TravelNow

Favorites
Country: Cambodia – Hands down!
Hotel: Best Western, Koh Samui, Thailand
Meal: Stir fried noodles with pork/vegtables, Soup Dragon Restaurant, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Least Favorites
Country: Vietnam – Hands down!
Hostel: Rowenas Lodge, Wellington, New Zealand – DISGUSTING!
Meal: “American Style Pork Fried Rice”, Thien Tung Hotel, Saigon, Vietnam -I don’t know what part of America they got the recipe from….fish sauce in it:(

Number of Countries visited: 7 (Tahiti, NZ, OZ, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Hong Kong)

Number of Books read: 8
Stars 1-4
* As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
**** The Known World, Edward P. Jones
**** The Time Travelers Wife, Audrey Niffenegger
*** The 27th City, Jonathan Franzen
** Deception Point, Dan Brown
**** Animal Dreams, Barbar Kingsolver
**** Long Way Round, Casting Shadows Across the World, Ewan MacGreggor and Charley Boorman
* Silver Wedding, Maeve Binchey

Money Spent on Internet Usage
Most $3.50NZD/per hour in New Zealand
Least $0.75USD/per hour in South East Asia

Cheapest Meal $1.50 for pork fried rice and a coke in Cambodia
Most Expensive Meal $30.00 for pancakes in Tahiti (No, they didn’t taste like $30.00 pancakes)

Methods of Travel: 13 – Plane, train, bus, taxi, ferry, car, camel, motorbike, cyclo, tuk-tuk, longtail boat, speed boat, sampan boat

Funniest Customs Agent: New Zealand “I must be a “real good” assistant to get two months off from work:)

Least Funniest Customs Agent: Australia “Will you be checking your email while you’re here?!?!”

HIGHLIGHTS:
Lake Pukaki and Mt. Cook in New Zealand, Camel ride in Australia, Singing/Screaming Bohemian Rhapsody and Hotel California at the Angkor What? Pub in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Having the children perform their native dance at the restaurant in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Dinner at Rouen’s house in Phnom Penh, Hearing a song from “The Beach” soundtrack while walking down the street in Bangkok, $5 1-Hour Massages!!!, How friendly 99% of the people I met were

LOWLIGHTS:
Arriving in Saigon and thinking “What the hell am I doing here”, Squat toilets in SEA, Children begging in Cambodia

Best Travel Item brought: Tissues, toilet paper, and hand sanitizer!

Most Commonly Asked Question after being asked where from: So, how do you feel about George Bush as your president?

Any other questions, just ask:)

Yahoo! 🙂

So, I left a day/night (?!) early and am home. What a horrible travel day. Left Hong Kong at 1:40PM and arrived in LA at 10:00AM after an hour delay. First, 6 people did not show up for the flight yet their bags did so “in the name of security”, they offloaded the bags. Then, the middle fuel pump was having problems and the engineer came on to fix that. Exactly what you want before you set off on a 12 hour flight. I knew it was going to be chaos on the way home. Afterall, I had been soooo lucky and not one problem on any of the flights I had in the past two months. Anyway, LAX was a major nightmare. Once I arrived and had only 2 hours layover instead of 3, I did not make it to the gate until it was already boarding. Security was a MESS and I got picked for the SSSS check (I asked the TSA lady if it meant Super, super, super screwed)…at least she laughed, I think I was a little delirious by that point. When you have enough time to watch 5 full length movies on a plane…ugh! Anyway, I have never seen a line for security actually have to go outside of the airport…craziness. So, I caught the next flight to Dallas and then from Dallas to Tampa, arriving at about 11:40PM. I think it will take a few days to recuperate and adjust to the time difference. Hong Kong was 13 hours ahead of Florida and it was 16 hours on a plane in total.

Anyway, thanks for following me on this journey of a lifetime. Oops, I almost forgot…I *might* be being profiled by Intrepid Travel for an advertisement in National Geographic because I am from the US and went to Cambodia. How cool would that be? I have to send her my information later today. It was a questionairre and they want a few “real photos”. I’ll keep you posted:)

Ciao for now.

So I decided to do a tour of Hong Kong Island. We went to Victoria Peak where there are views (it was a bit foggy) of Victoria Peak and Kowloon. Next it was onto Aberdeen Fishing Village. A few of us went on a sampan ride. The sampans are only used for tourists now but previously there was a whole “water lifesytle”. The woman who was driving the sampan had to be about 80 years old and spoke no english. When the ride was just about over, she tapped me on the shoulder and gave me the international sign for “time to pay me”. I bet she was a character..lol… After the ride, we went off to Repulse Bay to see views of the South China Sea. There were lots of people on the beach and they have a shark fence to prevent attacks. It looked like a pretty decent beach. Then it was onto Stanley Market. As markets go, this one was very neat and organized especially after Vietnam and Cambodia. It was not that big and I think I saw the whole thing in about an hour. We also went to a jewlrey factory-the usual for doing a tour. Nobody bought anything, though.

A funny thing happened on the tour….one of the woman on the tour asked if I would like my photo taken when she realized I was traveling alone. She told her daughter to come and take my picture and we started talking. Turns out she is also a Bootsnall member from Alaska. They always talk about random meetings and here I had one. Too funny.

Anyway, I am on my way home now. Wow!! Highlights and lowlights to follow:)

See ya soon:)

Well, well, well. I am here in Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region of China, in case you were like what SARS? Hah). The flight from Bangkok was only about 2 1/2 hours but we had turbulence for quite a bit of the way, even at 38,500 feet. The British pilot apologized a few times but seems there was a lot of traffic above us. We arrived at 1:40PM-there is an hour time difference ahead. They had temperature taking stations set up but they just waved us through..uh, okay. The first thing I noticed when I stepped into the airport was how it didn’t smell. Like anything. It was very hygenic! Customs was a breeze and I took the Airport Express to Kowloon. At Kowloon, the taxi stand was so orderly, I got a cab right away. I was worried since my taxi debocle in Bangkok but the hostel had put chinese characters on the sheet I had with me so it worked like a charm cause otherwise, he didn’t speak a word of anglais either-not that he should have to…I hope my rant didn’t sound too bad about that. You could easily say that I should’ve learned more Thai or Chinese, or Cambodian or whatever so. The hostel is interesting. I am not sure if there are shops, apartments, or what in the buildings but everyone smiles and Jacky Chan (yeah, for real) the manager was very helpful. I immediately left my shoebox aka room and went to the Sheraton Hotel (ahem) to book a tour for tomorrow. So bright and early, I am going on the Hong Kong Orientation Tour-figured that should be helpful. On the way back, I spotted a TGIFridays…hello, dinner. Remember, I hadn’t eaten yesterday and breakfast on the plane was pancakes with mushrooms (yes, really). So, I ducked in and ordered the three for all and a salad. It didn’t seem like they were too popular; there were only 3 tables filled at any given time. Whatever, I had decent, recognizable food and Madonna videos playing. It was great. I am just glad that I lived in NY for that year because I am like a master at sidewalk walking. I don’t get to practice that skill too much in Clearwater or even Oldsmar, for that matter:) I guess that’s all. Peace!

So, in the rain, I board the flight on Thursday (12/8) back to Bangkok. The rest of this entry is going to be called “It would be really funny if it was happening to someone else!” 🙂

The flight only took about 40 minutes and we apparently rolled up a little too early because we circled around several times before we landed. Collected luggage very easily and I walk past the official tax counter because, afterall, my guide book says to keep walking until you get outside and you will save about 200 Baht ($5USD) right off the bat! I grab the first taxi who says “Where you going?”. I give him the name of the hotel, the Airport Siridia. Since airport is in the name, I figure it has to be pretty close. He drives away and pulls over on the road and gets out to use the phone…okay…then I see him asking passers-by my sheet with the hotel name on it. Great…he doesn’t know where it is and can only say “Where you going” in english. He proceeds to take me to 5 different otels, all of which would like to sell me a room for the night. I am thinking I am going to be scamed when the manager of the last place comes out and gives the driver directions to my hotel. The manager says apparently, he doesn’t speak much english (much or any, I’m thinking), but now he knows where to go. So, all in all, we drove around for about 2 hours. The hotel was okay. Glad its for only one night and I think I will pass on dinner:) A photo of the menu will explain.

Tomorrow, Friday 12/9, I head to Hong Kong. I can’t believe this is the “last leg” of my trip. I am looking forward to getting home, not sure if the holidays have anything to do with this or not. In the meantime, have fun and talk soon!

For the record, Koh Samui is pronounced Sa-MOO-EE. It only took a few times of me saying it wrong:) Anyway, the island did not turn out to be the tropical paradise I had planned on. It rained non-stop everyday until I left. I guess it didn’t matter either way because I ate something bad and was sick for 2 1/2 of those days anyway. Like, really sick. One good thing is that I did have 2 english language channels, CNN and Discovery. So, if you have any questions on the Sadaam trial/circus or on fishing in the Orinoco, the history of Singapore, or figuring out urban legends, I think I am an authority on these subjects now. I also had a book-thank god Kate and I swapped before we left Bangkok or I would have really been out of my head! That really sums up my paradise retreat in Samui!

On 12/3 Saturday, I checked out of the Viengtai Hotel in Bangkok with not too much trouble until I went to get a taxi to the airport. The desk tells me500 Baht when yesterday it was 300. I say No thanks and then the bellman tells me I can’t leave until they check the min bar. I go back to the desk and he tells me its fine. Its funny that the things that were cute a month ago are starting to get a little annoying:) All I want is a trip to the airport and not get ripped off for being a farang (foreigner). I walk outside and its 300 to get to the airport. I get to the airport and they xray the checked luggage but not the carry ons, okay. The flight was suppose to be 1hr20mins but we got there in about 50 minutes. Every flight I have had so far has been quicker that it was suppose to be-not complaining about that. They even served lunch on this flight! Penne pasta and CHICKEN w/ mushrooms. So we land and its pouring rain. The airport is basically some bamboo huts covered in palm fronds. It was pretty chaotic but they did have free coconuts, in case you were in the mood for one?!?! I got my luggage and booked a shuttle to the hotel After waiting around for some other passengers, because of the flooding it took about 30 minutes to get to the Best Western Samui Bayview Resort. This was my 30th Birthday splurge (ugh, don’t remind me). It is cheap by US standards but not by Thailands, costing about $50USD per night. The hotel is built right into the mountain overlooking the Gulf of Thailand. Check in was super easy and they took my bags and led me to a couch where they give you a cold towel (why don’t we have this at home, especially in Florida?!?!) and a glass of fruit juice. My room was really nice with a great view. Unfortunately, it continued to rain, so I ordered room service (super star) and chilled out.

I am a bit better and have blown through Koh Samui..ugh…this internet is so slow it would take me an hour but I will update right quick! Off to Hong Kong tomorrow.
Peace.

The long and short of it is I feel decidedly unwell today. I am on my own as Kate left to go to the River Kwai until Friday. Carmel (from Ireland) is still here until tomorrow and we are suppose to meet up tonight for dinner. Today, I dropped off laundry (nice not to have to do it!!!), grabbed lunch, will do a little shopping, and I think I will take the afternoon off:) I have had a headache for the last few days and I really think it is because of the humidity and exhaust here. It will be nice to get to the beach on Saturday. Everything seems fine there so I am still going. We went to the night market last night but the magnetic strip on my debit card seems to have worn out so I had a minor crisis when I could not get any cash out. Fun stuff! It’s all straightened out now, no thanks to the 15 minute call to my credit union. I just transferred funds to my visa and will use that for the remainder of the trip. Stressed me out, though!! Nothing like being away and not being able to get any money!! Anyway, the market was huge-Thais really know how to set up a market and shop!! 🙂

That’s all for now! Just, think 2 weeks from today and I will be back in the USA! Yikes!

Well, today we slept in until about 11AM….Carmel (on the tour from Ireland) called and asked if we wanted to do some sightseeing. We went to lunch and then headed up to Wat Arun (aka Temple of the Dawn); it was across the river so we crossed for $3Baht (FYI $40Baht=$1USD). It was another impressive temple. We walked around for a bit and then headed back to the hotel area. Tonight, we are headed to the Patpong Market (which apparently leaves a lot to be desired) and we were told by some random teacher, Sonny, that today is a holiday and there are suppose to be fireworks tonight. Tomorrow, Kate is off to the River Kwai until Friday so I will probably just get a massage and relax (rough life, I know). I am still trying to get a straight answer about Koh Samui.
That’s all for now.