Introduction
It’s Christmas time again, at that means the at the Nguyen family are on another adventure. Their last trip was the calm, historic France. This time they’re going back to Thailand, a much more rough, hot and exciting trip. They will start their trip off at the crowded capital of Thailand, Bangkok, seeing city life. They then will move on to Chiang Mai, the more calm and cultured side of Thailand. They then will finish off at the relaxing beaches of Khao Lak where they will enjoy resort life. The Nguyen family are in for a wild adventure through Thailand.
December 25 & 26, 2011 - Toronto, Hong Kong and Bangkok
Another holiday means another vacation and we were ready to go. Our flight was early in the morning so after dragging ourselves out of bed, we were off. We took our taxi over to Pearson and then checked in. We went to our gate in preparation of our long flight. The flight was 15 hours but luckily it was Air Canada. There was a wide selection of movies and television shows that made the flight feel much quicker.
After not moving much for 15 hours we arrived in Hong Kong. We stopped in Hong Kong before in transfer and remembered how nice the airport was. We attempted to find our old dim sum place but were met with a decent food court giving us dim sum worse than Brampton dim sum. After relaxing in the airport for a couple hours our next flight was ready.
We boarded the Thai Airlines airplane and were served by beautiful Thai stewardesses. The flight was only a couple hours and in no time we were at our destination. We grabbed our luggage and felt the warm night weather as we walked out. We grabbed a taxi and drove to our hotel, Four Points. It was far from the airport and the taxi driver drove rather recklessly. We finally arrived at the gorgeous hotel. We checked into our joined room and were happy to see the high quality of the room. It was already late though and we decided to not go out instead we rested for the exciting adventures to come.
December 27, 2011 - Bangkok
It was our first day exploring the crowded but exciting city of Bangkok. Bangkok is home to over 12 million people with a variety of religions and a diverse history free from colonization. Mom and Dad left the hotel in the morning in order to find us food and they came back with some surprisingly delicious street food with kebabs and sticky rice.
Soon after, we left the hotel and were welcomed with the amazing heat. We walked through the somewhat dirty streets to Terminal 21, a unique mall designed after airports. Alex had woken up later, so she missed some of the street food. To make it up to her, we had a small breakfast in a cafe (I had tofu)
We then started to learn the sky train system in Bangkok which overlooks the main roads of the city. We took our first train to Erawan Shrine, a famous Hindu shrine; the train was convenient and fast. The shrine was rather small with a small perimeter where many locals were praying. It was an interesting sight to see the active worship however the constant smell of incense was overwhelming.
We then walked our way over to the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, a local art museum. The building was many stories high however, only the top floors had exhibits. There was an exhibition with countless painting worshiping the Thai King as well as a recent addition paying respects to the recent flood. The centre was mildly interesting and soon we were ready for lunch.
We crossed the street from the centre to eat at the MBK Centre which was another crowded and multi floored mall. We went to the food court which was unique in that tickets must be bought to buy food. It was an interesting system that we have seen in Singapore once and we managed to eat some decent food. Following our meal we grew tired due to jetlag and we shamefully went home fairly early.
We rested at our hotel for a few hours sleeping and watching TV until we were hungry again. We left our hotel searching for dinner. We wandered the streets passing the narrow sidewalk obstructed by rows of vendors selling a variety of products (some inappropriate). We found a nice lively restaurant with an active band playing and enjoyed some fine Thai cuisine. Following our meal, we enjoyed the interesting market environment until we were ready to go back to the hotel for good.
December 28, 2011 - Bangkok and Ayutthaya
Today, the plan was to venture to Ayutthaya, an old city that once was named the capital of Siam in 1350. The population was one of the highest in the world in the 1700s until the city was destroyed by the Burmese army in 1767 resulting in the collapse of the kingdom, however many temples and ruins remain.
To start our trip today, we ate street food picked up by Mom and Dad enjoying kebab and sticky rice. We then took the close metro ride to Victory Monument Station, a crowded hub where we could catch a van to Ayutthaya. We managed to get a communal van to Ayutthaya in which multiple people would be picked up on the way and dropped off at multiple locations. The van ride was very long as we drove through the countryside picking up planned people. After everybody was dropped off, we were left with our driver to take us around the many temples in the area.
The temples were very interesting as some were ravaged by the Burmese army leaving some parts of the temples destroyed. There were a variety of statues as well, one even having tree roots growing around a Buddha head. We visited around 4 temples each distinct with one having a gigantic gold Buddha, and another having an outdoor reclining Buddha.
We eventually caught lunch at a local restaurant behind a temple. It was in a crowded market that sold only junk; however the fried rice we ordered was delicious. We went around to one last temple, which overlooked the surrounding area for a beautiful view. We soon got tired and bought the van ride for ourselves all the way back to Victory Monument.
We then returned to our hotel extremely tired. We lounged around for a few hours until it was dinner time. By then we forced ourselves out to eat at the Baiyoke Tower II the tallest tower in South East Asia being 328 m high. We took a taxi to the tower and bought tickets to eat at the buffet at the top. The buffet was fairly decent with a mix of international food and the view was spectacular giving us a panoramic view of Bangkok from the rotating platform. We enjoyed our meal and left very full ready to fully rest from our long day out.
December 29, 2011 - Bangkok
Today’s destination was far from the main city of Bangkok. We would be visiting Ancient Siam, a very unique and huge park built in the shape of Thailand. What’s special is that there are replicas of Thailand landmarks corresponding to its location on the map in accordance to its place in the park.
We took the metro to the closest station to the park and rode a taxi the rest of the way. We arrived at the park, paid the fee and then rented a golf cart to tour ourselves around the park. Initially, Dad drove us around but eventually Alex took over. The park was huge with countless life size replicas of houses, temples, shrines and even a floating village. We made frequent stops at these sites adoring the extreme detail in the buildings with houses with complete furniture sets and temples having accurate statues. I got to drive the golf cart eventually and I chauffeured us around the park. The park took a while to tour and was very enjoyable. We stopped at the water town to eat lunch. The water town had some tables along the body of water and we enjoyed the relaxing ambiance of the town. Eventually we saw most of the park so we returned the golf cart and started heading back home.
Tonight the plan was to see the Calypso Cabaret; a local show with ladyboy dancers. We took the metro to the Asia hotel where the show was. Before the cabaret however, we ate dinner at a Chinese restaurant at the hotel. The place was empty though, giving a bad sign, which later proved to be right as the food was utter disappointment. Following our meal, we went to the show to watch the somewhat awkward performance. All the performers were either male or transsexual making me feel uncomfortable. The show was a collection of dancing and lip syncing from the ladybody dancers. It was well choreographed, but a little unsettling. Thankfully, it ended eventually and we were glad to go home.
December 30, 2011 - Bangkok
Today is a grand day: my 17th birthday! We were also moving hotels today in order to explore another point of Bangkok, near the riverside of the Chao Phraya River. We ate a breakfast outside this time, walking to a local cafe having a typical breakfast of fried rice. After our quick meal, we packed up our stuff and took two taxis to our new location. The taxi drivers were as crazy as usual and by the time we got to the Sheraton Royal Orchid, I felt sick. Long ago, we went to this very hotel on our last trip to Thailand, it was very nostalgic to be back. We checked in and went off to our room. The place was not as nice as Four Points, however the view of the Chao Phraya River was impressive.
After lounging about for a bit, we were off again to explore some of the local temples. To get around, we took a local ferry along the river. The ride was crowded, long and loud but the efficiency and cost were worth it. Our first stop was the 19th century Buddhist temple, Wat Arun. The most notable structure in the temple was the giant porcelain prang springing from the center of the temple. We docked at the area and explored the temple. The place was open with many ancient structures present. We climbed the prang getting a nice view of the surrounding area and a look at the material of the prang. After we explored Wat Arun, we again boarded the ferry to our next stop.
We would be visiting another temple called Wat Pho. Before we did that however, we ate lunch at a dock restaurant. The service was terrible but the food was scrumptious with some of the best fried rice yet. We then walked over past the crowded food market, past a scamming man trying to tell us that Wat Pho was closed. Dad decided to stay out because of boredom and we bought tickets in. The most notable characteristic of Wat Pho was the giant statue of the Reclining Buddha. The place was extremely crowded and it was hard to get a good sight or picture of the full Buddha. Also there was a constant clanking from the people circulating the temple adding coins to pots (ceremony to bring good fortune). We quickly got out of the statue temple and explored the surrounding parts of the temple. There were many prangs and towers presiding over the whole area and we had a good time exploring the many statues and buildings. Eventually we great tired and started heading home. We picked up Dad and took the ferry back to the hotel.
At the hotel, instead of staying in the room, we decided to spend time at the outdoor pool. Alex and I played around for a bit until we wanted to sunbathe. We spent a good amount of time soaking up rays and sipping sour Pina Colodas.
To treat ourselves for my birthday, we ate at the hotel as opposed to on the street. We went for expensive Thai food and it was quite delicious. It was not an excess of food either, it was a perfect amount allowing us to be filled but not dying of extremely full bellies. It was a delicious birthday dinner and it felt good to go to sleep 17.
December 31, 2011 - Bangkok
Today, we were planning to see more temples (surprise!). Instead of eating in our room, we went out to eat at a local cafe. It was a restaurant we went to last trip and it was decent with a typical Thai and American breakfast. We then set off again for more temples!
We took the ferry along the river over to the general location of the temple. The first temple we visited was Wat Saket also known as Golden Mount as it is located high atop the city on a mountain. The area was rather crowded and it was boiling hot. We were anxious to get through the temple and the loud constant ringing from the bells was not helping. We climbed to the top and enjoyed the great view, but hated the crowd. We quickly headed back down to the base and wandered around the crowded streets. With effort, we managed to hail a tuk tuk from the crowded streets. We initially wanted to visit another temple; however we got scammed and were brought to the wrong place. A grumpy Dad found another tuk tuk and we were on our way to the right temple. The tuk tuk ride was fun but scary as it was a small open air car whizzing past the traffic (Dad almost lost his hat!). The other temple was similar to the others and we grew bored of it quickly.
Another main attraction we visited afterward was Khaosan Road a street famous for its many businesses and markets especially popular to backpackers. The road was lined with clothing, fake Ids and massage places and it was interesting to see the place where backpackers would come for fun. It was fun to simply wander through the shops; however our feet were tired, so we chose to get foot massages. We paid a cheap price to go into this suspicious store, but were rewarded with a extremely relaxing massage. After our new experience, Dad was excited and wanted another type of massage. He became brave and went to a therapeutic fish massage, in which a special breed of fish would chew the dead skin off of a person’s foot. It was very unique, but I don’t think I would try it. After enjoying the ambiance of Khaosan, it was about time to go home. We caught another tuk tuk and a ferry home in order to rest.
It was New Years Eve tonight and to celebrate we would be having a somewhat pricey seafood dinner. We took a taxi to the restaurant and after a small wait we were in. The food was absolutely delicious with a variety of classic seafood marvellously prepared. By the time we returned to the hotel it was not midnight. However, we were too tired and decided to stay in for the New Year. I personally fell asleep before midnight in which there were endless sounds of fireworks for at least an hour, a great welcome to the New Year.
January 1, 2012 - Bangkok and Chiang Mai
It was our last day today in the great city of Bangkok. Mom and Dad got us another breakfast of street food (no kebabs surprisingly) and in no time we were packed up ready to move on. We took a van taxi and were off to the airport. We checked into our Nok Air flight (the airlines uniforms were unique, a spaghetti strapped dress) and headed to the gate.
Our next destination was the famous city of Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai has a wealth of cultural and historical sites which stem from its large contributions to Thailand trade. The Nok Air flight was a couple hours and we were soon arriving in Chiang Mai. The city seemed less grand and more local than in Bangkok as there was less traffic and less crowded streets. We took the taxi over to our hotel, Le Meridien and we checked into our SPG rooms. The room was not as nice as Four Points in Bangkok however it was still classy with speakers in the bathroom.
Not wanting to stick around the room too long, we went off again to explore Chiang Mai. Our first stop would be the Chiang Mai Weekend Night Market, located in the heart of Chiang Mai. It is a gigantic market with a multitude of crafts, food and junk. The market was impressive almost filled to the brim with tourists and locals, and with endless rows of vendors. In the center were occasionally some pleasing musical street performers.
We did our usual market viewing, touring around until we grew hungry. We went by the food section of the market and got some fresh hot noodles from some vendors. We continued wandering for a couple hours until we grew tired. We then headed back to the hotel after our night market expedition.
This night we wanted Italian food, so we decided to eat at the hotel’s Italian restaurant. The place was fancy but very delicious with authentic pasta and pizza. It was good to get a break from Asian food. To finish our night, we went back out to another market located along the main road outside of the hotel. It was similar to our other market trips; however this time we got another couple of foot massages. While relaxing, it was not as good as our first ones. Alex and I were tired so we left early leaving Mom and Dad to enjoy their longer foot massages while we turned in early.
January 2, 2012 - Chiang Mai
This was to be our first day out on Chiang Mai and we were excited. We grabbed some breakfast at a travellers restaurant near the hotel which had the best Pad Thai I have ever tasted.
While we were eating an old man with a pony tail named Ben approached us offering a private tour of Chiang Mai to wherever we wanted. Foolishly we trusted him and hired him for the day. To start our tour, we asked to go see the many craft factories along Sankampaeng Rd. There was a variety of different factories that he took us too including leather (I bought a sting ray wallet), silk (there was a great live silk worm display), paper (including umbrellas and fans) and a few more. The tour through Sankampaeng was decent however Ben started to irritate us as whenever we asked to go somewhere far he pretended that the destination was closed. It was a blatant lie and we were eager to end the tour soon. To top off our tour we visited a couple more temples in which at one of the temples we had some delicious coconut ice cream.
Following these couple of temples, we asked Ben to drop us off near our hotel to look for lunch. Reaching the end of our tether, we let him go and made it clear we don’t want another tour tomorrow.
We found our lunch at a clean cafe called Cafe Siam in which there was a good variety of breakfast and lunch. We then head back to the hotel. Alex and Mom went out to get full body massages while Dad and I relaxed at the hotel. It was a couple hours until they returned and when they did I was rather sleepy. Instead of going out again for dinner, Dad and I slept while the girls went out for a quick dinner.
January 3, 2012- Chiang Mai
Today was another full day out on Chiang Mai. We had breakfast at Cafe Siam again and Mom hired herself a young man as a driver. He took us to Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, a Buddhist temple located at the top of the mountain Doi Suthep. The place was very crowded and the base of the mountain had lines of vendors selling food to junk.
The first hurdle of the temple was the many stairs that lead to the temple. After climbing the stairs passing by some Hmong girls wanting money for pictures, we reached the top. The temple had a panoramic view of the forested mountain area of Chiang Mai. The temple itself was beautiful with a giant golden chedi in the middle as well as dance performances from young people on the outside.
We returned back to our driver afterwards and moved on to a small Hmong village deeper in the mountainous area. The village was rather deserted with few tourists. We wandered around the town seeing the poor house of the locals and saw a few kids playing. Aside from a cheap wooden gun target attraction, there was nothing to do and we left.
Out next stop was Tiger Kingdom, a tiger reserve in which tourists can take pictures with tigers of various sizes. The place was far off from the main city, and when we got there we decided to buy the most expensive tickets: to see the smallest and the largest. We first ate a decent buffet of Thai food. In no time, it was our turn to explore the pens. We first went to the extremely adorable smallest tigers. Alex and I took as many pictures as possible next to these cute tigers that seemed to not mind our affection. Next was the largest tigers; they were scarier and we were only allowed to approach them from behind. It was still a fantastic photo op and Alex and I truly enjoyed the experience. Following this, we were ready to go back home.
By the time we were ready to go out again, it was night time. We went to the market right outside our hotel again. We wandered for a time seeing the many cheap souvenirs, cheap massage places, cheap food stands and cheap entertainment. It was what we were used to and we settled to have dinner at an open seafood place which had surprisingly good roast duck. Finally we finished our night out and went straight to sleep.
January 4, 2012 - Chiang Mai
Once again we had plans to have a driver take us around. We had breakfast at the traveler’s restaurant again (amazing Pad Thai) and afterwards Mom found a driver for us. Our middle aged driver first took us to a Karen village (long neck ladies) where we got the opportunity to see many some of the Karen tribe women. The area was obviously staged and all the women did was sell junk to us. It felt strange to me and I was uncomfortable paying to see these strange women.
After my unsettling experience, we went off to Bo Sang, which is an area in which many craft stores exist, notably wood carvings. The area was rather deserted with few tourists. We spent a bit of time, walking around seeing the unique oriental craftsmanship. We hoped to see some behind the scene crafting, but there was nobody working actively. We eventually became bored and the afternoon was already passed.
We asked our driver to drop us off at a nice Ping riverside restaurant. The view of the river was nice as we had our own personal restaurant (a little too early for dinner) to enjoy the scenery. We had a usual Thai lunch/dinner and stuck around to take in the environment. When we were ready, we got a tuk tuk ride back to the hotel. We did our usual lounging around until night time. Without much to do, we returned again to the market. We repeated our outings from last night, touring through the junk and grabbing food. Alex and I left Mom and Dad at a foot massage place and returned home to pack and sleep through our last night in Chiang Mai.
January 5, 2012 - Chiang Mai and Khao Lak
After many days exploring the cultural and active side of Thailand, it was finally time to go the relaxing beaches of Phuket. There were no vans available so instead we took a red pickup truck with seats attached to the back to the airport. After our squished ride, we arrived at the airport. We checked in our bags and flew to the lush island of Phuket. The Air Asia flight was quick and soon we were in the extremely hot area.
Our resort was actually located in Khao Lak, a popular resort area. We had a personal driver take us to Le Meridian Resort Khao Lak. The drive was very uncomfortable, as the whole terrain was on the mountains resulting in twisting and turning driving, we all felt sick at the end of it. When we finally arrived however, we were greeted with a beautiful building with a magnificent beach. When we arrived we were given the typical resort greeting of flowers and a drink. We checked in and were guided to our connecting rooms. The rooms felt older but it was still comfortable.
We then explored the beach in order to look for a restaurant. We passed by the classy design of the resort with its fountain and gorgeous pool. We walked down the beach in order to look for a cheaper alternative to the overpriced resort. Eventually we picked a cheap looking restaurant and had a decent Thai meal. It was dark by now so we returned back to the room ready for a relaxing day the following.
January 6, 2012 - Khao Lak
After our many great endeavours through the historic sides of Thailand, it was finally time for us to kick back and relax. We woke up naturally without rush and got to enjoy a gluttonous all you can eat breakfast buffet. The buffet was delicious with a huge variety of Thai and American food. We stuffed ourselves with bacon, rice and dim sum and after we were done we could barely walk. Following our grand meal we headed to the beach.
The weather was nice and hot so we found ourselves some chairs and prepared to have an uneventful day. We switched consistently from the salty ocean to the refreshing pool. There was a dock out in the ocean that we could swim to. A good amount of time we spent on the beach, either sleeping, playing volleyball, or in my case, studying (Mr. Roach’s biology class). We even got to see a young elephant being brought around by a trainer.
Eventually time flew by and we returned to our room to clean ourselves up. We didn’t feel like leaving the resort this day, so we decided to eat the dinner buffet. The expensive meal was delicious and once again we stuffed ourselves with Thai food while watching a traditional Thai dance. After another filling meal we managed to roll ourselves to bed.
January 7, 2012 - Khao Lak
Today was to be another lazy day for us. We decided to not book any tours for the day and instead enjoy another long day at home. We were still full from the night before so left the hotel room later and left for a cheap beach brunch. We walked towards the nearby Rim Lay restaurant on the beach and had ourselves the typical Thai breakfast we came to expect. After our meal, we prepared to spend another long day on the beach. For the most part, our day was exactly like the day prior: relaxing on the beach and pool.
Following another great day of rest and relaxation, we wanted a cheaper dinner. So we took the hotel bus service out to the nearby town area. The town was a simple road exclusively with stores and restaurants. We wandered down the road looking for suggestions from Trip Advisor, but after being unable to find the restaurants we settled for a nicely decorated Thai place. We had the typical Thai cuisine and after Dad bought some tropical fruit, we took another pickup truck taxi home.
January 8, 2012 - Khao Lak
After we spent our last couple days relaxing, it was now time to explore the local attractions of the area. We rented a car from the hotel and drove off towards the coast to Phang Nga Bay, a famous bay sprawling with limestone cliffs and caves.
We drove through the mountainous area and stopped for breakfast at a quiet cafe. As we continued our drive towards the bay, a merchant on a bike stopped us and offered us a boat tour of Phang Nga Bay. With skepticism, we agreed and followed him to a dock. Mom paid him and
we were off on a small boat with just us. The boat ride was set for a couple hours and we were given a detailed tour of the major parts of Phang Nga Bay. We got to see the beautiful cliff formation looming around the bay as well as see the famous James Bond Island, which was featured in The Man with the Golden Gun. The tour was very relaxing as we enjoyed the sea breeze.
Following our long tour we returned to our car to explore more local attractions. However, Mom could not figure out our way to the monkeys temple so instead we gave up and headed to the hotel. On the way we felt hungry so we had a late lunch at a pizza place. It was delicious thin crust pizza that filled Alex and me up. When we returned home, we went back to the room to rest. It was getting late, but Mom and Dad wanted to go back to town. We stayed at home and left them to have their romantic time together.
January 9, 2012 - Khao Lak
To top off our Khao Lak adventures, we were going to go on a snorkelling and beach boat tour on a private island called Ko Ta Chai. We took the tour shuttle van to the dock and were collected for our boat ride by the owner of the tour group, Chris.
The trip was on a small speedboat that raced through the water but with much room for seasickness. The waves were very strong and after an hour of travelling, we finally reached the isolated island. The island was tremendous with the softest sand beach I have ever felt. The problem was however, that we couldn’t snorkel due to the dangerous ocean conditions. It was a shame as we were looking forward to that aspect the most. What we were left with was another day at the beach. Our lunch was brought over from the shore and it was a decent Thai buffet. The remaining few hours, we spent lounging on the beach as usual, taking in the rays and swimming in the ocean. It was time to leave during the afternoon and it was time for another uncomfortable hour long boat ride. It was a long trip that would have been worth it if we had the opportunity to snorkel, otherwise it was a lot of trouble and pain to go to another beach.
As we waited for our shuttle van home, we ate some street food stuffing ourselves with grilled meat and sticky rice. We took the van home and started to pack up. It was our final night in Khao Lak and we were not excited to leave the gorgeous beaches of Thailand. We finished our packing and decided to stay in for our last night.
January 10&11, 2012- Khao Lak, Bangkok and Toronto
To enjoy our final afternoon in Khao Lak, we ate once again at the hotel breakfast buffet. We then had our last hours on the beach taking in the hot weather while we still had it. After a few hours of final R&R we took our luggage, got our private van and returned to the Phuket airport. We then took our return flight back to Bangkok.
However, our final flight was the next day so we checked into a cheap motel near the airport. The place felt very local as there were few English speaking restaurants. We had our dinner at a local restaurant and had the spiciest soup Mom has ever had. It was nice to see some of the real community before we left for home.
We bared the night in the cheap motel and caught our early flight. The flight was another nice trip on Thai Airlines and we were soon trapped at Hong Kong Airport. We had a few hours to kill so we found ourselves some ergonomic chairs and killed some time. We had our usual HK airport food (this time noodles). Finally, it was time to go on our final flight. The Air Canada flight was long and tiresome, but the in-flight movies passed the time well. After many hours we finally arrived home at our wonderful cold home.
Conclusion
After a hiatus, we finally returned to Asia. We got to experience the wonderful and diverse land of Thailand once again. We visited the hustle and bustle of the legendary Bangkok. We saw the rich history and culture in Chiang Mai. Lastly, we got to have time for ourselves in the hot beaches of Khao Lak. It was an amazing trip touring through the exciting country and I am very glad that we got to get away from the Canada cold to see the historic and ancient country of Thailand.
