batam, i dont know where to start

it hasn't even been 2 months but again i find myself in indonesia; this time with the gf :)
this time its on the island of batam.

not much to do on this island but all was good, we made the most of it.

we stayed at the ace hotel next to the massive nigoya mall and ventured out on day 3, had ourselves brekkie and then decided to check out the local beach next to turin. the experience? 

interesting.

the taxi dropped us off in front of these village huts. i turned to the driver and he looked right back. yep, this was it.

he didn't know much english but he did nod, which at this point was at an all-time high. 

this was definitely our stop.

Amerie and I looked at each other and began to walk towards the shore. we meandered through rickety old wooden planks and find the shore.
indonesian families in the dozens all strewn across the shallow beach,
naked toddlers running here and fro,
the serious and stern looks of middle-aged indonesian men all pointed directly at us.  

i hold Am's hand tight and do what i always do in these situations,

i smile and walk as if my feet were light as feathers.

after a good mile of walking we took a little break and lay our beach towel. we settle next to a family and take everything in. its nice
we resume our walking and find ourselves at the edge of the cove in a park where groups of 10-20 indonesians deep were cooking goodness, dancing, and having a great time. 

we didn't not want to stick around much longer so we began to walk back to see if we could find a cab to turin beach but no cabs were to be seen. we walked along the highway in the humid and heavy indo heat and after a few close calls, we found a random ferry terminal that had shuttle services to turin beach.

i guess i should also mention here that this is when the food poisoning began.

yes, again.

i was and currently still am suffering the symptoms of food poisoning. not as severe as the first time in bali, but the diarrhea; well, it hasn't been pretty. Amerie also wasn't feeling all that great but we held it together. 

ok, so we found turin beach and its pretty much controlled by the island resorts and the shuttle that took us there spent almost an hour touring around the enclave of the resort villas. 

we finally made it and my stomach wasn't feeling that great. thankfully the resorts had amazing and beautifully scented washrooms.


we made our way along the resort grounds and they sure did cut themselves a nice slice of beach. it was nice even with the patchy clouds looming around.



the moral of the story?
getting food poisoning sucks.
getting food poisoning a 2nd time in less than 2 months sucks even more.

but seriously, even in the midst of difficult and challenging circumstances, your company will always be the breaking or selling point. it truly reveals someone's character and i was so blessed to have spent it my gorgeous angel.

the last time i was in indonesia i felt like i was going to die. this time i had Amerie with me :)
my singaporean ray of light. 

yardhouse love

its been almost a year since i barbacked at the yardhouse. 

it was a short lived 7 month stint. i met some amazing people...really really bad ones as well. a few foot injuries, numerous pints of brew and delicious plates later, i write and retrospect.

with no doubt, i know that the restaurant business is not for me. it is the succubus of jobs. but do i regret working at YH? not one bit

i remember the day i decided to apply.
i'd looked up all the restaurants on colorado blvd. and began my assault on lake and extended it to fair oaks. 

zero experiencia made me a hard sell. by the time i got to los robles, i was feeling pretty shitty. "a man can only take so much rejection" but wow, tough crowd. long story short, i finally arrived at the steps of YH. it was a long shot but i mustered the courage to walk-in and ask if they were hiring. the friendly face replied with a very familiar, "we're always accepting new applicants". but she mentioned that on tue-thurs from 2-5, they conducted open interviews.

well, it happened be tuesday around 1ish so i waited. 3 interviews and no experience later, they asked if i wanted to barback. 

this is my way of thanking YH. they gave me a chance when everyone else showed me the exit. barbackin' aint easy but i'm glad and thankful that i did it at YH. its a tight ship and they accept nothing but the best from their employees.

Grant, William, and Karl: thanks for giving me a shot and not taking it easy on me. 

Wilson and Fabian, couldn't have survived without your help.

***
originally posted on jonjvazj.blogspot.com

fool me once...

a few weeks ago i found myself in the warm and soft beaches of bali, indonesia. in a short 4-day span, i managed to enjoy most of what bali has to offer:

hit the bustling night-life of kuta.

 
layed out.

hopped on a questionable moped and cruised inland to the countryside for some rice paddy and ancient temple action.

and of course, i did alot of the eating. lots

i wish i could say that this trip ended well but it didn't.

long story short, i had a severe case of food poisoning. the pain was real. 

what made it worse was that it all started on the day i was to make my trip back los angeles, which included:

6-hour flight to sydney

5-hour layover 

14-hour flight to the states 

it was bad. 

not sure why i'm describing my ordeal but i'm doing it anyway. the sickness began like this:

 

feeling like a million bucks!

but then...

muscles and tendons, starting from my neck working themselves to my lower back and calves began to tense-up.

a few hours later the joints in all of my bones began to swell as if they were calcifying.

simple movements painful.

--- 6-hour flight to sydney---

i wake up mid-flight and i'm burning up yet i'm shaking from how cold i am.

a terrible headache begins to emerge just as the sun begins to rise from my window pane.

---5-hour layover in sydney---

the headache has now taken over and its become a blistering fever. 

i am weak and for the next few hours i curl up in a fetal position.

minimal movement 

its time to board and i can barely walk; luckily i'm in good company. brianne and jenny prop me up and try to make me look decent in order to avoid quarantine. a few dodgy stares and clumsy stumbles later i was in my seat. barely

---14-hour flight to la---

the headache and fever still rages but i manage to fall asleep. 

i wake up and my shirt is completely drenched as if i'd had fallen in a pool. it was gross

headache still going strong, i ask jenny for an aspirin. it helps

i fall asleep again 2 more times and same result. i'm drenched 

---home---

the fever works its course and when i land and drive home everything seems to be feeling better.

...but then the diarrhea kicks in. hard 

the next 3 days my body rejects everything, even water. nothing stays

at the end of it all i lost 10 lbs. and i'm sure some chunks of my lower intestine.

ok, so what's the moral of the story?
i don't know. but i guess its take a second look at your food. especially when you're in indonesia.