The Motorcycle Diaries

Next stop, southern Thailand!

Elephants and Rafting

Here are some pix from our elephant riding and rafting adventure. What a fun day! The rafting was awesome and we had a great crew of young Thais running the show. The rapids were a blast and there even was a rescue mission for when our raft flipped over.

The Highest Point in Thailand

From Chiang Mai we went to Doi Inthanon and spent a few days checking out the waterfalls and birding. We saw lots of beautiful birds despite the rainy weather. Next time we come back it will have to be in the winter when the weather is nice and there are a lot of migratory birds. Our guide was really great and knowledgable about the birds in the area. We saw brightly colored birds, falconettes, and other amazing things. Bart and I saw a medium sized animal run across the road but didn't quite make out exactly what it was-- maybe a jungle cat?

Northern Thailand

We just got back from a 10 day trip to the north and haven't been writing much about our adventures. So here are some pictures from our time at Sukhothai and around the Chiang Mai province. Sukhothai was one of the former capitals of Thailand. We rented bikes and spent the day riding around and seeing the various temples and ruins. One of the highlights was definitely this cool lizard we saw that changed colors from grey to a bright blue! From Sukhothai we went to Chiang Mai. Bart learned to ride a motorbike so we were able to see some of the outlying areas and go up Doi Suthep and Doi Pui to visit the temple and hike in the mountains. Our hike took us into the jungle where we encountered leeches-- one of the fun things about hiking during the rainy season! That evening we decided to reward ourselves with a luxury 2 hour massage at a local spa. My first spa experience and it was awesome.

in Chiang Mai

Today I rode a motorcycle for my first time! It is little hard to move around outside of the city, and after getting hustled by local taxi drivers, I decided I'm renting a motorcycle. Ok so it really was more of a moped, but still I was a little scared driving one. Everyone here knows how to ride one, and there are swarms of them on every street. It was a little sketchy driving in the city, you not only have to ride on the left side of the road, but also people don't really stay in their own lanes. I somehow managed to get out though, and then it was little easier. Bee and I visited a small town known for making umbrellas, and we watched how they make 'em by hand the traditional way. Quite an amazing process.

Then we went up to this mountain with a giant cave, and a massive stalactite decorated with ribbons and candles.

Everywhere there where shrines with Buddha, and people come there to pay respect and give offerings. After that we climbed to the top of the mountain, for a gorgeous view of the countryside. Next stop were the hot springs, with two geysers shooting out of the ground. There was a pool of hot water where people could boil eggs and a sign saying how long to leave your egg in there for the right amount of cooking! We were going to sit in the tubs but women and men had separate pools, and it was getting late. My watch has two times on it, one for US and one for Thailand, and I was looking at the wrong one, oops. We drove back in the dark which was a bit nerve racking, but after asking several people for directions, and several smashed bugs in my face, we arrived back at our guest house with our drunk Scottish owner socializing right outside the door of our room. Tomorrow we are going on a trek to ride an elephant, and go white water rafting.

thai temples

Today we finally ventured out to the main temple complexes of bangkok-- What Phra Gaew and Wat Pho. My brother and I tried to teach Bart how to say "I am Thai" so that he can get into the temples without paying the farang fees. I don't think he'd pass for a Thai guy though.
We took lots of pictures of the beautiful temples and learned about the story of the Ramakien which was painted all along the outer walls of the complex. Rama, Sita, Hanuman the Monkey, and Tosakan the demon king! The weather was phenomenally hot and there was quite a crowd of people. Nevertheless we had a great time roaming around and enjoying the beauty of the place. We visited Wat Pho to see the large reclining Buddah.

There was the most amazing bodhi tree at this temple. Apparently it is believed that this tree grew from a piece of the original bodhi tree that Buddah sat under when he gained enlightenment.

We also were hoping to find the Thai Massage school located somewhere on the grounds but were unsuccessful! Bim said he'd take us for a foot massage at the night bazaar instead.

arrival

After 15 hours in flight we arrived in the middle of the night in Bangkok. The air was hot and heavy with moisture. Bee's brother's friend Noo (Mouse) picked us up from the airport. First stop - 7/11 for some eggs, bread, and a Chinese bun. It was around 4 am when we were finally ready for sleep!