We are in China again. Tonight we travel to Beijing, but for the last two days we've been in the capital of Yunnan province. Despite being August in Southern China, it is very mild here. Kunming is known as the 'Spring City' within China because of it's year-round mild, sunny climate and it's elevation of almost 2,000 metres makes it more airy than you'd expect from a provincial capital. Planes, trains and automobiles In leaving Laos, we experienced yet another epic border crossing. After an early morning bus from Luang Prabang, we were faced with a choice between spendin [View Full Entry]

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Amo a Laos We are in the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos. I love this country and so does Indie. We are not alone - there are many travellers here from all over. In spite of this, Laos remains the most peaceful, quiet country I have ever experienced. After the lively, frenetic noise of Vietnam and also Phnom Penh, this country is a relative oasis of calm. Even its capital, Vientiane, is the most laidback I have ever visited. By 9 or 10 at night the streets are deserted - nevertheless Indie and I did somehow contrive to attract the city’s [View Full Entry]

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Silence is golden We have fled the stench and noise of Phnom Penh. Now we find ourselves in the relative tranquility of Laos. We arrived yesterday after another epic bus journey, and Laos is a refreshing change from the other countries we’ve visited so far. People seem to be warmer, more genuine and there is much less traffic. We love it! Our travelling companions On Cambodian buses we had to endure an endless supply of awful pop music. The rail network is even worse than the roads, so buses are popular. Unfortunately, on any long-haul journey in Cambodg [View Full Entry]

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Phnom Penh is a city of many smells Unfortunately, most of them are awful. The Cambodian capital is a place of stark contrasts - every so often you catch glimpses of real material wealth, but most of the time you see object poverty. You walk past an opulently decorated flashy bar which plays Western music and sells cocktails and aromatic cuisine, all priced in dollars. On the same street, just metres away, there is litter strewn everywhere; rotting vegetables and rubbish pile up in the heat; naked, malnourished children play outside until the early hours. There are many amputees [View Full Entry]

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Arduous travel We are in Cambodia. After 2 weeks in Vietnam, we took a boat trip along the Mekong, arriving in Phnom Penh yesterday. The last time I wrote we were in Hoi An in central Vietnam. 2 overnight journeys later, we arrived at Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh Cityas it’s been known since reunification of the North & South of the country. The 1st journey took us to a hectic coastal city called Nha Trang - the bus trip was organized by An Phu tourist ‘company’. I use the term ‘tourist company’ loosely, because this is an organisation that overlooks [View Full Entry]

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Since I last wrote, Indie and I have travelled around 800km south. We are currently in the quiet trading town of Hoi-An in Central Vietnam. In the last week we have: visited the picturesque highlands of Sapa; bribed a ticket inspector to let us stay on a train; pissed off a couple more of the locals; seen mysterious caves, temples and ruins; and bought loads of tailor-made clothes. Oh, and our wallet was stolen too. I previously mentioned the omnipotent vendors here in Nam. They are becoming an irritating thorn in our side: everywhere we turn, they try to hawk us [View Full Entry]

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The journey has commenced. We are now in Hanoi, the bustling, crowded capital of Vietnam. I landed in Beijing four days ago - upon meeting Indie; we headed directly south towards the city of Nanning, near the Vietnamese border. Highlights of our 28-hour journey were remarkably plentiful - the Chinese ‘hard-sleeper’ trains may be crowded, but they are lively and comfortable. I found ‘the natives’ to be friendly. Indie taught me a few random words in Mandarin - in truth, I’ve been impressed by how much he has learned during his teaching year here. He can ho [View Full Entry]

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