Travel Blog Posts
May 27th 2008
How can I summarise 6 months of time? I can't. To comprehend, appreciate, reflect and mentally revisit 1000's of human faces, hundreds of places where I have slept, to those villages, towns, cities, countryside views, and hear all those conversations, - its impossible - this endless list doesn't even include the activities and experiences! Highlights in short Dubai: That sunset in the desert. The thrill of the wadi wadi waterpark - reverse waterslides (well its different!) New Zealand: The tuneful birds in New Zealand - I now wish I had a cd so these could send me off to sleep. The empty roads and stunning countryside - there's nothing for miles and miles and miles The stunning walking tracks - most of which all to myself The quaint village life - the local post office, the ... read more
One last adventure or two!: Diving at Malapascua
Published: May 27th 2008Asia » Philippines » Malapascua Island
May 27th 2008
Apart from my closing comments for the trip (the very last entry) , this will be the last blog entry of the trip in terms of describing our activities - and as a result will probably be one of the longest as we crammed in a LOT in just 2 weeks ! (Skip this section if you don't want to hear about our Diving courses and adventures!).... OPEN WATER 4 day PADI COURSE: Despite the Box Jelly Fish Saga in Borneo and our two 'interviews' with instructors in Bali - both nobs - we finally got to meet our '3rd time lucky' instructor called Mike based at 'Thresher Shark Divers' a 5 star padi accredited dive centre. He was a typical Yorkshireman - blunt, down to earth equipped with a good sense of humour. DAY 1, ... read more
May 25th 2008
The main beach of Malapascua didn't exactly have 'paradise' written all over it but we knew this island had it somewhere. The white sand was lovely against the almost illuminous looking turquoise transparant sea, but the pieces of dead coral within the sand took away the 5 star element... Still, the palm fringed bay and very well set back low key beach accommodation gave this area a peaceful and very local feel - with just a handful of bars and restaurants along the bay. Stretching our legs at night along the shore we passed so many locals and so few tourists that it gave the island a very traditional feel - especially as the resorts and eating places were more like local's own houses/back gardens and ran in a very laidback way! Even strolling inland on ... read more
Final Stop: PHILIPPINES - Cebu (Cebu City) to Malapascua Island(The Versayas)
Published: May 25th 2008Asia » Philippines » Cebu
May 25th 2008
Date visited: 9th May - 24th The initial journey: After a brief 24 hours for the last time in Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, and one last night at the amusing hostel of Vincent's we once again got checked in on a flight this time to Cebu. Cebu is one of the larger islands of the Versayas - a collection of lots of islands in the central Philippines and is a common visiting haunt for divers and intrepid travellers! Malaysian Airlines were 'ok'. 1 hour late and okish - food nothing special for 140 quid! but hopefully we would be rewarded for the effort. We landed at hectic Cebu airport with our first challenge - to find a working ATM that would accept Cirrus. At last we found one then got the taxi to our ex-Pat guest house ... read more
May 7th 2008
Date visited: 2nd May-7th May As we couldn't get a flight to the Philippines earlier than the 8th May I thought we could 'pop' to Bali for a few days seeing as its only a 2 hour flight away and the ticket was only 30 quid return. After observing the relaxed town atmosphere of KK we were ready for a change even though relatively speaking, KK was a breeze compared to other cities. Still, after a week and what with the Diving fiasco, we needed a change, a distraction. I carefully selected Sanur for our base after hearing that Kuta, the main tourist hub, was more like a Spanish costa resort full of drunk brits and loud clubs. Sanur however was described as a smaller quieter and more upmarket version. I also hoped that at the ... read more
Malaysian BORNEO: Part 3 -Kota Kinabalu
Published: May 25th 2008Asia » Malaysia » Sabah » Kota Kinabalu
May 1st 2008
Date visited: We boarded a bus from the river camp area to Kota which took about 8 hours. Nice scenery en-route. It passed ok considering this was a bus journey and not a day train or sleeper train but getting into Kota seemed a nightmare. Queues on every entry point to the city seemed either blocked or queued up to the hilt - not what you want after being on the road for so long. Eventually the driver turned around and tried another route, then another before eventually we got here. Floods apparantly! We hooked up with another pair of travellers to share the taxi fee before checking in at our central hostel, Tropicana Lodge. Although the reviews were not great from the guidebook, there were brilliant online reviews of the owner Vincent. We arrived and ... read more
Malaysian BORNEO: Part 2 Kinabatangan River
Published: May 2nd 2008Asia » Malaysia » Sabah » Kinabatangan
May 1st 2008
Date visited: 23-25th April After the Orangutans at Sepilok we met our driver in the minibus at the carpark. After a short drive we met other travellers at the headquarters' where we had our free lunch and got chatting to other backpackers. We drove for 90 mins in minibuses to the river before boarding our longboat which roared down the river for about an hour or so. I couldn't believe how quiet this river was - known very well, in Borneo if not throughout the world for its nature and wildlife, I was expecting more tour boats and day trippers. There was just us! We arrived at the camp - all we could see was jungle. After balancing our heavy backpacks on our backs in the hot humid heat we proceeded through the jungle for about ... read more
May 1st 2008
Date visited: 22nd April - 23rd April Another mission travelling day: 6am start for the coach to a nearby town. 2 long local buses over 2 hours. A 3 hour plane trip. Eventually we land in the northern Malaysian state of Sabah, Borneo. Our plane dropped us off in Sandakan, a city on the East Coast of Sabah and our jumping off point for the region's Jungle activities. We arrived early and feeling pretty upbeat looking forward to the Jungle camp we previously booked. Sandakan itself unfortunately didn't do much for us - I'd describe it as a bit of a slum town to be honest containing oppressive gloomy flats and dark side-streets - certainly not the place to go for a wander late at night. We tried to find somewhere half decent to eat but ... read more
May 1st 2008
Date visited: 20-22nd April I was expecting another hectic and chaotic city but Melaka was a totally pleasant surprise in the end. Quiet, quaint and mainly traffic-free in the centre, this place had a relaxed feel. Our bus dropped us off in the central square next to the clock tower where a pedestrianised quarter awaited our feet to explore. TukTuk style bycycles meandered around the area loaded to the hilt with fresh colourful flowers - some so buried in flower heads it was hard to see the driver or the passengers! The church bell chimed in the background a few minutes later and more locals were beaming at us without us doing anything except walking and paying a polite glance. This whole scene was most welcoming and a great surprise. A mixture of themes' presented Melaka's ... read more
April 19th 2008
Date visited: 16th-18th April Our journey to this Englishy hill region of Malaysia (North, North-West) with its rose gardens, tea and scone cafe's and cooler air was a bit of a self inflicted epic! The lengths we went to to avoid a very heavily criticised coach company based in Panang meant us getting up at 5 am where we taxied to the jetty, ferried to the mainland, trained it for 3 hrs to Ipoh only to end up at Ipoh bus station having to use the same coach company (we couldn't find the other company!) Luckily we boarded just before it left for the Cameron Highlands which meant we could keep our luggage with us (where travellers previously have reported their bags being stolen/lost at the various drop-offs). The driver luckily seemed sane unlike some stories ... read more
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