Anxious to come home!

Hello All! Well, I realize we have been home in Canada for more than 2 months now, but I figured since I had written this blog I should post it anyways. Since I've written this, many of you have heard some of these stories anyways! I can't believe that it is October already! The time has flown by so fast! Mike and I are doing well, settling into life in Abbotsford. Mike is enjoying his job at the church, but life is going to get even crazier for him as he starts school this week. I am in a full time position subbing for a lady who is out on sick leave until December probably. Although the job has challenged me a lot, I am started to get more in the groove of it all. Well, I hope you enjoy reading our 'old' blog post! When I get a chance I will try to post more pictures from our trip. Take Care!

Well, here’s the rest of the story…. After Krabi we took a bus up to Surat Thani. You should’ve seen the bus - it was decorated with red colourful carpet on the walls and roof with big speakers and the base booming. It felt like the bus was straight out of a disco movie - we were just waiting for the disco ball to come down and the dance floor to open up. They played this incredibly crude movie - we put in our IPODs. We got dropped off at the train station with plenty of time. A lot of travelling is waiting! The train was delayed and we finally got on it at about midnight. We had opted for 1st class- our own sleeper room… who knew 1st class could actually be more uncomfortable than 2nd class… When we got on, we went down this incredibly tight hall, only to wait for about ½ an hour for our room to be emptied of box after box of who knows what… I was definitely getting clausterphobic in the tiny hall and was glad to get into our 1st class… ahem… okay, not so 1st class room. It was okay - a little dirty, but okay, except for the air conditioner. I was told it was going to be cold, so to bring a sweater. We luckily had our bags. So far everywhere we had travelled was so incredibly hot, I didn’t think I’d ever cool down again. But this little room on the train got so ice cold - and we didn’t’ know how to turn it off! So here I am, 1 am, exhausted, feeling clausterphobic in this tiny little room, with socks on my feet, a skirt over my legs, pajama pants on, 3 shirts, a hoodie and a blanket over my body - shivering like CRAZY. It’s like when you’re camping in cold weather, you just can’t seem to stay warm and if you put your head under the cover you can’t breathe, but if you put your head out of the cover you feel like you’re going to freeze to death. Finally I woke up Mike ( on the top bunk) and he came down to sleep beside me on this very skinny, single bed to keep me warm. Definitely an experience.
We finally arrived in Bangkok, to catch the next train up North. It was a holiday (which we didn’t know), so all the trains were booked. Luckily we got 2 seats on an evening train after someone else cancelled - this one 2nd class, still a sleeper with A/C, but no private room. So, we had about 10 hours to kill in the Bangkok train station. We had donuts from Dunkin’ Donuts, (not the best option on an empty stomach) then decided to head out and explore the city. We decided to check out China Town, appreantly a huge market near the train station. We decided to try a tuk-tuk basically a motorbike with a truck bed on the back where you sit. This was our first experience of getting completely hosed. We got into the tuk-tuk and WHILE he was driving he said he needed to stop somwhere and if we came he’d get a discount on gas. We should’ve seen red flags, but instead we went along with it. So, there’s these GEM scams where the tuk-tuk driver takes you to a jewelry store or a tailor shop and you’re supposed to get out and shop before the tuk-tuk takes you to your destination. And that’s exactly what happened - we found ourselves at a fancy tailor store. We thought we’d humor the guy and look for a minute then we came out. Apparently he was very upset with us not buying anything and was scowling at us when we came out. He was actually quite rude. So Mike asked how much to take us to China town and his price jumped about 100x’s as much. We said forget it and walked away. There we were stranded who knows where in the city of Bangkok, in the heat of the day. Kinda left a bad taste in our mouths about that city. I think as an angel sent from heaven, we stumbled across this little old man who started asking us where we were going in pretty okay english. Turns out he needed to walk that way and we unofficially had a tour guide for a few hours. He was hilarious. He’d stop and tell us about everything we saw - even the names of fruit which we obviously knew already… He even told Mike when he should stop to take a picture. He protectively walked us across crazy busy roads and showed us through China Town. The things we saw were incredible! So many different kinds of food and jewelry and trinkets. Our little friend wanted to take us on a bus to the ‘old’ city where he was from and where he was headed to the temple. As I didn’t want to stray too far from the train station and we were still a little guarded about accepting too much help, we ended up parting ways - with a very dissapointed tour guide. We headed back to the train station quickly because I think that was some of the hottest, most humid weather we had experience thus far. Only 2 hours wasted, 8 to go. Luckily it was a holiday so there was some kind of entertainment in the train station to keep us busy - a band, a magician, some cheerleaders… it was random. Mike even had a lady approach him to help her write an apology letter to a friend in English. We eventually boarded our next train in which 2nd class was much more enjoyable and comfortable. We met a girl named Anna from Germany who we met up with in Chiang Mai the next day. We stayed at an amazing little guesthouse in Chiang Mai - probably one of our favourite places. The food was great, the people so helpful, and the overall vibe very relaxed. We walked around the city that day and every time we opened our map looking confused a local would come over and start telling us all the sights we needed to see there They were so nice… almost too nice. 2 people that helped - one going for supper with her husband and a guy from japan who’s wife is from Edmonton (weird…) pointed us to the same tailor store that I think is a part of the GEM scam… coinsidence??? I have no idea… We got to go to the Chiang Mai market that night, and it was probably the most fascinating, neat market I have ever been to (that says a lot after living in Korea). Most of the things were handmade and local to Thailand and I pretty much wanted to buy everything. Unfortunately Mike walked about 30 feet ahead of me the entire time, carrying our money, so I ended up buying nothing. Bummer. I guess it’s better for the packing situation anyways. The next day we went on a 1 day trek. We drove about an hour out of town to an elephant camp first. We got on a little seat on top of an elephant with a guide sitting on it’s head, and took a trek into the rainforest. It was defintely a tourist grab, but still an experience nonetheless. We were with a group of other foreigners on the trek - some Canadians! And 2 of them were on an elephant with a very small guide - probably a little boy no more than 6 or 7 years old. They train them so young! We then went on a trek through the rainforest on small walls of mud - it started raining and was quite a slippery adventure! The scenery was amazing. We trekked through small tribal villages where Mike and I got sucked in by the young children selling us bracelets for cents. We are such suckers for their big eyes and persevenrance. We walked away with bracelets on each arm and a hurting heart for those children. The women were sitting there weaving blankets and scarves right in front of us. We hiked to a waterfall, but passed on swimming in the murky water in the rain. We stopped for a great lunch of rice, vegetables, and curried chicken before heading off to our last stop for the day - bamboo rafting down the jungle river. Although it was still raining and a bit chilly - the rafting was an amazing experience. We had a guide - once again a kid probably no older than 12, driving our raft - but he was a great driver! Mike had the other bamboo pole in the back, but had no idea what to do since our kid guide could not speak English… with the odd raming into a rock, our raft made it through with ease! While Mike was trying to follow the kids ‘pointing’ orders, the rest of us sat and relished in the relaxation. That night we were going to go back to the market and I was going to spend the wad, but it rained steadily all night, so we opted for a movie in the guesthouse instead. Probably another blessing in disguise, since I would’ve spent way too much at the market. The next day we were off, starting our 3 day travel to Luang Prabang, Laos. We joined a tour to take a bus to Chiang Kong on day 1, take a slow boat to Pak Beng , Laos day 2, and to take a slow boat the rest of the way day 3 arriving in Luang Prabang.
So far in the trip the food was incredibly good, with cheap pad thai becoming a quick staple. But Chiang Kong is when things started to go sour. We unfortunately got some kind of a food bacteria and although I will spare you the details we were pushed flat on our backs for 2 days straight… or should I say hanging our heads over that lovely porcelain bowl… I got it first, then Mike about 10 hours later. The first night in Chiang Kon we were in a hole of a hotel, so we checked into a more ‘comfortable’ option while we were stuck in this tiny town waiting to get better. 2 days behind schedule and our stomachs still not quite normal, we crossed the border into Laos, got our visas and boarded the slow boat. Well, if you know anything about me, you may know on a good day I struggle with boats and motion sickness… Luckily we were entertained the entire 6 hours by some Canadian French girls and Dutch boys from Holland playing a very loud drinking game…it was an interesting boat ride. The scenery around us was absolutely incredible with lush green rolling hills and small tribal villages the whole way. We arrived at a small village named Pak Beng for our first night in Laos. This was an experience. The whole village has electricity run off generators. So, at 10:30 every night the generators shut off and the village shuts down with it. What you don’t think about is that fan turning off in an intense heat… There wasn’t much to the village, but it was fascinating walking the streets and seeing the families work. The houses were extremely empty, little furniture, but most houses had a large T.V. and a satellite dish. Go figure.
The 2nd day on a slow boat we were feeling a bit better, but had other obstacles to cross. Day 1 on the slow boat we had 2 boats travelling to Pak Beng. Day 2 on the slowboat they wanted to put 2 boats of people packed onto one boat. No let me rephrase they - not ‘wanted to’, but insisted on. The foreigners getting on the boat tried to protest and not get on the boat so we left an hour late. But, the protestors eventually realized the people from Laos were not going to budge, so we squished them on - they even sat people in the engine room! Needless to say that was the most uncomfortable, most squished ride we’ve had. But, we finally arrived at our destination - Luang Prabang!
It is a beautiful, low key city in a relaxed sort of pace. We loved laos and the people there. We stayed in a great little guesthouse and did some exploring around town. We went to the waterfalls just outside town and got to swim in some refreshing, clean pools at the bottom of the waterfall. AMAZING. On the way back from the waterfalls, our tour van stopped at a village, which wasn’t part of the package. We walked around the village on this path, feeling extremely intrusive, like we were at a zoo there to gawk at these people. We saw things that broke our hearts once again. Children as young as 2 and 3 singing to you ‘you can buy one, 5000’, trying to sell you a bracelet they made for less than a dollar. Once again, Mike and I got suckered in and bought some bracelets, adding to the collection now forming on our wrists… Mike had a bottle of fresh water with him and started pouring it into the kids mouths - they loved it! The saddest thing I probably saw though was when we were leaving. I saw a little boy, probably 3 years old, with a dirty t-shirt on and no pants, carrying a load of firewood down the path to the pile. Wow. These people are so poor.
There were so many neat little restaurants in Luang Prabang where you could just sit for hours. There was also a very cool night market… big trouble for us. We ended up getting a bedding set custom made for us in 1 day, for less than $30. Incredible. And, the most phenomenal part was that the girl who sold it to us who we bartered with was only 12 years old! We also got suckered in again by a little girl selling bracelets… seems to be our weakness.. our arms are getting full.. We met a couple - a girl from Canada and a guy from New Zealand in Pak Beng who we hung out with in Luang Prabang. They had also just taught in Korea the past year, so we had a lot in common!
The university aged boys who ran the guesthouse loved speaking English with us. Mike gave them his e- mail address and they were just beside themselves with excitement. They said they had never had any guests be so kind to them before. The one guy said when we come back next time he will take us to his parents village because they would like to meet us. Such sincere people! They’ve already e-mailed Mike!
Next we flew from Luang Prabang to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam. We stayed in HCMC one night, then took a bus to Mui Ne the next day. We were getting a little tired of the face paced travelling, and I think getting sick took a lot out of us, so we were going to go to Mui Ne and lie on a beach for the remainder of our trip. First though, HCMC was a crazy, crazy experience. By now we’ve experienced our fair share of large cities in Asia - Seoul, Beijing, Bangkok… but I would have to say HCMC has them all beat. It can’t really be described with words - you just have to go experience it. The city feels like its on constant fast forward and it felt like scooters were taking over the road. I have never seen so many scooters in my life. Theyhave a special lane just for scooters! There were parks where lines of scooters were parked with couples snuggling on them. And the driving - let’s just say we’re glad to get out of there alive. There was no rhyme or reason to the driving. Scooters did what they wanted, sneaking into spaces and crossing in front of oncoming traffic Not to mention the honking - I though Korea was bad, but I think Vienamese lean their elbows on their horn the entire time they are driving. They must have to keep one hand on the steering wheel and one hand on their horn They honk to pass, go through an intersection.. and I think for no reason at all! You’re ears start ringing after a while. We got a taxi from the airport to bring us to a guesthouse we knew about from the Lonely planet book. He dropped us off at a sketch back alley - kind of a scary experience at night. Luckily we got a semi-clean room and had a terrible sleep. The next morning we woke up early to inquire aobut the bus to Mui Ne. We didn’t have this part of our journey planned out, so it was sort of go with the flow. Let’s just say this was the craziest morning we’d ever experienced and from the moment we woke up, we packed, booked a hotel in Mui Ne on the internet, took a taxi to the bus station and got on a bus within 45 minutes. Definitely a fast forward city. We didn’t’ even know what was happening, but our guesthouse guy made a call and next thing we knew we were ushered ina taxi with little time to spare. Ourside our guesthouse there were 2 women screaming at each other in a heated argument - all adding to what seemed like the craziest morning ever. Luckily we were on the bus and 5 hours later, arrived in calm Mui Ne. Since here we spent 2 nights at a resort on a golf course and a week at a resort on the beach. The one on the golf course was nice, but we’re pretty sure we were the only ones there - we had like 12 staff at our beckon call! The one at the beach is the one we are still at. It is incredibly beautiful. And we are definitely enjoying the relaxation. Since we’ve gotten here the hardest decisions we’ve had to make are when and where to eat, whether to lay at the pool side or at the beach, and whether to tan on your back or stomach… such a hard life. The weather has been a little gloomy with many rain storms, but it hasn’t put much of a damper on our relaxation! Lots of napping, reading books, watching TV and even some card playing! The ladies at the restaurant have our table set up every morning! We are definitely getting anxious to come home though. We leave tomorrow morning and fly from HCMC to Bangkok, then to Seoul for a day before home sweet home to Canada. We cannot wait to catch up with you then.

Mike and Amy

P.S. pics will have to come later once we've uploaded them on our computer!

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