Jo at the old Lin family house in Gu Lang Yu - Xiamen, China
Where's TopShop? - Xiamen, China
Jo & Uncle Adam at the CKS memorial - Taipei, Taiwan
The Grand Hotel - Taipei, Taiwan
06 March 2007
Eastern Action
The bar at the top of the The worlds tallest hotel - Swissotel Singapore
Jo at the old Lin family house in Gu Lang Yu - Xiamen, China
Where's TopShop? - Xiamen, China
Jo & Uncle Adam at the CKS memorial - Taipei, Taiwan
The Grand Hotel - Taipei, Taiwan
Jo at the old Lin family house in Gu Lang Yu - Xiamen, China
Where's TopShop? - Xiamen, China
Jo & Uncle Adam at the CKS memorial - Taipei, Taiwan
The Grand Hotel - Taipei, Taiwan
21 February 2007
Coming to an end. arse.
China. Well, we couldn't be any further from home. Not physically (that would probably have been NZ silly), but metaphorically. When we landed here and walked through the airport I was surprised how "western" everything seemed: signs in English, modern skyscrapers, fancy cars etc. But that impression soon changed. There were a few other foreigners on the plane but they were on business who soon disappeared into the western hotels and offices, leaving us, the rare western tourists... Most shop signs and signposts are dual language, but menus and everything else are only in Chinese and I've never felt so lame in my life for not being able to speak the language. Almost everyone here under 40 speaks a little English which has made us feel worse! I couldn't even order a tsing tao without causing utter confusion. Unfortunately, this restricted us to the hotel restaurants. Not that the food is bad, it's been very good, it's just that we'd rather have immersed ourselves a little more... It's also fair to say, that despite the English lingual skills of the locals, they don't get too many foreigners. Certainly not blonde ones over 6ft. The reaction is fairly universal. Children under 5 point and actually run away. If I move closer, they hide behind their parents. Aged between 5 and 15, a lot of kids smile and say "hello" and "how are you?". One even said "goodbye". Up to the age of 40 it's mainly staring and some smiling. Over 40 it's a kind of fearful staring. A wonderful experience I wouldn't change for the world...
How did we end up here:
3rd Feb
Back in the 'kok. This time we stayed in Siam Square. The heart of the shopping area and a few more farangs around, which translates to more sweaty old fat western men with their beautiful Thai brides. Those poor girls will be in for such a shock when they find out that their country gent from the home counties actually lives in a dodgy little council flat in Stevenage. Joey and I can't decide if the girls know the score. They can't be as naive as the men surely?
In the evening we went to PatPong. It's known for 2 main things. The market stalls selling fake tat (LV handbags, watches etc) and girly-bars. The whole girly-bar scene is a bit wrong. Kept alive by the same fat sweaty foreigners mentioned above, it's a few alleyways of bar after bar staffed by Thai men speaking excellent English equipped only with a price list. Not a drinks list. No. More like a list of services. I didn't realise table tennis was such a big deal here. Everyone kept offering us ping-pong shows. They looked flummoxed, almost outraged, when I said I preferred football shows... We also checked out the gay patpong just out of curiosity. Much the same, identical in fact, except without the ping pong. They had shows too, but I can't mention it here.
4th Feb
The chatuchak weekend market is the biggest in the 'kok. Some 8,000 stalls selling clothes, food, hardware, animals, electronics. Everything. Outside the market were a run of bric a brac tat merchants selling second hand crap. A few however were selling old watches. Old omega watches. Really nice old omega watches. I really really wanted one but couldn't quite bring myself to part with £70 for an old watch that could have been fake, and could have been broken. It didn't look fake, and it was all marked inside with omega markings, and would have been worth ten times that at home, but I just couldn't do it. Fortunately joey spent the next four hours at every single market stall leaving me plenty of time to muse upon how annoyed I was for not getting the damn watch.
After a quick jaunt to Jim Thompson's house (American silk trader - bit dull) we ambled around Siam Square. It was the day of the second leg of the ASEAN cup final. Singapore vs Thailand. A testy affair after the first leg. There were thousands of fans around (the match sold out in hours) all dressed in yellow in honour of the king. We chatted to a few. Good atmosphere. They're quite wild...
In the evening we went for a Chinese Hot Pot dinner. Basically, you get a pot of boiling water and choose veg and meat and boil it for a couple of minutes. Bingo! Add some rice and some soy sauce and chilli sauce and you're in. Messy.
5th Feb
What a day. We left the hotel for the airport and jumped in to an innocent enough looking cab. Oh dear. I think this guy had been working for about 72 hours and was keeping himself artificially awake. If you know what I mean... It was close to being the most frightening 30 minutes of our short lives. It was like a scene from a Bond movie. Or a classic car chase. Now, I know that the Thais are bad drivers, but this was a joke. He was doing about 120km/h on average whilst no one else was breaking 100. Winding across lanes. Squeezing between cars that were breaking and changing lanes. I can't describe it. I guess it was like how you drive in a computer game. Where no-one can get hurt. Anyway, we got to the airport in one piece. A miracle. Cheaper than a hotel car, but the laundry bill and therapy costs soon make up for that.
Nice easy check-in at the airport. What do you mean you need your passport to fly? Since when? Oh, and that's my fault you left it in the hotel safe? Is it? Oh, I guess it is. I was the one who took the stuff out of the safe. Phone hotel. Can you courier the passport to the airport? Yes, no problem. How long? One hour. Time to flight? Just under two hours. Did the hotel come good? Yes it did. Did it cost us four times what the taxi cost us? Yup.
Lessons learnt: (1) I am no longer allowed to take stuff from the safe. I can't be trusted. (2) We don't take Thai cabs anywhere ever again ever ever ever.
The rest of the journey was dull after that... Which set the tone nicely for Singapore! Where Bangkok is bonkers, Singapore is sensible. So sensible. You can get fined for chewing gum, crossing the road erroneously, not flushing the toilet etc etc. I think that it's well summed up by a Singaporean minister "we have to pursue this subject of fun very seriously if we want to stay competitive in the twenty-first century". Oh dear. Anyway, we arrived quite late so just strolled leisurely down the world famous shopping area of Orchard road. What a day.
6th Feb
So, what does sensible Singapore have to offer? Let's keep it brief. I'd hate to waffle. I just like to get to the point. Not mince around. That would just waste time. So where was I? Oh yes. Singapore. Strolled around the colonial area. City hall, law courts, cricket club and all that. Walked to raffles square where all the big big big office buildings are. From there to Chinatown. Chinatown? Seems odd doesn't it? The country has something like 4m people and 75% are of Chinese descent. So why is there a Chinatown? That was not a rhetorical question. I don't know the answer. Little India next. That one makes sense to me. 15% are Indian - ie an Indian community within a non-Indian majority. Dinner in the grounds of an old church. A Long day. Ticked a lot off the sightseeing list.
7th Feb
Went to Singapore's number 1 tourist destination. Sentosa island. Just off the southern tip off Singapore island. You get a cable car across which drops you on top of a small peak on the isle. And there's only one way down. Well two, but the other option's dull. So, we went down the number one way - Luge. Unfortunately joey didn't believe in going too fast. Could've walked quicker... Anyway, at the bottom: beaches. Singapore style. All man made. Protected from the open ocean. Imported sand. Fake surf culture. Pointless lifeguards. And the best bit? Someone's employed to rake up the seaweed. Just weird.
A singapore style night out. A couple of singapore slings at raffles, cocktails at the top of the world's tallest hotel (60 floors) and a curry by the river... Nice.
8th Feb
Early start - off to Hong Kong. HK's airport is new and built on an island where they chopped the top off to put the runway down. Engineering at it's finest. Checked in at our hotel in Tin Hau. Amazing views over the city. Went for some tea and dim sum - nice dumplings. Ambled round the shops. Early night for the flight to China!
9th Feb
Got up early, very early for our trip to China. Mainland China! As described above, our early impressions of Xiamen were that it was very modern. The airport must be pretty new. The city is home to 1m people but you wouldn't know it by the traffic. There are very few traffic lights. Most people travel by bus with few having their own transport. Xiamen is a coastal town and so when they decided to build a by-pass they just built it over the beach. Ingenious thinking. Function over form. Not good if you want to sunbathe though...
In the afternoon we got on the ferry to Gulangyu. The once home of joey's grandfather. Unfortunately the old Lin family home is seeing better days and is being renovated by investors (read demolished and rebuilt). The island is a national tourist treasure due to it's early 20th century European style architecture. After viewing the remains of the house we moved onto the Sea Garden built by a Great Great Grandfather (there may be more greats in front of that). Lots of gardens, walkways, pagodas, and monuments. Very, very pretty indeed. Infact it was a lovely afternoon wandering around with all the Chinese tourists.
After that, joey decided to do what she does best. She bought a pair of trainers. And she helped the world-wide counterfeit business at the same time. Adidas trainers that have only just been released. Shop price - £80. Joey price £12. Very realistic too.
Dinner in the hotel. All restaurants have the menus in Chinese only and so we couldn't venture too far. It was at this point we realised how lame we were for not knowing any of the language. Poor show on our part. Very poor.
10th Feb
With the official sightseeing done we decided just to hit Xiamen. Look around, shop, maybe just suss the place out. It's one of China's SEZs (special economic zones) and so is booming and being modernised all over. As I said above, they don't get too many foreigners round here so we got a lot of weird looks. Well, mainly me. Tall, blonde, ungainly looking, foreign. Most people in shops said hello or gave us a smile. Most children were either curious or frightened silly! A great experience. Lunch was at Pizza Hut! The only place with an English menu. Another excellent experience whereby the whole place stopped eating when we walked in and the staff wouldn't stop giggling.
Lots of the shops were western style, though few were recognised brands. In the backstreets were the food markets selling fruit, veg and raw meat. I'm not sure all of the stalls had their food handling hygiene safety certificates. Some of the meat was a little more "lively". Chickens and the like. Joey got offered a baby pig for 300 yuan. I'm not disputing that it's a good price, it's just not what we were looking for. Joey was after more shoes and I was checking out the price of electronics. Not sure little piglet would have checked either of those boxes.
In the afternoon we looked round a new shopping centre which had an indoor basketball court. The kids playing asked me to join in with them, so I did. Good fun. Incidentally, they all supported Liverpool & Arsenal. No Brighton fans. Strange. Nice kids though. Finished off with the worlds cheapest DVDs. Only 8 yuan each. Stuff that's only just out at the cinema. Half of them may be utter crap, but who cares at that price!
Joey's musings:
Well....as I write this entry (a little overdue due to too much jetsetting and not enough musing!), we have only 3 days to go till hometime.......No detentions for us am afraid (well, the forgotten passport in Bangkok was almost a detention, or a divorce! One of the 2 anyhow!).
Our brief but important sojourn into China was wonderful and particularly important to see where my Grandpa grew up. Xiamen was great and certainly interesting, the island of Gulangyu was a little like a magic island, a sort of sea playground with little cave grottos and bridges, a wonderful place to grow up I would imagine.
Unfortunately the weather up this end of Asia is not the best and tans are fading fast! Cold in China and Taipei and Raining in Hong Kong....nevermind, it helps us prepare for old, cold, England!
See you all very soon, by the time you read this we might even be home! Now there's a thought!
Lots of love xxxxx
How did we end up here:
3rd Feb
Back in the 'kok. This time we stayed in Siam Square. The heart of the shopping area and a few more farangs around, which translates to more sweaty old fat western men with their beautiful Thai brides. Those poor girls will be in for such a shock when they find out that their country gent from the home counties actually lives in a dodgy little council flat in Stevenage. Joey and I can't decide if the girls know the score. They can't be as naive as the men surely?
In the evening we went to PatPong. It's known for 2 main things. The market stalls selling fake tat (LV handbags, watches etc) and girly-bars. The whole girly-bar scene is a bit wrong. Kept alive by the same fat sweaty foreigners mentioned above, it's a few alleyways of bar after bar staffed by Thai men speaking excellent English equipped only with a price list. Not a drinks list. No. More like a list of services. I didn't realise table tennis was such a big deal here. Everyone kept offering us ping-pong shows. They looked flummoxed, almost outraged, when I said I preferred football shows... We also checked out the gay patpong just out of curiosity. Much the same, identical in fact, except without the ping pong. They had shows too, but I can't mention it here.
4th Feb
The chatuchak weekend market is the biggest in the 'kok. Some 8,000 stalls selling clothes, food, hardware, animals, electronics. Everything. Outside the market were a run of bric a brac tat merchants selling second hand crap. A few however were selling old watches. Old omega watches. Really nice old omega watches. I really really wanted one but couldn't quite bring myself to part with £70 for an old watch that could have been fake, and could have been broken. It didn't look fake, and it was all marked inside with omega markings, and would have been worth ten times that at home, but I just couldn't do it. Fortunately joey spent the next four hours at every single market stall leaving me plenty of time to muse upon how annoyed I was for not getting the damn watch.
After a quick jaunt to Jim Thompson's house (American silk trader - bit dull) we ambled around Siam Square. It was the day of the second leg of the ASEAN cup final. Singapore vs Thailand. A testy affair after the first leg. There were thousands of fans around (the match sold out in hours) all dressed in yellow in honour of the king. We chatted to a few. Good atmosphere. They're quite wild...
In the evening we went for a Chinese Hot Pot dinner. Basically, you get a pot of boiling water and choose veg and meat and boil it for a couple of minutes. Bingo! Add some rice and some soy sauce and chilli sauce and you're in. Messy.
5th Feb
What a day. We left the hotel for the airport and jumped in to an innocent enough looking cab. Oh dear. I think this guy had been working for about 72 hours and was keeping himself artificially awake. If you know what I mean... It was close to being the most frightening 30 minutes of our short lives. It was like a scene from a Bond movie. Or a classic car chase. Now, I know that the Thais are bad drivers, but this was a joke. He was doing about 120km/h on average whilst no one else was breaking 100. Winding across lanes. Squeezing between cars that were breaking and changing lanes. I can't describe it. I guess it was like how you drive in a computer game. Where no-one can get hurt. Anyway, we got to the airport in one piece. A miracle. Cheaper than a hotel car, but the laundry bill and therapy costs soon make up for that.
Nice easy check-in at the airport. What do you mean you need your passport to fly? Since when? Oh, and that's my fault you left it in the hotel safe? Is it? Oh, I guess it is. I was the one who took the stuff out of the safe. Phone hotel. Can you courier the passport to the airport? Yes, no problem. How long? One hour. Time to flight? Just under two hours. Did the hotel come good? Yes it did. Did it cost us four times what the taxi cost us? Yup.
Lessons learnt: (1) I am no longer allowed to take stuff from the safe. I can't be trusted. (2) We don't take Thai cabs anywhere ever again ever ever ever.
The rest of the journey was dull after that... Which set the tone nicely for Singapore! Where Bangkok is bonkers, Singapore is sensible. So sensible. You can get fined for chewing gum, crossing the road erroneously, not flushing the toilet etc etc. I think that it's well summed up by a Singaporean minister "we have to pursue this subject of fun very seriously if we want to stay competitive in the twenty-first century". Oh dear. Anyway, we arrived quite late so just strolled leisurely down the world famous shopping area of Orchard road. What a day.
6th Feb
So, what does sensible Singapore have to offer? Let's keep it brief. I'd hate to waffle. I just like to get to the point. Not mince around. That would just waste time. So where was I? Oh yes. Singapore. Strolled around the colonial area. City hall, law courts, cricket club and all that. Walked to raffles square where all the big big big office buildings are. From there to Chinatown. Chinatown? Seems odd doesn't it? The country has something like 4m people and 75% are of Chinese descent. So why is there a Chinatown? That was not a rhetorical question. I don't know the answer. Little India next. That one makes sense to me. 15% are Indian - ie an Indian community within a non-Indian majority. Dinner in the grounds of an old church. A Long day. Ticked a lot off the sightseeing list.
7th Feb
Went to Singapore's number 1 tourist destination. Sentosa island. Just off the southern tip off Singapore island. You get a cable car across which drops you on top of a small peak on the isle. And there's only one way down. Well two, but the other option's dull. So, we went down the number one way - Luge. Unfortunately joey didn't believe in going too fast. Could've walked quicker... Anyway, at the bottom: beaches. Singapore style. All man made. Protected from the open ocean. Imported sand. Fake surf culture. Pointless lifeguards. And the best bit? Someone's employed to rake up the seaweed. Just weird.
A singapore style night out. A couple of singapore slings at raffles, cocktails at the top of the world's tallest hotel (60 floors) and a curry by the river... Nice.
8th Feb
Early start - off to Hong Kong. HK's airport is new and built on an island where they chopped the top off to put the runway down. Engineering at it's finest. Checked in at our hotel in Tin Hau. Amazing views over the city. Went for some tea and dim sum - nice dumplings. Ambled round the shops. Early night for the flight to China!
9th Feb
Got up early, very early for our trip to China. Mainland China! As described above, our early impressions of Xiamen were that it was very modern. The airport must be pretty new. The city is home to 1m people but you wouldn't know it by the traffic. There are very few traffic lights. Most people travel by bus with few having their own transport. Xiamen is a coastal town and so when they decided to build a by-pass they just built it over the beach. Ingenious thinking. Function over form. Not good if you want to sunbathe though...
In the afternoon we got on the ferry to Gulangyu. The once home of joey's grandfather. Unfortunately the old Lin family home is seeing better days and is being renovated by investors (read demolished and rebuilt). The island is a national tourist treasure due to it's early 20th century European style architecture. After viewing the remains of the house we moved onto the Sea Garden built by a Great Great Grandfather (there may be more greats in front of that). Lots of gardens, walkways, pagodas, and monuments. Very, very pretty indeed. Infact it was a lovely afternoon wandering around with all the Chinese tourists.
After that, joey decided to do what she does best. She bought a pair of trainers. And she helped the world-wide counterfeit business at the same time. Adidas trainers that have only just been released. Shop price - £80. Joey price £12. Very realistic too.
Dinner in the hotel. All restaurants have the menus in Chinese only and so we couldn't venture too far. It was at this point we realised how lame we were for not knowing any of the language. Poor show on our part. Very poor.
10th Feb
With the official sightseeing done we decided just to hit Xiamen. Look around, shop, maybe just suss the place out. It's one of China's SEZs (special economic zones) and so is booming and being modernised all over. As I said above, they don't get too many foreigners round here so we got a lot of weird looks. Well, mainly me. Tall, blonde, ungainly looking, foreign. Most people in shops said hello or gave us a smile. Most children were either curious or frightened silly! A great experience. Lunch was at Pizza Hut! The only place with an English menu. Another excellent experience whereby the whole place stopped eating when we walked in and the staff wouldn't stop giggling.
Lots of the shops were western style, though few were recognised brands. In the backstreets were the food markets selling fruit, veg and raw meat. I'm not sure all of the stalls had their food handling hygiene safety certificates. Some of the meat was a little more "lively". Chickens and the like. Joey got offered a baby pig for 300 yuan. I'm not disputing that it's a good price, it's just not what we were looking for. Joey was after more shoes and I was checking out the price of electronics. Not sure little piglet would have checked either of those boxes.
In the afternoon we looked round a new shopping centre which had an indoor basketball court. The kids playing asked me to join in with them, so I did. Good fun. Incidentally, they all supported Liverpool & Arsenal. No Brighton fans. Strange. Nice kids though. Finished off with the worlds cheapest DVDs. Only 8 yuan each. Stuff that's only just out at the cinema. Half of them may be utter crap, but who cares at that price!
Joey's musings:
Well....as I write this entry (a little overdue due to too much jetsetting and not enough musing!), we have only 3 days to go till hometime.......No detentions for us am afraid (well, the forgotten passport in Bangkok was almost a detention, or a divorce! One of the 2 anyhow!).
Our brief but important sojourn into China was wonderful and particularly important to see where my Grandpa grew up. Xiamen was great and certainly interesting, the island of Gulangyu was a little like a magic island, a sort of sea playground with little cave grottos and bridges, a wonderful place to grow up I would imagine.
Unfortunately the weather up this end of Asia is not the best and tans are fading fast! Cold in China and Taipei and Raining in Hong Kong....nevermind, it helps us prepare for old, cold, England!
See you all very soon, by the time you read this we might even be home! Now there's a thought!
Lots of love xxxxx
07 February 2007
more from Thighland
I can't believe the trip is coming to an end. Less than three weeks to go and now we're having to think about jobs and tax and who knows what... Still so much to see and do, and we've had such a great time in thailand. Talking of which, the last 11 days have been down in Krabi; a region in the south west on the andaman coast famed for it's limestone rock formations, stunning beaches and filmset for "The Beach" and various Bond movies. We've taken it very very slow down here so i'll keep it brief.
22nd january
A long day flying down from chiang mai to krabi. A four hour stopover in bangkok is about as much fun as being an accountant. We arrived late in Ao Nang, ate and then just put our heads down...
23rd
After a well earnt lie in and breakfast, we decided to explore Ao Nang. This really just involved walking along about a mile of long sandy beach. It was hell. Bright sunshine, fresh fruit and cold drinks, crystal clear sea. German men over 60 wearing very small speedos. Italian men under 30 wearing even smaller ones. Joey then twisted my arm into getting a massage. Lying face down under a canopy with just the sound of waves to keep us company. And then it started. It was a time of my life i'll never forget. The evil genius got to work on my shoulders. With her thumbs under my shoulder blades and knees dug into the back of my thighs she exclaimed that it might hurt today but it would feel great tomorrow. She also went to work on my feet; removing dead skin and pummelling them so much that I think i've gone down a shoe size. I used to like all the dead skin. It meant that I could walk anywhere bear foot and not feel a thing. Now I have to wear towling slippers. After an hour or so massaging I was free. Doubled over in pain, but free.
24th
So, it seems that my arch nemesis tricked me. Evil, yes. Genius, no. Unless, her plan was to cripple me, in which case she succeeded. Shoulders and neck? Sore. Pride? Dented. By a girl. An evil girl. Fortunately i'm not one to moan on and on and on. Am I Joey? Oh, apparently I am.
We got a Longtail boat to railay. The laem phra nang peninsula is made up of four beaches with west railay and Ao phra nang being two of the world's finest. We purchased a bat and ball set but soon realised that it wasn't our forte. I mean really, who cares if you can hit a ball ten times between you. So what if our best effort was eight. This lead us to create a new game. Cricket. In the sea. Sicket! It'll catch on. You mark my words. After various swimming and relaxing activities (taking in the breathtaking views - photos will prove this), we popped home via longtail. These boats are hilarious. A wooden hulled shallowish boat some 20ft long. Powered by... An old car engine. The propellor is on the end of a long shaft straight off the engine block and the whole thing is manouvered by tilting and turning the engine. It shouldn't work and it can't be safe, but it's great fun.
25th
We hired a tandem Kayak and explored the local coastline round krabi. It's all rocky outcrops, caves and bays. Fish and crabs. The afternoon was spent recovering. In the sun drinking gallons and gallons of water. And maybe just a Singha or two.
26th
An early early start for a spot of Rock climbing. With Krabi's limestone karstes protruding out above stunning beaches it's supposed to be one of the finest spots in the world. Our guide Shai, started us off on some tough old climbs. I was suffering from the excesses of eating too much and found it very hard work. Joey, on the otherhand, has found her niche. She was up and down the rock like she was raised by a family of spiders... Excellent fun, and some awesome views from the top!
27th
R&R. Yep, we'd worked so hard over the last five days or so, that we deserved a day off. For good behaviour, if you like. Mainly just lounging by the pool or on the beach in some shade. You mark my words, its hard work. Hard work I tell you.
28th
Thirty minutes on a longtail. That's quite a long time on a floating deathtrap, but that's how long it takes to get to Poda island. Poda is about 10km from the coast and is an island paradise. Quite a busy island paradise. Longtail boats go backwards and forwards all day long. Backwards and forwards. On choppy sea. In fact it can get quite rough out there with swell regularly reaching 3m. This day it was only about 1m, but that was enough for our joey. Let's just say that she was a bit peaky. Not as sicky as I was at byron bay, but she didn't like it. Anyway, turquoise sea, white sands, palm trees, fish everywhere. Nice.
Back on dry land, we go for a very late lunch. I ordered some soba noodle pad thai type dish, but I got one word wrong and the waitress burst into laughter. And then she told all her mates and colleagues. And they all laughed too. I was baffled. Until I learnt what I'd ordered. And then we both laughed out loud. Cat curry anyone? Fortunately they wouldn't let me have cat curry, so I had to make do with the noodle thing. The word meow is pronounced mow. Not me-ow. That's a cat.
29th
An easy day on the beach, playing a bit of cricket and watching the monkeys. The little tykes have a colony. They steal food out of peoples bags whilst they swim. Very amusing. And they're just as happy with a packet of kit-kats as they are with a banana. I kept expecting to see them drinking a can of singha and having a smoke.
30th
Moved out of our hotel and into a more traditional bamboo type bungalow. The owner proudly informed us that the bathroooms are new and were only added recently. What he didn't explain is that the bathroom is lower than the bungalow and so the floor slopes backward. If i'd fallen out of bed I may have woken up on the pot. Would have cut out out the middleman.
After that we took our first steps toward Thaihood. We hired a motor bike. Well, more of a moped. Anyway, we explored out west. It's good to get out of the town so you see more. Cows, goats and chickens in the road. Roads are a bit ropey. Road signs aren't clear. Also we get funny looks from the locals. Anyway, we saw some nice areas and remote beaches, and more of an insight into how rural thais live.
In the evening kings and annie lou caught up with us, after their jaunt in Laos. Good to see them again. We all went to the dodgy bar near the bungalows. Drunk some beer. Played some pool. Watched dirty old western men getting friendly with young thai girls. With deep voices. And broad shoulders. Hmm. Girls? That were once boys? Oh, ladyboys! The question is, did the dirty old men know what they were getting involved in. Probably.
31st
Took Kinko & AL to the beautiful railay beach. Lots of general nothingness. Played some beach cricket & did very little. Went to some nice place called The Loft for dinner. Green curry with roti. Hubba hubba. Played pool til the wee hours. Oh, how we've suffered down here...
1st
Hired Kayaks again. This time though we went a bit further to a tiny beach only reachable via the kayaks. We shared it with only a few others (due to it's inconvenience) including one "naturist" ie nudie. Why! Why do you need to get sun burn "everywhere"! On the way back we weaved through a few caves. Cool.
Spent the afternoon sitting in an open air bar under palm trees.
After dinner, the four of us bravely ventured to ao nang's alleyway of Go-go bars. About a dozen open sided bars in an alleyway off the main drag. Quite intimidating if you're a man as there are dozens of women literally trying to drag you into the bars. Obviously most of the clientele are men and it's therefore geared towards men (but this is no patpong). More a similar concept to japanese hostess bars where they employ pretty girls in an effort to make you buy expensive drinks. Only this is Thailand. The girls aren't exactly girls and the drinks are dirt cheap. Anyway, it's a fun place where kingsley couldn't keep off the dancing pole and Joey befriended the bar girls.
2nd
Our last full day down south so the four of us hired two mopeds and got back on the road. This time we went east. First of all to Gastropod fossil beach. The thais love it. It's basically a beach with gastropod fossils - but I guess the title gave that away. It's also a very pretty desserted beach with really soft sand. Soft sand? Sounds to me like a perfect opportunity for the 1st Thai Open International long jump competition. Woo hoo! 4 teams but only one winner. Mats from Sweden. Jo-Jo from China. Herr Kingsley from Germany. Ms De Waal of Holland. The tournament was marred by technical faults; overstepping the line, arguing with the judges, shorts pulled up too high. A great opening event, the crowds enjoyed themselves. There was only one winner though: Sport!
After all that excitement we cruised on to Krabi, the main town of the region. A bit of a dump.
After dinner we played cards by moonlight at the bungalows. Sweet.
The musings of Hill:
Well - as I update my musings from Singapore (more about that later!), I reflect on our time in Thailand.........Bangkok - everything I thought i'd hate, dirty, smelly, rats, noisy, pollution etc. But I love Bangkok. It is a city so full of life and energy, people everywhere, madness, tuk tuks alongside hummers, temples next to shopping malls, foodcarts outside Burger king.....old next to new...fantastic! Thailand is called "the land of smiles" and it is so true, the Thais are so friendly and welcoming, we really had a great time. we had a lovely time with Annie Lou and Kinko, cards, Singha, ladyboys and muchos fun had by all. I certainly am enjoying my 30s so far! Particular Thai highlights for me included...watching the sun go down on Ao Phra Nang beach, 4 in a tuk tuk!, and Singha and Cards at the last café - perfect!
lots of love,
Mrs H. xxx
22nd january
A long day flying down from chiang mai to krabi. A four hour stopover in bangkok is about as much fun as being an accountant. We arrived late in Ao Nang, ate and then just put our heads down...
23rd
After a well earnt lie in and breakfast, we decided to explore Ao Nang. This really just involved walking along about a mile of long sandy beach. It was hell. Bright sunshine, fresh fruit and cold drinks, crystal clear sea. German men over 60 wearing very small speedos. Italian men under 30 wearing even smaller ones. Joey then twisted my arm into getting a massage. Lying face down under a canopy with just the sound of waves to keep us company. And then it started. It was a time of my life i'll never forget. The evil genius got to work on my shoulders. With her thumbs under my shoulder blades and knees dug into the back of my thighs she exclaimed that it might hurt today but it would feel great tomorrow. She also went to work on my feet; removing dead skin and pummelling them so much that I think i've gone down a shoe size. I used to like all the dead skin. It meant that I could walk anywhere bear foot and not feel a thing. Now I have to wear towling slippers. After an hour or so massaging I was free. Doubled over in pain, but free.
24th
So, it seems that my arch nemesis tricked me. Evil, yes. Genius, no. Unless, her plan was to cripple me, in which case she succeeded. Shoulders and neck? Sore. Pride? Dented. By a girl. An evil girl. Fortunately i'm not one to moan on and on and on. Am I Joey? Oh, apparently I am.
We got a Longtail boat to railay. The laem phra nang peninsula is made up of four beaches with west railay and Ao phra nang being two of the world's finest. We purchased a bat and ball set but soon realised that it wasn't our forte. I mean really, who cares if you can hit a ball ten times between you. So what if our best effort was eight. This lead us to create a new game. Cricket. In the sea. Sicket! It'll catch on. You mark my words. After various swimming and relaxing activities (taking in the breathtaking views - photos will prove this), we popped home via longtail. These boats are hilarious. A wooden hulled shallowish boat some 20ft long. Powered by... An old car engine. The propellor is on the end of a long shaft straight off the engine block and the whole thing is manouvered by tilting and turning the engine. It shouldn't work and it can't be safe, but it's great fun.
25th
We hired a tandem Kayak and explored the local coastline round krabi. It's all rocky outcrops, caves and bays. Fish and crabs. The afternoon was spent recovering. In the sun drinking gallons and gallons of water. And maybe just a Singha or two.
26th
An early early start for a spot of Rock climbing. With Krabi's limestone karstes protruding out above stunning beaches it's supposed to be one of the finest spots in the world. Our guide Shai, started us off on some tough old climbs. I was suffering from the excesses of eating too much and found it very hard work. Joey, on the otherhand, has found her niche. She was up and down the rock like she was raised by a family of spiders... Excellent fun, and some awesome views from the top!
27th
R&R. Yep, we'd worked so hard over the last five days or so, that we deserved a day off. For good behaviour, if you like. Mainly just lounging by the pool or on the beach in some shade. You mark my words, its hard work. Hard work I tell you.
28th
Thirty minutes on a longtail. That's quite a long time on a floating deathtrap, but that's how long it takes to get to Poda island. Poda is about 10km from the coast and is an island paradise. Quite a busy island paradise. Longtail boats go backwards and forwards all day long. Backwards and forwards. On choppy sea. In fact it can get quite rough out there with swell regularly reaching 3m. This day it was only about 1m, but that was enough for our joey. Let's just say that she was a bit peaky. Not as sicky as I was at byron bay, but she didn't like it. Anyway, turquoise sea, white sands, palm trees, fish everywhere. Nice.
Back on dry land, we go for a very late lunch. I ordered some soba noodle pad thai type dish, but I got one word wrong and the waitress burst into laughter. And then she told all her mates and colleagues. And they all laughed too. I was baffled. Until I learnt what I'd ordered. And then we both laughed out loud. Cat curry anyone? Fortunately they wouldn't let me have cat curry, so I had to make do with the noodle thing. The word meow is pronounced mow. Not me-ow. That's a cat.
29th
An easy day on the beach, playing a bit of cricket and watching the monkeys. The little tykes have a colony. They steal food out of peoples bags whilst they swim. Very amusing. And they're just as happy with a packet of kit-kats as they are with a banana. I kept expecting to see them drinking a can of singha and having a smoke.
30th
Moved out of our hotel and into a more traditional bamboo type bungalow. The owner proudly informed us that the bathroooms are new and were only added recently. What he didn't explain is that the bathroom is lower than the bungalow and so the floor slopes backward. If i'd fallen out of bed I may have woken up on the pot. Would have cut out out the middleman.
After that we took our first steps toward Thaihood. We hired a motor bike. Well, more of a moped. Anyway, we explored out west. It's good to get out of the town so you see more. Cows, goats and chickens in the road. Roads are a bit ropey. Road signs aren't clear. Also we get funny looks from the locals. Anyway, we saw some nice areas and remote beaches, and more of an insight into how rural thais live.
In the evening kings and annie lou caught up with us, after their jaunt in Laos. Good to see them again. We all went to the dodgy bar near the bungalows. Drunk some beer. Played some pool. Watched dirty old western men getting friendly with young thai girls. With deep voices. And broad shoulders. Hmm. Girls? That were once boys? Oh, ladyboys! The question is, did the dirty old men know what they were getting involved in. Probably.
31st
Took Kinko & AL to the beautiful railay beach. Lots of general nothingness. Played some beach cricket & did very little. Went to some nice place called The Loft for dinner. Green curry with roti. Hubba hubba. Played pool til the wee hours. Oh, how we've suffered down here...
1st
Hired Kayaks again. This time though we went a bit further to a tiny beach only reachable via the kayaks. We shared it with only a few others (due to it's inconvenience) including one "naturist" ie nudie. Why! Why do you need to get sun burn "everywhere"! On the way back we weaved through a few caves. Cool.
Spent the afternoon sitting in an open air bar under palm trees.
After dinner, the four of us bravely ventured to ao nang's alleyway of Go-go bars. About a dozen open sided bars in an alleyway off the main drag. Quite intimidating if you're a man as there are dozens of women literally trying to drag you into the bars. Obviously most of the clientele are men and it's therefore geared towards men (but this is no patpong). More a similar concept to japanese hostess bars where they employ pretty girls in an effort to make you buy expensive drinks. Only this is Thailand. The girls aren't exactly girls and the drinks are dirt cheap. Anyway, it's a fun place where kingsley couldn't keep off the dancing pole and Joey befriended the bar girls.
2nd
Our last full day down south so the four of us hired two mopeds and got back on the road. This time we went east. First of all to Gastropod fossil beach. The thais love it. It's basically a beach with gastropod fossils - but I guess the title gave that away. It's also a very pretty desserted beach with really soft sand. Soft sand? Sounds to me like a perfect opportunity for the 1st Thai Open International long jump competition. Woo hoo! 4 teams but only one winner. Mats from Sweden. Jo-Jo from China. Herr Kingsley from Germany. Ms De Waal of Holland. The tournament was marred by technical faults; overstepping the line, arguing with the judges, shorts pulled up too high. A great opening event, the crowds enjoyed themselves. There was only one winner though: Sport!
After all that excitement we cruised on to Krabi, the main town of the region. A bit of a dump.
After dinner we played cards by moonlight at the bungalows. Sweet.
The musings of Hill:
Well - as I update my musings from Singapore (more about that later!), I reflect on our time in Thailand.........Bangkok - everything I thought i'd hate, dirty, smelly, rats, noisy, pollution etc. But I love Bangkok. It is a city so full of life and energy, people everywhere, madness, tuk tuks alongside hummers, temples next to shopping malls, foodcarts outside Burger king.....old next to new...fantastic! Thailand is called "the land of smiles" and it is so true, the Thais are so friendly and welcoming, we really had a great time. we had a lovely time with Annie Lou and Kinko, cards, Singha, ladyboys and muchos fun had by all. I certainly am enjoying my 30s so far! Particular Thai highlights for me included...watching the sun go down on Ao Phra Nang beach, 4 in a tuk tuk!, and Singha and Cards at the last café - perfect!
lots of love,
Mrs H. xxx
25 January 2007
Pho-toes
Joey taking in the scenery... Awesome!!! - Lae Phra Nang, Krabi.
Poda Island Paradise - Jealous?
Jo on her hog...
Team Thailand...
Poda Island Paradise - Jealous?
Jo on her hog...
Team Thailand...
Tie-Land
We're not exactly the first visitors to this place. We're not the first people to say this, and we're not saying anything new. But it has to be said. Thailand is a top top country. I know we've only been here a few days, but from the invasion of all your senses when you arrive in Bangkok to the easy going life in the north, it's extremely likeable. We're on a plane now, heading down to the andaman coast for some R&R but we're already wishing we could have spent more time in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Still, 2 weeks on beautiful Thai beaches can't be bad. Now then, where's that bride I ordered?
16th
Landed in Singapore at 3am. Found a quiet little corner to try and sleep, Joey on a reclining chair and me on the floor, and dozed off and on for a couple of hours. Not the finest sleep! Eventually arrived in Bangkok at about 12 midday following the (previously mentioned) hideous journey... Exhausted, but given some sort of adrenaline boost by Bangkok itself. Every inch of pavement space is given over to stalls of some sort. Food is everywhere. The smell of food is everywhere. Unfortunately so too is the smell of sewage. And then there's the most appalling traffic. And smog. Motorbikes, taxis, cars and tuk-tuks. And people. It's overwhelming but so inoffensive that you can't help but like it. Everyone's smiling and friendly. Fortunately we had a quiet escape in our hotel. They upgraded us for some reason which included a free mini-bar. Cool. Add that to the free hotel bar and free bar snacks, it's amazing that we even left the hotel.
Since we've been away we've met up with relatives and friends around the world which has generally made the whole thing easier for Joey. Could you spend 24 hours a day with me for six months? The previous day our mates kingsley and anne-louise had jetted out to Thailand for a months travelling and it was no understatement to say that we were looking forward to seeing them. They very kindly came and met us at our hotel (lured by the free beer no doubt). Good to catch up with fellow brightonians and hear how cold and gloomy it was back there. We also revelled a little too much in their pastiness. Me and wifey have a bit of colour. Well, I have sporadic sun-burn and my Thai bride has enough tan for two.
The kinkster (kingsley) suggested an evening of culture Thai style. Also known as muy thai, thai boxing makes for a fair spectator sport with a couple of thousand locals cheering on every kick, punch and knee to the ribs. Good fun.
17th
Sightseeing recipe for success:
° 1 short journey on the Skytrain to the central pier.
° 2 boat journeys. Add 1 boat journey now, up the river to pier 8 and put the second aside (we'll need that later).
° A sprinkle of the historic Wat Pho (the main temple includes the huge gold reclining Buddha) for texture.
° Garnish with a trip to the Grand Palace and in particular the Emerald Buddha. It's very important at this point to ensure all legs and arms are covered up as a mark of respect and not to point your feet at the big guy. Due to my shorts I had to borrow a ridiculous pair of bright blue "fisherman's-pants". Almost ruined this recipe.
° Now add the boat journey back to central pier that we put aside earlier and mix well. Hmm, tasty!
Of course, no meal is complete without dessert. In the evening Annie-Lou, Kinky, Joey and I went to an Indian restaurant called "Mrs Balbirs". She's a TV chef in south east Asia and was in the restaurant when we had dinner. As English, she respected our curry appreciation skills and joined us for a chat and a few photos... I can't go anywhere these days. I forgot to mention that to get to the wild-ones hotel (Kingsley's surname is wildman), Mrs. H and I took our first Tuk-Tuk. A three wheel motorbike/death trap with fearless drivers swerving through the traffic and accelerating and braking sharper than most F1 cars. The fare was only about 40 baht, but the laundry costs on our undies could reach twice to three times again...
18th
Unfortunately, due to our delayed flight from Oz we lost a day in Bangkok, meaning that after only one full day there, we were off again. This time to the mountainous North of the country. Chiang Mai is a provincial capital and once housed the Emerald Buddha (he's the big daddy of them all). We had a good stroll around after some extended lunch with Anne-Louise and Kinko (they were spending a few days before they went trekking into Laos). We went to the dodgiest dinner place ever, but at 45baht for pad Thai (apx 60p), it was not to be sniffed at.
19th
A stroke of genius on the males' part meant that whilst Joey and annie-lou browsed tat jewellery, kings and I went motorbike hunting. Unfortunately, nobody could provide us with suitable bikes without us giving them our passports. Damn these reputable companies! So, we spent the rest of the day doing the tourist thing and looking at the Wats. Wat, wat, wat! They ranged from 800 to 1300 years old and were very impressive. Wat Phra Sing and Wat Chiang man. Most of these old temples have practical use. Some are schools and colleges others have people living there.
In the evening Joey stumbled on the five star Chedi Hotel near our guest house where we stopped by for dinner and cocktails. A stunning location by the river with only candlelights... After that, a trip to the slightly too touristy Night market...
20th
Cookery course. What an excellent day. We went to the Chiang Mai Thai cookery school run by none other than, yes, you guessed it, tv celeb chef Somphon Nabnian. Of course, Somphon being the big name that he is, he wasn't around. But our teachers Oh and Mee were more than capable. We started with a prawn soup. Mine was nothing short of foul. Joey's still vegetarian and so her's was tofu based and a little bland. Kings & A-L seemed satisfied with their efforts. Next up fish cakes. Here I outdid myself. I was particularly pleased with the outcome. They were damn good. Again, Joey had tofu cakes (can you see a theme?) Next course, Green Curry. And surprisingly tasty. And served with pad Thai which also worked well. By this point Joey actually resembled and smelt a bit like tofu... We were starting to get really full by this point but just managed to hold out and polish the chicken salad and sweet water chestnut dessert.
The whole day was excellent fun, and if anyone is interested in being catered for let us know. We also do weddings and funerals. As long as you like tofu.
21st
Early start to the day. Our car was delivered to our accommodation early doors and it was time for our biggest ever challenge: driving in Thailand. When driving there is only one rule: there are no rules! Speed limits, stop signs and traffic lights are just there for decoration. The line in the middle of the road and one way signs only apply to farang drivers like us! So, it's fair to say we were a little hesitant, especially knowing that the national Thai Elephant Foundation and Hospital was a 100km round trip. It turned out to be quite good fun. It's probably safer being a road user rather than a pedestrian, and the rule that the largest vehicle has right of way meant that all the motorbikes move out of your way. Cool.
The elephant sanctuary was a bit weird. Most of the elephants used to work for the (now illegal) logging industry. If it weren't for these sanctuaries they'd all die. Therefore they're all re-trained to amuse the public and give rides. Ethically, you know it's not exactly as nature intended, but without it they'd be long wiped out. And with this thought in mind we paid to have a short elephant ride, paid for the show and bought loads of bananas and sugar cane to feed them. We helped them earn their living. Interestingly, after 3pm each day, the elephants are free to roam the huge park where they eat, relax, chat etc. So there work is only really part-time... Anyway it was a good day out and we got close to loads of these beautiful creatures. Jo thinks that I'd make a good elephant and spent the rest of the day asking if I'd enjoyed being back with my own kind. Isn't she funny...
16th
Landed in Singapore at 3am. Found a quiet little corner to try and sleep, Joey on a reclining chair and me on the floor, and dozed off and on for a couple of hours. Not the finest sleep! Eventually arrived in Bangkok at about 12 midday following the (previously mentioned) hideous journey... Exhausted, but given some sort of adrenaline boost by Bangkok itself. Every inch of pavement space is given over to stalls of some sort. Food is everywhere. The smell of food is everywhere. Unfortunately so too is the smell of sewage. And then there's the most appalling traffic. And smog. Motorbikes, taxis, cars and tuk-tuks. And people. It's overwhelming but so inoffensive that you can't help but like it. Everyone's smiling and friendly. Fortunately we had a quiet escape in our hotel. They upgraded us for some reason which included a free mini-bar. Cool. Add that to the free hotel bar and free bar snacks, it's amazing that we even left the hotel.
Since we've been away we've met up with relatives and friends around the world which has generally made the whole thing easier for Joey. Could you spend 24 hours a day with me for six months? The previous day our mates kingsley and anne-louise had jetted out to Thailand for a months travelling and it was no understatement to say that we were looking forward to seeing them. They very kindly came and met us at our hotel (lured by the free beer no doubt). Good to catch up with fellow brightonians and hear how cold and gloomy it was back there. We also revelled a little too much in their pastiness. Me and wifey have a bit of colour. Well, I have sporadic sun-burn and my Thai bride has enough tan for two.
The kinkster (kingsley) suggested an evening of culture Thai style. Also known as muy thai, thai boxing makes for a fair spectator sport with a couple of thousand locals cheering on every kick, punch and knee to the ribs. Good fun.
17th
Sightseeing recipe for success:
° 1 short journey on the Skytrain to the central pier.
° 2 boat journeys. Add 1 boat journey now, up the river to pier 8 and put the second aside (we'll need that later).
° A sprinkle of the historic Wat Pho (the main temple includes the huge gold reclining Buddha) for texture.
° Garnish with a trip to the Grand Palace and in particular the Emerald Buddha. It's very important at this point to ensure all legs and arms are covered up as a mark of respect and not to point your feet at the big guy. Due to my shorts I had to borrow a ridiculous pair of bright blue "fisherman's-pants". Almost ruined this recipe.
° Now add the boat journey back to central pier that we put aside earlier and mix well. Hmm, tasty!
Of course, no meal is complete without dessert. In the evening Annie-Lou, Kinky, Joey and I went to an Indian restaurant called "Mrs Balbirs". She's a TV chef in south east Asia and was in the restaurant when we had dinner. As English, she respected our curry appreciation skills and joined us for a chat and a few photos... I can't go anywhere these days. I forgot to mention that to get to the wild-ones hotel (Kingsley's surname is wildman), Mrs. H and I took our first Tuk-Tuk. A three wheel motorbike/death trap with fearless drivers swerving through the traffic and accelerating and braking sharper than most F1 cars. The fare was only about 40 baht, but the laundry costs on our undies could reach twice to three times again...
18th
Unfortunately, due to our delayed flight from Oz we lost a day in Bangkok, meaning that after only one full day there, we were off again. This time to the mountainous North of the country. Chiang Mai is a provincial capital and once housed the Emerald Buddha (he's the big daddy of them all). We had a good stroll around after some extended lunch with Anne-Louise and Kinko (they were spending a few days before they went trekking into Laos). We went to the dodgiest dinner place ever, but at 45baht for pad Thai (apx 60p), it was not to be sniffed at.
19th
A stroke of genius on the males' part meant that whilst Joey and annie-lou browsed tat jewellery, kings and I went motorbike hunting. Unfortunately, nobody could provide us with suitable bikes without us giving them our passports. Damn these reputable companies! So, we spent the rest of the day doing the tourist thing and looking at the Wats. Wat, wat, wat! They ranged from 800 to 1300 years old and were very impressive. Wat Phra Sing and Wat Chiang man. Most of these old temples have practical use. Some are schools and colleges others have people living there.
In the evening Joey stumbled on the five star Chedi Hotel near our guest house where we stopped by for dinner and cocktails. A stunning location by the river with only candlelights... After that, a trip to the slightly too touristy Night market...
20th
Cookery course. What an excellent day. We went to the Chiang Mai Thai cookery school run by none other than, yes, you guessed it, tv celeb chef Somphon Nabnian. Of course, Somphon being the big name that he is, he wasn't around. But our teachers Oh and Mee were more than capable. We started with a prawn soup. Mine was nothing short of foul. Joey's still vegetarian and so her's was tofu based and a little bland. Kings & A-L seemed satisfied with their efforts. Next up fish cakes. Here I outdid myself. I was particularly pleased with the outcome. They were damn good. Again, Joey had tofu cakes (can you see a theme?) Next course, Green Curry. And surprisingly tasty. And served with pad Thai which also worked well. By this point Joey actually resembled and smelt a bit like tofu... We were starting to get really full by this point but just managed to hold out and polish the chicken salad and sweet water chestnut dessert.
The whole day was excellent fun, and if anyone is interested in being catered for let us know. We also do weddings and funerals. As long as you like tofu.
21st
Early start to the day. Our car was delivered to our accommodation early doors and it was time for our biggest ever challenge: driving in Thailand. When driving there is only one rule: there are no rules! Speed limits, stop signs and traffic lights are just there for decoration. The line in the middle of the road and one way signs only apply to farang drivers like us! So, it's fair to say we were a little hesitant, especially knowing that the national Thai Elephant Foundation and Hospital was a 100km round trip. It turned out to be quite good fun. It's probably safer being a road user rather than a pedestrian, and the rule that the largest vehicle has right of way meant that all the motorbikes move out of your way. Cool.
The elephant sanctuary was a bit weird. Most of the elephants used to work for the (now illegal) logging industry. If it weren't for these sanctuaries they'd all die. Therefore they're all re-trained to amuse the public and give rides. Ethically, you know it's not exactly as nature intended, but without it they'd be long wiped out. And with this thought in mind we paid to have a short elephant ride, paid for the show and bought loads of bananas and sugar cane to feed them. We helped them earn their living. Interestingly, after 3pm each day, the elephants are free to roam the huge park where they eat, relax, chat etc. So there work is only really part-time... Anyway it was a good day out and we got close to loads of these beautiful creatures. Jo thinks that I'd make a good elephant and spent the rest of the day asking if I'd enjoyed being back with my own kind. Isn't she funny...
21 January 2007
Travelling Thai Style! (yeah baby!)
Reflexology with Kinko and Annie Lou in Chiang Mai (North Thailand)
The lovely foot ladies wouldn't touch Mattie's wart feet!
Bangkok Baby!
Bangkok - a city full of life (and smog!)
The girls loving it in Chiang Mai
Oooh wouldn't you just kill for a Thai green curry (delicious) ??
The lovely foot ladies wouldn't touch Mattie's wart feet!
Bangkok Baby!
Bangkok - a city full of life (and smog!)
The girls loving it in Chiang Mai
Oooh wouldn't you just kill for a Thai green curry (delicious) ??
tie me kangaroo down sport, tie me kangaroo down..
Here's a rough transcript of today's events:
° Got up at 7am.
° In a cab at 8:15 to the airport!
° 9am check-in for flight at 10:50.
° At 10:30 we get an announcement that the plane is broke.
° 2 hour delay.
° At 12:30 the plane is not fixed nor going to be. There's more chance of me going on a low-carb diet than them getting SQ238 off the ground.
° Flight is re-scheduled to 10pm.
° No it isn't, it'll be fixed in 5 minutes. Actually, I can see the airplane mechanic from the window. He has a white face with a big squidgy red nose and giant feet. Looks like he's got a flower that squirts water at the pilot too.
° Oh no, the plane won't be fixed. 10pm again. I was right, the mechanic is clearly a clown.
° 2pm and we're given a room in the hotel over the road. Well done singapore air. This isn't so bad. Hilton. I can see why Paris H does okay. Includes lunch and dinner. A buffet! That's where I get my compensation...
° 8pm back to the airport. Flight due at 10pm still. Gets in at singapore at 3am and our flight to bangkok leaves at 8:45am. Great. The couple at the check-in desk next to us are losing their rag. No, they've lost it. Like a scene from the docu-soap airport. Tools. We should get another hotel at singapore airport. If not they've got a swimming pool and free internet. Could be worse. I could be married to psycho-wozza in the next line...
We lose a day in bangkok, but i've caned two buffets, and we lounged around watching mtv for six hours. Every cloud has a silver lining.
And for the last week......
8th january
Drove the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Apollo Bay, back to Portarlington. The road was built after WWII to create jobs for returning soldiers. It was built as a tourism attraction to rival California's Pacific Coast Highway. It is very scenic, nice small towns, great surf beaches, wildlife... Lots of wildlife. The Koalas are just sleeping in the trees above the road. Excellent. And we finally saw some (non-dead) 'Roos. And an Echidna. A bit like a hedgehog. We were very pleased with our wildlife spotting!
9th
Woke up to the smell of smoke. Bush fire! We're all going to die! Help, help. At this point, Joey told me to shut up and pointed out that the smoke was from a fire some 250km along the coast, that a change in the wind from a Southerly to Easterly, had brought our way... Quite weird. The sky remained very hazy and quite dark, and the smell made everything smoky...
We drove further up the bellarine peninsula so that we could catch up with Sally (a girl joey used to work with who's back in oz). Over to Joey: spent the day in Ballerine with my friend Sally, her Dad and new baby Harrison...lovely lunch (thanks Sal) and much fun baby cuddling. Really nice to see Sally and catch up on all the news...top day!
Back up to melbourne.
10th
Time to give the van back. Despite the relief of moving out of the van (3 months in total) we were a bit sad to give it back. This country's so damn big, you feel like you've just scratched the surface and want to carry on round to Adelaide and Perth. One hour later we've checked in to the relative luxury of the newly decorated holiday inn melbourne (an absoloute steal) and all van sadness is totally forgotten...
Melbourne is supposedly the most english part of australia. Known for it's food and culture. Culture? Australia? Surely some mistake? Maybe it's a bit early for us to judge, but at first glance it looks okay... Spent the afternoon orientating our good selves (which translates to me looking at interesting old buildings and Jo looking at shoes). Back to the hotel where phil and fiona met us for a food court dinner, a few hands of blackjack and the cinema. The Holiday. Have you seen it? Diaz, Winslett, Black and some other bloke. If you're a Shiela, it's okay. Otherwise, not so hot. I think joey was dehydrated by the end of it... Must have been all that crying.
11th
After all the time in the van, we felt it time to get vain. Which of course for me equates to a £5 haircut. For joey it was hair, feet, eyebrows etc etc. With time on my hands I did what I do best; hit the foodcourts. They say that Melbourne's not in the seeing or doing. More just relaxing, eating, drinking, and taking it all in. Worked for me.
Had dinner cooked for us in the evening by the luton-travellers. Spag bol. Just like home!
12th
Dossed around in the morning. Then planned on some more cricket misery. Eng v Aus one day (Day/night) at the MCG. What can I say. It's an incredible ground. 100,000 seats 80,000 of them full. And it was rowdy! The MCG is to the SCG what The Oval is to Lords. More of a people's ground. We met up with mike stephenson who I used to work with at Amex. He's emigrated to Melbourne with his family. We had a few beers whilst watching england get battered again (despite KP's and Freddie's efforts)...
13th
General shopping and strolling. Went to the shopping mecca of Chapel street. I think Jo was in some kind of comatosed state as she went from shop to shop on autopilot. We also saw some parks and the state museum which had an excellent display on trainers/sneakers. All the history and influences. Pretty cool.
14th
Last full day down under. How would you spend it? Probably want to do something typically Australian? Beach? BBQ? 'roo watching? Maybe some sport? No. A Neighbours tour. Infact the official Neighbours tour. Now if there's an official tour, there must be unofficial tours too. I didn't realise neighbours was such a big deal. Anyway, we were booked in for the 1:45 tour. Or so we thought. Got there at 1:30 and guess what? They didn't have our booking and the tour was full. Cue dissapointment from Mrs. H and relief for me. Some free souvenirs and tat certainly eased the pain. There was another couple who had been hanging around for about four hours waiting for a cancellation (they hadn't booked though). It was their last day and they were flying later. The tour office offered us directions to get there ourselves via taxi. AU$50 each way. The other couple asked us if we wanted to split a cab to see Ramsey Street as they only had $25 left. Well it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that we would have had to foot the cab bill back. Also, whilst the tour would have been enlightening/bearable (joey's/my perspective), a quick look up Ramsey Street would be as much fun as removing your own wisdom teeth. So we told the other couple we'd give it a miss. The reaction was priceless. I believe it would be described as "stropping off in a huff". She turned on a six-pence and steamed off down the street leaving her bloke red faced. Like we'd ruined her holiday. If she was that bothered, she'd have had the sense to book it, or got some more cash from an ATM. How we laughed as she sped down the street with steam coming out of her ears... Tool.
We got over it quickly. A couple of shandies, some grub and a return to the cinema. "The pursuit of happyness" (as opposed to happiness). Watchable, but a bit slow.
15th
I think I've mentioned enough at the top.
° Got up at 7am.
° In a cab at 8:15 to the airport!
° 9am check-in for flight at 10:50.
° At 10:30 we get an announcement that the plane is broke.
° 2 hour delay.
° At 12:30 the plane is not fixed nor going to be. There's more chance of me going on a low-carb diet than them getting SQ238 off the ground.
° Flight is re-scheduled to 10pm.
° No it isn't, it'll be fixed in 5 minutes. Actually, I can see the airplane mechanic from the window. He has a white face with a big squidgy red nose and giant feet. Looks like he's got a flower that squirts water at the pilot too.
° Oh no, the plane won't be fixed. 10pm again. I was right, the mechanic is clearly a clown.
° 2pm and we're given a room in the hotel over the road. Well done singapore air. This isn't so bad. Hilton. I can see why Paris H does okay. Includes lunch and dinner. A buffet! That's where I get my compensation...
° 8pm back to the airport. Flight due at 10pm still. Gets in at singapore at 3am and our flight to bangkok leaves at 8:45am. Great. The couple at the check-in desk next to us are losing their rag. No, they've lost it. Like a scene from the docu-soap airport. Tools. We should get another hotel at singapore airport. If not they've got a swimming pool and free internet. Could be worse. I could be married to psycho-wozza in the next line...
We lose a day in bangkok, but i've caned two buffets, and we lounged around watching mtv for six hours. Every cloud has a silver lining.
And for the last week......
8th january
Drove the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Apollo Bay, back to Portarlington. The road was built after WWII to create jobs for returning soldiers. It was built as a tourism attraction to rival California's Pacific Coast Highway. It is very scenic, nice small towns, great surf beaches, wildlife... Lots of wildlife. The Koalas are just sleeping in the trees above the road. Excellent. And we finally saw some (non-dead) 'Roos. And an Echidna. A bit like a hedgehog. We were very pleased with our wildlife spotting!
9th
Woke up to the smell of smoke. Bush fire! We're all going to die! Help, help. At this point, Joey told me to shut up and pointed out that the smoke was from a fire some 250km along the coast, that a change in the wind from a Southerly to Easterly, had brought our way... Quite weird. The sky remained very hazy and quite dark, and the smell made everything smoky...
We drove further up the bellarine peninsula so that we could catch up with Sally (a girl joey used to work with who's back in oz). Over to Joey: spent the day in Ballerine with my friend Sally, her Dad and new baby Harrison...lovely lunch (thanks Sal) and much fun baby cuddling. Really nice to see Sally and catch up on all the news...top day!
Back up to melbourne.
10th
Time to give the van back. Despite the relief of moving out of the van (3 months in total) we were a bit sad to give it back. This country's so damn big, you feel like you've just scratched the surface and want to carry on round to Adelaide and Perth. One hour later we've checked in to the relative luxury of the newly decorated holiday inn melbourne (an absoloute steal) and all van sadness is totally forgotten...
Melbourne is supposedly the most english part of australia. Known for it's food and culture. Culture? Australia? Surely some mistake? Maybe it's a bit early for us to judge, but at first glance it looks okay... Spent the afternoon orientating our good selves (which translates to me looking at interesting old buildings and Jo looking at shoes). Back to the hotel where phil and fiona met us for a food court dinner, a few hands of blackjack and the cinema. The Holiday. Have you seen it? Diaz, Winslett, Black and some other bloke. If you're a Shiela, it's okay. Otherwise, not so hot. I think joey was dehydrated by the end of it... Must have been all that crying.
11th
After all the time in the van, we felt it time to get vain. Which of course for me equates to a £5 haircut. For joey it was hair, feet, eyebrows etc etc. With time on my hands I did what I do best; hit the foodcourts. They say that Melbourne's not in the seeing or doing. More just relaxing, eating, drinking, and taking it all in. Worked for me.
Had dinner cooked for us in the evening by the luton-travellers. Spag bol. Just like home!
12th
Dossed around in the morning. Then planned on some more cricket misery. Eng v Aus one day (Day/night) at the MCG. What can I say. It's an incredible ground. 100,000 seats 80,000 of them full. And it was rowdy! The MCG is to the SCG what The Oval is to Lords. More of a people's ground. We met up with mike stephenson who I used to work with at Amex. He's emigrated to Melbourne with his family. We had a few beers whilst watching england get battered again (despite KP's and Freddie's efforts)...
13th
General shopping and strolling. Went to the shopping mecca of Chapel street. I think Jo was in some kind of comatosed state as she went from shop to shop on autopilot. We also saw some parks and the state museum which had an excellent display on trainers/sneakers. All the history and influences. Pretty cool.
14th
Last full day down under. How would you spend it? Probably want to do something typically Australian? Beach? BBQ? 'roo watching? Maybe some sport? No. A Neighbours tour. Infact the official Neighbours tour. Now if there's an official tour, there must be unofficial tours too. I didn't realise neighbours was such a big deal. Anyway, we were booked in for the 1:45 tour. Or so we thought. Got there at 1:30 and guess what? They didn't have our booking and the tour was full. Cue dissapointment from Mrs. H and relief for me. Some free souvenirs and tat certainly eased the pain. There was another couple who had been hanging around for about four hours waiting for a cancellation (they hadn't booked though). It was their last day and they were flying later. The tour office offered us directions to get there ourselves via taxi. AU$50 each way. The other couple asked us if we wanted to split a cab to see Ramsey Street as they only had $25 left. Well it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that we would have had to foot the cab bill back. Also, whilst the tour would have been enlightening/bearable (joey's/my perspective), a quick look up Ramsey Street would be as much fun as removing your own wisdom teeth. So we told the other couple we'd give it a miss. The reaction was priceless. I believe it would be described as "stropping off in a huff". She turned on a six-pence and steamed off down the street leaving her bloke red faced. Like we'd ruined her holiday. If she was that bothered, she'd have had the sense to book it, or got some more cash from an ATM. How we laughed as she sped down the street with steam coming out of her ears... Tool.
We got over it quickly. A couple of shandies, some grub and a return to the cinema. "The pursuit of happyness" (as opposed to happiness). Watchable, but a bit slow.
15th
I think I've mentioned enough at the top.
14 January 2007
so much to do and so little time...
Haven't done this for a while. Updating the blog whilst Joey's driving. Today we're covering over 650km from Canberra to Melbourne. This is the longest drive we've done for a while. It's not too bad as the roads here are generally pretty good. Unfortunately the same can't be said for the drivers. The male drivers. Cars here aren't just unleaded, they're testosterone fuelled too. Perhaps the drivers here are reflective of the country's general attitude, but we campervans get a raw deal. On a daily basis we get cut up and near rammed off the road. If we try to overtake someone, then they speed up (the pride won't allow being overtaken by a campervan), so we pull back in and then they slow down again. The male aussie pride is scary. And you should see the looks we get when they see a shiela behind the wheel when there's a perfectly good bloke in the passenger seat.
Anyway, rant over with, where have we been...
29th December (Wozza)
Let the birthday commence! Today Matt surprised me by checking out of the campsite and checking into the Hyatt hotel on Sydneys glamourous Rocks....it was amazing. We're talking views of the Opera house about 100m from the bedroom window, marble bathroom, rooftop pool with the harbour bridge looming over the top....as you know, i'm not one to boast but the boy done good! The champagne was on ice (thank you lovely Ali) as we entered the room and the birthday was in full swing.....
The Evening began by discarding the Tie Dye Teashirt, bongos and Thai fishermans trousers in favour of the new birthday Sass and Bide jeans for a night out on the town. The evening began with a delightful meal in the Sydney institution that is Doyles fish restaurant followed by drinks in Darling Harbour with Phill and Fiona (friends from NZ). The evening was completed with a selection of cocktails, Karaoke (me, matt and phill - a dazzling rendition of "papa don't preach"!) and a few rounds of black jack at the casino......all in all an excellent night, didn't get to bed till 3am which isn't to bad for an (almost) 30 year old! The egyptian cotton sheets at the Hyatt were also far more preferable than the somewhat musty (well we have been away 4.5 months) and torn (Matt has got a long toe nail!-only joking) sleeping bags!
30th December
What a lovely day......thank you for my surprise birthday cards, it was so lovely to read everyones messages...
Breakfast in bed looking at the opera house, birthday phonecalls, balloons and flowers delivered to the room...what a lucky girl I am.
Spent the day mooching round the Rocks and relaxing by the rooftop pool, bliss. The evening was spent with a surprise trip to "Bills" restaurant. Bill Granger is the Aussie equivalent to Jamie Oliver and does the meanest passionfruit pavlova ever, I was fit to burst! The birthday was brilliant.....
31st December (Matt)
Unfortunately we had to check out of the birthday hotel. We packed our bags and asked the concierge to get our van. What a site. On the hotel concourse was a charcoal Porsche 911, followed by a blacked out mercedes, followed by a 1993 toyota hiace campervan. What a sight! Then we saw the owner of the first two cars - some bloke called Sir Richard Branson. I've never heard of him but joey later told me that he's the founder of branston pickle. Who'd have thought there'd be that much money in pickle? So, we said hello. Posed for a couple of photos with him (I don't usually allow photos with joe public, but he was very insistent). Then we hopped in the van and cruised off. I think the highlight of the meeting (and for him i'm sure the whole experience was a highlight) was when I shook his hand and as jo went to shake his hand, he went in for the kiss!!! He very sharply backed away and put his hand out. The sly old dog! I think Wozza is going to sell her story to the News Of The World: "Married woman gives Branson the elbow". Or how about "Branson pickled". I should be a pun writer.
Anyway, down to earth with a bump as we were back in the Lane Cove Tourist Park. Not the 5 star pampering we had become accustomed too.
Then it was time for the grandaddy of all new years celebrations - fireworks in Sydney harbour. We got the bus in to town and watched from just below the bridge. Very very impressive I can tell you! 15 minutes of awesome whizzbangs and the like. Good atmosphere, good organisation, good night out. It was also the 75th anniversary of the bridge, so the fireworks were especially large! We were home by 2am using public transport. I can't imagine it being that well organised back home...
1st January
Got out of bed late. Lounged around all day and did bugger all - probably for the first time since we've been away. In the evening however we went on a wildlife walk with one of the park rangers (our campsite was in a national park). We saw a ringtail possum, brushtail possums, rabbits, various birds. All very impressive.
2nd January
One of Sydney's central beach suburbs is called Manly. When Cap'n Cook sailed past the cove just north of the entrance to Sydney harbour, he noticed that the "natives" were manly in appearance. Cook would turn in his grave if he saw the current state of the area's natives. It's nearly all tourists and backpackers. Most of them quite scrawny. Perhaps it should be renamed? After an hour or so trying to find somewhere to park (cue arguing and bickering) we ambled around the town. Pleasant enough with a top beach. But the main reason for coming here is to get the cross harbour manly ferry - the best way to see Sydney harbour. So we got the ferry to Sydeny circular quay. 30 minutes of surprisingly rough motoring. It does give great views though. Whilst in the city we took in the botanic gardens before popping back on the ferry. A nice day out
3rd January
Today something strange happened. Joey learnt cricket songs, and she won't stop singing them. In particular "monty, give us a wave, monty monty give us a wave" and (to the tune of yellow submarine) "you all live in a convict colony". Why? Because we spent the day with the barmy army at the SCG. 5th test day 2. Delicately poised. England were something like 230-4 with flintoff looking good on about 60. By lunch? 289 all out. Oh well. I think we know the rest of the story. Still, we had a great day out. We drunk and sung and engaged in light banter with the locals - though most of the banter was convict related. More importantly, joey has broken her england duck. Howzat!
4th january
Sydney. Home to the 2000 Olympics. So why not stay in the Olympic village? Good to see a different part of the city too. What better thing to do than try to set our own Olympic record? 100m sprint? Too easy. Marathon? Too time consuming. Gymnastics? Lycra's too embarassing. These events are for mere mortals. How about something a little more extreme? 3 full loads of laundry washed and dried in 1:58:27.53 - a new world record. Alright. I was so proud and honoured to be part of something so special. Just as the flag was being raised and the national anthem blared around the stadium in front of 75,000 people the news we feared most came through. Joey failed a drugs test. Again. I guess it explains why her biceps are now bigger than my thighs. And her gruff voice. And hairy back.
A few more wickets tumble down the road at the SCG.
5th january
Day 4 - SCG. This time it's personal. Overnight england were struggling with a 15 run lead and only four down (KP + monty at the crease). So we thought we'd make a real effort to cheer on our finest. We both had flags as capes. I bought a cheap red + white polo shirt. Wozza bought some red short/top combo. And we had face paints. We rocked. And we got amusing looks on the train into town. Unfortunately the day's play started 20 minutes early and KP had thrown his wicket early doors. There was then very little to celebrate as we finished with a 50 run lead and the convicts had an easy run chase. At least the barmy army amused everyone with renditions of "livin on a prayer" and "the final countdown"... We sat through the presentations but then left when the gloating got too much. Arrogant bunch.
In the afternoon we collected our passports after they'd been couriered to the Chinese embassy for visas. They look very cool. We can't believe we've been away so long and still have so much great stuff to do...
6th january.
350km to Canberra. Capital of Australia. It's about 150km inland. The area round there is like plains and quite beautiful. Like how you think the plains in Africa would be. And as beautiful as it is, you've got to wonder why the capital would be in the hot humid muggy inland region when the coast is so beautiful. Apparently 80 years ago when they became their own entity neither Sydney nor Melbourne would accept the other city as capital, and so they started from scratch and Canberra was born. The federal buildings are all newish and not that fascinating. The most interesting place was the aboriginal tent embassy outside the old parliament building. It's little more than a tin shack but is permanently manned by some tented aboriginals who are available for political chat and debate. The embassy has been there for 30 odd years, but unfortunately the old parliament building is now a national gallery with the new parliament now about a km away, reducing it's impact. Very interesting.
Other than that, canberra is a bit tame...
7th January
Drove to melbourne all day and just stopped to kip before we go onward to the great ocean road...
Anyway, rant over with, where have we been...
29th December (Wozza)
Let the birthday commence! Today Matt surprised me by checking out of the campsite and checking into the Hyatt hotel on Sydneys glamourous Rocks....it was amazing. We're talking views of the Opera house about 100m from the bedroom window, marble bathroom, rooftop pool with the harbour bridge looming over the top....as you know, i'm not one to boast but the boy done good! The champagne was on ice (thank you lovely Ali) as we entered the room and the birthday was in full swing.....
The Evening began by discarding the Tie Dye Teashirt, bongos and Thai fishermans trousers in favour of the new birthday Sass and Bide jeans for a night out on the town. The evening began with a delightful meal in the Sydney institution that is Doyles fish restaurant followed by drinks in Darling Harbour with Phill and Fiona (friends from NZ). The evening was completed with a selection of cocktails, Karaoke (me, matt and phill - a dazzling rendition of "papa don't preach"!) and a few rounds of black jack at the casino......all in all an excellent night, didn't get to bed till 3am which isn't to bad for an (almost) 30 year old! The egyptian cotton sheets at the Hyatt were also far more preferable than the somewhat musty (well we have been away 4.5 months) and torn (Matt has got a long toe nail!-only joking) sleeping bags!
30th December
What a lovely day......thank you for my surprise birthday cards, it was so lovely to read everyones messages...
Breakfast in bed looking at the opera house, birthday phonecalls, balloons and flowers delivered to the room...what a lucky girl I am.
Spent the day mooching round the Rocks and relaxing by the rooftop pool, bliss. The evening was spent with a surprise trip to "Bills" restaurant. Bill Granger is the Aussie equivalent to Jamie Oliver and does the meanest passionfruit pavlova ever, I was fit to burst! The birthday was brilliant.....
31st December (Matt)
Unfortunately we had to check out of the birthday hotel. We packed our bags and asked the concierge to get our van. What a site. On the hotel concourse was a charcoal Porsche 911, followed by a blacked out mercedes, followed by a 1993 toyota hiace campervan. What a sight! Then we saw the owner of the first two cars - some bloke called Sir Richard Branson. I've never heard of him but joey later told me that he's the founder of branston pickle. Who'd have thought there'd be that much money in pickle? So, we said hello. Posed for a couple of photos with him (I don't usually allow photos with joe public, but he was very insistent). Then we hopped in the van and cruised off. I think the highlight of the meeting (and for him i'm sure the whole experience was a highlight) was when I shook his hand and as jo went to shake his hand, he went in for the kiss!!! He very sharply backed away and put his hand out. The sly old dog! I think Wozza is going to sell her story to the News Of The World: "Married woman gives Branson the elbow". Or how about "Branson pickled". I should be a pun writer.
Anyway, down to earth with a bump as we were back in the Lane Cove Tourist Park. Not the 5 star pampering we had become accustomed too.
Then it was time for the grandaddy of all new years celebrations - fireworks in Sydney harbour. We got the bus in to town and watched from just below the bridge. Very very impressive I can tell you! 15 minutes of awesome whizzbangs and the like. Good atmosphere, good organisation, good night out. It was also the 75th anniversary of the bridge, so the fireworks were especially large! We were home by 2am using public transport. I can't imagine it being that well organised back home...
1st January
Got out of bed late. Lounged around all day and did bugger all - probably for the first time since we've been away. In the evening however we went on a wildlife walk with one of the park rangers (our campsite was in a national park). We saw a ringtail possum, brushtail possums, rabbits, various birds. All very impressive.
2nd January
One of Sydney's central beach suburbs is called Manly. When Cap'n Cook sailed past the cove just north of the entrance to Sydney harbour, he noticed that the "natives" were manly in appearance. Cook would turn in his grave if he saw the current state of the area's natives. It's nearly all tourists and backpackers. Most of them quite scrawny. Perhaps it should be renamed? After an hour or so trying to find somewhere to park (cue arguing and bickering) we ambled around the town. Pleasant enough with a top beach. But the main reason for coming here is to get the cross harbour manly ferry - the best way to see Sydney harbour. So we got the ferry to Sydeny circular quay. 30 minutes of surprisingly rough motoring. It does give great views though. Whilst in the city we took in the botanic gardens before popping back on the ferry. A nice day out
3rd January
Today something strange happened. Joey learnt cricket songs, and she won't stop singing them. In particular "monty, give us a wave, monty monty give us a wave" and (to the tune of yellow submarine) "you all live in a convict colony". Why? Because we spent the day with the barmy army at the SCG. 5th test day 2. Delicately poised. England were something like 230-4 with flintoff looking good on about 60. By lunch? 289 all out. Oh well. I think we know the rest of the story. Still, we had a great day out. We drunk and sung and engaged in light banter with the locals - though most of the banter was convict related. More importantly, joey has broken her england duck. Howzat!
4th january
Sydney. Home to the 2000 Olympics. So why not stay in the Olympic village? Good to see a different part of the city too. What better thing to do than try to set our own Olympic record? 100m sprint? Too easy. Marathon? Too time consuming. Gymnastics? Lycra's too embarassing. These events are for mere mortals. How about something a little more extreme? 3 full loads of laundry washed and dried in 1:58:27.53 - a new world record. Alright. I was so proud and honoured to be part of something so special. Just as the flag was being raised and the national anthem blared around the stadium in front of 75,000 people the news we feared most came through. Joey failed a drugs test. Again. I guess it explains why her biceps are now bigger than my thighs. And her gruff voice. And hairy back.
A few more wickets tumble down the road at the SCG.
5th january
Day 4 - SCG. This time it's personal. Overnight england were struggling with a 15 run lead and only four down (KP + monty at the crease). So we thought we'd make a real effort to cheer on our finest. We both had flags as capes. I bought a cheap red + white polo shirt. Wozza bought some red short/top combo. And we had face paints. We rocked. And we got amusing looks on the train into town. Unfortunately the day's play started 20 minutes early and KP had thrown his wicket early doors. There was then very little to celebrate as we finished with a 50 run lead and the convicts had an easy run chase. At least the barmy army amused everyone with renditions of "livin on a prayer" and "the final countdown"... We sat through the presentations but then left when the gloating got too much. Arrogant bunch.
In the afternoon we collected our passports after they'd been couriered to the Chinese embassy for visas. They look very cool. We can't believe we've been away so long and still have so much great stuff to do...
6th january.
350km to Canberra. Capital of Australia. It's about 150km inland. The area round there is like plains and quite beautiful. Like how you think the plains in Africa would be. And as beautiful as it is, you've got to wonder why the capital would be in the hot humid muggy inland region when the coast is so beautiful. Apparently 80 years ago when they became their own entity neither Sydney nor Melbourne would accept the other city as capital, and so they started from scratch and Canberra was born. The federal buildings are all newish and not that fascinating. The most interesting place was the aboriginal tent embassy outside the old parliament building. It's little more than a tin shack but is permanently manned by some tented aboriginals who are available for political chat and debate. The embassy has been there for 30 odd years, but unfortunately the old parliament building is now a national gallery with the new parliament now about a km away, reducing it's impact. Very interesting.
Other than that, canberra is a bit tame...
7th January
Drove to melbourne all day and just stopped to kip before we go onward to the great ocean road...
10 January 2007
This and that...
Aboriginal Embassy - Canberra
The Great Ocean Road (Victoria) Residents
Roos Chillin' on the Great Ocean Road
The Great Ocean Road (Victoria) Residents
Roos Chillin' on the Great Ocean Road
More Photos......
Birthday Dinner at Bill's Sydney (as in Granger - Aussie celeb chef)
New Years Eve - Sydney - A few sparklers and a Catherine Wheel!
The Hyatt Hotel - Me and my old mate Dicky!
New Years Eve - Melonhead!
Sydney SCG - 4th and last Day! Boo Hoo
New Years Eve - Sydney - A few sparklers and a Catherine Wheel!
The Hyatt Hotel - Me and my old mate Dicky!
New Years Eve - Melonhead!
Sydney SCG - 4th and last Day! Boo Hoo
Fotos.
Blue Mountains, NSW
Largin' it in the early hours on Joey's Bithday eve with Fiona & Phil (Joey was tucked up in bed by 7:30!)
The Bithday Hyatt with a fair-dinkum view of the tinpot Opera House.
Bondi Beach on Christmas Day - Poms and Irish everywhere!
Darling Harbour on Joey's birthday-eve celebrations (shortly before she won $100 in the casino!!!)
Largin' it in the early hours on Joey's Bithday eve with Fiona & Phil (Joey was tucked up in bed by 7:30!)
The Bithday Hyatt with a fair-dinkum view of the tinpot Opera House.
Bondi Beach on Christmas Day - Poms and Irish everywhere!
Darling Harbour on Joey's birthday-eve celebrations (shortly before she won $100 in the casino!!!)
02 January 2007
some time in december. in australia. in a galaxy far far away...
18th december
Still in Burleigh heads. Went to the beach, Surfed a bit. Fell off a bit. Got caught up in the rip a bit. Drowned a bit. Got tired a lot. Joey sunbathed. Maybe next time i'll join her. In the afternoon (or arbo as it's known here) we walked in burleigh heads NP. This walk was notable for having the biggest lizard i've ever seen. It was a foot and a half long basking in the sun. Maybe he too had had a tough morning on the gold coast's waves. This is probably the best campsite we've been in. Everyone's really friendly and it wouldn't be the end of the world if we were staying here over christmas...
19th december
Goodbye gold coast. Goodbye queensland. Hello new south wales. The only differences so far is traffic volumes. Anyway, two hours after leaving goldie, we arrived in Byron Bay. Where do I begin. Beaches? Stunning - you can see shipwrecks just off the coast. Town? Very nice. Amenities? Excellent. Camp-site? Okay. Locals? Pleasant. Travellers? Freaks. Serious freaks. Look at me, i'm finding myself. Look at me i've dyed my dreads pink and made my own clothes, i'm so unique. Sure, you and the dozens of other crusty clones. We went to lunch at a pleasant café, but ended up leaving abruptly after somehow ending up in conversation with two of the strangest (and drunkest and highest) men ever. They tried to buy us lunch and drinks. Then they admitted that they were making a film. Cue joey putting her jumper on, despite the heat...
At about ten pm the drumming circles started on the beach. Tools. The biggest irony was that by about midnight it was silent and all the wild ones were tucked up in bed.
20th december
After the huge success of snorkelling on the reef, we decided to go out onto the julian rocks marine park 3km off the coast. We were told that turtles were common and we might see giant rays and sharks. No matter how hard we looked, we couldn't find those darned sharks, however we did stumble upon one giant turtle napping on the sandy bottom and one young turtle swimming near us. Not to mention a myriad of brightly coloured fish. As this was not shallow coral, it was far more affected by the weather than at the great barrier reef. After an hour bobbing around on 3-4ft swell, all but one of the seven of us started to feel a little peaky. In fact on the boat back I was so close to puking. I went white but recovered quickly on dry land.
I had another go at surfing later in the afternoon (more bruises and near death experiences), and then we went out for a couple of beers after dinner - just to see what the fuss was all about. Pretty tame...
A lot of people love byron bay, and it's undeniably beautiful but it's no longer the hippy epicentre (hippycentre?) it once was. As our guide book says "these days it's about as alternative as MTV".
21st December
Drove down to Port Macquarie. Macquarie was an early governor in the original colony down in the south and his name crops up everywhere - towns, parks, buildings, malls... Nice town but it rained the whole time we were there...
Hmm, I smell a 30th birthday on the way...
22nd December
Cessnock is the main town in the Hunter valley. It's probably the closest we've been to the outback, but it's actually wine country. It was also mosquito country. We'd avoided them on the coast once we left the tropics and didn't expect to meet them this far south... Anyway, I got eaten alive. Again. We spent most of the evening drinking with an aussie family who were local to the area but spending christmas in the campsite. They had really strong accents which must have been the aussie equivalent of an english west country accent. They taught us some new words. My favourite being "wozza", which is really woman or your wife. The example they gave us in context was "hey, wozza, get us another beer". Amusing.
23rd December
Hunter valley wineries. We went to draytons, ivanhoe, rosemount, lindemanns... The list went on. I tasted quite a few, and joey drove. It was a really nice area and really easy to navigate, despite the amount of wine i'd drunk by 11am! Unfortunately though, we couldn't spend all day there as we'd decided to get down to sydney in good time for christmas.
After an uneventful drive we arrived at narabeen (north sydney) only to be told that the campsite had a four night minimum stay, which at $60 a night was $240. We were booked into an apartment the following day, so there was no way we were paying $240 for one night in a campsite when our apartment was only $180. So, whilst the staff at the campsite were completely unhelpful, the staff at the apartment were bonzer! They managed to squeeze us in a night early, and the apartment was awesome! Massive one bedroom with two balconies giving distant views to bondi, located above a mall with nice restaurants and a supermarket. Ripper!
24th December
Still can't get my head round aussie christmas. It's too hot. Why are people wearing santa hats and reindeer ears. Reindeers would hate this heat. I fear santa might struggle himself with all those layers. Maybe he just wears his undies and a vest on the aussie leg.
We went to the supermarket and got the grub in for a makeshift english christmas day - chicken, potatos, veg etc. Everyone else was buying sausages, burgers, steak and shrimps. I wanted a bbq so badly...
In the afternoon we got the train into the city and caught our first glimpse of the opera house and bridge. Very impressive. Obviously by this point I was getting rediculously excited by the prospect of santa's arrival. As they say here - one more sleep!
25th December
Christmas Day......(Joey)
Well, in true Aussie style we decided to spend the day at Bondi. After a delightful cooked brekkie, we sauntered down to the beach to watch the revellers, tourists and families celebrate santa's jaunt down under! No reindeer for this guy, a ute pulled by NSW's finest sheep maybe! The sun was shining, the surf was up and a great time had by all. We then bused back to the junction for a spot of roast choock and a few glasses of hunter valleys finest.
26th December (Joey)
The festival that is my birth began today! After a morning spent watching the cricket on the big screen downtown, my lovely husband announced that he had a surprise planned for the afternoon......yes, that's right, the Harbour Bridge climb! Apparently there were no climbs on the actual birthday as apparently there is this little tinpot firework display going on in the harbour which means preparation on the 30th...very selfish if you ask me, all for the sake of a few bangers and a ropey catherine wheel! The bridgeclimb was brilliant, it involves donning a rather fetching all in one suit with a harness to secure yourself to the bridge when you walk. It takes about 2 hours and you get to climb right over the steel girders, above the cars to the highest point. The views were amazing, we could see right over to bondi and out to sea and the jewell of the harbour (the opera house) was right in front of us....a brilliant and memorable start to the birthday celebrations indeed!
27th December (Joey)
Lane Cove Campsite
Now downgraded to the local campsite, except it's not really a downgrade as is situated in a National Park a few miles from Sydney CBD. Saw possums, cockatoos and skinks loitering round the van....excellent. Met nice fellow campers and enjoyed a few drinks al fresco listening to the sounds of the forest.
28th December (Joey)
The Blue Mountains
Drove the 2hours west from Sydney to the Blue Mountains National Park. They are referred to as "blue" because of the blue tinged mist given off from the native eucaliptus trees that grow all over them. The mountains are UNESCO world heritage listed and surfice to say are very pretty indeed. We stopped at Wentworth falls on the way to Katoomba (the central point to visit the mountains). The falls were relitively small compared to the beasts in NZ but this was mainly a result of the lack of water due to current drought conditions in the region. Went for a nice walk admiring the 3 sisters rocks and kings tableland on the way. Saw lots of cockatoo's too....very nice indeed.
Joey's Musings:- 2 more sleeps till i'm 30! xxx
Still in Burleigh heads. Went to the beach, Surfed a bit. Fell off a bit. Got caught up in the rip a bit. Drowned a bit. Got tired a lot. Joey sunbathed. Maybe next time i'll join her. In the afternoon (or arbo as it's known here) we walked in burleigh heads NP. This walk was notable for having the biggest lizard i've ever seen. It was a foot and a half long basking in the sun. Maybe he too had had a tough morning on the gold coast's waves. This is probably the best campsite we've been in. Everyone's really friendly and it wouldn't be the end of the world if we were staying here over christmas...
19th december
Goodbye gold coast. Goodbye queensland. Hello new south wales. The only differences so far is traffic volumes. Anyway, two hours after leaving goldie, we arrived in Byron Bay. Where do I begin. Beaches? Stunning - you can see shipwrecks just off the coast. Town? Very nice. Amenities? Excellent. Camp-site? Okay. Locals? Pleasant. Travellers? Freaks. Serious freaks. Look at me, i'm finding myself. Look at me i've dyed my dreads pink and made my own clothes, i'm so unique. Sure, you and the dozens of other crusty clones. We went to lunch at a pleasant café, but ended up leaving abruptly after somehow ending up in conversation with two of the strangest (and drunkest and highest) men ever. They tried to buy us lunch and drinks. Then they admitted that they were making a film. Cue joey putting her jumper on, despite the heat...
At about ten pm the drumming circles started on the beach. Tools. The biggest irony was that by about midnight it was silent and all the wild ones were tucked up in bed.
20th december
After the huge success of snorkelling on the reef, we decided to go out onto the julian rocks marine park 3km off the coast. We were told that turtles were common and we might see giant rays and sharks. No matter how hard we looked, we couldn't find those darned sharks, however we did stumble upon one giant turtle napping on the sandy bottom and one young turtle swimming near us. Not to mention a myriad of brightly coloured fish. As this was not shallow coral, it was far more affected by the weather than at the great barrier reef. After an hour bobbing around on 3-4ft swell, all but one of the seven of us started to feel a little peaky. In fact on the boat back I was so close to puking. I went white but recovered quickly on dry land.
I had another go at surfing later in the afternoon (more bruises and near death experiences), and then we went out for a couple of beers after dinner - just to see what the fuss was all about. Pretty tame...
A lot of people love byron bay, and it's undeniably beautiful but it's no longer the hippy epicentre (hippycentre?) it once was. As our guide book says "these days it's about as alternative as MTV".
21st December
Drove down to Port Macquarie. Macquarie was an early governor in the original colony down in the south and his name crops up everywhere - towns, parks, buildings, malls... Nice town but it rained the whole time we were there...
Hmm, I smell a 30th birthday on the way...
22nd December
Cessnock is the main town in the Hunter valley. It's probably the closest we've been to the outback, but it's actually wine country. It was also mosquito country. We'd avoided them on the coast once we left the tropics and didn't expect to meet them this far south... Anyway, I got eaten alive. Again. We spent most of the evening drinking with an aussie family who were local to the area but spending christmas in the campsite. They had really strong accents which must have been the aussie equivalent of an english west country accent. They taught us some new words. My favourite being "wozza", which is really woman or your wife. The example they gave us in context was "hey, wozza, get us another beer". Amusing.
23rd December
Hunter valley wineries. We went to draytons, ivanhoe, rosemount, lindemanns... The list went on. I tasted quite a few, and joey drove. It was a really nice area and really easy to navigate, despite the amount of wine i'd drunk by 11am! Unfortunately though, we couldn't spend all day there as we'd decided to get down to sydney in good time for christmas.
After an uneventful drive we arrived at narabeen (north sydney) only to be told that the campsite had a four night minimum stay, which at $60 a night was $240. We were booked into an apartment the following day, so there was no way we were paying $240 for one night in a campsite when our apartment was only $180. So, whilst the staff at the campsite were completely unhelpful, the staff at the apartment were bonzer! They managed to squeeze us in a night early, and the apartment was awesome! Massive one bedroom with two balconies giving distant views to bondi, located above a mall with nice restaurants and a supermarket. Ripper!
24th December
Still can't get my head round aussie christmas. It's too hot. Why are people wearing santa hats and reindeer ears. Reindeers would hate this heat. I fear santa might struggle himself with all those layers. Maybe he just wears his undies and a vest on the aussie leg.
We went to the supermarket and got the grub in for a makeshift english christmas day - chicken, potatos, veg etc. Everyone else was buying sausages, burgers, steak and shrimps. I wanted a bbq so badly...
In the afternoon we got the train into the city and caught our first glimpse of the opera house and bridge. Very impressive. Obviously by this point I was getting rediculously excited by the prospect of santa's arrival. As they say here - one more sleep!
25th December
Christmas Day......(Joey)
Well, in true Aussie style we decided to spend the day at Bondi. After a delightful cooked brekkie, we sauntered down to the beach to watch the revellers, tourists and families celebrate santa's jaunt down under! No reindeer for this guy, a ute pulled by NSW's finest sheep maybe! The sun was shining, the surf was up and a great time had by all. We then bused back to the junction for a spot of roast choock and a few glasses of hunter valleys finest.
26th December (Joey)
The festival that is my birth began today! After a morning spent watching the cricket on the big screen downtown, my lovely husband announced that he had a surprise planned for the afternoon......yes, that's right, the Harbour Bridge climb! Apparently there were no climbs on the actual birthday as apparently there is this little tinpot firework display going on in the harbour which means preparation on the 30th...very selfish if you ask me, all for the sake of a few bangers and a ropey catherine wheel! The bridgeclimb was brilliant, it involves donning a rather fetching all in one suit with a harness to secure yourself to the bridge when you walk. It takes about 2 hours and you get to climb right over the steel girders, above the cars to the highest point. The views were amazing, we could see right over to bondi and out to sea and the jewell of the harbour (the opera house) was right in front of us....a brilliant and memorable start to the birthday celebrations indeed!
27th December (Joey)
Lane Cove Campsite
Now downgraded to the local campsite, except it's not really a downgrade as is situated in a National Park a few miles from Sydney CBD. Saw possums, cockatoos and skinks loitering round the van....excellent. Met nice fellow campers and enjoyed a few drinks al fresco listening to the sounds of the forest.
28th December (Joey)
The Blue Mountains
Drove the 2hours west from Sydney to the Blue Mountains National Park. They are referred to as "blue" because of the blue tinged mist given off from the native eucaliptus trees that grow all over them. The mountains are UNESCO world heritage listed and surfice to say are very pretty indeed. We stopped at Wentworth falls on the way to Katoomba (the central point to visit the mountains). The falls were relitively small compared to the beasts in NZ but this was mainly a result of the lack of water due to current drought conditions in the region. Went for a nice walk admiring the 3 sisters rocks and kings tableland on the way. Saw lots of cockatoo's too....very nice indeed.
Joey's Musings:- 2 more sleeps till i'm 30! xxx
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