We have spent almost a week in Thailand, in a beach town called Phuket. (Said foo-ket) We have experienced the most odiferously offensive days of our lives. It truly deserves its own chapter in Dante's Inferno. The smells boast amazing pungency and variety so as to boggle the mind. Use your imagination and explore with me some of our favorites.
By far the most frequent and gag-reflex-inducing is the sewage. Sometimes it wafts up from open grates in the sidewalk while other times it blows in from seemingly nowhere to engulf the senses.
Far less frequent and offensive is the traveler's body odor. This is usually a quick flash as you cross paths with a fellow tourist and is gone before your eyes water.
Another category which shouldn't be horrifying (but really is) is the Asian food concentration areas. This is where many vendors in a small, unventilated area, are cooking odd and disturbing foods which the western palate can only shrink away from. After stumbling into one of these areas, you can generally see them coming and can avoid being engulfed by their stench.
Then there is the standard trash dumpster foulness. I think we have all been attacked by that odor, however there is the lovely additions of heat and humidity which bakes this special concoction to a heightened ripeness.
Finally, there is that grand smell of sea side places across the globe: the fish market. Somehow this town takes the fish market smell as a pleasant one, and it seems it can pop up anywhere. (Even in the ultra-modern, beautiful, air conditioned shopping mall we've frequented.) I am especially susceptible on this odor which has brought bile to my throat many times in the last few days.
So that has been our time in Puke-ette. Cataloging the olfactory offerings of this equatorial hot spot. Tomorrow we get on our cruise. Yay!!! Similan Islands, Sri Lanka, and India here we come! Today we stopped at the grocery store to stock up on a few snacks for the trip. We found our standard travel staples: Oreos and Pringles. The Pringles offered a slightly different taste than normal; two of the featured flavors were soft shell crab and seaweed. Seriously. Need I say more?
Friday, March 19, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Moving On Again
Bali has been good to us. The snorkeling is truly spectacular. The biodiversity is overwhelming and the clarity is fantastic. We saw lots of turtles, a shark, titan trigger fish, squid, and the most colorful and unique coral in the world.
But with each excursion out of the first-world luxury of Kuta (the tourist neighborhood of Bali) we are challenged by questionable cleanliness, inexact transportation, possibly lethal bug attacks, strange bathroom facilities, and unknown food safety. It is definitely as challenging as it is entertaining.
Tomorrow we will fly out of Bali. We believe we will make another trip here. But tomorrow we fly through one over night in Singapore and then on to Thailand where we will be boarding our cruise. We are looking forward to having the same place for 14 days.
Today we got hair cuts. This includes wash, cut, head massage, conditioning treatment, and blow dry for $18 TOTAL (not each) plus tip. We will miss this. And dare I mention that we are going to Bubba Gump's for dinner? A last bit of Americana for a while!
But with each excursion out of the first-world luxury of Kuta (the tourist neighborhood of Bali) we are challenged by questionable cleanliness, inexact transportation, possibly lethal bug attacks, strange bathroom facilities, and unknown food safety. It is definitely as challenging as it is entertaining.
Tomorrow we will fly out of Bali. We believe we will make another trip here. But tomorrow we fly through one over night in Singapore and then on to Thailand where we will be boarding our cruise. We are looking forward to having the same place for 14 days.
Today we got hair cuts. This includes wash, cut, head massage, conditioning treatment, and blow dry for $18 TOTAL (not each) plus tip. We will miss this. And dare I mention that we are going to Bubba Gump's for dinner? A last bit of Americana for a while!
Dragons
We crack ourselves out of bed in the wee hours of the morning to find the fabled Komodo Dragons. We make our way to the office in which we booked our trip. The street is full of uniform-clad children ambling towards school and parents zipping to work on mopeds, but the office is closed with nobody to take us on our trip. After a few minutes, the fellow who sold us our trip rolls up on his scooter and directs us towards the docks. When we arrive in the harbor, he hollers at sleeping men on ancient boats, trying to coax someone into taking us on our safari at this ungodly hour.
He is able to roust a crew and explain our itinerary which is to include Komodo National Park and Bidabari Island for snorkeling. Our salesman bids us a pleasant farewell and we set sail with a crew who doesn't speak a word of English (and seems ill-inclined to speak to us in any language).
You know that speed that is posted in harbors which is supposed to keep boats from making wakes? That was our top speed for the duration of our laborious journey. 3 hours later we arrive at Komodo National Park. There to greet us at the dock are 2 dragons. One was lazy and lethargic. The other was alert and ready for action. A man with a big stick started walking up the path with us in tow, sending the dragon running. Welcome!
The island consists of the park, a shack for the headquarters, a few huts for the park rangers to live in, and a couple dorm-style huts for guests. Here we are assigned a ranger and set off into the most oppressive equatorial heat ever. (The sweat pours off in buckets!) We immediately come upon 10 dragons dozing in a bit of shade. One of these beasts takes a liking to Steve. (Or possibly a dis-liking but I am a glass-is-half-full kind of gal.) The beast comes toward us as I position myself on the far side of the ranger. After Steve enjoys an intense staring contest, the ranger steps forward with a big stick and the lizard stands down. It seems rather easy to deflect these killers, but it was interesting to learn that only a few days before our arrival, one of the rangers was bitten by a dragon. The ranger had to be evacuated to one of the bigger islands and had finally made it to hospital where he was recovering.
During the rest of our walking safari, we saw monkeys, buffalo, and a wild pig. It was a steamy excursion but the dragons were frightful. The only thing missing was their world-famous drool!
He is able to roust a crew and explain our itinerary which is to include Komodo National Park and Bidabari Island for snorkeling. Our salesman bids us a pleasant farewell and we set sail with a crew who doesn't speak a word of English (and seems ill-inclined to speak to us in any language).
You know that speed that is posted in harbors which is supposed to keep boats from making wakes? That was our top speed for the duration of our laborious journey. 3 hours later we arrive at Komodo National Park. There to greet us at the dock are 2 dragons. One was lazy and lethargic. The other was alert and ready for action. A man with a big stick started walking up the path with us in tow, sending the dragon running. Welcome!
The island consists of the park, a shack for the headquarters, a few huts for the park rangers to live in, and a couple dorm-style huts for guests. Here we are assigned a ranger and set off into the most oppressive equatorial heat ever. (The sweat pours off in buckets!) We immediately come upon 10 dragons dozing in a bit of shade. One of these beasts takes a liking to Steve. (Or possibly a dis-liking but I am a glass-is-half-full kind of gal.) The beast comes toward us as I position myself on the far side of the ranger. After Steve enjoys an intense staring contest, the ranger steps forward with a big stick and the lizard stands down. It seems rather easy to deflect these killers, but it was interesting to learn that only a few days before our arrival, one of the rangers was bitten by a dragon. The ranger had to be evacuated to one of the bigger islands and had finally made it to hospital where he was recovering.
During the rest of our walking safari, we saw monkeys, buffalo, and a wild pig. It was a steamy excursion but the dragons were frightful. The only thing missing was their world-famous drool!
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Room 310
We are having a grand time in Bali. Everything is cheap but we sweat a lot!
Last week we planned a trip to another island called Flores (a 1 hour flight from Bali) where we get on a boat and go to Komodo National Park to see the Komodo Dragons. Very exciting.
8:00 am we arrive at airport
9:00 am we arrive at our gate for a 10:00 am departure
10:15 am we are told that our flight has been delayed to 11:00 am
11:00 am we are told that our flight has been delayed to 2:00 pm
At noon we are given a box lunch with 5 bites of rice, 4 bites of chicken, a urine-sample-size-cup of water, and a gelatinous rose.
1:30 pm our flight is cancelled
We are told the airline will put us up in a hotel and our flight will go tomorrow at 9:00 am
(Why was the flight cancelled? "Because the pilot has an ear ache." THE pilot.)
2:00 pm all the weary travelers from the flight to Labuanbajo are directed back to the check in desk outside airport security and are asked to wait for the luggage.
3:00 pm we are told the airline is, "Looking for the luggage."
5:00 pm we arrive at our evening's accommodation, luggage in hand, in a variety of taxis, to await our room key
5:30 pm. As we walk down the dark hall, a fellow passenger was holding up his lighter to the doors to try to see the number and find the correct room. He was kind enough to enlighten the numbers 310 on our door.
ROOM 310
Our cell had a cement floor, white cement walls, a plastic outdoor chair (that had seen better days), a bare light bulb in the ceiling and no windows. Unfortunately this was the good part.
You know how when you turn on a light and sometimes cockroaches go scattering? When we turned on the bathroom light, the resident cockroaches didn't scatter. They introduced themselves and told us we better stay in the main cell. The "bathroom" had a tall tank for water (some hybrid between a sink and a tub), 1/2 a toilet bowl, and a ladle. Plus of course the 2 cockroaches.
For all of you who have been hating us out of jealousy, clearly all things are a mix.
When we go back into the hall, some passengers are fleeing. We decided to tough it out and joined an Ausie and a Brit in a grand backpacker tradition: go get beer goggles thick enough to tolerate our accommodation. (Unfortunately this backfired as it increased the need for the useless bathroom facility.)
We survived.
The next morning our 9am flight left at 10:00 am and we arrived with relative ease. We were picked up by our hotel (love that) and brought to a lovely resort where we were, coincidentally, checked into another Room 310!
Last week we planned a trip to another island called Flores (a 1 hour flight from Bali) where we get on a boat and go to Komodo National Park to see the Komodo Dragons. Very exciting.
8:00 am we arrive at airport
9:00 am we arrive at our gate for a 10:00 am departure
10:15 am we are told that our flight has been delayed to 11:00 am
11:00 am we are told that our flight has been delayed to 2:00 pm
At noon we are given a box lunch with 5 bites of rice, 4 bites of chicken, a urine-sample-size-cup of water, and a gelatinous rose.
1:30 pm our flight is cancelled
We are told the airline will put us up in a hotel and our flight will go tomorrow at 9:00 am
(Why was the flight cancelled? "Because the pilot has an ear ache." THE pilot.)
2:00 pm all the weary travelers from the flight to Labuanbajo are directed back to the check in desk outside airport security and are asked to wait for the luggage.
3:00 pm we are told the airline is, "Looking for the luggage."
5:00 pm we arrive at our evening's accommodation, luggage in hand, in a variety of taxis, to await our room key
5:30 pm. As we walk down the dark hall, a fellow passenger was holding up his lighter to the doors to try to see the number and find the correct room. He was kind enough to enlighten the numbers 310 on our door.
ROOM 310
Our cell had a cement floor, white cement walls, a plastic outdoor chair (that had seen better days), a bare light bulb in the ceiling and no windows. Unfortunately this was the good part.
You know how when you turn on a light and sometimes cockroaches go scattering? When we turned on the bathroom light, the resident cockroaches didn't scatter. They introduced themselves and told us we better stay in the main cell. The "bathroom" had a tall tank for water (some hybrid between a sink and a tub), 1/2 a toilet bowl, and a ladle. Plus of course the 2 cockroaches.
For all of you who have been hating us out of jealousy, clearly all things are a mix.
When we go back into the hall, some passengers are fleeing. We decided to tough it out and joined an Ausie and a Brit in a grand backpacker tradition: go get beer goggles thick enough to tolerate our accommodation. (Unfortunately this backfired as it increased the need for the useless bathroom facility.)
We survived.
The next morning our 9am flight left at 10:00 am and we arrived with relative ease. We were picked up by our hotel (love that) and brought to a lovely resort where we were, coincidentally, checked into another Room 310!
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