Daniel Hawes

dan4brentford

Daniel Hawes

I'm a halfy (English-Malay), from London UK. Some people may associate me with Bruce Lee or just a generic oriental. Very keen sportsman with cricket being my activity of choice (but apparently better at football); enjoy nature and science documentaries (closet Trekky too) plus have an ability to crack numerous amounts of bones in my body. Some people would be surprised to know I've had plastic surgery too

I depart the organised madness of London on March 5th, for a seven month expedition. I am to go by myself to discover places that I have only seen on television or didn't even know existed. The journey starts in India, drifts through South-East Asia, onto Australasia and finally come to an end on the east coast of South America.

I hope to see wonders such as the Taj Mahal and Machu Picchu; meet magnificent specimens of nature such as Bengali Tigers and Orangutans but most of all meet great people from different cultures and hopefully make a few friends too.

"BALL!!!!"

Oceania » Australia » Victoria » Melbourne July 2nd 2011

The MCG

dan4brentford

Before I flew down under, I visited my friend in Singapore, Su. I met Su in Ko Lanta and she promised she would look after me for a few days. She did a very good job, even though she had no sense of direction. Singapore, for me, is definitely nice to see once or twice but there is no need for me to go back. It's just a big, expensive city for fat cats. Even the Chinatown did not sell knock off goods. Not a true backpacker destination whatsoever. Just too perfect! To get to Melbourne I flew with Jetstar. These guys are the RyanAir of long haul flights. Food even had to be paid for on the seven hour flight. Thank goodness I had a round-the-world ticket to receive food free. The person sitting next ... read more

Deet Deet!

Asia » Malaysia » Sabah June 23rd 2011

Early Rise

dan4brentford

On arrival back to Kuala Lumpur I had a special someone to pick me up. It was only my Mother. I guess that is the advantage of having one side of the family on the other side of the world. Big hugs all round. She had already been in Malaysia for two weeks, with her sisters and began speaking Malay to me. Interrupting her I said, "you do remember I only speak English, don´t you?!" One perk of not seeing immediate family for a while is the treats. For example, on the first day my Mum asked me, "Fancy going to have some Reflexology?" What do you think my reply was? As well as this, my whole family met up for a slap-up seafood meal. Lush. Nice change to fried rice and Pad Thai every day. ... read more

A Horrendous History with a Positive Future

Asia » Cambodia » South » Phnom Penh June 11th 2011

Cambodian Flags

dan4brentford

On the way to Phnom Penh, our bus stopped off at some street stalls. Many locals were chomping away on what, to them, looked delicious. On closer inspection these guys were feasting on deep fried bugs. Cockroaches, grasshoppers and huge spiders. One lady was eating them like a packet of crisps, in the seat in front of us, on the bus. Not to my liking whatsoever! James and I had little time to enjoy the sights of the capital city. However, that did not result in a lack of goings on. Firstly, after requesting to be dropped off at a hostel, by a tuk-tuk, we discovered it no longer existed. The Lonely Planet was only a year out of date. How could this be? We actually caught it during renovations but the same highly recommended family, ... read more

Angkor What?

Asia » Cambodia » North » Siem Reap June 7th 2011

Bayon Face Profile

dan4brentford

With James being mischeivous (again, if you ask me nicely you could find out) we had to rebook our buses to Cambodia. This meant we needed an extra days worth of clothing, which James did not. Being preoccupied, or just plain lazy, James bought a t-shirt rather than wash one he already had. If only it was that cheap at uni. Thankfully the last night went off without a hitch, apart from my Khao San belly. It had never been the same after I guzzled a bucket of Mai Thai cocktail in five minutes. Dangerous times when a several hour journey to Siem Reap beckoned. The trip started early morning on Khao San Road where the stragglers of the night before could be seen wandering aimlessly. Everything was going swimmingly until we reached the border post. ... read more

"This is Surreal"

Asia » Thailand » North-East Thailand » Nong Khai June 2nd 2011

Giant Surrelism

dan4brentford

After a swift exit from Laos, and two more stamps, I was back in Thailand. It was at this time I realised I had lost another pair of headphones. That's set number three gone. With a twelve hour train imminent, I was driven from shop to shop by a crazy female Tuk Tuk driver. She was one in a million but all she drove me to were mobile phone shops. Apparently, Nong Khai citizens do not listen to personal stereos. Oh well, a half day journey probably sat talking to a mad local awaited. Nong Khai had only one thing I wanted to see before I left for Bangkok: Sala Kaew Ku Sculpture Park. My Lonely Planet the area as surreal and this was pretty spot on. Gigantic Hindu and Buddhist images towered above me yet ... read more

Ville Capitale

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane May 31st 2011

Monk View

dan4brentford

Yet again, the Laos countryside blew me away to get to the capital city. Winding mountain roads, passed limestone formations and local villages were the highlights. The scenery sadly ended to bring me to the country's premier settlement. When I arrived at the guest house, the chaps working there found it funny I was British and I was called Dan. They just could not believe someone could look like them with a different accent. Every sentence ended in "Dan". For example, "Here's your back passport, Dan.","What EPL team do you support, Dan?" and "Have a nice stay, Dan!". This did not stop for the three days I stayed there. Word seem to get out and even the guy on the night shift did it. The strange thing was that I had never met him. In all ... read more

Not Playing By the Rules

Asia » Laos » West » Vang Vieng May 28th 2011

The Batcave

dan4brentford

What was I letting myself in for? Was I going to love it or hate it? From Luang Prabang there is a road. Not any road though. A single lane mountain road with more twists than a curly-wurly. The views in the highlands were terrific but my utmost concentration was needed not to be sick. Every other turn seemed to be a 180 degree corner just like the Monaco Grand Prix. On the way, there were villages perched on the sides of sheer drops. Hundreds of children roamed the road. One child of only two at most was feet away from speeding vehicles. I was nervous every time we got too close. At one point, a cockerel was avoiding the traffic in the other direction. In its haste it did not realise our minibus heading straight ... read more

Classy Cafe Culture

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang May 24th 2011

Morning Alms

dan4brentford

This town came with a big reputation. Caroline, a Swiss girl of whom I met in India, rated this as one of her top places to visit in six months of backpacking. Her first recommendation was to stay at a guest house situated near the Buddhist monasteries. She said the monks wake up at half four in the morning to do a important ritual, of which I could watch from the comfort of the guest house. It did not sound particularly appetizing but scheduled it in my diary. The first morning I just slept through until 11am. Oops! This did give me an opportunity to stroll around the town. The main street was amazing. It was just like I imagine a rural French village to be. Since it is a French colony, the architecture was almost ... read more

The Mighty Mekong

Asia » Thailand » Northern Thailand » Chiang Khong May 22nd 2011

Slowboat on the Mekong

dan4brentford

My visa exemption had come to an end so I made for the Thai-Lao border. I decided to use my full time in Thailand and spend the night in the sleepy town of Chiang Khong. I was not to do much apart from recharge my batteries and what a place to do it. My guest house lay beside the fast flowing Mekong with scenic land of Laos on the other side. As the Sun lowered, I indulged in a couple of glass-bottled Cokes and the best book I have ever read, Norweigen Wood by Haruki Marukami. Local fisherman hauled in the catches in apparent silence, shadows grew longer and eventually the off-key Karaoke was in full swing across the water. Fireflies even joined the party, one by one, blinking in a hypnotizing fashion on the riverbank. ... read more

Same Same But Different

Asia » Thailand » North-West Thailand » Chiang Mai May 16th 2011

Hungry Elephant

dan4brentford

Action packed from the beginning until the end. In fact it was amazing before it had even started. The mountain highway passed through some astounding scenery. It weaved through the undulating terrain and at one point our bus nearly travelled backwards because of the slope. During a toilet break I witnessed a monk smoking while he was on the phone. I could not help staring. Come to think of it, I have seen monks do this sort of thing before. In Bangkok I had seen a monk on an iPod. I wonder what he was listening to? Hopefully it was a bit of Kings of Leon, or better yet Daft Punk. A travel companion I had met said she had seen three monks on three adjacent ATMs. She did not even think they had bank accounts. ... read more

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