Saturday 18th April Today was to be a big ride, about 80 kms. We left our hotel in Cao Bang, one of the best we have had up to now, at about 8 am and drove for some distance along the highway towards our destination of Lang Son. Judy and a couple of the other woman decided the road was too rough, with too many trucks and the incline too steep so they elected not to join the ride today. It was uphill for a relatively short distance when we began, not too hard for about 5 kms. Then the fun [View Full Entry]

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Tuesday 14th April Today we were very lucky! when we arrived at the train station at 4.30am it was pelting with rain. We took our rain ponchos out of our bags and waited. We waited so long the train started moving again as it was shunted to another line. We weren’t the only ones still on board so we weren’t too concerned. By the time we got off it was only sprinkling so we went back to our original plan which was to kill time walking tot he Army Hotel. Even though Nam in Sapa had contacted them and they said [View Full Entry]

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Monday 13th April We were off just after 0930 with another couple and a guide for a trek starting about 5 kms out of town then through the hills, paddy fields and villages for about 10kms before being picked up and return to the hotel. Our guide, Chee, set a very leisurely pace and both of us got a little frustrated at the many stops made for a rest. Even so, the views were worth the effort and we marveled at how the people had carved the rice levees into the side of the mountains. We took many photos of the [View Full Entry]

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Shortly after arriving at the ticketing office in Hanoi, we were guided to the Livitran train where we had a VIP carriage - a cabin to ourselves. The railway lines are nowhere near as smooth as they are in Europe and it took some time for us to get to sleep with the rocking and clacking of the carriages, and some loud passengers (or staff) in the hallway outside. It seemed we had just got to sleep when knocking on the door awoke us and we were told 10 mins to go. Not a very nice way to start the day [View Full Entry]

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Tuesday 7th April Hanoi is an hour behind Singapore, something we didn’t twig onto for a while, so we expected our transfer to be gone. Ended up correct though and the rep from the Astoria Hotel was there to meet us. Not greet us, as he didn’t speak a word to us, just beckoned. After the precision of Singapore the driving here is to be seen to be believed. The horn is the most essential part of vehicles and is sounded constantly. Everyone seems to know where they are going, they all keep moving and the lines of traffic just blend [View Full Entry]

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Sunday 5th April After an uneventful flight where Judy dozed a bit and Rags hardly slept we arrived in Singapore. A short ride on the MRT and we easily found our hotel in the half light. By the time we had left our luggage with the bell boy and had a promise of a room after 9am we took the MRT to Tiong Bahru where Rags had read that there was a Sunday morning bird market. After getting directions from a local we arrived at the appropriate corner only to find that the bird markets have been replaced by a construction [View Full Entry]

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Wednesday, 23rd March We arrived in Katanning via Mt Barker where we checked into the only caravan park in town. This park is under new management and we found the facilities to be spotless and much better than we were led to expect. On sitting down and planning our next section we decided to stay an extra night here, firstly because otherwise we’d be home tomorrow, and secondly so that we could experience a sheep sale on Wednesday, in a market reputed to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. The early evening was spent at the park with Kelly, Harry [View Full Entry]

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Saturday 21st March When we reached Steve & Kerry’s we found a note on the gate telling us to make ourselves at home and to be careful not to damage the van going up the track to the house. Steve had been very thoughtful and sawn low branches off and generally cleared the way. We had no problems! After set-up, Judy had a rest as she still not right, whilst Rags climbed the hill to the back paddock where Steve was building a shed next door to the house he built for his daughter. Interesting house, octagonal, with lots of windows [View Full Entry]

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Tuesday 17th March - Thursday 19th March From Bremer we travelled through the farming areas of Borden, Gnowangerup and Tambellup before reaching our destination, Cranbrook. Here, we had arranged to spend Wednesday working with the teachers and students using ICT. The principal, Brian Appleby, had been at Teachers College with Rags all those years ago, as well as teaching his daughter, Julie, in Year 7. Both of them had changed since then but it was fun to reminisce. He now lives on a property near here, has remarried and has a 3 year old girl. Still hyperactive and looking good fo [View Full Entry]

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Friday 6th - 8th March 2009 Our first stop was Walpole where we had arranged to meet our friends, Kerry and Steve who had travelled across from Denmark for a couple of nights to try out their new camper trailer. We arrived just after 4pm and had time to set up before Kerry and Steve returned from a walk. The following day we enjoyed a walk to Sandy beach, canoeing on the Nornalup Inlet and a tour of the surrounding area that included the township of Walpole and the highlight was a walk up to the vantage point at Conspicuous Cliffs. [View Full Entry]

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