Ha, Ha, Ha...Now Where's the Real Museum?

Greetings from Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam! I'm still travelling with Amy & the two Turkish guys from Cambodia, and you'll be happy to know Murat, one of the guys, is just dorky enough to shout out "Good Morning Vietnam!" first thing every day...a ritual that's so "Mere," I'm jealous I didn't think to start doing it first!

HCMC is huge and bustling. There's a great backpackers area with tons of color and energy like Koh San Road in Bangkok, but much cleaner and nicer smelling! Today we saw some of the major sites, and I won't bore you with all the history lessons, but I have to write something about how atrociously skewed the "War Museum" is. The place is an absolute JOKE! It gives a ridiculously one-sided "story," painting the entire conflict as a war between Vietnam and America. Nothing at all is said about the civil war that was going on, about the hideous crimes against humanity that the Viet Cong were committing on Vietnamese civillians, nothing about the fact that America entered to support the South in their resistance against the Viet Cong. I mean it was just appalling! The exhibits and photos all made it out to appear that the U.S. just came in to this peaceful country and started blowing up the countryside & cities for no reason. Completely ridiculous, and such a shame for anyone who visits the museum without some understanding of the true history of events.

Heading North tomorrow.
xoxo,
Mere

This Happened In Our Lifetimes??!?!!!

After escaping the crowds at Angkor Wat, I retreated to Cambodia's capital city, Phnom Penh. The major sites here are heavy. Very heavy, but incredibly important, and I'm happy I saw them.

The sites revolve around the atrocities that befell the lovely Cambodian people in the mid 1970s when a maniac named Pol Pot ruled the country with a death grip under his regime, the Khmer Rouge. In the name of Communism, he sought to destroy all free thinkers and intellects in the country, ultimately carrying out a 4-year genocide that resulted in the deaths of 25% of all Cambodians - 1 in 4 Cambodian men, women & children were executed between 1975 and 1979. Causes for execution included speaking a foreign language and even wearing eye glasses. It was a sick, sick time, and those who worked for the Khmer Rouge were forced to carryout heinous murders on their own people or face execution themselves.

Thankfully, I met a nice American girl and two fun Turkish guys on my bus trip from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, and we decided to take on our visits to the dark places that recount the story of the Khmer Rouge together. Our first stop was The Killing Fields. This is an area just on the outskirts of town where executions were carried out. Since the Khmer Rouge was run out of Cambodia, over 17,000 bodies have been exhumed, with many mass graves yet untouched. There's a monument at the entrance that houses over 8,000 skulls and features piles of the clothing that hadn't yet decomposed in the mass graves. And under the category of "truly horrifying," we learned that the Khmer Rouge was too poor to provide gas or even guns & bullets to the executioners who worked here, sometimes being told to kill as many as 300 people a day. So instead, these executioners used hammers, shovels, hoes and the like to kill person after person after person after person. I've never thought about anything so evil and ugly.

From there we visited S-21, a high school in Phnom Penh that was turned into a prison and interrogation center that housed people before they were sent to the Killing Fields for their ultimate extinctions. The Khmer Rouge photographed some of the atrocities that happened in this place, and also kept a photo log of all the thousands of men, women & children who passed through, and today these photos hang on the walls of the school, retelling the story of what occurred here. It's positively chilling as you look into the nightmare photos, and see the same tile floor you're standing on, the same concrete walls that stand behind you, etc. It all really happened right there only a few short decades ago. At the height of this site's usage by the regime, it claimed an astonishing 100 victims a day, most who died from torture techniques used during interrogations.

I'm reading a book right now that's sort of considered required reading for visitors to Cambodia. It's called, "First They Killed My Father," and is written by a girl who was 5 when the Khmer Rouge took over. It's a fantastic read, and anyone interested in gaining more understanding of this ridiculous atrocity should check out the book. It's also chilling now to interact with older Cambodians...they lived through this. Were they Khmer Rouge (by force or by choice)? Did they lose loved ones? How did they survive? So many things I now wonder as I look into their eyes. I also look at the beautiful Cambodian children differently, with such thanks in my heart that they are growing up in their country as it should be -- with freedom, hope, security, possibility, education, laughter, innocence.

God Bless Cambodia.
Mere

Angkors Away!

From the minute I booked my plane ticket to Bangkok, extending my Africa travels to SE Asia, I began looking forward to exploring the temple ruins of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The first Tomb Raider movie was shot there, and I remember being fascinated back then when I read that the ruins featured in the movie are a real place, not the creation of a Hollywood set designer. I was fascinated by the old, grey stones with intricate carvings being swallowed in places by huge trees, their roots wrapping around the columns and doorways with strangling spirals. And then, last year, my friends Rich & Eveline visited the ruins on they honeymoon trip through Asia, and their photos were even more captivating than my memories from the movie. So it was this magnificent destination that I focused on when it was time to tear myself away from the majestic beaches of Ko Tao.

Angkor Wat is the name of a huge area of ruins in central Cambodia that were once the religious, political and social center of the mighty Khmer Empire which ruled much of the SE Asian peninsula from 802 until the Thais conquered in 1432. Each of the Devarajas (god-kings) who ruled Angkor over these many centuries tried to top his predecessors with additions to the buildings in the area, and the result is the world's largest religious building, Angkor Wat. It's surrounded by a huge moat and its skeleton is still in very good shape. Then, the larger Angkor area holds hundreds of other, smaller, but no less stunning & impressive temple and palace ruins. The carving detail is exquisite, and the ruins definitely do not disappoint.

All the thousands and thousands of fellow tourists did disappoint, however, and quite severely. There were so many huge Chinese tour groups at Angkor on the days I visited, I wonder if there are any people in China right now! It was a challenge to take photos that don't feature hundreds of other people -- even on my second day when I paid my motorbike driver to pick me up at 5am thinking I could beat some of the tourists (and the sweltering heat!). No such luck. This is a busy time of year, and the ruins are a popular draw, so while I didn't have many quiet or peaceful moments, I still got to take in these ancient wonders and marvel at the creativity and devotion that went into their creation all those centuries ago.

By the way, this is a photo of me with my motorcycle guide who took me all around Siem Reap & Angkor Wat. Some concerns -- 1. On our first outing, he hit a tourist on a bicycle and sent the poor guy flying into a tuk-tuk. Thankfully no one was seriously hurt. 2. After the "Bicycle Incident" he started wearing a helmet, but had none for me, and told me he was only wearing it because he lost his sunglasses and needed to keep the wind out of his eyes...right.... 3. On day 2, I think he started to misinterpret my grabbing onto his back/shoulders as flirting, when it was actually motivated by a desire to preserve my life. Needless to say, I didn't accept his dinner invitation.

xoxo,
Mere

I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing...In Perfect Harmony...

One of my favorite nights out in SE Asia has to be my recent trip to the Red Orchid in Siem Reap. I'd walked by the spot a couple of times. From the street, all I could see was a staircase heading up, and above, on the second level were several tables lining a balcony with people sitting and swaying to the music. The first time I passed by I heard a guy singing an Elvis song (with heavy Cambodian accent), the next time I went by it was a woman singing La Bamba (again, with a heavy Cambodian accent). I asked the guy at the door if it was a karaoke bar, and he nodded, and I thought it'd be worth checking out for a while. When I got upstairs, I discovered it was actually just a bar with a really large live band. There were about 12 band members total - not everyone performed on every song, and some were more talented singers than others, but at least two of the guitarists were absolutely fantastic, and one of the female singers could really belt out the notes. So I wound up staying put for the night and hearing just about every great Western sing-along song you can think of.

And perhaps the best part was the room was full of South Koreans. South Koreans have to be the most excited, jovial bunch of people I've ever been around. They were clapping, cheering and calling out requests in their broken English, and whenever one of their requests was honored, they'd jump up to sing and dance along with reckless abandon. The place reached a fever pitch for John Denver's "Country Road." I have no idea why, but everyone in the place, from the Cambodian waiters to the Asian tourists, to me, all sang aloud and swayed together over this...classic tune?? At any rate, you've not been entertained in SE Asia till you get by the Red Orchid for some slightly altered/accented Creedence Clearwater Revival, Tracy Chapman, Whitney Houston, ABBA and even No Doubt! The variety, the energy, all so great.

Wish you were here!
Mere

DO I Want My MTV???

OK. We've gotta talk. I've had two exposures to U.S. television since I arrived in SE Asia, and I'm afraid. I'm very, very afraid.

The first time was a few weeks ago. I was in Luang Prabang, and I caught an early morning glimpse of CNN. Zsa Zsa Gabore's husband was giving a live press conference about how he may be Anna Nicole Smith's baby's father. It was utterly confusing, but with the aid of the text scrolls across the bottom of the screen, I learned that Anna Nicole has passed away, and that there is now a 3 or 4 way paternity claims battle over her poor little baby. SICK!

The second time, was two days ago in Siem Reap, when again, I saw CNN, and this time it was Larry King, and he had several guests all discussing that day's court hearing in Florida about who gets custody of Anna Nicole Smith's 2-week old body for burial. EVEN SICKER!!!!!!

Add to all this that my incredibly talented friend, Sarah Grace's, blog ( www.sarahdisgrace.blogspot.com ) let me know that Britney Spears, mother-of-two, shaved her head and added two new tats after spending only 24 hours in rehab!

What's going on over there??? If anyone has normal, happy news, please send me an email with it, or I may never come home!

xoxo,
Mere

So Long, Farewell, Aufweiderzein, Goodbye!

With a tear in my eye, I finally tore myself away from Ko Tao. We went out with quite a bang, as Steve & I received a visit from Dave, a crazy Brit who we'd met days earlier on our bus/ferry trip from Bangkok to the islands. Dave had been on Ko Pha-Ngan, the next island over, but joined us on Ko Tao for our last hurrah. It was quite a night too. I won't go into detail, but between way too much cheap Thai whisky and a key we thought was lost (in the morning it was actually found in Steve's pocket...grrrr...), we closed out our final day by paying for the two broken deck chairs and a broken window frame on our bungalow, oh, and surveying our bruises and scrapes from our less-than-graceful entries through the small window that was really high off the ground. Good times, good times!

Despite our misadventures that night, Dave decided to leave the islands with us and join Steve for a trip into Northern Thailand, so we parted ways in Bangkok, with the guys heading North, and me off to catch a flight to Siem Reap. So I'm on my own again, and am excited to get around to the next adventure...I just hope they don't serve cheap Thai whiskey in Cambodia.
Here's a picture of Steve on our last Ko Tao sunset.

xoxo,
Mere

Oh Canada!

I don't think I've mentioned it, but many Canadians are really starting to get on my nerves. There are tons of Canadians travelling in this region right now. I meet several new Canadians every day. They say due to Canada's terribly cold winter temps, Jan - Mar are their most common vacation months, and most Canadians escape to warm weather locales like SE Asia.

I think it's great they get out of the cold, but what gets to me is the paranoia so many of them seem to have about being mistaken for an American. These Canadians are easily spotted, as they wear baseball caps (that I imagine must be sold in every Canadian International Airport's departure lounge) with a huge Canadian flag and the words "I AM A CANADIAN" on the front, and a smaller Canadian flag on the back. Then, they'll also have a Canadian flag sewn on their backpack, Canadian flag stickers stuck to any hard surface, luggage tags with the Canadian flag, Canada t-shirts, etc. It's sooooo annoying and insulting. Aaaaarrrgh! Sorry to complain, but I had to get this off my chest, and I refuse to take a photo of any of these dorks, so you'll just have to get a mental picture going.

God bless America!
Mere

Broken Record...

Yep, I'm writing from the gorgeous beaches of Ko Tao again. I KNOW, I KNOW, I KNOW...I still have Cambodia and Vietnam to get to in my dwindling weeks of this glorious trip. Two countries rich with culture, archaeological wonders, natural splendor. Two countries with tumultuous pasts and visible scars that help recount the stories for today's visitors. Countries worthy of months on their own even, and here I am sunbathing another day away. BUT JUST LOOK AT THIS PHOTO FROM THIS MORNING.... It's nearly impossible to think of tearing myself away.Steve & I and two fun Frenchies rented a longboat & driver for the day and toured around to some secluded snorkeling spots. Our first stop was Koh Nangyuan National Park, the string of three small islands connected by the gorgeous white sandbars in the photo above. We walked up to the top of one of the islands to take these sweaty photos. Simply amazing! I have, however, resigned myself to depart from this paradise on Thursday, so some new, more exciting updates should follow soon thereafter. Until then, happy sunsets to you & yours!
Tanned & happy,
Mere

Chalk Up Another Win for the Tortoise

I've found my favorite Thai island...Ko Tao (Turtle Island). It's on the East Coast in the Gulf of Thailand, and I absolutely love it here. The island is surrounded by coral reefs, so it's best known as a diving/snorkeling retreat. It's also extremely chill. Our beach bungalow rental affords us access to masks, snorkels, fins & rafts. Our days are spent in the sun & surf, watching the colorful fish play hide & seek in the beautiful coral.

No one here knows stress. It's idyllic. It's peaceful. And it's hard for me to imagine moving on. Thank you Turtle Island.

xo,
Mere

Keep Left!

So I finally had my first experience driving on the left side of the road...while sitting on the right side of the car...and shifting gears with my left hand...and using a turn signal with my right had...and dodging Thais & tourists on motorbikes...and I think I was pretty darn good at it! That's right, after two days on the beach, Steve & I decided to get out and explore Ko Samui, so we rented a truck this morning with hopes of getting ourselves off the beaten path (and giving our red skin some rest).

Our highlight is probably our hike up to the the island's biggest waterfall. It has been extremely hot & humid, so swimming in the very cool pool at the base of the fall was a real treat. And we were especially happy when we learned the only other three people there have lived in Thailand for the past 25 years, so I'd say that's pretty successfully off the beaten tourist path.

On the crazy front, we attended our first (and last) Thai kickboxing tournament last night. The poster showed huge, mean looking pro fighter types, so it was a bit shocking to get into the arena to witness ten year old boys in the ring pummeling each other. The next fight featured boys we imagined were probably 13 - not much better. By the sixth & seventh fights the athletes were of age, but still it was a bit awkward to cheer - especially when the fighters were unevenly matched. We'll file that one under "When in Thailand..."

Steve, by the way, is great for my travel budget. I thought I was an okay negotiator, but I understand now that I've overpaid for everything! We eat delicious meals for about 80 cents, got our front row seats at the kickboxing match 2 for the price of 1, got the cheapest ferry tickets ever to head to over to Ko Tao tomorrow, and the savings keep coming. It's like how can I afford not to be travelling right now??

Music alert -- I love Steve's Martin Sexton CD called "Blacksheep." The title song is especially great -- go out and buy it now (Cara, Jason - this is especially for you two!).

Hope everyone's staying warm.
xoxo,
Mere

Back to the beach, and loving it!

From Laos, I wound up heading back to the beautiful beaches of Thailand to meet up with Steve, a fun guy I met on my very first Africa tour. That's him sitting on the beach in front of that gorgeous hotel where we are most definitely not staying!

The water's warm, the sand is soft, and Steve's iPOD is full of fantastic tunes to enjoy while passing the hours away under the bright Thailand sun.

Wish you were all here!

Four Stars for Blue Lagoon

I'M SO NAUGHTY!! I was looking for a spot to have dinner tonight. I'd done breakfast & lunch off the street, so I was planning to enjoy a civilized sit down meal somewhere decent to close out the day. As I walked down a side street I'd never been on, my eyes were instantly drawn to a beautiful upscale looking spot called "Blue Lagoon." I was sure it was going to be out of my price range, but when I viewed the menu, it was hardly more than the basic (read: grimy) sit down spots I've been visiting on the main drag. I grilled the host with a ton of questions about whether or not they accept credit cards (with no ATMs in this city, my cash is getting low!), then I grilled him about seating options (I'm a total chicken about dining alone - especially in nicer spots!).

As soon as he seated me, I pulled my notebook & pen out of my bag (I always try to look busy and occupied when dining alone. On this occasion, I was going to make my to-do list for tomorrow: pick up clean laundry, pick up bus ticket, buy extra bag to hold all the shopping goodies, etc.). As soon as I put pen to paper, the host came back over and said in broken English, "OH...I see...you writer." Without thinking much about it I replied, "Yes, I'm writing." At that same moment, I was presented with a menu by my waiter, and when they both walked away from my table, I noticed the host grab my waiter, speak to him in Lao, and then the waiter came back over with a big smile asking if I was interested in a "...special Chef taste menu. He give you taste all his best dish. Is no on menu, but he can do." I thought that must be today's special, and just quickly said, "Oh, no thanks. I'm not hungry enough to take all that on. I'll just order from the menu."

A few minutes after I placed my order, I picked up my pen and resumed work on my to-do list. That's when the manager came over and sat with me. She welcomed me graciously, complimented me on my selections (grilled eggplant starter, and grilled Mekong Fish Fillet with vegetables and a Dijon sauce for my main course), and gave me a history of the place in her broken English (it's only been open 1 year, so it's not in most of the guide books yet....she's the chef's girlfriend...she's French, he's Lao, and they conceived of the place, built it and wrote the menu to compliment both of their backgrounds...). AND THAT'S WHEN IT CLICKED......THEY ALL THOUGHT I WAS A TRAVEL WRITER THERE TO REVIEW THEIR RESTAURANT!!!!

And what did I do?? NOTHING! In fact, I started playing into my role. I made notes in my pad each time someone left the table. I EVEN PHOTOGRAPHED MY FOOD!!! Everyone fawned over me, the chef even prepared me a special desert sampler! I even heard an American couple a few tables away talking about how I was there to review the place, and wondering which book I wrote for (thank goodness they never asked me!). WHAT AN IMPOSTOR I AM, but once the situation had started, I didn't know how to turn the wheels back. I also figure that writing this blog is as close as anything to a "job" for me right now, so although my readership doesn't extend beyond a small circle of family & friends, I'll finish the job and give my review:

Blue Lagoon Restaurant, Luang Prabang, Laos. Open daily for dinner 5 - 11pm.

Delightful, new spot in town with the best in Western-style service, and a menu that will suit those who crave East or West. The fish dishes are especially fresh and well-seasoned, and the vegetables are perfectly cooked even if they're not very imaginative (is it necessary to include potato in mixed vegetables when all dinners are served with a side of rice?). The staff is friendly and attentive, and the prices are right - a huge quality step above the average cafe on Sisavango St. without a huge step up in prices. And don't fill up on the scrumptious, warm, freshly baked baguette with herb butter that they bring you before your meal, because the deserts are not to be missed!

xoxo,

Mere

So Why Did They Put an "s" on the End????

Greetings from Laos...that's pronounced "Lao." The "s" is silent. This used to be a French colony. I'm assuming they had something to do with it! :) The photo on the left is the view of the Mekong River at sunset from my Guest House.

Laos is simply delightful! It's less spoiled and less touristy than Thailand, and Luang Prabang, where I've been hanging out is an adorable little city oozing with charm. The entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage site for its splendid display of East meets West - French colonial buildings line the main drag with quaint sidewalk cafes serving the best Asian cuisine (or a baguette w/ brie, if you wish!), then just off this same drag, you'll also find stunningly detailed Buddhist temples or Wats that are cared for daily by the faithful monks who roam about the town in their signature bright orange robes. And the location for the city couldn't be more majestic, as it sits along the banks of the mighty Mekong River. For anyone considering a trip to SE Asia, Laos is not to be overlooked!

My first day in Luang Prabang, I enjoyed a luxurious spa adventure (so much nicer than a Thai massage, which is really just a lot of uncomfortable poking at various muscles here & there!). I've also taken in a good bit of shopping in the chi-chi boutiques (I need to find a FedEx, but no such luck in these remote parts - this town doesn't even have a single ATM!). Another day I took a boat ride up the Mekong to some caves that were discovered in the 1860s with hundreds of Buddhas hidden inside. No one knows the history. And earlier today I took a ride out to a beautiful cascading waterfall with aquamarine swimming pools.

Living it up in Laos & loving every minute of it -- wish you were here!

xoxo,

Mere

P.S. - I walk by this empty yellow house everytime I go between my guest house & the main street with all the shops & restaurants. I want to buy it, turn it into a Guest House and move here - will you visit??? Ha! :)

One Buddha, Two Buddha, Red Buddha, Blue Buddha

Before this trip, I didn't know there is more than one Buddha. Turns out, most Buddhist countries have their own unique image of him.

In my mind, Buddha was a jolly older guy who sat with legs crossed in front of his big round belly. Turns out that's the Chinese image of Buddha (and there are plenty of Chinese living in SE Asia, so you'll see that image here from time to time). This photo was taken on the banks of the River Kwai in Central Thailand.

For the Thais, Buddha is much younger, has a long face, long earlobes, and is thin. The Thais also have a unique image of their young, thin Buddha for every day of the week. One day they worship a sitting Buddha, the next day a reclining Buddha, the next day a standing Buddha, etc. This photo's of a sitting Thai Buddha from the caves along the River Kwai.

And now that I'm in Laos, I've discovered they worship a female Buddha! She's tall and slender with long, beautiful fingers, and they focus a lot on her hands, so her finger positioning (which does change) must mean various things. This profile shot shows a Lao Buddha in a cave along the Mekong River just outside of Luang Prabang.

Anyway, just thought it was interesting to know there's more than one Buddha out there. Clearly, I have zero knowledge of the Buddhist religion. Perhaps I'll find some informative reading one of these days while I'm over here.

Mere

Girls of SK House

I closed out my time in Chiang Mai, Thailand with a bunch of fun girls I met in my Guest House, SK House. There were two Aussies (who happen to be Indian), and two Irish girls. We had a great time, and if any of you visit the "Chiang Mai Saloon" anytime soon, I encourage you to look for our post! (We're not vandals, the place provides markers and encourages wall art!)

We went for a trek into the countryside of the North. We visited some Thai tribespeople (originally refugees from Burma/China who are now settled in the hills of N. Thailand). It was nice to visit, but it felt a bit forced - they just wanted to sell us their wares, and communication was tough, as we don't speak their tribal language, and the only English they know is along the lines of, "You buy today," and "Good price for you." The only purchase I made was a bracelet from an enterprising little 5 year old. The bracelet was made of some embroidery string scraps and local seeds and beans from the forest all around us. It cost pennies, and fell apart after a few days, but was really lovely while it lasted!

We also went for an elephant ride, where the elephant owners are pretty sly. In addition to paying to ride their cute beasts, they encourage you to buy a bag of food (sugar cane & bananas) so you can feed your elephant along the way. Turns out the elephants have been conditioned to expect these feedings, so once you sit on the bench for your ride, the elephant's trunk is immediately over his head and breathing smelly elephant exhale in your face till he gets a treat. Once fed, the smart elephant will walk four or five steps, and then stop, throwing his trunk back again, and not moving until he gets another treat!! Cleverly, the owners have set up stands all along the elephant walking trails in the woods from which they'll gladly sell you more sugar cane & bananas so you can keep your beast moving. What a scam, huh? But seriously, with that smelly, drippy, windtunnel of a trunk in your face, you'd keep throwing food at it too! So not only did we pay to ride, but we also wound up paying for the animals' food for the day! Smart....very smart of those elephant owners!

Another of our activity highlights was the bamboo rafting, which consisted of us holding on for dear life and getting soaked as we rode down a little creek on ten pieces of hollow bamboo that our "guide" had just tied together with strips of bicycle tires. Maybe if we hadn't screamed like girls (to the guide's delight) every time he forced the raft to sink a bit, we would have stayed on a steadier course!

xoxo,

Mere

Pad Thai Party & You're Invited!

Chiang Mai is described in the travel books as the favorite city in Thailand among "culture vultures," or those who wish to study a Thai art - massage, language, meditation, cooking. I was all about the cooking classes, and immediately signed up!





What fun we had, and I learned a lot too, so once I've returned to the states and set up a home somewhere, you're all invited over for a taste of my Thai culinary skills. WARNING - I go heavy on the chilis!

Photos to the left are my sweet & sour chicken, and my spicy coconut soup with prawns.

Bon apetit!!

Mere

This Bud's For You

Timing is everything, as I discovered when I flew up to Chiang Mai just in time for the final weekend of their annual Flower Festival. According to my Lonely Planet, it's the city's biggest festival of the year - what luck! The events were fantastic. The flower festival takes over several blocks in one corner of the old city, which is about a 2km by 2km square area surrounded by a moat and remains of the old city wall, built 700 years ago.


There was a main stage with various bands and dance acts performing. There were street vendors selling every type of greasy Thai food you can imagine. There were display areas with plants & flowers that had been judged, ribbons proudly announcing the winners from each category. My favorites were the orchids -- so many varieties, and all so delicate and beautiful.


There was also a parade, the floats decorated solely with flowers a la Pasadena's annual Rose Parade. Oh, and one event that I'm sorry I missed was the Flower Festival Princess Pageant - I would have loved to have seen the Thai version of a beauty pageant - I arrived one day too late for that spectacle.

At any rate, I think my favorite part was simply being at an authentic Thai event surrounded by locals. This was their festival, their celebration, not a fire show or tiger viewing opportunity, etc. designed for tourists. It was nice to have a glimpse into their biggest annual community event, and join them amongst the blossoms in celebration of their city and its beautiful flora & fauna.

Mere

Mere, Igor & Alex

So after the beaches I returned to Bangkok to meet up with my tour group for a two-day excursion packed with activities in & around Central Thailand. I had to be at the travel agency very early to meet my group. There were only three of us. Me and two young guys: Igor & Alex. One of their first questions was, "From the U.S....Hmmm...But you are Jewish, No?" "No," I replied, "Why do you ask?". "Well, you are in an Israeli travel agency, about to leave on an Israeli tour." "Oh!"...I exclaimed, not quite understanding if there was any real issue with my race/religious status... As I looked around the travel agency, things did start to click a bit...so it was Hebrew everyone kept speaking...my ears are bad at discerning language, and I've had little to no exposure to Hebrew, so I wasn't all that shocked that I'd missed that que. But looking around there were other clues and tips I might have noticed, but I had only been focused on the trip itineraries & prices when I'd made my decision to book my tour here, days earlier before I went south to the beaches. So I asked the woman behind the counter whether the tour would be in English or Hebrew. She confirmed English, and I couldn't see any other reason it would matter, so off we went!

On the drive out of Bangkok I learned that Igor & Alex were celebrating the successful completion of their 3-year mandatory stints in the military, and taking this trip to relax before starting university in March. They thought it was so funny that I hadn't noticed I was in an Israeli travel agency, and were great sports about speaking in English, not Hebrew, so I wasn't excluded. English is their third language. Igor's family moved to Israel from Russia when he was seven, and Alex's family moved there from the Ukraine when he was four. So Hebrew is their second language, and English their third. Thankfully, they're really fluent.

I had so many questions about their military service, and they were happy to talk about it. They were both very confident, well educated guys, Alex a lot more serious than Igor who had the dry, sarcastic Russian thing going on, but was also easily excited and could get quite animated. They loved telling me about all of the various pieces of military equipment they used that were from the U.S. They'd describe weaponry and boxes of ammo, etc. with "U.S. Army" and our flag printed right on them. Igor also had a very matter of fact "eye for an eye" speech, complete with quoting the Old Testament, when discussing the Palestinians. They also had questions for me, about 9-11, about Jewish culture in America, about my own Cold War childhood when Russia/U.S.S.R. was a superpower. These topics surfaced time and again over the two days. Very interesting conversations to be having with these boys so young in some respects, and yet seemingly old & experienced in others.

Anyway, the drive was just shy of two hours, and then our tour began with a visit to some caves that housed a number of Buddhas in various underground rooms. The Buddhas had been hidden in the caves when the Japanese invaded Thailand in WWII, and the monks never moved them out, deciding to keep the caves as a holy place following the Japanese occupation. When we wrapped up the cave tour, Alex & Igor complimented me on my willingness to climb up to the cave area and crawl around in the caves' dark, wet, dirty passages. They said many of their girl friends would have complained. I assured them I was here for adventure and would only get really "girly" if large bugs crossed our path. They agreed to attend to the bugs, and we were all looking forward to the next adventure. It involved a trip on a Thai longboat (a long wooden canoe with a speed boat motor on the back). This was our mode of transport down the River Kwai from the caves to our hotel. When we arrived at the hotel's dock, I was last to leave the boat and made the mistake of pushing off with my first foot in such a way that the boat immediately began moving away from the dock as I had one foot still in it, and the other in mid air but moving farther & farther from the dock. Thankfully the boys were turned in my direction, and both of them grabbed my outstretched arms and pulled me up onto the dock. I was so happy I didn't fall into the murky water! And from that point on, they assumed a distinctly protective role with me. I thought it was so funny, because they were the young ones, but from then on, I was definitely under their watch. They wouldn't let me carry my luggage, they opened my doors, if we were hiking, they insisted I walk between them and they'd point out the slippery patches and suggest the safest routes for me. Chivalry was alive and well.

From the caves, we visited Tiger Temple, where the monks take in orphaned tiger cubs and raise them to be released back into the wild. Of course, if the tigers are not showing signs of ability to hunt for themselves, etc. as they grow, the monks keep them at the temple, and use them for their tiger breeding program. It's these breeder tigers that visitors are allowed to pet. They're enormous and beautiful! I loved it!!

The following morning, we were joined up with a larger group -- a tour bus full of Hebrew-speaking Israelis! I was sure I was about to be excluded due to the language barrier, but to my delight, Igor & Alex stayed surprisingly loyal to our trio and speaking English. We spent the morning hiking in the gorgeous Erawan Falls National Park. There are seven steps, or lookouts, along a hiking trail that follows the falls, and we made it up to the top, then returned to the fourth step for swimming -- the fourth step has a natural rock water slide that falls into an aquamarine pool - fun!

After that we were off to take an elephant ride in the woods, and when we got to the river bank, we went into the river for elephant bathing. We had scrub brushes and soap and would lather up the elephant and then he'd dunk us under, rinsing himself. It was such a riot -- we all loved it. Oh, and something I learned -- Asian elephants are a bit smaller than African elephants, and the Asians elephants' ears are much smaller than the enormous flapping wings that frame the African elephants' heads. Also, Asian elephants are less aggressive and easier to tame.

After the elephants, we took a ride back to the bridge over River Kwai on "The Death Train," so named because the WWII Japanese invaders forced the Thais to build the railway under ridiculous deadlines, killing over 100,000 Thai men in the process. From there we took a minivan back to Bangkok, and the boys invited me to dinner -- they knew another spot owned by an Israeli, and sure enough, it was another nice spot full of tourists speaking Hebrew that had I been alone I would have entered & eaten at without ever noticing!

Shalom!
Mere