Thailand: Bangkok and Chiang Mai

Alrighty, here is the first round of Thailand pics!  We did our first scuba trip & enjoyed it so much that we decided to stay in Koh Phi Phi a few more days so Tony can get his open water certification! So while he's swimming I'm getting some much needed internet time (after hiking 45 mins from our resort to town!).

Starting from the beginning..... 

Bangkok....this is from a few weeks ago.  People live in poverty along the river while supporting gorgeous temples covered in gold leaf and jewels.

This is the bastard that scammed us out of ~US$50 on a longtail boat tour.  An early wake up call for us, but since then we've done well avoiding the scams that unfortunately are so common in Thailand.

More along the canal

The giant reclining Buddha at Wat Pho

The King lives here.  I couldn't up thinking about "The King and I".  :)

We got to stay at the tower hotel where they filmed parts of The Hangover II.  It's a really nice hotel  (more executive apartment than hotel).  They don't allow photos at the highest Sky Bar where most of the filming was done, but here's a pic of the other bar from our balcony, on the 64th floor!

View of Bangkok from out room.

Sign from inside a bathroom stall. Not sure what it means (probably don't throw toilet paper in the toilet or something like that) but the little character warranted a pic.

 After Bangkok we headed north to Chiang Mai, a funky little college/hippie refuge in the hills.  Definitely a fun place.  Tony, in true daredevil style, rode a scooter during rush hour on Friday night. Think 10 scooters across every lane of traffic, between the cars, and relatively no traffic laws.  it was an adventure but we survived and had a fun time of it (much easier than negotiating with tuk tuk drivers).

This is what 350 Thb, or $12 USD will get you- a neat little room with no AC (days are unbearably hot but nights are cool & breezy in Chiang Mai).  Thanks to our Kiwi friends Jen and Saul for the recommendation!

We decided to do a cooking class in Chiang Mai.  It turned out to be an awesome experience (probably my favorite thing in Thailand).  Here is the rice vendor at the local market.

Thai fast food- yum!

One of our cooking instructors.  She's holding fish sauce - THE required ingredient in Thai cooking.

Demonstrating the sticky rice steamer.  Yes, that's me in the red plaid shirt.  Thankfully we only had to wear the hats for a few minutes.

Another instructor with a Thai eggplant

Ingredients for Red Curry

Master Chef pose with my Pad Si Ew.  The key is "massaging " the sauce into the noodles until they are "sleeping."

Tony frying up spring rolls.

Enjoying the finished product: Thai soups!

Yellow curry and chicken with cashew nuts!

 While in Chiang Mai we went on an overnight trek.  The first day we went on a short elephant ride, followed by 3 hours hiking through sweltering jungle and spending the night in a hill village.  The next day we hiked two hours (in our wet, dirty clothes since it rained in the night and there was no way anything would dry in the humidity), had the most bizarre "white water rafting" experience where they pushed us out in the boat with bamboo sticks instead of paddles without a guide. Definitely the most terrifying experience we've had.  Thailand has giant spiders and cockroaches that love to get in your boat and try to climb up you shorts.  Seriously, dinnerplate-size spiders.  We ended with bamboo rafting, which was much better than the white water, where you sit on a raft and float down the river while a guide uses a piece of bamboo to pole you along.

On the elephant

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Our accomodation

All 8 trekkers shared one room.

The shack on the left is the bathroom.  The blue hose is the shower. I'll let you imagine the rest.

Our trekking family.  We were the only Americans; our companions included a couple from Spain, 2 Germans, and an English couple on their way to Australia for a 2-year stay.

Bridge

Traditional Thai dinner in Chiang Mai

Enjoying our time in Chiang Mai