We're home! - Eric's report

So yeah, like Julie said... we're home. I'm sitting at home in Arizona right now, reflecting. And by reflecting I mean loading my bootleg games and eating western food again. haha. No, but seriously... it's weird to be back. I am both sad and glad to be back.

Obviously we were very busy taking everything in and blogging wasn't our #1 priority, although we did try to keep it up to date.... obviously there's TONS of stuff to still talk about, report, and laugh about.... so what I'm going to do is continue blogging and fill in some gaps and try and share more.

One thing that was an experience is I actually got a ticket! Yup, pulled over by the Pai police and was issued a ticket for not wearing a helmet while riding a motorbike and was made to pay a $200 baht ($6.71 usd) fine on the spot. Total bullshit. NO ONE wears helmets in this town, especially the locals.... there's 3k people in this tiny town, no car traffic, everyone drives 20km or slower. Basically they set up like a trap at a common tourist intersection (this one was the intersection you must pass through to get to a popular waterfall) and just pull everyone over. Of course the bike rental place never once mentioned that this was actually a law. Anyway, here's my first, and hopefully last, ticket from Thailand.

We're home- sort of. Julie's post

After a 15 hour flight, we arrived at LAX last night around 8:30. This time we were smart and asked for an exit row on both flights. On the longer flight from Taipei to L.A. the plane was so large that our exit row seating really had no seating for 6 feet in front of us which was wonderful. We bought those u-shaped travel pillows and they made all the difference too. I slept a good 9 hours on the last flight. The longer flight had 150 seats free unlike the flight going which was totally packed. So we had no one sitting next to us which also made sleeping easier. I think I'm always going to ask for the exit row when we fly internationally.

Customs was such a procedure, more so than I ever knew. First we got bussed from our outskirts terminal with the hundreds of other passengers. However, we had to wait for the 2nd bus. Then we stood in the customs line for a good while and got asked the standard questions, then got our checked baggage, and stood in another customs line to leave. It only took about 45 minutes but it seemed much longer after still being groggy from the flight.

The last couple days we met up with Jenny in Bangkok and stayed in a very nice hotel in downtown with all the skyscrapers. Some highlights were going to a swanky jazz club at the very posh Sheraton Grand. We paid $12 US for drinks and went in totally under dressed with not a care in the world. When I'd look around at all those international tourists, I swear we were getting the evil eye from a good number of them. The waitress was also very rude and snooty which was kind of bizarre considering she's a waitress at a Sheraton in Thailand. The music was amazing though and that's all that matters!!

Some good points were riding the sky train above Bangkok, going to the Chatuchak market, and last but not least MBK 8-story mall where Eric bought a couple of bootleg games and we gawked at the size and scale of the place.

Our last couple days in Pai were bittersweet as we really didn't want to leave. It was just incredible. Our last full day there we got on our motorbikes and rode around for half the day just looking at the beautiful scenery and taking pictures.

We're in Orange County staying with Eric's parents until tomorrow. Then we'll drive home with the dogs and start our life over again in this crazy place called America. It's been quite a shift just driving around this area and trying to get accustomed with this American lifestyle again. It is nice to be home. :)

Left Chiang Mai, now in Pai - Eric's report

After more eating, more drinking, more Muay Thai (I won $400B from a Scottish guy sitting next to me), and more shopping, we left Chiang Mai on monday morning. So after a 4hr mini-van ride from Chiang Mai we are now in the little valley city of Pai (pronounced "Bye"). We were only going to spend a few days here but we love it so much we're going to finish out our trip here and stay until Saturday morning when we will mini-van back to Chiang Mai and fly to Bangkok... spend the night in downtown, and fly home on Sunday evening.

Pai is awesome... it's a little city basically comprised of a 2km rectangle... so it's very small but it's very artsy, very hippy, and very beautiful. It's tucked in-between the mountains in a little misty valley. The surrounding mountains are very lush and the skies are clear (during the day when it's not raining.. rain starts around 4pm), clean, and blue. There's a nice river that snakes through the town. The first two nights we stayed on the river with an amazing view... there was a little bamboo bridge that connected our side (side the town is on) to the other side of the river. There were three bridges actually.. all very janky. No lights, no handrails, and not very sturdy. On the other side of the river are these bamboo bungalows nestled right on the banks of the river. Guests of those bungalows had to park their motor bikes on our side and walk across to reach their "home". Monday night as we were sitting alongside the river I joked about the stability of the bridges and laughed imagining drunk people trying to cross at night. Well anyway, it rained all night and when we woke up in the morning guess what... all 3 bridges were GONE! Completely washed away. Julie and I sat and ate breakfast watching the unfortunate people who stayed over there try to cross the swift moving river with 12kilo backpacks above their heads... water up to their chest. Sucks. One dude slipped and fell soaking everything.

So later that day we chatted it up with the owner of a restaurant... an American expat from Alaska who's lived here for about 8 years. He told us that in 2005 the river flooded and washed away all the bungalows on that side of the river. Apparently they are built on flood plains. 30 people died as their bungalows were washed away at 5am. Imagine waking up to that. So after 2005 the Thai government stepped in and said no one could build bungalows there..... so what did the owners do? They built them up the hill and moved them back down into the flood zone. Unreal. Anyone who stays over there is literally risking their lives and they don't even know it. Crazy the stuff you learn when you talk to locals.

More on Pai later, I'm hungry. :)

-Eric

Left Chiang Mai for the beautiful city of Pai!!! Julie's post

On Sunday night we took to the streets again for the Sunday night market in Chiang Mai. Last week it rained during our shopping adventure so we purposely stayed in Chiang Mai an entire week so we could go to it again. It was incredible and more impressive than any type of street fair I've ever been to. It stretched so many city blocks, you couldn't even count. We spent 4 hours walking it and didn't even get to half of it. Among the mix of cheaply made Asian fare, we came upon some amazing original art and a lot of handi crafts. As the market started to wind down, I walked over to the Taepae gate to take some pictures. The gate is about 2 or 3 stories high and has brick stairs with no railing of course. My heart sank for a second but there was no way I wasn't going to walk up them. I really had to restrain myself from looking down at the ground as I walked up. Surprisingly it was much easier to walk down than up. There were numerous beer bottles and trash strewn about at the top and also a few local Thai teenagers taking glamour shots of each other. The views from up there were pretty impressive. I wish I could post pictures but the cafe we're at won't let me install the drivers for the camera. We bought a card reader for the camera a couple weeks ago in Trang but the slot where my card is bent. So I've been having to install the stupid drivers each time I post pictures. Oh well...we only have a few days left. When we get back we'll put all of them on Flickr.

Two days ago we took a mini van ride from Chiang Mai north to Pai. The drive itself was about 3 hours but with picking up passengers along the way it came out to 4. I heard some horror stories of the drive being extremely windy and didn't want to chance getting sick so I took Dramamine. I'm glad I did because it was hairpin turn after hairpin turn. There's a funny sign here in Pai actually listing the exact amount of turns on that drive and it's over 700! Someones got a sick sense of humor to actually count the turns. :)

When we got to Pai I instantly fell in love. It's quaint and small but still vibrant with tourists who are going a bit off the beaten path. We even rented motor bikes which has been a lot of fun. There's so little traffic and most of it is motor bikes so it makes the windy scenic roads very pleasant to drive on.

The first two nights we stayed in a resort overlooking the river and mountains. The view from the room was phenomenal. Unfortunately they were putting in a pool and doing renovations while we were there so at about 8 AM - 7 PM we'd hear sawing and pounding. Today we moved guesthouses to a place called PAIridise hehe...We even decided to get a fan room instead of AC and saved money. The weather here has been much nicer than the rest of the country. It's not as humid and at night it gets chilly.

While we were in Chiang Mai at our cooking class we met a lovely Irish guy, John. He's from Dublin and works in IT. We had drinks with him the last two nights in Chiang Mai and it just so happened he was coming up to Pai the same time we were. Last night we had a drink with him at one of the coolest bars the most notorious incidents of people who got thrown out of the bar. Then there's another chalkboard with the names of people who've drank the most, complete with the countries they reside in. There was only one woman who made it to above 18 shots, her name was Michelle and she was from the United States. She won a t-shirt. I'm sure she's very proud. :)

At the bar we met quite a few people from all over, Ireland, Australia, UK, Israel, and San Francisco. At midnight that bar shuts down so we motorbiked it to the next bar just down the road, all 8 of us or so in tow. That bar closed at 1, so we motorbiked it to yet another bar until about 2 AM. The bar was mostly outdoors and playing incredible music- a lot of old hip hop and then techno and psy trance. It was pretty neat to see people from all over the world dancing to psy trance. It reminded me so much of Moontribe and brought back great memories. The whole town is a huge hippy fest. We love it so much that we've decided to stay for the rest of our trip and not go North to take a romantic river boat cruise. We're just having too much fun here to leave.

Tonight there's apparently a huge football...errr soccer...match at 2 AM that our crazy Irish friends are staying up for at a local bar. I think we'll have to pass on that. ha

The Elephant Conservatory - Julie's post

Two days ago we went to the Elephant Conservatory outside of Chiang Mai. There are a lot of elephant camps in Thailand but too many of them are run inhumanely.

The one we went to was amazing. We saw a special about it on he Discovery Channel a few months ago. It's been one of the most memorable parts of the trip thus far getting to be so close to the elephants, to touch them, and see them interact.

I've been to the circus a few times and what always bothered me was how much of a show it is. I was worried that the conservatory would give me those same feelings but it didn't. You could tell that the animals were very well taken care of.

Feeding the elephants

Trainers about to bathe them

They started spraying each other with water, and a man with a very nice camera standing in front of me. I saw it coming, apparently he didn't. :)





The elephants paint, and they're not trained to do so. Their handlers just give them brushes with color on them and the elephants paint whatever they wish. It's one of the most fascinating things I've witnessed. This elephant painted elephants. We wanted to purchase the painting very badly but someone beat us to it!



We rode an elephant. It was a bit scary at first but it was an incredible experience. At one point the elephant grabbed a tree branch from above us with his trunk and yanked it down so we wouldn't run into it. I have no idea if they're trained to do these things but he wasn't prompted to do so.


A few times the elephant stopped to make very deep but barely audible noises. The rumbling from being on top of him was unbelievable. It was obvious he was communicating with other elephants. To actually sit there in silence and witness this occurrence was fascinating.

Interesting Thailand Observations #02 - Eric's take

• Red Bull and other energy drinks are non-carbonated and come in little brown medicine bottles.. and sell for $0.33
• A haircut costs $2.50 but a single shot of vodka w/ tonic costs $4
• Whiskey is HUGE here
  
• "Top shelf" vodka = Smirnoff
• Maple syrup is extremely hard to find... pancakes are served with honey
• Most bars (90% +) are also "boom boom" bars where you can take the girls from the bar back to your hotel... after paying the mama-san, of course

Update and rant - Julie's post

Being in Chiang Mai for the past few days has been quite interesting. We got a great deal on a hotel called the Lanna House right in the heart of Chiang Mai. They're having some crazy deal where the first night is 99 Baht which comes out to less than $4 US, and then each additional night is 800 Baht which is less than $30 US. It's unbelievable the type of deals you can get here, especially now that it's the low season.

It's rained a lot the past few days, usually in the morning and the evening for at least a couple hours at a time.

Yesterday I went to a yoga class here on my own. I walked the many city blocks trying to find it and realizing it had shut down once I got there. I went into a travel agency, figuring they were the best bet for someone in there that spoke English well enough to help me find the place. Sure enough, the studio had moved down the street. The class went well but I quickly realized how much of a wreck my body was. It was unbelievable how tight I was and how many muscles ached from walking and carrying a backpack all the time.

On my walk back to the hotel I went down one of the main streets right after sunset. Many bars and restaurants line the street with tourists and locals eating together at many of them.

One thing that's seemed so strange to me is the amount of old men sitting with young Thai girls. Obviously there's a ridiculous amount of prostitution here, most people know that. However, what I didn't realize was just how out in the open it all is. Numerous bars have nothing going on except a white man sitting with an unamused young Thai woman, who's clearly not listening to the man as her head is cocked the other way. Every night we're out I can't count the amount of men with prostitutes here, it's that many. I really could care less about what these women do for a living as it's not up to me to tell someone what they can and can't do for a living. However, it's hard to not get totally disgusted when day after day you see 70 or 80 year old pervy old men with women who look completely underage, or just over the brink of 18. It's unreal and totally disgusting to me to see men with wedding rings on their fingers, with their arms around these women. I've tried to rationalize that perhaps they are married to them...but please, we're in Thailand. The chances of that being the case are slim to none.

Eric and I went to a Muay Thai fight on Monday night and a few fights into it I got tired and went back to our room. As it turns out, a man from the States came and sat next to Eric and as they chatted it up for the rest of the fight. The man divulged his whole life he lives in Thailand, secretly, away from his wife and four kids. He talked about how wonderful it was that you could just get hookers on a moments notice. On top of that, he rents these young Thai women for a month or so at a time and has them live-in with him while he's here on business. Also, how the women of Chiang Mai and Bangkok are mostly stuck up and a waste of time. What a man really needs is a girl in Chiang Mai who comes from Issan, which is North of here. Apparently the women there are less like that (ie: poorer and less educated). Hearing this story related back to me by Eric was just insane. First off, who goes up to a stranger and divulges this information like they're proud of it? All I could think about was how much of a scum bag this guy was. It's one thing to be with a prostitute. It's a completely different story when you cheat on your wife with a prostitute from a different country, and then potentially bring home diseases that could affect her and potentially your future children. Also, the man told Eric that the next time he comes here, "You know, without your wife and all" where he could go to get amazing prostitutes.

On Monday we're heading to Pai by bus on windy roads (thank god for Dramamine) and spending a few days to relax and take it easy. Then we'll go back to Bangkok and fly home in a week from Sunday.

Interesting Thailand Observations #01 - Eric's take

• "Orange Juice" = Tang
• "Coffee" = Nescafe Instant coffee
• EVERYTHING comes with egg
• Western food is a waste of time
• Traffic rules or laws do not exist
• Seat belts do not exist
• The word "boutique" in "boutique hotel" means "overpriced" in Thai
• Everything is spicy
• There is no such thing as "emissions control"
• Everything has too much sugar
• Pretty girls are often pretty boys

Cooking Class - Chef Eric's report

We just returned from the Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School where we learned all about thai spices, veggies, and ingredients. We spent the day with master chef Sompon Nabnian and learned how to cook 6 thai dishes. Coincidentally, we also spent the entire day eating. :) This is something I was very much looking forward to and am very glad I got to do it. It was very fun and I really learned a lot. Well worth it. We leaned how to cook:

• Thai Hot And Sour Prawn Soup (Tom Yam Goong)
• Green Curry With Chicken (Gaeng Kheo Wan Gai)
• Thai Thai Style Fish Cakes (Tord Man Plaa)
• Fried Noodles (Phad Thai)
• Spicy Minced Chicken Salad (Larb Gai)
• Water Chestnuts With Sugar Syrup And Coconut Milk (Tab Tim Grob)

I am now a master thai chef. :) Not really, but I was very impressed with myself and the turnout of the dishes.

-Eric

Mmmmmmmmmm food.

Tasting chef's dish for comparison.

I cut you.

Julie looks cute in an apron.

Future Thai chef's.

Everyone smile for Tom Yam Goong!

Scooting around in Chiang Mai - Julie's post

We're now in Chiang Mai, where we've been for the past three days.

We went to the Sunday night market, an open air market each week that spans many city streets. That's been the most memorable part so far of the city. The nice thing about Chiang Mai is that it's nicer, cleaner, and more laid back than Bangkok. However it's still a large city in that there seems to be endless amounts of people living here and still an amazing amount of things to do and see.

The first full day here we rented motor scooters. When we were in Jenny's village I got to ride one for the first time which was tons of fun. However, Jenny's village was small and there were two-lane roads everywhere with barely any traffic.

I had numerous mini heart attacks on that first scooter ride in Chiang Mai. First of all, there's really no traffic laws here other than stop signs and traffic lights. People ride their scooters 3 to a lane, with a tuk-tuk trying to cram its way between them. Our first adventure on the scooter was trying to get gasoline. We had to leave the relative ease of the inside of the city which is surrounded by a moat and venture outside of the moat area into the horrendous multiple lane traffic. We did a u-turn to get to this gas station. This u-turn entailed scooting into 4 lanes of oncoming traffic, many of the cars, tuk-tuk's, and scooters were in various lanes and nobody stays in the lanes. I think lane markers are just a suggestion here. People frequently cross over the double yellow to get in front of people.

I quickly realized I don't do well with no traffic laws. That u-turn was the scariest, most insane experience I've ever had behind any vehicle. I nearly had a panic attack. Needless to say, we returned the scooters the next day. I spent a total of about 30 minutes on that thing and each time, felt like I could die at any second. It's hard enough remembering which way to look, and having to drive on the left side, which seriously screws with your left and right hand turns...but then to put a bunch of crazy free-for-all driving in the mix. I wanted to come home alive, but more importantly, in one piece. I'll leave the crazy driving to the tuk-tuk drivers.

They have great food in the city and a lot of international cuisine. Two days ago I decided to be adventurous and try American food, getting a hamburger and french fries. Honestly, it was pretty good although all yesterday I felt the pain of that decision and stayed in bed most of the day trying to recoup from the GI pain and distress.

Eric got traveler's diarrhea while at the Amari resort. Within a few hours he started to get chills and a nasty fever. I was really scared for him. The last thing you want on your vacation is to get deathly sick. Thankfully we got a prescription for Cipro, a powerful antibiotic, which I was hoping we wouldn't have to take. He took it that night and started feeling better the next morning. He's all better now. I just hope I stay healthy until we get back to the States.

Julie

Chiang Mai, Day 3 - Eric's report

Chiang Mai kicks ass. It's a great city. Not as big, polluted, hot, expensive, and most people speak way more English... although my Thai is getting better every day. I am trying to learn new phrases daily. Jenny has been teaching me verbs, phrases, and basic sentence structure. I can now say:

• Hello & goodbye
• how are you doing?
  
• I'm fine.
• no thanks
• excuse me
• straw
• nice to meet you
• does this contain xyz ?
• I don't eat xyz...
• This doesn't contain xyz, right?
• That was delicious.
• Check please.

... and a few more.

This city is basically split up into two parts... the Old City, which is surrounded by moat and walls, and everything else. Its very artsy, very hippy, and very quaint. I could probably live here. Oh, and did I mention it's like 5c cooler and way less humidity (see: doesn't suck) than Bangkok. The food here is also much better and much more diverse. Instead of choosing noodles or rice for every meal there's middle eastern, mexican (yes, mexican food.. and it's 1/2 decent).

We arrived here at 11pm on Saturday night and went straight to our guest house and to sleep. Sunday we rented motorbikes and got accustom to the city. Needless to say, in a city with what seems like 0 traffic rules or laws, we cut our motorbike tour short and returned to the tuk-tuks. To quote Julie... "That was the scariest, most nerve racking thing I have ever experienced in my life." lol. Sunday night was the weekly night market. It was amazing. People from all over come and set up shop along the main road here, they block off the streets and shopping ensues.

Yesterday (Monday) I strolled around the streets solo as Julie was not feeling well. I was cat-called by the local prostitution houses / bars as I strolled along the main drag. Just like you see in the movies, it was crazy. Julie started feeling better and we wandered over to the banks of the river for a snack and to relax. Later that night we had a drink at the Tiny Bar, a bar that bills itself as "the smallest bar in the world", with an inside capacity of two and an outside seating area for 6, I think it might truly be the smallest in the world.

Last night I also got to witness my first Muay Thai fight! Front row. Holy crap. It was the most intense thing I have ever witnessed. These guys are truly insane fighters. It's so much different actually being there hearing the kicks, punches, and elbows connect.... and to see the sweat spray off these guys as they delivered hit after hit. Also the rules here are different than in the states... elbows to the back of the head are legal, knees to the head also legal. Devastating. The post-fight ladyboy (ladyboy = thai shemale) cabaret show was also a spectacle but in a much different way.

Beauty by the river.

Us at the Riverside Cafe.

Muay Thai!

Lady boxers.

A weary traveler.

Street around the moat.

Thapae Road... we stayed here.

Tha Pae Gate... where Sunday market starts.

They're everywhere!!

monsoons and nothing to do but write

After leaving the jungles of Palian and the mountain range of my village, it was a drastic mind warp getting used to resorts, idyllic beaches with emerald water and fruity alcoholic drinks brought to your door.

We arrived first at the Amari. The most beautiful and tranquil place I have ever seen in Thailand, let alone stayed at. I felt like a movie star and we got to act like it because there was like 5 other guests.

2 days of recuperating from the go-go-go life of trying to find a way to fill the buckets in my bathroom was not enough. I felt pains of regret as I left my little air-conditioned heaven and king-size bed all for me.

A bath tub for two and a shower in SEPARATE locations, recessed lighting, cable, four pillows and free water and bathrobes. Need I say anymore.

But leave we did, because the island life was beckoning us from the shores of Trang, from PakMeng pier which is where we departed from two days ago. We headed to koh ngai, an island I had never visited in my two years here and was super excited to check out.

Good thing we arrived with daylight to spare to enjoy the sunset. The next day it rained ALL DAY! And then we left this morning. Islands are like prisons during the monsoons. That sucks. Good thing the sea scape was so breath-taking, good thing there was air-con and good thing they have the most extensive list of cocktails I have yet to see.

I was excited to perch myself INSIDE; I was excited, at least, and inspired to write. It was easy to do with the rain still coming down in buckets.....

Andaman treasures, landscapes

still forming broken off, surviving

sea hawks searching, a pair of wrens

perching,

watching,

waiting for the second of sunset

still building, grass thatched roofs


the water keeps going still further

out beyond the line of my comprehension

revealing what was underneath as I swam

out an hour ago.

Where did the fish go?


I wish i was lighter, that I blended in

more, wispy I wish I

was a song that enhanced the mood

here even more, something like Enya


not Dido.

not elevator style

not jack johnson.


I will have to get back to city living and city thinking for the moment as we head to Chiang Mai for two weeks and the possibility of yoga classes is making me smile.

Also, thanks to Julie and Eric for letting me sleep on your floor. I am such a cheap peace corps volunteer :)

Jenny

Back from the Island... on to Chiang Mai! - Eric's report

So we just got back to Trang Town, same place we arrived via train a few days ago. We spent the last two days on Ko Ngai (pronounced "Ko Hai") in a beach bungalow just 15m from the water. The place was cool and the views were spectacular..... but it rained almost all yesterday. We got just 1.5hrs of sunshine. Luckily we made the best of those 1.5hrs and managed to go snorkeling. The food sorta sucked and there was no way to go to the inner parts of the island, so when it rained we were confined to our rooms... which still had a nice view, but you go to an island resort to swim and play in the sun, not sit in your room. I guess that's what we get for going in the rainy season... duh!

So now we're going to grab a bite and catch a plane up to Chiang Mai, way north near the golden triangle. We finally got usb cables and a card reader... when I get to Chiang Mai and have some time I'll post up my pics. I'll also go back and post pics to previous blogs, so go back and review them.

-Eric

Island Adventures - Julie's post

We're back in Trang, at the same internet cafe we posted from after our stinky train ride.

We stayed at the Amari hotel in Trang for 2 nights which was the most luxurious hotel I've ever stayed at, let alone seen with my two eyes. Eric said it was nicer than anything he's seen in Maui.
I got an overpriced massage at the resort, which left much to be desired. Thanks to our friend Tanya, who by the way is the best massage therapist EVER...nothing ever compares. I'm coming to realize that the more massages I get. Jenny got a massage too which she thought was excellent so that was good.

At the resort Jenny and I took a yoga class. It was one of the many free things they had offered there. The instructor was a 20-year old Thai man who's English was on par with my Thai, ie: non existent. I couldn't for the life of me figure out half of the poses he was doing (neither could Jenny) so we just improvised. Every position we'd do, he'd say, "Next Poh-zi-Shun" very much like a robot. It was very cute, he looked like a deer in headlights teaching to two women who were advanced.

After the resort style living we headed to the island Ko Ngai 2 days ago, on a speed boat straight from the dock of our resort. The speed boat was incredibly choppy the entire way. I've never been on a speed boat in the ocean, it's pretty intense. Luckily the ride was less than a half hour, which was just enough time for me to feel disoriented and shaky when I got off the boat.

The island was fantastic, although the weather was total shit. The day we got there it was overcast but thankfully not too rainy until the evening. Yesterday was a different story. It pretty much rained all day and all night. Although there was about 1 hour of total sunshine and another hour of clouds without rain. Eric and I went snorkeling during that time. Unfortunately it was hard for me to see anything because I couldn't put the snorkel gear over my glasses. :( That was kind of sad.

When we left the island this morning, the weather was perfect, just in time for our departure. The weather made our time there more interesting, even if we didn't get to spend as much time in the water as I'd have hoped. Also, the food wasn't that good, and I've come to find that you either have to have one of the two in this country to make it a spectacular experience- good food or weather. Both were missing.

I finally got the USB cable for my camera!! Look back to previous blogs in the next couple of days for pictures to go along with the stories!

Julie

The first 6 pictures are at the Amari resort in Trang
The last 4 pictures are at our island bungalow

Back from the dead... God bless Cipro! - Eric's tale

So Wednesday I woke up in our beautiful beach front resort, strolled over for breakfast... went for a swim in the Andaman Sea (which is very warm and salty compared to the Pacific Ocean), then as I was relaxing in my room, around noon I started feeling a little "off". Now I had had diarrhea twice that morning, but honestly, didn't think much of it since we've all been messed up in that area one way or the other since arriving. Either we don't deuce for 4 days (seriously), or we deuce 4x's a day. haha. Anyway... so I'm feeling a little warm, but figure I just got a little sun. I take it easy the rest of the day until sundown and stroll over for a Mai Tai to watch the sun go down..... 1/2 way through my drink I had to excuse myself... I was feeling dizzy, very warm, and uncomfortable. I get back to the room, and jump into bed. Within 1 hour I am on fire... burning up, but shaking with chills at the same time. "Holy crap", I thought to myself..... Now I haven't had a fever since I can remember and this was probably the worst one I ever remember having. I was F'ed.

Anyway, I laid in bed for about 3 hours, shaking, my entire body was tight... for a moment I really thought I was going to die, or at the very least go to the hospital. So I consulted my Lonely Planet guide and diagnosed myself with "Traveler's Diarrhea" (aka Montezuma's Revenge... depending on where you are) and popped a Cipro, some Ibuprofen, and a sleep aid. 14hours I woke up feeling about 97%. By the end of the day, and 2 Cipro later, I was back to 100%. Phew....

-Eric

Palian- Julie's post

After the train ride into Trang, we took taxi mini van to Jenny's village of Palian. It's very remote, an hour outside of Trang, up in the mountains of this region. First, I have never seen anything more spectacular or beautiful than this area. We were in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

However, the terrain and the beauty of the surrounding areas can easily be described by pictures, but the people of her small village were much more complex and richer than the environment. I'd rather spend time speaking to the richness of the people I was fortunate enough to get to know over those few days.

First and foremost, I have never met nicer people in my life. It seemed as though the hundreds of people that lived in the village know Jenny intimately. As we rode our motor bikes through the hills daily, we'd see children roaming outside as they waved intensely and called out, "Jenn-eee, Jenn-eee!". It was beautiful.

Each night we spent with her host family eating dinner. They were her second family during her stay in the Peace Corps and hosted her during her first two weeks of her service. The family consisted of the 73-year-old Grandmother, mother, father, teenage daughter, 2-year old daughter, and 3-month old son. Their house was open to the elements. Although it had walls, many of the walls did not go all the way to the ceiling. They showered with buckets outside. There's no hot water in any part of the village. There are no telephone lines, although they recently have gotten cell phone towers, so nearly everyone has a cell phone.

Her host family's house had no doors, let alone screens. We ate on the concrete floor each night as they asked us questions while Jenny translated and vice- versa. Her host family's extended family came by nearly every night to see us, and speak with the family. Everyone in their family is within a short walking distance and the commitment they have to each other is remarkable.

What I experienced there pretty much can't be described in any words. It was extremely powerful to be among such strong people. Strong in the sense that what binds these people is not possessions, but each other, their family and community.

The first day we got there was pretty rough as the sun was beating down and the humidity felt a hundred times worse than in Bangkok. We were in the jungle after all. The rest of the days were better as the Monsoons came rolling in and dropped the teperature.

That first day we went to a local Thai mother's noodle shop outside of her house. Quite a few of the women in the village sell noodles, rice, coffee, snacks, or desserts to supplement their incomes. There was many places to choose from for breakfast and lunch each day, and we ate for $1-$3 USD each meal for the three of us. It was unreal. $0.33 for noodles or fried rice and a drink. I couldn't get over that.

The most stunning part of the entire trip to this area was getting to see this Muslim culture. It was so warm, so inviting, and we were treated like we were family. I never expected to be treated as outsiders, but just the amount of smiles we got as we rode motor bikes down the roads was incredible.

There were so many experiences we had with the local people that going through all of them would take too much time. I wish I had journaled more while I was there but I just wanted to take it all in and really relish in the culture. So, everything came out the way it was supposed to.

Here's a journal entry from Sunday 5-4
The beauty of being in a place like this is realizing how little is needed in life to live a comfortable and full life. Jenny's host family has been the epitomy of how a family unit should operate. Their devotion to one another, to Jenny, AND us is somewhat foreign to me. I've never met nicer people. They have hearts of gold and show it through their actions rather than words, much unlike the United States. Yesterday at the waterfall I got to transform my outlook on this trip. I had the realization, as I do many times in life, that finding your way in life does not always come easy. One must let go of some things in order to find that thing they're looking for. The only thing that we can change is our perspective and being with Jenny's second family made that transition easier. They made me feel so much at home. They eat on the linoleum floor, full of sugar ants. The 73-year-old grandmother, mother, father, and 3 kids. Over the course of the evening, brother-in-laws, sister-in-laws, cousins, aunts, uncles...they all came over to say hello to us and to Jenny. How receptive and curious they were of Eric's braces. No one even knew these type of devices were available to people with disabilities. They asked many questions and were so sincere.

We are so far removed from this type of interaction in the United States, even coming from a tighter-knit family than most which values the importance of familial community, especially while we were growing up. Yet here, I've realized it's still different than that. It is a deep connection to the land and to each other that distinguishes this small S.E. Asian community from America. This guise we have in "our"world of security and semblance, it's all a constructed veil hiding the essence of our being. Just behind that thinly constructed thing we call security lies the true beauty of life. It's up to us whether or not we wish to move beyond that and to see what's truly important. What matters is not things, and yet we constantly say that to ourselves. Things like, "Possessions aren't important in life." Yet, we tend to say that a lot, but when do we really truly mean it? We know it's the right thing to say but who could really live without walls in their house, or ants on the floors, and mosquitoes flying and beetles roaming? How about a bucket to wash with and only cold water, or maybe no kitchen table, no washing machine, and no telephone? Could you kill your cattle for food, and harvest rubber from the rubber trees as your job?

All these necessities we live with in the western world seem to be just conveniences that distract us and keep us occupied just long enough to keep us sedate. Keep buying more, keep reaching, keep striving for something you don't have. Look for that job security because it's the only thing that can give you peace of mind. All of these things we seem to look for, or that hold importance in our minds...really they're all just this huge facade.

Changing your perspective means the real work would have to be done. The soul work required to find your individual purpose in life. Because really, is your job your purpose in life? Truly, is it your purpose? I found that in Jenny's village, no one looked at their job (mostly rubber farmers) as their purpose. No one's job was their purpose, as they didn't like or dislike their job- it was just something they did to make a living. I found that they grabbed onto the true meaning of life much more easily than most of the world, because the distractions of the modern world weren't there.

Back from the jungles of Palian - Eric's summary

So we are now sitting on the beach, at Trang Beach Resort, about to get another Mai Thai and I figured I would give an update. Before I do I've gotta say, this resort is not only the most beautiful place I have ever been to in my life, it's also the most drastically different place than Palian, Trang, Thailand , deep in the jungles of SE Asia, where we just spent 4 days. It would take me probably 20 days and countless pages to describe my experiences in Jenny's village so I will summarize the highlights instead and expand on them in future blogs. (Yes, that's what our room here looks like. Yes, that's our view.)

First I want to give you an idea of life there in the village and at Jenny's house contrasted from a Western perspective of the things we are used to in a "town" or "house". Jenny's house had no running water. The lights worked sometimes... seemingly when they felt like working. None of the houses have doors or windows... they are basically large huts with room dividers (Jenny's house had screens due to Peace Corp requirements). No furniture... everyone eats, sits, sleeps on the floor.... with all the bugs and critters. No toilet paper... cleaning yourself after a "deuce" consisted of either using a "butt gun", which is like a hose with a spray nozzle on it and you spray your butt, or, if there is no butt gun, you scoop water out of a nearby bucket and pour it over your butt while you rub and clean with your hand.... rinse and repeat. Seriously.

Funny side story: I was in Jenny's host family's (host family = family that took her in initially when arriving in Thailand) house eating lunch when I had to deuce, quick... now I had spoke to Jenny regarding the bathroom situation and was informed they did not have a butt gun and they used the soup ladle approach to cleaning. Like I said, I had to go quick, I didn't have time to jump on the motorbike, and go back to Jenny's house... but it wouldn't matter anyway because even though Jenny had a butt gun, she had no running water. Anyway, so I buck up and go to the bathroom there. When I'm done I begin wiping and cleaning myself with my hand.... half way through I look over to my right. Apparently they got a butt gun recently that Jenny was unaware of... needless to say I finished the cleaning with the butt gun and walked away fresh and clean. Honestly, those things get you really clean.

Here's a pic of a typical thai bathroom... the only real variations is that some have western toilets, but they don't flush on their own and don't have toilet paper.


Now on to the fantastic experiences:

• Motorbiking with Julie around the 3km loop that is Jenny's village... complete with winding, rolling roads, lush tropical landscape and scenery, and a giant dominating waterfall.
• Visiting a self-sustaining house deep off the main road through a 1.5km dirt road. A man and a woman built this paradise and were completely self sufficient... from cows and chickens, to a fish farm, water treatment, full garden and a beautifully landscaped living space.
• Swimming at the base of the waterfall.
• Witnessing the Halal killing and butchering of a cow by the village butcher at 6am in the middle of the jungle.
• BBQing and eating that cow for lunch.
• Meeting the local village people. Getting double-takes from locals as we passed each other on motorbikes.... with the exception of Jenny, some of these people have never seen Farang (farang = westerners) in "real life".
• Visiting Jenny's school for her going away party... complete with drunk teachers, a P.A. system that was WAAAY too loud, an MC that loved to hear himself talk on the ear piercing, echoing system, flying beetles the size of my fist, and last, but oh so not least.... Thai Karaoke. Complete with Engrish versions of everyone's American classics. It was awesome.
  
• Eating with Jenny's host family every night... the sense of family, community, love, and genuine interaction was touching and heart-warming to say the least.

Funny story about eating with them. So admittedly, before this trip I had a bit of a bug-phobia. Remember, these huts are deep in the jungle with no doors or screens to keep stuff out... and they eat on the ground. So we arrive the first night and enter the house for dinner... the entire family is sitting around in a circle and three spots await us. As I'm removing my shoes I look down and see ants and bugs (mostly ants) EVERYWHERE. haha... I got woozy. My first thought was... "hell no".. but I also couldn't be rude. WTF was I going to do? I looked around and Jenny took a seat, completely oblivious to the bugs, and the host family obviously didn't mind.... so I took a deep breath and just sat down. Turns out the ants were sugar ants and not concerned with people... they don't even crawl on you. And apparently only like sugar, which the dishes didn't contain, so they basically ignored the food as well. I completed the meal a new person. What an experience.

Well, that's all for now... I'm off to sit on the beach, work on my tan, then off to a Thai language class. The islands have been closed due to crazy monsoons, but I believe they open today, so tomorrow we're going to the island of Ko Hai for two days, then on the 10th we're flying way north to Chiang Mai.

- Eric

The train ride from Bangkok to Trang

We've arrived in Trang and only a couple hours behind schedule. Poor Jenny's train was delayed numerous hours on her way UP from Trang to Bangkok to meet us when we arrived. One of the train cars had derailed slightly and she was stuck on that thing for a long time.

Our train ride together was wonderful and I slept fairly well considering all the noise the train was making. Thankfully I have pretty hefty earplugs that come in handy for situations like that. Our car was a 4-person sleeper car (2 bunk beds on either side). It was much nicer than I anticipated. However, our car was the only one in the entire train that reeked of urine from the time we stepped on board. Ha. It figures. We're talking f-o-u-l! Honestly though, the stink didn't get overwhelming until a few hours before we arrived.

I woke up around 3:30 AM hoping to catch the sunrise but fell back asleep around 5:30 and missed it. However, I did wake up very shortly after the sun peeked over the amazingly green landscape. I was the first one up and took my camera and sat outside of our room, watching everything go by. The population became very sparse, only a few very modest houses/bungalows every 15 minutes of train ride. I quickly realized I couldn't get any decent shots being behind the glass of our train car so I headed to the front of the train- about 10 cars ahead. Each section of the train was a different price, the lowest in price being wooden benches with an open car and no air conditioning. I found it interesting to note that as I walked through the car, the skin of the passengers became noticeably darker. Jenny has mentioned that Thai culture puts the whiter skinned people on a higher pedestal and that many women use skin whiteners to make themselves more "beautiful." There are commercials for skin whiteners on the TV with a color scale showing how much whiter you'll become if you use their product.

I personally hope to develop an even nicer tan while being here! :)

The food car was an open car, and the only place on the train I could sit and get good shots, as well as be in the cool humid breeze of the early AM. The countryside in this area is amazing. Lush jungles with trees I've never seen before and rice fields with cows grazing and roosters roaming. I sat on that car by myself for about 40 minutes, drinking the traditional Thai coffee consisting of instant coffee, which isn't that bad when it's the only thing you've got.

I'm still blown away that we're actually here. I'm very happy to not be in Bangkok anymore and actually away from all the touristy crap of that city. There were about 5:1 white people to anyone else in a very large radius from where we were staying. Eric said on the last day it made him feel like he was on Spring Break. haha It was starting to feel like that...a bunch of college kids from Europe, Canada, and the US all out to party their asses off in Thailand. Also, I found it quite disturbing that most every white woman was wearing a low cut tank top, or worse- halter top with a mini skirt showing off all of her legs. Although we were in our own little touristy world of Bangkok where most of the residents are tourists, I made absolutely certain to NOT wear anything even slightly revealing, and to keep my knees covered at all times. Anyone who reads up on Thailand, even the slightest bit, could tell you that wearing loose fitted clothing (for women) and pants or capri's is not only respectful of the culture, it gains you much more respect and better service. I would just think that if you're going to take the time to travel all that distance to a foreign land, you'd make damn certain of the cultural nuances before heading out. I suppose that's too much to ask of us stupid Westerners.

I used a squat toilet for the first time on the train. If you don't know what that is, you should google it for pictures. I'm too lazy to post a picture right now. In any case, it was quite an interesting experience trying to squat on that thing while the train was in full motion trying my hardest not to gag from the stink. The gagging was inevitable though.

The first thing I noticed was how the toilets go straight down to the train tracks. It's just an open hole where everything exits the train. When you realize how many squatters live on the sides of the train tracks and walk the train tracks, you are able to start painting the picture of how disease can easily spread. That really blew my mind for a good couple of hours.

Until next time,
Julie

the other eye

This is Jenny. I'm the third stooge in this trio of adventurers. I am lucky enough to have visitors willing to run around with me and pretend to know what's going on.

Julie, Eric and I have begun a month of traveling around Thailand. First we met in Bangkok on the last two days of my Peace Corps Service. I finished officially April 30th, after a total of 28 months as a volunteer. I am relieved and a little sad. It's a lot of my life, a lot has happened, and I will miss this country.

Luckily, I get to travel with my two best friends. But as we're learning, it's not always a smooth ride. Last night we left Bangkok at five pm and just got to Trang. Where I have been working for two years. The trip is usually 16 hours; this trip was 20.

After blogging for a while, I'll be taking them to my village to meet the people in the photos here (from my show now up in Bangkok). To meet the family I have learned to love like my own. To play in waterfalls and walk in the jungle, to worry about scorpions and deal with no running water. Not joking. It's the dry, hot season and my well has been dry for a month.

I am worried I am overwhelming my virgin travel companions because everything is so familiar for me after this long abroad. The smells don't get to me. I feel bad for Julie who seems so sensitive to the changes in environment. I remember, but now I'm numb nose wise. The sights are like walking around the block where I grew up in LA. It's where I live now. The language comes naturally. The people are my friends.

What I hope to be able to show Julie and Eric is what Thailand can look like from an insider's perspective. I want them to be able to see this country the way I've come to love it. And to even teach them some Thai.

So far, so good. But Eric likes the lingo to pick up the ladies and makes me pee my pants with his jokes. I've designated myself the recorder of all good Eric quotes for our trip. Last night's train adventure elicited a number. 1) I feel like a circus animal. 2) I totally feel like I'm at camp right now." In reference to the bunks we had to cram into. 3) I always wish I could quote myself but I'm too lazy."

Hence my new appointment.

More pictures from the mountains of Southern Thailand....the Banuthat Mountain Range and the villagers who call me their daughter. The village is called BanKhuanMaidum and we are about to enter another world.

Peace, Jenny K

Thai Hooker - Eric's story

So... as it turns out, the Thai "cougar" (cougar = older lady on the prowl for younger dudes) that was hitting on me and buying me soda and ice cream was actually a Thai hooker trying to drum up some business with me.... that's how they operate I guess. I mean, I don't blame her, I am pretty hot.

So Julie and Jenny were setting up an art show in Bangkok and I decided to stroll across the street to a nice park right by the river and watch the boats go by... as I'm chillin' there, this older (40's) thai woman comes and sits about 25ft from me and asks me to take her picture, which I gladly do. She introduces herself as "Deeda" and proceeds to chat it up in her broken and barely understandable English. Now my Thai is no good either so you can imagine how the conversation went. Anyway, she asked me if I was married, to which I replied "engaged".... she clearly had no clue what that meant. She then started to tell me how lonely she was and how she had no husband and how she liked me and all this stuff.

Now me, being the ego maniac that I am, just figured some old broad was trying to score with "Bruce Willis" (yeah,this cab guy said i looked like Bruce Willis... he's right). Anyway, she then began asking me to go for a walk with her and I kept refusing. At this point I began to think that, perhaps, something was not on the "up and up"... I still wasn't sure what was off. I at first thought that maybe it was some scam, or some dude was waiting on the "walk" to rob me. I didn't get paranoid, just went on heightened alert. Anyway, time passed, she kept making small talk then offered to buy me a drink..... I kept refusing but she kept insisting. I started to think I was being rude, so I finally caved. Meanwhile I'm looking for an "out".

Thank god for Julie.... right when my Thai friend left to get her Bruce Willis a drink, my cell phone rang with Julie on the other line. Good timing too b/c the thai chick kept asking me for my phone # and I kept telling her I didn't have a phone. lol. Anyway, I told Julie where I was and to come rescue me.... which she did within 5 minutes.

The first thing Julie said to me when we walked away was... "you know that's a hooker, right?". hahaha.... to that point the thought never crossed my mind. Why would a hooker buy me drinks and ice cream? Aren't I supposed to be buying her stuff? That, plus my ego, made it hard to believe... but after thinking back on various things and relaying the story to Jenny for her thoughts, she was totally a hooker.

Still, I don't blame her... I am pretty fly for a white guy.

Ciao Bangkok, Hello Trang...

In less than 1.5 hours I will be on a train heading south to Trang, Thailand... a 16hr train trip. I'm definitely ready for some relaxing beaches, a direct contrast to the madness here.

Yesterday I got my first Thai Massage (I know the question and the answer is "no".)... $3. Can't beat that. It was fantastic. I think I will make that a daily event. It was much different than I had anticipated, sort of a cross between partner yoga, deep tissue massage, and wrestling.. haha.

This morning I went to see the Royal Palace... Julie and Jenny stayed behind. All I can say is "wow". The place looks unreal and straight out of a fairy tale... and this is 2008. Imagine how people felt viewing this place 100's of years ago.


Oh, and I totally got hit on by a Thai cougar today while I was relaxing in the park... she bought me a soda. More on that later, I have a train to catch!

Madness in Thailand - Julie's post

It feels so nice to finally be able to post to the blog. Yesterday was a horrible, HORRIBLE day. Words really can't describe the day I had.

Around mid afternoon Eric and I came into our hotel's Internet cafe to post to the blog, check emails, etc. As I tried signing into my Yahoo email account, I was unable to. My password wasn't accepted. Then I tried to sign into my Myspace account. Again, password not accepted. My email account and myspace were the only accounts I checked when we were at the Internet cafe in Taiwan. The first thing I thought was OH MY GOD, my online banking password is the same as my email password. At that point, all I could think was, OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD, I'm fucked! Once I regained some sort of sanity I quickly remembered the many safeguards BofA uses with their online banking to ensure your account won't get used.

I spent over an hour online changing passwords and trying religiously to get into my myspace account but apparently whoever hacked into my email account was able to change my myspace password and perhaps even change the user name to their email address. So, I can't get into my myspace, and I can't really do anything about it until I get back to the States.

Eric's pretty sure they're just using my email and myspace to spam, and thankfully my email is now under my control. The weird thing is Eric hasn't gotten any spam in his myspace from "me" so we'll see. My apologies to any of my friends on myspace if you start getting spammed. I'll take care of it when I get back.

I was so scared yesterday. All I could think about was how all of my personal information gets sent through my yahoo account and how that was all potentially looked at. All of my banking information especially. Thankfully BofA knows I'm in another country and has put in safeguards to watch for fraud on my account. They know what country I'm in and that my cards will only be used in this country, so we will see. Please pray for me.

So onto the good stuff!

I don't even know where to begin. First off, I've never experienced a place like Bangkok. It is controlled chaos like Eric said and I find myself finding it much like Burning Man in that I've seen the most insane things while walking the streets of the city.

Jenny said that the first time she visited Bangkok she became overwhelmed quickly. I found myself completely and utterly overwhelmed with stimulation last night and had to excuse myself from dinner and walk the few blocks back to my room alone. It's been very much sensory overload from the day we got here. However, the difference about yesterday was that I spent much of the day freaking out about my hacked email account, which exacerbated any type of overwhelmed emotions I was already feeling.

On top of that, I woke up this morning with a stomach ache and nausea. haha. Eric left about 30 minutes ago to see the Emerald Buddha and Temple. I decided to stay behind and blog close to my room, in case I start feeling worse. Luckily we got prescriptions for antibiotics before we left the States, just in case we were like the 50-80% of travelers that get traveler's diarrhea. I'm still holding out hope that this will pass, mainly because I've been taking probiotics for over two months for this very reason.

I've had so many intense experiences that it's hard to go into depth about all of them. So, instead of rehashing every day minute by minute, I'm turning to my journal for excerpts I've felt over the days...

We went to the reclining Buddha on our first full day in the city. As I stepped up through the intricately detailed temple, I was quickly awe struck by this enormous beautiful piece of spiritual art above me. Tears started coming down. The term "beautiful" does not do it justice, as really no words or pictures can express how this made me feel. All of the temples require shoes to be taken off and because Eric wears leg braces, he needs to sit down to take them off. As we asked one of the guards where we could sit (the benches on the sides of the temple clearly say "NO SITTING") he motioned over to a few feet away from the walls of the temple. His eyes drifted to Eric's feet as he started taking off his shoes and braces. The man looked at us with that look of understanding that has no language barriers. He walked over to us with this sense of reverence as he reached down to Eric's shoes and helped him untie them. He motioned for us to leave our shoes next to him and not in the public area where everyone else's shoes are placed. As we came back through the temple to get our shoes when were were finished, the toothless guard quickly came over us and took Eric's hand to help him down the steps. He also helped him to untie his shoes and put his braces back on. Although Eric didn't need the help, he was so attentive and understanding and it was the most intensely beautiful experience I've ever had, ever...in my entire life. I find myself crying over the very notion that no words need to be spoken, and that love is universal. Presenting yourself as you are, physical "flaws" and all, makes us all more human. I've found that the more human I am in this land of great differences, the more able I am to connect in a very real manner.

I wrote this entry in my journal after the boat ride from the temple and reclining Buddha.
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"Today the world stood still on that boat. 'A smile is universal' replayed in my head from nearly 10 years ago when I took my first college Sociology class. There's just about nothing more inspiring and scary than relinquishing your hold on what you believe the world to be. We all have preconceived notions of how people should be or how the 'rest of the world' really is.' Regardless of whether or not those notions are positive or negative, you quickly realize that you have them. They are staring back at you each time you look into somebody's eyes."
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Today we go with Jenny on an overnight train to Trang, in the southern part of the country, and then to her small village even further south. I'm very excited to get out of the big city and see countryside. Wish us luck, and that this stomach ache will pass!

Much love,
Julie