Thailand is known for its “water markets” and they are a magnet for tourists as guides load visitors into boats and float them through these interesting markets. The floating water markets are really colorful with shops that sell everything from snakes to furniture with generous offerings of souvenirs as well. But this market is different and its focus is that of a local farmers market.
We woke up early on the morning of our second day in Bangkok and headed out to see this very unusual marketplace. About forty minutes out of the city is a market set-up in the middle of an active train line. It runs for several blocks through town along the railroad tracks with vendors displaying their fruits, produce and seafood on both sides of the tracks. There are stalls and tables on wheels with awnings that stretch across the tracks. Shoppers walk on the track’s ties as they examine the offerings.
We arrived in the morning as we were warned that by afternoon on a warm day the smells of the seafood can get a bit overwhelming. The market was packed with shoppers along with a fair number of tourists as we all walked along the tracks. On either side there were a number of cafes with the side on the tracks wide open and people sitting and enjoying coffee and tea. At one end most vendors were displaying produce with a couple of hard goods merchants here and there.
As we worked our way though the market there was a change in the activity around us and in the distance a train horn sounded. Quickly awnings were cranked back off the tracks and stalls were moved away from the tracks. From the direction we came from you could make out the shiny metal of a train engine with orange and yellow stripes coming towards us. It moved slow and as it sounded its horn people pushed back to clear the actual tracks. As we stood there, as far back as we could get the train moved past with only a foot between us.
After the train went by we walked on past the seafood sellers which was alive with shoppers and marine life and the market ended right at the platform of the Maeklong train station.
As we travel we’ve visited probable hundreds of “farmers markets” from Tahiti to Italy, Alaska to Argentina but the Maeklong Train Market is the one that sticks out the most.
A beautiful city for walking, with its canals, flower gardens, parks and historic sights. The city of Amsterdam is laid out like a fan with the Central Train Station being the base of the fan. The tram routes sort of radiate out through the city from the Central Train Station and Centrum neighborhood with the city’s famous canals arcing across the fan.
Inside the first canal’s arc is the Centrum. It is the heart of Old Amsterdam that houses a majority of the museums and major sights and measures only about a kilometer quare but there is much more to explore outside the Centrum area. If you have the time. To get around quickly and inexpensively be sure and make use of public transportation.
Click on the map to download a pdf copy
To use public transportation in Amsterdam you will need to get the public transport chip card (OV-chipkaart) available for use to ride on all trams, buses and metros. The most convenient option for visitors is a disposable one-hour card or day card (valid for one to seven days). One-hour tickets can be bought from the conductor or driver on the tram or bus.
Buying A Chip Card
The main fare used is the non-personalised (rechargeable) GVB card, available at GVB ticket vending machines, GVB Tickets & Info locations, and many newsstands and supermarkets. The 24 hour ticket is €8.50 and currently €19 for a 72-hour ticket (February 2021).
Using Your Transportation Chip Card
The most important thing about using your chip card is to always to check in and check out. At the start of ride, hold your card up to the card reader until you see a green light and hear a beep. Also remember to do the same every time you leave the tram/bus/metro.
Seeing Amsterdam from a boat on the canals is another popular pastime and the most popular is the Hop On Hop Off Boat Amsterdam. It will allow you to make unlimited use of the sightseeing boats that cruise through the historic canal district. Hop On Hop Off Boat Amsterdam is the best way to explore the city’s canals and you can hop on and off as often as you like and wherever you want, or just sit back and enjoy the tour. At last check the tickets were €34.
Rome, The Eternal City. By not traveling over the past year there’s a lot that we miss but especially we miss Rome. We feel there is no city anywhere that is as cosmopolitan or modern while still offering up thousands of years of history at almost every turn…
The History Behind The Celebration Of Easter Without question the holiest site in all of Christendom is located in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem. It represents the location where Jesus was crucified and where his body was laid to rest. Today there is a high level of certainty that the location has been actually identified.…
Weighing Port Shore Excursions Against Going It Alone
A lot of people prefer the convenience of a ship sponsored tour, and there’s a lot to be said about what you get using professional guides.
If you’re not a “guided tour” enthusiast we completely understand. First and foremost you can save a fair amount of money by touring on your own and you get to pick what you’re interested in seeing.
From our point of view the biggest problem with guided tours is that you become a prisoner of the tour. It isn’t uncommon to get stuck visiting some place that you just aren’t interested in. It just doesn’t seem right spending forty-five minutes at a chocolate factory or a nut packer or souvenir outlet on a tour you paid to join? It’s common for tour operators to be paid to deliver people to that business. The other case is visiting a location where you could spend hours and are informed you have to be back on the bus in a half hour. Going it on your own eliminates those problems.
There is also the issue of cost. If you understand your options, often you will see that the ships shore excursion will cost you significantly more money than if you went off on your own.
Consider a few examples to illustrate The point:
A Day At The Beach
Cruises in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean often offer shore excursions focused on a day at the beach. While convenient you will more than likely be paying a premium for that beach excursion. Consider these two examples:
Barbados – There are many beautiful beaches in Barbados but the easiest one to get to is Boatyard Beach on Carlisle Bay. It is a great beach with white sand and tropical turquoise water. It’s only about a 20 minute walk along a seaside sidewalk from the cruise terminal or an inexpensive taxi ride. An admission fee of US$20.00 is charged to use the facilities which includes a beach chair, shared umbrella, one cocktail, free WIFI and complimentary transport back to your ship.
Cozumel Chankanaab National Park – When you get down to it, this is a day at the beach. The park is equipped with bars, restaurant, along with beach and snorkel rental options. A taxi ride will cost between US$10 and US$20 each way (make sure you have plenty of singles as drivers don’t offer change) and park admission is about US$21. A recent tour booked through the cruise ship cost $69 per person. That’s $138 for what would have cost $62 for two people going on their own.
Easy And Popular Attractions
Mendenhall Glacier Alaska – This is a national park outside of Juneau Alaska. The park is serviced by a public bus route from the historic downtown area near the ship docks with round-trip fare being $31. Add to that the admission to the park (NPS standard fees) $20 which totals $51 ($31 if you have a NPS Golden Eagle Senior Park Pass). The basic cruise tours usually start around $75 and if they add in a salmon bake it can cost an extra $20 to $30. For more on Mendenhall CLICK HERE.
Rome from the Port of Civitavecchia – If your cruisehas Rome as a port of call there usually is a tour called something like “Rome On Your Own” for around $100 per person which includes a bus ride from Civitavecchia in to central Rome and back to the ship. Six blocks from the Civitavecchia seaport is the towns train station and for as little as US$12 you can get a round-trip ticket to the St. Peters station and trains run about every half hour. For two that’s a savings of $172 and the trip in and back on the train is actually much faster than the tour bus. Just be sure and schedule your return to allow plenty of time.
For more on visiting Rome from Civitavecchia CLICK HEREand for our eight hour tour of Rome on your own CLICK HERE.
Monte Carlo From Villefranche-sur-Mer
Another interesting tour comparison is a trip into Monte Carlo from the popular cruise port of call Villefranche-sur-Mer. Most cruise sponsored tours start at $75 per person. Monte Carlo is a beautiful but compact city and going on your own simply requires walking seven or eight blocks from the cruise tender dock to the train station and buying a US$12 round trip ticket. It’s only a short twenty minute train trip to Monte Carlo and once there buy a Hop-On-Hop-Off Monte Carlo bus tour for under US$30.
In order to head off on your own and save money you do have to be a bit adventurous. We are pretty independent and are usually comfortable using local buses and trains as we travel. With our biggest fear being missing the ships departure we always build in a good time allowance as we make our plasn. We are also good at doing research on our destinations and have a good idea of what we want to see and how to do it before we even leave on a trip.
A Few Ship Sponsored Tours That Are Must
On the other side of the equation are examples of ship excursions that are well worth the cost:
The Golden Triangle Iceland – This tour is a bit pricy but so are the local tour companies. Often the reason this tour is better is often ships dock in the afternoon and sail shortly after noon the next day, disqualifying local tours as an option. While you can consider renting a car there is the issue of time. The tour itself probably travels over a hundred miles and takes you to geo-thermal fields, waterfalls(!!) and Icelands rift valley where the earths crust is pulling apart. No shopping stops or misspent time. If you are going to Iceland don’t miss the Golden Triangle.
Ephesus
Ephesus Turkey – The ancient city of Ephesus, located near the Aegean Sea in modern day Turkey, was one of the great cities of the Greeks and later the Romans in Asia Minor. It’s home to the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Today, the ruins of Ephesus are a major attraction located some distance from the port. Again not inexpensive but a great experience (it usually does include a stop at a rug showroom). You might be adventurous but think hard before renting a car for half a day in Turkey.
Seeing Bangkok
Bangkok’s port is Laem Chabang and it’s well over an hour drive from the city. Attempting to use public buses is a serious challenge, especially on a tight time schedule. If this is a first visit to Thailand do not pass up a trip into Bangkok, it is an experience not to be missed. If your ship is staying overnight in Laem Chabang one option is to consider booking a two day tour with a major tour company and stay the night in Bangkok.
Wine & Food Tours
Wine and food tours are a staple of ship sponsored excursions and often are some of the more reasonably priced tours. Taking advantage of these at times provides a good way to see a city or the countryside and sample local fare.
A Wine & Tapas Tour in Palma – This one usually isn’t very expensive and includes stops at several different tapas bars and free time in town for shopping on your own. The drive back to the pier can include brief stops at the castle overlook above town and a nice drive along the coast. A good answer to filling an afternoon in Mallorca. For more information CLICK HERE.
Jerusalem – Regardless of where your ship docks, Jerusalem is at least an hours trip away. The city is also huge with streets and alleys that present as a never ending maze. To really see Jerusalem in a day or two, a guide is almost a must. The convenience and the time you save makes a ships shore excursion worth the cost.
Ports With Great Public TransportationFor Exploring On Your Own
Another thing to pay attention to is the port of calls public transportation. There are dozens of cities with great and inexpensive public transportation. Most have ticket vending machines with instructions in English along with great system maps. Before you travel check out your ports and if the offer tourist tickets.
Singapore – While there are several cruise docks in Singapore, the nearest Metro Station is only a few blocks walk from each. The Singapore Metro system is clean, well marked and best of all the signage is in English.CLICK HEREfor specific information.
CLICK MAP TO DOWNLOAD A PDF COPY
Amsterdam – The center of Amsterdam is focused on the Central Train Station that can be reached in a short seven to ten block walk from the ships pier. A series of tram routes fan out from the train station and The Amsterdam City Card allows you to travel on Amsterdam’s GVB-trams, buses, and metros. This popular one-, two-, three or four day pass also provides free or discounted access to many of the city’s museums and attractions. A one-hour canal cruise by boat is also included with the pass.
Sydney – Cruise ships dock at a pier next to Sydney’s historic Rocks area with only a short walk to Circular Quay where you can catch ferries around the harbour, pick up a bus or a light rail. Ask about the Opal Card which gives you easy system access for a very reasonable price. MORE HERE.
Hong Kong – Like Singapore, Hong Kong has a very modern and inexpensive metro system with easy to use ticket vending machines and route information in English. It is also common for there to be free bus service that will take you from the cruise pier to a number of destinations. MORE HERE.
Athens – Piraeus is the seaport for the city of Athens and while a bit out of the city, the cruise ships dock less than a mile from a metro station. Easy to get to by just following the water front. Fare is only a couple of Euros and the Thissio stop on the green line from Piraeus is only a short walk to the Temple of Hephaestus and the Acropolis has its own stop. An easy trip on your own that represents a major saving.
There’s a detailed article on the Metro trIp HERE.
In closing there are can be tours and situations where the cost is just too good to ignore. Sometimes that is because you’ve got onboard credits that you just need to spend and others can be a perk offered by the cruise or your travel company.
We were twenty miles east of Tampa and realized we were a couple of hours ahead of schedule for our next stop. Seeing a directional sign on the interstate that indicated Hillsborough River State Park was at the next exit we went to take a look. It turned out the park was 12 miles north of the exit on I-4 but it was a fantastic find. This diverse park offers seven miles of nature trails along the Hillsborough River.
We hiked along the river rapids, crossed a suspension bridge and really enjoyed ourselves. The couple of hours wasn’t near enough time and we plan to return soon.
This Florida park includes camping, historic structures, scenic landscapes, fishing in the Hillsborough River, hiking or biking the trails, kayaking or canoeing class II river rapids and picnicking under pavilions built in the 1930s by the CCC.
The facilities and trails are well maintained there is plenty of wildlife to look for and the river is a pathway through some impressive wilderness areas.
After over forty years in Florida we finally made the time to visit Sarasota Florida and spent a day at The Ringling. The estate is focused on the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art but the estate is actually a 66-acre museum complex featuring the State Art Museum of Florida, The Circus Museum and Education Center, the Ringling’s Ca’ d’Zan mansion, and Bayfront Gardens. At $22 admission it’s a great value and an experience worth returning to over and over again.
Sarasota has meant circus for almost one hundred years. First, the city became the Winter Quarters for The Greatest Show on Earth with its thousands of workers, performers and associated infrastructure. Later it became a tourist attraction centered on the Circus Museum and today it is know as the city that John Ringling built.
John Ringling was one of the five brothers who owned and operated a circus called “The Greatest Show on Earth.” His success with the circus and entrepreneurial skills helped to make him, in the Twenties, one of the richest men in America, with an estimated worth of nearly $200 million. In 1911, John and his wife, Mable, purchased 20 acres of waterfront property in Sarasota. In 1912, they began spending winters in what was then still a small town and years later Sarasota became the Winter home of the circus.
In the early 1900s three of the five Ringling brothers died unexpectedly. John Ringling in 1918, after hardships caused by WWI and the flu pandemic, made the decision to merge the Ringling Bros World’s Greatest Shows and the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth into one giant circus. On October 8, 1918 the Ringling Bros. season concluded in Georgia and the various circus trains were routed to the Barnum & Bailey Winter Quarters in Bridgeport, Connecticut. and on March 29, 1919, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus opened in Madison Square Garden in New York City.
John and Charles Ringling had been speculating on Florida real estate and John and his wife Mable had built their mansion and a world class art museum in Sarasota. Partly to boost the value of their real estate holdings they decided to move the Greatest Show On Earth’s Winter Quarters to Sarasota, Florida in 1925. Although a resident of Sarasota, Charles died in 1926 before the move was complete. With the death of brother Charles, John was now the last of the Ringling brothers.
The success of the circus and the the greatest show of all, the incredible Ringling Bros, Barnum & Bailey Combined Circus continued well into the 1970s when changing times and public tastes began to have an impact on the circus business. Even today the circus still has the power to fascinate people and continues to draw people to Sarasota’s The Ringling.
The Intentional Travelers 