- FOOD: Dribbly pancakes; buckets of Sangsum and Red Bull; noodles for breakfast after no sleep all night; hangover food; Birthday meal of Greek salad, pasta and banana in coconut milk; lemongrass prawn salad; expertly chopped pineapple. - AREA: Ok Lamai beach and very ok 'New Hut' beach huts; Full Moon Party at Ko Pha-Ngan beach for my Birthday - Ibiza Club 18-30 eat your heart out; misted over Full Moon; Thai boxing with more kids doing it than adults; stolen and lost money; hired jeep to see waterfalls (blown tyre and got stuck); busy Chaweng beach. - PEOPLE: Early morning [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Street stall food all so good (and lots of it all so hot); good, proper hotel breakfast; bitter apple type fruit with hot chili sugar dip; fried locusts and fried maggots (yum); nice (but HOT) Thai green curry (my fave). - AREA: Mix of modern, mad, poor, rich with nice aromas of spices mixed with nasty ones of pollution; very wide lanes with MUCH traffic but calm alleys off them; Buddha statues in the middle of the madness; confusing road names; posh, multi level shopping centres at Siam Square with 'Boots'!; bright and bustly Khao San Road - backpacker [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: EXCELLENT plane food; cheap noodles at one of the MANY roadside cafes; huge grapefruit type fruit; a tea brewing ceremony; egg brewed in tea for 8 hours; mooncakes; hot chicken curry; sweet, bright pink cakes made from almond, cashew and coconut; Gulam Jamun - a ball of cream cheese in a pot of syrup. - PEOPLE: Polite and friendly. The whole population eating on the roadside. Nepalese man at a temple giving me orchids for good luck. - AREA: So smart and clean. High rise, modern tower blocks with greenery surrounding them; space age CBD; wide lanes of traffic; [View Full Entry]

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Australasia has been such a nice break away from South America and before heading to Asia. It felt a bit like going home (maybe the amount of Brits there and the expense contributed to that feeling). I really felt relaxed there and saw some of the most stunning scenery. Everyone was just so friendly and welcoming - the kiwis more so but they are superhuman anyway! The people are very proud and loyal, unlike most of the Brits I meet who don't have many good words to say about the UK (I spend all my time defending it). I think the [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Free cereal for breakfast (but no milk); no kangaroo for dinner for me - cheap Dominoes pizza instead; Black Cherry Tim Tams - THE BEST. - AREA: King's Park from a distance in the rain; free art gallery with a mixture of good art. - PEOPLE: Helpful ferry people; bitter Aussies at losing the cricket to the Brits! - WEATHER: Rain Mon 12th Sep: This hostel gets better - free breakfast. Cereal too although it was only after I'd poured it so excitedly that I realised there is no milk. Dry cereal is good though! I had a faffy [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Emu bitter; good, cheap Asian grub; free popcorn at the hostel. - PEOPLE: Know it all family; very few inhabitants. - AREA: Quokka inhabited, tiny paradise island with hundreds of beautiful, white sand, clear turquoise, coral filled sea bays; plenty of varied greenery and very few buildings. Bike without gears to cycle in heaven. Big king lizards. Ferries; nice hostel; 'Million Dollar Baby' DVD at the hostel. - WEATHER: Keep topping up that sunscreen and drinking that water! Sun 11th Sep: I caught a ferry to Rottnest Island (named from a Dutch man who was first to arrive [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Coffee and cake whilst chilling in the sun; squid and chips and wine. - PEOPLE: Old hippy dormmate with lots of incense; families filling all the many fish and chip restaurants; lary, towny teens. - AREA: Bohemian, small town - Cappucino Alley, nice market, quiet harbour, deserted South Beach with white sand and distant dolphin; 'Little Fish' at the cinema - WEATHER: Occasional sun Sat 10th Sep: I left the horrible hostel early and checked my backpack into the YHA (I caved). Feeling 15 kilos lighter I struggled with the maze of escalators, stairs and platforms at the cent [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: 2 minute noodles - PEOPLE: Loud snorer as a dormmate; sprawled out dormmate, weird Japanese dormmate, loud hostel mates, patronising woman telling me how to use the obvious to work cooker, drunk man pouring his heart out (get me outta this hostel!). - AREA: Manky hostel with an impossible to reach top bunk; laid back city that I love - Bell Tower, palm tree lined financial district, peaceful and modern buildings, generally nice feel. - WEATHER: Back to the grey and cold Fri 9th Sep: I didn't get much sleep as there was a major snorer in the dorm [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Excellent ice cream. - PEOPLE: Chattier tour group now they'd relaxed; Backpackers and interested locals in the club; Aboriginal people who can't drink in the bars wandering the streets VERY drunk. - AREA: Long walk through the beautiful, layered rock of King's Canyon; pygmy koala...; pretty Garden of Eden pool; brand new and perfectly formed Yulara town; not so nice sports bar; cheesy club (the only one in Alice). - WEATHER: Yes, more of this lovely hot sun Thur 8th Sep: Had a lie in and got up at 6am. Then we spent the morning on a 8k walk [View Full Entry]

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- FOOD: Free breakfast (although Vegemite); very good spread for lunch of meats, salad and cheese; champagne with Doritos and dip to watch Uluru at sunset; garlic bread and pasta with loads of fresh veg that WE made ourselves over a campfire; cereal breakfast and fire toasted toast; camp made damper (peach bread) - AREA: Sunrise at Anzac Hill; first stop at place with unhappy, cramped animals; The Forgotten Rock (looks like Uluru); red sand outback with lots of trees, tiny flowers and wild animals; Kata Tjuta National Park Cultural Centre to learn about Aboriginal law, religion and Dreamtim [View Full Entry]

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