travel channel update

for the past couple of days, ive felt queasy about going to pakistan. the us dept of state has issued a travel warning discouraging 'non-essential travel' due to precarious terrorist threats, which egged on feelings that karachi was perhaps too far off the beaten path. 'sectarian violence in punjab province has eased, although christians are still occasionally targeted' (sounds like my kind of place). but in the 2 hours i spent frantically creating an itinerary for the pakistani consulate general, i got re-enthused about the subcontinent. my lonely planet book couldnt conceal its disinterest in karachi, but was effusive about lahore, pakistans cultural center to the north. so ill spill some extra rupees for the additional flight into the hinterlands. plus... it only took 2 hrs to get me my $120 pakistani visa at their consulate on michigan ave. im sure my name and pic are already on their way to homeland security. look for my mug with 'half-korean al qaeda' on ur local news.

in terms of the bigger travel picture, its amazing what happens when you actually start doing some research about the places you plan to go. all of a sudden ive found logistically problematic holes in what looked like a fine itinerary. one or two scheduling snafus can be renegotiated thru an extra flight or by nixing a particular destination, but when u realize that your schedule has you missing asias biggest annual homo circuit party by mere days, an overhaul is mandatory.

so here she is. the additional $250 in change fees sucks, but im oh so much happier with my new schedule, which includes previously unscheduled days in japan:

9/4-9/8: nyc
9/9-9/10: la
9/11-9/17: kuala lumpur
9/17-9/19: penang
9/19-9/24: taipei
9/24-9/28: singapore
9/28-10/7: ho chi minh
10/7-10/8: hong kong
10/8-10/15: bali
10/15-10/20: hong kong
10/20-10/23: phuket
10/23-11/1: bangkok
11/1-11/7: karachi/lahore
11/7-11/8: seoul
11/8-11/11: daegu/jeju island
11/11-11/22: seoul
11/22-11/27: tokyo
11/27-12/4: seattle
12/4-... : ?

ill be a schizophrenic deaf mute by the time i return if i dont have any travel buddies... currently accepting qualified candidates. please?