Day 28 to 30 - Bangkok

We arrived the first day at 4:30am and took a tuk-tuk ride to the hostel we were staying at called Lub D. Its a very modern hostel in the Patpong district of Bangkok and is in a good location to catch the skytrain. We spend some of the morning catching up with our families and checking emails then we headed out to see the city on the skytrain.
The skytrain is an elevated train that sits about 100 feet above the streets of Bangkok and travels all around the city. There are two lines and the fees are fairly cheap, much cheaper than taking taxis everywhere. We found out that the largest open air market in the world was open today so we headed out. We spent a few hours wondering around looking at all of the different things the market had to offer. It was wild to see how chaotic everything was and how the locals could move through the market to get to the places they wanted fairly quickly.
We spent some time at the park next door enjoying the day and the views of the city. Bangkok has a very bad smog problem so we could only see about a mile away in all directions but it was easy to see this place was big. 12 million people live in Bangkok making it one of the more dense cities in the world.
We took the skytrain back to the hostel to check in and take a nap. We met our roomate, Jaeho, for the two nights of our stay. Jaeho is Korean and has spent the last several years living in various countries in Europe and lately in Australia as a chef. He is in Thailand to learn the language and the style of cooking for the next two months. We talked for a bit then read and fell asleep for a few hours to catch up on some much needed rest. When we woke up we set out to explore Patpong a bit and to get some dinner.
It only took us a block to find that the direction we were heading was not in the safe direction. It became apparent then that Bangkok is just another large city, something we were not used to having been to mostly beaches and the rural areas of Thailand. It is bustling with traffic, people, and packed with tourists. The vendors and taxi drivers here are pretty aggressive compared to the rest of the city so it was making our walk hard to enjoy. We headed down an alley in search of some food and were lucky to find a vegetarian Indian restaurant.
The owner of the restaurant was really nice and helped us order to make sure that it was Vegan and that we would be happy with it. We both agreed it was one of the best dishes we had the entire trip as it was full of flavor and variety. After dinner we went back to the hostel and spent some more time chitchatting with our roommate before going to bed.
The next day we set out early after a quick breakfast to explore some more of the massive city, this time by water. We took the skytrain to its last stop at the pier and bought some day passes for the water taxi. The water taxi is a large long boat that should hold about 100 people however at least 300 can squeeze on and they did. The taxi took us up the river at a fairly quick pace as we passed by several small apartment complexes and many skyscraper hotels. We passed by China town and one of the more popular fish markets before getting off at our stop to visit the Wat Po, one of the oldest and largest Wat’s in Bangkok. We toured the Wat for a few hours and spent some time learning about the different Buddha statues and what the posses meant. The Wat Po is famous for the largest laying Buddha which is a carefree pose meant to bring a good night’s rest.
After we walked along the river until we got to the Grand Palace and home of the current King. We were greeted by a few taxi drivers who tried to tell us the Palace was closed and that we should go for a ride in the taxi to the shopping markets. We had learned earlier from other travelers that these are scams where the taxi driver drives you to the markets for free and is given a cash bonus by the store owners for bringing you there. The Palace was packed with people and had over an hour wait to get in so we took a look from the outside and decided we had seen enough for one day and it was time to get some lunch.
We took the water taxi back down the river to the skytrain and decided that we wanted to rest a bit and a movie sounded great. We headed to the mall and bought our tickets for Avatar before having some lunch. If anyone hasn’t seen Avatar I highly recommend it as it was full of action and adventure and had a really good story line. The animation was excellent and the interactions with the human actors were quite seamless.
After the movie we went back to the hostel to meet up with Jayhoe for dinner and drinks at his favorite jazz club in Bangkok. Bre decided she wanted to stay back, read, pack, and get ready to be out of the city so the two of us boarded the skytrain and made our way to the club. We had an excellent Thai dinner while enjoying live Thai jazz for a few hours. At midnight we were back at the hostel and spend the next two hours talking about our adventures and future plans for life.
The next morning we woke up packed our things and headed to the airport for the next part of our adventure, Australia. It was a 12 hour overnight flight on British Airways that wasn’t too bad however sleep was a bit hard to get. As I sat in my chair I thought about the last month and our experiences that will be memories for a lifetime. For anyone wanting to visit Thailand I can honestly say that it is a must do. The people are friendly, traveling within the country easy, the food is fantastic, there is a lot of culture, and best of all its really cheap. It has something to offer everyone; beaches, music, art, history, religion, scenery, and people. Thank you readers for following and I hope you enjoyed the journey through my words just a fraction as much as we have experiencing it.
Pictures of Bangkok

Day 28 to 30 - Bangkok

Day 25 to 27 - Echo Jungle Trek

We got up early this morning so I could return the scooter and we could have breakfast before our bus arrived to take us on our trek at 9:00am. We got side tracked when Bre found out from her mother that her Grandmother Connie was in the hospital and had suffered a heart attack. She was in stable condition however is in a coma and did endure some brain damage due to a loss of oxygen to her brain. Our hearts sunk when we heard the news but reassurance from her parents let us know that there was nothing we could have done by being there. Still our thoughts are with her and our family back at home and we both hope she is not suffering and knows we both love her. It was a bit of a somber morning but the books that Bre and I have been reading on Buddhism talk about death and its inevitability in life and after a few hours Bre felt much better.
On our way out of town we picked up the 8 other people that we would be hiking with in this order.
Ben – A 31 year old British “professional” world traveler has spent more than a decade working odd jobs all over south east Asia and Australia to save up enough money to move somewhere different every few months. Came to find out he had been married once for 3 years but his wife did not like to travel and made him settle down in Brittan for just over a year and he is now separated from her. He has been living in various villages in the Philippines for the last 8 months and is here in Thailand for three weeks to visit and travel with his friend Jen.
Jen – 31 year old Swiss girl who runs her own business in London met Ben while traveling in Australia 11 years ago. She speaks multiple languages is very well traveled and was easy to get along with right away. Bre and her talked a bit about therapy as her business back in London was holistic therapy for people suffering from work related injuries.
Andy & Milly - German couple around 30. She a school teacher on winter break and he a sales and marketing manager for a certain line of German cars called Skoda, a little sister of VW.
Daniel & Maria – Both are 28 and met while working for Emirates Airlines three years ago and have been dating steady since meeting. Daniel is South African from just outside of Cape Town where his family has an 800 hectare ranch that used to offer guided hunts of just about anything you could want to shoot. However, recently his father has been limiting the amount of hunting and increasing the number of safaris, wedding, and corporate trips to preserve the wildlife and was something we both could appreciate. Although he was a bit rough when it came to his care for the animals Bre and him never got into any arguments, something I was grateful for. Maria was from the country of Malta. Now you may be asking yourself where the hell is Malta??? but rest assured hardly anyone knew where that was. It’s a small island off of the coast of Italy and is home to just 400,000 Maltese and it turns out that Daniels ranch is larger than the island of Malta.
Annette – 30 years old and also from Switzerland she is a process engineer working for Nestle improving processes but more importantly life for the people on the factory floor. She was very proud to be involved in helping to better the working conditions of the factory workers and was able to increase productivity by adding a 5th shift of workers; giving their people more time off between shifts.
Ann – Also around 30 works in one of the largest chocolate factories in Switzerland as a chemical engineer aka food chemist. She had a very interesting education background where she studied in India doing her master’s thesis on anemic women. Her team was able to find that most women were not getting the right amount of iron from their diets for two reasons: One because they don’t eat red meat which is full of a certain acid (I could not understand the Swiss word) and helps the body retain iron. Two they have almost no vitamin C in their diet which has a similar affect to the acid found in red meat. Since the cows are a very sacred animal in India her team was charged with finding another way. Her master’s thesis suggested the government fund research to create rice that was fortified with vitamin C, something which the University she was working with started working on once she left.
Been – 27 and our Thai tour guide was awesome. He made sure we all had everything at all times and was our cook for every meal. Though his English was a bit hard to understand at times he did his best to try and explain things as we went along.
We were all together and on our way north chitchatting and getting to know one another for the first hour before we stopped at a market for 30 minutes. Been bought all of our supplies for the weekend and we got ourselves some water and a few snack to tidy us over between meals. The market was like no other any of us had seen. This was a real Thai market full of every Thai cooking staple plus a lot of exotic thing like dried bugs, worms, strange animal parts, and yes, snake soup. I got a picture of the bugs but snake soup picture would not come out well because of the lighting so I am left with only the memory.
We hopped back in the Tuk-Tuk and spent another hour driving north to the elephant camp for some lunch and a ride on the elephants. Though a little hokey and touristy we did get to ride on an elephant feeding it bananas as we went along a loop trail that lasted just about an hour. The elephants were well taken care of and we learned that they were only trained by certain tribes from the age of 2 to 4 and were taught with care and respect.
We grabbed our rucksacks and started the 2 hour hike toward the mountain where we would spend the night with Luan Tribe. I can admit now as a backpacker having hiked a lot of the California Sierras I now have a new found respect for the Thai jungle and its rugged terrain. All 10 of us were shocked with how difficult the hike straight up the mountain was. With just over 2400 feet of elevation gain in less than 6 miles this was probably the steepest hike I have ever done. At one point I was thinking a rope would be nice and how they undersold the young fit part just a bit. Our leader, Been, has been doing this same hike every week for two years and was basically running between all of making sure we were okay and got us up the mountain safely but sweaty just before sundown.
We followed Been to host families bamboo hut on the side of the hill and were shown our sleeping arrangements. Again I think they undersold it a bit here but it only consisted of a straw mat on the bamboo floor with two blankets and a pillow thingy. We spread our stuff out and headed up the hill to watch the locals play some Thai soccer before the sunset over hills of Laos about 100 miles in the distance. The Thai soccer or, Tacrot in Thai, is a mix of volley ball and soccer. Its played by three people on each side on a half size volley ball court with similar rules except you cannot use your hands to get the rattan ball over the net. I picked up the rules quickly and watch the kids play until it was time for dinner.
We all sat on the floor and enjoyed dinner by candle light, our only choice, then sat around as one of the village members played some guitar starting with Thai songs and finishing with some American classics. We went to bed fairly late and had a rough night’s sleep with the roosters starting calls all over the village at about 3 am. Surprisingly enough the floor was actually somewhat comfortable but we were both happy to get up once the sun was out because sleep was not going to happen with all of the noise.
Been made us breakfast which consisted of a few scrambled eggs and 4 pieces of toast. Bre had found some puppies earlier in the morning and decided she was going to feed them her eggs and some toast. The four of them could not have been happier as they inhaled everything she gave them. At about 9am we packed our sacks and started the climb up and out of the village. We stopped again at the school and all attempted to play Takrot for about a half hour. Bre had the best kick reverted back to her karate roots launching the ball way over every ones heads on several occasions.
We picked up our stuff and spent the next hour climbing up the mountain then we took a sharp left and headed straight down. Some of the sections of the trail were so steep that we had to help each other down as people were constantly slipping over the wet soil of the jungle floor. We made our way down through the lush jungle until we came upon a river that we followed for a few hours. We came upon a small village at the bottom of a water fall where we had a well deserved lunch.
We spent the next two hours walking slowly along the river taking a break at a different fall before ending up at another small village along the river. There were only two happy ladies running the village and invited us in with a warm hello. This village was even more primitive then the last with only a bucket of water for a shower the guys elected to bathe in the river one at a time. The girls took their turns in the river as well and once we were all clean we celebrated the hard days hike with a beer around the fire as we waited for dinner.
We were able to eat at a table tonight that was made entirely from bamboo from the forest. Though not that sturdy it held us long enough to eat and return to the camp fire. We spent the next few hours chatting and getting to know one another. I was able to use a trick I had learned in New Zealand when we went rafting in a cage to take a picture of us with only the light from the camp fire. Setting the exposure time for 15 seconds we all held very still and the image came out as well as I could have hoped.
Sleep at this camp was much quieter however much colder being next to the river deep in a valley. Bre and I hardly slept and were again happy once the sun started to come out and warm things up a bit. We had the same breakfast as the day before and packed our things. We said goodbye to our two hosts and headed down the river to meet our river rafting guides just over an hour away. As we made our way out of the jungle we looked back at the mountain we came over in disbelief that there could have been a trail on something that steep but leave it to the Thai’s to figure a way.
Once at the rafting camp we through our stuff in the back of a truck got our life jackets and helmets and listened to a quick briefing on the commands from our guide. We were in the water within 15 minutes of arriving and were on our way down some rapids in the first 50 feet of the river. Though it was not very challenging the river raft lasted about 30 minutes and had two sections that were less than class II. At the end of the rafting section we all boarded handmade bamboo rafts for the last 20 minutes to experience how the Thai’s moved down the river long ago and still do today. Bre and I ended up on separate rafts at the head steering the raft with a long bamboo pole by pushing off of obstacles.
We arrived at the end of the river to a smiling Been who had lunch waiting for us at a small camp. We played some ping-pong and Frisbee as we waited for our ride back to town. The trip was an excellent way to see the jungles and experience some of the different tribes that have been in these mountains for hundreds of years. We both agreed that we were a little under prepared and if we did it again would have proper gear for hiking and sleeping.
Bre and I had to catch an overnight bus that would take us straight to Bangkok arriving at 4:30am. We took and expensive taxi ride to our hostel Lub-D in the Patpong district and have been catching up on emails and writing for the last few hours before we set out and explore this city. We were able to talk to Bre’s mom and found that her grandma had passed peacefully at noon on the 27th. We are both relieved to know that she did not suffer any pain and is now with grandpa Bill. Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and are looking forward to a Happy New Year celebration.
--Ryan & Bre
Trekking Photo's

Day 25 to 27 - Jungle Trek

Days 21 through 24 - Heading North

Day 21 and 22
We woke up early this morning and packed our stuff as it was going to be a long bit of travel for us. We decided to head to northern Thailand by taking the train which was going to take a total of 30 hours door to door. We still had a few hours with the scooter so we headed into town and cruised the streets until we found a small café with a good looking breakfast menu. We were right across the street from the ocean looking toward the larger island of Ko Samui while we enjoyed our breakfast fruit plate and pancakes.
We spent the next two hours at the resort taking full advantage of the hammocks before catching our taxi to the ferry at 11:30 am. Once on the ferry Bre and I both read our books while we slowly moved toward Suri Thani. Once on shore a bus took us to the train station that was a little over an hour away. During the ride Bre sat next to a very nice Indian=Australian named Sunjay who was staying on the island to figure out where he should live. A former Chiropractor at 55 years old just sold off all he had and was moving from Australia to Ko Phengan but had to go back to sell his car and send the rest of his stuff. He is going to open up a real coffee shop on the island that will have good coffee’s like espresso’s, mocha’s, latte’s, etc. and will sell cupcakes with a Chiropractic practice above it. I met him at the train station once we were off the bus and asked him about Australia and our upcoming stay there. He recommended that we checkout a bollywood dance studio that his friend owns that Bre promptly wrote down. I had met Miko from Finland who was on his way south by train to Malaysia and had to wait 6 hours before his train would be leaving, ouch!
The 4 of us set to explore the tiny area around the station and stumbled upon a concert. As we drew nearer we could see hundreds of kids with their parents all dancing while a Thai Christian rock band performed. We were lead through the gates by some of the enthusiastic Christians and given a free meal of rice with a fried egg. We enjoyed the concert for a few minutes then continued our tour of the town which was very short lived as everything was closing down at 5:00pm. We grabbed a quick beer and headed for the train station where we finished our drinks and said our goodbye’s.
Bre and I had reserved a sleeper car on the train but had not opted for A/C since it was night time and we were heading to the cooler northern climate. As we began our long trek toward Bangkok the conductor came by checked our tickets then changed our seats to a very cozy bed arrangement. We both had top bunks across from each other so we lay down and enjoyed a few hours of reading before we both caught some shuteye.
We arrived into Bangkok on schedule at 5:30 am so we departed the train in a fairly groggy state and headed to the terminal for our one and a half hour layover. We grabbed some breakfast, pad thai, and waited for our next 12 hour ride to Chiang Mai.
The ride north was full of beautiful scenery that consisted of lush green mountainous terrain, long flat rice farms and the occasional Buddhist Wat. There were only three other stops along the way at small towns that look like they have not changed much since they were first built. They did offer lunch on the train however there was only one choice of chicken over rice so both of us had to decline so we finished off the few snacks we had left. We pulled into the train station one hour after sunset and looked for the driver holding a sign that said Mr. Ryan from the Panda Hotel. Sure enough he was there and helped Bre with her luggage as we walked toward the Van that would take us into the city and to our hotel. We booked this hotel through a travel agent for one night as it was his only choice and could not say if it was nice or not.
When we arrived the driver checked us in and took us up to our room on the 4th floor of a 5 story hotel. It was a basic but we were pleased so we headed down to the first floor to grab some dinner before calling it an early night.
Photo's

Day 21 & 22

Day 23 – Chiang Mai
I was forced away this morning by some really early noise that was coming from outside our window that sounded like someone changing tires. As I looked out I could see there was a tire repair shop just across the small river that was already doing tire changes at 6:00 am. I would have thought the guy was training to be a NASCAR pit crew chief at the speed at which he was doing tire changes. He was going so fast that the pneumatic impact drill was running almost non-stop. There was no way we were going to stay another day at this place so we did some reading in the lonely planet guide and marked some places on the map and started walking toward the city. We crossed over the river and made a small left as we came upon a moat that surrounded the ancient capital. There was an old brick piling that made a distinct corner just across the moat with several lookout posts that were slightly caving in. As we walked along the moat we could see that traffic on the outside of the moat was moving clockwise and the traffic on the inside was moving counter clockwise and that the street were very narrow. We followed the map to a few places that had opening but were either too expensive or didn’t look nice. We were about to give up and head back so we headed up an alley way and saw another place called The White House with a vacancy sign. Bre went up and asked how much the rooms were and they said they had two available one with a full size bed and one with two twins for 250 baht a night (just over $8 US). After a quick look at the room we booked two nights; this place was better than some of the motels we have stayed at in the US.
After breakfast we found a scooter rental place and drove back to our old hotel to pack up and move to our new digs. I had read about a couple of places that were some distance away so we hopped on the scooter and headed for the mountains. We pulled up to Wat Su Dep after an hour of driving up the hill and were immediately blown away by its location on the side of the mountain. With just over 600 steps lined by two dragon statues the top was hard to make out through all of the visitors headed in both directions.
Once at the top we paid our entrance fee and spent the next hour seeing the temples, the monks, shrines, bells, bookshops, and expansive views of the city in the distance. It was really interesting to see all of the intricate statues of Buddha and all of the different positions that he can be found in all with their own meaning. The monks that roamed around did not interact with any of the tourists in complete silence as it seemed like they hardly knew we were even there. After asking several people we made sure that it was polite to take some photos of the buildings and once confirmed by a tour guide we had him snap a shot of us in front of a giant poster of the King.
We had lunch at the bottom of the steps of the temple which Bre found to be very exciting, Persimmons. Though not as good as the ones we get from her parents farm we enjoyed them nonetheless as we thought about home a bit and the cold weather we were happy to be missing. We made our way up the mountain on the scooter to the next attraction, the Phuphing Palace (we laughed at the name every time we saw a sign for it). The people of Chiang Mai built the palace specifically for the King after his first visit to the province so he and his family would have a place to stay. Though the King rarely visits Chiang Mai the palace is kept in immaculate shape and is open to the public for guided tours. We were bummed to find that it closes daily at 3:30 but we could see from the outside that it was a beautiful place with extensive flower gardens and a tree lined terrace that block some of the view of the house from the street.
We made the best of our trip up by seeing some of the shops that were located on top of the mountain and I was able to find a handmade shirt for 120 baht that had long sleeves. We found while we were at the temple earlier that long attire is required at some of the temples within the walled city of Chiang Mai so this was a good start. We headed down the hill slowly stopping often to look at the view and see some of the older buildings along the road. The pictures we took did not do the view justice because of the dense cloud of smog hanging over the valley below. The smog is something I had read and hear about but seeing first had really showed me how bad it was. Though not as bad as Bangkok the cloud lingering over the city was eye opening how pollution is affecting not only the view but the health of the people who live here.
As it grew dark we drove the scooter across town to the famous Night Bazzar, an open air market full of just about anything a tourist or local Thai would want. Rows and rows of small cart stands selling food, shirts, trinkets, CD’s, artwork, you name it they had it; a lot of the stuff was knockoff but it was all really cheap. After walking around for an hour we stopped for dinner and a beer in the center of the action and watched all of the different people from all corners of the earth scour each both. Some would make deals, some would pay asking price and some would just walk on by. Bre and I talked about how different it was here in Thailand with prices. Nothing is fixed, everything is negotiable, even if it’s posted on a sign which I figured it was a benefit of a cash only society.
We headed over to a vendor I had spotted earlier and grabbed a Roti filled with bananas for desert while Bre got some candy from across the aisle. I found some Thai pants I liked and made a deal with the lady for 120 baht and I now have a complete Thai outfit that I paid just under $6 for that would be acceptable at the Wats. Since Bre had some long pants and a long sleeve shirt she decided she wanted a small elephant keychain that could put on her backpack and wanted to wait until tomorrow to find an outfit. After a long day we headed back to the hotel to do some reading and relaxing. I read up in our guide about the city and planned a tentative day on the scooter while Bre enjoyed a book on Buddhism.
Day 23 Photo's

Day 23

Day 24 – The City of Chiang Mai
We woke up this morning and grabbed breakfast to go, Bre’s favorite Mango over sticky rice with coconut milk, and headed up the hill to a lookout we spotted yesterday. We enjoyed breakfast and each other while we looked at the view and talked about the rest of our trip. Bre decided that she wanted to check out a jungle trek with an elephant ride to make sure the elephants were as well cared for as we had been hearing. I had our day planned out to see the whole city by scooter stopping at temples, Wats, famous statues, and wanted to see the city art and cultural center to learn about the history of Chiang Mai.
After breakfast we drove back down the hill and found a jungle trekking outfit and stopped to ask some questions. Once we were satisfied Bre picked the three day two night echo trek that the owner told us only young people could do and we would be in a group of not more than 13 people our age. He ran through the list of things we needed of which we would only need to get a sweatshirt for the night time as the mountains can get quite cold, a mission for tonight’s Night Bazzar.
We spend the rest of the morning on the scooter driving the streets, stopping at shops and book stores. We read a bit about the city and learned that it was built in 1256 by three separate Kings. Since all of the roads had been established so long ago they were very narrow and only allowed for one way traffic with today’s modes of transportation. Most of the locals didn’t seem to abide by these rules but we tried to stick to them whenever possible. We had lunch along the moat that surrounded the city then headed back to the hotel for a quick change of clothing so we could go to the temples.
Our first temple was the first one built in this city in 1256 and is basically the center of the city. Still a working monastery today, the ancient temple was an awe inspiring brickwork building that contained a bit of the history in the Thai language we couldn’t read but would later learn about at the cultural center. One of the buildings on site contained a large statue of Buddha that was made of sapphire and locked behind a bullet proof glass and bars. The walls were covered with a mural that seemed to tell the story of how Buddha came to be the “Enlightened One” and how we went on to teach people and grow the spirituality of Buddhism.
We went down the street to the cultural center and spent the next two hours learning everything about the city from the prehistoric era, to the creation of Thai province and its importance to the trade routs between China, Laos, Cambodia, and Burma. We found out that the city had been taken over by the Burmese during the 14th century and they would continue to rule it for nearly 200 years. We learned how Chiang Mai was changed by its own gold rush and the introduction of western religions brought modern hospitals and doctors to the area. We would also discover that Chiang Mai was to be an example of a modern city until greed and corruption cancelled plans for an elaborate public transportation system. The city as it sits today is home to over 250,000 Thai and is the largest city north of Bangkok. There is a lot of heavy traffic pollution but most of the buildings within the moat are hundreds of years old and have been modified for common everyday things like pluming and electricity which are evident by pipes wires running every way totally exposed. We really had a fun day learning about the city and the people that call it home.
We spent a few hours back at the hotel writing about the day, reading and relaxing before heading out for dinner. We had an excellent Mexican dinner at a restaurant just outside the moat looking back toward the city that included all-you-can-eat chips and salsa, a true taste of home. We took the scooter to the Bazzar and spent a couple hours window shopping until we found the perfect sweatshirts for our overnight trek the next day. We ended up back at the hotel somewhat late but stayed up to separate the things we would be taking with us and the stuff we would leave behind.
Day 24 Photo's

Day 24

A Lot Has Happened - Day 16 to 20

We have been doing so much since my last update so the entry and photo albums may seem a bit long, sorry but we enjoyed them :).
Day 16
We woke up bright and early this morning for our three tank boat dive off of Phi Phi Island with Barracuda Divers. They have their own boat dive boat however due to the distance of the first dive they charter a speed boat with two 300 HP outboard motors that got us to our destination in a hurry. Our first dive was on the wreck of the King Cruiser; an old passenger ferry boat that “accidentally” hit a reef system causing it to sink. The story that we were told was that the ship was old and going to be decommissioned a month before the alleged accident. For the benefit of diving once she sank it was cleaned up and made safe for diving lying upright in 30 meters of water. She is 100 meters long and roughly 10 meters tall. Bre and I were paired with another American couple from Seattle and were led by our fearless South African Divemaster, Devon.
When we got to the site - the seas, we were told, were very light and only bobbing the boat around about a meter. We were the last group to enter the water and as we descended toward the vessel I could barely see our guide as the visibility was only about 5 meters. We came upon the wreck toward the stern of the boat and swam along the top deck toward the bow. We saw one of the biggest Lion Fish Thailand has to offer. It was probably just over a foot long with a wing span of about 8 inches, pretty big for a Lion Fish. It was then I was wishing Santa had brought me an underwater digital camera setup as an early Christmas gift. As we made our way along the upper deck tracing back and forth. I looked toward Bre who was right along side of me and quickly gave me the signal for okay, then I love you. I signaled back and we headed to the bow. Dropping down another few meters we followed the wreck along the starboard side passing numerous fish along the way and swimming through a few of the ships passage ways. After a 45 minute dive at 25 meters (thank you Nitorx!) we made our way back up the line where a group had congregated at 5 meters for the three meter safety stop and to my surprise was a giant jelly fish. The jelly was about the size of a Yoga/Pilates ball and even came with its own plethora of marine life. Looking at the jelly there were at least 100 fish living within its body and many other large fish circling the outside using the jellies tentacles as protection from larger prey.
Once back on board we quickly took our seats and headed for our next dive site, Shark Point. I had been hearing about Shark Point since the first day I was in Thailand, touted as one of the best dive sites in the area and I must say I agree. After a short surface interval Bre and I were back in the water circling a pinnacle that shot out of the water in the middle of the ocean between Phi Phi and Phuket. While we were circling the island I was thinking to myself about the movie “Finding Nemo” and how the writers and animators had to have dived here for inspiration because of the vast amount of marine life and soft corrals. We spent just over an hour under the water at this location and both Bre and I could have stayed much longer had we not run out of air. Once back on the boat we both raved about the site, I concluded that next to Cozumel, Mexico this was the best dive sites I had ever been to. Had the visibility been over 100 feet rather than 20, it would have been the best dive I had ever done.
We were back on the boat for no less than 2 minutes before our boat captain had us rocketing toward Phi Phi Lai, the small island just to the south of Phi Phi Don, and we made our way to Maya Beach for lunch. Maya Beach was made famous in the movie “The Beach” featuring Leonardo DeCaprio and the Thai have really exploited its beauty. It was very crowded with other boats and beach goers looking to soak up some of the suns rays and enjoy lunch. As I looked around I wondered what this place would look like void of people and realized that as I looked past the people the beauty was still there. I noticed that the rocks protecting the inlet of the bay were undercut by the strong ocean waves creating the appearance that the rocks were hovering over the water.
Once we were finished with lunch we made our third dive just outside of Maya which also lasted just over an hour. Though not as good as Shark Point, this site had plenty to offer and included a pair of turtles. One of which was missing an arm was affectionately known as Stumpy. We were back on the island by 3 in the afternoon and after a quick shower were strolling around town. We had dinner at Pirate themed bar that turned out not to be all that great but cheap nonetheless. With some drinks in hand we headed to the beach to check out the famous beach party scene but to our surprise the beach was empty even though it was almost 10:00 pm. We sat in the sand for a half our, then we walked along the beach and enjoyed the stars. We made our way back to our rustic accommodations to fight off what seemed like 100 mosquitoes before conceding and calling it a night.
Day 16 Pictures

Day 16

Day 17
The next day we woke up early again and packed up all of our stuff to catch the early boat out of Phi Phi so we could head to the island of Ko Samui. We both knew it was going to be a long day of travel again but the thought of somewhere different kept our spirits up. We were on the 9:00am ferry back to Phuket enjoying the views and reading some of the books we brought and after an hour and half boat ride we were back to port. We took a van ride back to Phuket Town to the bus station for a ride to Suri Thani, a similar port off of the mainland that offered fairy service to Samui. We found out that the busses for the day had already gone and were being hassled by a minivan owner to hire his van so we could have a private ride to Suri Thani. At 4,000 Bhat ($120 US) we know that that was 10 times the amount if we just took a regular charter bus. We decided to stay the night in Phuket Town and take a charter bus in the morning instead. We rationalized that this was a good idea as it would give us a chance to see some of Thailand that wasn’t near a beach and part of the old Thailand that originally drew people to the area.
After a quick lunch and some reading about places to stay in my Lonely Planet guide we walked to our hotel of choice the Thavorn Inn. Built during the 1940’s, which as it turns out was also a mining rush for Phuket, this place stood as a testament to what Phuket Town was like during its hay day. After a short time viewing our room we booked a night and Bre took a quick nap while I repacked some of the gear that I wanted to ship to Australia since the rest of our trip did not involve diving. We began walking with our bags to DHL store when we found out from a taxi driver that it had moved over 3 miles away. In the heat and humidity carrying almost 40 lbs worth of gear I decided walking was out so we hopped into a tuk tuk and cruised along a winding road to the DHL center. A short time later and $200 poorer our stuff was safely on its way to our next destination in the land of OZ.
We started to walk back toward town when a small Thai man on a moped stopped and said “taxi, taxi where you go?” and after some negotiations Bre and I climbed on the back of the bike. I was nervous at first after hearing about how dangerous the bikes were in Thailand but I quickly realized the rumors were false. Our diver heroically drove us back to town, Bre and I with enormous grins on our faces as the wind rushed by. Due to a language barrier the driver dropped us a few blocks from our hotel so we walked back stopping at a fruit stand along the way. Bre found her new favorite snack; mango with coconut milk over sticky and sweet rice… mmm mmm mmmmmm!
After a few hours of walking the city, Breanna found a travel agent who helped us book a minivan ride to Samui including ferry tickets at a fraction of what we would have paid if we had tried to do our selves. After talking with the travel agency owner we learned that the Thai are very against non-Thai business owners and conglomerates who suck money out of Thailand. The travel agencies offer deals to places that are Thai owned that beat the crap out of what we have been seeing advertized by some of the bigger companies. After a nice pizza dinner we walked around until we found a bar offering free wifi. We didn’t have my laptop so I could not update the blog however we were able to send some emails via my iPod touch. We got to bed around 11:00pm after a nice lightning show and a lot of heavy rain fall.
Day 17 Pictures

Day 17

Day 18
We were picked up promptly at 8:30am and were on our way north to Suri Thani in a van to catch the 2:00 ferry to Ko Samui. After several hours in the van I was just over half way through the 600 page book I brought when I looked over at Breanna sleeping next to the window. I swung her legs over mine and stared out the window for what seemed like 100 miles as the landscape passed by. Thailand is a very lush, green, undulating territory with many small villages each with its own personality. I reflected on the last two weeks and the rest of our stay here and how different a place South East Asia was even though I had only seen a tiny portion of what it had to offer.
Once in Suri Tahani we talked to another travel agent who convinced us not to go to Samui but instead Ko Phengan, a smaller island to the north only operated by the Thai. I had heard about this island from one of my friends who visited last summer. This island had been made famous by its full moon parties started back in the 80’s by a bunch of falong (white foreigners) tourists that stuck and is a regular occurrence. Though we missed the party for the month of December we decided it was a better choice to support locals and booked two night as Phengan Great Bay Resort. I will spare the details but after a long boat ride and a few transfers we made it to our resort just after 8:00pm; almost 12 hours to travel less than 300 miles. The good news was that we met three Romanians who were traveling to Phengan for a prolonged stay of six months. After a quick dinner we headed to our room for a shower and some long awaited rest, travel can really take it out of you.
Day 18 Pictures
Day 19
We almost sprung out of bed this morning as we could see a view of the beach from our room and were eager to get out and explore the island. We decided that it was time to rent a moped and give it a shot. Hell we have travel insurance that will cover us up to a million dollars of damage!!! After a quick tutorial we headed down the LEFT side of the drive way avoiding some large puddles caused from last night’s rain and made our way toward the township of Baan Tan for a coffee and a map. We spent some time at the coffee shop that offered wifi checking emails and letting mom and dad know that we were okay then we were off on the moped for the rest of the day exploring the island.
A little over 15 kilometers in diameter Phengan has three main roads that run north to south and one that kind of runs around the coast line. Some of the roads are dirt/gravel but the scooter seemed to handle them just fine. The highest point on Phengan is just over 600 meters and has a walking trail to a lookout point however the view was blocked by clouds when we drove by. We went everywhere on the scooter and had, what we both thought was, our best day in Thailand. Once we were out of the tourist areas we were able to experience some of the Thailand that not many see. The jungle, waterfalls, nature parks, Wats, and the vast coastline, most pass up for some partying, were ours for the day.
The weather however was not our greatest friend of the day… As we drove along the west shore of the island I quickly realized that the scooters rear was moving around a bit out of control. I pulled over to find out that we had a flat tire and no sooner than I started pushing the bike did its start to rain adding insult to injury. I walked the bike in the rain for about 10 minutes back to the nearest resort where we found a place that rented bikes and a quick phone call had a repair man on his way. We had lunch while we waited directly over the ocean on the beach while the rain continued and our tire was fixed.

Once we were back on the road we explored many of the beaches and temples. We even spend a few hours at a Wat (Buddhist monastery) in total silence as we walked the grounds with a few of the Monk residence. We were guided to a few of the meditation areas, the last of which was my favorite. A giant rock at the top of the hill that over looked the valley, the ocean and a few of the surrounding islands. I took a few pictures after showing the Monk my camera and a nod of approval let me know that it was okay however, the humidity in the air made it difficult to capture the expansiveness of the view.
We spent the next few hours on the scooter making our way along the coast line until we got to Haad Rin beach and the Mecca of full moon partying. There were dozens of small bars and DJ stands lining the narrow beach that has accommodated over 30,000 party goers. The weather turned quickly as it started to rain again heavily so I pulled over to the side of the road and we took shelter at a travel agency. We were able to take advantage of the time and booked our trip up to Chiang Mai. After much con$$$ideration we decided at a train ride would be our choice and secured our tickets. As we talked we with the agent I looked at Bre as he worked through the schedule that would take us nearly 30 hours to arrive to the north and was surprised with the calm that she displayed. The agent even suggested another nights stay on the island and Phangan Village so we booked a night stay.
We made our way back to our place and cleaned up for dinner. As we hopped back on the scooter we asked the Romanians if they would like to join us for dinner but unfortunately they had already eaten. As we drove through town under the shadow of night out of the corner of my eye I spotted a restaurant featuring Mexican food. Instantly the thought of a burrito accompanied my chips and salsa with a margarita to wash it all down had me parking the bike before Bre even knew what was going on. I told her I spotted a taste of home as I grabbed her hand and headed for the eatery. Funny how I attribute Mexican food with home…
Bellies full of burrito, salsa, and yes a mango margarita, even the Thai influence the Mexicans here, we headed back to the resort. We pulled up just outside of our room when we saw the three Romanians outside enjoying a bottle of Vodka they brought with them from home. We stayed up late with the trio talking about our differences, similarities and plans for the future. The only male of the threesome, Christian, has decided to rent a house for 6 months and stay on the island so he and I had a lot to talk about. Bre made quick friends with the other two girls as they talked and laughed about girlie things. We were the last in the complex to go to bed at around 1 am when we decided we had made enough racket for one night.
Day 19 Pictures

Day 19

Day 20
Bre was up much earlier than I this morning and even took a walk along the beach before I rose out of bed. We packed up our things stored our bags at the front desk so we could take advantage of the last few hours of our scooter rental. We sped along the center road toward the center of the island and a government park that boasted a water fall and nature park. When we arrived we were greeted by two dogs that helped us square away the bike and ran circles around us while we walked toward then entrance to the park. These two dogs stayed with us the entire trip and we wondered if they were there to watch the falong’s to make sure they did not get lost. After a few hours and a few kilometers of hiking we were back on the scooter and waved good bye to our canine friends.
Back at the resort breakfast consisted of a tofu burger while we waited for our ride to take us to our next destination which arrived 20 minutes early. We tossed our bags in the back of the pickup and rode through town toward the next stay. Down a rugged dirt road we passed a water buffalo who hardly acknowledged that we were driving by then a sharp left directed us toward the beach. As we rolled up we both looked at each other with smiles on our faces. There were hammocks everywhere and small bungalows lining the beach all facing seaward. We were given the keys to our room hut and were given a 1 Bhat tour (1/30 of an American dollar).
At just over $10 US a night this was by far the best accommodations we had seen to date yet the most primitive of them all. With only a bed, toilet and sink on stilts it was basically a tent on steroids. I tracked down the owner and hired a scooter for the day and Bre and I whisked away to check out more of the island. A few rainstorms later we found ourselves back at the resort reading and lounging around. Bre was able to find a puppy and spent the next few hours playing with her new friend “Jumbo”. I have to admit he was as cute as puppies get.
I have spent the last half of the day recapping and uploading pictures as Bre read her book and played with Jumbo. We laughed as we read through our Facebook pages at our friends who are at home and thought about how much we miss them. We also talked about our families and how this will be the first Christmas in 28 years of life that we are warm during December. We miss you all and wish you happy holidays! Sorry for the lengthy entry but internet is not found easily here.
Day 20 Pictures

Day 20

--Ryan & Breanna

Time to Relax - Day 15

Whew! The instructor exam (IE) is behind me now so Breanna and I will spend the rest of December exploring what Thailand has to offer. I am happy to report that the exams went well and I am now officially a PADI SCUBA instructor, back to teaching again. The IE lasted for three days and consisted of three parts. Friday we took 6 exams, Saturday we taught a skill in the pool and demoed 5 additional skills, Sunday we did taught two skills and performed a rescue in the ocean. All 6 of the candidates from my class passed the exam with flying colors and we celebrated together at a Reggae bar over looking Kata Noi beach. It was hard to say good bye to everyone especially Jo and Tim. They have become really good friends and we were sad that it was time to go our separate ways.
Bre and I got up nice and early this morning to catch a boat to Koh Phi Phi Don Island. We had a smooth ride over while watching Mr. Bean episodes on the boat; though it was pretty dry British humor can be funny to us Americans. Phi Phi Islands are a chain about 100 km south west of Phuket and one beach in particular stared in the movie The Beach featuring Leonardo de Caprio. They offer overnight camping trips to the island that Breanna and I are thinking about doing.
We have rented a room at JJ’s and found the accommodations to be much more rustic than our last stay. Our bathroom was a bit of a shock when we discovered that you have to flush the toilet by filling up a bucket of water and dump it in and there is no hot water for the shower. Not too bad though, its clean, they change the sheets everyday and they have WiFi. We elected not to pay the upgrade for air conditioning and as I type this at 10:00pm sweating I am beginning to wonder if this was a good choice???
After lunch we spent some time walking around a very busy market area full of shopping, bars and restaurants. We then made our way down to the beach to discover one of the most beautiful and interesting beaches either of us has ever seen. The beach is stretches for about a half mile with a very gentle sloping white sand strip about 30 feet wide. The water is crystal blue and is protected from the open ocean by massive vertical mountains that have very healthy green vegetation where life can be supported. There were hundreds of people soaking in the sun, some too much, and most of the women were topless. We walked down to the water got our feet wet and by the smile on Bre’s face I would guess the temperature to be well over 80 degrees.
The owner of the shop I did my instructor course through set me up with a dive shop over here and told me I would have to do some fun diving while in Phi Phi. Barracuda Divers has a shop right along the main road as you enter from the boat landing and when I walked in they already knew who I was. Bre decided not to dive today so we signed up for a 3 tank boat dive for the morning and I went out for a two tank afternoon dive. The diving is Thailand has been spectacular! I have already found Nemo more times than I can count and have seen a dozen Lion fish. We saw a Leopard Shark, two sea snakes, and a color changing Cuttle Fish. I am stoked on the dives for tomorrow since we are going to two of the top dive sites in Thailand, the wreck of the King Cruiser and Shark Point.
Once I got back Bre and I cleaned up and had an awesome Pizza dinner at one of the numerous bars along “the road”. There is only one road here as best we can tell that snakes along the thin beach line that we walked in about 10 minutes. The shopping here on Phi Phi is much better than on Phuket because the store owners are not hassling you to buy something as you walk by. We watch a lighting storm in the distance for a bit and once it started to rain we headed back to room to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Day 14 and 15 Album (click to see the entire album)

Day 14 to 15

Time to Catch Up - Day 13

Sorry everyone that it has been so long since an update on our status. Good news is that things are going well! I had class all this week with prep work for the instructor examination (IE) that takes place this weekend. Bre had tons of fun accompanying me to the resort and spending a few days on the beach in Kata.
We were able to have dinner a few times with our new Auzzie friends Tim and Jo. These two world travelers have really opened our eyes to what life can be like if you just take a step back and wait for things to come around rather than just jump right in and see what happens. These two both have a great attitude and outlook on life and both Bre and I look forward to our time in Australia after meeting these two.
I started my IE this afternoon with the first set of written examinations and I am happy to report I passed all 6 exams (physics, physiology, recreation dive tables, skills and environment, equipment and standards). The tests took me just over two and a half hours and when I left I felt a big weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. Saturday will consist of a pool demonstration and skills circuit as well as a classroom presentation. Sunday will involve two open water skills and a rescue demonstration. Once done I will be a PADI instructor, teaching SCUBA again.
Breanna has had her fair share of fun this week as well. She spent the first part of the week at Le Meridian lounging around the resort, pool, and boutiques. The rest of the week she decided to spend at Kata with her new friend Alex. Alex is a local who ownes a bunch of the lounge chairs and umbrellas along the north side of the beach. He has been a real guide to Bre and someone who just wants to be her friend, even after he found out she is married and has a bad ass husband!
The rest of the weekend will be consumed with the IE and all it entails however the rest of the month we will spend traveling around Thailand to experience all it has to offer. I will be updating as regular as I can to keep everyone informed and up to date. Hope you are all well!!!

Day 8 to 10

Day 8 to 10

Day 11 to 13

Day 11 to 13

Business As Usual - Day 4, 5, & 6 with 7

Breanna and I have been running most mornings to get back into a fit lifestyle and where better than along the beach. The road along Kata Beach has been great at motivating us MOST mornings.
Last night we went to the Full Moon Party on Karon beach and had an absolute blast. Tim from my IDC class, Breanna and I spent a few hours there an even had the chance to send up a wish balloon (not sure what its called but check out the video). The Thai people really know how to celebrate a regular occurrence with all night parties at the beach .
Bre took her first trip with me to Le Meridian today to see what the resort is like and absolutely loved it. She was blown away by how tranquil the beach was that she wanted to come back the next day as well. We ended up having dinner at the Thai Kitchen again because the owner will make us any of the dishes she has listed with tofu so we have decided to try everything on the menu; tonight was garlic and pepper tofu and yellow curry tofu with vegetables. Wow! Best meal ever!
After we took a walk along the main road and after about 30 offers we finally decided we have to get a Thai massage. We popped into a place that looked busy and the people were happily enjoying their treatments. After some “negotiations” we were escorted to a couples area and were directed to strip to our undies which I was happy to do, ha ha. The whole experience lasted only an hour and when she was done I could go for another. I looked over to Bre who had an interesting expression on her face as I was certain she was going to want one every day. “I am so glad to be alive right now, I thought that lady was going to kill me” she said. She continued her story about the popping, pulling, cracking, and stretching that just took place over the last hour and swore that was the last one she would be getting. I guess I just got lucky but for a $6.50/hour massage I could go for one at least twice a day.
We spent the rest of the night strolling the streets and checking out the shops. We came across the perfect shirt that only people who have been to Thailand would understand. It said on it “No I don’t want a Fu*king massage, suit, or prostitute”.
The next two days were pretty much “same same” as they say here with classroom work for me and days at the beach for Bre. She has already finished her Twilight book and is eagerly looking for the second to begin soon. For now she is passing the days with reading about Buddhism and ways to live a happier more fulfilling life, something I hope to read soon.
Photos (click to see the entire album)

Night 5 Day 6

A Day Off…More diving – Day 7

Bre has been awesome all week with supporting me during my class work and when I told her I had a day off on Saturday I was surprised when she told me she wanted to do a boat dive. The shop owner I am doing my class through basically gave me the day free so it was a deal hard to pass up. We did a two tank dive in Bungalow Bay on Racha Yai Island off the south-east coast of Phuket, Thailand. I don’t know if it was the 83 degree water, the Lion fish, the clown fish playing in the soft corals, or the two dives that were over an hour long but both of us ranked these dives in the top 5 we have ever had.
Today also happens to be the King of Thailand’s birthday, yeah! Wait…all of the bars are closed, no sale of alcohol permitted at all? Boooo.
We had a nice stroll along the beach tonight and a wonderful dinner at one of the only places open. It was almost like we were walking around in a different city tonight. What was once a busy, can’t seem to move around without bumping into anyone type of city has seen its Yang. The Kings birthday. The only thing remotely happening tonight were the firework displays that certain hotels were putting on. Every time we would here a loud bang we would run to our balcony and look for the bright flashing lights and guess how far way each show was.
I also got to spend some time tonight talking to my good friend Neil Romans; bravely flying helicopters in Afghanistan for the US Army. I am happy to report that he is doing well and loves flying everyday although he misses his wife Victoria. We were able to reminisce about SCUBA diving a bit and made some plans for the future that I now look forward to very much.
This next week is going to be busy with more classroom, pool and ocean work so I may have a hard time keeping up with updates. Take care everyone, laa korn ( ลาก่อน , good bye in the Thai language).
Diving day photos (click to see the entire album)

Day 7 - Racha Yoi Boat Dive

The Next 12 Days - Day 3

Today is the day I started class… It was very reminiscent of being back Cal Poly at the start of the quarter listening to the instructor go over the class outline, read off the required materials, and inform us about the quizzes we would be taking. Then I realized I was in Phuket, Thailand learning to be a SCUBA instructor again and that put a big smile on my face.
Earlier that morning Breanna and I woke up early to get a run in before it got to hot and the sun would only permit us to be in the shade. We ran along Beach Street for about a half hour until we realized that we were both out water and needed something to rehydrate. After a quick shower I was off to school and Bre planned on spending a day at the beach nose deep in the book Twilight.
I met the rest of my class mates during the first part of the morning:

Marian is an English woman who has been living in Sydney Australia for the last 9 years. A 40 year old graphic designer who has decided to take her life in her own hands and do more of the things she loves; teaching people to dive.

Roger is also English who retired as a commercial real estate broker to avoid an early layoff. He and his wife moved to Thailand a month ago and rented a flat about a half hours drive south of Patong Beach. His money is getting him 4.5 to 1 just by transferring it over to Thai Bot so he figured by retiring earlier in Thailand he was going to be okay and diving was something he could do make some extra money. His wife had been at a language school to learn how to teach the local Thai business owners basic conversational English.

Kym is a 24 year old Auzzie from just outside Sydney who does not want to join the real world quite yet. While on a trip with her friend along the gold coast she did a discover SCUBA diving program and was instantly hooked. She has been here for about two months working her way from basic open water diver through to the Instructor course.

Tim and Jo are also an Auzzie couple (yeah I am surrounded by Australians, good for me for where we will be going next) who are their regular two month holiday (vacation to us Americans) from their regular jobs. Both work on private yachts that travel all over the world; Tim has never been diving in the same place twice and Jo had completed her diver master in Honduras in between shore excursions with the ship owner. These two intrigue me the most because of their relaxed attitude on live and their outlook on what is important. They both value each other and the experiences that they have been fortunate enough to be a part of. I am looking forward to introduce them to Breanna and develop a friendship.

My days over the next two weeks will pretty much be the same; classroom instruction in the morning and pool in the afternoon. Breanna will be going to the beach, taking walks, accompanying me to the resort, and reading (go Team Edward). We will get to spend dinner together then I will be hitting the books again to get my homework done for the next day. We miss you all, Cheers!!!
Day 3 through 5 Pictures (click on the picture so see more)

Day 3 to 5

Getting a lay of the land - Day 2

When I woke up in our bungalow on the hill after a long night of heavy sleep I looked outside and realized just how beautiful this place was. The bright blue ocean with white sand beaches lined with tall palm trees as far as the eye can see. It was early in the morning but the constant sounds of scooters moving about were echoing out of the street below. Bre and I decided to go for a walk to see what Kata beach was like and to try and find the dive shop I would be training at.
Kata beach is on the Southwest shore of Phuket and is a popular destination spot for European tourists because of its beautiful weather and cheap 5 star resorts. The sandy beach is roughly a mile long and has thousands of double lounge chairs with an umbrella that can be rented the entire day for just over $3. There are several individual vendors that line road along the beach selling the typical water, snacks, beer, sunscreen, and beach toys. There are three roads that run north-to-south and three that run east-to-west; none of which we can tell have names and as I would later find out even people that have lived here for 10+ years still don’t even know what they are supposed to be called. As Bre and I walked up the street heading north along the beach we noticed the number of people out early exercising, the people out sweeping the streets, the water and ice vendors running about making deliveries to the shops and restaurants, who were all taking advantage of the cooler mornings.
We walked along until the road ended on one of the main streets heading east to west and made a right walking past a couple of small family restaurant owners who were all giving us the typical “goodmorniiiiiiiiing” as we smiled and waved hello. We got to the next north-to-south street and turned right heading back towards our bungalow, we could see right away this was the main street for bars, restaurants, shops, massage, beauty salons, and tailors. Nothing was open yet at 7:30 in the morning but based on the density of everything we could tell this place was going to be hopping at night.
We stopped at what looked like a nice place for a cheap breakfast and had a huge plate of fresh local fruit and toast, I got an egg omelet with veggies and we shared some coffee. We headed back to the room to pack up our stuff and head to the dive shop to get checked in and find out where we would be staying for the next 14 days. It turned out that the address of the dive shop I had was for their smaller sister shop so a quick call to the main shop and a driver was on his way to pick us up. Mr. Jun pulled up in a small diesel van with a big smile on his face ready to take us to our accommodations and as we drove north we chatted about where we were from.
Our place is off one of the three main streets heading east-to-west called “The New Road”. Built two years ago there are still a few hotels and mixed use retail buildings that have yet to be finished but the newness of it stands out. Baan Suay are several apartments above shops and restaurants and remind me slightly of a Santa Row layout without the ritzy façade. We quickly droped our stuff off and headed to meet Rene and the rest of the dive team at Le Marina Resorot on Patong Beach.
As we drove in the gate I knew this place was something special by the way the surroundings transformed from a jungle to a well manicured paradise. The van was parked and Rene with Sea Fun divers met Bre and I at the door with a smile. “Welcome to the place where things are all good” he said. We made some introductions and learned Rene was from Sunnyvale but was a native of Philadelphia who came here 10 years ago for a three week vacation and never left. He gave us a tour of the grounds filling us in about how the next 12 days would go and what to expect work wise. He then gave us a map of Kata Beach and gave us recommendations on restaurants and the Thai phrases Bre should use to ensure she orders vegan.
The driver took us back to our flat where we took an hour to relax in the A/C and get unpacked. Once things were all sorted we decided to give one of the restaurants a try then stock up at one of the local markets with fresh fruit. The Thai Kitchen is a small family run restaurant right of the main road that runs north-to-south that’s the furthest from the beach with some of the best Thai food in Kata, according to Rene. After the meal we both agreed that this is a place we will frequent during our stay here, the food is excellent and only cost us $7 including a beer.
The market is right at the end of the new road down the street from the Thai Kitchen and has just about anything anyone could want to make an authentic Thai meal. We spent an hour there with different vendors trying all of the fruit, some good some not so much. Oh, and to settle anyone’s concerns about the food, fruit, water or ice, Phuket is not the place to worry about in Thailand. They take special care to make sure people don’t get sick here; tourism is there lively hood and they need people to be well and spend money. Obviously you don’t want to drink tap water but you can buy a 5 gallon jug of filtered and distilled water delivered to your door for less than a dollar.
We stocked up and headed back to the room to rest and get ready for the night. After a few hours of rest and writing we headed down stairs to try the restaurant that was directly below us for dinner then we spent a few hours walking around and taking in all of the craziness that is Thailand. We called it a night around 10 pm and headed back to the room for some shuteye in the A/C.
Day 2 Album (Click to see more)

Day 2

Getting to Phuket - Day 1 30 Hours

After a sad farewell to both Buddy and Riley we were off to Cupertino to share thanksgiving dinner with our families at Barbara’s house. At the request of Breanna we (Ryan, Breanna, Joan, Jim, Bruce, Kim, Brian, and Barbara) enjoyed a vegan dinner complete with tofurkey and stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes with walnuts, awesome mixed vegetable salad, and to top it off for desert Barbara made one of the best pumpkin pudding pies I have ever tasted.
After sharing stories and playing games for a few hours the time came for us to head to SFO airport. We got our seat assignments, checked our bags and headed to the gate for our 12:05 am flight to Hong Kong. Our flight was 16 hours non-stop; the longest flight either of us has ever done in one shot. We got comfortable in our seats which, on a Cathay Pacific plane, was not hard to do. I was out for the first 8 hours of the flight. Bre ended up watching a movie first, then fell asleep for about the same time. The rest of the flight was spent watching movies.
Our flight landed in Hong Kong slightly after 6 am and we could see through the haze the glow of the city, which only revealed a small hint of its sheer size. We tooled around the airport for two hours and during our layover we noticed the similarities of all the shops there, and how overpriced things were. We watched other travelers and guessed by what they were wearing where they were going to, and coming from. With our $31.00 HKD Starbucks coffee we boarded the plane for our 9 am flight to Phuket, this time next to a window. As we rose away from the runway I could see through the smog how large Hong Kong was and how the mountains separate densely populated areas with sky scrapers. And with all of the water ways in between, it reminded me of many San Francisco sized cities all next to each other.
The three hour flight seemed to pass quickly as we talked about the adventure we were embarking on, and the people and places we would experience. As we approached Phuket from the south I could tell right away it was a relatively small island with expansive beaches that took up most of the coast. Its lush steep green mountains gave way to muddy rivers that feed farms and livestock in the middle of the islands, eventually weaving its way down to the ocean. There were small resorts, big resorts, and areas that look unclaimed, and they were all beautiful. As we approached to land from over the water the clarity of the ocean really caught my eye and I could make out how the reef system protected the shores of this small island.
Once on the ground we headed down a hot and humid hallway toward immigration where we stood inline and took note of the people entering Thailand; none of them were American and the large number of European travelers were families with small children or even infants. We made our way througth the persistat taxi drivers to the local bus where we drove down a winding narrow road shared with hundreds of mopeds without any regard for traffic laws. Our bus driver constantly honked the horn to let them know we were there with little results. We met a guy from Denmark who was moving to Phuket to work for 3 months and had no idea where he was going to live, just that he needed an internet connecion so he could work remotely. Another guy from Australia was here on his 4th visit for a year long stay as a writer and was going to purchase a condo in the north shore, then keep it as an investment. We got a lot of good tips as far as what the different beaches were like and what towns had to offer.
Once at the bus terminal Bre and I had a hard time asking the local Thai how to catch the bus to Kata Beach and after a 2 and ½ hour miss communication arrived in Karon Beach where we had our first Thai meal; spring rolls and green curry soup with seafood…Its true what they say about Thai food in Thailand, mmmmmm! With our belly’s full we hopped on the bus for another 15 minutes and finally got to our bustling destination, Kata Beach.
Like Waikiki there’s no shortage of hotels on the beach, restaurants, open air markets, tourists and the “occasional” prostitute. However, as we walked our way along the main street the vast difference of Thailand became very apparent. The quickly moving people, I thought were tourists, were the local Thai merchants running between friends and other businesses owners. They would talk for a bit trade some merchandise then run back to their store and quickly put it up for sale. I got the impression that the merchants were gambling with each other what would be a bigger seller that night and were taking the risk through trade.
Just as the sun was setting over the ocean we found a small bungalow style hotel with rooms high on a hill that had a vacancy and after some bargaining were able to secure for the night; just in time as Bre and I were quickly becoming cranky and tired. I looked at the clock, did some math and realized that we had been traveling for over 30 hours and was relieved to know we would not have to do it again for another month. After a quick shower we both melted into our oversized king bed and fell asleep to sound of the sweet Japanese art of Karaoke (pn., care-ey-okay with your best Japanese accent). As I lay there listening to the “music” a thought flashed into my head and I told Bre just as we both fell asleep “We are half way around the world Bre, and we are here together”.

Day 1+ Picture Album (click to see entire album)

Day 1

Trip Planning

Friends and family,
It has been a year since our trip to New Zealand and we are getting ready for our next adventure that will last 4 months, yep 4 months. In a nutshell Breanna and I have decided to take a career break, or as my mom keeps putting it "a break from reality", to explore two different parts of the world and experience cultures other than our own.

We will spend our first month in Thailand traveling from a small island in the south called Phuket and will finish up in the ancient capital of Chiang Mai. The first part of our trip includes 12 days at the Kata Beach Resort where I will take a refresher course on instructing SCUBA diving. Breanna plans on getting her fair share of Thai massages, read a few books that she has been putting off, and relax on one of the best beaches in the world. We will then spend the rest of the time traveling north with stops along the way and will tentatively fly to Brisbane Australia on December 30th where we will spend three more months.

We plan to live in Byron Bay, Australia where I will work as a SCUBA instructor part time and Breanna will volunteer at an animal sanctuary working with Koala's, Kangaroo's, Tasmanian Devil's, and some other of Australia's exotic wild life. We will spend part of our time working to make ends meet while we are there however, our main purpose is to experience another culture, meet people and learn to live without all the crap that has cluttered our lives over the last 5 years. We both plan to learn to surf, spend long days at the beach, travel to other cities via public transportation, visit music festivals, be healthy, and just get a different take on life.

I am sending this out early, hopefully not to make anyone too jealous but, to extend an invite at any time during our trip to take part in our experience. Nothing is set in stone except that we will be in these two places so we are open for whatever as long as you are up for a new experience and a good time. Below is a map of the first month in Thailand that begins November 27th at 12:05am out of San Francisco. Check it out and make any comments, especially if you would like to join for any length of time.

Take care all,

--Ryan & Breanna


View Thailand in a larger map