Campuchia

Imagine a country that as short as 30 years ago had a population of approximately 7 million, endured a civil war and then was systematically decimated by their own government, Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. Over 2 million innocent people were tortured and killed during this unthinkable genocide which lasted for just over 4 years. Today Cambodia is a beautiful, peaceful, quiet country with the most loving, warm, friendly people. Our exploration started in the capitol city with a Small party of seven consisting of Carin's baby brother Lee, Hannah, Sue & Dani and Kim (Lee's friend from NY). Phenom Penh like other Asian cities is a bustling place located along the Mekong Delta. During the Khmer Rouge the city was evacuated, the people told to take what they could carry and go to the country side, where they would be safe from the Americans who were planning to bomb Phenom Penh (not true). Schools were then turned into prisons of torture (SS1). The people, mostly the educated including teachers, doctors and old government officials were rounded up in the country side, interrogated and either killed right on the spot or sent back to places like the SS1 prison in Phenom Penh where they were tortured and sent to the Killing Fields, approximately 18 kilometers from the city. The killings took place all over the country but Phenom Penh's S-21was known for some of the worst atrocities on man kind. The record keeping was very similar to Hitler and the Holocaust. This really hit home when we toured the S-21 prison and saw all the before and after pictures they recovered and read the stories of the many people who perished. Towards the end of our tour Mike asked the young Cambodian women guiding us what she remembered, and we all were very saddened to hear that at 13 years old she was witness to her father and brother being killed by the Khmer. We then went to the Killing Fields where mass graves were found and more than 200,000 people were killed and buried. Today in remembrance of all the innocent people that were murdered there stands a Buddhist stupa housing the uncovered remains (bones) behind a giant pane of glass for all to pay their respects and remember. We came full circle as we dined at the wonderful restaurant Friends and witnessed the love and goodness in people. This place in an institution in PP. Their mission is to take very poor children off the street, educate them( they have their own school with boarding if necessary) and provide job training in their restaurants. They learn all aspects of work in the industry including cooking, serving and even English. They also run a store with many great items the kids make plus their own cookbooks and the proceeds go back into the school. The young people were amazing and the food absolutely delicious!
The temples of Angkor are not on the old Seven Wonders of the World list. They are also not one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. We are wondering why. Back in the 9th century Angkor was the heart of the Khmer empire for aproximately 300 years before being abandoned. At its peak Angkor had a population of one million. From our observations you would need at least that many workers to build these massive Hindu temples which today are Buddhist. There was Angkor Thom with huge faces carved into the rocks, Ta Prohm sometimes called the “Tomb Raider” temple not only where the movie was filmed but also where the jungle had engulfed the walls of the ruins which made for a very surreal experience, Banteay Srei which means citadel of women was the smallest of the temples we visited, but had the most intricate, beautiful carvings that they believed could only be done by the delicate hand of a women and last but not least Angkor Wat the largest of them all. This one required a 4:45AM wake up call to see the sunrise over the temple and started off with quite a bang when we stepped out of our hotel and realized Lee had mistakenly booked a third Tuk Tuk, we only needed two. After 10 minutes of watching the drivers try to straighten this mess out Lee stepped in and said he would pay the extra driver for the inconvenience, when we got back , and assured the driver not to worry, “I’m a man of my word”, which we all found very funny because just the day before Lee had scheduled the same driver but we ended up taking a van instead. Eventually we made it to the temple with a hundred of our closest friends and just in time to be escorted to our free plastic seat in the second row where we were offered coffee or Tea for 1 dollar. After drinking the lukewarm cup of instant Nescafe, Lee & Kim realized there was a real opportunity here to set up a Cappuccino & Espresso stand and make a small fortune. The sunrise really wasn’t as magnificent as we had hoped but all the early morning hoopla made it quite fun. After visiting Angkor Wat we went back to the hotel for a little R&R, before heading out to explore a floating village. Our captain looked to be 14 and his first mate 12 but they assured us we were in good hands. We spent the next hour or so cruising the river, exchanging hello’s, waves and smiles with all the villagers we saw along the way. It turned out to be a special treat on our last day in Cambodia.
Hannah left for Cape Town and we were now a Small party of four heading to the beaches of Ko Phi Phi & Railay for one last hurrah, before it was time for Kim & Lee to head back to the Big Apple. We rented a house on Railay, had a chef cook us a fantastic meal, snorkeled at Mosquito Island, Jumped off a cliff and sipped some wine thanks to Kim as we watched the sun set on the beach.
This time of the year is always a bit tough for us but we were thankful to be on a beach, one of Rachel’s favorite places, doing “cartwheels in the sand “, eating Thai food which she loved so much because of its sweetness and watching the oranges and pinks paint the sky each evening. The big, beautiful smiles and open hearts of the people of Southeast Asia will always remind us of our Sunshine as we continue this journey.
Shoutouts,
- To all our guest travelers Now that your seasoned how about a reunion in Morocco?
- Bonjour Brittney have fun in France and remember the three B’s
- Liz & Rick This batch of pictures is safe and sound thanks to you.
- Ivi Where are you?
- Hedy Surfs up in Costa Rica!
- Hannah Our Drama Queen no longer. Have fun in Cape Town and you remember the three B’s too.
- Jess & Rich Thanks for taking such good care of little Gus

SMALL PARTY OF NINE

After five months of travel, seven countries and a lot of anticipation the gang arrived in Bangkok ready "to let the wild rumpus begin," And so it did. The cold of Colorado was soon a distant memory the temperature in Bangkok, a steamy 90 with 95% humidity. With only a short time, the Grand Palace and several Wats (Buddhist temples) to conquer we forged ahead. Three days and some pretty yummy street food later we left the hustle and bustle of the big city and boarded our flight to explore northern Thailand and the charming city of Chiang Mai before hitting the beach. With plenty on the agenda, a trip to the Elephant rescue camp, Thai cooking class, trekking to the hill tribes and of course as many Thai massages as possible, there was no time to waste. We thought it would be fun to let our guest bloggers share some of the highlights.

- When in Chiang Mai going to an elephant camp is a definite must… so with only a moments hesitation after signing a liability waiver (which is practically unheard of in Thailand) we rode an opened back bus up into the soy bean fields with our guide “Bowie, David Bowie” to spend the day with the elephants. The view was gorgeous and the elephants magnificent. The elephants at the camp were rescued from Burma where they were abused. The camp was home to about 6 grown elephants and one adorable baby elephant named James Bond, much to the delight of the camp guides. Our day with the elephants started with each member of our large group getting the chance to climb aboard the back of one lucky member of the elephant clan. There are 3 ways to mount an elephant: (1) you can hoist yourself up by standing on the animals raised foot and then swing your leg over its back cowboy style (more easily said than done) (2) stand facing the front of the elephant grab a hold of the elephants large ears, the elephant will raise its trunk and you can scramble up the trunk onto the elephants back or (3) if you’re feeling particularly tenacious you can take a leap standing face to face with the elephant and hope to hurdle the elephants large head and land in a straddle position on its back. Option 3 offers the best chance for observer entertainment should the mount go wrong. After spending the morning taking turns getting on and off the elephant we had a lovely little lunch and then on we went to bathe the elephants in the river. The aforementioned liability form started to make sense once we all got into the water, elephants, camp participants and mahouts alike. The washing of the elephants turned out to be a sorry excuse for the guides to start a giant water fight, which Mike couldn't have been more excited about. Once the battle had ended, we all once again mounted our giant new friend. As usual, Mike and Carin were on the rouge elephant. Mike of course tried to wrangle his elephant back into submission while everyone else got back on their ride until it was only Carin left standing in the water with the elephants. In a state of mild panic Carin thought the guides were asking her to mount the elephant standing in front of her, unable to see that Mike had finally got his elephant under control and was laying in the water waiting, so in a slightly shrill voice, Carin eyed up the giant in front of her and asked the guide “how do you want me to get up there? It’s standing!!”. Eventually Carin found her way and we spent the rest of the afternoon letting the elephants graze and get a fabulous mud bath. The day was undeniably one of the most memorable experiences any of us will ever have. Jess

- After many eventful adventures in Chiang Mai the nine of us decided to take it easy by enrolling in a Thai Cooking class. Around three in the afternoon we all boarded the back of the truck and headed off to the farmlands slightly outside of the city. After many minutes on a bumpy dirt road we arrived at the cutest cooking school I have ever seen. We were treated to a brief tour of the organic garden where we smelled, tasted and learned about all the different herbs used in Thai cooking. Next we each settled into our individual cooking stations, equipped with a wok, single burner, pestle & mortar, and the necessary ingredients. The chef gave a brief demonstration and we began to cook our four courses, curry paste, red or green curry, chicken with Thai basil, tom yom soup, and what else… Pad Thai. Things seem to be going nicely until about half way into the green curry. Maybe it was the cold I caught from dad or it could have been the not so fresh chicken satay I scarfed down earlier from one of the many street vendors, whatever the cause I was soon white faced, covered in a cold sweat and I knew I was going down. My face was either going straight into my green curry or I would have to take a seat outside the cooking class I had waited to long to do. I opted for the seat outside and unfortunately will never know exactly how make curry. Luckily I have 7 others who do know how to make a successful green curry, plus a fabulous red curry made by the also fabulous Mike Small. After many cups of water and a few much needed and tender hugs from mom I rejoined the class and we finished making our big feast. My favorite part came right after the cooking, THE EATING! As we engulfed our meal we came to the conclusion that the best food in Thailand came right from our own cooking. So if anyone is ever craving“ fabulous Thailand food”, give anyone of the crew a call because we are more than willing to show off our
skills. Hannah

- From the enchanting beaches of Ko Pi Pi, to the fascinating markets and fish massages of Bangkok, to the scooters & magical New Year's Eve celebration of Chiang Mai. A once-in-a-lifetime incredible 2 weeks in Thailand. Best of all, we were with our dearest friends.
Eddysan "Massage King" B.

- The whole trip to Thailand was amazing, with the best part being that we got to see the famous "bigworld-smalltravelers" in person. What a treat! It was also great spending time with Jess, Hannah, Sue and Dani. My favorite day was the visit to the elephant rescue camp where we were employed for the day(even though we paid them). First we were told to strip down and put on our work camp uniforms which consisted of a one size fits all pair of denim pants (they were as wide as they were long and came with a belt already attached--efficiency at its best), and a matching denim top. I cringed as I heard Marcia's voice in my head--"double-denim,that's a glamour no-no!). Not to worry though, the little bamboo hats created a nice offset attracting one's eyes upward distracting from the obvious fashion faux pas. So off we went in our matching outfits to learn to feed, mount and command these amazingly large, beautiful, peaceful animals--who by the way are big sweet eaters. No wonder they are so big. They live on bananas and sugar cane! Anyway, we all got the opportunity to hoist ourselves up on top of them, bareback that is, speak to them in Thai, and feed them bananas as they wielded their humongous trunks up to grab the bananas. So imagine climbing up the side of an elephant grabbing the top of its ear and hoisting yourself over its ten foot wide back (my hip still hasn't recovered!). Then while you are on top with nothing to hold onto, and believe me it is high up, bunches of bananas are being thrown up for you to catch as you scream Thai commands at the elephant and suddenly its fire hose trunk is at you like no other one-eyed snake I've ever seen! It was scary and exciting and exhilarating all at once. I opted out of the front mount that we got to try next, but Mike's perfect spread eagle mount landed him smack on the elephant's forehead--nice air Mike! It was great fun watching everyone. They all deserve a big round of applause. After, we rode the elephants down into the river where we got to give them a bath and scrub them up. The elephants were happy to take care of all of their usual bathroom needs during bath time--I don't think I need to go into all of the graphic details---but just know that we were barefoot and hip deep in the water with them! Our guides were gracious enough to start a water fight so that we could all enjoy cooling down in the bath water. I was trying to be a good sport until I was whopped with a big splash of water and some got in my mouth! Carin and Mike's elephant was a bit feisty and gave them quite the ride--very entertaining! The rest of the day consisted of a trail ride, a roll in the mud, and ended with us planting sugar cane for a future meal. I don't want to be a blog hog, and there is so much more to talk about, but suffice it to say, I found this experience to be one of the top ten of my life. Truly spectacular! For those of you who need more--not to worry--I purchased a whole hour and a half DVD of the whole experience.So that was a highlight for me, but the entire trip was simply AMAZING! Thank you to Carin and Mike again for providing the opportunity for this once in a lifetime experience. AN

- Before we began our travels we received some good advice from Mike which helped us throughout our trip. He told us to let go of all our expectations because things simply do not operate the same way in Asia as they do at home. All this became very clear when we arrived at the beach, via 6 different types of transportation, and the hotel did not have our reservation. Several hours later we found accommodations and the time we ending up spending at the beach with Mike, Carin, Hannah and Jess was amusing, adventurous, relaxing and beautiful. We spent our days kayaking, snorkeling, laying out and even a little cliff jumping amongst some of the most beautiful rock formations and the clearest water we have ever seen. We shared some amazing experiences both at Railay Beach, Chiang Mai and Bangkok (also with Ed, Ann and Nicole)that will last a lifetime. Thanks to Mike and Carin for allowing us to join them on their extraordinary journey!! Our eyes have been opened to the world and we think that we might have caught the traveling bug:)

Sue and Dani

- Railay beach offers a fantastic array of adventures from rock climbing to kayaking and everything in between. Having already been kayaking and lacking the upper body strength of rock climbers we decided to embark on a sunset snorkel. The plan was to leave at 2 in the afternoon, hit 3 snorkeling spots, have dinner at sunset on a secluded beach, take a night swim with the phosphorescent plankton and be back by 8:30. As many of us know life tends to get in the way of all of your plans and things ended up going just a bit differently. Here are the highlights:
· Our guide’s name was Joe. Joe liked to drink. A lot.
· A storm came along after our first snorkeling spot and as we rocked back and forth in our small boat on the angry sea, Sue pleaded with Joe to take her back…the answer was “No”.
· Due to issues Joe had on the previous nights excursion getting to the preferred island for dinner we had a location change and Joe took us to the rockiest island in the vicinity of Railay beach and had us hike ashore. This was only mildly irritating in daylight but turned dangerous when the sun went down.
· Dinner was supposed to be served at 5:30. At 6:30, when people were reaching the point of ravenous, Joe happily assured us not to worry because more beer was on the way… dinner was served at 7:30 and shockingly it was absolutely delicious.
· Mike fell on the rocks trying to get back to the boat. Many of you may not see this as a highlight, but if you are part of the Small family, you most definitely will and so it has to be noted.
· When Joe tried to prompt everyone to go swim with the plankton in a string of slurred words, 4-year-old Oliver (a fellow traveler) announced to the group in his loudest and most adorable Australian accent “Don’t listen to Joe, He’s crazy.” All of us thought it; none of us were brave enough to say it.
· Carin fell off the shaky ladder trying to get out of the boat, hanging on with one hand she flailed above the barely calf deep water until the hands on deck could get her back on balance. Hannah and Jess laughed about it the whole way back to the hotel.The snorkeling was very good and the experience was quite an adventure. Overall I think most of us would do it all again. Jess

So there you have it. As you can see Thailand really left a lasting impression on all of us. Traveling with 9 people is definitely exciting, frequently funny, sometimes a little challenging, but always filled with love especially when with your dear friends and favorite girls.