Chiang Mai

We took the overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai -- this time in 2nd class sleepers as 1st was sold out -- and it was very easy. Sam, Jack and I preferred 2nd class because you are not confined to a small cabin, instead curtains are used to provide privacy for your "bunk". Philip, however, missed his privacy and wants to make sure we travel 1st class next time! We'll see.
Our hotel in Chiang Mai, Golden Cupids, and its owner were the highlight of Chiang Mai for us. Pepe, the owner, is about 45 and married to an 80-year old Englishman. We never even saw Peter, her husband, as he is ill at the moment, but we did get to enjoy meeting all of her relatives who work there. It is a happy, lovely place. I took a cooking class with another women staying there, which was terrific as it was lots of personal attention and we got to choose which things we wanted to learn to cook. Two nights there were fireworks for the kids, including the most beautiful paper lanterns that you light and release into the sky. Thai tradition says that the lanterns take all of your bad luck with them as they float away and we enthusiastically participated!
Elephants are a big part of most people's Chiang Mai stay and we had two very different experiences with them. The first included an elephant show and a one-hour trek into the jungle on an elephant's back. We all enjoyed it tremendously, especially the ride. The second experience was a day at an elephant conservation camp and that was very different. We learned a lot about the brutal way that domesticated elephants are trained to do all of the things we had enjoyed a few days before and it took some of the joy out of our previous experience. While at the camp we got to feed the elephants (bananas, watermelon and pineapple) and give them 2 baths in the river. It was amazing, we all fell in love with the elephants and would love to have brought them home. The only catch was that while you were bathing them big bundles of elephant poo would come floating between your legs. By the end of the day we all stunk, but we all really enjoyed it.
Another interesting experience was visiting a village (set up for tourists) where people from different hilltribes live and let you come visit to make money to send back. The most dramatic of the tribes is known as the "long-necked woman" and it made a dramatic impression on us, but particularly Sam. These women start putting brass rings around their necks when they are about 5 and continue to add to them until they are adults. We saw one women with 23 rings, and it didn't look comfortable. They can't really move their heads normally, bend over or even drink easily. We spent a lot of time discussing the importance of respecting other people's traditions, but in this case we struggled to think it was a good idea.
Next is a 2-day boat trip down the Mekong to Luang Prabang, Laos.
Overall we liked Chiang Mai, it's sort of a Bangkok Light.

Thailand with Henrietta and Zoe

Wow has time flown! We arrived in Bangkok on the 27th and checked in to the lovely Four Seasons Hotel anxious to see Henrietta and Zoe who were coming to meet us. Alas, due to a delay at JFK and a typhoon in Japan they were re-routed and spent the night in Nagoya Japan instead of with us in Bangkok. While they did arrive the next evening, it meant that we only had one day of sightseeing together before leaving for Phuket. We got up early on Monday, ate a huge breakfast from the amazing buffet and boldly set forth. Initially it all went well. We found the Skytrain station, purchased tickets (although we did slightly misunderstand at first and thought that the fare was 5x what it ended up being) and made it to the station by the river where we were intending to take a river bus (boat) to some of the main sights of Bangkok. Due to a rehearsal of a huge event to commemorate the King of Thailand's 80th birthday, the river was going to essentially close in an hour so we were talked into a canal tour in a private longtail boat. Although it was expensive, we did enjoy getting the water perspective of Bangkok. I had not known how tied to the water and canals the city is until that tour. Bangkok is often referred to as the "Venice of the East" and it's a fair description - many people commute via the river and canals and it is definitely the quickest way to get anywhere.
After the tour we asked to be dropped off at the Temple of the Dawn. We explored the magnificent and ornate temple and then decided to try and go to the Grand Palace. Alas we didn't realize that we were not on the same side of the river as most of the sights and ended up walking quite a ways in the hot sun, with 3 tired kids and no water. It wasn't that much fun! We finally found a tuktuk (sort of a motorcycle pick-up truck with a flimsy roof and sides) and the 5 of us piled in. The best $2.50 we have ever spent was that croweded ride to the Grand Palace. When we got there we were able to buy water, but the kids were done and we decided that itwas probably best to go back to the hotel. AFter another tuktuk ride we had a lovely afternoon at the pool. The only bummer was that we weren't able to see more of Bangkok with Hen and Zoe.
Next stop was Phuket. After a quick flight on a big plane (747 for a one-hour flight) we arrived and took 2 taxis to where we were staying, the Amari Coral Beach Resort in Patong. The resort itself was nice and very well located. The town of Patong is not really all that nice, it looks like beach towns all over the world and is filled with bars and small stalls selling cheap clothes and souvenirs. We spent the first day lounging around the pool and eating and all went to be early in anticipation of Philip's arrival the next day.
Philip arrived a bit hassled, tired and somewhat shell-shocked Halloween morning. After a quick reunion and a nice lunch we took Zoe, Sam and Jack for a Halloween walk in town. Zoe was a witch, Sam a clown and Jack HArry Potter and I don't think that any children anywhere have ever gotten so much attention for dressing up. They must have had their pictures taken 25 times by Thai people stopping them on the street and got hundreds of smiles and comments. We laughed at how our kids' pictures were going to be on computers all over Patong! They were even were asked to participate in a photo shoot for a shopping mall brochure. If any one is in Patong in the next few months please take a look! OVerall I think that the day was a big success and other than the fact that the kids felt a bit shorted on candy they agreed that it was a satisfactory Halloween.
Our last day Phuket we took an all-day tour to an amazing park where we went on sea kayaks through Mangrove forests, and around and "under" islands that just jut out of the sea. The scenery was spectacular. Also in the park is an island known as "James Bond Island" where parts of The Man with the Golden Gun were filmed - Philip's favorite part. The final stop was at a Muslim fishing village entirely on houses with stilts over the water. Right as we arrived the school was getting out and it was wonderful to see the students running around, getting snack and drinks and behaving like all of our kids but in such a completely different kind of location.

Alas Henrietta and Zoe had to leave the next day for BAngkok to catch their flight home to New York. It was so wonderful to see them and such fun to have a Thai adventure with them. I only wish they could come join us again in a few weeks! Our next stop is also Bangkok, so more to come!