Bangkok
It's been a few weeks since we updated the blog - life seemed to run on such a different time scale when we got to South East Asia that the idea of the blog drifted a bit from our minds!
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| (view from the plane - a lot of water) |
We arrived in Thailand flying over flooded areas where you could barely tell what was land and what was sea. Having heard so much about the floods we'd already booked flights out to Malaysia almost immediately. Our one night in Bangkok was spent not far from the airport in a cute little bungalow by a river. We revelled in air con and cleanliness!
The owner didn't speak any English and when we mimed 'food' to him he mimed 'bike' back to us. Thinking that meant we had to go get the food we went back to our room to get ready to go out, wondering where we'd go late at night in the middle of nowhere. As we started walking down the road we met the hotel owner coming back towards the bungalows on his moped. He smiled and held up a bag of food... it was amazing seafood soup and rice noodles that he'd popped out to get for us. It was a lovely gesture and we felt really welcomed into the next part of our journey.
Penang
The next day a short flight took us to Penang island in Malaysia. We hadn't really researched this bit of the trip but we had heard of a family guesthouse in the north of the island and had scribbled down the address and some vague directions. A bus took us through the main towns on the island, the aircon pumping out enough to make us retrieve jumpers from the luggage. An hour and a half later we were still going, wondering if we were heading in the right direction. The heavens opened and the evening rain began to wash through the humidity as the sun set. Eventually we got off the bus and wandered up the road. As we turned the corner into a residential area, feeling damp but hopeful, we saw a few people hanging around outside a house. It was the sweetest little family run guest house. They welcomed us in finding it funny we'd trek all the way out to them without a reservation but immediately making us up a bed.
The area was really great. There was a beach just down the road, a huge food court with heaps of cheap Malaysian dishes to choose from. We stayed for a few days going around the island a bit seeing some different beaches, trekking a bit through some of the jungly national park. We took it in turns to get ill but as the place was so relaxing we caught up on sleep and felt a lot better.
Thailand
We met a couple at the guesthouse from Australia, Shez and Toby, and got on really well. We organised to travel up to Thailand together. After the epic distances of India we couldn't believe how easily and quickly you can hop between countries and regions around Malaysia. After a day trip we arrived in Krabi, in south east Thailand. We found a super cheap hostel for a couple of nights and then the four of us caught a boat over to Phi Phi island.
Phi Phi
We'd heard mixed reviews of Phi Phi - it's undeniably beautiful but quite crowded with tourists. It is made of two back to back beaches that curve in and away from each other leaving a central strip of land just wide enough for a couple of streets. One side is restaurants and boats. The other is full of neon beach bars. Despite the influx of drunk gap year students, it was awesome.
As soon as we'd found a room and dumped our bags we headed for the beach. The sea was crystal clear and warmer than most showers we'd had on our trip so far. It was below knee high for a couple of hundred metres then gradually dropped into sapphire blue. As we waded out the clouds gathered from nowhere, as can happen quickly and often in the rain season, and we sat in the warm sea as the rain fell. The drops got fatter and bounced off the surface of the sea making it rain in both directions. Out in the distance lightning flashed and the thunder rumbles circled around us in surround sound stereo.
When the rain stopped we were still lounging around in the water when Toby suddenly but calmly said, "Oh. You're a snake. I'm pretty sure you're really poisoness." We turned and saw the creature poke his head out of the water and eye up Toby in quite a conversational manner. Dan and I did some slightly delayed shocked flapping in the direction of the beach before realising the snake had swum off in the other direction anyway. The Aussies, completely unfazed, just laughed.
It was a great island for parties and in the night the beaches came alive with luminous displays and fire shows. The Thai bar workers, more often than not looking like pirates, would periodically dip sticks and poi into kerosene, light them, and fling and spin burning drops into the air. Fearless human fireworks. One guy even did this whilst balancing on a tightrope. Another guy stopped half way through his performance to put on a hat after almost setting fire to his mullet.
We found a little area of bamboo huts near the beach and moved into them for a couple of days. They were very picturesque though also a haven for mosquitoes - the unseen enemy no paradise is complete without. It is bugs more than anything that make me doubt Leonardo Di Caprio's performance in The Beach. If on an isolated Thai island he would definitely be covered in red welts and spend at least half the scenes scratching bites in unfortunate places. Poetic licence I suppose.
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| (playing around with Toby's macro lens yey) |
One afternoon we hired kayaks going on a bit of adventure. It was possible to paddle right up to the giant rocks and cliffs sticking out from the sea. They were coated with a shimmering layer of lichen and crustaceans and hundreds of multicoloured crabs. It rained whilst we were out there which was beautiful to see from that angle floating on top of the ocean. The warmth and humidity made rain something to look forward to rather than avoid as it was so refreshing. Dan and I had a two person kayak and we paddled back trying to sing songs to keep our oars in time to varying degrees of success!
We spent one day on a boat tour. It took us out to waters perfect for snorkeling. The fish were huge, colourful and abundant. Unsure of their names I will say that some were stripy and some were spotty and some were rainbow coloured. There was a type of coral that looked like bright blue lips protruding from rocks. There were sea urchins the size of my head.
After snorkeling we were taken to the beach where The Beach was filmed. As you can imagine this perfect bay, hidden from sight until you have passed through high cliff walls, with perfectly clear turquoise waters, was completely over-run by tourists... but was still beautiful to see.
The last stop on the boat trip was to 'monkey beach'. The boat stopped quite far out but the water was only waist high. The guy was telling everyone, "you can get out...you can see the monkeys...yeah?" So to show willing we hopped over the side of the boat and started in towards the beach. The first thing we noticed was the oily layer on the top of the water. From the boat the sea had looked fine but when in it the smell of the oil was really strong and any splashes tasted foul. Then came the coral and the rocks. Hidden beneath the cloudy sea sharp stones cut our legs and made us stumble. By the time we reached monkey beach we were walking like penguin zombies; our bloodied limbs and the thought of having to get back to the beach somewhat over powered the excitement of seeing some monkeys...!
Koh Lanta
After a few days on Phi Phi we decided it was time to move on, having heard of a slightly bigger island called Koh Lanta only an hour and a half away by boat. As soon as we arrived we wished we'd made the trip earlier. This island was fantastic - it had everything. It was big enough to have a few different little settlements to explore. It's shore lines of sandy beaches stretched for miles so they were very underpopulated in comparison to packed beaches of Phi Phi, and because it was less well known everything was cheaper too. We stayed in beautiful little bungalows which had an awesome driftwood bar attached to it run by a super friendly guy called Bau.
The first morning we woke up to hear this dramatic thudding outside. There would be a rustle, a pause and then THUD. Taking a look outside I saw a guy looking up into one of the palm trees planted around the bungalows. He whistled and suddenly something moved and another coconut came hurtling down. Seeing the speed and hearing the thump I can now understand how death by falling coconut can be so common. Then appeared a little monkey face up in tree! He'd been trained to shake the coconuts knocking down the ones that could fall and giving the fresh ones a good shake just to make sure they were safe. He was so responsive to the man on the ground they made a great team!
The sea was the most perfect sea I have ever swum in. Soft sand underneath, ideal temperature, deep enough to be like a massive swimming pool with an eternal horizon that the sun sinks into every night. And it is the setting of beautiful thunder storms. You see the clouds gathering at dusk on either sides of the view and as they collide the rumbles echo slowly or snap fast and forks of lightning crack through the sky.
We rented out mopeds to be able to explore the island better. We came across hidden beaches and jungly areas. We rode up to the animal rescue centre and volunteered for a few hours taking some dogs out for a walk. It was a really fun few days and before we knew it Dan and I realised we needed to book for our trip towards Singapore. We had thought to take a few days to travel through Malaysia but Koh Lanta was so perfect we left only enough time for one day in Kuala Lumpur and one day in Singapore, maximising our time by the sea.
The time came and we left. We said good bye to Toby and Shez, leaving them on Koh Lanta looking for work (jealous!), and took a mini bus taxi to Hat Yai. We'd been told this took 4 hours so we left at midday, leaving plenty of time to catch our 7pm night coach to Kuala Lumpur. At five to seven, with no idea where we are, with a driver who speaks no English, possible scenarios are running through our minds. At 6.59 we see the sign for our bus company on a building and I exit the van at a run leaving Dan with all of the luggage. It was fine, they printed the tickets and the bus turned up and ten minutes later we were on our way, both of us in disbelief that we'd actually made it. Amazingly comfy coach seats, though we missed the bed-busses of India.
Kuala Lumpur
The bus arrived in KL at five in the morning. Luckily it stopped five minutes walk from China Town, where we were heading to look for accommodation. We took it slow but still almost everything was closed. We found an open hotel lobby and they said we could have a room at seven o'clock, but kindly they let us lounge on their lobby couches for the time in between.
It was strange being in a big city again. KL has many skyscrapers and a good sky-metro system. The architecture was interesting for it's modernism often showing an Islamic influence. We went over towards the twin towers and wandered through the city districts a bit bemused by the developments having been in beach huts for the past couple of weeks. We went shopping stocking up on some things like work shoes and tee-shirts as we'd been told how expensive everything is in Australia.
Singapore
The next day we left in the morning for Singapore. We'd bought a bus ticket and all was good until we reached the border. We'd had a similar problem at a few places but it had never come to anything - the problem being that 16 yr old passport-photo-Dan doesn't really look anything at all like older bearded-travelling-Dan. The Singapore border control guy looked at the passport, looked at Dan, looked back at the passport, asked a few questions and then took him aside for interview.
I got through easily, spent twenty minutes debating with the bus driver on why he really should wait for Dan before being kicked off the bus. I guess at least he gave me warning to get the bags. A very kind lady pushed ten Singapore dollars into my hand as I got off the bus to pay for public transport - without which we would have been stuck at the border with no local currency to get into the city. Dan in the meantime was showing photos of progressive beard growth and facial development to the border control officers and eventually convinces them that he is in fact himself.
It was dark when we got to China town and started looking for a hostel. It didn't take long to find a clean bedroom in a nice hostel and it had a free washing machine! (Its amazing when travelling how quickly washing machines become the most exciting thing ever invented.) Out for dinner the food was great and the city colourful. We were excited to explore a bit the next day, especially with Dan's roots here, we wanted to learn a little about the area.
Singapore is a very tall city - it has one of the highest populations per square foot of ground because so many people live on top of each other. We went down roads that had block after block of at least 25 storey apartments - on one road we saw up to 384a,b,c and d of these huge complexes.
We'd seen an advert for an art exhibition so went for a wander to try and find the gallery. We ended up amid some beautiful modern sky-rise blocks. It was an area near the harbour and had been thoughtfully developed with some stunning architecture. There was a model of the area with information about the different developments. If you pressed buttons it illuminated relevant buildings and paths, including the inner-city grand prix track, and explained plans for buildings currently under construction. Everything had been thought of - I liked the path of lights with solar panels above powering them. It was interesting to see how cities can be designed when you don't have to consider aspects of historical preservation.
The most impressive building was a hotel, shopping and casino complex. It had three 57 storey towers connected on top by a boat shaped platform that had a sky garden, the highest swimming pool in the world, and a casino. We went inside the hotel, trying to blend in (failing!), and took the elevator up to the top. Though we were ticket/room key-less the door guy was sweet and let us go and take a look at the view. From that height you had the sprawling city in one direction and a harbour full of boats the other way. You could see over to Malaysia and other islands around. The light was an almost silvery blue and we saw gathering storm clouds.
As we headed in the vague direction of our hostel, with the storm about to break, we stopped into a cafe. The rain was insane. The thunder and lightning circled over us for ages striking tall city buildings with a cracking like gun shots, echoing through the streets. The rain was fat and kept going for hours. When it showed no sign of quieting down we dashed through the buckets of rain falling, getting instantly soaked. It smelt great though - that lovely scent of warm rain of hot pavements.
That evening we left for the airport with lots of time to spare, excited about going to Australia. Knowing that we needed to find jobs and a house we were approaching Melbourne with a completely different attitude to the other places we'd visited so far. After a couple of months drifting we were both looking forward to this new challenge of getting to grips with 'real' life again.....
