I've made it to Asia - now how do I get back?
In and around Asia
Ok - first things first - the name: Helen was taken and I was tired so I went with another fairly common reference - 'Mel's sister.' All suggestions welcome but that'll do for now.
As anyone reading this is sure to know I've taken six months off with a rough idea of a plan but no particular aim in mind. I don't have any ambition to change the world and I'd be surprised if I found myself on this trip (I got lost within about 5 mins of arriving - Mum don't worry - it took an hour but I now know exactly where my hostel is - its on road Z somewhere and so long as I stay on road Z I'll be fine). The plan such as it is is to travel a bit and volunteer a bit and get to know a few new people and their cultures.
I'm starting in Nepal - why? - the trip was advertised with a start date of 5th Sept and my contract at work ended on the 3rd so it seemed to fit. Then the plan is India, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and so on. Plans change but its a start...
Route taken and entries by Real Traveler Mel's sister
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1
Happy Home
To give you an idea of how clueless I am about this trip - I flew in to Kathmandu via Doha and when asked where that was I hadn't a clue, when aske... Continue reading »
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2
namaste!
Before you travel, you get a bunch of travel guides and read the lot. A few of them begin by telling you the sights you 'have to' see but a few see... Continue reading »
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Sightseeing in Kathmandu #1
Visited Bodnath ( Buddhist temple similar to Swayambhu - monkey temple - in that the eye of buddha is there and built on a hill but diff. atmospher... Continue reading »
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Village Life
I left this entry blank for a good while because: a) the internet kept crashing and b) it was pretty difficult to extract any sort of meaning from... Continue reading »
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Sightseeing in Kathmandu #2
Came back from the village yesterday afternoon. An hour and a half of the ticket seller banging on the side of the bus to tell it to go and the dri... Continue reading »
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Trek to EBC (5300m up)
Day 1 – Lukla to Phakding (2600m)
Arrived at Lukla at c.6 in the morning. Stopped for breakfast then carried on with the walk to Phakd... Continue reading »
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The volunteer bit
It was a bit of a slow start - having had 2 days enforced 'rest' in Kathmandu, then had a day travelling to Pokhara and resting and a day transferr... Continue reading »
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8
Sunset in Sauraha
Spent the last two days in Chitwan, on the border of the national park. Chitwan is right down in south Nepal - you still have the Himalayas in the... Continue reading »
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9
Nepal - India overland: easy peasy!
I was looking forward to India with a mixture of excitement and dread - more dread the closer to the border I got. I had checked - the border was s... Continue reading »
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10
Varanasi and Sarnath
Arrived at 5am. Overnight train was great - I mean that - I got at least 4 hours sleep on a 6hr journey. Comfortable, berth to myself and 134rs for... Continue reading »
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11
Khajuraho: unexpected and amazing
Khajuraho is a small town, in the middle of Madhya Pradesh, full of Hindu temples which date back to the 10th and 12th centuries. Before I planned... Continue reading »
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12
Orchha: old and a bit grimy
The guide book describes Orchha as:
'An essential stop en route to or from Khajuraho, Orchha ("hidden place") certainly lives up to its name,... Continue reading »
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13
Agra: doing the tourist bit & a morning at the GPO
From reading the guide books and talking to my fellow travellers I was all geared up for 2 days of hell in Agra - a kind of soulless tourist trap w... Continue reading »
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14
East meets West in the Pink City
Arrived at 11pm and got a rickshaw to the hotel. Train from Agra was 5hrs so don't believe anyone who tells you that the bus is faster and cheaper... Continue reading »
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15
No Delhi belly but I think I have the flu!
They must think I'm mad here and I probably am - spend c.45quid on shopping yesterday and then walk everywhere today to save the 10rs or so it cost... Continue reading »
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16
'God's own country?'
It was an inauspicious start - I had a cold, which resting in Delhi hadn't cleared, my taxi driver was late, the plane broke down halfway (Mumbai)... Continue reading »
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17
Varkala, Madurai, Munnar (and Calcutta)
In sum: Varkala - heaven on earth: left because even in heaven I can't spend more than 4 or 5 days by a beach doing nothing but can safely say I've... Continue reading »
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18
Escape from the city
It took me the first two weeks to find my feet with the project and feel settled but, that being done, Julia being gone and the strike being on/off... Continue reading »
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3 days to go
I finish here in 3 days, a fact of which I'm quite glad. I know the children still enjoy having me here but I've got out of it all that I think I'm... Continue reading »
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In search of 'the real Laos'
I left Calcutta 2 weeks ago at midday. 24 hours later I was in Laos having caught the night train up from Bangkok. It was a very smooth ride throug... Continue reading »
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No, I didn't go to the Full Moon Party (I did yoga instead)
Have just finished 30 days in Thailand - having re-entered Thailand from Laos on the 14th leaving on the 12th was just in time - another day and I'... Continue reading »
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Extra photos - Ed and Helen Thailand
Ed came out to Thailand for 3 weeks in Dec '07/Jan '08. I switched memory cards halfway through and gave him the old one for safekeeping. I did not... Continue reading »
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23
Vietnam - the first week
When I was planning this trip back in the UK I was really looking forward to going to Vietnam - a country with a lot of history, beautiful scenery... Continue reading »
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24
The coolest city on 2 wheels
Before I started travelling I had a rough plan of where I was going but only 3 things were fixed - the 35 day trip around Nepal, the month vol... Continue reading »
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25
The final week at the orphanage + 6 days finishing my tour of Vietnam
I wrote my last entry at the start of the third and final week at the orphanage in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. Here's how the last week wen... Continue reading »
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The last 3 weeks - 5.5 days in Cambodia
From HCMC in Vietnam I got the bus through to Phnom Penh in Cambodia. I had 2 options:
(i) Take a boat trip for 2 or 3 days and combine the t... Continue reading »
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