Cute and Furry Monkeys in Phuket

Our first up close encounter with monkeys in SE Asia. They are all over the place. On our island tour, we were warned not to get to close. They are cute and look pretty harmless, right?

Italian in Phuket

Jeff is pictured here with the owner of the best Italian restaurant in Phuket. We had 3 of our 4 dinners at this restaurant, nestled into the lobby at the Lawan Residence 'Boutique' Hotel where we stayed for 2 nights. Despite it's upscale name, this ho(s)tel advertised its excellent location across from a massage parlor with 'over 50 beautiful women" and policy for not charging extra for overnight guests. We quickly decided that we were not as adventurous as we had thought and left for another hotel right away.

Here's the link if you're interested in seeing the restaurant, the rooms, or even just the marketing content.
http://www.lawanresidence.com/

Relaxing in Beautiful Phuket

Despite all of the warnings from other tourists and backpackers about the over developed beaches in and around Phuket, the region is beautiful and worthy of another blog post. Here are a few pictures of our island tour and a resort just a few minutes away from the main strip.

The Beach: Phuket & Phi Phi

We visited this uninhabited island near Phuket- the actual filming location of 'The Beach' but no Leonardo Di Caprio or Tilda Swinton. We did find a few tourists re-enacting some scenes but their glamor shots weren't quite up to snuff.

Child Moto-drivers

They grow up so fast...

Loi Krathong in Thailand

Our stay in Thailand coincided perfectly with the annual full moon lantern festival. Jeff lit his paper lantern and launched it from the riverside where hundreds were being released to float up to the heavens. Unfortunately, we also saw quite a few crash and burn dangerously close to well wishers.

Thai Cooking with Jin Sun

While Jeff went dune buggy riding (for loyal readers, you know it has been his dream since Safford, AZ), Jin Sun took her first Asian cooking class. Here we see a few dishes and ingredients. Yum...

Just a Great Name for a Gay Bar

This was spotted in the gay bar section of Patpong in Bangkok.

Jin Sun Enjoys Her First Durian

It is banned from many hotels and airlines (and illegal in public places in Singapore), but durian lovers are convinced that, like fine French cheeses, the worse the smell, the better the taste.

Here are some of the ways that the smell of Durian has been described:

* Fermented onions
* Overripe cheese.
* Rotting fish.
* Unwashed socks.
* A city dump on a hot summer day.
* Historians report that Sir Stamford Raffles, who established Singapore as a British trading post in 1819, held his nose and ran in the other direction if he caught even a whiff of the dreaded fruit.
* Another former British governor likened the stench to carrion in custard.

Biologists believe that the bad smell attracts jungle animals to eat the fruit, thus facilitating seed dispersal.

Here are some other food pics from Bangkok...tasty.

Can I Get a Wat Wat? Part 1

Wats all over the place- here in Bangkok, we visited the famous reclining Buddha and the main palace. Click the blog title for more pictures of Bangkok.

The Return of JinXstreme

Ever the thrill-seeker, JSP eases into the bungee with a 50m jump.



We'll post better videos later- for both Jeff and Jin Sun

Eco Adventures in Chiang Mai, Thailand

We rode an elephant, visited a local village, trekked to a waterfall, and ended our 'eco-tour' with a ride down a river in a bamboo raft. No pictures of the rafting as it was a partially submerged water ride- Jeff's group of three rafters flipped over a small rapid and JSP sat in 8 inches of muddy river water the whole ride. Probably the best adventure tour so far...

Modes of Transport: Tuk-Tuk, Sky Train and Boat

Our first of many tuk-tuk rides in Thailand. We also took the boat up and down Bangkok and took the sky train.