TravelStream™ news feed for member sergeandclare on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/sergeandclare en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 05 Aug 2007 01:56:00 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1186033560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1186033560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1186033560/tpod.html Sun, 05 Aug 2007 01:56:00 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Bangkok, Thailand

Back in Bangkok. Its exactly the same as 8 months ago apart from the new Subway on Koh San Road! We've spent far too many hours wandering round MBK shopping centre looking for the last few bargains to be had. We're staying in the same place as last December and enjoying the roof top swimming pool and massage centre. The traffic is still crazy, trying to get the taxi drivers to use the meter is still a struggle but the people generally are so sweet and friendly. Its the last day of the trip today, after 8 months we are looking forward to coming home (at least for a few weeks!) and to staying in one place for a while. Glad to leave the rucksack behind too. Our last entry will be in a couple of days when we have a chance to think about the whole experience from the comfort of a proper home.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185686400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185686400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185686400/tpod.html Sun, 05 Aug 2007 01:43:35 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Singapore, Singapore

Well Singapore is a complete change from everywhere else we have visited on the trip. Basically one huge shopping mall, it does have some colonial buildings and a really good Asian Civilisations Museum but really that's a minor distraction from all the shopping to be done! We walked for miles and miles, mostly in airconditioned malls but still we didn't stop for four days. Orchard Road malls were mostly outside our budget at the end of an 8 month trip but the packed Mustafas shopping arcade and stalls in Little India were fun to explore. We stayed in a dorm with 8 others so didn't get much sleep either, we were dead after 4 full days of exploring. We had some nice food in Little India and a lovely night on Boat Quay in a restaurant along the river, a really nice old terrace of bars and restaurants overlooked by huge offices and skyscrapers. But really, it looks like the average Singaporian spends their days shopping, shopping and shopping!

The zoo and night safari (a tram ride through a part of the zoo at night to see all the nocturnal animals) were excellent. 99% of the animals are in a really natural setting with plenty of space and its a huge place to walk around. Orangutans are free to swing in the trees above the paths and monitor lizards are wandering round the whole zoo. It was a nice change from the city. We really liked Singapore for a few days, the MRT (train) is cheap and easy to use and nearly everyone speaks English, but you need a bigger budget than ours to make the most of all the shopping chances!

We also saved some money for some real bargains in Bangkok, our last stop of the whole trip...

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185538680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185538680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1185538680/tpod.html Fri, 03 Aug 2007 08:27:18 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Mersing, Malaysia

There is not really anything to say about Mersing. We spent one night in Kuantan on the way here and then took a bus to Mersing. The guide book describes it as a lively fishing town but there is absolutely nothing to do and it doesn't have much charm. It didn't help that it poured down most of the time. It just seems to be the point where you board the boats to Tioman island but we didn't have enough time to squeeze a trip in. We found good roti stalls again and a decent hotel room with tv so it wasn't too bad!We needed to fill one day before we headed to Singapore as we certainly can't afford too many nights there.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184998980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184998980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184998980/tpod.html Fri, 27 Jul 2007 03:42:20 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Cherating, Malaysia

An early start for the 6.23 so called 'jungle train' from Khota Baru to Jerantut. The train goes past the edge of the Taman Negara National Park so parts of the journey were through jungle but parts were also through areas of deforestation, not the prettiest site. There were some really cute little villages and kids waving from their wooden houses and we did see a couple of monkeys. Its a really relaxing way to travel, if not the most exciting. We arrived in Jerantut around 1pm, it was pouring down and we were being hassled for trips to Taman Negara National Park. We'd decided against going there as we've been on quite a few jungle treks in the past few months and don't want to start comparing to them. Plus it was pouring down so the leaches would have been out in force!! So we waited around until a bus was going 4 hours later to Kuantan. Not the prettiest town, and no tourist scene so ended up in a grotty hotel trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in between the mattress springs! The food was great again though, roti chnai is getting very addictive and is so cheap. The next morning we eventually worked out which bus we needed to take to Cherating village, after about 1 hour at least 20 school kids squeezed on and proceeded to giggle and say random words in English to us for the next 20 minutes. Cherating is a lovely little fishing village, it must have had grand tourist hopes at one point as there are pavements half constructed, empty buildings waiting to be filled. But its a quaint little place with a huge windy beach, full of surfers in the monsoon. Everybody smiles and starts conversations with you wherever you go, and the owners of the chalet where we stayed (Mimi's, really recommended) even put on a free fish curry dinner one night. There seem to be quite a few foreigners meeting locals here and deciding to stay. The chalet owners had found an abandoned baby monkey and were looking after it before sending it to a monkey school where they learn to climb trees to pick the coconuts! He was a cheeky little guy though, very cute in his new-born sized nappies! The weather wasn't too great though, one day it rained heavily all day, apparently the monsoon has come early. We went on a boat trip upriver into the mangrove swamps and saw monitor lizards swimming along, monkeys and mangrove snakes in the trees. Apparently at night they drop down into the water to catch fish. Our captain was bringing the boat a little too close for comfort though, as he'd already told us how poisenous they are! Its a really eerie place, two hours was enough! Now back in Kuantan for the night, then heading to Mersing tomorrow for a couple of days.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184751120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184751120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184751120/tpod.html Thu, 26 Jul 2007 02:50:23 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Perhentian Islands, Malaysia

Well, first the positives: beautiful islands, perfectly clear water full of colourful fish and white-sand beaches with great seafood bbqs in the evenings. The negatives are actually only related to accommodation. We arrived at 11am after a bumpy crossing on a boat going far too fast and then a rocky transfer to a smaller boat able to get fairly close to the beach. We had tried to book in advance but none of the budget places take bookings but we thought we were early enough not to worry too much. Well, after a very sweaty 30 minutes walking up and down the beach in the sun carrying the big packs we found the only place with availability. It was double our normal price and very very basic, but had attached bathroom. That night we came home, turned the light on and saw a rat right in front of us! It was like being back in Pursat, but that was part of the deal, this certainly wasn't! We found that they got in through the bathroom so had to wedge the door shut (as there was no door handle). They'd eaten through a packet of biscuits so we tied the rest of the food in a plastic bag to the ceiling. We'd had to fight for a mosquito net even though all the other rooms had one and there was a dengue outbreak. That night we heard rats scratching around in the gap between the chipboard dividing walls. Not a lot of fun. We'd booked a snorkelling trip the next day so got up early and found out someone had stolen my bikini from the line on the porch (obviously Clare writing this!). So had to very quickly find a bikini and paid far too much for it, of course. The snorkelling was great though. We saw black tip reef sharks really close up and a huge turtle swimming just in front of us! So many different brightly coloured fish and coral. The captain thought it was fun to throw bread at us so the fish would come from all angles and suck on us! Had a great day on the beach yesterday and used ear plugs to drown out the rats at night and then discovered this morning that my sarong had been taken from the line. That was enough, everybody's beach gear was hanging outside but they took mine again. Its a shame because the islands are really beautiful and its definitely a great place to stay for a week or so, but maybe it was our turn for the bad luck as we've been really lucky until then. So now we're back in Khota Baru after a strange taxi ride with a driver who kind of danced to Britney Spears on the radio whilst driving. We're going on the jungle train either tomorrow or the next day.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184327340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184327340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184327340/tpod.html Tue, 17 Jul 2007 08:05:51 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Pangkor Island, Malaysia

Two buses and a ferry ride later, we arrived at beautiful Pangkor island and friendly Mizam's resort (the word resort is used in a very flexible sense in Asia). We were the only guests and I think there were probably only 10 other foreign tourists on the island when we arrived, lots of KL families came for the weekend though. The hut we stayed in overlooked the edge of the forest area that extends from the centre of the island with only the road separating it from the beach. There were so many hornbills flying around it was like being in a zoo and the monkeys weren't scared either, one night they found old biscuits in the bin and sat on our roof eating them and glaring at us. We had to take cover inside for a while! The beaches were beautiful, and nobody tried to sell us jewelry, sunglasses, tshirts or anything else! The only downside to the lack of tourists midweek is that most of the stalls selling fresh seafood in the evening were closed. We ended up going to the same place nearly every night, a sign it was time to leave was when we walked in and they'd just say 'chicken sate and a mango shake again..?' We took a snorkelling tour one day where we were shown rocks that look like animals, again, it seems to be an obsession of all tour guides and then dropped on an island for snorkelling for a few hours. Not a bad way to pass the time. We also hired a moto to explore the island, visiting the old chinatown and a small dutch fort before taking on the twisty climbing road with hairpin bends that circles the island, really beautiful riding through the forest trying to spot the giant monitor lizard. We didn't see one though, just more cheeky monkeys!

Now facing the long bus journey across to the north east coast, Khota Baru.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184152800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184152800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1184152800/tpod.html Tue, 17 Jul 2007 07:48:24 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Kuala Kangsar, Malaysia

Back to the sticky weather, and our first place that's surprisingly off the tourist trail (its not mentioned in the Lonely Planet). It was nice to be staying in a normal working town, no western food restaurants (apart from KFC!), no English menus and people that just stare at you! We had a long and hot day walking out to the national mosque, apparently the biggest in Malaysia. We were given long robes and then we could go inside. Luckily a tour group arrived from Penang at the same time so we could listen in as the tour guide explained the Islamic architecture, or we wouldn't have had a clue. We also saw the old sultan's palace which has been turned into a museum but was closed for refurbishment, and the gallery of the present sultan which is basically his excuse to get all the gifts he's been given over the years out of his house! Its a beautiful building and is full of his watch collection, outfits he wore at different events, photos of his family, old cars, hockey trophies, models of different buildings round the world, gifts of cutlery sets etc etc. The building had airco though so we were happy! We also found an outdoor restaurant showing Malaysia's first game of the Asian Cup on a big screen. Can't say the locals were particularly enthusiastic, they just gave a half hearted ' ooh' whenever China scored (again, and again). We had to get the whole menu translated by the poor waiter but had some really good food here, and the bill was never more than 4 dollars (mainly because very few places sell alcohol, or if they do, its really expensive). Plenty of people wanting to practice English too!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183806840/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183806840/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183806840/tpod.html Tue, 17 Jul 2007 07:46:55 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Tama Rata, Malaysia

After very humid and hot weather conditions, finally some cooler weather. About 20 degrees and colder at night the Cameron Highlands is the perfect spot to spent a couple of days without sweating. Public buses took us to a few strawberries farms, everywhere you look you can see strawberries,extremely popular with Malay tourists. Due to the weather conditions there are some tea estates, we have been to BOH tea estate. Had tea and scones ( not as good as yours Gran) at their restaurant and had a tour in the tea factory, was really nice to see the process of creating tea. Bought some tea so in a couple of weeks everybody will be able to taste Malay tea.
Spent most of the time reading and walks to town to eat some superb Indian food. Now heading to Kuala Kangsar, this to see some Islamic architecture
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183526580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183526580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183526580/tpod.html Tue, 10 Jul 2007 01:41:09 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Melaka, Malaysia

Lovely Melaka! We stayed in Chinatown, opposite a huge mosque, down the street from a hindu temple and up the street from a chinese temple. The town had a really nice feel and a sense of national pride in their descriptions of all the Eurpoean influenced past in their many museums. We have never been to so many (very cheap) museums, temples and historic sites in the space of a couple of days: Ethnology and History Museum; Portuguese fort, Dutch church, Islamic museum; kite museum, culture museum, beauty museum, sultan's palace. In between most of these visits we ran across the street to the shopping mall and some well needed a/c! Window shopping resulted in a few purchases and now the backpacks are literally bulging at the seems and we're going to struggle to fall under the 15kg limit for Air Asia! We also went to our first proper sate restaurant. A pan of bubbling sate is put in a hole in the centre of the table above the gas can. You choose your own skewers of vegetables, dough, pork and king prawns and cook your own food. They simply count the sticks afterwards, so cheap too! It was really delicious, much spicier than in Holland, just a small problem when the sate boiled over! The Indian food was again great, huge portions for a dollar or two. The accommodation in Malaysia has been much more expensive but transport and food are stupidly cheap, good job as our budget is pretty tight after no work for 8 months! Now a break from the heat, we're heading to the Cameron Highlands for a spot of tea and a scone or two!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183106580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183106580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sergeandclare/asia-2006/1183106580/tpod.html Wed, 04 Jul 2007 05:10:57 -0400 Next stop South East Asia...

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Wow, crazy Kuala Lumpur. We're staying in Chinatown round the corner from the night market (which actually seems to begin in the morning) and could have bought thousands of ' genuine' watches and sunglasses by now if we'd wanted too. Its been lots of fun (and really easy) to explore the city on the metro, we've queued with the masses to go up the Petronas towers, spent far too long in a/c shopping malls, squeezed our way through Little India, wandered through Lake Gardens park, seen the city at sunset from KL Tower, ate some cheap Indian food and got all kitted out to go to a Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra performance! We met up with Todd and Kyla when we went up the Petronas towers and in the foyer they were selling the tickets for the performance the next day in the Petronas theatre. We thought why not, and the lady at the counter kindly pointed out that there is a strict dresscode and tshirts and flip flops were a definite no no! Well, that afternoon was spent trying to find cheap smart clothes and shoes in Little India and Chinatown (none of us could carry any more clothes, so we really were looking for cheap stuff). We managed to get in, but Kyla and Clare were in real pain, they just don't have size 42 feet in Malaysia! The performance was really good so it was all worth it!

KL is a complete mix of people, Indian, Chinese and Malay yet the biggest queues in the food courts are at McDonalds and KFC and boy can they shop!!!! Still waiting to find the great sate but the Indian food has been great, though we always manage to confuse the waiters and are never sure what we're getting! Said a final goodbye to Todd and Kyla as they fly back to Canada and we head to Melaka to see what the Dutch and British did here.
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