This is a tale of late night survival in Tokyo.... It was 11 o'clock at night when I boarded the tube, and I silently congratulated myself at having mastered the metro system. As I sat down and looked at all the incomprehensible Japanese signs outside, I thought to myself how easy it would have been to take the wrong tube. An hour later I look up from my book to find I'd gone the wrong way! I was at the end of the line in Shibuya, nineteen tube stops from my hostel. And this was the last tube. The words "damn", [View Full Entry]

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Tokyo is a shopping Mecca. If it exists, you can buy it here. If it doesn't exist, you can probably order it anyway! There is an impressive district called "Electric Town" which is packed with seven-floor superstores containing every electrical item known to man. This is the place you look if you want to see what we'll be buying in England in a years time. There is a department store called Takshimay which sells a French loaf for £25 ($50). It is baked in Paris on a Thursday and flown to Japan for the weekend. There is a fascinating chain store [View Full Entry]

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My next stop was Tokyo, a most fascinating city with a dual nature. On one side it blends tradition, history and ceremony, with it's geishas, tea ceremonies, samurais and temples. On the other, it's a futuristic cyber-city with neon skyscrapers, intelligent toilets and ultramodern concept cars. I was hoping for some culture shock here, and I certainly got it! One of the first things I noticed was the incredible number of vending machines. Tokyo has an estimated 6 million vending machines, and you can see them on almost every street. The most common ones sell soft drinks, beer and cans of [View Full Entry]

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Whilst in Indonesia, I took an internal flight with some Indonesian airline I had never heard of. I have no fear of flying, yet I was slightly concerned about this flight. Indonesian airlines have one of the worst safety records in the world. None of them are permitted to fly into ANY European Airport because of this. Apparently, when European airlines remove their planes from service, they sell them to the Russians. When the Russians have finished with them, they sell them to Indoneisa. Or so the rumour goes Here are a few stories I have heard about whilst in Indonesia.... [View Full Entry]

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A few facts and observations about Indonesia... 1. The most expensive coffee in the world comes from Indonesia. It is called Kopi Luwak, or Civet Coffee, and is made from coffee berries which have passed through the digestive tract of the Palm Civet Cat. The inner coffee bean is not digested by the cat, and it is thought that the resulting coffee bean tastes better. So folks, Civet Coffee is coffee from a cat's butt. 2. Indonesians are crazy about iced tea. Plain, lemon, orange, iced green tea, even carbonated! Carbonated tea, whatever next 3. Once upon a time on Bali, [View Full Entry]

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The next island on the Indonesian achipelago was the delightful Lombok. It was a five-hour ferry journey, and our ferry really should have been taken out of service in the 80's. It chugged along, spouting black smoke from it's chimney, and we were covered in flecks of black soot by the time we arrived. During the journey, the crew were casting fishing lines off the back as we sailed, to catch fish for sale in Lombok. On the way from the ferry, our driver stopped off at a bird-singing competition. There were about 100 people gathered around a central judging area. [View Full Entry]

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Bali. An island packed with temples, forests, lush rice terraces and beautiful beaches. A gorgeous place - provided you stay away from Kuta! It is the embodiment of everything I hate about mass-tourism. A tacky, commercialised holiday destination lacking any grace, style or charm. After visiting many places with rich culture and history, arriving in Kuta was like being hit around the head with baseball bat. But admittedly, Kuta does serve a purpose. If you are looking for a cheap holiday fix without any frills, just beaches, bars and cheap shopping, then this is the place. THINGS I HATE ABOUT KUTA [View Full Entry]

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There were two more sights I wanted to see in Java, but their remoteness made independent travel a pain in the butt: Mount Bromo and the Ijen Plateau. I had heard about a three-day excursion which also included onward travel to Bali. A gentleman I met gave me a leaflet, and promised me a hefty 30% discount if I booked through his office. I arrived at the office, and the guy behind the desk denied all knowledge of a discount. "Who said this?" he demanded. I didn't know the other guys name, but I remembered he was cross-eyed, and so I [View Full Entry]

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My next stop was one of Java's largest cities, Yogyakarta. On the way, I noticed that many buses and trucks had names written across their windscreens in giant adhesive letters. Apparently it is fashionable in Java to name your vehicle for all to see! Most were in Indonesian, so I had no idea what they meant. But I spotted a few in English which made me chuckle, such as a bus called "The Winner", and a truck called "Catwoman". Who on earth would name their ten-ton truck catwoman? I arrived at Yogyakarta at 5 o'clock in the afternoon. I settled into [View Full Entry]

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At the unsavoury hour of 6am, I boarded a minibus to the coastal town of Pangandaran (try saying that after a few beers). On the way I observed the Indonesian technique of overtaking. First, you pull out and start pipping your horn whilst going for the overtake. Even if a car is coming the other way, or you are approaching a corner, you still make the attempt. Because if it becomes apparent that you are not going to make it, there are two options 1. Step hard on the brakes and fall back into place, and attempt the overtake again later [View Full Entry]

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