Well, then. What remains? As most, if not all of you know, I am now home, so this will be the last post on this blog. I have been putting it off, actually, because I think I was worrying about writing something suitably profound, something that would sum up my travels in its entirety and show you all that I have learnt and grown and that I am now worldly and wise.
I'm not, though. I mean, sure, I've learnt some, and grown some, but I'm still at heart the same person I was... just a little different. Happier, mainly.
Anyway, we ended up coming home early as all of you knew apart from my parents, who were suitably surprised! I didn't write about it on the blog (to maintain the element of surprise, obviously), but on our arrival at Bangkok airport, it hit Char and I suddenly that we were just really exhausted. Really, really exhausted. Of constantly being in airports, of living out of bags, of missing everyone - all the things that I detailed in previous posts, really. And while we both would like to get to Sri Lanka eventually, it didn't seem like an enticing prospect in the slightest just then. So, over a Starbucks, we decided to go home - it felt like a pretty big and pretty exciting decision, even though we were only home 8 days early in the end so it wasn't a massive difference. But psychologically it was, because both of us were so ready to be home.
So we phoned STA Travel and rebooked our flights, and then everything else in Bangkok happened as I detailed previously. We flew to Sri Lanka via some rapid present-buying in duty free, spent the night at the Airport Transit Hotel (it was luxurious, and it bloody well should have been for the $76 we paid for 8 hours - yes, they sell their rooms in hour blocks of time, so weird) and the next day spent 11 hours on the plane before touching down at Heathrow. It was obviously raining, which was both nice (familiar) but also a bit sickening (really cold).
We breezed through immmigration, picked up our bags and then headed for the tube(!). After half an hour or so the tube pulled into Hammersmith and Char and I said a tragic goodbye (I am literally missing her already, I keep turning round to say things to her/shout "Boycieeee" before I remember that she has her own home to go to and I can't reasonably expect her to follow me everywhere I go just for the BANTAH). And then I was on the Richmond branch of the District line, and then I was walking from the station to my door - and then I was home.
I can't tell you how surprised mum and dad were - they actually didn't believe that I was me. Thanks to everyone who was in on it for keeping the secret, the moment of utter shock was priceless and made my endless journeying worth it. It is indescribably lovely to be reunited with my amazing family. I love them to bits and have been missing them for so long, and it is brilliant to be home where absolutely nothing has changed (well, I have a new wardrobe).
I was on such a high that I could hardly sleep that night. The next day was spent unwrapping various parcels I'd sent home (I'd forgotten what my Indian carpet looked like; it was good fun to see that again. And I'd totally forgotten I ordered a marble plate... I don't know what the hell I was thinking, what on Earth will I do with a marble plate?! It's beautiful, though), and just wandering around the house in a daze. Today I became slightly more organised, sorting out all my photos and putting them on Facebook, joining the gym, booking my first hatha yoga class, etc. and getting in touch with friends gradually and making plans.
It is so brilliant to be reunited (and to continue being reunited - I have lots of happy phonecalls to make tomorrow!) with my friends. I have missed you all beyond belief. I can't wait to see you all again :D
I don't really know what else to say. What a journey it has been... both literally and metaphorically (haha). I am the same, and I am different. I think that sums it up entirely. Essentially, travelling hasn't enlightened me - you know, not in the sense that a lightbulb appeared above my head that suddenly contained the answers to Everything. But it has made me acutely aware of myself, who I really am, how I react to things, and also the vast amount of opportunities and choices that are available to me, both in terms of my career, sure, but also how I live my life generally. It has opened a lot of doors and I do now see the world in a different way, a happier way. And of course, I have gained several wonderful friends, and met some beautiful people and seen some beautiful places.
How lucky I am. That's what I keep coming back to, and I feel really strongly that that's what this blog should finish with - not with any profound (read: possibly pompous) statements declaring my self-actualisation. How lucky I was to be able to undertake a journey like this, how lucky I was to be able to share it with Charlotte (who is incredible), how lucky I was to have my friends and family waiting on me, looking forward to hearing my news, supporting me through everything - and excited to see me on my return. How lucky I am to have a lovely job waiting for me.
It wasn't unadulterated amazingosity. Things did go wrong, severely wrong at times, and occasionally I have had to draw on some pretty deep resources just to keep on getting out of bed in the morning. But during those moments, I was always acutely aware of my good fortune, to be travelling but also to be alive.
Now my travels are over, and I am concentrating on the alive part, adjusting my life and habits in London so that the happiness and beauty I have taken from travelling don't just fade - I am taking steps to make sure that those lessons learnt are permenantly incorporated into my daily routine. I firmly believe that because of this, I will always be a happy person. That's more than many people can say, and I have travelling to thank for that.
So, I have had the most wonderful time, and I am, indeed, the luckiest person I know. Good times. Thank you all so much for supporting me and for reading about my adventures and taking the time to get in touch while I was away - believe me, I know how busy life is, and I massively appreciated all your correspondance when I was feeling very far away in distant climes.
Soo... that's me done I guess. Until the next time!
Love you all (but not missing you anymore),
Bye, (but also, since I am now home, hello?! I'm not sure I thought this out...)
Amy xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <3
Sunday, 26 June 2011
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Bangkok, The Sequel
Here we are, back in Bangkok, back on the Koa San Road. Once again we have seamlessly re-entered what is as close to the Western world as we will find in Southeast Asia. In fact, it has moved beyond the Western world - Bangkok is where Westerners come for decadence, and that's saying something.
But, as always, I'm racing ahead - although maybe 'racing' is the wrong word since I have only missed, like, a day. But anyway.
We arrived in Jakarta airport, considered going clubbing as originally planned, and rejected the idea as too expensive. We were sitting in KFC not ordering anything, pondering what we might do instead that didn't involve sitting in KFC any longer, when the 2 Australian surfers we were chatting to said they were staying at the Airport Transit hotel and did we want to sleep on their floor? The sensible, economising traveller's answer to this was obviously yes please. So for no money at all we had a very comfortable sleep and a hot shower - thanks, random Australian surfers.
We were up at 3.30am to check in for our flight to Singapore, which was all fine, and at Singapore airport Gabi very sadly left us and Charlotte and I flew onto Bangkok. We then got a taxi to the Koa San Road, checked into a really nice traveller's guesthouse and had a wander and some dinner before crashing out relatively early.
Today we have just been strolling around Koa San trying to readjust (which seems pointless seeing as in Sri Lanka we will immediately have to un-adjust, but there we are). We spent some time in the bookshop and some on the internet and am about to do a bit of souvenir shopping (read: battling to get what masquerades as a fair price for something that the recipient may well not even like - but I will do my best). And then we fly to Colombo this evening, at 9.10, so we have to leave in less than 3 hours to get to the airport, where Duty Free awaits us, twinkling in all its enticing glory.
I think that is pretty much a complete update of our recent movements, and I have nothing else particularly to add, apart from that I miss you all and not long to go now.
Lots of love xxxxxxxx
But, as always, I'm racing ahead - although maybe 'racing' is the wrong word since I have only missed, like, a day. But anyway.
We arrived in Jakarta airport, considered going clubbing as originally planned, and rejected the idea as too expensive. We were sitting in KFC not ordering anything, pondering what we might do instead that didn't involve sitting in KFC any longer, when the 2 Australian surfers we were chatting to said they were staying at the Airport Transit hotel and did we want to sleep on their floor? The sensible, economising traveller's answer to this was obviously yes please. So for no money at all we had a very comfortable sleep and a hot shower - thanks, random Australian surfers.
We were up at 3.30am to check in for our flight to Singapore, which was all fine, and at Singapore airport Gabi very sadly left us and Charlotte and I flew onto Bangkok. We then got a taxi to the Koa San Road, checked into a really nice traveller's guesthouse and had a wander and some dinner before crashing out relatively early.
Today we have just been strolling around Koa San trying to readjust (which seems pointless seeing as in Sri Lanka we will immediately have to un-adjust, but there we are). We spent some time in the bookshop and some on the internet and am about to do a bit of souvenir shopping (read: battling to get what masquerades as a fair price for something that the recipient may well not even like - but I will do my best). And then we fly to Colombo this evening, at 9.10, so we have to leave in less than 3 hours to get to the airport, where Duty Free awaits us, twinkling in all its enticing glory.
I think that is pretty much a complete update of our recent movements, and I have nothing else particularly to add, apart from that I miss you all and not long to go now.
Lots of love xxxxxxxx
Monday, 20 June 2011
Jogjakarta/Yogyakarta
I included both names in the title because this place can't seem to decide what to call itself.
It's also the first place in Indonesia we've been that can't seem to decide if it wants to be Indonesian or Western. A bit of a Saigon in the sense that it is a cultural mish-mash; plenty of local, traditional culture, but either hidden or dressed up and sold to Westerners for a price. And of course there are all the standard Western phenomena like massive, massive shopping malls. And yet, as well as taxis, horse and carts are the standard way for tourists to get anywhere. It all makes for a very confusing but exciting city.
We arrived from Gili late at night, headed for street food, and then settled into our slightly dingy hotel - Gabi and I shared the room that had the window, so it didn't feel exactly like we were trapped in a prison cell, which was nice.
Breakfast in hotels in Jogjakarta seems to consist solely of chocolate sandwiches. No, actually - chocolate sprinkles and bread toasted together in a toasted sandwich maker. It started off as a novelty but by the end we were sickened and forewent free breakfast in favour of paying for fruit and green tea somewhere else. There's only so long I could handle chocolate in a sandwich for.
That day, we booked all of our excursions for our few short days in Java, and then just hung around in cafes and shopping malls, getting a general feel of the city. We finally, finally, sent our postcards - I sent 18 in total which ended up costing a bit of an absurd amount of money, but never mind. You're all worth it, ha.
In the evening, we went to Prambanan temple (a Hindu temple) to see an outdoor performance of traditional Ramayana ballet. It was the first episode, where Sita is captured and Rama meets the ape prince. I vaguely remembered the story from my religious education at primary school, so was able to tell roughly who was who, because otherwise it wasn't exactly clear - the golden deer, for example, was difficult to distinguish when all of the 200 people on stage were wearing enough gold to satisfy even, like, 50 Cent. The dancing was obviously very different to traditional ballet but we enjoyed it very much, and spent some of the journey home making clever puns based around "ape" (japes, etc.).
The next morning we were awake absurdly early, at 4.30am, and headed off to Borobudur, an absolutely massive Buddhist temple about 40km from Jogjakarta. Our guide told us many really interesting stories about Buddha's youth which I already knew (class geek...) but were still interesting nonetheless. And it really is a fascinatingly beautiful place. The hordes of Indonesian schoolchildren were less fascinated by the temple itself and more fascinated by Charlotte, Gabi and I; we couldn't walk three steps without being asked for a photo opportunity. It ended up being really annoying but since they were children we felt bad being rude, so we spent a lot of our free half-hour post-tour being hugged by various small Indonesians rather than wandering around, finding Nirvana. Never mind, I found metaphorical Nirvana in Gili Air anyway.
After that, we went on to see Prambanan by the light of day which was really nice but we were pretty knackered by that point, so after wandering through a few of the temples that make up the complex, we showed our religious awe and appreciation by sacking it all off and going for chicken noodles.
We were pretty tired when we got back from the tour [a general theme of our busy, crazy, awesome Indonesian jaunt] but no rest because next day we were up to begin our long journey to Mt. Bromo, an active volcano.
After a 12-hour car journey, we reached our hotel, snatched a few hours of sleep in a tauntingly-comfortable bed, and then we were up and in our warmest clothes at 3.15am.
Yeah, 3.15am.
We walked 2km uphill (before breakfast, I might add) to the viewpoint, which was, to be fair, completely incredible and absolutely worth the minor trek. We watched the sunrise over Mt. Bromo, which began to erupt as we looked on. It was awesome. We were cold and tired and hungry, but we forgot all of that in the face of the incomparable view and the constantly-changing, always-vivid colours of the sky. At one point the brightest orange began to merge with the brightest blue, and it was better than any postcard.
After that, we headed to Bromo itself, and climbed up through the ash-dunes (like sand-dunes, but, you know, ash) and then up the ash-y side of Bromo itself. A difficult climb and a long one, but, once we got to the crater itself, again, completely worth it. We were actually on the edge of the crater, standing on it, as a volcano erupted ash. It was absolutely amazing and kind of incomprehensible that a)this was really considered safe? (it totally was though because I'm fine) and b)that we actually made it to the crater. The smoke was thick and there was ash covering our hair and clothing. We obviously took some photos, and then slid all the way down the ash dunes and made ash angels (because to be honest we were already covered in ash so may as well enjoy it...). This was a total highlight - this, the orangutans and my diving on Gili Air have contributed to the most incredible three weeks and confirmation that Indonesia is my favourite country on my travels, if I were forced to pick one.
Then we got back to the hotel, where a man leading a komodo dragon was just walking around. Standardly we each grabbed the lead and walked a dragon for a bit.
It wasn't even 9am. I'm forced to admit that if such a massive amount of amazing stuff can occur before 9 o'clock, I might well have to convert myself into a morning person.
(By the way, on our way out of breakfast, we saw the man slaughtering and gutting the poor komodo dragon that we'd walked only a few minutes before. I was traumatised and couldn't watch, Gabi, with all the fascination of a surgeon-to-be, was really interested. Poor dragon. In my head I'd named him Charles.)
It was then time for the journey back to Jogjakarta - twelve long hours, but we snagged the front seats in the minibus (thanks to our experience fighting for seats on the London Underground, I reckon) so at least there was ample legroom.
We got to Jogjakarta around 11 and crashed out, after showering to remove at least the first coating of ash from our hair. I can still feel it though, two shampoos later. I look like I have gone prematurely grey.
Today we packed up (I threw out half my bag to try and get it down to the weight limit for this absurd flight) and headed for juice and fruit, and then for some serious internet time.
We fly out of Jogjakarta at 6 and get into Jakarta about 7. Since our flight to Singapore leaves at 6am tomorrow, we have decided to leave our bags at the airport and go out clubbing all night - obviously the only sensible option. It will save us lots of money on a hostel and is a more-than-suitable way to celebrate our last night travelling as a three. It has been so lovely having Gabi along and I will miss her very much indeed.
Gabi stays in Singapore tomorrow whilst Char and I will continue to Bangkok, where we have two days of souvenir shopping and general readjustment before we fly to Sri Lanka for our last week of travelling.
With only ten days to go until I am back in London, my excitement levels are rising. I've been making lists of everything I want to do and see when I get back and all the things and people I have missed. As well as passing the time on long journeys, it is really nice to think of home knowing I will be back there soon.
But I am going to miss Indonesia so much. It is paradise and I will be back.
Missing you all, lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
It's also the first place in Indonesia we've been that can't seem to decide if it wants to be Indonesian or Western. A bit of a Saigon in the sense that it is a cultural mish-mash; plenty of local, traditional culture, but either hidden or dressed up and sold to Westerners for a price. And of course there are all the standard Western phenomena like massive, massive shopping malls. And yet, as well as taxis, horse and carts are the standard way for tourists to get anywhere. It all makes for a very confusing but exciting city.
We arrived from Gili late at night, headed for street food, and then settled into our slightly dingy hotel - Gabi and I shared the room that had the window, so it didn't feel exactly like we were trapped in a prison cell, which was nice.
Breakfast in hotels in Jogjakarta seems to consist solely of chocolate sandwiches. No, actually - chocolate sprinkles and bread toasted together in a toasted sandwich maker. It started off as a novelty but by the end we were sickened and forewent free breakfast in favour of paying for fruit and green tea somewhere else. There's only so long I could handle chocolate in a sandwich for.
That day, we booked all of our excursions for our few short days in Java, and then just hung around in cafes and shopping malls, getting a general feel of the city. We finally, finally, sent our postcards - I sent 18 in total which ended up costing a bit of an absurd amount of money, but never mind. You're all worth it, ha.
In the evening, we went to Prambanan temple (a Hindu temple) to see an outdoor performance of traditional Ramayana ballet. It was the first episode, where Sita is captured and Rama meets the ape prince. I vaguely remembered the story from my religious education at primary school, so was able to tell roughly who was who, because otherwise it wasn't exactly clear - the golden deer, for example, was difficult to distinguish when all of the 200 people on stage were wearing enough gold to satisfy even, like, 50 Cent. The dancing was obviously very different to traditional ballet but we enjoyed it very much, and spent some of the journey home making clever puns based around "ape" (japes, etc.).
The next morning we were awake absurdly early, at 4.30am, and headed off to Borobudur, an absolutely massive Buddhist temple about 40km from Jogjakarta. Our guide told us many really interesting stories about Buddha's youth which I already knew (class geek...) but were still interesting nonetheless. And it really is a fascinatingly beautiful place. The hordes of Indonesian schoolchildren were less fascinated by the temple itself and more fascinated by Charlotte, Gabi and I; we couldn't walk three steps without being asked for a photo opportunity. It ended up being really annoying but since they were children we felt bad being rude, so we spent a lot of our free half-hour post-tour being hugged by various small Indonesians rather than wandering around, finding Nirvana. Never mind, I found metaphorical Nirvana in Gili Air anyway.
After that, we went on to see Prambanan by the light of day which was really nice but we were pretty knackered by that point, so after wandering through a few of the temples that make up the complex, we showed our religious awe and appreciation by sacking it all off and going for chicken noodles.
We were pretty tired when we got back from the tour [a general theme of our busy, crazy, awesome Indonesian jaunt] but no rest because next day we were up to begin our long journey to Mt. Bromo, an active volcano.
After a 12-hour car journey, we reached our hotel, snatched a few hours of sleep in a tauntingly-comfortable bed, and then we were up and in our warmest clothes at 3.15am.
Yeah, 3.15am.
We walked 2km uphill (before breakfast, I might add) to the viewpoint, which was, to be fair, completely incredible and absolutely worth the minor trek. We watched the sunrise over Mt. Bromo, which began to erupt as we looked on. It was awesome. We were cold and tired and hungry, but we forgot all of that in the face of the incomparable view and the constantly-changing, always-vivid colours of the sky. At one point the brightest orange began to merge with the brightest blue, and it was better than any postcard.
After that, we headed to Bromo itself, and climbed up through the ash-dunes (like sand-dunes, but, you know, ash) and then up the ash-y side of Bromo itself. A difficult climb and a long one, but, once we got to the crater itself, again, completely worth it. We were actually on the edge of the crater, standing on it, as a volcano erupted ash. It was absolutely amazing and kind of incomprehensible that a)this was really considered safe? (it totally was though because I'm fine) and b)that we actually made it to the crater. The smoke was thick and there was ash covering our hair and clothing. We obviously took some photos, and then slid all the way down the ash dunes and made ash angels (because to be honest we were already covered in ash so may as well enjoy it...). This was a total highlight - this, the orangutans and my diving on Gili Air have contributed to the most incredible three weeks and confirmation that Indonesia is my favourite country on my travels, if I were forced to pick one.
Then we got back to the hotel, where a man leading a komodo dragon was just walking around. Standardly we each grabbed the lead and walked a dragon for a bit.
It wasn't even 9am. I'm forced to admit that if such a massive amount of amazing stuff can occur before 9 o'clock, I might well have to convert myself into a morning person.
(By the way, on our way out of breakfast, we saw the man slaughtering and gutting the poor komodo dragon that we'd walked only a few minutes before. I was traumatised and couldn't watch, Gabi, with all the fascination of a surgeon-to-be, was really interested. Poor dragon. In my head I'd named him Charles.)
It was then time for the journey back to Jogjakarta - twelve long hours, but we snagged the front seats in the minibus (thanks to our experience fighting for seats on the London Underground, I reckon) so at least there was ample legroom.
We got to Jogjakarta around 11 and crashed out, after showering to remove at least the first coating of ash from our hair. I can still feel it though, two shampoos later. I look like I have gone prematurely grey.
Today we packed up (I threw out half my bag to try and get it down to the weight limit for this absurd flight) and headed for juice and fruit, and then for some serious internet time.
We fly out of Jogjakarta at 6 and get into Jakarta about 7. Since our flight to Singapore leaves at 6am tomorrow, we have decided to leave our bags at the airport and go out clubbing all night - obviously the only sensible option. It will save us lots of money on a hostel and is a more-than-suitable way to celebrate our last night travelling as a three. It has been so lovely having Gabi along and I will miss her very much indeed.
Gabi stays in Singapore tomorrow whilst Char and I will continue to Bangkok, where we have two days of souvenir shopping and general readjustment before we fly to Sri Lanka for our last week of travelling.
With only ten days to go until I am back in London, my excitement levels are rising. I've been making lists of everything I want to do and see when I get back and all the things and people I have missed. As well as passing the time on long journeys, it is really nice to think of home knowing I will be back there soon.
But I am going to miss Indonesia so much. It is paradise and I will be back.
Missing you all, lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Wednesday, 15 June 2011
Gili-ant
Sorry about the title. I know it's bad. I think the sun has gone to my head, or something.
I forgot to mention in my last post the highlight of Ubud for all of us - the live music. We went to the Jazz Cafe and were treated to live Latin music which we attempted to salsa to - badly, obviously. We also went to a reggae bar, and listened to world music and various acoustic sets. All three of us are music lovers and particular fans of live music in any shape or form (apart from badly-played) so that was a real treat.
But anyway, onto my news from the last few days.
We caught the slow boat over to Gili Air which allowed ample time for tanning on the sundeck, although since none of us had slept well the night before it was resentful, grumpy tanning as opposed to sun-worshipping tanning. As in, if there had been shade, we would rather have been in it.
But we soon realised the enforced tanning had been a good idea when we got to Gili Air and saw how disgustingly brown everyone was compared to us - it is such a diving paradise (and a paradise in general) here that lots of people come here and just stay and dive, thus making them hideously, depressingly tanned. We felt very pale and English.
We found our dive school with ease - there are no roads or ATMS or cars on Gili Air, you go everywhere by horse and cart, and if you haven't taken out enough money, I suppose you are there washing dishes until you earn your boat fare back, or something. So we took a horse and cart to Blue Marlin Divers, where Chris, a nice Irish girl who owns the place, was waiting for us to give us our PADI books and get us settled into our room.
The next day, Gabi and I started our course at 2.30pm just watching videos and stuff - in the morning we just sunbathed, and I read Gabi Chapter One of the Openwater Dive Manual to help relieve her boredom - I'm not sure if it worked... Charlotte was doing her Advanced Diver course so was out at 8am in the water, doing two dives that first day with a very amusing couple of Russian girls (unintentionally hilarious, obviously) who spent the entire Underwater Photography Dive taking photos of themselves doing peace signs rather than at the fish as directed.
Gabi and I started our course the next day, we met the other girls (Jo, Laurie and Maryam - all very nice indeed, Maryam ended up being my dive buddy and a very good one she was too) and did our pool test. Gabi wasn't that fussed by it, she didn't hate it but just didn't particularly love it, so decided not to do anymore of the course because that way she didn't have to pay. I went back for our first openwater dive in the afternoon which was a cross between the exhilarating and the traumatic - exhilarating because, you know, you're breathing underwater, and there's fish and stuff. And traumatic because I couldn't control my buoyancy, equalizing seemed like a lot of work, and I had a strong feeling that my tank might fall off/regulator might break and I might die a horrible underwater death. The fact that this has never actually happened didn't reassure me. But it was actually a great dive and we saw some interesting things and I didn't die, which filled me with confidence (sort of).
The next day was an early start - 8am. We did three hours of dive theory, and then our second pool session to learn skills, before doing another dive in the afternoon. This dive was much better - I was reassured, no, convinced that I wasn't going to die. I almost descended properly (not quite). I managed to actually look at the fish instead of just hover in vague confusion. Everything was looking good. We then came back and took the PADI exam which was pretty easy, seeing as everything you get wrong, you get explained to you and then corrected so everyone gets full marks eventually. Not that I got much wrong to be honest, only a couple of questions - that was the geek in me, I suppose. I think I was the only one on the course that actually read the instruction manual... it didn't really help.
Our last day was just two 18m dives. This was by far the best day. I was confident, could set up the gear on my own, descend without any help and manage my weights correctly, maintain my buoyancy no problem, and even better, we saw and had long looks at some awesome fish and coral. We dived around a wreck in the morning which was incredible and quite creepy, and then in the afternoon we saw six sea turtles (mind-bogglingly huge), a stingray and a puffa fish all puffed up, amongst many other beautiful things. And then I was a qualified Open Water Diver! Which is a really amazing feeling despite it being a course that even the most idiotic Gap Yah can and does complete on a regular basis. I still felt good. At this point in my travels it's been so long since I have studied for or achieved anything tangible that I was on a high from that for quite a while.
In the evenings we have mainly been eating really nice food, drinking a little bit (not much because Charlotte and I were diving) and having big cups of tea watching the sunset and then the moon on the water. Tonight we are going for fresh barbecued fish, and then there is a big trance/reggae party at one of the bars on the island that our dive instructors are going to so we will definitely hit that up as a last-night treat as we leave tomorrow to go to Jogjakarta (Java).
Gili Air is the most amazing place. I am feeling thoroughly relaxed and happy, and my tan has considerably deepened. Diving, too, has been an incredible experience. All of these things combined make Gili Air definitely one of, if not my actual favourite, place on this trip so far - and there is a LOT of competition for that title. I will definitely be coming back here.
Tomorrow we get a boat then a plane to Jogjakarta and are going to a volcanic crater lake, and to see some temples and things. We have exactly a week left in Indonesia, and it is now officially two and a half weeks until I am home. I have mixed feelings about both of these things.
I do miss everyone, though. I wrote a lot of postcards back in Goa in March but genuinely I have been too lazy to actually send them (really sorry) - I will get on sending them soon. They may be distinctly Indian in nature. I was considering pretending they all got lost in the post but may as well come clean and admit that no, they have just been sitting in my bag for over three months because I've never seemed to find time to go to the Post Office. This will be rectified - and not just because Gabi has to send hers and therefore she will motivate me to go with her. Hm.
Will write more from Java. Apologies for anyone whose messages I have not yet replied to - my internet time is limited due to the fact that I am maximizing my tanning time so when I get back no one does that whole "Ooh, have you really been away for four months? You're not that brown", and also my dive course was super hectic - I will get on it, probably towards the end of Java.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I forgot to mention in my last post the highlight of Ubud for all of us - the live music. We went to the Jazz Cafe and were treated to live Latin music which we attempted to salsa to - badly, obviously. We also went to a reggae bar, and listened to world music and various acoustic sets. All three of us are music lovers and particular fans of live music in any shape or form (apart from badly-played) so that was a real treat.
But anyway, onto my news from the last few days.
We caught the slow boat over to Gili Air which allowed ample time for tanning on the sundeck, although since none of us had slept well the night before it was resentful, grumpy tanning as opposed to sun-worshipping tanning. As in, if there had been shade, we would rather have been in it.
But we soon realised the enforced tanning had been a good idea when we got to Gili Air and saw how disgustingly brown everyone was compared to us - it is such a diving paradise (and a paradise in general) here that lots of people come here and just stay and dive, thus making them hideously, depressingly tanned. We felt very pale and English.
We found our dive school with ease - there are no roads or ATMS or cars on Gili Air, you go everywhere by horse and cart, and if you haven't taken out enough money, I suppose you are there washing dishes until you earn your boat fare back, or something. So we took a horse and cart to Blue Marlin Divers, where Chris, a nice Irish girl who owns the place, was waiting for us to give us our PADI books and get us settled into our room.
The next day, Gabi and I started our course at 2.30pm just watching videos and stuff - in the morning we just sunbathed, and I read Gabi Chapter One of the Openwater Dive Manual to help relieve her boredom - I'm not sure if it worked... Charlotte was doing her Advanced Diver course so was out at 8am in the water, doing two dives that first day with a very amusing couple of Russian girls (unintentionally hilarious, obviously) who spent the entire Underwater Photography Dive taking photos of themselves doing peace signs rather than at the fish as directed.
Gabi and I started our course the next day, we met the other girls (Jo, Laurie and Maryam - all very nice indeed, Maryam ended up being my dive buddy and a very good one she was too) and did our pool test. Gabi wasn't that fussed by it, she didn't hate it but just didn't particularly love it, so decided not to do anymore of the course because that way she didn't have to pay. I went back for our first openwater dive in the afternoon which was a cross between the exhilarating and the traumatic - exhilarating because, you know, you're breathing underwater, and there's fish and stuff. And traumatic because I couldn't control my buoyancy, equalizing seemed like a lot of work, and I had a strong feeling that my tank might fall off/regulator might break and I might die a horrible underwater death. The fact that this has never actually happened didn't reassure me. But it was actually a great dive and we saw some interesting things and I didn't die, which filled me with confidence (sort of).
The next day was an early start - 8am. We did three hours of dive theory, and then our second pool session to learn skills, before doing another dive in the afternoon. This dive was much better - I was reassured, no, convinced that I wasn't going to die. I almost descended properly (not quite). I managed to actually look at the fish instead of just hover in vague confusion. Everything was looking good. We then came back and took the PADI exam which was pretty easy, seeing as everything you get wrong, you get explained to you and then corrected so everyone gets full marks eventually. Not that I got much wrong to be honest, only a couple of questions - that was the geek in me, I suppose. I think I was the only one on the course that actually read the instruction manual... it didn't really help.
Our last day was just two 18m dives. This was by far the best day. I was confident, could set up the gear on my own, descend without any help and manage my weights correctly, maintain my buoyancy no problem, and even better, we saw and had long looks at some awesome fish and coral. We dived around a wreck in the morning which was incredible and quite creepy, and then in the afternoon we saw six sea turtles (mind-bogglingly huge), a stingray and a puffa fish all puffed up, amongst many other beautiful things. And then I was a qualified Open Water Diver! Which is a really amazing feeling despite it being a course that even the most idiotic Gap Yah can and does complete on a regular basis. I still felt good. At this point in my travels it's been so long since I have studied for or achieved anything tangible that I was on a high from that for quite a while.
In the evenings we have mainly been eating really nice food, drinking a little bit (not much because Charlotte and I were diving) and having big cups of tea watching the sunset and then the moon on the water. Tonight we are going for fresh barbecued fish, and then there is a big trance/reggae party at one of the bars on the island that our dive instructors are going to so we will definitely hit that up as a last-night treat as we leave tomorrow to go to Jogjakarta (Java).
Gili Air is the most amazing place. I am feeling thoroughly relaxed and happy, and my tan has considerably deepened. Diving, too, has been an incredible experience. All of these things combined make Gili Air definitely one of, if not my actual favourite, place on this trip so far - and there is a LOT of competition for that title. I will definitely be coming back here.
Tomorrow we get a boat then a plane to Jogjakarta and are going to a volcanic crater lake, and to see some temples and things. We have exactly a week left in Indonesia, and it is now officially two and a half weeks until I am home. I have mixed feelings about both of these things.
I do miss everyone, though. I wrote a lot of postcards back in Goa in March but genuinely I have been too lazy to actually send them (really sorry) - I will get on sending them soon. They may be distinctly Indian in nature. I was considering pretending they all got lost in the post but may as well come clean and admit that no, they have just been sitting in my bag for over three months because I've never seemed to find time to go to the Post Office. This will be rectified - and not just because Gabi has to send hers and therefore she will motivate me to go with her. Hm.
Will write more from Java. Apologies for anyone whose messages I have not yet replied to - my internet time is limited due to the fact that I am maximizing my tanning time so when I get back no one does that whole "Ooh, have you really been away for four months? You're not that brown", and also my dive course was super hectic - I will get on it, probably towards the end of Java.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Orangutan-ing Around
We have spent a fabulous, ridiculous, beautiful week in Borneo getting to know locals and orangutans. Literally nobody spoke English, they know one word which is "Yes" and they say it to everything you ask/tell them. Once you establish that, it's fine and you just learn to communicate using other methods (i.e., sign language...) but until that point, when you think they're actually agreeing with you, it's very confusing. All the flight announcements, too, are in "bahasa Indonesiana" [Indonesian] so basically, if you want information at an airport, you may as well not bother... or be satisfied with a "Yes" to anything you ask.
We caught our flight to Palangkaraya with no problems whatsoever apart from minor delays and the worst duty free options I have ever seen. The luggage carousel was so small that it didn't even go round, it's just one straight long line that everyone grabs at until it all spills off/piles up at the end. An intelligently designed system with no major flaws, obviously. We made it to Hotel Annisa Dina, where we were essentially celebrities, complete with a photoshoot. The next day we got a taxi to what we thought was going to be the bus station, so we could get a bus to Palangkalanbun, but what actually turned out to be an 11-hour drive to Palangkalanbun itself (via the hair salon to drop their friend off for her appointment)... see what I mean about communication problems?! But actually the taxi was only a pound more expensive than the bus would have been, and technically more comfortable though I think my tailbone is bruised from the bumpy roads.
We arrived late, and the next day headed to Kumai a short distance away, and from Kumai into the jungle (Tanjung Putting National Park). Our "speed" boat (5k/hr... absolute top speed) was guided by, essentially, a total mental, with a self-professed addiction to crystal meth, who listened in on any private conversation we had without any shame whatsoever, it was brilliant. We kept up our Danish identities and gave ourselves assumed names for the weekend, for no other reason except that we could, and telling our guide about our imagined visions of Denmark (none of us have ever been, but in our heads, everyone cycles everywhere and the Dutch are their natural enemies) provided a few hours of amusement. We slept on the boat, watching the stars, trying out the (really quite painful) traditional massages (supposed to have healing properties but gave Gabi the shakes and Charlotte a headache and didn't make any difference to me whatsoever) and drinking rice wine. At one point our boat got stuck in a floating island, and it took the guide ages to cut us out of it.
The next day was devoted to seeing wild orangutans, and tamer ones on the reservation, too. They really are fabulous and very amusing - hairy orange people is quite a good description, I think. Both times, they met us off the boat jetty, like they were expecting us. Their faces are so leathery and expressive, it's so entertaining just watching them, I could have watched them for absolutely hours. I have always been fascinated by monkeys and seeing them wild like that was such good fun and a real highlight.
The magic of the jungle itself is something that I really should mention. The tranquility and the beauty that we found there was something that had a calming influence on all of us; personally I have never been anywhere that remote, wild and unspoilt but somehow completely unthreatening. I'm sure I'd feel differently if I was stranded on the mainland at night with a snake wrapped around my foot/neck, but on our boat, moving almost silently through the water, flanked either side by colonies of fireflies glittering and winking at us, we felt very much at peace. I have never seen stars like we saw on that boat (we were also treated to a lightning storm, which was lovely); it was when we wished we'd googled the constellations, the only one we could find was the Plough. Charlotte and I have been meaning to google star constellations since Dharamsala so we did slightly feel silly for not having done it yet, but we just made some up which sounded very professional and was almost as good. Pointing at any bright star and saying "That's the North Star" in a tone of sufficient authority pretty much makes you an astronomer, I think. So yes, the jungle was incredible and what we had all been hoping for and more.
Oh my God did I get bitten by mosquitos, though. Literally eaten alive. The bastards. (Sorry, I don't normally swear that much on this blog because I know people who don't like swearing are reading it [sorry] but I really, really, REALLY hate mosquitos. My love of nature and all the world's creatures has increased exponentially during my travels but unfortunately mosquitos do not fall into this category, they fall into my category of literal hatred alongside cockroaches and Indian policemen.)
From the jungle, we made the long journey back to Palangkaraya and flew to Bali, where we are now - in Ubud. Ubud is lovely, very touristy, lots of white people and food that isn't cold, oily noodles (breakfast, lunch and dinner - mmm...). Which is a massive relief, much as we loved the remoteness of the jungle, we didn't always love the cuisine and mostly lived on biscuits and tinned fish. We have been doing bits and pieces here, lots of sunbathing and eating vegetables; our hotel has a pool which we have been thoroughly enjoying. Gabi and I were planning a walk up to the rice paddies so I think I will cut this blog entry short in a little bit and go and have some fun (er, not that writing this isn't fun, it is, it's just... a computer screen. And I've seen computer screens in my life more than I have seen rice paddies).
Tomorrow we get the boat to Gili Air, one of the Gili Islands, and Gabi and I are going to do our PADI Openwater dive course for four days. So by the next time you see me I will be able to dive anywhere in the world (supposedly) down to 18m. Which is quite exciting. Apparently the islands are really beautiful and we have booked with a good, PADI-accredited dive school so we should have a very happy few days. We then fly to Java on the 16th, but I'm sure I will update again before then.
Half of me is counting down the days until I am home - I really am ready to be back. But half of me is wanting this trip to never end. It depends on my mood, or, to be blunt, if it is a day where we are sitting on a various mode of transport being bored or a day we are doing something amazing. I am bored of buses, trains and ferries, and planes too, but not of doing amazing things. But you have to do one to get the other, so will just have to grin and bear our 11-hour ferry journey tomorrow.
Lots of love to all, miss you very much xxxxxxxxxxx
We caught our flight to Palangkaraya with no problems whatsoever apart from minor delays and the worst duty free options I have ever seen. The luggage carousel was so small that it didn't even go round, it's just one straight long line that everyone grabs at until it all spills off/piles up at the end. An intelligently designed system with no major flaws, obviously. We made it to Hotel Annisa Dina, where we were essentially celebrities, complete with a photoshoot. The next day we got a taxi to what we thought was going to be the bus station, so we could get a bus to Palangkalanbun, but what actually turned out to be an 11-hour drive to Palangkalanbun itself (via the hair salon to drop their friend off for her appointment)... see what I mean about communication problems?! But actually the taxi was only a pound more expensive than the bus would have been, and technically more comfortable though I think my tailbone is bruised from the bumpy roads.
We arrived late, and the next day headed to Kumai a short distance away, and from Kumai into the jungle (Tanjung Putting National Park). Our "speed" boat (5k/hr... absolute top speed) was guided by, essentially, a total mental, with a self-professed addiction to crystal meth, who listened in on any private conversation we had without any shame whatsoever, it was brilliant. We kept up our Danish identities and gave ourselves assumed names for the weekend, for no other reason except that we could, and telling our guide about our imagined visions of Denmark (none of us have ever been, but in our heads, everyone cycles everywhere and the Dutch are their natural enemies) provided a few hours of amusement. We slept on the boat, watching the stars, trying out the (really quite painful) traditional massages (supposed to have healing properties but gave Gabi the shakes and Charlotte a headache and didn't make any difference to me whatsoever) and drinking rice wine. At one point our boat got stuck in a floating island, and it took the guide ages to cut us out of it.
The next day was devoted to seeing wild orangutans, and tamer ones on the reservation, too. They really are fabulous and very amusing - hairy orange people is quite a good description, I think. Both times, they met us off the boat jetty, like they were expecting us. Their faces are so leathery and expressive, it's so entertaining just watching them, I could have watched them for absolutely hours. I have always been fascinated by monkeys and seeing them wild like that was such good fun and a real highlight.
The magic of the jungle itself is something that I really should mention. The tranquility and the beauty that we found there was something that had a calming influence on all of us; personally I have never been anywhere that remote, wild and unspoilt but somehow completely unthreatening. I'm sure I'd feel differently if I was stranded on the mainland at night with a snake wrapped around my foot/neck, but on our boat, moving almost silently through the water, flanked either side by colonies of fireflies glittering and winking at us, we felt very much at peace. I have never seen stars like we saw on that boat (we were also treated to a lightning storm, which was lovely); it was when we wished we'd googled the constellations, the only one we could find was the Plough. Charlotte and I have been meaning to google star constellations since Dharamsala so we did slightly feel silly for not having done it yet, but we just made some up which sounded very professional and was almost as good. Pointing at any bright star and saying "That's the North Star" in a tone of sufficient authority pretty much makes you an astronomer, I think. So yes, the jungle was incredible and what we had all been hoping for and more.
Oh my God did I get bitten by mosquitos, though. Literally eaten alive. The bastards. (Sorry, I don't normally swear that much on this blog because I know people who don't like swearing are reading it [sorry] but I really, really, REALLY hate mosquitos. My love of nature and all the world's creatures has increased exponentially during my travels but unfortunately mosquitos do not fall into this category, they fall into my category of literal hatred alongside cockroaches and Indian policemen.)
From the jungle, we made the long journey back to Palangkaraya and flew to Bali, where we are now - in Ubud. Ubud is lovely, very touristy, lots of white people and food that isn't cold, oily noodles (breakfast, lunch and dinner - mmm...). Which is a massive relief, much as we loved the remoteness of the jungle, we didn't always love the cuisine and mostly lived on biscuits and tinned fish. We have been doing bits and pieces here, lots of sunbathing and eating vegetables; our hotel has a pool which we have been thoroughly enjoying. Gabi and I were planning a walk up to the rice paddies so I think I will cut this blog entry short in a little bit and go and have some fun (er, not that writing this isn't fun, it is, it's just... a computer screen. And I've seen computer screens in my life more than I have seen rice paddies).
Tomorrow we get the boat to Gili Air, one of the Gili Islands, and Gabi and I are going to do our PADI Openwater dive course for four days. So by the next time you see me I will be able to dive anywhere in the world (supposedly) down to 18m. Which is quite exciting. Apparently the islands are really beautiful and we have booked with a good, PADI-accredited dive school so we should have a very happy few days. We then fly to Java on the 16th, but I'm sure I will update again before then.
Half of me is counting down the days until I am home - I really am ready to be back. But half of me is wanting this trip to never end. It depends on my mood, or, to be blunt, if it is a day where we are sitting on a various mode of transport being bored or a day we are doing something amazing. I am bored of buses, trains and ferries, and planes too, but not of doing amazing things. But you have to do one to get the other, so will just have to grin and bear our 11-hour ferry journey tomorrow.
Lots of love to all, miss you very much xxxxxxxxxxx
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Jl Jaksa 27
So here we are in Indonesia, in Jakarta to be precise - the blog title is the address of our hotel, which we have actually just left. We arrived safely and took an excellent cab ride in which Char, Gabi and I established that we are an ethnically and aesthetically-correct Charlie's Angels - Gabi is Alex, Charlotte is Natalie and I am Dylan. We have continued these alternate identities throughout our time in Jakarta and the locals seem to buy it, treating us like actual celebrities. The cab driver told me I looked like Barbie, and a small piece of my soul died, though he insisted it was a compliment. To console myself, I pretended to be Danish. Taking on alternative personalities has been one of the most amusing things about travelling. Generally I pretend to be Welsh, but I have been mixing it up recently and expanding into the rest of Europe. It doesn't seem to matter that the only accent I can do is Southern Irish.
We have had a pretty chilled out time in Jakarta - there's not that much to do, to be honest, but we've mainly just been lazy. We've sat in the same cafe a lot watching Indonesian music videos (people commit suicide a lot in them due to being dumped - a bit of a disproportionate reaction, but each to their own I suppose), and spent time marvelling at the windowless charm void that is our hotel room, and last night we walked an hour and a half trying to find a substandard, overpriced Middle Eastern restaurant. But that is about it. We did meet a wonderful man in the tourist office, called Frank/Taufik (he likes both names), who insisted that he could be reincarnated as a stone, and also that he was both Dean of the local university and an MI6 spy. At least, he was wonderful until he went on an insane racist tirade. I don't know what it is about us encountering racist officials (remember Ali at the Taj Mahal?!), but it was both incredibly uncomfortable and absolutely hilarious (mainly because it was so uncomfortable) - we didn't know what to say, so we just said nothing at all, which we figured was safer. He took us out with his family for long island ice teas at a local pub where there was a live band playing all the classics - some songs were better than others, it has to be said. "The Power of Love" was never one of my favourites, but if I ever hear it again, I will begin moving quickly in the other direction.
Today we fly to Borneo, where we will be getting a river boat to some villages, and also going to the National Park to see orangutans. It is pretty remote and I doubt I will get any internet signal, so don't be surprised if you don't hear from me for a week or so. I have (probably) not been mauled by a rogue orangutan.
I imagine my next update will be from Bali, where we fly on the 7th.
Also, I just thought I should mention that it's exactly a month today until I am home, meaning we are over 3/4 of the way through our trip now. So, for those who are missing me (tumbleweed/awkward silence), it's not long until I'm back, and I'm very excited.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
We have had a pretty chilled out time in Jakarta - there's not that much to do, to be honest, but we've mainly just been lazy. We've sat in the same cafe a lot watching Indonesian music videos (people commit suicide a lot in them due to being dumped - a bit of a disproportionate reaction, but each to their own I suppose), and spent time marvelling at the windowless charm void that is our hotel room, and last night we walked an hour and a half trying to find a substandard, overpriced Middle Eastern restaurant. But that is about it. We did meet a wonderful man in the tourist office, called Frank/Taufik (he likes both names), who insisted that he could be reincarnated as a stone, and also that he was both Dean of the local university and an MI6 spy. At least, he was wonderful until he went on an insane racist tirade. I don't know what it is about us encountering racist officials (remember Ali at the Taj Mahal?!), but it was both incredibly uncomfortable and absolutely hilarious (mainly because it was so uncomfortable) - we didn't know what to say, so we just said nothing at all, which we figured was safer. He took us out with his family for long island ice teas at a local pub where there was a live band playing all the classics - some songs were better than others, it has to be said. "The Power of Love" was never one of my favourites, but if I ever hear it again, I will begin moving quickly in the other direction.
Today we fly to Borneo, where we will be getting a river boat to some villages, and also going to the National Park to see orangutans. It is pretty remote and I doubt I will get any internet signal, so don't be surprised if you don't hear from me for a week or so. I have (probably) not been mauled by a rogue orangutan.
I imagine my next update will be from Bali, where we fly on the 7th.
Also, I just thought I should mention that it's exactly a month today until I am home, meaning we are over 3/4 of the way through our trip now. So, for those who are missing me (tumbleweed/awkward silence), it's not long until I'm back, and I'm very excited.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Monday, 30 May 2011
Maccaroni Cheese, Skype and Topshop
From the title, I could be writing about London. I'm not, though, I'm writing about Singapore, which is utterly fabulous in every way and just what we needed to recharge our batteries.
Our last couple of days in Ko Tao were, of course, wonderful - I've already described the glory that was that beautiful island and all the fun things we did there. Nick and Rob turned up on our last afternoon, and we all went out for dinner, and sat around on the beach reminiscing about how far we have all come since the heady days of Dharamsala (which I now fondly pronounce Dharum-salahhhh, gap-yah style). It's both strange and brilliant to have made such close friends on our journey - we have spent over a month of our lives intensely together, so in a sense we know each other inside out. But with none of the history of our childhoods/adolescence, unless we choose to share or reveal it. This is the last we will see of them on our trip, as Rob heads home from Bangkok in a few days' time to start a new, exciting chapter of his life, and Nick heads onwards to do the Laos/Vietnam/Cambodia circuit, before flying out to Australia to live there for a little while. So while I will see Rob very soon in London I'm sure, it'll be a lot longer before we're all reunited. But when that day comes, it will, of course, be awesome.
Charlotte and I then headed by boat, another boat, bus and another bus to Phuket, where we spent the night before our flight to Singapore the next day. We were kindly met at the airport by the wonderful Simon, Irene and Robin, who we are staying with. We had a pretty chilled day, going for lunch by the seafront and a walk around the Botanic Gardens, before an amazing dinner of maccaroni cheese with broccoli and Ben and Jerrys ice cream. Those who have been travelling for a long time will understand the true luxury, no Eden-esque, implication of those food items. Last night, we had broccoli and stilton soup, complete with amazing fresh granary bread and real cheddar. Tonight, Charlotte and I are cooking - garlic chicken with roasted vegetables, pesto and goats' cheese. Guess who chose that menu and bought the groceries... A massive thank you to Simon and Irene (and Robin too, who has very kindly allowed us to totally take over his room for three nights and who has humoured my teacher-like requests to identify the difference in the narrative styles of J.K. Rowling and other authors with enthusiasm) who could not have been kinder or made us feel more welcome. It has been such a slice of home, and we now feel ready to pack our backpacks up again for the last quarter of our travels.
We went to the National Museum on Sunday, mainly because it was free. It was really excellent. We got out around 3.30 and there, waiting for us on the steps with an amazing sign, was the wonderful Kai! We met Kai back in March in Dharamsala, and since he is a Singapore native, we were fortunate enough to catch him at home. So we spent the afternoon together; Kai gave us a tour of some of the more amazing/ridiculous areas of Singapore down by the coast (a shopping centre with a dry ice rink and a river running through that you could boat on). It was so great to see Kai again, although it made us all a little nostalgic for our amazing life in Dharamsala. Those two and a bit weeks remain my favourite of the trip so far. The people, the place, all came together for me - which is so rare - and whatever I have experienced since, no matter how fantastic it has been (and it has been fantastic), that time still seems a little magical to me.
Today, we got up a little earlier and headed out to meet Charlotte's friend Gabi, who we are travelling Indonesia with, at a shopping mall in town.
She came bearing gifts (well, one gift. One particular, very special gift).
A new pair of Topshop ballet flats. In my size. Exactly the colour I wanted.
Talk about an amazing first impression. I couldn't have been happier if she'd bought me a house.
I nearly cried I was so excited. I know how relieved you will all be, too - my shoe plight has (probably) been affecting your dreams/nightmares as much as it has mine. So you will be extremely reassured to know that the heartache is over, and I am in possession of a shiny (literally) new pair of flats, and I don't hate them, and it's all going to be okay.
Singapore is full of Western shops and we hit them pretty hard (though I only spent £20, so actually, I didn't hit them that hard. We did shop all day though). I bought things to replace broken things so I now have a basically functioning lot of clothes again, which is nice. Although my leggings are still broken beyond repair and I wasn't able to find a suitable replacement pair, so I will just go on wearing the broken ones, which doesn't seem skanky/trampy when you're travelling, it seems economically sensible. Charlotte left to get her hair done and Gabi and I carried on shopping, I bought some groceries for dinner and we went around the food hall pretending to be rich and looking like we might buy things so we got given lots of free tasters - perfect free afternoon snack.
I then headed back to Simon and Irene's in a cab, where I am now, and am about to start making dinner I think, even though Charlotte's not back, or it will start to get late. We are meeting Gabi at the airport tomorrow for our flight to Jakarta, and then our Indonesian adventure will begin!
I am three quarters of the way through my journey now and, much as I am enjoying it, I feel ready to come home. It has been hard being away for so long. By the time I get back, I won't have seen my dad for at least 6 months, and as a very close family that seems pretty absurdly long to be apart for. I oscillate, though, between longing for home and absolute certainty that once I have officially settled back in, I will long to be out here again, doing this, so I am trying to forget about the weariness and keep pushing on. Not that I am not enjoying travelling - of course I am, hugely so, and I am very aware of my good fortune to be in this position. I am just a little tired of packing up and putting on that backpack, of not being able to hide my greasy hair with dry shampoo, of wearing the same clothes, of constantly missing my friends and family, of figuring out new currencies, of figuring out new people. But all those things, apart from missing people, are negligible compared to all the absolutely incredible things about travelling. New places, new people, new experiences, the best and the worst in everything and everyone. Discovery and adventure and connecting. Beauty everywhere, challenging my traditional perception of the concept, the conceit of it. More laughter than I remember in a long time, and a new happiness and peace that I haven't experienced before. Those who knew me before will find me, on my return, a better person. I don't fool myself that I have made any great impact on the wider world through my journey (besides contributing in a minor way to the local economy, I suppose) - I haven't. But I have certainly changed myself a little.
School taught me that I wasn't anything special, that I will always be pretty average - not the cleverest, not the prettiest, not the most musical, the funniest, the most fashionable, not anything else in particular. University taught me that all of that is and will always be true. But travelling has taught me that all of that is probably still true, but that none of it matters. That it doesn't pay to compete with other people, even if they are trying to compete with you - it wastes time and energy and happiness. That all I can do is be the best person I can be, and that's enough, and that alone will make me a beautiful person. This lesson might seem pretty obvious to everyone else, written down it looks so dumb, but it really has taken me twenty one years of my life to realise that being perfect isn't about being skinny or having great hair or being really smart (though I do have great hair), it's about being the best you. I mean, not that I'm giving up makeup completely when I get home, obviously. I'm not going mad or anything. And I'm sure it's a lesson I won't always remember and some days I'll still wake up and hate every single outfit in my wardrobe and hate the fact that I don't look like Pixie Lott. But finally, I think the gist of it has kind of sunk in.
How introspective of me. I don't know why I went off on a self-righteous rant about beauty, I'm not sure where that came from. I apologise for any unintentional foray into an American teen drama with a life-lesson at the end that I may have made.
Whilst in Singapore I have managed to skype my mum, brother and dad, which has been amazing - first time I have talked to them in over a month I think. Emails just aren't the same and I can't wait to see them all again.
Plans for Indonesia include some diving, a moon party in Bali - half-moon, maybe - some orangutans and a volcanic crater. Not all at the same time, obviously. We have got three weeks, then a week in Sri Lanka and then home on July 2nd.
So into the last quarter of our trip we go, and we are still alive and well and happy, and acutely aware of how much we have to be thankful for. Good times.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx <3
Our last couple of days in Ko Tao were, of course, wonderful - I've already described the glory that was that beautiful island and all the fun things we did there. Nick and Rob turned up on our last afternoon, and we all went out for dinner, and sat around on the beach reminiscing about how far we have all come since the heady days of Dharamsala (which I now fondly pronounce Dharum-salahhhh, gap-yah style). It's both strange and brilliant to have made such close friends on our journey - we have spent over a month of our lives intensely together, so in a sense we know each other inside out. But with none of the history of our childhoods/adolescence, unless we choose to share or reveal it. This is the last we will see of them on our trip, as Rob heads home from Bangkok in a few days' time to start a new, exciting chapter of his life, and Nick heads onwards to do the Laos/Vietnam/Cambodia circuit, before flying out to Australia to live there for a little while. So while I will see Rob very soon in London I'm sure, it'll be a lot longer before we're all reunited. But when that day comes, it will, of course, be awesome.
Charlotte and I then headed by boat, another boat, bus and another bus to Phuket, where we spent the night before our flight to Singapore the next day. We were kindly met at the airport by the wonderful Simon, Irene and Robin, who we are staying with. We had a pretty chilled day, going for lunch by the seafront and a walk around the Botanic Gardens, before an amazing dinner of maccaroni cheese with broccoli and Ben and Jerrys ice cream. Those who have been travelling for a long time will understand the true luxury, no Eden-esque, implication of those food items. Last night, we had broccoli and stilton soup, complete with amazing fresh granary bread and real cheddar. Tonight, Charlotte and I are cooking - garlic chicken with roasted vegetables, pesto and goats' cheese. Guess who chose that menu and bought the groceries... A massive thank you to Simon and Irene (and Robin too, who has very kindly allowed us to totally take over his room for three nights and who has humoured my teacher-like requests to identify the difference in the narrative styles of J.K. Rowling and other authors with enthusiasm) who could not have been kinder or made us feel more welcome. It has been such a slice of home, and we now feel ready to pack our backpacks up again for the last quarter of our travels.
We went to the National Museum on Sunday, mainly because it was free. It was really excellent. We got out around 3.30 and there, waiting for us on the steps with an amazing sign, was the wonderful Kai! We met Kai back in March in Dharamsala, and since he is a Singapore native, we were fortunate enough to catch him at home. So we spent the afternoon together; Kai gave us a tour of some of the more amazing/ridiculous areas of Singapore down by the coast (a shopping centre with a dry ice rink and a river running through that you could boat on). It was so great to see Kai again, although it made us all a little nostalgic for our amazing life in Dharamsala. Those two and a bit weeks remain my favourite of the trip so far. The people, the place, all came together for me - which is so rare - and whatever I have experienced since, no matter how fantastic it has been (and it has been fantastic), that time still seems a little magical to me.
Today, we got up a little earlier and headed out to meet Charlotte's friend Gabi, who we are travelling Indonesia with, at a shopping mall in town.
She came bearing gifts (well, one gift. One particular, very special gift).
A new pair of Topshop ballet flats. In my size. Exactly the colour I wanted.
Talk about an amazing first impression. I couldn't have been happier if she'd bought me a house.
I nearly cried I was so excited. I know how relieved you will all be, too - my shoe plight has (probably) been affecting your dreams/nightmares as much as it has mine. So you will be extremely reassured to know that the heartache is over, and I am in possession of a shiny (literally) new pair of flats, and I don't hate them, and it's all going to be okay.
Singapore is full of Western shops and we hit them pretty hard (though I only spent £20, so actually, I didn't hit them that hard. We did shop all day though). I bought things to replace broken things so I now have a basically functioning lot of clothes again, which is nice. Although my leggings are still broken beyond repair and I wasn't able to find a suitable replacement pair, so I will just go on wearing the broken ones, which doesn't seem skanky/trampy when you're travelling, it seems economically sensible. Charlotte left to get her hair done and Gabi and I carried on shopping, I bought some groceries for dinner and we went around the food hall pretending to be rich and looking like we might buy things so we got given lots of free tasters - perfect free afternoon snack.
I then headed back to Simon and Irene's in a cab, where I am now, and am about to start making dinner I think, even though Charlotte's not back, or it will start to get late. We are meeting Gabi at the airport tomorrow for our flight to Jakarta, and then our Indonesian adventure will begin!
I am three quarters of the way through my journey now and, much as I am enjoying it, I feel ready to come home. It has been hard being away for so long. By the time I get back, I won't have seen my dad for at least 6 months, and as a very close family that seems pretty absurdly long to be apart for. I oscillate, though, between longing for home and absolute certainty that once I have officially settled back in, I will long to be out here again, doing this, so I am trying to forget about the weariness and keep pushing on. Not that I am not enjoying travelling - of course I am, hugely so, and I am very aware of my good fortune to be in this position. I am just a little tired of packing up and putting on that backpack, of not being able to hide my greasy hair with dry shampoo, of wearing the same clothes, of constantly missing my friends and family, of figuring out new currencies, of figuring out new people. But all those things, apart from missing people, are negligible compared to all the absolutely incredible things about travelling. New places, new people, new experiences, the best and the worst in everything and everyone. Discovery and adventure and connecting. Beauty everywhere, challenging my traditional perception of the concept, the conceit of it. More laughter than I remember in a long time, and a new happiness and peace that I haven't experienced before. Those who knew me before will find me, on my return, a better person. I don't fool myself that I have made any great impact on the wider world through my journey (besides contributing in a minor way to the local economy, I suppose) - I haven't. But I have certainly changed myself a little.
School taught me that I wasn't anything special, that I will always be pretty average - not the cleverest, not the prettiest, not the most musical, the funniest, the most fashionable, not anything else in particular. University taught me that all of that is and will always be true. But travelling has taught me that all of that is probably still true, but that none of it matters. That it doesn't pay to compete with other people, even if they are trying to compete with you - it wastes time and energy and happiness. That all I can do is be the best person I can be, and that's enough, and that alone will make me a beautiful person. This lesson might seem pretty obvious to everyone else, written down it looks so dumb, but it really has taken me twenty one years of my life to realise that being perfect isn't about being skinny or having great hair or being really smart (though I do have great hair), it's about being the best you. I mean, not that I'm giving up makeup completely when I get home, obviously. I'm not going mad or anything. And I'm sure it's a lesson I won't always remember and some days I'll still wake up and hate every single outfit in my wardrobe and hate the fact that I don't look like Pixie Lott. But finally, I think the gist of it has kind of sunk in.
How introspective of me. I don't know why I went off on a self-righteous rant about beauty, I'm not sure where that came from. I apologise for any unintentional foray into an American teen drama with a life-lesson at the end that I may have made.
Whilst in Singapore I have managed to skype my mum, brother and dad, which has been amazing - first time I have talked to them in over a month I think. Emails just aren't the same and I can't wait to see them all again.
Plans for Indonesia include some diving, a moon party in Bali - half-moon, maybe - some orangutans and a volcanic crater. Not all at the same time, obviously. We have got three weeks, then a week in Sri Lanka and then home on July 2nd.
So into the last quarter of our trip we go, and we are still alive and well and happy, and acutely aware of how much we have to be thankful for. Good times.
Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxx <3
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