http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Steve and Laura/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Steve and Laura en-us Sun, 12 Oct 2008 01:56:11 BST Sun, 12 Oct 2008 01:56:11 BST Back AgainOur next stage of the trip took us to the Colourful island of Bali famous for surfing beaches and colourful Hindu culture.KutaWe spent our first few days in Bali at the famous beach resort of Kuta. Infamous site of the tragic 2002 Bali bombings.The town had a very relaxed atmosphere with a real mix of people of all ages and races mingling together around its narrow streets that head d http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Indonesia/Bali/Ubud/blog-322673.html Hello Again EveryoneThe next stage of our trip took us from Sumatra to Java seen as the heartbeat of Indonesia and home to 60 of its population.Jakarta BogorWe flew from Padang in Sumatra to Jakarta the bustling capital of Indonesia in Western Java.From what we had heard Jakarta was not really a place to linger and so we had planned our only full day in and around the city to be spent in Bo http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Indonesia/Bali/Ubud/blog-309202.html Hello AgainWe rejoin our adventure on the rainforest clad island of Sumatra a land of Wild OrangUtans even wilder volcanoes and a real feel of adventure.Well actually we had to reach Sumatra first from Penang which involved a six hour journey on a small ferry across the open sea and up and down waves I could swear were 10m high Plastic bags were handed out throughout the journey and just as qui http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Indonesia/Sumatra/Lake-Maninjau/blog-309200.html Hello yet again everyoneYes this is 4 blogs in 3 days i know but i thought i better get you all up to date as we will be disappearing off the radar for a little while tomorrow into the jungles of SumatraPulau Perhentian KecilAfter the long freezing cold overnight bus journey from Melaka to Kota Bharu we stayed in Kota Bharu for 1 night sampling the famous night market food whilst watching the http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Malaysia/Penang/George-Town/blog-309198.html Hey People Us AgainAfter the beautiful Angkor Wat our next destination was Malaysia starting with its Striking Modern capital Kuala Lumpur.Kuala LumpurAfter sleepy relaxed Cambodia Kuala Lumpur KL proved to be a major gear change for us modern buildings public transport you could set your watch to and restaurants catering to anything you could wish for.Although perhaps KL offers a less http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Malaysia/Malacca/Malacca-Town/blog-309197.html Well what can I sayEverybody should visit AngkorThis place is simply breathtaking even better than the very high expectations that we had for it.We spent 5 nights in Siem Reap which gave us enough time to explore the temples for 3 full days and they were 3 of the best days of our trip so far.First of all Siem Reap is a surprisingly pleasant town to wander around with some impressive french a http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Cambodia/North/Siem-Reap/blog-309196.html Hello There FriendsAfter the rest and relaxation of the Mekong Delta we travelled to the Cambodian capital city of Phnom Penh. The Journey was by slow boat and the name didn't lie The boat was definately slow taking around 9 hours in total but luckily the scenery along the way was fantastic. We watched children playing in the river and locals washing and fishing as we trundled by being overak http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Cambodia/South/Kampot/blog-309194.html Hello ThereSorry for the long gap in blogs I'll try and get you all up to date.Ninh BinhWe left Sapa and headed south past Hanoi to the town of Ninh Binh.The countryside around Ninh Binh was stunning and we enjoyed a few days here cycling around the area seeing sights such as Rach Ga Chicken Canal Village where much of the lives of the people is conducted on the river set in a beautiful area http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Vietnam/Southeast/Ho-Chi-Minh-City/blog-309191.html Greetings from VietnamThis is now the 5th country we have visited on our trip and so far it certainly been one of the best.We started our vietnam adventure in the Northern town of Dien Bien Phu The town where the vietnamese finally defeated the french.We spent a day looking around some of the old war sites such as bunkers and museums in the town before catching a flight to the capital city of Ha http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Vietnam/Northeast/Sapa/blog-293788.html Again Text will follow soon I promiseThis country just gets more gorgeousHope everyone is well.Steve and Laura. xxx http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Laos/North/Luang-Namtha/blog-286094.html Text will follow later but I'll let the photo's speak for themselvesWhat a gorgeous countryLove Steve and Laura. xxx http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Laos/South/Tha-Khaek/blog-282757.html Chiang MaiAfter the relaxation of Mae Hong Son Pai we moved onto the City of Chiang Mai.A place jam packed with culture and watsWe spent 4 days here enjoying the sites and walking around the colourful streets of the city.One of the cities most famous tourist attractions is its Night Bazaar where it seems half of the city is opened up each evening into a giant market selling produce from the http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/North/Chiang-Mai/blog-274982.html Hello EveryoneUs again And look we have pictures againMae SotWe travelled from Sukhothai to Mae Sot near the Burmese border on the next leg of our trip.The main reason was to cross into Myanmar briefly to the town of Myawadi to see a bit of Burmese life and also to extend our Thai Visa.We spent a few days here in a beautiful guesthouse complete with our own lounge area and large balcony for ar http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/North/Mae-Hong-Son/blog-272998.html BangkokAfter nearly 3 weeks sunning it on The Best Beaches Thailand has to offer we were back on the culture trail in the Thai Capital of Bangkok.Not knowing what to expect except that they were very keen on ping pong in this city from some reason I wasn't particularly looking forward to the city.As it Turned out However Bangkok was one the best cities We have visited to date with many Galle http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/North/Sukhothai/blog-268625.html The next leg of our trip took us to the beautiful islands of Thailand famed for their powder white sand and crystal clear water.We flew into the Island of Phuket from Sri Lanka and spent only a night there before moving on to our first destination in Thailand the island of Ko Phi Phi an adyllic island lined with palm fringed beaches and the most amazing bottle green sea you are ever likely to s http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Thailand/South/Ko-Phi-Phi/blog-268623.html After enjoying the week of luxury with my parents we were back on the more bumpy road again starting with a 2 hour journey in a tuk tuk from Dambulla to Kandy in the midst of a rather large tropical storm not something I would particularly reccommend to anyone but fun all the sameWe spent a couple more days in The city of Kandy exploring the city centre and its attractions before heading into Sr http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Sri-Lanka/Unawatuna/blog-268621.html Hi AllSorry for the rather large delay in blogs recently this is mainly due to the poor standard of internet speed at our guesthouses in sri lanka so I will be getting you back up to speed with 3 or 4 quickfire blogs nowWe arrived in Sri Lanka on the 8th of March after a short 1 hour flight from Kerala.After a 3 hour drive from Colombo we arrived in Kandy the world heritage listed city set aro http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/Sri-Lanka/Kandy/blog-268618.html Hi EveryoneSorry for the long delay in this one had some trouble finding a connection to upload photos so none of those at the moment but they will added soon i hope.The next part of our trip nearly a month ago now sorry took us from Munnar across to Thekkady and the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary before we headed for the coast and the beautiful resort of Varkala and finally to the famous Kerala http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Kerala/Allepey/blog-260549.html KochiWe arrived into Kerala after a very early morning flight tired and exhausted but after a mid day siesta at our wonderfully welcoming homestay arose to discover the most beautiful and peaceful of cities ready to explore. Cochin is divided into distinct parts the main modern city called Ernakulam and the old Portuguese fishing port of Fort Kochi filled with history and culture which is where http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Kerala/Munnar/blog-252652.html JaisalmerThe next leg of our travels took us deep into the Great Thar Desert to the Fortified city of Jaisalmer.It is a truly unique place with an atmosphere all of its own and is frequently listed in the top 100 places to visit before you die listsMany of the population of the city still live inside the vast forts ancient walls and it is a wonderful experience meandering through the narrow stre http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Rajasthan/Udaipur/blog-245445.html