Albino Bowler at the Swayambhunath Temple complex

    After leaving China (click here), Holly, the Albino Bowler, and I headed over the Himalayan mountains to the Kathmandu valley in Nepal.  It is fairly safe to say that I’ve been to and stayed in some pretty dirty places… but I’m pretty sure that Kathmandu takes the cake.  Bob Seger was apparently crazy… Kathmandu, while it sounds neat, is not really a place you want to go.  I am glad I can say that I’ve been there, but I don’t know that it is real high on my list of places to go back to! :)   We did make the most of our time there however.  We stopped by two durbar squares as well as several temples and monasteries, including the Swayamhunath temple complex… yeah… good luck pronouncing that one right.  The tourists have nicknamed it the “monkey temple” because it is easier to pronounce and because there are monkeys running around everywhere.  This particular place was the most interesting to me because it was set up on top of a mountain overlooking the Kathmandu valley, and it had a giant stuppa with the ‘all seeing eyes’ of Buddha on it (don’t ask… I just thought it looked neat).

    Lucky for us, Kathmandu was not the reason we wanted to go to Nepal.  We actually came to Nepal to Albino Bowler and company riding an elephantgo on a safari and I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Mount Everest; both of which we were able to accomplish.  Safaris in Nepal, specifically in the Royal Chitwan National Park, are a bit unique from your typical safari… if there is such a thing.  Safaris are done here, not in a jeep (although you can do that if you want), but on the ultimate offroad vehicle… an elephant.  Yes… we rode on the back of an elephant through the jungles of Nepal. :) I still laugh every time I say that because it seems so preposterous. 

    Chitwan National Park is known for its diverse wildlife; including several types of deer, monkeys, crocodiles, elephants, one horned black rhinos, and the ever elusive Bengal tiger.  The two national parks in Nepal are actually supposed to be your best chance at seeing a Bengal tiger in the wild, however according to our guide, they have become very scarce in the past couple of years in Chitwan… we didn’t see any.  We did however get to see all the other animals I mentioned with the exception of the wild elephants, and from what the guides were saying, a wild elephant is not something you really want to run into while you’re riding another elephant.  I’m kind of glad we didn’t see one.  The rhinos on the other hand, were quite the spectacle; and one of the nice things about being on the back of an elephant when you encounter one, is that they’re not scare of you.  We literally rode right up to them!  THAT was an amazing experience.   Also while in the park, we had the opportunity to ride in a handmade canoe down a river as well as a few walks through the jungle looking for wildlife… one such outing had us within 50 yards of a rhino.  While I was in a tree snapping pictures of the rhino, a mongoose unknowingly walked right up to Holly and our guide Brahma!  Once it realized what it had done it quickly changed course, but it was a neat thing to see.

The Albino Bowler making friends with a baby elephant

    While not out on safari, Holly and I had the opportunity to do a couple of really neat things.  In the mid morning to early afternoon hours, it is extremely hot and muggy there.  By this time, all the wildlife has found a nice cool place to hide, which makes viewing them very difficult.  Since there isn’t anything else to do, the owners of the elephants take them to the river to splash around… and yes, you can go join them.  This is something else that makes me laugh when I tell people; you can go swimming with the elephants.  Definitely the experience of a life time.  The handlers will bring the elephants over to a mud bank so you can climb up… bareback.. onto the elephant.  They then walk the elephant down to the river and let them splash themselves off, while you’re on their backs… so of course you get drenched.  They also will lay over sideways into the river, tossing you in, unless of course you’re fast enough to move around on him… I of course was not.  I could go on for hours, this was absolutely amazing.

    We also stopped by the elephant breeding center; this is where it all starts for the working animals.  The elephants are bread here and trained here.  It was quite the entertaining thing to watch the baby elephants play around, they are quite mischievous!  One actually smacked Holly with its trunk!  I guess he wanted some more grass from us.  Funny stuff (well, funny because it didn’t hurt).

Till next time, happy travels!

– Dan Thompson

To see more pictures from this trip, click here and select the 2010 – Nepal link from the left.

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NoSHAVEmber: Fun with Facial Hair

December 8, 2009    Category: Albino Bowler   No Comments »

    I don’t know who came up with it, or when and where it started… but fellow employee Jay Norris introduced the office to NoSHAVEmber (you may have heard it called “No Shave November”) this year; and being the bunch of nerds that we are… it caught like wildfire.  The idea is simple: you don’t shave for the entire month of November.  Now several people took this a little further than others.  Some, like Zac, didn’t touch a razor to their face nor scissors to their hair all month long.  Others, like Jay, decided it was acceptable to shave your neck… just

not your entire face.  It was actually a pretty amusing little experiment.  We found that some people, like Samat, still can’t grow a beard… and we’re quite sure that Jeff is actually Santa Claus (we think it all turns white closer to Christmas).  I, on the other hand, could not last the entire month.  I made it 8 days and had to give up.  I came to the realization that having a beard and being completely bald looks quite ridiculous… and is quite itchy to boot.  All in all we apparently generated enough buzz about the whole thing that local radio personality Kim Hansard from Star 102.1 wrote a commercial about it for

a local business that does laser hair removal (listen to it below)!  Now THAT is pretty funny stuff in my book.

   Do you know someone who participated in NoSHAVEmber?  Post up in the comments section and link to a picture!  We’ll all enjoy a good laugh I’m sure.

– Dan Thompson

 NoSHAVEmber Ideal Image Ad [0:01] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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    Okay, so I have a couple of things to admit here… 1) I’m not the biggest football fan in the world and 2) I’ve never been to a pro sporting event of any kind.  Well… unless of course you count our local hockey team.  I will very rarely turn down the opportunity to try something new though, so when our friends Jay Waggoner and Ashby Lincoln from Veristor invited my boss Aaron Sherrill and I to a Tennessee Titans game, I was fired up… and so was the Albino Bowler!

    Aaron and I met up at the office and made the relatively short drive over to the stadium in Nashville.  I had heard for years that the pro football games lacked the intensity of college football, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that there wasn’t any shortage of excitement around the stadium… the fans were out BIG TIME.

After walking around for a couple of minutes, we caught up with our friends and headed inside.  Now, Aaron had actually been to a couple Titans games before, so I think he had an idea of what we were in for when they said “VIP treatment”, I on the other hand had no clue.  After having had the “VIP treatment” though, I can tell you with all certainty that if you’re going to go to a pro football game… this is how you do it!  We were setup with an executive suite to watch the game from; complete with all the food you can eat, all the drinks you drink, and of course, a pretty darn good view of the action on the field.  Oh… and if you happened to miss something (like the tons of bad calls the refs were throwing down), there were a couple of big screen TVs to catch the replays on.  Now THIS is sweet!

    At the end of the day the Titans barely lost to the Houston Texans, 34 to 31, but there was no shortage of entertainment.  I’m also pretty comfortable saying that there was just as much intensity and passion with these football fans as any I’ve run into at the college games in Neyland Stadium here in Knoxville.  I don’t think they could have gotten any louder (and thankfully so because you would probably be well served with some ear plugs as is!).  Aaron and I had a great time and it was definitely a fun experience!  Thanks again Jay and Ashby for the invite!!

– Dan Thompson

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    My wife has been saying “take me to the beach” for some time now.  I tried to pacify this desire of hers by making a stop by the Gold Coast in Australia last year… but turns out April isn’t necessarily the best time to be going AND she was apparently interested in a little more time then a day.  Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE sitting on a beach and watching the day go by… but when we start talking vacation my mind wanders to far and away places where action packed days are the norm.  Sometimes I have to be reminded that its fun to do… well… nothing!
   We started doing a little digging around and decided on the Dominican Republic as our destination of choice to get some chill-out time in.  I think I’ve almost decided that it really doesn’t matter WHERE you go on this type of vacation so long as the ocean is wet, the sun is hot, and the beaches are sandy… everything else seems to fall by the way side.  If you’re looking for such a spot though, the Dominican Republic is an excellent place with all of the above criteria, and some REALLY friendly people to boot.
   
    The resort we picked was called the Punta Cana Princess and my wife, the Albino Bowler, and I were quite pleased.  The beaches were beautiful powder white, the food was good, the room was nice (although were didn’t stay there much), and the staff were AMAZING.
    So what did we do?  Well… not much of anything really!  My wife and I spent pretty most all our time on the beach.  The Albino Bowler opted for the shade (he apparently burns easy) while we did a lot of moving back and forth between the sun and the shade.  We did get to try some fresh coconut / coconut milk after one of the staff climbed a tree and chopped some down for us.  I’ll have to admit here that it wasn’t that good though.  :)   The milk doesn’t have that much taste… and it’s obviously very warm since it’s been hanging up in that tree all day.  We decided to dump it out and fill it back up with piña coladas.  THAT was a treat.  The Albino Bowler figured out that you could scrape the inside with your straw and cut slivers of the coconut, which makes for a nice addition to the drink.
    In addition to the awesome staff at the resort, the Albino Bowler made friends with a monkey named Meekee.  He said he was initially a little intimidated because the thing was so huge (this is the equivalent of a human standing next to a giant gorilla), but it all ended well.  Turns out that Meekee was just as scared of the Albino Bowler as he was of her so they had a mutual respect for each other.

   Finally, the resort threw a beach party for all the guests one evening, and all three of us attended.  It was an interesting mix of local foods and local entertainment.  The Albino Bowler and I tried some goat meat, (Holly wasn’t up to the task) which was quite tasty, and enjoyed some merengue music.  Good times!

– Dan Thompson

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     In part one of this trip, the Albino Bowler found himself hanging out in Vegas and then heading out to Rachel, Nevada to see how close he could get to the famed ‘Area 51’.  After spending a little bit of time in the Rachel area, we took off again.  The next stop on our trip, was Zion National Park.

    If you’re a fan of canyons and big red rocks, this is the place for you.  Holly and I had a great time here and it ranked as Holly’s favorite destination of the vacation.  We

decided to go hiking while in the park (of course) and chose the trail to ‘Observation Point’.  The hike itself was 8 miles round trip, and had some pretty sketchy spots where the trail had literally been carved out of the cliffs.  The views all along the trail, and at the point itself, made the trip worth every second though.  Beautiful place!

    Next stop on the trip; Page, Arizona.  Page is home to a pretty popular canyon named “Antelope Canyon”, which may not ring a bell until you see the pictures.  Antelope Canyon is a “slot canyon”, and was very much other worldly.  The walls themselves were, at times, as narrow as a few feet apart and reach close to a hundred feet in the air.  Holly and I spent several hours here, and to be honest, could have spent all day here.  It was absolutely fascinating and a blast to take pictures of (if you’re interested in going yourself, you can find my full review of the upper and lower canyons here on TripAdvisor.com).  As the sun moves across the sky, it completely changes the look inside the canyon and offers the chance for some truly unique photography.  I would highly recommend stopping by and checking this place out.  VERY cool.
    After a short stay in Page, our next destination was Moab, Utah and Arches National Park.  Arches is also a stop that has been on my list for a while (Are you seeing a pattern here?  Lots of life list things on this trip) and did not disappoint.   The only thing slightly disappointing about the park is that there were just so many people there.  The land is beautiful there, but everyone is obviously there to see the arches… so finding one without people in, around, and on, gets to be a bit of a challenge.  I’d recommend planning a trip here during the winter when the crowds are minimal.  Regardless of when
you go though, you’ll be rewarded with some of nature’s beautiful wonders… you might just have to share them with a hundred or so of your closest fellow travelers.  :)

    Leaving Moab and heading South again, you come across a classic American West landscape recognizable by anyone.  Conjuring images of John Wayne and old Western movies with cowboys and Indians, Monument Valley is an American icon for sure.  Holly and I decided to
splurge a little here and stayed at The View in Monument Valley, which is built on the Indian reservation and quite literally just a stone’s throw away from some of the monuments.  Stunning location, and as the name implies, the view doesn’t get any better.  Very relaxing spot.

    The final destination before heading back to Las Vegas was the Grand Canyon… but we managed to stumble upon something VERY interesting on the way just outside of Tuba City, Arizona; dinosaur footprints!   This place was CRAZY.  There had to have been hundreds of prints all over the place, permanently petrified in the rock.  It was as if someone had poured out concrete on the ground and let the guys just have at it.  This was definitely one of those little stops you make, not expecting much, and then you getting blown away by what you find.
    Picking back up on our journey, we soon arrived at the Grand Canyon National Park.  Here we met some friends of ours, Jay and Jennifer Norris.  Jay and I had been discussing a trip out west one day in the office, and as it turned out had been planning to go around the same time.  Our itineraries were slightly different, but both included the Grand Canyon… so we booked it up!

    Hiking is a must here.  We learned while in the park that only 1% of the visitors actually take the time to go below the rim of the canyon, so the Albino Bowler is a member of an elite group.  We chose the South Kaibab trail as it offers excellent views within a relatively short distance.  Holly and I made it as far as Skeleton Point, which is 3 miles down into the canyon, and offers a view of
the Colorado river, as well as an awesome perspective of the rest of the canyon.  The problem though is this… if you walk 3 miles down into the canyon… you have to walk 3 miles back UP.  And it’s straight up, or at least it sure feels that way.  Whew… EPIC.  I will say that the effort is greatly rewarded.  More people should get out of their cars and do this, but as you’ve probably gathered by now, I’m glad there were no crowds.  ;)     Two days at the canyon and it was time to head back
to big city lights and all the craziness of Vegas.  We did happen to randomly stumble upon another American icon on the way back though… Route 66.  I happened to notice a lot of Route 66 memorabilia in a gas station we stopped at and asked the attendant if it was near by… he pointed out the window and pointed to the street outside, “Yeah, it’s just right there”.  It wouldn’t have been right to have not taken a picture!

Till next time, happy travels!

– Dan Thompson

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    Over the long Easter weekend, fellow thealbinobowler.com contributor Zac Mckinney and I decided to drive down to Starr Mountain to do some rock climbing.  Starr Mountain, which is just outside of Etowah, Tennessee, is home to some AWESOME climbs and is also just a beautiful place to hang out… always makes for an enjoyable day.  The cliffs themselves are very exposed, so while the start of the climb may just be 60 feet or so below you, the Hiwasee river valley is directly behind you making it feel like you’re hundreds of feet up.  That takes a little getting used to, but luckily you’ve got a 5.6 climb (read: very easy) called “Pleasing to the Touch” to get warmed up on.  It feels epically huge while you’re on it, but the generously placed monster holds will have you feeling right at home in no time.
    After a little warm up session; me, Zac, and the Albino Bowler decided to focus our attention on a climb we had been eye-balling last time we were there called “Men Without Hats”.  This particular climb is rated a 5.10 b/c (read: amateurs need not apply) and is the perfect crack climb.  The fun / tricky part about the climb is that the rock bulges out you about half way up and makes for some interesting lay backs.  Good stuff!  All in all it was a great day, save for a sun burnt head… that’ll happen though.
   Oh yeah… I almost forgot.  I had been telling Zac for about a week or so about my trials and tribulations with a new ping pong table my wife and I had purchased.  It’s not so much that there is something wrong with the table… but that my wife keeps beating me!  Zac decided he wanted to challange her and proved to be a worthy opponent; he beat her two games to one.  I guess I’m just not that good at ping pong.  :)

– Dan Thompson

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    By now you’ve likely heard your friends discussing  Tourism Queensland’s “Best Job in the World”, or at least seen it in the headlines.  Well, I’ve decided to apply, and it was only fitting for the Albino Bowler to appear in the video.  Check out my official video on their site, and see if you can spot him (hint, he’s in the last scene).  While you’re at it, help a brother out and give it a good rating!  ;)

    Here’s the scoop on the job if you’ve missed it; the successful applicant will be given a 3 bedroom / 2 bath house on one of the islands in the Great Barrier Reef AND paid $150,000 AUD to… *drum roll* explore the islands and all that the GBR has to offer and report back to the rest of the world about your experiences…  yes folks… just the job I (and the rest of the planet) have been looking for!

   Obviously if I make the cut and get the job, there will be a good chance the Albino Bowler will be going with me to share in the adventures (that’ll be six months of other adventures he’ll miss out on though.. so we’ll have to see).  It should be an awesome experience for whoever lands the position.  Stay tuned!

AUSApp

– Dan Thompson

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   Happy New Year everyone!  I hope you all had as exciting of a year as we did in 2008!  The Albino Bowler traveled to two new continents, tagged along with lots of new people, was entrusted to a non-Claris employee… attended concerts, went to lake parties, went scuba diving… WHEW! Awesome!  As mentioned in a previous post, 2008 was not the best year for the Albino Bowler’s health.. or at least his bowling arm.  When last we spoke, he was in several pieces, not to worry though, he’s all back together now.  No trick photography here, it’s really attached and moves again.  For how long, no one knows though.  ;)

   Myself and the rest of the Albino Bowler team anxiously await what 2009 has in store.  The glue was barely dry on his arm before he was on the road again.  This time he’s off to Big Sky, Montana to do some
snowboarding with Paul Sponcia and Jay Norris.  It’s the Bowler’s first time traveling with them, so it should be interesting to see what they come up with (pictures are already showing up on Facebook).  Since he’s going to be involved in some extreme sports, we went ahead and gave his shoulder a good wrap so hopefully there won’t be any arm malfunctions on this trip.  As for the rest of the year?  Well… who knows.  Hopefully he’ll add another continent to the travelog (how about a trip to Asia, Africa…. Antarctica anyone???), or maybe a country or two that he has hasn’t visited yet.  Whatever happens though, I’m sure it’ll be entertaining.  The web site has also gotten a slight upgrade with the addition of a photo album.  Several readers suggested it, so we made it happen.  It’s quick and dirty for now, but watch for this to become more organized here in the future.  We’ll keep the most recent pictures first though for easy viewing.

   From all of us, to all of you, have an AWESOME 2009… and happy travels!

– Dan Thompson

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    2008 was an awesome year of travel for the Albino Bowler, however it would not seem that it was the best of years for his health.  The poor guy underwent intensive surgery back in August, and then subsequent follow-up surgeries after that to repair his arm.  Finally it had accumulated so much glue that it would no longer stay on for any amount of time, so Erin did the next best thing… she made him a sling.

    Striving to give him the best life possible, and hopefully even restore him to a state in which he could bowl again, I decided we should buy another Albino Bowler and sacrifice it in the name of spare parts… so the “spare parts Bowler” (SPB) was purchased… and the operation began.

    I should have seen the dark clouds looming when I realized that 2 of his 3 now rusted screws were stripped out… but alas, I pressed on.  I drilled out the screws knowing I’d have to replace the chest piece anyway if his bowling action was to be restored.  About 15 minutes later, the deed was done.  The Albino Bowler was once again in pieces.  Not to worry though, we now have a shiny new bowler ready and willing to give of himself so that the original can live on… or so I thought.  I proceeded to unbox the SPB, and that’s when the gravity of the situation was realized.

    It would seem that our friends over in China who put together our pigmentally challenged friend, in their infinite wisdom, decided that they should change the way the fellow is put together.  Undoubtedly to save on the huge cost of the three screws… they have been deleted.  Yes, the newer models have no screws, and thus cannot be safely disassembled and scavenged.  That my friends… is just plain wrong.

    So it’s glue and pins again for the old guy, and he may well be permanently in a sling.  He’ll live to travel another day though; this, I promise.

– Dan Thompson

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    Well, you just never can tell where the Albino Bowler is going to show up next!  :)   This past week, the Albino Bowler joined me on the set of the WBIR morning show to discuss last minute Christmas ideas for all those techies on your list (check out the clip below).  Morning show host Russell Biven, traffic guru Ed Rupp, and the rest of the morning show team were nice enough to play along.  Keep your eyes open… who knows where he’ll show up next!!

– Dan Thompson



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