The Beggars of Bangkok

Child Begging, Bangkok, Thailand, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

There seems to have been an increase in the number of beggars in Bangkok just lately. The tourist high season is approaching and I am sure there are now more on the streets.

There are different categories of beggar. There are the disabled, some of whom have really grotesque injuries caused by fire, leprosy or other causes. Some have lost their limbs and these are probably refugees from Cambodia. The infirm receive money from tourists and Thais alike, but be careful as they are not always what they seem. I have seen an apparent armless man begging with a cup in his mouth get up and move aware revealing a pair of perfectly functioning arms!

There are women with babies and very young children most of whom must be drugged because they all appear lifeless. These almost always part of an organised crime syndicate aimed at extracting money from the tourists. They are also unlikely to be Thai but Burmese or Cambodian.

There are children begging alone such as this little chap, sometimes they sit with a puppy in an attempt to extract even more sympathy and of course money. They are also at the mercy of unscrupulous operators or even parents. I have sometimes seen them with mobile phones obviously in touch with their minders.

Then there are the genuine homeless or mentally disturbed people who can usually be recognised because they are so filthy. These too arouse my sympathy.

If you are in Bangkok you will have to make your own mind up as to who receives your charity, but I for one will not give money as a reward for exploiting children.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

#3 for interestingness on Flickr

The Classic Thailand Photo - Phi Phi Don Island, Thailand, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

According to Flickr, this is the 3rd most interesting photo in my collection. Personally I like this photo as for me it epitomises Thailand as a holiday destination. This is taken on Phi Phi Don Island in a particularly beautiful spot. Most people do not see this part of Phi Phi as it is on the north east corner of the island and there are only 3 hotels there. It is very quiet and peaceful.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

Bangkok Monsoon Season

Bangkok Monsoon Season, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

It is the end of the monsoon season and sunshine and blue skies are now with us. It has been a pretty dry monsoon season at least in Bangkok. Other areas have not fared quite so well. Last week, Koh Samui was getting drenched to the extent that over 1000 tourists got stuck there as all flights were cancelled due to the inclement weather.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

Shwedagon Pagoda, Rangoon(Yangon), Burma (Myanmar)

Shwedagon Pagoda, Rangoon(Yangom), Burma (Myanmar), originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

Buma (Myanmar) has been in the news again recently due to the democracy protests there. The monks started it all and this picture is of the famous Shwedagon Pagoda in Rangoon (Yangon). The pagoda is truly amazing and I took many photos while I was there. This photo (although in my opinion not the best photo I have of the pagoda) received more hits on FLICKR than any other photo.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

TIme to reflect

This photo is taken in Hanoi Vietnam. The lake is Hoan Kiem which translated means Lake of the Returned Sword and is named after a local myth. I recently read that the lake is only about one and a half metres deep but there is a layer of 5 to 6 metres of toxic sludge on the bottom. Efforts are underway to clean the lake up which reportedly holds a giant 200 kg turtle.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

Sleeping in Hanoi

We were recently in Hanoi again and I spotted this woman in the vegetable market fast asleep. Even the flash going in did not arouse her but then again I guess she had been up early to the wholesale market. We once arrived back in Hanoi by train at something like 5am in the morning and saw the wholesale market. It was incredibly busy, with people running around everywhere buying vegetables presumably for sale in the local markets.

See more photos and travel stories at http://kevinhellon.googlepages.com

#1 for interestingness in FLICKR

FLICKR is a photo sharing site where I keep all my photos. The site has an algorithm that measures your photos in terms of "interestingness". Exactly how this works is a mystery to all but the boffin at FLICKR who developed it. "Interestingness" is another one of those words concocted by our American cousins who seem to have a great propensity for making up words. However, that is another story.
I have decided to post some of my most interesting photos here. This one is, and has been for some time, my most interesting photo according to FLICKR. It has appeared at one time or another as one of FLICKR's top 500 most interesting photos for the day that it was loaded. Hope you like it. It was taken near Mui Ne in Vietnam although it looks more like it was taken in the Sahara Desert! If you look carefully, you can see some people standing on the dune to the right.

CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO SEE AN ENLARGED VERSION

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hellon_earth/

The Dangers of the Monsoon Season

This photo was taken in July during the south west monsoon that affects Thailand during this period. Signs and red flags indicate that it is not safe to swim during this time but you can see that people still ignore the warnings. In the week that this photo was taken at least 4 people drowned on Phuket - 2 on Patong Beach, 1 on Bang Tao Beach and 1 on Nai Harn Beach. PLEASE heed the warnings if you go to Phuket during this period.

Floating Market, Thailand

Floating Market, Thailand, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

We recently visited the floating market which is probably in the top 5 tourist spots for visitors to Thailand. This is the first time we have been in all the time we have spent in Thailand.. This time of year is good for fruits which tend to be a little more exotic than the fruits found in Europe. This picture is typical of the floating market. The fruits are from front to back Jackfruit, Mangosteens, Dragonfruit and Lychees. On the boat at the side there are also some Longans and some Rose Apples. There are more such as Durian, Mango and Rambutan, all of which are dleicious.

TIT (This is Thailand)

This perhaps does not seem like a very interesting photo. However, look at the traffic lights and you will see that the green arrow is on green for traffic to proceed.... but so is the pedestrian sign! This is Thailand!

Long Tailed Boats and the Kongs

One of our recommended trips for visitors to Bangkok is to take a boat around the klongs (canals) of Bangkok. This gives a fascinating insight into local life in Bangkok. The fact that people live alongside, on and in these klongs offers some fascinating sights. The trip usually starts on the Chao Phraya river vith a visit to Wat Arun ( The Temple of Dawn) and then you head of down the klongs in a long tailed boat which traditionally have there prows adorned with (now mostly plastic) garlands. These boats normally have huge, unenclosed V8 engines with a long propeller attached (hence the name long tailed!) and they are capable of blasting along the river at tremendous speeds. Fortunately, they tend to go rather slower around the klongs. Unless you pursuade the driver otherwise, you will generally get to see various “sights” such as a snake farm, fish feeding floating vendors etc. Whatever, it is a trip worth doing.

The Colourful Bangkok Taxi

 

The Bangkok taxi has become very colourful and can now be found in blue, red, yellow, green, bronze, purple and pink like this one. At one time, they seemed to be either red and blue or green and yellow but now they have turned to these much brighter colours. Unfortunately, it does not make them go any faster in the Bangkok traffic. To do that, you need to risk life and limb on a motorcycle taxi!

The Love Circle

 

I saw this pair of dragonflies seemingly having a lot of fun and while I wasn't quite sure as to what they were doing, I had my suspicions. A little bit of research on the internet revealed that they were indeed indulging in a little bit of copulation. It seems that this little position is known as a "mating wheel". The male attaches the end of his abdomen to a fixture at the back of his mate's head while the femail attaches her genitalia to the male's member. If dragonflies are at all romantic, I am sure that they would refer to this as a "love circle" instead of a "mating wheel"

 

We spotted this sign in Kuantan, Malaysia last year whilst on holiday. In actual fact, we found Kuantan to be only slightly more welcoming than this sign!

 

Often seen in Thailand is the Bodhi tree decorated with pieces of coloured cloth. These trees are sacred in the Buddhist culture and symbolically represent the environment where Buddha gave his sermons and eventually lay down to die. They are often found in the grounds of temples and are revered by the Thais who bring offerings in the hope of receiving good luck.

Interesting Bars - The Volk Bar, Bangkok

Volk Bar, Bangkok, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

There are mnay interesting bars in Bangkok for a variety of reasons. This one is very much a novelty bar that can be found in Sukhumvit Soi 7. It is known as the Volk bar for obvious reasons and the sticker on the door claims that it was established in 1999. As you can see the bar has a few bar stools but also a number of tables on the pavement. It makes for an interesting photo but it is hardly a bar where you would spend the evening.

It actually seems to be not such a bad idea to list my favourite bars in here so I may well add other "interesting bars" to the blog although I tend not to have photographs as I do not take my rather large camera out with me in the evenings as a general rule.

I guess this is number 1 in the series then. Number 2 coming up tomorrow.

 

Summer has arrived in Bangkok. This seems a little strange as it more or less seems like summer all year round to me as the temperature rarely drops below 20 degrees centigrade and that is at night! However, Summer in Thailand means remorseless heat with temperatures topping 40 degrees C and with humidity to match. The heat arrives with a vengeance in March and gets hotter into April before the onset of the rainy season.

The rainy season lasts until October during which time it can rain every day especially in the afternoons. On the other hand, it may not rain for a couple of months at all during this period. The chances are that there will be some spectacular thunderstorms and almost certainly flash floods during this time. The rains in the north of Thailand gradually swell Bangkok's main river the Chao Phraya until by November it is often the case that the river banks are being propped up by sandbags and parts of Chinatown are under water. Flood prevention measures such as damming the river have been put into place but this has only alleviated the problem and not cured it as the authorities eventually have to open the dam gates in any case.

This photo is, as you may have guessed, not Bangkok but is taken in Phuket during the rainy season. A heavy storm rolled in across the Andaman sea and dumped its load. As luck would have it, it was lunch time so we ate lunch, by which time the sun had reappeared and we were able to continue our stroll along the beach in beautiful sunshine.

Backpackers in Bangkok

 

Anyone who has spent time as a backpacker in Bangkok will instantly recognise this location as the Khao San Road which is home to many a backpacker in Bangkok. We recently spent a very hot Sunday afternoon sat drinking beer in a cafe on the Khao San Road watching all the weird and wonderful individuals troop up and down. I have to say that it never ceases to amaze us how many people both young and not so young resort to this method of touring the world. I am sure some of them really do get to see the world but it often looks like they are just trudging from place to place spending all their time trying to find a cheap place to stay.

We are just glad we are not backpackers.

 

Chinatown in Bangkok has been around for about 200 years. It is quite a big area and is always busy with buyers and sellers of just about anything you can think of. Different parts of CHinatown sell different things and there are several markets. Sampeng Lane is a "walking street" meaning that there is no traffic but in reality this means not very much traffic as you still get the odd motorbike or scooter winding its way down the lane not to mention all the food, fruit and ice cream sellers pushing their carts. A glance at this photo gives a good idea of how busy and crowded this very narrow lane is. At times, there are so many people going in each direction that the flow literally comes to halt. Unfortunately, this is a haven for opportunistic pickpockets so it is best to hold on toght to your wallet!

All good things come to an end

 

All good things come to an end. So was the case on a recent holiday to Phuket. We never tire of Phuket as it has so much to offer and these days the infrastructure has improved so much. Some people hark back to the days when Phuket was a virtually unknown tropical island. So much has changed and personally, the thought of being all alone on a tropical island sounds just wonderful - for a day. For a holiday though, I prefer to have my comforts and a certain amount of commercialism. Phuket is thriving and is just as beautiful as it ever was with one or two exceptions. This photo was taken on Bang Tao beach which is just 5 minutes from our villa. It was at the end of a beautiful day which, like all good things inclding our holiday, was coming to an end.

Bangkok Street and T.I.T.

Bangkok Street, originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

Expatriates in Thailand have an expression which is very frequently used to quell certain exasperations about the way that Thailand works. It is T.I.T. or This Is Thailand. It is used on all manner of occasions and this photograph represents a case when it can be used with all sincerity.
This is really a case of wonderful planning. These stairs belong to a bridge so that you can cross the road safely. But as you can see thay have been built with barely any room to pass. I guess most Thais are small enough to fit through the small gap but it is tight. You cannot walk around because of the barrier. Not sure which came first - the stairs or the barrier but it really took some great planning!

Dressed to Kill in Munich

Munich is a wealthy place even for Germany as can be confirmed by strolling around in the area of the Maximilianstrasse on a Saturday. Here the shops are full of handbags, shoes and lots of other designer stuff at astronomical prices. The jewellers keep their doors locked but open them on request greeting their customers like long lost friends which is hardly surprising considering the price of some of the jewellery. Of course, the clientele of these shops and a couple of cafes in the area are something to behold as they parade around the streets flaunting their latest purchases. I have to say that I have never, ever seen so many fur coats in one place at one time. As for me, I went to C & A's and bought a pullover to help stave off the cold for 12 Euros. As my wife, Ann will tell anyone that cares to listen, I am a one of a dying breed of great spenders.

Prehistoric monster discovered in Bangkok!

 

Well not really, but this thing looks pretty scary. In truth there are several of these monitor lizards around in Lumpini Park, Bangkok. This one was licking his lips having just devoured a fish it had caught. We saw about three of these on the same day as we walked through the park. We have also seen then in Malaysia and on the Indonesian island of Bintam. 

Halong Bay, Vietnam

Halong Bay tucked up on the north east coast of Vietnam and about 3 hours drive from Hanoi is recognised as a World Heritage site due to its landscape and geological features. We took a 3 day cruise on a junk through this wonderfully scenic area. The 17 people on board spanned quite a mix of nationalities - 2 English, 3 French, 1 Finn, 1 Portuguese, 1 South African, 2 Americans, 2 Irish, 2 Indian, 2 Spanish and 1 Peruvian of English descent so made for some interesting conversations. Food on board was superb and we had a surfeit of prawns, crab and fish. We had a very lazy 3 days cruising around some of the almost 2000 islands and outcrops, occasionally stopping for a swim or a bit of site seeing at a fishing village or cave. It was quite a contrast from the noise, hustle and bustle of Hanoi and we enjoyed it immensely. The scenery is quite wonderful and this is a trip we would recomend.

Hanoi - Markets

One of the things I find fascinating about Asia are the markets. Wherever I go, I find myself wandering around the markets taking lots of photographs. They are all so noisy, busy colourful and full of life. They are also frequented and inhabited by many characters. Hanoi has several markets selling all manner of exotic fruits, vegetables, spices, fish and meats - I say meats because in Hanoi apart from the usual meats including live chickens, pigs trotters and the like there is also dog. I guess it is the Vietnameses penchant for dog that keeps the srteets clear of strays. Ann commented on the fact that there are so few dogs running around in comparison to Bangkok. It is also true that most of the dogs you do see are of the smaller variety such as Pekinese I guess because they are not worth the bother of cathing and cooking, or maybe they just dont taste good! Mmmmm, food for thought but in my case not for the dinner table.

Hanoi - Motorbike Madness

Have you ever tried crossing the street in Hanoi? It is truly an experience as there are thousands of cyclists and motor cyclists and they just keep on coming. There hardly ever seems to be a pause in their numbers so one has to quickly adapt to the local method of strolling across the road, letting the bikes avoid you. It is rather scary to say the least and requires a large degree of faith to venture across the road. Forget about traffic lights, Pelican crossings and one way streets as effectively there is no such thing in Hanoi. Sure they are there but hardly anyone on a bike takes any notice. The technique is to walk slowly and determinedly across the road watching closely for the subtle changes of direction that each bike makes to indicate that it is going to pass either in front of you (in which case you slow down slightly) or behind you (in which case you speed up slightly). It is not for the faint hearted especially on the busiest and widest of streets but at least I still live to tell the tale!

Feeding the Flock

Feeding the Flock
Originally uploaded by HellonEarth2006.

We wandered around Bangkok this weekend taking it easy. Ann wanted to buy some material so we went to Chinatown which is always an interesting experience. Sampeng Lane is a very narrow thoroughfare jam packed with shops and vendors of all descriptions. Shoes, jewellery, food, clothes, material etc all jostle for our attention as we picked our way through the mainly Thai hordes. This is in fact just a small part of Chinatown as there are different areas all specialising in the sale of various articles and each area has its own fascination. For me, Chinatown is a microcosm of Bangkok as, like Bangkok, it never ceases to amaze me that we keep finding different areas of interest. From Chinatown we walked up to Khao San Road which is backpacker territory. There is also a market selling mainly clothes and it is a good area to stop and have a beer or two, so not wanting to miss such a good opportunity we did just that. We passed these two monks on the way feeding their flock which made for an interesting photograph not to mention title!

Weekend in Phuket 23 - 26/9/06

2 days holiday enabled us to have a 4 day weekend at our villa in Phuket. We flew late Friday night and went directly to the Black Cat, a restaurant owned by a Frenchman which has already become a favourite. It serves food until midnight and so is very convenient as we arrived at 11:30pm. Being the rainy season, we didn't expect much in the way of weather but is was a mix of sunshine and downpours so not bad at all. We invited 3 of our new neighbours over for drinks Saturday and had a very interesting evening. Sandy is a Scot and a typical one at that while the other couple were an extremely fit octagenarian Dickie and his wife Mary. An absolutely fascinating couple who have been all over the world and have just decided to up sticks from Spain and move to Thailand. As an ex WW2 RAF fighter pilot, I guess the world holds no fears for Dickie (would you believe Richard Richards is his name!). We guess they had a good evening too as they arrived at 7pm and didnt leave until 1am when Mary (who reminded both Ann and I of the Queen), Dickie and Sandy swayed home. We flew home Tuesday evening to the spectacular new Suvarnabhumi (pronounced Suwanapoom) airport which didnt officially open until 2 days later.

Coup D'etat - Bangkok

Breaking news on the TV yesterday evening announced a Coup D'Etat was in progress in Bangkok. This seemed a little strange as we were sat in the heart of Bangkok totally unaware of these events. Next morning I prepared for work but my driver didnt turn up and after a quick phone call I heard that the company was closed. From our 28th floor apartment the view was the same and everything looked calm. There was something missing however - the traffic. It was unusally quiet on both the normally busy road close to our apartment and on the highway which we can see in the distance. Both CNN and BBC News have been blocked so we do not know what is exactly going on at this moment. We just hope that everything remains peaceful.

Beautiful Bodensee

A sunny weekend in prospect and a visit from the Pope to Munich (Who was who said that the sun shines on the righteous?) was all the incentive required to hire a car with the intention of visiting the Bodensee or Lake Konstanz as it is otherwise known. We had visited during the Winter on an absolutely freezing weekend but wanted to see the area in it's Summer glory. We were in Lindau, a lovely town built on an island in the lake and connected by a short causeway, by 10:30 a.m. Lindau, like many towns in the region has a stunningly painted Town Hall. After a pleasant couple of hours we moved on to Meersburg where we had intended to stay the night. It was the Wine Festival weekend however and we couldnt even find somewhere to park let alone a hotel room. We tried the town further down the lake but in the end took flight to Ravensburg some 25kms away where we easily found a comfortable room. We actually had a very pleasant evening there as we found a Mexican bar and retaurant serving very good Fajitas. Sunday and we drove back to Meersburg early before the crowds descended. Meersburg is a lovely place but it was a lttle busy and our visit was tinged with regret that we hadn't been aware of the Wine Festival so could have booked in advance. But, on the other hand, I didn't regret the hangover I didn't have! We vowed to return again at some time in the future and then headed north through the vineyards and orchards, for which the region is famous until we reached Ulm. Ulm is quite a large city with a huge cathedral currently undergoing renovation. Other than that, the beautifully painted Town Hall and a small area around by the river, there was not much to recommend Ulm which I suspect was a victime of the Allied bombing during the second World War. Two hours drive from Ulm and we were back in Munich having had a great weekend. I hope the Pope enjoyed his weekend as much!

Dachau for the day

 
2nd of September and alone in Munich I decided to go to Dachau on a guided tour. It proved to be very interesting, dispelling my previously held idea that Dachau was one of the death camps. It is true that many people died there - around 30,000 but it was not one of the mass extermination camps such as Auschwitz. Opened in 1933, it housed mnay of Hitler's political opponents at first and then others, such as the Jews from Krystalnacht, who didn't exactly fit into Hitler's scheme of things. I endedx the day in good spirits thanks to a 5-0 for England. 

The Wedding Season

 
25th August and I was off to the UK for a wedding the following day at Knowsley Hall, a beautiful country house. It was the wedding of Ann's niece Laura and a black tie affair. My 2 daughters Katie and Natalie were bridesmaids and looked stunning (I don't care if I am biased as I was told the same thing by many other people too!). All went well and I returned to Munich late on Sunday evening. It must be the wedding season as we were invited to 3 weddings in August and the daughter of a good friend of ours also got married. Unfortunately this was the only one that we could make.