Passport problems

We overnighted at the Swan Hotel near the river in Bangkok. The room was standard but offered a perfect view of the Sirocco tower, a skyscraper that received worldwide attention in the movie 'Hangover II'. The bathroom in our latest room only needed one visit for all your hygiene needs. It was basically a large shower with toilet and sink in it. It gave new meaning to shaving in the shower. Two things we haven't quite figured out: First, how to keep the toilet paper dry when showering (maybe that's not a problem if we stick to the butt washer) and secondly, once showered and dressed, how do we re-enter the bathroom without getting our feet wet. If barefoot then we track water through the room, if in socks then they need to be changed and if wearing shoes it tracks dirt from the soles all over the room.
Breakfast here was complimentary with the room and was the best yet with eggs prepared to your choice, fresh fruit, juices, toast and several dishes like noodles, chicken pasta and salads.

Tonight we catch the sleeper train to Phuket in the south of Thailand. Until then we have to try and resolve a problem with our visas. When we flew into the country we were given a 30 day maximum stay and we planned to fly out on the day our visas were to expire. What we didn't realize is that when a tourist enters the country by air they get a 30 day stay but when they enter by land, as we did yesterday from Cambodia, they are only given a 15 day stay. Our flight is still 8 days after that.

We checked out of the hotel and caught a cab to the government complex. The stop where the cab dropped us off was across the street from the government complex so we needed to cross the highway on a walking bridge. Each entrance to the bridge had two armed soldiers. When they saw us they held us back for a moment and then told us to run. They spoke Thai of course so we really didn't know what they said, but they were waving and flailing their arms letting us know to hurry. When we reached the top of the stairs I only thought it appropriate to stop and take a picture, but much to my dismay it set off the guards at all four places, yelling and screaming and jumping and waving? They were moving their arms furiously and yelling, the ones behind us were waving GO GO GO and the ones in front of us were signaling COME COME COME. They way they were carrying on we were apprehensive about coming out the other side expecting a chewing out, but the soldiers looked happy and relieved when we exited the bridge and waved us on. Last week there was a travel alert issued by the US dept of defense concerning tourists in Bangkok due to some kind of terrorist threat. Travelers were encouraged to avoid public areas and apparently us meandering on a walkway way up high in the open was making us a target. We decided to find another way back to the hotel.

Safe after crossing the highway we found out we were not at the correct building and two motorbike drivers offered to take us to the correct place. There are four primary forms of transportation here; public (sky train, subway and bus), automobile, tuktuk and motorbike and perhaps there are more of the latter than anything else. They are small and cheap and fast and maneuver easily in and out of the harrowing traffic. Imagine a wild and crazy tuktuk running on granny's moonshine only on 2 wheels instead of 3. We held on for dear life zooming in and around cars like characters in a 3D movie. Parked car in road? No problem, WHOOSH! Cars too slow? No problem again, WHOOSH! No room between cars? No problem, sidewalk free, WHOOSH! All of a sudden we found ourselves praying for a TukTuk. Thankfully we didn't have far to go which was fortunate, much longer and we both our seats would have been wet.

The government building was massive and looked like it could easily house a football field in the interior courtyard. It was 8 stories up and at least one visible court below full of restaurants and stores. We went through a lengthy and frustrating series of different offices and lines before finally being told that since we will be staying in Chaing Mai for the next two weeks we would need to file the papers at the Chaing Mai office.

We caught a cab directly to the train station, safely avoiding the walking bridge, where we stowed our bags and went to see the river. We sat at a restaurant, had a drink and watched the boats going back and forth up and down the waterway. After returning to the train station we ate a quick meal at KFC and boarded our train to the South.

Back to Bangkok

Awaking early, we cleaned, blogged and packed for our return to Bangkok. We were ahead of schedule and had a full 30 min wait before our ride was scheduled to pick us up, so we decided to indulge on our free American Breakfast. Not so. Immediately after finding a place to sit between motorbikes, our driver showed up. We left our final remaining Riel to tip the hotel staff and were on our way ... or so we thought. We were dropped off at a pickup spot packed with travelers heading to Thailand. When the place could hold no more, we were corralled to a large bus and then just before getting on we were directed into a waiting cab. We picked up one other passenger at an upscale looking hotel (no motorbikes in dining room) and at last we were back on the road.

Two hours later we arrived at the border. The process back to Thailand was much easier and faster than when we crossed into Cambodia, and we found ourselves an hour ahead of schedule. We passed the time at a small restaurant between the two borders watching people pull their carts back and forth in front of the casinos. Sitting outside, we ordered a light meal and had a delightful visit with the young lady that rode with us in the cab from Siem Reap. Julie was returning to Bangkok where she currently lives with her family. Being an ex-flight attendant, she spoke Thai, Hindi and nearly perfect English with only a slight Indian accent which grew noticeably thicker as she spoke to her Indian friends and family over the phone. Julie was a charming young lady and talk flowed easily on a variety of topics. Once in Bangkok she directed us to the proper train, instructed us where to get off and even paid our fare. Our meeting was truly one of those serendipitous connections to remind us that even people halfway across the world can share the common bond of humanity and goodwill.

We found our hotel with little effort, had chicken teriyaki and a corn pie at McDonalds and had an early night's sleep after a long day of travel.

People sure drive fast here!

Timeless Temples

Angkor Wat was still waiting for us when we returned this morning. This time the grounds were filled with tourists walking through the ruins; a completely different experience from the night before, yet the ruins and the fascination remained. Built in the early 12th century over a period of 40 years, it is the world's largest religious building. The temple has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. Angkor Wat is completely surrounded by a moat and covers over 200 sq. acres. The outer wall is 2.2 miles long. Uncle Joe had mentioned that a picture of a stegosaurus was reportedly carved on one of the walls. We walked thought what seemed like endless passageways and corridors and just about every square inch was carved with images. We never found the dinosaur but did notice that there were thousands of identically carved images from one end to the other. The meticulous uniformity of so many carvings in such a massive complex was astounding considering the many different people that were necessary to create them.

Our next temple was Bayon, the temple of four faces, named so because the center spire has a face on each side facing the four directions. This temple is much less intact than Angkor, and piles of stones sometimes 15 ft high encase the perimeter. These stone blocks are from collapsed areas that have yet to be reconstructed - if that is even possible. The part of the temple that remains erect resembles a giant ant hill made of stone. Passageways wind in and around multiple levels; every turn revealing yet more tunnels and stairways. Add a little suspenseful music and Angelina Jolie and you have a scene from the movie Tomb Raider. We learned later that part of the movie was in fact filmed there, although what part of which temple we aren't sure.

Our third and final temple for the day was Thomamnomm. While the previous temple looked like a scene from Tomb Raider, this one was straight out of The Jungle Book. Giant gnarled trees wound their way through and around the crumbling structures. This temple is a true testimony of the power the jungle has to reclaim its own. Massive tree trunks could be seen perched on top of roofs, their large roots like tentacles enveloping entire walls. Fallen archways and leaning spires show decades of neglect, and narrow tunnels snake in and out between tree roots that matured when only wild animals were left to tend the once majestic structures.

Our evening consisted of a meal in a local restaurant and packing for the return trip to Thailand. Our entry to this country was marked with stress and trepidation, but our exit was with a new awareness of our insignificance. We consider ourselves advanced because of our modern conveniences and technology; but here was an ancient race of people that with nothing but their own hands, ingenuity and willpower, were able to accomplish unspeakable feats that still astound the world today.

Sundown in Siem Reap

Our second evening in Siem Reap was much more pleasant than the first.
Having an English speaking tour guide and having gained a grasp of the Cambodian currency, we felt like we could function again.
Wan took us to get tickets for the next day at the temple area and we caught our first glance at the ominous Angkor Wat.

Having arrived shortly before sundown the tourists were thinning out fast which gave us a clear run through of the enormous temple. The temple area covered many acres and at one time was the center of a community of about a million people. For some unknown reason the area vacated and the city was reclaimed by the jungle; the magnificent temples became the playground of wild animals and monkeys.
We climbed as high as we could and watched the sun set beyond the ancient spires of the famed temple. The grounds were empty now and almost deathly silent as darkness crept in. Shadows from the pointed towers grew increasingly long and the only sounds were the eerie chirping of bats stirring within the crumbling ruins of the temple peaks. A thick feeling of reverence descended as if the massive stone walls were releasing the mystical chants of ancient monks busy with their evening prayers from a time long forgotten. We sat in silence overwhelmed with a feeling of gratefulness and wonder, thankful that we endured the trials of the Cambodian border to witness this amazing event.

Wan took us on a tour of the town before returning us to our hotel. The night was alive with activity and street vendors were plentiful pleading with weary travelers to buy their wares. We did buy a couple of T-shirts which only attracted more vendors. Children surrounded us showing us magnets, books, trinkets and many other souvenirs. One kept putting a small flute in my pocket and then thanked me for the $1 purchase. To them it was a game and we played along with them for awhile before moving on.

We smelled cannabis driving through the downtown market area and asked the TukTuk driver about it. He said its illegal here but they don't usually bother the tourists that have it. He also told us about a place called "Happy Pizza" that puts it in the pizza but said it can make you crazy for days. We decided to stick to our boring rat sandwiches.

We ate dinner at the night market and returned to our room excited about the next day's return to the temples.

Planting a Pump

We have a strong habit in the USA of using tap water for any and everything. Brush your teeth, rinse your mouth, rinse your toothbrush no problem. When in this part of the world, bottled water must be used for EVERYTHING that may come in contact with your mouth. In many hotels bottled water is provided daily; our first hotel even had instructions in the room not to drink the tap water. Not drinking from the tap is easy but brushing teeth using bottled water is a little different. It works at first, but let you mind wander for just a second when the habit to rinse your brush kicks in, Oops! Dysentery dysentery stay away!

Fresh water is truly a commodity here and many people don't have easy access to any running water much less potable water. Returning from the floating village, we went back through the area of rustic homes and noticed children in some of the yards getting water or bathing around manual 'old fashioned' water pumps. The pumps all had large clear signs posted by the pumps with donor names. In this area where the water is far away, dirty and undrinkable, these pumps provide much needed drinking water.

We asked our TukTuk driver about them and he told us of an organization in Duluth, MN, that places pumps in these impoverished areas. He said for $250 they go to an impoverished area, dig a well, place a pump and pour a concrete slab around it. These pumps literally save lives and help whole communities in a way that will change their way of living permanently. We got the contact information for the office in Deluth and are strongly considering donating. Your pump will be clearly marked so you know where your money is going.
The organization is:
Minnesota Veterans for Progress,
Cambodian Water Well Project,
PO Box 3106, Deluth, MN 55803
http://mnvetsforprogress.com

Floating Village

Angkor Wat is the primary draw for tourists to this area, and many Asian tourists come just for the weekend. Being Sunday, our Tuktuk driver, Wan, encouraged us to wait till Monday for Angkor Wat and he would take us to the Floating Village today. OH NO! We were both alarmed at the thought of being captive in another expensive market place. But this was the Floating VILLAGE, not the market, and all fees were presented up front. We consented and were so glad we did.

The dirt road to the floating village was lined with homes. All shacks of different sizes and shapes, most up on poles and very impoverished. The houses ended at a muddy area with a shallow inlet which contained rows of long narrow boats. We boarded and quickly found ourselves in a line of boats with gawking tourists slowly maneuvering through the muddy channel. Our captain was a boy that looked no more than 16, barefoot, and thin like the boat itself. He controlled it using a complex looking combination of various pedals, ropes and poles.
The small channel opened into a large river and soon little homes started popping up along the water, and not on the banks, for there were no visible banks. The homes were built high on stilts about 20 feet above the current water level. The water was about 10 feet deep at the time and was expected to drop even more during the dry season.

Many homes were as primitive as possible, made from poles, straw and perhaps sheet metal. Others were nicer with real wooden walls and plaster. All were reached by narrow ladders or rough looking steps. We stared as a tiny old woman with a hunched back struggled to pull herself up a crude pole ladder. Little floating wooden platforms were everywhere forming boat docks, places to dry and store firewood and for holding caged animals.
Our young driver showed us his home as we floated by. It was one of many so clumped together it was hard to distinguish one from the other. He said the population of this village was about 3000 and extremely poor. Most of them made their living from people like us who came to stare in amazement at their way of life. During the rainy season, the water rises almost to the floors of the homes which at this point towered overhead.

We docked temporarily at a small floating platform that housed a restaurant. We decided to take an optional $5 excursion through the flooded Mangrove trees. We clambered onto a tiny old boat barely large enough for the two of us, and a young girl sat in the front and paddled us thought the trees. She appeared to be about 12 yrs old and very timid; her voice was soft spoken and we never could make out her name although we think it started with either an S or a V, or maybe it was an A.
At the conclusion of the small trek thought the trees we had a very tasty meal at the restaurant, and then we were back on the first boat. We followed the river past the remainder of the homes and into what appeared to be an ocean, except it was strangely quiet. The only bank visible was the one we just came from, and that consisted only of densely populated Mangrove trees.

The trip back thought the village and then back to our waiting TukTuk was silent and somber. We reflected on the lives of these people and thought how grateful we are to live in a land where our water is controlled by a faucet and knowing that if we fell out of bed we would only hit the floor.

Breakfast

The morning couldn't come early enough, and yet it was still too early. We both had troubling dreams stemming from our ordeal crossing the Cambodian border. While I was ecstatic to find out I wasn't really being kidnapped by an Arab policeman at the Saudi airport, the day was still full of uncertainty and challenges. We had been told back in Thailand that our room would include breakfast. We showed up at the reception desk only to be ushered into a side room. The room was dark and we were alone. Looking around, we wondered if the clerk directed us to the correct place. There was a sign on the door marked "American Breakfast" but the motorbikes in the middle of the dimly lit room weren't exactly appetizing. After a short wait a small man appeared, bowing to us as he set down some toast and then he scurried off again. We wondered if that was it, and as the little guy didn't return for some time we started in on the bread. He did return with some butter and jam, and even later with some juice, and once again with a cup of some kind of hot beverage. His final return provided a plate of fried eggs. Not so bad after all. We left what we thought was an appropriate tip and went to meet our TukTuk driver from the previous day.

International High Finance

For anyone interested in international travel, it literally pays to be informed. Our dear friends at the credit card companies are more than happy to offer cash advances from foreign ATMs for a foreign transaction fee of 3% of the amount withdrawn, or $10, whichever is greater, PLUS the fees the ATM company charges. On top of that, the credit card companies start charging around 25% interest on the money from the time of withdrawal. Even using a standard credit card for regular purchases of food, goods or services-- without the cash advances-- is subject to the 3% or $10 minimum charge per transaction. This is certainly NOT an economical way to finance a trip.

The best solution we found was to use our bank debit card, which is good anywhere a Visa card is accepted. Using the debit card gives access to funds already in the bank, bypassing immediate interest accumulation and the foreign transaction fees. Arvest bank charges $2 per transaction, with no foreign transaction fees or interest (since the money is already ours). That seems to be a much better solution than carrying a wad of cash, or paying the insane fees to credit card companies.

When we arrived at the Thailand airport, we were able to retrieve the local currency from an ATM. We knew the current exchange rate was basically 30 Thai Baht per dollar. While we relied on the help of calculators to get through some of the more complex purchases, it didn't take very long to get used to the conversion. However our feelings of accomplishment were short lived - enter Cambodia!

We were advised different things by different people at different points. We were told that Cambodian money (Riel) could not be used inThailand so don't get much at one time. The man who was guiding us across the border advised us of the dangers of pickpockets and to hold tightly to our passports. He told us we'd need to convert our currency at the border because Thai money wasn't used and although American money is accepted, it is best to use their own currency. At the crossing we converted 8000 Thai Baht (about $260) into Cambodian currency and got over 800000 Riel. It was a huge wad of bills and they were quite nasty compared to the pretty and clean Thai baht. It took a while for us to acclimate to the new currency value because when we tried to tip the TukTuk driver 500 Riel he said it was worth about a dime. Oops! After that, our first few meals and transactions had us furiously calculating these huge numbers that had so little value. Whew!
We also soon found out that American money is preferred over thier own currency, and most everything is Priced in American dollars. Many shops will not take their own currency if it is dirty or torn, and of course much of the money given to us at the crossing was filthy. Live and learn.

First impressions-Cambodia

The Cambodia countryside looks basically like driving through interior rural Mexico. Homes are mostly shacks, some a little nicer with stone and plaster, and some just sticks and straw. Many are built up on stilts to protect them during the rainy season; the lower areas serving as an open air place to cook, get out of the heat, and nap in their hammocks.

The wayside rest stops are much more impoverished. Bathrooms are just a hole in the ground and parking areas are crowded with little kids selling their crafts for Wun dalla', Wun dalla'. At one stop I gathered the courage to enter the store and see if there was anything appetizing. I spied a small bottle with brown liquid containing a real baby cobra with a large black scorpion in its mouth. The clerk gave me a price, he say it very good whiskey but drink only little bit very strong. I passed on it and headed right back to the van.

We've been drinking nothing but bottled water since we arrived, with the exception of juice in the morning and the occasional cup of hot tea. Just can't work up the desire to eat anything from a street vendor and certainly not at this little road stop. A woman walked up to the van with some snacks. What is that? A fried bat on a stick? I'd rather eat a rat sandwich. Wait. That IS a rat sandwich.

We reached the outskirts of Siem Ream and got off the minivan in what appeared to be an old abandoned shed used to hold kidnapped tourists. Oh goody, there were several TukTuk drivers there to meet us. They divided up our belongings and off we went to our hotel. Our TukTuk driver spoke excellent English and was the first person we met that did. That was the first reassuring thing that happened up to that point. Not wanting to let him get away, we negotiated a time for him to pick us up the following day.

Inside the hotel no one knew but the tiniest bit of English. Our room here was quite different than the one we had in Bangkok. It was a very simple, no frills room, tile floors, two short and firm (yet only one step above straw) beds, and a stark bathroom, all white, all tile, simple fixtures. While it did have a toilet, it came with the standard butt faucet. The bathtub had the only hot water in the room through a hot water on demand device that was about the size an American would use for hot tea in their kitchen. The water heater was connected to a hand held shower hose and of course no shower curtain. We both very successfully managed to wet the entire room in each bathing.

It was too late to return to Thailand or to change hotels, we had prepaid. Having passed on all the snack opportunities during the commute, we were hungry and hoped that a good meal would make the trials of the day seem better. Again, no one spoke English although the menus were in English. Using the Point-and-Smile system we managed to order and had a very tasty meal. The bill came to 36,800 Cambodian Riel (their currency).

Border Crossing

The Cambodian border offered a stark contrast to Thailand. We went from a city that has a penalty of jail time for littering to what looked like the outskirts of the city dump. The process through immigration was grueling and nerve racking to say the least and the entire process took 2 hours. There were several check points to cross and we still aren't sure how many stamps we received.
The waiting areas were hot and crowded and standing room only. The unfamiliarity and tension of the moment mixed with flashbacks of Americans being arrested on false charges for bribes created more stress. I watched outside a window as a local looking fellow bypassed the lines and the entry checkpoint and was met by a border guard. The guard took his passport, walked around the corner, removed some money from the passport, then returned it to the man and waved him across the border. Watching that sure didn't dispel any of our worries.

As we stood in the long lines, we watched groves of locals entering and exiting. This was truly a third world county and made Thailand look like a resort area. The people were mostly dressed in old tattered clothing that looked as if they would need a can opener to undress, and most of them were either pulling or pushing old rickety looking carts. The images today are just like pictures or old movies that depict people with carts piled so high with stuff that you wonder if it's real. Well it is. Sometimes a little hand drawn cart would have 20 feet of stuff piled up and bundled with ropes and perhaps a child sitting on top. One cart was packed 5 feet high of bags of ginger root.

The border town on the Cambodia side had several casinos, and being the weekend, Thai people were pouring in to try their luck. This provided another interesting contrast. Casino employees here are dressed as they would be in the states- well groomed, clean and very well dressed, but they may ride up on the back of a struggling old moped driven by a tattered farmer.
We left immigration with great relief and started the two hour ride in another minivan to Siem Reap, the gateway town to the national treasure, and our destination of Angkor Wat.

Bye Bye Bangkok

5:50 am for some reason didn't come near as early as it does in the States. By 7:40 we were checked out of the hotel and in a mini van on the way to Cambodia. Hello? Does anyone out there know anything about Cambodia? If you do and didn't warn us then you're in for trouble when we return!

I had expected today to be a quiet day with not much to journal but that shows what a dumb American I am. On the ride to the border we were traveling with 3 people from the UK, 3 from Italy and 2 from Idaho. It was a quiet restful 5 hr drive. The countryside looked remarkably like rural Arkansas. Rice fields were plentiful and little stands could be seen along the highway selling mountains of bags of rice for cheap. There were corn fields, hay fields and sugar cane fields and familiar looking trees and woods in between. There were two stops to refuel, use the bathroom and stretch. In both places the men's room consisted of a row of urinals along the backside of a wall; ONE wall. While it was a bit of a shock, the landscaping was pretty.

We unloaded at our final stop before the border at 12:30 pm and waited at an outdoor restaurant while men hurriedly gathered our passports, travel and hotel information. We each paid them one fee of about $50 for their services and that included the one month visa for Cambodia. We wondered if that was too high but soon we changed our minds and decided it was quite the bargain.

After about an hour we piled back in the van and unloaded a few minutes later at the border to Cambodia...

Temple Tours

After our proven inability to pick good drivers, we left our next pick to the hotel concierge. 'Tony' arrived at 8:30 to take us on a tour of some of the more well known local temples. Tony spoke English fairly well so already the day was off to a better start.

Our first stop was Wat Pho, the temple of the Reclining Buddha, a massive 140 foot long golden statue of Buddha reclining on his side. The walls of the building were painted from top to bottom with murals and the constant ringing of clinking metal filled the room giving the impression of metallic popcorn popping. As we rounded the long statue we could see small bronze bowls along the full length of the back wall. For a small charge patrons could purchase a small bowl of tiny coins to be dropped one at a time in each of the larger bowl along the wall creating the sound we were hearing. The complex was a maze of intricately designed buildings and smaller temples containing over a thousand statues of Buddha. At every turn was a donation box to keep Buddha and his grounds cleaned and well groomed.

Next stop was the Grand Palace, a complex of buildings at the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam (and later Thailand) since 1782. The king, his court and his royal government were based on the grounds of the palace until 1925 when they moved but the Grand Palace is still used for official events. There were several large temples on the complex and people were lined up offering gifts to the Buddha and other statues. What struck me the most was in one certain offering area there were a choice of several things, such as flowers, incense and various foods, that could be purchased and then immediately laid on the altar. To keep piles from accumulating a caretaker would remove them allowing more to be offered. It was a never ending cycle. I thought it odd to pay money for something as an offering and then watch it being removed and tossed into a box. It seemed rather pointless.

Our final temple was Wat Arun, Temple of the Dawn. It is well known for its unique look, and is the temple that makes the background for our blog. To get to it we had to pass through 1000 street venders and take a ferry across the river. The river itself is a hive of activity. Boats of every size and shape make their way up and down the channel and although it is very large, it's like playing the video game frogger to get from one side to the next.

The Wat Arun temple basically consists of five tall spires. The middle one is the largest and the only one that can be climbed, at least by tourists. The ascent was extremely steep and climbing from one level to the next was like an aerobic workout. My shoes were about 3" longer than the depth of the step and they must have been about 12" high. The upper level, for those brave enough to risk it, was half way up the spire and offered an amazing view of the river and the Bangkok skyline. The descent was precarious and downright scary. It was quite amusing watching others expressing their alarm when attempting to go down. I watched as one middle aged Chinese lady was walking along chatting to a friend in Chinese, and when they got to the stairs and looked down, her face went pale as she exclaimed in English "Oh My God!" Has that phrase become a universal expression of alarm? Haha!

After we reached the bottom, our driver took us to a local restaurant. It was cheap and tasty. Before heading back to the hotel we again had to maneuver through the sea of vendors. We kept spying items that we thought so and so back home would like but at this point our bags were so packed we couldn't manage anything else. But it was fun to bring our friends and family with us on our trip if only in thought and conversation. Our driver was better than could be hoped for. He was helpful, informative and interesting. It was a good day but oh were our feet tired from all the walking and climbing. I can't help but wonder why so many of the statues of Buddha depict him as being fat with all those stairs to climb.

Siam Niramit

I love Broadway! So when I found out there was a Broadway style live stage show here it immediately became high priority. The name of the show is Siam Niramit and is performed on a gigantic stage listed in the Guinness World Records! Prior to the show was a buffet dinner and self guided tour of their ancient Siam village. There were dancers performing, shops to explore and even elephant rides. Between the two of us we've been to over 50 shows on Broadway and yet this show often left us with wide eyes and gaping mouths. Several numbers were performed among and involving the audience and at one point a full sized elephant came lumbering right by us. It truly was a must-see spectacular show. The show features over 100 performers, lavish costumes and stunning set designs. There were enhanced special effects and advanced technology used to produce a very realistic, stimulating and inspiring experience. Information about the show and more pictures can be viewed at their web site: www.siamniramit.com/show.php

Floating Market

After our earlier experience with the TukTuk we were apprehensive about taking one again but the price was certainly right. We agreed for the driver to pick us up the next day for a visit to the Floating Market. At $3 an hour we figured we could endure a few other sales pitches for the cheap ride and driver. Cheap ended up being the magic word of the day, mostly since the word was never used again that day.
We met the driver at 10:30 for our trip only it wasn't who we were expecting. A different man met us, Mr. Thom with a message from our expected driver that he was busy and to go with this guy, and the best part is and he had a real car, even better for $3 an hour. We climbed in and off we went.
The first thing to note is that this driver barely knew any English, so conversation was difficult. Then he was heading out of the city which turned out to be a 1 1/2 hr drive to the Floating Market. This $3 was stretching farther by the minute.

We stopped for gas along the way and the station had attendants that took some odd nozzle looking thing and plugged it into a pipe under the hood of the car. It turned out that the car didn't use liquid gasoline but ran on natural gas. The process was very similar to recharging a propane tank. I'd love to know what kind of mileage it got.

During the 90 minute drive we discussed why we were going to a market anyway. We didn't want to shop and we weren't even sure how we got signed up for a 3 hr round trip ride to buy something we didn't want. Oh well, we figured the worst case scenario would be 4 hrs of time for the driver so we were getting a $12 tour of the country side. Still not too shabby.
When we arrived at the parking area where we board the boats we were greeted with free drinks and information about the trip, including a monkey show and elephant rides. By this time we were getting nervous. This wasn't our first sales pitch. One thing we discovered was a free drink is usually followed by a hit to the wallet. We were right. Come to find out this free little boat trip through the market place to buy something we didn't want was supposed to cost $160 each! We declined! A price was offered without the monkeys for $145 each. We declined! Subtract the elephant rides, $130 each. We declined! We had budgeted a big ZERO for this boat ride and we sure weren't paying that kind of money. The price dropped to $ 100 each. We got up to leave. We went to our driver with the salesman in tow. And the bargaining continued. We were told how the company had to pay the drivers gas and time and toll fees. Aha!! We suspected as much! Finally the price was down to $50 and we decided to go on the float trip.

We begrudgingly got in the boat and started down the canal. We were in a network of canals with primitive homes and shops all nestled among the banks and water. The canals were barely wide enough at points for two very narrow long tail boats to squeeze by each other, and they networked back and forth like city streets. The closest thing we could relate to it was riding a log flume at an amusement park. But this was real life; people lived here and the smells proved it was no Six Flags. We both thought at first it was a sewage drain of sorts. As we rounded the first bend there was a booth on the edge of the canal that the boat floated up next to and the sales pitch began. Scented fans, wooden chop sticks and refrigerator magnets were but a few of the hundreds of little items for sale. No, No, No, No we kept responding trying to hold back the frustration of having just paid someone to put us smack dab in the middle of a market place. Now we were a true captive audience as the boat stopped over and over and the endless shops along the banks. Calendars, monkey carved coconuts, place mats; the items just kept coming and the booths never stopped.
We arrived at what they called a coconut sugar plant. We got out of the boat to see a table with some small coconut patties on it drying. So much for the factory tour, took about 30 seconds, but conveniently on the way back to the boat we got to pass through more shops. Pictures, incense, hats and sandals. Sandals?? Wait a minute, I had planned to buy some in Thailand anyway and found some I couldn't do without. I paid $10 and hurried back to the boat. We couldn't waste any time-there were more shops to see. Shirts, pouches, toys and jewelry. Does this place ever stop at night? These people were like piranhas eating on the captive 'flesh' of paper in our wallets.
The waterways finally broadened and then the floating vendors appeared. People floating in their boats with the freedom to paddle right up to offer you all their valuable treasures. Purses, kitchen supplies, postcards and food. Food huh? Well you got me again finally. We bought two things that are rarely ever found in the US. First was a sliced Pomello, which resembles a giant grapefruit but bigger and without the bitter taste. The second fruit was bright and had a similar taste and texture of an apple. The best I can remember the name was a Champu (sounds like shampoo) and I only remember that because I joked about it being used to wash our hair. No time to joke now, there is shopping ahead. Straw hats, dolls, wall hangings and statues. No, No, No lets go!

We reached a point where there was an old temple of sorts. We disembarked to take a few pictures then back to the canals and back toward the starting point, which of course meant passing all the same shops again. Leather goods, sunglasses, food and drinks. This time through we received less attention from the sellers so we could pay more attention to the environment. There were hundreds of small homes along the canals. Little kids were playing in the water or along the rickety walkways and women were washing clothes in the same water that smelled like their sewage. People were also washing themselves, and little baskets of toiletries including toothbrushes were sitting on the edge of the canal waiting to be used. One even contained a bottle of Oil of Olay. The trip back was entirely different as a whole world emerged along the banks of a nasty canal. These people were born here, lived here and died here. It was an unforgettable experience on many levels.
Back at the base we piled into the car and headed back to the big city.
Our moments of somber reflection were short lived as the driver was back to his old tricks and dropped us off at a shop in downtown Bangkok which we thought was a place to buy T-shirts. We were met at the door with beautiful young women in silk gowns offering free drinks! We looked at each other and both thought the same thing, RUN! It turned out to be an upper class jewelry store and we made it clear that we were not staying and walked out. We were back in the car before the driver could even collect his customer fee and were headed back to the hotel. We were so ready to get back to the hotel and away from sneaky drivers and sellers. Then we hit our final wall. At the hotel the drivers gave us his bill, $100. Of course that didn't go over well. We got the concierge at the hotel in on it and we debated back and forth and finally settled on $75. We were done with shopping, we were done with TukTuks and done with drivers and trips and about done with Bangkok altogether. Good thing we only have 28 more days to go. *sigh*

Took a TukTuk

TukTuks are small little vehicles that resemble a glorified golf cart on steroids. They run up and down all over the city causing great alarm to unsuspecting tourists. One guy was pursuing us with great vigor to enjoy his 'sight seeing tour' for 100 baht, approximately $3 an hour. Having been warned first by our friend and Bangkok expert Ellis (you were right-on Ellis, thanks!) we had a lapsed moment of judgement and took Mr Net up on his offer.
Five minutes later we knew we were in big trouble. We learned a lot about city driving in Bangkok in the next few fleeting moments, such as the lines in the road are more of a suggestion than a law. Also, while stop lights do their job, no one likes them so speed limits are non existent. It was amazing how multiple vehicles shared the same lanes. A typical two lane street could have three cars, 2 tuktuks and 4 motorcycles (amid all the busses and delivery trucks!) all abreast and all vying for the number one spot. We dodged in and out like a cockroach in a pinball machine with two balls in play at the same time. How there were no accidents we'll never know, but we managed to survive-still breathing-and found that our knuckles regained their normal color after only about 5 minutes. It was probably the most exciting $3 adventure we could experience on our trip. And again as Ellis warned, our TukTuk managed to stop at every store owned by Mr Net's family and associates. We were shown custom tailored suites, silk shirts and ties, jewelry and ended up at a travel agency. The latter turned out to have been a blessing since we booked the rest of our visit in Thailand all in one sitting. The return trip to the hotel again proved to test our stamina and strengthen our prayer life.

Bangkok Begins

The entire trip from first take off till last touchdown was 28 hrs. Let there be no mistake, we were ready for bed! By the time we arrived at our hotel and got situated it was 2:AM. We put out the Do Not Disturb sign so if we slept till noon the maid wouldn't bother us. 4 1/2 hrs later we were staring at the ceiling so we decided to get up and checkout breakfast. Breakfast consisted of various breads, jams, sweet rolls, cereal, several kinds of meat, juices and scrambled eggs. That confirmed it! This was the best $35 a night hotel I've ever stayed in.
Back at the room we answered emails and read the AR news then hit the streets.
We made some smaller change and got some good advice from the hotel concierge, Paen, and started down the street. This part of the city was a mixture of old and new. A 100 yr old shanty of a building was right next to a modern multimillion dollar structure. People and cars were everywhere, zooming in and out of traffic. It was nerve-racking to watch. Street vendors lined the sidewalks with a wide variety of food, clothing and souvenirs. A whole sidewalk in one area was full of vendors who were deaf. Since I (Trevor) am an interpreter back in the States I immediately tried to strike up a conversation. I found that many signs were the same or similar to American Sign Language and enough that we were able to communicate, although not without obvious and often humorous error. We did buy two pair of shorts from them.
We visited a shopping area called Times Square, bought wonderful fresh fruit smoothies for $1 each and passed hundreds of unsanitary looking food venders with all sorts of unrecognizable 'goodies'.
The streets were packed with people and motorists veering back and forth and in and out like Nascar drivers after a New Years eve brawl. Amidst it all one thing we both noticed was how clean the streets were, not without hundreds of years of wear and tear, but no litter. Later we found a notice that anyone littering will be arrested. Wow, that's one way to handle a trash problem.
Finally it was lunch time and we settled on an authentic Indian restaurant. It was very yummy and reasonably priced but very spicy. It was a treat that we could enjoy twice since it burned going in and later burned coming back out.

S33

Our hotel is located just off Sukhumvit street, a main tourist and shopping area in Bangkok. The hotel is oddly named S33, obviously by its location on 33rd street. It's only 2 months old and looks it. Everything is new, modern and clean; yet it has it's peculiarities.
(www.s33hotel.com)
A bellboy offered to take our luggage to the room but there was a two person limit on the elevator. When all three of us entered the same one an alarm sounded. So the two of us went up first (to the 7th floor) and the bellboy waited for the next elevator. When we first entered our room there was no electricity, none at all. No lights, no AC, nothing. We groped around a few minutes wondering if we were in the right room when the bellboy finally arrived to educate us. We were supposed to insert our room key into the appropriate wall slot and then the room came alive. Remove the card and the room goes dead. We decided to leave the key in.
Thankfully the room has a real toilet, but it has an optional butt faucet for those that prefer a bedet rather than using our familiar paper. Good thing they left plenty of wash cloths.
We learned on the flight over that Bangkok is subject to frequent power outages, whether you have your room key in the right slot or not, and just in case there was a flashlight on the night stand and a movable lamp for the bathroom.
Another concern we had was with the electrical plugs. Before leaving the states we each acquired the appropriate adapter, thank you very much Jimmie! Come to find out this hotel comes equipped with new electrical plugs that accept the standard Thai plug and the American style plugs. So at least in this first hotel we can charge the iPhone, both iPads, two cameras and battery packs all at the same time! Tourists and their gadgets! Hey, maybe that's why the electricity keeps going out around here.

Touchdown!

Our flight left Tokyo on time and we arrived in Bangkok 7 hrs and 3 crying kids later at 11:45 PM Tuesday night. As we soon found out, at midnight in Bangkok things are just getting started. There was no mistaking that we were in foreign territory when I entered a bathroom at the airport and there with other men standing at the urinal a woman entered and started sweeping the floors around us. AWKWARD! And then I spotted what Bryan quickly named the 'squatty-potty'. Somehow I just didn't have the urge to go anymore.

Travel Day!

4:00 What's that awful noise? Alarm! 5 more minutes mom, please? It's way too early. I didn't know they still made a 4 am.
4:15 Its the shower, shave, scurry, sort and suitcase scramble!
4:30 Where's my other sock? Did you print the tickets? What happened to my keys? When do we meet our ride? THE DOG! Where is the dog? Oh wait, I don't have a dog! This is entirely too early!
5:30 Thanks for the ride David, you're a champ! American Airlines, here we come.
7:00 Up up and away!
7:15 Zzzzzzzzz
8:35 Hello Chicago. Wake me when we're at the gate.
9:15 Waiting for our next flight. Still tired, Hope we board soon, I ...am...so...zzzzzz
10:30 Here we go again. First flight on Japan Airlines. Sure are a lot of Asians on here.
12:00 Lunch is on the way, Hooray! I ordered kosher meals for our flights, they are always yummy.
12:10 PM They apparently didn't get the kosher meal order and now we have salad with bacon bits and noodles with shrimp. Where's the peanut butter?
2:00 This is the longest flight ever.
4:30 Afternoon snack. Oh No! Ham and yellow cheese. Where was that peanut butter again?
6:20 We are flying at 36,000 ft with outside air temp at -79f, ground speed over 589mph. Glad we didn't take the ferry.
8:00 This is the longest flight ever.
9:30 Another meal, never found the peanut butter and the Japanese snack crackers have shrimp. WAIT! A vegetarian pasta dinner! HOORAY I'm saved!!
11:30 Touchdown in Tokio (Narita intl airport). Did I mention that that was the longest flight ever?
12:15 AM and at the gate for the flight to Bangkok.