Highlights of four-week author trip to Asia

From 2/13/16 to 3/11/16, I hopped across Asia to speak at nine schools and a company. Meeting the students and staff at the schools was rewarding on its own, and getting to experience three countries new to me (Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong/China) was a bonus I don't take for granted.

I've blogged extensively about this trip. All nine schools and the company were highlights, and among are the highlights when I was not working:

Malaysia

Thailand (Phuket) 

Thailand (Chiang Mai) 

Thailand (Bangkok; previously unpublished!)

One night in Bangkok—literally. 

It was just a layover. I didn't even get off the plane.

Hong Kong

[NOTE: Most are selfies because I was mostly alone. I prefer travel photos with the traveler in them to show you that were there; otherwise the photos could just as well be from a book or site.]

For details on each photo and more in general on my time in Asia:

• Malaysia
• Thailand
• Hong Kong

Jurassic Park with elephants

Culminating my nine days in Thailand was a magical, mammoth experience: visiting an elephant sanctuary.

Elephants have been an integral part of Thai culture for centuries, but tragically, they are regularly mistreated in the name of commerce (tourist rides, street begging, circuses, logging). At Elephant Nature Park, rescued elephants are respected for the majestic creatures they are.

There is a glut of elephant-themed places to visit, and at first glance, it's hard to tell them apart. But this one came specially recommended in more ways than one, and it earned those endorsements. Even on the drive there we passed other elephant camps that did not look as humane—elephants penned in small enclosures right by the road.

You walk into ENP and it immediately seems like Jurassic Park with elephants. They roam free on the expansive and glorious grounds, gently and unobtrusively tended to by the staff of about 70. (But none of the elephants tried to eat us.)

I chose the "short day" package, which ending up feeling full in the best way. My group departed the office in Chiang Mai at 9 a.m., was driven by van for about an hour to the sanctuary in the countryside, and enjoyed it (including a bountiful lunch) till the 2 p.m. departure. When I made my last-minute booking two nights before, the site said "only 11 slots left." Funnily, my group was only 12, suggesting I was actually the first to book. I was also the oldest in my group by more than 10 years. Mostly twenty-something backpackers, newlyweds, or European vacationers. The only other Americans were a brother and sister from Boston.

At ENP, the ones running things are the elephants. There is no riding, there are no shows, and there are no sticks in the hands of the mahouts, or men (has to be men) who train elephants. An elephant is assigned one mahout, often when the mahout is young, and the two stay together for the duration. In other places throughout Asia, mahouts use a sharp metal hook to control their elephants, and despite what the tourists are told, getting jabbed with it does hurt the animal. But at ENP, it's all positive reinforcement. Nothing sharp in sight.

Most elephants there are rescues. The humanitarian founder of the park buys them out of abusive situations. In one case, the cost was $2,000. In some of the elephants, heartbreaking tics linger; one swings his trunk and rocks when standing. It looks sweet till you learn the reason. To quote our sweet host/guide, Narissa (at least that's how it sounded), at ENP "elephants learn to become elephants again." She told us some of the elephants might cry when we receive them.

Almost a third of the 30 or so elephants there are blind by human means. People who come to ENP already have some spiritual or primal connection to these animals and hearing of these horrific examples of man's cruelty only intensifies that empathy. I found myself continuously thanking a higher power the whole time I was there that there was a there.

At least one elephant was older than my parents—born in the early 1940s. Narissa called some of them "grandma."

Most of the elephants in the park have formed small families—it seems like five or six animals apiece. One, however, has kept to herself in a particular spot—for nine years. While not social with her kind, she does let humans approach—some of the time. Here she is with Narissa, our guide.

The mahouts live at the park in these structures:

In the water, the adults surround the baby both to protect him and to play with him. He spent most of his river time rolling around underwater. See his trunk sticking out?

At ENP, humans follow the elephants' leads:

This is one of at least two elephants who stepped on a landmine near the Cambodian border, which you can see in his mangled front left foot. Narissa said they are lucky to be alive.

The only elephant who accessorized:

The day was so uplifting, emotionally draining, and hot that most of us fell asleep on the way home:

If you ever visit Thailand—or anywhere in Asia—get yourself to ENP. You might even consider planning a trip for this alone.

Thailand footnote: over my nine days, I ate pad see ew—my favorite dish (not just favorite Thai dish, but favorite of all dishes)—seven times:

• 2/25/16 lunch—local place my driver knew
• 2/25/16 dinner—Boat Lagoon Resort (my first Phuket hotel)
• 2/27/16 dinner—BLR
• 2/28/16 dinner—BLR
• 3/2/16 dinner—restaurant delivery to Bike Resort (my second Phuket hotel)
• 3/3/16 lunch—Golden Bell (my Chiang Mai hotel)
• 3/4/16 dinner—Anoma Boutique House (a small hotel café in Chiang Mai old town)

Being spontaneous in Malaysia and Thailand

For more than a year, I planned what became monster trip to Asia—seven days at a school in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, two days at a school in Phuket, Thailand, and five days at four schools in Hong Kong. The way it shaped up, the bookings spread over four weeks with six weekdays that no schools requested.

While getting a week to tool around Asia would certainly be fantastic, it's not where I'm at in life. I'm already away from my family for too long; on top of that, to then spend rather than earn money for a week did not sit well with me.

The school visits started on February 15. By the next day, thanks to the kind word of mouth of educators who had just heard me present, I began to fill that gap week. Ultimately, I was able to schedule appearances for three of the five days—two schools and a company. Complicating that was the fact that one of the schools and the company were in Kuala Lumpur—but I was already in Thailand. Luckily, Asia has good budget airlines.

My gap week, revised: 

• Monday 2/29—rescheduled date for British International School of Phuket; that evening flew (back) to Kuala Lumpur (where I'd been from 2/13 to 2/23)
• Tuesday 3/1—British International School of Kuala Lumpur in the morning, Astro TV in the afternoon; that evening flew back to Phuket
• Wednesday 3/2—Phuket International Academy
• Thursday 3/3—flew to Chiang Mai in the north, Thailand's second largest city, for two days before leaving for Hong Kong on 3/5; speaking of being spontaneous, I landed in Chiang Mai without knowing where I would sleep that night

Huge thanks again to Jeremy Townend at the British International School of Kuala Lumpur, Hakim Amir at Astro TV, and Lynne Nigalis at Phuket International Academy for inviting me on such short notice. Your spontaneity is a gift to your students (and to me). If this proves anything, it's that author visits can be relatively easy (and definitely quick) to put together!

British International School of Kuala Lumpur:

 courtesy of Jeremy Townend

Astro TV, a large content provider:

 courtesy of Hakim Amir

They asked me to do a selfie with the audience:

Phuket International Academy:

courtesy of PIA

Day 1 of 2 in Chiang Mai; at the gate to the old city, which dates back to the 1200s:

This place is not as exclusive as it might seem:

Bugs in Phuket, Thailand

On 2/23/16, I flew from Malaysia to Phuket, my first time in Thailand. Of the international destinations I’ve been fortunate to visit due to my work, this was one I was especially excited about. I love Thai food (one dish in particular, as you will soon see) and the beaches of Phuket are famously fetching.

My kind host from the British International School, Cindy Colson, picked me up and took me to dinner at a restaurant in the harbor complex of my hotel. My first meal in Thailand was, with no element of surprise, pad thai.

The harbor setting is lovely—lighthouses and the like—though I could have done without the boat engine throttling at 4:30 a.m. the next morning.

Before I arrived, I was told that (palm trees aside) BIS resembled another British school…albeit a fictional one.

In her library, Cindy is a merchandising master. Here is her display for graphic novels:

The bugs I am referring to in the title of this post are of two varieties. One is mosquitoes. I’ve never been snacked on more than I was on my second night in Thailand (at a lovely restaurant on the beach with school staff). Dozens of bites. My knees looked like the moon (if the moon had hair).

I learned that people with type O blood (like me) are often more appealing to mosquitoes, and I also learned I may have something called skeeter syndrome. It’s not as gross as it might sound. It simply describes people whose skin reacts more flamboyantly to mosquito bites. In my youth, the bites were dots, but now the bites are often big, bumpy, pink (and sometimes closer to red) splotches.

My nightly ritual was to hunt mosquitoes in my room.

The other kind of bug is of the technical variety. The day before I arrived in Phuket, the provincial authorities announced that they would carry out checks on the power lines on the second of the two days I was scheduled to speak at the school (February 25). That would mean the school would have no electricity that day. That would mean no LCD projector…and, more pressingly in a steamy country like Thailand, no AC (or, as they say here, no air con). Tough in average situations and more so in rooms with many people.

Fortunately, I had already planned to be in Phuket beyond my two days at BIS so we agreed that we would reschedule me for the following day. However, not all groups that were slated to hear me on Thursday could fit me in on Friday, so we decided that I would do presentations for those groups on Monday.

The presentations went well. My favorite question, from a first grader: “What is the Riddler’s favorite country?”

I said that question was such a stumper that even the Riddler himself doesn’t know the answer.

On my Thursday off (during which time the staff and students had to sweat it out at the school), I explored the southwest coast of the island, where most of the beaches are. I started with Karon and made my way to Rawai (on the southern tip). One of them, Kata Noi, is #19 on Trip Advisor’s 2016 list of the 25 best beaches in the world.

Kata Noi beach, where I encountered a dark knight of a different kind:

Nai Harn beach, where I saw the first of numerous couples taking wedding photos:

View over tiny Yanui Beach, perhaps my favorite of the ones I saw:

At Yanui there is a marker indicating that the 12/26/04 tsunami caused water to settle inland at 4 meters above sea level. (The date is hard to read but it’s below “4 m.”)

My driver Tor-ha sketched an explanation:
 

In other words, the marker itself is not 4 meters high but the top of it is 4 meters above sea level; you walk down a little slope to get to the beach near it.

Phromptep Cape, one of the best views on the island, features an outcropping that is a symbol of Phuket:

Another wedding photo shoot:

My first time eating pad see ew in Thailand; it is not only my favorite Thai dish but perhaps my favorite meal in general:

My self-directed tour ended with a stop at Big Buddha, the grounds of which are still being built but which is already open to the public:

Construction began in 2004 and I’m told it has been funded almost completely via donations.

The cost of a driver (who also kindly volunteered to serve as tour guide and photographer) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. was $78. Tipping is not expected in Thailand, and when it does happen it is usually only change, but Tor-ha gave up his whole day for me, so I tipped him $12. He said “Too much” and I insisted. He gave up his whole day for me.

Plus his rear view mirror had a bat on it:

Other glimpses:

Elephants (and monkeys, and snakes) are indentured servants in Thailand, chained and at a tourist’s disposal for entertainment. I was conflicted to take this photo but was honored to get to touch such a majestic animal.

They look at you with such intelligence—and, some say, desperation—that it makes the system even more painful to observe. My driver said Americans in particular get upset at the way the elephants are ridden and kept, but he told me that the Thai people and elephants share a long, regal history. He said the elephants are assigned one trainer from birth so a relationship develops, and even a unique language between them. My driver also said that the elephants are treated humanely. That, of course, is not always true. But unless you are going to take action against the practice, believing it helps you bear it. Before I leave Thailand, I am hoping to visit an elephant sanctuary that gets raves for letting the animals roam freely—and letting them run the show. Tourists can pay to walk among them, but there is no riding and no confining.

Even tigers! This place is famous for letting tourists go into cages with tigers to pose for photos. They insist the animals are not drugged but again, that seems unlikely to be fully true. Even after a mauling in 2014, the place remains open.

Sign in the bathroom in the lobby of my hotel:

(No word on avoiding flus 2010-2016.)

Sign in the lobby of my hotel:

Durians are a regional fruit with a smell so pungent that hotels regularly forbid it.

The 1974 James Bond film The Man With the Golden Gun filmed scenes in Phuket and that beach is now a tourist destination. I was advised not to bother, and I heeded that advice.

Thank you, Cindy and BIS, for making this experience possible.