Asia

May 16, 2015

Singapore slings and wild things

Our final stop on our south east Asia trip was Singapore and I had been looking forward to our visit for a few reasons. First, I have been to Singapore about 6 times, although I have never really left the airport. Second, was we were meeting up with a friend of James’s which meant there was no need to worry about guide books or making plans. Finally – I was just looking forward to being one step closer to home!

We arrived mid-afternoon and spent the afternoon looking around Peninsula Plaza which is one of the many shopping centres in Singapore. However, this one is pretty much dedicated to cameras so James had an enjoyable afternoon going from store to store to see what he could find. I ditched him (with love) and went and had a mani-pedi in a spa. So overall, it was an ideal afternoon for the both of us!

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May 16, 2015

Shopping City

Usually I get a bit glum when we head back to a big city as I much prefer exploring the smaller cities and towns in a place, however I was really looking forward to exploring Kuala Lumpur. I was particularly looking forward to having a bit of a shop around too. We stayed close to Chinatown so we had an excellent place to explore on our first afternoon. We walked down Petaling Street which is covered market where you can buy pretty much any counterfeit or rip off clothing, bags and jewellery. It is also home to some hawker food stalls but instead of getting distracted by the food we powered through to visit the Central Market.

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May 13, 2015

High(lands) Tea

After a stunning few days in the Perhenthian Islands our next stop had a lot to live up to. As we drove through winding roads up to the Cameron Highlands in the pouring rain, it wasn’t looking like it would make the cut. Unfortunately, the rain kept up all afternoon but we were staying in a lovely guest house that had cosy lounges and a sheltered courtyard so we had a nice place to relax while we waited it out.

It finally stopped so we made our way down to the main town of Tanah Rata to check out the scene. There was one main road, with a whole bunch of restaurants, shops and tour agencies so our exploration didn’t last too long. Luckily, the sights of Tanah Rata highstreet weren’t the reason we were visiting the highlands.

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May 9, 2015

Island Paradise

From the island of Penang we decided to head across the country to visit the Perhenthian Islands. To do this we had to take what was thankfully the last night bus of our trip to Kuala Besut and from there jump on a boat across to Pulau Perhenthian Kecil (small island). The night bus was pretty comfy, but it did arrive at 5am, which meant we had two hours to wait until the first boat left. We were so exhausted by the time we got onto the boat I fell asleep on the journey and woke up in paradise.

We stayed on the Coral Bay side of the island and as our boat pulled up to the jetty all I could see was bright torquoise water, white sandy beach and palm trees. As we walked along the beach to our resort we passed about 4 guest houses, a couple of beach front restaurants and a few dive shops. That is it! Probably the closest I will ever get to a deserted island paradise.

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May 5, 2015

Penang Revisited

After a fabulous two weeks in Cambodia it was time to move on to our second last country – Malaysia. Our first stop was the island of Penang, which I had actually visited on a family holiday 15 years previously. I was really excited to revisit a place that held fond memories and explore more of Malaysia. The last visit was with family friends and was centred more around lazing by the pool and beach. This time we were staying on the other side of the island so I was interested to see how different it was.

By the time we had arrived from the airport and checked into our guesthouse in Georgetown it was about 5:30pm. So we thought we would have a quick wander of the neighbourhood before the sun went down to get oriented before grabbing dinner somewhere. As we wandered around we spotted our first of a bunch of amazing street art murals as well as the wire cartoons put up around Georgetown by UNESCO. Along with the amazingly beautiful old colonial houses and traditional chinese architecture the whole of Georgetown is a sight to see.

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April 30, 2015

Exploring an Ancient City

Our final stop in Cambodia was Siem Reap and the ancient city of Angkor. First though, we had to get a bus from Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh and then from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. It was a fairly uncomfortable journey and one I am glad I never have to do again. It took just over 13 hours to do the trip and by the time we arrived at our guesthouse in Siem Reap all I wanted to do was crash. After a over a week in bamboo huts and beach shacks we had flashed out a little on a double room with aircon and it was a welcome treat after a long journey.
 
Siem Reap is a great base for exploring the ancient temples of Angkor and for $30 you can get a three day pass that gives you access to everything. We also hired a tuk-tuk driver for the three days at $60 (so $10 per person per day) and he was a great guide and point of contact for all things Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. His first piece of advice was to visit the Phnom Bakheng temple for sunset. As he drove us through the complex where we saw our first glimpse of Angkor Wat before reaching the foot of the hill. We walked for 15 minutes up to the top where we found the ruins of the temple. We climbed its steep stairs to the top and waited with the rest of the crowds for the sun to set. We were there so early and had about an hour to kill before it set so we wandered the ruins, people watched and waited patiently while we were jostled and pushed around by everyone else trying to get their sunset shot.

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April 26, 2015

Beach Bums

We have just spent a lovely three days beach bumming our way around the southern shores of Cambodia near Sihnoukville. I had been looking forward to more beach time for ages and as our minivan from Kampot arrived at the beach I was excited to sea bright blue-green water and long stretches of sandy white beach. We transferred into a tuk-tuk to take us to our accommodation and, once again, we had a bumpy ride along dirt roads before we found our riverside retreat, Mama Clares.

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April 21, 2015

Cambodian Capital

SMPH1109Our first stop in Cambodia was the capital Phnom Penh, and as we arrived into the city by bus we saw that every shop and food stall were shut up shop due to Khmer New Year. We were worried that we would be stranded but thankfully there were plenty of remorque drivers ready for us at the bus station to take us to our guest house, which was thankfully, open. We had a bit of a wander around our area, walking through the gardens and watching Cambodian families enjoy the holidays with picnics in the park but unfortunately, with most things closed, there wasn’t much else we could do. It was a welcome excuse to have a relaxing afternoon at our guest house.

The next day we were told that everything should be open so we were keen to head out and explore. When we got to the Royal Palace though, it was still closed. We decided we would walk along the river and check out the next point of call – a temple complex, but it too was closed. It was a slightly frustrating feeling, not knowing what may be open,so we decided to walk back to our guest house to get some more info. On the way however, we saw that the Museum of Cambodia was open. Finally! Something to visit! We paid our $5 entry free and spent a couple of hours exploring.

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April 18, 2015

Splashing Out

Next stop on our Vietnam itinerary was the beachside town of Mue Ni. After starting to relax at the beaches in Hoi An I was looking forward to a few days of doing nothing but laying poolside and reading a book. The only downside was we had to endure a 21 hour bus journey to get there. What made up for quite an uncomfortable and sleep deprived journey was there was a five star hotel waiting for us at the other end. My generous colleagues had given me an amazing farewell gift of a voucher for a hotel chain and so we flashed out and stayed at the amazing Anantara Beach Resort and Spa.

We walked into the cool calm reception, welcomed with tea and relaxed while our check in was taken care of and our backpacks were carried by the porters. Then it was into our deluxe garden view room with a welcoming bottle of champagne and local fruits. Ah! Heaven. I was tempted to curl up in the cloud like bed or relax in the large stone bath tub but the draw of the pool and beach was too much.

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April 11, 2015

Eat, Shop, Love – Hoi An

We arrived in Hoi An to bright blue skies and a shining sun which was nice after a few smoggy days in Hue. I had been looking forward to visiting Hoi An for a second time as it was my favourite place on my last trip here with my family 13 years ago. Our arrival at our lovely guest house, Thien Tan Homestay, made our arrival even better with a delicious home cooked meal and a friendly chat with the manager. She told us all about Hoi An, where to shop, how to get to the beach and good places to eat. It meant we were ready and raring to head out and explore. Thankfully, the guest house provided free bikes so we jumped on and rode the short trip into town.

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