Taiwan and Japan

Fiji

Fiji 20th December / 1st January 2015

Airport to port Denarau there is a free shuttle bus that can take you there instead of a taxi.
Yasawa flyer to Nanuya island cost 170 dollars. Catamaran left at 08:30. There is a bula pass ticket you can get but might work out cheaper to buy direct tickets and use taxi boats if not doing too much island hopping.

Nanuya Island resort

Stayed in rooftop bure. Beautiful view. Nice and secluded. Beach was practically empty. Water temperature was nice and cool. Great spots to go snorkelling. 
Resort itself was OK. Breakfast was pretty basic, staff looked disinterested and not managed well. No free WiFi. Dinner mains were pretty expensive; 40-55 dollars.

Blue lagoon resort

Taxi boat here was 30 dollars. Stayed in dorm initially for 3 nights. For the price dorm was extremely good. Air con, comfy beds, spacious, clean and fresh towels daily.

Beach was really nice. They had swimming pool also and nice lounges to sunbathe on. Daily food plan was 69 dol!are per day. You will not go hungry! Food was really good and dinner menu changed daily. Christmas morning they had a small pressie for everyone and free bucks fizz. Christmas lunch was buffet comprising of ham, turkey, steak, fish and more champagne!

Met some really nice people at this resort. Good if travelling on your own.

Activities changed daily. We did some snorkelling, diving, hill walk (spectacular views) and cave trip. Their cinema night on the beach I enjoyed also. Free WiFi also.

Spent two nights in garden villa. Their outside bathroom and shower was the highlight.

Yasawa flyer back to mainland. Got free shuttle to Nadi  airport and taxi to first landing. Negotiated fare to 20 dollars.

First landing

Spent three nights here. Beach was not that nice. Felt in a bit of a time warp. Facilities really need an uplift. No free wifi. Gardens are very well maintained tho.

Lots of public buses and hitch hiking getting around to lautoka, Nadi and Denaurau. The former towns are pretty filthy and nothing really to see.

For new years spent at west in for buffet dinner in Denarau. Walked down to Sheraton after for midnight fireworks. Pretty good!

Conclusion

Yasawa islands were amazing. Next time wouldn't spend much time on mainland. People are friendly. Always bargain fare with taxi drivers 

Weather

Fantastic sunshine. Only one cloudy day.

South Thailand Islands

Koh Phagnan

Stayed in lime n soda resort again near thongsala pier. Really like this place. Staff our super friendly and the free breakfast buffet is pretty good too. Double room air con per night was 900 baht. Chilled at the pool the first day. 

Then rented a bike and headed down to haad rin to have a drink at the coast resort. The infinity pool there is pretty nice too. Best singapore sling cocktail I had all trip! Went for dinner in an Italian restaurant on the way back.

Second day we went beach exploring. First haad yao, then haad salad. Really nice golden beaches. Water temperature was so warm too. The trick is not to step on any sea urchins or the coral.... Drove up north after to utopia resort. Here there is a wonderful viewpoint of Koh ma. 5-7 walk to the view point through the jungle. 

Highlights

• Shooting range 
• Coast resort infinity pool 
• Haad salad beach 
• Haad yao beach 
• Bottle beach 
• View point from utopia resort 
• Cheesecake nira home bakery 
• Beach lounge for dinner

Koh Samui

Highlights

• Lotus chaweng 400 baht each a night 
• Rent moped 200 baht a day 
• Hacienda 900 baht for twin room very compact 
• Fisherman village condo 1000 baht per night really really nice 
• Lamai view point 
• Big Buddha temple 
• Street market bophut (awesome), Friday lamai, Sunday Mae nae beach 
• Silver beach 
• Thai oil massage

Koh Tao

Got a free pickup from the pier with big blue. 
Checked in and booked open water course. 9000 baht.
Stayed in their guesthouse. Upgrade to air con room for extra 1000 baht per night.
Rented a moped for 200 baht and drove down to freedom beach to check out the view point. Second time a lot better as the  weather was sunnier and a lot clearer. Chilled out at freedom bar after.
Course started that evening. Everyone apart from Anna and I choose ssi. We went for PADI certification. We ran through section 1 and 2 that evening of the DVD. Then that night answered section 1 and 2 question sheets. Full on day.

Met our instructor rick the next day at 08:30. Watched section 3,4 and 5 at big blue 2 resort. Rick ran through section 1 and 2 with us and went into more detail on some areas. 
After that, we hit the pool and he explained all the scuba equipment. Then we had our first confined water session running through tests under water. 40 mins for lunch then back in again.... Tiring work! Finished around 5 then raced down to chopper bar to watch the lions match! After that grabbed a quick bite to eat then back to the guesthouse to fill out question sheets 3,4 and 5. Passed out in bed after all this course work!

Meeting rick at 8 in the morning so another early start. Ran through the final question sheets. Then time to take the exam. Passed it with 92% wohoo. Finally no more academics, then concentrate on going diving now in the open water! After lunch headed out on the boat with the rest of the group for our first open water dive.

Highlights

• Open water course big blue resort
• Portobello good pizza 
• Freedom beach bar and view point

Cambodia

Kampot (May 19th - 22nd)

Paid 18 dollars for ferry and bus from phu quoc island to Kampot. Border visa cost 27 dollars into Cambodia. The police make an extra dollar from you for 'body temperature' check...

Stayed in Naga guesthouse along the river bank. Its a pretty new hostel, served ok food. Kampot is a well known stopover for chilling out. The hostel had a good decking area to read a book or smoke some weed (as i learnt!) It has a famous item on its breakfast menu called "Rockstar breakfast". It consists of a packet of smokes, shot of whiskey and a black coffee...

I rented a moped as i usually tho when i arrive in a new place. Took a wander into town and grabbed a late breakfast at epic arts centre. After i visited Bokeo national park. Great panoramic views of Kampot and the gulf of thailand. Disappointing overall with a hotel and casino at the top. I guess there needs to be an incentive for building their roads!!

In the evening took a swim in the river, watched the sunset and tried the renowned bbq ribs at Rusty Keyhole (not that impressive mind you!)

Overall - Guesthouse was ok, dorm extremely noisy above the kitchen and near the bar. Staff stoned most of the time so not great for providing info! 

Sihanoukville (May 24 - 26th) 

Koh Rong (May 22nd - 23rd)

5 Dollar return ferry ride

Ty Ty guesthouse 5 dollars per night for own room, pretty basic. Dont book ahead as there is many guesthouses just off the pier. 

Phnom Penh (May 27th - 29th)

Siem Reap (May 30th - June 2nd)

Vietnam

Hanoi (May 3rd - 8th )

Flew from luang prabang to Hanoi. Booked into Hanoi backpackers on Ma may street.
Shared a taxi from the airport with a few girls I met on the plane. First impressions of hanoi was a very energetic city with scooters flooding the streets. You want to be careful when your walking the streets!

The hostel was very modern. Good dorm rooms and showers. The bar downstairs was always kicking off in the evening time. The first night I was on my own as James and Katherine who I met on the gibbon experience were arriving the day after. I grabbed a bite to eat downstairs and chatted to a few backpackers. Held off going out. Very proud of myself!

Next day I decided to do the free walking tour with the hostel. Got to see the old town and learn about the history of Hanoi. I went off on my own then and searched for some local street food and bia hoi (their cheap fresh draught beer). I found one place full of locals where the beer only cost 9000 dong; result! After lunch I checked out the war history museum. Vietnam have alot of history in war, thanks to the French and the Americans... :-)

That night met up with the guys and headed out on the pub crawl with the hostel. Ended up that night in a cafe upstairs in a clothes shop that was converted into a bar just for farangs....  Was not a late night. Hanoi closes down at night time quite early.

The next day we strolled around the city and took some snaps.Checked out hanoi prison also. When Hannah arrived in (Canadian girl I met on gibbon experience also) we grabbed a taxi out to snake village. I wanted to try out some snake for dinner and drink some snake blood.....

The whole experience was quite surreal. At the side of the restaurant was a cage full of cobra and bamboo snakes. We got to choose our snake and then the killing commenced... He wripped out his teeth, then stabbed him in the back of his head. Then he drained its blood, mixed it with some rice wine and took the heart out!

After this eventful show, we were shown to our seats and served up 12 different dishes of snake food. In between this we took shots of blood and I ate the heart... I have to be honest. I lost my appetite after this! Still happy I went tho.

It was an early night after this as we were up early the next morning to head to halong bay on the castaway tour. This tour I booked through the hostel. It was recommended to me and known for its party atmosphere.

Monday morning we set out for halong bay. Was excited about this trip after seeing the photos of the numerous limestone islands and beaches online. The journey there was pretty long. It took nearly 8 hours by coach and boat to arrive to castaways island. The lunch on board was pretty good. I stocked up on snacks for the trip and spirits just in case....

We were greeted by the group that were already on the island the night before. They looked like they had being on the beer all day..... We were greeted by all the lads performing the haka on the beach.

CONTINUE...

Hue (9th May -10th May)

Overnight bus from Hanoi here. Just stayed for the day. Must people go here for day trips to the DMZ, tombs and the citadel. You can also get scenic motorbike bike tours onwards to hoi an. 

Hoi An (10th-12th May)

Stayed in sunflower hotel. Good rooms. Pool with free breakfast buffet. Found sensational restaurant we went for lunch twice and dinner once. Called cargo restaurant. Food is divine especially their desserts! Vietnamese guy opened this one and also the first Vietnamese restaurant in hoi an called mermaid restaurant in 1992. We went there for dinner also. Loved the markets. Picked up some singlets and north face bag. Best part is the bartering! :-)  rented mopeds for the day and headed to da bang beach. Also picked up a charcoal three piece tailored suit, shirt and tie for 203 dollars. They even sorted out the delivery for me to Australia. Only took a day in total!

Ho Chi Minh (13-14th may)

Stayed in long hostel in backpacking district. Flew in from danang. First day walked around the city. Seen presendential palace and the war museum. Museum was pretty morbid and quite harrowing. Obviously its very much anti American but still! Notre dame cathedral. Out for dinner on bar street, place called five oysters. Really good Vietnamese food. Found bia hoi up the street. Only 7000 a glass! Second day cu chi tunnels. Really liked this trip. Tunnels pretty claustrophobic. :-)

 

Mekong delta (15th-16th May)

Said farewell to Katherine and James in the morning.
Rice fields, floating market, Mekong restaurant in can tho, coconut sweets, making rice noodles, listening to traditional music. Bus to rach gia costs 100,000 dong. Stayed in a guesthouse near the wharf for 200,000 no air con, no warm water. The cheapest room. Found a popular spot across the bridge on the riverside for dinner and the coffee rooms near the kids entertainment area for breakfast. Good Vietnamese iced coffee!   Ferry to phu quoc with superdong cost 320,000 dong.

phu quoc island (17th - 20th may)

Alanis cafe, superb food and divine mocha frappe. Best passion fruit juice I've ever had!  The guys that run it are full of information. Recommended different places to go see and where to eat out at night time. Sao beach on the south east coast is amazing. White sand and the water is so warm. Many dirt roads to get here. Phu quoc island is under mass development. Glad I got here now before it becomes over run. Grabbed an assortment of seafood at hue huè stall in the night market. Was delicious. This island is home to pearl farms run by the Russians. It seems everywhere I go I hear about them. Sounds like they have a strong foothold here. Probably to the demise of the Vietnamese.

Conclusion

Some interesting observations. Men have very long finger nails. They love coughing up a lung on the street! Bia hoi is by far the cheapest and best beer I've had in south east asia. Vietnamese are very friendly people. Seafood is amazing. Never seen such massive prawns.

Laos

Huay Xai (28 April - 30 April)

Called into the gibbon office after on the main street to book the tour commencing Monday. For the 2 nights and three days for the waterfall experience cost me 240 euro. Really looking forward to this trip. Stayed in bap guesthouse next door for 80000 kip a night. Its my own ensuite room with a fan.was pretty tired so only ventured out to grab some food; traditional Lapp dish and a dark beer lao.

Next morning headed off on the trip. Funny thing is on the way, one of the Jeeps broke down. For this amount of money surely they can invest in Jeeps, right!? Got to the base around midday and broke into two groups of eight. Decided to do the trek the first day and the waterfall the second. Happy with my choice as the group I was in was pretty cool. It was so humid trekking and the jungle was so dense. Pumping sweat! A lot of water is needed on this trip..... Stopped off halfway and picked up our harnesses. This is where the fun begins zip lining! First zip line we tried was 60m long. Bit nervewrecking at the start, but once you get going its exhilarating. No signs of gibbons unfortunately but did see some other wildlife. That night ziplined to our treehouse where we were staying for the night. It had two floors, spacious and incredible views of the forest. The tour guide provided us with dinner and played cards in the evening to pass the time.

Next morning we were up early to start hiking. Did not sleep very well. There was a lot of commotion between bats and rats moving around.....  Seen some gibbons tho in the trees when we were having our breakfast which was our goal all along.. Left the treehouse around 8 for a tough trek in the heat to the waterfall. They prepared lunch for us (quality of the food BTW is not great) and then we chilled out at the waterfall for a while. There was an old zipline across the water that we all practiced jumping in on; good laugh.

We then headed back to the treehouse and rested up after a hard days trekking. At this stage I was wishing I brought more snacks; so hungry! Took a pretty cool shower in the treehouse. Amazing views of the surrounding jungle. Need to be careful also not to slip and fall when your a 100m up! That night we played cards again under our flashlights as the lights did not work in the treehouse. The next morning had a light breakfast of bread and jam and hike back to base. Majority of the trek back was out in the open and in that humidity and heat was pretty challenging. When we finally arrived back to base, we waited in the shade for the Jeeps to bring us back go huay xai.

Overall, I really enjoyed the trip. The group I was in were outgoing and friendly. The treks were pretty tough in the best and the terrain. I loved the ziplining along the way also. The only real disappointment was the quality and portions of food we were given and the lights not working in the second treehouse. Decided not to get the slow boat down the Mekong river in the end and get the Vip bus instead down to luang prabang with a group I met on the gibbon experience. Ticket cost me 180,000 kip.

 Luang prabang (May 2-3rd)

When we arrived in the bus terminal on the outskirts of the town, it was not what I was expecting. But once we got a tuk tuk into downtown, started to see the affects of the French colonialism. The streets and roundabouts were well maintained and chains of restaurants and guesthouses lined the Mekong river. Stayed in khammany guesthouse on the outskirts of the town. Cost 40,000 kip per night. The mixed dorm was fine. Very spacious, clean and each bunk bed had their own reading lamp and socket. As we arrived early we went to grab breakfast in a cafe nearby called Jo ma cafe. Was not disappointed. Their signature bacon and egg bagel was yum.

We strolled around the town after that and checked out some of the temples before stopping off along the riverside for lunch in a place called saffron cafe. Again, not disappointed with the quality of the food. There is many excursions you can do here including elephant treks, waterfall and cave sightseeing. But I decided to book my ticket to Hanoi the next day to get there for the weekend. We checked out the markets that night before heading for dinner in a restaurant called tamarin that was recommended. It was nice to try the traditional laos dishes but the portion sizes unfortunately were very small. Ended the night off by going for a drink along the riverside and getting drenched running back to the hostel in a thunderstorm... :-)

Conclusion

Overall I found Laos to be very expensive even though it is a lot poorer than Thailand. The locals are rather friendly and felt safe at all times.

Thailand

Preparation

Visas

• Thailand: http://www.thaiconsulateireland.com/visaapplication.htm (Double Entry Tourist Visa: €70.00)
• Vietnam: www.vietnamembassy.org.uk (loose leaf visa) Price £59
• Laos:Visa on arrival as i am entering overland.
• Cambodia: Visa on arrival as I am entering overland. 

Travel insurance 

Decided to go with blues insurance. Backpacker insurance for 80 days, grade 3 level (hazardous activites). Cost was 180 EUR.
http://www.blueinsurance.ie/travel-insurance.asp

Travel vaccinations

Majority of clinics quoted me the same price. Decided to stay with TMB as they already had my existing vaccinations on their system. This time it cost me 195 EUR (i know, i know pretty expensive aye... ) This time i only had to get my Hep A and Hep B boosters. So i should be sorted now for the rest of my life!!

Thailand

Bangkok (April 17th - April 19th)

Staying in rambuttri village inn and plaza. Great location near khao San road and grand palace. Facilities include free wifi and two rooftop pools. I arrive just after the Buddhist new years festival so they're maybe water fights still occurring! 

Flew with air China. Smooth flight and not bad food either! The plane was practically empty so had lots of room. First thing when landing was to get a sim pack. Dtac seems to be the most popular provider but went with ais. The plan for the month and sim cost me around 750 baht. Then I got the air train to the final stop paya  Thai for 45 baht. Very modern train. I think its only two years old. Nice view of the outer suburbs of Bangkok. Foilage is so green and lush with lots of palm trees.

From there flagged a cab to my final destination; rambuttri village inn and plaza. Taxi fare cost 80 baht, so cheap! Room was not ready in the morning so I went to the nearby cafe to grab a coffee and relax. I presume the jet lag will kick in soon! Guesthouse seems very busy and a good mix looking at the sign in book at reception! After a nice rest in my new double room took a walk around. The room btw was standard but clean and spacious with ac so have no complaints. So many food stalls to choose from. Picked a spot that was busy with locals and backpackers. Large Chang beer and chicken with chilli and basil came to 120 baht. Followed that up with a scrumptious nutella and banana crepe for 50 baht!

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Next day I got the river boat to the grand palace. Tricky thing is you can easily miss the lane ways out to the pier. I passed it twice! It costs 500 baht to enter the grand palace. You get to see the emerald Buddha temple also. Be weary of all the dudes outside telling you 'its closed' or 'you can't get in with those shorts!'.  Go straight inside and there you can borrow pants for the tour. You just have to leave a deposit down which you will get back on the way out. The grand palace is quite spectacular. Funny thing is when you enter the temple and take your shoes off, the smell of feet is pretty strong! From there I walked down to the museum of siam. I could have grabbed a tuk tuk to break up the journey but I wasn't in any rush. Picked up some fresh mango along the way for 20 baht. You literally can pick up anything on the food stalls! The museum was certainly the highlight of the day. The exhibits are super interactive and entertaining. The cannon ball game at the end is pretty hilarious. Admission was 300 baht and well worthed.

 Chiang mai (19th April - 23rd) 

Arrived at the airport and got a taxi to the airport for 120 baht. Stayed in deejay backpackers. Room is very basic, 3 bed mixed dorm for 97 baht a night. Seems like a pretty socialable hostel. Decided to walk around old town in the baking heat. Viewed most of the temples. Stopped off for a cold beer and a thai beef salad. Nearly choked on the chillis! Found a massage parlour that is run by female inmates in the correctional facility nearby! 180 baht for fully body massage. Never cracked so many bones in my life... :-)

 Met some people in the hostel that night drinking. Decided to rent a scooter with some of them the next day. Renting a scooter was so cheap, only 200 baht a day. headed up the hills of chiang mai to wat phra that doi suthep. The drive was spectacular and amazing views of Chiang mai. Was gaining confidence on my new friend so decided to drive all night around the moat stopping off at different spots eating and drinking! That night strolled around the Saturday market and got another massage. Life is tough!

 Next day decided to do even more driving and do the 70 km loop around Chiang mai. Went off the beaten track and stopped off at some isolated rural villages for a rest and some food. That night headed to the sun day night market. You literally can buy anything at these markets!

 Next day booked an elephant day trek through the hostel. It cost 2250 baht. Tour was called rantong. The trek lasted most of the day including two rides on the elephant. The second time bathing them in the water. Lunch was really good too. One day for me was definitely enough. That night went to see a thai boxing tournament. The fights were entertaining. Even a farang fought at the end. Ended up in zoes that night. Was a late one and had to get a bus journey to pai the next morning; ouch!

 Pai (22nd April - 27 April) 

 Arrived in the afternoon time and decided to stay in charn chai muay thai. Its only a km out of town so rented a scooter to get out there. Checked in and for 400 baht a night got my own private bungalow, ensuite. It included two double beds, fridge, aircon and TV. Not bad! I barely had any sleep and decided to go to the evening training session at 3. What a workout. Lasted nearly two hours. What the hell have I signed up for!

 On a Wednesday morning they run to the temple and back. I did not realise that the temple has steps and you have to run up them three times also,bummer! When I got back I thought that was the session over. But oh no, pad work for 40 mins followed by ab work! Thank god I got my own bungalow as in between sessions you need your rest.

Still found time to head into town and found a cafe that did amazing crepes and a flat white also.. Very small town to walk around but I still prefer driving around on my scooter! Not much sightseeing the first few days as in between sessions I try and layer up in food. You need a lot of energy for these workouts! Oh forgot to say the scooter cost 140 baht per day for 125cc automatic. Still did not much sightseeing as I was beat in between the sessions. But I did manage one morning to get around on my scooter and seen everything literally in under an hour! The photo below is the temple Wednesday we had to run to and run up the steps three times, killer!

Saturday evening then I got a bus from pai to the thai border with Laos. It was a mini bus and was a nightmare of a bus journey. Accommodation was included in the ticket price. Only had a few hours sleep before hitting the thai border post before getting a slow boat over the Mekong river to the Laos side for 40 baht. You need then a passport photo and 36 us dollars for visa on arrival.