afraid it is all over now. the last 10 days in Perth were a whirlwind, with Interhash and the following 'wine' tour. Great to see friends from Red Deer and great to get out and do some running (and maybe have a beer or two). Runs included a pre-amble in Fremantle (gorgeous port city near Perth), the Red Dress run (over 2,000 hashers in red dresses in downtown Perth), the Saturday Interhash run (hills outside Perth that almost killed us), the Sunday Interhash run (beach location, most of us skipped the running thing) and four runs during the wine tour in various cities/towns south of Perth.
Good times had by all but good to be home.
Thx all for reading - anybody know where a man can find a job???!!!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
back to perth
bloome was a great place to kick back and relax. small city with 22km of white sand beach just outside town. we went in the off season when it is too hot and humid for the Auzzies to vacation there. I think everyday was 35 or higher and very very humid. did some wandering around town - they have a Chinatown market area and lots of pearl shops. pearling was the original reason for the town to be established. Did a fair amount of walking/running on the beach and a little swimming. The beach near our hotel went on for about 7km and was probably 500 metres deep. the one afternoon there was us and one other couple in this whole area. kind of a neat feeling.
did the sunset beach camel ride one night, which is a broome tradition. it was great and the sunsets were all amazing.
one day on the beach was lucky enough to see a huge (10' diameter?) manta ray just offshore, I was maybe standing 20' away while he circled back and forth, must have been feeding. way cool!!
most days we tried to get back to the hotel by mid/late afternoon. with that heat nothing felt better than the hotel pool!!
our last day we went to one of the local watering holes where the Goose Club was having a fundraiser. Met some nice people, had a couple of pints and did not win anything in the raffles (just like home).
flight to perth was fine and had a couple of days in perth to wander around and see the sights. Yesterday (Tuesday) met some friends from Edmonton (Gregg & Brenda aka Premmie and G-Spot) and ferried to Rottnest Island (a vaction/wildlfie sanctuary just off the coast) and then back to Fremantle for a "pre-lube" run. Both places were great and the beer and the hashers as always were a lot of fun. Today the rest of the Red Deer gang arrives so should be entertaining.
hope everyone has a great easter - see you soon...
did the sunset beach camel ride one night, which is a broome tradition. it was great and the sunsets were all amazing.
one day on the beach was lucky enough to see a huge (10' diameter?) manta ray just offshore, I was maybe standing 20' away while he circled back and forth, must have been feeding. way cool!!
most days we tried to get back to the hotel by mid/late afternoon. with that heat nothing felt better than the hotel pool!!
our last day we went to one of the local watering holes where the Goose Club was having a fundraiser. Met some nice people, had a couple of pints and did not win anything in the raffles (just like home).
flight to perth was fine and had a couple of days in perth to wander around and see the sights. Yesterday (Tuesday) met some friends from Edmonton (Gregg & Brenda aka Premmie and G-Spot) and ferried to Rottnest Island (a vaction/wildlfie sanctuary just off the coast) and then back to Fremantle for a "pre-lube" run. Both places were great and the beer and the hashers as always were a lot of fun. Today the rest of the Red Deer gang arrives so should be entertaining.
hope everyone has a great easter - see you soon...
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
the land down under
sorry to be so long away but internet connections have been all dial up since we left Perth. A brief history:
the driving tour was pretty ambitious for miles. Day 1 was about 6 hours driving to Kalbarri. Nice place. Had a great seafood meal at a really neat outdoor place and did a short hike the next morning on a deep river valley. The picture of Monique at "Nature's Window" is from the hike. From there we drove to Denham, a small resort city near Monkey Mia. We got to spend 2 nights at a great little apartment and spent the free day at Monkey Mia. It was one of the best days of the trip. Saw the wild dolphins in the morning and Monique was picked to feed one. Really neat to stand knee deep in water with 6 or 8 dolphins swimming close (a few feet) by. In the afternoon we saw group sex, Australian style. Basically a gang ('alliance') of males corral a female, chase her and trap her so that the leader can have his way with her. They were dolphins by the way. We had gone on a wildlife sailing trip and saw this, lots of other dolphins, some dugong and turtles. At one point we stopped for a swim (the water was a brisk 30 degrees C.). However, after only a couple of minutes the guide called us all out of the water because he was sure he saw a 3 meter tiger shark nearby. We tried to pursue in the boat but lost him so we stopped for another swim. Not sure that was the smartest idea in the world. In the evening we went on the sunset sail (picture above). It was a converted racing boat and the wind was decent so had a great sail.
Next morning off to Coral Bay, a resort on the Ningaloo reef. Another 2 night stay with a free day that we spent on the beach. I snorkelled most of the morning, it was phenomenal! In the afternoon went for a glass bottom boat ride and saw more fish and coral. No reef sharks though, which were supposed to be quite common.
Then to Karratha for 2 nights. Basically a resource town, lots of mining. Toured around during the free day and had lunch at Moby's Restaurant - best fish and chips in Western Australia (according to the advertising anyway). Spent the late afternoon and evening at the hotel pool with an Aussie fellow which somehow ended up in a lot of beer and wine and maybe a little bourbon.
From there an 850 km drive to Broome. It is beautiful here and sure we will muchly enjoy our 4 days.
Miss you all - see you soon
Randy & Monique
Monday, March 3, 2008
once more to singapore
well it is around midnite and we are back at our favorite late night hangout - Changi Airport. Left Bali just after 8:00 pm and now await our flight to Perth at 1:30 a.m.
all goes well here - I think the 9 days on Bali were the quickest 9 days of my life. Didn't feel like we did much - pretty relaxing.
the picture on the last post, in case you wondered was taken around noon at Bali and I believe the sun was pretty much straight up (not much shadow if you look).
anyway, we are off to Oz and greatly looking forward to it. Hope everyone is well
Randy & Monique
all goes well here - I think the 9 days on Bali were the quickest 9 days of my life. Didn't feel like we did much - pretty relaxing.
the picture on the last post, in case you wondered was taken around noon at Bali and I believe the sun was pretty much straight up (not much shadow if you look).
anyway, we are off to Oz and greatly looking forward to it. Hope everyone is well
Randy & Monique
Saturday, March 1, 2008
time flies when you are having fun?
it is hard to believe we have been in bali for 8 days but that is what the calendar says and it is time to head on to Oz tomorrow. we have done 3 tours, laid on the beach, hung out by the hotel pool, wandered aimlessly and had a massage. The tours were alright, particularly when driving and seeing the countryside. Each one involved a temple though. Temples are nice but seen one, seen them all kind of sets in. Each tour also involves a "craft" stop where you spend 5 minutes watching someone do something (woodcarve, stone carve, batik paint, etc.) and then far longer than that shopping at their store. Nice stuff but...
we had really hoped to go hashing here but Monday and Thursday we were on tours and therefore planned on doing the Saturday run. Left a message at the phone number on the website to meet the hash bus but did not hear back. Went to the hash bar early Saturday and they said come back in the afternoon, all the hashers would be there. We went, but they weren't. An Aussie at the bar knew one of the hashers so called on cell and it turned out they had made 'alternate travel plans' and therefore no bus and no hash. it was too damned hot to run anyway so we stayed at the bar, drank beer and played pool. Happy birthday to me!!
met lots of Canucks on the tours and at the hotel. Went for dinner one night with a couple from Penticton. it was quite nice. Food choices here are amazing, Indonesian food is a little dull after Thailand but plenty of options to eat Thai, western, Indian, etc.
one of the pictures here I took of my feet on the beach. Anyone notice something unique about this picture that you would never see at home?? Other picture (sorry - it would not downlaod) is from the "Hall of Justice" which we toured. Lots of paintings that relate what will happen to you in the afterlife if you do bad things in your real life. in this one, if you did not nurse your baby then in the afterlife you had a snake breastfeeding for eternity. Passing gas was also a mortal sin so think I am damned..
miss you all, will update from Oz after we arrive.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
beautiful bali
after a lovely night at the Changi airport where I was only awoken once by a guy with an automatic rifle, we made the flight to Bali. Hotel here is gorgeous, much nicer than the guest houses on the backpack trail. Lights, furniture, the whole works!
Lot more people here than I would have imagined, quite a populated island. we have done a couple of tours (arts, crafts, shopping and some traditional dances). Kind of nice but the roads are a little scary. I could never drive in Asia, there seems to be a no fear mentality.
The beach is a short walk from our hotel, miles of sand. Kind of an older crowd in Sanur (where we are) so we feel young. We spent one day in Kuta (party beach) and it made us feel old.
Today our big plan is to go for a massage, then maybe some time on the beach or by the pool. Maybe the pool bar??? It is a tough life.
Pics are from a dance and a sideways of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur.
hope everyone is doing well - miss you all!!!
Randy & Monique
Friday, February 22, 2008
a quick tour of Malaysia
it is 2:00 a.m. on Friday Feb 23 and I stand in Changi airport in Singapore awaiting our 9:30 flight to Bali. Our plans to catch a sleep at the airport hotel were quashed as they are full so looks like we are napping in chairs. And how did we get here???
the bus from Hat Yai, Thailand to Penang, Malaysia was interesting. I had no idea what to expect in Malaysia, thought it would be like Thailand, only maybe poorer. Very wrong. As soon as you cross the border you notice the improvement in the highways and the care in the landscaping around them. They also have much nicer cars. When we reached the 1st city there were new developments that looked just like suburbia at home. Very nice, very modern.
Arrived in the city of Georgetown on the island (there is a bridge) of Penang. Hadn't done much reading on this either, expected a small city and got a large, densely populated one. Quite late when we arrived so we went direct to the recommended guest house. They had no rooms with a private toilet and it was too late to go searching, so we took what they had. It was a lovely (?!?) attic room, accessed by climbing what was more like a ladder than stairs. Room had 2 beds and nothing else and faced the main street. Not much sleep was had.
Penang being not what we expected, we booked a bus out for the next afternoon, did a little wandering b4 that. I think it is a nice island once awy from Georgetown, but did not find out. The plus and minus of not planning - we ended up somewhere different than expected but were able to leave right away.
the afternoon bus we took went to a city called Tapah. I thought it was going to Tanah Rata. Close though, both are generally in or near an area known as the Cameron Highlands. There were a couple of ladies on the bus who also wanted to go where we wanted and offered to share a cab from Tapah but it was quite expensive and our bus driver insisted it was better to sleep in Tapah and catch the 8:00 a.m. bus to Tanah. There were 2 hotels we could see so we went to number 1. For lack of a better term, it was a shithole. Dirty, water leaking and some lumps on the floor that looked remarkably like mouse dirt. It seems $12 doesn't buy what it used to. But we stayed. Being late (after 9:00), we went looking for a place to eat. Choices were a small roadside cafe or KFC. The cafe won - no English on the menus but the waitress spoke a little and we managed to get some pretty decent chicken and rice.
Next morning we caught the local bus to go to Tanah. The bus was obviously painted with a brush and looked like it was homemade 40 years ago. After a quick stop to get a gallon of oil, we were off. The bus actually did quite well, covered the 52 km. in just over 2 hours. All uphill on a narrow ashphalt road carved in the side of hills/mountains. Lots of switchbacks, one of the most scenic drives I have ever been on.
Tanah Rata is a very nice little city, surrounded by tea plantations and gardens. Went on a little tour that afternoon and saw a plantation, rose gardens, strawberries and a butterfly farm.
The big draw to the area is the cooler weather and jungle hikes. Next morning I headed out with a map (Monique was not feeling up to hiking). Ended up in the jungle for about 5 hours and saw 5 other human beings that whole time. Hike was great, but very difficult with steep climbs and descents. I loved it!!! By the way, we found a really nice little guest house here to stay in for 2 nights.
Thursday morning it was time for another bus (a much nicer one!) and we headed out for Kuala Lumpur. Stayed right in Chinatown at a decent place. Arrived around noon so had lots of time to wander. Next day we did the Petronas towers (they were the tallest buildings in the world until 2003). Great views. And did more wandering, train and monorail rides and a little beer and food. Quality time b4 we caught an evening bus that 5 hours later got us to Singapore. Where the airport hotel is full and I stand at an internet terminal, now at 2:30 in the morning.
Hope everyone is doing well - miss you all!!
PS. Malaysia was great, would love to come back sometime and see some of the stuff we missed.
the bus from Hat Yai, Thailand to Penang, Malaysia was interesting. I had no idea what to expect in Malaysia, thought it would be like Thailand, only maybe poorer. Very wrong. As soon as you cross the border you notice the improvement in the highways and the care in the landscaping around them. They also have much nicer cars. When we reached the 1st city there were new developments that looked just like suburbia at home. Very nice, very modern.
Arrived in the city of Georgetown on the island (there is a bridge) of Penang. Hadn't done much reading on this either, expected a small city and got a large, densely populated one. Quite late when we arrived so we went direct to the recommended guest house. They had no rooms with a private toilet and it was too late to go searching, so we took what they had. It was a lovely (?!?) attic room, accessed by climbing what was more like a ladder than stairs. Room had 2 beds and nothing else and faced the main street. Not much sleep was had.
Penang being not what we expected, we booked a bus out for the next afternoon, did a little wandering b4 that. I think it is a nice island once awy from Georgetown, but did not find out. The plus and minus of not planning - we ended up somewhere different than expected but were able to leave right away.
the afternoon bus we took went to a city called Tapah. I thought it was going to Tanah Rata. Close though, both are generally in or near an area known as the Cameron Highlands. There were a couple of ladies on the bus who also wanted to go where we wanted and offered to share a cab from Tapah but it was quite expensive and our bus driver insisted it was better to sleep in Tapah and catch the 8:00 a.m. bus to Tanah. There were 2 hotels we could see so we went to number 1. For lack of a better term, it was a shithole. Dirty, water leaking and some lumps on the floor that looked remarkably like mouse dirt. It seems $12 doesn't buy what it used to. But we stayed. Being late (after 9:00), we went looking for a place to eat. Choices were a small roadside cafe or KFC. The cafe won - no English on the menus but the waitress spoke a little and we managed to get some pretty decent chicken and rice.
Next morning we caught the local bus to go to Tanah. The bus was obviously painted with a brush and looked like it was homemade 40 years ago. After a quick stop to get a gallon of oil, we were off. The bus actually did quite well, covered the 52 km. in just over 2 hours. All uphill on a narrow ashphalt road carved in the side of hills/mountains. Lots of switchbacks, one of the most scenic drives I have ever been on.
Tanah Rata is a very nice little city, surrounded by tea plantations and gardens. Went on a little tour that afternoon and saw a plantation, rose gardens, strawberries and a butterfly farm.
The big draw to the area is the cooler weather and jungle hikes. Next morning I headed out with a map (Monique was not feeling up to hiking). Ended up in the jungle for about 5 hours and saw 5 other human beings that whole time. Hike was great, but very difficult with steep climbs and descents. I loved it!!! By the way, we found a really nice little guest house here to stay in for 2 nights.
Thursday morning it was time for another bus (a much nicer one!) and we headed out for Kuala Lumpur. Stayed right in Chinatown at a decent place. Arrived around noon so had lots of time to wander. Next day we did the Petronas towers (they were the tallest buildings in the world until 2003). Great views. And did more wandering, train and monorail rides and a little beer and food. Quality time b4 we caught an evening bus that 5 hours later got us to Singapore. Where the airport hotel is full and I stand at an internet terminal, now at 2:30 in the morning.
Hope everyone is doing well - miss you all!!
PS. Malaysia was great, would love to come back sometime and see some of the stuff we missed.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
a nice weekend in Phattalung
after getting up at 5:00 a.m. and catching the 6:00 a.m. train we arrived slightly late at 11:30 in Phattalung. The ride was realy good, scenery from a train somehow seems better than from a bus.
Time for food, so we set off in search of a restaurant. Now , we generally like Thai food but we do like a place with English on the menu so that we know what critter we are eating (the snake, rat and ant eggs are supposed to be delicious though). Phattalung is not a tourist centre, so we had no success. After wandering for awhile, we actually met a white person who asked if we were lost. Explained our predicament and he gave us directions to a nice little place. I tried to order Thai food but waitress would not give me (too spicy I think) and told me I should have the American Fried Rice.
tried phoning Chris (aka Flaming Stiffy) after that assuming he would still be working for a couple of hours. Ended up he was between classes so came right down to pick us up. We did a quick wander thru the school (lots of kids, all in identical uniforms and all smiling and laughing) and then waited in the staff room while he taught a class.
went to a great restaurant out of town that night, best service we have had and across road was another place with live music. Very nice. A couple (?!?) of beers and then home to bed.
Saturday did a little tour to a lake resort, had a great ice cream and a little touring before another great meal and then stopped at a very nice new place by Chris's with live music. Early night.
Sunday Chris was kind enough to drive us the 100 km to Hat Yai where we now await the bus to Penang, Malaysia. Afraid in a couple of hours we need to say good-bye to Thailand - it has been great.
Flamin says hi to everybody, he is doing very well but seems to be a little lonely for female companionship, which is apparently very hard to find in Thailand.
The pics are us out for dinner in Phattalung, view from our guest house on Tao (that is Shark Island), some serious cooking in Chiang Mai and the view from the top of the road to our guest house in Tao (that path of concrete going straight down is indeed a road).
Hope everyone is doing well - miss you all!!
Randy & Monique
Thursday, February 14, 2008
visiting a former hasher
we are now in Phattalung and looking to hook up with Flaming Stiffy, a former Red Deer hasher!
some more info on what we have been doing:
on Samui the night b4 we went to Ang Thong, I went to join a couple of guys having a beer near our cottage. They ended up being Canucks (Vancouver) and ended up having many beers. the wake up at 6:30 the next morning came very early but the scenery and snorkelling were so great it was quickly forgotten.
Our place on Tao was amazing, great views, nice beach and great snorkelling. Our last day there it was very windy so rather than snorkel we went hiking. It is hard to believe they can make roads that steep, there is no way I would ever drive on them. It was hard enough to walk up/down them. On returning we came across a young French couple who had crashed their dirtbike on the road. Helped them get the bike up a hill and them on their way, she had hit her head but hopefully all was OK.
On Thursday we ferried 2 hours to Chumpon. There we met Richai, our very good friend. He sits at a table in front of a shop and helps tourists. Ended up sitting and having a beer with him (and buying a drink for him). He even helped us cross the street (for a small donation). Neat old man and I learned something new from him. In Thailand, you see lots of guys hanging around drinking out of small brown bottles. I had earlier discovered these bottles were from Red Bull and a similar energy drink. I learned from him that stores will refill these bottles with vodka for easy portability. What a great idea!!
And a short top 3 list:
Aneeda's loudest screams:
3. on the bamboo raft as it looked like it was going to tip.
2. on the motorbike when the relatively large snake darted across the road in front of us
1. in the shower on Samui when she discovered she had a gecko in the shower with her.
the scream on the dumping of the kayak was probably louder, but being underwater nobody heard.
And sorry Nat, Sparky's record is secure as I managed to avoid any mud wrestling on Samui.
Also, Monique had a suggestion that the rest of the "interhashers" start a blog so we can keep up with your travels.
Anyway, we are now in Phattalung where a former Red Deer hasher now resides. Got in just b4 lunch and discovered there is little English spoken/on menus when you leave the tourist zones. we managed to get fed though. Will catch up with Stiffy when he is done work later.
Hope everyone is well!!
Mobey's
some more info on what we have been doing:
on Samui the night b4 we went to Ang Thong, I went to join a couple of guys having a beer near our cottage. They ended up being Canucks (Vancouver) and ended up having many beers. the wake up at 6:30 the next morning came very early but the scenery and snorkelling were so great it was quickly forgotten.
Our place on Tao was amazing, great views, nice beach and great snorkelling. Our last day there it was very windy so rather than snorkel we went hiking. It is hard to believe they can make roads that steep, there is no way I would ever drive on them. It was hard enough to walk up/down them. On returning we came across a young French couple who had crashed their dirtbike on the road. Helped them get the bike up a hill and them on their way, she had hit her head but hopefully all was OK.
On Thursday we ferried 2 hours to Chumpon. There we met Richai, our very good friend. He sits at a table in front of a shop and helps tourists. Ended up sitting and having a beer with him (and buying a drink for him). He even helped us cross the street (for a small donation). Neat old man and I learned something new from him. In Thailand, you see lots of guys hanging around drinking out of small brown bottles. I had earlier discovered these bottles were from Red Bull and a similar energy drink. I learned from him that stores will refill these bottles with vodka for easy portability. What a great idea!!
And a short top 3 list:
Aneeda's loudest screams:
3. on the bamboo raft as it looked like it was going to tip.
2. on the motorbike when the relatively large snake darted across the road in front of us
1. in the shower on Samui when she discovered she had a gecko in the shower with her.
the scream on the dumping of the kayak was probably louder, but being underwater nobody heard.
And sorry Nat, Sparky's record is secure as I managed to avoid any mud wrestling on Samui.
Also, Monique had a suggestion that the rest of the "interhashers" start a blog so we can keep up with your travels.
Anyway, we are now in Phattalung where a former Red Deer hasher now resides. Got in just b4 lunch and discovered there is little English spoken/on menus when you leave the tourist zones. we managed to get fed though. Will catch up with Stiffy when he is done work later.
Hope everyone is well!!
Mobey's
Monday, February 11, 2008
new island new cottage
important things 1st - the baby mentioned in the comment on the last post is my new grandnephew - congrats Sabrina, glad everyone is doing well!
on our last full day on Samui we took a day trip to Ang Thong National Park. About an hour by speedboat to a series of islands. Beautiful. Did some snorkellng, kayaking and hiking. Dumped Monique into the ocean at end of kayak trip. The ride back was pretty rough, probably 8 to 10 foot swells in a speedboat. Surprised no one was sick.
next day took ferry to Koh Tao, a smaller island that is a big diving destination. roads are a challenge (cabs are all 4 wheel drive trucks) but the scenery is amazing. And good snorkelling from the beach in front of our hotel. we look out on Shark Island but so far have seen no sharks.
could say a bunch more but connection is slow and keyboardis terrible so until later..
on our last full day on Samui we took a day trip to Ang Thong National Park. About an hour by speedboat to a series of islands. Beautiful. Did some snorkellng, kayaking and hiking. Dumped Monique into the ocean at end of kayak trip. The ride back was pretty rough, probably 8 to 10 foot swells in a speedboat. Surprised no one was sick.
next day took ferry to Koh Tao, a smaller island that is a big diving destination. roads are a challenge (cabs are all 4 wheel drive trucks) but the scenery is amazing. And good snorkelling from the beach in front of our hotel. we look out on Shark Island but so far have seen no sharks.
could say a bunch more but connection is slow and keyboardis terrible so until later..
Friday, February 8, 2008
same island, different cottage
island life is easy to get used to! Thx for the comment Phyllis, somehow it makes it better being here when we know how cold it is there! we have been taking life pretty easy, went to Chaweng Beach one day (the most popular) which is 6km of sand - pretty nice. next day we moved to our new cottage, smaller center on north coast called Mae Nam. we were able to upgrade and are now right on the beach. It is great to gp to bed hearing nothing but waves and birds. Nothing real exciting to report. Have been spending our days swimming, strolling on beaches or touring the island on a scooter. Pics above are the swimming pool at our guest house in Cambodia and breakfast at our 1st hotel in Samui. miss you all!!! |
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
samui sun
after a relax day in Chiang Mai we flew out to the island of Samui in southern Thailand. had looked at taking trains/buses but would have killed almost 2 days so the 2 1/2 hour flight seemed better.
Like any other Thai destination, the worst part is arriving. We have a guide book that says how and how much it should cost to get to where you want to go but the taxi drivers, etc. are always there pushing for higher amounts and the way you want to go seems to be difficult to find. Anyway, we ended up doing a lot of walking and a short taxi and truck ride to arrive at Lamai Beach. First couple of places we tried to find a room were full but then came across the place we originally wanted to find and they had rooms. A little more than we wanted to spend ($40/night) but is a nice cottage with air, hot shower, TV, fridge and breakfast included. Also a very short walk to the beach!
went for a swim (not Monique) and played in the surf, very nice. Also relaxed in the sun and I had my first Thai massage. For such a little girl she pushed me around pretty good.
Dinner was amazing. A number of places set up tables with candles on the beach. We stopped at one close to our cottage - the food was great, the beer was cold and it cost less than $15. I love Thailand.
after that, went to the bar area. Each bar is a small shack with bar stools around and a couple of tables and there are about 10 in the same area. And they all have a stripper pole in the middle. Ended up at the "Ladies Bar", very entertaining. the bartenders play games with you (connect 4 and Jenga) and they never seem to lose. they also dance on the pole (fully dressed of course, but fun to watch!). After that we went to the "Lady Boy" show. Very over the top, with boys dressed as girls, some with "cosmetic enhancement". When I tipped the waiter/waitress, he/she insisted I must tuck the tip in his/her bra. Not sure if I should have been thrilled or not. Maybe it was the beer, but Thai men can look scarily attractive, I would be greatly afraid to be single and picking up a "girl" here, you never know what you get.
today we got a scooter and cruised the island. Very nice and found a great little cottage to stay at later.
to be continued...
Like any other Thai destination, the worst part is arriving. We have a guide book that says how and how much it should cost to get to where you want to go but the taxi drivers, etc. are always there pushing for higher amounts and the way you want to go seems to be difficult to find. Anyway, we ended up doing a lot of walking and a short taxi and truck ride to arrive at Lamai Beach. First couple of places we tried to find a room were full but then came across the place we originally wanted to find and they had rooms. A little more than we wanted to spend ($40/night) but is a nice cottage with air, hot shower, TV, fridge and breakfast included. Also a very short walk to the beach!
went for a swim (not Monique) and played in the surf, very nice. Also relaxed in the sun and I had my first Thai massage. For such a little girl she pushed me around pretty good.
Dinner was amazing. A number of places set up tables with candles on the beach. We stopped at one close to our cottage - the food was great, the beer was cold and it cost less than $15. I love Thailand.
after that, went to the bar area. Each bar is a small shack with bar stools around and a couple of tables and there are about 10 in the same area. And they all have a stripper pole in the middle. Ended up at the "Ladies Bar", very entertaining. the bartenders play games with you (connect 4 and Jenga) and they never seem to lose. they also dance on the pole (fully dressed of course, but fun to watch!). After that we went to the "Lady Boy" show. Very over the top, with boys dressed as girls, some with "cosmetic enhancement". When I tipped the waiter/waitress, he/she insisted I must tuck the tip in his/her bra. Not sure if I should have been thrilled or not. Maybe it was the beer, but Thai men can look scarily attractive, I would be greatly afraid to be single and picking up a "girl" here, you never know what you get.
today we got a scooter and cruised the island. Very nice and found a great little cottage to stay at later.
to be continued...
Sunday, February 3, 2008
in and around chiang mai
cooking school was a lot of fun. Good group, a young Aussie couple, a girl from Bulgaria and a lady from Wales. Our instructor took us down to the market and explained the various fruits, veggies and hebs and we bought what we needed. Then back and cooked 5 or 6 dishes and ate. and ate. And ate. the pics will be posted on their website if interested (http://www.cookinthai.com/) sometime b4 feb 14 - we took the class on Jan 31.
next morning we left for a 3 day trek. Day 1 was drive, market stop, drive, then elephant ride (lots of fun) and about 4 hours of hiking to a small village. There were 12 of us (4 Dutch, 3 Koreans, 1 Brit, 2 French and us Canadians), stayed at our guide's house and had a great time. All the village children (about 30) came and sang songs, the stars were amazing and the food and beer was great. Sleeping was a little rough - 12 people in a room on a concrete floor with very thin mat. Lots of snoring, teeth grinding and the rooster started to crow at 2:30! And it was very cold.
next day we divided in 2 groups. The French couple, a Dutch couple and us hiked to a "waterfall camp" out in the mountains. It was beautiful, with a bath area where they had partially dammed the creek and a shower where they ran creek water through a bamboo shaft. Very cold but nice to get clean. Beds were a little more comfy here and we had more blankets and less people to make noise so was a little better for sleeping. Day 3 was another 3 hours of hiking, a stop at a waterfall for a swim (I was the only one to brave the water - very cold) and then a bamboo raft ride. Monique screamed a little bit and we got very wet!! We have some great photos though.
back to our hotel b4 5:00. Went out for a quick dinner and found a massive market area with all the roads closed. Not sure if this was the normal Sunday thing or some festival but there were a lot of people and kind of neat to wander. Aneeda stopped roadside for a much needed massage.
today will be a quiet day and tomorrow we are beach bound. Having a great time, hope everyone is doing well!
Randy & Monique
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
chiang mai 1
arrived in chiang mai after a 6 hour bus ride yesterday. decent scenery and the road was better than I had expected but still alittle rough in places. muchdifferent than Bangkok, although still big enough with 1.6 million people. it was late afternoon when we got here, but found our guest house (very nice) and toured the markets (7 blocks of shopping heaven/hell). today we wandered around the old city, saw a few temples and a few sites. Lo and behold we found the Hash House Pub & Restaurant. It is a novel concept, I think we need to start one at home. Anyway, after a 5 hour lunch (was it slow service or good company and cold beer???) we headed back to our hotel. we may head back for dinner....
tomorrow we try and teach Aneeda how to cook. I will go along just for the entertainment.
miss you all!!
Mobey's
PS. I think I need to give up on pics. We are in a decent hotel here but still the connection is painfully slow and no USB port. If you want pics, do an internet seacrh of the places and picture Aneeda and I there. Remember I look like Russell Crowe and Aneeda is a white JLo. XXOOX
tomorrow we try and teach Aneeda how to cook. I will go along just for the entertainment.
miss you all!!
Mobey's
PS. I think I need to give up on pics. We are in a decent hotel here but still the connection is painfully slow and no USB port. If you want pics, do an internet seacrh of the places and picture Aneeda and I there. Remember I look like Russell Crowe and Aneeda is a white JLo. XXOOX
Sunday, January 27, 2008
sukhotai
first, would like to apologize for no pics. lots of internet cafes but the connectons are generally really slow and most do not have a USB port to connect the camera. Maybe in Chang Mai??
Sukhotai is very nice. did a lot of walking yesterday. Nice countryside, neat ruins and not too many people. And everywhere a Buddha. And by the way, very hot. still don't think we have seen a day under 30. It is a tough life.
Aneeda did her 1st Thai massage yesterday, really enjoyed it. I sat and had a beer and waited. Really enjoyed it.
Today we rented bikes and went about 10km to "New Sukhotai". Nice enough city, wandered the markets and toured around. Pretty relaxing...
hope everyone is doing fine - miss you all!!
Randy & Monique
Sukhotai is very nice. did a lot of walking yesterday. Nice countryside, neat ruins and not too many people. And everywhere a Buddha. And by the way, very hot. still don't think we have seen a day under 30. It is a tough life.
Aneeda did her 1st Thai massage yesterday, really enjoyed it. I sat and had a beer and waited. Really enjoyed it.
Today we rented bikes and went about 10km to "New Sukhotai". Nice enough city, wandered the markets and toured around. Pretty relaxing...
hope everyone is doing fine - miss you all!!
Randy & Monique
Saturday, January 26, 2008
bye bye bangkok
so we had planned to spend 3 nights in Bangkok but saw it all in a day and headed out after 2 days. Actually did not see much, toured a few Buddhas and temples and wandered Khao San Rd (the backpacker hangout). Bangkok is big, crowded and traffic is a nightmare with the related pollution. We did take a water taxi when we could, which was much better.
On Khao San we stopped for lunch and a couple of beer, ended up chatting with a Scot and a Brit. Booth agreed Bangkok was difficult but that it was a great place once you get used to it. Maybe we will stop again on our way back south.
On a related note, the Brit and the Scot both agreed on a number of things about the Welsh - something about Wellies, sheep and electric fences??
this morning (Friday) did a 6 1/2 hour bus ride to Sukothai, which is the ancient capital and has a lot of ruins. It is a small city (40,000) so a little calmer. We plan to spend 2 days/3 nights and then up to Chang Mai.
the scenery from the bus was nice - rice paddies, a few cities, etc. buit is pretty flat - makes Saskatchewan look like the Rockies. met a very nice man on the bus so that helped the trip go by.
hope everyone is doing well!
On Khao San we stopped for lunch and a couple of beer, ended up chatting with a Scot and a Brit. Booth agreed Bangkok was difficult but that it was a great place once you get used to it. Maybe we will stop again on our way back south.
On a related note, the Brit and the Scot both agreed on a number of things about the Welsh - something about Wellies, sheep and electric fences??
this morning (Friday) did a 6 1/2 hour bus ride to Sukothai, which is the ancient capital and has a lot of ruins. It is a small city (40,000) so a little calmer. We plan to spend 2 days/3 nights and then up to Chang Mai.
the scenery from the bus was nice - rice paddies, a few cities, etc. buit is pretty flat - makes Saskatchewan look like the Rockies. met a very nice man on the bus so that helped the trip go by.
hope everyone is doing well!
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
on to singapore
again no pics as at a terminal in Singapore airport that has no connection for camera.
tuesday and most of wednesday in Siem Reap were quiet days - wandered around the markets, hung around by the pool, read and relax. maybe a beer or two. met a guy from edmonton at breakfast one morning - small world.
some last thoughts on cambodia - very peaceful, only saw one army guy with a machine gun in 5 days. it is a 2 wheel kingdom, bikes, small motorcycles and tuk tuks. There are some cars but few compared to bikes and almost all of them are Toyota Camry's. Also the currency is really weird. They use the riel, which converts at 4,000 per $US. But everything that is worth $1US or more is priced in $US. And everyone uses $US. Except there is no coin, for small change under $1 they use riel. So the price of something might be $2.50 but what it really is is $2US and 2,000 riel. And if you give them $3US you get 2,000 riel back. it sounds simple but generally it confused the hell out of me.
Siem Reap is a tourism growth city. lots of new looking hotels and more under construction. roads to the more remote temples are being improved which will greatly increase the crowds. go now if you can!!
anyway, wednesday night we made our way to Singapore and stayed at a real hotel with furniture, a TV and a bathtub. Nice, but probably awhile b4 we see that again. Spent Thursday walking around singapore - nice. big buildings, interesting chinatown and very very clean. And lots of shopping (yeehaw???). Now at airport and on our way to bangkok. should be a thrill!!!
hope everyone is doing well!
tuesday and most of wednesday in Siem Reap were quiet days - wandered around the markets, hung around by the pool, read and relax. maybe a beer or two. met a guy from edmonton at breakfast one morning - small world.
some last thoughts on cambodia - very peaceful, only saw one army guy with a machine gun in 5 days. it is a 2 wheel kingdom, bikes, small motorcycles and tuk tuks. There are some cars but few compared to bikes and almost all of them are Toyota Camry's. Also the currency is really weird. They use the riel, which converts at 4,000 per $US. But everything that is worth $1US or more is priced in $US. And everyone uses $US. Except there is no coin, for small change under $1 they use riel. So the price of something might be $2.50 but what it really is is $2US and 2,000 riel. And if you give them $3US you get 2,000 riel back. it sounds simple but generally it confused the hell out of me.
Siem Reap is a tourism growth city. lots of new looking hotels and more under construction. roads to the more remote temples are being improved which will greatly increase the crowds. go now if you can!!
anyway, wednesday night we made our way to Singapore and stayed at a real hotel with furniture, a TV and a bathtub. Nice, but probably awhile b4 we see that again. Spent Thursday walking around singapore - nice. big buildings, interesting chinatown and very very clean. And lots of shopping (yeehaw???). Now at airport and on our way to bangkok. should be a thrill!!!
hope everyone is doing well!
Monday, January 21, 2008
beautiful cambodia
sunday after last post was a quiet day, markets, cafes, a craft school for disadvantaged and disabled youth, the hotel pool and a couple of beer. Monday was a Wow! day, absolutely great. On Sunday we had asked at the hotel desk about going to some distant temples - guide book said a dirt bike was needed, one clerk said tuk tuk was OK but the other said you needed to book a car. Price was a little much so we decided to go to nearby temples on Monday. But tuk tuk driver showed up in the morning and said he could take us - would be a long day and cost a little more but was agreed. i have never eaten so much dust in my life as much of the roads were dirt/sand/clay and/or very rough pavement. it took us 2 hours to get to 1st temple and then another 1 1/2 hours each to the next 2, and then 1 1/2 hours home. But what a day. temples were amazing, first was a 30 minute climb up to a riverbed and waterfall. no buildings, the carvings are all in the rock around and under the river. 2nd temple was small but intricate. Third was our favorite - very few people and the temple is still in the condition they found it. much has collapsed and tree roots grow thru the walls but really neat to clambour around on the buildings and explore with a very friendly local guide.
probably better than the temples though was all the driving thru the countryside. saw how people lived - very simple but nice. kids generally looked happy and many waved - in some places we went i think it was pretty unique for them to see white people in a tuk tuk, there were very few others we saw that day. stopped for gas at a typical cambodian gas station in a small town. if you want 1 litre gas, they have it pre-measured in Johnny Walker scotch bottles (probably tastes better than the scotch originally did!), if you want 2 litres it is a coke bottle full. the people at the store were quite amused with us. we also stopped at a large county market near where How (our tuk tuk driver) was born. it was huge and you could buy anything. No hawkers selling tourist crap though.
back to hotel after 6:00 and can't remember a shower ever feeling so good. or a cold beer ever tasting so good!
great day!
no pics as connection here is painful slow - maybe will have better luck in singapore or bangkok.
hope everyone is doing well!
probably better than the temples though was all the driving thru the countryside. saw how people lived - very simple but nice. kids generally looked happy and many waved - in some places we went i think it was pretty unique for them to see white people in a tuk tuk, there were very few others we saw that day. stopped for gas at a typical cambodian gas station in a small town. if you want 1 litre gas, they have it pre-measured in Johnny Walker scotch bottles (probably tastes better than the scotch originally did!), if you want 2 litres it is a coke bottle full. the people at the store were quite amused with us. we also stopped at a large county market near where How (our tuk tuk driver) was born. it was huge and you could buy anything. No hawkers selling tourist crap though.
back to hotel after 6:00 and can't remember a shower ever feeling so good. or a cold beer ever tasting so good!
great day!
no pics as connection here is painful slow - maybe will have better luck in singapore or bangkok.
hope everyone is doing well!
Saturday, January 19, 2008
wat's up in Siem Reap
sitting in an internet cafe on Sunday morning in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Pics look doubtful as connection is pretty slow.
so how did we get here? left home Wednesday a.m. at 9:00 Red Deer time. arrived at our hotel at 5:00 a.m. Friday morning Red Deer time. stops along the way included LA, Taipei, Singapore, Da Nang (Vietnam) and finally Siem Reap. Singapore Air was great, good food, lots of drink (but I was not drinking) and the flight attendants were very cute in their traditional outfits. Sadly I was fighting a head cold/flu so did not enjoy a lot of it. However, like a typical male I kept my suffering to myself and smiled along - no whining!
so how did we get here? left home Wednesday a.m. at 9:00 Red Deer time. arrived at our hotel at 5:00 a.m. Friday morning Red Deer time. stops along the way included LA, Taipei, Singapore, Da Nang (Vietnam) and finally Siem Reap. Singapore Air was great, good food, lots of drink (but I was not drinking) and the flight attendants were very cute in their traditional outfits. Sadly I was fighting a head cold/flu so did not enjoy a lot of it. However, like a typical male I kept my suffering to myself and smiled along - no whining!
Arriving in Cambodia was a unique experience. Airport is slightly larger than Red Deer, looks like a new and very nice building. upon entering the terminal, someone at the door required to see our boarding passes. This confused us as we were off the plane. But... Once past this guy, entered a room with a big semi-circle counter behind which there were 14 men in shirts and ties sitting in a row. Lined up to see guy #1, who happily took our $40US (plus$4 because we had no photos) and the 3 forms we had filled out on the plane, each of which contained pretty much the same info. Then we lined up to see guy #14. Meanwhile, there was much shuffling of papers behind the counter as our passports and documents went thru the process. I think it was 1 guys job to look at the passport photo, find the person in the crowd and stare at them for 10 or more seconds. Anyway, roughly 5 minutes later guy #14 called our name and we got our paperwork and passports back. Then went to the next room, where there were 12 customs officials (much like US customs in Calgary) and lined up again. Got our pic taken and passport stamped and were on our way. A cynical person would suspect that all 27 people working at airport customs were related to a politician somewhere as appeared to be the simplest job in the world, seperating tourists from there money.
next to baggage, where we were thrilled to see our bags that we had checked in Calgary almost 2 days prior. next thrill was to see a young fellow holding a sign with our name on it and we were off on our 1st tuk tuk ride (small motorcycle pulling a cart). short hop to our hotel.
the hotel is a really neat place - I think it is a fine example of a late night beer drinking idea that someone actually followed up on the next day. Picture a few Norwegian packpackers who had fallen in love with Siem Reap who have the brilliant thought to open their own hotel, cater to backpackers and then they can get paid to hang around at their own bar and do the things they enjoy doing. Brilliant! And one of them must have been a hasher as their symbol is a footprint. And just before we got there, probably during another drinking session, they decided they should have a pool at the hotel to hang out in. And maybe shape it like a foot and put a seat and some jets in each of the 'toes' to give the jacuzzi experience. Really neat. And the staff, which are mainly locals, are incredibly nice, helpful and cute.
Siem Reap is a nice little city (160,000 people), much cleaner than I expected. Markets are fun, food is good and the beer is cheap. Yesterday spent a day at Ankgor, absolutely amazing. Visited a couple of different temples and tomorrow will do a few more. It was very hot (must have been 30 plus in the afternoon). Today we will do the markets and relax, taking in a play tonite put on by an orphanage.
it is great to finally be here - hope everyone is doing well at home.
Monday, January 14, 2008
back on the road (or on the air)
it was great to be home but we now we are heading back out. It was wonderful to catch up with everybody, highlights included Grey Cup at Brent & Claudie's, hanging out with a 2 year old (including Xmas and going out to cut down our own tree), New Year's barn party at Wayne's and going back country X-country skiing with Wayne, Mona and Brian. Also appreciated going to Kelly Collier's retirement lunch - after a mere 23+ years he has left Parkland to enjoy some travel/relax time with Wendy - good luck!
A few pics of some of these are attached.
Backpacks are packed and we are ready to go. we are heading out Wednesday afternoon from Calgary and, hopefully, a mere 40 hours later, we will be in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Will try to update as often as we can as I think there are quite a few internet cafes throughout.
Hope everyone had a great holiday season. Talk to you soon!
Randy & Monique
Randy & Monique
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