Slowly Falling in Love With Chiang Mai

Wednesday, February 3

Tuesday night Tina and I flew from Siem Reap, Cambodia to Bangkok, Thailand in just under an hour's time. We landed, grabbed the first cab we found, headed straight for our hotel (conveniently booked less than 2 miles away) showered off our Cambodia dirt and fell fast asleep...ok I say all this like we were lazy...it was past 1am by the time we were in bed!

The next morning we woke up, ate a quick breakfast in the hotel lobby, and jumped on the 10am shuttle ride to the airport...we were headed to Chiang Mai at the northern tip of Thailand! Another puddle jumper, up and down in 50 minutes {as opposed to the overnight, 12 hour, sleeper buses everyone thought we should have taken??} and we were in Chiang Mai!  We found our little hostel (another room to ourselves...score!) grabbed my lonely planet, and we were off; the city was ours to explore for the afternoon!

Although our Lonely Planet walking tour of Bangkok did not go as smoothly as planned, we decided we were in a fresh city and we'd take a fresh start! Armed with a walking map of Chiang Mai we started off on our route and spent the afternoon checking out the unique temples, cafes, and side shops that Chiang Mai had to offer.

[ Side note: having never stepped foot into ANY sort of temple before this past August, I've been on a quest to learn what I can about them while I am here. They may not be of my personal religion or belief system, but the artwork and details that go into these buildings is truly a beautiful work of art. Likewise, I have been shocked to see just how truly different the temples are from country to country and region to region. It was also interesting to note {and maybe someone more knowledgeable than me can help me out here} that it appears that different customs and traditions are practiced in the Buddhist temples in Thailand in comparison to those in Taiwan as well as having VERY different images of Buddha displayed in the 2 countries temples. ]

Our temple hoping included, but was not limited to, visits to Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Phan Tao, (which had a distinctive Japanese feel to the temple), Si Phum, Wat Pra Sing, & Wat Pad Thai....ok maybe Pad Thai isn't a temple, but we sure had our fill of the delicious Thai noodles! During one of our temple visits we also stumbled upon a group of young boy monks in school. I asked one of their superiors and was told that once a week their classes pertained to some form of temple art and that currently they were working on making tin lanterns and symbols for the temple. It was fun to watch them for a while and get to know a little bit more about what they were doing in those mysterious orange robes we saw all over the country! 

As the afternoon came to a close we found ourselves once again hungry, seriously what's new lol, and about that time stumbled upon a night market outside a large shopping mall...SCORE! Tina and I split some type of Thai noodle soup that looked good as well as a hearty portion of mango sticky rice followed by a Thai crepe of sorts...what I said we were hungry! The market was right up my ally! Filled with hand crafted Thai souvenirs, crafts, and handmade clothes...this girl could have spent hours there! Of course, I was in Thailand, so I had to snag some elephant themed goodies before we left. 

Before calling it a night {as our most anticipated day of our 2 week trip was just around the corner!} we found a rooftop bar to relax in for a while while soaking up the amazing city views...I have to say, Chiang Mai can so quickly steal your heart!

PS - Ok, I can't leave out the funnies, our night didn't end on such a romantic sounding note. The hotel we stayed at came with directions to get to it saying to show the taxi driver the name of a boxing ring and have them drop you off there "near the hotel". We thought "near the hotel" meant it was probably on the same block. Or...about 3 yards from the door of our hostel room haha. So naturally, I stood outside with all the cooks from the restaurant and watched some of the boxing match before going to bed (Mother Goose had a rhyme along those lines right?!?!) I can't say I know anything about boxing, but watching 2 scrawny Asian guys go at it pretty hysterical if you ask me!

Sunrise Over Angkor Wat

Tuesday, February 2

Today was by far are earliest of days during vacation, but holy moly was it worth it! We found a tuk-tuk driver Monday night that agreed to pick us up at our hotel at 5:00 {yes you read that right...my 4:30am alarm was not a welcome sound!} We agreed to $7 a person for Tina and I to your us around some of the fourth out temples, off the main circuit, starting with sunrise at Angkor Wat.

We arrived to Angkor Wat a little after 5:30 in the morning and were honestly surprised at the number of other crazies that were out there with us chasing the sunrise (it may not have helped that the previous 2 mornings apparently had poopy/cloudy sunrises so some people came back in hope of a good show!) I'll be honest, there aren't really words to describe what we saw. Sunrises are always an amazing spectacle to watch, but when you have the opportunity to watch the sun rising over a 1,000+ year old structure and you begin thinking about how many sunrises this place has seen and that more than likely the men who built this temple 1,000 years ago sat in the same spot watching the same sunrise...you can't help but getting goosebumps while realizing how amazing our world truly is that we live! It reminded me so much of my time 5 years earlier watching the same sun come up behind the pyramids in Egypt...sometimes life is surreal!

After the sunrise we spent a little time exploring Angkor Wat a second time and then made stops to some further out & less touristy temples (off the main route the drivers take) including Preah Khan, Neat Pean, Prerup, and Ta Prohm. These temples, although not as well kept as the "main ones" were fascinating in their own rights and allowed us to truly explore the temple and imagine what it may have once looked like in  its former glory.

We had every intention of having our driver with us until noon, but around 10am we started to feel the pull of our eye lids and we had him drop us off around 11 with just enough time to nap, pack up the rest of our belongings, and check out of our hostel.

Our afternoon was filled with lunch (umm hello spicy papaya salad where have you been my whole life?!) walking through the local markets, stocking up on last minute souvenirs (including a painting that I cannot wait to hang up!) sight seeing within the main town (including some stops at much newer and active temples) and finally grabbing a late night dinner and grabbing a tuktuk to the airport. A relaxing afternoon was well deserved!

So I could stop there, but what's the fun in leaving out a little action in our day. I said we grabbed a tuktuk to the airport, but nothing runs that smoothly when your traveling!! We got to our hostel and planned on walking our luggage down the dirt road until we ran into a tuktuk that would take us for a reasonable price. We get into eye sight of the hostel though and I see a guest leaving the hostel and loading his belongings into an already almost fill tuktuk...he had to be going to the airport, I just knew it! So of course being the shy quite person I am {hehe} hollered the guy and asked where he was going...BINGO...the airport! I asked if he cared if he had company and of course because of my charming personality {or because he thought I was crazy!} he said yes!

To say the 3 of us AND all our luggage was a tight squeeze in the tuktuk is an understatement; I'm not sure I could see poor Tina's eyes for the first 10 minutes of the drive! We were piled in though and out of town, maybe 15 or 20 minutes into our 25 minute drive, when all of a sudden we hear this horrible sound, followed by our tuktuck making a sharp turn, we feel some big bumps, and then we crash. Umm...what just happened?? Turns out we may have been a tad over capacity for the speed we were going and the poor guy we shared the ride with, his bag fell off the front of the tuktuk with no one noticing, the tuktuk then proceeded to "run over" the bag the best it could, although that just resulted in the bag getting stuck in the tuktuk's wheels. Needless to say that was enough to put our cart off balance and threw the whole thing into a nearby light post on the side of the highway....luckily we were all fine, the bag had some new wear and tear and the tuktuk a crack on the front, but we were fine! Obviously though, getting to the airport a couple minutes later was a welcome relief as we checked in and boarded our plane, headed for Bangkok!

Let's Fly!

Monday, February 1

Monday was Tina's birthday and we decided we were bound and determined that we were going to make it one to remember {as if being in Cambodia for your birthday isn't amazing enough! lol}

Sadly breakfast for her birthday wasn't really an option as we were up and out the door, waiting on our ride from Flight of the Gibbon at 7:00am. We piled into a van along with several other groggy eyed tourists and headed for...well we weren't exactly sure where yet.  We arrived to "I don't know where" (ok base camp!) maybe 40 minutes later and spilled out of the van. We were quickly given wavers to sign {you know, we wouldn't sue them if we lost an arm, both eyes, and my favorite pinkie toe type of thing} harnessed up, given our hard hat helmets and sent to our first briefing...ready or not, ZIP LINING HERE WE COME! We had 10 or 15 minutes of quick directions, don't do anything stupid type of deal, loaded back in the van, and we were ready to go!!

To say that the next 2 hours hours were exhilarating would be a lie; they were beyond exhilarating! Throughout the course of the next 2 hours we zipped {not sure what verb would be appropriate here lol} over 10 separate zip lines; with the longest totaling 310 meters (340ish yards), walked across 3 suspension bridges, 21 different platforms (most way above the tree tops!) and rappelled down the last one  to finally meet the ground again...talk about amazing! To make matters even better, our 2 guides were amazing, corny jokes & all! ;)

As zip lining grudgingly came to an end we were informed that our ticket for the day also included lunch at a local restaurant....umm can you say score?!?! We sat down and enjoyed lunch with our new group of Australian friends before climbing back in the car to the hotel {ok I can't lie here...we all passed out hardcore in the van, we were exhausted!}. We got back to the hotel a little after 1 and we all agreed as the birthday girl declared it nap time!!

Rebecca and  Tory apparently required a little more R&R than Tina and I, so when the 2 of us were ready we snuck out to treat ourselves to some birthday mani/pedis and fruit smoothies. When the bears woke up...oh I mean Rebecca & Tory! :P...we met up in town and Tina and I had booked dinner for the 4 of us at a local restaurant serving traditional Cambodia food {delicious!} as well as offering traditional Cambodian dance performances while you ate...umm amazing! Needless to say dinner was delicious & the dances were beyond mesmerizing to watch!

After dinner we walked around the markets for a while, indulged in yet another foot massage (who can seriously say no to 30 minute foot massages on the side of the street)  and slowly {but oh so happily} made our way back to our hostel.

Cambodia...you truly are amazing!

Didn't have a chance to read about our previous day in Cambodia? Check it out here!

Good Morning Cambodia

Sunday, January 31

Ahh, traveling is amazing! Learning about new cultures, meeting new people, trying new foods, and making the most amazing memories; nothing can ever top it!

Tina and I got to Cambodia late  Saturday evening (January 30th) and while Tina crashed early for the night I went out and explored the large night market about half a mile from our hostel. Ok, to be honest about everything was half a mile from our hostel as we were literally on a dirt road...I loved it!  Coming back late from the market, I met up with Tory and Rebecca who had arrived in Cambodia earlier that morning...the 4 of us were finally together and we were ready to party...or at this point in the night go to sleep lol. {side note: we scored with this hostel as it was for 4 "random" people and we booked all 4 beds for $4.70 a night and had the room to ourselves!}

Sunday morning was our first day together. We let ourselves sleep in a little bit, and then it was temple time!! We left our hostel in search of breakfast, and stumbled upon a place with the most amazing coconut curry, a popular Cambodian food, and a "Dr. Fish" pond. As we waited for our food to come we sat by the pond where I was able to stick my feet in the water and have the fishes nibble the dead skin off my feet...talk about ticklish!!

After breakfast we found a tuk-tuk driver willing to take us for the day and we headed out for Angkor Wat {a natural first choice!}. Angkor Wat was AMAZING!!! It reminded me so much of the feeling of seeing the pyramids in Egypt for the first time; it's so surreal you get goosebumps. If you would have told me 6 months ago I'd be with 3 people I didn't know at the time standing in Cambodia staring at Angkor Wat I would have told you that you were crazy...but there I was, and it was beyond incredible! We saw ancient temples and cities over 900 years old still standing (or restored) to much of its former glory...it was truly spectacular!

We walked around with our jaws dragging on the ground for a good 2 hours before finding our tul-tuk driver and heading to the next temple. Our driver proceeded to drive us around the "temple circuit" (a cluster of temples remotely close to each other {fun fact: there are over 300 temples in the town of Siem Reap alone!!}) for the remainder of the day stopping for us to explore Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm, and Banteay Kdei. The last of these, Banteay Kdei, was very much unlike the first 5 we stopped at for several reasons, first, it did not appear that much, if any, money had been put into its restoration over the years, and secondly, there were hardly any tourists there. This temple in particular was amazing to explore. It had this calm sense about it and being able to walk through the old door ways and the rubble piles really let your imagination run wild as to what this place might have truly looked like almost 1,000 years ago!

Leaving the temples we were beyond exhausted and head out driver drop us off at a restaurant for dinner on the way to our hostel. After dinner we checked out the market for a bit, relaxed with some nice cheap foot massages on the side of the road and headed back to the hostel for an early{ish} night in!

Go With the Flow!

Saturday, January 30

We started off with a terrific plan! My Thailand Lonely Planet book (aka my travel bible!) had a 2.5 mile walking tour of Bangkok that hit several of the highlights that are on our to do list yet allowed us to keep our own pace so we thought it was a win-win deal! We chatted with some people at our hostel and figured out the best way to get to our starting point, and then we were off! We had 7 hours before our 8pm flight to Cambodia, my Lonely Plant book, and our walking shoes...nothing was going to stop us!

We got to our starting point, Victory Monument, and we sat down so I could read us some information on what we were looking at (thanks Google!) and I got no more than 3 sentences into the description when a middle aged man stopped near us and started to chat. Next thing we know he was handing us a list of "must see"/non-touristy destinations to hit, flagging us down a tuk-tuk driver and waving us goodbye with the most happy of smiles plastered across his face...so our plans were off to a rough start, but when opportunity knocks, I can't say no!

Our first stop was a teeny temple with zero tourists around making it a nice quiet place to explore. As soon as we arrived a man working there begin speaking to us in English and showed us an apparently 1000-year-old Buddha statue that the temple was famous for and told us if we touched it, it would bring us good luck (I'm still waiting on the call from Jackpot Lottery!) 

After a visit with the baby temple, we headed to a more famous spot in Bangkok, the Marble Temple. This temple is constructed from white marble imported from Italy and is beautiful! The outer courtyard is like a ring or a donut around the temple in the middle and features 52 different Buddha statues in varying positions. My personal favorite was popcorn Buddha (ok not really, but I swear his hands were out like for an offering and someone had filled them with popcorn...and guess what, I didn't even borrow any from him!) It was interesting as each Buddha had a little explanation about what their pose or position meant. Within the Buddha donut (can you tell its snack time here yet?!) was the actual temple which housed a large golden Buddha and motifs painted on the wall from the different provinces around Thailand. 

After leaving the temple our tuk-tuk driver drove us to a suit tailor. We had no intentions of actually purchasing a suit but it was on our list of things to do and we thought why not check it out! Apparently the guys who own the shop could sense this as well, after showing us the books and asking us to look around next thing we know they said OK five minutes goodbye have a nice day and showed us the door. So much for hospitality!

Later, after the suit and then gem shop (if we looked for 10 minutes our tuk-tuk driver got a coupon for 5 free liters of gas...sure we'll help you out buddy!) we asked our driver to take us to the Bowan Temple. We paid him a whopping 40 Thai Bot ($1.14 USD total for several stops) and said our goodbyes. We checked out the Bowan Temple for all of 5 minutes before we decided that food was a must before more temple exploration. We found some amazing Thai street noodles filled our bellies, then went back to work on Bowan Temple! Like many of the temples in Thailand the Bowan Temple had a large golden Buddha at the center of the temple. Unlike most of the temples though, there was a second building on the grounds that was used for monks' meditation. Each floor of the 6 floor building was laid out in a simple grid pattern with basic instructions as to guide you through your walking, standing, and sitting meditation phases. The top floor was entitled nirvana and was an open roof with spectacular views of the city below!

Leaving Bowan Temple we decided to take the river boat back to our hostel (one of Bangkok's several forms of public transportation) and enjoyed much different, yet equally spectacular, views of the city from the river. Quickly grabbing our belongings from the hostel we found our bus and headed for the airport; Cambodia {and Tory and Rebecca} were waiting!!