An Eden amongst the concrete and glass
18 июня 2017 г., Сингапур ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
We only have two days of doing stuff in Singapore so even though we woke up today to pouring rain and thunder storms it wasn't going to stop us getting out there and exploring. We headed over to the Marina Bay area where they have a site called Gardens by the Bay. Here they have two large green house domes as well outside themed gardens and artifical trees. We got off the tube a station later than we needed to so we had quite a long walk in the rain to reach the two domes which were situated on the far side of the park. We went in the Cloud Dome first which has walking platforms all around a central tall column that is completely covered in beautiful plants. As you enter you see the world's tallest indoor waterfall which gave off an amazing sound and spray. As you work your way round the bottom layer there are hundreds of different species of plants that live in a climate where the pressure and temperature forms clouds around and through the jungle. They even had a few plants made of Lego near the end of the bottom section. You then head up in a lift to the top and work your way back down walking on many platform walkways as you do so. While we were at the top they turned on there machines which then produced a cloud inside the dome for you to see. It was very cool to be inside a cloud while admiring the many species of plants. One part we didn't like was a section inside the column where they had taken from several caves around the world about 50 stalactites and stalagmites to display. It felt so wrong to remove something so beautiful from where it was naturally formed and the centre didn't need it because it isn't relevant to the theme of the dome anyway. After we finished up here we had some lunch and then went into the Flower Dome. This dome was mainly one storey but had some sections raised up and others dropped to provide some separation. They had a great section of cacti and desert plants although again it felt like they were taking things away for their rightful habit because they had about 5 huge trees which swell at the bottom to conserve water which they stated were originally from Africa and provide the local tribes with a source of water, food and wood. It did feel wrong that they've therefore been dug up and brought here. One section we found amusing was a Mediterranean part that contained many species of plants and flowers we have in the UK. It was weird being in a place like this that is displaying things from back home because they don't have these species of plants here themselves. After taking too many close up photos of plants we left the dome and by this point it was early evening. Our ticket included going up the top of one of the metal trees to see the view around but we planned to do this in the evening when it was dark and the trees were lit up. However a huge thunderstorm rolled in so after having some food, sheltering from the rain and waiting for darkness we went over and found out the tree was shut due to lightning and the light show wouldn't start until an hour later. It was a shame but we've been reassured we can come back tomorrow and still use our ticket. The trees themselves were very impressive and the trunks are covered in hundreds of plants which provide a habitat for many insects and even hummingbirds. We plan to revisit tomorrow to see them in their full glory and to visit the top of the main one. Fingers crossed it's not torrential rain tomorrow!Читать далее
Don't you just love travelling days
17 июня 2017 г., Сингапур ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
We've arrived in Singapore! We packed up our things had one last use of our lovely hostel's kitchen before setting off on the journey to Singapore. We're very sad to be leaving our great hostel behind and hopefully the next one will be just as nice. We got to the bus station early with an Uber which gave us time to relax and fill out our immigration forms for the border crossing. Eventually we were on the bus and on our way down south. The journey wasn't that long but it was very dull and as you can see I was rather tired out by it! We both read quite a lot and then the two border stops helped break up the journey. There was no direction from the driver as to what to do at these stops, we just followed the crowd and hoped for the best. We were a bit miffed when out of everyone on our bus we were the ones to have our bags x-rayed outside the immigration centre to then have it done again inside as well. We did queue for quite a while but we got through okay and eventually found ourselves in a Singapore! Our hostel was a 15 minute walk from bus station but it was 15 minutes of blistering heat even late in the afternoon but we finally made it. We were offered to upgrade from an 8 bed dorm to a 2 bed for only £12 extra so it seemed like a welcome idea and now having been here this evening we were so pleased we did. Our room is small with a bunk bed in but having that privacy and not having to worry about making too much noise is great. We headed to a food court in a mall near by in search of cheap food and found a pretty nice Japanese place where we chose to ate. Meals are more expensive here so we were pleased with our cheaper food that we'd managed to find. After dinner and some shopping for packed lunches we came back and planned our accommodation in Bali for the first few days of our trip. We've got a busy day planned for tomorrow so it's off to bed ready to start exploring in the morning.Читать далее
Happy 120 days/4 months of travelling!
16 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
Exactly 4 months ago today we left the UK behind and began our journey across Asia. Today also marks our last full day in Malaysia as tomorrow we are getting the bus to Singapore. In Singapore we plan to post some gifts and souvenirs home that we have bought along the way, one to save on space but also in case anything isn't allowed into Australia. The strangest thing happened the other night when we arrived back at the hostel. We'd been talking about having to find a box to send things back in and then minutes later as we walk through the kitchen a guy is offering a girl a converse shoe box as a joke from the shoes he just bought. Sounding like a right weirdo I asked him if we could have his box so we now have a posting box for free! I spent this morning lining it with a cut up H&M bag and parcel tape to provide some protection to the contents from rain (I'm very proud of it so have included a photo). Nick spent his morning trying to log into student fiance but having forgotten his password to his hotmail account that he used to set it and hasn't used since he actually spent most of his time filling our security questions that they weren't happy with so he has to try again tomorrow. It was all a bit of a nightmare really and we did spend a lot of time trying to sort it. Upon giving up we sorted out what to send back home in our box which also meant a thorough reorganise of our bags. As a reward we watched an episode of a programme on YouTube and it wasn't until 4pm that we actually left the hostel. For our last night in Malaysia we had to end it how it began, with a Nandos! We walked to the mall and had a late lunch/early dinner before a little bit of shopping. We then caught a taxi to visit the Floating Mosque or Masjid Salet as it is formally named to watch the sunset. It was beautiful and not too crowded which was a great bonus. After watching the red coloured sun disappear we caught a taxi back to our area to discover a night market happening on the road near our hostel. We popped back to see how much our taxi tomorrow to the bus station should cost and then went to get a few bargains to use up the few small notes of money we had left. It was a really nice unexpected end to our last day here in Malaysia.Читать далее
Discovering the history of Malacca
15 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
There are many things to see in Malacca that have Malay, Chinese, British, Dutch and Portuguese influences and today we had a day planned of walking to explore most of them. We began our day at a museum that has been made inside a replica boat on the river front. The museum itself was interesting but it's information lacked enthusiasm and it was hard to read board after board of solid text. Unfortunately the most memorable part of the visit was when it came to needing a wee and I had our worst toilet experience to date. I won't go into too much detail as I hope this will be erased from my memory soon but it involved a disgusting squat toilet and cockroaches. I miss normal toilets and hygiene! After that point I was traumatised and needed a sit down and we left pretty soon afterwards. We did learn about the different European countries who invaded Malacca though all mainly on the rumour of it being a gold mine. Afterwards we had a ride on a circular platform that rises you high in the air and rotates to give you 360 degree views of the city. We got quite a nice perspective of the area and even managed to work out how to get to the mall we were aiming to visit next. After arriving at the mall we visited the supermarket and invested in some lunch foods before returning to our hostel to dump our shopping bags and cool down from the heat. After a short break we visited an area with Dutch buildings including a church before heading up to St. Peter's Hill which had the ruins of a church at the top. Our last stop was to the ruins of the old fort which was a small tower but at the museum we had seen how extensive the fort had been so that gave us some perspective when looking at this area. Our last stop of the day was on a river cruise down the river that made Malacca such a successful trading port. We saw some beautiful buildings and street art and even some monitor lizards in the water. The round trip took 30 minutes and was a nice end to our extensive sight seeing day. We returned to the cafe we visited for dessert last night and had some great food. The place is so sweet, our table was an old singer sewing machine table. We came back quite early so watched a Danish film in the movie room that had English subtitles. It's so nice having somewhere else to hang out rather than always in the room. Quite a nice day overall exploring Malacca.Читать далее
Making full use of the freebies
14 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
Our hostel is so lovely. We get a extensive range of breakfast, snacks and drinks included as well as free laundry and a movie room to use. It's been a while since we washed clothes and when it's so hot here everything needs washing pretty quickly. After our mammoth travelling day yesterday we decided to make use of all the facilities and relax for the start of the day. We woke up late with no alarms set and headed down for some breakfast first. I also managed to change our room so we will move later away from the movie room which is good. After breakfast we put on some washing and set up camp in the movie room. They didn't have a great selection but they did have The Legend of Hercules so that's what we spent the next couple of hours watching while going back and forth to the washing machine. At about 2pm everything was washed and dried so we headed out to a famous street here called Jonker Street which happens to be the next parallel road from our hostel anyway. It's full of arty shops and cute cafes and we enjoyed just strolling around the area. We had dinner at an English pub that overlooked the river and I had my first pie since leaving home! It wasn't a patch on my own or my mum's but it was still a lovely taste of back home. We headed to one of the cafes after for some pudding and a drink before returning back to the hostel where we had planned to watch Hotel Transylvania, another movie they had. Turns out it is a pirate copy and after 20 minutes the sound cut out and it said were not allowed to watch this type of film on the TV. We're pretty sure they are all pirate dvds so that's a bit frustrating. Nick went to check if reception had others and the guy lent us his own external hard drive with movies on to use which was lovely of him. We tried to watch the Revenant but we were conscious of the noise, even though it was 7pm, and even with fiddling with the audio settings we couldn't get the voices to be louder than the sound effects. The copy must have very loud background music in comparison to the speaking. With the accents as well we couldn't make out what was being said so after an hour of trying we gave up and watched some programmes on YouTube instead before Nick planned some more accommodation in Australia and we headed to bed. The lazy kind of day we both needed really to recharge.Читать далее
A place so cool it has two spellings
13 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
We're in Malaka/Malacca! We've said goodbye to Georgetown and it's street art. When we met the Malaysian family I mentioned yesterday we asked them where to visit in Malaysia and three of them at once said Malacca and you can't ignore advice like that so today we made the 8 hour bus journey from Penang, through Kuala Lumpur to Malacca. It's been a very long day! We managed to sort out with the help of our hotel a free transfer with our bus company to the bus station in Penang. This was great as saves on a taxi but it did mean a 15 minute walk with heavy bags to the pick up point. It all went smoothly until we arrived at the bus station and our bus at 9:15am wasn't on the board and there was no general information desk to ask. We asked someone at a random bus service desk and she seemed to be implying we could get on any random bus from 3 platforms, that was until we did actually remind her it was Malacca and not Kuala Lumpur we are going to. This didn't sit right with us anyway when we had chosen seats on a specific bus. Luckily it all sorted it self out and our bus showed up as leaving at 9:30am on the sign so that was a relief. We had lots of leg room and a reclining chair with pull out leg rest as well. We had one stop on the way, which didn't seem like much for such a long journey, where we could use the loo and we got some fresh hot sweetcorn which tasted amazing! I'd saved a few episodes of a programme on YouTube offline so that and reading mainly kept us entertained. Once we arrived and after a loo stop at the station we headed in a taxi to our hostel. The taxi driver was great, really funny and knew a lot about England. He thought I looked like Adele and called me Wonder Woman for being able to carry my backpack that is significantly heavier than Nick's! Our hostel is so lovely. They've gone for that concrete modern interior with some street art on the walls and copper pipes and cool lighting in the bathrooms. They have a movie room as well as free laundry which we plan to make full use of tomorrow. We dumped our stuff and headed out around the area to find some food. The food seems to be cheaper here as well which is a bonus. It's ended up being quite a late one because the movie room is below us and a father and son are making a lot of noise in there despite Nick asking at 11pm to keep it down. We plan to ask to move tomorrow so hopefully there is another room available but tonight it's time for ear plugs and hoping!Читать далее
The largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia
12 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
It's been a while since we visited a temple and seeing as Penang has the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia and some say in the whole of SE Asia, it would be rude not to visit on our last day here. We set off early and caught the bus to the temple. The buses give you no indication of where to get off so we spent an hour looking out for road names and signs but luckily another passenger informed us when to get off. The temple site is a bit of a building site. They're currently renovating and expanding the structures so that did ruin the whole feeling of the place. The area is huge though and set on a hillside which did mean some walking to get to see certain buildings. Luckily they have put in a hillside elevator to reach one of the monuments which was such a relief as the temperature became almost unbearable. When we first arrived we discovered a pond which was filled with hundreds of turtles which we were able to feed. Our favourite place was a garden that surrounded a tall white progoda. It was full of lush greenery and tropical flowers and had spectacular views of Georgetown which could be seen through a huge archway. We were able to climb up the progoda and see even more of the citiy from up the top. After exploring the temple we caught a bus to Penang Hill where you ride a train up to the top at 712 metres above sea level. Once again we discovered the annoyance of being a foreigner when they charged us 3 times the price of a Malay person. It makes no sense to us when you're taking up as much room as anyone else is. At the top the view was incredible though so it was worth going up there. After we headed back to Georgetown and visited a burger place we've wanted to try which was amazing. I had only two instances of negativity towards me today. At the temple, of all places, an elderly local man gestured to spit on me and then when walking to the burger place we walked to the 'little india' area and a woman spotted me, told her friend and they both glared at me with utter disgust on their faces as I walked past. Some people are so welcoming everywhere we go but there are still very judgemental people out there. We met a Malaysian family who all found it funny to call us 'you white people', which we didn't mind but upon reflection if that was us saying that in the UK about Asian people we'd get a very different response.Читать далее
A little taste of home
11 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
I was feeling quite home sick today knowing that all the family, except my sister, were together meeting my new nephew. With that in mind and still with planning to do we headed to Starbucks to plan how we we're getting to Singapore and our accommodation there. Singapore, we have heard, is very expensive so we wanted to get our accommodation booked as soon as possible to avoid the costs going up too much or cheaper places not being available. After some research we concluded that we will be heading back into a dorm room, our first since Kyoto, Japan and private rooms are just too expensive. Even for a dorm room for 3 nights it is a lot more expensive than we have been paying but we think we have found a nice hostel and are in an 8 bed dorm together. We also had a look into what to do this afternoon and everything is far away and we felt we weren't that bothered about doing any of the things, not enough to travel far for it. To cheer ourselves up we decided to head to the 8th floor of the mall which did have some great views and visit the cinema there. We decided upon The Mummy in the end which was very jumpy but so good! The sound effects and volume in the cinema make it so much more scary. We thoroughly enjoyed it and it was the treat we needed and felt like we were back in the UK. After the cinema we headed to an authentic Italian restaurant for some pizza. It was quite a trek and when we got there we were seated and then told as we were looking through the menu that their oven is broken so they have no pizza. We decided to leave and managed to find another one not too far away from where we are staying. It wasn't amazing but it was still a nice dinner before we headed back to the guest house. Not a very exciting day but something that needed to be done.Читать далее
Such beautiful colours
10 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
We hadn't planned anything after we leave Penang on the 13th so we used our morning to go to Starbucks on the bus and plan our next moves. We booked our bus and hotel before heading back to the bus stop to continue our journey to a butterfly farm and centre. There are some great reviews of this place online so we decided that it would be a good afternoon activity but having visited we could of spent the whole day there. The place was amazing. The areas with the butterflies are so open and full of wonderful plants, trees, streams and even a waterfall. They've built the area on several levels and every section feels individual and unique to the next. They had some beautiful species of butterfly all flying around and we even had the opportunity to release some that had newly hatched from their pupae stage. Many were landing on the path as we walked around so we were anxious that people would step on them so helped as many to the side as we could. I had a bit of shock when one decided to land on my eye and eyebrow and Nick caught the moment on camera! Definitely a perfectly timed shot. At the centre they also house many reptiles and insects and we were able to hold two of the insects there. It was all very informative and interactive. Inside they have a fantastic 8 room educational centre that is so modern and engaging that this was when we realised we should have given this place more than an afternoon. We went right up until closing at 7pm before walking the 1.6km back to the bus stop. We had to wait and while for the driver and then we had our delightful one hour journey back into Georgetown. By the time we go back it was almost 9pm so for ease and the need for more lamb shank we went back to where we ate on the first night. It wasn't as amazing but we think it's because it's the end or service and they were quite busy but it still tasted great. A great end to a long colourful day.Читать далее
Street art hunting
9 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
We've based ourselves in Georgetown in Penang which is known for it's British and French architectural influences but also it's vast array of street art. Today we had planned to set off early and explore the area on foot hunting down all the different artworks to see. We did have a slight hiccup with leaving though. As I pulled the door closed the whole handle came off to door! One of the staff luckily managed to fiddle around with the key and open the door again but he had to wait for the other member of staff to arrive to look at it. We waited for him and after 20 minutes or so we just decided to go ahead and lock the door and leave. There wasn't anything we could input to fixing it by staying so we told the guy we'd come back in and hour or so and after some coffee and an explore it was all sorted with a new lock. Woopsie! I love Georgetown! I love the weathering of the buildings, the bunting, lanterns and plants that are everywhere and the wonderful street art. It's crumbling plaster and mishmash pavements give it such a charm so much so that it is becoming my favourite city that we have visited so far. After we visited all the artworks on our map we began a 20 minute walk to a supermarket. It was so unbelievable hot today: 35 degrees but it said it feels like 46. We were melting in the heat and when we entered an air conditioned mall at the end of our walk it was pure heaven. We stood for a minute or so just with our arms on the cold metal railings inside. We had some juices and then eventually found the supermarket. With the heat we decided to get a taxi back and visit a traditional mansion in the town that has Malaysian, Chinese and Indian influences in it's decoration and style. We had an 81 year old tour guide who took us around and was very insistent we had a photo with her which turned out to be an awful shot but it's a good memory to have. She didn't have much information to share and there wasn't any signs either which was a shame but we enjoyed having an explore. Afterwards we headed to a great little restuarant bar for dinner and I had the most amazing burger for tea. Coming back and having a cold shower was almost the highlight of the day!Читать далее
The coldest train in the whole world!
8 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
It's voting day and the youngest sister's birthday back in the UK so today really feels like we're missing out on not being at home. Luckily our proxy vote applications arrived from Thailand in time so my parents are voting on our behalf today. It's time to say farewall to the busy Kuala Lumpur and head to the island of Penang. Our train was leaving at 11:30am so this gave us enough time to get ready, have breakfast and use the cheaper public transport to get to the station instead of the quicker more expensive taxi. We boarded the train with no hiccups and found it was very modern and spacious with plenty of leg room which was nice. The journey lasted 4 hours and it was the coldest 4 hours of our lives. The air con was on so high that it was bitterly cold and basically like being in the UK in winter! Luckily and I mean really luckily Nick had packed not only his hoodie in his hand luggage but also his fleece too. I'm not sure we would of survived without them! Having arrived at a place called Butterworth we met a fellow traveller and worked our way up and down a very stair heavy route to the ferry dock. With a bag weighing 20kgs on your back and dodgey knees this was not a fun trek but at least we had our new companion to talk to about her travels. Sadly when we disembarked after 15 minutes on the water we lost her in the hustle and bustle of people getting off the boat so we didn't even get to say goodbye or find out her name. We walked to the guest house which is only 15 minutes away and no matter how much you look at the pictures and read reviews it's always a surprise when you enter a new accommodation. We'd chosen this place as it said it had a private bathroom but turns out non of the rooms did. Being a bit tired I disputed this and said on the website the room we booked does not say it's a shared bathroom to which he went to check and came back offering us to leave and that he'll have to inform booking.com about this. He was very apologetic and the room is the best value we saw here so we decided to stay. It made it a little awkward when leaving later for dinner but he seems okay with us and showed us where all the essentials are on a map. We headed out to find some dinner but soon realised we should of researched it as it was all street food places. Penang is known for its street food but after being so ill last time there's really no way I'm risking losing two days of doing things again. After a bit of wondering we found a lovely modern bakery and bistro. They had lamb shank! I cannot tell you how happy this made me and so of course I had to order it. Back home you can pay anything from £15 to £30 for this dish so when the price of this main was £5 it had to be done and by golly it was beautiful. It was in a tomato sauce but it was so rich and flavourful that it went surprisingly well. Nick had a baked rice dish which he was also impressed with so maybe we'll head back there before we leave. Georgetown where we are staying is know for its street art so tomorrow we plan to fully explore the area on foot.Читать далее
We finally saw the towers!
7 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
We're leaving Kuala Lumpur tomorrow and we haven't actually got round to planning our next step. Very last minute indeed! We spent the morning researching and booking accommodation to Penang. After looking into several bus companies we were struggling to find a bus service that begins at an easily accessible location and after a while we discovered we could get a train from the main station to Penang for not much more than the bus costs. Rather than booking online in case we had to print our tickets we decided to visit the station instead and book directly. After a long wait we booked our tickets and then boarded a train to visit the Batu Caves. A holy site where they have built temples inside the caves. The area was quite run down and there's a lot of building works going on. In many ways the temples ruined the beautiful caves because they looked poorly made and so many building materials were left all over the place. The caves themselves were so impressive though it's just a shame that you can't enjoy them completely as they formed. There were many monkeys on the steps leading up to the caves which were taking full advantage of the tourists, we even saw one steal a brand new bottle of 7-up and enjoy slurping the bubbles. Not the healthiest of diets! After the caves we headed back to the central station and had one last Nandos for tea, we've really put a lot of money into this place recently! After a bit of shopping we headed to KLCC station where the Petronas Twin Towers are situated, apparently the tallest twin towers in the world. We spent a good half an hour messing around with angles and posses until we got some half decent non blurry photos. It seems to be the place you have to visit if you're in Kuala Lumpur. By the time we left it was quite late and we got back to discovered that someone has been put into a room in our apartment. Not really the private room we booked when we're having to tip toe around to use the bathroom but oh well we are leaving tomorrow.Читать далее
Who needs a swimming costume anyway!
6 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Nick had found a pretty cool waterpark and amusement park to visit today and luckily every first Tuesday of the month is heavily discounted in price. It has a combination of 6 different parks from a water park to a zoo. When we arrived the queue to get the wristbands was huge and we were wondering what we had done! As it was so discounted we decided to pay extra for fast passes and we were so glad we did! We were able to just walk straight to the front of the line and get on the rides straight away. It was no Alton towers for rides but they did have a few cool ones including a pirate ship that went a full 360 around. We decided to do all the dry parts first before getting changed to do the water parks. The park is a little bit of a con as you can't take bags on rides so you are forced to pay a fiver to rent a locker for the day. We headed to the zoo after the rides where they had white lions and white tigers. We saw the white tigers up so close and they were pretty interested in each other which we discovered first hand is because it's mating season! The kids found this hilarious of course. After some food it was time to get changed and head to the water parks. This is when we discovered that me being such a bright spark had left my swimming costume at the hotel! I left it out of the bag as I was going to wear it under my clothes but decided in the morning I'd get changed when there and forgot to put it in. I had to go a buy some heavily branded shorts and t shirt to wear. Luckily they were in a sale but I spent the rest of the day walking around looking like a tourist who was so enthusiastic about the park that I bought the clothing to prove it! The water park areas were busier and they had some great rides so we were glad we could just go to the front and get on straight away. The best time for doing this was on a ride where you needed 4 people to go inside a large ring to go down the slide. When we got to the entrance we were paired with a boy who was about 5 and his mum who had been waiting for another 2 people to come along to be paired with. We entered the queueing area and they went to join the regular line where the wait time was at 1 hour and 30 minutes. It felt so good to say to them that they were able to jump the queue with us as we had the fast passes and the boy loved it as we walked up the stairs passed the hundreds of people all the way to the top and straight onto the ride. He also loved the ride as well so that made it even better. We went on it again later and managed to do the same thing for another child and her mum. Some rides didn't have a separate fast track queue so you had to ask to come through the line and with a large double rubber ring as well this was a bit tricky. You also have to explain to every person that you have fast passes and you do get some pretty annoyed looks. You do feel a bit rude but at the end of the day we did pay for this. After one water park area we climbed up so many stairs where we jumped another 1.5 hours queue to zip wire down to the other water park area which was pretty cool! Despite the lack of swimming costume we had a great day in the end and stayed up until the park closed and then had some Japanese food for dinner before heading back to the hotel.Читать далее
Overcoming the bird fear
5 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
I've never been comfortable around birds. When we were in Japan we had a few goes at feeding some birds which was the first time of battling the fear. Nick loves birds so today we planned to visit a bird park in Kuala Lumpur that has the biggest walk through aviary in the world, a great day for Nick and a bit of a test for me. We spent the morning trying to find somewhere to print out tickets we have for a theme park tomorrow and once this was sorted we arrived at the bird park. The eagle feeding was beginning when we arrived so we quickly hurried there with the plan to return to the start after. I was very uncomfortable there as clearly the birds knew that after the eagles had their food they could get some outside too. We were surrounded by so many cranes, stalks and small herons all hoping for some food. There were so many of them that it was hard to keep track of all the ones around you and their movements. I was not enjoying the experience that's for sure. We also watched a bird show where they showed the intelligence of the birds by having them solve problems and tasks. The true highlight of the day was when we visited the parrot aviary. We were looking around with the parrots close to us and someone cleaning out a cage behind us not only encouraged Nick to try and get one to walk onto his hand but he also gave us sunflower seed through the bars to feed them. I pushed myself here and firstly fed them before having one on my hand and then ended the time with one on my shoulder which I was super proud of. We spent about an hour in this enclosure feeding and interacting with all the beautiful parrots. It truly was a great experience for myself but also for Nick who was in his element. I walked back to one enclosure and as I did a cockatoo said hello to me! We had a great afternoon at the park before heading to the central mall to a burger place for tea. They have a great concept there where you build your own burger similar in the way you build a sandwich in Subway. We've decided if we win the lottery we will set up this idea in the UK as I really think it could take off. Overall we've had a very good day with lots of mini accomplishments.Читать далее
Missing our friend the ocean
4 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
Now that we're back in a city we have been missing the ocean and beach life. Snorkeling around was one of the best experiences we have had so far so we decided today to visit the aquarium here in Kuala Lumpur. It took the monorail, walking and then underground to arrive at the area. The aquarium is near the twin towers so our plan was to visit there before a science museum and then give seeing the towers at night another shot. The aquarium was very impressive and informative. They had a strong message on trying to stop the removal of shark fins, a meat used as a popular dish in South East Asia. They had a horrible graphic video that showed how many of these sharks are caught and their fins removed while they are alive before being tossed back into the sea. It was barbaric and I don't know how anyone could not be moved by it. We then also found out that 100 million sharks are killed each year for this reason, 100 million! Sharks do not reproduce often so this has left pretty much all species of sharks as endangered or vulnerable. Great white sharks, for instance, are now endangered to the point of near extinction. You hear so often about African animals being endangered such as giraffes and rhinos but never of sharks. We had no idea this was such a huge global problem so it felt good to visit a centre where our money is being used to try and confront this issue. They have a strong breeding program of bamboo shark at the aquarium as well, a species that numbers are dwindling. We left the aquarium feeling very moved by what we had learned but also quite drained. We had a late lunch and drinks before both deciding we didn't have the energy to go to science museum today after that. As there was a long wait until night time to see the towers we considered going to the cinema but there wasn't anything we fancied watching enough. Instead we decided to do the museum and towers another day so we headed back to our hotel area which took a good amount of time before returning to our favourite spot Nandos for tea. Our evening consisted of watching the rest of Britain's Got Talent before we discovered the winner by mistake on Facebook! Although it wasn't the full day we had planned it feels good knowing we will get an early night tonight and be well rested for tomorrow.Читать далее
A whole day devoted to my GoPro
3 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Today has been a long day! My GoPro camera stopped charging while in Thailand and we tried another lead but it still wouldn't work so we were worried something was really wrong with the camera and this being our first proper city we decided now is the time to sort it out. I found a place that repairs the cameras so our plan was to head there and try and get things sorted before heading to see the iconic twin towers. Firstly we headed to the mall near us for some brunch and a look around. We've seen our first mall with a roller coaster in it! We arrived at the mall where the shop is listed after getting the monorail and walking there. We entered into a strange Islamic supermarket and shopping area and searched everywhere for this shop asking many people. After about a hour of looking and ending up in the busiest clothing store in the world we thought the address must be wrong. We found a Starbucks and went on WiFi to check the address. After some probing and research we found out the mall this shop was originally in has permanently closed and the Islamic shops have replaced it. It was pretty gutting to come all this way to not be any closer to sorting my camera out. Luckily we found another branch of the store and checked the mall it was in to be double sure it still existed. We caught a taxi there and at this point it was late afternoon because we'd allowed ourselves a lie in this morning. We found the shop and the woman didn't seem to know too much about the camera. She tried another battery but even that wouldn't consistently charge. We then asked her to try another cable and adapter and this seemed to work thankfully! We may have only needed the wire but we decided to get the adapter too as it would come in handy and it may be the combination that work. Fingers crossed that is all it is and the camera isn't broken. Afterwards we didn't feel like doing anything else so we found somewhere in this mall to eat. It was a disappointing meal but at least it was food at this point. We ended the night with some shopping before heading back to the hotel. We didn't get back until 9.30 so it's likely to be another late night. Hopefully we can get an early night tomorrow as it's making us very tired in the day! A not so exciting first day in Malaysia!Читать далее
Goodbye Thailand, hello Malaysia!
2 июня 2017 г., Малайзия ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
Today's photos are a lovely photo shoot of Nick becuase he never takes any pictures so I'm very rarely in any! I'm sure he does it on purpose with the hopes of being spotted by a modelling agency who happen to be viewing my blog. Anyway today we finally left Thailand! We have spent over 3 weeks there and it was time to move on and have a change. We had an airport transfer arranged for 11am so we had time to get ready and check out. The hotel had charged Nick's card twice for the room and wanted to refund the money to his card. We have received a refund before this way and Nick was charged by the bank back home for the refund. Not just a little bit but quite a lot so we pleaded with reception to do the refund in cash and wrote down our reasoning for the manager to be asked. Thankfully as we checked out today we got our refund in cash which is great! We had a cramped ride to the airport as we sat in the seats next to the luggage on the mini bus but we finally made. Krabi airport is very basic in comparison to others we have seen. The had a set of weighing scales instead of the fancy conveyer belts that double up as scales for example. We checked in and made it through security and began the wait for the plane. Annoyingly we saw a couple of people who had large rucksacks like ours but as their hand luggage instead of checked in bags. We paid £20 each extra to be able to have the luggage but they seem to have been allowed to take there's on the plane with them for no charge which is frustrating. But anyway the flight was smooth and we landed in Kuala Lumpur in just over an hour. Nick had researched the cheapest way to get to the hotel so we first took the bus to the central transport station here. When we arrived here we walked into a huge 8 storey shopping mall on the way to the monorail we were getting. We decided as it was quite late to eat here before carrying on. We were on the escalators travelling up to the 3rd floor food court and that's when I saw it. On the 4th floor over the top of the rail I could see the top section of the sign for Nandos! It was happening! We had to wait in a queue for about 20 minutes but it was so worth it. It's cheaper here as well which was a bonus. With full happy bellies we caught the monorail to our stop only to find out it's better to go to the next stop then walk from there. We did that and a short walk later found the hotel. We booked a double room but maybe because it was late and they'd given it to someone else we've been given one of their 3 bedroom apartments to ourselves complete with kitchen and lounge area. As long as no one else is put in with us we've hit the jackpot here! We have 6 nights here so having the ability to make our own breakfast will be most handy indeed.Читать далее
Birthday celebrations
1 июня 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
It's Nick's birthday! I successfully woke up in the night and managed to get everything prepared by the light of my phone. He was woken up by me walking in from bathroom with my amazing Pringles tube "cake" which consisted of candles stuck to the side with medical tape singing happy birthday as I walked. He then opened his very strange card that was the best of a bad bunch when the opportunity arose to buy one and proceeded to open his presents which had been wrapped inside my socks. All very makeshift but I think he appreciated the effort and was amazed I even had these 2 opportunities to buy things at all when he won't leave my side! Unfortunately Nick started to feel ill and felt that he wouldn't enjoy the trip we had booked to do today so I went and cancelled it but it was too late to get our money back. After a while though he started to feel better so off he ran to see if we could still go and luckily one group was running late so there was still our van in the area to pick us up. The tour operator even gave him a lift back on her moped to the hotel to make the van on time. It was all rather dramatic but we were on our way for our day out. The trip included visiting the mangrove forests by longboat, going to James Bond island where one of the films in the 70s was shot, stopping at a floating village for lunch, an optional canoe ride, visiting a temple inside a cave with monkeys outside and a final stop at a waterfall. Originally we had opted not to do the canoeing but then found out if you don't do it you have to wait around for the others to finish before moving on so as it's his birthday we decided to pay extra and do this. Our canoe rower was trying very hard to be funny and singing throughout which did make it hard to enjoy the beautiful scenery around us. We were able to get up close to the mangrove trees and see the impressive root systems they have. He cut me a heart out of a leaf which I thought was sweet but then wanted to have my camera to take a photo through the heart shaped hole and insisted we kiss for the photo. The result isn't too bad! The monkeys at the cave were friendlier than we have seen before and it was amusing watching them snatch bottles of peanuts tourists had brought to feed them with to then sit and drink the peanuts out of it. Unfortunately at the waterfall stop it was too strong to swim in at this time of year but it was still an impressive sight to see. We had a long drive back to the hotel and as we were last to get on the bus in the morning we were sat apart from each other. We got dressed up and headed to a restuarant that is on the beach front and has a balcony that overlooks the sunset for dinner. It was a beautiful setting for Nick's birthday tea but you really are paying for the view not food quality. I ordered a chicken burger and we weren't even sure what I received was legal meat and it was a horrible brown pink colour. There was no way I was going to risk eating it after being so ill so after Nick had his food we got a ride a Burger King instead! At least I could trust the meat here. Overall I think Nick's had a nice birthday and was pleased we managed to make the trip in the end despite changing our minds so much!Читать далее
Jumping into paradise
31 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
I had a pretty rough night again. No where near like last night but I think being ill made me too dehydrated so I woke in the early hours with a pounding headache that lasted most of the night. When we woke up it had eased but was still not fully gone and while in our sleepy early morning minds we decided not to go on our trip that we had changed to be today. As the morning passed and we considered it more we changed our minds and we were so glad we did! Koh Phi Phi and the surrounding islands are breathtaking. We were picked up from the hotel and headed to a small beach where we boarded a speed boat. We then had the bumpiest ride of our lives and all I kept thinking was how pleased I was that we didn't do this yesterday. We had a baby girl on our boat who was 15 months old and she coped so well with the rough sea. Her grandmothers were very good at making the experience fun and not scary for her even when they had to physically tie her to one of them to stop her flying out their arms. Our first stop was to a place called Bamboo Island which had clear turquoise waters and fine white sand. It was so beautiful it's just a shame you have to share that beauty with hundreds of other tourists. While others swam in the sea we headed down the beach and found secluded rock and beach areas which enabled us to enjoy the island and view so much more. We thought this was a a tour with snorkels available but our tour leader wouldn't let us have the snorkels until the last stop which was a bit frustrating. Next we entered a bay which was surrounded by tall sheer rock faces covered in dense greenery. We were able to jump off the front of the boat and swim in it's beautiful waters for a while. We had two stops where we had to stay on the boat. One was to a cave called Viking cave which you are not allowed to enter as swallows nest in there and they are worried about tourists trying to take the valuable nests which are a delicacy through Asia. Funnily enough we got quite friendly with a Malaysian woman and her 3 children who are our age and her husband owns a bird nest farm in Malaysia so she was able to tell me all about this traditional dish. It was also handy to get some tips from them seeing as their home country is our next stop! The other place we visited where we couldn't depart was a cliff face where monkeys have decided to take up residence. I'm still wondering how these monkeys came to be on these small cliff islands in the first place really. We stopped on Koh Phi Phi Don to have a buffet style lunch. I mainly stuck to plain rice and noodles to be on the safe side. After lunch we had our final stop which was snorkeling in the sea near an island. Unfortunately my gopro has stopped charging so we were unable to take underwater photos which was actually a nice change as it meant I could be completely there in the moment while swimming. We saw angel fish and clown fish that were the colours of Nemo, both we haven't seen before. It's so amazing that even out in the open ocean the water is still warm, definitely don't get that back home! After heading back we were able to Skype home and see my gorgeous nephew for the first time which was priceless but did make us want to climb through the screen and be there too. It's Nick's birthday tomorrow and I've managed to have one opportunity to buy some presents and some candles. It's been impossible when we are together 24/7 and he won't leave my side. Therefore he's got a lot of toiletries which I'll have to wrap in my socks tonight and as I couldn't get a cake he's having candles taped to a Pringles tube! He can't say I don't spoil him! Now I just need to hope I wake up in the night to sort this all out, fingers crossed.Читать далее
I have a nephew! Oh and food poisoning
30 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
Last night was horrendous. I fell asleep with pains in my stomach and woke up in the early hours of the morning and was unfortunately sick. It was the start of a spout of food poisoning from the street food we ate last night that went on all through the morning. From 1 until 6.30 when Nick woke up I'd had about an hours sleep. It was unbearable and today has been just as bad. I've spent the whole day in bed and we've watched Britain's got Talent to pass the time. While I've been napping Nick has been amazing and planned most of our Kuala Lumpur part of Malaysia as well as gone out and brought me back some snacks in the evening when I was feeling like attempting food. We did have a little hiccup this morning as we'd planned to go on a trip today. Nick headed out half an hour before we were arranged to be picked up to inform the woman that we couldn't go and can we rearrange for tomorrow. 20 minutes after he left I get a phone call and the woman in reception is saying our pick up is downstairs. I tried to explain but she wasn't understanding. As Nick was out getting breakfast I had to get dressed and climb down the 4 flights of stairs to reception with awful stomach pains where I tell her Nick is sorting it but she insists I have to speak to the driver and ushers me outside. I meet the driver and check his sheet and he's collecting one person not two and with a completely different room number to ours. He wasn't even for us, so that was rather frustrating. On a massive plus side though my beautiful nephew has entered the world and our family this morning at 3:45am UK time. Being ill meant I was able to be on constant wifi to see all the amazing photos and updates from back home. Today has been a trying day and of course I had nothing to photograph but our room and tablet so have included some great pictures of baby Zephyr sent from my sister. I'm so in love and craving to be home more than anything. It's going to be very hard the next few weeks!Читать далее
Rock pool exploring
29 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
We've spent our first night in Krabi and realised that we don't know anything that there is to do here or what our next plan will be. Nick's birthday is on the 1st so we want to do something fun for that therefore that is influencing when and where we go next. We needed to do some planning, our favourite thing! We let ourselves have a lie in after the epic travelling day yesterday and then headed out for some brunch. After food we found a nice place on the beach front that does cheap juices and has wifi so set up base here. Having looked into the islands around Krabi we have decided that we would rather use Krabi as our base and do day excursions than stay on these islands. Most seem to be over populated with tourists and very expensive to stay on. Having made a plan we booked two excursions, one for tomorrow to Koh Phi Phi and the surrounding islands and another one for Nick's birthday exploring other islands. We spent time researching into nice hotels to stay in for a couple of nights for his birthday and booked a place down the road that's reasonable but a much nicer hotel. I did love how our seat height criteria included having a bath! Ever since my mum sent me a photo of her bath that she was about to get in we have both been craving one. We also planned that our next stop will be Malaysia and booked a flight there on the 2nd. Having had a successful planning session we headed out for dinner. We walked towards another beach near our hotel which had limited options and in the end Nick convinced me to eat at a street food area that has been set up with around 20 stalls. We ordered food from one and juices from another. I asked if they do the chicken with cashew nuts that I like and he proceeded to ask the chef about this before saying yes. Having received the food I now knew they'd just cooked their stir fried chicken which they had a picture of on the stall and put cashew nuts on the top, cheeky but clever. After dinner we headed to the beach across the road to watch the sunset. The tide had gone out which left behind many rockpools on the beach. We spent the next hour or so until all the light had gone exploring the many pools on show. The sky was the most beautiful colours as we did this. It was the perfect end to a nice successful day.Читать далее
People are awesome
28 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Our day of travelling is complete! We were taken to the pier at 8:30am to catch the ferry. We weren't too sure of the journey ahead and only really knew that our last destination was Krabi. We waved goodbye to Koh Tao as we set sail for Koh Phangan. We had to disembark at this island and had an hour wait to transfer to another boat. While waiting we had a man busking for money playing his guitar behind us which wasn't welcomed at first but actually was quite nice in the end. I was having sunburn struggles as my trousers were sticking to it and every time I stood up I had to pull it off my already raw skin. The new boat arrived and we were ushered on board. Trying to go to the loo on a speedboat ferry is the hardest thing in the world I tell you! We had a brief stop at Koh Samui before we ended our water part of our journey on the mainland. This was the part we were unsure of but it couldn't of been more easy. As we exited the boat there were 4 buses lined up in front of us each other labelled with their destination, couldn't go wrong really! We had a comfy bus with loads of leg room which was great. After ten minutes or so the woman next to us but slightly in front was trying to recline her chair and in the end Nick helped her do this which sparked up a conversation with the couple. I think they were nearing 70 with both children and grandchildren but they are so inspirational as people. They're from Norway and have travelled to over 130 different countries around the world. 130! I was in awe of them and their attitude to life and travel. They just pick a country and go there and then build up a connection with the local people to find out where to visit next. They travelled in the 70s when they were the only tourists in certain cities or even countries. They spoke of going to Fiji during a tense time when civil war was on the cards and they were the only people on a flight from Aukland becuase they were the only nationality that would be allowed in the country at that time. They've been to Syria to see the war first hand and talked about cafes and hotels being bombed just hours after they had visited there. They were arrested and had been accused of taking pictures of the president's safe house after the prime minister was murdered which resulted in a 4 hour battle to prove they hadn't taken pictures on this house to then be excused by the president as they had the wrong couple. The husband had worked with the red cross and lived in Zambia for a while where they did a walking safari and had near death experiences with elephants and leopards. He talked so beautifully of building relationships with every local person from the homeless up to the highest class of people around. They visited places and beaches which only they knew about and would be the only tourists for miles around where as now these places are over run with tourists and resorts. They just had such a thirst for life and experiencing everything they possible could in this world with the time they have been given on this planet. I have so much admiration for their attitude and it's made me realise that we have a limited time on this world and we need to make the most of it. I completely know now that I'd rather have a cheaper smaller house than we can afford and use that extra money each year to go somewhere amazing and new and to not be afraid by the reviews and stories you hear of places but to see the world and live it. We spoke with them for the whole 3 hour journey and I couldn't of been more grateful for those precious eye opening 3 hours.Читать далее
Is sunburn meant to hurt this much?!
27 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C
Today was one of our best days so far, even despite the sunburn! We booked onto a tour that takes you to 5 different snorkeling places around the island of Koh Tao. We had arranged to be picked at 9.30 but the taxi turned up at ten to 9 so we had a mad rush to get ready and leave. We made it to the company's office on the pier front and sat around waiting for a good half an hour so I'm not sure why we were picked up so much earlier than we asked. We were given our snorkels and free coffee which was a bonus. Having boarded the boat we set sail to our first dive site, shark bay. Unfortunately it didn't live up to it's name and we didn't see any reef sharks here. We did see hundreds of beautiful fish and untouched coral. Being in the deeper water was so much better than snorkeling off the shore line because you don't have the risk of touching the coral and the water is so much clearer. Our next stop was just incredible. The coral at the sea bed was like something out of a film. Nick isn't a strong swimmer so I left him and his life vest behind to explore the whole shore line diving down to get closer looks at certain fish. So many fish try and interact with you. We had two more diving spots which were nice also because you could see the coral up close on the rocks. I lost all fear of the ocean and just embraced the feeling of wonder and freedom. I can honestly say it's one of the best things I've ever experienced and it makes me want to scuba dive so much more, although I'm not sure Nick is so keen. We had lunch on the boat followed by fresh fruit. We paid such a small amount to do this in comparison to other trips and we had continual tea, coffee and biscuits on top of fruit and lunch. It was such a good deal for everything it included. Our last stop was for 2 hours at a collection of 3 islands that are joined by a small stretch of beach. As soon as got off the boat the torrential rain started but luckily we had everything in a waterproof pouch with us that was important. We waited a little bit for it to ease and then headed up to the view point and what a view point it was. The passing storm brought clear blue skies and low clouds brushing the mountain tops. We had to climb up rock faces to get to the view point which was challenging but so worth it. We spent the next hour snorkeling and once we'd passed the large area of ruined coral we hit a beautiful reef full of life. It's always reassuring to see that humans haven't completely destroyed such beauty. We just have to hope that most people continue to not venture out to this part of the reef. There were gangs of palm sized stripey fish that just swarmed you and tried to nibble you so we spent a lot of time trying to escape them! We headed back to the mainland after enjoying our time at these islands. We had been silly and left our bag with towels in at the company's office and we discovered on returning that it had been sent out on another boat. We had to wait for this boat to return so headed to get some dinner. At this point I realised how sunburnt the backs of my legs were. They were so painful so we also went and got some aftersun. Once we'd eaten we retrieved our towels and took the jeep back to the hotel. We spent the rest of the night applying layer after layer of aloe vera gel on our burns while feeling sorry for ourselves. You forget that when being face down in the water all day your legs are most exposed and even with a few applications of factor 50 it isn't always enough!Читать далее
An unexpected afternoon
26 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ 🌬 24 °C
I seriously lacked at taking photos today and am lucky to have 6 different ones for the blog! We moved to the other side of the island this morning which involved us getting the free shuttle from the hotel to the pier then someone from the new hotel picking us up. As we came to check out at 8:25 knowing the taxi leaves at half past we were shocked to see it pulling away full of people. They operate a sign up sheet for the vehicle and we were the only ones who had actually signed up so it was a little frustrating to see them leaving without us. Luckily the receptionist got their attention to stop but there was hardly any space for us and it resulted in someone from the reception who works there having to stay behind. We made it to the pier and waited to meet our next hotel driver. Having arrived at the hotel we paid only £4 extra to upgrade to a room with a sea view which we were able to check into right away and what a great view it is! We chilled out for a while until we were ready to venture out into town. Having booked our transport over to the other side of Thailand we went to a beachside restuarant to have lunch and plan some accommodation there. During lunch we had a couple of cheeky birds hanging around us and I fed them some of my bread which resulted in them losing all shyness and sitting expectantly next to us for a while. There is a temple that Nick wanted to visit here so we planned to head back and get changed in to appropriate clothing and visit there in the late afternoon. As we were walking back however we came to a section of the road which is badly damaged and has been filled up with sand and many mounds have formed from the cars driving on it. As we approached a tourist coming towards us skidded on the sand and crashed off his moped. We were the first there and helped him to the side of the road and moved his bike out the way. He suddenly got a lot worse and was complaining of pain in the side of his face and shoulder. I stayed with him while Nick ran to a medical centre that was luckily near by and got help. Lots of other people stopped to ask about it or to offer advice which was reassuring. The centre came with a stretcher and carried him back to their clinic. We went with him keeping hold of his shoes and bag. After an hour and an x-ray they discovered he'd torn a ligament in his shoulder but luckily no damage to his head or broken bones. The hardest part was when he asked me to send a recorded message to his girlfriend to let her know, knowing that whatever I say will result in her freaking out about it. We went and bought him water and sat with him until he agreed to stay at the clinic overnight. He's travelling alone and they didn't want him to be on his own with the pain in his face. We were able to leave knowing he will be in safe hands and hopefully feeling better after a good rest. He was very grateful for our help but there's no way we could of not gone with him. That did mean we weren't able to go to the temple but it didn't even matter anymore. Instead we got changed and went to dinner and had some great Thai food. We've booked a snorkeling trip tomorrow so we're up bright and early for that!Читать далее
We love snorkeling!
25 мая 2017 г., Таиланд ⋅ 🌬 17 °C
Our day started off very early with a taxi to the pier at 7:30 for the half 8 ferry to Koh Tao. The ferry was only an hour and a half but it was incredibly cold with the aircon. We did enjoy indulging in an instant coffee though! We docked in Koh Tao and were greeted by so many people holding up signs with hotel names or offering taxi services. We were worried we'd be too early for our hotel to check in but luckily a guy was there from our hotel who drove us for free and had no issue with us being so early. We rode on the back of a jeep through some beautiful scenery on the island until we reached the resort. Our room is so big and the hotel has everything you could every need to hand. We are in the middle of no where so there aren't any shops near by which is the downside but it's a worth while sacrifice for the views and setting. We got settled in and then headed to the beach. We had a steep 5 minute decent to the beach half of which was down a raised wooden walkway over a waterfall and river. I was definitely dreading the walk back up! After some much needed brunch we headed out into the sea with our goggles ready to do some snorkeling. The reef was incredible. So many weird and wonderful fish to see and they weren't shy either. One particular fish kept swimming right up to me almost as if he wanted continual photos on the camera. It was sad to see other people snorkeling who clearly didn't know the damage that humans can cause to coral so they were walking and standing all over it. I feel like any beach with a reef should put up signs to ask swimmers not to stand on the coral. This reef had been far less damaged than others we have seen though. While floating and trying to sort out our goggles I didn't realise we had drifted from our currently clear patch of sea bed so accidently scraped my foot on some coral which resulted in me being quite shocked but that then caused Nick to do the same thing only so much worse. He's taken the skin off 3 of his toes quite badly. We tried to continue for a while longer but in the end decided to head back up to the hotel to sort his foot out. After a very steep climb back and with a bandaged up Nick we went to the infinity pool and while Nick sat on the side I had a little swim. We proceeded to sit and plan/discuss our next destination and have also come to the conclusion that with our flight to Bali leaving Singapore on the 20th it's unrealistic to fit in a good amount of time in Laos ummong Malaysia, the rest of Thailand and Singapore itself. We've decided to visit Laos on the way home instead. With a much clearer route in mind we can hopefully book some bits and bobs tomorrow. We spent the rest of the afteenoon chilling by the pool, watching things on YouTube and going to dinner in the restuarant. The view at dinner was amazing but it's so hard to enjoy a meal with hundreds of mosquitos around you. Even fully covered with clothing you are not safe! We are both looking forward to seeing how many bites we have gained!Читать далее