Disney vacations , and

MouseSavers.com - Disney Discount Source - Disney World Discounts, Disneyland Discounts, Disney Cruise Discounts Great deals on all things Disney! Welcome to MouseSavers.com sm , your source for Disney discounts, helpful information for Disney vacations , and codes and coupons for Disney merchandise . Want to save money on your next vacation at Walt Disney World or Disneyland ? Looking for a discount on a Disney guidebook or other Disney merchandise ? If you need any kind of Disney discount, you're in the right place! MouseSavers.com also offers discount information for Universal Studios, SeaWorld, Legoland and other Southern California & Florida attractions . Walt Disney World Disneyland Disney Cruise Line Transportation for Your Disney Vacation Other Disney Travel Savings Discount Disney Shopping Mall Live Disney Shows Disney Freebies Disneyland Resort Paris Disney Parks in Asia Disney's Vero Beach/Hilton Head Non-Disney Theme Parks & Attractions More information: About MouseSavers.com Frequently Asked Questions Trip Reports and Articles Links Testimonials Privacy Policy & Legal Stuff Contact Mary LATEST HOT DEALS - AS OF 12/28/05 Is your New Year's resolution a trip to Disney for your family, but you have no idea how to afford it? Take a look at this page on how to save money for your Disney vacation . Maybe it will inspire you! You might also be interested in these articles about how a family of 4 may be able to visit Walt Disney World on a $1000 shoestring budget or a $1500 budget . FREE shipping on orders of $75 or more at DisneyShopping.com . Plus, up to 70% off sale . Combine this with a coupon code to save even more! Hotel Royal Plaza in the Walt Disney World Resort is about to reopen after more than a year of renovations. You can now book MouseSavers rates for stays beginning January 21! May-December 2007 3-night and 4-night sailings on the Disney Wonder are now on sale. (Exceptions: the 6/17/07, 6/24/07 and 7/1/07 sailings are being held back and are not bookable at this time.) Contact a Disney specialist travel agent to book your stateroom. Fantastic MouseSavers exclusive offer at Hilton Anaheim : $50 credit toward Disneyland tickets, plus kids eat breakfast FREE and lunch & dinner for 99 cents ! If you are planning to purchase multiple Disney movies in the next two years, be sure to check out the great deals available through Disney Movie Club . Click here for details! Need luggage for your Disney vacation? MouseSavers.com readers get an exclusive 20% discount at eBags -- applies to almost all luggage items! Are some links not showing up in the text above? Are words missing from sentences? Click here to learn why. Sign up for the FREE MouseSavers Newsletter and get exclusive discounts not available on the web site! Sign up to watch this page for updates! (The update service is provided by ChangeNotes, which is not affiliated with MouseSavers.com. If a new offer is added to this page, it sends you an e-mail the next day.) There is now a MouseSavers.com newsfeed! Click on this icon to start using RSS now! Back to top Content of MouseSavers.com is © Mary Waring & MouseSavers 2001-2005. No part of this website may be reproduced in whole or in part without permission.

South America Travel Forum

South America Travel Forum on the Travoogle.com - Worldwide Travel Forum ~ probably the Web's favorite travel search engine ~ By participating in these forums you can earn free advertising! Click here for details. FAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Register Profile Log in to check your private messages Log in South America Travel Forum Moderators: aaron , paul , Trev , axxiom , Dan , Red Tape , sunshine82 , Eurapart , georgep , GregW Users browsing this forum: None Goto page 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 Next Forum Index - South America Travel Forum Mark all topics read Topics Replies Author Views Last Post Sticky: [ Poll ] And the nominations for the South America Expert 2005 are... 3 aaron 526 Thu Dec 15, 2005 8:29 am thowra Sticky: A word of warning about advertising... 1 aaron 4222 Fri Apr 25, 2003 5:59 pm aaron need a place to stay in Rio? 1 locaindc 28 Wed Dec 28, 2005 1:07 am Red Tape i want to teach english in argentina, chile 2 Pete_ 637 Mon Dec 26, 2005 6:25 am andando Spanish courses 8 bwlamas 2146 Mon Dec 26, 2005 6:05 am andando South america.. backpacking.. language.. [ Goto page: 1 , 2 ] 17 Ryit 3731 Mon Dec 26, 2005 5:59 am andando Argentina 9 rjackf 927 Mon Dec 26, 2005 5:53 am andando Studies and accommodation in BA needed 3 hihihi 771 Mon Dec 26, 2005 1:02 am andando The safest and most dangerous countries in South America 12 JohnBoy1984 1500 Sat Dec 24, 2005 2:03 am adult-vacations [ Poll ] CYCLING SOUTH AMERICA 3 stuntmanjeff 1042 Thu Dec 15, 2005 8:49 am thowra Brazil: Low Fares and Mini-Air Pass for the Northeast 0 lagoaemar 194 Sun Dec 11, 2005 5:24 pm lagoaemar Lnaguages spoken in Argentina 3 Sidesplitter 413 Sat Dec 03, 2005 12:29 pm Sidesplitter Street Art in Buenos Aires, Argentina 0 frassinetti 175 Fri Dec 02, 2005 1:47 pm frassinetti Brazil: New low-tariff flight companies 0 lagoaemar 269 Tue Nov 22, 2005 1:32 am lagoaemar CCUSA's Work Brazil Scheme 1 beeee 251 Fri Nov 18, 2005 11:25 am beeee Sao Paulo - Looking for budget accomodation in 27th Nov... 0 carley 209 Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:13 pm carley Flights from Rio to Salvador 1 southam 454 Wed Nov 09, 2005 9:40 am paul Saquarema - Rio de Janeiro - Brasil 1 PHForever 325 Wed Nov 09, 2005 9:28 am paul Train / trip from Buenos Aires to Rio de jeneiro??? 1 southam 381 Tue Nov 08, 2005 1:11 pm Sidesplitter amazon jungle trek 4 spiderman2099uk 673 Mon Nov 07, 2005 9:57 pm spiderman2099uk Machu Picchu voted No.1 wonder of the world 0 paul 444 Fri Nov 04, 2005 10:59 am paul Brazil: Flight Rio - Salvador for 225 Reais 0 lagoaemar 495 Tue Nov 01, 2005 1:08 am lagoaemar Welcome to Per 1 Conociendo Per 513 Mon Oct 31, 2005 11:06 pm Sidesplitter Traveling To Paraguay 0 cbj 432 Mon Oct 31, 2005 12:35 am cbj Sex tourism in Brazil 10 aaron 12774 Fri Oct 28, 2005 11:06 pm paul Brazil trip concerns 2 Nigel_UK 983 Sat Oct 22, 2005 12:57 am Larry Aiello brazil first timer 3 lewis377 1028 Thu Oct 13, 2005 11:41 am Sidesplitter Teaching in Cuenca, Ecuador 0 Alyssabeth123 460 Wed Oct 12, 2005 11:11 pm Alyssabeth123 Learn Spanish in Cuzco Peru. 1 aqmaster 592 Tue Oct 11, 2005 3:16 pm paul Two way radios in South America 1 Wayne 670 Sun Oct 09, 2005 4:29 pm Sidesplitter Getting Married at the iguazu falls 3 J-Ro 1012 Tue Oct 04, 2005 8:24 pm Sidesplitter volunteer bolivia 1 pratzki 650 Mon Oct 03, 2005 6:20 pm Red Tape A few questions about Peru 0 gardkarlsen 632 Wed Sep 28, 2005 8:12 pm gardkarlsen Travelling to Buenos Aires 1 shahzad 694 Wed Sep 28, 2005 8:18 am paul Flights to Buenos Aires....Budget a Go Go?? 4 massivebigtoe 1061 Tue Sep 27, 2005 2:01 pm paul Lone female traveller 9 niamh 2406 Sun Sep 25, 2005 11:17 pm whereshegoes South America October 2005 9 jamy25 1667 Fri Sep 23, 2005 11:38 am Sidesplitter Going to Quito, want to teach English, need help. 4 Pete_ 1246 Tue Sep 20, 2005 2:50 pm Sidesplitter Volunteering 1 buttmunch 696 Mon Sep 12, 2005 8:42 am paul Spanish Language Schools Santiago 0 Glen 449 Sat Sep 03, 2005 11:22 am Glen South America in Sept 5 Joshila 2389 Thu Aug 25, 2005 7:50 pm sandy Love motel for pets 0 paul 620 Mon Aug 22, 2005 10:13 am paul My family offer accommodation at home in Lima - Peru 0 peruexplorer 599 Mon Aug 22, 2005 3:25 am peruexplorer Special Offers - Alternative to Brazil Airpass 0 lagoaemar 936 Sun Aug 07, 2005 12:40 am lagoaemar Warning against VARIG flights 0 lagoaemar 952 Sat Aug 06, 2005 10:34 pm lagoaemar Weather in Chile in July? 2 chapter11studios 1059 Fri Aug 05, 2005 2:23 pm chapter11studios Hilton hotel in Buenos Aires 0 paul 736 Thu Aug 04, 2005 8:32 am paul Have you been to the 'Valley of the Moon' in Chile? 4 chapter11studios 1225 Sun Jul 31, 2005 10:50 am Ginirover Florianopolis / Floripa - Brazil 1 redsand 1759 Sat Jul 30, 2005 6:40 pm ElPerroGrande Anywhere good between Rio and BA? 2 gazthornton 1057 Sat Jul 30, 2005 6:26 pm ElPerroGrande Display topics from previous: All Topics 1 Day 7 Days 2 Weeks 1 Month 3 Months 6 Months 1 Year Forum Index - South America Travel Forum All times are GMT Goto page 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 Next Page 1 of 7 Jump to: Select a forum CHECK-IN DESK ---------------- Introductions Forum General Chat Forum Travel News Forum ARRIVALS & DEPARTURES ---------------- Africa Travel Forum Asia Travel Forum Caribbean Travel Forum Central America and Mexico Travel Forum Europe - Eastern Europe Travel Forum Europe - Western Europe Travel Forum - UK & Ireland Europe - Western Europe Travel Forum - France, Spain and the rest... 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Orlando Vacations Orlando Vacations

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PRICELINE.COM, and PRICELINE are registered service marks, and NAME YOUR OWN PRICE, and NAME YOUR PRICE are service marks of priceline Incorporated. ws-16 priceline.com home | priceline.com site map

Travel Insurance

QBE Insurance Group - Home Page If you can read this your browser does not support javascript or this feature is currently switched off. Please update your browser using one of the following links or enable javascripting via your browser settings. Click here to download Internet Explorer 6 Click here to download Mozilla QBE Insurance Group "QBE Insurance is Australia's leading International General Insurance and Reinsurance groups and one of the to 25 world wide." Core underwriting entities Standard & Poor's Rating = A+ Our Vision internationally recognised as a highly successful general insurance and reinsurance group; a builder of shareholders' wealth; a developer of "can do" people; and an organisation that excels in the continuous delivery of new and proven quality products and services. Our Values increasing the long-term wealth of shareholders; customer satisfaction and retention; employee satisfaction; and integrity. Divisions Group Annual Report Press Releases Shareholder Centre Financial Centre Webcasts Australia "QBE Insurance Australia, protecting people in all walks of life - from the home to the office and beyond" From our humble beginnings as the North Queensland Insurance company we have grown into a sophisticated provider of general insurance products. Our strength is our diversity. We provide over nine broad categories of general insurance. We provide comprehensive protection for peoples' homes, their lifestyles, their work environments. As a group, QBE works together to improve our customer service, our technology and our products. QBE Insurance - Aviation QBE Insurance - Commercial - QBE Mercantile Mutual QBE Insurance - Compulsory Third Party - CTP QBE Insurance - Corporate QBE Insurance - Personal - WQBE - Western QBE QBE Insurance - Professional Liability QBE Insurance - Surety QBE Insurance - Trade Credit QBE Insurance - Travel QBE Insurance - Workers Compensation Application for Credit Limit Endorsement QBE Insurance - Europe QBE Insurance - Asia Pacific QBE Asia Pacific: Our Vision Increasing Accountability Local Knowledge - Specialist Expertise Thriving on Complexity Our Vision - QBE Asia Pacific We aim to be recognised within the Asia Pacific markets as: a highly successful provider of specialist insurance solutions a team of results-oriented entrepreneurs with high levels of expertise and integrity a strong and ethical business partner an organisation that thrives on innovation and excels in the delivery of quality products and services a builder of customer value and shareholder wealth Increasing Accountability & Litigation For Asia Pacific companies to thrive in today's challenging business environment, they must be smarter, quicker and more entrepreneurial. They constantly face new business exposures and challenges arising from government regulation and common law. The margin for error has been squeezed in business today, and managers are confronted by the global trend of increasing accountability and litigation. They need specialist insurance solutions, backed by technical expertise. Equally as important, they need risk management experts with specialist knowledge who can translate the global into practical solutions at the local level - and then provide the on-the-ground resources when they are needed most. QBE Asia Pacific Operations has developed considerable strengths to best serve clients. Our history of commitment to the Asia Pacific markets means that we've developed a wealth of knowledge and experience. Local Knowledge - Specialist Expertise Five of our operations were established in the late 1880s, and four more were established in the early 1890s. Building on this strong foundation, we entered four additional markets in the 1970s and 80s, and five more in the 1990s. We now have over 18 QBE operations in various markets throughout the Asia Pacific region. Each market features different characteristics and dynamics, and local market knowledge can make all the difference for clients. For example, QBE operates in: Mature markets such as Singapore, New Zealand and Japan Emerging markets such as Indonesia and the Philippines Developing markets such as Thailand and Malaysia Small markets characterised by tightly knit communities, such as Vanuatu and Micronesia Markets that are rapidly moving toward more open economies, such as Vietnam and China Markets that have seen new opportunities emerge from the return to their motherland, such as Macau and Hong Kong Markets that operate under French customs and law, such as New Caledonia and French Polynesia Markets that have experienced political and social upheavals, such as Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands In each of these markets, local knowledge is invaluable. And with the internationalisation of trade and business practice, businesses also need an underwriter with specialist insurance expertise, vast global experience and solid financial strength. Thriving on Complexity Ours is a complex business, and we thrive on that challenge. It is also a dynamic one, with growth driven by an acquisition strategy and a commitment to the professional development of our local teams. We are a grass roots company that is international in every sense of the word. The combination of local knowledge and specialist expertise provides important benefits to clients and intermediaries. In Asia Pacific, it's the QBE difference! QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Specialist Risks Unit QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Marine Risks Network QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Hong Kong QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Indonesia QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Macau QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Mainland China QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Malaysia QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Philippines QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Singapore QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Thailand QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Vietnam QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Fiji QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - French Polynesia QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Japan QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Micronesia QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - New Caledonia QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - New Zealand QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Papua New Guinea QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Solomon Islands QBE Insurance - QBE Asia Pacific - Vanuatu QBE Insurance - the Americas QBE Insurance Group Limited, is an insurance and reinsurance company publicly traded on the Australian Stock Exchange. Its history dates back over 116 years when the Company was founded in Australia. Since then the Company has grown to have operations in 47 countries with over $2 billion dollars of capital writing in excess of $3 billion dollars in premium. QBE the Americas operations commenced in 1986 when the QBE Insurance Group established a presence in the U.S. QBE the Americas now conducts business through its five companies, QBE Reinsurance Corporation, QBE Insurance Corporation, QBE Aseguradora de Riesgos del Trabajo S.A.,Argentina, QBE Del Istmo, Panama and QBE Brasil Seguros S.A. Lloyd's The Lloyd's division comprises QBE's share of the Lloyd's syndicates managed by Limit. The 2001 results are the first to contain a full year of activity from the acquisition of Limit in August 2000. Gross written premium for the Lloyd's division was $2,182 million, compared with $547 million last year. Net earned premium was up 273% to $1,365 million. Significant progress was made during 2001 towards achieving the objectives set out in last year's annual report. The rationalisation of the structure of the Lloyd's division continued with the merger of syndicates 79 and 2999, the closure of the under-performing syndicate 456 and the disposal of the property and aviation syndicate 318. This resulted in a significant reallocation of QBE's capital towards its best performing Lloyd's syndicates. Our exposure to poor performing US liability business was significantly reduced. QBE is now the sole capital provider to each of Limit's syndicates, other than syndicate 386 where our share has increased to over 40%. For the 2002 underwriting year, QBE provides 78% of Limit's aggregate capacity compared with 72% in 2001. The tragic events of 11 September overshadowed the year and the World Trade Center (WTC) loss had a significant impact on performance. In addition, upgrades were made to prior year outstanding claims provisions, principally to reflect adverse development on US liability business seen across the market. These upgrades have been substantially mitigated by reinsurance protections and provisions established on acquisition to allow for deterioration. Consequently, the result for the year largely reflects the performance of the 2001 underwriting year. The claims ratio was 72.9%, compared with 59.4% for last year. The combined operating ratio was 108.6%, compared with 101.1% last year. Excluding the WTC loss, the combined operating ratio would have been 101.0%. The movement in the commission ratio from 27.3% to 24.6% reflects the change in the mix of business during 2001. The decrease in the expense ratio from 14.4% to 11.1% reflects the synergies and savings delivered by the integration of QBE's former Lloyd's operations with Limit, partly offset by residual post acquisition integration costs during the year. 2001 was a transitional year in the market cycle with the rate increases anticipated at the start of the year not materialising until at least the middle of the year and, in some cases, not until after the impact of 11 September. We are now seeing substantial increases in premium rates across all classes of business underwritten within the Lloyd's division. These rate increases, together with a high level of business retention, new business opportunities and the reallocation of QBE's capital, should ensure profitability for the 2002 underwriting year. Our objectives for 2002 are to: take advantage of the dramatically improved rating environment and return all areas of underwriting to strong profitability; seek further rationalisation of the underwriting and operating structure in order to improve capital efficiency and our expense ratio; acquire further capacity on syndicate 386 as it becomes available; and be actively involved in the reforms proposed for the Lloyd's market. Our business at Lloyd's remains highly dependent upon the quality and commitment of our underwriters and their business franchise. I thank them for their efforts and achievements, which have ensured that QBE's Lloyd's division is now ideally positioned to take advantage of the hard market conditions now prevailing at Lloyd's. Steven Burns, Managing director, Lloyd's division Global Trade Credit "QBE Trade Credit, World-Wide credit solutions in an increasingly volatile business environment" QBE's Trade Credit underwrites $30bn of domestic and export trade credit from units in Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Europe having extensive experience in assessing risks in over 150 markets. We are a Standard and Poors A+ rated company. Supported by a product range of tailored solutions to your credit needs, QBE is uniquely placed to offer our clients the opportunity to conduct business in a secure environment. Established in 1962, we have in the last four decades risen to become the largest Australian Insurer offering both Domestic and Export trade credit insurance and have expanded offshore to service our clients locally around the world. QBE Re QBE Re is a leading global reinsurer providing treaty and facultative reinsurance, direct insurance, and other financial products to its varied clients. QBE Re conducts business through three Divisions: Australia, Europe, and the Americas. As a global reinsurer, QBE Re underwrites traditional and financial products covering all major lines and classes of business. Through its divisional network of companies, QBE Re excels in providing regional expertise and service tailored to local-market needs. For additional solutions from QBE Re, please visit our local teams: QBE Insurance - Australia QBE Insurance - Europe QBE Insurance - the Americas

Taiwan Travel

Andrew and Mei's Taiwan Travel Blog Andrew and Mei's Taiwan Travel Blog Andrew and Mei are in Taiwan teaching English and exploring the island! What fun adventures will they have? Find out here! Monday, October 31, 2005 Asia pictures Hello everyone! I finally finished uploading the 293 photos that are in this album. Again, you'll have to log into Snapfish in order to see the photos. Enjoy! http://www.snapfish.com/share/p=547311130794745666/l=65291688/cobrandOid=1000321/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB posted by Mei @ 17:06 0 comments Thursday, October 27, 2005 First Trickle of Photos... You have to have a snapfish account in order to view the photos. Sorry about the catch (No pun intended)! But it's free and I will be uploading all of my pics onto Snapfish. I'm not sure how Andrew will upload his pics. http://www.snapfish.com/share/p=192271130458320686/l=64809203/cobrandOid=1000321/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB posted by Mei @ 17:18 0 comments Friday, October 21, 2005 What? Who? Where? Luckily, my jet lag has been minimal, so I can discern easily whether that ("What? Who? Where?") is coming from the Nicholas Cage impersonation on SNL or from yours truly. I think that has something to do with the fact that on our last day in Thailand, we had to get up at around 4:30 AM and were only able to sleep minimaly for the next 36 hours. That led to an immediate crash upon coming home. However, I have been waking up at 8 AM (what the hell) and taking long, extended naps during the afternoon. So what now? Ideally, I'll be sitting on my ass for as long as possible. I DO have my movie collection I hope to watch. But in reality, for me now I have to a) find a job, b) find a car, and c) find a place to live. Not neccessarily in that order, either. I need to organize my pictures into a digestible format, but until I get my monitor back (currently on loan) that is an impossible task to do. Oh well, maybe it's for the best. I still need to FIND jobs, APPLY, finish my school apps, get a car, clean my room, organize the boxes that will be coming home, and last but not least, trying to figure out how I'll be seeing my friends. So what do I immediately notice about here compared to where I was? Driving to Wells Fargo, I was just amazed by how big our neighborhoods are. In cities in Taiwan, there are no neighborhoods and there are no noticable zoning regulations. It seems to be everywhere you go there are 4-5 story buildings, with the bottom floor being relegated for businesses and the top floors for people to live. Houses are minimal except in the 'country', and convenient stores are LITERALLY on every corner instead of on every commercial corner. Comparatively, the density of people here to there is non-existent. And it's cold here! Man. This is me, the guy who hates the heat, who withers and dies. But I must have gotten used to it, at least more so that previously, because I'm not enjoying the SJ autumn, I'm wearing jackets and pants constantly, and my hands are nearly frozen off (I have bad circulation in my hands). Well, this may be one my last postings on this blog, since it's not mine. Thanks so much to 6Q for letting us post on here and use this space. Maybe I'll make one of my own for my random thoughts and to provide therapy, if you're remotely interested just let me know. So concludes our trip: now, it's 'back to the real world.' Thanks for taking the time to read this, everyone! I hope I get a chance to see you all soon!! posted by Andrew @ 09:01 0 comments Tuesday, October 18, 2005 Home. Safe and Sound! Hello everyone! We are home, happy and healthy! Our plane was a little delayed and we had some trouble getting our bag (but at least they made it!) The end of our trip was nice, but we got rained on during our trip to see one of the smaller islands, and our canopy trekking was very quick but fun. When I get all of my pics uploaded, I will post a link for you guys to see our pics, and maybe Andrew will get his plethora of great shots uploaded as well. It's been a great ride, thanks for going along with us! posted by Mei @ 22:13 0 comments Saturday, October 15, 2005 Counting Down... Only a couple of days left in our trip! We're enjoying the last few days, doing things like relaxing on the beach and stocking up on last minute supplies. Huh? Supplies? Well, DVDs and PS2 games are extremely cheap here. (Of course they are burned.) The thing is, I don't know if the PS2 games (sorry, they're called DVD games) will work, but I am pretty sure that they will. But as games have gone from $4 to $2.50 to $2 as we have progressed around Thailand, you can imagine that I've been going a little crazy. Like a moth to a flame is a better description. Not as cheap as $0 for unlimited games like Todd can get, but hey, all the (PS2) games I can want for, what, $50? Not too shabby. Now I just hope they work. It's also ridiculous the number of DVD's I have bought here. After leaving America with *2* tapes, I'll return with an infinite number of movies. In fact, I think when I do get home, I'll need a couple of months to get all the games and movies out of my system. THEN maybe I'll start looking for a job. Haha. posted by Andrew @ 16:31 0 comments Friday, October 14, 2005 Koh Samui is a beautiful Island! Super quickly: Made it to Samui safe and sound, our bungalow is about a 15 sec walk to a very quiet, almost private beach. We've rented a jeep to see the island and it is absolutely gorgeous! We have plans to go sea kayaking, snorkeling, and "canopy climbing" which is apparently going through the trees on ropes, like rapelling, but you go horizontally through the air, instead of vertically down a cave or cliff. Yay! posted by Mei @ 17:15 0 comments Wednesday, October 12, 2005 "Bangkok is bitchin'" To quote Jerry, the guy who placed us at our jobs in Taipei, "Bangkok is bitchin'." Well, as it turns out, not really. If you recall, Jerry, the recruiter in Taiwan who placed us at our jobs, is a habitual liar. Some of his other comments include, "Your job isn't far from Neihu." (in fact, on the complete other SIDE of Taipei, a mere 1 1/2 hours away by bus and train), "Teachers have all the leverage.", "Schools have all the leverage.", etc. He has an insatiable thirst for lying. This isn't to say that we went to Bangkok because of what HE said, no, no no no. It's the capital of Thailand, of course we're going to stop by and say hello. However, bitchin' isn't the term I'd use to describe Bangkok. Big? Definitely. Boisterous? Sure. Belligerent? Yeah, you bet. But bitchin'? Eh... Bangkok isn't a bad place, but it is what most large Asian cities tend to be: big, unorganized (aka chaotic), polluted (nasty air and nasty stuff on the sidewalk), crowded, and, of course, there's bad traffic. What with 6 million people here, it's understandable that driving around is a lot like Office Space. But there is some of the stuff that we came here to see: the history, the temples, the art. Today, for instance, we headed down to the river and took a boat up to the Grand Palace and the Green Emerald Temple. The temple is remarkable: typical Thai style architecture ornately decorated. The temples are tall and have many spires seemingly reaching out toward heaven. Inside there is an actual Green Emerald Buddha, who interestingly enough changes clothes every season to reflect the current season (i.e. rainy, hot, cold). We then went to the adjacent Grand Palace, which is currently being rennovated (deja vu to Beijing). The King lived here, I believe, and performs some duties here still. Quite similar to the Buckingham Palace structurally (of course it does, all kings get big, luxurious buildings) but is more green and has elephants. Then we took a tuk-tuk to the National Museum. I think we described tuk-tuks, but if not, briefly they are three-wheeled motorcycle taxis (with a roof). Driver in front, two seats in the back. Perfect to inhale car/motorcycle exhaust, feel the full extent of potholes in the roads, and avoid getting ripped off in. Not my favorite. The National Museum is enormous and remarkably not crowded, considering how close it is to the main attraction in the area (Grand Palace and adjacent temple), which has throngs of people. The first building had the history of Thailand and its kings, and I was amazed by how often Thailand was at war for a Buddhist nation. However, it appears to be all or mostly all defensive in nature, so the museum says (nearly all by Myanmar (ex-Burma), those crazy war-hungry people!). But I am thankful that with the exception of some territorial concessions to France and Britin, Thailand was never colonized, and the evidence is in the language. While many people speak good English, the Thai language is predominant and never adopted roman letters. Instead, Thai characters are used. Anyway, from there, we explored other parts of the museum, including ceramics, ivory, old war weapons, gold figures, etc. It was massive. There was so much stuff. there were also massive chariots used for what seemed to be funeral processions. MASSIVE. I mean, we saw a video, and there were maybe 3000 people carrying the largest chariot ceremonially. To actually carry some of these massive contraptions, 56 people were needed. We are now at our guest house. An hour after we got in a massive afternoon storm came by; it was torrential, but it's eased off a bit now. Looking forward to getting to Ko Samui and relaxing, but I'm not too thrilled about the 4 AM wake up tomorrow! Ack! posted by Andrew @ 17:38 1 comments Contributors 6Q Mei Andrew End #profile -- Previous Posts Asia pictures First Trickle of Photos... What? Who? Where? Home. Safe and Sound! Counting Down... Koh Samui is a beautiful Island! "Bangkok is bitchin'" One night in Bangkok...Well, actually 3... I just ate delicious Thai food, cooked by ME! In Chiang Mai! This blog goes to the end of China, more later! Archives July 2004 August 2004 September 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 January 2005 February 2005 March 2005 April 2005 May 2005 June 2005 July 2005 August 2005 September 2005 October 2005