We chose to add Düsseldorf to our list of destinations for our October 2018 trip to Europe because we wanted to see part of Germany that was different than the Bavarian region that most people initially think of. The first day consisted of a four hour drive from Strasbourg, France past dozens of vineyards and the Black Forest. Upon our arrival to the city, we checked into a HUGE extended stay hotel called House Hyatt and went somewhere nearby for lunch. I was excited to finally try a currywurst which is essentially a sausage with a curried ketchup on top. After lunch we walked the riverfront and attempted to get tickets to a Burlesque show but they were sold out. As a back up we got some gelato and hit the gym at our hotel.
On the second day of our time in Dusseldorf we discovered a really cool open air market with stunning florals and delicacies. We enjoyed some gelato by the river, did a ton of shopping and ended the day bar hopping. Drinks began at the riverfront with a gorgeous sunset, moved on to dinner at a Thai restaurant, included some breweries and ended at a hookah bar.
Walking through the market
Gelato by the riverPretty cocktails at sunset
Delicious dark beers at a local breweryEnding the night like a local at a hookah bar
Every time we visit a larger city that we’re not familiar with, we try to take a Hop-On-Hop-Off Red Bus Tour. They’re super fun, informative and convenient because they provide your transportation for the day, as well. The next morning we took our red bus tour to get to know Düsseldorf, visited the Aquazoo and the Japanese Gardens, and Erica and I ended the day with a yoga class at Shivasloft. The yoga class was very different from what I’m used to in the U.S.; the teacher started by handing out a paper with a chant written on it and accompanied the chanting with a tiny little piano. There was also a lot more breath work than I’m used to, but it was a really fun experience and I still use some of his posture ideas in my classes today.
One of the tanks at the Aquazoo
Fountain at the Japanese GardensExploring the gardens
Yoga in a foreign land
The next day was one of the most hilarious days I’ve had while traveling. We began with another trip to the market, visiting a cafe and shopping. Then we went to Capella Breidenbacher Hof for High Tea. The hotel made for a stunning setting for an elegant and delicious afternoon tea with champagne.
One of the attractions in Düsseldorf is their Tonhalle venue, and we really wanted to experience a show during our stay in the city. We were able to find a Symphoniker show on one of the nights we were going to be in town. However, when we tried to buy tickets through our hotel concierge they said that the Tonhalle wasn’t having any events that week. We ended up calling the venue directly and purchasing tickets. We should have listened to our hotel staff because when we arrived, all dressed up, for the “symphony”, we found ourselves at some kind of community recital. We had a glass of wine at a Lions Club event that I’m pretty sure we weren’t supposed to be at, and another in the lobby surrounded by senior citizens, and tried to sit through a terrible show that ended up putting us into fits of laughter that couldn’t be controlled. When the show ended, we rushed out of there and found a bar playing Raggaeton music where we got Pisco Sours and danced by ourselves for the rest of the night.
Exploring the city at nightDressed up for the “Symphony”
At least we still got to experience a really special venue!
The next morning I woke up incredibly sick. We assume it was from the egg white foam on our Pisco sours from the night before. I spent the entire day in bed while Erica and Scott did laundry, worked out and went out for lunch. Eventually I kept down some chicken nuggets from a German McDonald’s at the very end of the day. The following morning we left Düsseldorf for our final destination on our trip: Amsterdam!
We had a great time in Düsseldorf getting to know the more urban side of Germany as opposed to Bavaria. We had some great laughs, amazing food, and unforgettable experiences.
The third leg of our October 2018 trip to Europe was spent in the stunning Alsace region of France. Alsace is known for vineyards, medieval towns, and a unique blend of French and German culture.
Our first day was full of driving through the fall foliage of Switzerland and France and trying to navigate the medieval streets and walls to get into our hotel. We stayed at the Regent Petite France in the heart of Strasbourg and the historical guard towers and stone walls were all still in place, making driving up to our hotel very challenging but totally worth it. After a lunch outside in a cobblestoned square (I had a salad with fried goat cheese that was to die for) and a glass of regional Pinot Noir, we spent our afternoon in a laundromat and watching Netflix in our pretty hotel rooms.
Exploring Strasbourg
On our first full day in Alsace, we got to check off a major bucket list item: wine tasting in France! Coming from Eastern Washington I was expecting the bold red wines of the Bordeaux region, but we learned right away that Alsace specializes in all white wines (Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muscat and Gewurtzraminer) and one red, Pinot Noir. However, these were not the sweet varietals we know in the states. They were dry, crisp and refreshing. Our favorite discovery was by far the sparkling variety, Cremant d’Alsace, and we continue to look for this stuff on any wine list we come across.
The wine tour we chose (VinoRoute Strasbourg) also included scenic stops in medieval towns, viewpoints of the incredible vineyards showing off their fall colors, and some spot-on lunch recommendations. Specifically, we visited Specht, Frey-Sohler, and Zeyssolff wineries and spent time in the towns of Riquewihr and Ribeauvillé, where we had lunch.
Samples in a barrel roomVineyard villagesAmazing vineyard views
Walls and towers from the Middle Ages
Getting excited about some macaroons!
After sleeping off a long day of drinking wine, we awoke on our second day in Alsace to have brunch, visit the Cathrédrale Notre Dame de Strasbourg (not to be confused with the Notre Dame in Paris), and walk by the canals.
When we got back to the hotel we got in a quick workout to prepare for the massive feast we were expecting for dinner. Scott and I really wanted Erica to experience a Michelin rated tasting menu and we all love French food, so we found Au Crocodile while we were planning our trip. The meal did not disappoint and we even got to meet the chef, but we definitely needed to go in with an empty stomach!
The prettiest dessertHanging out with the chef under a crocodile
The next day was our final day in Strasbourg. We spent it shopping for treats to take with us, walking the beautiful canals and parks, finally eating some crepes, drinking Cremant d’Alsace, and capping it all off with a very authentic dinner in an old cave where we sampled Escargot.
An amazing view of Strasbourg
We will be dreaming of bubbly wines, coq au Riesling, and crepes until the next time we are in this beautiful place!
In October of 2018, Scott and I took another long trip to Europe, but this time it was even more special because we had a third travel companion! My sister, Erica, had always wanted to attend Oktoberfest in Munich and sample authentic German cuisine so we planned this Eurotrip around the famous festival. The totality of this trip included Salzburg, Zurich, Strasbourg, Dusseldorf and Amsterdam, but it all began with Oktoberfest in Munich.
Our travel from Seattle to Munich was fairly uneventful. However, I will avoid the Amsterdam airport if at all possible in the future. They had crazy long passport control lines that you had to go through even if you were only catching a connecting flight. Contrarily, Munich had some of the simplest customs procedures that I’ve experienced to date. We arrived at our hotel, Marc Munich (Marc München), in the early afternoon and weren’t able to check in so we immediately hit the streets to explore the city. We watched as throngs of people, mostly in traditional tracht clothing, flooded into Oktoberfest. This gave us a pretty good idea of what we would be up against the following day when we were to try and attend the festival.
Eventually, we ended up in the center of town and found a restaurant called Schnitzelwirt (https://www.schnitzelwirt.de/home/) that was in a very authentic looking basement space. Most of the waiters were only marginal with their English and were extremely friendly and welcoming. We each chose a different beer based on nothing but blind faith and all got different versions of roasted meat with potatoes. It seems as though every time we travel, our first meal is chosen with no frame of reference and is totally stumbled upon. It also seems as though our first meal is one of the best of the entire trip. Whether we were exhausted and starving or the food was just that good, we were in culinary heaven.
Our first beers of MANY on this trip
After dinner, we walked around to get the lay of the land and then we checked in to our hotel. We promptly fell asleep at around 5PM and slept off our jet lag and our food coma.
Since we had seen the chaos and the numbers of people that attend Oktoberfest in the afternoon the previous day, we chose to get to the festival early. We were awake by 5:30AM and out to breakfast by 8:00AM. We went to a chain called Coffee Fellows and had a quick bite, then we walked to Marienplatz (the main square) to explore. Marienplatz is home to some incredible architecture and seeing it when the town is still mostly asleep was really special. It’s a place of history and culture that is humbling to see.
A swastika flag once hung from the center tower and dominated the square
This photo was taken in the evening and you can see how busy it normally isThis photo was taken on a different, but equally quiet, morning
While walking around, we discovered a luscious street market. There were tons of shops selling produce, flowers, meat, crafted wares, cheeses, grains, sauces, and the list goes one. There were also tons of restaurant stands. We bought some strawberries that literally melted in our mouths and ate them in front of a church in Marienplatz.
Finally, it was time to head in to the festival (it was about 10:30AM at this point). Once we came within a certain distance of the festival, there were arrows all over the sidewalks guiding us to our destination. Even as early as we were, there were still crowds of people walking with us towards the gates. We were pleasantly surprised when there was absolutely no wait to get into the venue! We were able to take a photo at the entrance, walk straight into our first tent and get served our first beer-stein all within a few minutes.
Pausing on our walk in for a photo opThe grand entrance!First views of inside the festivalMassive horses with better outfits than usStanding outside our first tent!Inside tent 1: PaulanerFirst Steins!
Our first tent was the Paulaner tent! It was still very early on a Thursday so seating was plentiful. The tent was decorated with green banners, taxidermy, and a massive crown made out of hops. There was a band setting up, people selling pretzels, and we each got our first liter of beer which was delicious!
The next tent we visited is one of the most famous: Hofbrauhaus. Things were definitely getting busier at this point, but a nice lady took us back to a bunch of empty tables. The band at this tent was up and running and continuously playing a “Cheers” song that we new by heart by the time we left. Everyone would wrap their arms around each other, sway back and forth, clink their huge beer-steins together and yell “Prost!” at the top of their lungs. We ordered a cheesy bacon pretzel and by the time we finished off our second liter of beer, we needed to take a short rest. In fact, we left tent #2 and went and sat on a lovely grassy hill that was littered with absolutely obliterated drunk people at about noon.
Inside Tent #2Second Round!
Our third tent was our final drinking tent: Hacker. This tent is famous for the ceiling that is decorated like a sky. We got extremely lucky as Oktoberfest was now officially busy and we managed to snag a table to sit down and eat at. We got another pretzel and some more traditional German entrees. The one I remember most clearly was Erica’s Sauerbraten which I am still drooling over in my dreams.
We did walk through a fourth tent, Spaten, but couldn’t find seating and we needed a break from beer anyways, so we snapped a photo and continued on towards the carnival.
The Carnival towards the back of the festival was actually pretty easy to access given how many people were in attendance. Scott, Erica and I managed to ride a ferris wheel, a roller coaster and do a couple fun houses. It’s a wonder none of these things made us sick after so much beer and rich food. One of the fun houses offered 3-D glasses and while walking through the moving tunnel, I managed to fall and crawl the rest of the way through as a 7-year-old ran right past me…it wasn’t my most elegant moment.
Riding the ferris wheel
When we finished the rides we decided it was time to head out. We made a quick stop on the way home for some pretty awful fried food and ended up passing out at 7:00PM. At midnight, however, a fire alarm went off in our hotel and we weren’t allowed back in so we found ourselves wandering the busy streets of Munich in our pajamas. We saw so many people in lederhosen stumbling around looking to eat, puke, or hit a strip club. Eventually we ended up in a popular train station drinking water and people watching.
The next day, we were up early again and had breakfast at our hotel. They had a wide array of sausages, cheeses and fruits, but Erica had Muesli which quickly became one of our favorite things on this trip. Muesli is a form of Swiss overnight oats with yogurt, fruit and other toppings and it is incredibly delicious.
After breakfast, we were taking a drive through Bavaria to visit the Neuschwanstein Castle which inspired the iconic Sleeping Beauty castle in Disneyland. We weren’t expecting the hike from town (the only parking available) through the forest and up to the castle, but it was a gorgeous day and we had a lot of beer to work off from the day before. Once we got to the top we realized that there were no tours of the interior for another three hours so we decided to just take in the sights from the outside. The grounds were amazing and we were surprised to learn that the castle isn’t that old. It was built in the late 1800s. The best view of the castle is from a rickety, narrow bridge that is a short hike away and crowded with people. We walked out only a few feet to get some photos and an adrenaline rush.
Example of the kinds of architecture we saw on our driveHohenschwangau castle which can also be seen from where we parkedHiking our way up
In the courtyard with my cute photographer
Amazing lake viewsAmazing countryside viewsThe best view of the castle
After hiking back down, we stopped at a shop in town and bought a few Christmas ornaments and a very ornate cuckoo clock. Then we had one of our most memorable meals of the trip. As we started driving home, we realized we were starving and I used the smartphone provided by our hotel to look up a restaurant. I found one called Wirsthaus Acheleschwaig and we got directions to it. We found ourselves driving down super rural roads and farther away from civilization. Pretty soon, we realized we hadn’t driven by any houses at all in quite sometime and we were only minutes from our destination. We ended up at a farm in the middle of nowhere complete with horses, chickens and dogs running freely. There were plenty of people eating on the patio, however, so we decided to give it a shot. We walked up to a tiny window and ordered from a young man who spoke no English at all. We each got a Radler (half beer, half lemonade), Erica and I got roasted pork and Scott got deer rehragout. It was mouth watering! We had to protect our drinks and food from hundreds of flies, but it was totally worth it.
Scott and Erica at the farm restaurant in the middle of nowhere
When we arrived back at our hotel, we took a power nap and then went back out to walk the city some more. We tried to grab beers at the famous Hofbrauhaus brewery in town. Although it was a beautiful and popular place, it was extremely hot and stuffy and too crowded for us to get served.
Inside the HB brewery
We ended up eating outdoors at the Paulaner brewery since that was Scott’s favorite beer from Oktoberfest and had an amazing dish with mushroom cream sauce and spätzle (a fluffy German pasta). Afterwards we returned to the train station and got a raspberry cream danish and an apple pastry.
The next day was our last full day in Bavaria and one of our busiest and most intense days of the trip. Our plan was to go to the concentration camp, Dachau, and visit the Austrian city, Salzburg.
Dachau was one of the most intense experience of our travels to date. I was not expecting to feel what I felt or react the way I did. At times I felt as though I couldn’t cross a threshold without bursting into tears or shrinking away with fear. To see barracks, crematoriums, artifacts and tools used to punish residents was unlike any museum experience I had had to date. It was obvious that Scott and Erica were having similar feelings and reactions. I remember all of us remarking on how jarring it was to be surrounded by beautiful nature on a perfectly sunny day while walking through structures and exhibits that exuded such darkness.
Walking in through the front gatesThe gates with the famous work camp slogan which means “Work will make you free”The main facility and museumThis was once lined with barracks and leads to the memorialsThe Christian memorialOne of the crematoriumsA gas chamber
Following Dachau, there was a pretty silent car ride away from the concentration camp. We were all stunned and in our own thoughts as we tried to switch gears towards our next activity. Eventually, we were having thoughtful conversations about our experience there and were ready to explore a new city in a new country.
Salzburg is a city in Austria right on the border with Germany. There are many similarities between Bavarian culture and the vibe we felt in Salzburg, but they maintain their own unique identity. It is a city most known for being Mozart’s hometown (this is extremely evident by the dedications to him all over town) and being the setting for “The Sound of Music”. Truly, Salzburg feels like a beautiful, Baroque town that is bursting with art, music, and alpine heritage.
The first thing we did in Austria was eat! We had lunch at Gasthof Goldgasse (https://www.gasthofgoldgasse.at/en/) and it was yet another extremely tasty and memorable meal. Scott had suckling pig, Erica had a full trout with the fins and head intact, and I had sturgeon ravioli. We all enjoyed Aperol Spritzes (a staple on many menus in this region) and several desserts. I think the show stopper was definitely the Apfel Strudel; a warm apple strudel swimming in custard sauce (insert drooling emoji here).
Erica waiting for her trout in Gasthof Goldgasse
The rest of our day trip was spent viewing Mozart’s house, the Sound of Music gardens, Fortress Hohensalzburg, and the Salzburg Cathedral.
Cathedral SquareWalking the narrow streets of OldtownThe exterior of Cathedral Salzburg
My favorite part of a cathedral is always the organsAn art display in the crypt
Standing the shadow of Fortress HohensalzburgMozart’s House!Making friends with the locals
The Sound of Music gardens
We took thousands of steps in Salzburg and saw dozens of sights, but the one thing we struggled to find was the famous Viennese coffee. After an exhaustive search, we ended up with a drip coffee with some whip cream on top and drove ourselves back to Munich.
On our final morning in Munich, we scoured the town for an Oktoberfest pin for my grandpa and had one final delicious meal at a breakfast place called Backspielhaus (https://backspielhaus.de/en/). With full bellies, it was time for another country as we set our rental car GPS towards Zurich, Switzerland. Stay tuned for part II!
Our time in Asia was coming to an end, but before we started the long journey home, we had one more stop in Bali. Bali is somewhere I’ve always wanted to go because of their culture, cuisine, and scenery. While I was in other parts of Asia, however, I began hearing that Bali was dirty and not as enjoyable as I’d always imagined. Of course, we wanted to see for ourselves and I’m glad that we did. There is something about their commitment to tradition that is incredible to see and the food did not disappoint. In the future, I hope to return to Bali to explore the yoga scene, but for now, I hope you enjoy reading about our tour-packed visit last November.
When we arrived in Bali, we went to a boutique hotel called Griya Santrian. We were starving so we had a quick lunch, pizza for Scott (I think he needed a break from Asian food) and Beef Padang for me, and then took a nap on the beach until the rain came. The rains in Bali were unlike anything I’ve ever seen and they kept us indoors for the remainder of the first day. The opportunity to relax and watch a movie was just what we needed because the following day was FULL.
We ate a quick breakfast at our hotel and were picked up in a van for a Temple Tour. In the end, we saw so much more than temples. Our first stop was a wood carving studio. We watched talented artists carve masterpieces in very short periods of time. After touring the shop, we purchased several wood sculptures to bring back to our friends and family. We moved on to a painting studio which was even more incredible. The building itself was extremely ornate and stunning to look at and it had room after room of gorgeous original paintings. We brought home several pieces from there as well and many of them hang in our home as focal points. Apparently, Bali is known for it’s art and artists and it wasn’t hard to see why.
Master carvers at workThe temple with infinitely many rooms full of paintingsOne of the artists at the painting gallery
The next stop was Tanah Lot, an amazing temple right on the ocean. It was given to the village by a priest. I made sure to dress appropriately for temples (shoulders and knees covered for women), but we never did get to enter any of the enclosed Hindu temples. It didn’t dampen the experience any because these buildings were amazing to look at from any vantage point.
We happened to be in Bali during a special time. It was the week after Galungan which is a Hindu Temple Festival that symbolizes the victory of good over evil and offering thanks to the gods. It is also the time with the gods come down to Earth. During this celebration, all statues are wrapped in sarongs to clothe and acknowledge them. Also, penjors are erected all over town (bamboo poles with offerings) and huge parties are held at the temples throughout the island. We got to see a lot of the preparations for these events.
Even the gateways are dressed with a sarongA close up of a statue dressed up.People participating in the festival by praying and making offeringsLittle girls preparing to dance and perform at the festival
Standing in a gateway with a penjor to the left of us in this photo
After Tanah Lot, we had lunch overlooking a rice field and watched the fog start to roll in on our sunny day.
Following lunch, we went to my favorite temple called The Lake Temple or Pura Ulun Danu Bratan. There was the most torrential rains I had ever seen during our visit to this temple. We were walking through flash floods that sloshed up to our knees and it was surprisingly warm. The umbrellas we are carrying in these photos did very little to keep us dry, but we had fun taking shelter under beautiful gazebos on the temple grounds. As we snuggled up under these roofs, we had the interesting experience of having Asian tourists ask us to take photos with them. We had several groups of people say we looked like movie stars and they kept commenting on our height and our teeth. Apparently, they weren’t very used to seeing Westerners, and we had fun chatting with people and taking photos with them.
The park heading towards the Lake TempleSome of the flooding we were experiencingThe temple itself
The last temple was called The Royal Temple or Taman Ayun. This temple was totally different! Each pagoda had an odd number of tiers symbolizing a certain member of a royal family. The entire compound was surrounding by canals and gorgeous gardens. We got to get up close to the architecture more at this final stop. One moment of note was the slaughtering of the pigs. Our guide was very excited to show us this cultural event of sacrificing the pigs and preparing them for the festival. Knowing that I might offend our guide and his culture, I had to walk away, but I did appreciate the significance of the event and their heritage. Scott watched the event and took photos, but I won’t share them here. Instead, I’ll post the photos of the incredible scenery and other festival preparations we were able to watch.
My personal favorite part was the Barong. The Barong is a lion-dog-man creature who represents good in the fight against evil. He is the king of spirits in Hindu mythology. The Balinese do a Barong dance at these festivals to represent his fight against evil.
Building penjor (made from bamboo)
A close up of an offering
In the Barong denA close up of the Barong (made entirely from seeds, beans, etc.)
The Royal Temple was our final temple to visit, but not the last stop on this tour. We continued to drive around with our guides who gave us so much interesting history about the island. Such as, Bali is a Hindu island in the Muslim nation of Indonesia and there are some tensions regarding those differences. We learned more about the Penjor and that they are built by the men and the offerings are made by the women. Then we discussed Luwak Coffee (some of the most expensive in the world) and decided to stop at a Luwak coffee farm for a sampling. Basically, kopi luwak are lemur-like creatures that are so picky that they only eat the most perfect coffee berries. Then when the coffee passes through their digestive system, it is harvested, roasted and turned into a coffee that costs between $100 and $500 per pound. We got to meet some kopi luwaks and sample several different types of coffee made at this particular farm. We did bring some back for family, but unfortunately, it was instant and not quite as good as the fresh brewed stuff at the farm.
A particularly pretty penjor and offering alterJust a couple of kopi luwak
After an amazing cup of coffee, we were finally done with an awe-inspiring day of touring. We had a light dinner and an early bed time because the following day would be full of even more touring an a lot of eating.
Our last full day in Asia was our pork tour! We were guided by a really sweet Balinese girl throughout the island to taste the most famous Balinese dishes. Bali is famous for their pork and, thanks to Anthony Bourdain, we knew we had to experience these delicacies. We made several different stops on this tour and they were ALL amazing, the captions on the photos below describe the place and the dishes we had.
The first stop was literally a tarp-tent on the side of the road. Someone was cooking skewers over an extremely primitive stove and we ordered sate babi (pictured below), a pork skewer in a sweet and spicy sauce. I loved it!
The scond stop was the famous Anthony Bourdain dish: Babi Guling. Basically it’s a bunch of different parts of a suckling pig (including organ meat and skin) that are cooked in different ways and served over rice with a pork soup. Also delicious! Most people rave about the skin, but I liked the tender marinated meat best.The next stop was a BBQ place that was a lot more modern. It had tons of famous artwork (such as the Mona Lisa) with pig faces replacing the famous figures. We sampled some delicious ribs.Next we went somewhere that was considered more for the young, “hip” crowd called Pork Star. This was our favorite dish! It was pork meat with a spicy, coconut sauce and crispy onions and peppers on top. We stayed at this restaurant the longest and had a beer or two trying to digest a little before the last stop.The last stop was a restaurant with stunning grounds. You could eat in your own gazebo or in the restaurant itself. We order Iga Babi Goreng Sambal Matah (I can only describe this as a pork ceviche type dish) and some more ribs that were quite different from the ones earlier in the tour. We were about to explode from eating so much, but this stop was just as delicious as the other four.
When the pork tour was over, we slipped into a food coma for most of the afternoon on the beach outside of our hotel while the weather was still nice.
There’s even a penjor on our beach!
The next day was our FINAL day on the most epic trip. We got up, watched the sunrise, bonded with some stray beach dogs, and took it slow while we geared up for another very long day of travel.
She liked a double chin scratching…I think she would have come home with me =P
It’s going to be really hard to beat our first time in Asia. The food, sights, culture, and experiences were unforgettable. I can’t wait to revisit this corner of the globe over and over again…if I’m lucky.
Scott and I saw pictures of the Super Trees of Singapore and have wanted to go ever since. We realized once we got there, however, that we really didn’t know what to expect from this little island city state. It is an absolute haven for people who love to shop (over 100 malls on a 278 square mile island), foodies, and lovers of modern architecture. It is a very clean and organized city with fantastic transportation, a lot of history and one of the most blended cultures we have ever experienced. Singapore does seem to lack some of its own identity as it focuses so much on tourism, but even that fact adds to its uniqueness. Usually Scott and I do a lot of outdoorsy and cultural excursions during our travels, but Singapore gave us an opportunity to explore our more luxurious side.
We found the MRT (Singapore’s public transportation train system) within our first couple hours in Singapore and it became our best friend for the duration of our visit here. Our first MRT ride was to Little India because we were starving and had never visited an Indian community before. We found a restaurant called Madras New Woodland soon after we disembarked from the train. I was expecting a curry house because we LOVE Indian food here in the states and that’s what we were used to. This restaurant was not a curry house and I didn’t recognize anything on the menu. This turned out to be our lucky day because we told the waiter that and he said he wold get us something delicious. The first thing he brought us was Appalam (you may know it as pappadam if you go to many Indian restaurants in the U.S.) which is something we’d seen before. This was the best Appalam I’d had so I knew the rest of the meal would be good. The next thing he brought us was a Dosa Thali for me and a Bhatura Thali for Scott. These were the exact same dishes with different breads. Scott’s was a thin, rolled, crepe-like bread and mine was a giant puffy ball. I also got Masala Tea which was delicious.
Our next mission was to pick up our City Pass (I highly recommend this if you’re going to Singapore). We took the MRT to Marina Square and when we got our City Passes we were told we could take a night bus tour throughout the city that night. We decided that seeing the city on our first night would be ideal because we would then know exactly what we wanted to do for the coming few days. We took the opportunity to explore the nearby area while we waited for our bus tour. We got tea concoctions at R+B Tea (peachy oolong was amazing), had a very American style lunch at a pub called Harry’s before walking over to the famous Esplanade Theatre.
The architecture of the Esplanade Theatre is very interesting because it is made to look like a Durian. Durians are famous in this region and are incredibly bad smelling (in fact, they are banned from many hotels and other public places), but some people find them to be a real treat. There are amazing views from the roof of this fruit-shaped building from which you can see many of Singapore’s most famous landmarks.
View of Marina Bay Sands and the ArtScience museum (designed to look like a lotus flower)View of the famous Merlion fountain and boats in the bayDurian shaped Esplanade TheatreTrying to point out the amazing sights
Art in the courtyard outside the theatreWalking home through Clarke Quay
After a long day of walking and sight-seeing we were ready to hop on the bus tour, rest our feet and see the island. However, when we arrived at the pick up point for the bus, we waited around until we were finally told that we were an hour late. Apparently, Singapore is an hour off from Thailand and we had no idea. Thus, we took our tired bodies back to Clarke Quay (the area in which we were staying) and rested up for another try the following day.
The next day was full of activities. We went right across the street from our hotel to Fort Canning Park and ate at a café called Fabulous Baker Boy. I had the best French toast of my life! Then we caught the MRT to the Sentosa Express and went out to Sentosa Island. Our Singapore City Passes came with access to Universal Studios and the S.E.A. Aquarium which are located on Sentosa Island right off of Singapore itself. It’s basically an island devoted to family fun.
Best latte!My crazy French toast and Scott’s benedict
Our first stop was the aquarium. By far, the BEST part was a HUGE exhibit with a pod of manta rays in it. We watched the mantas do a choreographed dance for at least a half hour. They were so social and graceful, I fell in love with them.
Me and my new besties
Our next stop was Universal Studios. I have been to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, but I had never been to a Universal Studios. I was really excited to check it out! At first glance, I was amazed how they were able to create all these little worlds. From New York to Ancient Egypt to Jurassic Park, it felt like being on a million movie sets. Then we tried riding rides and chose a 4-D Transformers Ride. It was pretty intensely visual and shook you around a lot. I barely made it out without getting sick on everyone in my group. We then decided to try a 4-D, sit-down movie and went to a Shrek show where you are supposed to be in a Lord Farquad’s dungeon. After that, we saw the prices of all the food, drink and souvenirs and decided we aren’t really amusement park people. We rode the MRT back off the island and went in search of the next attraction.
Merlion statue in the park!
Since we were in the family fun mood, we decided to go to the ArtScience museum next. The lotus shaped building is so beautiful and intriguing, so we had to check it out. There were a lot of digital art exhibits where music was set to moving artwork. There were games where you could hold a handheld device and walk through the museum seeing different things (kind of like Pokémon Go), and interactive exhibits where kids could scan in their drawings and they would become part of the art. It was truly a place you could spend hours playing and discovering new things.
A gorgeous water lotus pond in the courtyard of a lotus-shaped building!
Singapore has become a place entirely devoted to finance and tourism. Therefore, they have more malls than I have ever seen. After our time at the museum, we wanted to go eat at and shop one of their famous malls: Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands. We went into so many upscale shops and got amazing Ramen and lemon tea for lunch. I even got an outfit for dinner the following night.
The entrance to a floating Louis Vuitton store
Finally, it was time for the Night Bus Tour that we had missed the night before. We drove all around the city including the shopping district, Orchard Road, which was decorated for Christmas. Having been in a Buddhist country before Singapore, we forgot that it was November and getting close to the Christian holidays. Singapore was our only stop on this trip that was Christian and primarily spoke English (although most things were in Mandarin, as well). These malls really went all out this time of year.
Riding on top of the bus.
Another very famous mall.
The final stop on the bus tour was Gardens By the Bay which included a show at the Super Trees. Being November, the show was Christmas themed and the lights danced to classic and contemporary Holiday tunes. I absolutely LOVED the light show and I belted out Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is You (if we had been in The States, I definitely wouldn’t have been alone in my performance).
The Super Trees were so cool! Eventually, they will be entirely covered in living plants.
Close-up of the living plants!Jealous of the people who got to watch the show from the Sky Bridge.Christmas light show time!
Cool shot of Marina Bay Sands from the tour bus.
The next day was another LONG day of touring the island state. Our first stop was something I couldn’t miss in a place where Mandarin is so heavily spoken: Chinatown! We had been told that Chinatown was the best place to shop for souvenirs and art. Plus, I had to get Dim Sum in a Chinatown that was actually in Asia! We did quite a bit of shopping and got some really fun art pieces before finding a place called Yum Cha to get Dim Sum at. It did not disappoint! We had BBQ pork buns, mushrooms and veggies, Xiao Long Bao, steamed prawn dumplings and pan-friend chive meat dumplings. Basically, I became a dumpling fanatic on this trip!
View from Chinatown train station.
Chinatown from above!
Shopping in ChinatownTrying to select my dumplings.Literally can’t wait any longer!
After lunch, we went back to Gardens By the Bay to visit the other attractions besides the Super Trees. There are botanical gardens outside and two enclosed gardens: the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest. Personally, I liked the Cloud Forest best, but the Flower Dome has every type of flower you could possibly imagine and was getting set up for a big Christmas event. The plant life was all breathtaking and there were also sculptures and art pieces mixed in throughout. The following is just a tiny sample of all the photos we took of plants, art, and the domes themselves.
Some views from the outdoor botanical gardens
Standing at the base of the cloud forest
A giant Lego display!
Looking through a waterfall
Later that night we had reservations at Ce La Vi which is the restaurant on top of the iconic Marina Bay Sands building. This was one of the best nights of the entire three week trip! We had Pinot Noir from New Zealand, Garam Masala Potatoes, Cashew Vegetables, Crusted Lobster and Rack of Lamb. Then we drank cocktails, made friends from all over the world and danced until the dance floor closed.
View of Gardens by the BayView of the bay and the skyline
The whole dinnerAmazing desserts!
The next day was our final day in Singapore before moving onto our final destination, Bali. We spent the day on a hop-on-hop-off tour getting some shots of some unique places around the city. During the tour we got off at one point and walked to the gigantic Paragon mall where we had sushi for lunch and experienced some incredibly high end shopping.
After changing and resting up, we ended our time with an incredible, seven course, French meal at Les Amis. We had the BEST time at Les Amis! Every course was explained to us and we asked questions about the food and the wine. We were having so much fun and it was pretty upscale, so we didn’t get any photos of the gorgeous food. However, the sommelier took us on a tour of the wine cellar which contained bottles of wine that would require an annual salary to replace and Scott got a couple of photos. I had a photo of us in the wine cellar, but my phone lost it…this is why Scott is the photographer. Nonetheless, it was a rich and delightful way to close out our time in Singapore.
The ground is covered in pebbles to prevent the sommeliers from breaking an expensive bottle should they drop one.Look at the size of that bottle of Cristal!
This blog took me weeks to write because we just did SO much in the four days we had in Singapore. We had the best time here! My next post will be chronicling our final stop on this trip: Bali!
Our final stop in Thailand was the wonderful and very popular Phuket! This place may be set up for tourists, but there is definitely a reason for its popularity: delicious food, bumping nightlife, stunning beaches, island excursions, wildlife experiences, and the list goes on.
Unfortunately, we had a rough start with our accommodations in Phuket. We were scheduled to stay at Centara Villas which overlook the ocean and are nestled peacefully into a lush mountainside. When we arrived, they had us wait over an hour before telling us that our villa had been flooded and drove us down the road to Centara Kata which was not our cup of tea. It didn’t have a view, our room smelled musty and it was full of drunk people and large, loud family groups. Clearly, this wasn’t a place to lounge at so even though we were tired from traveling, we freshened up and hit the streets!
Our first night in Phuket we walked around quite a bit and saw massage parlors, restaurants, open air bars, street food stands and shops. Eventually we came upon Palm Square and sat down for some drinks, Thai food and live music.
Enjoying a Chang beer and a shot of Jack after a frustrating day of travel
The next day we were pretty happy to have a full day of excursions so that we didn’t have to stay at our temporary hotel. We were picked up early by a minibus for some island hopping. It was a long drive to Phuket Marina, but when we got there we were served tea and coffee while introductions were made and boat safety was discussed.
Waiting for the boat!How cool is the Thai architecture behind the marina?!
The first island we visited was called Bamboo Island. Each of the islands we visited had something different to boast about. Bamboo Island had HUGE stretches of white sands, excellent snorkeling and rows of the picturesque traditional Thai wooden boats.
The new and the old: we were on a three motor speed boat like those seen here.
Trying to find our own little secluded spotMy turn with the camera!
Could have sat in that water all day
All aboard the three engine speed boat and on to Ko Phi Phi Don! Phi Phi Don was a much more populated island with huge, open-air restaurants. This is where our group stopped for a buffet style lunch with amazing massaman curry and rice. We didn’t have much time to explore this island, but of course Scott got some good shots in.
Continuing with the Phi Phi trend, our next view was of Ko Phi Phi Leh. We didn’t get off the boat at first, but instead watched monkeys jumping in the water off of the cliffs and then went snorkeling off of our boat. It was stunning and so much fun to watch the wildlife. So much so, in fact, that we didn’t take a single photo at this stop and just enjoyed the frivolity of it all.
The boat eventually anchored off of Phi Phi Leh’s Maya Beach. This beach was crowded and had several deadly jelly fish warnings posted, but it was quite a sight. There were massive cliffs, turquoise waters, white sands, and lush greenery to stare at through the crowds of bodies. I was all about risking the jelly fish to get back in that water.
Coming in off the boat.Ignoring the jelly fish warningsAwe-inspiring cave-like cliffsWalkin’ the beachCave selfie!
After a long and exhilarating day of island hopping, we traveled slowly back to our temporary hotel. We didn’t want to eat at the restaurants there so we hit the streets once again. We were so hungry that we stopped at the first thing we saw that looked edible and we were pretty stoked about that decision. Street food in Thailand is delicious and cheap! We sampled some BBQ pork, BBQ chicken, Pork satay with honey sauce (best thing every) and washed it down with some Chang for an appetizer. Then we found a live seafood restaurant and chowed down on some Phad Thai (we weren’t feeling adventurous enough to try one of the fully intact fish we were seeing on other tables). With full bellies, we walked back home and crashed out in a damp-smelling bed.
And just like that it was finally elephant day! I had been looking forward to visiting an ethical elephant sanctuary since we started planning this trip. This time, we were picked up in a pick-up with a covered bed and rode through the jungle with a few other girls.
Upon arriving at Elephant Jungle Sanctuary Phuket, we were immediately able to feed a mother and her baby, Cho, pounds upon pounds of banana and watermelon. It was cute to see their preferences and personalities. As visitors to the sanctuary, we were also volunteers so we loaded baskets with more fruit than I’d ever seen in my life and fed it to 16 more elephants. We were taught the command, “Bon” to get the elephants to lift their trunks and open their mouths for a treat. Some elephants were calm, others were frisky, some were friendly, others swayed back and forth in a dance of anxiety. It’s clear that some of these elephants were rescued from less than desirable circumstances and it was eye opening to see them in recovery.
The look of pure excitement!
I loved the babies!
Had to give that rough pachyderm a kiss
Getting a back scratch in before mud baths.
The last step of elephant care on our tour was giving the group a mud bath. Scott and I actually didn’t participate for quite a bit of this because the mud baths were full of elephant dung and super crowded. Some of the HUGE creatures were doing barrels rolls unexpectedly right next to people and it just looked like chaos. Eventually, however, I couldn’t resist going in up to my thighs and interacting with two of my favorite elephants while Scott kept his roll as bystander.
Excited for their baths!This loner was my bestie
This mama and baby were so funny! She kept doing barrel rolls and the baby kept throwing mud at the tourists.
Elephant day was amazing, but it wasn’t over yet. After a lunch buffet and a long ride back to the hotel we were originally supposed to stay at, our villa was STILL not ready. So they upgraded us to a villa with a view and a private pool (would have been nice to have that for four nights instead of two, but we settled right in). We took a dip in our private pool, napped in the villa with the doors open, and fully relaxed for a few hours. When the sun set, we were up and running again.
We had heard there was an amazing night market in Phuket and this, my friends, is very true. Naka Market was the best market we saw during our time in Asia and we visited many. We purchased tons of goodies here including some of our favorite art from the trip and some tasty pork buns.
When the market got too crowded we snagged a cab to one of Phuket’s most famous attractions, Bangla road. This is where this blog gets a little “explicit”. The sex trade is famous in Thailand and Bangla road is one of the epicenters of this kind of activity. As soon as you arrive on Bangla road, you feel a Las Vegas type atmosphere: loud music, peddlers trying to sell you a show, people walking around with adult beverages, go-go dancers, etc. Scott and I sat at one of the open-air bars with go-go dancers and had a few drinks while trying to absorb everything we were seeing. There were bracelets for sale with the most obscene expressions you could possibly imagine, advertisements for “ping-pong” shows, “husband daycares”, strip clubs of every type of intrigue, and you had to pay for most of the toilets. Overall, probably the best people watching I’ve seen.
When we’d seen all of the interesting sights we could handle for one day, we packed up our market purchases and took a cab back to our villa for the night. The next day was our last full day in Phuket and we decided to spend it relaxing.
There was a primitive pathway down to the beach right behind our villa so we were able to walk straight from our beds to the beach. It was an overcast day, but it was warm and perfect for reading and enjoying the waves without getting fried to a crisp. We could even see the famous Big Buddha from the beach and Scott was able to get a couple of photos of it. We ended the day with dinner with a view at the hotel restaurant and went to rest up for another day of travel.
Check out Big Buddha all the way in the top left!A bit better shot of Big BuddhaWalkin’ in from the wavesI have some awesome tan-lines from the cutouts in my one piece.He always takes walking shots of me, gotta get one of him!
He’s pretty dreamyLOVE to read on vacation, this was such a good day.
Our time in Phuket was scenic and jaw dropping. It was also our final stop in the country of Thailand before the city-state island of Singapore. It was time to trade in Thai food and beaches for skyscrapers and cocktails. Looking forward to sharing our time in that unique city in my next post ❤
Our next stop on our November 2017 trip to SE Asia was the bustling city of Bangkok. So far, Bangkok is the largest and busiest city we’ve seen on our travels. The traffic was INSANE so public transportation was a must! Since it was so hard to get around, we were limited to how much we could see in a short time. Most of our visit was spent eating and shopping and taking in the urban Asian culture.
The first day we were in Bangkok we spent most of the day in a taxi trying to get from the airport to the Riva Surya Hotel where we were staying. Driving through the city, we realized how dedicated the Thai people are to their king and that many people use some sort of smelling salt to stay awake while driving in the basically non-moving traffic. Once we finally arrived, we ate a nice lunch on the river, went to the gym in our hotel and pretty much relaxed the rest of the day away.
An intersection with tributes to the king
View from our hotel during lunchView from our hotel at night
Our first full day in Bangkok was a day of eating delicious Thai food. We weren’t sure where to go in Bangkok so we took a cab to the center of town where we found Siam Square and the Siam Paragon Mall. This mall was amazing. You could literally buy or eat anything you want in this place. Scott was enamored with a whole floor of the mall dedicated to luxury cars and I loved the apparel and the seeing the largest food court of my life. You could buy anything in this food court including whole chickens and sweet buns shaped like teddy bears. We also went into a gourmet market and picked up some teas, spices and durian products for my sister who has a love of foreign delicacies.
More traffic on the way to Siam Square
A display in the mall…I couldn’t resist
My favorite part of Siam Paragon, however, was our stop for some tea. TWG stores are all over the world but I’d never had the pleasure of visiting one. Not only does it have the largest selection of loose leaf teas I’ve ever seen, but we were able to sit down and each have a pot of tea made especially for us using tea perfecting techniques. Of course, we had to buy a whole bunch of it to share with friends and family and each other.
This is JUST the tea menuScott’s drinking White Passion Tea and I tried Immortal Tea
After tea time, I bought a new dress and we took a cab to the COMO Metropolitan Hotel to eat at their restaurant, Nahm. Nahm is the only Thai food restaurant to be listed amongst the top 50 restaurants in the world, it has a Michelin star and it consistently ranks in the top 10 restaurants in Asia. Since Thai food is my favorite cuisine, I was dying to try this place. It truly did not disappoint! The atmosphere was actually pretty casual and inviting, but the food was AMAZING! Scott had a Strawberry Mule while I sipped a glass of Rosé. We were served an amuse bouche of pineapple and spiced meat and we ordered a pork and lobster canapé (spicy and so flavorful). For our main courses I got the coconut curry with blue crab and Scott ordered chicken with ginger sauce. By far one of the best lunches I’ve ever had.
Lobster and Pork CanapéExcited to dig into our main courses
We went back to our hotel after Nahm and rested our stomachs before a quick afternoon workout at the hotel gym. Then we got ready for yet another culinary experience. For dinner we wanted to get the best view of the city possible so we chose to eat at Saffron at the Banyan Tree hotel and then get cocktails at The Moon Bar. The dinner at Saffron didn’t really compare to our amazing lunch at Nahm, but The Moon Bar was incredible! This lounge was on the 59th floor and had 360 degree views of Bangkok. The service was really nice and the atmosphere was swanky and fun.
The next day was our last full day in Bangkok and my favorite day in this city. We finally discovered the Sky Train public transportation and getting around the city became much easier!
I dabble in cooking my own curries at home and when we first started planning our trip to Thailand, a cooking class was top of my list. We found Pink Chili Cooking Class in Bangkok and it was more of a cultural experience than just a cooking lesson. We met our guide and she took us through a local market which was much larger and more foreign than the ones we saw in Chiang Mai. There were huge stalls of fresh produce, bins upon bins of rice, sauces and spices I couldn’t begin to name and pretty fascinating (or maybe even disturbing) displays of meat. We saw full pork heads, every part of a chicken, live toads, and live eels just to name a few delicacies displayed. Another interesting thing is that nothing was kept over ice. I’m assuming the goods sell so quickly that preservation isn’t an issue, but it was odd to see a slab of meat just perched on a tile countertop. I could have stayed in this market for hours, but we were there only to purchase the freshest ingredients possible for the meals we would be cooking for lunch that day.
Poor toads…maybe they were being sold as pets? There was gold everywhere you looked in Thailand!
We took our super fresh ingredients straight back to Pink Chili’s kitchen where we began chopping and slicing immediately. The first thing we made was our own red curry paste with mortar and pestle. We then continued on to make sweet and sour chicken, crispy spring rolls, red curry with chicken and eggplant, a sweet chili sauce and pumpkin in coconut milk for dessert. I thought absolutely everything was DELICIOUS! I just wish we had some of these ingredients back in Seattle so that I could recreate this curry.
The cooking set-upReady to slice and dice!The freshest ingredients
Grinding that curry pasteSmelling our delicious curryShowing off our sweet and sour chickenThe full meal (except dessert)
We made some fun friends during our cooking class and one of them took a polaroid photo of us newlyweds before we all went our separate ways. Scott and I took the Sky Train back to Siam Square and wandered around for a while and then decided to check out a Thai movie theatre.
We went to a 3-D Imax showing of Thor Ragnarok and sat in a love seat style chair at the very top of the theatre. They had amazing popcorn and some funky tasting Sprite and, of course, some Hello Kitty decor. One of the more unexpected things about seeing a movie at a Thai theatre is that they do a tribute to the king before the previews where everyone stands up. The movie was great and exactly the relaxing night we needed to end our time in such an intense city. The next morning we would be getting up and catching yet another early flight to Phuket! That will be a much longer blog full of AMAZING photos by Scott. As always, thanks for reading and going on our adventures with us!
It has been well over a month since we returned home from our nearly three week trip in Southeast Asia. With the holidays, building a home and life just getting in the way, I haven’t had the time yet to write about this experience. Lack of writing aside, I have had plenty of time to reflect and be grateful for such an amazing trip and hopefully this next series of blogs illuminates which moments were most significant to us. I considered breaking this blog series up into two parts: activities and food (the food was just incredible and so different everywhere we went, it deserved it’s own post!). In the end, however, I decided to continue writing about each, individual place as a whole experience.
On my list of places I would most want to revisit Mykonos (from a trip I went on without Scott in 2011) and Chiang Mai would be at the top. I hope that the photos throughout this composition make the excellence of this place obvious and fully explain why we would want to return so badly.
Scott and I traveled for 30 hours before landing in Chiang Mai. This is BY FAR the longest day of travel I’ve ever had. We flew EVA Air from Seattle to Taipei, Taiwan to Bangkok and then took a regional airline to Chiang Mai. For the longest leg of our flight, we took Advil PM and we will now be doing this for any flight we have that’s over 7 hours. We were dead asleep for 8 straight hours. One thing of note during this travel was the Taipei airport: it’s full of themed waiting rooms and shops that make it quite obvious you’re in Asia. The most popular of which was a Hello Kitty waiting lounge which looked like something straight out of the cartoon. We also had some of our first Asian cuisine while waiting in the Taipei airport and it set me off on a dumpling obsession that continued for the rest of the trip and likely for the rest of my life.
Finally arriving in Chiang Mai, we couldn’t find the car that was supposed to be waiting for us to take us to our hotel so we ended up waiting in the WORST taxi line of all time. We checked in at Amata Lanna Village Hotel after dark, but even without light we could see that it was an incredibly beautiful place to call home for the next three nights. We walked over a koi pond on cement stepping stones to a lobby with traditional Thai architecture. The doorways to each room were fully carved and each feature seemed to have detailed artwork incorporated into the design. Most exciting of all was that we could see the first night of Loy Krathong (the Thai paper lantern festival) taking place in the background. It seemed as if Chiang Mai was greeting us as we watched thousands of paper lanterns drift through the sky and over our hotel from the doorway of our room.
Our view of the lanterns from right outside our roomView from our hotel room towards the city during daylightOur bathtubOur room was second from the right on the top floor!These sculptures were placed throughout the hotel property…so cute!
On our first morning in Thailand, we were scheduled to visit the highest peak in Thailand, hike some waterfalls and visit Doi Inthanon. We ended up getting so much more out of this day. The hotel we were staying at was owned by a family and they were amazing hosts. Breakfast begins at 6AM with a menu of fruits, sticky rice, bacon, sausage, eggs, porridge and more. We were given an appetizer of Chinese fried bread and fresh fruits. I had my first taste of Mango Sticky Rice and I will now be seeking this out for breakfast whenever I can.
To-Die-For Mango Sticky Rice
My daily tropical fruits fixEnjoying my coffee and Chinese bread
After breakfast we were picked up by our tour guide and started our first day of sight-seeing in Thailand. Our first stop was going to be the tallest peak in Thailand, but we stopped and purchased some fresh fruit from a street vendor on the way up the mountain. Our tour guide wanted to make sure we got to try everything. Our first new fruit to try was called a longan (a small version of a lychee with a tough peel and squishy, grape-like insides). We also tried persimmons, Thai sweet potatoes, fruit wine, and several different dried fruits. We ended up purchasing plenty of samples for our family back home.
One of the many markets that lined the streetsPeeling and tasting a longan in our karaoke/tour van
My favorite thing of all, however, was a sweet pork dumpling that our tour guide bought us from another street vendor. I spent the rest of the trip looking for more of these delicious, warm, sweet rolls filled with ground pork.
Next, we arrived at Doi Inthanon National Park and peered over the tallest peak in Thailand. There was pretty dense forest surrounding the peak, so there wasn’t much of a view to show off, but stay tuned for some killer views of Chiang Mai we got the next day!
After leaving the highest spot in Thailand, we traveled winding roads towards the stupas of Doi Inthanon. Along the way, we saw several Buddhist offerings nestled into the forest and I was fascinated by the intricate details and the effort put into these works of art.
The primary attractions of the day were the stupas and gardens of Doi Inthanon built for the king and queen. Each stupa was the same number of feet tall as the monarch was old. Inside each stupa were statues of Buddha corresponding to the day of the week the queen/king were born. Each stupa and corresponding garden were designed around the personality of the queen and king. The queen’s was ultra feminine with purple glass tile decorating every surface while the king’s had more of a brown and brass tone throughout. It was truly something to behold and it is difficult to pick any number of pictures to represent it’s beauty because Scott captured so many gorgeous images of this place.
A view of both stupas over the garden pond
A close up of the king’s stupaScott and I in the gardensThe view from the gardens over the cliffsSome of the tile work outside of the queen’s stupaThe Buddha inside of the queen’s stupaMore of the incredible view from the gardensSome of the tile work outside the king’s stupaInside the king’s stupaThe garden was getting some maintenanceAbout to head up the long stairway to the stupas
After spending a lot of time gawking at these masterpieces and wandering the gardens, we were off to have lunch and visit some waterfalls. Lunch was at a huge gathering place with several restaurants and one communal outdoor cafeteria with a covering. We had cashew chicken, a Thai omelette, steamed veggies, and one of our favorites: Thom Kha Gai (a spicy coconut based soup with chicken, mushrooms and lemongrass). On our way to the first waterfall, we got to hike past farms and rice fields and were able to see some of the canal systems and methods for farming in the region.
A close up of some cropsRice fields amongst the jungle
The tour guide prompted me to test the strength of the vine so I pretended to be Tarzan over a farming canal.
The first waterfall we visited was called Siriphum Waterfall. After Costa Rica, we had seen our share of jungles and waterfalls, but there was something truly special about this national park and we loved hiking over the rickety bridges to get closer to the powerful spray of Siriphum.
Resting by the riverTrying to show Scott something cool from the bridge viewpointHiking over to the bridge
The next waterfall we visited was the largest in Doi Inthanon National Park: Wachirathan Waterfall. After seeing this beauty, we continued on a path that followed the flow of the water and found some of the most vibrant rainbows I’ve ever seen. Usually rainbows are hard to capture on film, but these were not camera shy one bit.
Not our best photo, we were getting hit directly in the face with cold waterfall spray
Wachirathan marked the end of an amazing first tour and we were driven back to our hotel. We decided to rest for a brief period, change our clothes and head out on the town to get our first taste of an Asian city. We decided to go on foot (which we would later regret) and walked over the river towards the Nawarat Bridge which was supposed to be the center of the town. As soon as we started our walk we could tell something special was happening in the city. There were street vendors set up everywhere selling toys, sweets, lanterns and other celebratory wares. We decided to get dinner at River Market Restaurant so we could stay near the bridge and watch as the celebrations picked up in fervor. We enjoyed spring rolls and massaman lamb curry (YUM), and Scott had a Chang beer (this would soon become one of his all time favorites) and I had some Chardonnay. As we ate, we began to see people practicing the lighting and releasing of lanterns. We were shocked to see lit lanterns landing in trees or lawns and continuing to burn and then just going out. The vegetation was so wet that fires just never started. Coming from Washington State this went totally against our prevent-forest-fires nature!
Finally, the sun went down and we went to the bridge to join in the festivities. We chose not to purchase a lantern because we had no clue what we were doing or what was being celebrated and felt like imposters. We truly felt lucky just to watch. We had a great viewpoint on the bridge and watched several people try and fail to set off lanterns (who knew it would be a challenge?!). Eventually, lanterns started successfully taking off all around us! After watching several successful launches, we decided to help a group of young travelers from San Diego launch theirs after many failed attempts. They were gracious enough to give us a lantern to launch of our own. We succeeded on our first attempt thanks to all of our observing. We learned that the releasing of the lantern symbolizes letting go of negativity and sending blessings into the New Year. The festival takes place on the evening of the full moon in November which is the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar and, therefore, the end of the lunar year. It was such a happy accident to arrive in Chiang Mai during this festival and getting to share it with the local people is something we will never forget.
View from our restaurant
That’s our lantern!
When we felt it was time to leave the festival, we walked all the way home. We dodged traffic (mostly scooters and tuk tuks) and walked through narrow unlit streets for what felt like several miles. I was wearing sandals and ended up having blisters on my feet for the rest of the trip, but it was totally worth it.
The next day, we had another jungle hike and temple tour booked. Again, we were served a delicious breakfast and then we were off to Doi Suthep. The previous day, Scott and I were the only members of our tour. This day, we were joined by four Asian Canadian students and a Dutch couple. Unbeknownst to us, we actually had quite an extensive hike through the jungle to arrive at today’s temple. Luckily, we were both dressed for the miles we had to trek through dense forest and my blisters decided not to give me too much trouble. At Sai Yoi Waterfall we did get to take off our shoes and frolic in crystal clear waterfall pools and climb some giant boulders to cool our feet. During the hike we were surprised to come across monks leading individuals into the jungle. They are portrayed very accurately in art and media and seem to radiate a kind of peace and tranquility in their mannerisms. Eventually, we arrived at a kind of cabin resort for temple visitors at the top of the hike and were able to rest before exploring the temple itself.
Our group at the first waterfall before the hike beganJungle trekkinWaterfall pools with small catfish in them!
Barefoot, wild and free
Finally arriving at the cabins with one of the temple’s gold pagodas in the background
Since we had just hiked straight up a mountain through the jungle, our group was starving. At the bottom of the stairs into the temple there was a huge, bustling market where we found a cramped noodle place and had our first authentic phad thai and thai iced tea. Honestly, they were quite like what we were used to in the U.S. and super delicious! We enjoyed getting to know the Dutch couple and learned that they were from Amsterdam so we got all the travel tips we possibly could for our upcoming 2018 Europe trip! Finally, it was time to enter the temple. Everyone made sure there knees and shoulders were covered (most of the girls had to buy sarongs to enter) and started a secondary hike up a long, ornate stairway.
The temple was so stunning it’s difficult to describe. There was genuine worship taking place all around us and the smell of incense was sweet and heavy as soon as we crested the top of the stairs. Every square inch of the structure was decorated and dazzling. Gold, jade and other precious jewels were everywhere you looked. This is by far one of the most incredible manmade sights I’ve ever beheld. I hope these photos can portray some of the wonder this place instilled in all of us, but it’s definitely something difficult to capture.
The long stairway to the templeA close up of the dragons on the stairwellAn epic entrance wayEach of these Buddhas represents the day of the week you were born. You are supposed to pray to your own Buddha. I was born on a Sunday so I am the first buddha called “in pensive thought Buddha”. He stands upright with his hands clasped low contemplating his wisdom. Scott is Thursday so he is the meditation Buddha (fifth from the left).
Elephants represent good luck in Thai cultureWe love goooollldddd!You have to kneel inside of the prayer rooms, we were fortunate enough to watch a monk lead a mass blessing in a similar room.A jade BuddhaA close up of the gold pagodaSome realistic Buddhas
The breathtaking gardens outside of the temple’s exit
After exiting the temple we walked through stunning gardens like the one above and went up some more stairs to a gazebo that looked over the entirety of Chiang Mai. It was an incredible view and the underside of the gazebo was decorated with carvings of the different Buddhas. I became a little obsessed with learning about my Sunday Buddha and seeking him out in religious artwork. The tour ended with a bathroom break in a ginormous store full of anything you could imagine made out of jade from chess sets to bangles (unfortunately, it was such a quick stop we didn’t get any photos).
Another elephant sculpture on the way upMore stunning architecture outside of the templeAn incredible view of Chiang MaiOur tour guide helping me find my Sunday BuddhaThe whole gazeboLooking out over Thailand
I didn’t even know I was doing my Buddha posture!
It was a really intense day of hiking and sensory overload at the temple, but this was our last night in Chiang Mai and we weren’t done with this city yet! After we rested off our tour, we got changed and ordered an Uber (no more walking) and went to the Chiang Mai Sunday Market. We were instantly struck by how busy this place was! Crowds filled the entire width of the street and the smells of street food wafted out from behind the people selling their trinkets. Even more shocking was the price of this stuff! So inexpensive we could hardly believe it. We ended up buying clothes, lanterns, art, and other gifts for people back home. Then we stopped at a restaurant called Cooking Home and I ate one of my favorite Thai dishes to date: Khao Sui. This is a yellow curry soup that you can only get in Northern Thailand and it’s to die for. When the night was over, we took our first tuk tuk (basically a chair rigged to the back of a moped) ride back to our hotel and so ended our time in Chiang Mai.
The huge crowd in the marketNot the prettiest picture but the most delicious dish: Khao SuiTuk Tuk Driver!Feeling a little nervous on our super fast tuk tuk ride
Chiang Mai was our favorite part of Thailand and we can’t wait to go back. BUT I can’t wait for my next installment in this series where we visit the insane and massive city of Bangkok!
Costa Rica is famous for its white water rafting scene. People come from all over the world to raft here and the Pacuare River is destination numero uno. Although I’d never white water rafted before, we decided we couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Plus, there was a hotel nestled in the jungle along this river that I was DYING to experience. We may have gotten a little more than we bargained for, but one thing is for sure, we will NEVER forget our final few days of honeymooning in Costa Rica.
While planning our trip, I Googled the most stunning honeymoon suites in Costa Rica and found The Pacuare Lodge. This lodge is listed amongst the National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World. I didn’t know this, I just thought it was gorgeous. You could book a treehouse with a private pool and we had to try it out. It wasn’t until we were half way through our honeymoon that we realized why this place was so unique. The only way to get there was to get picked up in San José at your hotel, take a bus ride for a few hours East and then white water raft two more hours down river. You are also allowed very limited luggage as it has to also arrive at the lodge by raft.
Scott and I arrived in San José (TERRIBLE TRAFFIC), got a quick bite at McDonald’s, and settled in at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Then we spend the rest of the evening attempting to pack ONE backpack with enough clothes for both of us to last three days knowing that we would also need clothes to get wet on the rafting trip. It was a challenge…I don’t pack light usually.
The next morning we got up super early and grabbed a quick bite at the hotel (I had more amazing mango that I couldn’t get enough of) and waited for our river guide to pick us up. Our luggage would remain at the Crowne Plaza until we got back. Our river guide, Danny, showed up right on time and we drove through the city to pick up another couple. As we drove, Danny told us about his trips to California, Oregon and other parts of the U.S. where he spends time as a river guide and his passion for life on the river. Then we stopped at Bocadito Del Cielo for a bite of second breakfast. This name of the restaurant translates to Little Taste of Heaven because it sits overlooking stunning views of the valley.
Some views of the drive through San JoséViews from breakfast
Finally, we arrived at the Pacuare River. We were taught on the spot how to raft while we were geared up and our luggage was handed over to a skilled rafter named Rafa. We were taught commands so we knew when to paddle forward and backward and when to jump inside the raft or lean.
The start of our rafting journey
At first, I was terrified of rafting. Especially since I was brand new and would be starting out on Class 3 and 4 rapids. Scott had been rafting in Oregon, but failed to mention this until after I’d had a few moments of panicking. It only took a couple big rapids, however, for me to LOVE it! I was smiling and laughing pretty much the entire trip and the two hours which had seemed so daunting went by in a flash. We did have one break where we were able to visit a secluded little waterfall and take a swim. Of course, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity and we were the only ones to jump right in the river, clothes and all. We did learn later that the Pacuare River is full of piranha, but they have soft teeth and aren’t dangerous to humans. We also saw the biggest spider I’ve seen to date sitting on a rock that our raft got VERY close to, and enjoyed watching different birds in their natural, untouched environments.
Eventually, we rafted by a couple of extremely remote and off-the-grid cabins before arriving on the banks of the Pacuare Lodge.
We were then escorted to the Honeymoon Suite which was a short hike up from the main lodge and restaurant for seclusion. Our suite was nestled right up against the jungle and raised up a hillside so as to be in the canopy and turned into a treehouse. This was by far the most gorgeous hotel room I’ve ever been in. It was made out of rich woods with a tree platform, hanging bridge, hammock, private pool, 4-poster bed, glass walls, and an outdoor shower. We were then informed that there was no electricity except for in the main lobby and we would need a solar flashlight, rubber boots and an umbrella. We also told that when we came down for dinner (which was served at a very specific time) a worker would come to our room and light a whole bunch of candles for us. Being near the equator, the sun sets around 6PM all year round. We were given two choices for dinner and were asked to make our selections and were left to rest after the long travel and rafting day.
The pool and the bridge to the tree platform
The cute little sign they made for usView to the tree platformWalking back towards the roomView of the room from the tree platformEnjoying the hammock and the deckA teeny tiny lizard we found in our curtains
We were so secluded that we didn’t even both to unpack our swimsuits to test out our private pool. It was cold but so refreshing after a rafting workout in the humid jungle. Then we quickly changed into dry clothes and went down for lunch. Our river guides became our servers and chefs at the lodge restaurant! They served us an elegant spinach soup, mushroom tomato penne, coconut flan and some DELICIOUS beers that they brewed onsite. After lunch, we went upstairs from the restaurant to the bar and ordered some tasty sangria, the spiciest margarita ever and sweet coconut mojitos.
Finally, we were just exhausted. We went back up to our paradise room, watched some downloaded shows on our iPad and had a long nap with all the doors open.
Since dinner was at a specific time, we had to get up from our nap and head down not long after. The restaurant was also without electricity so we were seated with candle light and had to bring our solar lamp everywhere. We enjoyed really good wine, bread, and squash ginger soup. Scott’s entree was steak with eggplant puree and potatoes while I had a tuna steak with green beans and rice. Dessert was a passionfruit mousse for me and a chocolate torte for him (he made the right choice this time…yum). The daily menu was designed and executed by locals without formal training but with an inherent love for cuisine. I thought it was super unique and everything we ate was awesome!
After dinner was when the real adventures began. We went back to our room in pitch black and got ready to brush our teeth. As we rounded the corner to our bathroom we saw a HUGE cockroach stuck on his back in the hall. It wasn’t moving so Scott grabbed some tissue to try and pick him up and throw him outside. My job was to hold a phone flashlight so he could see in the dim candlelight. Of course, as soon as he touched the roach it started moving furiously and we both screamed and then he didn’t have any light and comedy ensued. He tried two more times before finally getting it outside.
Unfortunately, that was only the beginning. Our bathroom was backed right up into the jungle and wasn’t very well sealed. There were two spiders hanging out waiting for us and almost no light to see by. We knew this was going to be a long night at this point. There were a few small insects on the mosquito nets surrounding our bed AND another layer surrounding the entire bedroom. This got in our heads and we felt like bugs were everywhere. After watching some more shows we tried to blow out our candles and go to sleep, but we kept feeling bugs crawling on us (probably just in our imagination) and had to relight a candle and keep it burning all night for our sanity. At one point I got up and went to the bathroom on my own and saw a shadow on the ground. When I put my phone’s flashlight on it, I saw that it was a massive cave dwelling spider. From that point on neither of us went to the bathroom alone or got much sleep. As terrifying and restless as this night was, Scott and I were totally bonded over our mutual fear of creepy crawlies and the fact that we loved each other enough to accompany each other to the bathroom over and over. Like I said, we’ll never forget it.
The next day we were scheduled for two serious activities: an extreme seven hour hike and a candlelit dinner in the treetops that we had to zipline to get to. At breakfast we were surrounded by bees and ants and we had just had a night full of bugs. We realized that a dinner in the treetops where we wouldn’t be able to really see our surroundings was more than we could handle. We knew we would be exhausted from our hike and, frankly, couldn’t handle the idea of new and exciting bugs to befriend. So, we canceled our dinner and got ready for the hike.
This was the most difficult hike we’ve done to date. Due to the wetness and wildness of the jungle, we had to do the entire thing in rubber boots and long socks or pants. We were warned about bullet ants (a bite from one of these will paralyze you and give you extreme fever for a couple of days) and poisonous snakes and spiders. After we were shown the bullet ants we recognized them from right outside our suite…great…However, this hike was a truly incredible experience. We had two guides: a Costa Rican named Edgar and an indigenous local named William. They were incredibly kind and knowledgeable and let us practice our Spanish with them. Their aptitude and fitness for the jungle was astounding.
The jungle was insanely humid and we went through several large canisters of water. Walking sticks were entirely necessary for the steep and slippery terrain. At one point, we crested a hill and could see over the canopy. A breeze from the Caribbean came through and was the most refreshing thing I could imagine at the time. We walked past indigenous villages and farms completely hidden within the jungle. The final destination, however, was a hidden waterfall that we could only reach by repelling down a sheer rock face. Here we had lunch, stripped off our rubber boots, and took a lonnngggg, well deserved rest.
Getting ready: Scott looking fine in his rubber bootsThe indigenous villageTrekking through pretty untamed trailsA look up at the canopyThe start of the repelFinally reaching the waterfall
Our awesome guides
The trek back was long and painful, but it was totally worth it. At one point, Edgar found a jaguar den and we had to be very quiet and walk really close together. Honestly, I was more scared of the spiders in our room, but I had heard of guides and tourists being stalked and snatched by jaguars.
When we returned to the lodge we enjoyed coffee and cookies and hung out near the river for a while before dinner time. This time we I had duck and Scott had pork ribs. I honestly still think about this duck dinner, it was SO good. Night two really didn’t go much better than night 1 and our spider friends returned to torment us.
The next day we were due to raft back West towards San José and return by bus to the Crown Plaza. We packed up, said goodbye to the spiders and went down for breakfast and to wait for our river guides once again. While we were waiting, Edgar (our guide from the day before) grabbed us and told us he had something that I’d been waiting to see. He had set up a telescope and told me to look through it towards a treetop. On our very last full day in Costa Rica, I finally saw a wild sloth!!! I was so happy! It was sleeping, but I could still see it really well and watched as it breathed as slowly as you would expect a sloth to breathe. He also showed us a glass frog which camouflages with its eggs perfectly on the bottom of leaves, a blue jeans frog which is very loud and colorful, and a green iguana-type lizard which was so well camouflaged that we had to look directly at it several times to see it.
On the four hour rafting trip back, we went through much more advanced rapids. At one point the guide turned the raft completely backward so we wouldn’t see the size of the upcoming rapid. Apparently he didn’t trust us not to spook and ignore his commands, but it was so fun. We stopped along the banks and the river guides turned our raft into a buffet and served us a lunch of fruit, salad, sweet tea and delicious chicken burritos. This is when we were shown the piranhas. You could throw a piece of cheese into the river and a SWARM of fish would destroy it. We let them eat out of our hands and felt their soft teeth.
On the bank where we had lunch and fed piranhas
The raft buffetFor this trip we had to have a safety kayaker for the more dangerous rapids
When we resumed rafting, we came upon a canyon and everyone jumped off the raft to float through the green waters and admire the scenery. It was truly a moment of peaceful surrender for all of us.
The canyon with a primitive bridgeClearly I’m enjoying the float
Finally, we finished our river adventure, took the bus back to the Crowne Plaza, had some sushi and crashed out in Costa Rica for the last time. In the morning, we returned our rental car which had driven us all over the country, went to the airport, bought some more amazing coffee, and got on the plane that ended our honeymoon.
We chose Costa Rica because we wanted adventure in a beautiful, relaxing place. Honestly, we had mostly adventure and not much relaxing, but that’s more our style anyways. Maybe next time we’ll spend our days on the Caribbean side and take in more of the beach life, but there’s really way too much to experience in the land of Pura Vida.
For Part 2 of our Costa Rican honeymoon, Scott and I travelled inland to visit the cities of Arenal and La Fortuna. We drove quite a distance from Tamarindo to get to our hotel in Arenal. We stopped at a Costa Rican Walmart and tried a ton of local snacks: chocolate covered pineapples and bananas, yuca chips, and palomitas (popcorn). We also enjoyed a scenic drive around the entire perimeter of Lake Arenal which is a manmade lake at the base of an epic volcano.
For this portion of our trip, we stayed at the Arenal Manoa Hotel. This is one of the many hotels in the area with a STUNNING view of the Arenal Volcano and in-house hot springs. We were greeted with a blackberry drink and taken to a villa with a view.
View from our villaEnjoying some Chardonnay on our porchA beautiful Bird of ParadiseHumid volcano selfie!
After we got settled in, we went down to the pool and swim up bar where we had a few too many mango daiquiris and margaritas. The pool was busy and had a party atmosphere so we enjoyed people watching. Then we got changed for dinner and went to the hotel restaurant, La Saca. We had SUPER rich mushroom risotto and pesto gnocchi and went back to the villa to go into a sugary drink and rich food coma.
One of the swim up bars
The next day we woke early, had a 10 minute breakfast stop at La Saca, and went to catch a shuttle for an all day tour. We were going to tour two major destinations: The hanging bridges at Mystico National Park and La Fortuna Waterfall. These two hikes were very different, but equally incredible.
At the hanging bridges, we saw unique plants, vipers, tarantula, countless birds, loud and fascinating cicadas, howler monkeys, and the most rare sighting of day: peccaries! Upon entering the park, we saw a deadly, baby viper right away. Then we looked back towards where we walked in and saw a small herd of peccaries! The deeper into the forest we went, the louder the buzzing sounds throughout the air became. We learned that these were cicadas and they became the soundtrack for this entire trip. They provide a constant humming melody that differs depending on region. These massive insects live only one day, but certainly make their presence known during their short lives. We had wonderful tour guides who spotted camouflaged animals that we would have never seen. My recommendation after this trip is always to do wildlife tours with a guide!
At the entrance for Mystico National ParkA juvenile viper (could kill a human with one bite)Peccaries looking for foodTarantulaSome cool plant-lifeFuzzy caterpillar!A spider in a crazy tunnel web
Super speedy lizard
WoodpeckerA cicada next to his old skin
Another big lizard
Our shuttle picked us up from the hanging bridges and took us to our next stop: La Fortuna Waterfall. This was one of my favorite parts of this trip! We had to hike down about 500 steps (which meant we eventually had to hike back up them) and arrived at a gorgeous waterfall and crystal clear pools. We were able to swim in the pools amongst tons of not-so-small fish and mossy cliffside.
A view of the waterfall from afarThe hundreds of steps to the poolsA close-upStaring at the powerful waterfall in aweWaterfall selfie!Sitting on a rock and channeling my inner Little Mermaid
After a long day of touring, we all enjoyed lunch together. This was our first experience with a Costa Rican cuisine staple: Casado. Casado consists of meat, tortillas, beans, rice, a fried plantain, salad, cheese and sometimes eggs and sautéed onions.
It was a long day of hiking, so we spent the rest of the afternoon watching American football in Spanish and napping. For dinner we drove slightly outside of the hotel to a delicious pizza place called !Que Rico! which means “How Delicious!”.
The next day we had another tour planned. This time we drove two hours in a shuttle to do the Rio Celeste (translates to Light Blue River) hike. This was one of the most fascinating sights and the photos truly don’t do it justice. The Rio Celeste is full of minerals that create the optical illusion of a light blue color. The water is in fact clear, but the reflection of the light off of the white mineral particles makes the water looks like an opaque, bright blue. We saw many more animals on this hike including frogs, different kinds of insects, spiders, monkeys, snakes, and coati (a raccoon-like mammal). We also saw hallucinogenic leaves the size of a car tire and one of the largest and oldest trees in the country.
Catarata = WaterfallAnother long hike down to a waterfall, but this one was a no-swim-zone.
The water bubbles like it’s boiling here and smells STRONGLY of sulfur.A very rickety bridge that you had to cross one-at-a-time.Where the minerals enter the stream and change the water from clear to bright blue.A wild turkeyA female spider who eats her tiny, brown matesA giant and ancient treeA poison dart frogA very well camouflaged cricketScott on another rickety bridge.
We finished this day with a delicious meal of arroz con pollo (chicken and rice) and a dip in the Termales (Hot Springs). These hot springs were at our hotel and were actually rerouted from a naturally hot river that’s heated by the volcanoes. Of course, the hot springs also had a swim up bar and we had to take advantage on our last night in Arenal.
The following day was the day we were supposed to travel to the capital, San José, but we couldn’t resist squeezing in one more activity while we were here: A Coffee Tour. If you’re ever in Costa Rica, do a coffee plantation tour! I have alway been an avid coffee drinker and this tour completely changed the way I buy and drink coffee. Scott has even been drinking more java after this experience. During the tour we planted, harvested, roasted, and ground beans to see every step of the process. We also made our own chocolate and sugar cane juice which was amazing! We may have gotten bitten by some ants in the process, but it was totally worth it.
Harvesting coffee beans the old-fashioned wayMaking chocolateJuicing sugar cane
The coffee tour marked the end of our time in Arenal and the beginning of our journey to San José and the Pacuare River. Another treacherous drive that ended in some horrific traffic began and a whole new scene awaited. Part 3 will outline our time in these Eastward destinations!
Adams Adventures 