JCR
Jen Joined: July 29th 2009
Logged in: June 8th 2011
Logged in: June 8th 2011
Enjoy!
Travel Blog Posts
Hello! For those of you that don't know: I'm in Thailand. I left on 11th November with my friend Ruth but I will be back for Christmas. I am having a really good time, as you might expect. We arrived in Bangkok quite late but still managed a wander and to find some food. At the weekend in Bangkok there is a market called Chatuchak market which is huge. It would probably take you a week to get round it properly so considering we only had the afternoon we just managed a lap. Lots of things to look at but I was told bits are cheaper in the north of Thailand so I was waiting until I got there. That night out at dinner we met two girls from Scarborough one of whom is best friends ... read more
I arrived quite late and again in the rain so I jumped in a taxi and went to the hostel I had booked. It's always nice when you have been organised for these sorts of situations. My first day in Kota Kinabalu I met a guy called Ruud and spent the day having a wander around the city and trying to work out what I was going to do with myself. We had some lunch down by the harbour and I accidentally ate a chilli that was probably the hottest thing I've ever put in my mouth! I bought some fruit in the market and we tried durian for the first time which was ok but not something I'll be trying again in a hurry, the very strange taste rather than the smell put me off. ... read more
Halong Bay was amazing and definitely up there in the favourite places I've been this year. We had a lovely boat and the bus ride wasn't even that bad, but it did seem to take a really long time. There were the four of us, two couples, Stefan and a French family. Everyone was really lovely. The first day we got the boat out to the islands whilst we had an amazing lunch and then cruised around the bay taking photos and marvelling generally. We went out on kayaks and spent some time jumping off the boat into the water, loads of fun. To start with, even though they were in the same kayak, Crissi and Pete looked like they were racing each other, it was so funny to watch. Dinner that evening was relaxed and ... read more
We arrived in Vietnam by boat along the mighty Mekong river. It was very relaxing and refreshing to be away from all the beeping and the crazy roads and buses with karaoke playing at full volume. Arrived in Chau Doc and stayed in a floating hotel. We had a short walk through town and dinner from a street stall. It was unbearably hot that night and so refreshing to be out on the river again the next day to see a fish farm underneath someone's floating house and a Muslim graveyard where they buried the dead vertically instead of horizontally. Had lunch on the boat and then changed to a bus to go all the way to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) it was relatively painless, at least there was no karaoke and the air con ... read more
Arrived on the other side of the bridge, and found the bus into town. On my bus were Sara-Jane and Simon from England and we found a place to stay and went expolring. We visited the replica Portuguese ship and marine museum and got a free ride across the river because we couldn't be bothered to walk all the way down to the bridge. I complained to them that I only had 10 weeks left so for the whole of the rest of the time taking the mickey out of me! There was a really funny man who broke a coconut with his elbow at the night market, very good night market too. The guesthouse I was staying at had really great people staying and we had a few fun nights. There was a family from ... read more
I had a nice flight to Bali, I got a blow up pillow, a blanket and a meal and drink, it was ok. I was very tired when I arrived though. I shared a taxi with 2 guys and once they got dropped off the taxi driver decided to try and extort more money from me so I got a different taxi and accidentally paid him 10 times more than I should have because I didn't look at the money. I put it down to experience. Once I had found some where to stay I slept for most of the afternoon and ventured out in the evening. I met a friendly Australian couple who were very helpful with advice on how much things should cost, recommending a tour company and generally being nice. Feeling better already ... read more
kakadu
I arrived in Darwin airport in the evening and found a lady to share a taxi with. Hostel was nice and because I had to make my own bed the girl there bought me a drink, very nice. The next day I had booked to go on a tour of Kakadu National Park, which in hindsight I wish had been on a different day so that I didn't have to get up so early but it was a lovely day. Went for a drive around Jabiru, a town that has a hotel shaped like a crocodile, then to Bowali Visitor Centre to learn about the people and the flora and fauna and the way of life that has been prominent in Kakadu. I met a couple of people on the bus and we had a good ... read more
msw
It was lovely to see John and Mel and Jess again and I was there for Easter (yes I know that was ages ago now and that I am pretty useless at this but thanks for persevering with me and reading what I'm up to!) and for Jessie's 2nd birthday. Being in Sydney again was wonderful, I went to church and did all the Easter things, I ate lots of hot crossed buns. I met a girl I had met in New Zealand called Rachel and her boyfriend for dinner in the rain in Surry Hills, lovely food. I played with Jess, went to the beach, I went on a day trip to the Blue Mountains which was really good fun and we went on a couple of hikes. I walked the Manly Scenic Walk from ... read more
skyline melbourne
Arrived in Melbourne after my two days stop over in Auckland and it was sunny, woop! I had met a family in Sydney over Christmas who live in Melbourne and very kindly offered me a room at their house so I stayed with them. I did some babysitting and some cooking for them to earn my keep! I spent a week in Melbourne all together and I did a variety of things. I had a day where I went to Museums and Galleries, very cultural. I went to St Kilda, where there is a nice beach, on the tram. I got talking to a couple of Aussie girls who are planning a trip to the States and went for a drink with them as it was St Patrick's Day. I also met a group of people ... read more
natadola beach
Paradise found! Arrived in Nadi, where there isn't a lot apart from a lot of hotels and hostels and the airport of course so got myself set up to leave there asap. I went on a 4 day tour around the main island of Fiji, Vitu Levu with Feejee Experience. Our first day it was quite rainy, not happy, but once we had bought supplies for lunch and water for the rest of the trip we were on our way to Natadola Beach, a famously pretty beach. Us being Brits, mostly, we sat on the beach in the rain and ate lunch, it was pretty and the water was warm and we all had a laugh. We met the rest of our "family"., including our 2 guides and 2 drivers, lucky us. Later on we visited ... read more
