Go Pee Pee

Monday, September 27, 2010 Katie and Taylor
Beach week – A week where Odyssey lets us loose in Thailand to relax/swim/dive/meet family/do what you want wherever you want. To the east: Koh Tao, Koh Phang Nga and Ko Samui were host to some Odysseyers but we opted for the quieter west coast Island of Koh Phi Phi with Neill and Kylie.

We left Bangkok on an overnight bus which dropped everyone off at their hop off points to their chosen Island. Krabi was our hop off point which didn’t look like it had too much to offer, but we didn’t get a chance to find out as we quickly hopped onto our ferry to Koh Phi Phi.

Koh Phi Phi was one of the many unlucky islands that was struck by the Asian Tsunami in 2004. The island has a narrow isthmus between two bays; Ton Sai and Loh Dalum which were devastated in the disaster but little evidence of the Tsunami can be seen today.  Bamboo huts, buildings and boats which were washed away have been replaced and the centre of Ton Sai (the main village) is once again a bustling little area with busy restaurants, dive schools and guesthouses all around. A memorial park has been created for the 4000+ locals and tourists killed in the disaster and a small Tsunami village has been created high into the hills to house those left with nothing after the devastating freak of nature.  They have also toughened up on communication and evacuation sites all over the island. It’s quite strange seeing Tsunami evacuation routes and designated safe buildings to flee to in the case of a tsunami, but its reassuring to see.

Our plans were to stay for a few days then head to Phuket then Ao Phang Nga National Park before catching up with the group in Khao Sok National Park but as soon as we arrived we decided this was the place for us and a few days turned into the whole week. We had booked Bamboo Bungalows for the first night but didn’t last long there as the rooms felt like saunas and for half the price we could have something better. A piece of advice if you travel to Koh Phi Phi, wait to book your accommodation when you get there, the internet is not cheaper and you can hunt around for good deals for all budgets! Also when you arrive you get charged 20baht for “pavement tax” so be prepared.

There are tour operators and diving schools all around offering the best deal for one trip or another. On our first day we opted to do a day trip around Koh Phi Phi Ley, an uninhabited island off the South West coast of Koh Phi Phi Don (our island). The trip took us to monkey island, pirate cove, a stunning lagoon and then Maya Bay otherwise known as “The Beach” from the film “The Beach.” The beach is stunning but not quite as serene as the film due to the masses of boats and tourists. We were able to snorkel and swim at these stops and in my case get injured at nearly every stop. A cut here and a bruise there before getting stung by a jelly fish – no Taylor didn’t pee on me – but I looked like the walking wounded by the end of the day surprisingly didn’t get sunburnt (it’s a miracle)! After lunch we headed for Bamboo and Mosquito Islands for some more snorkelling before heading back to the pier. We hoped to watch sunset from the boat but the weather wasn’t on our side.

A short sweaty hike up to the viewpoint the next day was well worth it, the view was stunning! We later moved hotel rooms and our luck was in as our new room overlooked the whole island - spectacular so we sat and watched the sun go down from their with some Sky Wine Coolers and Chang Beers – This is the life!

Kylie and Neill left the next day for Railay beach back on the mainland. We stayed put and went out in search for accommodation with a swimming pool. We finally settled in a resort just off the main stretch of town for a bit of luxury, our first upgrade of the trip £14 per night for a bungalow with AC, a swimming pool and all you can eat brekkie, can’t really say no!

We did very little the rest of the week, walked to other beaches, swam in the sea, swam in the pool, read some books, ate some amazing seafood and watched time fly by it was great just to stop for the week. Tomorrow we head for Khao Sok to meet back with the group. This national park is an Odyssey first so we’re really looking forward to it also need some exercise after our lazy week by the sea!
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Jack Bauer to the Rescue!

Monday, September 20, 2010 Katie and Taylor
After the hustle and bustle of Bangkok we have just been in Kanchanaburi, and its a breath of fresh air! Joe Tourist hasn't invaded here yet so it isn't over run with people trying to sell stuff, just very chilled out. We all stayed in Apple and Noi's hotel which over looks the river and serves some of the best food we have ever tasted.


We rented bikes to see many of the sights around here which is an awesome way to get around and get some exercise at the same time. Visited the Chong Kai war cemetery which sits on the site of an old POW camp site and contains 1,740 remains (by countries: 1,379 British, 313 Netherlands, 42 Malayan and 6 Indian) from the second world war. Also cycled to a monkey school where orphaned monkeys are nursed back to health along with being taught how to play basketball?!


We also visited the River Kwai bridge which has been in many films through the years,brought from Java by the Japanese supervision by Allied prisoner-of-war labour as part of the Death Railway linking Thailand with Burma. Still in use today, the bridge was the target of frequent Allied bombing raids during World War II and was rebuild after war ended.


A bit of a messy night out on the last night for the boys where some shoes were lost, then found again and a certain Mr Schreiber was carried home by Jack Bauer would you believe!
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Ladyboy GaGa

Friday, September 17, 2010 Katie and Taylor
Crossing into Thailand we got the first minibus of the trip and sped all the way to Bangkok – reached 100mph at one point and dodged death quite a few times! Checked into the back-packer area of Bangkok just off Khao San Road which has lots of cheap food stalls and even a Boots pharmacy so we settled in nicely, didn't blend in with the hoards of baggy Aladdin trousered/ dread-locked travellers though!

Bangkok was one of those places we were really looking forward to seeing and with 3 full days to explore we thought we’d have plenty to do. However sightseeing wasn’t really on our agenda so we spent a lot of time faffing and have nothing really to show for it apart from a slight dent in the old bank account. One major highlight was sending our souvenirs back home which has reduced the size and weight of our bags considerably –sad I know but when you’re carrying stuff that you don’t need around for 5 months you’re glad to get rid of it!

We all headed out on the second night where Pete "treated" us to a deep fried bug each.. eeew! Poor Ben got a bit of a shock when the entire bag of bugs (minus the ones we'd eaten) were thrown over him.. heehee. Some of us ended up in what seemed the only bar not playing thumping dance music and had live music instead, it’s always great to hear normal music again. The Man United Rangers game was on at 1.45am so we hung around the bar till kickoff as they said they’d play the full game for us but politely kicked us out at 2. We tried another bar who was advertising the game but had thumping music on in the background. We eventually realised it was on in our hotel room so headed back.

We managed to find an English cinema the next day (it wasn’t difficult) and even a Tesco Lotus superstore on the way (it’s the little things). After having to stand for the Thai national anthem The Expendables started, cost only £1.50 (including popcorn!). Later we strolled through the red light or Patpong district where we were offered numerous ping pong shows – no need to explain but we politely declined and choose to play spot the ladyboy instead!

That’s Bangkok done, don’t think we’d be in a rush to go back even though we dock in on Monday before heading off for Beach Week -Yey, maybe this time we'll take a few more pictures! 
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Angkor What?

Sunday, September 12, 2010 Katie and Taylor
Post Phnom Penh we hit Cambodia's second biggest city, Battenbang which didn't have much going for it apart from being the official venue of mine and Simons birthdays. Had some cheese and biccies with everyone for my birthday was very sophisticated for being in a typical Cambodian city. The main reason for heading hto Battenbang is for the boat ride to Siem Reap which trundles through some wee floating villages.


Siem Reap is the tourist town which homes the hoards of foreigners which descent on Angkor Wat daily but is actually a really funky town, full of street stalls, restaurants, bars and markets. 


You'll probably recognise Angkor Wat from Tomb Raider film plus it also closely resembles Temple of Doom and is absolutely stunning. Even being dragged out of bed kicking at screaming at 5am was worth it to catch this wonder at sunrise. Nothing quite prepared us for the sheer scale of the place and just to get round the main sites requires a full day tuk-tukking and a week is long enough to tick of the extended sites. I was also a victim of monkey terrorism when the monkeys which reside within the temple grounds stole my breakfast. Decided it was not worth risking being bit in order to save a peanut butter sandwich, but one day I shall find that monkey and steal his breakfast.


We spent a couple hours early morning exploring the low levels and galleries walking around the perimeter - very quiet and peaceful. Angkor Wat was built to honour Vishnu and was absolutely amazing trying to figure out how it was constructed. They were built between the 9th and 13th centuries with Angkor Wat being the largest religious building in the world. In fact in its heyday their were around 1 million people living here when London was a measly 50,000. 




Next on the list was Ta Prohm ie the Tomb Raider temple, where the trees have strangled the temples leaving a kind of film set to wander through, although when we visited it had been descended on by the Japanese and their endless group tree hugging ceremony photo shoot.


Surprisingly enough we were herded to a local eatery for lunch, which as expected was ran by their uncle/brother/friends dogs friend and food was pricey but none the less superb! Last on the temple checklist was Angkor Thom which houses the Bayon temple and the Terrace of Elephants.  Bayon temple consists of 54 towers, each carved with a face. Feels like you are actually being watched wherever you walk, in fact I'm sure one of them winked at me.
            
  
Well this is our last stop in Cambodia, a real country of contrasts going from human genocide one week to Angkor Wat complex the next, a real highlight of the trip! 




P.S. Photos have been updated on the signpost above.
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Phnom Penh in 2010

Wednesday, September 08, 2010 Katie and Taylor
Country number 20, Cambodia, we’re only here for 8 days 3 of which were spent in Phnom Penh, the capital so it’s a flying visit and there’s lots to see and even a 50th to celebrate!

Cambodia is a country full of tragedy, half the population was wiped out in the 70s and hundreds of mass graves are spread across the entire country. Our first day was a bit of a history lesson as we all headed for one of the main prisons and the killing fields. The S21 or Tuol Sleng was originally a high school but was shut down in the 70s during Pol Pots Khymer Rouge regime to take Cambodia back to year 0 and exist as a farming country. Intellectuals were captured and brought here for interrogation into the whereabouts of their families so they could all be killed. Men, women and children were brought here blindfolded, many were tortured and often starved to death. No one ever escaped the prison but there were 7 survivors, 4 of which still live to tell the tale. Much of site has been left the same since it was abandoned in 1979 even blood stains are still visible in many of the cells.

Many prisoners were transported to Choeung Ek or Killing fields where they were murdered on mass, many were buried alive! There is also a tree which was used to smash babies against then toss them into a grave. Whilst touring through the killing fields with our guide it was clear we were walking through mass graves, clothes, teeth and small fragments of bones were coming up through the ground due to the rainy season and it felt wrong to be walking where we were even though we kept to the paths. With my background I was almost on my hands and knees trying to identify fragments of bones, there was even a skull popping out from the ground. A memorial stupa is in place in the centre housing a small proportion of the bones recovered from the graves to highlight the atrocities to visitors.

After our somewhat sombre morning we headed off for happy hour at the Foreign Correspondence Club. Simon turns 50 on the 8th and fancied a pre turning 50 birthday party which cheered everyone up and also gave some of us an excuse to try out our tailor made clothes!  A real night of class!
The next day was a bit of a slow start, and we headed for the Russian market around lunchtime. I think we’re both a bit marketed out now and came home empty handed (can you believe it?) and went for a wander around the city for some Wat spotting.

Off to Battenbang this morning for 2 days of birthdays; Simons then Taylors so it’s going to be a bit of a party of a visit before we head for Siem Reap on the 10th.
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I can ride my Scooter with no handlebars

Saturday, September 04, 2010 Katie and Taylor
Sun, Sea, Sand and Stress! Well the only stress at our stay at Jungle Beach was to turn up to meals on time. No chance of starving there as breakfast, lunch, afternoon fruit plate and dinner were all included, plus if you weren’t there for feeding time you’re hunted down. Food was delicious and included Tuna, Squid, Chicken, Tofu, Pork, Beef, Pasta and Morning Glory (woo) all served with copious amounts of rice and sweet chilli sauce!

We pulled the lucky straw and had our beach hut facing right onto the beach, absolute bliss and after almost 5 months on the road it was great for some proper r&r time. We also celebrated “Marry’s” birthday otherwise known as Barry here with more delicious grub, a beach bonfire night and swim in the phosphorescence. Basically it is plankton which reacts to movement and glows which we’ve never seen before and is spectacular, even if you do resemble Michael Jackson lighting up everywhere as you walk around. All made better by being able to drink Gin and Sprite in the sea!

We were dragged away from the beach for a long drive to Ho Chi Minh or Saigon city depending on who you ask. The outskirts start around 1.5 hours away from the centre and the swarm of scooters start, weaving in and out the traffic, beeping horns and carrying stuff that defies the laws of physics. Absolute mayhem and nothing can quite prepare you for the sheer numbers of people and scooters, in fact cars have a 100% import tax on them so unless you are rich and can afford to shell out around £30,000 for Ford Fiesta, you have to own a scooter.


First day here was spent with Neill and Kylie visiting the Cao-Dai Great temple and the Cu Chi Tunnels. The temple wasn’t a lot to write home about but arrived just in time for the 12 o clock worship involving music, singing and praying. Very cool to witness!

The Cu Chi Tunnels is an underground network of tunnels used by the Viet Cong in the Vietnam war to hide from the Americans and once used to span around 250km. They housed hospitals, kitchens and armouries underground not to mention the various booby traps which I can ensure you look very painful. The tunnels are very claustrophobic even though they have been widened for the “ fat westerners” as called by our local guide(who also informed us that a virgin is no longer a virgin when she realises how big the banana is! How cultural!) The tunnels also have the opportunity to shoot real guns for $1 a bullet, hearing them was enough for me! It’s hard to comprehend the noise that would have rung out in this area only a short time ago.
Today we just had a wander around the city while trying our best to avoid being mowed down by scooters and visited the War Remnants Museum. As the Lonely Planet describes – “not for the faint hearted” and they are quite right! It houses relics from the war such as tanks and helicopters plus holds heartbreaking photographs from the war, well worth a visit though. To cheer ourselves up we had to do some more shopping with the last of our Dong purchasing a nice photocopied Lonely Planet of New Zealand for £3!

Cambodia awaits us tomorrow and cheery things to visit such as the Killing Fields and Genocide Museum, going to be a sombre few days with Simons 50th in the middle of it all!
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