Beachin’ it, like I have never beached it before

Just before we left for the airport I decided to check online about flooding issues.  Thank goodness I did, because our flights were moved from the domestic airport to the international airport.  I called the airline, and they assured me that the flight would be at the same time, just moved to Suvarnabhumi.

We piled into a cab with a meter, and went to the airport.  It was a madhouse.  The airline was not prepared to be operating out of Suvarnabhumi, so all of the staff was uncomfortable with the equipment, computers and the facilities.  Within fifteen minutes we were checked in, so I was pleased.  Then I looked at the boarding passes.  Our flight had already been delayed two hours!  The woman hadn’t even told me when we checked in!  I went to information, and no, there wasn’t a mistake, our flight was delayed.  Ann and Heather were still calm, so I was as well.

Fast forward.  Our flight that was supposed to leave at one o’clock didn’t take off until 9:15 pm!  I was livid, but somehow we made it work.  We laughed for most of the afternoon, played with Photo Booth on Ann’s ipad, and took turns going to buy snacks.  We also found a wai-ing Ronald McDonald, and Ann was able to check the photo off of her Thailand bucket list.  It was definitely a rough afternoon, but once again, Heather and Ann were troopers.

We arrived at our resort in Phuket after 11 pm, and exhausted.  Our room was totally bizarre, but we were too tired to worry about it.

The very odd layout of our room- beds backing up to the open bathroom.  

The next day we woke up to the most beautiful beach in Phuket.  White sands, crystal clear blue waters, and service like I have never experienced before.

Trying not to sound ungrateful, let me explain how my family “did vacation.”  We didn’t order room service, it was always overpriced and never very good.  We also never stayed at resort-y places.  We stayed at hotels and then went outside to do activities.  I have always loved family vacations, and I guarantee that someday my kids will grow up without room service and resorts, and they too, will be just fine.  But, I have to admit, my vacation with Ann and Heather was quite a treat.

In Phuket we had five swimming pools, countless restaurants and a very long stretch of beach at our disposal.  On the first day we ended up sitting poolside, having fancy drinks, food, massages and pedicures by the pool.  I kid you not.  As I sat in a pool lounge chair, drinking a drink out of a pineapple, and reading my book, I got a massage and a pedicure.  You can’t make this stuff up.

We spent three days relaxing in the sun and living the life on the beach.  One morning we went into the Old Town and explored the local market.  It was filled with meat, fish, spices, produce, and just about every smell, good or bad, that you can imagine.  Heather struggled.

Pig feet for Gary

During the evenings we explored the nightlife of Phuket, giving Ann and Heather a firsthand look at the seedy underbelly of Thailand.  Read: we saw a ping pong show.

People watching.  One of our favorite pastimes. 

Buying DVDs in Phuket

Photos from our ride home in a tuk tuk that looked like it had just come from "Pimp My Tuk Tuk"

Three Annapolitans Traveled Thailand

Heather and Ann Palmer came to Thailand!  

In February, Ann and Gary went on a cruise with my parents.  While my parents talked up their trip to Thailand, Ann showed interest, and Gary did not.  By mid March, Ann had booked flights for herself and Heather to come to visit.  I was beside myself!  Then, I forgot about it.  An accident happened, life happened, deaths happened, and traveling happened.  Next thing I knew, it was September, and we hadn’t planned much.  In a matter of about two weeks, and countless emails, we planned everything.  Then, the floods happened.

I scrambled back to Khon Kaen from Cambodia for Cait’s birthday.  The six hour bus ride took twelve hours, and I was in Khon Kaen for about 30 hours before I was on the bus again.  While on my way to Khon Kaen I called my mom, told her the situation, and told her to call Ann.  I had planned to meet them at the airport, but with unpredictable bus times, I didn’t want them to wait.  The message was: If you don’t see Meaghan immediately, she is stuck because of the flood, take a cab to the hotel without her.

My quick trip to Khon Kaen for Cait's birthday.

Now, this wouldn’t be a story if the message went through.  The message didn’t go through.

I, of course, was delayed, by about three hours.  Ann and Heather, on the other hand, arrived on time.  And then they waited.  And waited.  And waited.  They waited at our meeting spot for over two hours before being asked if they needed a cab.  

**Note to all new travelers: the answer to that question is always “no.”  A cab driver won’t ask to give you a ride.  You will ask him.**

But, Ann and Heather were unaware of this rule, so they said yes.  And the two of them jumped into the back of an unmarked, tinted Camry, without a taxi meter.

I was also in a taxi, headed directly to the hotel, knowing they would be there waiting for me, because, of course, they had gotten the message.  

When I arrived at the hotel, and realized they hadn’t checked in, I was nervous.  And then, I got a text message.  Ann was texting me from the back of the cab.  She was a nervous nelly, and wanted to know where I was, and why I hadn’t met them.

After a few attempts at sending reassuring text messages, they arrived at the hotel.  I paid the cab fare, which was more than three times what it should have been, and hugged the frazzled travelers.  

When we checked into the room and realized the miscommunication, they were fine and grateful to be safe and sound.  I apologized, and took them on the second of their many adventures in Thailand.  

At around 1 am, Ann and Heather were still on east coast time, and ready to go to the bar.  We went to a nearby go- go bar alley, and had a few beers.  I have never seen Heather’s eyes so large in my entire life.   She was just trying to take it all in.  And for those of you that haven’t been to Thailand, there is A LOT to take in.  From there, still wide awake, we went to the flower market.  The flower market opens at around 3 am, and is mostly frequented by locals.  I had always wanted to go, and Ann and Heather were ready.  It was fantastic.  The flowers were incredibly beautiful, and so inexpensive.  Heather worked at a florist for years, so she was a wealth of knowledge.  She was able to tell us what everything was, and how much it usually costs.  In Thailand, flowers cost next to nothing.  Ann and Heather were ecstatic.  We walked the entire market, bought a few orchids, took tons of photos, and eventually headed back to the hotel.

 We finally went to sleep a little after 4 am, but we were up the next day in time for the hotel breakfast!  

We spent the first full day in Bangkok taking a longtail tour of the canals.  We spent two hours going through the canals on the west side of the city.  It was dirty, it was real, and Ann and Heather were loving it.  As the tour guide for their trip, I was very relieved.  

At the end of the tour Ann asked if the driver could drop us off at the Oriental Mandarin hotel.  The three of us waltzed into the nicest hotel in Bangkok for afternoon tea.  In a beautifully decorated tea room with live acoustic guitar wafting through the air, the three of us enjoyed tea, scones, sandwiches and cookies.  It was every bit as classy as I imagined an afternoon tea to be, and I loved every second of it.  

Our next day in Bangkok we went to the Grand Palace.  The tuk tuk drivers attempted to convince us that it was closed because of the flooding, but we weren’t falling for it.  

So, exactly at noon, we arrived at the Grand Palace to have a grand tour under the beating sun.  I hired us a tour guide, and she was wonderful.  She was very enthusiastic and informative.  Even though I have been to the Grand Palace four times, I love it every time I go.  With different tour guides and different groups of people, I learn more every trip.

I can handle the Thailand heat, but I must say, this was a very hot tour.  Aunt Ann was definitely done by the end of it, but she was a trooper.  We finished the entire tour and still had energy to shop!  After walking around the market and stores, we decided it was time for the pool.  The three of us lounged poolside with umbrella drinks.  

When a storm rolled in, we were all more than willing to sit in our room, eat pad thai and chat.  When the power went out in the hotel, we weren’t as psyched to be in the room.  The three of us got ready in the dark, and headed out for a night on the town.  With the flood seeping into various parts of the city, we ended up at a night market where we shopped our butts off.  After, we stopped at an Irish pub for beers, appetizers and live music.  

Our last morning in Bangkok we ventured to the tailor across the street.  Ann had thought about having suits made, so we went over to check it out.  About two hours later, Ann was having two three-piece suits and a dress made, a skirt for Heather and a dress for me.  They would all be ready when we came back to Bangkok after the beach.  Impressive.

I did it!

Number 16 on my list of 25 goals to complete before I turn 25 is to have 5000 page views on my blog.  Well, guess what?!  I have surpassed my goal!  It is only November 28, and my stats page told me that I have 5,019 total views!  Woohoo!

Can I get 7,000 before I turn 25?  

Angkor World- The Newest Disney Resort!

Two long bus trips through the flooded countryside brought me to Siem Reap, the city closest to Angkor Wat.  Once again, I booked my hostel in advance, and the tuk tuk driver was waiting for me at the bus station.  Mr. Bun was excited to see me, the girl who matched the name on his paper, and helped me with my backpack.  Then he said “this all?  Girls always have many, many things!”  Well thank you, Mr. Bun, I’m pretty proud of myself too.  As I climbed into the tuk tuk, he kick started it and said “today the flooding very good.  Yesterday- bad.  Today, water below the knee.”  Oh, goodness gracious.  What have I gotten myself into?  

This photo was the day that I left, when the road was mostly visible.  Mostly.

Mr. Bun navigated the flooded roads, swerving around the holes that he knew existed, but couldn’t see.  As we turned the last corner, there was another tuk tuk that hadn’t navigated around the hidden holes, and was stuck with its front wheel straight in the air, and its exhaust pipe filling with water.  Oh my goodness, please get me to the hostel in one piece.  

Mr. Bun's tuk tuk, and my ride for the tour.

We arrived within seconds, and Mr. Bun and I made plans for our sunrise trip to Angkor Wat the next morning.  I checked into the hostel, looked at the swimming pool, and was thrilled to be settling down for a few days.  I went upstairs to put my bag in my room and to change into my swimsuit.  There was a tall blonde guy in the room when I walked in.  He asked where I had come from, and when I told him Phnom Penh, he said he would be heading there the next morning.  He asked if I could recommend a place to stay.  I did, he thanked me, and he left the room.  (But, that isn’t where the story about him ends... I’ll tell you when you’re older)  

I swam a few laps in the pool, showered and called it an early night, but not before spending some quality time with the tall blonde man.  The next morning I was to meet Mr. Bun out front at 4:30 for our sunrise tour.  I jumped out of bed, tried to be as silent as possible while I got ready, and went downstairs.  Mr. Bun arrived after a thirty minute drive from his home, and we were off.  In the pitch black, we bumped along the mostly visible roads.  The flooding had gone down dramatically since the previous day, and I no longer feared for my life while we drove.  As the signs for Angkor Wat became more frequent, my heart started to race.  I was so excited!  As we entered the park, I saw more and more tuk tuks driving alongside us, on the roads I thought we would have to ourselves.  When we finally arrived at Angkor Wat, the most famous temple, there were tuk tuks everywhere!  There were people everywhere!  It was still pitch black, and there were hundreds of people with their appropriate walking shoes, their cameras around their necks and their maps.  This is not what I expected.  

I followed the herd of people to a dirt path directly in front of Angkor Wat.  The mass of people were standing shoulder to shoulder waiting for the sun to rise directly behind the temple.  I stood in the line for a few minutes before moving on.  I have a Canon Powershot camera.  There is no way that I would be able to take an amazing photo of the sun rising, and even if I do, the postcards will still look better.  So, I went into the temple.  And just as I did with the Mona Lisa, I took a photo of everyone else taking the same photo:  

Most people probably thought I was crazy for missing the sunrise, but they were the crazy ones!  I was able to take photos in the temple without a single person in them.  I had the temple to myself.  I explored the entire temple, completely alone.  It was magical.

From there, Mr. Bun took me on the short tour of the park.  I tried to take plenty of beautiful photos and “selfies,” but within a few hours, there were people everywhere.  At around ten o’clock, I finished a small walking tour of a few temples and came back to find my tuk tuk.  What I found looked like Disney World.  The parking lot was filled with vans and tour buses.  I am surprised the rows of the lot were not named and labeled.  “Oh, when you come back, the van will be parked in the Minnie Mouse section, row E.”

The day was incredible, and each and every temple was beautiful and unique, but the thousands of people took away from some of the magic.  By the end of the day, I struggled to take a photo without an umbrella in it, or a stick with a pom pom and streamers that a tour guide waved around.  Just like Macchu Picchu, the tour vans, and the men with walking sticks take something away from the beauty, but I tried not to let it bother me.  There is a reason the men with walking sticks flock to this place- it is amazing.  It is indescribable.  So, unless I pull a Hiram Bingham and discover Macchu Picchu, or the newest and greatest wonder of the world, I am going to have to be a tourist, just like the rest of them, dealing with the crowds.

Doesn't everyone love a good motorobike photo?

Sean Penn is not the capital of Cambodia

No, Sean Penn is not the capital of Cambodia.  Phnom Penh is the capital.

I wasn’t necessarily thrilled about going to Phnom Penh.  The only things I knew about it were that the tourist hot spots were the killing fields, the genocide museum and the shooting range.  Now, I will bet it is no surprise that those three things are not exactly my cup of tea.  Beautiful ancient ruins, okay.  Paying to shoot cows, eh, I’ll pass.

I arrived at my hostel, one that I booked in advance again, at the recommendation of a friend.  It was a great location and filled with friendly and exciting people.  I met an Australian girl who was in town for three weeks to volunteer at an orphanage and an American girl who moved to Phnom Penh on a whim to teach.  The two girls, alone, would have made my trip to Phnom Penh worthwhile.  They were very interesting to talk to, and gave me lots of tips about where to go.  They both insisted that I go to the killing fields and the genocide museum.  So, even though I wasn’t thrilled about it, I took their advice and went.

I hired a tuk tuk for the day.  He took me to the killing fields, the genocide museum, the Russian market and the palace.  It was a pretty big undertaking for one day, but in a lot of ways, I thought I would just want to get it all over with.  Boy, oh boy, was I wrong.

The memorial at the killing fields.

My first stop was the killing fields.  I honestly had no idea what to expect, but I expected to hate it.  For five US dollars I gained entry to the fields and an audio tour.  It was amazing.  Well, that is a terrible word to use in this situation, so let me explain.  The tour was incredibly well done.  Everything was explained in plenty of detail, but nothing was too overwhelming or too much information to process.  There were the options of a variety of different personal stories, each of which made the history significantly more real and shocking.  I am not going to even attempt to explain the significance of the killing fields, or the history of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia for that matter, but look it up.  And now that the Khmer Rouge is back in the news, it is quite relevant.

All I can say is that the day was moving.  The killing fields and the genocide museum were incredibly informative.  I am so grateful the girls recommended to go.

The Russian market was just another market.  But, I am a bit jaded at this point.  The market did have some pretty impressive wheels, however.

And the palace, sorry, Cambodia, but Thailand wins.

A model of Angkor Wat at the palace.

I spent the evening enjoying a traditional Khmer dinner with my new friends.  We had a great meal, a great discussion, and a beautiful walk along the river back to the hostel.     

A flat tire?  I wonder why...