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Hampi General Info

andrew_stelmach — Fri, 1 Mar 2013 06:29:00 GMT

General Info as it was in December '12 to February '13:

The cheapest I've seen is 100 Rupees per night at Goan Corner. This little corner of Heaven (well, quite big actually) is owned and run by Sharmilla and her husband. If you're a climber, THIS is where you stay.

The 100 Rupees a night gets you a mattress with a mosquito net on the roof, shared bathroom facilities and full use of the restaurant etc, just like everyone else. Some cheapskates stay here all the time, while most people do this while they wait for a room to become available.

400 Rupees for a hut with double bed, shared toilet and shower facilities. Many people shared these huts to save some money. There are also huts with their own toilet and shower for a bit more money and I THINK maybe some rooms in the house or something, but not sure about this.

These were the prices over the New Year period, roughly mid or late December through to first half of Feb. Everyone in Hampi raises their prices over this period and they just pick their price. But all the guesthouses kind of match each other. So you can shop around, but you won't find much difference.

If you're planning on staying a few weeks or a couple of months, you can usually negotiate a cheaper rate at most guesthouses, so long as you commit to the whole period. However, you probably won't be able to do this if you rock up in the middle of this peak period. If you arrive mid-December, you could probably negotiate something.

During the first half of mid-Feb, Sharmilla dropped the hut price to 300 per night. Prices get progressively less the hotter it gets and the less people are in Hampi.

Top tip for dirty, cheapskate, smelly climbers: to get a hut at Goan Corner when it's busy, you can either stay on the roof (there are usually spaces on the roof (about 80% of the time during peak season), or do you what I did, which was to stay somewhere else on the 'strip' (the main street on that side of the river) and hang out at Goan Corner in the evenings after climbing, eat in the restaurant etc. Also, make an effort to chat to Sharmilla whenever you see her in the evenings, so she knows your face and gets to know you and knows you're ok (and not an axe-wielding psychopath, or even worse (in her eyes), an Israeli!). That way, when she knows a space in a hut is coming up and she knows you're looking to get into a hut, she'll let you know and you can bag your spot.

Sharmilla told me that she does take advance bookings by email, even during peak season. This is VERY useful to know (if you can locate her email address). I will definitely do this if I go to Hampi again.

Getting in and out of Hampi is straightforward. Nightbuses from Goa are frequent and during peak season, night buses often run between Hospet and Mumbai (both ways). Hospet is the sizeable town a few k's away. It's the main transport hub for the area. The nightbus I took from Goa arrived directly into Hampi though.

Bouldering mats can be hired in Hampi for about 1 pound a day. You can just take it and pay your tab when you return it. I took one for 40 days! You can also buy chalk there (if you want really high-quality chalk though, bring your own. I was bouldering up to F6c+ and found the chalk I bought there perfectly adequate). You can also buy finger-tape, Evolve climbing shoes and chalkbags. Maybe a few other bit and bobs.

During my stay in Hampi (28th Dec to end of Feb), I spent between 200 and 250 quid a month, staying in a hut to myself in Goan Corner for 400 Rupees a night. That's EVERYTHING. Luxuries included shelling out for wi-fi quite alot at Goan Corner (can't remember the cost, I think it was 100 Rupees for the whole day), the occasional bike hire (depends on the bike, between 150 and 500 Rupees a day), and plenty of food. I wasn't a big beer drinker. I'd have the occasional beer. You can't always get beer in Hampi easily, but you always can if you're willing to go on a mission (you'll see). Alot of the time, they'll serve it to you in guesthouses. It all depends if all the guesthouses have paid-off the police that week.

Motorbikes available for hire include really small shitty things (twist and go with a 50cc engine of some sort) which are fine for getting to a few sights on, but they're not fun to ride, all the way up to Royal Enfields, which are an awesome experience. Other bikes are the usual India affair - 'Hondas' (not genuine), Pulsars, etc. That sort of thing. Some of these bikes are pretty good to ride really. It's not like riding a proper Honda or Yamaha or whatever, but they're ok and fun enough. The engine sizes of these decent-enough bikes are around 300cc. Fine for the India roads.

Top tips:

1. If you're a motorcyclist, you MUST hire a bike and go exploring. A great way to do this is to get a route recommendation off a local for a big circular day route. If you're in Goan Corner, Sharmilla's son was great for this - his English is pretty good. He gave me a town-to-town list which brought me in a big circle back to Hampi. In each town or village I would ask the locals for directions to the next one on the list. This was a great way to get some interaction with the locals. That day was a really AWESOME day. Loved it.

2. The 'waterfall' is shit.

3. Swimming in 'the lake' is great. For the ladies, there are some fairly private spots if you look for them.

4. Keep asking the guesthouse owner if there's a religious festival or celebration coming up. The dates for these can change on a daily basis. Make sure you get down to the river in the morning with your camera when there's one on.

5. The bouldering's awesome. If you're a really nails boulderer i.e. F7b and above, you might complain of it being quite sharp. It is. But it's still great. It's not as good as Font, but it's very very good and the trip isn't ONLY about bouldering after all. The overall experience and vibe is top-notch.

6. If you're there for the bouldering, stay at Goan Corner or one of the guesthouses near it.

7. If you arrive on a tourist bus, you'll get swamped by tuk-tuk drivers wanting to take you down the road. You CAN walk yourself - it's literally only about 200 metres, if that. Just head towards the big temple you can see sticking up at the end of the road.

8. Hire a motorbike.

9. Goa's shit.

10. Well ok, it's not SHIT. It's just not the paradise people make it out to be. I was quite disappointed.

11. Hampi is great for meeting people if you're flying solo. I'm not sure there is anywhere else in India that has the 'hostel' vibe and layout, but I'm not well-travelled in India.

12. If you're a climber/boulderer, you can TOTALLY rock up in Hampi solo and you make friends and bouldering buddies overnight IF you stay at Goan Corner, or one of the surrounding guesthouses (Goan Corner's best for this though, I think), AND if it's peak season i.e. December to end of Feb. Dec to Feb is the bouldering window (due to temperatures). End of Feb seems to be the cut-off date when everyone leaves (strangely, it really is quite black and white - as soon as end of Feb comes around, all the climbers f off!). Goan Corner is incredibly sociable and lots of boulderers stay for a few weeks or even 2 or 3 months, so if you're staying a while, you end up with genuine friends to hang out with daily. If you're staying for a short time, no worries either - you can't help but make bouldering buddies. I would have NO hesitation in going solo to Hampi again.

Check out my friend Andy V's video on Hampi (Averageman Films). Conveys a very accurate picture of a climber's stay there and also the general vibe of Goan Corner (it's the video at the top of the page).

Hampi Steve

andrew_stelmach — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 08:53:00 GMT

“What’s your name?”

“Jaidev”, the American replied,

“Oh, you have an Indian name?”, Ola, the Polish climbing machine said,

“Yeah, it was given to me a few days ago by the Amar. It means ‘Mighty Victorious Soul’. I guess it’s a name you kind of grow into, ha-ha”,

A statement loaded with strangeness, yet delivered with a conflicting ‘matter-of-factness’. This was just the start, but all I’ll say for now is these are the kinds of things you hear from peoples’ mouths on a fairly regular basis in India.

“What was your previous name?” Ola asked,

“Steve”.

“What’s wrong with your real name that your parents gave you?” is what I wanted to ask at this point, but I didn’t.

The three of us were walking through the immaculate boulder fields in Hampi to a particular area we had in mind. Once there, we would pit our wits and muscle against some of the finest granite boulders the world has to offer, in amongst some of the most beautiful scenery and settings I’m ever likely to witness. Warm evening light bathing our backs as we choose exciting and inspiring routes by which to ascend these monoliths of hidden joys.

As we’re strolling along, Jaidev suddenly and unexplicably drops to his knees and bends forward with his arms in front of him, touches his head to the ground, stands back up again and carries on walking.

“What was that?” I ask,

“Acknowledging the Goddess” (this Goddess had a name but I can’t recall it), “we have a special relationship”.

Pointing towards a temple on a hillside that’s just come into view, he chuckles as if in an attempt to normalise the situation. ‘I’m chuckling because I just made a funny comment, there’s nothing strange going on here, but really there is’, is what I think is really going on in his head.

Once we get to the bouldering area we meet up with a couple more friends and have a great time bouldering around and having fun. There was no more strangeness from Jaidev during this time. I still haven’t made my mind up if he just had no desire to preach to us during this time or if he was just biding his time until he had a captive audience…

Once it got dark we were all chilling out on the bouldering mats (these crashpads double as wonderful mattresses to relax on). After a while most folk went on their way and Ola, Jaidev and I remained to linger and enjoy the starlit night, the quiet and the perfect temperatures. I pointed out a satellite racing across the sky and a couple of shooting stars. Ola talked about China, the culture and her time there and we had a conversation about good places to live in the world. Steve was joining in too, albeit in a slightly loud and dominating fashion that was at odds with the sublime, peaceful surroundings. I attempted to counter this mild assault with a gentle steering of the conversation towards China and other parts of the world that Steve wasn’t so familar with. It was working, but then Jaidev inevitably piped-up…

“I’m a kind of spiritual adventurer”

“Uh-huh”

He launched into a sustained account of how he found a spiritual group in L.A. that met every Saturday, banged drums and did yoga together. He then met a ‘guru’ at one of these events who was regarded as a ‘realised soul’. As a young man this guru had travelled across Europe and all the way into India, hung out with some Krishna chaps and eventually became a ‘guru’ and, seemingly, ‘top-dog’ in a kind of temple in Mumbai.

“I was invited to come to his temple and stay a while”

“How much did he say it would cost?”, I wanted to ask, but didn’t. After all, any question, however innocent or controversial, would only prolong this sermon. In amongst these wonderful boulders, silouhetted against the night-sky that, to me, represented freedom, fun and excitement, we were now trapped. Short of abruptly making our excuses, or being brutally honest and leaving, we were forced to wait this one out.

He described how he went to this temple and ‘stayed a while’, getting up early and meditating with chanting for a couple of hours, then doing some kind of yoga.

“I mean, these guys are now my brothers.”

“Oh c’mon man…” I wanted to say, but didn’t.

Describing an ‘audience’ with the guru, “if you’re a westerner and have stayed there a while, they sit you next to him, which is considered a great honour”,

“How much did it cost to stay at this temple?”, I wanted to ask, but didn’t.

Now, I’m sure there are many spiritual communities you can stay with in India that have some genuinely wise ‘gurus’ and don’t try to fleece you for every penny you’ve got, to line their pockets, but I’m sure there are many that are nothing but brain-washing factories, or a bit of a con, or both. Which category this one fell into, I don’t know.

“There’s a guru in India who sits all day and looks at the sun directly from sunrise to sunset. Normally, this would burn your retinas, but nothing happens to this guy because his meditation has reached such a level that he really has become one with nature.”

“I don’t believe that for one second”, I wanted to say and I did. To be fair to Jaidev, he didn’t react adversely to my comment, but simply moved on.

Eventually, about 15 minutes later, Jaidev’s sermon came to an end and, not wanting to risk an extension to this, I simply remained silent, looking up at the night sky and listening to the music Ola had put on mid-sermon to give herself something to focus on that wasn’t Jaidev’s voice.

After a few slightly uncomfortable moments, Ola broke the silence,

“Yeah, I like the religions in India. They do not seem so oppressive.”

She immediately followed up with a comment about Hinduism and skillfully steered the conversation onto something else. Not long after this, Steve made a move and headed off, leaving Ola and myself alone under the nightsky where we whiled away an enjoyable hour or so talking and listening to music in the still Indian night.

Once back down to ‘civilisation’, if you can call a couple of guesthouses in the middle of the Indian countryside that, we met up with some of our earlier companions for a meal in a restaurant. I selected myself a space and took a seat on the thin mattresses on the floor next to one of the low tables. Feeling relaxed and happy after an enjoyable time in the dark amongst the boulders I engaged in conversation with the people around me. Almost immediately, however, I was disappointed to hear Jaidev’s voice pipe up loud and true from only a few feet to my right.

“Their doors are open to anyone all the time. You can just turn up and stay a while, but they do prefer it if you let them know you’re coming.”

“How much does it cost?”, I wanted to say, but I didn’t.

And so it went on. He’d apparently cornered a German girl sat opposite him. She looked bored but she was asking him the occasional question in the rare momentary gaps in his loud and well-enunciated speech.

I found myself becoming intensely irritated by his incessant, what I considered to be, ‘loud bullshit’. I even moved to my left a couple of feet in an attempt to decrease the volume of his voice on my right eardrum. It didn’t really work.

“Relax Andy, it’s not that bad. Why do you find it so annoying?”, Ola asked.

“He never shuts up”, I replied.

When Jaidev eventually left we were all talking and Ola brought up my irritation with Jaidev, as she thought it was quite funny, but also slightly puzzling.

The German girl he had ‘cornered’, it turned out, wasn’t particularly bored by Jaidev and was actually a little interested in what he had to say. Personally, I couldn’t identify with this and it was clear that I was the one person in the group who had found him the most irritating. Indeed, the others didn’t seem find him irritating at all or, if they did, kept it well hidden.

We had a funny conversation about this and then played cards and that was it. But I couldn’t help but reflect a little on why I found Jaidev’s recollections of his spiritual journey so annoying. Perhaps it seemed to me that he was preaching to people and was wearing his spiritual ‘realisations’ as a badge to show off. Whenever I get a whiff of this kind of thing I almost invariably switch off to that person immediately.

I also find it irritating when people make sweeping statements of the nature of reality, or similar, in a manner that says, ‘this is fact’. In my opinion, no-one knows the nature of reality, or God (if there is such a thing).

If someone makes a statement you know to be bullshit, or disagree with strongly, such as ‘Peugeots are the best cars in the world’, most people would voice their disagreement at least sometimes, if not often. However, if it is about religion or spiritualism, or meditation, or yoga, or a guru or spiritual leader, or anything else along these lines, people usually keep quiet.

Whether or not we should pipe up is a matter of debate and, in the end, ‘it just depends’ doesn’t it? However, I got the feeling that Steve had, knowingly or not, discovered that if he talked about his spiritual journey, people listened and rarely interrupted or challenged him, so that’s pretty-much all he talked about. That, or he was promoting these particular gurus and temples because he’d been encouraged to by his ‘guru’, or he felt he should, like a kind of ‘missionary’.

I would reach some sort of thought-provoking conclusion if it wasn’t for the fact that I’m now distracted by a loud, slightly intoxicated girl in a white loose fitting sort of dress, with flowers in her hair, twirling round and round in the middle of the restaurant.

Goa Dave

andrew_stelmach — Sat, 5 Jan 2013 14:41:00 GMT

So, in December 2012 I finished a contract in the UAE (the Emirates, for short) and made the plan (for reasons too long and boring to explain) to hang around in the emirates for a week while Luke and Owen finished their first week of paragliding courses in India. Then, go to India and join them for a week's paragliding. Then, go to Mumbai, when Owen would get on a plane home, and Luke and I would carry on to Goa for a few days over Xmas and then onto Hampi for New Year's and to wait for the next emirates contract.

As it turned out, Luke got the contract starting Jan 6th and I didn't, meaning I stayed in Hampi for another 2 months! Well, part of the reason for being there was in case one or both of us got messed around, so we made sure we were somewhere super-cheap, but also fun. Hampi ticks all the boxes! I had an awesome time!!

During this trip, I wrote two short stories, one in Goa and one in Hampi, both about two people I met. It's all true! So, without further ado:

Goa Dave

How to sum up Goa. Well, I could refer to one conversation I had with a guy called Dave. I’m guessing he was in his late 20′s and he’d been in Goa for a while. To be fair, he wasn’t a total crusty, only hints of it. Rather he struck me as someone who used to live a fairly straight-laced existence, probably the usual 9 to 5. There were only cursory nods towards hippydom, such as the slightly bizarre hat and loose-fitting shirt and trousers. Most strikingly though was that, although he could hold a normal conversation for brief periods, after a few minutes it seemed to become too much and you could be talking about the price of milk and you could see that he would be taking that simple concept and swirling it round in his mind, spiralling it down to ever-deeper levels of philosophy that only a drug-fuelled mind could.

He’d taken a tandem paragliding flight off the nearby hill and was saying, with quite some passion, that he was craving more and was thinking of taking some lessons. Me and Luke had completed some courses at an excellent school in Kamshet, not too far away and, as far as we could tell, was likely by far the best school to learn paragliding at in India and excellent value. We spent the next 15 minutes showing Dave photos and video and imparting everything we knew about the school to Dave. He appeared to be very excited about it and was seriously considering taking it further. The conversation came to a close when it reached a peak and I said, “Yeah, honestly Dave, I think if you’re going to do a paragliding course, you’d be crazy not to do it at this school. It’s the best value, it’s very safe and it’s an awesome place to be”.

The conversation paused and Dave suddenly became stock still as he considered the situation with a look of confused intensity. The neurons in the reasoning part of his brain were lighting up like a Christmas Tree, knowing that he really SHOULD go to Kamshet and take the paragliding course, but, like a Christmas Tree experiencing a rapid intermittent power cut, the lights were flashing brightly but only periodically and briefly. Meanwhile, the rest of his brain was a swirling vortex of drug-addled confusion. The maelstrom was sucking power from the Christmas Tree.

Deep down, Dave knew he should go and do the paragliding course in Kamshet. The deeply-buried Amygdala, the primitive reptilian part of his subconscious mind responsible for emotion – primitive though it may be, like your Mum doing the housework after the kids have made a mess, someone has to clear up the shit and keep the ship moving – the Amygdala knew it must do something and, mustering all of its primitive and simple power, was trying to steer this labouring ship towards the right objective.

I watched intently his furrowed brow and tense facial expression, his reddened eyes flicking around as his malfunctioning brain sent clashing signals around his cortex.

A few moments passed. I waited…

“I’m off to bed. Well, after a joint. I’ll see you guys tomorrow. You gonna be here? Same place?”

And off he went.

And so the rhythm of Goa carries on. Meditation on the beach, while 100′s of conventional Indian families and tourists stroll by – surely there’s a better place to do your meditation? I couldn’t help but think that it was some sort of ‘display’ of meditation and yoga. Maybe in their minds, by showing people that they could sit still for a long time despite throngs of tourists walking past them, these ‘lost souls’ would think about taking up meditation themselves? Or maybe they think that their ‘energy’ will rub off on these unenlightened people and bring good karma to their otherwise aimless existence. Or, for me, the most worrying possibility and perhaps the most likely, is that they just don’t feel at all strange or distracted meditating out in the open with lots of noise and people around them on a public beach. Maybe I could confront them and challenge them on their ‘lack of connection and engagement with people around them’. I’m sure they would horrified to hear something like that. That, or they would just think I’m lost and confused and calmly look back at me with sympathetic (but slightly reddened) eyes.

Today, Dave is on the beach biding his time, swinging his thin airy shirt around in a circle by his side as he walks along because it feels good and he’s a liberated person. Somewhere in his dulled mind he’s thinking that he should do something today, maybe some more of that strong acid that could o.d. a horse. That was the good shit. Or maybe he could try and shag that dreadlocked hippy-chick he saw earlier on who was foraging for pieces of coconut hair to make into a new braid. Apparently she was going to just bury it into her already birdnested set of dreadlocks and stray bundles of rebellious hairs. Her reddened and slightly wild eyes belied yet another mind on a sure path to ‘drug-assisted enlightenment’. Depsite all this, Dave felt strangely attracted to her. Just as he was thinking this, Dave tripped on a used fire-poi and landed face first in the damp sand. ‘Oooo, that kinda hurts, but it feels cool.’ And there Dave stayed for the rest of the afternoon, face down in the sand, until a strong feeling of hunger compelled him to trot happily off to the nearest cheap restaurant for some vegan and a joint.

Penang Visa Run

andrew_stelmach — Thu, 7 Jun 2012 17:50:00 GMT

Currently I’m laid in my very bland, but clean room in Penang, Malaysia, halfway through my visa-run. The blandness of the walls kind of match my mood – that numb, empty, though not unpleasant feeling that I sometimes have when arriving in a new foreign place.

Arriving at the pier on Koh Tao to catch the night-boat, I was mildly horrified to find that it was to be the crap night-boat , instead of the nice one with bunkbeds and air-conditioning. I ran to the pharmacy and bought sea-sickness pills and asked for some ‘sleeping tablets’. ‘Hmm… I have Valium’, the pharmacist replied. Valium it is then.

The rough seas to start the journey aptly represented the long tunnel of suffering I was about to enter, I thought. However, once we were travelling south past Koh Samui and Ko Phagnan, the boat was sheltered from the swell . I was afraid of taking Valium so I opted for a sea-sickness pill only and such was my level of comfort, stretched out on the mattress, not even a nice smile from a French girl could stop me from putting my head down and falling into a blissful slumber.

Even the 11 hour minivan journey wasn’t painful, given my legroom on the front row of the back seats. Next thing I know I’m sat at a man’s desk inside Banana Guesthouse in Penang, Malaysia, asking him how much everything was in Thai Baht and realizing I knew absolutely nothing about the country I’m in.

Fuck it, I’ll just head down to Starbucks and KFC at the nearby mall, ignoring the smell of raw sewage by the side of the road on the way and the hints of poverty all around; the careless, ignorant and probably naïve tourist.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, so for anyone who is here fact-finding, you might be interested that on my visa run to Banana Guesthouse in Penang (Malaysia) from Thailand my options were a 60-day Single-Entry Tourist Visa and two more options which were not open to me. These were; 3 month Single Entry Non-Immigrant Visa and 1 Year Multiple Entry Non-Immigrant Visa. They told me I could only get these visas with documents showing proof of employment, work permit etc. So for your average tourist/backpacking like me, it's the 60-day visa. I know that I could extend this visa by 30 days on Koh Samui too, if I wanted to.

You don't have to go and get the visa yourself, there are many guesthouses here in Penang (Banana included of course) that do it all for you. You just give them your passport and some money and hey presto the next day you have your passport and nice shiny visa back in your hand. They will also arrange your transport for you to many different places in Thailand.

If you're British and you think you might want to spend more than 30 days in Thailand, getting a nice long multiple entry visa IN BRITAIN BEFORE YOU LEAVE is the best plan of action. For those who don't know, single-entry means you can enter Thailand once during your visa. Multiple entry means the obvious (but I don't know how many entries you get). Obviously this is handy if you're doing the standard Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand backpacking route. However, I have heard that you can get long visas for Thailand in Northern Laos, do your own research on this.

Some people do visa-runs by plane in Thailand, because if you enter the country by plane you get the 30-day visa exemption. If you enter Thailand by land with no visa you only get a 15-day visa exemption.

A Step Into the Unknown for Two Weeks in India

andrew_stelmach — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:31:00 GMT

23rd Dec 23:58

Very happy. Travelling/backpacking/trips away (whatever you want to call it) is preceded by a period of research, deliberation and decision-making to give you the best chance of being happy during your trip. When you actually start travelling there is nearly always some apprehension - have I made the right call / oh my god what have I got myself into / it's ok I can always fall back on 'Plan B' etc etc etc. Sometimes you get it wrong, but on the other hand sometimes you get it right.... really right.....

I landed in Mumbai feeling distinctly, well, the same.... I really wanted to be 'overwhelmed by hardcore culture shock', feel that rush of adventure when I step out into the street surrounded by chaos but with a vague plan of attack which keeps me on the right side of safe and happy. Instead, I got off the plane feeling like I'd seen all this before, even though I'd never been to India before. Everything was very, well, mundane. And I was on my own - this had to work.

If my pickup dude wasn't waiting for me outside the airport I already had a plan to find some cheap accomodation and an internet connection to arrange a pickup for the following morning, or even get on a train to Lonavala etc etc. However, none of this was necessary - the rush of relief was strong when I found my guy stood there with a sign with my name on it.

This car journey to Kamchet, however, was not without its ups and downs. It was interesting seeing the slums of Mumbai adjacent to modern tall office buildings and the organised chaos of the roads was slightly entertaining but even that was something I was used to from previous travels. So... being careful not to labour the point, I was feeling a little underwhelmed and even a little sad that maybe my trip was not going to work out the way I'd hoped. Various plan b's and c's were already being formulated, but at the same time I was making sure I maintained a certain passiveness - an essential skill to learn, in my opinion, at times like this - because you never know what's around the corner. After all, it could all come good. And come good it did...

On arrival at the guesthouse, this was perhaps when I was the most worried, because it was crunch time. If I didn't have a good time here, then I was screwed. Would my research come good? The initial signs were mixed - the guesthouse had a peaceful air about it, but at first the only guests I saw was an indian family who were keeping themselves to themselves. Then I met my instructor. Unfortunately I can't remember his name just now. But anyway, he was so friendly and basically he just stood there smiling. Whatever I said just seemed to make him happier and happier. And he would then just carry on standing there. I was quickly learning that the indian way is extreme friendliness. Now, this is not overbearing friendliness - they are just very comfortable being in the presence of other people in close proximity. How it should be really. After all, we were designed like that, I think. How much we have lost in the west.

I ordered an omlette and a random indian invited me to eat with him, even before we'd said hello. Ashutosh is a construction engineer from Mumbai and speaks near-perfect english. Something I am quickly learning is a common trait. Shortly after this meal I was attacked by a hairy catapillar and I was almost overwhelmed by the willingness of everyone to help pick out all the hairs from my skin.

After this we retired to the terrace with a beer and I spent the rest of the evening drinking beer, chatting with several indians who were all sound as fuck and watching them all get absolutely baked. It seems that the basic routine is to go flying and then get baked. And then do it all over again the next day. AWESOME.

One of the guests getting baked was a stunning model from Goa. She's just here to go flying and get stoned for a few days. Another guy was an Italian who works in Tonsai, Thailand, teaching climbing and scuba diving. He's here to go flying and get baked. Another guy was from I don't know where but he has a beard and looks a bit russian, but he isn't russian. He works here teaching flying. In the evenings, he... yes you guessed it... gets baked. There were a few other people who came and went, mostly indian - again, all spoke near-perfect english.

It was a really nice evening and once again Comfortably Numb got a few plays at peak moments. I went to bed a happy man.

EDIT 13.06.2013: on this trip I also met a wonderful Indian woman and had, what you could call, a 'holiday romance' if you like. But it was more than that and I don't think I'll ever be sure if I made the right decision in letting her go. But despite the unhappy ending, I genuinely grew alot from that experience and learned many valuable lessons.

It was an awesome trip in more ways than one. One of the best trips I've ever had to the point that really, the word 'trip' seems way too simple a word and doesn't do it justice.

Best Laid Plans...

andrew_stelmach — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 14:10:00 GMT

The first time I've ever missed Thailand transport was this morning.

You know, as I got there really early and checked in my ticket for my visa-run trip, I had a funny feeling that everything seemed just a little bit too easy...

"You come back ten fifteen for boat",

So I went and had breakfast somewhere just around the corner and went back around to the pier at 1015, fully expecting the boat to be there, leaving at 1030, because in Thailand they ALWAYS tell you to come back 15 minutes earlier than you need to be there.

Not this time.

My boat was sailing away. So now I'm taking the 'night method', because the 'good' night boat is running tonight, so the whole thing shouldn't be too bad. Now I've been through this routine before, I'm forewarned. I know that I'm going to get woken up at about 4.30am or 5am and then have to stand by the side of the road in the dark for half an hour with other similarly spaced-out westerners. So I will get on the boat as soon as I can, hopefully around 1030pm and go straight to sleep, before it even sets off, thereby maximizing my sleep-time.

I will make sure my mp3 player is fully charged with a good playlist loaded. I'll then spend the day plugged into that, watching the events of the day float by in a kind of detached haze - I often find this much easier than engaging fully with days like this, only engaging with people when I need to with the occasional grunt.

I'll try my best not to miss tonight's boat.

Strange Feeling Today....

andrew_stelmach — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 12:27:00 GMT

Just for a moment, one random moment, I felt like something was missing in my life made more noticeable by the fact that I 'had everything'.

I'd just checked in my ticket for the catamaran to start my visa run, I had a nice little rucksack on with a fully-charged laptop inside, loads of money in the bank with more work coming up, an awesome pair of Ray Ban's on, I'm young and good looking. I have the kind of lifestyle and opportunity many people dream about.

Yet I didn't feel complete, even a little hollow like something was profoundly missing. Not happy. 'A family' I thought. If I had a family, would I still have this feeling from time to time? Maybe, maybe not...

At the same time in that moment, as I was walking along to buy a breakfast that was probably worth an average Thai's daily wage, it felt like I was getting a real taste of what it feels like to be stinking rich and unhappy. You know the classic story of the rich person with all the material wealth in the world, yet they're distinctly unhappy, chronically depressed even. It happens, you see it all the time on tv. And so was borne the theory as follows:

When you are preoccupied with material things, money-worries, or any of the normal life challenges that occupy your mind day to day, you have many things to blame any sense of hollowness or unhappiness on. However, when you have everything you need, anything that is missing is brought blatantly into the spotlight and you can't get away from it. And this is the sort of feeling I experienced today I think.

And perhaps the sort of core human needs we have are easily lost in today's preoccupation with money, jobs, living circumstances etc. It's easily done in western society - it's difficult, even, just to maintain a simple and stable lifestyle. In poorer nations it's often the other way round - they often have a simple stable lifestyle in a small rural village. Not much money or material wealth but they have their simple human needs catered for, such as family and community.

These core human needs are perhaps what is missing from my life and from these 'stinking rich unhappy types' lives. And when a need is so fundamental and so human, when this is brought into the spotlight, it's profound and impossible to get away from. You're a captive audience with the elephant in the room tied down on the stage. There's no chitter-chatter in the room - you're the only audience and you have no commitments or pressing needs to attend to, so you have no excuse to leave. You're forced to stare at the elephant on the stage until...

My 'Laos Girlfriend'

andrew_stelmach — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:40:00 GMT

Don't get too excited, I didn't have a Laos girlfriend on my travels, but this is the term my german friends and I came up with to describe a certain Laos girl on a public bus.

Somewhere in the Lonely Planet it says that on public buses in Laos, the rules and norms of personal space change and it's common for people to lean on each other, lay on each other's laps etc.

Sitting on a public bus two girls got on. It's often really hard to gauge asian women's ages, but I'm guessing these girls could have been anywhere from 14 to 19. One of the girls takes the seat next to me and the other a plastic stool in the aisle next to her.

The girl next to me is ill and occasionally vomits into a plastic bag. As a sidenote, I was always amazed at just how quietly she did this - asian girls' grace has no bounds it seems.

After a while she glanced at me and placed her head on my shoulder and dozed for a while. About 15 minutes later she also put her arm around mine (presumably more comfortable). About half an hour after that she also held my hand, interlocking her fingers with mine and stroked my hand a little with her thumb.

Now I wasn't quite sure what to make of this, but I knew it felt good and also it didn't feel awkward in the slightest. It seemed unusual to me and didn't fit in with my own sense of what certain gestures meant in my culture, but because she and everyone else on the bus was 110% ok about it, I felt no awkwardness either. So I just sat reading my book and quite enjoyed providing her with the comfort that she needed.

After the bus stopped for a break and we all got back on, she placed her bag on my lap and laid across the seats with her head on my lap. I placed my arm around her and my hand on her shoulder and gave her the occasional comforting stroke with my hand.

At the end of the journey I was half-expecting a thanks from her or her friend or some kind of acknowledgement when we got off the bus, but there was nothing. It was like the whole thing was a completely normal everyday thing for them.

My friends and I got alot of mileage out of this experience, joking about it. She quickly became known as my 'Laos girlfriend'.

Herpes Zoster

andrew_stelmach — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:17:00 GMT

So after being misdiagnosed as having sinus inflammation and/or sinusitis and even having the rash that developed later dismissed by one doctor on koh tao as merely a secondary bacterial infection, I had one day feeling particularly ill and decided that no, I want another opinion.

I went back to the first doctor I saw a week or so ago and when he saw the rash he immediately thought it was Herpes Zoster, or 'Shingles' as it's more commonly known. He was concerned because it included my eye. Worrying. After reading on the internet that in some rare cases it can lead to blindness I considered going straight to Bangkok or even the UK. However, I decided to give the Bangkok Samui Hospital on Koh Samui a go - the doctor had sent me there to see an Opthamologist. He'd also prescribed me anti-virals and painkillers (much needed).

After my visit there I was feeling more optimistic. Lesions on my cornea, but no sign of infection inside my eye or on my optic nerve, which is the main thing.

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So now I'm waiting for my ferry to go back to Ko Tao, from Samui, after visiting the Bangkok Samui Hospital yesterday.

The Opthamologist concurred with his diagnosis, as did a doctor of Internal Medicine who took a quick look at the rash. He found two or three lesions on my cornea, but nothing inside my eye or on the optic nerve, which was a relief.

He seems quite confident that I should be better in about 10 days. Prescribed me:

Anti-Virals:

Acyclovir 400 mg tablet (branded 'Vilerm'). 2 tablets 5 times a day, 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm, 10pm

Take until finished;

Painkillers:

Paramed Co (300/15 mg) Tablet (branded 'PARA-CO') (Paracetamol 300mg, Codeine Phosphate 15mg)

1 Tablet every 4-6 hours if needed

Eye-Drops:

Pred Forte Eye-Drop, prednisolone acetate 1%, Opthalmic Suspension

1 drop every 2 hours until midnight (8-10 times a day)

Eye-Drops:

Tears Natural Free Eye-Drop (32 tub)

1 - 2 drops into the affected eye, 3 times/day or when you have eye irritation

He made an appointment for me to see him again in 1 week (1st September)

Oh How Things Change....

andrew_stelmach — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:07:00 GMT

My idyllic start on Ko Tao went rapidly downhill. I'm now sat in 'Choppers' because I need to have breakfast with my painkillers and they do half-price here between 9 and 10. Hopefully the painkillers will dull what is, at the moment, excruciating sinus pain.

I'm wearing sunglasses (indoors) because my right eye and the surrounding area has various red patches of swelling, which means my face is seriously asymmetrical.

I don't know how the two problems are related, but can it just be co-incidence that the red spots and swelling is where I've been having sinus pain?

This all started a few days ago with sinus pain. The hunchback of Notre Dam appearance manifested itself one joyous morning a few days later.

The doctors seemed to think I had no infection, just inflammation, but now I have hard swollen lymph nodes behind the square of my right jaw, so I'm convinced I need antibiotics. I am visiting the doctor again today with a case prepared.

No diving for me for a few days. I pushed through the last stint of diving (assisting on a course) so I wouldn't have to do it again, but now I'm staying off until I'm better.

Not a happy bunny. I don't know if I can get this thing finished in time now. This is not like being on holiday anymore - time-pressures, less freedom, being ill... all things that exist in the real world that I temporarily escaped 3 months ago. Because I set myself this one-month deadline to do the divemasters, I have actually been living a fairly mundane lifestyle here - no partying, early starts etc. The diving was good to start with, but the memories of the good diving to begin with are now steadily being obliterated by the recent memories of feeling tired, run-down and in pain.

Some time-off now and hopefully within a week I will be better again (touch wood). During that time, hopefully I will get some theory work done so it's not time wasted and maybe even be able to relax if the sinus pain reduces.

Bangkok to Kho Tao

andrew_stelmach — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 15:43:00 GMT

As Bangkok became smaller in the distance I could hear its low bass-like groans and cries as it lamented my escape.

The living breathing beast had not got me.

I flopped into the warm embrace of the dive resort on Kho Tao, already feeling pleased about my decision to go there.

'Since you've already paid for the Divemasters, you don't have to pay for any diving. You want to get in the water tomorrow and start your Rescue Diver the day after?'

'Hmm. Ok.'

Five dives the next day and I was knackered. 6am til 9.30pm on the go.

The Rescue Diver course passed without incident. It was slightly challenging at times but overall it was quite easy and fun.

During the 'Dive From Hell', the final assessment on the course, I had my regulator ripped out of my mouth twice, my buddy losing all control of his buoyancy and perhaps the funniest part was when the whole affair climaxed in me having to pull my buddy back down because he had dropped his weight belt and having sorted him out I turned around to find another buddy sat on the bottom looking straight at me with no mask on.

Life here is pretty damn good at the moment, to be honest it couldn't get much better. Diving every day, good weather and surrounded by nice and mostly happy people.

Rock on!

Crunch Time!

andrew_stelmach — Tue, 9 Aug 2011 00:48:00 GMT

About five hours ago I decided not to go to the UK, but to go to Kho Tao and do my Divemasters. I went to their office in Bangkok and paid for the whole thing in one.

I was in real turmoil earlier today, but now I'm sat having a quiet beer and a cigarette, about to go and meet my Thai ladyfriend again and I'm actually now feeling, with some slight tentativeness, that I've actually made a really good decision. I feel great and totally relaxed! It's moments like this that make the hard decisions you have to make completely on your own as a solo traveller, even sweeter by the fact it was hard to begin with.

My 'Thai Date'

andrew_stelmach — Sun, 7 Aug 2011 20:40:00 GMT

If you could call it that. The moment she walked in, all my anxieties were dispelled, because her energy was so relaxed and, I don't know how to put it, 'innocent' maybe? She's no virgin and she knows what's going on. I really don't know how to put it, several words maybe: innocent, very feminine - the essence of femininity, submissive, feminine again. How to sum up a person, except this was like no other woman I've met in the western world and by default that means like no woman I've met before. Perfect perfect perfect.

Yet in a contradictory way, probably not the right woman for me long term. But she's an absolute gem. I don't know how else to put it.

EDIT 13/06/2013: Lol! It might sound to some people like I was deleriously in love with this girl! No. And she actually turned out to be a bit full of herself and a tease. I got sick of her after a few dates and didn't try to meet her again. It was a good experience though.

What you're reading above is what happens when a western man meets the 'eastern temptress' lol. They certainly do have a way about them. Don't yell "not all western women are like that!", "not all Asian women are like that!" etc etc, when you read what I have to say next. I KNOW what follows is generalising, but Christ, sometimes you have to generalise, otherwise you would take up half a page extra qualifying every statement you make.

Western women and Eastern women ARE different. Things are pretty fucked-up in the West. Gender roles are confused due to media bombardment and the remnants of the feminist movement. Now, there was nothing wrong with the feminist movement. It was absolutely necessary. Women were not allowed to vote, got paid less, all kinds of unfairness. As a result of this, they had to 'beat us at our own game', to make their presence felt. Which they did. And it was necessary. The thing is, you can kind of 'ease off' a bit now. You don't need to act like men so much anymore. Sure, you do sometimes (while you're at work in the corporate world for example, to make a good living), but just not so much. But I don't think many people realise this yet.

And to the men? Well, we had our balls chopped off. We were emasculated by the women. And this was necessary collatoral damage from the feminist movement. But you know, we don't have to act like women so much anymore. Actually, we have to be a bit more proactive and consciously reclaim our right to be men, as we were born to be.

As one wise man once said, "I believe that men should be men and women should be women".

In the East, men and women haven't had to put up with so much shit, and the media and advertising bombardment isn't nearly as strong as in the West. As a result, I find the men are more like men and the women are more like women. The women are often extremely feminine and (DUH!) this is extremely attractive! Perhaps as a relative newbie to Thailand the feminine presence of this woman was particularly intoxicating the first time around.

Full Circle

andrew_stelmach — Fri, 5 Aug 2011 23:47:00 GMT

So I'm sat in the same guesthouse in Bangkok I started my travels in 10 weeks ago. The same attractive girl is here in the same yellow dress trying to lure people in from the entrance. But it has free wi-fi and comfortable seats. It's a nice atmosphere. I stay in the cheaper guesthouse around the corner and come here to make use of the seats and the free wi-fi ;-)

I'm in the middle of a difficult decision about where to go from here. My tax advisor has told me that I'm non-resident but going back to the uk AT ALL this year carries a small risk of losing my non-res status and having to pay uk tax on this year's income, maybe even last year's too.

How much of a gambling man am I?....

1. Fly back to the uk for 3 maybe 4 weeks, then go to spain to see my friend. Any longer in the uk would be very risky, my tax advisor has told me. I would then fly back to the emirates for work in mid-September.

2. Fly back to Europe only (I already have a flight to London booked months ago, via Kiev). I could stop in Kiev and go to Spain (see above),

3. Stay here in Thailand and do my Divemasters. Turn it into something positive. I do miss my friends and family in the UK. Life is so transient on the road, gets a bit wearing after a while.

The worst case scenario I envisage is staying here in Thailand to save my tax, being racked with anxiety and guilt for a few days but then being absorbed in my diving for a month. Following that many months in the emirates with a slight, but persistent, sense of missing my friends and family in the UK, looking ahead to May 2012 when I can visit the UK in relative security. That would be a year and 4 months without seeing my UK friends and family.

Tough decision.

With all this going on, am I in the mood to meet this incredibly hot Thai girl who wants to see me? The obvious answer would be 'YES, OF COURSE!'. However I feel a little preoccupied and, perhaps surprisingly, it's somewhat overriding my motivation to meet up with this girl. Damn Owen and his girl.... he's flying to France after being with his parents in the UK, to see this great girl he's been shagging. Everything's so simple for him, but I'm staying out here and weathering the storm for tax purposes.

This Thai girl worked in this same guesthouse when I was here 10 weeks ago. She worked behind reception, but now works in a hotel nearby. Her brother also worked here and he was trying to sell me to her while I was here (not literally, you understand ;-). One day, I deliberately came out of the shower topless and with my hair down, to hand back my towel while she was there. She was visibly turned on. NICE.

I departed that day and when I was leaving, her brother asked me if I liked her and told me she liked me. It was hard to leave. She's pretty, confident, self-assured and a great body on her. I settled for leaving her brother my business card, knowing that he would give my facebook to her. Understated.

Sure enough, a couple of weeks later she added me. I deliberately didn't contact her though. Much better when they contact you. Sure enough she eventually struck up conversation on facebook and asked me contact her when I was next in Bangkok. I said I might be here this week. She gave me her mobile number.

I have to decide tomorrow if I'm flying out of Bangkok the next day. I wish I could do everything but I can't.

Muang Ngoi, Laos

andrew_stelmach — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 14:52:00 GMT

I've just realised that there's nothing in my journal about anything between Don Det and Chiang Mai. I had alot of wonderful and unusual experiences in Laos - maybe I'll write about those another time. But for now, I just want to include Muang Ngoi as a highlight, because it is possibly the best place I've ever visited!

It's a fairly remote riverside village, but has some conveniences such as guesthouses and easy access. Similar to 4000 islands, in that you can get a riverside wooden bungalow with a balcony and hammock overlooking the river and the fantastic mountain scenery.

My german friends and I stayed at Riverside Bungalows. Unfortunately (an understatement), I had to leave this place and (temporarily) my german friends after only one night to go on a desperate mission to find a decent internet connection (which eventually took me all the way to Oudomxay) to attend to some business. It was awful having to leave - the place is fantastic. SO peaceful and relaxing.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Muang_Ngoi

More Highs on Don Det

andrew_stelmach — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 16:51:00 GMT

We got into a great little routine in the evenings of lying in our hammocks listening to music, maybe with a couple of beers, smoking cigarettes and watching the river flow by. Simply idyllic.

I've been to some pretty beautiful locations in my time in good company, but the combination of good company, Beerlao, menthol cigarettes and hammocks is a first for me.

A typical day here goes something like this - get up when you feel like it, wander round to the cafe to eat breakfast (which typically takes half an hour to arrive - the locals never rush in Laos) and maybe read your book while you're waiting or lay on the floor with a pillow. After a leisurely breakfast head back and take a shower. You have now concluded the most stressful part of your day.

After your shower take a leisurely walk back to one of the restaurants, find a nice spot to lay-down with a good view of the river. Order a coconut shake and play cards. Repeat until you get hungry at about 6 o'clock. Order some food and another shake. Play some more cards and you and your friends may or may not want to have a few beers now.

Later on, retire to your hammocks to listen to music, drink another Beerlao and, if you're a smoker, have the odd cigarette. If you're a toker, have a joint of Laos's cheap 'happy-tobacco' (I'm not a toker, parents ;-).

Whilst laying in my hammock on one of these evenings, educating my Dutch friend on the finer points of Pink Floyd's best music, I was high on a combination of great music, great company, menthol tobacco, a couple of Beerlaos and a sublime location and view of the river Mekong with the mountains in the distance.

I felt so good I could burst.

I checked in on myself - I tested myself to see if I could put a dent in it. I thought about the things that usually bother me in darker moments. I quietly considered the fact that I am 32 and have no wife, no children and a shaky career and financial position.

It was blissful to find that none of these things bothered me in the slightest right now.

Even whilst actively considering these facts, I still felt like I was on Cloud 9.

At this moment, genuinely, none of these things bothered me at all - they made no dent in my blissful state. It didn't seem to matter at all.

I carried on looking out onto the beautiful Mekong with David Gilmour's guitar solo building, my hammock slowly swinging in the cool breeze and a slow, rapturous smile spreading across my face.

From not happy to very happy

andrew_stelmach — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:08:00 GMT

So having not had an awesome time since Railey (although SOME good times), I went down to Cambodia and after Siem Reap and Phenom Penh I ended up in Kompong Cham and I was NOT a happy bunny. There were no backpackers there and I was basically getting very lonely and DYING to speak to some British people!

I pushed on to Laos (I really had to push myself) and met some people on the bus on the last part of the journey to the 4000 islands. So I now have a little gang, at least temporarily. This place is amazing. So so peaceful and relaxing it's insane. It really is a little slice of paradise (but it's not on the coast - it's a couple of islands in the middle of the Mekong River). A short while ago I was experiencing one of the best natural highs ever, just so incredibly relaxed and happy.

So a big contrast from only 1 or 2 days ago. That's part of the adventure I suppose. Sometimes the perseverance pays off.

I have a little bungalow (like a shed) next to the river with a hammock on the patio, for about 40p a night(!). My gang had a few beers last night and today we went for a ride on some bicycles to look at the mighty rapids nearby. I came back a little earlier because I was convinced it would rain hard and didn't want my camera to get wet. On getting back I watched a couple of films in one of the bars with a french girl who was knocking around, within spitting distance of the water. When the films finished, they put on Coldplay's 'Fix You' and I was in heaven.

The last time I got a high like this was on Railey when I arrived with Marcel and was laid in my hammock looking at big limestone cliffs.

I felt so incredibly happy it felt like I was literally going to burst.

So this is a very good thing, I wasn't happy a couple of days ago but it just doesn't seem to matter anymore!

EDIT (13/06/2013): This story really doesn't convery just HOW fucking miserable I was in Kompong Cham. I was so miserable it really did feel like I had slipped into a minor depression. I was lost as to what to do. I was DYING for some company, but not just any company, not the kind that fucks off after a couple of days leaving me to fend for myself again. No! Fuck it man, I was NEEDY! I NEEDED some proper companionship!

So there I was, in my miserable bland hotel in the middle of a really fucking boring town, feeling incredibly along. I remember the sensation of 'zooming out' and remembering exactly where I was i.e. in the middle of fucking nowehere, a LONG way from home. In the middle of Cambodia?! I mean, WTF?!

At that moment I realised I had to do something, but what? What followed from that point, I think probably built some character in me. After all, as they say, 'adversity builds character'. So true!

I realised that, quite obviously, I was completely alone in a far-flung corner of the world, feeling completely miserable. And because I was completely alone in a far-flung foreign country, I only had 2 options: 1. Travel directly to Bangkok and take the next flight home to Mummy and Daddy. No! 2. Leave this town and find some travel buddies. I quickly realised that option no.2 was the correct choice. And because I HAD to do it, I MADE it happen.

The hardest part was deciding on the next step and forcing myself into it. I forced myself to book a bus to Laos, yet another country and go to the 4000 islands. This was was really quite scarey and difficult. I was so miserable I didn't think I would be able to have a decent conversation with anyone I might meet, and even if I could do that, how could I forge a strong relationship in that state, in order to carry on backpacking with them?

Well, what followed was partly luck, but definitely also down to my social engineering. When I got talking to Micah and Mari and Sander on the bus, instead of 'going with the flow' all backpacker-stylee, I actively (yet subtly) engineered the chain of events to make sure we ended up at the same guesthouse and got huts next to each other. In fact, subtly though I've made it sound, primarily all it took was to have the balls to say, "hey let's get the same guesthouse together". The reply? "Yeah sure!". And later, "hey, we should get huts next to each other, that would be cool!". The response? "Yeah sure!".

It really was as simple as that. Luckily, it seemed the others were quite keen to meet other people too, but if it wasn't for my proactiveness, I wouldn't have got to know these people and forged a genuine friendship with them. What followed was a really blissful 6 weeks of backpacking with them through Laos and back into Thailand, finishing in Chiang Mai. It was AWESOME.

What I took from this experience? It meant the highs I experienced were higher than if I'd gone travelling with friends. Sometimes we'd all be laying in our hammocks watching the sunset over the hills in the distance, beer in hand, watching the river glide past and listening to Pink Floyd. I'd be so ecstatically happy and then the thought would pop into my head, 'I did this. I rocked up in a foreign country COMPLETELY alone and this is now'. That thought would tip my incredibly happy state into one of the highest highs I'd ever known. This happened on 2 or 3 occasions. (And no, I wasn't under the influence of anything!).

A philosophy of my own that was borne out of this experience is: "If you REALLY desire something. Truly, deeply, fiercely desire something, it will happen." I'm generally of the opinion that people get what they want. Sometimes, it could be something negative and they think it's been thrust upon them, but it could have been due to a negative desire or belief lurking in their subconscious. Conversely, when you STRONGLY desire something, your actions naturally follow without you really having to consciously think about what to do. You will make decisions and take actions that engineer your desire into reality. Your body language and the 'energy' you give off will be picked up on by other people and they will (often without knowing it) forge your desire into a reality also.

Cambodia

andrew_stelmach — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 15:00:00 GMT

I went straight through Bangkok and got a taxi straight from the sleeper train to the northern bus station and got on a bus to the Cambodian border. Although I was skipping my potential Bangkok lady-friend I knew that I'd be in Bangkok at a later date anyway and I really don't like Bangkok and Koh San Road in particular.

5 hours later it was time to run the gauntlet into Cambodia. First it was a tuk-tuk ride 7km to the border (it broke down on the way but it just needed some fuel) and then it was past all the touts to the actual border. I found the touts easy to deal with (just ignore them), but what was harder to deal with was having to witness by companions (we'd banded together so we would share a taxi from the border to Siem Reap), engaging with them and, according to them, 'see if they could do a good price for a visa'. I mean c'mon!! The visas sell for $20 at the border at the official immigration desk. How are you going to get it cheaper through a dodgey middle-man?

So anyway, past the touts and through the border which was painless enough, but then came the 'free government bus or taxi?' debacle. By this point there were 5 male backpackers and 3 female backpackers all debating whether we should take the government bus (allegedly a trap sometimes) or a taxi (possible scams). It wasn't an easy decision but in the end we all got in taxis and there were no problems.

The ride to Siem Reap had some beautiful scenery - pancake flat paddy fields as far as the eye can see, like a green ocean. Never seen anything like it.

I separated from my companions in Siem Reap and was in the mood for a really nice quiet guesthouse with friendly staff. I found the perfect place in the form of 'Mommy's Guesthouse'. It's a relatively small guesthouse run by a family with two children. The welcome was warm and friendly and the room is REALLY nice. For $5 I've got a huge double bed, a well-sealed room, good ceiling fan and en-suite bathroom with a decent shower. CAN'T COMPLAIN.

I've been 3 nights here now (or is it 4?) and I've loved this little guesthouse. It's almost like staying with the family in their own home. After all, they do live here and they all spend their day in the lobby area, which is where I'm sat now on the FREE INTERNET(!). I eat my food here and read books and anytime I like I can order food or drink, or even have my laundry done. After the business of Chiang Mai and the endless uni students going 'tubing in Laos', I'm loving the fact there's no other guests here and having some time to myself with the children running round and crazy Cambodian TV.

On arrival here I was really keen to meet up with Wouter. I knew he was here and I was keen for some company. I'd met him and his friend in Bangkok. Having spent a few days with him however, I'm kind of preferring my own company at the moment. I can't quite put my finger on it, but as much as I like him and he's a decent guy, I don't feel like spending long periods of time with him. We may, however, be travelling away from here tomorrow to a small rural village for a couple of days which should be quite nice. Good photo opportunities and a chance to get off the beaten track a little bit.

Young Jade has thrown a small spanner in the works by facebooking me this morning and asking if I was in Cambodia because she's arriving in Cambodia today (probably here), so I've said to Wouter that I might prefer to stay behind.

Wouter and I sampled the delights of the local temples day before yesterday. Angkor Wat (Angkor WHAT?!) was our first stop - the 'eighth wonder of the world'. The night before we went out on the lash on Pub Street in town which was quite good. I think Wouter had a better night than I but it was good nontheless. We'd arranged to meet at 10am so despite being very tired and a bit hungover, given our 4am finish, I knew I HAD to be at our meeting point at 10am, otherwise things would snowball and we'd have real trouble finding each other. So made it on time I did and after looking for Wouter at his guesthouse, me and my tuk tuk driver went back and found him at the meeting point 30 minutes late, which was ok.

Angkor Wat was big and impressive, but other than that we both found it underwhelming. Maybe too touristified. The other temples though were fantastic. I hadn't been to temples before, whereas Wouter had been to many temples in India and was tired of them. However, even he found them really enjoyable. It was hot and sweaty work temple-tramping but they really were fantastic and one of the sites (Angkok Thom) has extensive and sublime grounds. It would be a great place to spend a lazy day wandering round and sitting on the grass and soaking it all in.

The day pass cost $20 so we weren't keen on doing another day and, besides, we felt 1 day was enough really.

Since then I've taken the opportunity to have some real chill-time at the guesthouse. I'm really getting into the history of Cambodia. I forgot to mention that on the first day Wouter and I went to the National Landmine Museum nearby and that was really good. The man who runs the place has an harrowing and fascinating past. He was a child soldier and went through alot. He laid alot of mines for various sides during the long war-history of Cambodia. Now he is on a mission to remove all of the landmines and unexploded ordnance. There was a big sign explaining his story and it was truly emotive.

This morning I took the time to read a fairly comprehensive story of Cambodia's history in the Lonely Planet guidebook. It makes for a fascinating and troubling read. The country has been through so much and the bloodiest time was not long ago - only 1975-79. Even after that though, there was an awful lot of bloodshed, forced labour and general suffering. At the moment there is the trial of several of the Khmer Rouge leaders showing on TV every day. The man of the house here watches it keenly whenever it's on and it was quite profound for me to be reading about what had happened in the book while at the same time the trial was on the tv in front of me with the Cambodian family watching it. At one moment, it even showed one of the Khmer Rouge leaders speaking on the stand while I was reading about him in the book.

I may head down to the capital to go to the museum there and also the killing fields.

Post-South Thailand, Motorbiking and Crashes

andrew_stelmach — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 22:38:00 GMT

So on it was from Krabi and through Bangkok up to Chiang Mai. I didn't even stay a night in Bangkok - I really don't like that place! Maybe I should stay away from Ko San road though...

After taking the nightbus (and seemingly getting 180 quid stolen from right next to me while I was asleep), I spent the day chilling-out in my favourite guesthouse - Happy House Guesthouse!

One of the older women working there saw I was tired and said I could use the area just up the stairs to lay down. I was ok there though. Not giving up, she tried to flirt with me a bit more and offered me her room to sleep in while she was working, "when I finish work, you go". 'Yeah right!' I thought, 'she has a bit more than that in mind!'. Regardless of whether or not I would have to pay for her 'services' (I'm not into that kind of thing and I'm not about to start), she wasn't a great looker so I politely declined and dozed in my chair instead.

Before I left I grabbed a shower and returned my towel to the desk before putting on my t-shirt. The gorgeous girl behind reception seemed to like this and her brother later told me she liked me. With great regret I had to leave straight away to catch my train but left them my facebook so she could get in touch. I left Happy House feeling quite happy with myself.

The sleeper train was a real experience - what a way to travel! I spent alot of time chatting with a british couple who were in the same room as me. Settling into Julie's guesthouse was harder than I thought though. Everyone there seemed really young, which isn't usually a problem for me, but I've come to realise that just a couple of years over 21 really does make a difference. I got trapped into a conversation with a bunch of folk who I clearly didn't click with. I was not a happy bunny. However, after a couple of days, some motorbiking and one bungee jump later I was heading off on a massive motorbiking tour with an irish companion called Niall.

This trip was absolutely awesome, despite even the fact that Niall couldn't seem to understand anything I said first time. I'm not sure if it was just a bit of a habit for him, but pretty-much EVERY time I said something to him, he would say, "say again?". This was REALLY irritating when I was tired. However, I managed to get through the trip without losing my rag.

The route went roughly from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai, via Phayao, next day taking a clockwise loop going north east from Chiang Rai to start with, then down south to Pong and round up to Phayao. Last day north-west to Phrao and down to Chiang Mai. We covered a total of 1400km! 2nd day we spent 12 hours in the saddle!

Second evening was the evening of my crash. Caught in a sudden downpour I lost it on a bend and went headfirst into the jungle with my bike. It was only a slow-speed crash so me and the bike got off pretty lightly really. It didn't even hurt particularly! I just have some sore ribs. The bike had a bent gear-lever, a dent in the fuel tank and some scratches. Someone must have called the emergency services because the cops and an ambulance turned up. They were awesomely helpful. We'd already got the bike out of the jungle using Niall's offroad skills, riding it up a wet and muddy bank. We just had to bend the gear lever out, which was difficult. The highlight was definitely when the Thais brought over a huge piece of bamboo with a piece of metal on the end to use as a lever.

Got some great photos from that episode, including me in the jungle with my bike and a shot with all the Thais. Luckily the bike was fully ride-able so we just headed back to Phayao and watched an awesome sunset over the beautiful lake there. Laying on the warm concrete with all our stuff laid out to dry was a great feeling!

The hotel we stayed in had a kind of road going through the lobby to the carpark out the back. Just like riding INTO the Julie's Guesthouse on a Kawasaki Ninja 250R was awesome, so was riding out of the hotel lobby on a motorbike in the morning.

Another awesome ride back to Chiang Mai and that was the end of the trip. I had to pay 280 pounds for the damage to the bike. Fortunately I'd opted for their extra insurance when I took out the bike, so it could have been ALOT more! He would have charged me for another 7 days bike hire if it wasn't for the insurance, for lost hire-time while it was getting repaired.

One of the highlights of the trip for me was the riding on the 2nd morning through a huge valley through paddy-fields. The scenery was just stunning and it had a lovely dawn light cast over it. The mountain loop we did that day was awesome too, especially the long section of brand new asphalt. The mountains in the east aren't covered with tall trees, so you get fantastic views everywhere, unlike closer to Chiang Mai. Another highlight was generally being a novelty to people in the remote villages. Finally an area with no tourists! One petrol station we pulled up in we felt like rockstars - the staff were all wanting to talk to us and I shared some amazing eye contact with a beautiful girl there. The look she gave me was definitely one of the highlights of the trip!

I was so knackered when we got back to Chiang Mai that all I wanted to do was go to bed. I got a private room in J J's Guesthouse and in the evening I went out onto the terrace just to have a quick cigarette before going to bed (for some reason I'm smoking the occasional cigarette at the moment!). Some french guys started talking to me and I ended up being persuaded to go out with them to a Thai nightclub. What an experience that was! Being the only white people in there was alot of fun and the thai's were very friendly. In a similar way to being in the remote villages, we were often surrounded by beautiful Thai girls. However, our western approach to chatting-up women was a little too much for them I think and none of us had much success in that department! Alot of fun was had by all. Unfortunately the french guys have gone up to Laos. I'm tempted to follow them but I may choose to actually head down south and go to Cambodia instead and catch up with my dutch friend.

At the moment I'm enjoying doing not a great deal and having quite a chilled-out time to myself. Feels good to be doing nothing! Also, I've overspent MASSIVELY in my first month here so I'm taking a cheap approach to everything now.

Railey to Bangkok

andrew_stelmach — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 12:42:00 GMT

Ponchos can be useful here if you need to keep your bag dry, but most people just get wet, because it's warm and wet. Saw a poncho out yesterday from a well-prepared German couple in their 50's. They've been backpacking every year since they've been married, having both got the bug in their 20's. Everyone was crammed into a longtail boat going from Railey to Ao Nang (about 30 minutes) to get the coach to Bangkok. It started raining hard and I managed to steal a piece of poncho to keep my little rucksack dry (my big one was luckily at the bottom of a huge pile at the front of the boat). We were chugging along nicely, although slightly apprehensive after a guy got on and said that he'd seen a longtail capsize the other day.

And then the engine broke down. It was a bit wavy and the german woman next to me got a bit nervous. I assured her that the waves weren't big enough to capsize us and since the wind was blowing us towards our destination, at least we'd get there eventually. She seemed to settle down after that, or maybe it was just her stoic german resolve. Underneath my calm exterior however, I was slightly apprehensive, not for my safety, because the water was warm and we were close to beaches, but I really didn't fancy having to deal with swimming around retrieving my rucksack.

After 15 minutes of everyone being deliberately calm and patient, the driver got it started again and all was well. After a couple of entertaining minibus transfers we eventually got on a rather nice big coach for the final leg of the journey to Bangkok. What feels like a long time ago (but only 2 weeks ago) I got a coach from Bangkok to go south. Having been shown a very old photograph in the travel agents of an absolutely awesome-looking coach (the V.I.P. coach it was called), we were disappointed to find our coach looking nothing like the photograph (this is not unusual in Thailand I now know). Yesterday, however, I ended up on the coach that looked just like that coach in the photograph. Two-tiered and you could put the seats all the way back and actually get some sleep.

Getting shouted at by Thais, "GO NOW BANGKOK! LAST STOP! BANGKOK! YOU COME NOW!" at 5.30 in the morning straight from sleep with your eye-mask on and ear-plugs in, is not the best way to start your day. Plus, the taxi-touts were one step away from being actually ON the coach, looking up the stairs at us, "WHERE YOU GO? WHERE YOU GO? TAXI." I'm usually very good at just blocking them out of my mind but at this hour my patience was hanging by a thread. Me, the random dutch physio and the german couple decided that we will share a taxi to Kho San road, to save money. However, as soon as we stepped off the bus I was almost certain that we were only 5 or 10 minutes walk from Kho San road. A taxi fare for that distance should only be 30 baht (60p) I explained to everyone else (they hadn't been to Ko San road before). Typically, the taxi drivers were aware that alot of people have no idea that they are only around the corner from their destination. If you engage these people to ask for directions, the conversation typically goes, "where is Ko San Road?".
"Ok Ko San road, 200 baht" (four quid),
"No. Where is it?"
"Ko San Road?"
"Yes"
"200 baht".

I don't know exactly why, but I've never got into these conversations, but I've seen plenty of other people do. Maybe I've been to enough countries before, or maybe it's because I just know that, if someone is just trying to get as much money out of you as possible, it's best to just not engage with them in the first place.

I told him 30 baht but he was still wanting 50 baht EACH for the taxi-ride. I still strongly suspected we were only about 200 metres from Ko San road and, at least, I always like to use the strategy of walking away from the mob of touts waiting for you and flag down a random taxi 100 yards away. The German man was not feeling too well so they got in the taxi anyway and me and the random dutch guy started walking.

We walked straight there in about 5 minutes and when we got there the german couple got out of their taxi, having done a short loop of the area. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't help but feel a vague sense of smugness.

Now I'm back where I started only 2 and a half weeks ago but it feels like easily a month. I was sad to see Marcel and Clare go (they're going to Malaysia and then India) - I've had a fantastic time with them and I consider them to be two new friends. Now I'm tired in Bangkok - not a place to linger. But having been through this process before, I'm not suffering from the same apprehension I was when I first arrived because I'm confident that wherever I go in Thailand, I'll always be meeting people, or 'catching another wave' ;-)