Ko Tao

After historical ruins, northern Thai cuisine, and elephant experiences, we were ready for some much anticipated beach time. We boarded one of Thailand's cheap domestic flights back to Bangkok to meet up with Rolo, Oliver's best friend of 24 years. From there, the three of us hopped on a night train to the southern port of Chumphon. A great way to save time and money, and a unique experience in itself, our seats on the train turned into sleeping berths by some tricks of engineering and quick bed-making by the attendants. After being rocked to sleep by the train, sometimes quite roughly, we pulled into Chumphon before sunrise and made a beeline for the ferry to Ko Tao. Unfortunately we were not quick enough and found the first ferry sold out. Bummed but not to be deterred, we checked into a nearby hostel at the half-day rate and killed some time in Chumphon taking naps, checking out the town, and grabbing supplies, if you can call donuts and scotch supplies. We boarded the early afternoon ferry just as it started to rain. Rain was quickly followed by wind and then waves which meant rough seas. Even before we left the pier, our ferry began rocking violently. Sensing the growing sea-sickness, the sailors began handing out barf-bags and we knew this was going to be a rough 2 hour ride. Since our ferry was a large catamaran, it rode the high swells rather than cutting through them, which meant roller-coaster, stomach-turning ascents and descents. The staff began pumping AC on high throughout the cabin in an attempt to combat a puke-fest, a la Stand by Me. Luckily, a large scale vomiting was averted despite some of those barf bags coming in handy. After a very long 2 hours, we spotted the tiny island of Ko Tao and thankfully scrambled for solid ground. While not a great start to our experience in the gulf, we were happy nonetheless to have arrived and excited to take advantage of the clear turquoise water of  "Turtle Island."

Look who we found in Bangkok!

Settling in for our night journey on the train to Chumphon.

Rolo's bunk was the "red light district."

On the pier to board the catamaran as storm clouds start to loom in the distance.

After a rough ride, Laura looking very happy to be in Ko Tao.

 

 

 

World renowned for it's reefs and marine life, Ko Tao is a top destination for beginners to wet their fins and accomplish their PADI Open Water Certification, a four-day intensive course consisting of classroom work, confined water dives(a fancy term for sitting under water in a pool for hours on end), and open water dives (the real fun!). Since our course didn't officially start until the next day, we oriented ourselves on Ko Tao by snorkeling, sun-bathing, and seeking out yummy restaurants. The next day we met our company for the next four days (two Canadians and a German couple), our instructor Dirk (a silly overweight German who "loves diving because he is weightless under water") and his assistant instructor Caroline (another German who came to Ko Tao to do her Open Water cert, loved it, and then went on to become a Dive Master). The first day was in the classroom where we learned the basics, the dangers, and how to overcome those risks. Then came the pool dives, a rather boring affair of hours underwater learning to breathe through a tank and other skills such as clearing our mask of water, communication, and safety measures. While none of us enjoyed that day very much, in the end it gave us a good introduction to the SCUBA system and many skills that would be necessary when we actually hit the sea. On the third day, we boarded a boat with a mixture of excitement and nervousness. As soon as we submerged, however, we found ourselves surrounded by multicolored fish and unearthly coral and were too fascinated to be nervous. Since this was still a course, though, we reluctantly tore ourselves away from our new environment and engaged in more skills that we would need to know to be real certified divers. The next two dives would follow much in the same way except that we would go deeper and progressively have less skills to focus on. Finally, after our fourth dive, which was more fun and exploration than education, we could proudly declare ourselves Open Water certified. We put a lot of time and effort into attaining this status, and at times wondered if we were still on vacation, but in the end it was definitely worth it.

Happy divers!

Our new PADI friends.

Diving at Twin Peaks, a location filled with all sorts of marine life and colorful coral.

Our instructor Dirk being his usual silly self.

Bond girl.

The best way to get around Ko Tao.

Buddies posing on Ko Tao's mascot.

We found a tree-house bar to celebrate our new certification.

A beautiful island, Ko Tao was hard to leave.

Baan Chang Elephant Park

One of the quintessential experiences for those visiting Thailand is riding an elephant. Unfortunately, this demand for elephant exposure has led to the creation of many tours and camps which have little regard for the safety, health, and happiness of their elephants. Many camps boast that their elephants can paint pictures, a horrible practice which involves intense "training" for the elephants, often to their detriment. Others require the elephants to carry tourists on a chair on their back, often dropping off one pair of tourists only to pick up another two, many times a day. Too often, these elephants are underfed, under-sheltered, and over-worked, leading to the premature death of these incredible wild animals. While riding an elephant was at the top of our list of experiences in Thailand, we did not want to contribute to their maltreatment. Finally, after much research, we came across Baan Chang Elephant Park, a conservatory with a unique perspective and approach which emphasizes elephant happiness over people.
We signed up for a two day "Elephant Adventure Life Experience" and were picked up from our hotel and taken an hour north, away from the noise and pollution of Chiang Mai, into the highlands of northern Thailand. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by the sight of two dozen elephants milling around, trumpeting, and flapping their gigantic ears. We were obviously excited. Before we could jump on an elephant, however, we needed a crash course in the ways of a mahout. A mahout is, simply, one who rides an elephant. In fact, mahouts are often attached to elephants at a young age and become their human counterpart, training, caring for, and living with their elephant. At Baan Chang elephant park, they try to rotate their mahouts so the elephants do not get too attached to any one mahout, which can result in severe depression if a mahout should become sick, pass away, or resign. Throughout our stay we learned that this was one of many policies unique to the park which attempts to maximize the welfare and happiness of the elephants.
Instructed that part of being a mahout meant getting dirty, we were given uniforms to change into, followed by an outline of what Baan Chang hopes to accomplish. In short their mission is to give the elephants a better life by first focusing on what elephants need to be healthy and happy, and only then bringing in people to appreciate them. Almost all of the animals at the park have been rescued, as in bought, from their previous owners, many of whom cared little for the elephants' welfare and more for the profits they could bring them. Some were rescued from logging camps in which they were forced to drag massive trees through the jungle in abhorrent conditions. Others were used by unscrupulous Thais using the elephants to pull money from tourists on the street. Still others were bought from less ethical camps as mentioned above. Our guide, Nie explained that each elephant has had unique experiences, and thus unique personalities, and we should respect that these animals are neither tame nor domesticated. Nie also emphasized transparency, encouraging us to ask questions, such as why the mahouts carried the thotti, a wooden stick with a nasty looking metal hook on the end (to break up fights among the elephants). We were told of how the elephant population in Thailand had plummeted from 100,000 to less than 3,000 due to such factors as development, poaching, and the the growing view among Thai people that elephants are merely giant pests that destroy crops and trample fences. But mostly, Nie emphatically repeated that their goal was to give each elephant what they needed to be happy: lots, and lots of food (an elephant's stomach only digests 20-40% of the food they eat and so they must eat continually), exercise (in the form of one daily hike, carrying one or two people directly on it's back), and a place to bathe. As mahouts in training we would be responsible for providing our elephants with all three of these important necessities.
Our first duty was to familiarize ourselves with the elephants by feeding them bananas and sugar cane. In doing so, we had the chance to see first-hand the different personalities of the elephants: some preferred bananas, while others liked sugar cane; some would take food from your hands with their trunk, while others wanted you to put it right into their mouths; some liked to be touched, while others shied away.
After feeding, we needed to learn how to communicate with the elephants. We learned how to tell the elephant to bend down so we could mount and dismount (non long!); the command for forward (pai!); to turn (kuai! with a kick to the appropriate side); and, of course, stop (how!). Once we learned these basic commands came the fun part: riding the elephant! With the mahouts looking on we mounted and rode the elephants a short way through the camp. Feeling these powerful animals beneath us was both exhilarating and humbling and gave us a new respect for these amazing creatures. As soon as our group felt comfortable, we were ready for the real test: a journey through the jungle. We were paired off and given our elephant for the day. We would get Nomei, a 20 year old female who happened to be pregnant! She was a sweet creature who didn't let her pregnancy slow her down one bit. Nomei would take us up and down hills, sometimes stopping to grab a branch from a nearby tree, at which point we would have to yell pai! to keep her focused on the trail. For the most part, however, she knew the way better than we did and happily swung her massive trunk side to side, sometimes reaching up to give us an "elephant kiss". Our journey would end in one of the highlights of the whole adventure, a trip to the watering hole where we got the opportunity to bathe with Nomei. We could tell she loved the water for as soon as she drank her fill, she plopped down on her side and allowed us to go to work with our buckets and scrubs. Bath time soon turned into play time, however, as she let us climb all over her and would suck up water with her trunk to give us a shower of our own. We could of easily spent hours in the water with her. Eventually though, the mahouts decided we were all clean enough and we said our goodbyes for the day.
Because we signed up for a two-day adventure, we stayed overnight in the park, a privilege which would prove to be an experience in itself. After all the other tourists went home, we were alone in the park except for another couple, David and Lana, a charming Dutch/Russian pair, Nie, and the mahouts. They cooked us a delicious Thai meal and invited us to sit around the campfire, feeding us Thai moonshine and a delicious dessert of coconut milk and rice cooked in bamboo sticks. They serenaded us with Burmese songs (most of the mahouts are refugees from Burma) well into the night. Exhausted, but supremely happy, we finally retired to our rooms which were situated on a hill overlooking the beautiful countryside with the moon and stars beaming brightly above us.

In our stylish mahout uniforms.

Laura bravely putting the food right into a blind elephant's mouth.

This big boy was a bit intimidating but very friendly if you have sugar cane!

The baby elephant had a thing for Oliver.

But she gave Laura a little hickey too.

A natural.

A great moment, Laura's first time up on an elephant.

Learning how to dismount. Non long!

Nomei saying hello.

The expert way to ride.

Nomei taking us on a hike through the jungle.

Cooling down at the watering hole.

Washing off all the jungle dirt.

Right before Oliver gets hit with a blast of water.

Do we look happy or what?

The following morning we were awoken by the sound of elephant trumpets as they took their morning bath. Sipping tea and enjoying the view, we readied ourselves for the day's activities. While we wouldn't get as much elephant time, we still enjoyed watching them interact with each other and with the new group of mahout recruits who arrived that morning. Our day would focus more on taking in the gorgeous scenery of northern Thailand as we hiked through the jungle to a beautiful, but cold!, waterfall, a ride down the rapids of the Mae Klong river, and ending with a languid float on a raft of bamboo.
One of the best experiences of all our travels, we could not have been more delighted with Baan Chang Elephant Park and were overjoyed to support a park with such an altruistic pursuit: the happiness of Thailand's noble elephants.

View from our rooms overlooking the park.

Hiking through the jungle.

Oliver practicing his aim.

Love at the waterfall.

Chiang Mai

Nestled in a valley among the forested hills of northern Thailand, Chiang Mai is a city you either love or hate, and for probably the same reason: it's bursting with tourists. A good base for exploring northern Thailand, the city is overrun with farangs, or Westerners, and practically every street caters to some form of trekking excursion, Thai massage, or cooking class. Not that there's anything wrong with these experiences. In fact, we would seek out all three. For those seeking an authentic northern Thai town, however, Chiang Mai is not it.
Northern Thai cuisine is a unique blend of Burmese curries, Chinese stir-fry, and Thai flavors. So it was only fitting that, while in Chiang Mai, we should try our hand in making the dishes we have come to love. On a recommendation from a friend, we signed up for Gap's cooking class, a 6 hour food extravaganza which included a trip to the local market to source our ingredients. Our instruction began with an introduction to the four main Thai flavors: salty, sweet, sour, and spicy. A good, authentic Thai meal will incorporate all of these flavors and finding the right balance is a matter of taste, experience, and in our case, a little luck. We were given cookbooks with detailed recipes, but our instructor, Joe (probably not his real name), emphasized that real balance comes from constantly tasting your food and adjusting appropriately. As he told us time and again: "Too sweet, add more fish (or soy) sauce. Too sour or salty, add more sugar. Too spicy, too bad." Our first task was to make the backbone of many Thai dishes: curry paste. With a mortar and pestle, we dug right in, literally. After we completed our base, we moved onto a green curry dish, each of the 6 of us in our group cooking on a separate stove, while Joe moved among us shouting instructions and encouragement. In the next few hours, we would also successfully complete a fish souffle, stir-fried chicken with cashew nut (our favorite!), fish cakes, and tom yum soup, each to our specific tastes and spice level. Starving, of course, we sat down and enjoyed the fruits of our labor. Full and proud of ourselves, we let the food digest while Joe showed us some neat culinary tricks of turning shallots and tomatoes into lotus flowers. Ready for more, we learned to make a pumpkin coconut custard, roll our own spring rolls, and stir up our own pad thai, taking these dishes home for dinner. Our experience at the cooking school left us full, proud, and excited to bring our new skills home to share with others.

Picking out our ingredients for the day.

Fortunately, eel was not on the menu.

Grinding the curry paste.

Some good looking fish souffles.

Laura inspecting the ingredients for stir-fried chicken with cashew nut.

Not bad for our first time.

Mmm..spring rolls.

Laura making her very first pad thai.

In Chiang Mai, it is impossible to throw a rock without hitting some parlor offering Thai massage, foot massage, oil massage, head massage, and yes, even that massage. Seeking something a little more authentic and special, we sought out the Thai Massage Conservation Club, which employs only blind masseuses. With their heightened sense of touch, hearing, and memory, we each received an hour-long alternation of pain and pleasure for the price of a beer back home. A benefit to the masseuses being blind is that they couldn't see our wincing and gasps, though Oliver's masseuse had to ask if he was okay at one point. Nonetheless, the experience left us feeling renewed and relaxed and gave us one more thing to check off our bucket list. We spent the next two days at Baan-Chang Elephant Camp (next post!) before returning to Chiang Mai to wander the night market, indulge in the cuisine, and watch the interesting mix of farangs and Thais. In the end, we didn't really love or hate Chiang Mai, but rather recognized it for what it is: a good place to start.

Yet another wat.

108 bowls, a sacred number in Buddhism. Dropping coins into each bowl is a form of merit-making in Thai Buddhism.

At the old city gate of Chiang Mai. Not much of this ancient wall remains.

Sukhothai

After a full two days in hectic Bangkok, we went in search of quieter culture and history by heading north to the ruined city of Sukhothai.  Our journey would consist of seven hours of travel by train, tuk-tuk, bus, and the back of a pick-up truck, through small frontier towns and rice-paddy fields, to finally arrive at the ancient capital of the once great Sukhothai Kingdom. Among the first empires of Thailand, the Sukhothai dynasty spanned 200 years and 9 kings and is viewed as the "golden age" of Thai civilization, giving rise to the Thai alphabet as well as classical Thai religious art and architecture. The remnants of this kingdom are now a World Heritage Site, an historic park of temple ruins scattered throughout a 45 sq km area of manicured lawns, spindly bodhi trees and lily-filled ponds. Basically, its Disneyland for history buffs.
We woke up early to beat the midday sun, snagged a couple of bicycles and a map from our hotel, and headed out to the park. We spent the next few hours in awe as we rode from one temple site to the next, trying to imagine life here as it was 800 years ago. The expansiveness of the park allowed us to explore many sites in solitude, adding to the already powerful effect of ancient sanctity. Eventually, after all day riding in an attempt to see them all, we succumbed to sore butts and tired legs. We reluctantly took our last few glimpses of this great lost city and wearily pedaled away. Though the world may have forgotten Sukhothai at one point, we know we never will.