Today we walked 20 kilometers. Why, you ask? Well, because….er….it was…hmm… all the way from downtown to the imperial tomb of Tu Doc.

Incense vender on our walk

It was a really hot day but for some reason we decided we wanted to take a walk instead of deal with overpriced motorbikes when we each have perfectly good walking legs. Or maybe we’re just crazy.

Mausolem of Tu Doc

Either way, it was a pretty nice day and the complex around the tomb was pretty nice as well. Surprisingly the buildings, stairs, and such are in relatively poor condition for being so new (it was only built in 1867).

Tomb of his favorite wife

Flowers in the park

There is plenty of shade and lots quiet places to rest but the complex is not very large so it doesn’t take too long to visit.

Hue’s Citadel is like a smaller, more quaint version of Beijing’s Forbidden City. It’s a quiet complex with more ruins than standing buildings, compliments of some serious bombing during the Vietnam War.

Inside the Citidel

Much of the back buildings are being restored and repainted to better reflect the Citadel’s former splendor. Entrance is 55,000 dong (just over $2) and it’s definitely worth a look. Be sure to bring your own water since the stalls nearer the Citadel are terribly overpriced.

Lake in the Citadel

Newly painted walls

In the halls

First day we arrived and it was freezing!! Of course we were still in shorts since Vientiane was so warm. We rested a bit the first day and checked around to see how exactly we wanted to go about seeing the Plain of Jars.

Jars... on a plain

Second day, we solved our query by renting a motorbike and taking ourselves on a tour. There are 3 sites of jars, site 1 being just about 10km or so outside town. Sites 2 & 3 are just a bit farther down the road, maybe another 5km.

They are pretty large

The roads to the sites are very well marked with large billboards in English so you really can not miss the turns. From the signs expect to drive another 3-5km to the actual entrance to the sites. Parking is plentiful and for us it was free although we have heard the they sometimes charge a small fee to park.

More jars

Entrance costs 10,000 Kip/pp and you can easily and safely guide yourself along the well-worn paths through the fields. Be sure to stay only on the paths and do not venture into any areas marked as unsafe (where there are possibly still unexploded ordinances in the ground) because getting blown to bits on your vacation would be a real downer.

Lindsey isn't scared

In town tour prices we checked at several offices ranged from 160,000 to 220,000 Kip per person with a minivan and guide (unnecessary because there is limited information and the paths are clearly marked as to safe/unsafe areas). The motorbike we rented was 80,000 Kip total and that even included the gas.

Us on our moped

Another 20,000 Kip total for admission at Site 1 and our day at the Plain of Jars cost a total, for both of us, 100,000 Kip! Quite a savings from 50,000 Kip if you drive yourself (not to mention how much more fun it is!) compared to a minimum of 160,000 Kip with a tour operator. Sure, we decided only to go to Site 1 but honestly that was definitely enough jars for us. For us it was worth it and we spent the rest of the afternoon driving out around the countryside by ourselves having a great time and just enjoying the views.

Lao country side

In the back of a tuk tuk we bounced and sped out of Vientiane to Buddha Park. About 26 km outside the city is a small park by the Mekong filled with numerous different styles of Buddha statues.

Budda feeling a bit grey

The entire park was built in 1958 by one man who left Laos shortly after and crossed the river to Thailand where he built another identical park. A great place to spend a few minutes even though the ride out to it does take quite a while.

Open wide!

The Park

In the park

Back Demon!

Entrance is 8000 Kip for you and your camera too. Don’t miss the inside of the giant structure just by the entrance!

We walked to the top of Phousi Hill, the site of a very old wat that looks over the city. It was a nice breezy view—we could even see the puny airport from the top! It’s been pretty hot in Luang Prabang and it was a welcome chance to get out of the heat for a bit. We were so winded for climbing a few stairs that we had to go repair to our room to watch HBO. (What’s that you say? Burned out? Nooooo, of course not!)

Vew over the city

Stupa at the top

Sunrise is a busy time in Siem Reap. You would be surprised at just how many crazy foreigners are up and (mostly) dressed to see sunrise at Angkor Wat. You would be even more surprised that lazy folks like us did it too.

Angkor wat by moon light

Only thing is, we skipped around the backside of the main temple of Angkor Wat instead of sitting with the hundreds of chattering tourists by the front nearly dried up ponds. We were incredibly lucky this very early morning because of the very bright full moon on this particular date. We watched the moon set behind the famous wat and that was worth getting up at 5AM just in itself!

Not very serene up front

Sunrise turned out to be foggy and more of just plain ol’ getting light rather than a colorful magical rising of a glowing orange orb in a pink sky. But that turned out to be the highlight of the morning. Instead of waiting around anymore we went inside the wat and were lucky enough to be the only ones (except for one security guard) in there!

Empty Halls

Lindsey exploring Angkor Wat

We had the whole place to ourselves for nearly half an hour before slowly a few tourists started to trickle in. It was really fantastic. So serene, so old, so intense and so full of time and stories noiselessly bursting from the walls. (Doubly worth getting up while it was still dark outside.)

Angkor Wat at sunrise

As if luck wasn’t already on our side this morning, just about the time we were finished exploring the wat, sunrise was just beginning to liven up out front. It was indeed the promised orange glowing sun backed by a colorful pink and yellow melting sky.

Steep!

Bayon Temple

From Angkor Wat, we carried on through the “small circuit” today and saw so many temples we are officially sick of temples and if we ever see another, we might just run the other way screaming and crying. Some great stuff in there though, definitely worth every minute.

Little guides

Bayon Temple

Travel Tip – Angkor Transport Options:

There are a few options for seeing the temples of the ancient city Angkor. You can rent bicycles for $2/day from just about any guest house OR you can hire a tuk tuk through the guest house or on the street for about the same price all day. The roads are paved and well connected in a circle around all of Angkor’s temples ad ruins so both transport options are just as easy in that respect. (Note: you can also rent a private taxi or probably your own rental car—no scooters here– if you have the desire and money but it is kind of wasteful and totally unnecessary).

The ruins are about 6km from town (that’s an estimate really but it takes about 15 minutes via tuk tuk from pretty much anywhere you would be staying) and Cambodians are known to hold the title of world’s worst drivers. Besides, you need a decent amount of times (days) to see your money’s worth of Angkor if you decide to save money and rent bicycles. Not recommended if you have just one day but might be a good option for the smaller circuit of temples if you have 3 or more days. Just hire a tuk tuk for the much larger/farther outer circle and then again for the outer lying temple group if you really want to pack in that third day. If you really just enjoy biking through bad traffic and terrible drivers, grab a map from any guest house and ask them to point out the small and big circles of temples so you don’t miss anything major. Plus you can always stop wherever you feel like if something not marked on the map catches your eye.

Hiring a tuk tuk is a convenient and relatively speedy way to see the ruins of Angkor. The driver will wait for you at each temple stop and you can spend as much or little time at a temple as you like. They are not your guide, just your driver so you have free reign of your time and don’t need to deal with a yapping guide the entire day. If you want the history of Angkor, google it. Guest houses are the most common way to hire tuk tuks although you can certainly try to hire one off the street. Those we talked to in both areas were charging the apparently standard rate of $12/day for the small circle of temples (that includes Angkor Wat [most famous wat at Angkor], Bayon [with the faces], a few more smaller temples, and also the Tomb Raider temple with the tree growing over the top), $15 for the big circle of temples, and $25 for the outer lying temple group. This means that, from sunrise to sunset, you have the services of that tuk tuk driver. They only drive you (or up to 4 people, maybe 6 if you’re terribly skinny and crunched in together) so no group tour things either.

Obviously biking is cheaper but not quite as fun for most people. The temples are pretty far apart, maybe a kilometer sometimes more, and this can make a very long day on top of the distance to and from town in the first place. Be sure to watch where you are riding because cars, motos, and tuk tuks pass at random and often times drive much to fast (and erratically in general) on the extraordinarily bumpy roads circling the temples.

If you hire a tuk tuk driver through you guest house, it would be nice to tip him (directly, not through the guest house tour desk) a couple dollars for getting you there for sun rise and/or especially if you ask him to do a sunrise and sunset run in the same day. Many times the drives work on a flat monthly salary so they are no even profiting from your $15 tour. Instead that money all goes to the guest house and he still gets his regular salary, no extra commission. A couple dollars goes a long way in a country where a $6 room is unanimously considered by locals to be “very expensive.”

Angkor Wat. Wow, what to say? It was spectacular, fascinating, beautiful, dusty, intriguing. It was also noisy and full of tourists and expensive. But it was worth those few irritations and (many) dollars to see such a historical jewel.

Inside the temples

Sounds cheesy but it really was great and you can only imagine how grand the ancient capital city must have been back in its hey-day. We visited what the tourist industry calls the “outer circuit” of temples via private tuk tuk arranged through our guest house. It cost a whopping $15 for the entire day, sunrise to sunset if we wanted, and we could stop and go as long and as often as we pleased. It was the driver only so we had the added bonus of not dealing with a yammering guide the entire day as well.

Our awesome Tuk Tuk

Our tuk tuk driver slept while we were visiting the temples and when we were ready to go, he would wake up just enough to drive us to the next one and resume his slumber again. There is really not much to say about Angkor Wat. It’s one of those things you really just have to see. Besides, too many fawning adjectives are not all that appealing to read. Especially when there are plenty of rad photos just below…

Temple detail

Tree covered entrance

Explorer Saben

Up the stairs

Lindsey in the temples

Selling fruit

Temple entrance

With Latham’s approaching flight this evening, we decided to save some of Bangkok’s best of last. Today we went to the Grand Palace. When they named it, they really were not kidding!

Golden statue

It was incredible. Amazing murals on the walls depicting religious art tied between Hindu and Buddhist themes, sweeping traditional Thai architecture, and beautiful shimmering tiles on the walls and roofs.

Wall Mural

The grand palace

Golden religious images, bumbling tourists, armed guards in spiffy starched uniforms, and immaculate landscaping also appeared in the huge royal complex. Though the King no longer lives here, none of the splendor has escaped the Palace grounds. It was quite a sight!

Wat in the Palace

Palace guard

We bid farewell to Latham and off he went into the night. On the way back, Saben was attacked and bitten by a bastard street dog and 2 of its equally wild eyed compadres. Great. Now he’s got rabies. Guess we’ll be off to the clinic tomorrow for some rabies shots…

A parting shot

The ruins of the old capital Ayatthaya are scattered across the now restored, modern city. Renting bicycles is a great way to get yourself around the city, using the extensive road system, a handy map from the rental folks, and a bit of caution when crossing the multi-lane highway that operates on the opposite side you might be used to. This is how we saw Ayatthaya’s ruins and it turned out to be a whole lot of fun.

In the ruins

Each temple complex is relatively small and takes little time to explore and enjoy. Nearly all the structures are made from bricks and most lean to the side thanks to resettling foundations and/or a light emphasis on structural integrity. The ruins are still quite beautiful and have so much history wrapped up in their bricks you will leave wanting to learn more about the events that led up to and eventually caused the downfall of this once booming capital city. Instead of boring you with a long diatribe we will satisfy your optical needs with a few photos.

Head in the tree

Inside a wat in the ruinsLatham in the ruins

Headless

Latham in the ruins

Ruins

Ruins

Travel Tip:

Skip the expensive and boring tour package and go yourself! It’s easy and cheap. All you do is catch a minibus from Victory Monument (they park all around the thing so just ask as many people as it takes to get to the right bus). It costs 60 baht one-way and takes about an hour and fifteen minutes. You’ll get a seat inside the air conditioned minibus and leave when it’s full, which is usually not too long. (For example, we only waited about 15 minutes).

Victory Monument

When you arrive in the city of Ayatthaya (pronounced like “aiy-YOU-tea-uh”), the minibus will terminate at a little bus stand kind of in the middle of the city. Your next move is to rent bicycles (50 baht/day) or mopeds (around 200baht/day), grab the free map at the rental place, and be on your merry way. You will have to walk around or ask someone where to find a rental place if you are dropped in an unapparrent location but we found the “Rent Bicycles” sign and walked toward a quieter part of the city til we found the place.

Ready for action

When you are ready to go back to Bangkok, grab a minibus (usually the ones back to BKK will have a big english sign across the hood) in the same area you were dropped off at (or ask for help if you need to). Although we can not necessarily confirm this, we heard that the minibuses run only until 5pm so be sure to check into it before getting stuck overnight without your stuff.

Also, please remember that Thailand traffic flows the opposite directions you are used to (depending on your country of origin) so be extra cautious and keep safely out of the way with as little swerving and looking behind you as possible.

After a stout breakfast of eggs and toast, we set out for a walking tour of the city’s main attractions. We left Khao San district and headed for the sizable Democracy Monument.

Democracy Monument

We crossed the massive intersections and continued on to check out the Giant Swing—a leftover from religious festivals that is no longer used due to the high number of deaths that occurred on it (or off it, rather). Across the road from the swing were the remnants of a “Bangkok 50 Years Ago” expo complete with excellent (and no doubt expensive!) classic cars from the 1940s and ’50s. Beautiful pieces of art!

The Giant Swing

If you look closely you can see a little drool starting to pool

On our way to Wat Pho we detoured into a quiet, serene city park with beautiful flowers and fat koi fish gobbling up bits of food left by some kind heart or happy child. Bangkok is so beautiful, organized, clean, and just fabulous all around. The King really knows how to take care of his people and his country.

Canal running by the park

Wat Pho was absolutely stunning. Thai architecture really celebrates Buddhism in a special way. It’s neat to see how different Chinese, Tibetan, and Thai people all celebrate Buddhism with slightly varied and all equally beautiful architecture.

Inside the complex

Wat Pho’s large complex just sparkles and glitters when the sun shines brightly on the colorful roof tiles of the smaller wats. On top of the sheer magnificence of the complex, we got to see the world’s largest reclining Buddha! Covered in gold with mother of pearl inlay on the soles of the feet, it is a truly impressive sight.

It's huge

Light reflecting off the glazed tile roof

We lunched at a sidewalk stand on fried pork and rice, a simple but tasty meal, while we watching the traffic roll by. We are definitely fully appreciating the lack of horn honking here! Even if you are standing right in front of a car’s path, the will not honk at you. It’s great! Maybe all that hearing damage from India can be halted and prevented from worsening toward complete deafness.

Nothing like tasty street food

On the way back home, we stumbled across a long sidewalk flea market. It was not directed toward tourists so the stuff for sale was really neat and better priced than the usual markets. Tiny metal figurines of Buddha, old postcards, random collections of second hand clothing, shoes, and bags, jewelry, semi precious stones and carved religious images and so on. Great fun seeing what we could find!

Oodles of Idols

We absolutely love Thailand and we have only been here for a few days. There could be no better medicine for coming from India than to come to Thailand. Just imagine if we had visited Thailand first! At any rate, we are thoroughly enjoying everything about this place. The people are so wonderful, the food is incredibly tasty, everything is so clean and organized, and the country itself is so beautiful.