Lantas Blog on RealTravel

Kandy journal: Tamils, Tonsils and Tsunami

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 01:19:11 GMT

I was surprized to know that old Morris Minors are still being made in Sri Lanka, helped by the English company Charles Ware's Morris Minors.

Travel to Sri Lanka and I suspect you'll be surprized by quite a few things. In fact, travel just about anywhere in the world that major TV news agencies have recently reported on and I suspect you'll be not just surprized, but confused, angry and/or disappointed as well. It's little wonder in the 21st Century that we are all anxious, suffering from some ailment or another, permanently attuned to and weary of yet another conflict/humanitarian ...

Sri Lanka journal: Sri Lanka: before and after

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 00:58:34 GMT

Sri Lanka has been packing in tourists for as long as tea has been packed in chests. Then, the tsunami of 2004....

Dubai journal: Dubai: The Dark Eyes Behind the White Smile

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 00:53:12 GMT

Naturally, the dream often springs from someone with imagination, power, influence/money (same thing), megalomaniacal tendencies (fathered by benign despot/raised by paid nurse), wholly detached from reality (spoilt), little understanding of the word "no" (add up all previous factors), fuelled by paid advisors (tapeworms)...you can see how good intentions begin to unravel....and then the search is on for someone to build it! At the right price of course. Business. Get the best possible deal for the least possible cash. Dreams are made of such.

In Dubai, you will not even have to leave ...

Amman journal: Hussein's Hashemite Kingdom

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 00:51:14 GMT

If you are going to visit the Middle East and you can only visit one country, then it has to be Jordan. It encapsulates all that is, or rather, could be great about an Arab Islamic country. How? Well it is certainly Muslim, you can hear the call to prayer five times a day everywhere, BUT other religions are tolerated in equal measure (something you won't even find in a moderately Muslim state, Malaysia, for example); the people actually work for a living as, being a relatively poor country, Jordanians can't afford to hire expat labour like most other Muslim countries; as a consequence, they ...

Muscat journal: Oman, the Last Great (Middle Eastern) Adventure

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 00:47:13 GMT

Yes, Oman is dazzlingly different. Beautiful. Sultry. Determined. A heady mix of all these which has helped it conquer vast swathes of Africa in days gone by. It has also helped it to adapt to the pressures of modern tourism and consumerism in its rush not to be outdone by its culturally deficient, but more flagrantly ostentatious neighbour, the UAE.

Indeed, many UAE expats have, over the years, used Oman as an escape from the brazen commercialism and brash de-desertisation that has befallen the Emirates (also because as soon as you cross the border, Omani driving is far more considerate ...

Male journal: Diving Delirium

Sat, 24 Nov 2007 02:55:41 GMT

If you are living in the Sub-continent, any of the volatile countries ending in "stan" or are getting increasingly fat and debt-ridden in the Middle East, then try a trip to the Maldives. It's only a two to four hour flight away and, if you choose your island/resort carefully, you'll be in for a treat.

Not only do you get a really incredible view as you fly over the weirdly spaced dots (islands) that make up this nation, you also get to land on what seems an aircraft carrier as a runway, (indeed, if you dive the "Victory" wreck off Male you'll witness airplanes up close and personal).

Middle East journal: Been There, Seen That, Done That.

Sat, 24 Nov 2007 02:35:51 GMT

You may ask what about Eyqpt? Tunisia? Libya? Kuwait? Lebanon? Syria? Yemen? Iraq? Iran? Bahrain?

Well, a bit like France and the French, each of these countries have beautiful landscapes, pity about the people (generally speaking). Feel free to use the usual guides to these places, but be aware that in:

Eqypt: everyone expects "backsheesh" for breathing (like in Mexico and L.A.). Furthermore, there is no such thing as an humane horse ride around Giza and Pyramids: all the horses here are treated abominably. A pity.

Tunisia: one phrase said to me in the souk says it all, ...

Maldives journal: Maldives: Damned Fine Diving

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 21:03:10 GMT

What else do you go here for, anyway?

Middle East journal: The Rest of the Middle East

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 18:52:13 GMT

You may have read the blogs on the U.A.E., Qatar, Oman and Jordan, so what happened to the other places?

Jordan journal: Jordan: Hussein's Legacy

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 22:42:06 GMT

Possibly the nicest group of people you will ever meet. Except for that (thankfully) dead Al Zaqari character.

Doha journal: Doha Delights

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 06:34:48 GMT

Doha. Host to last year's Asian Games. City of light (remember all those torches?). Centre of Qatari culture. (?) (!). Headquarters of the United States Gulf Forces. Possessor of one of the longest runways in the world and (only metres away from this) possibly the filthiest airport toilets anywhere north of the Equator.

The Equator has another significant bearing on Qatar, too. Waist sizes. Eating (aside from adopting/paying other nationalties would-be athletics/sports stars) is possibly the national sport and with the myriad of places to eat (from the Shebestan to Dairy Queen) it's ...

Oman journal: Oman, the Last Great Adventure

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 02:55:31 GMT

For years, Oman has been the weekend or short break escape route for all those expats who work in the Middle East, but not for too much longer....

Qatar journal: Qatari Queries

Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:46:24 GMT

Were we ever really safe in Doha?

United Arab Emirates journal: Dubai: welcome to the Dark Side

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:19:56 GMT

With the latest news stories about striking workers and rising prices emerging from the Emirate, the truth behind the facade.

Bali journal: Bali International Diving Professionals

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:15:59 GMT

Yes, some would say this is flagrant advertizing, others might claim this is brazen, opinionated favouritism without recourse to experiencing other companies. Well, bollocks to the rabble, I don't care.

BIDP (the acronym for the title of this piece) are a wholly Balinese dive outfit who really do know their stuff. No Australians, Germans, Dutch, Czechs or Brits are involved in any way in any of their operations and this (if you have never been to Bali or Indonesia), upon first sight, could be enough to put you off if you have ever travelled on any Indonesian transport service (you know, ...

Indonesia journal: Bali International Diving Professionals

Thu, 25 Oct 2007 16:04:30 GMT

How a dive package turned into a celebration of all that is good in people.

Ko Lanta journal: Why Come To Lanta?

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 16:22:43 GMT

Well, as suggested in my previous entry, the main invaders have their own reasons. But for the new arrival/tourist /traveller: what makes people want to come in the first place?

What this site isn't about is what you can pick up on the web and in guidebooks (climate/cultural events/etc). There are pretty much five main things to interest people enough to come to this rather detached place: beach holiday; diving; elephant "safari"/jungle/nature walks; solitude (but disappearing quickly); and business.

Beach holiday. As I said in an earlier life, there are miles and miles of great ...

Thailand journal: Lanta Rumour Service

Wed, 05 Sep 2007 22:20:01 GMT

Things to come...

Ko Lanta journal: Ko Lanta: high and low

Wed, 05 Sep 2007 22:17:15 GMT

The great thing about Lanta is that the ferry (like the tide) washes in and washes out all manner of humans: pearls as well as debris. And this happens daily as well as seasonally. Similar happens with bars, bungalows and restaurants, too.

Everyone who visits the island has their own version of what their favourite beach/food/bar/resort is and equally so where they probably wouldn't go again unless there was a change in management. To avoid doing a Lonely Planet job on the places to stay/eat/drink/shop /visit (and therefore inundate those places with even more blandness) I'll try to ...

Thailand journal: Ko Lanta: high and low

Sat, 01 Sep 2007 03:04:20 GMT

Some of the best and worst bits on the island.

Thailand journal: Why Come To Lanta?

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 21:57:08 GMT

And more

Ko Lanta journal: Ko Lanta: Thailand's Sunset "Paradise"

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 15:56:09 GMT

A brief overview of the plight of this island as seen from a resident.

Thailand journal: Ko Lanta: Thailand's Sunset "Paradise"

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 15:53:49 GMT

And