Thailand Hopping

While in Phuket, we had to go island hopping. This particular tour was labeled "Phi Phi Island by Speedboat" on the website. We were picked up around 7:30am and made it back to the hotel a little before 5pm. Fortunately for us, the weather was perfect that day making the views of the Phi Phi islands even more spectacular with great visibility in the water. Unlike our adventure tour, the drive was only about 30 minutes, meaning our fun began much earlier. Upon arrival at the dock, there was a short wait while they tried to sell us on renting fins to protect your feet. A word to the wise, invest in water shoes.

Here are the speed boats used for this tour. Each one fits about 50 people, and they manage to make sure each seat is full. Not a great situation if you are squeezed next to an oiled up Euro.



Passing by Phi Phi islands beautiful limestone formations and clear blue waters.

First stop was Maya Bay, famous for being "the beach" in the movie The Beach.

The thing I remember most about the movie The Beach was the pristine sand and the hot French chick that Leo swoops up on. I don't remember there being so many empty suntan bottles and people taking selfies, maybe that was the sequel.

Back in the boat and away from the hoards of people at Maya Bay, we were able to pass by more of lovely Koh Phi Phi.

Next stop, Monkey Island. First rule on Monkey Island is NOT to touch the monkeys. First thing the Euros do... GRAB A F*CKIN MONKEY!

Next stop was snorkeling off the coast somewhere. I don't think we were in Phi Phi anymore, but I think we were still in Thailand.

This was the last picture I was able to take until I noticed that my band new waterproof camera wasn't so waterproof.

After snorkeling we were taken to another island for lunch. This particular island was Muslim and all the food Halal. The food was pretty unspectacular, but at least there was plenty of it. The bad part about this island was that there was no alcohol served, couldn't even find a store that sold any. After lunch we tried to kill time on one of the lounge chairs but a guard immediately told us there was a charge to sit there, so we just went back to the boat and waited there. 

There was one more stop which was supposed to be the "party" island. This whole island was just a big tourist trap, there was a charge to sit anywhere and the local beers were about $7 each (ridiculous for this region of the world). There was really nothing else to do on this island except spend money. Mia tried snorkeling but she said there wasn't anything in the water to see. Once again we decided to go back to the boat early.

Overall I wouldn't recommend this tour even though it was fairly priced. The islands themselves were beautiful but the trip was ruined by having to be surrounded by rude tourists throughout the day. I just couldn't get past their lack of respect for the rules, nature, and the people of Thailand. I'm sure there are other ways to see these lovely island, I just don't think this was it.

Vietnam Vespa Adventures: Glimpse of the Mekong

On our second day in Vietnam, we decided to take a Vespa tour to the Mekong River. We really want to see what life was outside the city (which was very similar to going into the province in the Philippines). Also, I really wanted to drive a motorbike in another country. This was an all day tour which took us to some really small towns, down dirt roads, over a few bridges, and even on a ferry boat. 

This was our monster hog for the day. They give you the option of either riding on the back with a tour guide or driving yourself. After signing some insurance forms and a quick driving test, I was deemed fit to drive my own Vespa. Lets ride b*tches!

Lots of shrimp farms just a few minutes outside of Saigon. Rice, shrimp, and rubber trees are some of the most common types of farms we saw.

 This was our Glimpse of the Mekong. We drove our Vespa onto a ferry boat and crossed over.

#selfie

 
We stopped in a small town for a snack. While waiting for it to be cooked, we took a stroll through the street market. Most of the stalls sold things to burn for tribute to the dead. Other than basic incense, popular items to burn were: paper money, scrolls, cardboard clothes, and even cardboard houses.

Clams in seafood stock and rice wine. Caught earlier in the morning in the Mekong.

Grilled scallops with a quail egg. Finished w/ a topping of sauteed pork belly, scallions, and peanuts. Brilliant!

Another stop where an elderly woman makes incense.

Mia's Vietnamese homie.

Mia trying to make incense. Apparently they didn't teach this at UP and the results showed.

Stacks of sticks laid out to dry. On a sunny day, they can make about 3,000

The final stop on our tour was a late lunch. This place was called Com Viet Relax Garden. Other than food and drinks, people also come here to fish from the comfort of their lakeside table. We decided to be spectators instead of participants and watched a few kids find success with a couple of small catfish. I decided after over 5 hours of driving the Vespa, it was time to knock back a few beers and leave the driving to the experts for the voyage back into the city.

 

Our ride back into Saigon.

This was a relaxing tour and a great way to see the Vietnamese countryside.
For more information on this tour visit:
http://vietnamvespaadventures.com/tours

Street food in Thailand!

After eating at a restaurant and passing all these food carts on the street, we decided restaurants suck and we were better off eating off food carts because after all, they do have fast turnover and are often the best. This was also confirmed in Vietnam but we will leave that for a later post. When staying at The Senses hotel, the street was lined with bars and food stalls. There was a noodle soup place that always had people there so one night we decided to try it. Can I please say, utter deliciousness. We ordered a beef ball soup as well as the regular beef accompanied with fresh herbs and sprouts. Each bowl was 50 baht. 50BAHT. 50 baht would buy you a side order of bean sprouts at a restaurant. This soup was amazing. I'm pretty sure that we each downed a bowl in less than 10 minutes. I wanted to take a straw and drink straight from the vat of goodness but that's unsanitary.

 Beef ball goodness. The chili is like.. from the gods.

This next spot was just down the street from the noodle soup spot. We ate here multiple times and frankly, I want to franchise the thing haha. I (assume) that the name is really called Thai Restaurant as their beer coolers were thusly named. 

Super good spicy squid salad. I can drink that dressing... I did. I cried a little from the heat but it hurt so good

 We saved the last day for Thai tea. because it's too addicting. Despite how milky this looks.. it packed a good punch. Suuuuuper yummy.

Everyone needs a little fried calamari in their life. I hate over cooked squid because it gets all gummy. However, this lady managed to deep fry these babies to perfection. 

The best chicken curry I have ever tasted. It's like crack.. we had it twice.. two days in row. I won't describe this any longer because it'll make me hungry. 

Whale Sharks in Oslob, Cebu

Last week, Larry and I went to Cebu to avoid the holiday blunder of Metro Manila. Whenever we visit, Tetoy and Josette always welcome us into their home and let us stay for the duration of our trip. This time around, we only spent our first and last day with them but it was relaxing, nonetheless. Tetoy let us borrow his motorbike for our trip to Oslob which is the second to last southernmost point of Cebu island. It was a nice ride despite the heat but the scenery was really gorgeous. I was always so wary of motorbikes because I don't like the idea of being exposed but Larry was a great driver so I didn't have to worry much. With that said, I think the only thing that really killed us was the length of the ride -- 4 hours on the bike may be nice in the open air but at the expense of your butt and your back haha.

6AM thinking to myself, Yea, Mia.. swimming with whale sharks. No biggie!

When the boatmen told us to carefully get in the water, I look over and see this monster of a shark. Immediately, I say to them, "Oh hell no, I don't want to go in anymore!" They are big.. I mean BIG. This "baby" shark was larger than our boat. I let Larry go in first and still it took a bit of mental motivation for me to get in the water. 

Swimming away from the krill that a boatman was throwing 

Larry thoroughly enjoying himself with these so called gentle giants

 Whale sharks are filter-feeders so this one is sucking in all the krill 

View from the top of our whale shark who seemed to just want to hang around the whole time

Finally warmed up to these things and very much became aware that they will not swim away from you like the lady said in our briefing. No human can get between them and their krill and disregard any and all personal bubbles. With that said, they are pretty amazing creatures. If you ever visit Cebu, make sure to hit up Oslob and see the whale sharks!

We stayed at Aaron Beach Resort in Tan-awan which is a small place but very accommodating. The rooms are small but contain the minimum things needed. Huts are available to guests to use throughout the day, free of charge. Boatmen are up bright and early to take folks out to the whale sharks starting at 6AM. Boarding the boats is right in the beach front of the resort and they drop you off immediately after. They offer a small range of food and have a sari-sari store in front for necessities, snacks, and drinks. Oslob is pretty dead past 9PM but most activities take place in the early morning so there isn't a need to stay up late. Overall, this place is straight forward and has great service for being such a small spot.

Aaron Beach Resort
On National Highway, Tan-awan, Oslob, Cebu
http://www.aaronbeachresort.com/
Look for the big blue gate!

Phuket Adventure Tour

One of our tours in Phuket was an all day adventure tour which included a package of River Rafting, Elephant Trekking, and ATV Riding. We already posted articles about the River Rafting and Elephant Trekking. Those posts can be found at the following links:
http://themexicanblanket.blogspot.com/2013/10/river-rafting-in-thailand.html
http://themexicanblanket.blogspot.com/2013/10/for-love-of-elephants.html

After getting picked up from our hotel, we were taken on a long drive North. Technically this drive took us out of Phuket into another province. The first stop took us to a temple surrounded by hundred of monkeys.

Next to the temple was a cave.

Inside the cave was this big statue of Buddha. We saw a sign that said NOT to take pictures with Buddha AFTER we took the picture. Oh well.

After leaving "monkey temple" we drove to the adventure park. This is where all three of the major activities took place, including the lunch that was included in the tour. First we rode ATV's through their off-road jungle track. Fortunately it rained really hard during this part of the day making the track muddy and slippery, otherwise this would have been a somewhat boring activity.

After the ATV riding we did our Elephant Trek through the jungle, had lunch, then went river rafting. Our final stop was to a nearby waterfall where I was able to swim at the base. 

Overall this was a fun day. Mia really just wanted to ride elephants, so all the other activities were a bonus. I highly recommend this tour for a full day of fun.

We booked this tour as well as all our Thailand tours through the Phuket Travel Company.

http://www.phukettravelcompany.com