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Let's go South East Asia
  • Misa B
  • Benni H

Let's go South East Asia

Raus aus dem Alltag, raus aus der Komfortzone.
Rein in Veränderung, rein ins Leben.
Und ein bisschen den Planeten retten. Read more
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  • Let's go South East Asia

    Coastal & Underwater Cleanup

    July 29, 2022 on the Philippines ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Last Friday, we took part in a coastal and underwater cleanup event. The cities of Dauin and Malatapay organized a dive festival called "Dive 7". It's an annual event with the goal to collect as much trash on the coast as possible to prevent it from getting to the ocean floor where it's way harder for us to reach and remove. Additionally, the cleanup raises awareness to the issue of marine debris and the importance of proper waste management and behavior towards waste within the community (consume less, reduce waste and don't litter!).

    There were a few hundred people attending the "Dive 7" event in Malatapay, which is quite a lot when taking into consideration that there aren't many people living in that little town. 😊 Of course, MCP and Pro Ocean (an NGO that is operating from the same base as MCP and does coastal cleanups every day) took part on the event. But even other divers joined, fun divers who normally do not work for NGOs or in the area of environmental conservation, to help out and collect plastic.

    We joined forces with Pro Ocean and were handed bags to collect trash on the beach. After cleaning the beach, we geared up and went diving to collect trash underwater. The main focus was plastic waste and we found quite a lot down there. The problem with plastic is that it doesn't decompose but instead breaks down into smaller pieces and eventually becomes microplastic which then enters the food we eat (fish, seafood, seaweed, etc.) and can lead to cancer and other illnesses.

    Did you know that every single piece of plastic ever produced still exists (if it hasn't been burned which is not a good idea considering climate change and the toxic gases)? Did your hear about the great pacific garbage patch, a floating plastic trash vortex three times the size of France (80.000 tonnes of plastic)? Or the other 4 very large garbage patches in our oceans? Did you know that most of the plastic in our oceans is already at the very bottom of the ocean floor (an estimated 14.4 million tons of plastic). We should keep those things in mind when deciding if and what to buy and to cosume. Let's all go for less waste, less packaging, less plastic and raise awareness to save our oceans. ❤️    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Nightdive

    July 31, 2022 on the Philippines ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Man kann auch nachts Tauchen gehen. Dabei sieht man die gleichen Orte, die man schon von Tag kennt. Aber es ist dunkel.
    Dann kann man Fischen beim Schlafen zusehen. Oder Schnecken beim kriechen. Oder einer Krabbe, die ein Blatt wie einen Regenschirm über sich hält, um beim Wandern nicht bemerkt zu werden. Im Prinzip bleibt das meiste Tagaktive einfach stehen und das Nachtaktive beginnt zu krabbeln, fressen, schwimmen, zappeln.

    Insgesamt fällt auf, wie unglaublich viel Leben im Meer steckt. Wenn das Sonnenlicht fehlt und nur die Taschenlampe einen Kegel wirft, sieht nicht nur alles bunter aus, sondern man sieht auch, dass sich alles bewegt. Millionen kleinster Partikel leuchten im Wasser, ein Paradebeispiel für Biolumineszenz. Und auch für den Beginn unserer Nahrungskette und die zweite Lunge des Planeten.
    Ziemlich Erhaltenswert würde ich sagen.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    Byebye MCP

    August 3, 2022 on the Philippines ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    This one was one of the hardest and saddest goodbyes I've ever had.
    Over the course of our stay we found some of the most wonderful people and made friends with them. Living together 24/7, learning, working, helping, sharing stories, laughing, created strong bondings, close relationships and live-long friendships.

    Thank you all for making our time as wonderful as it was.

    After all, it doesn't feel right to leave. I don't want to leave. This was one of the best things I did in my life. It was fulfilling, meaningful, satisfying and important. I'm so happy I did it.
    This will forever be one of my best memories.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Living on a boat

    August 7, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    We joined a liveaboard for four days. For the first time in our lives we were living on a boat. Eating, taking showers, sleeping and waking up on a boat feels so nice. It feels as if you're completely free, like you can go wherever the wind and the currents carry you. And of course we were diving from our beautiful wooden boat. We did three dives a day and saw so many dive sites around the Komodo national park.

    It was one of the most amazing things I ever did in my life. Completely detached from a normal life on land and so close to nature. We dropped down to the bottom of the sea and found so much life. The reefs here are among the prettiest in the world (same as in the Philippines, both island nations are part of the coral triangle) and the fish are huge. I've never seen so many big, huge, massive fish!

    And then we saw manta rays! Mantas are extremely elegant creatures, the way they move underwater is so beautiful. And they are soooooo big. And very peaceful. Two of them came very close, their movements looked like they were flying. 😍 We also saw sharks. Whitetip and blacktip reef sharks, two of them we found sleeping on the ground while the others were swimming around. I used to be afraid of sharks but after seeing them up close, I'm not afraid anymore.

    Diving here in Komodo involves a lot of current. During some of the dives, it felt like flying or being on a rollercoaster. The current is so strong that it just takes you with it. Kicking and fighting against the current only keeps you in place but you can't go back to where you've been before. Just enjoy the ride and watch the fishies and coals passing by. 😅

    On one of the days, we also visited the Komodo national park and found some Komodo dragons. They can only be found in the area of the Komodo national park and the islands surrounding it and are an endangered species. They look a bit like monitor lizards but can grow a lot bigger.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Jungle Spa

    August 9, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    What a crazy place! We found a hotspring in the jungle. It felt like a spa or a thermal bath at home. It's the place where two rivers meet and form a little pool you can submerge yourself into. One of the rivers is freezing cold, maybe 15°C or even less. The second river is is boiling hot, heated by the volcanic activity of Mount Inerie. Benni dipped his for into the hot river and told me it's around 60°C. No thanks, I'd rather keep my distance. 😅🥵

    In the pool where the two rivers meet, the temperature is comfortable and changing from one side to the other. The temperature ranges from ~41°C to ~17°C I think. This gives you the opportunity to pick the perfect spot for you and even take a hot and cold bath.

    I love this place! We had such a nice time here, we were the only ones and it was peaceful and relaxing. 😍    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Color-changing lakes

    August 12, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Mount Kelimutu, a 1639 m high volcano crater is home to three lakes. Kelimutu translates to boiling lake. After learning about its name I understood why people aren't allowed to get close to the lakes or swim in them.

    The three lakes have different colors. When we visited the mountain, one was blue to turquoise, one was turquoise to green and one was black. But those lakes don't want to be boring little bodies of water. They change color nearly once every year. A few years ago, they even changed their color six times over a period of 12 months. The black lake for example used to be white and the turquoise lake was red.

    To the local Lio people, Kelimutu is a sacred mountain and the final resting place for the soul when people die. Based on your age and character, your soul will enter one of the three lakes. The black lake is reserved for the elders, the blue lake is the lake of the youth and the greenish lake is where the bad people go (lake of the villain).

    The last two pictures show a comparison of how the lakes look now and how they looked a few years back.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Ein Wasserbüffel kostet 25 Mio

    August 14, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Das habe ich herausgefunden. Umgerechnet sind das etwa 1600€. Ein echter Schnapper. Und dafür, dass die echt süß sind, eine wirkliche Alternative zu einem Hund.
    Doch wo wir gerade sind, hält man keine Haustiere. Das bedeutet, sowohl Büffel als auch Hunde sind entweder zum Arbeiten da oder kommen in den Topf. Oder - und das ist interessant - werden für die Geister und die Ahnen geopfert. Es kann schonmal vorkommen, dass man eine Kuh in den Vulkan wirft, wenn man Zeichen für die Notwendigkeit dafür sieht (ja, wirklich).

    Aber auch im Alltag ist das relevant. Will ein Mann ein Haus bauen, verlangt die Tradition des Stammes dafür Opfergaben. Büffel, Schweine und Hühner. Je nach Rangordnung und Größe des Hauses können das bis zu 20 Büffel und 80 Schweine sein, so erzählte man uns. Uiui. Ganz schön viel.
    Die Knochen der Tiere werden dann außen am Haus aufgehängt. Im Inneren des Hauses gibt es einen Altarraum, wo man täglich ein Feuer anzünden muss, um das Böse fernzuhalten.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    We finally found our tribal village

    August 15, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    It only took us 3 months from our first attempt to visit a traditional tribal village in the Philippines. The first try back then only led us over a very bumpy "road" (in Europe this would've been called a hiking trail) and through several rivers that we had to cross on our motorbike.

    But here in Indonesia, after 3 months of searching, we finally found it. And not only one, many of them. People still live in those villages and they are beautiful. I had never imagined myself seeing such a place in real life and up close, let alone being allowed to walk around in the village. The houses are made from wood, bamboo and thatch and they always have at least one stone megalith in the village, which they use for sacrifices and rituals.

    The houses are built in a rectangle around a central space which is reserved for the megalith and the men and women symbols. The men's symbols are huge umbrellas and the women's symbols are tiny houses. For each clan living in the village, there is one men symbol and one women symbol.

    When there's a problem that has to be solved, the men of the clan gather in the women's symbol to discuss about it and solve it. We've been told women are very important in those villages, but to me it seems pretty patriarchal with men solving all the problems. Not sure though, it's a completely different world.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Ingwer ernten

    August 15, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Das Wetter war sehr wechselhaft und wir waren gerade eigentlich erst wieder trocken an diesem Tag. Und eigentlich wollte ich mir von William die geheimen Wege durch den Dschungel zeigen lassen. Aber nochmal zwei Tage Klamotten trocknen lassen macht wenig Spaß, daher sind wir daheim geblieben.
    Auf die Frage, was William stattdessen heute macht, sagte er, er müsste noch zehn Kilo Ingwer ernten. Während der letzten zwei Jahre gab es für kaum jemand Arbeit und um Geld zu verdienen ist er dann eben Gärtner geworden. Gärtnern heißt in dem Fall: man steckt irgendwo zwischen den Bäumen und Palmen Dinge in die Erde und verlässt sich darauf, dass es wächst. Gute Erfolgsaussichten, hier wächst nämlich so ziemlich alles, wenn man es nur lässt.

    Es gab nichts anderes zu tun, also sind wir einfach mitgegangen und haben den halben Tag mit ihm im Dreck gespielt. Am nächsten Tag waren wir bekannt im ganzen Dorf, weil er Videos von uns auf Facebook geteilt hat 😄
    Und wir mussten natürlich noch bei ihm zu Hause essen.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia
    1

    Bali: temples and monkeys

    August 18, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    We went to Bali and met my mum! She flew all the way because I wanted to see her and travel with her. 😊 Our first stop was Ubud, the spiritual heart of Bali. That's how they call the city. The vibes here are not very spiritual, but instead very touristic and super busy with a horrible traffic jam. But the palace and temples are beautiful. We went to the Ubud palace and the Saraswati temple.

    The best part was the sacred monkey forest, a monkey sanctuary in the middle of the city. Very green, peaceful, relaxing and with a lot of trees and monkeys. The monkeys did very strange things there, check out the video.

    In the end we realized Bali is filled with monkeys. 🐒 Monkeys with bananas. Monkeys with corn. Monkeys with sweet potato. And monkeys with smartphones.
    🐒🍌🐒🐒🌽🍠🐒📱    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Rocky cliffs and sandy beaches

    August 20, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    A bit of relaxation is important when traveling a lot as it can be very exhausting at times. We had a nice relaxed time at Nusa Penida, an island near Bali. There's not much on the island. Jungle, rice paddies, palm trees, beaches, rocky cliffs and millions of tourists.

    The beaches are beautiful. We liked the Diamond Beach and the Angel Billabong (beautiful cliff with a tidal pool) most, but most of the tourists go to Kelingking Beach.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia
    2

    Katzenkotkaffee

    August 23, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Um die Erde herum läuft der sogenannte Kaffeegürtel. Das ist breiter Ring, der die Regionen beinhaltet, wo man Kaffee anbaut. Generell in Äquatornähe. Für Kaffee braucht es nämlich bestimmte Vorraussetzungen. Bei uns wächst der nicht, nee.

    ABER! Für manchen Kaffee braucht es mehr, als nur die richtige Temperatur und viel Wasser. Jaa. Für manche Kaffeesorten braucht man Katzen. Naja, nicht die Hauskatze von daheim. Das Tier nennt sich Luwak. Es frisst Kaffeebohnen und verdaut sie. Irgendjemand hat herausgefunden, dass der daraus gekochte Kaffee besser schmeckt. Dieser Kaffee ist Zuhause ziemlich teuer.
    Wir waren auf einer Kaffeeplantage mit Verkostung hinterher und ich habe ihm probiert. Schmeckt nach saurem Kaffee.

    Warum das Luwak gerne Kaffeebohnen isst weiß ich nicht. Aber vielleicht hilft es ihm wach zu bleiben. Ist nämlich nachtaktiv.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia
    3

    Land der Vulkane

    August 25, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Das indonesische Nationalgericht ist Nasi Goreng. Es bedeutet Kleiner Vulkan und hat lange Tradition.
    Man türmt einen symbolischen Haufen Reis auf und wirft verschiedene Gemüsestückchen als Opfergabe darüber. Je mehr Nasi Goreng gegessen wird, desto milder sind die Vulkane gestimmt.
    Wir haben davon mittelviel gegessen, deswegen hat der Vulkan Bromo bei unserer Besteigung nur ein bisschen geblubbert.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    Jogja, not Yogya?

    August 27, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We traveled from Bali to Yogyakarta by car and train. It took us three days and was super exhausting but we really really wanted to see the ancient temples of Borobudur and Prambanan.

    It was so worth it! Yogyakarta or "Jogja" is my favorite city in Indonesia so far. It's a big city but it has a nice chill and fresh vibe to it. It's less busy and cramped than Jakarta and way less touristic than Bali. You can find cute cafés, restaurants, nice little streets with lots of plants and trees, some parks and attractions here. They even have a few vegetarian and vegan restaurants!

    We went to a traditional Ramayana ballet show here. A very interesting and nice experience! I'm glad my mum told us about it and booked us some tickets. We definitely would've missed that kind of cultural experience.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Byebye Indonesia

    August 30, 2022 in Indonesia ⋅ 🌙 27 °C

    Ein Monat ging so schnell vorbei. Ein sehr unterschiedliches Land, das ein unglaublich viel zu bieten hat, mehr, als man nur ansatzweise in so kurzer Zeit sehen kann, hat bei uns Begeisterung und bleibende Eindrücke hinterlassen.
    Hier gibt es ungefähr alles. Vulkane, Dinosaurier, Orang-Utans, Schlangen, Haie, Wale, Regenwald, Tempel, Hinduismus, Islam, Animismus, Christentum, Asien, Orient. Wir haben nicht alles davon gesehen, aber es ist mind-blowing.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    A city in a garden

    August 31, 2022 in Singapore ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Singapore is quite a big city. With over 5 million people living close together you'd think of a place like Manila. But this city is so much nicer. There are many different gardens inside the city state.

    We visited the famous gardens by the bay and the botanic gardens, which are covering a huge space. It would take a whole day, maybe even longer, to see the area of the botanic gardens in its entirety. Nearly everything that is green in Singapore is free! What a nice place. 🌱❤️

    Singapore is a beautiful mix of different cultures living together peacefully. A modern society that preserved its cultures and traditions. It's a green, safe and relatively clean city. A city of gardens and luxury accomodations. A nice place to stay for a while if you've got the money. 💸💳    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Meeting friends from MCP

    September 3, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Awesome. It seemed so unlikely to meet the people from MCP in the near future, especially those we made friends with.
    But here we are and somehow met Tyler, Mikael and Ethan again.
    Feels cool to go some more steps together on this journey!!Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia
    1

    Elefantenpflege

    September 4, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Früher war es normal, für die Arbeit Elefanten einzusetzen. Das ist gar nicht mal so lange her. Heute macht man das zum Glück nicht mehr.
    Die Elefanten sind jetzt im Ruhestand. Entweder in Freiheit, oder in so einer Art Nationalpark. Das ist gar nicht so schlecht, denn hier können die Elefanten leben und gehen, wohin sie wollen. Sie werden überwacht, geschützt und können sich vermehren. Finanziert wird das teilweise durch Besucher. D.h. ganz natürlich ist das nicht, weil man die Elefanten mit Futter anlockt, damit man sie zu sehen bekommt. Dann kann näher ran, ihnen den Rücken Schubbern oder im Fluss mit Wasser bespritzen. Das finden die Elefanten überraschend gut. Ein badender Elefant ist Ausdruck großer Freude.Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    White Temple

    September 9, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ 🌧 29 °C

    In Thailand vergisst man manchmal, die alten Tempel zu erhalten. Dafür baut man umso fleißiger neue. Eigentlich sind alle davon ein bisschen übertrieben und oft kitschig, zumindest nach unseren Maßstäben Zuhause. Hier ist das normal und passt.
    In Chiang Rai ist der White Temple. Gebaut von einem Künstler auf eigene Faust. Eine Mischung aus Tradition und Neuzeit, Buddhismus, gemischt mit internationaler Popkultur und Comic-Stil. Letzteres spiegelt sich in der Malerei im Inneren wieder, die man nicht fotografieren durfte.    Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    Remains of a Siamese kingdom

    September 13, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    What a breathtaking city this place must've been! I wanted to come here for years and finally I could see the old capital of the Ayutthaya kingdom with my own eyes. 😍

    Ayutthaya was the second capital of the Siamese kingdom and gained power during the decline of the Khmer empire in the fourteenth century. The Ayutthaya kingdom reigned over modern day Thailand as well as parts of Cambodia, Myanmar and Malaysia. In the eighteenth century, Ayutthaya was invaded by the Burmese, who burned the city to the ground.

    Foreigners called Ayutthaya Siam but the people of Ayutthaya called themselves Tai and their kingdom Krung Tai, meaning Thai country. The word Thai itself stems from the first Thai Kingdom Sukhothai, which reigned before the Ayutthaya kingdom emerged. Sukhothai was a transliteration of the Khmer word Sukhodaya which itself was taken from the Sanskrit sukha (सुख, 'lasting happiness') and udaya (उदय, 'rise' or 'emergence'). Together, the phrase can be interpreted as meaning "dawn of happiness".

    Although vast parts of the old capital have been destroyed, visiting this historical place is a magical experience. Especially if you're into history and ancient temples like me.    Read more

  • Let's go South East Asia

    Bye bye Thai

    September 17, 2022 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Hä wie was, so schnell vorbei? Wenn man normalerweise immer einen ganzen Monat in einem Land verbringt, fühlen sich zwei Wochen eher nach verlängertem Wochenende an 😄
    Zusammengefasst: Thailand ist Sex, Drugs & Temples, es gab ein tolles Wiedersehen mit Ethan, Tyler und Mikael, Imbisse an jeder Ecke und viele Menschen mit Elefantenschlabberhosen.Read more

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  • Let's go South East Asia

    Bye bye Klebrigkeit

    September 18, 2022 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Seltsam, dass man so lange unterwegs war und am Ende trotzdem das Gefühl hat, dass einem die Zeit ausgeht. Ein halbes Jahr ist vergangen, seit wir unsere Abschiedsfeier hatten. Mein Körper besteht mittlerweile zu 70% aus Reis, in meinen Adern fließt Nudelsuppe. Die Toleranz gegenüber Gerüchen und Schmutz ist hoch, gegenüber scharfem Essen weiterhin überraschend gering. Die Schuhe sind kaputt gelaufen, eine Hose hat sich verabschiedet, ansonsten sind keine Verluste zu melden. Mein Name ist Hapler, Huler, Haudler, Hurler, Haeubler oder einfach nur Benjamin Daniel. Mein Horizont hat sich erweitert. Ich weiß jetzt, dass in Asien alles etwas kleiner ist und alles ständig irgendwie klebrig ist. Wenn man hier lebt, wird man irgendwann zum Kaugummi. Mit viel Verpackung.
    Ich habe so ziemlich bekommen, was ich mir erhofft habe. Einen Schritt heraus aus dem Alltag und der Komfortzone und für eine Zeit etwas anderes und für die Natur tun.

    Die Zeit der Klebrigkeit endet. Schade. Sie war klebrig, aber gut. Und wie meistens zu kurz.

    Komfort 4/10
    Erholung 3/10
    Erfüllung 8/10
    Erfahrung 10/10    Read more

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    Trip end
    September 18, 2022
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