Tahkaek, Laos

After a long flight to Ventiane(capital of Laos) via Louang Prabang, we headed for a bit of luxury in the form of a Novotel on the edge of the city. Showers, TV and smoked salmon, (courtesy of room service) and we nearly got lulled into a false sense of security...shall we stay just one more night????....nooooh! push on to Thakaek a sleepy little village on the main route 13 to the south of the country. So off we go to the main bus station(nearly got dropped at the airport...tricky thing this language lark!!!) to catch the air-con v.i.p. bus to Thakaek, having 'sort of' reserved our room at the Thakaek travel lodge(no relation to UK travel lodge chain).
1.00am in the morning is never a good time to arrive anywhere, especially in a foreign country whose language you don't speak and whose inhabitants don't recognise the english alphabet!
However, with a little help from our tuk-tuk driver(hired when we arrived at the bus station in Thakaek) we managed to rouse the clerk on duty and were shown to our room a spacious affair with air-con, shower(which sometimes works) and double bed. The Gheckos were put to flight and there followed a very comfortable night's(or what was left of it) sleep.
The following day was spent cycling around the village (10 mins) and navigating the little lanes in the area.
The scenery is stunning (limestone karst) and we hired a guide to take us the next day on a cave local cave tour, visiting 6 caves in all, one of them with an extensive network of underground water caverns which were partially explored by basic wooden canoe.
We both agreed that Christmas Day had been quite a surreal affair having chatted to our guide and his two students in english for most of the day(not sure how much they understood, but their english was much better than our Lao!!). Christmas dinner being a selection of dried, smoked fish, meats and strange looking vegetables complete with 'sticky rice'.
We had been looking forward to the next day for several weeks as we had planned to meet Andy and Jo at the Travel Lodge and they arrived at around 9.00am having taken the ferry from Thailand. How lovely it is to see them!! We chatted for some time before strolling down to the local bank to withdraw some more Kip(1,000,000) each should keep us going for several days(inflation being rampant here) 10,000 kip = 50p!!!
The kids retired to sleep for a couple of hours having been up most of the night travelling

Chiang Mai Thai.

Arrived here exhausted after an 11hr bus ride from Ayutthaya! After sitting upright for this length of time our feet had swollen (first time for me...first time since pregnancy for Pam!)but we immediately started to feel some affinity with the place as our accommodation is run by a Thai/Irish couple who have sympathy with what travellers need...(cup of tea and good Thai/European cuisine!!). Our first day was spent on the mountain to the west of Chiang Mai visiting a Temple on top of the hill and then taking a songthaew to Chiang Mai Zoo.


We booked ourselves on a 3-day trek into the hills of Doi Inthanon with a company who are renowned for supporting projects linked with these tribes and who have an excellent track-record in this field. The trek consisted of a morning visit to an elephant sanctuary, followed by a walk through the jungle to stay with trhe local Karen tribe. Day two consisted of a 10 k trek through the jungle hills, followed by yet another camp by the river, and day 3 started with a bamboo raft ride(scary this!! but pleasant enough as it turned out), and finished with a visit to the National Park and an impressive waterfall.
There were 11 clients in all and 4 guides, of which the lead guide Daet was extremely competent, knowledgeable and had an excellent sense of humour.


We both thoroughly enjoyed our experiences and meeting other people of 'like mind from Canada, Germany, US and Austria.




The next day saw us booked onto a Thai Cookery course. We had promised ourselves that we would take up the culinary challenge when in Thailand and so along with our new friends, Walther and Yasmin, 'Ziggy' and Melanie, we were to become Mr Visoot's new students. His knowledge of ingredients was fantastic and his presentation extremely amusing as he ranged the musical scales of voice intonation with gems of wisdom about Thai food!! He kept us amused and interested all day as we cooked(and ate!!) five dishes each. Our menu consisted of red, green and yellow curries, steamed Tilapia, Sweet & sour chicken, spring rolls and sticky rice & coconut with banana and a host of other dishes. We also tried our hand at food decoration!!! I just wish someone had told us not to have breakfast!! The day also included a visit to the local market to buy the food we were to cook.
The next few days are definitely 'rest' days as we prepare for a flight to Ventiane in Laos via Luang Prabang on Saturday(22nd)...courtesy Lao airlines.......watch this page!!!!!!

Ayuthaya Thai.

Next day, caught the train from Bangkok to Ayuthaya, a distance of 60km but took us 1.5 hrs due to the narrow gauge railway. A similar experience to our Indian travel..very basic(wooden seats), but nevertheless efficient and 'on time'.
Arrived at Hostel after .75hrs walk from station, a little frazzled and very hot. However, the Hostel(once again), is very friendly and we feel more relaxed as the evening passes by. A lovely Thai meal in a restaurant by the river helps us unwind.
On to visit several temples the following day until around 2pm(siesta time for us). At 4pm we take a river-boat trip(2 hours) which circumnavigates the city(more temples en-route)...beginning to feel 'templed-out'!

Another lovely evening meal in a different restaurant by the river and we 'call it a day.'
Catch-up day today(12th Dec) but also visit to Museum and later(8.30pm) we take the night bus to Chiang Mai(10 hrs!!!!).

Bangkok Thai.

Well, we always knew that Bangkok would be a culture shock, and after spending some time in Delhi a few years ago, we should have been prepared for the scams and con-men, but I think we must have left our brains in the Hostel this morning!! Taking a canal boat ride to The Grand Palace, we immediately came across a very friendly Thai gentleman who informed us that the Palace and temple was closed for prayers until 2pm, and he could arrange for a tuk-tuk to take us(half-price) to 3 other different temples, returning us back to the Palace in time for re-opening!! He also mentioned that we were so lucky, as there was a special convention on that very day, which we would get to visit, where we could also buy Thai goods. He was so convincing, that, before we knew it we had climbed into the tuk-tuk and off we went! As soon as we got moving we looked at each other and knew that we has been duped and that we were heading for a high-power sales presentation at some time during the next few hours. We re-negotiated with the driver not to visit the convention, for double the tuk-tuk fare(50p), but he wasn't happy so we got him to stop and found our own way to the Palace!! Dohh!!!!, stupid or what??
Spent the rest of the day looking around the palace and then took a taxi back to the Hostel.
Determined not to repeat our mistake of the previous day we travelled by Transit rail(overhead system) the next day tp Chatuchak market, a huge open-air affair on the outskirts of Bangkok to view everything from poodle-grooming, dry-fish stalls and furniture making to Fashion goods and handicrafts. Bangkok was preparing for Christmas...strange!!......I thought we'd left all that behind, but no, Weatern influence has turned this into a shoppers parsdise!!Pam bought some nice little casual tops for 39 baht(60p)!! Evening meal at an ultra-modern Paragon shopping centre in central Bangkok where one could buy anything, from a pair of Marks & Sparks socks to a Ferrari, rounded off the day(and what a day)!
Next day out to the Chao Phraya river(again by MRT..this time changing lines..cocky or what!?), to catch a 'river express up to Wat Po(the reclining Buddha) and then over the ferry to Wat Arun(Temple of Dawn). A visit to Lumphini Park on the way back for a little peace and respite and then back to our Hostel after evening meal.

Phi Phi Don Thai.

Took a ferry boat out to this beautiful island to 'chill out ' for a day or two before the hectic experience that will no doubt be Bangkok. This was one of the islands worst affected by the Tsunami in Dec 2004, but it's testament to the spirit of the people and their hard work that there is very little evidence of that traumatic event today and they are indeed in a build and develop phase.

The island is beautiful and here as in Phuket we have found the Thai's to be lovely warm-hearted people, only too willing to help.

Not quite the hustle and bustle of Phuket, but still a general air of industry in a 'relaxed' sort of way.

Spent time soaking up the sun and sea and sampling the local Thai cookery.

Also had a Thai massage!!

Phuket(Kata Beach) Thai.

A 7 hour flight to Singapore from Sydney, followed by a 1.5 hour flight from Singapore to Phuket, left us a little frazzled, so it was quite late when having haggled with a Taxi driver, we finally arrived at 'The Little Mermaid' accommodation in Kata Beach. I don't think either of us had realised when we booked it (courtesy Rough Guide Thailand), that it seemed mainly to be used by Scandinavian families and single males who were in Thailand looking for 'Thai Brides', but neverteless it was an extremely homely place and the staff were very kind and helpful.
Had a couple of days scouting around and beach- before visiting 'James Bond Island' in the Phang Nga National Park..a beautiful island which featured in 'The Man with the Golden Gun'(must watch it again now!). Talking of James Bond..is that Ursula Andress or what??? (I know...wrong film!!!)

We've both been impressed with the Thai's attitude to business and their ability to organise..they could certainly teach us 'Brits' a thing or two about thoroughness and customer satisfaction.

Rather blotted my 'copy-book' when I forgot to put enough cash in my wallet for the day and then came to pay for a lunch we'd just consumed!! Imagine our embarrassment!! However, it was 'no problem' to the Thais . The deputy manager of the Hotel just told me to hop on the back of his motorbike and whizzed me back to our hotel(about 4 miles) to pick up some more cash!! Imagine that happening in England!!

Sydney Aus.(return)

After our sojourn to the Blue Mountains, a return to Sydney, to finish off our time in Australia at a more luxurious hostel, seemed like a good idea...and so it proved!!
A visit to Hyde Park Barracks(yes, I know it sounds familiar to those of you in the UK ......but who said Aussies are original??) was extremely interesting, as they have a complete history of all the "criminals" deported there during the 1800's and details of their crimes along with the specifics of living conditions and punishments incurred whilst they were incarcerated. Most of them were only 'petty criminals' and some were deported because they were political or religious threats to the government of the time(nothing changes....)!
Lots of Irish Catholics were banished from the Kingdom, so I felt quite at home!!!

Pam tried out the sleeping accommodation....but I think I prefer a double bed personally!

Our last evening was spent at the Opera House with Dionne Warwick and boy did she put on a show!! I guess she must be in her 60's or even early 70's, but she had so much vitality and a real zest for life as well as a great voice still....we both thoroughly enjoyed the performance.

Katoomba(Blue Mountains) Aus.

We fancied a train ride away from the hustle and bustle of "city life", so, next morning it was off to Sydney Central to take the 2 hour train journey to The Blue Mountains for a spot of walking.

Checked in at YHA (what an excellent change for the better to have good accommodation) and took the explorer bus out to the edge of this mini 'grand canyon' The weather was good so great views were had throughout the day.

We walked for about 5 hours and then caught the excellent explorer bus back to Katoomba.

Today, however(Tues 27th), the weather has broken and so decided to have 'catch up' time in rural surrounds... excellent decision!!

Bondi Beach Aus.

The next day and we were up early to join the 'other beautiful people' on Bondi Beach!! A short bus ride saw us mingling with the surf-boards and slapping on the sun tan oil!(actually we only paddled as I won't swim in anything less than about 30 degs). The weather having taken a turn for the better we walked back to Coogee Beach around the coastal path and caught the bus back to Sydney.

One of the better areas is Darling Harbour and we've rather made a thing about eating out alongside the boats and people-watching until late evening. The restaurants around here cater for every taste and the fish is extremely good so this suits us fine.

Sydney Aus.

Arrived in Sydney to a cold, misty morning and a strong southerly wind. This is definitely not what we were expecting!! Checked in to our backpacker's accommodation which we had to book at the last minute as there was little available and a further shock to the system as it wasn't quite what we'd expected. In fact, it was very basic and we both felt like octagenarians as the scene was a bit like that witnessed by parents when their teenage children have their first party with alcohol(those of you who have had kids will know what I mean..........those of you who have kids not yet of this age.........you have a treat to come!!..........those of you who have no kids.........breathe a sigh of relief!! Added to this , the room was very bare and the toilets/showers were, shall we say, less than hygenic!! and worst of alll we were here for 3 nights. Trying to convince Pam that this was good training for SE Asia was not going down too well either.
Next day went down to Sydney harbour and with 1 night in the hell-hole behind us, things were starting to look up. Had a look around the Opera house,(very impressive architecture at close quarters), booked to see Dionne Warwick in a 1 night only show on our last night in Oz and took a tour around the Harbour , before heading off to the Botanical Gardens.
Beautiful plants, flowers and wild-life greeted us there and we were mesmerised by the sound of birds high up in the trees!!. Actually these were bats roosting(looked a bit like coconuts from a distance!) and we were rooted to the spot watching their antics, clinging on upside down, feeding young and fanning themselves(pictures for you Max, as if I remember correctly, you're fond of bats!!).

Christchurch NZ

Our very last place to visit and it's so English! We spent time in the Botanical Gardens which were just starting to show the early signs of summer blooms to come and were very impressed with the cleanliness and general tidiness of the place...not a piece of litter evident and everything in its place.

In the afternoon we visited the Art Gallery which was extremely interesting and innovative, with contemporary work on show from NZ's best.

Well, tomorrow at 7.00am we fly to Sydney and it really has to go some for us to rate it alongside this place....we'll see!!!

Aoraki/Mount Cook MZ

This trip wasn't really on the agenda, but it was too close and we were soon convinced by our B&B hostess Joan(thanks Joan!) that even though it was further to drive, we would be better to walk part way up the Hooker Valley at the base of Mount Cook than do a walk around the Lake Tekapo area. How right she was !!

The scenery was stunning and the weather equally good as we approached the area. Fantastic blue skies and snow-capped mountains together with beautiful lakes make for the best scenery ever in our book.

Drove up to Mount Cook village and proceded up the Hooker Valley to the song of skylarks and it wasn't too long before we were sighting Falcons and what looked like NZ redpolls and linnets.

Lunched at the top of the valley beneath the majestic slopes of Aoraki(it means cloud-piercer in Maori..so much more apt!), with cotton wool clouds spilling over the adjacent mountains..........ahhh bliss!!!

Left the area at around 4.00pm to drive on to Christchurch, our last destination in NZ(sob.sob!!)

We could easily relocate here if it weren't such a long way from family & friends. We've both loved our time in NZ... the climate is brilliant and the Kiwis so friendly and we only hope that the rest of our trip goes as well as the last 6 weeks. We'd urge anyone who has half a mind to visit NZ to do it!!

DunedinNZ (The Otago Peninsula)

Onwards and back up the east coast towards Christchurch(our final NZ destination), we had rather wanted to see the Penguins(Yellow -Eyed variety)..and what better destination than the Otago Peninsula? Booked a tour with'Penguin Place' which was OK but didn't get much of a view as the Penguins are currently laying eggs and each pair in this conservation area have man-made nesting boxes. Not a lot of movement going on as they sit on nests awaiting the inevitable hatching time. Still' it gave us some valuable information re their habits. We decided to have a walk down to the local coast-line and having climbed to the top of an old volcano vent, polled on down to the beach.
We had only been down there 5 mins when I noticed some movement in the far distance. A penguin waddling from the sea, up the beach to be greeted by his mate, who then proceeded on down to the sea to fish. They swap duties every now and then (6-12hrs), until the brooding and feeding of their young is complete!! We felt very priveliged to witness this and sat riveted to the spot with our binoculars 'glued to' our eyeballs for a further hour whence the whole ritual was repeated by other couples 3 or 4 times.

Great views of grey fur seals and Sea-lions were also had.

Tea Anau NZ (Doubtful Sound & The Kepler Track)

Travelling south to Te Anau was a delightful experience as the scenery was excellent. Southern Fjordland has a great expanse of big mountains and it was these, we had come to get to grips with,(in a limited way!)Snow-capped peaks dominate the scene and whilst we were here, we aimed to 'do' Doubtful Sound too.

Unfortunately, the weather took a turn for the worse and our cruise down Doubtful Sound gave us limited views of the massive walls rising vertically from the Sound. The wild-life was also conspicuous by its absence and, although we saw grey fur seals, most of the blue penguins were hidden(hunkered down in their shelters I guess!).

The following day we set off on the Kepler Track, the second of NZ's 8 great walks we were attempting, but this one is much more remote and more to my liking as it goes up into the mountains. Temperate rain forest covers most of the ascent of 1,000m to the Luxmore hut which is at about 1,100m. Now, I like rain forest just as much as the next bloke, but as can be imagined, it became a little tedious after 5 hours and we were both relieved to get above the tree-line. The hut was very comfortable with electric lighting and gas cookers, but at this altitude, it did get cold at night! The second day consisted of an alpine ridge, part of which was still snow-covered, and although we set off in poor weather, it improved slowly and we were treated to wonderful views of the Murchison and Kepler mountains, Lake Te Anau to the North and east and Lake Manapouri to the South. Progress was steady and at about 5.30pm we reached our second hut at Iris Burn(Peter H informs me that this is what one gets if you view some of those dubious internet sites!!!). Another warmer night ensued, chatting to our fellow walkers and after a good night's sleep we left the hut for our third day. We had intended to cover a similar distance to the Moturau Hut, but decided that we could 'gain a day' by walking on through to our final destination back in Te Anau. It was a risky strategy since we had nowhere booked to sleep in Te Anau and it was a long way(about 24 miles), but eventually at around 7.30pm we arrived back at the hostel to find that we could book in for an extra night(phew!). So, we walked the whole route + an extra 3 miles from our hostel to the start and another 3 miles to finish!

The following day saw us on yet another adrenaline activity...this time in the form of Jet-Boating on the River Waiuo near Te Anau. An 11am start meant we could have a 'lie-in' and when we were picked up by coach, we discovered that we were the only ones booked for that session. A short bus journey and we entered the river, just downstream from where we had left it on the Kepler track, the day before. Mark started up and a sudden rush of power lifted the machine out of the water and down-river at a fast rate of knots. The morning was beautiful and fantastic views of the wild-life followed, with Mark executing the odd 360 deg turn just to keep us awake!! ....brilliant and well-worth the early rise!!

Queenstown NZ(White-Water Rafting)

Pam was not at all sure she wanted to do this, but after much soul-searching, decided to give it a go(well done gal!!)
Arrived at the site (same river as I did my bungy on!) and guided by a couple of really funny Kiwi's who put everyone at ease and were obviously experienced guys in their early 30's(one had guided in Africa on the Zambezi!!).
Split up into 2 teams and proceded down the river in tandem. First a small rapid, then a bigger one and then the "Chinese Dog-Leg"(weird name for a real biggy of a wave!). The gorge was just superb..huge cliffs on either side and lots of wild life to watch as the calm sections in between rapids gave us some peace and respite.
Got to do a jump in from the cliff side as well. This river's excellent as it's a big volume job and this is definitely the best time to raft(their spring).Later in the year, it starts to drop in level(their mid-summer). Apparently 300 cubic metres a second flow past any one point(equivalent to 13 tons pressure)....so we needed ropes thrown out to us to drag us back in after we'd jumped!!

At the end of the day Pam wanted to do more and thoroughly enjoyed the experience......far more than she ever imagined she would.

Kawarau Bridge NZ(Bungy Jumping)

Well, I always said I'd try a Bungy jump, given the opportunity and what better opportunity than to do one at the Kawarau Bridge, home of the Bungy and the original site first used by AJ Hackett in 1988 when he started his commercial enterprise. Feeling a little nervous the day before, but by the time we arrived I just knew I was going to do it and went for a finger-tip touch in the water. The weather was beautiful and I think Pam was more nervous than me!! The jump is only 43m but the last time I tried to fly from a lesser height in 1979, I did quit a lot of damage to my bones!!!! However, secure in the knowledge that this time a tube of latex was going to negate a repeat performance.....I jumped......the water beneath rushed towards me and I just failed to get a finger-tip touch, back up I went and then down again several times....and before I knew it(approx 8 secs), I was coming to a rest and being hauled in from my upside-down position by the guys in the boat beneath me. Thanks to AJ for an unforgettable experience......would I do it again???........probably!!!!!!!!

Franz Josef Glacier NZ

A one-night stop in Greymouth(nice hostel..naff town!) and on to Franz Josef
Gla cier to prepare for a trip on to the Glacier. The Hostel was lovely and at 8.15am we were ferried to the start of the Glacier day. This is one of only 3 temperate glaciers in the world.. the other 2 being at Fox(just down the road, and in South America, so a good chance to investigate. Our guides Tom and Bruce(Bruce being from Suffolk...disappointing with a name like that in this part of the world!!) organised us with crampons/ice axes etc and off we went.Three large ice-falls and we were going to explore the first one and a half(ice too unstable from there upwards) so a 6 hr day ahead of us.
looking diappointingly black and dirty,the initial part of the 1st fall consisted of large chunks of ice(some the size of double-decker buses) and rock which seemed to teeter threateningly above us. Some struggling through narrow crevasse-like falls led us up to the second field which was much more impressive, with even bigger blocks, seracs and pinnacles. Lunch was taken (about 10 mins and then back we came by a different route. Unfortunately Bruce, our guide took a wrong turn and we ended up following a very difficult crack which led us to a dead end. On turning around(which was quite difficult as the cracks were only body width, guess who fell into an ice pool blocking our way? The guy in front of me bridged his way across and, as he pushed off a narrow ledge with one foot...I followed, but too my horror, the ledge collapsed and left me without any purchase !! In I went up to the waist in ice-cold water...I was more worried about my camera getting wet than anything else and struggled to get a grip with my crampons, which fortunately I did...and recovered....phew!!!! The rest of the day went without further mishap and we returned a little colder, but none the worse for our experiences(bottle of wine and pizza later and all was well with the world). Camera also seems to have recovered after two days drying out!
On to Wanaka(yes I know it's a quirky name...but wow what a lovely place), to prepare for the Bungy Jump tomorrow!!
P.S. Pam's efforts to save herself from the mossies at the last hut on the Abel Tasman walk actually failed....she just took longer to react..some days later up came the little itchy bumps and now who's laughing???(unbeknown to her one of the little blighters got into the bag before her!!)

Abel Tasman Coast Walk..Marahau to Wanui Bay NZ

A quick dash into Nelson to hire sleeping bags and buy one or two provisions and then off we went to Marahau by pre-arranged bus.
Started walking the route at around 10am and immediately struck by the beautiful scenery around the coast.Lunched at Anchorage Bay hut and then on to spend our first night in a D.O.C.(Dept. of Conservation) hut in Bark Bay, which was very comfortable.....but basic! We had hoped to finish the route in 3 leisurely days(51k), but unfortunately had not accounted for tide times and the fact that bus services did not operate as normal on Sundays...which meant that we had to spend 3 nights in huts and walk for 3.5 days.
The 2nd day was even better than the first from a scenic point of view...golden, desolate beaches, azure blue sea and bird-song like nothing we had experienced before. A lovely hut at Awaroa where we chatted to 2 German girls(their english... perfect!!) and a great de-hydrated backpackers evening meal rounded the day off perfectly(well almost perfectly, as no wine!!)
Day 3 was excellent too and all was going well until we came across our last hut at Whariwharangi. this left a lot to be desired as no candles for evening light, lots of mosquito's and sandflies and a resident rat which insisted on running back and forth between the partition walls!!
After a poor nights' sleep, I awoke to find several bits of my anatomy had been attacked by the mossies(not going to be too specific here....suffice to say that 2 days later and I'm still itching!!).
Pam meantime had got off lightly by cocooning herself inside her silk sheet sleeping bag(clever girl)...this did lead to her suffering dizzy spells for 2 days afterwards as a result of lack of oxygen to the brain!!