junglesis

[junglesis]

Swinging with the monkeys in Thailand

Read the full post with videos and pictures at: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/junglesis

We spend a couple of days earlier in the week walking THROUGH the jungle. Why not climb up into the trees - and try a different way to see things?

We had a terrific time spending about 3 hours ZIP-LINING through the jungle trees in Northern Thailand. This particular forest also has Gibbon monkeys. The organizers are careful to let you know it is the home of Gibbon monkeys, but downplay it - knowing that you might be lucky to catch a glimpse of a monkey or perhaps see them in the distance swinging through trees.

We were just a little more lucky!

Half way through our treetop journey, a small male decided he wanted to come and check us out. Our guide encouraged us to move on, as they can sometimes be a little aggressive. But we held our ground - and he decided to come and check us out. Here is a video of him approaching us - and some pictures of the small monkey and our tree top journey.

Below you will find:

1. A video of Meredith and Sophie Zip-lining

2. A video of the the monkey approaching us

3. More pictures of the monkey and zip-lining.

And the video of the monkey

[junglesis]

Eating Tasty Bugs in Thailand

Read more at: https://junglesis.tumblr.com and see the VIDEO of our experience!

My job is to share the local cultures with my nieces and nephews when we take our Uncle Rick trips. 

We are in Thailand. And that means tasting not only the great curries and Thai dishes - but also experiencing the great exotics fruits like durian and rambutan - as well as other local delicacies. Like fried bugs.

And so, while visiting a local market, and when we came upon a this sight - we had to dig in. Meredith had heard about this - and was probably a little prepared to want to try it and say she did it. But can you really be completely ready to try an assortment of bugs?

I purchased a bag of assorted fried insects, and Meredith and I sat down on a nearby step and did a tasting. Below are pictures - and the last is a VIDEO of the tasting! 

By the time we were done, we were both going back for seconds! Tasty. Crispy. With a little tang. You just have to get past the texture. And be sure to do a teeth check with your bug partner - to be sure no legs got stuck in your teeth! :-)

[junglesis]

Jungle Trekking and a bath with a few friends

For two days, we had a chance to go with a guide into the jungles of northern Thailand. We found waterfalls, and a few friends to bath with in the river...

(Nieces Meredith and Sophia with a few friends in the river).

[junglesis]

Food explorations and cooking in Chang Mai, Thailand

DAY 2 / Chang Mai, Thailand 

Read more at: https://junglesis.tumblr.com

After our introducing the Meredith and Sophia to Thailand by spending a day in the big city of Bangkok, it was time to head north to the jungle area. Chang Mai is surrounded by mountains, nature and hill people. 

Our first couple of night are being spend in a “art hotel” - where the rooms are themed by different periods of art for each floor. The girls were excited to get a room on the Pop Art floor. Their room is called “Love is Everywhere” - very appropriate for two sisters who love each other so. (See the first picture below).

I was appropriated to the “abstract art floor” with colors of red, black and abstract art above the bed.

The swimming pool atop the hotel offers a great respite to long days of trekking and temple viewing.

For our first evening, we thought it was time to explore the tastes of northern Thailand. What better way then to join a cooking class. The first part of the experience took us to the local market, where our guide walked us through the various fruits and vegetables we would be using in our Thai meals for the night.

WHILE AT THE MARKET, we found the famous Durian fruit, which would later create a tasting experience for the girls (see the earlier Tumblr post to read all about it). 

Once we picked up fresh fruits and vegetables, we headed to the cooking school. The evening itself was part social - part cooking less - and a lot of eating. We cooked 5 courses, and would stop to eat a few things and return to the kitchen to cook more. I

But our first steps were to learn the ingredients - and begin chopping.

The evening was fun - and we ended up turning out some pretty good versions of local Thai food!

AFTER OUR FOUR HOURS of cooking and eating, we decided that we were not done with food experience in Chang Mai. Another foodie in our group told us about a restaurant nearby that was featured in Anthony Bourdain’s trip to Chang Mai. It featured a lady in a cowboy hat and big platters of stewed pork hind legs. Of course we had to try it!

Here are pictures from our stop. Only Jackson (another chap in our group from Austin) and I had room to eat it. If Bourdain ate it, of course we had to eat it!

IF YOU WANT TO WATCH the video of Anthony Bourdain at the same restaurant, here is the link:

All in all, it was a fun and great food night in Thailand.

[junglesis]

Eating the fruit of heaven and hell

DAY 2 // Chang Mai, Thailand // Read the full blog and more at: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/junglesis 

Today, we traveled north to the mountainous and jungle area of Chang Mai in Thailand. We will be spending most of the rest of our trip up here.

We decided to hone our food and cooking skills by joining a food tour and cooking school for the afternoon and evening. 

Our first stop with our small group was to go to the local market and learn about local foods and what it will take to make our evening meal of curries, noodles and the famous mango sticky rice.

Art, our guide took us to the market, and showed us around.

While at the market, I decided it was time to introduce my nieces into the “Durian Club.” I was initiated 30 years ago on my first trip to Asia. And I wanted Sophie and Meredith to experience the same. 

The Durian is referred to as the “fruit of heaven and hell.” When we arrive to our hotel, we had to sign a piece of paper that we agree to two things: 1). That we would not smoke in our hotel room. And 2). That we would not bring an durian into the room.

The fruit comes in a dramatic and recognizable spiked skin. Once inside, there are soft fleshy pods with a large seed to each of the pods. Many Asians, especially in SE Asia are so fond of this fruit that they actually take holidays to special hotels in Malaysia to binge eat the fruit for three days.

Here is the durian we targeted at the market:

Many in our small cooking class had not tasted the durian yet, and so it was a perfect opportunity to bring a new group of tasters into the fold. I had to first ask Art our guide, if I could even bring back some of the fleshy pods with us in the van, due to it’s distinct odor/aroma. He smiled, and invited our group to indulge.

Here is a short video of Sophie and Meredith trying their first bites of Durian

Sophie - way to go! I am proud that you ate it - and even liked it a little.

As Sophie mentioned, the taste is distinct. She mentioned it was a bit like eating a mango that had gone past ripe - and was going bad - but in a good way. When asked, I describe it to friends as eating a custardy fruit that feels a bit like a mix of onion and garlic that is starting to sour and rotten.... 

I will add more pictures in the next post about the evening cooking school.

[junglesis]

ONE NIGHT IN BANGKOK

FRIDAY JULY 28 2017 / Bangkok Thailand

READ THE FULL STORY with many pictures here: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/junglesis

We successfully made the journey to Thailand. Sometimes, it sounds more romantic to travel to Asia, until you realize that it may take you 21 hours on three planes to eventually reach your destination. I think Sofie and Meredith realized how far “half way around the world” really meant.

Halfway there, we stopped over in  Japan, and had a chance to try some Udon at the airport. Thick noodles and various forms of seaweed, tofu and vegetables gave us the chance to practice our noodle slurping!

We reached Bangkok late on Thursday night, and did our best to crawl into bed. At midnight, while traveling from the airport to downtown, Bangkok was sleepy and quiet. I knew the girls would see a different story when we woke the next day.

Breakfast at hotels in Asia are a feast. At the good hotels, they do their best to give you a chance to eat either breakfast from your own home country - or to indulge in the morning rituals of another.

I encouraged the girls to perhaps “Go Asian” on the first day. And we, we walked right by the omelette station and the platters of pastries, and went straight to the Thai soup station. Bowls of hot broth, filled with rice noodles, pork meatballs and minced pork, accentuated with bits of greens, fish sauce, scallions and more is the best way to get the system going in the morning!

You get to try an array of fruit and fruit juices from the tropics of SE Asia, including rambutan, one of the fruits I introduced Sophie to during our trip to China town in New York so many years ago.

After breakfast, it was time to explore Bangkok. Temples and Grand palaces are a must - and our first destination. We took a train down to the river, and boarded a long boat that would ferry us upriver on the Chao Phraya. 

We spent the morning see the golds and glimmering of the Thai Grand Palace, and more Buddhas than we could count, from the size of a finger nail to one that is larger than an entire building.

After a morning of site seeing, it was time for some lunch - and our first tastes of green curry, traditional pad thai, papaya salad and tall glasses of lime juice with cane sugar. 

We spent the early afternoon walking through street markets, letting the crowd push us along through bobbles in small alleys. 

In late afternoon, after sight seeing and walking - we did what any tourist does after a long day, hard at it with the tourism. We went to have a spa and massage. It was the first for the girls - an experience I think we will all remember.

For two hours, we were treated to a combination of Thai massage and aroma therapy. During the two hours, you were pulled, pushed and prodded, with stimulating oils, flower teas and cool lemon grass wash cloths. It was a perfect way to refresh before beginning the night.

The sun at set, but a great way to refresh before you head out for a late dinner is to hit the “infinity pool” - set high on the 14th floor, overlooking the city:

After a quick clean up - it was time for us to head out for an interesting dinner opportunity.

We went for a “Dine in the Dark” dinner experience. The meal is hosted in a 100% completely dark environment. The servers and staff are blind - and become your guide for over two hours to eat through 4-5 courses of food. You get to choose whether you want Asian, Western, Vegetarian or a surprise. Plates of food are set in front of you, and you can decided if you want to eat with utensils or with finger. It is a great time to eat with your hands, because of course, no one will ever know!

Sophie is vegetarian, an so she opted for varies of fruits and vegetables. Meredith and I ordered the “surprise us” meal - never knowing if what we would get would have western or Asian influences.

It is an amazing experience to eat without use of your eyes - and to depend upon other senses. 

Our server, blind since his teens, was a a great guide to not only the food, but to share his life and stories about life as a blind person.

We took the last train of the night at midnight back to our hotel and crawled in to bed, satisfied we had given our first day pretty much our all. Tomorrow, we head north, out of the big city of Bangkok, and to the jungle areas of Thailand in Chang Mai.

[junglesis]

July 26 2017

TWO GIRLS ON A PLANE

Read the full entry at: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/junglesis

Sophia and Meredith, ready for their 3-plane / 21 hour trip from Kansas City to Chicago to Tokyo to Bangkok. They are excited now. Let’s see what their opinion is after we have flown over Alaska, Russia and swoop down into Tokyo for a two hour plane change (and most certainly bowls of Japanese curry and udon), and then continuing on to Bangkok, arriving near midnight. This will be an introduction to one of the prices you pay for long distance travel. But oh the excitement!

[junglesis]

I am the proud uncle of SIX very amazing nieces and nephews. Once upon a time, they were little kids. All in Kansas. I remembered being a little kid in Kansas. But one day, I joined the circus - er - Up With People - and left Kansas. Not only one year - but many years. And my life has never been the same. Over the last 30 years, there has scarcely been a year that my life did not include international travel. This has added such a depth to my life. And I wanted to be sure my nieces and nephews not only valued, as did I, the place where they were born. But also knew there were places beyond. Beyond Kansas.

And so, when the oldest of the little nieces and nephews could understand the concept of “going far away” - I made them each a promise. During the summer of their 8th grade year, after junior high school, they could choose any place in the US they wanted to go. And during the summer after their senior year, they could choose any place in the world, and we would make that journey. 

Part of the goal of the promise was to not only take the trip - but to also create the anticipation. And thee expectation that, one day in life - they could go anywhere and do anything.

Flash forward 22 years. 

To date, I have taken 5 of the 6 “anywhere in the US” trips - and have created adventures in Boston, New York, California (x2) and  Hawaii (smart one that one - by asking “Uncle Rick - does anywhere in the US mean anywhere in the Continental US?”).  And some recent years ago, the international trips started, with Jake taking adventure to Northern India (Dehli, Taj and Camel riding in desserts), Haley heading to Peru and the infamous 4 day hike up Machu Piccu, and Megan, off on the “Six countries in 9 days European tour” last summer.

Well - another summer has arrived. And this year, two sisters have teamed up and imagined themselves in the jungles of Thailand. And so, as I write this, we are zooming over Alaska or Russia or somewhere, on our first leg of an 21-hour / 3-plane ride to Thailand. We will land in Bangkok for a couple of days of big city hectic life. But soon enough, we head north to the jungles of Chang Mai, where we will spend days trekking  through the hill country jungles, with stand up rafting, jungle treks, gibbon monkey tree top zip-lining, and of course, spending time with elephants. Not riding - but going to elephant sanctuaries to wash and hang out with elephants. 

And of course, along the way - we will taste Thailand - both with our tongues and figuratively. 

And so - this small little blog will be a place for us to deposit a few pictures and share a little of our journey.

Won’t you come along with us each day on the Uncle Rick journey?

[junglesis]

Getting ready for our trip to Thailand next week!