Vest
Michelle Harris Joined: April 17th 2005
Logged in: June 16th 2011
Logged in: June 16th 2011
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Travel Blog Posts
The last supper - crocodile for me
- FOOD: Cheap, good and filling meal at bus stop; crocodile (tastes like pork); Lao lao shot (tasted like tequila); popular Indian (I can see why); our local - Sabaidee restaurant with fab tuna sandwiches and pad thai. - AREA: Much nicer bus back for just an extra dollar; quiet riverfront now the boat festival is over; cafes crammed with tourists; backpack pain (how I've grown to hate it); ripped travel trouser pain; Lao songs that I recognise. - PEOPLE: Nice tuk-tuk man; better bus driver; sweet bargainers; shouting but harmless people. - ACCOM: Hotel Bougnasouk again but this time a room with a view; Orchid Guesthouse splash out - not such a great room for 10 dollars with single, springy beds and towels that don't dry you; manky guesthouse with dirty, cracked, cockroached, 'sticky' room ... read more
The most basic and scenic village I've stayed in
- FOOD: Pumpkin soup; steamed fish in Gaza leaf and fish curry (sadly far too many bones and overrun with aniseed tasting herb; river weeds (a must - they are so nice); pink drink - AREA: Tiny village - the most basic and stunning I've stayed in with steep mountains and vegetation forming the backdrop - the perfect chill out spot; breaking down bus; wake up chorus of screeching cockerals, babies and pigs; Tham Pha Thok limestone caves ; dirt road lined with palm trees as the highway; tiny waterfall; SNAKE in the wild; cockfighting; beautiful 6 hour boat journey and cave temple. - PEOPLE: Vomitting toddler; very nice family who own the guesthouse including the perfect host 12 year old boy and his adorable (but whingy!) baby cousin; 3 dodgy, stalking men; playful children who ... read more
The wonders of Luang Prabang
- FOOD: Hotel restaurant breakfasts and squid with ginger dinner - gooood; expensive but oh so nice salad; posher restaurant food; cocktails; Mekong fish. - AREA: Best preserved town in S E Asia: Winding mountain roads, rivers with terraced banks, palms, peaceful roads; Buddhist and French architecture; Wat Xieng Thong temple - mosaic everywhere; chained up monkeys; long stretch of fantastic night market; Phu Si hill with temples, cave shrine and Buddha footprint; giving blood and having massage at Red Cross; plinkety-plonkety music; midnight curfew; Tat Kuang Si waterfalls on Singh, the elephant; bear and tiger sanctuaries; circus village stop. - PEOPLE: Most people sleep during the day here - they're more laid back than usual!; friendly masseuse; kids fascinated by Singh, adults scared by Singh; cute village kids who are already vendors; men (and some ... read more
Peaceful riverside
- FOOD: Croissants and cake on the plane; hot, spicy papaya salad; banana and condensed milk pancakes, fresh spring rolls with mint, noodles and egg inside and sticky rice and coconut balls; fish on a stick; Scandanavian bakery; JoMa bakery; sweet Spy wine; the best beer in Asia - Lao beer. - PEOPLE: No taxi men hassling at the airport - just one polite man!; Lao people soooo laid back; many people crowding the river side for the festival; kids selling balloons; speed walkers; smart school children; crazy bus driver and his mates partying hard. - AREA: Cranky old Lao Airline plane; untouched Mekong river with grassy banks and Bun Nam (River Festival) taking place (fireboats, fireworks, lit floats and a boat race); small and chilled out capital; Patuxai (Arc de Triomphe of Laos); dancing, lit ... read more
The glorious Angkor Wat
- FOOD: Edam and Laughing Cow cheese; rice overload with our great grub at Capitol restaurant; fish overload and good French wine in 'Dead Fish' restaurant. - PEOPLE: Charnt and Paulie our lovely moto men and tour guides; thousands of people swarming Angkor Wat (with their umbrellas); fewer people at the outer temples; imaginative boy selling plates with your photo on; tuk tuk tour amusement; little sellers at every site; more crossing of paths with Tania; Dr. Beat Richner (Beatocello) - a truly inspirational saint of a man. - AREA: Good bus journey past more glorious scenery (with love song karaoke playing in the background); calmer Siem Reap with narrower streets; market with good silk products; the astonishing architecture of the many temples at Angkor (Angkor Wat being the biggest, Ta Prohm being the most fascinating ... read more
Where are all the sellers?
- FOOD: Noodle and fish soup for breakfast; very alcoholic Mekong and coconut shake; good shakes; barbequeud squid; rice in a pancake with sugar; small donoughts; great Indian meal; Tim Tams! - AREA: Ochhentual Beach - the best and quietest although with a fair amount of rubbish and building work; Victory Beach - busier but a nice, narrow road with lots of food on offer; beautiful scenery on the bus ride. - PEOPLE: Lovely bike men who didn't even try to rip us off; children sellers who know how to talk and hassle you to death (I gave in and had my legs strung - ow); bumping into Tania; Cambodians on holiday and locals splashing around; nice family owning the Indian restaurant; friends back at the Capitol guesthouse. - ACCOM: Really nice, new and cheap guesthouse ... read more
Cooking the delicious street food
- FOOD: Sticky rice with hot banana inside wrapped in a banana leaf; good veg omelettes at the Capitol cafe; Angkor Beer; dragonfruit; top street food; eggs with duck foetus' inside (I didn't try one); tiny birds deep fried (I didn't try one); fish paste; the most amazing and filling breakfast I've ever had; free drink in luxury lounge of hotel; very good French wine. - AREA: Cramped bus on very bumpy trip to the capital with 4 ferry crossings; the most beautiful jungle scenery and red rivers; manic, extremely busy roads (except when the Festival of the Dead is on) - many are unpaved and muddy; lack of orphanages!; smart and not very built up riverside; mad building numbering; badminton played everywhere; nice, calm lake away from the madness; Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda; litter ... read more
- FOOD: Pizza - so un-Thai, but so good. - AREA: Ok for a border town with all the amenities I needed. - ACCOMMODATION: Pop Guest House - sweet bamboo walled rooms and a HOT shower at last! - PEOPLE: Sad goodbyes to the animals and Tania; 12 people squashed into taxi truck; chatty girl interrupting 'Girl, Interrupted'! Wed 28th: Tigs looked very confused as we were packing our bags and we had to say sad goodbyes to him. I hope the next people treat him well. The score with the taxi is that you just stand on the side of the road on the hour and hope one comes along. Which it did. Good job we were one of the first pick ups as by the time it reached the ferry port, there were 12 ... read more
Our perfect little beach hut
- FOOD: Fresh fruit galore and my old pal sugared nuts; spicy papaya salad; Joy Cafe's excellent curry, free muffins, chicken with cashew nut noodles; muesli for breakfast; banana and coffee shakes; - AREA: Excellent government bus to Koh Chang; green, lush island with luxury hotels in the process of being built but not quite ruining it yet; Siam Beach - perfect and ours alone - big waves, palm trees and relaxation; Thai massage. - PEOPLE: Punctual Thais; lovely family with cute kids at Joy Cafe; very skilled fire throwers; Tiggy, the cat with balls; Lazy Bones the dog; Tania with her Reiki magic! - ACCOMMODATION: Very basic wooden hut with hard bed still but good pillows! - WEATHER: Some sun in between the clouds; BIG storms. Sat 24th: We caught the Skytrain and government bus ... read more
A sweet little airport
- FOOD: Breakfast on a 45 minute flight! Red curry in gorgeous restaurant next to our hotel; unidentified but very good street snacks; more good street food for dinner. - AREA: Cute airport with trees and flowers; park in the middle of hectic Bangkok; efficient Skytrain; river boat to Khao San road past all the sites. - PEOPLE: Very sweet and smiley old lady running very sweet cafe. Thur 22nd Sep: I slept really well and then Tania and I headed to the airport to catch a flight back to Bangkok (who needs ferries and overnight buses when you have a spare 50 quid). The airport is SO sweet - a grass courtyard in the middle with wooden huts surrounding it. Trees and flowers everywhere and only 2 check in desks. We'd had breakfast before getting ... read more
