My interest in racing began with a video game.  My all-time favorite video game is the Super Mario Kart for Super NES.  Driving is so much fun when there is speed involvde: whether in real life or  in the virtual world.  It is the satisfaction of getting the best time possible for  certain lap or distance.  I have always believed that I am called to be a Formula 1 driver if I hadn’t gotten into business (Yeah, in your dreams, Mike!).

And so we must do the kart to find out if I am meant to be a great race car driver. There weren’t any customers when we arrived in Samui Go-Kart at Bophut Beach.  Maybe it’s  because it was a Monday and people were still tired from partying over the weekend,  plus it was a working day.
The rate for a 15 minute drive around the race track cost 500 Baht.  You can choose to drive from 2 kinds of Karts: top speeds of 40 kph or 100 kph.  We tried the 40 kph because it was our first time. Jenny found it too slow. She said her 12-year-old SUV is easier to drive. And yes, she was go-karting in a brown dress.  I drove at maximum speed and it was challenging to do the curves. There’s this possibility of turning turtle.  I think I just graduated from go-karting and I’m off to F1. 

Blogger: Michael Paul & Jennifer

Blogger: Curtis & Mark

Big also initiated a cherry knotting contest. It so happened that we had more than 3 cherries on our ice cream. We were amused that Big would know about this western tradition. Who won? Nobody! Not one of us was successful. We need more practice I guess! 

Blogger: Michael Paul & Jennifer

We have a car a bit bigger than other contestants, but nearly no place left for Chai, our liaison guy!

We arrive in the Sukko Spa resort, it is like being in jungle, we have the best comfort ever! Even a private massage place in our room! Photos here

We prepare to make our firsts tasks, and have a lunch in a typicall Thai restaurant. The waiters are laughing, because farangs (foreigners) probably never come in this small restaurant. The food is delicious, fast, and super cheap (we ate more than enough for 40 bahts, less than a euro per personn)!

We arrive in the Phuket Aquarium, and we discover local faune and flora. Also, worldwide fishes, corals shows their beautys! But, to tell the truth, we had the chance to see many of them in real scuba diving opened water recently, and, of course it is not the same taste. Photos here

Our programm brings us to the Phuket Zoo; we spend a few hours, to talk with our friends there. We saw some crocodile shows, with some Indiana Jones Thai style, we saw elephants dancing, even painting, and bicycling… Photos here

Well, to tell the truth, we do not appreciate really zoos, this is a very personnal point of view, but as we are open air people, we do not really like seeing animals in cages. We saw beautifull birds, but they cannot fly…. Pity…

Most of people really enjoyed the shows, so, it is for sure a good attraction for you if you wish it!

Before to explore a bit more the city of Phuket (scheduled for tomorow), we take a bit of altitude (still on the ground) and reach the Khao Rang view point (a nice hill just over Phuket, wonderfull view, and sunset) Do not miss it! It is full of ambiances!

We have a dinner at Baan Klang Jinda the evening, it is one of the most known restaurant in Phuket, and in Thailand! Food was amazing, fine, and tasty! The Chilian wine was also first choice! Emilia get a special vegetarian menu, while Mathieu have a great seafood plate. Photos here

What a day, we felt like we ran 24 hours. It is not finished, we have to report it to you! Emilia had a problem this evening: her charger of computer burned, means that we have now only one computer… Anybody has an idea to get a Toshiba charger in Phuket?

Tomorow, we hope the weather will be good, to show you Phuket city from the sky! We’ll probably do it in the evening, and visit the town during the day!

Have fun!

Blogger: Mathieu & Emilia

Blogger: Curtis & Mark

Have you ever been to a drag show? Yes we’re talking about those shows where men dress up in costumes, lip sync (oftentimes poorly we might add) and impersonate Cher, Madonna and every other diva out there? Well…Tiffany’s show is everything but that – except for the men dressing up like women part.

What’s the best way to describe the show? Does a giant, glittering peacock descending from the ceiling and an enormous, shiny stiletto-heeled shoe rolling onstage answer the question? We thought so.

Tiffany’s Show is self-described as the, “First ever truly transvestite cabaret show in South East Asia”. The entire cast is composed of male performers, even the female ones (but you’d never know). Classic and contemporary songs from stage and screen are brought to life in over-the-top sets, colorful headpieces, and shiney costumes. We’ve never seen so many sequins in one place before!

The show has many memorable numbers and very campy, over-the-top opening and closing numbers. In between set changes, solo and/or duet acts perform in front of the curtain; sometimes stepping into the audience. The rendition of Tina Turner’s Proud Mary was quite good.

Every year since 1998 Tiffany’s Show hosts the “Miss Tiffany’s Universe” beauty pageant. Rising stars showcase their talent with the hopes of becoming a part of this cultural icon in Pattaya.

Like any other theater show, photos aren’t allowed inside. But we caught up with some of the performers afterwards. These ladies are talented, beautiful and world-class. There’s a little something for everyone to enjoy at TIffany’s Show.

As a sponsor of the Ultimate Thailand Explorers Competition, we’d like to thank Tiffany’s Show. Next time we’d love to watch the magic happen from backstage!

|Know Before You Go|

Appeals To: The show is broadway-esque with it’s song and dance numbers. You’re either a fan of this style or you’re not. You may appreciate it’s over-the-top set design and staging however. Plus this is somewhat of a proud piece of Pattaya culture. So on that end, it may be worth seeing, just to say, “I saw it”. Finally, its promotional material touts that it is family friendly. We wouldn’t disagree, but this is a show where men dress up as women. Let loose and make this a teachable moment if the kids ask questions!
Suggested Stay: It’s around a 90-minute show with no intermission. Offered 3 times nightly.
Cost: Prices vary depending on the category of seats you choose. The 1,000 seat theater felt intimate enough that any seat could be a great seat. Tickets start at 500 Baht ($15)
Getting There: It’s at the end Pattaya’s second road. Drive yourself or take a cab. Parking is available, but on busy nights you may want to get there early since the many tour busses take up a lot of the available spaces.
Don’t Miss: Photo opportunities with the performers in the courtyard after the show. But it will cost you some Baht. No matter whether you’re in Thailand or the United States, Drag Queens always have their hand out looking for money!
Visit Online: | web |
BTW: In 2001 TravelCom Magazine ranked it 4th in their “Top 10 Shows Around the World”, falling behind the Moulin Rouge, Siegfried and Roy and Mystere. This ain’t no ordinary drag show friends!

Blogger: Benjamin & Brian

We drive from Pattaya to Phuket, and we think we can arrive in the evening; big mistake, it is longer than expected, and Mathieu is too tired to continue, we stop at around 3 in the morning, and sleep in the car. Pattaya to Bangkok to Phuket, around 12/14 hours, we strongly advise you to take the bus, they are very comfortable, cheap, and you travell by night, so you can rest.

We finally arrive in Phuket Island, and we go straight to one of the most famous beaches; Patong.

We find a very nice resort, owned by Claude de Crissey, an ex hang gliding instructor, who welcomes us. The Royal Phawadee Village is a perfect location to settle a bit in Patong beach. It is friendly, very nice looking, and you can really have a good rest. Budget is more than acceptable for people who wants to have the best comfort.

No time to loose, our main goal, for now in Phuket, is to learn scuba diving! To visit the island better, we’ll come back later, during the contest. Just arrived, and we book a 3 days full lessons of scuba diving at Sea World diving center. René Christoffersen, our instructor begins our courses, by a lot of theory, and by practical courses in a special framed pool for divers. We use the Padi system, which looks like the most known by far for recreationnal diving. Did you know that sound goes 4 times faster underwater than in the air? Emilia, not afraid, adapts very quickly to all exercises; while i really have to make efforts… To tell the truth, i’ve always been scared by water, and have no idea about how i will react in this new universe… But it looks like i do not so bad

Day after, first dive in open water! very exciting! Our diving area is Racha Yai island, south of Phuket Island. We take a boat, full of advanced divers, and have a 1 hour ride to reach the location. We start from the pier of Chalong (south east of Phuket, certainly the biggest pier for your activities, scuba diving, snorkeling, island hopping)

We pass close to beautifull islands, we fell in paradise. The boat stops in a small nice creek, and René invites us to wear equipment after a last briefing. We jump in the Adaman sea, it is sooooo warm! about 30 degrees! We begin the descent, and reach about 12 meters. And then appears to us, luckiest personns in the world at this precise moment, a new universe. How could we tell you? There are no words! Colourfull, silent, and full of different noises in the same time, it is just like a royal garden! We can see lots of corals, of different sizes, shapes, and colours. Some of them are green, some are red.

We see many different kinds of fishes, but we cannot recognize them, we are students! There are so many things to see, that we dont know where we have to turn the head! We can see Murrays, a bit scarry at the beginning, we see a baby ray, a stone fish, a scorpion fish, and so many others! Hundreds or thousands in fact! We also see Nemo, we didnt realised the film was done here…

After 45 minutes of this first dive, we reach surface, and have a break for the second dive. A bit more relaxed, we enjoy a lot this one too!

Time to come back to Patong, but we will not party tonight, we are too exhausted, and another dive awaits us the day after.

During the next day, we come back to Racha Yai Island, and explore underwater the other side of the island. Here also, it is totally unreal, and we begin to feel better skills, and to manage security better. Thanks to René, for his good teaching and his awsome pictures, and to Sea World for the logistic.

Despite the windy and turbulent conditions of theese days, we decide to try to fly the morning after; the take off will be close to Phuket city (east of the island), and we naturally book an Hotel here. We’ll wake up early the day after, we want to take off at the sunrise, to have the biggest margins to the wind, and to the turbulence.

Blogger: Mathieu & Emilia

Suan Lum Night Bizarre

One of the most popular destinations for Thais and tourists is Silom Night Bizarre. This location offers food (average plate price 50 baht,) free entertainment, beer gardens and shopping all in one place. Around five o’clock, shopkeepers begin rolling up their doors, pulling out tables and preparing for a night of vending as the shopping begins. This location offers the unique opportunity to watch a concert while eating and drinking at the beer gardens then taking a short stroll over to the rows upon rows of shops offering everything from t-shirts, trinkets, massages, stereos and anything else one can imagine. Refine the art of haggling as one should never take the price tag as the final price. One suggestion is to take half the price tag as your starting point and move up from there as the shop keeper lowers their price. Located next to Lumpini Park near Lumpini Subway Station, this location offers the opportunity to enjoy the cool night air after a hot day while shopping to your hearts content.

***Special note – rows of taxi drivers await the weary shoppers just outside of the Night Bizarre. Make sure that they use the meters to take you to your destination. Leave any taxi that attempts to negotiate a flat fee.  The first taxi that we entered wanted a 200 baht flat fee. The actual taxi that we used with a meter charged 50 baht.***

Blogger:  Curtis & Mark

Bungy jumps in Thailand are 50 meters-  or  165 feet-high, nothing higher than that. This is the standard set by the Thai government for all bungy operators. We saw the crane that was going to take us 50-meters above the ground and it didn’t seem that high. After taking a good look at the crane, I told myself, “I am going to be ok. I can handle this.”

Michael and I asked Samui Bungy owner Simon Tumbridge  if we could do a couple jump. We were glad when he told us we could.

“How do we do that?” I asked.

“You hug each other tight,” he said.

“What if we don’t hold each other tight enough?”

“Oh, I’m sure you will!” he was quick to answer.

A bungy jump costs 1,650 baht (US$47 or PHP2,100)  per person here (2nd jump-1,000 baht; 3rd jump-750 baht, if you dare to go back up and jump the same day!).  A couple jump costs the same–1,650 baht for each person. Those who are not that daring can choose to go up the crane to enjoy the great view  for 500 baht.

For an extra 300 baht, you  get the video and photo package as well. Even though we  brought our own cameras, we still got the package. This was  a momentous event that we wanted to capture for posterity.

And so, we had a total of 4 video cameras prepared for the jump. We arrived before 9 AM and  at around 11AM, they were done doing the safety checks. I was glad they’re  very meticulous.  We were asked if we wanted to have our heads  dip the water. It turned out you could choose if you want to be wet or to stay dry. Looking at the mossy green water, I didn’t have a hard time making the decision. If we landed on the water with our mouths open, who knew what kind of live organisms would enter our lungs.  Plus we didn’t bring extra clothes. 

After that decision was made, we were asked to sign a waiver. There’s no refund for non-jumpers, by the way.  A few minutes more and we were taken to an area near the crane to have our weigh-in. This would determine the length of rope that would be used to hold us.

Before long our feet were snugly tied together by soft  pads. We hopped to the elevator that would take us 50 meters up.  The view was spectacular at the top. It more than compensated for the apprehension we were feeling. Koh Samui is really a lush and beautiful island.

Mike and I said a short prayer of blessing  to  the people Thailand and the Philippines.  On our own, I don’t think we would attempt this.  I’d done  a free fall down  a 60 ft. waterfall before and it was exhilarating, but I wasn’t keen on being dangled  on a bungee. I wasn’t looking forward to all that tugging and bouncing. Michael, on the other hand, was afraid of heights.  But as Simon told us when we were at terra firma, “Why try it at all if you’re not afraid, right?” It’s all about facing and conquering our fears. This is what life is all about.

That prayer helped a lot in calming nerves and giving us that final resolve to jump. It’s the first time I experienced such a peace in the face of  an extremely unnerving situation. Then, we stood up and stepped on the platform. Michael looked down right away, and saw for the first time how high 165-feet really was. The pool that seemed so big when we were on the ground now looked like the size of a basketball from up there.

We looked at each other and said out loud, “What did we get ourselves into?!” And then the kindly bungy operator who rode the elevator with us wanted to push us off the platform—right away! And he was dead serious about it.  Hahaha! After getting rid of that initial shock, I calmed down and regained my composure. While Michael was psyching himself up, I was trying to imagine how it would feel falling sideways so that my mind and body would be prepared for the sensations I would be feeling during the leap.

I tried to practice the movement without falling completely while waiting for Michael to find the courage to jump. He kept looking down. I kept telling him to look up and enjoy the view.

About 20 minutes or so, we were finally were ready to jump. There was no fear at all for me, thank God! I credit it to the amazing grace of God and the power of prayer. But for Michael, it was a different matter. . . but  his determination to jump was there.

This is my advice to all of those who are planning to try bungy jumping: give yourself time to get rid of that initial shock before you beg or shout at the operator to take you down. But don’t take too long in waiting (not more than 30 minutes, please!) or you might just totally chicken out.

And so, we breathed deeply, looked at the view for the last time and asked the operator to push us after the count of three. There was complete silence as we fell sideways, head first, tightly clinging to each other. Then we let out a scream! I was able to keep my eyes open. I saw the trees and mountains coming nearer and pretty soon, we were dangling from the rope. It’s true what Simon and his crew said, the actual jump only lasted 3 to 5 seconds.

And it’s true what I’d been dreading, the bouncing and tugging and dangling was not a very pleasant experience, especially on a couple jump, where  you spin and sway more rapidly because of your combined weight. I had to keep my eyes closed because the force and pressure was making me dizzy (My eyes watered a lot, too), but we were still able to shoot ourselves and share the experience on video  as we hung there. Watch our video here soon!

And so we bounced, swayed and dangled like a pendulum for about 5 minutes before the bungy crew got  a hold of us. As they had promised, we didn’t get wet, although, at that time, I wished we did. It might have felt more refreshing that way.

And yes, we’re still alive!!!

They immediately asked us to lie down to remove the pads holding our feet. I saw the bungy cord for the first time.  It wasn’t a solid rubber rope that held us up, but a bundle of very thin rubber ropes. I thought they looked familiar! They were a familiar sight during my childhood. These are the same ropes holding those rubber balls we used to buy from street vendors. Yes, those are the same thin bouncy rubber ropes. The principle behind it is this:  it is safer to use a bundle of these thin ropes because they do not break easily,  compared to  having one solid rubber rope. Even if some broke during a jump, it would be hard to have all of them break at the same time.

While we were lying there, a concerned Simon came to us to break some news.

“Guys, I have news for you. What do you want to hear first? Good news or bad news?”

We mumbled something, to which he replied, “The good new is you guys have a free jump! The bad news is I wasn’t able to take any footage of you two because the camera went full just as you jumped. And I didn’t have time to get a new memory card, because you already jumped,” he explained.

I really thought it was a joke! But it’s not! You should have seen the look on Michael’s face.

We discovered later that 3 out 4 of the video cameras failed to take our jump! My DSLR automatically shut off just as we were jumping. The camera strapped on Michael’s arm also didn’t work because he accidentally pressed the stop button when we leaped. And so the only camera was able to film our experience was the camera held by our bungy operator who at that time was busy pulling the rope that was supposed to hold us. Well, it’s better than nothing.

 Two nights before, I had talked to magazine editor and writer Paul Brailsford  about his bungy experience. He told me that there’s a great adrenaline rush afterwards and it lasts almost the whole day. I did feel a little pressure on my head after the jump, but after about 15 to 20 minutes, I was back to my old self. Surprisingly, instead of being pumped up, I felt very calm. That’s why I posted on Facebook and Twitter that bungy jumping was a very calming experience for me. I was in that state of calm the whole day. So am I saying that bungy jumping  is more relaxing than a spa treatment? Perhaps only for Jenny.

We contemplated on doing another jump because we missed some footage. I was able to convince Michael to do the jump near sunset, which would be great on video. However, at lunch, I noticed that Michael’s face had red spots. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they were broken capillaries. We don’t know if it was the pressure, the fear or his blood pressure (or all of the above!) that caused it, but we decided that it wasn’t a good idea to risk another jump. But maybe when we go back to Koh Samui this year, we’ll take up Simon on his offer!

Now it’s Michael’s turn to tell his side of the story. . .

“It would be a cinch to bungy jump.”   That was what I was telling myself when Jen and I made our audition video.  “There is nothing to it,”  I continued, “besides, no one I know died from one simple jump.”   This would be a piece of cake.

I had that running in my mind ever since we got into the finals.  I was continually reminding myself that it would be easy (Do you see the fear building up since I was trying to reassure myself?).

The day we landed in  Samui,  I already had the Bungy marked in my mind.  My body had it’s own timer telling me, “Four more days.”  It is good that Samui is really beautiful because it helped me forget about that date. The  fun-filled days also drowned me in other matters so  forgot about the  Bungy.

December 14 came and I made sure we didn’t eat anything otherwise one of us would vomit on each other upon falling.

When we arrived Samui Bungy, I was relieved to see that on  the drop  site of the bungy was a big circular pool.  I felt safe.  I was looking for the tower or structure where we would leap and found out that the “tower” was a 50 meter high crane.  It really looked low from where I was standing.

After some basic briefing from Simon the Australian owner, we were tied up for the couple jump.  Although it may look stupid and foolish to throw oneself over a high platform, bungy is safe and very scientific.  We were weighed and compared to a standard so that the right bungy cord and rubber can be used.  This is not your usual bungy jump because Jen and I were going to jump together.  We were strictly instructed to hug tight otherwise we might bump our heads on the way down.
We sat on an elevator like contraption and was 50 meters up in no time.  The view was so beautiful the moment we reached the top.  We prayed a special blessing for Thailand and declared blessings also for next year’s Philippine elections.  I looked around again and was impressed at how beautiful Samui was.  But that was not the view I wanted to see. So I looked down immediately!

The moment I did that I regretted I told the whole world we were going to bungy jump!

You have to understand why.  When I was on the ground, the swimming pool was about 3 buses big.  But the moment we were up there, it looked like the size of a basketball.

I was so scared.

I peeked down again and said, “What have I gotten ourselves into?”   I was pondering on backing out, but then  about the promise I made. We don’t want to  fail our country.

I wanted to back out again the moment I saw the “basketball.” =)

It took us a total of around 25 minutes–because of me–before we were able to make that leap.  There was a strange peaceful silence when we were on the way down.  The only thing that I could feel was the air accelerating.  After the quick fall, the thud came, and we dangled until we were “towed” back to the ground.

To be honest, I am quite embarrassed when I heard myself scream like a pig being slaughtered on the way down.  Will I do it again?  Hmmm…  maybe =)

Recommendations:
1. Don’t eat a full meal before you do this please.

2. If you’re too scared to do it alone, find a buddy or a loved one you trust to jump with you. Someone you can really hug tight ( and whose smell is not offensive to you!)

3. Once up there, give yourself time to overcome shock and bewilderment before you give up on yourself and ask to be taken down.

4. Choose to jump at around 4PM or right before sunset when the sun’s not too hot and the light is perfect for pictures and videos.

We encourage you to do this at least once in your life! It’s life-defining!

SAMUI BUNGY JUMP

Price: 1,650 Baht

Address: The Reggae Pub, Chaweng Beach Road, Koh Samui

Website: http://www.samuibungyjump.com

Blogger: Michael Paul & Jennifer

Hey Explorers,

We’ve said it before, but it’s worth mentioning again, especially since we have new readers all the time; Pattaya has a little something for everyone. If beaches, museums and cultural sites aren’t your thing, Flight of the Gibbon will offer you a full day of adventure.

In just a little over an hour’s drive you can escape the bustling resort city of Pattaya and find yourself in a completely new world – the Thai Rainforest.

Flight of the Gibbon is a well-known adventure operator in Chiang Mai. Their business of sending people careening through the treetops was so successful that they expanded their outfit to the Chompoo Wildlife Sanctuary between Pattaya and Bangkok. Yes it’s true, Flight of the Gibbon makes for a great change of pace from your itinerary in Pattaya or Bangkok.

Flight of the Gibbon offers zipline tours through the canopies of the Thai Rainforest. You’ll spend several hours flying through the sky on over 3 kilometers of cable, moving to and from 26 platforms, 2 sky bridges and 2 opportunities to abseil (rappel down to the ground).

Your day will start with a safety briefing and a 10-minute trek to your first platform. Then get ready for a whole lotta fun. After a few trips down the line, you’ll be comfortable enough to start doing your own tricks and stunts like flying with no hands, leaping off the platform and more. You’ll feel as if you’re flying through the sky. It was fantastic.

Our group was small (around 11 people), plus 2 guides. They’ll take care of every detail, including providing you with a water break in a specially created treehouse. Flight of the Gibbon was an excellent experience and highly recommended.

We’d like to thank Chang Beer for supporting the Ultimate Thailand Explorers Competition and for making opportunities like Flight of the Gibbon possible. Please support our sponsors and indulge in some Chang Beer the next time you’re in Thailand – or visit their website to find a distributor near you.

|Know Before You Go|

Appeals To: Any and all adventurers. Those with a fear of height should be aware that you’ll be soaring high above the ground. Take a deep breath and conquer your fear! Children are welcome too, so long as they meet the minimum height requirement (1 meter)
Suggested Stay: 1/2 day to full day. Overnight packages are also available
Cost: Starts at 2300 Baht ($70). By far the most expensive activity we did, but it was worth every penny. This is a “must-see”.
Getting There: It’s about an hour’s drive from downtown Pattaya. But why bother taking your own ride when Flight of the Gibbon will pick you up and drop you off from your hotel?!
Don’t Miss: Spend your afternoon at the nearby Khao Kheeo Open Zoo.
Visit Online: | web | facebook | twitter | youtube |
BTW: We know safety is top of mind. Our guides were professional, safety-focused and the facilities top-notch. You’ll be in good hands. Keep an eye out for wildlife along the way too!

Blogger: Benjamin & Brian