Trip Report: Family4Travels to Thailand and Cambodia: monks, massages and mahouts; tigers, temples and Tonging!!
Apr 9th, 2008, 08:29 AM
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details and pictures, want them all come on now J. 
Sorry to hijack BMT- been busy, moving to BCN soon so a lot of work to finish here first. And there is a Zara practically on every corner, can't wait for the summer sales! Glad you scored some good stuff.
Sorry to hijack BMT- been busy, moving to BCN soon so a lot of work to finish here first. And there is a Zara practically on every corner, can't wait for the summer sales! Glad you scored some good stuff.
Apr 9th, 2008, 04:30 PM
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Laartista-You never finished your trip report to BCN, so you <b>are</b> moving there after all??
jgg-I'm very much enjoying your report, keep it coming! Can't wait to hear about your time with two of my favorite ladies, Tong and Ponheary.
jgg-I'm very much enjoying your report, keep it coming! Can't wait to hear about your time with two of my favorite ladies, Tong and Ponheary.
Apr 10th, 2008, 02:23 PM
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Thanks for your patience!!
We live in Southern Oregon so were leaving here at 4pm to fly to LAX and then spend the night there and leave the next day at 9:30pm for BKK. We had decided to spend our day in LA looking at some colleges for DD.
The day before we left DH decided that he might have a sinus infection or something and needed to go to the dr. before we left town. The dr. confirmed that he had an ear infection and gave him some antibiotics.
Our flight the next day to LAX was on a turboprop plane. As we started to descend DH starting holding his ears, as we continued to descend the pain got worse and worse, he got really pale and we honestly both thought he might pass out. When we finally landed he was just drained and in pain. He said he thought he needed to go to the emergency room tonight and that he was wary of having to fly again tomorrow, as it had been so painful.
We had made plans to meet friends for dinner near LAX so we went ahead with those plans and had a nice dinner. We were staying that night in Claremont, DH decided he wanted to go to ER at Huntington Memorial in Pasadena as we used to live there and he knew where it was and the area. It was only slightly out of the way for the final Claremont destination.
We arrived at the ER about 9:30pm and unfortunately it was packed! It took almost 1.5 hours for him to even get called by the nurse just to be triaged. As we sit there and wait, he says "This is so painful, I may not be able to go tomorrow." Hmmmmmm.......now, I had been contemplating that he may say that, and I really am a loving wife, but my first response was to say "Well, the kids and I can go. When you feel better in a day or two you can catch up with us."
Well, he wasn't too thrilled with that and frankly neither were the kids. However, it just seemed at the time that it was easier for just him to wait a day or two than for all 4 of us, and honestly after 9 months of planning the thought of renting a car and driving home just didn't seem possible!!
After a few tears by all, we agreed to just relax and wait and see what the doctor had to say. Well, the dr. did say that it was probably best not to fly, however, he said the worst that could happen is that he could pop his ear drum which would mean a loss of hearing in that ear for about 30 days. In addition, you couldn’t go into water, even need to be careful when showering because it is important not to get any water in your ears because you are at a great risk of infection. Since I knew that both ears were hurting, I asked “what would happen if both eardrums broke?” I’m thinking that being completely deaf for 30 days was not a risk DH would want to take. The dr. said that it would be highly unlikely for both to pop. He prescribed numbing ear drops and a narcotic pain medication and said “Good luck if you go!” So, 3 hours later at 12:30am we are finally done and head out to our hotel in Claremont. DH just says it will be a “Game Time” decision.
We visited the colleges the next day and DH got his prescriptions filled at Walgreens. While there he found these little plastic things (they almost look like screws) that you put in your ear prior to take off and descent. They are supposed to help equalize the pressure in your ears. All day we kept asking “Do your ears feel better?” but he kept saying “no”. However, armed with his medication and plastic ear thingies he got on the plane!! Now, when I first booked the flight it was nonstop LAX-BKK, but a month or two earlier they had switched the flight to a different plane and so it was going to have to stop and refuel in Osaka – not good news for DH. Well, the good news is he made it. He did have some pressure and pain, but nothing like the first flight. It definitely helped that we were on a jet as opposed to a turboprop, plus he thought the plastic ear thingies really worked!!
A few words about the flight. We had economy tickets. They were free using a FF mile plan that allows you to get tickets on any airline. However, they have to be the lowest fare so I was not able to use more miles or pay additional cost for premium economy. I was really worried as the flight changed from 17.5 hours to 19.5 hours when they added the stopover in Osaka. Plus, with all the comments on fodors about how great premium economy was and worth the extra cost I was a bit wary. However, I am here to report that if you end up taking regular economy it is not that bad!! The seats are wider and have more leg room then the majority of carriers in economy class and in addition there is a foot rest, plus the individual, on demand movies/tv/etc. are great!! I usually can’t fall asleep for very long on a plane and was a bit concerned about being on there so long with no sleep. I contemplated sleeping pills (which I never take) and did get a prescription for ambien, but I appreciated the comments a lot of people said on this board about why they don’t take sleeping pills, and if your tired your body will sleep. Well, that is exactly what happened. I think I slept for about 5 hours on the plane (I don’t think I’ve ever slept more than 30 minutes at a time before!) The food wasn’t bad (but it is still airplane food) and the service was great!!
DAY ONE
We were set to arrive at 8:00am. We actually arrived about 45 minutes early. Immigration was a breeze and our bags came out quickly once we got to the carousels. I had booked with AAC Limousine for a car to pick us up as when arriving in a new country like this after a long flight, I like to see someone holding up a little sign with my name!! Well, we walked out and no sign with our name!! I started asking for AAC Limousine, someone pointed me to her and she said, your flight must have come in early. Well, it did, but there was a big board with flight info. right in front of them I figured they would check. She loaded up our bags on a cart but said the driver wasn’t here yet. We had to wait about 15-20 minutes which was a bit of an annoyance considering what they charge.
Well, he finally arrived and whisked us off to the Peninsula. The drive took about 45 minutes. We arrived at the Peninsula about 9:15am and luckily our rooms were ready. We were on the 9th floor with fabulous views of the river. We settle in and then head down to the breakfast buffet. It is an incredible buffet, with just about anything you might want. DS is ecstatic that he can have fried rice and pork buns for breakfast.
We go back to our rooms and shower and clean up. We have a 1:00pm appt. at FACE Spa for 1 hr. Thai massages. We head across the river to the skytrain, get our tickets for (I think) 30 rides, whatever was the minimum and head to Face. By the way, they do have student prices for the skytrain cards. We find Face Spa easily as the street it is on is just at the skytrain exit. They only have two massage rooms so the kids are in one and DH and I are in another. They start outside with a relaxing foot bath and massage and some really delicious fruit juice. They have clothes for you to change into and mats on the floor. This was our first Thai massage and I really liked it. I actually usually don’t enjoy massage because it just tickles me – but no tickling here!! I really liked when they did the stretching.
Back at the hotel, kids and I head down to the pool. We probably weren’t there for more than an hour but while we were there had people come by with ice water, cool washcloths, fruit and a special eye moisturizing application. What service!!
We want to eat dinner early so we can get to bed early as we are beginning to fade. We have a 5:30pm dinner reservation at Tongue Thai (which we picked since it looked the closest and easy to get to – this is called foreshadowing!). We take the boat across to the Oriental Pier and start looking for the restaurant. Now, I do all the planning for the trip but DH has to do the navigation on the ground (I stink at reading a map). He is usually very good at it, A combination, of not feeling well, jet lag and the fact that the restaurant is not actually on the street it says but behind it, means we eventually got lost. (I know those of you who know where Tongue Thai is are laughing now – since it is so close to the pier).
We had several tuk tuk drivers stop and ask if we needed help but we kept saying no. Then it was getting past our reservation time so we agreed to have a tuk tuk take us there. Well, he definitely “took us”. The street we were on was one way so we knew he would have to turn up a street to go back the other way which he did, but when we got to the other street it was packed with traffic – we definitely could have walked faster, but then we realized he was going way to far with out turning in the right direction. We could just tell we were going further and further away from the river – we were livid. He finally stopped at a restaurant and said “this one?” We said “NO - and just take us back to the Oriental Hotel” which we knew was near the restaurant. He did, and the sad thing was is that he just gave us an awful impression of all tuk tuk drivers, which luckily was reverersed in Siem Reap.
This time we realized what our mistake was and found the restaurant right away. The food was good, but nothing spectacular, but we were so beat I’m not sure we could have appreciated too much more. We were back at the hotel by 7:45pm and went straight to bed to be ready for meeting with Tong at 6:30am the next morning!!
We live in Southern Oregon so were leaving here at 4pm to fly to LAX and then spend the night there and leave the next day at 9:30pm for BKK. We had decided to spend our day in LA looking at some colleges for DD.
The day before we left DH decided that he might have a sinus infection or something and needed to go to the dr. before we left town. The dr. confirmed that he had an ear infection and gave him some antibiotics.
Our flight the next day to LAX was on a turboprop plane. As we started to descend DH starting holding his ears, as we continued to descend the pain got worse and worse, he got really pale and we honestly both thought he might pass out. When we finally landed he was just drained and in pain. He said he thought he needed to go to the emergency room tonight and that he was wary of having to fly again tomorrow, as it had been so painful.
We had made plans to meet friends for dinner near LAX so we went ahead with those plans and had a nice dinner. We were staying that night in Claremont, DH decided he wanted to go to ER at Huntington Memorial in Pasadena as we used to live there and he knew where it was and the area. It was only slightly out of the way for the final Claremont destination.
We arrived at the ER about 9:30pm and unfortunately it was packed! It took almost 1.5 hours for him to even get called by the nurse just to be triaged. As we sit there and wait, he says "This is so painful, I may not be able to go tomorrow." Hmmmmmm.......now, I had been contemplating that he may say that, and I really am a loving wife, but my first response was to say "Well, the kids and I can go. When you feel better in a day or two you can catch up with us."
Well, he wasn't too thrilled with that and frankly neither were the kids. However, it just seemed at the time that it was easier for just him to wait a day or two than for all 4 of us, and honestly after 9 months of planning the thought of renting a car and driving home just didn't seem possible!!
After a few tears by all, we agreed to just relax and wait and see what the doctor had to say. Well, the dr. did say that it was probably best not to fly, however, he said the worst that could happen is that he could pop his ear drum which would mean a loss of hearing in that ear for about 30 days. In addition, you couldn’t go into water, even need to be careful when showering because it is important not to get any water in your ears because you are at a great risk of infection. Since I knew that both ears were hurting, I asked “what would happen if both eardrums broke?” I’m thinking that being completely deaf for 30 days was not a risk DH would want to take. The dr. said that it would be highly unlikely for both to pop. He prescribed numbing ear drops and a narcotic pain medication and said “Good luck if you go!” So, 3 hours later at 12:30am we are finally done and head out to our hotel in Claremont. DH just says it will be a “Game Time” decision.
We visited the colleges the next day and DH got his prescriptions filled at Walgreens. While there he found these little plastic things (they almost look like screws) that you put in your ear prior to take off and descent. They are supposed to help equalize the pressure in your ears. All day we kept asking “Do your ears feel better?” but he kept saying “no”. However, armed with his medication and plastic ear thingies he got on the plane!! Now, when I first booked the flight it was nonstop LAX-BKK, but a month or two earlier they had switched the flight to a different plane and so it was going to have to stop and refuel in Osaka – not good news for DH. Well, the good news is he made it. He did have some pressure and pain, but nothing like the first flight. It definitely helped that we were on a jet as opposed to a turboprop, plus he thought the plastic ear thingies really worked!!
A few words about the flight. We had economy tickets. They were free using a FF mile plan that allows you to get tickets on any airline. However, they have to be the lowest fare so I was not able to use more miles or pay additional cost for premium economy. I was really worried as the flight changed from 17.5 hours to 19.5 hours when they added the stopover in Osaka. Plus, with all the comments on fodors about how great premium economy was and worth the extra cost I was a bit wary. However, I am here to report that if you end up taking regular economy it is not that bad!! The seats are wider and have more leg room then the majority of carriers in economy class and in addition there is a foot rest, plus the individual, on demand movies/tv/etc. are great!! I usually can’t fall asleep for very long on a plane and was a bit concerned about being on there so long with no sleep. I contemplated sleeping pills (which I never take) and did get a prescription for ambien, but I appreciated the comments a lot of people said on this board about why they don’t take sleeping pills, and if your tired your body will sleep. Well, that is exactly what happened. I think I slept for about 5 hours on the plane (I don’t think I’ve ever slept more than 30 minutes at a time before!) The food wasn’t bad (but it is still airplane food) and the service was great!!
DAY ONE
We were set to arrive at 8:00am. We actually arrived about 45 minutes early. Immigration was a breeze and our bags came out quickly once we got to the carousels. I had booked with AAC Limousine for a car to pick us up as when arriving in a new country like this after a long flight, I like to see someone holding up a little sign with my name!! Well, we walked out and no sign with our name!! I started asking for AAC Limousine, someone pointed me to her and she said, your flight must have come in early. Well, it did, but there was a big board with flight info. right in front of them I figured they would check. She loaded up our bags on a cart but said the driver wasn’t here yet. We had to wait about 15-20 minutes which was a bit of an annoyance considering what they charge.
Well, he finally arrived and whisked us off to the Peninsula. The drive took about 45 minutes. We arrived at the Peninsula about 9:15am and luckily our rooms were ready. We were on the 9th floor with fabulous views of the river. We settle in and then head down to the breakfast buffet. It is an incredible buffet, with just about anything you might want. DS is ecstatic that he can have fried rice and pork buns for breakfast.
We go back to our rooms and shower and clean up. We have a 1:00pm appt. at FACE Spa for 1 hr. Thai massages. We head across the river to the skytrain, get our tickets for (I think) 30 rides, whatever was the minimum and head to Face. By the way, they do have student prices for the skytrain cards. We find Face Spa easily as the street it is on is just at the skytrain exit. They only have two massage rooms so the kids are in one and DH and I are in another. They start outside with a relaxing foot bath and massage and some really delicious fruit juice. They have clothes for you to change into and mats on the floor. This was our first Thai massage and I really liked it. I actually usually don’t enjoy massage because it just tickles me – but no tickling here!! I really liked when they did the stretching.
Back at the hotel, kids and I head down to the pool. We probably weren’t there for more than an hour but while we were there had people come by with ice water, cool washcloths, fruit and a special eye moisturizing application. What service!!
We want to eat dinner early so we can get to bed early as we are beginning to fade. We have a 5:30pm dinner reservation at Tongue Thai (which we picked since it looked the closest and easy to get to – this is called foreshadowing!). We take the boat across to the Oriental Pier and start looking for the restaurant. Now, I do all the planning for the trip but DH has to do the navigation on the ground (I stink at reading a map). He is usually very good at it, A combination, of not feeling well, jet lag and the fact that the restaurant is not actually on the street it says but behind it, means we eventually got lost. (I know those of you who know where Tongue Thai is are laughing now – since it is so close to the pier).
We had several tuk tuk drivers stop and ask if we needed help but we kept saying no. Then it was getting past our reservation time so we agreed to have a tuk tuk take us there. Well, he definitely “took us”. The street we were on was one way so we knew he would have to turn up a street to go back the other way which he did, but when we got to the other street it was packed with traffic – we definitely could have walked faster, but then we realized he was going way to far with out turning in the right direction. We could just tell we were going further and further away from the river – we were livid. He finally stopped at a restaurant and said “this one?” We said “NO - and just take us back to the Oriental Hotel” which we knew was near the restaurant. He did, and the sad thing was is that he just gave us an awful impression of all tuk tuk drivers, which luckily was reverersed in Siem Reap.
This time we realized what our mistake was and found the restaurant right away. The food was good, but nothing spectacular, but we were so beat I’m not sure we could have appreciated too much more. We were back at the hotel by 7:45pm and went straight to bed to be ready for meeting with Tong at 6:30am the next morning!!
Apr 10th, 2008, 06:52 PM
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Apr 11th, 2008, 03:15 AM
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HI jgg!
Yea- I am glad I found your report. Sounds like an amazing trip so far.
As you know, we travel with our teen boys, ages 14 and 17, and Thailand/SE Asia is on my short list for next year. We have decided that we are ready for a bit more adventure and want to expand out to a new area of the world. After lots of great U.S., Caribbean/Central America, and Europe trips, we want to do something different and special next summer (end of June, July or early August of 2009) for DS1's high school graduation. I am not sure that time of year is ideal for Thailand or is it ok?
Anyway, I always love your reports and this one is off to a great start! Welcome Home.
Yea- I am glad I found your report. Sounds like an amazing trip so far.
As you know, we travel with our teen boys, ages 14 and 17, and Thailand/SE Asia is on my short list for next year. We have decided that we are ready for a bit more adventure and want to expand out to a new area of the world. After lots of great U.S., Caribbean/Central America, and Europe trips, we want to do something different and special next summer (end of June, July or early August of 2009) for DS1's high school graduation. I am not sure that time of year is ideal for Thailand or is it ok?
Anyway, I always love your reports and this one is off to a great start! Welcome Home.
Apr 11th, 2008, 05:42 AM
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Thanks, Gpanda. On my initial "peeks" at the Asia board, it is clear that you and many others on this board are very knowlegeable and generous with your assistance. I haven't really started proper research at all, but my initial concern about summer, even June, was that precipitation levels look pretty high and that perhaps we should wait until we can go during more "prime" season. Hmmm.
For now, I will just follow along and start to learn, whether for now or later.
For now, I will just follow along and start to learn, whether for now or later.
Apr 11th, 2008, 12:57 PM
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J-
I am of course following your report!
Tim has chronic ear issues (from when he was a child), and any sort of head cold, stuffiness, any time within a week of a flight causes major anxiety. I am glad your husband was ok.
Here is a link to the Earplanes for anyone interested!
http://tinyurl.com/52hgg8
We also had a difficult time finding TT. Tim thought I was crazy... walking around the block following my instincts. I knew we were really close, and it was just a matter of stumbling into it, which we eventually did.
Looking forward to reading more.
Liz
I am of course following your report!
Tim has chronic ear issues (from when he was a child), and any sort of head cold, stuffiness, any time within a week of a flight causes major anxiety. I am glad your husband was ok.
Here is a link to the Earplanes for anyone interested!
http://tinyurl.com/52hgg8
We also had a difficult time finding TT. Tim thought I was crazy... walking around the block following my instincts. I knew we were really close, and it was just a matter of stumbling into it, which we eventually did.
Looking forward to reading more.
Liz
Apr 11th, 2008, 01:29 PM
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bookmarking
Excitedly planning my first trip to Thailand, hopefully in November this year. I'm really enjoying your trip report so far! I'm particularly looking forward to hearing about your 4 nights in Siem Reap.
Excitedly planning my first trip to Thailand, hopefully in November this year. I'm really enjoying your trip report so far! I'm particularly looking forward to hearing about your 4 nights in Siem Reap.
Apr 12th, 2008, 07:36 PM
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Sorry for the delay. Real life just tends to get in the way sometimes!!!
DAY 2 – Tonging!!
We came up with this term “Tonging” to describe anything we did with Tong. As the trip progressed we would ask, “What was your favorite part so fa?r” and the answer was usually “what we did with Tong.” One day when asked this question DH just said “Tonging!!”
We get up early and make it to breakfast by 6am. It is great to see the morning river traffic as the sun rises. Tong had called me the night before to say she wasn’t feeling that well, but would still be picking us up in the morning. For those who are new to the Asia boards, Tong is a highly rated and sought after guide from her many recommendations on Fodors and TripAdvisor. Her website is www.tourwithtong.com and e-mail address is [email protected]. You definitely need to contact her way in advance if you want to actually have her guiding you, although she does have several other guides on her team that come highly recommended. We had one for a day and he was excellent (more details to come). She really trains her team well. Just be patient and persistent when trying to reach her by e-mail – but trust me your work will pay off!! She is fabulous. She does everything to make your day fascinating and comfortable. She knows where all the good “Happy Rooms” aka bathrooms are a long the route, has a big cooler of cold water and towels in her car/van and basically will do ANYTHING to make you happy. Plus, she is just hilarious!!!
So, back to the trip report. We meet Tong in the lobby at 6:30am. She really isn’t feeling well and has a terrible cough, but says she actually feels much better than yesterday since she is now on medication. (went to the hospital the night before after touring with others all day). She says, “sorry I have a sexy voice – I sound like a Ladyboy!” We knew we were in for some fun!! We were originally just going to use her car, but she was worried the medicine might make her sleepy so she got us a van and driver for the day (personally can’t picture her sleeping – but we all agreed it was a wise decision).
Our first stop is “fast food” as we stop in the middle of the road as she stops at one of her favorite vendors for coconut puffs. OMG!! These were delicious!! Flour, cocomut milk, chives (families debating now whether there was rice in there or not). Anyway, they were fabulous. Next, we stop at a beautiful temple with intricate wooden carved walls.
We are now on our way to the Floating Market. Controversy #4 – Is the floating market just a tourist trap?? NO, NO, and NO!! ( Perhaps this is like asking if you should take a gondola ride in Venice – which of course the answer is YES!!). Anyway, from what I’ve read on the boards, many who go here by themselves hate it, but those who go with Tong love it! Well, we LOVED it. Probably one of our favorite things from the trip. We would normally never eat street food, but we felt in good hands with Tong, and all the food we ate with her was fabulous – actually, the best food on the trip!! We had chicken wings on a stick, satay, two different kinds of noodle soup/dishes and some other stuff I can’t remember. Just a tip, do NOT eat a big breakfast before you leave the hotel to go to the floating market, atleast with Tong. If you leave about 6:30am you’ll get there around 8:00 and have plenty to eat. DH asked her if she could get coffee and she said of course. So we floated by a place that made ice coffee and served it in a plastic bag with a handle (kind of like an i.v. bag in the hospital) with a straw. The coffee is strong which is just the way he likes it!!
We enjoyed seeing them cook the food on the boats, and watching them sell their wares. Then our boatman takes us down some quieter klongs and we see a small slice of daily life and living on the klongs.
After the FM we stop at a Thai handicraft site where they are making incredible handcarved wood items. However, we mostly stop here for a much needed happy room break.
From here we drive another 1.5 hours to the Tiger Temple in Kanchanburi. We hurry to see the tiger cubs playing. Okay, the Tiger Temple is where Tong really shines. She has the whole system dialed in. Figure there are about 50-60 other people there. Despite that Tong manages to get us first in line to walk the tigers, first in line to take pictures with the tigers, first in line to take the “special” pictures with the tigers AND when you are down in the canyon waiting for these things to happen she gets us seats on the front row benches (when there aren’t even enough seats for everyone) – she is truly amazing. We did pay the extra 1000 baht to have pictures with the tiger’s head in your lap. DS was the one who did it, and then we all got in the picture as well.
Controversy #5 – Are the tigers drugged? Basically, I don’t feel in anyway qualified to weigh in on this one. Suffice it to say it was an incredible experience for all of us. I will just say that spending time with Tong, one is well aware that she is a huge lover of animals and spends quite a bit of time at the Tiger Temple (she goes there several days a week). If she felt the animals were being mistreated she would not take people there.
Next Tong took us over to see BamBam the bear, Tong’s second daughter!! She has brought fruit and milk for us to feed her. DD and DS both enjoy feeding her milk from a bottle. They think playing with BamBam is one of their favorite parts of the day.
We leave the Tiger Temple and Tong takes us for a late lunch at a restaurant not far away. Tong has preordered for us and we sit in our own little thatched roof hut enjoy a wonderful, relaxing lunch. Before we leave we buy ice cream cones, the perfect treat and ice cream for all four of us only $1.20!!
We decide to drive to the Bridge Over the River Kwai since it is not really out of the way on the drive home. Just as we arrive the train is starting to come. People are walking on the tracks and as the train comes people just walk over to these little platforms that jut our from the tracks to be safe. Not something we would normally see. Tong tells us all the history of the bridge as we drive home.
We arrive at the Peninsula at 6:30pm. We are beat, head upstairs and order room service for dinner and go to sleep!!
Here is a link to pictures of Day 1 and Day 2: http://www.shutterfly.com/view/slide...=1208056471957
DAY 2 – Tonging!!
We came up with this term “Tonging” to describe anything we did with Tong. As the trip progressed we would ask, “What was your favorite part so fa?r” and the answer was usually “what we did with Tong.” One day when asked this question DH just said “Tonging!!”
We get up early and make it to breakfast by 6am. It is great to see the morning river traffic as the sun rises. Tong had called me the night before to say she wasn’t feeling that well, but would still be picking us up in the morning. For those who are new to the Asia boards, Tong is a highly rated and sought after guide from her many recommendations on Fodors and TripAdvisor. Her website is www.tourwithtong.com and e-mail address is [email protected]. You definitely need to contact her way in advance if you want to actually have her guiding you, although she does have several other guides on her team that come highly recommended. We had one for a day and he was excellent (more details to come). She really trains her team well. Just be patient and persistent when trying to reach her by e-mail – but trust me your work will pay off!! She is fabulous. She does everything to make your day fascinating and comfortable. She knows where all the good “Happy Rooms” aka bathrooms are a long the route, has a big cooler of cold water and towels in her car/van and basically will do ANYTHING to make you happy. Plus, she is just hilarious!!!
So, back to the trip report. We meet Tong in the lobby at 6:30am. She really isn’t feeling well and has a terrible cough, but says she actually feels much better than yesterday since she is now on medication. (went to the hospital the night before after touring with others all day). She says, “sorry I have a sexy voice – I sound like a Ladyboy!” We knew we were in for some fun!! We were originally just going to use her car, but she was worried the medicine might make her sleepy so she got us a van and driver for the day (personally can’t picture her sleeping – but we all agreed it was a wise decision).
Our first stop is “fast food” as we stop in the middle of the road as she stops at one of her favorite vendors for coconut puffs. OMG!! These were delicious!! Flour, cocomut milk, chives (families debating now whether there was rice in there or not). Anyway, they were fabulous. Next, we stop at a beautiful temple with intricate wooden carved walls.
We are now on our way to the Floating Market. Controversy #4 – Is the floating market just a tourist trap?? NO, NO, and NO!! ( Perhaps this is like asking if you should take a gondola ride in Venice – which of course the answer is YES!!). Anyway, from what I’ve read on the boards, many who go here by themselves hate it, but those who go with Tong love it! Well, we LOVED it. Probably one of our favorite things from the trip. We would normally never eat street food, but we felt in good hands with Tong, and all the food we ate with her was fabulous – actually, the best food on the trip!! We had chicken wings on a stick, satay, two different kinds of noodle soup/dishes and some other stuff I can’t remember. Just a tip, do NOT eat a big breakfast before you leave the hotel to go to the floating market, atleast with Tong. If you leave about 6:30am you’ll get there around 8:00 and have plenty to eat. DH asked her if she could get coffee and she said of course. So we floated by a place that made ice coffee and served it in a plastic bag with a handle (kind of like an i.v. bag in the hospital) with a straw. The coffee is strong which is just the way he likes it!!
We enjoyed seeing them cook the food on the boats, and watching them sell their wares. Then our boatman takes us down some quieter klongs and we see a small slice of daily life and living on the klongs.
After the FM we stop at a Thai handicraft site where they are making incredible handcarved wood items. However, we mostly stop here for a much needed happy room break.
From here we drive another 1.5 hours to the Tiger Temple in Kanchanburi. We hurry to see the tiger cubs playing. Okay, the Tiger Temple is where Tong really shines. She has the whole system dialed in. Figure there are about 50-60 other people there. Despite that Tong manages to get us first in line to walk the tigers, first in line to take pictures with the tigers, first in line to take the “special” pictures with the tigers AND when you are down in the canyon waiting for these things to happen she gets us seats on the front row benches (when there aren’t even enough seats for everyone) – she is truly amazing. We did pay the extra 1000 baht to have pictures with the tiger’s head in your lap. DS was the one who did it, and then we all got in the picture as well.
Controversy #5 – Are the tigers drugged? Basically, I don’t feel in anyway qualified to weigh in on this one. Suffice it to say it was an incredible experience for all of us. I will just say that spending time with Tong, one is well aware that she is a huge lover of animals and spends quite a bit of time at the Tiger Temple (she goes there several days a week). If she felt the animals were being mistreated she would not take people there.
Next Tong took us over to see BamBam the bear, Tong’s second daughter!! She has brought fruit and milk for us to feed her. DD and DS both enjoy feeding her milk from a bottle. They think playing with BamBam is one of their favorite parts of the day.
We leave the Tiger Temple and Tong takes us for a late lunch at a restaurant not far away. Tong has preordered for us and we sit in our own little thatched roof hut enjoy a wonderful, relaxing lunch. Before we leave we buy ice cream cones, the perfect treat and ice cream for all four of us only $1.20!!
We decide to drive to the Bridge Over the River Kwai since it is not really out of the way on the drive home. Just as we arrive the train is starting to come. People are walking on the tracks and as the train comes people just walk over to these little platforms that jut our from the tracks to be safe. Not something we would normally see. Tong tells us all the history of the bridge as we drive home.
We arrive at the Peninsula at 6:30pm. We are beat, head upstairs and order room service for dinner and go to sleep!!
Here is a link to pictures of Day 1 and Day 2: http://www.shutterfly.com/view/slide...=1208056471957
Apr 12th, 2008, 10:15 PM
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jgg,
Thanks for allowing us to relive one of our fantastic days with Tong. I am still trying to remember why we missed out on the late lunch after the TT. I guess we were just too full from the FM but eventually got hungry. By then we ended up going to a 7/11 where the kids pick up snacks, I offer to get Tong something- she says no thanks but buys her 11 BHT bread. Boy, was I upset with her.
Can't access your photos though. I always end up in my own shutterfly BKK photos.
Thanks for allowing us to relive one of our fantastic days with Tong. I am still trying to remember why we missed out on the late lunch after the TT. I guess we were just too full from the FM but eventually got hungry. By then we ended up going to a 7/11 where the kids pick up snacks, I offer to get Tong something- she says no thanks but buys her 11 BHT bread. Boy, was I upset with her.
Can't access your photos though. I always end up in my own shutterfly BKK photos.
