Suck it, Julia Roberts.

Indonesia was quite a trip. Some parts more pleasant than others. Bali, for the most part. was one big party. However, I was quite lucky to have made some friends on a chance encounter on a ferry boat, so my experience in Bali might be a little out of the norm. It's fun to luck out every now and then.

I don't think I will be going into further detail about aforementioned newfound friends because the Balinese Board of Tourism might not appreciate our activities. Also, I think my nieces might be reading this blog. Although, I will say that Bali truly is a paradise with many faces. Whatever face your paradise takes on in Bali is completely up to you.

Before I say bye bye to Bali and hello to Hong Kong, here are a few shots I took on the occasions I remembered to bring my camera. Enjoy!

Image: Temple statue covered in cobwebs, obviously.

Image: Traditional Balinese architecture.

Image: More temple statues.

Image: Batik - traditional and elaborate method for dyeing cloth using waxes.

Image: Rice fields on the face of some mountain with a name I can't pronounce.

PS - I must admit that I keep ragging on Julia Roberts even though I haven't seen the movie. I hear it's terrible. I mean, how could it not be?

Leavin' on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again.

Image: My grandmother and her sister posing after lunch in Pampanga

Holding pattern finally ending. Thanks to Kayak, I have finally purchased my ticket to my first foreign destination - the Philippines! I have been on the road since the end of July so it seems a little fast to think that I have just one week to soak up the States before I move on to the next adventure. Let's see what shenanigans I can fit between now and boarding call.

When I get there, I bet everyone will ask me if I've seen that Julia Roberts movie.

My witness is the open sky.

My first official post as a nomad on the road. No real home, just a general direction. Last night I slept in my birthplace of California. Tonight, I sleep under Idaho's portion of the vast American sky.

As I begin crossing this groaning continent for the second time, I can't help but feel like Jack Kerouac and I would be best friends. Not just because I was born in San Francisco and we have a Jack Kerouac Alley a few blocks from the Beat Museum, but because I understand. I understand that by trying to fit our immeasurable souls into these limited lives we are all "beaten down and beatific."

I noticed that this blog has gotten a little too serious. So, to mirror my intro post, I will end this thought with Julia Roberts. A few of you have asked me why I hate Julia Roberts. Why do you hate her so, Erick? Let the record show that I do not hate Julia Roberts. I was being facetious. I loved her in Erin Brockovich. I would marry Julia-Erin in a heartbeat. Julia-Erin and I would have incredibly good-looking hapa babies while we saved the world, fighting one greedy utility company at a time.

Enough won't do.

Well, I never thought I'd see the day. I am starting a blog.

Let me just preface this whole dive into the blogging world thing with the fact that I am starting this mostly as a means for friends and family to keep track of me while I take this world and wring its countries of absolute awesome. Basically, because blogs are cheaper (free) than phone cards (not free), this is how everyone will make sure I am not dead from dengue fever somewhere in the rural backlands of India. Or something like that.

Moving on, here is my plan:

• Quit job [check]
• Sell car [check]
• Sell furniture [check]
• Donate clothes [check-ish]
• Cash in 401k [check]
• Travel the world

Only one more thing left on my To-Do List, but to be fair, it's a pretty big thing. Ever since I can remember, I have dreamed about just packing up and going until one day it dawned on me - if not now, when? Now, goddammit. Now.

One last thing. Do not compare what I am doing to Eat, Pray, Love. This is not a trip contrived on the promises of the revenue of a book about self-discovery targeted at today's "modern woman" who is also probably a huge fan of all things Julia Roberts. Just. Don't.