Travel Blog Posts
June 26th 2006
Got up early, had breakfast and left for the airport to return to Bangkok. After our bus ride from hell, we opted to fly back to Bangkok. It’s only about an hour flight, and we were dust free when we got back to the P.P. House! ... read more
June 25th 2006
Breakfast at the hotel. Nam picked us up and we went out to the Roluos Group of temples, including Bakong, Preah Ko, and Lolei. It was a half-day of sightseeing, so we were back in town by lunchtime. Ate at Kama Sutra. Walked around for a while and stopped at Figo for drinks. We originally wanted to eat dinner at Figo but they weren’t serving food that day. The owner, and American guy, showed us the menu and the food sounded so good—too bad we were leaving the day…He recommended Pissa Italiana, which was excellent. We sat at a sidewalk table and there was a traditional Khmer group playing across the street, which made for a nice ambiance. ... read more
June 24th 2006
Had breakfast at the hotel. Nam picked us up bright and early and we headed out to the temples. We did Pre Rup, Banteay Srei, Neak Pean, Preah Khan, Phnom Bakheng, and some other temple which we don’t know the name of. Had lunch at No. 17 restaurant at Bayon, which was run by friends of Nam. Went back to the hotel, had a quick swim and then got ready to go out. We walked to the Grand Hotel D’Angkor, Siem Reap’s fanciest hotel, which dates back to the colonial days. The manager (an Englishman) gave us a mini-history lesson of the hotel and then we went down to the The Elephant Bar for happy hour. Had dinner at Moloppor Café, a small restaurant/bar down the street from the Bopha. ... read more
June 23rd 2006
Breakfast at the hotel. We called Nam, the tuk-tuk driver who drove us to our hotel the night before. He had said if we needed a driver while we were in Siem Reap to call him. Before we could enter any of the temple complexes, we had to buy passes. US$40 (each) for a three-day pass (at least they put your photo on it and laminate it)! We visited the Angkor Thom complex first, including Bayon, Baphuon, the Terraces of the Elephants and the Leper King, and Phimeanakas. Then we saw Ta Keo and Ta Phrom. Nam took us to No. 4 restaurant at Ta Phrom, which his family runs. All the stalls looked the same, so you just end up eating wherever your driver takes you, which is probably owned by his family or friends…After ... read more
June 22nd 2006
Took a bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Old bus, no A/C, had to keep the windows open the whole way....it took us six hours to go about 150 km (93miles) from the border to Siem Reap. See photo of the bus. You can also see one the lovely rest areas we stopped at. If you're thirsty, hungry, or need to relieve yourself, this is the place. Mostly everyone just peed and then sat around smoking cigarettes while the drivers ate their meals at a nice leisurely pace...The bus dropped everyone off at a hotel and we got a tuk-tuk to the Bopha Hotel. After so many hours on the bus we.were covered in orange dust and our hair and clothes were crunchy! We were too tired to explore and find food so we ate ... read more
June 10th 2006
We had some time in the morning for a little more sightseeing before our flight left in the afternoon. We walked to the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, which wasn’t open yet, so we wandered around the Eastern & Oriental Hotel and then walked though The Garage, a restored old building which is now a mall. Headed back to the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion for the tour. We highly recommend a visit to the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion website, since visitors are asked not to take photos inside the mansion. The tour was one of the best guided tours we’ve been on, largely because the guide was one of the architects responsible for the restoration of the mansion, and she was incredibly enthusiastic and knowledgeable. The rooms of one wing of the mansion are used as guest ... read more
June 9th 2006
Up early and got a taxi out to the Sri Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani Temple, an Indian Hindu temple. It was raining and the cabbie wasn’t sure where we wanted to go, so when he dropped us off at a temple outside of town in the pouring rain, we hoped it was the right place. The temple was actually closed, but a man let us in and walk around for a quick look. We left and walked down the road (in the rain) to the path going up the hillside to the temple we were actually looking for. By the time we got to the temple it was raining pretty hard, so we stood under the overhang until the rain subsided somewhat. We were entertained by a young monkey who was screaming because a dog was blocking his ... read more
June 8th 2006
Arrived in Georgetown, capital of Penang, Malaysia, around 10AM, and took a taxi to the Traders Hotel. Walked around Georgetown all day. Visited the Penang Islamic Museum, the Goddess of Mercy Temple, and several of the kongsis, or traditional clan-houses, including Cheah Kongsi, Yap Kongsi, and Khoo Kongsi. The clan-houses are family-specific and serve as gathering places and places of worship for generations of families. We also got a tour of the Kapitan Kling Mosque, which was quite interesting, and the first time either of us had been to a mosque. We had to go to the education center to get a guide, who shared with us many different aspects of Islam. Walked down Lebuh Pantai, a street lined with old colonial buildings, which begins near the water. Across the water we could see the Malaysian ... read more
June 6th 2006
We all got up early so that we could hit a few of the must-see sites in Bangkok, especially since Jennifer hadn’t been to Bangkok before. We made it to Wat Po, the Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew, Anantha Somakhon Thrown Hall (was mostly closed for the King’s ceremony), Dusit Throne Hall and Vinanmek Mansion. Then we headed out to Khaosan Rd to get a very late lunch. The traffic was horrible so we got into a tuk-tuk thinking we could get through traffic a little easier. Wrong…we ended up getting out of the tuk-tuk and walking the rest of the way to Khaosan Rd. We shopped around for a while and then decided to go back to the apartment, but traffic was still horrendous. We ended up going to the Brick Bar to get a ... read more
June 5th 2006
Got up the next morning, got in the shower, noticed my big toe was hurting and there was blood on the floor. There was a large gash on the tip of my toe. Blood on the sheets, blood on the floor of our room, a puddle of blood (with a toe print in it) outside our door, and a trail of blood leading back to the beach. Beach + alcohol = injury of unknown origin. Returned the motorbikes, checked out, and got a taxi to the dock. Took the boat to Chumphon and got the bus back to Bangkok, about eight hours. After having major stomach problems Dan wanted McDonalds, so we got McDelivery for dinner.... read more
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