Mar 24, 2013 Posted by AJ

Scammed in Bangkok

Jan 31. Day 47. When I woke, the monks were already gone and it was only Paul and I remaining in our little cozy room of 4. I wanted to take advantage of my last visit to Bangkok by visiting the grand palace. The water taxi was cheap and fast. I marveled at how fast the captain docked and undocked such a long boat (~30 meters long, docked, pax unloaded, loaded, and off again in 1 minute). When I got to... read more

Mar 23, 2013 Posted by AJ

Buddhist Monks Love Jolly Ranchers

Jan 30. Day 46. I woke up refreshed and eager to collect my Indian Visa (click here for step by step instructions if you want to get a visa for India while in Chiang Mai). After picking up my credentials, I swung by the rail station and the melodic peaceful record that was playing in my head scratched to a grinding halt. All trains were booked – Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The only way... read more

Mar 14, 2013 Posted by AJ

My run in with the Thai Police

January 22. Day 38. I woke up to a beautifully warm Thai sun and decided I wanted some REALLY good pad thai so I knew I needed to head across town to a little place called Art Cafe right outside the main gate on the east side of Chiang Mai. After brushing my teeth, I headed outside and hopped on my trusty petrol-powered steed (scooter) and headed to the nearest 7/11 for my daily dose of pineapple juice... read more

Mar 4, 2013 Posted by AJ

Temporary permanent residence in Chiang Mai Thailand

January 10. Day 26. After my wonderful 3 days of mahout training, it was time to head back to Chiang Mai and settle into something a little more permanent (I needed a home base where I could live for a while). When I arrived back in town, I was dead tired from only sleeping 3-4 hours a night for the previous 3 nights, so I found an inexpensive hostel in the middle of Old Chiang Mai called Walk Inn. The... read more

Mar 4, 2013 Posted by AJ

So many places so little time

So as you can see, I’ve fallen quite behind on posting the stories of my recent adventures. It takes roughly 2-4 hours to write and hone each one of these stories. With that said, you can see how easy it is to fall behind on writing while traveling and exploring; especially when exploring from sun up until sun down. A man’s got to sleep and eat somewhere in there… A few stories that I... read more

Feb 25, 2013 Posted by AJ

Mahout training in northern Thailand

January 7. Day 23. I woke up early and wandered my way to the travel agency where Eddy was scheduled to pick me up. After doing a lot of research, I found vast differences between the elephant camps that were available near Chiang Mai. Eddy Elephant Chiang Mai repeatedly showed up high on the customer review ratings and more importantly, they treat their elephants with love, respect, and don’t abuse... read more

Jan 24, 2013 Posted by AJ

Bangkok. Where not wearing underwear can land you in jail.

January 1. Day 17. 2013!! Happy New Year everyone! First things first. I may or may not have worn underwear (a gentleman never tells) while in Thailand, but I certainly didn’t do any jail time. Now onto my adventures in Bangkok… After the fireworks ended (amazing by the way – Railay Beach knows how to throw a New Year’s Eve Party for sure!), I stretched out my bamboo mat and slept... read more

Jan 22, 2013 Posted by AJ

Yoga, Meditation, and Monkey Thievery

December 28. Day 13. Party day. As in THE Full Moon Party on Haad Rin Beach. However, after several nights of partying – especially my encounter with Thai Methamphetamines – I decided it was time to pull chocks and head to another place. I had spent 4 days on Koh Phangan and felt I had explored all I could. Full Moon Party? Nah – not my thing. Onward.     I headed to the Thong... read more

Jan 11, 2013 Posted by AJ

Thai Methamphetamines and Hot Pan BBQ

December 21. Day 6. I wandered around town most of the afternoon checking out the temples and as the sun began to set, decided to duck into a little chill bar just inside the eastern wall for a bite to eat. Here I had some wonderful pad thai, a tiger beer (or two?), and met Bradley and Damien from Cape Town South Africa. Damien was DJ-ing and had some great trance chill songs spinning. He also played... read more

Jan 3, 2013 Posted by AJ

Spending time in Chiang Mai

December 19. Day 4. I arrived in Chiang Mai early in the morning (the train was late – as I’ve come to learn most train arrivals are in Thailand) and decided to wave off the barrage of taxis and tuk-tuks that bombard tourists with offers to take them places. In reality, they see us tourists as easy targets… and for good reason. More on this later. I learned very quickly that the best way... read more