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Trains, Toilets and Tuktuks

Sunday, April 22nd, 2007

Feb 22-25

After our less than inspiring introduction to Thailand, we decided to get out of Bangkok as quickly as possible. The next morning we got up early and caught the train to Chiang Mai, a small beautiful city in Northern Thailand (a 12 hour trip). Claude slept most of the way while the kids and I chatted with our neighbouring passengers. We met Leigh, a wheat farmer from Edmonton, who travels during the winter every year and was traveling around Thailand with a young couple who were friends of the family. He kept the kids and I entertained for most of the trip by playing with the kids and telling tales of his adventures abroad and, by the end of the ride, Simon was treating him like a surrogate grandpa.
[read on]

And on to Thailand

Sunday, April 22nd, 2007

Feb 20-21

Even though we only spent a week in Cambodia, we were incredibly affected by its poignant history and remarkable people, not to mention the incredible temples of Angkor. In retrospect, we should have planned to spend more time exploring Cambodia and, perhaps even its neighbours Laos and Vietnam. When we were planning our itinerary we were a little nervous about our ability to travel with the kids in a developing country and had decided to keep our initial visit short. Now that we are “seasoned” travelers, we know that we can handle just about anything and will definitely make our next visit a longer one. [read on]

The Legend of Aki Ra

Saturday, April 14th, 2007
For us, one of the highlights of our visit to Siem Reap had nothing to do with temples. I had read about a small private museum just outside Siem Reap, called the Cambodian Landmine Museum, not to be confused ... [Continue reading this entry]

The Temples of Angkor

Saturday, April 14th, 2007
While the rest of Cambodia is still struggling to pull itself out of economic depression, Siem Reap is booming, thanks to the presence of the temples of Angkor on its doorstep. Since the onset of peace ... [Continue reading this entry]

The Fast Boat to Siem Reap

Saturday, April 14th, 2007
One of our primary reasons for visiting Cambodia was to see the temples of Angkor, the most famous being Angkor Wat, reputed to be the largest religious structure in the world. To get there, we decided ... [Continue reading this entry]

The Ghosts of Cambodia

Tuesday, April 10th, 2007
Feb 14-21 As I sit here in Phnom Penh International Airport I wanted to capture my thoughts and feelings about the last week we spent in Cambodia. This won’t be one of my usual lighthearted tales of where we’ve been ... [Continue reading this entry]

Singapore

Sunday, April 8th, 2007
Feb 11-13 After Bali, Singapore was like returning to a North American city, with its glitzy high-rises, ultra-clean streets and expensive shopping malls. We arrived just one week before Chinese New Year and the city, especially Chinatown, was all dressed ... [Continue reading this entry]

Bali IV (Amed to Seminyak)

Sunday, April 8th, 2007
Feb 6-10 On our last morning in Amed, I went for a couple of dives on the USAT Liberty, an American ship that had been sunk in WWII, and it turned out to be the best diving of the trip thus ... [Continue reading this entry]

Bali III (Yeh Sanih to Amed)

Sunday, April 8th, 2007
Feb 3-5 Bali is one of the only islands in Indonesia that is predominantly Hindu while the rest of the country is largely Muslim and this is evidenced by the fact that you see “offerings” ... [Continue reading this entry]

Bali II (Ubud)

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2007
Jan 28-Feb 1 After Kuta’s craziness, we decided to soak up some arts and culture in Ubud, the cultural centre of Bali. Rather than risk the lunacy of driving ourselves, we hired a driver who showed us the beautiful countryside ... [Continue reading this entry]