TravelStream™ news feed for member arewethere.yet on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/arewethere.yet en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:18:49 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1191614340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1191614340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1191614340/tpod.html Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:18:49 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Cherating, Pahang, Malaysia

Cherating BeachCherating Beach was a great destination; sun, finally after weeks of monsoons, sandy beaches, warm water, resort hotel, practically the only people in the venue.  Our trip in Malaysia was during the month of Ramadan.  We could not find many places to eat during the day but the Ramadan hotel deals exceeded our expectations! We scored some breathtaking sites fit for a backpacker's budget.  The best part of Cherating Beach was our visit to the turtle conservation areas when we watched a green turtle lay 200 eggs and saw more baby turtles hatch and run to sea.  Tioman IslandThe memory of this island and its rowdy macaque monkeys, the one to two meter long monitor lizards, the enormous bugs, the millions of cats and the best diving conditions yet will be forever imprinted on my boys' minds.  We woke up early every morning to the sound of the same whining cat waiting at our door waiting to lead us to the breakfast table to enjoy the waking sun.  After breakfast, it was a quick trip to the wooden bridge to giggle at the frisky monkeys and their babies cavorting in the water, swinging from branch to branch and falling off.  After the crazy monkey sight seeing, and much to the boys' relentless complaints, we sat down for school lessons.  After lunch and more lessons, we would include a dive or some snorkeling in mid-afternoon.  Diving was beyond description as the colours and shapes underwater are not the ones you see above it.  I was always astounded that the sea creatures simply did not mind our presence.  During the evening, after the required and scheduled cocktail hour in front of the sunset (thanks to Mamie for this routine) we would saunter off to dinner in the rustic outside restaurant feasting on various sea foods or fresh local dishes. The best thing about Tioman Island is that wine and spirits are duty free. Woohoo!  Anywhere else in Malaysia, it costs the proverbial arm and leg to buy any kind of liquor.  I know, this routine sounds tough and we did have to spend 10 days on Tioman to ensure that we understood, practised and mastered island life. Yes, Tioman was such a "stressful' adventure.Melaka;Historical town with a Portuguese settlement and a beautiful "China Town" (nicest I have seen outside of China).    Port DicksonAnother highlight in Malaysia was the Avillion hotel in Port Dickson.  We found a great "Ramadan" deal at an exotic resort hidden under a canopy of trees where the chalets stood in the sea.  Our rating:  best service, best room, best pools, funky activities for the boys especially when they worked at the petting zoo. Heaven!!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189539660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189539660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189539660/tpod.html Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:57:05 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Vientiane, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

Vientiane   In Laos (an old colony of France), the French influence is very apparent especially in the capital city.  Vientiane has a Parisian flavour and it is very noticeable in its architecture, downtown area, street signs and cuisine.  French restaurants offer gourmet meals at a fraction of the price.  Golden temples decorate the city.  Markets are also everywhere.    Laos is a country in need of assistance and Ty and I were disillusioned by the fact that the NGO's are located in the most expensive buildings in the very trendy parts of Vientiane.  World Vision, UNICEF and UN organizations all display their brand new, top of the line, 4 by 4 trucks (one being a Toyota Sequoia).  Most streets are not big enough for these monsters!  Our money at work!?!      If you want to visit Laos, do it soon.  In three years time, the country will open up to foreign businesses.  The locals are concerned that they will suffer from too many enterprises venturing into their territory.  I do hope that the charm, innocence and magic are not forgotten by money.  
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189821300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189821300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1189821300/tpod.html Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:12:57 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Hanoi, all over Asia, Vietnam

Lost in translation!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1184193120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1184193120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1184193120/tpod.html Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:12:44 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

China, July I think 11th...1st entryI am typing on a computer with a Chinese language script keyboard and thanking my grade nine typing teacher as I am doing quite well at guessing where to locate my native letters of the alphabet.  By now, I have pressed so many buttons that I have surely sent the Space Shuttle back into orbit.  I will wait until I reach an Internet cafe with a staff capable of showing me the proper tricks of blogging overseas.How to fly to China with two children... not an easy task.  Our first stop is in Vancouver after a teary goodbye and leaving our home at 6 AM.  I do feel quite anxious about this trip.  Are we doing the right thing to leave for eight months?  Will we come back to a home "mostly" intact?  Will the tenants respect our space and what we left behind?  Will our boys be happy, healthy, safe and learn about life?  Will our grumpy male cat accept us back in his life when we return? But than again, I can forget about the grumpy cat.Lost in these thoughts and concerns, I realize that we are ready to land safely in Vancouver.  After our arrival, and just after before sitting down for lunch, we hear our names called on the intercom.  As my husband sprints through 25 gates to reach the calling point, we find out that they have overbooked the flight to Beijing.  First thought in my mind...we have to stay behind.  First words out of the attendant's mouth..."We have switched your seats to the front of the plane, do you mind?"  Hum?  First class; some angels were smiling at us that day !  Eleven and a half hours of pampering and maybe some sleep, hey, I think I may relax! As parents, we are giving this precious gift to our children; traveling the world to open their minds.  It will allow them to understand how lucky they are to live in a peaceful and amazing country like Canada. We hope they learn to appreciate simplicity and humility.  Well, we did not refuse the comfort of flying like royalty but will the kids expect this throughout the trip?  "Another glass of champagne with your salmon phylo pastry?" Je ne dirais pas non!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1200692880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1200692880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1200692880/tpod.html Sun, 11 Jan 2009 10:40:00 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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St Lucia, South Africa

St LuciaA little jewel north-east of Durban situated close to the Swaziland border.  Here, people are careful as hippos walk the streets at night and it is strongly advised not to frequent river edges as crocodiles are always hungry.  The Nile crocs seem to have the "chill thing" mastered as they tend to spend most of their day warming themselves in the sun. What they are really thinking when they furtively look at you is "lovely, here comes my snack!"  They move fast!  In St-Lucia, we stayed in a great  colonial style B. &B.; the entire house to ourselves.  It is located in a bird park called Cane Cutters.  It was worth the long 15km ride on the tiny unlit country road at night where the hippos roam; especially the night of the spectacular thunderstorm.  I understand now what they mean by an African sky when its entirety is illuminated by purple, white, green and blue colours of continuous thunder bolts.  This storm reminded us of the famous unrivaled one at Lac Beauclair 2 years ago...a beauty! The considerably sized bird park proved to be a great treat for us.  We became attached to the noisy toucans, the whiny peacocks, "Hello Pete" and the pink Australian Galah who talked to us ad infinitum which somewhat reminded me of my sons.  Early, E A R L Y  in the morning, we would help prepare the food and deliver it to the cages.  On our daily route, we could always count on being followed by grouchy geese, busy rolling dung beetles and an attention seeking miniature horse.One evening, I heard a scream coming from my oldest son's bedroom..."Maman, vite!" As I rushed to the room thinking that I may find a black mamba snake about to engulf my son (actually, these snakes only bite venomously), I see a small tailless gecko sitting on top of EDude's toe.  A gecko had fallen from the ceiling (again), this time on E's chest and he had tried to catch it.  The tail was "dropped" in his hand still waving and the cute little gecko was staring anxiously back at him.  The best part of this moment, according to the thirteen year old was that he could run after his brother with the live, squiggling tail in his hands. One morning, we set off on a hippo tour of the St-Lucia wetlands; ticking off another UNESCO site from the list.   We were quite entertained by the guide who could switch from Dutch to English to Afrikaan languages with such ease. We observed many hippos in their natural habitat; standing and flipping on to their backs.  It is quite funny to see legs coming out of the water as the hippos grunt, spray water through their nostrils, yawn to get air in their lungs and simply hang out. Hippos do not swim or float.  They travel by walking on the bottom of their watery domains.  They graze during the day and must walk many kilometres at night to help digest their daily food intake.  They stay in pods (scientists link hippos to the whale family) where there is one male, many females and young ones.  There can only be one "beach master"; the big cheese who must constantly defend his title against the up and coming young males...oh the grunting!  We saw the result of a failed "coup"at dethroning the master. The defeated hippo was left suffering quietly in his little corner of the reeds.   Once in a while, a croc would come to spy on us. Crocodiles are the submarines of the animal world.  They conceal themselves and move gracefully, smartly and quietly above and under the water.  They resemble floating sticks and leave gentle ripples on the surface...until they attack! Their "death role" can give you nightmares. We saw many birds of various sizes and colours nesting in the reeds and a lonesome buffalo.  We later tried our luck at our first game drive.  A note to self; animals don't like rainy days.  This game park boasted about having the highest concentration of rhinos...2000 of them!  Sadly for us, the rhinos on that day were not to come out and play.  The zebras were abundant and always the first ones to greet us.  The wart hogs, well they are just the funny little creatures. Our first excursion on our own in the "wilds" of Africa was quite a success.  Can't wait for the next one!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1203185280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1203185280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1203185280/tpod.html Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:21:44 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Victoria Falls, Zambia

On our way to Zambia, we: 1. Scratched more cheetahs behind the ears 2. Walked with some caracals3. Observed up close a grouchy leopard4. Climbed the highest sand castles5. Went sand boarding on very hot dunes6. Slid down sandy hills at 80km an hour7. Threw rocks into the deepest crevices8. Stood on the Tropic of Capricorn9. Explored coasts where nothing lives 10. "Smelled" a colony of seals...skunks would run away 11. Walked in a petrified forest late one afternoon at 45 degrees Celsius12. Learned how to hunt and trap animals from the kindest tribe members13. Watched the best live animal programs at a water hole14. Slept in tents beside hippos, wacky warthogs, genets, elephants, hyenas, lions, giraffes,,,,15.  Had a too close an encounter with a baboon16.  Stood in line and waited for four hours to cross the Botswana and Zambia border17. Celebrated our wedding anniversary wasting four hours to cross the Botswana and Zambia border  (bribery is all too well at work here) and then drank some bubbly18.  Had an unexpected shower at Victoria Falls (Smoking Thunder)19. Flew to Johannesburg on Christmas day20. Shared a "traditional " dinner with another Canadian family starting their safari. When we left Africa, I had a huge knot in my throat.  I know we each left a part of ourselves on this continent.  We felt the warmth, the passion and at times the deep rooted pain the people endure in these South African countries. We truly hope that one day; more peace can find its way to every region in this remarkable part of the world.  I now understand what my uncle Hubert meant every time he left to work to "mon Afrique"; his Africa. I understand the excitement he felt returning to his beloved adopted country. I only wish that my family could have shared part of our first experience "en Afrique" through his eyes. I am now "Out of Africa", I hope to return.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1197998880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1197998880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1197998880/tpod.html Mon, 22 Dec 2008 12:32:37 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Okavongo Delta, Botswana

Okavongo DeltaDec 18-20, 2007Throughout this trip, I am constantly reminded of a very special book I read as a child; Le Petit Prince. &nbsp;It was my first true understanding&nbsp;of philosophy and wisdom.&nbsp; Saint-Exupéry, the author,&nbsp;was able to animate and describe secrets that will forever be nestled in my soul. &nbsp;Passages and characters from this particular book have followed us during our travels; this truly in Africa.&nbsp; On this continent, we walked the sandy dunes in the desert, saw the famous&nbsp;rose,&nbsp;a cunning&nbsp;snake, met a "Lamplighter" and even "a Geographer". &nbsp;&nbsp;I was even able to locate the fox, my favourite character. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;A particular trip in Botswana in the Okavongo Delta, "Le Petit Prince" re-surfaced when we boarded the very small plane that would fly us over the vast delta.&nbsp; This magical childhood&nbsp;story was being told again.&nbsp; How small we were in this plane but floating over elephants, giraffes and cape buffaloes...whoa, I think I heard some music?? Landing was exciting as our tiny plane hovered and bounced to finally stabilize itself on the dirt runway.After a small walking excursion, we arrived at our camping site where one lone male elephant greeted us.&nbsp; He walked away with his two bird buddies at his side to&nbsp; knock down a very big tree&nbsp;as if&nbsp;to say: "Hey, yes, I DO&nbsp;own this territory".&nbsp;We were quickly amused again by the crazy warthogs that took up residence in our washrooms at nigh and even accompanied us for some warm outdoor showers...EEECK!&nbsp; Our tent also had a couple of them residing under it...they would keep us warmer at night...if only they could keep quiet.&nbsp; Baboons also love tents.&nbsp; The Velcro closings as well as the locks on the zipper doors did not deter "baboonian" thievery as Ty and EDude found out when the&nbsp;three primates&nbsp;ran away laughing with&nbsp;a plastic laundry bag.We also found out about the&nbsp;familiar&nbsp;snakes, the nightly wanderers (hippos, lions, hyenas) and hoped that they would leave us alone.&nbsp; At this time, the annoyance of the "Canadian camping trip" visits from swarming mosquitoes and frisky raccoons felt quite insignificant. In Africa, frogs chirp at an indescribable decibel level...a delta is a chorus of noises of symphonic proportions.&nbsp; Also, the darkness here permits one to see stars as far as eternity.Our excursions in this delta were always by foot and brought about some excitement (anxiety in my book of definitions).&nbsp; We came quite close to ever so curious head popping giraffes, to hippos...too close to hippos and colourful kingfishers.&nbsp; I think these birds visit us at Lac Beauclair.&nbsp; Evening dinners outside, nights spent on the terrace watching the stars, card games with our British friends and watching the Christmas tree glowing inside the common area were all surreal.&nbsp;&nbsp; We even had Santa (our white haired guide) sit at the head of the table.&nbsp; &nbsp;The last morning, Ty and I tried to photograph the family of warthogs lazily stretched across the washroom floor.&nbsp; Papa warthog did not like the flash and his reaction prompted Ty and I to fly away like the speed of light. Luckily for me, I got to hop on the sink.&nbsp; This fun adventure inspired the crazy XDude to come up with a new game called "spank the warthog".&nbsp; I am delighted that this only became a " big dare".&nbsp;Before boarding the plane, we were told that earlier this year, more than one walking guide met up with tragedy...some forms of arguments with big felines and other mammals. I, once again, thanked my lucky stars and was glad that this little factual tidbit was reported to me when we were about to leave.&nbsp;Two absolutely enchanted days and nights were spent in the Okavongo Delta; I highly recommend it to liberate your soul. You can also read Le Petit Prince for&nbsp;added&nbsp;wisdom.&nbsp;<i>"And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye."Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1198022640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1198022640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1198022640/tpod.html Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:47:17 -0500 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Grootfontein, Namibia

"Be careful how you try to help" is the lesson I understood from this story.&nbsp; You see, our guide to our African journey&nbsp;Johan, had many stories and all of them were either&nbsp;thought provoking or very humourous.&nbsp; This one, I will cherish.It seems that in&nbsp;a village in Namibia, like many villages in Africa, a group of women&nbsp;would&nbsp;trek close to 20 km&nbsp;&nbsp;a day back and forth&nbsp;to fetch the daily intake of fresh and clean water. (Yes, this is beginning to sound like one of my father's stories of his youth when he had to&nbsp;"walk" 10 KM to school every morning in the deep snow with one boot, uphill....).&nbsp; For many&nbsp;Africans,&nbsp;walking long&nbsp;distances&nbsp;is part of&nbsp;a daily routine.&nbsp; But one day,&nbsp;a very kind and generous group of Canadian engineers found out about the hardship endured by women of a particular village who had to walk so far for a life's necessity...clean water.&nbsp; The engineers traveled a far distance to build the village a brand new well.After a few&nbsp;months of the well&nbsp;having been&nbsp;put to good use, the engineers received&nbsp; a message&nbsp;explaining that the well&nbsp;had been&nbsp;"broken".&nbsp;&nbsp;The crew of engineers quickly came to the village's rescue to fix any damage.Later on, another message was&nbsp;sent&nbsp;to the engineers who could not understand what was going on.&nbsp; This little charade did not have to last too long for the engineers to figure out that the well was being sabotaged.&nbsp; Who could do such a thing?The answer was very simple for the women but not so obvious for the kind hearted helpers.&nbsp; Walking the 20 or so&nbsp;KM to the water source for the women of the village was a precious time of day. They could finally have time to themselves.&nbsp; They could meet up with women from other villages to exchange greetings and stories.&nbsp; It was the "conversation at the water cooler" time to which they looked forward every day.&nbsp; The women were&nbsp;destroying the well.&nbsp;In many parts of Africa, time is not measured.&nbsp; It is daylight, or starlight.&nbsp; It is time to eat, talk, learn or&nbsp;breath.&nbsp; What a lesson to learn.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1205257440/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1205257440/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1205257440/tpod.html Fri, 17 Oct 2008 15:14:00 -0400 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Lima, PeruMarch 10th, 2007&nbsp;Boys?"Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to smile from ear to ear and ooze as much charm as possible when we get to the Air Canada counter.&nbsp; We once had a chance to be in First class, maybe it could happen again."&nbsp;THAT didn't work!&nbsp; Ty's imitation of George Clooney seems to require more practice. We were given seats in front of the plane but evidently not close enough to the pilot.&nbsp; The wait for our flight out of Lima was delayed by 2 hours; we left at 2:00 am with too many interruptions to have our passports checked over and over again.&nbsp; How I hate red-eyes; they hurt.&nbsp;The plane attendants obviously don't like them either nor did they&nbsp;enjoy what they were doing.&nbsp; They could easily have been members of Attila the Hun's gang with its famous leader sarcastically answering questions and telling off the passengers.&nbsp; Between his continuous rants and impatient soliloquies, the babies crying and trying to sleep in a cramped space, I was beginning to question life.&nbsp;&nbsp; To top it all off, the projector did not work...no movies, arghh!Early in the morning, the first sign of Canada was waiting for us in the sky.&nbsp; Seeing the CN tower&nbsp; poke its needle&nbsp;nose&nbsp;through the clouds&nbsp;brought about a tremendous comfort.&nbsp;&nbsp;Don't quite know how we managed it, with&nbsp;a huge delay in Lima,&nbsp;but we did manage to make our connection in Toronto with a good 6 minutes to spare.&nbsp; We arrived safely in Ottawa after their latest snow dump (54cm) from an record breaking snow fall winter.&nbsp;What I still can't believe is that out of the 28 flights we had, we have retrieved our luggage 28 times and can still locate our passports.&nbsp;&nbsp; Mamie and Pappie were waiting for us at the airport...Mamie with flowers and Pappie circling the area in his car as he hates to pay for parking.&nbsp;I am overwhelmed by the fact that I am back.&nbsp; I am happy to see my family, my friends, my cats and my home.&nbsp; What I have missed the most from home&nbsp;was&nbsp;being able to grab a glass of water out of the tap. My bed will be very comfortable tonight. I am heartbroken because I will not have my boys with me for 24 hours a day.&nbsp; This was such a precious gift.&nbsp; I don't want to send my babies back to school.&nbsp; I will miss my daily adventures.&nbsp;I know that the world has taught us many lessons and that we will be forever re-evaluating everything we do.&nbsp; This is a life-altering experience.&nbsp; More answers to our many questions will come to&nbsp;us&nbsp;later I am sure. &nbsp;It will take us time to understand and process everything we have seen.&nbsp; I will enjoy these moments.&nbsp; &nbsp;We have been gone 8 months and have visited Beijing, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru and Ecuador with footprints in Mongolia, Paraguay and Zimbabwe. All of these countries have touched us.&nbsp;The top of the top highlights have to be the Great Wall, Angkor Wat, Ha Long Bay, Cape Town, the Namib Desert, the cheetahs licking our hands, the safaris, Machu Picchu and the animals in the&nbsp;Galapagos Islands. &nbsp;I thank profusely my family and friends who have supported us during this trip. Anytime I needed to consult someone at home, my inquiries were answered so quickly and with much caring and comfort.&nbsp; I have also benefited from the positive&nbsp;comments about my blog and advice (sister...awesome traveler) from friends.&nbsp; I have received much encouragement which helped tremendously during the times I "just had to go home" when the boys needed medical attention and for some crazy odd reason, I would choose to worry.I am home again, planning for&nbsp;our next trip.&nbsp;&nbsp;Thanks for reading! &nbsp;Marie-Josée LeBlanc&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1185111300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1185111300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/arewethere.yet/asia_and_beyond/1185111300/tpod.html Mon, 30 Jun 2008 10:01:54 -0400 On y va! A family`s trek across 3 continents

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Koh Samet, Thailand

Koh Sahmet Island:It is a very touristy and&nbsp;polluted island. &nbsp;The water near the conservation park is somewhat clear, very warm and spits out once in a while, massive, plate sized purple and green jelly fish.&nbsp; Cats come out at night on the beach and two males decided to fight under our very low table and bit our youngest.&nbsp;&nbsp;It left him with four bleeding holes on his leg.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Let's re-evaluate;&nbsp;it is 9:00 pm, on a small island in the Gulf of Thailand,&nbsp; where people speak a foreign language and &nbsp;animals roam everywhere (4 legged ones too)...is there a clinic?Eureka!&nbsp; We find one - no doctors, no nurses but&nbsp;a grumpy attendant oye!&nbsp; After she unlocked the door, she disinfected the wound and in broken English explained:" Very dangerous, must see doctor".Luckily for us, we had spent the extravagant amount of money pre-departure on rabies shots.&nbsp; We also knew that if were bitten that we would only require one extra stabbing on the arm within 24 hours... but where to get it?PattayaWe left the next day to meet my cousin in Pattaya.&nbsp; A saving grace as he knew exactly what to do and where to send us.&nbsp; We ended up at the Bangkok hospital which is as beautiful as a five star hotel.&nbsp; As we arrived in the foyer, we were greeted by a smiling and gracious hostess who took our coordinates, registered our son in the Thai system (he has a hospital card) and escorted us to the proper treatment room; no coloured stripes on the walls to follow on our own. &nbsp;As we followed the hostess, I am sure I saw angel wings on her back.Upon arriving at the "surgery' my son's vital signs were then taken, and the he was offered some lemonade and a sweet treat.&nbsp; Then, we met with a doctor and his nurse.&nbsp; They explained the treatment very clearly: "Master Yayier" needed a shot oops no, two shots and some antibiotics."The Master", who cringes (loudly) at the sound of the word syringe, was no longer in control.&nbsp; As tears started to&nbsp;pool in his beautiful sea blue eyes, two nurses immediately came to his side to rub his hair and console him.&nbsp; His shots were administered,&nbsp;I paid for the antibiotics.&nbsp; The hospital staff&nbsp;even arranged for an air-conditioned taxi to take us back to our hotel.&nbsp; From beginning to end of the visit: 1 hour!&nbsp; The cost of the visit, consultation, shots and antibiotics: $89.00 Canadian. Best medical service I have ever experienced; priceless! The rest of the day was spent with my cousin Bruno&nbsp;whom I had not seen for quite a while.&nbsp; He loves Asia and has started a web site business.&nbsp;&nbsp;Koh Chang:&nbsp; a lovely and less visited island.&nbsp; It is a lot cleaner and the water is clear, warm and turquoise and the jelly fish are smaller here.&nbsp; Our hotel was on the beach and we enjoyed our evening dinners on the sand sans cats.&nbsp; What fascinated me were the minute&nbsp;hyper-active sand crabs that zoom on the beach during the day.&nbsp; They laboriously and continuously swallow grains of sand to extract food particles and spit&nbsp;them out in perfect little balls.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;They create the best&nbsp;"Pollock" and "Seurat"&nbsp;designs all over the beach.&nbsp; This island was worth a longer stay.&nbsp;&nbsp;
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