Drifting on Arroyo
Drifting on Arroyo
Episode 133 - Beyond Borders: Conversations with El Vampiro
The world opens up through conversation as we welcome back David El Vampiro after a three-year hiatus from the show. A gifted educator with a passion for global exploration, David takes us on a journey from the classrooms of Southern California to the coffee fields of Colombia and the ancient temples of Cambodia.
David's career trajectory reveals how life's unexpected turns often lead to the right destination. After leaving a challenging situation in Fresno, he found his calling teaching English Language Development to high school students in the Inland Empire. His teaching experiences reflect a genuine commitment to helping students develop authentic language skills rather than relying on technological crutches like Google Translate.
The heart of our conversation explores David's recent travels through Colombia, where he discovered the secrets of exceptional coffee production, savored affordable yet delicious local cuisine, and connected with friendly locals. His detailed accounts of roasting techniques challenge our conventional coffee consumption habits, suggesting that truly excellent beans require no additives. Meanwhile, his adventures in Southeast Asia—navigating tuk-tuks through Cambodian streets and discovering the stark contrast between accommodations—offer practical insights for aspiring travelers alongside captivating storytelling.
Throughout our wide-ranging discussion, we weave between memories of growing up in East LA, college struggles with engineering programs, and the hunt for authentic regional Mexican cuisines. David's storytelling bridges cultural gaps, reminding us how food, language, and community shape our identities whether at home or abroad.
Whether you're planning your next international adventure, curious about teaching as a career, or simply enjoy authentic conversations that traverse continents, this episode delivers both entertainment and insight. Join us for this global journey, and discover how travel broadens perspectives while simultaneously deepening our appreciation for our roots.
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Thanks for Listening!
Welcome back to the Drifting on the Arroyo Podcast. This is Mig. This is Lano. R-k-6-7 is missing once again. I think the Bears and Yosemite got him. Dude, you called him or you just texted him. I texted him.
Lano:I was going to say maybe we should send him the link.
Mig:I was going to tell you that before the show.
Lano:You should have done it. I forgot. I wasn't sure how busy he was going to be.
Mig:Yeah, but anyways he's not here Special guest. But we do have a fill-in Very Special guest. But we do have a fill in Very special, a fan favorite. If you can't tell by that, laugh already. You're not really a fan. It's the famous, the one and only, david El Vampiritis. Hello, how you doing, david Great. Long time no see man. Yeah, I think it's been three years, not that long, hello. Hello, how are you doing, david Great Long?
David Na:time no see man. Yeah, I think it's been three years.
Mig:Not that long. Well since you've been on the show, but Three years on the show, yeah. I mean not since I've seen you.
Lano:Has it been that long? I don't know.
David Na:I haven't seen him since the show.
Lano:I saw you on. Halloween.
Mig:Halloween. Yeah, last Last Halloween, last Halloween at Rick's birthday party.
Lano:Oh, halloween party oh that was right.
David Na:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.
Mig:That was a good time.
David Na:That was a year ago, yeah.
Lano:Is he doing it this year, because it's already coming up. I haven't heard anything about it.
Mig:No, he told me he wasn't going to do it this year. He has to take a break. It's a lot, a lot of work going right now that he has to get squared away. So with, uh, with his business, you know, I mean thank god, you know his business is rolling along really nicely. So you know, that's good.
Lano:You know, we all, we all got our businesses rolling along pretty nicely now and then he had like um, that halloween party was like back to back with, I guess, the friendsgiving or christmas. It was like it was too too much like two, two parties close together.
Mig:It is. It's a lot, you might not think, but he goes all out for every one of them, yeah.
Lano:To switch it over.
Mig:Especially for the Halloween. That Halloween party was great that.
Lano:Halloween party was fun.
Mig:It was you live too early.
David Na:I really like your costume, River.
Lano:Oh, is that the P Diddy one? Yeah, oh, I forgot to turn on this other camera. You guys keep talking.
Mig:Which one? Oh, the TV one. So, anyways, what you been up to, david. Where are you teaching at now?
David Na:I'm at a high school Out in Chino Hills, you know.
Mig:Okay, is that the one you said you were going to be teaching at the last time you were here? Yeah, okay, that's good, so it's going good.
David Na:It's going great. The kids are really cool, the staff, everybody's really supportive there. I love it.
Mig:Okay, and you hear anything from Fresno and from anybody over there, you know what I broke all contact with the people in Fresno, you know.
David Na:Okay, when I came back it was like they're gone, I'm not going to.
Lano:Oh, in Fresno, the last show, you're talking about how there was like some trauma or something, right? No, I'm not bringing it up, but that was the last thing. So I mean it was good to like lose contact with those people.
David Na:Yeah, yeah, you don.
Mig:Yeah, yeah, yeah. You don't need that negativity in your life, dude.
David Na:I don't. And you know, once I was able to step away from that, I saw things like in a different perspective. You know, there you go. It was kind of like a blessing in disguise, you know, see because you were all worried.
Mig:You were really worried about leaving over there and you were having doubts and everything.
David Na:I told you, dude, just trust, trust that God's going to put you where you need to be Right.
Mig:Look at you now dude.
David Na:You know what, Mick? I know you're not going to believe this, Mick, but I love that place so much, that little town I was in.
Lano:Fresno.
David Na:Yeah, there was a little town. I'm not going to say it right on there where the town was. I love the people and every time I dream about it it's always like a good dream, you know, like there's never been a nightmare, because the people right there were just cool, very genuine, you know, yeah, very hardworking.
Lano:Like good memories, but you had some bad apples there. Yeah, you had some bad apples.
Mig:I mean, that's what they say. You know, just a couple of bad apples ruins the whole barrel, the whole barrel. Yeah, yeah, you're right, you're right.
David Na:But it's been a good three years being back here, you know. Yeah, there you go, but you know there's still a lot of memories there, a lot of great, fond memories of Fresno, you know.
Mig:Yeah.
Lano:So now you're back and then. So David, if the audience doesn't remember Is a professor, he's a professor Of English.
David Na:I was, if you can believe that.
Lano:He has the highest education In the room right here, yeah.
David Na:In his element.
Mig:The dude's actually Pretty brilliant.
David Na:Hey, thanks man Out of his element. I don't know but I love the guy yeah, same here big I love you guys, great, great friends huh yeah, dude, how long has it been? How long has it been?
Mig:dude it's been you know, I think about that, like with a lot of people that I'm still in touch with, and I think about that, and it's like you start counting the years and you're like, dude, it's like where has the time gone? It's like it's like just uh, um, a few episodes ago I had my friend on, you know that. Um, I met back in 05. Her name's sylvia and we had her. We had her on because she was talking about Barron's Baseball Academy, you know, which I still keep on posting a bunch of stuff on Instagram on it. You know, for anybody interested out there wanting to get their kid into baseball and stuff, good place to start Check them out. They're bringing home hardware, championships and everything. So just thought I'd give them a shout out. Well, shout out, parents, baseball and Instagram yeah.
Mig:And yeah, you know, it's like we had her on here, you know, one of the one of the weeks that Rick wasn't here. So she filled in and, um, yeah, we started talking about it and we're like dude, 20 years, we met 20 years ago. Wow, oh, five. Yeah, it's like I'm still in the mindset of when someone says 30 years ago. I'm still thinking what the 70s. Yeah, that's where my mind's at dude. It's like no dude 30 years ago and it's the 90s. Yeah, you know, I'm already out of school you know, I'm already an adult.
Mig:It's like when the hell did that happen? Oh, five was. Imagine that five years after y2k. You know, I'm already out of school. You know, and I'm already an adult. It's like when the hell did that happen 05 was imagine that five years after Y2K?
David Na:Remember that whole big thing. Yeah, that garbage right.
Lano:People thought everything was going to end, or whatever.
David Na:When did I meet you guys? It was at the coffee shop, at Yancy's coffee shop.
Mig:Oh, whenever he opened up dude. I mean, I honestly can't remember when it was, you know.
Lano:Do you remember Lalo the year? No, but that's when we met Dolores. That's when everybody, like we, were all like like young kids, like I don't know, I don't know.
Mig:We were in our 20s, 30s, I don't even remember 30, maybe I think it's easily what like 15 years, maybe now 10 or 15 years it goes by fast, dude.
Lano:Before you know it, you've been on the show twice and we're still trying to get Dolores to be on the show once.
David Na:Yeah, what happened with her?
Mig:She never calls back Really yeah. She's been checking up on us lately she checks up on us, because when we threw down our weight loss challenge Last episode, she actually texted us in a group. Uh, she's like, oh so who's in the lead and oh so who's who's winning. You know who's losing the most so far oh, I know you're paying attention, delores.
Lano:Yeah, well, we'll get on the show, especially now that we know how to do this link.
David Na:You know I'm shy and you don't want to be on the show I remember, uh, she came over to rick's house and she got on this thing and rick flipped her upside down oh, and she was hanging from that back stretcher thing.
Mig:It's like a decompressor. That was that thing's funny.
David Na:That was like the funniest thing man she was. She had this long dress.
Mig:That's terrible, yeah, man.
David Na:It was. It was cool, but I.
Lano:the last time I think I saw Dolores was my baby's, my first daughter's birthday party. Wow, Cause you brought her.
Mig:Oh, the pizza place, yeah, the pizza place.
Lano:You brought her down, and I think that was the last time.
David Na:I don't like that pizza place.
Lano:My, my daughter's going to be four in February, so that was already three years ago.
Mig:Gosh yeah.
David Na:I see so it'll be fast. Who do your daughters look like? Your wife or you?
Lano:They all say they look like me. Oh, I don't know.
Mig:I say Laura.
Lano:You say Laura, both of them.
Mig:Yeah, dude, they're cute. They're not looking at me like you. They're cute little girls.
Lano:I mean, I don't know. My wife says they look like me. They always say that they're making your face, but I don't know, they're always like mad all the time?
Mig:Oh yeah, probably because they're hungry.
Lano:The hungry face. So, You're back in. How long have you been back since the Fresno? When did you leave Fresno?
David Na:2023. So it's two years, two years. And then so You're, you're teaching again where uh, I'd rather not say it out there, but it's it's out in the inland empire the inland empire, and this is high school, or high school and you're teaching.
Lano:What are you teaching? Uh eld eld means what?
David Na:english language development okay, okay.
Lano:So what grade Is that like? Like any grade Of the four years In high school? Yeah, it's.
David Na:What do you call it, these kids that haven't passed the language proficiency exam? So they go from Ninth to twelfth grade and they're there. You know, some of them Get stuck there.
Mig:So back in the day, when we were in school, they used to call it esl. Yeah, english as a second language, yeah, but now it's eld, they call it, they change the terminology terminology right more political correct or something. Yeah, we won't. We won't get into that, yeah, and how do you feel about um like?
Lano:because I mean, when I look at kids these days, I I feel like they're behind. How do you feel? Did COVID ruin them? How are the kids now? Are they caught up? I think they're better now academically you think so.
David Na:Yeah, but I can't really tell because I deal with a lot of kids from other countries coming here trying to learn English.
Mig:Well, yeah, but they're great. Yeah, I mean, if you're, if you were dealing with the ones that were like born here and everything I was gonna say it's like you don't you don't find like a certain like laziness in them, or?
David Na:you know, you know when I was okay, not not laziness like iphone era, like, are they on their phones?
Lano:yeah, yeah, they, a lot of them are not, not so much like on their phones.
Mig:But but you know how a lot of the stories go around of students not using like the ai or chat yeah, I do the reports or anything it's like. Have you come across anything like? That, or I think that is true, or is it not really like, like in your field, or like what you're teaching? Does that not really like apply, you know, because they have to like really get a grasp for the language and well, you know, here's the thing.
David Na:Like a lot of them, uh, a lot of the students, uh, use something called google translate, you know okay, right and it translate, translated, translates it from their native language to english, right, oh, but that's a crutch, you know, and I tell my kids doing it for them.
Mig:They're not learning and then they go to another class like history, or you see, that's kind of what I meant, like you haven't been noticing, like a laziness. You know like they need, you know like technology or whatever, or otherwise they're not going to learn, you know.
David Na:You know what here's the thing a lot of the kids, you're right, they do use it and, as a teacher, if the teacher was smart enough, you could tell it's not their work, Because it's not like you. I can take a paper that a kid wrote, supposedly allegedly, and say what does this vocabulary word mean? And they're all I don't know. I just you know, so you could tell.
Lano:Right there they plagiarized or they got it from AI. That's the way you check it. You know, do you?
David Na:get on them. You know, last year, but this year, with Google Translate it might do it, but I'm trying to start Something different when? I tell them Put your Chromebooks, your cell phones, put them away and keep them up there. And your cell phones, put them away and keep them up there and I just go. You're going to go, pen and paper, I'm going to give you the sentence frames yeah.
David Na:And if you can't figure it out, you're going to ask someone that knows English, or me. Hey, mr Navarro, what does this mean? And we'll find a way to translate it. You know, but you're not going to use Google Translate.
Lano:That's good, and you said Chromebooks. Is this like a public school or a private school? Yeah, it's a public school Okay.
Mig:That's a good school district right there.
David Na:Yeah, it's a great school district, it's awesome. Yeah, they're amazing yeah.
Lano:And you've been at this school for how long?
David Na:This is my second year.
Lano:Okay.
David Na:You have like a big, a large classroom, like big amount of students or my fourth period maybe, like I have like 35, you know that's pretty good, yeah, good size, number and Because I remember when we were in high school.
Mig:You know it's like that was always a problem.
David Na:You know, too crowded a classroom like 50 kids or something like that Did you have that many in there there make some, some classes. Yeah, what class was it?
Mig:I mean, but this is like early on, like in junior high right because once I got into high school, I was like taking higher level classes and everything so oh, so it was a select group like small.
Lano:Yeah, so the classes were smaller, or something like that yeah, wow, how many.
David Na:How many did you have? How many students in the class when?
Mig:you were taking those classes an average um 20. Maybe that's good man yeah.
Lano:Yeah, because when I was in school, like my junior senior year, I had like three AP classes.
Mig:Yeah.
Lano:Nowadays, people like they got like five or six AP classes like the smart ones and I was like I was top 13% in my class, wow, but my class was only like 100 people, so I was like number 13.
David Na:That's pretty good it was easy for the percentages.
Lano:But my classes were like maybe 15, 16, the honor roll classes, like the AP classes and stuff. I mean I graduated with a 4.3, but nowadays kids graduate like 4.8 or whatever.
David Na:That's ridiculous, scott kind of.
Mig:Yeah, I never understood how the GPA GPS could go higher than 4.0.
David Na:Well, you know what it's?
Lano:because it's a bonus. They get a bonus point for those classes. Yeah, but that's crazy Because if you pass the test at the end, then like you don't have to take that class in college. But I never like passed the test at the end.
Mig:I'll tell you this, though dude, For as smart as I thought I was in high school Once I got to college.
David Na:What was it? Cal State LA Cal.
Mig:State.
Lano:LA dude, but engineering, you're an engineer, well yeah engineering.
Mig:But either way, dude, I was not prepared. I thought I knew my stuff in and out, you know, and I thought I was going to breeze. Now, honestly, like that shit was a rude awakening.
Lano:I from a like a private school with like maybe two percent asians and then when I went to casa late, like the majority of my engineering classes were like with asians like I, just I couldn't compete with their, their book smarts, their book smarts I mean they just had better habits than I had that's, that's what it boils down to, you know.
David Na:But you know, if you had, if you could change time or something you did, would you Change it to an easier major, if you could?
Mig:Like now that you look back, I don't, I mean what would be easier.
David Na:Anything, engineering is hard, man, but it's like. You like engineering.
Mig:But the thing is I didn't see myself being a teacher, you know. I didn't see myself anything in the medical field.
David Na:Okay.
Mig:Which would have been exponentially more difficult.
David Na:Right.
Mig:You know, it's like I didn't see myself in any of the political sciences or anything like that. The only I guess what I was thinking back then is like of the degrees and everything, which one would be most hands-on and, I guess, like most blue-collar let's say Right right, you know, and that's why I chose engineering.
Lano:Was it like mechanical engineering or just engineering Civil? Okay, because that's what I did civil engineering.
Mig:Yeah, civil dude, I mean building stuff, right, I'm like like I'm all over it, you know.
David Na:But but what about this? What about If you would've got a trade tech and you would've got Like a trade, you know?
Mig:I have a trade.
David Na:Okay, I know.
Mig:I made a career Of being a mechanic. Yeah, I know.
David Na:But you could've even Got a trade tech and gotten like your mechanic license. Well, yeah, you already have it.
Mig:Well, I mean, that's the thing it's like, then why Bother wasting the money or anything If I'm already learning With my dad.
David Na:Right right.
Mig:You know it's like so I was Trying to get away from that, but it didn't work out. So that was my fail safe. I guess that's why I never really worried About it, cause I'm like, well, if I don't make it here and I'll just be a mechanic.
Lano:Yeah, and then me like in high school In high school I wanted to be.
Mig:I wanted to retire.
Lano:I wanted to be an architect Because I used to like draw and stuff. I wanted to be an architect but I didn't get accepted to any architect schools Like architect schools or like specialized schools.
David Na:I didn't make it.
Lano:I was like going for USC school of architects, where they only like. Receive like 13 students A year for Damn.
Mig:So then I went to Cal State, la. I'm similar dude Cause like, even like In the little bit of Traveling that I've done, I'm always in awe Of like seeing structures and Right. Buildings and just Things that.
Lano:Museums.
Mig:I'm always, always looking at that stuff things that have been standing for like centuries, or even like 100 years or whatever you know, and it always amazes me I love stadiums and arenas, like I'm just staring at them to see how they're like these massive things are yeah it.
Mig:It leaves me like dumbfounded. It's like dude, it's like they built this 200 years ago, you know, with no machines by hand. You know it's like how do they know that this is going to stay together? Like for me, like the ultimate is like a brick archway. How, how did they figure that out? Yeah, you know. How did they know that with the keystone laying the brick in a certain way or anything. It's not going to fall.
Lano:And the supports on the side and it's going to hold Forever.
Mig:That's always fascinated me, dude, and that's why when I travel, I love going to places that has like old structures or old buildings and everything, because I just sit there and like I'm in awe. You know what sit there and like I'm in awe you know what. That's why I thought like civil engineering would be a natural transition for me, because you know I could build a bridge. You know I could design and build a bridge, or you know this, that whatever, but yeah and that's the same thing I did.
Lano:I went, I switched to civil engineering at cal state. I mean well, that's why I went for my major, thinking it was gonna um be the same. But then all my friends were doing the general ed classes and I'm in the engineering building by myself with all my friends doing other stuff, so then it just wasn't as fun. Everybody's at the studio union playing pool.
David Na:They had a bowling alley too, right Lano.
Lano:I don't remember the bowling alley. Yeah, there was a bowling alley downstairs.
David Na:Really, I think so.
Lano:Damn the bowling alley. Yeah, there was a bowling alley downstairs really, I think so am. I never knew about the king taco and yeah, I know they had pool tables and stuff down there.
David Na:I don't know about a bowling alley, sure, or that was fresno state, I don't know and then I'm alone in the student building.
Lano:All my friends are, like you know, taking their classes together. You know what that?
David Na:was a really cool student union the way they designed it yeah it like it was awesome. You know, it was just like, and they don't mean the only one thing that was cool, though.
Mig:I know what you're going to say I love the experience that I had there and this is why I stuck around so long Was because there was a program for minorities. It was a minority engineering program, mep. What was it called? Mep Minority Engineering Program and the dudes that I made friends with there man, you talk about homeboys that can party dude. Yeah, bro, that's where I got a degree in you almost graduated.
Lano:I mean you're there for a while. I didn't almost graduate because I was there for one year, like you were there.
Mig:I mean just going a couple, just because I was there for like four years.
Lano:It does not mean, you were there for four years yeah, dude, but I kept failing my classes I had to keep taking classes over and over. I was nowhere near. I just did one year, and that was it wait. So how?
David Na:many units did you complete? Then you must have completed like 40 at least maybe half that.
Mig:I don't know what was. What was what was required to graduate?
David Na:Like maybe 80 to 120 units.
Mig:Okay, maybe then about 40. Not bad Because I was passing everything else except the core. Wow, what my core major required.
Lano:The engineering stuff or the other stuff.
Mig:Dude, the engineering, the physics, the chemistry, you know the.
Lano:So were you repeat classes.
Mig:Like was it easier? Yeah, you passed the time, or no? No, and the thing is to get help any of those teacher's aides and everything. They're all a bunch of assholes.
Lano:Were they younger people at the time.
Mig:No, they're like almost your same age, maybe a little bit older and they didn't want to help you, or what? No, it's like almost your same age, maybe a little bit older, and they wouldn't want to help you, or what no, it's like you go up to them, you ask them a question. Oh, you should know that already. Wow, that's bad it's like dude, I don't. That's why I'm asking you.
Lano:Oh no, that's bad, that's terrible man.
Mig:And then you get nothing but professors With. You know they're foreign, you know and they got. They got really thick, heavy accents, right, so difficult to understand them that we're not exposed to.
Lano:Yeah, we're not exposed to, you know.
Mig:And I'm talking everything. I'm talking like Asian, I'm talking maybe like Middle Eastern, you know, and maybe Eastern European, you know, just like such thick, heavy accents and so difficult To understand them, you know, it's like I don't know how people pass dude, it's like, unless you're naturally gifted. And you, you know the material, you know. But I struggled so much I just I couldn't, you know, and and it came to the point to where I was, I was getting grant money to go to school and once the grant money ran out, I'm like you know what I'm not going to Pull out loans and Right.
Mig:Get myself in debt To keep on failing Right and that's it. I'm done, dude, it's like They'll give you free money.
Lano:Yeah, and it ran out.
Mig:You know all the years that I was there, it ran out and I was just like you know what.
Lano:No, but the student loans, they'll just offer it to you.
David Na:They don't care about it. I'm still paying my. It's not like you're qualifying for it.
Mig:That's what I didn't want. I didn't want to still be paying them. I said screw that.
David Na:It's a pain in the ass man.
Mig:I was like I guess I'm becoming a mechanic then.
Lano:So you graduated from Cal State, la, david, or from where?
David Na:From Cal State, la, with a bachelor's in English and then I went to Fresno State got your masters. Got a masters in education with an emphasis in reading and language arts and a teaching credential. A single subject teaching credential in English.
Lano:And is that like that teaching credential? I don't know nothing about it, but is that like from the state or you?
David Na:could teach anywhere. Yeah, I could teach all over California.
Lano:If you go to another state you have to get, like another license, I think so, but I think they might like honor ours, you know.
David Na:They might honor it in another state, and so, yeah, I got those two things, man, and it takes like once you get the credential, you're like, ok, I got a credential, but you actually have to do something called clearing it. Where they got to come watch you Like your master teacher has to watch you see that somebody's got to come observe you for like a year, and then you finally get it cleared, you know.
Mig:So still like you're interning or something. Yeah, exactly Wow.
David Na:For a year. It takes a year or maybe two years Like probation. Yeah, maybe one or two years, and then they finally clear it, you know.
Mig:Wow.
David Na:So it's a big business man, you know.
Mig:But look at you now, man, it's allowed you to travel.
Lano:Travel the world Up on the screen. I got a map of this is where our viewers are. Okay, where have you been On this map? Because I know you do a big trip every year or every other year, yeah, every year, you know I've been to.
Mig:I know you've been to South America.
David Na:Yeah, I've been to South America, I've been to Colombia and I've been to Peru, chile, no Peru Peru. I love Peru, I love Colombia, they're great, you've been to Europe.
Mig:right, I've never been to Europe. No, I thought you went to Italy or France or something.
David Na:I never did. I've been to Thailand, I've been to Cambodia for three days, oh that's right and I wanted to go to Vietnam, but they wanted a what do you call it? Some type of visa before you get there. You know, you can't just walk into Vietnam, you know. Hey, I'm here I pay a fee. They want you to have some type of permission.
Lano:So like where do you get that?
David Na:So I was at a Thai Vietnamese embassy in Thailand and they were just taking a long time. I go, oh, it'll be another four hours. I was just there. Ah, you know what Screw it. I'll come back and I'll go to Vietnam. So I just I got a bus to go to Cambodia that time.
Lano:But that, like, because I don't know the process, that's how you get a visa. I don't know how you get a visa. Well, I don't know what it's called, but it's like a special permission to go to the Vietnam consulate or the US consulate? I think it's.
David Na:I don't remember exactly Lano, but it's a process. You know, like certain countries like Japan, they make you sign a little something and then they let you in right away. You know, but that country doesn't. I don't think they let you in just like that. They want to know who you are, you know, like Imagine that.
Lano:And so like a visa. Like is that?
Mig:I want to know what that's like, because apparently here there's a revolving door at the border I'm sorry so I'm not like a big traveler.
Lano:I've been to the philippines but like I didn't need to get a visa, so like a visa does what just allows you to enter, allows you to do. It's like a special permission for that country okay, something like that if you're gonna be there a certain number of days, you have to get one, or it doesn't matter.
David Na:I think like 30 days or something.
Lano:I don't know, oh, okay.
David Na:I'm not sure I'm the last person to give you advice, you know, I think you're right.
Mig:I think different countries have they're either more lenient Mexico. They want to know. You know, are you just going to be like by the border?
David Na:You know, are you going?
Mig:to be there like a day or two or the weekend, or Are you going to go all the way To, like central Mexico, you know? Because if that's the case, then we need to know on your.
David Na:Wait, they were asking you for that in Tijuana. Whenever.
Mig:Whenever With my ex, whenever we travel down there and you got to fill out those forms.
Lano:Oh cause you go deep in Mexico, huh.
Mig:Yeah, cause, if you're going to fly over there like cross the CBX right there in TJ or in San Diego.
Mig:you got to fill out these forms and one of them's like pretty much you're applying for a visa to go into Mexico because you're going to go visit somewhere further than I think, like 20 miles or something from the border I think that's what what the requirement is, and you got to fill out like an official form and on that form you know they want to know what hotel you're staying at they want the address you know.
Mig:They want to know how many days you're going to be there, what days you're going to be there, from what to what you know and it's a big old process, dude.
David Na:You know what they did the same thing to me colombia and medellin when we got to the the border yeah they go what hotel are you staying? And I go. Well, you know what? I'm gonna go to a uh, certain neighborhood, which was el poblado, and they're like okay, we need to know the name of the hotel yeah and I go.
David Na:I just do things. You know, I hopped on a plane with a buddy of mine. I don't have anything planned, I don't have an itinerary, I'm just going to do and they go go sit over there and you go pay for a hotel.
Lano:I'm serious, man, this is like customs, yeah, customs. When you get there, that's the customs.
David Na:In Colombia and I you know, I knew, and the country was in spanish. They're talking to you, yeah, they're talking to me in spanish, but the everybody was cool, except that guy at that, one border guy like uh customs. He gave me a freaking hard time. I even told my friend let's go back to the us, we don't gotta go in here so this is already after you.
Lano:You got there right and then yeah, to get out of the airport.
David Na:You're like no, so he sat us there and I didn't even take my debit card because I didn't want it to fall into another hand, but luckily my phone had my information, so I was able to book a hotel, you know, okay. And then I showed it to him and then he let us go, man. But you know that's not a, it wasn't a good impression of that beautiful country.
Mig:When.
David Na:I first got there I go, but it it wasn't a good impression of that beautiful country.
Mig:When I first got there. I go, but it's great. Colombia was your latest trip at the beginning of this summer, right.
David Na:Yes, oh, this summer yeah.
Lano:So tell us about Colombia. How was Colombia?
David Na:Oh man, beautiful, it was beautiful, it was great.
Mig:How's the coffee.
David Na:Good, really good you know what we did. Yeah, we went to uh, a place where they make the coffee there, you know uh-huh and uh, these guys, they trained us in how to be great. Like coffee connoisseurs, like, uh, they tell you, um, like, for example, nescafe or something right, right. Or the coffee we drink, he says that has a lot of larvae and I don't know what else, but they burn it so much that it kills all those, all that bacteria.
Lano:Oh, like little bug larvae. Yeah, okay, uh-huh.
David Na:And then he said that the coffee that's like what do you call it? The lightest color, and that it hasn't been roasted deeply. You know, that's the one that that's probably going to be the most pure. So you always want to look at, um uh, a dark roast or no, no, like a lighter roast, but you want to make sure that they they don't uh, deep roast it, or they they wash it too much, okay, okay.
Mig:That's what he said.
David Na:And we were there and it was really cool. They have this. They get it from the pulp of the coffee bean, like the sugar that comes out of it.
Mig:Okay.
David Na:And they made like this drink. It was like a lemonade, they put a little bit of sugar and it was so delicious Really.
Mig:Yeah.
David Na:How come you guys don't sell this on the market? You guys can make billions out of this, you know and did it have like a coffee flavor or no? No, it had like more like a lemonade sweet flavor to it and this is.
Lano:You said it's from a coffee bean, or no?
David Na:it's from a little coffee bean. You know um, it was great man, it was amazing you don't remember the name of? It so. So, no, I don, I don't remember, but I think the place we took a tour and it was called Aredoros or something like that Aredoras or something like that, and it's really great coffee man.
Mig:Normally, when you have coffee here, how do you take it?
David Na:I put a little bit of milk and a little bit of sugar. Sometimes I take like Nescafe.
Mig:How did you drink it down there?
David Na:They gave it to us like that, like black, and then they gave us some other ones, like little Cups of coffee, and they were delicious man. With nothing in it, just the coffee some of it was black, some of it was sweet.
Mig:I don't know what it was, but you see, because that that's my thing, dude. It's like I always say I don't know how people could drink coffee black, because a lot of times the coffee we drink here, if you try to drink it black, it's just like it's so bitter, you know, but that goes to what you're saying. You try to drink it black, it's just like it's so bitter, you know, but that goes to what you're saying, you know, because they over roast it yeah and they burn it.
Mig:You know, and I'm thinking, you get a really good quality coffee and you brew it and you should just be able to drink it, just like that.
Lano:Yeah, and it'll be like without roasting, without no, no, no, no without putting anything oh yeah with no milk with no sugar, nothing, no way.
David Na:They said this too. Uh, they said, and I bet you don't do this make. Uh, they said, why don't you heat up the milk with the coffee and then pour them in at the same time?
Mig:oh, in mexico do we, did that all the time. Yeah, but I don't see this no, yeah, I mean that's why they call it cafe con leche.
Mig:Yeah, you know, and when we were um, when we would go there as kids, always in uh aguascalientes, with my aunt, my tia maria, you know, we'd always uh gather around the kitchen. It'd be like in the evening, you know it's like she started warming up the milk. She'd bring out the next cafe, you know, it's like she'd go send someone to go get pan dulce, you know, and then they'd bring out the Nescafe. You know it's like she'd go send someone to go get pan dulce, you know, and then they'd bring it back and we'd just sit around the kitchen table. Dude, everybody had their café con leche. You know you don't make it with water. You know you pour yourself your warm milk. You put in like a spoon of the Nescafe, which was like instant coffee, and, dude, that was the best.
David Na:You know, with, with the pan dulce there and everything. Wow, yeah, oh yeah, that coffee is good man coffee's, yeah, but.
Mig:But I mean that that that's that's like my whole thing, that I've always wondered. You know, it's like there's gotta be like really good, high quality coffee that is just gonna be superb and you don't have to add nothing to it, because to me, finding a good coffee like that is like finding your favorite alcohol. But like the top shelf Wow, you get that top shelf dude and you don't mess it up putting anything in it, and I feel there's coffees out there that are the same way.
Mig:I think you're right, but that's why you didn't you didn't like have any coffee like that in colombia, like you didn't go to any of the roasters or anything and just have it just like that.
David Na:This was like uh what do you call it a place where they show you how, how they? Uh plant the coffee and how the workers take the coffee beans out of the right out of the tree, so it was a very col place Is Colombia, the number one coffee export. I think so. Yeah, because they're called cafeteros. Yeah, colombia, cafeteros de Colombia.
Lano:Like more than Guatemala and stuff. I just know Guatemala because Yancy used to get his beans from Guatemala.
David Na:I'm not sure. I'm not sure, but yeah, I would say Colombia is probably the best one, probably.
Lano:You know, Italy is a big coffee country. They get their beans from Colombia.
Mig:I don't know, Maybe you know they have their espressos and all that stuff. Did they say the coffee bean grows in a certain climate? Or something?
David Na:Does it require a certain climate? Yeah, I think so. This place was away from the city. It was maybe like 30 miles out of the city and it was in in the like cerros, you know, like, like like mountainous uh range you know, and they where they had like uh, overcast, um, it was overcast, cloudy, you know, and then the sun would come out, so it had a little bit of everything of climate you know.
Lano:So it was, uh, really great coffee I'm on wikipedia and it says colombia is one of the five largest producers of the world of coffee, avocados and palm oil the other four, you gotta be guatemala right one of them probably. Yeah, it doesn't. It didn't give me a list, but this says yeah, so sugar king, bananas, pineapple, cocoa, but yeah yeah, the food is delicious right there in colombia.
David Na:Man like what?
Mig:what like local? What local stuff do they have that like we haven't heard of? Well, they have a thing called tried was good what?
David Na:I didn't try it, but my friend did. It's called bandeja de paisa okay, and it has I think, like a piece of sausage and a piece of meat and rice and beans. It's really good, man, and I tried something. It was like chicken, roasted chicken with rice and these sweet beans and a salad what else did it have? And it was so good, guess how much I'm probably like three bucks wow, you're close.
David Na:It was like five dollars, which is uh, okay I believe it's like 20 000 colombia pesos okay and it was so delicious, man, I you know like a king, like a king well, we're at a mcdonald's over there, megan, uh, or or like like, uh, a combo. It was like like six or seven bucks. So we sat there and we just started figuring out dude, we had like two of those combos. You know all these Big Macs, you know we're just like what's uh, what's um what?
Mig:what city it's? A pretty big city Pretty big, beautiful.
David Na:Yeah, beautiful city.
Mig:What's the street food scene like, like, what's their street food. Oh man, you know you go to Mexico and you got taco stands everywhere.
David Na:Yeah, Over there, you know what.
Lano:Like they eat tacos and burritos. No, huh.
David Na:No, they Eat like Platano fritos.
Lano:Okay.
David Na:And then they have this, this pan, and I was tripping out when the lady told me I hope I don't offend anybody, but it's called pan cerrote.
Mig:Okay.
David Na:And it has like bacon and sausage and cheese. It's delicious, you know. It's baked into it, or they just like cut the bread open and so it's inside of it, so like I guess they make it and they put it in there, you know.
Mig:So they bake it in yeah of it.
Lano:so like I guess they make it and they put it in there, you know. So they bake it in, yeah, oh, okay, like a ham and cheese croissant, like yeah, exactly oh, yeah, that sounds good.
David Na:Yeah, then they have like these little potatoes little oh, they were so delicious. Man, little ones, you're just like man. You can have like six or seven of them because the the time that you went to peru.
Mig:Did you ever have that? Uh, lomo saltado I didn't no damn dude should have you know, that's what.
Lano:That's what I ordered when I was in peru. Yeah, I think that's like the national, like dish right there dude.
David Na:No, they eat a lot of chicken and french fries. I remember that yeah in peru it was delicious, but colombia the food is great, mick, and it's cheap and it's amazing you know, is there here any colombian restaurants that compare?
Mig:no, I don't know I don't matter, I haven't seen I'm sure there are, but you would have to look, I think maybe a pico rivera, maybe, yeah so, oh, pico rivera, pico union, pico rivera no pico rivera.
Lano:There's a, there's a big community of colombianos right there oh, I didn't, I didn't know that yeah, but um now, when you're out there, um, because you're you're bilingual, you speak spanish uh-huh you can meet everybody speaking spanish. Or do people know english? Because I always ask that, because I don't.
David Na:I only know english when I travel, like well, you know what, like, we went on a couple of tours and the tour guides believe it or not, I don't mean, I don't mean to sound um like I I disparaging anybody, but the tour guides that gave us these tours, their English was almost perfect, it was flawless. You could understand what they were saying, you know. And on the other hand and please don't get offended, but, for example, when I'm taking a flight in Mexico and the pilot tries speaking English, I can't understand usually what he's saying Thank you very much for flying with us. But when the Columbia pilots talk English, when they speak English, I can understand clearly what they're saying.
Mig:I was going to say dude I think that's just pilots in general dude, because when I've flown, dude, and they start talking, these dudes talk like they're walking to the subway.
Lano:What.
Mig:What the hell did these guys say I'm serious dude, the times I've flown dude, that's what they sound like. I was like whatever dude, I don't know. Just don't crash the plane, just get us there.
Lano:What airline did you fly? Oh, the best one. What was that?
David Na:The smoothest ride. It was amazing. It was American Airlines. You know what's a trip.
David Na:I don't know if you guys will believe this, but my friend and I were on the plane and in the plane and I was tripping out, but the plane, it looked like it was just there was a point like where we're getting into Miami and maybe like 30 minutes before we got to Miami, the plane, just it looked like it stopped in midair and it was just floating there. And I looked at my friend. I go, dude, are we like moving or not? And he's just like no, I think we're just kind of like floating here and there. And I go it, because nothing seemed like nothing seemed to be moving. I go, that's kind of weird. But those pilots were great. They landed the plane like really smoothly and I even told them I saw them after. Uh, when we got off the plane and we missed our next flight, we had a flight flight that was going to go straight to Colombia. And we go, hey, you guys flew that plane like really smoothly, the landing was great, thank you, and they were all like grateful, you know.
Lano:So you flew from LAX right.
David Na:Uh-huh To Miami so.
Lano:LAX to Miami and then go down to Colombia.
David Na:Yeah.
Lano:Because you always think like it's South America, you just go straight down, but it's actually like Further east.
David Na:I'm looking at the map right now.
Lano:Well, you know, like even right there, from Guatemala.
David Na:From Guatemala you could. They always go to Miami A lot of times, you know.
Lano:But it's closer yeah.
David Na:And it's because I'm taking American Airlines, so it's like that's like a big hub for them, you know.
Lano:Like one of their big hubs For Central America.
David Na:Uh-huh, and you know so I always end up in Miami, you know, for some reason.
Lano:You know, and yeah so every, you said everybody know they speak mostly um spanish, but like the tourists, the host, they speak english yeah, they speak english. They speak both, you know just because, um, the only international place I've been to is um the philippines because my wife's filipina, but, um, I was very worried about the language, like not being able to talk, but over there in the philippines everybody spoke english good yeah, that's Spanish right, well, yeah, I mean they're. Tagalog has similar words Like Spanish.
David Na:Uh huh.
Lano:But yeah, I mean I was. I could go to any place, order food Shopping, I could wander around myself and speak English.
David Na:And how safe was it Like walking around there?
Lano:Oh, it was very safe.
David Na:Man, I would love to go to the Philippines and my wife.
Lano:She's um, like she's gone to europe and and she says europe's like dangerous really but the philippines, the philippines or, she said, europe. There's a lot of like pickpocketers and stuff. You always have to be looking around watch oh, wow yeah, but, um, but in the philippines, like I didn't, I didn't have any. Um, I mean everything look. I mean no scares or nothing, everything looked like legit, that's cool.
David Na:That's cool to know. I want to go back. I love you. Know that time I was there In Southeast Asia it's going to be almost 10 years. In 2026 It'll be 10 years Damn that long. Yeah, because I was Teaching at a college and I remember I'm going to go somewhere this summer and that's when I decided to go.
Mig:Oh, that's right. Yeah, I was, I think, at.
David Na:Compton and what do you call it. I ended up going there. It's going to be 10 years, so I want to go back and maybe explore, like the other countries, like Laos and Burma, you know, but they don't call it Burma anymore, they call it Mayanar, right?
Lano:Yeah, yeah Right, they recently switched.
David Na:Yeah, yeah Right, they recently switched like with the last TV, but you know why they switched that name you know why they switched it Like a war or something.
Lano:No or no.
David Na:No, because remember when Rambo came out with that movie.
Mig:Yeah.
David Na:Rambo 4? I think they switched it because of that, remember, because they had that stigma, I never saw that movie.
Lano:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
David Na:Right, that's one of my favorite ones. Yeah, crazy.
Lano:But, um, this is crazy Cause, like you know, if you know anything, um, or follow the like the the Vietnam war, like, um, like whole cities, like capitals, like they change names, like they, just like, I think the Capitol, you know, the Capitol of Vietnam, is a Saigon, but after the war it became Ho Chi Minh City.
David Na:Oh, ho Chi Minh, okay.
Lano:Where, like you know, people grow up in Saigon and then all of a sudden Just switches names. Wow.
David Na:Like changes like history yeah.
Lano:And so it's just weird. But how are the the Colombians Like? Are they nice? Like when you're a traveler? Are you Like when they say where you're from, you say you're American, or you say you're Mexican?
David Na:Well, you know what they knew? I was Mexican. I'm going to tell you why. And I knew the tourists that were there. The majority no, it's one thing, the majority of them in my hotels were Mexican, Because when you're Colombian, you know how they say good morning, they say buen dia, and a Mexican always says buenos dias and I go this guy's mexican just by the way, he greeted me and there were a lot of mexicans down there.
Mig:You know that's funny because, um, even even in mexico, dude, it's like different regions have their different dialects and everything, and um, I remember someone pointing out to me. You know, they told me it was like, isn't it? Zacatecas. And I'm like how did you know that it was my mama? You know, it was like how did you know? It's like pues, porque dice mamá.
David Na:Yeah.
Mig:Yeah, and I guess that's like something like in Zacatecas. You know the other places. I don't know if they say madre or you know, or whatever you know. Oh to say madre, or oh, wow, or you know, or whatever you know. But oh, that's very interesting. Yeah, it's crazy.
Lano:So it's like it's regional.
Mig:You know that's cool. Everywhere it's like they'll don't know exactly where you're from.
David Na:They'll know just by looking at you make you know, like the way you're dressed. They go this guy's not from around here I could do it.
Mig:I get that right away.
David Na:You would think my mom's just like like, like a nickname like mommy, mom, mother, like it's just, yeah, I guess, so huh yeah, you know, like um, I was in michoacan and I want to go visit a place called lago pascuaro and I had some enchiladas right there and I really great food in michoacan, the best you. You will love it, you will love it. And I was sitting down there in the plaza by myself and these guys are just all staring at me, but in a good way, not in a bad way, you know, but they could tell I'm not from there, what the app? I'm taller than most of them, right?
Lano:And then I guess, oh are they. Are they smaller?
Mig:well, a lot of them in. Uh, I was talking about when he was dimitri khan. Yeah, some of them.
David Na:I don't want to stereotype, but some of them uh, there's a lot of. At least where my dad's from, there's a lot of like indigenous roots, right there so so they're a little darker and a little shorter, you know, but um, it's, it's great man, great food man, the best so no, that's, that's cool.
Lano:I mean, since I've known you, you've been like, um well, since you got out school you've been traveling a lot. That's, that's pretty cool yeah, I got.
David Na:I got a little bit of uh adhd, so I got to travel somewhere every year yeah, that's cool, right?
Mig:you just experience a lot of stuff you gotta go, I do it. I want to go with you one of these years, just go man just go.
David Na:Yeah, see if I can carve out some time from work dude, just Just even like a week man, it'll change your life.
Mig:Well, that's what I'm saying, dude. It's tough for me to get like a whole week because, well, it's only me and my brother. You don't want to leave just one person you know in charge, but I mean, no, I would love to get away for a week.
Lano:So this is a.
David Na:Or even just like Maybe like four or five days. Yeah, that's all you need. You don't need to stay there For like three weeks.
Lano:This is something you get bored after ten days man. That I've been wanting to do. But, like, you have to find the right group. But, like there was this YouTube follower I used to follow, he had, like he called it, his Like vacation I don't know if it was His friends or club, but like, every year, like, let's say, it's a group of like 10 people or 5 people and each year one person or one couple would plan the trip. So you would just tell your friends like block out the days.
Lano:You know, september 20th to September 30th we're going on a trip and then, like a week before, you tell them, like, how to dress, like hot climate, like cold climate or whatever, and then bring a passport and bring it yeah, bring a passport and then, um, so that one sets up the trip, buys all the tickets, the airline, the hotels, all that stuff, and then, um, I mean I'm sure everybody gives them money up front, like, let's say, this trip's gonna cost, like like I don't know, I'm just throwing out a grand, or whatever yeah like.
Lano:so then nobody knows where they're going until they get to the airport and see where the tickets are. And every year, like they do that Like one person has a trip.
David Na:That's fun, dude. That's anticipation, right?
Lano:So then you go and you travel to this new country like every year, like someone planned it, like you know all the whatever the excursions are going to do. But I always wanted to do something like that seemed like cool. Like you don't know where you're going to get to the airport then, like you're just with a bunch of friends, like ready to spend a week with them, whatever this new adventure and stuff, and then they would like film the whole trip. But I just thought it was like a cool concept, cool idea I wanted to do that cool concept like you're.
Lano:Oh, we're going tropical, like pack this or this and that, or blah blah, and then we get to the airport, we're going to thailand, or whatever we're gonna, you know I was that.
Mig:That's the thing, though dude, david's all gung-ho gonzo balls out doing it, though, dude, because he doesn't book rooms or nothing, man, he just yeah he just worries about getting there well, that'll be his idea, he worries about finding somewhere to stay after you know what?
David Na:I think I'm gonna have to uh I don't think I could do that. You know what I think I'm going to have to book rooms, maybe the first three days of wherever I get, because it is a pain in the ass, meg, to Once you're there. Once you're there, Like excuse me, do you have a vacancy?
Mig:Yeah.
David Na:And then you know what, as a traveler, this is what I always do I'm going to rent me.
Lano:Oh really.
David Na:Yeah, look at the toilet, look at if the AC works, check under the bed, check everything. You know because I was in Cambodia one time, and what do you call it. I got there and I asked the guy, my tuk-tuk driver, I go, do you recommend a hotel? And he took me to a friend of his and I'm not going to say the hotel, but they were really sweet people and I opened the bathroom and the bathroom in the tub there was like a huge gash and it smelled like sewage. And I go, wow, you know what?
David Na:Like a hole yeah like a big hole like a big line like a big hole, like a big line, like a big opening crack in the tub and I saw, like man, that looks like sewage. But I go, but this is a third world country, so it must be like that. That's my first assumption. Right and at night the AC didn't work so I had a smell put up with sewage fumes. I couldn't take it. I was dying.
David Na:That's nasty, yeah, so at about like, and then the heat, because it was very yeah, and at about four or five in the morning I think it was five in the morning I told the guy you know what, I'm not gonna stay here another night. Um, can I get my passport? He gave me my passport, I walked, I learned the lesson. After that I got a look at the hotel before I rent it. So, um, I went three, three doors down and there was a beautiful hotel, like with elephants I still remember elephants outside.
David Na:It was in cm reap statues or like statues and right outside the hotel and the place had like an ac, it had a pool and the floors were spotless man. And you know what the price was for that place? I paid $50, because the currency in Cambodia is American money. And guess how much I paid in that nice hotel with elephants?
Lano:$50? Is that what you said? Exactly, $50. Oh wow.
David Na:So it was the same thing, but a much better, more luxurious, cleaner, you know.
Mig:So Cambodia, their currency is dollars.
David Na:Yeah it's dollars.
Mig:Really cleaner, you know so cambodia, their, their currency is dollars. Yeah, it's dollars really.
Lano:Yeah, wow, american money yeah so okay, um, cambodia, like, is a neighbor of vietnam or part of vietnam it's like it's around there.
Mig:Yeah, it's in the area, so I think it's in the middle like I don't know the vietnam war, who was fighting who?
Lano:Because I had asked someone and they got offended Like I'm not, I'm from. She had said I'm going. Well, it's my hairstyle. She said she was going back home and I thought she was Vietnamese, but then she went to Cambodia. But she.
Mig:Then I asked her she's like no, I'm Vietnamese. All those countries Are lumped together Like Vietnam, cambodia, la Cambodia, laos.
Lano:Great Laos so. I don't know if the borders changed over the years, you know what you know.
David Na:In the old days I saw this over there the Cambodians were attacked and they had like genocide there, like during the 70s, I believe, by Pol Pot. And A lot of them died and it was like Really brutal deaths, you know. And then I don't know what the whole deal with vietnam was. I think vietnam was trying to. I don't know, I'm not gonna say anything you know, but there's been a lot of uh, a lot of sad things that have happened in those countries yeah but the people are great, man, you go to cambodia and the people are so friendly.
David Na:Man, I don't think I've gone anywhere where the people are just like like that friendly and they're funny too. They're like excuse me, sir, can you give me some money? I like some rice to eat. They're like it just busts you up, dude. It makes you like laugh. You know, right, that's funny, right. And yeah, they were real genuine in Cambodia. I loved it there. I went to Angkor Wat. It's right in the jungle, it's awesome you got to. It's like permits before the.
David Na:Cambodians, you got to check it out. Man, you got to Dude, I don't but those tropical places, dude.
Mig:I mean with heat and humidity, dude, I will not do good there. What?
Lano:I thought the Philippines all suffered, but it wasn't that bad as I thought. But maybe I went in February, I don't know oh, that's why it was a, but people were warning me watch out, you're gonna be humid sticky just like that story that you're saying about that first room that you rented.
Mig:Oh, dude, I would've been so pissed off, dude, if there was like no AC or something.
David Na:Yeah, there, I don't even think the TV worked. To be honest with you, I don't care about that.
Lano:Was the room the same price, 50 bucks? The guy charged me 50 bucks, the same as the one with the elephant.
Mig:Yeah, 50 bucks Because you just sleep in your own pool of sweat and everything dude. It was terrible man.
David Na:And then on top of that, you don't have nowhere to shower, often no, and the sewage Well, yeah, the smell, yeah, it was like oh my gosh, and but I loved it there, man, and you know I went to a couple of, uh, like the tuk-tuk driver took, took me around, uh and tuk-tuk is like a truck right like a little jeep like no, it's like a motorcycle and it has like a bicycle, right?
David Na:no, kind of no, it's like a motorcycle and it has a carriage attached to it so they could carry you, they could travel you around, so it's like a tuk-tuk.
Lano:Oh, this thing, I have it on the screen Like one of these, yeah there you go.
Mig:It's kind of like a tri-motorcycle.
David Na:Tuk-tuk Cambodia. It's different. Let's see Cambodia C-A-M no, no. C-a-m no no.
Lano:C-A-M Like this no.
David Na:Yeah, like that. See that one. Like with the motorcycle.
Lano:Yeah, so it has like a trailer hitch. Yeah, exactly A motorcycle with a trailer hitch on the cabin.
David Na:It's really cool man.
Lano:It's very safe, you know so you said you asked the driver, the motorcycle driver, like, tell me where to stay, or eat.
David Na:Yeah and no, I had this guy. He was really cool. He was just taking me around that night and I was going through these streets that I didn't even know and I remember, man, this place looks like tijuana. That's the first thing I thought. I go, I'm back in tijuana that's what cambodia looks like you know, and how much is one of those tuk-tuk rides it's cheap, man, like five, five bucks, five, ten bucks, you know and you're just paying them cash.
Lano:You know like it's not like a bus pass or like anything, right?
David Na:yeah, so he took me and I I told him like um, I want you to take me to a couple places at night and then how much will you charge me? And he was just like 20 bucks I'm just throwing a number, I forgot how much it is and they were really cool like that. You know They'll wait for you Like they're. You know they're very honest people.
Lano:Oh, they'll sit there and wait for, you. Yeah, they'll wait for you.
David Na:Because I went to At Kerouac and my tuk tuk driver but I was asleep Somewhere in In the jungle and I go, I'm not, he's not gonna be here when I get back. And he was there Like lying down and he goes hey, let's go back. And he was really cool man.
Mig:Yeah, that's cool when you find like Locals, like that, that'll hook you up. Because I remember when, um, when I went to the f and um, you know, me and my ex and we were in the hotel and she, um, you know we wanted to go tour the pyramids and you know we were, we were checking out the tours at the hotel offered or whatever, but then, um, expensive, like one of one of the workers are told is like hey, I know someone, you know that he'll come.
Mig:and instead of you being like hey, I know someone, you know that he'll come, and instead of you being in a group, it could just be you guys, you know, and that way you guys can move like around the lot faster and like have more to enjoy. I know you pay him so much and he'll be with you the whole day.
David Na:How much did he charge you?
Mig:I forgot it. It might've been like 40 bucks.
David Na:And you went to 30, 40, 50 bucks.
Mig:Yeah it was great right dude, awesome, so awesome you.
David Na:You know who went there too. You'll trip out. Uh, you know, he just died recently. I saw pictures of him is ozzy osbourne oh, yeah, he visited and you know, trip, trip out on this. And then I found an older picture of Jim Morrison visiting Totiwakan in the 60s.
Lano:Speaking of celebrities, David's famous for being in the Under the Bridge video in downtown LA. That's good.
Mig:I'm looking at Anand and there's rumors that he's in that video.
David Na:That East LA video I'm not in.
Mig:I'm looking at it Because, being from Boyle Heights, I heard that William and Tabu Gave you a cameo. Well, we'll talk about that Right now you said you're homies With them.
David Na:Well, I'm looking at William's cool man.
Lano:You could rent a Tuk Tuk for like a day. This is where you were right, anger what anchor why? Yeah, you can write one and keep it, I guess oh, really quick, let me finish my my story.
Mig:So, um, this dude, he takes us to the pyramids, you know, and so he's. He says you know, it's like you guys go ahead, enjoy whatever, and I'll be here, you know, it's like, when you guys want to, you know, if you guys want to eat, you know, then just come back and I'll take you somewhere to go eat. So we're there, I'm trying to climb these pyramids, dude, and I'm dying, dude, because I'm For one. I mean, I wasn't in terrible shape, but the altitude there, dude, that thing makes you that's a gut check.
Lano:This is Cancun right, or where is?
Mig:it. No, no, mexico City, totiwakan, oh, oh yeah, it's like the highest point in Mexico.
David Na:They have pyramids there.
Mig:Yeah, and they have permits there. Yeah and um and yeah, dude they were. They're even like young people there. They were like in shape, trying to run up those pyramids. They were getting winded, dude, because the air is so thin, you know it's like you can't breathe well anyway.
Mig:So then, like we, we went through everything pretty quick and we got hungry, you know, because we left early. We left, we left like maybe like at six in the morning and so we, we saw a lot of the stuff and we went back and the driver was like, oh yeah, you guys are done. And we're like well, yeah, we're hungry, we want to go eat, you know, and he starts telling us he's like oh, he goes. Well, if we drive down a little bit, you know, there's like these restaurants, you know with the in the hotels, this or whatever, and my ex she's like no, no, no, no, donde vas a comer, tu you know where would you go eat Right?
Mig:no, that's a good question, you know, and he was like pues, acabo de almorzar, you know, pero acá, pero no sé si let's go, dude, take it sir. No, that's good.
Lano:That's good we went dude.
Mig:And I tell you the best freaking birria not birria on Balbacore, wow, but the borrego. Because I don't like borrego dude, because it's funky and nobody ever makes it right.
David Na:When you take a shit it smells bad, right, but this place where he took us to dude.
Mig:This place has like dedicated pits to where they're cooking the stuff.
Mig:Wow, and it was amazing, dude. You get there and they serve you like for like an appetizer, where places serve you like chips and salsa, well, they serve you a taco just to like pick your hunger, you know, to get you picado and shit. Yeah, man, you know it, girl. And yeah, dude, but the best freaking barbacoa I've ever had, dude, wow, it was incredible. You still remember that place. I don't remember what it's called, but the best freaking barbeque I've ever had, dude, wow, it was incredible.
David Na:You still remember that place.
Mig:I don't remember what it's called, but you could find it. Maybe I don't know.
Lano:So I have the pyramids on the screen. That's the one you went to.
David Na:Yeah, there's a lot of them in there. There's a lot of them, five or six of them, yeah.
Lano:Because my mom she went to some pyramids, and she says it was like hot, and then there was like Metal chains. There was like metal chains and she said you couldn't even Touch the chain Cause it was so hot.
Mig:Yeah, cause even they even have like a huge, like a walkway. They said it used to be the marketplace Back Back in the In the heyday of the the civilization.
Lano:That's pretty cool. You got pictures of that and stuff.
David Na:Yeah, you know where they have great pyramids In Guatemala, tikal, and it came out of Star Wars Like the pyramids.
Lano:Which one? You know which one which movie.
David Na:One of the newest. Look up Guatemala pyramids, Star Wars, You'll find it. And they're amazing, man, Like. They're really tall, you know. Like.
Lano:So you went to. You've been to Guatemala, then, right.
David Na:Yeah, I've been there a couple times, I love it, and I've been to El Salvador too.
Lano:Oh yeah, look at these, look at.
Mig:Oh Tripon.
Lano:You would think that's CG. I guess back then they didn't have CG yeah.
Mig:Look at how tall they are man.
David Na:Yeah, way above the tree like yeah, I think I went up that one, you know, cause there's a way like an entrance through the sides.
Lano:That's crazy, because it's so narrow, like it's a different style of pyramids.
David Na:Yeah, it's different right. It's more like Mayan right Mayan yeah.
Lano:So, fresno, you came back to California. Well, I guess you're always California LA, so where are you staying at? Now? I'm in East LA. East LA, like your own place, or you're with your mom.
David Na:No, I'm still with my mother and sister.
Lano:That's the Project Estrada.
David Na:No, I don't live there anymore in the Projects. No, I'm living in East LA in a house.
Lano:Oh, I think I've been there. We went to see the dogs.
David Na:That's right, you were there, I went there.
Lano:Okay, so I just bring it up, because we talked about East LA, so you knew William. He was from the same place. Yeah, I knew that's a true story.
David Na:Yeah, that's, really true I knew him growing up.
Lano:He grew up there over there.
David Na:He grew up in the projects a lot. You know he would walk around Like with a cane.
Lano:Like this is when you were younger, or this is after, this is before he was big, or while he was big.
David Na:After Before he was big, you know this was like In the old days, you know. When we're like, smaller, you know, than teenagers. Maybe, Up until freshman or sophomore year. I saw him around there, you know, and you went to Garfield.
Lano:You went to Roseville.
David Na:No, I went to Salesian. Oh, I forgot about you went to Salesian. Yeah, we're rivals, you and I.
Lano:We're rivals. I could see you. You're Salesian, I forgot.
David Na:Yeah, but he's a good guy man. Well, I am.
Lano:And what did you think when you heard the song? Because I sent it to you, right?
David Na:No, I heard it. I don't know how I came about it, but I clicked on it and I go, wow, this is pretty cool and he shows the projects right there right, oh yeah, the whole thing was filmed there dude Right.
Lano:Yeah, and do you feel like it represents East LA or Boa Heights? I think it's more like Boa Heights, right?
David Na:Yeah, I know it's called East LA, you know, but I know there's always been that argument, like the Indiana Olympic, anything south is that right or north, like after you go from Indiana to, let's say, Atlantic is that considered south or north, south, south. South.
Lano:Yeah.
David Na:So then anything south, like from right there, that's where the borders start, so that's really where East LA starts, right, but anything north would be Boyle Heights, you know.
Lano:But but Boyle Heights is just like LA City. Yeah, and outside of LA City is East LA, which is run by the county.
David Na:Officially, but I guess when they have a lot of mexicanos, you know, they consider it. Oh, it's east la, you know, but it's a cool place, man, it has a lot of history. You know all those movies, you know and how was it um like growing up in in estrada?
Lano:estrada was it like dangerous or it was dangerous, like you, got hit up every day or no. I, like you, took a bus to school or they dropped you off at salesian I would walk, I would or I would take the, the rtd.
David Na:It was called rtd yeah, the bus, the rough tough and dirty I would take the rtd and uh, sometimes I would get rides from uh friends, you know. But it was, it was nice, it was cool, it was beautiful, like the, the sun, the way, the way the sun would hit the windows. It was nice, you know. But and then it was cool because a lot of people, everything's close together, a lot of these apartments, so you talk to a lot of the people, you make friends, you know, that's what I was gonna say.
David Na:Like your neighbors were cool with yeah, everybody was cool with each other and yeah, people were cool around there, like they have any problems, like with the assays around there or anything Nah.
Lano:How many years were you there, Like?
David Na:10 years. First 10 years or 15 years, oh, no more. Like I think I was in my late 20s when I finally moved out you know, oh, so you grew up there yeah, there, hardcore, you know. And my sister, um, she bought a house in montebello and she goes I'll rent her, I'll rent your room and I go, nah, I don't really want to leave the projects, you know, and it was only like five miles down, you know right. But I still win, you know. But I it's home, I pass by there sometimes you know, yeah, it's still home.
David Na:I have a lot of memories of a lot of places right there, you know so um what would you recommend?
Lano:because um once a month meanwhile we go to ball heights like olympic and we'll get, like we'll get some food out there okay um what? What places you recommend to eat in ball heights?
David Na:well, my favorite place to eat I just took my dad here for his birthday is, uh, taqueria, la estrella, the star taco restaurant, but it's called la estrella taqueria.
Lano:Is that different From, like the LA taco trucks, the ones?
David Na:over here, go there To La Estrella.
Lano:Is that the same chain or different?
David Na:No, it's different. It's probably different. Yeah, where's that at? Where's that at? It's right there by the Lorena Pharmacy.
Lano:Oh, right there.
David Na:It's like maybe a block Before.
Mig:Oh right, like be a block before. Oh right, like on Lorena and Whittier.
David Na:Yeah, right there, but a block before.
Lano:Because we'll go there to get, like we'll go to that pharmacy at the park and I'll get some churros. Oh yeah, we got a lady that sets up some churros there.
Mig:She's still there. I haven't been there in a while. Hey, do you guys still go there?
David Na:to that place Semillas to get those semitas.
Lano:You know, year ago I went there because I was like really craving one, and I ordered it just the same. It tastes the same, that's what scared me. I want to go, but I, like you know, and I tell rick, I don't know, dude, maybe I didn't order it right, or maybe a different cook, no it just it didn't hit me like when the times that we've gone I haven't had one in a while, so I gotta go, but that's like yeah, I was disappointed though.
Mig:It was good, but it wasn't what I remember. It wasn't phenomenal, yeah.
Lano:No, because I remember like it was like it's between a burger and a torta, but it was like better than both of them.
David Na:I was like like the first time Rick took me there, I was like what is this? Because, oh, it's a meat, I'll go. What do you remember? Yeah, and samita is that really good, or what is that? Yeah, it's mexican. It's like, what is it like from?
Lano:puebla right, pueblana or no?
David Na:yeah, but is it like like meat, like it's the bread?
Lano:it's a type of bread the bread, but the sweet is like the name of the bread.
Mig:That's the thing you can get it, like I always got a milanesa.
Lano:Which is breaded, breaded, milanesa, which is I always got milanesa.
Mig:Yes, it's a breaded steak, okay.
Lano:But then they have jamon and all that stuff. Yeah, but the but it was always like the difference when you want panela or the cheese or the. Oaxaca, the shredded Oaxaca. Some days I want a panela. It's always different.
David Na:You know, I've been to Oaxaca. The food's great and I don't want to sound biased here, but I think the best food and I've been everywhere in Mexico, practically the best food would probably be Michoacan, you know. You know no, the carnitas, you know.
Lano:For some sake.
David Na:I mean, we know where it originated from, but not only the carnitas man they have. Like in the morning you could get up and go to a restaurant. They have all these different types of food, like carne with papas and chile Right and just like an array of plates. You will love it, Mick. You know we should go to my dad's hometown.
Mig:Why of plates? You will love it. Migg, you know we should go to my dad's hometown. Why would I know, dude?
David Na:Because I'm fat. No, no. What are you trying to say, dude? No, I know you like to cook a lot.
Mig:No, because I know you say you hope people don't get offended or anything, but then you offend me, right?
David Na:to my face, dude, but you know what I?
Mig:respect that At least you're saying it to my face and not behind it's because you know what I love?
David Na:food too, man, I love food.
Lano:Por eso estamos como estamos. Si, that's why man yeah. But I don't know it's because that's where my mom from. But Zacatecas they got some good. There's a place they go in the valley. It's called Salsa and Beer. It's all Zacateca food, but it's like really good and I love it.
David Na:But what dish Do they have?
Mig:there the it's like um spicy carnitas you know you know what though dude, right now that I'm remembering one, uh, one of the trips I took with my ex, to her, to her parents um little pueblo right there in jalisco, um tuxueca it's. It's close to like bordering michoacan. Is michoacan was the border, was like maybe like 40 minutes away, but only because it's like a lot of twists and turns and everything. You got to drive slow, you know, but it's not that far. We went to, oh, what was the name of that town? Mazamitla, uh-huh, is that in Michoacan, I don't know? Or is that somewhere in Jalisco? I'm not sure, mick. Oh, I think it was Mazamitla. I Jalisco? I'm not sure, mick, oh, I think it was Mazamitla, I don't know. It feels like right on the border of Michoacan. I think we were in Michoacan.
Mig:But that place, dude, they had a corn vendor and the lady you know, she was roasting the corn right there. She had her cart with her coals and everything and she was roasting it fresh and that's the last time I had corn. That was just incredible, wow, it's like she prepared it the way they do here, you know. It's like they put the mayonnaise and everything on it and then the parmesan cheese or whatever they have, the cotija, you know, or whatever crumbly stuff they had, but they had this chili powder dude, that it was just phenomenal. I don't know what chilies they roasted or what they used, but I have never been able to find a duplicate for it. Wow, and that's why, even to this day, I don't like getting corn anywhere, because if it's not going to have that good Chili powder that she had, then I don't want.
Lano:Which was like Homemade, you think Absolutely.
Mig:Absolutely.
David Na:And that was where In, in, in Michoacan.
Mig:I think it was Michoacan, I'm not sure. I'm not sure when, where, where, where, where, where, where, where, where, where, where, where, but I know it's like right on the border, because I know we did go into Michoacan it was. Was it San Jose De Maria or something like that? Yeah, dude, I should have run these places down.
David Na:Yeah.
Mig:Getting back to you about Michoacan having the best you know, it's like that chili powder dude I mean. That's why I don't get corn anywhere else anymore because that chili powder was just so.
Lano:That's the flavor you're looking for. That's the flavor I'm looking for dude, it's like not overpowering.
Mig:Spice, good spice, nice like a little bit smoky. You know, dude, it was so good and it's just like I get corn now and I'm disappointed. And the corn was delicious, dude, the corn was man. It's like the lady even tells you, you know, ¿quieres blanco o quieres amarillo? Or she even had the blue Blue corn. Yeah, she had every kind you wanted there, but they even had the blue Blue cord. Yeah, wow, she had every kind you wanted there, but they all taste the same, right or no?
Lano:No, they're different yeah.
David Na:Which one's the best one.
Mig:I think the yellow's A little bit sweeter. The white's like more, more savory. I think I didn't try the blue. I didn't try the blue.
David Na:I've had blue tortilla chips, yeah, at. Trader Joe try the blue. I didn't try the blue. I've had blue tortilla chips. Yeah, I traded joe's, you know.
Lano:But I didn't try the blue though well, this is one of my favorite spots in both hearts. It's called um burrito la palma. Have you been there?
David Na:where's? No, I never even heard of it.
Lano:It's on olympic, it's by um. You know, ramirez brothers, that giant like liquor store there's one in el monte, yeah there's one in the mountain, that's the way we go there on pick road is that by?
David Na:by the club Don Quixote, you know the Don Quixote nightclub.
Lano:No, I don't think so.
David Na:And it was in the old days, that liquor store, was it called? Fines?
Lano:I think it used to be called Fines. Yeah, but this is the one in El Monte. You been there, mink. It's pretty good. We go there once a month. I recommend the spot, but we go to the one in El Monte or the one in Boyle Heights.
Mig:I haven't gone because Mingo said he went and he said it wasn't all that.
Lano:Oh no, you got to go. They're little burritos but they're good.
Mig:Well, yeah, no, he said they were little burritos. He's like nah, but they're whatever.
Lano:Oh, I'll bring you some. I'll bring some. They open one in Highland Park one, and he's like it's the same cook as the one in Boyle Heights. They say they should taste the same, but but they're always like Top of like lists, but no, it's really good, like now, like your brother seems sus, which is His picks now, cause it's a good spot. We go all the time, alright. Well, thanks for coming down. How's your Tuesdays? Cause we recording Tuesday. Maybe you can stop by when Rick's here.
David Na:Okay, cool yeah, maybe.
Lano:Cause I know when Rick's here, I'm out in my Cycling class, you know.
Mig:Or, if you can. If you can't make the drive, lon will figure it out how you can call in.
Lano:Okay, live A smart phone and then some headphones.
David Na:If you have some headphones, if you have headphones, or we see ourselves. How do we look on tv?
Lano:uh, we're not live on thursday, okay, but we'll be on thursday, okay but um, you can come back next week or whenever when rick's here, because then we'll have some stories about um adventures and stuff yosemite yosemite and today we're like interviewing you, but we'll have some, some fun, funny stories and, as far as the weight loss challenge, I think I'm in the lead. Yeah, three, but I got away myself, but mingy's um lost some weight. People have gone up yeah did mark say no mark? Didn't mark say he lost a pound he?
Mig:lost a pound. Yeah, rick gained five pounds. I think uh he was snagging uh picnic baskets with a yogi bear up in yosemite I know he was on vacation for a week. So that's my theory and I'm sticking to it.
Lano:Hey, any shout-outs? You want your mom or anybody.
David Na:No.
Mig:Shout-out to Boyle Heights, East LA.
David Na:Boyle Heights, east LA, east LA.
Mig:I don't know.
David Na:To all my friends there, you know.
Mig:All your old Silesian heads.
David Na:Alright, y'all.
Mig:Good show.
David Na:Thank you for having me.
Mig:Thank you, david, for being here. Thanks so much. Love you brother.
David Na:Alright, love you too. You guys are great.
Mig:Love you guys out there too. Keep on drifting yo.
David Na:Yo Peace.
