Dubai, United Arab Emirates

June 20 - 22

After Ko Samui, we spent another day in Bangkok and on the way back to Germany we made a longer pit stop in Dubai. We arrive very early in the morning in Dubai, and nothing was open!! We walked around a bit, trying to wait it out until we could check into our hotel. We visited lots of the famous buildings (the Burj, etc.) and saw Jumeriah beach.

The most memorable was the shopping experience at the notorious Dubai mall. The mall is something to write about. We didn't go to the mall with the skiing inside, but another one that was amazing for a gal you likes to shop! It was huge - think Mall of America size - with every store you can imagine. I was so excited to see my American brands of the Gap, Banana, etc. The sales were not that good, but the selection of stores was unique. To get out of the mall was an obstacle, as it is in the middle of nowhere. To get there was easy, to leave was the hard part. The taxi line would have taken 4 hours, I have never seen a line so long ---reminded me of a line to get on a roller coaster except shoppers had carts full of their goods!

While our time in Dubai was limited, here are my initial impressions of Dubai:
-Really freaking hot, feels like you cannot breathe
-Large difference between the wealthy and the poor
-Bad public transportation system
-Money makes Dubai go round and opens doors
-I have never seen so many sky scrappers being built at the same time as I have here
-Chaotic
-Multi-cultural, but separated

Photos:
1 and 2 - Early morning views of Dubai
3 - Exploring the closed Souk area
4 - Dubai Creek
5 - Around town
6 - Rules for entering the mall
7 - Dubai Museum ticket, not overly exciting museum about the history of Dubai
8 - My favorite - Fresh mint and lemon drink
9- View from our hotel window. Those are beds on the roof of the building next door.
10 - The closest you can get to the Burj
11 - The Gulf at Jumeriah beach
12 - The Burj Dubai, it will be the world's tallest building when it is finished September 2009
13 - The pier
14 - Friends hanging out and chilling along the Dubai creek

Koh Nangyuan, Thailand

June 17

Koh Nangyuan is about a 15 minute ferry ride from Ko Tao and is made up of three small islands that are connected by a sand dune. There are 3 ferries a day there and back from Ko Tao, and the last one comes back pretty early. After this time boats are not allowed to go back and forth. We decided to go over pretty late and brought the snorkeling stuff. I think we had about an 1.5 hours until the return ferry! This turned out to be the most beautiful beach that I saw in Thailand. The sand or lack there of was really rocky, but the water was a amazing. Really shallow coral. I was just sitting in the shallow and could see all the marine life swimming past me. Florian went out deeper to snorkel around, and accidentally cut up his foot. It was a mini-freak out, as this island is tiny with only one resort and one shop. I was virtually running all over the island to find a first aid kit! Alas, I found something and got him on the boat back safely.


Photos:
1 - Ariel view of Koh Nangyuan
2 - On the ferry ride over
3 - Snorkeling
4 - view of Koh Nangyuan as we left

Ko Tao, Thailand

June 15 - 18

After a little disappointment with Lamai Beach, we decided to go even more remote. We took a 1.5-2 hour ferry to the island of Ko Tao. Ko Tao was originally an island meant for divers, but is now opening up for further tourism. We even stayed at a diving resort that held classes everyday, although we didn't dive.

In Ko Tao, Florian got a little sick from the air conditioning, but Florian was recovered by the end of our time. I had time to wander around the small island and it was a little relaxing for the both of us to be away from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. Beautification procedures are soo cheap in Thailand, the hardest decision is where to go. I ended up getting some Thai pampering with a massage, pedicure, etc. and n Ko Tao. The Thai massage was painful, but felt great!!

Living the business
I noticed that Thais really live their business. For example, when you go into a pharmacy or a shop, they really seem to live there. They are watching TV, eating or cooking. You have to take off your shoes as a sign of respect, since this is their "house." At a larger restaurant along the main strip I even saw people sleeping and relaxing on the floor of the kitchen - not sure how sanitary this is!!

Photos:
1 and 2 - On the boat to Ko Tao, which was about 2 hours or so from Ko Samui
3 - Ko Tao scenery
4 - Florian at our lunch stop along the harbor
5 - The Ko Tao harbor
6 - Me thinking how are we going to get back up that steep path. We were exploring the more secluded parts of the island where we had to drive the 4x4
7 and 8 - Ko Tao beach scenes
9 - Leaving Ko Tao on an old school propeller plane, which of course we were seated right next to

Ko Samui, Thailand

June 13 - 15

We were trying to go South straight from Kanchanaburi, but ended up taking the bus back to Thailand and to the airport. We sporadically bought plane tickets at the airport and hopped on a flight that night. We hadn't even really booked a hotel room and we arrived quite late in Ko Samui. From the start it is obvious that Ko Samui is a hot tourist destination with the outrageous taxi prices that you have to take. We took the taxi and I think it may have been the scariest taxi drive in my life, I really had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. It was a very shady cab ride, as the driver made us switch to his brother's country club car to finish our journey. Then he was driving really fast and the curvy, bumpy roads didn't help! Alas, we arrived safe and sound.

We decided to stay at the second most popular beach (Lamai) to avoid crowds and congestion, in Lonely Planet it says it may be the most beautiful. However, we made the wrong decision. The sand was rough and the water was rough and nothing special. Don't get me wrong it was very beautiful with huge rocks, but not what I was expecting at all. However, we ended up checking out the most popular beach, Chaweng Beach, and it was very nice. Crystal clear water and warm. Chaweng was the place to be and we had a very nice dinner one evening on Chaweng beach!

Never Saying No
I realized that in Thailand show the desire to purchase something or request something, the Thais will go out of the way to accommodate you. For example, we stayed at a small nice mom and pop owned place with individual cottages. For breakfast I ordered my usual iced ovaltine, which I couldn't find on the menu. They took the order and 5 minutes later the husband was off on his little scooter and came quickly back with the drink mix in hand. This is also very apparent when shopping. Don't see your size, never fear the vendor will find one for you. Talk about customer service!


Photos:
1 and 2 - the bad beach (Lamai Beach)
3 - the good beach (Chaweng Beach)

Kanchanaburi, Thailand

June 11-13

We took a 2 hour bus ride to Kanchanaburi, it was recommended from a friend to visit here as it was a little quieter and not as touristy as Bangkok. My friend also recommended a really good cooking school and place to stay here, but when we got there the hotel was all booked and cooking school teacher was out of town. However, all was not lost. It was great to see a smaller town like Kanchanaburi, although there were still the cheesy touristy places. I also wanted to go here to see the infamous Bridge over River Kwai, known from the movie.

Here is the story behind the Bridge over River Kwai:
The black iron bridge was brought from Java by the Japanese supervision by Allied prisoner-of-war labour as part of the Death Railway linking Thailand with Burma. Still in use today, the bridge was the target of frequent Allied bombing raids during World War II and was rebuild after war ended. The curved spans of the bridge are the original sections. A daily train is still following the historical route from Kanchanaburi to Nam Tok Railway Station.

You can walk across the bridge and it was a little scary as you are just walking along the wood planks with the river below you. There were little safety platforms where you could stand if a train started to come down the tracks. I thought this was a joke, but later we saw a train pass.

We didn't do much sightseeing here, but explored the area a bit and relaxed! Of course, continued to shop and eat tasty Thai!

Food. Cuisine.
The Thais can really cook any cuisine. Not only did I have amazing Thai food, but also American and Italian. I think I already mentioned the french toast that I had every single morning with honey! I had the best pasta arrabiata, because it was actually spicy. When you say spicy in Thailand it is a whole new ball game, unlike in Germany when you ask for spicy, it really is. I can't count the number of times my mouth was on fire, but ohh so tasty!

Photos:
1 - Kanchanaburi sign near the train station
2 - Bridge over River Kwai
3 - Danger sign of trains that pass on the bridge, is this a joke?
4 - Me facing my fears and walking across the bridge
5 and 6 - Bridge from a far while at a floating restaurant
7- Trains actually do run on the bridge
8 - PongPhen was probably the best place we stayed in Thailand, which we accidentally stayed at because nothing was available at Apple's Guesthouse

Bangkok, Thailand

June 8 - June 11

With a stop over in Dubai, We arrived in Bangkok late on June 8th. We stayed on Khao San road at a place that Florian had been to before. Arriving first on Khao San is this indescribable feeling because of all of the chaos that surrounds you...it is a combination of excitement, energy, anxiety, intrigue and confusion, oh yes and tiredness from jet lag.

Our first day in Thailand we at this Irish Pub around the corner that had pretty good food, while in Bangkok we ate here everyday for breakfast. It was heaven for me as I consistently has french toast with honey and iced ovaltine to drink! Being in Europe, I have missed good American breakfast!! There was a torrential downpour and parts of Khao San was literally flooded. So not a good sightseeing day, however it was a day well spent as we did "sight-seeing" in a local mall. We shopped a lot, as you can get name branded apparel really cheap and they will even alter it for you right then and there. We ended up seeing Sex in the City this night, as going to the movies in Thailand is an experience as well. Before the movie begins, a short video montage of Thailand's King Rama IX (he has reigned since June 9, 1946, he is the world's longest-serving current head of state and the longest-serving monarch in Thai history). Everyone stands and watches the video as a salute to the King, watching a reel of the greatest moments in his life as King I suppose. It was kind of like the pledge of allegiance, with a song in the background, although no one sings really. We also visited Sukhumvit Road, which according to Wiki is the center of modern Bangkok and not only one of the longest roads in Thailand, but one of the longest roads in the world.

We went sightseeing around Bangkok and took the river boat taxis along the Chao Phraya River to get around easier. We went to see the palace in Bangkok, but it was already closed for the day. Afterwards, got hit by another torrential rainstorm (did I mention that it was almost the start of the rainy season in Thailand) and visited a Wat (temple). We also saw the reclining Buddha in a Wat. It is huge, although the way that it is displayed (columns in front) makes it hard to see the entire statue. We also bumped into a Buddhist ceremony going on and it was very interesting to watch. There was maybe about 10 monks you mediate together and a small area for worshippers. The mediation was almost melodious. It felt as though we were invading and not supposed to be there, but the doors were wide open.

Prostitution
So, it is quite apparent from the moment that you land that prostitution is quite legal in Thailand. It is everywhere, especially in Bangkok, but also very prevalent in the smaller cities we visited along the way. It was also not high season, so it was also quite apparent because many women were always hanging around and lingering around the bars and restaurants. If you are a white guy and are into Asians, this is the place to be. White European or American men with a Thai mistress in tow was a common scene. I found this culture to be quite disturbing, but realize the role it play into Thailand's economy, according to wiki "organized sex work in Bangkok alone involves a minimum of many thousands of workers, and possibly in the tens of thousands." On the other hand, prostitution is somewhat legal in Germany as well, however, I think it was more distributing in Thailand because the sex trade is on a much grander scale.



Photos:

1 - Me with the infamous backpacker's backpack
2 - Florian in one of the shopping malls
3 - Riding in a tuk tuk
4 - Me enjoying a wonderful Thai meal
5 - View of the Chao Phraya river
6 - On the ferry boat
7 & 8 - Taking the ferry boat around Bangkok
9 - Temple (Wat) stop
10 - Florian and I at the renowned Oriental Hotel
11 - Another view of the 3-wheeled Tuk Tuk, taxi driver
12 and 13 - Wat pho, Temple of the Reclining Buddha
14, 15, 16 - At a Wat, the colors were so amazing
17 - We came across a Buddhist service that was in session. It was funny during the mediation one of the monks was on his cell phone, ah how times change.
18 - Bangkok chaos, I think we were on the way to the movies
19 - Me on the chaotic Khao San Road
20 - Leaving Bangkok, backpacks in tow, for more adventures around Thailand