BLOGGING

Ola! I have been blogging, just not posting the blogs due to unreliable internet.

I will Be Backposting asap. We are heading to Ko Tao.

Home end of Feb.

Why we didn't go to Pai.

So, Pai Thailand is supposed to be heaven. Everyone we have met that has gone there has said it is just beautiful and the images we have seen on the internet are just beautiful. So, we decide to pack up and make the 130+km journey on the motorbike and stay for a night or two. We get about half way, or about an hour into the trip from our apartment, just beginning to wind our way up the mountain when the bike makes some loud noise, like a pop. Mikae stops the bike, we look at each other, and decide that we should just go home. We both feel this at the same moment, its time to go back. We have been making an effort to listen to our instincts no matter what. So, we make the trip back to Chiang Mai.

Now, I get this article sent to me by Thai Visa, a forum I subscribe to. So glad we didn't get to Pai, that would have been a rough night. Horrible.

To our mothers. We don't get drunk, go out at night, fight in the streets, or even interact with anybody really. Don't worry, we keep our eyes open, and our wits about us. Still.. I am VERY glad we were not there.

Tiny Bars, Thai Idol, Tom Yam, Tokyo & Takeaways

Yesterday Afternoon, we noticed that the little bar beside us (which is not at all little, its very large, and usually empty... and our endless source of entertainment) was setting up for a serious party. They built a stage, put up a screen? Bed sheet? Curtain? At the back of the stage and set up a monitor and video recording equipment. A truck came to drop off some very large speakers and rental equipment, and a Thai man was busy putting signs with arrows all down the street. We have no clue what is going on, so we decide to keep a close eye. Eventually, what looks like “Chiang Mai Idol” begins. There is three or four performers, each get a substantial block of time where they sing popular pop hits. The quality of the singing is likened to karaoke. Anyways, from our vantage point, we see simply the performers silhouette through the sheet? And we can hear everything do to the bumping system. At one point, during the second performer, three Thai men go outside and decide to light some firecrackers in the parking lot. Almost immediately, the straw roof of the restaurant catches on fire. The man on the mic gets wind, says something in Thai, and the restaurant evacuates. Every one runs into the parking lot, where one of the culprits is standing on an SUV swatting out the fire with his jacket. I love the little restaurant next door. The Thai guy who waters the gravel all day, the Women that look up here at us. How they all bolt upright when the tour buses pull in. We watch them all day long.

Last night we met up with Guillome and Jennifer at the Tiny Corner, on Moon Muang Soi 2. And not just a clever name. The bar has 3 tables with a couple plastic stools, a very tiny bar area and a toilet. It is possibly 8sq m. At one point, Jennifer abandoned her stool for the stoop of the business next door (which had closed), and the under the half raised metal door, a thai woman slipped out a pillow for Jennifer to sit on. I love the Thais. The bar has a toilet as well, in which the walls are very neatly covered with Thai women in lingere and sexy poses. The attention to detail was impressive. exactly spaced, cut very preciously, all straight and and like sized images along side each other. The other notable mention of the toilet was the 4 cups labelled S, M, L and Thank You respectively. The S and M cups held condoms, and of course, the L cup was empty.

We enjoyed some Singha and talked with our friends for quite some time. They are very well travelled, having spent some time in various countries all over the world. Both are originally Canadian. They had a remarkable story about trekking through Indonesia – Sumatra. The two of them were with a guide, while the guides wife goes into labour. The guide continues the tour and then invites them back to his home directly afterwards to meet the new baby, and his family. They enter his home, and the wife and newborn are still in bed, although she offers to get up and make them coffee. The family then prepares a special meal of rice and goat with peanut sauce, and offers it to their guests. Jennifer is vegetarian, but understands the significance of this offering, and eats it happily. The grandmother watches the two enjoying her meal and beams. Afterwards, the family asks if Jennifer and Guillome will name the newborn. They give her the name Laurie.

Both of them agree that Indonesia is the most incredible place that they have visited, and that the scenery is mind-boggling. They also say, that you have to dedicate a fair amount of time in order to appreciate the country, its seventeen thousand + islands, its rich culture and incredible geography, and of course, tumultuous weather conditions. These two are for more adventurous than me, and it is truly inspiring. I am working myself up, slowly. Hehe.

Today we awake early and head to May Kaidee's for our cooking class. As we arrive, there is a man waiting in the restaurant enjoying a coffee and fruit (our complementary Thai breakfast) His name is David, originally from Birmingham, Living in Tokyo. He is a vegan, and also excited about the dedicated vegetarian nature of this course. May Kaidee's sister Duan, offered us some coffee with soy milk and a fruit plate as well, and we enjoyed our breakfast while we chatted with David. He had just returned from several days in Cambodia and he had some excellent advice. I had heard that a Cambodia can satisfy in four or so days, and David confirmed. Two days in Siem Reap and two days in Phomn Pehn is plenty if those are your only destinations (the tourist attractions). He also commented on the loveliness of the Cambodian people, and said that visiting the killing fields is well worth the visit. Cambodia is both beautiful and sometimes painful for visitors, as it is impossible not to feel intense compassion for the people.

We then were escorted to the market, where the three of us were schooled on Thai herbs and spices. The market is known as the “cooking class market” and its set up as such. One vendor sells fresh coconut milk, cream and grated coconut along with fresh chili pastes and dry ingredients. Another sells fresh rice noodles, tofu and dried noodles. Another sells mushrooms and herbs, and so on. Many other westerners were being led through the market with cooking class groups, all larger than ours, and baskets of fresh herbs and supplies in their baskets. We learned that shitakes are very expensive in Thailand, and we were introduced to a jelly-like mushroom that looks like, and is referred to as “mouse ears” We sampled the aromatics of various thai basil's, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass and galangal. We returned to the restaurant and began cutting up our vegetable mix to use in our recipes, and two more classmates showed up. Rachel from England and Jane from Los Angeles joined our class, although late, ready to learn. The class flowed very well, much like Brigita's yoga classes, with each recipe picking up on elements from the last - and at the same time introducing a key concept that flowed into the next recipe. I was very surprised how easy everything was to make, and how delicious everything turned out. May Kaidees is also known for using organic ingredients from the family farm, and not using MSG. I was very happy we took a dedicated vegetarian course, as most chili pastes have shrimp paste and oyster sauce is often used. I wanted the vegetarian experience. The course was 1200 baht, or $40 each, lasted until about 1:30 from 9am and included our breakfast, lunch and then dinner in the form of takeaways. My favorite thing we made was likely Somtam, Peanut sauce (exceptional) or the Tom Yam.

After the class, we chatted some more with our new friend David, who has invited us to visit him in Tokyo, as he has an extra room.

Incidentally, we figured out how to eat like the Thais. All of their takeaways are in plastic bags with elastic bands sealing in the curry, soup, etc. Trying to figure out a way to reheat my May Kaidees takeaways, I fastened the elastic band to a plastic spoon, and immersed the soup in my kettle and let it boil. Hooray! Warm dinner. I am so proud of this moment. lol.

New Years Chiang Mai

New Years in Chiang Mai was one of the most remarkable nights of my life. The lanterns that we saw lit in Bangkok for Loy Kratong are a huge part of the celebrations in Chiang Mai. They are called Khom Loy or “Floating Lanterns” and for several days before New Years they were available everywhere. Of course, on New Years Eve, there were several vendors selling them at Thapae Gate for us tourists who were unprepared, for 50 baht each as opposed to the 3 for 100 that we saw them at all week.

We stayed in the apartment until quite late. Mikae was watching Xmen (Trilogy was on Star Movies), and I was trying to get some progress made on the uploading of all of our videos and photos. We didn't leave for chiang Mai's core until almost 10pm. By that point, the lantern lighting was well underway, and as we rode into town hundreds of lanterns twinkled in the distance. They are said to resemble a ladder going to heaven, but with this many, it looked more like a flickering milky way. As we came in to town past the river, the park beside Riverside was full of Thais sending their lanterns and wishes into the air.

As the night falls, the spectators will be excited to see the long strings of
Khom loy rise gently into the limitless sky as they stimulate the participants'
spirits to rise higher to the heaven. This brings joy and happiness to the
merit-makers since their ill-fortune has been floated away.

We headed to ThaPae Gate, as this was the center of the action, and we really had no plans. We watched Thai families light their lanterns for a while, and then we purchased our own. It was already put together, we simply lit the coil, allowed the balloon to fill with hot air, and let go, watching it fly into the heavens. It was beautiful.

General Video of the Scene at ThaPae Gate



Lighting and Releasing our Latern into the Sky

We then wandered to the closest place with seating available, which happened to be a pizzeria and ordered a pizza and some drinks.. and sat back to watch. The beauty salon beside us had a group of Thais polishing off several bottles of SangSoem and being Very boisterous. It was fun to watch. The very old white dad and young Thai mom with two teens that were clearly theirs, spoke Quebec French beside us, and the owner of the pizzeria bumbled about getting champagne ready to share with his employees. We paid for our bill and left at 10 min to the countdown, hollering a quick “Sawadee Pi Mai KA!!” at the Beauty Salon Thais, that all thought this was hilarious and all went bananas. Took us only a matter of minutes to navigate through the crowded streets back to the gate, where all the cities tourists seem to have gathered. Several wore the pointy multi-coloured caps that were a couple baht at Tesco. More than several were very drunk.

We climbed the stairs to the top of ThaePae gate where maybe a hundred people had congregated. We then climbed onto one of the little “turrets” (for lack of a better term) and tried to watch the spectacle without falling off. At the stroke of midnight, three or so official looking fireworks displays began from different areas of the city, along with a number of unofficial ones. It was truly magnificent, the lanterns floated between the blasts, continuously, and people were setting off firecrackers from every direction. We quickly climbed down from the wall afterwards, as I didn't trust my balance, the crowd and the 1000 pipers I had downed just before.

Climbing up ThaePae Gate & the Fireworks

We wandered around a bit more, watching people shooting firecrackers at each other and over the moat, watched some lantern carcases floating by in the moat, and lanterns caught in trees – still burning. When you have zero regard for safety, and there is no municipal insurance, you can seriously party.

We then ran into a friend of Mikaes from highschool, named Guillome who was with his girlfriend Jennifer and his parents. Guillome and Jennifer had just moved to Chiang Mai to teach, and his parents were here visiting for Christmas. Mikae is all excited, because Guillome's mom was beside us purchasing scarves at the Sunday market, and he thought that he had recognized her. We exchanged phone numbers and decided to meet up for a drink within the next couple of days. After this, we motorbiked home in the freezing cold. (It got cold all of a sudden in Chiang Mai) I counted lantern carcasses the entire way, surprisingly, I only counted 16.

New Years Day, the Thais traditionally visit temples, and do such things as setting birds and fishes free, feeding fish and all of these wonderful acts of liberation. We thought it would be a nice idea to visit a Wat that we hadn't visited yet anyways, as most things were closed and it was a very nice day. First things first we went into town for a bite to eat. Chiang Mai was a ghost town. Most businesses were closed, and there was only a handful of wanders on the streets and no street vendors, tuk tuks anything. It was really bizarre, and a huge contrast to the night before. It was also very clean, for the party the night before, there was very little litter... other than the odd lantern carcass here and there. We found Jerusalem Felafel, and they were open for business. I had a lentil and spinach soup to start, which had Mikae looking enviously over his plate of french fries. Our felafel pita sandwiches were very large, on. Fresh whole wheat pitas, very full and with a substantial amount of both felafel and humus. Could have used some spice, and some purple radishes, but very tasty.

We selected “Wat U Mong” otherwise known as the “Forest Wat” and made our way over there on the motorbike. Vendors were selling fish food at the entrance, and the woman explained to me (using charades and the word “plaa” which I understood ... it means “fish”) that the fish do not eat the fish food, they like this and she handed me a bag of caramel popcorn. I bought one bag of caramel popcorn and one bag of fish food, and I was still very confused. We entered the Wat and looked around, it was beautiful.

Wat Umong is unique in many respects. For one, it's built in the foothills of
Suthep mountain and is still heavily forested. But the most unique feature of
the temple are the tunnels which give the wat its name (umong is the Thai word
for "tunnel").

The temple and its tunnels were built in the late 14th century. On a level open space, a large artificial mound was built and then criss-crossed with tunnels. The legend is that the temple was built like this for a highly regarded monk who was nonetheless a little crazy. The somewhat maze-like tunnels kept the mad monk from wandering off. The monastery was later abandoned and wasn't used again until the 1940's. The long disuse is probably what accounts for the overgrown atmosphere of the temple. That's why the temple is so great to visit right after the rains have gone. The brick walls of the mound are covered with moss and small plants. Other stone works are covered in moss and vines.

Atop one end of the mound is the temple's chedi, reachable by a short stairway to the left of the tunnel entrances. The main "bell" section of the pagoda is mostly covered in thick vines, giving a strong sense of decay even though the structure of the pagoda appears sound. When I was here in early October 2002, it appeared that the chedi had been opened and the relic inside removed. A curious little ad-hoc alter had been set up on the base of the pagoda right in front of the rough opening in the brick work. The alter consisted of many tiny Buddha images as well as other offerings, apparently left by many people. By August 2007, the pagoda had been restored and most of the vines removed.

A trail leads from the chedi across the roof of the mound and down the other side. Just beyond the far edge of the mound is a rather ghastly, very emaciated seated Buddha image. This style of Buddha image was in style for a short time hundreds of years ago, but today there are very few examples of it still in existence.

The path down winds through the monk's cells and other out-buildings, then back around to the front of the mound. Just as the path turns back towards the main tunnel entrance is a curious collection of Buddha heads and other relics from various temples. This odd collection started when one of the temple's supporters rescued some broken images from an abandoned temple in a nearby province and bought them here. Now, apparently, when people run across such relics or have a broken Buddha they want to replace, they bring them here.If you continue on the path on past the mound and the pagoda, you'll eventually come to a small lake with many fish, birds and other wildlife.

After visiting the collection of Buddha relics and the tunnels, we wandered towards the mediation center and decided to sit for a moment. This place really has an almost magical vibe. Its beautiful. We listened to the chanting of the monks, wandered around the massive chedi and curiously followed a a young Thai couple that had a plastic bag full of live fish. We followed them to the lake where they released the fish from the bag. Fish food in hand, I found a bench and looked over the murky water. The water was filthy, littered with scraps of bread, fish pellets, kernels of popcorn.. looks like there had been some serious feedings early in the day. We decided to give it a try regardless. Drop in fish pellets, no action. We think that it is possible that the fish are full. I reluctantly try a caramel popcorn piece and the fish go wild. The lady was right. I tie up the fish pellets and put them in the backpack, deciding to feed the moat fish with them at some point. We sit for at least a half an hour dropping caramel corn into the lake and watching whiskery fish fight for every piece.

I should probably mention Miguel's – a British run “Mexican” Place here in Chiang Mai. We had a very large burrito smothered in sauce and cheese, order of nachos, and a decent vegetarian soft taco for me with one beer and one margarita, for around $16. Not the best Mexican I have ever had, but it certainly hit the spot, AND the margarita actually tasted like tequila. A pleasant surprise.

Motorbike Tirades and Hard Boiled Eggs

Yesterday we finally visited AUM vegetarian food on TH Moon Muang, immediately south of Tha Pae Gate. I had the "Chiang Mai Curry" or something like that, spicy, with brown rice. It was good, plenty of fresh crisp green beans and spice. It was very good, although, I think May Kaidees is still better. I preferred the selection of choices at May Kaidees right away. It was nice, however. Price was about the same, 50baht or so per main, 15baht for rice. Afterwards we went next door to Black Canyon Coffee and had delicious iced coffee drinks made with coffee that was NOT instant Nescafe (ahhh!!) and Mikaes even had whipped cream. This was a nice experience, if just for the real coffee, clean toilet and air conditioning. We crossed the road afterwards, and heavily caffeinated we admired the Tha Pae gate. This is a portion of the original wall of the city that has been fully restored. It was definitely worth a look. I can't even imagine the inner moat area being walled. Its amazing.

At the moment, the front of Tha Pae gate on the outer moat side has a Christmas tree made out of glowing lanterns. Its beautiful. This is also the area to purchase fish food for, and feed the incredibly large and terrifying moat fish.

This is one of the five main gates to the old city of Chiang Mai, and a major
landmark as well. Each corner and each main gate of the old city faces the eight
main points of the compass, with one extra gate on the south side. Tha Pae Gate
faces east, and is endowed with the astrological faculty of mula or prosperity.
It was first called Pratu Chiang Ruak because it was situated near Chiang Ruak
village when it was built in the reign of King Mangrai in 1296. Today this
impressive looking Gate is a popular photo-taking spot for tourists.

We then decided that we should go to Carrefour and get some more groceries. Peanut Butter is cheaper at Carrefour than Tesco, and they have fresh baked goods. Mikae bought a cheese baguette which turned out to be sweet. It had cheese baked on top, but it also had a sticky sweet syrup under the cheese. The donuts had fillings like Green Bean. In my opinion, it beats Boston Cream, but Mikae wasn't thrilled. At one point I took a photo of some sushi being made, and a photo of me with a jar of Rotkohl to send home to my mom. I thought it was so funny, and I was having such a great time. As soon as Mikae takes off for a moment, this large Thai man wearing all pink and this ridiculous do-rag thing comes over and demands to see my camera. I don't understand, and he starts motioning to my pants pocket. I take out my camera and he makes me show him the photos. The photo is me, with a jar of red cabbage and the biggest grin ever. He makes me delete them, and hes getting furious that I am confused and don't understand what is going on. Now I am really upset, this incidence is likened to the man who yelled at me at the Grand Palace about "300 years of tradition" Because I didn't understand why I needed to rent a skirt (I was wearing pants already). At this point, I just wanted to leave Carrefour, and no amount of fresh 10baht kiwis could persuade me to stay, So i didn't get the full experience.

We went back to Riverside for dinner. I didn't have Margaritas and Mikae had a burger instead of Filet Mignon, so the bill was closer to $16. Mikae had deep fried shrimp and a burger with a large Singha, I had the Spicy Mushroom soup (so spicy, and so good) and Penang Curry with Brown Rice again. Oh, and two Whisky and Pepsi. We sat for several hours at a table right by the stage and watched the Acoustic Beatles cover man again, and then the Excellent coverband that came on afterwards. They sang mostly British Pop hits, like Mika, Lilly Allen and Dido, and some U2 etc. They were incredible though. Riverside usually has two bands playing at a time, one in each building.

Today we went to the Sankampaeng Hot Springs. We took the motorbike and the ride there was easy enough. We paid 10baht to park the bike, and went to the food vendors along the entrance. We found one that spoke English, well, that knew what we meant by "vegetarian", "fried rice" and "pad thai" and had a nice lunch along with some rowdy tour bus-Thais whose wives were no doubt basking in the hot springs while they polished off several bottles of Sang Som. The family running the place were friendly, attentive and amulet-clad. It was the last little restaurant on the strip, closest to the entrance of the hot springs, and the food was really nice. There were some entrails roasting on the grill on the way in, but we bypassed them, for now.

Entrance to the Hot Springs was 30baht, or about a dollar. We purchased a basket of chicken eggs for 20 baht (Quail eggs are another option), and entered. The Hot Springs park is beautifully landscaped, with a mineral pool, restaurant, and a camping area. We waled directly to the hot springs area where two geysers spew hot water into the air, and lovely rainbows form. A 105 degrees C bath of water sits with metal pegs all the way around, for you to hang your basket from, and boil your eggs. After 12 minutes, our eggs were done. I ate one, it tasted like hard boiled egg. Mikae didn't want to try. We then put our feet in the hot springs, along with a large number of Thais. It was nice and warm. It is believed that this water has healing properties.

Sankampaeng Hot Springs is an ideal destination for those interested in health
and well-being. A natural spring emitting water with high sulphur content, the
spring is said to cure ailments and rejuvenate the body. The water has a
temperature in excess of 100 degrees centigrade and the area is so active that
there is ongoing research into how to tap the springs as a potential energy
resource.

We left the hot Springs as it was getting late, and we did not want to drive in the dark. I also wanted to stop at a silk farm on the way home. Just pas the town of Sankampaeng the bike starts to wobble violently, and Mikae pulls us over. Ah, the back tire has gone flat. After asking a few Thais where we can get it fixed (using charades, and Motorbikes as visual cues) we walk about 300m to the nearest bike repair shop. It took less than 10 min. How lucky was that. Now, all week, Mikae had said that he had a feeling about this motorbike, now his instincts were right, and we should have traded it in. Regardless, we get to the repair shop and the one English speaker high-tails it. Well, it is Friday at 5:30pm. We are just thankful the repair shop is even open. We had called Mr.Order, our bike rental place, and they had told us just to find a nearby shop to fix it - presumably because we are so far out of town.

So, the flat tire becomes (of course) a popped tube, faulty tire and faulty brake. The two of us just want the bike fixed, and we want to get out of there as soon as possible. It is getting dark, and we are tired and eager to be back in Chiang Mai. We both feel like we are being scammed, but there are three Thais working on the bike, tearing open packages and pulling out parts, and whirling around like a storm. They understand no English, and are speaking to us in Thai, showing us the "damage" on the bike. We are just both praying that it doesn't cost more than 1000 baht, or $30 which is all we have on us. Anyways, they fix the bike and the bill comes to 440 baht, or about $15. I am adamant about collecting every last part that has come off the bike including the popped tube, old tire and brake bit AND all of the packaging and a detailed receipt with the Shops name and number on it. So we ride back to town, with me holding onto a bike tire, and go to Mr.Order.

We get there, and of course, they don't want to pay for the repair. It's not their problem, we were scammed, we are tourists. Mikae explains that we could not negotiate anything as there was a language barrier and that all they were saying that made any sense was that the bike was not safe. How can he ride a bike that's not safe? (motioning to me, who islooking scared) Mikae goes on negotiating with the owner. We have rented for two weeks already with this company,and presumably we want another two. If they do not want to reimburse our money, we would like all of the parts we just paid for taken off and we will keep them, or sell them, and find a new rental shop. I hand over the old parts, which they don't really look at. The owner explains that these might be low-grade parts they have sold us etc etc. Finally, after Mikae continues to stress that he doesn't want to fight, he just wants to come to a resolution, they refund our 440 baht. We then have them look over the bike to make sure that it is safe, and we leave with it. The point is, that when the flat occured, we immediately called the rental shop. They did not want to send someone to come fix the flat, and they instructed us to go get it fixed at the nearest shop, and then keep them posted. We did what they had asked, and, ok, got hosed along the way - but that was to be expected. We don't speak any of the necessary Thai to get us out of that situation in a different way.

All and all, this experience could have been much worse. We were driving slowly, maybe 40km/hr when it happened, and we were in the motorbike lane which is directly closest to the shoulder. There was very little traffic, and we were very close to a town, and very close to the motorbike repair shop. Plus getting hosed here doesn't cost that much. Mr.Order put up a good fight, and they were justified, we had just expected our "insurance" we purchased to provide more. In the end, we continue to be happy with their service.

We then went to Durets Cafe for some stirfry and salad for me, and over to Mike's Burgers for a fish sandwich with fries and a pop for Mikae. Coming home, I was very worked up and could not sleep until well after midnight. What a long day.

We are still looking into Visa Run options. Our choices are Burma (or Myramar) which is currently in a bad state and not really an option - although it is the cheapest and fastest option. Laos, will be a several day affair, with stop-over in Chiang Rai, but we get to take the VIP Air conditioned bus. It would be worth seeing Chaing Rai as well. Laos visa will be $40, for Canadians.

Laos itself is not really a destination that I am interested in visiting at the moment. It is a calm, peaceful, natural retreat for all those who like those sorts of things. I am still terrified of travelling, even though I am here. I like International hospitals and airports, toilets and ATMs. We shall see. I might try one day, just to broaden my comfor zone a little wider. I was saving that for Cambodia.. Originally we were looking at flying to Kuala Lumpar, but that will be an expensive trip. Hotels will be at least $50 a night, plus flying there and back, and we miss out on a week in our apartment. Plus, Jake is coming here on the 14th, and who would want to miss a party with Jake?

Christmas Dinner Riverside as I (or my guitar?) Gently Weep.

Ok, I'm just being dramatic.

Yes I cried, a little, but only after the lovely orchestrate / bango renditions of Christmas Carols were turned off and a Thai with an acoustic guitar started singing the Beatles. Christmas at my dads always included Beatles sing-a-longs, or any other night for that matter. We had Christmas dinner at Riverside Bar & Restaurant in Chiang Mai, which is a lovely place. Mikae had Fillet Minion with breaded shrimp appetizer and a large Singha. I had a small carafe of Margarita, Some Mushroom and Tofu soup, and some Penang Curry with Brown Rice. The bill came to about $27, or under 1000 baht. They also offer a lovely river cruise for an additional 90baht per person, or around $3. If we can get reservations, we want to do that for New Years. There were some "wealthy" Thais dining near us. Four small girls, nicely dressed, had bottle service of a full 26oz of Vodka and another of Red Label whiskey. They also ordered about 8-10 full dishes and picked off of them lightly. It was pretty funny, primarily because they were so tiny and making no dent in either food or booze. They looked like they were having a great time however.

Afterwards, We sat in the park Riverside for a little bit, and then loaded up on the Happy phone cards and called all of the parents. We came home and watched the Simpsons Movie. Thats it.

Earlier During the day, we ate Indian Food that was half decent, FINALLY at Spices. It was nice and spicy. We then went looking for the ancient city.

Wiang Kum Kam, the Underground Ancient City In 1984, just outside the modern Chiang Mai metropolitan area, archaeologists uncovered the remains of an ancient city. Research concluded that this was the city of Wiang Kum Kam, one of many fortified cities built by King Mengrai as he consolidated his hold on the north. In fact, it appears that Mengrai may have lived at Wiang Kum Kam for a few years before Chiang Mai was founded in 1297 a.d. Nearly 20 temple sites have been uncovered in the area, which lies between the Ping river and the Lamphun highway. The buildings were buried underground by years of flooding, which apparently is the reason Mengrai eventually moved his capital to Chiang Mai. In fact, the Ping river originally flowed along the north side of the town, but at some point during the Burmese occupation from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, the river changed course and now flows along the west side of the site. The change of course was apparently the final straw which caused the city to be largely abandoned for 300 years.

Most of the sites are not much more than platforms and ruined chedis. The scenery was really nice though. Nothing like exploring ancient ruins in the middle of a field with a cow munching beside you.

This morning, we had to bring in the motorbike as it had been a week with this one. We also had to get Mikae to the dentist for 1pm. I opted to go back to my favorite massage place, for a one hour foot massage and a one hour Thai massage. I think it is called "Thai Healing Arts Center Chiang Mai." As I said before, it is just inside the walls of a Wat. The massage here focuses on healing, and it is very rough. 120 baht for the foot massage and 120 baht for the Thai massage, I gave her $300 even, which is $10 including tip. It was lovely.

Mikae's experience was not so lovely as he had three cavities drilled and filled at Dental4U. He said the doctor was very thorough, but it was painful. He is now sleeping.

The best part of the day was the weekly maid cleaning, we got home and this place was spotless. Hooray! Note that I went to buy some multi-B-vitamins here at Boots, and vitamins are very very expensive here. I paid $16 or so for 60 caps. Tonight I think we will take it easy as Mikae is in pain.

Sawadee Pee Mai to you!

Well, I just got out of the pool. I went for a quick swim. The best thing ever, is that we live in a building full of Thais. Yesterday, a girl went to her motorbike from the office, like 10ft. She put a pink parka with a fur lining on in order to go outside. In other words, I am in a bikini at 5:30 pm daily, in a swimming pool, in December. They are all looking at me like I am TOTALLY mad. There is never anyone in the pool but me.

My anxiety attacks are back, I am trying to deal with them. I am getting regular Thai massage now in order to help. I am only mentioning this to prove that the everyday gym trips I was doing, and the weekly yoga, was making a huge difference. Now that I am not doing these things, my anxiety is back. Now, I have to start making an effort again to go to the gym, and swim laps every day. I found a Thai massage place today, in the inner moat area, within the walls in a Wat. It cost 120baht, which is about $4 an hour. She was rough with me, and it really helped.

A couple days ago, we took the motorcycle up the mountain to Doi Suthep. We visited Wat Phra Doi Suthep at the top of the mountain. The view is impressive, as is the massive golden chedi. This is one of the most sacred and holy temples in all of Thailand. Entry cost 30 baht, and there is a tram if you do not want to climb the 307 steps.

This is from a travel website

Wat Phra That Doi Suthep is probably Chiang Mai's most important site for
visitors, and certainly its most visible. Wat Phra Borommathat Doi Suthep
nestles into the side of Doi Suthep some 3,000 feet above sea level amongst some
of the most picturesque scenery you are likely to encounter. Built by King
Gue-Na in 1383, the temple houses a large copper-plate Chedi (twenty-two meters
high) that is covered in gold and contains holy relics of the Lord Buddha. As
well as being a key tourism destination, the temple has considerable importance
and Buddhist pilgrims visit the site all year round. The temple has four chapels
and an important golden Buddha image is found at the temple.

The best part of the visit, is that we received blessing from a monk. He sprinkled on, well more like soaked us with, blessed water while chanting a prayer. Afterwards, he tied a white string bracelet in Mikae. I had another man, who was not a monk (monks cannot touch women) tie a more intricately knotted white string bracelet on my wrist. These bracelets have been blessed, and will, as the Thais believe, bring us luck. It was a beautiful experience. Definitely a highlight.

The ride up and down the mountain on the motorcycle was also a highlight. I took some video, for all those who have the stomach to watch.


We also took the motorcycle to Chaing Dao. It was a longer drive, maybe an hour and a half. The last 20km or so is extremely difficult, and not for a novice. Mikae has rider training and his Canadian Motorcycle license – which came in very handy. We were talking to an American about this, he said when he went up with his wife they saw people walking their scooters. The road is dirt and gravel, very windy, and a complete disaster at points. However, we did stop at the side of the road at one point to watch an elephant give itself a dust bath, which was interesting. We stopped in at Cafe Cafe, a lonely planet recommended restaurant, where Mikae chatted with the owner in French. Food was good and inexpensive.

The highlight of Chiang Dao was the cave complex which we visited, which is one of the major tourist attractions of the area. Now, I am generally claustrophobic, and not much of a “caver” but I tried. We hired a Thai guide with a lantern to take us through. It cost 100 baht, I think entry was 20 baht. She spoke very little English, so getting through the tour was a challenge enough, but she was a good sport and we had a great time. We got to use every Thai word we have learned sofar. The caves experience is very hot and sweaty, and you crawl through little caverns to get to the next area. I was mostly terrified. I found out later on the way out, that there is a much easier way to exit the caves, so if you needed to, in a hurry it wouldn't be such a production. The climbing and crawling is part of the experience. The rock formations are all named after things they resemble, for example: chicken, papaya, lotus, waterfall, elephant etc. It is truly incredible at at points the walls glisten with “diamonds”.(Please note that this could be a translation thing) It is breathtaking. The grounds around the caves, and the Wat, are all worth the tour as well. The tour guide in front of ours was giving a tour to Chinese tourists that had a mini boom box with them. We are observing glistening stalagmites, while Britney Spears songs echo throughout the chamber.


Food has been fantastic in Chiang Mai, and a welcome change in price from Phi Phi. Our two favorites are Ratana's Kitchen & MayKaidees. Both serve lovely vegetarian food. Prices are about 30-50baht per meal at both places. ($1-$2 approximately) Both also offer cooking classes. May Kaidees is spectacular, akin to Juice for Life back home. They serve Brown Rice, organically grown at a family farm. I am taking my classes from there. They are 1200 baht, the most expensive I have seen. Usually they run about 800baht. However, we ate lunch there the other day just as a couple was finishing up their class. The 10 dishes they made were on the table, and they let me sample one. The class was private, just the two of them, and five hours in length. It includes a trip to a Thai market, to help identify certain herbs and vegetables that we might not be familiar with. The ten dishes you learn are all 100% vegetarian, and they include all of my favorites like SomTam, Pad Thai, Massaman Curry and Cold Spring Rolls. The other classes I had looked into had “vegetarian options” but it is not the same. I was interested in classes at an Indian restaurant, until we tasted the food – which was awful. May Kaidee's has been fabulous both times we ate there. Generally, if someone focuses on only vegetarian for twenty years, chances are, the flavours have developed. This made my choice easy. Nikki sent me $30 for Christmas, so I am going to put it towards this class. Mikae doesn't want to come, so it might just be one-on-one. Well worth $40. I am very excited.

Two more places we visited that are worth a mention are the Huay Keaw Waterfalls. There are actually Two waterfalls, Pha Ngerb and Wang Bua Baan. The water cascades down a number of rocky ledges, with groups of Thai teens scattered on each having picnics. It is a beautiful area, with vendors outside selling fruit, roasted insects, beer, everything you need for a perfect afternoon. Its gorgeous, and a really nice spot. It is close to the university, so there are plenty of Thais in university uniform to chat with if you like.

Next to the waterfalls is the zoo. The Chiang Mai Zoo cost 100baht, or about $30. You can ride on an open aired bus for 20 baht, or take the monorail, which we didn't do. The zoo is pretty good, there are alot of animals. There are very insignificant barriers between you and the majority of the animals, which is slightly alarming. Other than a massive area designated as “open zoo” the animals are housed in terrifyingly small pens. After an entire day at the zoo, we witnessed many fights between animals. It seems as if each pen had a female and then two males, a younger one and an older, larger, dominant one. This caused a great deal of fighting. The Thais were eating it up, so we are pretty sure they do this on purpose. We saw two Asean Black bears seriously scrapping, and some extremely angry Hippopotamuses. To visit the Pandas is an extra 100baht. This is the upsell, so every path leads to the pandas. My camera died before I could take photos of me and all of the panda statutes everywhere. Heartbroken. Might return for Twilight zoo.

Today we visited the Dentist. I had a general cleaning and opted for a Flouride treatment. It cost me 900baht, or about $27. Luckily, I am cavity free. Mikae had a deeper clean, no flouride, and he has to return on Wednesday for three fillings. Fillings will cost about $20 each. We went to a place that appeared clean and sterile, and had a good brochure and website, and was full of Westerners – which is a good sign. The dentist did the cleaning rather than a hygenist. The hygenist simply assisted the cleaning. Good, thourough job. Flouride application was extra. The dentist got back from a recent 3 month trip to Canada. I thought that was fun.

For Christmas Eve, we are going to watch some movies and eat Pot-of-Noodle. Something Nicer tomorrow.

The rules of the game, Thai-style

One thing I forgot to mention. It is a big trend in Thailand at the moment to glue (I assume) strands of Tinsel into your hair. Seriously, we have seen tonnes of young girls with this done. It is a pretty big trend, even the manager assistant at this hotel has it done. At Chatechuck market, we saw a man walking around with a sandwich board with packs of multi-coloured tinsel taped to it, all for sale. Strands are glued in individually, and throughout the entire head of hair, usually several colours of tinsel at a time. It is then trimmed to be the exact length of the wearer's hair. I can't find any links or reference to this anywhere, I would have gotten a photo if it was not so rude. Maybe I can make a friend with hair tinsel, and ask what the deal is.

Rules of the Road, Thailand.

#1 - he is who biggest has right of way
#2 – lanes are optional
#3 – going the wrong way on a one way road is ok, as long as you assume that people can see you
#4 – the more emmissions you can spew from your engine, the more tourists you can drive around for baht.
#5 – The speed you can go is directly proportional to how many Singha you have consumed this morning.
#6 – first come, first served
#7 – yellow line is not to divide the two lanes, it is for motorcycles to follow, coming in either direction.

Rules of Dining, Thailand

#1 – appetizers will come when appetizers want to come, not before main courses, and not after drinks are served necessarily.
#2 – Sharing meals is a much better idea. This way, you can taste various dishes, and not have to stare at your partner hungrily as they slurp the last of their dish before yours has even arrived.
#3- If you are white, they will give you ketchup. Ask for Siracha and chilis etc when you order.
#4 – if you are white, you must ask for spicy. They will question you to confirm. Say “Ka. Spicy. Ka”
#5 – you must motion to your waiter if you want service, turn palm downwards and move fingers inwards.
#6 – do not tip more than 20 baht.
#7 – do not sit down to eat unless you have more than an hour. Even for breakfast, just in case.
#8 - make sure you order enough food, taking into consideration that one or more dishes may not arrive.

Are you smarter than a Thai 5th grader is one of the most popular shows in Thailand right now. Its exactly like the Western versions, except in Thai. Oh, and the kids “wai” all the time. its brilliant. Thais would crowd around the communal tv in the alley outside of Buri, all the flowershop workers, and watch it. We put it on the other night here, and watched the entire thing. It was incredible.

Center Park Serviced Apartment Our home in Chiang Mai

This is Home. We paid $187 for the month, with once a week cleaning. We took the lowest priced option and what a serious deal.

Panic Attacks, More Scams, Our New Apartment & Parking Lot Aerobics.

So, today was a long day. Yesterday evening, we ran into a Canadian that we had hung out with briefly in Bangkok. He was with a very large Aussie woman and an Indian man. I went over to the moat where they were feeding the VERY large river fish, to ask if they wanted to come sit and have a drink with us at the pub across the road, where we were sitting. Some Chiang Mai University students came over and asked me to fill out a survey about tourism, and take a photo with them. It was adorable. The guy that ended up asking was very timid and his friends were egging him on. I was happy to ablige. So, afterwards the Indian and the Aussie and our friend from Canada came across to the pub and sat to have a drink. Everything was going nicely, making small talk about the city and travelling etc. The Canadian then had to leave to take the train back to Bangkok and the other two decided to stay and chat some more. They explained that the Aussie has an Indian boyfriend who is in the room sleeping as he wasn't feeling well. The Indian guy begins to explain that he is a business man, and that for generations, his family has been dealing in Diamonds. He mentions doing business together, we are thinking website, and he also mentions that the Aussie girl has made money twice with him, once 20K and once 50K.

Now, all of this is said in passing, and we never push to elaborate on anything. Its only after we looked back on the whole thing that we even noticed any of this.

The Indian continues on about his wife and family, and the family business and how he has 200 employees in a factory, and then how he has 350 employees (hmm) and how is is here to relax on vacation. He calls his other Indian Friend, who eventually comes to meet us. He is very charming. Very Charming. Now, he also claims to be a Musilm, Indian, who has a home here in Chaing Mai, and a home in Japan etc etc. Now, they continue talking about how much money they have. How many rupees. Later, we notice, the one guy has mangled teeth, and they have shitty cell phones. Generally, you would think people with that much money would show it off a bit. Now, the people in Thailand for example, when they have money, show it off like mad. He keeps talking about he doesn't want to look like he has all the money he has for safety etc. They also mention that they are staying in a GuestHouse (even thought they have a home here?) for 250baht. Which is seriously bottom dollar. The one guy keeps talking about how in India, they have to pay 250% tax to export their jewels, and how his business works. Now, he never really gets too involved. Now, they order one soup and one Indian and the Aussie (who literally ways 350lbs and looked very hungry) share it. They also order a juice and a tea. Their portion of the bill was probably less than $3. Now, the one guy keeps reiterating that they want to cook us lunch tommorrow. They want to hang out some more, show us around – all that jazz. Now the bill comes and the total bill is less than $10. It is like 280 baht. We go to pay our portion, and the one guy whips out 500 baht and hesitantly exclaims that he will pay for the entire thing. We can do something for him later. This entire time, my head begins to THROB, and i feel very ill. It gets to the point where I am finding it unbearable. It is before 9pm. The crew is trying to coax us into going somewhere with them to party. We also notice that the one Indian guy who is talking to the waiter, speaks incredible Thai. We leave, hit a Boots to get some Tylenol, get back to the hotel and I throw up. I then begin to have a horrible panic attack. Mikae looks online, and finds out that most of the details from our evening can be found in the script of one of the oldest Indian gem scams in the book. So basically, my panic attack resulted from my intuition, and spared us as well.

At this point, I am practically in tears and sick of all the bullshit we see in Thailand. I really really want to go home. We decide that the only way to survive here, as we keep learning, is to get as far away from the tourist district as possible. We had picked up a brochure for a serviced apartment 15 min drive out of town. So, we decided to go look at it today. We rented a motor-scooter for 250 baht inclusing insurance. So we drive around for 2 hours looking for the place, and see all these Rich Thai suburbs which was fun. We finally find it. It is called Center Park Serviced Apartment and it is just over the highway, North of Chiang Mai. It takes about 15 min on the scooter to get back to city center. Anyways, we look at a room and it is small, but very nice. Has a balcony and a kitchenette, free wifi, a pool and fitness room, UBC (international television) and it is brand newly built. There are different levels of service ranging form one day a week cleaning to full service cleaning and linen changing etc several days a week. We decided on a room with a view of the Mountain. Final price 6000baht with a 6000baht deposit. Works out to about $187 a month. The scooter will cost us about $120 for the month. To fill up the tank is 60baht or $2. A taxi into the city center is 100baht or just under $3. Its hard to believe, the place is super nice, and has live jazz and a cafe on site. Its nuts.

After we made that decision, we went to Tesco Lotus and bought Proper motorcycle helmets for under $30 for two. The ones you get with the rentals are just little plastic toy-like helmets. We wanted foam lined rice-cookers. So we got them.

The BEST THING EVER happened at Tesco. We pull in the parking lot and hear this trance beat. Its that “I'll be on your trip tonight, kryptonite” track. I look over and there is a stage with a guy bouncing with one of those Britney Spears headset mics, and he is shouting in thai, clapping, going bananas. In front of him, i kid you not, are like 120 Thais, at least, in workout gear all following his every movement. They are bouncing, and stretching and dancing. Its like that Hip Hop Abs infomercial guy but Asia, and on serious uppers. They bounce to the right, the left, up and down in unison. Some of the guys are even taking it further adding little twists and spins to the routine. This is 6pm on a Tuesday, in waht is the equivalent of a Walmart parking lot. I'm going back to see if it happens again, and I will join in and of course videotape. The communal excercise thing Asia has going is totally badass.

We move there tommorrow. Tonight we got some pizza, and wandered around the silent and totally dead streets of Chiang Mai in the evening. We picked out a cooking course as well, should be fun. I also want to do a one day “hilltribe” trek, and a mini mountain trek with the two of us. Our friend we met on Phi Phi, Jake, is coming to meet us day after tommorrow to hang out for a few days, should be great. I am very excited. Tommorrow brings unit move, a massage (they are SUPER cheap here, like 150-200 baht or about $5-$6.) and a trip to Tesco Lotus to buy a kettle and some mugs and of course pot-of-noodle. The best part of Tesco, is shopping with the monks.

Chaing Mai

Chiang Mai!! We have just arrived in Chiang Mai, after a 14 hour ride on the train. We booked a second class sleeper with upper and lower, and it was surprisingly comfortable. Mikae and I sat together on little benches with a table, he ordered a 160 baht singha and 150 baht fried rice meal. I ate my vegetarian Takeaway I purchased at the station, and some fruit we brought along. After 10pm or so, the man came by and converted our dinette into a bunk bed with curtains. I had the lower bunk which kept the window, and a shelf for my belongings, and a nightlight. I woke up only twice, once to use the bathroom, which also wasn't as bad as I had expected, and once to eat the rest of my stirfry as I was soo hungry.

This trip to Bangkok also had included a small bout of the travelling sickness *ahem* which luckily cleared up quickly. We checked in to Siam Mi Casa, and I think we were upgraded, as it looks like our room didn't open up. In Thailand, just because you made reservations, doensn't mean you'll have a room. Travellers are always extending their stay for another day, and the Thais will not kick anyone out of their place, its super rude. Anyways, our room looks like one of the much more expensive rooms on the website, and we paid $500 baht. (or about $15.50) It has a tv, fridge, private bath, double windows, aircon, wifi and it is spacious and comfortable. This place is beautifully decorated, its lovely.

The best part about the train ride was in the train station before we embarked. I was upstairs getting my stirfry from a takeaway, and Mikae was sitting downstairs in the plastic seats. All of a sudden, the Thai National Anthem comes on, and everybody has to stop what they are doing and stand up, quietly. We both knew about this and stood up, but many tourists had no clue what was going on. Immediately afterwards, all business resumes as usual.

Chaing Mai has a great deal of charm. Temples, Pagodas everywhere, 300 wats in total and origianlly, as it was a walled city with a moat, the wall exists in remlants and the moat exists now. The moat is 150 years old. This place just oozes with charm. Definately my favorite place in Thailand sofar. Someone said to us, and it is totally true, that if Bangkok is the United States, Chiang Mai is Canada. It is alot bigger than we expected, and there are so many things to do and see. It is more cosmopolitan than we expected, but really laid back. It is a great place.

The Design & Durian Issue - Back in Bangkok

What have we done on our Bangok visit this time. Well, after finally visiting all of the main attractions on the Thornburi side of town, we decided to give Sukhumvit a proper visit. We took the BTS to National Stadium, and decided to go to Jim Thompson's House. On the way we found a food vendor that was selling Durian, the delicious and custardy fruit with the wicked odour. There is a sign up at Buri saying “Durian Contraband.” For 30 baht or just under a dollar, we got 3 kilos of already cut and prepared little nuggets of fruit. It was so good.

Jim Thompson's House is a big tourist attraction. It is the former home of Silk Magistrate Jim Thompson, who misteriously disappeared in Malaysia in 1967 after only living in the home 6 years. What happened to him still remains one of the greater unsolved mysteries of Southeast Asia. The home is made up of 6 seperate traditional, old thai homes that he had uprooted and shipped to Bangkok, where he put them together to create a somewhat Western Styled home. It is magnificent, and well worth the visit. Some of his original Thai antiques and collectables are still on display. The main foyer has White and Black checked Italian marble floors. There is a reason to why the black and white check became popular, originally, the white marble would stay cool whereas the black marble would warm. You would walk on the black marble in the cooler months, and the white in the warmer. Also, we learned why the thais remove their shoes before entering any home or business. Traditionally, Thais used to eat sitting on the floor, in a circle. This is why they keep their floors very clean, this is also why you never wear shoes in a thai home.

We then wandered down Sukhumvit to Nana Station, and went to Little Arabia. We had lunch at another Lonely Planet Recommended place, good food, horrible serivce. Wandered around Sukhumvit some more, watching Old white men try to communicate with their bored looking young Thai girlfriends. We stop to have a quick Singha at a beer garden, and the young man informs us that they will stop serving alcohol at 6pm. Oh yes, we had forgotten, because of the Thai election, Bangkok will be booze free until Sunday at midnight. We were going to venture to Patpong, but I guess it might not be worth it now.

Met some Canadians names Sean and Derrin from BC, hung out with them a bit. They are looking for an apartment, and interviewing for teaching jobs. Sean managed to get a good one before we left Bangkok, and after two months he has the opportunity to move to HR.

We took a walk to Playground!, which is the design/graff/hi-so boutique shopping centre on Thonglor. Basically, this is Jteam heaven. There is a music area, a magazine area with international magazines and books, an art gallery area with exhibitions, books, art supplies, action figures, furniture, knick nacks, “Greyhound” the clothing line, some cafes and tonnes of very trendy young Bangkokians. The parking area is filled with kids mulling about very expensive cars. Everything at Playground is expensive, even by Toronto standards, BUT as an inspiration playgound, it does its job for sure. It is absolutely worth the visit.. if just to fantasize about the things you would buy if you didn't have to lug them around in a backpack for the next couple of months.

This is from their website...

This is a place that gives you new inspiration through various aspects of
marvellous designs of fashion, arts, decorating, music, books, galleries,
restaurants, and cooking school. The shopping arcade was built to satisfy the
lifestyle of unique, independent, hip, and cosmopolitan. Playground! is actually
the one and the only novel art boutique store in Thailand.

Playground! is located at Soi Sukhumvit 55 (or Soi Thonglor), its a
three-storey building which covers around 7,000 square metres. The layout of the
building itself can be divided into zones.
On the first floor, there is a magazine store which is a place-to-be for those magazine lovers due to the fact that it is the largest magazine store in Thailand which also provides the largest choices of both foreign and Thai magazines. In addition, there is
another section for those rare or collectible music CDs and vinyl and a
separated iPod Station. Moreover, the famous Starbucks and the tasteful Vanilla
Industry Restaurant are located on this floor.

On the second floor, this is a mecca for those trendsetters who love
fashion, cloth, and jewelry of famous designers and brands around the world. A
surprise still keeps coming for all shoppers with unique make-up store,
stationery shop, sport store, travel shop, and centre of art and graphic design
books which influence the inspiration life.

The top floor of the arcade gathers various types of goods, furniture,
utensils, and kitchen appliances from all over the world. It also has a nice and
tidy restaurant corner and a cooking school by Kuppa and another restaurant
which focuses on food fusion of contemporary Japanese food called Sonie’s. Last
but not least, a corner called Play Gallery displaying art collections by famous
artists and a corner called Play Area which is a convention room often used for
fashion and art seminars are also located on this top level.

Oh yes my friends. Beats shopping at Magic Pony and then having to walk all the way to BMV.

Chatetuck Weekend Market was our Sunday stop. it covers over 35 acres (1.13 km²) and contains upwards of 15,000 stalls. This market puts any other market, or superstore, or mall, anywhere, to shame. Literally EVERYTHING was for sale. We purchased a pair of one-size-fits-all cotton tie pants for me for 250baht, some springrolls and snacks, a Tshirt for Karine, and Miake got 3 incredible graphic Tees for 500baht. The graphic tees were nuts, one of them is Ed Banger. They has so many there, and they were all so good.. man, when we come home we are stopping first at Chatechuck. Everything is for sale, including more of the bunnies in dresses, baby chicks (birdflu?) puppies, ancient temple salvages, wicker baskets, hot sauces, military garb.. basically anything you can and possibly things you cannot imagine. This is Asia, after all.

Back in Bangkok

So we are back in Bangkok and Back at Buri, in room 5 which is two single beds. What a difference a room makes. This experience is not as lovely as the first. We had called to reserve our room 13, and the language barrier, considering we were talking about the 13th of December, needless to say, we took what they would give us. Yesterday we went to the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew – otherwise known as the temple of the Emerald Buddah. It is worth a look definately, even if you are slightly wat-ed out, like I am at the moment. We visited the weapons museam and the emerald buddah museaum which are included and on-site. The Emerald Buddah museaum was fun, as we got to see the other 3 costumes for the other 3 seasons.

After this, we went to the nearby market for some green mango with chilli and sugar powder, some pineapple and a fried rice and a fried noodle, which set us back about $3.50. We then browsed through the Amulet Market which is a makeshit market along the sidewalks, where people sell amulets supposedly blessed by various monks. The amulet collecters are serious, and there are books and magazines and catelogues they peruse while they browse. We took a quick ferry across the Chayo Praya River to Wat Arun, or “Temple if the Dawn.” This temple was just beautiful. We strolled past a local school in Thornburi and watched a very competitive soccer game, that had a live announcer and a few drummers providing loud beats. It was super high energy, we took a video. Afterwards, we ferry'd back across the river, and took a taxi to fetch Mikae's suit. It turned out beautifully, and we are rather happy with the result. I picked out a pretty snazzy tie to go with the ensemble, its white silk with a textured finish. We took the same cab to the Hupalong train station to pick up our tickets to Chaing Mai. We leave Sunday night at 7:35, and arrive in Chiang Mai the next morning. We have a 2nd class sleeper, top and bottom bunk. Tickets are 1620 baht or $49 for a 14 hour ride.

After all of this, we went to MBK and went to the 51/2 floor coupon food court to nosh with the Thais. I had cold spring rolls – apparaently shirmp only but made with suspiciously pork looking filling, vegetarian curry and a banana shake for about $3. Mikae had two gyros which was closer to $6. I love that food court. Be warned, when you get to the first food emporium, on the 5th floor, It is pimp and uses cards, don't be fooled, go up one more floor to get to the coupons. That place is the goods. We then came back here, exhausted, and I watched a Harry Potter movie on my laptop until I fell asleep.

Motor Taxis, Masala & Monsoons

Note.. Phuket is pronounced "Poo-get", not "FuckIt" .. Vee Vee has already made this mistake, lets not make it again. hehe.

Mikae and I have started listening to our instincts. We had made arrangements with the resort we were staying in, Vikiing Place, to take some photos for their website, in exchange for a couple nights stay, or a discount on a swanker unit, etc. Anyways, we get let into some bungalows to take photos, I take some of the grounds and some nice shots of the beach. We get to the point where we need to show the management what we have done, and all of a sudden, they are not interested in even seeing them. They have it taken care of. Mikae and I sit down to play Jenga and we see a man in his mid-forties, with a massive SLR puttering around with a notepad and a ladder. He is clearly Not a professional. He is making notes, Setting up the ladder, staging his wife on the sofa in the main room -- making a huge production out of it. So now we understand. All they had seen from me was a regular point and shoot.. and like many clients that have come before... essentially they aren't all that interested in the final product, they are far more interested in the production.

Well, the free stay didn't work out, which was a blessing. Both of us had the feeling that we wanted to leave, and would go out first thing in the morning. The options for ferrys from Ko Phi Phi to Phuket are 9am, 1:30 and 2pm. We decided to take an early ferry, our friend Ida was leaving as well so we could travel with her, which was fun. We had decided to spend the night in Phuket Town, which is not so touristy, but charming. No where near beach or party scene, although we considered taking a tuk tuk to Patong to party with the Klathoey. We selected a hotel on whim, by reading one review on Tripadvisor, and visiting their website. Its a serviced apartment, actually, but they do nightly rates. It is called Baan Suwantawe.

We get to the ferry peir, and we have paid 50 baht each, or about $1.50 for a min bus ride to our hotel. Mikae is on the phone with the hotel, trying to get directions, and the receptionist's English is not so good. He is really struggling. He hands the phone to the mini bus driver, and asks him to speak to the hotel for directions. The guy freaks out, saying he is on a tight deadline and has no time for us, and he thought we were going to the same hotel as Ida. We get him to drop us at the next major intersection, and we leave a very young, and terrified, European couple in the back of the mini bus. Mikae tries calling the hotel again, and we still cannot figure out where we are, or where we are going. Two motor bike taxi men have been shouting at us the entire time "taxi" "moto taxi" "where you go" and we keep brushing them off. Finally they come over, and out of exhaustion, Mikae hands them the phone. The one guy communicates with the receptionist in Thai, and finds out where we are going. Keep in mind that it is 30+ degrees, and we have our packs on and we are totally wiped. Reluctantly, we each mount the back of a motorbike, and hang on. Mikae hangs on to the back post, I grab right onto the guys sweater and cling for dear life. He doesn't seem to mind, that, or my nervous laughter. Luckily, he goes slowly, and the traffic here isn't bad at all. By the time we get to our hotel, my palm prints have soaked into the drivers jacket, and they are laughing at my horrified face. "Sanook!" I say, which means "Fun" in Thai, and they laugh. We give them another $100 baht plus a tip for helping with the phone call, and my first ever motorbike ride, which ended up being, well, ok, cost us $4. The washroom at the ferry pier had been disgusting, but Im glad I went. If I hadn't risked the nasty toilets, there would have been a whole'nother kind of motorbike accident on the streets of Phuket town today.

Sorry to our mothers.

We check into the hotel (see the video from last post) and unpack a little. Enjoy HOT showers with excellent water pressure, and use an entire bar of soap. The rough handed Ferry baggage handler has helped to rupture some waterproof sunscreen in my pack, which I now get to clean up. We wander the streets a bit, taking in the fantastic Sino-Portuguese architecture, and stopping at a supermarket to purchase Pot of Noodles and beverages for our mini-bar.

We stopped at a restaurant mentioned in Lonely Planet, called "Khana Sutra" which apparently has curries with aphrodisiac properties. The samosas were handmade and very fresh, the Dahl and Aloo Ghobi were spicy, tasty, and fresh-tasting. It was delicious. Expensive, for our tastes, the bill was over 600 baht, or $20, but well worth it. I would have paid anything for good indian food after two weeks on Phi Phi without a chick pea in sight.

We came back to our hotel to freshen up before our night out on the town, and I take a swim. It begins to rain, so I step inside. All of a sudden Rain begins to pelt down in sheets, and there is a MASSIVE storm. We stayed in. We couldn't help thinking of our little grass fisherman's hut we left behind in Phi Phi, and how *ahem* fun that must have been in the storm. Our instincts are getting good, i must say. We both knew it was time to go. Plus the evening in the swank hotel room has been nice, especially with the broadband.

Fly to Bangkok tomorrow, Air Asia, both of us with taxes for $112. check back into Buri B&B, and do some sightseeing for a few days. I want to see the Grand Palace and the Temple of the Dawn, and we have a suit to go fetch in Thornburi. We will try to get overnight sleeper train tickets for Chiang Mai. I'm looking forward to Chiang Mai.. I want a bicycle.

Yesterday and Today

Yesterday's Fisherman's Hut on Phi Phi Viking Place Resort




Today's Serviced Apartment in Phuket Baan Suwantawe

Last Night on Ko Phi Phi Plus, I FOUND NEMO

Ciao Bella, Drinking Sang Som & Coke, (Thai Whiskey) and Ice Cold Singha on wifi

ah, Ko Phi Phi

we are leaving on the 9am ferry to Phuket, for 350 baht or just about $10. We then check into this lovely boutique hotel in Phuket Town Baan Suwantawe for 1200 baht or about $40. We are staying there just for one night, in a nice place, as Phuket can be.. horrific. 27 hours is all we need. Hopefully take a taxi to the infamous Patong, which is full of braonzed bodies, and of course, Kathoey. Everybody we know who has been said it is tolerable for a quick peak only. We will take video, so none of you have to go.

From there, we fly back to Bangkok on Air Asia for $112 total, and one hour. Then, we go back to our favorite Buri B&B . Hooray for 500 baht or $15.50 rooms. We still have 12 rides on our BTS Skytrain pass, and we intend to use them on some tourist spots we missed, and to pick up Mikaes suit. We have some things I still want to see in Bangkok, so we will hustle around like mad tourists before our train to Chaing Mai. We spoke to an American Woman named Erin last night, who asked us about wifi, and volunteered a lovely guesthouse in Chaing Mai called Siam Mi Casa it has internet, and is $650 baht or about $20.

So, I FOUND NEMO. oh yes, and Dori as well. Today while snorkelling at Shark's Point, I saw sea anemones. From the movie Finding Nemo I knew that meant I would find Clownfish. So i dived down, and did! They are adorable. Just like Nemo's dad in the movie, they all would poke out, look to see if it was safe, panick and skittishly jolt back in. Amazing, definately the highlight of my day. Im geting some in a saltwater tank when I get home, so we can chill all the time.

So We are leaving our Fisherman's bungalow overlooking the Andaman Sea, and me and my Thai Fisherman's pants are moving on to a nice hotel. Whew. See you in Phuket.

I forgot to mention something. The other day, Mikae and I were snorkelling with Bang and Goran, and while swimming, we came across a whole school of large parrot fish, maybe 1.5ft long or a little smaller. Literally, hundreds. So we swam along with them for a while, whilst they fed on coral. Fish make crunching noises as they eat coral, especially larger fish. The sound of all of these parrot fish crunching was the most incredible thing. It was amazing. Hooray for Ko Phi Phi Leh.

Beach Bungalow, Hammocks, Sweeds & Ocean View

So we thought it would never happen, but here I am. In a rickety grass bungalow overlooking the ocean.

We are at Viking Resort, Half Way between Hat Yo (Long Beach) and Ah Ton Sai, tourist village. This place is a very charming, authentic, jungle resort with a private beach. It is very much like a boutique hotel, and the cleanliness and attention to detail are both outstanding. This place is truly incredible, I wish we had found it sooner. Last night we had a premium bungalow, today we have downgraded to a more, rickety, affair but you cannot beat the view. We are right on the top of the hill overlooking the ocean, you can see both Ko Phi Phi Don & Ko phi Phi Leh from the hammock on our balcony. Words cannot describe this place, it is truly unique and breathtaking. Even this crappy, small, rickety hut with shared bathroom, which is the cheapest option in the resort, has so many little details. We have two musical instruments, fresh flowers, a small desk, incense and burners, tonnes of hanging seashells and coconuts that tinkle in the breeze. The little restaurant here is expensive, but at night they were playing lounge versions of Bob Marley tunes and Sade. It is less than a 20 min walk to the tourist village, and 10 min to Long Beach, although the walk either way is a careful climb over ancient knotted tree roots and rocks. Part of the charm. The bathroom for this bungalow is shared with 4 others, but it is honestly, the nicest bathroom we have come across so far. It has 2 separate entrances, each with a shower and toilet and vanity, and an impressive variety of toiletries for use, looks brand new, and apparently, is cleaned every hour. It shows. Everywhere there are shells and clay pots with ladles for you to wash off your feet in order to keep things clean, and less sandy. The main area is filled with board games, musical instruments, and books and magazines to keep you entertained, and there is rental snorkels and fins and kayaks. The resort is eco friendly, and there are carefully marked recycling and compost bins as well as garbage. Everything is made out of natural materials, and all of the decorations are made from coconuts, shells, driftwood etc. It truly is spectacular.

Apparently this place is under new ownership, and massive renovations. They are building massive 2 bed, 2 bath 3 storey bungalows just down the hill from this one. They are all of the Teak and Thatched Roof variety. The entire place has a Tiki Theme, and it is perfect. We downgraded to the cheapest hut at 1000 baht or just under $30. This one will likely be torn down, most of the huts are the 4-5 star variety we stayed in last night. I'm glad we get to stay here now, it is just unbelievable.

We are currently at Ciao Bella, Eating supper with Wifi. I felt whack today, and had to opt for crab rather that my usual rice vegetables and beer. They LOVE Canadian music here, tonights playlist has included Neil Young, Stomping Tom and Bedoin Soundclash. Tonight at Hippies, there was a Nutella eating competition, and the winner won $3000 baht or about $100. Damn Nikki could have taken them.

Anyways, Our Friend Goran has moved on for some more Thailand tour and then back to Sweeden. We wish him well. Tonight a woman named Erica came up to our table to ask about wifi and ending up giving us a hotel in Chaing Mai with wifi for $650 baht rooms, about $22. It is called Siam Mi Casa. So we will call tommorrow. That solves that problem.

Anyways, need to hike back to the other side of the island and get some sleep. Sorry about the videos, they aren't uploading on the wifi here, not fast enough, but I have oh, another 50 or so.

Love you all.

J.

The King's Birthday and Swimming with Sharks

HC Anderson Hotel, Room 10

The King of Thailand, Rama IX, turned 80 today. Apparently, everything was to shut down, but in tourist town, everything is bumping except the nightclubs. As a result, we have an influx of browned surfer-hippies now playing bongos in the courtyard in front of our room, and drinking beers from 7-11.

We went snorkeling today off of Hat Yo (Long Beach) Again, where they have "Sharks Point." The fish here are massive, I've never seen such large ones in the wild, and I fed some Parrot fish pineapple out of my hand. Best part is.. We saw a Reef Shark! Harmless, and only about 3ft long. We also found a resort with a private beach and the cutest bungalows. It is called Viking Place. We went there with Goran today, and he whips out his digital SLR to take some pics. A Thai comes running over and says they are looking for photographers and web help for possible exchange for stay. We couldn't get into any more at the moment as the owner is in Bangkok but we booked for Friday anyways. Prices are 900-1000 baht for shared bathroom (although, possibly the nicest bathroom I have seen in asia thus far I took a photo, serious.) 1200-1500 baht for shared bathroom, and 2500 for a seriously pimp bungalow. We booked in the 1500 baht one, but might downgrade on Friday, we will see. The place has a great deal of charm, and excellent reviews from both Travelfish and Lonely Planet. Mikae thinks the swank bungalow is worth the $50, and its his turn to make some decisions. This place has a private beach, it is incredible, and it is right between Ao Ton Sai where the main pier is, and Hat Yo, or Long Beach. So, we might still stay at Phi Phi Hill afterwards, we went to eat there today and the food was good. We met a Swedish Girl today named Ida, who is staying there, and she said it is nice. We also found little puppies, and I climbed a palm tree. For dinner, we went with Goran to Ciao Bella, a lovely bar on the beach that has wifi. We will be there for drinks one afternoon soon. Wifi, and little cabanas that provide refuge from the afternoon sun. Who can ask for more?

My legs, are still rashed, mosquito bitten and now scraped from coral. I am so attractive.

Oh, MyTeenLounge Episode 3 is now up. Take a look, just in time for Christmas.