Wow! Where to start! Our stay in Bali has come and gone like the wind on your back! So unbelievable! I last told you about our stay in Sanur and partial stay in Kuta, which I will add were both amazing. Friday we took a fast boat out to the Gili Islands, we stayed on Trawanagan. Unfortunately, for most of our stay it rained. And there isn't too much you can do on an island, population 800. In general most people go to the Gili's to dive, snorkel or lay out in the sun. So I am sure you can feel some of our devastation. The last day of our stay, Tuesday, it was sunny and hot, so we were thankful for that. On the flip side, we did a home stay while we were there and our room had a TV and millions of DVDs. So most of our time was spent doing that! Tuesday night I awoke at approximately 10:45pm, so literally directly after I had fallen asleep, to Nicole telling me there is a fire outside. I have never gotten out of bed so quickly in my life. Sure enough, through the curtains I saw orange flames and heard the owner of our room yelling, "Fire, help" over and over again. Tons of people were yelling and I heard some kids crying. I have never felt panic so deep. As fast as I could I grabbed my backpack and threw in my money belt, my purse, and my water bottle. My mind was blank and my nerves were shot. I finally had the sense to quickly open the door in case we ended up getting trapped and once that happened, we saw that the fire was in the neighbouring yard. So we sat on our stairs until it was put out. It very well could have leaped across, considering everything is made out of straw, but thankfully it did not. I have never felt so afraid in my life. I actually thought we were in serious danger, not to mention the roof is made completely of tin, so when the water hit it, it sounded as if a bomb was going off. That was my first thought when Nicole had woken me up. Regardless, we sauntered back into the room, we pulled ourselves together and went back to sleep. Or should I say layed there. I was literally buzzing or shaking all night. I just couldn't believe that happened. The next morning it felt like a bad dream. I guess the fire had started because a few men who lived there had lit a candle after dark and then decided to go fishing and didn't blow it out. So sure enough the candle melted and caught on fire when there was no wax left. I don't know who decides to go fishing around 9pm at night.. but that's what happened. We were happy we left Wednesday. So we had two final days in Kuta before leaving Saturday to fly back to Bangkok, where we currently are.
It's so mind blowing that we're at the end leg of our journey. Incredible how fast time really does fly. Tuesday evening we will be heading to the airport around 9pm. And that's it. Wednesday evening I will fly back into Canada, Vancouver to be precise. Nicole flies into Rome where she'll meet her parents and travel a bit more. I never thought I would say this, but I am so excited to return home. Living among other cultures is hard. It requires so much patience. You don't really ever know how good you have it until your placed among some of the poorest people and observe how they live. I talked to one man on the Gili's who was trying to sell me a bracelet and he told me he had never been anywhere except his small village near Lombak and then the Gili Islands, where he goes to make money for tourists. His wife stays home with his son and she makes the jewelry, he sells it. We got talking about schooling and education and he only gets free education until he is in grade 3. Then he has to pay until he is 13 when school ends. Then you have to continue paying.. He made it til he was 13. He can read and write well, but nothing enough to give him a decent job, which is why he sells jewelry. You never know how good you have it until you put yourself in someone elses shoes. I've learnt a lot this trip. About other cultures, but mainly about myself. I have been so challenged and stretched, I feel like a completely new a different person. My outlook and perspective of life is renewed, fresh, and so different than ever before. I am thankful the Lord led me down this path, for still some unknown reasons that I have yet to figure out. This trip is going to mould my future in great ways. Whether I figure it out today, tomorrow, or in 10 years, it's all according to His plan for my life, and I couldn't be more grateful. "The world is a book, and those who never travel only read a page." That's all she wrote!!
Saturday 19 May 2012
Tuesday 8 May 2012
Best for last !
We have reached out final destination and I can say confidently on behalf of both Nicole and myself, WE LOVE IT HERE!! Yep! We flew in late Wednesday night and drove to Sanur, where we booked a hotel for the first 5 nights of our stay. We were a bit anxious on the topic of weather after we had read reports of clouds, rain, and lightning. However, those weathermen have proved to be just as bad here as they are back home because we have had nothing but sun, sun, and more sun! The heat is much more tolerable here too because of the constant ocean breeze. So our stay in Sanur consisted mostly of lounging by the pool, reading, listening to music, and napping. We did go to the beach on our first day, but it wasn't a very clean one( if you can believe it! ). That fateful beach day, we happened to stumble upon some awesome lounge chairs from a fancy beach front resort. So, without looking to conspicuous, we snagged some for ourselves. We were able to take in close to 31/2 hours of sun before a employee from their hotel came over to ask if we were guests. An awkward no came out of our mouths and we were asked to leave. Let's just say we haven't been back. So from Thursday to Sunday the pool was our home. And we loved it. We want nothing else to take up our time but complete relaxation! Sunday morning we met with my Aunty Louise and my mother's mutual friend Laurie for breakfast. Laurie moved to Bali close to a year ago to teach English. So it was a nice refreshing time to connect and she gave us lots of information and advice for the remainder of our time in Bali. Her daughter Nicole, and boyfriend Ben also joined us, they just arrived in Bali too. Monday morning we checked out and drove to a different area of Bali called Kuta. It's much more mainstream then Sanur and known for awesome surfing. Quickly after we checked into our new hotel we hit up the beach. I have never been to a beach like this one. So incredible. The beachfront is huge! And when the tide is out you could say the width of a soccer field if not bigger! I have also never seen waves so crazy! There are 4 different tides coming in at once, it's nuts. We rented some lounge chairs-open to the public-and stayed until after the sun set, which may I also add was extraordinary! This morning Nicole and I took a cooking course. A little old woman by the name of Maria picked us up at 10am and we taxied over to her house! In a gated courtyard, her one bedroom house is where we took the class. It was just the 2 of us who were there too! We made 4 different meals: Beef Rendang (Beef, potatoes, (we added tofu), and a paste of various spices), Fish Petes (fish with a paste of spices smeared throughout and wrapped in a banana leaf and steamed), a vegetable soup (I forget the name), a sweet chicken dish (I also forget the name), and a homemade peanut sauce. Everything was super tasty and delicious, although some of the dishes were super spicy! I think I will attempt to make them at home, minus the chilli! The day filled with cooking lasted almost all day, 6 hours! We definitely got our money out of the course. Our stay will continue in Kuta until Friday, when we will take ferry over to the Gili Islands! The part of our stay I am most excited about. The Island has a mere population of 800, has no cars, no motorcycles, the only method of transportation is by a horse carriage or by bicycle ! There is no wind, so the water is completely calm and crystal clear! So I am thinking some snorkeling will be in order to get a good look! The duration of our stay will be 5 nights before heading back to the mainland! I can't wait! :)
Tuesday 1 May 2012
Bali Bound Baby!
Tomorrow night (Weds May 2nd) at approximately 8:25pm (Malaysian time), Nicole and I are heading to our last big adventure : Bali ! Tonight, over dinner, we fed off of each others excitement and discussed our joy. To put it straight, we cannot wait! Bali has been one place both of us have wanted to go the most! We'll fly in late, around 11:30pm, and then before proceeding through immigration, will have to stand in the 'visa upon arrival' line. Predictions are that we won't hit the sack until 1am. For the first bit of our trip we will be staying in Sanur, Indonesia. We have booked, what looks like and what we're hoping to be, a beautiful hotel (with hostel prices) 2 minutes from the beach ! We will also be meeting up with both mine and Nicole's mom's mutual friend, Laurie, to give us advice, show us around, and to steer us in the right and general direction to having a sweet time!
Although our time in Malaysia was only 12 days, it was long.. We didn't do an ounce of research before heading here and I think it showed. The country does have a lot to offer, we just didn't have the time to really discover much, plus a lot didn't really grab our whole attention without wanting to grab every last dime we had too. Highlights of the country include: a visit to the petronas twin towers, browsing the KLCC & the Pavilion malls, seeing The Avenger's (Awesome movie), bubble tea, Nicole had the best gelato ever, hanging out in a cool city centre park, free breakfast at every accommodation, the bird park, and this awesome street food stand we found where there are tons of food on skewers! To touch base on the last point, this stand had every type of meat and vegetable on skewers. After you pick which you want, you can barbecue (usually with the meat) or steam the food. It was awesome! Another cool point, was today, it literally down poured from 4:00pm-10:00pm (it may still be raining). But neither Nicole nor I have ever heard thunder so loud. Nicole actually screamed when one hit, ha ha. But it was freaky. I have some videos, which I will try to upload at some point. As Nicole and I have discussed, the worst part of our experience in Malaysia, are the men. With the country being mostly Islamic, a good number of the women dress very modestly with head coverings. However, many do not. Regardless, we dressed quite modestly during our time here, yet were always uncomfortable. The men, to be quite frank, stare hard. At first, being a westerner and standing out was the first thought that came to mind. It happens almost everywhere. But, when you really look, it's quite grotesque. It's almost as if they are undressing you with their eyes, it's very perverted. It's weird too, because we are in a capital city, with over 2 million people, where tourists are everywhere. It's to the point though, that I never feel comfortable. So with great joy I will say, I am so excited to leave this country and not return! Take me to the beach please!
Please pray for our flight tomorrow, that everything will go smoothly and as planned. That we will make the flight fine and have no problems! Love you guys! I'll report back from paradise! :)
Although our time in Malaysia was only 12 days, it was long.. We didn't do an ounce of research before heading here and I think it showed. The country does have a lot to offer, we just didn't have the time to really discover much, plus a lot didn't really grab our whole attention without wanting to grab every last dime we had too. Highlights of the country include: a visit to the petronas twin towers, browsing the KLCC & the Pavilion malls, seeing The Avenger's (Awesome movie), bubble tea, Nicole had the best gelato ever, hanging out in a cool city centre park, free breakfast at every accommodation, the bird park, and this awesome street food stand we found where there are tons of food on skewers! To touch base on the last point, this stand had every type of meat and vegetable on skewers. After you pick which you want, you can barbecue (usually with the meat) or steam the food. It was awesome! Another cool point, was today, it literally down poured from 4:00pm-10:00pm (it may still be raining). But neither Nicole nor I have ever heard thunder so loud. Nicole actually screamed when one hit, ha ha. But it was freaky. I have some videos, which I will try to upload at some point. As Nicole and I have discussed, the worst part of our experience in Malaysia, are the men. With the country being mostly Islamic, a good number of the women dress very modestly with head coverings. However, many do not. Regardless, we dressed quite modestly during our time here, yet were always uncomfortable. The men, to be quite frank, stare hard. At first, being a westerner and standing out was the first thought that came to mind. It happens almost everywhere. But, when you really look, it's quite grotesque. It's almost as if they are undressing you with their eyes, it's very perverted. It's weird too, because we are in a capital city, with over 2 million people, where tourists are everywhere. It's to the point though, that I never feel comfortable. So with great joy I will say, I am so excited to leave this country and not return! Take me to the beach please!
Please pray for our flight tomorrow, that everything will go smoothly and as planned. That we will make the flight fine and have no problems! Love you guys! I'll report back from paradise! :)
Friday 27 April 2012
Monkeying Around !
Hey all!
After a quick 4ish days, we are back in the capital city, Kuala Lumpur. Monday we traveled up north to the province of Penang, where we stayed in the city of Georgetown. Georgetown is located on an island, yet still connected to the mainland by a 13.5 km long bridge! Tuesday we spent most of our day at a beach called batu ferringhi. It was nice to recline in the sun/shade after quite a bit of travel. The following day we went to go to the Penang National Park. The park is the world's smallest national park, with 1181 hectares of forest and 1381 hectares of wetlands. We were stopped on our way in by a tourist company trying to sell us a ticket for a speed boat. We told him we wanted to hike, duh! He said it would take an 1 hour, 15 mins to get to the beach we wanted to go to. I think Nicole and I both laughed in our heads.. "buddy, I think we can handle a hike, we just did a 2 day trek of hiking and we live in a country where we hike all the time." We probably should have bought a ticket for the speed boat back, ha ha! The hike in wasn't bad, quite fun actually. The path had us going up and down, jumping over rocks, crossing bridges, winding down staircases. It had rope tied to different trees to use as a railing or to pull yourself up. It felt like an adventure course someone had set up, and it was through a jungle-type setting. We finally got to the beach, called "monkey beach", where we read and took a nap in the sun. At first, the name of the beach didn't say too much for itself. Until I was just waking up from a nice cat nap, when Nicole said to me, "Sara, don't freak out but.. there are monkeys all around us." As I slowly got up, there was a monkey, I kid you not, a foot away from my right. My heart suddenly took itself into high gear. Just before we set off to the park, I had read on the Internet about what to do if you encounter one of the species. Basically, they can be quite aggressive and it's hard to read them! A set of rules such as: do not look them in the eye because they may be threatened, do not show your teeth because they may be threatened, do not feed them, do not pet them, do not even take a photo because the flash could set them off. Okay, let's just say when I sat up to see that monkey literally in my reach, I freaked out a little inside. No more then 30 seconds after I had sat up, a monkey ran in from behind me and stole my half-eaten granola bar. When I had looked back, there were about 10 monkeys staring me right in the eye. As fast as I could, without being too alarming, I grabbed my stuff and got out of there as quick as possible. It did indeed take awhile for my heart to settle down. I don't know if I was paranoid that the monkeys were following us from behind, or maybe it was the terrifying jungle sounds, but the hike out wasn't as fun! Thursday, we took a bus back to the city, which was a perfect travel day because it stormed all day! Now that we are back in the city, we are a little unsure of what to make of our itinerary. We don't fly out and into Bali until the evening of Wed May 2. That gives us 4 full days and a half if you don't count today. This morning we went to a bird park, which was super cool. Tons of beautiful and funny looking birds, all of which I can't quite remember what their names are called - very complex, except for the simple ones: peacock, hawk, eagle, stork, pelican, flamingo, owl, parrots, and ostriches. We did try to switch our flight to an earlier day, however it is quite costly to do so. Thus, we will be in the city awhile still, making things up as we go. Malaysia is an interesting country. Upon first arrival it did excite me. Lots of colour, history, and culture. But the more time I spend here it does fall short of what I had imagined. There isn't too much that really strikes my fancy, maybe because my mind is too consumed with everything to do with Bali and what we'll be enduring there. It's out of my control, so I will do my best to make the most of our days left here. I guess that's all for now. Also, I have ringworm and Nicole is a bit sick, so if you could pray for healing, we would be appreciative! And that we would continue to have hearts full of praise as we make the most of our time left in Malaysia. What an amazing opportunity that we have been blessed with, let us make the most of it !
After a quick 4ish days, we are back in the capital city, Kuala Lumpur. Monday we traveled up north to the province of Penang, where we stayed in the city of Georgetown. Georgetown is located on an island, yet still connected to the mainland by a 13.5 km long bridge! Tuesday we spent most of our day at a beach called batu ferringhi. It was nice to recline in the sun/shade after quite a bit of travel. The following day we went to go to the Penang National Park. The park is the world's smallest national park, with 1181 hectares of forest and 1381 hectares of wetlands. We were stopped on our way in by a tourist company trying to sell us a ticket for a speed boat. We told him we wanted to hike, duh! He said it would take an 1 hour, 15 mins to get to the beach we wanted to go to. I think Nicole and I both laughed in our heads.. "buddy, I think we can handle a hike, we just did a 2 day trek of hiking and we live in a country where we hike all the time." We probably should have bought a ticket for the speed boat back, ha ha! The hike in wasn't bad, quite fun actually. The path had us going up and down, jumping over rocks, crossing bridges, winding down staircases. It had rope tied to different trees to use as a railing or to pull yourself up. It felt like an adventure course someone had set up, and it was through a jungle-type setting. We finally got to the beach, called "monkey beach", where we read and took a nap in the sun. At first, the name of the beach didn't say too much for itself. Until I was just waking up from a nice cat nap, when Nicole said to me, "Sara, don't freak out but.. there are monkeys all around us." As I slowly got up, there was a monkey, I kid you not, a foot away from my right. My heart suddenly took itself into high gear. Just before we set off to the park, I had read on the Internet about what to do if you encounter one of the species. Basically, they can be quite aggressive and it's hard to read them! A set of rules such as: do not look them in the eye because they may be threatened, do not show your teeth because they may be threatened, do not feed them, do not pet them, do not even take a photo because the flash could set them off. Okay, let's just say when I sat up to see that monkey literally in my reach, I freaked out a little inside. No more then 30 seconds after I had sat up, a monkey ran in from behind me and stole my half-eaten granola bar. When I had looked back, there were about 10 monkeys staring me right in the eye. As fast as I could, without being too alarming, I grabbed my stuff and got out of there as quick as possible. It did indeed take awhile for my heart to settle down. I don't know if I was paranoid that the monkeys were following us from behind, or maybe it was the terrifying jungle sounds, but the hike out wasn't as fun! Thursday, we took a bus back to the city, which was a perfect travel day because it stormed all day! Now that we are back in the city, we are a little unsure of what to make of our itinerary. We don't fly out and into Bali until the evening of Wed May 2. That gives us 4 full days and a half if you don't count today. This morning we went to a bird park, which was super cool. Tons of beautiful and funny looking birds, all of which I can't quite remember what their names are called - very complex, except for the simple ones: peacock, hawk, eagle, stork, pelican, flamingo, owl, parrots, and ostriches. We did try to switch our flight to an earlier day, however it is quite costly to do so. Thus, we will be in the city awhile still, making things up as we go. Malaysia is an interesting country. Upon first arrival it did excite me. Lots of colour, history, and culture. But the more time I spend here it does fall short of what I had imagined. There isn't too much that really strikes my fancy, maybe because my mind is too consumed with everything to do with Bali and what we'll be enduring there. It's out of my control, so I will do my best to make the most of our days left here. I guess that's all for now. Also, I have ringworm and Nicole is a bit sick, so if you could pray for healing, we would be appreciative! And that we would continue to have hearts full of praise as we make the most of our time left in Malaysia. What an amazing opportunity that we have been blessed with, let us make the most of it !
Sunday 22 April 2012
The end of one country, the start of another..
Hello my friends!
A new update is in order. Our travel to the South of Thailand was indeed a bit of a trecherous, tiresome journey. On the Monday night, we took an over night bus to Bangkok. Leaving around 8:30pm and arriving in Bangkok around 5:30am, neither Nicole or I got much shut eye. Our plan was to hangout at a mall for the day, since that evening around 7pm, we were back on an overnight train down to the South. The mall unfortunately didn't open until 10am, so bumming around the city was hot and gruesome. Our train delayed upon arrival in Suri, did not actually arrive until 10:30am instead of 7 ! We finally got on a bus and got moving, heading to Krabi by 5. Unfortunately, the bungalow the tourism agency booked for us fell through because the agency was neglecting to pay them. We had to contact them back in Bangkok and tell them to book us another place as we were very reluctant to spend our own money once again. What a nightmere! Finally, things turned around, we found a place to stay and did thoroughly enjoy the time spent there, the 2 full days that it was! The days were filled with the beach, reading, walking throughout the town.. it was pretty low key, but we needed it.
We flew into Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday (April 21) in the late evening. We managed to get ourselves the hour distance from the airport to the heart of chinatown, where our guesthouse is located. The evening was spent exploring the markets a few foot steps from our doorway. We were about to call it quits for the evening when some staff at our guesthouse told us there was a festival happening a few blocks from where we were staying. Hesitant, but eager to check it out, we went on our mary little way down the road. It was so incredible. Man were we stoked to have found it. Through the crowds we made our way, closest to the front as possible, as we watched over a hundred students, in full costume, dance their way to the music. The dancing took place on and off with singers, as well as joined together. It was rad to get to see some cultural dance so vibrant. This morning, we ventured to the city centre, wanting to purchase a ticket for the skybridge. Kuala currently holds the largest twin towers in the world, 88 stories, since the tragic incident in 2001. On the 45(?) floor is a skybridge connecting the two towers. It is open to tourists for a price, holding one of the best views in the city. It was amazing to get to see such a view. The ticket also enabled us to go to the 86th floor, which holds a panoramic 360 view of the city. Outrageous! The pictures do not do enough justice, and until I realized this, I stopped snapping my camera and took it all in! We also spent most of our day in the city centre at the coolest mall ever stepped foot in! With 6 floors, going all over the place, we browsed and wandered endlessly, watched a few fashion shows, and took part in a Tawainese food festival in a supermarket! It was a day full of events. It has been awhile since we have literally walked ALL DAY!
So far we mutally agree that Kuala Lumpur is a beautiful city. Rich in colour and culture, it is one of the cleanest cities thus far seen. It has so much history, it draws you in. We also love it because of the LRT transportion system. I don't know how to stress the fact that we love not having to negotiate with tuk-tuk drivers (most of Asia's form of taxi, other than a taxi!) ! We came to this country having absolutely no idea of what it holds. No plan, no schedule, literally no diea of what to expect. We have concluded after one and a half days to head up to Georgetown, in the province of Penam, tomorrow. Penam is a small province in the North-Western region of Malaysia. Georgetown is a city on an island located west. We aren't entirely sure of what to expect, other than some beaches, cool historical building and streets, and some awesome parks.. I guess we're once again kept guessing. I'll leave it at that until we arrive there and let you know myself! Peace!
A new update is in order. Our travel to the South of Thailand was indeed a bit of a trecherous, tiresome journey. On the Monday night, we took an over night bus to Bangkok. Leaving around 8:30pm and arriving in Bangkok around 5:30am, neither Nicole or I got much shut eye. Our plan was to hangout at a mall for the day, since that evening around 7pm, we were back on an overnight train down to the South. The mall unfortunately didn't open until 10am, so bumming around the city was hot and gruesome. Our train delayed upon arrival in Suri, did not actually arrive until 10:30am instead of 7 ! We finally got on a bus and got moving, heading to Krabi by 5. Unfortunately, the bungalow the tourism agency booked for us fell through because the agency was neglecting to pay them. We had to contact them back in Bangkok and tell them to book us another place as we were very reluctant to spend our own money once again. What a nightmere! Finally, things turned around, we found a place to stay and did thoroughly enjoy the time spent there, the 2 full days that it was! The days were filled with the beach, reading, walking throughout the town.. it was pretty low key, but we needed it.
We flew into Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday (April 21) in the late evening. We managed to get ourselves the hour distance from the airport to the heart of chinatown, where our guesthouse is located. The evening was spent exploring the markets a few foot steps from our doorway. We were about to call it quits for the evening when some staff at our guesthouse told us there was a festival happening a few blocks from where we were staying. Hesitant, but eager to check it out, we went on our mary little way down the road. It was so incredible. Man were we stoked to have found it. Through the crowds we made our way, closest to the front as possible, as we watched over a hundred students, in full costume, dance their way to the music. The dancing took place on and off with singers, as well as joined together. It was rad to get to see some cultural dance so vibrant. This morning, we ventured to the city centre, wanting to purchase a ticket for the skybridge. Kuala currently holds the largest twin towers in the world, 88 stories, since the tragic incident in 2001. On the 45(?) floor is a skybridge connecting the two towers. It is open to tourists for a price, holding one of the best views in the city. It was amazing to get to see such a view. The ticket also enabled us to go to the 86th floor, which holds a panoramic 360 view of the city. Outrageous! The pictures do not do enough justice, and until I realized this, I stopped snapping my camera and took it all in! We also spent most of our day in the city centre at the coolest mall ever stepped foot in! With 6 floors, going all over the place, we browsed and wandered endlessly, watched a few fashion shows, and took part in a Tawainese food festival in a supermarket! It was a day full of events. It has been awhile since we have literally walked ALL DAY!
So far we mutally agree that Kuala Lumpur is a beautiful city. Rich in colour and culture, it is one of the cleanest cities thus far seen. It has so much history, it draws you in. We also love it because of the LRT transportion system. I don't know how to stress the fact that we love not having to negotiate with tuk-tuk drivers (most of Asia's form of taxi, other than a taxi!) ! We came to this country having absolutely no idea of what it holds. No plan, no schedule, literally no diea of what to expect. We have concluded after one and a half days to head up to Georgetown, in the province of Penam, tomorrow. Penam is a small province in the North-Western region of Malaysia. Georgetown is a city on an island located west. We aren't entirely sure of what to expect, other than some beaches, cool historical building and streets, and some awesome parks.. I guess we're once again kept guessing. I'll leave it at that until we arrive there and let you know myself! Peace!
Sunday 15 April 2012
Songkran Festival !!
SAWATDI PI MAI!!!! (Happy New Years in Thai!)
This past week has indeed been magical. We arrived back in Chiang Mai on the 10th. The following day led us to begin our 2 day 1 night trek! Our group consisted of 14 people: 3 Germans, 3 Dutch, 3 British, 2 Australians, 1 French, and us, 2 Canadians! We began by a quick stop at a market (for those who needed additional supplies) and then our pickup truck-which carried us all in the back-drove forth up the mountain! Our first adventure was rafting down the river. Now this was not quite the river rafting you'd expect. The rafts, which consisted of 5 super long bamboo sticks tied together, carried us down. About 3 to a raft with a guide, who had a long pole to push us from edges, took us down. I am pretty sure this activity would be dubbed illegal in Canada.. just chilling on this raft as it's going through mild rapids, half submerged at times in the water, no helmet or life jacket.. no big deal. I think it was one of the funnest things I have done yet! We just motored down, skimming rocks, getting knocked too a fro-what a jolly good time. We got to a certain point where I think it was too dangerous to be on the raft, so we all filed off to climb some rocks, where at the other side, maybe 20 ft up, we got to do some cliff jumping! Our trek continued after rafting with a lunch before we actually started our hiking. Just a further drive up the mountain, where we were dumped onto the side of the road and our 3 1/2 hour hike began. I must admit, it was quite a strenuous hike.. I have also been battling a super bad cold, so my lungs weren't very impressed.. but I made it through. We stopped along the way, visiting waterfalls, (which may I add were AMAZING!) visiting a village, and at last found camp. Situated right along a loud thundery river, it was amazing! Had some delicious dinner, enjoyed a campfire, and drank too much rice wine or socke (sp?). The next day began with breakfast and a hike out, which felt like it would never end. Our trek concluded with, might I add the best part, an elephant ride! Ah, it was so great. Nicole and I climbed into the basket held on the elephant's back, we had a guide who sat on the elephant's head, and off we went up and down hills. It was very bumpy, but so amazing! We felt the elephant purr several times, it was such an unforgettable experience! What amazing creatures!
Back in Chiang Mai, the 12-15 a Songkran Festival took place. Essentially, since the Thai New Year is held on the 13th of April, to symbolise the washing away of the previous year, ready to bring on the next, they hold a nation wide WATER FIGHT!!! Uh huh, you heard me. I think it was one the of most unreal experiences ever. Not really sure of what to expect, I have really never seen anything like it. Everyone, you name it, the young, the old, foreigners, locals... literally everyone comes together with either a water gun, a bucket.. they use ice water, warm water, dirty water.. some throw flour on you... its a gong show. The streets are packed with people, you can't move, drive.. your soaked ALL DAY! Yep, it never really ends. There is no point of ever changing your clothes into dry ones, because once your back into the streets, another bucket drenches you again. The only safe place there is to go, is the markets at night! Which is exactly where we hung out. Plus the markets have the most amazing street food, for very cheap prices.. I don't think I have ever eaten so much, but so worth it. We are very thankful that the water fight, while it was fun, is over. Let's just say the chafing can speak for itself. Plus, it's so nice to be dry, although you can really feel the effects of the heat now. Back to the inevitable perma-sweat. Yay!
In between all of this crazy water soaking fun, I spent a day ZIPLINNING!!! AHHHH!!! It was SO MUCH FUN!!!! .. As I ventured with another group of people up a scary mountain side, we prepared ourselves for the highest and longest zipling in all of Thailand! In total, there was 22 ziplines, which took about 3 hours to complete! It was AWESOME! As Nicole spent the day learning new cooking skills, I spent the day screaming(wooo)and laughing in the heart of the jungle! Not only did I zipline, I conquered spiral stairs, walked across swinging bridges(80 m high) and propelled, up to 40m, down ! By mistake, I had told one of our guides that I had been bungee jumping, so he basically propelled me "free fall" on the last 40m fall, but it was incredible!
Alas, the Chiang Mai adventure has come to a quick end, although close to a week was spent here. Were heading to the South next. With an overnight bus tonight bringing us to Bangkok.. a day spent back in the capital .. and another overnight train down to the South of Thailand.. our time will be spent on the beaches of Krabi !! A nice relaxing few days before we head to a new country!
Thanks for reading, talk to you soon!
Ps. Here is a video I found on youtube from previous years that sort of sums up the giant water fighting!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtEKvBI_4Ws
Monday 9 April 2012
A place called Pai.
Time sure flies when you are having fun .. I have found this cliche phrase to prove itself true over my past week of adventure throughout Northen-ish Thailand. We arrived in Bangkok last week(which is where I left off). We had decided to spend a few days in the city to await the arrival of two of Nicole's friends(Jess&Jill)before heading up to Chiang Mai and eventually Pai. During the few days spent in the capital, we managed to find our favourite Pad Thai dish, explore more of the endless markets, taste one of the most refreshing fruit smoothies ever, and explore the greatest and craziest mall ever! At this mall we went to a restaurant which held almost every cuisine you could think of! From Seafood to Greek food to Thai, Mediteranean, Western, Japanese, Vegetarian, Arabic.. Everything! We also saw the Hunger Games, which I was extremely disappointed in. To be fair, I had just finished reading the book, so almost every detail lingered in my mind, but I just couldn't get over how they left so many key and important things out that they very well could have added. One of the highlights while we were in the city was my "base-oil massage". One morning Nicole went to do a cooking class, so I thought I would get pampered, paying only $10 for just over an hour, my massage was definitely unlike any other I have ever had. Let's just say it was relaxing, yet awkward, painful, and strenuous.. however, the outcome left me feeling very loose and light.
After a long 14 hour over night train ride, and a nauseating 4 hour minibus ride, we had finally arrived at a place so unlike any other! A place called Pai. (Pronounced Pie). From the minute I stepped out of the bus, my heart felt at ease. I am not sure if it was do with the fact that the past few weeks has been in huge tourist cities, but the exclusivity of this town, surrounded by lush mountainside was exhilarating. I really wish we had more time to spend in this slightly hippie town, but alas, the time spent was embraced. We stayed just outside of town, in a bungalow! With 4 rooms upstairs, it was surrounded by a huge deck, full of lounge chair and hammocks-where I did happen to take a relaxing nap! Our first full day was spend exerting our poor bodies in order to see some waterfalls. I am not sure if we were just so hot and exhausted by the time we got there, as we did not anticipate the journey, but they fell short of our expectations. It very well could have been the fact that we visited some falls, which I failed to mention above, while we were in Bangkok. They were so spectacular and mind-blowing, the water so cool and refreshing, the 4 hours it took to get there and back, was worth it, even though we spent just short of 3 hours actually at the falls. Our second full day in Pai totally made up for our exhausting first day. We rented vespas-which may I add was SO RAD-and rode them maybe 40 minutes outside the town, venturing to some hot springs. Once again, we didn't entirely anticipate the road once we had turned off from the main one. Let's just say it was very vertical, making Jill and Nicole having to walk in areas, as Jess and myself drove them up and down. The condition of the roads was also very poor, a quad would have been safer. I'll just leave it at that. The hot springs however, made the stress and difficulty SO worth it. It felt like a hot tub, no exaggeration. As the stream-like-pond trickled water down the body, we dipped our toes in unsure of what the temperature would be. But once that steaming water touched our sun-kissed feet, a full plunge was in order. We floated until our fingers were pruney. The nights were filled with amazing street food and cheap cocktails and beer. Roaming and aimlessly wondering, let us to discover the most tasty burger ever! I also indulged in ice cream, waffle sandwiches filled with blueberry sauce, shishkabobs coated with sweet chilly sauce, and mango-sticky rice(essentially stick rice, with slices of mango, covered in coconut milk).. YUM!
We are heading back to Chiang Mai this afternoon for almost a week. Tomorrow we will take part in a 2 day 1 night elephant trek before returning for a nation-wide water fight for 5 days.. is that not unbelievable or what. I am not exactly sure what to expect for either of these activities, all I know is that words cannot express my excitement. I guess you will have to hold your curiosity for another week. Until next time!
After a long 14 hour over night train ride, and a nauseating 4 hour minibus ride, we had finally arrived at a place so unlike any other! A place called Pai. (Pronounced Pie). From the minute I stepped out of the bus, my heart felt at ease. I am not sure if it was do with the fact that the past few weeks has been in huge tourist cities, but the exclusivity of this town, surrounded by lush mountainside was exhilarating. I really wish we had more time to spend in this slightly hippie town, but alas, the time spent was embraced. We stayed just outside of town, in a bungalow! With 4 rooms upstairs, it was surrounded by a huge deck, full of lounge chair and hammocks-where I did happen to take a relaxing nap! Our first full day was spend exerting our poor bodies in order to see some waterfalls. I am not sure if we were just so hot and exhausted by the time we got there, as we did not anticipate the journey, but they fell short of our expectations. It very well could have been the fact that we visited some falls, which I failed to mention above, while we were in Bangkok. They were so spectacular and mind-blowing, the water so cool and refreshing, the 4 hours it took to get there and back, was worth it, even though we spent just short of 3 hours actually at the falls. Our second full day in Pai totally made up for our exhausting first day. We rented vespas-which may I add was SO RAD-and rode them maybe 40 minutes outside the town, venturing to some hot springs. Once again, we didn't entirely anticipate the road once we had turned off from the main one. Let's just say it was very vertical, making Jill and Nicole having to walk in areas, as Jess and myself drove them up and down. The condition of the roads was also very poor, a quad would have been safer. I'll just leave it at that. The hot springs however, made the stress and difficulty SO worth it. It felt like a hot tub, no exaggeration. As the stream-like-pond trickled water down the body, we dipped our toes in unsure of what the temperature would be. But once that steaming water touched our sun-kissed feet, a full plunge was in order. We floated until our fingers were pruney. The nights were filled with amazing street food and cheap cocktails and beer. Roaming and aimlessly wondering, let us to discover the most tasty burger ever! I also indulged in ice cream, waffle sandwiches filled with blueberry sauce, shishkabobs coated with sweet chilly sauce, and mango-sticky rice(essentially stick rice, with slices of mango, covered in coconut milk).. YUM!
We are heading back to Chiang Mai this afternoon for almost a week. Tomorrow we will take part in a 2 day 1 night elephant trek before returning for a nation-wide water fight for 5 days.. is that not unbelievable or what. I am not exactly sure what to expect for either of these activities, all I know is that words cannot express my excitement. I guess you will have to hold your curiosity for another week. Until next time!
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