Resetting.

No Harm Dreaming, Right?

naddydaud — Tue, 13 May 2014 00:59:00 GMT

There are so many things that I am planning to do this year. Like how I am planning to dirt bike the next time I am in Krabi. But for now, I can only afford to dirt bike across the border at Tristan Park. Already planned to do so after my favourite beertender is done with her exams and after my Brother, Qama, is confident enough to do so.

How I have been trying to find a swimming coach with an affordable price because I want to take my PADI Open Water Course in Koh Tao. And once I am done with that, I shall dive whenever I can and who knows, take the Advance Course so that I can experience night diving.

And that I want to stay a few nights in Ton Sai the next time I am there.

And how I want to learn to surf in Bali. And also go for the cycling tour in Bali and then dirt bike again with Net and gang.

That I wished I could fly to Norway for Midnight Sun Festival and meet Monica and Stefan. That I wished I could go over to Ireland to meet my blast from the past best friend, Syafiqah. And how I can't wait to meet Alyssa and James somewhere in the world. That I want to fly to New Zealand to meet Dada and get fitness tips from her. And to go to Australia to meet Matthew.

Well, I know 90% of this list would not be happening anytime this year. But there is a reason behind that and I am beyond thankful to have been given that oppurtunity.

Time to explain more about that in my next post!

Semasa Di Bali.

naddydaud — Tue, 13 May 2014 00:16:00 GMT

The last time I went to Indonesia was when I was 15. It was a 2 days 1 night trip organized by the school and it was a Geography trip. We went to Manado and damn, really beautiful landscape and we were fortunate to stay in a resort up the mountain which served really delicious chicken wings for breakfast!

After that trip, I've always told myself that I need to go there again. Because 2D1N wasn't enough! I still haven't got the chance yet, hopefully sometime next year. Sheila's been asking me to travel with her and I think next year would be a good year for Manado.

This year I finally stepped foot on the sands of Kuta Beach. Most of my friends have been to Bali and I've always wanted to go there, I even told my previous partner that I wanted to go there but she said it's boring. It was boring for her probably because she's been there so many times. I'm thankful that my friend, Net, actually asked me out of the blue to go to Bali after my Solo Trip 2013. Because if she hadn't asked, I think I wouldn't have had the chance to and because of this trip, I found another travel buddy which I am so thankful for.

I rarely fly but this time round I didn't opt for any checked-in baggage. Well, reason being I didn't even intend to shop. So it was just my trusty haversack and I! Since the flight to Bali wasn't too early, there wasn't a need to catch a cab so I met Net at the MRT station and off we go from the West to the East. Met another 2 of her friends at the airport! It was so awkward, I mean, I naturally am an awkward turtle, plus I've never met them before so I was worried if I was going to take a while to warm up to them. We checked-in and we had our breakfast first since we had the time and then time to fly off! When we touched down in Bali, Kadir was already waiting for us and the first stop was the currency exchange. The rates there are better actually. First day was mainly just exploring around since the adventure only starts the next day! So first day was exploring and going through the endless outlet stores!

The highlight of this Bali Trip was definitely dirt biking. Which was done during the 2nd day. Glad that all of us managed to wake up on time. Wait, not exactly on time but we weren't that late. The ride to Tabanan took a few hours from Kuta so we had plenty of time to sleep. Reached the location and time to get changed. Net managed to choose her bike first since she knows how to ride while the 3 of us pillion with the crew to the training ground. We got our bikes, all manual except of Nana's bike, she got the automatic one! A few hours of training there. My first fall was because I hit some kind of wall and the training ground was right beside a school and the whole bunch of kids were laughing at me. It was so hilarious. Net said I looked like I'm mowing the lawn when I rode the bike, it's my posture, for sure. The whole experience, it was beyond amazing. We wanted adventure and Bali Dirt Bike definitely gave us adventure. The weather gave us extra adventure too! I've never operated a bike before, I'm always the pillion. So basically, I had a crash course while I was there. I fell plenty of times and my bike stalled countless times. But I swear, I'm definitely doing it again. The trail was scary but it's definitely thrilling. The crew was helpful and patient. They were friendly and easy going. It started pouring heavily while we were biking so all of us seeked shelter under the trees since we were in the jungle. All of us became pillions after that because we were non-experienced riders and it was unsafe to ride. We stopped at a tiny hut with an view amazing view of the paddy plantations. And then off we go to one of the crew's house and had durians there. Durians during a heavy downpour with amazing buddies and amazing people, just perfect. We were all drenched but it didn't matter. It was an unforgettable experience and I can't wait for the next time I'll be doing it again. After we returned the bikes and cleaned up, we had some light food before the few hours ride back to the hotel. We fell asleep again and bathe once we reached the hotel. Net suffered a lot of bruises since she fell down a hell lot, especially when she had to ride the automatic bike, damn heavy! Out for dinner after that and then some shopping for them (I really didn't shop during this trip!) before getting some shakes and then off to some bar whereby Net and Mira made Nana and I tried Jungle Juice. I was shocked at the size of it. It's good but we drank responsibly so none of us got high or drunk. Maybe Nana did, damn funny. We wanted to walk back to the hotel but it started drizzling and Nana and I needed the toilet damn badly so we cabbed back instead. Washed up and had our shakes and I think that night I was the last one to fall asleep because I was very alert. But I did had a good sleep after that.

So what did I do on the 3rd day? Dreamland. Woohoo! I love it, I love it. Finally some sea water after so long! Net rented two body boards because she wanted me to body surf with her. Well, I've never done it before so I got her to teach me. Well, we are both scared of deep waters so we didn't go far. Plus, we kept running away from the waves because they were always very big. God knows have many times I rolled over and did flips when the waves came crashing. But I had so much fun. Then Net lost her glasses when the waves hit her, well, at least now she got all the reasons to always come back to Dreamland. Her eyes are there. We spent almost the whole day there. We had a scrumptious dinner at Bale Udang after trying so hard to decide where to eat. Kadir really brought us to the best food places in town. Not forgetting shopping places too. Well, the next time round I'm there, I'm definitely shopping. Especially for shoes. And oh, boardshorts too. That night I wrote my postcards and reminded myself to post them the next day since it's the last day.

As usual, it's always hard to leave. I didn't want to leave. I'm sure we didn't want to leave either. Kadir waited for us and we had breakfast first. We had a Polaroid picture taken there with Kadir in it so we gave it to him to keep it! Then I had to withdraw some money since I'm running low of funds and then off to the post office to mail my postcards. I'm glad there wasn't a queue. Then we went to Krishna to get souvenirs before heading to the airport. Bid goodbye to Kadir and Bali.

Net and I had a whole row to ourselves and I slept the entire time. Landed in Singapore and my Brother, Qama, was waiting for me at the gate. 4 more Polaroid frames so we had Qama to help us take pictures for each of us to keep. They left while Qama and I headed to Commonwealth to meet Shaf. And yes, I was still with my trusty haversack. Did some catching up and off I go, cabbing back home. Marking the end of my Virgin Bali Trip 2014.

Photos: How about oversleeping?

naddydaud — Wed, 7 May 2014 03:17:00 GMT

Confident about waking up at 5am. I was wrong, totally overslept and it turned into the most unforgettable experience. Well, at least for now. I'm sure I'll have a lot more unforgettable experiences to come.

Surreal - Part #6

naddydaud — Wed, 7 May 2014 02:48:00 GMT

Those who saw my submission for 2014 Travel Writing Scholarship would know what happened to me the day after Songkran. Yes, overslept and missed the minivan at 6am.

Well, we were so damn sure that we would wake up on time. I had a few alarms set and Nan had a few alarms set too. But nope, we still couldn't wake up. Opened my eyes and realized it's already 8:45am. Looked over to Nan and he's sound asleep so I woke him up and told him that we overslept. Guess what, he knew. He woke up at around 7am and tried to wake me up but I couldn't wake up. I guess we were too relaxed the night before. Since we missed the minivan, might as well just take it easy, right? Woke up and washed up and checked out. Asked the reception if she know of any minivans that were heading towards Hat Yai from Ao Nang. She told us the safest bet would be from Krabi Town since we've missed the 2 morning minivans already. Too broke to catch a cab, so a tuktuk will do! Even though we were in a rush, we stayed calm the entire time. It was scorching hot and we walked a lot, trying to find agencies with minivans leaving on that day itself but to no avail. So we decided to grab lunch first since we were so hungry and after that, we managed to actually find an agency with a minivan leaving at 3pm. We booked it even though it cost more than we thought it should be. Hung out for about an hour before the minivan came and off we go! Close to 5 hours ride to Hat Yai and oh dear, it was such a bumpy ride as compared to the ride from Hat Yai to Ao Nang. Made me feel like peeing the entire time so I kept hoping for pitstops, which they had for quite a few times so I was thankful for that. Reached Hat Yai at about 8pm and definitely headed off for dinner first. Almost everyone in Hat Yai are able to converse in Malay which was really good but the accent is really thick, but I'm glad I could still understand and catch what they are trying to say. We stopped near the Bus Terminal so we ate somewhere there and thankfully there's an agency which has a coach going straight to Singapore the next day. Once again, the price was more than we thought it was but we booked it since both of us had to get back to work in a couple of days! Trust me, we were so broke. So damn broke.

My pay have yet to come in and my parents' were broke too so I couldn't borrow any cash from anyone because my closest buddies were tight in the financial department too. Luckily, Nan still had some money left and I have some left and tha got us through. We booked the coach tickets and we even booked a room in that building itself which was opposite the Bus Terminal because we were just so exhausted to even find a decent proper hostel/hotel to stay in.

It was a little uncomfortable at first, I have to admit. But in a way I felt like I was home, because back at home I don't have a proper bed, I sleep on the mattress. My mind was running wild, like what if there are spiders in the closet or whatnot. It's silly, I know. The bathroom was a shared bathroom so at night I asked Nan to accompany me. Like what I said, I was a little uncomfortable. Surprisingly, I fell asleep first. I woke up at 8am, even though the coach was leaving at 11am. I just didn't want to risk anything. I felt comfortable with the room and the bathroom already that I decided to go alone. That's when I know, and I'm glad to still know that I am still the person who adapts to environment easily. Nan woke up slightly later and then we decided to grab breakfast before checking out.

At 10:50am, we checked out and the reception told us to wait for the motorbikes to take us to the other agency. There's where the coach will be at. Nan and I was separated for a while and I did have a good conversation with the motorcyclist. He asked about my stay in Thailand and I told him the places that I intend to visit. Finally arrived at the other agency and Nan was behind me and he said that he was pretty worried that we might end up in different buses. Waited for another hour before the bus arrive.

It was a long journey back to Singapore, I slept most of the time. But let me tell you something, I saw the most beautiful sunset while I was in the bus, I think we were somewhere in Kedah if I'm not wrong. But oh my, it was beautiful. It's too bad that I didn't capture it on my camera because in a way I regretted not capturing it but you know, some things are just meant to be captured up in your mind and I can deal with that. There were plenty of pitstops but I was just too tired to even eat much. Like what I said, I slept a lot.

Nan stopped in Johor Checkpoint because he stays in Pulai while I countinued my journey into Singapore and stopped at Singapore Checkpoint and shared a cab ride back home with a fellow traveler who was in the same coach since he stayed around my neighbourhood.

This incident also made me realized that my parents' definitely trust me at being independent no matter who I'm with or where I'm at. And even if I'm dead broke, they trust me enough to go through it and find my own means and ways to get back to where I should be. It was a comforting realization. Though a part of me felt a little scared at the fact that they are in a way letting me go. My dad knows how much I love traveling and he wants me to know that shit happens and that I have to get out of the situation by hook or by crook and he trust me and my travel buddies to be able to do so as and when the time comes.

I've been busy working and saving up since I'm already itching to travel again, hopefully sometime in September or October.

Photos: Songkran 2014.

naddydaud — Fri, 2 May 2014 22:48:00 GMT

Celebrating Songkran in Krabi.

Surreal - Part #5

naddydaud — Thu, 1 May 2014 02:22:00 GMT

While we were on the minivan to Krabi, we met a Malaysian couple who planned to celebrate Songkran in Krabi. They wanted to see how the celebration is like in Krabi because they celebrated it in Hat Yai years ago and they really enjoyed it and they have been planning to go every year but time wasn't always on their side but they finally managed to celebrate it in Krabi this year.

As for Nan and myself, we haven't got a chance to celebrate it and coincidentally our trip was during Songkran so, lucky us! Which also means that we're definitely celebrating Songkran again in the upcoming years for sure.

I expected to wake up to noise since it was Songkran but it was surprisingly quiet. I walked to the balcony and the street right outside the hotel was very quiet. But hey, what we didn't see what the road at the other side was closed and a two-way road now has turned into a one-way road! We got ready, head out and off to a quick breakfast by the road. We settled for banana chocolate pancakes with egg. But poor Nan, his plate overturned and his pancake dropped on the floor. Off we go to get ourselves ready, you know what that means? Water guns! We decided to not ride because it's seriously dangerous to ride with the water splashing on your face and it's actually quiet painful when it gets directly into your eyes. Nan parked the bike by the roadside and then we started walking and playing with water of course!

We decided to walk over to Mr. Long Bar to check if they are open and we decided to have a shot each before continuing our Songkran journey. Chang and crew told us to join them so we did and that's when we found out that Songkran is one of the festival in Thailand that has the highest number of deaths. Which was really surprising because I never knew, you know? We walked everywhere and then we lost them because Nan and I stopped to get some food and beers and cigarettes. By the time we're done, they are gone so we decided to find our bike and head for lunch. It got a little confusing because the road is no longer a two-way road so we rode aimlessly and we finally found a place to eat which was away from all the noise. That's when I realized my water gun was leaking and I was so sad. After we're done, we rode back to the streets of Ao Nang and guess what, I bought a bigger water gun! Parked the bike and off we go! Another round of getting wet and powdered!

Since we are both so wet, we decided to head over to Ao Nang Beach and grab a quick rest there. And of course, dip in the sea water! After that, off for another round before we head back to our hotel. But we had a problem. The road. One-way road and we have no idea how to get to our hotel. Guess what? We rode on the pavement, and then to the side road and it was scary as hell but we managed to return the bike on time and got back to our room safely and wet.

As usual, washed up and rest a bit more before we head out again. This time round, no more bike for us so we have to walk around instead but it didn't matter. Off to find some food and then back to Mr. Long Bar since it was our last night in Krabi. Damn, we didn't want to leave.

We're suppose to get a tuktuk back to our hotel but Nan decided that we should check out what's there in RCA Entertaiment and the deal was, a shot and then off we go. We went to Kiss Bar and bam, a few shots and a few drinks and a few beers. We even had to withdraw money, damn. We overspent but at least it's our last night in Ao Nang so might as well make it memorable, right?

Got back to our room, washed up and off to sleep. We already packed our things beforehand so there wasn't much packing to do!

And at the end of the day we do realized why Songkran caused a lot of deaths. Personally, I find it really scary to be riding a bike and having tons of water and powder being splashed right in your face. Doesn't matter if you have visor or not, your vision will definitely be blurred.

Oh, so much for packing our things beforehand and having a few alarms. Did you know, we woke up late the next day! More about that in the next post!

Photos: When I was in Krabi.

naddydaud — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 02:44:00 GMT

Well, I fell in love.

Doo Doo Doo

naddydaud — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 23:59:00 GMT

Heard this song when we were at Mr. Long Bar and it became our jam rightaway.

Surreal - Part #4

naddydaud — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 20:12:00 GMT

Let's not make the same mistake again, I didn't save after 60 minutes and there goes my post. It's the 2nd time it's happening to me. I should pay more attention to the time next time round.

The previous night was pretty much a stoned night. Originally we planned to go for water rafting but figured that if we were to do that, we wouldn't have time to just chill during the day so we decided to head to Ton Sai and Railay since A and J did recommend us those 2 beaches. So we did. We woke up and we went to the reception first to inform them about the problem with the television set before we rode to find places to grab our breakfast. Or was it lunch? Brunch, I mean. But before that, we did more souvenirs shopping and we did shopped quite a bit. Then off to find the Post Office because I wanted to mail my letters to ▼ and I needed stamps for the postcards too. We decided to have brunch at the shop across the road from the Post Office. We then rode back to our hotel because the pier to get on the boat to Ton Sai was just directly across our hotel. Each ticket costs us a 100฿ and we had to wait for quite a bit because they need 10 people before they decide to move and we were short of 3 people and guess what? We forgot to leave our helmets with our bike so we ended up carrying it around in Ton Sai and Railay. How silly.

The journey was quick and I'm pretty sure we sail pass those two beaches the previous day during our Krabi 4 Islands Tour. About half of the passengers alighted at Ton Sai while the other half continued their ride to Railay which is just beside Ton Sai. The sand were pretty rough and the shore was a little rocky. Well, untill it was low tide then I realized how rocky it was - damn rocky! I actually wanted to swim but we decided to settle down at Viking Bar first after walking around the area.

Viking Bar is definitely the perfect place for someone like me. It didn't matter that there were plenty of flies and flying insects. With all the hammocks hanging, I just wanted to settle down there. It's such a quite and calming place. I wish I'm there instead of being on the mattress now in my room. How I miss that place deeply.

Spoke to the bartender whom I assume is the owner of the bar too and told him that A and J told us to come here. He recalled and said that both of them were always around to chill here and I wished I came to Krabi slightly earlier then I'd have been able to hang out with them. A very laid back guy and we decided to get our Chang and a shake and let him continue his game of pool with his friends while we settled on the hammock. With the breeze and the stunning view, it was just a perfect place to be after a long day previously. As usual, we chilled in comfortable silence and flew to another planet while we're on the verge of sleeping.

Of course, a lot of things went through my mind and I wish I could write or even drew but I didn't know why I didn't take the time to do so. Probably because I just wanted to indulge in every single second of that moment. Things that I couldn't comprehend and things that I could. It came to a point where I could honestly say that I'm contented and blessed and that I've never been happier. Looking back at how things were a year ago, I was a mess. Everything about me was a mess and I think I grew up a lot, mentally. I would have read if I brought my books but I totally forgot about books for this trip so that was quite disappointing. As I was thinking, my eyes drifted away to the amazing rock formations and it got stuck on one of the huge formation and I kept seeing faces on it. I wanted to draw them all because it would be interested but then again I just wanted to indulge in that moment so I didn't. I would have asked Nan but he was drifting away in his own world but after we left the place, he did mention that we saw plenty of faces too. At least I'm not the only one! After a few hours we decided to make a move and we grabbed some food at the stall beside Viking Bar itself.

I still wanted to swim but the tide was low and it's so full of rocks and the thought of stepping on rocks while I swim didn't please me at all so we decided to just head straight to Railay. To be honest, I really don't know how to walk to Railay. Chang told us we could kayak but looking at our state and the state of our pockets, we decided to just walk since I kept seeing people walking from the far end of the shore. We could walk because it's low tide and actually there's a proper trail to follow but we thought that was for the rock climbers because there's quite a number of climbers that were preparing for their climb. How silly of us not to ask. So we walked by the rocky shoreline which wasn't that bad at first but damn, it got a little challenging after a while. The rocks were sharp and it felt like we signed up for rock climbing but without safety harnesses because we had to climb over a few rocks that were really slippery and sharp. Definitely not the kind of thing to do when you're not sober and clearly we weren't sober at all! I'm on my alert mode so I kept seeing creatures like crabs moving on the rocks. It was very scary especially when your legs start to get shaky and I wished I could have taped it all but I was just too focused and I didn't want either of us to fall because we would injure ourselves pretty badly. We then saw two ladies in their bikini and barefooted so we asked if we're reaching Railay and they said it's just behind them and I was thinking, "Wow, those ladies sure is something. Walking towards Ton Sai barefooted on those kinda rocks?" Just wow. We made it to Railay safely!

My feet sunk into the warmest and softest sand that I've ever felt in a very long time. I wanted to do sand angels! The view was just beyond stunning though the waters weren't as clear as Poda, it didn't matter. I loved every single bit of that island. We placed our bags in the sand and decided to swim since I didn't get to swim at Ton Sai. Nan wasn't very keen on being in the water because of his freshly done tattoo but he went inside anyway! After we got out, he said that we should go for massage by the beach and we did. As much as I'm uncomfortable of getting massages, I think I deserve to pamper myself every now and then and of course it felt damn good. They folded us like we're clothes! We also got our foot scrubbed and it was ticklish but it was so relaxing. We figured since we're feeling all relaxed, might as well just head back to Ao Nang after we're done so we did that. We didn't have to wait long this time round but we alighted at the pier that's further from our hotel but it didn't matter since we could walk and dry ourselves before reaching the hotel. While on the boat there was this lady who spoke to me asking if I was wearing a Tegan & Sara shirt which I did and asked if I've seen them live. Of course not since I didn't have the chance to when they were in Singapore but my previous lover bought it for me because she was there. I would have conversed more with her but I was just so tired I guess, but sea sickness was getting to her and she puked after she went off the boat. We got some bracelets done while walking back to our hotel and bought some banana and chocolate pancakes.

I saw this one shirt that I really like and I know it's not cheap but I tried to bargain anyway. I'd get it the next time I'm there. I bargained and he was really funny, he took a pair of thongs and gave me and said that for the price I gave, I can only get that. Nice one, really. Served me right!

We got back to our room and washed up and rest a little before heading out again. Wrote on my postcards and mailed it at the mailbox opposite the hotel before riding to Center Point to get our bracelets by the road side. Another pancake and a bottle of Chang again because we decided to get more bracelets done to give as souvenirs before heading to Mr. Long Bar again.

We made it a point to go to Mr. Long Bar during our stay there. I really loved the place and the ambience there. Doesn't matter that there's a lot of mosquitoes. The cats there are really cute too. One of the reason why I loved the place so much is also because it's pretty secluded. Plus Mr. Long and his crew are very approachable! Especially Chang and Mr. Long himself. Nan said he wants to retire like him. Who wouldn't, eh? But the sad thing is, the place was closing in a few days time because that area is going to be used for hotel development. Basically, on our 1st night there, there were about 3 more bars there. But on this day, only his bar was open. The rest was torn down already. But rest assured, Mr. Long Bar will be easier to find the next time round because it'll be by the road side and there'll be one near Nopparattara Beach too.

As usual we had our usual beers, chilled and talked. We left the bar and decided to check out the night life at Center Point. We went to Chang Bar and it was their Happy Hours and we got ourselves a bucket. Danced a little and decided to get back to the hotel since we were quite tired. Once we were back in the room, Nan was in the mood to watch lesbian movies and as he said that, two girls were kissing on the screen! We were a little shocked. Come on, we don't get such things in Singapore, it'll be censored! It was in Thai so we couldn't understand anything but really, I do want to pick up the language. Because I foresee myself exploring Thailand in the years to come. I'm already planning one in October this year.

We finally fell asleep after smoking so much and after a cup of instant noodles. It was Songkran the next day so I'm pretty damn excited! So I'll talk about that in the next post and have a great week ahead!

Photos: Singapore to KL to Hat Yai!

naddydaud — Thu, 24 Apr 2014 02:01:00 GMT

It's our BroTrip'14, unfortunately the younger Brother couldn't make it so it's just Nan and I. We started the journey by train from Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Stopped in Kuala Lumpur and then another train ride to Hat Yai, Once in Hat Yai we took a minivan to Krabi. So here are the pictures of our journey.

Surreal - Part #3

naddydaud — Thu, 24 Apr 2014 00:32:00 GMT

Krabi 4 Islands Tour!

We booked ours from YourKrabi.com before we left for the trip because we wanted to settle whatever we could before reaching there. Even though it would be just as easy to book any other tours because there's a lot of agencies there in every corner of the street. There's one right beside the hotel we stayed in too.

Probably the only day we managed to wake up on time. We were at the lobby at 8am but figured that it was still rather early so I had my morning tea while Nan had his morning coffee at the cafe nearby. Realized that they didn't serve any food so we settled for cup noodles from the convenient store next door. At about 8:45am the transport came to pick up us and since we were the last ones they picked up, there wasn't any space left for us at the back so we sat with the driver in front. Rather squeezy but it wasn't a problem at all. It's just a 2 minutes drive to Nopparattara Beach and that's where we took our longtail boat. Even before boarding the boat, we were already wet but we were all ready and set to get wet since I brought a dry pack for my phone just so I could take pictures underwater!

I haven't been on a boat for a long time and just so you know, I haven't been to any great beaches for more than a decade so I was extremely excited for this trip and honestly, I feel like 2014 will be my Beach Boi year!

Our first stop was Poda Island and the waters were so damn clear. Lovely. I swam near the shore, even though it's the near shore I still wore my life vest because I'm scared. I swam with the fishes! They were so close to me! Snorkeled a bit at Poda too. It was at Poda too that Nan and I tried to figure out how to use my phone properly underwaters because everytime I wanted to snap a picture, it locks itself. How frustrating. I can't exactly remember how long we were there but the guides called us back to the boat so that we can move on to the next island.

We cruised past Chicken Island, which I personally think that the rock structure looks like a Peacock instead. On a side note, I'm extremely fascinated by all the beautiful rock formations in Thailand itself, especially while I was in Krabi and doing the Islands Tour. I find them really stunning.

We stopped by Tup Island for our lunch and picked a spot near the rocks to enjoy our lunch. Once we're done we took our snorkel kits and snorkeled a little around our boat. The waters there aren't that clear as Poda but I saw a sea cucumber chilling by a rock and my feet cringed because I didn't want to step on it and I kept imagining how squishy it might feel like if I stepped on it.

After Tup Island, we cruised along more rock formations and then the boat came to a stop. Then I remember Qama telling me that they had open water snorkelling in the middle of nowhere. Okay, here's the thing. I can swim. But I have no water confidence even with a life vest and Qama said the water was 2 metres deep, so I thought, "That's not so bad." That spot had a lot of sea urchins too but it was on the other side of the boat and now I understood why Qama was so afraid. He has phobia of sea urchins after his trip to Krabi. So the boat stopped, the ladder was put on the side and we wore our life vest and our snorkel kits. Got insde the water and I dipped my head inside. "Oh Lord, save me now.", was chanting in my head. It was definitely not 2 metres deep! Nan was holding on the ladder while I told him that we should just swim, afterall we do have our life vests on. It was super deep, but it was beautiful. I saw corals right in front of my eyes, huge corals with a huge sea urchin on it. I saw bigger fishes as compared to the ones in Poda. I was so scared but the experience was beyond words. Despite the tormoil in my head (because of my fear of drowning and whatnot), I found peace in being underwater and being able to still breathe through the snorkel kit. I felt so calm as I swam further away from the boat and away from Nan because I was engrossed on seeing more marine life. Only after I put my head up that I realized Nan was nearer to the boat so I swam towards him and decided to just hold on to the ladder because my fear came back to me. We decided to go up to the boat and that's when the guide were holding on to a sea urchin. I heard they sting but I still wanted a picture with it so I held it in my palms. It tickles when it moves! After that we decided to jump again, swam a little bit more and get all scared again before heading back up to the boat.

Off to the last island! Which was Phra Nang Cave Beach! It was quite a walk to the cave but it's definitely quite a sight. Full of wooden penises. Very interesting indeed. After reading what it's for and all, we decided to put our bags down under the shade of the cave and head for a swim. But before that, I realized there was a black dog that was sleeping at a small opening at the cave. It made me wonder where do that hole leads to. But obviously I don't have the guts to go there so let's just a swim. The seabed at Phra Nang Cave Beach was rather flat so we didn't mind going further. Stepped on a lot of rocks too! We swam for about half an hour or so before heading back to the boat and off we go! Back to Ao Nang! A lot of things went through my mind on the boat ride back to Ao Nang. Nan and I was pretty silent throughout that journey, probably he had a lot in his mind too.

Back at Nopparattara Beach, we decided to get ice creams before taking the transport back to our hotel since it's been a long day. From morning till about 4pm! We got a shock of our lives when we got back, got naked and realized how dark we got! But I didn't mind it a single bit because I know that's only the start of it. Darker shades to come.

So we washed up, washed our clothes and hung them to dry. Rested for a bit before leaving for an early dinner. Nan rented a bike so transport wasn't a problem. We bought plenty of souvenirs that night and off we go to Mr. Long Bar again for drinks and guess what? For tattoos! Nan had his anchor tattoo done while I had a small compass to accompany my swallow which was done with bamboo. Chang definitely did a great job on our tattoos. Chilled out after we were done with our tattoos and spoke to some of the other fellow travelers there while they were playing pool. A few more bottles and we decided to ride back to our hotel and get more cup noodles for the night!

We had our cup noodles and sausages once we got back to the hotel and we couldn't watch any shows that night because there was something wrong with the television so we resorted to watching YouTube videos and singing out loud since we were quite bored and was pretty high. Nan knocked out first and then it was my turn.

Definitely had a damn good sleep after a damn amazing day!

Next post shall be about Ton Sai and Railay! I really should start uploading the pictures too. Shall do so soon enough and most times I wish I am able to write better and describe better but oh well.

Surreal - Part #2

naddydaud — Mon, 21 Apr 2014 23:48:00 GMT

I've always wondered how hectic it would be to travel with a small child. While I was in the train, there was a mother with her son. Very beautiful eyes and he was such a shy boy. I wished I packed a set of Lego Kit from work whenever I travel so I can entertain them when they start crying. The way he stared out of the train window when he was crying made me wonder what was going through his mind. He's so young yet he's traveling so much and he's so full of energy, lucky boy.

Finally the train left Padang Besar and I decided to rest a bit more because it's about 2 hours ride to Hat Yai. Nan slept most of the time while I stared out of the window with plenty of thoughts in my mind. How different it feels like going solo and traveling with someone. There's a sense of personal satisfaction when you travel alone, that's how I feel. When the train stopped at Hat Yai Junction, there were a few people who came into the train asking where the passengers are heading to next because they are from some of the agencies there and they are trying to get people for the minivans. Thankfully I already booked mine and Nan's at Cathay Guest House. Those people are very persuasive but after I told them that I've already booked mine beforehand, they just directed me to exit of the station. The station wasn't packed with people but damn, the smell of fried chickens, yum! I'm a sucker for fried chickens, hehehe. We made our way out of the station and started walking towards Cathay Guest House with the help of the map that I printed out. Parts of it was wet because some banana milk spilled on it, oops. While walking, we saw the mother and her son and she called out to us asking where we were heading to. "Krabi!", we said and she asked where we were taking our minivan from and we told her we booked ours at Cathay Guest House beforehand. She asked the price and asked if she could join us. Of course she could! There was a man who wanted to charge her 600 baht and she knew it was well overpriced because she stays in Krabi and it's her first time taking a minivan to Krabi. It's always a pleasure to meet people while I'm traveling, and of course this one was extra special because I made friends with a young traveler who's way beyond shy but he's such a cheerful boy. We reached the place and most of guests there were people from the train that we took from Kuala Lumpur! There were all waiting for the 1pm minivan so Nan and I left our backpacks there and searched for a place to have lunch. We walked around the town of Hat Yai aimlessly and we settled for Espresso By Nong! It's a Halal restaurant and food served are amazing! Price wise, it's cheap! Comparable to street food prices actually! Once we were done with our lunch, we decided to get Happy Tourist SIM card only to realized that my traveling phone battery is dead!

Back to Cathay Guest House at 12:45pm and the minvan was there already so we boarded it and damn, they really tried to squeeze as much people as they can! It's packed like sardine and for a 4 hours trip, wow. It's cheap but truth to be told, it's not very comfortable I tell you. But I definitely would do that again, for sure. Great views during the journey. We stopped at a few places for toilet breaks and the views are always amazing. We stopped at Krabi Town because there are a few fellow travelers who were alighted there. About 15 minutes ride to Ao Nang after that and by then all of us in the minivan pretty much made friends with each other. A couple from Malaysia decided to go Krabi for Songkran because they have experienced it in Hat Yai a few years back and they wanted to see how it is like in Krabi. Interesting to hear their stories!

We finally arrived at Ao Nang Andaman Resort, affordable and clean place with great and friendly service from the staffs! They were really helpful! We arrived at about 7pm so we checked in, washed up and decided to roam around Ao Nang for the night. Guess where to! Mr. Long Bar of course! A friend of mine whom I might in KL when I went for my Solo Trip in December 2013 recommended me that bar and hell yes, I wasn't disappointed at all! Mr. Long himself was there so we were able to speak to him and Chang the tattooist was there too. I love the ambience of the place, really. Such a relaxing place with good music. Reggae music, hehe. Before we actually got there, we actually got lost along the beach area because we thought it was at Phra Nang Inn but we realized that's Beach Bar and we didn't want to be rude to ask the staffs there about the whereabouts of another bar so I decided to on my GPS instead. (Data charges will be a bomb this month, I'm quite afraid of that.) We spent a few hours there with a few bottles of Chang Beers and Mr. Long's homemade Tequila which was so smooth. Best Tequila ever. Why I am saying that is because I stopped drinking Tequila because I hate the taste and it makes me puke. But this one, best of all! We took the tuktuk back to the resort, bought some drinks and munchies from the convenient store and washed up. Fell asleep while watching some Thai channel that was advertising their call girls or somethiing, hahaha.

Snorkeling stories in my next post!

Oversleeping Leads To An Experience.

naddydaud — Fri, 18 Apr 2014 19:55:24 GMT

There are a number of 'Firsts' during my trip to Krabi, Thailand. But nothing beats this, oversleeping. It's a normal occurrence when I'm back in my hometown, Singapore. But when I'm overseas, obviously not! On my last night in Ao Nang, I decided I should check out their night life. I've always wondered what was there at this lane called RCA Entertainment because their signage shows silhouette of ladies on it and that got my attention. My initial plan was just to have a shot and a bottle of beer and off I go to my hotel since my minivan was leaving at 6am the next day. There were plenty of bars there and the ladies are always trying to lure you into the bars but I settled for the last bar at the corner which called Kiss. I was approached by a lady who gave me the menu and I settled for Long Island Tea and that's when I know it wouldn't be just shots and beers for me. Why? Because that's when I had to buy drinks for the lady too and then another lady came to sit with me and bam! I've got to get drinks for the other lady too. We had a good conversation even though my pocket was running dry. I got so tanned during my time in Krabi that they couldn't absorb the fact that I'm born and raised in Singapore. The bar closes at 2am so I left and flagged for a tuk tuk to get back to my hotel. I've set my alarm clock at 5am! I bathe and went to sleep right away! Guess what happened when I opened my eyes? The sun was up and it was 8:45am. Wow. Just wow. I washed up, checked out and asked the reception if there's any minivans from Ao Nang that goes to Hat Yai on that day. She called a few agencies and said the safest bet would be from Krabi Town because I missed the 2 morning vans. I took the tuktuk to Krabi Town, walked around under the scorching sun (I wished people would throw a bucket of water on my head since it's the 2nd day of Songkran but there wasn't anyone doing that) and finally found an agency that has a minivan leaving at 3pm. That also means that there's no way I could catch the train from Hat Yai to Kuala Lumpur since it was at 4pm but I told myself, "That's okay." I reached Hat Yai at about 8pm and had dinner first. Thankfully there was an agency nearby the Bus Terminal with buses straight to Singapore the next day at 11am. I booked it and rented a room for the night. I woke up at 8am even though my bus leaves at 11am. Bathe, had breakfast and walked around Hat Yai. Basically, I just didn't want to sleep because I felt that I'm bound to oversleep again!

Surreal - Part #1

naddydaud — Fri, 18 Apr 2014 18:17:00 GMT

Neither of us could sleep the night before the trip. My brother, Nan, was having his night shift at work and even during his breaks, he couldn't sleep. While I was at home feeling all excited about it. We planned this trip about 2 months before. It was supposed to be a BroTrip 2014 with Qama as well but he couldn't make it due to work commitment. But still, I slept pretty early the night before just because I wanted to sleep in the train the next morning.

I received a phone call at 4:55am from Nan, a wake up call just before my alarm rang. So I bathe, got ready and patted all my cats and informed my Dad and sibling that I'm leaving. I reached Singapore Checkpoint on time at 7am. For the first time I actually see 160 looking pretty empty at 6:30am. Nan waited for me outside the Pass Office and that's when we looked at each other and said, "This is really happening! Finally!" We got down to the Bus Bay, he called his partner to said goodbye to her since he wouldn't be back till a week later.

Our train towards Kuala Lumpur leaves at 8:30am and we arrived across the border at about 7:30am. So we changed some money and got cigarettes and breakfast! We were done with all that by 8:10am so we decided to sit at Rest & Go and have a quick massage before heading for another smoke. The train finally arrived and it's Nan's first time being on a train journey. Since it's a morning train, we didn't get the sleeper train so we got the Class 2 seats. Sleep didn't come easy for me because I couldn't wait to reach Kuala Lumpur so time was passing by pretty slowly for me. It was easy for him to fall asleep since he had a long night previously. For the first time I got so hungry in the train, I actually bought food from the canteen. Usually I'll just stock up on food at Johor Bahru. It started drizzling when the train reached Kuala Lumpur grounds and Nan said it's like a curse of something because the previous time I arrived in Kuala Lumpur, they greeted me with a heavy downpour. Oh well. We reached Sentral Kuala Lumpur on time and we left our bagpacks at the Left Baggage and off we go to Putrajaya by KLIA Express Transit to meet Nan's friend, Raihana. Oh, and I wished I brought my jacket along with me because it was freezing cold in the train and I kept going to the toilet every time I woke up from my sleep.

We've never been to that area before but I guess it's like their CBD area? It was very quiet there though and we had to wait about an hour or so for his friend. We had all sort of conversations while waiting for Raihana. Like how he we said we wouldn't mind having a wedding photoshoot at the open field nearby. It felt good seeing a huge open space since we rarely get that here in Singapore. Raihana finally came and she drove us to Pavillion because I wanted to go to The Click Shop to get films for my Polaroid but guess what? We were running out of time and the concierge said that there's no such shop there and the nearest would be at KLCC! Eh, where got time! I was looking forward for the films, really. I've told myself to get a pack everytime I travel and this is the first one out of 3 trips that I didn't manage to get them. I was so disappointed, even thinking about it makes me want to cry. It's not the usual FujiFilm Polaroid I'm talking about, it's the old school Polaroid Impulse I'm talking about, which is why it's hard to find the films. I've to use Impossible Project films for it. Oh well. We headed straight to Reggae Bar Chinatown, my favourite back in Kuala Lumpur and drank all my sorrows away. Had my Slippery Nipple Cocktail and told Nan to try it too even though he said he didn't like it because it tasted like cough medicine. I wanted him to try Graveyard but I'm surprised they didn't have it anymore so we tried All Around The World instead and finally, for closure, we had shots of Jaggerbomb with Raihana! Off to the gents before we rush off to Sentral Kuala Lumpur (Amazing Race style!) but before that, 2 patrons of the bar approached us but damn boys, we were rushing so we had some small talk and off we go. Even though I'd love to hear the about Brooklyn from those 2 men. But before that, we went to KK Supermart for a small bottle of Coke and Vodka!

Exchanged some money when we were in Sentral Kuala Lumpur because we needed to stock up on bread and water. We both know it'd be an intense train ride because both of us were pretty much high on alcohol and we always have intense conversations. We finished up our Vodka and Coke and that's when I got hungry and Nan felt like puking. While he tried to puke, I was busy eating bread! We also screamed out lungs out at the door of the train because seriously, the adrenaline rush was just plain amazing. Feeling the wind in your hair and seeing how death might get right infront of you, it's just wow. I travel a lot of KTMB trains and up till today I still find it amazing. Really.

Hella good sleep after all that and I got up at about 6am to watch the sun rise. I woke Nan up but he was still deep in slumber so I let him sleep. We reached Padang Besar and stocked up on more liquids and had breakfast there because we had to wait for an hour before we could get back on the train. It was at Padang Besar that we met a mother and her son who was so adorable beyond words!

Another hour on the train before we reach Hat Yai.

To be continued, in a couple of days time!

Photos: Semasa Di Bali

naddydaud — Sat, 5 Apr 2014 16:20:00 GMT

Well, it's my virgin trip to Bali and it's definitely an impromptu one because a friend of mind from way back in high school messaged me after I came back from my Solo Trip '13 and asked if I wanted to go to Bali. So I agreed and it's a start to many more trips to come with a new found travel buddy!