Hey Everyone!
Thank you so much to all who responded with a comment, email or message- I really appreciated each one.
I have been back in Bangkok for five hot, busy, humid days but will leave tomorrow morning for Burma, also known as Myanmar, or the completely new cultural experience that I've been waiting for! I have learned a lot about Burma since I got here and it has slowly become one of the top places I want to go. This comes as somewhat of a surprise to me considering that out of all the places I planned to go, it was the country I knew the least about. However, after hearing and about all the wonderful, kind, hospitable, interesting people there are to meet in Burma I can't wait.
Luckily for me (and actually very unfortunately), I leave to catch my flight in 2 and a half hours (it is 1 in the morning here) so.. wow I have to make this quick. Although Ben and I are both very excited about Burma, a huge downside is that, seeing as Burma is a much more underdeveloped country than Thailand, there will be little to no internet access. I am sorry for this but will be sure to keep an exceptional travel journal during those weeks with all of you in mind.
A quick update:
Chillin on Koh Chang was really fun and gave Ben and I an amazing opportunity to relax and kind of re-introduce ourselves to one another. The first few days were somewhat rough due to jet lag, my first experience with the all powerful Thai buckets (fun at night, not so fun the next day, all day) and Ben getting himself food poisoned by purchasing and ingesting a hamburger where the patty was taken from a warm 'cooler' out of the back of some dood's truck/work station/possible home.
By the last day however, I was finally used to the time difference, my drink of choice had become nam (water) and "hot lipton tea, please" (..tea) and Ben was finally eating again so those last 24 hours on Koh Chang were undoubtedly the best-
After spending the day swimming and playing games on the beach, Ben and I decided to rent a motorbike to explore the island and find a cool place to have dinner. We drove along through the different villages up and down hilariously steep hills which eventually brought us to some incredible viewpoints. We pulled into one and just stood looking out at the ocean and the beautiful small islands that are scattered just off of Koh Chang. Writing about it won't do it justice but those views completely took my breath away so I can't wait to show the pictures I took.
We continued on up and down the hills and around the winding turns until we were eventually back on a straight road again. There were so many incredible things to see and at one point looked over to my amazement as I saw through the trees the first elephant I have ever seen that wasn't on t.v, in a magazine or portrayed as... a cartoon. I was so shocked that by the time I was able to make out the words of what I had just seen to Ben, we were about another minute up the road but he turned around and drove back to where they were. I jumped off the motorbike and just stood in amazement as I looked out on them. Elephants are some of the most beautiful creatures I have ever seen. I felt like I was in that scene in Jurassic Park where the family first looks out at that herd of Brontosaurus (or Long necks, for the Land Before Time keeners out there, actually.. do I even know what I'm talking about? It's really been too long since I saw Jurassic Park. Man I love that movie. Wow, I am so tired..)Alright, Ben was really stoked on being there with me for my first time seeing an elephant but was understandably less fazed as he had already spent quite a bit of time with elephants earlier in his travels on a trek he made. So what I was standing on was somewhat of a reserve but mainly a tourist attraction. There were signs advertising all of the things you could do with the elephants which included everything from two day treks through the jungle on their backs, to paying 80 baht to sit on them and have your picture taken. This all seemed really wrong to me, I felt content just watching them eat and walk around. I really couldn't decide how I felt about the elephants being made to work in that place as a tourist attraction and just wanted the elephants to be able to roam completely free. I expressed my feelings to Ben who told me a few interesting facts. Apparently up until about 15 years ago elephants were used as work animals and it wasn't uncommon to see them actually walking through the streets of Bangkok. Now, Ben isn't even sure if there are any wild elephants left in all of Thailand. It's really sad.
The elephants that I saw did actually look quite happy and free to roam around on the large reserve so I was happy watching them and if I didn't have the rest of the island to explore and a cool restaurant to hunt down before sunset, I would have stayed for much longer but we continued on in search of dinner and a sunset.
We settled at this incredibly laid back, funky place called Treehouse where I just today was told by Carli that she stayed. Wow, I can't believe I am still writing. Ben is slumped over the chair next to me grumbling something about how grumpy he is going to be tomorrow and something about chamomile tea.
Dinner and the sunset that night were both absolutely gorgeous and I have the pictures to prove it.
The next day we left back to Bangkok and have spent most of our time hanging out in air conditioned restaurants and cafes.
Thailand has been a lot of fun but over the past 15 years the country has really began to take advantage (as they should) of how much money tourism brings in and has therefore really learned to cater to the western demands. Tomorrow morning. Or.. in an hour an a half.. I leave to Burma which is a country both politically unstable and underdeveloped yet FILLED WITH EXTREMELY KIND, HOSPITABLE PEOPLE. Burma is often referred to as Thailand 30 years ago when bungalows were cheap and tourists few.
Also, we have our Lonely Planet and more importantly each other :)
I LOVE YOU ALL
Talk to you in a few weeks, or earlier if we can find anywhere with internet.
Goodnight. Ish.
Good thing the flight is only about an hour.
Love Jena and Ben
ps Ben just updated- http://www.benjotravels.blogspot.com/!!
pss Mom, we called to "check in" with the Canadian embassy and they were really confused. Haha but we did it.
psss Anna I'll write you when I get back. Koh Lanta is the place to be!
Love love love. I hear it's all you need.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Bangkok
Dearest friends and family,
My attempts to update my blog this afternoon has proven completley impossible at this time of day as I am surrounded by people yelling to and at eachother. Anyone who has been in Bangkok before will understand how busy and loud it is.
My sincere appologies but I will have to try again later tonight.
Love you all, Jena.
My attempts to update my blog this afternoon has proven completley impossible at this time of day as I am surrounded by people yelling to and at eachother. Anyone who has been in Bangkok before will understand how busy and loud it is.
My sincere appologies but I will have to try again later tonight.
Love you all, Jena.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Elephant Island
Hello my beautiful family and friends !
I am writing to you from a busy internet cafe on a street on Koh Chang with screaming babies and loud Falang (other tourists) all around so please excuse any poor writing that may follow.
First things first, Yes, I am alive. I arrived safely into Thailand five days ago but have unfortunately only now realized the severity of only getting in touch with Dad on my first day; After reading all the messages that have accumulated from frantic loved ones worrying themselves sick over my whereabouts, I feel pretty bad. So, my sincere apologies to those who were starting to freak out a little bit, but, here I am! Having suuch a great time on the island of Koh Chang (or Elephant Island - I strongly suggest you Google image it) I am staying at the Apple Resort on White Sand Beach and it is GORGEOUS.
For those of you who asked about my flight- the 26 hours of travel went by in more or less of a daze, feeling suspended in time and maintaining the single emotion of patient anticipation I seemed to have mastered in the last few weeks leading up to my trip. Pretty bland to say the least and highlights really only include movies and meeting a Los Angeles native named Red who goes to Thailand every year to get materials such as crocodile skin for his prosperous L.A based shoe company. We had some good laughs and was good company flying out of Seoul and into Bangkok. Thankfully my overwhelming numb emotion completely dissipated after spotting Benjamin Francis in the crowd of people waiting to greet the Flight 635 Posse and was replaced with complete ecstatic excitement. After chilling out a bit, we caught a taxi into Bangkok that was spent talking and laughing and just trying acclimatize as best as possible. It was so so hot even at the airport but the humidity that hits you when you get off the plane is nothing compared to once you get into the city. We arrived at the insane, world famous khao san road and I walked through the crowded streets with a totally unfazed Ben despite all the insane new things I was taking in. We tried to tracking down some of his friends that were leaving to the island of Koh Chang in the morning but they were nowhere to be found and I was pretty exhausted so we just looked around a bit and then went to sleep. Ben had booked a nice hotel with the luxury of air conditioning which you unfortunately only notice once you leave the room and walk out onto the street into a brand new level of humidity. I was only able to sleep for about 3 hours.
The way I would describe waking up my first morning in Bangkok is a very similar way I would describe waking up in a tent somewhere hot with the early afternoon sun blaring directly down on you. The moment you open your groggy eyes you notice how thick the air is and how uncomfortable the heat. Although you are still completely exhausted, you get up and head out in the hopes of cooling off a bit and sucking in some fresh air but when you do you're shocked to find all you're breathing in now is thick and pungent and suddenly your hotel room isn't looking so bad after all. Also if this was a tent you would also be kicking yourself for your decision to pitch it so close to the rank, overflowing outhouses and garbage piles.. All something to get used to though as I would soon discover :)
Wow, sorry for the quick subject change, but Ben has been sitting next to me in the internet cafe while I type this, fooling around on itunes trying to upload some of his c.ds and just said OH NO.....Jena.. Jena please don't be really angry with me... He doesn't need to say it. My ipod plugged into his computer and the look of complete and utter fear on his face says enough. Yes Dear Reader, Ben Griffiths, the computer whiz kid, has just wiped out the entire contents of my ipod. Carli, I know you can feel my pain right now as you assisted me in filling it with all of that incredible, diverse music of sweet sweet perfection.
Well, so much for the sight of Ben's wonderful face dissipating any numb or negative feelings...
haha... I'm sure i'll be ok.
ANYWAYS.
The next day in Bangkok I ordered the breakfast that has quickly become a favorite of mine here of fruit, yogurt and muesli from a really cute little restaurant down the street from our hotel. It was so fun to just sit right on the street and talk, watching our surroundings slowly wake up after what was I'm sure for most, a crazy all night party in Bangkok. The fresh fruit was so good and we sat laughing at our table as little dogs ran around at our feet and all over the place. A number of people who I talked to before my trip and who had been to Thailand mentioned these wacky dogs that are all over the place but you really need to be here to understand. It's so funny but quite interesting how fast I've become completely accustomed to the quirky differences in culture like that- just a part of the experience of kickin it in Thailand (and even more so Bangkok.) That day we also checked out the big weekend Market which was awesome and I bought some really neat things. It has hundreds of little vendors and stores offering anything you could possibly be looking for- In our case, food and clothes, and we definitely indulged in both.
The incredibly delicious food I've been enjoying here is something completely in need of talking about. I've been eating the most incredibly flavourful dishes on this trip am in HEAVEN over here as anyone reading this who knows of my passion for food will understand. Any true lover of Asian cuisine must come one day (ahem -John Gogo-) Although Bangkok is really cool to experience, I found a couple days to be quite ample especially considering Ben and I couldn't wait to get down to some islands to just totally chill and meet up with his hilarious Norwegian friends and Kfir (who Ben had traveled all throughout Vietnam with and whom I was really looking forward to meeting) We traveled by bus and then ferry to get to Koh Chang where we still are now.
Some links to pictures of where I'm staying: http://www.backpacking.se/grfx/NewsPictures/haad%20sai%20khao%20från%20havet%20sett.jpg
http://www.southwest.com.au/~lockley/Kochang.jpg
http://www.asienforum.net/images/kohchang.jpg
We, of course, have been taking our own photos but I'll be posting those a little later.
I can't begin to describe how euphoric it has been to wake up whenever, spend the day however, pick any restaurant along (or on) the beach to eat dinner and watch the sunset with friends. I have much more to tell about the incredibly beautiful island of Koh Chang including stories of the hilarious friends we've made, a run in with a seemingly cute, 'innocent' little monkey (Jeri you'll love it, thought of you right away), the awesome house band who play every night at our club of choice along the beach, the cutest little Thai todler who lives at our resort, Ben's decision to ingest the sketchiest burger ever from a street vendor in the wee hours of the morning, motorbiking across the island and much much more!! On closing- Mom, yes I am wearing insane amounts of sunscreen and will continue to ensure Ben does too no matter how many hilarious sunscreen application ninja fights I undergo. Also, Mom, considering I actually have no plans whatsoever of attending a full moon party.. would you please enlighten me as to who the hell this 'Glen' character is and how this person could have leaked Ben and my apparent plans to attend a craaazy full moon party where we will undoubtedly be tempted to indulge in the wonders of drugs and alcohol?? Ben got enough Full Moon for the both of us earlier in his travels when he was drugged to the point of a complete black out on the island of Ko Phagnan :( Poor guy. Anyways, I appreciate your concern but you really have nothing to worry about, it's just unfortunate that 'Glen' apparently does.
I love you all and wish you could be here with us in Paradise!!
xo Jena
I am writing to you from a busy internet cafe on a street on Koh Chang with screaming babies and loud Falang (other tourists) all around so please excuse any poor writing that may follow.
First things first, Yes, I am alive. I arrived safely into Thailand five days ago but have unfortunately only now realized the severity of only getting in touch with Dad on my first day; After reading all the messages that have accumulated from frantic loved ones worrying themselves sick over my whereabouts, I feel pretty bad. So, my sincere apologies to those who were starting to freak out a little bit, but, here I am! Having suuch a great time on the island of Koh Chang (or Elephant Island - I strongly suggest you Google image it) I am staying at the Apple Resort on White Sand Beach and it is GORGEOUS.
For those of you who asked about my flight- the 26 hours of travel went by in more or less of a daze, feeling suspended in time and maintaining the single emotion of patient anticipation I seemed to have mastered in the last few weeks leading up to my trip. Pretty bland to say the least and highlights really only include movies and meeting a Los Angeles native named Red who goes to Thailand every year to get materials such as crocodile skin for his prosperous L.A based shoe company. We had some good laughs and was good company flying out of Seoul and into Bangkok. Thankfully my overwhelming numb emotion completely dissipated after spotting Benjamin Francis in the crowd of people waiting to greet the Flight 635 Posse and was replaced with complete ecstatic excitement. After chilling out a bit, we caught a taxi into Bangkok that was spent talking and laughing and just trying acclimatize as best as possible. It was so so hot even at the airport but the humidity that hits you when you get off the plane is nothing compared to once you get into the city. We arrived at the insane, world famous khao san road and I walked through the crowded streets with a totally unfazed Ben despite all the insane new things I was taking in. We tried to tracking down some of his friends that were leaving to the island of Koh Chang in the morning but they were nowhere to be found and I was pretty exhausted so we just looked around a bit and then went to sleep. Ben had booked a nice hotel with the luxury of air conditioning which you unfortunately only notice once you leave the room and walk out onto the street into a brand new level of humidity. I was only able to sleep for about 3 hours.
The way I would describe waking up my first morning in Bangkok is a very similar way I would describe waking up in a tent somewhere hot with the early afternoon sun blaring directly down on you. The moment you open your groggy eyes you notice how thick the air is and how uncomfortable the heat. Although you are still completely exhausted, you get up and head out in the hopes of cooling off a bit and sucking in some fresh air but when you do you're shocked to find all you're breathing in now is thick and pungent and suddenly your hotel room isn't looking so bad after all. Also if this was a tent you would also be kicking yourself for your decision to pitch it so close to the rank, overflowing outhouses and garbage piles.. All something to get used to though as I would soon discover :)
Wow, sorry for the quick subject change, but Ben has been sitting next to me in the internet cafe while I type this, fooling around on itunes trying to upload some of his c.ds and just said OH NO.....Jena.. Jena please don't be really angry with me... He doesn't need to say it. My ipod plugged into his computer and the look of complete and utter fear on his face says enough. Yes Dear Reader, Ben Griffiths, the computer whiz kid, has just wiped out the entire contents of my ipod. Carli, I know you can feel my pain right now as you assisted me in filling it with all of that incredible, diverse music of sweet sweet perfection.
Well, so much for the sight of Ben's wonderful face dissipating any numb or negative feelings...
haha... I'm sure i'll be ok.
ANYWAYS.
The next day in Bangkok I ordered the breakfast that has quickly become a favorite of mine here of fruit, yogurt and muesli from a really cute little restaurant down the street from our hotel. It was so fun to just sit right on the street and talk, watching our surroundings slowly wake up after what was I'm sure for most, a crazy all night party in Bangkok. The fresh fruit was so good and we sat laughing at our table as little dogs ran around at our feet and all over the place. A number of people who I talked to before my trip and who had been to Thailand mentioned these wacky dogs that are all over the place but you really need to be here to understand. It's so funny but quite interesting how fast I've become completely accustomed to the quirky differences in culture like that- just a part of the experience of kickin it in Thailand (and even more so Bangkok.) That day we also checked out the big weekend Market which was awesome and I bought some really neat things. It has hundreds of little vendors and stores offering anything you could possibly be looking for- In our case, food and clothes, and we definitely indulged in both.
The incredibly delicious food I've been enjoying here is something completely in need of talking about. I've been eating the most incredibly flavourful dishes on this trip am in HEAVEN over here as anyone reading this who knows of my passion for food will understand. Any true lover of Asian cuisine must come one day (ahem -John Gogo-) Although Bangkok is really cool to experience, I found a couple days to be quite ample especially considering Ben and I couldn't wait to get down to some islands to just totally chill and meet up with his hilarious Norwegian friends and Kfir (who Ben had traveled all throughout Vietnam with and whom I was really looking forward to meeting) We traveled by bus and then ferry to get to Koh Chang where we still are now.
Some links to pictures of where I'm staying: http://www.backpacking.se/grfx/NewsPictures/haad%20sai%20khao%20från%20havet%20sett.jpg
http://www.southwest.com.au/~lockley/Kochang.jpg
http://www.asienforum.net/images/kohchang.jpg
We, of course, have been taking our own photos but I'll be posting those a little later.
I can't begin to describe how euphoric it has been to wake up whenever, spend the day however, pick any restaurant along (or on) the beach to eat dinner and watch the sunset with friends. I have much more to tell about the incredibly beautiful island of Koh Chang including stories of the hilarious friends we've made, a run in with a seemingly cute, 'innocent' little monkey (Jeri you'll love it, thought of you right away), the awesome house band who play every night at our club of choice along the beach, the cutest little Thai todler who lives at our resort, Ben's decision to ingest the sketchiest burger ever from a street vendor in the wee hours of the morning, motorbiking across the island and much much more!! On closing- Mom, yes I am wearing insane amounts of sunscreen and will continue to ensure Ben does too no matter how many hilarious sunscreen application ninja fights I undergo. Also, Mom, considering I actually have no plans whatsoever of attending a full moon party.. would you please enlighten me as to who the hell this 'Glen' character is and how this person could have leaked Ben and my apparent plans to attend a craaazy full moon party where we will undoubtedly be tempted to indulge in the wonders of drugs and alcohol?? Ben got enough Full Moon for the both of us earlier in his travels when he was drugged to the point of a complete black out on the island of Ko Phagnan :( Poor guy. Anyways, I appreciate your concern but you really have nothing to worry about, it's just unfortunate that 'Glen' apparently does.
I love you all and wish you could be here with us in Paradise!!
xo Jena
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