Howdy!
It's been a while since I drafted a personal travel
diatribe. Look out - here it comes!
A couple of months back in Hanoi I noticed Vinh
(my field rep and best pal) wearing a new pair of reading glasses
(he just breached 30+).. Upon enquiring about price, source etc.
he suggested we go to his optometry connection and buy a pair
for me. Being legally blind within 18 inches of my nose and relying
for a few years on cheap disposables I was in sore need of some
real specs. So, all went well and for a mere US$19.00 I scored
a pair of unbreakable (I will have to be exceedingly irresponsible
to break these!) Japanese flexible titanium frames with scratch
proof color-change lenses matching my scrip. Let's see you pull
THAT off in the West!
However, ownership does not imply responsible use.
A few weeks later in Seoul I ventured out through my 'hood and
just couldn't face unfamiliar food and large crowds, so I looked
for a convenience store for supper. Great, a 7-11, Korean instant
noodles in the spicy red pictorial package, beer (a no-brainer)
and, Gods Bless, chocolate Daz (a brand I could probably find
in my sleep). And then, low and behold, slivered almonds - their
identity so obvious from the blurry photo on the package - the
perfect compliment to the Daz! I was in puppy heaven!!. But, shopping
by the pictures, I had neglected to wear my still bitchin, yet
now not so new glasses that hung languishing in my breast pocket.
Sequestered in the privacy of my room I slurped
up the instants, quaffed the brewskies and kicked back to my studies.
. Ah yes, the Daz! Broke out the beloved pint and it was so cool
and delicious (super hot and humid summer season in Korea) and
all was well. Then, suddenly, I remembered the slivered almonds,
WOW! I ripped open the pack and dumped its contents atop the softly
tempered Daz, waited a few moments and blended them in. What could
be better, heh?
Wrong!! Took one massive swallow and nearly woofed
my cookies!! Apparently, I had indeed bought slivered almonds,
but upon a more thorough inspection of the trashed package (WITH
my glasses) I ascertained that my purchase incorporated a plethora
of dried and salted guppies - apparently a Korean snack food delicacy.
Go figure! The moral of the story? Modern humans when empowered
with cool tech tools must be wise enough to remember to use them
responsibly - in my case wear my glasses. Believe me, it could
have been worse!!
And speaking of studies, there must be those among
you who wonder (as I often do) why am visiting hyper-expensive
Japan and Korea for the third year during the most uncomfortable
summer season? Well, in short, it is the only convenient time
for me to visit
and there is much to learn as well as cooperative sponsorship
based on academic respect for my research pursuits. I am provided
with an apartment at minimal cost, amazing support from museum
staff and basically the keys to the museum universe. Of course,
my research revolves around Cannabis - duuh! - yet on four interrelated
fronts. In historic chronological order:
I am concerned with documenting the evolution of
Cannabis via DNA analysis. Hop (Humulus) researchers have made
serious advances into this field of knowledge. The collateral
damage ensuing following brewery meetings is most enjoyable and
reminiscent of work years ago in Eastern Europe!
Following this seminal curiosity, I endeavor to
record the earliest uses of Cannabis in eastern Asia by meeting
with archaeologists who discover, document and date (C14 etc.)
Cannabis fiber, seed and pollen remains. Precious little is published
in English and
this field of research is a veritable 'goldmine' of data. Meeting
with archaeologists (who are generally quite responsive) is my
unique way forward.
Then, there is a third level of curiosity related
to my "disease" of collecting every available object
I can afford that is truly fabricated from Cannabis. This incentive
spans every level from flea markets through merchants to museum-related
laboratories working to develop reliable analysis techniques to
identify various textile fiber sources - there are dozens of fiber
plants with ancient histories - so this research has become very
complex and convoluted - a blend of local knowledge and serious
lab science, most enthralling! Museum and private collections
provide the remaining items I either cannot find for sale or,
as is often the case, simply cannot afford.
The fourth, and to me the most mysterious and fascinating
level of research, surrounds my relatively recent focus on the
ritual uses of hemp in eastern Asia and their common parallels
throughout much of Eurasia. The present-day use of hemp fiber
in Japanese
Shinto ritual is simply astonishing and may well be descendant
from the Korean shamanic traditions I also explore. Much may be
concluded concerning Eastern Europe as well.
So, by providing you with a moment of synthetic
thinking, well outside the box, it is my fervent hope that you
all may vicariously enjoy, as I enjoy, the deep study of one of
the world's most ancient and fascinating plants. Several books
are in the works so stay tuned! In the meantime join the International
Hemp Association and receive our journal twice a year. It is fully
peer-reviewed and awesome!!
I also continue to enjoy every museum, local festival
and Shinto shrine in my path (there are often Cannabis lessons
waiting within), fish for fishes when possible, keep only as many
as my immediate cohorts can consume, and eat as many local cultural
delicacies
as appeal to me. I have found my 'perfect partner' and we shall
remain as 'one'.
One Love,
Rob Around the World
Projects Manager
International Hemp Association
Dedicated to the advancement of Cannabis through the
dissemination of information
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