27/12/11-01/01/12
A change of scenery as for the New Year I was invited to join my hosts down at their beach house in Jervis Bay, around 3 hours south of Sydney. The drive down was quite pretty as we took the coast road flanked on one side by the ocean and on the other by mountains. Arriving in the early afternoon we prepared the house as it is only used several times a year. I was to be housed in a separate apartment in the garden so I had my own private space. We were joined by their daughter and her family later on so there was plenty of use around for the holiday period. Alex their daughter’s son is a mad cricket player, most of his thoughts centre on it. For him the most important thing to set up was the cricket pitch in the back garden, this was to be the hive of activity over the next few days and for me a change to vastly improve my bowling skills. The beach was only a stone’s throw away from the house, literally across the road. That night I had my first experience of the Kinect, a motion sensor device on the Xbox which reads your body movements and translates the actions on screen. The dance game proved very popular.
Our first full day started with a bike ride down to the local bay. The daughter’s daughter was celebrating her birthday and received a brand new bike so it was tried out that morning. Round this side of the coast it is known for its waves so a new experience for me was taking part in body boarding. Over the coming days I got really into this, such a great feeling when you catch a wave right and are pushed onto the shore, accelerating as you go. That evening we went to a local funfair and had a go on a few for the rides until the spinning ones took their toll on our party.
Another day mainly filled with the same activates including cricket and body boarding. In the afternoon we took a trip to the local shopping centre so the others could have a look at the sale items. In the evening we had a bonfire as we had cropped wood from the tree in the garden so we could bowl better, burning off the wood we cooked some marshmallows at the same time.
A change for breakfast as we ventured out to a local national park to use the on-site barbeques to cook that morning. Afterwards we had a quick bush walk before heading down to a nearby surf beach to try our luck at catching some waves. The sea was quite rough with a rip tide so it wasn’t ideal conditions to try our luck. Later that afternoon we set up the badminton set in the back garden and had a mixture of cricket and badminton games.
New Year’s Eve went the same as most days apart from in the evening of course. That night instead of having one main meal we were each given the task of preparing a course which we would continue to serve over the course of the evening. For my contribution I was going to serve sweet chilli chicken and chocolate covered strawberries. So in the morning we paid a quick visit to the local packed supermarket to grab our ingredients. In the evening we headed down to the local harbour to watch the firework show the town was putting on, for a small town it was a very good display. Back at base I made and serve my chicken with went down a treat before serving up my chocolate covered strawberries which were equally great. The New Year was officially rolled in by watching the fireworks from Sydney on the television. Another year but this time I was starting it from the other side of the world, half a day before my family back home would celebrate.
New Year’s Day was to be my last full day in the company of my excellent hosts and what better way to start the year than down at the beach playing in the sea this time with a blow up raft. That afternoon we went down to the town to have lunch, I treated my hosts to fish and chips which due to crowds out that day took an hour and a half to be served! Happily they were worth the wait though. With everyone feeling tired that evening we just crashed out and watched a film.
Showing posts with label gap year. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gap year. Show all posts
08/01/2012
06/01/2012
Xmas
24/12/11-26/12/11
Christmas Eve resulted in me leaving the city centre to join my first home stay just in the western suburbs. I was to be the guest of Ray and Lu, a retired couple with Ray being related to a family friend back home. He straight away took me on a bike ride to see the 2000 Sydney Olympic site. If I thought we were going for a gentle bike ride my suspensions were immediately on alert as Ray stepped out of the house dressed in full cycling gear. Riding there I was absolutely fine and we stopped off at the archery centre to watch someone practise. The journey home was a different matter; lack of exercise finally began to tell as any in climb sapped all energy in my legs, by the end the pain was too much as acid burned in my legs. Stopping off at one point to rest I lost sight of Ray for one moment, continuing on after several moments he was nowhere to be seen, by myself I remembered the turning off we had used earlier and so waited until he returned again to find me. Back home and on aching legs I found out we had covered a distance of over 60km! No wonder I was in such pain, but this matter was soon relieved as the spa was started up and we took a dip, once out I felt a lot better. That evening we had a bbq steak dinner before me and Ray ventured out to look at house decorations and to have an ice-cream with a flake in it.
On Christmas morning I woke up and opened up a package I had been sent from home, inside were several Christmas cards which I proceeded to open over breakfast. My hosts were going out that lunch time to a Christmas lunch so I was left alone that afternoon but having just received my MP3 from home and my New Zealand travel guides I happily spend the afternoon relaxing and chilling out, once again I jumped into the spa. In the evening we went round their sons houses for Christmas dinner. After the meal they opened their Xmas presents with me receiving an aboriginal Christmas tree decoration, something to cherish for holidays to come.
Boxing Day the roles were reversed as family members were coming over for lunch that afternoon. With the Boxing Day test on TV we prepared the food for that afternoon. Being in Oz I had yet to do a BBQ so with meatballs needing to be cooked I was selected to be the tong master for the event. I must be good because in the end we used a whole packet of 100 meatballs up! Of course all this was done with me wearing the classic strongman apron with six pack on show (I wish). After all the food was done we hosted our own Boxing Day test on the back lawn, I wasn’t to know at this point that over the coming week I would be playing a lot of cricket. After everyone had left and we had cleared up it was time once again to jump in the spa for one last time, that night we chilled out to a film.
Christmas Eve resulted in me leaving the city centre to join my first home stay just in the western suburbs. I was to be the guest of Ray and Lu, a retired couple with Ray being related to a family friend back home. He straight away took me on a bike ride to see the 2000 Sydney Olympic site. If I thought we were going for a gentle bike ride my suspensions were immediately on alert as Ray stepped out of the house dressed in full cycling gear. Riding there I was absolutely fine and we stopped off at the archery centre to watch someone practise. The journey home was a different matter; lack of exercise finally began to tell as any in climb sapped all energy in my legs, by the end the pain was too much as acid burned in my legs. Stopping off at one point to rest I lost sight of Ray for one moment, continuing on after several moments he was nowhere to be seen, by myself I remembered the turning off we had used earlier and so waited until he returned again to find me. Back home and on aching legs I found out we had covered a distance of over 60km! No wonder I was in such pain, but this matter was soon relieved as the spa was started up and we took a dip, once out I felt a lot better. That evening we had a bbq steak dinner before me and Ray ventured out to look at house decorations and to have an ice-cream with a flake in it.
On Christmas morning I woke up and opened up a package I had been sent from home, inside were several Christmas cards which I proceeded to open over breakfast. My hosts were going out that lunch time to a Christmas lunch so I was left alone that afternoon but having just received my MP3 from home and my New Zealand travel guides I happily spend the afternoon relaxing and chilling out, once again I jumped into the spa. In the evening we went round their sons houses for Christmas dinner. After the meal they opened their Xmas presents with me receiving an aboriginal Christmas tree decoration, something to cherish for holidays to come.
Boxing Day the roles were reversed as family members were coming over for lunch that afternoon. With the Boxing Day test on TV we prepared the food for that afternoon. Being in Oz I had yet to do a BBQ so with meatballs needing to be cooked I was selected to be the tong master for the event. I must be good because in the end we used a whole packet of 100 meatballs up! Of course all this was done with me wearing the classic strongman apron with six pack on show (I wish). After all the food was done we hosted our own Boxing Day test on the back lawn, I wasn’t to know at this point that over the coming week I would be playing a lot of cricket. After everyone had left and we had cleared up it was time once again to jump in the spa for one last time, that night we chilled out to a film.
03/01/2012
Sydney
20/12/11-23/12/11
On my first day in Sydney there was only one place I could visit – the harbour area. I made my way straight to the harbour bridge, one of the most iconic structures of Oz. I had planned on doing the bridge climb but on learning that you couldn’t take your own camera along and seeing the price I instead decided to just climb up one of the pylons where I could take as many pictures as I wanted with the same view as the climb. Heading back down I visited the Rocks, part of the first settlement area where colonial buildings have been luckily saved after a programme of demolition during the last century. Here I also popped into the Contempary Art Gallery to check out an interactive exhibition where all the pieces involve yourself – the one I liked the most was a room filled with light bulbs flashing to the heart rate of visitors, as another person gets there heart rate measured it is added to the nearest bulb as others are moved down one bulb. Next I went to the Justice and Prison museum before wandering down to get a few snaps of the Opera house, a building with a very sad construction history. That evening for dinner I picked up some kangaroo burgers to try out, they turned out to be quite nice!
Another day another harbour as I ventured to the city’s new entrainment complex – Darling harbour. After a quick wander through I visited the maritime museum before heading into Paddy’s Markets to pick up a boomerang for the travel shelf back home. Later in the afternoon I joined a free walking tour of the city to see some sights often missed by tourists.
Today I awoke to find rain pouring down outside. After spending the morning doing bits and pieces in the hostel I ventured out in the afternoon first visiting Hyde Park Barracks, a building that used to house convicts. Next I continued down to the botanical gardens to grab some views of the Harbour Bridge and opera house together. Here I was alarmed to be confronted by extremely large bats which reside in the park. Making my way back I found time to visit the Gallery of New South Wales before heading home for an early dinner. That evening I had bought a ticket to watch Sydney FC play Adelaide, throughout my time in Oz I had been trying to see some live sport but the dates had never matched with where I was staying. I was able to get a sense of Aussie atmosphere as the game finished 2-2.
On my first day in Sydney there was only one place I could visit – the harbour area. I made my way straight to the harbour bridge, one of the most iconic structures of Oz. I had planned on doing the bridge climb but on learning that you couldn’t take your own camera along and seeing the price I instead decided to just climb up one of the pylons where I could take as many pictures as I wanted with the same view as the climb. Heading back down I visited the Rocks, part of the first settlement area where colonial buildings have been luckily saved after a programme of demolition during the last century. Here I also popped into the Contempary Art Gallery to check out an interactive exhibition where all the pieces involve yourself – the one I liked the most was a room filled with light bulbs flashing to the heart rate of visitors, as another person gets there heart rate measured it is added to the nearest bulb as others are moved down one bulb. Next I went to the Justice and Prison museum before wandering down to get a few snaps of the Opera house, a building with a very sad construction history. That evening for dinner I picked up some kangaroo burgers to try out, they turned out to be quite nice!
Another day another harbour as I ventured to the city’s new entrainment complex – Darling harbour. After a quick wander through I visited the maritime museum before heading into Paddy’s Markets to pick up a boomerang for the travel shelf back home. Later in the afternoon I joined a free walking tour of the city to see some sights often missed by tourists.
Today I awoke to find rain pouring down outside. After spending the morning doing bits and pieces in the hostel I ventured out in the afternoon first visiting Hyde Park Barracks, a building that used to house convicts. Next I continued down to the botanical gardens to grab some views of the Harbour Bridge and opera house together. Here I was alarmed to be confronted by extremely large bats which reside in the park. Making my way back I found time to visit the Gallery of New South Wales before heading home for an early dinner. That evening I had bought a ticket to watch Sydney FC play Adelaide, throughout my time in Oz I had been trying to see some live sport but the dates had never matched with where I was staying. I was able to get a sense of Aussie atmosphere as the game finished 2-2.
Canberra
17/12/11-19/12/11
Today I had an early start as I jumped on a coach to head to Canberra – Australia’s often forgotten capital city. The journey took around 10 hours so by the time I got there most of the day had passed by. On arrival at the hostel I went for a quick look round the main shopping centre to get some dinner and grab some supplies for my stay.
The whole of my full day in Canberra was dedicated to one place – the Australian War Memorial. There is more to this place than the name first suggests – as well as having the war memorial underneath is a museum containing artefacts from all conflicts that Australian armed forces have fought in. They recommend you spend a day and a half visiting the site and this is no exaggeration, if done properly there is masses to see here. For me one of the most effective parts is the use of dioramas through the galleries, the scenes sourced from photographs really captured a moment in time especially the First World War ones.
With a coach to catch in the evening to my last destination in Australia Sydney, I had nearly another whole day to spend in Canberra. Although the weather was wet I ventured out on foot to cross the bridge across to the parliamentary zone. First I visited the Australian National Gallery to check out art work from Oz and around the world. After I climbed the hill up to the Parliament building, an impressive structure dominated by the four legged flag pole which adorns the roof. Inside I was able to visit both the houses as well as jump on the lift up to the roof to get good views over the city. Next I headed back to my hostel back paid a visit to the Canberra museum to find out how the city came to be the capital of the land down under. That evening after a short coach ride I found myself in Sydney.
Today I had an early start as I jumped on a coach to head to Canberra – Australia’s often forgotten capital city. The journey took around 10 hours so by the time I got there most of the day had passed by. On arrival at the hostel I went for a quick look round the main shopping centre to get some dinner and grab some supplies for my stay.
The whole of my full day in Canberra was dedicated to one place – the Australian War Memorial. There is more to this place than the name first suggests – as well as having the war memorial underneath is a museum containing artefacts from all conflicts that Australian armed forces have fought in. They recommend you spend a day and a half visiting the site and this is no exaggeration, if done properly there is masses to see here. For me one of the most effective parts is the use of dioramas through the galleries, the scenes sourced from photographs really captured a moment in time especially the First World War ones.
With a coach to catch in the evening to my last destination in Australia Sydney, I had nearly another whole day to spend in Canberra. Although the weather was wet I ventured out on foot to cross the bridge across to the parliamentary zone. First I visited the Australian National Gallery to check out art work from Oz and around the world. After I climbed the hill up to the Parliament building, an impressive structure dominated by the four legged flag pole which adorns the roof. Inside I was able to visit both the houses as well as jump on the lift up to the roof to get good views over the city. Next I headed back to my hostel back paid a visit to the Canberra museum to find out how the city came to be the capital of the land down under. That evening after a short coach ride I found myself in Sydney.
Melbourne
12/12/11-16/12/11
Time to travel back in the right direction to resume my travels around Australia; I had my last train journey using my rail pass. It was a long 10 hours back to Melbourne, the third time I had had to do this journey. When I arrived I had a short walk to my hostel located in the north of the city centre, it is one of the biggest in OZ with over 800 people staying in it at one time. My main task was to send a birthday text home back to my sister – the first birthday of hers that I had missed.
On my first full day in Melbourne I decided to stick to the area around my hostel near to the Queen Victoria markets. I first went to visit Melbourne Old Gaol which was the scene of the famous bushranger Ned Kelly execution by hanging. The visit also included a brief stint being locked up in the local police holding cells where the pervious occupant’s writing still adorns every surface. In the afternoon I moved on to Melbourne museum to see the most famous attraction in the entire city – the legendary horse?.
Another fine start to the day as I made my way south back to Federation Square to check out an exhibition that had caught my eye the last time I was down here – Star Voyager in the Centre for Moving Image. The exhibition focused on how space has been seen and portrayed on screen including looking at moon landing footage to big budget motion blockbusters of Hollywood – very interesting to a fan of Si-fi like myself. Later I made my way across the Yarras River to get a view of the city from up above using the Skydeck – this is on the 88th floor of a skyscraper. The views where very impressive from up there, you could see the whole of Melbourne stretching out across the distance. After I walked down to the War Memorial before heading back towards the city via the National Gallery to round off my day in the south of the city.
Hopping on a tram, today I made my way to the coast to visit the famous seaside resort of St Kilda. Here I caught sight of the Spirit of Tasmania waiting to begin its voyage down south. After I walk along the beach and out to the end of the pier I made my way inland to see the creepy smiling face of Mr Moon at the entrance to Luna Park which was closed to a private school function. Here in good old British tradition I had my first Oz fish and chip lunch under the palm trees of the local park. In the evening back at the hostel I went down to the bar to claim my free drink during jam night where people are encouraged to get together and jam using any of the instruments provided, three willing lads managed to perform a decent version of Teenage Dirt bag.
On my last full day in Melbourne I went on a walk along the Yarras River stopping off to visit the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Walking around the ground I saw a small crowd of people assembled around the bowling nets, I wandered over to find legendary spin bowler Shane Warne practising in the nets along which his Twenty20 team mates. While here I also got a view of the tennis courts being prepared for the Australian Open at the start of the New Year. Heading back to base I visited Federation Square for one more time popping into have a quick look around the National Gallery of Australia.
Time to travel back in the right direction to resume my travels around Australia; I had my last train journey using my rail pass. It was a long 10 hours back to Melbourne, the third time I had had to do this journey. When I arrived I had a short walk to my hostel located in the north of the city centre, it is one of the biggest in OZ with over 800 people staying in it at one time. My main task was to send a birthday text home back to my sister – the first birthday of hers that I had missed.
On my first full day in Melbourne I decided to stick to the area around my hostel near to the Queen Victoria markets. I first went to visit Melbourne Old Gaol which was the scene of the famous bushranger Ned Kelly execution by hanging. The visit also included a brief stint being locked up in the local police holding cells where the pervious occupant’s writing still adorns every surface. In the afternoon I moved on to Melbourne museum to see the most famous attraction in the entire city – the legendary horse?.
Another fine start to the day as I made my way south back to Federation Square to check out an exhibition that had caught my eye the last time I was down here – Star Voyager in the Centre for Moving Image. The exhibition focused on how space has been seen and portrayed on screen including looking at moon landing footage to big budget motion blockbusters of Hollywood – very interesting to a fan of Si-fi like myself. Later I made my way across the Yarras River to get a view of the city from up above using the Skydeck – this is on the 88th floor of a skyscraper. The views where very impressive from up there, you could see the whole of Melbourne stretching out across the distance. After I walked down to the War Memorial before heading back towards the city via the National Gallery to round off my day in the south of the city.
Hopping on a tram, today I made my way to the coast to visit the famous seaside resort of St Kilda. Here I caught sight of the Spirit of Tasmania waiting to begin its voyage down south. After I walk along the beach and out to the end of the pier I made my way inland to see the creepy smiling face of Mr Moon at the entrance to Luna Park which was closed to a private school function. Here in good old British tradition I had my first Oz fish and chip lunch under the palm trees of the local park. In the evening back at the hostel I went down to the bar to claim my free drink during jam night where people are encouraged to get together and jam using any of the instruments provided, three willing lads managed to perform a decent version of Teenage Dirt bag.
On my last full day in Melbourne I went on a walk along the Yarras River stopping off to visit the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Walking around the ground I saw a small crowd of people assembled around the bowling nets, I wandered over to find legendary spin bowler Shane Warne practising in the nets along which his Twenty20 team mates. While here I also got a view of the tennis courts being prepared for the Australian Open at the start of the New Year. Heading back to base I visited Federation Square for one more time popping into have a quick look around the National Gallery of Australia.
21/12/2011
Train days
08/12/11-12/12/11
Not a lot to be said for my day joining the train, I’m so use to the procedure now that it’s like catching an aeroplane and having to sit through the familiar safety briefing time after time – read/eat/sleep
I arrived the next day at midday in Adelaide (that rhymes!). Unlike last time when I arrived to find the supermarkets were closed this time there were no problems in picking up food.
The one place I didn’t get to visit the last time was the Adelaide Hills so on Saturday I decided to jump on a bus and go explore this area. I first took the bus all the way to Handoff, an old German settlement. It still retains an atmosphere of its old colonial roots although this is mainly only kept alive for the tourist trade. After I headed back in the direction of the city to trek up to the top of Mount Lofty to check out the views of the surroundings, picking an area without an established walking track I had to use the main road for half the trek. That evening the hostel I was staying at was celebrating its one year anniversary so we were treated to a hog roast that evening – all 240kg of it!
For my last full day in Adelaide I mainly relaxed and visited the main sights for the last time grabbing some photos of stuff I missed the last time I was here.
Time to travel back in the right direction to resume my travels around Australia; I had my last train journey using my rail pass. It was a long 10 hours back to Melbourne, the third time I had had to do this journey. When I arrived I had a short walk to my hostel located in the north of the city centre, it is one of the biggest in OZ with over 800 people staying in it at one time. My main task was to send a birthday text home back to my sister – the first birthday of hers that I had missed.
Not a lot to be said for my day joining the train, I’m so use to the procedure now that it’s like catching an aeroplane and having to sit through the familiar safety briefing time after time – read/eat/sleep
I arrived the next day at midday in Adelaide (that rhymes!). Unlike last time when I arrived to find the supermarkets were closed this time there were no problems in picking up food.
The one place I didn’t get to visit the last time was the Adelaide Hills so on Saturday I decided to jump on a bus and go explore this area. I first took the bus all the way to Handoff, an old German settlement. It still retains an atmosphere of its old colonial roots although this is mainly only kept alive for the tourist trade. After I headed back in the direction of the city to trek up to the top of Mount Lofty to check out the views of the surroundings, picking an area without an established walking track I had to use the main road for half the trek. That evening the hostel I was staying at was celebrating its one year anniversary so we were treated to a hog roast that evening – all 240kg of it!
For my last full day in Adelaide I mainly relaxed and visited the main sights for the last time grabbing some photos of stuff I missed the last time I was here.
Time to travel back in the right direction to resume my travels around Australia; I had my last train journey using my rail pass. It was a long 10 hours back to Melbourne, the third time I had had to do this journey. When I arrived I had a short walk to my hostel located in the north of the city centre, it is one of the biggest in OZ with over 800 people staying in it at one time. My main task was to send a birthday text home back to my sister – the first birthday of hers that I had missed.
05/12/2011
Launceston
29/11/11-01/11/11
Time to move north, having exhausted Hobart I jumped on a coach up to Tasmania’s second city Launceston where I was catching my return flight to Melbourne a few days later. The trip only took less than three hours so having left in the afternoon I arrived just before the evening had set in.
The next day I went to explore the town but found it was just the same as Hobart really, nothing of note to see. Instead I dragged myself around the local art and history museum, the latter being housed in an old railway depot. A welcome surprise I found was that the local park a group of red faced macaques which were a gift from Japan.
With the sun shining I went to hike around Launceston’s main tourist attraction – Cataract Gorge. This huge natural feature has several walking tracks so you can walk along its path. If you fancy there’s a chairlift that spans across the gorge. Instead I spent the morning hiking around the available tracks. Along the way I crossed several suspense bridges as well as visited the old hydroelectricity station. On one path along the top of the gorge I happened to bump into a kangaroo with baby joey in tow and a small spikey ant eater called a Q, bit more interesting than some of the wildlife you would see on walks back home. In the afternoon I walked along the Inveresk trail next to the history museum.
Time to move north, having exhausted Hobart I jumped on a coach up to Tasmania’s second city Launceston where I was catching my return flight to Melbourne a few days later. The trip only took less than three hours so having left in the afternoon I arrived just before the evening had set in.
The next day I went to explore the town but found it was just the same as Hobart really, nothing of note to see. Instead I dragged myself around the local art and history museum, the latter being housed in an old railway depot. A welcome surprise I found was that the local park a group of red faced macaques which were a gift from Japan.
With the sun shining I went to hike around Launceston’s main tourist attraction – Cataract Gorge. This huge natural feature has several walking tracks so you can walk along its path. If you fancy there’s a chairlift that spans across the gorge. Instead I spent the morning hiking around the available tracks. Along the way I crossed several suspense bridges as well as visited the old hydroelectricity station. On one path along the top of the gorge I happened to bump into a kangaroo with baby joey in tow and a small spikey ant eater called a Q, bit more interesting than some of the wildlife you would see on walks back home. In the afternoon I walked along the Inveresk trail next to the history museum.
30/11/2011
Hobart
23/11/11-28/11/11
After a hard night’s sleep on a wooden bench I was finally able to check-in my pack and jump on my flight to Hobart. After just an hour we had touched down in Tasmania, I was now under down under. By the time I had got to the hostel it was only just 9 in the morning so while I waited for my room to be ready I popped down to the shops to gather some supplies. In the afternoon I explored around the town and visited the history museum which is in the middle of restoration works. With the day dragging along due to my early start I had an early night to recharge my batteries.
With the sun shining (while storms where occurring on the mainland) I followed the suggested walking tour in my lonely planet guide. This took me through the centre of town, down by the docks and along to the homes of Battery Point. In the afternoon I went to the penitentiary chapel which is owned by the local natural trust to take part in the tour through this former chapel, prison and law courts.
With the weather still holding I decided to jump on a local bus and make my way to Fern Tree to the starting point of the tracks that lead up Mount Wellington. After picking up a map from the local store I set out to tackle the steep climb to the top. It was not easy going, most of the paths where rocky tracks where the surface was very uneven, to your side the ground fell away. After several stops along the way and much puffing and panting I was relieved to reach the summit. It was worth the climb for the views which stretched on for miles, you could see all the way around. I had my lunch at the top before once again setting off to retrace my steps back down to where I started. Of course for those who want the easier route a road leads right up to the summit – but where’s the challenge it that? Not surprisingly I was certainly worn out that evening.
On a wet and cold day I had my first Oz tour to the convict settlement of Port Arthur to take part in the evening ghost tour. Along the way we stopped off at Richmond, a quiet little town which is home to the oldest continually used bridge in Australia. We also visited several sights of natural wonder, including sea caves and blowholes. On arriving at Port Arthur we had a few hours during the afternoon to do a quick tour of the site in the day light before we joined our ghost tour that evening. On the tour we were led by our story teller who lead us to varies sights in the grounds where ghosts had been spotted before telling us the experiences who those who have seen them. Our only light came from three lanterns that where held by varies members of our group. Each ghost he told us about had been reported seen by three different people in the same location three times. It was an engaging experience and you are certainly drawn in by the stories you are told, unfortunately though we didn’t experience anything that night but I really enjoyed myself, would definitely do something like that again.
After several days rushing round I decided to just take it easy so had a rest day, the only I did venture out for was to visit the Botanical Gardens to read my kindle in the sun for a few hours.
On my last full day in Hobart I spent the morning sorting out several issues such as transport for future trips. I had received the good news that I had been offered accommodation in Sydney for Christmas and New Year’s so I now know roughly where I was going to be for the rest of my time in Oz, this was especially useful with school holidays fast approaching, and I could now make sure I had everything sorted. In the afternoon I popped into town to visit the maritime museum and took a walk along to Sandy Bay where people have their yachts moored.
After a hard night’s sleep on a wooden bench I was finally able to check-in my pack and jump on my flight to Hobart. After just an hour we had touched down in Tasmania, I was now under down under. By the time I had got to the hostel it was only just 9 in the morning so while I waited for my room to be ready I popped down to the shops to gather some supplies. In the afternoon I explored around the town and visited the history museum which is in the middle of restoration works. With the day dragging along due to my early start I had an early night to recharge my batteries.
With the sun shining (while storms where occurring on the mainland) I followed the suggested walking tour in my lonely planet guide. This took me through the centre of town, down by the docks and along to the homes of Battery Point. In the afternoon I went to the penitentiary chapel which is owned by the local natural trust to take part in the tour through this former chapel, prison and law courts.
With the weather still holding I decided to jump on a local bus and make my way to Fern Tree to the starting point of the tracks that lead up Mount Wellington. After picking up a map from the local store I set out to tackle the steep climb to the top. It was not easy going, most of the paths where rocky tracks where the surface was very uneven, to your side the ground fell away. After several stops along the way and much puffing and panting I was relieved to reach the summit. It was worth the climb for the views which stretched on for miles, you could see all the way around. I had my lunch at the top before once again setting off to retrace my steps back down to where I started. Of course for those who want the easier route a road leads right up to the summit – but where’s the challenge it that? Not surprisingly I was certainly worn out that evening.
On a wet and cold day I had my first Oz tour to the convict settlement of Port Arthur to take part in the evening ghost tour. Along the way we stopped off at Richmond, a quiet little town which is home to the oldest continually used bridge in Australia. We also visited several sights of natural wonder, including sea caves and blowholes. On arriving at Port Arthur we had a few hours during the afternoon to do a quick tour of the site in the day light before we joined our ghost tour that evening. On the tour we were led by our story teller who lead us to varies sights in the grounds where ghosts had been spotted before telling us the experiences who those who have seen them. Our only light came from three lanterns that where held by varies members of our group. Each ghost he told us about had been reported seen by three different people in the same location three times. It was an engaging experience and you are certainly drawn in by the stories you are told, unfortunately though we didn’t experience anything that night but I really enjoyed myself, would definitely do something like that again.
After several days rushing round I decided to just take it easy so had a rest day, the only I did venture out for was to visit the Botanical Gardens to read my kindle in the sun for a few hours.
On my last full day in Hobart I spent the morning sorting out several issues such as transport for future trips. I had received the good news that I had been offered accommodation in Sydney for Christmas and New Year’s so I now know roughly where I was going to be for the rest of my time in Oz, this was especially useful with school holidays fast approaching, and I could now make sure I had everything sorted. In the afternoon I popped into town to visit the maritime museum and took a walk along to Sandy Bay where people have their yachts moored.
Overland
21/11/11-22/11/11
An early start as I made my way to the train station to board the Overland to Melbourne. The journey would take 10 hours so I mainly spent the time on board either reading or having a snooze. It was a different landscape we passed compared to the outback I had travelled through on the Indian Pacific, here farmers’ fields stretched out into the distance. My hostel in Melbourne was just 5 minutes from the train station so after settling in for my one night’s stay I took a quick stroll to the centre of the city before feeling the weight of the days travels I returned to bed.
My flight to Hobart the next day was in the early morning so tonight I would be sleeping at the airport. I mainly filled the time by doing laundry, visiting some of the sights of the city including Federation Square and doing the last preparation to send birthday and Christmas cards home. I tried not to see too much as I knew I would be coming back to Melbourne to explore it probably in a few weeks’ time. After delaying for as long as possible I made my way to the airport where I soon settled in for the night to try and catch some sleep if it was at all possible.
An early start as I made my way to the train station to board the Overland to Melbourne. The journey would take 10 hours so I mainly spent the time on board either reading or having a snooze. It was a different landscape we passed compared to the outback I had travelled through on the Indian Pacific, here farmers’ fields stretched out into the distance. My hostel in Melbourne was just 5 minutes from the train station so after settling in for my one night’s stay I took a quick stroll to the centre of the city before feeling the weight of the days travels I returned to bed.
My flight to Hobart the next day was in the early morning so tonight I would be sleeping at the airport. I mainly filled the time by doing laundry, visiting some of the sights of the city including Federation Square and doing the last preparation to send birthday and Christmas cards home. I tried not to see too much as I knew I would be coming back to Melbourne to explore it probably in a few weeks’ time. After delaying for as long as possible I made my way to the airport where I soon settled in for the night to try and catch some sleep if it was at all possible.
22/11/2011
Adelaide
16/11/11-20/11/11
On my first full day in Adelaide I carried on from where I kicked off yesterday by visiting the migration museum in the morning. While I was in there a group of Australians were also looking round at the same time, it was interesting to listen to the stories of how their families came to be down under – most certainly seemed proud to have convicts in their families! During the afternoon I strolled to the Oval cricket ground before enjoying the sun while wondering next to the river, following its course till it took me to the botanical gardens while I stopped off to read my book in the afternoon sun.
The next day I jumped on the tram and rode it till the end of the line to Glenelg, which is situated right on the western coast. Whilst there I took a stroll along the beach, after the warm seas I experienced in Asia its back to the cold ones unfortunately. Glenelg turned out to be quite beautiful, it was I shame I hadn’t brought a towel along to enjoy the beach further.
Another day another location as I went to visit Port Adelaide, despite being a heritage zone almost no money has unfortunately been spent on the area, though finally the local government is starting to invest in the area. Although the area is full of historic buildings there really wasn’t a lot to see, so after visiting the maritime museum and climbing the lighthouse I decided to head back to the city centre.
Saturday turned out to be a shopping day. I spent most of the morning in and out of the shops along Rundle Mall and those inside the Central Market. I treated myself to an early Christmas present – a Kindle. As with everything in Oz book prices are almost three times the price of the UK, even second hand books cost more than brand new ones back home. Added that selections in hostels are poor I just wanted to be able to read something that I would enjoy hence purchasing a Kindle – plus saves me having to carry bulky books around! In the afternoon with the weather being slightly cooler I decided to take a proper hike along the river. With one eye on Taz and New Zealand I need to start getting ready for doing some tramping, so I blew a few cobwebs out of the system by challenging myself to walk at my usual fast pace. I was happy to find out that I was still up to pace.
My last full day in Adelaide turned out to be sunny but with a cold breeze. With it being a Sunday I took it easy and just visited some of the areas I hadn’t seen before whilst stopping off to relax in different locations. Tomorrow I would be jumping on the Overland to make the 10 hour trip to Melbourne. Unfortunately due to there being no availability on the Ghan for two weeks I couldn’t head immediately up to Alice Springs as I had planned to. Rather than wasting time waiting for the train in Adelaide I instead booked flights to visit Tasmania from Melbourne during the gap. This would mean I would have to head south before heading north to once again head south – not ideal but with an unlimited rain pass I was stuck with what was available with that company. One thing was for sure I would be clocking up the miles over the next three weeks.
On my first full day in Adelaide I carried on from where I kicked off yesterday by visiting the migration museum in the morning. While I was in there a group of Australians were also looking round at the same time, it was interesting to listen to the stories of how their families came to be down under – most certainly seemed proud to have convicts in their families! During the afternoon I strolled to the Oval cricket ground before enjoying the sun while wondering next to the river, following its course till it took me to the botanical gardens while I stopped off to read my book in the afternoon sun.
The next day I jumped on the tram and rode it till the end of the line to Glenelg, which is situated right on the western coast. Whilst there I took a stroll along the beach, after the warm seas I experienced in Asia its back to the cold ones unfortunately. Glenelg turned out to be quite beautiful, it was I shame I hadn’t brought a towel along to enjoy the beach further.
Another day another location as I went to visit Port Adelaide, despite being a heritage zone almost no money has unfortunately been spent on the area, though finally the local government is starting to invest in the area. Although the area is full of historic buildings there really wasn’t a lot to see, so after visiting the maritime museum and climbing the lighthouse I decided to head back to the city centre.
Saturday turned out to be a shopping day. I spent most of the morning in and out of the shops along Rundle Mall and those inside the Central Market. I treated myself to an early Christmas present – a Kindle. As with everything in Oz book prices are almost three times the price of the UK, even second hand books cost more than brand new ones back home. Added that selections in hostels are poor I just wanted to be able to read something that I would enjoy hence purchasing a Kindle – plus saves me having to carry bulky books around! In the afternoon with the weather being slightly cooler I decided to take a proper hike along the river. With one eye on Taz and New Zealand I need to start getting ready for doing some tramping, so I blew a few cobwebs out of the system by challenging myself to walk at my usual fast pace. I was happy to find out that I was still up to pace.
My last full day in Adelaide turned out to be sunny but with a cold breeze. With it being a Sunday I took it easy and just visited some of the areas I hadn’t seen before whilst stopping off to relax in different locations. Tomorrow I would be jumping on the Overland to make the 10 hour trip to Melbourne. Unfortunately due to there being no availability on the Ghan for two weeks I couldn’t head immediately up to Alice Springs as I had planned to. Rather than wasting time waiting for the train in Adelaide I instead booked flights to visit Tasmania from Melbourne during the gap. This would mean I would have to head south before heading north to once again head south – not ideal but with an unlimited rain pass I was stuck with what was available with that company. One thing was for sure I would be clocking up the miles over the next three weeks.
17/11/2011
Indian Pacific
13/11/11-15/11/11
It was time to leave the West coast behind as I began my 41 hour train journey to Adelaide in South Australia. The journey would take me through one of the harshest environments in the world, the great Australian outback. We had several stop-offs along the way, the first was the gold town of Kalgoorlie that evening. Arriving near to mid-night on Sunday, the town was eerily quiet as everyone was safely tucked up in bed. After a brief walk round I ventured back to the train to try and get some sleep. My seat and bed for the journey was a reclining seat which wasn’t too uncomfortable, the only problem was I had to have my feet on the floor so there was aching joints in the morning.
The next day as we passed through the outback a variety of wildlife could be seen including emus, eagles, kangaroos and camels. Surprising it was quite green outside due to the recent fall of rain, usually the orange sand and rock dominates the landscape. Our stop off today to refuel was at a town called Cook, literally in the middle of nowhere. With the privatisation of the railway the town as slowly shrink with only 4 people now living there. Here the price of water per litre is the same price as fuel due to the remote location. We were allowed to wonder round the ruins of the town which once had a school and hospital. After half an hour we were back on the way to Adelaide, that day we officially passed from the West to the South.
Our trip officially came to an end the next day when we pulled into Adelaide woodland railway station in the early morning. Jumping on the express bus I was soon at my new hostel just off King William Street. I first needed to find supplies including a new towel as I discovered I left my mine at the last hostel – no way was I going back for that! In the afternoon I popped into the SA Museum and the art gallery before making my way back to the hostel to cook dinner and grab some needed sleep.
It was time to leave the West coast behind as I began my 41 hour train journey to Adelaide in South Australia. The journey would take me through one of the harshest environments in the world, the great Australian outback. We had several stop-offs along the way, the first was the gold town of Kalgoorlie that evening. Arriving near to mid-night on Sunday, the town was eerily quiet as everyone was safely tucked up in bed. After a brief walk round I ventured back to the train to try and get some sleep. My seat and bed for the journey was a reclining seat which wasn’t too uncomfortable, the only problem was I had to have my feet on the floor so there was aching joints in the morning.
The next day as we passed through the outback a variety of wildlife could be seen including emus, eagles, kangaroos and camels. Surprising it was quite green outside due to the recent fall of rain, usually the orange sand and rock dominates the landscape. Our stop off today to refuel was at a town called Cook, literally in the middle of nowhere. With the privatisation of the railway the town as slowly shrink with only 4 people now living there. Here the price of water per litre is the same price as fuel due to the remote location. We were allowed to wonder round the ruins of the town which once had a school and hospital. After half an hour we were back on the way to Adelaide, that day we officially passed from the West to the South.
Our trip officially came to an end the next day when we pulled into Adelaide woodland railway station in the early morning. Jumping on the express bus I was soon at my new hostel just off King William Street. I first needed to find supplies including a new towel as I discovered I left my mine at the last hostel – no way was I going back for that! In the afternoon I popped into the SA Museum and the art gallery before making my way back to the hostel to cook dinner and grab some needed sleep.
16/11/2011
Freo
09/11/11 – 12/11/11
Leaving the main city behind I jump on the train to make the short journey to Fremantle or ‘Freo’ as it is known to the locals. Located nearer to the Indian Ocean, Freo is the main port along the coast in this part of Western Australia. When I arrived my hostel wasn’t ready yet so I dropped off my pack before going to grab a snack for lunch. Later after checking in I made a quick visit to the Army Museum of Western Australia to have a look at the exhibits there. While travelling across Asia I visited many sites and countries where Australian Commonwealth troops had fought and died so it was interesting to learn some of the history behind the conflicts and special operations. This was also the first day in Oz that I went to the supermarket to stock up on supplies to cook my own food, that nights meal was simply pasta in sauce.
The next day there were two main places of interest I want to visit the first being the WA Maritime Museum which contained the American cup winning sail boat, Elizabeth II. The main reason for my visit was to go inside the HMAS Ovens, a post second world war submarine which is in dry dock behind the main museum building. I think I had already been inside this class of submarine before at Chatham dockyards but it was interesting to hear tales from a guide who had actually worked in the sub when it was active. After I made my way across town to do some time behind bars as I entered Fremantle Prison, a convict built prison that was still in use up to 1991 before it was closed down due to the lack of conditions deeded suitable for prisons human rights. This was due to the prison have no plumbed toilets in its cells so prisoners had to use buckets, although this is still common in most prisons in England. That night before dinner I made a quick visit to the nearby beach to watch the sunset on the horizon.
Remembrance Day – In the morning I paid a quick visit to the war memorial on top of the hill looking over Fremantle to see the preparations for a ceronmery later that morning to remember those who had fought to save their and others countries. At 11 o’clock the last post was played as a single jet fighter flew overhead. In the afternoon I popped in to see the Shipwreck Museum which houses artefacts from a series of Dutch trading ships which met their end off the coast of Perth. Nearby was the Roundhouse, the first convict built structure in Freo. Later I visited the local markets before venturing to the park to read my book to the afternoon sun.
On my last full day in Western Australia I took things easy as I got prepared for my long train journey to Adelaide, I basically repeated my afternoon from the previous day as I visited the local markets once again before heading to the park to relax on the sloped grass.
Leaving the main city behind I jump on the train to make the short journey to Fremantle or ‘Freo’ as it is known to the locals. Located nearer to the Indian Ocean, Freo is the main port along the coast in this part of Western Australia. When I arrived my hostel wasn’t ready yet so I dropped off my pack before going to grab a snack for lunch. Later after checking in I made a quick visit to the Army Museum of Western Australia to have a look at the exhibits there. While travelling across Asia I visited many sites and countries where Australian Commonwealth troops had fought and died so it was interesting to learn some of the history behind the conflicts and special operations. This was also the first day in Oz that I went to the supermarket to stock up on supplies to cook my own food, that nights meal was simply pasta in sauce.
The next day there were two main places of interest I want to visit the first being the WA Maritime Museum which contained the American cup winning sail boat, Elizabeth II. The main reason for my visit was to go inside the HMAS Ovens, a post second world war submarine which is in dry dock behind the main museum building. I think I had already been inside this class of submarine before at Chatham dockyards but it was interesting to hear tales from a guide who had actually worked in the sub when it was active. After I made my way across town to do some time behind bars as I entered Fremantle Prison, a convict built prison that was still in use up to 1991 before it was closed down due to the lack of conditions deeded suitable for prisons human rights. This was due to the prison have no plumbed toilets in its cells so prisoners had to use buckets, although this is still common in most prisons in England. That night before dinner I made a quick visit to the nearby beach to watch the sunset on the horizon.
Remembrance Day – In the morning I paid a quick visit to the war memorial on top of the hill looking over Fremantle to see the preparations for a ceronmery later that morning to remember those who had fought to save their and others countries. At 11 o’clock the last post was played as a single jet fighter flew overhead. In the afternoon I popped in to see the Shipwreck Museum which houses artefacts from a series of Dutch trading ships which met their end off the coast of Perth. Nearby was the Roundhouse, the first convict built structure in Freo. Later I visited the local markets before venturing to the park to read my book to the afternoon sun.
On my last full day in Western Australia I took things easy as I got prepared for my long train journey to Adelaide, I basically repeated my afternoon from the previous day as I visited the local markets once again before heading to the park to relax on the sloped grass.
12/11/2011
Land down under
06/11/11 – 08/11/11
After an overnight stay at Bangkok airport where I slept on the marble floor of departures, I boarded my Thai Airways flight to Perth. I was in for a shock when I landed. After seven weeks backpacking around Asia I had got use to hostel life out there, going out and buying all your meals, having someone do your laundry for you etc. Out in Australia this is all different of course as prices are more in line with what we pay at home due to the low exchange rate. Also the major difference out here is that people come to Oz to work so for them hostels are there homes for months at a time rather than for a few days. With hardly any sleep in over a 24 hours period the realisation of this hit me almost straight away when I walked through the hostel door in Perth. My first week was going to be a hard lesson in learning to change my routine.
After a well needed night’s sleep I ventured out the next day to explore the city at large sticking to the walking route suggested in my Lonely Planet guidebook. This led me up to King’s Park, a large series of gardens located on a bluff near to the city centre; from here I had great panoramic views of the surrounding country. Later that evening I met up with two of the people who had been on my Indochina Tour as they had just landed in Perth that day, to get into the Oz spirit we went out in the rain to buy some goon (boxed wine – traveller’s cheap drink) and catch up on what had happened since we last saw each over.
With a slight hangover the next day I once again when to explore the city, first I ventured into the National Western Australia Museum which surprisingly had an exhibition from the British Museum on at the time. It featured objects from around the world which told stories of our past, almost all of them where rare finds such as the old object ever found – a simply hand tool. With mixed weather I read that a nearby island had Joey’s on it so I went to explore not expecting to see much as rain was moving in, but luckily I did manage to catch a glimpse of two sheltering in nearby bushes.
One of the biggest shocks I have found out is that in some hostels you have to pay for the internet including wireless. So needing to hit the web I visited Peterpan’s, a travel agency which caters for backpackers where you can surf the internet for free. Here I bought an unlimited rail card on the three main train routes which cross the country as my means to travel rather than flying everywhere and missing out on seeing the local scenery. I decided that on the coming Sunday I would make my first journey to Adelaide to set myself up for a trip to see Ayres rock.
After an overnight stay at Bangkok airport where I slept on the marble floor of departures, I boarded my Thai Airways flight to Perth. I was in for a shock when I landed. After seven weeks backpacking around Asia I had got use to hostel life out there, going out and buying all your meals, having someone do your laundry for you etc. Out in Australia this is all different of course as prices are more in line with what we pay at home due to the low exchange rate. Also the major difference out here is that people come to Oz to work so for them hostels are there homes for months at a time rather than for a few days. With hardly any sleep in over a 24 hours period the realisation of this hit me almost straight away when I walked through the hostel door in Perth. My first week was going to be a hard lesson in learning to change my routine.
After a well needed night’s sleep I ventured out the next day to explore the city at large sticking to the walking route suggested in my Lonely Planet guidebook. This led me up to King’s Park, a large series of gardens located on a bluff near to the city centre; from here I had great panoramic views of the surrounding country. Later that evening I met up with two of the people who had been on my Indochina Tour as they had just landed in Perth that day, to get into the Oz spirit we went out in the rain to buy some goon (boxed wine – traveller’s cheap drink) and catch up on what had happened since we last saw each over.
With a slight hangover the next day I once again when to explore the city, first I ventured into the National Western Australia Museum which surprisingly had an exhibition from the British Museum on at the time. It featured objects from around the world which told stories of our past, almost all of them where rare finds such as the old object ever found – a simply hand tool. With mixed weather I read that a nearby island had Joey’s on it so I went to explore not expecting to see much as rain was moving in, but luckily I did manage to catch a glimpse of two sheltering in nearby bushes.
One of the biggest shocks I have found out is that in some hostels you have to pay for the internet including wireless. So needing to hit the web I visited Peterpan’s, a travel agency which caters for backpackers where you can surf the internet for free. Here I bought an unlimited rail card on the three main train routes which cross the country as my means to travel rather than flying everywhere and missing out on seeing the local scenery. I decided that on the coming Sunday I would make my first journey to Adelaide to set myself up for a trip to see Ayres rock.
Singapore - Goodbye Asia
04/11/11
Today I decided to spend the day learning about the history of the island, mainly involving the events that occurred during the Second World War when the British surrendered to the opposing Japanese forces in 1942. I first headed to the Battle Box in Fort Canning Park; this underground bunker system was the primary headquarters for all the operations in the Malaya area. It was here where the notion of surrender was first brought up. Next I headed south to visit Fort Siloso which saw action during the conflict. To round off my day I lastly went to visit Kranji war memorial and war graves which is the final resting place for many serving soldiers and volunteers who lost their lives during that period. With this being my only full day in Singapore in the evening I decided to take a stroll along the quay side to see the skyline lit up. While wondering along a discovered an Indian dance festival was taking place.
05/11/11
This was to be my last full day in Asia before I move onto Australia. I think this is now my new favourite part of the world – great food, friendly people and stunning scenery. With a flight back to Bangkok in the evening I went to visit the Quay side again to grab some photos and explore more of the surrounding area. I discovered a 7 side international rugby event was happening on the cricket green. Moving back towards the direction of my hostel I stumbled upon the National Museum to find out it had an exhibition of paintings from the Musee D’Orsay Paris on show including Van Gogh’s Starry Night, it worth it just for that painting.
Asian Favourites
Below is a list of some of my favourites in Asia:
• Favourite country: In the end little Laos stole my heart; I’m so surprised this country isn’t more widely known.
• Favourite food: Hard to choose but for me Vietnam just came out on top.
• Favourite capital city: Has to be Hanoi, the mixture of new and old and the general pace of the city.
• Favourite scenery: Look no further than Laos with its topical forests and mountains which burst out of the ground like razors.
• Favourite people: The people of Cambodia take this easily - Always smiling, polite and super friendly. Never in a bad mood.
• Favourite place: Georgetown, Penang. A world heritage protected area and you can see why they would want to preserve it, like taking a step back in time.
• Least favourite country: Thailand I’m afraid – just too plain old dirty for me. Didn’t feel like it had its own identity.
Today I decided to spend the day learning about the history of the island, mainly involving the events that occurred during the Second World War when the British surrendered to the opposing Japanese forces in 1942. I first headed to the Battle Box in Fort Canning Park; this underground bunker system was the primary headquarters for all the operations in the Malaya area. It was here where the notion of surrender was first brought up. Next I headed south to visit Fort Siloso which saw action during the conflict. To round off my day I lastly went to visit Kranji war memorial and war graves which is the final resting place for many serving soldiers and volunteers who lost their lives during that period. With this being my only full day in Singapore in the evening I decided to take a stroll along the quay side to see the skyline lit up. While wondering along a discovered an Indian dance festival was taking place.
05/11/11
This was to be my last full day in Asia before I move onto Australia. I think this is now my new favourite part of the world – great food, friendly people and stunning scenery. With a flight back to Bangkok in the evening I went to visit the Quay side again to grab some photos and explore more of the surrounding area. I discovered a 7 side international rugby event was happening on the cricket green. Moving back towards the direction of my hostel I stumbled upon the National Museum to find out it had an exhibition of paintings from the Musee D’Orsay Paris on show including Van Gogh’s Starry Night, it worth it just for that painting.
Asian Favourites
Below is a list of some of my favourites in Asia:
• Favourite country: In the end little Laos stole my heart; I’m so surprised this country isn’t more widely known.
• Favourite food: Hard to choose but for me Vietnam just came out on top.
• Favourite capital city: Has to be Hanoi, the mixture of new and old and the general pace of the city.
• Favourite scenery: Look no further than Laos with its topical forests and mountains which burst out of the ground like razors.
• Favourite people: The people of Cambodia take this easily - Always smiling, polite and super friendly. Never in a bad mood.
• Favourite place: Georgetown, Penang. A world heritage protected area and you can see why they would want to preserve it, like taking a step back in time.
• Least favourite country: Thailand I’m afraid – just too plain old dirty for me. Didn’t feel like it had its own identity.
07/11/2011
Malaysia
30/10/11 – 02/11/11
After my unexpected overnight stay in Hat Yai I finally made it to Penang in Malaysia. Arriving in the afternoon I tried to Skype back home completely forgetting that the clocks had gone back an hour where as I had gone an hour ahead. That evening I went for a stroll around the town in the rain after grabbing some dinner from the huge shopping complex under the Komtar Tower.
The next day I went on my own walking tour of Georgetown, a protected world heritage site. Here is a list of some of the sites I visited:
• Town/city hall
• Fort Comwallis
• Queen Victoria clock tower
• Penang state museum
• Goddess of Mercy temple
• Mahamarianman temple
• Cheah Kongsi
• Khoo Kongsi
• Little India
That afternoon I caught a bus to the bottom of Penang hill before taking the hill train to the top to get some panoramic views of the island and city.
With me liking Penang so much I decided to stay an extra day to see some more sights in the area including Wat Chayamang Kalarm, the Burmese temple and the Botanic gardens (where I attempted to climb up to see the waterfalls but gave up after 40 minutes).
The next day I jumped on a coach to Kuala Lumpar, with me staying an extra day in Penang I only had the afternoon to do a bit of sightseeing in the city so I headed to the KL Tower to get some raised views of the city. There I bumped into a fellow Brit who I arrived to meet that evening to grab some dinner in the China Town area.
03/11/11 – 04/11/11
Another day another coach journey as I made my way to Singapore, the last new country I would be visiting in Asia on my RTW trip. Everything was going fine until I got to Singapore immigration where we had to disembark our coach to get checked into the country. At this point there were only 3 passengers left on the coach including myself. I filled out my immigration card before going to see the custom official to get check in. After I had to put my backpack through an x-ray machine before I quickly went to the loo before the final leg of our journey to Lavender Hill bus station. But on arriving in the coach parking area I couldn’t see my transport anywhere, I run up and down the platform checking to see if it was there – no sign of it. Asking another bus operator I was simply told that the coach had already left; cue an outburst of swearing from me. After waiting half hour to see if it hadn’t got simply held up in customs I knew it was true it had already left.
The main problem was I had no local currency on me due to having only just entered the country so my first mission was to find an ATM. After talking to a security guard I was pointed towards a shopping complex nearby so I quickly dashed over to find a series of ATM machines – relief! With money in my hand I boarded a local bus to the nearest metro station, not the stress I was expecting to find that day.
After my unexpected overnight stay in Hat Yai I finally made it to Penang in Malaysia. Arriving in the afternoon I tried to Skype back home completely forgetting that the clocks had gone back an hour where as I had gone an hour ahead. That evening I went for a stroll around the town in the rain after grabbing some dinner from the huge shopping complex under the Komtar Tower.
The next day I went on my own walking tour of Georgetown, a protected world heritage site. Here is a list of some of the sites I visited:
• Town/city hall
• Fort Comwallis
• Queen Victoria clock tower
• Penang state museum
• Goddess of Mercy temple
• Mahamarianman temple
• Cheah Kongsi
• Khoo Kongsi
• Little India
That afternoon I caught a bus to the bottom of Penang hill before taking the hill train to the top to get some panoramic views of the island and city.
With me liking Penang so much I decided to stay an extra day to see some more sights in the area including Wat Chayamang Kalarm, the Burmese temple and the Botanic gardens (where I attempted to climb up to see the waterfalls but gave up after 40 minutes).
The next day I jumped on a coach to Kuala Lumpar, with me staying an extra day in Penang I only had the afternoon to do a bit of sightseeing in the city so I headed to the KL Tower to get some raised views of the city. There I bumped into a fellow Brit who I arrived to meet that evening to grab some dinner in the China Town area.
03/11/11 – 04/11/11
Another day another coach journey as I made my way to Singapore, the last new country I would be visiting in Asia on my RTW trip. Everything was going fine until I got to Singapore immigration where we had to disembark our coach to get checked into the country. At this point there were only 3 passengers left on the coach including myself. I filled out my immigration card before going to see the custom official to get check in. After I had to put my backpack through an x-ray machine before I quickly went to the loo before the final leg of our journey to Lavender Hill bus station. But on arriving in the coach parking area I couldn’t see my transport anywhere, I run up and down the platform checking to see if it was there – no sign of it. Asking another bus operator I was simply told that the coach had already left; cue an outburst of swearing from me. After waiting half hour to see if it hadn’t got simply held up in customs I knew it was true it had already left.
The main problem was I had no local currency on me due to having only just entered the country so my first mission was to find an ATM. After talking to a security guard I was pointed towards a shopping complex nearby so I quickly dashed over to find a series of ATM machines – relief! With money in my hand I boarded a local bus to the nearest metro station, not the stress I was expecting to find that day.
30/10/2011
Asian Impressions - First Draft
Some Asian impressions from what I have experienced so far:
• Horns Blazing – A common sound out here as horns are used all the time to warn other road users your either: About to pass, want them to move, let them know your there, move animals out of the way, to show your annoyance at other people’s driving.
• Chop sticks – The only instruments you need to eat food out here, maybe a spoon sometimes when soup is involved.
• Spitting – If you don’t see people doing it you’ll certain hear them when they do, a common occurrence.
• Rich paddies – The main crop grown out here, in England you have green fields pass you by as you drive through the countryside, out here its rice paddies stretching for miles either side.
• Flood water – Maybe not a common sight, but this natural problem has followed me around Asia.
• Conical hats –Not just a tourist product, but the headwear of most workers who are out in the fields all day.
• People swatting – Not just over toilets but a general position most Asians adopt whether waiting out in the street or eating at home. Warning to Westerners – do not attempt to copy, we just aren’t built to hover our bums in the air.
• Mosquitos – Don’t think you wouldn’t get bitten because you will at some point; legs are especially tasty to these annoying creatures.
• Blocked pavements – In the west these are designed so you don’t have to walk in the street, out here there seen as an extension of your living room/shop/restaurant and just somewhere to park your bike – not to be walked on apparently!
• Potted roads – When it rains constantly for six months a year you expect the roads to suffer a little, well maybe quite a bit, expect your body to take a pounding when you less expect it. Smooth roads quickly become rally stages.
• Bikes – There everywhere, out here two wheels is the way to go.
• Stunning scenery – You’ll find some of the best driving roads out here. Just when you think you seen it all, the views around the next corner will once again blow you away.
• Tall narrow buildings – Best examples are in Vietnam where nearly every building has a narrow front but will be long and tall, this is due to the way land is sold.
• Horns Blazing – A common sound out here as horns are used all the time to warn other road users your either: About to pass, want them to move, let them know your there, move animals out of the way, to show your annoyance at other people’s driving.
• Chop sticks – The only instruments you need to eat food out here, maybe a spoon sometimes when soup is involved.
• Spitting – If you don’t see people doing it you’ll certain hear them when they do, a common occurrence.
• Rich paddies – The main crop grown out here, in England you have green fields pass you by as you drive through the countryside, out here its rice paddies stretching for miles either side.
• Flood water – Maybe not a common sight, but this natural problem has followed me around Asia.
• Conical hats –Not just a tourist product, but the headwear of most workers who are out in the fields all day.
• People swatting – Not just over toilets but a general position most Asians adopt whether waiting out in the street or eating at home. Warning to Westerners – do not attempt to copy, we just aren’t built to hover our bums in the air.
• Mosquitos – Don’t think you wouldn’t get bitten because you will at some point; legs are especially tasty to these annoying creatures.
• Blocked pavements – In the west these are designed so you don’t have to walk in the street, out here there seen as an extension of your living room/shop/restaurant and just somewhere to park your bike – not to be walked on apparently!
• Potted roads – When it rains constantly for six months a year you expect the roads to suffer a little, well maybe quite a bit, expect your body to take a pounding when you less expect it. Smooth roads quickly become rally stages.
• Bikes – There everywhere, out here two wheels is the way to go.
• Stunning scenery – You’ll find some of the best driving roads out here. Just when you think you seen it all, the views around the next corner will once again blow you away.
• Tall narrow buildings – Best examples are in Vietnam where nearly every building has a narrow front but will be long and tall, this is due to the way land is sold.
Karon beach
25/10/11-28/10/11
A change of scenery as I moved to the west coast of the island for a few days to Karon beach, the resort just below the infamous one of Patong. My plan here was just to relax for a few days and that’s exactly what I did. My daily routine whilst here was to wake up late before heading down to the beach to spend the afternoon relaxing on a bed under an umbrella. The sand here is white and makes an audible squeaking noise when you walk on it, whilst the sea is clear and shallow so you can walk quite far out. In the evenings I took a walk along the front just to get some exercise. On the first night I lightning storm was happening in the distance over the sea so I stop off to watch its display whilst in the background there was the constant noise of the waves breaking.
My only problem was the on-going flood situation in Bangkok which was getting worst every day. When on Thursday the city was told to evacuate certain areas I tried desperately to delay my flight to Bangkok without any success, in the end I decided to ditch the flight and change my travel plans. With Bangkok turning into a no go zone I instead decided to travel down to Singapore to catch a flight from there before I head to Perth. My last week in Asia wouldn’t be spent in Thailand as I originally planned, I going to go to two new countries instead!
A change of scenery as I moved to the west coast of the island for a few days to Karon beach, the resort just below the infamous one of Patong. My plan here was just to relax for a few days and that’s exactly what I did. My daily routine whilst here was to wake up late before heading down to the beach to spend the afternoon relaxing on a bed under an umbrella. The sand here is white and makes an audible squeaking noise when you walk on it, whilst the sea is clear and shallow so you can walk quite far out. In the evenings I took a walk along the front just to get some exercise. On the first night I lightning storm was happening in the distance over the sea so I stop off to watch its display whilst in the background there was the constant noise of the waves breaking.
My only problem was the on-going flood situation in Bangkok which was getting worst every day. When on Thursday the city was told to evacuate certain areas I tried desperately to delay my flight to Bangkok without any success, in the end I decided to ditch the flight and change my travel plans. With Bangkok turning into a no go zone I instead decided to travel down to Singapore to catch a flight from there before I head to Perth. My last week in Asia wouldn’t be spent in Thailand as I originally planned, I going to go to two new countries instead!
25/10/2011
Phuket
23/10/11-24/10/11
23: With Bangkok under the threat of flooding I decided early on in Chiang Mai to escape for a few days to one of Thailand’s islands so I could hit a beach. With limited flight options from the local airport I ventured out today to Phuket, the largest of Thailand's islands. I had booked myself a couple of nights stay in the main town to muse over where I wanted to go.
That night I found a nice street bar to watch some football, the first time I've had a chance to see Spurs play since leaving home. It wasn't until I went to the toilet that I started to doubt by choice of bar. After going inside through some glazed doors I opened the toilet door to be greeted by the sight of two men being massaured by the sinks, one was having his back cracked while the other was being stretched out. I quickly went about my business and before dashing out of the door. Outside I turned to look at the name of the joint, turns out it was called Fantasia. A local online guide states the following:
Fantasia
This is another quintessentially Thai place, complete with extremely attractive and skimpily dressed dancing girls in a pretty good floor show, flashing lights, expensive drinks and a slight air of seediness. Be prepared to pay more here – for company, drinks and 'friendship'. All in all, this is a whole lot more entertaining than your typical Go-Go bar in Patong.
At least I had picked a classy place to watch the football! It sums up Thailand perfectly though, this place is just pure filth.
24: With nothing planned for the day I did what most people do when they arrive in Phuket, I visited some of the beaches. I stuck with the east coast so I first jump on the local bus to Chalong but after jumping off I found that there was hardly any beach there. I quickly move further along down to Rawai beach which I discovered is mainly use to transport tourist to neighbouring islands, so far not what I was expecting to find. I just wanted to find somewhere where I could park up for the day. Dissappointed I headed back to town safe in the knowledge that I was moving the next day to Karon on the west coast of the island. Hopefully I would find what I was looking for there.
23: With Bangkok under the threat of flooding I decided early on in Chiang Mai to escape for a few days to one of Thailand’s islands so I could hit a beach. With limited flight options from the local airport I ventured out today to Phuket, the largest of Thailand's islands. I had booked myself a couple of nights stay in the main town to muse over where I wanted to go.
That night I found a nice street bar to watch some football, the first time I've had a chance to see Spurs play since leaving home. It wasn't until I went to the toilet that I started to doubt by choice of bar. After going inside through some glazed doors I opened the toilet door to be greeted by the sight of two men being massaured by the sinks, one was having his back cracked while the other was being stretched out. I quickly went about my business and before dashing out of the door. Outside I turned to look at the name of the joint, turns out it was called Fantasia. A local online guide states the following:
Fantasia
This is another quintessentially Thai place, complete with extremely attractive and skimpily dressed dancing girls in a pretty good floor show, flashing lights, expensive drinks and a slight air of seediness. Be prepared to pay more here – for company, drinks and 'friendship'. All in all, this is a whole lot more entertaining than your typical Go-Go bar in Patong.
At least I had picked a classy place to watch the football! It sums up Thailand perfectly though, this place is just pure filth.
24: With nothing planned for the day I did what most people do when they arrive in Phuket, I visited some of the beaches. I stuck with the east coast so I first jump on the local bus to Chalong but after jumping off I found that there was hardly any beach there. I quickly move further along down to Rawai beach which I discovered is mainly use to transport tourist to neighbouring islands, so far not what I was expecting to find. I just wanted to find somewhere where I could park up for the day. Dissappointed I headed back to town safe in the knowledge that I was moving the next day to Karon on the west coast of the island. Hopefully I would find what I was looking for there.
24/10/2011
Chiang Mai
18/10/11 – 22/10/11
18-20: On route to Chiang Mai we stop off at the White Temple, one of the most unique temples in the world due to its artistic decoration. Last day of my tour with Gap (now known as G-Adventures) so we have a final meal at the coupon place in the Night Bazaar before a few drinks at a local bar. The next day I transfer to a hostel and go to see Thai boxing in the evening. This is followed up on the 20th with me visiting some of the local temples here – Wat Jediluang, Wat Chiangmun. After I have a quick walk through the local China Town here where straight away you can see the difference in culture.
21: I have a day trip to the Elephant Nature Park (ENP). Instead of going elephant riding at another attraction I instead choose to visit the ENP because here they rescue injured or rejected animals and give them some much need care and attention, and most importantly love. On arriving we are first taken to see two elephants which have been injured by land mines in Burma. You can clearly see the damage they have suffered as they can only put weight on three legs. One had its ankle blow off while the other lost its toe. We have a quick chance to feed them before we head back to the main building to feed some of the other elephants. After feeding its bath time so we each grab a bucket before heading down to the river which runs alongside the sanctuary, time to get wet. As the elephants step in we all join in to throw water over them to help them cool off in the hot weather. Then we grab our own lunch before we have another chance to meet other residents here where the process is repeated. We are also shown a video about the work done here and the ritual elephants have to go through so they are made submissive to work. I have had a great day and am happy I choose to go somewhere where these massive creatures are being helped.
22: Another animal day as I head to Chiang Mai zoo further out of town to hopefully see pandas. My mission is successful and I get to see 3 of only 35 pandas outside of China. Disappointed that they are all asleep I head for the exit but am stopped in my tracks by the sound of raised voices behind me as one decides its food time and wakes up to feed. They are big creatures and its surprising how man-like their movements are, they are also very fussy eaters. That evening I head out with the last member of my tour group who stuck around the same as me for one last meal. Been a bit of a sad week as I have mostly only said goodbye to people, a chance in scenery is needed.
18-20: On route to Chiang Mai we stop off at the White Temple, one of the most unique temples in the world due to its artistic decoration. Last day of my tour with Gap (now known as G-Adventures) so we have a final meal at the coupon place in the Night Bazaar before a few drinks at a local bar. The next day I transfer to a hostel and go to see Thai boxing in the evening. This is followed up on the 20th with me visiting some of the local temples here – Wat Jediluang, Wat Chiangmun. After I have a quick walk through the local China Town here where straight away you can see the difference in culture.
21: I have a day trip to the Elephant Nature Park (ENP). Instead of going elephant riding at another attraction I instead choose to visit the ENP because here they rescue injured or rejected animals and give them some much need care and attention, and most importantly love. On arriving we are first taken to see two elephants which have been injured by land mines in Burma. You can clearly see the damage they have suffered as they can only put weight on three legs. One had its ankle blow off while the other lost its toe. We have a quick chance to feed them before we head back to the main building to feed some of the other elephants. After feeding its bath time so we each grab a bucket before heading down to the river which runs alongside the sanctuary, time to get wet. As the elephants step in we all join in to throw water over them to help them cool off in the hot weather. Then we grab our own lunch before we have another chance to meet other residents here where the process is repeated. We are also shown a video about the work done here and the ritual elephants have to go through so they are made submissive to work. I have had a great day and am happy I choose to go somewhere where these massive creatures are being helped.
22: Another animal day as I head to Chiang Mai zoo further out of town to hopefully see pandas. My mission is successful and I get to see 3 of only 35 pandas outside of China. Disappointed that they are all asleep I head for the exit but am stopped in my tracks by the sound of raised voices behind me as one decides its food time and wakes up to feed. They are big creatures and its surprising how man-like their movements are, they are also very fussy eaters. That evening I head out with the last member of my tour group who stuck around the same as me for one last meal. Been a bit of a sad week as I have mostly only said goodbye to people, a chance in scenery is needed.
Mekong River
14/10/11 – 17/10/11
14-15: Stayed in Luang Prabang (Laos). Lovely town next to the Mekong River, classic architecture, feels a lot like Hoi An but not so touristy. During my stay I visited Wat Tham Phu a temple on top of the only hill in town, great views of the local surroundings. Also visited the Night Market which runs through the centre of town, a massive market which sells all sorts of gifts, I pick up a monk painting made on special local paper.
16-17: Board a Slow Boat as we make a two day journey to the Thai border along the Mekong River, which I have come across before on my travels. We have an overnight stay in Pak Beng, a small riverside town with only one bar. Here I eat Buffalo and tried the local rice wine – Lao Lao. End up visiting the only bar which we turn into a nightclub. The next day after a 10 hour boat journey we reach Chiang Khong (Thailand) where we have to perform a water border crossing.
14-15: Stayed in Luang Prabang (Laos). Lovely town next to the Mekong River, classic architecture, feels a lot like Hoi An but not so touristy. During my stay I visited Wat Tham Phu a temple on top of the only hill in town, great views of the local surroundings. Also visited the Night Market which runs through the centre of town, a massive market which sells all sorts of gifts, I pick up a monk painting made on special local paper.
16-17: Board a Slow Boat as we make a two day journey to the Thai border along the Mekong River, which I have come across before on my travels. We have an overnight stay in Pak Beng, a small riverside town with only one bar. Here I eat Buffalo and tried the local rice wine – Lao Lao. End up visiting the only bar which we turn into a nightclub. The next day after a 10 hour boat journey we reach Chiang Khong (Thailand) where we have to perform a water border crossing.
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