Going to Bali!

[Kim]

Woo hooo.... we're going to Bali in September!

Going to stay in Bangkok for 3 nights and then 12 nights on Bali.

I know it's not like my 7 month European trip but I have limited vacation days (and funds!) and the moment.

If you've been to Bali or Bangkok and have any advice for me..let's hear it!

Kim

[Jacob]

Bali is great, I have been there four times.  The beaches are great, and the people are some of the friendliest I have met.  Kuda beach is probably my favorite (I am not sure if that is spelled right), It has the biggest waves. There is a really cool reastaurant called Poppies, I think, Make sure to go there.  The satay is great.  Make sure you take a trip inland for at least a day.  There is a great town, I can't remember what it is called, but it starts with a "U".  As for bangkok,  I have been twice.  We didn't stay long, but I remember the night market was a lot of fun.

[Kim]

Hi Jacob,

Glad to hear you like Bali! I'm pretty excited-although it's a hell of a long flight, something like 17 hours from Vancouver to Bali. (Which is why we want to stop in Bangkok)

I think the "U" town you are talking about is Ubud? I've heard good things about it from other people so we will make sure to go to it.

We are going to the travel agent today to put a deposit down. I put my holiday leave sheet in yesterday and I think my boss was shocked I wanted to take just under 3 weeks in a row off.

Kim

[me]

i hear one can get tailor made clothes in bangkok really cheap.  you might should look into that.  

[Kim]

Oh, I am all over that!! ;D

I think I might take a few things to be copied as well as some pictures of things to be made.

Kim

[Lizzi]

Kim,

You must go to La luciola Restuarant at sunset it's in Legion. It is About $70AUD for two (drinks and 3 courses) well worth the spend and you'd be advised to book before you leave.

A beautiful place to stay is a two hour catamaran trip from Nusa Dua - its an island called nusa lembongon (wakanusa resort) you can do a day trip as well.

Ubud is great, stay for a day or two.

Anywhere in Bali you can hire a driver and four wheel drive to tour up in the hills (a must do)approx. $60 AUD for the car and driver (lots of bartering is expected)

Kuta is where the main shopping and partying goes on - very young and full of Aussie boys & girls out for a good time - we like a drink in Aus.

Nusa Dua is the upmarket (more expensive) area.

Legion still has great warungs (Bar and food) it's not as crazy as Kuta.

Dont drink tap water (only bottled inlcluding brushing your teeth), bring something for "Bali Belly" and enjoy the massages - on Kuta Beach you can bargin down to about $8- $10 AUD for an hour - heaven.

Luv this site - am planning a trip to Europe next year.

Cheers
Liz

[Kim]

Thanks so much for the Bali info, Liz!

Can't wait-counting down the days.

Only part I'm not looking forward to is the flight...it's a long one from Canada. 17 hours or so?

Hope we can help with your Europe trip!

Kim

[musicdisciple]

I haven't been yet but friends who should know tell me that Ubud is the place for music. Check out a shadow play while you're there. They are amazing experiences.

[Marie]

I went to Bali last year with a school trip and I know what you mean about the long flight. I was leaving from Montreal and we had to stop in Alaska to fill up on gas all in all we spent about 23 hours in the air! But once you get there it's entirely worth it.

The Kuta beach is amazing and there are a lot of little shops nearby where you can get cool stuff for practicaly nothing even the big names like Roxy and Billabong. Oh and I strongly suggest you get something made of silver. It's internationaly renound to be the best. I bought a bracelet for around 15$ and it makes for a great souvenir! You can visit the factory in Celuk.

The sea temple offers an amazing view (I'm not sure if it's the actual name though)as does the view the Mount Batur volcano.

I just looked up the name of the sea temple in my papers and it's called Tanah Lot temple. There are so many nice places like Tampaksiring and Ubud and Mangwi Taman Ayun,...

As for Bangkok, well a was REALLY sick when I was there so let's just say I don't have the best memories of that city. The Grand palace is a must see for tourists, but one tip your legs have to be covered so many girls wear pareo since they're not as warm as pants. If you do, make sure your pareo doesn't have a fringe. Abunch of us were stoped at the entrance and had to put a second one over ours.

I hope this helps. Have a wonderful trip.

[pam]

hi kim,
i just wanted to say that i was born and raised in bangkok and lived here for 18 years..im here till september 7th (on summer holidays) then im off to france. this is my home and for the past 3 years i have been living in canada because i go to university there:)
if you need any help or have specific questions, pls go ahead and ask me, i'd be more than willing to help!!! otherwise you could just tell me what youre interested in doing and i can give you some pointers and stuff!
ciao...take care!

[Kim]

Pammerz,

I would love some pointers! We only have 3 days in Bangkok and will be seeing the Grand Palace for sure, but what other things would you suggest? We would like to see some sights, do some shopping and have some great food!

Also, I am a vegetarian-could you suggest some Thai dishes that might be good for me?

Thank you!
Kim

[pam]

Hi Kim,
Ill try and help as much as I can ...so here goes:

Thai food is super spicy, but it's damn good! Studying the food/restaurant industry has really made me realize how popular Thai cuisine is! Food in BKK is incredibly cheap, you could get a plate of fried rice for about $1.50CA...that's your low end restaurant.
As for veggie food, it isnt a problem at all b/c almost all thai dishes can be made vegetarian, do you plan on eating oriental food or would ya like to stick to your usual kinda western food?
Some thai favorites would be the tom yum soup, stir fried noodles (mm my favorite) or pad thai which is stir fried rice noodles. the soups/curries are amazing, but they are a bit spicy. you'll have to make sure you tell your server not to put chili in your food! even food at a normal restaurant is sooo cheap. for a nice dinner for two, you'd spend about 15CA.
There is a street about 30 mins away from Bangkok DOWNTOWN called Khao Sarn road. This is where all the backpackers hang out...it's a street with many guest houses and little restaurants/cafes/little stores and shops. Even on a friday night, sometimes in the summer my friends and I go hang out there. It's a lot of fun and everyone there are backpackers and tourists, mostly young people, from around 18-30 years old. Really friendly people from everywhere. I suggest you spend some time there - if you don't intend to find a place to stay there. However, I always end up talking to tourists and they never leave that street while visiting Bangkok because they think that is all bangkok is which is NOT TRUE! They are missing out a huge part of Bangkok if they only hangout in that area...

You should definitely make a visit to the grand palace, it is stunning. Make sure you are not wearing a skirt though and you are wearing capris or pants, or a long skirt/sarong.

One night you should head onto this area called PatPong on Silom road. It is a night market which sells fake copy watches, bags, cds, dvds, etc. You could pick up a new dvd which hasnt' even hit the movies yet for about 6CA. The shopping is good cheap stuff, fake brand name tshirts etc, all look real! The key to shopping in Bangkok is bargaining! If they quote you something for 100 Baht (about 5 CA) you could bargain it down to about 50 Baht!
This area is also BKK's red light district. It's a must see! Little show bars fill the sidewalk...its just something to see! Just make sure you don't get lured into a bar..haha.
You will see a lot of prostitutes and foreign men in this area, so it's really a pick up place. But, its very safe, go there after 7.30 pm, it really starts happening.
The main street is called Sukhumvit - same type of shopping, a tad bit cheaper. These are where nice stores are : Central and Emporium - these are equivalent to your malls.
Getting clothes made is also very cheap, but youll have to pick the fabric with them and show them exactly what you want!
A lot of ppl recommend seeing the floating market, but honestly i find it so sick. its really filthy, bugs and things everywhere, just wasn't a pleasant place.
I really don't know what youre interested in seeing so it's hard to figure out what you can do in 3 days!!!
Just let me know if youre interested in shopping or eating...or tours, etc. That way I can write a more specific post, I hope this helps for now.

[Kim]

Thanks so much, that is great!!

I definately want to eat Thai food-I'm really looking forward to it! The problem with Thai food over here is that you have to go with a group of people to get a good selection as it can add up. I want to try all different things in Bangkok cause it's cheap.

Sukhumvit is where we are staying, the hotel is called the Amari Boulevard. We were supposed to stay at the Amari Atrium but we got our travel agent to switch us as the Atrium looked way the heck out of the way.

So will sandals be OK for the Grand Palace? I will wear a long skirt or capris but I'm not packing too many pairs of shoes.

Definately want to do some shopping. Do you think I should bring fabric from over here to get clothes made?

Thanks for all your help!

Kim

[pam]

Hey Kim,
I'm so excited, a weeek before france, even though I'm way behind in planning

Anyway, Down to business!
Regarding the tailoring shops here, I suggest if there is a certain type of material/fabric you are SURE you want to use, than bring it from home because not all shops carry all types of material. However, if you just want general material for like pants and stuff, then there is no need to bring fabric from home. Also, some tailors aren't really good with "trendy" designs, so anything you can bring from magazines and stuff will help them. There is a material market here in BKK but it's k inda far and out of the way, but it is super cheap - so if you want I can find out the exact address and I can give that to you if you're up to spending some there. Personally, I would think it was a waste of time, and the money you'd pay to get there makes up for the difference in pricing of the material
Also, as I'm sure you know, BKK's traffic is terrible so please make sure you are going by BTS (Bangkok Train System) It's cheap, clean, and very efficient and goes almost everywhere. It is open from 6am to midnight (I think.)
Shopping: If you are upto cheap nice trendy tshirts go to an area called Siam Square (Train stop: Siam) It is a few streets full of little shops selling cool fake jewelry, cool belts and bags, shoes, sandals, jeans, etc. Mind you these places you can't try on things unless that particular shop has a changing room.
I think sandals should be fine for the Grand Palace - I'm not quite too sure though; just bring a pair of socks incase, that way if worse comes to worse you can just throw on your socks under your sandals, won't make for a fashion statement though!!!!
Is there anything else in particular you need help with? Do let me know, I'd love to offer anymore advise to help you with your stay in BKK.
-Pam

[Kim]

Pam-just talking about it with you makes me more excited! I love going new places, it's making me bounce off the walls at work (my poor co-workers! ;D)

That was another reason we picked the hotel we did-it was right across from a BTS station (Nana, I think?) and a Foodland. Our hotel is on 2 Soi 5, Sukhumvit Rd.

What do you think of MBK Shopping Center-I've heard there is good shopping to be had there? I think that's the Siam stop too right?

OK, now a weird question-I'm vegetarian and sometimes it's hard to convey to people that I don't eat meat or fish.

I have this written down:
di-chan kin muu mai dai
(I can't do the accents over the letters with this keyboard)

Problem is, it doesn't really specify I don't eat fish and a lot of people assume that when you say you're a vegetarian, that fish is OK.

Is there anyway that I can say "I'm a vegetarian, I don't eat meat or fish"?
I plan on taking it on a piece of paper to show someone if there is a language barrier.

Also, does it matter that it's not in Thai characters-will people still understand? I just don't want to copy the characters from my book or I will end up writing something wacky!

Going to go buy my material tomorrow (with my mom-I know nothing about fabric!!) like you suggested.

Thank you, thank you!!

Kim