Normally when I visit Chiang Mai, I stay at Tawan Court, a small budget hotel located a couple blocks away from Chiang Mai’s popular Night Bazaar. While there really isn’t anything really special about the hotel (the rooms are somewhat drab and need new carpeting), I feel comfortable staying there because the management is very friendly and the location is ideal. As the hotel rates go up every year, you would think that the owners would spend some extra monies on refurbishing the rooms.

On my last visit to Chiang Mai in December 2009, I decided to ignore my loyalties to Tawan Court and try something different. After considerable research online, I found the Banilah Hotel, a very stylish looking budget hotel located away from the tourist districts in a neighborhood popular with the University crowd.

The images on Banilah’s website are very flattering in an attempt to portray the hotel as a boutique property. While the office has a nice ambiance, the rooms were sort of dark and drab with very small and cramped bathroom facilities. When you take a shower, the toilet will get all wet. The hotel, which is over 3 years old, is beginning to show some signs of wear and tear. As with most local and budget hotels, there are no in-room safes or safe deposit boxes available at the front desk.

On the plus side, all the rooms have free Wifi and TV. In addition, the hotel offers complementary use of bicycles to all their guests.

Two of my biggest criticisms with Banilah are:

• The hotel management exercised very poor judgment by laying down a water hose across the narrow walkway to the guestrooms without putting up a caution sign. Somebody easily could have tripped and had an accident.
• The hotel staff doesn’t necessarily answer their phones during their normal business hours of 9:00AM – 6:00PM. That definitely created a problem for me. To give you some idea, I was near Taphae Gate in Chiang Mai (the opposite side of town) and was getting ready to return to Banilah by Tuk tuk about 4:30PM in the afternoon. As I was leaving on an early morning flight to Singapore, I had to retrieve my valuables from the hotel safe by 7:00PM (the hotel office closes at that time). As most of the tuk tuk drivers probably did not know of the hotel and where it was located, I tried calling the hotel numerous times to get directions but there was no answer. Fortunately the tuk tuk driver that I hired knew the way and I reached the hotel in less than 15 minutes.

Even though the hotel is a pretty good value, in light of my recent experience, I really cannot recommend Banilah Hotel at this time. Management needs to be more responsible to its guests, and most Western visitors might be not too pleased with its offbeat location. Then again, the hotel seems to cater mostly to a Thai clientele.

If you’re traveling to TAIPING, a very pleasant city located in Northwestern Malaysia, you’ll definitely want to stop by and pay a visit to La Promise Bakery and Café. A relative newcomer to the scene, La Promise may be the only restaurant in Taiping that specializes in Western Food, a city which is dominated by food shops offering Chinese, Malay and Indian dishes.

Centrally located in downtown Taiping, the café is especially popular with the University crowd and professional people. Very spacious inside with comfortable seating, the café also has free WIFI.

Prices are reasonable and the food – while definitely not gourmet quality - is fairly good. To give you some idea of the prices – a plate of spaghetti is 7.90RM (about 2.30USD) and a Western style Breakfast – complete with eggs, toast, sausage and juice - is all of 5.50RM(1.60USD). The pastries in particular looked absolutely scrumptious. Richard is a genuine pastry artist!

A young Chinese couple - Richard and Ling – own La Promise Café. I had an opportunity to talk extensively with the amiable Ms. Ling. Of all the people that I met in Taiping, Ms Ling probably speaks the best English. She said that her facility with English can be attributed to her being very diligent as a student in both primary and secondary school.

Born and raised in Taiping, Ms. Ling has quite an interesting history leading up to her career as restaurateur.

After graduating from high school in Taiping in 1999, she received a scholarship to study at a University in Penang, where she majored in hotel management and catering. After 2 1/2 years at the University, she left Malaysia for the Gold Coast of Australia, where she finished her studies at Griffiths University.

Upon graduating from the University in 2005, she returned to Penang, Malaysia where she worked as manager for over 2 years at a local Haagen Daas Ice Cream Store. It was there that she met Richard - her future husband and business partner - who worked in the pastry department of a major hotel.

In 2007, she traveled to Ireland where she took courses in accounting and lived with her brother-in-law for over 1½ years, before returning to Taiping in September 2008. Back at home, she decided to pursue career as a restaurateur with her newlywed husband, Richard.

Her parents, who own a local hardware store in Taiping, gave financial backing to Ling and Richard for their “new baby”, La Promise Café. The Grand Opening took place in August 2009.

I give La Promise a big thumbs up!

It was my last morning at GUAYABO LODGE. After packing my bags, I went downstairs to have breakfast and settle my bill with Don Pedro as I still owed the lodge for two dinners. The dinners had been very tasty and healthfully prepared and included three courses - salad or soup, the main course and dessert. As I am vegetarian, the kitchen prepared special dishes for me – e.g. on the 2nd night, they gave me a vegetarian quiche. Don Pedro’s wife, Rossana, has trained the Costa Rican kitchen staff to be able to prepare gourmet European cuisine. I really didn’t know how much they were going to charge for me the dinners, but I caught a glance at the posted menu prices near the office on my 3rd day there - the fixed price for the three course dinner was listed at $17USD - a little steep for the vegetarian meals that I had, but not totally outrageous. As a result of these prices, I had my dinners in the town of Turrialba on my 3rd and 4th night there.

When I approached Don Pedro to pay my bill, I was resigned to the fact that I would have to pay him $34.00 (19,380 colones). Needless to say, I was pleasantly shocked when he told me “For two dinners, that will be $20USD - if you’re paying in colones, $10,000 would be fine.” When I confided in Don Pedro that I thought I would have to pay $17 per dinner, he smiled and said “Normally dinner includes a special meat entree, a chicken dish or a grilled trout and the cost is $17USD but for a vegetarian it is less of course. Our prices are very reasonable considering our meals are of a gourmet quality and not average restaurant fare.” I agreed with Don Pedro that the dinner tariff was indeed very reasonable. I told him, “Now that the issue of my dinner bill was cleared up, I really I have nothing really negative to say about Guayabo Lodge.” He smiled upon hearing this and said “We try as much as possible to be reasonable and fair to our guests.”

Don Pedro Ferreira is an extraordinary gentleman, a man of integrity as well as a very congenial host. He knows how to make his guests feel at ease.

On my last trip to Costa Rica, I had the pleasure of staying at Guayabo Lodge. One of the best eco-lodges/bed and breakfast hotels in Costa Rica, Guayabo Lodge is located near the small village of Santa Cruz about ½ hour from the city of Turrialba and 90 minutes from San José. Surrounded by pastures of a dairy farm, the lodge is perched on the slopes of the Turrialba Volcano about 1500 meters above sea level. Nearby is Guayabo National Monument, Costa Rica’s most important archaeological site.

With 25 guestrooms, Guayabo Lodge is the largest hotel in the Turrialba area. From the outside, the lodge looks a lot smaller than that. All the rooms are simply but tastefully decorated with paintings or watercolor prints from Costa Rica. With views of either the surrounding countryside, pasturelands or of Turrialba Volcano, most of the rooms are relatively large and airy - no two rooms are exactly alike.

The owners, Don Pedro Ferreira and his wife Rossana, are distinguished academicians and educators. They come from totally different backgrounds - Don Pedro, a native of Uruguay, has a PHD in Statistics, while Rossana is Dutch and is a Cultural Anthropologist, having received her doctorate in her native Holland. They met by chance in the late 1980’s while both were professors at nearby CATIE, the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center located in nearby Turrialba. During their many years at CATIE, they developed a strong environmental ethos and an appreciation of natural history. After leaving CATIE, they seamlessly have made the transition from educators to small hoteliers. Their environmental ethos is reflected in their hotel management style - they’ve installed solar panels as an alternative energy source, compost waste food, recycle whenever possible and are active in promoting conservation and environmentally friendly practices in the community.

Rosanna has quite a passion for cooking, as evidenced in the tasty haute cuisine meals that are prepared by her staff. She also has quite an aptitude for home décor and design – sprinkled throughout the lodge are the many paintings, arts and crafts that Don Pedro has collected during his many years of travel throughout the Americas and Caribbean. The ambiance at the lodge is indeed quite cheery and tropical. When I was there, they were in the process of expanding the outdoor gardens. In addition, Rossana has plans to enlarge the kitchen to accommodate her hotel guests and visitors as well as opening up a cooking school onsite. What about Don Pedro? I found him to be an especially amiable host, and I enjoyed hearing his many travel stories.

On my most recent trip to Costa Rica, I asked my tour operator, Costa Rican Trails to book me a room for my final 2 nights before returning to the USA, at what they felt was the best budget hotel in downtown San Jose . My objective was to sample some budget accommodations for prospective frugal minded customers who have limited funds. Keep in mind that I usually stay at Hotel Bougainvillea, a moderate lowrise property located just outside the city in the province of Heredia. The Bougainvillea is not a luxury hotel by any standards but it is very comfortable and proper with some very beautiful gardens. My rating - 3.5 stars.

The Hotel they selected for me was Palm House Inn. The pictures on the website looked pretty good but I know from experience not to put much credence on pictures in hotel websites or in travel brochures, because they are always way too flattering. I would have to reserve judgment until I actually stayed at the hotel.

I really didn’t know what to expect when I checked into the Palm House Inn, but after staying there for 2 nights, I have to say that it exceeded my expectations. Located on the edge of the downtown area in a quiet neighborhood, this small cheerful hotel of only 12 rooms or so is walking distance of Plaza de La Cultura, the National Theatre, museums and other attractions. Across the street is a community playhouse that features comedies and theatrical productions and nearby is a theatre which was currently featuring a Gay Musical.

The rooms, while a little on the small side are immaculately clean, simply decorated and are equipped with Cable TV, safe deposit box and phone. The only negative - the bathrooms are very petite and somewhat cramped. The people at the front desk seem to be University Students (or recently graduated from school) – they are very friendly, helpful and speak pretty good English. The hotel is very secure and safe; in order to get in you have to ring the bell at the security gate outside. This no real hindrance, as there is always somebody at the front desk 24 hours to buzz you in. Downstairs there is free WIFI and small eating area for breakfast. Rates are very affordable $45 single/$55 double with breakfast included. I give Palm House Inn a big thumbs up (highly recommended) and I plan to use this hotel for in my Costa Rica Program for travelers on a budget!

COSTA RICA is one of my favorite travel destinations. After an absence of 4 years, I will be returning to COSTA RICA on March 25 for 2-½ weeks - it will be my eighth visit to COSTA RICA, which I have affectionately nicknamed PuraVida Land

I have rarely received any negative reports from any of my customers who I have sent to COSTA RICA. Not too long ago, a customer of mine from Switzerland submitted a critique of his travel arrangements on his November ‘08 trip to Costa Rica. I also asked him to list the highlights of his trip as well.

The customer was a volcano enthusiast and was interested in an itinerary which featured excursions to a variety of volcanoes - with a few minor adjustments, Calypso Island Tour’s Volcano Explorer package was exactly what the doctor ordered as it included excursions to two of the most important volcanoes in Costa Rica - Arenal Volcano and Rincon de La Vieja as well as a four day interval at Ocotal Beach, one of Costa Rica’s better Pacific Coast beaches. Not surprisingly, the customer had a wonderful experience and his satisfaction rating was very high! Here are some excerpts from his critique:

The Costa Rica trip was good to excellent, but actually a bit too easy for us!! (We are used to do a lot of organizing when we are traveling on our own).

Regarding the hotels - You wish that we make some comments about all the individual hotels. That’s not easy because they were all so wonderful. We therefore have only some really minor things hardly worth mentioning.

In San Jose …The Grano de Oro is special indeed, as all guidebooks say. Just the breakfast there is rather for people who are on a diet. The Bougainvillea (in Heredia) is a must because of its splendid garden, despite the fact that the location is not really convenient. They seem to have abandoned their shuttle service into downtown San Jose.

The Arenal Observatory Lodge is definitely a good location, provided the
weather is good, and it’s primarily for people who like to do some hikes on
their own. We walked up to Cerro Chato, a good hike, but only for people
used to do some “work”.

The Hacienda Guachipilin (near Rincon de La Vieja National Park) is a good place as well, just a bit too far away from the park for those without their own vehicle.

The Ocotal Beach Resort is superb. Less so their restaurant, they have too many items on the menu that we would call fancy things, and which were not very filling. Other guests must have felt the same, because the restaurant was virtually empty in the evenings. But the breakfast is excellent there, the terrace is wonderful and so is the wildlife around the hotel!

Highlights? Certainly the Rio Celeste Park, but also the sunsets at Ocotal Resort, the garden of the Bougainvillea hotel and the flight in the little airplane from Liberia to San Jose. And there are two further things which should not be forgotten, despite that they are not part of the original trip: The Jade museum in San Jose and the La Paz Waterfall and Gardens near Poas Volcano

PURA VIDA

Mae Pun Din, Po Tum San (Mae Pundin for short) has to be one of the most unique places to stay in Chiang Mai. In English, it means ‘Mom enjoys clay works while Dad prefers working in the garden’. Located just off the highway in Chiang Mai’s Mae Rim district, Mae Pundin is an easy 20-minute drive to the famous night bazaar. Owned by a Thai couple in their early 70’s - Chaleo & her husband Anong - this rather eclectic homestay/guesthouse and art gallery offers both terracotta pottery workshops and Thai cooking classes.

Surrounded by lush tropical gardens, the centerpiece of Mae Pundin is a very lovely teak house built in the traditional Lanna style of Northern Thailand. Scattered throughout the
gardens are clay figurines of many types of animals - elephants, birds, pigs, frogs, dogs and monkeys as well as some clay representations of the Buddha. It seems that the pig is the owner’s favorite animal as they are more figurines and representations of pigs than any other animal in her garden and art studio. My favorite is a female monkey swinging from the branch of a tree carrying her baby. Looks so real!

A very bubbly and cheerful lady, Chaleo is an accomplished artist and has developed quite a reputation over the years. Mae Pundin has been featured in several very prominent Thai house and garden magazines and has been host to a number of rather famous people including the Princess Mother, one of most revered persons in Thai history and mother of Thailand’s King. While the Princess Mother stayed at Mae Pundin, she modeled for Chaleo - situated on a small wooden table on the 2nd floor of the teak house is a very lifelike clay bust of her. According to Chaleo, the King’s niece is also a regular visitor to Mae Pundin. Inviting me into her colorful open-air studio, the first thing I happened to notice were the many unusual brightly painted caricatures carved into the wall. Besides the many smiling piglike figures (her favorite, of course), there is an outstanding representation of Chaleo and her husband. (See picture at top) Scattered throughout the small studio are some examples of her fine work.

Mae Pundin offers a special package, which features a pottery workshop and cooking classes at a very affordable 1200 Baht per day per person including all meals. As far as accommodations go, there is a choice of six rooms - four rooms at the lower garden level and two rooms upstairs in the teak house, all of which are available at 600 baht per day including breakfast. My preference would be one of the two large very comfortable rooms located upstairs in the teak house. Looking out onto a large living area complete with a library, TV and DVD player, these rooms share one large bathroom but are very cool and mosquito free (compared to the rooms at the garden level) – the large beds have their own mosquito net just in case. The living room is decorated tastefully with watercolor prints, artifacts and relics of the Lanna culture. I give Mae Pundin a big thumbs up!

I would like to share with you my favorite trio of restaurants in Langkawi, Malaysia’s most popular beach destination. Almost all tourists are self-styled restaurant critics. I am no different, except there is one caveat - I’m a vegetarian (97% vegan). While I’m not fussy, I am very conscious about the way the food is prepared - you know, minimal salt and oil etc. If the produce used in the restaurant is organic and grown locally, so much the better. Finding some decent vegetarian friendly restaurants in Cenang Beach, Langkawi’s liveliest resort area, was a little difficult as many of the restaurants specialize in the traditional Malay cuisine which is heavy on fish sauce, meat and seafood, however I did see a number of Indian and Middle Eastern restaurants that offered vegetarian entrees, and a lesser number of Chinese and Thai restaurants as well.

Be forewarned, there are some pseudo fancy Indian restaurants in the area, but menu prices looked a bit on the high side and judging from the lack of customers, the food at these places was probably mediocre at best!

My wholehearted recommendations are as follows:
**** Let’s hear the drumroll please!****

1. The Oasis Pub and Restaurant
   ****

   Located about 200 meters south of Underwater World, this small beachside café specializes in North Indian Tandoori and Western food. After sunset, the ambiance at the Oasis Beach Club is very special with large colored light bulbs and candlelights illuminating the outdoor dining area. Did I say romantic? At the Oasis, there’s a good selection of set Indian dinners – both vegetarian and non-vegetarian – and for Langkawi, entrée prices are fairly reasonable. The fact that I ate there two of the four nights that I stayed in Langkawi has to tell you something – the food was very tasty. Only negative thing that I can think was that the service can be somewhat indifferent.

2. Red Tomato Café
   ****

   Located just 50 meters north of AB Motel was RED TOMATO, this small rather eclectic café offers a variety of mostly Mediterranean and Western dishes. The ambiance is very tropical, funky and offbeat – a place where most western tourists feel comfortable and judging from the crowds that gather here for the early morning hours, this café is hands down the most popular place for breakfast in town. While I was having breakfast there one morning, Red Tomato was so busy that the Maitre-D was putting people on a waitlist. What did I have for breakfast? A large mixed fruit salad with yogurt and granola accompanied by some delicious organic coffee (not Nescafe, thank G-D) and a toasted baguette. Don’t miss out on their wonderful homemade bread and rolls!

   The European lady who owns the place is a little quirky, but her Malay husband, Oli - by occupation, he is a building contractor in Langkawi - seems to be a really amiable gentleman. He even posed for a series of pictures for me. I didn’t have a chance to make it there for dinner, but the menu had some decent vegetarian options including some delicious sounding salads. Service can be a little bit spotty though and prices are a little on the high side for Langkawi. In addition, their free Wifi is very fast - a lot faster than the service I paid for at the AB Motel. Soymilk is available upon request for their mixed coffee drinks.

3. HAROO
   ****1/2

   Owned by a middle-aged couple from Korea, Haroo is located on a side street directly opposite Underwater World. Haroo offers a very diverse dinner menu, but their breakfast offerings are rather standard - toast, eggs, hash brown and a small juice. The service is very good and the prices are very affordable. The one time I went there for dinner, I ordered a very delicious vegetarian curry dish, rice and a side of garlic bread. Hmm very tasty! The husband personally greets every guest that walks into the restaurant with a bow and a smile, while his wife mans the kitchen. Overall, this is probably my favorite restaurant in LANGKAWI as the husband and wife tandem are such gracious and humble hosts. Their daughter, who is very fluent in English, is quite artistic – see her tribute to chairs and coffee houses on the far wall. Excellent calligraphy. Highly recommended!

Kevan, the proprietor of Phu Lang Ka Lodge, is an extraordinary man. As the elected president of the Yao (Mien) people of Thailand, Kevan and his wife, Nong are very active in the community and play an instrumental role in the preservation of Yao culture and heritage. The Yao originate from the highlands of Southern China - over the years they have migrated and established communities over most of Southeast Asia. Numbering approximately 50,000 in Thailand, the Yao (Mien) people live for the most part in the northern provinces of Nan and Phayao and are one of the most successful and well educated of all the hilltribe groups.

Kevan is also the director of Ban Mai Pang Ka, a small community school that is funded by the government, at the nearby district of Pong. The school has about 320 students (ages 4-16) and is attended primarily by Hmong and Yao children from the surrounding villages. While most of the kids take public transportation to the school, about 70 children live at the school during the week - on a room and board basis - to return home on the weekends to be with their parents. About 65% of the children are Hmong and 30% are Yao. For the schoolchildren, the education is free and the Government pays for the salary of Kevan and his staff of 19 teachers.

Kevan and his staff organized a very impressive 2 day tribute, this past November to the recently deceased Princess Galyani, the king’s elder sister. On Thursday, November 20, there were ceremonial marches by the school children; then on Friday, both the principal hilltribe groups in the area - the Hmong and the Yao - staged their own separate tribute for the belated Princess, who during her lifetime had contributed much of her time and energies towards the improvement and welfare of Thailand’s hilltribes. Yao dignitaries from Oregon (USA) - friends of Kevan and Nong - showed up to pay their respects as well. Very well done, Kevan!

More on this Special Tribute in a subsequent post

The small nature lodge at Phu Lang Ka is a family affair - Kevan’s two daughters, Irene and Nissana and his son, Sattapat help him out with the responsibilities of running the lodge. He and his lovely wife, Nong maintain a beautiful home in Chiang Kham, a small city located about 33 KM away from Phu Lang Ka.

Everybody in Bangkok has been raving about PRIMO POSTO, the new Italian restaurant-café located in the Thai countryside, so this past weekend my friend and I decided to check out what all the buzz was about. Located near Khao Yai National Park about 160KM from Bangkok, by car, it’s a leisurely two-hour drive to Primo Posto. See map below

Believe it or not, all the hype is well deserved - the architecture and landscaping was absolutely breathtaking. Painted in many brilliant colors, the Italian style building houses a coffee shop, restaurant, ice cream parlor, gift shop and an upstairs art gallery. Chatting briefly with the owner, he said “the design is from my experience and strong inspiration from traveling through Tuscany and Florence in Italy.” In the backyard, wooden benches and tables were set up under the shade of the building not far from the green fields of the wine vineyard. Covered with brown trees and dry vegetation - showing signs of the approaching summer - the mountains loomed in the background forming the perfect backdrop for this new Italian country café. Primo Posto exudes such a wonderful ambiance that even though I have never been in ITALY before, It felt like I had been transported somewhere in the Italian countryside. It took me a minute or so to realize that I was still in Thailand.

For the time being, the coffee shop and restaurant is only open Friday-Sunday and public holidays. When I was there, I observed that there were many hipsters visiting Primo Posto. It seems most of them stayed just long enough to take a couple of pictures before moving on. Prices for coffee and coffee drinks are similar to Starbucks in Bangkok, and the restaurant fare is somewhat pricey for most Thai people but would be considered affordable to the oversea tourist crowd (farangs).

To discourage the casual Thai tourist who stops there only to take couple of pictures without buying anything, the owner has instituted a 55 baht entrance fee which can be exchanged for one scoop of ice cream or applied to any coffee drink or item on the menu.

For more pictures of Primo Posto, see my photo album.