It's hard not to love the face of this tiny spectacled leaf monkey, which we spotted chowing down on a beachside breakfast near Railay, Thailand. She and four friends ate, scratched, grutned, and jumped around from tree to tree bascially acting like happy monkeys all morning. We couldn't stop watching and wondering how we could sneak her back into the U.S. without getting arrested.
We’ve been living high on the hog in Bangkok, at least from a culinary perspective. The food here--and all over Thailand, for that matter--has been incredible. Even the stir-fried scorpions taste like something far better than you'd think a stir-fried scorpion would. We're particularly fond of the food stall across the street from our hotel. Everything (and we mean everything...soup, chicken, unrecognizeable meat) is cooked open-air by a skinny transvestite in one large wok over a propane tank burner (the food's in the wok...not the tranny chef).
About our hotel...we weren't sure where to stay in this city of 12 million that seems to go on forever. From the train station, we hopped a city subway to the infamous Sukumvit
Road, which we thought would give us easy access to quality cuisine, crazy night life, lots of embassies, and hotels galore.
We hauled our packs from
hotel to hotel…to hotel...looking for a cheap room that wasn't rentable by the hour. After a long haul, we find a spot called “The Miami.” This place is
like an off-strip, run-down Vegas hotel, in the center of Bangkok. We booked a room with air-con, cable TV, and a rotary phone for less than $30 per night. Luxury, at least for us. The craziest part--everything is pink. Except the pool (yes, this place has a pool),which Kip was brave enough to venture into…one time. After hearing where we're staying, a traveler we met said he’d read
something about The Miami in a book about Bangkok.We found an excerpt from the book:
"Opened in 1963, the Miami hotel has always been popular, drawing in
some guests for its tatty but atmospheric lobby, and others for its reputation
as a “hooker friendly” fleapit.The
debaucherous Thermae coffee shop, once the dead centre of the city’s sex trade,
was located right next door until its closure in 1996. More recently, the
street corner outside has become popular with African drug dealers."
But hey, the price is right, and if we ever need a sleep aid for the long bus rides ahead, we know where to find some.
Our main reason for being here was to get our visas sorted
out for the next few countries--Burma, China, Tibet, and Nepal. On our trek to the Chinese
Embassy, we stepped into a coffee shop in a mall to wait for the embassy to
open. We soon found ourselves with a front row seat to the alms giving for Buddhist
Lent, similar to the ones we saw in Laos. The juxtaposition
of a Starbucks, a "one-day free pretzel" sign, and a nearby highway, topped off by two lines of over 100 monks making their
holy procession out front with shopping carts was an interesting sight to behold.
Maybe monks love pretzels?
While the event proved scenic, it turns out it was a national holiday in Thailand, meaning the embassy didn’t actually open that day. Oops.
To celebrate our amazing knack for timing and advanced planning, we strolled back to our favorite food stall and stuffed ourselves with pad Thai, Panang curry, and fresh mango smoothies.
After a nap, we headed to Khao San Road, where we picked up two sweet hats that will look as good on our wall back home as they certainly look on our heads in this photo. Although the Nepali woman selling them assured us they were the genuine article, we're pretty sure these are not traditional Thai headwear. And we've learned our lesson not to sit at the table closest to the street in a restaurant. The street vendors know how much beer you've had, and when to make the sale...
We will be sad to leave Thailand, the Miami, and the incredible tranny-cooked food, but the mysteries of Burma (aka, Myanmar) await! We're looking forward to some views like the sunset below...though every day will likely be topped off with lots of rain, since it's the dead center of monsoon season. Good thing we look good in ponchos.
Liz enjoys the air conditioning of our third class cabin on the overnight train...
When we decided on traveling by train through rural Thailand, we envisioned a scenic, relaxing, even romantic sojourn...a throwback to the golden age of travel on an overnight train from Bangkok south to the country's famous beaches.
What we got was far from it. Instead of scoring a first class sleeper compartment with beds, someone (Kip) booked us two 3rd class seats located right next to the squat toilet...for the entire 13 hour trip. No air-conditioning, but at least we could stick our heads far out the windows when it got too warm or smelly.
In all honesty, it was just part of the charm and so much more scenic. Or at least, that's what Kip kept repeating.
When we got to Railay Beach in southern Thailand and Kip heard about deep water soloing, there was little doubt of what the next few days would involve.
Not that he knows anything about rock climbing. But as he pointed out, it's not every day you get the chance to scale the faces of sheer limestone cliffs, dangling high above jade green waters without ropes or harnesses to hold you back (or up, as Liz pointed out).
Soon after arrival, he signed up for a day trip with one of Railay's climbing companies, of which there are quite a few.
As he quickly learned, there's not a ton of skill required. You pay your fee (about $30 for a day), get a two-minute briefing, and grab a well-used pair of climbing shoes. Then, off you and your group go on a half-hour sailboat ride on the Andaman Sea.
Once at the chosen spot, your instructor points to a rock wall, asks who wants to go first, and off you go. It really is that straight forward.
Two guides were on hand to shout directions to you if you couldn't figure out where to go. "Up" was the most-often heard word of advice. And so, driven on by such professional instruction, up everyone went, until we couldn't go anymore.
It was everything you can imagine and then some. Because you're so terrified when you fall or jump from the cliff face, there's not much pain when you hit the water.
Usually.
Our deep water soloing guide. He's scared of heights and was terrified to climb without ropes. Seriously.
Our climbing group. Kip's in white shorts. Our fearless guide (black shorts) hugs the stalactite below him to the left.
We’ve been living high on the hog in Bangkok, at least from a culinary perspective. The food here--and all over Thailand, for that matter--has been incredible. Even the stir-fried scorpions taste like something far better than you'd think a stir-fried scorpion would. We're particularly fond of the food stall across the street from our hotel. Everything (and we mean everything...soup, chicken, unrecognizeable meat) is cooked open-air by a skinny transvestite in one large wok over a propane tank burner (the food's in the wok...not the tranny chef).
After hearing where we're staying, a traveler we met said he’d read
something about The Miami in a book about Bangkok. We found an excerpt from the book:
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