After 48 hours of traveling we have made it back to a land where they accept good ole American dollars (for the little that they are worth!) and drive on the right side of the road. No mom, I didn't come home without telling you....we are in Cambodia.
Before making our way east, we spent about a week more in Southern Thailand with Halley, Megan, and Kerri. Other than relaxing, the highlight of our remaining time in Ton Sai was probably our St. Patty's Day celebration. We were able to find a Irish Pub, fully equipped with green beer, orange, white, and green hair coloring, Guinness, and a live Irish band. What more could we ask for? It felt like we were celebrating in south Boston.
A couple of days later we took a short overnight trek from Ton Sai to Koh Phangan, the site of the infamous full moon parties. Being that the island gets really crowded around the time of the party, we didn't really know where to go and what to do for accommodation. We arrived at 6am and basically sat on the side of the road until someone found us. This method has worked out wonderfully for us in the past, so we figured we would take our chances on actively doing nothing. Luckily, someone found us and he got us a free ride to Haad Khom, a beach on the northern part of the island. When we got there we knew it would be perfect; it was away from the all day debauchery of the full moon party and we got a cheap bungalow for about 300 Baht a night (10 dollars). Haad Kohm is basically what comes to mind when you think of a beach on an island in Thailand: it was quiet, had a rope swing from a palm tree, great snorkeling, and a bunch of foreigners with dreads who came a long time ago and never got on the ferry to leave. The owner of the guesthouse, Mr. Wong, became our Thai father; he took us on all kinds of errands and basically chauffeured us around in the back of his truck whenever we needed a ride to town. After the full moon party we bid farewell to the girls and ended up staying a bit longer in Haad Khom to lay on the beach. On Easter we decided to be daring and rented a motorbike to drive into town. Although we didn't get hurt, this was a bad idea. That's all I have to say about that.
When we finally mustered up the will to leave Koh Phangan, we started our journey to Cambodia. It wasn't until we arrived on the other side of the border that we realized it took us almost 2 full days to get here. Right now we are in Sihanoukville, on the southern coast of Cambodia. Of course, when we got here Jess wasted no time heading to the beach. When I finally arrived, I found her surrounded by 7 little girls; they all wanted to either paint her toe nails or make her bracelets. Each of them spoke perfect English and were on their mid-day school break. Although a bit overwhelming, they entertained us thoroughly. Jess ended up getting her nails done and left with 3 braclets...I got 6. To their delight, we gave them a dollar each, ensuring that we were going to be best friends for life. I think we will avoid this beach from now on...those girls were more expensive than our hotel room!
We plan on heading further east tomorrow, then up north to the capital to get more pages in our passport, then northwest to check out the Temples of Angkor.
New pictures of Thailand are up, so check em out!
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Paradise
As I sit here at the computer writing this post I am looking out at the beach in Ton Sai, Thailand. To say that this is paradise would be no lie and we have no intention of leaving anytime soon. Basically, we have loved this country from the moment we stepped off the plane and hopped in our hot pink taxi to our Asian palace (aka the Marriott, courtesy of Mr. Hayden's reward points). The hotel was fully equipt with a pool, exercise room, flat screen TV, shower you can sit in, men who bow down to you every time you walk in the door, and most importantly: air conditioning. Who would ever want to leave? NOT US. That's right, we were in Bangkok for 4 days and left the hotel room for only the essentials: McDonald's, Auntie Annes, and Dairy Queen. Actually, I wouldn't want to exaggerate...we did leave to do our laundry. Any by "do our laundry" I mean put our laundry in a machine in the middle of the sidewalk behind where some lady runs her very successful pad-thai food stall. There was no dryer, so we constructed a clothesline in our room, making it a sure thing that we can turn the nicest suite in all of Bangkok into a pigsty.
A couple days after getting to Thailand we met up with Jess's friends from high school (Hally and Megan) who have been living here teaching English. We managed to adopt a new travel partner for the past week (their friend from study abroad, Eric) who is on spring break. It's nice to have some new people to talk to and Jess seems to be enjoying the familiar faces. We are still with them now in Ton Sai and will probably stay together for a bit as we have similar travel plans. This beach that we have stumbled upon is absolutely gorgeous and probably surpases the beauty of my previously favorite place in Brazil (Floripa). There are tons of activities to do including rock climbing, kayaking, and hiking. Yesterday we took a day trip to Kho Phi Phi, the island where the movie "The Beach" was filmed. We got to go snorkeling and checked out the site, which is preserved by the government. No one is allowed to live there, which is nice because everything around here is getting so built up and touristy. There is not much else to report as we basically have been sitting around doing nothing for the past week, recovering from our tiring trip through India. I know, we lead a difficult life.
OK, that's all for now...I have to go eat sticky rice and watch the sunset. Yes, my life is awesome.
A couple days after getting to Thailand we met up with Jess's friends from high school (Hally and Megan) who have been living here teaching English. We managed to adopt a new travel partner for the past week (their friend from study abroad, Eric) who is on spring break. It's nice to have some new people to talk to and Jess seems to be enjoying the familiar faces. We are still with them now in Ton Sai and will probably stay together for a bit as we have similar travel plans. This beach that we have stumbled upon is absolutely gorgeous and probably surpases the beauty of my previously favorite place in Brazil (Floripa). There are tons of activities to do including rock climbing, kayaking, and hiking. Yesterday we took a day trip to Kho Phi Phi, the island where the movie "The Beach" was filmed. We got to go snorkeling and checked out the site, which is preserved by the government. No one is allowed to live there, which is nice because everything around here is getting so built up and touristy. There is not much else to report as we basically have been sitting around doing nothing for the past week, recovering from our tiring trip through India. I know, we lead a difficult life.
OK, that's all for now...I have to go eat sticky rice and watch the sunset. Yes, my life is awesome.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Til' next time, India
I apologize to those of you who were alarmed by my last entry. I am hearing through the grapevine that I scared you all with our tales of thieves and stomach parasites. BUT, all is well and we are really enjoying our time here in India, despite some minor setbacks.
I don't know if you are up to date with the Indian celeb magazines, but if you find the opportunity to grab the latest, you'll see your two favorite travelers on the cover. Since the last entry we have toured through the city of Mysore, where we became a bigger attraction than the sites we went to see. At first we were flattered, thinking it was based purely on our good looks, but when requests came for a song, I realized they thought we were famous (being blonde and American and all). Our favorite was when an Indian guy told us his friends mistook us for J.Lo, seeing as we are Latino. In all honestly, there are more photos of us floating around on Indian cameras than on our own and we will probably be gracing the living rooms of various homes throughout southern India. Although the organized tour was sadly unimpressive, there were 2 parts that were really memorable (not counting the various photo shoots): the Mysore Palace and the Brindavan Gardens. As we walked through the rooms it was easy to pretend we were in a Disney movie...so we sang some Aladdin hits we all know and love (including but not limited to "A Whole New World" and "Prince Ali"). The Gardens were best once the sun set and the lights lit up the fountains. Luckily we caught the tail end of the fountain light show in which the water was synchronized first to American techno and secondly to traditional Indian songs. India is the land of extremes.
Next stop after Mysore was Kochi in the state of Kerala. Kerala is known for it's backwaters and for good reason. We decided to take a day tour which first took us on a houseboat (you could sleep on it...we didn't have the cash for that) through the larger canals and natural lake and then on smaller boats through the man made canals. Beyond the beautiful sights, we learned all about herbs and coconut trees...all things that we thought were extremely insightful at the time but have no true recollection of now that a couple days have passed. Whoops. Our day was made all the better by an older Indian couple who made it their personal mission to educate us on Indian history and geography throughout the day. They had a way of making the ugliest trees look magnificent and the most boring subjects intriguing. Plus, the fact that they could hardly walk yet were jumping in and out of boats because we said they should inspired us to travel forever! Sorry Mom.
Next on the itinerary was a slow (really slow) public boat through the backwaters, yet again. This was a really great ride because we got to see how the locals get around the area. The boat stopped anywhere, on any island where someone waved them down. The clientèle ranged from businessmen (sporting classy button down shirts with sheet skirts), to schoolgirls, to guys hauling their coconuts from their island to the mainland. It was awesome. After yet another bus ride we arrived in Kumily.
Our main reason for going to Kumily was to see some animals at the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. Ironically, the majority of our fun was found outside the sanctuary and didn't involve wildlife in the least. Our first day was spent checking out the tea plantations with 2 tour guides. One of them knew absolutely nothing about tea but spoke great English, while the second was extremely knowledgeable but knew not one word of English....together they made one great tour guide. It was pathetic how obsessed we were with tea. We wanted all the information they could possibly give us and then some more. On our little tour we went into a tea factory, at which point we were consumed by the glorious smell of tea making! It was like breathing in a cup of tea! I couldn't get enough. We also saw some of the ladies who pick the tea leaves, who get paid a whopping 80 rupees (2 dollars) for the first 45 kilos they pick and 2 rupees (5 cents) for every kilo after that. Think of them the next time you throw out a tea bag. Our perfect day was made all the better when the owner of the tea shop gave us a tour of his spice garden. When his kids weren't running amok, he was able to show us various plants (coffee, vanilla, cardamom, all-spice, cinnamon...) that we would have otherwise thought were weeds. He fed us a cup and tea and we went on our way. It was refreshing to encounter such a generous man who didn't want anything in return.
The next day we actually went into the wildlife sanctuary....what a let down! We took a boat ride and spotted some buffalo. Well, they might have been buffalo..or they might have been bison (don't know the difference)...or they could have been dead bushes in the distance...who knows!??! We will have to take their word for it that the black spots were indeed buffalo. In order to make up for the dud of a boat ride, we let some lady rope us into taking an elephant ride. We were an easy sell as all Jess wanted for her birthday was to get on one of these darned elephants we have seen roam the streets. While it was exciting at first, it quickly turned depressing when we realized we were supporting animal cruelty. To the elephant mans dismay, rather than pay to ride the elephant, we fed her some fruit and went on our way.
From Kumily we headed to Puducherry, where we are right now. Tonight we took a Yoga class and tomorrow we are heading north to catch our flight back to Mumbai in a couple days. Our trip to India has been an eye opening, interesting experience that I wouldn't trade for the world. We have taken the good with the bad and are leaving wishing we were better prepared to spend more time here. Coupled with it's poverty and lurking smells, India is gorgeous, has an engulfing culture, great food and, as we have come to find, is not as intimidating as those of you at home might think.
And finally, if I can give you all one word of advice...go to the store and buy some cardamom tea. I don't know where you can buy it, but find it and drink it. You will love it. Oh yea...go to an Indian restaurant too.
I don't know if you are up to date with the Indian celeb magazines, but if you find the opportunity to grab the latest, you'll see your two favorite travelers on the cover. Since the last entry we have toured through the city of Mysore, where we became a bigger attraction than the sites we went to see. At first we were flattered, thinking it was based purely on our good looks, but when requests came for a song, I realized they thought we were famous (being blonde and American and all). Our favorite was when an Indian guy told us his friends mistook us for J.Lo, seeing as we are Latino. In all honestly, there are more photos of us floating around on Indian cameras than on our own and we will probably be gracing the living rooms of various homes throughout southern India. Although the organized tour was sadly unimpressive, there were 2 parts that were really memorable (not counting the various photo shoots): the Mysore Palace and the Brindavan Gardens. As we walked through the rooms it was easy to pretend we were in a Disney movie...so we sang some Aladdin hits we all know and love (including but not limited to "A Whole New World" and "Prince Ali"). The Gardens were best once the sun set and the lights lit up the fountains. Luckily we caught the tail end of the fountain light show in which the water was synchronized first to American techno and secondly to traditional Indian songs. India is the land of extremes.
Next stop after Mysore was Kochi in the state of Kerala. Kerala is known for it's backwaters and for good reason. We decided to take a day tour which first took us on a houseboat (you could sleep on it...we didn't have the cash for that) through the larger canals and natural lake and then on smaller boats through the man made canals. Beyond the beautiful sights, we learned all about herbs and coconut trees...all things that we thought were extremely insightful at the time but have no true recollection of now that a couple days have passed. Whoops. Our day was made all the better by an older Indian couple who made it their personal mission to educate us on Indian history and geography throughout the day. They had a way of making the ugliest trees look magnificent and the most boring subjects intriguing. Plus, the fact that they could hardly walk yet were jumping in and out of boats because we said they should inspired us to travel forever! Sorry Mom.
Next on the itinerary was a slow (really slow) public boat through the backwaters, yet again. This was a really great ride because we got to see how the locals get around the area. The boat stopped anywhere, on any island where someone waved them down. The clientèle ranged from businessmen (sporting classy button down shirts with sheet skirts), to schoolgirls, to guys hauling their coconuts from their island to the mainland. It was awesome. After yet another bus ride we arrived in Kumily.
Our main reason for going to Kumily was to see some animals at the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. Ironically, the majority of our fun was found outside the sanctuary and didn't involve wildlife in the least. Our first day was spent checking out the tea plantations with 2 tour guides. One of them knew absolutely nothing about tea but spoke great English, while the second was extremely knowledgeable but knew not one word of English....together they made one great tour guide. It was pathetic how obsessed we were with tea. We wanted all the information they could possibly give us and then some more. On our little tour we went into a tea factory, at which point we were consumed by the glorious smell of tea making! It was like breathing in a cup of tea! I couldn't get enough. We also saw some of the ladies who pick the tea leaves, who get paid a whopping 80 rupees (2 dollars) for the first 45 kilos they pick and 2 rupees (5 cents) for every kilo after that. Think of them the next time you throw out a tea bag. Our perfect day was made all the better when the owner of the tea shop gave us a tour of his spice garden. When his kids weren't running amok, he was able to show us various plants (coffee, vanilla, cardamom, all-spice, cinnamon...) that we would have otherwise thought were weeds. He fed us a cup and tea and we went on our way. It was refreshing to encounter such a generous man who didn't want anything in return.
The next day we actually went into the wildlife sanctuary....what a let down! We took a boat ride and spotted some buffalo. Well, they might have been buffalo..or they might have been bison (don't know the difference)...or they could have been dead bushes in the distance...who knows!??! We will have to take their word for it that the black spots were indeed buffalo. In order to make up for the dud of a boat ride, we let some lady rope us into taking an elephant ride. We were an easy sell as all Jess wanted for her birthday was to get on one of these darned elephants we have seen roam the streets. While it was exciting at first, it quickly turned depressing when we realized we were supporting animal cruelty. To the elephant mans dismay, rather than pay to ride the elephant, we fed her some fruit and went on our way.
From Kumily we headed to Puducherry, where we are right now. Tonight we took a Yoga class and tomorrow we are heading north to catch our flight back to Mumbai in a couple days. Our trip to India has been an eye opening, interesting experience that I wouldn't trade for the world. We have taken the good with the bad and are leaving wishing we were better prepared to spend more time here. Coupled with it's poverty and lurking smells, India is gorgeous, has an engulfing culture, great food and, as we have come to find, is not as intimidating as those of you at home might think.
And finally, if I can give you all one word of advice...go to the store and buy some cardamom tea. I don't know where you can buy it, but find it and drink it. You will love it. Oh yea...go to an Indian restaurant too.
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