Pai ctd.

Hi again,

So we've booked our onward travel, and it's going to be a long slog! Our first bus leaves at 8.30am tomorrow, and then we have a connecting bus in Chiang Mai at around lunchtime. From there, it's another six hours to the Laos border, where we will stay for the night. Then it's up early the next morning, through the border checks, and on to Luang Nam Tha in northern Laos (where we should arrive around dinner time). So we have two full days of travel ahead of us.

Pai has been pleasant. We switched hotels and found a real bargain, so that's why we decided to stay here another night instead of heading to Chiang Mai. We've been reading in hammocks a lot, and planning out our remaining time in Asia. The time is flying, and we have a lot of ground to cover!

So I don't think I'll be blogging until we arrive in Luang Nam Tha. Goodbye Thailand--see you again in a couple of weeks!

Love,
Ames

Chiang Mai--->Pai

Hi there,

Here we are in the hippified town of Pai. It's all dreadlocks, reggae, and baggy clothes here--even more so because there was a big reggae festival going on, plus there was a full moon.

It's nice here, but it's very touristy. I think we'll stay another night or two and then head to Laos. I'm craving a bit more adventure--but I have to say that the Western food and ease of travel has been appreciated.

We had our first Thai massages yesterday. I was stood on, elbowed, kicked, and punched...and it felt great! An hour was only about $5 US, so it was very well worth it.

Enjoy the photos!

Cheers,

Amy

Ayuthaya--->Chiang Mai

Hi everyone,

We're in Chiang Mai now, and liking it, but already planning our exit to Pai tomorrow. We'll have to return to Chiang Mai for another night anyways, so it's not a big deal. We'll take an early bus in the morning.

The overnight train was about 1000x better than last time, and our hotel here is lovely. We even spent the afternoon by the pool--felt like a holiday from our holiday! To top it off, we had some delicious Mexican food last night (with actual black beans...yum!). We also went to an enormous night bazaar last night, which we'll head for tonight too.

No pictures today, but I'll write more and post some in a couple of days from Pai.

Love,
Ames

Ayuthaya ctd.

Hello again,

We're taking advantage of the ultra-cheap, air-conditioned internet cafe here in Ayuthaya. That means I've posted even more photos--I can't seem to stop!

We spent yesterday evening walking amongst the ruins and then stopping at an outdoor market for dinner. We split a whole fish that had been cooked on a rotisserie, and it was delicious. The meal came with all sorts of weird and wonderful sides and greens (and all for about $5 US dollars total).

Today we rented the bikes and hit the road. Traffic is rather slow-moving, and you can't really get lost because Ayuthaya is an island. The first temple we visited had an enormous bronze Buddha and also a green sandstone Buddha that is 1500 years old. The monk there gave us a blessing, showered us with holy water, and then gave us woven bracelets to wear.

We catch the train in about 5 hours. We have our bikes until then, so we might keep exploring--if the heat allows us to. The weather forecast is calling for temperatures over 100 degrees F for the next few days.

Love,
Ames

Bangkok--->Ayuthaya

Hi everyone,

Greetings from Ayuthaya, ancient capital of Thailand. We left the current capital, Bangkok, this morning and arrived just in time to find a hotel room and grab lunch.

Ayuthaya is famous for its ruins, as it was the capital in the 1700's. We'll stay here for just one night and cycle around the ruins and temples, and then catch another sleeper train tomorrow night and head to Chiang Mai.

Bangkok blew me away. The city is so exciting and there is so much to see--I can't wait to return in a few short weeks. We stayed near the backpacker ghetto of Khoa San Road and then took public transport to the Grand Palace, main temples, and downtown. My favorite part was the Reclining Buddha--it was absolutely massive! I was also impressed by the faith Thai people place in the famous Emerald Buddha. You couldn't help but be awed by it.

I'll blog again from Chiang Mai in a couple of days.

Love,
Ames

Bangkok continued

Hi everyone,

So I love Bangkok. Here are a few photos of what we got up to yesterday, and I'll write a longer post soon.

Love,

Ames

Koh Lanta--->Trang--->Bangkok

Sawadee kah! (or however you spell it)

Well, we escaped the beaches and took the sleeper train to Bangkok. I think that Lanta could have been nicer under better circumstances, but as it was, I was happy to move on.

We stayed two nights at our air-conditioned hotel--just long enough for Rory to recover. I ended up paying A LOT of money for a tuk-tuk to carry us and our stuff 200m or so, but it was still worth it. Rory was one sick puppy.

We were able to book a bus to Trang and connecting night train to Bangkok with only a day's notice, and we weren't swindled too badly either. Once in Trang, I ran into someone from high school--such a small world! So we had a good chat with them, a bit of food, and then took our place in second class.

As bad luck would have it, Rory and I were the beds closest to a set of broken doors. Those broken doors meant that the train was extremely loud--like pain the eardrums loud. And we were on the train for close to 16 hours. Rory was able to sleep some, but I only managed about an hour and a half, so I feel a bit zombie-like. On the plus side, Bangkok looks great and we managed to get a room at a nice hotel. I think we'll spend two or three nights here before continuing our move up north.

I might have more pictures to post tomorrow.

Love,
Ames

Singapore--->Phuket--->Ko Phi Phi--->Ko Lanta

Hi everyone

It's been awhile--four days now? Anyways, we've been moving around a lot and not finding time to put pictures up or blog. We spent one night in Phuket, took the ferry early the next morning to Ko Phi Phi, spent two nights there, and then took a ferry to Ko Lanta yesterday. I'm not sure how long we'll stay--we'll leave as soon as Rory feels well enough for the ferry/train to Bangkok.

I can't say I've had much fun. Phuket was a poophole, Ko Phi Phi was a circus, and now we've had a challenging time on Ko Lanta too. Rory had very bad food poisoning last night, and we also had bed bugs. We're moving hotels today, but that won't change the crazy heat and the fact that there are tiny stinging jellyfish in the water. Even changing hotels in an hour will be difficult, as Rory can barely stand at the moment. We need air-con so that Rory can recover, even though our budget wouldn't normally stretch to that.

So, no photos yet, and I don't know if there will be until Bangkok. Oh, and one more thing: I hate Thai toilets.

Love,
Amy

Singapore: one more time

Hi there,

We've come to the end of our first stint in Singapore. Our flight to Phuket, Thailand is this evening and I'm very excited for beaches and Thai food! But I also really liked Singapore and am looking forward to returning here in a little less than six weeks.

We hit Chinatown and the Arab District yesterday, and both were atmospheric and exciting. I've included some pictures of the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown and also smoking the shisha on Arab Street. Despite the intense heat and humidity and jetlag, I had a great day.

We met a lovely German woman who works with primate conservation in Vietnam. She works with an endangered monkey on a small island--only 70 animals left--and she's in Singapore to present her case at the Asia for Animals conference. She gave me a card and told me they are looking for someone in Cambodia--bad timing, but very cool none-the-less. It's fantastic to know what jobs are out there.

I'll blog again from Thailand!

Love,
Ames