Blogs from Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia, Asia - page 11

We stood in mud that smelled like elephant dung for hours on end the other night. Our clothes are speckled with dried, red mud. Our feet are just now fading from the red mud dying them a jaundice color. It was all worth it though to experience the Rainforest World Music Festival. Held annually in Kuching, the festival was incredible, despite the standing area in front of the stage being a mud pit that stunk like so much elephant poop. The mud actually ended up being pretty fun to stomp around in. The festival takes place over three days with workshops during the day followed by six main-stage performers in the evening. It's held at the Sarawak Cultural Village where they have replicas of longhouses that the local tribes live in. We arrived early to check ... read more

Kuala Lumpur was a bit like a bar of Hershey's chocolate. Stuff it between a two graham crackers and a toasted marshmallow and it'll do the job, but it's not great chocolate by any standards. Kuching, on the other hand is like the most delicious hand-crafted truffle. I love it here. It has small-town charm and the mystique that surrounds the jungle being just a few kilometers away. As we took the one and a half hour flight here from Kuala Lumpur I couldn't help but think that we were going on an Indiana Jones type adventure. We usually fly by the seat of our pants and don't book reservations beforehand. It's worked every time up until Kuching. Unknowingly, we arrived here along with 6,000 Hash House Harriers from all over the world. We managed to ... read more

Ok, so I've been thinking about doing this for a while, maybe 2 years, but I had to wait until I was travelling before I could legitimately write a travel blog. I never got around to it last time, and well, it seemed no one missed it anyway. This time, I'm off to south eastern Africa for a while, and hopefully some fun shit will happen along the journey. Unless you've actually been somewhere, or have a specific interest in somewhere, it's not very exciting to listen to me rabbiting on about it. Stories need a hook, and then a punch-line. Much like this doesn't have. I've looked at a few different people's blogs, and to be honest, they can quite easily become boring and repetitive, unexciting and tedious, uninteresting and bland. I'll try to ... read more

En ole koskaan pitanyt itseani rantaihmisena ja viela vahemman Mikko. Muutaman paivan maleksiminen rannalla oli ihan ehdottomasti tarpeeksi, olivat rannat ja maisemat kuinka upeat vain. Kaiken lisaksi Oskari on osoittautunut allergiseksi kaikille kolmelle eri merkkiselle aurinkorasvalle joita meilla on mukana... Apteekille taisi olla hyva keino rahastaa 20euroa/100ml kun vaittivat ettei kemikaaleja sisaltamattomalle aurinkorasvalle allergisoidu, no eivatpa ole tavanneet Oskaria. Parin paivan jalkeen lahdimme tutustumaan Culttural Village:iin. Neljan hengen sisaanpaasy 30euroa tuntui takalaisittain aivan ryovaykselta. Mutta kylla rahalle sai vastinetta. Jarven ymparille oli rakennettu eri alkuperaisheimojen seka kiinalaisten ja malajien perinteiset kylat/talot. Paikasta oli tehty elava museo, sisalla talossa oli ihmisia tekemassa perinteisia toita ja esittelemassa tapoja ja kulttuuri... read more

Hyppy lansimaisesta Singaporesta Borneon sademetsiin oli melkoinen... Singaporen lentokentalta Tiger Airways lennatti meidat Borneoon, Kuchingiin. Tigerin lentoemot olivat kylla niin hemaisevia, etta jos mina saan paattaa niin Mikko ei enaa Tigerilla matkusta... Kentalta oli sitten helppo bongata paikallinen isantamme, norjalainen Lars. Miksiko? No, ainoa vaalea ihoinen ja kaikkia muita paata pidempi. Siita alkoikin hikinen automatka, niin kauan ajettiin kun tieta riitti. Tie loppui pieneen (noin 100 asukasta) kylaan. Auto vain parkkiin kylan raitille, laukut kantoon (luojan kiitos, etta karsimme viela viime hetkilla matkatavaroita aika minimiin) ja jalkapatikkaan. Ylitimme riippusillan joka jo yksinaan olisi riitanyt lapsille seikkailuksi, eivat viela tieneet mita seuraavina paivina olisi luvassa... Kylan laidalla hyppasimme veneeseen ja jatkoimme matkaa ylajuoksulle. Jo pelkka v... read more