A Week in Thailand

Phuket and Koh Phi Phi Island

We started the trip in Phuket just to stay the night and catch the ferry in the morning to Koh Phi Phi Island.  In Koh Phi Phi we swam, kayaked and hiked our way around the island.  We also had some of the best fresh fruit smoothies of our lives.  One night we went to a fire dance show and barely escaped without third degree burns.  The dancers were not trained professionals, but young amateurs opening up for the real fire show that would come on later.  After I barely escaped a near fatal throw to the face we decided to call it a night.  We stayed three nights and then headed back to the mainland to catch a flight to Chiang Mai.

Chiang Mai

Our flight arrived late at night so we checked in to our hostel and prepared to get up early to go to Patara Elephant Farm to be an elephant owner for a day.  In the morning the shuttle picked us up and drove us an hour and a half to the farm.  Walking up to farm I was greeted by a baby elephant and mama who were happy to grab my hand with their trunks and then investigate my hair.    We sat through orientation of how to approach elephants, check if they lay down to sleep, if they were sweating and if they had pooped.  After orientation we got to meet our elephant for the day, my elephant was Ploi an eleven year old female who is known as ‘The Wanderer.’  I learned how to give commands in Thai for her to follow me, lie down and open her mouth.  I got her feed her, brush off all the dirt on her back and then give her a bath in the river.  After giving Ploi her bath I was walking up to the bathroom and I noticed blood all over my legs and sought out medical aide.  Turns out I had been attacked by blood sucking flies and had to get special treatment. 

Once I had been treated I learned three different ways to get on her back and was successful at all three.  Then we were off to go trek to a waterfall in the jungle where we would have lunch and swim with the elephants.  Ploi kept wandering off into the foliage so I kept having to dodge branches, vines and the occasional mud pie she would throw over her shoulder at me.  We made it to the waterfall, ate a fantastic Thai lunch and then jumped in the water to swim with the elephants.  There was this one baby elephant that would not leave me alone, he kept trying to bite my leg and drag me into the water to play.  By the end of the day I was so happy with how I had spent my time and reflected on all I had learned about this giant and beautiful animal. 

Over the next few days we went white water rafting, saw paper being made out of elephant dung, went to some golden temples, took a cooking class and made friends with locals who took us to some authentic Thai restaurants.  The rafting trip was quite dangerous but our guide was a riot.  He flipped us on purpose and was convinced I was never wet enough so he would periodically fill his helmet with water and throw it on me.  The elephant dung paper place was really cool and actually quite the process.  The temples were so detailed and beautiful and listening to the monks chant was an experience to remember.  The Thai cooking class was a blast! We met awesome people, made and ate delicious food and got a recipe book.  When it was time to leave Chiang Mai we were sad to go because of all the fun we had and the new friends we would miss. 

Bangkok

We literally only had one night in Bangkok because our flight back to China was the following day.  We were dropped off at the infamous Kao San Road and wandered around Thailand’s party street.  My favorite was the edible bug cart that had every bug you could imagine deep fried and ready for consumption.  Scorpions, grasshoppers, fire ants, grubs, you name it.    A few streets over was our hostel that was a traditional Thai house and where we stayed in a 22 bed mixed dorm.  Ended up not being so bad and we heard some interesting tales of some wild nights that had been happening to some of our roommates.  The next morning we walked around Bangkok seeing some sights like China Town, The Grand Palace, the big Buddha and some temples.  After a few hours of that we had to grad a shuttle to the airport for our flight back to Shenzhen.  We were sad to leave the warm weather and go back to work, but the memories and friends we made had made our trip one to remember.     

A Week in Bali

China in January is pretty cold, so you can imagine how happy I was to be flying to a location that is seven degrees below the equator.  Getting on the plane I was all bundled up and looking forward to getting out of the cold and into the sunshine.  First we flew into Bangkok, waiting a few hours for our connecting flight to Bali.  The flight to Bali was eight hours and we were sitting in the row right before the exit row so our seats didn’t lean back.  Along with trying to sleep in the upright position, the airline didn’t provide food or drink unless prepaid.  When we arrived I was tired, hungry, thirsty and crabby.  Getting off the plane and seeing the green, lush surroundings all my fatigue and crankiness went away.  I was greeted with a warm breeze, the smell of ocean and a $25 tourist visa.  I rushed to the shortest customs line and waited to get stamped, checked, and x-rayed.  Once all that was done it was time to exchange money and get a taxi to the hostel.  Stepping out of the airport we were hit with a wave of humidity.  I enjoy humid climates due to my anemia, so for me it was like stepping into weather that suited my needs.  We stood in line for a taxi, gave them our hostels address, paid 60,000 Rupiah and were off. 

The hostel we were staying at was located in Kuta, a tourist town.  We were surrounded by Aussies and other foreigners along with the locals who hustled you around every corner to buy a souvenir.  The next day we woke up to a torrential downpour.  The streets were flooded and it looked like we weren’t going anywhere.  With a few hours the rain let up and we were off searching for things to do.  We shopped, ate, went to the beach, got massages and came back to the hostel for a cold shower.  Due to the amount of foreigners and city life around us we decided to head inland to Ubud an hour bus ride away. 

Ubud is home to rice terraces, coffee plantations and Mt. Batur.  The town seemed quite idyllic and it appeared to be less out a tourist town.  We found a home stay that was relatively cheap and not too far from the downtown area of Ubud.  Hanging out at the home stay we met Hannah, a gal from the States who had been living in Bali for six months.  She gave up lots of information of things to do around the city and where some good hiking was. 

The next day my friend Jenna and I rented bikes with the hope of finding some rice terraces.  We came across a street market, had lunch and made our way up to the terraces.  At the top of a hill we were biking we stumbled into a ceremony that was happening to celebrate the half moon.  We saw offerings being made with incense and basket upon basket of food.  It was so cool to witness all the men, women and children dressed for the occasion and the traditional music being played.  We biked on and saw some beautiful rice terraces and offerings for the half moon celebration. 

The next day we headed to Mt. Batur with the hopes to hike to the top.  Just when we arrive at the mountain it started to rain.  We camped out in a coffee shack until it let up just enough for us to head back to our home stay.  We were bummed that we weren’t able to hike, but the view was gorgeous. 

The next day we got up early to meet our taxi that would take us to the airport to catch our flight to Thailand.