I never thought I would have a blog. Once upon a time in 1999 I thought I would never own a cell phone either, but like this it was a way to keep in touch with friends and family. It seemed to make sense to post somewhere the contents of the emails I regularly re-send to friends (restaurants I like in Shanghai, the hostel I stay at in BKK, etc) and 2) If I update this while I’m on my 3-month+ Latin American walkabout family and friends can keep track of my ’progress’ if they want and I don’t have to send out impersonal mass emails.