AWOL

Taiwan Son sent me this email from Taiwan:

Mom and Dad,

I'm leaving for Cambodia tomorrow at 7:00 AM. I will be back on February 14th. Nothing regarding the trip is determined besides the information I've just provided you. I intend to read the guide book while in flight tomorrow and that should help me figure out the details for my trip. Once I get back I will send you an e-mail informing that I am safe and well, I wouldn't expect anything until then.

Love,
Alex

Can I just say that I really don't like it when he does that? He left with his backpack and his camera for 3 weeks of hiking by himself. Last time he did that he and a buddy were on the Great Wall of China in an area that wasn't open to tourists, let alone anyone hiking and camping. They bribed a guard to get on the wall and were told in no uncertain terms that they were NOT allowed to return the way they came from. Yeah, and he found out why the area wasn't open - IT WAS BARELY NAVIGABLE! Like, scaling walls with nothing more than his hiking stick wedged between rocks to move along sections of the wall and if the rocks gave way he would tumble to his death. However, he speaks of that trip and his "brush with death" as one of the more memorable highlights of his life thus far. He speaks with reverence of waking in the early dawn to stand on the wall just as the sun comes up - the whole world laid out before him bathed in golden light and he feeling like he owned the world. He faced an incredible challenge and he learned to trust himself. Thus begins a lifetime journey of learning that he is capable of accomplishing great things. I can't fault him for wanting to learn more.

Ugh! It's going to be a long 3 weeks.