All that glitters is good.....

All that glitters is good.....

Monday, January 19, 2015

Asian Adventures - Chiang Mai

After a full day of flying from Bali (it should only take 5 hours unless you miss your 2nd flight like us), we landed in Chiang Mai a little before 9p. The AirBnb condo we stayed in was new, air-conditioned and a close walk to Old Town. Even though the owner lives stateside, she was still very helpful and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a little bit quieter of an experience. However, if you want a little more hustle, I'd recommend staying in Riverside, where it's a little more touristy and there are lots of bars, restaurants and shops. But we were happy for the comfortable bed and strong A/C upon arrival. It was an early night... But lead to an early start the next day!

I made it to Old Town around 7:30am, which I highly recommend. All the temples (wats) still had their services going on, which were beautiful to listen to. There's also a main square where you can see all the locals giving alms to the younger monk boys. I hit the main 3 wats right away. They were all gorgeous in their own unique ways. It was peaceful to sit on the grounds before all the tourists rolled in.

Wat Chedi Luang Worawihan
Wat Phra Singh Woramahaviharn
After that I walked back past the 3 Kings Monument and grabbed a breakfast of mango sticky rice (typically a dessert but I'm on vacation!) and papaya smoothie.

Yes, there's really 3 of them
And this is mango sticky rice - eat as much as possible!
After that I went to get my first Thai style massage, which I actually liked more than the Bali ones. Thai massages are aggressive. They try to crack all the bones in your body and force you into tough yoga poses for stretching while they continue to knead you. It's only 200 BHT for 1 hour, so $6. After that, I went to lunch at Hot Chili, which has a fun ambiance of red drapes and lanterns hanging from the ceiling. 

Hot Chili
I had the papaya salad, which was so hot my mouth was on fire. Everyone around me laughed as I drank 3 bottles of water in rapid succession. I also had some pork wontons to help the burn, which were far and above any wontons I've had with my Chinese takeout back home.

Papaya Salad - Hurts so good, prepare to cry
After my mouth returned to normal I continued walking around Old Town and looking at all the wats. It feels like there's a new wat every block, each with their own statue themes and different feel. For a good easy read and explanation of all the wats in Old Town follow this guide.They're hard to describe so here's a variety of photos:







Old Town is nice, as it's a central square surrounded by a crumbling wall and moat. It's touristy, but not too crazy in November. There's tons of bars, restaurants, shops and massages places. There were 2 post offices so I got some mail out pretty easily. After walking what felt like every inch of Old Town, I decided to branch out. My next trek was a specific quest. I saw that one of the highest ranked things on Trip Advisor was a cat cafe called Catmosphere. Missing my own cat, I walked there for about 45 minutes along busy roads (I'd recommend a taxi for most). 

Catmosphere!
The cafe was small but adorable. You sit on a floor cushion with a low table. There are about 15 kittens, sleeping, playing, eating. There's tons of toys. They also do treat time with them, which gets all of the sleepy ones out of their boxes and hammocks. I stayed for about 20 minutes, had a kiwi soda, played with some kittens, then headed back to the condo. 

KITTENS!!!!!!
We grabbed a taxi and headed to the restaurant Huen Huay Kaew, which is right outside of the city at the bottom of the mountains near the zoo. There you can eat on one of several levels of outdoor patios overlooking jungle and a beautiful waterfall. The food and drinks are cheap, so while it's a little out of the way it's a good deal. 

Waterfall view from the patio
The taxis here are a fun experience, as it's a closed top truck with 2 benches facing each other and an open back, so people jump in and out along the way. Careful when drivers slam on the brakes, you'll feel like you're going to fly out. They'll try to negotiate with foreigners but if you're within city limits it should be 20 BHT each. For a nightcap we hit a neighborhood bar where a man played acoustic versions of popular 90s jams.

The next day we got picked up at Wat Suan Dok by our place for an all day cooking school, Siam Rice Cookery. For the first 30 minutes they bring you to a local market where you get to see and learn about a lot if the ingredients you'll be using later. 

Meat aisle at the market
After that they take you a but further, out to the 1 building school. They are so helpful. You pick which dish you want to make for each course, they then plate all the ingredients for you. All you basically do is chop everything up, then cook it in a wok or pot. There are half day and full day options. We were excited and did the full day but in retrospect I'd recommend the half day, which is 4 courses. The full day adds an addition 3 so over the course of 4-5 hours you eat so much you can't even finish most of it. But overall an amazing experience. Is recommend it to any travelers wanting to learn more about local cuisine. I'm a horrible cook but my dishes went off without a hitch. I made chicken coconut soup, drunken noodles (so fun, pick this over standard pad thai and you get to play with fire), papaya salad (my spice nemesis), fried chicken with ginger, panang curry (my new favorite curry), and mango sticky rice (amazing for any meal). 

The finished product!
Making drunken noodles...

The next day we went on a day trip that we booked through Untouched Thailand the night prior. We booked this tour and were the only people who signed up, so basically it was a private tour. This AMAZING husband and wife team picked us up in a van and we went up the mountain to tour Doi Suthep Temple, this lavish wat overlooking Chiang Mai. It looks like it's made completely of gold and jade, so at the top of the mountain it beautifully reflects the sun. 



Our guide knew a lot about the temple and overall religious customs, so that was interesting to hear. After walking around the temple and then the outside terrace views we got back in the van and headed to Doi Inthanon National Park, which is a little over an hour outside of the city. We parked by one of the main waterfalls and our guides directed us to the best place to eat, where we could pick out meat they'd grill it up right in front of you. We had pork belly, sticky rice, papaya salad, whole coconuts, and spicy chicken and ate it all with our fingers. It was one of the most authentic, and best, meals we had the whole trip. After we walked the hill to see Wachirathan Falls. 


After that we hopped back in the van and went to a local market put on by one of the tribes who lives in the park. Then we drove to the center of the park, where we met a man who didn't speak English but was part of the Karen Hill tribe and familiar with the forest, so they hire him to be a guide. The trek was about two hours and absolutely amazing. We saw several epic waterfalls (they give you the option to go swimming in them but we passed). 


We walked through jungle, down a mountain, and through old poppy fields. 


The hike ended in our guide's village, where they make their own coffee. We got to try the coffee, as well as some of the local moonshine. Our guides had also noticed at lunch how much we loved coconuts so they surprised us with a few more. It was so neat to hang out in a place where even though we couldn't communicate with the locals, they were so friendly. Seeing a remote village of a tribe that is on the impoverish end is one of those important travel experiences everyone should have to really put things into perspective.


That evening we went back into Old Town for the Sunday Night Market. There's quite a few markets that are always going on but the Sunday night one is the biggest. It was cool to see what everyone is selling and I snagged a few super affordable pashminas, and then we decided to escape the crowd and observe from a restaurant deck up top. There I tried one of my new favorite Thai dishes, khao soi. It's a brownish curry (similar to a massaman) with fried egg noodles in it. They then give you a bunch of fixings on the side that you can opt to add in, like onion, chillies, shallots and peanuts. Not every place has it and I've been on the hunt for it since being back in San Francisco. It's only found in Burmese, Laos, and Northern Thai restaurants.
Khao Soi w/the fixings
The next day was our all day excursion to the elephant sanctuary, which is one of the neatest things I've ever done. Elephants are the sweetest animals ever. They seem like giant puppies and even have some of the same mannerisms. I was very concerned about finding an elephant place that was humane and did not use sticks to prod them or mistreat them in any way. After consulting a lot of friends and some online research, Baan Chang Elephant Park kept coming up. 

Elephants!!
I'm so glad we went here. They rescue mistreated elephants from circuses and bad owners, then rehabilitate them. The day starts our with getting to feed them bananas and sugar cane, so they're understandably excited to see us coming. 

My favorite elephant: Gangster
We learn some of the different elephants stories and how they each get their own mahout to take care of them. We gave one of them a bath and saw some babies from a distance. 

Elephant shower time
Then we learned how to mount and dismount elephants and rode them around in small circles. The sanctuary gives you lunch, then you get to ride the elephants in a larger circle through the nearby forest for an hour or so. 

Up high, look at those ears!
The day ends with an interesting "elephant bathing" experience which I won't spoil for you. Just be happy they give you clothes to wear for the day.

Just you wait...
That evening we went to the Riverside area, next to Old Town on the opposite side of our AirBnB. We met up with our group from the elephant excursion and ate at A Good View Bar & Restaurant, which has an extensive cocktail list, giant patio, and overall fun ambiance.

That's it for Chiang Mai but I would recommend people spend at least 4 days there. There were also whitewater rafting and ziplining day trips, plus multiple day excursions to nearby Chiang Rai that would have been fun. But now it's off to the islands!

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Asian Adventures - Surfers in Seminyak

Continuing our Bali adventure, we traveled to Seminyak from Ubud. Which Ubud is in the center of the island, with jungle and rice patty terrain, Seminyak is a surfer town on the southwest side. Ubud to Seminyak is about an hour long drive.  

In Seminyak we stayed in a great studio condo, run by Wanto and Sara. It was extremely reasonably priced, close to everything, had A/C, just bring some earplugs for the barking dogs. The hosts were very helpful in recommendations leading up to the trip and Sara helped us arrange everything when we were there.

Outside of studio
Sara recommended a great local place for so we headed there immediately. Warung Murah was a 15 minute walk from the condo. There you can walk up to a buffet style counter, point at a bunch of things, and they make you a delicious plate of food. The giant plate of food, plus a mango lassi still came out to under $5.

Warung Murah platter of deliciousness
From there, it's another 5 minute walk to the beach. You have to pay for a chair and umbrella but it's worth it because the sand is piping hot! The water is surprisingly warm and easy to go in. We stayed out there for a couple hours. There are beach vendors who will try to sell you things but they go away when you decline (it was substantially less aggressive than Mexico).

Beach in Seminyak
For dinner we got dressed up and decided to splurge a little. Grabbing a metered cab (metered is key!), we headed to Potato Head. It's a gorgeous open air restaurant. If you go early enough you can rent a bed by the infinity pool overlooking the ocean.

Infinity pool at Potato Head during sunset
The restaurant seating is right behind that so you still get a gorgeous view. They have an amazing cocktail list. I got the kokkabura, which is possibly one of the best drinks I've ever had.

I am obsessed with this drink!
We enjoyed some smaller tapas plates and split the grilled prawn entree. With all that food and a couple drinks each, the bill converted to ~$80. While upscale for Bali, this is on par with a nice dinner in the states but has way better views of the sunset. The manger came over, so we inquired about the original name. The owners thought it would be funny when they were starting out, not knowing it would become such a popular destination. She also told us that the walls made of window shutters were all reclaimed from houses around the island and each had their own spirit. Overall, a gorgeous experience and worth the splurge!

The next day we walked one of the popular shopping streets in Seminyak and got massages again (90 minutes for under $10!). We ate at a noodle house, which was good but nothing to write home about. After that, sarah arranged for a driver to take us to Uluwata, an hour from Seminyak on the Kuta peninsula. First we went to tour the Uluwatu Temple, which has scenic cliff views overlooking the ocean. They give you a sari to wear after paying for a ticket, but other than that it's not a very strict dress code.
Uluwata Temple - Right on the tip
There's also a ton of scrabby monkeys around, so remove your jewelry and glasses. They like sparkles, so I'd recommend leaving those at home too (who knew I had some much in common with monkeys??). Rabies shots are recommended, per my travel clinic.

This boss monkey gives no fucks about rowdy monkey fights.
After that, the driver took us to the nearby Single Fin restaurant. It has multiple levels overlooking the ocean and it a great place to watch all the surfers. It is also an amazing place to watch the sunset.

You can't tell, but all the waves are speckled with surfers.
The food is not spectacular but is reasonably priced. The drink pitchers are tasty and they have a live band. We met a Dutch surfer who said they throw crazy dance parties with DJs on Sunday nights.

Seafood curry overlooking the sea #fresh
I'm happy we saw both Ubud and Seminyak in Bali. They're both great cities with totally different terrains and vibes. I would recommend hitting both, as they aren't that far apart. But even together it's only a small snapshot of everything Bali has to offer. I wish we could have stayed longer but it was time to fly to Thailand! 

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Asian Adventures - The Hood of Ubud

I've never believed those computer screensavers are real. But I hate being a cynic, so after years of having SE Asia on the bucket list it was time to go. My best friend since childhood and I had always planned to go on a trip to celebrate turning 30, so it was perfect timing.

We spent almost 30 hours in airports and on airplanes to get to Bali from San Francisco. Taipei is a great airport to have a layover (clean and good food). China Airlines turned out to be a pretty good airline to fly. But despite all this we were itching to get there. We finally landed in Denpasar, the urban center of Bali where a driver had been arranged to pick us up. Beware of people offering to take your bag. They may forcefully take but still expect a big tip. From there, we braved an hour long ride to Ubud, down narrow, busy streets jam packed with trucks and scooters whizzing every which way. In Ubud, I found this amazing place on AirBnB. One of the guys met us at the road and from there we trekked down a long dirt path, through rice patties fields being harvested.

View of the rice patty fields
Our bamboo eco-hut emerged, admist the palm trees overlooking a pure, vibrant green rice party field with a river flowing through. The inside of the hut was beautiful, with a shell chandelier, colorful tiled patio, secret outdoor shower and towels folded like swans.

One of the best AirBnb's ever!
They brought us tea and coffee that we drank overlooking the view. After a gorgeous sunset we took a stroll into town but were overwhelmed by the aggressive Vespas.

Sunset view from the hut
Turning around, we ended up at a warung close to us, where each table was its own little hut, with low tables and cushions to sit on. My friend had fried fish in coconut curry and I had the most flavorful (and spicy) chicken satay I've ever had.  With 2 entrees and plenty of beer and wine, the total meal still came to a little under $40. Satisfied and jet-lagged, it was not hard to fall asleep despite the "glamping" situation.

The next morning, we were again provided with tea, coffee and free breakfast (omelette with Thai basil and goat cheese, sautéed zucchini and garlic, wheat toast with fruit jam). After that we headed to Yoga Barn in Ubud, a studio compound where many stay and practice on retreats. We easily got into a class and practiced for 90 minutes in an open studio overlooking ponds and palm trees. Butterflies flew in through open windows and it felt like zen heaven.

Outside of one of the Yoga Barn buildings
After that we walked a short distance to grab lunch at the Dirty Duck Diner (Bebek Bengil). This is a food stop not to be missed. The restaurant grounds are vast, allowing most diners huts to eat in or elevated dining areas overlooking... You guessed it, more rice patties. We drank fresh coconut and tried their house special, dirty duck. You get half a deep fried duck with super crispy skin, a variety of hot sauce accoutrements and succulent meat, rice and Balianese vegetables (eating with your fingers is encouraged). We stuffed ourselves and still this meal came to a little under $30. So worth it!

Dirty Duck with all the fixings - so tasty!
After that we continued down the busy street, toward the heart of the city. There were tons of cute shops and restaurants. We kept seeing a lot of signs for massage places and heeding some common advice (get as many massages as you can), we decided to pop into one called Dini Bali. A little skeptical at first, we were quick converts. For an hour I got the same caliber of massage I get in SF for ~$100. Yes the ambiance was a little strange but it felt great. And was $7 after currency conversion!!

We made our way to the Ubud Palace, which is confusing. When you get to that corner there's several palace-like buildings, none of which are labeled. We overheard several conversations from other tourists having the same confusion. So pick whatever building you like better, snap some pictures and call it a day.
Possible Palace Location
We went back to our hut to make sure we caught the sunset. We headed back to the main road in town to grab dinner, where we found Cafe Lotus. The back of the restaurant was open space and faced a temple, where they were having a traditional Legong dancing show, with beautiful costumes. It was better than dinner theater!

View of Legong dance from the restaurant
I drank the local Balianese rose wine, which exceeded my expectations. Robin got the white, which was on the sweeter side (comparable to a Riesling), so after she switched to the Bitang local beer, which is everywhere. I had seared tuna with glass noodles and local fruit with coconut shavings for dessert.

The next morning was our last in Ubud. The hut owners brought us Balianese French toast (which I like more than American as it's not very eggy), with a side of papaya in Thai basil. A great way to end the experience, then it was off to Seminyak!