Walking Day

March 29, 2010

I woke up with the intention of walking and after a couple cups of coffee, and a chat with one of the morning hostel employees, Sophie (everyone is too nice here), that is what I did.

It was hot, I was sweaty, and I tried to walk down the river to the Royal Palace and the National Museum. Somehow I passed them both and was completely lost. I saw what looked like a shopping mall near by, and hopped in to take advantage of the AC and possibly get some information. Little did I know this was actually a casino, and how can I not play a little Black Jack in Cambodia. I got my taste, they have some silly rules here, which made me lose all my money ($10) on one hand when I doubled down against an ace, caught my 21, only to find she had a blackjack. This is definitely not Vegas.

I caught a motorbike to the National Museum (I literally walked right past it a mile ago) and was fairly unimpressed. The museum was mostly Angkorian artifacts, very similar to the ones I had seen two days ago, so I rushed through a bit. Then a search for food.

Near the museum is a restaurant called Friends, which seemed to be situated literally in a playground. I checked it out, and it turns out it is an organization that trains and educated street youth. All the employees had come up through their system, and the food was tapas style. Good food and a good cause, I was in. I had a tasty roasted veggie salad, it was delicious, and the service was great. It did end up being a bit pricey for Cambodia ($8) but thats ok.

I then tried to walk to the Russian Market (the cheap foreigner market started by the Russians). I again got lost, and had to hire a tuk tuk, which is a great thing since I was evidently extremely lost. The market was ok, I bought a few souvineer type things, and haggled quite a bit. One girl called me stingy and said she was losing money on me. I told her not to sell it to me then and started to walk away when she called me back. I then got her to cut another dollar off. Funny system.

Marketed out I walked up to S21 or the Tol Soul Prison. This was the infamous Khmer Rouge prison, where they tortured and killed their "enemies." I found the museum to be quite dull in a way. I appreciate its significants, but it was focused on the shock factor of the gruesome torture methods rather than it's historical importance. I wasn't into it. However, afterwards as I was relaxing with some much needed water, I saw a group of guys playing a game similar to hackey-sack but instead of a ball there was a spring with feather similar to badminton. I was intrigued, and asked to join. It was fun, I was awful, and of course everyone laughed at me. I learned the game was called Sai, and some of the guys had some crazy behind the back moves.

After I was tired out, I caught a motorbike to Wat Phnom, just a block from my hostel. I checked out the Wat, it was cool, the pagoda was a bit more colorful than others with neon ferris wheel lights. There were also monkeys around the surrounding park, which scared me.

After some R&R at the hostel I tried to go back to the night market only to find it was closed. I came back to the hostels street in search of some noodles and found Marco (a man in my dorm) sitting in front of a "convenient store" having a beer. He asked me to join and i indulged.

We weren't sitting on the front steps, the owners of the store set out chairs and tables for their costumers. Our neighboring table was a group of Khmer men (who may have had a few Angkors already) and they were extremely excited to talk with us. Pretty soon we were all talking and laughing, they shared their mangos with us and bought me some peanuts (the peanuts here are not cooked, so they are soft oily and very tasty). After a while I brought up Sai, and after some confusion (I pronounced it completely wrong to them) I found out the store carried Sai. I bought a couple, and we played. I gave the Sai to a kid who played with us, and bought a couple more to replace them (they were $.25).

A note on our hosts. The business' here usually double as stores and home fronts, and the owners were a fantastic family. They were fantastic to us, and work long and hard hours, which is shown in their Lexus SUV parked out front, which they take great pride in.

A fantastic day in Phnom Penh. I feel like I could stay here forever. It has such a revived feeling, and its an enormous point of pride for its inhabitants. Such a fantastic energy.

Panom Pen

March 28, 2010

I spent my last morning in Siem Reap trying to find a bus to Phnom Penh, since I slept through the morning ones. Fortunately I was able to find one for noon at a slightly inflated price.

The morning was consumed with some breakfast, a little packing, and a chat with a firefighter from Hong Kong named Eric. Hopefully we can meet up sometime when I'm in his city.

Although the van to pick me up was half an hour late, the bus ride was six uneventful hours. There were some seat shufflings which left me in the dust, and we got a good look at the Cambodian country side. It was pretty cool, everyone was finishing up work for the day, so everyone was in sarongs, lounging and bathing.

I got to Phnom Penh and made way to a hostel, Me Mates Place. Fortunately there was room since the place is really nice and cheap.

The hostel is a mere 50 meters from the river, so I decided walk along it in search of some food. I ended up running into the night market which was a spectacle. There was a huge traffic jam outside, a band playing in the center, and tons of vendors. Unlike some of the other night markets I've been to, this was aimed mainly at locals, and nearly no one spoke English, which posed a bit of a problem when eating.

Basically the food is set out and you put what you want into a basic to be prepared. This took me about 15 minutes to figure out by watching everyone else. I picked out some spring rolls, some bread (which they fried), some peppers (which they fried), and what I was told was a fried ball of duck. I was a bit surprised to find this was actually an embryonic duck, and even more surprised to find how amazingly tender, rich, and juicy it was despite the tiny embryonic feathers.

The eating scenario was all on the ground in laid out mats. It was a lot of fun, and I lounged around with some Angkor beers while picking at my feast (which only cost 5000 real, or $1.25) but I left feeling the grease seeping out of my pores. So I walked along the river a bit more, it was cooler at this point and a bit refreshing.

I was beat after this and headed back to the hotel to work on the internets. I ended up chatting with a Medical Anthropologist named Ben, as well as the bar manager Tony "Montana." Ben is doing work in the area through USAID, some pretty awesome stuff, and Tony is an extremely fun and energetic local guy. They both gave me some pretty cool tips about what to check out.

Unfortunately I had to call it quits early, those bus rides take it out of you. So far this city is extremely exciting and beautiful, and the Khmer people are even more friendly than in Siem Reap.

Angkor Wat

March 27, 2010

Adrien confused our agreed time, and woke me up a bit early, so we made our way back to the same French restaurant for some breakfast and coffee.

We then hired a Tuk-Tuk to Angkor, where we say Angkor Wat and explored Angkor Thom (the anceint city). My favorite was the Boyoun Temple in Angkor Thom, even though it was all amazing. Although the temples themselves did not blow me away by their mere appearance, when put in context (as they were built in the 12th century), the work is marvelous. Everything is made out of stone, which is all decorated with great detail. At the Boyoun temple, which is more of a ruin, we were able to explore around it freely. All the sides of the towers are sculpted into face shapes, and the stairs to the upper levels are extremely steep. I took a bunch of photos, which I will post eventually.

I was beat by the end of the day, and I made my way back to the hostel to recouperate, and decided I will go to Phnom Penh tomorrow, as I don't feel like going to Angkor again and the rest of the town of Siem Reap has seemingly little less to offer.

As I was researching my trip, I met my new roomates, who are actually from Westwood. Small world.

I then headed out for some more Amak curry with Adrien, and another one of my dorm mates, Roz, from England. We had some tasty curry, and the lady boy waiter remembered me and kept on telling me how handsome I was. Very flattering. We then headed back to pub street for a couple beers, but we called it a night pretty early as we all had early bus's/tours the next morning.

I enjoyed Siem Reap, but it is mainly aimed at tourists, and got tiresome very fast. The Cambodian are remarkable so far, everyone is smiling and extremely friendly. I have a sneaking suspicion I'm heading for bluer waters in Phnom Penh.

Siem Reap

March 26, 2010

Woke up to my empty dorm. Sweet and quite. A good night sleep did me well and I got out of the room in hopes of getting out to Angkor Wat. Until I found out it would cost me close to $50, I knew nothing about it, and it was already about 10:30.

So instead I set out to explore Siem Reap, get a guide book, and do a little research on this Angkor Wat place.

The hostel breakfast looked gross and was somewhat expensive ($3), so I set off for greener pastures. I walked into the main section of town, skipping through the traffic. Crossing the street is pretty crazy. I learned the best strategy (from a tuk-tuk driver laughing hysterically at me) is to just be brave, and bravery it does take.

I found a French restaurant which seemed a bit posh, but upon further looking, it was only $3. I checked out an omelet and coffee, and was blown away by my beautiful americano, eggs that taste like eggs, and a fresh baguette. Basically the best western breakfast I've had in a long time.

After sipping my coffee on the patio, I made way across the street to a little market in search of a guide book, and found tons of vendors literally sitting in fish. Most of them were alive to begin with, but upon ordering the women would kill, scale, gut, and butcher them, leaving an amazing aroma. It was fun.

After much searching and bargaining I found a book for about $3, and made off to find a place to read a bit about Angkor and Siem Reap. Literally two sips into my beer, Adrien (my Scottish train friend) came and sat down with me. He told me he wasn't able to find our meeting spot the previous night, and it turned out we ate dinner about 100 feet from each other.

We chatted for a bit (both feeling overwhelmed by Angkor a little) and decided to head to the Angkor museum.

The museum is a beautiful modern building, and was extremely informative about ancient Khmer culture, Hinduism, and Buddhism. We left knowing what we were in for and grabbed some noodles.

While eating we were confronted by the usual influx of child beggars. We both have mixed feelings about this (as anyone who has seen Slumdog Millionaire can attest to), especially since it is possible that many of these children, who are often mutilated in some way, could be after effects of the Khmer Rouge. The kids are always very cute and witty, some can name off tons of facts from whatever country you tell them you're from. We opted to buy some of them some noodles and mango. It was fun and a bit gratifying, knowing our money is going to the kids stomach rather than god know's where.

We split up after that for some down time, and met up again at Pub Street, which is exactly that. We found a pretty cool bar and had a couple drinks. It was fun, I got a free t-shirt from the Angkor What bar, and Adrien and I planned to meet up the next morning to explore the temples.

The Never Ending Train #2

March 25, 2010

The train to Aranyaprathet (Thai border of Cambodia) leave from Hua Lamphong station at 5:55 AM, with an estimated arrival time of 11:30.

I was up and at 'em with no problem. Swung by the 7-11 for some snacks and a 2 liter bottle of water for the journey, and made it to Hua Lamphong with plenty of time to spare.

The train cost 48 Baht (about $1.50) and was definitely a no frills trip. All the seats are bench seats offering little comfort for the inevitable naps required to the early start time. There is no AC, there are some fans that help a bit, but all the windows remain open to let in the warm breeze and tons of dirt from the country side. There is also a "kitchen," which comprised of the front few benches of my car. Yum.

I found an open bench and quickly fell asleep, only to be woken up an hour later by two women and child who squeezed in with me. I am certain this was a tactical maneuver to get me to move. I held my ground and went back to sleep, and they continued to surround me the whole trip. Although they spoke no English we had a symbiotic relationship. Across from me was the child and her grandmother. The little girl was about 4 and cycled through naps and hyperactivity. Sleeping she seemed all too cute, but when she woke up she would give me death stared that could break glass. I was able to crack a smile out of her a couple times, but I realized she didn't like me or was afraid of me because I was a farang, when she told her grandmother. The older woman was very smiley and it was fun to watch her play with her granddaughter who was very giggly when not looking at me.

The train stopped at a station at one point and didn't start again for nearly two hours. This gave me time to become extremely impatient and frustrated, as well as giving me time to talk to my new travel buddy Adrien from Scotland. Adrien was a freelance Journalist back in the UK, but is now exploring different ventures and taking a couple weeks mainly in Thailand and Siem Reap. We get along quite well, and it was very nice to have someone to commiserate with, as there were few other westerners on the train.

We finally got to Aranyaprathet at about three in the afternoon, and Adrien and I made our way to the border crossing 15 km away at Poi Pet. We got through customs alright, and smartly avoided scam visa offers.

We got in a taxi to Siem Reap, again avoiding the smooth talkers at the border, and after a couple obligatory stops at his friends stores, we made it to Siem Reap at nearly 6.

The taxi driver didn't know our hotels so he handed us off to his "brother" who drove a Tuk Tuk and knew Siem Reap better. Some arguing and 3 whole dollars later I got to th Siem Riep Hostel, with plans to meet up with Adrien for dinner later on.

The hostel is eight dollars a night (they use dollars here as well as the riel which is pinned on the dollar at 4,000 to $1) and is pretty nice. The atmosphere is very laid back and I have a sneaking suspision that I'm the only person in my 6 bed dorm. Sweet.

Fighting through exhaustion and hunger (I had eaten nothing but a bag of peanuts at this point) I showered, had a couple Angkor beers (only 75 cents) and checked the internets before I headed out.

After dropping off my laundry next door, I was picked up by a motorbike "taxi' and I surprisingly guided him directly to my meeting point, without knowing its name.

Our meeting spot was a hotel we had seen before, and I ran into our tuk tuk driver, Baran, who told me Adrien's hotel was very far away. I waited awhile, played some pool, and drank some more Angkors with Baran, who is a hilarious guy. He would squeal everytime he made a shot and make fun of me when I missed.

I gave up waiting, said farewell to Baran, and headed to night market. I think I was more stumbling in search of food with my eyes half way open (due to hunger and exhaustion not beer). I found a delicious curry. I ate it in what I suspect was four bites. Then b-lined to hostel where I was asleep probably before laying down.

I didn't get a good grasp on Cambodia today. I had food tunnel vision. Tomorrow is a new day though.

Bangkok Airport to San Francisco in only 20+ hours

This will be my last blog post, as I arrived in San Francisco earlier this evening. I think the time difference will take a little getting used to, since I'm wide awake at 3 AM - oh well, there's time to adjust.

After a long wait at the Bangkok airport, a delayed flight, a group sprint through the Taipei airport to make my connection, and a thorough search of my belongings at US Customs, I'm home but wishing I was back in Asia on a train somewhere between Bangkok and Cambodia.

I guess we'll all have to live vicariously through Sam's adventures now!

Back to the Bangkok

March 24, 2010

Our flight back to Bangkok was a bit solemn, as Emma is leaving today. We enjoyed a free breakfast at the Bangkok Airways lounge. This time there were tasty curry pastries.

In Bangkok we had our last meal together at Black Canyon Coffee, where Emma ceremoniously ate her last Pad Thai. Then we parted ways as I hopped on a bus to the Vietnam Embassy, and Emma made her way to the International Terminal for her flight back to the states.

The Vietnam Embassy was as uncoordinated as ever. When I got there I went to a free window and was immediately helped only to find the man standing at the window next to me had been waiting for a long time. I apologetically let on how typical this was.

My visa was to be ready in half an hour, and after a trip to the nearby mall for some green tea (The third time I have been to this exact place) I continued to wait in the embassy for nearly an hour. I do now have my visa, so there is little to complain about.

I then made my way down to Hua Lamphong station to a hostel that I found on the web. I went by motorbike (I wore a helmet, if that makes it any better) and realized that this is the only way to travel around Bangkok. It was cheap after haggling and the drivers calling me a Farang and telling me to pay a higher price. I countered by telling them I'm not a foreigner in my broken Thai much to their amusement. This went on, and we settled on a fair price. The motorbikes are also a lot faster and more fun as they squeeze through the congested roads.

After being offered a room at a couple sketchy guest houses, I found the hostel I was looking for. It's very nice, very cheap, and the staff are extremely friendly. They showed me were to go to replace my ipod cord, and I was off walking to the MBK center.

I forgot that I actually really like Bangkok. Most of all I love the pace of the city. Everyone is either rushing or relaxing, with no medium.

I took the long walk to what I realized was an enormous shopping mall. I thought I've seen big malls before. this one is seven stories high, with a maze of escalators in the center. I was lost and ended up wandering around for a few hours until I found the cellphone department. When I say cellphone department I mean section of the mall with numerous cellphone kiosks all hawking what I assume to be fake, stolen, and unlocked merchandise.

I haggled for my charger and explored some more leading to me to the arcade. Crazy place. I played some Time Crisis with a little kid. He was super into it, and we had fun.

All malled out I made my way out of the mall, a challenge in itself. As I crossed the street via a skytrain bridge I found myself in the midst of a group of people in red bandannas getting guided down the stairs by the police. As you may know there has been a large political protest here in Bangkok for the past week or so, the protesters being the "red shirts" ala the red bandannas. It was an interesting situation, not at all hostile, as the red shirts simply walked away with their handfuls of pamphlets.

I than ran into a peace "demonstration" in front of the Art and Culture center where there were walls and streamers set up for people to draw on and a youth break dancing crew. I stayed and checked out the festivities for a while, but I still don't have any idea what it actually was.

Then another motorbike trip back to the hostel, where I sit now catching up with the world and resting up for my 5 AM train to the Cambodian border, where I will travel to Siem Reap.

Back to Pooket

March 23, 2010

Today we go back to Phuket for our plane ride back to Bangkok tomorrow morning. Needless to say it was a melancholy morning in the sand and water before we got the 3:30 ferry back to our least favorite place.

Getting to ferry was an adventure in itself, the water was particularly choppy and making the jump from the longtail onto the ferry was a bit treacherous. Emma almost fell off of the ferry, and Sam's water bottle exploded rather hilariously as he climbed onto the longtail. We survived, and after some amazing ocean views from the boat, two hours later we were back at the Phuket dock.

We were surprised to find that our ferry had arranged transportation from the docks to our hotel, and we made our way to Tanamas House near Naiyang Beach.

This part of Phuket is a place we actually enjoyed. Our hotel was a nice little bungalow about 2 KM from the beach and 5 minutes from the airport. The staff was fantastic and shuttled us to and from the beach, and to the airport free of charge.

We made our way down to the beautiful and clean beach just in time to enjoy the last few minutes of a miraculous sunset, and indulged in a seafood dinner in the sand. There were enormous king prawns, duck satay, and pineapple fried rice (my island favorite). It was delicious, but a little pricey, and we had to run to the atm to make the check. Oops.

We jumped to conclusions about Phuket. We now know to steer clear of Patong, and find the nicer places the island has to offer.

Beach Hop #3

March 22, 2010

We woke up this morning and left our favorite island Koh Lanta. A 2 hour ferry ride dropped us in Railay Bay, a group of beaches on a peninsula on the coast of Krabi. Known for its rock climbing and scuba diving (neither of which we do), Railay is surrounded by limestone cliffs. It's incredibly beautiful, and there are no boat docks. To get to the beach, the ferry stops in the middle of the bay, and several longtail boats come out to meet it. Then we had to make the perilous climb from ferry to longtail with our backpacks. The longtails drop you at the shore, and after hopping out into the knee deep water, you're there.

We found our hotel easily, as it was one of 5 or so that lined the powdery sand on West Railay beach. We decided to splurge for our last beach stay, and we have a snazzy bungalow with a view of East Railay beach. Quite nice, I must say.

We headed to the beach for the afternoon, hanging out mostly in the water. We had some overpriced sandwiches for lunch. Unfortunately, Railay is definitely more expensive than Lanta, and it's a bit of a shock for us.

After watching the sunset by the beach, we took a short hike to the other side of the peninsula through a wooded trail, and arrived at the sheltered East Railay beach. This side is not great for swimming, as it is covered in mangrove trees, but there are a number of cool beach bars and restaurants.

We chose one, and had a tasty bbq fish, as well as a chicken kebab and some pineapple fried rice (a new favorite). Sam ordered a pina colada (which needed to happen since he's been singing the Jimmy Buffet song constantly for the last week or so), and we chatted about the island, and about how we wished we didn't have to go back to Phuket tomorrow.

Lanta State Park (Does it exist?)

March 21, 2010

Another beautiful day in Lanta. After a quick breakfast at the hotel we set off to explore the east part of the island and the Marine National Park on the Southern tip.

We set out on the motorbike and drove across the island which sports some beautiful forests and some steep hills (the motorbike got a good workout). The opposite side of the island is just as beautiful as our side but lacks the white sandy beaches thus there are not many resorts on this side and little tourism. Many of the little towns are fisherman villages and a lot of the houses have evidently been built since the tsunami.

We drove south to the end of the road hoping to run into the National Park, but instead finding a little village and kooky resort with overpriced banana milkshakes. Shucks.

The scenery was still beautiful and we decided to try our luck heading south on the West Side of the island. We made it back across with a brief pit-stop at what we thought would be some caves, but instead turned out to be an elephant trek that we weren't in the mood for.

Back on the west side we found a neat beach called Nui Beach. We had to hike down a steep little trail to the almost deserted white sand. Besides for little shade huts constructed by various travelers the only building on the beach is a ratty old bar sitting on an overlooking cliff.

After a few dips, some sun, and a little reading, we continued on our journey to the state park only to find the pavement made way to a loose dirt road that the tiny motorbike could barely handle. We gave up on our dreams of the State Park and sat down for some lunch at a beach side restaurant called Same Same but Different, which (besides for the amazing location on the beach) was more same same than different.

After a quiet rest of the afternoon at the hotel, we went North for some seafood on the pier in a town called Saladin. It was tasty and cool and even rained a little. We got a whole red-snapper and to Emma's dismay I ate the eyeballs, my grandfather would be proud. We also had some tasty peppered crab and some pineapple fried rice, all for about 500 baht ($17). Not too shabby.

I (Sam) am very very happy we spent the extra day here in Lanta. I think I could live here, or at least spend more time vacationing. Sad, but excited we leave for bluer waters tomorrow morning.

Do we ever have to leave?

March 20, 2010

So, as the title of this post might suggest, we love Koh Lanta. I (Emma) am unfortunately, having a minor/major problem with my shoulder. In fact, it seems as though every single muscle in the left side of my back/shoulder has made an agreement to knot up and cause me a great deal of pain. So I left Sam sleeping this morning to go get a massage and hopefully ease the tension. The massage helped some, but still not doing so great there, which is a bummer.

Nonetheless, we grabbed our rented motorbike and headed out to explore the island. There is definitely no better way to get around. Koh Lanta is a big island, with a lot of great, isolated, and uncrowded beaches. Today we went to Phra-Ae beach (also called Long Beach), one of the more popular spots on the island. We relaxed for a while and swam a lot. It's so hot that we can only sit in the sun for short periods of time, and take to lazing around in the shade or just perching in the water, which is also amazingly warm.

We headed to dinner at a great family-run restaurant a little ways down the island. The family built the entire restaurant themselves and its decorated with amazing shell chandeliers and exotic plants. We had some tasty Thai food, and then walked along Klong Nin beach for a while before heading back.

Lanta is so different from the last few places we've been. It has a real island feel, but without the constant tourist traps and crowded streets. Of course, the tourist activities are around and available, but it's also possible to have our own experience on the island without being pushed around by tour agents. It's pretty amazing to ride the deserted roads on our bike with the moon out, and you can see almost as many stars as you can at Bar 717.

We've decided to stay an extra day, so there will be more island exploration to tell tomorrow.

Oh Lanta

March 19, 2010

We woke up early to another beautiful morning in Phi Phi, and spent hour last few hours enjoying the beach and exploring the surrounding islands a bit.

There are two Phi Phi islands, Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Ley. We stayed on Phi Phi Don since Phi Phi Ley is uninhabited due to the fact that is mainly large steep limestone cliffs. We took a longboat around Phi Phi Ley to check it out, and even got to jump in the water in one of the less crowded coves (most of them were filled with large groups of snorkelers and scuba divers). The water was beautiful and so was the scenery.

We hopped on the midday ferry over to Koh Lanta, a much larger island about an hour and a half away. It's exterior was not as impressive as Koh Phi Phi, but as we took a taxi to our hotel we noticed that this was an actual island town, not a pure tourist getaway. Very cool, very laid back, lots of rain forest, and more culture than we have seen in our previous island stops.

Our hotel was great with an unswimmable yet very beautiful beach, extremely friendly staff, and air conditioning! Our room was a bungalow and although it was a bit of a walk away from the water, we were on a cool private little lake.

We spent the evening lounging at the hotel watching the sunset, then we rented a motorbike and headed up the road for some tasty foods.

We like Koh Lanta a lot.

Beach Therapy

March 18, 2010

Battling the effects of St. Patty's Day, we took to the beach for Day 2 of our stay in Koh Phi Phi. Later on in the day we roamed the island, and ended the day with a tasty seafood dinner overlooking the pier where the ferries arrive/depart.

Although our day was quite enjoyable, we decided to head to bed on the early side after an episode or two of Arrested Development - our travelling show. We were dismayed to find the top 40 remixes that played at the Apache Beach bar we enjoyed last night, were blaring into our bungalow tonight. That, combined with a warm evening with no a/c, made sleeping tough, and moods bitter.

St. Patty's Day on Phi Phi Don

March 17, 2010

Later, Phuket - hope I see you never. We raced from our hotel this morning to the pier where ferries depart for Koh Phi Phi, our next island destination. Our taxi driver got us there just in time, and we hopped onto one of the many waiting boats just in time. We took a seat at the front, only to find out early in the journey that waves splash over that part, and they will get you wet. So we moved to the top of the boat, where spray still splashed up from the water - wetting our faces and covering us in fine salt and sand. The boat takes about an hour and a half to get to Phi Phi.

Phi Phi gained notoriety because of the stellar (or not) Leonardo Dicaprio movie "The Beach," which was filmed here in 2000 or so. The island has since become a major destination for travelers, especially young backpackers. We booked a beach bungalow along Lo Dalam Bay. The bungalows are super modest, no A/C, just a fan, a bed, and a bathroom. There is also a cute porch with some chairs to sit and people watch. The inner part of the city is cluttered with tour companies, dive shops, and bars catering to international tourists.

Our beach is beautiful, and in the early part of the day, very swimmable. Around 3:30 pm, the tide goes out and the beach is exposed, still beautiful, but not so much for swimming. We went to the beach, had a couple of great swims, and settled down to read/nap/do our thing. As the tide went out, we walked back to the bungalow to take a break.

Later, we emerged and had a drink at the beach bar next to our bungalows. There we met a very nice English couple named Kirsty and Andy, who we chatted with about traveling, feral cats, and the possibility of celebrating St. Patty's. We decided it was a good idea. After grabbing dinner with them, we stopped by Jordan's Irish Pub, which was semi out of control. We got some drinks, and met some Irish travelers who joined our group as we walked back towards the beach.

We returned to Apache Beach Bar, a stone's throw from our bungalow, to find the Irish celebration in full effect. A fire show was going on, including a giant ring of flame that Sam and I jumped through, and serious jams were playing on the stereo. We stayed and had a great time with the English and Irish couples, then when the music ended, we headed to bed, very fast.

Now for Sunbathing Sam:

The trip to the ferry was terrifying. We were a little late out of the hotel and where scared we might have to spend the rest of the morning in Phuket. Nooooo!!!

We made it, got sunscreened, and took a seat in the front of boat. After a bit of a wet ride we made it to Koh Phi Phi and were immediately awestruck by the sky high limestone cliffs and white sandy beaches which contrast beautifully with the crystal clear blue water.

Koh Phi Phi is an interesting little island. It has a local population of about 1,000, and has been quickly rebuilt after being demolished by the Boxing Day Tsunami a few years ago. This however is not evident, since it has been completely rebuilt since then. The island is small, you can walk across it in minutes, and there are no motorized vehicles on the island. It also sports a cool little inner town with thin stone streets and about 10 7-11s.

We made our way to our hotel for quick change before we collapsed in the sand. The hotel is actually a simple bungalow merely 100 feet from the water. The afternoon was spent with a combination warm blue water, hot sun, and some good reads. Not too shabby.

After some downtime in the bungalow we made our way to the beach front bar to watch the sunset. Here we met Kristy and Andy. Kristy shares the common story of being laid off from her lawyer job, and instead of looking for a similar job has decided spend this time traveling. Still seems pretty cool to me. I digress. We got along pretty well, so we headed out for some dinner and eventually some celebrating of St. Patrick's day. Although the beach was empty during the day, the tiny streets were filled with mobs of people. Interesting.

We visited an Irish pub and the beach bar in front of the hotel which had transformed into quite the scene with firedancing, music, and tons of people. We did jump through a ring of fire. It was hot. We then went to sleep, we like Phi Phi.

Phuket, more like Poo-ket

March 16, 2010

Today we travel to the beach.

We started the day early in Chiang Mai, getting a flight to Bangkok at 9:00 and then on to Phucket after a couple hour layover.

Although this seems a bit boring, we flew domestically through Bangkok Airways (Thailands Boutique Airline, as we were told many a time), and it was amazing! They had a lounge room in both Chiang Mai and Bangkok which served refreshments, had free wifi, was very clean, and in Bangkok served us lunch. The lunch was surprisingly good, and probably tasted even better compared to $10 sandwiches which seems to be the worldwide airport norm. The bitesize chicken sandwiches and ice tea was our favorite.

We finally got to Phucket!!! It was about 4 by the time we got to our hotel and we immediately headed down to the beach. I was so excited to swim in the crystal blue water, only to find it litered with 7-11 bags and only about 2 feet deep forever. Let alone the fact that the beach had more trash than sand, and there were skee-do's for days. Nevertheless we were here so we frolicked in the water for a bit, even if it left a gross grime on our skin. So sad to see such a beautiful place be ruined like this.

On our walk back to the hotel we were harassed by the street vendors hawking the usual souvenirs, people handing out fliers for the various clubs, and the crowds of men already on the prowl for some mating. We locked ourselves in the hotel room for a nap, and found the earliest ferry we could for the morning. We hate Phucket.

Unfortunately people have to eat sometime. So we walked around Patong for a bit; navigating around the free drink special fliers, top 40 remixes, and strip clubs to get some Pad Thai. We did stop in a bar for a bit and enjoyed a Thai cover band who had most of their songs down pat. Back at the hotel we confirmed our 8:30 ferry time with the front desk.

15 hours in Phuket is 15 hours too many.

Oh, and the streets smelled of trash and sewage. Phucket sucks, or at least Patong does. Emma shares my beiefs:

Phuket was an unfortunate stop-over. Fortunately, we were only there for a short time. The flights were easy, the chicken sandwiches delicious, and we arrived with little trouble.

Upon arriving at Patong Beach - where we stayed - it was immediately like we were transported from beautiful Thailand into a seedy strip of bars next to what I'm sure used to be a beautiful beach. Poor Sam, so happy and excited to swim in the warm ocean immediately dropped his things when we got to the beach and began to frolic out only to discover it was about a football fields length before the water got deep enough to swim.

The city is over run with tourists looking for a drink (or twenty) and some action. We had some dinner, grabbed a drink at a silly bar where a Thai cover band sang such classics as "Sweet Child of Mine" and "Stairway to Heaven."

That's really enough about Phuket. We're hopping a ferry early tomorrow morning and setting sail for better shores (we hope)! Koh Phi Phi, we can't wait.

Hasta la vista, Chiang Rai

March 15, 2010

We woke up this morning sad that we will be leaving Chiang Rai, yet excited to see a few last sites before we leave. Last night at the party, someone began raving to us about the "Black Temple," declaring that we couldn't leave before we saw it. Danny, Lisa, and Blue have yet to see it as well, so we all headed to through some back roads this place we had heard so much about, yet knew so little about it.

Well, Gary was right, this place was amazing. It was an interesting contrast to the White Temple we saw yesterday. Large black buildings, intricate wood carvings, stone statues, and animal bones woven into the many decorations. This was definitely not the light hearted, round about morbidity we saw yesterday, it was kind of in your face, and yet it is was equally amazing and beautiful. The complex was built by Thawan Duchanee, another Thai artist, and is comprised of many individual building all with unique designs and decorations, yet all sharing the common black color.

Unfortunately we were a little rushed to get home before our bus so we had to leave without seeing the whole grounds. I guess we'll have to come back and see it in greater detail (sounds familiar).

On our way back to Danny and Lisa's we stopped by a pharmacy to get me some hydrocortisone cream for my skin which was acting up. Usually in America this requires a doctors visit, a prescription, and probably a bit of bill (luckily insurance has always covered it). Here it simply requires a 115 baht purchase (less that $4). Maybe health care reform could be a good idea.

Anyways, after some good byes we got our bus back to Chiang Mai which got us in at about 6:30. This time we stayed at a proper (yet extremely cheap) hotel which sported some pretty interesting karaoke in the restaurant. We strolled into town in search of a specific restaurant but found our way to a bookstore where I found a book about a doctor in Laos during the 1960's that Lisa had told me about, we then stumbled into the night bazaar where we sat down for some dinner and called it a night.

Tomorrow... Phuket. And now I hand it to Emma:

We headed off our last morning to see the Black Temple - it seemed only fitting that we should see it after spending some time at the white temple the day before. I must say that it was quite different from the white temple. The large grounds are set back from the road and can only be reached my turning down an unmarked street, driving through a modest neighborhood, and making another unmarked turn. Thawan Duchanee, the artist who designed the project, clearly wants it to be an attraction for people who are in the know, not your average tourist passing through.

Nonetheless, the buildings are incredible. From a huge, Thai style house painted black to a number of strange space like white domes, and a huge building shaped like a fish (doorway is in the mouth), we had a great time wandering the grounds. It was all of our first visit, including Blue who has been travelling and visiting Chiang Rai for years. Duchanee has decorated with semi morbid themes - lots of bones and skulls - but the location is beautiful, and the area has some incredibly intricate designs, wood carvings, and architecture. We particularly loved the bathroom, which - as Sam put it - looks like "a nice place to do business."

We left to rush back, pack, and eat some tasty leftovers from the party. We bid goodbye to Blue, Boot, Rene, and the dogs at the house, and Danny and Lisa drove us to the bus station. We can't even begin to thank them for hosting us, it was a great time, and we hope someday to come back.

An uneventful busride left us back in Chiang Mai, where we spent the evening wandering the streets, buying a book, and checking out the night bazaar. We scooted off to bed early, since we have a plane to catch in the morning!

Party in the Chiang Rai

Sunday March 14, 2010

This evening Danny and Lisa will be hosting a party at their home so by the time we woke up Boot and Lisa where already hard at work preparing food and cleaning up the house a bit. Danny, Blue, Emma, and I took a trip to Wat Rong Khun aka the White Temple.

Wat Rong Khun was built by an acclaimed Thai artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, in his home village of Rong Khun to help support it's economy. This place was unlike any of the other Wat's we have seen. Like most other Wat's it was large, grand, and had an amazing attention detail, however this temple was all white, decorated with precise reflective mosaics, and many of it's features had some real sense of humor if you took a close look. Possibly the coolest part about it all is that it's a work in progress and thus only partially finished. Danny and Blue started noticing tons of things that were new since they had last been there including a large colorful, humorous, and largely metaphorical mural in the main room. I guess we'll have to go back in the future to see the changes.

We walked through the gift shop and the artists gallery, and then headed over to the Big C for some lunch and light shopping. Big C is basically a mall, with a bunch of little shops, kiosks, and eateries with it piece de la resistance being an enormous department store on the top floor. We spent some time in the department store, which slightly resembled target and the likes, and purchased a few necessities such as beach towels for our island travels and a bunch of cosmetics. We walked away with a bunch of stuff only out about 300 baht (less than 10 dollars), crazy.

Then back to the house for some R&R and some party preparation. Guests started arriving at four and soon the house and yard were filled with interesting people and tasty food. Many of Danny and Lisa's friends are local artist and others who they have met in their time here, both Thai and Farang (foreigners) all of which were very nice and interesting to talk to. We got some good advice about what to do in Chiang Rai as well as the rest of Thailand, and heard some pretty great stories.

By the end of the night we were all full, tired, and ready for bed. Tomorrow we leave for Chiang Mai in the afternoon, sad to go. Emma is now crying and she will tell you why:

I am not, actually crying, although I am sad to leave Chiang Rai. It has been so nice to have Danny, Lisa and Blue to show us around and take care of us. But now's not the time for being a sad sally.

Wat Rong Khun was our major outing for today. The temple is...amazing, but not at all in the way that the other temples have been. Chalermchai Kositpipat, the artist/architect has created a very interesting perspective in his work. There is a clear contrast between good and evil, in addition to a dark sense of humor that weaves its way throughout his pieces. The best of these is dark "jokes" is in the entrance to the main temple at Wat Rong Khun. While crossing an ornate bridge that leads to the temple, you walk over a sea of sculpted hands, all reaching as if to pull you down into the abyss. One of these hands, is giving the middle finger, and has one single red fingernail, the only color in a sea of white.

The inside of the temple includes a mural which pictures the attack on the world trade center, some Chuck taylors, and some other unexpected images. There is a theme in his work of a passage between the bad things in the world towards a kind of nirvana, represented by the traditional Buddhist images which decorate the far wall of the temple.

The outside of the grounds is a vast expanse of intricately designed buildings in gold and white. The architecture uses many of the same styles as traditional temples, like the broken tile mosaics and moldings, but in such a way that the effect is completely different. Really interesting stuff. Also, the temple is open despite being under constant construction. Chalermchai Kositpipat reminds me very much of some artists I admired in Spain, Antoni Gaudi (who had such grand plans for the Sagrada Familia that it continues to be under construction far after his death) and Salvador Dali (for the way he uses imagery, color, and illusion in his work). Of course I'm not expert on art, so this is all just my idle musings, but that's what I got.

After lunch at Big C, and a quick stop to grab some essentials, we headed back to get ready for the party. Lisa and Boot were busy all day preparing salads, snacks, tasty chicken dishes with basil and fruit for the festivities. All of the guests were very friendly, and we chatted with them about our travels, their lives in Chiang Rai, etc. The party was a great success, and at the end of the night we were exhausted, but happy.

Everybody Wan Chaang Tonight

March 13, 2010

This morning, Blue took us up the river to ride elephants (or so we had planned). We hired a longboat from the Chiang Rai dock, and headed up the Mae kok river to a village where many mahoots bring their elephants to give rides. The river is very low at this time of year and our driver had to be very careful not to bottom out on a sandbar or hit the gnarled trees that protrude from the shallow current.

About 15 minutes up the river, we pulled off to the side of the river and climbed out to visit a place called Monk Cave. This is exactly what it sounds like. There's a monk who lives in a giant cave in the side of a mountain. We reached the cave by climbing up some stone stairs, and walking through a huge opening. The cave is full of Buddhist items as well as offerings that visitors have brought to offer the monk. He sleeps on a small cot, hidden carefully behind a screen in the corner of the cave. The ceilings of the cave are incredibly high and you can hear the resident bats screeching and occasionally they fly from wall to wall. Not exactly where I'd like to live, but pretty stunning.

We hopped back in the boat, and after another half an hour or so, we reached the village. Blue noticed immediately that the elephants were not in their normal waiting area. Instead, up on a huge sandbar up the river, about 20 elephants were gathered. After asking around the village we found out that it was Wan Chang, an elephant holiday - no rides.

Our driver took us up the river a little ways, and we hopped out and walked over to check out the elephants. For the holiday, the elephant handlers and their families had set up folding tables covered with sugar cane and bananas which the elephants helped themselves to liberally - an elephant buffet of sorts. It was pretty amazing. We fed some treats to a friendly looking elephant, took some pictures, and watched as the ceremony ended, and the handlers hopped up on the elephants (they call them over using their voices and then mount the elephants by hoisting themselves up onto the elephants head, and then climbing to sit either in the baskets above, or more often - just behind the elephants head with their legs behind the elephants' gigantic ears. Whole families rode their elephants home through the water and back to the village. Although we were initially a little disappointed that we couldn't ride the elephants, it was so nice to see the Thai people honoring and celebrating this animal that they value so much. We left totally happy about our interaction with the big beasts.

This afternoon we headed out with Danny, Lisa, and Blue to get our first full-body Thai massage. Turns out, Thai massage hurts, but as Sam keeps saying "hurts so good." We got massages together, and the masseuse did some incredible/painful stretches and massage patterns that brought out whole new areas I didn't even know were tense.

We had dinner at a restaurant by the river, very pretty and with a cool breeze coming off the water. Danny, Lisa and Blue continue to share their knowledge of the area with us, and patiently answer all our many questions. After dinner, we stopped by "walking street," the Saturday night hot spot in Chiang Rai. Like a gigantic version of the Night Bazaar, walking street shuts down a main road in Chiang Rai and vendors, food sellers, and everyone in the city comes out to socialize, see each other, and buy some cool stuff. It was quite a scene. Lisa bought some coconut puffs (I'm not sure what their called), but they are delicious little puffs made in tiny molds from coconut milk. Sweet and tasty.

That was today, and now we're very ready for bed. Here's Sam:

Unfortunately Danny and Lisa had to spend the morning preparing for the party tomorrow, so they didn't participate in our early adventures up river. So Danny drove us to the peir where Emma, Blue, and I got a long boat and headed up the Maekak river to ride elephants and see the Monk Cave.

The river was pretty low, but the longboat driver was a pro and weaved through the sandbars and debri. First stop was the Monk Cave which is just that, a little Wat located in a cave. There is one Monk who lives here, with the many bats and cats. It kind of captures the essence buddhist minimalism, pretty cool.

Next stop was the elephant village where we hoped to get a ride, but unfortunately it was Wan Chaang (Elephant Holiday). We looked around the village for a bit, which had a bunch of snakes and hill tribe souveniers, and then headed a little up the river to see the holiday festivities.

All the elephants were just hanging out and eating, we got to feed them some sugarcane, and soon it was time for them to go. The owner of the elephant we were visiting told the elephant it was time to go, climbed up its head to perch himself on its neck, and just before heading across the river the elephant cleared the table of all the goodies so he can nosh on them during his trip. What a smart animal, knowing that he won't be back to the table and therefore picking up all of the food for later.

We made it back to Danny and Lisa's, where Boot had made us some tasty spaggheti and chicken sauce. After a short rest we all headed down to the massage house, where we were greeted by cold wash cloths and tea to get us ready for the tenderizing. Thai massages are brutal in such an amazing way. My girl found knots in my shoulders that I never knew existed and got them out via elbows and body weight. Painful in such a great way, and at the cost of 150 baht per hour (less than $5).

For dinner we went to a cool restaurant on the river. There was a nice cool breeze, a great little musical dou, and plenty of good food.

We then went to Walking Street, which is kind of like a night Bazaar for the locals. It was quite a scene, tons of people, cool booths, and plenty of food. We stayed for a bit and checked out the many vendors until it got a bit too crowded (literally shoulder the shoulder).

Another fun and full day in Chiang Rai.

We're alive, will update soon!

We've been traveling a lot over the last few days and have had some spotty internet access. That is our formal excuse for not posting in a few days. It's also true that we're in Thailand, at the beach, and sometimes we're just too lazy to blog. Many apologies, and stay tuned for a full update when we can pull ourselves off the beach to write. Love, Sam and Emma

From the Hills to the Golden Triangle

March 12, 2010

This morning, after some eggs and toast, we piled into the car: me, Sam, Danny and Blue and set off for a day of exploration. The farmers around Chiang Rai have been burning their fields to fertilize the soil for the next round of planting and the air is a bit hazy. The temperature is cooler, nonetheless, and we're grateful for the breeze.

Our first stop on a day of sightseeing was a mixed hill tribe village about 20 minutes outside of Chiang Rai. The hill tribe people have been living in this part of Thailand for a very long time, and as Danny and Blue have been teaching us, the government has taken a very passive approach with them - essentially choosing to ignore them until they became an active part of the opium trade. Once we had paid our entrance fee to the village, we walked along a dirt path that led to a number of huts inhabited by members of the Akha tribe. The women sell handicrafts in the village - amazing pieces with intricate cross-stitching are their most revered craft. I bought a little purse, and Sam and I took pictures with an older woman who Blue knew from a previous visit with the most contagious smile you can imagine. The Akha tribe also did a short musical performance using bamboo reeds as percussion, and small flute-like instruments as well.

The next tribe we saw were the Lahu people. They also performed a dance for us, but seemed less excited and we felt a little awkward. There are donation boxes posted around their village with crosses hanging above - a sign of the Christian missionaries that Blue tells us are working among the tribes. Sam and I bought some amazing cups made from bamboo with amazing carvings along the sides.

The pathways wind through the village and kids in western t-shirts, hot dogs, and groups of chickens with chicks roam freely between the huts. We also visited the Longneck Paduang village, where women wear long brass coils around their necks. Blue tells us that each year on their birthday, the coils are unwound, and a new loop is added. The coils are incredibly heavy, and take a tough toll on the body, but all the women seemed in good spirits.

On our way out, we passed a group of women out working who Blue had photographed on one of his previous trips to the village. This time, he brought the prints back with him and gave them to the women, who laughed at the images of themselves, but seemed so happy to keep them. It's a pretty cool thing Blue does, and I doubt the tribes often get to see pictures of themselves.

Danny and Blue have been filling us in on the history of the hill tribes, and the general attitude towards this large part of the Thai population. Despite hard-living, economic distress, and very limited government assistance these tribes are resilient and some - like the Akha, have begun to find ways to lift themselves up. The Akha tribe now grows Doi Chang coffee, which is very popular in this area and throughout Thailand. Danny and Lisa always keep it on hand in their house, and it's very tasty. We bought some today to bring home and share.

After a cool drink we left the village and headed back to the car. The drive to the Golden Triangle took about 45 minutes, and we arrived during lunchtime and at a lull in tourist traffic. From a viewpoint along the river (which is incredibly low right now due to the drought and dams in China that divert water in the north), you can see where the river branches and divides the land into the borders of Burma, Laos, and Thailand. Pretty amazing.

We checked out the triangle, and browsed the shops, stopping at a stall Blue remembered where a Thai guy sells incredibly old Buddhist artifacts as well as dusty relics, funky instruments and dried up honeycomb with dead wasps on it.

We headed back to Danny and Lisa's to head out to dinner at a restaurant perched above the night bazaar. After some tasty food, we browsed the market and headed home - worn out from a good day and ready for a good nights sleep.

I am Sam:

Travelling around with Danny and Blue has been a real treat since they have a wealth of knowledge about the area, it's people, politics, and environment.

We started off by going to visit a village of mixed hill tribes. It was neat to see some of the indigenous people of Thailand living in their customary settings. Blue knows many of the people in the village as he has spent the last 25 years in this area learning about them, even publishing a book about them a couple years ago.

The reason this village is here is because many of the tribes are refugees from Burma particularly. The land is privately owned, and hence used as a tourist attraction to see many of the hilltop tribes in one convenient stop. Blue has also explained to us that these people are not recognized as Thai citizens, but as refugees and must remain on the property at all times.

Walking through the different parts of the village was definitely a trip, a lot of extravagant traditional garb, different types of huts, and lots of friendly smiley women and children (there was a noticeable lack of men, who supposedly are somewhere else working). Each tribe had their own individual style, lots of crafts for sale, and some even gave a performance.

The Hoka tribe gave a pretty cool performance banging together pieces of bamboo, creating a very complete percussion ensemble accompanied by a couple gourd pipes. Blue took our picture with one of the tribes older woman who has quite an entrancing smile. Many of the older people in most of the tribes don't have many teeth, and those which they do have are stained a dark red from chewing on beet roots, I think. The Lahu's, performance was more of a dance, and seemed a little forced and insincere.

One of the coolest tribes we saw was the Padaung, who's women wear heavy rings around their necks, adding another ring on each birthday. It looks really cool, they also do some pretty nice weaving, and in general were the most friendly of the tribes we had seen.

After hiking around the villages, we all sat down for a cool soda and discussed what we had seen and some of the bigger picture things that is going one with these people. It seems that they are quickly being assimilated into Thai/Western culture, loosing their own that has been alive for thousands of years. They also have some troubling problems with their citizenship in Thailand as well as some pretty heavy Opium problems in some cases. Some pretty sad stuff going on.

We next headed to the Golden Triangle, an intersection of rivers which separate Burma, Laos, and Thailand. They have a little strip above the river selling goods and some pretty neat views of the area. Unfortunately this is a bad time for the beauty of the area, as the air is very hazy from the smoke and drought, the river is very low, and the foliage is not at its darkest shade of green. Fortunately it is hard not to see the beauty of this place, and see the significance of this river which is practically the life line of SE Asia.

We visited a merchant who Blue knows, who owns an incredible antique stand at the end of the road. The place was filled with some really old stuff, and it all felt very earthy and a lor more authentic than similar stands down the street. The owner was a very cool, simple man, who is very passionate about his things, loves to show and talk about them, lives in the store front, and when we walked up to see him was washing his clothes at a faucet across the street.

We then ate some lunch, checked out some higher views of the triangle and headed back to the Big Brown House.

Then it was off to the Chiang Rai Night Bazaar. This was much cooler than the one back in Bangkok, having some sense of uniqueness in the stalls, cheaper prices, cooler weather, and an altogether much better vibe. We ate dinner at a restaurant overlooking the Bazaar, and then looked around the stalls, buying a much needed watch, and checking out Danny and Lisa's favorite vendors. One of the highlights is a clothing designer called Nine Shop, which has tons of individually painted clothes and shoes. Danny thinks it would be a big hit with the MTV crowd, and I definitely agree.

Then it was bedtime. Long, full day in Chiang Rai.