Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Vientienne and Nong Khai

For those of you reading in sequential order....we inadvertently missed one of our favorite stops. Our last blog brings us through Van Vieng. From there we headed south to Vientienne. We were told it was a big city with very little to offer, so we spent one night and got our Cambodian Visas taken care of. There was some great left-over French architechure and food, mostly crusty baguettes but with little maintenance on the city, the buildings were falling into disrepair. Our block didn't have water for most of the day. Anyway, we got out as quickly as possible and headed over the border into Thailand to Nong Khai. Since most travelers, take the bus to the train station, this city seems to get far-less touristy traffic and we felt very comfortable there. Mut Mee guest houses were awesome with thatched attached bathroom to our bungalow and a great staff and lots of people sharing stories. They were also keen to give us a map of the area and all the places to visit by motorbike. We spent a few nights there because we liked it and postponed the trip back to Bangkok a bit. Our favorite and most weird siteseeing was at Kew Gardens, where we saw huge sculptures of Hindu and Buddhist gods. The park was Alice in Wonderland like and fittting as the sculturer was also a guru who saw a vision after falling in a hole as a child. We also got to see him. They had him embalmed in a glass bubble on the top floor of a Wat, with weird memorabilia like a picture of the blood he caughed up just before he died and his final resting bed.


Pictures from the Kew Garden Sculpture Park

More pics from Kew Gardens...

We sitesaw, drove the motorbike around town, met locals, Ethan had a non-verbal hourlong experience fixing the tire of the motorbike while I hung out at a book store with a British man and his VERY young Cambodian girlfriend/wife, who told me Vientienne was better than Nong Khai. We walked through a tunnel of a mall and purchased nothing. We wound up next to another American that studied at South Pacific University in Samoa and talked Samoan to him! Small world. We reminisced about Samoa and said our goodbyes.

And then after two nights, we went to the train to head back to Bangkok. At the train station we ran back into the crew we had traveled on the Mekong with. So the train was a great fun party. Well, until this one French man told me that Peace Corps was a cover-up for the CIA. I tried to argue with him but realized I was going to get nowhere and just let it go. Ethan came back and I am really glad he didn't make the same comment to him, the French man may taken home a black eye for a souvenir.

Ethan and Colin being silly with Claires iddie biddie purse on the train.

Ok, now on to South Thailand....



Here are some of his sculptures.

Monday, August 28, 2006


Fishing for Farang.

Vang Vieng is a midway stopping point between Luang Prabang and Vientiane in Laos. I must apologize about my atrocious spelling, but most words here don't translate into English well, so sometimes there are three spellings of the same word. In Laos, with the French influence, there is also a French-ized version of a name.

Anyway, Vang Vieng is known for its TV bars and tubing. Thats about all there is to do in town and most people somehow get stuck here for at least a night, but some fall into the rut and stay longer. We enjoyed the tubing for the one day, but when the weather turned the next morning, we decided to head out on a whim down to Vientiane.


Waiting to go into the river. The kids were bouncing on my tube with me and I highfived them all before I left.


This doesn't look bad, huh?

But, tubing was great! Let us tell you more. With a lazy river (well, not in Monsoon season) we were given advice by seasonsed tubers to stop at each bar as the river would get us back to town in 40 minutes and they said the first bar was the best. So, we come to the man fishing for farang. At the first bar, he stands on the dock and throws a tube at those waving for a lift in. He has two tubes, so if you miss the first, he'll throw the second. If you miss the second, he has this heavy bottle that should catch you instead of you catching it and if all else fails, there is a pretty permanent drift line he pulls up to grab to any of the lines that just got thrown at you. We didn't get into that much trouble being pulled in, but it was funny to watch others try to make it in. The other reason the man stood on the dock was pull the jumpers back in. Yup, there was a trapeze bar. You need not pay, only purchase a beer or soda to use their swing...climb up the bamboo ladder and grab hold. Ethan must have done it three times, I managed to get myself up there once. We spent a lot of time at this bar watching people belly flop, flip, and wish we had score cards for grading.


At this bar, the boys took a turn at wakeboard surfing on the floating piece of wood...


I think this was at the third bar...we were all starting to get some colour and some spirit!

After some fried rice and noodles, we moved on to the next bar...only a 100 yards down the river and had another beer. There swing wasn't nearly as cool, but they had this wood surfboard tied to a tree that you could navigate through the very heavy current, just like wake boarding. Ethan and the boys enjoyed this andI hope to get pictures from the others (that had waterproof cameras). The next stop had a simple swing and most of us had switched to water, so we didn't last there long. By the last stop, we were sunburned and cold (as it was now 5PM) - having extended the 40 minute drift to five hours - so we warmed by the fire and then headed back to the guest house for a shower. Definately a chill night after that experience and went tobed early.

So, we decided the guy at the bar that waited on the dock for the foreigners to float by had a cool job and in honour of his hard fishing work, we have named this post after his job. Fishing for Farang.

Waterfalls of paradise!


Second day in Luang Prabang. So it seems everyone grouped up on the boat heading down the Mekong. Our group was the core 6 (Ethan and I, the Brits - Sam and Dave (on a RTW for one year), and Chad (RPCV Phillipines) and Wendy (RTW for a school break). Us six, spent day one at the first waterfalls. A nice little swimming hole at the bottom and a muddy hike up...stunningly beautiful, well that is until the second day of waterfall visits. Chad had traveled through Laos before, so he did a lot of the negotiating and tourguiding, but our tuktuk driver was very happy to have the repeat business. On our third day in Luang Prabang we headed to a boat ramp, where the longtail boat driver tried to overcharge us even though the prices were posted and we had another Lao guy help explain that we understood and wouldn't be taken for a ride - funny pun- and then went across the river to the entrance of this beautifully landscaped, still muddy (it is monsoon season), natural waterpark. Complete with restaurant, tables and umbrellas, a water wheel pushing a grinder and a water pipe. I think I have pictures. Very ingenious yet very old fashioned. Would be a great way to grind Cocoa Samoa... The scenery was amazing, the sun was out, and the water was cold. We were told to be careful because with the strong water, the spirits come out. I appreciated his comments as a different approach to his own religion and we were careful.


View from the top of the falls and us walking across the path. Have we mentioned, it's rainy season and the water was knee deep and powerful...making us concentrate on getting across instead of being washed over the edge.

See www.fiataa.snapfish.com for more pictures of these amazing waterfalls.

We went out drinking with some other folks, all Mekong boat friends and had a grand ole time. Traveling with two other couples was nice for the boys because they could be boys together and us girls made them promise us shopping time and they could wait for us in a pub. It all worked out really well and we all had similar interests. We learned alot about travel from each other and everyone was respectful. One night, the two Israeli boys joined us for a late night, post-bar chat. There is a law that bars close at 11:30PM in Laos, but most stay open until midnight, pushing those boundaries. There was a great sign in the bathroom of one bar we went to ... I will try to post it, but it sums up Laos.

Laos Bathroom sign.

From Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng, we had heard some not safe travel stories. Thirteen tourists were killed on the road by local militants in 2003 and although we had heard things were cleared up, but the travel agents don't tell you any information. There were these two Irish girls that got a little shocked by the soldier (undercover) with a gun poking out of his belt, but in talking to some others...they claim that the undercover solider is to protect each bus from bandits and that things were under control now. We however, opted to rent a whole minivan, and add people if we could. It was still about the same price as the local bus and we felt a whole lot safer.

We did add 3 others, filling our bus. Julie, an American living in Taiwan, and Colin, the Irish guy, and Claire, the Australian that reads alot. Everything was going well until we pulled over to the side of the road with three other minvans and three cargo trucks. One of the other minivans was having engine issues, therefore we all sat on the side of the road for about an hour waiting for a new van for the other group. We changed drivers (I guess ours was the one that could fix the engine of the broken van) and got moving in a caravan again when the other van arrived. Mind you, I was too scared to go into the woods to pee after hearing the stories back in Luang Prabang, but now we understand there is power in numbers.

The ride had amazing scenery and the occassional checkpoint, where the driver turned over cash to an armed guard (AK47). Only a few places along the road did we see young children with guns (BIG ones) and not toys - I guess this is an improvement from Chad's last trip (2 years ago). He really said there was a big difference in tourism efforts since that last trip. We arrived in Vang Vieng and checked into our luxary hotel ($8). So far, this was the nicest place we stayed with a beautiful balcony overlooking the Song River and cliffs on the other side. After a nice dinner, we headed to town as a BIG group and stopped off at the Happy Bar before returning home.

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Laos.

We headed on the A/C 2nd class bus to Chang kong where the women next to us was puking her brains out for the first half of the trip, making many of us naucious...but we held it and then she slept the second half. Most of these bus rides have a point where everyone gets out, can buy snacks, pay to use the toilet (or hole in the ground) and then get back on for the rest of the journey.

Ethan at the Laos/Thai border "Gateway to Indochina"

We had opted to cross the border and spend the night in Laos, which we now realize was the more relaxed laid back country town. Most travelers stayed in Chang Kong and then headed over (sometimes on a package lodging/boat across/Mekong 2-day slow boat package) which was a better deal than piecemealing it like we did. Ah...the boat ride down the Mekong river. I can't post pictures until we get to Thailand...but it was like 70 people (only a few Lao - mostly foreigners) in a long boat with benches deep enough to fit half a cheek and only wide enough to fit two adults sitting straight forward. We boarded the boat at 10:30AM after a speech from the customs man (well, he checked us into Laos the day before). He scared us into pre-booking a room in Pak beng, told us there would be No electricity in pak beng, no food available on the boat, and that we would arrive at 7PM, after all the tourists traveling the other way arrived making guest houses sparce and food unavailable. After a 3PM arrival, we decided we weren't too upset about pre-booking, but if you (the reader) are planning this trip, you'll get a hostel for about 1/2 the $300Baht we paid, if you just go. Then again, we were tired and very happy not to have to deal with the stress when we arrived. Pak Beng does have sporadic opwer, but we were lucky to have it all night when we were there. the boat did stop and these kids sold chips, water and beer half way through the day. It was town set into a hill with mudslides and one main street that totally benefited and catered to the passing boat traffic.

The boats for the two day journey, down the Mekong...


First day on the boat...


Second day was WAY more relaxed.


A view of a small village along the Mekong.

Laos food is like Thai food but with less flavor and less vegetables and more oil. The guest house in Pak Beng was fine and the mosquitos weren't that bad. The next day, we reboarded the boat at the requested time of 8:30AM yet we didn't leave until 10:30AM. The second day boat ride was way better, more relaxed and much more socializing. We met some new friends. A fellow RPCV (from Phillipines) and his British girlfriend as well as this other couple (British) who had put there lives on hold for a full year RTW. We didn't plan to all stay at the same guest house, but we did. Actually, all of us have done everything in Luang Prabang together. There is discount in numbers and we hired a mini-bus for the trip down to VangVieng tomorrow. It is also nice because us girls are shopping together tonight and the boys can wait for us at the pub for bit. Jaylia's Guest House (at $6US) a night for both of us, has been the best night sleep I have had since leaving Samoa, maybe even since my mothers house last December. All of us agreed the next day that the sleep was fantastic and the mattresses nice, sheets included!

Night one in Luang Prabang: Dinner with our boat crew. We made a plan to hire a tuktuk for a ride up to the waterfalls. It was beautiful and we'll tell you all about it if you read on.

Friday, August 18, 2006

The Motobike Excursion of Pai; its surrounding villages, lands, and muddy roads (it is rainy season afterall).

We took the suggestion of the English couple at the bar to ask the bar owner to give us his map and route of the surrounding area by bike. It was great and the map only got us lost once when after the waterfall and before the big Wat on the hill, we realized the road was out. Definately, a big river blowout and from what we hear this big monsoon left some huge damage when it came through a few months ago. Anyway, the day was overcast and the rain stayed away, so it was a perfect day for cruising the motobike. It was very free and refreshing and we enjoyed the views, the people, It was nice to be out of the touristy stuff and into the big wide countryside. We stopped for beverages at random places; one such place being a two-story bamboo hut made of nothing (including the floors) but bamboo. The dog ran by and the whole place shook. At this point, we were also rethinking our travel schedule. With Laos as a new viable and side excursion trip...we wanted to get moving. The options included a 11PM bus, skipping Chiang Rai, down to Chiang Khong (the Laos border crossing) but we didn't know what to do for another day in Pie (a bit teeny of town) and I wasn't so keen on the overnight bus trip. So instead we opted for the mini-bus (van) to Chiang Mai and then the local bus to Chiang Rai. It added an hour or so, but we got to see and spend the night in Chiang Rai, which turned out to be good decision. The city was smaller than Chiang Mai and way fewer tourists. we stayed at a place called Mae Kok Guest House (say that...yup, you said it right) and the bed was a bit like sleeping on concrete, the shower needed to pushed with a wire hanger to get the leaves to go down and I frieked out on the worms (not earthworm looking) that accumulated at that time and wouldn't go into the bathroom without shoes for the rest of our stay there. We had big giant fried prawns and spring rolls from the market and stopped at a traveler hangout for guidance on Lao called the Teepee Bar. We went to the Hill Tribe Museum the next day which was great and an NGO type of place I see myself working at some day. I'm glad we stopped in Chang Rai and one day was enough. Even smaller of a town than Chiang Mai, more of a import/export city from China and elsewhere in Asia, down to Bangkok.

Next we head to Laos and the journey to get there.....



Local scenery in northern Thailand.



To cold to swim and a bit overcast...but me being mimika(show-off) at the waterfalls.


This was where the bridge was supposed to go across. Hence our turnaround point.




Rice fields...

Life of Pai (actually that is what Ethan is reading currently) and funny, its also the name of the city we are in.


In case you can't read this, Ethan and I are in seats 7 and 8 of the 10 passenger minivan to Pai and this is our ticket.

On a minibus, we weaved in and out of the mountains to the valley of Pai. This little town was a suggested stop by a RPCV and we are truly glad we made the trek. The bus was a bit scary for Sara but Ethan enjoyed the scenery while I put my nose in the Sudoku book. The Thai man next to me even tried to figure a few out, but since neither of us spoke any of each others language, I couldnt explain. We thought we were getting close after a police check point when we stopped and everyone got out. It was our rest stop and the driver needed to eat. We had homeade sausages (not quite sure what was in them, but they were yummy).

Ethan in front of our 'minibus' at the pitstop on top of a mountain, about 40 minutes from Pai.

We are staying at Mr. Jans because it was close and in the book and now we see there are many other options out there, but it is quiet and serene and in the middle of a traditional herbal garden and we have our own bathroom with hot water (a first for us in Thailand).


Bungalow #5 at Mr. Jans

After checking in, we immediately rented another motobike and buzzed around town. We found the food a bit eclectic, for lack of another word. Every place had the standard Thai options along with pizza, sandwiches, burgers, and other assorted random bits. Every menu was 15 pages long. The afternoon dry period from 2pm -5 pm must throw many for a loop, but coming from Samoa with evening Sa, it almost made sense to us. The guy that sold us our beer at about 4PM, told us to put it in our backpack and to be quiet. Ethan said it was reminiscent of buying beer on Sunday in Samoa. After dinner, we tried to find a fun local bar and we did. I can't tell you the name of it but Pong, the owner was a really good guy and he gave us some great insight on what to do tomorrow.


Pong's Bar - that is tobacco (shisha) in the hookah behind us, I swear.

Chiang Mai.... Trains, Bikes and Tuktuks

The twelve hour train ride left in the afternoon and per the advice of our Thai friends in the PC Office (Thailand Post), we left from the northern part of the city instead of travelling back into the city. There was so street vendors across the street and I ventured to find us dinner with nothing written in English nor any pictures. I even tried to look around and point at someone elses dish, but I managed to get a Thai style fried rice and some skewered meat and some dumplings. Oh, the fun of sign language. At this point, we have attempted many foods off the street and we have yet to be disappointed. The table you see below converts into an upper and lower bunk. We ate our street food and the few beers we brought along (mind you, we purchased one in the food car for 3x the price of the ones we brought with, so we were smart). The food car reminded us of something off The Beach - the movie. A whole bunch of crazy farang (palagi - for those of you in Samoa and foreigners for those of you not in Samoa) dancing to the tape player playing Abba and other really old 80s crap. We hung out with the one Thai guy in the car then left. We got back and our bed had been made so we tried to fit into one bed but no way...I crawled into the top bunk. I kept waking up and thinking I was going to miss my stop. Ethan tried to reassure me that the train turned around in Chiang Mai and that there was no way we could miss the stop, but my clock kept waking me up every hour or so. Not a very good sleep and the tracks were a bit old so it was bumpy.


Cruising in style on the train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai.

After checking into an American-run hostel, we got Thai massages. They came to our room and Ethan got the daughter (who could not have been 16 years old) and was amazed at her strength. Thai massage is rough and painful. They really work your body to get your blood flowing and stretch you in ways that you didn't know you could move. I liked it but I think Ethan will opt for the oil or herbal massage next time (maybe tomorrow). We napped and walked into town, got lost again, because the signs look like ดกหดเมารวียยขย้-เกห . If the words were in English characters, we could probably follow the signs a bit better, but there were very few signs in English characters. We found a cute place for dinner called Ratana's Kitchen and had the khao soi (a popular and very tasty Northern Thai dish of flat noodles, spicy sauce, and coconut cream and some veggies). After dinner we headed over towards the infamous Night Bizar and were unimpressed with the amount of haggling required to make a purchase. We gave up, called it a night and headed back to our bed for a good night sleep. The next day, we had a plan to visit a few wats (Buddist Temples) and some other stuff when we realized how much the tuktuks would run us. We checked out the price of a moto bike rental and realized we would save tons of $$ and we ran with it. Everyone drives moto bikes in Thailand and we hear even more so in Vietnam and other SE Asia countries. Ethan's learning curve was short...well it had to be...there was so much traffic and little room for error. There were no rules, no instructions, and lots of panicking (on my part). But after he got adjusted to driving and I to being passenger, we really started to dig it. We enjoyed visiting the Wats and were interested in the buildings and the Buddhism. We actually wanted to do this monk chat which was to let the monks practice their English and to teach farang about Buddhism, but the time and day didn't jive with our schedule. The bike gave us a ton of freedom to see things we never would have been able to and we truly saw the city. We had dinner at Huean Phan (which took three circumnavigations of the city to find and the first choice from Lonely Planet being under construction) but was wonderful. We were the only farang in there for a while, which says something about the quality of food. We had an amazing Green Papaya Salad (another Northern specialty) and then a lemongrass chicken soup and some a Burmese Red Curry (waiters suggestion) that were both out of this world and super spicy.


Look Mom, I have my helmut on!


Waiting at the petrol station for his fare. This is a tuk tuk. By the way, you have to crouch down low and forward so you can see out the windows.


One of the many markets in Chiang Mai.

We were sad to leave Chiang Mai but ready for Pai our next excursion and we promise to write more from their now. So as we hop on a minibus for a 4 hour ride up and over the mountains. we will write more from there.

Monday, August 14, 2006

Bangkok.
Wow....what a city. So, Ethan and I are in the Peace Corps office in Bangkok chilling in their lounge while we wait for our 6PM train to Chiang Mai. We have had an excellent, fun-filled and exciting past few days and hadve decided that we should spend a few more days here on the way back through. So, Ill tell you all about those days.



Ronald welcoming us to Thailand with the traditional Thai greeting.

Well, after a horrible late night arrival and the grossest dirtiest smallest hostel room in Bangkok, we were not feeling the Bangkok vibe right off. After a good night of sleep (well as good as the bad mattress and neighbours could afford us), we packed up our stuff, headed out for a American style breakfast with bacon and eggs and COFFEE. The coffee was instant, did the trick andt he breakfast was cheap but now that we have been here a few days, cheap keeps getting smaller. When you convert everything to US dollars, everything here is cheap, but if we are now trying to set a Baht budget for our time here to keep my shopping in check! When I say cheap, we were living on a pricey island. Even the beer here is less than $1US for a big one. I bought myself a cute skirt for $4US and a new t-shirt will put you back $0.50US. Bottled water runs between $0.25 - $1US. In the markets, they tend to start about 4x higher than the real price but 711 and the other street stores keeps the prices pretty set. Anyway, enough price comparision...I have realized that I have lost a lot of my bargaining skills and that speaking Samoan with Ethan while bargaining is a very handy tool to have. Back onto the events...anyway, we found a great hostel for $450Baht (or $11.25US) a night with an A/C unit and a balcony that we really liked. It was off the famed Ko San Rd and we liked the view.
Pad Thai Vendor on Ko San Road...

Next, we wanted to go see the city and thought a trip to the weekend market would be a good experience. We still weren't even here for 24 hours mind you and it was a Sunday, reminiscent t of Samoa since it was a 3-day holiday weekend. Overwhelmed with the crowds, we only lasted an hour or so and were about to head back to our little comfortable niche (the hostel) and a nap. We wound up sharing a taxi with these two Aussie blokes, who also invited us out that night to a less touristy section of town to hear some good music. We told them how we'd been living on an island and were game for some more big city/cultural stuff more than your average tourist/Ko San Rd gig. We danced at this great strip of clubs (I couldn't tell you where it was for the life of me) and heard some great house music. By the end of the night, Ethan, the two Aussies, and this other British dude (whom they met in Vietnam) and myself were invited back with these Thai girls to their condo. The one doing the inviting, who owned the condo, was keen on the British dude and her sister and other friend were along as well. Turns out this girls condo was beautiful and gorgeous and her father worked for the police. Her English was good, the sister's was weak, and the friend spoke none. Another Thai boy showed up later (I think to keep an eye on them) and his English was at least conversable. We danced and tried to feed us, bought some more alcohol and they didn't seem the type to always invite farang up to their condo for an afterparty, so it was really interesting. I may note, that I was not drinking (although I did imbide on a few RedBulls to keep me going). We lasted a while and then left the boys to their own thing and Ethan and I taxied back to the hostel. Of course, we tried to sleep in the next day but I can't sleep in...so instead we went out and took naps in the afternoon.

View from the Skytrain bridge crossing over to the Weekend Market.

Day 2 in Bangkok. We tried to follow the Lonely Planet walking tour and got lost. But it was fun to get lost and wind up in communities where we were off the beaten path and just wandering the streets. Our lunch was fantastic, on the river and REAL Pad Thai and some noodle soup, next to a vendor selling snakes and snails (live in bowls). Way better and unlike the plain street variety Pad Thai on Ko San Rd. We enjoyed our four hour walk through the Amulet market, University, and Chinatown, and past many temples. We couldn't go in because we didn't have covered shoes and pants (or long skirt for me) on. After a good long nap, we headed out to the Patpong Night Market for some real bargaining and cultural experience. We had dinner at a place packed with locals and a menu with pictures under the expressway at a metal table on the street. It was so good, I still can't stop talking about the prawns in lime and coriander. We picked up some good deals at the market and stopped at a local joint in the area for one beer before heading back to the hostel and calling it a night.




Dinner on the street in Pat Pong, across from the night market, mmmm was it good.

Today, we head to Chiang Mai on a 12-hour train ride so stay tuned for more adventures.

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Bangkok Thailand.

Wow. We left Melbourne on an early flight and then truly decided that we didn't like Sydney when we had to pay to get from the domestic to the international terminal. We had budgetted out our money so tight, that we had to skimp on lunch to take the bus. We tried to walk but we were told there was no sidewalk and we would be arrested for walking on the highway. After a 6 hour layover, we headed out on Thai Airways for a 9 hour flight. We were fed well and drinks were free, even in economy! Cognac after the meal. We tried to sleep and watched three movies. Wow, we are so glad that is our longest flight of this trip.

Arriving in Bangkok was overwhelming. We are glad that we had a few weeks in NZ and Australia before heading here. This is a big, HOT, crowded city. Its amazing, exciting and a bit scary all at once. We arrived into the city, about midnight which was actually 3AM from the time we left Australia and we were tired. We settled on a really sketchy room for $250 Baht and decided to just crash and deal with it today. As we speak we are waiting for a lovely balcnoy room with A/C for $450 instead of the first one we chose for $350 with only a fan, but not enough breeze. ($450 Baht is about $10US). Ethan went out for some water and was only approached for other less wholesome things 4x in his 10 minutes out of the house. Its actually the Queens Birthday in Thailand right now, so it is a 3 day weekend and many things are closed. Its ok and it makes it a bit more bearable for our first days here.

We will write and take more pics in the next few days...just wanted to make sure everyone knew we are safe in Bangkok.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Melbourne Australia.
What a wonderfully relaxing and refreshing stay in a VERY cold part of Australia. We would truly like to come back here and visit when we aren't freezing and when we can take some time to enjoy the city. Everyone has their tastes, but Ethan and I both felt more at home in downtown Melbourne over Sydney. Ethan's childhood schoolmate, Nancy, met us at the airport. We flew into Avalon (we thought it was Melbourne - discount fare on Jetstar from Sydney) and it was the other side of Melbourne from where Dexter and Nancy live. Oops. Sorry Nancy and Dexter and thank you for everything!


Nancy and Dexter (Our Melbourne Hosts!)

Nancy and Ethan were two years apart in school but their mums are still good friends. They hadn't seen each other in 15 years, but it was really nice for them both to reminisce and of course its always nice to have friends visit from overseas to your new home. Ethan and I learned that when we had friends or family visit in Samoa. We were their first overnight guests in their new house which was fun and I hope we were good guests. They had to work most of the week but there was a computer in the second bedroom and I took advange (poor Ethan) and spent two days working on finishing my college essays. Dexter has heaps of movies and series, so Ethan caught up. We experiemented with the Western style grocery stores and bottle shops and I still need to have my hand held as we go through the isles. Its still overwhelming. I made dinner for Nancy and Dexter, Ethan made me lunch and we truly enjoyed having a home where we could just relax. I also saw the doctor...yes mother...I am back on antibiotics for the cough. I think it should be cleared up but the doc said that some Thai massage and time in a hut on a beach someplace will definately help clear it up. So, no complaints, I can do both tomorrow when we head to Thailand.
Feeding the parrots at the Park.... That's Nancy on the right.


We tried very hard to change our JetStar tickets and our StarAlliance RTW tickets to spend a day or two extra in Melbourne but to no avail. We were completely bummed because Dexter and Nancy scheduled a poker/potluck with some mates on Saturday ngith and Ethan and I really wanted to attend. Did I mention that Nancy pulled out their old yearbooks and I saw the first pictures of Ethan as a child? How funny! He says dorky, but he hasn't seen mine! Anyway.

Today, we spent the day with Nancy and Dexter. We mentioned that we were interested in their little wine region (Yarra Valley), but besides that they were the trip planners. What a great day. They always start their weekends with cartoons, so we made a big breakfast and then watched superman. We headed out with a picnic lunch with winter coats to the mountains, where we fed the parrots. The parrots acted like pigeons but definately smarter and more beautiful. They are native to this area. We had seen one in Sydney and thought someone's pet must be loose, but no. Ethan got pooped on but the rest of us were spared of bombings and noone lost a finger. See pics. Lunch was lovely and then we were off to taste wine.

Midweek wine tastings definately rock over weekend tours. We were usually the only ones in the wineries and got extra special pours because, well, we were the only ones there. The wines were decent and by the last vineyard Nancy and I went in and left the men to power nap in the car. We all bought some. Ethan and I will be enjoying ours tomorrow on our 6 hour layover in Sydney airport. All in all, a great week. Ethan's got the sniffles but I think nothing some warm weather can't cure.


What winemakers do after work...note the beer bottles on the table and the grapes in the background.

We are still travelling in our two backpacks and I have a shoulder bag, Ethan a small pack for carry-on. No extra weight as of yet although if we keep eating as well as we have been, we maybe loosening a few belt buckles and backpack straps..he.he.he.

Monday, August 07, 2006

We have left Sydney and are now in Melbourne. In the last five days in Sydney, we went to the Zoo...I think we took the most pictures there. It wasn't the most impressive zoo, but the animals were unique to Australia which was fun. The elephants were in quarantine ... which would be upsetting to someone visiting, who didn't happen to be heading to Thailand and India next. No worries for us!


Giant koala hugs Sara at the Sydney Zoo!!!


Oh look a kangaroo!

We also did a Saturday night out. As warned, no one hits the clubs until after 11PM, actually some don't even open until 10PM...so I took a nap. I can blame it on my nasty cold that I can't seem to break but we all know I like my sleep! We picked a bar called Melt and waited in line. Ethan and I are both used to getting in where we want and found waiting in a que a bit tough, but we did and it was worth it. I ordered a Cosmo at the bar and the bartender spent about 5 minutes making me what I considered the BEST cosmo ever! Ok, I haven't had one in quite some time but this one was definately made with TLC and class. Mmmm. I had two. By 2:30AM, I had danced enough and was ready to head out. Ethan caved in and we went back to our hostel. I am very happy we didn't head with the youngsters from our hostel to their bar of choice, where one of the boys thought he was being trapped in the toilet when in actuality it was a pull and not a push door. He climbed over the restroom stall, hit an innocent bystander on the other side, security escorted him out of the bar, where the police took over and he head butted a cop. He is being deported back to England. One night, Ethan did head out with that crew. I was feeling a bit under the weather and told him to have fun. Seeing the condition he returned in, I can tell it was a bit of a rough crowd.

Ethan checks the news of a friend...

We also took a trip to the biggest mall on the Southern Hemisphere during a rainy day. I really wanted to see "The White Masai" and it was playing there. Great movie about a Swiss woman who falls for a Kenyan Masai Warrior and lives with him in his rural village. Ethan and I both enjoyed it but isn't $15.50 Aussie a bit pricey for a moive? We did get to mossey around the mall and check out fashions ... none of which we could afford. But it was fun none the less.

Our last day in Sydney, we headed to the Sydney Jewish Museum. There were quite a few Jews on the first ship on convicts to Australia...knewly learned fact. It was interesting and we are both now very interested in exploring Eastern Europe...maybe even searching for some of my relatives homelands. The holocaust exhibit was really upsetting and disturbing, but a very good historical account/including pictures and memorabilia from the atrocity.

Ok, I can't end this blog on such a morbid note so I will tel you that Melbourne is a nice (COLD) city. I went to the doc this morning and hopefully I can beat this cough before we head to
Thailand. We are chilling at Nancy and Dexters home. Nancy and Ethan grew up in St. Croix together. Their moms were friends and therefore the 15 years in which they haven't seen each other doesn't seem like long at all. We are their first house guests and Dexter set me up a computer to help me finish my grad school apps. Oh...thats right, I should be doing that right now. Cheers!

Thursday, August 03, 2006

Sydney and Hunter Valley Wine Region.
We arrived in Sydney and met up with my friend Felicity (from Aspen) the next day. After work, we all headed to her parents place in Newcastle for the night. The plan included a day trip into wine country and back to Newcastle for the evening. Her parents were wonderful and had dinenr waiting for us when we got there. Wine country was a blast. We didn't get to go to a ton of vineyards but it was nice to not drive and be driven in a "wine bus." Today is a rainy day in Sydney and a bit nippy too. We are headed to a museum and then maybe a movie. Also, maybe we will find some shopping as well. Cheers!


Cool cathedral shot in Sydney.


Flick and Dom at Rosemount Vineyards.


Ethan and I at Tyrrell's Vineyard after the tour.


Ethan and the Opera House.