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Frog's adventures
  • Findlay Russell
  • Kate Bougoure
  • Fern Russell
  • Findlay Russell
  • Kate Bougoure
  • Fern Russell

Frog's adventures

An open-ended adventure by Findlay, Kate & Fern Read more
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  • Frog's adventures

    The world's biggest markets

    Nov 23–25, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    Our last 2 days in Bangkok were huge! First we went to Kahosan Road via a limo tuk tuk. It was fast compared to Sri Lanka tuk tuks. It was pretty heavy traffic too.
    Khaosan Road was nothing like mum and dad remembered from 20 years ago. But they still had tarantulas, scorpions, snakes all on a stick to eat. I ate 2 crickets which were a bit sticky and got stuck in my teeth. On the way home I pulled a cricket wing out of my teeth.
    Kahosan was a road full of market shops. I bought a pair of mui Thai boxing shorts for me and Matty. 1 pair started at 900 Baht which is about $45, and I ended up getting 2 pairs for 400 Baht.
    The next day we took another limo tuk tuk to Chatachuk markets- the world's biggest markets. It was overwhelming. I saw everything you could imagine. My favourite thing to look at was the fish tanks.
    I bought a silver bangle from a locally owned shop. She recycles offcuts from factories and turns them into cool jewellery. I really love it and will wear it forever.
    I liked Thailand, especially Phi Phi Islands. It was so different from the big cities, and not a single car. Bangkok sure was a big city! I did like the markets though.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Off to Cambodia

    November 24, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    We left Bangkok and hopped on a 1 hour flight to Cambodia. We are staying in Siem Reap for a week. The girls stayed at the hotel whilst dad and I went to the pub to watch the Formula 1. We saw a parade of supercars whilst we were there - maybe about 15 cars. Of course the Bugatti was my favourite.
    Last night we went to Pub Street for dinner. I liked this street, lots happening there. We caught a different type of tuk tuk today. It's cool seeing all the different types in different countrues.
    I think I will like Cambodia.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    The Temples of Angkor

    November 25, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Today we woke up not really knowing what to expect. We got Marshmello, our new Cambodian Tuk Tuk. It's a boy tuk tuk this time! I prefer the original Tiki because she was a bit more comfy.
    Our first stop was to get our 7 day pass for the Temples. Only mum, dad and I needed to pay- Fern was free. $72 usd each.
    The first Temple was Banteay Srey which is located 37km from Siem Reap. It is a small temple made of red sandstone. It is known for its beautiful carvings in the walls. I thought it was awesome. The door frames were so small Fern even hit her head going through. The next temple was called Kbal Spean. A bit further away from Siem Reap. We had to do a 2km uphill hike through the jungle and another 2km down. It was nothing compared to Mt Kinabalu but a lot more humid. But it was worth it when we got to the riverbed and saw amazing carvings in the flowing river. They were mind blowing. And just remember both of these Temples are ever 1000 years old and hand carved.
    The road was very very bumpy.
    After a long day exploring we had a curry (our favourite) and finished the day with a foot massage.
    Today was big.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Amazing Angkor Wat

    November 26, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    We jumped in the tuk tuk and off to the temples. But not just any old temple, one of the world's biggest! Over 1000 years old Angkor Wat is indescribable. There are 2 gates into the temple and when I went through the first one, I thought I was inside, but I had just walked into the second entrance! This place was huge!
    I don't even think we explored the whole temple and we were there for hours. The carvings were amazing on the walls and I could not even imagine how they looked when they were first done.
    There was a bit in the temple where you have to be 12 years and over to enter so Fern sadly wasn't allowed to do it. It was a really steep and thin set of stairs to the top of the temple and I heard that the reason they are so steep and thin is that it is supposed to be a challenge because it is the stairway to heaven.
    I will remember this day for a really long time.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Faces of the jungle

    Nov 27–28, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    The Temples continue to amaze me as we entered Ta Prohm. It's like nature has taken back its land and it's swallowing the temple in the process. I really liked this temple because it's not like the others- it's very unique with the vines and trees.
    We went to Bayon Temple with over 250 face carvings. Staring at you from every direction! When we came back to the tuk tuk the monkey had spilt or drank all of our water. I don't know how they learnt to unscrew a bottle!
    We had dinner at Pub Street and then had a massage. Me and dad played pool well into the next morning!    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Hero Rats

    Nov 28–29, 2024 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    The first thing we did today was to visit a Hero Rats information centre where they showed us how they train them to sniff out landmines and bombs. I liked this because it's such a smart way to free the world of landmines. They are African pouch rats and they are really big. When someone stands on a landmine it detonates instantly. The person may die or lose a limb. There are some bombs that are designed for tanks- packed with 6.5kgs of TNT.
    the Temples for today were different from the usual ones. The first one we had to climb a big hill and it was getting extensively renovated. And our last temple used to be a village a thousand years ago with lots of small rooms for houses.
    Our last night in Cambodia was spent at the circus. It was heaps of fun and I loved old mate doing his handstand tricks on 3 balance poles.

    Our time in Cambodia was amazing and I really enjoyed it here. My favourite thing was how friendly everyone was, the Hero Rats and my favourite temple was Angkor Wat.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    The best tasting food market

    December 1, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Today, we went to look for temples. The first one we went to is called Chiang-Kai Sek Memorial. At this temple, there is a big wooden statue of the Prime Minister. After that we went to Longshan Temple. When we got there, there were lots of people giving offerings and praying to their gods. We went further to a day market. There were some really weird stuff like pig guts and blue or black chicken feet. When we were just walking along the path we stumbled across a big fluffy dog- it was so cute. In the market we tried lots of new foods, some were really good but some not as good.
    We came home for a bit a bit of a rest then. We did a lot of walking today. After that we went to the night markets and I had lots of new foods again. But there was one food that stood out to me though, and it was the Chinese beef burger. I think it should have a Michelin star with how good it was. It's definitely my favourite.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    From mountain to skyscraper

    December 2, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    We woke up to a beautiful sunny morning but everyone for some reason was still wearing full winter clothes. We took a bus to Elephant Mountain. Mum and dad said there was 600 steps but I challenged them on that and as we climbed I counted each and every individual step. My total was 1083 (give or take 2 or 3). The walk up was relaxing as it was only a kilometres, just all steps. The views were cracking looking over Taipei City. I could see all the tall buildings, especially Taipei 101. When we descended, me and Fern stayed up at the playground area for about 15 minutes. We decided that we wanted to beat mum and dad down so we ran, and we overtook them! We beat them by 75 seconds.
    Then we walked to Taipei 101 and the elevator was 60.6km an hour. 1010metres, per minute. This took us the 89th floor in about 15 seconds. When we got out it was amzing- it was such a great view and you could see everything. We did some postcards to Pappy and Florrie from the top of this and posted them.
    In Taepei 101 it has a damper that prevents the building falling over and it can survive 200km winds. The technology was amazing. The damper is 660 mega tonnes.
    We finished the day with a trip to a new market- Shilin. More shops than food stalls, not as good as the first night. I bought a lego set that lights up. I am excited to build it.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    The cave behind the waterfall

    December 3, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Had our favourite donuts for breakfast which we get from the metro station each morning. Mum has given us $25 each per day to spend on food, drinks and things we want to buy. But we have to be careful not to go over our limit. We have to speak to the shop owners and sort out all of our money all by ourselves.
    Quick bus ride to the Maoking gondola where we went 4km up into the atmosphere. At the top we started our walk to the Yinhe Cave. When we got there after a couple of kilometres I saw a waterfall and I thought oh my God that is amazing! It was a temple cave inside a mountain and you could walk behind the waterfall. It was really beautiful walking through the bush with all its unique plants.
    Lunch was a great all you can eat BBQ buffet.
    We visited the Jordan shop and there was a wall of every pair of Jordans ever made- like a museum. You can design your own custom shirt and I got to make one!
    We finished out time in Taipei by going back to the night market. We went back to see our good friend at the Chinese Beef Burger stand and he wasn't there!!!!    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Taipei to Jiufen

    December 4, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Coming up the mountains towards Jiufen, we thought we might have been lost because of all the little winding roads.
    We checked into our little house and it us the quirkiest t little place I think I have ever stayed at! The bath is like a water tank. It is square and really deep!! I love this house. The first time we walked to the markets was about a 1km walk up and down stairs and I was knackered. Little did we know we took the longest route possible thanks to Google maps. In the evening we discovered it's actually about 50m from our front door!
    Walking through the the markets at night was cool because of all the lanterns lit up.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Lanterns of Shifen

    December 5, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ 🌬 24 °C

    We arrived at Shifen after a taxi through the mountains. I felt a bit crook because it was so windy. When we arrived in Shifen we saw heaps of people letting lanterns go into the air. I shouted us to also do one- $250 in Taiwanese dollars which is about $12.50. We all wrote on the lantern about our wishes and what we want for the future. I wrote about me and dad's new business becoming successful in the future. The man lit the paper and away it flew into the sky. It was heaps of fun but very messy with writing the ink with brushes.
    We walked down to a waterfall, Taiwan's largest. It was really big and I wish we could have had a swim but it was a bit chilly. We wandered around on the train tracks and had to jump off when the trains came through. And you wouldn't believe it, but we found a meat pie for lunch!!!!
    After we got back to Jiufen I had my graduation online. The first part was just talking to my friends via zoom and then the graduation was after. I felt good but sad.
    We had our last night at the street market, which was exciting because we had more delicious food.
    Jiufen was pretty cold. Maybe down to 15 degrees at night. I liked the cold.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    From the caves to the beach

    December 7, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ 🌬 24 °C

    On our way to 7-11 for breakfast we stopped to say hello to our turtle friends across in the creek. We feed them green leaves from the trees every day. We walked down to get our hire car but it was a bit weird seeing dad sit on the wrong side of the car to drive, and we drive on the right here.
    We drove to Kenting National Park and thought we could drive between all of the sites- but nope! We had to walk the loop which was about 4km.
    Some of the things we saw at the park were limestone Caves and rock formations. We saw a crystallised stalagmites which was made from dripping water from a stalagtite. Lots of banyon trees and strangler figs. Walking through the caves was really cool as there were only thin crevices that we had to sneak through.
    After the National Park we drove to Maccas!! In the afternoon, we visited the most southern point of Taiwan and a surf beach. We found out we can rent a board at this beach which I hope we can do tomorrow.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    A windy day at the beach

    December 8, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    We caught a bus to Nanwan to spend the day at South Bay Beach. When we arrived we found a cool bar called Cowboys and found 3 really cute puppies. All day me and Fern just played with the dogs and took them for walks. It was the windiest day of our holiday and when we walked on the sand it felt like bullets on your legs. I don't know how but the dogs loved running on the sand. The water wasn't that bad, maybe about 19 degrees.
    It was a really hot day, much different from the other areas of Taiwan.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Kaoshiung fried rice

    December 9, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We left Kenting and took the bus to Kaoshiung. Technically I wasn't allowed on the bus because I forgot to scan off the night before and I have been banned from all bus services. So instead of using my metro card I have to pay in cash.
    In Kaoshiung we dropped our bags and went to KFC for lunch. We started exploring Central Park. There was a fake grass slope that you can slide down on cardboard which we played on for a while. At this park is also a cafe that had the most diverse range of capabara, meer cats, mountain sheep and a few others. It sadly wasn't opened for another 2 weeks.
    On our way home we were lucky to see the Dome of Light which is actually at our metro stop. It's a stained glass roof that the sun shines through in the metro station. It had every colour you could think of.
    In the evening we went to Dream Mall and went to the top floor and there was a huge Ferris wheel. We decided to go on it and at the top you could see the whole city- what an amazing view.
    We had our first tram ride tonight. It's like a train, but electric and it goes on the road. Another type of transport for us.
    The markets near our house are only about 2 min walk. I had the most amazing fried rice I have ever had in our life. We are definitely having more tomorrow. It was the best thing about today and nearly the best meal of the holiday.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    A kidnapping in Kaoshiung

    December 10, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    We went for a walk around Lotus Lake today and ended up at some great Temples. The Tiger Tower was covered in scaffolding- typical.
    The next one was a dragon body which we could walk through. There was an enclosure near it with hundreds of turtles, not very good- too many in one spot. The Temples were pretty good to see, different to other countries, and it's good to see how they all do them.
    And now I will talk about the kidnapping... in the cab the driver took us 2 blocks further then we should have gone. Then we were on the freeway, miles away. He manipulated us to try and get more money out of us. I looked up the definition of kidnapping and that's exactly what he did. Held us against our will by deceit.... We didn't pay him.
    We took a tram to Dream Mall and spent some time here and then for dinner we went back to the markets and unfortunately the fried rice man was not there and Fern was upset. We tried to cheer her up by giving her some coins for the claw machines and we won about 8 things from the machines. Definitely cheered her up!    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    The fishy ferry to Xiaoliuqui

    December 11, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We drove to Donggang to catch a ferry but arrived a little early so we went to the fish market and I had some sashimi. I tried salmon and sailfish. The texture was a bit weird but it was very tasty. I would definitely eat sashimi more often.
    The fish market had heaps of different fish. I saw some devil type eel thing that was crazy.
    The ferry was only 20mins and we arrived at Xiaoliqiui Island before we knew it. We picked up some electric bikes which I was stoked about. I can't wait to ride it around the island tomorrow.
    I made a couple of lego dinosaurs this afternoon. I bought them earlier in the day from 7-11 and had been looking forward to making them all day.
    Dinner was delicious tonight. We found a tasty little local place with noodle soup.
    An interesting fact about this island is that there are about 12000 people living here and there are only about 10 different surnames on the whole island.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Riding around the island

    December 12, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    We were up and out of bed early today because I was keen to get on the bike. We spent the morning riding around the whole island stopping off at different spots. My favourite was Black Devil Cave - it is the coolest cave I have ever been to because it wasn't a walk through a cave, but you had to crawl through it.
    We had to ride on the right side of the road and it was weird. I had to swerve a couple of times! I was on an electric bike. I had to pedal but it was so easy to ride. I hit a top speed of 43km an hour but I didn't tell mum that.
    Dad and I found Venice Beach, I think the only sandy beach on the island. The rest of the beaches are coral. We saw heaps of turtles swimming again today- this place is insane for seeing turtles.
    There were heaps of cool spots on the island and we rode around it twice. Heaps of caves, heaps of Temples and I really enjoyed seeing the sights from the bike.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Our first taste of coldish weather

    December 13, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    We left the island on a bullet train to Taichung. It got up to 291km an hour- amazing!.
    In Taichung we stayed at a hotel attached to a mega mall. It was huge and I went to the movies in the afternoon. It was good to have a rest and I loved the movie- Moana 2.
    We found a new night market and found a scallion pancake with tuna. Not my most favourite dish but still pretty good.
    It was freezing cold in Taichung- I was not expecting that! We have our jumpers out now.
    We came across some Christmas markets a day I made a cool dragon pendant. I will wear this and remember Taichung.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Meeting up with poison dart frogs

    December 14, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    Today we went to a street full of anime art. When we arrived we met a man making a fairy garden art work in his garden. The artwork was very cool.
    Then we went to a local market and found delicious scallion pancakes- I wish I could have these back home! Mum and Fern looked at heaps of Op Shops and I ended up finding a cool Adidas jumper.
    Dad took us to the Taichung Science Museum. It was fantastic and I loved spending time there. My favourite was the physics area- I find it so fascinating how things operate and move. It was a massive Museum and unfortunately didn't get to see it all.
    Next stop was an indoor rainforest. There was a huge waterfall coming from the ceiling and fishtanks and a few poison dart frogs.
    Today was a really fun day and I enjoyed all the different things we saw. I am really lucky to be seeing all these things.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Good bye Taiwan!

    December 15, 2024 in Taiwan ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    I was a bit disappointed this morning because I thought we were going to Harry Potter style Cafe, but it was nothing like it- just a shop. Cool building but too crowded.
    We went to a new market and I bought 5 strawberries for $10- outrageous! Tasty but not worth it. I found a delicious looking curry that I had my eye on, but it was sold out! Got to get in quick when the food is that good!
    We left Taichung on a bullet train and arrived in a town near the airport and it is freezing here! The train ride was a bit hectic, there was no spare seats so Fern and I sat on the floor behind a chair. Mum and dad had to stand the whole way. And with our big bags it was a bit crazy getting on and off. We didn't even leave the hotel this afternoon. 14 degrees outside and it feels mega cold! Don't know how we will cope in Japan tomorrow!    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    At last- Kobe wagu beef!

    Dec 16–17, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    Today we woke up mega early to get dropped at the airport. Our next form of transport is a plane to Tokyo, Japan. When we arrived at about 11, we went to get Sim cards so we can keep up our posts and as we were doing that a TV channel came up to us and asked if they could interview us. It was about why people come to Japan. After that we found a Nintendo display and me and Fern got to play for ages whilst mum sorted out the sim cards. We played Lego 2K Drive- loved it!
    Next was a train to Tokyo City and then a bullet train to Osaka.
    Our unit is awesome- pacman, pool table, Wii, heated floors and heated dunny!
    We found a sushi train close by for dinner. It was so cold we had to bring out the ski jackets!
    Our first real day in Japan we went to Osaka Castle. I have never seen a real life castle and I loved it. The trees were weird and look a bit fake because they are so perfect. We found a row of vending machines and Fern and I straight away spotted icecream that looked like our favourite from Sri Lanka!
    We got some cool photos of throwing the yellow ginkgo leaves into the air, like it was raining leaves.
    After walking through the gardens we found a 2nd hand shop and I found a cool pair of Nike's that were Airforces, but they are really light and soft and only $16. I snapped them up!
    In the freezing evening we walked to Dotonbori which is the busiest place in Osaka because of 2 things- the Running Man and Mr Crabby Crabby. It's about 2km from our house but we walk through a long shopping mall to get there.
    I found a skewer of Kobe A5 wagu which was $10. Definitely worth it, and I will do it again and again and again till mum has no money left...
    We had a quick sushi train at Dotonbori and then a cold walk home.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    The giants of the sea

    December 18, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Today we went to the Osaka Aquarium and in my opinion, probably the best in the world. They had a massive tank in the middle of the Aquarium that had whale sharks, and heaps of other sharks including hammer heads. There was a mola mola also known as a sun fish- amazing!. The whale sharks were incredible, still only babies but so big.
    The king crabs are native to Japan and the largest in the world. These were pretty fantastic.
    I liked the dolphins and loved the penguins. You never get to see such amazing animals but we were so lucky.
    The seals were playful and fun to watch, but overall the whale sharks were just too good!.
    We had a quick look at a lego shop in the afternoon and even got to have a quick play. We caught trains to these places and boy are the trains busy!
    After a quick trip to Dotonbori dad and I found a pool hall near our place. The tables were good quality and nice to play on.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Shoe shopping heaven

    December 19, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C

    It was a shopping day today! We went to many shops but my favourite of course were the shoe shops. There are a lot of rare and expensive shoes- I wish I could buy a few pairs! I really like the Jordan 1 off whites and the Jordan 1 Diors. Thousands of dollars each.
    A few cool hats too, the one I wanted was not in my size.
    We found a great raman spot for dinner- we were knackered from all the shopping!    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    Me and Mr Frank, the tortoise

    December 20, 2024 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 5 °C

    We have a tradition of chicken karage for breakfast from our favourite spot near our house- the best! Also at 7-11 we make our own smoothies, so much fun!!
    Another shopping day, but much better than yesterday. Had to walk past 2 Ferrari dealerships and Lamborghini dealership to get to the shopping area. Shopping was heaps of fun- all vintage old cool stuff. Went to 2nd Street (our favourite shop) and I found some Nike's that were right up my alley. They look plain and black but they are actually reflective. And a bargain at only $30! Couple of gyoza for lunch and then we did something unusual- a rare zoo in the middle of the busy city. Amazing sloths, owls, cat bears, foxes, armadillos, toucan, rabbits, monkey and the best was my mate Mr Frank, the tortoise. I got to feed the sloth and that is something I will never forget! Sloths are weird, strange hands and feet and they will bite you!
    Our last day in Osaka and I had a great time. Last time we came to Japan we only came here for 1 day so I am glad we got to really look around Osaka. My favourite think about Osaka was definitely the Aquarium- it was just brilliant.    Read more

  • Frog's adventures

    A deer town

    December 21, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    We went to Nara today and when we arrived we hopped on a bus and went to the Nara Deer Park. There were lots of deers- I reckon there were 1000-1500 of them. When you are at the park you are allowed to go up and pat them. One funny thing that they do is bow at you because they think if they are nice to you they might get a biscuit. There was also a huge temple with a very big Buddha- I think the 2nd biggest one of the holiday.
    The deer's were both big and small- the big ones looked a bit dodgy so I tried to keep my distance. They have had their antlers cut off but we did see a few people getting chased!
    In the evening when we were walking home it started to rain! We were not expecting it and luckily we were standing out the front of a little bar. The owner let us come in and we sat there for a drink. The japanese are very kind people.
    Nara was a really great and a fun place with all the deer and I really liked it.    Read more

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