The Carrolls: Setting Off: "SE Asia 2018" in BKK

When Jeff stopped working 9 to 5 last summer, we knew this summer would be ideal for a big trip. Asia with the kids had always been on the list. When Babçia and Grandpa jumped on the bandwagon we began fine tuning an itinerary that would work for all parties. Lonely Planets were bought, borrowed, and gifted and Jeff and Mom took on the majority of research. We consulted YouTube to find out what street food got Mark Weins to make the best faces and how to spend $20 a day in any given city. The girls planned their budget for souvenirs, activities, and ice cream.

We had been to Thailand and India (pre-children) in autumn 2004 and thought some familiarity would give us a modicum of comfort arriving in a foreign land. Jeff and Mom sketched an itinerary that included starting in Bangkok and the beaches of Koh Chang; two places we'd been before. The rest of the route was a flexible arc across Cambodia, Angkor Wat, diving locations, the Mekong Delta and some Vietnamese beaches. We would part with the Boyans after 4 weeks and continue up to Hanoi and back or circle around through Laos back to BKK. Even though we loosely followed a pre-imagined itinerary, most lodging and transportation was booked a week or less ahead of time.

We are travelling light, just one (large, school backpack size) bag for each of us and 1 extra daypack. It worked out perfectly and we never felt deprived of wardrobe or accessories. In 2004, we carried towering frame packs. This time we scoff at travellers we see in that position. We're kind of over buying tons of souvenirs, so as long as you manage your laundry schedule, a small bag is the way to go.

STEP 1: Get to the other side of the world.

@ Chicago Ohare, 2nd of 4 airports encountered en route to Bangkok. Our "cheap flight" took us on Qatar Air, which traversed the long way around the globe with a stop in Doha.

The girls on the 13-hour transatlantic leg:

Hour 00:00 - "OMG, this is the coolest plane ever!"

(complimentary swag bag, personal TVs, video games, and food service)

Hour 01:30 - "OMG - so much food we cant even finish!"

Hour 03:00 (midnight our home time) - Maya is able to conk out. Genna is in tears, how will she survive this flight length?

Hour 04:00 - Genna's asleep

Hour 06:00 - Maya discovers the Trip-route feature of the TV, "We're only halfway!!!!!????"

Hour 10:00 - Genna woke up to discover she missed ice-cream service

We have the good fortune to be traveling with the Boyan Grandparents for the first 4 weeks of the journey. We met up in Chicago to embark together. Our first perk of family travel is they sat with the girls on the 2nd flight (7 hours) so Jeff and I actually got some sleep.

We arrived in Bangkok at 7:00am, 2 days later, having lost a day to time zones. An early arrival means that we have an ENTIRE busy day ahead of us before bedtime.

Khao San Road

We pre-booked a hotel (with airport pick up) near the famous traveller's hub of Khao San Road. (Rambuttri Village Inn on a quieter side street). Yes, the discerning traveller may poo-poo this backpacker mecca, but it fits the bill for being close to major attractions (walk to Grand Palace and Wat Pho). Plus, you can conveniently arrange onward travel and tours from here (our top priority in the 1st few days). I do admit we started our pilgrimage with some generic pad thai on the street the first day. The rest of the day, the girls enjoyed the roof-top pool and explored shopping opportunities.

It was also decided that we would skip Koh Chang and find some Cambodian Beaches further down the line. Summer is not the best time for diving near Koh Chang, so we hoped that it was a legitimate reason to skip it. The direct route from Bangkok to Siem Reap makes more sense than going down to the islands and then back up. This would mean that the Boyans missed out on having much Thai-time.

Day 2
Stop #1: the Grand Palace
FYI - this place does enforce the strictest dress code we encountered. Pants must be long. Capris are not pants! Leggings are not pants! (unless you're a "baby" ~ Genna).
It was vastly more crowded than we recall from 14 years ago.