Diary Update - Thailand to Singapore to Australia
Trip Start
Oct 18, 2006
1
12
27
Trip End
Apr 04, 2007
Sydney,
Australia
Saturday, January 6, 2007
It's been a while since I wrote my diary and lots has happened since last time!
Tuesday 19th December
Our last day in Thailand. Hired a scooter from the YHA and went out to do some last-minute shopping. Lunch at Rawai Beach sitting on the floor and eating off low tables right by the beach. Visited the Sea Gypsies to say goodbye and got treated to fried fish in Three Trees House. In the evening went to Baan Kiki for the last time and took lots of people from the YHA with us for a meal.
Wednesday 20th December
Didn't fly out until the evening so had time to do some stuff during the day
01 Phuket Family
. Took the scooter to Prom Thep Cape, the southern tip of Phuket, to see the view. Had lunch at Rawai Beach again because it had been so tasty the day before. Back to the YHA for sad farewells; we had been there for over two weeks and the place felt like home, and the people who work there had become firm friends, as well as lots of the other guests. A big thank you to Dao, Nok and Phong for making us so welcome :) Then a taxi to the airport and a short flight to Singapore. We had a less-than-warm welcome at the Bugis Backpackers when we arrived close to midnight! Thursday 21st December
A long day exploring by foot and MRT, the Singapore underground system. Followed our noses to a Buddhist temple close to the hostel, then had a look round a nearby shop selling all sorts of artifacts where I bought an unusual ring with the words of Buddha around the middle. When we left there, we spotted some food stalls and went over to have a look, and made our favourite discovery in Singapore; they have what they call Food Hawkers which is several aisles of food vendors back to back selling good cheap food. Of course we had to try one or two dishes, including Nasi Lemak which is a strange combination of rice, chicken, peanuts with anchovies, some kind of green veg and curry sauce. Then across the road for a wander round a shopping precinct including a wonderful ceramics area
02 Food Hawkers
. Next to Little India where we stopped for a rest and tried some tasty ginger tea. After exploring the area we found a wonderful Indian restaurant where we had biriani and side dishes for a very reasonable price for lunch. Next to China Town. I have never seen AD enjoy shopping so much, and the Devil presented himself to us in the form of Temptation! We could have spent a fortune there but we managed to hold it down! Close by was a very ornate Hindu temple which we visited before making our way to the port where the cable car to Sentosa Island leaves from. Next to Raffles Hotel, famed for the many writers and other dignitaries who have stayed there in the past, as well as for the place where the cocktail, the Singapore Sling, was invented. Along with the other tourists we had to stop at the Writer's Bar for just one Singapore Sling even though the price was extortionate! On the way out of the hotel one of the porters stopped us, telling AD that he couldn't go in as they have a dress code! Next we went to Orchard Road, similar to Oxford Street in London, to see the Christmas lights which were indeed very pretty, as well as the Nativity Village which was extremely tacky! By this time our feet were killing us so we grabbed some chicken from the food hawkers and took it back to the hostel. Friday 22nd December
We loved the food hawkers so much that we headed straight there for breakfast
03 Singapore Sling
. Next to Marina Bay in the heart of the city, surrounded by skyscrapers. We walked past the famous statue of Sir Stamford Raffles and the Singapore Cricket Club and then back to Little India where we visited a fresh food market full of all sorts of interesting wares. Then back to the food hawkers for a lunch of mutton stew before we went back to the backpackers to chill out for a while before we had to make our way to Changi Airport. The airport truly deserves its reputation as the best in the world with unsurpassed facilities including free internet, flower gardens, a pool, cinema and seasonal fun such as the acapella choir singing Christmas carols! A night flight to Australia got us in to Adelaide at 9 o'clock the next morning. Saturday 23rd December
An Aussie friend who runs our local pub in Oxford, Keiron, brought his English girlfriend Becca home to Adelaide for the first time and he and his family had generously invited us to spend Christmas with them, in fact that was what had dictated the timing of the first half of the world trip. Keiron and Becca picked us up from Adelaide airport and it seemed so strange to see familiar faces on the other side of the world! They took us to Keiron's family home and after a cuppa and a chat AD and I had a nap, not having had much sleep on the plane. When I awoke AD and Keiron were busy assembling the new barbeque Keiron's dad had bought that day
04 Becca and Keiron
. Later, Robert cooked up a delicious array of chops, steaks, sausages and more. Then Keiron took us to the Central Adelaide YHA where we would be staying. Unfortunately the night club next door was busy and loud but we eventually got to sleep! Sunday 24th December
Late morning Keiron and Becca picked us up and we went for lunch in a pub called the Austral in the middle of Adelaide. After exploring the main shopping street for a while we went to Glenelg beach. We had been expecting Australia to be the hottest place we had visited, but they had unseasonably cool, windy weather so we went for a coffee in the precinct nearby. That evening we went to a bar in north Adelaide and met up with a couple of people who had worked in our Oxford local, and there was an excellent live band playing so I couldn't resist having a boogie! AD and I got a taxi back to the YHA earlier than the others, still catching up from a couple of short nights. I did end up staying up late and playing the guitar with some of the other residents of the hostel!
Monday 25th December
Merry Christmas! It seemed that the other residents of the YHA were more subdued than usual but we were in a great mood
05 Christmas Lunch
! Keiron picked us up late morning and took us to his house and we had a very pleasant time chatting until it was time to open presents before lunch. It seems that a lot of Aussies still have the "traditional" Christmas lunch of roast turkey with all the trimmings, and that's what we had - it made us feel very much at home. After a little afternoon kip for me, we enjoyed "playing" with some of our gifts, and watched some TV while munching on leftovers and other nibbles - just like home! Tuesday 26th December
On Tuesday we were picked up from the YHA by two of my Internet friends - it's always such a thrill to meet them face-to-face having known them for so long online :) They took us back to Glenelg where we had lunch and strolled along the beach, and then took us to meet one more Net friend. Then a lift to Keiron's house to pick up our luggage and on to the airport. We flew to Melbourne as the flights were cheap and saved us hours. We made our way to Sandringham where we were picked up by a friend, Lissy, who spent a couple of years in Oxford a few years ago, and who we had seen recently when she visited England. She kindly put us up in her home for the next few days. That evening we just chatted and ate and met Lissy's brother, Marty, who is a scream :)
Wednesday 27th December
As we were in Melbourne while the Ashes were being played there we couldn't resist going to the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the day
06 At The Ashes
. I won't dwell on the outcome, I'll just say that it was a great day out and great to see the English team out on the field all day. We did catch a glimpse of Warnie, but we left feeling a little despondent before he came out to bat. Then on to St Kilda, a trendy area on the coast, where we went to a pub called the Esplinade, affectionately called the Espie. Then home for food. Thursday 28th December
Lissy took us into the centre of Melbourne... We went to the famous Victoria Market but unfortunately it was closed (our slightly out-of-date guide book was to blame). We explored the Victorian shopping arcades in the centre and had something to eat, and then went back to Black Rock, did some shopping, and AD and I cooked "lasangaroo" - lasagne made with kangaroo mince instead of beef! Some of Lissy and Marty's friends joined us for dinner, and didn't seem that phased when we told them about the secret ingredient!
Friday 29th December
Lissy took us to meet her mother and we passed a delightful few hours chatting in her garden. That evening we were invited for the evening to two friends of Lissy's, Rosie and Tim, and we took the lasangaroo leftovers with us, and stayed the night at their place
07 Brunch
. Saturday 30th December
While Lissy and Marty went off to their uncle's funeral, their friend Megan spent the afternoon with us. We crossed the road to the beach and chilled there for a few hours until the others got home and then spent the evening all together.
Sunday 31st December
About ten of us went to Sazio's in Black Rock for brunch, which was delicious. Then back to Lissy's to collect our luggage and then sad farewells as it was time to move on to Sydney. We had intended to travel there the previous day, but demands on public transport (with all the English cricket fans going from Melbourne to Sydney) meant that we had to leave it until the last minute. We paid an extortionate amount to fly to Sydney, and landed at 7pm - just in time to make it for the New Year's Eve celebrations! We were picked up at Kings Cross Station by my mother's cousin and her husband, Cynthia and George, made a lightning stop-off at their appartment, and then they showed us the way to Circular Quai where Keiron, Becca and Becca's college friend Kay had been reserving a spot close to the water for hours! We joined the one million other revellers and had a good view of the fireworks over the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, although, as AD said, it would've been better with about a million less people
08 Fireworks in Sydney
! After the fireworks were over we made our way briefly to Keiron and Becca's hotel and then AD and I decided to walk back to George and Cynthia's place rather than going on elsewhere as it had already been a long day. There were many "Happy New Year!"'s to and from strangers along the way :) Monday 1st January 2007
Happy New Year! We woke up late morning, and I had just got out of the shower when mum called, just a few minutes before the New Year came in in England. It was lovely speaking to mum and dad, hearing their reactions to the London fireworks. After that I actually fell back asleep and didn't wake up again until 3am! We could've met up with Keiron and Becca, but sometimes you just need to give in to fatigue, and we ended up spending a lovely evening chatting with George and Cynthia and getting a well-needed night's sleep.
Tuesday 2nd January
On Tuesday AD and spent the day with various relatives of mine on my mother's side who live in Sydney. Having only seen them in England in the past, it felt very strange to finally be on their turf! We were picked up by Yael who showed us around the Eastern suburbs and The Rocks at the mouth of Sydney Harbour
09 The Three Sisters
. After taking us briefly to her house to meet her husband Sandy, she took us to my aunt Seemah's appartment. She is the wife of my uncle, and we had never met before. She lives next door to her brother Elias, and after meeting him and having an enormous lunch, she showed us to Bondi Beach and then to the Bondi Junction shopping mall where she delighted in showing us around. Then Yael picked us up from the mall and took us to my mother's cousin Ruby's house where we were joined by lots of other members of the family, and where we had some food, and chatted until after 10pm when Yael did her final duty of the day by taking us back to George and Cynthia's place. Wednesday 3rd January
On Wednesday we made our way to the Blue Mountains by train where my Net friend Rachel picked us up from the station. One of my oldest friends on the Net, it was so good to see her and to meet her two sons aged seven and eight. We went back to her house and spent the rest of the day just chatting on the verandah and cooking a barbeque.
Thursday 4th January
After a hearty breakfast we started doing the Blue Mountains tourist thing. We all went to see the Three Sisters, a spectacular rock formation at Katoomba, although the weather was a little overcast
10 Picnic at Leura
. Then a picnic and a bush walk down to Leura Falls, and then we went back home where AD and the boys played cricket in the garden, and we ate out on the verandah. Friday 5th January
We had a real adventure before lunch, we went for a bush walk to Wentworth Falls, a place where Rachel had not been to before. We followed a path down to the main viewpoint and then allowed the boys to lead us further and further down the path. Eventually we met a guide who told us that we could continue along that path and it would bring us back up to the car park. The path became more and more rugged and we came to a place where we crossed and re-crossed a stream and the path brought us to a spectacular viewing point from which we were treated to the sight of the valley stretching before us hundreds of metres below. After a climb back up to the car we drove to Black Heath where we had a picnic and then went to Govett's Lookout, another spectacular vista. On the way home we passed close to the Three Sisters and went to have another look at them as the sunny conditions were so different to the previous day. Then we passed by the supermarket where we picked up the ingredients for AD and I to cook the evening meal which, of course, we ate on the verandah. Rachel knows a DJ on MMM, a radio station which serves Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, and we called him up. He recorded me talking about the cricket, and then we got on to the subject of the MHMF. He broadcast the cricket conversation just a few minutes later, and said that he would broadcast the interview about the MHMF this Monday. So if you're within broadcasting range, listen out on the evening show, and if not, you might be able to download it from the Net!
Saturday 6th January
Up to date - today we went to a proper billabong called Jellybean Pond where we spent a few hours swimming, exploring and having a picnic. The scenery was stunning and we came home tired, but nice tired. We've just eaten outside and here I am finishing my diary for the time being!
One update for you is that we bought a book of Australian birds, and we are continuing the Bird Identification Challenge that we started in South Africa. Here is a list of the birds we have seen since we got to the Blue Mountains:
169. Red Wattle Bird
170. Regent Bower Bird
171. Pied Currawong
172. Galah
173. Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo
174. Red-Whiskered Bulbul
175. Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo
176. New Holland Honey Eater
177. Australian Raven
178. Kookaburra
179. Little Raven
180. Eastern Spinebill
181. Common Myna
182. Mistletoe Bird
And we're enjoying twitching as much as ever!
Hope you've enjoyed the update. As ever, thanks to everyone who's been in touch, and thanks to everyone who has sponsored us. You can do that by following the link on the Home Page of www.miriam-hyman.com. Not sure what our next challenge is going to be, but rest assured I'll let you know as soon as we come up with an idea!
xesther & AD
