The boat from Penang (Malaysia) to Belawan (Sumatra -Indonesia) was suprisingly efficient and relatively quick. It takes about 5 hours but you are unfortunately forced to endure the worst movies that anyone could find, including Robocop #6 and some kids film about the Loch Ness Monster!!! On the boat there were suprisingly few tourists - and which I would later find out was a common theme around Indonesia. I did meet two Americans - Paul and Robbie, a Polish girl - Megan and an Australian who had been living in France for the last 12 years - Henrietta.
None of us wanted to stay in the port town of Belawan and it was a short ride to the city of Medan. The third largest city in Indonesia, it is a relatively featureless and sprawling mess and again none of my party or myself wanted to stay there either. Lucily we didn't have to - we just managed to catch the last bus onwards. This bus journey was a good introduction to the general eventful and chaotic bus journeys that you seem to get across Indonesia. We nearly crashed about 6 times as cars seem to overtake cars that are already overtaking trucks. Our bus did the same. Horrifically we also saw one dead body in the road. A policeman was standing over him trying to disperse the crowds. The victim had two sheets of newspaper laid over him in a poor attempt to cover the man. Welcome to culture shock Indonesia.
We eventually arrived at our destination - Danau Toba (Lake Toba). To the average person, Toba is simply one giant lake. Beautiful but still a big lake. To a volcanologist, it is so much more than that. Let me give you a quick brief:
Toba is a super volcano (not very technical but thats what they are called). This isn't just a volcano - this is a huge volcano. Like that of Yellowstone in the USA, Toba covers a huge mass of land. When it erupted around 75,000 years ago it produced 2,800 cubic kilometers of material (St Helens produced 1 cubic kilometer and the last Yellowstone eruption produced 2,500 cubic kilometers), making it the largest eruption in the last 2 million years (largest in the Quaternary Period).
75,000 years ago the volcano literally blew its top off. The rim of the volcano then collapsed in on itself creating a collapse caldera, a large depression, that then filled with water to produce the extensive lake that stands today.
The eruption triggered pyroclastic flows which sped across the surrounding landscape, covering an area of 20,000 square kilometers, and ash fall-out drifted even further, found to cover a region of 4 million square kilometers (about half the size of continental USA) and has since turned up in Central Asia and the Middle East. Worryingly, the area is still seismically active.
The lake is South East Asia's largest (and is one of the deepest in the world at 450m) and at lt's centre is Pulau Samosir island. Myself and my new found crew took a boat to the island - which is the most popular place to stay. As we took the boat across, Megan lifts up her Lonely Planet book and pointing to the map asks me where the volcano is. I move my finger around the whole lake, explaining to her that the whole thing (everything inside the boundaries of the lake) is the volcano. I continue - "....the island in the middle, that we are heading to, is approximately the size of Singapore!!! So the lake and thus the volcano is far larger than the country which tips southern Malaysia. You can imagine who big the eruption must have been". She looks out over the lake a little confused - "actually...." she says "...I can't imagine that". Some things are just too big to comprehend, like the size of the Universe, the fact that there are actually more stars in the sky than grains of sand on the Earth or the fact that an eruption is big enough to swallow the country of Singapore with ease. The volcano is 1707 square kilometers - thats big!!!
Actually I have to tell you about this young Polish girl. Megan is not like any traveller I have met before. She doesn't stay in any place for any length of time. As soon as she has arrived somewhere she is already leaving. She had come all this way to Toba - thats a boat, two buses and then another boat, to only spend 2 hours on the island before she was heading off to Java!!! She would then be in Bali a few days later. She had already covered 6 countries in record time. I can't imagine that she could have seen very much except the inside of a bus. But each to their own I suppose.
My new team minus Megan didn't hang around. We dumped our bags and trekked to the top ridge, the highest point on the island. It's a steep and tiring climb but at the top are great panoramic views of the lake. We stayed one night at the top (Jenny's Guesthouse) - perhaps the most authentic place I have stayed yet. It's basically a small farm. When she offered us coffee - she went off to ground the beans which she had grown. I'm no coffee expert but it was the best I have ever had. For dinner - she went off to pick fresh potatoes and home-grown rice. Food is supposed to be excellent across Indonesia especially for produce such as coffee because the whole country is made of volcanic islands and volcanic soils are rich in minerals - it's what keeps people on the slopes of even the most dangerous active volcanoes around the world.
I had also brought my football to the top of the ridge. I had bought it in Thailand and had now been carrying it for the last 3 months mainly to play with other travellers and of course the local kids. Suddenly from out of no-where, kids came flocking to play. Then dads, brothers, nephews, sons and uncles were all joining in with myself and the two Americans. Before long we had a chaotic 5-a-side game going. We were having a kick about in the middle of one of the world's largest and most destructive volcanoes - though, I can't think of a better place to play.
Actually, despite it's fiery past, travellers flock to Toba for peace and quiet. It's stunning scenery and laid back atmosphere is pure tranquility.
Toba is a stratovolcano, created as the result of subduction of the Indian Ocean Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate. This produces a series of volcanoes travelling the western side of Sumatra, from Toba in the north, all the way down south to the islands southern tip. I just happened to be going south - thats lucky........but before I would get to my next destination I would have the bus journeys to top all bus journeys - this is it, the one i'll never forget...........
Saturday 31 May 2008
Danau Toba (Sumatra - Indonesia)
Friday 30 May 2008
Penang
A boat trip back to the mainland and then an overnight bus gets you from the east coast of Malaysia to the west coast. I had actually gone full circle around Peninsular Malaysia when I landed on the island of Penang. Just north was Langkawi where I had started my Malaysian adventure. Penang was always my intended last destination in this country as it has a direct boat across to Medan in Sumatra (Indonesia) where I was heading next. But while I was here - I thought I would check the place out.
Penang is the oldest British settlement in Malaysia. While the island does have some fancy beaches, the island's main attraction for most travelers is the city of Georgetown for it's history, culture and food. Georgetown, like many cities in Malaysia has it's China Town and Little India with their usual chaotic streets. There are also some interesting historic colonial buildings such as Fort Cornwallis and the City Hall. There are a variety of temples and other religious buildings and there is also the impressive Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, built in the 1800's with 38 rooms and a mix of eastern and western influences.
One great thing about Penang is its food. It is known for having the best cuisine in Malaysia and with so many making a statement like that - they can't all be wrong - and their not. There is so much to choose from you end up eating between meals - not because your hungry but just because you want to try everything!!! The street food is by far the most authentic and the most tasty - as it is everywhere in Asia. Stay on the streets and eat as the locals eat - and you can't go wrong.
After my few days in Penang I headed for the ferry. Malaysia had been a real adventure, with so many completely different places all located next to each other it's hard not to have an amazing time in this country. My boat was ready to depart. I had spent enough time messing about in Asia - sightseeing and lazing on beaches. It was time to get down to the real business - and my next destination would provide everything I would need. When you want to be a volcanologist then you need to go on the hunt for some volcanoes. The hunt was over......welcome to the land of fire.......calling me from across the waters was - Indonesia.
Perhentian Islands
The Perhentian islands, off the east coast of Malaysia, are the countries showpiece beach destinations. There are two islands, Perhentian Kecil (small island, which is where most travelers stay, as I did) and Perhentian Besar (big island). It takes a day from the Cameron Highlands (which is located in central Malaysia) up north and across to the east coast. You then have to take a speed boat to the island of your choice. Every boat that I had previously been on in Asia (there were many), had been pretty slow, so even when they claimed this boat was speedy I wasn't holding out hope of getting there any faster than it would take a turtle. Oh was I wrong. This wasn't a boat - it was a converted space rocket. We didn't sail over waves - we were jumping them. In fact we spent most of the time off the water than actually on it - and so yes, we got there quickly.
The islands are stunning - easily a match for those in southern Thailand. Unfortunately it was difficult for me to stay there too long simply because it is so expensive, which is a shame. I did however have time for an all day snorkeling trip - as the islands are famous for having some of the clearest waters and most spectacular coral in Asia. Well I can tell you now - come to the Perhentian islands just to snorkel. It was incredible. Far better than anything I had seen in Thailand's waters. The coral was colourful, the fish were abundant and the species - varied. I took the trip with Elmar and our pilot - Youseff. We ventured to 5 locations, one was called "shark point" where guess what - you see sharks. For the second time in two months I had now been swimming with sharks and this time it was even better. They were the same species as in Shark Bay in Koh Tao, - Black Tipped Reef Sharks and they are harmless. They were far bigger however here than in Thailand - about 2 - 2.5m in length.
Another snorkeling location was called - "turtle point". It took a while but finally we found them. How we missed them in the first place was beyond me. We are not talking about small turtles here - these were about the same size as me (maybe bigger)!!! It was incredible.
Most of the other fish - I had no idea what they were. There was one species I did recognize however - amongst the coral was Nemo, more technically known as Clown Fish.
However, within the beautiful watery world beneath me was a menacing creature, a truly evil thing that any snorkeler dreads to have around them - I speak of course of - Sea Lice. They are, as the name suggests - like lice in the sea. They give you an itching feeling all over - there are so many of them. Some swimming areas have the problem worse than others and it is very annoying. Nevertheless, the whole experience was fantastic - definately worth taking a bite or two.
The evenings were chilled out beach bar vibes, like that on Koh Chang, Koh Tao and ko Lipe. It was nice to get back to a beach for a while. Hung about with Peter - who had joined me from the Cameron Highlands, Elmar and two English girls we had met (Cherry and Jesse), also from the Highlands.
At the end of my Perhentian experience, I said goodbye to Peter for the very last time. He was heading to Singapore and then home and I was off to far away places. It was weird - we had traveled together - on and off - since Vietnam when we unexpectedly got put in the same room. We had been through a lot, from the Temples at Angkor (Cambodia) to the Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan (Thailand) to the jungle trekking in Taman Negara (Malaysia). Now it was the end. Like all the other goodbye's I have made - it was hard - but thats how it is and I had to move onwards.......so thats what I did.
Cameron Highlands
I left Taman Negara and also left Peter there - it wasn't really a goodbye because he was joining me a day later. On the way to my next destination, at a crappy little service station eating hole that all the buses stop at, I bumped into Isabelle - who was heading to the jungle. Said a quick hello - and then a final goodbye to her, as I knew our plans would not see our paths cross again!!! I also met up with a Dutch guy, Elmar, who I had originally met in my guest-house in KL and then in Taman Negara. He was also heading the same way - almost everyone does the same route and our route..... was to the Cameron Highlands.
The Cameron Highlands is an extensive hill station. The first thing you notice when you arrive - is the weather. As it's name suggests, being up at 1300-1800m above sea level, the weather is cool and damp, and at night - even becomes cold. At home in England, your pretty much cold 90% of the year. For our few weeks holiday, us Brits generally head to warmer climates just to feel the sun on our face. I have been hot, everyday, for the last 3 and a bit months (thats around 100 days). This was my holiday!!! Wrapped up in a jumper, feeling the cold, not sweating, no mosquitoes... pure heaven!!! Like a gift from god, altitude is one glorious thing.
The scenery here is stunning and actually has a very English countryside feel to it. The weather conditions are ideal for growing tea and plantations are scattered across the region. They have also taken some English traditions on here too - with the many strawberry farms in the area, scones with cream and jam have become popular with your steaming cuppa!!!
I took a trip to one of the tea plantations to see it's process in action. I also ventured to the highest peak in the area, Gunung Brinchang (6666ft) for panoramic views and trekked through a mossy forest (very different to the rain-forests of Taman Negara).
At the guest-house I was staying in, a fire was set up every night, and cold travelers would huddle around and talk about, well, their travels generally. Marshmellows even came out for real bonfire atmosphere.
The food around the town of Tanah Rata (the main town in the Highlands) was still very Malaysian. I actually had one of the greatest dishes here..... later finding out you could get it almost anywhere in Malaysia. It's an Indian cuisine consisting of one very large nan bread (the size of your plate), with a Tandori chicken in the middle and then 4 or 5 sauce for you to dip into - really good!!!
I actually didn't want to leave, for the views and the relaxed atmosphere and of course for the cold. I will never complain about the weather in England. Having seasons is a great thing. Seasonal variations has seemed to of escaped Asia apart from being the rainy or non rainy season. Temperatures are always warm and it's only when you come to a place like the Cameron Highlands and feel the cold that you realise how lucky you are back in England - honest!!!
Malaysia is a diverse country; it's people, it's food and it's scenery differ from place to place and even within the same region. It has everything from big cities, dense jungle, English feel countryside and as I would soon find out......stunning beaches.
Tuesday 27 May 2008
Taman Negara
It's a bus to Tembeling Jetty in central Malaysia and then a three hour slow-boat ride to a small town on the Tembeling River called Kuala Tahan which is where you base yourself. On the other side of the river (a 30 second boat ride will take you there and back) is the entrance to the National Park of Taman Negara.
Taman Negara is awesome. It claims fame to being the oldest rainforest in the world (130 million years). It sprawls some 4343 Sq Km and it is a wonderland of jungle wildlife and hardcore trekking. Forget those walks in northern Thailand - this is the real deal!!!
I covered a lot of ground on the few days that I spent here. On the first day, Peter and I went out on some small walks - not venturing too far - just to check some of the nearby trails out. We saw a variety of wildlife including a dying boar. We made it to one of the hides - an observation post where you sit out waiting for wildlife to appear on the grassy clearings and salt licks in front of you. You need a lot of patience here. It is possible to see elephants, black panthers and tigers out here - but generally they are rare and further in the depths of the jungle. There was a sighting of a tiger 21 days before we arrived though so we held out hope. We saw one large lizard.
That night we did a guided night trek. Most of the creatures in the jungle are nocturnal and so as you can imagine - we saw a lot of wildlife. Most were creepy crawlies including - stick insects, grasshoppers, frogs, crickets (I remember eating those in Bangkok) and giant red ants. We went back to the hide and saw wild deer and on the way back spotted a huge variety of large spiders - most of which were poisonous and all of which seemed to give you a week fever before a horrible death if you are bitten by them. We also saw a baby python - it was poisonous enough to kill small animals but when they are bigger they can easily take on a buffalo. I felt quite bad seeing the python - knowing it was an endangered species, yet munching on one in Cambodia. If I had been here first I probably wouldn't have ordered it from the menu!!!! The night trek was brilliant though - really worth it !!!
The next day we took a guided walk up to some viewpoints (Teresik Hill). Our guide explaining on the way what all the plants and trees are used for. Some plants were used as an insect repellent, or to stop the bleeding from a leech bite (I didn't know this at the time but this would become very useful knowledge), one was used as a natural shampoo, others ingredients in perfume. One plant has a very strong smell (some people pass out when near it) and is used for cures of dysentery and asthma!!! The rest of the plants however are toxic and often used by tribes people for making poisonous darts!!!
We then trekked to the famous Canopy Walkway, the longest of it's kind in the world. Its a wobbly rope walkway - very high up in the trees canopy. It's a lot of fun but I did underestimate how wobbly it is - nearly losing my camera (I wasn't going to lose another camera!!!). We were in a group with a reserved and quiet dutch couple. The lady was walking behind me on the walkway. Suddenly I turn around, holding on by both hands, she swings her legs up in the air - resting them on the top rope and swinging the walkway from side to side while making monkey noises. My jaw would have hit the ground had I not had to struggle to remain on the walkway which was now swinging frantically. I stood in amazement at this crazy dutch woman who must have been in her late 40's. Malaysian voices from all directions suddenly yelling around the tree tops for her to "get the hell down". Peter was laughing at the site, standing next to her husband who was shaking his head and shouting something in dutch to her. I asked Peter what he said later that night....."Act Normal" was the reply. I think she does stuff like that regularly. Actually this event was a bit of a wake up call for me. I had recently got used to the fact that people are pretty unpredictable. It was always animals and other wildlife that your told to look out for as they can be highly dangerous and unpredictable. At university, we learn how nature and it's most powerful forces are extremely erratic and produce the unexpected - an important lesson when you want to study and climb active volcanoes. Yet actually, people could be just as dangerous, pulling out the unexpected at any time. It took such an event to remind me of that - I won't forget it quickly.
In the afternoon I went to see the Orang Asli tribe, originally from Africa, they are the only tribe in Malaysia who never leave the jungle. They catch their food via poisonous darts, make their own fire and live a very simple life. Their marriage rituals are interesting. The father of the potential bride gives the man a task such as - catch and kill 3 monkeys in 24 hours or your not fit enough to marry my daughter. We got to try blowing poisonous darts at a target - I missed every time. They also showed us how they make fire which is amazing to watch and they can do it in just a few minutes. A very interesting experience altogether.
It's an interesting life they live, almost the opposite end of the livelihood scale to a westerner like myself. I thought of them as the same as the small island dwellers who reside on the tiny island of Ko Lipe in Thailand. You wonder sometimes who has the better life. These two communities wake up, are surrounded by stunning scenery everyday and live life in it's simplest form. They don't have to worry about trivial things like paying the mortgage or terrorist attacks on the underground, they don't have distractions of television or video games and they don't panic about when the next paycheck is coming through. Yet perhaps there lives are not better. They have to survive, if the male hunters don't return from the jungle with food - then they go hungry, they never really get to learn about the world or what wonderous things are outside of their jungle habitat. They will never experience some of things I have in the last few months. We have that option, they just simply don't. It's a difficult one - still haven't worked out the answer. Maybe it's somewhere blowing in the wind.
On our final day in Taman Negara, Peter and I got our supplies, took a boat 45 minutes up stream and then trekked the 13km on our own through the jungle. There are yellow markers to keep you from getting lost but they are few and far between and sometimes it is difficult to know which way to go. You don't want to be getting lost in Taman Negara. In 1996 an American girl (Molly) got split from her trekking group and to this day she has never been found!!! We started at Kuala Treggan, heading first to another hide although we saw nothing. Then we headed back. After 30 minutes, my bag split open and everything fell into a muddy ditch. Then while recovering my belongings I realised that small worm like creatures were moving towards me from all directions - they were leeches. They can detect body heat and suddenly start moving towards you, moving like a slinky down the stairs.It doesn't matter if you have repellent on or that your shoes and socks and done up tight - they get in somehow - there is no escape. After a while you just can't be bothered to flick each one off and you just give in to the fact that your gonna get your blood sucked. The bites don't hurt and they just drop off when they have had their feed - now looking like a big fat slug. I got bitten a few times - blood pouring out of every part of my body like a sieve. They inject you with an anti-clotting poison so you bleed for about 30 minutes. The bites don't hurt though so thats one bonus!!!
The trek was such fun. We had to cross a river - wading through up to our waists. We clambered across tree trunks, listening to the sound of the jungle. We had had training in the event of being attacked by an elephant or tiger but were lucky enough not to have to use our survival skills. Some parts were dense jungle, other bits opened out into clearings, birds and plant life and especially bugs of every colour, shape and worryingly of every size. We got lost a few times - but just headed back and found the yellow stickers - finding the right route and continuing. We were up and down slippery slopes, across termite colonies and over natural bridges or walkways. It was real jungle trekking and a lot of fun. After the all day trek, I collapsed on my bed, bleeding from every angle. My jungle adventure was over and I was heading out again to my next destination, where fine tea would be drunk and scones, cream and jam would be eaten - it sounds like England but I wasn't returning home..........
Kuala Lumpur (KL)
After saying goodbye to Isabelle, we headed to Kuala Lumpur. The boat and bus there was pleasurable mainly because it passed some incredible jungle scenery, of which I knew I was heading to later.
When you talk to travellers, they love to give you advise and visa versa. They tell you which places are the best they have ever been (and that you must go there or you will live to regret it for your whole life) and which places are boring and should be missed. I suppose I do it myself too - everyone has there own opinion. The key to it all, is to take all the advise with a pinch of salt. You have to go to the place and experience it for yourself. KL was a perfect example. Everyone I met says it's rubbish. It's good for shopping and thats about it. You can skip through it in a day - don't spend longer than that.....I must have visited another KL because I loved it!!!
KL is unique, because it is a cross between east and west. There are modern skyscrapers dominating the city, fast trains that whizz you around town, it's clean (compared to anywhere I have been so far in Asia) and it has all the other western features that you would expect from somewhere like New York. Yet on the flip-side, you can take a stroll through China town or little India and suddenly your back in Asia, eating off the street stalls. You don't see that in many places of the world and thats what makes it special.
You don't have to do much in KL if you don't want to - just walking the streets and taking in the atmosphere is good enough. On the few days I spent here, I took a lift up the KL Communications Tower (the 4th largest communications tower in the world you know) for great views of the city. Your ears pop as you go up - it's high. I strolled through the central business district (CBD), full of suited high-flyers and buildings tall enough to touch the sky. On the quieter side a walk through the lake gardens was a good way to escape the noise.
We were staying in China town, a bustling place of amazing street food (Chinese of course) and busy workers. Smells and sounds are extraordinary here. Similarly, a walk through Little India also has a bustling vibe, with speakers on every street blaring out loud Indian music. We also trekked to Merdeka Square, a great chill out spot in the city which must be visited, not least for it's great skyline views.
Finally, we walked through the KL City Centre and there you get a view of one incredible landmark. The Petronas Towers formed the world's tallest building up until 2003, now second only to Taipei in Taiwan (although I hear there is another building being built in Dubai which will conquer them all), it does still take claim to being the tallest twin towers in the world - to say the least - it's tall!!! Between the two soaring towers (451.9m) is a connecting sky-bridge (the longest in the world....for sure)!!! You can't go to the top of the towers but you can take a free visit to the sky-bridge on the 41st floor with equally impressive views as the communication's tower. You have to watch a 3D video first about how great the oil company Petronas is, and by the end you do feel that they are, some how. The night views of the towers is when the photo pictures come out and round the back of the towers is a large park area where Malaysian teenagers just come to sit out under the stars and gaze up at the extraordinary site. I know it sounds ridiculous to some, but the towers are so awesome to look at, that for me they actually compete with the first views of Angkor Wat (Cambodia) at sunrise. They are both stunning engineering structures, just one is ancient, the other modern. Inside the towers, apart from the office floors, is a huge shopping complex which is where those disillusioned travellers must have spent all their time.
To continue the saga of Peter and his money. It was now 4 days and he still had no cash. We thought if he couldn't get any in KL then he may as well get a cardboard box and start settling in. Crazily, none of the ATM machines would accept his card and no bank would help him. Eventually he resided to the last option left - Western Union. If your ever in financial trouble when abroad then these are your boys to help you out - future travellers take note. You call home - a family member goes to a WU and gives them a heap of money, then within 10 minutes it's transferred across the world to you. It costs a lot to do it but when your desperate - then thats what you have to do. Anyway, finally it was sorted.
I suppose you have to like big cities but KL is brilliant to me - don't take my word for it - come and see it for yourself and make your own mind up. However, my big city days were over for a while now, I was moving on - and going back to nature........
Pulau Langkawi (Malaysia)
Getting from Thailand to Malaysia by boat was easy and the immigration was by far the quickest yet. When you arrive on the island of Langkawi, you soon realise how big it is. It's more like a small country than an island and you definately need some form of transport to get around. Perhaps it's size shocked me more than most because I had just arrived from the tiny island of Ko Lipe!!!
Langkawi wouldn't be the highlight of my Malaysian voyage but it was a good introduction to the new cultural lifestyle here, as Malaysia is predominantly Muslim. No pork on the menu's, you have to dress a little more conservatively and alcohol is either hard to come by or expensive. Still, i'm sure I can cope.
Arriving in Malaysia, you also realise what food delights await you. Because the country is a complete mish mash of origins, from Chinese, Indian and Indonesian (as well as others), the choice of cuisine is excellent.
The whole island of Langkawi is actually a duty free zone. It has a westernized feel to it and is packed with family tourists who have ventured here for their few weeks holiday. My only highlight on the island was a visit to underwater world which had a variety of impressive sea life and there are some good looking beaches around too. I was currently still travelling with Isabelle and Peter but had planned on going seperate ways after Langkawi. However due to two inter-related problems that my Dutch friend had, he was tied to my side for some time longer.
As we enter the country, he gets a call that his credit card had been cloned in Thailand. Within a few days it was being used in Wall Mart in the USA and 2000 Euros were already missing. Then he finds out that through customs, his debit card strip had been wiped when he was being scanned. He literally had no money. To make matters worse, it was Friday evening and the banks wouldn't open now until Monday!!! He had about 10 pounds to his name, and his bank in the Netherlands said there was nothing they could do except apologise. If I had not been with him - I seriously don't know what he would have done except perhaps spend a few nights on the street. I hope that such unfortunate events are not part of my future.
I had myself, only planned on staying a couple of days on Langkawi but due to a Malaysian holiday, there was no transport and I was literally stuck on the island for an extra day. Actually, only very recently I had changed some of my plans altogether. Originally, I was to spend three weeks in Malaysia, then head to Sumatra (Indonesia) before making my way to Singapore before the end of the Asian part of my journey. However, while flicking through the Bible, known to most travellers as the Lonely Planet, I soon realised that I could fit in the island of Java (Indonesia) too and that meant one thing.....more Volcanoes. The globe really is one big playground, if you have the means and the will, then you can change all your plans from one day to the next. You pick where you want to go and just have fun!!! I was now cutting Malaysia short by a week and that meant a change in route around the country. Instead of doing this world famous city last, I would now be heading there next......
Wednesday 7 May 2008
Ko Lipe
Within the ko Tarutao National Park , located in the furthest reaches of South-West Thailand are five accessible islands. Only two have park accommodation - Ko Tarutao and Ko Lipe. Beacuse it is the wrong time of year (out of season), you can't get a boat direct from Koh Lanta. Instaed you have to head to the mainland, then get a bus down the coast and hop on another boat to your destination. A full days travelling though was definately worth it once you see Ko Lipe.
If you want a real beach island, one you can literally walk round and explore all the beaches it has to offer in 25 minutes, with perfect white sand, clear turquise waters and only a small community of local residents, then this is the place. It was the most stunning island by a long way and I was glad it would be my last memory of Thailand. Of course it's seclusion comes with a price - and that price is well - everything. The most expensive place I had been so far but for the views and the beaches - it was definately worth every baht.
There's not a lot to do except nothing and that is generally what everyone does. we met three cool Swedish ladies here, which we generally spent our time playing card drinking games on many of the wonderful beach bars.
It was my last location in the wonderful Thailand, so.... I ate my last banana and chocolate pancake, my last pad thai and my Chang beer (ummmm). Amazingly I had my first Thai massage here. I had already had a swedish massage on Koh Phangan, much needed after the full moon chaos. But I had never had a Thai massage, which I can brifely describe to you as an hour of pure pain. They bend you in every position imaginable, clicking bones and twisting muscles that you didn't even know you had. Before the process begins they rub what i can only imagine was some super strength version of "deep heat" into my back - my body feeling like it was literally on fire. Suprisingly, you come out feeling good - like somehow, it works and you forget all the pain for the after results.
My time back in Thailand had been relaxing, memorable (well most of it) and just how I remember Thailand to be from the first time I was here - an incredible country with character, culture, diversity and the best mango shakes in the world!!! I'm sad to see it go - but my travels don't end here - so off I went......
Koh Lanta
The boat straight over from Phi Phi to koh Lanta was easy and for once, quick. The island is far bigger than it's nearby neighbour but has far less foreigners and a Koh Chang feel to it. Chilled out beach bars and secluded beaches dominate here.
My little beach shack that I stayed in for three nights was also similar to that at Koh Chang, yet it actually had a fully protective mosqito net. The questhouse also had a pool - but when you have a clear blue sea at your doorstep, thats all I need.
Peter and I hired a motorbike for two days, exploring the island, which is stunning. The roads generally lead no-where and quite worryingly - especially those signed "tsunami evacuation route" - they take their time in Asia. At the very southern tip of the island is Koh Lanta National Park, where we photographed a lot of monkey's and some giant lizards. We also began to climb the jungle trail but unfortunately had to turn back when Peter got bitten by a gigantic termite. Those things can bite - blood everywhere. Ok, so its a large ant - but it looked painful.
After a few relaxing days, I booked my onward ticket to my final location in Thailand.....Koh Lipe.
Tuesday 6 May 2008
Koh Phi Phi
Siting within a national park, Koh Phi Phi is divided into two islands. Koh Phi Phi Don, the larger of the two, is inhabited and thus where you have to stay if you come out to Phi Phi. The main area is essentially two bays, facing out to eachother, with a small strip of land settled between and filled with a maze of narrow footpaths and small shops. Due to it's limestone cliffs, clear blue waters and white sands, popularity has recently turned the place into a bit of a party island. Among all nationalities, Phi Phi has a large influx of the Swedish, and it's only the sun and the sand and the tropical island beach island feel, that keep you from thinking that your boat may have actually dropped you off the Scandinavian coast. It is however a beautiful island and made more-so by the long but worth while climb up to viewpoints 1, 2 and then tiring to the 3rd and top spot.
Phi Phi Don is also famous for it's recent devastation by the boxing day, 2004 tsunami which wrecked havoc here and is still visible, especially on the faces of the locals who are willing to talk to you about it. There is now an evacuation route set up on the island.
The other island, Koh Phi Phi Ley is not inhabited and you can only stay there for the day before having to head back to Don at sunset. I went out as a day trip, which included snorkelling in nearby waters and then kayaking to Ley. The island is kept exclusive, rubbish free and people free by night. The main beach along Maya Bay is stunning. It was made famous for the filming of "The Beach". Unfortunately you have to share it with every other tourist desperate to see where Di Caprio played with sharks before eventually going mad in the film. Maya beach is a must see though.
Again, the rest of my days were spent lazily. I have come to realsie i need to get off these islands before I never leave!!!
The only other thing of note to tell you about Phi Phi, is my friend Peter got a bamboo tatoo, with the words "Love Of My Life" across his stomach, after his favourite song by QUEEN. I'm seriously starting to worry about him. I have now decided to get a tatoo with the words "Would The Real Slim Shady Please Stand Up" plastered across my bottom, in similar fashion. Don't worry mum, I would have to be very drunk to do that......"would someone get me another Beer Lao"!!!
Off to Koh Lanta....
Krabi (Thailand)
So after my day in Burma and 24 hours of non-stop travelling, I eventually make it to Krabi. Krabi town is not a beach destination itself, but more of a mainland jumping-off point for nearby islands and some close proximity beaches. I skipped the featureless town and headed straight for Ao Nang Beach. All the beaches off Krabi are recognisable for their large karst formations sprouting from clear turquise waters and crescent-shaped coves - beautiful!!!
I was re-united here with Siobhan, Isabelle and Peter. I didn't actually stay at Krabi for long - we were soon moving on to the world- famous island of Koh Phi Phi. However, to escape more beach laziness, I did manage to fit in a day of rock climbing. Clambering up huge, twisted rock units is famous on Krabi's Rai Leh Beach, so thats where I went to test my skills.
There was no training. We were geared up and sent off to the cliff face with our guide, Nu. He was completely insane, yet his humour somehow made it bearable to know that I had to trust him with my life, as I dangled from countless meters above the ground on a thin peice of rope that he was holding at the other end. In fact, it was a lot of fun although very tiring and before swinging back down to safe ground, there were great views from the top. We started off at level 3 and progressed to harder climbs, finishing on 5B. I think thats medium difficulty for those unfamiliar with climbing rocks.
After a couple of days, we left Krabi by boat to Phi Phi and the famous "Beach".
Sunday 4 May 2008
One Day In Burma (Myanmar)
My plan was to head from the Gulf (east) side of southern Thailand to the west or Andaman side. However, before-hand I would need to leave the country and re-enter. In Thailand you are allowed to stay for 30 days but then you have to do a "border-run" to get a new 30 days or end up being fined a lot of money. The only border close by was - Myanmar, the modern name for Burma. It took one overnight boat to the mainland, then a short bus ride to the Thai border (Ranong) - easy. Getting into Burma was more problematic though. On the way I had made good friends with Elina from Sweden, renamed "my border run partner".
To get from Thailand to Burma you have to take a boat across a huge inlet. It takes an hour to get there. The scenery in Burma is stunning, yet the small town that they drop you off at, certainly isn't. When you arrive there is a huge sign, which reads "Please help us to eradicate narcotic drugs". As you step off the boat, the guide who directs you to the immigration office to get stamped suddenly pulls out a box of 200 cigarettes, a crate of whiskey and a large bag of opium and offers them to anyone willing to buy. You later find out that it is one big scam. On the boat trip back to Thailand, the boat suddenly pulls into a small island and the Burmese Army jump on and start searching everyones bags and persons. The military and the drug dealers are clearly working together to catch any travellers stupid enough to purchase, making them a lot poorer leaving the country than when they entered.
Because Burma has severe problems at the moment, your visa is valid for 2 weeks only. However, you are not permitted to travel anywhere else in the country, your stuck there on the border for the duration. You are also not allowed to take any photo's of the town (although I got a few), which appeared to be filled with shanty buildings and kids playing in large rubbish tips. The whole place had a slightly corrupt feel about it and I was glad to be moving on.
However it is possible to fly into Burma and travel around the country, and one day I would like to do it - because it does look a fascinating place. Not this time though, and my border run partner and I were out of there, she going to Bangkok and I to Krabi.....
The Full Moon Party
Because the full moon party is such a popular event, almost everyone that I had met along my travels was going to be here, turning out to be one big reunion. I had already met Heather from Vietnam, Ruth and Bety from my time in Laos, and later Peter, Siobhan and Isabelle from Cambodia. Pheobe and Daniella were also about. On the night itself I also bumped into an old work friend from home, Amy, who I thought had returned from travelling but apparently not!!!
The full moon party is free, it's one big beach party and everyone from every nationality is there. It happens once a month (every full moon) and ours on April 20th had approximately 10,000 people there. Dozens of bars line the beach, each playing a different genre of music, which (because they are all open onto the beach) becomes a defening musical mess as sounds propagate in all directions. The choice of drinks is buckets of....stuff. They are sold everywhere and whatever they contain, you don't need many to get your head spinning and your vision blurred. The most popular is Sangsom (whiskey), coke and redbull.
The party goes on all night and into the morning. there are fire shows, flashing lights and fireworks everywhere. At 10am the beach startens to quieten down and the true ravers head off to the after-party further inland to continue dancing. I was passed out by 8am. It was a good, no, great night and had to be done for the experience.
Before I left Koh Phangan, a few days later, I took my last stroll up to the party beach. There were TV screens showing the DVD of the Full Moon night. Just as I was about to leave I turn to the screen and see my face on it - karma - I bought the DVD. Should be posted home soon.
Koh Phangan
A one and a half boat ride is all it takes to reach koh Phangan from Koh Tao. When you arrive on the island you have to ask yourself one question: If you want to party, rave like a lunatic and not go to sleep for the entire time your staying here then you head to the south-east to a town called Haad Rin. If you want peace and quiet then you head anywhere but Haad Rin. Off we went to Haad Rin.
We had arrived 5 days before April 20th, the date when the moon is at it's most full and the largest beach party in SE Asia takes off - for one night of madness. Accommodation even so early in advance was hard to find and we walked for two hours before reaching a suitable guesthouse. We were at least on the quieter side of Haad Rin (Nai or Sunset beach). It is Haadrin Nok (Sunrise beach) which is where the Full Moon Party happens, and would happen in just a few days.
Leading up to that night, We had spent our days exploring the island. Most of the beaches away from Haad Rin are beautiful, including Haad Yao, Bottle Beach and Koh Ma. To see many of them you have to arrive by boat and a days boat trip around the island was definately worth it, exploring both the coast and some of the island's waterfall filled interior. The night's events generally involved going out and partying. The night's leading up to full moon are aptly called the "Full Moon Warm Up Nights" and many believe that they are better than the event itself.
I did however, get to escape one night and instead went to a Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) Event. It is perhaps one of the most brutal things I have ever seen. Anything goes, and the main aim is to knock your opponent out. I saw 6 fights, starting with kids and progressing up in age. There were three K.O's, two cut faces and a lot of blood. The first fight was between two twelve year olds. After a short time, the blue corner was completely knocked out and had to be helped out the ring. Barely able to walk - his mother gave him a big slap around the head for losing - it's serious business here. Fun night though.
Evetually April 20th arrived.
Koh Tao
After Koh Chang, I had to head back to Bangkok for one night before moving on to Southern Thailand. If all went according to the rough plan that resided somewhere in my brain, this would be my fourth and last time in the countries capital. Actually, despite the crowds and the smog and the chaos, I had grown to really love Bangkok. Of course you can't stay here for more than a few days without going temporarily insane, but when you leave you really miss the buzz, the nightlife atmosphere and the amazing street food (Pad Thai - ummm). The next day I left for Koh Tao, an island on Thailand's Gulf Coast (South East).
A bus to Chumphon, a four hour wait at the pier and a 2 hour boat was all that it took to reach the small Island of Koh Tao, well that and a crazy 31 year old (Gina), who born in Pakistan but now living in London and unknown to me at the time, would be part of my life for the next two weeks. Gina, I and a girl from Isreal, Noa all headed to Sairee Beach for an eventful few days.....
On our first day on Turtle Island (Koh Tao) we headed to Shark Bay. It gets it's name for one reason and one reason only - it's full of sharks. Unknown to me which sharks they were, how big, or if they were dangerous, I grabbed my snorkel and naively went swimming. You have to get past some serious amounts of coral, with poisonous sea urchins and fish of every colour, but then the water gets colder, darker and just a bit deeper. Within seconds your snorkelling with sharks. They were about 1 - 1.5m in length, light grey and mean looking. It was amazing - perhaps one of the most incredible things I have done so far. I was swimming with sharks!!! On two occassions one of the sharks came hurtling towards me, I just froze, but each time they darted away when they realised what I was. Together there were about 5 sharks swimming around me. I believe they were harmless reef sharks but I still don't actually know for sure. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures due to my camera being unable to operate unless completely dry and in a normal breathing atmosphere.
On our second day, it was another watery afair. It was the Thai New Year known as Songkram. For reasons that the Thai's don't even know - it is basically one giant water fight. You step outside and at every corner someone is waiting to pour a bucket of cold water over you and smudge some sort of perfumed clay in your face. Water pistols, buckets or simply bottles are the weapons of choice, and in getting wet - you have no choice. You can't stay dry, if you wanted to or not and no-one is excused, from little kids to the elderly. In Bangkok it lasts for 3 days and in Chiang Mai for 5. Here it was just the one, but a fun one, with everyone heading for a huge watery beach party where most people ended up in the sea. For similar reasons to the day before - there are unfortunately no photos of this great event.
Within the watery fiasco, I was however reunited with an old friend, Heather, who I had met in Vietnam, in the beautifully old town of Hoi An. Noa though, was leaving for different shores and thus departed, and Gina and I headed on out too, to a much larger island just to the south - known as Koh Phangan. We needed to get there quickly because there was an even bigger party coming up - although thankfully as we understood it, it would be a lot drier there.
Koh Chang
After a long bus journey and very short boat trip I arrive on Koh Chang (Elephant Island, Koh = island, Chang = Elephant). It's one of the biggest islands in Thailand but is also one of the most unique. For while it has all the usual attractions that an island should have - clear blue sea, some sun, and sprinkles of sand here and there, it also has a dense jungle which parks right up to the shoreline. Most other islands either lack this feature naturally or have been stripped bare to make way for tourist resorrts. It gives the place a very genuine feel. However, the jungle atmosphere also means one thing - mosquitos - and there are thousands of them here. My wooden beach shack is equiped with simply a bed, a fan (which is about as useless as a condom machine in the Vatican) and a mosquito net (with more holes in it than the film - "Demolition Man"!!!). Least to say - I got eaten alive most nights.
The so called "vibe" on Koh Chang is very relaxed. There are no major parties, just bars on the beach filled with hammocks of lazy travellers. As such, the few days that I spent here were filled with doing very little. Beach football with the locals and anyone else who wanted to join in was of course a big part of my day. I did however rent a motorbike with two other guys I had met on the way here, David and Marco. We soon found out however, that the few roads which intersect the islands jungle interior generally lead no-where.
The story goes - after some cemented roads and some great scenic beach views, the roads begin to appear punctured by giant potholes. Continue further and the road edges dissappear, becoming narrower and more difficult to ride. Eventually the road disappears altogether but continues on the other-side of a large river which had now dried up. Determined, the others somehow got their bikes across the river bed - weaving between huge boulders. The road on the other side then ends up as a small jungle path not made for bikes at all and we eventually give up. Note - if going to Koh Chang - just stay on the beach!!!
After a few relaxing days - I was off again!!!
