The End of an Era

And so we've come full circle.  Trevor, Carson and Eli have left for the aiport, my solo flight's in about 5 hours, and I have been kicked out of the hotel.  If you've kept up with this blog regularly, we thank you, and if this is your first time reading... well I guess that's just your loss.

Before I go I'd like to give Thai Airways my full recommendation, they've got about 60 free movies on demand, games, comfy blankets, and airplane food that I'd be happy to order in a Thai restaurant.  They aren't paying me to say this (yet.) Over the past 3 weeks we've stayed in 7 hotels, 1 train, and 1 bus.  We've ridden (or been ridden by) monkeys and elephants, swam in the ocean, eaten, laughed, cried (at least that's what it looked like when trevor ate the spiciest dish alive), and possibly even learned something along the way.. (although that last one might be a stretch).

On our journey back west, we hope to bring home Eastern spices, knowledge and culture, much like our explorer predecessors of the 14th and 15th centuries.  We didn't get a chance to go to the Wish Lantern Festival, but that is something I'd like to try at home, so if your in for it, prep yourself for something amazing.  I think it could be quite a sight off of DP.

Thanks for reading, its been fun, but for some reason I think that seeing all of you in person will be even better.

Back to the BKK (and the TF's 2nd Annual Sweepstakes)

Well, we're back in Bangkok and it feels stupendous.  I feel like we've been all the way around the world the past two weeks, but it turns out we've just been around Thailand (and a little bit of the land down under for one of us.)  Last night we took an 11 hour red eye bus trip (following a two hour ferry) from the bottom of the country back to the middle, where we currently reside.  Seeing Bangkok both before and after seeing the rest of the country is kind of cool as we're able to compare how it felt at first, and what it looks like compared with other more rural parts of the nation.

Two weeks ago we were wide eyed kids in a new world, gaping in awe at the 30 Baht to US Dollar ratio, the absence of traffic laws, Buddhist Monks, and the sleezy (yet fun) street vendors.  Now that we're (dare I say it?) seasoned veterans, we can see the town for what it really is, with a golden badge of experience worn on our upper lapel, as we overlook the town from the 17th floor of our hotel.

In a word, Bangkok is... busy.  In twenty words, Bangkok is a crazy, smoggy place with a whole lot going on and not a lot of ways to go about doing it.  Somehow everything we try to do, we end up at the same street with fake watches being sold and transvestites hollering out "Hey Sexy Boys!" offering us massages.  Don't get me wrong, I love massages, but these are not the massages we're looking for.  

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Anyways, after arriving here at 6 this morning we headed back to the tailor to get refitted for our suits.  Don't wanna brag, but I also don't wanna lie... we look damn good.  When the other 3 amigos wake from their cat naps we'll probably head out for some dinner and see what else this town has to offer.  There have been rumors of a floating restaurant, and the good lord knows I'm not one to turn down anything that involves floating and food.  I also haven't played ping pong in a while, and word on the street is Bangkok is famous for something called a "ping-pong show?"  No idea what that means, but it sounds interesting, and I've seen enough youtube videos of asians playing amazing ping pong to know that it probably isn't something to be missed.  If you have 30 seconds, here is a fun little clip of Bruce Lee killing it on the tables.  To be honest I'm not even sure if Bruce Lee is alive or dead, but it would be really epic if he showed up tonight.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  

That's all for now, and thanks for reading.  Hope everyone's school is going well, we had a grand time missing class today.

Cookies!

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Also, as a reward for finishing this literary masterpiece, despite the fact that it was entirely void of pictures, you have been entered into The Thailand Fantastic's 2nd annual sweepstakes! (No purchase necessary, many will enter, few will win.) At this exact moment in time this blog's got 1157 views.  We have an amazingly cool, indescribable Thai prize for the 1250th viewer of the Thailand Fantastic.  I repeat, if you  are the 1250th page view for this blog, post a screen shot on Facebook of you completing such a feat, and the prize is YOURS.  If you are a parent, advertiser, or journalist without Facebook, just let us know, and we'll most likely trust you.  We will announce the prize tomorrow, so best of luck!

Thailand Travel 101, and other Fantastic Things

For those concerned, we are still alive and thriving.  Apologies for the hiatus, we've been living the island life, which means a) internet connection is subpar, and b) it's hard to get yourself to blog when there are $10 massages along a white sand beach.

Nonetheless, we've been quite busy since we last spoke, and tigers and elephants are things of the past.  The past few days have been filled with heaps of travel and excitement, and for the all time low price of only $4.99, I can fill you in on everything.  (See Donate button to the right).

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If you are reading this, we appreciate your contributions.

Saturday ended with a night Safari, where we saw zebras, kangaroos, giraffes, yaks and more, all in their natural habitats.  Please ignore the fact that none of these animals are native to Thailand.  I woke up Sunday with the scooter life on my mind, so Trevor and I hopped back on our bikes and scooted up into the mountains while Carson and Eli got pampered at the local massage parlor. 

A side note: To be short, in Thailand, this are cheap.  In fact, cheap is an understatement, things are dirt cheap, we have been continually astounded at the low prices here.  From 2 dollar Pad Thai dinners to $5 hour long foot massages, the currency conversion has been good to us, to say the least.  Still, there is one thing that has topped it all.  And that, my friends, are moped scooters.  Take a guess at how much it costs to rent a scooter for 24 hours with full insurance... 10 dollars.  Ten measly dollars and we had bikes for a full day.  Bam.

Trevor and I took a quick stop at a Snake Show in the hills of Chiang Mai, and then it was back to the city to meet up with Carson and Eli.



Gettin our Britney Spears on.  Of 40 people, we were the only caucasions, and I have never felt more like a celebrity.

That night we visited the night market and a temple, and then were off to Phuket.  The temple was truly mesmerizing, as you can see.

Us, Truly Mezmerized

The next couple days were busy with travel.  Within less than 48 hours we took to flights, a ferry, and who knows how many shuttles and taxis.  (I am continually amazed at how easy it is to book flights less than 2 days in advance).  In short, we flew Chiang Mai to Phuket, spent a night in Phuket, (bnicest beaches I have ever seen in my entire life), flew from Phuket to Ko Samui, and then ferried from Samui to Ko Phangan, where we currently reside.  Somewhere along the ride we stopped for some food, and Trevor decided to order the "extra spicy" option.  The waitress warned him against it, but some like it hot, and Trevor pressed forward.  On the bright side, I'll give it to him that he finished his meal.  On the dark side, he did end up looking like this.

I actually have a lot more to tell all of you, but the internet connection at this hotel is really slow, and dealing with this computer is literally making my trip worse.  It took me about 7 minutes just to write that sentence right there.  We hop on an 11 hour bus/ferry/taxi ride tonight at 5 to head back to Bangkok, so I'll fill you in on the rest in a days time.  Living large, and I wish a happy OTT to everyone back in IV. 

The Thailand Fantastic

And I'll Never Go to Another Zoo Ever Again

Ohhh Thailand, you've done it again.  The past two days have been something for the books, as the four of us have embarked on journeys we'd never dreamed of.  There comes a time in every mans life when he's presented with true greatness, and this trip has been one of those times.  Friday and Saturday's activities presented tests of our strength, wit, prose and brilliance...  Fortunately, with the help of our faithful readers, we've passed with flying colors... And I'll never go to another zoo ever again.

Friday morning we were faced with our first test, waking up at 6 am to catch a shuttle to the Jumbo Elephant Camp.  "But Noah, what is this Jumbo Camp you speak of?  Didn't you already go to fat camp last summer?"  Yes, I did, and I'm looking great thank you very much.  But this is something different.  We set out on our journey to Jumbo Elephant Camp with one goal, and one goal only - to ride an elephant.  To what? To ride elephants, I said.  And elephants we rode.

nothing like a man in control

oh hey!

Can't really explain how majestic the elephants were.  As we rode them through the jungle, I just couldn't wrap my head around how smart they were.  They say elephants can learn over 150 commands, of which we learned about 4. (But they were in Thai, so give us a break).  Even though the elephants went where we told them to, we all got the feeling that the elephants were really the ones in control, and sitting 12 feet off of the ground on their heads, we were completely at their mercy.

Nonetheless, we got so good at riding them that they even let us lead some tours with some local students.  They didn't speak a lick of English, so we had to converse with our stunning elephant handling skills.

"and on your right, you'll see the thai ka-chwen bush, one of the elephants favorite snacks"

Celebrity Status - I think they took more pictures of us than they did of the elephants.  But who could blame them after seeing Eli man handle the mountains from Dumbo's back?

Friday night we headed out for some good old fashioned Muy Thai Boxing.  Feeling burly after our bout with the elephants, we settled for VIP Ring Side seats for a whopping $15 a seat.  To be honest I couldn't really tell whether they were dancing or fighting, but either way it was awesome.  Furthermore, we were sitting right next to the announcer, and we may or may not have been getting a little loud and American-rambunctious in the fifth round of the night's headline.  The announcer overheard us screaming about a particularly suave move by one of the fighter's, and let Trevor tell the entire stadium what he thought of the kick.  "DOUBLE FAKE KICK TO FLYING PUNCH" he screamed into the announcer's microphone... pretty sure thats the technical term for it

Saturday, Saturday, Saturday.

This morning we woke up feelin a little wild, and theres really only one thing to do when you feel that way... Play with tigers.  So we hopped on some motor scooters and headed to the Tiger Kingdom.

Then, as if it couldn't get any better.... baby tigers..

Finally, we hopped back on our scooters, and headed home.  The first half of our ride we were clearly the Asian driver equivalents in Thailand -- I'm about 90 percent sure that Thai's have a plethora of jokes about how terrible 21 year old white boys are at driving.  If not, they should, because we were going about half the speed limit and taking up every lane...  It also didn't help that they drive on the wrong side of the road here.  

Nonetheless, we soon got our bearings, and from then on it was smooth sailing.  We made it home unscathed with  ridiculously good looking helmet hair.  Was thinking about joining Hells Angels until Eli told me that they don't drive automatic scooters.  And that just about brings an end to our Saturday... Once again, thanks for caring, and hope everyone back at home is doing swell, we misses you.

Sincerely, The Thailand Fantastic.  

#blending in

Short 'n Sweet; A Midsummer Night's Train Ride

Our Lopburi experience ended with some foot massages and a drink at the local travelers' bar.  Soon we were off to the train station to catch a red eye up to Chiang Mai.  The good news was, we had sleeper cars with nice comfy beds... The bad news was.... the beds were definitely meant for Thai people, and it turns out Trevor is a little big larger than the average Thai.

Nonetheless, it was an 11 hour train ride, so we played our cards, read our books, and set to sleep in Car # 12 of a Thailand railroad car.  Trevor and Eli took one car, and Carson and I took the one next door.  Whose team are you on???

vs.

If you said Trevlar and Eli than you lose.

Finally, we woke up in Chiang Mai, got off the train, and headed to our hotel, the Royal Princess.  Somehow they overbooked the hotel, so we ended up in the suite for 50 dollars a night.  Sweet!

It's started to rain a little bit, but that didn't stop us from beasting the elements and making it to this internet cafe so that we could book our flights to the dirty south (Phuket) and fill you in on our adventures.  Tonight we go see a Muy Thai boxing match, and tomorrow it's elephants or bust.  Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy the California sunshine for us.

The Thailand Fantastic

Bangkok, Lopburi, and a Heap of Monkeys

CONGRATS TO BOWEN DK ON BEING THE THAILAND FANTASTIC VIEWER # 350!  Mr. Dunahoo Kirsch, a prize awaits you.  Stay tuned for the next sweepstakes this literary masterpiece has to offer.
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And as the stars aligned, Bangkok screamed out our names, and finally, the four of us are here.  That's right ladies and gents, The Thailand Fantastic has officially begun.

finally met up

elis here too - living proof

(Although I don't have any pictures, I can personally account for how great Trevor, Carson and Eli looked after 20 hours of travel.)

Apologies for the delay in posts, but we had only 48 hours in Bangkok, and somehow blogging didn't make the cut.  Nonetheless, here's a breakdown of the past few days in the land of the Thai.

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After meeting up at our Hotel in Bangkok (Monday afternoon), we headed out for a night on the town at historic Khao San Road.  

 

To say the least, Khao San was a blast.  Imagine a mile stretch of road composed of a mixture of flea markets and Rush Hour 2, and you can get somewhat of an idea of what we were up against. After eating some delicious Pad Thai (2 dollars) on the street, we spent the night turning down vendors and other various suitors.  (As a general rule, some things in Thailand are just better left walked away from).  On the way home we took one of Thailand's infamous Tuk Tuk taxis, and despite the fact that the ride only cost 6 dollars, it just seemed right to squeeze all 4 of us into one.

what you know about for guys in a tuk tuk?

Tuesday was our first full day here, and we started the day in style with some Tuesday Morning Football.  (God forbid Trevor and Eli miss the Raiders game).  After the game, it was time to fully take advantage of the 30 baht to 1 USD ratio, so we headed to the tailor to get fitted for some suits. 

You're gonna love the way we look... I guarantee it.

Tuesday...

Our time in Bangkok had come to a close, and this morning we had an early wake up to catch a train to Lopburi.  (3 hour train ride, 150 baht, 5 dollars.)

Sidenote:  To our parents and other concerned citizens, I'd like to say that we've been left in good hands.  Trevor has been busy taking care of our train tickets, bus tickets, hotels, and itinerary.  If not for him, we'd probably still be stuck at the Bangkok Airport trying to figure out which form to fill out at customs.

DeSalas hard at work figuring out what's next.

We started out Lopburi with some bike taxis to some ruins, but I'd like to quote Casey Simon when I say, "Once you've seen one ruin, you've seen all ruins," so we quickly moved on to something more exciting, (and the reason for our stop in Lopburi),  

THE MONKEY TEMPLE.

The Monkey Temple was exactly what it sounds like, exactly as amazing as we thought it would be, and I can't really explain it any better than these next few pictures....

Winner

Hey Carson, you got a monkey on your back.

Yup...

After the temple we treated ourselves to a nice 7 course meal for 6 dollars a person, (how is that even possible?), and ended up at this little internet cafe to escape the sweltering heat.

Tonight at 8 we hop on a red eye train to Chiang Mai, and by sunrise we'll be basking in whatever Northern Thailand has to offer.  Not sure what comes next, but I can say one thing.... The Thailand Fantastic, has just begun.

Give me a week...

ATTENTION: Due to the fact that no one has claimed the sweepstakes prize at 350, the sweepstakes number is being extended to page view # 425.  Post a screenshot of you being the 425th visitor and win a stunning Australia shot glass.
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Meanwhile.....

I came to Sydney with 3 goals.  To see the opera house, to see a kangaroo, and to visit the Paddington Lawn Bowling Club, where a girl named Bene worked for a few months last year.  Bad news is, the lawn bowling club is ever elusive, sorry bout it.

Kangaroo, check!

The good news is... Noah went to the zoo, which means that this post will be mostly pictures. The zoo started with a ferry ride, which is by far the best way to get to a zoo.  After seeing the roo's, I passed on to another one of Australia's flagship species, and an animal that holds a lot of memories from my childhood... the tasmanian devil.  Unfortunately, it turns out tasmanian devils look absolutely nothing like Taz.  Four legs? Come on now Loony Tunes.

Then, in a fit of hysteria, as if it couldn't get any better, the Sydney Zoo did the unthinkable, they mixed kangaroos with Tasmanian devils.  Unfortunately, the outcome is not for the weak minded.  For a picture of what happens when these two creatures are mixed, check out the "pictures" section of the blog.

Next I moved on to some of these guys.  As soon as I saw the elephants, I told them, "Give me a week and I'll be riding one of you in Thailand!"  They were very excited.  When I said the same thing to a group of girls on the subway, I got a very different reaction.

It's night three in Sydney, and my solo journey is coming to a close.  10 am tomorrow I catch a flight to Bangkok to meet up with the 3 muskateers, and you finally get to hear from someone besides me talk about nothing and everything.

peace, love, and safe travels to the three muskateers.  and as reward for reading this whole post... here is a koala