Travels in Thailand, part 5

The last noteworthy part of our trip wasn't scheduled to happen but like a lot of unplanned events, turned out to be memorable.  Jennie had booked and paid for the trip and we weren't far off leaving when Thai Airlines contacted her and said they'd cancelled the return flight on our chosen day.  They gave her the choice of returning a day earlier, or extending the trip for a day and putting us up in a Bangkok hotel, meeting all our accommodation and food bills.  Naturally, Jennie chose the latter!

Flying into Bangkok from Phuket in the late afternoon, we were met at the airport and ferried to the Novotel a few minutes distant.  This is a seriously nice hotel and far beyond what we thought we'd be staying in.  For starters, the atrium must be 60 metres long, 40 metres wide and maybe 30 metres high, all covered in marble! The quality carried through to the bedrooms, which were huge and beautifully-appointed.  We dined in that night and all that needs to be said is that the buffet was exquisite.  By way of example, there was a block of Roquefort cheese sitting on the cheese stand which must have weighed a couple of kg and at the price of that stuff....!!!!  Suffice to say that we over-ate!

Because our flight didn't leave until early the following evening, we consulted the concierge and arranged a tour of the Bangkok waterways .  Did you know it's locally known as the Venice of the East?  We didn't but it has literally hundreds of canals all over the city coming off the main Chao Phraya river and as part of our honeymoon 39 years ago was spent in Venice, there was a nice symmetry to it.

We ambled down to the atrium in the morning to meet our young tour guide and he asked us to wait a moment whilst he phoned for our vehicle to take us the 50-odd minutes into central Bangkok.  All we (well, me) could do was gape because we thought there'd been a terrible (and expensive) mistake!!  See the picture below.

Oh heck - who's made a blunder???

When a beautiful Jaguar with dark tint windows and a white-gloved chauffeur turns up, the phrase "this must be for us" is not something which immediately springs to mind! Jennie, who has infinitely more class than me swept straight into the back of the Jag like she does it every day, whilst I stood there grinning like an idiot and taking photos.  Jennie thought that I'd let the side down somewhat but at least, dear reader, you can see what I was grinning about. I guess it's expected by the tour company that Airport Novotel guests always travel that way.  All part of the very reasonably-priced tour though.

That ain't workin', that's the way you do it, la la.....

The trip to town on the excellent toll road was interesting as we imperiously exceeded the speed limit all the way with the engine quietly purring away whilst we sipped cold drinks in the back - could get used to this lifestyle very easily!

Big-scale advertising on hotel block

 

Waiting for the water taxi

Now let me explain something about the longboat water taxis as they are pretty impressive.  Only 2 metres wide at the maximum point and maybe 15 or 20 metres long, they look like oversized canoes.

Front of our water taxi down a narrow canal

That's where the similarity with canoes ends as the propulsion system is pretty impressive.  The motors are turbocharged truck engines beautifully counterbalanced with a long prop shaft so that they swivel like an outboard. The skipper steers the whole thing with a long pole attached to the front of the engine - see the 2 photos below.  Those suckers are seriously fast and the spray and rooster tail from the shallow prop were impressive.  Even more so as there were just the skipper, the guide and Jennie and me on board!

Turbo'd power plant - nothing like a few gee-gees

Showing the counterbalance arrangement

Cruising through the canals was a fascinating experience which gives you the chance to see "everyday life" in a city and we wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Rustic waterside house - complete with satellite dish

Canal supermarket - don't drop your groceries!

Waterside temple

The photo below is interesting.  The little boat was a mobile floating snack bar and the driver stopped to buy some bananas which were fried on the spot in a charcoal-fired wok! There were also little boats which were mobile supermarkets.

Stop me and buy one.....

Suspended fishing net makes a cool picture

I doubt that any of the canal-dwellers would ever starve as the waterways are teeming with catfish.  We lobbed a bit of bread on the water surface and this is what happened:

No over-fishing of resources here then!

Interesting mailbox

Waterside orchid farm

The Royal Palace

Making Chrysanthemum garlands at the market

Just a few chillies!

Local taxi - the 2 stroke tuk-tuk

What a fantastic bonus to have toured Bangkok by water and really added to our enjoyment of Thailand.  The Thais are genuinely nice people and go out of their way to give visitors real value in terms of their experiences.  We probably won't return as there are so many new places to be explored but for anyone who is thinking of going there for a bit of fun, you'll absolutely love it!

Hey ho, back in New Zealand trying to get into a routine - having to cook for yourself is the biggest pain!!!

Hope you've enjoyed seeing another part of the world......

Travels in Thailand, part 4

One of the activities we'd booked was an elephant ride through bush tracks on a mountain range.  Not only did it include the ride itself but some other cultural things like tapping rubber trees for their latex and making sheet rubber, preparing a Thai curry from scratch with the spices in their original form - roots, leaves etc and a few other things besides.  The day was to finish with an evening cruise and dinner on Chalong Bay in a gorgeous old traditional boat.

Unlike the short elephant ride we did bareback in Vietnam which was a bit painful on the nether regions (certainly for a guy!), this one involved decent seats and was perfectly comfortable.  Boarding the elephant from a ramp was pretty easy too. The ride is smooth until steep downhill sections when you go down in a series of lurches which has you hanging on tightly!

The comfort of a decent seat!

Fantastic view from high in the forest

Trying to pick my pocket for goodies!

We had a short trip in a cart pulled by a water buffalo.  My goodness, they are seriously big and the size of their horns defies belief.  This one was a big old softie but I'd hate to meet one that was ticked off!

A seriously big animal

Rubber tree tapping

Thailand still seems to have huge rubber tree plantations whereas when we were in Malaysia, the planting of Palm Oil forests seemed endemic.  I have no idea of the planting of palm oil vs. rubber in terms of long-term economics but palm oil plantations are quite poor for supporting biodiversity under the canopy.  No magic bullet, that's for sure.

After yet another humid day of activity, it was a perfect end to go for a buffet dinner cruise on Chalong Bay as the sun began to set - sheer magic!

Our boat at the wharf

Cruising past a tropical island

Sunset over the mainland - Big Buddha on the highest hill

Next day, it was another day of great activity in the shape of ATV riding and we were collected from the hotel and taken to a forest area on the east coast where it was all due to take place.  We knew that there would be big mud holes and streams as well as forest trails so a change of clothes was prudently packed.  Like all of the activities we'd been on so far, the Thais deserve every accolade for their timing and organisation, without it being overdone.  On arriving at the ATV base, we were plied with cold drinks to prevent dehydration and given a comprehensive run-down on riding the ATV's.  This was followed by an easy circuit of the base camp to let people get used to them. The ATV's were 400cc 4 strokes so there was the potential to cause some grief if not handled with a bit of respect. Two of the riders looked downright incompetent and seemed to be having trouble co-ordinating the lever-operated throttle and brakes, so they had guides on the pillion to watch over them. Was still wary of going anywhere near them though!

 ATV Central, although only about 10 people on our trip

Forced smile before setting off.

Arty shot of Jennie - she's clearly not impressed!

The terrain  through the forest was fantastic, with steep up and downhill grades, mud holes, streams, fast forest tracks and even in sand and sea through the mangroves!  Both Jennie and I had no problems with the terrain as we'd ridden racing 2 stroke ATV's in NZ's south island a few years ago (Jennie had actually given me a complete riding lesson on one part of that day!) but some of the other riders were finding it a bit tough.  One of the riders kept following me too closely and actually ran into the back on one downhill grade, fortunately with no damage.  I feel a bit guilty now, but solved the problem by deliberately banging open the throttle at the next mud hole, getting wheelspin and dumping several kilos of exceedingly sloppy mud over the driver.  He kept his distance after that!

A bow wave of mud and water

Half way through the day, we looped back to base for a lunch of fresh tropical fruit and more liquids to keep up energy levels and hydration. Jennie's right thumb had nearly seized up due to the throttle adjustment on her ATV so I suggested that she double up with me for the second half of the ride. Some of the mud holes were deep and the tyres got a bit floaty so the extra weight would help although you'll understand that I was exceedingly careful in the phrasing of this to avoid a swift kick where it hurts most.

The second half of the day was equally huge fun although the driving standards of some of the people hadn't shown much improvement.  On one tricky section, we heard a scream from behind followed by a glancing blow and the sound of foliage being rent asunder.  When we stopped and looked round, there was an ATV half-buried in a bush with the rider totally inside it and the guide/instructor completely in the open on the pillion giving a broad grin and a wink.  It was clear that the rider had got badly out of shape and had panicked, so the instructor simply reached forward, grabbed the bars and steered them into the bush.  What a hoot!!

Hmmmm.... can we get through that?

Yours truly among the mangroves and sea

We had yet another fantastic day, we were completely knackered and slept pretty darned well that night.

Final episode to come.......

Travels in Thailand, part 3

After the unplanned expenditure mentioned in part 2, I decided to get something for myself; albeit rather more modest.  We'd heard about a men's and women's tailoring enterprise at Patong Beach called Tom's International Collection.  Being retired and having hung up my business gear, tee shirts and jeans or shorts tend to be my everyday clothing.  From time to time, Jennie and our daughter Victoria "encourage" me (an understatement) to look a bit tidier so the plan was to get some nice casual "dress" shirts made.  I don't want to drag this out, but what a great experience!  The standard of service, choice of materials, patterns and professionalism couldn't be faulted and we'd be hard-pressed to find an equivalent service in the West unless it was at the very top end of the market.  Loved the little touches like a different pattern lining in the collars and cuffs.  From first measurement to final collection of 3 superb shirts in less than 2 days was great, at a price that was substantially less than off-the-peg poorer fitting and lower quality garments in NZ.  Also, now that they have my measurements, I can mail order more at any time.  Just to conclude the tale, Jennie had a pure silk evening top made and it's a stunner so we were both happy.  So there you are... if you ever find yourself at Patong Beach, go to Tom's and ask for Ali - you won't be disappointed.

Saw this nice Honda cruiser near the tailors with the Grim Reaper airbrushed into the tank and rear guard - paint looked an inch thick!

Cool paint job

That evening, we decided on a bit of entertainment and trotted along to a show just north of Patong Beach called "Fantasea".  We knew that you got a feed and the show involved elephants but that was about it.  The location was superb and the organisation faultless.  The huge grounds were set up like an old-fashioned carnival and shops but with modern decor so that you could amuse yourself after eating and before and after the show.  The evening meal area was a buffet of beautiful foods and could cater for 4000 people at a time!  Organisation was excellent and it didn't feel at all cramped or rushed in the dining area.

Entrance to dining area

A small section of the dining area

After the meal, we took part in some of the carnival/funfair attractions, one of them being on the pistol range.  I hadn't fired a handgun for over 30 years and was simply amazed (so were the attendants!) to score all inners and bulls, winning a lovely stuffed elephant toy which will be going to our granddaughter.

The stage show itself was spectacular.  The storyline was an old Thai story about a prince combating evil, but using modern sets, laser light, fireworks, elephants and other performing animals - incredibly well done.  We weren't allowed to take photos from the show but here's a selection of shots outside taken in the grounds.

A neon-lit bar

 Entrance to the show

2 metre long catfish in the lake - yup...2 metres!

The following day was time for a bit of action - kayaking off the north east coast of Phuket Island.  A boat took us to an area which was a little reminiscent of our March visit to Halong Bay in Vietnam, and let us loose on inflatable kayaks at several particularly beautiful islands.  One of them was "James Bond Island" where part of The Man With the Golden Gun was filmed many moons ago.  Another island was riddled with caves and a central lagoon.  To get to the lagoon, some of the caves were so narrow that you had to lie down in the kayak and push on the walls with the paddle! 

Crab fishermen in the bay

Some of the limestone islands

Yours truly off for a paddle

Some nice toys

James Bond Island - a few hundred metres wide

Market stalls  on James Bond Island

Massive fault in the cliff - maybe 80 metres high

Entering the cave system on an island

Big Water Monitor lizard at cave entrance

Jennie and I laying flat to get through a narrow squeeze

Entering the island's inner lagoon

Part of the inner lagoon

Old-looking monkey on the lagoon walls

On the way home, we noticed the following sign near a beach.  Wondered if it meant that you were only safe from tsunamis at an altitude of 300 metres vertically above the sign!!!

Not a reassuring sign......

What a fun time!  More to come.......