Aka Ho Chi Minh City Aka the City of Too Many Motorbikes
After a wonderful week in Bangkok we flew east to Saigon, Vietnam. We weren't exactly sure what to expect and were surprised by how few people there were in the airport and how easy it was to get through customs. Without incident we found the driver for our guesthouse and made our way through what can only be known as motorbike madness. It is estimated that there are 10 million people living in Saigon and nearly half of them have motorbikes. They are everywhere... but more about them later.
We arrived at our guesthouse and were thrilled with such amenities as air conditioning, a bathroom, a TV, and free breakfast (Woohoo). Our guesthouse was located in the backpacker area so we were surrounded by travel agencies, motorbike taxis, and vendors selling everything from baguettes to pirated movies. I don't think we ever walked more than ten feet without being asked if we wanted to take a motorbike taxi.
We didn't have much planned for our arrival, but after a little research we decided a city tour would be the best way to make sense out of the madness.
City Tour
On our first full day in Saigon we started our tour at 8 AM. Our guide Viet (who explained that people often called him Vit which means duck, and we could also call him either Donald or Don and his wife is named Daisy... funny guy) was great and we took a quick liking to him.
The city tour was a great way to see the sights of Saigon without trying to navigate their crazy intersections and argue with motorbike taxi drivers. The first stop on our tour included the War Remnants Museum (the Vietnam War, which here is known as the anti-American War). I won't say much about it, but it was very eye-opening and very depressing. The effects of the Vietnam war are still very evident in Vietnam today and although we were glad we went it was a sad stop. To us it is something we learned about in history class but it effects many peoples everyday life here. When asked about how Vietnamese people feel about America today our guide Viet said, "We cannot look back, we can only look forward. Young people want to make our country great and all we can do is create work for ourselves so we can feed our families. We want to look to the future. I say please leave the terrible images you see at the museum inside those walls, they are not good and they will give you nightmares." After the museum we went to the Handicapped Handy Craft Center. This Center was set up to give work to people who were born with defects due to agent orange (from the war). There were many beautiful crafts using paint and crushed egg shells. We bought a small picture of a fisherman on a river. We also visited the Post Office and Vietnam's Notre Dame Cathedral (a fifth of the size of the one in France). They were elaborate Western buildings that made French history here evident. We sat outside and were discussing how scary it is that the side effects of war still effect millions of people here today. As we were chatting we noticed the women sitting next to us was carrying her teenage son in a sling like backpack. He was missing one leg and his other was very short. His hands and face were physically deformed. We had heard about agent orange before, but we were not prepared or expecting for the effects to be so visible.
We also got to visit a huge wholesale market that sold everything from fabric to dried fish. Near the wholesale market was a Chinese Buddhist Temple. Outside of the temple we noticed a cage of little birds. Our guide informed us that when people go to the temple to repent they believe it is good luck to set a bird free, so they buy them here. Sadly, the vendors like to reuse the birds and clip the wings so that they can go pick them up later. Last was the Reunification Palace celebrating the reunification of North and South Vietnam. It very much reminded me of visiting the White House in Washington DC. There were lots of interesting rooms and we got lost a few times as we were exploring. After a long day of touring we dined at a cheap roof-top bbq. It had some major advantages... a great view of the city and street vendors couldn't approach and insist you buy something from them. A good finish to a good day.
Food
Megan loves Pho (traditional Vietnamese noodle soup) and enjoyed at least one bowl every day we were there. I partook in a Vietnamese pancake (stuffed with shrimp and veggies). We also visited a few street carts and tried the "McDonald's of Vietnam." McDonald's is not allowed to open stores in Vietnam because they were not willing to use Vietnamese beef. Viet informed us that that street carts that serve baguettes stuffed with various meats, pate, and veggies are the most popular fast food here. I got to enjoy many a Saigon beer as well.
Urban Chaos
Back to the motorbikes... there are many features that make this city feel overwhelmingly crowded. It seems as though everyone drives a motorbike, and it is amazing that they can fit as much on them as we can fit in our cars. Traffic rules seem to not apply to motorbikes and they often weave in and out of traffic, on the wrong side of the road, on the sidewalks, and even in buildings. Another feature of Saigon traffic is their love of honking horns. The first night I observed that perhaps they weren't honking their horns, rather continuously honking and occasionally letting off. Crossing the street on foot is an adventure in and of itself.
We quickly developed two games... First counting the seconds between hearing a honk (six seconds was the record, average under one second). Second, and most fun game, was "How much can I fit on my motorbike?" Winners include: six sacks of rice, about 30 buckets, loads of boxes, a queen size mattress, four kegs, a refrigerator, a family a six, six garbage cans, eight cases of bottled water, two full grown pigs, and a live cow.
The female motorbike drivers were often covered from head to toe. Most people wear medical face masks due to the pollution. Many females, however, cover their entire bodies. This is because it is very favorable to have light skin as it implies higher status (working inside instead of out in the fields). They were long sleeves, long pants, glove, and large hats in very hot and humid weather. Also, the grocery stores carry all kinds of skin lightening products and lotions. Interesting contrast to the multitude to tanning salons back home.
Another thing that adds to the craziness is their electrical wiring. Never have I seen so many disorganized wires connected to a power pole. Each pole looks like a spider web with so many wires going off in various directions. I had to snap a picture and send it to my old work buddies back home. We even saw an electrician crawling along the wires like a sloth, tying them together. Wow.
The street vendors here are much more aggressive than any we had seen before. One man even slammed Megan's taxi door because we refused to ride on his motorbike. We noticed a linear progression of the products vendor's will approach you to buy on the street. In the afternoons it's sun glasses and lighters. Around dinner it's pirated DVDs. After dinner the movie salesmen start to offer drugs as well. After dark anything goes and they put away the sunglasses in order to offer drugs and girls. No thanks.
For our last couple days we explored the city on foot and spent some time at the Thai Embassy sorting out our Visas. After several days we became overwhelmed with busy crowds of the city and decided to move on. We knew our next big stop would be Cambodia so we were very happy to find a tour that would take us down the Mekong River by boat and end in Phnom Penh, Cambodia... but that is for another post.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Bangkok, Thailand
Getting There
Our travel from Sydney to Bangkok turned out to be a long day of planes, trains, and automobiles. We woke at 5 am, said our tearful goodbyes and thanked our friends for their hospitality, and took a shuttle to the airport. Upon checking in we learned that we needed proof of leaving Bangkok within 30 days of arrival. We had planned to play SE Asia by ear, and travel via train and bus, so our tickets to leave Bangkok were for four months after we arrived. The poor guy who gave us the bad news was really hesitant and had to check with his manager a couple times, but sure enough they were not letting us on the plane. Without the proper tickets we had to scramble down to an Internet cafe and book the cheapest flights we could find to Vietnam just so we could board the plane. In the end it worked out fine since we planned to go to Vietnam that month anyway, but the plane was about $150 more than the bus we would have taken. We later learned that this rule is rarely enforced , and sure enough after our ten hours in the air the Thai customs agent made no request for our proof of onward travel.
After withdrawing some Thai Baht (currency) we made our way to our hostel via two trains. We got off our second train very tired and disoriented, having been awake for 20 hours. After walking around many dark, crowded, foreign streets lugging giant bags, and looking at maps for half an hour we figured out which way was up and found our hostel. It was located down an alley off a side street which had a bustling night market going on. Had we not been so tired we would have been more tempted by the delicious scents wafting from the food carts but it did get us excited for the food we would be enjoying soon enough. The hostel ended up being in a really good location near the skytrain line and it felt very safe and quiet. Sleep came fast.
Bangkok International Food Fair
The next day after a good night's rest we enjoyed our free hostel breakfast, got our bearings, and set off to explore. We didn't make it too far before we stumbled upon the Bangkok International Food Fair. Several streets were lined with tables of food. Each table had a chef and a flag representing the country it was from. There was bright colored deep fried flowers from Thailand, sautéed shark fin soup from Japan, giant bowls of curries and Naan from India, and the good old USA was represented by a sandwich artist from Subway. There were several stages of live music, Barista competitions, and contests. At about six, people began to gather at the main stage. Intrigued, we took a seat and watched the show. Camera men with news cameras filtered in. The front two rows had reserved signs attached, and the people who filled them were dressed to the nines and seemed very important. They had two nice hosts who introduced the events throwing in a little English here and there so we knew what was going on. First up was a celebrity chef cooking competition. Next was a fashion show featuring four women who strutted their stuff while carrying platters of food and donning hats covered with fruit, sushi, and toast. After the fashion show they moved into some music first featuring four guys wearing chef hats banging on pots and pans. Next was a female singer with a beautiful voice. After her set the hosts interviewed her and we found ourselves laughing along with the crowd even though they were speaking Thai. Apparently the hosts noticed us laughing along seeming to understand and they felt it necessary to call us out. In the middle of the interview they started talking to us and the cameras zoomed up tight on our faces which were projected on the big screen that was broadcast over the whole event. The hosts asked us if we knew what was happening and noted that we were obviously tourists. We admitted that no we did not know what was happening and yes we were tourists. We were more than a little embarrassed. They warmly welcomed us to the country and said they hoped they made a good impression on us. After that excitement we made our way back to the hostel stopping at a 7-11 (they are everywhere!) to pick up a beer and a Gatorade. Our hostel had a rooftop garden so we enjoyed our refreshments up there and exchanged travel tips with a nice French backpacker. Not bad for day one.
Food
Thailand's food is the best! We already have some reoccuring dishes and are so glad we will have so much time to enjoy them. At the train stations, and in the streets there are booths with tons of fresh tropical fruit (we love Pomelo, pineapple, and mango - and it's been a treat to try all kinds of new fruits). They also make fresh squeezed juice with all kinds of fruits and veggies. A lady outside our hostel makes the best crepes stuffed with all different things, we got one with a banana and chocolate. And another of Mike's favorite treats are these small, delicious waffles stuffed with your choice of maple, chocolate, cream, or fruit fillings. I love getting Thai Iced coffee and Iced tea, it's pretty sweet but very refreshing to have on a sweaty, sticky day of walking around the town. At the night market below our room, we have a favorite street vendor (who has even memorized our order) of Chicken Phad Sei Ew. Also, of course we've had our share of the classic Phad Thai (but I have to say On Rice in Bellingham does a really nice job of every dish we've had). Sometimes the language barrier can make ordering a challenge, but it's usually pretty easy to just point and smile (this only resulted in a couple mystery meals, "oops, I thought that ginger was noodles!") One surprising place to eat a delicious, cheap, meal is in the mall. The malls here are a lot different than at home. They are really fancy, one of the only places you can spend some time in air conditioning, and decorated with chandeliers, waterfalls, and elaborate displays. The food vendors sell the same food you can find in the streets, but sometimes it's nice to be able to sit down and enjoy your food inside. There, we enjoyed some spicy bbq pork skewers, and I found a new favorite in Papaya Salad. It's really spicy because they take a young papaya, shred it, and smash spices into it using a mortar and pestle. In my opinion, the best way to end a long day of exploring is by sharing a dish of mango and sticky rice, delicious!
Exploring Bangkok
We didn't do any organized tours here, and instead took to the streets (and rivers) on our own. We've found so many valuable travel websites to get directions, advice, and itineraries. These are so helpful to bring along, because if you get in a pinch you can just point to the address and a taxi driver will know the way. We haven't used many taxis here because the public transit is really easy to use. Every day we take the skytrain over the busy streets, although it is very uncomfortable at rush hour when you are crammed in with hundreds of sweaty people. Every time the door opens, more rush in (Mike has a huge advantage when it comes to breathing, being about a foot taller than most).
We also have explored town using the river boats along the waterways. This is sometimes an adventure in itself, going by all sorts of temples, giant buildings, and houses built on stilts over the water. One day we took the boat to Khao San Road, the famous backpacker street. It's full of vendors, resteraunts, hostels, and nightlife. Fun to see, but we're glad we decided to stay a way off the beaten path. While buying a t-shirt, one nice women laughed at Mike for ordering a medium, "Haha! No! Large! You giant!" She forced him to buy a large :) It was pretty funny (and the shirt does fit).
We visited the Wat Pho temple, home of the massive reclining Buddha statue. It is a gold statue that takes up an entire building. It's beautiful and very detailed. Behind the statue there is a large row of metal bowls, and you can buy a bag of small coins to drop in for good luck. It makes for a neat addition to the atmosphere, always hearing "plink, plink!"
Floating Market
We visited a floating market, which we've heard has changed a lot to target tourists, but we still enjoyed our visit. You get to take a small row boat and be paddled around to the different stalls selling food, clothes, and souvenirs. There are also vendors in boats paddling around selling fruits, and mobile phad thai making stations. We bought a beer (for Mike) and a coconut (for me) to drink while in the boat, very fun! There were so many boats in the small river that at times there were traffic jams, and we ran into several other boats.
Animal Encounters
Sometimes when you take trips out of the city, you have unexpected stops along the way, usually involving animals. One of these was a place where you could ride elephants (we didn't do that because we will be going to an Elephant sanctuary with Brian and Martha). We did get to feed them a basket of bananas, it was crazy how fast they took the bananas, bunches at a time, with their trunk. We also fed a lot of koi and snapper fish food in a lake.
Teak Woodcarving
Another place we found fascinating was a teak woodcarving shop. There were about 20 people carving elaborate jungle scenes into tables, statues, and wall hangings. They were so talented, and we enjoyed watching them.
Tiger Temple
Perhaps our most adventurous event in Thailand was a visit to the Tiger Temple Forest Monastery in Kanchanaburi. It used to be a place for Buddhist monks to live and study, but has evolved over the years to be a giant animal sanctuary that tourists can visit or live and volunteer at to study both tigers and Buddhism. The first tiger cub was brought to a monk after being rescued by local villagers. Poaching is still pretty common here, and the cub was left after it's mother was killed. The monks raised the tiger, and the trend continued, more and more rescued tigers were left in their care. Now, they host 17 tigers, some of them have begun breeding. They are currently building centers to train the cubs to be rereleased back into the jungles. People have brought many other animals to live at the temple too, and we saw camels, wild boar, cows, buffalo, goats, and chickens roaming freely.
We were a bit nervous when we saw a medical helicopter pad near the entrance, but they have never had an attack and people visit daily. The process of actually petting the tiger was exciting and a bit strange. You get in line, and then a local guide and volunteer holds your hand while another guide takes your camera to take pictures of you with the giant cats. There were several rules, no wearing red or pink, no sunglasses or purses, only touch the tigers backs near their tail. It felt safe having people telling you what to do and guiding you around, and the tigers were mostly sleeping or lazy, but my heart was beating really fast the whole time I was in the tiger habitat. A couple picture suggestions were funny and a bit awkward, they kept wanting us to hold up the tigers tail. I guess maybe sometimes it works, but these photos turned out to be more of a joke to us.
After visiting the giants, we had the pleasant surprise of getting to spend some time with the cubs. They aren't always out, but we had good timing and got to pet them, watch the monks play with, train, bottle-feed, and bathe them. That was the highlight of my day. They act just like a bigger, more ferocious house cat. All in all a neat experience, that I don't think could be recreated anywhere else in the world.
Other Highlights
One of Mike's favorite moments was sitting on top of our rooftop garden with a Chang beer during the biggest thunder storm we've ever experienced. I stayed in the room, and after seeing bright flashes and hearing thunder that sounded like gun shots continuously for a bit, I ruined his fun and drug him down back to the room. The window shaking was still intense and exciting, but I felt at ease knowing he wasn't being struck by a bolt of lightning :)
One of our best dinners here in Bangkok was with our old friend Trevor. Trevor was a friend from WWU who we hadn't seen in years. He moved to Thailand to get his Master's degree, and has lived here working for World Vision for a few years. He brought his friend Youi (not sure how to spell it), who was really cute and fun to chat with. She works at a Thai news station, and had recently volunteered Trevor to sing on stage with a Thai Pop Star in front of 10,000 fans. It was fun to hear that account and see pictures. She is from Thailand, and we all decided it would be best if she ordered our dinner for us, we had 6 delicious dishes (family style) that we never would have known to order on our own. Trevor also generously brought us an old phone he had so that we can use it if we have an emergency. Cell phones are so much easier here, there is no contract and you just buy a sim card and add minutes on the street corner. Thanks Trevor!
Another great dinner was with our old friends Sarah and Davey. They are from Enumclaw, and had just completed a trip similar to ours (only they stayed in SE Asia the whole time). It was their last night in Bangkok before they returned to WA, and we had just arrived. They had so many great tips on places to go and things to see. We ordered a tower of Chang beer and some Thai food and chatted for a long time. We felt spoiled seeing some great familiar faces halfway across the world, and it made the transition to an unfamiliar place pretty easy.
Our hostel has an awesome feature, in that they allow long term luggage storage for free. We were able to be true minimalists and leave all but our small backpacks with them. It was definitely a challenge(especially for me) to get a month worth of clothes and toiletries into such a small bag, but the payoff is worth it for sure. Not having to lug around our 30 pound bags has made a big difference in travel days. Bangkok is turning out to be a great jumping off point for our 4 months in Asia, and we're sure to return several times before heading home. Next up: Vietnam and Cambodia, then back to Thailand to meet up with friends before starting our teaching project.
Our travel from Sydney to Bangkok turned out to be a long day of planes, trains, and automobiles. We woke at 5 am, said our tearful goodbyes and thanked our friends for their hospitality, and took a shuttle to the airport. Upon checking in we learned that we needed proof of leaving Bangkok within 30 days of arrival. We had planned to play SE Asia by ear, and travel via train and bus, so our tickets to leave Bangkok were for four months after we arrived. The poor guy who gave us the bad news was really hesitant and had to check with his manager a couple times, but sure enough they were not letting us on the plane. Without the proper tickets we had to scramble down to an Internet cafe and book the cheapest flights we could find to Vietnam just so we could board the plane. In the end it worked out fine since we planned to go to Vietnam that month anyway, but the plane was about $150 more than the bus we would have taken. We later learned that this rule is rarely enforced , and sure enough after our ten hours in the air the Thai customs agent made no request for our proof of onward travel.
After withdrawing some Thai Baht (currency) we made our way to our hostel via two trains. We got off our second train very tired and disoriented, having been awake for 20 hours. After walking around many dark, crowded, foreign streets lugging giant bags, and looking at maps for half an hour we figured out which way was up and found our hostel. It was located down an alley off a side street which had a bustling night market going on. Had we not been so tired we would have been more tempted by the delicious scents wafting from the food carts but it did get us excited for the food we would be enjoying soon enough. The hostel ended up being in a really good location near the skytrain line and it felt very safe and quiet. Sleep came fast.
Bangkok International Food Fair
The next day after a good night's rest we enjoyed our free hostel breakfast, got our bearings, and set off to explore. We didn't make it too far before we stumbled upon the Bangkok International Food Fair. Several streets were lined with tables of food. Each table had a chef and a flag representing the country it was from. There was bright colored deep fried flowers from Thailand, sautéed shark fin soup from Japan, giant bowls of curries and Naan from India, and the good old USA was represented by a sandwich artist from Subway. There were several stages of live music, Barista competitions, and contests. At about six, people began to gather at the main stage. Intrigued, we took a seat and watched the show. Camera men with news cameras filtered in. The front two rows had reserved signs attached, and the people who filled them were dressed to the nines and seemed very important. They had two nice hosts who introduced the events throwing in a little English here and there so we knew what was going on. First up was a celebrity chef cooking competition. Next was a fashion show featuring four women who strutted their stuff while carrying platters of food and donning hats covered with fruit, sushi, and toast. After the fashion show they moved into some music first featuring four guys wearing chef hats banging on pots and pans. Next was a female singer with a beautiful voice. After her set the hosts interviewed her and we found ourselves laughing along with the crowd even though they were speaking Thai. Apparently the hosts noticed us laughing along seeming to understand and they felt it necessary to call us out. In the middle of the interview they started talking to us and the cameras zoomed up tight on our faces which were projected on the big screen that was broadcast over the whole event. The hosts asked us if we knew what was happening and noted that we were obviously tourists. We admitted that no we did not know what was happening and yes we were tourists. We were more than a little embarrassed. They warmly welcomed us to the country and said they hoped they made a good impression on us. After that excitement we made our way back to the hostel stopping at a 7-11 (they are everywhere!) to pick up a beer and a Gatorade. Our hostel had a rooftop garden so we enjoyed our refreshments up there and exchanged travel tips with a nice French backpacker. Not bad for day one.
Food
Thailand's food is the best! We already have some reoccuring dishes and are so glad we will have so much time to enjoy them. At the train stations, and in the streets there are booths with tons of fresh tropical fruit (we love Pomelo, pineapple, and mango - and it's been a treat to try all kinds of new fruits). They also make fresh squeezed juice with all kinds of fruits and veggies. A lady outside our hostel makes the best crepes stuffed with all different things, we got one with a banana and chocolate. And another of Mike's favorite treats are these small, delicious waffles stuffed with your choice of maple, chocolate, cream, or fruit fillings. I love getting Thai Iced coffee and Iced tea, it's pretty sweet but very refreshing to have on a sweaty, sticky day of walking around the town. At the night market below our room, we have a favorite street vendor (who has even memorized our order) of Chicken Phad Sei Ew. Also, of course we've had our share of the classic Phad Thai (but I have to say On Rice in Bellingham does a really nice job of every dish we've had). Sometimes the language barrier can make ordering a challenge, but it's usually pretty easy to just point and smile (this only resulted in a couple mystery meals, "oops, I thought that ginger was noodles!") One surprising place to eat a delicious, cheap, meal is in the mall. The malls here are a lot different than at home. They are really fancy, one of the only places you can spend some time in air conditioning, and decorated with chandeliers, waterfalls, and elaborate displays. The food vendors sell the same food you can find in the streets, but sometimes it's nice to be able to sit down and enjoy your food inside. There, we enjoyed some spicy bbq pork skewers, and I found a new favorite in Papaya Salad. It's really spicy because they take a young papaya, shred it, and smash spices into it using a mortar and pestle. In my opinion, the best way to end a long day of exploring is by sharing a dish of mango and sticky rice, delicious!
Exploring Bangkok
We didn't do any organized tours here, and instead took to the streets (and rivers) on our own. We've found so many valuable travel websites to get directions, advice, and itineraries. These are so helpful to bring along, because if you get in a pinch you can just point to the address and a taxi driver will know the way. We haven't used many taxis here because the public transit is really easy to use. Every day we take the skytrain over the busy streets, although it is very uncomfortable at rush hour when you are crammed in with hundreds of sweaty people. Every time the door opens, more rush in (Mike has a huge advantage when it comes to breathing, being about a foot taller than most).
We also have explored town using the river boats along the waterways. This is sometimes an adventure in itself, going by all sorts of temples, giant buildings, and houses built on stilts over the water. One day we took the boat to Khao San Road, the famous backpacker street. It's full of vendors, resteraunts, hostels, and nightlife. Fun to see, but we're glad we decided to stay a way off the beaten path. While buying a t-shirt, one nice women laughed at Mike for ordering a medium, "Haha! No! Large! You giant!" She forced him to buy a large :) It was pretty funny (and the shirt does fit).
We visited the Wat Pho temple, home of the massive reclining Buddha statue. It is a gold statue that takes up an entire building. It's beautiful and very detailed. Behind the statue there is a large row of metal bowls, and you can buy a bag of small coins to drop in for good luck. It makes for a neat addition to the atmosphere, always hearing "plink, plink!"
Floating Market
We visited a floating market, which we've heard has changed a lot to target tourists, but we still enjoyed our visit. You get to take a small row boat and be paddled around to the different stalls selling food, clothes, and souvenirs. There are also vendors in boats paddling around selling fruits, and mobile phad thai making stations. We bought a beer (for Mike) and a coconut (for me) to drink while in the boat, very fun! There were so many boats in the small river that at times there were traffic jams, and we ran into several other boats.
Animal Encounters
Sometimes when you take trips out of the city, you have unexpected stops along the way, usually involving animals. One of these was a place where you could ride elephants (we didn't do that because we will be going to an Elephant sanctuary with Brian and Martha). We did get to feed them a basket of bananas, it was crazy how fast they took the bananas, bunches at a time, with their trunk. We also fed a lot of koi and snapper fish food in a lake.
Teak Woodcarving
Another place we found fascinating was a teak woodcarving shop. There were about 20 people carving elaborate jungle scenes into tables, statues, and wall hangings. They were so talented, and we enjoyed watching them.
Tiger Temple
Perhaps our most adventurous event in Thailand was a visit to the Tiger Temple Forest Monastery in Kanchanaburi. It used to be a place for Buddhist monks to live and study, but has evolved over the years to be a giant animal sanctuary that tourists can visit or live and volunteer at to study both tigers and Buddhism. The first tiger cub was brought to a monk after being rescued by local villagers. Poaching is still pretty common here, and the cub was left after it's mother was killed. The monks raised the tiger, and the trend continued, more and more rescued tigers were left in their care. Now, they host 17 tigers, some of them have begun breeding. They are currently building centers to train the cubs to be rereleased back into the jungles. People have brought many other animals to live at the temple too, and we saw camels, wild boar, cows, buffalo, goats, and chickens roaming freely.
We were a bit nervous when we saw a medical helicopter pad near the entrance, but they have never had an attack and people visit daily. The process of actually petting the tiger was exciting and a bit strange. You get in line, and then a local guide and volunteer holds your hand while another guide takes your camera to take pictures of you with the giant cats. There were several rules, no wearing red or pink, no sunglasses or purses, only touch the tigers backs near their tail. It felt safe having people telling you what to do and guiding you around, and the tigers were mostly sleeping or lazy, but my heart was beating really fast the whole time I was in the tiger habitat. A couple picture suggestions were funny and a bit awkward, they kept wanting us to hold up the tigers tail. I guess maybe sometimes it works, but these photos turned out to be more of a joke to us.
After visiting the giants, we had the pleasant surprise of getting to spend some time with the cubs. They aren't always out, but we had good timing and got to pet them, watch the monks play with, train, bottle-feed, and bathe them. That was the highlight of my day. They act just like a bigger, more ferocious house cat. All in all a neat experience, that I don't think could be recreated anywhere else in the world.
Other Highlights
One of Mike's favorite moments was sitting on top of our rooftop garden with a Chang beer during the biggest thunder storm we've ever experienced. I stayed in the room, and after seeing bright flashes and hearing thunder that sounded like gun shots continuously for a bit, I ruined his fun and drug him down back to the room. The window shaking was still intense and exciting, but I felt at ease knowing he wasn't being struck by a bolt of lightning :)
One of our best dinners here in Bangkok was with our old friend Trevor. Trevor was a friend from WWU who we hadn't seen in years. He moved to Thailand to get his Master's degree, and has lived here working for World Vision for a few years. He brought his friend Youi (not sure how to spell it), who was really cute and fun to chat with. She works at a Thai news station, and had recently volunteered Trevor to sing on stage with a Thai Pop Star in front of 10,000 fans. It was fun to hear that account and see pictures. She is from Thailand, and we all decided it would be best if she ordered our dinner for us, we had 6 delicious dishes (family style) that we never would have known to order on our own. Trevor also generously brought us an old phone he had so that we can use it if we have an emergency. Cell phones are so much easier here, there is no contract and you just buy a sim card and add minutes on the street corner. Thanks Trevor!
Another great dinner was with our old friends Sarah and Davey. They are from Enumclaw, and had just completed a trip similar to ours (only they stayed in SE Asia the whole time). It was their last night in Bangkok before they returned to WA, and we had just arrived. They had so many great tips on places to go and things to see. We ordered a tower of Chang beer and some Thai food and chatted for a long time. We felt spoiled seeing some great familiar faces halfway across the world, and it made the transition to an unfamiliar place pretty easy.
Our hostel has an awesome feature, in that they allow long term luggage storage for free. We were able to be true minimalists and leave all but our small backpacks with them. It was definitely a challenge(especially for me) to get a month worth of clothes and toiletries into such a small bag, but the payoff is worth it for sure. Not having to lug around our 30 pound bags has made a big difference in travel days. Bangkok is turning out to be a great jumping off point for our 4 months in Asia, and we're sure to return several times before heading home. Next up: Vietnam and Cambodia, then back to Thailand to meet up with friends before starting our teaching project.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Great Ocean Road Trip - Victoria, Australia
For the last week of our time in Australia, we rented camper van and took a road trip through Victoria. We started in Melbourne, went down the Great Ocean Road, the Surf Coast, and through Otway National Park and finished with a camping trip in The Grampians National Park.
Torquay and Bells Beach
On the southern coast of Australia, there are two of the world's best surf beaches. The waves were much bigger than we could attempt, but there was still plenty to see in the area. Torquay is where Quicksilver and Ripcurl were born, and there is a surf museum and large shopping area full of all the brands associated with surf culture. I got a new pair of Reef sandals for $5.
We watched the surfers and walked down the beaches, then continued on.
Apollo Bay
A darling little fishing village. Spent awhile walking around the wharf. Mike was incredibly patient as I took a zillion pictures of old boats (one of my favorite subjects). We made some stirfry at our campsite and camped out in the van (which felt very spacious compared to our NZ rental).
Otway National Park
The moment we got off the main road and into the rainforest, we saw several wild koalas in the trees right off the road. We parked the van and I got out to take a picture, and surprisingly, the little guy stood up and began lumbering down the tree trunk all the way to the ground. I didn't get too close because they can be aggressive, but he sure was curious. We drove to a trailhead where we did a hike through the jungle. Parts of the trail were covered by a nice boardwalk, but the rest was very dense. I actually felt pretty claustrophobic with the low branches and giant leaves and humid heat. The sounds were incredible, loud squawking parrots, hundreds of cicadas, and lizards crawling through the dead leaves. I jumped a few times when mistaking a lizard for a snake. And found myself nervous to pull leaves out of my hair in fear that they were the killer red back spider. It's a funny shift from hiking at home, where you keep your eyes out all around for huge bears and cougars. Not sure which I prefer.
12 Apostles (and other cool rock formations)
The 12 apostles are a series of large cliffs standing tall out of the ocean, they are an icon of Southern OZ, and found on many postcards. They were beautiful but really crowded with tourists. Around the area there are other parks with all kinds of coastal caves, blowholes, and miles of sharp cliffs. There is nothing blocking the massive waves from Antarctica, and they crash constantly across the southern coast. After taking in the sights we continued along the road, which runs the length of the coast winding above the cliffs. We made a stop at a couple really touristy places, including a whale nursery viewing dock (no whales, wrong season). When we saw the roadside sign stating "cheeseworld" we had to stop for a cheese museum, tour, and shops.
Grampians National Park
After driving a long time through desert plains, Grampians NP sticks out of the ground like two massive, tree covered shark fins. We had a pretty big letdown after driving all day only to find the road to our campground closed about 20 miles before we would arrive. We thought about camping out until morning in hopes it would open up. Luckily, we asked a local who let us know that there had been a flood and landslide and the road would probably reopen in about four months. We followed the detour route for another two hours and decided we really wanted to have a straight up American BBQ when we finally arrived. We stopped at a little red grocery store with cartoon roosters painted on the walls. It had a huge poster advertising chicken feed. As we walked up to the doors we were greeted by a nice lady who took one look at our van, gave us a strange look, and said, "sorry, we are closed. Just about to have a staff meeting." It wasn't even 6 pm. As we made our way back to the van, we were pretty bummed and about to give up on our dinner plans when we noticed the neighboring building, a supermart. How could such a small town have two grocery stores back to back? We took a second look and realized that the first store was actually a feed store, had a good laugh, and picked up our Budweiser and dogs. When we arrived at our campsite at
Halls Gap, we were greeted by hundreds of wild kangaroos all over the park. As we cooked the hot dogs, the cute little guys perked up and watched closely, but they just love eating grass and didn't get aggressive at all. I also saw several kookaburras and was shocked at how much they really sound like loud laughing monkeys. Another group of birds that visited our camp a bit too often was a gang of cockatoos. They look cool but they were real punks. They surrounded us every morning as we ate cereal, tried to get in our van, and even jumped on Mike's shoulder to snag his pbj. When we refused to feed them, they began the really ridiculous antics: squawking and fighting with each other, hanging upside down to drink from our faucet, chewing on our extension cord, and trying to steal our towels. Little buggers.
Across from the camp was a row of cute shops along a little creek. We had a nice time checking out the stores and I discovered a new fascination with coffee flavored ice cream.
Brambuk aboriginal cultural center was full of artifacts and history of the area and the aboriginal people who had been living there for hundreds of years. It was fascinating to see how similar the struggles in Australia are to those of the Native Americans. You could also participate in a guided bushwalk to learn about the medicinal plants. The center offered boomerang classes and traditional bush food (emu, kangaroo, and crocodile).
Sadly, the same nasty weather that blocked the main road into the park also caused landslides that closed off many hikes. Upon checking into the ranger station we learned that the hike we had our eye on (the wonderland loop) was blocked. However, they provided us with a map of hikes that were safe to tackle. We settled on Boronia Peak and made our way to the trail head. We had bright blue skies and lots of heat on our steady climb to the summit. The last 50 yards or so was a rock scramble to a 360 degree lookout featuring views of lakes, forested hills, cliffs, and farmland. We took a well deserved break and as we started in on our oranges we were joined by a school group of 20 or so thirteen year olds. We could almost watch the chaperone's hair go gray as his class carelessly hopped around the rocky peak with steep falls on every side. More than a few times he mentioned all the paper work he would have to fill out if any of his students fell. We extended our break until the school group was a good ways in front of us and then made our descent back to camp where we refueled on leftover hotdogs and baked beans.
After our camping trip we returned our van to Melbourne and flew back to Sydney to spend our last two nights on Bondi with Jessica and Chris. To our surprise, when we arrived to their apartment there was a package waiting for us. It was a gift from our wonderful friends Britta and Jeremy, full of Valentines candy, travel supplies, and a nice card. Britta had emailed Ray and sent the package to her work, so thoughtful! For our last evening, we decided to have something we would soon be missing: cheeseburgers! Then we packed our bags and set our alarm for a jam packed travel day to Thailand
Torquay and Bells Beach
On the southern coast of Australia, there are two of the world's best surf beaches. The waves were much bigger than we could attempt, but there was still plenty to see in the area. Torquay is where Quicksilver and Ripcurl were born, and there is a surf museum and large shopping area full of all the brands associated with surf culture. I got a new pair of Reef sandals for $5.
We watched the surfers and walked down the beaches, then continued on.
Apollo Bay
A darling little fishing village. Spent awhile walking around the wharf. Mike was incredibly patient as I took a zillion pictures of old boats (one of my favorite subjects). We made some stirfry at our campsite and camped out in the van (which felt very spacious compared to our NZ rental).
Otway National Park
The moment we got off the main road and into the rainforest, we saw several wild koalas in the trees right off the road. We parked the van and I got out to take a picture, and surprisingly, the little guy stood up and began lumbering down the tree trunk all the way to the ground. I didn't get too close because they can be aggressive, but he sure was curious. We drove to a trailhead where we did a hike through the jungle. Parts of the trail were covered by a nice boardwalk, but the rest was very dense. I actually felt pretty claustrophobic with the low branches and giant leaves and humid heat. The sounds were incredible, loud squawking parrots, hundreds of cicadas, and lizards crawling through the dead leaves. I jumped a few times when mistaking a lizard for a snake. And found myself nervous to pull leaves out of my hair in fear that they were the killer red back spider. It's a funny shift from hiking at home, where you keep your eyes out all around for huge bears and cougars. Not sure which I prefer.
12 Apostles (and other cool rock formations)
The 12 apostles are a series of large cliffs standing tall out of the ocean, they are an icon of Southern OZ, and found on many postcards. They were beautiful but really crowded with tourists. Around the area there are other parks with all kinds of coastal caves, blowholes, and miles of sharp cliffs. There is nothing blocking the massive waves from Antarctica, and they crash constantly across the southern coast. After taking in the sights we continued along the road, which runs the length of the coast winding above the cliffs. We made a stop at a couple really touristy places, including a whale nursery viewing dock (no whales, wrong season). When we saw the roadside sign stating "cheeseworld" we had to stop for a cheese museum, tour, and shops.
Grampians National Park
After driving a long time through desert plains, Grampians NP sticks out of the ground like two massive, tree covered shark fins. We had a pretty big letdown after driving all day only to find the road to our campground closed about 20 miles before we would arrive. We thought about camping out until morning in hopes it would open up. Luckily, we asked a local who let us know that there had been a flood and landslide and the road would probably reopen in about four months. We followed the detour route for another two hours and decided we really wanted to have a straight up American BBQ when we finally arrived. We stopped at a little red grocery store with cartoon roosters painted on the walls. It had a huge poster advertising chicken feed. As we walked up to the doors we were greeted by a nice lady who took one look at our van, gave us a strange look, and said, "sorry, we are closed. Just about to have a staff meeting." It wasn't even 6 pm. As we made our way back to the van, we were pretty bummed and about to give up on our dinner plans when we noticed the neighboring building, a supermart. How could such a small town have two grocery stores back to back? We took a second look and realized that the first store was actually a feed store, had a good laugh, and picked up our Budweiser and dogs. When we arrived at our campsite at
Halls Gap, we were greeted by hundreds of wild kangaroos all over the park. As we cooked the hot dogs, the cute little guys perked up and watched closely, but they just love eating grass and didn't get aggressive at all. I also saw several kookaburras and was shocked at how much they really sound like loud laughing monkeys. Another group of birds that visited our camp a bit too often was a gang of cockatoos. They look cool but they were real punks. They surrounded us every morning as we ate cereal, tried to get in our van, and even jumped on Mike's shoulder to snag his pbj. When we refused to feed them, they began the really ridiculous antics: squawking and fighting with each other, hanging upside down to drink from our faucet, chewing on our extension cord, and trying to steal our towels. Little buggers.
Across from the camp was a row of cute shops along a little creek. We had a nice time checking out the stores and I discovered a new fascination with coffee flavored ice cream.
Brambuk aboriginal cultural center was full of artifacts and history of the area and the aboriginal people who had been living there for hundreds of years. It was fascinating to see how similar the struggles in Australia are to those of the Native Americans. You could also participate in a guided bushwalk to learn about the medicinal plants. The center offered boomerang classes and traditional bush food (emu, kangaroo, and crocodile).
Sadly, the same nasty weather that blocked the main road into the park also caused landslides that closed off many hikes. Upon checking into the ranger station we learned that the hike we had our eye on (the wonderland loop) was blocked. However, they provided us with a map of hikes that were safe to tackle. We settled on Boronia Peak and made our way to the trail head. We had bright blue skies and lots of heat on our steady climb to the summit. The last 50 yards or so was a rock scramble to a 360 degree lookout featuring views of lakes, forested hills, cliffs, and farmland. We took a well deserved break and as we started in on our oranges we were joined by a school group of 20 or so thirteen year olds. We could almost watch the chaperone's hair go gray as his class carelessly hopped around the rocky peak with steep falls on every side. More than a few times he mentioned all the paper work he would have to fill out if any of his students fell. We extended our break until the school group was a good ways in front of us and then made our descent back to camp where we refueled on leftover hotdogs and baked beans.
After our camping trip we returned our van to Melbourne and flew back to Sydney to spend our last two nights on Bondi with Jessica and Chris. To our surprise, when we arrived to their apartment there was a package waiting for us. It was a gift from our wonderful friends Britta and Jeremy, full of Valentines candy, travel supplies, and a nice card. Britta had emailed Ray and sent the package to her work, so thoughtful! For our last evening, we decided to have something we would soon be missing: cheeseburgers! Then we packed our bags and set our alarm for a jam packed travel day to Thailand
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