Alice’s blog

We got off the ferry and there were taxis everywhere. But not your conventional taxi oh no these were like land rovers, open at the back with two benches in the back. Our luggage was chucked on the top (not tied on!) then loads of us piled into the back. I had to sit in the front with the driver but I moved to the back at the first opportunity partly so I could keep an eye on my bag. I had visions of us leaving a trail of bags behind us!

As soon as we reached our resort I fell in love with it. Koh Chang, although the second largest Thai island, is much quieter than the likes of Koh Samui and Phuket, especially as it’s low season. It’s national park too so development is only allowed on the west side of the island. The rest of the island is just mountains covered in South East Asia’s biggest rainforest.

We’re staying in southern Khlong Phrao a quieter part of the island and it’s beautiful. The resort is called Grand Cabana and comprises of a few bungalows and apartments, a pool and a restaurant. We’ve got an apartment room which is a massive bedroom with ensuite. There’s mountains behind us and the beach is literally a 5 second walk from our room. We can actaully see the beach from our bedroom window.

Once we’d checked in we explored the bit of road near our resort which has a few shops, cafes and a couple of bars. We had dinner for less than 1 ponud, used the net then chilled before getting some shut eye.

DAY 1

I woke up in the middle of the night to a massive thunderstorm and it was still raining in the morning, not the best start but the place still looked nice even in the rain. By the afternoon the sun was out so we spent the rest of the day sunbathing. Picture this: a gorgeous beach lined with palm trees, the sun beating down, the only sound you can hear is the sea and the wind blowing through the trees. Seems to good to be true doesn’t it. The Thai people are lovely, sweet natured people, atleast all the ones here seem to be.

In the evening we had dinner at this small restaurant/bar and I had thai green curry which blew my head off! I’m still suffering! If you eat in Thailand don’t assume it’s going to be the nice mild version you have at home! We stayed there all night and watched the England game. It was a good night and the locals were really getting into it. Apparently Thai people love the English and are mad about the England team. They support 1 of 3 English teams: Chelsea, Man U or Arsenal and they seem to think we’re all from London or Manchester!

The guy who ran the bar was English and was nice enough but he talked in that slow and simple way people do if the other person can’t understand except he did it to us aswell, I suppose because he’d got so used to talking to the locals like that. It just got irritating after a while. The little mangey dog that lived there took a liking to us particularly Jen and spent the night slept on her bag, nice! It was a fun night and we went home with plenty of money to spare: 8 bdrinks and 2 meals cost us 8 pounds, I love this country!

It was strange leaving Australia after it felt like i’d been there an eternity but I couldn’t feel too sad as Stephen and Manu waved us off because Stephen thought it was a good idea to see us off in his sheep pjs!!! I was really excited about Thailand if not a little aprehensive and the aprehension hadn’t left when we arrived at Bangkok airport at mid-night. It was 28 degrees celcius even at that time! The Gold Orchid hotel was lovely though, despite being on a busy highway. It was so nice to get into a comfy bed in a swish hotel room rather than sharing a springy bed with hundreds of bed bugs and a room full of sweaty backpackers. I couldn’t get over people calling me madam and opening doors for me! We arrived really late so I went to bed only after going through the hotel room ritual (checking the mini bar, making sure the bathroom’s nice, opening every cupboard and flicking through the channels on the TV not necessairily in that order).

DAY 1

Walked into the restaurant for breakfast and it was all you can eat buffet so I happily tucked in! We didn’t really feel like venturing far, the furthest we went was the internet cafe and that made me a little nervous. I had no reason to be but all the scare stories hadn’t helped. After emailing the rents we spent the rest of the day chilling at the hotel. A nice cold Tiger beer by the pool, the sun beating down on you, bliss! Em took on the brief role as fitness instructor and got me doing lengths of the pool but I didn’t last long! When I saw the evening buffet I was quite glad I’d burnt off a few calories!

DAY 2

We decided to be brave and get a taxi to the Chatuchak weekend market. We spent four hours walking round hundreds of stalls, sweaty and gross but enjoying it nonetheless. Everything was so cheap and I spent money like there was no tommorrow. Neither of us dared barter, we weren’t sure if we were expected to. Everyone seemed to be wearing a yellow t-shirt and we found out that Thailand was celebrating the King’s 60 year reign so we bought a ‘I love the King’ t-shirt. I was so surprised at the lack of hassle I received, not one person hassled me into buying.

We got back to the hotel booked a couple of tours then indulged in a well earned foot massage. I would reccommend it to anyone it felt amazing! After dinner we watched the England match, a good excuse for a couple of cocktails.

DAY 3

It was an early start this morning for our tour to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. We got into this small mini-bus and it was just the 2 of us so were slightly worried especially when the driver took us down loads of windy backstreets. You could definately see the poverty. All the buildings were grimey, there are dogs walking everywhere and stall after stall selling dubious looking food. Bangkok is definately designed for vehicles. The Thai people don’t tend to walk great distances and the streets are just packed with every vehicle you could imagine dodging out of eachothers way, it’s manic. We did end up stopping at other hotels which was a relief and our tour guide was really nice although we seemed to be some of the few people who could understand her. The group were really nice too, a good laugh.

On the way to the floating market we stopped at a service station for a toilet stop and I really wish we hadn’t. The toilet, although I only describe it as that loosely, was a hole which you squatted over. To flush the toilet you had to get a bowl and fill it with water out of this manky tub and pour it down the hole, no wonder there are so many diseases!

Our first stop was the market where we sat in a long speed boat but not as we know it. It chugged alonbg at some speed down these narrow water ways past people’s houses and loads of stalls on the river. People were selling fruit and veg on their litt;e boats too. We then got into a smaller boat paddled by a Thai woman and the idea is you stop at differnt stalls and buy whilst sat in the boat. It was great fun but I did feel nervous at times as I seemed very close to the water and I had images of me falling in.

After the canal trip we went on an elephant ride for half an hour through this park which was awesome. Getting onto the elephant was tricky but the ride was amazing. We then visited a wood carving workshop before stopping for lunch at Samphran elephant ground.

Our last stop was at the Rose Garden where we watched a Thai village cultural show full of Thai dancing and music and a bit of Thai boxing. After a bit of Thai culture it was back to the hotel , dinner and an early night as we were meeting Jen from the airport early in the morning.

DAY 4

We met Jen and took her to the hotel before venturing off on a temple and cuty tour. It was good but I think once you’ve seen a few Buddhas and temples it gets a bit samey. I couldn’t understand a word our guide was saying either. We visited the largest Buddha in Thailand, the reclining Buddha at Wat Pho temple, the golden Buddha at Traimitwitthayaram Temple (try saying that one!) and another I can’t remember the name of.

Back at the hotel we hit the pool but it started raining so we were confined to the room. We had a good catch up over dinner and even though we hadn’t seen Jen for 6 months it felt as if it was yesterday. We had a few drinks in the bar then went to see Em off at the airport. I was sad to see my travel buddy go especially considering some of things we’d been through on our travels! It’s weird to think she’s back in England as I’m writing this.

DAY 5

Keen to get out of Bangkok Jen and I went off on a mission to find a travel agent. We headed to Khao San Rd which is where most of the backpackers stay. It was pretty mental down there, so many shops and tuk tuks which are little open air taxis and people just ererywhere. We ventured down the next street which just seemed to be full of bridal shops but we managed to find a tour operator and booked a coach and ferry to Koh Chang. Booking it was so straightforward little did we know the stress that was to come!

We did quite a bit of shopping on Khao San and I started to get tyhe hang of bartering although I could probably do with a few lessons! We had lunch then headed back to the hotel with all our bagians and chilled by the pool.

DAY 6- Bangkok to Koh Chang

At the hotel reception checking out, we hadn’t even left Bangkok and things started to go wrong. Em had decided to nick one of the bed throws and no soon as we checked out they were up there checking the room. They couldn’t find one of the throws surprise surprise so they spent ages dithering about and questioning us despite us stressing that we had a coach to catch. Eventually we got out without having to pay for a replacement and sped off in a taxi. Little did we know it would be the taxi ride from hell.

We endured an hour taxi ride through Bangkok in rush hour which was bad enough but after va while it appeared that our driver had no idea where he was going despite getting directions from the hotel doorman, making several phonecalls and stopping to ask 2 tuk tuk drivers. I tried to talk to him but he couldn’t understand a word of English AHHH! Jen and I were in despair, the clock read 8:00 am and we were supposed to be there at 7:50. Eventually we spotted Khao San Rd told him to stop and through some money in his hand before legging it to the coach stop. For 10 mins we sat there convinces we’d missed it then out of know where a man appeared saying “Koh Chang?”, we had been saved. We followed him picking up others on the way, all of us following him like rats and the pied piper. We reached the coach and didn’t really know what was going on then we were bundled onto a coach and sat there for 7 hours until we reached the ferry terminal at Trat. We were so releived when we reached the island.

It felt good to be back in Melbourne, it was kind of like coming home in a way, although there was still alot of the city we hadn’t really discovered. For this reason we decided to live in a hostel actually in the city before going to Stephen and manu’s (Em’s brother and his wife). We’ve spent a bit of time exploring more of the city and taking photos true tourist style! you wouldn’t velieve the lengths we wnt to to get good pics like sneaking into hotel toilets! Basically I’d read from the travellers bible no less (lonely planet guide) that the views from the Sofitel Hotel toilets were amazing so off we toddled into this grand hotel looking very sheek in our 5 million layers, gloves and scalves (yes Melbourne is freezing!). We manged to find the toilets and the views were gorgeous although I felt like a complete twat taking pictures whilst posh looking people were ‘taking a little commission’, as my Belgium friend calls it.

A few other random outings have included having our pictures taken with giant baked beans tins and spotting a cow in a tree, supposedly ‘modern art’! I think I do prefer Melbourne to Sydney I’m not really sure why. I suppose part of it is that it’s kind of got a slightly Eouropean feel about it which I like and it seems to have an identity which Sydney lacks. Syd is a bit Americanised and it’s as if it’s trying to be something it’s not plus there are more weird people there than I’ve had hot dinners!

Australia has definately got me more involved in sport much to Em’s surprise! Melbourne has been no exception. The first night here was spent in a pub watching the Soccoroos play Greece, I know can you beleive it me and football!I’ve also been to watch another Aussie Rules game this time at the MCG which is an amazing stadium, absolutely huge. The Sydny Swans beat the Hawthorn Hawks which I was very pleased about partly because no team with a crppy name like that deserves to win!

The MCG has not been the only highlight though oh no. You can’t come to Australia and not pay a visit to Ramsay Street! Me, Em, Kate, Lou and Chris all trouped off in a van with a load of other sad pommys on an official Neighbours tour. Our first stop was Erinbrough High where the lovely Susan Kennedy waves off all her pupils! Then we drove past the studios and as we did so who should we see driving their car but Stingray, which caused us all to leap about the bus in excitement like a bunch of nutters! When we got to Ramsay Strret we weren’t allowed to go up the street because they were filming but some of the cast came down to talk to us and have photos taken. Oh how sad we all looked standing at the end of the road cameras at the ready. We did manage to get photos with Boyd, Steph and Tody which was pretty cool although I felt like a bit of an idiot because I didn’t know what to say to them. Em went one step further than the ret of us and managed to grope Boyd’s bum ‘by accident’ yeah right Em!

Thursday night was Kate and Lou’s last night with us before they went of to Adelaide with Chris so we all went out for a nice meal then paid a visit to the Casino but there was no gambling on our behalf you’ll be pleased to know. The next day Em and I waved them off in their little campervan, little being the operative word, and a few tears were shed! Whilst they’re cramped in a van I’ve got the luxury of a big house as we’re now back at Stephen’s for a few days. I can’t believe in 3 days I’ll have left Australia but in the words of Arnie “I’ll be back”!!

I’m sat here with 3 hours to go before I leave Sydney and I actually feel quite sad. I’v become quite fond of the old Roof Top Lodge. I’m quite gutted that I’m leaving as I’ve just started to get to know some of the people here, I know it’s taken 6 weeks but it is actually quite hard to get to know the residents here. The only time you tend to meet people is cooking or randomly in the corridor and you can go weeks without seeing them again.. Not long after we got here I bumped into Katie who I met in Cairns but then I didn’t see her again until about a week ago- turns out she’s been living here all this time! We caught up for a much needed catch up on the rooftop with the aid of a couple of bottles of wine! She’s really nice and lives in Nottingham so hopefully we’ll meet up when we’re home. I’ve just said goodbye to her and I do actually feel quite sad to say goodbye :( It’s time to leave Sydney though, I prefer Melbourne and funnily enough that’s where we’re headed now. I’ve got a 12 hour coach trip ahead of me but it’s overnight so hopefully I’ll sleep for most of it. Just hope I don’t have anyoneone that snores near me! Kate and Louise left yesterday on the Oz Experience so they’ll be joining us later on.

Sydney summed up: hectic especially about 4/5 ‘o clock when just about everyone barges into you; massive; full of weirdos; expensive…hmm doesn’t this sound like any other major city?! Sydney’s OK it’s got nice places and crappy places and there’s quite a bit for tourists to see but I prefer the smaller cities to actually live in. Anyway I’d better go and finish getting sorted I’v got a coach to catch.

We spent the last weekend in the gorgeous blue mountains, so called because of the blue haze created by the eucalyptus trees. We stayed with Jock who is Louise’s mum’s fiance’s brother, so he’ll be her step uncle eventually. After getting up at four in the morning we had to get a coach and train to Kootoomba station where we met by by Jock and his grandaughter Melissa. The coach journey provide a bit of entertainment after Em pointed out a man who looked like me apparently! I have to admit if I had a brother that is probably what he would look like, how weird is that?!

The blue mountains are absolutely freezing, my teeth were chattering under my several layers of clothing with woolly hat and gloves not being high on my list to pack funnily enough. Jock kindly offered to show us around so he drove us to various tourist spots. We started off with a visit to the Three Sisters at Echo Point, which are basically three big rocks but the scenery is just out of this world. We then went on the scenic railway to the bottom of Jamison Valley. What I thought would be a proper train ride was in fact a short trip down a really steep drop in what can loosely be described as a train where we weren’t strapped in, I seriously thought I was going to fall out. We then went back up in a cable car which was alot less scary and we managed to avoid the hoards of Japenese tourists.

We then visited Evans Lookout near the town of Blackheath, which once agian provided stunning views over the valley. I realise that to someone who has never been to Australia or the blue mountains for that matter, these places will mean absolutely nothing but I’m doing my best without the help of a map! We then drove along the Great Western Highway, through Mt Victoria, the highest point in the mountains and the small town of Hartley. I have to say I did sleep through a small part of this journey-I don’t cope well with early mornings! Me, Kate and Melissa took a trip into the Jenolan caveswhich are the best-known limestone caves in Australia and some of the crystals were just amazing.

After lunch at Tarana we drove to Lithgow a small industrial town where Jock lives. Ooh and we got to see kangaroos really close up on this golf course, I havn’t seen skippy that close before.  Jock let us stay at his house and he was so nice. It did feel a bit odd though going to a working mans club with a 60 year old man - he looked a bit of a pimp with four lovely women at his side! After the best nights sleep ever (I’v missed comfy beds) we given the best fry up, it just gets better. We visited Jock’s daughter and her family before the long journey home. We ended the weekend sat in front of the telly watching Love Actually…a good weekend all in all.