August 20, 2009

• Thailand 2009!

  So, just got back from Thailand.  Who still reads xanga?  anyhow, I just posted some of these pics on facebook, so sorry for the repeats!

  We left for Thailand on a 1 am flight (no fun) and I have to say that LAX is the most inefficient airport in the WORLD.  ugh.

  Anyhow, we stopped by Korea on the way for a 12 hr layover to much of our delight and I got to eat some yummy food and see how uniform all the women and men look in Seoul. 
  
  Wonderful AREX took us from the airport to the city area.

  
  Look who i ran into! 

  
  Look what I bought!  (just for curiosity sake)

  

  Someone told me about delicious tuna kimbap so i was obsessed about finding it and eating it.  It was pretty delicious, but I took the leftovers in my bag and it didn’t smell so nice after a day of walking in sweltering heat.

  

  I know we don’t look very attractive here, but man…24+ hrs of traveling makes a very tired and swollen traveler.

  

  Hotel #1.  Shower and toilet room all in one! 

  

  Our ultimate destination and most anticipated.

  

  
  Suvarnabhumi airport, bangkok

  
  Hotel #2 at Ao Nang, Krabi

  

  

  

  View from the pool area. 

  

  
  Fruit drinks galore in Thailand, but WAY too sweet.

  
  One of these drivers gave us a very memorable trip…

  He offers to take us to take us to the area we wanted to go to, which was about 20 min. away.  I already knew this tuk tuk would struggle a bit getting all the way to where we wanted to go, but figured they knew what they were doing.  So he goes opposite the direction he’s supposed to go and I ask him why he’s going this way and I smell alcohol on his breath and get a bit worried.  In his broken English he tells me that he’s going to change cars!  So he precedes to take us in a random, unpaved, UNLIT road where bugs are hitting us left and right and even a BAT!  Anyhow, he takes us to his house where we meet his sister/wife/son/no clue! and pulls out his truck while we wait for him outside on the road next to his house in the DARK, UNLIT street.  Anyhow, the guy ended up being pretty cool and waited for us to take us back later and played his Thai music REALLY loud and had this creepy, nervous, anxious giggle. 

  

  Anyhow, got some delicious PAPAYA!! (this pic was intended for you, Stella!)
  The fruit in Thailand is DELISH and so abundant and cheap.

  

  Got a massage for like $6!  Lady massages you head to toe.  She even massages your scalp.

  

  On ferry to go to Koh Phi Phi Don!  Excuse the shiny, greasy face.

  

  around the corner is Railay, Krabi.  I’d say that this place is worth visiting and not Ao Nang.  The only way to get here is by boat though.  It looked so beautiful!  our ferry picked up people from here and the way they got here is by one of those wooden boats and just hopped on with luggage and all!

  

  

  Around, the corner is the port for Koh Phi Phi

  

  We stayed at Phi Phi Hotel

  

  Took a 1/2 day snorkeling trip on one of these long tailed boats

  

  One of our stops

  

  At Monkey Beach

  

  Crazy monkeys. 

  
  
  Little monkey stole that sucker.

  
  
  Our long tail boat driver/tour guide=NO HELP

  

  

  

  First timer!

  

  

  

  The aftermath of our mini side trip (part of the snorkeling 1/2 day trip) to Maya Bay, where they filmed The Beach with Leonardo Dicaprio.  You’ll have to ask me about the craziness of getting to that bay.  Let’s just say the waves were rough and rocks were sharp and our boat had to dock really far and I had to save Kaitlyn.  My gash was gushing blood at one point.

  

  Phi Phi viewpoint.  Quite the trek to go up here.

  

  

  After this really long uphill hike, we decided to find another beach, but little did we know HOW FAR “just around the corner” really was. 

  
  Our poor feet suffered in the process

  
  I couldn’t get sand into my gash so I had to wear a sock on it the whole time we were hiking/walking on the beach. 

  
  I think my camera needed a little lens cleaning at this point…sorry for the hazy.

  

  Found a cool abandoned boat!

  So, we stopped by Phuket on the way back to Bangkok for the afternoon.

  Before we got to Phuket, we had to take the ferry boat ride from HELL.  This video does not do justice for how ridiculous the boat was rocking.  Everyone was some shade of green in the face and smelled of vomit…. 

  
  Patong Beach

  

  Bangkok…

  

  Hotel #4 in Bangkok

  
  @ the weekend market aka chatuchak market.  So fun! and totally worth it!

  

  

  
  
  I look homeless.  It was SO hot and humid.  Ugh.

  

  

  Our tour guide around the grand palace.

  

  Reclining buddha

  
  
  He’s got some enormous feet!

  
  
  Foot/leg massage #2!  Again, this is my “look like a homeless person” day.

  

  
  We saw a ladyboy (tranny) show…Share in my disbelief in how beautiful these men look!
  

  The Thai’s really like the Wondergirls.  They played that Nobody song EVERYWHERE! and even performed it!

  
  
  Definitely one of the prettiest!

  

  She was definitely a close competitor

  

  

  
  I look really happy, but actually I’m sort in shock because they spoke to us in their manly, deep voices.

  
  We were pretty beat by the last day so we just did whatever was in the vicinity…Little did we know all the hidden picture gems they had at this place!

  

  

  

  

  

  

  So hot!!

  

  

  

  

  
  Sorry Kevin

  Last stop to Korea on the way home…
  

  mmm…I love beef too.  We ate WAY too much chicken in Korea

  
  
  So RAINY and WET in Korea.

  

  Mmmm…Ahn Dong Jeem Ddak!

  OH yeah! when we took our random SF trip in June, we ran into Man vs. Food guy Adam!  I took a stalker picture…
  

  We sat at a table right in front of the restaurant and he came up to us and talked to us and I THINK they taped us, but not sure and not sure if they’ll use the footage because we didn’t sign waivers or anything.  but maybe we’ll be in the background?  i dunno.  The episode comes on August 26th!  watch it!

  
  Sorry so long!!!

  • 2:14 am
  • 6 Comments