Blanchard's Oriental Travel Journal Introduction and Index

The current entry will always appear here. New entries from Jakarta, London, and Bangkok will be uploaded the during late August and early September. Apologies for the delay. (..Eds.) Blanchard's Oriental Travel Journal: Index and Intro | Blanchard's FAQ | Reviews, Best, and Miscellania | Blanchard's Disclaimers and Acknowledgments | Asia Pacific Management Forum | Restaurant & Entertainment Reviews | Hotel Reviews | The Forum Travel Pages NEWS: Wednesday 6th May: Blanchard Gets Stripped! Oh dear! For those who dont know the publishing parlance you will be happy to know that it dosent mean Blanchard gets divested of his clothes.. (Perish the thought!).. but we are now publishing Blanchard every month rather than when he feels like it, but a little less each time. Weve at last got the lad under control during a spirited phone call to Macau between dice games last night. (Yes we finally caught up with the blighter though we owe the doorman at the hotel and the ferryman a hefty tip..) The deal... he gets his stuff in on time every month as long as we dont censor it as we have done regularly in the past. Heavens forbid!, ..from the next updates.. you will ALL know what problems he has acting his age... The full, raw, unadulterated and politically incorrect Blanchard, ....and sometimes it aint pretty.. Dont tell us we didnt warn you...and lets hope Hortense never buys a modem. ...(Eds..)

WHILE YOU ARE WAITING.... While we have not seen head or tail of Blanchard since a hefty tip from one of our Hong Kong friends of the Rat to both the ferryman and the concierge at the Hotel Lisboa last placed him in Macau back in May, here are some other columnists scattered around the Web, who, unlike Blanchard, are actually on time with their copy. Rumours that Blanchard has got caught up in the crossfire of the current triad wars there, we hope are not true. Two sightings that we cant possibly put in the "credible" category yet, was that a bedraggled and wet Blanchard was observed scampering onto the Royal Yacht "Brittania" in the company of two quite attractive young gweilo ladies at 10 to 1 on July 1st in a final effort to escape gambling debts and a visa overstay and get back to the old dart. Sorry Nom and Kenny, we cant count sightings on a telly half on the blink, especially at midnight from a Krong Thip-soaked beer bar in Phuket, as a "confirmed" sighting.... ...We just think that you got him mixed up with another gentleman with his tail between his legs... Save your time and go to the other columnist's page for columns from Mungo Park, Burke and Wills, Dr Rob Brown, Sam McGhee (and dog), George and Margaret from the University of Internetica, and our own Khun Kriengsak, Boye Lafayette de Mente and Chinese expat in San Francisco. Such a diverse and august crowd... But remember to check back here regulalry.... PAST ENTRIES Wednesday 11th December to Saturday 21st December 1996 Hong Kong, Singapore, Penang, Alor Setar Blanchard scours South East Asia for the meaning of Christmas...only to find it in the most surprising of places... Monday 2nd December 1996 Manila Why the Hotel Co-Co is a No-No... Thursday 18th July 1996 Kuala Lumpur Pub talk at the Hard Rock Cafe in Kuala Lumpur, Orang-utans run amok, and reverse language colonialisation Thursday 9th March 1996 Bangkok How it came to pass that Major, Kohl, Mahathir, Goh, and Blanchard assembled in Bangkok, Thailand to discuss issues of some import... Monday 19th February 1996 Kuala Lumpur The fat controller rules the roost at Kuala Lumpur Railway Station, the Locomotive Bar readies for the big opening and goodbye to the Pig and welcome to the Rat in Singapore, (where the rats chase the cats) Saturday 11th November to Saturday 18th November 1995 Bangkok One (day) in Bangkok, being compared to a barbers pole, Nok offers hospitality and the joys of getting lost down a soi-soi.. Sunday 23rd October to Wednesday 26th October 1995 Hong Kong Flying into Kai Tek on sundown, why the white ghosts are becoming lonely ghosts as the ticker counts down in Tianneman Square, being outstared by Japanese carp, and how to avoid poison arrows. Friday 5th August to Thursday 24th August Singapore, Kuala Lumpur On getting from KL to Singapore and back, getting currency in and out in Malaysia, the white ghost meets the hungry ghost, and playing the Karaoke Game Wednesday 19th July to Thursday 25th July 1995 Singapore, Kuala Lumpur On getting on the wrong bus in Kuala Lumpur, flying BA, meeting old friends, changing business styles in Singapore, shopping and women

INTRODUCTION The opinions expressed here are solely those of Blanchard and are almost always not the opinion of Orient Pacific Century, nor anybody else we know. I dont remember exactly how I met Blanchard, but he travels around the region doing some sort of business that I never really could understand and has some interesting observations along theway. Blanchard is the epitome of ordinariness, especially when he is escorted by his wife/concubine/defacto? Hortense. I never worked that one out either. He is not big on seeing the tourist sights but often stumbles on things which are more interesting and real than anything you will see on a bus tour or between the airport, your Hotel and the office.. Often his budget limits him to hotels and eating places, and airlines that no self respecting business traveller would even get close to. Occasionally he scores a job with a big client and gets to stay at the Hilton or somewhere like that where his innocence of things luxurious results in several ...well.. "interesting" divertisments. His observations on the people, business and social customs (more on the latter than the former), hotels, taxis, airports, faxes, restaurants, and hawker centres of the Asia Pacific should prove useful and insightful to any Asian business traveller, no matter what the style. He goes to places that your clients would probably never take you, generally by taking the wrong turn down a soi or a leboh. His experiences with the locals as well as that fascinating creature the gweilo, farang and ang-mo we have decided to share with you..like it or not.. Most of the time he mentions the establishments by name so you will recognise places you've been, and those that you wish you had and will next time. More likely though it will be places that you never wish to experience. Many times he just forgets what the name of the place was either because he couldnt pronounce it or he was "tired and emotional" by the time he walked out. We haven't been sued yet, but I guess the one you really have the beef with would be Blanchard who views the world from the Blanchard point of view, and good luck at catching him, because I sure can't and hes never on the plane he was booked on anyway. Before you sue, read Blanchards Disclaimers and Acknowledgments Page. Blanchard hasn't got his email program on his laptop yet as he gets confused with things technical like typing win at the dos prompt. Even a Mcintosh was too much for him. He uses one of those nifty dictation machines he bought at Kowloon about 6 years ago. And he religiously writes his journal every 2 or 3 days at whatever innocent hostelery has agreed to put him up for the night, sometimes on that ubiquitous hotel stationary or more likely a stained napkin from the hawker centre he had just eaten in. Then he sends them to us..... That way you get to read his journal as well....Though we censor some of it and most of it is ..well.. boring.. And Blanchard sends his stuff about once a month....on average.. with high standard deviations...