Halong Bay

 "25/05/2013-27/05/2013"

I was up early this morning for my really amazingly exciting trip to Halong Bay.
This was going to be the highlight of my trip and it was not going to rain.

The tour guides in our minibus had exceptionally good English, and were incredibly friendly, joking all the way to Halong Bay.

I'd checked out the weather forecast and it seemed to be okay...fingers crossed.

When we arrived in the Bay it was crazy, so many buses, so many boats, so many tourguides.
I did think that it would spoil the pictouresque nature of the bay, but very quickly we found our boat, and were pulling away from the harbour to much quieter surroundings with hardly a boat on the horizon.

First stop was to some caves, which provided some welcome respite after our enormous lunch.
Later in the afternoon we stopped off for some kayaking.  Having kayaked in crocodile infested waters in the Northern territory, Australia I was sensing this might be slightly less nervewracking.
It was still pretty tough-going, kayaking isn't that idealistic thing you might picture on a Sunday afternoon, it's really hard work, and the girl I was paired up with struggled with the concept of which way to paddle (and the language barrier) so I had to work twice as hard.

After a good amount of exercise we made our way back to the boat for sunset.
It was now that I had a chance to get my perfect sunset picture, and oh yes! It was a beautiful beautiful one.  I probably had enough, with the different island formations to fill a whole new album.

I love sunsets on water, there's something about it that is just so magical and mystical.

I'm glad I got all my pictures in today, because the next day was a lot more overcast.

I had to change boats and guides for a visit to Catba island, the only inhabited island, and also a trip to monkey island.  I wasn't expecting this, but the "hike" was worth it for the views and was a nice break in the scenery.  I wasn't a fan of the monkey part, monkeys are rather devious, vicious creatures and I kept my camera very close to my person.

The evening was filled with karaoke, and was a lot of fun, before we enjoyed further rock formations en route back to Hanoi and then the long flight back via Bangkok to home.

Halong Bay was such a perfect end to my South East adventures, and although I'm sad to be going home no doubt I'll be hitting the road soon.

Hanoi

 "23/05/2013 - 25/05/2013"

Urgh that bus journey was horrible, although I had a much nicer seat.

I opted for a seat at the back of the bus and that meant I actually had a double seat, which also had substantially more leg room.
I would have had plenty of sleep if it wasn't for the fact that we stopped a couple of times early into the journey for a puncture.
Generally speaking you are meant to disembark if you are fixing a puncture.  Not here, no, they proceeded to "fix" the puncture, twice with everyone still on board.  Hmmmm.

I'm not entirely sure what they did either, because for a long duration of the journey I swear I could hear the sound of air coming out.  I'm sure I wasn't imagining it either.
I must have nodded off, because we did all make it in one piece to Hanoi.

I was slightly scared of Hanoi, because Ho Chi Minh freaked me out with the traffic and I'd heard that Hanoi was crazier.

When I arrived at the bus station I tried to consult a map for my hostel, but in the end caved and went for the motorbike option deciding that a) it was the end of my trip and b) I was so tired and couldn't be bothered to deal with the traffic and getting lost.
It was about 15mins walk about so I probably made the right decision given my history of getting lost and I didn't get ripped off either. (Mostly because I went with...well I could just walk there...)

The hostel was again really friendly, told me to help myself to breakfast before worrying myself with my details etc.
Having been nice and relaxed they showed me to my room, so I could get some sleep.

I love how everywhere I've been (or nearly everywhere) the rooms have been ready for early morning buses, this should be standard everywhere as a lot of buses to get in early.
It was so refreshing to have a nice sleep.
I was planning on heading out for some exploration, however when I woke up the sound of thunder and heavy rain greeted me....nooo the cyclone that had been making it's way around Thailand/Myanmar better not be coming this way, at least not for Halong Bay!!

I man-ed up, and decided to do some site seeing as I only had two days in Hanoi and half the stuff wasn't open tomorrow.
The main area where the museums and sites were concentrated around did require a taxi to get to (or it would take me about 40mins to get there...or actually an hour given how long it would take me to cross each road...eeeek)
So I hunted for a taxi.  So the thing is when I want a taxi there isn't one???

Eventually I found someone willing to take me, and actually for a decent price.
WOW

It took me a while to find Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum (I got the museum and Mausoleum confused).  The Mausoleum is like only open at certain times, you have to pay and then can't take any pics, so I couldn't be bothered with all that.  I took photos from the outside.
The history museum was actually very interesting and a lot more rounded than the Saigon ones.
I also visited the Palace, and Ho Chi Minh's houses, as well as the temple of literature en route back.

It took me a long time to get back, because I walked.  At one particularly crossing I required a 5 yr old child to cross with me.  How do they do it?  It's so scary :( !!
I survived.

The evening was nice and chilled out in the hostel.  (so many English speaking travellers and all very friendly)

24/05/2013

Today I went on an exploration of Hanoi with Lana, an American I'd met yesterday.
I wanted to see the Lake, and also see a water puppet show.
I also wanted to do a bit of souvenir shopping.  Somehow the afternoon went really quickly and we hit the Lake perfectly timed as the thunderstorm started...so headed into the theatre for the water puppet show.
There is definitely a lot of similarities between the Gamelan shadow puppet plays here, but what was remarkable is that the puppeteers are under water and unseen throughout.
The puppets were really quite remarkable as were some of the movements, such as ploughing of the fields.

Incredible.

It was such a lovely day and guess what...I'm off to Halong Bay tomorrow - really really hope it doesn't rain!!!

Hue - Pagodas and Temples and Rose Petals

 "20/05/2013-22/05/2013"

Hoi An - Hue was a very scenic and nice short bus journey, which I took nice and early in the morning to maximise my travel time in Hue.
I arrived around midday and was immediately confronted by the many motorbikes wanting to offer me transport to my hotel, whilst I stood dressed in my jeans with my backpack, not entirely knowing where I was going (Jade Hotel was about 10mins away).

As ever, I didn't see the point in getting a lift with it being so close, so I kept asking for directions, (my sense of direction is getting marginally better)...eventually I got onto the right road.

The contrast between Jade Hotel and An Hoi couldn't be more different.  The doors were flung open, my rucksack taken from me to ease the weight and "I was asked how I was, had I had a good journey, where had I travelled from"...etc.
I was offered a cold towel and the most delicious fruit juice once I'd arrived.  Then a platter of fruit as well, before being asked if they could get me anything else.
The staff were so friendly wanting to get to know me.  It was such a lovely welcome.

I was shown my room, and although it was slightly dark, and narrow for $20 per night it was amazing.  Double bed with rose petals over it.  I felt like royalty.

I consulted with the staff how to get to Hue Help, which was a charity Manchester Rag helped whilst I was at university.  My role was to set up the volunteer project from Manchester, working with the volunteers who would be heading out to Vietnam.  This was a pilot year so I was very much building relationships with the Vietnam team from scratch.
I never went to Vietnam as when I started working on the project I already had a holiday booked (to Central America), but I thought while I was in Hue it would be amazing to see the work the volunteers had been doing.
The Hue staff were really friendly and delighted to finally meet me.

The Jade Hotel staff recommended getting a taxi, but from the map it didn't look too far away so I walked.  Factoring in getting lost it took me at least an hour, but I got to discover a large amount of the city.
One of the Hue staff then took me on her motorbike to visit the centre, and it was in such a great condition.
The children have their own bed, and get 3 meals a day.  They have toys, clean clothes...it's such a contrast to the orphanages I've visited in Africa.
It was a positive experience to see that development work really can make a difference to people's lives.

On my walk back I watched the sunset over the river...absolutely stunning.

21/05/2013

Today I had a tour of the temples and pagodas in Hue, organised through my Bamba Experience pass.
My pick up was ....late....because they forgot about me...ooops!!!
The temples were very different to some of those which I'd seen earlier in my journey, and particularly the different gardens and outbuildings.
I love the way that they incorporate nature with their architecture.

In the afternoon we visited the citadel which was really interesting to see.
There was still time to stop off at a pagoda before catching the boat back to the centre.

A very exhausting day!!

22/05/2013

I spent most of today not really doing much as I had a mid afternoon bus.
I meandered around town and chilled out with the staff at Jade.

I'll be really sad to leave Jade Hotel as they were so unbelievably friendly.
Definitely recommend this place!

I have a very very very long bus journey to Hanoi as I embark upon the final leg of my journey.

Hoi An

"19/05/2013"

I had a bit of a panic attack when I saw my bus ticket.  Because my seat had been booked so far in advance, my seat was right at the very front.
The idea of having a seat in full view of the road scared the life out of me.

Fortunately another English girl was happy to swap with me, so I got a different bunk for the journey.

The night buses have reclined chairs.  The space on the inside differs, including leg space.  Mine was an example of nowhere for my feet, and the design was rather floored as it left no room to put your hand luggage either.
I knew this would be an uncomfortable ride.

I should add that it didn't have a seat belt either (totally expected in SE Asia) but given the pace the bus was travelling at, the bends and the fact you were on a bunk bed, seemed slightly absurd.

It took me a long time to get any sort of comfort and I did regularly wake up along the road. (Mostly because of the frequent beeping of the horn), still I'd rather the driver used the horn than had a collision.  I'd prefer to stay alive than suffer with sleep deprivation.

It gradually got lighter and lighter, and then we rocked up in the middle of no-where, to be told we had reacher our destination.  I know my ticket said we were going all the way to Hoi An, but when I'd seen pictures of Hoi An, it looked pretty touristy and with plenty of amenities around.  This was the middle of nowhere.

We all disembarked and a couple of taxis pulled up.  No-one really knew what was going on, as everyone was half asleep.  The taxis quickly filled up, and I caught on, so decided to go for one of the motorbike taxis as I was desperate for the bathroom and was really tired.
All the drivers were dressed in a uniform so looked like they worked for the same company as the coach which had dropped as off.  I didn't even think to arrange a price before getting on the motorbike (stupid in hindsight).

Nevertheless, we reacher my destination very promptly and the nice guy the driver was wanted a very large sum of money.
My assertiveness (and tiredness) was not in anyway shape or form going to allow this.  I went on the prices I knew, and knowing I wasn't going to win at 10000, ended up paying nearer 30000 (still a rip off :()
I wasn't impressed.

Nor was I impressed by the lack of welcome I got at An Hoi hotel.  They seemed grumpy to have guests at 7.30am, but my room was ready, and I was also informed that I could have breakfast which was great news.

I slept for a couple of hours and felt tons better.

Hoi An is a historic town, with lots and lots of pagodas, traditional houses and museums.  All of the old town is in walking distance and so I was able to take my time visiting everything, stopping for a breather every so often (and returning to my hotel room which was 5mins away) if I needed to for a water refill.

For some strange reason despite having moved up North, the temperature seemed to have increased aswell, and I found it pretty unbearable (rather static and airless).
Fortunately there was a nice pool at An Hoi to cool down in in the afternoon, so I indulged in that before heading out to a nice Thai restaurant that evening.

Hoi An was pretty, but I just didn't warm to it quite as much as I thought I would, perhaps it had something to do with the arrival.

Nha Trang - Tropical Paradise

"16/05/2013-18/05/2013"

So I'm on my way to Nha Trang at last.

I cannot wait to get to the beach for some full on sun, relaxaxtion and cocktails.

Nha Trang is pretty small, but the hostel I was staying at still was an adventure to find.  Mojzo Inn.
I was with a British couple, and the bloke was convinced he knew where the place was.  It amused me slightly as it reminded me of someone I knew; not willing to cave in and admit they didn't know where it was and ask for help.  We continued like this walking round in the midday sun (which was getting rather unbearable by this point) with our backpacks.

Nha Trang is very touristy and as such you get hassled a lot.  It didn't seem too bad, I've experienced a lot worse in Africa, but it clearly was intimidating for the other Brits who snapped at the locals.
(Amateurs).

Eventually we found Mojzo Inn, and were greeted by a lovely welcome, offered cool towels and ice water.
Mojzo Inn had refillable water...very sensible, I thought given the heat and the amount of time we'd be spending out in the sun.  It's also much greener than to keep buying new plastic bottles.

They had storage facilities and even a downstairs area where you could get changed (as it being morning, the rooms weren't ready yet.)
I was ready to hit the beach.

I spent all afternoon on the beach, soaking in the sun.  It was unbelievably relaxing.

I meandered over to the nearby restaurant (maybe not the cheapest) and bought myself a cocktail...delicious!

What a lovely way to spend an afternoon while everyone else was spending the day in the office in England in the cold, rain.

I did however catch the sun...despite putting suncream on.  I have no idea how that happened, because normally I don't burn ESPECIALLY not if I've plastered myself in factor 50.  It clearly had evaporated off me or something.  Needless to say I felt the effects much later on, and didn't feel well at all.
The dorm room I had was very airless, and I needed ice cold ness.  I felt in agony.
Even taking a cold shower and putting aftersun on didn't seem to work.

The lovely people I met in Dalat were in my dorm, so we decided to go for dinner together.
Whilst the Thai restaurant was really delicious, I felt ill all evening, and not hungry at all and really lacking conversation.  Stupid sunburn.  I felt like my whole body was blowing up, like Aunt Marge in Harry Potter.

The night was an interesting affair as I could hardly sleep with the heat in the room, and me feeling unwell.  I must have gotten some sleep though.

Next day I was off on my snorkelling trip.  At least the water would mean I could cool myself down thank goodness.
In the nature of a number things with the bamba pass, the company did expect me to pay for my trip...so there was that wonderful chaos of them asking for my reference number, then ID, then "we need to make some phone calls".  Eventually all was resolved.

The snorkelling trip was good, however there were, as with a lot of the trip so far, plenty of added extras that needed paying for on top of everything else, which I wasn't too fussed about.

I would definitely have liked the boats to have gone a little further out for the snorkelling, but I guess that's what you pay for on budget, whereas the catamaran in Australia was some serious stuff.
It was good fun, and I did see some lovely fish.
The buffet lunch was delicious and as I've been starting to find, when they do remember to cater for vegetarians then they cater magnificantly well.  Amazing food.

The floating bar was good fun too.

The next day I had another relaxing day on the beach, indulging myself in more cocktails and sun, before what was to be a very long overnight bus journey to Hoi An.

I will miss Nha Trang, but the north awaits.

Tour de Dalat

"15/05/2013"

Bonjour et bienvenue à Dalat.

Could this place get anymore French...it even has an Eiffle tower.  haha
Well the power stations look like mini Eiffle towers.
The quaint streets, with little painted houses overlooking the lake certainly give off an alpine flavour.  Even the weather is a little more European, with rain more of a regular occurrance.

I went on an interesting little tour today, encompassing the countryside and the main sites in Dalat.

Our first stop visited a flower farm.  We then went to a little village, and on to a cricket farm (yes some of the others tasted cricket...apparently it is a local delicacy...best served barbequed with chili sauce.)
Then it was on to a silk farm.  Incredible to see the intricate work and each silk worm could produce 1km of thread.  Amazing!
Placing the thread into the machines looked a very tricky job, so I have no idea how they managed to find the end each time.
The end products were beautiful too.

We then left to stop off at a Pagoda with a Happy Buddha statue, before clambering to a waterfall.
The elephant waterfall was very pretty, but nothing quite compares to Iguazzu.

It was then time for a visit to a coffee plantation, which had views to die for (more opportunity to shop), before heading back to Dalat for a spot of lunch...yes they actually managed to find something vegetarian for a change!)
We witnessed an incredible downpour on the way to the restaurant, including a very strong thunderstorm, although it didn't last long.  It soon cleared the air, and we were able to continue with our tour, visiting an older railway station and finishing off at the beautiful lake.

I'm off to Nha Trang tomorrow, I really hope the weather is sunny!

Saigon - Dalat

"14/05/2013"

I was very sad to leave Long Hostel, it was a lovely place to stay.

This next bus journey was a long one, but very comfortable as there were only 9 passengers on the bus.

It did take around 9 hours, but the last 3 hours were worth it, with breath taking scenary over the hills coming into Dalat.

It was definitely my little flavour of Europe.

Chu Chi Tunnels - a Vietnam War Lesson

"13/05/2013"

Today was my Ho Chi Minh day - learn about the Vietnam War / add to my prexisting knowledge.

The tour involved a trip to the famous tunnels used by the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War, a visit to the War Museum, and some sites of Ho Chi Minh City.

During the visit to the Chu Chi Tunnels, we were given a very interesting video perspective on the war...portraying the Americans as evil.
However, evidence would show us that the Viet Cong were incredibly intelligent, with their survival tactics, using things such as termite mounds to cover the tunnel network, which allowed air into the tunnels.

We had the opportunity to experience a tunnel, which was not for the larger sized tourists.  (Perhaps that's why the Americans didn't guess so quickly, because they couldn't fit down the rabbit warren holes anyway...lols).

The war museum was another depiction of what was a very one sided argument.  However, my own historical understanding would side with the accusation that the Americans hold some serious blame, going to war to prevent the spread of communism.  Their use of chemical weapons is a case of pot kettle black if we now look at some of the current affairs, and the destruction left from them is appalling.
However, we only have one side of the argument.

I walked back from the war museum with a German tourist from my tour, and visited the Notre Dam cathedral, and the opera house, walking through the upper class district of Ho Chi Minh.  You can really see the French influence in this area, and I felt (baring the motorbikes) that I was walking through Paris.

In the evening, myself and another Canadian (there seem to be a lot of these on this trip) sampled some Vietnamese street food.
This was an interesting experience, with my meal arriving only after he'd finished his.
The waitress understood the concept no animals, and in the end I received a plate of one type of vegetable...I have no idea what though.  The spicy sauce it had been fried in was delicious.

Mekong Delta

"11/05/2013 - 12/05/2013"

Another early start as I needed to be at the Sinh Cafe for my bus.
I left with another tourist who was heading that way so no problems finding the bus station this time. ;)

When I collected my tickets, I noticed that we would be staying at a 4* hotel so thought I ought to have packed my bikini, so pegged it back to the hostel.

Still had plenty of time so I stopped for a spot of breakfast (a nice mixed fruit smoothie sounded a great idea).
Having ordered, the waiter clearly had no idea..I was given a portion of chopped fruit to take away with me...despite "mixed fruit smoothie" and picture appearing on the menu.  Grrrh.
I had to leave as the bus was ready by this stage.

The bus was pretty full and included quite a few varieties of naitonalities.  I was the only Brit.  Glad to be flying the flag for the country.

The tour guide was very enthusiastic...(as are all of them)...and very repetitive.
I was VERY aware that our first visit on the Mekong Delta involved a visit to a Honey bee farm, and I was NOT impressed.  Panic panic...(!!)
I avoided the bees, infact I didn't even see one bee, however we were served a very nice honey flavoured tea and a lovely platter of fresh fruit.  YUM!
We were then entertained by some local mekong delta folk music.  (which went on far too long).  The music would have been a lot better had it not included the singers.  Enough to lull you into a sleep, especially with the heat increasing every second.
I wish the singers used their diaphram to sing and not their throat...arrrgh, so much vocal coaching I wanted to offer.  And every time we thought it would stop another singer would take over.
I guess they were only doing what they've been taught.

It was good to get back on the river, with a cool breeze as the boat moved along.

Next stop was a coconut "factory", where we learned how the coconut candy was made, starting with opening up of a coconut.  Easier said than done.
I'm not a fan of coconut itself so the coconut candy was a bit of an acquired taste...I didn't opt to try the coconut wine either, fearing it to be a bit like Malibu...and we all know what my reactions to Malibu are like.

After the coconut tasting spree, it was time to hop on a Vietnamese style tuk-tuk.  Basically a back of a truck, before another boat ride.
I sat in a truck with some Malaysian girls who were very friendly, but slightly scared of the tuk-tuk.
However, when we reached the river, it was time to experience a Vietnamese style rowing boat, which was a lot more daunting.

The weight of four people in the boat I'm sure would be enough to tip the boat, but we stayed afloat!

The boat took us to where lunch would be served...a welcome sit-down after the busy morning.

We then departed for the hotel, a good few hours away.

The hotel was a 4* hotel...did I mention that?  Although I would still rate it as maybe 3*...I'm not sure, I am not accustomed to staying in hotels.
It was good, but not excellent.

But nice to have my own room, with TV, and ensuite.

Next day (after a very westernised breakfast) we left early for the floating markets.  Very different to those in Thailand, as these were commercial and existed with or without the tourists.
We stopped off at a plantation where there were some beautiful flowers, and a bridge, very reminiscent of the Monet garden in France, before devouring a massive platter of fruit.  The mango was the best I've tasted so far, so delicious.

Then it was a quick trip back to the hotel, before leaving for Ho Chi Minh.

Quad Biking, the Killing Fields and a tuk-tuk race

"10/05/2013"

Today was a crazy crazy day.

Having checked out of my room, and feeling a little hungover, I decided a spot of breakfast would be a good idea.

I had left plenty of time in wait for the quad bike trip...all should be fine.
Except that breakfast took 30 minutes to come...and when it did come, my lift to the quad bikes arrived.

I scoffed breakfast down - not ideal, but felt very guilty for keeping the others waiting...then after the staff took an age to let me PAY? I could have walked off, right?  I finally made it to the trip.
Transport was yet another tuk-tuk...I am getting quite familiar with this mode.

It is probably better than a taxi as the traffic was pretty crazy.

Tuk-tuk was able to cut down some back roads when there was a stand still traffic jam.
I had no idea how far the quad bikes were, and was getting slightly anxious with my bus leaving at 1pm.

Eventually we arrived at the quad bikes, which involved a village tour on quad bikes.
Lots of fun, but the seat kept burning me, and I'm glad I had someone with me to take over every so often as the control was tiring on the hand.

There were some very cute village kids who ran out to greet us...again so similar to Africa!

I miss Africa.

When the tour ended we went to the genocide museum.  The killing fields are where millions were executed during the war.  When there were too many to dying, prisoners were kept, held and then killed later on, including children.  It is horrifying.

After a sombre experience the tour guide gave me a lift back to the hostel by motor bike...as time was ticking by.  This was rather scary, and I did hold on for dear life, but I do think he went slower than usual...though I do think they go slower on the motor bikes than in the UK.

Having arrived back at the hostel, and changed, I was ready to leave for the bus station.
Except no-one knew where it was.

It would have been really helpful if Bamba experience had sent the details of which bus company I would be travelling with...
Instead I had to guess, and go with the place I was dropped off at.

Turned out that this was incorrect.  Panicking, we managed to get through to the emergency contact.  I was still getting concerned that 1pm was getting ever closer.
Eventually we got hold of Armin and the details "The Sinh Tourist Cafe"....but it was now gone 1pm...too late.
"No" said Armin "the bus leaves at 1.30pm".

I grabbed another tuk-tuk, who knew where this place was...problem was it was 20 minutes to get there...
Please no trafific!!








I made it with 5 minutes to spare...what a relief!!!


I needn't detail the journey...pretty uneventful and standard border control.
When I arrived in Ho Chi Minh, despite being ripped off by a taxi driver...grrrrrrrh....I received the loveliest welcome from the Long Family, who run Long Hostel.  A lovely lovely place.

After a crazy day...settled down for a restful night's sleep before the Mekong Delta.

Monkey Madness - Phnom Penh

"09/05/2013"

Speaking of bombshells...today I left the absolutely lovely Siem Reap Rooms / Siem Reap for Phnom Penh.
A long and nervy bus journey ...to a city, basically en route to Vietnam.
I was stopping there to visit the Killing Fields and pay my respect to all the lives lost in the Genocide.
That was to come the next day.

Mad Monkey was not of the hostel standards of Lub D and SRR.
Very smelly and loud...and didn't feel secure or organised, although previous ratings would suggest the opposite.

Although I wanted an early night I could tell I was not going to get one with the bar being directly upstairs, so thought it best to have a drink and chill out before going to sleep.

I met some safe USA girls as well as a few long term volunteers helping in Cambodia, from the UK.

Temple Run

"08/05/2013"

Early start today...How often am I going to be saying this.

I was wondering if the bus would pick me up at all...but they turned up promptly in a lovely airconed mini van.

The tour guide was very talkative and friendly...and I could tell it would be a lively day.

The group was a nice mix, but mostly young travellers - couples.  One rather annoying Argentinian couple who insisted on taking about 100 photos at every posing opportunity.  Young love eh?

It was very very very hot.  By 10am I had definitely drank most of my first water bottle and I am sure that I'd burnt in some places.

The early part of the day really started to drag on...the guide was incredibly knowledgable, but didn't know when to stop talking.  Too detailed.  I was also getting slightly concerned that we wouldn't get round all the temples.

I'm not going to try and pronounce all the temples on all this broken keyboard...I may insert at a later date.
However Ankor wat was pretty incredible...as was the tomb raider temple.
My only disappointment was not getting Ankor wat at sunrise/sunset.  Our tours were timed later in the day.

Still a good day.

I wandered round the markets in the evening and bought a bag - bound to come in handy at some point, as I'd stupidly bought my handbag rather than a small rucksack.  Note to self for next time.

I then checked the sports news.

Sir Alex Ferguson to retire as Manchester United manager

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22447018

I will leave this post on that bombshell.
I AM SHOCKED.

In transit - Bangkok - Siem Reap

"07/05/2013"

This promises to be a short and sweet entry as I left the city of Bangkok ready for Cambodia.

After much deliberation, with many people advising me to take a different route other than the bus, I decided late yesterday to book a flight, fairly cheaply, and avoid the tourist bus/taxi attack at the border.
This also meant I got a lie-in, easy route to the airport and a nice chilled out day heading over to Siem Reap.

I discovered Bangkok airport is amazing...so if I have time to spare on route to my flight home, then I definitely will not be bored.

I got talking to a fascinating Australian who regularly volunteers out in a Cambodian orphanage ...very interesting guy who helped pass the flight time.

Siem Reap airport was definitely built for the tourists.  It was clean accessible and efficient.  My e-visa went through no problem at all, and my time of 4pm was a little ambitious.
However, Siem Reap Room's pick-up arrived early...and so I was not even kept waiting.
I was however expecting a taxi...not a tuk-tuk.  Slightly scary!!!!

Actually the tuk-tuk turned out to be a relief in the Cambodian mid-afternoon sauna.

My first impressions of Cambodia were that it was very similar to some of the African countries I've been to.  The red dust...billboards everywhere, and a lot of urban poverty.
It felt warm and friendly. I instantly liked it.

And sticking with the African theme...the tuk-tuk picked up a puncture...TIA?

It didn't take long to fix, so soon we were en route to the hostel again.

Siem Reap Rooms provided the friendliest welcome.  A refreshing drink, and a warm welcome explaining everything to me.
They couldn't be clearer about what to do and where everything  was.  Amazing :)
The hostel was incredible too.

I spent the evening relaxing, as I had a busy day ahead of me visiting Ankor wat and a number of temples.

Floating Markets, elephants and tigers

"06/05/2013"

I decided late last night that I wanted to see the floating markets.
When I realised that I could do the tour, and go and see tigers and elephants it was a no brainer.

Right on queue the tour guide showed up at 7am, when I was trying to decide whether or not to take the tourist bus to Siem Reap...more about that another time.

The tour guide had rather a habbit of repeating himself.  But was a sweetie.
Clearly everything was not included in the price, so at every stop we had to pay more on top of the price we'd already paid.  A tad frustrating.

Needless to say the tour was well worth it.
A morning at the floating markets, with some amazing spring rolls and a trip down the canals.

We then left for the elephant home, where there was an opportunity to ride elephants.  The elephant I rode took a little detour into the river...sensible plan as it was getting really hot.
The elephants are working elephants and this was a further way to keep them in a healthy way.

We then swapped vehicles (some people were heading back to Bangkok)...following a brief stop at a snake show, which no-one wanted to pay extra to see, before a long journey to the River Kwai for a buffet lunch...which was included, and well worth it.  (DECENT VEGGIE OPTIONS FOR A CHANGE!)
It was a lovely river view, and as I mentioned to someone else on the bus, this would be worth gold in the med...

We had a brief stop at "death bridge", which was supposedly a bridge bombed during the second world war by the US....and something to do with Burma.  However we weren't quite sure what Burma had to do with anything, especially as Burma was not on the other side of the bridge...hmmm.

We then had another long journey to "tiger temple".  Yes tigers.
There was an opportunity to go in for free and stroke the tigers, plus have your photo taken.  The guide I was with took several...compared to the "special photo with the tiger on your lap" for 1000baht.
Personally I preferred what I did and my pics are great.  The tigers were incredible...though I'm still convinced they were drugged.

Then for the long journey back to Bangkok.

It was an incredible day, and there is so much more to come.  I can't wait.

Grand Palace and lots of temples

"05/05/2013"

It was an early start today.  Something which is something that is going to be a bit of a trend this holiday.
We had been advised to get up early to see the temples, as it tended to get very busy in the afternoon + the heat of the day would make things a lot less pleasant.

Negotiating the skytrain proved to be no problem at all, and myself an Alex (another fellow traveller from my hostel) arrived at the river in no time for the boat service.

We thought are plans would be scuppered slightly when a friendly tour guide mentioned that the service wasn't scheduled to run till later, but that he could offer us a private long boat for 500Baht.
Not deterred we went to find out ourselves, and 5minutes later the public service rocked up.  For 25baht.

The boat trip up the river was worth it, especially as at 7.30am the day was already warming up.

When we arrived we stopped for a bite, and looking up at the skies, I was very keen to discover where the temples were as it looked like the storm was coming.

Our first temples was Wat Pho.  It hadn't been two minutes of being there before the heavens opened and we were glad to be inside.  Definitely a tropical storm.  And a day I seriously regretted NOT having my rain wear with me.
The whole area seemed to get a battering, and the wind seemed to be blowing some of the preparations around.  Urgh.
We waited inside the temple for a good hour - it seemed most of the other tourists had a similar idea,  not wanting to brave the conditions.

When it finally didn't look at all like easing, we made the decision to crack on and explore.
Two seconds on being outside, and we were both soaked to our skin.  We sought refuge in a shop, and the shop owner managed to track down a lady selling anorak coats.  Clearly not the cheapest item in the world, but I needed one.

Of course by this point, it stopped raining didn't it.

The next game was one of avoiding puddles whilst taking photos of what was a beautiful temple.

Some of the pillars had incredibly ornate decoration on each mosaic tile, and it is fascinating just how similar cultures such as the Egyptians, Romans, Mayans and Buddhists all are really and yet how far apart they were.

We then walked for ages trying to find the Grand Palace, with security guards continually telling us it was closed to the public.
Eventually we got there (it should have been like 5/10 minutes max).
The gold temple was just radiating in what was now midday sunlight.  Dazzling.

The individual aspects of the temple do remind me of some of the Roman palaces..the separate buildings.
I also loved the ability to match the palace with nature - the water fountains, and gardens were very relaxing.

We meandered back to the boat, there was a river crossing which took us to Wat Arum, the temple at dawn.
This spiralled upwards with fantastic views over the city.  Again very similar mosaic patterns.
The climb go steeper and steeper, but was well worth the view.

We hopped on the boat back to Central, after what had been an exhausting day, en route stopping off for tea at a lovely little cafe.

South East Asia adventure begins

I thought I was packed well in advance for this trip, but having finished work at 10pm on Thursday night (polling day), I came home realising just how much I needed to sort out before leaving for the airport the next day.

I was not really in the mood for a 9am meeting the next day, especially as the details I needed for the meeting I'd received at 5pm and had hardly had time to digest.

Never mind.

I struggled in during morning rush hour with my rucksack, sweating like crazy.  Why has England started being warm just as I am planning on leaving it?

It was a relief to finally get to the airport and be rid of my backpack (only to have the realisation that I would of course be lumbered with it for the next few weeks).
Emirates were lovely to fly with.  Really friendly staff and the airline was very comfortable.  But best of all.  The movies!!!!!!!!!  LES MIS.  LES MIS....LES MIS!!!!  I have been wanting to rewatch that for so long.
And Skyfall...there were loads of others I wanted to watch.

I arrived at Dubai international airport, and the first thing I noticed was this warmth.  How hot was it!
We got on the shuttle bus, and spent like half an hour driving round the airport.
Seriously...where was this bus driver going...

The Dubai terminal was just as extravagant as I anticipated.  Marble everywhere, and a luxurious fountain.
Beautiful, but so much wealth.

I slept for most of the second flight.

Arriving in Bangkok wasn't as frightening as I had anticipated.  Everywhere spoke English, and it was easy to hop on the train.  No problem.
I connected to the BTS Skytrain, which took me to Chong Nonsi, the area where Lub D my hostel was located.
Getting off the train in the midday sun, I was literally baking.  I hoped the hostel wasn't far away...it wasn't, but finding which direction, and which exit from the station was another issue entirely.

I walked for at least half an hour with my rucksack trying to find the hostel, until I finally wound onto the right street.

Lub D was so welcoming when I arrived.  So clean and friendly.  I was happy to be here.
I got chatting to a Canadian and we made plans to head off to the Grand Palace and temples the next day.

Had an early night in preparation for an early start.

2013 - An Update

It's been a while since I've had the privalege of writing here.

I have diaries full of adventures since my journey round the world in 2011 and it is my intent to fill the world in with my stories, particularly with reference to Tanzania.

I am about to embark on another journey, this time to South East Asia, which for me is a relative unknown, despite it being a well travelled backpacker route.

I hope this summer to be able to update of all my adventures, but for now here is some information on my latest project.  http://www.africalearningzone.org/blog.html

Once again au revoir.