Music one aspect of travel easy to pack home

The Doghouse Skiffle (jug) Band performs in Borneo.

One element of travel that is almost certain to be a part of any journey is the exposure to new and different kinds of music.

If you are in a foreign country, it's pretty much guaranteed that you will hear music different what you normally hear played at home (although that is changing these days, as our societies become more integrated and increasingly multi-cultural).

However, that can often be the case with domestic travel in North America, as well. The kind of traditional, local music you'll hear in Newfoundland or Saskatchewan will be decidedly different than that of what you may hear in New Mexico or Alabama.

Sometimes, though, you may be surprised at what you hear, abroad.

While we always associate a country's or a region's music with its culture, we may not always hear what we expect - and it can be a bit jarring, at times, albeit in a good way.

For example, a few years ago, I attended the Rainforest Music Festival in Borneo, Malaysia. The festival brings together musicians from all over the world. And while there are some local musicians that play there, it is actually quite a cornucopia of musical styles.

There was a jug band from Great Britain; an acapella singing group from Africa; and a bluegrass band from Oregon.

As I was listening to the latter play, I found it a bit jarring to the senses, almost surreal...I mean, here I was in a jungle in Borneo, listening to Foggy Mountain Breakdown, watching a large number of young Asian people bopping to music from half-a-world away as if they listened to it every day. Not exactly the image I pictured in my mind when I thought about what I might see when I was planning the trip.

I had seen some very good traditional Malaysian dance performances in Kuala Lumpur, a few nights before, so when you combine that with the festival`s musical fare and the music we enjoyed at a traditional Dyak village a few days later, it was certainly a well-rounded trip, musically speaking.

 

Some soft, quiet music at a Bangkok Hotel.

You would think because Thailand is so close to Malaysia geograpically, Thai music might be the same. While you might some similarities, you'll also find difference, again, depending on what region you're in, as it varies within the country.

Let's get energetic with some mariachi music.

Some of my favourite world music is that of the Andes Mountains of South America. There is something about that sound, something that really draws me into a place of joy whenever I hear it.

I can never get enough of it, and anytime I arrived at an airport in Peru, there seemed to be a Peruvian band with guitar, pan pipes, drums and all the other instruments used to produce the unique Andean song.

Another form of music that is always fun is that of Mexican music.

Whether it comes from a 12-piece mariachi band in a posh Mexican hotel or a simple duo singing from café to café on the beach, it's almost always recognizable and definitely full of energy.

Part of that energy comes from the music itself; but part of it also comes from the fact that it really and encourages participation by the audience.

 

Shades of Remington Steele, Season 2, Episodes 1-2

Without a doubt though, the music that haunts me most, the sound that has the most mystical appeal for me is that of the Middle East. I have never been to the Middle East, and given some of the safety issues involved in traveling there, I may never visit there - although I sincerely hope that is not the case.

Of course, you don't need to travel there to experience some of their music and the dance that goes along with it. Any number of Middle Eastern restaurants in most major North American cities often present belly dancers for their patrons on weekends, restaurants like Vancouver's Afghan Horseman, Toronto's Anatolia or Calgary's Casbah Restaurant. Still, that's not the same as experiencing it in-country, since a memory of music from another country will often stir more emotions than a memory of music in a restaurant in your hometown.

That's because one of the wonderful things about music you hear when you travel is the fact that when you get back home and hear music from that culture or country again, it transports you right back to that place, it's like you're reliving your trip all over again.

You may end up buying a few CD's of the local music to take home. But whether you take those with you or just return with the memories, it makes for some pretty light extras to the baggage. And these days, with all the extra fees added to carry-ons and checked bags, that's a welcome addition to any traveller's take-homes.

Around the world with burgers - where's your favourite burger joint?

"I'll gladly pay you Tuesday, for a hamburger today."
-  J. Wellington Wimpy

Those who really known me know I love burgers. I'm always on the lookout for a good burger and in Vancouver I'm always looking for new burger joints.

In the past month, I've found two new ones, one just last week.

That lunch last week got me thinking about my quest for burgers. I travel a lot, so I obviously got to thinking of all the places in the world where I've enjoyed a burger outside of Vancouver. While it is a North American dish, it is sold internationally - although you wouldn't expect the best burgers would be easily found in other countries.

The site of my first international burger, outside Belmopan.

However, I have enjoyed my share of burgers internationally as well as around Canada and the United States.

My first "out-of-country" burger was in Belize, my first out-of-country trip (aside from the U.S., which I'd been travelling in and out of, since I was seven)

We'd been kayaking, caving, exploring ruins and horseback riding in the jungles and highlands of that country for close to two weeks - all on a diet of seafood, chicken, rice-and-beans, and vegetarian fare.

So we were C-R-A-V-I-N-G some burgers in the worst possible way. Luckily, on our last day of the trip we were able to feed that craving, and feed it twice: once at the Belize Rodeo, and once at JB's Watering Hole, near the capital of Belmopan. They probably weren't the best burgers, but sitting in JB's, quaffing a cool one and munching on a burger was like heaven.

After Belize, the trips began to pile up, but I don't remember eating burgers in Africa, Ecuador, or any place else, until I went to the Rainforest Music Festival on Borneo, in Malaysia. And I have to confess, I didn't eat a "Malaysian burger."

A burger at BK in Bangkok.

I ate at Burger King.

After 17 days of really good local food, I was craving a burger. So, at the airport in Kuala Lumpur, the day I was leaving, I purchased a burger. I never eat at BK at home, but there it seemed like burger heaven (nothing like the place in New Westminster, B.C. though!)

That little dining adventure eventually became a tradition for me: when leaving a foreign country, eat a burger at BK in the airport. I repeated that in Thailand a few years later.

I tried to do it earlier this year when exiting from Mexico, but there was no BK to be found in the Puerto Vallarta airport. So I ate at Johnny Rocket's. Probably better than BK, but the next time I exit from another foreign airport, I will try to find a BK (tradition, you know?)

I've enjoyed many, many burgers in the U.S. A few memorable ones include the signature burger at The Saltwater Cowboy on St. Simon's Island, Georgia; the signature burger at A Cheeseburger in Parrotdise in the Little Torch Key, Florida (both since closed, unfortunately) - not to mention the burger named after Jimmy Buffet's classic song at his restaurant in Key West; and the Market Square Burger at Winghart's in Pittsburgh.

As far as Canada goes...

Who's up for a poutine burger?

Since this is where I've live, this is obviously we're I've enjoyed the most burgers. I've had my share of burgers from fast food outlets in almost every province I've lived in and visited: the Yukon, B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia- but not PEI or Newfoundland. (I've been to PEI, but not long enough for a burger, and I have yet to see Newfoundland.)

I've visited so many burger joints, I can't really recall them all.

Ones that do come to mind immediately are the Cabo Diablo burger at Relish Gourmet Burgers, in Fredericton, NB; the "Lieutenant Burger" at Burgernator in Toronto's Kensington Market area; and several in B.C., including any burger at the aforementioned Burger Heaven; the poutine burger at Tap and Barrel; and burgers at the Two Parrots Bar and Grill; the Blue Canoe Waterfront Restaurant; the Flying Beaver Bar and Grill; the Howe Sound Brewpub; and the Rod and Gun Bar & Grill.

Hopefully in the years to come, as I continue to travel the world, I'll be able to add to my list of international burgers enjoyed.

Meanwhile, I'll leave you with a song that could've been written as my theme song...



Sing it, Jimmy!

Feeling travel bored? Start your own weird travel tradition

"It's become sort of a McCallister family travel tradition ... funnily enough, we never lose our luggage!"
- from Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

A whopper and a coke for the road, in Bangkok.

Many families - and for that matter, many individuals - have created and practised their own unique travel traditions over the years.

I'm no different.
Except my personal tradition might be considered a bit weirder than most.

I didn't plan it - it just sort of evolved as a result of being hungry and bored, with time to spare in an airport.

It all began several years ago, at the end of a long press trip to Malaysia.


A group of Canadian travel writers, including Yours Truly, were wrapping a two-week long tour through the country, guests of Tourism Malaysia. We'd spent most of our time on the island of Borneo,  but a few days at the beginning and end of the trip took place in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, which is located on the mainland.

We got to the airport in plenty of time. We were looking at a long flight back to Vancouver via Taipei, Taiwan, flying on Eva Air.

I spent a bit of time wandering around, thinking back over the past fortnight's adventures and looking forward to getting back home to hang out with my parrots - Nikki, Coco, and Einstein - and do a bit of paddling - which I'd not had the chance to do while in Malaysia (although we did make use of motorized canoes to visit an Iban village in the Sarawak area, visiting and enjoying a meal with the former headhunters.)

Before I go any further, I should tell you one thing you may not realize about modern-day airports, is the fact that North American culture has pretty much taken over them, no matter where in the world you go. Want a Starbucks' latte in Lima, Peru? No problem. Craving something from the Colonel in Changi (Singapore)? You got it.

Anyway, we got through security and I had already done more shopping than I wanted to do on this trip, so I was bored. And a bit hungry. And although I love Asian food - especially some of the Malaysian dishes - after two weeks of nothing but that type of food, I was ready for something else.

And there, like an oasis on the desert, rising out of the horizon, appeared a Burger King.

Now, I'm not a huge BK fan; I really don't like the fact they bought Tim Horton's recently. But, it is what it is, and life goes on. Besides, this goes back a few years.

I thought to myself, "It would be kind of cool and bizarre to say I ate at a Burger King in Malaysia. And at least it's not McDonald's..."

So I went in, placed an order, sat down and ate.

It tasted pretty much like the BK food you'd get in Canada. I enjoyed it and didn't give it much thought afterward.

Fast forward a few years, and I'm wandering around the airport in Bangkok, waiting to catch a Cathay Pacific flight back home. And when what to my wandering eyes did appear - but a BK outlet, to my gate, very near.

Of course, I had to go in and have a burger. This time I even snapped a pic and posted it on my Facebook page.

And at that point, it officially became my very own eclectic travel tradition. Forthwith, from hereon in, whenever I exit a foreign land, I vow to eat a meal at a BK outlet before boarding the plane.

I had a chance to add to it recently - but I had to make an adjustment.

When you can't find BK, go for a JR.

If you're a Facebook friend, you may have seen it: I posted a photo of my burger-rings-milkshake lunch at the Puerto Vallarta airport en route from Mexico back to Canada earlier this week.

However, there was no BK there. So I had to make do with a Johnny Rocket's. That's okay - it was still good. Maybe even better than BK (which wouldn't really be that hard). But - the tradition continued.

So....

Do you have an odd travel tradition you follow regularly? I'd love to hear it in the comments below.

It doesn't have to involve food, or be weird (but if it is, GREAT!) or even be very elaborate. Just something you do every time you travel.

If you do NOT have one, why not think one up? It will at least give you something to do or think about it next time you're waiting for a flight home.




I didn't see any ninjas at the KL Airport BK - but then I didn't look very hard. 
And they're tough to spot (that's why they're ninjas.)

Things NOT experienced while travelling - and not sure I want to...

The only dolphin swim I'd consider:
snorkeling around  wild ones in the ocean.

It seems everybody has a "bucket list" of travel destinations or experiences these days.

Well, this is my "reverse" bucket list. It's a list of all the things I have NOT done while travelling - and I'm actually quite happy to keep it that way.

Whether for reasons of hygiene, fear, safety, ethics, or concern for the environment, these are experiences I'd not include on a bucket list of things to do, nor would I probably ever add them.

1. Fish foot massage in Thailand. I had the opportunity to experience this, had I really wanted to, when I visited Thailand. But the thought of sticking my feet into waters where countless others had done so, in order to have fish nibble at my feet, chewing any dead skin off, really does not appeal to me. I'll stick to reflexology, Thai, or aromatherapy massages, thank you.

2. Bungee jumping. Had the chance to do this on the bridge that spans the Zambezi River gorge between Zambia and Zimbabwe. I decided to take my chances whitewater rafting (I did almost drown, but that's another story). I hate heights. Terrified of them. Plus, with my history of lower back injuries and issues, bungee jumping anywhere would just not be safe.

3. Dolphin swims. I should clarify this. I have done snorkeling with dolphins - wild spinner dolphins in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of the Big Island of Hawaii. No contact is allowed, and respect is the watchword. This experience is similar to watching gorillas in central Africa. What I will not do is the dolphin swims sponsored by hotels in places like Mexico, Hawaii, etc. These dolphins are captive dolphins, kept safe from human infectious diseases through the use of anti-biotics. You get in a pool and can touch them, play with them, etc. Not for me, thanks.

4. Climbing. Anything. Again, I don't like heights. I don't intend to take up rock-climbing anytime soon. Or ice-climbing. I won't even consider a trip up Mount Kilimanjaro, which does not involve any technical climbing skills. However, it does require a fitness level that is probably beyond my reach at this point in my life. Besides, there are other experiences I'd rather in Africa that involve paddling as opposed to "ped-ling."

5. Zip Lining. See Numbers 2 and 4, above. Don't like heights. Back issues. Safety concerns. 'Nuff said. I have done the TreeTrek in Whistler offered by ZipTrek Ecotours. That was enough of a stretch for me, given my acrophobia.

Treetrek, yes; ziptrek, no thanks.

6. Whitewater kayaking. Whoa - I bet that brought you up, fast. You're probably thinking, "What the hey...?" After all, this blog post is partially about paddling, right?  But while I've done plenty of whitewater rafting (as a guide once said, "all thrill, no skill"), plenty of kayak touring, and lots of canoeing, I have ZERO experience with whitewater kayaking. Complicating the issue is the fact I've had shoulder issues the past several years; although I can paddle flatwater, some moving water and on the ocean, the strong, quick moves necessary to survive Class IV whitewater rapids in a kayak are beyond me. Still love watching it, though.

7. Parasailing. If you'd read the list above, you probably have no trouble figuring this one out.

8. Sky diving. Do I really need to explain?

9. Eating stuff that's TOO weird. I have eaten some weird stuff. But even I draw the line at what I consider to be really gross stuff like balut, sheep's brains, raw seal blubber - and any kind of botanicals (see, ayahuasca) that are going to mess with my brain's synapses. Anything weirder than the stuff described in a previous blog post, I'll leave for Andrew Zimmern.

10. Downhill skiing. Bad knees. Bad back. No experience at all in this activity. Probably not something I want to try to add to my list of travel experiences at this point in my life. I'll go cross-country skiing or hang back at the apres-ski in the hot tub, thank you.

Riding down Thailand's Chao Phraya River on a rice barge: 

one of the items scratched off my travel bucket list.

Now, even though I won't be doing anything list above, I'm still left with lots of things on my to-do bucket list.

So - what's on your anti-bucket list?

Playing with Panthera at Tiger Temple

The tiger sniffed my hands, decided he liked the smell, then started to chew.

That is, he decided to chew the chicken I was holding out for him. (Betcha wondered where this was going, didncha?)

Although this sounds like I'm tempting fate, it's really not, at least not in my mind.

However, there is something very special about offering food to a large carnivore that you know could eat you if it decided to, but instead it takes the food from your hands, even taking time to lick your hands to make sure it gets all the juices and every last little bit of chicken there is to be had. The tongue, surprising, was really no rougher than the tongues of house cats I've kept as pets, albeit, it's much bigger.

Hand feeding a teen tiger.

The tiger was a large, but not fully-grown adolescent who lives with 87 other tigers at the Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi, Thailand. Feeding him was part of an incredible experience that capped off my visit to Thailand the first two weeks of April 2011.

Visitors to the centre may choose to participate in one of the extended programs that includes feeding an unweaned tiger cub with a bottle of formula, walking (or rather, being "walked by"!) a tiger cub, giving them a bath with soap and water, feeding them cooked chicken from your hands, playing with some of the adolescents in a pool, and finally, walking with/watching adult tigers engaged in play in a larger pool where only the facility's staff are allowed to be while the tigers are loose.

These tigers are not exactly wild, but not exactly tame, either. What has now become the Tiger Temple, started with the saving of two young Indo-Chinese tiger cubs from starving to death after their mother had been shot. Someone brought the cubs to this monastery and the monks began to care for them.

Before long, more cubs were brought to the temple, which eventually became a sanctuary.


A hungry cub


As with any approach that is outside the standard practice used in animal conservation or welfare, there are critics of the temple's approach to keeping these endangered animals in what is essentially a zoo. Some cite evidence of less-than-adequate conditions for some of the creatures. I cannot dispute that, nor can I confirm it; with any touring group, even as a media member, we are shown what the management chooses to show us, so I really cannot speak one way or another about the conditions behind the scenes. Quite honestly, I wouldn't really know what to look for. I can tell you if a companion parrot or dog or cat is being cared for properly; I don't know anything about caring for large carnivores.

The animals I saw during my visit seemed healthy and happy. Again, I didn't see all 88 tigers, so I cannot say one way or another how the overall conditions there match up with something like, say, the Bronx Zoo, which is probably the best zoo in the world.

During a lengthy conversation I had with Dr. Somchai, the head veterinarian at the Tiger Temple, he admitted the situation at the Tiger Temple is not a perfect solution; far from it. Would he not rather see these tigers in the wild? Yes, he would. But he does raise the pertinent question, "Where would they live?"

That's a question that is only partially hypothetical in nature - it is very practical, as well. There are very few extensive tracts of forest cover large enough to provide food and habitat for the 88 tigers that live at the temple, certainly not in Thailand. Dr. Somchai stated, quite accurately, that if those tigers could somehow be rehabilitated and be released into the wild, they would very soon be shot.

Kind of puts us all between a rock and a hard place, really. That question about dwindling habitat is one we all need to ponder as we continue to see more forests cut down in what used to be prime tiger habitat.

Sadly, the doctor expressed the thought to me that unless humans change our ways, he felt that eventually there will be no more wild tigers, anywhere. In fact, even now, there are more tigers in captivity than there are living in the wild. And that latter number seems to be decreasing further each year.

 

Tigers at play, Tiger Temple, Thailand

I hope to someday see a wild tiger in its natural habitat, before they all disappear. I may or may not experience that. I do know the experience I had at the Tiger Temple was awe-inspiring. It makes me want to do even more to save the remaining wild tigers.

There are many organizations working toward saving the last few remaining wild tigers. Among that group are:

The World Wildlife Fund Tiger Conservation Program
The Save the Tiger Fund
The Sumatran Tiger Trust
The Wildlife Conservation Society Tigers in Peril

I'll finish this post by leaving this quote for you to ponder (bearing in mind, that given humankind's current path, we may very well be eliminating the other possibility):

"It is not part of a true culture to tame tigers, any more than it is to make sheep ferocious."
  Henry David Thoreau 

(If you would like to see more images of my experience at Tiger Temple, go to:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/fbx/?set=a.1886343991254.106330.1021036665&l=4d0d6a1e2b )

Hanging with the Hill Tribes of Thailand

A good portion of one day during my recent travels around Thailand involved a bit of hiking, a bit of haggling and plenty of highland views of some wonderful landscapes.

We enjoyed these experiences while visiting a pair of Hill Tribe villages in the Chiang Mai area of the country.

Hill tribe is a term used in Thailand for all of the various tribal peoples who migrated from China and Tibet during the past few centuries. They now inhabit the remote border areas between northern Thailand, Laos and  Myanmar. These areas are known for their thick forests and mountainous terrain.

Ready to bargain for a purse

We spent time with the Palong (also spelled "Palaung") tribe, a group originating from China and Myanmar. We only needed about a half hour hike up a road through the forest from our van to reach the first village, set off the road a bit, which peters out as it goes further into the hills.

As soon as we arrived, three or four women wearing the traditional clothing of their culture began to spread out blankets and set out crafts to sell us.

Bartering is part of their way of life, so I quickly became embroiled in a bargain for a small purse. She wanted 150 Baht for it, I countered with 100, she came back quickly with 120, and I thought that was a good bargain, so I purchased it.

The most striking feature about Palong women is their teeth: they're dark black. Depending on who you talk to, it's caused by chewing betel nut combined with lime paste and palm nut wrapped in a betel leaf, done to improve the strength and health of the teeth (that's what our guide, Chan, told us); or, according to other sources, it's done through a painting process as the women consider it to be a form of beauty, much like we co, according to other sources.

While not all the women sport blackened teeth, and regardless of the reason or cause, it does produce a striking appearance.


Beyond the Lost Horizon ...

After chatting with some of the women through Chan's interpretation (most of the men were away from the village, working), we paid a quick trip to the village temple, then strode across a short bridge and began a trek that would take us high up into the hills above the village.

When we reached the highest point, we looked back down into the village we had left, and down and ahead to a beautiful valley below, seeing the village we were headed toward.


 We were about halfway between the two villages, in terms of the distance between them. The one we were headed for, far below, surrounded by hills and forests, reminded me of the mythical kingdom of Shangri-La, of the book and movie , The Lost Horizon.

Down we went, across the hills, past fields of crops, including coffee and pineapple plants. A short walk along a narrow forested path brought us to a bridge across a stream and into our second village.

We ate lunch, did some more trading, took some more pictures, then piled into our van, which had met us there, and our drive back to the city. 

A Palong woman weaves cloth the traditional way,
and listens to the less traditional radio.


Before leaving the village, though, we had an opportunity to observe a Palong woman using a traditional loom to weave cloth used by the tribe for their traditional dress as well as for selling to tourists.

It was a short trip in terms of distance - but it was a much longer trip in terms of time, if you consider it truly is a trip back in time to see an ancient way of life practised as it has been for centuries throughout southeast Asia.

Quirky aspects to every culture, Thailand no exception

One of the wonderful things about travelling to other countries and experiencing other cultures is the chance to see quirky little things, expressions and ways of doing things that are different than my own culture. Mind you, living in Vancouver provides me with the opportunity to see many different cultures right here; however, there's nothing like experiencing it firsthand in the country where a culture originates.

Take for example, eating quirks. In several Andean countries in South America, guinea pig - or "cuy" as it's called there - is considered a delicacy. I've had cuy in both Ecuador and Peru. I preferred the Peruvian version, as the cuy I had in Quito was deep-fried while in Cuzco, I ate a con fit of cuy as part of an appetizer.


Anyone in the mood for some frog skins?



Of course, in many cultures, bugs are considered good sources of protein. I admit to eating ants in the Amazon jungle - just tiny ants, popped into my mouth from a tree, tasting a bit citrus-y. However, I never did work up the nerve to try the cicadas or beetles that were on sale in some food markets in Thailand. Ditto, the frog skins or snakes.

Food is not the only quirky aspect you'll see in other countries. The rituals surrounding the use of bathroom facilities can also be interesting. Sometimes the facilities themselves can be quite interesting.

How about some nice, fresh beetles?

One of the aspects I really liked about Thai bathrooms (or at least the ones in the hotels and lodges where I stayed) is the presence of what I call a "poor man's bidet." It's a small shower head and hose attached to the toilet, used to clean yourself after doing your business. Very sanitary, much more so than just toilet paper. I wish they were standard equipment here in North America, or for that matter, everywhere.

Of course, if you happen to be hiking or doing some other outdoor activity where there are no toilets, you have to go behind some bushes. Thais have a couple of really quaint expressions for this: if you're a man, you have to go "shoot a rabbit;" if you're a woman, you have to "go pick some flowers."

I was really tickled by these expressions - and even more so when I went to use the toilet facilities at a café where we ate lunch. Outside the two sets of washrooms was a bas-relief mural that left no doubt where the men's and ladies' washrooms were located.


Shooting a rabbit, picking some flowers:
Guys on the left, gals on the right.



Of course, every culture (including our own) have some quirks that are not as nice.

For example, in Thailand, you can often find people in the markets who will have animals like birds or fish captive in cages or water bowls. For a small fee, you can purchase the "release" of said animals and gain karma points.

The problem is, those same birds are often re-captured by the seller in order to re-sell their release and help others gain karma points. So I don't know that it's really doing what it is supposed to do. Buying the release of an animal just so it can be re-captured and re-released so the seller generates profit seems to go against the whole spirit of Buddhism, in my mind. It's not really released - so how do you gain karma points?

Maybe there is an explanation. Until I hear it, though, it's one of those weird, culturally quirky aspects of Thailand I'll continue to ponder...

Journey into the jungle, let its rhythms float your cares away

"When I was here, I wanted to be there; when I was there, all I could think of was getting back tino the jungle ..."
- Martin Sheen as "Captain Willard" in the 1979 film, Apocalypse Now!

Okay, so I mentioned in my last blog post that I spent some time in Thailand at the River Kwai Jungle Rafts lodge. I stayed there one night, but I really wish I could have spent more time there.

View of the main eating and drinking area, from my "porch."

I arrived in a torrential downpour, via dugout canoe (motorized, thankfully, or I would have really been soaked.) Not that it would have mattered that much. Being wet is part of being in the jungle. As long as I can keep my camera gear dry, I'm happy.

What is it that's so special about a jungle lodge - or for that matter, being in the jungle?

It's really hard to explain, at least to someone who has never been in the jungle or someone who doesn't feel the same tug. Obviously, there's a romantic appeal to being in the jungle, at least there is for me. I love the sounds, the scents, the feel that there's so much life contained within its environs. As a kid growing up, I loved watching movies or cartoons that involved jungle adventures. Still do, as a matter of fact...that's why I have the complete original Jonny Quest series on DVD, as well as all the Indiana Jones movies.

At the same time, there are things about the jungle that are not all that appealing, chief among those being the heat, the bugs, and the fact you never seem to have dry clothes to wear because you've soaked everything you own in sweat during your forays into the jungle.

Like Martin Sheen's character demonstrates in the opening scene of the movie Apocalypse Now!, there can be a real ambiguity about being in the jungle, at times it seems like a love-hate relationship.

A Mon woman demonstrating one of her tribe's dances.

For me, it's mostly love. I love the jungle. Of course, one of my passions - parrots - is centered around the jungle, as that's where most parrot species live. I've been very fortunate in my life that I have seen wild parrots in jungles around the world - as well as some other pretty cool wildlife like gorillas, orangutans, hornbills, monkeys and snakes to name but a few.

So, it stands to reason, someone with my interest and love of the jungle would also love staying in jungle lodges. (I've camped in small tents along jungle rivers, and while it's fun, it's also nice to have a bed to sleep in, as I have on trips to Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, Malaysia and now Thailand.)

The lodge at River Kwai Jungle Rafts does it a bit better than most because it floats on the river. It has no electricity (which I think is kind of cool) so kerosene lamps are used to light your room at night. (It also helps if you bring a Petzl headlamp). There is also no air-conditioning, but the river seems to help keep things cool at night.

There's an outdoor "Jungle Bar" you can sidle up to and order a cold beer like a Singha or a Chang. It has great views of the jungle surrounding you on all sides. It even has a jungle spa if you want to relax with a massage.


Time for a cold Singha after the show.


The lodge also offers plenty of other activities, including canoeing/kayaking, elephant rides, fishing, bird-watching and hiking. At night, after supper, members of the Mon tribe of Burma entertain guests with cultural dance.

Then there are the sounds...
Lying in my bed in the dark, I hear night birds calling to each other in the depths of the forest.

Then I hear something large crashing through the underbrush on the other side of the river. A wild boar perhaps, or maybe a deer. Over breakfast, I hear the trumpeting of elephants, announcing the start of another day in paradise.

Yes, I definitely have jungle fever ... I can hear that jungle rhythm...

My latest off-the-wall massage experience: jungle spa

Trust Thailand to provide me with Number 10A in my list of odd, interesting, unique and amusing massage experiences, as related in my first posts on this blog.

No, it wasn't a "happy ending" massage; and it didn't involve paint masks, reiki, gum-chewing waitress types or even a pregnant massage therapist asking me to "feel (her) belly."

What made this particular massage creep onto the list was its location, combined with its immediate ambiance.



Welcome to the Jungle (spa)...

It took place at the River Kwai Jungle Rafts, a really interesting jungle lodge accommodation located right on the Kwai River. And I mean literally on the river. The lodge is set on floats, and it sits away from the shore.
I love jungle lodges, and this one was no exception - it was pretty cool, just being able to stay there for a night, drink beer at the "Jungle Bar," watch the Mon tribe from Burma put on a cultural dance display, and listen to the sounds of the jungle on either shore during the night.

They also have a jungle spa there, where you can get Thai massage, foot reflexology, or my personal favorite, an aromatherapy massage.

What made this particular massage experience unique/odd/amusing/interesting (pick one!) was the set-up for the massage.

While Thai massage is done fully clothed, on a mat, usually on the floor, a massage with oil on a table usually requires a bit more privacy, since most, if not all of your clothes, are removed.



Spa menu at River Kwai Jungle Rafts
(32 baht = $1 Cdn)

I walked into the spa after booking my appointment and saw the tables. They were side by side - and there were no walls anywhere. The only thing giving you any privacy are some gauze-like curtains the massage therapist rolls down. But there are gaps, and even without the gaps, people outside the curtains can still see the massage taking place through the curtains. The client can hear people talking in the waiting area.

"Hmmm...mmm..." I'm thinking. "I wonder how this is going to work?"

I should point out, that during any kind of regular therapeutic massage I receive from a Registered Massage Therapist in Vancouver, I'm basically naked, but completely covered with a sheet, other than the area immediately being worked on. That's pretty standard procedure.

Given that, I think you can figure out why I felt a little hesitant about the set-up at this jungle spa.

Then my therapist, a really nice Burmese lady, told me to take off my shirt.

Okay, no problem.


The rather non-private massage tables


Then she told me to take off my pants...so I start taking them off, but I'm a bit hesitant, as I can see and hear people about 20 feet away. She senses my slight discomfort, takes a quick look, and says, "Oh, good, you have underwear on."

Yeah. Good, indeed.

Really, that's the only way to do it, given that kind of set-up. I sure wasn't about to get down to my birthday suit if the room was not completely private.

Once that was settled, I jumped up onto the table, and enjoyed a nice relaxing 60-minute massage. Except for the mosquitoes. Where's that Tiger Balm when I need it? (In Thailand, it seems Tiger Balm is a cure all for everything. Got muscle aches? Slap on the Balm. Mosquito bites? Rub some TB on them. I even had a guide put it on a scalp cut I got when I banged my head in a temple.)

Anyway, the massage itself was great. I left the spa and went immediately to dinner, in ultra-relaxed mode.

Dinner involved three bottles of Singha beer, so I was even more relaxed after eating.

Life in the jungle is definitely good ...

Rollin' down the river (on a reconverted rice barge)

Now I know what you're thinking ... and no, the title does not refer to a barge that hauls twice- or even once-converted rice.

(A quick aside: was there ever a more useless food created? What's wrong with long grain/short grain/sticky/Basmati/brown/wild rice? Why do we need to convert rice? Can't we allow it to keep its own spiritual beliefs?)
 

All aboard the Mekhala!


No, what I'm actually referring to is an old rice barge that Thai River Cruises converted into a passenger boat to ferry tourists up and down the Chao Phraya, a.k.a., the "River of Kings." The company actually runs two boats, I happened to be aboard the Mekhala for my overnight cruise from Ayutthaya down to Bangkok.

The boat is 20 metres long and constructed from huge teak planks. It’s 100 years old, but it has been transformed into a rather stylish floating hotel, complete with a sundeck, fully-stocked bar, books for passengers' reading pleasure and staterooms that include air-conditioning and private western style bathrooms.

I'd spent the first half of the day exploring the ancient capital of Ayutthya with Neung, a guide with Nutty's Adventures, using bicycles to visit the ruins and ancient temples from the days when this city was the capital of Siam.

Having traded bicycle wheels for boat engines, I sat back and relaxed, watching the river roll by on our journey to the modern-day capital of Thailand.



A raft of water hyacinth and a fish shack.

Our passenger list certainly had an international flavor to it. I was the only North American on this particular cruise; we also boasted a German, an Austrian, seven Danes and a Thai lady who had grown up in Denmark. Then, of course, we had a Thai crew of four.

We saw an odd mix of the old and new as we motored at a leisurely pace along the river. Buddhist temples and their associated buildings certainly dominated the structures we saw along the riverbanks. On the river itself, our boat was joined by craft as small as one-person fishing skiffs to huge barges of rice, ore and other materials being hauled up and down the river by tugboats. At various points, we also saw large rafts of water hyacinth plants floating on top of the river.

Once underway, our crew prepared us cocktails of our choosing. For my first drink of the day, I opted for a "Mekhala Special", a concoction of different tropical fruit juices, gin and something called "Thai whiskey," which, as I understand it, is closer in character to being a rum than a whiskey. (And depending on who you talk with, there is or is not a spirit called Thai whiskey.)

Regardless of its ingredients, it was delicious - cold and refreshing.

Alternately napping and snapping (photos), I whiled away the afternoon. At about 5 p.m., we reached Wat Kai Tia, a Buddhist monastery and its associated village. The captain turned us loose for an hour or so, to wander about the one main street. There wasn't a lot there, but I did manage to find a little café where no one spoke English, but sold very cold Leo's Lager Beer. I enjoyed a can before heading back to the boat for a sumptuous candlelit dinner on board.



Enjoying the deck during our cruise

 We were up and heading down the river before 6:30 the next morning. We enjoyed another fine meal, a hot, full breakfast. A rain shower drove us under cover for a few minutes, but it passed by quickly.

And that's really a good description of how the cruise ended - all too quickly. Before long, the skyline of Bangkok loomed in front of us with its contrasting mix of old and new buildings, modern hotels next door to ancient temples, the ferry boat traffic moving people and goods up and down the city's main thoroughfare. (Before the automobile and its associated roads became the main form of transportation, Bangkok could be negotiated by a series of canals, which gave rise to it often being referred to as "the Venice of the East.")

We said our good-byes, passengers and crew, and disembarked to head off in our separate directions for our next adventure in Thailand.

Buddha Bicycling around Thailand's ancient capital

When we last left Rocky and Bullwinkle -- er, -- our intrepid blogger, he had just finished celebrating Songkran, the Thai New Year.

The new year's celebrations in Thailand tend to go on all week, at least it seemed that way while I was there. One of the common ways Thais express joy at the coming of a new year is by soaking their neighbors with buckets of water and/or super-soaker water pistols.



Some of the ruins at Wat Phra Si Sanphet

Believe it or not, those "water wars" actually stem from the ancient Buddhist practice of sprinkling water on your family, friends and neighbors to bless them. Somewhere along the way, people got the idea it was more fun to totally soak people rather than just sprinkle them. Being an old water gun warrior myself, I can certainly understand the mindset. 
However, I was certainly glad that when I received a blessing during Monday night's festivities near Wat Pho, it was just a sprinkling I received. (I was wet enough from sweat, anyways - this is the tropics, after all!)

The next day, blessed and drier, I was off to Ayutthaya to experience more of the Buddha nature of the country. Ayutthaya is the ancient capital of the kingdom of Siam. My visit here took the form of two different activities: bicycling and boating.

Reclining Buddha image



Cruising along the Chao Phraya River on an overnight trip between Bangkok and Ayutthaya has been one of my "bucket-list" items for about five or six years. There are several different ways to do the trip; you can do it one day, as it's only a journey of 80 km. You can leave Bangkok, sail to Ayutthaya and overnight there, returning the next day. My own trip involved driving to Ayutthaya to spend the morning bicycling to many of its ancients ruins and temples, then boarding a boat in the afternoon to float down to Bangkok with an overnight stop.

I cycled with Nutty's Adventures, guided on my own personal three-hour tour (no, Gilligan was not involved!) by a young lady named Neung. She proved to be an excellent guide, as we pedalled our way to some of the city's ruins and temples.

We began our tour at the Ayutthaya Historical Study Center, to get some of the historical context. Then it was off on our bikes.



Buddha head at Wat Mahathat



Highlights of the tour included a huge (37 metres long) reclining Buddha carved from stone, a stone Buddha head entwined in tree roots at Wat Mahathat, and the ruins of Wat Phra Si Sanphet, which was the old site of the royal palace.

The time went very quickly and it was soon time to begin the second leg of my journey between the capital cities, ancient and current, by trading in my bicycle for a berth on the Mekhala, a rice barge converted into a passenger ship that carries tourists up and down the River of Kings .

Anchors (or should I say "ankgors?") away!

(I know, I know, "Ankgor" is actually Cambodian - but we did see an example of Cambodian architecture in some of the ruins at Ayutthaya...)

A Night at the Temple

"...so you better go back to your bars, your temples, your massage parlours ..."
- Murray Head, in the song One Night in Bangkok

While I haven't been to any bars or massage parlours in Bangkok, I can now at least say I've been to a temple.

You could say I've been to THE temple: Wat Pho.

This Bangkok landmark is renowned for several reasons.
For one thing, it is home to Thailand's most renowned Thai massage school. It is home to more than 1,000 Buddha images.
But probably it's best known feature is its 46-metre long, reclining golden Buddha.
I visited there Monday, April 11, as part of an international celebration of Songkran, the Thai New Year, hosted by Tourism Thailand.

Members of the media from all over the world attended,  in conjunction with an ecotourism conference.

A boat ride down the Chao Phraya River, temple tours, cultural performances and great food - both in the temple grounds and at a nearby park - made the evening an occasion to remember for the visitors. Oh, and don't forget the jasmine leis and water blessings we received.

The temple itself is absolutely breath-taking. Sounds cliched, I know. But it really is an incredibly special place, just magnificent. Photos or word descriptions do not do it justice.
You really have to see it for yourself to appreciate it.
It's open seven days a week, 365 days of the year, and it only costs 50 baht to visit. That's about $1.50 Canadian.

If you do go, plan to spend the whole day there. Maybe get a Thai massage at the school while you're there (about $10 for an 60-minute massage - and you won't find that price anywhere in North America for a similar service!).

Even if you decide not to get a massage, you will definitely need more than a few hours to take it all in. I certainly wished I could have spent more time exploring all the beautiful architecture, and soak in all the atmosphere.

If you'd like to see more photos of the event, visit my Facebook photo album at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1021036665#!/album.php?fbid=1872820453174&id=1021036665&aid=105707