Travel Blog Posts
June 28th 2010
After two weeks rumbling over the rough terrain of Mongolia in a soviet era van we were looking forward to some luxury in Thailand. It didn't disappoint. We stayed in the Sukhumvit area of Bangkok. The area was a bit seedy but the hotel was great and the street food nearby was good. After a couple of days lazing, indulging in massages and eating fine food we made our way to Koh Samui. Que more lazing, indulging in massages and eating fine food only this time by the beach. We spent the first night in Bo Phut in a hotel that had rave reviews on tripadvisor. The hotel was rubbish, perhaps they write some of their own reviews. Bo Phut was a bit run down and the beach wasn't great so we were a bit disappointed. ... read more
June 14th 2010
After a short flight from Beijing we landed in Ulaanbaatar and were greeted by someone from the hostel we had booked. As soon as we arrived there we tried to sort out a trip. We got together a plan for 13 days and we found 3 people to join us, which made the trip a lot cheaper for everyone involved. Thomas and Stephanie from France would join us for 8 days and Hanno from Germany for the whole 13 days. The next morning we were on our way towards the Gobi desert with Zaya our tour guide and cook and Tseren our driver. Most of the time we would sleep in Gers, the traditional Mongolian tents, and the food would be very basic. Now again Zaya would whip up a Mongolian traditional dish which was quite ... read more
June 7th 2010
We only had a week in China so we had to cram a lot in. First off Beijing. We stayed in a really old guest house in Qianmen, near tiananmen square and the forbidden city. Aparently important guests visiting the emperor might have stayed there in days gone by. Unfortunately its let itself go since then but it had aircon and the staff were nice though lacking in english except for one girl who seemed to do 90 % of the work eventhough there was 3 or 4 other girls “working there”. The smog and dirt is horrendous in Beijing and the general bad manners and habits of the locals didn't endear the place to us. It was quite a change coming from Japan where everyone was so polite and friendly. The forbidden city of “the ... read more
May 24th 2010
Finally the time has come and we were heading to Japan for a couple of weeks. My parents were also joining us which was a great help to us for interpretation purposes. At the airport we were greeted by my cousin Maki who helped us find our hostel in Tokyo. We spent a couple of hours at the hostel owned bar for a few sakes and beer afterwards. The next day Maki showed us around Harajuku area. My parents were arriving the next day, so it was back to airport for us and Maki to meet them. We went straight to my auntie's house in Ibaragi, to stay with her for a couple of days. It was great to see her again after such a long time and also my cousin Chikage and her little son. ... read more
May 8th 2010
I was looking forward to driving to Uluru for quite a while as I have read that there are a few wacky roadhouses on the way down. Our first stop was Daly Waters just 3 km off the highway. All travellers seem to leave anything behind and the whole place is decorated with ID cards, money, flip-flops, knickers and bras!! You name it, it's there. It was also our cheapest campsite for $10 a night. After that, our next stop was Wycliff Well, known for UFO encounters. Apparently it's the place in Oz if you want to see one of those. Needless the say, the whole place is decorated with all sorts of UFO memorabilia. Ed din't really see the point staying there but in all fairness, how could I drive past there?? Alice Springs was ... read more
April 23rd 2010
OK, time for some blog catch-up. Ningaloo reef was one of the things we were most looking forward to in Australia. The coral spawns around the full moons in March and April. This attracts plankton, which in turn attracts whalesharks, which in turn attracts humans - namely us. We spent a night in Coral Bay and did some snorkelling there before moving on to Exmouth. The snorkelling there was great around the Oyster Stacks. We booked a whaleshark tour from Exmouth with Ningaloo reef dreaming as they had their own dedicated spotter plane and good reviews. As it turns out the tour guide on the boat went to school with my cousin in Kati Kati - small world. After a couple of hours we found a whaleshark about 8 meters long and jumped in for a ... read more
April 13th 2010
The south of WA doesn’t seem to disappoint us at all. After the beautiful beaches in Esperance we ventured into the Valley of Giants. We decided to stay in Walpole as it was closer to most of the attractions and the campsite was in a beautiful tree setting near the beach. We went to see the Tree Top walk, which was pretty good but in all fairness more interesting for children. After that we thought it would make sense to taste the wine and cheese in that region and it was delightful. Pemberton was our next stop the next day with a giant tree (64m) to climb. Scary business I’m telling you as they have hammered a spiral staircase of nails into the tree with a viewing platform on top. No way was I going to ... read more
April 6th 2010
After handing back the keys to our Richmond abode we hit the road to Adelaide. This was a 750 km + drive, something we would have to get used to. The Barossos offered to put us up for a couple of nights so it was a nice start to the trip with some great portuguese cuisine, mmm bacalho! (some cod fish dish). Luis's parents were great hosts. Our first proper sightseeing was a trip out to Adelaide Hills, home to some of South Australia's best vinyards (or winerys as they call them here). Its also home to the german village of Hahndorf. Yvonne was disapointed as there wasn't really a great variety of German food and the place was a bit tacky. Although I have to say the beer was up to scratch! From Adelaide we ... read more
June 2nd 2008
Owing to laziness, apathy and the global financial crisis this blog has been delayed 4 months. Anyway we landed in NZ from Chile on June 2nd. Lee Cook, "That Maraetai Computer Guy", put us up in Auckland and was a great host. As you can see from the pics it was the perfect place to relax for a few days. Later we travelled to Kati Kati to stay with my auntie Maura and uncle Geoff. They have a nice place with lots of avocado and mandarin trees, oh and a hot tub. We were well looked after for a few days in Kati including some fishing and a day trip to Rotarua for the polynesian hot springs and a couple of other touristy things. Of course Yvonne caught the biggest fish...again. I'm supposed to be the ... read more
May 20th 2008
Uruguay, what a beautiful place. Unfortunately we didn't stay long enough to savour all the delights of this country but we managed to stay on a working ranch, Estancia as they call it there. We heard about this place from a girl we have met in Bolivia and the prospect of horse riding was just too tempting for me not to go. Ed agreed to join me and the minute we arrived there he probably regretted it because apart from the farmer he was the only guy inbetween 5 other girls ;) The deal was to pay 30 Us$ a day and you're getting accommodation, foof and all the horse riding you can think of. As it is a proper running farm, you can go out everyy day and "help" working every day. That involved rounding ... read more
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