Ventura, California was the place where I first stayed after spending close to four consecutive years living in Thailand. I travelled from Bangkok to LA, then to the comfort of my brother's home (my brother may be found in the last photo of this series). Ventura was a weird place for me during this visit. I was experiencing an almost debilitating level of culture shock that I wasn't expecting.   I spent much of my time in Ventura watching Western television, bundled in blankets and wearing sunglasses indoors; the bright light and glare I found in Ventura was close to being unbearable. Perhaps I wasn't used to being around that much glass and/or shiny objects. I have no … [Read more...]

  I've travelled to Ventura on three separate occasions and every time I go, the experience is different.  My last trip, as photographed below, was taken after spending 3.5 years training muay thai in Thailand and the last 2.5 years were spent living in Buriram. Buriram is located in Thailand's north east and lies in the countryside within close proximity to the Cambodian border. Making the transition from traditional, conservative, rural Thai culture to what I found in Ventura was unexpectedly weird. I was weird. Everyone around me was weird. I got hit hard with re-entry shock and couldn't write. As a result, almost two years later, I'm revisiting this post in an effort to give you … [Read more...]