{"id":974,"date":"2019-12-24T06:14:56","date_gmt":"2019-12-24T11:14:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/?p=974"},"modified":"2025-03-30T10:11:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-30T15:11:58","slug":"elle-sez-walking-the-walk-series-thailand-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/?p=974","title":{"rendered":"Elle Sez: Walking the Walk Series-Thailand 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\tElle Sez: Walk the Walk Series-Thailand 2019!\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\tSo, our Fall trip this year was to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. We had an extra special treat by being able to go into Myanmar because they weren\u2019t fighting at this point in time. It was an 18-day journey with our usual Gate1 host that never failed to amaze us with their knowledge of the country. So, let me take you on a little overview of the delights that we experienced.\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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\"One
One of our first stop was to the reclining Buddha in Bangkok It<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"On
On day one we decided to abandon our group and go visit the floating market in Bangkok. We went by boat and as you can see past a monk rowing his way down the waterway.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This was a very interesting and unique way of conducting commerce. They were restaurants on either side and many exciting sites to see.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Including
Including a few snakes in case you were interested.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Visiting
Visiting a traditional village.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This woman Is unwinding the cocoon of a silk worm to make silk threads that use their garments.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Some
Some of their party buses were absolutely unreal<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"We
We started making our way north to Ayutthaya which was the previous capital of Thailand and had many beautiful ruins.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"We
We stopped by the roadside to sample some local delicacies. This sells for four times the price of chicken. If you<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Further
Further north was the even older capital of Sukhothai. So of course the ruins were even more amazing going back about eight centuries.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The entire country is very religious.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Here
Here is the outdoor lobby of one of our hotels.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Silk
Silk weavers at work.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Another
Another gastronomic delicacy of silkworms, crickets, and grubs.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"When
When the police are not directing traffic, they are also keeping themselves busy. Wish our officers did that as well.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Amazing
Amazing plant life.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Here
Here we are in the middle of the Golden triangle<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"They
They are fighting an uphill battle due to the poverty and the need to make an income.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Here\"
Here<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"We
We visited a female monastery. This is a very rare occurrence because women are not considered that highly in that culture.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Visiting
Visiting the opium museum in Myanmar.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Ahhh\"
Ahhh<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Lotus
Lotus flowers in the lake at the home of the long neck hill tribe people.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"No
No telling how old she is.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Remember
Remember all those pictures you saw in National Geographic when you were young? They really do exist<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"They
They only take it off once in their lifetime and it doesn<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This is brass and it weighs about 7 pounds and they wear it for their whole life.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The amazing white temple refurbished by a famous Thai artist. A must see if you come to Chang Rai.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The detail is amazing.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"A
A beautiful afternoon at the botanical gardens. What a treat!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Don\"
Don<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Then
Then we had lunch at an orchid farm<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"And
And butterfly habitat.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"How
How peaceful.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Arrived
Arrived in Chiang Mai in time for a quick afternoon dip. This is the first evening at our hotel in Laos.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This is the most unique pedicure you<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Another
Another day that we played hooky form the group and went to an elephant refuge camp. Kind of like a retirement home for elephants. All they do is get fed and bathed and pampered.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Of
Of course, there was Charlie, the little millennial elephant a year and a half old. We had to peel his bananas for him. Can you believe it?<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Playing
Playing in the mud was fun.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Here
Here is our whole group at the house that we had dinner at with a local family. They happen to also own a restaurant so their food was amazing. The house is 100% teak.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This is the first evening at our hotel in Laos.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The women of the village are performing a welcoming ceremony for us. They are tying yarn around our wrists to protect us and bless us.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This is the final product. We have to leave it on for three days<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The next morning, we were off at five in the morning to give alms to the monks.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"They
They file down the street and we each give them some sticky rice.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This little girl from a poor village is receiving some of the rice from the monks.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"This
This is a bridge made out of only bamboo.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Laos
Laos is communist but they still have religion and you can own your own property and have your own business. So I guess communism didn<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The production of moonshine is quite common here.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"And
And we think the worm at the bottom of the tequila bottle is bad. Yuck.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Heading
Heading for a boat ride for lunch on the Mekong river.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"To
To the cave of 1000 Buddhas.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"I
I lost count.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Dinner
Dinner and a show. The dancing was wonderful.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Flew
Flew down to Cambodia to enjoy the Angkor Wat complex. This tree is ancient and it has grown over these walls and destroyed many of them.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Another
Another delicacy<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"I
I just look at those roots.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The awesome Angkor Wat at sunrise.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The roots grow over the wall like a waterfall but yet the wall still holds after all these years. This was built in 1113.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Nice
Nice backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Amazing
Amazing details.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"We
We took a nice tour through the country in a water buffalo cart. It was really beautiful and tranquil.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The ride took us to visit the rice fields. Ray got attacked by a bunch of fire ants. Not fun.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"We
We took a boat ride on the Mekong Delta and visited a<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"...crocodile
...crocodile farm. Ray had crocodile for dinner one night.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Here
Here we are at the final fitting for the suit Ray got in Bankok. $366 for a fine wool suit and a custom-made shirt. Doesn<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
The one thing I miss upon my return is those beautiful, luscious coconuts full of that delicious coconut water. Nothing like we get home here, especially in the can. They cost about a dollar.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"So
So now I'm back home and back at work. NOW FOR THE ACTION SHOTS:<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Elle Sez: Walk the Walk Series-Thailand 2019! So, our Fall trip this year was to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. We had an extra special treat by being able to go into Myanmar because they weren<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-news-and-information"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=974"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/974\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1010,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/974\/revisions\/1010"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}