Getting from Kuala Lumpur to Iboih beach on Pulau Weh (off the north coast of Aceh, Sumatra) involved the full gamut of transport: taxi, train, bus, plane, another taxi, ferry and motorbike. Nevertheless, the twelve hour journey went without a hitch and by 4 p.m. we were sitting on the balcony of our stilted hut over-looking the flat-calm Indian Ocean: a pellucid swirl of emerald, cobalt, azure and indigo. Here at Yulia’s the restaurant overhangs the crystal-clear sea and a myriad of fish amble amidst the coral below; it promises to be snorkeling paradise. As evening draws-in huge fruit bats with orange manes swoop across the purple sky before making heavy landings and inverted scrambles to gorge on… fruit (forgot to ask the name of the tree). Our hut, positioned twenty yards up the hill side ... read more

Most people we’d met in Laos had said that, by comparison, Cambodia was a disappointment (with the obvious exception of Angkor Wat that is universally raved about). However, nearing the end of a month here we’d have to disagree. What Cambodia lacks in attractions it more than makes up for with its’ people who are delightful. In Laos you are always greeted with a warm “sabaidee” (hello), but further intimacies are hard to extract. In Cambodia you receive an equally welcoming “hello” (sadly not their own “suas’dei”), but it doesn’t end there; the people are that little less reserved, that bit jollier, and hence more approachable. Even the dastardly auto-rickshaw drivers are politeness itself: “Does sir/madam want tuktuk?” We never do, invariably preferring – to their astonishment – to walk. Nevertheless, after our equally polite “no ... read more

Well, having been so tardy in typing anything and over a month having passed since our last entry we thought we’d better post something…. Lijiang at dawn is stunning: a maze of apparently ancient wooden dwellings leaning inwards over cobbled streets and burbling inter-linking waterways. It is however only sleeping. By mid-morning every building has removed its fronting wooden shutters to reveal gaudy tourist fare that is periodically viewable through the multitude of, primarily Chinese, tourists. Navigation through the old city is a nightmare, most eateries are tourist orientated, the guest houses expensive if admittedly beautiful and traditional, and the crowds simply frustrating: we weren’t immediately enamoured. Nevertheless, once you have your bearings and have located some tourist-untouched corners it did begin to grow on us. Plus, we found a great guest house in the Garden ... read more