Visa hunter

I have quite literally done more stuff in the past two weeks than i think i have done in any two weeks of my life. The last two days i have found myself a nice quiet hotel and just slept haha and watch suits but apart from that just sleep. From tibilisi i had myself a nice little plan which didnt really work out, surprise surprise. But at least the most important thing has been completed and the main purpose of my trip can go ahead. I have my Iran visa!!!! :)

Anyway more on that one later. I have been working on a pretty loose schedule up to now but the d'day of being back in Turkey on 21st May was rapidly approaching so i had to shorten my time in georgia and have some serious journeys if i wanted to check out armenia and see the breakaway republics of Karabakh and Abkhazia. My entry to armenia was one of the more memorable introductions to a country i have had, having two of the cars i was riding in break down and then arriving in the most horrendous storm i have seen in a long time. Soaked bedgraggled and slightly pissed off i arrived at the hostel having had no replies to any of the 20 couch surfing requests i had sent a week prior. Hey ho sometimes you get no luck :( As it turns out as often it does this worked in my favour as i stayed at the best hostel i have ever stayed at, truly amazing service where the only answer was yes!! Anyway i had five days in armenia so one day in the capital Yerevan was enough as its pretty small and the only real things of interest for someone with churchphobia was the genocide museum. I will fully admit to knowing nothing about the genocide aside from the fact that turkey denies it and most countries side with turkey in denying it. All you can say is that prior to 1915 there were 2 million armenians and after 1917 there were 500,000 scattered around the globe. I had been under the assumption that the turks had invaded and killed them but infact the armenians were scattered throughout the ottoman empire and it was in multiple towns and cities a few government leaders compelled to exterminate them. Despite the obvious hatred armenians have for turks in general i will say that one of the most compelling quotes was that this was 'the work of a few not the work of the majority' so i will point this out now.

The museum was an eye opener and the fact that neither the uk or the usa accepts this happened is a shame and a stain. Purely through our alliance with turkey over our requirements for middle east conflicts we skip over this little known event in history. After this it was back to the fashion parade that is Yerevan. I have never seen a city where people take so much care of their appearance, everyone looked like a model and armenia without a shadow of a doubt has the most beautiful women in the world. After Yerevan i took a couple of day trips to the big lake Sevan which looks kinda similar to lake Tahoe and also to some monasterys outside of the city. It was on this excursion with a couple of poles and sammy the irish guy we devised a plan with our taxi driver to take a two day trip to the south of the country ticking off some sites along the way like the worlds longest cable car (bet you didnt know that was in armenia) before entering Karabakh for an evening and a morning. Karabakh claims independence but since 1992 and the fall of the soviet union both armenia and azerbaijan have been fighting over it. Infact, now it is kind of occupied by armenia and in azerbaijan it is a crime to visit the area. So that is why i am now officially banned from ever going to azerbaijan with my current passport. Another first for me!! Anyway Karabakh was kind of interesting, like the genocide i didnt know too much about the war and it was interesting to interact with some of the locals even if some were decidedly unfriendly. Whilst drunk at 2am we nearly got arrested by the secret police but fortunately Jakub the polish guy i was with kissed ass so much my inflammatory comments didnt backfire. But seriously if you want to sit and ask me questions for 40 minutes pretending to want to be my friend and not answer any of mine what do you expect me to say!!

It was cool to see some of the cities etc and experience it but what i really came for was the deserted city of Agdam. It is kind of similar i guess to chernobyl where 20 years ago people left in a hurry and never returned. I had seen blogs and photos from people who had got inside and there is the classic photo infront of the mosque which was the only building left unscathed in the fighting. This was a real anticlimax as we didnt get anywhere near it as the two people we hired to get us around the army and police checks both crapped themselves and refused to take us. Needing to be back in Yerevan and with a 9 hour trip in a lada that had already broken down on several occasions ahead of us we didnt have time to try again. This sucked massively as we had driven all this way largely for nothing :( oh well you cant win every time.

And from there my epic days of endless transport changes and visa chasing began. I really wanted to visit abkhazia on my way back to turkey and just managed to get across the border at 5pm after huge delays waiting in a barbed wire confine, walking across the border i felt like a refugee with people coming past on any form of transport and with loads and loads of possesions. Being after 5pm this meant the public transport in the form of minibuses had stopped which is where the travellers worst night mare starts. Just to get moving i took a cab who dropped me in the middle of nowhere and then i got endlessly harrassed by locals trying to rip me off. With nightime approaching and 50km still to go i finally hitch hiked my way to Sukhumi the capital where i met my next couchsurfing host. Marina was russian and lived with her husband in a very old and rickety house but what it did have was a great location and a hammock in the garden. I had some plans to see stuff outside sukhumi but in actual fact i ended up chilling in a hammock, going to the beach or buying and eating massive amounts of vegetable from the market :) Sukhumi like karabakh was torn apart by war in 1992-1993 and is still only recognised as independent by 5 countries. Infact entering from georgia there isnt even a border post just some concrete blocks in the road. I never really felt too welcome in abkhazia, excusing my hosts and a couple of others i just got questions about why the UK supports georgia and endlessly harrassed for money. Other travellers i met had various stories from being extorted by police to being dragged off buses and mugged. I didnt have anything like that fortunately but it was quite intimidating in places!!!

But after this little sojourn in eastern europe my main goal was still Iran so i hightailed it back to Trabzon on an epic 15 hour day with 10 transport changes!! And after a morning where i could have cried after some heart stopping NO VISA YOUR ENGLISH answers, the afternoon staff after 200 euros and some epic hassle issued me with an Iranian visa!!! I was so relieved i couldnt quite believe it and kept checking it to make sure there was no mistake lol So now I am chilling for a couple of days before heading to Kurdistan and on to Iran. Im guessing most things will be blocked or the interent will be so slow for the next few weeks so dont expect any photos or blog posts haha

catch you later

Tucker

Chasing Kars

What a cool place i am in, Tbilisi and i think it is possibly the most endearing capital i have been to. I arrived last night after 12 hours squashed in a mini bus and was straight out on the town. I got turned down on all my couch requests which was a pain but its Easter here (i know i was puzzled too) so most Georgians have gone home. Turns out Georgia is orthodox christian so they have a different calendar and this year i get two white Easters. It was snowing in the mountains :) wonder what the odds were on that one.

After dogubayazit i was pretty bored having been couch surfing then left to my own devices. I left after just a day and headed to kars to my next rendezvous with local students. Kars like erzurum doesn't have much for the wandering tourist but it does have great great people. I ended up staying again for four days in which time i visited the castle which was ok, but also hitch hiked out to the ancient city of ani and went to a Turkish wedding but more on that later. In kars i stayed with Hayrettin and his friends Cihan and the best cook in turkey Burcu :) like all students we ended up staying in bed most days till two haha i am getting seriously lazy!! Unlike erzurum these guys were English students so it was much easier to talk to them and make friends here. Along with this came the inevitable questions about grammar lol which i still have no idea about at all.

After one day in Kars three of us decided to hitch hike out to the ancient city of ani which was about 40km out of town. Ahh the pleasure of hitch hiking :) it all started so well we left early and after three very interesting rides, one in what was possibly the oldest car still working in the world and also a kangarooing bumpy off road detour with a learner driver we were there. The city doesn't have too much left but was once a major site on the silk route and as i am following this pretty essential stopping point for me. The area is pretty earthquake prone so must is rubble but there were some cool churches and mosques with a dramatic mountain backdrop and a view over the closed border with Armenia. This border is still closed after the war and so for me to visit is a long detour through Georgia haha this region blows the mind for its relationships between people and countries. The ride back wasn't so great and took 5 hours to cover the 40km which involved sitting at the side of an incredibly empty road for ages and also walking endlessly to the horizon. We did make it back and to a Turkish wedding when we were picked up as it got dark by a fellow guest. I am so glad we made it to the wedding was such a cool experience :D not a drop of booze in sight but everybody dancing with the traditional moves which fortunately was simple so i could join in. To be fair i didn't just join in i put them to shame with some of the moves i was busting out lol

After that it was another heartfelt goodbye and the hottest bus ride ever to batumi in Georgia. Country number 51!! over halfway to my life time goal :) I went to batumi to get my Azerbaijan visa after the consulate in kars said no :( application in and everything no problems but the cost of 100 quid for a week seemed excessive. So the plan changed yet again and i left batumi which is photogenic but has nothing else and headed for the mountains. (plus nobody in batumi smiles ever!!!) Batumi has had so much investment and has many 5 star hotels after the old president put so much money into it, but the new president has withdrawn the support. So there are epic buildings standing empty and being off season the city is dead which is a bit creepy. The mountains though are always a good outlet and i spent a few days exploring traditional villages and attempting and failing the 3 day hike to the highest village in Europe. Even now the snow is deep and i had to catch a ride. I stopped around for the Easter feast which was essentially meat and vodka before taking the bus yesterday to Tbilisi. This city is just completely regenerating itself and there are so many cool new buildings as well as the traditional old ones. Its a pleasure to walk around and just to be here sat in a cafe in the sun is great. Not so much time here which is a shame but got to get back to the sight seeing :) its a cool country but so much of it is occupied by the Russians or has claimed Independence you cant see everything. But we will do our best!! Enjoy the photos there are some cool ones

Tucker

Eastbound and down

For four days i was a student again, and do i miss that life when 11am is too early, washing up doesnt matter and the only plan for the day is jokes and more banter. Yes!!!! The last four days have been so much fun, my decision to persist with couch surfing has resulted in some of the best days i have ever had travelling. Emre and his friends in Erzurum were truly cool guys and showed me the real turkey. I cant thank them enough for that!!

But after I left you last time I believe I was about to do that most quitissential of capadoccian experiences the world famous balloon ride. After about 10 seconds deliberation i decided that i had to do it. And lets just say it was worth it. Despite the literally hundreds of balloons and the chaotic takeoff areas, it is just truly magical once you are up in the air. Drifting amongst the fairy towers and cave houses as the sun comes up is breathtaking. The colours kind of reminded me of the grand canyon in a way, just spectacular in the early dawn light. It really is something that has to be done!! The rest of my time was no less special, missing the fun of two wheels i rented a motorbike for the day to explore some underground cities that were at one time home to over 20,000 people, truly remarkable. Those were pretty cool to explore in the pitch black, climbing through holes in the cealing and dropping down through tiny shafts. Must admit its not for the faint hearted in places especially when you can feel your footholds crumbling away!! That day also saw we stranded in the middle of nowhere as the idiot at the shop promised the bike would do 80km on a tank. Rubbish 50km later in a deserted valley it konks out. FFS!!!! many many stronger words were uttered i can assure you. So 1/2 hour trek to a farm and some pretty impressive sign language later this legend of a turkish guy gave me a lift with a jerry can. Couldnt say thankyou enough. Especially as turkey has the most expensive fuel in the world apparently, and he wouldnt take a cent. You really do meet some great people!!

After that a swift pass back through ankara to collect my uzbek visa and then east to the slightly seedy black sea port of Trabzon and the traditional turkey I had come here to see. Two days in Trabzon was plenty believe me so I moved on to Erzurum. Where the fun began!!

The first day i arrıved was my birthday and maybe you saw on facebook it was my fırst proper attempt at hitch hiking or auto stop as they call it here. 10 hours it took to get from where i was staying near Trabzon to Erzurum. I managed to hitch for about 200km but the other 200 was on the bus :( Nearly everyone i have met here has been doing it and says its so easy, even hitchwiki the website goes on about how easy it is in turkey. To start it was, getting picked up after about 10 minutes in Trabzon but it was just downhill from there lol. I did get to go in a truck for the first time so i guess thats a small upside. I will persist with it but its kind of demoralising, everytime someone drives past its like they are telling you to F off. And when they stop but for a different reason is the worst haha you are all excited then massive let down. You just want to know whether they are not going the same way or they really dont want to help out the overladen, slightly unkempt englishman. Maybe a shave will yield better results??

But i did make Erzurum before nightfall and met up with my new host Emre a biology student at the university there. Emre lives with his mates Kubilay and Adem, but the flat despite the lack of furniture is the centre of goings on and for two nights a load of people from his course came over. First night was vodka time which very quickly led to a night of dancing to turkish music and lessons on how to click my fingers. A life skill which sadly still eludes me lol It is probably the first country i have ever been to where traditional music is the only order of the day. Despite their efforts i cant say that i am a fan however. It is all so sad, emotive and just about hurt and pain. The mood is just reflective to the point of wanting to end it lol, I was told you cant forget the bad stuff and move on. Im not entirely sure thats for everyone. Needless to stay we still had a good time and the banter was fun.

Theres not a great deal to see in Erzurum but Fatih and Emre showed me the mosques and city tower etc before heading through a slightly decrepit neighbourhood and on up to the castle which overlooks the city. The view is amazing with snow covered mountains all around. The city itself is a centre for skiing in the winter but for the rest of the year its stuck on a high plain miles from anywhere at around 2000m. Lets just say it was cold and the weather is pretty abysmal (anyone booking their holidays yet haha i should work for the tourist board) The first question most people asked was why are you here?? Im getting used to that most places i go now. If it wasnt for the uni ım ure it would die a death but the student atmosphere is central to everything and great to experience again. The other nights we tried some traditional turkish delicacies like Çig Kofte which is raw meat, barley and a mixture of blended vegetables rubbed together by hand for three hours!!! Tastes amazing but not great if your starving :) The perfect accompaniment to any meal here Rakı was brought out which just adds to the melancholy atmosphere. Vodka for party, Rakı for reminiscing. We werent drunk the whole time however and I did fınd time to watch aston villa get spanked, get thrown out of emres uni lab class apparently for health and safety lol and experience the highs and lows of the somewhat slightly confusing relationship dynamics between the various classmembers. Seriously ive read novels with easier story lines. Good times though and ones i certainly wont forget that in a hurry!!

Now today i sit 20km from Iran in a place called Dogubayazit which is a mostly kurdish village at the base of Mt. Ararat. The weather was rubbish this afternoon but tomorrow hopefully it will brightnen up to see the palace and the mountain. And Noahs ark if the stories are to be believed!! So i believe that we are all pretty much up to date. From here its onwards to Georgia the land of honey and the home of all surnames ending in dze!! Catch you later guys

Tucker

Turkey and the start of the road east

So here it is guys back by popular demand and several threats my blog is here.

I am now in Capadoccia maybe you have heard of it? but if you haven't you have definitely seen it in some amazing pictures :) I have just spent 7 hours hiking round the fairy pinnacles, valleys, gorges and abandoned villages. It is really really cool and tomorrow I have a balloon ride booked so proper excited now!!!!

Time is flying once again and I have been away for a week and a half wow. My plan is totally up in the air and now seems dependant on visas which i guessed at the start it might end up doing. I flew into Sofia and took the night train to Istanbul which is the final stage of the orient express and something i didn't do last time i was in the area. Lets just say i think the orient express passengers had it easier. First someone committed suicide in front of the train which was really sad and meant we had to wait for the police etc to arrive (not always the quickest in Bulgaria, have a word with your dad Tereza it was by your town). This meant we got to the border at 3am where the border police insisted on taking everything out of my bag which was not really what i wanted and then i was the only nationality that had to buy a visa. All the Germans thought it exceptionally funny. But finally i got to sleep and woke up expecting to see the ancient city of Istanbul on the horizon but the guy in the cabin next to me said we had been stopped for five hours pretty much as soon as i fell asleep because someone had stolen the cables. lol it happens here too. Anyway i wont bore you with the rest of it but i got to Istanbul 9 hours late but i got there. Anyway this is why you go travelling right?

I stayed in a hostel which i haven't done in a long time and to be frank the hostel was nice but so quiet. I did meet a few people to go out with at night (by the way Istanbul has amazing night life) and also to hang around with to see the sights. Had to properly get back into the swing of talking to absolutely everybody and there were some interesting characters. There is so much to see in Istanbul its crazy but i got to the main sights blue mosque, aya sofia etc which were really nice but its the small sights in the backstreets which are the best. The best thing is just pick a direction and walk and stop for coffee tea whatever. Its so big you can easily get away from it all, i highly recommend definitely for a long weekend.

But even before i did this i had a date with the Iranian embassy. Now i have already started the application process months ago and due to the fact there are no relations between our two great countries i wasn't expecting this to go smoothly. And guess what it didn't. I was let into the embassy which was great, they even had my paper work in order. Already too good to be true i thought and then they dropped the bomb! Ever so nicely the guy announced that on the 1st April for two months we have changed our policy, you now have 15 days on issuance of visa to get to Iran rather than 3 months. FFS. I wasn't going to be in Iran for two months and my schedule after one day has been blown out of the water. Its a good job i never book anything. So now i am doing two months travelling around Turkey, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan before flying back to Istanbul from east turkey picking up my visa and flying back. The guy was really apologetic and was like if you had been here 4 days ago it would have been fine so i thanked him, gave the thumbs up and left. (Later i found out the thumbs up is the rudest gesture you can do in Iran so maybe i wont even get any visa haha)

Anyway after that I was in the mood for a drink so after it being suggested at the hostel a few of us went to a random couchsurfing meeting in the evening. Already a member from years back i have decided to make a real effort this time and use it alot. I had a great evening out met some really cool people, learnt a bit of salsa and some other dance moves and got some great contacts :) Actually staying with someone on couchsurfing is something i never really tried before but i have already stayed with Can in Ankara for a couple of nights and it was great to see the city from a locals perspective, and also be able to stay in a home which believe me you miss alot. Although his exceptionally crazy cats meant i didn't get the greatest of sleep especially when it knocked down a load of shelves one night and then thought it would be great to jump from sofa onto my bed on the floor over and over again!! Fun times. Anyway Ankara doesn't have much for tourists being a largely administrative city and i was only there for picking up an Uzbekistan visa (more fun and games) and replacing items that have already broken like my shoes. I loved those shoes as well 40 odd countries before they gave up the ghost so not too bad i guess.

And then from Ankara i have a week to kill before i can pick up my visa so i have come to Capadoccia the land of fairy chimneys and where lord of the rings becomes real. All day i hiked exploring caves, sticking my head in random holes and tunnels and generally just enjoying exploring. There is none of this signage cluttering up the place like in the UK its just like here's a valley go check it out. So that's what i did, although meeting a local who showed me a few hidden treasures helped. Saw a few really amazing cave churches with ancient paintings was so nice. Anyway now i am absolutely shattered and legs are killing so heading for food and sleep (really boring i know) but the balloon ride is for sunrise at 5am so i do have an excuse.

Take care everybody and catch up soon

Tucker

Tribes and Tribulations

Seasons greetings

Its been so long now since I wrote a blog post im going to have to skim through quite a lot. I reckon it was Darjeeling which was over a month ago time is really flying by and soon it will be Christmas. Even out here I heard Slade for the first time yesterday made be a bit nostalgic. Sad to say I think it will be my first Christmas without Fairy Tale of New York gutted.

So I will get down to it I have now been to 4 of the 7 Tribal states and have one more to visit for which i don't need a special permit. I am currently staying with a family in Aizawl in Mizoram. He is the teacher of Ganesh a guy i met on the bus in Assam who invited me to come and visit. Unfortunately his family have literally no space in their house so i couldn't stay there instead he fixed me up with his teacher nearby. Its kind of been a recurring theme in Nagaland, Assam, Meghalaya i have either lived with or been doted on by some family who takes me under their wing. Its really amazing such nice people.

After Darjeeling I had a brief sojourn into Sikkim did a bit of walking in the amazing countryside and had my first experience of Diwali in India although Sikkim has quite a large Buddhist population so it was not nearly as intense as other places. I pretty much blitzed through Sikkim which was a bit of a shame but it was unavoidable at the time as my plan was to make it to Kolkatta for the cricket which has obviously not happened now. From Sikkim it was 26 hours on a bus to Assam then another 12 hours the next day onto the island of Majuli which is the biggest river island in India. The place is a spiritual centre for Hindus as well as being the most laid back and chilled place I think I have visited. I had gone there for a festival but the dates I had been told were wrong so I stayed for four days taking leisurely cycle rides to different Satras and then just lying under the palm trees watching the sunrise and sunset. Awesome stuff. Unfortunately the boat ride out is slightly less relaxing. I had to take the ferry four times in the end as I left and then came back for the correct days of the festival. It involves the single most unstable and overloaded ferry I have ever seen which was a bit of a nightmare. Especially the first one as I sat on the roof and the slightest movement kept edging me towards a dip in the river. Its the first time I have seen the locals look worried!! I have some photos and when I get some faster internet I will upload them.

From Majuli I took another backbreaking twelve hour bus ride to Nagaland. This was the main purpose of me going to the north east as this year was the first year you could visit as a solo traveler and not as part of a tour group. I arrived in Mon which is like the biggest frontier town ever having watched everyone carrying guns, machetes and spears in all the villages we passed through. I had heard stories about the nagas being dangerous and to watch out, but as ever the hospitality shown to the random English guy rocking up with nowhere to stay was second to none. As its winter here it gets dark so early around 4 so I always seem to arrive in the dark which sucks as it makes things so much harder. In Nagaland it was pretty much a permanent black out of electricity as well which didn't help. Anyway i got fixed up with a naga family who looked after me and sent their son out to drive me around the tribal villages on his motor bike. The villages still stay pretty traditional and in some of them the older men had face tattoos which signifies they took part in head hunting raids back in the day. A couple of the villages had some skulls and various traditional artefacts so it was pretty interesting. Every village has a different language so even for my guide it was a bit of a problem communicating. Its a really crazy place, pretty much no one had a job and the son who took me around kept bringing me back to his other house (away from his parents) which was a massive drinking den for the local guys. Nagaland is a dry state due to it being overtly christian but everyone guys, girls everyone drinks like a fish. So rather than getting the tax revenue all the money goes to the smugglers. On the way in the police had searched my bags but they obviously do a lousy job or just get bribed. Having rum thrust in your face at 9am having a few glasses then being driven on twisty roads by a guy who is drunk and also huffing opium was a little bit nerve racking but i got to see everything and I am still in one piece. Not wanting to push my luck any further I had to say my goodbyes and again experience the torture of a packed jeep ride for fourteen hours. My record so far is twenty people in a jeep which was impressive considering there are only 8 seats. I really don't remember anything like this last time i went traveling literally every place I have been going to is 12-14 hours so it takes a day to get over it. Fortunately I have one more 16 hour night bus then the blessed relief of train journeys. Cant wait!!

But even if the travel is bad the destinations are worth it. Hornbill festival is  newish creation intent on preserving the rich heritage of a rapidly changing population. It is also the one time when all the Naga tribes come together and it is 7 days of dancing, singing, eating all dressed up in the traditional clothes. It is by far the most photogenic festival I have seen and the three days I was there flew by just being entranced by everything and making the most of the availability of beef. The nagas eat everything which meant I got to try larvae for the first time. Lovely stuff. The war dances and even the wrestling competition was spectacular. One American guy had a go and got completely hammered into the ground which kind of dissuaded me. The festival takes part in Kohima the capital of Nagaland and the scene of one of the bloodiest battles of WWII. It is as far west as Japan made it in the entire war and kind of marked a turning point like el-Alamein for the Germans. The famous phrase 'when you go home tell them of us, for your tomorrow we gave our today' was written in blood on a rock in the centre of town at Garrison hill and has since been re-engraved by the war cemetery. There is also a museum of the battle which was just incredible especially the photos there was nothing left when the siege had ended. Definitely worth some time of Wikipedia if you don't know much about it.

Kohima doesn't have many hotels and what little they do have gets booked by tour groups months in advance so I just decided to turn up without even trying to book. I had to see the festival so even if I slept in a park it had to be done. Again luckily and completely by chance I stumbled into a restaurant rather than a hotel whilst looking for rooms and one of the guys Robin ran a girls hostel for a college and being Christmas everyone was away so I stayed instead. I can add this to my collection of random accommodations. I also made friends with the people at the restaurant who made me dinner every day and I didn't have to eat rice either. It also turned out Robin knew pretty much everyone their was to know in Kohima so we had all sorts of interesting experiences like hanging out with one of Nagalands biggest bands, getting priority for the Hornbill rock concert which has loads of bands from around India, as well as the last night when we had to leave because he initially thought some of his friends had been taken by insurgents but it later transpired they had robbed a petrol station. Nagaland was strange like that they are completely different to Indians and I would go as far as to say they despise Indians which is why they are fighting for and want independence. Yet because they are a collection of tribes their loyalty always goes back to the villages so the independence movement has collapsed and has now been divided up into different factions that fight each other rather than as a united force. They have so much potential there but nobody wants to invest because of the security situation and numerous other reasons. I loved it and have been made to promise I will go back, so next year hopefully I can get the opportunity as long as the permit situation doesn't change.

And from Nagaland it was onto Shillong which is a dump, then to Nongrhiat an unexpected wonder of a place at the bottom of a secluded valley just a few kms from Cherrapunjee famous for being the official wettest place on earth. I had heard it was nice and worth seeing, lonely planet had said it was worth a day trip and nothing more (a piece of advice lonely planet India especially for the North East is the biggest waste of space ever) but I stayed one night and there were lots of people who had stayed for weeks. Nongrhiat has an infectious atmosphere of complete tranquility and is the site of living root bridges where villagers have used the roots of trees, twisted them together and formed living bridges across these stunning jungle covered gorges. It took two hours to hike down and it was so nice and peaceful such a contrast to the noise and stress of all the towns. There was also a river for swimming and chilling out two minutes from the guesthouse, managed to get in some cliff diving as well. As always happens the one time I book something I want to change my plans but unfortunately I could only do the one night as there were no more buses to Aizawl for a week. Before I had to leave I managed to hike up to a promontory overlooking the fourth highest waterfall in the world and ride in the back of a truck over the Meghalayan moors. Seriously it looks exactly like Scotland except with tribal people, really spectacular stuff.

And now I am in Aizawl catching up with some jobs and eating lots. I finally managed to post a parcel here after spending nearly two days and enlisting a string of helpers in Shillong. No idea why but they wanted the parcel wrapped in cloth, stitched up and sealed in medieval fashion with wax. Not entirely sure if it will make it home as it is a pair of Naga traditional machetes know as Daos but we will see.

Not entirely sure how long I will be here my friend wants it to be a month but I want to head down to Bangladesh by the middle of next week. Who knows.

Anyway have a Merry Christmas if I don't write again before the 25th. Have a good one

Time flies

I know its been quite a long time but I very rarely seem to have either the Internet or the time at the moment.

I left it last time in Kathmandu which seems a lifetime ago. Since then I went to Pokhara where despite my best intentions of going trekking I ended up largely sleeping, watching films and wandering round some of the hills that provide amazing views over the lake and the Annapurna mountain range. Three weeks doing the Everest trek pretty much knackered me out and it was nice to be able to catch up on some TV series and download some new ones. Plus the quiet of Pokhara meant I was actually able to sleep past 6am for the first time since Ive been here.

Well rested I headed off to Chitwan national park in the vain hope of seeing tigers but more realistically seeing the Rhinos for which chitwan is famous. Unfortunately the main trekking season of October and November is the worst time for Chitwan as the grass is ten feet tall and it nigh on impossible to see anything. Unfazed a group of six of us braved the barrage of safari shops and guides and booked one for the next morning. So we headed out early morning on a canoe ride to see the crocodiles and gharials (fish eating crocs) before trekking back three hours to the main town Sauraha. Turns out our luck was in straight after a somewhat disappointing canoe ride we nearly walked straight into a massive Asian rhino just in the bushes. The wind was blowing the wrong way and it legged it before we could get a photo but our spirits were raised. As it was that was the only thing we saw in three hour slogging through gigantic grass and we found ourselves back at the canoe launch point disappointed. Chitwans big attraction is the elephants which patrol up and down the main streets which takes some getting used to but it provides an opportunity to take part in the elephant bathing in the river. This pretty much involves sitting on the back of an elephant whilst it squirts you with water and then rolls over dumping you in the river. It was kind of nice and something to do before our elephant safari that night.

There is two bits to chitwan the main park then the 'community forest' which is basically some trees that have a whole load of deer and monkeys and pretty much jack of anything else. So you wander round on the back of an elephant for an hour with about twenty other elephants full of shouting indian and chinese tourists so anything that may have been close legs it. Its disappointing but I rode on an elephant so that's kind of cool.

Unfortunately the people I was with were pressed for time and left the next morning but I resolved to go into the park again and this time go for a day and a half so that I could get deep into the park. So for the next day and a half we walked and walked and walked through the park. As any time with safaris you cant guarantee anything so by four o'clock after walking for 9 hours I was gutted until round the next bend a mother and baby rhino. They were so close it was amazing and this time the wind was blowing towards us. We were there for at least half an hour before they left and it was great just watching these massive animals just twenty meters away. I was briefed by the guide before we went in about what to do should we see certain things and they come at you, for rhinos it was climb a tree which makes sense and tigers it was stare it out which I would have been interest to see put into practise. This all seems good advice until you look around and theres no trees within 300m not quite sure what plan B was. So we just sat still and watched and fortunately despite the fact they were no more than twenty meters away they didn't see us.

From then on it was a windfall we saw a bear really close as it barked a warning at us then ran, monkeys, wild pigs, deer, crocodiles, loads of birds and tiger tracks so it was well worth it in the end. In celebration me and my two guides got drunk on local wine watching the sunset and playing cards whilst listening to the jungle which was quality. Even had an early morning hungover encounter with a rhino that was sleeping at the stairs to the lodge.

After Chitwan I had pretty much done everything I wanted in Nepal and was ready for India. Unfortunately to pick up my Bangladesh visa it meant going back for two incredibly tedious days in Kathmandu faffing around before taking the 16 hour killer of a night bus to the border. Unfortunately I was at the front of the bus and it was tortuous hurtling along in the pitch black, overtaking on blind bends with Justin Bieber on repeat and the screeching of the brakes which is still ringing in my ears. Needless to stay I didn't get any sleep at all and was a mess when I rocked up in Kakharbitta the border town. As always happens it turns out alright in the end as i met Hari this local Nepalese guy who was returning home on the same bus after visiting England and he just said hey do you want to have breakfast and rest a bit in my house. Two days later I was still there, his family were so great feeding me up and showing me the local sights of their tea plantation and rural village. I was sad to leave as they were so generous and it was great chatting with them about local life in Nepal and going through their photos of London. I doubt on this trip but hopefully soon I can go back and stay for longer. But with a visa set to expire I made the hard choice of going for my first taste of India.

Not quite wanting to go to any cities yet I headed up into the hills to Darjeeling to sample the tea and make the most of the clear weather to see some more of the huge mountains of the Himalayas. Right on the doorstep is Kachenjunga which is the 3rd highest mountain which we got up early for this morning. Darjeeling is nothing like i imagined the town is picturesque from afar but the narrow streets are a mess of rubbish and traffic with incessant horns and exhaust fumes, I'm sure it was grand in its day but that day has definitely passed. A good thing though is they actually have food options Dominoes last night was a real treat  after fried rice twice a day and a fry up with proper bacon and eggs this morning. Other than that ive just been drinking large amounts of amazing tea.

My hotel is an absolute dump so cold and damp but at just over a quid a night i cant complain too much and I leave tomorrow. After picking up my special permit yesterday I head to the tiny mountain kingdom of Sikkim for ten days before heading off to the tribal states of the north east over the coming month. Not sure how far I can get as the permit situation seems a bit up in the air but if I can get to Nagaland i will be so happy. There is a massive tribal gathering in a couple of weeks and I would love to be there.

Im sure you will be chuffed to know its cold here probably worse than at home and only going to get colder in Sikkim so its not all sun, sea and sand.

Ill leave it there as I need some more tea and an episode of Dexter is waiting. Catch you later

Tucker

Namasde Nepal

So here we are three weeks in Nepal and i finally have both the time and energy now to write my first entry of this years blog. Quite a lot to cover as it has been pretty eventful with some good accomplishments thrown in.

Three weeks ago after finishing work on the Friday I flew out to Nepal via a very pleasant upgrade to first class for one leg and also the crushing reality of 8 hours on the floor of Delhi airport trying to sleep in freezing air con. This was nicely followed by 2 hours in the visa queue at Kathmandu airport and then the very in your face city itself. I had planned to come to Nepal first as a nice ease in for India in a months time but the city was not at all what i expected or had prepared for. Its just hot and dirty with the tourist part Thamel a hot mess of camping shops and other tourist crap. I don't think i have met anyone that likes Thamel yet. Anyway it served to make up my mind to get the hell on with the trekking and on the 5th i took the 10 hour bus to Jiri which is at the start of the Everest base camp trek. You can either walk the six days to the start of the trek proper or fly into the worlds most dangerous airport Lukla. The fact the weather had grounded all flights kind of helped the decision so instead I took what must have been close to the worlds most dangerous bus ride instead. The bus was mental ive seen some stuff is SE Asia but this took the biscuit as soon as you leave Kathmandu its tiny little mountain roads with massive drops on either side, blind overtaking, loads of backing up with someone making sure all four wheels stay on the ground plus the fact it was so overcrowded with people on the roof as well. All you can do is laugh really, I forgot to get at the front so was at the back bouncing around smelling the stench of everyone being sick in front. Happy memories.

Anyway made it to Jiri where I promptly hooked up with two other English trekkers doing the walk on their own without guides and porters and the like. Being poor/tight as many people seem to think I was also carrying all my own stuff. From there we set out on six eight hour walking days going up one sheer valley and down the next. Honestly the comradery of everyone was pretty much what kept us going as the scenery was ok but kind of lacked any spectacular views but the walk was hard core. After two days our group had swelled to 6 with another English pair Ian and Pippa as well as Jar this chinese guy who spoke no english and was my room buddy for a few nights. We soon realised how cold it was going to be as well as at night even at a few thousand meters it gets cold quick.

Seven days in we got to the start of the serious stuff climbing up from Namche Bazaar the Sherpa capital at 3400m, over the course of five days high altitude trekking we made it to Everest Base camp and the viewing point at Kala Pathar. At this point everyone struggles, as walking whilst carrying 14kg at 5000m is tough. We still managed to blitz all of the organised groups who carry nothing and have an endless stream of porters and yaks carrying all the 'essentials to the top.' By this point I had realised I had packed too much stuff and had done a serious rethink leaving alot of things behind including deoderant, washing powder, and a change of clothes. Above Namche for eight days no-one had a shower as it was too expensive, changed clothes because we had nothing but thermals in the bag or ate anything but rice and lentils. It was not pleasant and I pitty the poor sod who gets my washing but everyone's in the same boat. I lucked out walking with Ian and Pippa as well as another Andrew who were all a good laugh, keeping ourselves entertained with endless card games and banter before bed time at 6.30pm. Your body clock just changes so much when your walking getting up at 5.30am at first light for breakfast and to be first on the trail then going to bed as soon as it gets dark. The lodges were properly cold as its just a stone building divided up with some ply wood so its great just to get into your sleeping bag and warm up.

From Namche the path lead us through Tengboche, Dingboche, Lobuche and finally to Gorek Shep, now forever known as the place where people go to die. Gorek Shep is at 5200m and is the base for the walk to base camp and Kala Pathar (from where you see everest). Most of the towns are pretty grim just bleak settlements on the high mountain plains but the Shep is so bad. It was the one night we didn't get a room as well and had to sleep on just a plank of wood in a corridor with everyone huddled together. It was a comedy of errors from the start, we all felt pretty bad and most of us had colds by this point as well as coughs and god knows what else. Then part way through the night the owner robs all our blankets leaving us so cold, and just listening to people hawk their guts up with a kind of surround sound effect. At dinner lots of people looked ill and for whatever reason hadnt gone back down to get rid of the altitude sickness. Three people died when we were up there and some of the people shouldn't be allowed anywhere near a trek in their lives, vetting process required I think. On the way down we were playing the will they/wont they make it game and wondering if they new what they were letting themselves in for.

All in all we had a great time i finally got the monkey off my back and made it to base camp after last times saga in Tibet and the views and weather were incredible. We have some great photos which I will put up next opportunity i get. So thats pretty much up to date, apart from the fun and games at Lukla airport. Seriously ive never seen anything like it we spent all day trying to find out what the hell was going on and just get any flight as we kept being bumped by tour groups. Fortunately our hotel owner came through and pulled a few strings with his mate on the airline and we did some bumping of our own and managed to get down in time for our celebratory Pizza night with so much beer. After three weeks of tea and rice it was immense.

Anyways im off to the festival now, get myself some face paint and see what goes down. Then on to Pokhara for some more trekking then an elephant safari in Chitwan national park to hopefully see some rhinos and maybe a tiger if im lucky :)

Hope everyones great!!

Tucker

Ending on a High

So that's it 11 months, 24 countries and a whole host of new friends and experiences later im sat writing my final blog for this trip but hopefully not for ever.

This year has been truly amazing and i owe alot to all those who have helped me and shown extraordinary kindness along the way. I will never forget this and hopefully i can do my part and return the favour at some point.

Last time i wrote i had just arrived in Brunei a place i chose to visit purely through curiosity, to see what the small oil rich kingdom had to offer. The curiosity aspect seemed to be the same for everybody else i met, some having purely come on a day trip from KL. I was unsure of what to expect and to be honest the capital Bandar Seri Begawan (BSB) did disappoint. Together with Rob who i met at the airport we checked into the only affordable hostel and went off to explore. Lonely Planet provides a walking tour map for BSB and so it was 15 minutes after starting we had completed it. The city is tiny and apart from a mosque and a clock there is nothing there. The Sultan may be one of the richest men in the world living in a huge 4000 room palace on the hill above, but this wealth you do not see on the street. The people live comfortably and thats about it, no poor no rich just ok.

To kill a bit of time we took one of the water taxis, locally dubbed 'flying coffins' and used this to cross to the largest stilt village in Asia that sits just off the mainland. It filled an hour and we both agreed that we would leave the next day. That night we chanced upon a local who gave us a tour in his car using his local knowledge and we ended up getting to visit the largest mosque in south east asia. This is really spectacular and kind of worth the visit to Brunei on its own if we had actually been allowed inside. Instead we had to make do with the outside and the beautiful gardens.

Next day i caught a speedboat to Bangar from where i hoped to take the bus back to Malaysia and Kota Kinabalu (KK) in Sabah. The boat trip involved a hair raising hour long ride on a speedboat through the tiny mangrove lined waterways. Arriving in the Bangar i realised within about ten seconds that there was nothing to fill the afternoon so i scrubbed my plan and headed straight back to BSB. That pretty much sums up Brunei and unless your passing through i wouldn't bother.

Deciding to forsake the bus route i instead took a boat to the island of Labuan in malaysia where i spent a few hours before continuing on to KK. This town was hardly much better although Summer Lodge is a really great hostel and their cat was funny as it amused itself by chasing anything that moved including the arrow on the computer screen. My last major activity i had planned was to climb Mt. Kinabalu the highest mountain in South East Asia. Standing at 4095m it towers over the north of Borneo being visible from pretty much everywhere. While the weather remained fine i wanted to get the climb out of the way so i left KK after a day and found a mountain guesthouse just outside of the park. Most people climb halfway in the afternoon spend the night and then get to the top for sunrise and this was my plan as well until i was told it would cost 90 quid to stay at the mountain hut in a 30 person dorm. And this cost is in addition to the climbing permit and the obligatory guide which added another 50 quid. I could not afford this and gutted i was not sure what to do. By chance a ranger said you could always try a day climb but here is the time schedule and if you dont make it fast enough, tough luck.

The day climb was now my only option so i arrived back at the park at 7am to start the climb as i had to be halfway at 10am and at the summit by 1pm. God knows how much paperwork later as well as a bus ride to the gate we finally started climbing at 8am. I am not in the best of shape having done little vigorous exercise and i was increasingly worried when after 15 minutes i was out of breath. I really thought i wasn't going to make it as the guide kept glancing at his watch, and desperate not to fail i refused to stop for any breaks. Anyway at 9.50 we had done 6.5km out of the 8.7km climb. No problems from there on in although my legs were feeling the pace. The altitude had an effect and our pace slowed quite alot but we still managed to summit at 12 having climbed the mountain in four hours as well, in the process catching the only other day climb group who had left at 5am. The mountain is really beautiful with its lush forested lower slopes which give way to bald granite moonscape at the top. Having studied and been fascinated by the mountain at university i have finally fulfilled my ambition to see it for myself. Im so glad i did it although my legs gave out on the way down and hobbling in quite alot of pain i made it back to park headquarters with numerous blisters. Needless to say i couldn't walk the next day and had difficulty for a few days after that.

With only five days left and two weeks until im back at work i decided to fork out for a three day safari of the Kinabatangan river. A suitably exotic name and place to go and spot wild orangutans. Before the boat left I visited Sepilok the world famous rehab centre for the Orangutans but it was pretty rubbish and we saw one ape that had been forced out so as not to disappoint the crowd. That afternoon 8 of us took a boat upriver to Uncle Tans jungle camp. The place is set in the middle of the jungle and came highly recommended. There i spent two nights being attacked by millions of mosquitos and trying to avoid the enormous spiders that kept somehow getting inside my mosquito net. Despite this i had a really great time and my tour group were interesting people and a good laugh. We managed to see the wild Orangutans which was a real highlight, as well as gibbons, hornbills, macaques, leaf monkeys and crocodiles to name but a few. Most of Sabah is now one big oil palm plantation and very little forest remains as is the case on the river as the trees are probably only three or four deep along the banks. It is shocking to see but as the wildlife has nowhere else to go its easy to spot. I guess everything has an upside.

With two days left of my trip and not really enough time to do anything else i spent two nights in Sandakan with a father and daughter from Oklahoma who i met at the camp. The city is pleasant enough and yesterday I visited the really moving war memorial park which commemorates the thousands of POW's who died in awful conditions at the hands of the Japanese. The only other attraction of note in town is the house of the famous American author Agnes Keith which is located on the hill overlooking the bay next to of all things an english tea room, complete with scones, cream and even a croquet field. A pleasant hour was spent chowing down on the excellent chocolate cake and tea.

And thats as they say is a wrap. I now sit and wait for my flight which is in 6 hours and 15 hours after that i will be back in England. Plenty of time then to plan my next trip!!!

Finding Paradise

Wow wow wow what can you say. I am 24 and i have found what many people dont find in their entire lifetime. Paradise. I have looked forward to the Togians for so long and it didnt disappoint utterly incredible.

12 hours after leaving Gorontalo on the ferry we arrived in the ramshackle port of Wakkai. Not a good start by any means. From there the four of us travelling together hired out a canoe to take us the three hours to Malenge island. We had been recommended this by a guy on Bunakan and it was immense. As we rounded the final corner we were confronted with the whitest beach i have ever seen, on which were situated five bungalows surrounded by palm trees. So so happy at this point and more was to come. The resort was on a peninsula at the back of which was a blue lagoon perfect for pre/post dinner or all day swimming sessions. As if this isnt enough i hear you say the island is covered in jungle and is inhabited by many animals all of which you can hear and often see from the lagoon while you swim. Too good to be true especially as it was 7 quid a night including 3 meals a day.

On the opposite side of the beach was a very picturesque floating village with a 1km long stilt bridge that at sunset made for a stunning panorama. Unfortunately my camera is knackered so no photos will be forthcoming. But it will live in my memory for ever.

Five days i spent on Malenge, snorkelling the coral reef, trekking, relaxing in my hammock under the palms and generally enjoying life and the few weeks i have left. It was really great travelling there with the guys from Bunakan as we got on well and there was some good banter over a few beers. There is nothing quite like relaxing with a cool beer just watching the world go by, although the spiders were plate sized and cockroaches/ foot long millipedes abounded.

Unfortunately as all things do my time on malenge came to an end. The Togians have been largely preserved due to there isolation and so it was that there is only three ferries a week from Wakkai. I skipped the first one as i was enjoying myself too much trading this for no days in Makassar. This was a good idea but it meant i would have a mission on for the next few days. The morning of departure arrives and when we ask for the canoe back to wakkai we are told in the matter of fact way indonesians have 'no canoe waves too big'. On further questioning we are told the ferry has sunk and 8 people in a canoe have died in the past day. Exactly what you want to be told when considering chancing it. If i cant leave the island soon i could well run out of visa time which will be expensive. Eventually Rudi the owner finds some people from the village who are willing to take a chance for which they demand a high price. The togian island people only use small outrigger canoes and they cannot go out in even small waves, two hours later two guys turn up in a huge dugout with no outriggers. Saying our prayers we agreed to it as there was little other choice. At least on wakkai we would make the ferry if another one came.

I have feared for my life a few times on this trip, sitting on top of a truck which is leaning over a ravine, near misses driving through vietnam and now i have a canoe ride through a rough open ocean, with waves breaking over the sides and the indonsians bailing frantically all the while trying to position ourselves so we dont capsize. I think i may have said more prayers than most people do in a lifetime. To make matters worse we had to go the long way round trying to stay in the lee of islands as much as possible. I take my hat off to those boat guys as 5 hours and some severe nerves and sunburn later we arrived to Wakkai. Never have i been so grateful for land and cared so little about missing the ferry we had put so much effort into trying to make.

Now i was really pushed for time especially as i had intended to spend 5 days in Tanah Toraja and now that would be cut to two at the most. With little other option we headed out to the nearest island Kadidiri for two days where i tried to forget the impending travel nightmares and relax in the luxury resort. Thought id splash out a little as work is looming just around the corner.

Two days later the ferry arrives (having not sunk, indonesia is definately the king of rumours) and we make it to Ampana where the bus fun begins. Sulawesi is just mountains and forest with tiny tiny winding little roads. I set off from Ampana with a Dutch couple from the ferry as well as Nacho from Malenge. Six hours later and nearing midnight we arrive in Tentena having decided not to stop in Poso where some unfortunates were beheaded not so long ago. Next day involved probably the worst travelling day of the year, 11 hours on the bus got us into Podolo a horrible little town approaching 9pm. Twice we nearly went down a ravine having overshot hairpins as well as negotiating a narrow muddy section where the road had been taken away in a landslide. In Podolo we tried for two hours to find someone to drive us to Rantepao and after giving up all hope some decidedly dodgy guys who i think may have robbed the car offered to drive us. Still with an hour or so to go and at 1am in the middle of the jungle in the pitch black they stop and get out. Honestly we all feared the worst and being told to hand over everything we had wasnt far from my mind. Fortunately it didnt happen and five minutes later they reappeared and it was time for a driver change. Nachos face was amazing as he turns to see a kid who was maybe 14 at a push get behind the wheel. It was bordering on ridiculous as the kid started driving sitting well forward with his face pressed against the glass at around 10mph. I couldnt stop laughing as knackered beyond belief we roll into Rantepao at 2am. So so glad that we had reserved rooms and after hammering on the door for 10 minutes we were let in.

Tanah Toraja is famous for its people who are animist and maintain much of their traditions. The most famous and my reason for visiting was the funerals these guys have. Most ceremonies go on for three or four days and each one involves something different. We managed to get invited to day one of a funeral and turned up to witness alot of people milling around chatting, not really doing much apart from killing a few pigs. There was lots of piggy screeching and not much else so we left to visit a few of the wooden villages with there unique boat shaped houses covered in crazy carvings. You may think its a bit wierd going to funerals but these things cost a fortune and many times the person is dead for three or four years before the family can afford to bury them. During this time the body is left in a coffin in the living room. Crazy stuff. The cause of the expense is the Buffalo sacrifice. Each buffalo can cost thousands of pounds probably a few years wages for an indonesian, and it is believed that a minimum of five are required to be slaughtered to carry the deceased to heavan. So day two we rent bikes ride back to the village and go to the buffalo sacrifice. I half expected to pass out but it was strangely fascinating and a surreal experience. Watching buffalo being led into the ring surrounded by maybe a hundred people, seeing their throats cut with blood going everywhere accompanied by the wailing family of the deceased in a small wooden village in the forest in sulawesi was amazing. A real cultural overload. Something i feel priveledged to have witnessed before it eithers stops or is entirely ruined by hoards of package tourists.

Not having time to go to the third day where a procession transports the body from the village to its final resting place in a cave, i rode out to a couple of caves with coffins already in situ. I spent a few hours crawling around with a tiny flashlight looking at the coffins both old and new within the cave systems. Some of the coffins were so old they had rotted away partially exposing the deceaseds bones within, but also the people carve a likeness from wood which is placed inside or outside the cave. These are incredibly realistic especially in bad light and are liable to cause a fright when stumbled upon. If you look up photos on the internet you will see it seems more like a filmset from Indiana Jones than a real life place.

That night i had to take the nightbus to Makassar which turned from 8-9 hours into 14 hours sat on a bus, uncomfortable with no sleep due to the road condition as well as the two locals behind me who insisted on throwing up for the entire journey. The rain in several places had washed out a good few kms of road causing a huge traffic jam with nobody around to take charge. Just what you need. Tired and dishevelled i went straight to the airport to kill 7 hours before flying to KL. Then KL i had 10 hours to kill overnight before flight to Brunei early the next morning. No sleep two nights in a row as everybody sleeping in the airport got kicked out for two hours while they cleaned and then there was too much noise even in the darkest corner i could find. The comfy seat of the air asia plane was just the ticket and i just wish it could have been a longer flight to grab a little more shuteye!!

On Borneo now in Sabah but as this is quite a long one i will do the past few days at a later date....

An introduction to Indonesia

Three days in Ubud turned into a nice getaway from the heat and nightmare place that is Kuta. It was by far the most i have been hassled by touts anywhere on my trip and after a month in australia with none of that it was a shock to the system.

Ubud is a pleasant enough town situated in the volcanic foothills of Bali, set amongst what seems like endless scenic rice terraces. It is also the artistic centre of Bali attracting many artists from all around Indonesia. My real problem at this point in time is space, i have very little of it and there is increasingly less ways i can rearrange my bags to fit within baggage restrictions. This trip has revealed my intense weakness for buying art and i should have realised in retrospect that Ubud wasn't the best place to go in my position. In three days i wrestled with my conciense and in a way i successfully escaped with only one more painting to squeeze in. There are some seriously impressive pieces on show and for between 10-100 quid a pop it is seriously hard to resist.

With only ten days to spend on Bali i had to move on and the next port of call was Toya Bungkah a small town inside the crater of Gunung Batur. This is the second highest point of Bali and is truly stunning. The road and several villages rest precariously on the rim of the volcano and down below lies the town of Toya and the beautiful lake. Then within this crater is another volcano which is the summit. I headed here eager to get some more hiking in before returning home and a steamy active volcano seemed just the ticket. Before this i had another slightly more unwelcome challenge to overcome. I had rented a scooter to get around Bali as the island is pretty small, but this brought me face to face with the islands incredibly corrupt and such a pain in the ass police force. Knowing full well that tourists don't have the correct paperwork they seem to have taken it on themselves to dent Balis image and extort money. So as i approach the crater rim my heart fell as a police road block waves we over. Shit shit shit. I had spoken to some people in Ubud who had been had for 100 quid which was not an option for me or even within remotely reasonable realms so i awaited what they said. Predictably they say you do not have an international license which is true (the uk one does not count in Indonesia) so i just keep saying, no my license is fine over and over again like a stuck record hoping they will just let me go. Not to be outdone he calls the boss over and same story is repeated to him, then an unexpected turn he asks what is is in the tube i am carrying. I explain it is a painting, then he says you are an art student, yep i reply not knowing where it is going. Then prove i am a student i pull out the bedraggled and long since expired card i carry all the while trying to hide the money just taken from the ATM earlier. I think the student ploy was good as they said so you are poor and yes that is now very much true thanks to Australia and with a smile that seemed to say you are not going to be so lucky next time he let me go. So so happy but it just meant that i had to ride looking out for police more than anything else and although twice more i was waved at i just floored it with the plan of playing ignorant and they never pursued. It really is annoying though, in Vietnam despite being there for a month and breaking so many road rules we didn't have a single issue. But Indonesia as a whole is not quite as welcoming or accommodating as some of the other places i have been to.

When you do a trip like mine you cant always be in a country during the dry season and so it is with Indonesia. January is the wettest month and up until Gunung Batur no rain although this was unlikely to last. I took the initiative and climbed while the weather was fine and it was a great hike up through the pine forest and over the lava fields to the summit. I had been given an egg by the lady at the home stay but after putting it in a steaming vent to cook i dropped it over the edge as it was a lot hotter than expected. Not too big a disappointment as i would rather the egg than me. There really wasn't much else to do in the crater apart from drive up and down the windy road pretending to be Valentino Rossi and even that after a while lost its thrill. So off to do some snorkeling in Amed.

The weather by now had turned and in torrential rain i headed off for the three hour drive over two volcanoes to the coast. On the way i stopped off at the Besakih temple complex the holiest site on Bali which was full of worshipers as it was the full moon that day. The rain meant i couldn't really hang around but fortunately by the time i reached Amed the sun was out and wow what a place. The beach is black sand and due to the time of year pretty much deserted making for some tasty deals on beach front bungalows. I really enjoyed it snorkeling on the amazing reef in the bay with all sorts of colourful fish and then an early morning fishing trip. I managed to extend my run of never having caught anything ever and instead had to make do with watching a school of dolphins swimming around us and then jumping ahead of the boat. Amazing stuff. The guy who took me fishing i think felt pitty and gave me some fish he had caught which the lady at the bungalows turned into the most incredible fish lunch i have ever had. Indonesian food might have little variety but if you like fish there is no better.

My flight left the next day so i split the journey back to Kuta with a stop over in Padang Bai. The town was pleasant enough for the evening but the road on the east coast of the island was phenomenal and the real draw. Like the great ocean roads of California and Australia but designed for bikes. Windy, up and down with amazing views so much fun. More than confirming my need for a bike license when i return. I had six hours to kill till my flight and there was a huge power outage so i headed to the airport just to get some air con and max out Starbucks free wifi. The heat in Kuta that day was like nothing i have ever felt before, so hot and humid you feel sick and cant breathe. Plus i had 23 kilos of luggage hanging off me. Cant wait to be rid of it soon.

Bali might not be my favourite of places and sometimes it is a bit of a tourist trap but i would recommend it if anyone wants a taste of Asia with all the trimmings. And the east coast is stunning and would be a highlight of any trip.

10 days in Bali down and then a flight to the north of Sulawesi and hopefully a bit more adventure. Touching down in Manado at midnight was a massive pain especially as all the hotels were full leaving me with the hotel Celebes. Not bad location i thought next to the harbour, that was until the morning fish market started at 5.30am. Great stuff. What took the cake is that i had to stay two nights as being a small christian enclave in Indonesia nothing runs on a Sunday. From Manado on many peoples recommendation i headed out to Pulau Bunakan which is rated as one of the top 10 places to dive in the world. And i can see why. Not being a diver i satisfied myself purely with snorkeling. Lorenzos bungalows was quality and had a great vibe and some really nice people with whom i shared a boat out onto the reef. It was such incredible snorkeling we stayed alot longer than i had planned and my back was thoroughly cooked by the time we returned. The disappointment of Australia was completely forgotten. The reef stretches 100m or so off shore before there is a deep sea dropoff that attracts barracuda, sharks and many other things besides. We saw so many turtles it was getting ridiculous. Two days of that was wonderful and im so glad i got over my slight fear of being swept away in the fairly strong currents and took the plunge. Again pushed for time as i always seem to be yesterday i grabbed a bus on a wild ride through the dark forest and mountains in the north of the island to Gorontalo to get the ferry to the Togian islands. This is something i have looked forward to for nearly a year. Its a tropical paradise national park, with wildlife teeming both onland and offshore and i cant wait to get back in the water. Never ever thought i would say that.

Australia - Melbourne to Brisvegas

Following on from our Christmas day on St Kilda beach, I had the opportunity to do something i had dreamed of doing for quite a while. Go to the ashes in Australia. This is basically one of the most important things i had in mind before i left home and was a fixed date in the calendar. I was a bit gutted that i didn't see any cricket in Perth but our change of plan was definitely the best decision. So boxing day, early doors we headed to the MCG with most of the other residents at the hostel and what seemed like half of Melbourne. 85,000 people at a cricket match is essentially unheard of and walking into the stadium you really did feel butterflies. And so much more was to come. By midday with the Australian batting line up in a complete shambles things couldn't be better. Never did i dream i would see their entire innings and see England bat all in one day. I have just been chatting to an Australian couple over dinner and its nice to be able to give someone else stick about their national team. All in all it was an excellent time to be a Pomme down under.

Next day was another must do for any self respecting English person and a trip to the neighbours night to meet the cast. Despite how corny i was expecting it to be it was kind of cool. We went with Tom and Paul two guys we met on Christmas day and it turned into a really fun evening of which i have very little recollection. I have the photo and signature evidence of meeting Dr. Karl Kennedy, and also the very lovely Sky Mangle. It turns out Dillon, Stingray and Boyd all live together so they were all there as well. Normally Karls band plays but for some reason he didn't that night which was a bit annoying but the rest of it was great although we definitely were cheated out of the trivia prize. Next day was a bit of a mission though trooping around Ramsay street and some other parts of the neighbours set with a massive hangover. It was ok but the street is nothing like i expected, its really small in real life and just a normal residential street. The tour was pretty short so we managed to get to the cricket again for midday and see us rub salt in the wounds and take another 7 Australian wickets. Immense

That was pretty much it for Melbourne apart from seeing the penguins in the harbour. Melbourne without a shadow of a doubt is the best city i have ever been to, no word of a lie although Sydney does run it close. If i don't end up back there someday i will be very disappointed.

Next up Sydney for the most iconic new years imaginable. For this special occasion Jon and I were joined by Jamie who had managed to leave the arctic conditions of the UK and join us for a couple of weeks. Sydney like Melbourne is great, and we were blessed with the most perfect weather you could hope for. Seeing the opera house and bridge were must do's of course but the real reason as i said before was the fireworks and new years party. Most places fill up fast and we kind of left it a little late but we joined Tom and Paul headed to the only free patch of ground in a tiny little park with about 1,000 others. Quite a few beers later the 10 hours or so of waiting went by fairly quickly and although it wasn't the best view it was definitely the best new years i have ever had. Nicely followed up the next day by a trip to the world famous Bondi beach to soak up some rays and sleep off the after effects from the night before. Bondi was rammed but the good feeling abounded and it was a really pleasant way to spend any day.

Three days in Sydney was pretty much it and saying goodbye far too quickly for what i would have liked we flew to Cairns in the north of Queensland. It was here that we had to amend our plans as the flooding had cut the roads between us and Brisbane as well as the access points to Fraser island. This was gutting to be completely honest as this was the number 1 thing everybody said to do in Australia. Not to be too downhearted we made the most of the north of Queensland heading up to Cape Tribulation and Daintree national park via Port Douglas. Despite the hundreds of slow down for Cassowary signs we saw hide nor hair of them or any other animal for that matter. Queensland's great and the beaches are truly spectacular but the signs everywhere warning of the crocodiles and jellyfish mean you cant go swimming. Its like being given the best dinner in the world and being told you cant eat it. Oh well there are plenty of other activities and happily for me at least the clouds stayed away long enough for me to tick off another of my things to do before you die and i did a skydive. The whole experience was immensely surreal as we kept being delayed and delayed, then it was all go go go and over in the space of five minutes. We freefalled 11,000 feet in 60 seconds before doing the final 3,000 parachuting down. Honestly it is hard to describe the rush, im glad i did it as a tandem as i am sure i would forget to open the schute while looking around. The feeling is incredible and pretty much all consuming so it is very difficult to concentrate on doing anything else. A real highlight and a big thanks for the amazing Christmas present to everyone who contributed.

From Cairns we had a long drive down to Airlie beach in order to take a trip to the Whitsunday islands and the great barrier reef. Having had to change all our plans at the last moment we had nothing booked but managed to do it the same morning we wanted to leave, so we had a mad rush to get the ferry to long island. The resort was pretty decent and made a nice change as it was only the second place where i have had a pool since ive been away, with the added bonus of a hot tub and turtles swimming just off the beach. One day on the island and one day on the reef was all we had time for. Im not going to lie the reef was a bit disappointing although I did see some cool fish and some anemones etc. The area of the reef they have their big pontoon on has had two typhoons recently which pretty much annihilated the coral. Still a good day out followed by a pub quiz at the resort which is a good way to end any day.

Unfortunately for us that concluded Australia. On flying into Brisbane we had intended to drive down to Byron bay but the weather/lack of accommodation rendered that pointless and left us with 4 days to kill in Brisbane. Its not the greatest of cities and when the weather is wet there is very little to do in Australia and even our trip to the cinema was cut short when they turned off the film and told everyone to leave before the city was cut off by the rising water. We did manage a trip to Australia zoo which descended into farce in the heaviest rain i have ever seen. Despite this we did manage to go and pay homage to Steve Irwin at the crocoseum and see his wife and kids do a show. It was good but it must have been awesome if he had been there. Looking around the zoo you realize what an amazing guy he actually was and how much he did for wildlife but also Australia as a global icon.

Due to the nightmare situation we found ourselves in Jon and Jamie bailed early so as not to waste any more of their holiday and headed for Hong Kong and fortunately for myself i managed to change my flights and left the next morning. Rumours abounded about public transport stopping and the airport being cut off, so with no desire to spend anymore time in Brisbane i took a cab and got the earliest flight i could and now i am here amongst the temples and rice terraces on the paradise island of Bali.

Hope everyone at home had a great Christmas and new years. All the best for the rest of the year!!!

WA and Melbourne

I will first make my excuses as to why i haven't done a blog post in over a month. The problem with Australia is that it seems to be the only place on earth where providing easy and cheap internet access is not taken for granted. It does go to show how much we rely on it now.

Despite this the month in Australia with Jon and in the later stages Jamie was immense. I really really enjoyed it and if there is any city on earth that can claim to have the best quality of life it has to be Melbourne or Sydney. Not being much of a city person at the best of times i loved these two cities with Melbourne i think just slightly edging it.

Anyways we started off our ambitious plans with 6 days in western Australia. Originally we were going there to watch some of the cricket but the lack of anything else to do in Perth, plus the rave reviews we heard about the margaret river region meant we took the hire car for an extra day. Before taking the car we had a day in Fremantle where we met up with Josh who happened to be in town before heading to south africa for christmas. We took in the sights of the fremantle jail on a guided tour before grabbing some beers and heading to the beach to watch the sunset over the indian ocean. The quality of life in australia is ridiculous at no point if you live in a major city are you more than 1/2 hour from a beach that puts most places to shame. And these are the city beaches much better were to come.

Perth isn't bad by any means just very quiet and the main attraction in Western Australia is the lack of people and the completely unspoiled coastline. So we headed south and our first day in Margaret river took in the beautiful Meelup beach and the cape peninsula as well as wine tasting at one of the many vineyards in this very famous part of the world. We ended it on Hamlin bay swimming in the crystal clear waters off a 5km stretch of beach with literally no-one else. WA is the size of India with only 2 million people of which most live in Perth. Unfortunately you could spend months here and not see everything and we only had six days. So unlucky for Jon as he was the only one driving the next day we blitzed it south to Pendleton to climb the Gloucester tree which is the highest fire lookout in WA at 60m. A little bit hairy climbing up some spikes sticking out of the trunk but an awesome view from the top. After a quick walk in the bush we pushed on to Walpole where you can do a boardwalk through the forest canopy. It was pretty cool but a distinct lack of any wildlife to look at. To date only kookaburras and kangaroos to tick off in the i-spy guide.

That was pretty much it in WA, i would have liked to have a bit of time to see the dolphins in Bunburry where we stopped for the night but time did not permit as we had to drop the car off. Again as with so much of the trip i flew out of perth with the feeling of having so much unfinished business, only getting the very briefest of tastes.

Even briefer still was my stop in Adelaide as i could count the hours on one hand having had my flight delayed until the evening and then being picked up early as the next morning. Instead of flying to Melbourne straight from Perth we had booked onto a tour of the Grampians and the great ocean road leaving from Adelaide. Normally hating tours more than anything this was much better than expected. First day was a bit rubbish as it was mainly sitting in the bus but the next two involved a bit of hiking, some amazing views from the pinnacles at the top of the Grampian mountains as well as the coastline of the great ocean road. Good times and after this we arrived in Melbourne to get ready for the most un-christmasy Christmas of my life.

Despite it being the 23rd of December and making quite a few attempts to boost the Christmas spirit listening to the Glee rendition of numerous classics (Jons ipod not mine) being sat in the sunshine getting a tan seems to nullify all efforts. Despite this we went to the cathedral in the centre of Melbourne Christmas eve which seemed to be full of English people for the evening service, before standing in the main square watching carols by candlelight. Turned out to be pretty good in the end and it was a great atmosphere all around. For Christmas itself we signed up for the meal at the hostel which after a few initial reservations was pretty good. Being my first Christmas not at home it kind of helps being around other people who are also away from their families and are in the same position as yourself. The atmosphere was pretty good and the post Christmas lunch activities were one to remember as we all headed down to St. Kilda beach to play cricket (which my team won) and football (which i gave up on due to the dubiious leg breaking challenges that seemed to be dominating). After watching the complete misery at home over the winter i was not the slightest bit envious of not having a white Christmas and i reckon i could get used to sunbathing with some turkey sandwiches in the future.

TBC...

Missioning Malaysia

Due to the length of time i ended up staying in Myanmar i only had 10 days to see the sights of peninsula Malaysia.

Flying back to Bangkok i headed straight for the train station to catch the 23 hour train bound for Butterworth. The train turned out to be pretty comfy and surprisingly enough i managed a few hours kip before entering Malaysia early the next morning. The first greeting was a board saying 'strictly no hippies' and then a list defining what a hippy was. Already liking this place.

From Butterworth its a short hop on the ferry to Penang Island and Georgetown. I teamed up with some guys from Glasgow and some American girls on a visa run. We headed for the nearest hostel and knackered i decided to relax with a few beers. This was spoiled by the fact there is a 200% tax on alcohol in Malaysia which made it very expensive. Instead a shared bottle of vodka was called for and we had a fun evening playing drinking games, before heading out on the town.

I was really worried about how much time i had before I had to be in Singapore but Penang really didn't have much to offer. I spent one day walking around and going to the snake temple but that was really it. The food on the other hand was incredible, the best indian i have had anywhere!! Also cheap 2 quid for half a tandoori chicken with naan and salad. Happy happy days, anything to get away from the fried rice i had been eating for the last month.

I left early the next day for the Cameron highlands to do some walking and get some exercise. The highlands as you might expect are pretty high and were freezing cold. This wasnt helped by the wet weather which turned the trails into mudbaths. I managed one day hiking through lush rain forest and tea plantations before heading back into the middle of another drinking session. My alcohol tolerance since russia has declined rapidly and a few 'down it' cards later meant i was ready to call it a day. The weather deteriorated overnight so i just used the next day to book some flights for the rest of the trip as well as plan my next few days.

I now had four days left two of which i spent in KL and the other two in Malacca. Both were ok but one full day was enough in each. Plus a Christmas spending session in the Petronas towers mall had me spent out. Its really weird building up to Christmas in the warm as everything is so un-christmasy. Listening to carols and slade while sweating buckets does not get you in the mood. Despite this i managed a photo with Santa and his assistant.

I left Malacca after much stress having missed my earlier bus as the guesthouse had neglected to inform me there is no public transport on sundays. Malaysia really is the worst place for public transport. In just the few days i was there i had so many issues. Fortunately there are quite a few buses to Singapore so i jumped aboard and six hours later i was on the island.

Singapore is a very sterile place as everything is illegal and it has very little atmosphere save for the indian and chinese quarters. After dumping my stuff i headed on the metro to raffles hotel for cocktails with beav. It was so odd seeing somebody i actually knew for a change. Anyway Singapore slings down the hatch we had a walk around for the next couple of days as well as blagging a swim in the pool. There are some things its worth having somebody else pay for.

Two days in Singapore was plenty and then it was time to catch my flight to Perth, WA where the fun would really begin.

Golden lands: part 2

Ok so following on from last time

We left Hopin on the only transport available which was a truck full to the brim with goods and it was on top of these we had to sit crammed in with twenty other misfortunates. It was really really uncomfortable and also incredibly hair raising as we made it closer to the lake and had to cross a mountain road deep with mud and ruts. It got to the point where as we tilted to the side we all had to hang on to each other so no-one fell off the top. We also took it upon ourselves to trade medical insurance details incase one of us survived and could help the other in the event we rolled over. 6 painful hours later we rolled into Lonton and disembark at a gorgeous lakeside chalet. I was so glad we had made the journey plus after much haggling we managed to get the price of the room down to $5 each. Now things in Myanmar don't always go to plan or in accordance with the normal rules of traveling. This is further complicated as most towns have electricity for maximum of two hours a day or none at all. So come 5.30 it is pitch black and a torch is your most prized possession. Just setting the seen for you.

Where there are no other tourists it normally works in your favour as you have the bargaining upperhand but in lonton miles from anywhere this did not happen. We had just finished eating dinner when the guy running the guesthouse runs over and says we have to leave. He doesn't speak much english so someone translates and says one of the army generals wants to stay and therefore we cant. Great we think. Hotels in Myanmar unlike most places have to have a permit for foreigners to stay there, and we are banned from staying anywhere else. Lonton not surprisingly only has one such hotel and so essentially we have just been told we have nowhere to stay and because the way the trucks work we were stuck there for two days. To add to this confused situation, some random woman turns up and says we can sleep on her floor. At this point i am knackered, not feeling great and on a short fuse especially as i was just looking forward to some much needed sleep as i hadnt slept well due to the dreadful room in Hopin. I was so pissed off stood there in the dark, not having a clue what was going on or how to go about doing something about it. To cut it short it turns out an army general (who lived in a mini fortknox overlooking the town dracula esque) wasnt coming to stay but he owned the guesthouse and said we couldnt stay for the price we had haggled for. So an hour later crisis over and we are a little more out of pocket than we would have liked.

Indawgi despite all this turned out to be incredible in the main part as it was completely unspoiled by mass tourism. Its main hope being its not on any tour operators radar. Day one we rented a rowing boat and some extra rowers and went out to the amazing floating Shwemyzu pogada. Although Anya was disappointed as women weren't allowed onto the island. This took pretty much the whole day as it was alot further than i expected and also our hired help took to letting me do all the work when we weren't looking. Second day we were so lucky as Jean a really nice Swiss guy showed up and after finding out we weren't planning on doing a motorboat trip due to the huge expense said we could go with him. So we had a whole day feeling like proper pioneers hitting really small villages that maybe get one or two outside visitors a year. The looks on people faces were amazing and everywhere we went we were greeted after the initial shock by big shouts of 'Mingalabar' my new favourite word. Basically it just means hello in Burmese but everyone loves it when a foreigner speaks in their language and its such a great ice breaker in situations when the locals just didn't know quite what to say or do.

Our time here went so fast and we headed back to Myitkina after just two days. The journey back wasn't so eventful as the road had dried out somewhat and the train being 3 hours late worked in our favour for once allowing us to jump aboard and make the distance without losing another day. Next up came a four day river trip down the Irrawaddy to Mandalay. It was really cool as travelling in this way is such a joy. We took three different types of boats and properly got a taste of local life watching people at work on the riverbanks doing everything from farming to panning for gold. Anything just to scrape a living. In this part of the world the forestry has been relatively minor so for most parts the banks were unbroken jungle with the occasional small wooden village. I would have loved to have gotten off somewhere and explored but there was nowhere for us to stay and we would have probably gotten the locals into trouble with the police.

Most foreigners i met who lived in Myanmar even in Yangon said the secret police was just a fact of life and most days they get followed by someone. Also anyone we spoke to would probably get a visit to make sure nothing subversive was going on. On indawgi when we did the boat trip the generals daughter was sent along to keep tabs on us and as soon as we got back she was straight up the hill to give her report.

Our river plans were messed up a bit when the government boat we planned to take broke down and instead we had to wait an extra day for a private boat which cost 8 times as much. Like most places there was a local price and a foreigner price but here it was ridiculous. $5 for locals and $60 for foreigners. Its not like we got a room or anything just a chair. We made the most of it though and relaxed in the sunshine with rum and cokes for the whole day and also managed to scavenge a row of seats to sleep on that night.

Arriving in Mandalay was a shock and also the only let down for me in the entire month. So far up to now i hadn't been hassled but Mandalay is tourist central and touts were everywhere. The city was also really dirty and crazy as it is one of the few places where people can afford bikes and cars. We did a trip to Sagain hill which is the biggest Buddhism centre in Burma and then went to Arapura bridge for sunset. The bridge is the longest stilt bridge in Burma and was amazingly beautiful. By this point amazing sunsets had become so routine but this was the best of the lot.

Next day we got up at 4am for sunrise on Mandalay hill which was alright but the city was pretty boring other than that so i headed off to Kalaw that night. I only had just over a week left and wanted to get in the three day trek to Inle lake as well as the fire festival i had found out about the day before. It turns out i was really lucky to get a seat on the bus at short notice and after a couple hours sleep i joined a group of people heading to Taunggi. The festival was insane, basically just really drunk men messing around with fireworks and fire in the attempt to get some wacking great balloons off the ground. The evening ones were pretty dangerous as the balloons had crates of fireworks hanging below and the fuses seemed to be random. This resulted on a few occasions in some of the fireworks going off before the balloon was clear of the ground which got everyone running for cover.

Next day I set off with an English couple and an Argentinian couple with our guide on the three day trek to Inle lake. The walking was pretty spectacular taking in forest, rolling hills, farmland, tribal villages and another round of friendly people. First night we slept in a tiny village and had the best food, and the next one in a monastery. Being woken up at 5am by the chanting of the monks was so nice and a real experience, added to by the misty morning over the hills outside. Some of the colours were stunning and at points it felt like walking through a painting. I had never seen anything like it.

Getting to Inle i also lucked out as i got an amazing room for $10. It was by far the nicest i have had to date and plus everyone from the trek was staying at the same place so we shared the cost of a boat trip around the lake. I can see why the lake is so popular and cruising around stilt villages and floating gardens made for a very enjoyable day and another chance to top up the tan. I think i saw a cloud once in my entire trip and every day it was so hot at least 35-40. It made made me feel even better when i got news of the utter misery in England.

Two really good days were spent at the lake but time was pressing and the ancient temples of bagan awaited. On the bus was a girl from hong kong i had met earlier so we shared a horse cart ride around the temples. It was really amazing, the site is so huge and did not feel overcrowded which was the problem at Angkor wat. Most temples were fairly similar but you could climb quite a few of them which due to the really flat terrain resulted in amazing panoramas especially at sunset. There were two main areas and the second day i rented a bike to check out the others which was a bad idea. It was so hot i only made it to five or six before i felt a bit dizzy and went back to lie in the air con.

I managed to watch a few games of football that night which is so surreal when you are surrounded by monks, who once they realise your the only one cheering for villa actually turned around every time arsenal scored pointed and went 'aaaahhh' right in my face. Monks here are really different to the rest of asia.

I then was left with a 15 hour night bus ride on an abysmal bus that kept breaking down, plus every time i fell asleep we reached a checkpoint where i had to get off and show my passport. So annoying. But i did get to see the new capital Napydjaw on the way back to Yangon. Never have i seen such a complete farce or felt utter hatred towards the ridiculous government in Myanmar that grows fat off the hard work of people who have nothing. 5 years ago the Military government consulted astrologers who told them that Myanmar's problems were due to the bad spirits brought by foreigners to Yangon. So the solution was to waste an incredible sum of money building a new capital in the middle of the jungle to which foreigners are banned from visiting. Its the only place in the entire country with 24 hour electricity and driving through it was lit up like Vegas complete with massive shopping centres and hotels but nobody to use them. Even the roundabouts had flashing lights and ridiculous lit up sculptures. There were row upon row of streets that had street lighting but no buildings had even been built yet, it was so maddening and surreal at the same. I could see the Burmese on my bus felt physically sick at what they were seeing but fortunately the huge new boulevards with no traffic allowed us to escape in record time.

This brought an end to my Burma adventure and it was utterly perfect. Honestly it was the only time i have felt sad leaving a country and if it wasnt so much hassle to stay there i would have done. Anyway as soon as the government falls or the restrictions are relaxed i am so back there.

Sorry i forgot to mention about going out clubbing in Yangon on my last night. There is pretty much no nightlife but the only place listed in Lonely Planet turned out to be completely empty. I only found this out after already having payed to go in. They then refused to give me money back instead giving me two free beers which i drank in utter bemusement whilst watching a midget dancing to some hard core house music which apparently passed for entertainment. So so funny and wierd i wasnt even positive that it was actually happening. Lol!