over to Lantau
Island and made a nice hike up to the hills and saw a
waterfall along the way.  It is really hot and humid
so we were drenched with sweat by the end.

Otherwise we've wandered the streets watching people
and seeing the markets.

I'm running out of time now so I will close.

Sorry if I haven't responded right away to everyone
that has written, internet has been more expensive
here so I haven't had the time to catchup.  I promise
to do better when I move on into China.

As a parting note, I'm sure everyone heard about the
happenings in Nepal.  That was quite a terrible
surprise.  It is interesting how news of these events
takes on a different meaning once you've visited a
place.

Okay gotta go.

Love you all,

Chris