Twelve Feet, Six Continents, One Year

3/23: 10am in Malaysia, 3/22: 7pm in Portland We pulled away a few minutes before 10 and drove to a gas station. Under the RMO, the pumps were operating but the store was closed. Fortunately, I was able to buy a toll tag (a debit card, really) and load it with the amount we were told we’d need for the drive (equivalent to about $15 plus some extra to spare). We got on the highway and drove to a rest area just past the first toll plaza. We waited there for our companions to catch up, coordinating by facebook messenger as a modern day CB radio! For the next three hours or so, we followed them on a nearly-empty super highway with a painfully slow 110kph speed limit. Every five minutes or so a Mercendes saloon would come roaring by going at least 150kph. I mused that it was undercover police since it seemed to be a parade of the same make and model, always tinted windows, etc. KL Rush Hour, COVID-style An interesting feature of the Malaysian freeway: motorbike rain shelters. Ev...

After a long day yesterday , exploring temples and trekking in the jungle heat, today was relatively slow and easy and very focused on nature, which always brings joy to this crowd. Our guide took us to the Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity . This is an animal rescue facility near Siem Reap. They collect animals that have been hurt in the wild or abandoned as pets. To the extent possible, they use breeding pairs from this population to help repopulate endangered or threatened species in the surrounding territory. If you're inspired, you can donate to them (for context, their requested donation for visitors was $5 each). After our tour, our teacher shared some turtle shells and other specimen while discussing how certain animals are hunted (sometimes aggressively) for their medicinal benefits.  Just add water! Snake-infused water is believed by some to have powerful healing benefits. From ACCB, we drove about half an hour to the Bantre...