Deliverance continued

So I guess Erika's writing cliff-hangers now. Let's see if I can tie up the loose ends in the 3 minutes I have left on this thing.



The bamboo raft hit some rapids, and at one point, the raft did some serious pitching, and I fell off, and so did the Irish dude behind me. I was clinging to one of the baskets as if for dear life just like in the movies before realizing that the water was like 3 feet deep and I could stand. After falling off the thing, and while clinging to the basket, the guide asked me, "do you swim?" I really don't like that guy.



The back of the raft then broke a couple of times, including one time when the Irish dude's foot just went through it. I don't think it was for real dangerous, but it was a little, even according to the Irish dude, and he works in Sudan. The Deliverance-style part came at one point when the raft was broken, and some random guy (at least it seemed that way ) came out of the jungle to help us fix it. He was nice. It got fixed. Anyway, the trip ended and we all got there safe and sound.



There was no way I was going whitewater rafting after that, but Erika did and said it was a blast -- she learned how to steer one of those rafts, there were helmets and life jackets to go around, and the guide knew what he was doing and was really good. I on the other hand napped for about half an hour and then rode down in a pickup truck with the Irish/Kiwi couple to meet Erika and the French couple at the finish. After passing an Italian man wearing a very small swimsuit on one of the rafts, the Irish dude said one of the funniest things I have ever heard (warning -- ethnic slur ahead): "How far into the jungle do you have to get to not see a wop in a Speedo?" I really like that guy.



Then we got back and showering and getting clean felt amazing, as did sleeping on a soft bed. Then we went to sleep at like 9 PM on a Saturday night (apparently the French did the same).



Other notes on the villages -- they were in really beautiful locations, but their life is still really simple and really hard. It was the first time I had been in that type of cultural experience -- I don't know for a fact that it wasn't contrived, but it was far in the jungle and everything seemed pretty real (the only influence of tourism was that each village had a small stand selling drinks). One woman was making food using mortar and pestle (is that what it's called?), there were pigs and chickens everwhere, and a couple things that are just stupid, like an indoor stove that keeps smoke trapped in the hut where people sleep instead of having ventilation. Erika tells me this is a problem that reduces life expectancy in places like this.



One thing I continue to learn and saw in both these villages as well is that little children are basically the same everywhere. They like pretty colors, smiles, and attention. One adorable little kid kept looking at someone in our group's photos and then repeating the words that he was told were the English words for what was showing up on the screen.



I have to stop typing now (I actually got a bonus 10 minutes, I didn't write this in 3), so one note on something Erika left for me: the Night Safari.



In a country where there are lots of beautiful, amazing things, but which are run in a way that we in the United States would sometimes refer to as "bootleg," this one was a shocker. This experience was polished. Like, Disney-style clean and orderly. And it was amazing. First on the program, there was a "Music Fountain." "What's that?" we asked. "It's like a... fountain. With... music." That's actually about as close as you can get, except there was a laser light show involved through the mist of the fountain set to the music. Pretty cool. But the main attraction of course were the animals, which were amazing.



Erika usually gets upset at zoos, expecially when there are big animals in small cages. Erika was not upset at this at all. The animals all have plenty of room to roam, and for most animals there are several of them, so they have some sort of social life. By "room to roam," I mean our tram-type-thing had to stop a couple of times because wildebeests or giraffes were blocking the road. We saw lions, tigers, bears, giraffes (look more graceful than I thought), rhinoceri, hippopotami (look funnier than I thought), a cheetah, all sorts of deer and antelopes, etc. And they were really close and healthy and happy looking. It was amazing.



Also, they had a thing where you could get your photo taken holding a baby white tiger (of which there are not many in the world). In the picture, the tiger is sitting in Erika's lap and I am feeding it from a milk bottle. It is every bit as adorable as it sounds.



OK, time's up! More from the beach! (flight to Bangkok and then to Krabi tomorrow)

Deliverance- Thai Style

Last night we got back from a wild adventure into the jungle in northern Thailand, northwest of Chiang Mai. It began in with a stop at a great little market, then onto an incredible waterfall. We walked right up to the falls and stood behind the water. The water was incredibly refreshing in the hot weather.

After the waterfall we went to hot springs- it's not exactly the place you want to be in Thai weather but it was fun to poke around. We tried to get in to the water but it was so incredibly hot I could only stand to put in my lower legs. Nuri braved the scalding pool and got in eventually.

After the hot springs we started a long hike into the forest. We were accompanied by two couples- one French and one Kiwi/Irish. The hike was lovely and only mildly challenging. We sweat more than we ever have before and downed a ton of water. I was actually dripping all over- something you only get in that kind of jungle heat.

We passed through a few villages and ended up in a Karen village for the night. We were told by our guide that the camp was full and we had to either hike another hour or take a bamboo raft. Bamboo rafting was part of the trip anyway so we decided it would be fun. We watched them build the raft and got on. It started sinking. They added some bamboo to the side and went down the river. It was getting darker and darker and we were a little spooked by the jungle and the raft but we got to the camp in time.

The next day we were scheduled to ride elephants and go bamboo rafting again. Now, I've done some stupid sh-- while traveling like jumping off bridges, paragliding and biking on highways but nothing prepared me for the elephant ride. Holy moly I thought we were going to die. We were the only couple on an elephant without a guide on it and we were in front. The saddle thing seemed to be slipping to one side the entire time and our elephant was extremely distracted by some cattle we met along the muddy, hilly way. I would also like to add that the "chair" we sad in was just some wood and rope. The elephant kept on veering off the path toward the water to chase the cattle and we were beyond nervous. I jumped off a cliff to paraglide- that was scary. This elephant ride was terrifying. Later, the person on the elephant behind us admitted that our elephant had been slipping the entire way. Great.

Yet, that was nothing compared the the bamboo raft ride that awaited us...

Thai Cooking School

Yesterday, I had an incredible culinary experience. I was picked up promptly at 9:30 by my older teacher, who happens to be an 18 year elementary school veteran, on her motorbike. We blasted through the streets to the food market where she dropped me off with her husband so that she could shop for us as I looked around. Her husband explained all of the different groceries to me- from the gigantic catfish, to the production of coconut milk and from the frog slaughter to the fresh white peppper. One of the more brilliant colored herbs I had never seen before was fresh turmuric but the taste of the fresh white pepper was special.

After perusing the market, he took me back to my teacher who was waiting on her motor bike with a few bags of groceries. We went through the winding streets to her restaurant/home/cooking school. I thought I would be learning with one other person but it was just me and the teacher- which provided a very special experience. First, she guided me through her garden. There were five different kinds of basil which I smelled and tasted, mini green eggplants, kaffir lime and pumpkins among many other things. I could really go on and on.

After seeing the garden we immediately began to cook. I could go into tremendous detail about each dish but instead of that I will list the major dishes and a few key ingredients.
1. Fresh Spring rolls
2. Red Curry Fish in Banana Leaf Bowls (bowls we made!!!)
3. Green Curry with Chicken
4. Papaya Salad
5. Tom Kha (chicken coconut soup)
I'd also like to mention that she taught me how to make the curries using a mortar and pestle!

Thai food seems to be a balance between sour, sweet and salty with a ton of spice. Some main ingredients include...

Chili peppers
Fish Paste
Soy Sauce (light and dark)
Coconut sugar (it's like a paste)
salt
white and black pepper
basil
coconut milk
lemongrass
kaffir lime (rind and leaves)
lemon

Hopefully I'll be able to find most of these ingredients in Chinatown when I get back to keep cooking the recipes I learned.

If you want details on the recipes. Holler

The Worst Train Ride Ever

We arrived in Chiang Mai yesterday afternoon after 28 hours on the train. Nuri decided to cheap out and get the sleeper with a fan instead of a sleeper with A/C. It was a really bad mistake but he let me take the bunk with the window so I'm was able to sleep with the aid of Dramamine.

Chiang Mai is a totally different feel than Bangkok. It is much, much cleaner and more chilled out. It reminds me a lot of Banos, Ecuador, which is extremely tourist friendly.

I'm going to let Nuri blog about the amazing "Safari" we took last night but here's a quick update on today- I'm taking an all day cooking class with an old lady who was recommended. There are a bunch of touristy schools but I'm getting to be alone with her or maybe one other person and she is coming to pick me up on her scooter and take me to the market. We'll see how it goes!

Tigers and the Bridge over the River River

Hey, Nuri here. Hi guys!

I got back from my day a little before Erika, so it's blog-time.

First, a couple of things I'd like to elaborate on from Erika's earlier posts:

1. The hustle.

I'm from New York. I was born in New York, raised in New York, and live there now. I am well-accustomed to a level of noise, dirt, chaos, and hustle that would drive most people crazy. Bangkok yesterday was driving me crazy. In the morning, we got screamed at by a taxi driver who spoke no English (and we speak no Thai) -- incredibly, a situation that has never come up in New York. We had no idea where he was going, and it was terrifying. But we got where we needed to OK (and all the other cab rides have been fine). Around the main tourist attractions, the tuk-tuk drivers (it's looks like those pedi-cabs they have in New York now mixed with a motorcycle) kept shouting "where you going? Where you going?" and people kept aggressively offering stuff and by the end I was losing my cool a little bit and really felt like shouting at these people. It couldn't have helped that it was really hot and we were getting lost a little. Hustlers (like the people outside of tourist traps getting you to buy from them when the real ticket vendors are inside -- don't worry, we're not that stupid) also suck because they make helpful people unhelpful, because you don't know who to trust. I'm making yesterday sound way worse than it was (it was mostly awesome), but if Thai people are really as famously nice as the tour book says they are, it sure doesn't come through in the tourist centers of Bangkok.

2. Muay Thai boxing

Famous Thai niceness also doesn't come through if you go to the place where people gamble on other people beating the shit out of each other. Have you ever seen the scene in Deer Hunter where lots of crazed Asian people are screaming and gambling on POW Russian Roulette? I realize it's a different type of Asian person and a different game, but this was probably as close as I'll ever come to experiencing that. There were just a lot of probably degenerate old men screaming and gambling with each other through hand signals -- they helpfully (rudely, condescendingly) told us as the gambling was getting started that we had to move out of the Thai only section. We did, and to be fair, it was the right call. It was chaos, and they were all gambling with each other. Still, saying "you want to move. Maybe accident" was not the most elegant thing to say. Anyway, Thai boxing was awesome and it's a shame that I actually fell asleep during it due to jetlag.

OK, now to my today stuff.

I went on some tour that Erika didn't (I'm going to get a bit more brief now as my minutes are short). The famous River Kwai is a misnomer. Kwai (or actually, it's pronounced differently -- like "Kway") is Thai for "river." So whoever called it the River Kwai just didn't understand. The famous bridge that was bombed is all touristy now but it was still cool to go there and walk around and see what happened there. About 100,000 people apparently died building this "death railroad" that included that bridge and which the Japanese had POWs and Asian laborers build over 18 months, and in raids on the bridge the Allies accidentally killed Allied POWs because the Japanese did not label POW camps as such (apparently you're "supposed to" in war).

We also visited a cemetery, which had mostly Christian gravestones, but a couple Jews. Most of the epitaphs had to do with "he served his duty well" or something, but the saddest one was just "Tom -- someday I will understand." Yikes. A lot of 22 and 23 year olds died there.

The tiger temple was a little disappointing. They had a plausible back story for why the tigers were so docile (they are more active in the morning and at night, they are very familiar with people) but they were, like, suspiciously docile. And they just seemed emasculated, or e-felineated, or whatever, as the monks basically handled them like props and had tourists pose for pictures with the tigers in a creepily efficient way. But they also had pictures of the tigers playing during the non-picture time... I don't know. It left me with a weird feeling, though I did get some awesome photos out of it for what that's worth.

Ouotta time! See you in Chiang Mai!

Beauty and the Hustle

Right now Nuri is on his way or arriving at some WWII sights or the Tiger temple. I'm taking the day to do things he hates- shopping in big markets and spa treatments.

Yesterday was extremely draining and a sensory overload. We went on Lonely Planet's 1.5-2 hour walking tour of all the major sights. It turns out that it's a 2 hour tour without stopping to see anything. We started at the Grand Palace which was an overwhelming display of gold and precious gems/metals. Some of the huge buildings are just completely gold leaf which is hard to look at and extremely brilliant. We were completeley mesmerized by our surroundings and the comlex is gigantic. It is building after building of giant gold Buddhas, gold painted murals and towering, intricate spires. (Picture on the right.)

After the temple, we went to Wat Pho. It seemed like a similar, albeit smaller, collection of buildings. We were utterly shocked at the reclining Buddha. It just goes on and on, brilliantly golden, in a building filled with extremely detailed murals. (Picture on the left.)

From Wat Pho, we found our way to the river to get on a a boat to Wat Arun. Wat Arun has a more interactive element- you can climb the structure. The climb up, and especially the climb down, is not for the faint of heart. It is high and damn steep. Still, the view makes it worth it. It was a little different than the other places with less gold and more intricate patterns. It was more like what you see in pictures of Angkor Wat.

Unfortunately, all along the way there were annoying Tuk Tuk hustlers who want to get all up in your business and try to sell you something completely unnecessary. It took away from the experience a little bit but the trip was well worth it.

We did much more yesterday, including a Muay Thai event. Holy crap, those guys can take a beating. We also ate plenty of street food and I was able to go out later for a drink. I will talk more about those later- I'm running out of internet minutes.

Much love from the hottest, most humid, dirty city in south east Asia (well, maybe not, but it sure feels it!)

Bangkok- The first impressions

We arrived at 11:00am yesterday after a grueling 25 hours in transit with surprisingly high spirits and energy. We took an easy bus into the city and had a hell of a time finding our hostel- Suk 11. The place is very nice (yay A/C) although the people who work there are extremely unhelpful so we're on our own for setting things up and getting around.

After a much needed shower and teeth brushing, we headed to a large weekend market via the ultra-modern skytrain (think the tram at Disney). The market was a gigantic scene of food, clothing, household items and kitch. We immediately went for the spring rolls, BBQ beef, coconut water, cream puffs, salted/sweet pickles and later downed a $2.50 gigantic shrip Phad Thai. YUM. Street food is fantastic here. We meandered through the sweltering market, poking into the shops and soaking it in.

From the market we took the subway to Chinatown which was a little dissappointing because the markets were dying down but we were able to get a feel for it. Mom, Dad, it smells a hell of a lot like China there- a mixture of dried fish, rotting meat and open sewers. We were able to poke our heads into the first Wat of the trip, a beautiful temple of golden Buddhas and intricate designs with young monks scampering about.

We did the Lonely Planet walking tour which landed us at the Pier on the big canal. We took a fast long boat to Banglamphu, a touristy section of the city with bars and a Chabad house. Along the way we got a beautiful sunset/night view of the major religious sights that we are going to visit today. When we got off the boat we were greeted by a nice little park that reminded us of union square. It was an old vs. new scene with a mash up of chanting prayer for the elderly and breakdancing beats for the teenagers.

We walked around the busy tourist street of Khao Sarn (the name of my favorite Thai restaurant in NYC) where we sat down for cool Singha and Chang beers. We also meandered off slightly off the beaten path to a fancy rooftop bar that overcharged us for a Singha but provided a lovely view of a temple.

After a few beers, we had to get something to eat. We ordered a 20 Baht (60 cents) Phad Thai that was made fresh for us at the cart with all the vegetable fixings. I foolishly added hot spice, thinking that the vendor had left it our like our previous Phad Thai cook. Uh oh. While Nuri chowed down, sweat beads formed on my forehead and I tried to breath calmly. Delicious.

Today we are going to all the big Wats and temples which should be a fascinating, albeit touristy, scene. Later we plan on seeing Muay Thai boxing.

This is Erika, from Bangkok, Thailand. Over and out.