In India! August 9, 2008

Phew! Just posted a quick recap of Vietnam/Laos, it’s amazing how the weeks fly by and all of sudden I’m yet again, months behind in updating you all on my travels. (I was typing fast, so get ready for a good laugh on my grammatical mistakes and random thoughts!)

Suzanne and I flew into India on the 3rd and have had quite a whirlwind adventure so far. I have about a week of updates, but it is going to have to wait until the next time I jump online as the Internet cafe is shutting down.

More on beautiful and chaotic India, to come…!

Laos: Highlights and Memories August 9, 2008

1. Taking the bus from Hanoi to Vientiane. This was a 24 hour non-stop bus ride. You heard correctly, 24 hours. However, at this point in my trip I’m use to 8…10…15 hour bus rides, so really, what’s another few hours?

2. Being spoiled with a “home” and amazing hospitality. Sara’s sister Gemma lives and works in Vientiane, and let us stay with her and her boyfriend Thomo, in their amazing mansion of a house. It was so great to have a “home” for a few days (and a REAL BED!). They absolutely spoiled us. THANK YOU GEMMA AND THOMO!

3. Cooking for a dinner party in a real kitchen. Cooking is one thing I miss on this trip, and it was an absolute treat to get in the kitchen and whip up a meal.

4. Tropical Fruit, muesli and yogurt. Need I say more. This alone is my ultimate favorite food in the world. Well, maybe it runs a tie with Amarena gelato….

5. Working out in a gym! I was “Gemma” for the afternoon and spent 2 glorious hours lifting weights and running on the elliptical machine. I think I could have spent 8 hours easily. It is so hard working out while travelling and in humid heat (trust me, Brian, Suz and I tried to do sit ups on the beach in Thailand and got plenty of stares).

6. Meeting our new friend Joe on the bus ride up to Vang Vien.  Joe is probably one of the smartest and most interesting people I have ever met. Suzanne, Joe and I were inseparable for about a week straight and I don’t think we ever ran out of interesting things to dicuss, debate or laugh about.

6. Being stranded on the road twice in one journey. Due to the tarantula downpour from the night before, our bus got stuck going around a corner as we made our way from Vang Vien to Luang Probang. We waited over an hour and watched as the bus/car backup piled to 20+ vehicles in each direction. Luckily after an hour, a tractor came and pulled us out. Later, when we were maybe only a 1/2 hour from our destination, the engine stopped.  Fortunately we were picked up by another bus within an hour. Our 7 hour journey turned into a 10 hour adventure.

7. Sitting quietly on the temple steps, listening to  the monks chanting their afternoon prayers in unison .

8. Learning how to cook Laotian food at the Tamarind Cafe. In an outdoor garden setting along the Mekong River, I learned how to cook gourmet Laotian food. The menu included: fish wrapped in banana leaves, chicken stuffed lemon grass, Buffalo laap, Jeow salsa & sticky rice and a traditional Laos soup. The flavors were incredible and the presentation was impeccable. I have the cookbook and bought a mortal and pestle, so  get ready for a yummy Laos dinner when I get back!

9. Meeting Yev and Isaac, two fellow Americans (which is a rarity, because Americans don’t travel!). Again, traveling is more than just seeing the destination, it is about the people you meet along the way. Yev and Isaac also top the charts on being two of the most fascinating people I’ve met on this trip. Every conversation was stimulating, interesting and educational. I love learning and if this trip does anything at all, it has definitely made me thirst for knowledge.

10. Scaling the walls of a giant waterfall. Probably not the smartest idea, but adventurous indeed.

11. Using the waterfall’s rapid spray as a back massage. 1) it was free and 2) was better that a real massage. Now, how to get that set up in my backyard someday is the question…

12. Watching Yev run and slip-in-slide head first down a muddy trail. Absolutely epic.

13. Painting Yev, Issac, Joe and Suzanne’s faces with mud. It’s fun to be a warrior for a day!

14. Eating a Laos BBQ.  This is not a traditional BBQ, but rather more along the lines of fondue. There is a grill set up in the middle of the table where you put on your own meat (and cook to your personal tenderness)  as well as a bowling pot below the grill where you heat up broth for soup and cook veggies. Delish!

15. Being the instigator in setting up a 100 meter dash in the middle of the street, during pouring rain. Hey, if you’re already wet, might as well play in the rain!

16. Staying up til 5a.m. talking about politics, films, books, inventions, business, travelling and life in general. I can’t remember when I’ve had more interesting  and stimulating conversations than that night hanging out with Joe, Yev, Isaac, David, and Suzanne. It was like we were in university—where we had time to discuss, to be creative, to brainstorm and to share personal knowledge.

17. Riding an elephant through the jungle, over streams, down mud trails and eventually into a lake where I bathed the elephant and got splashed with water.

18. Trying a smorgasbord of food from the local food stalls. It’s so fun to try out all the different type of food. Point and pay is the name of the game.

19. Laotian Pineapple–the BEST pineapple that has ever touched my lips. Unless you’ve tried it, you don’t understand.

20. Relaxing on a boat while we made our way to a cave filled with hundreds of Buddha trinkets.

21. Shopping in the Laos market, one of the most stress-free and relaxing market shopping experiences in all of Southeast Asia.

Vietnam: Highlights and Memories: Sapa to Hanoi August 9, 2008

1. Trekking through the rice paddy fields of Sapa and spending the night at a home stay.

2. Drinking rice wine with the Lo Chai women and playing card games while laughing and talking candidly.

3. Riding on a moped through the countryside, past small villages and waterfalls.

4. Watching the Water Puppet Show in Hanoi, and marveling over the unique instruments that the band used to create the music.

5. Meeting up with my Australian friend Sara, who I had gone to uni with in Perth. It’s amazing how with some friends, no matter how long time passes, you can always pick up where you left off.

6. Meeting “old friends” along the beaten path. It was great to see David, John and Victoria (friends we met in De lat) while we were in Hanoi. The backpacker community is truly unique in that you are thousands of miles away from your hometown, but run into people that you “know” so the world never seems that large. In fact, it’s small.

7. Hanging out with 7 Spanish guys and being mesmorized by their accents. “Zapatillas”, which simply means “shoes”, is now the sexiest word in my dictionary.

8. Going to the movie, Sex in the City.  I know, “bad tourist”, but after 5 months of traveling, you sometimes need to incorporate a few comforts that remind you of home.

9. Taking a nap in the sun on the roof of a boat overlooking Halong Bay. Waking up and falling asleep to beauty is one of nature’s glorious gifts.

10. Riding a bicyle, around Cat Cat Island.

11. Getting a massage, while sitting outside at a bar drinking a cocktail. Kind of bizarre as the massuse moved from one person to the next in the group, but it still felt amazing!

12. Running through the rain in search of Pho’. With the rain pelting down around us, Sara, Suzanne and I happily ate the most delicious Pho’ under a tarp at a street stall vendor. The cheap and amazing food from street stalls is something that I am going to tragically miss when I go home.

Vietnam: Exploring Sapa August 9, 2008

Sapa: If you get a flutter of excitement when you see a shiny silver star sparkling from the top of a Christmas tree, then your stomach is going to roll like thunder as you weave your way up a mountain lined with green and brown terraces of rice paddy fields and streams of cascading waterfalls strewn down the mountain like glittering blue Christmas tinsel. Sapa is more than a village tucked up high on top of a mountain, Sapa is the essence of that magical Christmas feeling every time you see that shiny silver star.

To carry on the idea of the winter holiday theme, the ride up to the top of the mountain was like piling the family in the car on Christmas Eve and slowly driving by the houses decorated to the max with blinking lights, snowmen and Santa Clause & rain deers strapped to the rooftops in mid-flight.  Gazing out the window as you drove by, your sensors are overloaded by the amount of decorations and novelty of it all. This–in a nutshell–is the same affect you get while driving up the windy road to Sapa. There is so much to see: giant green banana leaves line the side of the road, A-frame shacks with thatched roofs dot the rice paddy fields, red dirt tracks cut through the mountainside, water buffalo with giant horns lazily graze on grass, and as you climb higher, the gray sky turns to blue and the white fog that hovers over of the bowl of the mountain’s jagged peaks gleam with a hint of yellow from the rising sun.

When we arrived in the actual village we were greeted by two little girls from the Lo Chai tribe, Chow and Mu, who walked along side us as we made our way to our hostel. Dressed in their traditional attire of indigo blue coats and leggings, they asked us questions about our family and life in America. Although, they carried woven baskets with souvenirs strapped to their back, they did not ask us to buy anything. Instead, they buttered us up with conversation and said they would stop by later once we were settled in.

It is heartbreaking to see children working from dawn until dusk because they have to help support their families in order to survive. The tragedy to this is that they miss out on their childhood. They miss out on the ability to play with friends, to use their imagination and to be sheltered from the hardships of reality. Your youth is one of life’s biggest gifts, and so many of these children never get to unwrap it.

With this tucked in the back of our minds, Suzanne and I thought it would be fun to take Mu and Chow on a picnic lunch to Cat Cat village. We could, for a day, give them a break from work so they could enjoy themselves. However, they didn’t understand this concept and wouldn’t accept the food we tried to buy them. (We even tried to buy them ice cream but Chow relayed a myth that if you eat ice cream when it’s hot outside that you would die! She said her father told her that. Eventually, at the end of our day trip they let us buy them noodle soup at the local market.)

As we walked to the village, we candidly talked about their lives in the nearby tribe.  Although 11, Mu looked like a child around the age of 8. She had a handful of brother and sisters, and her parents had a small farm as well as made silver jewelry to sell in town. During our walk, she asked me if I had a boyfriend. I said no. I asked her if she had a boyfriend. She said she was too young. However, when I asked what the typical age for marriage was she told me it was fifteen! Her sister, who was 16, was already married and had a small child. I’m 25, and I think I’m still to young to get married….

The entire day was wonderful. I did not cure cancer or disarm nuclear weapons, but I did hopefully bring a little joy to a young girl’s life. (Chow and Mu especially enjoyed the Washington picture book that I brought with me and gave them as a present, as well as the photo shoot Suzanne and I took of them at the waterfall where we made them do star jumps and goofy faces.)

Frequently, while traveling I’ve felt hopeless–in that I am only one person and my actions cannot bring much change. However, it is in these moments that I realize, the small actions do mean something. And, doing something, is better than nothing.

***Note that Chow and Mu, seem to be some of the luckiest children that we have met while travelling in southeast Asia, in that they live in a peaceful environment, are well fed, are part of a loving community and seem to be selling souvenirs as additional income for their family, not as their main mean of livelihood like the children in Cambodia.

Vietnam: Shopping in Ho’An July 30, 2008

Ho’An:Ho’An is a historical town, but needless to say I did not see anything outside of a 3 block radius as I spent 3 mind-numbing days shopping from morning to evening—no joke. Being the frugal shopper that I am, I can’t justify in buying something right away. Instead it takes me AGES, because I go to every store for a price and selection comparison. I’m always trying to get the most of my money by researching all my options before I make a final purchase, that way I get what I want and don’t have regrets on spending the money. In other words, “shopping” before purchasing. This drives some people mad. It drives me insane. On one hand, I like the fact that I am adamant about saving money any way I can. On the other hand, “over-shopping” can be such a waste of time leaving me feel like I’ve accomplished nothing. After all, it is just shopping…and I could be spending my time exploring a new city I may never see again. I am currently working on finding a balance to the guy/woman approach to shopping. You know the drill for a guy: enter store…see object…try object on (if even needed)…purchase…exit store and never think about it again. Instead I: enter store…scour entire store to “see” what is available….collect object(s)…try on…get friend’s approval…narrow down selection…try on again…debate over what to actually purchase and either 1) purchase with the possible intent of returning the product or 2) put the item on hold to “think about it” before going back to get it. This process is pure insanity. My mind definitely has more useful things to think about then strategic shopping.

Strategy aside, the actual tailoring experience in Ho’An was quite remarkable. And it was an “experience” in itself. You can have anything you want made. From coats and shirts, to jeans and shoes—you just point at a picture or tell the tailor what you want and within 24-48 hours you are back in the shop for a fitting. I’ve never had anything custom tailored before and it was like being a kid in a candy shop. In other words, to expound on that overused saying, my eyes became big, I salivated at the plentiful options before me and like a child wants to try every piece of candy, I greedily wanted every piece of clothing. The consequence of overeating/overspending are the same, at first you get a sugar/shopping high, then you get a stomachache from over indulgence. Fortunately, thanks to George Bush and his little incentive program, my stomach doesn’t hurt nearly as bad as it would have.

Traveller’s tip: Don’t get greedy. Figure out a budget and stick to it otherwise you will be buying clothes like a bulimic girl shovels down junk food. The best value for your money are jackets. I got 4 jackets made–a trench coat, two wool coats and a nice silk jacket all less than $120. For the 2 week travelers, shop away as that is better value than you will ever find at home. For the 2-8 month backpackers, remember $120 is a plane ticket or roughly about 24 nights of hostel accommodation in Southeast Asia….things add up!

Vietnam: Delat July 24, 2008

Delat: Delat is often described by guide books as looking similar to the French Alps in the springtime–they weren’t lying. The fresh crisp air was a stark contrast to anywhere else we have been in Southeast Asia. Since we’ve spent most of our days “glistening” from the humidity (a nicer term to describe “sweating our pores out and looking like we’ve just ran a 100 meter sprint “), Suzanne and I wholeheartedly welcomed the difference in climate and greatly anticipated the opportunity for comfortably trekking outdoors. During our second day in Delat, we had signed up for the famous “Easy Rider” tour and spent the day on a back of a motorcycle cruising past rice paddies, vegetable and flower farms and coffee plantations. As you can imagine I was quite content riding through paradise with the cool wind blowing through my hair like the girl from Top Gun (ha..ha..actually not quite as glamorous, because yes Mom, I did have a helmet on )

During the tour, we made a detour to a mountain where, kid you not, I probably could have kneeled and kissed the ground as I was so happy to be climbing again (Mark, get ready you have a new climbing partner!) Later on that afternoon, we stopped at a minority village where Suz and I tried to decipher the broken English of a tribe elder, and although we couldn’t make out what he was saying half the time, we did understand what he meant when he had us try the local rice wine which he stored in a pottery vase covered with grains of rice to keep in the moisture. We took a sip of this delicious wine through a plastic tube that resembled the kind you use to brew homemade beer.

We ended the tour by stopping at a flower farm filled with rows of vibrant orange and red Gerber daisies, sauntered through a garden filled with a variety of bonsai trees and was sprayed by the runaway splashes of a giant waterfall.  Needless to say, it was a wonderful day.

Vietnam: Mekong Delta, Saigon, Mui Ne Recap and Highlights July 10, 2008

Well, believe it or not I’ve tried to post a handful of times, but for some reason certain computers have not liked WordPress, so it has taken me until now to finally find a computer that works! Here is a quick recap of a few places I have been so far:

Mekong River Delta- Although we visited a coconut candy factory, honey farm and a rice paper factory, the highlight of the trip was by far the overnight boat cruise. Waking up at 5a.m. I peared out the tiny window from where I lay on top of a bunk bed. Before me bright shades of yellow, pink and orange splashed across the sky as though a bucket of paint was thrown into the air. Suzanne and I gingerally crawled out of bed and past the dormitory style bunk room where 10+ fellow travelers slept, and made our way to the top deck of the boat. Besides a gentleman from France, we had the deck to ourselves where we happily played the part of two photographers–capturing the changing colors of the sky in addition to the early morning commotion of the floating market.

Sitting in a cloth lawn chair with my feet propped up on the railing and my sarong wrapped around me I watched as a man woke up from his hammock strung off the rear of his boat. Hundreds of green lily pads floated by in clumps, but were pushed aside by the oars of small row boats steered by people from the mainland going to the market to get fresh vegetables and fruits to sell on shore or use in their restaurants. One boat pulled up alongside a larger double story vessel where coconuts where handed out a sun-stained, muddy window. The coconuts soon filled the inside of the smaller row boat leaving only enough room for the driver. Somewhere in the distance there was a loud purr of the motor engine. It reminded me of home and my father. As a child, on warm summer days as I played outside, the buzz of my father’s plane overhead was music to my ears, it was comforting like the distant sound of light jazz coming from an open window. A feeling of excitement would always rush through my body as I heard the engine’s motor come to a halt–this meant that the work day was over and dad would shortly be on his way home. The cut of the engine was also the cue to start dinner. Often times mom and I would sit on the patio furniture outside in the back yard shucking corn and shelling peas, which we had picked earlier from the garden. These simple summer nights were some of my fondest memories, and although a continent away and a decade past, these memories still bring a huge smile to my face.

Farther down the river I watched as a women in a yellow pant and matching sleeveless tank top sat on the edge of the back of the boat bathing herself with the muddy river water by using a red bucket attached to a string that was tied to the side of the boat. Dip and pour…dip and pour. Using the same routine, another woman in a nearby boat washed dishes, not seeming to mind that the leftover liquid in the bowl was of lighter color than the muddy brown water used to clean the bowl.

Besides the occasional karaoke boat and gasoline station (by station I mean 1 liter jugs of petrol lined on the back of a boat), the majority of the boats were selling fresh fruits and vegetables. In order to navigate efficiently through the market, the boats would raise a stick full of dragon fruit, cabbage and potatoes, for example, high into the air as we would a flag. This spear of fruits and veggies signified what the boat was selling that day. Forget banners, reams of paper or expensive printing costs—this was a simplified and Eco-friendly approach to effective advertising.

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) This is a city where there are almost as many motorbikes as there are people. The streets are packed to the brim with motorbikes, petal bikes and the “occasional” car. This is where I learned how to do the famous “Vietnam Stroll”…a.ka. saunter slowly into the middle of the street and let the motorbikes swerve around you. There are hardly any stop signs or stop lights–and, in this developing country anything goes–meaning a two lane street usually implies 5-6 motorbikes lined horizontally, competing against each other to gain the few extra meters of distance in the congested space (just to save 1 minute of driving time). This is where 2 adults and 2 children ride on the same motorbike–where, because they don’t have the trunk space of a car, anything and everything is strapped to the rear including common necessities like groceries and bags of clothing to bizarre objects like medical IV’s, and live pigs in cages.

The men and women looked like bank robbers racing along the paved streets as they escaped the smog filled air by covering their faces with masks that are actually quite fashionable and can be bought in every design, fabric and pattern imaginable. Helmets also follow the same prestige and can be purchased to look like sun hats or even in the same matching fabric as the seat of the moped. All and all, walking, driving and riding in this chaos is a highly dangerous act, but is also the most efficient, cost effective and liberating mean of transportation. (Still–I am trying to keep myself from being ground meat as I have met quite a few travelers with muffler burns or skinned legs!)

Mui Ne Since we were to arrive in Mui Ne around mid-night we pre-booked a hostel and upon arrival were greeted by a room full of “friends”. It was not quite the welcoming you may imagine. In fact, these four legged skirmish creatures, also known as cockroaches, were not quite welcomed by Suzanne and I, but because we were on a “budget”, instead of asking to change rooms we concocted a game of flick and throw. It is quite a complex game, requiring a rolled up piece of paper, a heavy magazine and muffled screams. Being the flicker, I had the important duty of scraping the cockroaches off of the bathroom door onto the bedroom floor as Suzanne hurriedly pushed them out the open door with the magazine. The object of the game was to get rid of of the cockroaches with the least amount of screaming. Apparently we weren’t too good at it, as the hotel manager soon came in and handed us a bottle of raid. We sprayed the room with the potent chemical to the point that my future children may be deformed someday, but at least I would be safe from cockroaches climbing on me while I slept that night. Wrong. Either the mosquito net was not tucked in properly or cockroaches are the smartest insect alive as one pesky creature made it through and woke me up in the middle of the night as I felt it crawl across my shoulder. Needless to say we checked out the following morning and surprisingly found a new hostel, cockroach free with a 90 degree view of the ocean for the same price! We spent the following 2 days in luxury, lounging on lawn chairs overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

On the second morning, we even rose from our slumber around 5a.m. and moved to the lawn chairs to watch the sunrise. The fishing boats the locals used were nothing like I’ve ever seen before, they were like little 1 man teacups floating in the water. Knowing that I would get fresh seafood, that night I splurged on an expensive dinner–spending $6 dollars for the most incredible chile/garlic bbq tuna fillet. (Typically I stick to the $1-2 dollar options of rice, noodles or fruit). One of these days I might even go “crazy” and splurge on the $10 lobster…we’ll see, as bad as I want it…in my mind that is still 2 nights accommodation!

Delat, Natrang, Ho’An, and Hanoi are still to come; however, I am being kicked off at the Internet cafe and I leave for a 2 day home stay at a minority village outside of Sapa tomorrow so I won’t be online for a few days! In anycase, I wanted to get a few things posted and more to come when I get back online!

I’m back! June 23, 2008

Unfortunately, the past few months I have spent more time updating my vivid daily journal and have been horrible at keeping my blog updated. But, by popular request (or actually stern prodding by my brother Mark), I promise to keep this updated more regularly so I can share the remainder of my travel experiences with family, friends, and fellow travelers. My great intentions to have this as a resourceful travel blog for other travelers may have to wait until I take my next round the world trip (and surprisingly yes, I’m already scheming it), as below I have just provided a number of posts recapping memorable moments in New Zealand (South Island), China, Thailand, Malaysia and Cambodia. Enjoy!

Where am I now? Suzanne and I arrived in Vietnam a few days ago and are heading down to the Mekong River Delta for three days to view the floating villages and explore more of the countryside before returning to Ho Chi Minh City. Stay tuned for more details!

Recap: Cambodia June 23, 2008

Each country I have been to thus far has affected me in it’s own unique way. New Zealand fed my hungry appetite for adventure and tramping in the outdoors. China presented me with a colorful history coupled with beautiful chaos. Thailand spoiled me with mouth-watering food and secluded tropical beaches. And, Malaysia showcased her natural beauty: sparkling beaches, fascinating wildlife and a breathtaking underwater world. Cambodia, by contrast, has revealed to me her horrific past and daily struggle to overcome tragedy. Traveling in Cambodia has, thus far, been the most emotional and inspirational country I have visited.

Prior to stepping foot in Cambodia, I read the novel “At First They Killed my Father,” by Loung Ung. This powerful book, told through the voice of a five year old child, takes the reader through the Khmer Rouge (1975-1979), a period in which Pol Pot rained terror over Cambodia, killing off 1/5 of the country’s total population through execution, starvation and forced labor. The regime mostly targeted those who had the potential to undermine the New State. They ruthlessly disposed of doctors, lawyers, teachers, former military members and intellectuals because they were seen as a threat–killing not only the individuals but entire families. Even people with glasses or soft hands were quickly disposed of.

Even after reading about Ung’s horrific experience, it still didn’t prepare me for the raw emotions and heartache that surged through every part of my body as I walked through Choeung Ek, also known as The Killing Fields, an area outside of Phnom Penh that was used to execute and bury thousands of innocent victims. Within the first 20 feet of the entrance stood a massive statue with over 8000 skulls lining the inside and a heap of clothes piled at the bottom. My head swirled and my stomach became queasy like i had just gotten off a boat on rough seas.

Our guide had us follow him to additional mass graves, where articles of tattered clothing could be seen poking out under the muddy path. He stooped down and picked up a human tooth that was lying on the ground as he explained the brutal torture methods used by the Khmer Rouge. To save bullets, adults were clubbed in the head with blunt instruments or their throats were sliced with the sharp edges of baby palm leaves. As for the babies, they tossed them into the air spearing them with their bayonet or held them like a baseball bat and hit them across a tree.

Throughout the tuk tuk ride to Tuol Sleng Museum, the former Tuol Svey Prey High School, I choked back tears but as I walked past row after row of the victims’ photos, I silently let them fall. Babies, children, teenagers and adults stared back at me with looks of fear, hatred, confusion and utter hopelessness–it was one of the most heartbreaking afternoons of my life.

Although horrific, going to The Killing Fields and museum helps to explain the current state of Cambodian society. It gave me perspective and understanding of why poverty levels are so high, infrastructure still poor, and education systems lacking. It is a nation rebuilding itself, trying to regain what was so brutally stripped from them only a mere 30 years ago.

Recap: Malaysia June 23, 2008

Malaysia: Highlights and Memories

West Malaysia

1. Walking the streets of Penang while marveling at the contrast between the old run down buildings, colonial architecture and Chinese temples mixed and mashed along side each other on the same street.

2. Drinking Malaysian coffee while listening to jazz music in a quaint little neighborhood cafe. This deep black roasted coffee could possible rival (dare I say) Italian espresso, it really is that good.

3. Miscalculating new currency.Suzanne eyed a beautiful piece of art at a shop on our way out to the Botanical Gardens.

“Wow, that’s only $20,” I exclaimed after converting 200 Ringgit to American dollars in my head. She agreed it was a steal of a price and within moments had the purchased piece of art in a sack as we walked out the shop door. About half a block away from the shop, Suzanne stops dead in her tracks.

“Wait!” She suddenly comments. “That wasn’t 20 dollars…that was 200 dollars!”

Ahh, yes…that would be correct. We were still in the mindset of Thai Baht, not Malaysian Ringgit.

4. Discovering the world’s most hidden jewel, the Perhentian Islands.What originally was going to be a three to four day stay at Perhentian Kecil turned into nine days. Life was too good. $5 for a bungalow off of a soft white sand, clear torquise water beach, who could ask for more?

5. Becoming fast and close friends with 20+ fellow travellers from around the world. We spent practically every moment together, swimming, playing volleyball, talking about life/travels, snorkeling, and thinking up amusing ways to pass the time–like digging a 4 foot hole to play charades in or dressing up in ferns and flowers for a night out. The best part of travelling is the people I have met along the way and the surprising tight bond of friendship I have formed in such a short time.

6. Touching a wild sea turtle! We spent the afternoon on a snorkeling tour around the island where we saw reef sharks, vibrant shades of coral, a variety of fish and my favorite, a sea turtle. I hovered over the turtle as it lazily glided below me. Then, as it came up for air, I swam right alongside it, hand caressing the smooth shell until it began it’s decent to deeper depths. It was in that moment, that I knew I wanted to explore more of the underwater world.

East Malaysia (Borneo)

1. Watching the cute orange Organgutans at the Sepiloc Orangutan Sanctuary. With their long arms and slow graceful strides they made their way along a rope tied between two trees to where the bananas and milk awaited for them. I felt like a child at a zoo intently watching their every move.

2. Spending three days exploring the Kinabatangan River and jungle. I sat in a small motor boat as it slowly moved alongside the shores of the jungle. From a distance we saw tree fulls of Long Tail Macaws and Proboscis monkeys swinging among the branches, squabbling over food, and lazily sleeping in the nooks of the trees. A Spitting Cobra snake glided through the water, our boat tailing it closely–I waited in fear for it to leap from the water and bite me. Small crocodiles with their eyes peaking up from the muddy banks of the river seemed to glare at us as we continued on.

During our walk through the jungle, I stomped through the muddy trail in my rubber boots like a 5 year old child–I enjoyed the feeling of getting dirty. Variety of bugs lined the floors and sunlight shone down in beams through the small open spaces of the trees. We left the path and went on a hunt in search of the wild orangutan making rustling noises nearby. Our guide, chopped down leaves with his machete as we followed behind. My arms and legs covered head to toe, were still attacked by leeches that “leeched” out at us from tree leaves like a small child reaching for it’s mother.

3. Getting my PADI Certification and diving in Sipidan, one of the top 5 dive spots in the world. Ed, our English instructor extraordinaire, led Suzanne and I to depths of up to 18 meters where a whole new world awaited all this time. Before me stood a reef containing hundred of thousands of different types of coral: pale pink shaped mushrooms, squishy red tubes and elephant ear sized discs just to name a few. Swimming past me where Angel and Parrot fish while lobsters with their long antennas peaked out from the holes in the rocks. Little Nemos shyly hid in the anemone while Green and Hawksbill turtles lazily moved past, holding my gaze until they disappeared out of sight. Ed had us tickle a Garden eel’s head and pointed to a pregnant pufferfish swimming past. A blackfrog fish blended perfectly into the midnight color coral and as for the crocodile fish, I almost mistook it for grains of sand.

When I thought it simply couldn’t get any better, a school of a 1000+ barracuda swam overhead, casting a shadow that blocked out the sunlight that shone from above. The glittering silver fish glided past as I watched in complete awe, it is a moment I will never forget.

As our dive came to a close we moved up to 5 meters for our 5 minute stop, playing underwater sports games to pass the time. I wound my body up and threw Suzanne a pitch. As she hit the invisible ball, Ed dove to his side and made an impressive “catch.” Moments later we were swinging golf clubs and watching them fly into the distance.

Diving. I think I have found my new addiction.

*A shout out to Suzanne for being the best diving “buddy” ever!*