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Langkawi 2.0
Thursday, August 04th, 2011 /

I was super excited and anxiously waiting at the Langkawi airport for Ashley’s arrival…. The first of our friends to actually come to travel alongside Brad and I!!!!! She was easy to spot with her blonde hair and I ran up to give her a massive hug!! She was about to experience the life of a budget backpacker….couch surfing style!  Woo hoo… now all the fun adventures could begin!

Hugs at the airport!!

We started simple and went to the beach for what turned out to be a beautiful sunset, before hitting up the massive duty-free shop for some cheap vodka! We checked out a very little local bar/hostel where we ran into Deb, our new Canadian friend who used to live on the island, and taught her and Ash our new favorite drinking game…golf (Thanks Chris and Joe)! It was an easy chill island-style drinking night!

Sunset at Pantai Cenang Beach

They next day we rented a car to go check out the sights! First stop, the Telaga Tujuh, or “Seven Wells” waterfall! It was super nice, walking through the green jungle, seeing monkeys running around on the footpath. Ashley and I both LOVED seeing the monkeys, as most people can tell from my abundance on monkey photos! Then we rocked up to the waterfall and it was so pretty and relaxing. We dropped our stuff, stripped down and jumped in! Places like this are cool because you can actually climb and interact with the nature…it’s not all roped off to prevent unjustly suing.

Climbing around!

After a bit of a play in the water, we explored the bottom part of the falls. We heard you could slide down the rocks, and were sure we found the right ones. Ashley thought she’d give it a try no worries…. Hahah but as soon as she gave herself a little push, she was GONE….no stopping her! After a brief moment of panic, we all started cracking up after witnessing her fully slide, flip and fall down the rocks! Phew…maybe a bruise, but made for a funny memory!

We took off for a further hike to the top of the falls where there was a nice lookout and a bit of a scary drop down!

Brad looking out right at the waterfall dropoff!

The hike DOWN the waterfall however was the most memorable! We decided to eat a couple granola bars for an energy boost on our way down through the jungle, and I start telling Ashley about the monkey that semi-attacked me in Phi Phi when suddenly a MASS HOARD of monkeys is coming straight for us with greed in their eyes! Ashley and I start screaming and trying to hide behind Brad, but he takes off running down the hill and us girls are just freaking out with no idea what to do. We jump up on the bench, but of course, so do the monkeys…grabbing at our legs and arms! It was TERRIFYING!! Ashley then quickly realized she had half a granola bar in her hand and threw it which distracted them, so we took off running in the opposite direction, which happened to be back UP the hill. DANG! We were stuck and too scared to go down again. Some locals were walking up and gave us a few tips…glasses on, don’t look at them, NO food, and grab a stick. We finally worked up the courage to go down, and had no problems but our hearts were BEATING!

One of the NICE monkeys from earlier....

PHEW so we took off to a pretty white beach on the other end of the island to calm ourselves! It was beautiful with white sand, small rocky islands off the coast to admire, and overhanging cliffs in the distance! After a bit of a play in the water, we chowed down on some Malaysian flavored Twisties and headed home.  I took Ash to our new favorite dinner joint, “Tomato”, oddly enough an Indian restaurant … but it had the BEST (and cheapest) Roti around!!  We had a long girls chat and catch up, complete with Chai tea!

Time to calm down!

Brad was feeling sick and we thought he was having a reaction to the mold that was in Din’s house. It sounds gross, and it is gross, but it’s also kind of common living on a tropical island with crazy wet seasons. Anyway, he was feeling a bit queasy, so drove us to another waterfall the next morning, but opted to stay in the car! Ashley and I took the hike up, avoiding crazy spiders and insects along the way!  It was cool because we were the only ones around, and stumbled upon a broken bridge that we had to climb across! FUN! We didn’t take long though, knowing Brad was waiting, so hurried back to check out the famous Langkawi cable cars.

Climbing over the collapsed bridge!

We arrived at Oriental Village, hoping the weather was calm enough to take the 1 and a half mile long … steep…cable car ride to the top of the mountain! We were lucky! Once we started the ascend, we were able to see beautiful panoramic views of the island, jungle and waterfall on one side, ocean and rocky islands on the other! Once at the top, you get to walk across this incredible sky bridge. You can feel in shake slightly as you walk over it!

Amazing view!

On the sky bridge!

After lots of walking and an increasing appetite, we decided we HAD to take Ashley to a local Malay buffet, and made her eat with her hands! She took to the hands thing well, but don’t think she was a huge fan of the buffet… I’m usually not a buffet girl either! Actually, we were warned to stay away from buffets as travelers. But oh well…do as the locals do!

Ashleys turn!

Come night, Brad was REALLY HOT, so after forcing lots of water and fruit upon him, Ashley and I left him home to sleep while we again went to Sunba with Din and his crew. Same band, same drink coupons….lots of dancing…just as much fun! There were a few funny characters around that gave us lots of laughs throughout the night!

Love her!

We had time for one last relaxing swim on the beach the next morning, with Brad feeling surprisingly better,  before heading to the other side of town to catch a ferry to Penang!  

Love him!

Category: Beaches, CouchSurfing, Islands, Langkawi, Malaysia  Tags: , ,  Leave a Comment
Langkawi 1.0
Wednesday, August 03rd, 2011 /

The road out of Thailand was hectic and a tad bit stressful. The reason being….our visa was running out in a couple days and if we didn’t get out of there, we might have been paying a hefty fine!! The reason we COULDN’T get out of there was because there was MASSIVE flooding on all the roads leading OUT! Ahhhh  the buses weren’t running,  the trains were blocked. We even went to an immigration office, but they basically told us either way…we were paying! GREAT! We waited it out in beautiful, yet wet Krabi, and LUCKILY on the very last day, the bus was running! So we bussed it to the border, where we jumped on a ferry to Langkawi!

Ferry ride...with rice sticks!

We arrived by ferry but cabbed it to the airport to meet our Couchsurfer Din! He works there, but also lives close by…so gave us a ride to his place! Just off the beach on a little back road was his humble abode! After we settled, Brad and I walked to the beach for sunset! We were in Langkawi for the next 2 weeks and they were spent relaxing and partying with Din and his friends!

Han

Hanging around at Yellow cafe!

Din had the morning off so took us to a waterfall nearby. It was a nice walk through the jungle full with humping monkeys J We were lucky because the waterfall was roaring! The night before we experienced a torrential downpour and tropical thunderstorm as we were having drinks under a little tin roof. It was scary as…. The thunderclap and lighting shut off the electricity and everyone was sitting in the dark drinking…barely able to hear each other over the pouring rain! But hey…it made for a pretty waterfall trip the next day!

Climbing around on the waterfall!

That night, Din took us to his friends pre-opening of his restaurant. Turns out it was Rizal…who we were couchsurfing with for the second part of our trip!! Haha..small island! He brought out tons of amazing food for us to try (for free!) before we all took off to Sunba, the only late-night bar on that side of the island. We had a BLAST!!! Drinks were cheap…plus we had a pile of free-drink coupons, the band was rocking with Pink Floyd and Bob Marley covers, and we were all dancing as if nobody was watching (especially me ahhh!) We didn’t go home until 3 or 4am … and somehow Din does this almost EVERY night before taking off for work early the next morning!!

Partying with Din!

One of the coolest things about Malaysia, seeming as Brad and I are food lovers, is that they eat with their hands!!! It’s a very skilled art, but it doesn’t matter how sloppy the curry…you’re eating with your hands. Din took us to a super local buffet and everyone was extremely impressed that Brad and I not only tried eating with our hands….but knew the correct technique (thanks Aunty Suhaima!!)

Brad eating...Malaysian style!

So with Din being the ultimate man…he then invited us to ANOTHER party with tons of free food, and this time free booze as well. It was a 75th birthday party of a local German man who was partnered with a Malaysian man.

Brad dancing with traditional....?

The party was AMAZING!! The most food Brad and I had seen on our whole trip….and ALL FREE! We were in heaven but absolutely stuffed out faces (in an elegant mannered way of course). The party was on the sand with nice tables and decorations, and full of entertainment from lady boys to a slideshow of Johnny’s life. Everyone was so friendly and towards the end everyone let off those floating lantern things…which turned out to be surprisingly difficult…but really nice!

Floating lights :)

Again the night ended with everyone off to Sunba…but I was mostly excited for the anticipated arrival of my bestie Ashley!

Category: Beaches, CouchSurfing, Islands, Langkawi, Malaysia, Uncategorized  Tags: , , , ,  One Comment
Phuket
Sunday, June 12th, 2011 /

There is nothing quite like Thai-island hoping, at least not that I’ve done yet. Despite being passed from one mode of transport to the next during the course of a trip; with touts threatening a longer wait time without additional payment, it’s actually a cinch – just as long as you stay persistent!

Beautiful Phuket

We were traveling from the east to the western islands for our next destination – to the popular island/peninsula of Phuket. The overnight journey went off with only a few hiccups and before we knew it we were standing in front of our Couch Surfing hosts house in Chalong Bay. Our host Val is originally from France but is posted up in Phuket running her scuba diving school and has been for the past few years. She made us dinner and we spent the hours in conversation about political & social issues surrounding the marine conservation efforts that she is involved with there. She is an absolutely lovely woman whom we so easily bonded.

Chels's first time driving

When daylight came we took off early in search of a motor bike. It had been such a success in Koh Phangan it deserved another go. We had a place in mind as we walked down the main strip of Chalong Bay. Since the first place was closed we ended up renting from a Thai Massage business that tripled as a restaurant and apparently bike rental place, perhaps even travel agent if we needed. Normally this might have seemed dodgy, but in Thailand even the most unsuspecting places are legit and as it turned out, so was this one.

Phuket is more metropolitan than Koh Phangan so instead of avoiding crater-like potholes and steep dirt roads we now had to watch out for other drivers whizzing past us. Despite all that, cruising on a motor bike had become one of our new favorite hobbies. It’s such a great way to explore an island, cruising to the far reaches, feeling free. Not only did we get a chance to explore but we felt like locals (even though we can’t balance 3 kids and two adults on one bike).  And pulling off to fill up our gas tank with a Johnny Walker bottle full of petrol at little stands set up along the roads was a welcomed experience!

chilln

Val clued us in to a sweet snorkel spot on the south east corner of the island and even loaned us some equipment. The road to the secluded beach was spotted with signs reminding us of the past tsunami that had devastated parts of the island; and pointing you along an evacuation route but in some places informing drivers that you have entered a point of no return (if one were to hit). But who has time to worry about stuff like that during an adventure (kidding mom/mum).

Chilln with the fishes

We had to walk the bike down the steep beat up road to our secret snorkel spot and as soon as we touched the sand the gear was on and we hit the water. We spent the next hour or so skimming the surface, spotting many of Nemo’s buddies, who weren’t always so happy to see us, as we were them.

Snack time!

It was such a peaceful area that we decided to have some lunch at the snack shack set up on the beach. We had spent the rest of that day lounging on beautiful white sand beaches, wadding in the warm Thai waters. As daylight drifted we soaked the last rays up on the tourist popular Patong Beach for what turned out to be our unanimous favorite sunset; having lots of fun snapping photos and playing in the water.

Sunset at Patong!

Headstands at Sunset

The sad reality of sex tourism reared its ugly head as we walked up and down the infamous Thanon Bangla road. Old white men rubbing their much younger hired Thai dates in often inappropriate places. An unfortunate circumstance of rampant poverty, cultural differences and a soaring exchange rate. Besides the urge to vomit we enjoyed the area, ducking into the dirt cheap markets with knock off goods and yummy eats.

Infamous

The lady boys were just starting to emerge on the scene when it started pouring down rain…i mean monsoon!! Crazy heavy thick rain! We ran into some tin-roof covered markets and tried to wait it out while browsing. Luckily i had saved a poncho i picked up for free at GurtenFest in Switzerland, and now it was FINALLY coming in handy! The rain just didn’t let up, and we figured it was now or never to make the 30-minute drive home. Really though…if not now, there might be some flooding with all the crazy hills. So on the scooter we hopped and Brad got us home safe and wet! :)

Pumpkins and Ponchos

On our next day we decided to hit the more rural areas of the island and take a trip to see big Buddha. He is currently being built at the highest point of the island and so anticipating we would get hungry on our trip, we picked a coconut from one of Val’s trees and stored it in our motorbike basket.

The road up to see Buddha is a windy and scenic ride and well worth it once you get to the top. The views were spectacular and although neither of us is a Buddhist, Buddha was so enlightening and we think of him as a model human we should strive to imitate. And we certainly appreciate the dedication of the monks who dwell there.

Big Buddha

Inside the area is gong that you can hit or rub the back of with your bare hands to create this deep vibrating sound.  Both Chelsea, me and several other tourists failed to create a sound. But when a young boy, maybe 6 or 7 years old got behind it he slipped into a meditative state and it began to sound (All the tourists, including us…were mesmerized!!).

super powers

On our ride down we were getting a bit thirsty and remember our coconut. Spotting an elderly man on the side of the road selling fruit we pulled over and signaled to our coconut. Immediate he walked across the road to his “workshop”, grabbed his hatchet and cut open our coconut. Of course, you can buy ones that are perfectly shaved, chilled and served with a straw; but we preferred a still green, hand-picked, cut open by a rural farmer and drank from the opening. A strange but sweet taste! The best part being the connection we made with the man, who was amused by our excitement.

Yum

We rode through to a Si Ray, a small little island off the coast to grab some lunch. It was a place off the beaten tourist track. And the locals were quite surprised to see phalong (white people) when we rocked up. By far the cheapest and best food we had on Phuket, full of such flavor.

On our way back we fed some monkeys and hit up Phuket Town. In search of a tourist agency to get pricing on a ferry to Phi Phi, we ran into an agent flying solo who overheard us asking locals. He said he could offer us the cheapest prices because he worked independently. At first we didn’t believe him but he seemed harmless and we ended up booking anyway.  As it turns out, was a super nice guy! He arranged to pick us up the next morning and walked us all the way to the ferry boat to ensure our send off. We waved goodbye to him and Phuket as we sailed off to the magic that awaited us in Phi Phi!

Category: Beaches, Phuket, Thailand  Tags: , ,  Leave a Comment
On a shoestring.. like, really on a shoestring
Thursday, February 17th, 2011 /

Some advice for broke ass travelers:

Adhering to our tight budget was almost like a full-time job and at times, no fun.  Constantly seeking out the cheapest possible option can be exhausting, but after a while you do get used to it and it becomes part of the day.  And the end result is, more traveling!

For a lot of people who don’t travel, they usually give a myriad of excuses as to why they don’t.  Money usually being the prevailing reason.  The others, I’m not qualified to advise you on.   I can, however, provide some useful tips that worked for us throughout our travels.

First, you must understand where your money will be spent.  Our top three expenses while traveling:

1.       Accommodation

2.       Transportation

3.       Food

Segmenting these helps a lot with budgeting; stay at a nicer hostel, eat a little worse, it’s common sense and when you’re traveling on a tight budget it becomes the norm.

I’ve broken down the three expenses and explain a little bit how you can save money.

Accommodation:

 

Making do

  • Couchsurfing: Cannot say enough about this.  I’ve written a little expose on the network (if you have not already heard about it).  But to summarize, it’s hands down the best way to see an area of interest; you meet amazing locals, it’s safe and free!  There are also other hospitality networks such as global freeloaders, hospitality club, and Women welcome women – the girls only edition
  • Camp: We brought a tent since we traveled in summer, when we couldn’t couchsurf we camped, saved us HEAPS!  Also sleeping on the beach, where it is safe, is a good option.(reference the Lisbon post)
  • WOOF and Help Exchange are programs that allow you to volunteer your labor for accommodation.  Keep in mind a lot of farmers require you to stay a certain amount of time and it’s more than likely you’ll be in a rural area. You also have to pay for a membership.
  • Part time job – Some places you can work and stay, illegally, so I don’t advise this, but as a backpacker I am required by our code to present this info to you.  You can also do it legally, which is what I am doing in Australia at the moment!  It is absolutely possible, especially in the service sector so bring along a resume!

 

Food:

 

A staple of our daily diet

  • Grocery Store: We carried a bag of food around with us, shopping at grocery stores to save money.  Cans of tuna, loaves of bread, jar of peanut butter and lots and lots of oranges :)  This is not glamorous but that’s how we role.  Of course one of our favorite things to do is taste the local fare, so once a day, or once every two days we would grab something cheap.
  • USE THE BACK STREETS.  The most expensive places to eat are usually the ones that are right next to the tourist attraction.  Explore a little for your food.   If you see a long line of locals at a spot, chances are the food is fantastic and reasonably priced.  An ancillary benefit is you’ll see more of the city, maybe  discover some hidden gem, like the 7 euro buffet in Florence!

Transportation:

 

Bus-a-bout

  • Take buses, we signed up for a busabout – hop on, hop off tour.  Which gave us a choice of cities that were on its loop with designated pick up days.  The bus would usually make two stops the last one a compulsory overnight stop and that would be considered 1 trip.  An example of a route would be Nice, France to Barcelona, Spain.  You can buy anywhere from 5 to unlimited trips.  Mostly this saved on big distance travels.  But for small distances within a country it can be rather cheap.  Like in Italy, traveling from Rome to Florance was 16 euro one  way train or something like that.  It gets expensive when you are going international/long distances like Paris to Amsterdam.  This is when having a rail/bus pass is super beneficial.
  • Use Rideshare programs (Europe): Or pre-arranged hitchhiking with a relatively small fee. Basically someone posts on the website that they are driving from A to B and they have __# of seats.  They may or may not list a price but it’s easy enough to work out.  The only thing about this is, you have to get lucky and find someone who is traveling the exact route you want at the exact time.  It only worked out once for us, Vienna to Salzburg, but it was smooth sailing the entire ride and much cheaper than the train or bus.   The majority of these are for northern Europe in countries like Germany, Netherlands,  Austria, and Switzerland where trains are Extremely expensive and there are no buses.  Just pull up google and punch in ‘ride share – (country)’  – and a bunch will pop up. 
  • Making friends; Klaus is jamming out and Heter is right behind him

    *Another example of something you can do is hitch a ride in a camper van.  While at a camp site in Senj Croatia,  we met this wonderful couple from Germany.  We heard that they were going to Plitvice Nat. Park the next morning.  Fortunately we had just met two other travelers from Germany who were able to translate, and asked them if they would take us along!  …They ended up driving us around Croatia for the next week!  An example of the kind of things that can work out if your open and friendly….being in a camper park helps too  ;)

     

Just think about it like this, how would you save money at home?  Apply the same mentality.  When on holiday it’s easy to spend frivolously because of the excitement, but do a quick costs-benefit analysis.  More often than not you’ll find that you make economic decisions based off short term satisfaction and if you’re going the distance like us than you’ll be coming home quicker than anticipated.

Depending on your level of tolerance and time, you can cut costs left and right.  It takes a strong will not to give in when you’re tired or hungry, but roughing it was the best way for us to travel this particular trip and I wouldn’t change a thing!

 

Any questions about specific ways we saved money in a country just leave a comment or shoot us an email. Driftingduo468@gmail.com

Category: Travel Tips  Tags: , ,  One Comment
Bangkok 1.0
Thursday, February 10th, 2011 /

We were definitely sad to leave our new friends Roy and Arnav; not to mention so many unexplored regions of India, BUT we had been looking forward to Thailand since the start of our trip and with Bangkok first on our itinerary , there was no time to dwell on what had been left behind.

Thai Airways!

We arrived very early in the morning and as in some places we’ve visited before, Bangkok had energy.  Unfortunately for us, we didn’t.  We caught the taxi to our CS host, Mai’s apartment in Sukhumvit.  She answered the door, still in pajamas looking sleepy, with evidence of a party in the background.  As it turned out, her celebratory birthday dinner got a little crazy the night before and had plans to go into work a little late.  SO, she went back to bed and Chelsea and I passed out on the amazingly comfortable futon leaving the intro phase till later that night.

Finally Thai Food!!

That night we got to know Mai a little bit over some delicious Thai street  food in a area set up for vendors with little plastic table and chairs set up besides their portable kitchen.  We were really excited since we’d been looking forward to that since the inception of our trip. The service was quick and personal, and the mixed meat and noodle dish did not disappoint, especially the mango and sticky rice for dessert!

Mai and Sticky Rice!

On our way home, we all decided to get Thai Massages!! Yay we had been waiting 6 months to get a massage (it was especially difficult turning down 5 a day on the beach in Santorini!), and the moment had finally come! Mai knew this CHEAP place, only 100 baht, which is just over $3!!! We may have been sketched out if Mai had not been with us. This place was dark with little cubicles to lay in, BUT it ended up being amazing! A Thai massage is more like being stretched out after a work out. The outfits they give you to put on are the coolest too :)

Thai Massage!

The next day on our way to the train station to buy tickets to the Cambodian border, we were lured in by a travel agency.  A bit skeptical but intrigued enough to listen we sat in there for over 2 hours figuring out plans for what would turn out to be, the next two weeks.

First stop on our tour was Kanchanaburi and this involved an early next morning “bus” to experience the River Kwai and surrounding areas.  These new travel plans had us booked for two return trips to Bangkok.  Since we had to be up-around 5:00am we opted for a visit to China Town knowing at some point in our returns, we would explore the  cities famous attractions.  We got lucky picking China town on this particular night, where the vegetarian festival was underway.  We took advantage of the  street vendors and even caught a glimpse of some ancient Chinese dancing.  The night concluded with the long walk back to the sky train.

Chinese Dance!

Category: Bangkok, Cities, CouchSurfing, Southeast Asia, Thailand  Tags: , , ,  Leave a Comment
Kolkata!
Saturday, February 05th, 2011 /

We were sad to leave such a wonderful place but as it turned out, Kolkata was the best way to end our Indian adventure.  We had lined up some CouchSurfing hosts that lived close to the airport.  Managing  our way to their apartment appeared to be simple enough, given our instructions were to take the bus  that stopped right near their place; so we figured easy as, lets give it a go.

Walking out of the train station, shooing off the taxi totes offering rock bottom bait and switch deals, and to the hectic bus stand that would turn into our latest adventure.  Although it appeared unorganized at first, the bus we were looking for showed up after only a few minutes.  This was a reoccurring theme of India transport, appearance of no structure but  somehow, it gets you where you need to be (but never on time).

Kolkata thanks to Google!

Before we had to jump on, and I mean quite literally ‘jump’ on the moving bus we decided we’d better get a water.  It was blistering hot, we were carrying backpacks and had been traveling for 18 hours.  I reached into my pouch, grabbed 100 rupees and as I pulled it out realized there was a tiny tear in the top left corner of the bill.  Our experience with ripped rupees was that NO ONE accepts them (at least from a foreigner). We had no extra money and no ATMs in sight.  On the walk back to the station, we stumbled upon a man who tried gluing it back together, BUT we watched it fall apart within seconds. Luckily we found a kind old lady at the medical tent who went out of her way to get it switched out for us.

Now, back to the bus stand, we grabbed a water and very kindly were told about the air-conditioned bus, only a few rupees more.  We were hot , and spotted it right away so we made a run for it.  Chels had fallen behind a little bit and had to stand in front of the bus to make sure he stopped for her lol (of course I was telling him to as well but they don’t always listen).  It was a good thing that we opted for the air con bus because it took us 2 and a half hours at high noon, sitting in dead stop traffic to get to our CS, Roy and Arnav’s apartment.

Roy and Arnav!

We spent the rest of the day getting to know each other, chowing down food (at this point we had not eaten for 24 hours) and exchanging music.  At night we hit up this great hotel bar that had a live band playing some grunge and classic rock tunes.  Roy and Arnav were absolutely rocking out dancing and singing and we happily joined in.  After the close of the bar we went to the local late night food spot.  They did all the ordering and it was delicious and fiery hot!

Rocking out!

The next day we hung out all day together. Roy graced us with his chilled-out guitar skills, and we completely fell in love with one song, “Bana Bana Bana Bana, Bana Bana Bana” hahaha sounds silly when we write it out like that. It basically means “Keep Moving”. Keep moving along in life! He has a really deep southern sounding voice… Johnny Cash style in a lot of songs he wrote!

Bana Bana!

When we decided to grab some food, Roy took us to a local spot to get a Chicken Roll and it was the best thing ever!!! We broke our vegetarian-only habits on our last day in India but ohh it was sooo worth it!

Chicken Roll Yum!

A bit later on, we picked up one of their good friend at the airport.  Roy was surprised at the amount of traffic for that time of day and as it turned out, a Haj pilgrimage, which is a Muslim pilgrimage to mecca was underway (wanna freak out an American, visit the airport during a Haj) and again bonded over our love for music. Roy picked up a bunch of beer and Indian snacks. Brad and I taught them some American drinking games (our specialty) before we all headed to the rooftop to light off fireworks! Probably NOT the best idea with a buzz on! The boys had a massive firecracker war…runing all over the roof, brad seriously burnt his hand on a sparkler, and we had another “Bana Bana” singalong sesh! It was like we had been friends forever!

Fireworks Fun!

On our way out the door to catch our super late flight, Arnav gave me a surprise going away pressie! A great big handbag! They both manufacture luxury handbags and wallets, specializing in leather, and made me one <3 ! So thoughtful, and it ended up being so handy throughout the rest of the travels! We were so sad to leave Roy and Arnav, and almost considered changing our flight to spend more time with them! We didn’t leave before promising a return visit to India sometime in the near future :) Thanks boys!

Looking back on India… well actually I hated it at first.  India has extreme polarization of rich and poor and it is painfully obvious, there population is massive making things cluttered and it has some of the dirtiest places I’ve ever seen.  Corruption is rampant and you will be ripped off  in some way shape or form.  Mostly everyone knows the bad stuff from either a travel show or having known someone who has been.  BUT India is magical.  By the end of our trip and soon after I realized how mother India’s fascinating people, places and culture transcend all the negatives.  It breaks you down then builds you up, a constant roller coaster of sights, sounds, smells and emotion; I’m sorry we only had two weeks.  Even though it started off tough,in the end India was exactly what we needed and had been searching for.  It’s top on the list of places to revisit, and next time, I’ll be ready.

Category: Cities, CouchSurfing, India, Kolkata  Tags: , ,  3 Comments
InDiA!!! Finally
Thursday, November 25th, 2010 /

Brad and I were so lucky to have found a couchsurfer for our first stop in India…New Delhi! It was a good way to ease us into it. His name was Kaushik and he picked us up from the airport, brought us back to his home where we had a yummy breakfast together before separating ways. On the way, we immediately noticed the craziness in driving… people in between lanes, driving on the other side of the road, CONSTANTLY honking… but it didn’t seem to phase Kaushik!

Rickshaw!

 

The Hazy city!

Brad and I wandered to the nearby markets to pick up some necessities. Crossing the street was interesting :) It took us a little bit to get the conversion down while we were shopping too, 45 rupees to 1 dollar. We didn’t end up going into the center because we were going to stay a couple days. However when Kaushik got home from work, he told us that tomorrow was the verdict after 16 years of waiting to decide a fight between the Muslims and the Hindus, for a mosque or a temple. Apparently there was super increased security because they were expecting some outrage and crime… so unfortauntely we decided we had to leave Delhi tomorrow.

Kaushik and his magic!

 

SpiCYYY!!

We DID however make our last night there count, and Kaushik took us to a cool Tibetan joint with cheap cheap food..but a lot of it! Deliciousness! Loads of dumplings accompanied by a super hot chili sauce that Brad had to eat a heap of after losing to a rock paper scissors contest :) He took it like a champ though! We finished off a great night with Kaushik showing us his incredible magic tricks! Still am amazed and have no idea how he did what he did!!!

Brad in deep thought!

The next morning, we woke up super early to catch a train out of Delhi, but it didn’t quite turn out as we hoped. When we arrived, the train station was packed with Indians, all apparently trying to leave Delhi during the Commonwealth Games. We found out the usual tourist ticket office was closed, and we had to go into the city center to get them. And so we did. THEN we found out ALL the trains were waitlisted at over 100 people, and we had to change our WHOLE India trip.

Cooling off!

New plans…. Delhi->Udaipur->Jaipur->Agra->Varanasi->Kolkata. It cost more than we hoped, but now ALL of our trains AND accomodation were booked, so i guess it took some stress off, especially since the Indian trains can be a nightmare sometimes! Since our train wasn’t leaving until late that night, we were lucky to actually be able to see Delhi for the day, with a free driver too!

 

Indian girlies!

We went to a couple temples and forts, took our first Rickshaw ride, saw our first snake charmer (which i unfortunately didn’t get a picture of), and ate our first official Indian dishes! Girls kept asking me for pictures, and i don’t know if they think I’m famous with my big sunnies, or if it’s just because I’m white! haha! But most of all, we spent the day just watching everything going on around us. Craziness. Traffic. Poverty. Wealth. Kids running in Sprinklers with not a care in the world. Praying. Colors everywhere. Great aromas of street food. Disgusting wiffs of dog piss and sewerage. It was overwhelming.

 

crazy trains!

When it was time for the train, Brad and I had no idea what to expect….. an unorganized crowd of people? Chickens running through the train cabins? People hangning out windows? Yes…it was like that in the unreserved second class cabins, but luckily we got Third Tier AC reserved seats. So basically there are 3 bunks stacked and another set across from it….pretty crowded but still enough breathing space. Not the most lovely, but definitely good enough.  And so we left Delhi, sad to leave Kaushik, but excited for what was to come…especially since we had never even heard of Udaipur before.

 

Category: Cities, CouchSurfing, India, New Delhi, Temples  Tags: , ,  Leave a Comment
Budapest!
Monday, November 08th, 2010 /

I think Chelsea and I both agree that our time in Budapest was less about wandering around the city, discovering cool, exciting things to snap photos of and marvel over but about chilling out and preparing ourselves for our two weeks in India!

Pretty!

We thought we had a CouchSurfer lined up for the entire length of our stay but when we failed to connect the first day we were no longer sure. Lucky for us he lived in the same building as a cheap hostel, where we would bed down for the next two nights.

The first morning we woke up with a purpose, attain our Indian visas.  Now, we had been putting this task off for the entire six months in Europe, praying that our research was right and we could apply for the visa at our port of exit to India. The processing takes three days and the embassy only excepts applications between the hours of 10am-12pm, Monday – Thursday.  It was Wednesday and if we didn’t get there this day, we were screwed!  Needless to say we woke up stressed to find the embassy and get it done.

Chain Bridge!

Three quarters of the way through our cups of coffee and  halfway out the door, our CouchSurfer, Gyuri comes wobbling in to our hostel.   He is a good looking guy and well spoken so I guess I would say he has charisma! You could talk to him about anything from US monetary system to Scientology, and we did.  BUT, not on this morning.

Sneaking in!

Once we had the Indian Visa situation taken care of (and realized there was no way for a Russian transit one) we felt like we could relax and take in Budapest.  Our host Gyuri was a really interesting guy, probably one of the most unique individuals we’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting.  He had heaps of advice about traveling in India and Southeast Asia and we swapped stories about touring Europe and America.  Like I mentioned earlier, he is a guy that could talk about anything so conversation flowed super easy laying the groundwork for a quickly formed friendship.

Playmate party!

He taught us about the national sport of Hungary… sneaking in to places (or getting in for free).  Of course Chels and I were all about the price of free but when it came to hopping fences to get into a mineral bath we took a pass. Riding the tram and bus without tickets, dodging the conductors was enough of a thrill for us and as much risk as we were willing to take.  A highlight of our “sneaking in” experiences with Gyuri was when we somehow scored VIP to the Playboy Playmate of the Year Party at this uber cool night club.  The place was packed with people, especially for the strip-tease show at the end.

Strip tease!

This girl apparently was a famous Hungarian porn star (The OTHER National sport of Hungary), and an amazing stripper, opening her own place, and teaching girls ha! She’s pretty old now in the face, but rocked a great bod….and put on a fabulous show!

The next day we finally caught up with Courtney, ready for this…Brad’s mom’s co-workers daughter! haha! It was cool to have a mutual soon-to-be-friend to meet up with in another country! We met at St.Stephens Basilica, which is MASSIVE and beautifully placed in a big square with lots to do and see around it….it’s the center of attention!

After eating at a yummy Italian restaurant where it was soooo nice to have a delicious Caesar Salad…. Courtney and her friend took us to this “underground pub” called Szimpla. This place reminded us of the festival put on by the squatting community in Amsterdam… lots of Art and what might be considered junk…turned into something funky and fun.  Apparently there are a few places like this in Budapest; they are called ROMKOCSMA or “ruin pubs” because the buildings had no use any longer. Anyway, we loved it..super cool AND they brewed their own beer!

The next few days Brad and I spent relaxing, wandering the city, picking up our visa (yay!), having a picnic in the park which Brad completely organized :)   Gyuri also took us to the flea markets one morning which turned out to be great timing, because there was a massive marathon happening in the same area. I’ve never been to one, so it was cool to see the hundreds and hundreds of people preparing, and all the commotion and excitement going on!

Marathon

Before we knew it, it was almost time to leave Budapest. But not before meeting Courtney’s Dad! It just so happened he was coming into town while we were there, so it was great to meet Jeanne’s coworker and get some juicy stories on her :) It all turned out to be good of course! He treated us to a meal and the conversation flowed. Thanks again Richard :)

Next stop: India!!

Category: Cities, CouchSurfing, Eastern Europe, Hostels  Tags: , , ,  One Comment
Amsterdam 1.0
Sunday, October 17th, 2010 /

Amsterdam….where to begin!? This city offers more than just hookers and marijuana! It’s tree-lined canals are a million times prettier than Venice’s building lined ones….that with the beautiful Vondel park plus fun different shops everywhere makes it an amazing city to visit!

Beautiful Canals!


Simchah and herring

Brad and I arrived to our couchsurfer Simchah waiting for us at the train station. He’s not exactly a typical-looking Dutchman …he’s tall but actually has some skin on his bones, and has a headfull of dreads! Very cool vibes! We immediately went to rent bikes while he gave us the low-down on the rules…

1. Look everywhere (for tourists mostly!!) 2. Give way to the right 3.Don’t be afraid to use your bell!

Our yellow bikes!

So on we rode with our massive backpacks on ha! Simchah first took us to the coffee shop he worked at and treated us to a cappuccino before heading to his humble abode to drop off the packs! The town is just incredible to ride around in….bike lanes EVERYWHERE! The bikes rule the city! There’s a parking garage dedicated to BIKES at the train station!

Come nightfall Simchah took us to this underground “lighting festival” put on by a squatting community! We rode all the way out to the shipping warehouse and were terrified upon entering when there was a massive clap of synthetic thunder! We walked down a pitch black path to an exciting world of art, music, lighting and fire! This community had made something beautiful out of junk and free stuff they found! Taking a bath 20 feet above ground, chilling out in tree chairs and abandoned school buses are just a few things they enjoy!

Lightning!

Fire Show!

The best part of the night was after midnight (officially my birthday!) when they put on a tribal fire show! I imagine it was a scaled down version of burning man. Everyone came out painted in robes, banging on trash cans, with bags of sawdust and fire! It was incredibly impressive, and by the end of it…they had burned down this whole contraption!

By the time we finished exploring, took the hour-long bike ride home, and got to sleep it was 6am and the sun was riding! So the next morning was a late start, but Brad and I eventually went out with the bikes and explored the red light district a bit before having a really nice lunch/dinner in Vondel park! It’s so massive with fountains and gardens and playgrounds….it can be explored for hours!

Vondel Park!

With a fairly easy night enjoying each others company….we were rested and ready to spend time with the family :)

Category: Amsterdam, Central Europe, Cities, CouchSurfing, Festivals, Holland  Tags: , , , ,  Leave a Comment
Belgium!
Wednesday, October 13th, 2010 /

Two things that I love about Belgium:

1) There is a good variety of Quality Beer for cheap!   Brands like Chimey and Duvel which might cost you $10-$12 in a bar, are $3 MAX.. and even cheaper if you opt for the six pack in the supermarket.

Beeer!!

2) Some of the worlds best splurge foods are in abundance and a cut above!  Chocolate, French Fries and Waffles.. need I say more?  I will.  Even in the United States & Australia these foods are amazing, but in Belgium.. they are better.  Who knows why, they just are, and it is probably a good thing that I live outside of this country!

Waffles!

As sad as it might sound, those two reasons stand alone as the only purpose Chelsea and I even went to Belgium:  Beer and Treats!  Yum!  Yum indeed!  Even though these aren’t the best reasons for visiting, we left with more excuses to return.  Some other highlights were hanging with our CS host Jenny, a cool Fin who was light-hearted and possessed a love of Irish Pubs.  Also the chocolate museum in Brugge! Brad and I kept going back to the demonstrations for the free chocolate samples :)

Choco-man!!

Our CS host Jenny!

The scenery in Ghent was well deserving of the star recommendation from Kelly and the rest of Chelsea’s fam, especially along the “sandless beach.”  Ghent was very similar to Amsterdam with bicycles wizzing past, spinning unsuspecting tourists around and chill canals running through the city.

The Beach in Ghent!

Good job Belgium, always nice to have expectations met, then exceeded!

Category: Belgium, Central Europe, Cities, CouchSurfing  Tags: , , ,  2 Comments
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