Home sweet home!
Well, we made it back. Pops and Moms picked us up at around 7 last night. Surprisingly my body feels back on track, I know we are both a little tired today though...so we will throw ourselves back into our lives. Meaning Thuy will go out run errands, jog, shop...and I will, eat and rest.....back to reality!

A few thoughts about travelling from my (Dave's) point a view.

1) Pictures/photos - although we took 500 picutres, I'm sure if we focused on it we could have taken 2000. HOwever, we found that the camera was a 2nd thought most of the time. Obviously for the big attractions it was the first thing we took out...but for a lot of the time, we would be oh we should have taken a picture. But that was because we were experiencing things, and enjoying things. So we apologize if there isn't a ton of pics of everything. But I'm sure many have experienced that when they travel.

2) Partnership - I've never travelled alone, but I couldn't imagine not having Thuy there. WE had such a good partnership, good cop/bad cop, i mess she cleans, I handled the maps, she kept the credit cards. It worked beautifully. It's fun to have a partner when you go into new palces.

3) Airplanes - I can't sleep on them.

4) Airports - I can't sleep in them.

5) Email/Internet - I realized that I am addicted to email and the internet. I couldn't resist checking it almost every day. I know Thuy could go pretty much the whole time. I'm dependent on the "information age". I need to be informed of the world around me. I like to know if the Canucks won, what's going on in Ottawa or with the 2010 Olympics, what movies are doing well at the box office. CNN, TSN, ESPN. They are as important to me as food and water. I'm not going to apologize for it. I think that's just part of who I am, for better or worse. Just like I prepared for the trip by researching a lot of the places we were going to visit. I like to be "in the know".

6) People - I found that people, no matter where they are from, are very much alike. Religions may differ, views on politics or relationships may differ, but ultimately we are all similar. We laugh at the same things, we all like to eat, kids like to play. Not that I thought the people we would encounter would be alien to us, it was just that despite the language barriers, we could still communicate with hand signals, a smile, and of course...cash money. Perhaps it was the western influence in asia that brought this feeling for me...but I think it was more the people. Most were so nice, even when they were trying to rip you off, you could see a twinkle in their eye that totally gave them away. Sometimes, it seemed like they wanted us to call their bluff and then they would agree to a much lower price. I'm sure their theory is "shoot for the stars" with tourists, and I don't think we can really judge until we walk in their shoes (wouldn't I do the same if I couldn't find work, or the country I am in just doesn't have the programs to support me or my family??)

7) Adaptability - Finally, I think I learned that I can adapt to different environments and cultures. I experienced culture shock in Bangkok the first few days. We plopped ourselves in the middle of chinatown and walked the region that first day. Wow! Perhaps it was because I was the only white guy in a 10 mile radius probably, but it took a while for me to feel comfortable. After that though, whenever we reached a new place, we would usually hail a cab and go to the middle of the city, and just explore. And that was the best part of the experience. Just finding things on our own.

Anyways, will update again with our top moments of the trip, and pictures!

Au revoir
Well, sad and happy to say our trip has come to a close. Sad to leave, but happy to come back to Vancouver.

We are at the Singapore airport, which is amazingly beautiful. So clean and efficient.

We were just in Singapore for one night (got in around 8pm last night). Thuy will update the blog when we get back as to our trials and tribulations getting to Singapore. It included getting somewhat smuggled across the border as our friend forgot his passport...don't worry D, Thuy will fill you in for sure!!!

Anyways, when we got here, Chris' brother in-law Malcolm volunteered to show us around. We went to eat and of course, it started pouring! Always leave a little Vancouver everywhere we go!!! He took us up to the hill-tops to an open air bar that was beautiful. had a 360 view of Singapore. So nice to see the ligtning storm!!! hehe.

CLike the song in Love Actually, "Christmas is all around us"!! They are so into Christmas at the malls here. Huge trees, displays, lights everywhere, you'd think Thuy was president here. She went a little starry eyed to say the least!

As well, we here there is snow in Vancouver. Will be quite the climate adjustment! But we are ready for it!!!!

KL was nice. We shopped a lot. We were kinda touristed (if thats a word) out. So we laid low, shopped, ate as usual, and relaxed.

But, our flight leaves in about an hour, so we should get going. Again, we will update the blog when we get back, giving everyone our highlights, lowlights, and memories!!! So many to count. But I think we are both ready to come home to our family and friends, especially for the holiday season.

We have however both gained some weight we think, we are hoping it's water retention, but nonetheless, we will be back in the gym promptly upon our return!

See everyone soon!

Dave and Thuy

KL!
Hey peoples!!!

Well, we made it to KL (our second last destination). What a beautiful city so far. We are in the downtown area, so we haven't ventured to Chinatown or the night markets yet...tonight we will!

First let me catch you all up to date.

We left Koh Samui on Thursday night. The rains were pouring down when we left so it delayed our flight a bit. Not as bad as some who were delayed 4-5 hours.

Koh Samui overall was nice...but I think due to the weather, we overstayed a few days. We didn't have much of a choice as the only flight out was on Thursday, but we got a little bored.

The weather prevented us from swimming and lounging on the beach the last half of our stay there, but I'm sure if the weather was nice, we wouldn't have been complaining. At least we got a few nice days in unlike some of the guests.

From Koh Samui, we flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. About a 2 hour flight in a small 48 seater plane. Ya, you feel the turbulence much more in those things.

But we made it safe and sound. Our friend Chris picked us up and drove us 2 hours North to Ipoh. Ipoh is known for its Tin Mines (not so much any more) and their noodle soups...which we stopped at 1am for a bowl of. Mmmmmm....delicious!!!

We can't say enough about Chris and Terance and how hospidable the entire family was to us. They wouldn't let us take out our wallets once. And the food was just amazing.

We are forever greatful for being our taxi and conceirges for the past few days!

In Ipoh, we ate...ate...rested..and ate again. For me...that is heaven as many of you know!!

Friday night, we went out for some drinks at a bar called Y2k. Pretty western..beers, redbull vodka. Then it was off to Mike's Place..which we were the only people there, but that meant better service for us. Quiet place, more drinks, more food, great night.

Yesterday, Chris drove us down to KL (about 2 hours). We checked into our hotel...the Concorde Hotel..very nice. $60 a night Cdn but would be double in Vancouver I bet. Finally, a bathtub!!!!

We ventured around the downtown area last night, not too busy. We will do some more sightseeing for the next few days.

Right now, we are at the KLCC area in downtown. There is a huge mall and it is attached to the famous Petronas towers. We tried to get tickets to go up to the bridge (which is on 44th floor half way up) but it is sold out today. If we want to go, we will have to come back early Tuesday. We'll see.

Anyways, we are here for a few more days, and then Chris has volunteered to drive us to Singapore (about 4hours) on Tuesday morning. So nice. Thuy made him an offer he couldn't refuse (physical threats nuff said).

So, we are going to do some shopping, sightseeing, more shopping, and eating! Can't wait for some Satay! Yum!!!!

If you don't here from us, that's because we ran out of money! hehe. There aren't many internet areas here, so we may just update from Singapore. We are only there for one night, and we fly home on Wednesday mid day. Sigh.....back to reality soon...but we will milk it for all its worth until then!

At least i have some cold cash waiting for me, as we sold our grey cup tix since the Lions crapped out on everyone! No point seeing Edmonton and Montreal play again! What is it, the third time in four years?? Disgraceful!

To my Dad and bro enjoy the Danny's on Sunday, save some house special fried rice for me!!!

Thuy is absent from the blog...we are in a mall after all. I should go get here before she cashes in our return flights!! hehe. JK.....perhaps!

Go Canucks!

Dave

Moving On
I realize that the past couple of updates have not been exactly blockbuster material, but unfortunately the winds have not died down, and we are still stranded like rats (this is Thuy by the way).

Yesterday we went on a tour of the island. I don't want to sound mean, but we were stuck with the senior citizens tour. They were not as enthusiastic as we were, especially when it came to taking pictures with the monkies (which you will see when we get back). Nonetheless, it was a very interesting tour. We got to see the entire island of Samui from an air coniditioned mini-bus. We saw a few temples, a very Big Buddha, some interesting rock structures (hehe), trekked up to a beautiful waterfall, had some lunch, and did some shopping.

For some reason, I'm having writers block right now. When I initially set out to write this blog, I had so many stories to tell you about Dave and all his geekiness, but now I can't quite remember. Let me think....

For one, he failed to mention that upon our arrival at the Koh Samui airport, we ran into a "twin" of his. The guy had the exact same outfit on but was about a foot shorter. I like to call him mini-Dave.

Oh ya, back in Chiang Mai, a local tuk-tuk driver asked him if I was his wife, without a momment of hesitation, Dave walked on and failed to acknowledge me. I was a little hurt as I ran after him with tears streaming down my face. You can all confront him when we get home.

All of the locals here think I'm Thai, so they come up to me and start talking, but I give them the most dumbfounded look, and they walk away.

Dave and I are trying to learn Thai, and you'll be happy to know that we have learned our own language (Thai-lish). Not quite Thai, not quite English. You will all be hearing it soon enough.

We have decided on a favorite restaurant in Samui. It is in Lamai and it is called Kung Fai (I think that is the spelling). It's got good food and good prices, but extremely slow service. We like to call it "the slow place". But we have pigged out there twice and it is delicious. We highly recommend it.

I would write more, but I shall leave your imagination to wander. Don't worry, I will give you all personal stories when I get back. Now on to Davide.

Well, I don't agree with some of the statements above, especially about her crying in the middle of the street (didn't happen). She's so dramtique.

Well, this is our last full day here on the island. I wish the weather was a bit better so we could enjoy the water, but we got 3 nice days in which is better than some people here. It is still warm and sunny, but just really windy at our resort, and the beach is full of debris at the moment, although today is a lot better. Perhaps tomorrow morning we will get in one last swim.

Our travels take us to Kuala Lumpur tomorrow night. We fly out around 6pm on a 48 seater!! Thuy is getting her gravol ready.

Our friend Chris is "hopefully" picking us up at the airport, if not, Dorina you will be hearing from us! You can't strand the godparents in a foreign country!!! You can't!!!

We will be going to their house in Ipoh (which is about 2.5 hours north of KL) for a few days, then on to KL for about 3 nights and then on to Singapore.

Our next update will probably come from Ipoh!!!

Hope everyone is well! C U SOON BYE BYE!!!

Dave and Thuy (but mostly Thuy this time)

The eye of the storm
Greetings

Well, we have been laying low the past few days. Soaking in some sun, and enjoying the water.

The area we are in is very quiet and the beach is gorgeous. However, yesterday, we had somewhat of a storm come in, and we were left trapped in our bungalow like rats. But we survived. The sun is out today, and there should be some good swimming later on.

Not much to update, we are both having a great time. We had a GLUTONEOUS (our spelling) meal a few nights ago. We went to an all you can eat BBQ, and we pigged out!

We will probably sign up for a tour in the next few days to check out other parts of the island. As for now, we are going to walk around and look for some good deals!

We'll update the blog when something more exciting happens. But for now, we are enjoying the relaxed atmosphere on the island.

Dave and Thuy

In paradise
Well, not that we didn't really enjoy Bangkok and Chiang Mai, this is what we have been really looking forward to. Koh Samui. And we are finally here, and definitely worth the wait!

First, on the 15th in Chiang Mai, they celebrated Loy Krathong (which is celebrated all over Thailand). There were huge parades, tons of firecrackers (think Halloween to the extreme). And thousands of people letting little flower boats with candles go into the water.

Thuy and I both got one and let it go, sending with it our bad luck for the year. So we will be buying lottery tickets when we get back.

We then did some major damage at the NIght Bizzarre! We were expert hagglers, and once we got a taste for blood, there was no stopping us. We usually got 40-50% knocked off the prices. We played good cop bad cop. One would really act like they wanted it, while the other would say, no too expensive and try to pull them away. We'd say "final offer" then start walking away. They'd always crumble! hehe. We are so mean. But we got some great stuff.

We had a great dinner. We feasted at a restaurant on the river. We tried as we might, but the bill was still only $22 Cdn. For major drinks, dessert and everything. Crazy cheap for food there.

Around 11:30 we began our trip to Koh Samui. We first flew to Bangkok, and then switched planes, and by 4:00pm we were at the airport. The airport is very interesting. It is completely open air, and all made of wood. It is something out of Gilligans Island.

Here we encountered the toughest test, trying to negotiate a taxi into town. It is a lot more expensive here than in the bigger cities. We tried to haggle down to 300 baht, but the drivers wouldn't budge and walked away. We new we were beaten, and we wanted to get to the hotel before it got dark, so we agreed to 400 baht (about $13 Cdn).

Once we arrived, we were in awe. We are staying in Tha Ka Tien area which is right between the major beach of Chewang and Lamai. We have our little own beach (shared by only 2 other resorts). It is truly amazing here! Our bungalow exceeded our expecations (for about $25 a night). It is quite large with a queen size bed. Cable TV (lots of new movies...too new to be showing on TV if you catch my drift).

We went down to the water, and dipped our feet in the warmest waters I've ever felt for open water. Thuy says it is similar to Cuba in temperature. The beach was pure white sand, and the gound in the water was all sand too...no coral...perfect for wading out. t was a full moon last night, so the entire beach was lite up. We didn't go to Kho Pagnan for the Full Moon party, which is basically an all night rave on the beach. Too much for our old bones! hehe.

We ventured into the Lamai beach area for some food. Lots of clothing stores and supermarkets, restaurants and bars. Probably similar to what Hawaii was like 40-50 years ago. Lots of construction going on as it seems to be expanding. From our readings, it says the first visitor came ot Koh Samui in only 1971 and set up a hut. So in 35 years, it has expanded immensley.

In town we had some food and beers, and picked up some essentials (flip flops and beach towels!)

This morning, we got up early, and hit the water. It was so nice and warm, but refreshing. There is a lot of shade on the beach too so you can have a bit of both. There is a massage hut set up right on the beach that I think we will use soon!

Thuy is off reading a book on the beach, so I will be joining her shortly for some fun in the sun!

Our plan was to leave on Sunday, but with flights to Kuala Lumpur leaving only on Thursday and Sundays, we've extended our stay here until the 24th. We couldnt' resist a few extra night here. It's so relaxing and beautiful, it just seemed like the right thing to do!

Our best to everyone!

Davide and Thuy

Grey cup!
Hey guys!

D'oh. Just got an email from the team 1040 telling me I won tix to the grey cup for coming in 3rd in a poker tourney! The 2nd place guy was from out of province so he was disqualified, which serves him right for sucking me out at the end of the tourney!

Anyways, I'm hoping they let my pops get the tix since he is a huge Lions fan (origianlly a Saskatchewan fan but alas they have only won once in like 50 years!)

To keep you up to date. We have bascially been touring Chiang Mai the last few days. We visited a lot of temples which are quite amazing. Today we went to Doi Suhtep which is up a mountain (and another 300 steps yikes). But from atop you can see all of Chiang Mai and the surrounding areas. It's awesome. AFter that, we came down the mountain and ventured into the university. We peeked into some of the classes and the dorms. I think they probably thought I was a teacher or exchange student.

Yesterday we visited some of the older temples (which are steps from our guest house). Some are as old as 1300 ad. Great pictures.

We are excited for tonight as it is Loh Katrong which is a big festival where they make little boats with flowers and send them out into the water to take away their bad luck etc. I think thats the jist of it anyways. It's probably jsut a big excuse to light off firecrackers which are in abundance here. So it should be a spectacular night! And of course we will be doing some shopping.

We realized our friends from London that we met on the trek are staying at a fancy hotel. Like $100 per night $US. No wonder they didn't haggle with the locals! Hehe.

We are off to Koh Samui tomorrow to relax on the beach for 4-5 days! Wihoo! That's what I've been waiting for!

Thuy will be updating the blog soon with her views of our trip so far. She thinks I'm sanitizing the blog and not giving all of the bad or geeky stuff I've done so far. hehe....stay tuned!

Trek cont'd
Hi again.

After about 1.5 hours, we reached our first destination. The elephant camp. Here, we bought some water (as we went though quite a bit). Me and Thuy were led up these steps and told to climb into a little platform on top of the elephant. Once we were in, our guide took our picture..and we were off down the trail.

We left the village down a little road, across a creek, and then up into the hills. The elephant was so well trained. The path was very narrow! The elephant walks in a straight line using two feet at a time and replacing them with the other two feet as they move. He stopped for a few bamboo snacks along the way too. Thuy called him Brents for being so glutounous.

We got wacked with a few bushes along the way and there were red ants everywhere, but with our insect repellant we were fine. The other elephants were a little more mischievous as we arrived at the outskirts of the village about 10 mins earlier than the others.

The village. The tribe is called Palong (I think that's how it's spelled. When we arrived, another group on the 3 day 2 night trek was there on the other side of the village. There were animals running everywhere, one of the dogs had given birth recently to puppies, and there was about 8 of them running around along with piglets, chickens, roosters, and cats.

It was pretty cool to be right in the village (of about 150 people). Although we felt we were intruding into their camp, they were very welcoming. The tribe is fairly new (about 25 years old) from Burma. A lot of the tribe was not actually there as they were driving into town (they are only allowed a license for a few days at a time to get supplies etc.)

We were given our sleeping quarters. Which was basically a big hut with thin mats on the ground for us to lay on. Not that comfy, but it was ok. Again, good pictures.

The guide and the villagers prepared a great dinner for us. Rice, chicken and veggie stir fry, a curry dish, and some beans. Along with their bar consisting of pop and beer (we ran a tab and paid at the end). Big beers were 80 bhat (about $2.50) not too bad, not as cheap as in town, but we didn't mind paying extra as the money went to the village.

AFter dinner, we went over to the other camp and they performed songs and traditional dancers for us. Thuy joined in the dancing around the fire. It was so much fun, then they asked us to sing some songs. The other travellers were from Holland, Israel and Austrailia so all we ended up singing was happy birthday as no one really knew the words to many songs. It was good fun though.

We woke up early the next day to roosters crowing at around 4 am. So early!!! Argh!!! But the coffee was on shortly and breakfast was pretty good.

After purchasing a few more items from the locals (Thuy got some good deals of course). We headed out for our next leg of the trek. This was about a 2 hour trek into more heavy forested areas and across few ponds where we got a little wet ;)

We walked through a village and saw many many many spiders! Our guide tricked us so many times, trying to freak us out...throwing rocks into the trees and yelling tiger!!! Shelly wasn't impressed, me and Thuy just lauged though.

AFter about a 2 hour trek we made it to the rafting area where we had some great soup for lunch.

We headed out on the bamboo rafts, Thuy, Matt and I were in one. It was a peaceful ride down the river as we saw more of the country side. After about an hour (we almost tipped over once which would have been horrible as I had our passports in my pocket!) We reached the end and it was back to Chiang Mai and up to date with our adventures!

Our plan tonight is to hit the Night Bizarre and do some shopping and eating! Tomorrow we will likely hit some of the temples and probably go watch some Thai Boxing as there is a special event on at the stadium.

All in all, it has been a great time so far! We were both a little down after the long train ride, but a great nights sleep brought back our energy and enthusiasm, and we can't wait to see the rest of the city and then fly off to Koh Samui. I'm also greatful for the travel agent for suggesting we fly to Koh Samui as our original plan was to train back to Bangkok and then to Koh Samui which would have taken us 2 or 3 days. For about $150 more we will be on the beach in 3-4 hours! Oh well, that can be our Xmas presents for each other!

Sorry for going on and on...but I wanted to get it all out before my memory fades after some beers tonight! I would highly recommend the trek for anyone coming here in the future. It's not that tough (as a 5 year old kid did it with us). And it really lets you see how the actual villagers live and see a lot of the natural wildlife and agriculture of the region.

I better get back to Thuy before she thinks I'm off getting a massage!

Miss you all. Update you soon!

Dave and Thuy

Back from the Trek
We are back from the Trek! Hey everyone!

Well, let me catch you up from where we last left off. We checked out Khao Saun Road (again, my spelling will be horrendous througout). It was pretty cool. Very western though. Lots of westerners walking about, drinking at bar like places. Not very Thai if you ask me...but a very good place to stay if you are going to be in town for a long period of time as it is very comfortable. I'm glad we checked it out.

We next headed to the train station for our "luxury" second class sleeper trains. Hmmmm...I guess for $15 each what should we have expected.

Basically it was like sleeping on a long bus ride except the seats folded down into a small single bed. Thuy slept up top, well at least we tried to sleep, it was pretty hot. The morning was nice as we sat and watched the country like scenery. We finally reached Chiang Mai at 1pm (16 hours later!). We were so glad to get off the train.

We checked into our guest house (SK House) which is in the middle of the city. It is fairly nice. Basic rooms, the shower though is in the middle of the bathrooom, with a drain on the floor, which Thuy assures me is quite common in asia. Not too bad.

AC was humming along great so we were happy for that. We headed out and checked out the town a bit. We walked by the school and saw what I guess would be a "Sports Day" like when we were young. There were teams all dressed in green, blue, red, and purple and they had cheerleaders and cheers. It was kinda cool.

Chiang Mai is much nicer in my opinion than Bangkok. Quieter but still has a fun atmosphere. The people aren't as pushy, nor are the tuk tuk drivers. No harrasment so far.

I'm a little embarrased though. We came back to the room for a quick nap with plans of hitting the night bizzare, but what was supposed to be a nap turned into a 13 hour sleep (I guess we were sleep deprived). Alas, I am now in charge of making sure our naps are just that...NAPS!!!

Now on to the funnest part of the trip so far! The trek!!!

I can't remember the names of all the tribes but I will try.

The truck came to pick us up around 9:30 and we finally met our first travellers. Matt and Shelly from London who were the nicest people. They were about our age, and Matt's best friend had just got married in Karet (I think) to a Thai woman and they had attended the wedding. They are staying in Chiang Mai and flying to Koh Samui much like we are.

Anyways, the truck took us about 1.5 hours to a beautiful waterfall...which we actually walked up (good pictures).

We then drove another 1.5 hours to a small village to have lunch. After our lunch was finished (like seconds after)..the locals surrounded us to sell their crafts. We bought some nice pot holders..and I think Thuy was the only one bargaining out of our group which also included an Austrian couple and their 5 year old son (he was pretty cool...didn't complain once the whole trip).

Anyways, from there we started our trek into the hills. We walked about 1.5 hours in about 25-26 degrees which wasn't too bad except when we were walking right into the sun.

I'm going to continue this in a next blog as I don't want it getting cut off for being too long.

TBCnt'd

Off to Chiang Mai
Hey everyone.

Well we just checked out of the Grand China Princess. Very nice hotel. We had buffet breakfasts both mornings for free. Very good food.

Last night was fun! After zonking out for a few hours, we hit the town. We went to Sukhumwhut Road (forgive me for butchering the spelling.) We would describe it as a mix between the Vegas strip and Robson street. Very lively. Lots of hotels, lots of tourists. It was really the first time all trip that we saw visitors. Where we are staying, in Chinatown, it seems like there are hardly any tourists (except for the hotel). It would take me way too long to comment on the traffic here. Lets just say its like putting hwy 1 rush hour traffic onto every main street, and then having no traffic laws to follow, with motorcycles and cabs weaving in and out at all times. Insane!!!

We went bar hopping, was fun, but you could sense something was different there, as every bar would have tons of white (mostly older) men sitting with young Asian women. But I digress, to each their own.

Today we went to the fancy hotels (the Oriental and the Sheraton). They are really nice, but it doesn't seem like Bangkok there. It seems more like a resort. And the vendors and cab drivers really harrass you.

We are going to check out Kho Saun Road now which is were all the back packers stay when coming to town. Then off to the train station where we will board the 9pm train to Chaing Mai (it is a 15 hour ride yikes!). But we have 2nd class sleepers with each other, so it should be kinda fun.

Hope everyone is well!

D & T