Pictures are Sorted, Titled, and Ready to be Seen

Despite almost losing over 400 of our pictures (mishap with the camera-computer transfer, but Jeremy fixed it with some software so we recovered all except a few photos), the best of our pictures are finally ready.

We sorted through over 1,300 photos we took over the course of 7 weeks to pick out the ones we most enjoyed so that you can get a sense of our trip and the things we experienced. We also made sure to apply captions to all of the pictures so you know what you're looking at. Instead of doing a public posting on our blog, we are emailing the picture website link to everyone. Our apologies if we forgot anyone - just send either of us an email and we'll be sure to send them to you.

We hope you enjoyed our blog, as we certainly enjoyed sharing our trip with you.

Wrapping Up the Trip

Using our 3 day Angkor pass (they create an official ID card for you), we headed out to some of the farther away temples. Because we were traveling farther distances, we used a car/driver instead of our tuk tuk. We first went to Banteay Srei, a temple that is built largely with sandstone, so the current colors of the temple make it a beautiful site to see.

We then stopped at Banteay Samre, before heading to East Mebon, Ta Som, Neak Pean, and Preah Khan. Unfortunately, after the number of temples we have seen, many of them start blurring together and many are not as magnificent as Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, and Ta Prohm. Preah Khan was somewhat different than many of the other temples; instead of simply a surrounding wall and the temple in the center, Preah Khan had 4 enclosed passages (although only the walls are currently remaining) coming from the east, west, north, and south to the temple in the center. Neak Pean was also unique in that it is a small temple built with a very wide moat completely surrounding on it, creating an island effect. Although today the moat is dry, during heavy rains it will actually flood.

Throughout our two days looking at temples, we were often approached by children (usually little girls) trying to sell us all sorts of trinkets and guide books. Their sales approach was often entertaining. It would start with "What's your name?" "Where you from?"- once you answer this question, they tell you the population of the capital. At one point I said I was from Djibouti, which produced just a smile. Unlike India, here, the kids would know to leave you alone after one or two "No thank you's." Our other favorite phrases were, "Ïf you buy, you buy from me, okay?" or "When you see temples, you buy when you come back?"

Surprisingly, we were able to get everything done before lunch. We headed to the Old Market area, which is considered the center of Siem Reap. We are bummed that we are not staying in this area, as it has the most options in terms of restaurants and activities. If the roads were better (most are dirt/mud roads that have large holes filled with rain water) we could probably walk to this area.

After a mid-afternoon nap, we headed back to the Old Market area for a good Khmer dinner - our last night on the trip. It has been an amazing 7 weeks, but as Jeremy said, we're looking forward to heading back to the States.

Woman: Hear Me Roar

For the past seven weeks we have been traveling to countries where women are not given a very strong position in society (with the exception of Singapore). It has sometimes been difficult for me, as I have had to change some of my behaviors.

In India I was very good - I covered up with my shawl every day for 16 days straight. In Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia, I have not covered up for day-to-day walking around, but would almost always carry a shawl or long sleeve shirt with me in case we were going somewhere religious/sacred. I am happy to respect the local culture. The thing that gets me, is when I, as a woman, am required to cover myself up because my sex is seen as too sexual, but shirtless men walk the grounds of a sacred place.

In all the guide books we have, each one has a section for women travellers, telling me what to do and what not to do. Again, I'll abide by what is said, but that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it!

It has been interesting to see what positions women work in throughout the different countries. In India, rarely did you encounter a woman at work - in restaurants, men waited on us, in hotels, men cleaned our rooms - men filled most service positions. The only place we regularly saw women were as flight attendants (but sometimes still outnumbered by male flight attendants). In India, their place seemed to be more as private maid or cook, or staying home to raise and take care of the family. This surprises me, as the country has at least one very powerful female politician. We often saw signs on the back of tuk tuks saying "Women Empowerment." I doubt the drivers fully understood this concept.

In Vietnam and Thailand we saw women playing a larger role in society. They filled stereotypically female roles, and were also included in other roles such as construction. I was also really surprised (and delighted) to have a female tuk tuk driver in Sukhothai, Thailand - the first and only woman we've seen driving a form of transportation. Cambodia has also been similar, with women cooking meals in street side restaurants, while men filled more "important" roles like tour guide or front desk help.

I've chaired Women in Leadership Conferences and am part of councils for MBA women, so it's hard for me to swallow my pride and know my place is these countries. It also reminds me that I do have it pretty good in the States. We certainly have our own problems (don't get me started), but they still don't compare to where Southeast Asia is in terms of women advancement.

Taking Off the Rose-Colored Glasses

We arrived in Siem Reap, and the 6 hour drive through the country as well as Siem Reap itself has given us a better feel for the poverty level in Cambodia. When you think of a developing or 3rd world country, Cambodia definitely comes to mind. It is how you might expect a poor country to be. Unfortunately, Cambodia also has the reality that their "history" is still very recent, with Pol Pot dying less than a decade ago and the Khmer Rouge's affects still evident on the country (careful not to stray off the well-trodden path as you may step on a landmine) - all of this provides for a poor and tragic country (you can sometimes see landmine victims around town, in addition to the very poor children and adults).

Jeremy and I had an interesting conversation last night on the tuk tuk about Cambodia versus India. While the poverty levels of both countries seem to be on par, India comes across as much worse in part because the country is so filthy (people don't make an effort to pick up trash or urinate in bathrooms) and because there are so many people which the economy cannot currently support. It is also more surprising because we think India should be a lot further along than it is (because many international companies operate there and it has a larger presence on the international political and business scene), but yet Cambodia seems to be ahead of India (they even have small things like garbage pick-up which we never once saw in India).

We don't want to give the impression that Cambodia is doing really well, because it is clearly not. But they seem to have their act together a lot more than India, and will hopefully continue to thrive in the post-Khmer Rouge era.

US Dollar: National Currency of Cambodia

As Jeremy talked about in an earlier post, friends of ours had said how awful Cambodia was in terms of poverty. From their descriptions, we anticipated something close to what we experienced in India. Having arrived in Phnom Penh this morning, we have been pleasantly surprised (if you can call it that). While the country surely is poor, and poverty can easily be seen, it is not on the same scale as in India.

We walked around a bit today - went to see the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda, National Museum - and were aggressively approached by children, some begging for money and others selling items such as books or water. As a rule, we have not given to anyone begging in any of the countries we have gone to. While the begging can sometimes be hard to handle, we believe that money given to children doesn't always stay with the children and by giving money, foreigners help to keep children on the street because that is how they learn to make a living. It has also been clear to us that some amount of begging is dramatized (women pretending to breast feed babies when we come closer). While the government is unable to currently provide social service support, NGOs exist to help out (even in terms of restaurants that employ street children).

Compared to India, Cambodia on the outside appears to be in a better state - trash is not laying everywhere, people are not urinating wherever they please, emaciated people do not seem to be as common of a sight. Given the sheer number of people in India, the current economy does not seem to be able to support the number of people trying to eeck out a living.

The other interesting thing is that the most expensive parts of our travels will actually be in the poorest countries. Whether it is because of increased competition in richer countries or because the lack of a local middle class in India/Cambodia wanting similar goods as foreigners, we are charged higher prices for things like drinks, hotels, and even souvenirs than in countries like Thailand and Vietnam. In Cambodia, the US dollar functions pretty much as the main currency (with the Cambodian Riel provided as change for small amounts); it is very difficult to determine the value of items you are buying. It sort of makes it hard to swallow paying US prices for things with US dollars, but not receiving US quality in return.

Living Within Our Tax Bracket

Travelling for 7 weeks has made us keep a close eye on how much we spend for things. In general we have stayed at moderately priced hotels, and have eaten meals that generally top out at $5 for the two of us. Even though we eat cheaply, we don't skimp on the taste. We eat at recommended restaurants, but for the price we are not getting things like ambience or air conditioning.

Early on, we made a point to try to have one nice meal in each country we have been in. But while we were splurging in Ko Samui, we thought it would be appropriate to have a couple nice meals (both in taste and ambience), especially since many nice meals are closer to $10-$15/person in Thailand compared to $30-$50/person in the States.

Our first nice meal was at the Italian restaurant at the hotel. While we didn't go all out (only had one course and didn't order wine), we had a lovely meal (with the chef taking our order). Unfortunately our second meal didn't treat us as well. Supposedly the best restaurant on the island, Betelnut was a fusion of Asian and Western food. The chef/owner came out to answer any questions we had (there were only three tables occupied - about 1/4 full). I orderd deep friend soft shell crabs - didn't quite realize that I was supposed to eat the entire thing (shell/claws/eyes and all - no thanks). I did eat most of it, but it just tasted deep fried - no real flavor. Jeremy ordered beef, and was underwhelmed by the tastes and quality of the cut. However, we both did enjoy our appetizers (chicken wontons and prawn spring roll), and a nice glass of wine. While we are happy we did a fancy night out, we didn't feel that the meal was worth quite what we paid.

Despite the one bad experience, we are still going to try having nicer meals interspersed with our cheap ones. Spending a fair amount of effort choosing inexpensive places, we have sometimes forgotten the income bracket we actually exist in. In the remaining days of our trip, we're going to try to remember that it is worth paying extra (while not sacrificing things like taste), especially since the little extra here goes a very long way.

Much Needed Break

On the morning of the 24th we left the great north for the islands in the south. We headed to Koh Samui, one of the islands on the eastern side of Thailand in the Gulf of Siam. We have been looking forward to this part of the vacation since we left for India on the 15th of May.

To insure we really enjoyed this part of the trip, we decided to splurge on our hotel. We are staying at the Amari Palm Reef, second highest rated (by Trip Advisor) hotel on the island (although we didn't know that when we reserved the hotel). The Amari has some nice touches that we have not seen in awhile: multiple towels, large bars of soaps, quiet & working a/c, really nice breakfast spread, and very attentive hotel staff (there are even two men stationed at the street at all times to help you cross to the other side).

After arriving at our hotel we headed straight to the beach. The beach itself is quite nice - fine white sand that is soft under the feet. The water is also amazing - the clearest body of water either Jeremy or I have seen. And the water is easy to walk in - a good temperature, quite shallow for a long distance, and no waves/currents to worry about. While we like the beach, it has its moments of grossness - where the water hits the beach it can feel very muddy underneath your feet since the sand is so fine; this is particularly unpleasant during low tide. The beach also caters to an older crowd so it can be very quiet at times making it very peaceful. The hotel also has two pool areas which are nice, but we were spoiled by JW Marriott in Mumbai, India which was an infinity pool with built-in chairs/loungers inside the pool.

For dinner, we ate at a small place on the beach where we were literally two feet away from the water. Today we spent more time in the water, where small colorful fish swam all around us. Tomorrow we are going snorkling to a nearby island, Ko Tao, which has world reknowned snorkling and diving.

This morning, both of us woke up and decided that we were officially tired of Thai food (yes, Jeremy even admitted to being tired of Phad Thai). So we had nachos for lunch and are headed to a nearby Italian restaurant for some gourmet pizza. Yum.

Unfortunately the time here already seems to be flying by. We both wish we had additional time to do more (like go to the Marine Park, where the movie The Beach takes place) in addition to relaxing on the beach.

Elephant Camps

Our second day in Chiang Mai we went to see some elephants - our main purpose for coming to the city. We decided to arrange a private car to take us, as it was made economic sense and also cut things out that we didn't need to do on a tour (snake farm or orchid farm). The big decision was which camp.

I had originally wanted to go to the Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang, but in speaking with several travel offices, it seemed more difficult and expensive to do. Instead, the one that every office had tours to is called Maesa Elephant Camp. My concern was that the Maesa camp was geared only towards tourists and didn't care as much for the elephants - something I didn't want my money supporting. Lampang is the national conservation center and is the main hospital for all elephants to go to. But the ease of getting to Maesa (20km vs 70 km) couldn't be ignored.

Jeremy indulged me, and we stopped into an internet cafe to do some impromptu research on the Maesa camp. From a few different websites I was satisfied that the camp treated the animals well and that they were concerned with their welfare.

So, back to the story at hand.

Our driver took us to the elephant camp, where we arrived before many of the tour groups. Since the first "show" started at 9:40am, and it was 9am, we decided to go for a 30 minute elephant ride. There is a two-seater bench strapped to the top of the elephant. At first I was a little hesitant as we got going - the ride takes you through the surrounding jungle, so the path is very muddy, making the ride rocky. But I quickly became used to it. Our elephant, a 33 year old female named Mae Khammee, was rather graceful. Our mahout hopped off at one point to snap some pictures of us - they turned out great which made me really happy. We also went into the stream for her to take a drink (and tried to avoid the really large spiders hanging from the trees).

After our delightful ride, we went to see the elephants bathing in the water. Following this, we went to go see the "show" the camp puts on. All in all it was quite ridiculous. They have the elephants do things like play the harmonica, dance, play soccer, and paint pictures. We did not feel comfortable sitting there and watching these performances. When you go to a circus or zoo you know what you're getting and you expect some form of show. Here, I was expecting to be educated on the elephants and how they have been used in terms of making work easier (at the end of the "show" they did do a logging part, showing how the elephants are used as part of work - we found this very interesting, although most of the audience seemed to have preferred the harmonica playing). A part of me wishs we had gone to Lampang where their "show" doesn't consist of these silly tricks.

After the "show," we went to the nursery where I got up close and personal with some of the baby elephants (one wrapped its trunk around me). I also purchased a couple items made of elephant dung. Nothing says "I love you mom" like elephant poop.

The camp also brags about their entry into the Guinness Book of World Records where they have the world's most expensive painting done by a group of 8 elephants. The painting sold for US$39,000 and can be seen at the camp. Other paintings are sold there, but as expected, they are grossly overpriced.

While I wasn't thoroughly pleased with the elephant camp, I also understand the reality that not as many options currently exist. The Maesa camp does care for its elephants, even though they are expected to perform degrading tricks. The tourist portion of the camp ends mid-afternoon to allow the elephants time to freely wander through the surrounding jungle. The camp is also a good source of funding for the care of elephants (apart from medical attention, they require a lot of food every day) - without quality camps, elephants may continue to dwindle in number.

While I'd prefer a camp that catered less to tourists and more to the elephants, I also realize that alternatives don't always exist, at least for now.

Danielle's Shopping List Continues to Expand

After an early morning flight out of Sukhothai, we headed to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Happy to leave Sukhothai, we arrived in Chiang Mai expecting to have someone from the hotel pick us up at the airport. After waiting for about 20 minutes, we phoned the hotel, only to have them say they were not aware of our reservation. We had booked the hotel through a website called Sawadee.com. After going back and forth, the hotel sent a car to pick us up. While they said they had not received the reservation, they went ahead with checking us in and offered their apologies (best customer service we've had in a long time). The hotel is a pretty good value and is in a great location - right between the Old City (complete with actual city walls) and the Night Market.

Surprisingly, Chiang Mai is Thailand's second largest city. But compared to Bangkok it is much smaller. We really like it so far. It is definitely a city (there are 4 Starbucks and a Subway & McDonald's chain), but is not as overwhelming as a big city can be. The weather is also much better - mid-80's.

Despite an early morning flight, we decided not to nap and instead headed out to eat and see some of the city. We saw some of the more famous temples in Chiang Mai: Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Pra Singh, and Wat Prasat. For dinner, we took our cues (once again) from the LP and went to a restaurant that served northern Thailand dishes. We tried the khao sawy (egg noodles with chicken in a curried broth) which was really quite yummy. As we were wrapping up dinner, I looked across the street (it was an open air restaurant, as most are) and saw four guys waiting to cross the street. I realized they were our classmates who we had previously seen in Bangkok - small world.

After dinner, Jeremy and I headed to the Night Market to check out what sorts of goodies we could stuff into our already bulging bags (mine might be bulging a littler more than his). The actual market (there are many stalls lined up on the sidewalks that are not technically part of the market) is a three level building that is actually on the upscale side compared to the other markets we've been to in Bangkok or Vietnam. The rows were pretty big to walk through and the stall owners were not nearly as pushy. When we can, we try looking one night and buying the next - it helps with knowing what price things sell for (and I'm not very good with spot decision making). Unfortunately Jeremy has given up his quest for white sunglasses and upgrading from a less ghetto wallet (he had purchased a very cheap wallet in Vietnam because he had been carrying his money loose before). But I think he'll keep looking.

Long Live the King

To pick up where Jeremy left off...

Day 3
To add to Jeremy's post, we also did a foot massage. Among other things, Thailand is the land of massages, so we had to get one done. Unfortunately, I'm hesitant about letting just anyone touch my back, as it can be an easy thing to mess up if pressed in the wrong way or spot. So we stuck to feet. There is actually a massage school at Wat Pho, so we both did a 45 minute reflexology massage, which was very nice. The rest of our bodies felt neglected.

Day 4
Because we got a late start to the third day, we were unable to see everything from a sightseeing perspective. We started our day heading across the river to Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn). It's amazing to us how large the Wat complexes are and how beautiful all the constructions are - even the smaller Thai Wats so far are much more impressive than the major Temples we've seen in other Southeast Asian countries.

Unfortunately the Mass Rapid Transit system in Bangkok (maybe another complaint of ours) doesn't extend to the west part of the city, where all of the major sites are (Palace, etc), so we tried taking the ferry system they have, but again, we could not decipher where the express boat stops because signs are not at all clear (even the ones that were in English didn't make sense), so we were left to taking a cab or tuk-tuk places.

We headed to the Jim Thompson House. Thompson was an American who had been an architect and part of the CIA during his lifetime. Falling in love with Thailand, Thompson made a home there and introduced the fashion industry (ie Vogue) to the use of silks from Thailand. He disappeared mysteriously in 1967. His house is now a museum, showing off works of Thai and Asian art he collected during his lifetime. It was a nice change from all of the Wats we had been seeing, and we're both big fans of seeing artwork in its "natural" surroundings like a house instead of a sterile museum. However, I wonder how well preserved some of the artwork is, as many/most of the rooms are not climate controlled.

Then it was to lunch, where I restrained myself from getting McDonald's (craving a little bit of western food - had pizza instead) and Jeremy battled with the pad thai (he ordered it, but it came with seafood even though he specifically asked for no seafood - had to send it back twice, and there was much confusion on the food court's side, but everything worked out, except he ended up getting pasta, which was sad).

We then braved the rain (we have been very very lucky with weather, so a day or two of rain is no big deal), and headed to the massive weekend market via the MRT system. Unfortunately, we could not find a map of the market (there are over 3,000 stalls), but amazingly enough we made our way around without too much of a problem - even though there was odd placement of stalls, such as pets next to souvenirs. We were also amazed that both of us did not get more frustrated with the aimless wandering as we tried looking for stuff. Both of us had our shopping lists, but I did much better than Jeremy. With a lot of handmade and original clothing/accessories/etc, I bought a couple purses (for the first 4 months of dating Jeremy, he noted I always used the same purse - not sure where the current purse purchasing has come from - he thinks it combines by desire for practicality and buying local goods), a shirt and skirt, and a couple souvenir-y items. If we lived in Bangkok we would probably do most of ou shopping at the market instead of at malls, simply for the unique items you can obtain. The bargaining has also become more enjoyable for us, since it's easy to deal with than in India.

Once the market closed up around 6pm, we took a taxi back to the Banglamphoo area to do some more shopping, where Jeremy picked up a couple t-shirts, but no luck with his other shopping list items (he really wanted a pair of white plastic sunglasses, but the only ones available were cheap-looking knock-offs). We then had a very satisfying dinner before heading back to our hotel.

Day 5
Unfortunately we didn't quite realize how early our flight out of Bangkok was - had to wake up at 4am. Ouch.

Also of note, it has been the King's 60th anniversary of accession to the throne, so there are numerous shrines around town (sometimes in the most odd places) that have a large picture of the King (still wearing 1970's glasses) and flowers surrounding it. People are also decked out in bright yellow polo shirts with the imperial emblem on the front And finally, my favorite, people are wearing Lance Armstrong-like yellow wrist bands that say "Long Live the King."

While Bangkok is definitely a big city, it is surprisingly laid back. People walk at a slower pace than in New York, and you're not as bothered by things like tuk-tuks as in Vietnam. Not to mention, you can actually walk on the sidewalks which is nice. With just 5 days in Bangkok, we can easily understand why people love Thailand.

Now we're sitting in an internet cafe in Sukhothai, the first capital of Thailand, where we'll spend the next couple nights. Unfortunately it's absolutely pouring outside....