Statue at the entrance to the house.

We have stayed in quite a few dodgy accommodations during our trip, some dirty, some noisy, some too hot, but there was one place in the sleepy seaside town of Hokitika in South Island New Zealand that was particularly memorable. Not because it was dirty, or even dodgy, but it was just plain spooky. It wouldn’t have mattered if it was dirty because we were staying in our own tent on the lawn.

The common room looks like it hasn't been touched in years.

We were making the trip down the West Coast towards Franz Joseph after picking up some food in Greymouth.. Looking at the map, the next logical place to try and get to before nightfall was Hokitika. As we approached the sun was already beginning to set and we were starting to get worried that we wouldn’t get our tent pitched before dark, or find a camp site that was still open. We need not have worried though because we drove past a sign advertising Accommodation and Camping. A quick turn around and we were driving up a lonely path, past an old graveyard and church towards a guest-house on a large expanse of land looking out over the sea. The sky was grey and it was threatening to rain, which added to the gloomy mood of the place. There were two buildings, one looked like the main house and the other looked like an old hospital or nursing home from the 60′s. After a quick discussion, we all agreed that despite it being very spooky, it would be a laugh to pitch the tent and stay there for the night.

The old hospital style beds, complete with partition curtains.

We all sat in the car and debated who would go to the house to discuss the price for pitching a tent on the lawn. After some negotiation, I agreed to go knock on the door. The door was answered by a pleasant enough older lady with long black hair. After some swift negotiation we agreed on $15 to stay for the night. She pointed at the other building and told me we could use the showers and other facilities in the other house.

The hallway didn't help ease the spooky feel to the house.

She walked across the yard with me, unlocked the door to the old building and showed me in. Immediately I felt like I’d walked into a 60′s time-warp, complete with old furniture and decorations. It smelt kind of old too, like your grandma’s old farmhouse. She walked me through the long corridor to where the showers and bathrooms were. A quick glance around some of the rooms and it was apparent that it used to be some kind of nursing home or hospital, complete with hospital style beds and curtain partitions. It had clearly closed down many years earlier and hadn’t been modified or changed since. Once the landlady disappeared back into the main house we proceeded to set up the tent in the fading daylight.

Having a beer and posing for a picture outside the house.

The combination of fading light, grey skies, crashing waves, an old church, graveyard and old nursing home/hospital all added up to a very spooky setting. On top of that we were also the only people that were staying there, adding a lonely feel to the place. We all cracked open a beer and played a game of cards while discussing what exactly the old house had been used for, and why it hadn’t been upgraded since. One thing was for sure, none of us was going to try and navigate through the dark corridors in the middle of the night to use the bathroom.

The next morning, I was brave enough to go and explore the building fully. You can get a feel for the place in the video that I took below. All in all, it made for a memorable and fun experience in the small town of Hokitika. I recommend you check it out if you ever find yourself passing through.

Warmun Aboriginal Community sunset, outback Western Australia

During my time working in regional Western Australia I was lucky enough to be treated to this sunset on a daily basis. I never got bored of leaving work each evening and being treated to the above sunset. The perfect way to end the working day.

Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown. Crystal clear fresh water lake.

If I’m honest, I have to say that, before visiting New Zealand I didn’t know a huge amount about the place, except that Lord of the Rings was filmed there and Queenstown is the Adventure Tourism capital of the world. Pretty much everyone that I’ve talked to who has visited the Oceanic region have either gushed about how amazing New Zealand is or how much they regret not visiting New Zealand. Its a sad fact that when many people from my part of the world who decide to head to the southern hemisphere, New Zealand often gets overlooked in favour of Australia. Here are just some of the reasons why New Zealand should be high on anyone’s agenda.

Scenery

We landed in landed in Christchurch on New Years Day after celebrating the New Year in Melbourne. Needless to say, we were feeling more than a bit worse for wear. Despite sleeping most of the flight I awoke as the plane was reducing altitude to prepare for landing in Christchurch. Looking out the window towards the ground I could see snow capped mountains and I could already see why this was the place that Peter Jackson chose as his location for ‘Middle Earth’ from Lord of the Rings.

It's not hard to see why New Zealand made for the perfect 'Middle Earth' in Lord of the Rings.

There are very few places in the world that can offer up breathtaking scenery around every corner. New Zealand is definietly one of those few places though. Pretty much the whole country, both North and South Islands can offer something that makes you go ‘WOW!’. Its a sheer pleasure driving, from the roadside waterfalls , vast mountain regions, Glaciers and crystal clear lakes of the South Island, to the Volcanoes, bubbling mud pools and stunning beaches in the North Island. Never once was I bored driving in New Zealand.

Sunset in Kaikoura, South Island New Zealand

I’ll never forget the first New Zealand sunset when driving into the seaside town of Kaikoura. The sky had turned to and orange-purple gradient over the sea as the sun was setting. I have never seen anything like it before. This sunset marked the start of many unscheduled photo-opportunity stops through out the New Zealand leg of the trip. If I had to sum up the scenery in New Zealand in one word, the only word that would come even close to summing it up would be EPIC.

Adventure

New Zealand has a reputation as the adventure capital of the world. A reputation it is very proud of, and rightfully so. If its extreme, adventurous or scary in any way, New Zealand offers it. You can do Bungee Jumps, White Water Rafting, Skydives, Mountain Biking, Jet Boating, mountaineering, rock climbing, the list goes on. When the winter arrives you also have the added option of world class Ski and Snowboarding.

Yes, that is me throwing myself off the edge of a cliff, 400 meters above Queenstown. I doubt you'd find a better backdrop anywhere else in the world.

The main hub for most of these activities is in, and around Queenstown on the South Island. Being a bit of an action-man myself I couldn’t resist getting in on the action by doing a Bungee Jump, Jetboating and Bungee Swing in Queenstown. David, a friend from home, was even convinced to take part in the activities and successfully completed all the challenges he was set, although he did need a slight ‘nudge’ of encouragement for the Bungee Jump.

After all the adventure, Donna wasn't the easiest to wake in the mornings. Most of the time she wouldn't get up until I started dismantling the tent.

Donna even got in on the sense of adventure by celebrating her 26th birthday white water rafting . This wasn’t just any tame trip down the river, it was a Grade 5 white water rafting that boasts ‘the highest commercially rafted waterfall (7m) in the world’. If this was going to be her only adventurous activity in New Zealand, I was going to make sure it was a memorable one. It certainly was for me, watching her face as each set of rapids approached.

People

Something that you learn quite quickly while travelling is that its never just the locations or landscape that makes a place; it’s the people that make it special. This is especially true of Kiwi people, they are some of the warmest, genuine, helpful and friendliest people I have ever met. This was immediately apparent from the moment we arrived in Christchurch airport. People were always eager to help out, offer advice, or just strike up conversation. This trait was pretty much universal in New Zealand.

Face to face with Gollum at the Weta Caves in Wellington.

Bus drivers, in particular, were surprisingly helpful in ensuring we got the right bus, got off at the right stop and even stopping to pick us up, despite being at the wrong stop. Another example was when we were trying to find the right road to Papamoa beach and we asked a lady on the street where the nearest iSite (tourist information) was. She was unsure of where it was but walked us up the street to her car, produced a map and explained how to get to Papamoa beach. She even gave us her road map to keep.

Cleanest river I have ever seen.

New Zealand has something to offer everyone, and is a place that should be high on the list of priorities for anyone visiting the Oceanic region of the world. It’s a place I definitely earmarked for a revisit, maybe even an extended stay.

The trip was well worth the money, over 5 days I had encounters with turtles, giant Potato Head Cod, White Tip Reef Sharks, Scorpion Fish, Clownfish, Moray Eels and countless other species of fish. I had rented an underwater camera for the trip and took well over 600 photographs, a selection of which can be viewed below. I’ve also included a couple of videos, showing the shark feed and Cod feed. You can view the full set of images in the Photo Gallery.

Trying to catch a shot of the Potato Head Cod as it swims past.

Hanging over the Abyss. A 1000 meter drop-off at Osprey Reef.

 

Watching the Silver Tip Reef Sharks in a frenzy for some Tuna heads.

Pink Anenomefish.

 

A poisonous Lion Fish trying to make its excape.

 

A Giant Clam sitting among the Coral.

 

Small Nudiebranch makes its way along the Coral.

 

Some soft Coral, a favourite with the Clownfish, AKA Nemo.

 

Look close enough and you should be able to see a grumpy Stonefish frowning at you.

Swimming through a massive shoal of Yellow Perch at Steve's Bommie.

 

I've found Nemo, hiding in the soft Coral.

A small Pufferfish peaking out behind the Coral.

Dolphins joined us for some fun at the front of the boat.

Christmas tree worms appear on the coral in their hundreds. They look just like Christmas trees, hence their name. If they are disturbed they instantly shoot into their hole in the coral.

A Parrotfish decides to pay us a visit. One of many, as they tend to swim in shoals.

 

Striped Humbugs passing by.

One for my Cousin Linda. I told you I would take Teddy everywhere with me. Including scuba diving.

 You can see the full set of photos  from the trip by clicking here.

Scenes like this was normal to us. The quiet streets of Cairns now seemed strange to us.

When we first set out on our trip, I was looking forward to having my first real culture shock.  To a certain extent, our first stop Hong Kong was our first experience, mainly with the food. We had somewhat naively expected the food to be like our local Chinese takeaway at home. This was not the case; instead we were treated to chicken’s feet on street stalls and the smell of shrimp paste in the air. Donna also found herself to be a bit of a minor celebrity, with the locals all wanting their picture taken with her. However, the first major culture shock of the trip for me was arriving in Hanoi, Vietnam. Everything there seemed alien to me; the sheer number of people, crazy traffic, sights, sounds, smells and general way of life.

After the initial shock, we soon got used to it and grew to love it, which is why we chose to live and work there for 4 months teaching English. What was once strange to us, soon became normal. People got to know us; we navigated the crowds and millions of motorbikes with ease. We hopped on and off the back of a motorbike several times a day to go to work, the markets or the gym. We never had the desire to cook, nor had the facilities even if we wanted to. Why would you cook when you had the choice of cuisine from round the world on your doorstep, all for less than a couple of dollars. The Vietnamese were good at cooking not only their own cuisine, but cuisine from other cultures with ease. Bargaining and haggling became a way of life and less tedious as people got to know us. We got to know the Xe Om (motorbike taxi) drivers, Tam the fake book seller, the local street stall owner, restaurant staff and our Vietnamese family; TiTi, baby Louis, ‘laughy woman’ and ‘granny’, among others.

Hitting the Goon (low quality cask wine). No more cheap beer. Alcohol is crazy prices in Australia, even more expensive than at home.

Although I had read quite a few blogs on the topic of reverse culture shock, I wasn’t quite expecting to suffer from it myself. Our first taste of arriving back into ‘western’ culture was arriving in Cairns after spending 8 months in Southeast Asia. The first shock was just how expensive everything was, small bars of chocolate were $2 to $3, and small bottles of water were $3. An even bigger shock was the price of alcohol, where a bottle of cider in a bar cost $12. It was blatantly obvious to us that the days of 40 cent beers were well and truly behind us. Obviously, we knew things were going to be more expensive than Asia, but we were still shocked as just how much more expensive it was. We had quickly gone from living quite comfortably in Hotels and Guesthouses for $3 – $10 each per night to sharing an 8 bed dorm for $20 – $30 each per night.

Arriving in Cairns, we were surprised by how little traffic there was. All the cars obeyed the rules of the road, stopped at traffic lights and adhered to the speed limit. We had gotten so used to constantly dodging motorbikes, weaving in and out of heavy traffic and walking on the roads due to the pavement being blocked with bikes. It was probably more noticeable because we had went from heavily populated Asian cities to the relatively sleepy town of Cairns. Crossing the road was a breeze, because it seemed like the roads were practically empty.

Durian was a popular fruit in Asia, but it smelt so bad it was banned in many hotels and public areas.

It was a sensory overload going from A to B in Asia, from the smell of fish sauce or Durian, motorbikes with 3 seater sofas balanced on the back, hawkers all shouting for your attention and people everywhere. By comparison Cairns seemed a little dull. Where were all the people? Why were there no hawkers? Where were the millions of bikes?

It seemed old habits from Asia also died hard. I was so used to removing my flip-flops before entering many buildings in Asia that I was slightly embarrassed when I instinctively kicked off my flip-flops before entering a dive shop in Cairns.

Opening hours also seemed bizarre to us. Shops opened from around 10am and closed again at 4pm (or earlier if the owner could get away with it). Was this what it’s like at home? In Asia most places opened from early in the morning until at least 10pm. Infact, most of our trips or journeys were booked late the night before. It seemed that were were going to have to be a little more organised in Australia. As it turns out this seems quite common in most towns in Australia. The bigger cities tend to have more extended hours and open late (until 9pm) at least once a week.

The people also seemed less friendly, don’t get me wrong, they weren’t unfriendly but we were no longer greeted with beaming smiles and friendly questions. Nobody seemed to care who we were, where we were from, where we were going, how we got here. The naturally friendly and inquisitive nature of Asians was replaced with slightly more guarded Westerners.

Catching Cane Toads. Just another normal day in Australia.

The comparisons with Asia continued for a few months as we adapted back into Western society. Now, 10 months after first entering Australia, I have went from being a bit Asian to being a bit Aussie. I’m more laid back now and I usually reply to questions with ‘No worries’. What next? Wrestling Crocodiles while shouting out the word ‘Crikey’. I would rule nothing nothing out any more. I’ve done so much that I never thought, or even knew I could do. Some might say that I’ve become a bit of a Yes Man. catching cane toads and getting stuck in the outback overnight being just a couple of note worthy, and equally random things that I’ve done. All of which will be covered fully in a blog shortly. This is the western world but not as I knew it.

Needless to say, I may have to prepare for reverse culture-shock part 2 when I do eventually return to the homeland.

Before embarking on a trip, hope and pray you like the people you do meet because it’s not going to be the last you see of them. I don’t know if it is because we cling to our photocopied or otherwise ligit copies of Lonely Planet but these days most of us are heading in the same direction.

It might just be a faded concept that the travelling folk are all hippies with backpacks that whip out a compass and let the wind take them to the next town.  More so nowadays, most backpackers end up doing a fairly similar route when covering a country and therefore, you end up spotting people you know along the way.

South East Asia was great for this. Meeting people during tours, chatting to them randomly on the street or spotting them on a bus, however you met, you’d be guaranteed to see them again in said country or the next.

If you really wanted – you could call it a modern day serendipity – fate bringing all these people together time after time but it’s kind of crazy to think how you can bump into someone in three different countries considering the distance and time spent travelling between them.

Phil was the best example. It happened when we were tubing in Laos. We got chatting to Phil because he was from 20 minutes down the road from me in Ireland. It was one of those short “We’re from the same place” conversations lacking any great detail.

Moving on with our travels, I think we might have bumped into aul Philly boy at least 5 times again…in Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, never really finding out much about him when we chatted but it became a running joke to us that we’d spot him in the next town without a doubt. He even bought a South America Lonely Planet guide before he left to go home to Ireland so I’m guessing we’re going to see him there too at some point.

It is obvious that over this huge span of land, meeting people time after time following a similar intinerary is bound to happen. Ok..but how can you explain when it happens just living in one city?

Brisbane is another place that you are guaranteed to bump into people! It’s that kind of place.

I got chatting to a guy on a bus one day coming home from work and we got talking. Of course I never passed any remarks after meeting him and went on about my business.

A few weeks later… on a different bus route – I see him again. Making the usual “oh fancy seeing you here” chat I get off the bus and think nothing more of it.

Three months later, I start a new job and of course who is sitting in the office…but my bus friend!! We don’t run in the same circles, live in the same area or know the same people but have bumped into each other randomly on quite a few occasions!

Regardless of routes, money or committments… it’s something you can guarantee will happen and  will keep you on your toes as to who you might see next.

Sunset in Siem Reap

A street scene in Siem Reap in Cambodia. You never get sunsets like you do in SE Asia and this is an example of street life as the sun was setting. Lovely small town with great bars, cafes, restaurants and of course the Temples of Angkor.

40+ Degree heat and no air con or water is not fun.

Conked out from the power cut, G tries to find some refuge on the cold tiled floor with not much on as a long night of 40C  with no air-con or electricity kills us. Disgustingly sweaty, we both jumped into the pool the minute the sun came up to try and cool down.

Break down. Not impressed.

The bad luck continued the following day with an unsuccessful night bus knocking someone down, a 4 hour wait for the next bus in the middle of the night, a rocky and speedy journey on the second bus which then broke down and just about now if you look above to the pic…you can see my pissed off face. Yup this was my breaking point….almost 15 hours after we left Siem Reap… nearly died.. two or three times in one night… I lose it 15 km away from our final destination. I would have walked it just to eventually get there!!

Snacking on some Locusts.

This woman is having a snack on some locusts at the border crossing of Cambodia and Vietnam.  As delightful as they look, I just wasn’t in form for them that day.

Singha and Diet Coke.

The beginning of the end. Our favourite drinks to accompany dinner in Thailand…in Thai!! When I was feeling mad…I’d go for a Mai Thai!!

Beach bum.

This is wee Buddha bum. All the kids in Vietnam were cute (although after teaching them for four months I can also say slightly annoying at times too) but Buddha is one of my favourites. Everytime he ran into the water his shorts would fall down round his ankles… giving us a different type of full moon…something I giggled at the whole day.

Sleeping beauty.

The joys of the sleeper bus. This picture was taken while I was conked out on our journey to Mui Ne. A rare occasion that we got a sleeper bus during the day… I took advantage and had a good kip with the bally blanket wrapped me for good measure while G posed to make sure he got the best angle of himself in the photo. I’m a gorgeous sleeper, right? Powerful!

Poster girl for the Mui Ne sand dunes. Sexy!

It wouldn’t be a best pics blog without including one of the numerous sand dune pics we took in Vietnam. Much to everyone’s entertainment, and probably the first time of the trip…G and everyone else got plenty of giggles from my facial expressions rather than the activity itself. Priceless.

Having a chat.

This really captures the madness of day-to-day travel in Saigon. With 5 million motorbikes on the road in this huge city, hopping on and off these things becomes the norm. This is us having a wee chat while stopped at the traffic lights. Totally alien now I think back.

Baby Louis choosing his future career.

Louis Louis Louis Louis Louis. The baby of the hotel we stayed at while living in Saigon. He was so cute and when he grows up he’s going to be a doctor!!

Taxi, Vietnamese Style. Yes, that is my backpack wedged between his legs.

Me and my motorbike man. He was my personal driver the whole time I stayed in Saigon and he liked me so much he even bought me my own special helmet…as modelled in the photo. This was taken on the last day when him and his mate brought us to the aiport to leave. Yes, we did drive through the mad traffic with my backpack inbetween his legs and I did fear for my life a few times when he couldn’t see over it. But alas we made it in one piece.

Hong Kong. The beginning of the trip and the beginning of my stardom among the Asian population. This woman purposely made her way over to me to ask could she get a photograph with me. So started a wave of Asian men and women asking me for a pic with them…or just randomly taking photos of me in the street. Oh to be famous eh?

Another start to something that would become a regular activity within our year away. Gareth’s love to trek up steps and take great joy in watching me clamber up behind in the distance. This is the first example of a steep trek up a mountain in Hong Kong to get the best viewing spot to see white dolphins. Alas, the only dolphins we saw that day were the white plastic kind that were planted on top of the mountain. Worth the trek?… I think not.

You learn something new about the person with your travelling with every day. This day I learned of G’s excellent karaoke skills. Asking the taxi to bring us to the nearest karaoke bar… we were escorted to a hotel converted into a karaoke establishment. We were brought to our own private room…feeling like a prostitute checking into a cheap motel..we were told to be out by 5am. “We’ll only sing a few songs…we’ll be well gone by 2am,” we thought. Cue getting back to the hotel at 6.30am with a McDonalds breakfast in tow.

One of the best things about Bangkok. The street bars.. a little shack rolled out onto the street for drunk locals and tourists alike to go have a drink after you’ve been to a club or bar. We loved a particular Lisa Street Bar and visited Lisa all 4 times we were in Bangkok.

One of those stops most people overlook but was key for entertainment value. Seeing the renegade monkeys run riot around Lopburi was a real pinnacle of culture shock for us. These monkeys use telephone wires of the town as their own  personal playground and climb the windows hoping to get a snack from people inside. Just after this pic was taken…the cute little monkey started pulling G’s hair and he found it very difficult trying to shake his new friend off!!

The Laos Slowboat. All smiley faces as we get down early to get the “best seats” on this coffin ship. Of course Murphy’s Law follows us about with latecomers getting put on a second boat with big comfy leather airplane style seats as we’re left to do the 2 day journey on wooden pews. Typical eh? The beginning of the trip that seen us stranded on the beach for the night. Only in Asia!

What can you expect for $3 dollars a night? At Mr Miagi’s guesthouse in Luang Prabang.. G looks like the grim reaper as he doesn’t trust the sanitary standards in the room. I learned a lot throughout the year…one thing being – if G whips out the sleepliner…then we’re definitely sleeping in a shithole!

Monkstalking! I love this pic. Monks are very friendly with each other as we got this snap of two friends walking along the street… and have no embarrassment by putting their arm around each other… although the irony of them walking past a van with “Playboy” and a monk inside in it just sums up Asia in a photograph.

St Paddy’s Day – This expression sums up how drunk we all were in one hilarious snap.

What a way to get over one of the biggest hangovers ever – a day at the beach. Nha Trang has some of the best waves as George experienced by getting beat about. Great to clear the head and have a good laugh…battling the monstrous waves was one of our favourite things to do in the beach town!

We’ve been on the road for one full year today. Both of us want to reflect on some of our favourite bits we might have missed out on during our travels and our hopes for what’s to come in 2011.

Donna…

Last Magners on Irish soil in Belfast City Airport

From the first sip of Magners at Belfast City Airport waiting to board the first plane of our big adventure to the 1.5 ltr of water I’m drinking typing this on New Zealand’s Interisland ferry, a lot has happened in the past year!

Sitting in the bar excited to kick-start the trip, we both made a promise to at least last until the summer…meaning we could both go home with our heads held high and not be embarrassed about returning home earlier than planned.

Our original itinerary from 16th January had us staying in S.E Asia for 7 weeks…covering 4 countries in that time frame…going to Australia to work for a few months, continuing to travel New Zealand for one month and then hopping over to South America to round off our trip at Christmas and be home for 15th January.

With our Vietnamese family celebrating baby Louis 1st birthday.

As it stands today, we’re a bit behind on the original plans as we currently are spending the second half of January in the North Island of New Zealand. What changed from 7 weeks in S.E Asia turned into 8 months of travelling the countries and spending 4 months teaching English in Vietnam. Loving life there.. it was tough saying goodbye to the place we spent the majority of our trip but we moved onto Australia…where our plans changed even more. With jobs in Brisbane…but time running out, we decided to keep our original NZ plans….drop the ticket to S.A and home…and return to OZ to work instead of catching that BA flight back to Belfast. In our usual style we don’t know what the future holds but I’m sure we’ll make our minds up as we go along. Why change the habit of a lifetime eh?

As for 2010… It’s quite hard to sum up a year of culture shock, growing up, near death experiences into one blog but we both have our favourite bits.

The beginning of the end of the Hue clusterfuck

I have my own personal memories that will always stick in my head and also have the funny stories we repeat when we’re chatting to new people. One thing I’ve learned over the past year which could be a metaphor for life I suppose is…it may seem like it’s the worst possible situation at the time….but those are the things that make the best stories!!

It’s hard to pick a favourite place out of all the cities, villages, townships, rivers we’ve visited. I’ve got my favourites in each country I suppose and I pick them purely because of the experiences there.  For example, Hue in Vietnam is not the biggest tourist destination in the country. It doesn’t have the beautiful beaches of Nha Trang or the busy city life of Saigon but if we didn’t stop off at this pitstop we never would have had the story of “Fuck Liar” – one of my faves!! It’s the small places you wouldn’t think twice about bypassing that make the best memories sometimes. This kind of sums up what S.E Asia is all about…which is what I loved about it.

A long way from home on Phi Phi Island

I remember sitting in Phi Phi and ringing home on Sunday night – the week before we left to go to Australia. I remember telling my mam it was the last time I’d be chatting to her in Asia.. and I felt a wee bit sad about it. Leaving paradise in the Islands was pretty hard but it was funny when we did arrive in Cairns the week after and Gareth took his flip flops off outside a dive shop before going in to ask about trips. Stupid things like that will always make me giggle!

Life in Oz has been great in a different way… it’s a complete reverse U-Turn to what we knew in Asia but the lifestyle is much more relaxed with lots to do at the weekend and we get to earn big bucks while doing it. The BBQs….weather (when it’s not flooding) and things to do in the city are things we miss out on in Belfast…which makes working not so bad.

Rounding off the year in New Zealand has been a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know what to expect but I’m well impressed what I’ve seen so far. Being on the road again after a short stint of working is great… It’s a brilliant country to drive around and camp in…something we’d never really get the opportunity to do anywhere else so it has been great. Not being into the countryside really I’ve changed my opinion just driving through the mountain ranges and crystal blue rivers and lakes camping along the way which has been great craic.

As a new year begins…so does a new adventure with who knows what 2011 has in store for both of us. I’m sure it will match the excitement and thrills of 2010.

Gareth…

What an incredible year it has been.  We’ve experienced so much and have countless stories to bore people with when we do finally make it home. From the moment we stepped on the plane in Belfast its been an absolute blast.  The initial culture shock in Hong Kong was nothing compared to when we arrived in Bangkok, then just as we had got used to Thai culture we were thrown into Laos, and possibly the biggest culture shock of all…Vietnam.  It’s very hard to sum up the highlights of the trip as there have been so many but I’ll touch on a few of my personal highlights so far.

Going for the windswept look in the back of a Tuk Tuk

Bangkok the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and (hopefully not the final) 4th visit

Bangkok is a crazy, crazy place for travellers that are new to Southeast Asia. It’s a real melting pot of culture, sleaze, sex tourists and crazy traffic.  The first time we arrived here we had our guard up and were worried about getting mugged, murdered, robbed or scammed.  Luckily, we negotiated at the airport and arrived at the Suk 11 hostel without encountering any of the above.  After initially settling in we plucked up the courage to venture out onto the streets and into the madness.  It was mental and left us feeling drained so we soon retreated back into the hostel for the rest of the evening.  We couldn’t wait to get out of the city first time round but this soon changed on the subsequent transit visits.  Bangkok is a city that grows on you and by the 4th visit I was loving it.

Spooning like melted ice-cream - Joanne and Donna cuddle for heat in Laos

Being stranded on the Mekong river in the middle of nowhere in Laos

This is a classic example of how a seemingly bad experience at the time can turn into a fond memory.

Despite being stuck in the middle of nowhere, the Laotian people really knew how to make the best of a bad situation.  They set up camp, complete with music and food stalls, not forgetting the alcohol.  It had a real party vibe.

A full account of the experience can be found in my ‘Mekong Madness‘ blog post.

Danger Area! But not off limits.

Exploring the ancient temples of Angkor in Cambodia

The Indiana Jones in me has always wanted to visit here but after suffering from Temple fatigue throughout Northern Thailand and Laos I was worried that I might be disappointed.  I need not have worried because it was incredible.

Only in Cambodia are you given pretty much free reign to explore anywhere in the sprawling complex. As you can see from the photograph, I roamed every nook and cranny of the dilapidated temples. The Lara Croft in me took over and I was like a kid in a candy shop. I even got to see where they filmed the Tomb Raider movies at the Ta Prohm temples. It was amazing to see the trees overgrown on the ancient landmarks. My favourite has to be the Bayon temple…with a number of faces etched into the stone walls. A real beauty.

Check out my photo blog for some of the highlights of the visit.

Happy Birthday G - Vietnamese hospitality at its best

Living and working in Saigon, Vietnam

Vietnam was always a major point of interest for me when we were first planning the trip and I was looking forward to visiting and travelling through this country.  Little did I know that I would be living and working there for 4 months.  Ho Chi Minh City – with a huge population of over 7 million people – was the city of choice for our 4 month stint.  After an initial shaky start with finding  jobs and getting used to a city with such a huge population we began to feel at home there and really began to see a whole different side to the Vietnamese people.  When it was time to leave we were both genuinely sad to be leaving our second home behind.

Check out my Day in the Life blog for a sample of what it was like living there.

Bronzed and loving the Islands in Phuket

A month of madness on ‘The Islands’ of Thailand

After our 4 months teaching in Vietnam we were both ready for some partying and relaxing and the Islands of Southern Thailand was just the ticket.  Thailand really is something special.  Our trip started back in Bangkok for the forth time with some vodka buckets on Khao San Road then on to a beachfront bungalow on Koh Tao for some advanced scuba diving. Next stop was the equally stunning (but a bit more touristy) island of Koh Samui before skipping across to the west coast to Phuket.  After Phuket we made our way back across to the east coast for the full moon party on Koh Phangan.  By this stage we were both suffering a bit from paradise island fatigue (and mega hangovers) but ventured back across to the west coast again to spend the last few days of our Asian adventure on Koh Phi Phi.  Koh Phi Phi was simply incredible and had a laid back, relaxed vibe to it.  It was the perfect way to finish up that leg of the trip.  Even now, 4 months on, we are still dreaming of going back to the land of smiles.

Feeding the Giant Potato Head Cod 18 metres deep on the Great Barrier Reef

Diving the Great Barrier Reef

This was also high on my list of priorities when we were first planning the trip.  Having gained my Advanced PADI course while in Koh Tao I was keen to do it properly.  This is the first and only time on the trip (so far) where I really blew the budget.  I opted for a 5 day live aboard trip that took us to the outer, more pristine Barrier Reef.  This included a visit to the ‘Cod Hole’ where we were able to dive with and witness giant Potato Head Cod feed.  The weather conditions also allowed us to dive Osprey Reef with a 1000 metre drop-off, vast quantities of marine life and hundred of silver tipped reef sharks up close and personal.  We were also able to witness the sharks in a feeding frenzy as they tucked into Tuna heads.

That’s just a small sample of events and memories that have made up an incredible year of travels.  Who knows what 2011 will have to offer but we’re looking forward to finding out.