As we had decided to head to Kanchanaburi for our next destination, a stop over was needed in Bangkok. So after a 7 hour VIP bus journey we arrived at the Southern Bus Terminal and headed towards Sukhumvit Road for an overnight stay.
We arrived late and the room from first impressions seemed adequate for a stop over, no window again, but you can't have everything. After half an hour we did start to detect a rather unpleasant damp smell, which we initially blamed on the a/c, so requested to have a fan instead. To cut a long and unpleasant story short the smell worsened, which meant sleep was not an option and our gag reflexes came into full play.
Strangely enough we checked out at first light, skipping breakfast and headed back to the bus terminal, occasionally being reminded of the smell, as it permeated our skin, clothes, backpacks and our very own soul!!
Only a 2 hour bus ride awaits us to Kanchanaburi, looking forward to getting to the countryside of Thailand.
Monday, 19 January 2009
14th January 2009
After our fair share of beaches and questionable accommodation, we opted for a few days in a normal hotel. So we spent 3 days enjoying such luxuries as air-con, a fridge, hot showers and English movie channels, only pausing to top up our beer supply and get takeaways - BLISS!
There isn't much else to explain about Chumpon, it is mostly a jumping off point for Koh Tao, but on a surreal note, we did see an elephant walking past the night market! Where is your camera when you need it!
There isn't much else to explain about Chumpon, it is mostly a jumping off point for Koh Tao, but on a surreal note, we did see an elephant walking past the night market! Where is your camera when you need it!
9th January 2009
Whoever invented the phrase "Plain Sailing" has obviously never caught the ferry to Koh Tao!
It was a beautifully sunny day for our crossing and we were 2 of the lucky few who managed to get a seat up on the open deck of the ferry. Knowing this was a 2 hour crossing we thought this would be an ideal time to top up our tans. Little did we now that this crossing would be like an outtake from the film "The Perfect Storm", and also that our envious seating position was the only bench not welded to the deck of the boat. As the crossing continued, our bench slid backwards and forwards and occasionally jumped into the air. So after 2 hours of Clare fighting back the sea sickness and Adam fearing for both of our lives, we were very relieved, albeit a little shaken and emotional, to find ourselves on dry land again. After asking a member of the crew, "Is it always this rough?", we were somewhat dismayed at his reply of "Oh yes, always, same same"!! Knowing that the only way off Koh Tao was another ferry, silence once again fell over our lips.
Koh Tao would be a very beautiful and intimate island, if not for the restaurants and bars which had built piers over the sands, leaving no beach if the tide was high. However we did manage to steal a few hours swimming in the sea and enjoyed a romantic walk along the moonlit beach. We had many enjoyable evenings here, savouring the sunsets and tasty Thai food while sitting at the traditional low tables overlooking the sea.
Accommodation was not a high point for us here, so after 5 days and 3 different bungalows we decided to move on. We had hoped by paying extra to go on the catamaran to Chumpon, that this would hopefully make the crossing more bearable. All we need to say is that everyone was handed sick bags before we had even set sail! Yes, you've guessed it, the waves were even bigger than before, but this time we came prepared with some travel sickness pills. After dealing with the crossing in a much more calm and relaxing manner, with Adam reading and Clare listening to her ipod, we decided to find out exactly what the travel pills contained. Apparently they are some kind of tranquilizer, but who cares, it got us to Chumpon without any tears or panic attacks!!
It was a beautifully sunny day for our crossing and we were 2 of the lucky few who managed to get a seat up on the open deck of the ferry. Knowing this was a 2 hour crossing we thought this would be an ideal time to top up our tans. Little did we now that this crossing would be like an outtake from the film "The Perfect Storm", and also that our envious seating position was the only bench not welded to the deck of the boat. As the crossing continued, our bench slid backwards and forwards and occasionally jumped into the air. So after 2 hours of Clare fighting back the sea sickness and Adam fearing for both of our lives, we were very relieved, albeit a little shaken and emotional, to find ourselves on dry land again. After asking a member of the crew, "Is it always this rough?", we were somewhat dismayed at his reply of "Oh yes, always, same same"!! Knowing that the only way off Koh Tao was another ferry, silence once again fell over our lips.
Koh Tao would be a very beautiful and intimate island, if not for the restaurants and bars which had built piers over the sands, leaving no beach if the tide was high. However we did manage to steal a few hours swimming in the sea and enjoyed a romantic walk along the moonlit beach. We had many enjoyable evenings here, savouring the sunsets and tasty Thai food while sitting at the traditional low tables overlooking the sea.
Accommodation was not a high point for us here, so after 5 days and 3 different bungalows we decided to move on. We had hoped by paying extra to go on the catamaran to Chumpon, that this would hopefully make the crossing more bearable. All we need to say is that everyone was handed sick bags before we had even set sail! Yes, you've guessed it, the waves were even bigger than before, but this time we came prepared with some travel sickness pills. After dealing with the crossing in a much more calm and relaxing manner, with Adam reading and Clare listening to her ipod, we decided to find out exactly what the travel pills contained. Apparently they are some kind of tranquilizer, but who cares, it got us to Chumpon without any tears or panic attacks!!
7th January 2009
After a 2 hour journey on a twin prop plane we arrived at the quaint airport of Koh Samui. This is one of the best airports we have ever seen, open air buildings with lovely thatched roofs. We decided to be a little daring this time and arrived with no accommodation pre-booked, knowing that there was a hotel information desk at the airport that could help us out. After perusing the file of Samui accommodation it became apparent that all of them were a little bit out of our price range, so we enquired if there was anything a little cheaper. The clerk immediately flipped the book to the back page and pointed at the only resort that was in our budget. This we thought looked fine! That was until we were ferried by minivan to our chosen resort and shown the room. Having learnt from our previous experiences, we decided to go through our checklist. Bathroom - Fine, Cleanliness - Reasonable, then the ultimate test - the mattress! After we prized the mattress springs from out of our bottoms, we decided that this was not the room for us. So after a stern look from the cashier, we got our money back and set off in the scorching midday heat for something a little better. Luckily Koh Samui is not short of accommodation, so we found an alternative in next to no time.
The sea here was crystal clear ad the beach was made from fine white powdery sand. So our days were spent relaxing on the beach and swimming in the clear blue water. Come sunset the atmosphere changes on the beach with some lively bars and pretty restaurants appearing. We decided to steer clear of all the brits abroad packed in like sardines on sun loungers, listening to their Ibiza beats and found ourselves a lovely candlelit beach restaurant where we had an enjoyable meal.
On a romantic note, we bought a Chinese paper lantern from a beach seller, lit it and watched it float into the night sky over Chaweng beach and above the sea. Lighting a paper lantern and trying to catch the moment of film was a difficult thing, but we did manage to get a good couple of pictures.
Unfortunately the main road on Chaweng beach at night does resemble Kingston at closing time! Apart from the drunken brits staggering around, this was cleverly illustrated by a monkey being thrown at Adams head and a ladyboy accosting Clare! So we made a swift exit to the comfort of our balcony and played cards, where no monkeys or ladyboys could find us!
Whilst having a gorgeous beach and plenty of restaurants and bars, Koh Samui does seem to have lost any Thai culture and has become overpriced compared to nearby islands. Ultimately this is a great place for the young part crowd, but it realistically could have been anywhere in Europe.
So after 2 nights, we booked our ferry ticket to Koh Tao and looked forward to a nice relaxing journey...
The sea here was crystal clear ad the beach was made from fine white powdery sand. So our days were spent relaxing on the beach and swimming in the clear blue water. Come sunset the atmosphere changes on the beach with some lively bars and pretty restaurants appearing. We decided to steer clear of all the brits abroad packed in like sardines on sun loungers, listening to their Ibiza beats and found ourselves a lovely candlelit beach restaurant where we had an enjoyable meal.
On a romantic note, we bought a Chinese paper lantern from a beach seller, lit it and watched it float into the night sky over Chaweng beach and above the sea. Lighting a paper lantern and trying to catch the moment of film was a difficult thing, but we did manage to get a good couple of pictures.
Unfortunately the main road on Chaweng beach at night does resemble Kingston at closing time! Apart from the drunken brits staggering around, this was cleverly illustrated by a monkey being thrown at Adams head and a ladyboy accosting Clare! So we made a swift exit to the comfort of our balcony and played cards, where no monkeys or ladyboys could find us!
Whilst having a gorgeous beach and plenty of restaurants and bars, Koh Samui does seem to have lost any Thai culture and has become overpriced compared to nearby islands. Ultimately this is a great place for the young part crowd, but it realistically could have been anywhere in Europe.
So after 2 nights, we booked our ferry ticket to Koh Tao and looked forward to a nice relaxing journey...
Thursday, 15 January 2009
4th January 2009
After an amazing 4 hour bus ride, which we had paid extra to travel "top class", with our own personal TV's and food provided, we arrived in amidst the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur!
As we had left Georgetown 2 days early, we had no accomodation booked, but luckily enough for us the bus dropped us off outside a rather nice looking hotel. We chanced our luck and enquired about their prices, but we were not at all surprised that this way outside of our meager budget. This didn't stop us, so we asked to use their toilets (they hadn't been the best of standards since hitting Malaysia.) Well, these were probably the finest toilets we'd seen since leaving England! Clare even said that she wouldn't mind staying in there for the night! Lucily, Adam had done a little research and we had an alternative to try in Chinatown which was close by to where we were. So we trundled off, leaving a trail of sweat and eventually found The Chinatown Inn.
Thankfully they had rooms available and at a reasonable rate for the area, but as us travellers have to look after our pennies we chose the scenic room with no windows. But wow, we had a TV with movie channels! So on our first night,we went out, got some chicken and rice from a street vendor and watched movies all night. Funny how you miss the simple things. Our hotel couldn't have been more in the thick of it, slap bang in the middle of Chinatown Market - with all the Gucci, Diesel and Tiffany that you could think of - all at very reasonable prices of course. We don't know how they do it so cheaply!!!
After our movie night we headed off to the KL tower to do the tourist thing and enjoyed the amazing views over Kuala Lumpur. We decided to walk back to our hotel, but oh my goodness, Kuala Lumpur seems to resemble some kind of sauna! We couldn't drink as much water as we were sweating out. But on a brighter note, it did mean we avoided the squat toilets! Come on now, what does it take to put some toilet paper in there! If we needed colonic irrigation we'd visit a health spa!That evening we caught the local train to Little India and after wandering around aimlessly, managed to find some very fine curry and naan bread. This all went down very well, until Clare spotted a fat rat running around the tables! Needless to say we made for a swift exit!
A bright and early start for us was needed for our last full day in Kuala Lumpur. We had to get to the Petronas Towers nice and early to get our free tickets to the viewing bridge. "Free" fits in very well with our stringent budget and even meant we may have been able to splash out on one beer that night! We arrived at the towers at 8.30am, to be greeted by a large queue, not a problem for us, as it was air-con all the way! We got our tickets for a 1pm viewing slot, so we had plenty of time to take numerous pictures of pretty much every conceivable angle of the towers and also check out the huge shopping mall underground. The towers are a pretty spectacular sight, the viewing was very good and gave us more impressive views over the city. You could even feel the sway of the towers in the centre of the viewing bridge - Crazy!!
The rest of the day we spent taking in the sights of the city and we dined out on fresh chicken and beef satays. For dessert we ate chocolate roti's, one of Clares favourites! We even had enough Ringit leftover to treat ourselves to one can of beer each, so obviously we bought the strongest possible. We think it was the local version of "Special Brew", but nevermind, it made us sleep well and for £2 a can, we hoped it would do something!
Enough of cities and expensive beer for us, we were up bright and early to catch a plane bound for Koh Samui for a little R&R. Hotel number 15 here we come, this travelling business is exhausting...
As we had left Georgetown 2 days early, we had no accomodation booked, but luckily enough for us the bus dropped us off outside a rather nice looking hotel. We chanced our luck and enquired about their prices, but we were not at all surprised that this way outside of our meager budget. This didn't stop us, so we asked to use their toilets (they hadn't been the best of standards since hitting Malaysia.) Well, these were probably the finest toilets we'd seen since leaving England! Clare even said that she wouldn't mind staying in there for the night! Lucily, Adam had done a little research and we had an alternative to try in Chinatown which was close by to where we were. So we trundled off, leaving a trail of sweat and eventually found The Chinatown Inn.
Thankfully they had rooms available and at a reasonable rate for the area, but as us travellers have to look after our pennies we chose the scenic room with no windows. But wow, we had a TV with movie channels! So on our first night,we went out, got some chicken and rice from a street vendor and watched movies all night. Funny how you miss the simple things. Our hotel couldn't have been more in the thick of it, slap bang in the middle of Chinatown Market - with all the Gucci, Diesel and Tiffany that you could think of - all at very reasonable prices of course. We don't know how they do it so cheaply!!!
After our movie night we headed off to the KL tower to do the tourist thing and enjoyed the amazing views over Kuala Lumpur. We decided to walk back to our hotel, but oh my goodness, Kuala Lumpur seems to resemble some kind of sauna! We couldn't drink as much water as we were sweating out. But on a brighter note, it did mean we avoided the squat toilets! Come on now, what does it take to put some toilet paper in there! If we needed colonic irrigation we'd visit a health spa!That evening we caught the local train to Little India and after wandering around aimlessly, managed to find some very fine curry and naan bread. This all went down very well, until Clare spotted a fat rat running around the tables! Needless to say we made for a swift exit!
A bright and early start for us was needed for our last full day in Kuala Lumpur. We had to get to the Petronas Towers nice and early to get our free tickets to the viewing bridge. "Free" fits in very well with our stringent budget and even meant we may have been able to splash out on one beer that night! We arrived at the towers at 8.30am, to be greeted by a large queue, not a problem for us, as it was air-con all the way! We got our tickets for a 1pm viewing slot, so we had plenty of time to take numerous pictures of pretty much every conceivable angle of the towers and also check out the huge shopping mall underground. The towers are a pretty spectacular sight, the viewing was very good and gave us more impressive views over the city. You could even feel the sway of the towers in the centre of the viewing bridge - Crazy!!
The rest of the day we spent taking in the sights of the city and we dined out on fresh chicken and beef satays. For dessert we ate chocolate roti's, one of Clares favourites! We even had enough Ringit leftover to treat ourselves to one can of beer each, so obviously we bought the strongest possible. We think it was the local version of "Special Brew", but nevermind, it made us sleep well and for £2 a can, we hoped it would do something!
Enough of cities and expensive beer for us, we were up bright and early to catch a plane bound for Koh Samui for a little R&R. Hotel number 15 here we come, this travelling business is exhausting...
Saturday, 10 January 2009
3rd January 2009
We arrived at Georgetown ferry port after our peaceful3 hour crossing, only to be met by a torrential downpour - NICE! But this did not stop us, we dug out our macs and headed for our hotel. We were staying in the aptly named "Broadway Budget Hotel", We guess the clue is in the title, but we are blaming the sun and humidity on this one. It was an oddly shaped room and none of the furniture seemed o fit, not even the bed. So you can guess it was a little cramped by the time we moved in!
Not letting the rain deter us, we decided to go for a walk about to see what the place was all about. We strolled around Chinatown and Little India, stopping for some delicious chicken satays. Our first impression of Georgetown was that this was a pretty grubby town with not much to offer us, apart from of course the exceedingly expensive beer!
After an evening out full of staring eyes and touring around the filthy food stalls, we decided that Georgetown really was not the place for us. Although the town itself was full of great architecture, old colonial buildings mixed in with Chinese and Islamic homes, we did not find it a very welcoming or friendly place.
So we cut short our 3 day stay, packed our backpacks and headed for the local bus station to catch a 4 hour ride to Kuala Lumpur.
Not letting the rain deter us, we decided to go for a walk about to see what the place was all about. We strolled around Chinatown and Little India, stopping for some delicious chicken satays. Our first impression of Georgetown was that this was a pretty grubby town with not much to offer us, apart from of course the exceedingly expensive beer!
After an evening out full of staring eyes and touring around the filthy food stalls, we decided that Georgetown really was not the place for us. Although the town itself was full of great architecture, old colonial buildings mixed in with Chinese and Islamic homes, we did not find it a very welcoming or friendly place.
So we cut short our 3 day stay, packed our backpacks and headed for the local bus station to catch a 4 hour ride to Kuala Lumpur.
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
29th December 2008
We arrived in Langkawi via a proper high speed ferry, well it wasn't exactly P&O but was pretty good by Thai standards. Even getting on and off was easy!!
With high expectations of the paradise island we made our way in a 4 wheeled taxi to our guest house called 'Gecko'. After a some what abrupt check in with the English owner, we were shown to our bungalow. Well, it was a bungalow in the loosest terms, it more resembled a garden shed with a mattress inside! First impressions were that it would be OK for the 3 nights we had booked with them, so excitedly we headed off to the beach, factor 20'd up as it was a scorcher. Arriving on the beach, silence fell upon our lips as it was not exactly the paradise we had imagined or seen many times in many glossy magazines. Never the less it was a clean beach and fairly picturesque so we went for a nice refreshing swim. After our swim we headed back to the 'Ghetto' oops I mean 'Gecko' we realised our first impressions were a grave misjudgement. This was compounded by a number of factors, such as, the 2 pet monkeys that were kept chained to a tree outside our shed, the bar outside our shed pumping music until 2am, the mattress that resembled a concrete block and finally, the shower, which in all honesty we have seen more effective gardens hoses. So we guess it was quite at home in our shed!! So no surprises, after a sleepless night we swiftly checked out and found ourselves a comparatively luxurious room with concrete walls, a TV and a hot shower - BLISS!
We stayed here for 2 nights and filled our days with seeing the local sights, an aquarium and more importantly a duty free shop. Before we knew it we were having an eye test and buying some new designer specs. Well it was duty free!! Oh & not forgetting our daily swims accompanied by the local baby jellyfish - OUCH!! Where is a holiday rep when you need one!
After 2 days at the Sweet Inn we moved to our 3rd and final hotel. We had already booked this guest house and had met the 2 English owners. They seemed to be very friendly and welcoming - no surprise at their prices!
So moving our backpacks again, we arrived at 'The Palms' and we were shown to our room by Dave. The room was great with clean linen, fridge, air con and a hot power shower. All the comforts you need. We had not been there long until we realised that a) the rooms were not very soundproofed (you could chat from the veranda to the bathroom) and b) that 'Big Brother' ( or should that be 'Big Dave') was watching our every move. We had been there for no longer than 3 hours and we had already been told off for leaving a light on and moving a sun lounger from its original position. All of a sudden it felt like a holiday camp rather than a travellers guest house.
New years eve came and we splashed out on a really nice meal - we found an English owned restaurant serving homemade burgers & chips and believe us when we say, every mouthful was savoured! We think we had got totally "riced out"! As midnight approached, we headed to 'Reggae Bar' on the beach to see the new year in. It was a great atmosphere with loud music, beer and one hell of a fireworks show, even though they were a bit too close for comfort. Not sure health and safety has reached Asia yet!! One hotel resort on the beach were releasing lit lanterns into the night sky, coupled with the fireworks it made for a truly original way to see in the new year.
On our last day in Langkawi we decided to put on our adventurous heads on and hire a car for the day. Well... we say a car, but it seemed more like a 4-seater lawn mower, maybe it should have been stored next to the hose pipe in the "Ghetto" - "Gecko"!
We headed to the cable car which goes up to the highest mountain peak on the island, but alas it was closed to the strong winds. As we stared up to the tiny cable cars swaying in the wind we realized that we were pretty thankful it was shut. So we headed off to the waterfall. After walking a flight of 200 steps in 90% humidity we were overwhelmed at the small trickle we found, we think it might be best seen in the rainy season!! Next up was the source of the waterfall called "The Seven Wells". After another 50 steps Clare decided that sitting on a bench was a better option, but good old Adam took the camera and soldiered on, not realizing that there was another 400 steps to the top. After twice thinking he was having a heart attack he made it to the top; Clare thought that the photos were very nice, but he wasn't half sweaty. That afternoon we drove around the island and visited a few other beaches which were pretty and a bit quieter than ours.
Langkawi was worth the visit, but not quite the picture postcard we had imagined. Eating was interesting, we tasted some local dishes which were nice, but we did find it somewhat difficult and lacking in choice. More importantly the beer was much more expensive than Thailand!
So we packed up our backpacks again and headed to the port for our 3 hour ferry bound for Georgetown, Penang.
With high expectations of the paradise island we made our way in a 4 wheeled taxi to our guest house called 'Gecko'. After a some what abrupt check in with the English owner, we were shown to our bungalow. Well, it was a bungalow in the loosest terms, it more resembled a garden shed with a mattress inside! First impressions were that it would be OK for the 3 nights we had booked with them, so excitedly we headed off to the beach, factor 20'd up as it was a scorcher. Arriving on the beach, silence fell upon our lips as it was not exactly the paradise we had imagined or seen many times in many glossy magazines. Never the less it was a clean beach and fairly picturesque so we went for a nice refreshing swim. After our swim we headed back to the 'Ghetto' oops I mean 'Gecko' we realised our first impressions were a grave misjudgement. This was compounded by a number of factors, such as, the 2 pet monkeys that were kept chained to a tree outside our shed, the bar outside our shed pumping music until 2am, the mattress that resembled a concrete block and finally, the shower, which in all honesty we have seen more effective gardens hoses. So we guess it was quite at home in our shed!! So no surprises, after a sleepless night we swiftly checked out and found ourselves a comparatively luxurious room with concrete walls, a TV and a hot shower - BLISS!
We stayed here for 2 nights and filled our days with seeing the local sights, an aquarium and more importantly a duty free shop. Before we knew it we were having an eye test and buying some new designer specs. Well it was duty free!! Oh & not forgetting our daily swims accompanied by the local baby jellyfish - OUCH!! Where is a holiday rep when you need one!
After 2 days at the Sweet Inn we moved to our 3rd and final hotel. We had already booked this guest house and had met the 2 English owners. They seemed to be very friendly and welcoming - no surprise at their prices!
So moving our backpacks again, we arrived at 'The Palms' and we were shown to our room by Dave. The room was great with clean linen, fridge, air con and a hot power shower. All the comforts you need. We had not been there long until we realised that a) the rooms were not very soundproofed (you could chat from the veranda to the bathroom) and b) that 'Big Brother' ( or should that be 'Big Dave') was watching our every move. We had been there for no longer than 3 hours and we had already been told off for leaving a light on and moving a sun lounger from its original position. All of a sudden it felt like a holiday camp rather than a travellers guest house.
New years eve came and we splashed out on a really nice meal - we found an English owned restaurant serving homemade burgers & chips and believe us when we say, every mouthful was savoured! We think we had got totally "riced out"! As midnight approached, we headed to 'Reggae Bar' on the beach to see the new year in. It was a great atmosphere with loud music, beer and one hell of a fireworks show, even though they were a bit too close for comfort. Not sure health and safety has reached Asia yet!! One hotel resort on the beach were releasing lit lanterns into the night sky, coupled with the fireworks it made for a truly original way to see in the new year.
On our last day in Langkawi we decided to put on our adventurous heads on and hire a car for the day. Well... we say a car, but it seemed more like a 4-seater lawn mower, maybe it should have been stored next to the hose pipe in the "Ghetto" - "Gecko"!
We headed to the cable car which goes up to the highest mountain peak on the island, but alas it was closed to the strong winds. As we stared up to the tiny cable cars swaying in the wind we realized that we were pretty thankful it was shut. So we headed off to the waterfall. After walking a flight of 200 steps in 90% humidity we were overwhelmed at the small trickle we found, we think it might be best seen in the rainy season!! Next up was the source of the waterfall called "The Seven Wells". After another 50 steps Clare decided that sitting on a bench was a better option, but good old Adam took the camera and soldiered on, not realizing that there was another 400 steps to the top. After twice thinking he was having a heart attack he made it to the top; Clare thought that the photos were very nice, but he wasn't half sweaty. That afternoon we drove around the island and visited a few other beaches which were pretty and a bit quieter than ours.
Langkawi was worth the visit, but not quite the picture postcard we had imagined. Eating was interesting, we tasted some local dishes which were nice, but we did find it somewhat difficult and lacking in choice. More importantly the beer was much more expensive than Thailand!
So we packed up our backpacks again and headed to the port for our 3 hour ferry bound for Georgetown, Penang.
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