Krabi

Landing in Krabi town with no plans in place, we hit a local internet café to explore our yacht chartering options. A few hours later and we were put in touch with a Dutch character named Maximillian. All he had left was a 30 foot catamaran. The notion of sailing around through the turquoise waters and anchoring in the white sand coves of the Andaman sea had us sold! We had a poke around town, which seemed strangely quiet until we discovered that it was Easter Sunday. Fortunately, we had a few inside tips (thanks Chantal) and found a great little restaurant with internet where we were able to research some sailing itineraries in with unfettered access to Singha beer and great food. The next day we set out on our three hour journey to Phuket where we would meet up with Max and settle in to our new home for the next seven days
Happy Easter Everyone! Hope the Easter Bunny brought lots of chocolate!

Life's a beach in Ko Pha Ngan

We managed to score a great little beach bungalow on one of the north eastern beaches of the island, despite showing up unannounced three days before the infamous full moon party. This island has a beach for everyone… from tiny isolated stretches of sand with one or two bungalows to sandy versions of Bourbon street. Our beach was somewhere in between. We spent the days kayaking to the nearby waterfalls, scuba diving, and lounging in hammocks. After nightfall there were plenty of restaurants to try and even a few bars for late night “warm-up parties” (warm up for the full moon of course). We kept it pretty tame most nights, enjoying happy hour and the accompanying entertainment of fire dancers and these really cool fire balloons that were launched from the beach (check out the video). Did we attend the full moon party? OF COURSE! We couldn’t return home with our heads held high if we had turned down the opportunity to attend the biggest beach party in the world.

We jumped in a speedboat and headed down to the party. Enroute the driver pulled off to a pitch black beach and made six people get out of the boat because he was over capacity and he was worried there would be a police check at Hat Rin. He promised to be back in 10 minutes…. meanwhile, we motored on for another 15 minutes before pulling up to the beginnings of what was to be a massive party.
Fortunately the party was just getting warmed up when we arrived, it made it easier to find some friends that we had arranged to meet up with. It was good to be there a little early and watch how quickly the party grew. The entire beach was a dance floor, each of the bars along the sand had different music playing so you could find exactly what you wanted to dance to. Just to make things even more interesting you were never more than 20 feet from a vendor selling little buckets that came with a flask of alcohol, a can of mixer and a bottle of Red Bull… more drunken energy than most people can handle for about $3. Fire dancers provided entertainment until the crowd got inebriated enough to be entertaining in itself. We had a great time and danced for hours, but despite the Red Bull we didn’t have the fortitude to make it to sunrise or the after party which starts at 9 am the next day! Check out the video of the party from above… yes those are all people! (Can't post this now b/c it seems very difficult to find a fast enough connection where we are right now).
We’ve decided that we haven’t had quite enough beach time so we’re making a break for the west coast of Thailand. We are having a hard time deciding where to go though- so many beautiful places and so little time. We are keeping our fingers crossed that we’ll be able to find a last minute sailboat charter…. that way we can cover more ground without having to pack the bags around so much.

To Market We Shall Go…

The floating market of Damnoen Saduak is supposedly one of the few left in Thailand. In an effort to avoid the main glut of tourists that come down by bus from Bangkok each morning, we decided to stay overnight and get an early start. We awoke at the crack of dawn and were picked up on the canal by a longtail boat. We toured through a few of the smaller canals, getting glimpses of the morning rituals of the people that live along the water before heading for the market. Most of the wares were geared towards the tourists (the locals now seem to get their shopping done at a land based market) but seeing the odd boat loaded down with produce and the merchants chatting and laughing with each other, it was easy to imagine what the market once was really like. Breakfast in Thailand is not limited to eggs or cereal, anything is eaten any time of the day, so it was noodle soup for me and fried baby bananas for Adam. It was a little unnerving to see a huge wok of bubbling oil suspended over an open flame, perched atop a bobbing longtail boat… but we had a chuckle when the bananas were handed over in a little bucket on a really long pole.

Marketed out we grabbed our bags and headed for what turned out to be an unnecessarily long journey to the island Ko Pa Ngan. We will spare you the details but in short it was several bus rides, interspersed with a lot of waiting (including one 3 hour wait under and overpass on a highway), an experience that bordered on abduction, a boat ride, and to finish it all off a 45 minute ride in the back of a pick up truck on a washed out dirt road. I think we are ready for some time on the beach, or at least in a bed!

Congratulations!

We just wanted to spread the great news that Michelle & Dave are officially engaged! Congratulations you two! We can't wait to celebrate with you when we get home.

Ancient Ayutthaya

Completely surrounded by three rivers, it is no surprise that Ayutthaya was once the royal capital of Siam . Most of the ancient architecture has long since been reduced to ruins by the invasion of the Burmese but there are still many impressive sights that make this UNESCO world heritage site a popular stop on the tourist circuit. Arriving after dark, we stopped in our hotel long enough to drop our bags and bask briefly in the coolness of the air conditioning. Sufficiently chilled and offloaded we set out to see what was happening in this ancient city on a Friday night.

We came upon an outdoor theatre which had an audience of about 25 rather disinterested looking locals. We joined in and watched what seemed to be a Chinese opera for a little while, the lead actress seemed very pleased when we joined the crowd, probably because we were the only ones paying attention and even snapping photos. The costumes and make-up were great but eventually the shrillness of the singing through the over-amplified speakers drove us away. We snuck off while the leading lady was off stage and moved on to the small riverside night market. After a market stall dinner and a look around, it was time to retreat to the mercy of a/c once again.
The next day we rented a couple of bicycles and set out to explore some of the ruins. The crumbling remains hinted at what a magnificent place this must have been 500 years ago. We saw many stupas and even more Buddhas including the oft photographed Buddha face surrounded by the roots of a banyan tree. The bright saffron coloured sashes of worship tied about the crumbling remains of many of the Buddhas made for an especially dramatic contrast.
After lunch we came across the rather murky looking local swimming hole. The group of boys that had gathered there chatted with us for a bit and then showed off their skills at jumping off the bridge that spanned the river. A couple hours later the same boys were still playing there as we cruised under the bridge on our longtail boat tour around the island. From the river we saw more wats, some huge lizards, ladies doing laundry, people fishing, and parents bathing their children. Our boat driver even gave us some Thai lessons as we cruised along.
The next day we visited the museum for one final dose of ancient history before heading south to Damnoen Saduak.

Let's talk Bangkok

After a sad goodbye to everyone in Australia we set out for our Asian adventure and another six months of living out of our backpacks. First stop, (if you can call it that) was Singapore airport. If you must spend 12 hours in an airport, this is the one to do it in. Decent 24 hour food, a massive shopping area and a clean and comfortable hotel INSIDE security made this stopover strangely enjoyable?!? It’s kinda like you are sleeping at your favourite shopping mall and everything is on sale (thanks to the favourable exchange rate)!
We arrived in Bangkok expecting to be greeted by a mob of touts and taxi drivers but were thankfully surprised by an orderly prepaid taxi service. We paid and jumped into an immaculate taxi and set out for our hotel. After our experiences in India, we were surprised to find that the drivers here actually stay on their own side of the road, don’t honk their horn every time they see another car, more or less stay in their own lanes and even stop at red lights!
We splashed out a little on our Bangkok hotel, knowing that we would be spending a fair amount of time there doing some catch up on planning for our journey through Thailand. We will be through Bangkok three times this journey so we took in the sights in moderation in between bouts of poolside research at the hotel.
A trip to one of the many night markets found us in the “red light” area of town. While the merchants tried to sell Jen counterfeit purses, jeans, and jewellery I mainly got bombarded with men, women, and she-men saying “ping pong? ping pong?” and others flashing me little cartoon pictures trying to coax us into one of the many “showrooms” lining the streets.

On the other end of the spectrum we got to see a couple of magnificent wats (temples) and more Buddhas than I can count on both hands and feet. We saw the famous gigantic reclining Buddha and the equally revered Emerald Buddha both set among a maze of beautiful architecture; the latter being set in the Royal Palace grounds. The National Museum is rather large, hosting everything from a collection of antique marionettes to a room full of ornate funeral chariots. There was also a lengthy exhibit detailing the history of Thailand which we had to force feed ourselves as the oppressive heat began to melt our brains.
Getting around this metropolitan city was easy given the many boats that travel the river and the very clean and new looking skytrain. Our hotel was attached to a mall which had it’s own metro stop so we barely had to leave air-conditioned comfort to get on the train.
So far the food has been fantastic. The best meals have come from the street vendors where there is usually no menu, you just ask for your favourite and they concoct it in their teeny little stall. Favorites so far: mango sticky rice, green papaya salad, and a yummy green curry that we had for dinner one night. The fresh pineapple sold by the many fresh fruit vendors is a perfect midday snack.
With some travel plans in mind and a colourful Myanmar visa stamped in our passport (our other main objective in Bangkok) we were ready to set out and see more of Thailand. As for Bangkok there are many things left to see and do on our next couple visits…Thai boxing, the Temple of Dawn, Chinatown, the flower market…. we definitely look forward to returning.

Allana & Mark's Wedding

Back in Melbourne for one week.

With Jen cooking up some goodies for my mother to dine on after we leave, changing flights, replacing missing gear, and a wedding..... we were running ragged.

The big day arrived and the wedding went off without a hitch. As you would expect the bride and groom looked fantastic, the food was great and a good time was had by all (even though I was the master of ceremonies).

Its over all too quickly before we find ourselves back on a plane and headed for Thailand!

Delhi Revisited

Its funny how quickly you can become acclimatized to your conditions. Just a few short weeks ago, we were in culture shock at our surroundings in Delhi. But now as we return the night before our flight, Delhi seems so clean and hassle free compared to everywhere else we have been. Our only sight seeing this leg was the Red Fort. While massive, is not that impressive inside, especially after the British finished using it as a military barracks . We must have been in there longer than I thought judging by the beard I left with.

While it hasn't always been easy, we have learned to love India and will be leaving with more stories after 3 short weeks than we gathered in months elsewhere. Being such a massive place, we have only explored a tiny area, but the rest will have to wait for next time.

With us both suffering a mild dose of "Delhi belly", its off to Melbourne for my niece's wedding.

Udaipurfect

After a lengthy drive in a 50’s vintage Indian built taxi we skirted around the lake and cringed as our driver crammed the large car down the tiny path that led to our hotel. Had the car been any bigger or the alley any smaller, we would’ve needed a giant pot of Vaseline to get there. We were enthusiastically greeted by our German host who escorted us to our spotless and spacious room. Dumping our bags, we ventured to the rooftop café with lovely views overlooking the lake, the main ghat on the opposite shore, (with locals washing their clothes and bathing) and further down, the old palace. If you ask Jen, the view was merely a backdrop for the foamy vision of beauty that was her first real cappuccino in weeks. I guess Nescafe doesn’t quite cut it.

Refreshed and caffeinated, we ventured out to visit the town. The first thing that struck us was how much cleaner Udaipur was compared to many of the cities we had visited recently. The “touts” even seemed friendlier and less invasive. The Udaipurians seemed very proud of the fact that Octopussy was filmed here and every hotel in town had nightly screenings of the Bond flick. We opted for a traditional performance of dance, music, and marionettes instead. The performance was held in a beautiful old haveli that had originally been built to host visiting dignitaries. The courtyard was adorned with ornate stone carving and had been furnished with a plethora of colourful cushions for the audience to lounge on. We felt a little vulnerable in our “front row cushions” when a lady with 10 water pots balanced precariously on her head was dancing rather vigorously right in front of us.


Our visit to the palace, (yes… another one!) was also an exposé on how grandiose an Indian wedding can get. The aviation minister was marrying off his daughter with a party of some 4000 guests, Bollywood stars included. The celebrations, like all good Indian weddings were to last three days. The preparations saw dozens of trees dripping with flower garlands, a huge stage for the entertainment and dancing, 2 jumbotron screens, countless tables filling the various courtyards, and several small armies setting it all up…. and this was just for day 1! Apparently somebody forgot to add our names to the guest list…. Kelvin where are you when we need you?
The palace itself was as beautiful as any we had seen on the journey with many a jewelled room and courtyard. The peacock courtyard in particular carried a sad story. The Raj’s daughter had been mistakenly betrothed to different men in the neighbouring kingdoms; in order to avoid certain war, she killed herself. The heartbroken Raj commissioned a courtyard of brightly coloured peacock mosaics in her memory.
After the palace we wandered around and did some shopping. Amongst the loot: some old framed b & w photographs, a couple of skirts, and some charms for Jen’s souvenir charm bracelet. We scored the best table at a great restaurant overlooking the lake.
Bellies full, we were ushered off to sleep by the throbbing bhangra beat of a neighbouring wedding and awoke to the rhythmic wap, wap, wap, of the ladies beating their laundry down at the ghats. Another day, another palace. This time it was the Raj’s abandoned hunting lodge; “the monsoon palace”, perched atop a rugged mountain peak. There was a Bollywood crew setting up for some event, hanging neglected palace. The view of the city below and the sunset framed by the layers of the surrounding mountains was breathtaking. Flying around the bends all the way down the mountain, our autorickshaw driver was determined to avoid the brakes in an effort build up enough speed to get us as far as possible wbaubles and fabric everywhere; it actually looked pretty cool filling the shell of this abandoned andithout the engine. Much to our surprise, we actually did end up firing it up, although it seemed like he had built up enough velocity to get us back to Delhi

Jaisalmer... Camels gone wild

We are back in the sanitized safety of Australia, but have a few more tales to tell of India as we’ve fallen behind once again. The truth is, India actually got better the longer we were there. You know how you’ve heard (or experienced) that shortly after giving birth you forget all the bad things about the process (an evolutionary tactic made to trick you into doing it all again). India’s like that… only probably a lot less painful. Are we glad we did it? Yup. Would we go back? Definitely!
So we left off on an overnight train to Jaisalmer. The trip was a surprising success (gauged by the fact that we did not get robbed, groped, or infected with scabies). We were whisked off to our hotel in the wall of the fort and wouldn’t discover it’s full glory until the sun cast some light on our spectacular view of “the golden” city. We happened to be in Jaisalmer for the annual Desert Festival which included some traditional dancing, some very obedient camels marching in formation, a turban tying competition (locals and foreigners), and the pinnacle of the festival: the “Mr. Desert Competition”. Visions of a male swimsuit competition were quickly replaced with a whole lot of facial hair twisted into oversized handlebars! That was just day one… unfortunately we missed out on the next two days of events thanks to a nasty G.I. bug and on the upside, an overnight camel safari.
We had a short ride out to the dunes on our camels Calloo and Maya. Unfortunately the nearly steady stream of flatus from their bums didn’t result in any forward propulsion but we did make it just in time to catch the sunset. The group that we met up with had been riding all day and it was apparent by the way they were hobbling over to greet us. We soon discovered that one of the camels in the group wasn’t your ordinary dromedary, she kept making a disgusting burbling noise and bubbling an enormous tongue out the side of her mouth. To see this for yourselves click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2DFJUd1YI8 Our guide assured us that it was actually quite ordinary behaviour she was “just horny”. Suddenly our musical camels didn’t seem so bad. We gathered around the fire for a home cooked meal and some Rajasthani folk songs before bundling up under the starry desert sky and falling asleep to the gentle melody of tongue burbles from the hot-to-trot she-camel nearby. We were grateful to see sunrise after a rather chilly and fitful sleep. After breakfast we were back astride our smelly steeds and before we knew it we were back in Jaisalmer, showered, and ready to see some sights.
We checked out the palace and some of the havelis- ornate sandstone mansions that had been built by wealthy merchants a couple of centuries ago. Jaisalmer’s prosperity came about from its strategic position on the trade routes between India and Asia. The intricate architectural details on many of the houses are vestiges of the wealth that has long since faded away.
The next day we went to visit one of the many Jain temples within the fort. Jainism is one of the oldest religions in the world and places a large emphasis on karma. Jains’ strong belief in non-violence carries over to their diet, where they are strict vegetarians, usually vegans, and often even refrain from eating root vegetables because that would mean taking the life of an entire plant. The temples were also very ornate and every square inch was covered in sandstone carving.
Off to the airport for our flight to Udaipur!