Slow Boat

Got to the docks at 8:30 to get the boat for 9:00 only to discover as I should have predicted that the Thai attitude towards timings is employed across the border as well. At 11:00 we finally departed after changing boat which resulted in me losing my good seat and winding up next to a chain smoking old Japanese man. The scenery was beautiful though and I met some lovely people including an Australian couple who were nurses in Australia and a guy who did his Dive Master in Ko Tao at the some place I dived. Once we reached Pakbeng, Max (the diver) and two of the girls we met got rooms together which proved an experience as we lost power at about 10 O'Clock resulting in no fan and no light in a tiny room with a thunderstorm outside and then of course I got ill...less than ideal. The next morning it was all I could do to make it to the dock where I spent the next 7 hours in the back of the boat. It was the only place there was space to lie down but was so hot and noisy. Luckily I was so out of it that I managed to sleep quite a lot anyway!

Houyxai

Tuesday 11th May - Bit of a stressful morning today! Got up at 7:30 to call the publc bus station to find out what time the bus to Houyxai was and discovered that it went at 8:30 so after speedy packing, shower and breakfast got to the bus station at about 8:20. After waiting in the huge queue for 45 minutes with my bag on only then did I discover that the bus was full...not happy. Ended up just going back to the guesthouse and getting a minibus which cost more but was nice as I met some people who I could chat to and when we reached Chiang Khong we decided to cross the border together. When the driver said a 5 minute walk to the ferry it turned out to be about half an hour but we eventually made it across with no problems. Excited about the slow boat tomorrow!

Back to Chiang Mai

Monday 10th May - Second day in Phenom Penh and this morning I did the Royal Palace which was a bit of a dissapointment as the Prime Minister was in residence so I wan't actually allowed into any of the buildings! Also did the Silver Pagoda which had an amzing mural of the Ramayana myth and alledgedly Buddha's footprint but I missed this! Next stop was the National Museum which wasn't quite what I expected, just lot's of bits of the temples at Angkor. The highlight was the paintings of Angkor which were stunning. Had my flight to Chiang Mai this afternoon and got checked into the same guesthouse as last time I was here ready for the border tomorrow morning.

Phenom Penh

Sunday 9th May - Made the massive mistake of taking the 'sleeper' bus from Siem Reap last night...it was horrendous. It was basically just a normal bus with poor air conditioning so trying to sleep was practically impossible. In the end I just gave up and slept in the aisle, I'm sure all the locals must have thought I was nuts. Managed to get about 2 hours sleep and then checked into a lovely guesthouse after being taken to my driver's guesthouse which I did not ask for and was not best pleased about at 6 O'Clock in the morning! After a couple of hours kip I got up and started the sights. On the way to the Toul Sleng Genocide museum we stopped off at the Liberation monument celebrating relations with the Vietnamese and the Independence Monument to celebrate independence from France. The genocide museum was shocking, it's so sad that the exterminations happened so recently (1975- 1979) with about 15,000 children killed and yet hardly anyone knows about it. This afternoon I went to the Killing Fields which is wehere the prisoners from S21 were taken for the exterminations. Finished off the day by going to the Quay which is where the tourists go to eat and drink and all the locals meet to socialise. It's a great atmosphere and I keep being amazed by the French influences all over the city. I was walking along the Quay and came across a massive group of people of all ages dancing on the Quay, kind of like an outdoor aerobics class... did look like fun though!

p.s. I undrestand why celebrities get annoyed with the papparazi now...the whole time I have been here I have just been heckled by tuk tuk drivers and children selling books. The manage to get to you before you even leave the guesthouse but the worst is when you are eating and you can see them watching you from outside ad when they see you get up they all crowd to the door like vultures...it's horrible!

Louang Phabang

Realised I have been rather neglecting the blog over the last week due firstly to doing a lot of travelling, Phenom Penh to Luang Phabang in 4 days and then being quite ill. At some point during the travel I picked up the dreaded traveller's sickness which I was pretty gutted about having managed to make it the whole way through with only a week left! Luckily I am on the mend now and glad that I budgeted an extra day into the itinerary. I will try and catch up with the diary over the next couple of days. Today was the first day I dragged myself out of bed so I went up to the Kouang Si Waterfall which was just as stunning as I was promised and home to a bear sanctuary and some huge, purple spotted butterflies which made the whole area magical. The water was freezing cold (well relatively compared to the sea in the south anyway) but was lovely for a swim after the sun. I am about to be very cultural and go watch a film next door so I can have a good rest! I am so excited about tomorrow because I am going elephant riding!! I actually can't wait...should be so much fun!

Angkor Temples

Saturday 8th May - Today Rich and I did Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples which was amazing! We went out to see the sunrise over Angkor Wat which was the first stop on the tour our tuk tuk driver did for us. It was funny because it was pretty busy at sunrise but after that everyone seemed to disappear. Unfortunately quite a lot of the temple was under construction which ruined the photos a bit. Next stop was Angkor Thom ...the Bayon was actually my favourite temple, it was pretty run down but so beautiful and I can add another two blessings for good luck to the list now. Angkor Thom is a collection of temples and as we walked to the Baphoun we came across some wall rubbings of Angkor Wat which I was persuaded into buying and am now trying to carry around with me! Ta Keo is a replica of Mount Meru with all the stones for the temple brought from the Mountain. They were transported using bamboo sticks which are driven through the stone (no idea how). Next stop Ta Phrom which was used as the set for the Tomb Raider movie. This is the one which has been left completely as found after it was claimed by the jungle so there are trees growing out of the structure which is pretty magical. This was one of the most important temples as over 12thousand people lived there! After a couple of the smaller temples we decided to call it a day as a 4 O'Clock start was a bit difficult! This afternoon I spent planning the rest of the trip as I realised how little time I actually have left. We then went to have a look at the market and tried cricket for the first time which was surprisingly not disgusting at all!

Siam Reap

Had an absolute emotional rollercoaster of a day on Friday. Got up at stupid O'clock to get the bus down to Bangkok although I was very happy that this only cost 1 pound. I was having a massive panic before I got there because I was running around Ayutthaya at about 7 in the morning trying to find somewhere to exchange Baht into Dollars and get passport photos ( these are needed for the visas and the stupid dive resort used all of mine!). The journey was uneventful until we got to Bangkok and I realised that we had stopped at a different station to the one we left from on the way out. The annoying thing was I knew where I was but not how to get to the bus terminal as the maps are awful and Thais generally have no idea either where they are or where anything else is. After crying in the middle of the station I bought the most sugary drink I could find and bouyed up on E numbers I told the driver to just drive and discovered the bus terminal was just around the next corner! Bus to Aranyaprathet was less eventful and luckily I found a woman from Australia who worked in Cambodia who helped me painlessly through border control. Turns out I managed to get away with not having photos by paying 100 Baht extra. Arrived In Siem Reap after having to wait 45 minutes for my taxi driver to pick up two other passengers who never turned up! I couldn't stay angry at him though, he was so charismatic and pretty soon we were both laughing hysterically as I tried to negotiate the price in Cambodian and him in English. When we got to Siem Reap I hadn't decided where to stay so hailed the first Westerner I saw intending to ask him directions to the place I had picked out of the guidebook. Turned out it was a guy I had already met in Ko Phangan called Rich. We were planning to go for a drink which then turned into dinner and then turned into me just staying with him. Hotel room for $3 and organised trip to the temples the next day was definitely a bonus!

Ayutthaya

Had an epic journey yesterday...left Ko Tao at 1400 and arrived in Ayutthaya at 1000 this morning! I then decided to jump right in, hired a bike and have spent the day going round as many temples as I think I can handle for a while! Got some good pictures but unfortunatly no means of uploading at the place I am staying. Most of the temples are ruins from when the Burmese sacked the city in 1767 but they are beautiful, apparently like Angkok Wat but on a smaller scale. After leaving my frines in Koh Tao I am on my own again but heopfully will meet new people on my way into Cambodia. After hearing some horror stories about dedicated visa buses I have decide to go back to Bangkok and get the public bus which seems like a better option and will probably be cheaper as well. Today I managed to get a room for 120 B -about2.5 punds- and a bus ticket for 1 pound!

Thank you for the comments, it means a lot to know you guys are listening, I miss you all so much xx

Open Water Advanced

Day 1: After great success on the Open Water Course, decided to stay on and do the advanced. Today we had three dives so I am absolutely exhausted, the extra nitrogen really makes you tired. The first dive was the deep dive where we went the whole way down to 30m. It was amazing the temperatures differences when you hit a thermocline. It feels like a massive difference but is actually only about 1, maybe 2 degrees and you get a weird kid of mirage effect in the water. The second dive was navigation which was actually surprisingly easy so we relaxed a bit and just cruised around taking in the marine life. Then this evening we had the night dive which was actually my favourite yet. We didn't have to do any skills so it was really relaxed, we saw a lionfish which are really rare around here and bio luminescent algae which glow when you move about in the water, it was incredible!

Day 2: Decided as I am here I may as well do everything I can so today I got certified to use enriched air as well which allows me to go deeper for longer. The dives today were basically just fun dives without our instructor which was a bit scary at first but so much fun. My buddy and I swam out to 'Secret Pinnacle' on the first dive so it was just us which is nice as usually there are quite a few other divers around. We got quite a shock when I turned around and there was a huge trigger fish literally right in front of my face. Luckily it didn't get territorial although Julie in the other buddy team got attacked when they went into a territory!

Open Water

Day One: After dancing til dawn at the Full Moon party I then got up after about a hour of sleep to get the boat to Ko Tao. Turned out to be a very good idea as I missed the rush and actually managed to start the dive course this afternoon. The class consisted of a video which I am sure lasted about three hours...a bit of a mission after very little sleep! First dive tomorrow!

Day Two: Had such a good sleep last night :D Started the class this morning reviewing the theory we learnt last night. Most of it is common sense actually. This afternoon we went into the pool which was a bit scary but then again you always know that if something does go wrong you are just a metre from the surface! Tomorrow we have our first open water dive.

Day Three: Very early start this morning as we got the boat at 7:30. We went out to the dive sight where we set up our equipment, did our buddy checks (my buddy is Julie from New York City) and then got in the water. I was actually terrified but I am so proud of myself now. Getting in the water is called a giant's stride. Basically holding onto your weight belt, mask and regulator you take a huge step off the side of the boat and just drop! I think for me that is actually one of the scariest parts! Both times I did it I lost my fins, regulator and mask! Even the second dive was better than the first as I relaxed, controlled my breathing better (so I wasn't going up and down like a cork) and we saw some amazing marine life like moray eels, stingrays and so many different fish!. This afternoon we had our final theory class and then the exam which I passed with 98%. All that is left to do are the skills tomorrow then then I get my certificate.

Tonight we went to a drag cabaret (where the picture is from). I am not really sure how to describe it but it was incredible. I think the pictures will tell the best story when I can upload them! Definitely worth a visit!!

Day Four: Early start again today as we set off for our final two dives. These were a lot more fun than yesterday as we basically just swam about looking at all the marine life as the skills were completed yesterday. Once again I have not managed the entry and lost all of my equipment! At least it is good practice for clearing my mask. It's amazing, I am so much more comfortable in the water now (although those first few breaths still terrify me!) and even on the surface I am a lot better. I am quite surprised that I am having some trouble with my ears as they never pop when I fly but I think with practice I will get better at equalizing. Today we got filmed as well so that should be interesting...hopefully they got my underwater somersault!

Tomorrow I start the advanced course which allows me to go down to 30 metres rather than just 18 so hopefully I will be able to dive some wrecks in the future...no rest for the wicked!

Ko Phangan

Came to Ko Phangan on Sunday after a epic journey and such a rough boat ride. We checked into what was promised to be an amazing hostel but as I was trying to have a quiet night it awful. The next morning there was no water so the one shower we had was rendered useless. Myself, Cat and Michelle (friends from Phi Phi) decided to get a hotel room together so we are now staying in a nicer place for cheaper! Ko Phangan isn't actually that great, the beach is just like Magaluff apparently, loads of British people with blaring music and beer. Two nights ago we went to a pool party and I think I got spiked which was just a horrible experience, luckily I was still with my friends who took me home..kind of scary still though...and annoying as I didn't even leave my drink. Had a quiet day yesterday recovering from the effects of the night before (not pleasant) and found sunset beach which was so lovely and relaxed. Today Cat and I and some of her friends took a ride up to the north of the island but to be honest there isn't much here. We finished off with a game of volleyball on the beach...it has to be done!

Tomorrow I am leaving for Ko Tao to do my diving course (so excited!) and tonight is the Full Moon, though I am trying not to get my hopes up as I don't want it to be a disappointment!

Still in Phi Phi

Still in Phi Phi, this place is incredible! The day before last we took in Long Beach which was beautiful but on the 'quiet' side of the island and had a richer clientele. The walk to get there was a bit of a mission, there was some serious guesswork going on as to where the path was going! Then yesterday 10 of us hired out a longboat to take us around the island, we went over to Phi Phi Ley where we landed on Maya Bay where they filmed 'The Beach', it's absolutely stunning. We also stopped off in various places to snorkel which was unreal. It was my first time snorkeling and did not disappoint... I had a bit of a shock though as my snorkel had water in from where I had jumped in so he first thing I did was inhale a huge amount of water! The was not the best thing in the world as I did panic slightly right ion the middle of the ocean! The fish are incredible, the colours are so vibrant and we saw some coral as well. I dived down to get a closer look and was a bit too late taking a breath so got another mouthful of water...not so good.

I have got my first burn, it's just a tiny patch but it hurts so much. The toe splinter seems to have sorted itself out but I now have a cut on the sole of my foot!

Probably leaving in the next couple of days to hit the full moon on Ko Phangan...promises to be a good trip.

Ko Phi Phi

Well I survived the rock bed but did not fare so well in Phuket town, there was just nothing there so I decided to get the first boat out of there the next morning which was the best decision I have made yet. I came to Ko Phi Phi and it's incredible...beautiful location full of beautiful people. I stumbled across an English guy in a dive shop who pointed me in the direction of the Rock which is the best backpackers guesthouse I have been to and not even in my guidebook!!! I am in a dormroom with about 12 other people and it's amazing, I have made three best friends already and everyone is travelling on their own so we are like kindred spirits.

There are a group of people who have been here for about 2 weeks who took us up to the viewpoint last night where we watched the sunset over the bay before a wild beach party which happens every night where you drink for free! Everyone is sleeping off the effects of last night at the moment but hopefully we will take a boat round to Longbeach later which is the best on the island.

I think I might end up staying here a while, I can see why people get hooked and never leave!

I went adventuring yesterday along the beach though an got a huge splinter in my toe :( ...it hurts.

Laeoo juhhr gan

Phuket

Had my first genuine Thai experience yesterday when I visited a temple out of Changmai and was literally the only westerner there, starving hungry I asked a woman who was handing out food if I could buy some as there were no vendors around (a rare thing in Thailand!). She said no, it was free and invited me to eat with her family who were there for a ceremony to initiate her nephew into the monkhood. Nor was the only one who spoke english so had to translate all of the questions between myself and her family. At the end of the day there was no transport back to Changmai so I decided to start walking in what I thought was the right direction. It turned out I was actually going completely the opposite direction so I ended up hitching a lift to the main road and then catching a taxi back to the city...a bit of an interesting day all in all.

Today I flew down to Phuket which is absolutely beautiful though I probably won't stay long as it is full of package tourists and is very expensive. Also my bed is like a rock!

laaeo juuhr gan

p.s. Thank you for the comments, it's so mice to hear from you all, I miss you loads xx

Cooking course

After a giant water fight I met a lovely couple from Brighton who I have been with for the last couple of days. Yesterday we went up the mountain to the 'holiest temple in the north', Doi Suthep which was in a more Burmese style than the ones in Bangkok. I also discovered that people have a different buddha depending on which day of the week they were born to whom they make offerings which bring good luck. I also think I got blessed with holy water by a monk so the rest of the trip should go well! We then headed back in the old city of Changmai and did all of the temples down here, which are much less ornate than those in Bangkok but the old teak ones are so beautiful especially as the sun sets. At sunset the monks had prayer which we watched and found it was pretty moving actually.

Today was the cooking course which was fantastic, we made seven different dishes with varying success. I think the best was actually my Thai yellow curry, not bad for my first curry ever! The recipes are fairly simple, it might just be a bit difficult getting all of the ingredients back home. Ella and Sean (from Brighton) fly to India tomorrow so I'm not sure where I am going to move onto from Changmai, I'll let you know in the next post!

Once again I have forgotten to bring my camera lead but I will try to upload some photos at some point.

Laeeo juurh gan

Changmai

End of the first day here in Changmai and I can't believe I wasted any time in Bangkok! It is so much more fun and more friendly, I have met so many lovely people, probably because I am staying in a guesthouse as well. It only cost 4 pounds so we will see how it goes! The night market was beautiful, I have turned into a proper hippie but am still resisting the lure of genuine fisherman's trousers...not sure how long that will last! The night train here was not exactly what I was expecting, got ripped off by the travel agent who I thought was giving us a really good deal. I say ripped off, only by about a fiver but it feels like a lot when you are paying so little for everything. The a/c carriage I was expecting turned out to be a fan in a long galley of 39 people but it was a good experience and not as bad as I thought it would be when I first got on the train.

Changmai water festival was even better than in Bangkok, they have a moat which surrounds the town so there were kids playing in the water all day like on the ganges in India. There is so much to do here as well, hopefully doing a cookery course and an elephant ride in the next few days then thinking about going north into the hill country up to Pai which is beautiful.

laaeo juuhr gan

Songkran

wow...Songkran was incredible! The Thais sure know how to party, one giant water fight lasting about three days!! Met some amazing people over water fights who have given me loads of tips on where to go/ what to see. I am leaving for Chiang Mai tonight with three of them on the sleeper train which apparently is a fantastic journey. Sampled the Thai whiskey which was less than fantastic however!

Yesterday I did the tourist trail and saw the Grand Palace. King Rama 1 who built it has basically taken the best bits of countries all over the world and copied them into his palace, we saw the emerald buddha and then onto Wat Pho where after a lot of searching and being drenched we eventually found the reclining buddha. So glad I didn't miss the night market, the atmosphere is electric!

Arrivals

I made it, eventually after a ridiculously long flight! Luckily I met a really lovely couple called Kris and Susie on the plane, it was definitely a bonding experience when we discovered that Bangkok Airport is not even in Bangkok and much hilarity ensued trying to work out which bus to get when everything was written in Thai! I then had the ride of my life getting to the hotel when my taxi driver decided to just jump red lights occasionally!

It really is a different world out here, people in poverty living right under huge office blocks is a sight to see. The main area of the city is very well kept though and the 'dress rules' that everyone talks about don't seem to exist! I haven't managed to hook up with any other backpackers yet, in the area I'm staying they are a little thin on the ground. I am going over to the backpacker area tomorrow though and will probably do the temples so hopefully more luck there. No pictures as of yet but I will try and do some for the next post.

laaeo juuhr gan

Departures

Well, here it is...departure day! Leaving in a minute for the airport...rediculously excited and also panicking a little! I keep waking up and remembering things I haven't packed or done before I go, never a good start! Ah well, wish me luck :D

xx

Flights booked, vaccinations done...

Finally after months of planning, throwing ideas out the window and mad plans to go around the world on my own I am finally ready to depart!

I have set this up to keep anyone who is interested up to date with my progress and will try to add photos on the way. Please do not try and call or text me from across the world as it will cost you a small fortune! So here's the plan....

Depart England 11th April and land in Bangkok at stupid o'Clock the next morning. So excited about spending Songkran (Thai new year) in Bangkok!!

Then down to Phuket to do my Open Water Diving Course and beach bum for a bit!

After that....the plan is pretty loose, hoping to take in Ko Phi Phi and Ko Pha Ngan before making my way into Laos, possibly fitting Cambodia in on the way :D

laaeo juuhr gan!