(Wrote by Nic)
Our eventful trip to Laos started in Hanoi, Our taxi driver turned up, however we did not see a car, only a small scooter, and with 6 bags and two people on the back it was going to be a tight squeeze. So he phoned his mate and another scooter turned up to take us to the bus stop. This was one of the most scariest experiences of my life. So there we were travelling on the back of a scooter with our back packs on in Hanoi rush hour, and to top it off the driver did not stop smoking or talking on his phone the whole time, and i think at one time he managed both at the same time.
We finally arrived at the border (which was like a zoo with wild goats running around) where they make people pay a dollar to stamp there passports. However because it was a sunday and "unsocialable hours" we had to pay 2 dollars for them to stamp our passports.
We arrived in the capital Vientene 4 hours early than scheduled, so after a 18 hour overnight bus journey we were finally in the last of our Asian countires. After a quick rest, we decided do partake in some more sightseeing, however after reviewing the guidebook we decided to go for a beer instead as we did want to see any more temples!!!
Our next adventure would take us to the tourist capital of Laos, Vang Vieng! So we got on another bus which was meant to be a VIP air con bus which turned out to be a local bus with windows for the air con. In vang Vieng we embarked on one of funest days of our trip, Tubing. Tubing is floating down a river on a rubber ring, stopping off at make shift bars enroute. Each bar had a zip line or a giant swing with some about 10 -15 metres high. However if you let go to early on these swings it would really hurt as the river was not that deep!!
My favourite bar had a giant slide which throws you into the river. After copious visits to the bars we had a nice relaxed float to the end of the tubing track. Vang Vieng was very touristy with every bar showing friends or movies and far to many drunk tourists just like the thai islands. So we decided to get a bike and visit some caves just outside town.
The caves were really pretty and Jenny went swimming in a blue lagoon. However it took alot longer to cycle here as the roads were so bumpy. After a good morning sightseeing we decided to grab another beer and chill out for the afternoon.
Our last trip in Laos took us to a the north of Laos called Luang Probang, a small town in the mountains. The town itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Luang Prabang has both natural and historical sites. One day we set off on our own little adventure to the Kuang Si Waterfalls 32km away. As Jenny did not want to ride a bike there, I had to overcome a fear and get on the back of a motorbike with Jenny Driving. It was defantley Like mother like daughter! The waterfalls consist of a 180 foot main waterfall, and several 10-15 foot cascades from one turquoise blue pool to another. Our final day saw us get a massage as we were still sore from tubing.
We were then going to embark on a 24 hour bus journey to the north of Thailand!!
Lots of Love
Nic and Jen
xxxxx
Saturday 19 September 2009
Friday 18 September 2009
Vietnam
We arrived in Saigon to a terrential downpour after however a very smooth border crossings!! On the bus with us was another British couple and we knew where we wanted to go so we thought we would share a taxi. After being told we were at the bus station we asked the taxi driver to put the fare on the meter and we were away. After about 5 minutes we realised the fare was going up very quickly but still adjusting to the Vietnamese currency we thought it just might have been us!! We eventually stopped and definately realised we'd been scammed with the dodgy meter as we should have paid a lot less!! Not only that, the taxi driver short changed us saying sorry he didn't have any change!! After I had a bit of a go we eventually got our change and met a man who showed us to a guesthouse which turned out to be very nice for $10!
Later that evening we went out for dinner with the couple Rich and Jen but on our way back to the guesthouse we realised there were lots of buses stopping at this one place then jen realised she saw the cash point where she'd got money out!! So bascially the taxi driver took us for a little ride around the block with his faulty meter!!
Other than the first mishap Saigon couldn't have been more different to Cambodia it was a lot more built up and VERY busy!! The only danger about it was trying not to be hit by the 3 million mopeds driving around town!! Crossing the roads was bascially suicidal!! The following day we headed out to look around town and we found a cafe with lots of pastries! (the only good thing the French has done is bringing french baguettes to Vietnam!!)
We had crossaints for breakfast and a cup of coffee, as we'd read vietnamese coffee was meant to be really good!! Well whoever said that was lying!! It was incredibly sweet and had very strange milk!! After breakfast we headed to a market and it wasn't like any market we'd been in before as the Vietnamese were very friendly in that they liked to touch you!! We were grabbed more times than we could count to stop at their stalls. Nic had trousers held up to him and it was a fatal mistake asking how much something was because then they wouldn't let you go!! Literally!! We did however purchase a few things!!
After that we went to a musuem of all places!! But when we turned up it was closed for lunch which was just our luck so we had to occupy ourselves in a cafe for an hour!! The musuem was the war musuem which had lots of US army aircraft still there which was quite cool!! After lunch we headed to another market and we found even more dvd's to add to how growing collection and we both bought brand new ski jackets!! We couldn't get over why they were selling ski jackets in a hot country like Vietnam but we also didn't care as both of our ski jackets came to 40 pound!! Bargain!!
That night we went out for dinner again with our new found friends and had a few beers and to our surprise beer was even cheaper than in Cambodia as a big bottle of Saigon beer was only 35p!!
The next day we had booked on a trip for $4 each to go to Cui Gui tunnels which were 2 hours out of town. They were the tunnels the Vietcong built in the war. We learnt a lot about the war and stopped off at a handicrafts place where injured people from the war made souveniars! We didn't buy anything but later found out the name for the place was "handicapped handicrafts"! Not particualrly PC!!
We arrived at the tunnels and walked around and learnt more about the war! We even tried to fit into the tiny holes the vietnamese made! I got in fine but had a bit of struggle getting out! Further on you could follow one of the tunnels for 100 metres under the ground we all followed in a line until I reached the entrance and looking down the tunnel I was thinking once I'm halfway there's no way of getting out so I decided against the tunnel but Nic caried on and came out sweating buckets!! How the vietnamese lived down there for month on end we do not know!! The informative day came to an end and we had dinner and went to bed!
The next day we were heading to Saigon Water park!! Which we thought would be a nice break from the heat of the city!! We turned up not expecting much but were pleasantly surprised to find loads of slides!! So we headed around the park!! Not long after reaching the top of one of the slides I realised that I was a little bit underdressed in my bikini as all the other vietnamese girls were wearing shorts and T-shirt!! So the rest of the day we were stared at!! Also Nic was a little overdressed as the Vietnamese Men were wearing speedos!! But the water park was really good but we did come away with a few injuries! We headed back to the centre and that day we were getting a bus up the coast so we made our way to the next place!
We arived in a place called mui ne which was by the coast! We got then again in terrential rain! We headed out for dinner to then find that the whole town was completely dead and were told that September was their quietest month of the year!! We eventually found a little place and because we were the only ones in there they let us pick any movie and watch it!! So we were happy for the night!!
The morning after we gave the town the benefit of the doubt that we had arrived at night but still there was no-one around!! Not even the beach was particularly nice!! So instead of hanging around we thought we'd book a bus and head further up the coast! On the bus we met our friends again and were now heading to Nha Trang further up the coast!
We arrived again to guess what MORE RAIN! We were prepared for the rain however in that we'd bought waterproofs and after checking into our hotel we headed out to dinner with our friends!! We found a pizza place and were more than happy when the beers were buy one get one free!! Following dinner we were sat there and then our canadian friends who we met in Cambodia walked past and they then joined us for a drink!! A few bars later we headed home to wake up to a bit of a hangover the next day!!
The sun was shining which had proved to be a rare sight in Vietnam so far so we made the most of it and hit the beach!! We hired some beach beds for a pound with our friends Rich and Jen! The beach was really nice and to begin with the sea was nice too. But after about an hour the sea had obviously been churned up and all we found in it was lots of rubbish!! At that point Rich had found a water park up the beach and as they missed out on the one in Saigon! We joined them and were slightly disappointed when it didn't live up to the one in Saigon! We went on a few of the slides to then realise there was a severe lack of health and safety! On one of the slides you had to fight your way on to even go down it but then half way down the kids thought it was funny to block the slide so no-one could get down!! After a lot of cuts and bruises we left the park with the worry we might get septesiemia!!
That evening we headed out again for dinner then onto some bars!! One bar we played a bit of pool and there was the smallest puppies I'd ever seen! Later I realised they were Chewawa puppies but we also got offered to buy one for a pound!! In the one bar we had had 11 beers between 4 of us and the bill came to 3pounds!! You wouldn't even get one beer for that back home!!
The next day we went on a trip around the islands off the shore! The boat wasn't quite what we were expecting but our first stop was at an aquarium which was pretty good! We then went onto a place where there was supposed so be coral and we could snorkel but having had a look with our masks on you couldn't really see more than a metre in front of you as the vietnamese don't really have any awareness for the environment!!
We had lunch and was bought out noodles, rice, spring rolls and various vegetables and soup but the only thing was we had to eat it with chop sticks and there was no option for a knife and fork!! We were laughed at a lot by the vietnamese on the boat as we just had to resort so shoveling the food down!! After lunch we were treated to some music from the crew on board I say "treated" but it was more like deafened!! Following this it was then a floating bar! I had read on the advertisment about a floating bar but didn't really know what it meant. But it's exactly what it says on the tin in that we all jumped in the water and a guy had some bottles of wine on some polysterine blocks and we all had rubber rings floating with a glass of wine!! However the wine tasted more like vinegar and excuse my french but all the guy could pronounce perfectly in English was "this wine is fucking minging!"
After a few sips we all reaslised there was something stinging us and the guy said yes this is a jelly fish area!! We soon got out of the water and then started our cruise back to shore!! That evening our friends left us and we thought it would be best to have an early night!
The next day we chilled out by the beach but this time were by a bar which had a swimming pool so we didn't need to go in the sea and that evening we headed on the night bus further up the coast to Hoi An. We had been told it was a sleeper bus which was true but the only thing was was that it was made for Asian people and nic was far too long for it and couldn't strech his legs out!! After a very bumpy nights sleep we met up again with our friends who told us that they had been out shopping in Hoi An, as this was the place with lots of tailor shops!! Shortly after breakfast we walked around town in search for clothes!!
We stopped off in many places Nic trying on suits and I was trying on dresses and coats!! They took our measurements for everything then all we had to do was wait for the following day to go back for our fittings!! The next day we thought it would be best to hire a bike to go to all of our fittings so there we were pedalling around town stopping off in the different shops! After our first fitting we were both a bit disappointed as it wasn't quite how we imagined but the beauty of it was was that they would change it until it was perfect for no extra charge!! So later that day we went back and all the clothes fit like a glove!! But then we thought how on earth were we going to fit the 2 suits, 3 trousers, 4 coats and 2 dresses into our rucksacks so then we had to buy yet another bag which meant that in total now we had 4 big bags between and two small rucksacks!!
Other than the tailor shops Hoi Ann was a very quiet, pretty little town and it was a nice change not to be hassled all day long!! The following day loaded with our new wardrobes we headed on the bus to Hue.
Hue is perhaps best known for its historic monuments, which have earned it a place in the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. However we failed to see any of these sites. After our not so good first impressions of what looked like a dirty town we decided to only stay a day and booked our bus to Hanoi, Hue was a first for me as we went to the market in the afternoon and I didnt buy anything!!! And Finally to top of our visit to Hue we went out eat in the evening, We both ordered our food. Ten minuters later Nic recieved his food which was very good, however he had finished his meal and had another beer before I got mine, (which I didnt like).
The next day we headed for the capital Hanoi. After a short 15 hour bus journey we arrived. Getting off the bus in a strange place is not fun when you are very tired and grumpy and you have 20 touts all shouting in your face pushing past each other to show you their guesthouse. We finally chose one man and got in the taxi. However when we asked to look at the hotel leaflet, the man had very craftely stapled his guesthouse's card over the name of the real guesthouse on the leaflet, which was one of the most expensive in Hanoi. So when we got out and saw that the rooms actually looked nothing like the rooms on the leaflet we made a quick escape next door to a nice clean room.
After a couple of days looking around, we were ready to leave for Halong Bay. Hanoi was very dirty, bustly and we found the people no way near as friendly as the south of Vietnam, which was a shame as we really enjoyed Vietnam.
We booked onto a 2day one night trip to Halong Bay which was 3 hours from Hanoi. We got picked up early in the morning to then find we were the last ones onto the very cramped mini bus and this meant we had to sit bolt upright for the next 3 hours and didn't even have a headrest to sleep!! We arrived at the port and were then asked to hand over our passports to check us onto the boats!! We handed them over and then saw the guy leave with about 50 passports in his hand!! We were then shued onto a boat where we had lunch which was more vietnamese food which we had to eat with chopsticks!! After lunch we sailed around and stopped at some caves we were very impressive despite the bright coloured lights they had put up inside which apparently took the artist years to design!!
That afternoon we sailed further and the views were something out of this world The bay features thousands of limestones karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. Unfortunately we have reaslised that photos we take never do the sight any justice so you'll have to take our word for it. The amazing thing was how peaceful the place was and that you'd see people in their fishing boats as some people actually lived out in the bay on floating houses!! That afternoon we stopped at a place where we could do some kayaking and later then stopped to sleep on the boat for a night where we had the chance to jump off the top of the boat into the luke warm water!! More vietnamese food later we called it a night and had a particularly hot sleep in our cabin!
The following day it was a case of heading back to port and getting the bus back to Hanoi. The only thing was that the tour was extremely disorganised and whilst moving we had to change boats twice and back at the port we had 1 and half hours to wait before the bus picked us up but we were happy to wait when we sampled the Vietnamese fresh beer for 10p!!We arrived back in Hanoi at 6pm and headed out for dinner and the following day we would head to Laos!!
Hope all is well!!
Lots of Love
Jen and Nic
xxx
Later that evening we went out for dinner with the couple Rich and Jen but on our way back to the guesthouse we realised there were lots of buses stopping at this one place then jen realised she saw the cash point where she'd got money out!! So bascially the taxi driver took us for a little ride around the block with his faulty meter!!
Other than the first mishap Saigon couldn't have been more different to Cambodia it was a lot more built up and VERY busy!! The only danger about it was trying not to be hit by the 3 million mopeds driving around town!! Crossing the roads was bascially suicidal!! The following day we headed out to look around town and we found a cafe with lots of pastries! (the only good thing the French has done is bringing french baguettes to Vietnam!!)
We had crossaints for breakfast and a cup of coffee, as we'd read vietnamese coffee was meant to be really good!! Well whoever said that was lying!! It was incredibly sweet and had very strange milk!! After breakfast we headed to a market and it wasn't like any market we'd been in before as the Vietnamese were very friendly in that they liked to touch you!! We were grabbed more times than we could count to stop at their stalls. Nic had trousers held up to him and it was a fatal mistake asking how much something was because then they wouldn't let you go!! Literally!! We did however purchase a few things!!
After that we went to a musuem of all places!! But when we turned up it was closed for lunch which was just our luck so we had to occupy ourselves in a cafe for an hour!! The musuem was the war musuem which had lots of US army aircraft still there which was quite cool!! After lunch we headed to another market and we found even more dvd's to add to how growing collection and we both bought brand new ski jackets!! We couldn't get over why they were selling ski jackets in a hot country like Vietnam but we also didn't care as both of our ski jackets came to 40 pound!! Bargain!!
That night we went out for dinner again with our new found friends and had a few beers and to our surprise beer was even cheaper than in Cambodia as a big bottle of Saigon beer was only 35p!!
The next day we had booked on a trip for $4 each to go to Cui Gui tunnels which were 2 hours out of town. They were the tunnels the Vietcong built in the war. We learnt a lot about the war and stopped off at a handicrafts place where injured people from the war made souveniars! We didn't buy anything but later found out the name for the place was "handicapped handicrafts"! Not particualrly PC!!
We arrived at the tunnels and walked around and learnt more about the war! We even tried to fit into the tiny holes the vietnamese made! I got in fine but had a bit of struggle getting out! Further on you could follow one of the tunnels for 100 metres under the ground we all followed in a line until I reached the entrance and looking down the tunnel I was thinking once I'm halfway there's no way of getting out so I decided against the tunnel but Nic caried on and came out sweating buckets!! How the vietnamese lived down there for month on end we do not know!! The informative day came to an end and we had dinner and went to bed!
The next day we were heading to Saigon Water park!! Which we thought would be a nice break from the heat of the city!! We turned up not expecting much but were pleasantly surprised to find loads of slides!! So we headed around the park!! Not long after reaching the top of one of the slides I realised that I was a little bit underdressed in my bikini as all the other vietnamese girls were wearing shorts and T-shirt!! So the rest of the day we were stared at!! Also Nic was a little overdressed as the Vietnamese Men were wearing speedos!! But the water park was really good but we did come away with a few injuries! We headed back to the centre and that day we were getting a bus up the coast so we made our way to the next place!
We arived in a place called mui ne which was by the coast! We got then again in terrential rain! We headed out for dinner to then find that the whole town was completely dead and were told that September was their quietest month of the year!! We eventually found a little place and because we were the only ones in there they let us pick any movie and watch it!! So we were happy for the night!!
The morning after we gave the town the benefit of the doubt that we had arrived at night but still there was no-one around!! Not even the beach was particularly nice!! So instead of hanging around we thought we'd book a bus and head further up the coast! On the bus we met our friends again and were now heading to Nha Trang further up the coast!
We arrived again to guess what MORE RAIN! We were prepared for the rain however in that we'd bought waterproofs and after checking into our hotel we headed out to dinner with our friends!! We found a pizza place and were more than happy when the beers were buy one get one free!! Following dinner we were sat there and then our canadian friends who we met in Cambodia walked past and they then joined us for a drink!! A few bars later we headed home to wake up to a bit of a hangover the next day!!
The sun was shining which had proved to be a rare sight in Vietnam so far so we made the most of it and hit the beach!! We hired some beach beds for a pound with our friends Rich and Jen! The beach was really nice and to begin with the sea was nice too. But after about an hour the sea had obviously been churned up and all we found in it was lots of rubbish!! At that point Rich had found a water park up the beach and as they missed out on the one in Saigon! We joined them and were slightly disappointed when it didn't live up to the one in Saigon! We went on a few of the slides to then realise there was a severe lack of health and safety! On one of the slides you had to fight your way on to even go down it but then half way down the kids thought it was funny to block the slide so no-one could get down!! After a lot of cuts and bruises we left the park with the worry we might get septesiemia!!
That evening we headed out again for dinner then onto some bars!! One bar we played a bit of pool and there was the smallest puppies I'd ever seen! Later I realised they were Chewawa puppies but we also got offered to buy one for a pound!! In the one bar we had had 11 beers between 4 of us and the bill came to 3pounds!! You wouldn't even get one beer for that back home!!
The next day we went on a trip around the islands off the shore! The boat wasn't quite what we were expecting but our first stop was at an aquarium which was pretty good! We then went onto a place where there was supposed so be coral and we could snorkel but having had a look with our masks on you couldn't really see more than a metre in front of you as the vietnamese don't really have any awareness for the environment!!
We had lunch and was bought out noodles, rice, spring rolls and various vegetables and soup but the only thing was we had to eat it with chop sticks and there was no option for a knife and fork!! We were laughed at a lot by the vietnamese on the boat as we just had to resort so shoveling the food down!! After lunch we were treated to some music from the crew on board I say "treated" but it was more like deafened!! Following this it was then a floating bar! I had read on the advertisment about a floating bar but didn't really know what it meant. But it's exactly what it says on the tin in that we all jumped in the water and a guy had some bottles of wine on some polysterine blocks and we all had rubber rings floating with a glass of wine!! However the wine tasted more like vinegar and excuse my french but all the guy could pronounce perfectly in English was "this wine is fucking minging!"
After a few sips we all reaslised there was something stinging us and the guy said yes this is a jelly fish area!! We soon got out of the water and then started our cruise back to shore!! That evening our friends left us and we thought it would be best to have an early night!
The next day we chilled out by the beach but this time were by a bar which had a swimming pool so we didn't need to go in the sea and that evening we headed on the night bus further up the coast to Hoi An. We had been told it was a sleeper bus which was true but the only thing was was that it was made for Asian people and nic was far too long for it and couldn't strech his legs out!! After a very bumpy nights sleep we met up again with our friends who told us that they had been out shopping in Hoi An, as this was the place with lots of tailor shops!! Shortly after breakfast we walked around town in search for clothes!!
We stopped off in many places Nic trying on suits and I was trying on dresses and coats!! They took our measurements for everything then all we had to do was wait for the following day to go back for our fittings!! The next day we thought it would be best to hire a bike to go to all of our fittings so there we were pedalling around town stopping off in the different shops! After our first fitting we were both a bit disappointed as it wasn't quite how we imagined but the beauty of it was was that they would change it until it was perfect for no extra charge!! So later that day we went back and all the clothes fit like a glove!! But then we thought how on earth were we going to fit the 2 suits, 3 trousers, 4 coats and 2 dresses into our rucksacks so then we had to buy yet another bag which meant that in total now we had 4 big bags between and two small rucksacks!!
Other than the tailor shops Hoi Ann was a very quiet, pretty little town and it was a nice change not to be hassled all day long!! The following day loaded with our new wardrobes we headed on the bus to Hue.
Hue is perhaps best known for its historic monuments, which have earned it a place in the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. However we failed to see any of these sites. After our not so good first impressions of what looked like a dirty town we decided to only stay a day and booked our bus to Hanoi, Hue was a first for me as we went to the market in the afternoon and I didnt buy anything!!! And Finally to top of our visit to Hue we went out eat in the evening, We both ordered our food. Ten minuters later Nic recieved his food which was very good, however he had finished his meal and had another beer before I got mine, (which I didnt like).
The next day we headed for the capital Hanoi. After a short 15 hour bus journey we arrived. Getting off the bus in a strange place is not fun when you are very tired and grumpy and you have 20 touts all shouting in your face pushing past each other to show you their guesthouse. We finally chose one man and got in the taxi. However when we asked to look at the hotel leaflet, the man had very craftely stapled his guesthouse's card over the name of the real guesthouse on the leaflet, which was one of the most expensive in Hanoi. So when we got out and saw that the rooms actually looked nothing like the rooms on the leaflet we made a quick escape next door to a nice clean room.
After a couple of days looking around, we were ready to leave for Halong Bay. Hanoi was very dirty, bustly and we found the people no way near as friendly as the south of Vietnam, which was a shame as we really enjoyed Vietnam.
We booked onto a 2day one night trip to Halong Bay which was 3 hours from Hanoi. We got picked up early in the morning to then find we were the last ones onto the very cramped mini bus and this meant we had to sit bolt upright for the next 3 hours and didn't even have a headrest to sleep!! We arrived at the port and were then asked to hand over our passports to check us onto the boats!! We handed them over and then saw the guy leave with about 50 passports in his hand!! We were then shued onto a boat where we had lunch which was more vietnamese food which we had to eat with chopsticks!! After lunch we sailed around and stopped at some caves we were very impressive despite the bright coloured lights they had put up inside which apparently took the artist years to design!!
That afternoon we sailed further and the views were something out of this world The bay features thousands of limestones karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. Unfortunately we have reaslised that photos we take never do the sight any justice so you'll have to take our word for it. The amazing thing was how peaceful the place was and that you'd see people in their fishing boats as some people actually lived out in the bay on floating houses!! That afternoon we stopped at a place where we could do some kayaking and later then stopped to sleep on the boat for a night where we had the chance to jump off the top of the boat into the luke warm water!! More vietnamese food later we called it a night and had a particularly hot sleep in our cabin!
The following day it was a case of heading back to port and getting the bus back to Hanoi. The only thing was that the tour was extremely disorganised and whilst moving we had to change boats twice and back at the port we had 1 and half hours to wait before the bus picked us up but we were happy to wait when we sampled the Vietnamese fresh beer for 10p!!We arrived back in Hanoi at 6pm and headed out for dinner and the following day we would head to Laos!!
Hope all is well!!
Lots of Love
Jen and Nic
xxx
Monday 7 September 2009
Cambodia
So we were in Bangkok ready for the border crossing to cambodia which we had heard really bad things about, including the conspiracy that Bangkok airways were paying the Cambodian government to keep the road to Siem Reap unsealed to encourage people to fly!! But when we saw the flights were $150 for only a 50 min flight we realised flying wasn't an option!
It was an early start at 6:30am we jumped on a minibus and were on there for about 4 hours. We stopped at a small place which included a resturant and were asked to fill out forms for our Cambodian visa. And also hand over our passports and money for the visas!! Obviously being weary of everyone in Asia we were a little reluctant but everyone was doing it we didn't have much choice! So after some fried rice with vegetables for lunch we headed for the border! Luckily when we got there we were handed our passports with the visas inside and were thankfully chaparoned through the very hectic crossing! At one point we had to stop and something was held to my head which I swear looked like the shape of a gun but it turned out to only be a thermometer to check you for swine flu! So I felt very stupid when I was trying to dodge it afterwards! Many passport checks later we were at the otherside and realised all the other travellers we wearing a sticker which meant they would get a taxi to siem reap which took 2 hours instead of the 4 on the bus!! We enquired and being that money solves all problems in asia before we knew it we were in a taxi!!
During the taxi ride we managed to get stopped by the police!! Not really sure why as the driver didn't speak a word of english but he seemed a bit worried when he had to get out and speak to the police but luckily it seemed to be no problem and we were on our way! We reached what seemed like a dirt track and soon realised this was where the canadian girls we were sharing the taxi with were staying!! At $15 a night it was pushing our now cheap budget so got on a tuk tuk to another hotel we'd heard of!! We got to a point on the tuk tuk where the driver got stuck and turned out we were stuck in the road made of sand!! So he asked us nicely (in his limited english) to step off the tuk tuk so he could push it through the sand!! So it was an eventful journey to a very nice guesthouse!!
After the daily standard nap we headed into town to have some dinner. We got another Tuk Tuk into town and were asked by the tuk tuk driver what time did we want picking up so told him the time!!We walked around and eventually found a mexican restaurant who were selling tacos for a dollar and beer at 50 cent so that sold it to us!! A couple of 50 cent beers later we were picked up by our tuk tuk driver and headed home!!
The following day we were introduced to another tuk tuk driver who would take us round for the day. He asked us if we wanted to go to a war musuem so we said yes not really having a lot of choice as he was already on the way. We turned up to what was not our idea of a musuem being that it was just a field with tanks etc in it. We didn't really know what to expect but we were introduced to a guide who showed us round. He talked to us more about the war but also his story in that he had lost all of his family when he was four, along with 3 fingers and still had shrapnell in his face from a land mine. Extremely shocked by his story we were very quiet for the rest of the tour and when asked if we wanted to take photos of the guns used in the war we declined!
After a very emotional but informative morning we headed back to town for lunch and then onto the market. Yet another shock was the street children trying to sell you things like postcards. It broke my heart when a little girl of only about 7 or 8 kept following me trying to get me to buy her postcards. But we were told not to give the street children money as it would encourage their parents to keep sending them out to work. Other children would come up to us and ask us where we were from and once we said UK they would reel off lots of facts about the UK including the population and the prime ministers going all the way back to Margaret Thatcher ( i think they knew more than me!)
After buying a couple of items in the market including a North Face rucksack for Nic.Later that day we headed to Angkor Wat at around 6 to to see the sunset. After about an hour we were shued from the temples and unfortunately didn't get to see the sunset because of the cloud cover. That evening we headed for dinner but felt the $1 tacos were too good to resist so went back to the same mexican restaurant as the night before!! We then enjoyed some 50 cent beers with the Candian girls we shared the taxi with from Bangkok. Then to our surprise they were showing cricket on the tv and it turned out to be the last test of the ashes. So we sat down and the candidan girls were a little confused as to what the game was and the importance of it but luckily as it got late we headed back and watched england win the ashes in the comfort of our hotel room.
Our Tuk tuk driver was trying to persuade to go to Angkor Wat for sunrise but knowing how both Nic and I liked our sleep we declined his offer!! We were still at the temples by 8:30am and even then it was in the sweltering heat and it can be safe to say that we sweated all day long!! The temples were very impressive and Lara Croft Tomb Raider was filmed in one of the temples we visited. After a tasy fried rice and vegetables and yet another spicy meal for Nic we headed back for another standard nap!! That evening was the last night in Siem Reap and we enjoyed yet some more 50 cent beers and it's embarressing to say but we did go back to the same mexican restaurant but luckily there was two so we didn't look stupid to the staff and in our defence we hadn't had mexican food in a long time! We had another evening with our candian friends before saying goodbye!
The following morning we got on a bus to Phom Penn the capital of Cambodia. Cambodians definately don't pay road tax as it was a very bumpy journey. The Michael Jackson craze has even hit South East Asia and we were treated to a concert of his on the tv on the bus!!
Once again we arrived in Phom Penn not having a clue where we were in the city but having checked the map we took off walking to look for a hotel. All the hotels quoted us a lot more than we hoped and after being following for about 15 mins by a tuk tuk driver we caved in and jumped on the back and he took us to the backpacker area. We arrived and were shown to a guesthouse which was described as having lakeside views! They were right that we could see the lake but the lake was muddy and full of rubbish and definately not one of the best views we've seen. We were shown to a room and at first glance it seemed ok but later that night we realised why it was only $5 as there was holes in the floor, the fan barely worked properly and the toilet didn't have a flush! We only stayed there one night before moving to another guesthouse which probably wasn't much better but had to do. The next day we went to yet another market and purchased lots of really cheap dvd's and we also spent another day visiting the killing fields and having watched the film the night before I understood about the war in Cambodia a lot more. The killing fields was yet another emotional experience so we didn't do much more that day.
On a lighter note our tuk tuk driver asked if we wanted to go visit S21 a musuem further about the cambodian war but I misheard him and when he asked "do you now want to go to S21" my reply was "oh no I'm 22!" Nic found this hilarious at the time and insisted on telling everyone we met about my mix up!!
After a couple of days in Phom Penn it was again time to move on. Next stop was Vietnam!!
Hope all is well!
Lots of love
Jen and Nic
xxxxxxx
It was an early start at 6:30am we jumped on a minibus and were on there for about 4 hours. We stopped at a small place which included a resturant and were asked to fill out forms for our Cambodian visa. And also hand over our passports and money for the visas!! Obviously being weary of everyone in Asia we were a little reluctant but everyone was doing it we didn't have much choice! So after some fried rice with vegetables for lunch we headed for the border! Luckily when we got there we were handed our passports with the visas inside and were thankfully chaparoned through the very hectic crossing! At one point we had to stop and something was held to my head which I swear looked like the shape of a gun but it turned out to only be a thermometer to check you for swine flu! So I felt very stupid when I was trying to dodge it afterwards! Many passport checks later we were at the otherside and realised all the other travellers we wearing a sticker which meant they would get a taxi to siem reap which took 2 hours instead of the 4 on the bus!! We enquired and being that money solves all problems in asia before we knew it we were in a taxi!!
During the taxi ride we managed to get stopped by the police!! Not really sure why as the driver didn't speak a word of english but he seemed a bit worried when he had to get out and speak to the police but luckily it seemed to be no problem and we were on our way! We reached what seemed like a dirt track and soon realised this was where the canadian girls we were sharing the taxi with were staying!! At $15 a night it was pushing our now cheap budget so got on a tuk tuk to another hotel we'd heard of!! We got to a point on the tuk tuk where the driver got stuck and turned out we were stuck in the road made of sand!! So he asked us nicely (in his limited english) to step off the tuk tuk so he could push it through the sand!! So it was an eventful journey to a very nice guesthouse!!
After the daily standard nap we headed into town to have some dinner. We got another Tuk Tuk into town and were asked by the tuk tuk driver what time did we want picking up so told him the time!!We walked around and eventually found a mexican restaurant who were selling tacos for a dollar and beer at 50 cent so that sold it to us!! A couple of 50 cent beers later we were picked up by our tuk tuk driver and headed home!!
The following day we were introduced to another tuk tuk driver who would take us round for the day. He asked us if we wanted to go to a war musuem so we said yes not really having a lot of choice as he was already on the way. We turned up to what was not our idea of a musuem being that it was just a field with tanks etc in it. We didn't really know what to expect but we were introduced to a guide who showed us round. He talked to us more about the war but also his story in that he had lost all of his family when he was four, along with 3 fingers and still had shrapnell in his face from a land mine. Extremely shocked by his story we were very quiet for the rest of the tour and when asked if we wanted to take photos of the guns used in the war we declined!
After a very emotional but informative morning we headed back to town for lunch and then onto the market. Yet another shock was the street children trying to sell you things like postcards. It broke my heart when a little girl of only about 7 or 8 kept following me trying to get me to buy her postcards. But we were told not to give the street children money as it would encourage their parents to keep sending them out to work. Other children would come up to us and ask us where we were from and once we said UK they would reel off lots of facts about the UK including the population and the prime ministers going all the way back to Margaret Thatcher ( i think they knew more than me!)
After buying a couple of items in the market including a North Face rucksack for Nic.Later that day we headed to Angkor Wat at around 6 to to see the sunset. After about an hour we were shued from the temples and unfortunately didn't get to see the sunset because of the cloud cover. That evening we headed for dinner but felt the $1 tacos were too good to resist so went back to the same mexican restaurant as the night before!! We then enjoyed some 50 cent beers with the Candian girls we shared the taxi with from Bangkok. Then to our surprise they were showing cricket on the tv and it turned out to be the last test of the ashes. So we sat down and the candidan girls were a little confused as to what the game was and the importance of it but luckily as it got late we headed back and watched england win the ashes in the comfort of our hotel room.
Our Tuk tuk driver was trying to persuade to go to Angkor Wat for sunrise but knowing how both Nic and I liked our sleep we declined his offer!! We were still at the temples by 8:30am and even then it was in the sweltering heat and it can be safe to say that we sweated all day long!! The temples were very impressive and Lara Croft Tomb Raider was filmed in one of the temples we visited. After a tasy fried rice and vegetables and yet another spicy meal for Nic we headed back for another standard nap!! That evening was the last night in Siem Reap and we enjoyed yet some more 50 cent beers and it's embarressing to say but we did go back to the same mexican restaurant but luckily there was two so we didn't look stupid to the staff and in our defence we hadn't had mexican food in a long time! We had another evening with our candian friends before saying goodbye!
The following morning we got on a bus to Phom Penn the capital of Cambodia. Cambodians definately don't pay road tax as it was a very bumpy journey. The Michael Jackson craze has even hit South East Asia and we were treated to a concert of his on the tv on the bus!!
Once again we arrived in Phom Penn not having a clue where we were in the city but having checked the map we took off walking to look for a hotel. All the hotels quoted us a lot more than we hoped and after being following for about 15 mins by a tuk tuk driver we caved in and jumped on the back and he took us to the backpacker area. We arrived and were shown to a guesthouse which was described as having lakeside views! They were right that we could see the lake but the lake was muddy and full of rubbish and definately not one of the best views we've seen. We were shown to a room and at first glance it seemed ok but later that night we realised why it was only $5 as there was holes in the floor, the fan barely worked properly and the toilet didn't have a flush! We only stayed there one night before moving to another guesthouse which probably wasn't much better but had to do. The next day we went to yet another market and purchased lots of really cheap dvd's and we also spent another day visiting the killing fields and having watched the film the night before I understood about the war in Cambodia a lot more. The killing fields was yet another emotional experience so we didn't do much more that day.
On a lighter note our tuk tuk driver asked if we wanted to go visit S21 a musuem further about the cambodian war but I misheard him and when he asked "do you now want to go to S21" my reply was "oh no I'm 22!" Nic found this hilarious at the time and insisted on telling everyone we met about my mix up!!
After a couple of days in Phom Penn it was again time to move on. Next stop was Vietnam!!
Hope all is well!
Lots of love
Jen and Nic
xxxxxxx
Friday 28 August 2009
Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Thailand
After finally taking advantage of everything being free on the aeroplane. We arrived in Singapore to the 28 degree heat at 10pm!! We got a taxi and watched the skyscrapers go by before arriving at the hostel to a very nice air conditioned room!
The next day after a good night's sleep we headed in the hot, clean city + firstly explored chinatown which was a lot more chinese than the one in Sydney! After being called "my friend" in the market I purchased a watch for 1 pound 30 + we both had lunch for 2 pound fifty!
Following lunch we headed to the shopping street + it can be fair to say we have never seen so many shopping malls all in one road it was unbelievable! We continued walking around the city and ended up in "Little India" which really did feel like we were in Mumbai with the crazy traffic and little stalls! Thats when we decided it would be curry for dinner!! And it lived up to the atomsphere of mumbai with a delcious curry not exactly sure of the name but it was good!!
The following day we headed north to Kuala Lumpur! We were on a very nice air conditioned bus then to our surprise they even put a dvd on! We couldn't believe it when the dvd turned out to be Mr Bean!! So thats was us occupied for the next 5 hours! We had booked a guesthouse but had no idea where in Kuala Lumpur we would be dropped off! The next minute the guy was telling us it was our stop so we got off! We had the address of a guesthouse so it was just a matter of getting a taxi! Our backpacks being an obvious giveaway we are foreigners we were hounded by people asking us whether we wanted a taxi. We got to a taxi man and handed him the address on a piece of paper, he then called his mate over to ask where it was!! For some reason they didn't know where it was, but he started driving and reassured us he knew where he was going! We drove up the street and luckily I saw a sign and he pulled over otherwise I think he would have just left us to find it!!
The guesthouse was a nice surprise in that it was clean, air condidtioned and we wouldn't have to share a room with 6 other people as it was just to ourselves for 4 pound each!
The next day we got up early to go up the twin towers. They gave out free tickets before 10am but we were told to be there for at least 8 to ensure we got them. By 9:30am we had our tickets and allocated time of 10:15am. In the meantime we went + had coffee. Something never to be repeated as the coffee is not the same as home!! But luckily it came at a very small price!!
We went back to go up the towers and reached the 42nd floor! It was quite impressive and good that niether of us suffered from vertigo!
That afternoon we explored another Little India and Chinatown which was pretty crazy! We had our first look at a market + I have never seen soooooooo many fake handbags!! We got into the bartering which is my new favourite hobby! (I must follow my mum in more ways than one!) Nic got a casio watch at a bargain price and I got some sunglasses!
We walked back in the baking heat and headed down yet another huge shopping street which I think even topped Singapore for the amount of shopping malls! However the best thing about the shopping malls would be that they would have foodcourts which was really cheap and so many different cuisines to choose from! Both our meals came to 2 pound but we are still trying to work out how to use chopsticks and often have to ask for a knife and fork!!
The following day we were moving again this time to Thailand. We were aiming to get to the Thai islands but could only get just over the border into South Thailand to a place called Hat Yai. We panicked a little at the border wondering whether we needed a visa etc but luckily didn't and we got there ok. But again we had no clue where we would be dropped off and this time no idea where to stay! We luckily passed a hotel and thought we'd stay there. But when the bus stopped I saw our bags being taken off and taken away. We quickly rushed off to find out they'd been taken into a tour operator and were bombarded with questions "where to you want to go?" We quickly picked up the bags and headed to the hotel. The hotel was again a pleasant surprise and this time even had a tv!!
That night we headed out for our first sample of thai food. After just having a look around in the shopping mall we soon experienced our first thunder storm in south east asia and we moan that it rains in england! It's nothing like this. We thought initially that it'll be over in 20 minutes but we were wrong and instead of staying in the dry in the shopping mall we braved the rain and found ourselves a restaurant.
I ordered Pad thai and nic ordered thai green curry. Very excited we received our meals and were bitterly disappointed when mine contained egg for some reason and Nic, (usually being good with loads of chilli) had a couple of mouthfuls and had to give up because his mouth was on fire! When then ordered some nachos to make sure we didn't go hungary that night!!
We woke up the next morning bright and early to go get our bus to the islands at 8:30am. We arrived at the tour agent and sat down and waited. They said to us that we were too early but by our watches we were bang on time!! I firstly thought it was a scam and they were trying to make us miss the bus but they soon said "no it's 7:30am did you come from malaysia??" We then realised that malaysia was an hour ahead but no-one told us!! Feeling very stupid we had an hour to kill before catching the bus.
Once again we got on a minibus with no idea of how we were getting to the thai islands and we would often stop at what we thought was a service station where we had the pleasure of hovering on the toilet! We reached a ferry terminal and got told via hand gestures where to go by our bus driver. The only thing was we were waiting in the passenger terminal and were the only ones without our luggage as the driver insisted on keeping it in the bus?? So we had 3 hour ferry crossing with no clue as to whether we would see our luggage again!! We got off the ferry at Koh Samui and thankfully our bus driver was there waiting and kindly showed us to a taxi where we don't even think he got comission! We got in a taxi which was actually a pickup truck which fitted about 10 of us in the back!! We reached the beach and got out where it looked like it was busy and went in search of a guesthouse. We'd asked a couple who said they were full or were bascially too expensive until we eventually found one.
That night we headed out to dinner and ended up taking advantage of the 80p beers on the beach listening to some music and watching some fire dancing! The following day it was time to hit the beach and top up the tan. But as soon as we laid our towels down we were sweating so much we had to go into the sea to cool down. But the sea in no way cooled us down as it was more like a luke warm bath! From then on we were unable to sit on the beach as it was too hot so instead spent the rest of the day in the sea and we even rented a lielow for the day but paid the price when Nic burnt his shoulders!
The following day we decided to head off to other another island called Koh Phangnan. This time we even had a room overlooking the beach for 8 pound a night!! We did a lot more sunbathing and were finally getting used to the motorbikes in asia and further weird and wonderful things until we then saw a woman riding a motorbike with a monkey in front of her!!Crazy!
One night on the island we ended down the beach for dinner and some drinks. On the beach we found some crazy things happening including a big skipping rope which was lit with fire!! But along with it a bunch of crazy english lads getting serverly burnt!! At this point Nic and I weren't feeling brave enough to and instead ventured for the buckets that were on offer. (Thats buckets filled with alcohol!) It soon went down hill after two buckets of gin and lemonade and we found a limbo stick on fire which we were joining in on!! We called it a night at some point or another and Hannah enjoyed a lovely drunken phonecall from me as a result of the buckets!!
The following day after we paid the price of our previous night's escapades where were we heading to bangkok on a 15 hour journey! Again we had now idea exactly how we were getting their but were luckily given stickers so whenever we got off a bus or a boat we were herded in the right direction. We were meant to arrive into Bangkok at 6am but when we were woken up at 4am saying we got there we were quite surprised!
We got off the bus very dazed to then be bombarded with taxi drivers. Yet again we had booked a guesthouse where they didn't quite know where it was!! The taxi driver was then saying "how much you pay me?" But we didn't have a clue where we'd been dropped off in Bangkok, therefore how far it was away from our guesthouse. We soon got rid of him when he refused to put the fare on the meter and luckily found a driver who did. After struggling finding the place we were pleased to realise the fare was a quarter of the price the previous taxi driver was offering us!
After a good night's sleep we headed to the Royal Palace in Bangkok, which was truely unbelieveable! Better than any churches we've got in europe I think! The only thing was I had to wear a lovely, stinking, glamourous shirt to cover up my shoulders and Nic had to wear what looked like scrub trousers a doctor would wear!! Following the Palace we walked further around the city and the next day headed to chinatown where we experienced the craziest market ever!! It was extremely busy selling all types of things but the thing was the alleyways were so small and cramped two people could barely get past each other let alone the motorbikes which were trying to get down the alleyways!!
After a crazy two days in Bangkok we looking forward to heading to Cambodia where we were hoping things would be a little less hectic!!
Lots of Love
Jen and Nic
xx
The next day after a good night's sleep we headed in the hot, clean city + firstly explored chinatown which was a lot more chinese than the one in Sydney! After being called "my friend" in the market I purchased a watch for 1 pound 30 + we both had lunch for 2 pound fifty!
Following lunch we headed to the shopping street + it can be fair to say we have never seen so many shopping malls all in one road it was unbelievable! We continued walking around the city and ended up in "Little India" which really did feel like we were in Mumbai with the crazy traffic and little stalls! Thats when we decided it would be curry for dinner!! And it lived up to the atomsphere of mumbai with a delcious curry not exactly sure of the name but it was good!!
The following day we headed north to Kuala Lumpur! We were on a very nice air conditioned bus then to our surprise they even put a dvd on! We couldn't believe it when the dvd turned out to be Mr Bean!! So thats was us occupied for the next 5 hours! We had booked a guesthouse but had no idea where in Kuala Lumpur we would be dropped off! The next minute the guy was telling us it was our stop so we got off! We had the address of a guesthouse so it was just a matter of getting a taxi! Our backpacks being an obvious giveaway we are foreigners we were hounded by people asking us whether we wanted a taxi. We got to a taxi man and handed him the address on a piece of paper, he then called his mate over to ask where it was!! For some reason they didn't know where it was, but he started driving and reassured us he knew where he was going! We drove up the street and luckily I saw a sign and he pulled over otherwise I think he would have just left us to find it!!
The guesthouse was a nice surprise in that it was clean, air condidtioned and we wouldn't have to share a room with 6 other people as it was just to ourselves for 4 pound each!
The next day we got up early to go up the twin towers. They gave out free tickets before 10am but we were told to be there for at least 8 to ensure we got them. By 9:30am we had our tickets and allocated time of 10:15am. In the meantime we went + had coffee. Something never to be repeated as the coffee is not the same as home!! But luckily it came at a very small price!!
We went back to go up the towers and reached the 42nd floor! It was quite impressive and good that niether of us suffered from vertigo!
That afternoon we explored another Little India and Chinatown which was pretty crazy! We had our first look at a market + I have never seen soooooooo many fake handbags!! We got into the bartering which is my new favourite hobby! (I must follow my mum in more ways than one!) Nic got a casio watch at a bargain price and I got some sunglasses!
We walked back in the baking heat and headed down yet another huge shopping street which I think even topped Singapore for the amount of shopping malls! However the best thing about the shopping malls would be that they would have foodcourts which was really cheap and so many different cuisines to choose from! Both our meals came to 2 pound but we are still trying to work out how to use chopsticks and often have to ask for a knife and fork!!
The following day we were moving again this time to Thailand. We were aiming to get to the Thai islands but could only get just over the border into South Thailand to a place called Hat Yai. We panicked a little at the border wondering whether we needed a visa etc but luckily didn't and we got there ok. But again we had no clue where we would be dropped off and this time no idea where to stay! We luckily passed a hotel and thought we'd stay there. But when the bus stopped I saw our bags being taken off and taken away. We quickly rushed off to find out they'd been taken into a tour operator and were bombarded with questions "where to you want to go?" We quickly picked up the bags and headed to the hotel. The hotel was again a pleasant surprise and this time even had a tv!!
That night we headed out for our first sample of thai food. After just having a look around in the shopping mall we soon experienced our first thunder storm in south east asia and we moan that it rains in england! It's nothing like this. We thought initially that it'll be over in 20 minutes but we were wrong and instead of staying in the dry in the shopping mall we braved the rain and found ourselves a restaurant.
I ordered Pad thai and nic ordered thai green curry. Very excited we received our meals and were bitterly disappointed when mine contained egg for some reason and Nic, (usually being good with loads of chilli) had a couple of mouthfuls and had to give up because his mouth was on fire! When then ordered some nachos to make sure we didn't go hungary that night!!
We woke up the next morning bright and early to go get our bus to the islands at 8:30am. We arrived at the tour agent and sat down and waited. They said to us that we were too early but by our watches we were bang on time!! I firstly thought it was a scam and they were trying to make us miss the bus but they soon said "no it's 7:30am did you come from malaysia??" We then realised that malaysia was an hour ahead but no-one told us!! Feeling very stupid we had an hour to kill before catching the bus.
Once again we got on a minibus with no idea of how we were getting to the thai islands and we would often stop at what we thought was a service station where we had the pleasure of hovering on the toilet! We reached a ferry terminal and got told via hand gestures where to go by our bus driver. The only thing was we were waiting in the passenger terminal and were the only ones without our luggage as the driver insisted on keeping it in the bus?? So we had 3 hour ferry crossing with no clue as to whether we would see our luggage again!! We got off the ferry at Koh Samui and thankfully our bus driver was there waiting and kindly showed us to a taxi where we don't even think he got comission! We got in a taxi which was actually a pickup truck which fitted about 10 of us in the back!! We reached the beach and got out where it looked like it was busy and went in search of a guesthouse. We'd asked a couple who said they were full or were bascially too expensive until we eventually found one.
That night we headed out to dinner and ended up taking advantage of the 80p beers on the beach listening to some music and watching some fire dancing! The following day it was time to hit the beach and top up the tan. But as soon as we laid our towels down we were sweating so much we had to go into the sea to cool down. But the sea in no way cooled us down as it was more like a luke warm bath! From then on we were unable to sit on the beach as it was too hot so instead spent the rest of the day in the sea and we even rented a lielow for the day but paid the price when Nic burnt his shoulders!
The following day we decided to head off to other another island called Koh Phangnan. This time we even had a room overlooking the beach for 8 pound a night!! We did a lot more sunbathing and were finally getting used to the motorbikes in asia and further weird and wonderful things until we then saw a woman riding a motorbike with a monkey in front of her!!Crazy!
One night on the island we ended down the beach for dinner and some drinks. On the beach we found some crazy things happening including a big skipping rope which was lit with fire!! But along with it a bunch of crazy english lads getting serverly burnt!! At this point Nic and I weren't feeling brave enough to and instead ventured for the buckets that were on offer. (Thats buckets filled with alcohol!) It soon went down hill after two buckets of gin and lemonade and we found a limbo stick on fire which we were joining in on!! We called it a night at some point or another and Hannah enjoyed a lovely drunken phonecall from me as a result of the buckets!!
The following day after we paid the price of our previous night's escapades where were we heading to bangkok on a 15 hour journey! Again we had now idea exactly how we were getting their but were luckily given stickers so whenever we got off a bus or a boat we were herded in the right direction. We were meant to arrive into Bangkok at 6am but when we were woken up at 4am saying we got there we were quite surprised!
We got off the bus very dazed to then be bombarded with taxi drivers. Yet again we had booked a guesthouse where they didn't quite know where it was!! The taxi driver was then saying "how much you pay me?" But we didn't have a clue where we'd been dropped off in Bangkok, therefore how far it was away from our guesthouse. We soon got rid of him when he refused to put the fare on the meter and luckily found a driver who did. After struggling finding the place we were pleased to realise the fare was a quarter of the price the previous taxi driver was offering us!
After a good night's sleep we headed to the Royal Palace in Bangkok, which was truely unbelieveable! Better than any churches we've got in europe I think! The only thing was I had to wear a lovely, stinking, glamourous shirt to cover up my shoulders and Nic had to wear what looked like scrub trousers a doctor would wear!! Following the Palace we walked further around the city and the next day headed to chinatown where we experienced the craziest market ever!! It was extremely busy selling all types of things but the thing was the alleyways were so small and cramped two people could barely get past each other let alone the motorbikes which were trying to get down the alleyways!!
After a crazy two days in Bangkok we looking forward to heading to Cambodia where we were hoping things would be a little less hectic!!
Lots of Love
Jen and Nic
xx
Sunday 16 August 2009
Australia
G'dday!
We arrived in Australia to a warm welcome from Mr and Mrs Stone (Kris's parents)! We were even more pleased that it was 25 degrees heat and for it to be their winter!! After a tour round the grand designs house which included a cinema room and jet powered pool we headed to the local wildlife park! We saw everything Australien from Koalas to crocodiles + even fed some kangaroos! It can be said the Australia has some of the weirdest looking animals on earth! Kris's dad then told us he'd seen a few snakes at the end of their garden!!
That evening we headed out for dinner at their local British pub! I had bangers and mash which was a very nice change from the chicken and rice we'd been having in Fiji! In the evening it got a little colder enough to just put a jumper on. But Kris's mum was layered up so much you'd think she was going on an Artic expedition! I would have liked to have seen her survive the winter we had had in Britain!
The following day we had breakfast on the barbie! Then headed up to a place where you had a view of the city! That evening we enjoyed T-bone steak cooked on the barbie along with some "stubbies" beer to you and me! Nic was happy to be able to watch the ashes but at that time England were winning so no Aussies would admit to liking cricket, only when they were winning did they like cricket!
Our last day in Birsbane we walked around the city + got back to a nice meal of lamb! Of course cooked on the barbie! We were given a lift to the airport + were very grateful to the Stones for having us and said our goodbyes + headed north to Cairns!
The flight was 2 and half hours and we were still in the same state! We were picked up by the hostel we were staying at. As we were heading into town we saw a group of lads walking on the side of the road with a large bank to the side of it. The driver said it was very dangerous for them to be walking and we just assumed it was because of the traffic, but he then went on to say it was dangerous because of the crocodiles!!!
We headed out of the hostel early the next morning for a day out at the beach and to obviously make the most of the 30 degree heat!! As we got to the beach all excited, we found out it was too dangerous to swim in the sea due to the deadly box jelly fish and sharks and most probably crocodiles as well!! So we settled for the lagoon instead!!
Our first trip in Oz was to the Great Barrier reef. We boarded our 50 foot sailing boat and headed out to sea! Once anchored we had a couple of hours snorkelling to explore the reef! It was unbelievable , 1000s of tropical fish (including nemo) and stunning colourful reef! We boarded the boat and had an amazing lunch which we both took full advantage of. The best part of the day however was after lunch when the instructors were feeding the parrot fish and also 4 (1.5 - 2 metre) black tip reef sharks! So everyone grabbed their snorkelling gear and jumped straight back in the water. The sharks were amazing but once again we were told they were harmless but I had at the back of my mind that Australia has the most amount of shark attacks in the world!! On the sail back to port we enjoyed cheese and bisuits and a glass of wine, to end an amazing day!
Another part of Cairns we particularly enjoyed was the free food! For some reason bars gave out free food and not even any hidden agenda! We would go in even order tap water from the bar eat the food and head out! One night we went to 3 different places to get 3 meals!! After the few days in cairns it was time to move on down the coast. Cairns was a nice place however we didn't meet many Australians!
Our next stop was a small town called Airlie Beach which was the gateway to the Whitsunday islands!
The next day we set sail on a two day two night sailing trip around the whitsundays on a boat called the New Horizon! After learning about the islands, we anchored for the night. After some baked fish we started the drinking games. As beer was so expensive in Oz we shared a box of wine or goon as they call it! However when you pay 5 pound for 4.4 litres of wine you're not expecting anything special!
After being woken up very very early to a rocky boat, whereby after breakfast I was unfortunately very seasick off the back of the boat! We set sail to the white haven national park home to whitehaven beach named second most beautiful beach in the world! It was unbelievable the sand was so white and soft, and we don't think the photos do it justice!
We anchored later that day to go for some more snorkelling (Nic's new favourite hobbie!) again the reef was amazing and we were very lucky and saw turtles. That day we sailed further and viewed a magestic sunset! More drinking games commenced and lots more goon drunk! After an amazing view of the milky way we went to bed. Our Whitsunday adventure had come to an end however still had more to look forward to in Oz!
After the trip things started to go a little down hill. We headed to the after party and met up with our new found friends from the boat but as I had developed a boil on my bum the only way I was comfortable was to be horizontal! So the party was short lived.
The next day we headed further down the coast on a 14 hour night bus to go on our next adventure! We were going to Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world! There was 11 of us altogether + we were basically given a 4x4 + food to explore the island as we wished! We were given a safety briefing on driving the car, the tides + to stay away from the Dingos! After that we were on our way! After a short boat journey we were on the island + had put all our trust in a Finish guy to drive us and was pleased to say he luckily didn't drive as fast as Mika Hakkinen!
We reached the campsite after a few hairy moments getting stuck in the deep sand. Then the boys cooked steak and the drinking games followed!
We were woken up in the morning at 6 am by a angry park ranger! In our briefing we were told to lock all of our food away in the cars because if we didn't it would attract dingos + we would get a fine of $300! Luckily there was no food left out however she wasn't happy about the beer cans lying about. We had 15 mins to tidy up the camp otherwise she would fine us. Luckily we passed the inspection and continued cooking our scrambled eggs for breakfast! That day we explored the island further including swimming in a crystal clear lake!
Unfortunately we arrived back down at the beach at high tide and were unable to travel up the beach to camp where we were supposed to! We were told by some rangers it was too dangerous to go onto the beach + instead pointed us in the right direction of a camp site! Once reaching the campsite there was a lot of signs saying we'd get a $300 fine if we were loud after 9pm + the chances we were gonna be with the very loud Canadians in our group! Luckily the rangers turned up + said they would show us somewhere to camp but they really shouldn't be because they would lose their job if someone found out. The place they showed us was a picnic area which was scattered with "no camping" signs! We set up camp, ate dinner and started the drinking games and it wasn't long before the rangers were there with their beers joining in! After a very late and cold night and yet another 6:30am start we were all very happy to get back to the hostel later that day for a shower and some sleep!
The following day we headed south of Brisbane into New South Wales to a place called Byron Bay. After a very busy week of trips and overnight buses we definately needed to recharge our batteries! We had come to the right place because it was full of chilled out hippies!
That night we went to the cinema close by + it was the coolest cinema ever because there was big cushions so you could lie all over the floor + even big teddy bears you could cuddle! Unfortunately I was a little to comfortable and I am following my mum in that I fell asleep during the film for a little bit!!
The following day we chilled out by the beach! We even contemplated surfing but after watching the surfers it liked like too much hard work! We treated ourselves to a subway because we had a 2 for 1 voucher on the back of our supermarket receipt!
That night at the hostel there was a talent competition but not like the type I know you're thinking of! Bascially we felt very left out as I think we were the only people in the hippie hostel who couldn't play the guitar and sing!
The next day we got a night bus to Sydney to again enjoy some home comforts staying with Nic's, Dad's Cousin's Daughter! If you lost on how nic and her are actually related don't worry because we all were! We had some time to kill after getting off the bus so we got our bearings and took a stroll by darling harbour. By communicating with Jeanette (Nic's, Dad's Cousin's Daughter!) via text we jumped on a train and headed to the surburban area they lived in + waited to be picked up. I think the big rucksacks gave it away as to who we were! We arrived + instantly thought good things when we entered through the large electric gates + then we drove up the driveway to what can only be described as a mansion! It was huge, swimming pool, billards room + we even had our own quarter! We had an amazing meal which was a nice change to the noodles we'd been living off to save money!
The next day was a day of sightseeing. We headed into the city to circular quay to get a ferry over to Manly ( a part of Sydney with a beach). The boat went straight past the opera house and harbour bridge so got snappy happy with the camera! We arrived in Manly + had a good look around + walked along the promonade by the beach. For lunch we splashed out on fish and chips because they are not as cheap as home! We go the ferry beack and further walked around the city and even walked across the harbour bridge before catching the train back!
Yet another delicious meal + an early night ready for the following day where we headed to the blue mountains!
A two hour train journey later we found ourselves hopping on a little trolley bus to take us round the area! We had another voucher to get 2 for 1 traditional english cream tea so jumped at the chance of a taste of home! After using every single bit of cream and jam on the scones we headed for the mountains! We took lots of photos of the mountains + valleys sadly didn't have the time to do any walks before jumping back on the train to sydney.
The following day we headed to bondi beach. After a pitt stop at Nic's, Dad's Cousin's sons house, where we even watched his sons who were 6 + 9 play rugby! Lets say the future of Australien rugby is looking good!! We then had a traditional Aussie lunch of fresh prawns we even had to remove from the shells! We then went to a bar to have a few beers overlooking bondi beach which I think live up to all the hype!
That evening Jeanettes eldest daughter who was 16 was hosting a party after her formal. We were asked to be on patrol for alchol and gatecrashers! But we'd been 16 and there's no way of stopping any drinking! Anyway there was no mishaps and we helped tidy up and went to bed gone 3 am.
The next day we said our goodbyes + promised their kids they had a bed whenever they came backpacking to england!
So we had come to the end of Australia had a really good time in their winter! So god only knows how hot it must be in the summer!! We were now looking forward to South East Asia for the beer and food to be cheaper + to start the shopping!!
Hope all is well at home!
Lots of love
Nic and Jen
xxxxxxx
We arrived in Australia to a warm welcome from Mr and Mrs Stone (Kris's parents)! We were even more pleased that it was 25 degrees heat and for it to be their winter!! After a tour round the grand designs house which included a cinema room and jet powered pool we headed to the local wildlife park! We saw everything Australien from Koalas to crocodiles + even fed some kangaroos! It can be said the Australia has some of the weirdest looking animals on earth! Kris's dad then told us he'd seen a few snakes at the end of their garden!!
That evening we headed out for dinner at their local British pub! I had bangers and mash which was a very nice change from the chicken and rice we'd been having in Fiji! In the evening it got a little colder enough to just put a jumper on. But Kris's mum was layered up so much you'd think she was going on an Artic expedition! I would have liked to have seen her survive the winter we had had in Britain!
The following day we had breakfast on the barbie! Then headed up to a place where you had a view of the city! That evening we enjoyed T-bone steak cooked on the barbie along with some "stubbies" beer to you and me! Nic was happy to be able to watch the ashes but at that time England were winning so no Aussies would admit to liking cricket, only when they were winning did they like cricket!
Our last day in Birsbane we walked around the city + got back to a nice meal of lamb! Of course cooked on the barbie! We were given a lift to the airport + were very grateful to the Stones for having us and said our goodbyes + headed north to Cairns!
The flight was 2 and half hours and we were still in the same state! We were picked up by the hostel we were staying at. As we were heading into town we saw a group of lads walking on the side of the road with a large bank to the side of it. The driver said it was very dangerous for them to be walking and we just assumed it was because of the traffic, but he then went on to say it was dangerous because of the crocodiles!!!
We headed out of the hostel early the next morning for a day out at the beach and to obviously make the most of the 30 degree heat!! As we got to the beach all excited, we found out it was too dangerous to swim in the sea due to the deadly box jelly fish and sharks and most probably crocodiles as well!! So we settled for the lagoon instead!!
Our first trip in Oz was to the Great Barrier reef. We boarded our 50 foot sailing boat and headed out to sea! Once anchored we had a couple of hours snorkelling to explore the reef! It was unbelievable , 1000s of tropical fish (including nemo) and stunning colourful reef! We boarded the boat and had an amazing lunch which we both took full advantage of. The best part of the day however was after lunch when the instructors were feeding the parrot fish and also 4 (1.5 - 2 metre) black tip reef sharks! So everyone grabbed their snorkelling gear and jumped straight back in the water. The sharks were amazing but once again we were told they were harmless but I had at the back of my mind that Australia has the most amount of shark attacks in the world!! On the sail back to port we enjoyed cheese and bisuits and a glass of wine, to end an amazing day!
Another part of Cairns we particularly enjoyed was the free food! For some reason bars gave out free food and not even any hidden agenda! We would go in even order tap water from the bar eat the food and head out! One night we went to 3 different places to get 3 meals!! After the few days in cairns it was time to move on down the coast. Cairns was a nice place however we didn't meet many Australians!
Our next stop was a small town called Airlie Beach which was the gateway to the Whitsunday islands!
The next day we set sail on a two day two night sailing trip around the whitsundays on a boat called the New Horizon! After learning about the islands, we anchored for the night. After some baked fish we started the drinking games. As beer was so expensive in Oz we shared a box of wine or goon as they call it! However when you pay 5 pound for 4.4 litres of wine you're not expecting anything special!
After being woken up very very early to a rocky boat, whereby after breakfast I was unfortunately very seasick off the back of the boat! We set sail to the white haven national park home to whitehaven beach named second most beautiful beach in the world! It was unbelievable the sand was so white and soft, and we don't think the photos do it justice!
We anchored later that day to go for some more snorkelling (Nic's new favourite hobbie!) again the reef was amazing and we were very lucky and saw turtles. That day we sailed further and viewed a magestic sunset! More drinking games commenced and lots more goon drunk! After an amazing view of the milky way we went to bed. Our Whitsunday adventure had come to an end however still had more to look forward to in Oz!
After the trip things started to go a little down hill. We headed to the after party and met up with our new found friends from the boat but as I had developed a boil on my bum the only way I was comfortable was to be horizontal! So the party was short lived.
The next day we headed further down the coast on a 14 hour night bus to go on our next adventure! We were going to Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world! There was 11 of us altogether + we were basically given a 4x4 + food to explore the island as we wished! We were given a safety briefing on driving the car, the tides + to stay away from the Dingos! After that we were on our way! After a short boat journey we were on the island + had put all our trust in a Finish guy to drive us and was pleased to say he luckily didn't drive as fast as Mika Hakkinen!
We reached the campsite after a few hairy moments getting stuck in the deep sand. Then the boys cooked steak and the drinking games followed!
We were woken up in the morning at 6 am by a angry park ranger! In our briefing we were told to lock all of our food away in the cars because if we didn't it would attract dingos + we would get a fine of $300! Luckily there was no food left out however she wasn't happy about the beer cans lying about. We had 15 mins to tidy up the camp otherwise she would fine us. Luckily we passed the inspection and continued cooking our scrambled eggs for breakfast! That day we explored the island further including swimming in a crystal clear lake!
Unfortunately we arrived back down at the beach at high tide and were unable to travel up the beach to camp where we were supposed to! We were told by some rangers it was too dangerous to go onto the beach + instead pointed us in the right direction of a camp site! Once reaching the campsite there was a lot of signs saying we'd get a $300 fine if we were loud after 9pm + the chances we were gonna be with the very loud Canadians in our group! Luckily the rangers turned up + said they would show us somewhere to camp but they really shouldn't be because they would lose their job if someone found out. The place they showed us was a picnic area which was scattered with "no camping" signs! We set up camp, ate dinner and started the drinking games and it wasn't long before the rangers were there with their beers joining in! After a very late and cold night and yet another 6:30am start we were all very happy to get back to the hostel later that day for a shower and some sleep!
The following day we headed south of Brisbane into New South Wales to a place called Byron Bay. After a very busy week of trips and overnight buses we definately needed to recharge our batteries! We had come to the right place because it was full of chilled out hippies!
That night we went to the cinema close by + it was the coolest cinema ever because there was big cushions so you could lie all over the floor + even big teddy bears you could cuddle! Unfortunately I was a little to comfortable and I am following my mum in that I fell asleep during the film for a little bit!!
The following day we chilled out by the beach! We even contemplated surfing but after watching the surfers it liked like too much hard work! We treated ourselves to a subway because we had a 2 for 1 voucher on the back of our supermarket receipt!
That night at the hostel there was a talent competition but not like the type I know you're thinking of! Bascially we felt very left out as I think we were the only people in the hippie hostel who couldn't play the guitar and sing!
The next day we got a night bus to Sydney to again enjoy some home comforts staying with Nic's, Dad's Cousin's Daughter! If you lost on how nic and her are actually related don't worry because we all were! We had some time to kill after getting off the bus so we got our bearings and took a stroll by darling harbour. By communicating with Jeanette (Nic's, Dad's Cousin's Daughter!) via text we jumped on a train and headed to the surburban area they lived in + waited to be picked up. I think the big rucksacks gave it away as to who we were! We arrived + instantly thought good things when we entered through the large electric gates + then we drove up the driveway to what can only be described as a mansion! It was huge, swimming pool, billards room + we even had our own quarter! We had an amazing meal which was a nice change to the noodles we'd been living off to save money!
The next day was a day of sightseeing. We headed into the city to circular quay to get a ferry over to Manly ( a part of Sydney with a beach). The boat went straight past the opera house and harbour bridge so got snappy happy with the camera! We arrived in Manly + had a good look around + walked along the promonade by the beach. For lunch we splashed out on fish and chips because they are not as cheap as home! We go the ferry beack and further walked around the city and even walked across the harbour bridge before catching the train back!
Yet another delicious meal + an early night ready for the following day where we headed to the blue mountains!
A two hour train journey later we found ourselves hopping on a little trolley bus to take us round the area! We had another voucher to get 2 for 1 traditional english cream tea so jumped at the chance of a taste of home! After using every single bit of cream and jam on the scones we headed for the mountains! We took lots of photos of the mountains + valleys sadly didn't have the time to do any walks before jumping back on the train to sydney.
The following day we headed to bondi beach. After a pitt stop at Nic's, Dad's Cousin's sons house, where we even watched his sons who were 6 + 9 play rugby! Lets say the future of Australien rugby is looking good!! We then had a traditional Aussie lunch of fresh prawns we even had to remove from the shells! We then went to a bar to have a few beers overlooking bondi beach which I think live up to all the hype!
That evening Jeanettes eldest daughter who was 16 was hosting a party after her formal. We were asked to be on patrol for alchol and gatecrashers! But we'd been 16 and there's no way of stopping any drinking! Anyway there was no mishaps and we helped tidy up and went to bed gone 3 am.
The next day we said our goodbyes + promised their kids they had a bed whenever they came backpacking to england!
So we had come to the end of Australia had a really good time in their winter! So god only knows how hot it must be in the summer!! We were now looking forward to South East Asia for the beer and food to be cheaper + to start the shopping!!
Hope all is well at home!
Lots of love
Nic and Jen
xxxxxxx
Sunday 19 July 2009
Fiji
Bula,
The day of our flight started out really well because we got all of our insurance deposit back for the campervan ( therefore the lady checking it luckily didn't see the cracks in the windscreen + we did manage to drive away from a campsire with the electricity cable still in, stupid I know!!) Thankfully she missed that too!!
However, our day soon went downhill when we got to the departure screen to find out there was not a flight to Auckland at 9:50am! We were a little suspcious before arriving at the airport because we were flying with Jetstar New Zealands equivalent to Easy Jet and Ryan Air!! A little worried we asked at the desk + they said the flight was leaving at 10:30am. Bearing in mind we had to change planes in Auckland to get to Fiji! Therefore it turned out we would have only 30 mins to get off the aeroplane, collect our luggage and travel the 15 mins to the international terminal! After a panic phonecall to Hannah we'd come up with a plan that I would run off the plane to the other terminal + hold check in whilst nic collected the bags!
We were reassured by the Jetstar staff that the flight was on time and we would be boarding at 10am. When it reached 10:20am and we still hadn't boarded, Jetstar were definately living up to their reputation! We took off 10mins late which doesn't seem like a lot but in our time scale it was huge!! We asked several dumb stewardesses what time we would be arriving, all of which didn't get back to us but turned out we were 5 mins late! So as soon as we landed I rushed off the plane! I ran as fast as I could but being unfit this resulted in some brisk walking at times! Amazingly I reached the check in and the woman happily asked me the necessary questions but Nic still hadn't arrived! Eventually he made it just as check in closed, then it was a sprint for the gate ( it really felt like something off a film!) We made it on the plane and were particularly impressed with the stereotypical Air Pacific polynesian music and outfits the stewardessess were wearing! We were then definately in the holiday mood!
We had the heat hit us as we stepped out of the plane which put a smile on our faces and before we knew it we were at the hostel and booked our island hopping adventure for the next day!
We got on the boat at 8:30am and headed north for 5 hours to our first resort (if you could call it that!) We arrived to a Fijian welcome song + sat down to eat our first lunch which consisted of mushy rice! We then were showed to our dorm which had about 30 other people in it! And the outdoor shack which was the cold showers and toilets! We were however 5 hours from civilisation so I was impressed they had electricity!!
That afternoon Nic spotted some guys playing rugby so jumped at the chance to throw a ball around! He was even happier to find out later that day there was touch rugby against the Fijians! I even joined in the volleyball but soon stopeed when I felt my height restricted me + they were definately talking and laughing about me in Fijian about my volleyball skills!
The next couple of days consisted of the same get up eat, sunbathe, eat and sleep! One resort we were able to walk to the other side of the island through the bush! On the way were saw lizards, insects and even came across a pig penned up! We finally made it to the blue lagoon the set for the film "blue lagoon" which starred Brooke Shields! (We'd never seen the film but it was Fijians claim to fame!) But it was like paradise, white sandy beach and crystal clear waters and the best thing was we were the only ones on it!!
That night the resort only had 7 people on it which compared to the 60 in the one before it was very small. We did however take part in a Crab Race whereby they collected a number of hermit crabs and numbered the backs of them and set up a ring. There were 3 rounds + the top 3 in each round went through to the next. The aim was for the crab to get outside the sand ring. When it came down to the first round niether Nic's nor mine barely moved whilst everyone elses raced for the edge! So that was the end of that game for us!!
One day we had the opportunity to go swimming with Manta Rays ( a friendlier version of a stingray!) So we jumped at the chance!
We got our snorkling gear + got out on the boat! Within seconds of being in the area they were the guy spotted one and shouted to everyone "get in". So literally it was a case of jumping in and swimming after it! It was one of the biggest things I've ever seen + at one point we were following one and we were probably about one metre away from it! It was incredible! I did however always had the thought of Steve Irwin at the back of my mind but luckily they didn't have a long stinger and we were informed they were harmless! One of the guides even dived down and touched it on it's back!! It was however extremely difficult to keep up with the Manta Rays but there was 1000's of fish to look at too!!
That evening we were entertained by some Fiji dancing which included fire dancing! We were even made at one point to get up and dance too which meant Nic was able to show off his lack of rhythm!
After 6 different islands and resorts we headed to our last resort Beachcommber for Nic's birthday which is known as the party island. We had bought a bottle of gin before leaving the main island to save on the pennies! We met a lot of people and played lots of drinking games but sadly they found out it was Nic's birthday and it turned out he was drinking a lot more than the rest of us and sadly couldn't handle it so was in bed at 11pm passed out!! I however had a great night and even ended up in the sea at 1am!! But I soon got out when I found out that the reef sharks came really close to the shore as they were attracted to the light!
The next day, very hungover, we headed back to the mainland ready to catch our flight to Oz the next day! So after 14 days of sun, a lot of mosquito bites, we were sad to be leaving Fiji but are looking forward to our next adventure in Australia, where nic is hoping to watch a lot of the Ashes!!
Hope all is well at home!
Lots of love
Jen and Nic
xxxxxxx
The day of our flight started out really well because we got all of our insurance deposit back for the campervan ( therefore the lady checking it luckily didn't see the cracks in the windscreen + we did manage to drive away from a campsire with the electricity cable still in, stupid I know!!) Thankfully she missed that too!!
However, our day soon went downhill when we got to the departure screen to find out there was not a flight to Auckland at 9:50am! We were a little suspcious before arriving at the airport because we were flying with Jetstar New Zealands equivalent to Easy Jet and Ryan Air!! A little worried we asked at the desk + they said the flight was leaving at 10:30am. Bearing in mind we had to change planes in Auckland to get to Fiji! Therefore it turned out we would have only 30 mins to get off the aeroplane, collect our luggage and travel the 15 mins to the international terminal! After a panic phonecall to Hannah we'd come up with a plan that I would run off the plane to the other terminal + hold check in whilst nic collected the bags!
We were reassured by the Jetstar staff that the flight was on time and we would be boarding at 10am. When it reached 10:20am and we still hadn't boarded, Jetstar were definately living up to their reputation! We took off 10mins late which doesn't seem like a lot but in our time scale it was huge!! We asked several dumb stewardesses what time we would be arriving, all of which didn't get back to us but turned out we were 5 mins late! So as soon as we landed I rushed off the plane! I ran as fast as I could but being unfit this resulted in some brisk walking at times! Amazingly I reached the check in and the woman happily asked me the necessary questions but Nic still hadn't arrived! Eventually he made it just as check in closed, then it was a sprint for the gate ( it really felt like something off a film!) We made it on the plane and were particularly impressed with the stereotypical Air Pacific polynesian music and outfits the stewardessess were wearing! We were then definately in the holiday mood!
We had the heat hit us as we stepped out of the plane which put a smile on our faces and before we knew it we were at the hostel and booked our island hopping adventure for the next day!
We got on the boat at 8:30am and headed north for 5 hours to our first resort (if you could call it that!) We arrived to a Fijian welcome song + sat down to eat our first lunch which consisted of mushy rice! We then were showed to our dorm which had about 30 other people in it! And the outdoor shack which was the cold showers and toilets! We were however 5 hours from civilisation so I was impressed they had electricity!!
That afternoon Nic spotted some guys playing rugby so jumped at the chance to throw a ball around! He was even happier to find out later that day there was touch rugby against the Fijians! I even joined in the volleyball but soon stopeed when I felt my height restricted me + they were definately talking and laughing about me in Fijian about my volleyball skills!
The next couple of days consisted of the same get up eat, sunbathe, eat and sleep! One resort we were able to walk to the other side of the island through the bush! On the way were saw lizards, insects and even came across a pig penned up! We finally made it to the blue lagoon the set for the film "blue lagoon" which starred Brooke Shields! (We'd never seen the film but it was Fijians claim to fame!) But it was like paradise, white sandy beach and crystal clear waters and the best thing was we were the only ones on it!!
That night the resort only had 7 people on it which compared to the 60 in the one before it was very small. We did however take part in a Crab Race whereby they collected a number of hermit crabs and numbered the backs of them and set up a ring. There were 3 rounds + the top 3 in each round went through to the next. The aim was for the crab to get outside the sand ring. When it came down to the first round niether Nic's nor mine barely moved whilst everyone elses raced for the edge! So that was the end of that game for us!!
One day we had the opportunity to go swimming with Manta Rays ( a friendlier version of a stingray!) So we jumped at the chance!
We got our snorkling gear + got out on the boat! Within seconds of being in the area they were the guy spotted one and shouted to everyone "get in". So literally it was a case of jumping in and swimming after it! It was one of the biggest things I've ever seen + at one point we were following one and we were probably about one metre away from it! It was incredible! I did however always had the thought of Steve Irwin at the back of my mind but luckily they didn't have a long stinger and we were informed they were harmless! One of the guides even dived down and touched it on it's back!! It was however extremely difficult to keep up with the Manta Rays but there was 1000's of fish to look at too!!
That evening we were entertained by some Fiji dancing which included fire dancing! We were even made at one point to get up and dance too which meant Nic was able to show off his lack of rhythm!
After 6 different islands and resorts we headed to our last resort Beachcommber for Nic's birthday which is known as the party island. We had bought a bottle of gin before leaving the main island to save on the pennies! We met a lot of people and played lots of drinking games but sadly they found out it was Nic's birthday and it turned out he was drinking a lot more than the rest of us and sadly couldn't handle it so was in bed at 11pm passed out!! I however had a great night and even ended up in the sea at 1am!! But I soon got out when I found out that the reef sharks came really close to the shore as they were attracted to the light!
The next day, very hungover, we headed back to the mainland ready to catch our flight to Oz the next day! So after 14 days of sun, a lot of mosquito bites, we were sad to be leaving Fiji but are looking forward to our next adventure in Australia, where nic is hoping to watch a lot of the Ashes!!
Hope all is well at home!
Lots of love
Jen and Nic
xxxxxxx
Tuesday 30 June 2009
South Island
After a thankfully not so choppy crossing from the North to South Island we had our first night back in the campervan after having a week of luxury out of it!! We headed to Nelson ( What is said to be the sunniest part of New Zealand!) When we arrived it was raining! Typical! After being confined to the campervan all day we headed out into town to watch the All Blacks v France and hopefully enjoy the Kiwi rugby company!
We went to the sports bar in town which was packed and after standing at the bar and being asked by several people who do you think is going to win my quick response was the All Blacks! Watching the game was very different to the bars in Cardiff we're used to in that Kiwis actually watch the game and don't take part in any form of singing which was disappointing as we thought they might have they own Kiwi take on Bread of Heaven! When the All Blacks played rubbish + France won we made a swift exit!
The following day we headed west and having been over many mountain ranges in NZ we were used to them. However on this occasion we were coming down one hill for what seemed like a very long time and after a while we turned the down music down to realise the van was making a strange noise. We pulled over to find our tyres steaming! The van obviously couldn't take the amount of breaking we were doing so we sat and had a cup of tea for an hour waiting for the wheels to come back down to normal temperature! We did start to feel stupid when many kiwis took pity on us + asked us if we needed any help!!
The next day we embarked on a two day sea kayaking trip in the Abel Tasman National park! To begin with I thought it was a stupid idea in that we would be the only ones staying in little huts in the winter overnight ( as the park was only accessible by water or on foot) Luckily there were two other Americans ( you can decide for yourself if you think this is lucky!!) stupid enough as us hiring a kayak which put me a bit at ease! When asked which one of us was going to sit at the back of the kayak Nic jumped at the opportunity to steer!!( By lunchtime I was at the back of the kayak steering as we had had a couple of close encounters with some rocks).
The kayaking consisted of some hardcore paddling at times in some choppy waters! We stopped off at some of the most beautiful beaches + bays which in summer I could have imagined being packed, I suppose being in New Zealand in Winter has its plus points in that we had the beach to ourselves!! We got to the beach where we were staying for the night after getting wet we were thankful for a gas heater!( Obviously a hot shower would have been better but we didn't have such luxuries!!) As it was dark by 6pm and no electricity i.e no lights we were pleased to be accompanied by about 10 other people!! After our nutritious meal of noodles we exchanged travel stories with a couple of other people! Then a German guy came bursting through the door saying " You've got to come outside I've never seen the milky way so clear" At this point I felt a bit stupid in that I knew the milky way had something to do with stars but didn't actually know what it looked like until we went outside! I have never seen so many stars in the sky! We couldn't believe it! It was unbelievable! So there we were 10 complete strangers, stood on a beach in the middle of nowhere staring at stars! Quite surreal!
The next day we continued the kayaking and saw some seal colonies + at the end of the day got picked up by a water taxi! By the end of the trip you could say we definately feel at home with nature. To say I was sad to be leaving my kayak I would be lying because a hot shower appealed to me way too much!!
We had arranged to meet my friend, Laura, on the Tuesday to do a days wines tasting in Marlborough but once we were in the van we soon realised it was actually Tuesday night and therefore the fresh air had obviously had a big effect on us!! The following morning we went to sample some New Zealand wine and even splashed out on a bottle in my quest to make Nic like wine!
We then headed down the east coast to Kaikoura a place where there are lots of marine animals e.g seals, dolphins + whales! We did a coastal walk which we find ourselves doing more and more walks as due to the budget it is an activity to do which is FREE! I made the mistake by walking out the shore and whilst walking back I had my head down to see what I was stepping and I heard the loudest noise which could only be described as a bark and it turned out I had got too close to a seal and it wasn't very happy with me!!
The next day we booked onto a dolphin swimming trip and after waking up far too early with excitement we headed to the bay in our quest for the dolphins. However to our disappointment the sea was too choppy so our dreams of swimming with wild dolphins were slashed . Following the bad news we headed south.
We arrived at a sleepy town town called Hanmer Springs ( famous for its hot springs!) We quickly got changed in the freezing conditions and jumped into the 40 degree volcanic springs. It was surreal to be sitting in boiling natural springs in temperatures below zero with views of snowcapped mountains.
We woke up early next morning and I jumped in the car to get us on our way, however instead of listening to Nic I managed to reverse into a big pile of snow! So not for the first time the campervan was stuck! After lots of wheel spinning, arguing and mud flying at nic the van was eventually free and on his way to Christchurch!
After checking out what the very British city had to offer us ( not a lot) due to it only being about 150 years old! we headed to Methven, a small ski town at the base of Mount Hutt. We had high hopes for the ski resort as kiwis raved about their skiing unfortunately we were very disappointed when the piste map and mountain did not quite match up because there was really only one run with a few variations. However it did offer fantastic views and was really cool to be skiing above the clouds. I found myself on a number of occasions throughout the day half way down the mountain turning around to find out Nic wasn't there! 10 mins later he would appear covered in snow saying he'd fallen over. This was a reccurring event throughout the day and I'm still hearing about his painful hip!!
Our next stop took us to the glacier country on the West coast after a beautiful 6 hour drive we pulled up to 1 of only 3 forward moving glaciers in the world. However after seeing the glaciers in Argentina this one didn't quite compare!
Again heading south we headed for a small town called Wanaka which is home to the world famous Puzzling World, lots of rooms of optical illusions. After we spent the morning there we headed to the maze. After an hour of walking in circles and getting no further we decided to leave out of the emergency exit before we stopped talking!!
The following day we ended up in the touristy Queenstown. After a quick check of the bank balances we decided that we couldn't afford to ski and that it would have to be our favourite of walks for the next couple of days!! We did however go on a trip to Milford sound which is rated as one of the most beautiful places in the World. The trip involved a boat trip through the Milford Friords with snow topped mountains, 200 m waterfalls which made us feel very insignificant in the unbelievable landscape. While stopping to look at the waterfalls we heard the captain shout dolphins (finally) so as everyone rushed to the front of the boat, however due to their speed and my photography unfortunately they weren't captured on film!
One day we headed up to a mountain to a deer park with again fantastic views over Queenstown. After plucking up courage we bought some feed and started feeding the various animals, this was hard for Nic as him and animals are not the best of friends!! Therefore he retreated to the car most of the way round!! While in Queenstown a big winter festival started, the opening cermony was cool and there was lots of fireworks!! Even the New Zealand prime minister opened the event!!
Our final day in queenstown consisted of a two hour walk to another view point. ( There was a gondala up the viewpoint, however due to the tight pursestrings we decided to walk!) This was a bad idea as I was very tired and grumpy about the walk in that it was only saving us 8 pounds!! then again when your a traveller every penny counts!! At the top we luged down the mountain which consists of little karts on a race track which was fun!! In the evening Nic had bumped into an old school friend (Chris Lewis) who invited us round for dinner which was really nice and we had our first sunday roast of the trip!
On our way back to Christchurch we stopped at Lake Tekapo. Takepo is famous for is turquoise colour and awesome views over Mount Cook the tallest mountain in New Zealand!
Therefore the second legg of our trip has come to an end! We've travelled 5,283km in the cosy campervan and enjoyed every minute but we are definately looking forward to finally getting a tan in fiji!!
Hope everyone is well at home!!
Lots of Love Nic and Jen xxxxxxxxx
After a thankfully not so choppy crossing from the North to South Island we had our first night back in the campervan after having a week of luxury out of it!! We headed to Nelson ( What is said to be the sunniest part of New Zealand!) When we arrived it was raining! Typical! After being confined to the campervan all day we headed out into town to watch the All Blacks v France and hopefully enjoy the Kiwi rugby company!
We went to the sports bar in town which was packed and after standing at the bar and being asked by several people who do you think is going to win my quick response was the All Blacks! Watching the game was very different to the bars in Cardiff we're used to in that Kiwis actually watch the game and don't take part in any form of singing which was disappointing as we thought they might have they own Kiwi take on Bread of Heaven! When the All Blacks played rubbish + France won we made a swift exit!
The following day we headed west and having been over many mountain ranges in NZ we were used to them. However on this occasion we were coming down one hill for what seemed like a very long time and after a while we turned the down music down to realise the van was making a strange noise. We pulled over to find our tyres steaming! The van obviously couldn't take the amount of breaking we were doing so we sat and had a cup of tea for an hour waiting for the wheels to come back down to normal temperature! We did start to feel stupid when many kiwis took pity on us + asked us if we needed any help!!
The next day we embarked on a two day sea kayaking trip in the Abel Tasman National park! To begin with I thought it was a stupid idea in that we would be the only ones staying in little huts in the winter overnight ( as the park was only accessible by water or on foot) Luckily there were two other Americans ( you can decide for yourself if you think this is lucky!!) stupid enough as us hiring a kayak which put me a bit at ease! When asked which one of us was going to sit at the back of the kayak Nic jumped at the opportunity to steer!!( By lunchtime I was at the back of the kayak steering as we had had a couple of close encounters with some rocks).
The kayaking consisted of some hardcore paddling at times in some choppy waters! We stopped off at some of the most beautiful beaches + bays which in summer I could have imagined being packed, I suppose being in New Zealand in Winter has its plus points in that we had the beach to ourselves!! We got to the beach where we were staying for the night after getting wet we were thankful for a gas heater!( Obviously a hot shower would have been better but we didn't have such luxuries!!) As it was dark by 6pm and no electricity i.e no lights we were pleased to be accompanied by about 10 other people!! After our nutritious meal of noodles we exchanged travel stories with a couple of other people! Then a German guy came bursting through the door saying " You've got to come outside I've never seen the milky way so clear" At this point I felt a bit stupid in that I knew the milky way had something to do with stars but didn't actually know what it looked like until we went outside! I have never seen so many stars in the sky! We couldn't believe it! It was unbelievable! So there we were 10 complete strangers, stood on a beach in the middle of nowhere staring at stars! Quite surreal!
The next day we continued the kayaking and saw some seal colonies + at the end of the day got picked up by a water taxi! By the end of the trip you could say we definately feel at home with nature. To say I was sad to be leaving my kayak I would be lying because a hot shower appealed to me way too much!!
We had arranged to meet my friend, Laura, on the Tuesday to do a days wines tasting in Marlborough but once we were in the van we soon realised it was actually Tuesday night and therefore the fresh air had obviously had a big effect on us!! The following morning we went to sample some New Zealand wine and even splashed out on a bottle in my quest to make Nic like wine!
We then headed down the east coast to Kaikoura a place where there are lots of marine animals e.g seals, dolphins + whales! We did a coastal walk which we find ourselves doing more and more walks as due to the budget it is an activity to do which is FREE! I made the mistake by walking out the shore and whilst walking back I had my head down to see what I was stepping and I heard the loudest noise which could only be described as a bark and it turned out I had got too close to a seal and it wasn't very happy with me!!
The next day we booked onto a dolphin swimming trip and after waking up far too early with excitement we headed to the bay in our quest for the dolphins. However to our disappointment the sea was too choppy so our dreams of swimming with wild dolphins were slashed . Following the bad news we headed south.
We arrived at a sleepy town town called Hanmer Springs ( famous for its hot springs!) We quickly got changed in the freezing conditions and jumped into the 40 degree volcanic springs. It was surreal to be sitting in boiling natural springs in temperatures below zero with views of snowcapped mountains.
We woke up early next morning and I jumped in the car to get us on our way, however instead of listening to Nic I managed to reverse into a big pile of snow! So not for the first time the campervan was stuck! After lots of wheel spinning, arguing and mud flying at nic the van was eventually free and on his way to Christchurch!
After checking out what the very British city had to offer us ( not a lot) due to it only being about 150 years old! we headed to Methven, a small ski town at the base of Mount Hutt. We had high hopes for the ski resort as kiwis raved about their skiing unfortunately we were very disappointed when the piste map and mountain did not quite match up because there was really only one run with a few variations. However it did offer fantastic views and was really cool to be skiing above the clouds. I found myself on a number of occasions throughout the day half way down the mountain turning around to find out Nic wasn't there! 10 mins later he would appear covered in snow saying he'd fallen over. This was a reccurring event throughout the day and I'm still hearing about his painful hip!!
Our next stop took us to the glacier country on the West coast after a beautiful 6 hour drive we pulled up to 1 of only 3 forward moving glaciers in the world. However after seeing the glaciers in Argentina this one didn't quite compare!
Again heading south we headed for a small town called Wanaka which is home to the world famous Puzzling World, lots of rooms of optical illusions. After we spent the morning there we headed to the maze. After an hour of walking in circles and getting no further we decided to leave out of the emergency exit before we stopped talking!!
The following day we ended up in the touristy Queenstown. After a quick check of the bank balances we decided that we couldn't afford to ski and that it would have to be our favourite of walks for the next couple of days!! We did however go on a trip to Milford sound which is rated as one of the most beautiful places in the World. The trip involved a boat trip through the Milford Friords with snow topped mountains, 200 m waterfalls which made us feel very insignificant in the unbelievable landscape. While stopping to look at the waterfalls we heard the captain shout dolphins (finally) so as everyone rushed to the front of the boat, however due to their speed and my photography unfortunately they weren't captured on film!
One day we headed up to a mountain to a deer park with again fantastic views over Queenstown. After plucking up courage we bought some feed and started feeding the various animals, this was hard for Nic as him and animals are not the best of friends!! Therefore he retreated to the car most of the way round!! While in Queenstown a big winter festival started, the opening cermony was cool and there was lots of fireworks!! Even the New Zealand prime minister opened the event!!
Our final day in queenstown consisted of a two hour walk to another view point. ( There was a gondala up the viewpoint, however due to the tight pursestrings we decided to walk!) This was a bad idea as I was very tired and grumpy about the walk in that it was only saving us 8 pounds!! then again when your a traveller every penny counts!! At the top we luged down the mountain which consists of little karts on a race track which was fun!! In the evening Nic had bumped into an old school friend (Chris Lewis) who invited us round for dinner which was really nice and we had our first sunday roast of the trip!
On our way back to Christchurch we stopped at Lake Tekapo. Takepo is famous for is turquoise colour and awesome views over Mount Cook the tallest mountain in New Zealand!
Therefore the second legg of our trip has come to an end! We've travelled 5,283km in the cosy campervan and enjoyed every minute but we are definately looking forward to finally getting a tan in fiji!!
Hope everyone is well at home!!
Lots of Love Nic and Jen xxxxxxxxx
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