JamesIsTooFancy

Student. Traveler. Foodie. "No one ever said life would be easy, they just said it would be worth it."

[jamesistoofancy]

Parisian street cafes are never too far away #chicago #lincolnpark (at Le Pain Quotidien)

[jamesistoofancy]

Trill tree #harvard #winthrop #thankful #🌲 (at Winthrop House)

[jamesistoofancy]

No chickens crossing this road #shibuya #worldsbusiest #tokyo #japan #crossing (at Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo, Japan)

[jamesistoofancy]

私達従兄弟 (translation: we are cousins) #kyoto #japan #🇯🇵#mycousiniscoolerthanyours (at Fushimi Inari-taisha)

[jamesistoofancy]

Not your average castle #osaka #japan #osakacastle

[jamesistoofancy]

Capstone of SE Asia #railay #thailand #ontotokyo #beach (at Railay Beach)

[jamesistoofancy]

Not pictured here: a sunset #krabi #beach #thailand (at Aonang Krabi Thailand)

[jamesistoofancy]

To the strangers who asked for a selfie and then proceeded to give us a break dance performance, become our Facebook friends, and bike us halfway across the city on the highway, thanks for giving me one of my greatest travel experiences ever #hanoi #vietnam #newfriends #hoankiemlake (at Hồ Gươm - Hồ Hoàn Kiếm)

[jamesistoofancy]

Well worth the paddling #vietnam #halongbay #kayak (at Hạ Long Bay)

[jamesistoofancy]

There is even a floating basketball court #floatingvillage #siemreap #cambodia #lake (at Floating Village, Tonle Sap Lake, Siem Reap)

[jamesistoofancy]

Hidden gems of Siem Reap #kandalvillage #siemreap #cambodia (at The Little Red Fox Espresso)

[jamesistoofancy]

Cambodia: Day 2

I've been saying this (Cambodia day 2) was one of my favorite travel days ever. It just had the perfect combination of tourist sites, food, and adventure. I'm not sure I could've asked for a better day. The morning started at 4:45am when we caught our taxi to Angkor Wat. Many people recommend getting their for sunrise, so we figured we should check it out. Unfortunately, it was a pretty cloudy morning, so the impact of the sun was minimal. Even still, as the light slowly emerged, getting that initial glimpse of the world famous temple was exciting. After the sun was up, we spent a few hours exploring the various temples while riding tuk tuks between sites. We saw the big temples of Angkoe Wat and Bayon and also some others like Baphoun. While each was astounding, I kinda began to feel as though once you've seen one temple you've seen them all. So, after a bit, we returned to the hotel, where we rewarded ourselves with naps, sleeping from roughly 9am to 1pm. When we woke up, we decided it would be fun to explore some parts of the city we hadn't seen yet. It's cool that in Siem Reap exploring the streets just a few blocks from the center is an adventure in itself. As we walked we made a pit stop for gelato (it was delicious) and walked through a temple. Then we found ourselves on the riviera, where we decided our next stop would be coffee. Through research we found some of the city's best coffee spots. While we did not find our initial target, we found ourselves on one of the city's up and coming trendy streets that was lined with cafes and shops. It was a side of Cambodia we hadn't yet seen--a bit more high end and with posh overtones. From there we wandered a bit more and got our first taste of the city's Night Market. This market seems a bit more high end than what we've seen before, and it was a good point to pick up some pretty unique gifts. After a quick shopping break we headed over to Bugs Cafe, a restaurant that attempts to let you eat bugs without getting sick. During dinner we managed to eat tarantulas, water bugs, red ants, flying ants, silk worms, crickets, and grasshoppers. I, surprisingly, really enjoyed the bugs. While sometimes it's difficult to stomach when you think about what you're eating, the flavors and crunchiness made for a good snack. However, we still made moves to a second dinner following the bugs; I won't lie, chicken satay was a nice change of pace. After dinner we did a bit more shopping before retreating to the hotel. The day was great, but per usual we were pretty exhausted. We've got one day left in Siem Reap before leaving for Vietnam tonight. It should be fun!

[jamesistoofancy]

Cambodia: Day 1

It's been an amazing few days here in Cambodia. From the minute we landed (minus the sweltering heat and some bed bug fears) it's been a phenomena 24 hours. Right when we landed we brought our stuff to the hostel and began exploring. We didn't know too much about Siem Reap besides Angkor Wat, so we just wandered. Downtown Siem Reap is great. The streets are lined with shop, people, and tuk tuks, and everything is dated enough to feel like you're in a different world, while sill having the comforts of a tourist town. As we roamed the streets, we came across a market before finding ourselves in a Cambodian village. What's interesting about Siem Reap is it is a city of under 1 million people, so the tourist part leaks into the rural community. The village where we ended up had dirt roads, huts, and was largely underdeveloped, but nonetheless the people were smiley. What I've really liked about Cambodia is that it is very underdeveloped and when looked at from the surface it would seem sketchy or unsafe, however, there hasn't been a moment here where I have felt uncomfortable. While in the village we came across a crocodile farm, which was quite eerie. Thankfully, all of the crocs were in some sort of enclosure. Eventually we found ourselves at a Cambodian barbecue place back in town, which was good, but didn't fill us up, so we supplemented it with a second Indian dinner. After that we spent sometime finding a hotel, and came across an amazing one where we ended up moving to. The people were so friendly and the staff helped us tremendously during our trip. Then, that night, we ended up going out. First, to the bar at our hostel and then to Siem Reap's self-proclaimed "best dance club." It was such a fun night, which only led to a few hours of sleep for our 4:45am wake up call to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat.

[jamesistoofancy]

Not chicken or beef #bugsfordinner #siemreap #cambodia #tarantulas #insects #🐜 #🕷 (at Bugs Cafe)

[jamesistoofancy]

Wat-ing on the sun to rise #angkorwat #cambodia #siemreap (at Angkor Wat - អង្គរវត្ត)

[jamesistoofancy]

Gentle Giants

Today was another full day (as evidenced by the fact that I fell asleep before writing this). The morning started bright and early with a 6:30am pickup to head to Baan Chang Elephant Sanctuary. As soon as we arrived we were immersed in all things elephants. First, we got to feed them. What impressed me here was how skilled these animals are with their trunks. They would grab food right from our hands and then curl the trunk to their mouth. The feel of the trunks reminded me of an octopus' tentacles. After feeding them banana and sugar cane, we learned more about the elephants before being taught commands for how to ride them. After a by of practice we began a 30 minute ride through the hills in the area. Riding an elephant is surprisingly difficult as you have to straddle it's neck. There is no seat or harness as that hurts the elephant, so you really have to hold on tight. At the end of the trail we came to a pond where we got to jump in and bathe the elephants. This was quite daunting as you are sitting in the water with multi-ton mammals that want to roll around and enjoy the water. It was an amazing experience, and one conclusion I came to following the day was that elephants really are gentle giants. After a ride back to Chiang Mai, I did a bit of exploring in town before we went to a local university to participate in Monk Chats. Monk Chats are a way for Buddhists monks to practice their English and foreigners to learn about Buddhism. You sit with a monk or two and ask any questions you wish. Since I knew very little about Buddhism, this was a particularly interesting and informative experience. Getting an insider's perspective of the life a of 20-year old monk was something I don't think I could do anywhere else. From there we took a tuk tuk (the best mode of transportation in my mind) to Nimanhaman (spelling likely butchered), which is Chiang Mai's top street for cafes and bars. Here we grabbed a quick coffee and had a very deep conversation on religion. Then we stumbled across the mall, which had a huge market outside and we got to enjoy some tasty street food. After that we grabbed dinner at a northern Thai restaurant before retreating to our hotel. We expected to go out last night but we all fell asleep almost instantly. Also, for the second night in a row, random people in our hosts woke me up to ask me to stop snoring...oops! Anyways, today we are en route to Cambodia, so hopefully some more exciting stories to report soon!

[jamesistoofancy]

🐘🐘🐘 #elephant #thailand #chiangmai (at Baan Chang Elephant Reserve Thailand)