day 9: chiang mai

day 9


our first day was pretty relaxing.  we spent the day exploring the city we were in.

the first thing on the agenda was to sleep in.  once we woke up we got our usual breakfast.  since we were staying at a bed and breakfast, we got breakfast every morning.  we would eat outside at the tables, take our time eating and read our books.

on day 9 we spent a long time relaxing, taking a nap, reading and lounging around the garden.

next was a must: eat some thai food in thailand.  our first experience was a major success.  as we sat at lunch we both agreed that it was the best thai food we had ever had, and it only cost about 2 bucks total!  we ordered pad thai and green curry, our two favorite dishes.

after lunch we visited a monastery and saw some monks sitting before a buddha statue in silence.

then, of course, we had to get thai massages for about 7 bucks each.  it was our first time getting thai massages.  these woman didn't hesitate to start pressing their elbows into our thigh muscles and using all their weight to add more pressure, all the while we are folded in a pretzel.  i'm a big fan of massage therapist stretching me during my massage, but i have never had it this intense.  i think at one point i was in a back bend while she was pushing her elbow into my leg.  the massage ended with us laying our heads in their laps while they rubbed our scalp, shoulders and neck.

when we finished, it was time to eat more thai food. after dinner we went to a muay thai fight.  this was really exciting for us because lately we have been obsessed with the ultimate fighter.

the first two fights are little boys, about 8 years old.  it was heartbreaking for me to watch because the kid who lost would look like he was going to cry, especially when he would get thrown down really hard and the crowd would go wild.  He seemed so embarrassed.

we also got to see some women fighters.  we both thought that they were more entertaining than the men, because as soon as the bell would ring and the music would start, they would go at each other throwing elbows and punches, clinching in for the knees and tossing each other around the ring.

ryan and i bet each other on each fight.  the winner of the night got to get the best version of a thai massage from the other person.  i won.

game bong

i'm taking a quick break from our vacation posts to post about one of my friends birthdays.  we had a great weekend with friends celebrating.

we went to a place here called a "game bong" which means game room.  it's genius.  it's a giant room full of tables, comfy chairs, a cafe and all the games you would want.  when we sat down at the table, one of the workers handed us a menu full of games.  each table is equipped with two blow-up hammers that are used to hit the person who lost the game.  it cost about 2 bucks for the first hour, and then any additional hour is .40 cents.  this particular game room was on the sixth floor, so we had a great view.

we played a few new games that we loved, but we spent the majority of the time playing speed uno.  it's became pretty intense at our table.  other people were often alarmed by our screaming and laughing.

day 8: onward to thailand

day 8

we spent a day of travel to go to thailand.  first we had to fly from cebu island to manila, philippines.  we had to catch another flight from manila to bangkok, thailand.  immediately from our flight into bangkok, we had to catch an overnight train from bangkok to chiang mai, thailand.  and of course our day of travel was on my birthday.  it's okay though, because ryan made up for it by waking me up to him singing happy birthday to me.  i told him the day before that it was all i wanted for my birthday this year.

we started the day with pancakes for breakfast.  we ordered chocolate chip peanut butter pancakes, and lemon cream cheese pancakes.  mmmhhmmm!

we gave the philippines a korean goodbye.  in korea, everyone poses for pictures with the peace sign.

next it was onto the trains.

our train had to stop about 4 hours from our destination, because the tracks were flooded, so we had to take a 4 hour bus ride into chiang mai.  once we were there we rode in a tuk tuk to our bed and breakfast.

we really enjoyed staying at this bed and breakfast.  it was full of fellow backpackers from all over the world.  we made a lot of friends in chiang mai due to backpackers season.  breakfast was served everyday in this outdoor eating area near their garden and water fountain. the bed and breakfast was located about a 2 minute walk off of one of the main roads.  we were able to walk everywhere we needed to go.  the streets were full of shops, restaurants, massage parlors and foreigners.  

day 7: island hopping

day 7

even though the hostel we were staying at wasn't the greatest, while we were staying there, we had one of our favorite days out of the whole trip.  we went on a private island hopping tour.  it was just me, my husband, and three men who guided the boat around.

island 1:  we went snorkeling.  the water was deep, so we were able to see some really large fish.  (we don't have an underwater camera, so i didn't take any pictures of this.)  at one point, a school of large fish had us surrounded and they were swimming in circles around us.  we got bread to throw at the fish, so ryan liked to throw his bread towards me to make all the fish swim at my face in order to eat the bread.  he did it because i told him i get grossed out thinking about a ton of fish touching me.  after we were finshed snorkeling, we were handed a coconut to snack on.

island 2:  we went snorkeling again, but this time the water was only about 6 feet deep.  we were able to see a lot of coral and smaller, more colorful fish.  i even got stung by a jelly fish four times on my arm.  it's okay though, because it was a baby jellyfish.  at this point on the journey i really had to go to the bathroom.  ryan told me to just pee in the ocean.  i tried and tried, but was unsuccessful, so i asked the three guides, and they pointed me to a toilet on deck that only covered me to my torso.  so that was fun- peeing in front of four men.

island 3:  this was where we had lunch.  it was a smaller island where we could see the ocean on all sides of it, no matter where we stood.  as soon as we set anchor, we walked down the beach and the men set up a table and two chairs for us.  then they walked towards a grill and made us lunch.  ryan and i walked around the island and went swimming while we waited.  when it was ready, they set down all of our food, and then they left us to enjoy.  it was the best bbq i have ever had.  they made us fish, squid, chicken and pork with a side of mangos and beers.

after lunch, we went snorkeling at the island, and ryan got bit by a clown fish.  i saw the whole thing- it was kind of funny.  he's okay; no wounds.

when we left the island, we had a little over an hour of a boat trip to make it back to the main island we were staying on.  during that hour trip, we got caught in a storm.  out of no where, it started to pour rain with lightning and the wind picked up.  we had to set anchor in the middle of the ocean and wait it out.  meanwhile; i see locals in their boats still fishing and going about their day, because they gotta catch fish and make a living.

it was a wonderful day.

day 6: tree house disaster

day 6

our last delicious meal at eden was breakfast.  we had delicious pineapple-mango smoothies, toast, eggs, vegetables and fresh mango.

we departed from eden and took a three hour bus ride back to the city.  we were really excited about the next hostel we stayed in on mactan island.  it had a tex-mex restaurant that was connected to it, and our room was actually a tree house.

as cool as it might have seemed to stay in a tree house, it was actually a disaster.  first of all, the owner of the hostel was really rude to us.  he actually yelled at us in the tex-mex restaurant in front of everyone, because we didn't book an excursion that he recommended we book.  second of all, the tree house didn't have any solid walls, and the hostel is located on a busy street about 5 miles from the airport, so we barely got any rest during our two-night stay there.  other than that, we enjoyed our stay at mactan island.