Day out on the River Taxi

Tuesday 24th November: We made our way to the River Taxi. Is it terible that I can't remember the name of the river? Hmm. Google it. So the river taxi is a pretty good idea; no traffic and very very cheap. I like. We got off at the Wat Pho stop, checking out the tourist attractions. We visited the reclining Buddha; absolutely massive monument. All indoors, so you have to remove your shoes and women have to cover up a bit. I like how respectful the Thai people are; both respectful but also welcoming at the same time. A lot to look at here, which I like; you can just roam the city and come across temples and markets, without having to map out a specific itinerary for the day. And you will always find food stalls if you get a bit peckish; street food is great and again so cheap. I always get my daily dose of watermelon out here. Ha.

So after an injection of culture, Izzy and I made our way back to Kao San Road to get those souvenirs. Such a tourist trap. Not the best place to go if you want to lap up the Thai culture, but a pretty cool atmosphere nonetheless. Does bring out the shopper in me though; is that why my backpack is feeling rather heavy at the moment? We spent the evening at Suk11 relaxing and chatting to people in the hostel; such a nice place to stay and really good room rates. I sound like a bit of a marketing campaign don't I? Ha. Just visit Thailand.

Back to Bangkok

Saturday 21st November we said goodbye to MD House and headed back to Bangkok on the sleeper train. Such an experience. The beds came down about 9pm and we climbed up to the top bunks. It's much better getting the overnight train, because with it being a fifteen-hour journey, it helps to get a bit of sleep! Anyway our carriage was being run by a lady-boy. Ha ha absolutely fantastic character; Izzy was not so amused by his banter. I loved it. I mean where else? He woke us up at about 5am and he saw our faces (still asleep, our hair sticking up) and just laughed, the most shrill, theatrical laugh I think I have ever heard. Especially at that time of the morning. Ha ha was brilliant. We got a tuk tuk to the hostel- Suk 11: Brilliant recommendation by my brother. It's in its own little hideaway and is beautifully constructed, the whole feel of the place is so well thought-out. Downside: we arrived at about 7am and check-in was not until 11am. Time to roam the streets of Bangkok. Not ideal with a backpack the size if a house. Hmm..

Just chilled out for the day, had dinner at the Suk 11 restaurant, loving the red snapper and chilli. Woke up Monday ready to explore Bangkok. The breakfasts at the hostels here are amazing and all free. Toast, jam, yoghurt, endless amounts of fresh fruit. Yes I may be getting fat, but it's so worth it. Am going to make the most of it while it's cheap. Good justification. So we found ourselves at Pratunam market, in search of the gipsy-style harem trousers we have come to love over here. The market-place was more for Thai locals, rather than tourists in search of souvenirs, so we decided to end our search here and go back to Kao San Road (backpacker central).

We spent the afternoon at The Jim Thompson House and Museum. He was an American architect, who found himself in Asia whilst serving in the army. After leaving the service he returned to Thailand, having fallen in love with the country. Can't blame him, I have too. And so he built himself a home here, taking pieces of architectural and artistic influence from all over Asia to create his materpiece of a house. It is a combination of six teak buildings which represented the best in Traditional Thai architecture. Beautiful. And the surroundings are amazing; a little jungle of his very own. Not bad Jim. In his work, Jim Thompson contributed to the long-neglected silk industry, bringing it back to life, and contributing to the worldwide recognition of Thai silk. There you go, I learned something. Jim Thompson disappeared on a trip to the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia and has never been found.

On the walk back into the centre, we came across some professional photographs. I couldn't resist; bought a photo of the floating markets. They're mounted on wood and look amazing, so that will be going up on my wall when I get home, if I go home that is..

Caught the sky train back to Sukhumvit area where the hostel was. The London Underground could do with taking a few tips from the Thai Transportation Office. Or whoever deals with the public transport; really clean, so efficient and air-conditioned. Impressive. Love Bangkok.

To the Northernmost of Thailand

Friday 20th November 2009, we were going further north. We visited the White Temple in Wat Rong Khun, Chiang Rai. The temple is not actually that old, only been erect for about six years (I think), pretty modern anyway. And lots still being done to the place. It's my favourite piece of architecture over here; you can't touch anything to ensure that it remains the 'white' temple. There is also a beautiful mosaic of tiny mirrors over the entire exterior, which makes it glisten in the sunlight. So simple and yet so effective! Very impressive piece of architecture. And I love the monks, so chilled out and content. Well from what I can gather that is.

Next stop: The Golden Triangle, where the borders of Thailand, Loas and China meet at the Mekhong River. Really cool, so we had a boat trip over to the Laos border- I have to visit Laos on my next visit, it looks amazing and I have heard so many great things about the place. So I suppose I will just have to come back! Ha. Any excuse. Turns out the locals love their whiskey- it's everyhwere! And the piece de resistance: whiskey soaked in tiger penis. Or is it tiger penis soaked in whiskey? Yeah sounds right. Ha ha. Also a snake-flavoured option. The variety is endless, can't say I was too tempted to be honest. I was more interested in the market stalls. Yeah I have a problem: can't stop shopping! It's so cheap and the stuff here is amazing: the jewellery, the clothes, the bags. I have a new addiction. Ha.

We reached the 'northernmost of Thailand' later that day, Mai Sai. The people here are mainly from Burma, so we got a taste for a different cultural influence up here, and more markets! Last stop of the day was the Karen tribe, also known as the 'long-necks.' Can't say I'd care to have coils of metal wrapped around my neck, but each to their own eh. Was pretty fascinating, although one of the tourists was crying in pity for them. I don't think they're unhappy though, they seem at ease with it all, and use it as a tourist attraction anyway, so they're probably doing alright off it. I don't know, maybe I should be more compassionate? Hmm.. will ponder over this at a later date. Really great day trip though, have loved travelling around Thailand, there's just so much to see and the scenery is constantly morphing as you reach the various areas. It is a country with so much to offer.

The Asia Portion

So Miss Smith and I left the UK on November 12th 2009, and how glad I am that we did!
We arrived in Bangkok the next day and it has been a little adventure ever since. We didn't give ourselves long to settle in to bustling Bangkok, as we were on the train to Chiang Mai the following day. A nice 'crisp early' start to the train station (ha is there such thing?) and a good 15 hours later we arrived in Chiang Mai. Hefty train ride, but it was amazing to watch the scenery change as we headed further and further north. Amazingly green. The train did break down in the jungle about 45 minutes out of Chiang Mai, shunting back and forth for about 2 hours, but all part of the experience? Hmm..was not at the time.

Got ourselves into a tuk tuk (fantastic method of travel) and headed to our hostel: MD House. Great cheap place to stay; but cheap hostels in Asia are like hotels anyway- you get so much for your money. We even had a swimming pool! Brilliant. Love the way the Thais do it. The next morning we were up and ready to get started on everything. We booked all our excursions for the next few days, really helpful staff who go through everything with you. And we were set! We started the day with a trip to Chiang Mai zoo. Pretty cool, but a zoo is a zoo at the end of the day: cooped-up animals. Was an amazing setting for a zoo though; lush and tropical. Did see pandas though! The sweat was unbelieveable. Going to take a bit of getting used to methinks. We headed back to the hostel for a chilled out evening and met some fantastic people- Canadians and Swedes. Gotta love them. Really nice group of people; I love how everyone has the same mind-set when travelling- makes it so easy to meet people you have loads in common with. So a chilled-out evening by the pool ended up with a brilliant night out in Chiang Mai. I recommend the 'Riverside Bar' to anyone visiting Chiang Mai: live music and a great atmosphere, ironically situated by the side of a river. Ha.

The next day we visited the Doi Suthep temple- lapping up the culture. I love the architecture here- so ornate and stately, and so different from what I have seen before. We followed that trip with a visit toTiger Kingdom. I was petrified; Isobel was excited. Hmm. I sense a conflict of interests here. We went for the 'package' that day: small tiger and big tiger deal. Ha ha. Do I get to keep my limbs with that? I was scared of the little ones for God's sake! But they were very cute. And I know they must sedate them slightly, but to be honest the tigers were all really lively, jumping around play-fighting with one another. So they did not appear sedate enough for my liking, not that I am pro animal cruelty or anything. I am digging a hole. Anway, then we were onto the big tigers. We were in a cage with three fully-grown tigers. Sensible? Hmm. We did the whole stroke the tiger for the camera thing, which was pretty amazing, just a bit on the scary side! And the trainer kept jumping up behind me trying to scare me. I think the tigers were enough. Ha. Fantastic experience. Let's leave the tiger cage now.

The evening followed with a trip to the infamous lady-boy bars. Haha. So strange, and yet you get used to the whole scene so quickly. The sex trade in Thailand is so blatant, theatrical even. Curiosity lured the backpackers in. It is hilarious to see the amount of sex-tourism going on here; fat white man scoops up petite, attractive Thai lady. They certainly do well for themsleves (the European men with big bellies that is). Obviously a sad side to it all, but what I found horrible was the fact that there were young children begging in these seedy bars. These kids are only four or five years old and they know far too much for their age; a Thai child should not be pinching women's behinds or know how to swear, and in various languages! But I suppose that's how things are done in places like this; we're all pretty damn lucky we didn't have childhoods like that. So yeah, not your standard night out, but great company in our new traveller-friends.

Wednesday was elephant-training day. The highlight of my trip to date! A mini-bus trip out to the jungle and we found ourselves in a Mahout (elephant trainers) village. Stunning surroundings and lots of elephants roaming about in their natural environment. I've heard terrible stories about the treatment of elephants in the touristy areas, but the animals here were treated so well and we were so lucky to be part of the whole thing. To begin with, we were given a list of Thai elephant commands to learn. I couldn't remember anything. Oh except "YOOD" which means "STOP" in Thai. Ha. Standard. And then we were off telling the elephants to lift their legs to let us up on their backs. The alternative way to mount them is to get them to lower their trunk and you climb up it that way; hilarious watching each other struggle to mount these gigantic elephants. Such an amazing experience.

We rode the elephants through the jungle and the surrounding streams, then we washed them in the river! They may be huge animals, but they are such gentle giants. Lovely animals. We gave them a mud-bath after that. I thought it would go the other way: mud bath then wash them with water, but the mud protects them against the heat of the sun. Ah see, didn't know that did ya? You probably did, makes sense. We had a brilliant Mahout helping us out- Kai. Such amazing people, so friendly and happy! I love this country! So that was our day with the elephants and I can't really explain just how incredible it was. Bloody knackered by the end of it.