tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:28:07 +0000Step inside, take my Blog for a spin, and see what kind of places, people, and adventures I encounter as I explore new countries and cultures through international assignments that have taken me through Europe, the Middle East, and now Asia.http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/default.htmnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)Blogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-3963432338763413083Sat, 13 Mar 2010 06:20:00 +00002010-03-13T00:21:27.508-08:00Birthdays come around a lot faster than they used to. Games of Pin The Tail on the Donkey and richly frosted chocolate cake with brightly lit candles have transformed into pitchers of margaritas and deep fried Mexican chimichangas. Racing around the back yard chasing childhood friends in a sweaty game of Tag has turned into running around the office chasing down the latest sales update figures http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2010/03/birthday-blogging.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-399243445822649833Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:01:00 +00002009-12-30T16:51:47.311-08:00I recently concluded a month-long sabbatical which allowed me to completely disconnect from the day-to-day grind of work. This precious time away, which was five years in the making, also provided a rare opportunity to slow down, take stock in what I truly value, and reacquaint myself with the good people in my life that have helped shape who I am today. There is no doubt about it, and I would behttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/10/chance-to-inspire_8743.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-6384279532709326878Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:57:00 +00002009-06-06T23:39:31.776-07:00Today marks the date five years ago when I touched down in Singapore and began my life overseas in Asia. As I scrolled back over all the posts from my blog over that time period, I came across the one-year entry and again the two-year entry commemorating these milestones in groupings of 365 days. Time has certainly marched on and I cannot believe that five years have elapsed. It got me http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/06/5-years-in-singapore.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-1341386570838452124Sat, 30 May 2009 11:52:00 +00002009-12-30T15:53:11.465-08:002009 was officially the year when everyone collectively jumped on the "Green" bandwagon. I personally think it's great that being more efficient, productive, and cleaner; while finding alternative sources of energy are now considered cool and mainstream. What I do love about this new green penchant is that people are rediscovering that tried and true methods are actually beneficial to the causehttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/05/back-to-basics-with-twist.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-221917120884404662Sat, 09 May 2009 02:37:00 +00002009-07-26T03:35:48.157-07:00I can count on one hand the number of friends who have had both the flexibility in precious time and money to be able to swing by Singapore during my tenure here in the Lion City. But when a friend is able to align those variables and stop in for a visit, it is always a very good thing. My friend Caroline is part of the esteemed Munich Crew that many have read about in some of my earliest blog http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/05/singapore-stop-over.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-4077879006105062263Sun, 22 Feb 2009 03:53:00 +00002009-07-11T21:31:36.703-07:00The global economy is struggling in what looks to be a race to the bottom. The financial crisis in the US is rippling across the globe, as the world's largest consumer market puts on its collective brakes, while the industries and countries who supply these consumables scramble to insulate themselves from the impending storm. I made my first trip to Bangladesh as the global market was in the http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/02/boom-not-gloom.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-507438946912004949Fri, 23 Jan 2009 14:55:00 +00002009-02-08T05:16:52.990-08:0017 years is a long time, even in Dog Years. But 17 years was exactly the amount of time that had passed since many of my high school friends and I had crossed paths back on graduation night in 1991. Back on that special evening, we all dawned caps and gowns and zoned off as boring speakers reminded us that for all that we had accomplished in our short 18 years of life back then, that the real http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2009/01/getting-band-back-together.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-3216328004450540716Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:21:00 +00002008-12-12T01:50:23.443-08:00Sometimes it's really rewarding to check back in on someone you've met previously on your travels and see how life is treating them. Some of you may recall my interactions several months ago with Jimmie, the friendly and enthusiastic manager of the Fatburger restaurant at the massive Venetian resort in Macau. Seeing a Fatburger restaurant, like I did back in Macau, had me yearning for the tastes http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/11/coming-full-circle-in-hong-kong.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-4677388278545015264Mon, 27 Oct 2008 08:21:00 +00002008-11-02T05:38:33.652-08:00Few Westerners have heard of the Khmer Civilization. The Khmer established themselves as one of the world's most innovative, advanced, and sprawling cultures which dominated and heavily influenced present day Southeast Asia for close to a thousand years. The Khmer Civilization spawned from what we know today as Cambodia, and its capital and spiritual center was located at Ankor Wat, near present http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/10/cross-roads-in-cambodia.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-5665808801795844699Sat, 04 Oct 2008 08:25:00 +00002009-02-28T03:14:27.158-08:00Living in Asia, we hear about typhoons each year around this time of year. I honestly never actually knew the difference between a typhoon, a hurricane, and a cyclone until I looked it up and learned that they are all essentially the same thing; it is rather where geographically in the world this type of storm occurs that determines which name it goes by. I had ominous timing as I arrived into http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/10/taiwan-typhoon.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-1289434628000950834Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:38:00 +00002008-08-15T09:40:50.277-07:00 No one can really understand how much an entire country can want just one thing so badly. But after 48 years without an Olympic medal, Singapore has craved this moment for generations. Today, my co-workers gathered in our office pantry to watch the Singapore Women's Table Tennis Team earn a medal birth by defeating South Korea in the semi-finals and the video shows the winning moment and http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/08/48-years-of-frustration-vanquished.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-2519629661092174205Fri, 15 Aug 2008 01:29:00 +00002008-09-18T22:29:46.716-07:00Today is a milestone in several ways. On one hand, today is the 5th anniversary of beginning this blog. On the other hand, this specific post that I am creating now at this moment represents the blog's 100th entry. And if I had more than two hands, the third would mark the special occasion of when my overseas life really all began back in August of 2005 when I prepared to ship off to Munich, http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/08/milestone-5-years-100th-post.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-6537128855397782387Sat, 05 Jul 2008 01:52:00 +00002008-10-02T19:34:22.091-07:00There is nothing more American than the 4th of July. American Independence Day has woven its thread into the fabric of our being and has grabbed a prestigious position within the cultural idiom which is used to describe something as being uniquely American, "That is as American as Baseball, Mom, Apple Pie, and the 4th of July."It is odd for me to think that for something that has so much positivehttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/07/baseball-mom-and-apple-pie.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-8603898756776919930Sat, 21 Jun 2008 07:38:00 +00002008-08-24T17:46:08.264-07:00After four years living in a tropical country, where seasons ebb from either 1) Hot or 2) Hot with rain, I found myself craving the rebirth and renewal that comes with the Spring time. The fields of my parents' home in Oregon presented the perfect environment to indulge my senses and sensibilities in this craving. My parents now live on the farm that has been in my family for over 100 years. http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/06/spring-fever.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-979817077281209453Wed, 21 May 2008 00:29:00 +00002008-07-27T00:53:52.592-07:00There are times in each of our lives when drastic change is the only thing that can shake out the cobwebs, reboot the system, and clear the slate from the status quo and mundane routines that we sometimes find ourselves. My close friend, Kevin, is embarking on a journey that will indeed challenge his will, his perceptions, and most definitely his comfort zone. Over six years ago, Kevin initiated http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/05/from-tropical-island-to-great-white.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-7128234115476028813Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:01:00 +00002008-07-06T05:52:55.597-07:00A sabbatical is a chance to get away from it all, collect your thoughts, explore new places and ideas, and think deeply about what your life should be like once you return. My co-worker and friend, Mark, was currently enjoying this benefit that is offered by our company to US-stationed employees. They get a two month paid sabbatical for each seven years of service. I too was once logging my yearshttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/04/taste-of-sabbatical.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-5798273171644348890Sun, 23 Mar 2008 15:18:00 +00002008-05-15T09:35:16.865-07:00March got off to a nice start, as it was my birthday on the 11th. I was joined by close friends at a Brazilian restaurant to celebrate the occasion. My friends chipped in and got me a chocolate birthday cake, which just happens to be my favorite. I made a quick wish before blowing out my candles. Thank goodness they only had a few candles and not the traditional one for each year; otherwise we http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/03/march-placeholder.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-4143063920648552496Sun, 24 Feb 2008 16:04:00 +00002008-04-25T21:38:05.290-07:00Over the last several days of trekking through ankle-deep mud, scaling up and down unforgiving inclines and descents, and fighting off packs of vicious dogs at night, my co-workers have assembled reputations as being real tough guys. Well now it's time to blow the cover off this persona and reveal that even tough guys need a day of pampering. We were all tired, sore, and had been suffering in http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/pampered-day-of-recovery.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-2856237721579616263Sat, 23 Feb 2008 10:02:00 +00002008-03-29T23:41:01.907-07:00The sun, which had been hiding from sight virtually the entire race, made its inaugural visit on the 5th and final stage of the race. It was a gorgeous day as the competitors completed the shortest of all the stages (13KM) and made the final push into the town square of Sapa. It was the crowning achievement not only for the competitors who would be completing their 250KM journey, but also for http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/stage-5-finish.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-5877689940126536622Sat, 23 Feb 2008 10:01:00 +00002008-03-02T05:21:41.238-08:00Today's stage was less about logging additional miles on mud-clogged trails in the quest for drawing that many steps closer to finishing the 250 KM journey, and was instead more about a small rural community celebrating what they have achieved and where they hope to be going next. Stage 4 ended in the town of Ta Van, Vietnam, a small village that is home to 700 people who primarily work amongst http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/stage-4-connecting-cultures.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-5135744591287328803Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:05:00 +00002008-04-02T01:53:51.878-07:00Stage 3 was the shortest so far at just over 30 KMs. The race organizers had modified the course layout today after several racers took wrong turns the previous day. There were still incredible inclines but the organizers told all the participants in a pre-stage meeting that some of the most challenging climbs had been taken out. This was actually no small consolation because the revised http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/stage-3-shorter-yet-just-as-tough.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-6694922889169466550Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:21:00 +00002008-02-21T03:13:33.628-08:00One would think that 105 KMs in the First Stage would be hard enough, but no one truly knew how hard 51 KMs could be during the 2nd Stage when most of that distance was to be spent slogging it through ankle-deep mud. The mud was everywhere and it sapped the strength of the racers as they slipped, slid, and stumbled up and down sheer inclines covered in the thick, sticky, and unforgiving http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/stage-2-mud-fest.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-5197742775940428122Tue, 19 Feb 2008 10:47:00 +00002008-03-29T23:48:59.513-07:00The 250 KM journey for 51 racers started yesterday morning at 8AM. Racers started the morning huddled around a huge fire for warmth in the chilly mountain air. This first stage would be the most arduous of the race, as it totalled 105 KMs and would have most racers competiting all day and most of the night without rest. Just before the race began, local villagers from Si Ma Cai performed musichttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/and-race-is-on.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-3051928912442769656Sun, 17 Feb 2008 13:25:00 +00002008-02-17T06:11:13.787-08:00I am honored to be a part of Racing the Planet, an extreme endurance race that spans 25oKMs over the course of five days. This year's race takes place throughout the lush terraced rice fields of northern Vietnam. Although I am not competing in the race myself, I am supporting three of my co-workers who are. My main responsibilities will be to document via photos, video, and podcast interviews http://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/02/over-night-train-to-lao-cai.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5678494.post-4579752498199212352Sat, 12 Jan 2008 12:53:00 +00002008-04-25T19:51:40.733-07:00The beginning of the new year always means that our annual sales conference is right around the corner. This year, we had the added dimension of a change in venue from our previous three years to help add a little zest to our yearly gathering. Las Vegas was the place and meeting up with old friends and co-workers, mixed in with the sights and sounds of Vegas, was the name of the game. Our companyhttp://www.mjbryan.com/fosbergd/2008/01/vegas-baby-vegas.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (David Fosberg)0