Chiang Mai Photos...

Here are some photos from our time in Chiang Mai...

Chiang Mai 2007 Photos

Chiang Mai in Central Thailand...

Okay, so we left Koh Chang and after another night in Bangkok at The New Siam II, we flew up to Chiang Mai. There are several local Thai airlines that offer really inexpensive flights that make the decision to fly much easier. We save time, see more and they're such cheap flights that it's easy to justify.

We arrived at the airport after a quick flight and grabbed a taxi who dropped us off at our cute little guesthouse, The Sri Pat Guesthouse. We arrived on a Sunday and it just happened to be the last day of the annual Flower Festival in Chiang Mai. The festival was within walking distance of our guesthouse so we cruised out to see the town. The festival was incredible. There were floats in the middle of the street that were constructed completely out of flowers. On the sides of the street were different categories of flowers: orchids, rhododendrons, vermiliads, etc. all hanging inside little shade structures that you could walk under. Some of the flowers in each category had won for their class and were sporting ribbons for first, second, and third places. It was really a sight to see hundreds of these beautiful flowers lining the streets. Further down the way there were food merchants selling all kinds of interesting stuff to eat. A park was filled with Thai locals sitting on mats on the grass and enjoying their peaceful sunday. It was feeling good to get into a big city and have an event to go see that was mostly locals and very few tourists.

Flower Festival Floats

Sunday in Chiang Mai also boasts the Sunday market which is an intersection of two streets that shoots out for a mile in all four directions with nothing but cute little vendors hocking their wares. In Bangkok the people selling their stuff were much more pushy and we found ourselves happy to not have to deal with "i make very good price for you" every time we stopped to look at the items for sale. It was here that I found my "Buddha of Gratitude".

Sunday Night Street Market

On one of our days in Chiang Mai we took a windy taxi ride up to a wat (temple) that is on the side of the mountain overlooking the valley below. The wat is called Doi Suthep and it's incredible. You climb up a bunch of stairs and at the top is one of the most beautiful wat's I've seen yet. There are golden Buddhas lining the courtyard and these really impressive golden spires that shoot up into the sky. The monks that we met were very sweet and in one of the temples, Maggie and I were blessed by a monk who spoke very good English. I went crazy and took a gazillion pictures up there. I'll post some of them soon.

Maggie at the entrance to Doi Suthep

Chiang Mai is also a city that is known for being close to some of the best elephant camps. We were still holding out faith that there was a way to get close to the elephants in a respectful way but this time we were going to do our research. There was a place called the Thai Elephant Conservation Center that looked promising but when you read the itinerary of your "mahout training" it included training them to do tricks and then watching the "elephant show" where they perform these tricks. (it's worth checking their site cause they have rad pictures updated daily). This didn't seem like what we were looking for. Then, thankfully Maggie found us the most amazing organization. They're called The Elephant Nature Park and soon as they get "foundation status" will be The Elephant Nature Foundation. This place is so incredible and so inspiring that I'm going to have to write an entire entry just about our two days there.

More soon!

Giving our new friend Lilly a bath.

My Buddha & The Secret...

On our last visit to the Bay Area around the holidays, my good friend Anthony, gave me a video to watch. It's a new Australian production called "The Secret". The DVD is all about how we each are able to create whatever we want in life and that we have this incredible power that most people don't fully recognize. After watching it (three times), i became completely inspired. In a nutshell it tells us that the messages we send out into the universe through our thoughts and feelings will shape our lives. That we attract the things that we think about and that we can have anything we desire by simply putting our thoughts and feelings into it. We often spend time thinking about the things we don't want. This is a new approach to thinking about the things we do want and to feel what it feels like to have those things. There are these really simple practices that help you to obtain your goals. One of the practices is to remind yourself each day of all the things you're grateful for.

In The Secret there's a story about a man who has a "gratitude rock" and it's simply a rock that he found that he keeps with him in his pocket where ever he goes. At night when he empties his pockets, there's the rock and a reminder to think of all the things he's grateful for. In the morning when he goes to get his keys there's the rock again and so are his feelings of gratitude. The concept is that when you recognize the things that you are glad that you have, you'll attract more of the same. So, on this trip one of the little things that I'm having fun with is my miniature Buddha that i keep with me at all times. He's my Buddha of Gratitude. I've been taking pictures of him all over Thailand and he's there each morning and night to remind me of the things I'm thankful for. As a matter of fact, he's actually sitting at my keyboard right now watching me as i type ;-) .

My Buddha of Gratitude.

"The Secret" might not be ground shaking material for a lot of people and the concepts presented in the DVD seem simple, but the message is so powerful that you can't help but get totally psyched and excited. There's a website where you can view the video online and I'd be happy to share the video with anyone who wants to see it when i return. Here's the site: "The Secret"

I've been trying to get into a morning practice that involves reminding myself of the things that I'm grateful for and to really put my thoughts and feelings toward the things that I want to create in my life. My goals, my aspirations, my affirmations, etc. If you're reading this, there's a good chance that you're in my thoughts each morning as my friends and family are the things that I'm most thankful for.

The other component of my morning practice is to get my body physically in better shape. My daily routine includes sit ups and push-ups, and I'm planning to build that up and add running to my program as soon as I can. So, I hope to come back to the states with a healthy mind, body and soul.

I've also been reading (shocking i know). I just finished a book called "The Number" by Lee Eisenberg that is all about preparing yourself financially for your post working years (retirement). I'm reading a book on video editing so that i can sharpen my skills as well.

So, I guess this was all just sharing some of the daily things that happen for me on this trip outside of all of our exploring. Can't wait to see you all again soon.

Love,

Max

Koh Chang Photos...

Here are some of our pictures from our time in Koh Chang...

Koh Chang 2007 Photos

Koh Chang...Fresh Air & Elephants.

We're doing great and life is good!

We caught a bus from Bangkok to the far Southeast corner of Thailand, a province called Trat. From there we jumped on a quick 45 minute ferry ride that took us across to Koh Chang. We were excited about "elephant island" for we'd heard a lot about it from friends and the allure of seeing elephants was one of the reasons we chose Thailand in the first place. We were also eager to escape the craziness of the city and the overwhelming pollution. Mags and I brought our running shoes and had envisioned spending mornings running through the places we visit. However, the air quality has been horrific and we've not been thrilled at the prospect of sucking up exhaust and diesel fumes while we run. Many people here seem to have chronic coughs while others wear masks to try to filter the air. We find ourselves holding our shirts to our mouths in order to handle a 15 minute tuk-tuk ride. So sad what we are doing to our planet and that breathing clean air is not an option for millions of people!

So off we went to Koh Chang in search of elephants and a breath of fresh air. After the ferry dropped us off, we piled onto a taxi - a covered pick-up truck with padded seats that fit 5 per side. Along with a diverse group of other travelers, we threw our bags on the roof and told the driver to drop us off at Lonely Beach - a spot recommended to us by several friends. Although we had no hotel reservation, we figured we could just walk the beach until we found a place - that's why we packed light after all!


Maggie found a place that came highly recommended on tripadvisor.com and so we walked up to The Oasis which sat high on a hill near the beach. The owner was a sweet woman named Suni who offered us a simple bungalow for $9/night. Our hut came with clean sheets, an outdoor shower and a terrific hammock on the front porch. Suni's place had good vibes and she was such an amazing host that we were happy to be staying with her despite the fact that she was farther from the beach than most of the other options.


Lonely Beach was anything but lonely. It was another very popular destination with European backpackers/travelers and it had a total party vibe with bars playing loud crappy techno music until late in the night. The beach itself was clean white sand and the water was warm and inviting. We swam, laid in the sun, relaxed, and got a chance to really sink into our travel mode.




Surprisingly, the island air was still grey and smokey. We have come to learn this is due to an annual burning of the underbrush all across Thailand. These fires fill the sky with a dense smoke that makes for a golden evening sun that fades into the horizon without much of a sunset. Funny to watch the sun get more and more faint as it dips into the smokey horizon and then just vanishes. I keep expecting something exciting to happen and then, poof it's just gone!


Although we didn't find clean air we did find an elephant camp for our first elephant experience. After doing some research, we determined that there was really only one decent option for an elephant experience on Elephant Island. We were looking for a place with a solid conservation ethic and where, most importantly, the elephants would be treated with love and respect. According to Lonely Planet and the people in town, Ban Kwan Elephant Camp was just such a place so we made reservations and the next day they came to our hotel and picked us up.

In a truck filled with many loud Germans (aren't Americans supposed to be the loud ones?) we wound our way deep into the interior of the island toward the jungley land of elephants. We got to the camp and and passed by another group who had just finished their experience waiting to get in our trucks to go back down. This place seemed to be doing quite a brisk business! As we entered the camp, we saw our first Asian elephants and we were instantly in love... so beautiful and amazing.

The elephants had just been given a large pile of pineapple plants that each have a tiny pineapple in the middle of the long hard leaves. As we watched, an elephant wrapped her trunk around the pineapple and proceeded to whack the rest of the plant onto her giant toenails to try to separate the fruit from the leaves. If that failed, she would gently steps on the leaves, pull the fruit free, then deliver the sweet snack to her mouth. Such a magical creature, so big and majestic! My mom and family has had a love for elephants ever since I can remember. Mom's paintings often featured elephants and my favorite childhood book was about elephants smashing small cars.. For me, seeing them here in their natural home felt extremely special.

Expecting to be greeted by the camp's owner and to launch into our elephant education, we walked a little further into the camp and started looking around. Before we got too far, a young Thai woman told us to follow this "mahout" (thai elephant trainer pronounced ma-hoot) who's walking with an elephant, so we follow. Maggie and I look at each other; we were already getting the sense that might not be the experience we were hoping for.

The mahout was carrying a 2 foot long wooden pole that had a metal hook at the end which he was using to poke and prod the elephant into submission. He spoke no English, and our expectation of getting some introduction to the camp, perhaps be introduced to our new friend (the elephant) was quickly dashed. Instead, we found ourselves following along, looking at the back of an elephant who didn't seem to want to go where its mahout was taking it.

Down to the river we went where the mahout forced the elephant down into the river. "Wash, wash," he told us and pointed to the buckets and brushes lying on the rocks. One of the other tourists grabbed a brush, climbed roughly on top of the elephant, started brushing hard and laughing nervously as his wife took pictures. Our hearts sank. This was exactly what we were hoping to avoid. It was a show and the elephant was getting no respect.

Thankfully, the elephant had soon had enough and got up and walked slowly back to the camp. The next step was the ubiquitous elephant ride. (We see advertisements for elephants rides EVERYWHERE in Thailand. We've since learned that this is a really great way to ruin an elephant's spine and that you should avoid riding elephants whenever possible -more on this subject to come later). At this point both Maggie and I were feeling that a ride might not be the best thing to do, but our desire to be close to the elephant got the better of us and we climbed aboard. Although we loved the feel of the elephants hairy back in our toes, we instinctively felt that the ride was demeaning to such a magnificent creature. After the ride, the show was over and we left feeling sad and guilty for having supported such a place. We also wondered: Why did Lonely Planet tell us that this was a great experience? Was this what should be expected when you go to an elephant camp? We didn't know but we were going to find out.

Our five days on Koh Chang was the mix of experiences that travel so often provides. Breathing polluted air while eating the most delicious pineapple curry. Swinging in a hammock listening to the sounds of the jungle while the mosquitos begin to feast on our legs. Seeing an elephant munch a pineapple, seeing an elephant beaten with a sharp hook. Thailand has it all and through the ups and down we are feeling grateful to be here experiencing it.

I'll post some pictures soon and get caught up with our updates.

Bangkok to Ko Chang...

Our Thailand adventure began 10 days ago when my dad dropped us off at SFO. Seems like so long ago and yet time here in Southeast Asia seems to be flying by. The flight to get here is a killer. This place is awesome but it's no wonder that people in the States aren't just popping over for a quick vacation. We flew out at noon on Thursday and arrived at our hotel at 1am Saturday morning. Hello jet lag!



So, we spent the first few days in Bangkok cruising around checkout out the sites. Bangkok is huge with an interesting contrast between beautiful gold and jewel encrusted temples and right next door poverty and despair. The city has a very metropolitan swanky feel in parts and then very third world urban nastiness in others. I guess it's like any huge city i just hadn't envisioned the modern, high-tech metropolitan side. Our hotel was near Khao San Road which is a mecca in the city for backpackers and budget travelers. The majority of the people we've seen in Bangkok have been european (english, german, swedish, etc.) and not too many americans. I'm not sure why, but it's felt cool to be in this touristy spot and not be surrounded by people from the states. Makes it feel even more like we're really far from home.

We explored beautiful temples (Wats) with enormous golden Buddhas, walked the streets looking at all the stuff for sale. There are these incredible markets, and night bazaars, and roads famous for their shopping. It's the strangest thing but there are hundreds and hundreds of these individual shop keepers who set up shop on the street each day. Every three booths it's the same exact stuff as the guy had a few booths ago. It's hard to imagine with all the competition that people can get by but then again, there are A LOT of shoppers out every day and every night buying crap (including mags and i). Have i mentioned how cheap it is yet? $1 equals 35 Baht and your money goes a long way. A taxi ride anywhere in the city will cost around 60-80 baht, an entree is often 50 baht, etc. It's a nice relief to have our money go so far after the expense of Hawaii. We indulged and treated ourselves to expensive 90 minute thai massages at a fancy spa that set us back 450 baht ($13).

So, after walking, taking taxis, tuk-tuks, and the sky-train all over Bangkok, we decided it was time to get out of the city and head for the islands. We caught a bus that would take us to the far South East province in Thailand called Trat. From here we took a ferry to the Island of Ko Chang. Ko means island and Chang in Thai is Elephant so Elephant Island here we come.



more soon...

Pictures from Bangkok...

Bangkok 2007

Sorry for the delay. I've been struggling with internet stuff. Not at all with finding an internet cafe but more that i'm struggling with sitting in one. You see, i ended up bringing my laptop which has been great, but the challenge has been that thus far, wireless has been difficult to come by. I'm actually in an internet joint right now but i plugged the network cable into my computer so i can upload the pix i've taken.

We're on the island of Ko Chang now and leave in the morning back to the mainland. I'll be in touch soon as we get more settled.