Goodbye Bangkok (for now)...

Well our time in Bangkok has come to an end we've had an amazing time. It's very hot and humid... There was a massive storm yesterday afternoon with monsoon rains and the loudest thunder we've ever heard.

The kids are having the time of their lives: cooking classes, soap making classes, etching classes and playing with the resident bunny rabbits! A little sanity in the madness of Bangkok. Outside the B&B we've seen buddhas and temples galore, been on crazy tuk tuk rides, boated through the Bankok canals and yesterday the kids had 'fish pedicures' where little fish nibble the dead skin off your feet. Gross!!!

For anyone heading to Bangkok here are a few tips:
1. Get Nancy Chandler's Map of Bangkok (thanks Rob and Leisha for this tip). Great map.
2. Use the river taxis as much as possible. Only 15 baht - and this gets you out of the crazy traffic.
3. Take a canal tour - great way to see how people live.
4. Eat food from the street vendors. We have every day with no repurcussions!
5. Long pants and shoulder coverings are a must for the temples!
6. Don't trust tuk tuk drivers when they offer 'cheap' tours. Agree on price before you go anywhere.

We're heading down to Southern Thailand tonight. Overnight bus trip then 2 ferries to the island of Koh Phangan. Looking forward to some beach time.

Lily: I really liked Bangkok. I bet it's going to be my favourite place, but I don't know. We went to a night market, rode on lots of ferries, and went to climb a big tall temple. I even had a try at Thai boxing. Inside of one big temple called Wat Po there was a big gold buddha laying down. I wasn't even as tall as one foot! In the temple our shoulders and knees had to be covered. We also went in 3 tuk tuks and one of them was a crazy driver. He went around cars really fast in the wrong direction. Mommy was very scared! Daddy's tuk tuk driver had to go to the police station because he got caught going the wrong way up a one way street because he was trying to avoid a traffic jam. Our hotel has a sandpit, a swing, a massage room, an activity room and a rooftop patio with 17 bunnies. I got to go in their cage and feed them. I also got to help fix an injured bunny. Everyday we did some cool stuff, like make soap, make stamps and do a cooking class. We made pasta from scratch. It tasted like the yummiest thing I've ever had. The staff here are really nice. I spent a lot of time with them. Their names were a little different like Sai, Fon and Bow. They treated us like family. I'm sad that we have to leave but we'll hopefully come back again soon.

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Ella: Bangkok is probably going to be my favorite of all the cities. It was so cool how the buddhas were so humungous. The temples were so big and one of the ones that we climbed was probably 1,000 times taller than me. We climbed up some stone stairs that were as steep as the ladder we use to hang the Mexican Flag on the cabin. It was scary and if you looked down your tummy would feel weird!! The favourite thing that I did was a fish pedicure at a market and it tickled so much when they went in between your toes and on the bottom of your feet. Afterwards my feet felt so smooth it was amazing. The food at our hotel was really yummy. I loved it. I ate pancakes and salad for breakfast. I can't even say how delicious the smoothies were. I loved riding on the tuk tuks (it's kind of like a car with only 3 wheels, no walls, 1 seat at the front and 5 people can jam into the back row - which is designed for 3 people). We had the craziest tuk tuk driver that nearly hit 3 people, 2 cars, 1 bus and another tuk tuk. Mama looked as though she was going to have a heart attack!! Krap Kun Ka Bangkok! This means 'Thank you Bangkok'.

Isaac: I really loved Bangkok. It had everything! Our hotel was amazing - it's not like anything I've ever stayed in before. On the outside it looked very rickety, but inside it was a very nice place to stay. The staff were very helpful and easy going. They taught us how to cook some different types of food, how to do etching (I made my own stamp to keep) and how to make soap. Bangkok is less modern than Guangzhou but I think I liked it more. I loved that when we went to the river there were millions of fish, and we could feed them bread, and they went crazy trying to get it. The best thing that I did in Bangkok was the fish pedicure. This is where you put your feet in some water full of sucker fish and they eat all of your dead skin - it felt really ticklish, but my feet felt really good at the end. I loved eating the Pad Thai from  the street vendors. If anyone is coming to Bangkok I would recommend staying at Phranakorn Nornlen. It has lots of transportation close by (ferry, tuk tuk etc). The staff are amazing and the food is delicious.