Bangkok Day Two: Royal Palace and Lumpini Park

February 24, 2013January 3, 2015 / wrightsolution / 2 Comments

Having shopped as much as I could the day before, my plan was to get a little cultural sightseeing into the mix during my second day alone in the city. The number one to-do on everyone’s list seemed to be going to the Grand Palace. However, after a little research I learnt that it gets incredibly packed and was full of horror stories involving dumb tourists being scammed left and right. I wasn’t afraid of the scammers, but the crowds were a whole different matter. I have to admit that morning I almost rolled over and gave up on going, as the thought of being jammed packed anywhere with a zillion tourists was turning me away. But I pulled out some resolve, decided that if it was too crowded I could just leave, and an hour later I was in a taxi heading over to the site.

I arrived just as it was opening. And boy, the net did not lie. It was packed…crammed…with tourists as far as the eye could see. The picture below doesn’t even begin to do the crowds justice.

Mass crowds at the Palace entrance

Take this crowd and add in about 20 giant bus loads of school kids, and you have every inch of every space taken with milling people, just standing around waiting for instruction. They weren’t even queuing up for anything. I jumped up on the little wall on the edge of wide entrance area, and wove my way through the trees to the ticket office. I’m suspicious that it was school bus season, with kids visiting just before the end of the Thai school year, pushing the crowds way beyond tolerable. However, paying for a ticket was easy, because it looks like I was one of about 5 people who hadn’t come in a massive group. In fact, showing up by yourself in these types of situations is actually easier than trying to do it with someone else. It was so crowded, it was hard to deftly weave in and out of the crowd, but it would have been much harder with more than one person.

Oh, and did I mention that there was a dress code? Its all over the net, but a little vague at the same time. Women aren’t allowed to show legs, toes, or armpits. It seemed stricter than the Greek Orthodox monasteries and I didn’t want to hassle with the rented outfits. So I wore light shorts with long light pants on top, and a sleeveless tank with a light sweater on top. The idea was that I could strip off the top layer at the first opportunity. It was already 95 degrees. These people are insane! Walking around I noticed a lot of women wearing knee-length skirts and plenty of naked toes in sandals. I took my sweater off in protest. Like anyone was going to notice in this mob scene!

The palace itself is pretty spectacular. Its not one building as the name suggests but lots – about 20 I would say. Each more weird and wonderful that the next. A truly eclectic selection of structures as though each royal architect was on a mission to out do the other. It was hard to get a photo that wasn’t 70% crowd, but this one gives a little idea:

Entering every structure looked like a 30 minute commitment, so I avoided it. Instead I concentrated on getting up close and personal with some of the amazing detail work on the outside on the buildings. Every inch of every building was covered in something ornate and wildly decorative. Figures, patterns, gold, jewels, glass, tiles…it was all there and pretty amazing.

I did stop for a while at a small temple. There was a space to sit down, some shade and people watching opportunities as they came to offer lotus flowers and light a candle at the altar. It was as peaceful as the site got all morning. I lasted about an hour before I reached overload, but it took a further 30 minutes to maneuver my way off the compound. Once out, I hailed a taxi and, on a whim, asked him to take me to Chinatown. I really enjoyed the drive and the driver seemed a pretty nice guy. I relaxed into what felt like a tour of the city down side streets selling all kinds of stuff. It was my first time outside of the downtown hotel strip or a tourist site, so I got a little feel of the every day side of the city. Once we arrived in China town it looked a lot like this:

and I didn’t really feel a need to get out. I think its probably much more interesting at night when the street vendors appear. But Chinese New Year was just around the corner, and all the streets were decorated with red and gold. That was fun to see:

Getting ready for Chinese New Year

So I asked the driver to keep going. Lumpini Park was on my list of places to go and I was hoping it would be peaceful and quiet. And 20 minutes later, we arrived at the far side of the park and, wonderfully, it was almost empty. I went from heaving crowds to this little quiet space right in the middle of the city. Manila really has no parks of any kind, and the few “conceptual” parks that we have in The Fort are really just pedestrian walkways with a few plants. This was space, greenery, and a lake. A much welcome antidote to the Grand Palace.

I walked around a little. There was an outside gym area with guys working out, a few cyclists, dog walkers and small children. It was reasonably maintained, but a little shabby around the edges, but basically a very nice place.

A quiet oasis in the middle of the city.

After a while I found a wrought iron bench and sat down for a while and watched the world go by. After about 15 minutes, with no warning, a big monitor lizard appeared at the edge of the water and slipped out of the lake on to the bank. He then waddled around through the park, taking his time and ignoring me and everyone else. He just hung out, scratching around in the dirt for something. I watched him for ages. It was my second time meeting monitor lizards, the last time being at the underground river in Palawan.

I’m glad I recognized what this was. I’d have been more frightened if I didn’t know!

After the park, I slowly headed back to the hotel on foot, exploring a little more of the downtown area and grabbing something to eat. I was glad I got to see the Palace, despite the crowds and my lack of Thai historical background, which would have helped to put in some sort of context. I had one more day left in Bangkok, and tomorrow I wouldn’t have to explore alone. Chatnuchuk market here I come!

Shopping in Bangkok: Like Manila But with Fabric

February 19, 2013January 3, 2015 / wrightsolution / Leave a comment

First impressions of Bangkok was not what I expected: more smog and more humidity than Manila. A lethal combination that the weather service was blaming on the continuing cool front over the city. Cool being a relative word, of course. It certainly didn’t feel cool to me, and I live in a hot, humid city.

First smoggy impression of Bangkok

The taxi driver experience was more coordinated than Manila, though I missed the lack of at least some English. The ride there in traffic was pretty good and the modern highway delivered me without any fuss to the Plaza Athenee Hotel in the centre of Bangkok for a 4 day visit. I was piggy backing off Robert’s stay there on a required training course and I would have 3.5 days to explore the city, but 2.5 days of that would be alone.

Signage? Not.a.clue.

Suddenly I was in a different Asia, minus the English or even the Latin alphabet. All around were pretty squiggly alphabet letters that gave me no clue – no clue – to what I was reading. I hadn’t experienced that since China. A little foretaste of life in Nepal, I think.

So, what’s a girl to do alone in the city for three days in a new city? Shop of course. Or at least start with the shopping and take it from there. That was the plan. However, I had arrived mid-afternoon without a minute to pre-research where to go and what to do. So I settled into the room, made friends with the coffee machine and bath tub, got on the computer and waited for Robert to arrive on his later flight. Its amazing what information you can gather on a city via the internet, but when you’re really starting from scratch and trying to cross reference maps, temples and metro stops, having a few books laid out in front of you makes life a lot easier. Switching from browser tab to browser tab gets old. (Note to self: next time bring a guide book too.)

Our hotel location was wonderfully close to a lot of the big shopping areas: MBK Center, Siam Center, and Central Chitlom Department store. The Metro ran from just around the corner to stops all over the city, but I decided that at least for now, I wanted to walk, and it was all walkable. So I set out the next morning to find out what they had to offer and was struck by impression number two: street food.

Which fresh veggies would you like to top off your dish?

Most people have heard about street food in Bangkok. Even the Embassy doctor told me it was safe to eat, but in Manila you sort of disregard street food as not yummy and walk on by. Not so here. Everything looked good: fresh fish, fresh vegetables (yes, that’s fresh and vegetables in the same sentence), fresh fruit, fruit drinks, unidentified deep fried things on sticks… all of it looked good. On the little plastic chairs and tables on the side of the road were bunches of fresh basil, grated vegetables, leaves of lettuce…because adding something fresh and crunchy to your food is a good thing here….! See…I knew I wasn’t making it up!

I was kept visually entertained the whole walk to the MBK center just by eyeing the various food offerings.

The walk is made easier to by a pedestrian skyway which runs about a mile along the length, and pedestrian bridges are located at most major intersections in the central part of town. You need to be able to go up and down stairs, of course but, if that’s not an issue, they beat fighting across the road at the lights. It turns out that Thai’s don’t respect the STOP! hand signal that I’ve used to cross streets here in Manila where a mixture of confident commitment and that hand signal stops traffic that has otherwise rebelliously ignored street signs such as cross walks and stop signs. In Bangkok, not so much. You WILL get mowed down!

So on to the actual shopping bit. My target was the MBK center as it had lots of small stalls and sold knicknacks, souveniers and perhaps what I was really looking for….fabric. Asia’s known for it silks, batiks and cottons depending on where you are, but no so much in the Philippines. There’s fabric here, of course, but not much distinctively ethnic or interesting to buy. So I was on the hunt for some nice silk, preferably by the yard, not the most beautiful, expensive kind (sorry jim thompson) and not the really cheap Chinese stuff. Just something good quality and a reasonable price that I could use to copy some of my favourite shirts. It turned out to be pretty illusive in downtown Bangkok. I’m sure it’s there somewhere but my first attempt failed in MBK and Chitholm Department Store which didn’t sell fabric.

MBK was fun, though. Lots of the expected touristy stuff. A lot of it reminded me of the basketware, raffia and wooden items for sale in the Philippines. But it was fun looking around and I managed to find one or two things that I liked. I skipped the other malls. As a long weekend tourist, I really didn’t need any of the international retail chain stuff, although I understand department stores in Bangkok do sell western sized clothing. For now, I was saving my tourist dollars for the promised treasures at Chatuchak Market.

Lost in the warren of MBK market stalls

This Kathmandu Thing is Starting to Look Real…..

February 18, 2013February 18, 2013 / wrightsolution / 1 Comment

I hear that the truck that moves our stuff overland from Calcutta port to Kathmandu may have some similarities with this vehicle. Mmm….

We’re approaching the 120 day mark until we move and the months are starting to fill with due dates and moving realities. Back in July, it was a year away and more conceptual than anything. The lead up to Christmas was almost normal, although the realization was there that the one year mark had passed and seasonal activities and once-a-year events were not to be repeated during our stay in Manila. The fun, to-do items on the Filipino check list got revised and prioritized, but not much else affected every day life. Since Christmas with the countdown to departure looming, I have to admit I’ve been in a bit of a funk. There’s no good, specific reason why I am feeling less enthusiastic or energetic than usual. It seems to be a general rebellion against our life being put on hold until our travel orders are approved. The organiser part of me is on a practical path to take care of details that aren’t move specific: Taxes: in. Closets: clean. But the cheerleader in me is just sitting inert, looking at daily responsibilities and not feeling the love. I just don’t like feeling like I’m in stasis, and that’s how it seems right now. I know this will pass, and when it does it will be with a torrent of activity…(at least this time I don’t have to sell a house)… and I should be enjoying the quiet before the storm, but I’m not. Let’s get on with this thing already….!!

Siquijor: A Review of Coco Grove Beach Resort

February 18, 2013February 18, 2013 / wrightsolution / 2 Comments

Finally, a short word about where we stayed in Siquijor. We had booked our accommodation back in February when I first learnt my family was coming for Christmas, and we managed reservations from the last few rooms available. It had been recommended to me by friends as one of their favorite places in the Philippines and, as a result, I had high expectations. But I was still pleasantly surprised when we arrived. It was very, very pretty. And large.

The resort is spread out along almost 2kms of beach, with two restaurants, two swimming pools and and cottages widely spaced in different settings. I loved the restaurant tables, where you could get a table in a little private hut, far away from others. Everything was well cared for and the service was good. The clientele was from all over the world, but there was a high percentage of families from Europe. This was reflected in the menu, which offered a lot of European dishes with potatoes, not rice unless you asked for it, and European service standards. Additionally, there were many customs and typical Filipino protocols that weren’t followed either. If you haven’t lived in Manila, you wouldn’t notice their absence, but we did. Staff were trained quite differently. The Filipino standard Mamsir form of address was replaced with first names only, which they took the time to learn. Starters were brought out as a first course, not along with or even after the entrée, a common practice here. Entrees came out at the same time, so everyone ate together, rather than just delivering the dishes as they were prepared in the kitchen. Even the plate clearing was handled differently. Giving good service in a Filipino restaurant means clearing empty plates away as quickly as possible. This can be awkward to Westerners who don’t like their plates cleared so quickly, leaving the other diner eating alone. Here plates were cleared when everyone had finished. A small detail that makes a big difference to Western manners.

We quickly learnt that the way to get efficient service in the restaurant was to preorder your meal. If you go down to the restaurant earlier in the day and let them know where you would like to sit (the best beach tables were booked a couple of days in advance) and what you would like to eat, the food arrived hot and prompt. If you didn’t, you went straight to the back of the line as everyone else pre-orders, every meal, every day.

In the main, the resort did everything very well, and it was a pleasure to be there. At Christmas, it was full with families – the noisiest of guests – but we rarely really felt their presence. You could walk on the beach or through the grounds, see others but feel enough personal space that they never took away from the relaxing experience. The pool was probably the only place I sometimes felt other people’s presence intruding on mine, but the pool was an optional space. So if you felt crowded, you could just walk away. There were plenty of quieter spots that were comfortable with pretty views. We did have to fight the German’s tendency to reserve every pool chair with their towel, holding the chair for hours for their exclusive use. Fortunately none of us really wanted to hang out around the pool too long anyway.

Coco Grove was that rare find in the Philippines so far… an affordable resort, with excellent service that took advantage of its beautiful location. I don’t think we’ll have a chance to return, but it would be a wonderful opportunity to go again.

Latham’s IB Film: The Line

February 7, 2013 / wrightsolution / 2 Comments

This is Latham’s High School final production for his IB film course. He was the director, working with a writer, cinematographer and writer to produce this 7 minute film. I think they did a great job!

Beautiful Siquijor

January 24, 2013January 23, 2013 / wrightsolution / Leave a comment

I really liked Siquijor. It was small enough to miss the traffic, noise, congestion and sprawl of a larger island. But large enough to explore, with lots to see and do. We only got to see a corner of it, but if I had time, I would love to go back. Paul and Nikki managed to have their own adventures, exploring the town and a Mangrove swamp. Paul took some fabulous pictures which I’ve included in other Siquijor posts, but many didn’t really have a place in any of my stories. Here’s a few more that he took that I loved, and that really help capture the spirit and feel of the place. They all look better when you click and enlarge them. Enjoy!

Bridge across Mangrove Swamp, Siquijor

Not a kitchen restaurant I’ve eaten from (I hope)

Filipino Market Stall

Typical Filipino Covered Market. This one’s in Siquijor but looks like so many others I’ve visited

Whats’s for sale today in the market

Dried Fish in Siquijor Market

Just hanging out in Siquijor

Siiquijor boat at sunset

People Watching in Dumaguete

January 23, 2013 / wrightsolution / 2 Comments

Dumaguete was only on our schedule as a point of arrival and departure at the airport. It was supposed to be a short drive from the dock over to the airport and back to Manila for a couple days of touring Taal and perhaps some more shopping before Paul and Nikki had to leave. However, we woke up on our last scheduled morning to a tropical depression and a canceled ferry. The pages of the newspapers the next day showed people in the sea with life jackets being rescued from another ferry that chose to sail Our canceled ferry meant that we would miss our flight and the rest of the day was spent calling, faxing and emailing the airline to try and solve the problem of rebooking our flights. It was a problem that needed constant feeding. Philippine Airlines were not cooperative, and we very grateful to have a travel agent to assist us. We never really got to enjoy our extra day at the resort because of the stream of airline demands and Manila arrangements needed canceling too.

The next day we took the first ferry out, which meant an unscheduled afternoon and night in Dumaguete. The short drive from the port to the hotel was enough to make sure I wasn’t too excited about going out to explore. I’d been around enough small, poor towns here to feel uncomfortable and almost voyageristic walking around. There’s usually nowhere to really eat, drink or hang out and you often get mobbed by beggars or small children. But I decided to venture out with Nikki and Paul anyway, thinking I could just turn back. But Dumaguete was a small, college town worth a look around.

Nikki and I let loose in Dumaguete

I stumbled upon a fabric store. Perfect timing to buy some fabric for new tablecloths

We drew a circular route down the main street, and then back along the tree lined coast road to the Mexican restaurant where we planned to eat that evening. Latham and Robert joined us at our last destination and we watched the world go by for 2-3hrs, through the rush hour traffic along the coast, and on into the early night. It was fun looking at all the different passengers on the tricycles, trucks, cars and bikes that paraded by. School kids, people coming back from work, college kids, families, goats and chickens. Paul sat and clicked away at the procession and we drank margaritas and ate funky nachos. After the evening traffic died down, the street vendors came out and a makeshift street restaurant just materialized down by the water. It was a little bit of unscheduled fun salvaged from our disrupted plans and I was grateful for it. Sometimes its nice to have something unexpected in the mix.

Watching the tricycle traffic in Dumaguete

Family after family on bikes heading home

Every tricycle told a different story. So fun to watch everyone commuting back and forth

Young passenger waiting for Dad to come back

As always, kids are often the best subjects

We watched so long the traffic subsided and darkness started to fall, with a little peace returning to the coast

Seaward side of the coastal road. Boats lined up on the beach reminded us that island life wasn’t far away

Apo Island: Adventures with Turtles

January 22, 2013March 12, 2013 / wrightsolution / 3 Comments

Apo Island is a small island destination about 1.5hrs away from Siquijor by boat. We had originally tried to book the boat privately to take us over on our anniversary as a way of marking the day and making it extra special for everyone. With our own boat the idea was that we could stop somewhere else along the way, or have a picnic lunch in a quiet cove somewhere. We really didn’t know what to expect on Apo and it seemed like a way to avoid what could be another one of those nightmarish vendor-infected scenarios. There’s never anyway of telling in advance. But hiring the boat didn’t seem to offer us any advantage. There was probably a way to do make the way you wanted it, but without inside help, I gave up.

So we took the group boat, which was fine. Its always annoying to wait for (really) latecomers who can’t get themselves out of bed in the morning, but the boat was clean and comfortable, and not too crowded. We sat on the back deck watching the waves and water spray up on to the deck.

Beautiful wave sprays as we headed out

About an hour later, the island came into view and our boat slowly manouvered on to the beach.

Apo island coming closer

Our boat docked on the Apo Island beach

Apo island has a small, attractive resort right on the beach. It would be a lovely place to stay and a way to enjoy the peace of the island after the daily boat (us) has left. Maybe next time….

Upon arrival everyone has to pay a small environmental fee. Hopefully this is going toward the job of preserving the reef and beaches. It was certainly kept unspoilt. It actually could have used a little development, though, to help protect the shoreline and the visitors. A small wooden dock extending into the water a little would have made entry across the spiky coral much easier. But Apo is still very pristine and low key. I would never have picked that particular shallow, coral beach covered in algae and rock pools to enter into the water and explore. But they were right….it was totally worth it.

Nikki held back a little. She was the last in the water, but the first to see a turtle. I wish I had been there to witness it. As she worked on her resolve to enter the water, a turtle head poked out of the water to get air. I can only imagine the scream! To her credit she got in anyway, and we all managed to see and swim with the turtles. I didn’t see one for a good 10 minutes, then Latham started signalling me to turnaround. I turned, expecting to see something the size of a large tortoise, but no, it was the size of a small kitchen table, swimming around just a foot or two away. It was kind of disturbing that something so large was so near and I had only just spotted it.

Smaller, but beautifully coloured turtle

My first turtle…and it was a big one!

Yes. It is what you think it is….don’t tell Nikki!

The Apo Island snorkeling beach.

Not exactly a beach I would choose to snorkel at…and yet it was great Turtle territory

After about an hour or so, we had had our fill and headed over to the resort for lunch. We could hear the drummers playing from a distance, our entertainment for the meal. On the way back across the beach, we passed this excellent Christmas tree, that is made from fallen, dried palm fronds, driftwood, and discarded tourist gear. Loved it!

Drummers entertain while we enjoyed our beach lunch

Apo island was a great location, and still undeveloped enough that everything was pleasant and friendly. I sure it will become more popular in coming years and I hope that they continue to care for their environment as well as they do now. Responsible tourism attracts responsible tourists. And I got to swim with turtles…..!

Sign Language: Temporary Contraceptives

January 16, 2013January 13, 2013 / wrightsolution / Leave a comment

Sign on the back of a Mobile Health unit parked in Dumaguete. I’m not sure what “temporary contraceptives” are? I can guess at what they really meant but, on a symbolic level, this is an old sign. A new sign would offer permanent contraceptives since the landmark passing of the Reproductive Health Act last month despite heavy opposition from the Church.

Its a very important change for the Philippines, allowing free access to contraceptives, instrumental in decreasing the exponential birth rate here, and an important component of the country’s development in the next few years.

Siquijor: Rasta Tree!

January 13, 2013January 10, 2013 / wrightsolution / Leave a comment

Ancient Balete Tree

On the way home from our Cambugahuy trip, we stopped at an amazing old tree by the side of the road. It been called the Century Old Tree, or “centuries old” I’m sure that no one really knows. But I could easily believe it was 400 years old. It had a massive girth, amazing hanging roots, and huge crawling roots that spiraled out from its base. It sits next to what must be a natural spring, and probably the reason for its longevity. Kids were jumping and playing in the water.

Amazing roots (dreadlocks) hanging down!

We walked around marveling at the thing, and circled around to the back of it. Latham climbed up the roots to get a closer look. Then I saw the tshirt he was wearing. Rasta guy in a rasta tree. Way, cool man!