http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Pen and Dave/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Pen and Dave en-us Sat, 22 Nov 2008 19:35:47 UTC Sat, 22 Nov 2008 19:35:47 UTC This one'll be short but sweet ....We're currently in Phuket heading to Koh Phi Phi the day after tomorrow. All that exists now is white sandy beaches pristine sapphire sea sunshine icy cold beers and massages.Travel is a fulltime job. We are absolutely exhausted and lapping up this relaxing opportunity before the real world grabs us by the throat.Don't hang your hopes on anymore blogs Unle http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/South/Ko-Phi-Phi/blog-343128.html Phew What an adventure the past three days have thrown our way. We've traversed King Cobra infested paddy fields at night slept with snakes forged across torrential rivers thigh deep in monsoon mud and had our blood almost sucked dry by leeches. We reckon we're lucky to be alive .... and even luckier to have a good story to tell afterwards.The hill tribes of Northern Thailand's trekking areas b http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/North/Pai/blog-342591.html Diwali The Festival of Lights is one of the biggest celebrations in India on a scale similar to that of Christmas. Every single window in this 'worldsmostcrowded' city is adorned with glowing lanterns. Strings of fairy lights drape over entire apartments and trees crawl to life winking coloured light bulbs against the night sky.The locals ignite a never ending array of crackers sparklers http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Maharashtra/Mumbai/blog-341603.html The pace of living slips down a notch in Goa and we had no problem following suit......once we got into the swing of things.We'd made loose plans for the Portuguese 'state' but these could have changed on a 3second whim or by a passing comment by a random stranger. When our taxi driver questioned our directions to Panjim the Goan capital where the Lonely Planet advocated two days minimum to s http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Goa/Colva/blog-341495.html South India is a world away from all we experienced up north. The people are educated poverty is greatly reduced and corruption crime almost nonexistent. A relaxed vibe permeates the sea breezes.....until midday strikes and you shrivel like a lizard in the scorching sun. Following cricket mania we took an overnight train to Fort Cochin and set up camp at the Princess Inn run by two jovial gu http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Kerala/Kochi-/blog-336926.html Picture this You are travelling a third world country with your partner one of closest friends and her friends' folks in the lap of luxury. Just as a milestone birthday approaches you are to be cast off to return to 'simple travelling'. Yes I was excited to be turning thirty. Yes I was glad my beautiful girlfriend would be there to share in the celebrations and yes I have still yet to take a http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Karnataka/Bangalore/blog-335965.html For a country we nearly slayed from our itinerary India has surprised and delighted us a million times over. A fascinating land of contradictions where 4wd porsches weave through dusty slumfringed streets and anorexic donkeys haul loads of bricks on their rickety backs for construction of the newest mansion.Visually India aligned perfectly with our expectations understandably considering the http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Rajasthan/Jaipur/blog-334696.html Please excuse us kind Madams and Sirs for leaving such a long time between drinks. But plans changed rapidly after the last straw of too many last straws in China and we've spent a week revelling in Hong Kong's Western affluence.First things first ... the reason we beat a hasty retreat from the backwaters of Chongqing a dirty old man on a local bus hocked up a foul green oyster and spat it on th http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Hong-Kong/Kowloon/blog-330096.html Our last day in Chengdu involved nothing more than recovering from our massages and treating ourselves to the Sichuanese delicacy HotPot. For those who are uneducated in the ways of HotPot please see the text at the end of the blog Now anyone who has even met Dave will know of his love for this dish. Penny's first HotPot however nearly ended in disaster. A piece of beef slipped from the hol http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Sichuan/Emei-Shan/blog-326320.html What a Chinese Massage Disaster Our 3 massage seemed like a fantastic treat touted as Chengdu Traditional Medicine University Professional Massage with over 10 Years Experience. We honestly assumed we'd discovered a small concession of heaven in China. Pleasure greed was our first mistake. After an hour of awesome shiatsu massage the therapist convinced us to push for an extra half. Obviousl http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Chengdu/blog-324804.html As Penny's stomach slowly recovers from a bout of 'Beijing Belly' the tour of China continues....At time of writing we are two overnight train journeys away from Beijing's choking smog and mean staring eyeballs. Green trees line the streets and parks yes parks of Chengdu the charming capital of Sichuan. We can actually breathe out here.Penny's opinion of China improved however long before http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Chengdu/blog-324531.html Due to vastly divergent opinions we've decided to write separate blog entries for China so farWretched Duck by PennyChina is not what it's cracked up to be. The flashy images portrayed during the Olympics are poles apart from the truth.The Great Wall The Forbidden City Tian'anmen Square and the Temple of Heaven make fantastic postcards once the choking pollution fog is photoshopped out of http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Beijing/blog-322620.html Tokyo is the New York City of Asia .... well almost. Take Manhattan multiply it's population by 4 jack up the12288fashion dare coefficient add a billion more flashing neon signs and similar numbers of department stores subtract the stinking sewers and street bums and there you have it. Unbelievable Somehow the confusion melts into pure efficiency. Just don't attempt crossing the current o http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Japan/Tokyo/Ikebukuro/blog-320427.html We mentioned Japan was cheap .... True unless you're a fan of fresh fruit and vegies. 1 x mango 24 1 x peach 12.99 1 x bunch of grapes 8.50 weekly food budget blown on half a fruit salad. More fruity facts .... each individual piece of fruit is customwrapped in a polystyrene lattice sock. Perhaps this explains the elevated cost Talk about polite .... Pull into a Japanese petr http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Japan/Shizuoka/Mt-Fuji/blog-318558.html They say Kyoto is the most visited tourist destination on the entire planet eclipsing heavyweights like Paris and New York. Even so we have yet to spot more than a handful of Westerners. With countless World Heritage listed temples and shrines the mysterious Geisha underworld and a multitude of calming Zen gardens Kyoto is in every sense the most traditional of all Japan's large cities.Our Jap http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Japan/Kyoto/Kyoto/Gion/blog-315259.html After the crazy concrete jungle of Osaka we stumbled upon quintessential Japan in the mineral hot spring onsen town of Kinosaki. Despite spending only a single night here the experience deserves an entire blog entry as it held so many joys in such a small space in time.Kinosaki is a laidback resort town where the Japanese come to soak their troubles away in 7 public bath houses aligning a slow http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Japan/Osaka/blog-314977.html Japan is awesome The culture shock strikes right to your core as you wade around a sea of indecipherable characters like a blind shark. Futuristic technology meets a backward existence where rusty old bikes seem to be the most popular form of transport and the crime rate is so low there's not a bike lock to be seen.We opted for a 'Japanese Style' hotel room in Osaka and we were delighted by the s http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Japan/Osaka/Osaka/blog-314234.html Priority 1 Food Glorious FoodWith such a short time back in Italia we knew what our stomachs craved and we were on a mission to deliver.First stop A tiny gourmet Pizzeria on the outskirts of town. Dave held a 'treasure map' of sorts in his hot little hands drawn by a random Canadian we met in Munich. Propelled by the promise of 'the world's most delicious pizza' we arrived at sunset to s http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Italy/Lazio/Rome/blog-312046.html Finns love fish but not just your normal garden variety. Step into any market or deli and you'll feel as though you just strapped a scuba tank to your back and dove into the ocean.... Cinnamonpickled sardines coalfired baltic herring cheesesalmonpeppercorn scrolls fish pie fish quiche fish jelly ... now THIS is Penny's idea of heaven. She declared our 7 days in Helsinki 'The Week of Fish http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Finland/Uusimaa/Helsinki/blog-312039.html Like the plethora of Croatian alleycats slumped across scorching stones we are drunk on sunshine. Barely able to manage simple daily tasks we stumble between the Supermercato and the beach before crashing like the cats for hours with the sparkling ocean horizon working hard to prop open our heavy eyelids.After 2 weeks travelling all corners of Croatia we feel we have done the country justic http://www.travelblog.org//Europe/Croatia/Dalmatia/Dubrovnik/blog-309277.html