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Mordor & River Valley Feeling both happy and relieved after surviving the sky dive we jumped back on the coach and headed to River Valley. This was to be yet another scenic route, which led us through the Lord of the Rings territory, passing through Tongariro National park where the filming for Mordor was done, followed by the river were Gollum was caught whilst fishing. River Valley Lodge itself was picturesque to say the least as it’s wedged between towering cliffs and green bush clad hills. There hadn’t been much rain as of late; resulting in a low river... so unfortunately rafting was out of the question and instead we spent a relaxing day soaking up the sun lying and playing cards by the river, whilst getting eaten by the sand flies. Wellington Wellington is ... read more

Rotorua - This Town Stinks Rotorua is the kind of place that on approach you wonder if the guy next to you just dropped a bomb. It stinks. No it's nothing the residents have just done either, but they did build a town in an area of very high thermal activity. I’m sure they have a good reason for building on a geothermal area, with stream vents popping up everywhere releasing the rotten egg smell??? Sticking with the bad smell theme we went to Wai-O-Tapu, New Zealand's most colourful and diverse geothermal park. Interesting scenery, you'd think you were on Mars. Sulphur covered craters, violently bubbling hot mud pools, geyser’s which erupt several metres high and a steaming lake supposedly meant to resemble hell on earth but I’m guessing these people have never been in ... read more

SYDNEY Sydney is a spectacular city - incredibly landscaped, full of young trendy people, tons of cultural activities and restaurants, stellar shopping, and a real cosmopolitan feel. It was strange walking through the city. It looked so familiar it could be almost any big city in the UK, modern buildings and names like Liverpool Street, Hyde Park and Oxford Street. The electricity found in most big Asian cities just isn’t here but in its place is a clean, relaxed, very easy going pace - all without being too crowded or rushed which adds to the city’s charm. After checking into our hostel we wandered down to take a look at the opera house and bridge from across the harbour although the cloudy sky’s somewhat spoiled the first time I saw them for real. Strange how ... read more

Tanam Negara After our few days in the laid back Malaysian capital we decided we were in need of some action and thought a 3 day jungle trek through the oldest rainforest in the world was a good choice. So after a fairly arduous round about trip we landed in a tiny town, where we met a few other travellers who were planning the same trip the following day, an Aussie named Trent and a Spaniard called Xabi. We all checked out the local market for some weather proof gear as we were really not prepared for one of the wettest places in the world! Alan was in luck finding a decent set of waterproofs but unfortunately all I could find to fit was a flashers mack and matching hat! The following day we were up ... read more

After a long bus journey we found ourselves at George Town on the island of Penang. It was late. Feeling tired, hungry and struggling to find any cheap/decent accommodation. Our Penang experience didn’t start off in the best way. Eventually we found a room and had at chat with a travelling Filipino band who advised us of the local night spots which we decided to explore. There is precious little to do in the daytime (or night time). Perhaps the main attractions are the Museum and the reconstructed fort Cornwallis. The museum was full of the usual Asian pottery, but did have an interesting exhibition detailing how people from many different races and regions contributed to society, throughout George Town’s colonial history. There were no real surprises. For me George Town is not worth visiting and ... read more