accordingtoang's blog

New Year's....Thai Style

Well this New Year's has got to be the best I've ever had!!!! I had to post about it right away while it is still vivid in my memory.

The original plan was to go to the Countdown Party at Koh Phangan...the local friend that Kyle made, Keng, was going to take us there with his friends (Marti, Phut, Tan, Nellie, and others)....but unfortunately a tropical storm hit the islands and made the seas really rough and unsafe for the speedboats, so we decided to stay on Samui. I was initially disappointed because I'd hoped to meet up with some of the Seetanu group over there, but I reminded myself that everything happens for a reason.

Keng picked us up at our bungalows and took us to his home, where a group of his friends were sitting on the front porch at a table filled with Singa Beer and authentic Thai appetizers. We sat down and were so warmly welcomed, immediately given glasses of beer with the infamous Thai smiles. They even picked fresh coconuts off the trees and poured us glasses of coconut milk to try. We learned the Thai way of saying cheers ('chung gao'), and got a lot of practice saying it throughout the evening!!!

We then headed to a restaurant at Chewang Beach, where the long table at which we sat was filled with incredible Thai food - fried rice, curry prawns, spicy soup, beef....I've never eaten so much in my life!! At this point, fireworks were going off all over the beach...you could feel the excitement rising in the air as midnight neared....

And now the most magical part of the evening....at 11:30 we walked to the beach, right up to the water's edge so that the waves were lapping up against our feet. The beach was absolutely packed, even more so than at the Full Moon Party, but again everyone was there simply to have a good time and I couldn't have felt safer or more comfortable. Now here's the hard part....what I saw was indescribable, and yet I'm faced with the task of trying to explain it in a way that does it justice....I'll do my best...

The sky literally took my breath away...here on Samui there are Good Luck lanterns that you can light and release into the sky. They're quite big, probably about 3 feet tall and made of a white paper fabric shaped as a cylinder. There were literally thousands of these speckling the sky like golden stars, slowly floating down the beach being carried in the wind and creeping upwards in the night. Mixed among these, massive displays of fireworks were being set off all around the bay as far as the eye could see, with some no more than 20 feet from where I stood....they literally went off directly above my head. This scene was truly magical....not something you could ever capture on film, but can only hope to imprint forever in your memory...

Last night, I escaped the tourist world and joined the local culture. I was given a taste of Thai hospitality and witnessed the very best of Thailand. The people here are the most genuine I've ever met, wanting nothing more than to spend time showing you their country and make you as comfortable as possible. I am lucky to be here and cannot begin to express how much this New Year's meant to me.

I have to believe that 2008 is going to be a good year based on this most incredible start...

Happy New Year!!!

Fun and Sun on the Thai Islands

Hi everyone back home!!! I'm all settled in at this internet cafe with the sole intention of filling you all in on my time at Koh Phangan and here on Koh Samui. Alas, my camera has decided not to cooperate (or more likely the computer is being stubborn) but in any case, my pictures will have to be posted another time. I guess I'll just have to be really descriptive in my writing!!

Anyway, way back on December 19 I took two overnight buses to get to Koh Phangan, in what has so far been the roughest trip yet!!! The first bus was pretty bad....no lights, no air, no leg room. Not to mention the fact that I was bumped from a window seat, leaving me to lean on a poor chinese guy throughout the night, and the french giant behind me refused to let me recline my seat. ...I won't even get into the onboard thai toilet..... Luckily the second bus was VIP and very nice (although the first bus had VIP on the windows as well, so I think that's more to make tourists feel special rather than to describe the comfort of travel!!) Arrived at the port and caught the first ferry out to the islands, visiting along the way with some Argentinian hippies who played the guitar.

Seetanu Bungalows is an incredible place to stay on Koh Phangan (I have Scott Gerylo to thank for the recommendation!) We were put up in the Taj Mahal of bungalows, complete with air con, TV, hot shower, separate living room, and beachfront location. I went for a swim and lounged on the beach, chatting with Larry from Montreal, until Kyle and RaeAnne arrived (apparantly their journey in from Phuket was rough as well!)

We were so lucky to be staying here when we did, because the people were incredibly fun!!! We all ended up drinking in the Seetanu restaurant/bar one night and got to know each other. Fun group of guys from Australia (one of whom I may see again in Melbourne), Caroline from England, Nick and Renatta from New Zealand....honestly such a wonderful group of people!!!

Our days on Phangan were spent mainly on the beach, although RaeAnne and I did feel adventurous one day and rent a motorbike.....SO SCARY!!!! Let me put this into perspective....we rented the bike from a girl who spoke very limited english, so she couldn't really explain how to drive it, and we had already nominated me as the driver, so I was more than a little nervous!! Plus they don't wear helmets very much here and certainly don't have them readily available if you do want one. But hey, how hard can it be right??

After doing a few practice runs, RaeAnne hopped on the back and we made a less than graceful take-off and started off down the road. We met Larry on his way back to Seetanu and he offered to take us to Than Nam Rak, a beautiful waterfall in the middle of the island, so we followed him and gave him a few moments of pure entertainment with my driving skills (nearly took out a trailer hitch and I almost lost my sandals by putting my feet down before stopping the bike). Locals would even stop to watch me take-off, knowing that I'd be hilarious!! But it was fun and just adds another funny story to my trip!!! Oh and the waterfall was beautiful and absolutely worth the embarassment of getting there!

Spent Christmas Eve on the beach, with me still hiding out in the shade!! That night we headed to the notorious Full Moon Party at Haad Rin. There were at least 15 people all crammed into the Seetanu truck on the way down. Once arriving at the beach, RaeAnne and I each got buckets of Thai whiskey, red bull and coke, and those lasted us for the rest of the night...  Really though, the Full Moon Parties are not that crazy....they're crazy in the sense that there are thousands of drunk people crammed onto the beach, with rave music playing from coutless different bars and with specific areas roped off for those who cannot handle their booze and need a place to lay down without being trampled. But I never witnessed any fights or robbery, and generally found everyone to be there simply to have a good time. I believe I had a good time, although the night passed so quickly that before I knew it, it was 7am and we were taking a cab back to the bungalows...certainly not the traditional snack night I normally do on Christmas Eve, but when in Rome, right???

I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about Christmas Day, because frankly, it wasn't great. In ways it passed just like any other day here, with the sun shining and the beer flowing. But I just found that all day there was a cloud of blueness, perhaps because there were reminders everywhere that it was Christmas, and yet family and traditions were no where to be found. Plus calling home has been incredibly difficult from here, as there are no pay phones that accept calling cards, and the overseas call centres charge close to $1/minute. We perked up the next day though and went snorkelling at Nangyuan Island and Koh Tao - seriously saw flourescent coloured fish!!!! Beautiful!!!!

I hated leaving Phangan.....I knew I'd miss the people and the island atmosphere, which is far less touristy than Samui. But we said our good-byes and caught the ferry. Kyle actually made friends with one of the workers who is from Samui so he offered to show us around the island some time during our stay. Yet another example of the incredible generousity among the Thai people!!

Anyway, we did end up going out for dinner and clubbing with Kyle's friend and are planning on going to the New Year's Countdown Party on Phangan with him tonight. After that, Kyle and RaeAnne head back to Bangkok to fly home and I'll leave Jan 2 to Krabi and Phuket for a week. The three of us have gotten along so well on this trip...we've spent a lot of time together, but I've also given them their space here and there. I'll miss them when they go!!!

So I think that about does it for the update...Honestly a lot of our time on the islands has been spent on the beach and in the bar - gets kind of tough to change up the story and keep it interesting when you have limited material, so hopefully I've shared my more interesting experiences!! I'll try to get my pictures up as soon as possible.

Sending loads of love home and hope everyone has a great New Year's!!!!!

 

I'm a blog slacker....I know!!!!!

So apologies for not posting lately at all....in fact, this one will be short too, but I promise to update within the next couple days!!!!!!

I have been enjoying the Thai island experience so much that I've left my camera and all blogging intentions in the bungalow in exchange for 27 Baht beers and fun times in the Seetanu Bar and restaurant. Have met some amazing people, some of whom I hope to meet up with again on my future travels, and also managed to get a horrible sunburn on half of my body!! Ahh, this is the life!!!

Anyway, I'm off to explore Samui with Kyle, RaeAnne and some locals we met on the way over from Phangan. Until next time.....

Merry Thai Christmas!!!

It is so strange celebrating Christmas in Koh Phangan, Thailand! There are Christmas decorations all over our resort, and you can often hear Christmas tunes playing in the stores...and yet the atmosphere just doesn't scream 'Christmas'.

Anyway, I want to wish everyone back home a very Merry Christmas!!!!! Miss you all!!!!

Thailand Trekking

My two day trek into Northern Thailand has got to be the highlight of my trip so far. It was filled with so many amazing sights and experiences, I don't know where to begin!! I'll try my best to convey the magic...

 

The Tour Group

Our tour group consisted of 12 people from all over the world (Germany, Slovenia, Holland, Australia, Korea...). We spent most of the first day riding in the back of a pick-up truck, had lunch at a waterfall, then walked for about 2 hours through the jungle and rice fields to the Karen Village.

The Karen Tribe

The locals made jewellery and scarves to try and sell to the visitors, so we were swarmed upon arrival by kids and women holding baskets of handicrafts...I ended up buying a necklace from a young girl with incredible big brown eyes.

Dinner of soup, rice, vegetables and fruit was served, along with an authentic Thai birthday cake for Jos, who was turning 27 that day!!! Then we sat around a fire, with our guide James singing and playing the guitar...he loves the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Beatles, so we got to hear lots of their songs...with some Thai flavour!! The tribe elder even performed some magic tricks, which I've yet to figure out!!

Our bedroom at the Karen Village

Finally headed off to bed, but falling asleep was a different story!!! We had seen a scorpion near the fire and a cockroach in our hut!!! Ahh, the great foreign outdoors!!!

I actually had a really good sleep though! There was an incredible symphony of crickets lulling me to sleep, and I was exhausted after the long day of trekking!

In the morning, I was woken up by the sounds of dogs barking, chickens clucking and pigs oinking....certainly the most unique wake-up call I've ever had!!

We had hot coffee by the fire and a breakfast of fresh fruit, toast and jam and a hard-boiled egg before heading out for the rest of our trek. The weather was again almost digsustingly hot....I'm certainly not at my prettiest out here!!!!

Shower in the waterfall!!

Walking through the jungle is quite the adventure!!! You're either walking up a really steep incline, trying to maintain your balance on a narrow ledge, or hoping that you don't fall and roll down a hill!! Great exercise!!

We stopped at another waterfall, and I got to have the most refreshing shower!!! I've always wanted to do that, and yes, in case you're wondering the water was really cold!!!

Elephant Ride

After lunch at a local restaurant, we finally headed to the absolute highlight....elephant riding!!! I was so excited for this part of the trek, and it turned out to be just as incredible as I'd hoped. I originally started out sitting on the bench, but then the guide invited me to sit behind him on the elephant's neck. Towards the end of the walk, the elephant stopped at a large basin of water and started splashing itself with water to cool of, which of course meant that I got completely drenched!!! At the end I bought a photo frame made of 'processed banana leaf'....get it??

The last part of the trek was a ride down a river on a bamboo raft...again, I got drenched!!! No pics because my camera would've been ruined!!

Trek Party

After the trek was done, we all decided to meet at a bar back in Chiang Mai. There was an all you can eat buffet and a live raggae/thai band. We had a blast, drinking beer, exchanging emails, playing pool, singing....a great way to wrap up the trek!!!! I ended up staying until almost 1:00am, when the local police showed up and ordered the bar to close...apparantly we were disturbing the neighbors!!!

Laundry Day!!!!

Anyway, as I read through this post, I know that it's impossible to capture just how amazing this experience has been. I have had such a great time on this trip and have made some wonderful friends, some of whom I may meet up with again down the road. This really was a great group of people!!

For now though, I have treated myself to a nice private hotel room with, yes, my very own bathroom!!!! I did laundry this morning (have never enjoyed the smell of laundry detergent this much before!!!) and will spend the rest of the day wandering around Chiang Mai, eating the amazing local food and reminding myself that I am, indeed, on this incredible journey!!

As for the future, I'll stay in Chiang Mai for one more day, and then I'll catch an overnight bus to Bangkok and make my way down to the islands for Christmas!!!!

Night Train to Chiang Mai

 

The Grand Palace, Bangkok

The last few days have absolutely flown by!!! We spent our last few days in Bangkok walking around the city. We visited the Grand Palace, where the much loved King of Thailand lives. One of the scams that you have to be careful of here is that as you're walking towards the palace, someone will come up to you and tell you either that it's closed or that you aren't dressed appropriately and cannot go in. Then they'll offer to take you to other sights around the city.....they charge a lot and they often waste your day by taking you to a bunch of stores that pay them commission to bring you there!!! We were stopped a couple of times, but kept walking....our pre-trip research really paid off!!!

Me and the Tigers

We also spent a day at the Tiger Temple, which is an hour and a half outside of Bangkok. Our taxi driver got lost a few times, and we ended up showing him where to go...he didn't speak a lot of english, but he was relaly nice!! The Tiger Temple was amazing...the monks there have taken in all kinds of animals who were either orphaned, starving, or sick. The tigers are the main attraction though, and we all got our photos taken with them..

DSCN3887

Afterwards, we all packed our bags and boarded the night train to Chiang Mai. Our tickets cost about $20CAD and got us the 12 hour transport, a hot meal, 2 snacks and air conditioning...well actually the AC was a row of fans bolted to the ceiling of the train car!!! The ride was fairly comfortable though. I had a good conversation with the man sitting next to me, who had studied meditation for a number of years.

I did end up getting some sleep, and woke up to the sunrise over the hills of Northern Thailand!

 

 

 

Up Close and Personal with Thai Bumpers

I'm honestly having a hard time deciding where to start with this post!!! My head is spinning from a whirlwind day!!!

Dinner with Kyle and RaeAnne

I arrived in Bangkok yesterday afternoon, found my brother Kyle and future sister-in-law RaeAnne and ended up crashing in their hotel room last night on the most expensive cot I've ever slept on...would've slept on the floor had I known!!!

Anyway, we ventured out today, and looking back, the best descriptor would be "a blur". People move fast, cars drive fast, scam-artists talk fast, we always walked fast, drank our water fast....I think tonight I will hang out in my hostel, relax and read...slowly!!! (Oh, and I met a girl in my dorm...from Edmonton! Small world...)

The one thing that sticks out in my mind from today would be that I have never been so uncomfortably close to moving vehicles...car bumpers have literally brushed past my knees, tuk tuks tires have been inches from my toes, and truck side mirrors have clipped my shoulders! Pedestrians absolutely do not have the right of way here. In fact, even when you have the go-ahead to cross the street, cars will still whip by you, which means every crossing is a mad dash and an adrenaline rush!!! It's an extreme sport of a new variety!! However, I'll learn to deal, as I imagine that there will always be something interesting to see "just across this street"!

Tailor Shop

But we went shopping on Khao San Rd, found a tailor for RaeAnne's wedding dress and visited the Reclining Buddha Temple. Also shopped in a market and bought a bag full of drinks, buns, crackers and fruit for approximately $8! This place makes you feel like money is no object!!! Very dangerous indeed...!

The plan from here is to stay until December 14th, and then take the night train up to Chiang Mai...looking forward to the change of scenery, but in the meantime, I'll just try to keep up with the racing heartbeat of Bangkok!!

 

A German and a Canadian Lost in Little India

 

I can't believe it's my last day in Singapore....I've been all over Singapore in the last couple days trying to see as much as I can!! I'll tell you about the highlights...and all of this took place in the pouring rain...it's wet season in Singapore!!

I visited Haw Par Villa, which is sort of like a morbid Chinese history theme park.

Is that a Q-tip???

One of the 10 Stages of Hell

Haw Par Villa

Haw Par Villa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Merlion Statue

No Drinks at the Long Bar!!

 

I also saw the Merlion Statue at the mouth of the Singapore River and went to Raffles Hotel...was going to have a drink in the Long Bar, but it was unbelieveably expensive...$10 for a glass of fruit juice!!! We got our picture taken and then we promptly left and bought a 1.5L Blueberry Tea for $3...now that falls in a backpacker's budget!!!

 

And today I had a most unusual dining experience...Thomas and I wandered around Little India and decided to eat in an Authentic indian restaurant.

Authentice Indian Rice Plate

We found one that was filled with locals (always a good sign of authenticity!!) so we went in and sat down. After perusing the menu we decided on something that seemed safe...a rice plate.

When the meal came, we had no idea how to eat it. It had five small dishes of various liquids and a spread of different food items on a banana leaf....

I picked up my fork and started eating some of the rice and Thomas grabbed his spoon and tried one of the 'soups'. Our waiter was watching from afar, and we had definitely noticed a few odd looks from other patrons. Finally our waiter came over and, while maintaining a somewhat straight face, he explained that the liquids were sauces for the rice and pointed to one of them and said it was sweet so you eat it last. Now, keep in mind this was in broken english, so I smiled and thanked him while still trying to grasp the idea of exactly how to proceed...and yes, at this point we had become a source of entertainment for everyone else!!! But we just smiled and sheepishly shrugged our shoulders and carried on...until I poured the final sweet sauce on the remainder of my rice...another waiter was helping the table next to us and he did a double take at my plate and then laughed and pointed at the last 'sauce'...I was supposed to drink it, not pour it on my rice!!! So, after treating a sauce like soup and a drink like a sauce, we were officially embarassed and both felt completely out of our realm. The food was good, but the experience was humbling....but that's why we travel right??? To experience (and embarass ourselves!) in different cultures.  

Anyway, it's off to Thailand tomorrow...I'm so excited to meet up with Kyle and RaeAnne...it'll be nice to see some familiar faces!!!!

Not feeling sleepy at "Sleepy Sam's"

It's about 6:30am here in Singapore and I'm wide awake....Good thing the internet here is free!!!  So I figured I'd send my first 'post from abroad'...

After spending more time than I care to know on planes and in airports, I finally arrived in Singapore yesterday and decided immediately it was a place I would love. The people here are incredibly friendly...While I was riding the MRT to my hostel, the woman sitting next to me saw me looking at my map and asked me where I was going. After giving me directions and advice on getting good deals on train tickets, she gave me her business card and told me to call her cell if I ever have any troubles....and even offered up her guest room if my hostel didn't work out!!! That kind of generousity is the kind you only hear about...until you travel and get the reminder that it truly does exist!

I've met a few people already...spent most of my time yesterday with Thomas (Germany) and Aggie (Poland). We walked down to Boat Quay along the river and saw the spectacular view of Singapore at night. Actually, I'm making it sound as though we found our way there no problem....not quite true! We got so turned around and ended up walking in circles, so a local ended up walking out of his way to show us where to go, pointing out various landmarks along the way...a free tour guide, if you will!

Anyway, the plan was to treat ourselves to a nice meal at the water's edge, but after realizing how expensive it was (S$10 for a glass of beer!!!) we decided to eat in true backpacker style.....instant soup and Tiger Beer purchased from 7-Eleven for under S$5!! Couldn't beat it though....we sat on some steps leading down into the river, and listened to a live band playing at a hotel across the way....they even played a favourite of mine "Weather With You"!! Yet another sign that Singapore and I will get along just fine!!

I have pictures to post, but will do that another time...my camera connections are in my bag, which is nestled snuggly among 9 other sleeping girls!! Don't want to be one of those backpackers who wakes everyone up with the irritating rustling sounds of someone who's trying to be quiet and failing miserably!!

Hope all is well with everyone!! Keep sending those emails....you have no idea what a comfort it is to have messages from home!!

 

Angie's in Singapore!!!!!

Mom and I just got off the phone with Ang. She made it to Singapore. She said the flight was long but there were a lot of choices for entertainment - movies, TV and even learning languages!!!!! She met a girl from Taipei who she exchanged e-mail addresses with. Perhaps Taiwan will be on her next adventure!?!?

She was very tired but sounded good. She's anxious for some sleep and a shower. I think she's planning on sticking pretty close to the hostel today (It's about noon on Saturday right now).  Of course she had to rub in that it was warm and she was staring out the window at palm trees. We assured her it was still cold as ever here. Now she's off to find the MRT (train) so she can go to her hostel. She said everybody has been very kind and helpful so far. It was great to hear her voice and hopefully the next post will be from her.

Julie