Laa Kawn Thailand, North-South-East and West, we did it all!

Today is our last day in Koh Samui, Thailand. We catch an early morning plane tomorrow for Bangkok, and then an early morning plane back to Portland, Oregon on Thursday, March 1. We have seen much of Thailand. We began in the chaotic city of Bangkok two months ago where we were startled by the sights, sounds and smells of Asia. We wanted only to get out of that city as quickly as possible. From Bangkok we headed to the Southeast corner of Thailand, near Cambodia and the island of Koh Chang. We spent two weeks amid it's misty peaks and knotted forest amid the clear blue sea. We went to cooking school, rode the elephants, and did a snorkeling day trip to the surrounding islands. From there we went back to Bangkok, but only for an hour, catching a taxi and taking it three hours south to Hua Hin. Here we stayed with friends Kay and Bill for three nights. We left Hua Hin, back to Bangkok for the afternoon only to catch the overnight train to the Northeastern corner of Thailand, and the city of Nong Khai. Nong Khai is located along the banks of the Mekong River and offers fine views over the river into Laos. We crossed the Friendship Bridge and entered Laos arriving in its capitol city Vientianne. We spent one week in Laos traveling south to north from Vientianne to Luang Prabang. We both agree that this was one of the best weeks of our trip. Laos was less affected by tourism. It felt as if we were immersed in the culture and everyday life. There are still many areas that were heavily bombed and damaged by the U.S. during the Vietnam War. The country remains very poor. On our travels we saw people literally living along the edge of the road. Eating, bathing, cooking, working and sleeping - all of it within inches of the road - in the dirt and dust. We walked into local villages and saw the village children unclothed and living in very poor conditions. Yet for all of its depressing sights, the beauty of Laos was also present. The caves in Vang Vieng, the sunsets over the Mekong River, the lush green jungle and the bright, happy smiles of the native people at the Luang Prabang night market. Next we flew back into Thailand, landing in the Northern city of Chiang Mai - a neat, square city bounded by moats and partial walls. Everyone from Thailand says "you must go to Chiang Mai" and we did. It was a shoppers paradise. Pirated goods including handbags, software, jewelry, etc... and authentic Thai products like woodcarvings, silks and textiles. We filled our shopping bags and once again boarded the night train - back to Bangkok! This time, our 4Th time to Bangkok, what was chaotic and alarming was that we felt at home in the city! It's like New York City in rush hour with a very bad sewer system and a variety of other smells, honking horns, pollution, jam packed people, and we were comfortable. Hmm. We next headed to the Southern Islands and visited Koh Tao, Nang Yuan, and Koh Samui, where we are today. These islands are heavily touristed and you see very little of authentic Thai life. We would suggest if you are planning a beach trip to Thailand head to Koh Chang and Koh Mak instead. And, if planning a trip to Asia, the hot spots right now are Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Many people we have met think Thailand is too crowded now with tourists, we understand why, it is a beautiful country. We have been intrigued by the politics in Thailand. The Prime Minister was ousted by a military coup back in September. There are of course two sides to the story-one he was a great man who did much for Thailand-including building the new airport in Bangkok, the biggest in Asia. The other side says he was a crook who stole money and took kickbacks. Regardless, there is a great tension in the air. On New Years Eve nine bombs were set off in Bangkok, killing 3 tourists, the top news story has been about the new airport and whether or not to close it because large cracks have been discovered in the runways. The people are uncomfortable not knowing who is in charge of their country-it will certainly prove to be a time of great change. We have never felt in danger and these issues do not appear to have affected tourism. We are ready to come home. Melissa more so than Julie. It has been a bit unnerving realizing we are going home to "unemployment." For two people who have always been employed-not having a job can scare you a bit. Again, Melissa more so than Julie. We think we've dropped some weight while in Asia(Julie more so than Melissa), and we are looking forward to some good home cooked meals. We will begin our job search from Olympia, Washington where we will set up a temporary home until we see what the future brings. We expect to be up and online in 7-14 days after our arrival home. We will certainly follow up with the blog, additional thoughts, budget updates, the best photo's and our future plans. It's impossible to determine the many ways in which we've been affected-you just don't know at this point. Regardless, we both still feel it was a great leap of faith to take the trip and leave our very comfortable lives behind. As our friend Dawn said, "what the hell." We have certainly met some great people who have touched our lives. We are putting together a community college course on "How to travel the World" that will include info on budgeting, packing, preparations, transportation, technology, etc. And last, our import party. For those of you in Portland, OR we are bringing back the goods! Silver, jewelry, textiles, oils, and other items- we will update you on this later. Julie's email is julie.ferguson@yahoo.com, phone 503-841-3012(effective Sat). Melissa can be reached at melissa.jones3@gmail.com. She doesn't have a phone yet but can be reached at Julie's number. Minnie-the chihuahua- your mother is coming home!! She misses you. "One doesn't discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time." Andre Gide

Final Week

We took a two hour ferry to Koh Samui yesterday and found a nice little hotel to spend our final week. www.samui-hacienda.com. It's in a small fisherman's village called Bophut and we really, really like it here. See you soon!

Pictures from Paradise

Nang Yuan Island Paridise

There's only one resort on this island and we spent 7 glorious days there. During the day boat loads of tourists arrive from neighboring islands around 10:00 and they depart around 3:00. Mornings and evenings the resort guests have the island all to themselves and we don't think there is another place in the world quite as magical as this island. We were sad to leave but our skin had about as much sun as it could take and we had read all of our books. It was time to move on for our final week. Take a look at paradise.

Koh Tao

Koh Tao Pictures

Hello - Here are some pictures of our 9 nights on Koh Tao. It was wonderful!

Nang Yuan Island Dive Resort- Paradise Found!

Today is our last full day on the island of Koh Tao, in southern Thailand. We are heading over to a great little paradise we found - Nang Yuan Island and staying at the only resort on the island. Nang Yuan is a group of three small islands connected by sand bars. It is absolutely STUNNING! We took a longtail boat over this morning while our driver steered with one hand and bailed the boat with the other. No worries, he was a fast bailer. The islands are about 1 km off the shore from Koh Tao. Once we walked in we just knew we wanted to stay. We also went snorkeling while it was early, calm, and mostly deserted. You would not believe the fish. Parrot fish, needle nose fish, clown fish and lots of others we don't know the names of. Julie is doing much better at being still, and in fact today she was so still that a fish pecked her mask. She screamed and was no longer still! You can check out pictures at www.nangyuan.com. Take a look and see what we are seeing. It is paradise! We don't know how long we will stay, depends on when we no longer feel its paradisy enough. We fly from Koh Samui on the 28Th, and then home to Portland on March 1st - only two weeks away Nina! We keep discussing what you are fixing for dinner, all of it sounds heavenly. Please no Pad Thai. Please lots of wine. The Internet here is really spotty, so we can't promise much more from paradise, but please know we are thinking of you. Happy Valentines Day.

Last Lazy Days

Hello everyone. We have settled in nicely at Sensi Resort on Koh Tao Island in Thailand. As you can imagine, we've been VERY busy. Our days go like this: 7ish wake up, sit on the porch of our cute little bungalow for a bit before heading down the short hill to the beach at our resort where we acquire two of the 8 chairs, drink our coffee and coke, read our books, mosey over to breakfast when we get hungry. Then, back to the chairs, in for a swim or snorkel, back to the chairs to read, back in for a dip. Hunger moves us over the the restaurant right at the beach for some lunch. Back to the chairs to let our food settle before another swim or float on an inter tube. Around 4 is Happy Hour of course and this takes different forms. Even the form of a gin and tonic with peanut butter on crackers on our porch. It was a big deal finding peanut butter in a small shop since it's not been anywhere for the last 5 months. For dinner sometimes we shake it up and go down the beach to dinner but our resort has a wonderful restaurant that plays nice music and you sit right at waters edge, so that's become our favorite. And they have BLT's for lunch, one of Melissa's favorite. We fall asleep around 9ish and then start all over again the next day. It's really rough. Once in awhile we do talk about getting jobs and the realities of going home and we good with it all. We are especially excited to see our family and friends. Internet has it's issues on this island and is expensive so we won't be posting much. We will try to post some pictures soon. Bye for now.

16 Hours, 9 Taxis, 2 Boats, 1 Airplane, and a Strange Rash!

We left Bangkok, Thailand on Tuesday, February 6th and expected an easy "travel day." Our Bangkok Airlines flight was only 60 minutes and then a short ferry ride would take us to Ko Pha Ngan. No big deal, or so we thought. We woke up at 3 a.m. and left our Bangkok home away from home, the Bossotel Inn. We caught taxi #1 and headed to the airport. We had a nice snack in Bangkok Airlines Boutique Lounge and flew south to the island of Ko Samui. We landed on the Lower Southern Gulf of Thailand amid beautiful azure colored seas, white sandy beaches, and coconut grove vistas. The airport was one runway with attractive thatched hut out buildings. There awaited taxi #2 to a high speed catamaran which whisked us 20 kilometers away to the island of Ko PhaNgan in just 20 minutes. It was only 9:30 a.m. and the beach was calling our names - life was good. We had heard the Ko PhaNgan was a quieter, calmer island and only got crazy once a month for the big "full moon party." Knowing that the full moon had been on Feb. 3rd, and it was now Feb. 6th we were all set. So into taxi #3 to scout out the north end of town and find lodging. We visited some "resorts" only to find none suitable. Feeling a bit frustrated we caught taxi #4 back to the pier to catch taxi #5 over to a recommended "remote" location on the east side of the island. We went across a dirt road filled with boulders, downed trees, and dry river ruts, only to arrive at what we would describe as a twenty something, Melrose Place, hippie hangout with a lot of new age activities. Not our cup of tea. The accommodations were less than basic, not so clean, and once you got over there you sure as heck weren't going anywhere else easily or cheaply. So into taxi #6, back across the jungle and over the mountain for more searching. We had hoped to settle on Ko PhaNgan for a week or two, but weren't having much luck. Into the Internet cafe we went, but try as we might, we just couldn't find a place on the island. So by unanimous vote, we caught a very rough riding ferry to Ko Tao, 90 minutes north. It was 2 pm. Ko Tao, also called "Turtle Island," is a bit smaller and we hoped a bit of an older crowd. It was now about 5 pm and taxi # 7 took us to a recommended "remote" location on the east side. This "road" was even worse! At best it was an impassable trail through the jungle. But pass it we did. May we say that the taxis are nothing more than pick up trucks with a metal bench in the back bed. That's where we had spent most of our day, on the metal bench, riding around in the 90 degree heat hanging on for dear life. Really. But we digress... when we arrived at this location we found a tree house type bungalow with gaping holes in the weak floor, less cleanliness, a bad mattress and some animal issues. It was beautifully located and staff was charming, but we just couldn't do it. Into taxi #8 back across town and to Ao Chaluk Ban Kao, on the Southern tip of Ko Tao. It was now after 6 pm, we'd been up 15 hours, and we didn't have a place to sleep. Why? Because after the "Full Moon Party" on Ko PhaNgan everyone becomes enlightened and heads to Ko Tao! We walked in the dark, carrying our bags to over half a dozen resorts, all full. Finally, we stumbled upon 7-11, and just started making phone calls. Finally one place, Tommy's Bungalows had a room. Into taxi #9 to Tommy's where we landed for the night. It was after 7:30 pm, we were starving, we were smelly, and there was a very strange and painful rash appearing on Melissa's rear end. Our sense of humors had long since disappeared. Need we say more? Tommy's turned out to be OK, a bit overpriced, but clean and located in a small cove that has great snorkeling and a nice sunset view. That's where we are now. Sitting on the giant rocks overlooking the water and watching the sunset. Tomorrow we move on down the coast to the Sensi resort. Our new location is www.sensiparadise.com - Take a look, we fit in a bit better here. We rented a scooter today and scouted out the island and this was our pick. Along the way a nice Thai pharmacist took a look (really) at Melissa's full moon and prescribed some cream that is supposed to help. It's a condition called "too much taxi" butt. Life is good again. We come home three weeks from tomorrow so we plan to spend our time in the sun to work on our tans. We did break down and get haircuts, so we won't be shaggy on our arrival. Ko Tao is a snorkelers paradise. We went in for a short dip today and saw amazing fish, sea slugs and coral. We can't wait to see what else if under the water. Check it out at www.kohtao.com. This is your last chance to join us. It's now or never!

Chiang Mai, Thailand

We have spent the last 5 nights in Chiang Mai and it's been relaxing because of the generosity of a couple of people. Esther, who we met through www.couchsurfing.com, and Lou Lou, who is a Serves host. We stayed the first few nights at Esther's guesthouse for free. Now, we don't think this is the typical couch surfing experience and we were a bit overwhelmed by her generosity. She even fed us breakfast and dinner at the restaurant attached to the guesthouse. All was complimentary. It was a very authentic 100 year old teak home she bought a few years ago and turned into a charming guesthouse right on the River Ping, it's called River Ping Palace. We aslo contacted Lou Lou, who's a Servas host and met her for dinner along with her friend Lizzy. Lou Lou is from Australia and Lizzy happens to be from Seattle. In fact, Lizzy worked for a short period of time at Pacific University at the same time Melissa was teaching there. It''s a very small world. Lou Lou was going out of town for the weekend and offered her apartment to us. We've loved having a flat and we've cooked and watched several movies. The flat reminds us of a loft in the Pearl with concrete floors and lots of windows looking out at the city. Along our journey we've met so many people who have been wonderfully generous. Special thanks to Esther and Lou Lou! This afternoon we board a night train to Bangkok and will stay one night there before heading south to the beach.

Luang Prabang, Laos

We woke up at 6 AM one morning to witness an offering for the Monks. Every way we looked down the streets we saw orange. We'd also like to introduce you to Mr Kon Lee, the 9 year old artist we visited at the local orphanage. As you can see, he's a very sweet boy. Our last day we day tripped to this spectacular waterfall. Melissa gets tired of having her picture taken...

Luang Prabang, Laos Photo's

We were able to get to a fast enough Internet connection and we would like to share some photo's of Luang Prabang with you. We are enjoying drinks on the Mekong, shopping at the fantastic Night Market and visiting colorful Wat's. You really must put Laos on your list of places to visit.