Our final day in Beijing (Tuesday 23) was very relaxing. We had an earlier start than usual (9am), and walked to the Beijing Police Museum, in the Former Foreign Legation quarter east of Tianamen Square. The area itself was lovely - big buildings and and churches the legacy of foreign governments and their interests in Beijing. The Police Museum - free thanks to our out of date student cards - was pretty funny. A police museum in a police state was bound to be full of propaganda, and it didn't disappoint. We learnt how corrupt and unjust the force was, and how likeable and friendly they all are now! There were several murder and robbery cases displayed in detail ("and these are the sneakers the criminal tried to run away in") but alot of the info was only in Chinese. They had loads f badges and photos of old policemen, a 'martyrs wall' for officers killed on the job, and heaps of guns on display. Fittingly, there were almost as many un-smiling security guards as there were visitors.
We got some emergency US dollars for the rest of the trip, helping finance the Bank of China with a $30 fee. Then we went to Wangfujing Snack street for a feed. Still not sure what exactly we ate, but we steered clear of the still-moving scorpian skewers, cockroaches, squid, searhorses, starfish, lizards, gizards and goo.
It was lvoely weather, blue sky after the massive dust storm. Did some serious people watching (or were they watching us?) and played some Time Crises in a Sega Arcade - we make a good combat team. Had a bit of a sunbake and read outside the Egg and stocked up on pot noodles and snacks for our train trip.
We met a French couple at the hostel, Charlotte and Remi, who had just done the Trans-Mongolian and just got to Beijing from Ulan Bataar. They told us about the ger tours they did, and how cool our hostel is, which heartened us for the next stage of the journey. Because it's still so cold, we were worried that we wouldn't be able to get out of UB and into the countryside. But apparently the family that runs the Golden Gobi hostel can organise tours and tickets and everything!
Today we left ou hostel at 6am, and rolled out of Beijing Railway station at 7.47am. The train is lovely - our compartment has four sleepers, and so far we have it to ourselves. There's a fold out table and plenty of storage space, and bedlamps that work! We got free lunch and dinner in the dining cart - the first of much meatballs or dubious origin and potatoes. To be fair, we had been snacking all day. The train seems pretty empty. We saw a beautiful sunset over a windfarm and powerlines, and our first star, maybe planet, for two weeks. The trip out of the city was single-story ramshackle town houses, then massive apartment blocks, seemingly made out of lego. Once in the country side, the countryside same in - dust through the cracks and windows. The landscape is extremely dry and arid - half the soil landed in Beijing. There's rows of tiny, maybe dead, trees and shrubs - apparently the government is paying farmers to plant trees in order to prevent the desert creeping up to Beijing.
At midnight (it's now 8pm), we say so long to China, wait three hours and the border crossing, then hello Mongolia!
Friday, March 26, 2010
Beijing, March 22, 2010
On Saturday, after out Great Great Wall adventure, we took a day off. From what? Well..travel can be exhausting. After a sleep in (easy in a basement room) we headed upstairs to check the weather - a massive dust storm had rolled in from the Gobi, which made breathing difficult, let alone walking and breathing! Armed with books, diary, cards and postcards, we headed to Sakura cafe, in another hostel up the road. A much cooler place than our hostel - rustic furnishings, writings and paintings on the walls. We settled in for the next seven hours and rode out the dust storm. A good place for people watching. A bit of a write-off day again, but that's a luxury that comes with staying in a place for two weeks.
On Sunday we walked around Behai Park, a very popular Sunday activity apparently. The man-made lake dates back about 1000 years, and has a massive island in the middle. There's temples and dagobas, and heaps of history. We walked around the whole lake, about two kms, stopping for a bit of a read under a tree. Grass and trees are still dead, but it would be lovely in spring. The wonderfully colourful buildings made up for it though. The sweet corn - a big let down. We walked back on the outside of the Forbidden City and into the most eager people ever to want photos with us. Some would ask, others would strategically pose someone just in front of us. This must be what it's like to be famous. Phill even denied one young man dressed as a Commy soldier. Heartless. "I was having a bad day and I'd been asked like four other times...and i was just annoyed at, like, Chinese society...don't put 'like' in there! Stop writing what I'm saying. I'm a cold-hearted bitch with stunningly good hips..."
We went back to our Newmans restaurant for disappointing corn soup for afternoon tea. Had an awesome exhausting-day-spent-in the cold- nap before going to Sakura for dinner and free beer (we did deserve it).
On Sunday we walked around Behai Park, a very popular Sunday activity apparently. The man-made lake dates back about 1000 years, and has a massive island in the middle. There's temples and dagobas, and heaps of history. We walked around the whole lake, about two kms, stopping for a bit of a read under a tree. Grass and trees are still dead, but it would be lovely in spring. The wonderfully colourful buildings made up for it though. The sweet corn - a big let down. We walked back on the outside of the Forbidden City and into the most eager people ever to want photos with us. Some would ask, others would strategically pose someone just in front of us. This must be what it's like to be famous. Phill even denied one young man dressed as a Commy soldier. Heartless. "I was having a bad day and I'd been asked like four other times...and i was just annoyed at, like, Chinese society...don't put 'like' in there! Stop writing what I'm saying. I'm a cold-hearted bitch with stunningly good hips..."
We went back to our Newmans restaurant for disappointing corn soup for afternoon tea. Had an awesome exhausting-day-spent-in the cold- nap before going to Sakura for dinner and free beer (we did deserve it).
Beijing, March 19, 2010
Today we had an epic journey to the Great Wall at Simatai. After walking around three bus/train stations and no-one able to take us to Mutianyu, we went to the long-distance bus station where a lovely lady told us Simatai was much better, much higher. She pointed us to the bus and we got on. It took us to Minyu, where it dropped us pretty much in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by taxi touts who insisted Simatai was 75km away. Not knowing where we were, we bargained with them, their spokesmen insisting the Lonely Planet is old, and fuel is 6 yuan a litre, until we agreen on about $63 for the round trip. We felt ripped off and little anxious in Mr Dong's car, but we had no real choice.
The wall was quite spectacular, and would have been very spectacular had the clouds cleared. At 1000m, we could see about 15m in front of us, often not knowing when the next watchtower was. The walk was steep, and the steps that annoying size when one at a time is too little but two at a time of too taxing. There was still snow, but luckily no wind. We saw maybe seven other couples on the three hour walk, which I think is rare for a Great Wall experience. It was nice to have some peace and quiet, so we could eat our jam sandwiches alone. The hawkers though were persistent. We had two ladies follow us about 500m, not very forgiving terrain, trying to sell us tacky souveneirs. We picked up the pace and used our big strides.
The walk was pretty hard at times and we managed a sweat even though it was freezing. Our imaginations also got a workout trying to picture the view. We gave our knees a rest on the way down a caught a 400m flying fox for $6. It looked dodgy, but there was a sign saying it was safety tested...didn't mention the year though. It lasted about 30 seconds, but was good fun - the lake below and the clouds above, and then a very pleasant walk back to the car park. A massive section of the lake was frozen - not even massive rocks that Phill threw (with ease) could break the surface. The pleasure boat service wasn't running.
Our driver, Mr Dong, was waiting where and when he said he would be, bless him, and we made the epic journey back to Miyun and then Beijing and our lovely warm hostel, and amazing spicy pizza bread, and hot showers, and tea, and laundry, and free internet for Phillip to download games to his I-phone.
The wall was quite spectacular, and would have been very spectacular had the clouds cleared. At 1000m, we could see about 15m in front of us, often not knowing when the next watchtower was. The walk was steep, and the steps that annoying size when one at a time is too little but two at a time of too taxing. There was still snow, but luckily no wind. We saw maybe seven other couples on the three hour walk, which I think is rare for a Great Wall experience. It was nice to have some peace and quiet, so we could eat our jam sandwiches alone. The hawkers though were persistent. We had two ladies follow us about 500m, not very forgiving terrain, trying to sell us tacky souveneirs. We picked up the pace and used our big strides.
The walk was pretty hard at times and we managed a sweat even though it was freezing. Our imaginations also got a workout trying to picture the view. We gave our knees a rest on the way down a caught a 400m flying fox for $6. It looked dodgy, but there was a sign saying it was safety tested...didn't mention the year though. It lasted about 30 seconds, but was good fun - the lake below and the clouds above, and then a very pleasant walk back to the car park. A massive section of the lake was frozen - not even massive rocks that Phill threw (with ease) could break the surface. The pleasure boat service wasn't running.
Our driver, Mr Dong, was waiting where and when he said he would be, bless him, and we made the epic journey back to Miyun and then Beijing and our lovely warm hostel, and amazing spicy pizza bread, and hot showers, and tea, and laundry, and free internet for Phillip to download games to his I-phone.
Beijing, Thursday March 18, 2010.
Today we went to the Beijing Zoo. The grounds were lovely, with willows lining a river and frozen ponds. But the animal enclosures - and the animals are the main drawcard of a zoo - were foul. Bears were alone in bare bear pits, nothing for stimulation except the zoo patrons throwing mandarin peels at them and making them beg for apple juice - despite many signs saying no feeding. One man even spat on a bear - who spits on a bear? We're not sure if it is due to the freezing temperatures, but there were tigers and pumas in heated cages, about 5m x 5m, with concrete floors and a bench - that's it. There were much bigger outdoor enclosures, but perhaps it was too cold. Elephants walked around their tiny enclosures covered in shit and hay and with radiators lining the walls. It was pretty depressing to see, but the locals seemed to have no qualms about it. There were signs advertising how the zoo was making enclosures to mimic the natural habitat. Pretty sure there's no concrete, steel and glass in the jungle. Also pretty sure platypusses aren't called Duckmoles, and that a kangaroo's natural diet doesn't consist of corn, carrots and cabbage. The pandas were the biggest attraction, but really, they don't do much beside eat bamboo, sleep and look cute. They couldn't even be bothered to have sex for us. There was a couple of 'lesser pandas' and 'red pandas', but really.
All in all, a disappointing zoo, possibly even some animal-protection-convention-breaking going on there as well.
All in all, a disappointing zoo, possibly even some animal-protection-convention-breaking going on there as well.
Beijing, Monday 15 March 2010
We are the proud new owners of two tickets to Ulan Bataar! Hard sleeped, for 30 hours, for about $180 each. Booked in for next Wednesday (24th), figuring that it would be better to be in Beijing than Mongolia - where it's still -11 degrees.
We went to the Forbidden City, me stupidly in leggings and shorts, when there's still snow on the ground. It was freezing. The Forbidden City was vast and empty, except for the thousands of tourists and grand buildings dating back hundreds of years. The Spring Garden would be lovely in Spring. In Winter it had a dreary beauty - old, possibly dead, trees; snow still packed on the ground; flower beds waiting for Spring. There is an awful lot of history in the place - but it was just freezing. After about three hours we headed for home, and discovered the Egg - the National Theatre, a huge egg-shaped steel and glass building, and deserted at 4pm.
That night we treated our Canadian roomies Kane and Joren to our Newman's restaurant, and proceeded to get very drunk with a blue-eyed Chinese demon man. Not a word of English, but 'take a shot' seems to be universal sign language. He loved Phillip, his hair and his height, and was confused when Kane's Japanese friend Chicko couldn't understand Chinese - apparently they all look the same. Old Blue Eyes shared his 52% alcohol with us and got many photos before his friends or family dragged him home - but he came back! There was much hugging and hand shaking until he left. food and lots of drinks - about $5 each. But we paid for it more the next day.
Tuesday was a write-off of a day recovering from whatever spirits we were drinking the night before. While Kane and Joren left early for the Great Wall, we stayed in bed until 1pm. We struggled through town and to the Santilun are - full of embassies, bars, shopping centres and money. The chain stores - Puma, Adidas, Nike - were genuine and thus out of our price range, but after finally finding a size 11.5 pair of decent walking shoes, Phill invested in the future of his feet, knees and back. I too, invested (it is an investment) in a pair of bright purple ski pants for $60 - I'm determined to be warm in Mongolia, if a little chubbier.
Wednesday - finally I've caught up. After a lazy morning, we got all athletic and caught teh subway to the Olympic park. Joren and Kane came with, and the four of us dwarfed the population. The subway is so easy to use - signs in English and arrows pointing us in the right way - a very useful relic from the Olympic Games. We saw the Birds Nest, or the National Stadium, but passed on the $9 to go in, figuring that they probably wouldn't let us run the trackl or play in the long jump pit. And despite Internet pages from 2009 stating the contrary, the Water Cube was not open to the public - in fact, it was closed for renovation. Lucky we took our swimmers. The whole site is huge and would have been packed during the Olympics. On a cold winter's day, however, the hawkers almost outnumbered the tourists. Olympic Green was deceptive - concrete walkways and statues and bizarre steel poles. A river ran through and trees looked hopeful for Spring. At the Northern end if Olympic Forest Park, massive in the middle of the city. We walked around for a bit of fresh air, and poked some fish in the lake.
Came home via Tianamen Square at sunset (which, oddly enough, set above the horizon in the layer of pollution) to watch the lowering of the flag - very pompous and packed with tourists and security stopping the traffic so the soldiers could walk across the road from the Forbidden City.
We went to the Forbidden City, me stupidly in leggings and shorts, when there's still snow on the ground. It was freezing. The Forbidden City was vast and empty, except for the thousands of tourists and grand buildings dating back hundreds of years. The Spring Garden would be lovely in Spring. In Winter it had a dreary beauty - old, possibly dead, trees; snow still packed on the ground; flower beds waiting for Spring. There is an awful lot of history in the place - but it was just freezing. After about three hours we headed for home, and discovered the Egg - the National Theatre, a huge egg-shaped steel and glass building, and deserted at 4pm.
That night we treated our Canadian roomies Kane and Joren to our Newman's restaurant, and proceeded to get very drunk with a blue-eyed Chinese demon man. Not a word of English, but 'take a shot' seems to be universal sign language. He loved Phillip, his hair and his height, and was confused when Kane's Japanese friend Chicko couldn't understand Chinese - apparently they all look the same. Old Blue Eyes shared his 52% alcohol with us and got many photos before his friends or family dragged him home - but he came back! There was much hugging and hand shaking until he left. food and lots of drinks - about $5 each. But we paid for it more the next day.
Tuesday was a write-off of a day recovering from whatever spirits we were drinking the night before. While Kane and Joren left early for the Great Wall, we stayed in bed until 1pm. We struggled through town and to the Santilun are - full of embassies, bars, shopping centres and money. The chain stores - Puma, Adidas, Nike - were genuine and thus out of our price range, but after finally finding a size 11.5 pair of decent walking shoes, Phill invested in the future of his feet, knees and back. I too, invested (it is an investment) in a pair of bright purple ski pants for $60 - I'm determined to be warm in Mongolia, if a little chubbier.
Wednesday - finally I've caught up. After a lazy morning, we got all athletic and caught teh subway to the Olympic park. Joren and Kane came with, and the four of us dwarfed the population. The subway is so easy to use - signs in English and arrows pointing us in the right way - a very useful relic from the Olympic Games. We saw the Birds Nest, or the National Stadium, but passed on the $9 to go in, figuring that they probably wouldn't let us run the trackl or play in the long jump pit. And despite Internet pages from 2009 stating the contrary, the Water Cube was not open to the public - in fact, it was closed for renovation. Lucky we took our swimmers. The whole site is huge and would have been packed during the Olympics. On a cold winter's day, however, the hawkers almost outnumbered the tourists. Olympic Green was deceptive - concrete walkways and statues and bizarre steel poles. A river ran through and trees looked hopeful for Spring. At the Northern end if Olympic Forest Park, massive in the middle of the city. We walked around for a bit of fresh air, and poked some fish in the lake.
Came home via Tianamen Square at sunset (which, oddly enough, set above the horizon in the layer of pollution) to watch the lowering of the flag - very pompous and packed with tourists and security stopping the traffic so the soldiers could walk across the road from the Forbidden City.
Beijing, China. Wednesday March 17 2010.
So far, Beijing has been amazing. It is very well laid out, the subway is super clean, cheap and efficient, and the people are polite - despite the constant spitting.
We arrived at Tianjin airport on Friday, and with our new friends Joe and Bec from England and Andrew from Perth, negotiated public transport - shuttle bus, bullet train, and subway - to our hostel, about 15 minutes walk from Tianamen Square. In almost minus temperature, everyone stared at Phillip in his shorts and things; one old lady yelled at him. The hostel, also a hotel, has come to represent every business we've come across - clean, hygenic, staff on hand at every corner, grand old buildings and furnishings and every facility the traveller could need - massage, a barber open 'til midnight, restaurant, bar, cafe, tour desk, souvenir shop, bike rental...and it seems pretty empty! The toilets could be better...not knowing if it will flush or not doesn't make the most relaxing atmosphere for a poo. we will be here 12 mights total, so it's very homey, and $7.50 a night each for a dorm bed!
Our first day (Saturday) we had a very deserved sleep in, then walked to Tianament Square. Apparently it only opened at 12pm, and the gates were rushed! There was much pushing and shoving in order to get across the road, and then a bottleneck to get through the security check - a bag scan and a quick pat down - and finally into the square, where security, police and 'professional' photographers nearly outnumbered the tourists. The square itself is vast, empty and patriotic - flags everywhere, Uncle Mao looking over the whole thing from the north - the entrance to the Forbidden City.
After the obligatory photos, we headed to Wangfujing Street, a shopper's paradise. Three massive, upscale Western style malls and food courts and so many shoppers and still more construction. We found Phillip some thermals and got our photo taken by a passerby - not so subtle with the flash on. Then we ran - to keep warm - to Alien's Street Market, which should be called Little Russia. Apparently they pop over for the cheap clothes and tailors. We bargained in the markets for gloves (two pairs for $12), beanies (two for $12), and cutlery sets for the train, and purple thermals for me!
We walked and subwayed back to the hostel - so easy to get around - and went to dinner at our new favourite restaurant run by brothers who look like Newman from Seinfeld. We had a massive feed, beers and shots with the locals for about $8.
Sunday we awoke to snow! very rare for March apparently. It was lovely walking through all the hutongs (alleyways that service the courtyard houses), with about an inch of snow settled on everything. We walked to another disappointing shopping centre in search of more warm clothes, then subwayed to the main rail station, battled crowds and were directed to another hotel for info about train into Mongolia. We went there, it was closed. But we took advantage of the lovely lobby and bathroom for a bit of melting off and warming up. It must not have been a very memorable night...writing now (Wednesday), I can't remember what happened...
We arrived at Tianjin airport on Friday, and with our new friends Joe and Bec from England and Andrew from Perth, negotiated public transport - shuttle bus, bullet train, and subway - to our hostel, about 15 minutes walk from Tianamen Square. In almost minus temperature, everyone stared at Phillip in his shorts and things; one old lady yelled at him. The hostel, also a hotel, has come to represent every business we've come across - clean, hygenic, staff on hand at every corner, grand old buildings and furnishings and every facility the traveller could need - massage, a barber open 'til midnight, restaurant, bar, cafe, tour desk, souvenir shop, bike rental...and it seems pretty empty! The toilets could be better...not knowing if it will flush or not doesn't make the most relaxing atmosphere for a poo. we will be here 12 mights total, so it's very homey, and $7.50 a night each for a dorm bed!
Our first day (Saturday) we had a very deserved sleep in, then walked to Tianament Square. Apparently it only opened at 12pm, and the gates were rushed! There was much pushing and shoving in order to get across the road, and then a bottleneck to get through the security check - a bag scan and a quick pat down - and finally into the square, where security, police and 'professional' photographers nearly outnumbered the tourists. The square itself is vast, empty and patriotic - flags everywhere, Uncle Mao looking over the whole thing from the north - the entrance to the Forbidden City.
After the obligatory photos, we headed to Wangfujing Street, a shopper's paradise. Three massive, upscale Western style malls and food courts and so many shoppers and still more construction. We found Phillip some thermals and got our photo taken by a passerby - not so subtle with the flash on. Then we ran - to keep warm - to Alien's Street Market, which should be called Little Russia. Apparently they pop over for the cheap clothes and tailors. We bargained in the markets for gloves (two pairs for $12), beanies (two for $12), and cutlery sets for the train, and purple thermals for me!
We walked and subwayed back to the hostel - so easy to get around - and went to dinner at our new favourite restaurant run by brothers who look like Newman from Seinfeld. We had a massive feed, beers and shots with the locals for about $8.
Sunday we awoke to snow! very rare for March apparently. It was lovely walking through all the hutongs (alleyways that service the courtyard houses), with about an inch of snow settled on everything. We walked to another disappointing shopping centre in search of more warm clothes, then subwayed to the main rail station, battled crowds and were directed to another hotel for info about train into Mongolia. We went there, it was closed. But we took advantage of the lovely lobby and bathroom for a bit of melting off and warming up. It must not have been a very memorable night...writing now (Wednesday), I can't remember what happened...
Thursday March 11 2010, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Our night in Patong proved to be very entertaining. Starting with pre-drinks at our (air-conditioned and very comfortable - why would we want to leave that?) hotel, we wandered into town about 9pm. The streets were packed with tourists and locals alike - old couples on their way home after expensive seafood dinners, young men prowling in groups, local girls all dolled up, and the inevitable ping pong show touts.
After a bit of research - you can't be hasty with these things - we chose a show ("free show, just buy one drink, 500 baht a drink") and were taken behind a red velvet curtain into what was essentially a strip club. Young girls - barely 18 - in the tiniest G-string bikinis gyrating rather unconvincingly against poles, moving one place to the left after each bad song. Tourists lined the walls drinking their exorbitantly priced Changs (us included), waiting with baited breath for the good shit to happen. The good shit must have been at least 30 and at a mother at least twice. First she burst balloons with a blow pipe and arrows inserted into her va-jay-jay. Then there were the ping pong balls - one up, one down, bounce it around, squat and balance it on a beer bottle. Next, how about we whack a whole ball of tape up there, and unravel it around the dancing poles. And - what's that smell? Is that fish? Yep - squirt out a couple of livies, efficiently inserted backstage. Then, the piece de resistance, a live canary, in and out like a very live train at a train station.
This whole process just kept repeating, with intervals for full frontal nudity, lesbian action, and (possibly) a very flexible lady boy. Half the fun was guessing which ladies were boys - Thais don't have the biggest boobs, and a bit of duct tape can hide anything. We stayed for about an hour, feeling pervy and intrigued.
The nightlife of the streets was pumping - tiny bars brimming with tourists and locals, blaring bad music onto the street and offering all kinds of drinks deals. We got two cocktails for about $4 and played Connect-Four - yep - against a very bored and talented bartender. Games for the customers in.
We walked the streets, glad we were together so no prostitutes solicited us. Ladies and ladybos of the night were everywhere, made up and dressed for the role. Among them, a pregnant woman in an oversized T-shirt trying to get people to go to ping pong shows. We hoped she wasn't the talent.
We got more food and watched the drunks stumble past. It was very entertaining night.
Oh, and before all this, we got on TV! Walking down to the beach, we eyed off a camera crew until they stopped and interviewed us, asking questions about our fears of natural disasters - tsunamis and earthquakes - and political disturbances and terrorism. Being the responsible tourists we are, we praised the facilities, police presence and safety we felt in Thailand. It seemed to be for some tourists show or ads, as they presented us with police pamphlets and got photos shaking hands with the big, burly Austrian volunteer tourist police.
The next day we caught a 2pm ferry to Ko Phi Phi, about an hour and a half east of Phuket town. The village was destroyed in the 2004 Tsunami, so everything had been rebuilt, and was beautiful. Paved lanes - no cars or scooters - market stalls, restaurants, coffee shops, and lots of guesthouses at exorbitant prices. We got the cheapest we could find - $20 a night with fan and shower. Thankfully it was a big out of the town and away from the noise and lights . There was construction everywhere, bags of cement waiting to be mixed (by hand) and probably poured to make more guesthouses. The beach was packed with taxi boats to other islands, private charter speed boats, and ferries for snorkelling tours. We watched the sunset over the limestone (according to Lonely Planet) mountains and swam in the low tide - up to our knees about 50m out. It was relaxing after Patong, not as many people. Had pizza for dinner at a restaurant on the beach (poor Phill was starving - it took 30 minutes) and went home. Feeling a bit ill, I stayed home and Phill went to watch the nightly fire show on the beach.
On Monday morning, we explored the island. There's about 150m between bays and beaches across the mainland, so it's easy to see how fucked up it would get in a tsunami. We walked up the easterly mountain, following the Tsunami Evacuation Route (just to familiarise ourselves). The views were spectacular, especially the young Swiss man in his Speedos. The water sparkling blue and the sand white...and oddly enough, the trees were green. The Swiss man was really brown.
Climbing down, we partook in the blues waters and read - in the shade. The amount of potential skin cancer is abhorent - young Scandinavians in the midday sun, with bikinis on - not even hats! The afternoon we went on a sunset snorkelling trip. Saw Monkey Beach - lots of cheeky monkeys; Viking Cave, and the island Ko Phi Phi Lay, a marine park, uninhabited except for the dozens of tour boats making daily trips. We kayaked and snorkelled in a pretty amazing bay - lots of different fish and coral and spiky things Phill was scared of (not being able to float and all). We swam and walked through a rock tunnel - very dangerous - and ended up at The Beach - made famous by the movie of the same name. For such an isolated beach, it was packed full of tourists. We took the obligatory photos and swam in the warm water, and found a cock-shaped rock. Back on the boat, we were fed a pretty amazing red curry as the sun set and dolphins frolicked and fat English brothers tried to communicate with their Thai girlfriends. That night, we sat on the beach drinking vodka and beer, hoping (lamely) to meet other travelling couples doing the same thing. But apparently those that come to Phi Phi have the money to spend at the myriad bars and restaurants. We prowled the streets, being all yoof-like, and caught a Thai cabaret show at a nightclub - lady boys in sequins and tuele lip-synching to Tina Turner and Beyonce. Still unsure why, but we were denied the free vodka buckets we were promised on the flyer for enduring the cabaret - which the bartender promptly threw out when we showed him. Annoyed, we walked home through town that seemed deserted for a place full of young backpackers - maybe all their scuba diving and sunbaking exhausted them.
Tuesday, another exhausting travel day. Two hours by ferry to Krabi, four hours in a mini van to Hat Yai, then nine hours overnight in an overly air-conditioned bus in to Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian customs was easy - the lad only commented to Phill "Oh, you cut all your hair off!"
We arrived at KL at 4am, a very seedy time of night. Luckily, lots of hotels were still open and the lovely man at Red Dragon hostel let us check in at 5am for the enxt night, for $14 a night. Sept off the bus trip til 11am, got a feed and started walking. Got lost, and came home for some serious Facebooking (five weeks of photos - you're welcome) and blogging. We met Mirjam and Parth for dinner - Mirjam is a friend of Phill's German friend Denise. They both study in a town about 2o mins from KL, and like to come to town to get away from their conservative college - no drinking, no common rooms, gates locked at midnight. It was very interesting to talk to them about Malaysia and how conservative it is - Parthe had not drunk alcohol for three months, since leaving India. Beer is expensive and Muslims don't drink. Had some great curry for dinner and saw the Petronas Twin Towers lit up at night.
Today we got up early - 7am - and caught the very clean, efficient, cheap and easy to use subway, to KLC and the Twin Towers. After an hour wait, we were given free tickets and subjected to the most patriotic and Petronas-loving 3d media show (glasses and all). The we got to go to the Skybridge, 41 floors up, as seen in the film Entrapment. The view was ok. Caught the train again to Merdeka Square, a parade ground and popular stop for tour buses- that's it' unfortunately. On the way back to our hostel we were fined for jay-walking. We tried to talk our way out of it - we were tired from a long walk and didn't want to climb up the overhead walkway; everyone else was doing it (everyone else also got fined); we were tourists and didn't know; there were no signs (we saw the signs after). We bargained with them (that's right - bargaining with police officers) and they said as we were tourists they would only fine one of us, 30ringits, about $10. Thing is, we budgeted for our stay in KL, only had enough for taxi and bus to the airport tomorrow, and food. We had 20 ringits in my wallet, so they accepted that. Still felt very ripped off.
After a bit of research - you can't be hasty with these things - we chose a show ("free show, just buy one drink, 500 baht a drink") and were taken behind a red velvet curtain into what was essentially a strip club. Young girls - barely 18 - in the tiniest G-string bikinis gyrating rather unconvincingly against poles, moving one place to the left after each bad song. Tourists lined the walls drinking their exorbitantly priced Changs (us included), waiting with baited breath for the good shit to happen. The good shit must have been at least 30 and at a mother at least twice. First she burst balloons with a blow pipe and arrows inserted into her va-jay-jay. Then there were the ping pong balls - one up, one down, bounce it around, squat and balance it on a beer bottle. Next, how about we whack a whole ball of tape up there, and unravel it around the dancing poles. And - what's that smell? Is that fish? Yep - squirt out a couple of livies, efficiently inserted backstage. Then, the piece de resistance, a live canary, in and out like a very live train at a train station.
This whole process just kept repeating, with intervals for full frontal nudity, lesbian action, and (possibly) a very flexible lady boy. Half the fun was guessing which ladies were boys - Thais don't have the biggest boobs, and a bit of duct tape can hide anything. We stayed for about an hour, feeling pervy and intrigued.
The nightlife of the streets was pumping - tiny bars brimming with tourists and locals, blaring bad music onto the street and offering all kinds of drinks deals. We got two cocktails for about $4 and played Connect-Four - yep - against a very bored and talented bartender. Games for the customers in.
We walked the streets, glad we were together so no prostitutes solicited us. Ladies and ladybos of the night were everywhere, made up and dressed for the role. Among them, a pregnant woman in an oversized T-shirt trying to get people to go to ping pong shows. We hoped she wasn't the talent.
We got more food and watched the drunks stumble past. It was very entertaining night.
Oh, and before all this, we got on TV! Walking down to the beach, we eyed off a camera crew until they stopped and interviewed us, asking questions about our fears of natural disasters - tsunamis and earthquakes - and political disturbances and terrorism. Being the responsible tourists we are, we praised the facilities, police presence and safety we felt in Thailand. It seemed to be for some tourists show or ads, as they presented us with police pamphlets and got photos shaking hands with the big, burly Austrian volunteer tourist police.
The next day we caught a 2pm ferry to Ko Phi Phi, about an hour and a half east of Phuket town. The village was destroyed in the 2004 Tsunami, so everything had been rebuilt, and was beautiful. Paved lanes - no cars or scooters - market stalls, restaurants, coffee shops, and lots of guesthouses at exorbitant prices. We got the cheapest we could find - $20 a night with fan and shower. Thankfully it was a big out of the town and away from the noise and lights . There was construction everywhere, bags of cement waiting to be mixed (by hand) and probably poured to make more guesthouses. The beach was packed with taxi boats to other islands, private charter speed boats, and ferries for snorkelling tours. We watched the sunset over the limestone (according to Lonely Planet) mountains and swam in the low tide - up to our knees about 50m out. It was relaxing after Patong, not as many people. Had pizza for dinner at a restaurant on the beach (poor Phill was starving - it took 30 minutes) and went home. Feeling a bit ill, I stayed home and Phill went to watch the nightly fire show on the beach.
On Monday morning, we explored the island. There's about 150m between bays and beaches across the mainland, so it's easy to see how fucked up it would get in a tsunami. We walked up the easterly mountain, following the Tsunami Evacuation Route (just to familiarise ourselves). The views were spectacular, especially the young Swiss man in his Speedos. The water sparkling blue and the sand white...and oddly enough, the trees were green. The Swiss man was really brown.
Climbing down, we partook in the blues waters and read - in the shade. The amount of potential skin cancer is abhorent - young Scandinavians in the midday sun, with bikinis on - not even hats! The afternoon we went on a sunset snorkelling trip. Saw Monkey Beach - lots of cheeky monkeys; Viking Cave, and the island Ko Phi Phi Lay, a marine park, uninhabited except for the dozens of tour boats making daily trips. We kayaked and snorkelled in a pretty amazing bay - lots of different fish and coral and spiky things Phill was scared of (not being able to float and all). We swam and walked through a rock tunnel - very dangerous - and ended up at The Beach - made famous by the movie of the same name. For such an isolated beach, it was packed full of tourists. We took the obligatory photos and swam in the warm water, and found a cock-shaped rock. Back on the boat, we were fed a pretty amazing red curry as the sun set and dolphins frolicked and fat English brothers tried to communicate with their Thai girlfriends. That night, we sat on the beach drinking vodka and beer, hoping (lamely) to meet other travelling couples doing the same thing. But apparently those that come to Phi Phi have the money to spend at the myriad bars and restaurants. We prowled the streets, being all yoof-like, and caught a Thai cabaret show at a nightclub - lady boys in sequins and tuele lip-synching to Tina Turner and Beyonce. Still unsure why, but we were denied the free vodka buckets we were promised on the flyer for enduring the cabaret - which the bartender promptly threw out when we showed him. Annoyed, we walked home through town that seemed deserted for a place full of young backpackers - maybe all their scuba diving and sunbaking exhausted them.
Tuesday, another exhausting travel day. Two hours by ferry to Krabi, four hours in a mini van to Hat Yai, then nine hours overnight in an overly air-conditioned bus in to Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian customs was easy - the lad only commented to Phill "Oh, you cut all your hair off!"
We arrived at KL at 4am, a very seedy time of night. Luckily, lots of hotels were still open and the lovely man at Red Dragon hostel let us check in at 5am for the enxt night, for $14 a night. Sept off the bus trip til 11am, got a feed and started walking. Got lost, and came home for some serious Facebooking (five weeks of photos - you're welcome) and blogging. We met Mirjam and Parth for dinner - Mirjam is a friend of Phill's German friend Denise. They both study in a town about 2o mins from KL, and like to come to town to get away from their conservative college - no drinking, no common rooms, gates locked at midnight. It was very interesting to talk to them about Malaysia and how conservative it is - Parthe had not drunk alcohol for three months, since leaving India. Beer is expensive and Muslims don't drink. Had some great curry for dinner and saw the Petronas Twin Towers lit up at night.
Today we got up early - 7am - and caught the very clean, efficient, cheap and easy to use subway, to KLC and the Twin Towers. After an hour wait, we were given free tickets and subjected to the most patriotic and Petronas-loving 3d media show (glasses and all). The we got to go to the Skybridge, 41 floors up, as seen in the film Entrapment. The view was ok. Caught the train again to Merdeka Square, a parade ground and popular stop for tour buses- that's it' unfortunately. On the way back to our hostel we were fined for jay-walking. We tried to talk our way out of it - we were tired from a long walk and didn't want to climb up the overhead walkway; everyone else was doing it (everyone else also got fined); we were tourists and didn't know; there were no signs (we saw the signs after). We bargained with them (that's right - bargaining with police officers) and they said as we were tourists they would only fine one of us, 30ringits, about $10. Thing is, we budgeted for our stay in KL, only had enough for taxi and bus to the airport tomorrow, and food. We had 20 ringits in my wallet, so they accepted that. Still felt very ripped off.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand. Saturday 5-3-09
Pretty sure that 'Patong' is Thai for either 'Scandinavian' or 'get your tits out' - both seem to apply to this packed tourist destination. We came here intending to relax by the beach all day, our first beach in two and a half weeks and our last until Germany (using 'beach' very loosely). Patong is as touristy as Kaho San Road, with the added bonus of 50-something overweight Europeans of lavish resort holidays. The tourist information booths and taxi drivers almost outnumber the tourists though.
The natural beauty of the beach is stunning - a sweeping sandy bay facing west, hills on either end and islands in the distance. It would be nice if all the people upped and left, but that's highly unlikely. The sand if packed with sun chairs and umbrellas; sunburnt walruses getting their boobs out for some vitamin D. Hawkers strut up and down with their wares, and ladies yell their nasal 'maaaassssaagggeeee', as if saying it for longer will make you agree. It is a lovely place, but it makes us appreciate Australia's natural beauty and our pristine and deserted beaches. Patong is a tourist destination, with an international airport thirty minutes away, and every facility a holidaying couple, or a bucks party, would want. Unfortunately we will not have time to discover if all of Thailand's beaches are like this, as we fly to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur in a week. We hope to get to Ko Phi Phi for a taste of island life before making our way to KL.
We arrived in Phuket Province, actually an island attached to the mainland by a bridge, at 10.30 on Thursday night, after another epic 30-hour journeys from Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand. First, a 14-hour sleeper train to Bangkok - with only second class fan available, which should definitely by called third class. The doors between the carriages couldn't close so it was noisy the whole time. 'Fan' also means window, which can close except for about a foot. As it was so hot (it was a 3pm departure), we left the windows open, so dust, bugs, stinky fire air (smoke?) all came in and settled through the carriage. I had the bottom sleep, and half of it was broken and a spring was sprung. The lights in our berths didn't work, and the main lights in the carriage flickered on and off. I resigned to reading Harry Potter by torchlight, trying to make myself super sleepy. We arrived in Bangkok an hour and a half late, but luckily still had time to get a feed, have a bit of a train station wash, before boarding the 8.05 to Surat Thani. Although it was only seats, thankfully it was aircon, clean and comfortable. We even got breakfast and lunch!45 minutes late to Surat Thani, but we managed to hassle a taxi driver (who am I kidding - they pounced) and we got a 6pm 'minivan' to Phuket town, four hours away. This was the type of travel that gets us down - the whole way I was forming a stern e-mail in my mind: "Dear Sir, when you see us, and notice that we are taller than your average Thai or tourist, please could you mention that your minivan is made for midgets, and will not depart unless every seat is filled, and every space filled with luggage. Also, please add on at least an hour to expected travel time. Also, if you bothered to purchase a van with individual reading lights, why not maintain them? Also, perhaps some kind of seating system whereby short people are assigned to the seats with less leg room might be a good idea. Kind regards, tall disgruntled passengers. PS, when you say you stop at the bus station, please take us to the bus station, now some dodg
y alleyway where we don't know where we are, only to be hounded by motorcycle taxi drivers." The joys of long distance travel. But it did only cost us about $60 each for a cross-country journey. Knackered, we settled on the nearest hotel for $20, found food and beer, and slept.The next day we walked around Phuket town, a nice city, with one-way streets, lots of 'Sino-Portugese' architecture and crumbling terrace houses. We checked into the cheaper On On Hotel, used as a set in The Beach...room 38 in fact. We were room 41. I could smell the remnants of Leo. Oh, wait, no. That was the squat toilet, the stagnant drainage system and the mould of the ceiling. Letting us down Leo. It is a beautiful, big old building and a shame to see it so decrepit.
After the midday heat, we walked to Phuket Bay, almost getting lost. Friday night is market night, and the whole bay was packed with locals - refreshingly, we didn't see any other white people there. There was a lovely park by the water overlooking the bay and islands, and what could have been a beach at high tide but was now just mud flats. There were lots of families out exercising and having dinner on the grass in the sunset. We partook in local twice deep fried seafood - fish, prawns (shells and all), anchovies (we think) and deep fried frankfurt. Yummo. We walked back into town and found a bar near our hotel for beer, got second dinners, met the loosest American (half-Norweigan, he insisted) on valium, and had a early night. Well, intended to, if everyone hadn't been so noisy and the walls hadn't been made out of cardboard and if they had gone from the floor to the ceiling.
Wanting to beat the midday heat, we left town at about 8.30 am, and got the public bus to Patong. Nothing here is cheap, so we settled on $20 a night for a really nice room - aircon, TV, shower and huge bed. Tonight, a night on the town. Maybe a ping pong show, we don't know if we'll have time...
Monday, March 1, 2010
Chiang Mai, Thailand. March 2nd.
Who manages to catch a cold in a tropical climate? I do! We are having a chillax day in Chiang Mai today so hopefully I will be well by the time it comes to move on...still deciding when that will be.
We caught an overnight sleeper train from Bangkok on Saturday night. At first we thought they had ripped us off and there were no sleeping compartments, but then a lovely man with a face mask came on and transformed the two lower seats into a bed, and pulled down the top bed from the ceiling, put curtains up, and made our beds with sheets, pillows and blankets. It was very cosy and the train rocked us to sleep, but also rocked us awake so 50/50 in the rocking department. It took 14 hours but was so much nicer than a bus - we could walk around, the toilets were usable, and we had a card table for Ultimate Golf (Phillip won).
We got into Chiang Mai about 10.30 am, and shared a taxi into town with an English couple. Found and checked into Julie's Guesthouse, recommended to us by lots of people. It's a cool little place, with a common area and a rooftop 'chillout area', a fridge full of drinks that you can just put on your tab (dangerous) and heaps of tour info. We wandered around town for a bit, found some markets with amazing food...indulged. Phill was craving a sausage, but unfortunately was let down by the fact that it had noodles and rice in it! Where's the meat? We ran into our English friends again and they had just been scouting out car rental deals and asked if we'd like to tag along for a day in the mountains where there's heaps of waterfalls. We did want to.
Sunday nights in Chiang Mai are all about the walking streets. Markets line (and line, and line) the main streets in the old town and you can get everything, and every food. Naturally, we began another eat-off - fried potato twists, roasted sweet corn, amazing pork dumplings, spring rolls, banana spring rolls, sushi, pad thai, smoothies and waffles. We would have spent about $3 each and it was all amazing and fresh. I freaking love corn! It was also a Buddhist holiday, so all the temples (and there's loads) were full of monks and locals making offerings and chanting. We came across a small group of monks letting off giant umm....I don't know how to explain it. Giant paper bags with flames underneath...like paper lanterns? So they lit the flames, waited for the lantern to fill up with hot air, then let go and they drifted into the sky. It was really beautiful to watch. The markets became so crowded at about 7pm, shuffling room only, so we went back to the hostel and played Ultimate Golf (Phillip won).
The next day we met up with Adam and Olivia, our English buddies, and hired a car, a Toyota Hilux with a tray. We eventually found the seatbelts. First stop - Tescos! We went a bit crazy in the supermarket; baked goods galore. Had some Milo cereal in the car park (all class) then negotiated the city streets to get out of Chiang Mai and on the highway to the mountains.
First stop was a pretty impressive waterfall, cascading down 30 tiers. Had a bit of swim under it and some rock hopping. Olivia and I rode in the back of the ute to the next stop, gotta love Thai freedom.
It was really nice to get out of the city. We had only been in Jakarta and Bangkok for about 10 days, and the pollution starts to get to you. The waterfalls were all in a National Park (Doi Inthanon) so there was just lots of open space. The air was still smoky as they were burning off, but it was still refreshing. It was also really nice to see Thais (to be fair, Asians in general) persuing leisure...All through Indonesia and Bangkok, it seems that the locals only work, and they're hard workers. Like our bike tour guide in Ubud, who was still puzzled as to why anybody would want to ride a bike, when you can ride a scooter faster and with much less effort. The Thais in Bangkok wanted to sell us stuff or get us drunk. But the Thais in the national park were out for the day, to see some nature and get some fresh air, maybe even a
s tourists from other towns. They were all taking photos ('and this is me, in front of the waterfall') and having picnics. We were the only ones swimming though...There were a few signs that said 'no wading', so we just swam instead. It's still awkward getting your kit out in a country of different religion and different culture, not knowing if our half naked bodies are offensive to them. But it was a beautiful park and it seemed a waste not to swim in the fresh and cold mountain water. The park has Thailand's 'highest spot' (point, surely?) at about 2,600m. Luckily we could drive right to it, but the best view was taken by some research station with signs saying photography is forbidden. It was cold up the top, but it was really nice to be cold. Probably not so nice for my cold though...
We got back to Chiang Mai about 7pm, and exhausted. Went for amazing pizza with Adam and Olivia and had an early night.
Today we decide whether to do another activity around Chiang Mai, or get to Phuket for an extra day. We have booked flights from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 12th, so time is running out.
We caught an overnight sleeper train from Bangkok on Saturday night. At first we thought they had ripped us off and there were no sleeping compartments, but then a lovely man with a face mask came on and transformed the two lower seats into a bed, and pulled down the top bed from the ceiling, put curtains up, and made our beds with sheets, pillows and blankets. It was very cosy and the train rocked us to sleep, but also rocked us awake so 50/50 in the rocking department. It took 14 hours but was so much nicer than a bus - we could walk around, the toilets were usable, and we had a card table for Ultimate Golf (Phillip won).
We got into Chiang Mai about 10.30 am, and shared a taxi into town with an English couple. Found and checked into Julie's Guesthouse, recommended to us by lots of people. It's a cool little place, with a common area and a rooftop 'chillout area', a fridge full of drinks that you can just put on your tab (dangerous) and heaps of tour info. We wandered around town for a bit, found some markets with amazing food...indulged. Phill was craving a sausage, but unfortunately was let down by the fact that it had noodles and rice in it! Where's the meat? We ran into our English friends again and they had just been scouting out car rental deals and asked if we'd like to tag along for a day in the mountains where there's heaps of waterfalls. We did want to.
Sunday nights in Chiang Mai are all about the walking streets. Markets line (and line, and line) the main streets in the old town and you can get everything, and every food. Naturally, we began another eat-off - fried potato twists, roasted sweet corn, amazing pork dumplings, spring rolls, banana spring rolls, sushi, pad thai, smoothies and waffles. We would have spent about $3 each and it was all amazing and fresh. I freaking love corn! It was also a Buddhist holiday, so all the temples (and there's loads) were full of monks and locals making offerings and chanting. We came across a small group of monks letting off giant umm....I don't know how to explain it. Giant paper bags with flames underneath...like paper lanterns? So they lit the flames, waited for the lantern to fill up with hot air, then let go and they drifted into the sky. It was really beautiful to watch. The markets became so crowded at about 7pm, shuffling room only, so we went back to the hostel and played Ultimate Golf (Phillip won).
The next day we met up with Adam and Olivia, our English buddies, and hired a car, a Toyota Hilux with a tray. We eventually found the seatbelts. First stop - Tescos! We went a bit crazy in the supermarket; baked goods galore. Had some Milo cereal in the car park (all class) then negotiated the city streets to get out of Chiang Mai and on the highway to the mountains.
First stop was a pretty impressive waterfall, cascading down 30 tiers. Had a bit of swim under it and some rock hopping. Olivia and I rode in the back of the ute to the next stop, gotta love Thai freedom.
It was really nice to get out of the city. We had only been in Jakarta and Bangkok for about 10 days, and the pollution starts to get to you. The waterfalls were all in a National Park (Doi Inthanon) so there was just lots of open space. The air was still smoky as they were burning off, but it was still refreshing. It was also really nice to see Thais (to be fair, Asians in general) persuing leisure...All through Indonesia and Bangkok, it seems that the locals only work, and they're hard workers. Like our bike tour guide in Ubud, who was still puzzled as to why anybody would want to ride a bike, when you can ride a scooter faster and with much less effort. The Thais in Bangkok wanted to sell us stuff or get us drunk. But the Thais in the national park were out for the day, to see some nature and get some fresh air, maybe even a
s tourists from other towns. They were all taking photos ('and this is me, in front of the waterfall') and having picnics. We were the only ones swimming though...There were a few signs that said 'no wading', so we just swam instead. It's still awkward getting your kit out in a country of different religion and different culture, not knowing if our half naked bodies are offensive to them. But it was a beautiful park and it seemed a waste not to swim in the fresh and cold mountain water. The park has Thailand's 'highest spot' (point, surely?) at about 2,600m. Luckily we could drive right to it, but the best view was taken by some research station with signs saying photography is forbidden. It was cold up the top, but it was really nice to be cold. Probably not so nice for my cold though...We got back to Chiang Mai about 7pm, and exhausted. Went for amazing pizza with Adam and Olivia and had an early night.
Today we decide whether to do another activity around Chiang Mai, or get to Phuket for an extra day. We have booked flights from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 12th, so time is running out.
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