Steve’s Travel Blog

Hello all,

Well after getting to watch the end of the Olympics and Canada winning gold in hockey, I figured it was time to get on the road again and see what the other parts of Thailand had to offer.

My first adventure away from Bangkok was to the west.  I decided to head out with a tour group because after looking at all the options it turned out to be the cheapest one.  Most go on a day tour to the area but I wanted to see a little more and planned out a 3 day tour.  I also did not want to go on a big bus tour so I picked one with a smaller group of only 10 people.  I was picked up at 7am and everyone on the bus was very quiet.  It was early and most were still a little sleepy.  It turns out that even though I was going for 3 days I ended up with all the one day tour people as well.  It was okay because there were some really nice people in the mini bus and we had a good time.  Part way through the day I was transferred to another bus because I had some different things to see with my three day tour. So what did I see you ask??? Well heading west means going into the area that is famous because of WWII and Japans part in the war.  We started off by going to Kanchanaburi and visiting the allied war cemetery and  war museum.  It kind of prepares you for the rest of the war things that you are going to see and try to understand.  Kanchanaburi is famous for one thing, Bridge over river Kwai.  Yes, you remember the movie about it or maybe you don’t, I don’t but now would like to see it again.  The bridge itself is just a bridge but it is how and who made it that makes it so significant.  The Japanese forced allied prisoners to build the railway and several bridges of which this was one of them.  It was good to see the pictures in the museum because at the time of building there was nothing else around and now the bridge is in the center of town and it is hard to imagine what it would have been like during the war.  I walked along the bridge and try to take in the atmosphere of what it would have been like.  There are lots of other tourists around so I walked all the way to the other end of the bridge where very few tourists went to.  After 3 days in the area I have a much better understanding of what happened during the war in this area.  I really had no idea about the area before or at least don’t remember anything from my school days.  You all know that I am not much of a fan for school, but I really do enjoy learning all this stuff in my own way and seeing for myself.  I seem to go onto the internet and look a lot of stuff up after I have been to these places just to get more information, who knew history could be so entertaining!!!  I had 2 other stops on this tour that dealt with the war and one was a trip on the Death Railway.  No the railway is not unsafe, it is called that because so many allied prisoners died while building it.  It was pretty unsafe at the time because some prisoners would purposely use bad wood or miss nailing in pegs so that it would fall apart, but if they got caught doing this that meant a beating and maybe death.  My other stop was a part of the railway called Hellfire Pass.  In this area the prisoners had to remove a large part of a mountain to get through to the other side.  They would dig by hand and then put in dynamite to help along the way.  It was called Hellfire Pass because they were made to work day and night and at night the area was lite up by torches that made the area look on fire.  Parts of the railway are still there today and walking through the pass was an intense feeling for me and I took some time to reflect on the stories I read about throughout the 3 days.  Not everything I did was about the war and I was able to have some fun as well.  The one afternoon I went on an elephant ride which turned out to be very touristy and I am not so sure that it was very good for the elephants.  The elephants end up having to take tourists up and down this path about 6 times a day and once I thought about it I was not that happy I did it.  I was able to make amends for it the next morning as I was able to go for a bath with the same elephants.  They take a very small group and you meet the elephants at the river for some fun.  It is their bathing and play time.  I followed my elephant into the water and they lean down so you can get on them but this time you are seated directly on them and not on a chair strapped to their back.  Pretty much the first thing that happens is the elephants lifts his trunk and completely sprays you with water.  Now that everyone is wet we can have a little fun.  It is almost like elephant rodeo and they move around and toss you into the water.  There is lots of laughing and the elephants have a ton of fun in the water.  After about 1/2 hour of play it is time for them to go and I headed back to the accommodation to see what else was planned for the day.  The accommodation is actually a room that is right on the river (called a river house).  It was a nice place and had friendly people, staff and other guests.  Both nights I was there I meet several people and we had great evenings.  I also got to go to the Tiger Temple.  From the info I had read the place is run by the monks and you can pet, play and walk with the tigers.  Most of the tours allow you 1 hour at the temple which I knew would be not enough and a big reason why I planned a 3 day tour.  I was able to stay at there for 3 hours and it still was not enough time.  I got there and the first stop is where you can pet the tigers.  I meet one of the trainers and was told that if I wanted to get a much closer look that I should come back later and see them during play time, which had an added cost but most of the tourists are gone and it is a better experience.  It sounded like a great idea so I paid and continued my way around the rest of the place.  It was a very open area that had lots of deer, horses, oxen, camels and other animals just roaming around.  The tigers all had there own area but during the day most are out with the trainers among the tourists.  I was able to sit right beside one tiger and get a picture.  It was interesting because the tigers are all on big chains and are not allowed to get to far.  I suppose this is good as they might decide to eat a tourist if they got hungry.  The only part of the day that I did not like or i guess understand was that I walked around the place for 2 hours and did not see one monk and could not find a temple.  Not sure if I was looking in the wrong area but it was strange not to find either.  The best part of the day was getting to see the tigers during their play time.  Most of the tourists had to leave and about 12 of us got to stay.  The first thing they do is take all of us and put us in a cage, instead of the tigers.  It felt good that we were the ones caged.  Once we were in, although the cage is not very high or really that safe, the tigers were taken off their chains and let to roam free.  You could quickly see which ones were the dominant ones and which ones just tried to stay out of the way.  Several played fairly rough with each other like 2 brothers fighting.  The trainers brought out some toys for  they to play with and got them jumping and swimming and having fun.  It was amazing to see how much respect the tigers have for the trainers as they could attack them at any time but just seem to want to play and have fun.  It was good to see this as I think most of their day is spent chained up and walked around for tourists to see.  My last stop in the area was to see a couple of waterfalls.  The first day I was dropped off at a small waterfall that most only see for 30 minutes but I had 3 hours again.  I was able to climb to the top of the waterfall for an excellent view of the area and then I found a trek that went into the mountains and 2 caves.  The first cave was not much but the far cave looked very impressive.  I started my way down the cave even though the sign said to wait for a ranger but none was coming.  I soon realized that this was not such a good idea to do alone especially in flip flops and without a decent flashlight.  I did go a little way until I could not see anymore and had no idea where or what I was stepping on.  On the way back I stood in the middle of the waterfall and had a refreshing cleanse.  The other waterfall I got to see was called Erawan Waterfall and it was completely amazing.  It is part of a national park and is a long trek to get to the top of it.  The waterfall has 7 levels and most do not go higher than about level 4 or 5.  I stopped for a swim at level 3 and then continued all the way to the top.  The scenery is so good and full of energy, at one point on the way back I just sat down for a while to take it all in.  The colors and smells of the forest and the sounds of the water are really relaxing and made me feel so good.  After 3 days in the area I headed back to Bangkok in the evening and got ready to make my way north of Bangkok.

The next morning I got onto another tour that was headed north but this time I took a one day tour with no plans to return to Bangkok.  I was the only one that had a big bag with them and most asked mt why I was bringing so much.  Once I explained that I would stay in Ayuthaya and not return that evening with them it made more sense.   Ayuthaya is all about seeing temples (Wats) and the Buddhist culture in the area.  We were toured around 6 different Wats during the day and seen some amazing places.  At this point I had seen lots of Wats through South East Asia and now I was looking for more information on what I was looking at.  This ended up been the perfect place to figure some of the information out.  During the day I wa able to understand the difference in a Wat, Chedi, Stupa, Pagoda, Prang and the other monuments.  I will not try to explain them all because we could be here for a long time then.  It was good to have a better understanding of all the monuments and get more information about them.  I was also able to find out a lot more information on the Buddha statues as well.  There are 3 different positions a Buddha will be in (sitting, standing and reclining) and all have different meaning.  The Buddhas have specific hand gestures as well and each has its own meaning.  There are to many to list but if you are interested you can look them up on the internet.  It has been very interesting to get an small understanding of the Buddhist faith just like it was with Hindu and Muslim as well.  I feel that having this understanding is making me a much more well rounded and better person.  Like I have said in the past, I think religion is a very personal path and I will not preach that any is right or wrong as each person has to make their own choice on what they believe.

I only stayed in Ayuthaya for 1 night and the full next day.  That evening I took an overnight train north to Chiang Mai.  While I have been in South East Asia I have been lucky enough to be getting lots of massages.  They are very cheap and make you so relaxed, and no I am not talking about the ones that have the “happy ending”.  I have always liked getting massages but also giving massages as some of the backpackers I have met can attest to.  While in Bangkok there were lots of courses in learning the art of Thai massage and I was interested but never did anything about it.  That all changed in Chiang Mai.  In my short time in Ayuthaya I met Eveline who was also on her way to Chiang Mai and interested in doing a massage course.  She ended up there the day before me and looked up a few schools that offered courses.  We signed up on Sunday for a 2 week course that started the next day.  I was really excited to be learning something new but also very nervous.  The course we signed up for was for Traditional Thai Yoga Massage.  When we got there on Monday morning and met the other classmates I was even more nervous.  Most of the class had done some form of yoga and had some interest in energy lines in the body and some other stuff I did not understand.  Thank goodness I learned a little about Buddhism and the energy of the body earlier as this is where this form of massage comes from.  Our teacher was a fantastic Thai lady that has been doing this for a very long time.  There was very little theory in the course with the majority of it been a practical class.  This was very good for me because I do not learn very well from a book and much better by just doing it.  Each day started at 9am and went till 4pm with an hour lunch break.  In the morning we would learn how t0 massage a certain part of the body and then in the afternoon we would practice on each other.  We had to practice with all of the people in the class which was good because there were many different body types in the class.  We had 3 guys and 5 girls in the class and everyone got along pretty well.  We actually had a 6th lady in the class to start but something happened the first day and she went running out of the class and never came back.  She kept on talking about some former boyfriend and seemed to be really unstable.  Most of the time I just tuned her out and I think it was good that she left as it could have been very distracting.  After the first week of class i was almost on overload with so much information and we still had more to learn.  A few of us did a practice session on Saturday and then I took Sunday off and did nothing with massage.  It was very strange to be in a class again but I was really enjoying learning something new.  Over the weekend I also took in the Saturday and Sunday night markets that are famous in Chiang Mai.  The market is huge and has anything and everything a person may want.  I think if you liked shopping you could end up spending a lot of money in a place like this, I did get a few things but was able to control myself.  The second week of class was also good and by this time I knew most of the class pretty well as we would meet for dinner in the evenings too.  The other 2 guys in the class were from the States (Yo and Balla), Annikii was from Sweden, Arati from India, of course Eveline who was from Austria, Lenny from Holland and a french girl that I did not get to know.  Eveline, Annikki, Arati and I spent a lot of time together during the class and in the evenings.  They were all great but I spent most of my time with Eveline as we were in the same guest house and seemed to chat a lot about all kinds of topics.  She is someone that I can see been a friend for a long time and chatting with as I continue on my journey.  I have several other people like this as well and it is nice to meet such great people as I travel. We completed all the learning by Wednesday and then Thursday was all for practice.  Our final exam was to do a full Thai massage on Friday which takes about 2 1/2 hours to complete.  We drew names for who we would have as a partner and I got Balla.  I was very lucky as Balla is a yoga instructor back in the states and had a really good knowledge of what was going on in the class.  On exam day when I got stuck at one point he just moved into the next stretch and then I knew what I was forgetting and was able to continue.  I was also able to get a really good massage in return and that did not happen for all in the class.  In the end I got a certificate that I completed a Beginners course in Traditional Thai Yoga massage and I was very proud of myself.  The amazing part was as I was going through the course and getting massaged everyday I learned that I was not as inflexible as I thought.  Although I am not that flexible I did get into some positions that I never thought I could.  I can even touch my toes without bending my knees, which I have not done in probably 20 years.

After 2 weeks in Chiang Mai I knew it was time to move on even though I had not seen that much of the city itself but I did tour around a little.  My next stop in Thailand was to Chiang Rai.  While I traveled in Indonesia I was told about a great couch surfing host in Chiang Rai so I contacted then before I got to Chiang Rai and set up to stay at there place.  That is where I am now and will stay here for a few days.  I went to the Saturday night market last night and this morning I went for a 3 hour bike ride through the countryside with Phillip another couch surfer here as well.  I think I will stay here until Wednesday when I have to take a bus out of Thailand and make my way to Laos.  My 30 day visa in Thailand runs out on Wednesday so that is why it is time to move on.  I have really enjoyed Thailand and learning some culture and ways of life in the country but I think I will always remember Thailand for the massage!!!

Thanks for following along on my adventure and I hope you continue to enjoy reading about it as much as I enjoy living it.

Till next time, take care all, love ya!!!

Steve

PS: It time for me to send out a birthday wish as I always do and this time it goes out to my cousin Jacqueline!!! I always enjoy our skype conversations and look forward to the next one.

Hello all,

It is that time again to give an update of my travels.  Over the last 3 weeks I have been hopping all over the place in South East Asia and having a grand time.  I will give a brief rundown of where I have been and then tell a few stories about the places I have been.

Feb. 5 – arrive in Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia from the Cameron Highlands

Feb. 6 – 8 in Georgetown

Feb. 9 & 10 – Langkawi, north tip of Malaysia

Feb. 11 – 14, Ko Lipe, south island of Thailand

Feb. 15 – Hat Yai south mainland of Thailand

Feb. 16 – overnight bus to Bangkok

Feb. 17 in Bangkok

Feb. 18 – bus to Siam Reap in Cambodia

Feb 19 – 21 in Siem Reap and Angkor Wat (one of the 8 natural wonders of the world)

Feb. 22 & 23 – Phnom Penh – capital city of Cambodia

Feb. 24 – Mar. 1 – Bangkok

Looking back at these 24 days and I can’t believe where I have been and what I have seen.  I have had some great moments and stories to tell.

In Georgetown I stayed in a hostel called Huttons Lodge and met my 2 dorm mates (Sascha from Germany and Michael)right away.  We decided to go to an outdoor cultural show that was at the town hall.  It was mostly Chinese cultural stuff with Chinese New Year so close.  After the show we made our way to the pub district and had a few drinks before getting caught in a huge rain storm and having to take a taxi back to the hostel.

The next morning Michael and I along with 2 American girls decided to tour around the Penang Hill.  At the bottom you get a pulley train to the top where they have a Hindu Temple, Mosque and Christian church.  The group of us then walked down the hill and along the way we got a little to close to some monkeys and a male decided to chase us down the road.   I thought we had gone far enough and looked back and the damn thing was right behind me and did not look happy.  We ran a little further and the monkey finally left us alone.  We ended up going down the wrong side of the hill and so we needed to take a taxi to our next destination Kek Lok Si Temple.  The temple is the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia.  It took us a long time to get it see all the different parts of it and it was amazing.  We stopped for a few minutes and were approached by an older gentleman who asked us if we were there for the celebration?  We looked at him and asked what celebration.  He told us that it was the lighting of the festival lights on the temple for Chinese New Year’s.  We were invited to join in the buffet dinner and then got to watch the monks as they went through all the ceremonial prayers before the lite up all the lanterns.  It was amazing how many lights they had, it had to be a million all over the place.  We walked around the temple again in the dark and then headed out so that we could see it from further away.  The temple was so bright and you could see it from all over the city.  My last day in Georgetown I toured around the city and seen all the sites.

It was time to head for the beach and get some sun on the island of Langkawi.  Langkawi is at the top end of Malaysia and is a beautiful island.  I got checked into the hostel and went straight for the beach.   Sascha was also in Langkawi and we ended up meeting up later in the evening with some others for dinner and then drinks at a beach bar that had a great jazz band playing.  I only spent 2 days in Langkawi because it was very touristy and I was headed to another beach place next in Ko Lipe Thailand.

Ko Lipe was like a vacation away from my travels.  It is a beautiful small island that had no cars.  They are plenty of motorbikes but everything is really relaxed on the island. I met up with my friend Nilly that I met while in Kuala Lumpur.  She was there with her boyfriend and some of her friends from Sweden.  We spent 4 days chilling out and relaxing.  We did a tour around the island and got in a great day of snorkeling in as well.

I had planned on meeting up with my friend Sanna in Bangkok but while I was in Ko Lipe she contacted me and we worked out a plan to meet up sooner.  When I left Ko Lipe I went to the Thai mainland and the town of Hat Yai where I got a bus up to Bangkok and then another bus to Siam Reap in Cambodia.  After two days of travel I was pretty tired when I got there and meet up with Sanna.  We took it easy the first evening as Sanna was not feeling that well.

Siem Reap is the town where you stay to visit Angkor Wat.  The temples of Angkor were built from the 800’s to the early 1200’s.  As each king took over they seemed to want to build something bigger and better than the last king.  The result is the seventh wonder of the world.  Most of the temples are is assorted states of ruin but are amazing to see.  They all tell a story in their carvings throughout and a huge national pride to the Khmer (Cambodians) people.  There are so many temples in the area that you would need over a week to see them all but the ones we did see were amazing.  The city of Siem Reap is very touristy and all are there for the same reason, to see Angkor Wat.  This is a place that everyone should take the time to see and enjoy the history is shares with us.  These types of places are hard to describe in writing and so I will not even try.

Meeting up with Sanna has been great and getting to know her again.  We traveled together with Esther and it is so nice to meet up with her again.  We have had great discussions and debates and our travels together have been fantastic.

We left Siem Reap and took a bus to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.  Going to Phnom Penh was about trying to understand what happened in Cambodia’s past.  While I was there we went to the killing fields of Choeung Ek.  This is one of over 3oo killing fields throughout Cambodia from the time just after the Vietnam War.  A communist dictator named Pol Pot took over and forced all the people to leave the cities and work on rice fields in the country.  Any of the intellectual people were killed and anyone who went against him.  100,000’s of people were murdered in a 3 year span from 1975 to 1978 until Vietnam attacked the country and took over.  I don’t remember learning a lot about this stuff in school but it is amazing to be learning it now.  To think that it was not that long ago that all this happened.  It is hard to explain everything I saw here but it was not a good feeling  kinda of like when I was in parts of Germany and France 20 years ago taking the sites of WWI and WWII.  One thing that seemed to make everything a little easier here was hearing a bunch of kids playing in the area.  There is a school right beside the killing fields and it was nice to hear them.  In the afternoon we toured around the other sites of the city and saw the huge Royal Palace and Silver Pogoda.  In the evening I went to the Olympic Stadium and saw a ton of Khmer people exercising is many different ways.  I saw soccer, volleyball, basketball, badminton, running, aerobics and swimming.  The Khmer people seem to be very happy and have moved on from their terrible past.  They talk about how all Thai people smile and they do but the Cambodians just seem to have bigger smiles.

After 2 ½ days in the capital we flew to Bangkok because Sanna was flying back to Finland.  I have spent the last 6 days hanging out in Bangkok.  I was able to see a bunch more temples in the city as well as the Grand Palace.  The palace was an amazing place as well and the Thai people really love their King.  I would have left Bangkok earlier but I really started to get into the Olympic coverage and wanted to stay around so that I could watch how Canada did and especially in hockey.  As it turns out it was a great decision and I got to see Canada win Gold over the Americans.  We had a crowd of about 20 Canadians and a few Americans.

I am getting ready to head into the north part of Thailand and really see the culture and history of the country.    I will see a tiger temple, bridge of river Kwai (yes the one from the movie) and the hill tribes of northern Thailand.

I hope you all take care and that I get to chat with many of you soon.

Steve

PS:  There are a few upcoming birthdays to send out wished to.  My Uncle George has a birth day on March 1^st, then my cousin Nicole has her day on the 7^th of March and her sister Jacqueline has her birthday on the 15^th of March.  I hope you all have a great day on your special day.