ChrisJenTravel.com – Honeymoon Trek

The most relaxing day in Chang Mai was the day of our cooking class. We slept in a little, made up the sheets on our plywood beds and were taxied to a nearby, open air cooking school. We sipped tea as we waited for our only other student, Pierre from France. While Pierre’s girlfriend was in massage school for the day, he was learning to cook Thai for her. Little did we know, Pierre had some cooking skills, and would be embarrasing us soon enough on the woks.  Marc, one of our female instructors, walked us to the market so we could learn about all of the vegetables, spices and tofu variations that we would be using in class. There were many variations we hadn’t seen before but Marc assured us we could find them in the States at any Asian market.  Several different kinds of chillis, ginger roots, lemon grass, basil, coriander, garlic, peppercorn, onions, tamarind, palm sugar, fish and oyster sauces and shrimp paste were on the list and turned out to be common ingrediants in most Thai cooking. We made our way back with our purchases in woven baskets with an unexpected appetizer Marc had picked up for us –  steamed, sweetened sticky rice and steamed banana wrapped in banana leaves.  At our first sampling, we knew we were in for a fun day of eating.

Throughout the day, we cooked four courses of meals with a break in between each to eat our creations – green and panang chicken curries, spring rolls, pad thai, sweet and sour chicken, cashew nut chicken, hot and sour soup, coconut chicken soup, spicy glass noodle salad and papaya salad.  If these sound good I can assure you they tasted even better. We were amazed at how easily we whipped up the colorful dishes and how good our own cooking could be. About two courses in, however, we realized we should have skipped breakfast for the all-day feast.  We struggled through the last few courses but managed to sample everything we cooked.  We knew everything would taste even better at home when we could cook for family and friends so we were excited they gave us cookbooks for everything we had made. Completely stuffed, we made our way back to the hotel for an hour’s rest before starting our long journey to Cambodia that night.

Our next day of trekking was much more interesting. We were picked up in a van, which was very full with about 12 of us. Mia, the guide, was hilarious. A true comic, she stood in the front of the van, looking at her audience and spoke into a microphone. Obsessed with Madonna and kareoke, we were able to catch up on all MTV TRL hits that we had been missing. Repeatedly, Mia threatened us with having to sing karaoke, told us about the history of Thailand and about the past and present culture, explained how the elephant was revered and dryly told us that elephant was on the menu at lunch – tastes like chicken. Our first stop was the orchid garden. It was simply breathtaking for anyone who likes tropical flowers. The hybrids that were created were unique and the orchids hung high and flowed like rainbow water.

Next was to Chiang Dao Cave, a Buddhist temple built in an underground cave. Read the rest of this entry »

We woke up early – one side of our body had inevitably gone numb sleeping unsoundly on our twin sized plywood mattresses, especially since the previous nights sleep was sitting upright on a bus.  The taxi driver arrived and picked us up for our first trek.  We were hoping to meet some others on the tour and soon realized that wouldn’t happen.  There were 2 deaf women and 2 Thai women in our group.  Although we were happy to meet them, the conversation didn’t go too far.

First, we headed to an elephant village in the rural mountains; different from the zoo-style park we had visited the day before. The smiling beasts were waiting aside platforms for us to mount like buses in a terminal. They were beautiful and it was cool to be even closer than at the park. We picked ours and sat atop as it meandered down the rocky mountain trails and up and down some very steep passes. The tiny local driver sat right on his head with his legs behind his ears.  At certain times it felt as if the little wooden box we were riding in would fall off the top and a few times we had to hold on with both hands to keep from falling off the elephant. We also stopped at some elephant rest stops, where they “encourage” you to buy snacks for your big friend. We thought the poorly written sign that said, “Snacks 20 baht for to make friend with your elephant” were pretty coy and cute, so we couldn’t resist buying some bananas and sugar cane. The only problem is, Read the rest of this entry »

Three days in Bangkok was all anyone needed. The air was filled with smog and smoke, the kind emitted from diesel trucks. With no where to go, many locals live their days with medical masks covering their mouths and noses, filtering the air to simply breath. Everyday, I blew my nose not knowing the amount of black mass that would escape. Chris’ allergies fought back and his cough from California continued to resurface. Chang Mai was a blessing, still smoggy, but most days would be spent in the rural areas away from the heavy city air. Read the rest of this entry »

We walked about Bangkok, exploring the sights, sounds and flavors, still trying to recover from jet lag. The Royal Palace temples were a mile away and we thought that it would be an easy sight to see. However, as we entered the grounds, tour guides flocked towards us telling us that we would not be allowed in due to our inappropriate attire. I wore a 3&1/2 length sleeved shirt (down to my elbows) and cotton shorts that passed my knee (which was not acceptable) and Chris wore long shorts. In order to enter, I would need a skirt or pants; Chris would need pants. Understandably, we hailed a taxi and headed to Siam Square, a shopping district that we wanted to stroll through. The traffic was overwhelming – 30 lanes of traffic converged to one intersection. Lanes of traffic are a concept in Thailand. Most don’t adhere to the lanes; instead, the millions of scooters, motorbikes and tuk-tuks weave in and out of traffic and create their own lanes. Relaxed and happy to not be driving, we waited for our stop at Siam Square.

Siam Square is a large, expensive shopping square made of 24 streets. Disappointed that it wasn’t more of a simple market, we began to talk to some locals about the area. There are plenty of people who are overly nice simply because they want to steer you in a specific direction for a personal gain. Small-time scams abound here, Read the rest of this entry »

After waking at an excruciating 3:30am, we quietly crept out of the room, the North Shore and Hawaii. Our stomachs churned like rough waters, uncertain if it was due to waking up early or our nerves; today we were leaving for Thailand!!! Either way, the plane smoothly departed with the Schroeder family in tow. Our first Asian meal on an airplane consisted of fried noodles, unrecognizable chicken, smoked salmon, flavorless Barbie pink cake, 2 ounces of red wine and hot tea. We were unsure if this was a good or bad sign, but hoped that the China Airlines food wouldn’t be indicative of Thailand’s cuisine. Thankfully, our wish came true. Nonetheless, China Airlines provided exceptional service, superior comfort and the nicest plane we had ever been on, not to mention the most affordable prices.

We headed across the Pacific, crossing the dateline at some point and landed in Taipei. Successfully connecting after our layover, we were a mere 3 hours away from Bangkok. The landing in Thailand was smooth, the airport brand new, a huge modern structure made from glass and steel. Like something concocted in the Matrix. After negotiating a cab, we were on our way to Kho San Road – the tourist mecca of Bangkok, to get our feet wet and find an in-n-out accommodation. We were 12 hours ahead of home and worlds away. Read the rest of this entry »

After two days fending for ourselves we met up with Matt and his friend Regis, also from Florida.  We’d never met Regis and it turned out he didn’t even know we’d be crashing!  (Thanks Matt!)  Luckily, though, he was super cool and we found out quickly the rest of our time in Hawaii would be a lot of fun.  We’d only been away for 10 days so far, but we were a little homesick and it was great to hang out with people we could relate to.  Regis booked a condo at the Turtle Bay Resort, a bit of a step up from our shabby hostel.  The place was stocked with all the comforts of home and even had a full bed-sized air mattress so we slept like kings for the week.  The resort also had a pool/bar/restaurant with a breathtaking view of the bay – amazing for after surf rest stops.

The next day the contest was still on hold so I went surfing with Matt and Regis.  We paddled out at Sunset, a well known but intimidating break on the North Shore.  It was a dream fulfilled for me.  After some guidance from the boys, who had surfed it the year before, I was catching some waves that I’d only seen in magazines before.  Jenny, who was so happy with our new home she had jogged almost the whole island, met up with us afterward and we all did a bit of exploring.  We celebrated the day with a great Mexican dinner. 

The contest was on for the next two days so we witnessed some of the most amazing surfing we’d ever seen at Pipeline, all from a perch on the beach 50 yards away.  It was crazy to see the pros free fall into the 8 – 10 foot waves Read the rest of this entry »

Hawaii wasn’t originally in our plans since, well, it isn’t exactly a budget-travel destination.  I mean people usually save it for honeymoons, weddings or anniversaries, not backpacking.  We’d both always dreamed of going there for a vacation but the distance and cost kept us away.  So when we got the offer from our friend Matt to crash with him for the week while he was in Oahu for the Pipeline Masters surfing contest, it was too good to turn down – a week in paradise surfing and watching the best surfers in the world compete in what is basically the Super Bowl of surfing.  For this, we figured the travel budget rules could be bent just a bit.

I met Matt through his wife, Robin, who I used to work with.  Robin liked arrogant lawyers and talking about law about as little as I did, so when we had cases together we would always talk about surfing – whether it was about the trip Jenny and I were planning, her husband Matt who loved to surf, or his brother, 8 – time world champion Kelly Slater.  I finally got to meet Matt a few weeks before we set out back on the road for a surf session and he was as cool as Robin described.  He was planning a trip to Hawaii with a buddy to surf and support his brother the same time that we would be on the road, so he graciously offered to let us crash.

Jenny and I arrived a few days before the others so we picked up our car and made our way to the North Shore.  The warm air felt great on our faces Read the rest of this entry »

Heading back out to the coast, we stopped into San Luis Obispo; home to some surfers we met while in Nicaragua. A small town of around 50,000 only 8 miles from the beach, SLO is centered around California Polytechnic Institute and sits in between mountains. It is a charming town with shop-lined streets, parks and friendly folks.  It had a different feel than a lot of the coastal towns, somewhere between California cool and modest Mid-West.  Although we could only stop for lunch, we definitely put it on the list of places to revisit.

Continuing South to Santa Barbara, we drove past another famous surf break with no surf, Rincon.  By now we knew we would have to wait for Hawaii to get in the water but it was still cool to see all the breaks we’d read about for so long.  We reached Santa Barbara just before dusk with enough time to see the sun set over the beautiful cliffs.  The State Street Hotel, a 100-year old guesthouse, 1/2 mile from downtown and ¼ mile from the beach became our home away from home for a night – a great deal for $50. Santa Barbara still looked like a post card of California from the 70’s. Homes are more understated, still outrageously priced. Palms higher than cranes line the boardwalk, which stretches far from one end of town to the other. On weekends, local artists set up tents all along the boardwalk, displaying their Californian themed paintings and handicrafts. Hordes of energetic sun-kissed locals take to the boardwalks, rollerblading, skating, jogging and walking. Colonies of beach volleyball crowds line the sand and groups of competitive bicyclists line the streets, dressed in bright primary colors. Downtown Santa Barbara twinkles at night like the stars in Central America. Millions of white lights suffocate the trees and outline each and every detail of the artsy-chic boutiques and restaurants. Its more chic than Santa Cruz, reminding us of a very young and more creative Winter Park, a place where disillusioned, rich youth shop on credit with no concept of how their pricey purchases are paid for. It is a perfect downtown that actually offers a nice range from affordable to buyer’s regret, but on a backpacker’s budget we thought that a one-night stroll was all we could afford.

Malibu. Home of Jennifer Anistons, Jolie-Pitts and celebrity beach goers. We were expecting more. Read the rest of this entry »

On our last night, we went to Outback, a Schroeder favorite, with Dad Schroeder to enjoy one last good salad and steak before heading out on the road. After dinner we stayed up as late as possible, enjoying our company.  Eventually we headed out to the sailboat for the night, swallowing the difficult void of missing Morgan.

We arrived in LA the next day after a 5 hour flight and started our drive straight up Hwy 5 to Sonoma – wine country! Sonoma is quaint and more manageable than neighboring Napa. The vineyards are picturesque, even after the harvest season – Tall Californian farm homes with adjacent barns, sitting behind wooden fences, on top of a hill at the end of a long dirt path and in the center of their wine vineyards. The vineyard manicured in perfect rows sparkles like a golden ocean, a foiled paper marking the vines. Downtown was a perfect square; covered in white lights, cottage, colonial and modern styles merged into one. Our hotel was quaint, in our price range and much nicer than we had anticipated. A local recommended the restaurant “Girl and a Fig” and we decided to give it a try since we had only one night in Sonoma – we wouldn’t have time for any tours in Napa or Sonoma, just a chance to decide that we would return one day.

We treated ourselves with a sampling of some local wines and the small dishes that we ordered were the most flavorful we had ever had. The bartender suggested some local wines and a nut and cheese plate. We had never experienced so many perfect flavors of fine cheese, nuts, fig cake and fruit. The combinations made us savor each and every bite as though it would be our last. Warm pear slices, fine goat cheese, toasted walnuts on arugula greens and topped with an amazing dressing for me. Chris chose a toasted baguette with fine warmed cheese, pear slices and proscuitto. We met a successful local artist and shared stories. One night in Sonoma was enough to recognize the locals’ passion for great wine, food and art.

The following cold morning, Read the rest of this entry »