Thailand- Phuket, Ko Phi Phi & Railay

If you have not taken notice lately as you are visiting your local Thai restaurant, be sure to make a special effort to have a look at Thai characters and writing. It’s beautiful. One of the things that struck us upon arrival to Thailand was the similarity of the sounds of Thai to Vietnamese. Both languages have multiple tones. In Thai there are 5 tones: low, level or mid tone, falling tone, high tone and rising tone. Well, that’s the start of the difficulties. It’s a very complicated language and we’re just lucky that the Thai people are ultra friendly and most of them know at least a little English.

After arriving in Phuket we hopped a taxi to Nai Han on the southern tip of the peninsula. We spent 2 nights in this semi sleepy beach town that had been taken out by the Tsunami back in 2004. We were given a recommendation by some folks we hiked with in Jordan, but apparently we mixed up Nai Han and Nai Yang. Oh well, there was a beautiful, if unsafe to swim in due to riptides, beach. We stayed in a simple bungalow and dove instead into the Thai massage culture. We started off our visit with pedicures and Thai massages for two for a grand total of 800 Thai Baht. At the current exchange rate of 34 that’s just under $24. We might be able to fit in quite a few massages at these prices. Oh, and to top off the experience for another 100 baht, as promised, Charlie got a new doo… that’s hair doo, or hair don’t as Rawson calls it. It don’t need washin’ and it don’t need stylin’. All it doo is look like a Thai monk. That’s right folks, all off. But honestly it looks quite good and was absolutely necessary in this heat and humidity. How about we take a vote… Should Rawson go Sinead O’Connor style too?

Ok, enough of that. We had a nice 2 days in Nai Han and our first taste of authentic Thai food was great. We decided to head to Ko Phi Phi. One Tut-tut (a taxi of sort, but more like a collectivo for those of you who have traveled in central America- in other words a truck into which passengers jump in the hopefully-covered back) and a ferry boat later we arrived at the Ko Phi Phi pier. Ko Phi Phi is most noted for 2 things being the site of the beginning of the movie “The Beach” and getting almost completely wiped out by the Tsunami in 2004 (one of the Thai princes died here during that tragedy). We found a decent place to stay and headed out exploring the island. After chilling on the beach with a fruity cocktail we watched the sun begin to set over the lagoon and come to recognize that we are one night before the full moon. In just about any beach town in the world that caters to backpackers, a full moon is cause célèbre – that’s right a Full Moon Party. Usually begins as the moon rises and goes until... This one was filled with locals doing anything you can think of with fire, and lots of booze (yes there are lots of accidents, bad combo). There is fire twirling, fire jump roping, fire limbo, fire walking etc etc. We found a bungalow on the beach where the best fire dancers would be performing the next night. We took in another day of Phi Phi and enjoyed the laid back atmosphere of southern Thailand. We had an afternoon Piña Colada at Carlito’s Bar on the beach (had to for Charlie’s namesake), then moved to the new bungalow and rested up for the night ahead. Being the oldest people at this full moon party we had to fit the stereotype and be the first to arrive. We don’t mind the stereotyping and it gave us a great chance to meet and get acquainted with the performers. Johnny was the “funny guy” who seemed to be leading the show a bit. Funny he is and quite talented as well. These young guys really put on a show for us and let us take as many pictures as we wanted, all before anyone else showed up.

Out comes the moon, out come the people and on comes the music and fire. What a spectacular show. After the main event was over they had games that the on lookers could participate in, fire games. If you jump the fire rope you get a shot of whiskey. The limbo winner got a bottle of Vodka. We met a Danish guy who burned his feet badly walking on the fire. You get the point. Charlie avoided the “peer” pressure in style (easy when your peers are 10-20 years younger) and we had a blast watching and making new friends. Check out some of the great photos. We finally turned in about 2AM but the thump-thump-thump of the Full Moon Party didn’t end…ever; didn’t sleep too well, but oh well.

The following day we took a ferry to Krabi town, a tut-tut to Au Nang and then a long tail boat to get to Railay Beach, our next destination. We’d heard from friends that this was a magical spot, and it did not disappoint. Railay is one of the premier rock climbing spots in the world. Its beaches are lined with towering cliffs and the green sea is sprinkled with massive out croppings of limestone rocks. This place is part of the mainland, but there are no roads there. It’s only accessible via long tail boat. We arrived on Railay West and asked every resort about their rates, but they did not fit into our Asia budget. So we took the advice of two guys from the UK we met on the way over and hiked over to Railay East. Where Railay West is beach front resorts and stunning sunsets, Railay East is back packers haven. This is a completely chilled out spot on the mangrove side of the island. By the time we arrived Rawson was at the end of her rope with her back pack. Broken, uncomfortable, lopsided etc. she felt she couldn’t go another step when a fellow asked if we wanted to see a 400 Baht/night room in the View Point Resort. Sure! For 400 Baht you can get a private bungalow with private bath and a fan that is quite nice. The view is of the bay and sunrise. But for 800 Baht you can get the same room but with Air Conditioning! Charlie talked them down to 700, of course, and we agreed to stay 2 nights there. We decided later in the week after having seen a couple of other places that 700/night (21USD) was just fine with us and negotiated an even lower rate for another 3 nights to total 5 on Railay. We met some truly amazing folks on the 2^nd day just as we found the best beach ever in Hat Pra Nang. This incredible spot is replete with staggering rock formations, powder white beaches and macaque monkeys at the end of each day (the monkeys took a shine to Rawson!). We ended up spending most of our time with our new friends and on this spectacular beach. First we met James. We’d seen James while we were on the beach sun bathing and having foot massages. He was sitting having lunch with a Thai woman and they looked like they could be good friends. Before we packed up to head in for a shower we asked James if he’d take a photo of us and chatted for a few minutes with him. Next morning we ran into him for coffee at Joy Bar and he invited us to join him on the beach for lunch with Sanah, the Thai woman we saw him with. This was the start of a grand experience not to mention a few new friendships. We met up with James, Sanah and Vanessa around 2:00 for lunch. Sanah and her husband Tik are from Au Nang and boat over every day giving massages on the beach. Before the Tsunami Tik (then aged 57) had a long tail boat and that was their livelihood (ferry goods and people). But it was smashed by the tsunami, as were those of so many people. Instead of looking for handouts, these amazing people instead took on the additional responsibility of adopting an orphan (a 5 year of boy who lost his parents in the tsunami)! Keep in mind this is middle aged couple already have 3 grown children of their own. Sanah and Tik are so truly kind, warm and prefect representation of the nature of the Thai people. When James met them a few weeks ago they invited him to join for lunch they had brought with them. After a few days of that James began inviting others to join and donate a nominal fee and now Sanah and Tik prepare lunch for about 4-6 others every afternoon. We joined them for 3 days. This was some of the best food we have had so far in Thailand, and many things you can’t get in restaurants. The experience was unforgettable and touched our hearts. Top all that with enjoying this experience sitting on one of the most spectacular beaches in the world (said to be loveliest in Thailand), there you go!

In the evenings we would meet up with our new mates and enjoy the vibe at Railay East. We loved this little slice of paradise and were sad to leave. We know that we’ll be back one day.

One long tail boat, one tut-tut, one overnight bus and one taxi to Kay’s condo in Bangkok. The next 10 days we’ll explore Bangkok, Chang Mai, Chang Rai and who knows what else, all with Nancy, Charlie’s mom, who we are off to fetch from the airport now!

Jordan and Dubai

Jordan and Dubai

The flight from Istanbul to Amman is only about 2 hours but the two cultures are worlds apart. We could see the change in the way people dressed and interacted even on the plane. We arrived in Amman, Jordan around 5:00PM and were met by a friendly man named Murad. He escorted us to his car, but only after losing and then finding the keys in the airport. Not your standard taxi or even black car. He had a BMW M5, and told us all about it on the way to David and Carrie’s. Murad is Jordanian Jordanian, from one of the two main Bedouin families in Jordan. Jordanians of complete Jordanian decent are the minority in their country. His family is Bedouins, nomadic shepherds, at least part time. Murad is into hunting and going to the shooting range and even pulled out his piston in the car to show us. Rawson was in the back seat and all she could see was this man waving his pistol around toward her new husband speaking in broken English. What a ride! We arrived at “Mr. David’s” house in one piece and found he and Carrie waiting for our arrival. We were delighted to be welcomed into their very nice very large home. We caught up on our travels and learned that they would be leaving Jordan soon, as Carrie accepted a teaching position in her childhood school in Hong Kong. They make the move in July, just in time to greet us there at the end of our trip. David and Charlie were in Bulgaria together as David ran the Investment Fund Charlie worked for. We had a lovely home cooked dinner and a fantastic evening. Tuesday morning we had plans to meet up with Mohammed and Susan Baghdadi (2 of Charlie’s closest friends from Thunderbird and SF) and their two boys, Adnan and Talal, then all head to Petra for a couple of days. We found a taxi easily and were off through Amman to the Four Seasons hotel. At the entrance gate to the hotel we were “greeted” by an armed guard with a peculiar device. It was a handle with a long wand which he held very steady and walked around the vehicle testing for something, we don’t know what. After the bombings a few years ago in Amman at 3 high end hotels new procedures were implemented. We passed the test and went to the roundabout to enter the hotel. Wait! We had to then go through the airport style security checkpoint and scan our bags. Whew! They didn’t find anything damaging. We inquired numerous times about this devise. It looks like the hand control to a toy remote car/boat. Apparently even cheap cologne can set them off. David’s security buddies in Iraq (where he has done Developmental Finance for 5 years; yes crazy stories) tell him they have NO IDEA what this equipment is or how it works. Not overly inspiring! Next challenge… finding the Baghdadis. Not in the room…. Not in the restaurant… hmm….. POOL! We were taken through the lush spa to the pool area. They were frolicking at the indoor pool. We had lunch together, packed up and made a plan to get to Petra, 3 hours south of Amman. We had no rental car and the van was quite expensive. We though “if we can all fit into a taxi it will be economical”. That’s Rawson, Charlie, Susan, Mohammed, Adnan and “Tukie”, and all of our bags went clown car style all the way to Petra. Dad and 4 year-old in the front and the rest of us in the back seat. It was tight, but we all survived. We splurged on a little luxury of our own by staying at the Mövenpick right at the entrance to Petra. Spectacular hotel. After the long drive and getting settled we wanted to check out the park and maybe go in that evening. They were closing in 5 minutes so that option was out but we got all of the info for Wednesday, including the dual pricing information. The fee for Arabs is 1 JD (Jordanian Dinar). The fee for the rest is 22 JD. One USD is equal to about 70 cents JD. Not in our favor. So we walked around the sleepy town before heading to the rooftop restaurant at the hotel; perfect spot to wind the evening down.

We didn’t get the sunrise start we had anticipated, but most of you know how it is with little kids. Rawson and Charlie purchased their expensive entrance tickets followed by Mohammed (those of you who don’t know Mo, he is Syrian; though a US citizen) who was promptly turned down for the Arab discount. Explaining to the fellow in fluent Arabic that he was Syrian and lives in Dubai was no help. So, off to the room to get his and Susan’s Dubai drivers licenses. 20 minutes later he came back with both, but they indicated that their nationality was US (Mo didn’t have his Syrian passport with him). So they also ended up paying the non-Arab price. Ok, off to Petra, again. The Baghdadis took horses through the first portion of the walk while we walked along side as acting family photographers for the day. We walked through the canyons toward the main attraction which is the breathtaking Treasury building. Petra is one of the new wonders of the world and is famous for very well preserved rock cut architecture built by the Nabataens as their capital. The Nabateans are ancient Arabs from southern Jordan. Petra was the site at the end of the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. You can see in the photos just how amazing it is. After checking out the Treasury we hired a donkey for the kids to ride, along with a Bedouin boy named Ahmad. We ventured a bit farther into the ancient city and saw some spectacular carvings. The entire visit lasted about 5 hours and we were all pooped. Taking an afternoon break by the pool sounded quite refreshing. We took lunch and a nap by the pool before venturing to the park in the evening for “Petra by Night”. There are hundreds of candelabras (bagged candles) lining the canyon leading us to the Treasury. The Baghdadis didn’t make it far, even with the Bugaboo stroller. So we went on our own. Once we arrived at the Treasury the entire ground in front of the structure was covered with bagged candles creating a mystical atmosphere. The guide quieted everyone down and the Bedouin music began. We saw two performances that made us feel like we had stepped back in time. After the show we headed back out to meet up with our friends. Pizza for dinner and a bottle of wine on the balcony after the boys went to bed. Nice day. Thursday morning, we had to find way to the Dead Sea. Mo arranged a van after our clown car experience and it was very comfortable. It took us a bit longer to get there than we had expected, but it’s vacation after all so no problem. Mo and Susan had booked the Kempinski Hotel for 2 nights to celebrate Susan’s 40^th in style. We arrived and got the same Four Seasons hand held sniff test again, passed again. What an overwhelming property. Ultra luxury, 10 infinity pools, over the top service, all right on the Dead Sea. We met David there after his day at the water park with some friends and their kids. We had a dip in the Dead Sea which is quite an unusual experience. You’ve probably heard but the Dead Sea sits about 400 feet below sea level and has an extremely high salt content, too high for anything to live (hence DEAD). Anyway, once you walk into the water up to your waist your body starts to float. It’s like sitting on a deflated raft. You don’t want to put your head in the water, however. It will burn your eyes , nose and even ears. Freaky! We loaded up in David’s car and the three of us headed back to Amman for 2 more nights. Another relaxing evening with David and Carrie before the BIG adventure on Friday, Wadi Mujib Reserve. This is the lowest altitude nature reserve in the world; being below sea level and all! Think orange rock gorge with a river running through and lots and lots of small rapids and waterfalls. For those of you who have seen Zion NP In Utah, this is “the Narrows” with more water. Simply spectacular. The hike was billed as quite strenuous with lots of rock hoping and repelling down a waterfall. We hiked in about 2 hours and dropped all of our gear before swimming through a gorge, climbing over huge boulders and sliding down rapids to work up our appetite for lunch. After lunch we geared back up and headed on. One of the ladies in the group was in over her head. Clearly she didn’t read the email David had sent explaining the hike because she couldn’t swim. So our expert guide had to call for a back up to pick her up, the hike was not a loop so the rest of were going in another direction. One of the others had brought his cell phone, again must not have read the email because the instructions were that EVERYTHING would get wet. The guide knew from experience that the only cell reception was up high on a cliff. So he headed out, cigarette dangling, and rocketed up this massive cliff in 12 minutes flat. He is definitely a local, although no altitude issues here. After making the call and sending the non-swimmer on her way we were on the move. We hiked through the water for about 30 minutes before reaching the climax of the hike, the falls. One by one we were harnessed in and lowered down, full repelling style, literally thorough a waterfall. Charlie did great, Rawson not so great. The falls flipped her around and slammed her into the rocks. A bit water logged and knee banged but she made it out. Next challenge, the rapids. This part was quite technical and intimidating. Our guide was fantastic and led us through in the safest manner possible. Rawson wasn’t done with getting banged up just yet. While trying to slide down a rock through the rapids her foot got caught, and she slipped, banged her head and was pushed under the rapids. That one hurt, but she managed to finish up the hike just fine. This was a very exciting and adventurous hike. Thanks David for including us! What a blast. Chilly beers waited at the car and we all had a victory toast. We showered up in the evening and headed out for Quiz night at the local English Pub. We did OK, but the “Boozers” (a group of 60+ year-old, red-nosed guys holding up the bar) killed us. Saturday, our final day in Amman, David and Carrie took us out for a tour of the city. We had lunch at the King’s favorite falafel stand. We know why it’s his favorite! We shopped around and Charlie bought a full Bedouin outfit. Now he can wear the full length white man dress and red and white scarf on his head complete with spare tire and all! Rawson got a traditional top but it’s a lot more versatile than Charlie’s outfit. Back to the house to pack and head to the airport for our 8:45 PM flight to Dubai.

David and Carrie were wonderful hosts. We thoroughly enjoyed spending time and getting to know them both better. We look forward to catching up in Hong Kong in late August.

The flight was simple enough but slightly delayed. We landed in Dubai after 1AM and walked a very long way to immigration. No problems there and as promised Mo had sent someone to fetch us. We drove through Dubai to the Baghdadis high rise apartment in 93 degree weather, yes at 1AM, and arrived just after 2AM. We got settled and hit the sheets. Sunday here is Monday back home, a work day. Mo went to the office for a while and then knocked off early to hang out with us. We all piled into their car and went to the Mall of the Emirates to check it out. This is the largest mall in the world, right below the new tallest building in the world, 190 stories. We shopped around and had lunch and stayed long enough to catch the Bellagio style, but bigger, fountain dancing. It’s a large fountain that has a show after sunset every 15 minutes to a different song. It just makes you smile. We headed home and had a chill night. Monday after coffee we walked down to the beach. Mo and Susan’s place is on the 28^th floor right on the beach overlooking the Persian Gulf. It’s beautiful, but indescribably hot. We swam in the sea, but not for long. The water is warmer than body temperature and not at all refreshing. We enjoyed the air conditioning after having lunch with Kelly Eide, an old Thunderbird friend of Charlie’s that lives here. As thanks for their hospitality we cooked up a yummy dinner for the Baghdadis and for Rany and Jena, Mo’s brother and future sister in law. Rawson made up some Mojitos and Charlie cooked up a mean Tagine (we learned this dish in Morocco). Tuesday was another lazy day. Tuesday night, Rawson and Susan went out with a group of local expat women for a “girls-night-out”. Mo and Charlie packed up the boys and did some touring around town, including a stop at the Palm Jebel, a man-made island in the shape of palm tree housing thousands of expats and the Atlantis hotel at its apex. Charlie and the Bagdhadi boys ended the evening at an AMAZING resort, a “One & Only” property called the Royal Mirage, with a 1^st class middle-eastern, outdoor patio restaurant. Mo and Charlie balanced a fine line of eat, feed and blocking off dangerous falls on the marble floor. 2 more arms each would have been ideal!

Many warm thanks to the Strines and the Bagdhadis for the amazing hospitality and great times! Well off to the airport for the long haul to SE Asia. Next stop, Thailand!