Travel Location: Singapore,Singapore

Travel About: big-city,beach

The city is divided up into several ethnic neighborboods, including Chinatown and Little India. We were staying near Chinatown, but I did not venture into that area since, again, I am living in Chinatown! Little India was more of an interest for me. It was fun to browse and people watch there. I imagine this was a small introduction of what some parts of India might be like. People out selling their wares, bright and beautiful fabrics to choose from. There were so many places to get really good and cheap Indian food! We went to that neighborhood twice for lunch-yum! One day, Michael and I took the subway over to the Arab Street area. We took a tour of a beautiful mosque in the neighborhood and there was a wedding ceremony going on inside. They had no problem with us watching and taking pictures. All the woman sat on the floor on one side of the mosque and all the men sat on the floor on the opposite side. The attendent at the entrance supplied us with simple cotton robes to wear to cover up while we walked inside the mosque. After the mosque tour we stopped at a cafe for strong and sweet ice coffee and some local pastries.

you could be fined for chewing gum in Singapore, they take their clean sidewalks seriously

Another highlight of the trip was are evening at the Night Safari. They claim that they have over 1000 nocturnal animals of about 130 species on their 40 hectares of forest. (I didn’t stop to count the animals so I have to take their word for it). We took the tram ride through the park with a guide pointing out and naming all the animals we saw. Have you ever seen an Malayan Tapir or a pangolin? Well I have!

We spent 4 days out of the week on the island of Bintan, about an hour boat ride from Singapore to this Indonesian island. (Again…another island!). The boat ride over was so rocky, people were getting sick all around us and this was an enclosed boat, no going outside! It was a rough entry to Bintan! We just wanted to get to the hotel and lie down for awhile. The main point of this trip to Bintan was to relax at this resort and that is what we did. We sat by the pool, sat by the beach, had a massage, got a pedicure, read books, and decided what restaurant to go to for dinner. It was a good getaway. One day, Suzanne and I hired a driver to take us out of the resort to the village areas to we could get a glimpse of regular life on Bintan.

Traveling in a group of seven can have its challenges, but we did quite well and I met my goals of relaxing and seeing another corner of Southeast Asia!

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Travel Location: Dargaville,New-Zealand

Travel About: natural-wonder,beach,hiking,hostel,farm,forest,kaihu-farm-hostel

We had a fun weekend up around Dargaville, a town on the west coast of Northland. We stayed at the Kaihu Farm Hostel which Avani loved. There were lots of animals there that she liked, including cows, sheep, two pet kunekune pigs, and a great farm dog, Buster. And since there were chickens there, we had to hear multiple times about how the rooster kicked her cousin, Addie, back in MN in October!

It was great to be back in a hostel again, with the simple amenities, communal atmosphere, and great conversation with other travelers. The hostel had a beautiful track, or hiking trail, through lush bush to a small glow worm dell. “Bush”, if I haven’t said it before, is the most underwhelming name Kiwis have for fantastically gorgeous forest, dense with giant tree ferns, long vines, nikau palms, and conifers.

The water is warm and crystal clear and the beaches are white and sugary soft.

On Friday we headed over to Baylys Beach, which is on the longest stretch of drivable beach in New Zealand – the 100km long Ripiro Ocean Beach. The sand is extremely hard-packed and people drive on it like it’s a highway. The beach overlooks the Tasman Sea, which is beautiful and completely undeveloped. Avani enjoyed it until a rogue wave knocked her off her feet and rolled her about 20 feet up the beach. After the initial scare, she took it well and wanted to do it again (minus the water in her nose).

We spent the first part of Saturday at the Dargaville Field Days, which was very Aggie to say the least. There was not enough good food and fun shopping for us and a little too much agricultural equipment, although the “De-Crap-It” attachment for a truck was interesting.

We went over to Kai Iwi lakes in the afternoon. They are three amazing freshwater lakes that were formed by rainwater filling in inland sand dunes. The water is warm and crystal clear and the beaches are white and sugary soft. Avani had a great time splashing about and not getting knocked about by waves. On Saturday night, we went to Trounson Kauri Park on the recommendation of the hostel owner and got to listen to wild kiwis calling to each other. Even though we didn’t see one, it was still a great treat since these small flightless birds are so rare now.

We spent Sunday hiking in the Waipoua Kauri Forest, the largest remnant of the once extensive kauri forests (now 95% gone due to logging in the 19th century). These are some of the largest trees on the planet and pictures just can’t relay how enormous and beautiful they are. We saw one tree, Te Mahua Ngahere (“Father of the Forest”) that was 53 feet in girth and about 2000 years old, and another, Tane Mahuta (“God of the Forest”) that is the largest kauri tree still living. Avani kept saying “Wow, that’s a big tree”.

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Travel Location: Ko-Phangan,Thailand

Travel About: beach,island,nightlife

Following a gruelling 14hr journey from Phi Phi by ferry to Krabi, minibus to Surat Thani and another much delayed ferry, we have finally arrived in Koh Phan Ngan ahead of the masses to secure accom prior to the Full Moon Party on 6th December. To be honest we’re not entirely sure its a full moon on the 6th but the Kings 80th Birthday is on the 5th (public holiday) so most places will be closed particularly bars and such – hence it may well have been pushed back a day.

Frankly it won’t matter in the slightest because over the next few days 30,000 revellers will be descending on the island for the party on Haadrin beach. Of course since we’ve arrived early we had to get warmed up so last night we hit the beach to get a taste of what’s to come…

We hit the beach a lil early around 7pm and had a great Danish dinner at the Drop in Bar and then as you do, ran in to many of the fellow travellers we have met right across the country to date. With the Mellow Mountain looming at the far end of the beach we set off to check it out! Several Happy Shakes later with a great floating feelin we swanned back to the party which was now banging out hardcore trance and techno at various venues…each vying to outdo their neighbouring bar.

The key here is to pace yourself and drink plenty of Buckets (ultra strength Redbull being the key ingredient) and mingle from one bar to the next until you’re totally wasted and then drink thru it until 7am the following morning. The Beach is pretty nice until you realise everyone is relieving themselves in the sea or trying to get laid!

Fortunately i have pictures coz i dont remember a lot…god knows what the actual Full Moon party will be like – will probably have to take a waterproof disposable in case i end up in the sea, which tends to happen to me on pretty much every beach party to-date.

On the night of the Full Moon Party there was a real struggle to find a bus that didn’t have 50 tourists on the roof and when we eventually found one…we had to push it up the hills or walk to the top and wait for it to catch us up!

The party raged on from like 7pm to 12noon the following day (after parties and Silver Moon Party aside). We had envisioned staying on the beach all of the following day but as the tide came in it brought with it all the rubbish from the last 17hrs – hence we were ankle deep in scum and feelin shattered headed for home with our many new found friends….if you need specifics you’ll have to ask me in person!

On our way back to Bangkok we stopped off at Ko Tao but just for the day to see what all the fuss was about. Its considerably smaller than Koh Phan Ngan but the water is certainly no better and a farcry from the likes of those on the Andaman Coast. We tried to arrange it so that we took a night bus but we arrived in Bangkok at 2am so had to book into a hotel for our final night before flying to India!

Hopefully India will prove to be as fruitful as the last 5 weeks

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Travel Location: Byron-Bay,Australia

Travel About: beach,relaxation,the-arts-factory

I started my venture up the East Coast of Oz and spent a week in Byron Bay at The Arts Factory. I’ve heard this hostel described as a 1960‘s commune gone right – and there are more than a few hippies, surfers and artists in this town; it’s a place where you wont find a high rise building anywhere and few mainstream shops.

I visited a town called Nimbin (the pot capital of Australia) near Byron – spent a hazy day there, visited the Byron market which was different to the likes of Covent Garden(!), walked up to the lighthouse and to the most easterly point in Australia, and that’s probably as energetic as i got! When I asked a local what there was to do here he told me I’m doing it…relaxing! So I chilled out in the hammocks, lazed on the beach during the day and around a campfire at night with guitars, goon (v nasty but cheap wine) and great company. I finally found a guitar on my travels hurrah! Met a fantastic group of people here and would have loved to stay longer but I had a job offer not to be missed so I’m postponing the east coast for now….

When I asked a local what there was to do here he told me I’m doing it…relaxing

After just 1 week in Byron I have flown back to Sydney to have a medical for the job which i start on 8th June. It’s for 2 months, on a cruise ship around the Kimberleys (Northern and Western Australia). It’s going be hard work (7 days/wk for 2mths, ouch!) but such an experience and I’ll get to see many stunning sights that most travellers don’t venture to.

After settling back in nicely I’m enjoying travelling and will get to continue doing with this job! I’m very excited and will keep the pictures coming…

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Travel Location: Brighton,United-Kingdom

Travel About: food-&-wine,beach,resort

Brighton is really cute! It’s on a pebble beach and it’s got a population of about half a million apparently. It feels quite happening. Lots of little alleys and the seafront is full of shops and bars right on the seafront. Definitely worth another visit. Next time I’d like to go and camp overnight…

It was a short trip on Saturday evening to Brighton for Sophie’s birthday. It felt so good to get out of London! Sometimes it feels so insular in this city, and it’s only once you realise how close things are it feels so silly that it’s such a big thing to leave!

Joe, my houemate and I went down about 6ish. The train trip was cool. Should have really left a lot earlier but oh well, still completely worth it. We saw sheep and lots of nice green meadows and all that. Brighton is really nice and got there just in time to see the sun go down. We met Sophie and her boyfriend, Bill, who were down on the beach having a picnic when we arrived. Then we went for a walk up the beach and along the pier where there are lots of rides. God, it’s so tacky! Apparently it’s one of the more posh seaside resorts in England. It really has a completely different feel in the UK to any other seaside locations I’ve been to.

Had a lovely vegetarian all you can eat buffet. Oh, and how can I forget? Went on a really old school carousel. That was cool.

It was a quick dash to the train to get back in time to catch the last train. Oh, and the bus trip home was a nightmare – that’s London and traffic for you though I guess. Ended up getting off the train in Picadilly for a bit, and couldn’t find anywhere to have a nice quiet drink. Fancy that, in the middle of London!

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Travel Location: Viti-Levu,Fiji

Travel About: cultural-immersion,beach,island,trek,feejee-experience

We decided to spend our first week touring Fiji’s main island, Viti Levu, with the Feejee Experience (sister company to the good old Kiwi Experience). Aboard the familiar green bus we set about getting to know our fellow travellers and the crew – comprising of our guide Té, the driver Arvin, 5 trainee guides, and the big boss lady. There were more of them than us!

The aim of the tour was to give us a glimpse of ‘the real Fiji’ rather than just the white sandy beaches and turquoise waters shown in the travel brochures – it was raining too. We were taken to a number of villages not regularly frequented by tourists, where the villagers would wave and beam at us as we passed by. Some of the kids would even pinch us to see what our white skin felt like. We took some basic stationery along to one of the village schools where the kids had great fun taking pictures of themselves with our digital cameras.

Getting dirty seemed to be the theme of the week

Getting dirty seemed to be the theme of the week. We got filthy sandboarding down muddy sand dunes – especially Dan when he prematurely parted company with his board and rolly-polied down the hill. We also spent an afternoon wallowing in natural mud pools, caking ourselves in it from head to foot. That’s our swimwear ruined!

Another highlight was a 4 hour trek through the muddy jungle in the torrential rain, which most of the guides did barefoot. We must have looked quite a sight as we eventually emerged from the jungle sopping wet, wearing our leafy camouflage hats and mud war paint, where we jumped into a rubber tyre and floated down the river to the end of our journey. A few days later the stench of a bus-load of mouldy trainers revealed why it was best to do this particular exercise barefoot – more items of clothing fit for the dustbin.

The Fijian people we met were all incredibly friendly and hospitable, although we were a little nervous when we visited the grave of the Fijian chief who holds the record for eating the most humans – but we were assured that the majority of them have now adopted Christianity in favour of cannibalism, and that they prefer beef anyway.

We made some great friends on the bus and partied the nights away crab racing and limbo dancing (I came joint first at the latter- there’s life in the old girl yet!). We also reluctantly took part in the traditional Kava ceremonies, where the root of a pepper plant is crushed up and mixed with water in a large bowl. The result was a liquid closely resembling muddy puddle water (in taste as well as appearance), which was passed around the circle and downed in one while everyone clapped 3 times. We failed to experience the reported narcotic (but perfectly legal) effects of the kava as we were unable to consume sufficient quantities of the foul mixture.

All in all we had a great time on Viti Levu – despite the weather. It had been raining relentlessly for four days causing widespread flooding. We thought we might have to spend our last night on the bus after we became trapped between a section of road that had been washed down the hillside and a river that had burst its banks. Fortunately the water subsided and we were able to pass – crisis averted.

Satisfied that we’d seen the real Fiji, we were off to the islands in search of paradise, and a little sunshine….hopefully.

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Travel Location: Ko-Samui-Region,Thailand

Travel About: beach,island,train,swimming

So we left Bangkok on Thursday and we couldn’t get out of there fast enough. One night was definetely enough with being bombarded by tuk tuk drivers who didn’t speak any english and just wanted to take you places that you didn’t want to go. Our favourite word there was no thank you but even then they didn’t listen to you. We ended up taking the night train down to Surat Thani which actually wasn’t that bad. 12 hour train ride and we left shortly after 5pm. We met a couple from England and a guy from the States and that made the trip so much better. We pretty much spent a majority of the ride getting acquainted and having some beers until we went to sleep. We arrived just after 5am, very early start to the day had to wait 2 hours for the bus that took us to the ferry. They tried to con us into paying them money to go in a pick up truck that left half an hour earlier, we said no, thank god because the bus ended up leaving at 7 am. We got to the ferry on this bus that was packed like sardines and really uncomfortable seats. They are definetely made for Thai people who are small not the average North American.

So we got to Koh Samui and after walking which seemed like forever with our packs and sweating out about 5 pounds we made it to our place we were staying at. The first thing was get into our bathing suits and go swimming. We stayed at Lamui beach which is beautiful. The water is crystal blue/green very warm, the sand is more grainy but we’re not complaining. Better than snow that’s back at home. We finally feel that after all that travelling we can relax and enjoy the trip. No schedules to worry about just working on our tans. We both already have sunburns that are quite painful where one day out of the sun is needed. We got Thai massages which were the best hours of our lives on the beach. They massage everything from your feet all the way up to your head. So relaxing and for only 200 baht. Definetely will be taking advantage of that a lot more often. Just walking the beach we have seen so many guys wearing speedos. Some of them shouldn’t but you can tell they just don’t care. We saw some beef cakes in speedos who were pretty ripped but thier tans where just over the top. IT actually looks like their layer of skin is going to peel right off. IT’s not even a brown color anymore. We have seen some women go topless and one we saw floating on the ocean totally naked. A little uncomfortable but you get over it really fast.

The first night we went out the 5 of us met up with 2 other guys from England and went for dinner and drinks. Had dinner right on the beach. The food here is so good and cheap. We then made it to the main street and went to an Irish pub, can’t go wrong there. There was a live band that was setting up and they were an Phillipine band, so we thought they weren’t going to be all that good. They were so entertaining, dancing around in their platform shoes, even the guy had them on. They just played covers from the 90\s and Tina Turner. The girl who did Tina Turner was bang on, so awesome. We were really impressed and they just gave it their all with head banging. One went to town with the tamborine, I thought her head was going to detach from her body with her shaking it and headbanging. They were the best cover band we have ever seen. They opened up with Angel by Robbie Williams, and we thought if you are going to open a set maybe you want to start with something a little more upbeat. The guys from England were saying that that song is the most popular funeral song in the UK. How depressing. They went on and sang Dire Straits, Belinda Carlise, The Eagles and on and on. After there we went to a bar that was a foam party. THey filled the dance floor up with what looked like bubble bath. We all went in and played around in it and once we inhaled it we couldn’t stop coughing. The strongest perfume smell we have ever smelt. So we didn’t go in there again, but one of the guys from England went in and was so drunk he fell in it and couldn’t get back up.. pretty enteraining to say the least.

Yesterday we took it easy by the pool and worked on our tans. Erin was in the shade most of the day and still managed to get a wicked sunburn all over her body. Right of our hotel there were these rocks, so I went with Toni and did a bit of rockclimbing to get a better view. With sandals and the heat not the best combination for climbing big steep rocks. Did lots of swimming in the ocean. Another day of really absolutely nothing. We met 2 girls from Austrailia and another couple from England by the pool. We all went out last night for dinner and drinks. Experienced my first bucket night where 4 os us shared 4 of them and now I know why all you need is one. It’s crazy man, a whole mickey of samsung 2 bottles of red bull and a bit of coke for color. The red bull here is nothing like back home. It isn’t fizzy and way stronger. It’s so nice to hear about other stories from different traveller’s.

We are now heading to the north of the island for a night to just check it out up there then off to Koh Pan Nnang tomorrow to gear up for the full moon party.

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Travel Location: Lombok,Indonesia

Travel About: natural-wonder,beach,adventure,surfing

So I left flores on the Ferry across to Sumbawa.

Got on a bus in Sumbawa and took it across to another Ferry to get to Lombok.

Got on yet another bus, got dropped off on the side of the road for the tunr off south to Kuta, Lombok (not kuta, Bali) and grabbed a cheap ride in a bemo (small mini van thing with massive sound systems. Funny thing actually, the bemo drivers love putting huge sound systems in their rides, no idea where they get the equipment, but you can pick which one you want to take based on the music and sound level. A few times I almost went deft, funny guys.

So I arrived in kuta, along with some a Canadian guy named Christian and an English fella named Chris. I met them on the Ferry from Flores, super rad dudes, and really nice to finally have some other travellers to talk with.

While in Kuta we rented motorbikes and toured around the area, checking out seculded beaches, little villages, and just rippin in general.

Christian blew a tire so had to push the bike to a small town to try and get fixed, luckily, no big deal.

That night we got drunk off Bintang, met a cool guy that told us to call him American Steve, and Christian got bit by a big geko

Next day, we rented more bikes, some surf boards and a hired a guy to give us a ride out to the break in his fishing boat.

The surf break was a reef break, a few miles out to sea. Pretty gnarly stuff, biggest waves i’ve ever been on, and most extreme location in general. Super fun, I got to ride a couple, but I was getting worked out there. Quite humbleing.

Headed back in we just chilled and organized how we were going to get out of there. I was heading to Gili Trawanagan, a small island off the northwest coast of Lombok, and the boys were headin to Bali.

Onward to Gilli T.

adam

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Travel Location: Honolulu,United-States

Travel About: beach

We turn up to airport for check-in only to discover that we were supposed to be there the day before.Fortunately the ground hostess took a liking to us and allowed us to check-in despite being a day late.

So we made it to Honululu and spent two very pleasant days hanging out at Waikiki Beach . We upgraded to a room with kitchenette and ocean views.

Depart Kona at 11.35 AM on Aloha Airlines AQ 217 – Arrive Honululu at 12.14 PM

The hotel is about 5 minutes from the beach so it is very easy to walk down and cool off.Booking the extra night allowed us the luxury of preparing for the trip home on the 11.30PM flight.

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Travel Location: Zanzibar,Tanzania

Travel About: beach,island

I have to admit I was completely spoilt rotten by my lovely boyfriend, taking me to such a gorgeous place. The views over the Indian Ocean were absolutely the best I have ever seen. I really regret not taking photos, as the days I decided to go out with my camera it suddenly became overcast. However, when the sun shone, the sea was picture perfect with all shades of turquoise around the coral, edged with the finest white sand I’ve ever felt. As the beach was private and part of the hotel resort, much of it was untouched, so like a couple of kids ,Mark loved the coral rock pools and I loved picking up pretty shells!

For New Years Eve we were treated to live music while we ate, followed by a disco at the jetty bar. Don’t remember too much of the latter part of the evening but I do remember some pretty mad dancing! I had a lot of lost ‘drinking time’ to make up for after all my poorlyness! All in all it was a great night.

Happy new year!

Unfortunately that was it for me. I’d had almost a week of feeling great. No poorly tummy, no more pills and I even managed to have a few work outs at the gym. I thought I was just hungover on New Years day but we both turned out to have food poisoning or something for the last few days. It was a pity, especially as it meant we couldn’t enjoy the lovely pool and delicious food on offer, but at least we had a nice room. We certainly watched a lot of films in Zanzibar! Should be enough to keep me going in my tv-free life back at Mili for a while.

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