Asia Trip 2006
In and around Southeast Asia
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Route taken and entries by Real Traveler Caroline in Asia
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Day 1: In Bangkok
We survived the gruelling over 24 hours worth of flights and arrived in Bangkok at about 2AM time here. We were exhausted! But the... Continue reading »
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Bangkok: Our "how many modes of transportation can we take in one day" challenge
We woke up in time for the hotel's breakfast (or, more accurately, we set an alarm so that we wouldn't miss the free breakfast). It was a b... Continue reading »
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Bangkok: Asia's Venice
We woke up this morning less than eagerly after yesterday's marathon of sightseeing. Nonetheless, we bounded out of bed with about 10 minut... Continue reading »
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Out of Bangkok, into Condom-Land
We woke up early to grab breakfast before checking out of the New World Lodge hotel. (note: that night was the first and only night we did NO... Continue reading »
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Pattaya city by day
We woke up to -- you guessed it -- another hot and sunny day. The thought of a lovely, complimentary breakfast at our new favourite restauran... Continue reading »
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On the road again: The Odyssey to Koh Chang
We set out from Cabbages and Condoms with sad hearts (it was just so nice there!) and were pleasantly surprised by the final bill -- just over 8000... Continue reading »
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Memories from Thailand -- front end of trip
Best cockroach exposure: under Kris' pillow at New World Lodge Hotel... she touched it, then screamed and then we killed it
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They don't call it the Rainy Season for nothing
We woke up this morning and I was very expectant to see our beautiful ocean at last, but for the first time in a week, it was not the sun that gree... Continue reading »
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Sunny days on Ko Chang's Kai Bai Beach
We woke up estactic to see the sun shining outside our balcony. The ocean looked gorgeous and blue in the morning sunlight. We got down... Continue reading »
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We discover Elephant Island
Sunny day again -- hooray! Went down to breakfast and found that the waffle kiosk was just serving fresh pancakes -- hooray! No one on... Continue reading »
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On the road again: Back to Bangkok
We woke up to another hazy day on Ko Chang, but determined to get in a last few hours on the beach, we struggled out of bed and out to breakfast.... Continue reading »
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Bangkok: Kris' last day
Woke up this morning and attempted to plot out an itinerary for the day. It was Kris' last day, so we wanted to make the most of it and make... Continue reading »
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Wat's in a Wat?
Today was a day of firsts... let me explain:
First day without Kris and we planned to keep our mourning minds occupied with a short 1-day tri... Continue reading »
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Back from Ayuthaya, Meeting our GAP Travel Group!
We woke up pretty early at our neat little guesthouse, eager to make a start on the day. We wanted to back in Bangkok in good time because to... Continue reading »
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Bangkok's Chatuchak Market
With the rest of the group headed to a Klong tour and visit of the Grand Palace, Liz and I decided to go to the Chatuchak Market, Bangkok's weekend... Continue reading »
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Off the train, into the Jungle
The lovely train staff woke us up around 5:30 AM -- by far our earliest morning of the trip! -- and the tired passengers slowly drifted back to con... Continue reading »
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Jungle Fever
With plans to go on a lake and cave tour in the National Park, Liz and I set the alarm fairly early, but when it went off, all I could do was groan... Continue reading »
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We arrive at the Beach!
After 3 painful hours in a minivan, we arrived in Krabi around mid-afternoon. Liz and Jane carried my bag up to the guesthouse, where I promp... Continue reading »
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With the wind at our backs
Another early start, but this one was going to be well worth it because we had booked a boat tour and snorkeling trip around five of Krabi's beauti... Continue reading »
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Beach day at last!
Although we had spent the day island and beach-hopping, we were longing for a lazy day at the beach, so a group of us set out in the midmorning to... Continue reading »
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Goodbye Thailand, hello Malaysia!
Another very early morning was necessary to get on the road out of Thailand and into Malaysia. We were warned that it would be a long day --... Continue reading »
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The Dark Side of Georgetown
Liz woke up at the very early hour of 5AM to the sound of praying in the neighbouring mosque. Since Malaysia is a muslim country, morning pra... Continue reading »
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Tea and Scones... Yes Please!
I am absolutely blown away by the scenery here. Okay, now that I got that off my chest, I can regale you with stories from here...
We... Continue reading »
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Tea-cinos at 5000 Feet
After a quiet -- but late -- night of mangosteens (if you want to know more about these mangosteens I keep referring to, click on: Continue reading »
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Pretending we are Catherine Zeta Jones in Entrapment
Oh, last night was fun, but too many more fun nights like that and we won't survive this vacation... hahaha
Getting up this morning was defin... Continue reading »
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26
Opium Dens in Melaka
Saying good-bye to the stunning city of KL was tough, but I'm getting pretty accustommed to moving on and I am definitely enjoying seeing new pla... Continue reading »
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27
Of Singapore slings and tribal warfare
Hanging in the opium den wasn't all that bad last night, I guess. We sort of bonded, told jokes and just had a low-key evening as a group, probab... Continue reading »
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Jakarta: a whole new world
After retrieving Sara -- who had not yet really gone to sleep... it was a wild last night in Singapore, I guess! -- we grabbed a quick breakfast... Continue reading »
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Liz's Birthday in Pangadaran's Paradise
An early start to the day led to a very LONG travelling adventure, including 4 hours by train, 6 hours by bus, a few cabs and culminating with a... Continue reading »
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30
Into the Earthquake Zone
It was so tough to leave Pengadaran, even tougher because it meant that we needed to get back on the god awful train. And it was god awful,... Continue reading »
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31
Visiting a Natural Wonder of the World
Our goal was to climb to the peak of a seven story ancient ruin before the noon-day sun scorched us to death, so it was a very early morning to boa... Continue reading »
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32
Getting WILD in Penanggungan!
The journey to the Seloliman Nature Reserve is a long one -- and definitely not a pretty one--, but, as we discovered, well worth the investment.&n... Continue reading »
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33
Loving Life in Lovina
We woke up this morning still reeling from the previous evening's news (and the wine...). We were pretty disturbed to watch the BBC during br... Continue reading »
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Sunrise at Bromo, Sunset in Bali
When we first arrived at our Mount Bromo accomodation, we were pretty impressed. The place seemed very... well, rustic, feeling almost like a... Continue reading »
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35
Rice Paddies and Cool Weather
-lazy morning in Lovina, Liz got a massage, I got the fantastic hair mask
-Lunch at fancy thai places -- 4 courses, lots of sharing
-an... Continue reading »
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36
Paradise has a name, and its name is "Meno"
Our Song
Yeah man, by the beach here, see the fire (bon fire)
Wesley's passed out... by the fire (bon fire)
Twelve hours by the b... Continue reading »
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The Whirlwind of Ubud
--We were anxious to get into Ubud, because we wanted to plan our trip to Gili Meno and our anxiousness was felt by the gods and punished us for it... Continue reading »
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Surfing the Waves in Kuta
--woke up very early to catch the 8AM flight back to Bali... had to wake up the hotel staff to open the gate so that we could leave! Taxi to... Continue reading »
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40
Living the Tourist Life in Singapore
--Landed in Singapore, classic efficiency.... very good. Especially the cab
--Wanted to stay at Inn Crowd and although Liz had made onl... Continue reading »
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Back "home" in Bangkok
Arrived in Bangkok after midnight, after a very tiring day of the high-speed Catamaran and VIP bus from Ko Tao. It was kinda nice not to have... Continue reading »
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44
Humbling HCMC
Arrived safely in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) after a (thankfully) unexciting flight. "We're not in Singapore anymore, Toto," I jokingly said to... Continue reading »
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45
Opening our eyes to Cambodia
An 8-hour bus journey, including an exhilirating border stop, brought us from Vietnam to Cambodia's Phnom Penh. After a full day of travellin... Continue reading »
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Playing Lara Croft in the Angkor Ruins!
details and pics to come Continue reading » -
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Kicking Back in Vientiane
it is sooooo relaxing here...send update soon In the meantime, look at the pics from Bromo Continue reading » -
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Enjoying the "Outdoor Museum"
Arrived safely by plane this afternoon and after finding our bags, we found our way to a mini-bus cab to be driven into town. Our "cab" was also... Continue reading » -
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