Sean Michael Hayes

We woke up in Campbell River, on Vancouver Island, B.C., and while it wasn’t raining, the puddles in the parking lot were frozen. The further north we went after we left the hotel, the more the land surrounding us became open and remote. In all directions it became dense and thickly forested. All different shades of green could be seen amongst the auburn hibernation of some perennials. I had just finished my coffee a when a deer bounded into our lane of traffic.The deer stopped long enough that I had eye contact with him. Then off he went, bounding into the undergrowth. We got on the ferry for Alert Bay (which is on Cormorant Island) at 11:30. It was packed, it’s not a big island but people were coming from all over to be a part of this ceremony. It was Marcus Alfred’s induction as a chief to the Kwa Kwa Ka-wak wak and most of the people on the ferry had a hushed sense of excitement about them.Our first stop was the native burial ground where they had just unveiled the islands newest totem pole. The silence of the island was intensified after the hours of highways and ferries it took to get there. The Burial ground looked out over the bay towards the west. Standing next to large totem poles in the unexpected sunshine, they had an energy that felt strong, protective and confident.  Their perch on the grassy knoll looked out over the steel-blue sea.When we got to the longhouse I was prepared for an authentic experience, and as soon as I stepped out of the car I knew that’s what I would be getting.What was most impressive about the ceremony was how intricate, and in depth, the history and story telling was. The elders sat in a row in front of the perpetually crackling fire. Behind them sat a row of younger men who beat on drums and created a thunderous and deep roar. The rhythm they created thumped through the four hundred or more people and we were all somatically connected by it.The fire had multiple people tending to it, placing thick 6-foot sections of Cedar every few minutes.The younger tribal chiefs were the story tellers, with tales of family history mixed with ceremonial dances dedicated to different animals, plants, the sun, wind and rain. The dancers wore speculator masks and robes, and danced around the burning fire. The fire shot sparks towards the openings in the roof and the blue-gray smoke in.

One of the most spectacular temples in Asia, if not the world, is the Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap. But for a budget-conscious backpacker, the options are limited. A one-day ticket will set you back $20, and a three-day ticket is $40 (all prices in USD).

Let’s be honest, most backpackers want to have it all, and in Siem Reap, you can have it all.

Spending a few extra days exploring the markets, cafe’s and bars, and, of course, the temples, will be well worth your time.

In the heart of this tiny French colonial town is the infamous Pub Street. While most guidebooks will claim that this is the place to be and the center of activity — keep looking.

If you are visiting Siem Reap and want to party all night, get a tuk-tuk to pick you up somewhere at 5 a.m. to see the sunrise at Angkor Wat; these are the top five places to be…”

To read my entire article on Gobackpacking.com, click here.

I began to explore a possibility. That life could be learned from those who had lived in earnest and captured it in their literature. Like it is with any subject. To study philosophy is to study life, and its counterpart, death.

Does the fact millennia of time has spanned between their life and mine change how much they knew then, or how little I know now?

Understandably people think, “Philosophy? I don’t even know what philosophy means, in fact I’m pretty sure I’m not interested in philosophy, it sounds boring.” At one time I was daunted by this four-syllable word, not knowing the truth of the world was hidden within this disciplines of subject.

This was how I felt about philosophy, even after 12 years of socialized education. Which, I might add, was not an education experience I enjoyed. However, allow me to reassure you that philosophy and it’s logical (and sometimes illogical) arguments will rarely bore you.

To me it seems the most difficult to master, and yet most creative of all the arts. While at the same time, the most mystifying and elaborate of all the sciences. There is nothing we do as humans which does not involve life, or for that matter, death to some extent.

As Socrates says, “Ordinary people seem not to realize those who really apply themselves in the right way to philosophy are directly, and of their own accord, preparing themselves for dying and death.”

Have you heard this saying? “Failure to prepare, is the same as preparing to fail.”

With that thought in mind shouldn’t I prepare to live and die in a way I determine to be true? Should I learn from the lessons of these ancient masters, or discard their work in hopes I can find my own way?

Aristotle wrote in its defense to a friend, “let not the youngest shun philosophy or the oldest grow weary of it. To do so is equivalent to saying either that the time for a happy life has not yet come, or that is has already passed.”

Neither of those things can be said about me. I am willing to learn, and I plan to continue to study the art and science, or philosophy of life, until my last breath.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from ancient philosophers. Got one of your own? Leave a comment below.

During the last week in August I crossed two goals off my bucket list. I became a #1 Bestselling author, and I met Jesse Stewart, a musician I’m a huge fan of. Here is my story from that week.

We picked up Jesse Stewart on a wet and windy Saturday evening from the corner of Main and Terminal in Vancouver, BC. It was Saturday, and two days since meeting each other for the first time in the parking lot of Pat’s Pub & Brewhouse on East Hastings Street. We went back to my friend Brennan’s house, and the story telling got so good I pulled out my voice recorder.

Jesse was tuning his Mandolin and telling a joke. With his classic wide mouthed grin he said. “A Mandolin player spends half his set tuning his mandolin, and the other half playing out of tune.” He laughed, continuing with a humble confidence as he spoke.  Tuning each nut on the head of his Mandolin he plucked up and down the wooden neck and tested the harmonics of each string against the others. Its pear-shaped body made a sound that resonated outwards, reminding me of the first time I heard him play.

I had been bartending in Colombia, and my friend Brennan sent me a video of Jesse on Youtube. He says when he sent the link for, “Cold Beer,” it only had a few hundred views, but what impressed us both right away was how he played. His unbridled passion was contagious. I addictively listened to it, and it became a known fact in the hostel I was working in, that if you heard that song, the bar was about to open.Jesse plays like his life depends on it, and I think thats what why so many people are fans. It has been the same when I’m drinking Angkor beer’s with Cambodians, or Aguila’s with the Irish. The song instantly become a classic beer drinking anthem among many travelers.

Myself, I’m not much of a guitar player. I like to play, but unfortunately when I was returning from my West Coast Book Tour in January, I had to sell my guitar in Lodi, California to pay for gas. It was one of those things too poetic to fight. An acoustic guitar given to me by professional skater Danny Way, whom I lived with when I was the team manager for Plan B skateboards. And it ended up being sold for $40 at a pawn shop, in a town that the band Creedence Clearwater Revival, or CCR, made famous for being stuck in.

Fast forward six months and I’d just returned from backpacking through Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. I made contact with Jess though Facebook, and told him I wanted to collaborate. A friend that worked at Pat’s Pub & Brewhouse invited me to do a book reading for Five Weeks in the Amazon, but I thought it would be more exciting if I somehow got Jesse to be the main act. I also thought what the hell, I might as well try playing a few of my own songs too. Another friend, AJ Minor, also agreed to play, and what began as my desire to meet someone I was a fan of on youtube, became a live concert with me as the opening act.

There was one major glitch in my schedule, which occurred the day after confirming Jesse and AJ would play. It was only 10 days before the show and I was scheduled to see an orthopedic surgeon for a mountain bike crash I’d taken at few weeks before. The doctor and I spoke for 5-10 minutes and I walked out with surgery scheduled for the following morning at 6am.

By the day of the show, even with my best efforts, I wasn’t ready. Yet, as the saying goes,“the show must go on!” But the lack of time to prepare, combined with the fact I hadn’t been able to sleep in days, gravely affected my “performance skills”. Lucky for me, AJ and Jesse played amazing sets and nobody cared much that I didn’t even finish a full song.

It wasn’t the surgery, or the show, which had been keeping me up at night. I had spent months preparing for a free ebook promotion for Five Weeks in the Amazon. As I sat at Brennan’s house, and Jesse told the story about how and why he began playing Mandolin, I thought back to the beginning of the week. All the hard work I had put in had paid off and my book launched into the #1 bestseller in multiple categories on Amazon. I couldn’t have done it without everyone that has supported me, and thanks again to everyone who came out to Pat’s Pub!

All in all, it was a learning experience and a week I won’t forget. Thanks again for all the support. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions on topics you would like me to write about, or places I have traveled, please leave a comment below or send me a message. And sign up here to be notified when I post new stories (Like the real reason Jesse plays the Mandolin).

Sean Michael Hayes – Always Adventure!