November 30, 2018

Wow!  The last day of November already.  Hard to believe but the calendar is telling me that tomorrow we will be into the month that will mean our return home.  The time really has gone by quickly and now that we are settled into our accommodation in Pai (where we have a pool and deck chairs) we are feeling pretty spoiled.  In fact, we have just added on one more night to our stay here so we will be here until the morning of the 4th when we’ll head for Chiang Mai.  I’m sitting in the lobby area of our “resort” waiting for the girls to bring me some soup for my lunch and then I think I will head down to poolside for a little dip.  Yep, life is rough!  LOL....

But back to this soup that I’ll be enjoying in about 10 mins....it is called chicken in coconut milk and they make it fresh from scratch when you order it.  I cannot describe how delicious it is and so today I asked if I could come into the kitchen to watch them make it so I could learn.  Amazingly they agreed and so I’ve just returned from my lesson where I watched them sauté some tomato and some onion and some sliced lemon grass and some fresh kaffir lime leaves and some sliced fresh ginger and a chopped red chilli in a little oil.  Then they added a little soy sauce and some water and a 1/2 a chicken bullion cube and a bunch of chicken.  They let that cook (boil) a little and then added a little coconut milk and a little fresh milk and then simmered/boiled everything all together for about 10 mins.  It was served with some more fresh red pepper on top along with a few chunks of fresh kaffir lime leaf and a 1/4 of a fresh lime.  OMG!  It was delicious!!!  This is a flavour profile I will definitely do my best to recreate once home.  They usually serve it with rice and honestly....I wish I would have had some rice to sop up the last of the liquid and to cut the heat just a little.

I haven’t even taken the time to blog about our trip to Pai from Chiang Rai.  We’d hired a private car for 8,000 Baht (about $320 CAD) and had been told that the trip would take about 4 hours.  The plan was that we’d travel cross country (on good roads) to cut the time of having to go all the way down to Chiang Mai and then back up again to Pai, which is almost at the Myanmar border.  As well, we’d made arrangements to stop at the white temple (about 30 mins south of Chiang Rai) as we’d be passing right by it so that just made way more sense than making another separate trip there.

The white temple is actually amazing!  Not sure if I totally loved it but it is amazing none the less.  It was like being inside of a giant wedding cake.  Everything is white and covered in mirror tiles and shimmering under the sun and the reflection off all the white almost hurts your eyes it is so bright.  The grounds of the temple are actually huge and you don’t pay to go to any of that....just 50 baht to go into the actual temple where there are no photos allowed and where you have to take your shoes off to walk through.  I’m so glad we were able to see it...it is one of those things that you kind of have to see to believe.  Even though I’d seen plenty of photos of the place, nothing really prepared me for how big and how white it all is.  The artist who has created it is continuing to build onto the space and so I’m sure that in a few more years it will be even that much more amazing!  While the temple is an actual temple the place is definitely a piece of art.  Some of it is beautiful and some of it isn’t really to my liking at all.  There were sections where there are hundreds of hands reaching up from below and other sections where there are just heads and skulls....yes.........an artists interpretation of something I’m sure.

Back to the road again and as it turns out this supposed four hour trip took us almost 9 hours!  Granted we spent almost an hour at the white temple and another almost hour at a cave but still....7 hours is a lot longer than 4!             As well, the road we had to travel was so curvy that there were times when we actually slid from side to side in the vehicle!  We were in a 9 passenger van so had lots of room which I am ever so grateful for.  I cannot imagine how horrible it would have been to have been squished into a little mini van with a bunch of other people to make that trip as was the other option for us to consider.  I would have paid the $320 myself if it was just me!  In fact the thought of making that same trip back out when we leave here for Chiang Mai is so daunting that just today we booked seats on a small plane (12 seats I think it is) that flies from Pai to Chiang Mai most days.  Those tickets are 2000 baht each (about $80 CAD) and will be worth every penny!  The flight is only 25 minutes versus the 4 hours it would be on a bus!

But we are glad to have made the drive one way as it sure gave us a good look at the north of Thailand.  We’d seen north/northeast to the golden triangle and now we were seeing the northwest too.  As well, there was a surprise stop at about the 1/2 way mark that was actually wonderful!  It was at Chiang Dao cave.  This limestone cave that extends into the mountain for more than 12 km is full of stalagmites and stalactites that are breathtaking.  We opted to go the route that it well lit vs the one where you need a guide and carry only a torch.  The one we chose was plenty!  In front of the cave there is a freshwater pool that is the colour only rock filtered water can be.  That perfect blend of green and blue with lush vegetation all around.  The cave has been used/visited for more than 1000 years and is home to many Buddhist artifacts.  In the area surrounding the cave there are several “shops” that sell all natural remedies for everything from diarrhea to haemorrhoids and bloating to pleurisy.

When we did finally arrive at the PaiViengFai Resort we were so glad to be here that we hardly even noticed how beautiful the place is.  But the next morning it was so nice to see that outside our little cottage there is an orchid growing from a tree and the grounds are beautifully kept and the pool is huge, clean, and refreshing.  And today as I sit here in the lobby typing this Sarah Mclaughlin  is playing on the speaker and there are water buffalo in the rice fields across the road.  And there is a rooster crowing in the far distance and doves cooing in the near distance.  Yes, it is a little piece of paradise and so I’m going to don my bathing suit and hit the pool.

Till next time,

LorLyn

November 26, 2018

It will be a quiet day today....we earned it after our epic adventure yesterday when we visited 3 countries and one of them 3 times!  So here I sit at a table in the covered area right outside our room at the Baan Bua Homestay in Chiang Rai.  

We’d made arrangements with Paul (travel agency) to do a private tour to the Golden Triangle that included the Choui Fong tea plantation, a stop in the Thai border town of Mae Sai, crossing into Myanmar (Burma), back into Thailand, markets, sightseeing, viewpoints, the Opium Museum, a boat trip to and time in Laos and back to Thailand again, a drive through the 1000 year old village along the way and of course.....a return to our Homestay in Chiang Rai.  Cost of our tour was 1,500 baht each plus entrance to Burma (500 baht) and entrance to Laos (30 baht) and entrance to opium museum (25 baht) and of course any food, gratuities, or other stuff we wanted to spend along the way.

So....here I sit munching on green tea popcorn (surprisingly good) as I catch up on facebook posts and this blog.  Posting on FB and the blog really helps to remember all that we did!  On a day like yesterday there was so much to see and do that it really is a bit of a blur.

We started our day at a very reasonable 8:30 a.m. when our driver/guide Mr Disuk picked us up at our Baan Bua Homestay.  Natalie had walked over here so as soon as he arrived we were ready to roll.

First stop about an hour up the road (heading north) was the Choui Fong Tea Plantation.  Gorgeous spot and what a gorgeous day to spend a little time here.  One of the big advantages of having a private tour is that you can stop when and where you want and for as long as you want so our time at the tea plantation was a perfect start to our day.  We learned about tea....how it is picked (by hand) and how it is dried (a lot of which is by hand), how it is sorted (mostly by hand) and in the end decided that we’ll never take a cup of tea for granted again!  We spent some time sitting on the deck at the plantation and both Lynda and I commented how much it felt like we were sitting on the patio of a winery at home.  The temperature is perfect (about 27) humidity seems non existent, views are gorgeous, light breeze blowing, and people from all over the world visiting this place with us.  We enjoyed our iced tea lattes and green tea desserts before hopping back into the car again.

Mr Disuk was very proud of his brand new car!  It is a little Toyota and only 1 month old.  I think the style was Yaris so we wouldn’t have been able to fit any more people in there but for us it was perfect and as Mr Disuk said....it is the VIP car that can go places other taxis cannot.  Wahoo!  I always knew we were VIP’s.  :-). Also important to mention here is that as soon as we got into the car we noticed on the middle of the steering wheel and on the roof right over the drivers head there were chalk like fingerprints.  When asked Mr Disuk explained that the monks had given his new car a blessing for safety so we’re good to go!  :-)

Next stop was the Thai border town of Mae Sai where Mr Disuk dropped us right by the Thai immigration to wait for him while he parked the car and hiked back to us from there.  We were grateful we didn’t have to walk as it felt so much hotter here in the city than it did on the tea plantation!  While we were waiting Lynda even had time to find herself a little gift that is absolutely GORGEOUS from one of the shops we were waiting beside!  Once Mr Disuk returned we headed into the Thai immigration office where we were officially “stamped” out of Thailand.  From there we walked across the bridge that leads into Myanmar (Burma) where we had to stop at their immigration office.  The immigration office there keeps your original passport (along with 500 baht ($20 CAD)) for the duration of your visit.  It feels a little uncomfortable leaving your passport there but it’s how they do it sooooo.....when in Rome......suck it up!

As soon as we exited the immigration office we were literally assaulted by taxi drivers vying for our business.  Thankfully Mr Disuk was able to speak with them and narrowed the options down to two.  We chose the truck taxi because it had 4 wheels vs the tuk tuk type that had only 3.  Either was going to be the same price.....360 baht ($15 CAD) or $5 each.  The driver would take us to three temples and a viewpoint before returning us to the market by the border....he’d be driving us up some pretty big hills and a fair distance as well as stay with us for well over an hour so we were happy to pay the $15.

The 3 temples we visited were all unique and beautiful in their own way.  The 2nd was really interesting though as we were helped to find the day of the week that we were born so we could make our wishes at the right “station” on the site.  I was born on a Wednesday and Lynda and Natalie were both born on Thursday.  A young person attached themselves to each of us and walked with an umbrella over our heads to protect us from the sun as they guided us to the right station to make our wishes.  My young girl is 16 years old.  She was lovely and was able to tell me exactly what to do, which I did.  I had to stand on a mat (because kneeling is not an option for my knees!) under a roof facing my Wednesday station.  Then I had to bow and make a wish three times.  From there I walked over to the station and used a small silver cup to scoop up water to pour over the head of the Buddha statue 3 times, then 2 more scoops of water over the shell that was behind the Buddha and finally 1 more scoop of water over the little elephant statue that was on the ground in front of the little Buddha statue.  Once all that was done we walked across the big open space on this hilltop location to purchase a string of fresh flowers (20 baht) that I could then “offer” to the Buddha along with 3 more bows and wishes at this location.  The final step was to then walk over to a very big very heavy brass bell where I used a large stick to hit the bell nine times to complete the process.  We’ll have to see what happens after all of this!  :-)

The 3rd temple was the largest and most ornate and it had a real sense of peace and tranquility about it.  There are several buildings on this site that are home to many monks and this location is visited four times each month (in conjunction with the moon cycles) by many other monks and followers of Buddha....perhaps that is why there was such a sense of calm about the place.  Behind the temple and beside the monks quarters there is a massive Po tree from India (I’ve also heard it called Pepo or People tree). This is the type of tree that Buddha is said to have been sitting under when he first found enlightenment in India.  In the main temple building here there are massive columns that are circled by mirror work near their base.  As the sun shone in the windows it caught the mirrors and caused the prettiest rainbow of colour.  It reminded me a little of the time, so many years ago, in the bedroom at the winter palace of the king in Jaipur India when my friends Mohini and Robin and I were treated to a recital of twinkle twinkle little star by our guide as he spun around with candles in his hands to create this same reflection off the mirror work that lined that room (ceiling and walls).  We had this massive space here in the temple pretty much to ourselves....it was so quiet and peaceful and even the air was cooler and felt gentle on your skin at this temple.  Again, there was no rush and so as long as we wanted to stay we were able.  The detail in the woodwork around the rooflines was stunning and there were so many pigeons here you could hear their cooing echoing through the property.  In fact, there was one white tower like structure right beside the entrance to the main temple and it looked like some of the pigeons were calling it home as one of them stood in the “doorway” of their temple/house as if to say....hello....what do you want.  LOL.  It was nice to see them here (and someone must do an awful lot of sweeping as there was no poop for us to step on) but I’m sure glad there aren’t pigeons in my rafters!

As we headed back to the market area in the back of our truck taxi it felt wonderfully cool and fresh to have the breeze blowing by us.  These tuk tuks and now this truck taxi are spoiling us for wanting to have vehicles where you can feel the breeze when you’re driving.  Once back in the market we found a vendor selling fried treats that smelled amazing and that we all decided would make a perfect lunchtime treat.  So corn fritters, potato pockets, and sweet milk fry bread were our noon meal this day.  We also saw loads of cute kids but two in particular stand out in my memory.....one was a little girl helping her mom sell sunglasses.  She was so shy to begin with but by the time I was leaving she was waving like a long lost friend with both arms in the air.  Her cheeks and forehead were covered with circles of the paste that Burmese females spread on their faces and in fact all over their body.  It is a blend of sandalwood and herbs that is mixed with water to make a light coloured paste.  It is believed to be a tool in keeping their skin beautiful and the look of having the paste on their faces is thought to be attractive as well.  The next little kid (or monkey as Mr Dusik calls all children) was just a baby.  He was in the basket that his dad was carrying along with cartons of cigarettes for sale.  The dad jokingly offered the baby for sale since we didn’t want cigarettes and I think Natalie was ready to make the purchase but for the fact that the border guards might have something to say about that!  I’m sure the dad would have too....LOL.....  :-). We found the Burmese people to be very friendly and this is a little different from my visit here to this same town almost 20 years ago.  At that time we were the first white people they’d seen in more than 6 months and the border had just opened that day and no one knew how long it would be open.  That time there were men and boys riding in the back of trucks all bearing weapons and the people in general didn’t look nearly as happy or easy going as they did today.  What a difference a generation can make!

Just outside the market we headed back through Myanmar immigration, retrieved our passports (without any trouble at all), walked over the bridge, filled out the Thai arrival forms, and had our passports stamped to allow us back into Thailand.

Back in the car we headed in the direction of the actual Golden Triangle.  The point of land that is where Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos all meet with just the Mekong River separating them.  The Golden Triangle got it’s name because it is the place where the opium trade got started.  Opium was referred to as black gold because it is black in colour and it was typically paid for in gold as it’s value was so high.  Here we visited the Opium Museum where we learned about the history of opium as well as several of the local area hill tribes including the long neck tribe.  It was interesting to learn that the long neck tribe doesn’t really have long necks....they have lowered the shoulders, clavicle and upper ribs to create the illusion of a long neck.  We’d already decided not to visit any of the hill tribes as that has been nothing more than a tourist attraction for many many years.  But it was interesting to learn how they do it and the reason why.  In the beginning of their story a tiger attacked their village and killed several women and girls by biting their necks.  As protection it was decided that from that day forward all girls and young women (age 5 till 25 or married) would have 3 rings added to her protective neck covering that eventually was also viewed as beautification.  On average the neck rings weigh about 8 kg by the time they’re finished getting them.

Next we were down a whole lot of stairs and into a little fast boat headed for Laos.  Again, it was our private boat so we could stay as long as we wanted.  Entering Laos was a different experience.  They don’t want to even see your passport....they just want you to give them 30 baht ( about $1.50) and they’ll give you a paper that looks very official but that is likely just a souvenir.  LOL. There’s not a lot here at this riverside town in Laos....and all of it is geared for tourism.  There is one casino with another under construction as well as markets selling everything from clothes and suitcases to whiskey with snakes and scorpions in the bottle.  The boat ride first up as far as Myanmar and then back down the Mekong to the port in Laos was rough!  Our little boat literally flew across the water and at one point we were even airborne as we crested a large wave.  All of us were hanging on for dear life and none of us were dry at the end of the “ride”.  What an adventure!  We took special note of the printing on the back of our life jackets where it said “Thai Life Insurance” and realized this is probably what the tour company was referring to when they said our trip included life insurance.  LOL!  After some time and a cold drink in Laos we were even able to watch the sun set over Thailand and then it was back into the boat for our final re-entry to Thailand for the day.  This would be our third and final time entering into Thailand today.  Once back on Thai soil we took a little time to enjoy a delicious iced coffee along with the views as dusk settled over us and then it was time to climb back into our little VIP car for the journey home.  

We drove through the 1000 year old village that holds so much history but unfortunately as the sun had already long set there was not enough light for us to be able to appreciate any of it.  The drive home was entertaining nonetheless as Mr Disuk is a character!  He entertained us with his running commentary.  Some of it we wanted to know and some of it we didn’t but all of it he wanted to share.  LOL. Yes, he was a character but in a good way.  

We had him drop us off in town so we could grab a late dinner and once that was behind us we  headed home to our respective places as we were all done for this day.  And now you know why today is a day of rest. Yesterday was a full one!  Till next time,

LorLyn

November 23, 2018

OMG!  How did that happen?  How is it possible that I haven’t posted anything in here since the 18th?!  Oops!  I guess the simple answer to that question is that we’ve been keeping busy and for the most part out of trouble....but the busy has left me with little time to blog so tonight I will get all caught up for those of you who are following along.

As of tonight we are staying in a traditional wooden house in Chiang Rai, Thailand.  That gives you a little bit of an idea about what has kept us busy!  The last time I wrote we were still in Kampot so since then we’ve had two full days of travel.  The first travel day took us from Kampot to Siem Reap and then today we flew from Siem Reap to Bangkok and then from Bangkok to Chiang Rai.  

But in between there we had three sleeps in Siem Reap.  What a wonderful little city that is!  Of course the temples are amazing but so is the city itself.  There is a busy little Pub Street that comes alive at night as well as a couple of night markets that are brightly lit and not crowded at all.  That’s not to say that there aren’t loads of people there....just that the space between the stalls is wide enough to be able to drive a couple of cars down but as there are no motorized vehicles allowed....there is  ample space for people to meander without worry of getting run over or dying from heat exhaustion.  One of the markets even has strings of lights hanging overhead....soooo pretty.....almost looks a little Las Vegas’ish!  LOL

Having three nights in Siem Reap really means that we just had two full days to experience all that we could.  One day was spent from dawn till dusk with our tuk tuk driver, Sok Heng, as we visited three of the temples.  That may not sound like a lot when you read it but let me tell you....we almost called it a day after the first one!  We were honestly melting it was so hot and humid.  Sok Heng was so sweet...each time we returned to his tuk tuk he would have cold water and a cold towel for each of us in an attempt to help us recover.  We’re pretty sure he might have been just a little bit worried that he was going to have a couple of old girls keel over in his tuk tuk from the look of our red faces and sweat drenched clothes!  Both Lynda and I agreed that this day is likely the hottest either of us has ever experienced!  But how hot we were is not what the day was about...it was about the temples so.....we started the day bright and early by stopping at the ticket place to get our one day pass ($40 US) for the Angkor site (many temples included in that ticket).  There were already hundreds of people lined up to get their tickets!  There were so many busses in the parking lot it was overwhelming!  But Lady Luck was with us once again and just as we approached the ticket counters....they opened a new window and directed us to the front of that line!  I’d say we jumped the queue by at least 500 people!  Wahoo!  What a great start to this day!  :-).     Oh ya...and guess what?  They take your photo and put it on your ticket!  So, if you lose your ticket you’re hooped...you have to buy a new one and at $40 a pop...that is one ticket you don’t want to lose!  As well, you need to show the ticket at every temple you visit and even to go on some of the roads.

First temple stop was Angkor Wat itself.  What a massive place that is!  It took 37 years to build and was first used for Hindu practices and later Buddhist.  So many parts to it and so many people milling about everywhere!  To access the temples you had to walk over a very long floating bridge as there is a lake in front of the main entrance to the temples.  As the original bridge is under repair they’ve constructed this floating bridge.  I did not like walking across it at all...every step is so squishy and the whole thing moves under your feet and having a few hundred people on it at any given time left me feeling a little seasick.  But eventually we made it across and up the stairs into the main “gate” entrance.  The place is soooooo grand but even more impressive was the fact that there was a family kneeling at the statue just inside the entrance.  They were praying and giving offerings.  As much as I’m one of the thousands of tourists who will visit this site today I hate that there are so many of us crawling all over this ancient holy site.  It was wonderfully refreshing and “right” to be able to see that in spite of all the tourists the locals continue to practice their faith right in the middle of all this chaos.  The vibe inside the temple was gentle and when we were able to block out the noise of all the visitors there was a quiet sense of peace to the place.  For part of the time Lynda and I just sat in a window and enjoyed the cool breeze that was coming off the lake out front.  That is how I will always remember my visit to Angkor Wat.....feeling the cool breeze when it was a thousand degrees out, sitting in the quiet space, and being able to witness the traditional practice of the locals who come here to pray.

The next temple we visited was called Bayan.  It too was impressive and filled with moments where our eyes couldn’t soak up enough of all that we were seeing.  Once again, there was a sense of history to the place that cannot be described by words...it’s really just a feeling....a feeling you get when you’re in a place that you know has been visited by millions for over a thousand years.  Add to that the special energy that is created by the strong belief of so many of those millions....yes....the energy in these holy places is palpable.  In addition to all the positive vibes these temples have to offer the intricate detail in the carved relief on the rocks is actually hard to believe.  How they did all this I have no  idea.  

The third temple was a difficult choice for us as we could either choose to see the temple where Tomb Raider was filmed or we could travel one hour north to see the Temple of Women (or Ladies Temple as it is often referred to).  In the end the Lady’s Temple won out and it turned out to be my favourite of the day.  Although still very large, it was much smaller than Angkor Wat and many of the other temples too.  Some believe that one of the reasons it is called Lady’s Temple is that it might be where women would have come to make their special prayers for things like a good marriage, many children, a healthy family, and things like that.  This temple is also made of red rock and so has a “pink” hue that may also be part of the reason it is called Lady’s.  The site required that we walk the entire area from the entrance to the exit and yes....it was still soooo hot but as we exited the back gate of the temple there was a group of musicians playing traditional music and seats for us to sit in the shade.  What a beautiful memory that will always be....listening to music from the past in a place that echoes with the voices of all who have visited and prayed here before.  But before we’d exited, there was a woman in traditional clothing sitting in the middle of the temple site.  She was singing and praying and let me take a photo of her.  After I’d taken my photo she took my hand and gave me a beautiful blessing of some kind....at least that is what I’m choosing to believe she gave me.  :-). Honestly, I’m sure it was as she said it with a smile and in a gentle voice and she held my hands as she looked deep into my eyes.  It was one of those moments that I can’t really explain but that I will always remember.  Once Lynda and I had exited the back gate and gotten our second wind sitting in the shade listening to the music....we had to decide whether we wanted to take the longer way round by the lake, boats, and fishing or the slightly shorter route through the botanical garden in the direction of the parking lot.  It took about 1 second to make the decision to skip the lake and go as quickly as we could to the parking lot.  Even with that shorter option it still took us several minutes to make our way back around the outside of the temple site and yes.....it was still HOT.....even in the shade of the trees that we’re guessing were the botanical garden as a few of them had signs showing their name/type.  By the time we finally got back to the gate by the parking lot we were so tired that we made a conscious decision to break the rules and go out the “in only” gate as we were both “done”!

During our hour long tuk tuk back toward Siem Reap we stopped along the roadside to learn how to make palm sugar.  What a lot of work!  First the sugar palm tree is tapped and a bamboo bucket (really just a hunk of bamboo) is hung from a nail to catch the sap from where the tree was tapped.  It takes about 10-12 hours for that piece of bamboo to fill with sap.  That sap is then dumped into a big cooking pot and put over an outdoor fire.  The sap is stirred constantly for 4 hours as it cooks down to become a thick golden paste that is the sugar.  When it is cooked a little longer and cooled down it can be formed into blocks and grated or smashed to make “grains” of sugar.  We were each given a taste of the sweet creamy goodness that was still warm from the fire and of course I had to buy a container of the slightly harder discs to bring home.  I don’t know what I thought it would cost but I sure thought it would be more than a dollar!  But that is all that it was....just $1 for 10-12 hours of gathering the sap and then 4 full hours of stirring it over a fire and then making the discs and packaging it all up and sitting there waiting to sell it and well.....there’s not a lot of profit in the palm sugar making business!  We were amazed by the number of vendors all making and selling the same thing along that stretch of road.  I’m guessing it must be an area where a lot of sugar palms grow or something.  Although it is pretty common in this part of the world for vendors who sell the same thing to all gather together in a particular area.  For example all the shops that fix motors are on the motor fixing street or all the basket making vendors are on a particular block in town or all the sausage makers are in that one particular village or all the sugar making ladies are along that stretch of road.  Who knows the reason...or maybe there are many reasons.  I just know that there were a lot of ladies selling their sugar along that road and not very many buyers at all!

We also saw a number of “scarecrows” sitting at the edge of people’s property in front of their homes.  Sok Heng was able to explain for us that these scarecrows only show up in rural areas and they are believed to protect the home and it’s occupants from evil spirits.  Super interesting to see how each family made their scarecrow protector unique.  All of them were dressed in western clothing, some of them had a coconut for a head while others had a motorbike helmet for their head.  Some were large and others were much smaller.  Some were colourful and creative and others were almost camouflaged in nature.  Yes, so many interesting things to see and to learn!

By the time we got back to our hotel in Siem Reap we both knew that we’d need the next day to recover from the dehydration we’d experienced on our temple tour.  So that’s exactly what we did.....pretty much nothing for the majority of the next day!  We slept in and lazed around our hotel pool until it was time to get cleaned up for a fun night out.  Yep....we’d booked a special treat for that night....We had front row seats for the Phare Circus and they were worth every penny we’d paid for them.

The show was scheduled to start at 5 pm and right on time the lights were dimmed and the show was on!  Natalie, Lynda, and I all agree that none of us even remember breathing for the entire hour the show was on!  The director, the musicians, and the performers managed to find the perfect blend of humour, drama, storytelling, and athleticism to create an hour of magic that none of us will ever forget.  Our front row seats provided us with a vantage that left us feeling like we were pretty much on the stage and in the show!  All who work with Phare are trained in a small city near Siem Reap and most of them have come to the show from a difficult life.  Phare trains and then employs them.  Knowing that made the show even that much more impressive and worth visiting.

Feeling excited and energized by the show we set out in search of some fun and adventure in the night market/pub street area of the city.  Natalie had scoped out a place for us to go for dinner the day prior (while Lynda and I were off touring the temples).  What a great place it was!  Pineapple Margarita’s were only $1.50 and they weren’t short pouring any of their drinks either!  From there we wandered and shopped and enjoyed the show that another restaurant was putting on.  The chefs were literally shooting fire all the way across the space between the front of their location and the one across the street!  At one point we were standing across the street when the fire was shooting out and we couldn’t believe how much heat we felt from it all that way away!  Yikes!  

From there it was back to the room as this morning would come very early!  We had a car booked to pick us up at 7:15 a.m. to go to the airport for our flight today.  Both flights were good ....actually better than good.  Bangkok Airways has a really cool system where they put stickers on your chest. Those stickers inform their staff where you are supposed to be. They mitigate language barriers and ensure smooth sailing for everyone. Both flights (were just an hour long) and both served full meals and drinks to all 150 passengers during that short time!  We’d decided to try going vegan (as Natalie is vegetarian and was choosing vegan for the flights). We won’t make that mistake again!  Sorry Natalie,,,,,you’re on your own on the veggie front.  The other thing Bangkok Airways offers is a complimentary lounge for all their guests. It was awesome!  Comfortable chairs, drinks, food, and wifi.....we all agreed....we like living the good life!  I think that’s about all we have to report on the topic of travel except to say that we had a little hiccup with our booking here in Chiang Rai.  The three of us thought we were all staying at the same place but....somehow Natalie got booked into the Baan Bua Guest House and Lynda and I got booked into the Baan Bua Homestay.  Go figure!  On the upside, our places are really near one another and the price was right in both.  Lynda and I are paying about $25/night (divided by 2) and we’re able to walk pretty much everywhere we’re so close to town.  On the downside, Lynda’s and my room has a big window between the room and the bathroom so any privacy we might have wanted is literally “out the window” for the next few days!  LOL!  We’re booked in here for five nights and then we’ve got a place booked in a small city called Pai.  

Tonight we wandered into town in search of dinner which we found at the Smiling Moon where Thai curry was on the menu for all three of us.  First night in Thailand has to be Thai curry right?!  And it was delicious!  Prices here look like they will be a little higher than we’ve been accustomed to though.  The beer (mind you it was a slightly larger can) was almost $4 each!  After dinner we headed over to the pharmacy as I was in search of some Benadryl (or some other brand of antihistamine) as the bathroom in our room is open to the outside (no roof on part of it) and so I’m thinking there might be a few more mosquitoes here than we’ve had in the past.  I’m wanting to be prepared in case they decide I look like a tasty bite (as is usually the case) and being kept awake all night by itchy bites is not my idea of a good time!  The store had nothing that looked remotely like Benadryl and none of the instructions were in English and I didn’t want to risk getting the non-drowsy kind so was prepared to give up my search when the pharmacist (who spoke English) arrived.  Wahoo!  Once I’d explained to her that I needed the non-drowsy type she gave me a little bottle of no name antihistamine that cost.....sit down for this one folks......60 cents CAD!  LOL....and I think there were 50 tablets in there too!  If you’ve bought Benadryl at home you’d know that it would cost a whole lot more than a penny a pill!

On our way back to our respective accommodations we decided a night cap might be in order at a place we’d seen on the way down.  It is called Hangover Corner and perhaps the name should have been a clue for us but it wasn’t and so there we were in a bar that looked like it was trying to replicate an English pub (and doing a bad job of it) run by a guy from the north of England where the bar stock was limited and the prices exorbitant. We should have checked the prices before ordering but we neglected to do that and as a result when our bill came Lynda and I each owed $8 for a single drink!!!  Yikes, that might be more than at home and certainly more than the $1.50 margaritas we had last night in Cambodia.  Yep....Thailand might be a little more expensive for us.  We’re going to have to tread lightly......

We checked out a tour operator on the way home last night too and I’m pretty sure we’ve worked out a customized day that we’re going to go back and book.  We’re all excited at the prospect of exploring the far north of Thailand over the next four days.  I was here 15+ years ago and can hardly wait to see how much I actually remember from that long ago.  But that will have to wait for another day’s post.  So until then.....good night,

LorLyn

November 18, 2018

Time sure flies here in Kampot!  Not that we’ve been super busy doing stuff.....the time just seems to pass by quickly.  Here we are with just two nights left of our five night stay and I haven’t updated the blog and there are still a couple of things on our Kampot ‘to do’ list.  Tomorrow will have to be the day as the next morning we leave bright and early for Siam Reap.

As luck would have it we arrived in Kampot right at the time of their water festival.  What fun!  There were boat races in the river and a boat parade and lots of people in from their tiny villages and loads of stalls set up all along the river and fireworks and well.....it was a festival and we were happy to be here for it.  The same festival will be in Phnom Penh the following week and in the past they have had soooo many problems there with too many people and too much “festivities” that it can actually be a dangerous place to be so we are super grateful to not be there for it.  In fact, the expats that live there plan to be away during the water festival and if they are staying in town during those dates they bring in all that they’ll need and then plan to not leave their homes during the events!

It was really interesting to watch the masses of people leave the water festival event here the other night....as I mentioned, many of them had come in from surrounding villages to support their teams (paddling races) and when the day was done it was time to head back to the village.  So, they just all piled into their boats....old, young, babies and their buggies, the produce and souvenirs they’d purchased during their day here in town....all packed into the boat and off they sailed into the sunset.  Well, they didn’t actually sail, there was a motor on the back of their boat.  LOL. As well, all the paddling teams just set out up the river paddling their way home, some in celebration and others in defeat but all having plenty of fun along the way.  :-)

More luck has come our way in the form of a new friend and travel buddy who is staying at our same hotel.  Natalie (from the UK) has been travelling on her own and as she is going in the same direction as we are and as our timelines are similar we’ve all agreed that it is a win/win/win for us to just do it together.  As I told her tonight....its way better to have three for a game of cards than two!  LOL. It also cuts some of our travel costs down a little.  For example, today we took a tuk tuk for the day and instead of having to divide the cost by two....we were able to divide it by three.  Yep....win win win.  :-). There is also the fact that Natalie was tired of travelling on her own...she was ready to have a little company and we are happy that she’s decided we’re good company.  :-)

Yesterday, Natalie and I decided it was time to check out a local spa that had been recommended.  Although it was okay....I think Bali has spoiled me as this did not compare to what I grew accustomed to during my time there.  By the time my facial was underway I was ready to leave and so while I was still covered in a mask of cucumber I simply said, “finished” and that was it.  My therapist got the message and so she finished me up by skipping the final few minutes and let me out of there.  Honestly, it was just too hot and there were mosquitoes in my little hut and so I was hot and tired and ready to go as we were already an hour over the time we were supposed to be finished.....and so I did.  Natalie too was ready to go and we laughed about the strange massage technique of hanging a blanket over our heads with a pot of aromatherapy below us as we came back to our hotel in our tuk tuk.  It’s an okay concept but the problem was that there was no “wonderful” aroma coming from that pot and my blanket had a little fly under it and it was HOT under there!  I lasted about 10 minutes before I took the blanket off my head and when my therapist tried to put it back on (she understood very little English) I just said “No, too hot” and took it away from her.  I’m pretty sure there is a photo of me on their “don’t let this one back in here” wall!  LOL

By night, the three of us have been doing our best to empty the bar here at Mea Culpa.  So far we have been unsuccessful but tonight gave it another shot.  Their White Russians here are to die for!  I’m not sure why.....perhaps it is that they must contain at least 4 ounces of booze in each!  Last night we gave the bar here a rest though and just used their glasses instead as another hotel guest had just gifted us with a bottle of white wine and so we managed to work our way through that with our dinner.  Yes, Kampot has been a stop filled with delicious drinks for sure!  We’ve already got a plan to head to Rikitikitavi tomorrow for their 2 for 1 happy hour....yikes!  This is beginning to sound like a problem even to me.  :-)

Today was an incredible day!  The three of us hired a tuk tuk for the day ($25).  Ali (our driver) picked us up here at 9 a.m. with our first stop at the salt fields about 10 minutes away.  What hard workers those salt field hands must be!  There are so many labour intensive steps in the process of gathering the salt from the sea water and the pay they receive is pittance!  In fact, they receive just $2.50 per step in the process per field and each step takes 3-5 days.  Each worker might be able to do 2-3 fields at a time.  Bottom line...they work HARD...really HARD...in the hot sun....and they get paid almost nothing to do it.  The kicker is that 90% of them are women.  The men are often off in another city working at their job and as the women stay home to tend to house and kids etc they do jobs like the salt fields “in their spare time”!  Gads!  I’m sure glad I have other options for my spare time activities!!!

Our next stop was the pepper plantation called La Plantation.  It is a French run operation that is very proactive about giving back to the community its located in.  Some of the ways they give back is by paying their workers a higher wage, by sponsoring the top three kids of each elementary school in their area to go to high school and potentially to college, and perhaps my favourite of their “gifts” is that they double the wage of the teachers in their local schools.  They also do smaller one off things like giving bikes to families who need one and perhaps not so small like being organic and working toward leaving as little footprint as possible with all their business practices.  Getting to La Plantation was not as easy as you might think.  It was about 40 minutes in the tuk tuk and the road we had to travel was rough.  Not just rough....but really really rough!  They’ve had a bad rainy season this year and it is not long over and the result is that the roads (none of them are paved) have massive potholes and small rivers running through and across them!  Without any exaggeration I can state that by the time we got back to our hotel tonight we all agreed that it is very likely we’ll all feel like we were in a car accident by tomorrow or the next day.  My guess is that there will be three people here taking an Advil tonight!  But it was all worth it!  What a fantastic stop it was!  The pepper poles are beautiful and the variety of ways the pepper can be used so interesting.  Kampot pepper is considered to be one of, if not the very best pepper in the world!  We even tried pepper ice cream..... But our favourite part of the day was when we agreed to do the water buffalo tour.  Who’d have thought that we’d be climbing into the back of a little wooden cart that was being pulled through the rice field and mango orchards by two massive black water buffalo when we got up this morning?!  Not us....but there we were....doing just that.....and in the end.....LOVING IT!  :-). It was another rough ride but somehow it all seemed so right to be there in the middle of nowhere in the silence of nature holding on for dear life in the back of that cart.  Our driver was perched out in front sitting on nothing more than the centre board between those two massive creatures.  He talked to them the entire time we were with them....and that is not insignificant!  You might think we were on there for 20-30 minutes???  Nope.....it was just shy of 2 hours!  OMG!  We were on there so long we almost began to believe we were farmers!  LOL. At the half way point of our water buffalo adventure we reached the lake (which was where we were headed the whole time).  The buffalo LOVE the water.  They pulled our little cart right into the lake with them and before we knew it, they’d both submerged completely!  We weren’t sure what would happen to us but I guess the plantation has done this before and so we only got wet up to our mid calf.  Our driver had warned us ahead of time so we already had shoes off and were prepared but still surprised none the less.  Those buffalo were soooo happy to be in that water.  The driver got off and walked (waist deep) around the buffalo to wash them off and splash them and just generally play in the water with them.  He extended the invitation to us to join in the fun but we all agreed that we’d rather keep our wet bits limited to our lower legs only!  The ride back to the plantation was the same path we’d taken on the way to the lake and so the familiarity added to our sense of belonging.  There were kids playing along the trail, there were orchards and sugar cane and rice fields and coconut palms.  There were flowers and cattle (the skinniest cattle I’ve ever seen!) and dogs and workers.  There was blue sky and there was silence....the kind of silence that only happens when you’re in nature and feeling very very present in the moment.  Perhaps we were so present in the moment as we had to hold on for dear life every so often or perhaps we were so present in the moment as there was no where else that made sense for us to be.  Regardless....it was a great day!

From the plantation we headed for Kep (ocean side) where we enjoyed a meal of crab.  Crab with garlic, crab with green peppercorns, and crab salad rolls.  Well, Lynda and I enjoyed the crab.  Natalie is a vegetarian so she opted for a veggie dish and passed on the crab that Kep is famous for.

By the time we got back to Mea Culpa tonight we were all done for but heh...there was a table calling us in the bar and we had some planning to do for the next leg of our journey as we only have two more sleeps here in Kampot.  So that’s what we did...we got to business and made some plans.  Yep, as crazy as it may sound....we’ll be taking a taxi from Kampot to Siam Reap....oh ya....that’s about a 10 hour drive!  LOL. Oh the adventures we have.  :-)

Till next time,

LorLyn

November 15, 2018

I honestly don’t know where to begin this post!  

Should I start with some of the sights we saw along the roadside today during our 4+ hour drive from Phnom Penh to Kampot in Cambodia?  I could tell you about all the skinny white cattle....the kind that have a hump on their back....I’ve never seen so many SKINNY cows!  Or I could mention the guys who were throwing bricks up to the second and then the third story of a building that was under construction.  They were throwing and catching them with two sticks and a bag attached to the sticks.  Kind of like a weird lacrosse thingy that was super long.  Or maybe I should mention the miles and miles of rice paddies or perhaps the hundreds of tarps covered in drying rice on the edge of the road or in people’s yards.  Or maybe it would be best to tell you about the mountain of pineapple that was sitting on the side of the road under a tarp waiting to be purchased.  Or...I guess I could talk about the guys on their bikes bringing their huge bunches of balloons and stuffies for a ride somewhere (to sell I’m sure).  But you might be more interested to hear about the thousands of strings of sausages that were hanging at the edge of the road drying in the sun or on a similar note of course there are the ever present “butcher shops” where hunks of fresh meat are hanging and waiting for someone to come buy them for dinner.  Or...perhaps you’d prefer to hear about the multi coloured symmetrical mountains of fresh fruit and vegetables that lined both sides of the road every time we passed through a market area.  And of course there is always the guys perched atop the semi truck....just sitting there....holding on to nothing....kings of that castle for sure!  Or the family that was all piled onto a single bike...mom, dad, and three kids (one was a baby).  There were mansions and there were shacks.  There were car dealerships and there was garbage.  There was road construction and there was smooth pavement.  We saw dogs and cats by the dozens.  There were broken down vehicles and others that were expensive and new.  There were restaurants with little plastic chairs for their patrons to sit and rest a spell and there were people.....so many people.....some with somewhere to go and others just hanging around in their yards or on the side of the road.  We saw life....life as it is lived in rural Cambodia.

But no...I’m not going to start with any of that...I’m going to start by telling you that Lynda uttered “Good Grief Alice” 37 times before I stopped counting as we were less than an hour into our journey!  Her comment was in response to the fact that the ‘new’ bus we were in was actually a very old van and that van was missing its shocks in the back, 5th gear on the transmission, a rear view mirror, any kind of liquid to wash the dirt off the windshield, and we’re not 100% sure about its tires by the end of our trip!  We do know that its brakes worked VERY well and it’s horn worked VERY VERY well!  We also know that my seat was broken and her seat required that she sit with her knees up against the back of my broken seat and her feet squished into the small area meant for tiny Asian feet.  I was lucky to have the sliding door next to me so was able to squish one foot forward into that space for part of the journey.  Lynda had to unfold herself at our 1/2 way stop and in truth...I wondered if we’d make the second 1/2!  But we did....and here we are in Kampot settled into our room at the Mea Culpa for 5 glorious nights.  But that journey was tough!  By the end of it we were both feeling the stress of having been stuffed into a too small space with a dozen other people.  There was air conditioning but honestly...I’m not sure it was doing anything.  We’d read that the roads in Cambodia (especially rural Cambodia) are rough but this road today was beyond rough!  It was dotted with potholes the size of small valleys and of course our driver was trying to make up for the fact that he’d been late leaving Phnom Penh and so we were constantly passing on the right which meant that we were half in the ditch for much of the trip!  As well, the final 40 km (took a full hour) before we got to Kampot was under construction and so we bumped and bounced on our “shockless” vehicle like neither of us had ever been bounced or shook before!  Our boobs were coming out of our bras and we were afraid to speak for fear of biting our tongues!  Yes, it was a tough trip.  In hindsight, we should have taken the time and figured out how to get on the Giant Ibis bus.  It still would have been a rough ride as it would have to travel the same road but...it might have been in better shape and therefore a little more comfortable.  But that is hindsight and had we done that we’d never have this memory/story to share.  It was one of those times that the sign we saw in the sandwich shop in Saigon really hit home.....the sign said, 

“Traveling - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”  Yep....we were both pretty speechless during much of this trip today and at the end of it all we could say was “thank heavens that is over!”  And...now we have a story we will never forget!

Phnom Penh was an interesting stop...we were just there for two nights.  We only wanted to be there long enough to visit the killing fields to pay our respect.  It felt like one of those things that you don’t really want to do but that you feel like you need to do and so we did.  

Yesterday was the day.  We hired a tuk tuk driver Rasee and were grateful to have him with us.  The site is a good 40 minute drive and Rasee was an excellent driver and his tuk tuk was large and breezy so we were comfortable for the two way trip.

The site of the killing fields was not so comfortable though.  It is an emotional journey that you go on when you visit that site.  The tragedy of the place is palpable and hearing the stories brings it all to life.  It takes a little more than 90 minutes to visit the site.  You’re given a headset and audio guide.  It is all incredibly well done and I was grateful to see that for the most part all of the visitors to the site were respectful and mindful of giving others space to process the experience in their own way.  At about the 1/2 way mark of my time there I found a quiet spot to sit under a tree beside a pond of water.  I knew this pond was also a mass grave but somehow it was so beautiful to see how nature had turned the horror of it into this beautiful space.  There were so many birds singing and sitting there in the shade of that tree I was reminded of the fact that we’d also just honoured our veterans on Remembrance Day.  So much tragedy and so much death and none of it makes any sense at all.  As I sat there listening to the story of one survivor come to me via my headset, I was impressed with his final message.  He said that he is like a broken glass and it is up to him to find the pieces of his glass and to put himself back together.  He also said that he’s moved past the anger and the need for revenge and that his focus is on education....educating the next generations about the atrocities of genocide and how each of us must do what we can to ensure it never happens again.  I was also confused and angry to learn that even after the rest of the political world knew what had happened during the reign of terror by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia between 1975-79 the UN still recognized the Khmer Rouge and their leader as the head of state of Cambodia.  The leader of that group who’d been responsible for randomly ordering the death of 50% of the people here went on to live a full and happy life for another 20 years.  It makes no sense....it is all so wrong.....and somehow the Cambodian people have risen above it to rebuild and regroup and revitalize.  I have a great respect for these strong and very gentle people that I have met during my few days here.

The location of our hotel in Phnom Penh was “interesting”.  We didn’t realize until it was too late but we were right on the edge of what turned out to be a red light district.  It was a strip of girly bars that attracted a seedy crowd and that partied till the wee hours.  Fortunately we were just far enough away from the edge of it that even though we could see and hear it we weren’t really so close that neither the noise nor the clientele were a problem for us.  Whew!

We really enjoyed our tuk tuk tours (night and day) around the city and got to see all that we wanted to.  We even spent our final evening at the night market as it’s known for it’s excellent street food and it didn’t disappoint.  We each had two full meals and including drinks our total bill was $5.25.  Not bad!

So here we are in Kampot....with a plan to stay for at least 5 days (as that is how many nights were available at Mea Culpa). We just had pizza from a wood fire oven and an icy cold beer to wash it down.  I had a White Russian for dessert.  I can see how this place could grow on you!  One blogger describes Kampot not as a place that knocks your socks off...but rather a place that gently pulls them off one at a time (not in a creepy way) and then before you know what’s happened there you are with your socks off and getting a foot massage.  I think that blogger has this place figured out and I look forward to getting my socks pulled off and my feet rubbed.  :-)

Till next time, 

LorLyn

November 12, 2018

Beep Beep Beep.....sounded the alarm at 6:45 a.m. so Lynda and I could get up to meet Darlene and Gail for breakfast at 7 this morning.  As I type this I’m reminded that I forgot to mention yesterday that there were church bells ringing so much that we began to wonder if the only way they’d stop is if we went to church!  They started up at 6 a.m. and were still ringing (on and off) at 6 pm!  But that was yesterday....and this post is about today....

Today is the day that Darlene and Gail head for home and so there will be no sleeping in for either of them!  It’s been a great 5 weeks full of adventure and fun but they’re both looking forward to going home too.

We wouldn’t want them to get away with no excitement though and so Saigon traffic made sure that they had a little glitch in that their car couldn’t get to the hotel as scheduled for their 7:30 pick up.  In fact, it wasn’t looking good for it to make it here by 8:00 and so plan B kicked in and Robert arranged for a taxi out front instead.  As a result they had a few anxious moments but in the end they made it to the airport and through security with time to spare so it was one of those times when you just have to say, “alls well that ends well”.

After our two travel buddies left Lynda and I decided it was way too early to get up and so it was back to our beds for a bit.  When we awoke again we discovered that Saigon was crying this morning too!  There was lightening and thunder and so what were we to do but to crawl back into bed for a little while longer.

Eventually the rain stopped and our day began.  The plan for today was to visit the Saigon Opera House as it is supposed to be one of the most beautiful buildings in the city.  While there we’d also be able to see that part of the city.  As luck would have it, there was a performance scheduled for the Opera House for tonight and so....we got tickets and are we ever glad we did!  We even dressed up a little and donned some mascara in honour of the event.  The production, The Mist, was an amazing show that depicts the life of the traditional farmer in southern vietnam.  You could have heard a pin drop in that theatre for the entire 90 minute show.  The theatre lived up to its reputation too.  It seats just 468 and there isn’t a bad seat in the house.  As well, the acoustics are exceptional and the seats roomy and comfortable.  We were welcomed to the theatre with a complimentary mojito that we were able to enjoy out on a little balcony overlooking the lighted fountain that changed colours every minute or so.  After that we were given wooden sticks as we were shown to our seats on the 1st floor balcony.  Once the lights dimmed and the music began, I am not sure that either of us breathed again until the rice fell from the sky at the end of the show.  Well, perhaps we breathed a little when we were participating during the section where we were invited to use those wooden sticks to mimic the performers as they beat on their bamboo “drums” and the floor.  All in all it was such a fun night neither of us really wanted it to end and so.....since it was the perfect temperature out we decided to extend the outing just a little bit longer.

The Opera House is located on a main square in the heart of the city.  Across the street there is the Hotel Continental Saigon and we could see a little patio that seemed to be calling us to come and have a coffee there.  The restaurant that this patio was attached to is called Le Bourgeois and the music that was playing was all in French so within minutes of sitting down we both felt like we were in Paris!  The coffees were delicious and the atmosphere perfect but you can only sit there for so long and in truth....we weren’t ready for this our final night in Vietnam to end just yet so.......

Next stop....rooftop bar for a night cap.  :-). On the other side of the Opera House there is another Hotel.  This one is called the Caravelle and it is home to one of the oldest and most favoured rooftop bars in the city.  The bar is called Saigon Saigon and on the way up the stairs from the 9th to the 10th floor they have pictures and information about the colourful history of this hotel and bar.  It was home to many a journalist during the years before and during the American conflict here.

By the time we’d enjoyed our drinks it was time to head back to the hotel as we had some packing and prep to do for our departure tomorrow.  We have flights to Phnom Pen on Cambodian Angkor Air at 1 pm so have arranged to have a car pick us up here at the hotel at 10:00.

What a great evening in this interesting and very cosmopolitan city......it was the perfect way to bid Vietnam a fond farewell. 

Till next time...... LorLyn.   (We lost our DarGai so all we have left is LorLyn)