Well, what a time we have been having here in Marcus' home State of Wyoming. Our two and a half months here have just flown by and all too soon we will be hitting the road again only this time to different destinations ... However, before we go into all that we want to give you a glimpse of what we've been up to in Wyoming for these past ten weeks ... We flew into Denver on 18th February during some of the lowest temperatures the West has felt in years: -38 degrees celsius! We thought we had caught the wrong [View Full Entry]

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Thursday 9th February Now you thought we got culture shock going to China? Well, California is something else! Our friend Lauren Kim, from California but who we met at St. Andrews picked us up at the airport and initiated us into American life with an In And Out Burger and 'Animal Fries'. We then promptly collapsed at her house with jet lag! Friday 10th February We braved the streets of LA and explored this fascinating city. We had to do the whole Rodeo Drive thing (where the stars hang out apparently!) but despite making an extra effort with our hair and [View Full Entry]

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Tuesday 31st January - Friday 3rd February We arrived safely into Auckland, New Zealand and after a very thorough customs search of all agricultural related products (including our walking boots!) we were met by Catriona and Daniel George and Catriona's mum, Leila, who was also visiting at the same time. It was great to see them, be with old friends and perhaps best of all not having to negotiate with any airport taxi drivers! It was a bit of a challenge trying to fit all of our luggage into the car but we made it and set off for Rotorua, passing [View Full Entry]

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Sun 29th - Mon 30th January SINGAPORE Our experience of Singapore differed from our expectations. Singapore is known for its extreme laws governing public order and cleanliness. The city was cleaner than other cities we have seen in Asia, yet besides the scary signs threatening massive fines, it was common to see dirty sidewalks and litter. This city-state is straightforward to visit. There is the condensed downtown of large skyscrapers (banks) and then a few colonial buildings (including a bridge built by Glaswegian Engineers) mark what remains of the original 1819 masterplan layo [View Full Entry]

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We were only in Malaysia a few days because we spent most of our SE Asia time in Thailand. We still managed to take in some major sights that were historically significant and interesting... Wed, 25 - Fri 27th January GEORGETOWN Georgetown is on the island of Penang, just across from Butterworth on the mainland. We decided to go to Georgetown after reading that it features some of the best of nineteenth century colonial buildings in the world. The sights were very impressive. Many were naturally from the British colonial times. These included the administrative buildings and [View Full Entry]

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9 January-24 January We arrived at Bangkok airport excited to see the blue skies, warm sunshine and palm trees. We had to queue for almost 45 minutes to get our passports stamped and then queue another 45 minutes to get a taxi which then took 45 minutes to get to our hostel, one of the nearest ones to the aiport. The Thai friendliness and hospitality of the next couple weeks more than made up for the misery of Bangkok traffic. We wasted no time in seeing the major sights. Sasi, Marcus' housemate from Oxford, works for the Thai Foreign Ministry in [View Full Entry]

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26 January We are currently in Malaysia after spending an amazing two weeks in Thailand. We will update the blog when we get a chance. Thankyou for all your kind Anniverary Greetings. We had a wonderful First Anniversary on Koh Mah, the perfect tropical island paradise in the Gulf of Thailand. A bit different from the wind and sleet last year! Photos to follow soon ... Don't be jealous!! (-; [View Full Entry]

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17th December - 9th January Xian One of the old capitals of Beijing—under the Qing Dynasty. We visited the famous terracotta warriors, of which there are believed to be around 6,000. Many are still being unearthed. We also visited a special wildlife reserve where we saw golden monkeys, leopards, wild boars, eagles, golden takins and…pandas! We were able to get close to Yang Yang, a giant panda, and rub his back through the gate. We were astonished at how playful and agile pandas are. Yang Yang effortlessly shredded one observer’s shoe. The bear rolled over o [View Full Entry]

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"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9.6 The "Star in the East" has certainly taken on a new meaning for us this Christmas. It will be a different kind of Christmas but very memorable for sure. We have not escaped completely from all the commercialism and build-up as the Chinese do not miss an opportunity to put up decorations - no matter what the festival! There are [View Full Entry]

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12-16th December We made an excursion to Dalian. This city is not on most backpacker routes but we were glad to have an excuse to go there in visiting Fiona's flatmate, Leilei, from St. Andrews. Dalian is a young and vibrant city on the northeast peninsula of China, close to the border with North Korea. This part of the country may be more familiar to some by the name Port Arthur. This is the English name for the nearby military port of Luashan where the scars from a painful, and recent, history have left their mark. It was at this port [View Full Entry]

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