Nothing like an overcrowded bus to Kanchanaburi from Bangkok. Good thing I got there early. Some poor souls had to stand in the aisle during the 3-hour ride.

Should I mention that I love the name of this state/city? Kanchanaburi, Kanchanaburi, Kanchanaburi. It just rolls off the tongue beautifully.

Apple’s Retreat
Apple’s Guesthouse embodies the very essence of what a riverside retreat should be. The rooms are spacious, bright and utterly charming. Frangipani trees were everywhere and it just smelled like serenity. Oh, and did I mention the amazing view of the River Kwai from the lobby?

The path to our room at Apple's

Spacious, cozy room at Apple's

So, me being a Thai-cooking nooblet, I signed up for Noi’s cooking class. She’s one of the owners of Apple’s (the other being, of course, Apple) and wonderfully friendly and open. She took us to the Kanchanaburi market and conversed with the stall owners all around us, letting us sample Thai delights I can’t really name (but that I really enjoyed tasting!). I swear, I must have seen 20 different varieties of eggplant at the market as well as rabbit, alligator, porcupine and turtle meat for sale. All fresh.

Just before we left for the market, Noi gave us an introduction to “proper” Thai cuisine and how to order and mix Thai dishes in order to achieve balance in the variety. Hot dishes need to be paired with cool dishes, salty with sweet – yin with yang. Eventually, my small group settled on four main dishes and I tried my hand at some Pad Thai (failed, since I overcooked the shallots), Massaman Curry (better) and Lemongrass and Vegetable Stirfry (not too bad, either!). My Tom Kha was, by, far, the best. “Perfect!” according to Noi.

Trendy lady at the local market serving up fried tofu and goodies

Delicious dessert thing I can't name

Another delicious dessert thing I can't name

Plum mangoes are in season!

This is why Thai food is so spicy

Ingredients for stirfried lemongrass and vegetables

Stirfried to success

The perfect Tom Kha

Erawan Falls
Made it up to see all 7 tiers at Erawan Falls in less than an hour without breaking a sweat! (No, I am lying.) The path up wasn’t too difficult at all and all along the way, the air was just amazingly sweet. Butterflies everywhere, too. Better than any butterfly park I’ve ever been to. Also great – all the pools along the waterfalls were teeming with fish that nibbled at you. Free fish spa!

One of the paths along the way

Yes, the waters are a beautiful blue.

Why can't I wake up to this every morning?

Tier #3, apparently, is popular with the boys.

Hellfire Pass Memorial Museum
We stopped by the infamous Hellfire Pass Memorial Museum run by the Australian Government (yes, their tax dollars are at work all the way in remote areas of Kanchanaburi). In case you don’t know, it was named Hellfire Pass by the prisoners-of-war who were ordered to build the Thailand-Burma Death Railway in World War II. The Japanese wanted the railway built as quickly as possible and worked the prisoners in shifts up to 18 hours a day, and all through the night. The bamboo torches lit up the areas around Hellfire Pass casting shadows of starving men hand-drilling through rock and jungle – hence the name.

My own great-grandfather was hauled away to build this railway and was never heard from again. The family assumes that he died while he was there, and so I suppose this railway holds a special significance to me. The original tracks are still in use (except for the section at the site of the museum) and we rode it across some unbelievably rickety wooden bridges.

I also visited the famous Bridge On the River Kwai – which I knew by the movie of the same name. I can barely remember the movie, though. I should really re-watch it now as adult.

If you look beyond the tracks you will see a ravine that was hand-cut into the mountain by the PoWs and "hired labor".

The memorial to those who lost their lives bulding the railway.

PoWs routinely self-sabotaged the tracks to slow down progress. I rode a train that crossed these very tracks.

I love this picture.

The Bridge On the River Kwai.

Banglumphu
Stayed three nights in the Banglumphu area, known for its proximity to some of the most famous tourist attractions in Bangkok and also for its concentration of backpacker hostels, bars, tattoo and piercing shops, and abundance of street vendors hawking what can most succinctly be described as hippie-ware. Just outside my small hotel, New Siam III, which is one street away from the infamous Khao San Road, I could get my hair braided, listen to Bob Marley (or some lite-jazz rendition of “No Woman No Cry” by a young female) and get a Thai foot massage – all at the same time.

Wat Chana Songkhram, a temple complex situated at the heart of this area, was a welcome escape from the dense chaos of tourists and vendors. The temple was definitely very Thai in architecture and had rows of gold Buddhist statues lining the outer walls, peacefully smiling at the central temple which housed more Buddhist statues in gold. Behind the central temple, young monks lived in the monasteries and the back door led straight into the lane which my hotel is on. At dusk, the temple gates are closed to the drunken debauchery that goes on in the streets late into the night.

More Wats! More Gold!
Down the West Bank of the Chao Phraya River from Banglumphu is Wat Arun, or the Temple of Dawn. The surrounding walls, parks and temples are much newer compared to the ancient structure, which seemed to stick straight out of the ground – defyingly gray with age and battered from the centuries. I have to say, it was quite an intimidating sight. However, the view from the top was well worth the steep climb. Personally, it was a pretty memorable view of the river which was lined with houses on wooden stilts. Not too far off, was the Grand Palace’s curved and tiered roofs amongst green trees and beyond that, skyscrapers in the distance.

Wat Po, on the other side of the river, houses the world’s largest reclining Buddha. Of course, this statue was covered in gold, too – except for gigantic feet on one end with intricate mother-of-pearl carvings on the soles. (Honestly, the most beautiful feet I’ve ever seen.) The sheer number of tourists was unbelievable though, thankfully, all was quiet inside except for the clinking sounds of everyone dropping coins into bronze bowls that lined the inner walls. I’m beginning to think that Bangkok is a city of contradictions – there’s chaos and confusion but also calm and peace.

Across the street is The Grand Palace, which is really, quite an understatement. ‘Grand’ doesn’t even begin to describe it. The palace and the buildings contained within its walls are utterly dazzling. Gold everywhere and where there isn’t gold, colored glass mosaics took their place. Looking around was like standing in a kaleidoscope.

Wat Phra Keaw, which houses The Emerald Buddha (actually jade, by the way) is set in the middle of the most unbelievably decorated temple. The tall pillars were intricately decorated with shimmering tiles in every color imaginable. Inside, the Emerald Buddha was almost difficult to spot amongst the tons of gold offerings and ornaments. Even the Buddha itself was clad in an outfit of woven gold and gems (he has a total of three outfits for different seasons).

After the glitz of the Grand Palace, I managed to spend some time at the National Museum where I learnt enough about Thai Royal History to make me understand why Thais are so proud of their heritage and why there are giant posters and banners bearing King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s image everywhere. (The sheer variety of his pictures is also quite interesting – The King with a camera around his neck, The King in a cowboy hat, The King in a regular polo shirt, etc.)

Sukhumvit, Bike-taxis, and Wholesale Shopping
We eventually moved out of the Banglumphu area for Suk11 Hostel, which is aptly described as “Robinson Crusoe-inspired” by the Lonely Planet guide that I loaded onto the iPad (very handy for traveling, I have to admit!). Jungle fever all around.

Finally got the guts to take a bike taxi. Pretty insane weaving in, around, through and against Bangkok traffic without a helmet on. It was a bit like sky-diving except that at no point will you feel the relief of knowing you have a parachute.

Anyways, I survived the ride to Platinum – a 6-floor, 3-block shopping mall that sells everything at wholesale prices (if you want to buy anything at wholesale price, it has to be at least 2 or 3 pieces per shop). It’s mostly a fashion mall with hundreds of small shops. Was it cheap? Kinda sorta maybe. Did I overspend? Kinda sorta definitely yes.

Enough, Already! Where Are Those Pictures?
Forgive the quality, I haven’t had time to edit since I have to use public computers while on the trip!

In the meantime, sawatdeekaa!

Gosh, I haven’t updated in awhile, have I? First, I was busy with Chinese New Year (my first in many years, and probably the most memorable) and then I went off to Melaka, Tioman and Singapore.

Now, I’m on a mission to conquer the sights and sounds of South East Asia I haven’t been to (I’m hoping to cover at least half of Thailand, some of Laos and some of Vietnam).

First stop is Bangkok which is short for (say it with me) “Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Yuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit“. The year here is 2554.

The city reminds me of Kuala Lumpur – if it were about 5 degrees hotter. It definitely feels as chaotic as any South East Asian city should be, with traffic that can’t wait to run you over and sidewalks packed with street vendors hawking everything imaginable. The mega-malls near my first hostel here (the uber-cool Lub.d Hostel) was near the main mall district which is very much like Orchard Road in Singapore – if the lanes between the malls were crammed with street stalls.

On day two, we moved over to Mystic Place, which is probably the artsiest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. Every room is unique and, well, very cool. Granted, I could imagine a place like this doing very well in, say, San Francisco.

Took a tuk-tuk and checked out the maze-like Chatuchak (Chatuchat? Jatujak? I’m not even sure what the correct name is) Market. Not kidding when I say this – the clothing section of the weekend market was one giant Urban Outfitters store. They even play the right kind of music. Really. Of course, I made a few purchases but I need to keep spending to a minimum if I want this trip to last.

Anyways, here’s a slideshow. Enjoy!

*Thanks @Dan!

*Thanks @tiliaw for this pic!!

Welcome to Malaysia: Hippie-free Since 1957

I simply had to steal this from Joe (who reblogged it from a bunch of people). Just crediting them for the picture though really, it should already be common knowledge that Malaysia has a no-hippies policy.