Fantasies of a Thai beach holiday have no doubt sustained countless people through months of mind-numbing workplace drudgery. Mine got me through a long Korean winter spent shivering in unheated classrooms. Admittedly I felt slightly less deserving of a holiday after being more or less entirely hammock-bound during our time in Laos, but landlocked Laos is no substitute for the idyllic Thai islands. So we had a little holiday. In fact it was quite a large holiday where the rigours of travel were replaced by lazing on the beach, relaxing by the pool, swimming, snorkelling, and long lie-ins. The lack of actual travelling means this will be short and a departure from my usual adjective-laden twaddle. Chris and Lou (Paul’s friends from uni, who whether they like it or not are now my friends too:) came ... read more

Just a short walk across the Chinese-Vietnamese border and I went from 'Miss' to 'Madame' with the occasional 'OY!' thrown in to keep me grounded. Six years on from my first visit to Vietnam and the motorcycle is still king. Not just a motorcycle they also function - amongst other things - as sofas, tables, family cars, taxis and removal lorries. Xe om (motorcycle taxi) guys have the ability to make a motorcycle look as comfortable as a sofa; leaning back with their feet up whilst awaiting their next fare. Families make motorcycles look as spacious as cars with families of four (and an occasional five), babies held in arms, toddlers standing up front, older kids clutching the shopping. Young guys hang out using their motos as card tables, drinking beer and watching girls go by. ... read more

Got to stop moving so fast and writing so slow. A few weeks have passed and we are now in beautiful Guangxi Province in the stunningly located and stunningly annoying town of Yangshuo. We've come here via Fenghaun and Hong Kong both of which deserve their own entry but due to lack of time and crashing computers aren't going to get one. Our trip to Fenghaun was the most pleasant yet (despite it being a pain to get to). First we took the train to Huaihau - I can't remember how long it took but can safely say it was in double figures. We found we were to be sharing our compartment with people of the young and cosmopolitan variety. In stark contrast to previous journeys, they were all clean, good-looking and fashionable (quite possibly models). ... read more

Palyondong post office started the proceedings in befitting style by shutting earlier than promised and thereby rendering us unbelievably, excruciatingly laden for the first part of the trip. We arrived sweating at the post office to see not-so-friendly-looking roller shutter doors and cursed the fact we would have to start 'backpacking' with backpacks plus three heavy boxes, meaning our total weight was up to 70kg. We took the first challenge in good spirits (or at least we tried) and grimaced our way up to Seoul. We managed to relieve ourselves of the boxes in the more reasonable Seoul post office which doesn't just slope of for a lie down whenever it feels like it. After a couple of days in Seoul we boarded a ferry bound for Qingdao, China. Our communal room with 'up to 50 ... read more

Our approach to our recent trip to Japan was relaxed, mainly because it’s only 3 hours away by boat. We didn’t put too much thought or planning into the trip, it just kind of happened and everything fell into place with very little effort. We were surprised to find a country very different from its neighbour. It’s hard not to compare the two countries, especially when Koreans seem to spend so much time doing it. They’re historically linked (understatement seeing as Japan ruled over Korea for 35 years, quashing Korean culture, language and identity…..understandably a bit of sorepoint over here.) Now they are rivals in most things from economics to electronics, Dokdo to baseball. Having spent the last 5 months in Korea a lot of the things that made an impression on us would probably not ... read more