Page 3 of Stoffel and Pantoffel on Manoeuvres Travel Blog Posts


Asia » Thailand » North-West Thailand » Sukhothai February 27th 2013

Asia » Thailand » North-West Thailand » Sukhothai February 27th 2013

26 January 2013 Back in Thailand and on the train from Ayutthaya to Sukothai. It is kind of a relief to be back in Thailand, with no travel restrictions and fabulous food. And Thailand is so cheap too!! The train from Bangkok to Ayutthaya cost THB15 each - that's 30 pence. OK, it did take 3 hours, when it was supposed to take half of that, but who is in a hurry? This is our first visit to Northern Thailand. We've been coming to Thailand for years but always end up going south and to the islands. And what a pleasant surprise this has been. Our first stop, Ayutthaya or Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya. The old city is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and it's probably the most relaxed WHS we have ever visited. Most of ... read more

Asia » Burma January 28th 2013

24 January 2012 As we leave Burma we contemplate on the things that have stood out for us: Beautiful people. The Burmese are truly unspoilt. They are generous and friendly and have a wonderful sense of humour. We will miss the smiles, the home visits, the "where do you come from?" followed by the football conversation, and the prettiest girls in the world. Velvet slippers. I'm sorry I never bought a pair, I was waiting for our last day and then spent that hanging over the wc instead of shopping. Pagodas, pagodas, pagodas, pagodas and more pagodas. Everywhere you look! Thanaka painted faces. From the hastily applied cheek apple swirls to the more intricate leaf prints on faces, or just a spot on the nose or a smudge under each eye. They are all beautiful. Beautiful ... read more

Asia » Burma » Yangon Region » Yangon January 28th 2013

23 Jamuary 2013 Day two in Yangon and we decide to follow the colonial route. We start with coffee at the Strand and end with lunch at the Governor's Residence, and in between take advantage of the free wifi at the part Junta owned Traders hotel. It is our most expensive day in Burma! You can really lord it here if you want to. The Strand has a colourful history. It's faded glory is still visible in the marble floors in the foyers and the high ceilings. The coffee is proper and so is the milk. We are so tired of three-in-one by now that we will pay anything, even US$5 each, for a cup of decent coffee. The butter biscuits are yum too. The free wifi at Traders is definitely the best in town, and ... read more
Andrew at the Strand
colourful boats at the jetty
old Bombay Burma Press building

Asia » Burma » Yangon Region » Yangon January 26th 2013

22 January 2013 13 hours on the overnight bus from Inle Lake to Yangon. It wasn't the worst bus trip ever and someone was managing to sleep - the snoring was majestic! Thank apple for iPods!! We arrived at the Mingalar bus station just north of Yangon at 06h30 in the morning so at least it was light already. We hadn't managed to secure lodgings in Yangon, so we asked our taxi driver to drop us at the furthest out hotel in the downtown area so that we could start walking towards the centre in search. On the very first corner I got shat on by a Yangon pigeon - lucky lucky!! But how we walked! Maha Bandoola Rd runs through the centre of Yangon downtown, and is about 5km long if you are going straight, ... read more
Sule Paya detail
Sule Pagoda
Thanaka

Asia » Burma » Eastern Burma January 21st 2013

16 January 2013 We stay at the Princess Gardens Hotel in Nyaungshwe. I think it is by far the nicest place to stay here. Ko Aung and Mee Mee are wonderful hosts and their bungalows are lovely. They have just been forced by the government to extend their original 8 rooms to twenty to be able to maintain their hotel license and have had to build some extra bungalows and a wing of attached rooms to this purpose. The rooms are great but the bungalows are fantastic. We are lucky to have been able to get One. They are usually full and the only reason we can stay here is because of the government ruling - so not all bad in this case, as far as we are concerned. Princess Gardens is also the only place ... read more
leg rower
floating village
floating village

Asia » Burma » Eastern Burma January 21st 2013

15 January 2013 Painted blue, green and yellow shutters and doors on natural bamboo and woven palm houses on stilts are scattered in and around the lake. Matching curtains are tied with contrasting ribbon. It is all very chic. The villages here are better off than other areas we've passed through. Though the lake shore has receded by about two miles all round, the lake is still vast and beautiful. The floating gardens where villagers grow onions, garlic, tomatoes, bitter gourd, and flowers, herbs and rice are flourishing. The produce in the local markets is testament to this. There is food for everyone. The floating villages perch picture perfect over the water. Fishermen's houses have large fishing nets slung underneath to keep the catch alive and fresh until market day. Shops display their wares strung up ... read more
pretty house
smokey morning on Inle
Sunrise through the mist

Asia » Burma » Eastern Burma » Kalaw January 20th 2013

14 January 2013 It is a crispy cold morning which we are not really prepared for ( we are packed for beach weather). We put on most of the clothes in our packs and go for a walk. We have three hours to kill before taking the train from Kalaw to Inle Lake. We decided on the train because it is a short trip from here down to Inle and we'd like to check out what the train journeys are like before taking a long one. The fact that the 46km journey was going to take 5 hours should have been warning enough..... We take a covered path up the hill towards a monastery that overlooks the town, and on the way discover the village well. As mentioned before, wells are a great place to meet ... read more
at the well
more from the well at Kalaw
Kalaw from the monastery

Asia » Burma » Eastern Burma » Kalaw January 20th 2013

13 January 2013 Falling asleep to the sound of monks chanting at the Buddhist monastery next door.. The air is cool and crisp and smoke from cooking fires is beginning to seep into our room. Kalaw was once a hill town where the British colonials came to escape the heat and it still has a faded but gently colonial ( is that an oxymoron?) atmosphere. The people here are much more guarded. They are not too keen to talk to tourists - they have seen and done this all before. We are only approached by two people during our afternoon walk-about. The first is a Christian nun from the old church up the hill. She is selling blessings for donations and she takes us for prime christian donation candidates. Little does she know that our light ... read more
Andrew in tea shop
Kalaw Barber Shop
Aung Chan Tha Zedi in Kalaw




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