Two for the Price of One

Two for the Price of One

I remember my father saying to me as he grew older, ‘I don’t know where the time goes!’  I find myself using the same excuse again on this blog.  However, I really don’t know where the time goes.  Eunice and I have been out in Thailand for almost six months and it has flown past.  So much already accomplished, emphasising how much still remains to do.  Only 203 bird species seen but we still have the northern highlands and the southern reserves to explore.  At least I feel confident with most local stuff.

Still, what has happened since my last posting.  Eunice and I went west round the Gulf of Thailand to a place near Petchaburi called Leam Pak Bia.  We stopped in a cabin right next to the beach and the wind became surprisingly strong overnight, raising quite a swell on the sea and making the waves break over the low concrete barrier that separated us.  As we looked out into the darkness, it did make me reflect for a moment on the dramatic and frightening events that swept across Puhket’s beaches on Boxing Day six years ago. It still leaves an impression on those living here, many of whom lost someone known to them.   At such moments we feel in awe and powerless against nature’s force.  

The area is a mosaic of salt pans, rolled billiard table flat, then flooded with shallow sea water.  It teems with waders, who rise and fall into the sky in restless waves of movement emulating the nearby sea as they search for the best feeding spots. The best time is early morning so Eunice and I arrived as a thin stain of light spread across the sky which rapidly grew as the red orb of the sun chased away the darkness.  It was so peaceful.  As I scanned the huge flocks of waders, one paler bird particularly attracted my attention.   It was fairly close and was soon confirmed as a Spoon-billed Sandpiper.  I determined to take some video footage but as I was setting up the camera, a pair of Peregrine flew over the road and the waders scattered into the air in one panicking mass of wings.  As soon as the raptors passed the birds began to settle back onto the salt pans and to my amazement I quickly located the Sandpiper in the same area.  I tried to describe where it was to Eunice but she seemed to be giving all the wrong responses.  At last we both settled on the bird and I managed to get some fairly decent film footage before it flew off once more.  Yesterday I was showing the video to Emma, my daughter who is staying with us over the Christmas period, and I proudly pointed out the Spoon-billed Sandpiper to her.  ‘It’s a rare bird that’ I told her wishing her to fully appreciate the significance. ‘So what’s that?’ she said pointing to a different bird on the edge of the frame.  Sure enough it was another Spoon-billed Sand.  Eunice then chipped in with ‘No wonder you thought I wasn’t following your directions properly.  There were always two birds.’ My humiliation was complete.  If I can get the film to upload, have a look and see how many you can find!  We did go on to find two unusual and rare birds for Thailand, two Common Starlings on a rubbish tip and Brahminy Starling.

Christmas was meant to be a time when almost all the family would come over to Thailand and got together.  However, the weather in UK soon ruined that idea as first Frances and Julian then Mark and Heather had their flights cancelled and the alternatives offered were either flying on Christmas day or soon afterwards.   Disappointing for everyone but we were fortunate that at least Emma was able to be with us.  Our Christmas Day lunch was taken at the Marriott Hotel on the banks of the Chao Phrya river eating turkey, ale and pie!  We had a pre-selected air conditioned table inside with views over the river.  Most importantly, we had cheese, loads of it and good quality.  Simple pleasures.

Whist Emma has been here it has been great to go and visit the wonderful places which we still hadn’t explored in Bangkok.  These included the Grand Palace, with the Emerald Buddha, and Wat Arun.  Both of these were fabulous although the Palace was crowded with tourists.  It was a fabulous day with clear blue skies, unusual as there is often a haze of pollution hanging over the city.  Every brick and carving showed in sharp relief and the colours were blinding in their crispness.  The gold smothered chedi reflected so much light you had to shield your eyes even behind sunglasses. The grandeur was spectacular.  By contrast, the following day we booked to take a Thai cookery course based in the Khlong Toei area of Bangkok, one of its poorest.  It was organised by a charity called Helping Hands who first take you to a bustling local market where you buy  your ingredients then are taken to a house inside the slum and are taught how to cook three splendid Thai dishes.  Once again, the light and colours in the market were stark as we moved from bright sunshine to dark tunnels created by the narrow space between the stalls.  Catfish flopped in shallow trays of water and bundles of frogs squirmed in sacking bags, waiting to be dispatched to ensure freshness.  At one point every tray was filled with roasted insects piled high, ready for consumption although not by me you will be pleased to hear. The thought of slipping something that looks remarkably like a cockroach into my mouth is not my idea of a perfect meal.  Having purchased our food, we were taken down a warren of narrow streets with stinking, open sewers spewing opaque, black water along them.  At one point a small six year old boy was bouncing his ball against the wall and he glanced up to watch us pass.  As his concentration slipped, so did his ball and it rolled inexorably off the rim of the path and into the thick, dark water.  For a moment the youngster looked in consternation at his ball floating sluggishly amongst the other flotsam, then he bent down, fished it out and continued playing.  Some things are just too valuable to be wasted.   

Off to the mountains in the west next week to the largest nature reserve in Thailand (Keang Krachen). Loads of birds and possible tigers, leopards and elephants.  I'll keep you posted.         

Bird List

At the beginning of December, I have now moved on to 174 bird species for Thailand.  So many still to see.  Its all rather exciting really because I can take my time and really get to know each new bird.  No sense of pressure either.  I sit on the balcony watching Olive-backed Sunbird feeding in the foliage of the potted plants, as confident in their calls and jizz as I would of robin or blue tit back home. Just don't let me become complacent and start compaining that there are no birds here.

Spoon-billed Sandpiper

Sorry it has been so long since I last updated my blog but we seem to be so busy and time just slips away.  You have probably read Eunice's email so I will try to add something slighhtly different.
I gather from reading the weather forecast that the UK is rather cold at the moment.  No such problem here.  The temperature dropped to a chilly 27C and the locals rushed out to buy their winter wear of fleeces and quilted jackets but they were far too hasty.  The wind shifted to the south again and it has remained in the thirties ever since. 
With great excitement and after months of waiting, our boxes finally arrived from the UK and we hastily ripped them open having both forgotten what we had packed.  After the bird books there followed fleeces, thick socks, walking boots and woolly hats.  What were we thinking!  Anyway it has all been stuffed in a wardrobe and will no doubt, stay there until we return.
So what have we been up to.  Eunice has told you of all the social events such as the pirate parties and her flirtation with pole dancing once again in Nana, the famous area of ill repute. (Exhibit One as evidence.)  Needless to say, I was not with her.

I will focus on the more mundane.  At the beginning of November we hired a car and went an hour and a half west of Bangkok to Khok Kham which is an extensive area of mangrove forest and salt pans.  We were fortunate in the fact that the day was fairly cool so were able to be outside most of the day.  As we scanned the thousands of waders searching for possible spoon-billed sandpiper, a local man with a fishing rod attached to his bike rode up and asked us what we were looking for.  I rather evasively told him we were just searching for anything of interest.  He immediately enquired if I had found any Spoon-billed sandpiper yet because he had seen two that morning and pointed to a picture of one stuck on his motorbike fairing.  He offered to take us to where he had seen them and beckoned us to follow him.  We jumped in the car and shot off down the dirt track after him, mindful of whether we were going to be lead into the middle of nowhere and then get turned over.  After a few kilometeres we stopped and he asked me if he could borrow my bins so he could scan the pools.  Reluctantly I handed them over but stuck to him like limpet.  He then handed my bins back and told me he would be back soon with a telescope.  Now this was getting really improbable.  Even Thais birders don't own binoculars let alone telescopes.  He disapperared and I thought that would be the last I would hear about it.  To my surprise, half and hour later he reappeared with a telescope and after scanning the area for over an hour, proceeded to locate a single spoon-billed sandpiper (photo attached).  It turned out that he was the famous Mr Tii, the man in  Thailand for locating Spoon-billed sandpiper.  We swopped cards and he invited us to visit his cafe if we were ever in the area again. A great contact made. 

The following week I was on a residential trip with the Y8 pupils.  This was to Kanchanaburi which is where you find the Bridge over the River Kwai.  The bridge is a bit of a disappointment as there is a brightly coloured train that goes backwards and forwards carrying tourists over the river but the museum is very moving and well presented. Our hotel was about and hour further north near Hellfire Pass in an area of steep wooded hills and river valleys.  I have attached a view from my hotel room for your interest. 

It was a great week with trips on a long-tailed boat up the river to a stunning set of limestone caves then walking along a section of the Burma railway known as Hellfire Pass, an area of stunning beauty where over 12000 allied troops and 90000 locals died building the railway by hand.  By contrast, we swam in the crystal clear waters of Erawan Pools where the fish nibbled at your feet once you stood still.  It was like a scene from South Pacific except it was stuffed full with overweight of russian tourists who did nothing for my balihigh.  There is no such thing as paradise. 

Once I had returned, Eunice and I went down to the WWF local reserve of Bang Pu to visit a Bird Fair there.  It was surprisingly good and we made a load of new contacts as well as buying some rather nice bird pictures.  We also discovered a large part of the reserve we knew nothing about so we will visit again early in the day this weekend when it is a little cooler.

Last weekend, we had the final part of our Thai culture training.  This involved going to Ayutthaya which is one of the old capitals of Thailand.  Here we were given a cultural show of dancing, Thai boxing, music, local crafts and games before being taken around the area to visit historical places of interest dotted around this world hertage site. To finish the day we were given a superb meal aboard a boat which sailed up the river on a evening cruise.  I can't see barnsley doing that for their new teachers any time soon!

   

   

Birding!!

You just can not please everybody.  Some say too much and others say not enough birds.  Well this email is mostly about birds so you can choose whether you want to read it or not!  I have included a few snaps taken with my out of date equipment.  No particular order but hopefully of interest.

I have not worked hard at pushing up my Thailand List but it has now crept up to 133.  Every morning we are woken up by Magpie Robin singing outside our window and I almost tread on Zebra Doves, Common Mynas and Pied Fantail as I walk to school.  Often an Indian Roller is sitting on top of the goal posts and four Black-naped Orioles flew out of a tree in KS one playground last week. 

The big numbers of autumn waders have long since passed through and each time I make my way down to Bang Po, which is the nearest piece of sea to home (about 15kms), the cast of players changes. 

Last time there were hundreds of Brown-headed Gulls with two Slender-Billed Gulls and Three Black-tailed Gulls hiding amongst them.  The time before, the sky was filled with hundreds of Whiskered Terns and a single Gull-Billed Tern.  Four species of Kingfisher are regular and, last time, a flock of Ashy Minivets flew through.  Little Cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Little Heron, Egrets and Pond Heron abound. Just up the road is a place known as Old Siam. 

It a collection of reconstructed half sized models of key Thai historical buildings.  Beside it are the Muang Boran fishing ponds Which teem with birds.  Drongos, Bee-eaters, Shrikes and Flycatchers are common. as well as Swallows and Asian Swift. 

Visit to Khao Yai our NNR during half term was one of mixed fortunes.  Whilst making our way through the rain forest, the trees were full of bird call and song.  But seeing them was another matter altogether. It was highly frustrating that after being lathered in sweat and covered in leeches, I had seen decent views of hardly a single bird for over three hours of walking. 

It had its compensations.  We wandered into a troop of Gibbons which surrounded us with their howling mournful cries and swung from tree to tree.  I had good views of a male and female Red-headed Trogon and Blue-winged Pitta heard calling from the forest floor.

 

Once out of the forest the birding hotted up with magnificent Great-eared Nightjars wheeling around our heads at dusk and Black-capped Kingfisher on the river. 

Birds of prey included Black Kite, Shikra, Japanese Sparrowhawk, Oriental Honey Buzzard and Changeable Hawk.  Yellow. -browed, Two Barred Greenish and Arctic Warbler were common as was Asian Brown Flycatcher and Ashy Drongo.  

Only another 810 or so to go

Apologies to none birders.

Enjoy

Pictures of Chiang Mai

You can see a Blue Rock thrush on top of this roof if you look hard!

Manbags.  You either love them or hate them.  In Thailand, almost every self respecting young chap has one and they come in a wide range of shapes and sizes.  Most hide an ipod or MP3 player and often you will see them talking into their bag which suggests they have a phone in there as well.  You will be pleased to know that I have gone native and bought myself one and very useful it is too.  Mine is made of a woven material with an elephant pattern running through it and I carry all sorts in it, anti mosquito gel, mobile phone, BTS card, antiseptic spray and tissues to name but a few. 

So what else have Eunice and I been up to.  The biggest highlight was last weekend when we flew up to the north of Thailand to Chiang Mai.  This is a small, bustling, walled city surrounded by steep hills which has almost a wild-west feel about it.  It is full of western tourists and, as a result, is full of market stalls which cling to every available pitch, spilling onto the pavements and making progress along them an adventure in itself.   Chiang Mai is also higher and a few degrees cooler than Bangkok although last weekend the temperature dropped to a chilly mid to upper twenties.

The purpose of the visit was to do a recognisance visit for the Year Six residential in January, which of course, Eunice will be doing.  My residential will be with Year Eights to the area around the bridge over the River Kwai in November.  It’s tough I can hear you say.  Anyway, back to Chiang Mai.  Our first night was spent at a residential centre half an hour drive to the north of the city which will be Eunice’s base for most of the week.  It is comprised of a number of small, modern apartment blocks which house six children and one member of staff in each apartment.  They are situated in superb grounds with playing fields, nature areas and small lakes all nestling in a steep sided valley.   White-breasted Waterhen trot around the lakeside and Olive-backed sunbird abound in the numerous trees surrounding the site.  On Friday evening we were taken to a restaurant located in the middle of a small lake and serving yet more wonderful Thai food.  (Both Eunice and I both love the food and yet we have both lost weight.)

 On Saturday morning we were up early and drove for an hour or so to the north and into the mountains around Chiang Dao which is one of the highest peaks in Thailand and not far from the Burmese border.  We left the winding tarmac road then bumped along a dirt track for a further couple of miles, finally pulling into a village.  The houses cling to the side of the hill, are built on stilts and made of wood and sticks. The livestock run over the verandas and the family pigs are tied to the posts holding up the floor.  The adult locals met us with polite but wary smiles and the children swarmed around us, inquisitive to know where we were from.  The hill tribes are all immigrants who have been given land by the king but not Thai citizenship and some groups have been this way for hundreds of years.  Eunice’s class will study these hill tribes as one of her topics next term and gifts will be exchanged.

 We moved through the village and climbed steeply through the rice fields before plunging deep into the rainforest along one of the trails.  The rain poured down and mosquitoes whined around our ears as we pushed through dense jungle.  Exotic calls from invisible birds such as a Hill Myna, frustrated my efforts to see them and my glasses steamed up from the humidity as soon as I raised my binoculars to my eyes.  The forest was alive with the mechanical drones and buzzing of scores of insects each staking a piece of territory as their own.   For both Eunice and I it was as if we were in our own adventure movie.  

 After a few hours trekking, we reached another village similar to the first where the local women, dressed in traditional costume over the top of tee shirt and shorts donned for our benefit no doubt, came to sell us local crafts of jewellery.  How can you resist?

The mini buses picked us up at this point and took us to the camp site Eunice will be using for one night during her residential visit.  It could persuade me to take up camping again!  After sampling a delicious yellow curry for lunch, we set off once again to visit a last hill tribe.  Here we were taken to look at the school, a rough wooden and concrete structure with open sides and a tin roof.  The playground for the Foundation pupils was uneven, bare earth with a rusting swing at one end.  Yet it was viewed with pride and a building of obvious value to the community, a lesson for us all about the importance of education.  We were taken on trip around the village with the usual train of children streaming behind us, shyly calling out ‘hello’ as they tested their skills in English. 

At the end of an exhausting day we finally drove the hour or so through the mountains back to our hotel, glimpsing the elephants being taken to bathe in the river as we speed past with Drongos swooping down off the telegraph wires.  It had been a long, hot thought-provoking and exciting day which we finished off with a cool glass of beer.      

Flight of the Gibbons

Last weekend we had an extra day of holiday so it was a three day weekend.  We all wanted to make the best of our time so we booked a bus and went to Ko Samet which is one of the nearer decent beaches to Bangkok. It is not too far from the Cambodian border and is a teardrop of an island hanging half a. mile off the mainland.  It is a 2 ½.  hour drive and then a speed boat to the island.  Since we arrived in the dark the speedboat journey is an experience by itself.  However after about twenty minutes the engines slow and the boat swings into a bay lined with twinkling lights and jugglers throwing blazing sticks into the air. You collect your luggage and step off the back of the boat into a warm sea, with fine white sand crunching under your toes at every step.  Soon you.  have settled into your room and are sitting out in the open, under the night sky eating your Mussaman curry. You enjoy a beer and a bit of chat with your friends then set off to bed. Then the blood party animals start and the bass grinds on until 4.00 in the morning.  By which time I was climbing up the wall.  At one point I was out of bed and on my way to the disco to ask them to 'turn the bloody music down.  Don't you know people are trying to sleep 'then I realised that I sounded just like Victor Meldrew and went and sat on a beach lounger instead. Then the sun came up.  Everyone talks about it as if it is paradise, but we weren't that impressed (and it wasn't our age, the others had mixed views too!). The island is meant to be a National Nature Reserve but it has become very. degraded with litter and rubbish everywhere, especially behind the coastal stretch.

But there were highlights. The first was to get out of Bangkok as we live and work in the same place - our living room overlooks the school and I hadn't realised how claustrophobic it was until I saw countryside and the sea. Secondly we didn. 't have to get up at 5.30am and be in at work for 6.30am then work til 5.30pm, quick tea and then bed! Thirdly we went snorkelling. Neither of us had done this before but nearly everyone else had. We (14. of us) hired a speed boat for 3 hours and were taken out to coral reefs. I put on the mask and nearly freaked out as my nose was covered and I couldn't breathe. I think being asthmatic this was too much for me. But dad talked me through it and eventually I controlled the panic, breathed through my mouth and finally put my heasd underwater. Well I was just entranced - the life below water was fascinating - the colours and shapes of fish and coral and other sea life. So I snorkelled twice at 2 different spots and would do it again!

On Thursday we went out with Dad's workmates. He is really happy now - loves his work - in fact he feels that he is not doing enough to earn his money. He works with pupils and has always enjoyed building their self esteem so now that is. what he does all day and finishes and doesn't have to bring anything home including worries. And he gets paid more than me! So things are really looking up - he's not tired or stressed and looking relaxed.

So to today and to the Flight of the Gibbons.  It was quite fantastic. It was provided by the secondary school as a team building opportunity for the new staff.  However I was allowed to take Eunice along as my partner.  We set off at 6.15 this morning in the relative cool of the early morning.  The sun was just rising and it was already 28degrees. It was a one hour journey down to Khoao Khieo near to Chonburi and it was great to get out of Bangkok city once again and drive past horizons of steep wooded hills framed by palm trees and scrub land.  When we entered the park, the buses were directed up steep, rutted tracks that wound into the hills. 

We finally came to a halt in a heavily wooded area with the exotic calls of Hornbills and Laughing Thrush to complete the atmosphere of a tropical rainforest.  We nervously collected together in an open-sided wooden hut and were introduced to our guides.  The harnesses were then strapped round our bodies and we set off into the forest, climbing a steep narrow path that wove through the dense undergrowth.  At one point one of our guides.  shot out his hand like lightening and when he opened it he revelled a lizard trapped between his finger and thumb.  One of the other guides whispered to me 'He comes from the north.  They are very poor up there.  They eat anything! '.  The other guide, aware of our western sensibilities released the lizard which scuttled off comically, head raised and legs akimbo to live another day.  Finally the undergrowth thinned and we stood at the base of towering rainforest giant.  Spiralling up around the side of the tree was a staircase.  It was like something from Tarzan.   Eagerly we mounted the steps and climbed upwards until we reached the foliage of the canopy. A narrow platform was constructed around the trunk.  We collected together and waited apprehensively, chatting nervously about what was to come.  A zip wire was strung out across the abyss to the next tree.  I glanced down to the foliage far below us.  These really are tall trees. The view in front of us was breathtaking, treetops extending far into the distance before they climbed.  a steep ridge and disappeared from sight.  An eagle circled lazily along the ridge, riding the thermals of the sweltering heat.  Cicadas buzzed and swifts swept past us, hawking for insects amongst the upper branches.

  

One of our two guides launched himself into space and swept across the void to a similar platform 50 metres away.  Eunice was up first.  Our guide clipped her safety wire to the zip wire and she nervously shuffled to the edge, her toes hanging over the platform.  The guide repeated the safety instructions and Eunice carefully positioned her hands in the correct manner.  She glanced back at me nervously at which point the guide gave her a shove and she was off.  Feet dangling, adrenaline pumping and wind whistling, she sped across the chasm to arrive safely at the other side.  When I joined her a few minutes later her eyes were still shining with excitement and the sense of achievement.

'Do you remember the time we went to the Tivoli Gardens on the Ferris Wheel?' She asked.  I nodded remembering how as the wheel had slowly rotated she had clung to me as if her life depended on it.

'I never thought I would be doing this.  It is fantastic.  I wouldn't have missed this for the world. '.

Twenty three zip wires, 2 aerial bridges and two plunging abseils of 30 metres and nothing had changed our sense of achievement or exhilaration.  As we both commented to each other on the trip back, new experiences, it's what we came to Thailand for and it isn't disappointing.