Flip flops, Temples and Lemongrass

Todd and his fancy coffee in Chiang Mai

We've gotten off the radar for a bit, which is quite easy to do in Southeast Asia. After we left Siem Reap, we took the long train trip back to Bangkok. This time, we felt like "pros" at the border crossing and breezed through. We met a nice man on the train who was practicing his English (Mr. Siree). In his proud words, "I speak English every day." He really was interested in Josh (everyone here seems to be!), and engaged him in conversation until Josh was exhausted and then he switched over to Todd. Todd was so patient with him and Mr. Siree was elated. He said genuinely, "I like you very much."  So, despite the extreme heat, and the long, bumpy ride, we enjoyed the trip back to Bangkok.

We stayed the night in an Airbnb (my new favorite mode of accommodating worldwide) not far from the train station, since we had plans to take the overnight train to Chiang Mai from the same station the very next night. The place was a small, industrial private apartment with super cold a/c in a very residential area of Bangkok. There were street food vendors all around, along with plenty of dogs and cats...We had a great dinner at a small hole-in-the-wall rooftop restaurant, then slept well and made our way to the train station the following morning. Although our train didn't leave until 7:00 pm, we wanted to store our bags for the day and check to see if we could change our tickets to have beds near each other on the sleeper car (which we did). It was rainy that day so we went to the Siam area of Bangkok which is the major upscale shopping district, with mall after mall. We enjoyed the cool and dry respite, but had zero interest in shopping. Being in those malls really highlighted the huge disparity between the "haves" and the "have nots" in Thailand, and honestly, I prefer and feel much more at ease among the fruit markets and street stalls in the old town.

Our overnight train was pretty exciting. We had 3 of the 4 bunks to ourselves for the first two hours or so and then, just as we were settling into our beds, a lone backpacker joined on the remaining top bunk. I slept ok, although I was aware all nights of the rattling noise of the train cars and the overhead light which could not be dimmed. Earplugs and an eye mask helped, but I was glad when it was morning and I could finally get out of bed. Josh and Todd were also awake, with Josh claiming that he didn't fall asleep at all. Not sure if I believed him, but we all were tired for sure. At that point, we were in northern Thailand and could see the mountains all around us. The views coming into Chiang Mai were stunning and I immediately fell in love with the town.

We stayed in a small guest house in the walled old city, a short walk to almost everything. Our host, MoMo, is from China and had agreed to care for the business for her friend while he joined his wife in the US to welcome their new baby. The inn was very basic and lacking in more than a few ways, but it was super cheap and adequate for us. MoMo is a kind, adventurous young person and I enjoyed getting to know her very much. We compared notes on our various adventures and she gave us tips for our time in Chiang Mai. We were the only ones staying at the inn for most of our time there. I realize now that I didn't take many pictures while out and about in Chiang Mai and I think it's because I didn't feel like a "tourist" there. It felt like a second home almost and I was at ease.

We spent the day of Josh's 7th birthday on an all day tour with the Elephant Nature Park, a fantastic organization committed to rescuing mistreated elephants and providing them with a good home for their retirement. The experience was life-changing for all of us and we are enjoying brain-storming the ways we can help the elephants once we return to Durham!

We spent another day in Chiang Mai exploring a cool museum called Art in Paradise where the art is painted on the walls and floors to create 3-D images that make for good photographs. We had a blast and got a few really good shots, mostly of Josh. We also went to a local pool a couple of times, and survived the big night market on Sunday. We spent a lot of time just chilling out and had many amazing meals.

The next leg of our plans was to Laos and we already had booked plane tickets from Bangkok. Unfortunately, the budget airline we booked on did not allow changes in departure city, so we had to get back to Bangkok in order to get that flight. We found another cheap and quick flight there from Chiang Mai and arrived in Luang Prabang, Laos on the 18th.

We are staying at the Mekong Sunset View Hotel right on the edge of the Mekong River and the view is beautiful. The town of Luang Prabang is small (but growing exponentially) and became a world heritage site in 2009. The old town is easily walkable and follows the bends of the river. There are countless beautiful temples and the Buddhist monks collect alms (usually sticky rice made each morning by the villagers) at sunrise each day along the main street. We learned a bit about the culture and the alms are given by the people not just to help support the monks, but also to "earn merit" for the giver (either for the good of their family or their reincarnation).

We explored the temples yesterday and had lunch at Tamarind, a restaurant that specializes in typical Lao cuisine. We had a some "samplers," which included rice cakes, dried mushrooms, bamboo chips, Aw Gai Ban (a stew made with chicken bones cut to release the marrow), Or Lam (eggplant stew), Lao sausage and, of course, no Lao meal is complete without the sticky rice. My favorite Lao food so far, Kai Pen, is a "cracker" made from Mekong river weed that is dried, seasoned with lemongrass and sesame and then fried. It's amazing! The currency in Laos is the Lao Kip, which unfortunately doesn't not have much value. 10,000 kip is about $1.23, so we are still getting used to paying 100,000+ kip for dinner (a mere $12 or so)!

Yesterday afternoon, we climbed to the top of Phu Si (a small "mountain" in the middle of town) for a stellar view of the sunset. In the evening, we went to the Gravelak, a storytelling event with music and Lao folktales. Our favorite tales were of the old king's mischievous and clever son, Xiang Miang. The stories were told in English by a Lao man and accompanied by singing and music on the drum and Laotian khene (a wind instrument made from bamboo).

We have a strong wifi signal today (yay!), so we are catching up on news, blogging, and Josh is doing his schoolwork (his teacher recommended an app we all love called IXL). Later today we have plans to take a boat on the river and I am hoping to get to an evening yoga class. We have a few more days in Laos and then we head back to Thailand for a "vacation". We have plans to spend a week on the beach on the island of Koh Chang, no sightseeing and no schoolwork. As this is the last week of "monsoon season," keep your collective fingers crossed for good weather.

Things We love about Traveling
new foods
meeting people
using foreign languages / currencies
simplifying life (Josh says he likes wearing the same clothes over and over)
transportation modes
doing with less
tropical fruits
local handicrafts
walking everywhere
quality time with the family

Things We Don't Like
lack of hand washing facilities
mosquitos
scams
lots of smoking
hard sell / harassment by tuk-tuk drivers

Things We Miss
friends and family
cooking at home
easy-to-do laundry
oatmeal
California IPAs
Amazon Prime (?)
having space for yoga
personal space
date nights / babysitters
reliable "anything" (air-conditioning, electricity, wifi)

Things We don't miss
makeup
chores
yard work
getting mail
closet full of clothes
driving