I don't know why or how this idea came to me but I know at least one person (hi mom!) who will appreciate it--if you'd like to try too, sing these words to the tune of 'Raindrops on Roses' from the Sound of Music (and also incidentally, my childhood):
Little black doggies who snuggle up for sunsets
Hamocks to swing in made from colorful nets
Scuba tanks that bump the boat with a cling
These are a few of my favorite things
Crystal clear waters and green sunny hill tops
Palm trees on beaches and smiles at small food shops
Breathing out bubbles that float up in rings
These are a few of my favorite things
Sea drops on long tails and bright colored fishes
Hot spicey curries and other yummy dishes
Little silver sting rays with light on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things
When the skeeters bite
When the sun burns
When the motos are loud
I think of a few of my favorite things and that makes me miss Koh Tao
Not bad eh? It's been a lovely stay in Koh Tao (apart from bites and burns--I wasn't joking). Yesterday I spent a couple blissful hours splashing around in Hinwong Bay--one of the best snorkling sights around--with another american I'd met earlier (this is kinda cool and I think I may have sat on that very rock, no joke http://www.shopart.com/thailand/rockybay.html). I perched on a submerged rock and had fish swimming all around me and through my legs not caring one way or the other what I was up to. I swam thorugh a huge school (100's upon 100's) of tiny (maybe 3 inches?) silver fish and watched them frantically scramble out of the way--they were so cute, all changing direction together as if they were saying "Monster!!! Go left! No right! No leeeft! Ah!" poor guys. I floated on top of the water which was calm as glass and let the tide carry me a bit before swimming back in. All in all a pretty glorious afternoon. I've met tons of nice people here and enjoyed the underwater wonders but it's time to move on.
Next stop: Wat Suan Mokkhaphalaram (or just Wat Suan Mokkh for short) an old Buddist monastery in a wooded area near Chaiya outside of Surat Thani on the south side of the gulf. There I will be participating in a 10 day silent meditation (more information found here: http://www.tribe-yoga.com/Meditation.html) which should be throughly challenging no doubt. That means no new blog entries or emails or phone calls or facebook messages until the 10th or 11th of August at which time, unable to contain myself, I most likely will spill approximately 10 days worth of thoughts in one big word garble. I hope not. Better would be that by the 3rd or 4th day silence is easy (got that song reference anyone? if so, cheers to you) and I come out feeling calm and refreshed and ready to take on the world or at least the unremitting pandemoniun that I expect to encounter in India. Certainly being deprived of contact with loved ones like you all will be the hardest part, but know that you will be in my thoughts (or rather just a little outside them if I can manage to meditate properly). Cheerio for now!
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Breathing Under Water is Coooooool.
After a day of regrouping ie being an online junkie in Bangkok, I headed to Koh Tao--a tiny islandin the middle of the Thai gulg just north of the better know Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. Though small, Koh Tao has a lot to offer, but it's gifts are mostly submerged. It's no surprise that Koh Tao is known to be a scuba diver's paradise as dive sites dot its coasts on either side and you can't wak 10 meters down Sairee Beach with out tripping over another dive shop just begging to take you on as a student. So I threw my hands up and signed on for a 4 day PADI open water certification course. Happily for me, Koh Tao is one of the most cost effective places to get certified as well. My course of choice as Seashel Dive Resort included instriction in and out of the water, 4 open water dives and accomodation in a pretty basic but overall suitable bungalow 150 yards or so from the beach (no view out the window but I've got legs) just big enough for 1. My only gripe if I'm allowed to have one is that there's no hot water--many other places I've stayed have shared to deficiency, but rather than a cool refreshing douse after sweaty sightseeing, I have a painfully chilly rinse after an already sufficiently cold and wet boat ride. (oh yeah and gripe no 2 might be that the mosquitoes are eating me alive!) Ah well, I live.
AS for the diving portion of the package deal I must admitt I was a tak nervous for the non-classroon segment--yeah the scuba part. The first few times going under in the shallows (where we practiced on our knees to start) I found myself inhaling long and deep from my mouth piece (regulator) before ducking under the surface as though I'd have to hold my breath, then I'd remember, exhale, inhale cautiously, woah I'm still under water and breathing taboot--sweet!
Like most things worth doing, scuba takes practice and requires the safe dismissal of a few basic instincts. Fortunately, 10 minutes in to my first open water dive I was hooked. Weigthless as though in outer space I floated along with the 2 other students in my class behinde our instructor Emma and savored my time in this other world. And another world is really the only way to descrive the experience I think. You don't see any fish drifting by your house peeping in, but lucky for us we have the opportunity to be voyeurs at the windows of sea life. I dunno what the heck the Little Mermaid was thinking giving all this up just for some guy--she must have major psychological issues by now!
Okay so I'm no expert, like any beginner, I struggled at the start to maintain my buoyancy--first siking to the bottow like a rock and thinking "Ah! Dagnabit!" (or some other explitive of frustration and panic) and then quickly take a huge breath to avoid bumping the coral at the bottom bc it'll be injured and so will you probably at which time I rose like a bubble towards the surface. My path through the water was something like a sign wave--or cosign if you prefer (yes calculus is good for something!) But after a couple dives, I had it better fifured--breathe normally--not as exciting but more effective to be certain.
Over the course of my 4 dives, I saw some pretty cool swimmers the highlights being: big boy trigger fish, x-mas tree worms (i'm not sure whether these aren that rare but they are so cute--little multi-colored plants shaped like, you guessed it, xmas trees that go blup! into their little holes as you swin by and then carefully reemerge when the coast is clear), giant grouper, hexagon grouper, squirrel fish, white moray eel, a clam that could swallow you whole or at least come close, and a super quick little yellow boxfish (he was awesome)
It was funny how some fish looked nicer than others, some had a little scowl and some looked kinda nervous, some looked cooky and some looked like they owned the place. Hopefully as a newly certified PADI diver, I'll be able to use my skills often and fill my log book to the brim, but sadly, I think I may have been spoiled by the richness of the reefs here, forever doomed to be one of those abnoxious people who surfaces and says "This was nice and all, but have you ever been to Koh Tao?."
AS for the diving portion of the package deal I must admitt I was a tak nervous for the non-classroon segment--yeah the scuba part. The first few times going under in the shallows (where we practiced on our knees to start) I found myself inhaling long and deep from my mouth piece (regulator) before ducking under the surface as though I'd have to hold my breath, then I'd remember, exhale, inhale cautiously, woah I'm still under water and breathing taboot--sweet!
Like most things worth doing, scuba takes practice and requires the safe dismissal of a few basic instincts. Fortunately, 10 minutes in to my first open water dive I was hooked. Weigthless as though in outer space I floated along with the 2 other students in my class behinde our instructor Emma and savored my time in this other world. And another world is really the only way to descrive the experience I think. You don't see any fish drifting by your house peeping in, but lucky for us we have the opportunity to be voyeurs at the windows of sea life. I dunno what the heck the Little Mermaid was thinking giving all this up just for some guy--she must have major psychological issues by now!
Okay so I'm no expert, like any beginner, I struggled at the start to maintain my buoyancy--first siking to the bottow like a rock and thinking "Ah! Dagnabit!" (or some other explitive of frustration and panic) and then quickly take a huge breath to avoid bumping the coral at the bottom bc it'll be injured and so will you probably at which time I rose like a bubble towards the surface. My path through the water was something like a sign wave--or cosign if you prefer (yes calculus is good for something!) But after a couple dives, I had it better fifured--breathe normally--not as exciting but more effective to be certain.
Over the course of my 4 dives, I saw some pretty cool swimmers the highlights being: big boy trigger fish, x-mas tree worms (i'm not sure whether these aren that rare but they are so cute--little multi-colored plants shaped like, you guessed it, xmas trees that go blup! into their little holes as you swin by and then carefully reemerge when the coast is clear), giant grouper, hexagon grouper, squirrel fish, white moray eel, a clam that could swallow you whole or at least come close, and a super quick little yellow boxfish (he was awesome)
It was funny how some fish looked nicer than others, some had a little scowl and some looked kinda nervous, some looked cooky and some looked like they owned the place. Hopefully as a newly certified PADI diver, I'll be able to use my skills often and fill my log book to the brim, but sadly, I think I may have been spoiled by the richness of the reefs here, forever doomed to be one of those abnoxious people who surfaces and says "This was nice and all, but have you ever been to Koh Tao?."
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Good Thing This Blog is Mine...
(and not yours) because that means I can use it for whatever I want (ah the sheer power of having your own little cyberspace, wow, no one warned me it could go to my head) including just to say this: Hey Ilse! I miss you already! If you are reading this, you must have made it back home safe (which is exactly what I am hoping will happen) and your many connecting flights must have connected just as good connecting flights should. Let's see, it hasn't even been a full day since you left and I'm thinking, hm. things sure feel awfully different here in Thailand... In one swoop my co-bargainer, co-ice cream-eater, co-laugher, co-victim of 'wow this food is tasty but different so now I have a tummy ache'-er, co-movie-goer, co-planner, co-navigator, co-'I really can't believe that just happened'-er, and the only person who can fully appreciate the jokes and references that come to mind as of late, have all gone and gotten on a plane to go half-way around the world with you. Well, shoot! I couldn't have asked for a better travel companion and you will surely be in my thoughts over the coming weeks. I feel like I'll be lost without you (both literally and figuratively) but hopefully this will be one of the oh so very few (hardy har) times in my life when I am completely and utterly wrong. If you turn around and come back, I'll give you....
10 baht...
okay 20.
Hope the next chapter for you is just as amazing but in a less smelly uncomfortable train ride kind of way!
cross oceanic hug,
kocian ocean
10 baht...
okay 20.
Hope the next chapter for you is just as amazing but in a less smelly uncomfortable train ride kind of way!
cross oceanic hug,
kocian ocean
Sunny Delight
Our next stop was Koh Samet on the East side of the gulf of Thailand. We choose this tiny island--its only 7X2.5 km--because it would be an easy commute form Bangkok, however, after a plane, a shuttle bus, two public buses, a motorbike and sidecar (that was interesting), a boat, a sawngthaew and lots of walking, I'm not 100% sure "easy" would be the exact description I'd choose. Nonetheless, we did indeed arrive-- Koh Samet was a lovely getaway and the sunset we watched there was well worth the rigmarole of reaching the place. We splurged on a nicer place than usual 100 feet or so from sandy shores and decided in the morning that the breakfast buffet that came with the room would have sold the place to us in a NY minute. After omlettes made to order, fresh fruit, and too many cups of coffee (ah how we've searched for a rich drip brew like this one) we spent some time relaxing in the sun, swimming and kayaking and then rewarded a hard day's work (riiiigggghhhhtt) with a massage in the shade waves crashing gently in the background. As I will be taking a thai massage course later in my travels I'm chalking that one up to field research--I've always loved the sciences! We reluctantly departed today (well yesterday now that I'm typing this up) and are back in Bangkok to live out Ilse's last day in style. Neither of us can believe we've come full circle already. It seems only yesterday (well maybe 2 days ago) that we were hopping in our first tuk tuk. But after many adventures, new sights, people, tastes and currencies, it's time for this part of our journey to end, which means of course, it's time for the next part to begin :)
What Wat?
Ankor of course! (and almost 20 others) So far, I've been trying to make these entries enjoyable for my readers (or reader as the case may be...) making light of everything from bargaining to bus rides to buddhas; I hope my sarcasm and wit has come through as intended! However, I must take a pause from jest for this one--I can't seem to find much in the way of silly anecdotes or jokes to recount (save a few small ones) from our time in Cambodia; Ankor Wat and the surrounding temples were/are absolutley spectacular! We've finished our third day exploring and are leaving Siem Reap shortly. Each of the many (many many) temples we visited was mysterious and majestic in its own way. I can't help but be overcome with the sense of something larger at work here. Even the trees that have overgrown the walls and archways, roots snaking through the rubble are some 500 years old or older. To set foot on the same stone floors that kings once trod upon 1000 years ago, to pass under the same doorways, and look out the same windows elicits a feeling everyone should have for themselves once at least, if circumstances allow. We climbed the short and the tall, surveyed the views, admired the carvings, ran our hands over the inscriptions, marveled at the architecture and rose before dawn to watch the sun rise over Ankor Wat (the largest by far and best kept of all the temples). After 3 days of temple viewing, food sampling (mmm milky curries and savory cambodian bbq), and a few glorious midday naps, we feel this part of our journey is complete and we are ready for some fun in the sun--back to Thailand for that!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
School is in Session:
Yesturday for our one day in Saigon/HCM City, we went to visit the Cu Chi tunnels of the Viet Cong and man did we learn a lot!
Lesson #1: many vietnamese were awarded the high honor of "American Killer Hero" (this from an amusing black and white video--it's always good to hear the other side of the story)
Lesson #2: there are 200km of tunnels
Lesson #3: the tunnels took over twenty years to create (starting in 1948)
Lesson #4: 3000 people can fit in the tunnels but 2-300 people can fit and stay for up to 1 week which they often did (that would be way worse than our train ride--whoa that's perspective for you)
Lesson #5: the viet cong set up grenades at the entrances to the tunnels after entering and dismantled them when they wanted to get out (not my style i think)
Lesson #6: vents from the kitchens were over 60 meters away from the actual location to throw the enemy(that's us) off track
Lesson #7: the viet cong put American smells around the entrance to the tunnels by wetting the clothes of the enemy (that's still us) and spreading the sent to throw off the dogs (that was pretty darn smart!)
Lesson #8: old tire scraps can be used to make shoes of all sizes but that doesn't mean they're comfortable
Lesson #9: many many many spikey looking booby traps of all shapes and sorts were used to kill or injure the Americans (one was like that pit trap in Swiss Family Robinson, you know the one I'm thinkin' of?)
Lesson #10: all of the spikey booby traps worked splendidly
Lesson #11: if the spikey booby traps were not leathal at first, surely the victim would die later due to infection as the tips of the spikey parts were dirtied for that puropse exactly (eek)
Lesson #12: B52 bombs weigh 250kg and blow gigantic craters in the ground
Lesson #13: if you are within 100m of one, you could die from shrapnel
Lesson #14: if you are within 3km of one, your ears and nose may start to bleed and you could go deaf
Lesson #15: firing a few rounds with an AK47 at the cu chi tunnels costs a few dollars extra but is pretty awesome (yeah i did)
Lesson #16: tapioca (like the pudding) is kind of like a sweet potato but white and more gummy and tates okay if you cover it in sugar and crushed peanuts
Lesson #17: crouching and crawling through 60 meters of zig zag tunnels gives for one dusty and tired girl but dramatically improves the taste of ice cream
Lesson #18: If you go to the Cu Chi tunnels, aske for Tree (like the number, he says) cause he's definitely the best guide around
An afternoon well spent for sure!
Lesson #1: many vietnamese were awarded the high honor of "American Killer Hero" (this from an amusing black and white video--it's always good to hear the other side of the story)
Lesson #2: there are 200km of tunnels
Lesson #3: the tunnels took over twenty years to create (starting in 1948)
Lesson #4: 3000 people can fit in the tunnels but 2-300 people can fit and stay for up to 1 week which they often did (that would be way worse than our train ride--whoa that's perspective for you)
Lesson #5: the viet cong set up grenades at the entrances to the tunnels after entering and dismantled them when they wanted to get out (not my style i think)
Lesson #6: vents from the kitchens were over 60 meters away from the actual location to throw the enemy(that's us) off track
Lesson #7: the viet cong put American smells around the entrance to the tunnels by wetting the clothes of the enemy (that's still us) and spreading the sent to throw off the dogs (that was pretty darn smart!)
Lesson #8: old tire scraps can be used to make shoes of all sizes but that doesn't mean they're comfortable
Lesson #9: many many many spikey looking booby traps of all shapes and sorts were used to kill or injure the Americans (one was like that pit trap in Swiss Family Robinson, you know the one I'm thinkin' of?)
Lesson #10: all of the spikey booby traps worked splendidly
Lesson #11: if the spikey booby traps were not leathal at first, surely the victim would die later due to infection as the tips of the spikey parts were dirtied for that puropse exactly (eek)
Lesson #12: B52 bombs weigh 250kg and blow gigantic craters in the ground
Lesson #13: if you are within 100m of one, you could die from shrapnel
Lesson #14: if you are within 3km of one, your ears and nose may start to bleed and you could go deaf
Lesson #15: firing a few rounds with an AK47 at the cu chi tunnels costs a few dollars extra but is pretty awesome (yeah i did)
Lesson #16: tapioca (like the pudding) is kind of like a sweet potato but white and more gummy and tates okay if you cover it in sugar and crushed peanuts
Lesson #17: crouching and crawling through 60 meters of zig zag tunnels gives for one dusty and tired girl but dramatically improves the taste of ice cream
Lesson #18: If you go to the Cu Chi tunnels, aske for Tree (like the number, he says) cause he's definitely the best guide around
An afternoon well spent for sure!
Miss Universe makes a strange appearence:
After visiting Tam Coc on a beautiful but extraordinarily hot day--Ilse burned her legs and I burned my arms and also had become adept at repairing bikes (the chain on my rental came off multiple times)--we were ready for a nice relaxing overnight train ride. Unfortunately, that was not what fate had in store. I can barely put the agony of this transportation experience into words-- it's a you had to be there kind of situation, but I will say that it was a nightmare in which time slowed to a mere crawl and it was as uncomfortable and disgusting as it was long. Id say wer were no worse for the ware but I pride myself in honesty; it took us a long nap, many showers, a massage and a couple of slower days and early nights to recover.
While in Hue, we booked a few flights and though it cost a bit more, we saved loads of time and recieved peace of mind in exchange for a few extra dong. There isn't a whole lot more to tell about our stay in Hue aside from a few tid bits. We noted with a chuckle that the silverware in our guesthouse was all marked Vietnam airlines and wondered how many flights it took to aquire... When we went to check out we are pretty sure that the receptionist swindled us out of about $10 each which is a lot of money here. There was confusion bc we were paying with dollars and dong--I saw her calculate how much we owed using 16.5 thousand dong to the dollar and how much we paid using 16-- and we are guessing that she slipped some money under the table when we weren't looking which would have been easy to do seeing as we were distracted by the sight of our bags being thrown off the bus we had booked to Hoi An so they could get a move on. Luckily we'd made friends with the tourist agents and the sent a cab to catch us up and the bus had to wait afterall. So there. 10 bucks poorer and we were just glad to be in keeping with our plans and out of Adong Guesthouse.
I've saved a positive encounter to end with however; the morning of our departure, before all that fuss, we visited Bao Quaoc Pagoda--the main place on my adgenda for Hue. After a few close calls on the road and an ignored red light (I got the crazy motto driver) we arrived just in time to see the monds at Bao Quaoc run through their after lunch ritual, chanting and shuffleing form the dining room to their place of worship accross the courtyard. It was peaceful and majestic. One monk came over to talk with us briefly and we had the funniest little chat--after the usual opening questions, he informed us that it was a shame that we weern't in Nha Trang as we could've attended the Miss Universe competition--Venesuela won this year, India the previous and Japan the year before that. "You must really like that competition" we remarked. "Oh no" he said "I just watch it on TV" " well maybe next year we'll come back and see it then" we said surprized to be dicussing next year's beauty pagent with a monk. "It won't be in Vietnam next year--2010 it will be back." and then he had to go or he'd be late for prayer.
While in Hue, we booked a few flights and though it cost a bit more, we saved loads of time and recieved peace of mind in exchange for a few extra dong. There isn't a whole lot more to tell about our stay in Hue aside from a few tid bits. We noted with a chuckle that the silverware in our guesthouse was all marked Vietnam airlines and wondered how many flights it took to aquire... When we went to check out we are pretty sure that the receptionist swindled us out of about $10 each which is a lot of money here. There was confusion bc we were paying with dollars and dong--I saw her calculate how much we owed using 16.5 thousand dong to the dollar and how much we paid using 16-- and we are guessing that she slipped some money under the table when we weren't looking which would have been easy to do seeing as we were distracted by the sight of our bags being thrown off the bus we had booked to Hoi An so they could get a move on. Luckily we'd made friends with the tourist agents and the sent a cab to catch us up and the bus had to wait afterall. So there. 10 bucks poorer and we were just glad to be in keeping with our plans and out of Adong Guesthouse.
I've saved a positive encounter to end with however; the morning of our departure, before all that fuss, we visited Bao Quaoc Pagoda--the main place on my adgenda for Hue. After a few close calls on the road and an ignored red light (I got the crazy motto driver) we arrived just in time to see the monds at Bao Quaoc run through their after lunch ritual, chanting and shuffleing form the dining room to their place of worship accross the courtyard. It was peaceful and majestic. One monk came over to talk with us briefly and we had the funniest little chat--after the usual opening questions, he informed us that it was a shame that we weern't in Nha Trang as we could've attended the Miss Universe competition--Venesuela won this year, India the previous and Japan the year before that. "You must really like that competition" we remarked. "Oh no" he said "I just watch it on TV" " well maybe next year we'll come back and see it then" we said surprized to be dicussing next year's beauty pagent with a monk. "It won't be in Vietnam next year--2010 it will be back." and then he had to go or he'd be late for prayer.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
oh yeah
it's probably important to make note after that last entry that the absolutely breathtaking beauty of Halong Bay and later Tam Coc outside of Ninh Binh overshadowed most of our troubles. They both could easily be world wonders in my book (i dunno exactly what impact my book will have on the world but i plan to publish and find out) and Ilse and I carried on generally without regrets but certainly a bit wiser for next time :)
Friday, July 11, 2008
the road gets a bit bumpy...
oh my goodness, the last couple of days have been, well, a bit of a rough ride. Ilse and I were ready to depart from Hanoi as we were starting to feel a bit uncomfortable in our guesthouse--think staff of 4 guys sleeping in the lobby all day i their boxers and slight vibes of resentment drifting our way bc we didn't book our tour to halong bay through them for twice the cost. I will now relay the last two days as a series of short anecdotes:
Wednesday:
6:30 wake up (ouch that felt early)
7:30 explain to staff that we'd like to use the internet which is not working at all, the guy says "yea yea ok i fix" and then leaves the building
8:00 hotel tries to overcharge us for the room, we correct them
8:15 ask for complimentary breakfast (included in last night's stay), the guy yawns, stretches and goes back to sleep on the couch
9:00 begin to wonder waht happened to our bus which is an hour late, ask to use the phone for a local call and the guys says it'll be 10,000 dong per minute--no way--we find a nice man accross the street who offers to call, we find out the tour has forgotten us
9:05 nice man's partner comes over to demand we pay for the phone call
9:06 we refuse
9:15 get in the cab sent by friendship travel agency
10:00 cab driver misses a turn and proceeds to reverse against oncoming interstate traffic as we bite our nails
10:05 we get on a crowded bus full of confused people who have been waiting at the side of the road for 40 minutes for no apparent reason
1:00 sit through an uncomfortable lunch on the boat with a table of french speakers who seem to be having a lovely conversation
2:00 stop for a look at a once beautiful cave which has since been completely ruined by multicolored artificial lighting--the place looked like a discoteque
3:00 pay 40.000 dong for a 15 min boat ride in a smaller boat that didn't show us much new
4:00 arrive at cat ba island and wait almost an hour for the bus
5:00 get on the jampacked bus and wait another 20 min for the shirtless bus driver to decide we should probably get goin
5:20 pray the bus will make it up this hill and the next
5:40 arrive at hotel on Cat Ba which is near nothing and could have easily been gotten to by boat
8:00 after dinner harrassed by 5 moto drivers to go to town, one offered a very low price (very low-1000 dong) and proceeded to take us 25 meters down the road and back
8:01 the moto drivers had a good laugh
8:15 arrive in town and battle the slowest internet connection of all time
8:45 search for a regular cup 'o joe with out condensed milk, its tough to find
9:45 bombarded by 6 or 7 moto drivers clearly in cahoots and continually blocking our way or grabbing our wrists to get our business (not the best strategy)
10:00 arrive at hotel, thank goodness
Thursday:
7:30 wake up
8:00 go down to check out and have breakfast and realize we left the key in the room
8:15 after looking high and low in the room, i play charades with the cleaning lady to see if she picked it up
8:20 I determine I am not the best charades player
8:25 i go down to the front desk distraught and the manager talks to the cleaning lady who does in fact have the key
8:45 ask for more jelly to go with my bread and hotel server says no
9:00 back on the bus and thenlater on the boat and go back to Halong City without kayaking or swimming both of which were on the adgenda
1:00 bus to Hanoi is crowded and hot and the AC is not really working but the guide will not let us open the windows
2:00 bus has trouble starting after tanking up and half the passengers have to get out and push
2:15 we take a vote and everyone wants the windows open so we do
4:30 arrive in Hanoi, bus drops us 4 blocks away from the agreed upon location and yells at us in Vietnamese when we protest
5:30 I stand out in the rain to try and feel cleaner
5:32 it stops raining-great
6:00 we go to the trave office to pick up the 6:00 bus
7:30 the bus finally comes--it's nice
7:45 the bus drops us at the real bus to Ninh Binh--they've got us on a sleeper bus for only a two hour ride but instead of two little beds they have us jammed into one
9:00 as we are sitting uncomfortably on our narrow platform sandwiched between two couples on their narrow platforms (picture a big family bed in the back of the bus with short dividers), the pop song "Noma Noma" comes blaring over the radio and we have an exasperated laugh
11:00 finally reach our destination after stopping for a half hour 15 min before we got off
11:05 pay a little extra ($12 instead of 6) for a room in the nicest hotel we've stayed in yet
11:45 agree that that shower we just had was priceless
Wednesday:
6:30 wake up (ouch that felt early)
7:30 explain to staff that we'd like to use the internet which is not working at all, the guy says "yea yea ok i fix" and then leaves the building
8:00 hotel tries to overcharge us for the room, we correct them
8:15 ask for complimentary breakfast (included in last night's stay), the guy yawns, stretches and goes back to sleep on the couch
9:00 begin to wonder waht happened to our bus which is an hour late, ask to use the phone for a local call and the guys says it'll be 10,000 dong per minute--no way--we find a nice man accross the street who offers to call, we find out the tour has forgotten us
9:05 nice man's partner comes over to demand we pay for the phone call
9:06 we refuse
9:15 get in the cab sent by friendship travel agency
10:00 cab driver misses a turn and proceeds to reverse against oncoming interstate traffic as we bite our nails
10:05 we get on a crowded bus full of confused people who have been waiting at the side of the road for 40 minutes for no apparent reason
1:00 sit through an uncomfortable lunch on the boat with a table of french speakers who seem to be having a lovely conversation
2:00 stop for a look at a once beautiful cave which has since been completely ruined by multicolored artificial lighting--the place looked like a discoteque
3:00 pay 40.000 dong for a 15 min boat ride in a smaller boat that didn't show us much new
4:00 arrive at cat ba island and wait almost an hour for the bus
5:00 get on the jampacked bus and wait another 20 min for the shirtless bus driver to decide we should probably get goin
5:20 pray the bus will make it up this hill and the next
5:40 arrive at hotel on Cat Ba which is near nothing and could have easily been gotten to by boat
8:00 after dinner harrassed by 5 moto drivers to go to town, one offered a very low price (very low-1000 dong) and proceeded to take us 25 meters down the road and back
8:01 the moto drivers had a good laugh
8:15 arrive in town and battle the slowest internet connection of all time
8:45 search for a regular cup 'o joe with out condensed milk, its tough to find
9:45 bombarded by 6 or 7 moto drivers clearly in cahoots and continually blocking our way or grabbing our wrists to get our business (not the best strategy)
10:00 arrive at hotel, thank goodness
Thursday:
7:30 wake up
8:00 go down to check out and have breakfast and realize we left the key in the room
8:15 after looking high and low in the room, i play charades with the cleaning lady to see if she picked it up
8:20 I determine I am not the best charades player
8:25 i go down to the front desk distraught and the manager talks to the cleaning lady who does in fact have the key
8:45 ask for more jelly to go with my bread and hotel server says no
9:00 back on the bus and thenlater on the boat and go back to Halong City without kayaking or swimming both of which were on the adgenda
1:00 bus to Hanoi is crowded and hot and the AC is not really working but the guide will not let us open the windows
2:00 bus has trouble starting after tanking up and half the passengers have to get out and push
2:15 we take a vote and everyone wants the windows open so we do
4:30 arrive in Hanoi, bus drops us 4 blocks away from the agreed upon location and yells at us in Vietnamese when we protest
5:30 I stand out in the rain to try and feel cleaner
5:32 it stops raining-great
6:00 we go to the trave office to pick up the 6:00 bus
7:30 the bus finally comes--it's nice
7:45 the bus drops us at the real bus to Ninh Binh--they've got us on a sleeper bus for only a two hour ride but instead of two little beds they have us jammed into one
9:00 as we are sitting uncomfortably on our narrow platform sandwiched between two couples on their narrow platforms (picture a big family bed in the back of the bus with short dividers), the pop song "Noma Noma" comes blaring over the radio and we have an exasperated laugh
11:00 finally reach our destination after stopping for a half hour 15 min before we got off
11:05 pay a little extra ($12 instead of 6) for a room in the nicest hotel we've stayed in yet
11:45 agree that that shower we just had was priceless
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
here's a quickie from hanoi
- i'm in hanoi and have been for a day and a half or so and have been wandering the streets since then. I literally mean wandering. it is impossible to navigate here! the small streets aren't labeled on the map and the big streets aren't labeled on the streets, ah! one word: motos. i've never seen so many in my life ever! there are 8 million ppl in this city and 7 million motos to carry them all around and that's a fact. luckily this means that there is no need to look both ways before crossing the street (in fact its best not to) bc you can be sure that 30 motos from each direction are headed straight for you. this activity (crossing the street that is) is a total leap of faith-- look down or straight ahead, walk at a steady even pace and hope that the drivers are competent enough to steer around little old you. so far they have been-phew! time for some pho!
Bangkok countdown:
PS for the last one: my travel companion got angry that she was listed only as travel companion and she deserves better--her name is Ilse Falk and she's a single civil engineer from new orleans who like long walks on thai beaches ;)
1,2,3...go
Fruits Tasted:
1. mangosteen
2. rambutan
3. dragon fruit
4. durian (well only a lick of a candy flavored like this one bc it's pretty much the most revolting vegetarian food item you'll ever come across)
5. lychee
6.startfruit
Words/phrases learned in Thai (I think I could look up the correct spelling but that's just stupid bc they use characters anyway so phonetic will do fine):
1. sa-wah-tee-ka=hello/ good morning/afternoon/night
2.kop-kun-ka= thank u
3. chai=yes
4. mai=no
5.mai kun ka=no thank u
6. lo gam=goodbye (and also bye bye the cabbie said so that one is used by me a bit more often)
7. ka ru naa=please
8. my pee lie= no problem
9. shurn ka/ pie kan teuh=let's go
10. chun cow=cheers
# of times at an internet cafe in 2.5 or 3 days=4
# showers= many
things i've seen/done/been to or whatever in Bangkok: (the real meat)
1.river canal tour
2.wat arun (the marble temple--too many steep stairs but well worth it)
3. wat po (reclining buddha- I call it lazy buddha cause that's more fun)
4. grand palace (grand it was indeed)
5. wat phra kaew (temple of the emerald buddha--has different outfits depending on the weather, no i amnot kidding)
6. siam sqaure
7.chatuchak market
8.dinner and a movie
9. thai boxing match
you may be thinking...one of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn't belong (can you hear the toon?) so yeah, goin to a movie sounds like a silly way to spend a night in Thailand but no!--it is a neccessary cultural experience (at least for the first 10 minutes) and as a bonus, its a great way to soak up some ac. When you buy tickets you must specidy regular or delux (those are different areas of the theater and slightly different prices--regular sits closer upand maybe cranks their necks to see) and you must also specify whether you want honey moon seats or not. Ilse and I thought 'wow! honeymoon seats, yeah! that sounds great! turns out it only means that the arm rest between seats can be lifted for canoodling purposes. oh well, we got them anyway at no extra charge and had a good laugh with the ticket lady.
Once the lights dim, everyone in the theater rises from their assigned seats and the national anthem is played accompanied by a lovely montage video of the king(it might be noted here that this interupted one couple's use of the honemoon seats)--the anthem is moderately long and various pictures are shown: (here's another list but there are too many to number) the king in his military get up, at coronation, with his family, without his family, giving handshakes, patting heads, panning shots with the king in them and close ups of the king, the king in plain clothes, the king in royal attire, in cars, standing on balconies, sitting on thrones, walking along the street, with hair, without hair (mostly without), with the queen, without the queen (also mostly without bc thai ppl just aren't quite as fond of her, a little fond, but not quite as fond) and so on...the king is well-loved by his kingdom fo sho. The anthem was followed by two commercials; one in which an entire sceen from the movie love actually was reenacted--not sure what was being sold but i'm sure there was copywright infringement somewhere there. And a second which is probably one of the most disturbing advertisments I've ever seen--An ad for coca cola involving a scary mime, carnival music and a high pitched cackle... and then we got to see a movie taboot!
Things I've done for luck:
1. wish at lucky buddha
2.rub elephant statue at wat phra kaew
3. roll stone in lion statue's mouth back and forth 3x at the grand palace
4. drop coins one in each bowl along the side of lazy buddha
lucky is almost as well like as the king :)
1,2,3...go
Fruits Tasted:
1. mangosteen
2. rambutan
3. dragon fruit
4. durian (well only a lick of a candy flavored like this one bc it's pretty much the most revolting vegetarian food item you'll ever come across)
5. lychee
6.startfruit
Words/phrases learned in Thai (I think I could look up the correct spelling but that's just stupid bc they use characters anyway so phonetic will do fine):
1. sa-wah-tee-ka=hello/ good morning/afternoon/night
2.kop-kun-ka= thank u
3. chai=yes
4. mai=no
5.mai kun ka=no thank u
6. lo gam=goodbye (and also bye bye the cabbie said so that one is used by me a bit more often)
7. ka ru naa=please
8. my pee lie= no problem
9. shurn ka/ pie kan teuh=let's go
10. chun cow=cheers
# of times at an internet cafe in 2.5 or 3 days=4
# showers= many
things i've seen/done/been to or whatever in Bangkok: (the real meat)
1.river canal tour
2.wat arun (the marble temple--too many steep stairs but well worth it)
3. wat po (reclining buddha- I call it lazy buddha cause that's more fun)
4. grand palace (grand it was indeed)
5. wat phra kaew (temple of the emerald buddha--has different outfits depending on the weather, no i amnot kidding)
6. siam sqaure
7.chatuchak market
8.dinner and a movie
9. thai boxing match
you may be thinking...one of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn't belong (can you hear the toon?) so yeah, goin to a movie sounds like a silly way to spend a night in Thailand but no!--it is a neccessary cultural experience (at least for the first 10 minutes) and as a bonus, its a great way to soak up some ac. When you buy tickets you must specidy regular or delux (those are different areas of the theater and slightly different prices--regular sits closer upand maybe cranks their necks to see) and you must also specify whether you want honey moon seats or not. Ilse and I thought 'wow! honeymoon seats, yeah! that sounds great! turns out it only means that the arm rest between seats can be lifted for canoodling purposes. oh well, we got them anyway at no extra charge and had a good laugh with the ticket lady.
Once the lights dim, everyone in the theater rises from their assigned seats and the national anthem is played accompanied by a lovely montage video of the king(it might be noted here that this interupted one couple's use of the honemoon seats)--the anthem is moderately long and various pictures are shown: (here's another list but there are too many to number) the king in his military get up, at coronation, with his family, without his family, giving handshakes, patting heads, panning shots with the king in them and close ups of the king, the king in plain clothes, the king in royal attire, in cars, standing on balconies, sitting on thrones, walking along the street, with hair, without hair (mostly without), with the queen, without the queen (also mostly without bc thai ppl just aren't quite as fond of her, a little fond, but not quite as fond) and so on...the king is well-loved by his kingdom fo sho. The anthem was followed by two commercials; one in which an entire sceen from the movie love actually was reenacted--not sure what was being sold but i'm sure there was copywright infringement somewhere there. And a second which is probably one of the most disturbing advertisments I've ever seen--An ad for coca cola involving a scary mime, carnival music and a high pitched cackle... and then we got to see a movie taboot!
Things I've done for luck:
1. wish at lucky buddha
2.rub elephant statue at wat phra kaew
3. roll stone in lion statue's mouth back and forth 3x at the grand palace
4. drop coins one in each bowl along the side of lazy buddha
lucky is almost as well like as the king :)
Sunday, July 6, 2008
let's talk about tuk tuks...
Thought this would just be a fun subject: a tuk tuk is basically a golf cart that swallowed a motorcycle. these colorful little vehicles decked out with lights and streamers zip around all over the city that way and that weaving in and out of the busy lanes which are only a suggestion really. If there's a break in traffic at a red light, it's a signal to go ahead and jump in if you can so the driver restarts the engine with a twist of the key (it was off to save a few drops of petrol before that) and off we go. According to the tuk tuk guide book, it seems that two people walking down the street are surely just waiting for a congenial tuk tuk driver to offer them a ride. Me and Ilse have been taking tuk tuks all over the city and each time we ask the price it goes something like this:
driver: 180 baht
us: no no, it's not far, 70 baht.
driver: 70 baht, 70 baht (pointing to us one at a time signaling that we each pay 70)
us: no no, 70 baht (signaling both of us together)
driver: okay 150
us: 80
driver: 140
us: no. lower. we paid only 80 baht last time, same trip. [...there is no last time, we've never been to that part of town]
driver: mmm 130 baht final offer
us: you can do 100, do 100
driver: 0kay okay
(wow that was longer than I thought to type out!)
we get in and 15 minutes or so into the ride, we realize that actually this place we want to go is quite far away after all and we pat ourselves on the back --$2 is not bad for cross town door to door or wat to wat service (as the case may be). "Khob khun ka!" we say (thanks) and on to the next POI.
I hand wrote this entry planning to put it up later (along with the previous one) early on and even after another day, we've gotten better at bargaining and each time we go somewhere we're a bit more firm on the price and start a bit lower. We've now done one particular trip for 100 baht then 80, then 70 and tonight 50 so I'm thinking the thai probably pay about 10 :) At one point today we were tired and sick of looking a maps and though we knew we were close to our place, a tuk tuk driver, who insisted that he take us where we were going, agreed to take us for 5 baht--we threw our hand up and let him and were amazed to find that it took definitely 5 and maybe even 10 minutes to get there. For our tired feet the ride was worth every single one of the twelve cents-- we may have even thrown in an extra baht if asked nicely.
driver: 180 baht
us: no no, it's not far, 70 baht.
driver: 70 baht, 70 baht (pointing to us one at a time signaling that we each pay 70)
us: no no, 70 baht (signaling both of us together)
driver: okay 150
us: 80
driver: 140
us: no. lower. we paid only 80 baht last time, same trip. [...there is no last time, we've never been to that part of town]
driver: mmm 130 baht final offer
us: you can do 100, do 100
driver: 0kay okay
(wow that was longer than I thought to type out!)
we get in and 15 minutes or so into the ride, we realize that actually this place we want to go is quite far away after all and we pat ourselves on the back --$2 is not bad for cross town door to door or wat to wat service (as the case may be). "Khob khun ka!" we say (thanks) and on to the next POI.
I hand wrote this entry planning to put it up later (along with the previous one) early on and even after another day, we've gotten better at bargaining and each time we go somewhere we're a bit more firm on the price and start a bit lower. We've now done one particular trip for 100 baht then 80, then 70 and tonight 50 so I'm thinking the thai probably pay about 10 :) At one point today we were tired and sick of looking a maps and though we knew we were close to our place, a tuk tuk driver, who insisted that he take us where we were going, agreed to take us for 5 baht--we threw our hand up and let him and were amazed to find that it took definitely 5 and maybe even 10 minutes to get there. For our tired feet the ride was worth every single one of the twelve cents-- we may have even thrown in an extra baht if asked nicely.
Lucky Buddha
After a jet lagged sleepless night following my arrival in Bangkok, I decided to get myself out of the D&D Inn and do some exploring before my travel companion arrived that afternoon. I was walking along with no particular purpose when a persistent salesman (of which there are many s I have recently discovered--no surprise there) caught my attention. He was offering a tuk-tuk ride to a number of city locations for 20 baht (abt 65 cents) I was savvy to this ploy--tuk tuk drivers offer you a tour and then bring you to stores to shop and get a cut of your purchase. I explained that I did not want to spend any money or go shopping and the little man (yeah he was maybe 5 feet) assured me that there would only be one stop for shopping and it was only because a government promotions allowed the driver to get free petrol. I did not have to buy anything and then we'd be on our way.
"20 baht right? only 20 baht total?"
"yes yes"
"okay okay"
and I hopped in, and off we went.
My driver's name was Dotan--he wore a big smile and encouraged me to take my time at each stop, we got along well. The first place we went was the Lucky Buddha. Dotan showed me that\e way--through a scholl yard jumping withkids round to the other side of a small ornate building to the entrance. After slipping off my shoes, I entered just behinde a middle-aged thai man who waved me in and patted the ground next to him. I knelt beside him in front of the big gold buddha and he showed me the proper way to bow three times and then told me a wish and then we bowed together three more times. I think its okay to reveal that I wished for health and happiness for my friends and family; I figure big lucky buddha can probably handle a big wish. After making our wishes, us two sat on the floor in front of lucky buddha and got to talking. He was a teacher at the school I'd just passed and gave me tips on visiting Bangkok and explained that today was a special holiday--buddha's birthday! So everything was cheap--the tuk tuk ride included--taxes were lifted and petrol was free. My encounter with this lovely man made my day completely--lucky buddha seemed to bring me luck on the spot, so my 65 cent ride was worth every baht. (However, me and Dotan did stop at 4 tailors where I spent a fair amount of time refusing offers for handmade suits and by the fourth I'd learned my lesson well--I suppose I deserved that one.)
"20 baht right? only 20 baht total?"
"yes yes"
"okay okay"
and I hopped in, and off we went.
My driver's name was Dotan--he wore a big smile and encouraged me to take my time at each stop, we got along well. The first place we went was the Lucky Buddha. Dotan showed me that\e way--through a scholl yard jumping withkids round to the other side of a small ornate building to the entrance. After slipping off my shoes, I entered just behinde a middle-aged thai man who waved me in and patted the ground next to him. I knelt beside him in front of the big gold buddha and he showed me the proper way to bow three times and then told me a wish and then we bowed together three more times. I think its okay to reveal that I wished for health and happiness for my friends and family; I figure big lucky buddha can probably handle a big wish. After making our wishes, us two sat on the floor in front of lucky buddha and got to talking. He was a teacher at the school I'd just passed and gave me tips on visiting Bangkok and explained that today was a special holiday--buddha's birthday! So everything was cheap--the tuk tuk ride included--taxes were lifted and petrol was free. My encounter with this lovely man made my day completely--lucky buddha seemed to bring me luck on the spot, so my 65 cent ride was worth every baht. (However, me and Dotan did stop at 4 tailors where I spent a fair amount of time refusing offers for handmade suits and by the fourth I'd learned my lesson well--I suppose I deserved that one.)
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