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Ok...so it's been a few days since the last update, and we're at an internet cafe in Pai. Bangkok was an interesting experience.... but, we are leaning towards only using it as hub from now on. The downside was the constant commotion, pollution, and scamming. But - we were lucky to have stayed in a spot relatively calm, yet close to some of the action.
First, we want to tell you about the scam: It was a second day in Bangkok and we were trying to see the Grand Palace via crossing streams of crazy traffic. We stopped some people for better directions and to their credit, they tried their best with limited english. In the middle of the attempted conversation, ALL OF A SUDDEN a well-dressed, EXTREMELY friendly, and fluent (in english) Thai man happend to walk by and offer his assistance. Immediately, Lorin gave me the "no" signal to not believe a word he was saying, as he read about these scams as he was planning the trip. Yet, he continued to offer Lorin all this great advice on how to say certain words, what sites to see, and better yet, how to get there via public
Scamming Tuk Tuk driver
If you recognize this man, please report him to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. transportation and avoid the tuk-tuk scams!! So, Lorin believed that this nice, well-educated man was simply trying to help us out.... Now, this tuk-tuk just happened to drive up and our newly-made friend translated for us and got us this amazing deal to take us to these sites for only 20 Baht (approx 60 cents)! I didn't want to go as to avoid the crowds at these sites and it was hot (I'm not good in the heat), but Lorin said, "No, I think he's legit. I'm getting a good vibe..." So, off we go! AND, WHAT DO YOU KNOW?? We were suckered! He took us to the originally agreed places, which included this festival - and amazingly only had white tourists and tuk-tuks everywhere with people asking us to give money for various causes (the first hint, among many :-) ). The second site, you couldn't get in unless you paid for it. AND THEN, we demanded he bring us back, as we previously agreed - we even made up that we had an early flight to catch. He continued to hassel us to go to additional sites and even tried to pull a sympathy card - ie, he
got free gas if he took us to this factory... Long story short -he said he would take us back but instead, went to an additional site, in which we left him to grab a taxi. So - here is the deal = THE SCAM STORIES ARE REALLY TRUE!
On a more positive note, Donna and I took a private long-tail boat cruise through the water canals of Bangkok. That was really cool and it was amazing to see how these houses were constructed. We saw the grand palace and some temples around the city.
After Bangkok, we grabbed a plane ride to the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai. The vibe here is much more mellow. We stayed in the "old city" part of Chiang Mai which is bordered by a moat (originally used to defend the city from Burmese invaders centuries prior). The town is easily navigated by foot, and Donna and I spent a couple of days wandering around, checking out many beautiful temples and visiting different day markets. The tuk-tuks, however, are still out in full force in Chiang Mai and itching to get tourist money! Being obvious foreigners, you could only imagine how
we were hounded! A second attempted scam was tried by this guy named WIN. He again was well-dressed, ultra friendly, and a fluent-in-english local. He story pitch was damn good - but as he tried to offer his advice on where to go in the town for great deals and then even offered to negociate a tuk-tuk for us - we skipped out!
Last night, we visited a couple of cool bars. One was a really laid-back bar called THC with a nice roof-top deck and another called Brasserie which featured awesome live music from this Thai dude named Tuk who played tons of Hendrix and Cream cover songs...very cool. (Thanks Gil) Anyway, we learned the "insider" secret to avoiding the constant hassel from people begging you for your business is saying "Mai Khrap". We learned that the more Thai you know - the more you will be left alone as they know they most likely can't trick or get as much money out of you. This phrase is prounounced "My Kap" (for men) or "My Kaw" (for the ladies) and means no thank you or a very polite no. And let us tell you, it works amazingly well!
Pic of us inside a cool temple in Chiang Mai
The Buddha behind us is actually really big. We said those words, and they instantly stopped!
Today, we took a minibus to the town of Pai which has been a mellow experience. Supposedly, this is a town that a lot of people visit but never leave because they love it so much. We bargained shopped and ended up with this quaint bungalow for only $9 per night... we just got done eatting and now are trying to put some pictures up.... but can't get them to resize.
So, let us end this Blog with we love and miss everyone. We promise to add some pictures soon. And we are safe, no food poisoning yet (lorin ate a whole cat fish that was grilled at a street market!), and most importantly, we're having a great time.
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anonymous
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A great start! This is going to be a fun trip for you guys ....