Round the World 0 Au Revoir 03-FEB-2009 21:34:55 Was the best leaving party a girl could have asked for! Will miss you all lots. x 0 Delhi - hot, humid and so many people! 29-MAR-2009 04:55:24 I've arrived in Delhi and have had an incredibly smooth first day - flight was good, transfer was easy and all the people have been lovely - outside of the hotel its just a sensory overload, but have enjoyed wandering around and taking it all in! It's just so hot and smoggy, I just can't get over the number of people, they are everywhere! (Along with the cows, monkeys and dogs!) Got an hour to pass then get to meet up with what i hope to be a lovely group of people which I will spend the next 22 days with on our 'North India Unplugged' Tour! 0 The Golden City of Jaisalmer 31-MAR-2009 10:54:10 Arrived in the Golden City of Jaisalmer yesterday after a 19 hour train journey from Delhi, the time flew and I got plenty of sleep thanks to being on the top bunk and listening to my ipod! The city is beautiful and we are really lucky to be staying within the 12th Century Fort where views of the city are stunning. Members of my group are lovely, we ate a gorgeous curry last night (my best yet!) and relaxed on the rooftop terrace drinking Gin and getting to know one another.! Today I've walked for miles around the city and really enjoyed watching the locals and dodging the cows and camels (let alone their poo!)!! Tomorrow we are off on Camel Safari for a night under the stars... 0 Camel Safari into the Thar Desert 02-APR-2009 05:53:35 Riding Camels into the desert was by far the highlight of Jaisalmer. We took a jeep for 35km where we met our camels. Mine was the youngest (probably because I'm the smallest!), only three years old and was called Mim - he was lovely! We treked for 3 hours and arrived at camp set among the dunes, the camel drivers provided beer and dinner which was all delicious. We paid 70 rupees each and the Gypsies came and danced and played music - its was great fun and we were all up and dancing! I woke at 5am and the sky was completely clear, I could see all the stars - magical!! The next morning we drank Chi and began our 2 hour return journey. After a quick shower we took a 5 hour bus journey to Jodhpur, we were all exhausted and slept all the way. 0 Jodhpur - the best Lassie in India 04-APR-2009 03:47:28 Arrived in Jodhpur yesterday and its a bit of a shock to the system after the tranquility of Jaisalmer. It's a pretty busy town which has some stunning sites. This morning I took a guided tour around Meherangarh Fort, its amazingly well preserved and was really interesting to look round. Also saw Jaswant Thada which is a marble memorial which was beautiful. Sampled India's best Lassie which was delicious - a bit like a yoghurt and it tasted just like Lemon Meringe Pie!! This afternoon I took an Auto Rickshaw to Umaid Bahvam which is the kings palace (apparently Liz Hurley got married there) - pretty impressive but only got to look around the museum. 0 Udaipur - Picturesque Lakeside Palaces 05-APR-2009 04:00:28 We took jeeps to transfer to Udaipur so that en route we were able to stop off and see some sights, so pleased as an 8 hour bus didn't sound much fun! The pottery was amazing and the skills and traditions were passed down through the whole family, even the 6 year old knew how the spin that wheel! We also saw a rural village and some of the guys in our group got to sample Opium where as the rest of us stuck to Chapati and Chai. Spent 3 days in Udaipur which would have been a stunning lakeside location had it rained there in the past 2 years! City Palace was beautiful and Monsoon Palace is famous as it's where they filmed Octapussy. Unfortunately I and 2 others in our group succummed to a Delhi Belly (it had to strike sometime) so I spent 24 hours in bed! Good job the hotel was lovely and my roomie Samira looked after me so well. 0 Pushkar - Meaning flower and hand 08-APR-2009 11:57:49 Today is Jacks 22nd birthday! After the 5 hour train journey to Agmer and a very cramped car ride (I thought they were going to put me on the roof with the bags!) we arrived at Hotel Kishian Palace in Pushkar. Home to the only Brahma temple it is one of the holiest towns in Hinduism and is an essential pilgrimage destination. It's a small town and after our orientation tour we recieve the 'Pushkar Passport', a blessing from a Brahman Priest allowing us access to the temples hassel free. We pray for our families and scatter petals and spices into lake Tirtharay, then sit and watch the people bath. Puskar is alcohol free so in order to celebrate Jacks special day we take a bus 5km to a local house, where we are fed, entertained and dance until the early hours under the full moon. Great for shopping - I've made a few small purchases that are so beautiful yet so cheap! ;-) 0 Jaipur City of Victory 10-APR-2009 10:43:22 After an early start we catch a local bus to Jaipur, it took 3 1/2 hours and cost less than a pound! Jaipur is a crazy busy city, similar to Delhi but without so much charm. It's enclosed within 20ft high fortified walls and was planned and built in 1727. All the buildings are pink and it's known as the Pink City. We walked round for hours, dodging bikes, rickshaws and buses - its so strange that to cross the road is like playing a game of chicken! In the evening we went to Raj Mandir, the most beautiful cinema in Asia and watched a hilarious Bollywood film for 3 hours. Afterward we ate Thali at a local restaurant - it wasn't until we left that Barney pointed out the guy in the corner had a machine gun under the table - government minister security apparently! Today we went to Jantar Mantar, a spectacular observatory build in 1728 it contains 17 astrological instruments and has the largest sun dial in the world (see pic of me in front of it!). Off to Nahargah Fort at 4pm for sunset and panoramic views over the city. 0 Bharatpur - Keoladeo Ghana National Park 12-APR-2009 11:55:08 We left Jaipur at 7am and took a tourist bus (ever so slightly more luxurious than a local bus!) for 5 hours to Bharatpur, a small town where we only go to see Keoladeo Ghana National Park. Converted from a Maharaja's hunting estate in 1956 this is one of the most important bird sanctuaries and is now a world heritage site, covering 29skms and with 1000's of migratory birds arriving every year. We take a cycle rickshaw and a guide and enjoy a 3 hour sunset tour of the park. I saw Egrets, Herons, Stalks, Owls, Darters, Snake birds, Spotted Deer, Jackals, Antelope and Peacocks. Oh, it's also Easter Sunday and Vicky gave us all mini choc eggs from New Zealand, yummy!! 0 Agra - Taj Mahal 13-APR-2009 13:53:45 The temperature is rising and today in Agra is 42 degrees. I'm still slapping on the factor 50 as the sun is so strong so no tan as yet ;-) Our hotel is only 100m from the Taj Mahal and its a 5.30am start so that we are first in the entrance queue. We enter via the East gate and the view of the Taj Mahal at sunrise is spectacular, enclosed within such beautiful clean and serene grounds. It's much smaller than I expected but equally as beautiful, the architecture outside is so intricate and inside is a very calm, dark space where both bodies are resting. Took so many photos but won't bore you with then until I get home! We left that evening on an overnight sleep train to Varanasi. 0 Varanasi & Ganges 15-APR-2009 14:10:31 The traffic in Varanasi is the worst yet - outside the train station there was nothing but chaos. Finally we jumped in some taxis and headed to Hotel Temple on the Ganges. There were many Ghats leading onto the Ganges with lots of people bathing, swimming and doing their laundry. At sunset we took a boat out for a prayer ceromony involving the lighting of candels. From here we watched a nightly ritual of music, prayer and dance. A few of us woke early and took a boat out for sunrise, it was a totally different feel to the night before with lots of people up doing their washing and jobs. We saw bodies being burnt and scattered into the Ganges which was quite a surreal experience...especially when there were goats and cows rummaging through remains!! Second day was electons and most shops/markets were closed so people could go and vote. We took an overnight train to Kolkata... our last stop on the tour!! 0 Kolkata, India 17-APR-2009 07:56:43 I didn't sleep very well on the train from Varanasi to Kolkata, suprising as I usualy do but this time it was hindered by a very bright light, a man snoring very loudly and me being too short for the bed - yep...too short! Great thing was that the train got in 4 hours early meaning I had lots of time to wander around the very European influenced city of Kolkata. It had parks, traffic lights and even lane markings, not that anyone used them! We walked around and visited Mother Teresa's house which was really interesting and displayed lots of information about her and her causes. As it was our last night we went out for a slap up dinner at Marco Polo which was great fun and lovely food. I had to say my farewells to everyone as I had an early flight the next morning. Its been a truly eye opening excperience in North India and I've enjoyed the company of super people who formed such a great group and made it really special. We've seen remarkable places, inspiring sights and very beautiful people. I'd highly recommend North India... but not for the faint hearted! ;-) 0 Goa - Palolem Beach 20-APR-2009 05:33:08 I flew Kingfisher Airlines to Goa via Mumbai and it was excellent - got a cooked breakfast with proper cutlery and crockery and a curry for lunch - it was only a 3 1/2 hour flight!! I had decided to travel south to Palolem beach, suposidly the most idylic of Goas beaches and I'd found Papillon beach huts online so they picked me up from the airport which was fab! My hut is lovely, really basic but cute and set in a really nice location. Have spent the last 6 days lying on the beach, eating and generally relaxing. Met a couple of nice English guys who are staying there and also 2 German girls. Going to venture North East and head inland to Hampi to see the temples so have just bought a train ticket for next week. Loving the beach life but getting withdrawal symptoms for the culture! 0 Panjim and Old Goa 26-APR-2009 09:32:50 Spent two days enjoying the winding streets of Panjim's old Portuguese quarter. Stayed in a lovely guest house called Somia and bought fruit daily from a really sweet, friendly young boy called 'Alli' - on my last day he threw in 2 oranges for free ;-) Took a local bus out to Old Goa and visited the Basilica of Bom Jesus which contains the remains of St Francis Xavier. Really enjoyed seeing the churches in such tranquility and peace. 0 Hampi - Ruins of Vijayanagar 28-APR-2009 03:01:04 After navigating the local buses I arrived in Margao to catch the train to Hospet, it ran perfectly to time and had quite a few tourists on board. Met Rich (UK) and Julia (Italy) in my carriage and we have spent the past 4 days together in Hampi since. We spent our first two nights across the river in really beautiful huts overlooking the river the moved into bazaar yesterday so we had more amenities. The landscape here is amazing, quite strange with boulders strewn everywhere, it was once the capital of the largest Hindu empire with a population of 500,000. We've walked loads, hired bikes and taken a rickshaw to take us out to the temples further afield. Everyone is really friendly and this morning I got up early to see Lakshmi'' the temple elephant take her morning bath with the locals in the river. Enjoying a lazy day today as up early tomorrow for my onward train... 0 Fort Cochin - Central Kerala 06-MAY-2009 05:04:57 Arrived at Ernakulam Junction train station after a challenging 15 hours on an overnight train. I slept really well but awoke to the cries of a 6 month old baby on the bunk below. She was really cute so it was hard to hold a grudge but the next 8 hours were frustraiting as her parents spread belongings all over the carriage, got up and down out of their seats every 5 minutes and I ended up with a rather small amount of seat space (although I don't need much!). Fort Cochin is lovely, I was going to stay on the mainland but thought I'd enjoy the relaxed pace on the island. It's really characterful and I easily passed a day visiting the Chinese Fishing Nets, St Francis Church (oldest European Church in India) and walking to the Dutch Palace and Jew Town. There are lots of Indian families on holiday at Fort Cochin and as lovely as they all are they wouldn't leave me alone and just wanted to talk! There are also some fabulous antique shops amongst the spice traders... I wanted to buy a beautiful wardrobe and courier it home!! Today it seems there is a strike so my plans to catch a bus are delayed by a day. Instead I've been relaxing in a courtyard garden and chatting to some travelers, we've just booked tickets to a Kathakali show tonight (mix between Shakespeare and face painting!) which should be entertaining. Hopefully tomorrow I'll make it to Allepey... 0 Alleppey - Keralan Backwaters 09-MAY-2009 06:01:12 I'm really loving the local buses - they are so much fun! So took another one to Alleppey which is the hub to the Keralan Backwaters. Enjoyed a fab canoe ride for 4 hours (couldn't afford a house boat!) and got to see the village life, house boats and beautiful canals - had a really funny guide Samjit who sang the whole time and was trying to improve his english so we did lessons along the way! Who said I'd never make a teacher! Decided to head inland rather than South to more of the same back waters to caught a ferry at 7am across a lake to Kottayam then from there another bus for 4 hours to Kumily. 0 Kumily - Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary 11-MAY-2009 11:04:15 It's a small world - even in India! Arrived in Kumily, a strange little town and found a cute home stay, only to walk down the road and bump into some peeps from Hampi - so, they decided to stay at my place too and we spent a great 2 days at Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary; Pilar, Bjorn and Pete! Went on a 3 hour jungle trek which by Costa Rican standards was pretty poor - saw some Samba deer and a few birds but no tigers or elephants. Oh and there were leaches everywhere..the squeezed through the mesh on peoples trainers and got into their socks, there was blood everywhere - fortunately none of the slippery little suckers got through my walking boots!! Visited a Spice Plantation in the afternoon which was great, the scenary is stunning with tea and spice plantations in the hills. So...we held out hope for the boat ride at 4pm to catch a glimpse of a tiger or at least an elephant.... despite selling out of boat tickets as we got to the front of the queue we managed to buy some on the side - strange back handers in India! As we were about to board the heavens opened and the rain poured - refreshing and fun but ruined all chances of seeing any wildlife - saw nothing in 2 hours! Prepared myself for the 8 hour journey on a local bus to Trivandrum... cost only 1.20p, bargain! 0 Trivandrum - Varkala, Kanyakumari & Kovalam 13-MAY-2009 04:46:28 I survived my very long bus journey - in fact it really wasn't that bad at all, just didn't drink any water - ha ha! So it seems it's peak holiday season here so it took a while to find a place to kip - got a bargain room though with TV and everything!! Spent yesterday walking round, checking out the sites and temples. Went to the best coffee house located in a brick tower with seats running on a slope all the way up - pretty cool. Got caught in amidst a procession yesterday which took over the city center with drums and music - it was the silver anniversary of something but couldn't find out what! Didn't wake up for the 5.30am bus to Kanyakumari today so opted for Varkala beach instead which was stunning - as cliff top picturesque as everyone had said! Perhaps tomorrow I'll aim for the 9am bus instead... Kanyakumari was really nice - definitely worth the bus trip to the most southern point in India - visited the temple and the resting place of Ghandi's ashes before they were immersed to sea. Today was a great day - I met with Alison's colleague Ranjith and enjoyed a fun day on the back of his Avenger bike, visiting an art gallery, eating Keralan food and visiting Kovalam - even climbed the lighthouse for a great view of the bay. I'll be sad to leave India tomorrow but thank you to Ranjith for making this a very special last day! I will be back... one day ;-) 0 Hong Kong - "neon lights and chicken feet!" 19-MAY-2009 03:51:59 There seems to be only one way to survive Hong Kong and that is to spend some serious cash! Thanks to my lovely clients at IHG I was fortunate enough to spend 3 fabulous nights in a hotel in the center of Kowloon..at a discounted rate of course! After my time in India the rooftop pool and room service breakfast felt like absolute heaven. Hong Kong is really cool, so clean and orderly with designer shops everywhere! I crammed plenty of sightseeing into the 4 days; a trip up the peak, HK park, Causeway Bay, Bank of China Tower, the Star Ferry, a Tram, the evening light show, drinks in Lan Kwai Fang and Soho...and of course plenty of shopping! Met up with Greg who I met on my India trip and had a great night out with his current China tour group around Temple Market, where I purchased my 4th pair of sunglasses, hopefully these fake Anna Sui's won't break too soon as I can't afford many more pairs of sunglasses! 0 Vietnam - Xin Chao Hanoi! 22-MAY-2009 04:03:56 Arrived in Vietnam Thursday night and took the shuttle bus to my hostel in Hanoi which is cool, really busy with lots going on; BBQ on the roof terrace, happy hour, free internet etc. Met Cristian at the airport who is from Chile (he's been telling me all about it and promised to show me round in January which is cool! - he's dressed below as a Vietnamese fruit seller!) and spent 2 days checking out Hanoi with him and fellow travelers. Vietnam is a nice contrast from HK, and Hanoi feels pretty tame for a capital city, everyone seems very friendly but the motorbike taxis and cyclos are pretty annoying hanging around every street corner trying to sell you a ride. I've eaten some great food... the beer is pretty good too! Off to Sapa tonight on an overnight train which should be great - really looking forward to escaping the city and seeing the village life and countryside. 0 Sapa - Hoang Lien Mountains 24-MAY-2009 06:26:34 I decided to make my own way to Sapa in Northwestern Vietnam rather than joining a tour group from Hanoi; it was far cheaper and I wanted to spend a few days in the North rather than returning after one night. Met Tara from California on the overnight sleeper train, we had a 6 berth cabin all to ourselves, slept pretty well and arrived at 5am in the morning. After hoping on a minibus we both checked into Mountain View Hotel which has amazing views of the Hoang Lien Mountains including Fansipan (Vietnams highest peak!). Sapa is such a beautiful hill station with hill-tribe women in colourful head gear, heavy fabrics and silver jewellery. After some debate I decided against trekking the 3143m to Fansipan summit (I think Kinabalu has given me the bug!) as I've been told its too wet and many tours have to turn back this time of year, so instead we are embarking on a dry, 2 day 1 night trek through the local villages with a homestay overnight. The trek was fabulous - absolutely stunning scenery and the weather was beautiful. The Mong tribes women were so gentle and kind, okay so we bought few bangles from them, but they were lovely even before we gave them our money!! The home stay was fun and the food delicious - nice to eat some homemade Vietnamese dishes and it was fascinating watching the people at work in the rice paddie fields. Also found myself in a field full of Hemp...! 0 Halong Bay, boat trip! 28-MAY-2009 05:57:50 As I fell in love with the buses in India I thought I'd test those of Vietnam. The overnight bus from Sapa back to Hanoi was luxurious to say the least with reclining seats and air con, and it included a free meal stop at midnight of egg and noodles but could I get comfy enough to sleep - NO! Oh well, the local bus from Hanoi to Bay Chai in Halong City was good and really comfy so I'm guessing I'll sleep well tonight instead. I decided to take the day tour around Halong Bay today instead of waiting for the 2 day 1 night trip tomorrow. I really want to head South and visit lots of places before heading to Cambodia so as it was loads cheaper and saved me 2 days I figured the day trip would be just as good - which it was! It was a little cloudy at times but the 3000 islands rising from the emerald waters of the Gulf of Tonkin were pretty incredible. 0 Ninh Binh, Tam Coc and Hoa Lu 30-MAY-2009 03:07:46 How many people can you fit into a minibus? The journey from Bai Chay in Halong Bay took 5 hours on a very cramped minibus, it was a pretty fun journey with all the locals and as the weather was dull and grey I didn't mind being sat at the back singing along to really loud, terrible Vietnamese music! Arrived in Ninh Binh and recived the warmest of welcomes from Queen Mini Hotel. The place was local but really nice and sociable with amazing cheap food, this is where I met Jen and Lynsay from Australia and Paul from Canada.. the next day we all took motorbike tours around the sights. Tam coc is stunning, like an inland Halong Bay set amongst rice paddies. We had a really fun boat ride along the Ngo Dongn river and through the caves... with crazy women rowing with their feet, quite a skill. Afterwards we headed to Hoa Lu which looks very similar to the rock formations of Tam Coc but with a historical twist. It was once the capital of Vietnam, most of the ancient Citadel has been destroyed but we climbed up a rather steep hill to get stunning views of what remains of ancient city. Our tour guide was great and we got to ride through small local villages and enjoy the countryside with water buffalos and green rice paddies. 0 Hue, Citadel Kinh Thanh 31-MAY-2009 03:04:11 I got given the worst bed on the overnight sleeper bus with a TV bang in front of my head playing loud Vietnamese programmes. When I finally got to sleep it was okay but in the morning I had been eaten alive by bugs and mozzies ;-( To make up for it I landed a really nice room in the city of Hue with lots of bars and restuarants nearby. Spent a good few hours walking around the Kinh Thanh Citadel which was interesting but not particularly informative.. it was heavily bombed during the war but now most of its opulent tombs are in a state of decay. The rest of the city is nice and full of scooters and I ate the most amazing apple and chocolate pancake ;-) 0 Hoi An...tailor made clothes 02-JUN-2009 11:45:40 Met Helen on the bus to Hoi An and we have had so much fun the past few days! Both of us have had clothes tailormade and weve spent hours picking fabrics, choosing colours and selecting linings! In between shopping weve been lounging by the poolside and enjoying a beer or two... Hoi An is a beautiful charming old town set on the Thu Bon River, it used to be an international trading port with Chinese and Japanese influences. Ive eaten amazing local food and the people here are so friendly and helpful. Helen and I are taking an overnight bus south to Na Trang this evening... 0 Nha Trang - Beach bumming and lobster! 06-JUN-2009 03:45:04 Enjoyed a really nice couple of days just chilling out in Nha Trang. Quite a nice city that was hosting a massive festival celebrating the sea and squid! Huge stage and sound system was set up on the beach and there were people and motorbikes everywhere... great atmosphere. Helen and I chilled out, topping up the tans and eating fresh seafood on the beach at bargain prices. Hopped on an overnight bus to Saigon on Saturday night... 0 Saigon 07-JUN-2009 03:46:44 It's been a tiring day as I was so uncomfortable on the overnight bus - I really don't know how these 6ft guys cope on the bus when I don't even fit in the chair! Found a great little hotel with free breakfast, dinner, internet and coffee then headed straight out on a tour to the Cu Ci Tunnels. We stopped enroute at a handicraft factory where disabled people make the most wonderful crafts and pictures. The Cu Ci tunnels were fascinating, it was interesting to learn more about the war and was great trying to fit in the snipper holes and crawl through the tunnels. After the tour and a quick pit stop of noodles and spring rolls we hit the War Museum which was incredibly moving and very sad; there was some emotional photography on display alongside artefacts, tanks and weapons. Have signed up for a 2 day 1 night tour out to the Mekong Delta leaving tomorrow which I'm really looking forward then it's off to Cambodia in a few days... 0 Mekong Delta; My Tho and Can Tho 08-JUN-2009 05:07:58 The past few days have been spent sailing up the Mekong River and enjoying the countryside surrounding it. After a bus ride to My Tho we took a small boat across the Mekong, stopping at a coconut candy plant, bee farm and villages where locals cooked us lunch and played traditional Vietnamese music (sounded out of tune!) - I even got to hold a Python!! We headed onto Can Tho on a large ferry where we stayed overnight - that evenings dinner had rat and snake on the menu! The following morning we took a ride along the river to the floating market, they only sold fresh produce and indicated what they were selling by hanging it from their masts. Then we visited a fruit farm, local village and watched rice noodles being made before heading back to Saigon in the evening. Spending today chilling in Saigon and seeing some of the city and markets before heading to the border and crossing into Cambodia to Phnom Penh tomorrow... goodbye Vietnam ;-( 0 Phnom Penh, Cambodia 12-JUN-2009 08:54:20 My expectations of Phnom Penh were that it would be a chaotic city that you would quickly want to leave for your next destination. However, even though I stayed only 2 nights I really quite liked the place. Judging by the history of the city and its horrific Khmer Rouge past it was inevitable that there would be beggars and amputees on the streets, this aside it had plenty of character and charm. Our day out at the Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng Museum (S-21 Security Prison) was a particularly emotional one, however I felt it was important to understand what the Cambodians and their country went through only 30 years ago. We stayed at Royal Guesthouse which was cute and in the centre of town then made our way up to Siem Reap on a 6 hour day bus (which was slightly smelly and not the luxury VIP aircon bus as said on the ticket!). 0 Siem Reap - Angkor Wat... the eight wonder of the world! 14-JUN-2009 23:36:21 Aside from a little confrontation with an over-eager Tuk Tuk driver, Helen, Rory and I arrived in the beautiful quaint town of Siem Reap and found a great little guest house to stay in. We made it to Angkor Wat for sunrise which led to a pleasant few hours traveling around other temples in our Tuk Tuk and taking in the sights, the midday heat was too hot to be walking around. I found the temples spectacular and was particularly surprised by the manicured landscape and lakes that surrounded Angkor Wat, I expected to be clambering through over-grown forest! Siem Reaps markets were great and I made a few little purchases before spending the evenings eating Ostrich and Kangaroo while drinking far too much Angkor beer. 0 Ko Chang - Thailand 17-JUN-2009 12:46:22 Could it get much better than this? Okay so perhaps a little more sun and a little less cloud would be good but that is the price you pay for visiting in low season. The border crossing into Thailand was slow but not too painful. I had to wait a few hours for my connecting minibus to Ko Chang but when it arrived we had a great bunch of people on it. We arrived on the island at 8pm and I checked into Magic Garden - a really nice chilled out place with cute little beach huts and fantastic food. It would be a bonus to have a roof over my bathroom (peeing in the rain is not fun!) but I guess you can't have it all! We do however have a pet monkey called Bungee which is cool. I've eaten some terrific seafood and am really enjoying the opportunity to relax and kick back as the past few weeks have been pretty non-stop. Few days here then it's off to Bangkok to party for my birthday...! 0 Bangkok Birthday fun! 26-JUN-2009 12:43:44 Stayed in a very cool new age hostel just on the east side of Bangkok... beautiful white dorms with trendy fixtures and even a pool - a little oasis in amongst the craziness that is Bangkok. Met some lovely people and enjoyed a few days out and about shopping, eating - even watched Transformers at the Imex! Had an absolutely brilliant 21st birthday in Bangkok - cake, cards, hotel, happy hours! Unfortunately not many photos to show of our night out on Khao San road as Chris and I started drinking during the day and made an executive decision to stay out rather than return to the hotel to fetch a camera, however I have been sent a couple courtesy of Jon! Thankfully not feeling too hung-over the next day from the birthday celebrations Chris and I went to Lumphini Stadium in the evening to watch some Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) - it was great fun and the stadium atmosphere was fab with live musical accompaniment, nothing like drinking beer out of plastic glasses! 0 Kanchanaburi & The Bridge Over the River Kwai 27-JUN-2009 08:04:28 After checking, double checking and triple checking which station the train to Kanchanaburi leaves from Chris and I rock up at which one? - the wrong one!! Anyway.. to save time we promptly got rid of any dissapointment of not going by train and caught a minibus instead... we still arrived in the morning and checked into a cute little guest house on the River Kwai with a beautiful view. Kanchanaburi was lovely and really interesting learning all about the building of the railway. We visited the Thailand and Burma Railway Centre which told us all about the Japanese agression during WWWII then we went to the War Cemetary accross the road which was very sad and quite upsetting. The following morning we walked to The Bridge Over the River Kwai and took a fabulous high-speed boat trip down the river where we saw locals partying on houseboats, a giant Budha and some caves... very HOT and sweaty caves!! This time we made sure we caught the train back to Bangkok... not difficult considering it was over an hour late but the scenery was beautiful and the train ride was lots of fun with the locals. 0 Ko Samui - Chaweng & Bo Phut beaches 30-JUN-2009 01:00:43 I take back what I said about Ko Chang... Samui is now the new paradise! Arrived at the cutest of little airports with bamboo roofed buildings and headed to Chaweng beach... we found a nice bungalow (some would call it bohemian!) right on the beach in amongst the bars and restaurants. I may have turned 28 but I am not past it just yet and Chris and I decided we could party just as hard as the 18 year olds! After 3 nights on Chaweng we couldn't take it anymore... ha ha. We thought it would be nice to try Bo Phut which turned out to be a beautiful white beach with quiet surroundings, stylish restaurants and luxury boutique hotels... needless to say we spoilt ourselves and had to try one out - 'Peace' had the most amazing pool right on the beach! Goodbye Chris - as he flies back to the chaos that is Delhi! I spent the next 2 nights a Eden guesthouse, relaxing by the pool, watching Wimbledon and planning the next leg of my trip... Malaysia! 0 Kulala Lumpur - from great hights... 06-JUL-2009 18:34:56 Finally... cheap high speed internet access... whoo hooo!! Had a really good flight from Ko Samui to KL... cheating ever so slightly in the sense of a hardened traveller but the flight was SO cheap and as time is of the essence I was eager to get to Malaysia and get trekking! Chinatown seems like fun... ever so slightly crazy after beach bumming for the past week but fun all the same. Checked into a simple yet effective hostel bang in the centre and just found out some travel chums from india are just around the corner... going to meet for a beer tomorrow ;-) Headed straight out early this morning and navigated the metro across town to the Petrona Towers where I queued for ages to get a free ticket up to the Skybridge. It's a small world and whilst queuing I bumped into Greg so we spent the morning touring round town until our viewing slot at 1.30pm. Visited the Central Market and Merdeka Square in the colonial district then walked to the Golden Triangle to go up the Menara Kuala Lumpur (once the worlds tallest telecommunications tower!). The views from here and from the Skybridge were spectacular! Heading out to a kareoke bar tonight with Greg and his tour group and currently deciding whether or not to spend another day in KL or travel out to the Cameron Highlands tomorrow.... 0 Tanah Rata - Cameron Highlands 10-JUL-2009 01:25:55 The past 3 days in the Cameron Highlands have been adventurous, muddy and cold...but SO much fun! I finally got to wear my hoody and raincoat, but now I think I may be getting a cold, boo! Farthers Guest House is really nice, with a great big sociable lounge area and fantastic cheap food! I'm sleeping in a bunker - it's a little chilly but am enjoying the experience, the showers are like being back at Brownie Camp! Yesterday I went on a full day 'Cameronian Secrets' experience and got to see a Rafflesia - the largest flower in the world! It was pretty special, and huge! They are fairly rare and only flower for 4-5 days, we were really lucky and saw a 1 day old flower that was starting to open, plus a 4 day old and some that had died and turned black. The 3 hours trekking was great fun, really muddy and so hot - I don't think I have ever sweated so much but I managed not to fall on my bum! We went off-roading in Land Rovers and one of them broke down - so we had to push! We visited 'Boh' tea plantation where, and wait for it.... Clare drank her first cuppa tea in years! I thought I should at least try it and Grant and Sarah (lovely UK couple) guided me through the process (I added sugar!) which was pretty hilarious. I have to say... it was a bit like dish water but I did manage half a mug of Cameronian Gold Blend!! We visited a local tribal village and got to try firing poison arrows using a blow pipe - surprisingly easy! Then it was another drive up to the highest peak where we trekked into a Mossy forest, it had just poured down with rain so it was like wading in a swamp... The forest was really eerie but I got to see wild Orchids and Pitcher plants along the way... a great experience! Chilling in Tanah Rata today and making plans for the next stop at Taman Negara for more trekking!!! 0 Taman Negara - 130 million year old rainforest! 12-JUL-2009 21:12:54 Kuala Tahan is a pretty special place, located across the river Sungai Tembeling from the Taman Negara national park entrance, it has a wonderful village community in a stunningly beautiful setting. Am staying in a down and dirty hostel which is fun, I've ventured away from the freezing cold showers until absolutely necessary so I may smell slightly! In fact my trainers are so bad they were binned this morning - bring on the shopping in Singapore! Have eaten some great food on the floating restaurants and met some lovely fellow travelers. Trekked to the top of Teresek Hill this morning with stunning views of the rain forest and took a walk over the worlds longest hanging bridge canopy which was quite an adrenaline rush! Really looking forward to my night safari tonight... 0 Perhentian Islands - Pulau Kecil 15-JUL-2009 10:54:30 The bus journey from Taman Negara to Kota Besut jetty was meant to take 8 hours but ended up being 14! Quite possibly the worst bus I have taken in my entire trip. The state was gridlocked as it was election day, when the driver could finally get going he drove like a complete idiot, over taking and speeding despite being shouted at to slow down by a French guy in our group. It was a relief to arrive in Kota Besut in one piece even though it was 10pm and we had missed our connecting boat! Met a couple of nice UK lads on the bus and we found a small hostel to stay the night in and finally made it across to Kecil by speedboat the next day. Finding accommodation on the island was tough, its a popular place but nowhere takes bookings so its turn up and see! We enjoyed our time on the island but only stayed 2 days before heading back to the mainland... I think I'll chill on the Tioman islands in a few weeks and the guys are heading to Langkawi so we will all get another beach fix soon... 0 Kota Baru, Thailand 16-JUL-2009 13:15:58 I've arrived in the cutest hostel, where Maria and her husband are so helpful and friendly, Kota Baru seems like a nice place to relax for a few days. Scott, Nick and I ventured out tonight and stuffed our faces at the night market with chicken, blue rice, and iced cake and they are only the identifiable foods! Will enjoy a lazy and chilled day tomorrow as it's an Islamic town and everything closes on a Friday. Saturday was a full on day of cultural activities... We got up early and ate a breakfast of Roti Canni and coffee then headed out to Muzium Islam, Istana Batu and Padang Merdeka (Independence Square). After lunch at a local restaurant we visited the cultural center for a FREE performance of local drumming, top spinning and Batik making. Quite possibly the funniest moment of my trip was when Nick's bed collapsed in the middle of the night - hilarious! Said goodbye to the boys on Sunday as they head to Langkawi and I caught a local bus South to Kuala Terengganu. 0 Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia 19-JUL-2009 17:06:00 Kuala Terengganu is the state capital located on the Sungai Terengganu river mouth overlooking the South China sea. I've really enjoyed a relaxed couple of days here and stayed in a nice hostel in the center of town with a rooftop cafe. Monday was spent with Danielle (Mauritius), Vicky and Jo (New Zealand) touring the out of town sights. We visited the Islamic Civilization Park which contains 21 miniature famous mosques and monuments from the Islamic world. The park highlight was the full size glittering Crystal Mosque which we were allowed to enter with appropriate dress - I looked hilarious! After a short walk we went to the Muzium Negeri (Terengganu State Museum) which is the largest in Malaysia and contained some really interesting collections; contemporary art, textiles, historical, sea faring trade etc. After some local lunch we trekked across town to Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah (floating mosque) which I have to say wasn't quite as spectacular as I had hoped. However the handicraft center afterwards was fantastic and I treated myself to a beautiful Batik silk scarf! Today has been spent visiting the sites in town. Chinatown was great and I enjoyed some lunch there (although not sure what it was!) and I've made travel arrangements for tomorrows trip further south down the coast to Cherating. 0 Cherating 22-JUL-2009 08:26:56 Have enjoyed a wonderful 5 days relaxing in Cherating, reading my book on the beach and being 'creative'! Painted my own Batik canvas with Vikki and Jo from New Zealand and got shown how to make a grass hopper by a sweet old man on the beach! I've got a great little chalet set amongst well kept gardens and all the locals are so friendly and helpful. I visited the turtle sanctuary but as yet there have been no turtles laying eggs on the nights I've been on watch. Unfortunately despite conservation efforts the numbers have really dwindled in recent years. Have really enjoyed Cherating village and it's laid back way of life...tomorrow I'm heading to Melaka via Kuantan. 0 Melaka - Food, art galleries and more food... 28-JUL-2009 04:54:51 Crossing the peninsular to Melaka sounded so easy, in actual fact it was fairly easy apart from the last bus breaking down. We were late departing Kuantan and then seemed to stop at every small town bus station enroute, I'm sure that woudn't normally happen on an 'express' bus - all in all I was on the road for 14 hours! Arrived at Sama Sama guesthouse which is a beautiful large house in the very center of Chinatown. Have quite a few days relaxing here in Melaka so am taking my time to see all the sights. Yesterday I explored the Town Square and Quayside before heading up to St Paul's Church on the top of a hill. Met a lovely old chap singing Beatles songs in the church and strumming his guitar. Later that evening I went back up for sunset and bumped into him again, we sat on his favourite spot of grass and watched the sunset (not as impressive as the night before!). Enjoyed some fabulous seafood on the riverfront and bizarrely enough when I went to pay they said it had already been paid for - have absolutely no idea who by! What a result when traveling on a shoestring... Have been incredibly productive today and went to the main station to buy my bus ticket to Singapore - I'm coming to get you mum!!!! Off to Chinatown later, fingers crossed I can avoid buying any antiques! 0 Singapore with Mother Chadders! 04-AUG-2009 03:55:31 Arrived in Singapore on a bang; fabulous dinner with Di and Baz, one too many bottles of red wine and fireworks (a rehersal it seemed for National Day and there was me thinking it was to welcome me)! Then mother Chadders arrived and the life of a dirty poor backpacker ceased for one whole week, wonderful! It was great seeing mum, staying in a lovely hotel and doing loads together. We trekked in primary rainforest where we saw a huge Monitor Lizard, explored Chinatown and little India, took a boat trip to Puala Ubin Island, went on a night safari, had our feet cleasnsed by nibble fish, ate loads of different foods and did some serious shopping with Mrs C's credit card! We walked our feet off and I'm sure we could both do with a holiday now... our last day was Singapore's National Day which was a fantastic end to our week with flyovers, parades and fireworks. Had a wonderful time with mum and thank you so much to everyone who sent goodies, cards, letters, photos and presents with her. Needless to say I offloaded from my backpack and mum was certainly leaving with more than she came with! So that's Asia complete, next leg of my trip...Oz! 0 Melbourne...in winter, brrrr! 12-AUG-2009 13:38:35 Arriving in Melbourne during winter was a bit of a shock after the warm (and cheap) continent of Asia. It was so strange seeing people in suits going to work and doing normal things, but it didn't take long to settle in - I just had to ignore all the beautiful clothes in shop windows and remember I'm a traveller! Last week was spent in and around Melbourne and was excellent. I headed out onto the Great Ocean Road which was incredible, winter is a great time to see the coast with bright sun and loads of fresh air - no chance of a dip in the sea though! The trip took me to Bells Beach (famous for surfing) and the towns of Anglesea and Lorne, stopping to see wild Koalas at Kennet River, they were so cute and very lazy! Continuing up the coast I took a helicopter ride over the Twelve Apostles which was incredible, well worth the money and such a good laugh with the guys I was with. Unfortunately it was at this point my camera lens motor decided to break so I'm hoping Phillipe and Roderico will send me their pictures of me in the chopper! We had a great guide, Peter, who has lived in Victoria all his life and he told us so many interesting facts, I was however the only English person so he wouldn't stop talking to me! I saw the great sea cave at Loch Ard Gorge and visited the collapsed London Bridge (see photo with only 1 arch left!). On the journey up the coast we spotted 6 Southern Rigth Whales and 2 calves, they were amazing and given they are endangered I felt so lucky to see so many of them, they were only 100m offshore but their numbers are on the increase which is good news. We travelled into the night, spotting stars and Kangaroos as we travelled to Halls Gap. Awaking in the Grampians we had a day of hiking to look out points where we viewed the famous sandstone rocks known as 'Jaws of Death' and the McKenzie waterfalls. Hostel was great, really modern and sociable and was perfectly located for lots of walking about the city. It rained a fair bit while I was there but it was nice wrapping up warm for a change rather than sweating in the heat! 0 Tasmania 6 day tour! 17-AUG-2009 13:25:55 Arrived in Hobart this morning after a very early start from Melbourne, flight was good and transfers both ends were really easy. This place is beautiful, rolling hills and deep blue ocean! The hostel is great, run by a Brighton chap, and full of character. Enjoying a couple of relaxing days here in Hobart before heading off around the island. The past 6 days have taken me on a loop of the island; up the warm East coast and down the cold and wet West. I visited the Tasman Peninsula and got to explore Port Arthur where convicts were sent from Britain, don't worry there were no Chadbunds listed on the database, but the cruise around the harbour and 'death' island was beautiful. At Freycinet National Park Ian took us on an 11km hike around the park and to the famous white sand beach at Wineglass Bay. We headed to the surf town of Bicheno, home to the Penguins, and celebrated Susannes birthday with fish and chips and wine! We had great weather along the East coast and the scenery from Bicheno to St Helens was beautiful. The Bay of Fires, recently rated by Lonely Planet as no.1 must see places was stunning, amazing views with no one around but us. After a short visit to the rainforests and waterfall at St Columba Falls we stayed overnight in Launceston. Cradle Mountain national park was spectacular but the weather had totally changed and the hike to Marion's lookout was hindered by snow, rain and cold! Staying overnight in a wooden cabin with a log fire was well worth it though! The West coast was wild, but I had so much fun climbing Henty Sand Dunes and body boarding down the 30 meter slopes! Great fun! On route back inland I visited Nelson Falls, the famous Franklin River and Lake St Clair. The Derwent Valley was beautiful and I got to see the tall trees (over 150m tall!) and Russell Falls at Mt Field National Park before returning to Hobart. 0 Cairns, Australia 27-AUG-2009 20:22:59 Have arrived in the sun and warmth that is Far North Queensland, such a nice change from the 10 degrees in Hobart this morning! Hostel is excellent and have stuffed myself full of Asian cuisine at the night market... looking forward to exploring and making plans tomorrow. Fesitval Cairns has been on during my few days here which has been greatl: live music and buskers, art exhibitions and performances. Decided to head far north to Cooktown before taking my time travelling back down the coast towards Cairns. 0 Captain Cook! 29-AUG-2009 07:42:34 I arrived in the frontier town of Cooktown 3 days ago... and I can't seem to get out! Took a local bus with an Aboringinal family, 2 very strange Aussie guys and a lovely, but very chatty local lady! We took the coastal route north along the Bloomfield track which is an unsealed road, at times I thought we were never going to make it out of some of the creeks! Pam's Place is a lovely hostel in the center of town, well there is only 1 road, and I feel pretty at home here, also there are a suprising number of travellers banana picking so there's plenty of company.... not to mention the pet goat, parrot and wallaby! I've done loads of walking. Today I ventured up Mt Cook and along to Finch Bay and Cherry Tree Bay, it was so secluded and peaceful, just had to watch out for crocodiles! I trekked up the steep hill to lookout point for sunset which is the grassy hill Capatin Cook climbed to get his bearings having grounded the Endeavour ship on the reef. To the left you could view the Endeavour River and to the right the ocean. Cooktown is certainly remote but I've really enjoyed it here and have loved the beautiful scenery and slightly odd locals. I've managed to book a bus tomorrow so will be heading a few hours back south to Cape Tribulation. 0 Cape Tribulation, Australia 02-SEP-2009 01:51:31 Cape Tribulation is beautiful, where the rain forest meets the sea. I stayed at Cape Tribulation Beach House which was a resort that also catered for backpackers. The dorm was great and there was a brilliant pool, although to be honest I spent most of my time laying on the beach with only a few other people around.... bliss! Met a great group of travelers and had fun drinking in the bar in the evenings, listening to some of them playing their guitars. We climbed the lookout point between Cape Trib Beach and Myall Beach and snorkeled a little on the reef really close to shore. After a couple of days I headed south to Port Douglas stopping en route for a crocodile cruise up the Daintree River. 0 Port Douglas, Australia 05-SEP-2009 02:58:23 Arrived in Port Douglas a few days ago and immediately bumped into a guy I'd meet last week. We hung out at the beautiful Four Mile Beach and listened to some live music in the evening, then spent yesterday snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef. It was so much fun and so beautiful, saw some incredible fish - I just wished for an underwater camera as mine stayed firmly on dry land! Port Douglas is lovely, pretty upmarket and I'm trying so hard to restrain myself from making any purchases, the jewelery is lovey! But I must remember I'm a poor backpacker... or I certainly will be after my time in expensive Oz! Chilling on the beach today and making plans to head off tomorrow... Hopefully I'll get to visit the Sunday morning market before catching the bus, gutted though as I'll miss the free Sunday BBQ in the afternoon! Typical... 0 Mission Beach & Scotty's lovely hostel!! 06-SEP-2009 18:10:41 Arrived in Mission Beach this afternoon after successfully making my connection with the Greyhound bus in Cairns. The hostel is lovely, so friendly and a good group of people seem to be staying here. Its right on the beach and has a great pool! Have met 3 lovely independent travelers but who are all randomly from the Netherlands. Yesterday we went on a 15km trek to South Mission beach and then on the Kennedy walking trail of 7km. It was great fun and so isolated, our self timer pictures are hilarious as we never knew when to jump. The waters are home to crocodiles but we survived the walk in one piece with just aching legs afterwards. Lydia and I even made it up for sunrise this morning...! Oh and than is Dunk Island in the background but we never quite made it Kayaking over there... 0 Townsville & Magnetic Island 08-SEP-2009 17:25:59 Arrived in Townsville this afternoon and am staying at such a cute little guest house. Lydia and Neils have also just arrived - we are all heading south down the east coast so are following one another although they luckily have a car whilst Henry and I are on the Greyhound bus - but hey we get movies! Only stopping here one night before catching the ferry across to Magnetic Island tomorrow but it seems like a friendly little hub. Oz is way more expensive than I had reckoned so I've been a good girl and for the last 2 weeks I've cooked dinner and made breakfast and lunch every day... I think its starting to pay off... but it is Pasta again tonight! Magentic Island is beautful and I have ended up staying 3 nights here in a wonderful hostel. I've been on a wildlife tour and got to hold a young crocodile, lizard, python and black cockatoo. Yes, I overcame my bird phobia and even fed it seed from my lips! Have met 2 great girls, Sabine and Charlotte and we spent a day treking to WWII forts and look out points around the island. The other 2 days were spent sunbathing on the beach and by the pool. 0 Airlie Beach & Whitsunday Islands 12-SEP-2009 00:33:35 Yesterday Sabine, Charlotte and I traveled together from Magnetic Island and traveled south to Airlie Beach. We are staying at a cool hostel and last night we even won a bottle of champagne in a quiz... yes 3 girls actually won a general knowledge quiz, we were very proud of ourselves and slightly drunk by the end of the night! We've signed up on a 2 day 2 night sailing trip around the Whitsunday Islands and leave today in a couple of hours! I'm very excited.... The past 3 days have been incredible! We spent day one sailing on S.V Whitehaven which was an amazing tall ship. We stopped at Blue Pearl Bay and spent the afternoon snorkeling with such gorgeous fish and coral. Dinner was sweet and sour chicken which was delicious and we enjoyed a few drinks on deck with a great group of 25 people. We woke at 6am on day 2 and after breakfast sailed round to Tongue Bay where we did a bit of trekking across to see the beautiful Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island... It was amazing, the silica sand was so soft and white! In the afternoon we sailed to the north of Hook Island and spent hours snorkeling with turtles and sunbathing on deck. We had some incredible sunsets and enjoyed star gazing on the evening of day 2 over a few chilled beers and spaghetti bolognaise. I slept really well in our cute little cabins and really enjoyed the sailing, our crew were great fun and it was a fantastic experience. Relaxing back at Airlie beach for the rest of today before catching a bus on to Agnes Water tomorrow. Oh and I need to buy yet another pair of sunnies as I somehow managed to break pair number 6, I don't think I know my own strength! 0 Town of 1770 16-SEP-2009 12:11:29 I have enjoyed a really nice couple of lazy days in Agnes Water and the twin town of 1770. There really isn't much there other than a nice beach, cute little town and a marina. The hostel Southern Cross was excellent and more like a little eco resort than a backpackers. I spent 2 days relaxing with friends, I seemed to bump into lots of familiar faces here, enjoying the pool, beach and wandering about town. We even had a steal drum band and camp fire in the evening. 0 Hervey Bay Whale watching 19-SEP-2009 16:47:05 Arrived in Hervey Bay this afternoon and am really excited as I'm going on a full day Whale watching trip tomorrow and to Fraser Island the next day.... A day Whale watching on a boat in Hervey Bay was one of the best experiences yet. We saw so many Humback Whales with their calves and male escorts. They swam underneath our boat and around us, played with dolphins and performed tail slapping, spy hops and pectoral slaps. Unfortunately no breaching but this was more likely from the groups of males in August rather than mothers and calves. Amazing! 0 Fraser Island, Australia 21-SEP-2009 02:27:34 Wow... I have been totally blown away by the landscape and nature of Fraser Island. A truly unique place with incredible history and amazing natural beauty. After much deliberation I decided to take a guided tour of the island, heard too many stories of people getting ripped of on self drive trips and arguing with their group, and I wanted to actually learn about the wildlife and environment. It was such a great trip and our group of 28 were a fantastic bunch of people. The freshwater lakes inland were incredibly clear, with fish and turtles living in them, the surrounding silica sand was almost whiter than Whitehaven beach! We saw Dingos, Whales, Mantarays and even had a close run in with a Brown Snake, Australia's second most deadliest snake. The 4 wheel drive bus was fabulous, such fun being bounced around and we (or the boys!) only had to get out once and push. All the roads were sand and weaved between rainforest, lakes and beaches. Oh and the shipwreck in the photos is Maheno. 0 Brisbane and Australia Zoo - crikey! 24-SEP-2009 02:36:51 Had a brilliant day at Australia Zoo (founded by Steve Irwin)! Ended up getting a lift there with a guy Chris who was on my Fraser Island tour so we had fun watching the crocodile performances and seeing all the animals. Even saw a Cassowary which kind of made up for not seeing one in the wild. Chris dropped me off in Brisbane where I met up with Linda and Neils (who I travelled with in Mission Beach and Townsville). We had a great day sightseeing, touring art galleries and shopping! I didn't actually buy anything but Linda wanted some new shoes so we had a great girly afternoon shopping. Needless to say Neils went off on his own and left us to it! We went out that night clubbing as we are finally going in different directions and are unlikely to see each other again. 0 Byron Bay, Australia 27-SEP-2009 03:52:08 Arrived in Byron Bay yesterday and had a nightmare trying to find a free bed! It seems like it gets pretty choca here at weekends (I didn't even realise it was Saturday!) but eventually I found one at Main Beach Backpackers. Had a great day meeting up with Donna from my Fraser Island tour. We trekked to the lighthouse and could see Whales and Dolphins from the top. The afternoon was spent lazing on the beach then we hit a bar with live music in the evening - great fun! 0 Port Macquarie & Newcastle 29-SEP-2009 00:57:11 Enjoyed a great day in Port Macquarie. A German guy in my hostel and I visited a nature reserve and were lucky to see wild Koalas and loads of flying squirrels. We wandered about town and along the beach front where there were lots of painted rocks, all with lovely comments, tributes or family designs. We hit the beach for a few hours then went on a tour of the Koala Hospital. It was pretty sad seeing the sick Koalas but they were so cute and the hospital are doing a great job rehabilitating them and releasing them back into the wild. The hostel was really good with a laid back and chilled out vibe, I won a few games of pool and watched some movies before heading to Newcastle. My day in Newcastle was good, I was pretty lazy and spent the day on the beach watching the surfers as the weather was glorious and sunny. The YHA hostel is in an old school building which has great character. Met some lovely girls and last night there was a free BBQ and quiz night and guess what... my team 'Team Sausage'! only won again! Another bottle of bubbly...I've either become incredibly knowledgeable over the past 6 months or I'm a lucky mascot! 0 Sydney and Blue Mountains... final Aussie destination! 02-OCT-2009 13:36:00 Arrived in Sydney at lunchtime and checked into an awesome hostel in the center of town call 'Wake Up!'. Have some lovely people in my dorm and most likely heading into town tonight as it's one of the girls birthdays. Well the past few days in Sydney have been rainy and grey. I've headed out to the Blue Mountains where its perfectly acceptable to be rained on! Arrived in Katoomba which is the center of the Blue Mountains, had a great 2 hour train journey to this cute little town. My hostel is amazing, just like home with log fires, comfy sofas and lots of friendly people. This afternoon I did a short trek along Prince Henry Cliff Walk and got caught in the most ferocious and incredible thunderstorm. Got absolutely drenched but it was so cool, almost euphoric! Until I feared getting struck by lightening! Embarked on a mammoth trek yesterday that took be down into the valley of the Blue Mountains and back along the cliff top. I took the giant stairway down which is 900 steep steps and an absolute killer, my legs were shaking by the end of it, the sheer drop was pretty scary at times. Had a great walk underneath the canopy and saw some beautiful trees and views across the valley, the sun was shining and it was a glorious day. Inevitably I had to get back up but rather than paying $10 for the Skyway cable car I had the great idea of walking the Fuber Steps back up to the top. Needless to say my legs are a little achy today! This morning I caught the train back to Sydney and have checked into my hostel and fueled up on lunch. About to meet Jen a girl who I met back up in Magnetic Island.... Had a great few days in Sydney, still pretty cold and dull weather wise but we've had the occasional glimpse of sunshine. Enjoyed a pint or two in Sydney's oldest pub, went across Harbour Bridge, walked through the Botanical Gardens and done a little bit of shopping! Fly to new Zealand tomorrow... and very excited! 0 Christchurch - South Island 12-OCT-2009 23:16:02 I have enjoyed a wonderful first day in Christchurch after deciding to follow the walking tour in the Lonely Planet. It's taken me all day but I have stopped at couple of cafes en route to people watch and drink coffee! I started in High Street with lots of funky cafes and boutique shops before heading to Cathedral Square which was busy with locals sat around drinking coffee and playing chess. New regent street, with the tram line running through it, had really pretty and colourful Spanish architecture. I made my way along the river, crossing the Bridge of Remembrance, watching people punting and stopping at all the British monuments (Queen Elizabeth, James Cook etc.) along the way to the Botanical gardens. These were beautiful and the weather has been gorgeous today - perfect for sightseeing! On the way back to my lovely hostel I stopped at the Canterbury Museum and Christchurch Art Gallery which were interesting. Tomorrow I'm off to Akaroa on the Banks Peninsula for a couple of days before returning to Christchurch. 0 Akaroa - Banks Peninsula 14-OCT-2009 21:40:02 I took a local bus out to the Banks Peninsula a couple of days ago, the journey itself was stunning, driving through the hills formed by two volcanic eruptions. The peninsula is surrounded by bays that radiate out from the centre and the town of Akaroa is on a harbor set in the centre of the original crater. I stayed at Chez Le Mer backpackers which was fantastic, a lovely little house with a great bunch of travelers to hang out with in the cozy lounge and pretty garden... I have become quite the master of Scrabble! The French influence on the town is due to settlers arriving in 1849 and buying the land from the Maoris so all the street names and shops are all in French. I stayed 2 nights and on my second day the weather was glorious so I decided to embark on the 'Around the Mountain' trek with an added trek up to the summit. The walk took 5 1/2 hours but the view from the top was well worth the effort - it was spectacular and to be up there eating my lunch alone was magical, you could see the snow capped peaks of the Southern Alps in the distance. Have arrived back in Christchurch today and will spend a couple of days relaxing and planning my next journey... 0 Lake Tekapo, New Zealand 19-OCT-2009 07:50:05 Yes, the lake really is that blue! The turquoise colour is formed by rock flour sediment which refracts the sunlight beaming down on it. It is absolutely beautiful! I've spent 3 nights in the tiny town of Tekapo, not really much else to do here other than walk so I've been up Mount John for an incredible view of the lake, around the lakside and out to the Chuch of the Good Shephard. There is the Canterbury University Observatory on top of Mount John which is fascinating but the night skies have not been clear enough to warrent spending $80 for a star gazing tour. We had an incredible rainbow on our first night and the view from the hostel lounge window is that of the stunning lake. The weather changes very quickly and today is a little grey but for my trek yesterday it was sunny and warm. 0 Aoraki Mount Cook 22-OCT-2009 22:27:07 I've had a wonderful couple of days in the remote wilderness of Mount Cook National Park. The YHA here has great facilities and even a free sauna! There isn't much else here other than the Hermitage Hotel and the Sir Edmund Hilary Alpine Centre. I met an interesting English guy, Dominic, who has been working for the Department of Conservation in NZ for 4 years and is a wealth of knowledge on the area, its glaciers and wildlife. He, I and a French chap Adrian have just returned from a trek to Hooker Valley, across swing bridges and past the Alpine Memorial. The weather couldn't be any better as the summit of Mt Cook was completely exposed and stunning, you could even see the Hooker Glacier at the foot. En route we could hear avalanches and when sat eating our lunch at the Hooker Lake we saw a small avalanch on our side of the mountain! Tomorrow I'm off to Oamaru on the East coast to see some Blue Penguins... 0 Oamaru & the Penguins! 24-OCT-2009 07:13:31 I caught a shuttle bus back across to the East coast to the historic town of Oamaru. I enjoyed a relaxing day there visiting the historic center with huge limestone buildings, art galleries and Victorian shops but the highlight of my visit has to be the penguins. I went to Bushy Beach first where the rare and endangered Yellow Eyed Penguins nest, they are so scarce and I was very lucky to see 4 of them come ashore at dusk and make their way across the beach to their nests (these are the ones in the photos). The I went to the Cape Wanbrow Reserve where I (along with many others!) watched the small Blue Penguins pop up out of the sea and waddle to their nests. They are only about 30cm tall and very cute! No photos allowed unfortuantely. I now want my own Penguin colony!! 0 Dunedin & The Catlins 26-OCT-2009 23:50:15 From Dunedin I took a day trip out to The Catlins, on the remote South Eastern coast of the South island. I saw Sea Lions and more Penguins and the scenery was beautiful. Remote rain forests and sandy beaches, lighthouses and even a 180 million year old fossilised forest. Sorry, not much time to write as I'm now in Te Anau and have a boat to catch taking me out on Doubtful Sounds for 2 days! 0 Te Anau & Doubtful Sound 29-OCT-2009 01:56:07 I hurried over to the East Coast from Dunedin so that I could catch an overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound for a cheaper price - after November 1st the price increases by $140! So the last 5 days in the wilderness of Fiordland have been brilliant. Te Anau is a nice little town and the YHA there was lovely, I even bumped into guys I met back in Mt Cook. To reach our cruise ship a bus picked us up from Te Anau and drove us to Lake Manapouri where we took a little boat for 40mins across to the other side. From here another bus took us winding through the rugged mountains, past waterfalls and finally to the edge of Doubtful Sound. We spent 24 hours on board our cruise ship 'Fiordland Navigator' and saw seals and Penguins plus amazingly untouched mountains and forests. I met a lovely English girl, Siobhan, and she and I spent most of our time braving the winds on the top deck with a glass of wine! The food was amazing, I've not eaten so well in 8 months, and the whole experience was really enjoyable. I'm glad I chose to take a cruise on Doubtful Sound which is the more remote, larger and untouched Sound compared to Milford. 0 Milford Sound, New Zealand 30-OCT-2009 23:00:39 The journey along Milford Highway to Milford Sound is meant to be a destination in itself so, Siobhan decided to join me, and on Saturday we took a bus for 3 hours along the highway; taking us past Mirror Lakes, the Divide, Waterfalls and a beautiful Chasm. We enjoyed lunch at the Wharf and a walk up to a look out then made the return back to Te Anau. Later that evening we watched 'Ata Whenua' at the Fiorland Cinema, a dramatic piece showing the Fiordland Area from a helicopter and set to wonderful music. It was only 35 minutes but really impressive. On Sunday Siobhan and I embarked on part of the Kepler Track for a one day 7 hour walk. It was really nice meandering uphill through a forest and the weather was great but my legs are very achy today! 0 Queenstown & Arrowtown 02-NOV-2009 13:47:46 I arrived in Queenstown on Monday and although Siobhan and I both have different bus tickets and hostel membership we are in fact traveling together, or at least in the same direction. So, the past few days in the adrenalin capital of NZ has been fun, slightly slower paced for me as I didn't launch myself off the 143m Nevis Highwire Bungy - unlike Siobhan! I'm saving myself for jumping out of a plane with Chris in Lake Taupo - or more importantly attached to an instructor with a parachute!! We took a Gondola up to the summit for great views over Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu then embarked on a pub crawl around town in the evening. We even went into an ice bar where it was minus 5 degrees and you wrap up in Ugg boots, gloves and wool coats, whilst drinking vodka cocktails out of ice glasses! It was pretty cool (!) but only Siobhan had her camera so hopefully she'll send me some pics. Last night we went to a bar called Subculture as they had a creative exhibition which included an open mic night, cheese and wine, live tattooist (no, I didn't get one!), acrylic canvases, jewelery for sale and some live music. It was excellent and was really varied from a Maori singsong writer to a UK guy who was a cross between the Arctic Monkeys and The Kooks. Today we took a local bus to Arrowtown which was a major Gold mining town - a cute little place with a Chinese Settlement, boutique shops and gold panning in the river. Unfortunately I didn't find my fortune ;-( 0 Wanaka 05-NOV-2009 11:52:45 Had a pretty relaxed time in Wanaka for a few days, I finally got a hair cut, ate way too much food and chilled in coffee shops with Siobhan! On our first night we went to Wanaka's famous Cinema Parasido to watch the Michael Jackson 'This Is It' movie, the cinema was kitted out with sofas and cool seating, it even has a car parked inside! Siobhan did her skydive which I was very jealous about as I'm now so keen to jump out of a plane.... bring it on! We walked to one of Wanaka's main attractions, Puzzling World, which was full of illusions, puzzles and a large 3D maze which was really funny... we felt pretty queezy at times! 0 Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand 07-NOV-2009 22:20:35 Yesterday Siobhan and I went on the most amazing Heli Hike onto the Franz Josef Glacier - it has to be a highlight of my time in NZ! We got kitted up in waterproof coats, shoes, trousers and took a 10 minute flight to the glacier. By taking the Heli Hike instead of the full day trek we got to start our hike about two thirds of the way up the Glacier where the ice is more pristine and the formations more incredible. The grampons took a little while to get used to but once you trust them it is great fun. We hiked with our guide 'Tai' for about 2 hours and saw incredible ice caves, flowing water and really blue ice pools - I think the photos speak for themselves! 0 Tranz Alpine Train: Greymouth to Christchurch 09-NOV-2009 22:43:20 Although being the largest town on the West coast Greymouth was in fact pretty small with little to do. I've enjoyed a relaxing day or two visiting the local art gallery, walking and socialising in a very homely YHA. Today I took the Tranz Alpine train from Greymouth to Christchurch which was really good. A very relaxed and 'grown up' 4 hour journey through Arthurs Pass and across Viaducts down to the Canterbury planes. I'd didn't spend too long on the viewing platforms as it was pretty chilly but the scenery was lovey and I had a very funny and entertaining Kiwi chap sat across from me. I only have one night in Christchurch but it seems tomorrow is their annual large County Show so as my bus isn't until 4pm I'm going to go and watch sheep sheering, sheep dogs and eat lots of ice cream! 0 Kaikoura - Abundance of Marine Wildlife 13-NOV-2009 21:25:50 I only stopped in Christchurch for one night following my Tranzalpine journey but I bumped into a girl called Ali who I'd met previously at the hostel, she'd been in the north island for one month and had just flown back to Christchurch to begin a job. Anyway, we decided to go to the Royal Canterbury Country Show the next day which was fun; lots of farm animals, wood chopping tournaments, tractor racing and general country stuff! Late afternoon I took a bus to Kaikoura and checked into the freindliest hostel! The lady who originally bought the land, built and run the hostel 50 years ago was back for her 81st birthday, there was a mixture of guests, young and old, but it was great fun and I enjoyed free wine and choccie cake! Kaikoura is a beautiful town on the coast with amazing snowy capped mountans right next to the sea. I did the Peninsular Coastal walk the next day and spent about 5 hours watching seals, walking, sitting on the beach and generally enjoying the sunshine. We also had an amazing sunset! I met a Brazilian chap in my hostel so got lots of insider knowledge ready for my trip to Rio, the next day we both headed to Nelson. 0 Nelson, New Zealand 16-NOV-2009 22:56:50 I have spent more time here in Nelson than anywhere else in New Zealand and I'm taking the opportunity to relax before embarking on a 4 day hike of the Queen Charlotte Track. Nelson is actually a city, as it has a Catherdral, and the centre has lots of galleries, coffee shops, book shops and alternative lifestyle centres. Its a really chilled and mellow destination! I've walked to the 'Centre of New Zealand' which is on the top of a hill with great views across the city, explored both the Queens Gardens and the Botanical Reserve, spent a few hours in the Nelson Provincial Museum and wandered the famous Nelson Saturday market. I've met some lovely people at my YHA and it has been a great base from which to visit Able Tasman National Park. 0 Abel Tasman National Park, New Zealand 17-NOV-2009 22:23:51 Just as I was thinking New Zealand couldn't get any more beautiful I entered Abel Tasman National Park, everyone I had met until now raved about it and it's no wonder it is New Zealands most visited National Park. As I'm spending quite a bit of money on the Queen Charlotte Track next week I decided to only take a water taxi and do a day walk, rather than pay for a full day kayaking. It was a gorgeous day and the sun was shining. I got picked up by bus in Nelson, driven to Marahau where I caught the water taxi to Anchorage Bay. The walk back from there was a fairly easy 15km along the coast where the bus pciked me up and returned to Nelson. I'm catching a bus from Nelson tomorrow and heading towards Picton ready for my early start on Monday for the Queen Charlotte Track. It is a total distance of 71km and I have backpackers booked along the route for 3 nights, the water taxis collects your bag in the morning and ferries it to your next accommodation so you only have to trek with your day pack and lunch. I'm really looking forward to it - fingers crossed for sunshine! 0 Queen Charlotte Track - Marlborough Sounds 22-NOV-2009 22:28:25 I did it - I completed the 71km Queen Charlotte Track in 4 days and it was brilliant! Day 1 started with a water taxi ride for 1 hour to Ships Cove, this is where the track began, and also where the historic James Cook landed the Endeavour. The 15km walk began with a mega uphill section for about an hour - it was tough but once you got up to some height the views were amazing. The walk took me 3.5 hours and I finished at Furneaux Lodge. The backpacker bunks in the Croft Barn were great and I enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the bay. Having met 2 lovely older NZ gentlemen I began my walk on day 2 with John. Sadly Allan wasn't feeling too well so he opted for the boat ride whilst John and I treked the 12km to Punga Cove. It was a fairly easy going trek although I must say John's pace was superb for a 70 year old! He told fantastic stories too. It was here in Punga Cove I was adopted and taken under the wing of 4 bubbly Kiwi ladies. After 11 years running this years trip was to walk the Queen Charlotte Track (and consume plenty of white wine in the evenings!). They very kindly invited me for dessert where I enjoyed an Apple Tart and a shandy! They provided hours of entertainment and plenty of laughter - thank you ladies! I set off at 8am to tackle the 23km trek of day 3 - I had an amazing surge of energy for the majority of it and completed it in 5.5 hours which I was very proud of. The thought of a swimming pool and beer at Portage Hotel at the end definitely incentivised. After a fantastic nights sleep in the Walkers Lodge accommodation at Portage Hotel we all got up and set off on our final day at 7.30am. The weather for the entire walk had been glorious and the sun was shining. This day was probably the toughest and the 21km took me 5 hours - I was so relieved to get to the end of the track and paddle in the sea to cool my legs. I also promised not to show the Kiwi girls photo.... but here it is! Thank you to everyone who made the Queen Charlotte Track such an enjoyable achievement.... 0 Wet & Windy Wellington! 28-NOV-2009 22:11:11 The Interislander ferry from Picton to Wellington took 3 hours but was quiet enjoyable. The YHA here is huge and has great facilities so i've had plenty to do and slept very well for the past 3 nights. The weather however has been variable. Saturday and Monday were wet and really windy so i spent most of my time in Te Papa museum and in the hostel. Sunday however was lovely so I explored the city, took a cable car up to the Botanical Gardens, visitied Parliment buildings and did a walking tour. I spent quite some time browsing the bohemian fashion quarter; Cuba St, with lots of funky second hand clothes shops - I managed to restrain myself from buying anything!! Today I've stocked up on books from a second hand book shop and am about to set off on my overnight bus to Auckland airport... very excited about spending 12 days on a beach in the Cook Islands. 0 Rarotonga - Cook Islands Paradise! 01-DEC-2009 21:57:08 The past 10 days have been amazing on the paradise island of Rarotonga. My hostel has prime location on Muri beach, the best beach on the island and right on the lagoon. I've spent my days with some lovely people; sunbathing, kayaking, and reading lots of books. I went to the local market on saturday and an island night last Thursday for local cuisine and dancing! Last nights sunset was incredible and I feel so relaxed and chilled - will post some piccies when back in Auckland as the computers here are very slow.... 0 Chris & Clare's Christmas Campervan Adventure! 16-DEC-2009 03:00:35 Our 3 week campervan adventure touring the North Island of New Zealand has been fantastic, topped off by a wonderful Christmas and New Year celebrations! We circled the North Island, starting in Auckland for a few days, giving Chris and I plenty of time to catch up, drink beer on the quayside and enjoy a lovely hotel. Then we collected the campervan, which was briliant, and headed South. In three weeks we have been caving in Waitomo Caves, trekked the 20km Tongariro Crossing, jumped 15,000ft out of a plane, sailed on sailing ship around the bay of islands and taken a fast speed boat.... not to mention the 3000km's we clocked up in the van. Both equally good drivers I must add! Christmas Day was spent on a beautiful beach in Coromandel Peninsular which as fantastic fun and even included some santa hats, bubbly and after eight mints! Chris' cooked breakfast was delicious (I even now eat Mushrooms!) and for dinner we ate chicken breast stuffed with Mozerella and Sun Dried Tomatoes with sauted potatoes and salad... yummy! It's amazing what you can create in such a small space with only 2 hobs. New Years Eve Day was spent sailing in the Bay of Islands followed by the most amazing dinner in a waterfront restuarant and fireworks - it was pretty special and the atmosphere was wonderful! We've had a great time together in our van, thanks Chris and heres to a very happy 2010! Today I'm off to Chile... I waved Chris off so he is now in the air somewhere between Auckland and London and I'm waiting to check in for my flight. Happy New Year all and see you soon..... 0 Santiago, Chile 03-JAN-2010 19:51:16 Its amazing how quickly you can adapt back into being a proper traveller. Having been spoilt by Chris with nice meals and a chaffuer driven camper it is back to reality with a bang... but an exciting one! The flight to Santiago was really good, I´ve never had so much comfort inflight and LAN Airlines were great. I slept well and so felt pretty with it on arrival. I managed to pick up my transfer easily and was soon greated by Cristina and Edmundo at their home in Providencia. It is a lovely house and I have my own room with ensuite, double bed, TV etc. There are two older American ladies also staying and we have just finished our evening meal in the kitchen, along with Leonardo (their son) and Roma his girlfriend. My Spanish is limited and their English is even less so I can´t wait to get stuck into tomorrow mornings Spanish lessons to get a bit more up to speed and understand the conversations. The weather is glorious and hot so looking forward to some afternoons sightseeing Santiago and practicing the lingo. DAY 1 at school: I´ve had a great day today. I walked with Cristine, Joy and Cristina to school this morning, it was straight forward and pleasant and we recieved a warm welcome at reception. My class is with 6 people, 2 Canadians, 2 Swedish and 1 German and 1 USA. The Canadian girl and I have got on really well and after our 5 hours of lessons and welcome lunch we have just orientated ourselves in Providencia and sat in the park completing our homework. Yep, its 5pm and its done! A-Star students!! We´ve made a plan to do activities, sightseeing etc together over the next few afternoons and maybe even head out further afield to the coast or Andes on a trip at the weekend which is nice. DAY 2 at school Its scorching today (sorry to rub it in when you have snow!). The pace of class today was fast and it was slightly overwhelming, however I have spent the past few hours doing my homework and I think I have just about got my head around it - part of me is even wishing I had longer than a week in school. This afternoon Darcy and I took a tram up to San Cristobal Hill for the most amazing panoramic views over Santiago (pics to follow!). Diner is at 7pm then at 8pm tonight I am meetig students from school to attend an open air Jazz festival in a park which should be great! DAY 3 & 4 at school The past two days at school have been great, I have never felt so motivated to learn. Our teacher Ricardo is excellent and with a lot of effort I finally feel like it is all clicking into place, I just wish I had more time here. This afternoon I went to the market, ate an Empanada and did 2 hours of homework. Tonight i´m revising as I have an exam tomorrow.... DAY 5 and final day at school Sadly as our tutor had limited time I was unable to take my oral exam, nevermind, it was more important that those students staying another week took it. We had a farewell lunch at school and I got a certificate for my weeks study which was cool. This afternoon I went downtown on the metro and did a walking tour with Darcy around the key sights. Dinner was really nice tonight and I´m meeting a few students for a beer soon... it´s also still very hot! Here are some photos! The panoramic shots are from the top of San Cristobal Hill where we took a fenicular up to the top. Cristina wanted me to apologise on her behalf for still being in her dressing gown, but it was early, so this is Edmundo and Cristina who have looked after me so well. The white building with the big door is my new hostel for the next 4 days and the blue and white building is my school. 0 Lima, Peru 13-JAN-2010 12:53:44 From one South American city to another... yet suprisingly very different! Lima is covered in a blanket of garua (coastal fog)! Had an early but good flight to Lima this morning and met the little man at the airport for my transfer, despite the sign he was holding saying Chadmundo (that´s a new one!). He was very entertaining and between my little Spanish and his little English we had quite a good conversation in the car, aswell as singing along to Lionel Richie and The Rolling Stones! The Red Llama hostel is really nice and situated South of the centre in a nice district called Miraflores. Its pretty funky and well decorated and I even arrived in time to get my free breakfast... my third of the day! I had planned to travel and take a flight over the Nasca lines today but there was some confusion with bus times and so I didn´t go. It was pretty adventurous attempting to get there and back to Lima in a day so hopefully I can go via Nasca on my return from Cusco to Lima. Instead, Johnny from the hostel took me and 2 kiwi guys (Neil and Mina) on a guided tour of downtown. We visited Museo del Tribunal de la Santa Inquisicion, which was used by the Spanish Inquisition from 1570 to 1829 to torture prisioners. We walked to Plaza de Armas, the oldest part of Lima to see the changing of the guard at Palacio de Gobierno then visited the Monasterio de San Francisco with its famous catacombs and library. Lunch was many Peruvian dishes which we shared alongside a local beer. Tonight we are going to Circuito Magico del Agua (largest water and light show in South America) at Parque de la Reserva. I don´t have any photos of the tour downtown to post but Neil is planning on sending me some. I do however have some very funny pics from our water extravaganza last night! Oh and the lady BBQ-ing was cooking our dinner, meat (of some sort) with spuds and corn. nice! 0 Lake Titicaca, Peru 17-JAN-2010 17:26:37 After all the excitement of the past 2 weeks I shall start at the beginning, where everything ran smoothly.... After meeting my tour group in Lima we flew to Juliaca before taking a bus ride Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca, 3830 m above sea level. Everyone had time to adjust to the altitude (or buy drugs to help!) in Puno before we set off on Lake Titicaca. Titicaca is the largest lake in the world above 2000m, and our boat (driven by a young boy at first!) took us across to the Taquile Islands. These were beautiful and we had time to meet the locals and eat lunch before heading across to Amantani where we stayed overnight with a local family. Mine was lovely and Janet, Sofia and I stayed there together, the kids were fantastic (I almost packed one in my bag!) and we got to dress up and dance to local music in the evening and eat dinner with them. The following morning we visited the floating islands of Uros, these are made entirely of reeds and the people were so beautiful and friendly, I couldn´t help but buy crafts from all these people! On our return to Puno we found out a transport strike was planned for the next day so we headed off to Cusco that evening. 0 Cusco and the Sacred Valley 19-JAN-2010 15:43:50 We had a very central hotel in Cusco and we really enjoyed the local markets and museums. The weather was pretty overcast and a little wet but nothing too bad. We got plenty of rest and enjoyed some nice group dinners before prepping to set off on our trek. Initially we traveled through the Sacred Valley of the Incas which was beautiful and a lush agricultural region. We visited the impressive Pisac ruins and a local artisan market before finishing the day in village of Ollantaytambo, and visiting another large Inca ruin. Thankfully the altitude didn´t affect me too bad but a few others in my group felt pretty sick and were concerned for the next 4 days on the trail... I however did a little more shopping in the markets! 0 Inca Trail and Machu Pichu 21-JAN-2010 15:17:11 We set off early on our 4-day 40km Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, with the minimum amount of belongings and a crew of porters, cooks and guides. The weather was pretty good on the first day, we even wished we had worn shorts but as we passed several small ruin sites the odd rain shower came down. Day one was about 5 hours walking and fairly easy going, arriving at camp we were introduced to our team and fed really well in preparation for the tough day ahead! The second day climbed the long steep path to Warmiwañusca, or Dead Woman’s Pass and the highest peak of the trek at 4198 m. Sadly the weather was wet all day and we didn´t get to enjoy clear views of the snow-capped Cordillera Vilcabamba. It was a really tough hike and at times, because of the altitude, we thought we might not make it. But we did, and slept for about 10 hours in our tent at the other end! The third day was great, and Sofia and I really enjoyed this day as we went though some beautiful cloud forest on the climb up to the third pass. We visited the ruins of Phuyupatamarca, or the 'Town above the Clouds', at about 3650 m and camped that night further down the hillside. Overnight it rained heavily and we set off at 4am for our final trek to Machu Picchu, it was an exciting 2 hour hike but sadly on arrival at the sun gate all we could see was cloud! After a few hours it cleared and we were so happy to see a view of Machu Picchu, it really was stunning. After a number of hours seeing the ruins we took a bus ride down the hillside into the town of Aquas Calientes where we enjoyed the hot springs and waited eagerly for out train ride through the valley and back to Cusco..... little did we know that this was not to be the case! 0 Aguas Calientes... and the evacuation! 25-JAN-2010 14:57:25 Word quickly got around that the recent rain had caused the most severe flooding in the Cuzco region in the past 40 years, multiple landslides had occurred, the river had burst its banks and many people had lost homes. Realising that no roads join Aguas Calientes to the outside world panic started to strike when we heard the collapsed train lines would take a month to fix. As more tourists descended Machu Pichu the severity of the situation emerged and the military were called in to evacuate over 2000 tourists. Sadly this process was badly managed and very few people were airlifted over the first 3 days. Some buildings in the town were evacuated with the threat of collapse and we spent a number of nights sleeping on the floor of a gym as hotels were either fully booked or marked by the military as unsafe. Evacuation was supposed to be by age and it looked like it could be over a week before people in their 20s got taken out. Food and supplies were running out and rice was being cooked in the street by locals for people to eat. Come day 5 Sofia and I had exhausted all of our patience. It seems the organisation of the evacuation was a mess and no-one knew where to go and kept being told to write their name on a list and queue. We decided to head to the train station, which was being used as a holding bay for those queuing to board a helicopter. Suddenly a group of 40 year olds were led in through the gates and the military let us follow, we passed 4 military check points and no-one asked for ID so within an hour we were being led to the heli pad and flew out to Cusco on a chopper. We were so relieved! I feel really lucky as many trekkers had to turn back or didn´t even start the inca trail. Sadly there were a number of landslides on the trek and a few days after we arrived 3 people died on the trek. I´m now safely back in Cusco and looking forward to leaving for Nazca on a bus tomorrow. I´ve missed my trip to the Amazon but am very lucky in comparison to many other travelers and locals. Next time I´ll visit Peru in the dry season.... 0 Nazca Lines 31-JAN-2010 18:42:01 The bus journey leaving Cuzco was initially very sad as we drove past entire villages that had been flooded and evacuated. The houses were made of stone and mud which stood no chance given the heavy rains. Huge temporary camps had been set up for hundreds of people and the region has been declared a state of emergency. What was meant to be a 12 hour journey ended up being 19, for what reason I don´t know but when I woke up in the desert the landscape was stunning, a total contrast to the wet highlands. My flight over the Nazca lines was excellent, the plane was tiny and I got to sit in the co-pilot seat. The flight was 35 minutes and honestly that was enough, the pilot threw the plane around so much, enabling us great views of the lines, that it made most of us feel sick! Good job I hadn´t eaten before...! Amongst the many thousands of lines are hundreds of individual figures that range in complexity from simple lines to stylized hummingbirds, spiders, monkeys, fish, sharks or orcas, llamas, and lizards. My images show the humingbird, condor and monkey! After another long bus journey I arrived in Lima last night and am enjoying a lazy day today before flying to Beunos Aires tomorrow. 0 Buenos Aires, Argentina 03-FEB-2010 15:57:29 My flight from Lima to BA was fantastic, I got upgraded to business class and had great conversation and laughs with a guy called Wayne from Alaska. It sounds like a fabulous place so I´ve added it to my list of places to visit. I met my group in BA and they are lovely, all but one are English and we are all in our 20s and 30s. We only had one day to explore BA so my roomie Monica and I set off exploring and tried to cram in as much as possible before our overnight bus to Iguassu. We visitied La Boca with its colourful houses and Tango shows, took a taxi to Plaza de Mayo and visited the Cathedral and main square. We headed to Recoleta and saw the famous cemetary which was stunning, and so elaborate, sadly it was raining heavily by then so no photos. In the evening our group went out and ate so much steak, it really is man sized portions over here! 0 Iguassu Falls 05-FEB-2010 18:03:28 The two days spent in Foz Do Iguassu town were great. On the first day we visited the falls from the Brazilian side, perfect for panoramic shots and an overview of the enormous falls. The second day we travelled back across the border to Argentina and spent the entire day walking through the park, visiting different aspects of the falls and taking a boat ride underneath, we got drenched. They were spectacular and we had fantastic weather! 0 Paraty 08-FEB-2010 22:53:17 Our 3 nights in Paraty were wonderful, it is a very quaint, cobbled street town right on the beach. We arrived late on our first night then planned our day sailing for the next day, we had our own boat, 2 tour guides and a chef and had the most wonderful 8 hours on the boat sailing around islands. The crew caught fish which were BBQ´d and served alongside stir-fry, salad, steak and bread for lunch, it was delicious. We swam in beautiful waters, trekked to a waterfall and sunbathed on deck whilst sipping Carpirinhas! It was agreed amongst all it was one of the best tuesdays ever! 0 Rio de Janeiro... carnival! 11-FEB-2010 18:08:15 Surprisingly.... arriving in Rio de Janeiro yesterday has not been as manic and busy as I had anticipated. Our group had a great hotel in Copacabana and after checking in we went on a guided whistle stop tour of key attractions (given that is is carnival week our tour guide thought this was best!). Our first stop was Corcovado to visit Christ the Redeemer in the Tijuca National Park. At 30 meters high it was very impressive, although perhaps not as impossing as I had imagined. The day was so hot but the panoramic views of the city were incredible, it is very beautiful. We then went to the district of Santa Teresa which was picturesque with stunning views across the bay. From here we saw Escadaria Selaron, a 215 step staircase leading to Santa Teresa Convent which has been tiled by the artist Selaron in Brazilian colours, over the years he has collected and been sent tiles from all over the world. It has made what was a dull set of steps into a famous icon that has stared in many films. We took a cable car up to Sugar Loaf for incredible views of Rio, the sun was beginning to set and the atmosphere was amazing. Today has been fantastic, I collected my ticket for the carnival parade at the Sambadromon on Sunday, checked out of the hotel and spent the entire day on Copacabana beach with Julia, Monica and Vicky...eating ice creams and sunning ourselves. Tonight I checked into my hostel which is very nice, the staff are really friendly and the girls in my dorm seem fun. I´ve stuffed myself with pizza and beer tonight and am catching an early one, tomorrow I am hitting Ipanema beach with the girls then we are off to Maracana football stadium tomorrow afternoon to watch the semi final between Vasco and Fluminense... it is going to be amazing! Wow last nights samba school parade at the Sambadromo was incredible, one of the best events I have ever seen. We had 6 schools parade, each lasting 80mins and it went on till 5.30am this morning! The floats, costumes, dances and performances were superb. I didn´t take my camera but will show you all some official piccies when they are released. After 6 wonderful days in Rio with glorious sunshine I´ve woken today with a runny nose, sore throat and rain! Its definitely time for my flight home, after a little bit of final shopping of course! 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