Dorans travels

December was a much more social affair than the previous month. This was because I had started to settle into Melbourne more, and the fact that hours in the warehouse had completely dried up. Which although, was not good for my bank balance; in a way it forced me to go out and do things to fill my days. Although I did still have my friday bar shift once a week at the nearby Moone Valley Racecourse. It was here, early on in the month, that I became pals with an Oz girl called Ella (and before anyone comes to any conclusions, she has a boyfriend), but we immediately had a rapport. After the shift we went out for a few drinks, during which she promised that she would show me the real Melbourne. During this ... read more

At the beginning of November, I moved into a share house in Thornbury, which is located to the North of the city. Prior to moving in, I was told by a few people that Thornbury is an up incoming suburb in Melbourne, which is quickly becoming one of the cool spots outwith the centre to live. The suburb next door, Northcote, is also a very hip bohemian place, and supposedly has an excellent music venue in the Northcote Social Club. Anyway, the house I moved into is very nice, with my room certainly being a decent size for the price I'm paying for it. I live with two girls, both of whom are fine to live with, but they are certainly not the kind of people who I would normally be friends with. They are a ... read more

I was greeted at the airport by my cousin, Callum, who then took me back to his house about half an hours drive away from the airport. I say 'his' house, but it would be more correct to say My Uncle and Aunties house. They live quite away out from Melbourne, in a suburb called Wheelers Hill. Along with Callum, my cousin Skye also lives there (Brad, my third and final Aus cousin, no longer lives at home). Initially I was only planning on staying with them for about 10 days. I thought that would be plenty of time for me to find a place to stay and get a job. However, I had not fully appreciated how truly skint I was, nor was I expecting Australia to be so expensive (particularly with the Aus $ ... read more

After crossing the boarder into Laos, we made the short journey to the town of Lac Sao. This town was not much of a town at all, it only consisted of about two streets, a bar, and a handful of restaurants. We we were only staying in the town for a night, and the most memorable thing was the spectacular view out from the balcony of our rooms - it was verging on breathtaking. This magnificent mountain dominated the skyline over this tiny little town. The next day we made the 6 hour drive to Vientiane. Compared to the hustle and bustle of Vietnam, the city was a nice change of pace for us. It was a gentle and pleasant place and considering it is the capital, and is a good indication of the atmosphere of ... read more

A short bus ride over the Cambodia/Vietnam border took us to the southern city of Ho Chi Minh (also known as Saigon). After dropping our stuff off at our hotel, we all went to the nearby market, which we had been recommended to go and see. To be honest, it was a bit of a disappointment. In Vietnam, you cannot show even a hint of interest in a particular item without the stall owner pouncing on you trying to make you buy it. In fact at one point, Myself and Sarah (a fellow Tour member) seemed to be walking down a gauntlet of sellers, off the usual walkway for the potential buyers. It was a narrow corridor, with sellers on both sides every 3 feet, all vying for our business and professing that we should buy ... read more

On entering Cambodia, we made the short journey to the city of Siem Riep. As we pulled up to the hotel, I think the majority of us were surprised at how nice our hotel was - this was actually a good indication of what the majority of our hotels would be like during the trip. I for one, was expecting to be 'slumming' for the majority of the tour. Anyhoo, after a few free hours settling into our new surroundings, we all went out for the evening. Before dinner, we went to visit an area of the town where its inhabitants were living in abject poverty. It goes without saying, that it was a very humbling experience. Nevertheless, the locals were friendly and welcoming. Despite their circumstances, the children all seemed happy and playful; and loved ... read more

I arrived at my hotel in Bangkok tired but boyed by the fact that I would be starting my month long tour of south Asia soon. The hotel was the one which was featured in 'The Beach'. The place was friendly and full of travelers, with my room being about the size of cupboard. I dumped my things in my room, and made my way to the main tourist street (the name of which escapes me) which was about 30 seconds walk away. The street was bustling with tourists and people trying to sell you everything from your 'future', to suits, to dirty massages. I grabbed some uber cheap dinner for a about $1.50 and settled myself outside a bar to do some prime people watching. That night, i went to bed early, and was in ... read more

I arrived in Singapore early in the morning, and after a long flight longed for a snooze. So you can imagine my delight when I arrived at my hostel to discover that it was probably one of the best hostels I am ever likely to stay in. The only thing hostel about it was that I was sleeping in a dorm. But the cleanliness, the design and the services were far and above any other hostel I've encountered. Mind you, the same can be said for the price! I stayed in Singapore for two nights, and to be honest, I was rather dissapointed with the place, I spent two days walking about not doing a great deal. The place was sterile, expensive and rather boring. So I was certainly not shedding any tears as I boarded ... read more

I arrived at my hostel in Hermanus late in the day, had dinner and went to bed. Those of us who were doing the shark cage diving the next day, were due to leave the hostel at 0630 the next morning, so i was tucked up and in bed nice and early. The next morning we were whisked off to 'basecamp' prior to heading for the sea. We were introduced to our captain, a seemingly friendly big Afrikaner (looked like he'd be handy in a brawl), had some breakfast and set out for the sea. After about 20 minutes going out to sea, we stopped at what I think is called 'seal valley', in other words, prime feeding ground for white sharks. The cage was dropped, the bait was thrown, and we waited. It didn't take ... read more

We stopped in P.E. for just a night; with us only be there for a matter of ours before heading off to Jeffreys Bay. Although the hostel in P.E. was more like someones house. In fact it belonged to this lovely, but eccentric old lady who was delighted to have a Scot living under her roof, as she proclaimed that she was Irish (despite having a very thick SA accent) she gave the three of us the best room to sleep in (despite her having already told another group they could sleep there) and even cooked us breakfast first thing in the morning (which is not normally included in the price). Despite her having only known us for less than an hour, she told us in great detail of herself and her family (such as - ... read more