Fun in the City- Bangkok Staycation

We decided to head into the city for a few days for a last minute vacation before school started back up.  We live about an hour outside of the city and it just isn't always the easiest to make it there.  We have had an ongoing list of things we have wanted to do in the city and decided to make a few days out of it.  Every time we spend time in the city, we say we need to do it more often.  I hope we actually follow through this year because there are so many great places to check out.

I found another amazing condo through Airbnb.  I am having some great success with this site.  The condo I found had 2 full bathrooms and one with a tub, two bedrooms, full kitchen, washer and dryer, and an amazing view of the river.  Ben and the boys kept making fun of me because I could not stop watching the boats on the river.  I was captivated by then.  I must have lived on a boat in another life.

The first night in the city we headed to Chamchuri Square to try out the Dialogue in the Dark exhibit. I was told about this exhibit and knew that this was something that I wanted the boys to experience. The exhibit is located on the 4th floor of the Chamchuri Square in NSM Science Square.  The science museum is free, but there is an admission for Dialogue in the Dark .  This is recommended for children ages 10 and up, but they will do a short little 2 minute test to see if children younger than 10 can handle it.  My 5 year old was worried that it was a haunted house and my 8 year old wasn't quite sure about it either, so we stayed behind and hung out in the science museum while Ben and Greyson experienced what it is like to be blind.  They had to navigate through a "city" for an hour and a half. They had to buy food, make change, and even get a tuk tuk!  Ben and Greyson said it was an amazing experience and highly recommend it.  I hope I am able to get back to try it at some point.

This picture of the King is made out of Legos. 

After the science museum, we headed to Asiatique for dinner and shopping.  The boys had to stop for gelato.  SO Yummy!.  We didn't stay long and thankfully left when we did because it started pouring. We made it back in time to our condo to watch fireworks at Asiatique from our balcony!

Day two in the city was spent by relaxing at the pool during the day.  I was too cold to get in the water.  I have become a complete baby about water since living in Thailand.  It was 85 degrees out and I had goosebumps.  I am going to freeze to death when we come back to the States!

That afternoon we headed to Impact Arena for the main event of our Staycation.  We were getting ready to see Cirque du Soleil's Quidam.  Almost everything we did on our trip would not allow cameras, so I actually do not have many pictures from this vacation.  I actually had to turn in my brand new camera before I could even enter the arena.  Thankfully, I got it back after the show.  I was a little nervous though.  I cannot say enough about Quidam.  If you ever have a chance to see Cirque show, do it!  You will not be disappointed.    I loved the message behind this show too.  It was about a little girl whose parent's were always too busy for her due to job, stress, and technology.  The boys even picked up on this theme. It kept the boy's attention the entire time.  It was so good and I am so glad I have finally been to a Cirque performance.

For day 3, I had plans to make it to a couple Thai museums, but we only made it to one and I cannot say enough about this one either.  We visited the Dusit Palace or the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall. This building looks nothing like other buildings in Bangkok.  It was designed by Italian architects and the building itself is a work of art.  The Throne hall houses pieces of artwork that have been made for the King and Queen for important celebrations, birthdays, & anniversaries.

I wasn't sure what the boys would think of this, but they loved it.  When you arrive, you are given a little recorder that tells information on every piece that is in the hall.  Britton loved typing in the number and listening all about the artwork.  I cannot even come close to describe the craftsmanship of the art that is in this building.  Most of the pieces are mind boggling.   Hundreds of artists worked for years on most of the pieces.  This museum was so well done and all of the guides were very kind. You need to have on respectful dress when entering this building.  Pants and short-sleeved shirts for men and children and women need to have on a skirt.  I was in pants and they made me buy a sarong before going in to the building.  You also have to leave all of your possessions behind in a locker.

Hanging out at a bookstore after lunch at the mall.

That night we finally, after years of wanting to go, made it to Siam Niramit.  It is a Thai performance about the history of Thailand.  It  discusses the different regions of Thailand.  I was actually glad that we did not see this performance earlier in our stay in Thailand.  I really understood most of what was going on and we have visited all of the regions that were in the play, so we had a point of reference for the story.  This was also very well done.  The lighting, costumes, and sets were all stunning.  This was another one of the places that we could not take pictures at.  And don't think you can sneak a picture. They have people watching with lasers and will shine them at you if you even start to take a photo with your phone!

Our last morning in the city was spent at Neilson Hays Library for story hour.  The boys listened to the amazing story teller read two stories about pirates.  Then they put together a pirate craft.  It is always a good time and I really wish we lived closer to the library to be able to do this more often.

That was our little staycation in Bangkok.  It was a lot of fun and I am already looking forward to planning another weekend in the city to discover a few more of the hidden gems that we have missed over the past few years.

Highlights from our week with Gigi (Grandma)

My boys were so excited to have their grandma (they call her Gigi) here in Thailand for 9 days.  The last time she came for a visit we did all the normal tourist trips, trip to the beach and visiting the largest reclining Buddha at Wat Pho.  This time I wanted her to experience a little more of our daily life in Thailand.  I wanted her to have a chance to see some of the activities the boys are a part of and have some traditional Christmas experiences with the kids.  Here are some of the highlight from her trip.

Thanksgiving & Christmas all in one day

Floating Market & Feeding Elephant

Visiting the old capital Ayutthaya & Ruins

Decorating Gingerbread Houses and Cookies

Watching Swim and Soccer Practice

Art in Paradise: 3-D Art Museum

Asiatique

The Boy's Piano Recital

 We all had a great week with Gigi.  It was nice to spend some time as a family.  The boys loved being able to share our lives in Thailand with their grandma.

Top 10 ( mostly free) Things to do In Kuala Lumpur with Kids

We ended up staying 6 days longer in Malaysia than we had planned. (Read why HERE), so we found many great thing to do in Kuala Lumpur with the kids.  Here are our top 10 favorite things to do.

1. Petrosains

When checking out other blogs and asking for suggestions on what to do in Kuala Lumpur, everyone suggests Petrosains, the hands ob science center.  The center is focused on the science of petroleum industry. It does focus on other areas of science too, but the main focus is everyday use of petroleum. The science center is located in KLCC Suria shopping center (the mall by the Petronas Towers.)  The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday 9:30- 5:30.  It costs RM 15.00 for adults, RM 10.00 for youth 13-17 years, RM 5.00 for children 3-12 years, and 2 & under is FREE.  

My boys loved walking around on the model of the oil rig.  They were so excited because they had just found out that their aunt was going to be working on an oil rig in the United States and they were getting to see what it would really be like living on a rig.  We had a great time at the museum and spent a few hours there.  One tip: Eat before you go to the museum.  There is a small snack bar, but it is way at the end of the museum.

2. KLCC Suria

This is the mall that is connected to the Petronas Towers.  I think we made a visit to this mall every single day that we were in KL.  There is a lot to do there.  We ate dinner at Chilis one night and had a window seat.  We were able to watch the light & fountain show from the window.  The boys loved this!  Make sure to ask for a window seat if you are at Chilis at dusk!

We checked out a movie while we were there.  The movies are MUCH cheaper than in the States.

We went to the Petronas Art Gallery, free art museum, that is located on the floor of the mall.

We stopped at Kinokuniya Book store a couple times and sat around and read.  I really miss good book stores and this one was amazing.

We ate at the great food court a few times.

Really, this mall has tons of things to do at it.  I usually hate malls, but I really liked this one.

3. Central Market

The Central Market has been open for over 100 years.  It is also called The Centre for Malaysian Culture, Heritage, Arts & Crafts.  This is the best place to shop for souvenirs to take home.  This market is great because it is indoors and air conditioned, so if it is too hot or raining, this is a great place to go for a bit.  There are places to eat and tons of great shops to look at.  Make sure to find a great batik to take home.  We found batik place mats that we loved.  My boys liked dressing up at the Chinatown shop!

4. National Mosque

We have been to Wats, Temples, Synagogues, and Churches, but we have never been to a Mosque. One thing that is great about living in another country (or even in a big city in the States) is being able to do our own world religion courses with the boys.  I was a little nervous about visiting, as I always am when I visit a new place of worship, because I did not want to do anything to offend anyone.  Some religions you are not supposed to touch the opposite sex or you need to remove your shoes or wear certain clothing and I wasn't sure what to expect.

 As soon as we made our way to the line to go into the mosque my nerves were calmed.  Everyone was so kind and helpful.  Women do need to be covered and will be given a robe with a headscarf. Men should be dressed in pants and children can get away with a little more.  My boys had shorts and t-shirts on.  We learned a lot about the Muslim religion from the guides that were there and met some wonderful people.  Our trip to the mosque was a highlight of our trip.  My boys loved it.  Greyson could not get over how beautiful the mosque was.

Just remember to be respectful.  You are a guest.  This is not just a site to see in the city, but also a place of worship.  We watched a few very large tour groups try to pose in the praying position to get a picture.  It was rude and made me uncomfortable to watch.  Make sure to check out the website for visiting hours. The mosque is closed during prayer times.

5. Planetarium

We stopped at the National Planetarium or called the Planetarium Negara for an afternoon visit.  The place it not really all that big.  We probably spent about 1 1/2 hours there.  We learned about life on the International Space Station.  They had a model of it and the boys were able to see how the astronauts sleep and even use the toilet. (Of course, a favorite of the boys and made lots of giggles.) They tried on gloves and tried to preform tasks like the astronauts have to do.  They had a model of a space shuttle that you could sit in.  It was very informative.  They also have a few shows during the day in the planetarium.  We watched one The Voyager Show.   The movie was geared more for middle school students and up, but my boys all enjoyed it.  The cost for the Planetarium is free but if you want to view the movie it is 12.00 RM ($3.70) for adults and 8.00 RM ($2.50) for children 2-12.

6. Botanical Gardens

The Botanical Gardens are located on the same grounds as the Planetarium and also very close to the National Mosque.  The gardens are huge. You can hop on a tram to get to and from each section if you cannot walk the whole thing.  We only explored a small section of the gardens.  The gardens are very well cared for.  They do have a small enclosure with animals in it.  They have a deer sanctuary and  houses for some rodent type animals.  We walked over to the massive Brazil Nut Tree and had a little picnic under the tree.  We only spent about an hour there, mostly because we were melting from the heat, but it was a lovely place to visit.

7. Chinatown

Our first attempt to visit Chinatown left me a little confused.  There were no stalls set up, just huge tables and a stage.  I just couldn't figure out where all the stalls and vendors were.  It turned out that Chinatown had been closed for the night due to a huge reunion!  I figured we must have visited the only night of the year when it was closed.  I didn't think we would have time to make it back, but we were able to sneak a quick visit in later in the week.  This is a great place to buy shoes, clothes, purses, watches, etc., but not souvenirs or art work. Go back to the Central Market if you want those. It was a fun place to see, and we left before it go too busy.

8. Playground 

The first night we were in Kuala Lumpur we headed over to see the Petronas Towers.  This was what the boys had been most looking forward to seeing.  Right outside of the towers is a massive playground.  It honestly went on forever.  The boys kept finding new sections to play at.  There is also a free splash pad/fountain to play in.  We decided against the water since Britton had a cut and injection marks on his arms.  I wasn't sure how clean the water was, but it looked like great fun. We went around sunset, which was a great time because it was much cooler out.  The park is not shaded, so it gets very hot during the day.  The boys loved playing at the playground.  We miss going to playgrounds in Thailand.

9. Fountains

Once it gets dark, head back over to KLCC Suria to watch the light/fountain show.  We had a lot of fun watching the fountains.  They were beautiful!

10. Gallery

I love getting a little history of a country when we are on a trip and a great place to learn about Kuala Lumpur is the Kuala Lumpur City Gallery.  The first part of the building goes over this history of the city. This building is also home to ARCH, which is a model making company.  You can watch the builders make the wooden models and also see the largest model of the entire city of Kuala Lumpur. They also have a beautiful gift shop.  The gallery is free.

We had an amazing week in Kuala Lumpur.  We saw way more than we had planned and had to scrap a few ideas due to Britton being injured.  Hoping next time we visit we will make it to the Batu Caves and the Firefly tours.  We all loved this city and hope to go back again!

Summer Bucket List-Kid Edition

We are celebrating our last official day of school today.  So, now I can start thinking about our summer plans. We have a great summer in store, but there will always be a day where the kids say they are bored and I want to be prepared. Most of the boy's friends are going back the the States or travelling for the summer, so I need to keep these kiddos busy.  We will be traveling for 3 weeks out of the summer, so that leaves us about 30 days to plan activities for. International schools have a short 2 month summer break. Here is our list of what we hope to accomplish this summer. I also have and adult version for all the fun things I would like to do.

1. Visit the library a couple times a week
2. Have a picnic at a park
3. Spend the day at a water park
4. One on one date with each of the boys
5. Visit a floating market
6. Go to the art museum downtown
7. Ride the BTS with the boys
8. Teach the boys to make a pie
9. Teach the boys to make their own lunch
10. Go to children's library downtown
11. Finish reading 6-8 chapter books to the boys
12. Tye Dye shirts
13. Go to Art in Paradise- Bangkok (3-D art museum)
14. Water Balloon Toss
15. Make popsicles 
16. Make homemade pizza
17. Stay up LATE having a movie marathon
18. Visit the monthly farmer's market
19. Have a science night with friends
20. Ice skating at the mall
21. Make muffins for our neighborhood helpers: Guards, coffee lady (she helps me), street sweepers,etc
22. Have 3 country themed meal, learn about the country and watch a movie on the location
23. Invite friends over for a movie night
24. Go to the pool (few times a week)
25. Stay in the city for a night or two
26. Make a care package for a friend that is moving.  Have it sent to his new home waiting for him.
27. Implement chore for the boys
28. Have a game night
29. Go bowling
30. PVC pipe sprinkler

There they are! Our 30 ideas to fun and bored free summer.  Hope you like them.


What do you do to keep your kids from saying they are bored all summer long?  

A Little Slice of Paradise- Koh Chang, Thailand

We have had a wonderful year of traveling...our first trip to Chiang Mai, Thailand and seeing Doi Suthep, The Umbrella Making Factory, amazing 3-D art museum, waterfalls, experiencing Angkor Wat & the floating villages in Cambodia, and seeing the wonders of Disneyland in Hong Kong.  I have loved everyone of our trips this year and really still feel like I need to pinch myself to remind myself that they were not just a dream.  All of our trips have been "on the go" and not very relaxing.  We were desperately needing a beach vacation to relax, read a book, and just watch the boys play.

We are very lucky that Ben has two weeks off of school for Spring break, so we decided to head to one of our very favorite islands, Koh Chang. We visited Koh Chang a year ago and had an amazing time.  We saw wild monkeys right on our front porch, took our first (& last) elephant trek, and just experienced island life. We were excited to get back to this island.

To get to the island, we took a mini bus from the airport and drove 4 hours to the pier to Koh Chang.  This bus driver was amazing and very cautious, unlike our ride home. More on that later!  Once you get to the ferry, it takes about 45 minutes to get over to the island.  Then hop right back on the minibus to your hotel. Thankfully, our trip to the island was very uneventful.

 On the top deck of the ferry to Koh Chang.

 This is the ferry that take you to the island.  

If you have a car, you can drive right on to the ferry.

This time we decided to just relax and enjoy the beach.  There was a lot of  building in the sand, swimming in the pool, and relaxing.  It was just what we all needed.

 I never thought I would see this, but Grey kept taking breaks to read his book!

 Building sand castles

 Digging

 Playing Frisbee

Swimming

On one the of the last days, we decided to take the boys snorkeling for the very first time.  None of us have ever snorkeled before and we had no idea if the boys would even like it.  All of the hotels have many options for different excursions to book.  We decided on a 3 hour snorkeling trip to one island instead of the all day option that would take you to 5 different islands.  The snorkeling company, KaiBae Hut,  picked us up at our hotel, dropped us at the docks, fitted us with the right size life jackets and we were off on a speedboat to the tiny island of Koh Yuak.  It was beautiful.  The water was crystal clear and as soon as you put  your head in the water you are surrounded by hundred of fish and coral every color of the rainbow.  It was stunning.  The boys could not get enough of it.  Greyson was obsessed with finding all the sea glass he could.  It was a really lovely morning and I look forward to doing that again with the boys.

 Getting ready to go snorkeling

 The beach was full of shells

 The water was crystal clear!

 The company that took us snorkeling

The island of Koh Yuak

Later that night we went Bang Bao Fishing Village.  It is supposed to be a traditional Thai fishing village.  It may be, but really it seemed more like a tourist trap to me.  The entire strip is built up on stilts and is lined with souvenir shops and places to eat.  We walked all the way to the end of the pier and looked at all the fishing/snorkeling boats and the beautiful lighthouse.  We had dinner in the village.  We had a little bit of a difficult time getting back to our hotel, due to the songthaew drivers asking way too much money for such a short ride.  Sometimes you just have to give in and pay a little more if you ever want to get home again.

 Snorkeling boats in Bang Bao

 Lighthouse at the end of the pier

The beautiful sunset while we were eating our dinner

We had a fabulous week at the beach.  It was full of fun moments, special bonds being made, and a week full of memories.  We are already talking about when we can try to make it back!  

 The boys on the beach

 Our hotel, Siam Beach Resort

 Special morning walk with Lincoln

Getting ready to head back to Bangkok

Now, getting home was a completely different story altogether!  Our driver that picked up up at our hotel was flying through the hills on the island.  We were just inches from rear ending a car.  I thought that maybe he was just in a hurry to catch the ferry, but by the time we were on the mainland we were still flying down the road.  I felt like we were in that scene of Harry Potter when he is on the bus and it it swerving all over the road and speeding like crazy.  This driver would get so close to the back of a car that I really have no idea how we did not get into an accident.  Finally, after a very stressful 3 hours in the mini bus, another passenger called the owner of the buss company and demanded that he slow own.  Once we go back on the bus, he was a completely different driver.  Almost Perfect.  Because of this situation, I will never go with that bus company again and plan on only hiring private drivers in the future.  But, we made it home safe and sound.

We have a few more days off for Spring Break and have a couple more adventures in store for the boys!