Kaikoura, New Zealand
This is yet another place that photographs and words can do no justice to. Imagine a seaside town - small and picturesque, quaint and sunny. But, lining the backdrop in the distance are stunning, snow-capped mountains. Here I had another 'wow' moment.
As soon as we'd arrived and dropped our backpacks, we set off on a 4 and a half hour trek through the hills, which included stopping at a wild seal colony. This town boasts more marine life than probably most places in the world, including dolphins and whales. That was the main reason we stopped off here, to swim with dolphins.
However, when we turned up at the date and time I'd booked months ago, the weather conditions were really bad. The tour could be cancelled at any point, as strong winds were causing a very heavy sea, meaning that if we found the dolphins we may not be allowed into the water to swim with them.
We were leaving the next day. Our only option was to rearrange and book onto the first tour of the next day - at 5.30am.
So the following day was VERY busy. Getting up at 4am, we only just made it in time but it was SO worth it. It was such a beautiful morning, without one tiny cloud in the sky. Once I'd wetsuited up for the first time in my life, (with hood+snorkel+flippers, the lot) I looked awesome and was ready to find some dusky dolphins. We found a pod of around 100, and most people on the boat got right in the water.
The experience is hard to recount, because it was the best but worst feeling. Obviously, if you know anyone who has swam with dolphins they will tell you it was amazing, the best day of their life etc. But that was almost definitely all the time in tropical waters, with trained dolphins in captivity. So how many of those people you know who have done it conventionally, have swum with wild dolphins in the open ocean?? Because this is quite a different experience. As they are wild, we cannot touch them and the boat does not entice them with bait or in any other way - they just look for the pods. Have I mentioned previously how COLD it is in NZ? Well this is apparently the start of their Summer, and I don't know if it's because I arrived from a total opposite climate but it feels like Winter. When I submerged into that early morning Pacific Ocean, it was so cold I nearly had a panic attack. I couldn't breathe! And then I had a slight snorkel incident, where I swallowed my own body weight in seawater, and this was all before I'd seen any dolphins! My body was desperate to get back on the boat, but my mind knew I couldn't ruin this once in a lifetime opportunity. I stayed in the water for about half an hour, and when the dolphins came close I could forget about the water temperature. Some of the them kept eye contact and circled me, which was really cute. They are one of the most acrobatic of the species, and they happily jumped out of the water, even doing flips like they were showing off. But when I got back on the boat I was quite happy to take off my wetsuit and just watch them from there!
Once we were safely back on land, we proceeded on a 2 and a half hour bus journey up to Picton, where you can travel to the North Island. We had planned to get the ferry, which takes 3.5 hours, but was told by a local that flying only takes 25 minutes. It was also a scenic flight, in a small charter plane over the Marlborough Sounds. So we opted for the second, faster option, which I thought would be quite exciting. Wrong!! It was terrifying. The plane was absolutely miniscule, had maximum 10 seats and only one pilot, who kept repeating "Make sure your seatbelt is nice and tight!"
It was a rocky flight, you could feel every gust of wind and it is well known that Wellington, our destination, is referred to as Windy Wellington. The views of course were spectacular, but I never want to get on a plane like that again!
So, a rather eventful day...swimming with wild dolphins, crossing the Cook Straight in a charter plane, sleeping in our first dorm room with some very weird people...the fun continues!
26/11/12 - Christchurch
So, the coolest thing about this city is the hostel we're staying in. It's a historic jail, built in the 1800's, and only closed in 1999. Our room is a tiny cell, with a bunk bed and a tiny window. There is no heating, so it's absolutely freezing at night. (NZ = COLD. Way colder than Sydney on a cloudy day). But they give you an extra quilt and offer you a free hot water bottle, which is cute! A few cells have remained the same to create a sort of mini-museum, along with artefacts and paper clippings from over the years. There's a really unsettling one about a breakout that occurred, where all the officers were beaten unconscious. My favourite part is a cell containing a prisoner's artwork on the walls. It gives a chilling insight into the mind of a prisoner - one of which was one of the last inmates of 1999.
Yeah so not much to say about Christchurch at all. The city is still in the process of picking up the pieces from the 2011 earthquake - there's still a cordon in the centre. But unless you have a car, to drive to the outskirts and the lovely scenery, (which we don't) there's not a lot to see or do at all. So we've just recharged our batteries, and booked our coach up to Kaikoura.
I feel the same about NZ as I did at first about Australia - not overly impressed, but there's no way I can judge the whole country from this one city.
25/11/12 - Sydney
On arriving in Sydney, with serious jet lag after a delayed 9 hour flight, I was not in the best of moods. In addition, it was grey, cloudy and absolutely freezing compared to the sunny, humid weather I was dressed for, which we'd left behind in Thailand. I hadn't really packed for cold weather as we were arriving in time for Australia's Summer, so I was not expecting this cold blast! The weather here is all over the place...they still have the air con on full blast though! It's unbelievable, I've spent the last 3 weeks running into the nearest 7/11, as it's the only place in a 10 mile radius with aircon in 35 degrees+ heat - and now I'm cold there's aircon everywhere I go.
So, back to the point, I was even more disappointed by the realisation that Sydney looked just like the UK. Did I really travel all this way for cold, cloudy weather and sky scrapers that look like a carbon copy of London?! The city's comparison to our capital is uncanny - they have a Hyde Park, King's Cross, Paddington, Oxford Street...
I'd spent almsot a month in the East, just started to adapt to the culture and enjoy it, and then at the click of a finger ( or a 10 hour night flight) I was back in the West. I didn't like it!! I guess Australia has been so hyped up recently, and the fact all we could see was the inner city buildings, that it was purely under-whelming.
That night, after a power-nap, we took a walk to the harbour to see the iconic sights of Sydney. The Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge was only a 20 minute walk from our hostel, so we were in a great location. Lit up at night, it was a spectacular view and I soon decided Sydney was way better than London!
The following day, we did the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb, which was expensive but worth it. [I take this back, we could really do with that $300 now.] The whole experience made me giggle - they take longer dressing you up and giving you all the prep than they take walking you up and down the bridge. You need a jumpsuit, fleece, belt and attachment, hat, gloves, handkerchief...you have to walk through a metal detector, do a breathaliser test...it makes you believe the climb is going to be hardcore and dangerous. But in essence, it was literally a few stairs, about 6 ladders, and there you were on the top arch. The views from the top were incredible, and we got to see the sunset on the harbour. What struck me is how huge Sydney Harbour acually is; the bridge is more or less central, and each side the water looks like it goes on for miles. Before the bridge was built, if you did not want to get across the water via boat it would take 5 hours to reach the other side!
We also managed to cram in Bondi Beach, which was lovely but looked a lot smaller than it does on the TV show 'Bondi Rescue!' The sea was, as predicted, laced with surfers. While the weather was a lot warmer and sunnier today, I still thought it was too cold to strip down to my bikini! It looked like what I imagine America's beach cities to look like, such as Miami or L.A. I've never been, but it looks similar to TV programmes and films from the USA. There's a bunch of seafood cafes and restaurants along the beachfront, just like the one Ryan from The O.C. worked in.
We also found 5 hours of our time to spend at Taronga Zoo. Which was amazing, as I got to get up close to a koala!! They were soooooo cute, very sleepy though, it's hard to get a photo of one with their eyes open. But they do sleep 20 hours a day, and I wouldn't want to disturb them, they are the cutest things EVER.
I feel like our time here has been a complete whirlwind, and there's so many things left to see - plenty more beaches, parts of the harbour and obviously the Blue Mountains. So hopefully we will find time in our year ahead to come back at some point.
So I have to apologise!!
It has been soooo long since this was last updated, but we've had internet problems, (you'd think it would get better as we get into more developed countries, but no they just rip you off) and New Zealand was so hectic we didn't even have time to get on a computer. BUT it's all written down in my journal, and now I have a fun few hours of typing it up....
Monday 19th November - Koh Phi Phi - Bangkok
We chose the perfect day to leave Koh Phi Phi. The weather was cloudy with showers, and hellishly humid. Much like when we arrived, but the seven days inbetween have been glorious. It usually rains during the night while we lie in bed, and it's quite nice listening to our bungalow get battered - until we find a few leaks in the morning!
Saying bye to Phi Phi was hard, we'd become so attached to it! It's the longest we've stayed anywhere for nearly a month. It really was the purest form of paradise I've ever seen, which can be said for most of the Thai islands. Their beaches are plentiful and unspoilt, no teenagers whizzing round on jet skis and banana boats. And the lush landscapes inbetween the beaches are just as pretty.
Bet HERE is definitely not.
Here we are again, on one of our ridiculous night journeys. We decided to get the train, you get a sleeper bed to yourself and presumably it's the fastest form of transport. Boat and bus to Suratthani train station all ran smoothly. Then on arrival, we get told our train is 2 hours delayed, and we already had an hour wait. Now this train station is not somewhere you want to be, for 2-3 hours, at nightfall. It' laughable they can call it a major train station. The arrivals and departures are written on a whiteboard. There is one tiny shop. Squat toilets, again. And did I mention the RATS? What makes this journey particularly worse is that it isn't worth all this. We're heading back to Bangkok, where we really don't want to be! Then we have a 9 hour flight to look forward to. (With Emirates at least, so we'll have a pleasant journey for that haha).
However much I'll miss Thailand's beauty, I am ready for a change of scenery. On our last night in Phi Phi we agreed we was going to eat some Thai food, until we saw a Grill Joint....all you can eat BBQ?! How could we resist. So we ate there and said it was to prepare our bodies for Aus, where they eat a lot of meat and bqqs all the time. Yay! But I'll miss all the little things...taking off your flip flops every time you walk into a shop or restaurant, saying 'Sawadee Kaaaaa,' getting massages whenever I feel like it, hearing Gangnam Style every day. However there's not much to miss of Khoa San Road or Bangkok, as there's only so many times you can politely say "No I don't want to buy a suit/lighter/wooden frog/spinny light thing," "No I don't want a tuk tuk" and "No I do not want to see a ping pong sex show!!"
I'm really excited to see Sydney now, and we have booked our Sydney Harbour bridge climb, so we will see it from the best possible view!
But for now, there's only one thing left to do....say Farewell to Thailand! I was going to do this by eating a cricket, and posting the proof here, but once again we couldn't find the stand last night!! :( I'm half happy half relieved about this.
Goodbye Bangkok, G'day Sydney! x
16th November - Koh Phi Phi Don and Koh Phi Phi Ley
So today I jumped off a cliff.
Yes, it was the most adventurous thing I've ever done! And I wasn't even scared until we turned up at the tour centre, and was handed a waiver to sign just in case we get injured or died. Oh right!! I didn't realise it was that dangerous....
It was all part of a boat trip around Phi Phi Ley, a tiny island so close to Phi Phi that it is almost connected. It was the best 500 baht/tenner I ever spent.
First we stopped at some cliffs to do the jump. We had to put special shoes on and literally rock climb, through jagged and slippy rocks, to the top of this cliff. Unaided I may add! I was expecting some stairs, then a run and jump?! No chance. These were real cliffs, with a jagged edge to leap off if you dared. So what was it like? For me, quite unpleasant! The first cliff was only 8m apparently - but it still took me a good 3 seconds to hit the water. And that's what it felt like, a massive slap. For some reason my bum felt it the most, even though I did what the guide said and jumped in like a pencil. Then as I plunged deep underwater, my head felt like it was going to explode. I thought I was never going to make it back up to the surface, then when I finally did, the waves were so choppy that I kept gulping water and found it hard to swim back to the boat with my backside still stinging!
Most people went back for more, to try the higher jumps, but one was definitely enough for me. At least I can say I did it! Only one person on the whole boat had the guts to do the big 18m jump. Rik went back to try the second highest, about 12m, but soon changed his mind and clambered back to the lowest one. It is soooo much higher and scarier when you're up there than when you're watching from below. But I'm really glad I did it.
From there we went round the corner to monkey beach, where you guessed it, monkeys live. But they were wild and fierce, not small, cute or cheeky like I'd imagined! When we'd had enough monkeying around, our tiny longtail boat zoomed off into the sea to take us to a beautiful lagoon. Surrounded by giant cliff faces, it was so peaceful and the water was amazing, so we all jumped in for a swim.
After a bit of snorkelling by a rocky wall (which me and Rik epically failed at) our guides then took us to Maya Bay - the actual beach where 'The Beach' was filmed. But our boat didn't pull up on that beach, oh no - we had to go on a little adventure. Just like in the film, it is actually a national park and we had to pay a national park entry fee. Once that had been collected, we were led to a cave where once again, we tried our hand at a bit of rock climbing. It was like a passageway under a cliff, but still in the sea with some very tight squeezes! But it was all part of the fun, and as we ascended into the light again, we came to the steepest staircase known to man. Another 10 minute walk and there it was upon us: that exact, breathtaking view from the film....ruined by a few boats and 50+ tourists. But still, it really is the most amazing beach, it's no wonder the director chose this location. It almost makes it a fact that Maya Bay is the most beautiful beach in the whole of Thailand. We spent about an hour there, and was nowhere close to getting bored. I just couldn't stop taking photographs, I wanted to remember this view forever.
But the trip was not over yet. As the sun set on the horizon, we were whisked away to our very own private beach fro a bbq and a party. It would be hard to beat Maya Bay, but as the boat pulled in to our location I knew it wouldn't disappoint. A small beach lit by flames, that led into a beach cavern, where fires and a little mini bar were set up and the music was pumping. There were only around 30 of us on this beach, so more of a friendly, cosy mini-party which was a perfect way to end the day. We ate, drank and chatted to a few people. Then one of our guides brings out a gutiar, and asks if anyone wants to play...next thing we're all singing Oasis round the campfire. There's no word to describe this apart from surreal. Do you ever get that moment where you think "This isn't real, I'm in a movie right now." Well this was definitely one of them. Following our sing-song the Thais got up and showed off their fire twirling skills - which everyone does here by the way, I think Thais come out of the womb twirling a firestick and throwing it to the next newborn across the room. It is entertaining though! Then they led us into the sea to show us the glowing plankton, as it was pitch black by now. They were wicked! If you stayed still, theres nothing but black all around and in the sea, but if you move or splash in the water, lots of tiny light dots appear, just for a few seconds, then disappear again. Fascinating sight to end the day with.
To conclude our night, we headed back to the village for a few drinks. It was just the best day ever. But now tomorrow is our last day, and I really really DON'T want to leave!!!
Rik on his 2nd jump:
Viking Resort, Koh Phi Phi
It is hard to describe this amazing place, so I'll just put it simply:
Bamboo huts, in trees, with a beachview. Everything is made of wood, from the bed to the clothes hangers. We have a terrace/balcony with a huge hammock, and lots of cute hanging shell mobiles. It is the only room we've stayed in so far with a fridge, which is filled with drinks, and where breakfast is included every morning. There is one downfall - STILL not hot water - but I'm quite enjoying washing my hair in the sea now, especially as there's 2 private beaches to choose from. So we originally booked 3 nights as it's a bit pricey, but as soon as we were shown to our room I fell in love, so we went back down to recpetion to book another 3 nights. This takes us up to when we have to leave for Bangkok.
So that night, we went into the village for dinner and what did we come home to? A cockroach infestation. I freaked out, as we had run out of the killing spray from last time! Luckily reception had some brought up for us, which did the job (and now we're fully stocked up for emergencies!) It may sound silly that I wanted to stay here, in this all-natural resort, yet not want to share it with these creepy crawlies. Why didn't I expect this?! I don't know. I guess paradise comes at a cost, which I'm willing to pay. Anyway, we've not had much trouble since so fingers crossed they've learnt their lesson.
