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Wat Po: Bangkok Thailand

Jay showing off Thai Fondu

Temple of the Reclining Budda, Wat Po, Bangkok...


The beautiful budda behind me, in one of the many temples in Chiang Mai

Me outside the same temple in Chiang Mai

It's not letting me upload more than 2 photos per blog. So please check out my gallery and you'll find all new pictures in it. THey're not labled yet, but there're in there somewhere, and I'll keep working on it.
Some thoughts from the last few days:
no matter what you do, cold showers, dabbing with cold towels, one just remains slick with sweat, face shinyness constantly. Drink water, LOTS of water!
It rains here, suddenly. and then its over. Its like someone dumps a bucket on your head and then the water runs out.
The mossies here are capable of bowling you over. like one nearly knocked me over...someone told me that they are the national bird of thailand. They're not that aggressive though, interestingly enough. THey sort of come by check you out, and maybe every 3rd or 4th one will actually try a nibble...strange creatures....
There are less mossies here at NATs G.H. I suppose because there isn't any foliage. But there is a mossie living in my bathroom because they hang out in the standing water. ick.
Two days ago I took it nice and easy. I was really too tired to enjoy it fully. Once settled in GAPS guest house this I walked around a bit. I took a delicoius breakfast of fried rice with pinapple, and a banana smoothie...they make killer smoothies here! Then I walked and walked and oogled and talked to some tour operators, but honestly Everything is so tourist-oriented, i'm not even interested in doing tours out of Chiang Mai. I think I'm going to head to Pai on Monday and check out tours from there. This place kinda reminds me of Panama City...well, better of course, but its just too full of tourists really--kinda ruins the beauty of the place. None the less, that's no reason not to enjoy what Chiang Mai offers. And it does offer a lot. There are tons of used book stores and shops full of really beautiful fabrics and clothing. If you can get by paying 3-8 dollars for tee-shirsts, skirts and scarfs in Bankok, you can get it for less here, and if you pay like 20-25 bucks for something, its like the most beautiufl thing you ever saw...I've got my eye of several articles of clothing that I'll buy if I kep my expendutures low here over the next few days.
That evening I met an english bloke Jay whom I've been talking to online for months now. We fianlly met and walked to the night market. Golly they sell everything you could ever want there!! THen we walked down "thai street" so called because nothing is really oriented towards tourists, meaning that everything is cheap, although somewhat more difficult to know what your getting ahead of time. No matter, we knew! We had Thai fondu! They gave you like a clay double boiler with coals in the bottom and soup in the top and we ordered raw meats and veggies and cooked them in the broth...it was SOOO good, and aout 100 B, like 3 bucks! mmmmm I was still exhausted, so around 9 we called it a night and I went back to my A/'C room and slept like a damn log...zzzz. I had a good breakfast this morning, included int he price. scrambled eggs, pinapple, toast and marmalade, and GOOOOD THai coffee.
I moved to NAT's GH yesterday morning but took off early in the day to explore the city. I saw some really beautiful temples and Their photo's are included in this blog but unfortunatly there are many more photographs that I can't include at the moment. By evening I was really craving company, but having spent the day walking about alone, I didn't get to know anyone. I wandered down to the night market and was drawn into an irish pub, as I usully am. There I met a really nice ex-patriot kiwi gentleman, who chefs at a local high end hotel. We hit it off well, got a bite, browsed the markets, then ended up dipping into a thai boxing match. wow!
The thai boxing was obviously pretty sugar coated, and winners and losers were determined from the beginning but they still fought fairly hard, and the punches sounded convincing. The main event was when 2 little boys, i mean LITTLE, maybe 10 or 12 years old, came out all greased up and ready to fight. And they fought well!! They went 5 rounds and neither of them won... but it really got the crowed riled up. Then Kiwi man and I played a few rounds of pool. He was a perfect gentleman: i really appreciated that. Its much nicer talking and socializing with older men who have careers and interests and other things on their mind than what a 20-something-year-old does. We parted without even a peck on the cheek, although I might have wanted that but was too shy to initiate myself.
This morning was a bundle of success in terms of making friends. I decided to have a quiet day just hanging out in the commons area. There are SO SO SO Many crazy characters here!! There's Sarah, the receptionist-don't reminder her she's a boy, she doesn't know it. She's outragiously hilarious and quick tounged and she's taking a bunch of us out tonight for a night on the town. Rachael is coming, a tall blond from Surry, England whose been teaching english in the hill tribes out here. Katie and Sara are coming too, two pretty American girls who i just met moments ago. Kon is coming, a Thai boy and I think a relative of Sarah's: Yon, whose outfit today looked like an exploded pink and orange highlighter attacked him and whose into biking the countryside, kyacking, camping and yoga. Big Boy, I have NO idea his name but Sarah calls him that, a german that keeps to himself through a haze of smoke and reads books-he's really nice, just reserved. Hopefully Alexander won't be coming, if we can all avoid him, he's perfectly harmless, but possibly born without a personality. He sort of hangs around the hostel in a drunken stupor, most of the time, pathetically mullin in his solitaryness, asking all the girls to go out with him, or trying to latch on to other peoples ideas, but offering no impedus for doing anything of his own accord. I have no idea why people like him travel. ANYHOW, there's probably more people coming too, and we're going for Sushi and the night market and then to a Reggae bar! fun!
Okay, i'm out, there are people waiting for the computer. Lata!

Wow and wow and wow.

Thai airways really went above and beyond in making me comfortable...The Crowne Plaza Hotel was nothing less than decedent, queenly even!!! I took the hottest bubbiliest bath ever, while watching Family Guy on TV, then I went down for dinner, and everything cost SO much money, the appetizers alone were over 27$. There wasn't really a budget option...and since I wasn't paying, i had an amazing surloin steak, something I've been craving for sometime now, it was cooked to perfection, seasoned with thyme and a dijon mustard sauce, along with asparagus and sweet potatoe. When the steak arrived I had a glass of NZ Cabernet. Then I had a Orange Compote dessart topped with semi sweet chocolate flakes. mmmm!! Walking up to my room I was full as a tick, and weary and I fell into the cloudlike bed and melted into the clean warm sheets like butter on a volcano. I flipped back and forht between Fantastic Four the movie, and It's always Sunny in Philidelphia, one of my favorite TV shows from home.

This is the view from my hotel when the sun went down:

This mornings Enjoyment at THe Crowne Plaza:

This morning the front desk called at exactly 7:45, as i asked them too, I switched on CNN, took my morning paper from the hallway, and drank coffee and got caught up on local an international news. A NEW PRESIDENT IN 5 DAYS!!!! WOOOOOOOW!!!!

THen i went downstairs from breakfast, I had berry yogert with fresh fruit including pineapple, rubharb, melon, and apples, then I had a bran english muffin with butter and honey, then I had another bran english muffin but with NZ cheese, something bree-like and something blue-like. I then ate half a grapefruit. ANd a cup of coffee.

Then I marinated in my room for an hour, took another hot wonderful shower, watching music videos and relishing the bed before checking out at 10.

'I'm back at Central City Backpackers doing the internet thing. I sent an email yesterday to the hostle in bangkok. They emailed back...remailed, shall we say. They said no problem on pushing the room back a night. THey'd not charge me any extra or penilize me. They welcomed me in whenever I arrived. The email was SO nice, I'll attch it

Hiyas Amy,
When you booked at soi1guesthouse you did the right thing!
We don't penalize anyone for being late or changing the dates, even tho in the contract we can.
Why? cause I've been travelling most of my life and I know things happen beyond our control and I don't ever hope to make money on others peoples misfortune.
So rest easy, we have updated your arrival date and we will honour your deposit for your original date on the day you arrive.
ALSO, Please read the attachment as it Will save you money and make your arrival easy. We are open 24 hours so no matter what time you show up is good.
Have a safe trip and we will see you soon.
Soi1david

well, isn't that just dandy.

So I'm off to bangkok today: for real.

I'm going to put a bunch of photos up since travellerspoint, in their infinate kindness, Have allowed an unlimited number of photos to go up....Enjoy!!!

Kitty Sleeps in Tree trunk in MBavatu Fiji

Worth the Hike up to the second waterfall at bouma National Park, Taveuni Fiji

Catch!!!! Nananu-i-ra Island...thanks to Guido for daring the take this picture!

Too good to be true: Splashing in the sunset

This is a Wai-O-Topo outside Rotorua...i think this picture makes me look like a midget! (no offence to little people!)

One of the strangest things about Taveuni, is that it will be a blindingly bright, hot, and sunny day, and next thing you know, it's misting-a nice soft light rain. You look up. You see blue sky. There isn't a cloud in sight. And yet it mists. and mists. Where does it come from!??

Very strange indeed.

I arrived Taveuni last Sunday and shared a Taxi ride with a LOVELY couple from England with whom I'd met on the ferry. We made it to Beverlies CampGround just a 15 minute walk from Matai. Bill, the owner is REALLLLY nice.

It POURED rain the first night, which was the test for my new tent and guess what!? I actually stayed dry! Yippeee! I visited the International Dateline and stood in both Today and Yesterday (pretty weird!) and also watched the locals slide down the water falls outside Weyevo. (looked like total suiside after 12 hours of rainfall...but the locals made it look easy!!)

The rain cleared up and I've gone on long walks from Weyevo to SomaSoma. The towns are really small and cute, it doesn't take long to see all there is to see here. And yet the charm is in talking to the locals, buying fruits and veg at the market everyday, and making friends with all the doggies that roam freely about the place.

The place is exceedingly buggie, might I add. I suppose much of the outdoors of Fiji is. There is a prepondernce of creepy crawlies that particularly like to live in the outdoor showers/bathrooms at Beverlies Campground. By day its mosquitos, spiders, and centipeds. By night, its usually the above, plus short fat orange lizards that look gecko like, plus huge moths the size of a small childs head. In Fiji there are ants everywhere. All over the tent, IN the tent, on your dinner, on the beach, in the woods, on the rocks, crawling up your leg, on your face etc etc et al infititum. or whatever. There is a particular spider that lives IN the toilet, which is really REALLY disconcerting. He likes to chill right in the bowl above the water line, and its not like i'm going to flush him or anything, cuz i'm not about to piss off the spider gods, in a place where spiders outnumber me 1 million to one. There is another spider that's made his web from my tent to the tree above, which i guess is okay cuz then he'll eat, well-other bugs.

There are also crabs EVERYWHERE. By night, shining one's flashlight over the sand, one can see 5 or 10 crabs at any one time scuttling this way and that. One crab lives underneith my tent right where my pillow is. It was really disconcerting hte first night hearing him (or her) scuttling and scraping this way and that, literally inches beneith my ear!! At first it really disturbed me, but now I"m quite use to it, and it doesn't bother me.

I still had a very slight ear ache so I went to the doctor here in Somo Somo. Bill, who owns Beverly Campground and who considers me "family" now (his Grandfather is Irish) told me that the doctor was only $20. Well, turns out it cost $50 for the consultation (special tourist price) and another $20 for the anti-biotics. 2 days later my ear feels back to normal, but dammit if that didn't blow my whole budget!! So I've been laying low, not really going anywhere or buying anything or doing anything.

I DID build a momumental sandcastle which got rained upon soon after its completion. Then a dog came and pooped on the remains. THen a small child came and pile drived the remains (both the dogs remains and my castles remains-so i had a good laugh about it) I did finish reading my book (sooo sad its over, have to find another). I Did make a mini-dinosaur bone repilca out of white coral i foudn on the beach, which another dog came and puked on, and then another dog came and peed on. (Whats with the dogs!?!?) I did memormize more Yeats. I Did go to Audrie's Cafe and eat chocolate cake and coffee and had a cup of her delicious homemade khalua (got the recipe too)- other than that I've been cooking very simply for myself and keeping my budget to under 20 / day to make up for the evil price gouging doctor.

(ps on this story: Bill feels really bad about me paying so much to the doctor: he actually went to town and let her know his indignation and informed her that he shall NOT be sending any more of his clients her way...so there. Aw, bill is SO nice)

I had planned on leaving on the Ferry to Suva Friday (tommrrow) but turns out its Fiji Day tommrrow, and the next Ferry doesn't leave til Sunday! FIE!!!

Good thing is, i can start spending somewhat more normally because thats 2 more days of regular budgeting to account for. So I think tommrrrow I'll see if i can find any local festivities to attend (there might not be any) and Saturday I'll go To Bouma National Park and hike to some waterfalls.

My plans for the next few days (modified

9 AM Sunday ferry leaves to SavuSavu. Arrives SavuSavu at noon and departs at 1PM and arrives Suva very frekkin late at night. (11 pm ish) THen early the next morning I'll get on a bus to Raki Raki via the Kings Road

My new friends, Helen and Charlie, will still be able to take the ferry back to SS tommrrow, and I shall miss them very much!! They were great neighbors and were just full of amazing stories about sailing from England, through the carrebian and into the pacific. They've been just inspirational, and now more than ever i want to learn to sail and do a round the world trip via sailboat. Oooh the possibilties are endless.

Once they're gone, I"ll still be in good company. A couple named Lucas and Peter (Peter is a girl) from Australia are here with their two children and are staying at Beverlies as well. They have a little bure to live in , and are staying in Fiji for 10 months! wow! They have lots of good advice and I feel very safe with them around> Furthermore, as aformentioned, Bill has been very good to me and keeps a close eye on me too. I've also come to know many of the people in his family, his neices, nephews, grandsons, and his wife, of course, who cooks a really good fish and taro dish! yum!

Anyways, I shall try to update before leaving Taveuni, but if not it shall be from the mainland of Viti Levu-Suva or possibly Raki Raki.

take care everyone!!! miss you tons!!