Jen Klaus

We've been doing a lot of traveling lately. Where should I begin? Over the past couple of days we've hit Ayuthaya, (the old "capital" of Siam), Kanchanaburi (Home of the Bridge over the River Kwai), Erawan Falls, and a gorgeous dam/lake where we slept on sleeper rafts. Before we left Chiang Mai, we went out for a Thai Massage ($15 for 2 hours) and it was a hoot! It was worth every penny..but I really had to put my giggle muzzle on! When we finally arrived in Ayuthaya, we spent a lot of time learning about the historical sites...lots of beautiful ruins (mostly of temples & palaces). We were in the area on a Buddist holiday, so we were able to do a lot of "people watching" and learn about their culture/beliefs. Next, we went to ... read more

Greetings from Thailand! My 24 hour trip landed me in Bangkok Sat. eve! I started off Sun. morning by walking to the Grand Palace and a famous temple called Wat Phra Kaeo (a.k.a. Temple of the Emerald Buddah). Luckily, I escaped the touts outside the hotel/tourist area who were trying to convince me to go somewhere else instead! Anyway, the Palace and the Temple were awesome. Seeing these places made me excited to be in Thailand. On the other hand… it was soooooooo hot and humid in Bangkok! I generally fancy myself a “Texan with war-weather-skin” but this place is something else! That evening I met my tour group: 11 travelers (3 Australians, 4 Europeans, and 4 Americans). One of the other American girls, Katy, is my roommate. After we went to sleep that night, she ... read more

Yangshuo was much anticipated and well worth the travel. We flew to Guilin and then took a bus to Yangshuo. There were so many options and activities for us to do... hot air ballooning, mountain biking, hiking, bamboo river rafting, kayaking, caving, etc. I wanted to do it all. We started off with a little walk into town which was again...very picturesque with so much to see. We rented some bikes and headed over to Moon Hill, where we hiked to the top. Some ladies who were trying to make a buck walked us all the way to the top, all the way fanning us and offering water. It was a little annoying at first, but then I was appreciative and decided I was glad that wasn't my job! Then we took a river boat cruise ... read more

Well, we made to Lijiang which was just as gorgeous as Dali. Cute little town (it's a World Heritage Site) with lots of eye candy. The town square was lined with shops, stores, crafts, restaurants, cafe's and bars. There were little streams of water going through with lots of greenery and cobblestone pedestrian streets, making it a very relaxing spot. The streets were difficult to manage because they winded up, down, and all around, but we managed to get the hang of it. We stayed at a quaint little hotel that had a beautiful courtyard with lots of rocking chairs and places to relax. It rained one afternoon and most of us just got our books out, leaned back in the rocker(s), and enjoyed a peaceful afternoon. Lijiang appeared to be a tourist haven, so were ... read more

Well, I've made it almost a week and I haven't caught any infectious diseases this time here in China! It took me a full 24 hours to get to Beijing and when I got to the airport (largest terminal in the world- pretty awesome) I found my way to the taxi line and gave the driver the address to the hotel. We got out on a tollway and about 1/4 of a mile past the toll booth, the driver started talking loudly in Chinese--I don't know if he was speaking to me or not :)-- but then he pulled over to the shoulder and started getting really crazy shouting in loud jibberish and the next thing I know, we're backing up on this freeway down the shoulder as the other cars are wizzing past us. I ... read more