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This is Martig Farms, that produce wild bird seed and milk, among other farm products. We met Martig family and got to see their operation in Ohio
One thing I learned was how big the wild bird seed market is in the US. Feeding birds is the number one backyard hobby in America, it seems.
Oh, and I experienced a calf sucking on my finger too. Quite a funny sensation.
P.S. It is called Wild Bird Seed because the seeds are to feed wild birds, not because the bird seeds are wild.
The seminar gang and I are getting on our 7-hour flight to Minneapolis, followed by a 5-hour wait for our final 3-hour flight to Cleveland, Ohio.
We're bracing for a long journey on what is technically a domestic flight but feels like a long haul international flight.
The airline charged us US$15 for our first bag checked in and US$25 for a second. Plus they were really anal about any overweight bags, even by 1kg. Nuts.
I am getting the Cowon media player ready for some entertainment.
You do know Obama is a son of Hawaii, right? Well my group visited their HQ today to speak to a state senator and a field organiser . Hawaii is a confirmed Democrat win so most of the staffers and volunteers are mobilized to call and persuade Nevada voters to vote for Obama (like walkover PAP GRC MPs help their mates in contested wards).
Being the incumbent party, their HQ was more swanky and polished than that of the McCain HQ (which we also visited) in Hawaii.
My only complaint is that bumper stickers and assorted Obama campaign stuff have to be paid for. Not free! Must buy!
Obama! You very ngeow leh!
After landing, I spent the morning settling down, and walking around in a jet-lagged state. Note to self, don't drink coffee for dinner at Narita airport before boarding my connecting flight.
Clearing customs was a pain, because their computers were acting up, causing delays, and I had some issues with my passport.
Here's a tip for those of you who want to go the US. If you have ever lost your Singapore passport, and it was replaced prior to the new biometric passport, please please please go and make a new biometric passport. This is because in the old days, if you lost your passport, and ICA issued you a new one, it was still the same passport number (usually your IC). This raises red flags at US Customs and you will have to go to the little black room and explain it, every single time. Happened to me last year in San Diego too.
The new biometric passport uses a new number completely, which eliminates this problem. But old passport users like me will be affected.
I assembled my Dahon bike and decided to go out to see the town and look for some food. This is where the hassle of packing a folding bike for my trip pays off. I could go anywhere I wanted from my apartment in the University of Hawaii, Manoa.
I rode to Ala Moana Shopping Center, and had a Jamba Juice there (fancy fruit juice joint). It took me about half an hour to get there because I got a little lost. Second note to self: get a map.
Staying on campus has its advantages. Food is cheaper here because it is meant for students. There was an all-can-eat-cafeteria (US$7.75 for brunch, eat 5 meals and get 1 meal free) about 1.5km away, and a student footcourt nearby.
Waikiki is about 5 to 6km away from where I am, and accessible by public bus (US$2 with one free transfer) called The Bus (a very duh name). You can mount your full-sized bicycle on the rack on front of the bus, and board it.
I haven't been back to Honolulu for more than 20 years now, it looks the same to me. Everyone looks quite laid back here, even in the city.
One thing Singaporeans need to get used to (beside riding/driving on the other side of the road, yikes), is that shops close earlier. It is not easy to get food late at night, not like at home where 24-hour coffee shops are everywhere. Fortunately for me, a Sushiman was open till 10pm and I found it after riding out and trying my luck. I had a bowl of spicy Ahi donburi (Ahi is Yellowtail Tuna). For UD$7, it was a lot of raw Ahi.
After dinner, I rode to the 7-Eleven, loaded up my Ortlieb pannier bags with a map, some bottled water, cold drinks and comfort food, and rode the uphill route back to my dorm, guided by my 2 Fenix L2D flashlights on my handlebar.
Thank goodness I brought a bike with 24 speeds. Hawaii everywhere is slopes and hills.
You get to know an airport terminal intimately when you have to wait more than 5 hours for your connecting flight.
After waking up at 3am and getting to the airport at 4am for a 6am flight, and 7 hours of rather uneventful flying from Singapore, I reached Narita airport at around 2.30pm, Tokyo time.
My connecting flight to Honolulu is 8.40pm, Tokyo time, so that gave me many hours to wander the hallowed halls of Narita's transit terminal.
Thank goodness for the Cowon A2 media player, with 25GB worth of movies and tv shows. I managed to finish Get Smart, and started on Iron Man.
Food at the ANA Fiesta foodcourt is probably one of the better non-Western-fastfood joints here.
Internet is not free, so I am typing this at an Internet kiosk, that is costing me 100 yen per ten minutes. Hey, that's still cheaper than data roaming on Softbanks's 3G network (more than $5 per MB!).
I will post a photo of the cool ass water spray I saw in the toilet bowl here, when I get to a proper wireless network with my Mac.
The Japanese think of everything.
Er, not really lah.
This is my Dahon folding bike packed into a 32 inch luggage, waiting to follow me to the US for a month.
I've still got to put in some packing foam to give it a little more protection but it's pretty much good to go.
The Dahon Mu P24's first stop will be Honolulu, where the New Generation Seminar takes place. It is organised by the East West Center, who kindly invited and paid for me to attend it. The East West Center is an educational and research institute set up by the US Congress to build up relations and understanding between the United States and the Asia-Pacific region. They are based in Hawaii, lucky fellas!
The seminar, attended by people from all over, is focusing on the topic of globalisation this year. After Honolulu, we will make stops in Youngstown Ohio, and Washington DC.
I am certainly looking forward to meeting and interviewing people from this cultural exchange program, and telling some Singapore stories for my presentation.
After the seminar ends in two weeks, another journey will begin. From the 5th of October to the 18th of October, my cameraman, Ryan, and Emily Teng of Blessingsinabag.com, will join me for The mrbrown Road Trip, East Coast USA.
We will be updating you via daily live videos, photos and blogs. Yes, LIVE Videos! It will be a new media, online, interactive travel show. You will be able to follow us as we explore cities like DC and New York, partly by a hybrid car (kindly sponsored by Hertz) and by folding bicycle (kindly provided by sponsor, Speedmatrix, the Dahon distributor, who is also providing bike tech support).
There will even be a contest! I'll tell you more about the Road Trip event over the next few days. Meanwhile, I need to make sure I didn't leave out any bicycle parts.
Not the best place to park, not when you end up blocking a long trailer that is hauling a construction vehicle, that in turn ends up blocking the whole traffic junction.
No car could move at the junction until the driver came back to his car to drive off.
FAIL.
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