trippin
Robin Joined: July 25th 2005
Logged in: October 16th 2006
Logged in: October 16th 2006
Travel Blog Posts
It's been months since I left Asia, and months since I've looked at this blog, but hardly a day goes by when I don't think of my time spent there. I wish I could say my life changed dramatically and all the personal and spiritual insights I felt while traveling have been easily applied to my 'real life', but it's so easy to fall back into routine. However, life in Vancouver is good, and it's nice to reconnect. I just wanted to write on last entry on this blog because I left it so abruptly (my last few weeks in Asia were a whirlwind of organizing my return and, well, shopping!) I cherish my memories and my photos, and can't wait to go back. Travel is life. Next stop South America?... read more
Welcome to the Jungle
Moving from beach (Tioman) to jungle (Taman Negara) I was forced to stop in the less-than-touristy city of Kuantan, apparently some distances really are too far to travel in a day, despite what look like teensy distances on a map! Kuantan was alright, though rainy, but it was quite obvious that it doesn't receive the same number of Westerners as other places... I'd gotten used to be being invisible, and suddenly I was once again being stared at, and the recipient of compliments, marriage proposals, and less polite advances from the groups of young men which apparently make up the entire population of the city. Oh well, it was flattering(?) and I had a stranger buy my dinner at the local restaurant I'd visited - I'd thought he was staring because my method of eating with ... read more
A Splash of Colour at a Place of Worship
I’ve discovered that, while traveling, you have a tendency to miss the silliest things. For instance, while in Georgetown I felt like I missed the cold and the rain (maybe it’s my Vancouver heritage shining through), so was quite excited when we left the heat for the misty Cameron Highlands. The highlands are (duh) high in the jungle and have an average daily temperature of (only!) 22 degrees, when we arrived, however, it felt infinitely cooler, plus it was raining. The novelty wore off after about 5 seconds. It was still a great place to visit, but harder to enjoy the jungley surroundings when the constant mist soaked you whenever you elected to leave the comfort of hostel, restaurant, or car, so instead of undertaking the jungle hikes we’d planned (whew, thought I’d have to get ... read more
My Attempt
{photos will be uploaded in the next couple of days} Ko Lanta, my las Thai beach stop for a while, was divine. Phi Phi had left me reeling (you know you're travelled out when a beach resort, even a beach resort like Ko Phi Phi, can leave you exhausted), so it was incredibly nice to get to a place a little more relaxed. Met up with Vanessa and arranged a bungalow, a lovely bamboo cabin with the most luxurious beds (crisp, white sheets! firm mattresses! soft pillows! My standards have luxury have definately changed) and spent the bulk of the next four days doing little more than relaxing by, or on, the beach. Ko Lanta is ringed with soft white beaches that seem almost endless, and although they may not be as visually stunning as the ... read more
A Very Phuket View?
It proved rather difficult to tear myself away from Ton Sai, not only because I'd made myself quite comfortable there, but because my next stop was to be Phuket, a plac on which I wasn't overly keen. To many people, Phuket and Thailand are synonymous, and as the country's premier tourist desitnation, it encompasses the very best and the very worst elements of Thailand's mass tourism industry. The province is filled with beautiful beaches, with white sand and azure waters... which have been totally taken over by glitzy resorts, overpriced restaurants, beach chairs as far as the eye can see, aggressive souvenier hawkers, and hordes of tourists. It's got all the Western comforts and conveniences you could want... but it's got all the Western comforts and conveniences you could want. But, I was still curious, so ... read more
Walking to the Beach
Life is hard. I've spent the last week on one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen, and my plans for the next month are much of the same... Hope the happy sunshiney thoughts of the blog and the beachy photos don't depress anyone in rainy Vancouver too much! (On that note, before I forget, exciting news! Landing at YVR March 18th, yay) Cruised down south on the luxe overnight train that's becoming all-too familiar (it was my fifth time on that route), and randomly decided to head to Krabi rather than Phuket as it seemed to be where most of the other backpackers I met on the train happened to be going. Since I have so much time here (a little under a month on the Adaman coast) I can be pretty relaxed with ... read more
Riverine Scenery
I left Vientiane for Vang Vieng entirely unsure of what to expect - everyone I've met whose been to the latter either absolutely loves it, or absolutely hates it. It can apparently be described in three words: Beer-Lao, tubes, and Friends (please note the capital, it's an important distinction!) Regardless, I was excited to move on after spending entirely too much time in bed in my previous two locations. On the bus I met three Aussie girls (I love the eavesdrop-and-interject method of introduction... too bad it only works when backpacking), and happened to spend the next few days with them, so from this point on the blog pronoun will be "we". We quickly found a lovely guesthouse, had a quick bite to eat, and set off to take on the activity for which Vang Vieng ... read more
Flash
{apologies for the lack of linguistic finesse, I'm reeling from the after-effects of "lao-lao" - Lao homebrew, tasty!} Getting to Thailand was exquisite. Nepal had been lovely but even there the constant military presence made me uneasy, and I found it quite difficult to meet people (again, a million thanks to Ben for saving me on Christmas!)... I was incredibly eager to get back to tropical South East Asia. Even in Bangkok, the city which gave me so much grief as the first stop in my trip I was struck by the relative ease of, well, living... The less-than-sparkling city felt fresh and clean, transportation was modern and fast and understandable, and people starting behaving the way I expect them to - there were suddenly women visible in public jobs and the staring was a little ... read more
Village Life
Happy holidays everyone! Before this brief entry I want to apologize to those I've been meaning to email and haven't been able to, connections here are quite poor and expensive, and I've been busy busy busy arranging travel details, I WILL have more time as soon as I get back to Thailand so expect emails! Sorry again! Leaving Kathmandu I travelled to the small town of Bandipur, a place only briefly mentionned in the Bible (aka Lonely Planet) and which I stumbled upon by chance, catching glimpse of a small advert suggesting travellers break up the Kathmandu-Pokhara march by spending a couple nights in an apparently enchanting hill-top town, with gorgeous views of the Himalaya. Having no real plans for my time in Nepal after deciding that it's too effing cold to do any real outdoorsy ... read more
Welcoming Prayers
{sorry for the double whammy of entries, it's just that I've stumbled upon a decent connection, oh miracle of miracles, and figured I ought to do it now! I'll even try to upload some photos tonight, but no guarantees} Nepal has made me breathe easier. The stress accumulated from exactly a month of travel within India melted away the second the air felt fresher and I returned home to a country where green is the prominent colour, and mountains dominate the sky (sidenote: I have realized on this trip just how desperately in love with Vancouver I am... there really is no place like it on earth, try to remember that those of you struck by the doldroms brought on by winter grey!). Our first stop in the country was the small town of Lumbini, made ... read more
