Guest Blog: Abi Knight (Rider) Tommy and Laura have entrusted me with the care of the almighty blog for this installment. I'm deeply proud. Our next pit stop was in Taman Negara National Park, the main jungle area in peninsula Malaysia, where we bedded down in Nusa Camp - the lodging located furthest down the river and thus furthest into the jungle. Though there have been tiger, leopard and elephant sightings here, we would have needed to trek for several days into the jungle for a glimpse so instead we contented ourselves with the staples of the Nusa Camp experience. It' [View Full Entry]

---

---

And on to the Cameron Highlands... Named after the English Gentleman who mapped the hills in this area and opened the door to a flood of other British folk to come and build their dwellings here. Consequently, a lot of mock tudor, thatched roofed and stone built houses still stand in the green pastures of this cool, temperate climate. On this occasion the Brits were right, as the cool climes still attract many a Malaysian holiday maker or city worker, trying to escape the heat and noise of KL, at the weekend. Before jumping straight into the Cameron Highlands we had [View Full Entry]

---

---

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Firstly, the more pedantic reader might ask "shouldn't it be three towers?" and they'd probably be more precise, however since Dickens never got round to writing the sequel: "A Tale Of Three Cities", my oh so clever title wouldn't work, so please forgive this inaccuracy. I call it a tale of two towers because we spent only a short time in KL, which was dominated by our luncheon visit to the "KL Tower" and a quick stop at the "Petronas Twin Towers". For us, KL was a transit city [View Full Entry]

---

---

Melaka is Malaysia's most enigmatic city with a rich history of royal rule, Chinese influence and colonial domination that affected many of the vital ports on the Asian trade route. It is also known as the "gateway of Islam" into Malaysia - Indian muslim spice traders brought the religion, which is now adopted by the vast majority of Malays. The city's history is reflected in its architecture - a colourful array of Chinese, Indian and European colonial influence. We spent a day of culture and education in Melaka's colonial centre and scenic Chinatown on Tommy's "Walking Tour of Melaka". [View Full Entry]

---

---

Our first Asian country could be described as a "soft landing" - Singapore gleams with its clean streets (a result of somewhat draconian mesaures e.g. the outlawing of chewing gum), it's giant "get anything you want" malls and it's tall shiny buildings. There's very little crime, people are affluent and being an ex-English colony, it doesn't seem too different to home (in parts). We landed in at Changi Airport, weary after a long flight but excitedly looking forward to a reunion with Miss Abi Knight who had bravely stepped up to share the next two weeks of travelling with us. Reaching [View Full Entry]

---

---

We spent a couple of days in Queesland's state capital and proved that poor planning can still yield awesome outcomes, if luck is on your side. We arrived without a reservation - stupid really since the town was packed to the brim with the Barmy and Boony Army - England and Australia's cricket fans, respectively. They were all there to watch the 1st test of the long-awaited 2006 Ashes. Unsurprisingly, everywhere we rang was fully booked for the next 5 days and we began to contemplate the prospect of either (a) leaving or (b) sleeping under the stars - neither of [View Full Entry]

---

---

Travelling from Airlie Beach to Brisbane, the classic side excursion is one to Fraser Island. Backpackers (mostly English and German) do it in their droves. They hire a 4WD and tents and whizz around the island for 2-3 days on this the largest sand island in the world. Within our time schedule and having been put back a day by our delayed Whitsundays cruise, we could only fit in a day trip, whistle-stop tour using the non-descript Hervey Bay, as a base. Fraser Island is a well-preserved wilderness, protected by its world heritage site status and it's unique ecosystems are abundant. [View Full Entry]

---

---

We arrived in Airlie Beach a day before our scheduled cruise, which we'd booked nearly two months earlier in Queenstown. On recommendations from Laura's friend Carolyn, we chose the Avatar vessel from the mass of available options, in an attempt to avoid the numerous booze cruises full of English & German, Club 18-30, lager lout types. According to a number of locals, we chose well (thanks Carolyn) - a fast, spacious trimaran was to be our sea-faring home for the next three days. Pre-sea sickness were alleviated, our yacht is apparently "very stable" we were told, so we arrived at check-in [View Full Entry]

---

---

We did it! After two aborted attempts in Lake Taupo we finally jumped out of a plane at 14,000 ft, harnessed to a professional skydiver. Although its a little more expensive to skydive in Australia, you can pretty much guarantee that the weather is right for a skydive at Mission Beach, just south of Cairns. Due to the generous leaving present that I was given from my former colleagues at Breast Cancer Campaign, I was able to have this "you've gotta do it once in your lifetime" experience. Thanks guys. After a very short safety briefing, Tom and I were herded [View Full Entry]

---

---

If you like cities, you'll love Sydney. It's a top-notch example of all things good about top cities: a fantastic waterside setting, nice green spaces, a good transport system and a cool mix of peeps. There's plenty to see and do and within 30 mins on a train you can find yourself at the beach or deep in the bush (not Shepherd's although rumour has it there is a fast underground service connecting to London's for all Aussies - we didn't find it!). We allotted four days in which to check out Sydney including a day in the Blue Mountains and [View Full Entry]

---

---