Lindsay and Ryan Do the World 2008/09

I have been home for a couple days now and I am actually liking it.  I spent the weekend with my sister and mom and finally got to see my sister’s pregnant belly.  Its so nice going to the fridge and picking whatever I want out of it, especially a nice big glass of cold milk!! 🙂

The plan was to be gone for a year but that didn’t happen obviously.  We were gone for almost 5 months and that was good enough for me.  I saw everything I wanted to (plus some).  I think it was time for me to come home.

Now I have to look into getting a job, a car and a place to live.  What fun!  Lots of big decisions to make in the next little while.

I know I will remember this trip for the rest of my life and overall I had the time of my life.  I wouldn’t change a thing. 🙂

Now where do we start! I think this has been the busiest stop yet!  There is just so much to see in Athens.  It is a beautiful, old yet modern city.  Our favourite city on this trip so far!!  It has been our chillest stop yet, about 12-18 degrees during the day and about 10 degrees at night.  That seems chilly when all you have to wear is a sweater and jeans.  We have learned to layer our clothes well. haha.

We have had 5 days here and I think we have almost seen all the main sightseeing spots plus some.  5 days is a good amount of time here.  We could spend some more time just wandering the cute little shops and streets but it would start to cost a bit.  The Canadian dollar buys .60 Euro.  Not too good considering that we have always gained on our currency during this trip.

Our first full day in Athens was March 15 and we had a busy day.  It was Sunday and everything is free on Sundays so we wanted to see alot.  We started early and saw changing of the guards at the President’s Residence, then headed down the street a little to the very first Olympic Stadium.  The first Olympics were held in April, 1896.  The stadium is quite small compared to modern day Olympic Stadiums but still impressive.  We then walked to the Temple of the Olympian Zeus.  It is a bunch of huge columns still standing from Ancient Greece.  That was my favourite ruin.  I just can’t believe how old some of the columns and buildings are here.  Canada definitely doesn’t have anything this old! All the main sightseeing spots are very close together.  We walked everywhere this day.  Our next stop was The Acropolis, where the Parthenon is.  It is 490 feet above Athens. We walked up the south slope through ancient theatres, more ruins, old statues.  When we finally got to the top it was great.  You can see the whole city of Athens from up there.  It is a very clean and cute city, hardly any skyscrapers or large buildings.  There were a lot of tourists up on the Acropolis this day but it is so large up there that is was ok.  We still got some great pictures.  I think there are about 3 buildings up there and two theatres while you walk up it.  It felt like everywhere you looked you wanted to take a picture. 🙂  This was Ryan’s favourite site.  Every night all the ruins in the city are lit up.  So you can see them right across the city. 

The next day we saw more ruins.  Ancient Agora was really good.  It is an old city of just ruins left. It probably has the best preserved building of them all.  It has a really long name and I don’t remember it. lol.  We also took a walk up this large hill where the ancient Greeks went to think.  There was also some battles up there as well.

Our third day we had a couple more sites to see.  We went to a really old burial ground and city called Kerimeikos.  The museum here had really interesting artifacts.  We walked around some really nice neighborhoods called Psiri and Plaka.  They are tiny little streets with a lot of cafes, bakeries and restaurants.  It was very much like how I pictured Europe.  We also went to the flea market and got a few souvenirs this day.  Since we have only 2 more days of our trip we decided to splurge and go to a nice restaurant for dinner.  The Greeks really do know how to cook!  It was delicious.

Today was our last full day in Athens.  We took the Metro to Pireaus (the harbour front).  It was ok down there, a lot of cruise ships and boats which take you to the greek islands.  We then took the Metro again all the way to the other end of Athens to see the Olympic Park from when the Olympics were held here in 2004.

We just got back from lunch.  We had gyros!  The best thing to come from Greece.  We have had one almost every day here.  They are very cheap.  For those who don’t know what a gyro is, it is a pita with sliced pork or chicken and onions and tomatoes with tzatziki sauce.  OMG…MMMM!!!!!

We fly home tomorrow with a stop in Amsterdam.  It is going to be a long flight back but Ryan and I both like the long flights because they feed you so well on them. lol.  We can’t believe it has been just about 5 months already.  Some of our stops flew by and some seemed to drag on.  Overall, I enjoyed every stop and am so glad we saw the things we did.

We had a very busy day yesterday!  Our day started at 8:30am when our private driver picked us up from the hotel.  Our first stop was the small village of Memphis, where the Rameses II museum is.  It was a great start to the day.  It had a huge statue of the king and then some other aritfacts in the court yard, including a small Syphinx and sarcophagus from 1200-1300 B.c.!

Then we headed to the Saquara Pyramids and Titi’s Tomb.  These pyramids are smaller than the Giza ones but still huge!  We walked around the ruins here and touched the real heiroglyphics that they are uncovering right now!  If this was back home we woud not even get close to it!  We then went down into Titi’s tomb.  We had to walk down this long, very narrow and steep tunnel down into the tomb!  It was so slippery too with sand.  Not much was down there just an empty sarcophogus (coffin).  It looked like it was made out of marble.

We made a couple quick stops at a carpet school and Papyrus paper factory.  We were only brought there to buy something, but we couldn’t.  Not in the budget.  I don’t think they were very happy with us. Oh well.

While we were driving along this small dirty river I saw two dead cows rotting in it! It was like from a movie.  And then these two guys were in a small paddle boat rowing with 2×4’s as paddles!  What the heck?!! LOL

We stopped for lunch at this 5 star restaurant called the Queen Cleopatra Restaurant.  It was a buffet lunch, so delicious.

Our last stop of the day was the Great Pyramids of Giza!!  The driver saved the best for last I guess! 🙂  We stopped at this stable and we had to barter with the guy to get a good price for a camel ride to the pyramids.  At first he was saying 200 EP each! We couldn’t afford that so we started to leave and then he said he would do it for 100 EP each!  So of course we did it for that price.  We are definitely paying the price today though!  Our whole bodies hurt.  Riding a camel is quite a workout!  We started heading towards the pyramids.  The guide took us to the top of this sand dune where it looked out to the pyramids.  There were some great picture oppurtunities from up there.  You could see all three pyramids.  One is made from granite, alabaster and limestone.  Then we headed to the biggest pyramid to TOUCH IT!  The regular tours are not allowed to touch it but with this guide he paid the police officer there and we were allowed to touch it quickly.  It supposedly gives you good luck!  That was AWESOME!  Then we headed to the Syphinx.  We didn’t get to get too close to the Syphinx but still were able to get some good pictures.  We are going back tomorrow night for a light and sound show there anyways, so its ok. 

We got back to the hotel around 530p.m. and went to bed at 10pm. We were exhausted. 

This was by far the best day trip we have ever been on!  Its a once in a lifetime thing that we will remember forever.  It was just so amazing.  We couldn’t believe we were in the Sahara desert, on a camel, on our way to the Giza Pyramids! OMG!

We arrived in Cairo a couple days ago.  We have been so busy so far!  Where to start?

Our hotel is not the best but its ok.  Its on the 12th floor and over looks Cairo.  Cairo has many beautiful old buildings but the city is just one colour, brown!  Its just so dusty and there are hardly no parks or trees.  Its winter here and people are wearing winter coats and pants.   Ryan and I think the weather is perfect, 22-25 degrees and sunny.  We were saying what would these people where if they experienced a Canadian winter! LOL. 

The first night we were here we went on a dinner cruise on the Nile River.  The food was really good and the entertainment was…really different.  Belly dancing and Arabic singing. 🙂  Our private driver stayed on the cruise with us and it felt like we had a personal body guard all night.  We had a good laugh about that. LOL

Our reception has helped us a lot and have organized and guided us for day trips.  Its going to be a very busy 4 days!

We figured out the exchange rate and its 4.4 Egyptian Pounds to 1 Canadian Dollar.  Not bad, but not nearly as good Thailand.

Its hard to walk around the city, almost all the signs and food menus are in Arabic but the Egyptians speak good english, better than the Thais we think.

The traffic and driving here is crazy.  Honking nonstop, no lanes, people just drive where ever they want and weave in and out.  There is a lot of traffic but not nearly as bad as Bangkok!  Pedestrians definitely do not have the right of way.  On our way from the airport our taxi driver said be very careful crossing the roads and then we saw an old man laying in the street and people surrounding him!!  I do not really like walking in the streets.  So hectic.

Yep, its true.  How does this happen you ask?  We have no idea.  The flight was for 12:45am on March 9th, so Ryan woke me up this morning in our hotel room in Bangkok and said “Lindsay, we missed our flight!” We missed it by 12 hours!  We thought it was TONIGHT at 12:45am.  Well, we thought we were in big trouble and we were going to have to pay big money to get another flight last minute, but it all worked out and we are flying to Cairo tonight at 12:45am, like we first thought.  Only $71 difference.  Not a big deal.

 We did our last minute souvenir shopping today and got some snacks for our 10 hour flight.

We were talking today and we can’t believe how fast 26 days in Thailand went.  We were really busy here, flying here and there and sightseeing and thats what made it go really fast we think.  We definitley would come back to Thailand.  The people, food, culture are all great.  If I come back again I would come for more of a vacation and have more money to shop. 

Thailand is so different from home, you can’t put it into words really.  It was a really relaxing and fun time in Thailand.

PS – Our weights when leaving Thailand are as follows: Ryan – 209.8 and Lindsay – 118.8  :S

We will write again when we get to Cairo and let you know how it is there.

This is about the extent of our thai words we have learned.  LOL. It means Hello.  We also know Thank you (khaawp khoon kha).  We figured these are the most important ones to know.

Anyways, we rented a moped yesterday and drove around the island.  Our first stop was a waterfall.  Its in a National Park so we paid 100 baht a person and walked the 500 metres to the waterfall (Klong Phu).  It was a treacherous 500 metres.  We were thinking that they should warn you before you try this walk.  They even had ropes for you to use at some parts of the walk.  The waterfall wasn’t that magnificent because its the dry season but we swam in the gorge below it and that was soo nice!  So refreshing.  We stayed there for about an hour and then walked back out to our bike.  We drove south along the coast through some other small towns.  There were some crazy steep hills and curves.  I was terrified, hanging on for dear life to the back of Ryan. Ryan says he has nail indents on his stomach from me holding onto him so tight.  We only had one spill but no one lost any limbs. LOL.  We stopped at a few scenic lookouts over the town we are staying at and the ocean, with other small islands in the distance.  We got some really good pictures and video.

We have one more day on this island and then we spend one more day in Bangkok before we fly to Cairo. We have a lot to do in Bangkok.  We have to get almost all our souvenirs there because Bangkok has the best prices we have found.

Ryan and I have found another treat, which is WAY better than Dairy Queen!  Yes, way better, if you can believe that!  It is called a banana pancake!  We first came across this terrific treat in Bangkok but we have grown to love it in Koh Chang.  It is a crepe fried on a wok with cut up bananas cooked inside and then drizzled with condensed milk.  It is made by street vendors and they are only 20-30 baht each (.75-$1.00).  We are going to open up our own little kiosk when we get home and make millions! LOL!

 Anyways, we are off to get our treat!  Goodnight! 🙂

We are spending our last few days on another island in the north Andaman Sea.  Its a nice quiet island.  Warm, clear water and not nearly as developed as Phuket, which is a nice change.  There is not much to do on this island except lay on the beach and swim, which is fine by us.  There are a lot of great restaurants and we eat at a different one each night. 

We are going to rent a moped tomorrow and tour around the island.  There are supposed to be some nice waterfalls around here somewhere.  Most of the island is a rainforest.  Its really pretty when you are in the ocean, all you see is beach and rainforest.  We took our cameras out into the ocean and took some pictures the other day.

The weather here is great.  A little humid during the day but just perfect for laying on the beach.  The nights cool off quite a bit so its really comfortable.

Our room here is ok. Not as nice as Phuket, but clean and close to everything.  1000 baht/night which is $34/night.

We weighed ourselves again the other day.  Ryan is at 212.3 and Lindsay is at 116.8.  I lost 5 pounds when I was sick last week and went down to 113 but my appetite is back with a vengence now! LOL.

We leave to go to Egypt in 5 days.  We are only there for 4 days to do a little sightseeing and then off to Athens for another 5 days.  Our trip is quickly coming to an end but I think the last few stops are going to be great.  We are really looking forward to them.

We will write again when we can. xo

We flew to Phuket Island on February 20 from Bangkok. 55 minute flight.  We checked into Square One Hotel.  It is so nice.  Huge room, pool, and its new.  $35/night.  We are staying here for 8 nights.  It actually feels like a vacation now and not travelling.  There is quite a difference!

We are staying on Patong Beach.  It is the party area of Phuket.  Very Americanized, reminds us of Miami Beach or Cancun.  The beach is crowded with bright umbrellas and sun-burned white people.  All the typical fast food retaurants as well but you don’t come to Thailand to eat Burger King! haha. 

We walk around every night and look at all the shops and try to barter for good deals on souvenirs.  There is a huge mall where we go to get our groceries and Dairy Queen. There is so much to see and do here.  But it is really crowded here too.

This beach saw the worst damage from the tsunami back in 2004.  You don’t see any of the damage at all today though.  There are a lot of Tsunami Evacuation signs along the beach.  Ryan and I have our route planned out. 😛  I’m just going to stand on Ryan’s shoulders.

Today, February 23, we went on a day trip to Phi Phi Islands, Maya Bay, Monkey Beach, Viking Cave and other little stops.  Maya Bay is where the movie “The Beach” was filmed.  If any of you have seen it, its a deserted island and turquoise waters.  So beautiful in the movie but when we got there it was a totally different story!  There was about 20 boats, 1000 people all crowded on the small, white beach.  We could hardly take a picture without getting an old man in a speedo in our picture!  It was very dissappointing but it definetly was the place where the movie was filmed.  You could tell that much at least.  Ryan and I were really looking forward to Monkey Beach since we are professional at feeding wild monkeys now.  Its where there are wild monkeys playing on the beach and you can feed them.  The tour guide only gave us 10 minutes here!  We even went and bought sunflower seeds to feed them! We were a little upset about that.  It was funny though because people were trying to feed them bananas but the monkeys get bananas every day, so they came straight to us and the seeds.  haha.

We had a buffet lunch on Phi Phi Don Island.  I started feeling really sick on the island but it passed.  Maybe too much sun.  Ryan took good care of me.  We spent the rest of the afternoon on Khao Kai Island.  Nice relaxing time there.  The sand was covered in coral so it was a little hard to walk on.  Very beautiful turquoise waters though.

After 6 hours on a hot, busy, old bus, we made it to Lopburi, the city beseiged by monkeys.  There are monkeys everywhere, climbing on the telephone poles, all over the ruins in the middle of the city and running across the street with their arms full of food.  Its quite a sight.

We each took a motorcycle taxi to our hotel, called the Lopburi Inn.  Ryan took one and I was on another behind him.  I lost sight of him for a few minutes and I had a terrible thought that I was going to the black market for my organs to be sold.

Its a nice room with air-con and our own fridge for 700 baht (25 dollars a night!)  We are staying here two nights and then heading south to some islands.  I am very much looking forward to that!

We went and took some pictures of the monkeys at the ruins today and we had no idea what we were in for!  When we got to the ruins, it was 50 baht each to get in and a little baggy of sunflower seeds to feed them.  We had no idea that we could hand feed them or even get close to them.  They are wild monkeys after all.  It was sooo much fun.  It was the highlight of Thailand for sure for us so far.  Their hands look just like ours!  They would take the food right out of your hands so nicely and they would just sit there and eat it in front of you.  The older ones are by far calmer and nicer. The younger ones are crazy though!  They jump on your legs and bounce off you like a trampoline and climb up your hands and try to grab whatever they can.  At first it is quite scary because you are afraid they are going to hurt you.  As soon as we got into the temple where they all hang out, we started feeding them and from behind this little one climbed up my back and sat on my shoulders and stole my sunglasses right off my head!  It scared the crap out of me. I was screaming “Ryan, Ryan, HELP” but all he did was take a picture! haha.  Then the monkey ran up the side of the temple with my glasses and put them on! LOL. Kidding.  We thought they were gone for good.  So we continued to just feed and play with the monkeys.  The little ones get a little feisty and climb all over you. One bite me on the wrist and I thought I would have to go for rabies shots but it didn’t break the skin.  The guy that takes the money at the front saw that we were having trouble with all the monkeys and gave us a stick to keep them away.  Ryan gave the monkeys what they deserved!  Kidding.  But he kept them in line for me.  Without the stick we would have been in real trouble. lol.  We didnt really hit them, we just swung a little at them to keep them off of us.  We were filthy by the end of it but it was way worth it. We are going again tomorrow morning before we get on the bus! 🙂  And right before we were going to leave, we saw the monkey that stole my glasses!  We baited him with some seeds and he dropped the glasses and I grabbed them back!  There are teeth marks all over them now but at least I got them back.  🙂

 We will update the blog again in a few days when we get to the south.  Bye for now.
 

We left Bangkok yesterday for Kanchanaburi on a “air-con” bus.  HA! There was no air-con and the bus ride took 3 1/2 hours.  Not very comfortable.  We arrived in the city and took a rickshaw to our guesthouse 4 km away.  The skinny Thai bicycled us and our bags to our guesthouse for 70 baht which is like $2.25!!! OMG.  Poor thing.  I wanted to get out and push! He did it in flips flops and no pedals, just pegs.  We must have weighed almost 500 pounds!  You could not pay me enough to do that.

We are staying at the Sugar Cane Guesthouse II.  It is a really nice place right on the River Kwai.  We are actually staying in a rafthouse.  We can see the Bridge on The River Kwai from our room.  It was one of my dad’s favourite movies.  We are going to go to a museum about it today and learn more about it.  It was built and bombed in WWII and 90,000-100,000 died building it.

We are staying in Kanchanaburi for two nights and then heading to LopBuri (a town riddled with monkeys!!)  More monkeys than people! haha.  Should be exciting.