Map to Takua Pa

I'm not sure if this will work or not, but here's a link to a map of Takua Pa...

http://europe.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&country=TH&addtohistory=&city=phuket

Takua Pa is north of Phuket.

Okay so that didn't work. If you want to know where I'm headed, go to international maps on mapquest, type in Phuket for the city for Thailand and then go north on hwy 4 until you hit Takua Pa. The bus is taking Hwy 4 south from Bangkok.

Trip to Takuapa

Sa-wa-dee ka!!
"Sa-wa-dee" is hello. You add "ka" at the end if you're a woman and "krap" if you're a man.

So... Greetings from Bangkok! Yes... I'm still here.

How are things for you? Thank you for the e-mails. I am really enjoying them and appreciate the thoughts.

Today I was suppose to fly to Phuket where Kellie's friend Fiona would pick me up to take me to Yaowawit. (Kellie is my contact at the school). Small problem though... the Phuket airport is closed due to the protests and they don't know when it will re-open. I had to go to the Bangkok Airport to confirm the closure though because I couldn't get accurate information and I wasn't sure if I could refund my ticket. Definitely closed and there is no way to know when it will reopen. Options:

- Stay in Bangkok for several days in hopes that the Phuket airport will reopen or
- Take a train (these are canceled as well though!) or
- Take an 11-12 hour bus trip to Takuapa.

After talking to Kellie though, I decided to catch a bus and meet Fiona in Takuapa. There are 3 bus stations in Bangkok and the one I needed was about 45 minutes by taxi ride to southern Bangkok. (Unless of course the taxi driver ripped me off). He did try to charge me 100 baht at the toll station which is actually 25 baht. Nice try. By the time we got to the 40 baht toll station he only asked for the 40 baht. Looking at the map though, I think he took me the long way but I didn't feel like arguing as I wasn't entirely sure of where I was at and I'm a bit over trying to smile and argue with someone pretending to not understand. :-)

The train to Takuapa is about 11.5+ hours. I'm on a local bus (I think) so I imagine it will take longer. It took me until about 1:00 pm to get to the bus station and the next bus out is at 6:50 pm. SIGH. I have another 5 hours of waiting.

For the curious, the bus is 632 baht, has A/C and a toilet. There are ones that are VIP and potentially nicer as well as ones with no A/C or toilet. I didn't really care - just wanted the next one out and had trouble understanding what the options were anyways. Express? Local? I have no idea which ticket booth offered which and I had to go to about 5 different booths to figure it out.

I will arrive about 7:00 - 7:30 am Monday morning. Fiona will pick me up at the bus station which is very sweet of her. She was even willing to pick me up at 1:00 am so I'm very grateful! I'm not sure what the plan is from there - if we will go directly to the school or if we will be in Takuapa for a bit (?). I'll have to google Takuapa to find out where it is. [Okay... I have since TRIED googling it and it's in Thai!! You get English until you zoom in and then it all turns to Thai words and characters]!! Ah well.

I'm finding that much of this trip requires an ability to adapt and go with the flow. I'm actually not bothered by the five hour wait as I can update this blog (at an internet cafe called "The Next Internet" for 30 baht for an hour) and eat at any or several!! of the numerous food kiosks or just journal or write. There are of course touristy gidgets and stuff here as well.

The bus station is actually pretty nice. In addition to th shops and food, the place is pretty large and has A/C, quite the contrast from the Greyhound stations in the US! I was able to purchase an international calling card and minutes for my Thai cell phone at the 7-11 here. They are everywhere!

For those interested, e-mail me if you want my Thai phone number. I still haven't figured out how to access voice mail (the challenge of buying a used phone) but I do have text messaging. It's a pretty basic Nokia phone so I'm sure I'll figure it our or google for the instructions.

Happy Labor Day weekend!
jaz

Pics

View of the city from the platform for the sky train:










Jim Thompson House












New haircut:


















Video from the other day... the video didn't pick up the sound of the thunder over the rain. This is before it got really heavy. The sign in the picture is still upright. A few minutes later it blew over. The lightning and thunder looked and sounded like they were directly overhead. I was tucked under the awning in front of the entry door for employees that kept coming and going.

30 August, 2008

Last night I took my sheet thin blanket and laid it on the tile floor and slept with nothing but the pillow. Hard floor or not it was still more comfortable than the heat. The bed was too hot. There is plastic underneath the sheet on the bed which just holds heat and makes it rather unbearable to sleep. Even with the windows and ceiling fan it was too hot. I woke up early and moved back to the bed. It’s tolerable about 2 am until about 7 am. Then it's back to humid heat and sweat.

There’s off and on thunder and rain. I love the sound. I can’t hear it as well with the fan but I can still hear the thunder over everything.

I hopped downstairs for the internet and met a couple (Z and John) who have been traveling for about 19 months. They are from the US but looking for a country to live in elsewhere. The woman, Z, has been to over 90 countries (she stopped counting after 90). GREAT to talk to. I enjoyed her stories and information. In some ways we are a bit alike and have shared some similar experiences. They are fun and very easy to talk to.

Breakfast was banana pancake again and a cheese omelet and coffee and water. Sorry no pics this time.

After checking the web and paper for Phuket airport information (all of which is saying the airport is closed) I opted to spend the day lounging, going through my pictures and journaling, reading, writing and napping. I realize that there are things to see in Bangkok but this trip is also about self discovery and doing things I enjoy. And today I wanted to relax and read and do whatever I felt like. Temples and weekend markets… another time. Turned out to be a good decision as I needed the bathroom quite frequently today! Hmm… strange food must be catching up to me!

Later I came down for lunch and the internet of soup with noodles and chicken and met up with Z and John again. Another couple was there too, Robyn and Leor from Canada. We chatted and laughed for a couple hours. They are all a hoot and a wealth of information. And… they got me thinking about the Peace Corp. Hmm… let’s see… expenses paid and they pay for graduate school… but a two year commitment… SIGH. Ah well.

I checked online and there is still no information about the airport. According to the front desk it wasn’t the whole airport and Phuket airport is open. I’ll call the airlines in the morning when I check out to make sure. Good news.

I bought more water and my new favorite soda and am sitting in my room typing for this blog. I’ve had a wonderful day and really enjoyed the people I met. I also saw the couple from Ireland I met at the Grand Palace, the ones who recommended I check out this guesthouse. They are trying to get to Malaysia but can’t get a train so they are looking at buses.

This may turn out to be an interesting time to be visiting Thailand. If any of you are interested, I’m going to refer you to the BBC website for the updates to the why and what for the protests.

Well, I need to pack my bags and get to bed. I have to be up by 6:00 to have enough time to get ready and get to the airport.

I hope this post finds you well and having a wonderful Labor Day Weekend!

Much love,

jaz

30 August, 2008

I’m posting this a day late…

Yesterday, the 29^th was spent running errands. I intended to visit a temple or two but decided to visit the US Consulate first. I should have called first. Apparently they are closed on the last Friday of every month and as Monday is a US holiday (Labor Day – which I forgot about … you know … being in a foreign country and all), the Consulate is not available until Tuesday. I fly out of Phuket Sunday. Ah well. I’ll just register online.

The day starts off with getting up, showering in the shared bathroom. Then I took an hour to play with my new hair cut. :-)

Breakfast consisted of a yummy banana pancake, a cup of coffee and a small water purchased from the bar (pancakes were 50 baht, coffee 20 baht, water 10 baht). Internet café (free) is a must stop on the way out and then it’s off to the sky train which is about a 10-15 minute walk past the vendors and a mall called C or C Square. Day pass for the sky train is 120 baht ($4). I would need it for about 4-6 rides depending on whether I went to the temples and MBK and consulate).

It was incredibly hot and muggy again and I was soaked in sweat before I even left the guesthouse. Tip – get something to dab the face so I don’t constantly look like a sweaty nasty mess! :-)

The walk and sky train to the Consulate was a bit of a detour and no where near any of the touristy stuff I wanted to see so I decided to stop back in at the MBK mall to find a phone and a few other things. I purchased a used Nokia phone and SIM card for 650 bhat. (AIS and “1 2 Call” capable for those interested). This equates to about $20. I can purchase local Thailand minutes at any 7-11 for about 5 baht a minute (300 baht per hour ~ $9). I can purchase an international calling card at 7-11 as well. Apparently I can use the calling card from my cell phone and not get charged minutes by calling the calling card number and hanging up. That number then calls you back and you can select the options as you would had you not hung up. The benefit – incoming calls are free, outgoing calls are not. Cool trick! Learned it from a Canadian traveler staying here at the hotel.

That all took me until about noon so I tried the mall food – purchased at a food court. NOT a smart choice. Food was gross and not worth the effort. Bought three tourist shirts for 400 baht, hit the local donut shop (“Mister Donut” – although they do have Dunkin Donuts) and then walked the 1/3 mile to Jim Thompson’s museum/house/store. Jim Thompson was influential in helping to sustain/revive (?) the thai silk industry. He was born in Delaware, USA and was living in Bangkok. His house is a combination of several other houses brought in from elsewhere in Thailand. It is beautiful and was opened to the public. Jim disappeared a number of years ago and his house is still maintained as a museum. Entry cost is 100 baht. I took some pics but my camera didn’t seem to work well with the lighting and the colors aren’t quite right.

I walked back to MBK and caught the sky train back towards my guesthouse. (Requires a transfer and I got on the wrong direction the first time – I can’t get this left/right thing straight and keep getting it wrong). Not that hard, but when you’re tired it’s hard to keep track.

I stopped at the C-Mall on the way back and purchased some art supplies for drawing. There is also – my favorite – a store at the top floor similar to a Fred Meyers. Yay!! No bartering and I can find things! I bought two polo shirts for volunteering and an umbrella and cheap rain coat (similar to a big plastic bag with snaps) and slippers. FINALLY!!

One of the vendors on the way back to the guesthouse had those yummy taco looking things with the coconut and marshmallow treats so I bought one (2 baht). YUM.

Back at the guesthouse I promptly showered and went downstairs for a bite. I had green curry pork for dinner. Yummy but spicy. My standard Schweppes Manao Soda (lime?) and water. The staff here is very nice and helpful. The other guests are easy to talk to and enjoyable.

There are some protests occurring so the train station appears to have cancelled several trips to Phuket from Bangkok. There was question as to whether the airport in Phuket was closed as well. Worst case I just wait a few days until the airport opens or catch a bus.

After dinner I sketched and wrote and looked at pics from the temples.

Asha Guesthouse

Asha Guesthouse is about 9 km north of Siam area and costs 300 baht. There is no A/C and no bathroom in the room. There is a ceiling fan and a balcony off of the room.
Balcony door and windows.












Hallway door and desk.









The bathroom is shared by the whole floor. There are 4 stalls and 3 shower stalls and three sinks. Toilet paper is kept outside the bathroom door which is an open door with hanging shells on strings.

The towel and I have been having a small disagreement. Every morning/evening I use this towel and it doesn't absorb water. It mostly pushes the water around. Annoying. Did I mention... annoying? :-) Minor details I realize, but entertaining and annoying to this foreign traveler!

Pics from the guesthouses... Wendy Guesthouse

These pics are from Wendy Guesthouse in the Siam area about 2 blocks from the MBK shopping center. The bedroom has A/C, a fridge and a tv. This cost 900 baht per night. The bathroom shower is not separate from the rest of the bathroom and the spray goes directly onto the floor.
Water is lukewarm or cold.













View from the window:

29 August 2008

Hi all,

I changed hotels today. I'm staying at Asha Guesthouse north of the Siam area (about 9 km north of where I was). Everything that was accessible from the last place is only another train ride by sky train and this hotel is about 1/3 the price of the other. I also am now sharing a multi stall/shower bathroom with the whole floor and my room doesn't have a/c or a phone. (I could get a room with a/c for 100 baht more). I'd rather pay less and save my money for fun stuff. :-) AND... the best thing about this neighborhood is that I found a salon and got a hair cut tonight for 150 baht ($5-6)! Although product or not - I'm in Thailand which translates to ... flat, sweaty hair. Great pics!! So much for style! But at least the mop is gone! :-) Yay!!! Oh yah... Internet is included in the room price so I'm saving even more (about 100-200 baht per day). All I have to do is go to the bar/pool table/swimming pool room with my laptop and plug in. I'm sitting at a table made of carved wood and drinking Schweppes Manao Soda (cost is 20 baht for those interested... the cold bottled water cost me 10 baht).

Today was spent getting to this hotel, answering e-mail, IM'ing and then shopping. For those of you that like inexpensive fun clothes, you might love Bangkok. Unless of course you don't like swap meets! Heh heh heh! There are a billion vendors on the streets and the malls are full of electronics. I could have bought a U2 cd today for 350 baht. Hmm... that translates to $10-11 USD - I think I could have bought it in the US! Ah well - it was fun hearing one of my favorite cd's playing in a foreign mall!! I trekked several miles today in search of umbrellas, shirts and who knows what else. So what do I end up with? Paper cd holders, elephant coin purses, sweet treats, a pork kabob, papaya, a hair cut and a hair dryer. Hmm... I need to learn where to shop! The umbrellas apparently can be found at 7-11 on every corner. Oh yeah... and slippers. I still need slippers!

As for local stores that are the same... there are 7-11's, the same car dealers (Honda, Mercedes, Nissan...), Burger King, McDonalds, Pizza Hut... probably a ton of others but I'm drawing a blank.

Bangkok reminds me of India in some ways and yet it feels safer? Traffic is nuts - there are overpasses for pedestrians to cross streets, lots of people, traffic, the scent of garbage (although not nearly as prevailing as it was in India). There are a lot fewer beggars too and poverty is not so blatantly apparent or maybe it's not as prevalent. At least in the areas I've been.

It's beautiful here. I hate shopping and bartering, but I feel comfortable here. Minus the taxi ride to this hotel of course. That was a bit hair-raising as I wasn't sure about the taxi driver. We argued over the meter and price after I was on my way. I kept thinking... if I need to jump - what do I have to take with me? And then he didn't know how to get to the hotel which did not relieve my concern! Poor guy. I overpaid by about 25 baht - not much. (Mostly because we'd already agreed on a price before I got in and he ran the meter). He didn't speak English and I don't speak Thai. Try following a map, watching street signs to make sure you're on the right road, and hoping the guy isn't going to take a detour and confuse you... and then he pulls over for directions! ARGH!! By the time I got to my hotel, booked my room and closed my door... it was time for chocolate and a nervous moment of sitting on my bed wondering why I bothered to save myself $60+ to go through all this. And what the heck was I thinking - traveling alone! Ah well. The rest of the day went fine.

I'm hoping tomorrow will be a bit more fun with temples or some other sight seeing. I am NOT a clothes shopper so today was a bit challenging! Although it's fun to see the city. I also went to the 43rd floor of the Baiyoke Tower - view of the entire city, Pratunam Market, Pantip Plaza ( a mall for computers, cameras, DVDs, CDs...) and the billion vendors nearby. I'm looking at the map and now I'm wondering if I was at the Pratunam Market - there were a lot of vendors but I'm not sure it was the market. Hmm.... might need to ask about that.

I still need a cell phone which will require a detour to the MBK Center (one block from where I was staying last night). MBK is a 7(?) story mall with a full floor dedicated to cell phones and a ton of other stuff... cosmetics, clothes, strange looking dried goods and cooked goods. It also has a vendor with tasty treats that I'd like to sample again (pictured below for the curious)! The yellow coconut and the white is a cream/marshmallow, all on a taco looking flat thing that tastes like a sugar cone.










Hope things are going well for all of you.

Love and hugs,
jaz

A day of temples

Hi all, (I can't seem to get rid of this underline...)

Today I visited the Reclining Buddha and the Grand Palace. Absolutely beautiful. I'm exhausted though so I'll just post a few pics.

The trip required a ride on the sky train and then a ferry ride followed by a ton of walking. It's hot and muggy here so I'm having to drink lots of water. By the end of my visit to the Grand Palace it was pouring and there was lighting and thunder directly overhead. Phenomenal and exciting experience! And so beautiful. Nice topper to the walks through the palace. The palace itself is amazing. I don't have words for it so here are a few pics that won't even do it the justice it deserves. Enjoy.

The ride back in the ferry was a bit rough but fun because of the rain but I made it back safely.

At the Temple of the Reclining Buddha:












The last 3 are at the Grand Palace.












And the rain... :-)













I'm not posting pics right now but the food at the markets was excellent. (And yes - I've taken pics of what I'm eating! I don't know what they are called so a picture will have to do)!

Bangkok - Day 2

Good morning all!

It is about 8:30 am in Bangkok on Wednesday, August 27th. I am staying at Wendy Guesthouse. I arrived yesterday about 10:30am and had a rather eventful trip from the airport to the hotel... lesson learned: don't be cheap and just pay the foreigner price for a taxi. Using the Airport Express is cheap BUT... 1/3 mile from the hotel with broken sidewalks and 4 flights of stairs... and I have 2 heavy suitcases and a heavy backpack and bag! :-)

Today I'm off to the Reclining Buddha and the Grand Temple. I'll try to post more later but wanted to let you all know I'm alive and well! The trip here went smooth - again - I'll add the details later.

My hotel is near the MBK a major shopping center and the Sky train (Siam Square area).

Also - please e-mail me your addresses - my address book could not be found in time to make my trip.

Love and hugs to all.
Joyann

Leave when???

This was a whirl wind weekend. I clearly bit off more than I could get done in the time I wanted. I am now leaving for my Yellowstone trip a day late. My step-daughter and I are taking a road trip for a week of alone time before I leave for a year. I'm going to miss my baby!! Okay - she's 16 and busy but I'll miss the option of her only being a 1-2 hour drive away!

My friends Tara, Erika, Sally, Lindy and Natasha hosted a really nice goodbye party for me on Saturday. You gals are incredible. The party was very sweet. Thank you so much. You mean the world to me and I'm going to miss you! To everyone that was able to make it - it was so nice to see you before I leave. Thanks for braving the lovely traffic too! I can't wait to read your comments in the photo album! And see the pics!!

Thank you to all of the friends who came by this week and cleaned and packed and helped. Sunday's plan was to finish the place and leave by 9:00am. Yes- I know a couple of you laughed at the thought - you were RIGHT!!! By 2:00 I called a friend who showed up with reinforcements for "an hour of work" and were here until after 10:00 last night! Thank you all for being there and for helping Lauren and I. You guys are incredible.

I dropped my dog off at Teri and Sandi's yesterday and bawled half the drive home. He's got a great host family and he'll be fine but I'm going to miss him! Teri and Sandy - thanks for helping me out and for taking Sully. I know he'll be happy and in the best of care. He's going to love Lola too!

Thank you to all of you for the support and hugs and laughs with preparing for this. I truly have the best of friends and family.

Love and hugs!! We're off to Yellowstone!!
http://www.theclipartsite.com/image_nps.php?category=yellowstone&picFile=yellowstone100.jpg&page=0

Quote and Thank You

I'm packing and going through boxes of papers and I came across a quote that I'd saved.

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."
"There's magic in you. Let it out."
~David Brower

My life has been so great already. I am surrounded by phenomenal people that I love. I lift my glass in cheers and gratitude to you. To all of you - you inspire me and push me to be a better person. I have tremendous respect for each of my friends and my family. Thank you for being a part of this process with me and for being a part of my life.

Lauren, you are the best daughter I could ever have asked for. I'm proud of you and inspired by your excitement for your life. You will go far kiddo! You have a beautiful heart and mind and a lot of love and laughter to give! I can't wait for our road trip! One more week and we'll be driving and arguing about what radio station to listen to!! heh heh heh :-)

I'm beginning to get incredibly excited for this upcoming year. This process has been a bit of a roller coaster with trying to get everything done and processing how I feel about leaving everything I know and trying something I've only up to now dreamed about. I'm finally getting more sleep but now I'm sick. Hmm... couldn't be the vaccines and stress and packing and ... and... and... did I get everything done? And why am I doing this? Who's idea was this? Oh yeah - mine. I am extremely happy with my decision. I'm just sad about leaving all the people I know, my work, my home, my step-daughter, my pets and even my city - Seattle! I will miss my life.

This is something that has drawn me for a long time. I want to do something that I believe in and do it in other cultures and meet new people. We have so much here in the U.S. it's easy to forget and to be complacent. The purpose of my trip is to do three volunteer stints, each different from the other, and to do them in different countries. I want exposure to different programs and experiences. I want to grow and I want to contribute. I have an opportunity to do this and I would regret it if I hadn't made this decision. I am so grateful.

Cheers to you and I wish you all the best.