Songkran Festival

The Thai New Year (Thai: สงกรานต์ Songkran, from Sanskrit sankrānti "astrological passage"; Chinese: 潑水節) is celebrated every year from April 13 to April 15. It coincides with the New Year of many calendars of South and Southeast Asia. The date of the festival was originally set by astrological calculation, but it is now fixed. If these days fall on a weekend, the missed days off are taken on the weekdays immediately following. If they fall in the middle of the week, many Thai take off from the previous Friday until the following Monday. Songkran falls in the hottest time of the year in Thailand, at the end of the dry season.

Songkran this year fall on Mon to Wed and the festivities started on Sat, 11 April. By 12 April, it was impossible for us to get anywhere on our bike without getting wet.
This is a good picture to explain what & how it happens. Score of people, both locals & foreigners standing at the roadside, with their weapon of choice, eg. buckets, waterguns, pails, baby powder etc,
getting ready to splash whoever passby in their cars, bikes, pick-up, tuk tuk and on foot.
Nobody is spare.

Those trucks on the road have their own supply of water on board so that they don't miss out on the fun. Young and old join in the
festival, it is a family affair.

Me and my weapon of choice, winnie the pooh water backpack... Didn't manage to take a picture of after the battle but it was pathetic ... :( but loads of fun.

Once in a lifetime experience !!

New Favourite City In Thailand

I declare Chiang Mai our new favourite city in Thailand, much better than Bangkok.
More activities, cheaper shopping and better food.

The hotel we stayed in D2 was great, excellent location at the night bazaar, good service and comfy room with a little surprise from housekeeping each day. In the 5 days there, we received some Thai snacks, a rolling massager, a notebook and some sweets.

We took a day trip on day 2 to Doi Inthanon National Park.
At 2,565m, Doi Inthanon is the highest mountain in Thailand and its surrounding areas are designated as the Doi Inthanon national park. The park itself lies roughly 90 minutes' drive southwest of Chiang Mai and is popular for its magnificent waterfalls, flora and excellent views. You can drive all the way to the top, where stately chedis have been erected in honour of the present King and Queen of Thailand. The climate up at the top is almost alpine and cool at all times of the year, with sub-zero (Celsius) temperatures in winter.
Definitely worth the day trip!!

We visited these places

• Wachiratan waterfall
• Mae Yai Falls (I think)
• Karen Village
• Royal Project
• Hmong market
• Royal Chedis

We rented a bike and rode to Doi Suithep National Park on the 4th day.
Doi Suthep-Pui used to be known as Doi Oi Chang. Its new name comes from the name of a hermit, Prarusiwasuthep who lived at Doi Suthep-Pui was a protected forest. In 1973, The Royal Forest Department decided that Doi Suthep and 13 other forest areas in the country should eventually be national parks.
We went to the temple, it was quite spectacular. The temple sits upon a distinctive peak and supports a community of souvenir vendors and restaurants. Entry to the temple is via an exhausting 300-step stairway lined with two elongated nagas (protective serpents). There is also a funicular rail. The centrepiece of Wat Pratat Doi Suithep is the magnificent gilded chedi and a peaceful courtyard.
A 20-minute ride farther up the mountain will take you to the Phuping Winter Palace, which is a popular residence for the current Royal family. We went to the palace and ended up being caught in the storm. It was a warm-up to the Songkran Festival.

Chiang Mai 08 Apr to 12 Apr 09

Hmmm... except for accommodation, nothing has been planned for the trip that starts in 7hrs...
Not a good sign but we'll go where the wind brings us.
To some wat(temple) for sure

Am I Clever Or What ...!!

For next week's Chiang Mai trip, I made reservations at Dusit D2 resort more than a month ago.
Early this week, went into their website and saw that they have a better promotion, with free lunches and free fisherman's pants thrown in as part of the package & at a LOWER price.....

dusitD2 chiang mai

dusit songkran splash 2009

package includes:

• 2 nights accommodation
• daily delight box
• daily buffet breakfast for up to 2 persons
• a delightful “after- splash set lunch – world cuisine” for up to 2 persons at moxie restaurant (once during your stay)
• welcome “red bull energy mocktail” drink
• songkran fisherman pants (for all stays between 11-15 april)

Terms & Conditions :

3 days/ 2 nights from thb 6,999++/ per stay
valid date: 1 – 30 april 2009

Called the hotel to change the booking & saved about $200 in total.
Am I clever or am I clever ...

PS: It's the Songkran weekend when we are there ...

BKK - 17 Mar to 19 Mar 09

Will be on the flight to Bangkok this time tomorrow.
Already have a long shopping list, mostly from the supermarket... Silly things like cereal, drinks, cup noodles that are not available in Spore.
Not to mention must go to places like Boots and Watson's, MBK and Siam Paragon ...
Papaya crab salad, tom yum koong, braised pork rice, duck keow tiao, here i come ...

Bit rush but looking forward to it.

Thanks ...

Thanks to Pebbles' "tip off", we are staying at Holiday Inn instead, for half the price ... ...
That leaves us with more money for shopping and eating :)

Bangkok Again

Let's forget Chiang Mai for a little while ... ...
Another impulse trip to Bangkok, booked this morning, 3D2N for a little shopping and lots of makaning, can't wait ...

Likely will stay at Grand Centara @ CentralWorld again, just like the last time

Chiang Mai Part 2

Finally got confirmed tickets to Chiang Mai, after been put on waitlist for a week.
Now have to decide on the hotel...
The Chedi or D2

Hmmmm.....

Chiang Mai

Trying to plan an overdue trip to Chiang Mai.
Chiang Mai (Thai: เชียงใหม่ (help·info);IPA: [tɕʰɪɑŋ mɑ̀i], Lanna (local): เจียงใหม่;IPA: [tɕɪɑŋ mɑ̀i] ), also sometimes written as "Chiengmai", is the largest and most culturally significant city in northern Thailand, and is the capital of Chiang Mai Province. It is located some 700 km (435 mi) north of Bangkok, among some of the highest mountains in the country. The city stands on the Ping river, a major tributary of the Chao Phraya river.

Will like to stay in this beautiful hotel, The Chedi, but damn expensive leh...
How? How?

Fisherboats

It was a raining trip and we were drenched a couple of times while on the bike but an afternoon trip to nowhere ended with these pictures.
We saw fisherboats coming back to the jetty with their day's catch. I've not seen so much seafood in one place in my life, not even in the wet markets here. There were baskets and baskets of different fishes. I saw crabs, longustines, shellfish, plentiful squids and many many fishes that I don't know by name.
And they were like a production line, very systematic, well-organized and lightning speed in sorting out the different species, different sizes and the good and bad. They then put the fishes in crashed ice in different baskets and stored in a secret compartment under the board of the boat, to be sold, I suppose.

The production line ran like clockwork, all done by boys no older than 15.
I was impressed ... and seeing this made that day trip worth it.

Hua Hin 24 - 27 Oct 2008

Our flight departed at 830am and we finally arrived at Anatara Hua Hin at about 2pm.
Unfortunately, our room was not ready, we only managed to check in after an hour's wait.
Above are pictures of the resort and our room.

Frankly, I'll say the brand is overhyped and overpriced.
Nice environment, nice facade and facilities but let-downed by the service.
Personally, I feel that the service could be much better, in terms of attentiveness of the staff and the attention to details.

There are many boutique resorts in Hua Hin, for a fraction of the price, will give you the same memorable experience ...

Stay tune for more on the trip itself ...

more photos from our last visit to HH

the difference between branded 5 star hotel and a cozy resort

1st picture : small cozy resort
2nd picture : Hilton Hua Hin

By This Time Next Week ...

By this time next week, we should be enjoying mojitos at the poolside bar in Anantara Hua Hin ... ...

This will be our 3rd trip to Hua Hin but 1st time in an Anantara resort. http://www.anantara.com

Hua Hin (Thai หัวหิน) is a famous beach resort town in Thailand, in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula, some 200 km south of Bangkok. It has a population of 84,883 in an area of 911 km², and is one of eight districts (Amphoe) of the Prachuap Khiri Khan province.

Hua Hin is closely associated with the Thai royalty. Merely 25 kilometers apart, Hua Hin in Prachuap Khiri Khan province enjoys a wealth of satellite attractions; prominent among them are national parks and historical cities.

Hua Hin Town (เทศบาลเมืองหัวหิน) is on the coast of Hua Hin District. With an area around 86.36 km², the town has 50,169 inhabitants. It is a popular beach resort getaway for Bangkok residents. The Railway Hotel, now more generally known as The Sofitel Hotel, is a famous old building which was used as The Hotel Pnom Phen in the film "The Killing Fields".

The district to the north is Cha Am. The district to the south is Amphoe Pran Buri.
Anantara Resort is actually nearer to Cha Am than Hua Hin

CAN'T WAIT ...