Si&Nik - S.E. Asian Adventure

Sen Monorom - Deisel and dust

2008-01-09T06:27:00.000-08:00

Yes, we wer thiose two dirty backpackers - covered from head to toe in a thick layer of fine, red dust. The dust permiated everything! From the soles of our shoes to the insides of our ears and noses... nothing escaped its wrath!

How did we come to be covered in such muck? It all started in Snoul (pleaase read previous post on the wonderful destination tha tisd Snoul). After getting off the Phnom Penh bound bus from Kratie, we were advised (by sign language) that there was no bus going to Sen Monorom. All this despite the fact that we, and two other travellers, were holding bus tickets that clearly stated the destinations name on them. A small Cambodian man, about the age of Yoda, was frantically crossing his arm to make an "X" sign - indicating that there was actually no bus today and that we'd have to go by a pick-up truck. At first Si thought this was just a con job - to get us to pay money for a car ride that we didn't need. Slowly we began to realise that he was genuine (cynicism must be a bi-product of living in big cities) as 9 of us sided up to the designated pick-up truck. We were laughing at the numerous trucks rambling in briming over with mysterious cargo and the locals riding rodeo on the top.

Three hours later- we were the ones joining the rodeo! There was no laughing now! Picture a rusted over pick- up truck with at least 30 boxes of produce, ice, and seafood; three crates of squacking chickens and ducks; a new black scooter; 11 back packs; and 19 passengers hanging on for their lives atop the heap. No safety belts - no seats - no ropes even to hang on to- hey, there wasn't even a road! To provide some sence of savety we were forced to puch holes into the cargo boxes beneath us so that our thumbs had something to give us some grip!

The first two hours consisted of a bumby dirt track through the scrub. The second three hours were a steep climb through the deforseted lands scattered with Chinese pine plantations. Again- just a dust path. Up the steep mountains, the "local chaperones" would jump off the truck just as the truck would start to roll backwards and throw chocks under the wheels to aid us up the terrain. Scarves were draped over our faces to prevent inhalation of the red dust. A few passangers bought meidcal masks to wear for this reason. We have never been dirtier in our entire lives and it looked like we had suddenly gained a wonderful "red" tan over our entire bodies.

Now... to wash off our lovely fake tan we rolled into the celubrious Peci Kiri Guesthouse and paid up for a room with electricity (don't snigger - its a luxury in Sen Monorom), hot water (another luxery in town), a TV with cable and 3 single beds. Yes - it was the last room available and we were too tired, too sore and far too dusty to argue or go in search of another abode. Unfortunately for us the bathroom didn't have any lighting in it, nor did it have any hot water! Aparently there had not been enough electricity to warm the water. So we were graciously provided with 2 buckerts of scolding hot water with wich to bathe in the dark. After this slight let down, we discovered that the TV didn't work - also due to the lack of electricity - and tha twe had a brickworks as a neighbour. late into the night and well into the morning we heard the sound of bricks being loaded and unloaded, stacked and unstacked, arriving and departing trucks. And to top it all off - we had a squeeky gecko in the room to keep us company!

The town comprised of 1 main road - sealed from one end to the other (and the ONLY sealed section for miles and miles around) - and a few smaller roads made of the same red dust. The buildings, the cars and bikes, even the plants had a red tinge to them (well... tinge is probably too weak a word... let's try stain!).

To let our limbs and butts recover, we spent a day relaxing in the "Greenhouse" (a mixture of travel, food, refreshments and internet) which was located right next to a bar appropriately called "Middle of Somewhere". The following day we rented a 250CC Honda Baja and sped off into the red dust again - this time to visit an amazing waterfall and the local villages. During our visit to the watefall we watched as small childern scrambled amidst the rushing waters to gather small Zebra muscles (attached to the rocks). By the end of the day we were, yet again, covered in the film of red dust and enjoyed a refreshing cold shower (HA! not by choice mind you!!) to cleanse our bodies. 3 days was more than enough time to get to grips with the town, the surrounding areas and the filth.

Fortunately for us we discovered that we could get onboard a minivan for the trip out of town - and only had to endure 11 people crammed into the small interior space - not duck or chickens this time as they were heading to Phnom Penh to "stock up" again! So... with everyone crammed in we headed back along the road to hell, bound for some greater sence of civilisation (and we hoped less dust!)

A shithole named Snoul

2008-01-07T06:17:00.000-08:00

The trusty Lonely Planet Guide said that the best thing about Snoul was that the road out of town was now tarmac.

Snoul is nothing more than an assortment of grotty and dirty hovels surrounding, what they call, a bus station. In reality the bus station is a rubbish tip with the towns flotsam and jetsom blowing alongside the dust. Even the towns 5 football fields are totally covered with all assortments of plastic rubbish bags and Chinese cracker wrappers. Snotty nosed and weepy eyed kids roll around in the fine, red dust as the parent/s looks on in adoration from their fruit stand.

If you ever have to pass through Snoul (and we sincerily hope that you don't) make it a quick one!

PS: There is little wonder why the local government in Snoul have installed a series of "speed humps" to the entrance of town - in order to slow the traffic down. Otherwise, we are sure, cars, pick-ups, buses and trucks alike would scream through the town in the blink of an eye. Obviously NOT one of our favourite destinations :)

Cruising into Kratie

2008-01-04T23:59:00.000-08:00

We jumped on the bus after a short stay in Kampong Cham and headed north - following the Mekhong River into central-eastern Cambodia. After a 3 1/2 hour trip, inclusive of a 30 minute lunch break in what can only be described as a rubbish tip (and we're being (a) very serious anf (b) quite generous in the description) we arrived into Kratie. Possibly the best thing about the ride north was that we expected it to take 6 hours and it only lasted 3 1/2.

After the necessary and turbulent battle of wills between the throng of tuk-tuk and motodup drivers vying for the attention and money of the newly arrived gwailo (round eye's) we jumped onto the back of 2 small scooters (vespa's) - 40 kg packs and all!! Within seconds we were at the Oudom Sambath Hotel - looking across at the Mekhong River and Koh Throng Island (sitting pretty in the middle of the river). How do we describe our new palace?? Hmmm.... tackishly Cambodian.... tiled from floor to ceiling.... with 2 foam beds and towels/ terry cloth blankets BUT...... a long awaited HOT SHOWER!!! It might seem funny to you - but after over a week of cold showers we were ready for some water that generated a little steam and heat.

Having dropped our packs in a cloud of fine brown dust (the consistency of talcom powder) we headed out and into town. Naturally we had to navigate our way through the motodup drivers that had followed us to the hotel and explain that "NO! We don't want a driver, or a bike, or a tour, or the see the dolphins just yet! We just want to be left alone and want to walk into town!"

Some 300 meters along the river, past the Buddhist Monestary, defunct pharmacies, tailor shops, little restaraunts and the Kratie Ministry for Information Radio Station we hit the local market. As we sit here at the internet terminal we are looking straight at it again. It really is a sight to behold (and to hold your breath). The Kratie Market comprises of a mix match of hardware stalls, fruit & vege stalls, fried meats sellers, beauty product sales, outdoor equipment and yesterays gold. After a quick spin around we settled into something resembling a western cafe and endulged in banana cafe latte shakes, fish soup (no oil, no carrot, no noodle) and a chicken currey. To accompany our meals we enjoyed the sights of cows wandering aimlessly (and unattended) through the streets in search of some greener pastures.

After crashing the night we rented our own scooter (much to the distress of the budding young tour guides who were overly concerned that we might get lost) and headed off on our own way. Into the hills we headed! Upon crossing the bridge on the edge of town it was like we were in another world. In the blink of an eye we were in "real village" Cambodia. This is what we had longed for! Traditional village housing along the river banks and every-day Cambodians going about their every-day lives. The scenery was breat-taking and it seemed tha tevery young village boy and girl was yelling out "Hello!!" to us while the parents peered out of their wooden and palm fromed houses at these "silly barang" on mnotorbikes. Even the school kids on their bicycles would stop or turn around and call out a greeting at the tops of their voices.

Along the ride we stopped of at Kampi (a small vilage some 15 kms from Kratie) and booked ourselves into the Dolphin Watching Tour. Not that this was any ordinary dolphin scene. In the Mekhong River at Kampi live the critically endangered Irrawaddy Dolphin of which some 80 - 100 survive today. As they live in localised habitats in the freshwaters, we thought it would be somewhat unlikely (OK... we thought we had absolutely no chance in the world at all) of spotting such a rare creature. Well.... to our surprise we had a time of our lives! We were the only 2 people on the boat (row/ paddle boat as engines are not permitted in the conservation zone), the only 2 people on the river and we saw lots of the dolphins. Now... we're not sure if we saw the same 3 dolphins many times, or if we saw many dolphins - but it doesn't matter - it was amazing!!! Feeling truely fortunate for such an experience we headed the trusty scooter for town.

Just on the outskirts we stopped at a unique Buddhist Temple. Not tha tBuddhism itself is unique in Cambodia - or anywhere in S. E. Asia - but the architecture of this one was totally different. It more resembled a 2 storey French mansion than a place of worship - with large balconies and European columns all matched with a Cambodian tile and flourished roof. We were greeted by a lovely monk who had been studying since he was 9 years old (now 16) and was relatively proficinat in English. The following morning we returned and he invited us int othe upper levels of th Monestary (actually their sleping quarters amongst a large golden Buddha and murals of the life of Buddha) to meet the other monks who wanted to pracrice their English skills on us. Yet another fortunate experience for the 2 of us!

We had hoped to jump on a local boat and cross the river to visit Koh Throng but after waiting some 45 minutes for a boat (or even the faintest sign of a boat) we decided to can that idea and have a picnic on the banks of the Mekhong instead as we planned our next steps int othe deeper and darker areas of eastern Cambodia.

Kampong Cham - Chump of a place

2008-01-03T00:43:00.000-08:00

After an arduous trip from Phnom Penh we arrived into Kampong Cham at about 4.30 and immediately set of in search of, what was to become Si's obsession, a room with a hot shower. First guesthouse wasn't fit for a dog (and had no hot water), the second place only had single rooms available (and still no hot water), the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh were just a fruitless too!! In the end Si begrudgingly dropped his desire for some hot shower and we settled on a little guesthouse on the banks of the Mekhong.

As was routine now - we dropped our packes in a cloud of brown dust and headed off with our new-found friend and his freshly painted tuk-tuk to see the sights. First was the Bamboo Bridge which is built every dry season to enable the villagers on an island to get across and into town. There it was coming up - we could see it.... and there it went! To our surprise we drove right by it without stopping. We mused that when the driver said "You can look at Bamboo Bridge" - he meant it literally! Then, wit hthe sun setting over the fields surrounding Kampong Cham we made a B-line to a Buddhist Temple and Monestary on some hill (Male Hill?? Female Hill??? We're not too sure??) outside town. This was where he was studying to be a monk and was supposebly the home of some fine looking monkeys. On our arrival he enthusiastically hollared out "Here monkey, monkey! Here monkey monkey!!". To our grave disappointment it was monkey bed time and they failed to heed the calling. There would be no monkey for us today :) None the less we strolled around the temples, all the while scheming how to get one of the Buddha statues into our backpacks - already bursting at the seemes. The sun was no below the horizon, darkness was setting in quickly and we left (Buddhaless) towards to night markets in town.

Dinner consisted of a quite nice beef and noodle dish for Si and a repea texperience of Foetus Duck Eggs for Nik. Oh yes... those eggs again!!! The Jackfruit was bought later on proved to be much more delicious. For the firs treal time in our adventure we experience begging - on a scale not seen before by us. Kids were constantly coming up (dirty faces, running noses, torn clothing) pleading for either food or money. Our galant driver shoo'd them away and then in true Buddhist fashion, gave them 100 Riel for their efforts.

And that was the sights of Kampong Cham! The next morning we waited on the roadside for the 10am bus to arrive and take us further north-east - which it duely did at 11am - and watched as conveys of Cambodias military elite were chauffered by in their flash Land Rover and Lexus SUV's - closely followed by truckloads of foot soldiers squeezed into open topped freight trucks.

2007 New Years Eve

2007-12-31T01:29:00.000-08:00

"Of course its not too late to make a booking for dinner" said Si on 30 December at 5pm.

"Are you sure? This IS Kep afterall" was Niks retort.

We picked the 2 fanciest restaraunts in the area and strutted in to make our reservation for NYE 2007/ 2008. The first Maitre De smiled, as if to say "You must be joking!", and apologised for being fully booked for the evening. The response to our same reques tat the second resort was much the same!

So we made the vesy best of the situation....

We grabbed a pricey bottle of Australian White Wine (DÁrenburg Stump Jump Sav Blanc) and a chilled bottle of bubbly (2002 Taittenger Champaigne) and made a reservation at the local Crab Market on the banks of the bay. The look on their faces was totally different! Instead of "You must be joking!" it was much more of "What do you want? A table right now? Sure! Let me clean it for you." After some quick sign language and translation by Nik - we had a table on the waterfront booked for 7pm. Let us take just a line or 2 to describe the table we had reserved: hand made from excess wooden crates, plastic outdoor chairs, thin vinyl table cloth, pink toilet paper as napkins and silverware served in a mug of boiled water - but a view to kill for overlooking the bay and outlying, smaller islands.

Upon our arrival the "father" of the family gave us some lime scented water (served in a greem plastic tub) to wash our hands and quickly scurried off down the road to find a real bottle opener for our corks. All the time the rest of the family were smiling from ear to ear at the sight of 2 westerners: dresed up for their special occaision, enjoying 2 bottles of wine, the view of the sunset and each others company. And what a feast we had! Everything in the restaraunt was fresh - and we mean fresh! Throughout the afternoon we saw them hauling in bamboo fish and crab traps; filled to the brim with their catch. So we endulged on freshly caught BBQ squid, a kilogram of freshly caught crabs, fresh vegetables, amazing rice dishes and a huge pot of spicey prawn soup. Fit for a King and Queen!

And as we were finishing our feast we watched fireworks explode (well... OK... more like a pop than the deafening roar from Sydney Harbour of Times Square) over the beach next to us. Perfect night! Perfect way to wrap up the year that was and welcome in the year that will be!

Kep and the coast of Cambodia

2007-12-29T01:02:00.000-08:00

After the luxuries and extravagence of Phnom Penh, we headed south to enjoy the sights and scenery of coastal Cambodia - at Kep, which was once the playground of Cambodia's elite before the Khmere Rouge oblittorated it during the 70's and 80's.

Kep comprises of palacial estates (well... now the ruins of), walled off from the streets and housing the devastated remains of large "French inspired" manors. The villagers have naturally moved in to inhabit the shells of houses (no roofs, no windows and in most cases only 1/2 walls and 1/2 floors) but have neither the money nor the means to restore them to their former glory. Shame really! Kep would have been spectacular in its hey-day.

Arriving when we did - between Christmas and New Years - we found it difficult to get a cheaper place to stay on the first night. We were forced (through necessity) to fork out US $25 for a ground floor room - with no hot showers, cold breakfasts and expensive fruit juices! As you can tell we were not overly impressed by this and found ourselves alternative (and cheaper) accommodation for the next 5 days a tthe Kep Seaside Guesthouse. Rumor had it that all the guesthouses had upped their prices for the onslought of foreigners (tourists and Expats from Phnom Penh) that make their way down to the coast for the holiday season. Despite this we had a place right on the beach (well... our Australian & American friends its not the sort of beach we are used to!). The so-called beach was a sandbox filed with imported white sand from further up the coast. The "actual" beach was a muddy bank of the Gulf of Thailand - strewn with a few small pebbles.

Playing the good tourists we succombed to the constant requests of the local tuk-tuk drivers and tour guides to visit the much hailed "Rabbit Island". The 15 minute boat trip across the bay found us on a grainey, grey sanded beach with storm clouds brewing on the horizon as the wind howled from the east. Picture perfect!!! We found the furtherest away bamboo platform (scattered all along the "beach") and made ourselves as comfortable as possible. Well... at least it didn't rain and the wind died down somewhat until it was finally time to board our boat for the return trip to Kep.

The next day we hired a scooter (1950's style Honda with no headlights, no front brakes, no speedometer, shattered shocks and nothing for the pillion passenger to hold on to) and bounced our way towards the town of Kampot. Kampot was famous for the production of black pepper and we were told that no restaraunt in Paris would have been without Kampot Pepper on its menu. Well.. things have changed somewhat! We searched and searched and searched for the renouned Pepper Plantation and, despite riding down the correct dirt track in the middle of "who knows where" we could not find it. Later we were told by the local tourism officer that we must have ridden right past the front gates - several times. Why oh why don't they have signs in English if its meant to be so famous and such a tourist draw??? Cynically we think its so you have to hire a tuk-tuk driver and guide :) Despite our failure, our desire for Kampot Pepper had not deminished so we made it for the markets in Kampot where we purchased 1/2 kg of the famous pepper corns. What are we going to do wit h1/2 kg of pepper? Ha!!! Wait and see what you get as a present next Christmas :)

There's not terribly much to do in Kep (the town is mostly a corner of 2 streets where the bus drops you off and a market area) - so we spent several days just relaxing, lying in seaside hammocks, watching the sun set over the Gulf and reading. What a perfect way to finish off 2007 and start 2008.

Ho Ho Ho - it IS a Merry Christmas

2007-12-26T01:51:00.000-08:00

After nearly two months of packing it through Thailand, Laos, and northern Cambodia, Si had a smug look on his face as he proclaimed that we would be having a ''VERY MERRY'' Christmas indeed.

Basked in dirt and filth from our ardurous and heated bus trip from Kampong Chanang, Si slyly showed the tuk tuk driver the name of the guesthouse we would be staying at in Phnom Penh. The angels sang as we entered the gates of the glorious Raffles La Royal Resort. One of the most exclusive of all their collection. Politely escorting us in and stating , "You look very tired""we were served up fresh squeezed juice in silver tumblers amid a festively decorated "writer's lounge" as our reservation and room was prepared.

How to describe the extravagance, luxury and grandiuer?..... The bathroom was three times as large as any of the rooms we had slept in. Shower, tub, robes, slippers, fancy toiletries, white sheets, puffy pillows, teek floors.. and a generous plate of delicious christmas cookies adorned with a marscarpone santa! I stood in awe for nealry an hour, then felt guilty touching anything due to not wanting to soil the prisitne condition. GLORIOUS!

Dinner on Christmas Eve was quite an experience - just in itself. Instead of eating at one of the several Raffles restaraunts - we hailed a taxi (well... actually it was a private taxi arranged by the Valet) ans went to Malis. This is a critically acclaimed and exquisite Khmere restaraunt in Phnom Penh - beautifully furnished around an outdoor terrace garden with ponds. We sipped on a bottle of Rosé after an apperitif of vodka and lime, and dined on scallops, fish amok and Khmere sweets. Everything was so perfect and presented so finely. Even the bill at the end of the evening (like the silverware) was served in a teak box. Our driver - still waiting patiently for us to complete the endulgence - generously took us on a night-time tour of the ciyt and showed us all the renowned sites - the gaudy US Embassy with its red, white and blue Christmas lights, Independence Monument, The Stupa and the Riverside Bars and Club district.

Our two days- extending to three were pure bliss. A workout room and spa (Nik's dream!), Gormet Buffet breakfast on the veranda each morning, and lounging under the frangapani trees poolside. What a way to enjoy the cheer of the holiday.

Being good all year surely paid off on Christmas, because Santa (Si) was surely kind to us. Dreesed in the best we could salvage from our packs, we started the evening in the reknowned Elepahnt Bar for predinner drinks accompanied by the best salsa and homemade yam chips. Thereafter, we were escroted into the intimate La Royal. Feeling just like christams, a beautiful tree sparkled and a grand piano enlighted with the playing of christmas carols. A four course dinner was presented in true elegance graced with the fine pairing of a South African Red (as recommeneded by the sommilier) and New Zealand Voigner. Pampering at its best!

After such a grand time, we packed up our dusty packs and hailed the tuk-tuk to send off to the coast- Kep.

Floating in Kampong Chanang

2007-12-24T02:29:00.000-08:00

Its quite funny but proving to be oh so true in our travels. The places you never planned to go to, or those that you never wanted to visit - often turn out to be the more colourful experiences. Kampong Chanang was just one of those times!

At first sight the town offers very little to a westerner and traveller. We were, yet again, accosted by tuk-tuk drivers at the bus stop and quickly whisked off to the nearest hotel with hot water (I'm sure you'll see a theme develop here). Well the 2 hotels in town were both fully booked for the night and we ended up in a small, grotty gusthouse - with cold water, bugs, screaming children running the varandah, loud tennants, buses and trucks roaring past the front door (as if to be in your room), another low bathroom entrance (for Si to bang his head on again!) and a beast of unknown genetics that crowed/ growled/ squawked outside the bedroom window all night! Oh yes.... we had scored a room in HELL!

However, our experience at the floating Vietnamese Village swept the previous sleepless nights pain all away. Its difficult to find the right words to describe the scene - and we wish we had the technology to upload many of the photo's we took. Let's try to explain....

We hired an ore boat (oared by a lovely Vietnamese/ Cambodian woman) for $3 and for the next hour she stroked the wooden canoe effortlesly through a village made entirely of floating houses, riverboats and barges. Everything was floating on the river - houses, mechanics, barbers, seemstresses, pig pens and every other necessity to village life. Villagers slept in hammocks, children smiled through windowless frames and jumped into the water, fishermen appeared from the rivers depths and people paddled their way to and from their daily activities. It was simply awesome and something neither of us had ever experienced. The peace and tranquility of the canoe moving through the water-fille streets and alleys. To behold such a spectacle was truely amazing and yet another moment of gratitude was felt by us both.

And that was not to be the only memorable and treasured moment of Kampong Chanang either. As mentioned earlier, Kampong Chinang offers very little to a westerner and traveller and there were very, very few other fellow travellers seen around town and the markets. Yet despite this a wonderful Cambodian woman pulled up alongside us at the markets, wound down here window and wished us (in English) a very Merry Christmas. How heart warming that was! How totally unexpected and seemingly out-of-place! How fantastic! How Kampong Chinang - full of unknown surprises!

Vientiane - is this really the capital?

2007-12-18T06:21:00.000-08:00

We are now nearing the end of our Laos journey (Part 1) and we find it hard to believe how quickly the 30 days has passed. We've travelled into the far north west of the country (near the Chinese and Burmese boarders), across into the north of central Laos (not too far from the Vietnamese boarder) and then followed the rivers through the middle of the country till we hit the capital - Vientiane.

This is a funny sort of capital. Perched on the banks of the Mekhong River (which in December is nearly bone dry and you could literally walk across the river floor into Thailand) its a strange mix of old French colonial, Lao and modern architecture. Mind you... there's not too much of the "modern".... just the odd shopping mall or office building. The city (or big country town) has many Vat's (sort of like a Wat in Thailand) dotted throughout the city.

We've seen Vat Sisa Ket that has thousands, and I mean literally thousand (6,481) Buddha's in its walls. Little ones, medium sized ones and huge ones! When we can we'll upload the photos - it truly is an amazing sight to behold! It was built in 1818 and is the oldest temple in Vientiane.

We've also visited the "Victory Monument" (built in the late 60's) which is Lao's version of the "Arch de Triumph" and walked onwards to That Luang. That Luang, the grand stupa, was built by one of the King's in 1566 and is believed to contain a relic of Buddha himself. The structure is some 45m high and has been restored several times after being damaged by "foreign invaders". It is now the symbol of the Lao Nation and is even on their Coat of Arms. Out the front is a statue of King Saysetthathalad (well... we think that's how you spell it) and it's flanked by several monasteries.

That Dum, or The Black Stupa, is also a prominent landmark that we've visited. Legend says that it is actually a shrine to the Naga (mighty water dragons) who are protectors of the city. Around the stupa are some of the most amazing 9and dilapidated) French colonial houses, all in various states of disrepair.

We've been trying to book flights into Siem Reap (Cambodia) but have been encountering a few "language" barriers at the travel agencies. Or maybe its just us??? We've tried small. boutique agencies, large ones and even the national carrier's Head Office - Lao Airlines. We just can't seem to get a straight answer out of anyone and cannot seem to purchase the Bangkok Air "Discover Pass", of which Lao Airlines is a partner. Oh well... at least we discovered the Scandinavian Bakery! This little respite from "day to day" Laos is full of every conceivable sweet treat you could imagine - cakes, pastries, chocolate and great coffee!

Legging it to Luang Namtha in the north

2007-11-20T05:08:00.000-08:00

In Thailand we had decided not to do one of the treks (otherwise known as tourist circus's) and read that we would have a much better experience in the north of Laos - either Luang Namtha or Muang Sing. So on the toss of a coin we headed from Huay Xai at the border to Luang Namtha. But the adventure started in Huay Xai.

Now that we had visa's and some Kip (Lao currency; US $1 = Kip $9,400) we needed another sawngthaew to take us from the border crossing to the bus station - the right bus station. Here we met Gerald - a great German man travelling by himself throughout Thailand and Laos. Gerlad was bargaining with the sawngthaew driver so we reduced his offer (as there was now 3 of us), made an agreement on the price and headed off in the back of his truck.

By the time we arrived at the bus station (we're not going to use the word "terminal" again as its insulting to all those real bus terminals) it was only 11am. The bus to Luang Numtha was scheduled to depart at 1.30! Oh well... plenty of time to chat and get to know our new friend Gerald. However at 11.30 there was all sorts of commotion around the bus. Tourists were being told to get their packs on the roof of the minibus, locals were putting their sacks of rice, bags of wood and canine animals in the aisles of the bus and everyone was ordered to get on board. Now, in Thailand we were used to everything running to "Thai time" - late. We were soon to learn about "Lao time" - that is when we are full and/ or ready to go, we will! So 2 hours ahead of schedule the bus left the boarder town of Huay Xai and we headed north. Unfortunately for the 2 of us, we chose the seat on top of the rear tyre well - meaning that we felt every single bump in the road. By the time we stopped for a break (3 hours into the trip) Si's bum was numb and legs cramped up under his chin.

Interestingly enough China is funding and building road networks from the north to the south - large, fully sealed roads for the Chinese trucks (full of Chinese manufactured products) to access the ports in Thailand. And not to be outdone, Vietnam is doing the same! So compared to 3 years ago (so an Italian told us) the roads are much better and the journey to Luang Numtha much quicker. It only took us 5 - 6 hours instead of the 10 hour hell ride of the past. But, as we were to continually discover, the "bus terminal" in Laos is typically several kilometers/ miles from the actual town - so we needed to get into yet another sawngthaew for the final journey into Luang Numtha. We think it might have something to do with "sharing the wealth"?? So the entire bus of people fro mthe boarder squeezed into an even smaller bus as we negotiated the fare. Strangely enough the driver wanted total payment up-front?? Like... where were we all going to run to?? Realising that the sawngthaew was not going to move until we paid up, we agreed to pay 1/2 asa deposit... and into town we rode.

Arriving in Luang Numtha reminded us both of some western town - desolate in the afternoon that we arrived. Where was everyone? The town comprised of a new part and an old part nearer to an airport. There seemed to be some form of market area that we dove past on the way in. There were even houses constructed out of brick and concrete (quite surprising actually as all the villages - every village we passed on the roads north - were all made of wood and thatch). But the streets were vacant... except for cats, dogs, chickens, roosters and children!

So, as usual for us we checked into a guesthouse (The Manychan Guesthouse) and went for a wander around the town and to book ourselves into a trek into the jungles and a visit to a number of hill tribes. By the time that was done, the sun was setting behind the mountains and the town was filling up with travellers (back from their treks) and locals (back from the fields). We settled into thge street-front bar/restaurant of our guesthouse and mixed it up with other worldly travellers: Alex from Canada, Ben from Sydney (Pymble), Liam from Ireland, Ginny from the US, Dave from the UK and Mr Hippy from Hawaii and a few locals (who's names I could not pronounce nor remember). Over a few BeerLao's (the best beer to drink in all of S. E. Asia) we all swapped travelling tales of horror bus rides and shocking guesthouses. Needing to fill our stomachs with more than just the liquid amber, we strolled across to the Night Market and indulged in an assortment of local fare; fresh vegetarian rolls/ wraps, eggplant rolls, BBQ'd chicken skewers, boiled eggs, chilli dips, sticky rice and fresh seasonal fruits.

Up, up and away to Huay Xai

2007-11-20T04:42:00.000-08:00

Who would have ever thought that getting into a socialist/ communist country would be so easy?

In the morning we got up, walked to the Immigration Centre at Pak Ban (10 minute walk up the road from Chiang Khong) and checked out of Thailand. We then meandered down the dirt road to the riverside where a flotilla of "long boats" were moored to the banks, paid our fare, jumped on board a boat and some 2 minutes later we were in Huay Xai, Laos. Going home to our respective countries is much more difficult and arduous!

At Huay Xai we filled in the necessary visa applications at the wharf, gave Lao Immigration a photo of each of us (we're sure that this is for the secret file that they now have on us) and paid our dues. Interestingly enough the visa fee for an Australia is only US$30 while for an American citizen it's US$35. But my fellow Americans don't be discouraged for the Canadians have to pay the most - US $42.

It must have taken us all of 20 minutes to depart Thailand, cross the river, get our visa's and be standing (legally) in Laos. And to our joy and surprise we were granted 30 day visa's instead of 15... so we had time to burn!

Chiang Khong respite

2007-11-19T04:09:00.000-08:00

After our day long ordeal we stumbled into the Bamboo Riverside Guesthouse; a ramshackled collection of bamboo bungalows nestled in a jungle like setting and perched next to the river. Complementing its bohemian look and feel were the two owners - seemingly "hippy" Thais who were renowned for the best Mexican food and chocolate cake in town. It all seemed a touch surreal.

Our first night's stay was spent in what can only be described as insect filth (please refer to "outhouse" in any dictionary). Because the walls and roof were thatched with palm leaves, all sorts of critters had happily made their homes. Peeling back the strategically closed window curtains revealed a half-inch high pile of insect droppings while the ceiling showed evidence of ant nests - active ant nests! And to finish everything off - the double bed was 2 singles pushed together (one being the box spring) and the mattresses and pillows seemed to be made from wood (or stone). Needless to say, after quite a sleepless night (due to the critters munching and squeaking, Si's snoring and the Tee Pee Bar's blaring music) we found ourselves relocated to a much more suitable room.

Despite the state of our dwelling, the town was very nice and friendly. To help get over the "ride from hell" (See Mae Sai to Chiang Khong article) and the less than comfortable nights sleep, we found a little massage parlour and indulged ourselves in a 1 hour Thai Massage. Too loosen the cramped muscles each morning we ran and worked out along the riverside as we watched the boats ferry people and produce between the two countries. We also discovered an amazing "street meats" stall selling the most luscious river fish in all of Thailand. It was so delicious that we ended up eating there every night and the owner ever tried teaching us some Thai words and phrases.

After 2 days of R & R we hired a little scooter (no way near as big as our previous 125CC bike in Chiang Rai) and headed for the hills. Our initial plan was to visit a scenic lookout, a waterfall of local renown and a beach to sunbathe on. Despite our best efforts at navigating, our grasp of the Thai language let us down as we couldn't read any of the street signs. Instead we found ourselves winding up mountains and down the other side, riding over dirt and gravel sections of roads on our little trike. At the peak of mountains we would have to rug-up due to the cold winter air and as we descended things would gradually heat up again. As we searched for one of our 3 planned destinations (the waterfall) we took a side route and found ourselves riding through the middle of some village. From the looks on the children's and adult's faces, we don't think that they have either (a) seen many white people before, or (b) we were definitely not meant to be in their village -possibly a bit of both we think.

Realising that we were never going to find the lookout, waterfall or beach we decided to follow the road to a town called Phu Chi Fa - or so we thought. Kilometers rolled on beneath our feet as we continued up and down more mountains, through rice paddies, bamboo groves and villages. At least we could follow the signs to the town of Phu Chi Fa. Well.... another surprise was install for us! Phu Chi Fa was not a town, not even a village, not even a hut! Phu Chi Fa was a national park on top of yet another mountain. Somewhat disappointed but eternally amused when we arrived and realised this fact, we stopped off and had a lunch of roasted chicken and purple wild sticky rice. With bellies once again full, tourist map (in Thai) in hand and the sun starting to set in the west, we headed down the far side of Phu Chi Fa (through Ban Huak, Thueng and numerous small villages) and eventually made it back into Chiang Khong (just in time to grab the last fish from our favourite vendor). Many thanks to the school children of Thoeng for pointing the "farang" in the right direction!

On the trip we decided that it was time to cross over to the other side - to go into Laos. We were recharged and ready!

Mae Sai to Chiang Khong sawngthaew saga

2007-11-18T03:39:00.000-08:00

We set off from Mae Sai thinking it was going to be a couple of easy hours on a bus. How wrong could we be?? Firstly we jumped a sawngthaew to the main Bus Terminal only to discover that we couldn't purchase any bus tickets! Why? We were at the wrong terminal! So we grabbed yet another sawngthaew and headed back into town and towards the "other" bus terminal near the boarder gates with Burma. Well... bus terminal is a word obviously used very loosely in Thailand! In reality it was 2 sawngthaew's parked on the side of the road and a small, hand painted sign saying "Bus Stop". After our "round about" trip we purchased 2 seats in the back of the "local bus" (really it was just yet another sawngthaew) and waited.... and waited... and waited... and waited! Each time we asked for our departure time we were cheerfully advised in broken English that we would leave in 20 minutes. Do you know how many times we waited 20 minutes?? So after about 2 hours and when all the locals (19 squeezed into something that could only be licensed to carry 10) were ready to leave (stocked up with months of groceries in hessian sacks, sacks of rice, dried meats, medicinal herbs, sticky rice and other assorted necessities) we left Mae Sai - bound for Chiang Khong. We were so tightly jammed into the back of the truck that Si chose instead to stand out the back, hanging on for dear life while Nik mixed it with the elderly women of several villages who were munching on something less than aromatic.

After 3 hours we pulled into another small town on the Mekong River - Chiang Saen - where we were advised that we needed to alight the bus and find another one to take us to Chiang Khong. Whilst it was refreshing for Nik to finally have some fresh air, do you think that the buses all left from the one place? No! So off we set, backpacks loaded up and searched for the "other" bus terminal. Ha! Of course this one was some 5 minutes walk away and had no signage what so ever. After looking like a lost tourist and wondering aimlessly up and down streets, Si was finally approached by some concerned local who kindly pointed to a row of sawngthaews that would take us to our intended destination. Once again we squeezed into a jam-packed sawngthaew (21 people this time) and thought that we'd arrive in only a few hours. Like the previous ride, this one was overloaded with rice sacks, fruit bags, boxes of "who knows what" and a brand new bicycle. In a puff of black, diesel smoke (and with Si once again hanging off the back) we sped out of town; gears grinding all the way.

The journey was quite amazing in its scenery... as if we were riding through the vegetable garden of Thailand; the Mekong River to our left and vegetable gardens all over the countryside mixed with rice paddies, banana groves and scatterings of villages. Some 2 hours later we stopped at Ban Hua (please don't ask us where it is cause we can't find it on any map). Here we were told to get off as the driver kindly pointed to yet another, yes another, sawngthaew and kept saying "Chiang Khong, Chiang Khong". Obviously... well more in hope... we assumed that THIS was to be our bus! And low-and-behold after another 3 hour ride in the back of a sawngthaew were landed in Chiang Khong. The entire journey had taken over 8 hours to complete (never believe everything you read in the Lonely Planet Guides) but here we were on the banks of the Mekong, looking across at Laos.

Golden triangle... or golden trash?

2007-11-16T02:01:00.000-08:00

Screaming down the highway at 110km/h (locals seem to drive as slowly as they walk) we took the turn off from Chiang Rai - Mae Sai towards Chiang Sean, Sop Ruak and the infamous "Golden Triangle". What's a visit to Northern Thailand without visiting the boundaries of Thailand, Laos and Burma (Myanmar).

And what a site to behold! After our formative years of hearing CNN, NBC ,ABC, BBC and alike filing stories by foreign correspondents from the drug ridden, opium smoldering jungles of the region - it was deflating to see what now confronted us! 2 large, cement elephants with a walkway between them, surrounded by gaudy, golden pillars and signs celebrating the destination. Slightly off to the left hand side of the celebratory monument was the Chinese inspired "Crystal Ship" which acted as the entrance to a giant golden Buddha. Aside from the fact that the Golden Triangle was now no more than tourist trash, the music blaring from the speakers made our ears bleed. Both Nik and I pride ourselves on our eclectic and diverse tastes in music - but this was something else!!! So to relieve our ears we made a dash down the far side of the street where we were confronted by store after store after store of, what can only be viewed as, tourist trash. Cheap, fake watches, t-shirts, imitation Hill Tribe dresses, tea towels... it was endless!!!

So as fast as we arrived on our Honda Daytona 250CC - we set off into the sun set (bugs between our teeth) and towards what we thought might be our next place of residence.... The Mae Sai Guest House on the banks of the Mekong River...

Rip roaring around Chiang Rai

2007-11-14T01:27:00.000-08:00

After leaving the tourist trap that was Chiang Mai, we headed off on another bus adventure - this time further north to Chiang Rai. The "Lonely Planet" made it pretty clear that there wasn't teribly much to do in Chiang Rai except arrange a trek into the mountains, do a bit of rafting and sleep with the odd Hill Tribe. But as we expected, it was much like Chiang Rai with the same areas and same Hill Tribes being visited. Si calls it eco-tourism gone a wry. Anyway, it didn't really matter because we'd already decided to leave the Hill Tribes, trekking and rafting alone until we get to Northern Laos where there are strict environmental guidelines and protocols for such activities. And above all this - there are organisations that put 90% of the revenue raised back directly into the villages.

So with that in mind we arrived at Chiang Rai Bus Terminal after a 6 hour ride from Chiang Rai and jumped in a sawngthaew (sort of a mini truck/ utility with two rows of seats along the covered, rear tray. To you Aussies - like a covered ute with seats running along each side of the tray) and headed for our next Guest House - The Chat House. Here we were greeted by John (a small, funny Thai guy) who ensured we were checked in and all settled. the room was small... but clean and not an ant in sight! There was even fresh towels and a large bottle of water for us. So... after a cursory glance around the room (and the bathroom) we dropped our packs and went on our routine stroll around town - to get our bearings.

We wandered along several back and side streets and through the maze that is the "Morning Markets". As we came out of the darkness we entered what is known as the Chiang Rai Night Food Markets where stalls sell all sorts of wonderful (and sometimes strange) fruits, vegetables and meats. There was everything from the usual watermelon, pineapple, pomelo, tomatoes and Chinese broccoli - through to deep fried fish, grilled chicken, spicy mushroom salads, cockroaches, crickets, grubs and fresh frogs (no not just the legs... the whole Kermit). After sampling some of the local goodness (and cockroaches are particularly flavoursome!!) we headed back to The Chat House.

We all know that looks can be deceiving! And we all know that things are not always what they seem! Well... we know know what its like to sleep on a rock! I thought that futons were tough... Nik thought the beds in China were rough :) But the bed in Apartment 14 at The Chat House was down right solid and flat! At first we thought we had been given another bed base (box springs - but with no springs!!) - then we realised that it was a mattress. For us it may have well been a plank of wood. Needless to say we asked for another room the very next morning and thoroughly tested the "softness" of the mattress before agreeing to the transfer into Apartment 9.

Then on one fine, sunny Chiang Rai day we decided to hire a motorcycle and head for them hills! From the Guest House we hired a 125CC Honda Daytona (all the bikes in Thailand are tiny - nothing seems bigger than 250CC - but they all have such macho names... Tiger, Razor, Devil, Wasp, Pantha, etc...). With a map in hand we rode off in search of the Buddha Painting and Pu Tu Caves - just past the outskirts of town. I don't know about you guys but when I hire a vehilce, I expect there to be a full tank of gas with it. HA!! I should have checked before heading for those hills!! As luck would have it (and Si's poker gang know just how lucky he is:) we ran out of juice about a mile after the road turned from bitumen to dirt. So around we turned and Si pushed the bike to the top of the hill and we coasted back down into a small village. Fortunately there was a gas station in this village. Well.. O use the term gas station very loosely! It was in fact 3 barrels of fuel (I assume Diesel, Super and Unleaded???) with a hand pump and measuring unit attached to the top of each. You manually pumped the gas into the measuring unit - and when you'd filled it to the desired level, you pumped it into your gas tank. 300 Baht later we were all filled up and back on our way.

Tu Pu and Buddha Caves were quite spectacular - with numerous carvings and statues of Buddha... in various states of "enlightenment"... scattered all over the caves. At the Buddha Cave there was a lovely old monk giving sermons to some locals (I wish we knew more Thai as the locals seemed totally intrigued by whatever he was saying), while at Tu Pu Cave they were completing an engraving of Buddha on a huge cliff face (and applying gold leaf to his feet). Then back on our chariot and into the jungle we headed.... up into the mountains, off the regular roads and tracks and into the wilderness. I'm sure that we were riding on someones "private" property for a long time - until the track ran out and the jungle really started. But what amazing views... rice paddies down in the gullies and valleys, Brahma cows grazing on old grass, a stream gently flowing through the countryside and a worker clearing the bamboo. Absolutely tranquil! Afterwards we continued up another path that lead us to a lookout - The Sea of Clouds - that sits some 945 meters above sea level. From here it felt like we could see not only all of Northern Thailand, but a million clouds as well. From the state of the lookout and the track leading to it - we don't think the "tourist hoards" make it this far. On the way down it was hard on the rear brakes as the bike slid sideways... Nik holding on for dear life. Meandering our way further up the valley, we came across a beautifully peaceful waterfall area... with no one but the 2 of us and a few workers building some tourist contraption. When the spray of the falls had cooled our faces and we'd caught our breath, we saddled up again and made our way for the Golden Triangle...

My oh my... Chiang Mai

2007-11-11T01:55:00.000-08:00

Heading north, we spent 3 days toiling in Chiang Mai. We were rather worried upon departure due to lack of accommodation, despite contacting several guest houses. Upon arrival we had to laugh, every building is either a guest house, white man bar or travel agency selling overpriced treks into the wilderness. Blue House for 300 baht a night was our place of rest. As it's title- it was a big blue house recently bought for 54,000 US and updated with a little garden and of course a travel agency!

Rented bikes ( yes with baskets on the front!)to visit the numerous Wats and the moat that surrounds the old city. As there are no stop lights- nor traffic laws- and the tires were not exactly straight- riding the bikes was even more of an adventure- at times I felt like I was the frog in frogger. Simon and I found tranquility in amidst a Buddhist garden in the center of town. Each tree amongst the grove had a Buddhist saying in English and Thai. Such a lovely place to sit and reflect with the rays of sunshine filtering in.

Simon and I both wanted to experience a thai boxing fight during our travels. Having breakfast one morning- a small truck with a rigged up sound system was patrolling the streets blasting an advertisement for the boxing fights held every Wednesday and Friday. Our Guest house provided us deal tickets- saving us 50 baht. Having had enough of street meat and markets- we decided to treat ourselves to some fine dining- Italian! Well known in Chiang Mai for the best Italian food, Giorgio's tasted heavenly. Giorigo himself from Italy was there to oversee it all- including the wine.

The big Thai match turned out to be a round eye fest-everyone in the stands was from the west and the "big international" match was on Friday. This did not take way from the rawness of the matches. With concentration and determination in their eyes- the fighters pummeled and kicked their way to a defeat. Simon took some fantastic video which will be posted for your enjoyment.

Visted the night markets to puruse through all the glourious junk found everywhere in Asia. We mangaed to find a handmade textile sotre of the beaten path. There we purchased a gorgeous antique hand made tapestry and green shawl.

Method to the madness

2007-11-07T04:31:00.000-08:00

Despite Phits being the pits, there was a sound rationale as to why we chose to stay there.

Not far from Phitsanulok is the historical park of Sukhothai (meaning rising happiness). Found in the 13th century, Sukhothai (literally means Dawn of Happiness) was the first truly independent Thai Kingdom, which enjoyed a golden age under King Ramkhamhaeng, credited with creating the Thai alphabet. The superb temples and monuments of this city have been restored in Sukhothai Historical Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ruins of the royal palaces, Buddhist temples, the city gates, walls, moats, dams, ditches, ponds, canals, and the water dyke control system, which was the magical and spiritual centre of the kingdom, are now preserved or have been restored.

As we meandered around the historical ruins of past glory, we watched as the Thai's were setting up for the Loi Krathong Festival (November 24 - 26) where they'll set small tea-lights afloat on the waterways across Thailand. “Loi Krathong” is traditionally performed on the full moon night of the twelfth lunar month. The floating of a ‘Krathong' – a banana–leaf cup – is intended to float away ill fortune as well as to express apologies to Khongkha or Ganga, the River Goddess. Some believe that the ritual is meant to worship the Buddha's footprint on the bank of the Narmada River, while others say that it is to pay respect to Phra Uppakhut, one of the Lord Buddha's great disciples.

What can we say? After the hell that was Phitsanulok (or more specifically The LiThai), Sukhotai offered an amazing relief or respite. Its tranquility and monuments are awe-inspiring! To be able to walk in the shadows of past kings with no barriers to the experience was magical. You could literally touch 30 foot tall Bhudda's that are centuries old, sit on ancient stupa's and wander through ruined chedi's. It was all, literally, at your fingertips. And an added bonus - no hawkers!

To get some idea of what we experienced, just click on the Si and Nik Photos link in the right hand column... we took MANY photo's of Sukhothai. Loved it!! Highly recommended!!

Phits is the pits!

2007-11-06T03:58:00.000-08:00

You never know how good you've got it till its gone!

To us "westerners" the meaning of "double room" and "cleanliness" conjure up visions of a standard place for accommodation. Welcome to The LiThai of Phitsanulok! To them these words have a completely different meaning... or maybe its something that gets lost in translation???

The room itself was barely big enough to swing a cat; the "double" bed was a deconstructed queen single - split in half. Consequently Nik got the top half and Si got the box springs! And it didn't stop there. We had the pleasure of entertaining a steady stream of small ants who traipsed across what spare floor space there was.... across the floor in the bedroom... over the TV... and into the bathroom... across the mirror and into the sink. these little buggers even found their way into Nik's toothbrush!

Fortunately for Nik, Si was on hand to squash every ant in sight, flush the toothbrush, check the beds and in the course of filling his duties banged his head on the doorway into the bathroom - not just once, not just twice, not even 3 times - but at least 5 times. What is it with little people??? Who designs or builds a doorway for people 4 foot nothing in height?? Obviously the Thai's!!! So now we had no room to move, ants invading everywhere and a sore head for Si (complete with a row of cranial scars). And to cap the hotel experience off, we arranged for them to do a bag of washing for us (some things were starting to walk on their own accord). Besides paying far too much (200 Baht = US $8) Nik found (much to her distress) that one of her favourite tops had been destroyed by bleach. I mean bleach! What on God's earth (or Buddha's for that matter) were they doing with bleach on a coloured top??? The hotel were quick to show me a sign in English that said... All care but no responsibility. I was just as quick to say 100 Baht, not 200.... and the deal was done.

That's what you get for being "tight"... and other bloggers had commented that this was the "choice" place to stay in town! Are they kidding?? We can only imagine the state of other hotels if The LiThai was the "Mandarin Oriental" of Phitsanulok.

But not everything was that bad! Only the hotel was. Once we got out into the town we experienced some great night markets, bars and restaurants floating on the river, fresh fruit and vegetable markets (Phitsanulok is the junction for a wide range of produce from the north of Thailand) and a few interesting Wat's.

What's a Wat we hear you ask?? Stay tuned... we'll deal with that topic later.

One night while we were sitting at the markets having dinner (grilled fish with chicken feet and cucumber salad) we witnessed and extraordinary event. A stall-keeper (well... more of a tarp owner) dropped several garbage bags of yellow "polo shirts" and the frenzy started. It was like an End of Year Sale... All stock must go!!! Men and women were going crazy for these yellow shirts. Why?? We asked the very same question! It's not like they're very attractive shirts! I mean... they're pale yellow to start with. As it turns out - yellow is the King's colour and Thai's are VERY passionate about their King. So as you stroll through any town in Thailand you'll see many people fitted out in the same yellow polo shirts. All we think is... lucky person who makes them!

Aside from that moment of amusement... Phits was the pits!

Escaping the Bang

2007-11-04T03:39:00.000-08:00

After 3 days of getting used to the heat, the humidity, the traffic, the noise and the general bustle of Bangkok, we decided to "blow that pop stand" and head for the hills. So after some consulting of the trusty "Lonely Planet Guide" we settled on Phitsanulok (or Philok to the locals).

Well... things are never as easy as they seem! We thought we'd be a little clever and ask the TAT (Thai Tourism Office) to write the direction to the bus station where we were to purchase our tickets. Having a scap piece of paper, with directions written in Thai, in our hands we jumped on the local bus (Number 3) and headed for what we thought was the Bangkok Bus Terminal. When we arrived at Mo Chit we saw a grand structure with lots of traffic and the word "Terminal" written on the side of one building. Ha! Aren't we clever we thought! Wasn't that hard after all! So off we strutted to the nearest ticket booth and asked for 2 tickets to Phitsanulok - departing tomorrow please. The poor lady behind the glass window looked at us in a strange way, spoke something to one of her colleagues (probably something not so flattering) and instructed us that we were at the wrong location. Fortunately for us, she also offered us another scarp piece of paper (written in Thai too) with the correct destination on it. So... the journey continued in a taxi and some 45 minutes later we arrived at another "Bangkok Bus Terminal" - this time out near the International Airport.

Then the next hurdle was encountered.... navigating the hoards of tuk-tuk and taxi drivers offering rides to anywhere you want and the maze of ticket booths with buses heading all over Thailand. Taking it all in our stride we eventually found the correct window (after being directed inside, then outside, then inside, then outside...) and purchased our escape from Bang.

With tickets in hand it was time to haggle on the taxi fare and hit the road for our guest house as the two Thai ladies were waiting to give us our massage.

Glamorous gold and kitch

2007-11-02T04:19:00.000-07:00

Nothing beats starting the day trying to run through the smoggiest streets of Bangkok in morning traffic. Si had the police holding up traffic, as I slapped elementary children high fives on their way to school.

Breakfast was severed in the serene garden- pasta soup with suet and tofu, herb and Parmesan mushrooms, dragon fruit and watermelon+carrot juice.. interesting menagerie of breakfast foods. I enjoyed a persimmon reminding of the best ones from the little market in Jaingmen.

Off into the heat... Took a refreshing ferry taxi along the Mae Nom Chao Phraya (the main river that runs through town) to the Ko Ratanakosin area where the country's most valued and holy sites are located. Dressed appropriately today, we entered the the Grounds of the Grand Palace. Truly remarkable... the ornate gaudiness! We were transfixed by the glimmering gold tiles each placed individually by hand. More surprising was the Emerald Buddha in Wat Phra Kaew. Immersed in golden splendor- to our surprise was only about two feet tall. The little, green, fat guy was placed high up in the rafters - on top of an ornate golden perch, surrounded by other Buddha's at the base. Everyone was made to sit on the floor with feet folded under... to show due respect. Be sure to check out the pictures to experience the extravagance. (Click on si and nik's photos in the right hand column to go to our Flickr account).

Strolled along the markets where all such lovely treasures ( i.e junk) could be purchased for thrice the price of it's value. Think garage sale blowouts- one could even find dentures and golden crowns! But the pineapple was divine!

With the King's Birthday quickly approaching and Loi Festival, traffic along the river was stopped on our return. A number of the king's royal barges floated down the river accompanied by a flotilla of police escorts. The river, normally a lifeline for transportation and a hub of frantic activity, was brought to a grinding halt for the entire afternoon.

Later that evening we indulged in the best Thai massages compliments of our guest house. Mats were laid in the teak bungalow adjacent to the lush garden area as soft tones were piped through the stereo. The girls knew exactly which pressure points to attend to. At the completion of the hour long session, we were graciously we were treated with fresh ginger tea. Felt like bliss after our trekking through Bangkok.

Bangkok touch down

2007-11-01T05:31:00.000-07:00

We finally made it! After months of talking and planning and an 11 hour flight via Brisbane, we arrived exhausted (well... one of us was exhausted) in Bangkok. Poor Nik spent the entire flight wedged between myself and another snoring comrade - so barely got a wink in herself. At 5.45am it was 24C (77F) as we made quick passage through immigration, customs and the baggage hall.

After picking up our packs we hailed a taxi and made our way into town and the hotel that is our home for the 3 (or so) days here. Given we arrived at the hotel at 7.30am, it wasn't to surprising to hear that our room wasn't ready yet. So we just sat back in the open and airy courtyard, had a few coffee's and enjoyed a plate of fresh fruit. By 8.30am we were checked in and Nik was catching up on her lost ZZZ's.

By lunchtime we decide to leave our sanctuary and explore the local neighbourhood - just to get our bearings. However, like what happened in Shanghai, we ended up walking for miles (and miles and miles). We started up the north side of town at Thanon Krung Kasem and meandered our way down to the river, via stalls full of exotic plants. Discovering it was a dead end, we came back and turned into Thanon Sam Sen and headed south towards Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and the Grand Palace.

Somewhere along the way we encountered our first friendly Thai scam. Apparently certain temples of great interest were only open to tourists today (Wednesday 30th October).. so we had to make sure we visited them immediately. However this really was our lucky day! Certain "tuk tuk" drivers (the Yellow ones) were offering a 20 Baht special and would take us anywhere in Central Bangkok, including the soon to be closed Temples. Did we really look that gullible? As we had both encountered similar opportunities in China and Vietnam in the past, we politely thanked our new friend and continued to stretch our legs.

Then we encountered the famous (or infamous) Thanon Khao San. Apparently this strip is "backpacker heaven" but we failed to see the appeal. So we took a right into Thanon Ratchadamneon Klang and made our way towards the Democracy Monument (kind of funny given the Monarchy's support for a Military Coup??).

And then we encountered scam number 2. This one was a lot better carried out and far less obvious. We were wandering down the street when a German (Andy) from Munich sided up to us and struck up conversation. He seemed nice enough.... was his 2nd trip to Thailand (first one was 3 years ago), was travelling alone (he preferred it that way) and was about to leave the capital for some scuba diving in the Andaman Sea. Hmm... all seemed perfectly OK at this stage. Then he suggested that we drop into his "travel agent" to get some information on our travels throughout S.E. Asia, as he was heading there anyway to pick up some papers. Well, it couldn't hurt could it?? So off to Andy's travel agent we went. As soon as we stepped in the door things seemed a little awkward with Andy as no one was quite sure how to act. We were shuffled to a desk while Andy "waited" for his papers from Mr Henry. As soon as we were seated Andy was out the door and onto his next catch. So for about 1 hour we were sold on jungle tours, rafting expeditions, hill tribe night stays, bus trips, flight itineraries and visa applications - all at exhorbanant prices. Smelling that we had been sold down the river by Andy we thanked our next new friend (Mr Henry) and wandered out - promising to be back with firm dates and plans. And as luck would have it, we bumped back int our mate Andy who had another 2 unsuspecting tourists by his side on his way to his travel agency (surely to pick up those papers he'd forgotten when he dropped us off).

From here we got ourselves a little disorientated (OK.. lost). We wandered around streets, lanes and alleys.... through markets and around in circles until the sun went down. De ja vous really does exist! We finally grew tired and decided to grab some chicken (street meat) from a street stall as we consulted the handy Lonely Planet Guide and got ourselves back on track. Eventually we made it back to our sanctuary, ready for Day 2 of our adventure.

It's a mess in there!

2007-10-19T03:37:00.000-07:00

The apartment is like a bomb has hit it!

We've got piles of clothes... the "Yes, I'm definitely taking that" pile, the "Hmmmm, maybe??" pile and the "Not a chance, do you know how hot it's going to be!!" pile. Then there's the toiletries, the first aid kit, the cameras and cords, guide books, iPods and chargers.... And that's just the bedroom!

Fortunately for me, Nik has been an absolute savior and cleaned/ scrubbed out the kitchen and living room (and I can't thank her enough for doing that) while I've been working in Tasmania... so we've also got a pile of boxes to go into storage. Lucky for us Alan will be "house sitting" for the 6 months we're away, so we can leave all the furniture and furnishings pretty much in place.

So now there's just a little bit of cleaning to do, place the car and motorbike into the garage, lock everything up and away we go...

Only 11 days to go!

Locked & loaded

2007-09-27T19:07:00.000-07:00

It's locked in!

Flight is booked and paid for, Thai visa's are being arranged as I type and accommodation has been arranged at a gorgeous little boutique hotel in the old part of town (www.phranakorn-nornlen.com).

Tuesday October 30 on TG992...

Bangkok here we come and the adventure starts!

Visa requirements

2007-09-19T01:02:00.000-07:00

Hmm.... more planning required. Oh well, life wasn't meant to be easy!

As we've started to prepare for our adventure, we've unearthed the complexities of visa requirements for each of the countries we planned on visiting. Funny! And here were we just thinking we could aimlessly meander through these countries with no hassles at all. Simply pick up the next countries visa before wandering across the next boarder. How wrong you can be!

So we've had to rethink some of our planned timings. It looks like we will buy a "return" flight ticket (Sydney-Bangkok-Sydney) that is valid for 12 months and won't cost a cent to change the departure date. We'll enter Thailand with a return date 1 month after we arrive - enabling us to get the 30 day Thailand visa with no trouble. Then we'll simply reschedule the return leg of the flight to some time in March 2008. Problem solved for Thailand. Laos and Vietnam will be pretty easy to sort out too - given that we'll fly out of Vientiane into Ha Noi and then out of Vietnam via Ho Chi Minh.

What we still need to work on is our Cambodian visa's. As we can't really commit to dates at this early stage, we're thinking of just taking the necessary visa application forms with us and getting them at the embassies along the way. After all... what's a few days waiting when you have no fixed plans???

And so it starts!

2007-09-15T22:19:00.000-07:00

Passports.... CHECK!
Backpacks... CHECK!
Vaccinations... CHECK!
Flight tickets... CHECK!
Digital cameras... CHECK!
Sense of adventure... CHECK!

Travel plan... what plan??? Oh... THAT plan!

Well, sort of. We've mapped out where we roughly want to go, what we want to see and experience and that's about it.

Broadly speaking we are planning on hitting Bangkok in Thailand at the end of October. From there we want to head north where we will eventually cross into Laos and travel down the Mekong River towards Luang Prabang. Then we think we'll head further south into the Laotian capital where we will eventually catch a flight into Hanoi in northern Vietnam. After heading into the mountains to the north west of Hanoi, we think we'll follow the coastline south and into Ho Chi Minh. From there we fly into Siem Reap in Cambodia and follow the river south towards Phnom Penh. Then from here we'll shoot towards the coast of Cambodia and settle in the sun on the islands of Kep before heading into northern Cambodia and crossing into southern Laos. When we finally reach Pakse we will catch a flight back to Bangkok and then do a little side trip into Maynmar before returning to Bangkok.

And that's about as far as we've got with our plans. Our estimates are that this section of the adventure might take 6 months in itself - and we haven't yet made it into Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia or East Timor. Then again we might find some of the cities quite boring and travel much faster through some of the countries than we currently think...

Only time will tell.... Let the adventure begin!