You are currently browsing the The Brel Chronicles weblog archives for December, 2009.
For all those travel friends out there who may not know, Mel and I were married in August 09--travel really was the final test! Next: "honeymoon"...the ultimate excuse to travel!
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“On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…”
12 Squatters squatting
11 rice paddies growing
10 flying bats
9 menstruating goats
8 scooters swerving
7 samabals burning
6 roosters crowing
5 Laaaarge Bintaaaaang
4 mie goreng
3 long-tailed Macaques
2 civet coffees
And a chicken in a maaango treeeeeee
Things I Think About during Endless Bus Rides – by Mel
1. Have not had liquids in 7 hours. Am I dehydrated? Must avoid peeing in the roadside squat toilets at all costs.
2. Is my Imodium working? If it isn’t, how will I manage this in the jungle? Did I remember to bring toilet paper?
3. Wonder if that mosquito that just bit me was carrying malaria. Are my drugs working? How will I know if they aren’t?
4. Wonder what Brella is doing right now. Wonder if anyone on this bus wants to hear about my dog.
5. Why are there no monkeys? Brendan promised me there would be monkeys in Indonesia.
6. How did this road trip seem like a good idea? Why does He need to earn these local travel Badges of Honour? Who is He trying to impress?
7. Hmmm. I’m definitely losing weight. Excellent. Will be able to justify the triple pork poutine when I get back. Mmmm….pork ribs…bacon…This is cheaper than a personal trainer!
8. God my ass hurts. I wonder how much these bus rides will set me back in my recovery.
9. I think Brella would be jealous of Indonesian dogs and their freedom. Is that dog sleeping in the middle of the road?
10. Tired of pretending to sleep. But it’s this or listen to Brendan go on about the coffee plantations and coconut trees. Does he ever stop talking?
Things I Think About during Endless Bus Rides – by Brendan
1. Why is my leg so swollen? Why is that bug bite still oozing?
2. How many more excuses will Mel find to bring our dog into the conversation? People are starting to look at her funny.
3. I’m so glad Mel is having this great local experience. I’m sure she’ll be totally converted to hard-core travel now. India and the ‘Stans, here we come!
4. Hmmm. I’m definitely gaining weight. Wonder if I’ll have to eat Mel’s lunch again. Mmmm..satay…beef rendang…
5. God I wish she’d stop talking about her ass.
6. Did we just hit a dog?????
7. Look at all the coffee plantations – are those robusta or arabica? I wonder if Mel wants to know how they are pollinated.
8. I wonder if Mel ate something bad, she looks like she’s about to projectile vomit.
9. Come to think of it, I haven’t seen her pee in 2 days. I wonder which will last longer, her stubbornness waiting for an “acceptable” toilet or her bladder snapping like a water balloon.
10. Glad my Indonesian accent is so fluent, otherwise no one would understand us. Must practice under my breath. “Jakarta” “Jakarta” “apa kabarrrr…”. Thanks Dad, for my International Accent.
Our first married Christmas wasn’t really the way we imagined it would be. There was no ‘First Christmas’ ornament for the tree. No family gathered ‘round drinking eggnog. No Christmas carolling or turkey dinner or gifts. It ... [Continue reading this entry] 
Welcome to Reality.
We are spending the next week on the island of Flores – a ... [Continue reading this entry] 
Here at Desa Seni, the focus is on healing, healthy living and spiritual well-being. Below is the Brel take on all this touchy-feely stuff.
Ohmmmmmmm…
In preparation for our week-long yoga ... [Continue reading this entry] 
Welcome to Bali!
Dear Readers, we hope you are enjoying this blog and will enjoy our stories of Bali. We should warn you now though, this blog will likely have no end. We are ... [Continue reading this entry] 
As we transitioned from Japan to Indonesia, we got the news that our poor pup Brella has been ... [Continue reading this entry] 
By The Numbers
• Pounds lost/gained: Mel -5, Brendan +5
• Trains taken: 40+
• Number of times Brendan had to eat a second of third mean because Mel didn’t like what she’d ordered: almost every meal
• Number of Japanese words Mel ... [Continue reading this entry] 
As most of you know, Brendan lived and worked in Japan for nearly 4 years. Some of his fellow teachers have since made this their permanent ... [Continue reading this entry] 
[Continue reading this entry] 
Ok, this is Brendan here. My voice was seldom heard in past blogs as it always seemed I had more work-related writing to ... [Continue reading this entry] 
... 
pichemelanie
