Updates of our Whereabouts 2004
After 7 weeks in New Zealand, farming, hiking, journeying (300km through the NZ wilderness!) and staying with the world's greatest hosts in Rotorua... we're in Australia! We spent Christmas in Melbourne with Kendra's Aussie relatives before making our way to Sydney and the famous opera house, the Blue mountains, Canberra (the park city), Mt Kosciusko (Aus's highest peak), bega (the only source of decent cheese when we were in Korea, and back to Melbourne. We've seen all of the australian animals in a wildlife sanctuary (ie. koalas, kangaroos, platypuses (not platypi!), wombats (Our favourite, I think) and plenty more. In our travels though, we've seen an number of those animals in the wild! Kangaroos, Koalas, penguins, wild horses, camels, emus and an echidna!
We've since made tracks to Adelaide and started our journey up the center to Coober Pedy, a dusty little outback town where people live underground to stay cool! We're now in Alice Springs, ready to head to Ayers Rock (Uluru) before heading north to Darwin. Then its onwards to Indonesia! Take care everyone!
From the deserts of Alice Springs and into to the tropical paradise of Darwin, ready to make our way to Indonesia. To the list of Australian wildlife we've seen in the wild, we can now add lizards, cane toads, geckos, water monitors, dingoes, wallabies and even a croc! We saw the croc lurking in the river while taking a small boat cruise in Kakadu national park. We found a covered area at the campground to gain refuge from the torrential monsoon rains, while we sat and watched Dingoes, birds and other wildlife pass through the grounds. Fun!
Tomorrow we hit Bali, and then continue through the Indonesian Island of Java and Sumatra, eventually working our way north to Bangkok. Have no fear, we won't eat any chickens or people who look sick:)
Arrived in Bali yesterday, and we're checking out the Kuta area for a few days before heading off on Monday towards Java. First Impressions of Bali? Very crowded and obvoiusly suffering from the detrimental effects of tourism. Thats just Kuta and Denpasar though, the really touristed areas. The streets are buzzing with the armies of scooters and mopeds that weave and swerve all over the roads. Officially they drive on the left here, but in practice they drive wherever theres space.
We took a walk off the beaten track today, and it was nice! We saw more of what we pictured urban Indonesia to be.... a patchwork of temples and shrines among simple little huts, oozing of sweaty charm. We're looking foward to the rural bits now!
We're in Probolinggo, after climbing Mount Bromo (2329m), an active volcano in Eastern Java. Picture this: Theres a huge mountain, with a huge flat, ancient caldera. Within the plains of the caldera, it seems like judgement day has come and gone. Theres a seemingly forgotten hindu temple and a few trees clinging to life on the rocks whitened with ash spewing from the next mountain which stands within the caldera. From the top, you look into the crater to see cloud of ash being pumped from the earth, and it hurts to breathe. Afterwards... you crowd 28 locals onto a 10 person van and drive down the outer mountain. That was us today.. though I haven't described the hordes of hawkers and beggars everywhere. Its a different world than what we're used to, thats for sure.:)
Indonesia has been amazing. We're loving every second of it!
We've just hiked Merapi (2911m), a much more difficult climb than Bromo. It was also an active volcano, and we had a guide so we hiked down into the crater! It was pretty tiring... we woke up at 12:30AM, started the climb at 1AM, and arrived at the summit at 5AM. It was pretty cloudy, so we missed the sunrise, but as we hiked around the crater, we had to watch our hands... there were hot vents blowing steam from the rocks. Again, the sulphur made it unbearable to breathe the air; Easily remedied with a sleeve over the mouth and nose. Another active volcano! Cool!
Moving right along, we've made some headway, not without some difficulties and frustrations. We're in Bukitinggi, Sumatra, Indonesia. After a 66 hour commute from Yogyakarta, including a disgusting bus which I have to describe:
The bus was loud, gaudily decorated with rabbit feet, record albums and Che Guevarra/marijuana/Bob Marley banners. Our driver bore a striking resemblance to the latter. Our fellow passengers were clad in dirty t-shirts and shorts, mostly male, and smoked constantly when awake, dropping their cigarette butts on the floor without stamping them out. Opening the window kept you cool, but also bore the disadvantage of breathing toxic smog with every breath. When it rained, it rained inside. As we passed over the dirt roads of southern sumatra, we were flipped and bounced in our seats. At one point, one older passenger raised a bribe from everyone to give to the driver, so that he would take a route that wasn't so badly affected by the earthquake the rumbled through sumatra a few days earlier. We stopped a few times a day to get some food and water, before rumbling along the unforgiving roads again. We also stopped a few times when the driver or his buddies (he had a few friends with him) had to to "kinshi", meaning take a whiz beside the bus. After 37 hours on the road, and averaging about 30-40Km per hour, we arrived at Bukitinggi, a small town 15 Km south of the Equator. Actually, our driver didn't feel like driving us all the way to our destination because it was slightly off the main road to Padang (his destination), so we had to find another minibus that would take us the last 10 Km. Wading through the ankle deep litter that had gradually accumulated throughout the ride, we were happy to get off. Needless to say, we felt justified in getting a nice hotel room in Bukitinggi. As we got our showers, and the blackness beaded from our skin and scalps, we cleaned ourselves of the physical reminder of the trip, leaving only the memory of our south sumatran experience.
Back to Java, Yogyakarta was great... we spent our 3rd anniversary hiking into the crater of an active volcano, having dinner at a nice restaurant and seeing a cultural performance of music and shadow puppets.
Jakarta, we learned, is the butthole of Asia. We spent 30 minutes there, commuting through to Sumatra. In that time I had my pocket picked (only to catch the guy, retreive my stuff, and fire him halfway across the train car before he ran off) and as our train departed, some kid on the platform heaved a rock, hitting the side of the train, right beside our window.
sumatra has been nice.... but not until we arrived here in Bukitinggi. Why? These people are poor. They have no role models or good influences in their live to learn from... they are driven by a natural drive to feed and clothe themselves. They'll go to great lengths to do so, even if it means inconveniencing or cheating another person, especially if that person is different and obviously more affluent. Our white faces are perfect targets. Thats not to say we haven't met any wonderful people here; we have. And this town is great, rich with culture and the worlds largest flowers (which we're not really sure we're interested in). We will go to the equator tomorrow for a picture though, however cheezy the monument might be. Then its northwards to malaysia, commuting through Medan. We're looking forward to Thailand at this point, but still really enjoying our time here.
Stuck in Medan now.... We tried to get to Malaysia on today's ferry, but it was full. Hopefully we can get out tomorrow. This leaves us in a stinky, polluted, noisy and overcrowded city for a day, so I think we'll stay in the hotel for most of the day.
Lake Toba was excellent; we stayed in a clean little cottage with hot water and a western toilet, and situated on the lakeside, for only $2.50 CDN! The catch was the annoying little man who kept pushing us to buy bus tickets, ferry tickets, blankets, etc... and wouldn't leave us alone. We rented a motorcycle and drove around the island, getting a few pictures and enjoying the slow, pastoral life of the villages. We saw a snake too, about 3 meters long!
Onwards!
Reached Penang, Malaysia, via high-speed ferry. we're not staying long in Malaysia this time around.... we're leaving tomorrow morning:) We did manage to see Khoo Kongsi, a house made famous by the movie "Anna and the King".
Malaysia is nice! Its far more developed than Indonesia and the people are far nicer and less aggressive, or so it seems. The hawkers are considerate, just trying to persuade you to buy their product rather than trying to screw you in the process.
Tomorrow we'll hit Hat Yai, in the south of Thailand.
Reached Bangkok, Thailand this morning. We only spent one day in Malaysia before moving on to Ko Pha Ngan, a beautiful Island in the south of Thailand. We spent a few days there, but wished it could have been more since it was just so peaceful, laid back and cheap (our beach hut was $3 a night). We just spent our time walking on the white sand beach, swimming in the crystal clear water, checking out the coral reefs and tropical fish and reading in our hammocks. Evenings were great too.. lots of little bars and restaurants lined the beach adjacent to ours. We almost changed our plans to include an extra month or two on the island, but we dragged ourselves away.
On to some cool ruins and a buddhist monastery before reaching the chaotic tangle of motorbikes and 'TukTuks' the thai call Bangkok. Tomorrow we're heading to the Bridge on the river Kwai and Ayuthaya, and when our Vietnamese VISAs are ready we're headed East!
WE reached Cambodia yesterday and now are in Siem Reap, the town closest to Angkor Wat which we plan to begin exploring tomorrow. But to continue where we left off, we stayed in Kanchanaburi (home to the bridge on the River Kwai) for two days in a nice little bamboo hut floating right on the river within sight of the bridge. By coincidence, we found that Eva had arrived there too on the same day so we later met up with her and explored the town and area together. Our next stop was the ancient capital of Ayuthaya, full of lovely old ruins of ancient Siam. Here we met up with Eva again and spent a morning biking around the ruins, taking in the atmosphere and making good use of our cameras.
Then it was back to Bangkok to pick up our visas and a digital camera (whoo hoo!--we just might have more pictures on our website in the coming month!). Yesterday afternoon, we joined the masses of wooded push cards and crossed the border on foot into Cambodia, the poorest country in SE Asia. The "highway" into Siem Reap was mostly a dusty road full of potholes and broken bridges; most was unpaved, but that didn't stop our taxi driver from flying over the potholes at 80km/hr!
After travelling for the past 11 days in Cambodia, we're heading on to 'Nam, Saigon first, then we'll wedge ourselves out of the staggering, sweltering and smothering heat, into some more temperate climes.
As soon as we entered Cambodia, we came face to face with the first obvious difference that we weren't in Thailand anymore. It was like moving back in time. Handcarts replaced cars. Bicycles and motorbikes were speeding in all directions. The roads were no longer a paved continuum. We made it Angkor on a rather touristy shared taxi, and spent 5 days there, exploring the fabled temples of Angkor for 3 of them. Magnificent. The inspiration of the builders , and the imagination of their former splendor that the temples ignite in a person is indescribable.
Between Angkor, the boomtown of Siem Reap, the smiling people, and the many sides of Phnom Penh, we're enjoying it here. Impoverished it may be, and though struggling to forget an atrocious past, Cambodia is our favourite Southeast Asian nation yet.
In Hoi An now, in the central region of S-shaped Vietnam. We've moved from cheap DVDs and CDs to cheap tailor made clothing:) Hoi An itself is quite charming actually... we've been renting bikes (for free!) and exploring the sleepy little hollows surrounding the town. Vietnam is quite nice when you get away from the people. Ok thats harsh. Some people are great, but the poverty in the populated centres is sometimes overwhelming to people of western cultures... Theres only a certain number of vendors you can turn away before you get annoyed. Cambodians were all smiles... Poor, but always smiling. Not really so in Vietnam
Financing a trip to Vietnam can be quite difficult. Vietnamese economics might be best described as capitalistic without moralization. Unknowing foreigners are preyed upon by all, and at every opportunity... one has to be vigilant. Very interesting country though, and it does have a number of good points. The traditional garment, now worn by high school girls, called the Ao Dai is beautifully photogenic. The conical hats are a nice little addition as well. And hey, its technically communist, and those socialist-looking posters along the streets are really enchanting.
On to Hanoi!
In Beijing now, after a long journey through Hanoi and Sapa (in Vietnam) and north through China to the nation's capital. China has been a wonderful experience, not always glamorous, but always interesting. One cannot describe such a large, strange world on a simple updates page of a website!
On May 26th we leave China on the train that will take us 8000Km through Mongolia and across Russia to Moscow. We'll likely have email blackout until we emerge on the other side of Russia on June 4th or 5th. Can't wait!!
Alright, some REAL updates are in order. We have been in China for 7 weeks now, having traveled from Vietnam in the South, chugging north through China's Yunnan, Sichuan, Sha-anxi, Shanxi, Hebei and Beijing provinces. We've seen tribal peoples, pandas (yeah!), two sacred mountain areas, ancient temples, walled cities, the terra-cotta warriors, the forbidden city, and, of course, the great wall (twice). We've been in a showdown with a wild tibetan macaque, summited above 3000m, and have seen a woman with bound feet.
On the other side of the the coin, we've wrestled with persistent vendors, suffered through bone crunching bus rides, trodden in the minefields of sidewalk mucous, been beleaguered by constant and prolonged stares wherever we've gone, ordered mystery meals and smelled some of the foulest toilets on the planet.
Its time to eat cheese and bagels. Its time to be understood. Its time to buy for quality rather than thrift. Its time to be normal again. We're going to Europe.
We're in St. Petersburg after crossing Russia on the Trans-Siberian Railway. Five and a half days of constantly changing scenes out our window. From the Great Wall of China to the Gobi Desert to the Mongolian grasslands, past the deepest lake in the world and through the endless forests of the Russian wild. We spent an exhausting but rewarding day in the capital before taking a night train up here, to 60 degrees latitude (the sun doesn't set until midnight!). Our transit visa expires soon so we're heading to Finland tomorrow to commence our two month journey through Western Europe.
In Sweden! The land of Saab, Volvo, ABBA, Ikea, Smorgasboard, meatballs, Mats Sundin and our favorite muppet!
We've just visited Niklas and Anna, a swedish couple who picked us up while we were hitchhiking in New Zealand. They invited us to stay the night, and gave us some great insight into life in Sweden. Our visit with them is a continuation of the wonderful experiences we're having in Scandinavia. Onwards to Denmark!
Theres a Danish saying that says: "You can only trust a man of 200 pounds", and at this rate, we'll be trustworthy in no time! We're in Copenhagen, and staying with the family of a girl we met while travelling in Australia earlier this year (named Tini). They've been amazing! We've had Danish breakfasts and Tini's dad (a big jolly man with a white beard) cooked us a Danish specialty, "Stect Flesk met basilesk sas", yummy pork. Copenhagen is a beautiful city, and a great place for Kendra to recover from the Mono-nucleosis which kept us in Sweden for an extra 6 days. Shes getting better now!
On wednesday, we're heading to Hamburg!!! (Mmmmmm, hamburg..)
We're in Germany again. This time in the Black Forest ready to do a little more hiking and camping before heading back into Alsace. Just spent a fantastic few days in Basel, Switzerland with Claudia and before that some time in the Vosages and with Marie-Loup and Robert in Strasbourg. Great friends, great scenery, history and culture not to mention, wine, cheese, chocolate. Europe has been wonderful!
Spending another month in western Europe, we had great times with friends and visited France again, Belgium, Holland and England before flying back to Canada on August 4th. Europe was amazing. It was all new for Dave, and for Kendra it brought back tons of great memories from her year in Strasbourg.
Upon arriving in Canada we went to two weddings, Meaghan and Jason's in Cornwall, Ontario, and Beth and Andy's, in Paradise, Nova Scotia.
Today Dave is moving into his apartment at Memorial University in Newfoundland, and tomorrow Kendra will start off for Nova Scotia to spend a month there before she starts her degree at York, in England. Being apart for a year will be a major adjustment and we'll miss each other immensely, especially after being so close together these past 3 years, but we're confident that it'll go smoothly. Its just a new challenge, a new adventure!:)
Wow, what a year. It started with a game of Trivial Pursuit in Melbourne Australia, our last post before exploring southeastern Australia and taking the long journey through the outback, Bali, Java, Sumatra, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, and England, before returning to Toronto, Canada and finishing the trip in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. What an Odyssey! Despite having very little money and not enough time, we have thousands of memories that will stay with as long as our minds do, and when our minds go, we'll still have pictures! We'll fondly remember the penguins in New Zealand, flipping the raft, hitching, camping on Kosciusko, the monkeys in Bali, the volcanoes of Java, the beaches of Thailand, Ecstatic Pizza, the tribes of Sapa, our engagement in China, Our 8000 Km train ride, camping in cow fields and reuniting with friends, to name just a few.
Now, at the close of this year, we are temporarily apart. Dave has just finished his first semester of his BEd in Newfoundland (with his best GPA ever!), while Kendra is almost three months into her masters degree in History and Culture in York, England. The long distance relationship is tough, but we look forward to reuniting in April. Who knows where we'll be in a years time...Onward Ho!
