I met Marcus in Melaka. He peered through the dormroom doorway and, seeing he had company, came forward to offer a friendly handshake and cheesy grin. From that point on, the usual onslought of traveler queries ensued: - Where are you from? - When did you arrive here? - How long are you staying? - Where will you go next? - What would you recommend around here? - How much does that cost? - How long are you traveling for? - What did you think of the last place? - What will you do in the next place? - How will [View Full Entry]

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Before arrival I had been very curious to know who it was that made up Singapore. What was their language, food, customs and ethnic background. But I'm not sure if my questions were answered in a way I would have expected - Singapore is such a diverse mixture of people, culture and religion that perhaps that in itself is Singapore's symbol; diversity. I decided to avoid the comercialised Merlion of Sentosa and took to the back streets of Little India, China Town and went to the island Pulau Ubin for the day. Everyone I met was exceptionally helpful and I really [View Full Entry]

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The first time I ever set foot in Hua Hin was in 1994. It was on one of those family holidays that soon became an annual tradition: we'd pack up from wherever we were in the world to spend a month on the beach. It was great. The venue of choice was a guest house of sorts called the Juniper Tree, frequented by many European families who lived in countries all over Asia and seemed to congregate in Hua Hin on their annual reprieve. My earliest memories consist of a daily ice cream allowance and the 'couch family sand - sculpture [View Full Entry]

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Addingham is a great little English country village. Its about an hour out Leeds and sports several pubs, georgous views and a pretty laidback sort of atmosphere. In the 3 weeks I've spent here, I've gone on some beautiful walks, enjoyed the weekly folk music down at the pub and had a chance to get the feel for the English country lifestyle. I've been staying with friends Phil and Miriam who have been incredibly hospitable. I owe a great deal of gratitude to their generocity and for putting me up for so long. My original plans for travel have changed and [View Full Entry]

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The cruise began in Reedham. Our crew was comprised of a number of amateur captains who were pleased to discover that drink driving laws did not apply to the steering and mooring of boats. Due to several delays, we spent our first night in Reedham. It was there that we learned of the advantages of a mobile home; if you don't like the neighbours, just move on down the river. I didn't catch our neighbours name; in fact he must not have mentioned it as you couldn't miss a word he said in his booming voice. He had a huge beer [View Full Entry]

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I've been in England just over a month now. I've probably had a million thoughts in that time about how I'd like to spend the next day, week and year and its been a whirlwind of ideas. A few days ago I was sitting at an office in London pondering my future when the doorman caught my eye. He was an elderly man with greying hair, of African decent and intuitive nature. "I think you should move to London," he said, as if reading my thoughts. I had to smile. "What makes you say that?" I inquired. He looked upwards and [View Full Entry]

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In Glasgow we met a Hungarian man who knew it all. He knew that we were too young to travel, that vegetarians are crazy, that all young girls want to meet Scottish men and that we couldn't take care of ourselves. But his most incredible claim was that there was no point in exploring the world. He'd been there done that of course, only to discover that every street, every shop, every building, in fact everywhere he went was all exactly the same. And we would only discover this once we got to his age. He felt he was doing us [View Full Entry]

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My trip to Brussels had been planned several months in advance and was the second destination on the 'kathy-joy week in Europe' intinerary. It wasn't long before I had a few reservations that we might not actually get to Brussels and could end up anywhere! I had organised flights, while Kathy took charge of booking the hostel and wrote back to inform me all was set, the dates we wanted were avaliable and she'd put down a deposit on a lovely hostel in Berlin. It took a gentle reminder and brief geography lesson to assert the fact that Brussels and Berlin [View Full Entry]

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At long last I have made it to Europe and Amsterdam stands out as a highlight of the trip so far. Some say it rains all the same, while others claim everyone is stoned. But I gained a glimpse of a city full of character and charm. Three days was barely enough to take in the numerous 'must sees' but we did our best to fit in as much as possible. I met up with Kathy there who I know from uni days in NZ. We rented bikes and spent a day riding out into the Dutch countryside which was beautiful, [View Full Entry]

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After my trip to Sukothai I came back to Chiang Mai to catch up with my parents and sister Becca for 10 days or so before I leave to head to the UK. We spent the weekend in Chiang Rai which I'd never been to before, its almost like a mini Chiang Mai: a smaller night market, less tourists and a nice place to visit. It seems to attract tourists for its location, only an hour or so away from the Golden Triangle which we also visited. It is the junction between Burma, Laos and Thailand and from the shores of [View Full Entry]

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