To follow the tradition of getting sick in Ko Tao, the trip back to Chumpon was (nearly) as bad as the 1st one; people would come out of the catamaran while we were waiting to get in, saying things like "what a trip" or, "you don't know what's waiting for you" and, to follow my tradition I started crying; I knew I wasn't going to make it better that way but I had such a hard time on the way there that I didn't want to go through that again. But we couldn't go back and we boarded the boar with tears and sobs. The sea was even worse than when we came, but the boat more stable (spell?) and I was stronger so I only puked once... We went to Ranong, to cross the border ... read more

After a month in Indonesia, Singapore was a paradise of organization and cleaningness... we spent 2 days there moving from shopping centre to shopping centre and not buying anything... Chinatown was great and the food tasty and cheap... Little India was spicy in many ways, it is the only place of the country (city?) where the rule of "no loitering" doesn't apply... Organization comes at a price and, in Singapore, everything is forbidden: no smoking, no loitering, no patronizing, no feeding the pigeons, not leaving the toilet without flushing, no cycling in bridges... or you'll get a fine... until recently it was even forbidden to chew gum on the street... The train ride to Kuala Lumpur, in Malaysia was interesting as we were ridding backwards in a car full of screaming children... that's if you ask ... read more

We landed in Bali, once the favorite destination of honeymooners, but got really affected by the 2002 bombings... But, like the Phoenix, it is growing once again and it's becoming a popular backpacking place, in fact, it has recovered so well that many places that Dax visited in 2004 and were then free, are now asking for a generous amount as entrance fee... Not only that, but you can take 3 steps without having someone offering something to you; the most used sentences in Bali are Hello Mister, Hello Boss and Yes followed by information, transport, room, food, massage, sandals, pareus and t-shirts... All of that was getting on my nerves because they don't give up when you say "no, thank you", they keep on askimg until they see another tourist or you just stop being ... read more

After a 30 days in New Zealand, our budget has been severely damaged and most probably and unfortunately we won't be making it back to Europe the way we first thought, in fact, we'll be happy if we actually make it to Beijin. No one is to blame except the travel bug inside our bellies that urges us to "see it all"... now, we really have to re-think our initial plan and make decisions about where to go and how to manage this next months... I can picture Dax hunting grasshoppers and me roasting them in a camp fire to get the nutrients we need to cycle away... By now, we have to cut luxuries like driving around in a van or going to campsites to have a shower... we'll have to be strong a face ... read more

I have never consider myself cool but, when we were on the glacier, there was a couple who didn't stop talking and they said they were on their honeymoon... the questions started straight away: "where are you from?", he's from Israel and she's German; "where do you live?" in England; "are you learning each other's language?" yes, but it takes time and it's difficult; "where did you get married?", in Berlin, a mix of Christian and Jewish ritual; "how long will your honeymoon take?", 3 months... after each answer, people would say "that's soooo cooool", and Dax and I would look at each other smiling, but say nothing... I felt as if 2 actors were playing my life in front of me... it was weird... but I kept my mouth shut... because I'm not cool, and ... read more