Before leaving, one last massage in the north, then off to tour Thailand’s southern islands. Continue reading Leaving Northern Thailand, February 9, 2012

David and Karen said goodbye to Carl and Julie and went further north, near the Thai-Burma border for some additional mountain trekking, but we used horses instead.  The very north is primarily agricultural, tea plantations.  We stayed at a farm stay which was right in the middle of the plantation.  The view out of our window was fantastic – so much so, we were compelled … Continue reading Chiang Rai – Mae Salong Thailand, February 6 – 9, 2012

We did try and plan some festivals during the trip.  We succeeded with the Thailand Flower Festival which is a big deal for the country.  Think the rose bowl parade, but you get to be just inches away, and the floats are made from the flowers that grow here.  Each tribe, from the different parts of the country come and highlight the flowers from their … Continue reading Chiang Mai, Thailand, The Flower Festival, February 4, 2012

I can remember a long, long time ago, reading a book, filled with exotic places and pictures, and saw these women wear brass rings on their necks, and their name was Karen!  How exciting.   From that day I have wanted to meet the Karen people.  Mission accomplished. The weight of the brass rings on the woman’s neck pushes down the collar bone and upper ribs, … Continue reading Chiang Mai, Thailand, Karen meet the Karen People, February 3, 2012

Chiang Mai, the largest town in Northern Thailand is the launch point for a huge variety of physical activities.  So let’s go . . .   Our Littleton friends, Julie and Carl (from the Bangkok fame) met us in Chiang Mai.   During a one day tour, we were able to go elephant riding, hike to a waterfall and finally on a raft trip down the Mae … Continue reading Chiang Mai, Thailand, Oh My Buddha!!, a Day of Elephants, Rafting and Hiking!, February 3, 2012

Karen zips through the trees having a blast while David stays on terra firma, saying he is afraid of heights. Continue reading Karen Zips thru the Trees, January 29, 2012

What is it about elephants that is so charming?  Is it because they are big and gangly, or because they eat using their nose, or perhaps because they have a wonderful smile.   Not sure why, but I think they are grand, and in this trip I got to drive one. You think I jest, but how do you make an elephant go?  You tickle … Continue reading Visit to Elephant Camp, Luang Prabang, January 29, 2012

Daily at dawn, saffron clad monks pad barefoot through the streets while pious townsfolk place tiny balls of sticky rice in their begging bowls.  It’s a quiet meditative ceremony through which monks demonstrate their vows of poverty and humility while lay Buddhists gain spiritual merit by the act of respectful giving. In line with our amazing good luck, a few hundred monks passed daily directly … Continue reading Monk Procession, Luang Prabang, Laos January 27 – February 2, 2012

This is the capitol of Laos, and very quiet indeed.  The entire Capitol stretches 20 blocks long and 3 blocks wide along the Mekong River.  We thought it may be nice to catch an original language movie . . .  There is only one movie screen in the city.  Not one theatre with multiple screens but one screen, and the movie was Thai. There is … Continue reading Vientiane, Laos January 24 – 27, 2012

Welcome to the year of the Dragon ! !  Very auspicious.  Bangkok, one of the leading cities to celebrate Chinese New Year, certainly parties in a big way.  We were invited into a hotel by a fellow traveler and the view from the sky bar was tremendous.  All Chinatown and the skyline/river where laid out below you.  New Year’s morning, we had reservations for the … Continue reading Happy New Year, Bangkok, January 23-24, 2012

When people travel they have touring or they have adventure . . .  when do you have both?, when your friends from home join you.  Carl and Julie, our friends from Littleton, joined us for the Bangkok portion of the trip.  We took in all the tourist sights: Buddha, palaces, river ferries and shopping.  It was so hot, over 90 degrees and high humidity besides. … Continue reading Bangkok, January 19 – 22, 2012

We leave Cambodia for Thailand. Continue reading Cambodia Farewell Sunset, January 19, 2012

Benteay Srei, is carved out of pink sandstone and is considered a jewel in the crown of the complex.  Certainly in person, as in pictures, you could see the art style involves much more complex carving which is found in India.   It was built by two Hindu priests to honor Shiva, but finished by a Buddhist king who was inclusive and finally brought peace to … Continue reading Benteay Srei Temple and Bicycling the Complex, January 15 -19, 2012

The temple complex here in northern Cambodia was built when it served as the seat of government between the 9th and 14th centuries.  Built under a succession of kings, the temples praised their gods (Hindu or Buddhist), served as a cremation location or commemorated a war victory.  Differing styles, materials and attention to detail would mark a stable time in a king’s reign.  The workmanship … Continue reading Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia, January 15 – 19, 2012

The capital city of Cambodia is lovely and calm if it is compared to Vietnam.  The population of the whole country is twice the population of Saigon.  So things are cleaner and infrastructure easily supports the people.  The Khmer people are very proud of Angkor Wat, the temple complex is on their flag, and the national museum, holds the centuries of history that is the … Continue reading Phnom Penh, January 10 – 14, 2012

Lots of our time here is spent on everyday life.  I thought about taking a minute and showing just those every day things that aren’t as splashy . . .   like our typical hotel room in a 3 star hotel not western hotel.  Breakfast is always included, and the buffet is multi national, so there’s is always rice, and soup for Asians, meat for Europeans … Continue reading Everyday Life

The goal was to get out of town and have a good, long workout.  A good, long workout is an understatement.  We got thru town and the road narrowed to the equivalent of a wide sidewalk . . . Enough for two scooters to pass.  This is just what we are looking for, a series of small villages along the Mekong, and each school, or … Continue reading On a dirt track, somewhere in the Mekong Delta January 10, 2012

We are in the Mekong, and one of the most colorful things to do here is the floating markets.  There, local people sell their produce to transfer it to larger ships.  There are lots of boats, produce and people, oh yes and tourists.  David and I were dockside in the early morning dark, shuttled into a small boat, and off for a 27 kilo river … Continue reading Floating Market, Can Tho, Mekong Delta, January 10, 2012

Saigon was a transportation hub for us.  Some museums and churches but nothing that really captured our imagination.  Our one full day we spent on a tour of the Chu Chi Tunnels north of HCMC. First the guide explained the difference between the two names.  Saigon was the capital  of south Vietnam before the Vietnam/American war.  When North Vietnam won they changed the name to … Continue reading Seeing Saigon, January 6 – 8, 2012

It is against the law tourists to drive in Vietnam.  It is probably due to the lack of stop lights and absence of stop signs.   It really is a orchestrated chaos with pedestrian vs. scooter and cars and trucks thrown in.  A tourist killed an elderly person by motorbike and had to pay the family a two thousand dollar fine.  That’s all . Anyhow, if … Continue reading Easy Riding in Da Lat. January 4 – 6, 2012

This town was not on our list of stops, but it is the transport hub for this section of Vietnam and we came into town from Whale Island after the final bus.  If you are going to spend one night might as well spend two and have a look around.  From our perspective that means bikes.  Finding a local tourist map we planned a route … Continue reading Nha Thrang – January 2 – 4, 2012

The fish farmers in this area revere the whale, and belong to the whale cult.  If the fisherman spot wales around this cove (Whale Island is on the migration path every May.) it signals a good season.  Whales – plankton – fish.  Guess it makes sense.  If a whale is beached, and dies, the farmers honor the whale by bringing it on shore and burying … Continue reading Whale Temple – Whale Island – December 29, 2011

We needed a vacation from our vacation.  A chance to stop, rest, and tuck in for New Years Eve.  We found ourselves in a bamboo bungalow 25 feet from the water’s edge.  “Our house” was the thatched roof directly in front of the blue canoe.  Dave would say in the middle of the night he thought the air conditioning was turning on only to realize … Continue reading Whale Island Resort December 28 – January 2, 2012

If you are a fan of travel websites like I am, Hoi An is consistently voted as the place “I wish I spent more time” and now I understand why. It is beautiful there, and architecture that is a thousand years old. I read that both sides during he American war agreed to NOT bomb this place, so much history at risk. So today, we … Continue reading Hoi An – December 26 – 28, 2011