I flew to Singapore to meet my house-mate from uni Steve, and his older brother Chris, as well as Emma, my friend from back home in Basingstoke. The reputation of Singapore's airport had preceded it as one of the nicest in the world, and when I arrived it didn't disappoint! Mints and sweets were being handed out, internet was on offer for free and the staff were actually friendly!! The four of us got reacquainted, and wandered down Orchard Road, the main thoroughfare in the city. With Steve, Chris and I being used to much more expensive parts of the world we were amazed at what we could buy for a measly $1SD (about 35p I think), and went on a mission to see what we could buy. Unfortunately this included a “birds nest” soft drink ... read more

To head north from Christchurch, I managed to snare myself a hire car! Because a lot of tourists travel New Zealand from North to South, hire cars often end up down in places like Christchurch, when punters are actually looking to pick them up further North. To get the cars back up to the North, the rental companies give you 24 hours to relocate the car for free - you only have to put in the petrol. I was given a little Daewoo something or other to relocate to Picton, the main entry port at the top of the South island. Anyway, I should never be left alone in a hire car as it brings out the scouser in me (sorry mum). A quick look at my guide book showed me that Christchurch was surrounded by ... read more

From South Africa I moved onto Sydney, and when I arrived I felt like Brooks in Shawshank. The world had gone and got itself in a big damn hurry. Instead of the sedate pace of South African life there were people absolutely everywhere. It was quite weird after six weeks away from it. Anyway Sydney is cool, and as I have explored the city more have really enjoyed it. Christmas Day here was actually pretty rubbish, the weather was cold and windy but I headed down to Bondi Beach all the same. Not really much going on down there so after a couple of hours I simply wandered back. Christmas away from the family - even if it was in Sydney, just wasn't Christmas. New Years Eve on the other hand was something else. Gary and ... read more

November 2004 saw me bidding an emotional farewell to friends and family and heading off my my post-graduate travels. The initial trip that I had mooted with my uni friends Steve and Chris had fallen through - I would now be meeting the Norfolk boys in Singapore for a month long blitz through South East Asia. In their absence, I had decided to forge my own path, which eased me into the traveling way via the English speaking South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, before heading up through South East Asia with Steve and Chris, and then culminating the trip in India and Nepal. So first up was South Africa, and I landed in Cape Town without any problems - although I was brought down to earth rudely before I even arrived at the hostel. Townships ... read more