Well Hello All, we know we haven’t been the best at updating our blog but here goes the last 3 weeks in Thailand. We hope you like it and the photos we’ve uploaded.
Well we arrived in Dublin airport but you know how it is, you can never leave without meeting someone you know! So we met Jenny who was the year behind me in school. She was heading to Bangkok and we thought first she was on our flight but in fact she was flying out 15 mins after us so we arranged to meet her in Bangkok airport.
We got on our BA flight but after take off they announced that the in flight entertainment wasn’t going to work at all, that’s 12 hours no in flight entertainment… all that’s left to do in that situation was have a few drinks & pop a sleeping tablet and wake in Thailand…
We arrived in Bangkok, got our bags and met Jenny. She had made a new friend called Nick from Wales. He was a lone traveler like her too so we now had a group of 4 and we all decided to stay in the hotel we had booked which was around the corner from Khoa San road.
Lovely hotel with a pool on the roof which we jumped in straight after check in cause it was so freaking hot in Bangkok!!!!
We went out for a walk on the Khao San Road (mental) and got some food and a “few” drinks. After a couple of beers we decided to get “a bucket of joy” (it’s a nag of whiskey, coke & red bull) obviously as you can tell from reading this we were well on our way after that…
We decided to go see a ping pong show, when in Rome and all that so the lads decided to do the bargaining/”best price”. They got a good deal, well so they thought!!! Lift there on Tuk Tuk, Free in and a free drink. Deal was done and we got into 2 Tuk tuk’s. We went all over Bangkokand ended at some terrible place in the middle of nowhere, where we were then expected to pay in to the ping pong show at extortion prices so we just decided not to go in and headed back to the hotel. (Rip off 1)
Next day got up and we all decided that we would not be had today so we set off with our guards up.
We got to the water taxi place were we were told we would do an hr long tail slow boat and see the famous floating market – all for 300 baht… we thought cool & cheap.
Off the 4 of us went on our slow boat. They brought us through the back streets/canals & underbelly of Bangkok which was fascinating & crazy to see!! We went along to the ‘Floating Market” which was in fact just one floating boat and a woman. We bought water from her and got a beer for the driver but she over charged us for the drinks and gave some money to the driver for stopping at her (Rip off 2)
The long tail boat dropped us off at Wat Arun (famous temple) where we had to pay a “landing fee” of 20 baht!!!(Rip off 3)
The temple was nice but we decided we weren’t paying to go in after and Jen & I were in shorts and showing our shoulders so couldn’t go in anyway.
We walked then through Chinatown. Nice cos there was no one in your face. But we got lost and as we were so determined not to be ripped on Tuk tuk’s we walked for 2 and a half hrs to find the express water bus. We eventually found it and got back home safe and sound!!!
That evening we went to a restaurant near our hotel that was in the lonely planet but when we got there the owner told us that restaurant had moved 3 yrs ago. It was beside a construction sight & had tacky plastic chairs outside but a couple who were dinning there told us the food was great so we decided to give it a shot. Man they weren’t wrong, amazing thai food at cheap back packers prices!!!
The owner took our orders and asked us where were we from. The 3 of us said Ireland and he said a few words in Irish to us. Then Nick said he was from Wales and he looked at him blankly and then spoke Irish again. This wasn’t the first time no one knew were Wales was so we then christened Nick - Irish Mick.
During the meal I moved my chair and it fell down a small hole, only inBangkok…
After our wholesome grub we ventured to a Blues bar across the road and had a few chilled out beers.
Got up the next day at 8.30am and met Jenny for breakfast and then the 3 of us headed off to the Grand Palace. But we failed at the final 50 metres. A well dressed man sporting a tourist guides badge jumped out of nowhere to explain the Palace was closed until 1pm and we should go to some other attractive temples near by. He then proceeded to draw all over Damien’s Loney Planet map (annoying) so we declined his offer and walked back to see Wat Pho which houses the largest reclining Buddha In Thailand. We had a feeling the map wrecking man was lying about the palace being closed so we walked up the other side of the palace and low & behold the palace was open all day. Damn scam artists they would tell you anything just to make a few baths for themselves!!!
We got the craziest tour guide in the Palace but she was great fun and explained all the history to us and took loads of photos of us so that was good.
We saw the Kings old residence & a number of fabulous temples in the Palace. The most famous Buddha in Thailand is housed there also – The Emerald Buddha.
When we got back we were roasting so we said we’d meet Jen at the pool. We got in and went for a swim but no sign of Jen. We stayed for an hr and never saw her. We thought she had gone to sleep so we went back to the room and she rang us. Apparently there were 2 pools in the hotel and so we were at 1 and she was at the other!! We went back to the lovely restaurant from last night, had a few beers near our hotel and then said goodbye to Nick & Jen as were heading off on a day trip to Ayuthaya & traveling up to meet Damien’s friends after that.
Next day we went off to Ayuthaya which was the first capital city but was mostly destroyed by the Burmese years ago. We saw amazing ruins of temples and the palace which was built in the 1400’s. Some of the temples dated back to BC and we saw a lot of difference postures of the Buddha’s.
After a long day of sightseeing we went back to Bangkok got our bags and got a taxi to the bus station for our over night bus of 11 hrs to Nakhon Phanom over by the Laos border to see Damien’s friends Wayo & Faye.
We arrived there at 6.30am and then got another bus to That Phanom an hr down the road to where Wayo lives with his girlfriend Huey & daughter Shayleigh.
Good to see the lads again and also met Faye’s girlfriend Awn.
That day we left and went to Mukdahan (a town separated from Laosby the Mekong River) and everyone there was staring at us as they never have tourists there. A lot of people kept coming us to us trying to talk English… Hilarious. We went to a lovely restaurant over looking theMekong River. It was amazing to have lunch on the banks of the river and stare across at Laos.
Later on we went for dinner but no menus were in English so Awn had to translate everything for us. Had a few drinks and then did Karaoke in a bar. Damien sang 2 songs… New career for him!!
Next day we went for a walk down the market, had a few beers and discovered 7/11 do the most amazing toasted ham and cheese sandwiches so ate them and then home to bed/ant infestation hotel.
The following day we headed back to Wayo’s in That Phanom and decided to go and shoot some guns. We shot a .38, .48, M16 & shot gun. So cool….
Stayed in that night with a few beers and watched some TV
Next day we got a 4 hr bus to Udonthani. Waited there for a few hrs and then got a 13 hr over night bus to Chiang Mai. Bus was smelly and not as VIP as our first over night bus but we survived.
Arrived in Chiang Mai at 9.30am where we were attacked by Tuk Tuk drivers to bring us into the city. We eventually got our bags and took the best offer of a Tuk Tuk into the city were we stayed in the Northland’s Guest house.
W got a nice breakfast there and walked around. We went to go and see Wat Singh first and then we were told that there was a ceremony of a boy getting his head shaved to join the monks so we hoped on a Tuk Tuk and went to see it but yet again there was no ceremony on except a funeral (had again) Left there and went to see another temple. Went and got a Thai oil massage and then went back to chill out.
Later after dinner we met Damien’s friend from the bank Richard and his girlfriend Be. Had a good few drinks and went to a nightclub where we were chatting to an Indian, a guy from Templeogue & a few lads from Oz. Good Craic and got in at 4.30am.
Woke to major pains in my stomach and was as sick as a dog. I had gotten some bad ice and was so sick from the bacteria but Wayo told Damien some tablets to get so I got them and then the next day I was fine.
Next day we rented a bike, saw the other big temple in the town and then drove up a real steep hill 16km to Doi Suthep(another famous temple!!). Our bike was half full at the bottom of the hill but when we got up to the top it was EMPTY… Amazing temple and had 306 steps up to it. Had to cover up but saw some amazing views of Chiang Mai.
Had to free wheel down the hill on the bike cause of the lack of petrol but turned out fine. Got some KFC and then went to the Sunday market and night Bazzar.
Next morning we got collected for our Thai cooking course. We got taken to the market and learned all about rice and noodles. Got back to the kitchen where I (Leah) made Spring Rolls, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Pad Thai, Red Curry, Chicken Coconut Soup & Sticky rice & Mango. Damien made Spring Rolls, Pad Thai, Khaosai Curry, Pad Kra Proaw, Tom Yum soup & Banana in Coconut Milk. You can see the photos athttp://www.asiascenic.com/images/webphoto/2009/June/15june/15.htm
As part of our curry making we had to make our pastes. Damien took on the role of Pestal & Mortor with the chillies and managed to get a chilly seed in his eye. The women said this had happened before and to just put oil on his eye and the seed would come out but of course it wasn’t that easy and she had to watch Damien’s eye out for him! We made so much food that we couldn’t eat all of it that morning so we took doggy bags and ate it for dinner that evening. Then went then for a drink and went to see Muay Thai boxing cos there was an Irish Guy fighting a Thai guy. Unfortunately the Irish guy Gavin got knocked out in the first round. Got a photo with him…
Then off to a rooftop bar after that for a few drink but we were up early to go to Pai so got home at 1.30am.
Got a 3 hr mini bus up to Pai (really cool, hippy, chilled out village) which has a population of 3000 so you see the same people a lot (good if you like them, bad if you don’t)!! We checked into the Baan PaiVillage which was these cool beach huts. Walked around the town and got some food where we met Wendy from Dublin and her friend James from Leeds. We went back and chilled in the hut and later met Wendy & James and had some drinks in “The Pub”. Yes it was actually called “The Pub” and owned by a guy called Mac from the Isle of Man. After that we went to Bamboo Bar and then headed home.
Next day we rented out a bike and drove to the waterfall were we got in a rock pool under the waterfall. It was so chilled out, lovely and relaxing. There we met Mark & Louise from England.
We went to an Italian for dinner and had the most amazing pizza and then headed to ‘The Pub’ for the weekly table quiz. Our team started as me and Damien but in the end we had 9 people from England, Canada,Germany, USA and us Irish. Apparently you were supposed to have 6 on a team but we couldn’t say no when they asked to join. There was a couple from USA Rachel & Chris; Chris’s brother came to join our team half way cos he had only just arrived in Pai. He had flown 2 days from the Croatia and was staying in Thailand for 3 days and the flying back….Crazy Man. There were 7 teams and the questions were hard. One of the teams had 3 lads, 2 from Ireland and 1 from Austria, had a great time with them. Johnnie, Rory & Yoyo. Also on another team were Louise & Mark. Our team won and we got a bottle of Whiskey which we shared with the whole pub. After that everyone from the pub went to Ting Tong’s. After another few drinks we left with the 3 lads from Ireland & Austria and stopped at 7/11 for our usual fix of toastie’s and met another couple we had met on the bus so we went back to our hut for a few drinks and ended the night at 5am.
Got up at 2pm the next day and went for food where we saw most people from the quiz. We drove then on our bike to the hot springs, they were nice & hot but we got eaten by Mozzies so we left after bout and hr. We got back into town and went for dinner where we met an Israelian couple. We learned loads from them about the trouble in their country. They also spent a few years in India so gave us loads of tips.
Next day up to get a bus back to Chiang Mai & then another bus to Chiang Rai.
Got there at 5.30pm (8 hour bus journey). We got dropped to the wrong bus station so after we walked for a while we realized that maybe we needed a Tuk Tuk to get to our guesthouse. YES YES we did as we drove for about 15 mins to get to our accommodation.
Lovely place with free internet and air con.
Walked around for a while. Went for a pizza and then walked around the market.
Next day we went to the day market, booked our trek for the following day, the guide we booked with met us before we booked it and he stank of booze. We were then told that we would be the only ones on our trek. We decided to go with him anyway cos he was the cheapest. After that we went for dinner in the night market.
Next day we met Pan our guide for the trek who now didn’t smell of booze, always a positive thing! We drove to the slow boat which we got on for an hr to the elephant camp. We got to ride on the elephants for half an hr. We got lunch in the elephant camp and then crossed the river to start our trek. We walked up into the jungle in the pissing of rain at the start. Our clothes couldn’t dry cos we were sweating so much from walking up hill. We passed the Lahu hill tribe and stopped there for a bit. The road was so slippery from the rain but we made it. We then walked on more to the Akha village where we were staying for the night. We trekked for 12km through the jungle. We met some cool villagers and 2 German lads who were on another trek. Pan cooked us dinner that he had picked form the jungle. We had Papaya soup & boiled Bamboo shoots. We had a few beers with Pan and learned more about the Thai culture. We slept on the floor of a bamboo hut (not comfortable).
Got up at 7.30am the next day and trekked onto the waterfall and then onto the hot springs, where we had a nice swim and then back into the car.
Off we drove to see the White Temple which is still being built after 10yrs. Amazing pictures painted inside.
After that we went to see the Karen Long Neck tribes, Mae Sai, the Golden Triangle, Opium Museum & the Ancient City called Chiang Saen. Got back to the guesthouse at 8pm. Went out and got some food and then we went to the famous TeePee bar where the owner was mental. He kept putting on wigs pretending to be different people. There we met 2 lads from Leeds – Alistair & Adam and an Irish guy Donal. After the TeePee we went to a night club. When we arrived in the night club we saw some Thai performers and then it turned into a dance club. Was pretty cool but we were wrecked from our trek so we went home about 1.30am. Again on the way home we stopped for our toastie’s….
Next day we got up at 12 cos we had to check out and we were so hung over so not good cos we didn’t need to be in the airport till 9pm. We walked around for a few hrs to find a laptop but we were unsuccessful as the shop we went to go to get it had disappeared… we thought we were on the right street but obviously not!! We got dinner and then headed to the airport. When we got there our flight was delayed till 11pm so Damien slept and I read my book.
We got to Bangkok at 12.30am and we again attacked by men looking for us to get their taxi but we had the hotel transfer bus so it was ok.
Nice hotel but we were so tired we just crashed out. We got up the next day and Awn(fayes girlfriend) told us where to go to get the laptop. It was madness; the shopping centre had 5 floors of just electronics!!! We finally found the one we wanted and got everything installed on it. We got a few DVD’s and some Mc’d’s. We headed back to the hotel and then got our transfer to the airport but luckily we had checked to see if our flight was delayed and it was so we didn’t have to wait around!
Flight was fine except for one moment we went through turbulence and the plane lost power for a sec but not the engines so was ok… Scary eh!!
Arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam at 9.15pm.
Will update on Vietnam soon.