On Sunday my aim was to cross the border from Laos into Cambodia, something I really wasn't looking forward to as I'd read it was a pretty corrupt border crossing. I got there a lot earlier than expected as a local farmer kindly gave me a lift there after I left the waterfall. In Vientiane I exchanged a large amount of NZ Dollars into Laos Kip for the crossing, although I later read that apparently you can't exchange Laos Kip outside of Laos so I exchanged that into US Dollars to confuse matters even more. The crossing actually went really smoothly although I definitely paid a lot more than I should have done, with random additional fees being implemented as I progressed through. I just paid up though instead of arguing as I knew it was corrupt so it wasn't really worth wasting my time for the sake of a few dollars here and there.
The border itself was literally in the middle of nowhere, so my next aim was getting to the nearest town of Stung Treng about 45km away. Luckily one of the locals crossing the border gave me a lift and I was in Stung Treng in really good time. As I'd done so well I was debating between pressing on to either Phnom Penh or Siem Riep. In the end my only option leaving that day was going to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, arriving in just as it was getting dark. It was a very long day in the end, and I arrived at my hostel just in time before there was another massive thunderstorm!
The following day I went out and explored Phnom Penh, although my first job was to sort some money out which is slightly confusing in Cambodia. They basically use the US Dollar and Cambodian Riel together. The majority of places quote their prices in US Dollars, although you can pay in either currency. Where it gets confusing though is that if you pay in US Dollars, they give you change in a combination of the two currencies, and vice versa. I definitely think I'm going to need to be on the ball because I think you could quite easily be scammed if you're not careful. My hostel was located right next to the Central Market so I had a good look round there after breakfast.
As it was the Cambodian Day of Remembrance, some of the major attractions like the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda, and National Museum were all closed for the day. I still managed to get a glimpse of the palace from outside though at the Royal Palace Park, heading there via the Independence Monument. There were a lot of locals there laying flowers to remember those who died during the Khmer Rouge. I then followed the river along Sisowith Quay which is where all the bars and restaurants were based, before reaching Wat Phnom. By this point is was extremely hot outside, so I went and checked out some of the shopping malls which were very modern. I spent the rest of the afternoon at the hostel just relaxing, heading out to the night market and Sisowith Quay for dinner in the evening.
On Tuesday I visited S21 and the Killing Fields, which were a couple of museums showcasing some of the horrific things which occurred during the Khmer Rouge. Between 1975 and 1979 Cambodia was ruled by communist leader Pal Pot, who believed Cambodia should become a completely agricultural country. He therefore emptied the cities and sent everyone to work in the countryside on labour camps. People were forced to work extra long hours and were given insufficient food, causing many people to die of exhaustion and malnutrition. He also banned things like religion, and anyone caught exercising their religion were sent to be executed. He also executed all intellectuals, and anyone who was deemed lazy or complained were also executed. During his reign, of the 8 million people living in Cambodia an estimated 3 million died.
The first museum I visited was the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, also known as S21. The former high school was converted into a notorious prison by the Khmer Rouge and over 17,000 prisoners were tortured there and then sent to the Killing Fields close by. The Khmer Rouge kept detailed records of each prisoner and these were on show at the museum, including displays of black and white photographs of the men, women and children who passed through and the instruments used in their torture. Some of the torture methods used were absolutely disgusting which I won't go into. S21 was just one of many prisons around Cambodia used during the Khmer Rouge.
I then visited the Choeung Ek Genocide Centre, also known as the Killing Fields located just outside the city. Those who were tortured at S21 were sent here to what they thought was a quiet farming district to work. Yet the thousands of innocent Cambodians were in fact sent here to be executed by some absolutely horrendous methods. Perhaps the most horrifying method was this tree they used to kill the children, where they grabbed their legs and repeatedly smashed their heads against it before chucking them in the mass grave beside it. Many of the original buildings where the atrocities occurred have since been destroyed but some of the mass graves have since been unearthed, where they have built a memorial stupa housing over 8000 skulls of the victims. This was just one of many killing fields around the country.
It's sad to think those atrocities were occurring less than 40 years ago, but it was definitely worth visiting to understand Cambodias recent history. I spent the afternoon just relaxing at the hostel as it was raining, although it cleared by the evening. I therefore headed back to the Independence Monument and surrounding boulevard which had this light show on the side of one of the buildings. Like in Vientiane, it was funny watching the locals doing their aerobics classes! I then went for dinner down Sisowith Quay again.
Saturday, 26 May 2018
Tuesday, 22 May 2018
Si Phan Don (4000 Islands)
From Pakse I was looking into another trip out for a couple of days to the nearby Bolaven Plateau, although I couldn't find a safe and affordable way of doing it. The Bolaven Plateau is a large area home to waterfalls, ethnic minority villages, and coffee plantations, most popularly explored by motorcycle. With everything very spread out and parts of it reaching up to 1300m altitude cycling was out of the question. It was possible to use public buses although they ran pretty randomly, and I did consider hitchhiking, but in the end I decided to give it a miss. To be fair as I've said before its currently the worst time of the year to see waterfalls with them at there driest.
I therefore headed south to Si Phan Don, which translates literally as the 4000 Islands. Si Phan Don is where the Mekong stretches up to 14km in width, and becomes unnavigable due to series of rapids and waterfalls which run between the countless islands in the section of the river. Whether there is 4000 islands or not is a different matter, but there certainly is a lot. There were several different islands it was possible to visit and I decided to stay on Don Det which seemed like the most popular island with backpackers. The bus ride down to Nakasong, home of the boat landing was nice and straight forward. From there it was then a short boat ride out to Don Det, arriving by lunchtime.
Don Det was only a small island, probably about the same size as Brownsea, and I soon checked into my accommodation where I literally had my own wooden bungalow with a double bed! The infrastructure on the island was pretty basic though, although it had a very hippyesque vibe. I spent the afternoon just relaxing, with my bungalow having a hammock on my balcony. What I most enjoyed though was having a double bed, although there was a massive thunderstorm in the night which created a racket on my corrugated roof!
On Friday I explored Don Det. There wasn't really much to see because it's the kind of place equipped for relaxation, but I did a lap of the island which took me a good couple of hours and got some good views of the Mekong and some of the outlying islands. After lunch I explored the middle of the island which was dominated with paddy fields, as well as the remains of an old railway line and port which was very interesting to read about despite little physical evidence of its existence. I spent much of the rest of the afternoon in the town section at the northern end of the island which had the bulk of the bars and restaurants, finding a nice place to chill and before watching the sunset later on. It was just nice to relax.
On Saturday I went and visited the neighbouring island of Don Khon, which was connected to Don Det by a bridge which used to be part of the old railway line. The railway line was built by the French in the late 19th century who had back then gained a particular stronghold on places like Vietnam and Cambodia which lie on the Mekong. The Frenches ambition was to continue their dominance northwards into China, using the Mekong as a way of increasing trade. The one thing stopping them was the rapids and waterfalls in Si Phan Don, so they decided to build a railway line across Don Khon, bridge across to Don Det, and continue across Don Det with a port either end to transport boats across, hence bypassing the waterfalls. It worked on the short term, although trade wasn't as big as they envisaged and by the 1930s the railway was abandoned.
First stop of the day was Li Phi Waterfall, which was situated on the western side of Don Khon. The sheer amount of water cascading down was very impressive, and there even a small beach area where you could sunbathe and go for a swim. After checking out another beach area nearby, I followed the old railway line to Ban Hang Khone village at the southern extremity of the island. There were great views south here looking down into Cambodia, although I wasn't lucky enough so see the incredibly rare Irrawaddy Dolphin which are occasionally seen south of the waterfalls.
Next stop was the Khone Pa Soi Waterfall, which I accessed via this track through the jungle. There were some relics from the railway line here with some of the old rail tracks used as these incredibly sketchy bridges. The waterfall itself was accessed across an equally sketchy set of suspension bridges, where there were several vantage points to see the rapids and waterfalls. I then headed back to the bridge connecting Don Khon to Don Det, walking along the street with the bulk of Don Khons restaurants and accommodation, as well as checking out the remains of an old locomotive. I got back to Don Det by early afternoon, where I just chilled out before catching a ferry back over the mainland to prepare myself for the border crossing into Cambodia the following day.
One of the reasons I stayed the night on the mainland instead of Don Det was so that I could visit the Khone Phapeng Waterfall before reaching the border, and also before the ticket office at the falls opened. The border was about 15km from Nakasong where I was staying, and the waterfall was about half way between there and the border. I therefore walked, and it was another pretty impressive waterfall, apparently the largest by volume in South East Asia. The boards at the waterfall even claim it is the largest in the world by width, which is strictly true if you account the width of the Mekong and all the waterfalls in that section of river, but that's a pretty audacious claim. It was definitely worth the early morning visit before facing the border crossing as I knew it was likely to be a long day!
I therefore headed south to Si Phan Don, which translates literally as the 4000 Islands. Si Phan Don is where the Mekong stretches up to 14km in width, and becomes unnavigable due to series of rapids and waterfalls which run between the countless islands in the section of the river. Whether there is 4000 islands or not is a different matter, but there certainly is a lot. There were several different islands it was possible to visit and I decided to stay on Don Det which seemed like the most popular island with backpackers. The bus ride down to Nakasong, home of the boat landing was nice and straight forward. From there it was then a short boat ride out to Don Det, arriving by lunchtime.
Don Det was only a small island, probably about the same size as Brownsea, and I soon checked into my accommodation where I literally had my own wooden bungalow with a double bed! The infrastructure on the island was pretty basic though, although it had a very hippyesque vibe. I spent the afternoon just relaxing, with my bungalow having a hammock on my balcony. What I most enjoyed though was having a double bed, although there was a massive thunderstorm in the night which created a racket on my corrugated roof!
On Friday I explored Don Det. There wasn't really much to see because it's the kind of place equipped for relaxation, but I did a lap of the island which took me a good couple of hours and got some good views of the Mekong and some of the outlying islands. After lunch I explored the middle of the island which was dominated with paddy fields, as well as the remains of an old railway line and port which was very interesting to read about despite little physical evidence of its existence. I spent much of the rest of the afternoon in the town section at the northern end of the island which had the bulk of the bars and restaurants, finding a nice place to chill and before watching the sunset later on. It was just nice to relax.
On Saturday I went and visited the neighbouring island of Don Khon, which was connected to Don Det by a bridge which used to be part of the old railway line. The railway line was built by the French in the late 19th century who had back then gained a particular stronghold on places like Vietnam and Cambodia which lie on the Mekong. The Frenches ambition was to continue their dominance northwards into China, using the Mekong as a way of increasing trade. The one thing stopping them was the rapids and waterfalls in Si Phan Don, so they decided to build a railway line across Don Khon, bridge across to Don Det, and continue across Don Det with a port either end to transport boats across, hence bypassing the waterfalls. It worked on the short term, although trade wasn't as big as they envisaged and by the 1930s the railway was abandoned.
First stop of the day was Li Phi Waterfall, which was situated on the western side of Don Khon. The sheer amount of water cascading down was very impressive, and there even a small beach area where you could sunbathe and go for a swim. After checking out another beach area nearby, I followed the old railway line to Ban Hang Khone village at the southern extremity of the island. There were great views south here looking down into Cambodia, although I wasn't lucky enough so see the incredibly rare Irrawaddy Dolphin which are occasionally seen south of the waterfalls.
Next stop was the Khone Pa Soi Waterfall, which I accessed via this track through the jungle. There were some relics from the railway line here with some of the old rail tracks used as these incredibly sketchy bridges. The waterfall itself was accessed across an equally sketchy set of suspension bridges, where there were several vantage points to see the rapids and waterfalls. I then headed back to the bridge connecting Don Khon to Don Det, walking along the street with the bulk of Don Khons restaurants and accommodation, as well as checking out the remains of an old locomotive. I got back to Don Det by early afternoon, where I just chilled out before catching a ferry back over the mainland to prepare myself for the border crossing into Cambodia the following day.
One of the reasons I stayed the night on the mainland instead of Don Det was so that I could visit the Khone Phapeng Waterfall before reaching the border, and also before the ticket office at the falls opened. The border was about 15km from Nakasong where I was staying, and the waterfall was about half way between there and the border. I therefore walked, and it was another pretty impressive waterfall, apparently the largest by volume in South East Asia. The boards at the waterfall even claim it is the largest in the world by width, which is strictly true if you account the width of the Mekong and all the waterfalls in that section of river, but that's a pretty audacious claim. It was definitely worth the early morning visit before facing the border crossing as I knew it was likely to be a long day!
Sunday, 20 May 2018
Pakse and Champasak
With little else to do in Vientiane I left on Saturday, heading south towards the small city of Pakse. I knew I wanted to visit Cambodia, Vietnam, and possibly Myanmar, so I decided to head south towards the Cambodia border instead of north towards the Vietnam border on the basis that I could in theory easily get a visa upon arrival in Cambodia, and not in Vietnam. I'd heard southern Laos was meant to be really nice too. When arriving at the bus station there was a bus heading south leaving within 5 minutes, although I did have to change buses in Thakek. One thing with buses in Laos is that they maximise all space available, pretty much acting as a delivery service amongst other things. The bus from Thakek to Pakse was no exception with the aisle literally stacked with sacks of vegetables you had to climb over to sit down!
As I'd caught a bus with such ease from Vientiane, I arrived into Pakse at like 2am which was a lot earlier than anticipated. It was still a very long journey though taking about 14 hours as it stopped in practically every village where the locals would get on trying to sell you food, which was actually a good thing on my behalf as I didn't buy anything before leaving Vientiane. I hadn't booked any accommodation in Pakse for the night so I slept at the bus station until morning. Pakse itself like some of the towns I passed en route was just a sleepy riverside settlement on the Mekong, at the confluence with the Xe Don river. I chose to stop in Pakse because it was a good base to explore some of the sights in the Champasak region which it lied in.
On Sunday I had a pretty laid back day, exploring Pakse. There wasn't really much to see other than a few temples and markets, but it was still worth a look. First stop was Wat Luang, probably the largest complex in Pakse, before heading to this Chinese temple located right at the confluence of the two rivers. It was interesting seeing where the rivers met, the Mekong noticeably a lot browner than the Xe Don. I passed another couple of Chinese temples as I continued exploring, before heading across the Mekong to this Golden Buddha. It's amazing how wide the river has become compared to when I first started following it at the Golden Triangle. There were great views up top and the complex was pretty large too, the highlight these countless smaller Buddha statues all lined up almost like an army.
I headed back to the hostel by the afternoon, via the Dao Heuang market which was absolutely massive. It was nice to lie down after such little sleep, although I resisted having a nap, instead researching the logistics of getting to some of the places I wanted to visit in the coming days. Come evening I headed back up to the Golden Buddha to watch the sunset, although whilst watching it there was an incoming thunderstorm. I risked it and stayed and it was absolutely worth it, the sky just changing colour and reflecting into the river. On the way back to the hostel I was bitten by a dog which wasn't ideal, but other than getting it cleaned I couldn't really do much until the morning. I listened to the football later in the evening.
The following day I was planning to visit the town of Champasak for a couple of days, although I wanted get to try and get my dog bite checked out so I went to the hospital as soon as it opened. The communication barrier proved too challenging though and I couldn't get to them understand what I was saying. To be fair the bite didn't look too bad and I got it thoroughly cleaned by someone at the hostel pretty swiftly after it happened. I certainly think I'll avoid getting a scar unlike my attack in Bolivia. In terms of getting it checked out properly I realistically needed to head to back into Thailand, but I decided in the end to risk it and hope I'll be fine because at the end of the day if the dog did have rabies I'm dead.
By the time I got back Pakse it was lunchtime and I decided to just chill out and head to Champasak later that afternoon when it was a bit cooler. Champasak lies on the other side of the Mekong and until 2014 was only accessible by ferry. Lieing 31km south of Pakse, with its main attraction Wat Phu a further 10km away, I hired a bike and cycled to Champasak to base myself there for a couple of nights to avoid basically cycling over 80km in a day. It was a nice flat bike ride, passing through the countryside and several villages en route. When arriving in Champasak there wasn't really much going on, the town basically just one long street, although I found myself a nice little restaurant by the river for dinner.
On Tuesday I headed out to Wat Phu for the day, which were some ruins dating back to the 5th century, although the complex which remains today dates back to about the 11th century and is linked to the Angkorian period. Located at the base of the Phou Kao mountain, the temple was part of a large ancient city stretching right from mountain to river, and was historically linked by road to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, somewhere I hope to later visit. When arriving at the entrance, which was dominated by these two large reservoirs, I attempted a walk to the nearby ruins of Oub Moung which supposedly took you via this cave and waterfall with ancient inscriptions. The signposting was non existent though and I was unable to correspond things to my map as the walk went through open rice fields and forest with paths all over the place.
I therefore headed back to Wat Phu where I explored the main temple complex. The walk to the temple took me along this long cobbled driveway flanked either side by these sandstone posts, before reaching these two almost identical buildings. I was able to explore both the buildings as well as the surrounding area which was littered in broken pieces of stonework, some even with detailed carvings on. I then began a steep climb up this narrow staircase, passing several terraces and pieces of ruins before eventually reaching the main temple at the top. There were great views looking back over the Mekong floodplain. The main temple aside, the top was also home to this natural spring which the locals believe is sacred, as well as a rock with an elephant carved on it.
After a good look round Wat Phu, I headed out to the nearby ruins of Hong Nang Sida which were basically this massive pile of blocks. Like Wat Phu though there was plenty of information available to visualise what it once was. I then headed to the ruins of Thao Tao, which were a little more challenging to locate. There was literally no signposting and it was a fair walk through forest and rice fields. Luckily some locals helped me find it in the end, although it does make you wonder why the two walks advertised within the Wat Phu complex have next to no signposting, are also the two walks they're trying to get to you to hire a guide for at the entrance. I think the guides may have been tampering with the signposts. There was also an old quarry with stone carvings nearby, although as my map was basically useless I decided to give that a miss.
After lunch I left Wat Phu and attempted another walk which took you round parts of the ancient city. Despite little physical evidence, there were several information boards to help you visualise what once was, the area now dominated with rice fields. That particular walk which was one not offered by the guides and had perfect signposting, so I defiantly think they've gone and removed the signs from the walks in Wat Phu to stop you doing them self guided. I finished the day by heading a short way down the Mekong past these villages to see the locals making handicrafts out of things like bamboo. There were also a couple of interesting buildings including this Catholic Church and Wat Mueang Kang which both had colonial influences attached to their designs. I arrived back into Champasak later that afternoon, definitely pleased with my decision not to cycle to Wat Phu from Pakse as a day trip!
On Wednesday morning I got up bright and early to watch the Buddhist Monks Alms Giving Ceremony, a Lao tradition I haven't yet woken up early enough to witness. This is where the monks walk down the road and collect offerings from locals to feed both themselves and the poor. It was quite a sight although I had to keep a distance out of respect. Soon after the ceremony to avoid the full heat of the sun I did this walk advertised as the rice fields loop. It was very pretty taking you along dirt roads through the countryside, as well as taking you down the full length of Champasak Town where there were a few interesting temples and colonial era buildings. I cycled back to Pakse after the walk, although by that point it was very hot. I just chilled out in Pakse for the rest of the day.
As I'd caught a bus with such ease from Vientiane, I arrived into Pakse at like 2am which was a lot earlier than anticipated. It was still a very long journey though taking about 14 hours as it stopped in practically every village where the locals would get on trying to sell you food, which was actually a good thing on my behalf as I didn't buy anything before leaving Vientiane. I hadn't booked any accommodation in Pakse for the night so I slept at the bus station until morning. Pakse itself like some of the towns I passed en route was just a sleepy riverside settlement on the Mekong, at the confluence with the Xe Don river. I chose to stop in Pakse because it was a good base to explore some of the sights in the Champasak region which it lied in.
On Sunday I had a pretty laid back day, exploring Pakse. There wasn't really much to see other than a few temples and markets, but it was still worth a look. First stop was Wat Luang, probably the largest complex in Pakse, before heading to this Chinese temple located right at the confluence of the two rivers. It was interesting seeing where the rivers met, the Mekong noticeably a lot browner than the Xe Don. I passed another couple of Chinese temples as I continued exploring, before heading across the Mekong to this Golden Buddha. It's amazing how wide the river has become compared to when I first started following it at the Golden Triangle. There were great views up top and the complex was pretty large too, the highlight these countless smaller Buddha statues all lined up almost like an army.
I headed back to the hostel by the afternoon, via the Dao Heuang market which was absolutely massive. It was nice to lie down after such little sleep, although I resisted having a nap, instead researching the logistics of getting to some of the places I wanted to visit in the coming days. Come evening I headed back up to the Golden Buddha to watch the sunset, although whilst watching it there was an incoming thunderstorm. I risked it and stayed and it was absolutely worth it, the sky just changing colour and reflecting into the river. On the way back to the hostel I was bitten by a dog which wasn't ideal, but other than getting it cleaned I couldn't really do much until the morning. I listened to the football later in the evening.
The following day I was planning to visit the town of Champasak for a couple of days, although I wanted get to try and get my dog bite checked out so I went to the hospital as soon as it opened. The communication barrier proved too challenging though and I couldn't get to them understand what I was saying. To be fair the bite didn't look too bad and I got it thoroughly cleaned by someone at the hostel pretty swiftly after it happened. I certainly think I'll avoid getting a scar unlike my attack in Bolivia. In terms of getting it checked out properly I realistically needed to head to back into Thailand, but I decided in the end to risk it and hope I'll be fine because at the end of the day if the dog did have rabies I'm dead.
By the time I got back Pakse it was lunchtime and I decided to just chill out and head to Champasak later that afternoon when it was a bit cooler. Champasak lies on the other side of the Mekong and until 2014 was only accessible by ferry. Lieing 31km south of Pakse, with its main attraction Wat Phu a further 10km away, I hired a bike and cycled to Champasak to base myself there for a couple of nights to avoid basically cycling over 80km in a day. It was a nice flat bike ride, passing through the countryside and several villages en route. When arriving in Champasak there wasn't really much going on, the town basically just one long street, although I found myself a nice little restaurant by the river for dinner.
On Tuesday I headed out to Wat Phu for the day, which were some ruins dating back to the 5th century, although the complex which remains today dates back to about the 11th century and is linked to the Angkorian period. Located at the base of the Phou Kao mountain, the temple was part of a large ancient city stretching right from mountain to river, and was historically linked by road to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, somewhere I hope to later visit. When arriving at the entrance, which was dominated by these two large reservoirs, I attempted a walk to the nearby ruins of Oub Moung which supposedly took you via this cave and waterfall with ancient inscriptions. The signposting was non existent though and I was unable to correspond things to my map as the walk went through open rice fields and forest with paths all over the place.
I therefore headed back to Wat Phu where I explored the main temple complex. The walk to the temple took me along this long cobbled driveway flanked either side by these sandstone posts, before reaching these two almost identical buildings. I was able to explore both the buildings as well as the surrounding area which was littered in broken pieces of stonework, some even with detailed carvings on. I then began a steep climb up this narrow staircase, passing several terraces and pieces of ruins before eventually reaching the main temple at the top. There were great views looking back over the Mekong floodplain. The main temple aside, the top was also home to this natural spring which the locals believe is sacred, as well as a rock with an elephant carved on it.
After a good look round Wat Phu, I headed out to the nearby ruins of Hong Nang Sida which were basically this massive pile of blocks. Like Wat Phu though there was plenty of information available to visualise what it once was. I then headed to the ruins of Thao Tao, which were a little more challenging to locate. There was literally no signposting and it was a fair walk through forest and rice fields. Luckily some locals helped me find it in the end, although it does make you wonder why the two walks advertised within the Wat Phu complex have next to no signposting, are also the two walks they're trying to get to you to hire a guide for at the entrance. I think the guides may have been tampering with the signposts. There was also an old quarry with stone carvings nearby, although as my map was basically useless I decided to give that a miss.
After lunch I left Wat Phu and attempted another walk which took you round parts of the ancient city. Despite little physical evidence, there were several information boards to help you visualise what once was, the area now dominated with rice fields. That particular walk which was one not offered by the guides and had perfect signposting, so I defiantly think they've gone and removed the signs from the walks in Wat Phu to stop you doing them self guided. I finished the day by heading a short way down the Mekong past these villages to see the locals making handicrafts out of things like bamboo. There were also a couple of interesting buildings including this Catholic Church and Wat Mueang Kang which both had colonial influences attached to their designs. I arrived back into Champasak later that afternoon, definitely pleased with my decision not to cycle to Wat Phu from Pakse as a day trip!
On Wednesday morning I got up bright and early to watch the Buddhist Monks Alms Giving Ceremony, a Lao tradition I haven't yet woken up early enough to witness. This is where the monks walk down the road and collect offerings from locals to feed both themselves and the poor. It was quite a sight although I had to keep a distance out of respect. Soon after the ceremony to avoid the full heat of the sun I did this walk advertised as the rice fields loop. It was very pretty taking you along dirt roads through the countryside, as well as taking you down the full length of Champasak Town where there were a few interesting temples and colonial era buildings. I cycled back to Pakse after the walk, although by that point it was very hot. I just chilled out in Pakse for the rest of the day.
Sunday, 13 May 2018
Vientiane
On Wednesday my aim was to get to the capital Vientiane, and getting there seemed easy with regular minibus shuttles as well as several local buses passing through from the north. As I stayed up late to listen to the football the night before I stayed in Vang Vieng until lunchtime. I managed to get a minibus to Vientiane pretty easily, although when getting to Vientiane I was dropped off in some random place full of tuk tuk drivers out of town which the driver insisted was the final stop, but I think it was a scam as he continued on with a few people still on board. I had to get off though as one of the tuk tuk drivers just took my stuff and put it on his tuk tuk. As they were trying to rip me off I walked into Vientiane, getting there eventually where I just chilled out for the evening.
I'd read that Vientiane was pretty lacklustre compared to other cities in South East Asia, but despite this I'd thought I'd give it a couple of days. Situated on the Mekong River which separates it from Thailand the other side, the somewhat sleepy city still had a few things I thought were worth seeing. The city was home to countless temples, and with most slapping on entrance fees to exploit the tourism I had to be selective. First stop was therefore Wat Sisaket which was a temple housing over 2000 Buddha sculptures. Across the road from there was Wat Phra Keow which was another temple acting a museum to showcase several Buddha relics. You weren't allowed to take pictures but it was an interesting place to walk around.
I passed several other places of interest on my way round the city including the Presidental Palace, City Pillar, and Wat Si Muang, perhaps the most picturesque temple of the day. Nearby there was the COPE Visitor Centre which showcased the dark history of the Lao Civil War and the 260 million bombs that were dropped on Laos between 1964-1973. COPE provides artificial limbs and rehabilitation for people, many of them children, who have lost limbs due to the unexploded objects which litter the country. It was really interesting, although you weren't allowed to take pictures. I then went to the Vientiane Centre, home to Laos's only air conditioned shopping mall and cinema. There was still no western influence though, with companies like Starbucks and McDonald's not making there way into Laos yet, but I just found it nice to find somewhere with air con.
Next stop was Patuxai, which bears a strong resemblance the the Arc de Triomphe. In 1968 the USA sent Laos enough concrete to build an international runway. They instead built Patuxai. I was even able to climb to the top, although there wasn't really much to see and the structure itself was a bit of a concrete monstrosity up close! I then headed to Pha That Luang, which was home to a big golden stupa. Legend says that part of Buddha's breast bone is buried there. I headed back to the hostel from there, via That Dam and the Namphou Fountain. Come evening I went to check out the night market which was by the river. I found it particularly funny watching the locals doing their aerobics classes which I passed en route. By the time I actually got to the night market though they were frantically packing up, which was due to massive thunderstorm which hit long after.
The following day I hired a bike to go out and visit the Xieng Khuan Buddha Park. I thought it would be a nice bike ride out there as the road skimmed the Mekong for many parts of the ride, although there wasn't really much to see. The Buddha Park housed several large sculptures, all of which were basically in their raw form. There wasn't really much else to see, although there was this bombshell like building which you could go inside and climb to the top of which was pretty cool. There were some pretty tight spaces though! I cycled back to Vientiane after looking round, getting back earlier than expected. I just relaxed for the rest of the day, heading out to Patuxai and the Namphou Fountain in the evening to see them in darkness, as well as finally getting to the night market without a thunderstorm to stop me!
I'd read that Vientiane was pretty lacklustre compared to other cities in South East Asia, but despite this I'd thought I'd give it a couple of days. Situated on the Mekong River which separates it from Thailand the other side, the somewhat sleepy city still had a few things I thought were worth seeing. The city was home to countless temples, and with most slapping on entrance fees to exploit the tourism I had to be selective. First stop was therefore Wat Sisaket which was a temple housing over 2000 Buddha sculptures. Across the road from there was Wat Phra Keow which was another temple acting a museum to showcase several Buddha relics. You weren't allowed to take pictures but it was an interesting place to walk around.
I passed several other places of interest on my way round the city including the Presidental Palace, City Pillar, and Wat Si Muang, perhaps the most picturesque temple of the day. Nearby there was the COPE Visitor Centre which showcased the dark history of the Lao Civil War and the 260 million bombs that were dropped on Laos between 1964-1973. COPE provides artificial limbs and rehabilitation for people, many of them children, who have lost limbs due to the unexploded objects which litter the country. It was really interesting, although you weren't allowed to take pictures. I then went to the Vientiane Centre, home to Laos's only air conditioned shopping mall and cinema. There was still no western influence though, with companies like Starbucks and McDonald's not making there way into Laos yet, but I just found it nice to find somewhere with air con.
Next stop was Patuxai, which bears a strong resemblance the the Arc de Triomphe. In 1968 the USA sent Laos enough concrete to build an international runway. They instead built Patuxai. I was even able to climb to the top, although there wasn't really much to see and the structure itself was a bit of a concrete monstrosity up close! I then headed to Pha That Luang, which was home to a big golden stupa. Legend says that part of Buddha's breast bone is buried there. I headed back to the hostel from there, via That Dam and the Namphou Fountain. Come evening I went to check out the night market which was by the river. I found it particularly funny watching the locals doing their aerobics classes which I passed en route. By the time I actually got to the night market though they were frantically packing up, which was due to massive thunderstorm which hit long after.
The following day I hired a bike to go out and visit the Xieng Khuan Buddha Park. I thought it would be a nice bike ride out there as the road skimmed the Mekong for many parts of the ride, although there wasn't really much to see. The Buddha Park housed several large sculptures, all of which were basically in their raw form. There wasn't really much else to see, although there was this bombshell like building which you could go inside and climb to the top of which was pretty cool. There were some pretty tight spaces though! I cycled back to Vientiane after looking round, getting back earlier than expected. I just relaxed for the rest of the day, heading out to Patuxai and the Namphou Fountain in the evening to see them in darkness, as well as finally getting to the night market without a thunderstorm to stop me!
Thursday, 10 May 2018
Vang Vieng
I aimed to leave Luang Prabang Sunday morning and head south to Vang Vieng. There were several places a bit more off the beaten track I was looking into visiting, however it was just getting to them that was the issue. Laos simply doesn't have the population to run an effective bus network, with it being a particularly poor and sparsely populated country. This means the timetables are pretty irrelevant, and the buses basically leave when they're full or when the driver has enough money in his pocket. I thought going to Vang Vieng would prevent this problem being a stop for buses en route to the capital Vientiane although that wasn't the case as when arriving at the bus station my bus was by no means full. I ended up being stuck at the bus station over 5 hours before it eventually left, and I couldn't really go anywhere else in case it got full and left without me.
Vang Vieng is small town on the banks of the Nam Song river, characterised by a backdrop of towering cliffs, countless caves, and vivid green paddy fields. In the past the town housed a particularly toxic party scene, where people would get drunk/stoned by the cheap and even free booze, and easily accessible drugs sold by these riverside rave bars whilst tubing to each bar down the river. In 2012 after a speight of tourist deaths brought attention to the place the government shut down the rave bars and implemented a 12am curfew nationwide. Nowadays the town has attempted to reposition itself as the rural paradise it once was and now offers an array of adrenaline fuelled activities and a more controlled nightlife scene. I didn't arrive into Vang Vieng until darkness in the end, and I was greeted by rain upon arrival.
The following day I went out to explore some of the outlying countryside. There are a countless number of caves, viewpoints, and lagoons in the area which locals have exploited by putting entrance fees on, so I knew I had to be selective in where I visited. First stop was the Blue Lagoon, a popular swimming area due to its clear coloured water. After a nice swim I headed to the nearby Poukham Cave which was more like this massive cavern, housing a small reclining Buddha. When returning to the lagoon the weather turned and there was a massive thunderstorm, although there were plenty of little huts by the lagoon to shelter in. It was a really quite impressive thunderstorm although the rain persisted for ages and by the time it stopped all the run off meant the water was no longer that blue anymore!
When the rain finally calmed down a bit I walked to the Nomxay Top Viewpoint, which presented me with a great views. The climb up was incredibly slippery though, and I couldn't stay up there too long as there was this swarm of flies which were very annoying. I then went to the Phu Pang Kham Cave. I wasn't sure which caves were best to visit as there so many, but the Phu Pang Kham Cave had the best looking pictures on the advertisement boards so I went there. It was totally worth it getting taken into two different caves by this local Laotian guy who spoke literally no English, going far deeper into the system than I would have done self guided. The stalactites and crystals on the walls were particularly impressive.
Nearby the cave was the Pha Hon Kham Cliff Viewpoint, which was on top of these pinnacles sticking out in the middle of the countryside. The views were as equally impressive as the previous viewpoint. I then headed back towards the Blue Lagoon, via the Phakam Phaxoke Viewpoint which again had stunning views. I was glad when I got back to the Blue Lagoon though as by that point I was very hot and a swim was particularly nice. I didn't get back to Vang Vieng as the sun was setting in the end so it was a long day. I went for a few drinks in the evening as many bars did free beer on their happy hours and it was a pretty lively atmosphere. Many bars were openly selling drugs on their menu though so I think Vang Vieng still has a little well to go to totally clean up its act!
The following day I went out and explored some more of the surrounding countryside. I read that the walk out to the Lusi Cave was a nice walk, and it was very picturesque going through the rice fields with the large karst cliffs as a backdrop. When reaching the cave I was a little reluctant to go too deep inside as I only had my tablet flashlight to guide me. I read there was a lagoon inside you could swim in but I didn't get far enough in to see that. A short walk back through the rice fields took me to the Pha Pouak Viewpoint. The climb up was pretty challenging as it was basically ladders and scrambling, although there were views over Vang Vieng town itself from the top.
From Pha Pouak I headed to the Pha Ngeun Viewpoint, perhaps the most visited in the Vang Vieng area. Certainly unlike the previous ones I had climbed I had no solitude up the top although the views were probably the pick of the bunch. I headed back into Vang Vieng for lunch, before heading out to the Chang Cave later that afternoon. Unlike the previous caves I had explored there was no need to carry a torch to explore with plenty of lights and a well laid path around it. There were several Buddha relics inside too. Just outside the cave was a nice little place to swim, fed by this small waterfall inside a cave. I managed to swim to waterfall, the water so clear. Come evening there was another almighty thunderstorm which caused a power cut. Luckily the power was back by the time the football was on though!
Vang Vieng is small town on the banks of the Nam Song river, characterised by a backdrop of towering cliffs, countless caves, and vivid green paddy fields. In the past the town housed a particularly toxic party scene, where people would get drunk/stoned by the cheap and even free booze, and easily accessible drugs sold by these riverside rave bars whilst tubing to each bar down the river. In 2012 after a speight of tourist deaths brought attention to the place the government shut down the rave bars and implemented a 12am curfew nationwide. Nowadays the town has attempted to reposition itself as the rural paradise it once was and now offers an array of adrenaline fuelled activities and a more controlled nightlife scene. I didn't arrive into Vang Vieng until darkness in the end, and I was greeted by rain upon arrival.
The following day I went out to explore some of the outlying countryside. There are a countless number of caves, viewpoints, and lagoons in the area which locals have exploited by putting entrance fees on, so I knew I had to be selective in where I visited. First stop was the Blue Lagoon, a popular swimming area due to its clear coloured water. After a nice swim I headed to the nearby Poukham Cave which was more like this massive cavern, housing a small reclining Buddha. When returning to the lagoon the weather turned and there was a massive thunderstorm, although there were plenty of little huts by the lagoon to shelter in. It was a really quite impressive thunderstorm although the rain persisted for ages and by the time it stopped all the run off meant the water was no longer that blue anymore!
When the rain finally calmed down a bit I walked to the Nomxay Top Viewpoint, which presented me with a great views. The climb up was incredibly slippery though, and I couldn't stay up there too long as there was this swarm of flies which were very annoying. I then went to the Phu Pang Kham Cave. I wasn't sure which caves were best to visit as there so many, but the Phu Pang Kham Cave had the best looking pictures on the advertisement boards so I went there. It was totally worth it getting taken into two different caves by this local Laotian guy who spoke literally no English, going far deeper into the system than I would have done self guided. The stalactites and crystals on the walls were particularly impressive.
Nearby the cave was the Pha Hon Kham Cliff Viewpoint, which was on top of these pinnacles sticking out in the middle of the countryside. The views were as equally impressive as the previous viewpoint. I then headed back towards the Blue Lagoon, via the Phakam Phaxoke Viewpoint which again had stunning views. I was glad when I got back to the Blue Lagoon though as by that point I was very hot and a swim was particularly nice. I didn't get back to Vang Vieng as the sun was setting in the end so it was a long day. I went for a few drinks in the evening as many bars did free beer on their happy hours and it was a pretty lively atmosphere. Many bars were openly selling drugs on their menu though so I think Vang Vieng still has a little well to go to totally clean up its act!
The following day I went out and explored some more of the surrounding countryside. I read that the walk out to the Lusi Cave was a nice walk, and it was very picturesque going through the rice fields with the large karst cliffs as a backdrop. When reaching the cave I was a little reluctant to go too deep inside as I only had my tablet flashlight to guide me. I read there was a lagoon inside you could swim in but I didn't get far enough in to see that. A short walk back through the rice fields took me to the Pha Pouak Viewpoint. The climb up was pretty challenging as it was basically ladders and scrambling, although there were views over Vang Vieng town itself from the top.
From Pha Pouak I headed to the Pha Ngeun Viewpoint, perhaps the most visited in the Vang Vieng area. Certainly unlike the previous ones I had climbed I had no solitude up the top although the views were probably the pick of the bunch. I headed back into Vang Vieng for lunch, before heading out to the Chang Cave later that afternoon. Unlike the previous caves I had explored there was no need to carry a torch to explore with plenty of lights and a well laid path around it. There were several Buddha relics inside too. Just outside the cave was a nice little place to swim, fed by this small waterfall inside a cave. I managed to swim to waterfall, the water so clear. Come evening there was another almighty thunderstorm which caused a power cut. Luckily the power was back by the time the football was on though!
Monday, 7 May 2018
Luang Prabang
After leaving Luang Namtha on Tuesday evening, I arrived into my next stop Luang Prabang at 3am which was completely unexpected as I read it was a far longer journey. When we arrived I didn't even realise we were there being half asleep, and with the bus station out of town I decided to just sleep on a bench there until daylight. Luang Prabang is probably is the most visited destination in Laos, it's historical core gaining UNESCO World Heritage status in 1995, characterised by its high concentration of temples and French architecture. Lieing at the confluence of the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers, the former Laotian capital attracts people due its array of cultural, nature, and food opportunities.
The benefit of travelling through the night was the fact it bought me a whole day I would have otherwise used sitting on a bus. I therefore dropped my bag off at my hostel that morning, before spending the day exploring the cities historical core. First stop was Mount Phousi, a small hill sitting right in the middle of town. The summit had a small temple, and there were several Buddha relics to see on the way up. What most people come for though are the views and they were brilliant despite it being a pretty overcast day. Apparently May is officially the start of wet season so I probably need to start preparing for the prospect for a lot more rain as it's definitely becoming more frequent.
From Mount Phousi I followed the Nam Tha right round to where it met the Mekong, before winding my way through the streets and alleys to explore some of the temples. Some of the highlights included Wat Xieng Thong, Wat Mai, and the old Royal Palace. I found the French architecture very interesting too, which included several little French bakeries and cafes. It was all just a very picturesque place. I didn't get back to the hostel until later that afternoon, where I had a well earned lie down. Come evening I checked out to the night market which was actually pretty sizable, the street packed with these low lying gazebos selling lots of interesting items. I found this really good buffet for dinner down one of the side streets, before heading back for a proper nights sleep.
On Thursday I crossed the Mekong River to attempt a walk known as the "Chomphet Hike". En route to the river crossing I visited this shop to try some Snake Angco Bravan, a local shot. It was weird. When finding the public boat service across the river, which was a challenge, I arrived on the other side in the small village of Ban Xieng Mane. After walking through the village which compared to Luang Prabang was incredibly poor despite its proximity, I headed up to Wat Chomphet. The temple itself has certainly seen better days, but it was views that I was particularly interested in, getting a great panoramic of the Mekong, Luang Prabang, and mountain backdrop.
The next temple I arrived at was Wat Long Khoune, which acted as the gateway to the nearby Wat Tam Sackkalin. In Laos caves are considered as sacred places, and over the centuries have been filled with Buddha statues. The Sackkalin cave was no exception, and after being escorted to the entrance by the young kid who unlocked the gate for me, I went in and explored. I had to borrow a torch as it was literally pitch black but there were several Buddha relics and it was really fun, although you could have easily got lost! As with most of the walk, the walk presented me with great river views as it went through the dense forest, and the next section to Wat Had Siaw was particularly picturesque.
From there I started climbing through the forest where I saw several crumbling Buddha relics scattered over the place. I eventually descended back down to Wat Khok Pab which had some further ruins as well as some nice gardens. It started raining here however so I found shelter and had lunch, which I'd been looking forward to after grabbing one of the filled baguettes from one of the local French bakeries that morning. It was literally proper bread too unlike the sweet stuff they have in most of Asia. I headed back to Ban Xieng Mane via Wat Nong Sakeo. When getting back to the boat landing the weather really started to set in. The rain persisted for the rest of the day so I couldn't go very far, although I did get out to the night market for dinner. It was a lot quieter than the previous night though!
On Friday I headed out to the Kuang Si Waterfall for the day. Situated 31km out of town, I decided I would cycle out the falls as the only other way I could realistically get there was tuk tuk and they had a fixed rate out per tuk tuk, great for groups, not great for a solo traveller. The ride out to the waterfall was actually really pleasant passing through countryside and the occasional village, before heading into the jungle to the waterfall. I didn't stop anywhere on the way though because I wanted to visit the waterfall while it was nice weather. When arriving I had to pay money here there and everywhere to do things like park my bike, go to the toilet, and access the waterfall. Laos people seem to exploit tourists out of money in literally every way possible.
Just before reaching the waterfall there was a bear rescue project which housed several black bears saved from poachers. It was interesting reading about the project and the bears were actually really active and cute to watch. The waterfall was a short walk from there, which was basically a three tiered waterfall leading to a 50-metre drop into spectacular azure pools before flowing downstream. On the way to the falls were several pools with cascades of up to five metres high you could swim in, which had nice and refreshing water due to the shade given by the surrounding lush tropical jungle. I swam in a couple of the pools, the water so clear, although they had little fish in there too which were nibbling my feet.
At the main waterfall there was a jungle trek you could do up to the top of waterfall to see some of the streams which fed it above. It was incredibly slippery but a nice walk. I spent ages lazing around in the pools, although come afternoon there was a big thunderstorm. After it passed I thought I'd better head back to Luang Prabang, taking a more leisurely ride stopping in a couple of the villages and surrounding countryside to take in the views. I got back to Luang Prabang just in time before the rain really set in. I was actually pretty exhausted after what was quite a sizable bike ride in the end. I went out to one of the French bakeries for dinner as I really enjoyed my baguette the previous day.
On Saturday I had a far more chilled out day, mainly because my bike ride had made me a little stiff come morning. The countries official name is Laos PDR, and the locals affectionately say PDR stands for "please don't rush", and I was in no rush to take another long bus ride somewhere. After checking out the morning market I headed over to Utopia, a riverside bar I'd seen advertised everywhere. It was really laid back with these mats to lie on by the river, and also a particularly good food menu which had literally that day launched a new Laos style vegetarian breakfast inspired menu. Come evening I went to the night market for dinner, before listening to the football later on.
The benefit of travelling through the night was the fact it bought me a whole day I would have otherwise used sitting on a bus. I therefore dropped my bag off at my hostel that morning, before spending the day exploring the cities historical core. First stop was Mount Phousi, a small hill sitting right in the middle of town. The summit had a small temple, and there were several Buddha relics to see on the way up. What most people come for though are the views and they were brilliant despite it being a pretty overcast day. Apparently May is officially the start of wet season so I probably need to start preparing for the prospect for a lot more rain as it's definitely becoming more frequent.
From Mount Phousi I followed the Nam Tha right round to where it met the Mekong, before winding my way through the streets and alleys to explore some of the temples. Some of the highlights included Wat Xieng Thong, Wat Mai, and the old Royal Palace. I found the French architecture very interesting too, which included several little French bakeries and cafes. It was all just a very picturesque place. I didn't get back to the hostel until later that afternoon, where I had a well earned lie down. Come evening I checked out to the night market which was actually pretty sizable, the street packed with these low lying gazebos selling lots of interesting items. I found this really good buffet for dinner down one of the side streets, before heading back for a proper nights sleep.
On Thursday I crossed the Mekong River to attempt a walk known as the "Chomphet Hike". En route to the river crossing I visited this shop to try some Snake Angco Bravan, a local shot. It was weird. When finding the public boat service across the river, which was a challenge, I arrived on the other side in the small village of Ban Xieng Mane. After walking through the village which compared to Luang Prabang was incredibly poor despite its proximity, I headed up to Wat Chomphet. The temple itself has certainly seen better days, but it was views that I was particularly interested in, getting a great panoramic of the Mekong, Luang Prabang, and mountain backdrop.
The next temple I arrived at was Wat Long Khoune, which acted as the gateway to the nearby Wat Tam Sackkalin. In Laos caves are considered as sacred places, and over the centuries have been filled with Buddha statues. The Sackkalin cave was no exception, and after being escorted to the entrance by the young kid who unlocked the gate for me, I went in and explored. I had to borrow a torch as it was literally pitch black but there were several Buddha relics and it was really fun, although you could have easily got lost! As with most of the walk, the walk presented me with great river views as it went through the dense forest, and the next section to Wat Had Siaw was particularly picturesque.
From there I started climbing through the forest where I saw several crumbling Buddha relics scattered over the place. I eventually descended back down to Wat Khok Pab which had some further ruins as well as some nice gardens. It started raining here however so I found shelter and had lunch, which I'd been looking forward to after grabbing one of the filled baguettes from one of the local French bakeries that morning. It was literally proper bread too unlike the sweet stuff they have in most of Asia. I headed back to Ban Xieng Mane via Wat Nong Sakeo. When getting back to the boat landing the weather really started to set in. The rain persisted for the rest of the day so I couldn't go very far, although I did get out to the night market for dinner. It was a lot quieter than the previous night though!
On Friday I headed out to the Kuang Si Waterfall for the day. Situated 31km out of town, I decided I would cycle out the falls as the only other way I could realistically get there was tuk tuk and they had a fixed rate out per tuk tuk, great for groups, not great for a solo traveller. The ride out to the waterfall was actually really pleasant passing through countryside and the occasional village, before heading into the jungle to the waterfall. I didn't stop anywhere on the way though because I wanted to visit the waterfall while it was nice weather. When arriving I had to pay money here there and everywhere to do things like park my bike, go to the toilet, and access the waterfall. Laos people seem to exploit tourists out of money in literally every way possible.
Just before reaching the waterfall there was a bear rescue project which housed several black bears saved from poachers. It was interesting reading about the project and the bears were actually really active and cute to watch. The waterfall was a short walk from there, which was basically a three tiered waterfall leading to a 50-metre drop into spectacular azure pools before flowing downstream. On the way to the falls were several pools with cascades of up to five metres high you could swim in, which had nice and refreshing water due to the shade given by the surrounding lush tropical jungle. I swam in a couple of the pools, the water so clear, although they had little fish in there too which were nibbling my feet.
At the main waterfall there was a jungle trek you could do up to the top of waterfall to see some of the streams which fed it above. It was incredibly slippery but a nice walk. I spent ages lazing around in the pools, although come afternoon there was a big thunderstorm. After it passed I thought I'd better head back to Luang Prabang, taking a more leisurely ride stopping in a couple of the villages and surrounding countryside to take in the views. I got back to Luang Prabang just in time before the rain really set in. I was actually pretty exhausted after what was quite a sizable bike ride in the end. I went out to one of the French bakeries for dinner as I really enjoyed my baguette the previous day.
On Saturday I had a far more chilled out day, mainly because my bike ride had made me a little stiff come morning. The countries official name is Laos PDR, and the locals affectionately say PDR stands for "please don't rush", and I was in no rush to take another long bus ride somewhere. After checking out the morning market I headed over to Utopia, a riverside bar I'd seen advertised everywhere. It was really laid back with these mats to lie on by the river, and also a particularly good food menu which had literally that day launched a new Laos style vegetarian breakfast inspired menu. Come evening I went to the night market for dinner, before listening to the football later on.
Thursday, 3 May 2018
Luang Namtha
On Sunday morning I left Thailand as my visa only had a couple of days left until it expired. I was debating between crossing into Myanmar or Laos, although with all the problems currently happening in Myanmar going to Laos was a no brainer. I'd love to go to Myanmar one day, just preferably at time when I'm less likely to die. On paper getting to Laos was as simple as stamping out of Thailand, crossing a bridge over the Mekong, and then getting stamped into Laos. This wasn't the case however, as when catching the local bus from Chiang Rai to Chiang Khong, the border town, the bus didn't actually take you to the border as advertised. This left me and several other people at the mercy of the tuk tuk drivers, and I had no choice but to take one to the border.
When reaching the border it was empty, getting stamped out of Thailand with ease. When getting to the Laos side however I had a few problems, as I didn't realise they had an entrance fee to get in which they would only accept in US Dollars, Thai Baht, or Laos Kip. My issue was the fact I was dealing in NZ dollars, and didn't have enough Thai Baht left to pay the fee, with the money exchange booth not able to exchange NZ dollars. This faced me with the prospect of having to return to Thailand to change some NZ dollars into Baht to pay the entry, although luckily someone kindly agreed to buy some off me at a fair rate under the circumstances so I eventually got my visa.
When finally getting into Laos in the town of Huay Xai, I waited at the border for the bus to Luang Namtha to arrive, an increasingly popular place for trekking and cultural experiences. In the 1970s during the Vietnam War Laos closed its borders to tourism and only reopened them again in the 1990s, but restricted people to visiting just Luang Prabang, Vang Vieng, and Vientiane. The northern and southern regions of Laos only opened to tourists in the mid 2000s. Therefore what many backpackers do from Huay Xai is catch a slow boat down the Mekong River to Luang Prabang over 2 days, and then visit the aforementioned places before crossing back into Thailand. This means places like Luang Namtha where I was heading have only recently experienced tourism so I knew I had to be prepared for pretty basic infrastructure.
I didn't arrive into Luang Namtha until late in the end, and the bus station was frustratingly 8km out of town which was not a walk I really wanted so late, but I got there eventually! The following day I explored Luang Namtha and some of the nearby villages, going by foot. I would have loved to have done some trekking in the nearby national park to some of the hilltribe villages but that was only realistic on a guided trek as it was remote and the tourist office didn't supply maps for that, just maps for the Luang Namtha area. I therefore had a walk round the town which didn't have much other than a few shops, restaurants, and trekking companies. There was a morning market just outside town though which was interesting, in particular the meat area which spared no parts of animals, with literally things like heads and organs for sale!
From the market I headed to That Luang Namtha which was this golden stupa surrounded by a few Buddha related relics. Nearby there I went for a short walk through this valley which was really pretty. From there I headed out of town towards the Nam Dee Waterfall, via a couple of the local villages. It was very poor although many of the locals waved as I passed through. The expansive rice fields along the way were also quite a sight.
When arriving at the waterfall there was a circuit through the jungle which basically followed this stream via the waterfall, and then back over the hill into the nearby village. It was very humid though. I headed back the same way towards Luang Namtha, although just prior to town I did a detour via the river which was nice. When returning to the town itself I just relaxed, before heading out in the evening to the night market, which was only small and but had several "what the hell is that?" dishes which people were cooking on these charcoal bbqs. I luckily found something safe to eat though!
On Tuesday I hired a bike for the day to explore some of the surrounding ethnic minority villages. The tourism office supplied me with a good map of the Luang Namtha Valley which displayed a cycle route taking you through the villages. First stop was That Poumpuk, another golden stupa situated next to the ruins of one which was bombed by the Americans in the Vietnam War. There were great views from the top too. Nearby the stupa was the Akha village of Ban Nam Matmai, which was probably the most picturesque village of the day. It was interesting because at the entrance to each village there was an information board telling you about the history, including where they originated from and some of their traditions.
The next village I stopped in was Ban Phieng Ngam, which was particularly famous for its weaved products, associated with the Tai Daeng people who lived there. It was interesting seeing the local women weave these intricate handicrafts as I passed through. I passed another couple of villages of Tai Daeng origin throughout the day too, one of which was based by river where at a certain time of the year it's apparently quite a sight seeing people extract silk from the silk worms. Between the villages I passed through the countryside was beautiful, and some people call it the 'sea of rice'. The Namtha Valley is surrounded by mountains, but inside that there were rice fields as far as your eye could see which was quite a sight!
Later in the day I passed a couple of villages of Tai Dam origin, which had particularly picturesque vegetable crops. Throughout the day I passed through so many different villages of different ethnic minorities, the information boards in each village helping to put things into context. The people weren't putting on a show, they were just living there everyday life which made it that much more pure. The final village I visited was Had Yao, home of the Hmong people. They were particularly famous for their embroidery making, although I liked watching the kids in the river as they were literally using this sewage pipe as a water slide! It was a really good day, although with all my detours to the villages I was knackered by the end, covering a fair distance on a very basic bike. I caught a night bus to Luang Prabang that evening.
When reaching the border it was empty, getting stamped out of Thailand with ease. When getting to the Laos side however I had a few problems, as I didn't realise they had an entrance fee to get in which they would only accept in US Dollars, Thai Baht, or Laos Kip. My issue was the fact I was dealing in NZ dollars, and didn't have enough Thai Baht left to pay the fee, with the money exchange booth not able to exchange NZ dollars. This faced me with the prospect of having to return to Thailand to change some NZ dollars into Baht to pay the entry, although luckily someone kindly agreed to buy some off me at a fair rate under the circumstances so I eventually got my visa.
When finally getting into Laos in the town of Huay Xai, I waited at the border for the bus to Luang Namtha to arrive, an increasingly popular place for trekking and cultural experiences. In the 1970s during the Vietnam War Laos closed its borders to tourism and only reopened them again in the 1990s, but restricted people to visiting just Luang Prabang, Vang Vieng, and Vientiane. The northern and southern regions of Laos only opened to tourists in the mid 2000s. Therefore what many backpackers do from Huay Xai is catch a slow boat down the Mekong River to Luang Prabang over 2 days, and then visit the aforementioned places before crossing back into Thailand. This means places like Luang Namtha where I was heading have only recently experienced tourism so I knew I had to be prepared for pretty basic infrastructure.
I didn't arrive into Luang Namtha until late in the end, and the bus station was frustratingly 8km out of town which was not a walk I really wanted so late, but I got there eventually! The following day I explored Luang Namtha and some of the nearby villages, going by foot. I would have loved to have done some trekking in the nearby national park to some of the hilltribe villages but that was only realistic on a guided trek as it was remote and the tourist office didn't supply maps for that, just maps for the Luang Namtha area. I therefore had a walk round the town which didn't have much other than a few shops, restaurants, and trekking companies. There was a morning market just outside town though which was interesting, in particular the meat area which spared no parts of animals, with literally things like heads and organs for sale!
From the market I headed to That Luang Namtha which was this golden stupa surrounded by a few Buddha related relics. Nearby there I went for a short walk through this valley which was really pretty. From there I headed out of town towards the Nam Dee Waterfall, via a couple of the local villages. It was very poor although many of the locals waved as I passed through. The expansive rice fields along the way were also quite a sight.
When arriving at the waterfall there was a circuit through the jungle which basically followed this stream via the waterfall, and then back over the hill into the nearby village. It was very humid though. I headed back the same way towards Luang Namtha, although just prior to town I did a detour via the river which was nice. When returning to the town itself I just relaxed, before heading out in the evening to the night market, which was only small and but had several "what the hell is that?" dishes which people were cooking on these charcoal bbqs. I luckily found something safe to eat though!
On Tuesday I hired a bike for the day to explore some of the surrounding ethnic minority villages. The tourism office supplied me with a good map of the Luang Namtha Valley which displayed a cycle route taking you through the villages. First stop was That Poumpuk, another golden stupa situated next to the ruins of one which was bombed by the Americans in the Vietnam War. There were great views from the top too. Nearby the stupa was the Akha village of Ban Nam Matmai, which was probably the most picturesque village of the day. It was interesting because at the entrance to each village there was an information board telling you about the history, including where they originated from and some of their traditions.
The next village I stopped in was Ban Phieng Ngam, which was particularly famous for its weaved products, associated with the Tai Daeng people who lived there. It was interesting seeing the local women weave these intricate handicrafts as I passed through. I passed another couple of villages of Tai Daeng origin throughout the day too, one of which was based by river where at a certain time of the year it's apparently quite a sight seeing people extract silk from the silk worms. Between the villages I passed through the countryside was beautiful, and some people call it the 'sea of rice'. The Namtha Valley is surrounded by mountains, but inside that there were rice fields as far as your eye could see which was quite a sight!
Later in the day I passed a couple of villages of Tai Dam origin, which had particularly picturesque vegetable crops. Throughout the day I passed through so many different villages of different ethnic minorities, the information boards in each village helping to put things into context. The people weren't putting on a show, they were just living there everyday life which made it that much more pure. The final village I visited was Had Yao, home of the Hmong people. They were particularly famous for their embroidery making, although I liked watching the kids in the river as they were literally using this sewage pipe as a water slide! It was a really good day, although with all my detours to the villages I was knackered by the end, covering a fair distance on a very basic bike. I caught a night bus to Luang Prabang that evening.
Sunday, 29 April 2018
Chiang Rai
After arriving into Chiang Rai Wednesday evening accompanied by thunderstorms which persisted throughout the night, I was up bright and early on Thursday to explore the area, the weather luckily a lot better. Chiang Rai is often called the sleepy Chiang of the North and is often overlooked for the larger city of Chiang Mai. Just a couple of hours from both the borders of Laos and Myanmar, the city is historically famous for its opium trading. Nowadays most people come to visit the unique temples and pretty countryside in the surrounding areas.
The main attractions of Chiang Rai were pretty scattered which made planning my day difficult. Luckily there were relatively frequent public buses following the main roads out of town, so I headed north to the Baan Dam Museum, commonly known as the Black Temple. It's not actually a religious site at all, being the home of the late artist Thawan Duchanee. The complex consisted of 40 buildings, predominantly of a traditional yet gothic Thai architecture. Many of the buildings contained bizarre and eerie exhibits of animal remains, including meticulously displayed skulls and bones, black thrones made of antlers, an entire elephant skeleton and skins hanging from wood beams. Everything about the place represented death, but I found that fascinating and spent pretty much all morning there.
From Baan Dam, I walked to Wat Hyua Plakang. It was quite a fair way to walk however although it was only way of really getting there without risking a taxi. The complex was pretty new, consisting of this Chedi, a couple of temples, and a big statue of Guan Yin. I was able to climb to the top of the Chedi, which gave some great views of the area. This was eclipsed however by the opportunity to go inside the statue of Guan Yin and view the surrounding countryside through her eyes. The walls inside were white and meticulously handcrafted, which I could tell by the fact they were still building the staircase below, the locals literally shaping the dragons there by hand. When getting back to the temple entrance I got free food, the temple offering help yourself noodle soup to everyone.
Shortly after leaving the temple it started raining which scuppered my plans to visit Mae Fah Luang. I instead just headed back to the hostel, and luckily by evening it cleared, heading out to the Clock Tower, a golden structure on this roundabout in the city. In the evening it performed a light show although it was a little disappointing. I think I went at the wrong time, watching the 7pm show which meant it wasn't yet fully dark outside. Afterwards I headed over to the nearby night bazaar which had a massive street food area, as well this stage with local entertainment which I sat and watched for a bit before getting an early night.
The following day I was up bright and early, heading over to Wat Rong Seua Ten, more commonly known as the Blue Temple due to the fact everything was blue. I then headed to the bus terminal to catch a bus south to Wat Rong Khun, which is more commonly known as the White Temple. The complex is by far the most visited attraction in Chiang Rai, most people coming up from Chiang Mai with tour companies for the day. The main temple itself was carved with painstaking detail, with a pure white and ornate facade. I was particularly fascinated by the hands amongst other carvings at the entrance, designed as deep symbolic message of desire, greed, suffering and the heavenly. It was incredibly busy but the complex as a whole was brilliant, spending pretty much all morning exploring it.
From the White Temple I headed back to Chiang Rai, where I relaxed for much of the afternoon. I went for a walk round the city itself later that afternoon, where there were a few interesting little markets and temples dotted around the place. Like the previous days however it started raining which halted my exploration, although I had seen what I planned to see before it really set in. Luckily it didn't come to much so was able to go to the night bazaar in the evening for dinner, as well as watching the later 9pm clock tower light show which was a lot more impressive with it being complete darkness.
On Saturday I went up to the Golden Triangle for the day, combining it with a visit to the nearby town of Chiang Saen. There were pretty frequent buses to Chiang Saen from Chiang Rai, and the Golden Triangle was walkable from there which made it a lot cheaper than going with a tour company, the only other way to realistically get there. Chiang Saen was just a small town on the banks of the Mekong River, littered with an array of ruins, as well as a bustling locals market. The ruins weren't as impressive as Ayutthaya but it was still interesting walking round reading about the history. It was almost reminiscent of Chiang Mai in a way as the town had a moat on three sides, with an old wall and a gate on each side. The only difference was the Mekong River acted as the fourth side.
From Chiang Saen I headed to the Golden Triangle, the point where the Mekong River meets the Ruak River, forming a natural border between Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. There wasn't really much there other a couple of temples including this large Buddha by the river and a couple of viewpoints, but it was still worth the visit just to look at 3 countries at once. I headed back to Chiang Saen for lunch, before catching a bus back to Chiang Rai.
The main attractions of Chiang Rai were pretty scattered which made planning my day difficult. Luckily there were relatively frequent public buses following the main roads out of town, so I headed north to the Baan Dam Museum, commonly known as the Black Temple. It's not actually a religious site at all, being the home of the late artist Thawan Duchanee. The complex consisted of 40 buildings, predominantly of a traditional yet gothic Thai architecture. Many of the buildings contained bizarre and eerie exhibits of animal remains, including meticulously displayed skulls and bones, black thrones made of antlers, an entire elephant skeleton and skins hanging from wood beams. Everything about the place represented death, but I found that fascinating and spent pretty much all morning there.
From Baan Dam, I walked to Wat Hyua Plakang. It was quite a fair way to walk however although it was only way of really getting there without risking a taxi. The complex was pretty new, consisting of this Chedi, a couple of temples, and a big statue of Guan Yin. I was able to climb to the top of the Chedi, which gave some great views of the area. This was eclipsed however by the opportunity to go inside the statue of Guan Yin and view the surrounding countryside through her eyes. The walls inside were white and meticulously handcrafted, which I could tell by the fact they were still building the staircase below, the locals literally shaping the dragons there by hand. When getting back to the temple entrance I got free food, the temple offering help yourself noodle soup to everyone.
Shortly after leaving the temple it started raining which scuppered my plans to visit Mae Fah Luang. I instead just headed back to the hostel, and luckily by evening it cleared, heading out to the Clock Tower, a golden structure on this roundabout in the city. In the evening it performed a light show although it was a little disappointing. I think I went at the wrong time, watching the 7pm show which meant it wasn't yet fully dark outside. Afterwards I headed over to the nearby night bazaar which had a massive street food area, as well this stage with local entertainment which I sat and watched for a bit before getting an early night.
The following day I was up bright and early, heading over to Wat Rong Seua Ten, more commonly known as the Blue Temple due to the fact everything was blue. I then headed to the bus terminal to catch a bus south to Wat Rong Khun, which is more commonly known as the White Temple. The complex is by far the most visited attraction in Chiang Rai, most people coming up from Chiang Mai with tour companies for the day. The main temple itself was carved with painstaking detail, with a pure white and ornate facade. I was particularly fascinated by the hands amongst other carvings at the entrance, designed as deep symbolic message of desire, greed, suffering and the heavenly. It was incredibly busy but the complex as a whole was brilliant, spending pretty much all morning exploring it.
From the White Temple I headed back to Chiang Rai, where I relaxed for much of the afternoon. I went for a walk round the city itself later that afternoon, where there were a few interesting little markets and temples dotted around the place. Like the previous days however it started raining which halted my exploration, although I had seen what I planned to see before it really set in. Luckily it didn't come to much so was able to go to the night bazaar in the evening for dinner, as well as watching the later 9pm clock tower light show which was a lot more impressive with it being complete darkness.
On Saturday I went up to the Golden Triangle for the day, combining it with a visit to the nearby town of Chiang Saen. There were pretty frequent buses to Chiang Saen from Chiang Rai, and the Golden Triangle was walkable from there which made it a lot cheaper than going with a tour company, the only other way to realistically get there. Chiang Saen was just a small town on the banks of the Mekong River, littered with an array of ruins, as well as a bustling locals market. The ruins weren't as impressive as Ayutthaya but it was still interesting walking round reading about the history. It was almost reminiscent of Chiang Mai in a way as the town had a moat on three sides, with an old wall and a gate on each side. The only difference was the Mekong River acted as the fourth side.
From Chiang Saen I headed to the Golden Triangle, the point where the Mekong River meets the Ruak River, forming a natural border between Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. There wasn't really much there other a couple of temples including this large Buddha by the river and a couple of viewpoints, but it was still worth the visit just to look at 3 countries at once. I headed back to Chiang Saen for lunch, before catching a bus back to Chiang Rai.
Friday, 27 April 2018
Pai
On Monday morning I left Chiang Mai, next stop the small town of Pai. Lots of people have recommended Pai to me due to its laid back nature and pretty countryside so I thought it was worth a look. Getting there required me taking a minibus, and with the road in having 762 bends it was not the kind of road for people who get travel sick. I've never been travel sick but sitting at the rear of the minibus even I felt a bit 'woah' by the end, our driver not afraid to put his foot down round the bends! When arriving at Pai the board at the bus station said it was 40 degrees so that probably didn't help either.
After recovering from the minibus ride I headed out for the afternoon, going for a nice walk through the countryside to the Yun Lai Viewpoint. En route I passed a couple of Chinese based villages where the people were very friendly. The views of the countryside around Pai from the viewpoint were amazing, Pai itself basically sitting by a river in a valley with mountains surrounding it in all directions. From the viewpoint I headed to the Mo Paeng Waterfall, although it was a little disappointing. I think the issue is the waterfalls are best in wet season and it's currently right at the end of dry season where I am so they haven't had much significant water intake for a long time. This meant the waterfall was basically a trickle, and the swimming holes at the bottom of each tier were just brown and stagnant. I didn't get back to Pai until darkness in the end.
The following day I left early to make the most of the day, first stop Pombok Village to do the Buddha Bamboo Walk. The walk basically took me on this elavated bamboo walkway through farmland to this small temple in the woods. I got followed the whole way by a dog though! Nearby the village was Pombok Falls which was a nice secluded waterfall surrounded by these high cliffs. There wasn't much water coming down though so the stagnant water put me off going for a swim. It was still a nice location with the cliffs.
Next stop was the Land Split, which was home to this large crack in the ground. The guy who lives there used to be a soybean farmer, but in 2008 there was an earthquake which cracked the ground open hence making it unsuitable to continue farming. Subsequent earthquakes in 2009 and 2011 have made the crack bigger, but instead of moving away the farmer has now made the land split open to the public. The farmer now grows an array of fruits for visitors to try, the farmer has also created an area with hammocks and WiFi for people to relax. The highlight though was this drink called Roselle Juice which was very interesting. I stayed there for a couple of hours.
From the Land Split I next headed to the Pai Canyon. The small canyon had countless paths both above and through the canyon you could explore and you could have walked round all day if you wanted! It was slightly sketchy in places though in terms of loose terrain but I had a good walk round. On my way back to the Pai I stopped at this strawberry farm, one of many coffee shops I passed with a balcony for views over the countryside. Later on in the afternoon it started raining, although as I had left so early in the morning I had done everything I planned to see which was lucky. It cleared by the evening, and I went out to the night market which was very hippie with some really unique items on offer, as well as some real good street food.
The next morning I was once again up bright and early, heading up to the White Buddha Statue on the hillside just outside of Pai. The temple complex of Chedi Phra That Mae Yen below had unfortunately recently suffered a fire, but it was still worth a look, from there climbing 327 steps to the White Buddha. There were great views up top. When reaching the bottom I went for a nice walk along the Pai River, characterized by these bamboo bridges built to cross it. I eventually made it back into Pai where I explored of a couple of the temple complexes and shops within the town itself.
I left Pai about lunchtime, catching a minibus back to Chiang Mai along the same winding mountain pass. The driver wasn't afraid to put his foot down either and we made really good time. When reaching Chiang Mai I had a couple of hours to kill before catching another bus to Chiang Rai. I would have loved to have visited some of the national parks in the area, although they're so inaccessible in the respect I can only really access them with tour companies or by taxi. The bus to Chiang Rai was pretty slow because there were lots of roadworks, and a massive thunderstorm. I didn't arrive in until darkness in the end.
After recovering from the minibus ride I headed out for the afternoon, going for a nice walk through the countryside to the Yun Lai Viewpoint. En route I passed a couple of Chinese based villages where the people were very friendly. The views of the countryside around Pai from the viewpoint were amazing, Pai itself basically sitting by a river in a valley with mountains surrounding it in all directions. From the viewpoint I headed to the Mo Paeng Waterfall, although it was a little disappointing. I think the issue is the waterfalls are best in wet season and it's currently right at the end of dry season where I am so they haven't had much significant water intake for a long time. This meant the waterfall was basically a trickle, and the swimming holes at the bottom of each tier were just brown and stagnant. I didn't get back to Pai until darkness in the end.
The following day I left early to make the most of the day, first stop Pombok Village to do the Buddha Bamboo Walk. The walk basically took me on this elavated bamboo walkway through farmland to this small temple in the woods. I got followed the whole way by a dog though! Nearby the village was Pombok Falls which was a nice secluded waterfall surrounded by these high cliffs. There wasn't much water coming down though so the stagnant water put me off going for a swim. It was still a nice location with the cliffs.
Next stop was the Land Split, which was home to this large crack in the ground. The guy who lives there used to be a soybean farmer, but in 2008 there was an earthquake which cracked the ground open hence making it unsuitable to continue farming. Subsequent earthquakes in 2009 and 2011 have made the crack bigger, but instead of moving away the farmer has now made the land split open to the public. The farmer now grows an array of fruits for visitors to try, the farmer has also created an area with hammocks and WiFi for people to relax. The highlight though was this drink called Roselle Juice which was very interesting. I stayed there for a couple of hours.
From the Land Split I next headed to the Pai Canyon. The small canyon had countless paths both above and through the canyon you could explore and you could have walked round all day if you wanted! It was slightly sketchy in places though in terms of loose terrain but I had a good walk round. On my way back to the Pai I stopped at this strawberry farm, one of many coffee shops I passed with a balcony for views over the countryside. Later on in the afternoon it started raining, although as I had left so early in the morning I had done everything I planned to see which was lucky. It cleared by the evening, and I went out to the night market which was very hippie with some really unique items on offer, as well as some real good street food.
The next morning I was once again up bright and early, heading up to the White Buddha Statue on the hillside just outside of Pai. The temple complex of Chedi Phra That Mae Yen below had unfortunately recently suffered a fire, but it was still worth a look, from there climbing 327 steps to the White Buddha. There were great views up top. When reaching the bottom I went for a nice walk along the Pai River, characterized by these bamboo bridges built to cross it. I eventually made it back into Pai where I explored of a couple of the temple complexes and shops within the town itself.
I left Pai about lunchtime, catching a minibus back to Chiang Mai along the same winding mountain pass. The driver wasn't afraid to put his foot down either and we made really good time. When reaching Chiang Mai I had a couple of hours to kill before catching another bus to Chiang Rai. I would have loved to have visited some of the national parks in the area, although they're so inaccessible in the respect I can only really access them with tour companies or by taxi. The bus to Chiang Rai was pretty slow because there were lots of roadworks, and a massive thunderstorm. I didn't arrive in until darkness in the end.
Monday, 23 April 2018
Chiang Mai
My train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai took ages although I did actually get some sleep which took the edge of the journey a bit. I took a gamble by going 3rd class (a seat) instead of 2nd class (a bed) and 3rd class was empty which meant I just put my legs up and fell asleep until sunrise. The train to Chiang Mai normally takes about 11 hours from Bangkok, although it took 14 hours because it went the scenic route. That was actually quite a good thing though as by the time I woke up it was a really nice train journey, the single lined track weaving it's way through pretty countryside, jungles, and remote settlements. At every town and village we stopped at though people would jump on trying to sell you stuff! We arrived in Chiang Mai about lunchtime.
After making my way to the hostel, where I was staying in the Old City, I spent the afternoon just relaxing. The hostel has some pretty erratic reviews online which I stupidly read after booking the hostel, in relation to someone called "Mama", presumably the hostel owners Mum. Luckily she wasn't there when I checked in. I saw her later on though and she definitely looked like the kind of person to avoid, literally some loud mouth woman with red eyes just sitting there in her rocking chair. In the evening I met up with my friend Amira who I travelled with in South America from Quito to Rio, and it was nice to catch up and talk about all our memories from the trip, going out to the night bazaar for dinner and a few drinks.
When visiting Chiang Mai before I basically visited Doi Suthep, Tiger Kingdom, and did a countryside bike tour, as well as the 3d/2n hilltribe trek. I never actually explored the Old City properly on my previous visit though so on Thursday I thought I'd do just that. The Old City is effectively a 1.5km square surrounded by a moat and the remains of an old wall. Each side of the moat had a gate to enter to the city, and I started exploring the city from the Thapae Gate on the eastern side. Chiang Mai is home to over 200 temples, so I downloaded a self guided tour which told me the temples most worth visiting.
I soon ditched my self guided tour though as the city was so compact it was easier just to wander. I still made sure visited Wat Chiang Man, the oldest temple in Chiang Mai; Wat Chedi Luang, the ruins of the old chapel; and Wat Phra Singh, which were the 3 temples apparently most worth visiting. Aside from that I effectively weaved my way in and out of to city, following the moat which had the 4 gates and 4 forts located on each corner, arriving back where I started later that afternoon. There were several interesting temples I found along the way, and I particularly enjoyed the markets which were selling traditional goods and interesting handicrafts.
On Friday I had a more relaxing day, hiring a bike after lunch and going for a bike ride to Huay Tueng Thao. En route I stopped at Wat Umong which was this temple based in the forest, it's highlight being this old Chedi with a network of ancient tunnels beneath it you could explore. When arriving at Huay Tueng Thao, which was this man made lake, I hired a bamboo floating raft house and lay inside in the shade. Later on in the afternoon I cycled round the lake, which had a nice backdrop of the hills of Doi Pui. There was some really pretty countryside on the way round, cycling back to Chiang Mai afterwards. It was a really dodgy cycling at times though, losing count of the number of cars that cut me up. I went to the night bazaar again in the evening.
The following day I had a more full on day, heading out to Doi Suthep via the Monks Trail. I visited the temple at Doi Suthep by taxi on my previous visit, although I read about the Monks Trail which looked like a nice alternative way to get there, getting it's name from the orange pieces of monks cloth tied to the trees to show you the way. After cycling to the trailhead, the path climbed through a jungle environment to the little visited Wat Pha Lat which was an old temple situated around this waterfall in a very idyllic jungle setting.
From Wat Pha Lat the path continued to climb before eventually reaching Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, perhaps the most visited tourist attraction in Chiang Mai. To get there required climbing 300 steps, with the highlight of the temple up top this golden chedi accompanied by these umbrella things. There were also fantastic views looking over Chiang Mai up top, although it was slightly hazy. Nearby the temple there was a market which I had a look round before decending back down to Wat Pha Lat, taking an alternative route from there through the jungle back to where I started. I was tempted to go back via a couple of waterfalls although it was getting late and my recent track record with waterfalls literally being trickles put me off making the effort. Come evening I went to the night bazaar once again, the Ploen Ruedee one my firm favourite.
On Sunday I decided I would go street art hunting for the day. It was amazing how many hidden gems I found, in particular in the Old City where I walked down several side streets and alleys which housed modern street art as well as authentic shops and coffee houses. I also strayed a little out of town to a couple of the shopping malls, although by afternoon I had to call it a day as it got so hot, hitting 37 degrees! Come evening I went to the Sunday night bazaar which unlike the bazaar during the week people from the local villages came. The market literally stretched from the east side to the west side of the moat, so 1.5km, with every side street packed with stalls too. It was very busy! Later on I went to watch the football.
After making my way to the hostel, where I was staying in the Old City, I spent the afternoon just relaxing. The hostel has some pretty erratic reviews online which I stupidly read after booking the hostel, in relation to someone called "Mama", presumably the hostel owners Mum. Luckily she wasn't there when I checked in. I saw her later on though and she definitely looked like the kind of person to avoid, literally some loud mouth woman with red eyes just sitting there in her rocking chair. In the evening I met up with my friend Amira who I travelled with in South America from Quito to Rio, and it was nice to catch up and talk about all our memories from the trip, going out to the night bazaar for dinner and a few drinks.
When visiting Chiang Mai before I basically visited Doi Suthep, Tiger Kingdom, and did a countryside bike tour, as well as the 3d/2n hilltribe trek. I never actually explored the Old City properly on my previous visit though so on Thursday I thought I'd do just that. The Old City is effectively a 1.5km square surrounded by a moat and the remains of an old wall. Each side of the moat had a gate to enter to the city, and I started exploring the city from the Thapae Gate on the eastern side. Chiang Mai is home to over 200 temples, so I downloaded a self guided tour which told me the temples most worth visiting.
I soon ditched my self guided tour though as the city was so compact it was easier just to wander. I still made sure visited Wat Chiang Man, the oldest temple in Chiang Mai; Wat Chedi Luang, the ruins of the old chapel; and Wat Phra Singh, which were the 3 temples apparently most worth visiting. Aside from that I effectively weaved my way in and out of to city, following the moat which had the 4 gates and 4 forts located on each corner, arriving back where I started later that afternoon. There were several interesting temples I found along the way, and I particularly enjoyed the markets which were selling traditional goods and interesting handicrafts.
On Friday I had a more relaxing day, hiring a bike after lunch and going for a bike ride to Huay Tueng Thao. En route I stopped at Wat Umong which was this temple based in the forest, it's highlight being this old Chedi with a network of ancient tunnels beneath it you could explore. When arriving at Huay Tueng Thao, which was this man made lake, I hired a bamboo floating raft house and lay inside in the shade. Later on in the afternoon I cycled round the lake, which had a nice backdrop of the hills of Doi Pui. There was some really pretty countryside on the way round, cycling back to Chiang Mai afterwards. It was a really dodgy cycling at times though, losing count of the number of cars that cut me up. I went to the night bazaar again in the evening.
The following day I had a more full on day, heading out to Doi Suthep via the Monks Trail. I visited the temple at Doi Suthep by taxi on my previous visit, although I read about the Monks Trail which looked like a nice alternative way to get there, getting it's name from the orange pieces of monks cloth tied to the trees to show you the way. After cycling to the trailhead, the path climbed through a jungle environment to the little visited Wat Pha Lat which was an old temple situated around this waterfall in a very idyllic jungle setting.
From Wat Pha Lat the path continued to climb before eventually reaching Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep, perhaps the most visited tourist attraction in Chiang Mai. To get there required climbing 300 steps, with the highlight of the temple up top this golden chedi accompanied by these umbrella things. There were also fantastic views looking over Chiang Mai up top, although it was slightly hazy. Nearby the temple there was a market which I had a look round before decending back down to Wat Pha Lat, taking an alternative route from there through the jungle back to where I started. I was tempted to go back via a couple of waterfalls although it was getting late and my recent track record with waterfalls literally being trickles put me off making the effort. Come evening I went to the night bazaar once again, the Ploen Ruedee one my firm favourite.
On Sunday I decided I would go street art hunting for the day. It was amazing how many hidden gems I found, in particular in the Old City where I walked down several side streets and alleys which housed modern street art as well as authentic shops and coffee houses. I also strayed a little out of town to a couple of the shopping malls, although by afternoon I had to call it a day as it got so hot, hitting 37 degrees! Come evening I went to the Sunday night bazaar which unlike the bazaar during the week people from the local villages came. The market literally stretched from the east side to the west side of the moat, so 1.5km, with every side street packed with stalls too. It was very busy! Later on I went to watch the football.
Friday, 20 April 2018
Songkran and Ayutthaya
I arrived into Bangkok at about 5am which was a pretty awful time to arrive in terms of doing anything. I therefore lay on one the benches in the bus station until daylight, before catching the train into the city. I decided to base myself in Chinatown for the duration of my stay as it was probably the place with the most central location to embrace the Songkran celebrations with Khao San Road and Silom, which I read were the best two areas to celebrate both within about 45 minutes walk in either direction. Chinatown itself was also more of a safe zone in terms of the celebrations which meant I managed to arrive to the hostel with all my belongings bone dry.
As I arrived at the hostel so early I could only drop my stuff off, so I headed over to Siam for the morning which is where all the shopping and entertainment complexes are based. It was very different from last time, as when I visited over 4 years ago now the Thai people were protesting about something and the streets round Siam were lined in tents. I had a look round some of the shops before heading over to Silom Road to begin my Songkran celebrations. When arriving they were still closing the road, but as soon as it closed it began getting crazy with basically a massive water fight down the street! I stayed for a couple of hours before heading back to the hostel to lie down for a bit as I was pretty exhausted from the bus ride.
I headed back to Silom Road later that afternoon and it was even busier than when I left, the party in full flow! There was a skywalk above the road where you could seek some kind of refuge, although not much, and from there you could see the sheer volume of people, the scenes almost reminiscent of carnival. After a couple more hours embracing the celebrations I headed into this Irish Bar down one of the side streets to watch the football. There were a few Chelsea fans there although I was the only Saints fan. It was just a shame about the result.
The following day I went to a couple of the temple complexes to see the more serious side of Songkran. I was informed that the government operated tuk tuks were taking tourists to 3 temples round the city which during Songkran were free entry. The only catch was that after visiting the first temple they took you to this tailors shop where they wanted you buy a suit where the tuk tuk driver would get commission, which is a completely ridiculous place to take a backpacker to. It seemed like quite a weird thing for the government to do. The second temple, Wat Intharawihan, was a really interesting complex home to several different Buddha statues which many locals were blessing with flowers and water. The standing Buddha, this massive statue, was covered in scaffolding though so you couldn't see that very well.
The final temple, Marble Temple, was the pick of the bunch I visited which had lots of local people doing things like dancing and singing to celebrate the new year in. I spent over an hour exploring the complex. When leaving my tuk tuk driver dropped me off at Khao San Road, where I grabbed some lunch before getting stuck into some of the more serious action. With Khao San Road a lot narrower and smaller than Silom Road it was a bit more intense, but it was lots of fun. I headed back to the hostel later that afternoon for a lie down once again, mainly just get some respite from the action!
Come evening I went over to Siam again, where I had heard they had some live music in the evening. They had a dry zone stage and a wet zone stage, and I went to both. The wet zone was absolutely crazy with these pressure hoses on both sides of crowd getting you soaked. Nearer to the stage they also had a foam machine although I couldn't get close to the stage as it was so busy. I had lots of fun and it was a good way to finish my celebrations. It will be nice to walk round the streets without getting buckets of water and water guns all over me next week though!
As I had done a pretty good job exploring Bangkok the last time I visited I didn't really have much else to see in the city itself other than temples. I did however want to visit the ancient city of Ayutthaya which was about 80km north of Bangkok. Ayutthaya was capital of the Siam Empire from 1351 until 1767 which was one of the largest and most prosperous empires of its time. It was however invaded and burned to ground by the invading Burmese in 1767, the capital being Bangkok eversince. The city is home to the ruins of many impressive temples and palaces influenced by many different cultures, a reflection of the cities intensive trade with many different nations.
I decided to leave my main bag in Bangkok and catch the train up to Ayutthaya which was surprisingly cheap and easy. I wasn't sure how long I needed to explore the city but the woman at the hostel in Bangkok said there were plenty of beds available if I returned that evening, and I knew Ayutthaya had extensive accommodation options. When arriving I went and got a map and soon realised it would be very ambitious to explore the city in a day as the ruins were all very spread out. It would have been impossible to visit every historical site, but the map I got had 10 of the places highlighted so I figured they were the best places to explore.
The centre of Ayutthaya itself was effectively an island being surrounded by 3 rivers, and 6 of the places highlighted on the map were here, the other 4 on the outskirts. First stop was therefore Wat Mahathat which was home to many Buddha relics, the highlight this Buddha head which had been strangled in tree roots. Across the road was Wat Ratchaburana which was home to this pagoda I was able to climb. You could even access this basement which was accessed by an incredibly steep staircase, home to some old wall paintings. A short walk from there was Wat Thra Sri Sanphet which was the most important temple in Ayutthaya being part of the now completely destroyed royal palace. The complex was centred around these 3 large stupas which were very imposing!
Nearby Thra Sri Sanphet was MongKhol Bophit, a more modern temple home to a large golden Buddha. Wat Phra Ram was a short walk from here and was home to several more Buddha relics and another large pagoda. My map stated the sixth place worth visiting was Elephant Camp, although when reaching there the elephants looked very unhappy. They were all chained up and covered in graffiti which was sad to see. I therefore headed out to one of the temple complexes a bit further out of town, Wat Chai Watthanaram. This riverside complex was home to the King of Ayutthaya and was probably the most intact temple I visited.
By this point I had visited 7 of the 10 highlighted places on the map. The other 3 were the other end of the city so I thought I'd save them for the following day. On my way back into the centre I visited some or the less visited sites including Wat Lokaya Sutharam which was a 42m long reclining Buddha. There were several little relics hidden around the place, and the centre of Ayutthaya was home to a series of lakes linked by these bridges which I understand was the old khlong system. By the end of the day I was knackered but I crammed a lot into the day which was good. I went out to the night market in the evening for dinner before having a well earned early night.
Come morning I was up bright and early to continue exploring the city. First stop of the day was the Phet Fortress, strategically the most important in Ayutthaya. I then visited another golden Buddha statue at Wat Phanan Choeng, before reaching Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon. This was an impressive 60m bell shaped chedi surrounded by hundreds of Buddha statues. From here I headed to Ayutthaya Floating Market although it was ridiculous because they would only sell me a boat ticket if I bought a ticket to the elephant circus show too which I didn't want to do, so I couldn't go. There was a normal market there too though so I still had a look round that.
Nearby the floating market there were a few more historical sites worth seeing en route back to the railway station, although before long the weather caved in and it started to rain. Luckily I found shelter until it calmed down somewhat, arriving back to the station by early afternoon. The train back to Bangkok was a little busy and when arriving it was still really grotty. My plan of action from Bangkok was to head up to Chiang Mai, and I was debating between sleeper train or night bus, opting for the sleeper train which I caught late in the evening.
As I arrived at the hostel so early I could only drop my stuff off, so I headed over to Siam for the morning which is where all the shopping and entertainment complexes are based. It was very different from last time, as when I visited over 4 years ago now the Thai people were protesting about something and the streets round Siam were lined in tents. I had a look round some of the shops before heading over to Silom Road to begin my Songkran celebrations. When arriving they were still closing the road, but as soon as it closed it began getting crazy with basically a massive water fight down the street! I stayed for a couple of hours before heading back to the hostel to lie down for a bit as I was pretty exhausted from the bus ride.
I headed back to Silom Road later that afternoon and it was even busier than when I left, the party in full flow! There was a skywalk above the road where you could seek some kind of refuge, although not much, and from there you could see the sheer volume of people, the scenes almost reminiscent of carnival. After a couple more hours embracing the celebrations I headed into this Irish Bar down one of the side streets to watch the football. There were a few Chelsea fans there although I was the only Saints fan. It was just a shame about the result.
The following day I went to a couple of the temple complexes to see the more serious side of Songkran. I was informed that the government operated tuk tuks were taking tourists to 3 temples round the city which during Songkran were free entry. The only catch was that after visiting the first temple they took you to this tailors shop where they wanted you buy a suit where the tuk tuk driver would get commission, which is a completely ridiculous place to take a backpacker to. It seemed like quite a weird thing for the government to do. The second temple, Wat Intharawihan, was a really interesting complex home to several different Buddha statues which many locals were blessing with flowers and water. The standing Buddha, this massive statue, was covered in scaffolding though so you couldn't see that very well.
The final temple, Marble Temple, was the pick of the bunch I visited which had lots of local people doing things like dancing and singing to celebrate the new year in. I spent over an hour exploring the complex. When leaving my tuk tuk driver dropped me off at Khao San Road, where I grabbed some lunch before getting stuck into some of the more serious action. With Khao San Road a lot narrower and smaller than Silom Road it was a bit more intense, but it was lots of fun. I headed back to the hostel later that afternoon for a lie down once again, mainly just get some respite from the action!
Come evening I went over to Siam again, where I had heard they had some live music in the evening. They had a dry zone stage and a wet zone stage, and I went to both. The wet zone was absolutely crazy with these pressure hoses on both sides of crowd getting you soaked. Nearer to the stage they also had a foam machine although I couldn't get close to the stage as it was so busy. I had lots of fun and it was a good way to finish my celebrations. It will be nice to walk round the streets without getting buckets of water and water guns all over me next week though!
As I had done a pretty good job exploring Bangkok the last time I visited I didn't really have much else to see in the city itself other than temples. I did however want to visit the ancient city of Ayutthaya which was about 80km north of Bangkok. Ayutthaya was capital of the Siam Empire from 1351 until 1767 which was one of the largest and most prosperous empires of its time. It was however invaded and burned to ground by the invading Burmese in 1767, the capital being Bangkok eversince. The city is home to the ruins of many impressive temples and palaces influenced by many different cultures, a reflection of the cities intensive trade with many different nations.
I decided to leave my main bag in Bangkok and catch the train up to Ayutthaya which was surprisingly cheap and easy. I wasn't sure how long I needed to explore the city but the woman at the hostel in Bangkok said there were plenty of beds available if I returned that evening, and I knew Ayutthaya had extensive accommodation options. When arriving I went and got a map and soon realised it would be very ambitious to explore the city in a day as the ruins were all very spread out. It would have been impossible to visit every historical site, but the map I got had 10 of the places highlighted so I figured they were the best places to explore.
The centre of Ayutthaya itself was effectively an island being surrounded by 3 rivers, and 6 of the places highlighted on the map were here, the other 4 on the outskirts. First stop was therefore Wat Mahathat which was home to many Buddha relics, the highlight this Buddha head which had been strangled in tree roots. Across the road was Wat Ratchaburana which was home to this pagoda I was able to climb. You could even access this basement which was accessed by an incredibly steep staircase, home to some old wall paintings. A short walk from there was Wat Thra Sri Sanphet which was the most important temple in Ayutthaya being part of the now completely destroyed royal palace. The complex was centred around these 3 large stupas which were very imposing!
Nearby Thra Sri Sanphet was MongKhol Bophit, a more modern temple home to a large golden Buddha. Wat Phra Ram was a short walk from here and was home to several more Buddha relics and another large pagoda. My map stated the sixth place worth visiting was Elephant Camp, although when reaching there the elephants looked very unhappy. They were all chained up and covered in graffiti which was sad to see. I therefore headed out to one of the temple complexes a bit further out of town, Wat Chai Watthanaram. This riverside complex was home to the King of Ayutthaya and was probably the most intact temple I visited.
By this point I had visited 7 of the 10 highlighted places on the map. The other 3 were the other end of the city so I thought I'd save them for the following day. On my way back into the centre I visited some or the less visited sites including Wat Lokaya Sutharam which was a 42m long reclining Buddha. There were several little relics hidden around the place, and the centre of Ayutthaya was home to a series of lakes linked by these bridges which I understand was the old khlong system. By the end of the day I was knackered but I crammed a lot into the day which was good. I went out to the night market in the evening for dinner before having a well earned early night.
Come morning I was up bright and early to continue exploring the city. First stop of the day was the Phet Fortress, strategically the most important in Ayutthaya. I then visited another golden Buddha statue at Wat Phanan Choeng, before reaching Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon. This was an impressive 60m bell shaped chedi surrounded by hundreds of Buddha statues. From here I headed to Ayutthaya Floating Market although it was ridiculous because they would only sell me a boat ticket if I bought a ticket to the elephant circus show too which I didn't want to do, so I couldn't go. There was a normal market there too though so I still had a look round that.
Nearby the floating market there were a few more historical sites worth seeing en route back to the railway station, although before long the weather caved in and it started to rain. Luckily I found shelter until it calmed down somewhat, arriving back to the station by early afternoon. The train back to Bangkok was a little busy and when arriving it was still really grotty. My plan of action from Bangkok was to head up to Chiang Mai, and I was debating between sleeper train or night bus, opting for the sleeper train which I caught late in the evening.
Sunday, 15 April 2018
Phuket
I arrived in Phuket on Tuesday afternoon from Krabi, and decided to base myself in Old Town as that's where the local bus station was, with all the bus routes to the main tourist destinations on Phuket originating from there. The long distance bus station was annoyingly in the middle of nowhere. Phuket is the largest island in Thailand and also the most visited by tourists. The island is a similar size to Singapore and is renowned for its beaches and wild nightlife.
On Wednesday morning I went out for the day to explore some of the beaches, catching the local bus down to Rawai Beach in the morning which was a nice beach with a backdrop of several islands. From there I walked down to Promthep Cape, the southern most point of the island. There were a lot of people up top at the viewpoint but no one seemed to be walking down to the actual cape which was actually a nice little walk. A short walk from the cape was Yanui Beach which was a very pretty beach, which I could also view from this viewpoint. I stopped at the next beach, Nai Harn Beach for a rest and swim.
From Nai Harn I headed up to this viewpoint which looked north over Kata Noi, Kata, and Karon Beaches. I soon dropped down to Kata Noi Beach where I stopped for lunch. There was this guy with a bushbaby though who put it on my back! From Kata Noi it was a short walk to Kata Beach where it began to get a lot more touristy. I headed up to the Big Buddha from Kata Beach though which was a 45m statue sitting on top of this hill. It was a bit of a slog up because of the humidity but the views over Phuket and out over Phang Nga were amazing. The sun was in the worst place to get photos of the Buddha statue though, but it was still an impressive sight.
I dropped down to Karon Beach from the Big Buddha which was even busier than Kata Beach, and in terms of length massive! I stopped here for a swim and rest though as I needed it after climbing the hill. From Karon Beach I headed over to Patong Beach which is where all the nightlife and shopping and everything else in between was based. It was a absolutely heaving, with also two massive cruise ships in the bay. I arrived by sunset. I was pretty exhausted when I arrived though because I'd actually walked quite a long way, much of the day in direct sunlight, although I stayed in Patong for dinner as I wanted to take a walk down Bangla Street which is the main nightlife strip when it was dark. It was an absolutely crazy place!
Come morning I decided to have a far more relaxing day, so I headed over to Patong Beach again. In hindsight I probably should have stayed there as that's where everything seemed to happen, although I probably wouldn't have got much sleep! I relaxed down the beach until lunchtime, although when going to grab some lunch I got bombarded with water guns for probably my first of many times over the following days. Songkrans Festival runs from 13th to 15th April, which is the Thai New Year and whole country basically has a massive water fight. In Phuket however they celebrate it for the whole week. The real meaning behind the splashes is to symbolically wash off all misfortunes in the past year, thus welcoming the new year with a fresh start. I guess it was nice and refreshing, although I do probably need to buy a water gun now which were being sold on every street corner in Patong.
After having a walk round some of the shops and markets around Patong, I headed back to the Old Town. The bus however stopped at some traffic lights, and people were there waiting with buckets of water and water guns so everyone on board got soaked! Old Town was luckily a bit more of a safe zone, so I spent the rest of the afternoon exploring there. There were several old buildings with a predominantly Chinese influence, as well as a little bit of street art. The streets were full of different coloured buildings, many of which were little shops selling things like handicrafts and local food. It was nice to have a relaxing day, even if I do now need to keep alert for water guns for the rest of the week!
On Friday I decided to leave Phuket and head up to Bangkok for the weekend. There were several places I was tempted to stop at en route to break the journey, including Khao Sok National Park, Koh Samui, and Koh Tao which I visited on my previous trip to Thailand, but with my visa expiry approaching I had to be selective in the places I visited. I headed over to the bus station in the morning to sort out my ticket, and also put my backpack in storage before the Songkrans celebrations got into full flow. My bus wasn't scheduled to leave until later that afternoon so I had much of the day to myself in Phuket.
I decided to have a chilled out day, although it wasn't long before I got my first soaking of the day by a toddler and his hosepipe! I eventually reached the shopping mall where I seeked refuge and sat on the WiFi. When heading out to lunch I got several further soakings and my first covering of white powder. The streets were just lined with people with water guns, being fed by these paddling pools and barrels full of water! The bus ride was inevitably horrendous taking about 14 hours, although it wasn't the seats that were uncomfortable, it was the Arctic-esque air con. Luckily they supplied blankets but I didn't really get much sleep.
On Wednesday morning I went out for the day to explore some of the beaches, catching the local bus down to Rawai Beach in the morning which was a nice beach with a backdrop of several islands. From there I walked down to Promthep Cape, the southern most point of the island. There were a lot of people up top at the viewpoint but no one seemed to be walking down to the actual cape which was actually a nice little walk. A short walk from the cape was Yanui Beach which was a very pretty beach, which I could also view from this viewpoint. I stopped at the next beach, Nai Harn Beach for a rest and swim.
From Nai Harn I headed up to this viewpoint which looked north over Kata Noi, Kata, and Karon Beaches. I soon dropped down to Kata Noi Beach where I stopped for lunch. There was this guy with a bushbaby though who put it on my back! From Kata Noi it was a short walk to Kata Beach where it began to get a lot more touristy. I headed up to the Big Buddha from Kata Beach though which was a 45m statue sitting on top of this hill. It was a bit of a slog up because of the humidity but the views over Phuket and out over Phang Nga were amazing. The sun was in the worst place to get photos of the Buddha statue though, but it was still an impressive sight.
I dropped down to Karon Beach from the Big Buddha which was even busier than Kata Beach, and in terms of length massive! I stopped here for a swim and rest though as I needed it after climbing the hill. From Karon Beach I headed over to Patong Beach which is where all the nightlife and shopping and everything else in between was based. It was a absolutely heaving, with also two massive cruise ships in the bay. I arrived by sunset. I was pretty exhausted when I arrived though because I'd actually walked quite a long way, much of the day in direct sunlight, although I stayed in Patong for dinner as I wanted to take a walk down Bangla Street which is the main nightlife strip when it was dark. It was an absolutely crazy place!
Come morning I decided to have a far more relaxing day, so I headed over to Patong Beach again. In hindsight I probably should have stayed there as that's where everything seemed to happen, although I probably wouldn't have got much sleep! I relaxed down the beach until lunchtime, although when going to grab some lunch I got bombarded with water guns for probably my first of many times over the following days. Songkrans Festival runs from 13th to 15th April, which is the Thai New Year and whole country basically has a massive water fight. In Phuket however they celebrate it for the whole week. The real meaning behind the splashes is to symbolically wash off all misfortunes in the past year, thus welcoming the new year with a fresh start. I guess it was nice and refreshing, although I do probably need to buy a water gun now which were being sold on every street corner in Patong.
After having a walk round some of the shops and markets around Patong, I headed back to the Old Town. The bus however stopped at some traffic lights, and people were there waiting with buckets of water and water guns so everyone on board got soaked! Old Town was luckily a bit more of a safe zone, so I spent the rest of the afternoon exploring there. There were several old buildings with a predominantly Chinese influence, as well as a little bit of street art. The streets were full of different coloured buildings, many of which were little shops selling things like handicrafts and local food. It was nice to have a relaxing day, even if I do now need to keep alert for water guns for the rest of the week!
On Friday I decided to leave Phuket and head up to Bangkok for the weekend. There were several places I was tempted to stop at en route to break the journey, including Khao Sok National Park, Koh Samui, and Koh Tao which I visited on my previous trip to Thailand, but with my visa expiry approaching I had to be selective in the places I visited. I headed over to the bus station in the morning to sort out my ticket, and also put my backpack in storage before the Songkrans celebrations got into full flow. My bus wasn't scheduled to leave until later that afternoon so I had much of the day to myself in Phuket.
I decided to have a chilled out day, although it wasn't long before I got my first soaking of the day by a toddler and his hosepipe! I eventually reached the shopping mall where I seeked refuge and sat on the WiFi. When heading out to lunch I got several further soakings and my first covering of white powder. The streets were just lined with people with water guns, being fed by these paddling pools and barrels full of water! The bus ride was inevitably horrendous taking about 14 hours, although it wasn't the seats that were uncomfortable, it was the Arctic-esque air con. Luckily they supplied blankets but I didn't really get much sleep.
Thursday, 12 April 2018
Krabi
On Friday I left Hatyai to head towards my next stop, Krabi. My bus didn't leave until the afternoon and it was quite a slow bus ride arriving into Krabi Town just before sunset. Krabi is a province on Thailand’s west coast, characterized by craggy, sheer limestone cliffs, dense mangrove forests, and more than a hundred offshore islands. Krabi Town where I was staying was one of the main gateways to explore the beautiful beaches and islands out in the Andaman Sea. By the time I checked into my hostel it was dark outside, so I went out to the night market to grab some dinner before relaxing at the hostel ready to start exploring the following day.
The following day I explored Krabi Town, first stop the Khao Khanab Nam Mountains, which were these two small peaks either side of the river which flows past Krabi Town into the sea. I followed this boardwalk through the mangroves hoping to get a closer look at them, although I think the best way to see them would have been to a hire a boat. The peak the opposite side of the river to where I got to in the mangroves was apparently possible to climb, and was also home to a cave system with some impressive stalagmites. I could have swam across but the water looked very murky so I thought I'd better not, I still got a good glimpse though.
Next stop was Tiger Cave Temple, which gets it name from legend which says a tiger once lived in a cave where the temple is located. When arriving at the large complex I headed up to the Footprint of the Buddha which was an incredibly steep climb up 1237 steps to this peak, home to a Buddha statue looking over Krabi. Up top I was rewarded with 360 degree views over the Andaman Sea and islands, as well as some of the surrounding limestone peaks. After gingerly making my descent back down I then visited this large network of caves sitting in the jungle at the base of the limestone cliffs, home to many of the monks that live and worship there. The actual Tiger cave was separate from other caves and housed several icons and relics including this rock which looked like a tigers footprint. Aside from the caves there was a pagoda and a few other buildings scattered about, the complex itself taking a good few hours to look round.
From the temple I headed back into Krabi Town where I followed the river which was home to several local fishermen, as well as visiting the Wat Keow Temple located in the town centre. I also walked round the town centre trying to suss out what the tour companies were offering in terms of getting out to the islands. Come evening I had a proper look round the night market which at weekends apparently has extra stalls, so it was absolutely heaving! There was lots to see and there was even a small funfair with several carnival games which was popular. I settled down in the local Irish bar for the football later in the evening, although it was pretty dead for a Saturday night.
On Sunday I headed out to Railay Beach for the day, accessible only by boat due to the large cliffs on each side cutting it off from the mainland. The beach is one of the most popular in Thailand for its stunning white sand beaches flanked by these huge limestone cliffs. I left my main bag in Krabi Town and packed an overnight bag as my plan was to go to Ao Nang Beach for a couple of nights from Railay Beach. Railay has two beaches, east and west, as well as two neighbouring beaches, Phra Nang and Tongsai, all of which are cut off from the mainland by the cliffs. I was dropped by longboat on the east side.
The east beach was more mangroves than white sands, so I headed towards the nearby Phra Nang Beach via this viewpoint and lagoon walk. Luckily I had my walking boots as the path up to the viewpoint was incredibly steep although the views up top were stunning looking over towards Railay Beach. The path to the lagoon was even more challenging as I basically descended into this hole where I surrounded in all directions by the cliffs! I had complete solitude at the lagoon though as there were ladders and effectively rock climbing involved to get there, and the majority of people who had attempted the hike were wearing flip flops so had no chance making it there.
When arriving at Phra Nang Beach, recently voted one of the top ten beaches in the world, I relaxed there for a couple of hours, even swimming across to this nearby island. There was a small cave system there too. After lunch I headed to Railay West which was beautiful, the limestone cliffs absolutely surreal. There was another viewpoint walk here although I only went part way up so I could have more time to relax and swim on the beach. I caught a longboat over to Ao Nang Beach later that afternoon, which is where all the nightlife and budget beach based accommodation in Krabi is. It certainly had more of an atmosphere than Krabi Town and I even met a Southampton fan down the pub.
On Monday I was up bright and early to walk up Khao Ngon Nak, which translates literally as Dragons Crest Mountain. I wanted to begin the hike early before it got too hot, and after signing in with the park ranger ascended to the 565m summit, which presented me with 360 views of Krabi. It was a little windy up top but there were lots of rocks to climb up for better views, including this overhanging rock which looked slightly precarious but made for some good photos! On my descent I went via this waterfall although it was just another trickle. I made back to the start by late morning.
On my way back to Ao Nang I beach hopped along the coast, stopping at Tubkaek beach for photos, before continuing to Klong Muang Beach for lunch. Both had a brilliant backdrop of some of the smaller islands. They were also both a lot quieter than Ao Nang, primarily serving some of the more expensive hotel resorts. From Klong Muang I headed to Noppharat Thara Beach which neighboured Ao Nang, managing to even walk across to a couple of nearby islands as it was low tide. I eventually made it back to Ao Nang later that afternoon where I just hired a deck chair and chilled out. There was a nice sunset, and come evening I went and watched this fire show down the beach.
From Krabi I was originally planning to go out and visit a few of the islands, but in the end decided not to as it actually would have worked out really expensive. I therefore instead decided I would head over to Phuket. As I was staying in Ao Nang and my main bag was in Krabi Town, I decided to go back there via the Shell Cemetery which was a beach with lots of fossils on it. It was basically these huge slabs of rock, which were broken up and inside had fossilised shells. There was also an interesting visitor centre there. When getting back to Krabi Town I collected my stuff and headed over to the bus station, and I didn't have to wait long until a bus to Phuket arrived, arriving into Phuket later that afternoon.
The following day I explored Krabi Town, first stop the Khao Khanab Nam Mountains, which were these two small peaks either side of the river which flows past Krabi Town into the sea. I followed this boardwalk through the mangroves hoping to get a closer look at them, although I think the best way to see them would have been to a hire a boat. The peak the opposite side of the river to where I got to in the mangroves was apparently possible to climb, and was also home to a cave system with some impressive stalagmites. I could have swam across but the water looked very murky so I thought I'd better not, I still got a good glimpse though.
Next stop was Tiger Cave Temple, which gets it name from legend which says a tiger once lived in a cave where the temple is located. When arriving at the large complex I headed up to the Footprint of the Buddha which was an incredibly steep climb up 1237 steps to this peak, home to a Buddha statue looking over Krabi. Up top I was rewarded with 360 degree views over the Andaman Sea and islands, as well as some of the surrounding limestone peaks. After gingerly making my descent back down I then visited this large network of caves sitting in the jungle at the base of the limestone cliffs, home to many of the monks that live and worship there. The actual Tiger cave was separate from other caves and housed several icons and relics including this rock which looked like a tigers footprint. Aside from the caves there was a pagoda and a few other buildings scattered about, the complex itself taking a good few hours to look round.
From the temple I headed back into Krabi Town where I followed the river which was home to several local fishermen, as well as visiting the Wat Keow Temple located in the town centre. I also walked round the town centre trying to suss out what the tour companies were offering in terms of getting out to the islands. Come evening I had a proper look round the night market which at weekends apparently has extra stalls, so it was absolutely heaving! There was lots to see and there was even a small funfair with several carnival games which was popular. I settled down in the local Irish bar for the football later in the evening, although it was pretty dead for a Saturday night.
On Sunday I headed out to Railay Beach for the day, accessible only by boat due to the large cliffs on each side cutting it off from the mainland. The beach is one of the most popular in Thailand for its stunning white sand beaches flanked by these huge limestone cliffs. I left my main bag in Krabi Town and packed an overnight bag as my plan was to go to Ao Nang Beach for a couple of nights from Railay Beach. Railay has two beaches, east and west, as well as two neighbouring beaches, Phra Nang and Tongsai, all of which are cut off from the mainland by the cliffs. I was dropped by longboat on the east side.
The east beach was more mangroves than white sands, so I headed towards the nearby Phra Nang Beach via this viewpoint and lagoon walk. Luckily I had my walking boots as the path up to the viewpoint was incredibly steep although the views up top were stunning looking over towards Railay Beach. The path to the lagoon was even more challenging as I basically descended into this hole where I surrounded in all directions by the cliffs! I had complete solitude at the lagoon though as there were ladders and effectively rock climbing involved to get there, and the majority of people who had attempted the hike were wearing flip flops so had no chance making it there.
When arriving at Phra Nang Beach, recently voted one of the top ten beaches in the world, I relaxed there for a couple of hours, even swimming across to this nearby island. There was a small cave system there too. After lunch I headed to Railay West which was beautiful, the limestone cliffs absolutely surreal. There was another viewpoint walk here although I only went part way up so I could have more time to relax and swim on the beach. I caught a longboat over to Ao Nang Beach later that afternoon, which is where all the nightlife and budget beach based accommodation in Krabi is. It certainly had more of an atmosphere than Krabi Town and I even met a Southampton fan down the pub.
On Monday I was up bright and early to walk up Khao Ngon Nak, which translates literally as Dragons Crest Mountain. I wanted to begin the hike early before it got too hot, and after signing in with the park ranger ascended to the 565m summit, which presented me with 360 views of Krabi. It was a little windy up top but there were lots of rocks to climb up for better views, including this overhanging rock which looked slightly precarious but made for some good photos! On my descent I went via this waterfall although it was just another trickle. I made back to the start by late morning.
On my way back to Ao Nang I beach hopped along the coast, stopping at Tubkaek beach for photos, before continuing to Klong Muang Beach for lunch. Both had a brilliant backdrop of some of the smaller islands. They were also both a lot quieter than Ao Nang, primarily serving some of the more expensive hotel resorts. From Klong Muang I headed to Noppharat Thara Beach which neighboured Ao Nang, managing to even walk across to a couple of nearby islands as it was low tide. I eventually made it back to Ao Nang later that afternoon where I just hired a deck chair and chilled out. There was a nice sunset, and come evening I went and watched this fire show down the beach.
From Krabi I was originally planning to go out and visit a few of the islands, but in the end decided not to as it actually would have worked out really expensive. I therefore instead decided I would head over to Phuket. As I was staying in Ao Nang and my main bag was in Krabi Town, I decided to go back there via the Shell Cemetery which was a beach with lots of fossils on it. It was basically these huge slabs of rock, which were broken up and inside had fossilised shells. There was also an interesting visitor centre there. When getting back to Krabi Town I collected my stuff and headed over to the bus station, and I didn't have to wait long until a bus to Phuket arrived, arriving into Phuket later that afternoon.
Saturday, 7 April 2018
Hatyai
After arriving into Thailand on the evening on Monday, I headed towards the city of Hatyai the next morning. When disembarking the ferry in Satun I ended up in a random town about 12km north of the jetty, and I could tell it didn't get many tourists as barely anyone spoke English and all the signs were in Thai. I think most backpackers who go from Langkawi to Satun then go straight up Krabi/Phuket the same day as that's where the tour operators in Langkawi were trying to sell me tickets to. It was an experience though and the locals in Satun were really friendly even if communication was difficult.
After getting this minibus from Satun to Hatyai, I just felt like having a nice and chilled out afternoon in bed on the WiFi. My bed however had Disney Princess sheets, although I did have the whole dorm to myself! Hatyai itself is actually one the largest cities in Thailand, it just lacks tourism after the recent bombings and terrorism related events in the city and surrounding areas in Southern Thailand in recent years, where over 6000 people have died since 2004. Come evening I went out to a couple of local night markets, and I particularly liked the handicrafts which looked really authentic unlike some of the tacky things you see elsewhere. Some of the street food looked a little suspect however, in a 'what the hell is that?' respect.
I was originally just planning to spend the Wednesday exploring Hatyai, before heading northwards towards Krabi/Phuket the following morning, although when doing a little research of things to do in the area the nearby town of Songkhla came to my attention and it looked like a really nice place. I therefore decided to spend the Wednesday exploring Songkhla. I caught a local bus over there in the morning, heading over to Samila Beach when arriving. It was actually a really nice beach and there was a nice breeze and lots of palm trees giving it a cooling effect. There were several local market tenders on the beach and even horse rides on offer. There was also this statue of a mermaid on a rock which had a very interesting story beside it.
After following the beach as far as this old fort, I followed the river towards Tang Kuan Hilltop which was home to an old lighthouse and pagoda. There were great views up top of Songkhla and surrounding areas. I then headed into the old town which felt like a small version of Georgetown with lots of really interesting street art, as well as several Buddhist and Chinese related buildings. There were also a few jetties by the river which gave an interesting insight into the fishing industry. I spent a fair amount of time exploring the old town, before catching a bus back to Hatyai later that afternoon. After getting back to the hostel I chilled out for a bit, before heading out to Asean Night Bazaar and Greenways Market in the evening.
The following day I explored the city of Hatyai itself. The actual centre didn't really have much to offer apart from shopping malls and local markets, many of which I'd looked round the previous couple of evenings. Aside from shopping, most of the sights worth seeing in Hatyai seemed to be based in Hatyai Park about 5km out of the city. I therefore headed out to the park via Wat Thaawon, a Vietnamese Buddhist temple which was home to things including a giant statue of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha as well as a 9 storey Chinese pagoda. The complex was actually quite large although there was a lot of building work going on preserving parts of the complex which made many of buildings hard to get a close look at. The area I found particularly interesting was this Chinese cemetery which had 224 smaller Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha statues all lined up to store the ashes of the deceased.
Next stop was Hatyai Park and when arriving I followed the road up the hill to this temple featuring a 20m high white jade statue of Kuan Yin, the goddess of compassion and mercy. From there I went through this huge dragon mouth entrance passing several small temples and statues including the fat laughing buddha, before over 1000 steps later reaching the hilltop where I got 360 panoramic views of both Hatyai and Songkhla. At the top of the hill was a temple with a 20m high statue of Buddha which looks over the city. There was also a cable car linking the hill to the adjacent hill, and when reaching the adjacent hill there was a four faced Buddha shrine, surrounded by several statues of elephants of various sizes, including a large statue of Airavata, the three headed elephant. I headed back down to the bottom of the hill from here and had a a stroll round the park before heading back into the city.
One of the highlights of Hatyai is the Klonghae Floating Market, although unfortunately it only runs on weekends which was shame as I still haven't visited a floating market. I therefore instead headed to the Kim Yong Market which was a nice market to look round. It was nice not to be hassled by the market sellers when looking round unlike some of the more touristy markets. After having a look round a couple of the shopping malls I headed back to the hostel, once again heading out to the night market for dinner in the evening. Looking back it surprised me just how little tourism there is in both Songklha and Hatyai, which is a shame because I thought they were both really nice places.
After getting this minibus from Satun to Hatyai, I just felt like having a nice and chilled out afternoon in bed on the WiFi. My bed however had Disney Princess sheets, although I did have the whole dorm to myself! Hatyai itself is actually one the largest cities in Thailand, it just lacks tourism after the recent bombings and terrorism related events in the city and surrounding areas in Southern Thailand in recent years, where over 6000 people have died since 2004. Come evening I went out to a couple of local night markets, and I particularly liked the handicrafts which looked really authentic unlike some of the tacky things you see elsewhere. Some of the street food looked a little suspect however, in a 'what the hell is that?' respect.
I was originally just planning to spend the Wednesday exploring Hatyai, before heading northwards towards Krabi/Phuket the following morning, although when doing a little research of things to do in the area the nearby town of Songkhla came to my attention and it looked like a really nice place. I therefore decided to spend the Wednesday exploring Songkhla. I caught a local bus over there in the morning, heading over to Samila Beach when arriving. It was actually a really nice beach and there was a nice breeze and lots of palm trees giving it a cooling effect. There were several local market tenders on the beach and even horse rides on offer. There was also this statue of a mermaid on a rock which had a very interesting story beside it.
After following the beach as far as this old fort, I followed the river towards Tang Kuan Hilltop which was home to an old lighthouse and pagoda. There were great views up top of Songkhla and surrounding areas. I then headed into the old town which felt like a small version of Georgetown with lots of really interesting street art, as well as several Buddhist and Chinese related buildings. There were also a few jetties by the river which gave an interesting insight into the fishing industry. I spent a fair amount of time exploring the old town, before catching a bus back to Hatyai later that afternoon. After getting back to the hostel I chilled out for a bit, before heading out to Asean Night Bazaar and Greenways Market in the evening.
The following day I explored the city of Hatyai itself. The actual centre didn't really have much to offer apart from shopping malls and local markets, many of which I'd looked round the previous couple of evenings. Aside from shopping, most of the sights worth seeing in Hatyai seemed to be based in Hatyai Park about 5km out of the city. I therefore headed out to the park via Wat Thaawon, a Vietnamese Buddhist temple which was home to things including a giant statue of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha as well as a 9 storey Chinese pagoda. The complex was actually quite large although there was a lot of building work going on preserving parts of the complex which made many of buildings hard to get a close look at. The area I found particularly interesting was this Chinese cemetery which had 224 smaller Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha statues all lined up to store the ashes of the deceased.
Next stop was Hatyai Park and when arriving I followed the road up the hill to this temple featuring a 20m high white jade statue of Kuan Yin, the goddess of compassion and mercy. From there I went through this huge dragon mouth entrance passing several small temples and statues including the fat laughing buddha, before over 1000 steps later reaching the hilltop where I got 360 panoramic views of both Hatyai and Songkhla. At the top of the hill was a temple with a 20m high statue of Buddha which looks over the city. There was also a cable car linking the hill to the adjacent hill, and when reaching the adjacent hill there was a four faced Buddha shrine, surrounded by several statues of elephants of various sizes, including a large statue of Airavata, the three headed elephant. I headed back down to the bottom of the hill from here and had a a stroll round the park before heading back into the city.
One of the highlights of Hatyai is the Klonghae Floating Market, although unfortunately it only runs on weekends which was shame as I still haven't visited a floating market. I therefore instead headed to the Kim Yong Market which was a nice market to look round. It was nice not to be hassled by the market sellers when looking round unlike some of the more touristy markets. After having a look round a couple of the shopping malls I headed back to the hostel, once again heading out to the night market for dinner in the evening. Looking back it surprised me just how little tourism there is in both Songklha and Hatyai, which is a shame because I thought they were both really nice places.
Wednesday, 4 April 2018
Langkawi
On Thursday I left Penang to head towards my next destination, the island of Langkawi. The quickest way was to just catch a direct ferry from Penang, although it was a lot cheaper to catch a bus to Kuala Perlis and get a ferry from there so I did that. I learnt my lesson from in the way in and caught the ferry from Georgetown to Butterworth instead of catching the bus down to the bus station on Penang, which would have essentially just put me on another bus to Butterworth. The ferry was actually really fun as it was an old rickety thing, and I saw lots of massive jellyfish in the water from the deck.
From Butterworth I soon got a bus to Kuala Perlis, making a swift transfer onto the ferry when arriving. The ferry annoyingly didn't have a deck though and from inside the windows were a little grubby so the beautiful scenery as we went into Langkawi was slightly obscured. Langkawi is made up of 99 islands, and ferry terminal was in the town of Kuah on the main island. Kuah however didn't have much to offer other than duty free shopping which many people come to Langkawi for. I wanted to get to Cenang on the other side which was easier said than done as the only form of public transport on the island is by taxi. Luckily as Cenang is the main tourist core for people wanting to stay by the beach I managed to share a taxi with a couple of other people heading the same way which was lucky.
By the time I got to Cenang and settled in it was actually quite late, although I had time to visit the weekly night market before just about catching the sunset on the beach. The following day I had a chilled out day, taking a short stroll down to Tengah Beach in the morning which was a lot quieter than Cenang Beach. There were some nice views of some of the smaller islands from here, and I spent much of the morning here relaxing. I headed back to Cenang for lunch, which was basically one long street full of tour companies, hotels, duty free shops, and bars/eateries. Come afternoon I went and hired a deck chair on Cenang Beach, even finally getting a swim in the sea for the first time since I arrived in Asia. It was nice to have a chilled out day, and the beach was real nice, the sand white and powdery.
On Saturday I went over the Machinchang Cambrian Geoforest Park for the day. Langkawi has three areas classified as Geoforest Parks, and Machinchang was the most easily accessible as it was based where the cable car was, one of the most popular tourist attractions on the island. The other two, the Kilim Karst and Palau Dayang Bunting Geoforest Parks were only realistically accessible by going with tour companies as they're best explored by boat. My plan for the day was to do a walk to the summit of Mount Machinchang via the Seven Wells Waterfall, and I once again managed to share a taxi with a couple of people heading over to visit the cable car.
When arriving it wasn't long before I reached the Seven Wells Waterfall, which was a relatively easy climb up this staircase from the cable car. From there I started doing some more serious climbing through the forest, the humidity just absolutely crazy. Before long the path got incredibly steep and I basically just had to follow this rope which was put in place to help you up. I eventually reached the 701m summit and the views were stunning looking over at the jagged peaks in the rest of the park. It was a little too cloudy to see right across the island though, but I had complete solitude up top which was special.
The descent was pretty challenging, and I kind of appreciated just how steep it was as I had basically climbed to the top of some jagged rock sticking out the forest. I didn't see another person until reaching the popular Seven Wells Waterfall, so Mount Machinchang was a hidden gem, although it was a challenging hike. The waterfall is called the Seven Wells because at the top there are seven pools which are linked by small waterfalls which you can swim in. The water was lovely and refreshing and much needed after the humidity experienced whilst hiking. A couple of the waterfalls even acted as natural water slides! After cooling off in the pools I headed down to the base of the waterfall, although it starting chucking it down with rain. It was amazing how the downpour changed the nature of the waterfall from a trickle to basically a torrent, before becoming a trickle again when the rain stopped.
When reaching the cable car I had a look round Oriental Village which had several attractions and shops linked to the cable car. It felt almost like a theme park. The cable car takes you up to one of the other jagged peaks in the park where you can do this sky walk thing. After leaving the village I went down to Kok Beach, which was another less touristy beach, also home to a lighthouse. There was a nice backdrop of Machinchang and the cable car from here too. Come evening I went out to watch the football, although I was unable to find anywhere showing it live which was annoying. Luckily the pub had WiFi so I could still follow it. When I left there was an almighty thunderstorm, and I inevitably got drenched when walking back to the hostel.
On Sunday I had a far more relaxing day, heading out to the Temurun Waterfall in the northern parts of the Machinchang Cambrian Geoforest Park. The waterfall itself was the highest on Langkawi although it was basically just a massive cliff with a trickle coming down it. Apparently it's more impressive in wet season. Despite this there were a couple of nice and refreshing swimming holes where I stayed until lunchtime. After leaving the waterfall I headed to the nearby Pasir Tengkorak Beach, which was a small pretty beach literally translating as Skulls Head Beach due to a few local and quite gruesome tales. It was a nice and quiet beach where I went for a short walk along the coast, before relaxing for a couple of hours on the beach. I headed back to Cenang later in the afternoon where I just chilled, heading over to Telaga Walk in the evening where they had several street food units, and a big screen showing the football, something I wished I knew about the previous day.
On Monday I thought I'd go and do one of the boat trips the tour companies were offering. My two options were a mangrove river cruise including a visit to a couple of caves, or an island hopping trip round some of the smaller islands to the south of Langkawi. I went for the latter. Our getting a minibus shuttle down to the wharf near Tengah Beach, our first stop was the Pulau Dayang Bunting Geoforest Park to see the Pregnant Maiden Lake. The islands coming into this island were very dramatic with some very interesting rock formations. When landing on Dayang Bunting we took a short walk to the freshwater lake in the middle, which we were able to swim in. I took a walk round the lake to this viewpoint too which no one else seemed interested in doing, so I had complete solitude up the top!
After leaving Dayang Bunting we continued weaving our way through the islands, before stopping to feed some eagles which was quite a sight! We then continued to Pulau Beras Basah which was a nice island with a beach we were allowed to chill on for an hour. There were lots of annoying monkeys though! From Beras Basah we returned back to the mainland. It was actually a real worthwhile trip!
Come afternoon I wasn't sure whether to stay another night on Langkawi or cross the border into Thailand. From Langkawi there were twice daily ferries to the island of Koh Lipe, and Satun on the Thai mainland. Both were tempting options, and I ultimately had to decide whether I wanted to island hop northwards, or head north over the mainland. I decided to head to Satun in the end. The ferry was ride was nice and smooth and the border was quick and easy because there was probably only about 30 people on the ferry. I wasn't sure whether I'd get a 15 day visa or 30 day visa for Thailand because it's really unclear online. Luckily I got a 30 day visa which gives me a bit more flexibility than what a 15 day visa would have.
From Butterworth I soon got a bus to Kuala Perlis, making a swift transfer onto the ferry when arriving. The ferry annoyingly didn't have a deck though and from inside the windows were a little grubby so the beautiful scenery as we went into Langkawi was slightly obscured. Langkawi is made up of 99 islands, and ferry terminal was in the town of Kuah on the main island. Kuah however didn't have much to offer other than duty free shopping which many people come to Langkawi for. I wanted to get to Cenang on the other side which was easier said than done as the only form of public transport on the island is by taxi. Luckily as Cenang is the main tourist core for people wanting to stay by the beach I managed to share a taxi with a couple of other people heading the same way which was lucky.
By the time I got to Cenang and settled in it was actually quite late, although I had time to visit the weekly night market before just about catching the sunset on the beach. The following day I had a chilled out day, taking a short stroll down to Tengah Beach in the morning which was a lot quieter than Cenang Beach. There were some nice views of some of the smaller islands from here, and I spent much of the morning here relaxing. I headed back to Cenang for lunch, which was basically one long street full of tour companies, hotels, duty free shops, and bars/eateries. Come afternoon I went and hired a deck chair on Cenang Beach, even finally getting a swim in the sea for the first time since I arrived in Asia. It was nice to have a chilled out day, and the beach was real nice, the sand white and powdery.
On Saturday I went over the Machinchang Cambrian Geoforest Park for the day. Langkawi has three areas classified as Geoforest Parks, and Machinchang was the most easily accessible as it was based where the cable car was, one of the most popular tourist attractions on the island. The other two, the Kilim Karst and Palau Dayang Bunting Geoforest Parks were only realistically accessible by going with tour companies as they're best explored by boat. My plan for the day was to do a walk to the summit of Mount Machinchang via the Seven Wells Waterfall, and I once again managed to share a taxi with a couple of people heading over to visit the cable car.
When arriving it wasn't long before I reached the Seven Wells Waterfall, which was a relatively easy climb up this staircase from the cable car. From there I started doing some more serious climbing through the forest, the humidity just absolutely crazy. Before long the path got incredibly steep and I basically just had to follow this rope which was put in place to help you up. I eventually reached the 701m summit and the views were stunning looking over at the jagged peaks in the rest of the park. It was a little too cloudy to see right across the island though, but I had complete solitude up top which was special.
The descent was pretty challenging, and I kind of appreciated just how steep it was as I had basically climbed to the top of some jagged rock sticking out the forest. I didn't see another person until reaching the popular Seven Wells Waterfall, so Mount Machinchang was a hidden gem, although it was a challenging hike. The waterfall is called the Seven Wells because at the top there are seven pools which are linked by small waterfalls which you can swim in. The water was lovely and refreshing and much needed after the humidity experienced whilst hiking. A couple of the waterfalls even acted as natural water slides! After cooling off in the pools I headed down to the base of the waterfall, although it starting chucking it down with rain. It was amazing how the downpour changed the nature of the waterfall from a trickle to basically a torrent, before becoming a trickle again when the rain stopped.
When reaching the cable car I had a look round Oriental Village which had several attractions and shops linked to the cable car. It felt almost like a theme park. The cable car takes you up to one of the other jagged peaks in the park where you can do this sky walk thing. After leaving the village I went down to Kok Beach, which was another less touristy beach, also home to a lighthouse. There was a nice backdrop of Machinchang and the cable car from here too. Come evening I went out to watch the football, although I was unable to find anywhere showing it live which was annoying. Luckily the pub had WiFi so I could still follow it. When I left there was an almighty thunderstorm, and I inevitably got drenched when walking back to the hostel.
On Sunday I had a far more relaxing day, heading out to the Temurun Waterfall in the northern parts of the Machinchang Cambrian Geoforest Park. The waterfall itself was the highest on Langkawi although it was basically just a massive cliff with a trickle coming down it. Apparently it's more impressive in wet season. Despite this there were a couple of nice and refreshing swimming holes where I stayed until lunchtime. After leaving the waterfall I headed to the nearby Pasir Tengkorak Beach, which was a small pretty beach literally translating as Skulls Head Beach due to a few local and quite gruesome tales. It was a nice and quiet beach where I went for a short walk along the coast, before relaxing for a couple of hours on the beach. I headed back to Cenang later in the afternoon where I just chilled, heading over to Telaga Walk in the evening where they had several street food units, and a big screen showing the football, something I wished I knew about the previous day.
On Monday I thought I'd go and do one of the boat trips the tour companies were offering. My two options were a mangrove river cruise including a visit to a couple of caves, or an island hopping trip round some of the smaller islands to the south of Langkawi. I went for the latter. Our getting a minibus shuttle down to the wharf near Tengah Beach, our first stop was the Pulau Dayang Bunting Geoforest Park to see the Pregnant Maiden Lake. The islands coming into this island were very dramatic with some very interesting rock formations. When landing on Dayang Bunting we took a short walk to the freshwater lake in the middle, which we were able to swim in. I took a walk round the lake to this viewpoint too which no one else seemed interested in doing, so I had complete solitude up the top!
After leaving Dayang Bunting we continued weaving our way through the islands, before stopping to feed some eagles which was quite a sight! We then continued to Pulau Beras Basah which was a nice island with a beach we were allowed to chill on for an hour. There were lots of annoying monkeys though! From Beras Basah we returned back to the mainland. It was actually a real worthwhile trip!
Come afternoon I wasn't sure whether to stay another night on Langkawi or cross the border into Thailand. From Langkawi there were twice daily ferries to the island of Koh Lipe, and Satun on the Thai mainland. Both were tempting options, and I ultimately had to decide whether I wanted to island hop northwards, or head north over the mainland. I decided to head to Satun in the end. The ferry was ride was nice and smooth and the border was quick and easy because there was probably only about 30 people on the ferry. I wasn't sure whether I'd get a 15 day visa or 30 day visa for Thailand because it's really unclear online. Luckily I got a 30 day visa which gives me a bit more flexibility than what a 15 day visa would have.
Monday, 2 April 2018
Penang
I left Tanah Rata and the Cameron Highlands relatively early on the Sunday morning to head towards my next destination in Penang. Penang is a state and is essentially an island but also includes some of the adjacent mainland which it's linked to by bridges over the sea. I was aiming to get to Georgetown which is the principal city of Penang in the north eastern corner of the island. The journey from the Cameron Highlands was nice and smooth, although being at altitude meant the road was incredibly windy as we descended back down to sea level! En route we stopped in Ipoh where I was considering spending a couple of nights but it would have essentially just been more temples and mosques.
I arrived in Penang around about lunchtime in the end, the bus dropping me off at the main bus station on Penang island about 15km south of Georgetown. This meant I had to catch another local bus to get to Georgetown. In hindsight I should have got off my original bus at Butterworth on the mainland where I could have caught a ferry across straight to Georgetown, a far quicker way of doing things apparently, although I didn't know that. By the time I got to Georgetown and checked into my hostel I just relaxed for the rest of the day, ready to go out and explore properly the following day.
Georgetown is the 2nd largest city in Malaysia, and has an array of things to see and do in the city itself and surrounding area. The historical core where I was staying was designated as a unesco world heritage site in 2008, and that's what I decided to go and explore on the Monday. There were several temples, mosques, and other historical buildings spread over the city, with over 1700 listed buildings. Whilst exploring I passed several interesting buildings, from many different cultures. One stop I particularly enjoyed were the clan jetties which were these old wooden jetties housing some of the poorer members of the city. Penang is perhaps most famous for its food, and is consistently ranked as one of the best food places in the world by lonely planet, and I stopped at the clan jetties for lunch which was really nice.
Aside from all the temples and mosques, another highlight was the street art which was absolutely littered all over the city. Penang is often renowned as one of the street art capitals of the world, and many of the pieces were interactive, having components in which the art interacts with real elements. There were some really interesting pieces. In the end it took me pretty much all day to explore the historical core, and there was probably still lots I didn't see but it was a really good day. Come evening I went down to one of the street food markets where I got some more great food, the food a lot cheaper in Penang than elsewhere in Malaysia for some reason.
On Tuesday I headed out to the Penang National Park for the day. The national park has the distinction of being the smallest in the world, but despite this still has lots to see. From the park entrance where I had to get a permit, there were meant to be two walks, one through the jungle to Turtle Beach, and another coastal based walk to this lighthouse via Monkey Beach. Unfortunately the walk to Monkey Beach was closed due to a landslip, although they you could still pay to get a boat taxi there. I heard Turtle Beach was nicer though anyway so I headed out to there, the walk through the jungle actually really pleasant along an undulating and well maintained path, even seeing a few monkeys en route.
When arriving at Turtle Beach it was a really nice and clean beach and being only accessible by boat or foot meant it wasn't very busy. You couldn't swim in the sea though because of the turtles, although there was this turtle sanctuary on the beach where they had a few baby and adult turtles they were looking after which you could see. I returned to the park entrance an alternative way round this meromictic lake, which describes a lake which consists of both salt water and fresh water, separated because they have different temperatures. The lake was dried out though so there wasn't really much to see.
When arriving back at the park entrance, the fact the path to Monkey Beach was closed meant I still had much of the afternoon to play with. I decided instead of catching a boat taxi out there, I would instead go to Batu Ferringhi for the afternoon, via the Floating Mosque. Batu Ferringhi is a popular area for its sandy beaches, and is home to all the big holiday resort accommodations like Hilton and Holiday Inn. This meant I was able to find a nice place in the shade on the beach and a deck chair and just relax. There were a lot of annoying locals though trying to get you to ride their jet skis though! I stayed until sunset which was good one. I then checked out the night market in Batu Ferringhi, although the market sellers were all very in your face if you even looked at something for a second so it was difficult to look round!
On Wednesday morning I headed out to Gurney Drive which is basically the cbd of Penang, but also home to a couple of temples I wanted to visit. I first visited the Wat Chayamangkalaram which was home to one of the largest reclining Buddha statues in the world. I then visited the Dharmikarama Burmese Temple. After having a good look round the temples I headed out to the Botanic Gardens which had an access point to climb to the 830m summit of Penang Hill. There was a funicular railway to get up there too but I thought I'd walk up to save money. It was just a road going up but I saw loads of monkeys and it was actually quite a good workout!
When reaching the top there were load of random little attractions like an owl museum, love lock fence, and several market stalls. I just went and checked out the sky walk which gave views over Georgetown, although it was a little hazy. I went back down a different way so I could check out the Kek Lok Si Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in Southeast Asia. I ended up spending ages looking round the large complex as there were so many areas to explore, the highlight perhaps this 7 storey pagoda which you could climb giving some fantastic views up top.
I arrived in Penang around about lunchtime in the end, the bus dropping me off at the main bus station on Penang island about 15km south of Georgetown. This meant I had to catch another local bus to get to Georgetown. In hindsight I should have got off my original bus at Butterworth on the mainland where I could have caught a ferry across straight to Georgetown, a far quicker way of doing things apparently, although I didn't know that. By the time I got to Georgetown and checked into my hostel I just relaxed for the rest of the day, ready to go out and explore properly the following day.
Georgetown is the 2nd largest city in Malaysia, and has an array of things to see and do in the city itself and surrounding area. The historical core where I was staying was designated as a unesco world heritage site in 2008, and that's what I decided to go and explore on the Monday. There were several temples, mosques, and other historical buildings spread over the city, with over 1700 listed buildings. Whilst exploring I passed several interesting buildings, from many different cultures. One stop I particularly enjoyed were the clan jetties which were these old wooden jetties housing some of the poorer members of the city. Penang is perhaps most famous for its food, and is consistently ranked as one of the best food places in the world by lonely planet, and I stopped at the clan jetties for lunch which was really nice.
Aside from all the temples and mosques, another highlight was the street art which was absolutely littered all over the city. Penang is often renowned as one of the street art capitals of the world, and many of the pieces were interactive, having components in which the art interacts with real elements. There were some really interesting pieces. In the end it took me pretty much all day to explore the historical core, and there was probably still lots I didn't see but it was a really good day. Come evening I went down to one of the street food markets where I got some more great food, the food a lot cheaper in Penang than elsewhere in Malaysia for some reason.
On Tuesday I headed out to the Penang National Park for the day. The national park has the distinction of being the smallest in the world, but despite this still has lots to see. From the park entrance where I had to get a permit, there were meant to be two walks, one through the jungle to Turtle Beach, and another coastal based walk to this lighthouse via Monkey Beach. Unfortunately the walk to Monkey Beach was closed due to a landslip, although they you could still pay to get a boat taxi there. I heard Turtle Beach was nicer though anyway so I headed out to there, the walk through the jungle actually really pleasant along an undulating and well maintained path, even seeing a few monkeys en route.
When arriving at Turtle Beach it was a really nice and clean beach and being only accessible by boat or foot meant it wasn't very busy. You couldn't swim in the sea though because of the turtles, although there was this turtle sanctuary on the beach where they had a few baby and adult turtles they were looking after which you could see. I returned to the park entrance an alternative way round this meromictic lake, which describes a lake which consists of both salt water and fresh water, separated because they have different temperatures. The lake was dried out though so there wasn't really much to see.
When arriving back at the park entrance, the fact the path to Monkey Beach was closed meant I still had much of the afternoon to play with. I decided instead of catching a boat taxi out there, I would instead go to Batu Ferringhi for the afternoon, via the Floating Mosque. Batu Ferringhi is a popular area for its sandy beaches, and is home to all the big holiday resort accommodations like Hilton and Holiday Inn. This meant I was able to find a nice place in the shade on the beach and a deck chair and just relax. There were a lot of annoying locals though trying to get you to ride their jet skis though! I stayed until sunset which was good one. I then checked out the night market in Batu Ferringhi, although the market sellers were all very in your face if you even looked at something for a second so it was difficult to look round!
On Wednesday morning I headed out to Gurney Drive which is basically the cbd of Penang, but also home to a couple of temples I wanted to visit. I first visited the Wat Chayamangkalaram which was home to one of the largest reclining Buddha statues in the world. I then visited the Dharmikarama Burmese Temple. After having a good look round the temples I headed out to the Botanic Gardens which had an access point to climb to the 830m summit of Penang Hill. There was a funicular railway to get up there too but I thought I'd walk up to save money. It was just a road going up but I saw loads of monkeys and it was actually quite a good workout!
When reaching the top there were load of random little attractions like an owl museum, love lock fence, and several market stalls. I just went and checked out the sky walk which gave views over Georgetown, although it was a little hazy. I went back down a different way so I could check out the Kek Lok Si Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in Southeast Asia. I ended up spending ages looking round the large complex as there were so many areas to explore, the highlight perhaps this 7 storey pagoda which you could climb giving some fantastic views up top.
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