TravelStream™ news feed for member mpoelzl on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mpoelzl en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:46:14 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221824880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221824880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221824880/tpod.html Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:46:14 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Ko Tao, Thailand

Beautiful island, great diving, warm clear water, a room with a balcony almost in the
water for perfect sunset watching, great. It took a bit of work, but worth it.

We arrived at the island without accommodation as we thought it would be pretty easy to pick a beach and go for a walk to find what we were looking for. Not so easy. We'd decided that we were going to Chalok beach as we'd seen a website for Koh Tao Resort and it looked good as we were after a little luxury as we're getting toward the end of the trip - fully booked. So we walked all the way around the very picturesque bay checking every place on offer. On Koh Tao the emphasis really is on diving and it seems that there is an unwritten rule that if you are diving you are happy to stay in average accommodation. It was a very strange situation where all of the accommodation on the beach was cheap and pretty barren (not bad but just not that special), we couldn't actually pay as much as we wanted to as the accom just didn't exist right on the beach (there are nice resorts but they are up the hill away from the beach - what's the point of sitting by the pool when the beautiful waters of the Gulf of Thailand are calling you in?). Once we'd exhausted our options at Chalok (and after lunch) we headed to Sai Ree beach, which is the largest strip of beach on the Island and also really beautiful. After looking at a few more places here we were getting a bit down and settled for Seashells which had a nice (not great) room on the beach.

There are loads of dive operators on the Island as we had a look around at some and in doing so we also had a look at the largest one (Ban's) which also has accommodation, as we weren't totally happy with the room we had and the price for a room and diving was pretty good we had a look at the room and it was really nice, so we agreed to move in the next day, just a short walk down the beach. Ban's was a big mistake, the diving here is really mass production. On Koh Tao there are loads of people diving so dive sites are a bit crowded anyway but if one boat (ie Ban's) brings 40-50 people that really doesn't help. Coupled with this our room was next to the bar which doesn't stop the music until 5am so sleep was minimal.

Next day another room search and we found View Cliff. Our priority had changed to quiet now and we found quiet, right on the beach (we had a private swimming pool that nature had made out of boulders in the sea right in front of the room), a balcony for sunsets and a nice enough room. Also View Cliff don't do diving so we were free to dive with whoever we want and we went with Scuba Junction, who were great (no ripped wetsuits, unlike Ban's), friendly staff and our boat took out 7 people the first day and 10 the next - Great.

The diving was very good although the visibility was a bit variable but we saw some very interesting marine creatures including a shark!!, eels, box fish, porcupine fish, scorpion fish (never would have seen these without the dive master), sting ray, huge groupers and loads of schools of other colourful fish (butterfly fish, fusiliers etc etc). Also, the snorkeling off the beach is great too so if you're not diving don't be too disheartened, just hire a mask and snorkel for less than $2 a day and go for a swim.

The rest of the days were spent lying in the sun on the beach, playing a bit of frisbee (until a dog got it) and relaxing with a beer.

On our way back to Bangkok we stopped off for nearly a whole day on Koh Samui as we had a late flight. Chaweng Beach here is also very beautiful so next time we'll visit Koh Samui.

Another quick note - Koh Samui airport, the best airport we've ever been to, not really like an airport at all, more like a golf resort, complete with the extended golf buggies that take you to and from the planes.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1222340640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1222340640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1222340640/tpod.html Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:05:56 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Bangkok, Thailand

A few days in Bangkok to finish off the trip and we finally get to see something of it rather than just shops.
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Bangkok, Thailand

Only one night here after a six hour train journey from Phitsanulok. Tomorrow morning we are off to Koh Tao at 6 am. Looking forward to a 4am wake up. NOT!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221557580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221557580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221557580/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 06:29:59 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Phitsanulok, Thailand

We wanted to visit the nearby (one hour by bus) Sukhotai Old City but Sukhotai doesn't have a train station so we elected to stay in Phitsanulok for a couple of nights and make the trip out to Sukhotai for the day rather than lug our stuff there. It's easy to do.

There is a night market in town and we also saw the locals participating in some sort of fitness regime on "Healthy Road". Phitsanulok also has some notable Wats in town, the Phra Sri Ratana Mahathat complex is pretty interesting to have a look around.

Sukhotai was easy to get to and from by public bus and hiring bicycles there made for a really relaxing and enjoyable day looking around the old city's numerous wats which are set amongst trees and lakes. The ruins are nowhere near the scale of Angkor Wat but are beautiful and very easy to visit by bike.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221470400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221470400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221470400/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 06:27:29 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Lampang, Thailand

Lampang is a nice little town, not really touristy at all. On the corner of the street from our hotel there was a great, really busy, little restaurant where we had the hottest curry of the trip so far. Whilst walking around the town we also managed to get caught in another now familiar afternoon downpour, which is more fun than it sounds.

About 20km out of town is the Wat Phra That Lampang Luang reputed to be one of the finest and most beautiful wats in Thailand. It is still a working monastery and is about 500 years old. One of the buildings here supposedly houses a hair and ashes of the great Buddha's forehead and neckbone. There's also a small viharn which contains a footprint of the Buddha (only men are allowed in). Another viharn at the site is thought to possibly be the oldest wooden building still standing in Thailand.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221483780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221483780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1221483780/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 05:30:38 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Muang Pan, Thailand

After a relatively busy Chang Mai we decided to get away from it all at the Chae Sorn National Park. We'd read about the hot springs and the waterfalls here so decided to head out there.

The hot springs in the park bubble out at between 75 - 80 Celsius, hot enough to boil an egg!! (It seems the thing to do to prove this and whilst walking around the springs you can see many baskets and crates of eggs getting their treatment).

The park itself is really beautiful jungle, we went for an unintentionally very long and difficult walk looking for the waterfall called Mae Pik (we think) which was supposedly on a nature trail 5km from the park headquarters. A point to note is that virtually all of the signage in the park is in Thai and there is very little English spoken here(hardly surprising really given that we're in Thailand!) so we did misinterpret the direction of the nature trail. Anyway after walking about 4 km, all up hill, we got to a sign that had a symbol that looked like a waterfall only 1km further away so we followed the sign. It seems that there haven't been that many people up there as the path just lead to nothing other than overgrown jungle so after all our efforts we didn't see the waterfall that we'd been looking for. We did however see lots of birds, multicoloured butterflies and a large snake!! as well as the bamboo, vines, palms and other greenery of the thick jungle.

The hot springs have been, thoughtfully, channeled into individual bathrooms with a small nature-fed tub and a shower. After the long walk it was very soothing.
The easy to reach (if you follow the right path) waterfall of Chae Sorn is quite spectacular falling down about 4 or 5 levels and running into a beautiful jungle stream.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220420580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220420580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220420580/tpod.html Mon, 15 Sep 2008 08:55:26 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Siem Reap, Cambodia

The Angkor Wat temple complex really is a sight to behold. It is a huge complex spread over a vast area so is most easily explored by tuk tuk which you will probably arrange on your way into town with the tuk tuk/taxi driver who'll undoubtedly give you a good price from the ferry to town.

On our first afternoon there we went to the main Angkor Wat temple for sunset. The following morning we went got up at 4am!! to head out to the temples for sunrise, we started at the ancient bath, Srah Srang, where the view of the sun rising is reflected in the water of the lake and is a truly special place. Also there were hardly any people there as we were told most people go to Angkor Wat for sunrise. Our next stop was a temple called Banteay Kdei which was magical as the sun came up and we walked around without a single other tourist to be seen. It really was like the cliché of the Indiana Jones or Tomb Raider (which was shot here) movie, walking through all the corridors seeing all the faces, gods and animals carved into the walls. The Ta Prohm temple is a little different to the others as it has really succumbed more to the jungle than the others. Throughout this temple there are large trees that have grown through, over and around the walls creating a really eerie feeling, especially in the early morning light.

As the day got hotter we moved over to the more visited sites, Angkor Thom and Angkor Wat. Angkor Thom has some temples/buildings inside its boundaries, notably the Bayon, into which are carved more than 2,000 large faces, the Baphoum with the giant reclining buddha. Also at Angkor Thom are the Elephant Terrace and the Phimeanakas (or Flying Place).

http://www.cambodianonline.net/angkormap.htm
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220956200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220956200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220956200/tpod.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:59:59 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Chiang Mai, Thailand

Chang Mai is the largest town in the north of Thailand and there is loads to do here. When you arrive and have a walk around you'll see everything from visiting a hill tribe to driving an off road buggy through a creek somewhere...we only had four days but we managed to pack quite a bit in (we think).

On our first night here we went to the night bazaar, a huge collection of market stalls. The stalls are not where locals go to shop. Why would they need "Ipood" (not Ipod) t-shirts, wooden frogs or hats made out of coke cans anyway? Only tourists "need" these things... so we went shopping. It took a few hours as there was a lot of strategy to the bartering. The stallholders here are obviously very used to tourists who are looking for a bargain as they are pretty firm with their pricing and are not scared to tell you what they think of your starting price or to just cut off the bartering session if you're "too cheap".

The next day we headed off with Mountain Biking Chang Mai to the Doi Suthep national park. We had originally signed up for a nice easy riverside ride through the jungle but when we got there we were talked into going for a downhill ride from the top of the mountain near Chang Mai. (We think the owner wasn't that keen to send another car with the two of us for the ride that we had originally signed up for, considering there were four others going down the mountain, and that's why he talked us into the "better ride", just a hunch). After we got to the top of the mountain and were given chest protectors, shin/knee pads, elbow pads, gloves and a helmet we were a little concerned as to what we'd signed up for but were somewhat reassured by the fact that our guide was wearing flip flops. In any case the ride was great fun through some beautiful forest in the national park, coffee plantations and with some stops for great views over Chang Mai. The downside to the downhill ride was that there is less time to take in the scenery as you tend to concentrate on the rocks, roots and ruts in the track as you speed down the hill. It was great fun though and a good challenge for us as we've not really done downhill riding before. Despite our initial bemusement about the level of protective equipment there was another member of the group who did have a fall and said he appreciated it!

Having done an organised tour the day before we thought we'd be a little more adventurous with our visit to the Mae Ya Waterfall in the Don Inanthon National part approximately 60kms from Chang Mai. We got a local songthaew (a pick up truck converted to have bench seats at the back) to Chong Thom and then did a deal with a local songthaew driver to take us into the national park and to the Mae Ya Waterfall. It was worth the effort, the waterfall is very beautiful, cascading down some 250m and below, a little further downstream you can swim and get a free massage in the river.

In the evening we went to the Khantoke dinner, which is a thai dinner with a cultural show of Thai dances including dances from various hill tribe groups, food was great and the dances were interesting, especially from the point of view of how different the ethnic groups's dances were.

Doi Suthep National park is also home to the Doi Suthep Wat, which is a very famous Wat overlooking Chang Mai (great views). The staircase leading up to the Wat has over 300 steps (if you're not feeling that energetic you can take a cable car) and is lined on each side by the nagas (snakes) so prominent in the architecture in this part of the world.

In the evening we went to the Siam Rice Thai Cookery School to learn some Thai cooking. We made ourselves some spring rolls, pad thai, chicken and cashew nuts, chicken with holy basil, red and green curry and sticky rice for desert. The food was absolutely delicious (we would say that given that we cooked it!) and our teacher "Pot" was great fun too. Before we got into the cooking we went to visit the market to see and smell the ingredients we'd later be putting together which was helpful as of course a lot of it is thai specific. If you're ever in Chang Mai and fancy having a go at cooking as well as eating thai food go to www.siamricethaicookery.com Make sure you don't eat beforehand as you'll be stuffed by the time you're done!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220789220/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220789220/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220789220/tpod.html Wed, 10 Sep 2008 06:36:48 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Chiang Rai, Thailand

Don't know if it's because we landed on a Sunday but the town had a bit of a ghost town feel, it's a bit livlier on Monday.

We have done a great trip here with the PDA which is a local not for profit that works with hill tribes in the area and has a museum about hill tribes in Chang Rai which is also very interesting.

We were very lucky in that one of the villages (of the Akra people) we went to visit was in the middle of their "New Year" celebrations, also known as the swing festival. At this village we were taken into the local houses to share some home made "whiskey", rice wine, beef soup (the cow was killed that morning in the village) and some delicious worms with lots of people from that village and surrounding ones who were going from house to house to meet friends and celebrate the New Year. The reason that the festival is known as the swing festival is that the village erects a swing which is used very willingly during the festival, which lasts a few days, but is left untouched for the rest of the year. We were a little worried before the tour that it would be quite contrived and feel more like a zoo than a visit to a village but it really was great that we were lucky enough to get there during the festival time.

To get to the village we went by long boat up the river from Chang Rai to the Karen Elephant village where we got a ride on an Elephant to the Akra village. The terrain was really steep and muddy and was a real challenge for the elephant and us (to hang on!). In terms of off road ability we've decided that the elephant is without equal, ride quality and comfort leave a little to be desired though.

To finish the trip we went to a nearby waterfall for a dip, very refreshing.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220702640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220702640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpoelzl/2/1220702640/tpod.html Mon, 08 Sep 2008 08:07:01 -0400 Russia to Asia

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Bangkok, Thailand

One night here on our way to the north of Thailand, some shopping. A few days before we arrived the government declared a state of emergency due to protests which had turned violent but there was nothing abnormal going on here from our point of view...
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