The White Temple and the Golden Triangle

March 7, 2009

North of Chiang Mai, Thailand

Today we were booked on a tour to the north and were picked up by van at 7 am. By the time the pickups were done the van was full (17 including the driver and guide). The first stop was the White Temple.

The White Temple was, and is, being built by a famous Thai artist who wanted to dedicate a temple to the King. The King in Thailand is revered and it is taken very seriously if anyone says anything bad about him. Serious as in they put you in jail. The King and Queen’s picture is everywhere. Not just in post offices and offices but everywhere including huge billboards on the side of the road. If you are in a public place, like a railway station, at 6 pm policemen start blowing whistles and everyone stands for the national anthem facing a portrait of the king. For those of you in Canada imagine what Stephen Harper probably dreams about and you’ll have it down.

The White Temple is made of concrete with pieces of glass embedded in it. The carvings (or castings) are all of figures from Buddhism and are amazing. The Temple is not large but is really impressive. Nearby was a gallery with some of his works in it as well and they were very powerful. Like most temples in Thailand they ask you to not take pictures inside out of respect. Unfortunately one guy with our party was doing that while trying not to be seen. I gave him one of my happy looks and he stopped. What a moron.

After the temple, we drove for another hour to the Maekong River at the famous Golden Triangle. The triangle got its name from the opium trade. The sandbars in the middle of the river are a no man’s land and don’t belong to either Burma, Thailand or Laos. Perfect for trading.

Now the triangle is changing. The Chinese are financing an airport on the Laos side, the Burmese already have a casino and Thailand is supplying something I’m sure. The river here is huge – far bigger then I ever thought. We are in the dry season now and were told the river will rise by another 6 to 7 metres (about 21 feet) in the wet season.

A quick boat trip over to a Laos market let me try some unique whiskey. It is rice whiskey but then they put cobras in it. The jar I sampled from had a snake in it about 2 metres long. Tasty. Supposed to be good for the libido.

Next was the depressing city of Mae Sai on the Burma border. We took some pictures across the border but declined the high visa price just to cross to get our passport stamed. The street vendors here were extremely aggressive and only ignoring their existence let you get through the crowd at all. Didn’t see the big military presence here that I thought there would be but it was clear it was not an open border. Traffic was flowing but Detroit – Windsor it was not.

After that then another long ride and a sad visit to the “long neck” people. They are a tribe from Burma that has been forced out due to the ongoing civil war there. For some reason the women of the tribe place heavy brass rings around their necks as they grow. This elongates their necks and gives them a permanent weight of about 15 pounds of more on their necks. The area were visited was just for them to sell a few handcrafts but mostly they were on display. Very sad.

Afterwards we did the three hour drive back to Chiang Mai. There is a drought in Thailand this year and it has compounded the dry season. We drove through a grass fire at the edge of the road and I could see others in the hills. Back by 9 pm. Long day.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

March 6, 2009

We took the overnight train (14 hours) to the northern city of Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai is the second biggest city in Thailand and is kind of like its cultural capital. Lots of tourists go there as it is much less busy than Bangkok, the climate is a little better and beer is cheaper.

The overnight train was interesting. We were travelling 2nd class which meant we had a seat facing each other and, about 9 pm, the seats were converted into an upper and lower bunk with a little curtain separating you from the aisle. Unless you are lying on your bunk, with the curtain closed, there is no privacy. The washrooms are a couple of steel lined rooms at the end of the car. You have your choice of whether to use the Western style one or the Thai one.

The Thai one is a steel hole in the floor through which you can watch the tracks go by. There is a convenient garden hose there to wash the room down and a sink the size of a beer mug for your hands. On the Western side, they have mounted a toilet seat over the hole. (I made a mental note to never walk the railway tracks in Thailand).

You can buy over priced beer and food on the train if you want but they don’t have a problem if you bring your own.

When they were building the railway line they must have had some problem matching up the rails because it was a bumpy ride. I was on the top bunk with no window and barely enough room to move from my head to my toes. Afterwards I felt a bit like a piece of shake and bake chicken. Lana was quite comfortable on the bottom bunk with a window, reading light and shelf.

Got into Chiang Mai around 9:45 am and was picked up by the guesthouse’s very modern van. When we booked this trip with a Bangkok agent we were told that our room was an en suite which turned out to be sort of true. There was a toilet and a sink but the showerhead was just mounted on the wall. Once you got used to taking the toilet paper out of the room before turning on the shower part it mostly worked.

The guesthouse turned out to be clean and, like most guesthouses here, it has a common area that is also a restaurant, it sells beer and you can book any tour in town. It is common for the staff’s children to play around the place and the pool table is used mostly by the staff. Still it is a good place to stay and we don’t have any complaints. It is a bit like staying with a friend of a friend.

We spent the rest of the next two days wandering around the old city, which is surrounded by an old moat and wall. The streets are narrow and the street vendors everywhere. We visited some of the big temple complexes and watched the monks go about their business.

One night we went to the night market in another part of the City but only a 15 minute walk away. It is an entertaining nightly collection of vendors selling everything from cheap silk to fake Rolexes to wooden carvings. The smaller the stall the more negotiable the price. If they are really desperate then they will start shouting lower the prices as you walk away. One Canadian dollar is worth about 28 Thai baht and the majority of prices were in the 100-200 baht range. If we were just visiting Thailand then we would probably have purchased some of the carving and things but no room on the backpacks. Beside they were probably made in China anyway.

Had dinner at a nearby place that was owned by a Thai woman with an Australian husband who gets pressed into service as a helper each night. We talked with him a bit and he told us how they had relocated to the Chiang Mai because they didn’t like Bangkok. Dinner by the way is about 100 baht ($4) each not counting drinks.

Most Thai’s, and most visitors, end up drinking Chang beer. A large bottle is usually 60-75 baht and most places keep them very cold. Not many Thais drink Singha beer or the other brand. They sell that to the tourists for higher prices.

Bangkok, Thailand

March 4.5, 2009

Spent another couple of days wandering around the inner part of the City. It is amazing how some people make homes in small little hovels just down the block from modern condominiums. Overall the people are very friendly and certainly we haven’t felt at all uncomfortable.

The city is, by NA standards, dirty and smog filled but everyone seems to get along somehow. Traffic is fierce with lots of new cars and trucks on the road. Most people seem to ride scooters or motorcycles however they don’t seem to be bound by any of the traffic laws. Many of the curbs are very high – partly to channel rain water (this is the tropics) and, I would guess, to keep the scooters confined to the road.

By the way, when you are riding the transit system you can not but be impressed with the majority of Thai people. In massive heat and humidity they all look like they just showered and changed. If they have a uniform or if they work in an office then they are always immaculate. I have no idea how they do it in this climate.

If you don’t want to ride the transit system then you can take a taxi (looks just like a NA taxi) or a tuk tuk. A tuk-tuk has one wheel on the front and two on the back. It will hold two passengers in the back under a low roof and the driver sits in the middle front. They are everywhere in the cities and can be a source of irritation as they follow you down the street. If you take a tuk tuk always negotiate the price before you get into it and pay no more than that when you get out. Many tourists get ripped off because they assume there is some standard rate which there isn’t.

Bangkok, Thailand

March 3.4, 2009


The 7 hour flight from Perth didn’t leave until 5:50 pm so we didn’t actually get to Thai soil until almost midnight. Passport control was quick and the airport was very large and high tech. Bangkok has 6 million people and is such a regional transportation hub it has two major airports – one for international flights and the other for domestic.

We had booked in with a hostel near the downtown commercial district and supposedly an express bus from the airport would drop us near there. I couldn’t get any internet access in the airport to confirm the address so we just showed the address that we had to some of the staff standing near the bus pickup. Hopped on a modern express bus after some really brief conversations with staff there who, like most Thai here, seem to know at least 10-15 words of English. Whether they are the right words or not is what makes the night fun.

Our bus driver took us over massive freeways and onto busy streets for at least 20 minutes with us as the only passengers. Eventually he started to pick up some more locals but no other tourists. After about 30 minutes, he turned and made a motion for us to get off.

We got off on a main road running under the overhead monorail tracks. A gloomy sight if I ever saw one. What made it more comforting was the fact that the street signs were in Thai, the temperature was 28C and the humidity was about 80%. Perfect weather for carrying heavy bags down a dark street that you aren’t sure is the right one.

When you first see Bangkok at night it looks like a giant slum. There are skyscrapers built next to decrepit three story apartments with tarp covered shanties filling the alleys. The street lighting is sporadic and the streets seemed to be full of people not doing much of anything.

Hauling our backpacks we walked a short distance down the street and found the hostel. Got up to the room and, not being able to sleep just yet, wandered back down the street to look at some of the food stalls in the street.

Part of Bangkok only comes alive at night and the street vendors lining many of the streets is an essential part of that. The street we stumbled onto hosted any number of mobile carts that would be gone by 3 am and magically reappear sometime in the afternoon the next day.

Most Thai’s seem to have two or three jobs and, when they aren’t working, they seem to be eating or shopping on the streets. You can get everything from your groceries to takeout to whatever there.

Spent the next day walking around parts of Bangkok. They have an excellent monorail and subway system with the station signs in English and Thai. Once you get your bearings it is not bad. Once you get off those lines the challenges are a little significant.

You realize quite quickly that everyone connected with the tourism industry is looking to make money from you. It is just not the ones that overcharge you directly but also those who will not tell you the “whole” story. For example, we needed to take a river ferry down to the old market area but the staff at the ticket desk just kept pointing to a sign that described the whole day ticket. Thinking we had no other option we eventually bought it.

Once we were on the ferry we watched Thais get on and off and just pay for a ticket from a woman walking down the length of the boat. Quick lesson learned for the next time we take a ferry ride!

The pressure on you to buy (anything) is directly proportional to your distance from a known tourist area. The more tourists the more aggressive the vendors can be.

Australia vs. New Zealand

Australia vs. New Zealand

We have been asked by some of our New Zealand friends to compare NZ and Australia. Hmmm. Ok here goes.

New Zealand Wins in the following

Better food
Better drivers (except for idiots on motorcycles)
Nicer people (by a hair)
Shorter distances to drive
Bigger mountains
Nicer museums
Great staff at tourist centres (really really good staff)
No snakes (although personally I like snakes)
Able to buy beer and wine in the grocery stores in most places
A reality based view of the world and their spot in it
Almost no traffic lights
Much cleaner cities
More consistent climate overall
Their coins are not as massive as the Australian ones
All pay phones accept any credit card

Australia Wins in the following

Cheaper in general
Real Pubs (almost all the ones in NZ have become upscale bistros)
Lots more wildlife (although much of it is motionless on the roadside)
Better shopping choices
Smoother roads
Big city hustle and bustle (if you want that kind of thing)
Really wide-open spaces
Most of the people on the roads are not tourists driving on the wrong side
If you are lonely, Australians will not let you stay that way
If you like long road trips then Australia is the place
Authentic bush is a very long way from anywhere

Ties

No Tipping!
All prices shown include taxes
They both have plastic money that flips out of your pocket.
Many things are more expensive then Canada (even taking in the exchange rate)
Way too many US based fast food places
Not nearly enough free wireless access (at least five years behind North America)
Many things like pay phones are massive bulky things that look like something from the Dr. Who TV show

There I hope that helps everyone.

Australian Road trip

In case anyone is interested, we clocked over 8,000 km in Australia. We did over 7,500 starting from Sydney then to MacKay then back to Sydney and then along the southern coast and up to Adelaide.

We clocked another 800 or so in Western Australia. All in about 30 days, in case you are interested.

I am a little tired of driving but we did get to see a lot of great parts of this country. (Lana added the bit about seeing the country - as full time navigator I am sure she is exhausted.)

Perth and area , South Australia

February 28, 2009

Landed at Perth at 8:30 a.m. Picked up the rental car and headed for the City centre to pick up a package sent by our daughter Charlotte (did I mention that she is really a good daughter – handling all of our mail etc while we are gone).

If you didn’t already know American Express will let cardholders have mail delivered to their offices worldwide for later pickup. This was a lot more important 20 years ago but still has its place especially if you are always on the move – like us.

Perth seems a nice City with a small pedestrian mall downtown. Seems to be lots of construction going on around and in the City. Someone told us that if we liked Adelaide (which we did) then we would like Perth. Not sure if that applies but it is a smaller town then Melborne or Sydney and seems to have an independent streak. Of course, it is a really long ways from any other big city so maybe that is justified.

Spent the first night in a caravan park near Freemantle (a beach style suburb of Perth). Freemantle is really quite interesting with lots of small shops, street musicians and over priced restaurants. However, anyplace with three used bookshops is fine by me.

Glenelg, South Australia

February 27, 2009

Spent the last day in South Australia in a hotel (pub to you un-travelled types). Actually we spent the night in a room over the pub since we had to be up at 4:15 am for our flight to Perth.

Glenelg is one of the seemingly endless beach areas that cover the coast around Adelaide. It has a nice beach, a number of high priced restaurants and zealous parking police (don’t ask).

But since it was close to the airport, and we didn’t want to be folding up a tent that early in the morning, if seemed OK. The organic pizza across the street was pretty tasty if pricey.

Adelaide, South Australia

February 25.26.27, 2009

Adelaide is a city of over a million but it has a small town feel. The brilliant folks who laid it out made sure that there was a big chunk of parkland all around the central core. The downtown is an easy to navigate grid with a big pedestrian shopping mall near the centre.

There are no pretentious fashions here. Everyone, except for the odd guy in a suit, looks comfortable. We found an amazing Scout Outdoor store that was on a level with Mountain Equipment Coop for outdoor gear. (I have to stop taking Lana to these outdoor stores – all of a sudden she likes them and it is getting very expensive).

We did the South Australian Art Gallery, the South Australian Museum and the Botanical Gardens (part of that greenspace I mentioned). One day we went up to Mt. Lofty, which is the highest point overlooking the City. Our planned bush walk was cancelled due to a high fire alert. (When that happens they close all the trails.)

We did, however, go to the Cleland Wildlife Park near the summit. Run by the government this is really a great place to go. Basically, you walk through different fenced natural environments and interact directly with the animals. Nothing like having an emu peck the feed (purchase at the entry) from your hand. Or you can have a grey kangaroo grab your hand to make sure you hold it in place while they chow down.

The areas that you are walking through are big paddocks and most of the animals in there keep their distance. On the day we went it was too hot but on other days you can even cuddle a koala (with a keeper standing there). We saw a talk with the koalas and they showed that, despite sleeping for 20 hours per day, they can move fast when they put their minds to it.

The place also has lots of snakes (no interaction there) and lizards and birds. Very different park and very neat.

Adelaide, South Australia

February 24, 2009

So let’s say that you are in Australia and you suddenly have an urge for real German strudel. You could ask the multitude of German tourists to make you some but that is assuming they can. You could have some shipped from Bonn or Berlin or somewhere or you could visit the town of Hahndorf which is a German town in the Adelaide Hills.

It was founded by German immigrants in the 1800’s and they still have an Oktoberfest, a variety of German taverns and several German bakeries that serve, you guessed it, authentic German strudel. Try Otto’s on the one end of town and get the cherry strudel.

Toured the Barossa Valley, which is the biggest of the wine regions, and saw thousands of hectares of vines. (According to one figure I saw it was over 7000 hectares – that is over 15,000 acres). Makes the Okanagan look pretty small.

Stopped at the Wolf Blass vineyard and, considering how much of their wine we have drunk over the years, I expected some kind of brass band. Instead we got stuck behind a bus tour group and had to wait but we still got to sample a variety of wines. The band must have had the day off.

Went to another small winery for lunch. There signature wine is from vines that are over 100 years old. It doesn’t make a very big batch but what they do make sells for $160/bottle. Its called “Old Bastard” and is all sold before its bottled. Oddly enough they didn’t include it in the free wine tasting.

Stopped for the night at the Levi caravan park just 5 km from the Adelaide City centre. Had a nice site overlooking a ravine with walking paths through it – much like the ones in Toronto – complete with ducks and birds coming up out of the ravine to clean up after the campers.

McLaren Vale, Southern Australia

February 23, 2009

Camping in part of the great Australian wine region it is hard to believe that we spent most of the day rocketing along the desolate Coorong peninsula.

The highway (speed limit 110 km with no shoulders) runs parallel with the coast. Just close enough so that the vegetation is scrubby but not close enough to see the water. Even when we went through areas of grazing land it looked like it hadn’t seen rain for years (which it hasn’t).

Stopped at the town of Goolwa to see the mouth of the Murray River, Austalia’s biggest river, empty into the South Ocean.

Finally came into patches of grape vines. At least they were green.

In a caravan park with a lot of out of work grape pickers. Normally they depend on foreign travellers to pick the young vines but not this year. The heat has fried much of the crop but someone forgot to tell the marketing department. The government is still advertising for the young travellers to come down and work.

Robe, Victoria

February 22, 2009

After finishing the Great Ocean Road we settled on a campsite overlooking the ocean as we contemplated the sunset.

That sounds pretty good doesn’t it? Probably should stop there.

Truth was it was David’s birthday in Finland and we had a hell of a time trying to call him. The pay phone wouldn’t take credit cards (all the pay phones in New Zealand do by the way) and we couldn’t get internet access so we only had three minutes with him before the balance on the cell phone ran out. Sorry bud.

By the way Robe is one of the capitals of the lobster trade but a couple of tails still cost $45.

Port Campbell, Victoria

February 21, 2009


Have you ever been airsick on a road? If not then I invite you to drive the first half of the Great Ocean Road along the bottom of Victoria. Make sure that you stock up on paper bags for the passengers and a harness for the driver first.

The road was built by out of work veterans of WW1 as a government make work project and it must have been a bitch of a job. The road is mostly carved into the cliffs overlooking the sea and it follows the cliff contours pretty closely. I was too busy hanging onto the steering wheel to look but from Lana’s helpful commentary I don’t think there was much room to spare.

Occasionally it flattens out enough for a beachy resort style town but most of it just kind of hangs out there – if you get my drift. From my occasional (death defying) look I think that the views were great.

Tented in the booming town of Port Campbell with a population of 500 and with all the local food establishments priced to take advantage of the weekenders from Melbourne. The “port” itself was one little dock but I guess that, in the old days, the very small bay was the only break in the shorelines limestone cliffs.

Camped next to a younger couple from Ontario in a site right on the small river there. Nice camp kitchen where I watched a team from Geelong kick the crap out of a team from Adelaide in Aussie rules football. Haven’t a clue what the rules are except you apparently get to hit anyone that you want to at any time. No pads.

Melbourne, Victoria

February 19.20, 2009

Came into Melbourne in a lot of traffic so we found a caravan park and took a cheap tram into the city the next day. I must admit that my previous experience with Melbourne hadn’t been really favourable but this trip changed my mind.

We walked all over the Central Business District, went to an Eco Fair in Federation Square and visited the Melbourne Museum. The museum was well worth the visit and a very nice woman at an Aboriginal booth at the fair suggested that we visit the Koorie Heritage Cultural Centre.

The Koorie were (are) the tribes that were based in Southeastern Victoria. The centre was smallish but great and we learned a lot.

When you go to Melbourne make sure that you walk around see what they can do with an alley. Most other places they would be full of dumpsters and dope dealers. Here they are called Arcades and are full of people, shops and cafes. Cool.

Bob - Where are the pictures

We have recieved hundreds of emails asking what has happened to the pictures in the blog. Unfortunately we have not been able to get any up on the blog for some time due, I believe, to a technical problem on Google's end.

You can still follow the link on the blog page to look at all the pictures we have put online from the trip. Hope that helps.