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Day Two Slow Boat

Pakbeng, Lao Peoples Dem Rep

I slept surprisingly well for the heat last night. The mosquito netting really kept us comfortable and bite free. The pouring rain while we slept was very nice to listen to. I didn’t want to leave the lodge this morning, it was so peaceful and beautiful. Ban Baw was our first stop today. It is another little village on the river bank. It’s very small, about 50 families. Here they make a traditional rice alcohol called lao-lao, it wasn’t very tasty. Local women weave beautiful scarves out of silk and silk and cotton right there in the village on looms in front of their homes. So of course I had to buy one of each. The kids were adorable there, they were very interested in our kids the same way ours were interested in them. After that my boys just spend the rest of the time trying to pet the baby pigs, chicks, goats, ducks or whatever other animals that are running around the village. Pak Ou Caves was our second stop after lunch. It is located on the Mekong and opposite the mouth of the Nam Ou River. There are two caves and thousands of Buddha statues inside. This is where they bring the damaged or worn out ones. It’s set up a lot of steps and into the cave, a lot of different areas to explore. I just opened the August issue of National Geographic and saw an article on Laos. It was a very interesting read and perfect timing for me. We arrived is beautiful Luang Prabang around 4pm after another beautiful day on the river. I read a lot and even napped today. I think the two days on the river was perfect, one would definitely not be enough and three too much. We were really lucky with the weather which was sunny and hot, but on the river with the breeze it was absolutely perfect. The boys had another fun day with their friends playing Yahtzee and all reading their Harry Potter books. Everyone is excited to explore Luang Prabang!

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Slow Boat to Laos

Huay Xai, Laos
We crossed the border from Thailand into Laos early this morning to board a slow boat down the mighty Mekong River to Luang Prabang. Over 70% of Laos is inaccessible mountain terrain so the Mekong is a major mode of transportation. It is a Communist country since 1975 after the Vietnam war but they are more tolerant than the Communism we know. They are allowed to practice religion, mostly Buddhism but Christianity is very scarce because they frown upon it. It was bombed by American forces every 8 minutes for 9 years during the Vietnam War because they border Vietnam and we were trying to suppress the spread of Communism. But the people are very friendly to Americans and just want to move forward in peace. Fifty percent of those bombs are still undetonated here in the country which causes a lot of problems so they still live with the war everyday In some areas. We took the slow boat because the trip along the Mekong is very scenic and such an experience. We are on the luxury boat because there are many that ply these waters and we don’t want to be stuck with a bunch of back packers! The boat holds 40 comfortably but there are only 17 on our journey. Luckily there are two boys from the UK almost the same age as Grant and Rowan! We couldn’t have asked for any better. They are happy and we are happy. We are spending the day reading, watching the scenery, eating….the food is amazing, they keep feeding us. Snacks to start, then a full Laotian lunch, then fruit plates, oh and there’s a bar! Nice bathrooms and outside decks, it’s perfect! I love the fact that we have nothing to do or no where to go, it’s such a great vibe. We stopped at a Lao village on the banks of the river. What an eye opening experience for the boys. They are a fortunate village because they moved from the mountains to the river bank and now they have electricity, running water and better huts. There still is no plumbing or modern conveniences but it is much better than before. Tourism is helping them sustain their village by building a school and giving them more opportunities. The boys saw that they don’t have TV……or Wii and Playstation!! Around 4pm we arrived in Pakbeng, a tiny village on the river bank half way to Luang Prabang. It isn’t really a village, just a few lodges for overnight stops. You don’t have to leave the lodge, we had cocktails on the deck overlooking the river, then a great dinner after. Since there are so few of us, we got to know each other pretty well and had a lot of fun. Everything is open air and natural. Each room is an individual hut on stilts overlooking the river. All the windows open up to the jungle and have no screens so there is mosquito netting on the beds. All the huts are situated along a beautiful raised walkway that meanders through lush landscaping with orchids and haleconia hanging off the branches. This is a place to really unplug, no phones, televisions, air conditioning, etc. There is wifi in the lobby but in the huts just time to read and sleep to the sounds of the jungle. I won’t need a sound machine, I have the real rainforest sound!

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Thai Elephants!!

Tambon Ki Lek, Thailand
Today we drove about an hour to the mountains to spend the day at an elephant conservation and rehabilitation center. I did a lot of research to find one that cared about the welfare of the elephants more than the tourist bucks. It is the highlight of our trip so far! Grant said that it was the best day ever. We started out by learning about the elephants and their history, conservation, etc. We took a ride and got to bathe with them in the river! They were so playful and fun, especially in the water! They were rolling around and squirting water at the boys then picking them up. I haven’t seen the boys laugh so much in a while. The elephants are amazing gentle giants and so smart. Now I know why they are so revered in this country. We also spent some time with one of the hill tribes that live here in Northern Thailand. The tribe we met were called the Long Neck Karen. The women wear these coiled neck rings? As they get older they get more rings, so the old ladies are really long! The boys were fascinated!

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Chiang Mai, Thailand

Amphoe Mueang Chiang Mai, Thailand


After a quick hour flight from Bangkok we arrived in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai is nestled into the foothills of northern Thailand and is a sanctuary with a laid-back pace yet is modern and has an international flair. It’s a nice balance between yesterday and today. We have a few days here so a lot of it will be relaxing since we have been jetting around the last week from big city to big city. Cocktails by the pool with a good book while the kids play. Our resort has the prettiest tropical jungle feel to it. There are maybe 10 teak bungalows that are dark wood and have hand carved designs on them. The insides are very comfortable and plush. It is family run and they are the sweetest family, plus the food is so good, real authentic Thai. Right outside of the resort are rice paddies, the boys loved looking for fish in the shallow water-they wanted to see where the Siamese Fighting Fish come from. Today we went to the temple on top of the mountain that Chiang Mai is famous for, Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep. Even though it was overcast, the view down to the city was beautiful. Of course the temple was gorgeous, watching the monks chant was surreal. The boys sat silent in awe. The one thing that bothers the kids are the stray dogs that are around. They want to pet them because they think no one loves them. They are also afraid that they are going to get hit by cars as they run around! They have big hearts and keep thinking of Stanley. Our driver brought us to a local restaurant that was so pretty-it was set at one end of a huge reflecting pool surrounded by elephant figures. The food was amazing and we are like kings and had a few drinks for under $20! The Thai Silk factory was next, can’t leave Thailand without learning about how it is made and maybe buying a lot of things!!! It was a really cool tour, they showed us all the stages from moth to eggs, larvae, caterpillars, cocoons, etc. The best part is that all those stages we saw were alive and we saw them wriggling!! Then they showed us how they take the silk off the cocoons then finally the ladies hand weaving on the looms. Of course we spent about an hour shopping after that! Eating here is really stressful. I live to eat and I made up cards for every language explaining my food allergy. I even put it in pictures in case the people cooking couldn’t read. Then I laminated each of them. I have cards in Chinese traditional, Chinese simplified, Thai, Laotian, Vietnamese, French, Khmer and Malay. It has really helped me but it still isn’t easy. I put each bite of food in my mouth and wait about 5 to 10 minutes before I’ll swallow it. If I’m okay then, then I know I can eat it. I just wish I could eat everything…it all looks so good. It’s worse on when flying, I’m afraid if something happens then it would be worse! I have my Epi-pen but still want to know I am close to a hospital. But it’s all worth it to experience the beauty here. The Thai people are very friendly and Grant is like a movie star, everyone wants to touch his hair and look at his eyes and the ladies keep hugging Rowan because he’s so sweet.

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Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok is pretty cool with some great things to see. It is very hot and humid and crowded. There is a lot going on and lots of traffic so we took the Skytrain mostly everywhere and tuk-tuks for short distances. the boys love taking the tuk-tuks, they thought they were awesome. While they were cool, all the fumes are spewing all around so it’s not too easy to breathe! We headed down to the Chao Phraya river to start our day and took a boat up to the temples. The first place was the grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The Grand Palace was the residence for the King of Siam and is now used for official events and Royal ceremonies. The complex is huge, were barely got through a few buildings in a few hours! The other main attraction in the complex is the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The temple is spectacular! As with all temples you have to take off your shoes and cover up. People wear crazy patterned pants that you can buy right outside all the temples and for women they have skirts. Or they will give you drab wraps to put around yourself to walk around. Plus you have to cover your shoulders and take off any hats. I was so hot in my very light cardigan! Our next stop was Wat Pho which has the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. The Temple has the largest collection of Buddhas is in all of Thailand. The complex is also home to traditional Thai massage, the school that trains all the masseuses in Thailand. A one hour Thai massage is about $10, and it IS respectable!! No funny business. We all got massages and the boys even got Fish Spa pedicures! They loved having the fish nibble their feet-they couldn’t stop laughing. Jeff and I had no interest at all. The night market was a fun adventure. Rows and rows of different stalls selling everything and nice stuff too not junk. We could have spent two days there but our stomachs were growling and the food offerings smelled amazing! We all just ordered different things and all shared-look at the pictures for the descriptions of each item. Wow was it good! Then we got an amazing storm-everyone battened down the hatches and the wind was bending the palm trees back and forth and rain pouring down. The boys were so happy to see heavy rain that they kept going out and standing in it. They also can’t get used to the fact that there isn’t a drought here. They keep reminding us the not run the water too long! But they like how I’m not rushing them in the shower 🙂 While we had a nice time in Bangkok, I probably wouldn’t come back here just for Bangkok, maybe as a layover. It is a little dirty and run down but has many charms, great food, beautiful temples and from what I hear, a raucous night life! It was great to visit once and the people were very friendly and loved the kids but two days was enough. We are looking forward to going to Northern Thailand next.

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Travel to Bangkok


Sadly we have to leave Hong Kong today, we really enjoyed it. Thankfully we had plenty of time to do some more shopping this morning since our flight wasn’t until 3:50pm. Shopping is amazing here, you can’t walk through anywhere without going through a mall and all high end retailers. There seems to be one on every other corner, a dream come true! The majority of our day was traveling to Bangkok. A 2.5 hour flight turns into an 8 hour day with travel to the airport a few hours before for check in, security, immigration, etc. Then baggage claim, transportation…… We made it to Bangkok late so we just had a drink and an amazing dinner right at the hotel, ready to sleep in our Heavenly Bed!

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Hong Kong


We spent the day in Central, where the business district is. It was a gorgeous sunny day, so we took the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbor and walked all over. Yesterday it was overcast with a little bit of sun so the temperature wasn’t too bad, just humid. Today with the sun beating down it was very hot, and humid! I think I was expecting a lot worse, because everyone said how horrendous it was this time of year but it felt similar to Manhattan in the summer, no different. In fact, Hong Kong reminds me of an Asian New York City. Smells, sights, street construction, traffic, full of people, food, all just in a different language. Oh, one major difference, the subways are air-conditioned!! It doesn’t feel like you are walking down into a steam room like NYC and the smells are city-like but different. It is more crowded than NYC and harder to get through the streets and subways. The boys got very annoyed by it! Not sure if I could handle that all the time but it does have a great vibe and I love it. After all the shopping and sightseeing we stopped at Man Mo Temple and the boys we intrigued by it. They really respected the temple and were very interested in watching the people coming in and out to say prayers and give offerings. I think Grant had an even better appreciation since he studied China’s geography, dynasties and religions this year in school. We met up with a friend of Jeff’s last night at Victoria Peak. It is the highest point on Hong Kong island and has spectacular views of the whole area. It was gorgeous to see at night!

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First Day Hong Kong

Hong Kong, China


Thankfully we took the high speed Airport Express train to our hotel to avoid the traffic. We were so tired! It was 4:30am pacific by then and with only a few naps we were pretty tired. But of course the boys were hungry so we grabbed a quick bite right near the hotel, squid ball soup and curry chicken. Our hotel is beautiful and our room has four beds!! We were so happy to sleep comfortably with no one bothering us! We also have a small kitchen with a sink, refrigerator, stovetop, microwave, rice cooker, French press, stocked nicely. The view is gorgeous too. Today was a lot of exploring, first to eat at a famous Michelin Star dim sum restaurant. It was AMAZING!! Then we rolled out of there and headed down to a Tailor for a custom made suit for Jeff in Tsim Sha Tsui. Down to the waterfront and the Hong Kong Walk of Fame, kind of like the Hollywood walk of fame along Victoria Harbor. Next up was the Ladies Market for some shopping and haggling. We made it back to the hotel and are ready for bed!! But we promised the boys we can go to the pool, it’s very humid but the temperature wasn’t too bad, nowhere near as hot as I thought it would be. The pool and spa is on the top floor of the hotel, what a great view. After a quick swim we all made our way to the steam room to relax our tired muscles….. Cocktails were on the 110th floor of the Ritz Carlton, what a view! Then of course we were hungry again….more noodles. Too bad the boys didn’t make it through all of dinner, I guess Jet Lag set in.

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Cathay Pacific Flight LAX-HKG

New Territories, Hong Kong


This whole morning from wake up until we took off I was a ball of nerves. We didn’t go to sleep until 1am then woke up at 6. So needless to say I was overtired and super stressed out to be ready to leave at 9am. Thankfully we have a great family who is taking care of Stanley and our house. So that was one less worry for us. We made it through security and into the KAL Lounge by 11:30! We left at 9am, traffic and security took so long. A stiff Bloody Mary, tea sandwiches and udon noodles helped a bit! It’s somewhat painful sitting next to the boys as they argue and fight over the shared armrest but I have a crisp glass of white to smooth it all over. I downloaded all these movies and TV shows but the entertainment system is amazing. I think I might start Breaking Bad since it is an offering?!? Only 13 more hours to go…, Lunch was decent considering its airline food, and the kids ate well. They are just super happy to drink sprite and eat ice cream! Now it’s time to take a nap, 3 hours into the flight, full bellies and I will finish my first episode of Breaking Bad then hopefully a nap. I managed to sleep for about two hours so that helped a lot. There’s nothing better than the Bose Quiet Comfort headphones, they have noise canceling and with that on and my music playing you don’t hear anything! I did watch the first episode of Breaking Bad before I napped. It was good but like any series, you need to watch a few to really get into it. Just had a cup of coffee even though it’s 7pm Pacific because I have 8 more hours of flight left and it will be around 6pm the next day when we arrive in Hong Kong. The boys are having fun but haven’t slept yet. They are having too much fun with the in flight entertainment choices. They had a good long game of video chess. They are also excited to cross the International Date Line. Only 7 1/2 more hours to go, made it half way and crossed the International Date Line! The second episode of Breaking Bad is over and still not hooked, but definitely interesting. I have been reading in between and eating and drinking. We had dinner at 10 pm pacific but 1:09pm Hong Kong time. I chose the Fish with black bean sauce and jasmine rice, it was surprisingly good! 5 more hours to go….2/3 of the way there. It’s not as miserable as I thought it would be. I am actually relaxing, reading, watching TV and enjoying myself. But there are five more hours, we’ll see what they bring…..nap time again zzzzz! Well I somehow slept again and for 2 hours until the boys woke me up kicking each other and fighting over space and who was encroaching into the others, etc. Just what I wanted to be woken to. Cranky now! But the monitor said only 2 more hours!! We all just freshened up and the boys ordered noodle soup-they are so happy now 🙂 I am going to do some reading and get ready for our arrival into Hong Kong soon! We are finally making our descent into Hong Kong, the flight is over!

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Itinerary

San Clemente, CA


I think that I may be planning too much but I feel like I need to see everything while we are there. The itinerary so far is this: Fly from Los Angeles to Hong Kong and stay there for 3 nights to see skyscrapers, taste heavenly food and experience ancient customs. Bangkok, Thailand for 2 nights to see the floating markets, the amazing food and the bustling nightlife. Then up north to Chiang Mai, Thailand for 3 days nestled in the foothills of the mountains with elaborate temples and a moat surrounding the old town. Especially excited to spend a day at an elephant conservation camp outside of town. From there we visit the infamous White Temple in Chiang Rai and the Golden Triangle at the confluence of the mighty Mekong and Ruak rivers where Myanmar, Laos and Thailand all meet at a point. It is the second largest opium producing region in the world besides the Golden Crescent in Afghanistan. From there we will head over to Laos by a two day slow boat on the Mekong and arrive in sleepy Luang Prabang to see the former capital with golden roof temples, saffron robed monks and colonial French architecture, a UNESCO World Heritage site. That brings us two weeks into the trip….I have a few more weeks to plan. I have my ideas and itinerary in my head but now I have to put it on paper. That is the problem with being a perfectionist, I spend so much time comparing hotels and things to do that it takes me a few days per city. It is a lot of fun to plan but is overwhelming too, but I love doing it.