Nina goes travelling...

Sand sea and diving!!!

nchande — Wed, 8 Apr 2009 21:46:00 GMT

So i think the last time i updated my journal I was in Langkawi. I then took the a boat to satun and arrived in koh lipe, a small island in the south of thailand. A very tiring journey that ended up taking 9 hours when it should only have taken 2. To top it off i arrived during a storm and 2 days before the thai festival so many bungalows were all booked up.

Anyway the next day the sun was shining and i was able to see the island for what it really was... absolutely clear blue water, sand as fine as talcum powder and stunning beaches. The island itself is really small north to south, about 2km with no roads, very easy to walk around the whole island in a morning. I decided to book myself on a 3 day open water padi course. I was the only person so managed to get one on one tuition which was great. Really cool and saw some amazing marine life though i'd be lying if i say i know the names of them all. It really is another world down there, so amazing. So i spent my days there chilling on the beach, finishing my PADI course and spent the evenings chilling at a bar called love and peace watching fire dancers.

I then moved to Koh Lanta a few days ago which is where i am now. I checked into a lovely hotel here that is again located on the beach. Really nice tranquil place (except for the crickets and cockerels) with a river flowing through the gardens. I made my first friend here very quickly... 10 month old Ne Mo whose mother works in the spa.. really cute litle boy:) So i've spent the last few days relaxing by the pool, doing some diving in Phi Phi and went there for the day to see where they filmed the beach.. really breathtaking views. So now it is my last day and I take the sleeper train to Bangkok tomorrow on the first day of the water festival! Today is Thai New Year and for the next 2 days it is tradition to throw water over people including tourists. Should be fun! I've also decided to end the "backpacker" trip in style and have reserved a deluxe room at the Hilton Millennium with views over Bangkok.

I can hardly believe the trip is coming to an end.. it has gone so quickly and i've had a great time, seeing new places, meeting some really nice people that I hope to keep in touch with. I'm looking forward to coming home, seeing everyone again and being in my own bed but not looking forward to the routine. I'll miss the sunshine though and the "noise", be it mopeds, cockerels, endless request of tucs tucs or "would you like sumsing to drink??" This isnt the end of holidays though and i'll be travelling again, maybe even with some people that I've met along this trip!

I'm not sure if I'll be writing again now before i come home but I am back this Thursday 16th. I'm looking forward to seeing you all and boring you all with thousands of photos and stories that may not have made it in this journal! See you soon! x

Malaysia, from KL, Penang to Langkawi

nchande — Wed, 1 Apr 2009 15:07:00 GMT

So I took the train from Singapore to KL. A comfortable ride and I was very fortunate to have the best accomodation I could imagine organised for me. I met a lovely couple in Bangkok at the start of my trip, indians from Canada living in KL. They insisted that I stay in their appartment as unfortunately they were away during my time in KL. What they didnt tell me is that it was a penthouse suite on the 28th floor with a swimming pool overlooking the whole city! Choosing which room to sleep in was a struggle! The view from the balcony was amazing. From there I could see the twin towers, the Kuala Lumpur tower and the blue mosque in the centre of town. The next day I was at the twin towers by 6.30 in the morning, holiday you call this?! Anyway I met 3 guys from india who are now working in Singapore. We went up the towers and ended up spending the whole day together visiting the rest of the city. During the afternoon, the rain poured for a short time and hours later temperatures were in the mid 30s again?? Being fed up now of noodles and rice and rice and noodles, I decided to have some indian food after about 4 weeks of not having had any. I found a great place full of locals in little india making naan and rotlis in front of you. The rest of the afternoon we went to the national museum and ended the evening with some drinks and a photo competition in front of the twin towers (one of the guys insisted he was a better photographer). The night ended and again the guys took good care of me, making sure I got home ok.

The next day I went to the station to get my ticket for penang and bumped into them again. They convinced me to go with them to Genting, an amusement park in the highlands with loads of rides etc. I was in my shorts as it was so hot and laughed at them wearing their jeans. By the time we reached there, they were laughing at me. I was soo cold. We spent the day on rides, being stupid and returned back to KL in the evening. I really enjoyed spending the 2 days with them and its easy to forget that you are travelling alone until you head off in different directions and on to the next destination.

So I arrived in Penang the next day by bus. I spent about 30 mins looking for good standard accommodation. Most had shared bathrooms and the standard was much lower than what I have had elsewhere. I found an ok place but woke up the next morning with 19 mosqito bites on my right arm. I spent the next day sightseeing and went up to Penang Hill which had a lovely view. I wasn't too impressed with Penang to be honest. I had been told it was amazing for food and full fo character but I found the people to be quite rude, the place to be very touristic and even the travellers seemed strange and quite content watching TV all day at the front of the guesthouse.

Anyway so now I am in Langkawi. I took the boat here yesterday morning which only took about 2.5 hours. I met a lovely French couple along the way and enjoyed chatting to them despite not having used my french in some time. They insisted they drop me to the area I needed to go to find acommodation before they headed to their Sheraton Hotel. I found a place quite quickly and soon headed to the beach about a 5 mins walk away. The sea was really warm with a long stretch of white sand. The sea isnt as clear as I'm hoping for in Thailand but i can't complain! In the evening, the french couple invited me for dinner at the hotel. Huge hotel with private bungalows on the sea front.

Tomorrow I am heading somewhere in south thailand, destination to be confirmed! Really looking forward to the marine life at last and would like to find a comfortable hotel for the last 2 weeks of my trip. Can't believe its gone so fast! Ive been moving quickly though and have seen a lot of places. I've also been fortunate to have met a lot of very lovely people along the way and hope that we keep in touch. I am tired from travelling now though and am looking forward to finding a nice island and staying put for a few days. I'm planning on taking a 4 day padi open water diving course so cant wait for that!

That's it from me for now! Sorry its taken me a while to update the journal, its been a busy few weeks! Hope you are all well at home - if anyone wants to join me for 2 weeks in south thailand, give me a shout;)

Immaculate Singapore!

nchande — Wed, 1 Apr 2009 14:52:00 GMT

So I took a flight from Siem Reap to Singapore the next day. A not so nice morning I have to admit. I arrived at the airport in Cambodia to find out I had been scammed in Vietnam where I had bought my ticket and the extra $25 I had paid for departure tax wasnt included and I had to pay it again. Anyway I landed in Sinapore and took the MRT to my hostel which I then found out was on the edge of a red light district (it was safe before you start to worry). The landlady however was very strange! So many notes all over the place with instructions such as no noise after 11 pm, lights out after 11pm, no drinking water out of the bottle else there will be a $100 fine?! I spent most of the 2 days walking around the city enjoying being in civilisation, a place where people follow instructions on crossing roads for the fear of being fined... a complete contrast to everywhere else... huge shopping malls everywhere. It seems as though these people have a lot of time and money to shop shop and shop.

Templing in Cambodia

nchande — Wed, 1 Apr 2009 14:28:00 GMT

And so the journey continued into Cambodia. I arrived just after sunset, the roads were dark and the streets were smelly and I set out to look for accommodation. I checked out the backpackers area but was not impressed, electricity was out, the place smelled of dodgy substances and the matresses were damp. So I moved onto the main waterfront to find a basic hotel for 1 night. I soon realised how poor the country is and its hard to eat a meal while there are children around you begging for money or to polish your shoes, even flip flops. I was told however that they all work for the Mafia and any money you give them goes straight to them. The next day I was up early and headed to the Killing Fields where the tortured people were brought under the Khmer Rouge regime. Really sad and disturbing to see the way they were treated. While visiting the fields and seeing masses of skulls in a glass cupboard you can hear children playing at a nearby playground and a little girl sitting outside the toilet giving people toilet roll. I then moved on to the Tuol Sleng Museum which was previously a school but turned into a prison to toture people before the were sent to the killing fields. Again, it was really hard to see such graphic images of methods used for torturing and unbelievable too that this happenned only 30 years ago.

The next stop was Siem Reap for the famous temples of Angkor Wat. I arrived before sunset and found a good, basic guesthouse with aircon for $8. The next day was another early start as I headed to the temples in my tuk tuk to see sun rise over Angkor Wat. Sunrise was good and I then headed to a really nice hotel that had been recommended to me. Although the guesthouses are comfortable, from time to time I've found it really nice to splash out on a nice hotel! This next place was great, a pool to have a dip in between visiting temples and really nice gardens. After a quick dip, I was visiting temples back to back from noon to sunset with temperatures around mid 30s. The temples were amazing, all very different from each other, with distinctive images of Buddha staring at you. At a temple on a hill at sunset I met another 2 travellers from the UK. We hit it off straightaway and within 5 mins we were laughing away. The next day, I decided to chill by the pool and do a few laps before I moved back to my basic accommodation. I bumped into the same 2 travellers there who had been next door to get a blind massage. We then went to the night market to get our feet sucked by fish. Apparently these fish like dead skin so you put your feet in the small pool and they all come to suck your feet. A strange sensation, I tell you!

Gooood morning Vietnam!

nchande — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 16:24:00 GMT

So its been a while since I last updated you all... sorry for the delay, I've been too busy having fun:) So the journey continued from Loas and I took a flight from Vientiane to Hanoi. Having taken long hot bus journeys, I assure you the flight seemed like luxury travel! I arrived in Hanoi about 8pm and it was just crazy! Mopeds swerving everywhere, beeping, people trying to sell you things, kitchens in full swing on the pavements and us being pushed aside with heavy backpacks on our back. Anyway we (I met an Irish couple on the flight) managed to find a hotel and I stayed there for one night. The hotel staff were rude, aggressive and the minute they saw my british passport (having negotiated the price down) the first words were "england, ahhh rich country". So i moved the next day to my first hostel, Hanoi Backpackers Hostel. Nice place, run by 2 aussie guys and full of backpackers. Being in a dorm for the first time I have to admit, it takes time getting used to but was fine. The next day I took a trip to Halong Bay with an overnight stay on the boat. The guide was another dictatorial Vietnamese guy, giving instructions on when to eat, when to pay, when to sleep, what to do... the trip was good though. Amazing scenery despite the weather being misty and foggy. We went to some caves and had dinner back on the boat. In the morning, we were all up at 7am to do some kayaking in the bay.. great to see such scenery from from the cabin window when you wake up. All in all the trip was good despite our guide and the weather not being so great.

The next day I flew to Da Nang to reach Ha Noi in Central Vietnam. An absolute contrast to the impolite, hectic and cold capital in the North. The streets of Ha Noi look as though they have been taken from a theatre set.. quaint streets, a river flowing by and people riding bikes around the village. The place is full of tailors and shops offering to make made to measure clothes. I managed to get a few skirts and a lovely woolen coat which were made within a few hours. The weather was perfect too, a gentle breeze but much warmer than Hanoi. The people were also much friendlier, smiling and relaxed. A really nice place all in all and it didn;t take long for the locals to get to know you.

So next destination, Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon. I had been warned - if you find Hanoi busy, Saigon is 3 times as worse! So far its been the best place I've stayed in, I love it and could imagine myself living here. Yes there are mopeds everywhere but the streets are bigger and its fascinating to watch the mopeds swerve and manage to weave their way through the traffic. I managed to find a really nice hotel and also met an english girl along my route so decided to share a room with her. Air con, fridge, hair dryer and 2 massive drench showers - seems like luxury! My stomach wasnt too good the first 2 days but I visited some amazing hotels during the day sightseeing! We walked the city at night and took a day trip along the mekong delta the next day. A really good trip with a jam packed agenda from holding a python around my neck, tasting the tropical fruits out here and seeing how they make candy from coconuts. The Cu Chi tunnels was on the agenda for the next day.. amazing to believe the soldiers were able to spend as much as a year in the tunnels when you find it hard to crawl through 100m in the tunnel. We arrived back in the afternoon to a short period of heavy rain but it soon cleared up and I met Milli, a cousin living here with 2 cute boys 4 and 6 years old.

Ok, I have to get ready for bus, will continue asap!

Ok so I am continuing a few weeks after but will try to remember as much as poss! So the next day I continued my sightseeing around the city and visited the war museum and the reunification palace. On the way back i stopped along the corner near the famous statue of saigon and met 2 lovely guys who were visiting saigon on business. David, from san jose and kevin from taiwan. Spent the evening watching the mopeds, talking to the locals and watching night fall in the city. I met them later on for dinner and went to a bad with live music from a band from the philippines and also met another guy from Liverpool who is now livign in saigon teaching english. A highly amusing evening with a mixture of accents, poor kevin had a hard time keeping up with a slightly tipsy liverpudlian accent! I had such a good time with them that I decided to stay in Saigon another day and spent the next day on motorbikes with david and Kevin into the Viatnamese countryside. They bought me a mask to avoid the polution with a skeletons mouth, I think i got a few weird looks from the locals! I was really sad to leave saigon, the guys were great and really took good care of me. We're still in touch though so I'm sure we will meet again.

The adventures of Loas...

nchande — Sun, 8 Mar 2009 19:13:00 GMT

Its been a while since I last wrote, Chiang Mai seems a long time ago now. So I left Chiang Mai and decided to get the speed boat along the mykong river which was supposed to be quite dangerous with below the surface rocks in shallow water. It took 6 hours and apart from being noisy, it was quite comfortable (despite the bumps) as we sped through the water. Arrived in Loas and managed to get great accommodation for 8USD, so nice to get a powerful shower! Spent the evening at the night market with some people I'd also taken the speed boat with. The next day was hot and busy.. visited the museum, temple (2 standard places in every city it seems!), bamboo bridge and sunset from the top of a temple. Met a couple of guys from London along the way in the afternoon and had lunch togther. In the evening we went to a bar and then onto a bowling alley that was open till the early hours of the morning. Great fun though my bowling skills clearly still havent improved over the years! The next day another long coach journey to Vang Vieng. Bus drivers are crazy here and think you are safe to go round a bend full speed if you blaze the horn! Managed to get there in one piece and found a lovely guest house for 1 night only but overlooking beautiful gardens. Really nice family too, so far I have found the people from Loas to be more friendly than Thai. Yesterday was great... went tubing along the river and swam from bar to bar, drinking, music, etc. Also attempted to take the swing and then jump into the river... ouch! I somehow landed sideways and my leg is now paying for it now. So then we crossed again to the next bar where there was also a mud bath.. so we (another couple and myself) thought ok, cool looks fun. I didnt expect a random guy to push me head first into the water!! Mud all over me, my hair, eyes, mouth.. not a pretty sight! Anyway so I took the coach from Vang Vieng to Vientiene today and deliberated between a 24 hour bus for 20USD or a 1 hr flight for 120USD. I had to pick the flight, buses here are painful.. I'll leave for the airport shortly so the next update from me will be from Vietnam! Hope all is well.

Gallery: Bangkok & Chiang Mai

nchande — Tue, 3 Mar 2009 15:16:00 GMT

In the hills in Thailand...

nchande — Mon, 2 Mar 2009 19:26:00 GMT

Ok, soo much to update you from only 4 days! Bangkok seems a long time ago now.. on Friday I went to the floating market on the outskirts of Bangkok. Met a lovely couple from Canada that are now living in Kuala Lumpa. Hopefully I will get to see them later on my trip when I go down there. The floating market was cool but I guess pretty much aimed at toursists now, selling items on long river boats. In the evening I took an overnight train to Chiang Mai which is in the hills in the North of Thailand. Overall the train was comfortable with sleeping bunks, one at the top and a lower one on each side of the train. I can't tell you about the train without telling you about the toilet... so I went in relieved that it was a western style one even with toilet paper... I'm onto a good thing I thought! So I wiped the seat and put the paper down and it disappeared... into the ground.. straight onto the track??? Anyway the journey was comfortable overall and I met 2 lovely girls from England that were also on the same tour as me. We arrived together at the hotel on Saturday. Had lunch together and checked out the local night market... loads of lovely things but i cant buy much yet till I get to the end of my travels really. Sunday the adventure began. We were collected from the hotel in a truck and began our trek. After the first 30 mins we took a dip in a lake and had lunch. The next 2 hours were TOUGH!! Uphill trekking and I am no expert! Anyway I made it and we arrived at a hut with a family who also lived there. We visited the nearby remote village with really cute kids and very much a subsistence way of life.. animals all over the place, I dont need to explain what they are for! We went back to the hut for lunch and had a lovely meal (I am vegetarian here). Our guide then lit a log fire and we proceeded to get our hut ready for bed. In midst of this, Sam (one of the girls) screamed seeing a cow behind our hut, it was dark and all we could see were these cow eyes looking at us. We hadnt noticed them but they had been there the whole time. The night was one with strange noises of animals, crickets and smell of cow dung etc. I managed to have my second shower in the morning in the toilet hut with cold water from a pipe. We continued trekking (I'm still no good) and met some more people when we reached a waterfall and continued our trek to have lunch. Lunch was followed by elephant trekking.. I had no idea they can eat soooo fast! Bananas were swallowed whole by the minute, and his trunk kept reaching back at us for more! The next part was bamboo rafting which was GREAT fun. There was a point whereby the tour guide stopped and suggested to us to jump from a height. We all said no way, we would hit our head on the rocks fearing the water would be shallow. Anyway he and an irish guy did it and showed us that that part of the water was deep enough... I couldnt resist. I climbed up and thought Im just going do it, so I jumped! It was such a feeling rising back to the surface. I was the only girl to give it a go. So now, aching from our trip, I did a few laps in the pool and we're heading out shortly to the centre for a thai massage. Very cheap here, about 140 bht per hr (about 3 pounds). We're also all meeting the rest of the people from the group for our last night together.. everyone is going in different directions. It still hasnt sunk in that I'm here on my own.. when people find out the first reaction I get is wow, you're so brave. I've just met some people who are travelling on the slow boat to Loas tomorrow too which is my next destination. I'll upload some pics if I get time before I leave tomorrow morning. That's it for now!

PS You should be able to see your comments now.

Bangkok and beyond...

nchande — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 03:35:00 GMT

Ok, so I arrived in Bangkok on Tuesday night having had more than my fair share of arabic fanta on the plane (I knew there was a good reason to slecting an arab airline!). The hotel where Ive been staying is really nice and I managed to get an upgrade which was great. I'm staying near Kao San road, the famous backpackers street selling anything and everything. Today I visited the temple and emerald buddha statue and bumped into some americans teaching english in korea at the moment. Then took a river boat down to the south of the river and took the skytrain to a new modern shoppig centre that's just been built. Had dinner this evening with some family friends who have expatriated here. Tomorrow is a busy day and the coach is leaving for the floating market at 7am, following by an overnight train to chaing mai tomorrow evening arriving on saturday morning. From there I will spend 2 nights in the jungle with native tribes, bamboo rafting, elephant trekking. From there I'll be taking a boat to arrive in Laos early next week... that's as far as I've planned anyhow! I'd better get going now. Got a guitar strumming Simon and Garfunkel's, The Boxer outside. Very touristic here as you can gather!

The backpack is packed...

nchande — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 01:17:00 GMT

Ok, so I decided to go a week ago... now the backpack is packed and I can't believe its actually happenning?! It's all happenned so fast I haven't had time to let it sink in... so I guess the next time I write I will be in Bangkok. I'm leaving tomorrow evening and will see you all when I get back in 7 weeks!