Bali Indonesia

After a 2 1/2 hour flight on Singapore Airlines we arrived in Bali Indonesia. There was a $25 US pp fee waiting for each of us at the airport. Two long lineups and we were ready to retrieve our 4 pieces of luggage. Four porters took hold of our bags and rushed us out of the airport before we could figure out what was happening. Finally we managed to take hold of our bags and shoo them away. Getting a taxi was easy but they insisted we take two for our BIG family of four. (That worried me but it worked out okay in the end).

A 15 minute ride to our hotel and a quick language lesson from the cab driver and we were ready to settle in. Although we hadn't planned on staying at a 5 star spa resort, we ended up here and are quite excited about the place. The first day the boys went solo parasailing (worried me to see Dieter up there swinging in the wind but he was thrilled). Erik rented a jet ski and took Dieter for a wild ride. We rented Kayaks and the boys played chess with 3 foot high chess men.

Dieter met Albert from near Bordeaux France and practiced his French for about 4 hours today.

We've scheduled scuba diving and snorkelling (for Dieter and I) in a couple of days. Tomorrow we're heading to Ubud to see some of that original artwork we've heard so much about. There's also a market just down the beach that we'll need to check out.

Bali deserves it's claim to fame as one of the most beautiful places in the world. This is so beautiful! We know Sue and Dion and the boys should have come here with us too!


Tonight Erik and Dieter captured their first HUGE bug. It's a beetle and a sandy colour. No doubt a photo will be taken and sent back to Georges Brossard. A proud moment here even if the good folks in the restaurant are still stunned by the experience.

We met a group from Canada - 28 of them here. Francoise originally from north of Quebec City has won our hearts and we're enjoying learning about the group and their travels eh.

Farewell Thailand Hello Singapore

We said goodbye to our friends Sue and Dion and their terrific two sons Spencer and Brett and left Thailand heading for Singapore.


We will always have fond memories of Thailand because that is where we doubled the size of our family.
Phuket- Patong Beach

Phuket Market


Our last event in Thailand was a Night Safari at the Zoo.


Although we had hoped for a more rugged experience, we weren't disappointed with the company of our friends and the dinner out by the sea. Our tour guide Geline was kind enough to teach us a few words in Thai and Sue and Georg especially enjoyed the English music while travelling in the van. English music meant music from the seventies and some people are very good at dancing while seated in a van.

The Century Inn Hotel was, as Sue called it, "so civilized" compared to some of our previous accommodations. The morning that the McDonalds left (at 4:30 AM) we had the unique priviledge of meeting fellow Canadians Georges and Suzanne Brossard. I would say that this experience was right up there with seeing the Pyramids.

Georges Brossard is a world reknown entemologist-he is commonly known as "the insect man" and is the founder of 13 insectariums around the world. He also hosts his own show on the Discovery Channel called "Insectia". We were honoured to have met this recipient of the Order of Canada, and to experience his passion for insects. Merci Monsieur Brossard!

Erik and Dieter are proud to own a butterfly/insect net that was given to them by Georges. They were given a quick lesson on how to use the net including how to close the net and preserve the insects. Both boys were so inspired we had to take our net out to the first park we saw in Singapore! We wanted to travel on to Penang in Malaysia to continue our insect quest but were unable to book the flight out in time for our trip to Bali. We will look for further oportunities wherever we travel. We have also begun plans to set up our sheet, lights and equipment when we return home. This new world of insects has captured our imagination and we're ready to begin a new quest.


In Singapore we have seen a city that is everything we heard it would be. It's clean and very modern. When we arrived we were given a sheet of paper that has been inserted into our passports. It reads "possession or sale of drugs is punishable by death." The taxi driver told us that everyone is required to learn Engish here. He also told us that there are cameras everywhere and it is illegal to litter, spit, or not flush the toilet.

On our first day in Singapore we walked from our hotel. Le Meridian, to the Asian Civilization Museum. There we learned about how Singapore developed and we learned a lot about Buddhism too. We took a bumboat tour of the city on the Singapore River.


There we saw the Merlion (which is a landmark icon for Singapore) and saw the famous Raffles landing site and hotel. The boys pulled out their new net and captured their first two specimens. How exciting! We went on a search of a book on 250 butterflies of the world, as recommended by Georges, but so far we've only collected a couple of books on insects. Our search continues.


On our second day we chose another location for breakfast. We somehow thought that $14 for a cup of coffee was too high (even with the exhange of .75). Our destination today: Sentosa Island. Here we were able to go on the Sky Tower - an elevated 360-degree viewing deck 110 meters high. This is where the Insectarium is located and also a Butterfly Park containing 2500 butterflies. The kids (okay adults too) went on a 650 meter luge ride and a sky lift. We also took the cable car back from Sentosa Island.

Merlion at Sentosa Island


Singapore has a population of 4 million. There is a problem now because most Chinese couples choose to have only one child. There are also many people from Malaysia and India living here. The taxi driver suggested Georg apply to teach here as there is a shortage of teachers. There are many new housing and commercial developements here. Many housing developments are designated for people with an income of less than $1000 per month. Conversely, many condos sell for 1.2 million and up.


Tonight we will go to see the Fountain of Wealth on the harbour. We plan to dine somewhere along the sea and enjoy the beautiful evening views. Tomorrow we will leave for Bali.

More Dives to add to the Scuba logbook

Leaving the Seeka Boutique hotel before 8:00 a.m. seemed like a good idea if you want to get in a full day of scuba diving. The Andaman Sea is home to an underwater paradise visible only to those equipped with scuba gear.

It was a windy day making the boat toss and turn offering a wild, unpredictable ride. However, after churning for an hour and a half Georg and Erik entered the quiet world below to get a glimpse of the kaleidoscope of colours, shapes and textures of the undersea world.

They had heard that many divers get a glimpse of the grey reef shark, but they were not so lucky today. The visibility could have been better, but nevertheless they saw a few different types of hard and soft corals, and thousands of clownfish (nemo), a few cuttlefish, and scorpion fish and few spotted ealgerays. Leopard sharks, and whale sharks, they were told are often hanging around to greet visitors, but today there were none, but as one diving slogan goes "the worst day diving is better than the best day at work". The one and half hour trip home was on a calmer sea and everyone, but the captain had a good nap.

Sawatdi!

That's the word Thai people use to greet one another. Men would add another syllable (Kap) and women (Ka) to this greeting.



It's very warm here: the temperature varies between 19 degrees C to 38 degrees C. Average temperatures are about 29 degrees C but the humidity makes it feel much warmer (at least 10 degrees). The humidity is between 66% and 82.8%.

The hot season is March to May and this is the time when school kids are on holiday from school (yes, three months). The rainy season is June to October and I can't believe this is the cool season from November to February! It's so hot!

The official population at the end of 2006 was 62,828,706: about 50/50 male and female ratio. of the total almost 5,695,956 live in Bangkok.

Thai is the national language and English is widely understood in the larger cities.

94.2% of the population are Buddhist, 4.6% Muslim, .8% Christian and .4% other.

The government is a constitutional monarchy with 76 provinces, each subdivided into amphoe (district), tambon (subdistrict) and muban (village).

The National Flag: red, white and blue bands symbolise the nation, Buddhism, and the monarchy respectively.

The largest provinces are Ratchasima, Chiang Mai and Kanchanaburi.
The largest islands are Phuket, Chang and Samui.

The highest peaks are Chi at 2565 m; Mun at 2285 m; and Doi Chiang Dao at 2,195 m
The principal rivers are Chi 765 km,Mun 750 km, Nan 740 km, and Chao Phraya 370 km

Major agricultural exports are rice, tapioca, rubber, maize, pineapples, durians, longans, palm oil and herbs.
Major manufactured exports are computer and computer accessories, integrated circuit, textiles, electronics, cars and spare parts, gems and jewellery, televisions and television accessories.

Thailand occupies an area of 513,115 sq km (just a bit larger than Spain) in Southeast Asia. Of its population of 65 million, the majority are Thais and the largest minority group is Chinese, who have mostly been assimilated through inter-marriage and long-time residence.
The origin of the Thai race is still unclear today. Some believe they have migrated from southwestern China, others say they have lived in border areas between China, Laos, Burma and Thailand for at least 2000 years, and still others suggest they originated in what is today's Thailand and then moved northwards.
Anyway, it was recorded in history that two Thai chieftains, Khun Gang Kang Hao and Khun Pha Muang, established the first independent Thai kingdom in Sukhothai in 1238 after driving away the Khmers who had ruled the region in the 11th and 12th centuries.

During the early part of the Chakri Dynasty, arts, culture and literature were in full bloom. Relations with the Western countries were restored by King Rama III. In the reigns of Rama IV and Rama V, Western culture was introduced to Thai society, leading to its modernization.
But Thailand also lost large pieces of its territory during this period due to the expansion of Western colonialism. Yet the Thais pride themselves on their ability to maintain independence while all their neighbours were reduced to the status of a colony one after the other. In 1932, a group of foreign-educated military officers and students staged a peaceful revolution and Thailand changed its political system from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy which has remained up to this day.

Although the Thais have always referred to their country as Muang Thai or Prathet Thai, meaning Land of the Free, the country had been known to the outside world as Siam until 1949, when the Thai government formally adopted Thailand as the official name of the country. After that Siam and Siamese became historical names.

Although Thailand is no longer an absolute monarchy, the love and reverence felt by the Thai people toward their King have not diminished in any way.

The present monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej remains the stabilizing element of the country and is generally recognized as one of the most beloved rulers in Thai history. Although he recently celebrated his 80th birthday, the many many photos depict him as a young man.

Because Thailand is a Buddhist country Buddha images are held sacred. Sacrilegious acts are punishable by imprisonment even if committed by foreign visitors.
Traditionally Thais greet each other with a wai (by pressing the palms together at the chest. If someone wais you, you should wais them back.
The head is the noblest part of the body so it is offensive to touch a person's head or ruffle his/her hair.
The foot is the lowest part of the body and should stay low. You should never put your feet on a table or touch any part of the body of anyone with your feet. Oh! and never use your foot to point to things. (I always do that)

Bargaining is an art long practised in Asian countries so people expect you to make a counter-offer when they quote you a price. Erik is really into this as he was born to debate. He amuses himself by talking to any and every vendor and is remarkably good at this "art." I don't know how he'll ever adjust to shopping at Winners again.

James Bond Island

The excursion to James Bond Island and three other islands in the National Park was more than we expected. We travelled by boat for 45 minutes to James Bond Island before heading off to another island in the National Park.



Our second stop included three person rafting to see caves! The entire experience left us with renewed reverance for nature and the wonders it provides.

Another day, Another Tuk Tuk

Today is a shopping and beach day. Tomorrow we're going to James Bond Island where they're promising us a Monkey Show; canoeing through a cave, sightseeing by longtail boat and trekking with elepants!

Kata Beach on Valentines Day

We hired a van to take us the short trip to one of Phuket's beautiful beaches called Kata. It was a 10 minute drive along the coast and there we found one of the nicest beaches we had ever seen. Kata Beach is nestled in a small bay surrounded by towering verticle cliffs. The fine white sand felt like powder on our feet. The waves broke in long-rollers so we were able to use our "floaties" to body surf them right to shore.

The beach provided numerous activities for "our gang" including Parasailing so we all had to give it a go. It's one of those things that has to be done at least once and this locale could not be beat. We all had a "blast"!!!








Though we spent six weeks in Hawaii there is no preparing for the power of the sun here. Even the most tanned of us are feeling the sun's effects. So after five hours on the beach it was time to call it a day, but what a day!!!

We went back to the hotel to shower before heading out for a Go Kart adventure. The kids had two ten-minute sessions of racing and were eager to continue the experience on into the evening. We're happy to report that nobody got hurt and we got a video of the experience to remember our event!

Phuket

Dion and Georg are thinking about looking for the same outfit too -
I don't think so!!!!



After three days in Phuket we flew to Phuket: Destination Patong Beach (an area most of us have heard of because of the tsunami). Everywhere you look there's construction of new buildings (hotels). Around 7:30 in the morning 3/4 ton trucks drive past the hotel hauling people - they're so packed in there they stand shoulder to shoulder with nothing to hang on to. As you pass by the construction sites you notice that men and women are labouring in the heat. They work long hours and it's hard physical labour. We watch in awe and can't help but respect and admire them.

Phuket is about 900 km from Bangkok. The word Phuket was formerly believed to have come from the Malayan word Bukit, which means mountain. However, it has recently been discovered that Phuket is actually a Thai word meaning mountain (phu) of jewel (ket).

Formerly known as Ko (island) Thalang, Phuket was only noted for its rich tin ores, from which its wealth was derived. Today, it is betteer known as a tourist paradise with long white beaches, abundant vegetation, crystal blue water and relaxing tropical atmosphere.

We're loving the lazy beach days. You arrive at the beach and pay for a chair with an umbrella. From your chair you can shop, eat, and drink as the locals rotate through bringing armloads of watches, sunglasses, clothing, silk textiles, ice cream, sandwiches, drinks, and options for fun activities. We've been great consumers and I'm sure they see our group of eight coming and know they're in for good sales that day!


The kids took a banana boat ride and are planning to go parasailing next.

Dining out as a group of eight has been fun! One day we went to an Irish Brew Pub (thought about Iain then). Georg and Dion ordered Guiness Pie. Man size serving of Guiness Pie.


We went on an excursion to Phi Phi Island, Maya Bay and Khai Island. It was billed as a "speed boat" ride with all these terrific stops and activities. It was really quite fun because one of the stops included feeding monkeys. Dieter had heard about this before we left Canada so he's been keen on doing this for quite some time.
Monkey Beach

Dieter and Brett at Maya Bay

Georg snorkelling at Loh Sama Bay

Ko Samui

We flew from Bangkok to spend three days in Ko Samui: two at Varinda Resort on Lamai Beach and one at Sunrise Bungalows.
Ko Samui is also referred to as the Coconut Island and is the third largest island of Thailand after Phuket and Ko Chang. Samui Island is famous for its coconuts so we had to sample a few to see if there was any merit to this. We all agreed it was great and very fresh! When we were sitting on the beach a coconut "appeared" and we were glad it landed beside us, not "on" any of us. One of the massage technicians offered to cut it for us.


We relied on our tour guide Geline and another travel agent (Tong Tong) to make the reservations as we had no luck booking on the internet due to the Chinese New Year. We had no idea what type of accommodations we were getting so it was a pleasant surprise to find this lovely resort on the hillside and just a five-minute walk from the beach. Erik and Spencer were quite thrilled to have their own "bachelor pad" and we all enjoyed the unique atmosphere of the Thai-family owned resort. We'd definitely recommend this destination!
The kids enjoyed playing in the powerful waves.


Thailand is known for it's custom-made suits and massages so we decided to be tourists and try these things out. Georg and Dion were fitted for suits and Sue and I started our quest for the perfect massage. The Thai massage wasn't quite as relaxing as we'd hoped. We had a tough time with the knuckle cracking and the walking on the back. Yes, it was less than $7.00 so we aren't complaining.

The sea, the sand, the spa, and world class diving all features of Phuket are calling us, so next stop: Phuket.

Kanchanaburi

We hired a driver and tour guide to take us to Kanchanaburi which is about a two and a half hour drive from Bangkok. Backpacks loaded with water, sandwiches and snacks, we headed out at 7:15 a.m. for our day trip. Our tour guide assured us there would be many "Happy Breaks" and "No problem" with four children for the long voyage. She was right.


Our first stop was "Bridge over the River Kwae"


We walked across the bridge and discussed the Death Railway: a strategic railway built between Thailand and Burma in 1942. Our tour included a visit to the Jeath War Museum. The word Jeath replaces the word Death because it sounds too horrific. Construction began on September 16, 1942 at Nong Pladuk, Thailand by approximately 200,000 prisoners of war from England, America, Austrailia, Canada, and Holland. Many labourers died of disease, stavation and lack of medical equipment. Photos in the museum tell a very sad story of the life and death of those who "slaved" on the railway.

This is written in the museum materials that we received.
"Dear visitors, The Jeath Museum has been constructed not for the maintenance of hatred among human beings, especially the Japanese and allied countries, but to warn and teach us the lesson of HOW TERRIBLE WAR IS."

Our group stopped for a traditional Thai meal on a floating barge before driving on to the Tiger Temple. The Tiger Temple was established in February 1999 when the first cub arrived. It was a female cub of Indochinese tiger subspecies and her condition was very poor.
We were able to hold the little tigers because one of the handlers (Rod from Banff) overheard Georg say "eh" and recognized us as fellow Canadians. Sue is an animal lover and the feeling seems to be mutual. The little tiger cuddled in her arms and seemed to want to go asleep. Another experience that only Sue experienced (I'm sure this is a one-of-a-kind experience) was a "licking" by a resident (a deer). While waiting for Brett to return from the "Happy Place" a deer approached Sue, licked her hand and then continued to lick her arm! I think this would be animal magnetism. Sue with Baby Tiger

By the way, she also seems to attract "short people" as she calls them. They are just drawn to her and seem to want to get close to her. Isn't it wonderful that she's been a preschool teacher/Mom to so many short people over the years!



Boys with Tiger


Baby Tiger


We drove to an elephant training camp where we watched an elephant show. The little elephants would collect 20 baht and go "shopping." Returning with a bag of potatoes or bananas they would wait expectantly to be fed the treats.

They also performed a little show of dancing and bowing and standing on two legs. Anyone wishing to have a massage could request an "elephant massage." Georg was volunteered for one such massage.


Two-by-two we went for an elephant ride that lasted over 40 minutes and included a quick trip through the water. Erik was happy to be able to "drive" his elephant. He switched places with the regular driver and spent the whole time trying to balance on the elephant's head.


The day ended at 10 pm. Everyone was tired and we all agreed that today was a 10.