We decided the best way to arrange all our pictures was by making a book, so here is the link to it!
Monday, July 19, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Gili Trawangan & Air
From Bali we travelled the ultimate fastest way (check out the multiple motors!) with 1500HP to Lombok. From there it was a short 15 minute ride to the Gili Islands, a group of tiny beautiful white sand islands located off the North west coast. The locals are so friendly that at first we thought they were mocking us. After purchasing any small item in one of their shops they gave us the biggest smile ever and enthusiastically screamed "THANK YOU!" in your face. Naturally this threw us off a bit at the beginning, but we soon learned to return the smiles and scream an equally loud "SAMA SAMA" (you're welcome in Indonesian) back.
Arriving on the largest of the islands (Gili trawangan) we soon started our search for some surf swell and found a perfect (little) reef break off the North end of the island. The waves came in like pearls on a string, but unfortunately our surfing was still suffering from interior European origins (which is scary on a shallow reef where your fins scrape the corals when you paddle). The locals instructed us to fall back into the wave in a controlled manner when we fell, which is definately harder than it sounds. especially when you are disracted from turtles swimming past you in the translucent water as you wait for the waves to roll in.
Days on the Gili islands tended to blend together in a delicious mix of sunny island walks, surf adventures, fresh seafood and the occasional sampling of the local "arak" liquor (which is not really to be recommended unless you enjoy pounding headaches and nausea and is a good explanation for why the locals always seemed to wobble on their bikes in the mornings).
Arriving on the largest of the islands (Gili trawangan) we soon started our search for some surf swell and found a perfect (little) reef break off the North end of the island. The waves came in like pearls on a string, but unfortunately our surfing was still suffering from interior European origins (which is scary on a shallow reef where your fins scrape the corals when you paddle). The locals instructed us to fall back into the wave in a controlled manner when we fell, which is definately harder than it sounds. especially when you are disracted from turtles swimming past you in the translucent water as you wait for the waves to roll in.
Days on the Gili islands tended to blend together in a delicious mix of sunny island walks, surf adventures, fresh seafood and the occasional sampling of the local "arak" liquor (which is not really to be recommended unless you enjoy pounding headaches and nausea and is a good explanation for why the locals always seemed to wobble on their bikes in the mornings).
Bali
Anyone arriving in Bali with preconceptions of a tropical paradise where exotic locals in sarongs serenely offer you coconuts on the beach might be thrown off when first entering the island. Rather than being greeted by sparkling white beaches, you are greeted by glowing neon Planet Hollywood signs and billboards with the alluring promise of "all you can drink all night pool parties" (which although might not fall under the definition of a tropical paradise has its own appeal in the right setting!). However, the mystical culture of Bali still shows up wherever you look, usually framed by a more contemporary cultural item, such as stalls selling hats emblazoned with "jiggy-jig massage" (we think the term speaks for itself...) while a young woman makes offerings to the gods in the little shrine right outside.
We arrived to Bali from Kuala Lumpur late in the night and had little idea of where to go. We trusted Lonely Planet, got a taxi to Poppies Lane 1 and got a cheap, but great value room in Kedin's Inn (including a swimming pool and breakfast for 10 dollars!).
Unfortunately, we both caught the second most common disease after "Bali belly", which was a rather disgusting eye-infection that spreads like wild fire (it is so common that pharmacies ran out of eye drops!) and makes you look at feel like a zombie. One speculation on how we got it is from some of the Swedish teenagers hanging out at the pool nursing their hangovers from the previous night's foam party, with suspiciously red eyes.
However, having recovered from eye-pus disgustedness, we decided to join the army of incompetent surfers on Kuta beach and be bashed by some waves ourselves. We chose a local surf school (http://www.surfschoolbali.com/) run by some very charismatic Balinese twins with strangely Australian accents. Jon struggled a bit to oil his rusty surf skills acquired in Brazil about 10 years ago (and maybe struggled even more to swim out through the choppy waves), but eventually popped up on the board. In Dahlia's case, about 20 desperate flailing attempts at standing actually culminated in feet-on-board contact, but the shock of actually managing threw her right off the board. However, eventually she managed to catch some white water and smaller waves, though where the larger swells are concerned, she is definately still in over her head (pun intended)!
We ended our Bali adventure with a temple visit on the southern tip of Bali, with majestic views over the ocean, and a very entertaining ensemble of monkeys (who were definitely less afraid of us than we of them). The visit was also accompanied by a very dramatic fire dance to which a male choir dressed in sarongs and flowers behind their ears chanted a very infectious tune. We also decided to indulge in a very decadent 3 hour spa session (which as being dusty backpackers, we enjoyed to its fullest!) that consisted of delights such as full-body massage, a flower bath, and a facial. So, in case you want to experience the spirit of Bali apart from foam parties and gallons of Bintang beer, it still is very much alive.
We arrived to Bali from Kuala Lumpur late in the night and had little idea of where to go. We trusted Lonely Planet, got a taxi to Poppies Lane 1 and got a cheap, but great value room in Kedin's Inn (including a swimming pool and breakfast for 10 dollars!). Unfortunately, we both caught the second most common disease after "Bali belly", which was a rather disgusting eye-infection that spreads like wild fire (it is so common that pharmacies ran out of eye drops!) and makes you look at feel like a zombie. One speculation on how we got it is from some of the Swedish teenagers hanging out at the pool nursing their hangovers from the previous night's foam party, with suspiciously red eyes.
However, having recovered from eye-pus disgustedness, we decided to join the army of incompetent surfers on Kuta beach and be bashed by some waves ourselves. We chose a local surf school (http://www.surfschoolbali.com/) run by some very charismatic Balinese twins with strangely Australian accents. Jon struggled a bit to oil his rusty surf skills acquired in Brazil about 10 years ago (and maybe struggled even more to swim out through the choppy waves), but eventually popped up on the board. In Dahlia's case, about 20 desperate flailing attempts at standing actually culminated in feet-on-board contact, but the shock of actually managing threw her right off the board. However, eventually she managed to catch some white water and smaller waves, though where the larger swells are concerned, she is definately still in over her head (pun intended)!
We ended our Bali adventure with a temple visit on the southern tip of Bali, with majestic views over the ocean, and a very entertaining ensemble of monkeys (who were definitely less afraid of us than we of them). The visit was also accompanied by a very dramatic fire dance to which a male choir dressed in sarongs and flowers behind their ears chanted a very infectious tune. We also decided to indulge in a very decadent 3 hour spa session (which as being dusty backpackers, we enjoyed to its fullest!) that consisted of delights such as full-body massage, a flower bath, and a facial. So, in case you want to experience the spirit of Bali apart from foam parties and gallons of Bintang beer, it still is very much alive.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Kuala Lumpur
After spending nearly a month in the African wilderness and then 2 weeks on secluded islands in Malaysia we arrived once again in a big city, Kuala Lumpur, and fully embraced the civilized joys of air conditioning, hot power showers and giant shopping malls!
The night bus journey there from the east coast of Malaysia was surprisingly comfortable, with fully reclining chairs. The only problem was the sheer panic that arose when looking out of the window, as the bus driver made a sincere attempt to kill any stray dogs that crossed our path and seemed to enjoy rebelling against the side of the road he should have been driving on (all of this in the pitch dark of night, with a good amount of rain beating against the windows).
However, we made it safely to KL and spent the morning standing in line for tickets to see the Petronas Towers, which are actually quite beautiful and impressive. One interesting thing about the city is how polite everyone seems to be. There are huge crowds in the morning while waiting for the trains, and people actually quietly stand in line waiting for their turn to get on! Hard to imagine... especially after being at Oxford Circus in London during rush hour!
The blending of cultures here is also very interesting. For example you can see an Indian lady in a sari with a bindi on her forehead selling flowers outside a Hindu temple, while on the opposite road side a Chinese man in an apron and a chef's hat is preparing won-tons in a giant wok, and just around the corner from there are European business men with their suits and briefcases standing in line for the high-speed trains to take them to work.
The night bus journey there from the east coast of Malaysia was surprisingly comfortable, with fully reclining chairs. The only problem was the sheer panic that arose when looking out of the window, as the bus driver made a sincere attempt to kill any stray dogs that crossed our path and seemed to enjoy rebelling against the side of the road he should have been driving on (all of this in the pitch dark of night, with a good amount of rain beating against the windows).
However, we made it safely to KL and spent the morning standing in line for tickets to see the Petronas Towers, which are actually quite beautiful and impressive. One interesting thing about the city is how polite everyone seems to be. There are huge crowds in the morning while waiting for the trains, and people actually quietly stand in line waiting for their turn to get on! Hard to imagine... especially after being at Oxford Circus in London during rush hour!The blending of cultures here is also very interesting. For example you can see an Indian lady in a sari with a bindi on her forehead selling flowers outside a Hindu temple, while on the opposite road side a Chinese man in an apron and a chef's hat is preparing won-tons in a giant wok, and just around the corner from there are European business men with their suits and briefcases standing in line for the high-speed trains to take them to work.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Perhentian Island Gallery
The Perhentian islands are a true cliche of beach perfection. Crystal clear water, soft white sand dotted with corals and fish in colours that you cannot even describe.
Once you get over the initial shock, even the reef sharks and Manta Rays seem friendly enough. We did our Padi open water certification with a great local dive company called Universal Diver, and as of today are qualified divers! Woohoo!
One sunny day we decided to walk around the entire island, but after a few hours we were stuck in the middle of the jungle in flip flops (along with a rather grumpy German lady who followed us thinking we knew where we were going). However, except for a few ant bites and sitings of 2 meter long lizards we made it through the jungle on to a cozy little beach, close enough to our initial destination.
We thought we would be here for a week, but today makes it 12 days. Tomorrow we are moving on to Kuala Lumpur (if we manage to tear ourselves away from the sun, sand and food)!
Once you get over the initial shock, even the reef sharks and Manta Rays seem friendly enough. We did our Padi open water certification with a great local dive company called Universal Diver, and as of today are qualified divers! Woohoo!
One sunny day we decided to walk around the entire island, but after a few hours we were stuck in the middle of the jungle in flip flops (along with a rather grumpy German lady who followed us thinking we knew where we were going). However, except for a few ant bites and sitings of 2 meter long lizards we made it through the jungle on to a cozy little beach, close enough to our initial destination.
We thought we would be here for a week, but today makes it 12 days. Tomorrow we are moving on to Kuala Lumpur (if we manage to tear ourselves away from the sun, sand and food)!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
120m Gorge Swing
In Victoria Falls we did a 120m high tandem gorge swing with 70m. free fall. Choosing the tandem option together we reached the max weight for the swing and found ourselves flying 2 meters above the water surface after the 120m high fall. Chills!!!
Zimbabwe
Of all the countries we traveled to in Africa, Zimbabwe was the one we were most apprehensive about. You hear horror stories about AIDS, poverty and unemployment, and we learned that most of them are true. However, besides all of these problems, we also learned that Zimbabwe is an amazing place. It started at the border, where wafts of reggae music played in the background and the officials were actually friendly, smiling as we gave them our passports and saying emphatically "Welcome to ZIM!". This continued as we drove through the lush green scenery to Victoria falls, with locals smiling and waving at us through the windows. They seemed so relieved that we were there and that tourists were slowly returning to Zimbabwe.
Our first stop was Victoria falls where we were greeted by a wild elephant outside our inn and then set off to explore the city once it decided to retreat for a bit. One strange thing about the country at the moment is that they don't have their own currency. At most street corners you will find hawkers trying to sell you old money (which is now worthless) in denominations as high as 500 billion Zimbabwe dollars! Apparently right before the currency was abolished you needed an entire backpack of notes to pay for a meal, so 500 billion Zim dollars would probably not even have bought you a loaf of bread. That is inflation for you at its best (or worst, depending on how you see it)! But at the moment most currencies are accepted, with preference given to the US dollar. Everything seems to start at a dollar, and everything seems to end at a dollar. A small coke in a restaurant costs 1 dollar, a medium coke cost 1 dollar, and a large coke costs....you guessed it... 1 dollar. At the curio markets you can also get away with paying a dollar for most things, or even better, swapping old BIC pens for souvenirs. However, after the 5th guy named Happiness or Mr Cool Prince tried to sell me salad spoons shaped like giraffes that I explicitly said I was not looking for, and the 10th little child who did not know what she was saying yelled out "hjelpe me please looking for your friend my mother is blind" I gave up on shopping and went to explore the falls instead.
Victoria falls is nearly impossible to describe, except that you are completely taken aback by the hugeness of it all. You feel tinier than ever before, and although it appears to be raining since there is so much water in the air, the sky is perfectly clear and rainbows appear like happy hallucinations everywhere you look.
Our next destination after Vic Falls was Matopo where we met our rhinoceros trek guide Ian, who was probably the person to give us the biggest insight into the country. The first thing you notice about him, is that he is white, but just as African as the locals. His family has been in Africa for 13 generations, and his first language is not English, but Ndebele (which has some amazing clicks in it!). His best friend is one of the 43 bushmen left in Zimbabwe and he can find everything he needs in the bush. On the short tour we had with him he managed to pick out plants that can be used as hallucinogens, herbs, anaesthetics and even soap, toothbrushes and teeth whiteners! He also told us about his fight against rhinoceros poaches who have killed most of the species for their horns, which are sold at a ridiculous price of around 50,000 USD a kilo as an aphrodisiac to the far east, or turn up as daggers in Yemen. Apparently they capture or kill about 25 poachers each month (though he would not tell us which proportion were actually killed), and as there are only about 400 African white rhinos left, he told us candidly that he would rather lose a client on a rhino trek than shoot a rhino if it attacked. Of course that did not go down too well with all of us on the trek, and at one point we did locate 3 bad-tempered rhinos which were ready to charge. In hindsight it seems quite funny, but I can assure you, at that moment... not so much!
The Okavango Delta
There are some places on Earth where it seems that however they came to exist, a little extra time was taken when creating them. The Okavango delta is one of these places. At first, the water seems dark and murky with weeds growing taller than the average person. However, if you are lucky enough to explore it in the way that we did, which is by a traditional canoe called a "mokoro" (which is basically a hollowed out tree trunk) you start to notice how beautiful it is. There are splashes of colour where you least expect them. A dragonfly has electric blue lines on its wings. The abundant fields of water lilies are tinged purple and frogs sport bright red spots, glowing against the dark green of the bamboo-like water plants. And when the sun shines on the water surface, you realise that the water isn't dark or murky at all, but completely clear, with rivers of red, yellow and green plants floating gently under the water surface. During our trip we did however have black clouds looming ominously on the horizon and we seemed to be canoeing right towards them. The floods were on the way.
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