Thailand

Thailand

11-Aug-00

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Thailand
We made 3 "visits" to Thailand on this trip; traversing the entire length of the country by train from Padang Besar to Nong Khai. We spent most of our time split between the islands of Surat Thani and Bangkok.

Hello to friends old and new:

"Bolton" Bill Knowlton, "Brian" Nitiwat Tejavanija, Peggy Rubens, George & Christine Twinem, and Michael Zakrewsky from Bangkok,

Joe & Cathy Keenan from Ko Phan Nguyan

Col Teaho, Clare Argyle, Lee Greenhalgh, Michael Christy, Jandi, Charla & Keile Johnson, and Norelle & Sandy Mallett from Hat Yao,

Jan the tattooed German from Samui,

Garry Woodcock and Julie Robinson from the Lembar ferry

Nong, Jane and Bill Heine from Haad Rin

Marjory Nisbit and Philip Hatvany from the train ride

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Padang Besar, Changwat Songkhla, Thailand (ปาดังเบซาร์)

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Thai Entry and exit stamps
Our first visit to Thailand on this trip we entered Thailand on 26-Jul in Padang Basar on the Malaysian border and departed for Cambodia on 11-Aug

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Nong Khai, Changwat Nong Khai, Thailand (หนองคาย)

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Our 2nd trip and 3rd Thai entry stamps; Bangkok and Nong Khai.

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Thai flag for our backpacks

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Thai currency
500 Baht note with coins of various smaller denominations. The Baht (THB) is a Southeast Asian standard. It hovered around 40 to the dollar whilst we were there. That's the king on the banknote.

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Beer Chang
Essentially a local version of Carlsberg Elephant (chang is Thai for elephant). It's a pilsner style and usually served in 600ml bottles. Drink fast before it gets warm!

Greetings from Penang Malaysia!

Hi Everyone!
When I last left you we were about to fly to Borneo to see the Orangutans. Well, we woke up at an ungodly hour of the morning to catch a bus to JB in Malaysia, and thence to the airport for a flight to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah. We just made it - and the flight was about 1/3 the price from Johor Bahru that it would have been from Singapore.
We landed in KK completely zonked - and had a hard time finding a place to stay - The place we picked in the LPwas infested with felines (not as bad as your mom's house Tom) and of course SGK is allergic to them - so we quickly picked the next one on the list and hoofed it there - only to find that once again the LP author is a fing liar. These guys don't even check to see where these places are half the time!
After 2 nights in KK we decided that it was a hole - and we were anxious to see the man of the forest (which is what Orang Utan means in Malay) so booked a bus ticket to Sepilok.
Once in Sepilok we were able to relax once again - it's a marvelous place even without the Orangutan rehab centre. But the star attraction here is the Orangutans. When we showed up in the Morning the centre was closed as there was a storm the night before and the pathway was destroyed by falling trees - But the friendly staff soon found us a way around them before feeding time. The upshot of this is that all of the bus groups bailed - and we practically had the place to ourselves for the second feeding. I took well over 100 photos and SGK took about 50 - a mother and her baby even came right up to us - only a few inches away! Way cool.
The next day after seeing the Orangutans (and getting my head shaved to the skin again) We headed into Sandakan - the nearest city to Sepilok. What a hole! it makes KK look inviting. We booked a package trip from there to Sukau on the Kinanbantangan river and the Danum Valley.
The Kinanbantangan river was excellent. We stayed in a jungle lodge right on the river, and had our own private guide. It felt like we were doing an African Safari - three times a day we would get into our boat with another couple and both of our guides and cruise the river looking for wildlife. If you've never seen a Probiscus monkey it's well worth the trip to Borneo - these guys are strange!
After 3 days on the river we headed on to The Danum Valley - an EXTREMELY expensive tour to a virgin rain forest. For the price we paid we had expected the world; what we got was nice, but no golden spoon treatment. They were understaffed and it really showed. The wildlife and scenery though couldn't be better.
At the end of our 3 days in the Danum Valley we had to spend the night in Lahad Datu - the closest town to the DV - and what a hell hole it was! It is also a pretty dangerous place - the haunt of Phillipino pirates (the guys that did the Sipidan kidnappings were rumoured to be living here before the kidnapping) and the hotel we ended up staying in was really a whore house. Yes, it was run by a nice Muslim family but apparently they had no qualms to renting put a few rooms to some ladies of the evening. Not since Korea have we stayed in a place like this.
The next morning we made like a bullet to get back to KK - and then on to visit the Sultan of Brunei's birthday celebration. Brunei is a very strange place - rich beyond dreams, but boring as toast. They have this gigantic amusement park there - they claim it's bigger than Disney - but only 70000 people live here so it's deserted. As a matter of fact they power down the rides until you want to ride them then they start them for you. The best log ride ever is here at this park.
After Brunei we hightailed it back to Sing to pick up some stuff we left with the Cave's and we had planned to go camping in Southern Malaysia with them as well. Unfortunately, Bill's work schedule conspired against the camping trip materializing, but it was good to see them again nevertheless.
Now we have departed Singapore for the last time and are making our way north to Thailand - we had a stop for two nights in Melaka, and another 2 in Kuala Lumpur then on to Penang where we are now. We are looking forward to heading on to Thailand tomorrow as we need a change in Diet - after about 3 months in Malaysia/Indonesia if I have to eat another Nasi Goreng I’m pretty sure I'll puke!
Well, where do we go from here??? Tomorrow we go into Thailand to find some secluded beach to hang at for a while, then onto Bangkok to see my old college buddy Bolton Bill Knowlton and hopefully meat up with SGK's sister in law Cathy. We hope to do an overnighter into Cambodia to see Angkor Wat, and possibly an elephant trek in Laos and a market day in Myanmar as well before going to Can Tho in Vietnam and thence to India.
Cheers!
MRA

Penang

Penang is the sight of the oldest English settlement on the Melaka straights -and very much a Chinese city. It is also where the English General Cornwallis went after losing horribly in the American revolution

23-Jul-2000 Thru 25-Jul-2000

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Guinness was the only beer available

Hindu Temple

Malay fishing village

Glass Butterfly

It is alive folks!

Butterfly on the head of Sarah from Aberdeen

Pitcher plant

(Carnivorous)

Rambutans

Lychees

Common Malaysian no trespassing sign

Boy are these guys serious!

Cannon at Fort Cornwallis

Georgetown street

Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur

21-Jul-00



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Kuala Lumpur (often referred to simply as "KL") is the largest city in Malaysia - and a bit reminiscent of the land of Oz...

Fountain in front of our electronics mall

Radio Tower

The Petronas towers peek out above the skyline

The tallest buildings in the world

There is no tourism at the Petronas Towers. You cannot go in unless you have business there.

KL Train station

Hindu temple

Ganesh

Our favorite Hindu deity

I think that this is Shiva

How about one of my Hindu friends lets me know if I'm right?

Melaka

Melaka

17-Jul-00

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Melaka

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Chinese Temple

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Figures in the Temple

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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SaraGrace Keenan. Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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SGK and bonsai in temple

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Iguana in the Melaka river

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Restaurant Kafe loony planet
The Lonely Planet (AKA LP) series of guidebooks is the de-facto standard amongst backpackers worldwide. Many enterprising locals take advantage of this fact as this creative pun of a restaurant name shows.

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Shop in Melaka

Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Portuguese fort

SaraGrace Keenan. Malacca, Malacca, Negeri Melaka, Malaysia

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Ruffey
This one is for the Keenan's Dog...

Bandar Seri Begawan

10-Jul-2000 thru 13-Jul-2000

Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital and largest (only) city in Brunei. The Sultanate of Brunei is one of the richest countries in the world and is located on the North Coast of Borneo- It is also extremely Muslim
We arrived here in time for the birthday celebration of the Sultan.




Waiting for the bus in Lahad Datu (still in Sabah)



The bus (late as expected)



Welcome to Brunei



Strict muslim rules
Sign says:
Asrama putera
Perempuan di-tegah masok
Women are not allowed



The sultans palace



State mosque



Anyone know what this says????
Come on Tarik - I know you read Arabic!



Kampung Ayer



SGK and Kampung Ayer

Brunei

The Sultanate of Brunei is one of the richest countries in the world and is located on the North Coast of Borneo- It is also extremely Muslim
We arrived here in time for the birthday celebration of the Sultan. The people that we met were all very excited that we had come for the Sultan's party.




Brunei flag patch for our backpacks



Brunei passport stamp



Since there is no alcohol allowed in Brunei, here's the label from their water