Over the mountains and through the woods

Our time spent in Ayuttua went slowly as it was so unusually hot, even for Thailand, and it zapped your energy pretty early in the day. We rented bicycles for $1.20 and rode around town visiting the various wats (Temples), the towns only real attraction. In the afternoon we took a longboat tour with tow french girls from our hostel down the river to reach 3 other wats. We climbed the skinny red stoned steps angled near vertically to the top of the last wat and got an amazing view.

The following morning we started what would take 6 days in and out to see the extremely remote Thi Lo Su waterfall waterfall, the 6 largest in the world. We started the trip with high spirits, but they we're slowly broken down each step of the way. With our first 7 hour ride to Tak we missed our connecting mini bus to Mae Sot. When we tried to negotiate with a waiting taxi driver to take us to Mae Sot, he refused to budge one baht, despite his prices being four times more then average. When we tried to talk to other tax drivers about giving us a ride into town to the only guesthouse, it was clear the first driver had told everyone else not to drive us anywhere. We were officially blacklisted and stranded. We later learned that there exist a taxi mafia who we apparently fell victim to that night. When asked at the bus counter for walking directions to the guesthouse, the police officer behind the counter had pity on us and gave us a lift in the back of his truck. Our room immediately reminded me of an insane asylum, and the eerie yellow glow of the single light did little to help the ambiance. We weren't entirely disheartened though, not even when the water from the shower and faucet poured out in a muddy brown stream. Instead, the next morning we had a refreshing cold shower from large seven eleven water bottles and then caught the 2hr mini bus to Mae Sot. From there we'd been previously warned by Dan's brother Matt that this is the hardest part of the trip, at least the vehicle part. We took a Sung Thaw, a truck with benches in the back and a cover, 4 1/2 hours through the mountains on the road of 1,216 curves, and because of the motion sickness spills I gratefully only felt about 500 of them. Dan and I were pleased with ourselves when we arrived in Um Phong without having been sick. We booked a room in the guest house and signed up for a 2 day guided tour to the waterfall. We had hoped to simply get a ride there, but the road does not open until November 4th when the water has dried up.

We began the next day in good spirits as we took a 4 hour rafting ride down the river and straight through pure jungle, complete with monkeys playing in the trees. From the jungle grew so many shades of green that it was brilliantly colorful. At the end of the ride we pulled up onto the muddy bank eager to begin the 5 mile hike to our campsite. Our guide, 15 year old Boss, led us to the path and you can see a picture of me, full of naivety and false hope. The first 2 1/2 miles turned out to be straight up a mountain. Literally. The 2 2 1/2 miles down only brought to life a whole new set of muscles as our bodies arched backward to keep from unwillingly running down the mountain. When we arrived we found our tent and took a bath in the river. The river was actually gorgeous, refreshingly col and the grey blue water was supplied directly from the falls. We hung around camp the rest of the evening with Tom and Pick, our British and Thai friends. The next morning we eagerly made our way to the waterfall 1 km away. We dove right into one of the lower pools and Dan successfully swam behind the waterfall (a smaller branch of the main one up higher). Honestly, after all we had gone to to get to the falls, we had expected to find the meaning of the life there. The waterfall was absolutely amazing, but I had put such high expectations on it that it ultimately let me down a little. Looking back on the trip, it was not the waterfall that held the most value or insight, but instead the journey itself. If i can climb straightt up a mountain then my expectations for future possibilities has definitely increased. At the end of it all we made the trek up and down the mountain, the raft ride, and then the 4 /2 hours down the road of 1,216 curves. I later found out the road is appropriately named "The Death Highway to Mae Sot". The stress of making this long trip back was considerably eased by know what was ahead, and the hike and Sung Thaw passed by quickly. Looking back I am so glad that we made the trip!

The Tiger Temple

Dan and I met a guy one night a bar in Kanchanaburi who volunteered at a sanctuary for Tigers run by monks, called the Tiger Temple. He told us about a program where you can be hands on with Tigers for a whole morning. We signed up and a couple of mornings later we arrived at the sanctuary at 7:30 and were joined by an Aussie couple. The Canadian guide who ran the morning program had come to Thailand 8yrs earlier and met one of the head monks who said he was his son from a previous life and adopted him. For the next four years our guide lived as a monk. He left the monk hood, I'm not sure what you'd call it, and lived here at the Tiger Temple with his monk father and married a Thai woman. Well, this interesting guide brought us to the temple where we bottle fed first the 2 month old cubs an then the four month old ones. At least half of the milk dribbled down their furry faces and pooled on the floor. When they finished their bottles we were able to play with them for twenty minutes, teasing them with their favorite plastic bag and stuffed toys. As cute as they are, you always have to be on your guard as their claws are long and sharp and once they bite its hard to get them to release. The cut on my finger can attest to that.


The staff set up breakfast and gave our offering of Pepsi's and Tim Tam cookies to the monks (we were told these are their favorite treats). The monks recited the morning prayers as we tried to keep our toes pointed away from them because it is very offensive. Breakfast was a colorful buffet of Thai dishes. After eating we walked the baby Tigers on leashes to the nearby 3 tiered swimming pools but it took at least fifteen minutes because they walked every direction but straight, their curiosity constantly peaked by the slightest movement or smell. When they got to the pools they jumped right in, frolicking around like puppies and tackling each other for their favorite toys (you can see the video). We had to be aware of our position to the tigers at all times because if you turn your back to them they pounce on you, this goes for the adults as well. Towards the end, the tigers revolted and started making breaks for it. At one point there were only two out of eight cubs in the water, with the rest bounding away with the volunteers running after them.

We reluctantly said goodbye to the babies and walked down the red dirt hill to the seven and nine month tigers. It sounds young, but actually they are a couple of hundred pounds. We walked the tigers down towards the canyon with a staff member holding a second leash. We were constantly reminded to stay behind the tiger or it would pounce on us. Needles to say, we stayed behind. At the bottom of the canyon was a large pool where the tigers were released to play. We were guided to "the circle of life". A literal circle drawn in the dirt that we could not leave. The tigers are taught that this area is off limits, but if you leave the circle there are no guarantees. We stood and watched for 45 minutes as the Tigers pounced and wrestled each other in the water. They crouched in the water and crept around, resembling an alligator stalking its prey. Very quickly things would grow quiet for about 15 seconds, and then suddenly the whole pool would erupt in action as they chased and tackled each other. All of this happened with us standing only 4 feet from the waters edge. When their play time was up we walked them back up the hill and repeated the process with the one and two year olds who were considerably larger but also a little less rambunctious in the pool. In the afternoon when the tigers were sleeping the public is allowed in to see the tigers sleeping in the canyon. A they fall deep into sleep the staff take pictures of people in different poses with the tigers. We took photos next to them, with their heads on our lap, and laying down with them. Yeah, it was pretty cool!

Now that the excitement of the Lions has passed Dan and I are in Ayutthaya where we'll spend today and tonight riding motorbikes around to see the Wats that the town is know for. Oh, I almost forgot though. When we were in Bangkok yesterday I stopped by an Internet cafe and found I had an email from Kevin, a friend I'd made in Europe this past summer, and he said he was in Bangkok. We had first met in Prague watching the Euro cup in the town square and then we ran into each other again two weeks later leaving the Budapest train station. I ran out of Internet time to write him back, and Dan and I went out to breakfast. We sat at at table and I looked to my right and there sat Kevin. Talk about a small world! We've met 3 times randomly in 3 different cities around the world in the last 4 months!

Photos

Videos

River rides and waterfalls

Dan and I headed to Kanchanaburi and the first day there we did the usual errands, finding an internet cafe and setting up stuff for the next day. When we finished we eyed the motorbike stand, they are similar to vespas, you can see it in my pictures. Dan was excited to rent them, I was less then eager. Honestly, I had my moms repetitive warnings on the danger of motorbikes running through my head. Sorry mom, the bike won. I practiced a bit in the alley next to the rental shop, were we got them for for the day for $5.00. We first visited the bridge over the river Kwai (like the 1950's movie) and then decided we had had enough of the cities and towns and their choking pollution and headed out into the countryside. We started off on the main road out to the country and then cut off to a much smaller one that took us through small villages and farms. We continued in the direction of the mountains and the view only became more gorgeous the farther we drove. I have to say, I felt pretty damn cool on the bike cruising along, although I suspect the Thais didn't think it that unique as 50% of them drive motorbikes. Actually all ages ride them. Just yesterday I saw a little girl about 9 years old with her 4 old brother on the back driving through Kanchanaburi. It's also not uncommon to see parents holding their infant between their legs with one arm and driving the motorbike with the other. As Dan puts, the 40 year old mother in me cringes every time I see a baby on a bike.

The following day we signed up for a tour of local attractions in the area. The day began at 7:00am, one of our earliest so far, and we peeled ourselves out of bed and off to breakfast and into the tour van at 8:00. We were joined on the day long tour by a french couple and two English guys, Tom & Rich. We started with elephant rides around an "elephant camp". The trip was bitter sweet as I strained to enjoy it, but failing as I passed a baby elephant tied on a two foot long chain around its ankle to a metal post. It wasn't alone in its misery and was surrounded by other adult elephants in the same short ankle chains. I was relieved when we were finished and was much more excited for the bamboo raft trip down the river in which I could be safe in assuming no animals were hurt in the process. The ride was quiet and tranquil with the only noise coming from the birds in the jungle surrounding us.

When the ride ended the tour van took us to Erawan National Park with the amazing seven tier waterfall. The water was as glassy blue as glaciers. You could see the foot long brightly colored fish and 3 feet below them to the stony bottom. You could swim on each tier and we started on the 3rd one which was 8 feet deep and perfect for floating on your back and gazing up at the moss green jungle foliage above. Dan had hoped to see some monkeys playing in the trees, but unfortunately the commotion of the swimmers kept them away for the moment. At the 4th tier were, as the guide so creatively put it, the two breast. The enormous round rocks are perfect to slide down. I chose the safe route and went sitting down, but Dan and the two English guys went on their stomachs and sitting backwards. The fifth level surprised us with clear blue pools flowing one into the next and jungle vines dipping the water. I climbed from pool to pool grasping at the slippery rocks, and stopping at each one to appreciate the jungle and how blessed I am to be here.

I'm running out of Internet time so I'll give you a quick summary of the Tigers and you can check out the pictures and videos and I'll write more later, promise! (Also, the pictures squish when I turned them upright, we really haven't shrunk or gained 20 pounds. The pictures are better though if you click slideshow) The next day we went to a Tiger sanctuary where we signed up for a morning program and their were only two other tourist there. We played, bottled fed and swam with 2 and 4 month old Lions. We also walked the 7 and 9 month old lions down to the cave where they played for an hour 2 feet from us in the water and then did the same thing with the older one and two year olds!!

Vagabonding Videos

Here is a link to our videos that we're going to be posting throughout the trip! Dan has a lot of videos up there, the ones from asia are labeled October 10th and on.

Dan's Blog

You also check out Dan's blog while we travel for his funny take on things!

http://www.experiencingasia.com/

My Photos

I'm going to post my photos on the internet as I travel so I have a backup of them incase my camera gets lost or stolen. Here's the website where I'll be posting them: http://picasaweb.google.com/Lauralai35

Dan brought along a video camera and he's going to be posting our videos as we travel. I'll post the link when we have them up!

Bangkok to Siracha!

Dan and I had 21 very long hours from NYC to Bangkok with a stopover in Tokyo. All in all the trip totalled about 30 hours, it definitely felt like it. But because I slept so little on the planes by the time we got to our airport hotel I fell right asleep and I haven't had a problem falling asleep yet even with the eleven hour time difference. The only tricky part is staying asleep on the "Traditional Thai Mattresses" as the hostels like to advertise, which as Dan so aptly puts it are so hard they can double for a cutting board. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get used to it one of these days. The first two days in Bangkok were a bit of a whirlwind of sorting out our credit cards which were turned off after we used them in Tokyo coupled with exhaustion and jet lag. We managed to see a bit of the city though including KoSahn Road, the backpackers hangout, and took a ferry down the river to get around. We are back in Bangkok now so were going to see a bit more of what we missed tomorrow.

After Bangkok we checked out of our Hostel and headed off towards the direction of where we thought the bus station was located, but after twenty minutes we stopped and asked directions and found we were way off course. A quick taxi ride brought us to the bus station where for $2.80 we caught an air-conditioned bus to Sirahca. Two hours later we arrived and called Dan's family friend Tip form the pay phone and she arrived quickly in a tuk tuk. Tuk Tuks are 3 passenger open aired motorized carts that serve as cheap taxis. Tip was sweet enough to host us for the weekend and let us stay in her apartment. As soon as we arrived we changed into our swimsuits and were off again on a whirlwind of a weekend. Tip certainly was not lacking for ideas of stuff to do right down to the museum of "Little Miniature Things" :-). We took a couple of buses to get to the beach where there were very few tourist, really there are few tourist everywhere we go, because it is still low season. The tourist/farang were scattered on the waters edge in the sunlight while the Thais were all thoroughly covered. Tip explained that the reason so many people, women especially, wear long sleeves and pants is to keep their skin white. I've found on my recent hunt for body wash that most products have a whitening ingredient to make your skin lighter.

We met up with Tips friend Paul, from Holland, and after a few absurdly overpriced beers from a great local brewery we headed out to see what Pattaya is all about. To put it bluntly the whole town is simply about sex. It is one huge red light district from one end to the other. The only farang there were western men middle aged to decrepit looking to watch some shows, be showered with fake attention, and get lucky. They walked around the town like they owned the place. This is where Paul lives because he is "studying Thai". Right. Prostitution is a common practice here somewhat regulated by the government and it is not unusal to see western men who have hired women as "companions" for the day or their entire vacation. The couple will go everywhere to together. It's sobering to compare the mans cocky pleased face and the women's blank emotionless stare. We spent the evening walking around and looking at the different bars filled with women or ladyboys, tried various street food, and got a coffee at "McCafe" (the popular coffee shop inside McDonald's).

We returned late to Tips apartment in Siracha and fell quickly asleep. The following day we met up with Tip's two friends, one of whom had a car, and drove over to the next town to see the Water Buffalo Races. Unfortunately it turned out the races were not until the following day, so I just got to pet some Buffalo. Tip picked up lots of amazing Thai snacks though that she brought with us to the beach later that day. The beach they took us to is tucked away at the far end of a Thai Navy Base and westerners are only allowed to go if they are accompanied by a Thai person. As a result we were just about the only farang on the beach, and I think that's one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much. I wore my bathing suit but saw the previous day at the beach that the Thai women swim fully clothed. So I put a t-shirt and shorts over my suit and jumped right into the pristine warm ocean water. Dan wasn't exactly keen on jumping right in as he had forgotten his swimsuit so Paul, who joined us again, had so kindly brought an itsy bitsy speedo for him to wear. Tip picked up that Dan was less then thrilled with his proposed swimming attire and made a quick stop at a road side market to find him some shorts. She grabbed a pair that looked like size small camo printed boxers. I've read that laughing burns calories, if so I laughed off my entire lunch when he put those on. The rest of the day we spent swimming and eating all of the great Thai snacks tip had brought along including a prickly fruit that you break open and inside is a little thing that looks like a butt and taste like a mango. It's delicious. One of my favorites was sweet sticky rice cooked in a large bamboo stick.

After swimming Dan and I were exhausted but tip still had a lot on her agenda. We told her we wanted to go home and shower, and thus got a brief respite of 30 minutes. That evening Tip and her friends took us to an amazing Thai restaurant right on the beach and afterwards they surprised us and took us to get Thai Foot Massages. I'm definitely working in one massage a week into my budget.

Today we took the morning off and hung out at Tip's and watched movies and made good use of the free internet. We decided to come back to Bangkok for the night and tomorrow we will go to Kanchanaburi in the afternoon where there is great hiking, swimming in waterfalls, and going on a jungle trek on the back of an elephant. I can't wait!!