Thailand: Krabi & Northern Thailand

Arrived into Krabi & it soon became evident that this is where all the people were! Yeah! Decided to catch a local bus to a nearby beach. Some locals (who spoke no English) helped me catch this minibus type thing. I had no idea where I was going but I hopped on the bus & ended up at a place called Ao Nang. It was really windy & threatening rain but it stayed dry so I could enjoy the beautiful beach, which had huge limestone rock formations in the sea. I ended up having a full body Thai massage in one of the numerous huts on the beach. Bliss.  I caught another minibus back to the hostel. Later I had food in the night market near the harbour, only 5 minute's walk from the hostel. I quite fancied a beer but today was a booze free day in Thailand due to a Buddhist celebration.  Back at the hostel, word was going round that there was a bar close by that was selling booze. A few of us headed there & met the Italian owner & his Thai wife. They weren't bothered about the booze ban! Had a fun night with people from the hostel.  Went to bed a little bit tipsy!

Next day I had a lazy morning then headed to the airport to catch the flight to Chiang Mai. So glad I booked it and avoided Bangkok! The Hostel in Chiang Mai was ok. Lots of young people (a lot of Brits) which I was expecting as Thailand at this time of year is full of students on their summer hols, but I was tired & a bit hungover & didn't feel like socialising, so I went off on my own to walk around the night market.  Bought 2 dresses for £9. Nice!

Sunday I was up early as I wanted to see as much of Chiang Mai as I could. Walked around visiting several temple's & enjoyed what the city had to offer. After my standard Pad Thai lunch, I had booked myself on a half day tour to visit one of the most significant temples in Thailand: Wat Suthep. The mini bus consisted of just girls. Clearly none of us wanted to drive a moped up the windy road to the temple! Bit of a rainy day but once at the temple the sun came out so we could enjoy the beauty of the gold temple shimmering in the sunlight. We also visited a traditional village close by, learning about the history but finding the museum very random so laughing rather than taking anything in! Wish I had a photo but we weren't allowed to take pictures. Later I went to the Sunday night market. Omg it was huge! I walked around for the best part of 2 hours & still didn't see all of it. It rained the whole time I was there so I trundled back to the hostel, soaked right through. I need to buy a waterproof jacket or brolly but it feels wrong when in Thailand!

After Chiang Mai I stayed for 2 nights in Sukhothai. Had a lovely day cycling around Thailand's first capital. The old city is a World Heritage Site & includes the remains of 21 temples within the city's ancient walls. It was a gorgeous day & I cycled for miles. Loved it here.  I made friend's with a 19 year old Thai girl on the 5 hour bus journey there, getting by with the help of Google translate on her ipad, I learned about her life & she made me try some fruit I'd never had before but I can't remember the name now!

Following Chiang Mai I stayed 2 nights in Pai. Met another Thai girl on the mini bus who managed to spill cold coffee into my seat & all over me so I felt like I'd wet myself for the last hour of the journey!  Not that I've ever done that of course....... ! Pai was amazing. Really laid back & chilled. I did a half day tour (which turned into a whole day tour as the guide spoke no English so was unable to tell us how long to stay at places), just me & 8 Chinese people visiting sights around the area; a temple, waterfall, memorial bridge, coffee shops & some other places. Saw some elephants! Made friend's with an 8 year old Chinese girl who was in the tour who spoke no English.  She was so adorable. Yes I'm getting soft in my old age! That night I met up with Eilidh, a Scottish girl I'd met on the way to Pai. We went to the 'secret bar' which I don't think was that secretive but anyway, it was cool in there.  Reminded me of being at a festival.  We declined the offer of the free salad (really?!) & had drinks instead. A guy played the didgeridoo, guitar & drums at the same time.  He was so good!  After he finished they started playing really heavy dance music which was inappropriate for that time of night, so we left & went to the Jazz cafe. Watched some live music there, had my first booze bucket of my travels (Sangsom & coke) & headed to bed.  Glad I did as I had a 9 hour journey the next day & a very windy road! Barf!

My last destination to spend the day in Thailand (for now anyway) was Chaing Rai. I'd been told a visit to the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) was a must and it was on my way to get to Laos. The temple had been damaged recently by an earthquake and the day I decided to visit, they were having a day of celebration to pray as they are worried another earthquake is going to damage it further.  The temple was really beautiful & unlike any I had seen before.  Everyone at the temple was so friendly.  A lady even held my hand to get me across the busy road beside it!  They were all wearing white clothes as part of the celebrations.  Glad I went that day!  That evening I caught the local bus to a Chiang Kong where I was staying overnight before Laos.

Lot of travelling around this last week with some mammoth bus journeys but glad I got to see so much. I would love to return to the north of Thailand again as I loved it & could spend longer there. The people in Thailand are so friendly & after everything that's happened recently, they are glad to see you. One lady even thanked me for coming to Thailand. Now onwards to Laos.

Thailand: Ko Lanta

I thought it would take me about 5 hours to get from Langkawi to Ko Lanta. Oh how wrong I was. A car journey, a ferry, a van, a bus, a tuc tuc, 2 hours in a random town,  another mini bus (which drove onto 2 ferries)..... 10.5 hours later, I had arrived!  Dear god!  What I hadn't realised when I decided to go to Ko Lanta was that it's low season, so not many ferries running, making journey's much longer. Got to my hostel & they couldn't have been more welcoming. It was just me & one other person staying! I went out for dinner & had a lovely Pad Thai in a restaurant overlooking the sea, only me & a Chinese family (with a screaming ill baby that should have been in bed) in the restaurant.  Quick & friendly service.  This was a theme for the next few days... minus the Chinese family thankfully!

Woke up the next day after a great sleep. The hostel is built over the sea so you can hear the waves as you sleep. It's so cute with a balcony out the front where you can chill, or you can walk up the wooden steps to a sun terrace.  After chatting to the owner, she told me the scuba diving doesn't operate from there at the moment.  I could go to Ko Phi Phi (an hour on the boat), but the boat had been cancelled that day & the previous day due to bad weather! Oh dear, someone should have done their research!

I went for brunch & decided to hire a push bike to explore the island a bit. I must have tried 6 shops but all they had were mopeds.  The place was like a ghost town. Finally someone pointed me in the direction of a shop 5 mins walk away. The lady in the shop was lovely & after trying to pump up tyres on the 4 bikes she had, she realised that they all needed a tyre replacing. Her English was a bit broken but next thing she'd closed her shop & I was on the back of her moped going to a bike shop.... I think. We drove around, then she mumbled something (it was hard to hear her whilst on the back of a bike, the wind in your face, speaking broken English), and we went back to her shop.  Then she asked me if I could drive her moped & she would carry the bike. Er no! She was really funny, perhaps a little bit crazy but lovely with it. We ended up walking with one of the bikes to a garage, having a chat on the way.  We discovered we were both the same age & chatted about our lives. She told me she was in love with a guy & he married someone else.  I just wanted to give her a hug but we had only just met so I refrained.

At the garage the inner tube she had brought was too small so off she went on the garage owner's moped to buy another,  leaving me there. Had a chat with a guy from the Philippines who was getting his bike fixed. The lady returned & finally my bike was fixed. She asked if I could take her on the back to return to her shop. I was like, really?! She realised it was a daft idea & the man at the garage gave her a lift.  Finally I was on my bike! Then after 15mins it started to rain so I stopped for a drink. Finally it stopped & I did some cycling!! The bike had no gears & wasn't very comfortable.  Was good to do some exercise though! I returned the bike back to the shop having another chat with the lady. She was so sweet.

Later I had dinner in another restaurant.  Really unusual place with multi coloured tables & chairs, flashing lights, random ceramic figurines ... secretly loved it! Tonight was a busy one.... me & 2 other tables! Food was lovely & dead cheap.

Next day I decided to try & go to Phi Phi for the day. The boat leaves at 8am & returns at 3pm. I'd enquired at the ferry terminal the day before about if they thought the boat would run.  The lady said to come at 7.30am & she would let me know.  I wasn't holding out much hope but got up & got ready anyway.  Got there & she said it's running. Great!  She was about to write me a ticket & I asked what time it would be returning.  11am. I decided not to go & went back to bed!

Had a chilled day & did a lot of planning for my trip. Ate some more lovely Thai food throughout the day & went for a long walk. The planning was definitely required after coming here!! It's been lovely though after a busy few week's & I know the next few are going to be jam packed.  I will try & keep writing my blogs but they may be shorter!

Looking forward to actually seeing more backpacker's tomorrow in Krabi before I head to the north for temples & trekking!

Jackie x

Penang & Langkawi

Penang is described as the 'Pearl of the Orient'. Like Melaka it's also a UNESCO World Heritage site so lots to do. I didn't arrive into Georgetown until the evening having spent the whole day travelling to get there. And with only 2 night's stay & an early morning departure, my time was limited. I went for a wander with Julia (German girl from the Cameron Highlands) and Peter, enjoying samosas & bhajis from the Indian market.  20p each and delicious! Of course I went back for another samosa! We walked around the streets, looking at the buildings & street art. Later we met Sabrina & Daniella for a drink in a cheap bar local bar with no tourists (discovered after Julia met a German guy who was working in Georgetown).  A friendly camp Malaysian guy started randomly chatting to me, explaining he lives with a film director from LA & was going to Italy on holiday in a few weeks. He just wanted to chat!  I managed to tear myself away & me & Sabrina went for some food. We sat with some locals at a street food van & I tried Nasi Lemak. Fish with coconut rice in a spicy sauce. I ate it but wasn't quite sure about it.... couldn't taste any coconut! That, a bottle of water & a samosa .... 65p! Seriously! Germany were playing in the World Cup that night at midnight but I went to bed whilst my German friend's headed to the pub.

Next day myself & Peter visited the Pinaon Time Tunnel learning about the history of Penang. Really interesting museum. At the end there were 3d paintings you could take your photo in. Quite amusing! The rest of the day was spent wandering the streets enjoying the street art & eating local food at any opportunity.  Beef Rendang, Laksa, an ice ball! (see photo) and an Indian platter. Yummy! Pretty chilled out day which was good after travelling all day yesterday.

The following morning we were off to Langkawi on the ferry, which takes about 3 hours. Daniella had warned us that half of their boat had been sick so I didn't eat any breakfast & had a motion sickness tablet which I'd bought the previous day. Once on the boat, I fell asleep and slept most of the journey.  Yes the tablets make you drowsy too! Result!  Apparently a young girl was sick all over the floor but I missed it... thankfully!  Got a taxi to Pantai Cenang & checked into my hostel. Had a wander around. Very touristy here, reminded me of a Spanish resort & the first place I've noticed lots of home comforts; a tea shop selling English breakfasts! Yes call me a snob but give me local food when I'm on holiday!  Had a look in the duty free shops.  I didn't realise that the island is duty free.... yes, cheap booze! I could now afford wine on my travelling budget! This was good and bad.  I've hardly been drunk since I left home. Yes I know,  hard to believe!  So that night I met all the guys along with Talia (Canadian girl from my hostel), and 2 other guys from Daniella & Sabrina's hostel.  I had a few glasses of red wine! We had dinner at a curry house & had drinks in a beach bar. The wind started blowing a gale & we knew the rain was on its way. Yes it's monsoon season.  We managed to leave the bar at the right time but had to run for shelter in a restaurant. It was after midnight at this point. We had some funny chats & finally the rain stopped so we could walk back,  avoiding the massive puddles on the street.

A lazy day followed. Spent time on the beach with the girls & caught up on washing,  planning, emails etc. Then that night it was my last night with the guys I'd been with on and off the last couple of week's.  We went for a cheap Indian, my last tandoori platter in Malaysia. Sad times. We then went for drinks, first at a bar outside a lovely jewellery shop,  then later to a makeshift bar outside a convenience store. It was very random but the music was good and the cocktails were cheap... £1.80! And they were strong.  I was really enjoying the night but I knew I had a long day travelling the next day so left around midnight. I later found out they'd all gone to another bar somewhere & didn't get to bed 'till 4/5am. So glad I left when I did!

I've thoroughly enjoyed my time in Malaysia. It has so much to offer, the people are friendly & helpful,  the food is delicious & varied, the weather was great.  And they all speak really good English. Go if you get the chance! Oh and of course, I met some really lovely people here. Back on my own again boo hoo. But loads more to come. Next stop, Thailand!

Change of itinerary

Need to do my latest destination update but I'm currently in Thailand on an island - Ko Lanta. It's out of season & there's hardly anyone here (I'm alone in my hostel!) & I didn't realise!! So been having a think about where to go later in the year & try to be a bit more organised! It's hard sometimes to plan ahead when you're busy having fun at your current destination! And the last few weeks have been a lot of fun! :)

So my new itinerary is going to be:

Stay in Thailand until 21st of July.

Laos 2-3weeks

Vietnam all of August 

Cambodia 1-15 September 

Borneo 16 Sep 2-3 weeks

Phillipines Oct 2-3 weeks

Myanmar end Oct 1-2 weeks (maybe as might have someone interested in coming with me)

Back to Thailand until 19 November.

This of course is subject to change! But I'm booking cheap flights today to get me from Cambodia to Borneo. There seems to be loads to do there & I can do some more diving. I've decided to give India a miss this time as I've heard too many horror stories & I don't feel comfortable going alone. I will go in the future! 

By the way if you weren't already aware, I'm only travelling until November now. Yes I have a boyfriend which wasn't in the plan when I booked this, but I couldn't be happier! South America will just have to wait. On and in other news, all being well, I will be moving to Edinburgh in the new year. It's all go and it's all bloody BRILLIANT! :)

Jackie x

Malaysia: Perhentian Islands

The Perhentian Islands are situated off the north east of Malaysia.  There are 2 main islands; Big Perhentian Island and Small Perhentian Island.  I’ve met a few people on my travels who have been raving about scuba diving.  I’ve always enjoyed snorkelling but I’m not a strong swimmer and the idea of scuba diving, being so deep under the water with just a tank on your back, terrifies me.  But I have never actually tried to scuba dive and if you don’t try you never know!  So I looked into courses and the Lonely Planet told me that the Perhentian Islands were one of the cheapest places to do it.  A quick Google search later I found a dive school there with glowing reviews (Turtle Bay).  I contacted them about doing a day introductory course to see if I liked it, then if I did, I would progress with the course.  No problem they said, so I booked myself on it.

I arrived at Long Beach on the small island on the Saturday evening after a very long and uncomfortable bus and boat ride.  Peter was also there as he was doing his rescue divers course.  And Matt and Sarah (from Melaka) were also there, as well the two Swiss girls from the Cameron Highlands, Sabrina and Daniella.  I went for dinner with Matt, Sarah, Peter and Alex (hilarious Polish girl from the bus journey) and had a lovely evening on the beach, despite the torrential rain meaning we were stuck in the restaurant for ages!!  Later we met up with Sabrina and Daniella for a drink.

Sunday morning just after 9am I found myself sat in a room above the dive shop alone, watching a really cheesy American DVD and the start of my dive course.  What was I doing??!  I got through the first level and then before I knew it, I was out in the sea with 3 other people and my instructor.  Eek!  I took quite a few attempts to take my mask off under water, I freaked out a few times and my legs were shaking.  By the end of the day I was still unsure if I liked it, so thought I'm here now, I’m not in a hurry, I may as well finish the course and then decide.  Why not!  

The next day I continued with the dive course.  Videos, tests, practising various safety requirements in the sea, setting up my equipment, taking it off etc.  That afternoon I went out to sea again and I was already nervous about the removal of the mask.  Once down the bottom, I had to do it and managed to swallow a lot of water and freak out! It really wasn't nice.  I managed to calm myself down but the rest of the dive, I couldn't relax.  I had a word with my instructor afterwards and he said he knew I could do it as I had done it a few times before, it was just in my head.  He asked me if I wanted to continue the course and I said I'd have a think about it.  I walked away deflated.  Met Peter and Alex and over a beer they gave me words of support and talked about their diving experiences and I didn't want to quit, so I thought no, I'm going to do this!  I felt terrible that night and went to bed early.  Slept so well.

Day 3 and I said I wanted to continue but didn't want to go into the sea that day.  I finished all the videos, reading and tests.  Did a swim and treading water test and finished around 3pm.  The rest of my group finished that day - well done guys!

Day 4, this was it!  My instructor had to go to the mainland that day so I had another instructor, an English guy called Joe.  I explained my situation and we went out to the shallow sea to practise.  He was really patient with me and showed me if I put my head right down I don't breathe through my nose. This was easy!  I managed to do it several times.  Then we went out to sea and did it again.  Then in the afternoon my final dive, I was nervous again but managed to do it.  We did a few more tests and before I knew it I was back on the boat.  I had passed!  Yippeeeee! TBH I still wasn't sure if I liked diving but now I was qualfied I could dive without having to do any of the tests so will see what happens.  Peter also passed his rescue diver course so we agreed to go on a 'fun' dive the next day.

I was still nervous about the fun dive but once I got in the water the nerves disappeared and I started to enjoy it, especially when a turtle swam right past me.  So cool!  Peter filmed it too and it looks ace!  I struggled a bit with my buoyancy but I'm told that comes with time.  Looking forward to doing some more dives on my trip now I'm a PADI Open Water Diver!!!!

Really loved my time on the island. Its so relaxing and chilled.  The evenings were spent meeting up with the people I'd met in the last week, enjoying the food and watching fire shows on the beach.  So lovely here.  I did manage to get 45 mozzie bites at one point and I'm not even kidding!  So I was sad to leave but also glad that I wouldn't be scratching any more.  Loved my time here.  Now onto Penang.

Malaysia: The Cameron Highlands

Got up early to get the bus to Tana Rata in the Cameron Highlands.  As I got off the bus I approached another backpacker to see where they were going and if they wanted to share a taxi.  His name was Peter from Germany and was going to the same hostel as me!  Result.  We arrived at Father’s Guest House and I instantly felt at home.  Had a lovely welcome from Manager (Valarie from France), she showed us around, pointing out the free tea and comfy seating area in reception.  Everyone seemed very relaxed here and it was colder outside,  a welcome relief after 5 weeks of sunshine.  Myself and Peter went for a wander around the town.  It was pretty compact, and it seemed like the only thing to do here was eat or drink.  So we went and had cheesecake and tea, as you do!  Back at the hostel we met some other people, Jez from London and Cerys from Manchester, and a young Dutch guy who I can’t remember his name as we called him Justin Bieber as he looked like him!!  We all went for dinner later to an Indian, trying the tandoori platter.  So good! Afterwards we went to a bar and met 2 Swiss girls, Daniella and Sabrina.  Cerys and Sabrina had met previously in Thailand.  Had such a funny night playing a silly card game and getting far too excited! I was called a party pooper for leaving early (er midnight!) as I was on a whole day trip the next day.  I later found out they all stayed out until 4/5am and truth or ‘action’ (not dare) had been played.  The football was on at 3am but I think that was just an excuse to stay out drinking!!

The tour I had booked the next day was a whole day tour visiting some of the sights in the Cameron Highlands.  Visited a tea plantation, mossy forest, tea factory, butterfly sanctuary, strawberry fields, a random museum and a Chinese temple. Really good day but I needed a lie down by the end of it!  Was cool to see where tea comes from and how it’s produced.  Oh forgot to mention, that morning I was in the jeep at the start of the tour with my guide and a Dutch couple.  We were stopped by immigration and a very stern looking man asked me for my passport.  I said it was at my hotel.  He then questioned me as to why I wasn’t carrying it and what would happen if something happened to me.  I was a bit shocked by his directness and just mumbled back to him.  He then gave me a final warning.  I later found out that you can get charged for not carrying your passport with you in Malaysia.  Whoops!  Lucky escape and a learning for the rest of my trip!

The following day I had booked another tour but this time half a day, a jungle trek to see one of the biggest flowers in the world!  Woooo!  I was with the Dutch couple from yesterday, a guy from Singapore and our guide, Frances.  I was a bit worried about leeches as it had been raining the night before and the Dutch girl as also the same.  We asked Frances but he said there would only be one or two.  About 10mins into the trek I felt something on my ankle.  I thought it was just my imagination but when I rolled up my trouser leg it was there, a leech! URGH!  I did a bit of a girlie shriek and Frances came to the rescue removing it from my ankle in one clean sweep.  He’s done with before!  For the rest of the trek up (about an hour and a half there) myself and the Dutch girl were paranoid about leeches and kept stopping to check our ankles!!  Then as we got near the top we were warned there would be a lot of wasps.  I hate them!  I was sweating so much too as the trek was all uphill.  When we finally got to the flower, loads of Malaysian tourists in the way crowding round, we all got to see it.  Wow incredible! They only bloom for 5 days but they have them most of year round here. It was pretty cool to see.  We walked back to the jeep through the jungle ….. only to find our jeep stuck in the mud!  Frances had gone on ahead to try and move it as he had struggled to get us up the hill earlier.  The jeep wasn’t moving. A few people tried to help but it wouldn’t budge.  Luckily another company had space in their van so we got a lift back to the hostel.  An eventful morning!  Had a relaxing afternoon eating and drinking tea.  Paula arrived from KL so showed her around.  Had a great time in the Cameron Highlands.  Malaysia is so not what I expected, really loving it here.  So much diversity of things to do.  Off to the Islands next… can I do my dive course…..  all will be revealed soon!