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Nomad 2020 Asia

December 2019 - January 2020
A short holiday trip around Asia. 4 countries over two weeks. Read more
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  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 1

    Waiting for take- off

    December 24, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Heading for my Christmas holiday trip around Asia. The first of a number of planned trips this year. I was going to head home to NZ but the return fare was so expensive I decided to see how far I could go for less. :-)

    So Bali here I come... and Vietnam and Okinawa and Taiwan.

    Stay tuned for photos and my daily blog.    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    1
    Day 1

    Bonjour Bali

    December 24, 2019 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    When I got off the plane the heat just hit me. Despite being in WA for the last few months, were it got up to 40c recently, the humid heat here definitely feels hotter.

    But when you can relax by the pool with a cold Bintang beer before having an hour long Balinese body massage and then taking a wander down to the beach at sunset; the heat just melts away in the breeze :-)

    As do work worries or any other of life's hassles!

    Happy Holidays!    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    1
    11
    Day 2

    Ulun Danu Beretan - Bali Day 2

    December 25, 2019 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Up early for the long drive north to Lake Beretan up in the mountains in the north of Bali. Was going to Sekumpul Waterfall also but traffic so bad decided to cut the trip short at Lake Beretan and visit a different Waterfall, Leke Leke, on the way back.

    The Ulun Danu temple on the lake is very picturesque and I got a few good shots. It was very busy though, primarily with Indonesian tourists from Java given this is a two week school holiday. Probably account's for the insane traffic too although the kamikaze scooter riders and general chaos of traffic is probably pretty normal for Bali. I'm surprised there aren't more accidents; but somehow it all seems to work despite the lack of rules or rather the lack of following any rules.

    On the way to Ulun Danu we stopped at a place where they grow and roast and serve Luwhak coffee. It's a very expensive special coffee whose beans have been through the digestive tract of a mongoose like creature, the Asian Palm Civet, before being cured and roasted and ground to a fine powder. Unappetizing as it may sound it really tastes amazing. Most of the local small hold plantations also grow and harvest lots of other things and will offer tastings of all their teas and coffees for free. The kicker is you pay 60,000 rupiah (about AU$6) for a cup of the Luwhak coffee. Well worth it though as you also get a tour of the plantation and get shown all the plants - and the animals - that go into making their products.

    Other stop of the day was at Leke Leke Waterfall. 50,000 rupiah entrance fee and a 20 min walk down the steep valley to the falls. A beautiful spot with a stunning waterfall. The trek back up was pretty tough though... I was a walking Waterfall of my own by the time I got back to the top :-)    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 3

    Goa Gajah, Hidden Canyon + - Bali Day 3

    December 26, 2019 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Another long day trip today, especially with the crazy traffic. Bali is definitely not built to handle the volume of tourism it gets, both domestic and international.

    The day started with Hidden Canyon and probably the toughest 90 minute hike I have ever done. Up a deep canyon scrambling over slippy rock formations, clinging to the canyon edge with small hand and foot holds and wading sometimes through chest high water. Well worth it though for the stunning rock formations and views; despite being soaked from head to toe. I tried to get some photos without the obligatory selfie takers or Instagrammers, but couldn't really avoid them as we stopped every few hundred yards to wait for the 'shots,' from the most photogenic places.

    Then it was off to Tennungun Waterfall a stunning fall at the bottom of a steep descent with steps and obligatory selfie spots along the way. Heart shaped cane seats seem to be the in thing, there everywhere.

    After the Waterfall it was off to Goa Gajah temple and the 'elephant rock' cave temple carved from solid rock. Pretty impressive despite all the tourists.

    Stopped for a nice lunch in Ubud somewhere before heading to the rice terraces. Terraced rice paddies that have been very touristyfied with swings, ropeway slides across the valley and lots of heart shaped selfie spots.

    Last stop was another coffee plantation. Well worth it for another strong shot of Luwak poop coffee :-)

    Traffic heading back was a nightmare and the 1 hr twenty trip going up morphed into an almost 3 hour journey back.

    Remind me not to come to Bali during holiday season again...

    Great day though.    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 5

    Good Morning Vietnam!

    December 28, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Up early to a humid grey Saigon after a long day of travel and two hours in queues at Visa and Passport Control. Welcome to the job creating bureaucratic state!

    A day trip down the Mekong delta by boat and car awaits.

    What a crazy, energetic, bustling city, even at 6am. Scooter madness and bikes and trucks and cars and buses and hordes of pedestrians.

    Street vendors, carts and people hustling the tourists... but not in a bad way. Lots of smiles on people's faces. Neon signs and shops everywhere in buildings bearing the unmistakable patina of tropical decay.

    Chaotic is probably a good description of everything here; but it seems to work... It just takes time. As does traveling anywhere. Time in Bali and here reminds me why I enjoy traveling in Japan... it's just so much faster and more enjoyable there. Everywhere else I have been in Asia the traffic is insane and getting anywhere takes two or three times longer than you might expect. I sure have spent a lot of time so far in traffic jams.

    At the end of the traffic we reached My Tho by the Mekong River and on to a boat to get ferried across to one of 5 Islands, Unicorn Island, and a visit to a Bee Cafe where we got to see all the bees while drinking honey tea and eating honied snacks like dried bananas. Next a visit to a chocolate factory and sample their varieties of chocolate. We also got to see and sample the many types of tropical fruit that they grow on the island.

    Then it was on to Coconut Island on another boat. First for lunch and then for a bicycle ride around the island. Really pretty place with little houses among the coconut groves and canals, with narrow winding concrete pathways shared by pedestrians, bicycles and the ever present scooters. Apparently there are 12 million scooters in Saigon and 15 million people :-)

    After the island and a paddle boat ride up one of the many tributaries of the Mekong it was back across the river and on to an amazing Buddhist Pagoda at My Tho... a giant Laughing Buddha and a giant Sleeping Buddha among a collection of ornate temples and giant Bonsai.

    Then back to Saigon and out for dinner for some more of the amazing food in Vietnam. I am like totally hooked on the delicious salads they have here. The one in the pics below is a 5 color Beef salad... I never knew green leaves could have so many different flavors. Delicious!

    All in all a pretty full on day for my first day in Vietnam. Going to explore Saigon tomorrow :-)    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 6

    Saigon Serenade

    December 29, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Started the day with a strong black coffee at Trung Nguyen Legend ' energy coffee' that claims - probably among many - to be the best coffee in the city. This is a great coffee city and it's usually served in a single cup slow drip with a cup full of ice or some hot water if you prefer. Amazing stuff!

    Photos can't really capture the bustling sights and sounds of the city but hopefully I captured some of the iconic images of Ho Chi Minh City.

    I spent the morning taking in the city slowly via cycle rickshaw, the best way to travel if you really want to soak up the city vibes... and fumes from the traffic :-)

    Lots of wide tree lined streets here that expose the cities French influence. Stopped at the War Remnants Museum first and looked aghast at what the USA, Australia and NZ did here during the Vietnam War. But all seems forgiven as you often see Viet and US flags flying side by side here. The US embassy however looks more like a fortress with high spiked walls, bollards and guard houses. The irony of the red hammer and sickle flag flying outside was not lost on me. After all the Viet Cong did win the war(s) despite all the atrocities visited on this country, first by the French, then the Japanese and finally by the USA and her allies.

    Then it was on to a large Pagoda to soak up the more peaceful vibes of the Chinese style Buddhism practiced here. Both the Pagoda and a Temple I visited were packed with praying people and the tourists seemed a little out of place, although ever present. Unlike Temples in Japan they are not really havens of peace in the city, they are actually quite noisy bustling places full of life.

    Catholics make up about 20% of the population thanks to the efforts of French missionaries so there are Chuches and a Cathedral also. Notre Dame Cathedral is more complete than it's namesake these days but also under reconstruction.

    Then it was a classic Banh Mi roll for lunch and back to the hotel to freshen up and escape from the heat of the midday sun.

    Visited the Independence Palace in the afternoon and the park lands around it. Learning lots about Vietnamese history on this trip. Much more complex than I had thought previously, despite growing up during the Vietnam War Era. Also reading a great historically accurate novel by Anthony Grey called Saigon.

    The serenade of the title, if you had not guessed, is the almost musical sound of the traffic, scooters, street vendors and beeps, honks and shouts of the crazy traffic as everyone somehow avoids colliding.    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 7

    Saigon by Scooter - Day & Night

    December 30, 2019 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    I was wrong about the bicycle rickshaw. The best way to see Saigon and soak up the atmosphere of this crazy city is on the back of a Scooter!

    Today I took two separate tours with Saigon Kiss Tours which is basically a female driver/guide dressed in the traditional áo dài dress who ferries you around to different places in the city, many off the tourist path so you can get a real feel for the city and it's inhabitants. In the morning I took a 4 hr tour with a girl called 'Linda' (her western name) to some great places I would never otherwise have known to go. First stop was a local market and a great crab soup snack then onto a famous old Coffee Shop hidden away down a side street that was a place where North Vietnamese revolutionaries met in secret when Saigon was capital of the South under the French and then the Americans. Lots of hidden wall spaces and a Hidden tunnel under a wardrobe used to escape should the police raid the place. Great coffee too :-)

    Then it was off to the place where the famous monk Thích Quảng Đức set himself alight in 1963 in protest at the corrupt South Vietnamese government and their persecution of Buddhists. He's known and worshipped as a Buddha now and his shrine stands by the intersection where he committed the ultimate sacrifice through self immolation.

    Then on to an old complex of apartments in District 3 to see how many of the people live. Narrow bustling streets and small balconied apartments above with all the plants growing, washing hanging and baskets of garlic drying. Designed by an American architect in the mid 60's the government now wants to knock them down but they are clearly well lived and loved homes with low rents and people do not want to move.

    The Scooter got a puncture here (or maybe it's passenger was just too big and heavy) so we stayed a while and had a lunch of the famous Vietnamese soup Pho; it was really delicious and eaten in a very authentic setting.

    Then off to the last stop of the day at a 260 year old Pagoda down by the Saigon River. Very ornate and Chinese it is really beautiful and peaceful... just us and the caretakers, no tourists.

    The night ride started at dusk in heavy beeping traffic and proceeded to some delightful street food stops. Lan Nhi picked me up from my hotel and first stop was taste of authentic Banh Mi, the Viet French Baguette then on to another market where tried the thin rice cake pizza like thing that was delicious then a flower market and yet more wonderful Vietnamese street food; before a trip under the River in the tunnel to District 2 which is very new and was very quiet and peaceful compared to the city. Final stop was for desert in District 4 before the trip back to the hotel.

    All in all an exhilarating whirlwind scooter tour of this crazy vibrant city. Highly recommended if you ever visit Saigon. The best way to see and feel the beating heart of this big hearted city.    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 9

    Two Castles & a Sacred Place

    January 1, 2020 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    First full day in Okinawa saw me head of early in my hire car to Sefa-Utaki in the south east of the main island. A Sacred place down through the ages and specifically to the Okinawa native religion which is similar to but not the same as Shinto in the rest of Japan.

    Beautiful, powerful and peaceful I got there early before most of the tourists so it was very pleasant. Then it was off to the ruins of Nakagusuku Castle (中城) which is one of several castles, which were built across Okinawa during the era of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which had been in existence for several centuries before Okinawa became a Japanese prefecture in 1879.

    Okinawa is definitely different from the rest of Japan... but also the same.

    After Nakagusuku I traveled on to the ruins of Katsuren Castle. Another one with stunning views and magnificent stonework.

    Finally I just drove around the coast and out to two islands off the east coast - Miyagi and Ikie - connected by road bridges. Wonderful coastline.

    Ended the day back at the hotel/resort enjoying the swimming pool and relaxing after a few very full on days in Bali, Vietnam and here in Okinawa. More exploring tomorrow :-)    Read more

  • Barrable TravelsNomad 2020 Asia
    Day 10

    Garden, Castle, Waterfall, Cave & Beach

    January 2, 2020 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Started the day early at the Southeast Botanic Gardens near Okinawa city. Always good to get to these places early before most of the tourists arrive; had the place almost to myself.

    Driving north in heavy traffic I saw a sign for Todoroki Waterfall so took a detour to check it out. It was really nice and peaceful with very few other visitors.

    Next stop was Nakijin Castle ruins, a stunning castle set amidst jungle close to the coast. Very photogenic on this lovely sunny and warm winters day.

    After Nakijin I drove around the western coast for a while and stopped at Manza Beach before heading inland and visiting Cave Okinawa, a 200m long limestone cave with a walkway that I noticed a sign for as I was driving. Always something to discover when getting off the beaten track and taking back roads; again I had the place all to myself :-)

    After the Gardens, Castle, Waterfall, Beach and a Cave the day was almost over so I took a slow drive back to the Hotel on the eastern coast stopping at a local Aeon Mall to get some food for supper... some yummy fresh fish Sushi.    Read more

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