Blogs from Asia - page 14691

Relaxation at last! After 16+ hours on the train, we finally made it to Chengdu! The train ride was actually quite pleasant - only 4 people total in our 4-person sleeper, a good chance to see the scenery, etc. Chengdu was hot, humid, and smoggy but we boarded the bus to get to our hostel. Unfortunately they were digging up the street to our hostel which made for an interesting detour through a deserted but incredibly nice courtyard house. We made it to our hostel and were very pleasantly surprised - it felt like an oasis. Nice outdoor area, ping pong table, bar, etc. And our room was nice and new with a great balcony area. Finally a place where we could relax for a few days! We relaxed for a bit and then headed out ... read more

Thailand: Jungle, great beachs, beer chang, chilli, snorklin, 3rd class train trips (V uncomfy), monsoon rains, humid heat, good reef, buckets, "U want tuk tuk? Where U go?", Fresh fruit & pad thai carts, "cheap, cheap!, friendly thai's & great sunsets! Thailand is awesome & i plan to go back some day, top spot! Me n john bused it to bangkok for a nite & a tone of shopping! we had a few beers for the last nite in thailand & john got a tat! then he went back to china (later m8) then later the next nite i flew back to Aus! G'day welcome home!! ( a big sign as you get into the sydney terminal) It's bloody good to be home!... read more

If you ever want to try genuine local Thai buffets, go around and ask about “Mukata”. Mukata is apparently where people go to enjoy cheap food on a do-it-yourself hotplate and steamboat. Their steamboats are combined with the hotplate and you cook everything on this nifty device. They seem to have everything available on the buffet table, including different cuts of chicken, pork, fish, and seafood. And when I say different, I mean it comes in all variations, marinated, raw, processed, etc. The liver is particularly good. They have ice-cream, dessert, as well as different types of noodles and cooked food. The only rule is that you must finish whatever you take or they’ll charge you extra. Drinks are on the house, and each person usually pays about 80baht (S$3.60) to partake. ... read more

Like most trekkers, we spent a couple of days in the hub of Namche Bazar, mainly to acclimatize to the altitude before ascending even more. The higher altitude was noticeable when we walked around town. The stairs can be steep and sometimes they left us gasping for breath, especially on the steep climb out of Namche. This is one of the larger towns in the area and a center for trade. Besides trekkers and climbing teams, there are many yak trains and porters passing through, ferrying supplies for locals and trekkers up and down the trail. The last of this season’s Everest climbing expeditions are currently descending, so we saw many yaks carrying climbing gear and other expedition supplies. Many climbing teams seem to be from Korea. All trekkers pass through Namche on their way up ... read more

BRIEF ENGLISH INTRO: (Pequeña introducción en inglés para los que no hablan español --después vienen todos los posts en castellano.) A Cambodian experience can be divided in two: Angkor and Recent History, or Recent History and Angkor. For the mild-hearted, I will begin with Angkor: one of the not-long-ago hidden wonders of this world, the vast and dramatic epic of an empire which reached levels of architectural success that can be compared to those of Medieval Europe and pre-Columbian America. Magic, mistery, sensations: a visit to Angkor Wat in the dark, before dawn, connects the body nerve nods with active spirits from a millenium ago. The sunrise is an amazing display of shadows and colours amongst the five main towers of the temple, and the reservoir's reflection helps to imagine the magnificence these Khmer cities had ... read more