Webbs and Mills's Travel Blog

(Emily) So it's nearly June and we are heading into our second month of travelling, i can't believe how quickly it has all gone. It has however been the most amazing experience so far and I'm sure it is only going to get better. Our next stop is Bali - Indonesia.

Our flight down from KL was a very quick 3 hours, i have to be honest and say that i didn't realise quite how close Malaysia and Bali were but then we all know that geography has never been my strong point. Arrived into the airport, had to get a visa on arrival this time, but it only involved paying 25 USD and getting a stamp really. The geek that i am really enjoys building up the stamps in my passport from all these places. So i say stamp away. Anyway headed out the front on the airport to be greeted by a million taxi drivers offering us transport. Over the last month i have been developing my bartering skills and have to say that i have gotten pretty damn good. So after one guy told us 150,000 (around 12 quid) i whipped the skills into action and managed to persuade him that someone else was offering us a much better price. The key is to suggest a price and then walk away and pretend to go somewhere else they nearly also come back and agree to the price. So after a big of throwing numbers around we agreed on 70,000. Half the original price, we were both very chuffed with ourselves - it was probably still a complete rip off they are very keen on getting as much money out of you as they can. But for a 20 min journey 6 quid didnt seem to bad a price to pay and we were keen to get to our hotel.

We are staying in a place called Segara Sadhu Inn, it's down an alleyway off one of the "main" if you can call it that streets. Hotel is pretty average, clean (ish) but we have a nice balcony and its air-con so we are very happy! Kuta is a really touristy area in Bali on the west coast. We have probably seen more westerners here than we have seen in the rest of our trip.

(Paul) Kuta attracts a lot of surfers, and looking out to sea, you can see why. Long gone are the calm waters of Thailand. This is where the real action is! Saying this, neither Em nor I are surfers, and unfortunately did not take the time to learn. Nevertheless, there were plenty of other activities to keep us occupied.

After 2 days in Kuta, we wanted to get away from the hussle and bussle, and head across to the Gili Islands. Although expensive to get across to them (its takes about a 2 hour fast boat ride over), it is well worth taking the time to do so. The Gili Islands are made up of 3 islands - Gili Air, Gili Memo and Gili Trawangen. Gili Air is the most easterly, is quiet and attracts plenty of families and couples. Despite this, this is where we spent our first 2 nights. Gili Memo is the middle island, and is the smallest. In fact you could run round the whole island in about 20 minutes (a little less than the 45 minutes it took Em and myself to run around Gili Air). We decided to skip this one and spend the rest of our time in Bali on Gili Trawangen, or Gili T for short. And I shall leave it in Em's capable hands to tell you about our time here...

So, the plan was to write a continuous blog throughout our travels over the next 4 months. Well 3 months now, as one month has already passed, and we have yet to write a post. So here it goes. One very large post, detailing our month in Thailand. We sit now in a hostel in the centre of Kuala Lumpur, reflecting on what has possibly been the best month of our lives. And here is our story...

After a final farewell dinner at Heathrow airport with our parents, we set off on our 11 hour flight to Thailand. Nobody looks forward to an 11 hour flight, but given the spare seat between us and a back catalogue of movies far greater than both our DVD collections put together, and some pretty decent food, we couldn't really complain. Now the original plan was to fly to Bangkok and spend a few nights there to begin our journey. But a mini civil war was on the cards, so on going along with both government advice, and warnings from our insurance company, we decided it safest to catch a connecting 1 hour flight straight down to a small town called Surit Thani. From here, we would catch a 3 hour train ride north, to another small town by the name of Chumphon, near the port. By the time we arrived here, we had been travelling for almost 24 hours (excluding the time difference) and arrived at Chumphon station just before midnight.

We had booked ahead at hostel in Chumphon, but had absolutely no idea where it was. The same applied for everybody else we tried to converse with at the station. Eventually, somebody seemed to know where this illusive place was, however, the only people that could take us there were 2 small Thai men on scooters. We had been given warnings of scooters before we left, but needless to say we were both prepared to try anything once (ladyboys excluded). But to do it with 15kg massive backpacks on board as well, no crash helmets, and neither of us being renowned for our balance, this seemed ever so slightly dangerous. Nevertheless, we were in a foreign town, with nowhere to sleep, so this seemed our only viable option. And hey, it was probably only a 2 minute ride around the corner, and given the luggage we had, they would probably go nice and slowly. But no. Half an hour of high speed, hold on for your dear life, keep your mouth and eyes closed while hundreds of bugs flew straight into your face, looking around to check we were both still together, and in my case, gripping my mobile phone in one hand and trying to keep all the loose money in my pockets, in my pockets, later, we had our first adventure in Thailand.

The next morning we awoke to a phone call from Emily's university friends Matt and Holly, and before we knew it we had joined them back in Chumphon and were on a ferry to Koh Tao, the first of the many islands we were to visit. Koh Tao is the most northerly of 3 islands off the west coast of Thailand. The island is probably most renowned for its diving, and this was our primary reason for visiting. On the recommendation from our friend Dave (cheers Big D), we checked into a diving resort by the name of Ban's. It was here that we would spend our next 6 nights, and during the middle 4 days, would complete our PADI Open Water Diving Qualification. And what incredible 4 days they were. But before that, here is a brief description of Koh Tao. Its is the smallest island of the 3, and as I mentioned, is completely set up for diving. There are a fair few dives sites all around, including the world famous Chumphon point (well in the diving world anyway). The resort itself was like a little village. I (Paul) myself, would describe it as a tropical Centre Parcs, just with a lot more bars and a lot less kids. And a beach. A very nice beach. A beach that would cause everyone of us sunburn on our very first day there. Anyway, the diving...

The first two days were spent in the classroom with our diving instructors Rich and Jimmy, going through both the physics of diving in regards to our health and safety, and the skills required to become qualified divers. After lots of reading, watching some video clips, a few homework exercises (yes, homework on holiday), some quizzes and finally a multiple choice exam, we were ready to move away from the theory and onto the practical side of diving. The morning of the 3rd day was spent in one of the 2 swimming pools on site. It was here we put into practice everything we had learnt, familarised ourselves with the equipment, and ran through some of the skills that we would be demonstating on our actual dives. Once this was done, and we had passed our swimming tests (again, something I thought was something I left as a 9 year old), we were ready to grab a spot of light lunch, and then head to boats for our first and second dives. We would do 4 overall, 2 on this afternoon, and then 2 the next day. And now I will tag Emily in to describe our dives...

The time for our first dive had arrived, the boat pulled up to our first dive site -Twin peaks, i have to say i was feeling a smidge apprehensive at this point. Here we had our last minute briefing and a quick demo on how to throw ourselves off the boat (from quite a height) and into the water safely. Once in, a quick spit in the old mask and down we went. Sinking slowly under water and still being able to breathe is possibly the strangest experience i have ever had. Swimming around at the bottom of the sea is literally one of the most amazing things i have ever done, its so awe inspiring i was literally stuck for words and as we all know that is rare. The 40 minute dive was over before we knew it and we were being signalled to return to the surface. The second dive of the afternoon followed a similar format with a few skills, checking we could all remove and replace our masks under water and change breathing supplies with our dive buddy and then off exploring the coral for sea-life.

I couldn't wait for the second afternoon and the next two dives, i have definitely fallen in love with diving. This time we were heading deeper to 18 metres, doesn't really feel that different just your ears pop more. Our dive instructor Rich gave us a quick briefing and strode up to the end of the boat- he was about to show us the James Bond of entries! He said that most girls did not like this one, so that was Holly and I convinced that whatever he was about to do next we would have to copy! Luckily it only involved flipping off the edge of the boat forwards and making sure you landed on your back so the tank hit the water first. A little harder than you might think as standing upright with the 20kg dive gear on was a challenge in itself, but everyone managed the James Bond entry in spectacular fashion! On our last dive we were joined by a women filming us all, so we were allowed to take our fins off when we reached the bottom and do back-flips and matrix style moves to show off to the camera! Great fun. The two dives were over before we knew it and we were heading back to sure qualified divers! To celebrate the whole group met up for dinner and drinks in the evening, our dive instructor Rich told us that we all needed to try a whiskey called Black Cock...

And now I (Paul) re-tag back in. Although I'm not sure why. As from this point onwards I remember very little. Travelling so far had been all about the beauty of the islands and the pleasures that come with learning to dive. Now came the juicy stuff-the partying-the place where all good stories come. I have none. By just gone 11pm I was passed out in my room, locking Em out in the process. Not a happy girl. Although she did get to dance on a bar. The next morning was not pleasant and we were very happy we had booked ourselves in for one extra night to deal with this. Anyway, less of that, and onto Koh Phangan.

Koh Phangan was the the middle island of the 3 and was notorious for its partying and its Full Moon parties which occur monthly. Unfortunately the way our dates worked out we were not in Thailand for any of them, missing out by a couple of days both at the start and end of our time in the country. Nevertheless, Thailand caters for these eventualities and hosts Half Moon and Black Moon parties, also monthly, and Black Moon would be the one we would attend on Koh Phangan. Our first stop was a place called Coral Bungalows, a resort renowned for its pool parties. But again, we missed this by a day. However the main reason for our attendance was to meet mine and Em's great friend Joey D, and his friend Max, for our time on the island. We stayed in Coral for 2 nights. The great thing about Coral was that it was situated just round the corner from Had Rin, the beach that the Full Moon parties take place on. However, on visiting the beach just after a full moon party, it was not the place to hang out. Condoms on the beach, litter everywhere, and the place itself was a bit of a dump. So off we moved up to the north western side of the island, to a resort called Sunset Bungalows. A place which defined luxury. The infinity pool overlooked the beach, which was subject to the most amazing sunsets. The resort itself was quiet, had a nice restaurant, which provided us with not only good food at lunch and dinner, but an included 3 course breakfast a well, something we were more than happy to be up before 10am for. The next 5 nights were spent here, relaxing, making the most of the tranquility and glorious sunshine. One evening, us guys were sent on a mission to see what was round the coast, to check out another beach to see if it was a good place to visit. And a mission it was. Clambering over devastatingly high rocks in just our flip flops, we adventured on into the wilderness, dodging stray dogs on the way, to make our way round 3 coves to the next main beach. And how we were rewarded for our endeavors. Just as we made it up and down our last hill, we entered the beach to what has to be one of the most glorious sunsets we all had ever seen. Sitting down, beers in hands, we sat and photographed the scenery, allowing Joe to produce the phrase, 'Now this is travelling boys'. We returned to an angry pair of girls, who wondered what had taken us so long, and instead of repeated the journey tonight, went for dinner down the other end of the beach. Things went from bad to worse for the girls, who were then bitten by a cluster of red ants, causing screams and rather a lot of pain. The food however, was pretty good! The next day we returned to the sunset beach in the evening, to sit and relax in each others company with good food, plenty of cocktails, and a smothering of ice cream. Wonderful. We parted company with the guys for a night, before reuniting 2 days later at a resort called Rainbow, in which we were in prime location for 'The Black Moon Party', something we had all been looking forward to. And it did not disappoint. After the traditional game of Ring of Fire, we all headed down to an impressively decorated beach, to party the night away Thailand style. Bodies were painted (mine somewhat haphazardly so), glow sticks were bought, drinks were drunk, fire was hurdled (not very successfully, given Max's burns we found the next morning) and music was danced to. The pictures describe it all. And the stories will probably come out in person, not through a public blog!

After a day of recovery, Koh Phangan was completed, we left Joe and Max who were off to Koh Samui, and we headed back to the mainland. A 10 hour journey ensued, including one ferry ride, 3 taxi rides and 2 coach journeys, all for the price of 12 quid each, across to the western side of southern Thailand, to a place called Krabi. Krabi not only had a lot of different activities we could participate in, but was ideally situated for heading across to the Phi Phi Islands. During our 5 days in Krabi (4 of which were with Matt and Holly), Em and I went on an island hopping tour (in which we have never seen so many jell-fish - Matt actually got a small sting from one), climbed 600 metres to a Buddhist temple/shrine (in which we have never sweated so much in our lives), rode on Elephants (a weird experience, and I must say felt a little sorry for Nelly, who had to have all 13 stone of me sat on her head), jumped into a waterfall, white water rafted (with instructors who informed us they learnt how to do it from the television), saw lots and lots of monkeys, too many penis shrines and finally witnessed our first bit of rain for the trip. It seemed that the islands had their own little micro-climates and rain wasn't part of them. On the mainland however, when it rained, it properly rained. Krabi was a fun little town, everyone was very friendly and there was always something to do. But after 5 days we were ready to move on to our penultimate destination, the Phi Phi Islands.

For me (Paul) this has been my favourite week and place to be so far. When we arrived we headed up to the north westerly side, to a beach by the name of Long Beach, where we would spend our final night with Matt and Holly. This quickly became the best beach we had stayed on by far. The sea was cooler here and actually had a few waves-something we had been missing since we started our journey. And it was deep too. We only had to walk a few feet before we were able to swim-again something pretty new for us! As one can imagine, our next 2 days were spent making the most of this. No sooner had Matt and Holly departed, then I received a message that Joe and Max would be joining us on Phi Phi. The town itself was a busy place, full of bars, restaurants and stalls, and was the place to be if you wanted to meet people and enjoy the party atmosphere. Long Beach was a good 20 minute walk up and down hills, through the woods, and not only caused a large amount of perspiration when tackled during the day, was hazardous to trek through at nightfall. So we moved back round to the port via a trusted long boat and took up camp in a nice resort called JJ Bungalows. We had only planned one night with the guys before moving back onto the mainland, but it just so happened JJ would host us for the next 4 nights. 4 very alcohol induced, party heaven nights. Joe and Max had brought their friend Dan with them, and throughout the next 4 days we picked up more and more people, both friends of friends, and fresh faces along the way. To tell you the details of the next 4 nights (and the stories we were told about Joe and Max's time without us), would not only mean I spend more hours on here typing, but would go against the one rule travelling together had established - 'What happens in Thailand, stays in Thailand', a rule derived from a previous statement, 'What happens in Volleyball, stays in Volleyball'). But that's an entirely different story.

Our 4 days in Phi Phi included Mai Thai (a form of Thai kickboxing where members of the public are encouraged to fight each other for booze-something our friend Max did very successfully), another island full of monkeys, a visit to 'The Beach' beach (and this was absolutely incredible!), snorkeling, a film with a horse and Dakota Fanning, lots of eating, beer towers, cards, football against Thai boys, human pyramids, cats and rats. Oh yes, and lots of beach parties. It was a pretty legendary 4 days.

After Phi Phi we headed across to a town called Patong on the island of Phuket, to spend our last night before flying onto Malaysia. Em and I feasted at the Hard Rock Cafe, dodged an inexplicable amount of ladyboys, and I met a Swedish Prince Harry lookalike. An odd night. But there again, Thailand can be a very odd place. Fitting perhaps. And I would recommend anyone reading to visit at some point in their lives. Preferably sooner though-it definitely favours youth. In fact the majority of people over the age of 40 I saw were in Patong, and their reasons for being there are not the reasons I am suggesting a visit. If you catch my drift.

Anyhow, Thailand is no done. Well done if you managed to keep reading this far. Em told me to be brief, but there's only so long you can sit on the beach for before needing to converse with the rest of the world. But perhaps I will try and keep the rest of our posts a little briefer. It has taken me till the end of our trip to Bali to complete this after all. Next stop, Kuala Lumpur, and Emily will guide you through our time here. Over and out England.

Our month in thailand has come to an end and although i am really sad we are leaving i am looking forward to getting to a city and away from the sand for a short while.

Kuala Lumpur has not dissapointed, we arrived at our hotel in chinatown the first night as the night market was in full swing. It's amazing, i have never seen so many stalls selling fake designer goods, you could buy almost anything you could ever want. I may have got slightly carried away and purchased a few more things than anticipated but everything was such a bargain i just couldn't resist! Webb and i grabbed some food, chinese of course from one of the road side restaurant/ vendures. Best prawn crackers i have ever eaten, the setting may be pretty dodgy but the food was incredible.

Next morning we decided to move across town to the area known as the Golden Triangle - basically main shopping district. Staying in the Green hut hotel, recommended by lonley planet of course. Guy who runs the place is really friendly and helpful, only downside is that the shower doesn't work so showering involves sitting under a tap trying to wash, not the easiest thing in the world! We were up early the next morning to head over to the pertronas towers, they do 1400 free tickets for the 47th floor skybridge on a first come first served basis. We got there about 8am and headed for the box office,which doesnt open until 8.30am. The queue was HUGE, we wound our way through all the people to the end and just as we got there one of the ticket guys came over and told us that all the tickets were gone for the day. Bad times. So slightly disappointed we headed over to the KL tower instead, which you had to pay for but you actually get to go up a lot higher than the skybridge and the view was pretty amazing. So in the end it worked out ok. Webb and i have been pretty ill since we got here - think the side effects of 4 days partying in Phi Phi, so after the morning site seeing we headed back over to the petronas tower as there is a huge shopping mall attached and we went to the cinema! and i have to admit it wasnt our first trip there and wouldnt be our last in the 4 days we spend in KL.

The last morning in KL we decided to head over to the Lake Gardens on the edge of the city - KL is a pretty compact city and you can walk just about anywhere. Although i think it is actually hotter and definately more humid that thailand so walking is a very sweaty experience! Also KL isn't exactly pedestrian friendly, while walking to the gardens we had to cross what can only be described as dual carriageways numerous times. I'm afraid to say that the green cross coad went out of the window and our tactic involved running like a crazy people across the 6 lanes (4 if you were lucky) of traffic.. After a very hot walk around the gardens, we headed back into the city. I have to say Webb and I have been very impressed with our map reading skills and have not managed to get lost or run over once in our 4 days in KL. It has been great fun being in a city for a few days and back in civilisation, but the beaches are calling and we are off to Bali tomorrow.