Journey to the World

Isan

Articles filed under Isan (Ascending Order)

Trekking In Khao Yai National Park And To Khorat

Filed under: Isan, Trekking, Travel Journal 2007, East Thailand, Waterfalls, Birds, Khorat (Nak, Natual Reservation, Khao yai | 852 views | By Amir.W עברית

14 01 2007

טרקינג בשמורת קאו יאי ונסיעה לקוראט~Trekking In Khao Yai National Park And To Khorat

January 14, 2007

Khao Yai National Park. We went on a truck for a full day trekking in the rain forests of Khao Yai. The ride starts early in the morning inside an open pickup truck so it’s very cold. You must bring a long sleeved shirt. It’s also very cold in the evening. During the day the weather gets hot.

The tour in the reservation was nice, but I was expecting something completely different. After a couple of hours walking in the park I already canceled my plans for staying another day. The rain forests, and I emphasize on the forests, are not the known jungles as you might have seen in Africa or in the movies. No jungles and no animals.

Trekking in Khao Yai

The forests are made of huge trees going up high to twenty to thirty meters. The trek goes through the wild bush, but it reminded me of the Israeli forests which are not the jungle-type at all. I’ve seen enough of these. The park itself is huge so you have to drive on the road which goes threw it. From time to time the guide stops the truck when he spots some animal on one of the trees. We spotted a couple of hornbills (birds), one huge squirrel, a couple of more birds and one or two monkeys on the trees.

Horse Washing, Phimai Temples And A Night Train

Filed under: Isan, Travel Journal 2007, East Thailand, Temples, Horses, Elephants, Phimai, Khorat (Nak, Night Train, Thailand | 921 views | By Amir.W עברית

15 01 2007

רחיצת סוסים, מקדשי פימאי ורכבת לילה אחת~Horse Washing, Phimai Temples And A Night Train

Janurary 15, 2007

I woke up in the morning and remembered I have to go through the bank. $300 USD in travelers checks transfered to a couple of thousands bahts. The nice tuktuk driver (30 baht) waited patiently outside the bank until I came out and took me back to the hotel. On the same street where the hotel is located there are a couple of monuments so I went checking them by foot. I checked out from the hotel and left my large bag at the reception.

Khorat is a large city with a lot of traffic. The number of cars in comparison to Kanchanaburi is high. Despite of this I tried looking for an automatic motorcycle. Unfortunately I found out that in the entire city you cannot find a single automatic motorcycle. The attempts to explain to me how to operate the manual gear didn’t help so much. A city with so much traffic along with a two days experience of riding motorcycles on the road, not to mention it’s on the left side, are not a good recipe to learn something new. Perhaps at a later time.

Crossing To Laos And A Vientiane Tour

Filed under: Motorcycle, Isan, Vientiane, Travel Journal 2007, Laos, East Thailand, Border Crossing, Nong Khai, Markets, Thailand | 1,088 views | By Amir.W עברית

16 01 2007

מעבר גבול ללאוס וסיור בעיר הבירה ויאנטיאן~Crossing To Laos And A Vientiane Tour

January 16, 2007

It’s 6:15 AM. Outside the train station in Nong Khai is still dark and curious tuktuk drivers still observe what I do. You can count the number of tourists on one hand. I went outside where a few more drivers sat near the fire. I paid 50 baht for a tuktuk to the border, a ten minutes drive. On the way the driver stops in the Visa Service + Bus which I already heard of as a scam. The bus fee, including help for filling the Visa forms, is 2000 baht which includes also the Visa itself. I politely refused to the offer. Before we went on the girl in the agency gave me a tip to pay in dollars and not in baht because of the low conversion rate ($31 USD vs 1500 baht). It’s a little before 7:00 AM and I’m already in the Thailand - Laos border. The exit from Thailand goes without a problem and I go on the local bus that cross the friendship bridge which separates Thailand and Laos. You are not allowed to walk there by foot.

Crossing the border to Laos

The Laos border is located at the other side of the bridge. The place is completely empty, only two German tourists are waiting for the Visa approval. Those who don’t have a Visa have to approach a small windows, open it and hand the clerk 1500 baht or $31 USD. I gave him $35 USD, my passport and a passport photo. I was then told to wait.