I had a good day again yesterday. I went to another recruitment agency to sign up, and they said there is a chance of some work coming up next week. The girls were really nice and friendly there, I think it was the best agency I've been to yet, I even got a good tip on where to buy some 'corporate' work clothes, so of course I went there after and had a look! It was a factory outlet place for one of the good department stores here. I could have actually bought the whole shop, they had some great stuff there and at really good prices. In the end though I had to limit myself...I bought 2 jackets, a pair of trousers and a skirt...all for under 80 pounds...bargain, I'm going to have to go back there sometime!!

When I got back, we went to pick up Sue from work and then went for a quick dinner at an Italian before going to the North Sydney Boys High school (which is where Sue and Grants son goes) to watch a concert. I didn't really know what to expect, but I ended up having a really good night. The school has 3 jazz bands, and the advanced one played last night, they played the first few songs and I was really impressed, the music was really cool. Then their special guest James Morrison came on stage, he's really well known here and has played the Sydney opera house amongst other venues. After the interval the boys band left the stage and James Morrison played with his band. I did enjoy this, but I actually preferred the first half best. Actually the drummer was very good and at one point when he was doing his drum solo he walked off the stage and was actually drumming on the stage, on the walls, and everywhere else, that was very enjoyable!!

It was a bit of a late night last night, and I'd drunk a few wines, so I was feeling a bit groggy this morning. I got up earlyish and went to the gym and did a yoga class thinking it would be quite relaxing....of course it wasn't at all, it was very hard work, but I felt better afterwards. I've just been sat in the back garden all afternoon, it's a gorgeous day, and it's supposed to be carrying on like this for the whole weekend, so maybe I'll get to see the beach on Sunday, at long last ;o)

Wow, what a busy last few days...I don't know where the time has gone!!

We had a lovely Easter dinner upstairs on Sunday evening, there was 10 of us and as usual it was a really good laugh. I've never really had the big family occasions, so it's a really nice experience for me.

The last 2 days I've spent in the city walking from recruitment agency to recruitment agency, it's really hard work I tell you as you spend probably 1.5 hrs in each one having the interviews and the tests etc...and my feet are killing me from walking around! I found out yesterday that it's preferable to have closed toe shoes and a smart jacket if you want to work in the city, which of course I haven't got with me, so I've spent lots of time trying to find those as well, it's not cheap this looking for work business!! I have had a couple of jobs come up, I went for an interview this morning at Woolworths (it's a bit different than the UK one, it's more of a supermarket here) the post was in the legal dept which I was a bit wary about, anyway, they wanted someone with legal experience, which I haven't got. That was a pain, cos I was up at 5.30 to make sure I got to the interview for 8am, feeling a bit sleepy now!! Anyway, I'm not too worried, I've had some more positive feedback from other agencies, so we'll see what happens. I managed to find the strength to go to the gym when I got back this afternoon and I'm aching now!

More news.....I've just spoken with the guy about the flat in the city center I mentioned before... I decided on Sunday I would take it, and I was just waiting for his return call before I told you about it. He has said that he's going to put a phone in so I will be able to make local calls and long distance calls with a phone card, which is great news, and also, he's looking about getting a TV put in there too, so I'm quite excited I'm moving in on Saturday ;o) I'll be sad to leave Sue and Grants as they've treated me so well and been really generous...but I'll still go round and see them lots....if they'll have me!!!

The sun is finally here!!
What a hot day today, this is what Australia is all about!! The family came back last night from their holiday so today I went with the kids to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, which is Australia's largest annual event. It celebrates everything from Australia's bush heritage to the latest in entertainment. We saw a few of the shows there for example, pig racing, sheepdog trials, woodcutting and freestyle motocross. The best bit though was the fairground, Jess and I got quite addicted to one of the poker games where I won not just one.....

.....but two prizes!!

I gave Jess the dog, so she was quite chuffed!

So we've just got back to the house now and I'm a bit sunburnt, it was such a beautiful day ;o)

Had another early start today, Kath took me to the supermarket this morning....Misty was running out of cat food! I went into the city pretty much straight afterwards, I had phoned up about another flatshare last night, so I had 3 to see today. The first one I saw was full of hippies, they seemed nice, but the house wasn't very nice and the room was really tiny, plus just 1 bathroom between 4 people.....so onto the next one. This one was just around the corner, first impression it was on a busy main road, so not good anyway, the house was ok, but the guy really creeped me out, I felt so uncomfortable in there on my own with him, I couldn't wait to get out!! so no luck there either. The walk to the houses was quite interesting, I hadn't been to that side of the city before, there were lots of mad people walking about shouting to noone in particular and it's obviously a gay area. After seeing these two places I started to get a bit disheartened, so I didn't have any hopes about the next place, but as it turns out I was pleasantly suprised. It was a Victorian terraced house split into 2 apartments, the landlord has converted the top 2 or 3 floors for himself and the bottom 2 floors are for his tenants. It's all been newly renovated, and is really clean which is good. There are 2 bedrooms which he is going to rent out, there are a couple of downpoints though, as I can't afford to live on my own, I was hoping to get to meet some people through a flatshare, but there is no communal lounge area there, so each room is pretty much self sufficient (apart from the seperate kitchen) so I don't know if we'll just keep to ourselves, also there is no phone or TV, but apart from that it's ok, plus I don't have to give lots of notice when I move out, so I could always move in there and still keep looking. The best thing though is the location, it's right in the city centre, literally a stones throw from the shops and the price is very good too. He said for me to think about it tonight and give him a ring tomorrow, anyway, he may even decide not to give me the room, I'll have to see. So I had a pretty good day, it gave me an idea of what properties in the city are like and what the prices are.

I'm glad something positive came out of it, I was feeling a bit down earlier. I'm really missing my family and friends and my life in Munich, I guess I'm just feeling lonely cos I haven't been out and met any people my age yet, so I'll be glad once I get a job and I settle in a bit. Apart from that things are going great ;o)

The weather has cheered up a bit ;o) yesterday was a really nice warm day (as long as you were in the sun) I was up early to go to the gym for my induction, I then spent about another hour there doing my exercises so I'm a bit stiff today! It's a really nice modern gym (Fitness First), they do lots of different classes, so I'm looking forward to trying those out.

When I got back I spent the afternoon sending my CV off to the recruitment agencies, unfortunately I forgot that it's Easter weekend and they won't be open now until Tuesday, so I'm going to have to wait until I hopefully hear something back.

Today I went into the city again, I thought I would go to the King's Cross area which is where all the backpackers go to stay. I'd heard that they put postings of jobs and flat shares in the hostels, I went into quite a few, but they only share the ads with people that are staying with them...which I guess is only fair. I went into one hostel to find out how much it would cost to stay there long term, the guy at reception was asking me all sorts of questions, like where I was from (he actually knows Bournemouth) then he was asking who did my hair....then he asked if I could sing!! He said he was looking for a singer.....yeah right, I just said, I'll see you then! Kings Cross is a red light area, so as you can imagine it's a bit seedy, I didn't like being there at all.

So I walked back into town, through Hyde park....it's like being in London, all the names are the same! Absolutely nothing was open today, it reminded me of Munich on a public holiday, mind you it wasn't quite as bad as Munich cos not even any of the cafes or restaurants were open which I was really suprised about, well Hungry Jacks (Burger King) was open, so I got myself a veggie burger....I had no choice!!

I had picked up a few leafets on my way through the hostels, so I've just been doing a bit more research on the internet since I've been back. I've actually got a flat to look at tomorrow and a couple more to phone today, so fingers crossed!

Back to the weather, it was lovely this morning, but the wind is getting up again and the skies are black...great!!

Hyde Park

Rain, rain, rain....

We were lucky cos the storm didn't really happen in the end last night, it was pretty windy and very rainy, but I think the coastal areas were affected more. It's funny, this weather is actually making me homesick!

I joined a gym today!! I walked there this morning and got absolutely soaked on the way even though it's only a 10 minute walk. The thing that gets me here is there are hardly ever any pavements in the suburbs, so you end up having to walk in the road! Anyway, back to the gym, my plan was just to do the 7 days free trial and then have a think about joining, but you know what those sales people are like once they get you there! I ended up paying for next month, but I do get a 2 week trial, so I can cancel it if I like and it's a pay as you go, so I'm not obliged to stay for a year. I just really miss doing my exercise after all this time!!

After that I managed to finally get my photos put onto the internet (see links on the right) that took me a fair while to get sorted. Then I walked to the supermarket to stock up. It's so cool how friendly and polite everyone is here, whenever you go in a shop, they always say 'hi, how are you' without fail, like I said before, it's a bit like being in the States!

I had a mail yesterday from a Kiwi guy I met in Munich last year, he's given me a contact of a friend of his here, apparently he wants to teach me to surf....well that could be interesting, will have to give that a try!!

I'm going to open a bottle of wine now and watch a film (free films are one of the perks of the gym!)

Oh, and I had a breakthrough with Misty the cat last night, she jumped up on the sofa and fell asleep on my knee...and I thought she didn't like me!

Yesterday was pretty quiet, apart from me spending about 4 hours getting through all the shops in the shopping mall up the road! I picked up some really good bargains too, I think I've got most of the things now that I need to get me through the next few months.

Last night I went to Kaths upstairs for dinner, her nephew had arrived earlier in the day. She cooked Flathead fish, which is an Australian fish, it was delicious.

Today I went into the city again with Richard (Kaths nephew) we started off by going to Darling Harbour and we took a walk through Chinatown, which didn't take long cos it's not very big. Then we got on the monorail and did a circuit of the city, it was good to see it from a higher viewpoint. We got off at the city center as we wanted to go up the Sydney tower, but by the time we got there the weather had taken a turn for the worse so we decided we didn't really want to spend all that money and not be able to see much so we didn't bother with that.

We had some lunch in one of the many food courts before walking down to Circular Quay. By this time it was really raining quite badly, so we thought we would go to the Opera house and do one of the guided tours. Close up the outside of the Opera house was not what I expected, the roof is covered with ceramic tiles (1 million of them) and the buildings are actually all separate above ground level. The tour lasted about an hour, within that time we sat in the concert Hall (the largest interior venue there) before we went in there I was thinking that the inside foyers were not all that impressive, I expected it to be more luxurious, but when we got into the concert hall I was very impressed! It is actually designed primarily for acoustic performances. The floor and the ceilings and all the chairs are made of wood so the acoustics bounce off of it, there is a massive organ at the back with something like over 100 pipes (the biggest of its kind in the world) they have seats all the way around the stage, so you can even sit at the back of the orchestra when they play. I'm definitely going to try and book a ticket to see a performance whilst I'm here, it's just got to be done. After that we walked next door to the opera theatre, that was a lot smaller than I expected, the acoustics there are designed for operatic perfomances. Next was a visit to the Uzton room, which is the first interior designed by the original architect Jorn Uzton (he was kicked of the project just after the shell of the building was completed because of going over budget and over time) he only recently designed this room, and it's only been open for 3 months.

So that was a good rainy day touristy thing to do, we then caught the bus back home. I've now just fed the cat and she promptly threw it all back up again!! I couldn't clean it up myself, everytime I went near it it made me feel bad, so I had to go and ask Kath to help me! I felt a bit silly, but I just couldn't do it, luckily she's used to it cos the kids always get her to clean it up for them!!

I've been invited for dinner again tonight, so I'm just off up there now.

I"ve just listened to the news, they're expecting 125km per hour winds and storms in Sydney tonight, I can't believe this weather...in fact noone can, apparently it hasn't rained here for about 12 months!!

Well, the last couple of days I haven't done so much as I've been sick, must have been the drop in temperature, anyway, I'm feeling a lot better today. I'm here on my own now, the family have gone to New Zealand for a week, so it's just me and the cat, Misty. It's ok looking after her, the only thing is she keeps waking me up at 6.30 in the morning by scratching on my bedroom door, not sure if she's trying to get in or if she wants her breakfast, I feed her anyway!

Misty

Today I was up early, the weather is now not so cold and it's stopped raining which is great. I caught the bus into the city. It's a nice journey as the bus goes over the Harbour Bridge and you always get to see the Opera House. Everytime I see it, I'm amazed I'm actually here! I walked down to Circular Quay, which is where the Opera house and all the ferries are, I jumped on a ferry to Darling Harbour and took some photos on the way (sorry they're a bit wonky, the boat was up and down!)

sorry, I went a bit mad with pics of the opera house!!

So my first stop after that was Paddy's market, which is a very large indoor market, I walked around there for an hour or so, didn't really buy much though, apart from 3 pairs of socks and some cashew nuts....exciting!!

After that I walked back into the centre to the Queen Victoria building. It's a really amazing building (built in 1898) which has been turned into a shopping centre, it has been described by Pierre Cardin as the most beautiful shopping centre in the world! It's so big, so I took ages looking around there, the clothes here are quite nice, and the prices aren't too bad. I'm really desperate for some new clothes as I've only brought a limited supply with me cos of my travelling beforehand! I did manage to find a couple of tops, I also got myself an Australian SIM card for my phone, which will help me to be contactable in my job hunt.

I have got my CV up together now, I've just got to send it to some agencies and see what comes up, I'm planning on working for a couple of months and then heading up North for a few weeks when winter arrives in June. I'm also looking for a flatshare in the city as I have to stand on my own 2 feet at some point, it'll be good though cos I'll hopefully meet lots of people.

Sue's mum (who lives upstairs) has just been down to tell me that her nephew is coming over from New Zealand tomorrow for a week. He's never been here before so we'll probably go and see some sights together, so that will be a bit of company for me.

I bought some potatoes today, so I'm just going now to make myself a nice baked potato, mmmmm.....

Travel update
so far I've flown 16,253 miles

Sydney harbour bridge in the rain

more photos on the way......

Had a nice evening yesterday. We started off with drinking a bottle of wine at home (my kind of people!) Then Grant, his wife Sue, her mum and Jess took me to their local Italian restaurant for dinner, I had my first BYO experience (bring your own bottle) apparently it's really common to do that here.....we took 2 bottles of wine. It was a really fun evening, they are all very nice people and I had a laugh with them.

I was so tired later on that I had to go to bed just before 10. I managed to get a good nights sleep, but unfortunately I woke up with a stinking cold :-( It's quite cold and rainy here at the moment, it's supposed to be like this for the next 5-6 days (it's only 21 degrees, which is cold from what I've been used to for the past 5 weeks) so that might be why I've come down with something. Anyway, Grant took me on the bus into the city center, it only takes half an hour to get there which isn't too bad, he says they hardly ever venture into the city. We saw quite a lot there, I got a really good first impression of Sydney. Lots of cool shops, I saw the Harbour bridge, the Opera House, and lots of other parts of the city, we were walking around for over 3 hours, trouble was it was raining all day, so we both got a bit wet!! We saw lots of people spilling out of the pubs celebrating St Paddys day. It hasn't really sunk in that I'm here yet, obviously seeing the harbour helped a bit, but it all seems a bit surreal somehow.

It reminds me a bit of America here, there are shopping malls everywhere, and cafes, restaurants, loads of take away food places with the most loveliest looking foods, theres no way I'm going to be able to lose any weight whilst I'm here. Mind you saying that, I picked up a leaflet today for a 7 day trial at the Fitness First gym, so I'm going to go there next week. Grant and his family are off to New Zealand for a week tomorrow, so I'm going to have to fend for myself, but that's a good thing really.

When we were at the shops yesterday I saw loads of Easter eggs, I actually hadn't realised it was Easter next weekend, that's how out of touch I've been!!

Australia- Sydney, finally here...
I'm finally here in Sydney after a couple of pretty scary flights. The first one from Bangkok to Singapore was awful, it was so bumpy, I was almost in tears (I'm really not a good flyer at the best of times) The mistake I made was I didn't take my tablets to relax me, so I got myself in a right state, plus I was a bit poorly maybe from something I'd eaten, so it really wasn't nice at all. The second flight was a lot smoother, but still really bumpy in parts, apparently it's like that a lot when you fly in the tropics, at least now I haven't got to fly again for a while!!
The landing was quite spectacular, about 30 mins before we touched down just above the dark clouds we could see strips of orange, yellows and blues, and then we saw the sun coming up whilst flying past the Harbour bridge and the Opera house, that was quite an experience, it made the flight all worthwhile.
So I was picked up at the airport by Grant, the flight came through a bit early so he wasn't at the gate right away, I did panic a bit cos I wasn't 100% sure what he looked like! Anyway, we found each other in the end. I've met his son and daughter now, it's funny meeting family that I've never seen before! They are all really nice and friendly and have made me feel really welcome. I had a sleep for a couple of hours, then we went to a shopping mall for some groceries, I'm looking forward to going back there and spending a bit more time (and money!)
We're going out for dinner tonight, we're eating Italian which I haven't had for over a month so I'm looking forward to that.

A few hours and a dream is realised...

Australia... woohoo

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Arrival in Singapore GMT + 8.00) - Next stop Australia...
Hiya in Singapore now, what a horrible flight, was so bumpy, just about to board, don't want to fly again! x.
(received Tues lunch 13:00 GMT+1)

Last day in Thailand :-(

I had a really good day yesterday, I met up with Ric in the morning, he looks really well, he's got a suntan and he's lost a lot of weight. Was nice to see him, he sounds like he's really enjoying Thailand...I can't blame him!

We started off by getting the bus into the city centre, I wouldn't have dared getting on a bus on my own, but he obviously knew where he was going. We spent some time walking around there, it was absolutely packed and sooo hot there, but it was good to see. We went to this massive shopping mall and spent ages walking around there, they have so much tacky stuff to sell it's unbelievable.

After we'd been there we met up with Ric's Thai friend, Nong, she is visiting from Chang Mai. We both wanted to do a river cruise along the Chao Phraya river, so we booked a long tail boat and spent 2.5 hours sailing along there. I was so amazed at how many houses there are along the river, some are really nice, but others are not so great. All the families were waving at us as we went past.

That was our day spent, so after that Ric took us to a Thai restaurant on the pier, I got to try some food I never would have tried before which was a good experience, my mouth was burning for ages after I can tell you!! When we'd finished dinner, we went to The Shamrock!! (nothing like the one in Munich!) they had a live band playing, so we had a couple of beers and watched them. We had good fun, Nong's English was excellent, she's a really nice girl, it was nice to meet a Thai person. I've learnt a bit of Thai too, only Hello, Thank you and Cheers, it's taken the whole time I've been here for the words to actually sink in!! I'm really sad to leave here, but I'm definitely coming back in the future where I hope to see some more of the country.

So, I'm just off to meet Ric again, he's coming to the airport with me as he's got a friend that works there. I've got a couple of things to do before I leave, got a little bit more money to spend!!! so until next time.....

Back in Bangkok....

I've just stuffed myself with spring rolls and Thai curry...yum!

I arrived in Bangkok early this morning, I left Koh Phangan yesterday at midday. The journey was pretty uneventful, although I met lots of people again. Dídn't sleep too well, there were a few snorers on board!!

I saw the Orient Express today, it was in the train station when we arrived, it looked really posh, would have loved to have gone and had a look inside, it was headed to Singapore.

I booked a hotel room at the same place as I was when I first came to Bangkok, I just couldn't resist their yummy breakfasts, and I thought I'd treat myself to a nice place as I'd been slumming it a bit over the last 2 weeks! I've been put in the new wing this time, so it's even nicer than my room before, and I've got a double and a single bed in there. Mind you saying it's nicer, I was walking down the stairs earlier and I saw a massive rat scuttle across the floor...that made me scream I can tell you!! Luckily I'm staying on the top floor, so hopefully no rats would venture up that far!

Today I thought I'd do a bit of shopping, I picked up a couple of skirts, a couple of tops, a pair of flip flops and a CD. I probably only spent about 7 pounds for the lot, still not sure how I'm going to get them in my rucksack mind, but I'll worry about that on Tuesday! Got my laundry done again too.

I had a message from Ric and I'm meeting him tomorrow morning, I hope he'll show me some good sights. I really want to go to the Patpong area, just for the experience, maybe I can persuade him to go tomorrow night, I want to go out with a blast as it'll be my last night here...off to Sydney on Tuesday, I can't wait ;o)

SMS Message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Thailand GMT + 7.00) - Back in Bangkok
Hi, just arrived in Bangkok. In a room with air con and hot water... bliss! Speak soon xx.
(received Sun Morning 00:00 GMT+1)

Had another great night last night, I started off by having dinner and watching a film (you have to do that as noone goes out till late) I met an English guy who was sat on my table, so we went down to the bars on the beach and had a few more buckets of vodka!! I bumped into lots of people I'd met the other night so it turned out to be another good night, I was home about 5ish again!! Its funny, I haven't actually met many females yet, they don't seem to travel on their own and they stick to their groups.

Just spent today relaxing on the beach (again) although it was far too hot to sit directly in the sun, I was sat in the shade most of the day. I've just treated myself to a pedicure (my feet look really pretty now!!) and an hour long Thai massage, well I had to whilst I'm here!! It was not what I expected at all, it was actually quite painful sometimes, they manipulate different parts of your body....they even use their feet to apply pressure! I must say though now I'm feeling really loose and relaxed, but I can imagine I might be a bit bruised tomorrow!! It only cost me 4 pounds for the lot, I might treat myself to a manicure when I get back to Bangkok (what a life eh!!)

I'm leaving Koh Phangan tomorrow morning, getting the ferry to Surat Thani and then the long train ride back to Bangkok. I can't believe my time in Thailand is nearly over, I'm going to be so sad to leave, I just love it here!! I've been away just 4 weeks now, it feels a bit like forever, but then again it's gone really quick too (if that makes any sense)

Quiet night for me tonight....well thats the plan anyway!!

What a brilliant night last night! I take it back what I said about it here, it's actually really cool. I took a walk through the town after dinner and I found all the bars put tables and chairs out onto the beach and thats where everyone goes. It doesn't really kick off till 11pm, but I'm really glad I stuck around. I met loads of people there, firstly I was talking to an American guy then he took me over and introduced me to all his Aussie mates, we had such a laugh, we were drinking whisky, coke and Red bull from a bucket, don't know how many we had, but needless to say I got quite drunk! Then we started dancing and I met even more people, everyone was really cool and friendly, I'm so glad I came here. I didn't get to bed till 5.30 this morning, I'm absolutely knackered now, I only had 5 hours sleep, wanted to get up reasonably early so I could get down the beach. Today was a scorcher, not really the best conditions for a hangover but I struggled through, I must have gone in the sea a million times to try and cool down. I stayed on the beach till 5ish, it was quite funny just before I left I was watching the little crabs poking their heads out of the sand and then looking around and then scurrying back in the sand again, was quite cute!

I'm just going to watch a film at the restaurant tonight, no buckets of alcohol tonight!!
I can't believe I saw those Israeli guys here last night, they arrived here on the same day as me, it's funny how you see the same people around and about, they've just walked in the internet cafe now actually, keep seeing them everywhere!

Koh Phangan - Another day, another island...

It was an early start yesterday to get to the pier for the 9am ferry. I managed to get a songthaew (local taxi/pick up truck type thing) I met a couple of Phillipinos who were really chatty, they were working at the resort just up from where I was staying. When it was time to get on the ferry, I thought, is that it??! it was very small, luckily the sea didn't look so rough so I thought it would be ok...little did I know that once we were a bit out of the harbour, the sea would get a lot rougher. That was another scary 45 mins, the boat was rocking all over the place, I had white knuckles from holding onto the seat so tight. I don't think I want to get in another boat ever, but I have to get the ferry back on Saturday, I'm dreading it!!
So anyway, I got another songthaew (I managed to get the price lowered too...I am getting good at this bartering) it was only a 15 min drive, but it was quite hairy, its a really hilly island and the roads aren't finished yet. After a couple of attempts, I found myself a bungalow (again for only 4 pounds a night) It seemed nice and big and clean, so I thought I'd take it....I'll come back to that later!
Took myself to the beach for the afternoon, it's quite a narrow beach which I was a bit disappointed about, but as the day went on, the tide went further out, so by the end of the day there was quite a lot of beach. I'm not quite sure what to make of it here yet, it's very touristy (which I don't really like) and it seems to be full of posers and hippys... not really my cup of tea. I decided to come to this resort as I'd heard it has one of the nicest beaches, but I found out it's a really big party town (I sound like I'm getting old don't I!) but I'm sure it'll grow on me.
So after the beach I went back to the bungalow and read for a while, then just as I was getting ready to go out I saw a lizard pop down through a crack in the ceiling and then pop back out again... well I didn't like that! It was only then that I noticed the ceiling tiles have not been fitted properly and there are lots of cracks and holes. I started to have a bit of a panic, so I grabbed the toilet roll and spent the next 30 mins stuffing paper in all the holes! Then I had to try and put my mosquito net up somehow (there was nothing above my bed to hang it from) so I did a bodge job and managed to stick it under one of the ceiling tiles, then I tucked it under the mattress as tightly as I could. They're not going to get me whilst I'm sleeping if I can help it!
When I sorted that out I just had a quiet night at the resort restaurant. I ate Pad Thai (recommendation from Alison, thanks Al) which was really nice. I watched a couple of films they were showing, National Treasure and Starsky and Hutch. Most of the restaurants show films each night, but they're the dodgy DVD copies. They play them in English with English subtitles, I tell you, that was funny in itself, the way the Thais have understood what the characters are saying, hilarious, especially Starsky and Hutch, I found reading the subtitles funnier than watching the film!
I managed to get some sleep last night, although what with worrying about the insects and the noisy men next door (I've never heard people talking so loud) I woke up god knows how many times, they were talking (well shouting) practically all night, I even heard them at 6.30 this morning, hope its better tonight otherwise I'll have to find my earplugs!
Spent today sunning it again, I'm slowly getting browner, although I'm going for the longlasting, slow tanning approach, but another day of using factor 30 today and I've decided to go down a couple of factors, the thing is I can't rub the stuff in, I just get white streaks...and I can't even wash it off properly cos I only have cold water...what I wouldn't give for a warm shower!!
Anyway, I think I've gone on enough, time for dinner.

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Thailand GMT + 7.00) - Arrival in Koh Phangan
Hiya. Got here ok, was a bumpy ride! Found a decent bungalow and just sat on the beach now. Cu
(received Mon Morning 9:00)

Koh Samui - washing day...
Not much going on here really. Last night was a bit strange, most of the pubs were closed, and the ones that weren't were not selling any alcohol, apparently it was because of the local election day....so my Saturday night wasn't very good at all!
Today wasn't much fun either, I was a bit poorly in the middle of the night, so I didn't sleep very well. I felt much better this morning so I managed to get up early to catch some sun, but it was really cloudy and windy and then it started to rain again a bit in the afternoon. I heard there was a boat accident near Phuket yesterday and 40 people died, I'm not suprised as the sea has been really rough, I'm heading off to Koh Phangan tomorrow, which is about an hours ferry ride, so I'm a bit dubious about that, I hope the weather calms down a bit, don't want to have another boat trip like Friday.
I managed to get my laundry done this morning, it only cost me a pound and it's so nice to have lovely clean clothes (it's not the same when you have to wash them in the sink!) I feel really fresh again now!
Well, I've got an early start tomorrow, so I'm going to have a drink, then off to bed.

Rainy days...
I was rudely awakened this morning by a massive storm and torrential rain, typical, I was just saying yesterday that I hadn't seen any rain for over 3 weeks!! I'm really bored today, theres not much to do here when it's raining, I can't even get my laundry done cos it won't dry, I'm running out of clothes! Actually it was quite good that it was raining cos I managed to get a lie in.
I've just been for long leisurely lunch at one of the restaurants, a guy I met a few days ago walked past and decided to join me, so that wasted an hour or two. Now I'm at a loose end so thought I'd come back to the internet cafe.
I met up with Riggs last night for some food, I walked past a place that did baked potatoes and I just had to have one with lots of cheddar cheese, it's been over 3 weeks after all and I was getting cravings! It was worth the wait. We went to a couple of bars after, it's such a funny experience going to these places...the amount of girls that work behind every bar goes from about 7 - 15 and the Western men just love them. The girls call them over and pay them loads of attention, and you can play Connect 4 or Jenga with them, then most of the time the guys take the girls home with them...it's so funny to watch. The amount of old men I've seen with young Thai girls, in fact lots of young guys have them as girlfriends too. We had a couple of games there and then went to the Friday night foam party, I'd never been to one before so that was funny, I had to go home pretty soon after that cos I was shattered from the days tour. I had fun with Riggly though, it was nice to see a friendly face again.

Koh Samui - Sea Safari
What a great day we had today. It was an early start again, we were picked up at 7.45. After we picked everyone up we headed for the pier to get our boat for the day where we had breakfast and headed on our way. First stop was Ang Thong National Marine Park, we got off the boat there and walked up lots of really high steps for ages until we got to the top view point, and what a view it was, it overlooked the Emerald Lagoon, which was every bit as green as the name suggests, I hope my photos come out ok.
After that we hiked back down and had a well deserved dip in the sea. Next was canoeing along the coast of Mae Ko Island. What a laugh that was, I was sharing with Riggly, we all set off at the same time, the idea was that we canoe into all these caves and crevices, anyway, we were absolutely rubbish at it, I don't know which one of us was rowing the wrong way, but we kept ending up going around in circles, we just couldn't seem to get in a straight line!! Needless to say, we were way behind everyone else....then the wind started up and we were rowing and rowing with all our might and we just weren't getting anywhere, it was hilarious, I was crying with laughter it was so hysterical, and that made me lose all my energy even more!! Eventually all the guys came back through a cave and saw us still in the same place, they thought that was extremely funny. We decided to swap places after that and Riggs got in the front and we seemed to make a bit more headway, and we actually managed to go through a couple of caves...about time! I haven't laughed so much in ages, the guy from the main boat even came back to see if we wanted to get taken back there, but we were determined to do at least something! So when we finally got to shore we did some snorkelling, I was quite disappointed though as the water wasn't clear at all, so we could hardly see anything, and it was my first time too :-(
After that adventure it was time to head back to Koh Samui, which should have taken us 1 and a half hours, but in the end took us over 2, the sea was so rough for the whole trip, the waves were massive, I tell you I was pretty scared at first, the front of the boat kept crashing against the waves and we were getting pushed all over the place, that lasted most of the trip back, it was mad! I'm still feeling now like I'm on the boat and it's over 3 hours later, not a nice feeling...I'm so glad the crew had some sea sickness tablets, it was pretty awful! As you can imagine I was really relieved to get back onto dry land.
The last stop was to do some elephant trekking, that was pretty cool. We fed them bananas, that was a funny experience as they kept spitting over our hands when we fed them.
So it's been quite a long day, I'm off to meet Riggs now for some food and a few drinks, he's heading off to Pataya tomorrow, but we might meet up again in Bangkok before I go.
I hope this going up and down feeling goes away soon!!

Koh Samui - Island tour
Today was a good day, got picked up by the tour bus at 9am where I met Riggly. The tour of the island was really worth doing, we got to see most of it. We started off by going to Wat Plai Leam (temple) it was only built last year though and it wasn't really very impressive. Next it was to visit Big Buddha, which is a massive gold statue that overlooks the sea, it's supposed to watch over the people of Koh Samui and bring whoever visits it good luck. We saw a monkey show where the monkeys are trained to climb up the palm trees and throw down the coconuts, that was pretty cool, plus we got to have our photos taken with the monkey on our arm!! They gave us some fresh coconut and some coconut water which was yummy, I also bought some coconut oil, it smells gorgeous but I think I've got a long way to go to get enough of a tan to be able to wear it on the beach without burning!!! We also saw a mummified monk, apparently he was 80 years old when he found out he had a vision was going to die within a couple of months so he asked for his body to be mummified... this was 32 years ago, was a bit creepy actually. We saw Grandmother and Grandfather Rock by the sea, the brochure nicely calls them 'Unusual stone formations' but basically they look like the male and female genitalia, was quite funny to see them, and you can imagine I got a few funny photos of Riggs with them! After that was the Namuang Waterfall and then our last stop was the Nathon town for a quick look around. Was a cool day, I really enjoyed it, we've just booked another tour for tomorrow which I'm really excited about, so watch this space....

Koh Samui - a peaceful sunrise...
Had a fun night again last night, I met up with all the guys and we had a few drinks together. They were having an earlyish night cos they had to leave early the next morning, so Riggly and I went off to watch another ladyboy cabaret. Got some great photos, was a really good laugh!
I actually managed to get up at 6.15 this morning to watch the sunrise, that was pretty cool to see, the beach was so nice and peaceful at that time, there were Thais already up doing the fishing on the shore. After that I had to go back to bed for a couple more hours!
Spent yet another day relaxing on the beach, mind you I didn't go in the sea today as it's been pretty rough the last couple of days, I attempted it yesterday, but just got knocked around all over the place!
Just been to meet Riggs, we had some dinner, and we've booked an Island tour for tomorrow, it's about 6 hours and the bus takes us to all the landmarks, so got an early start!

Koh Samui - It's a small, small world...
Had a great night last night, I went to a really nice restaurant and decided that I had to try some seafood while I'm here, so I went all out and had a prawn cocktail and a prawn green curry...was absolutely delicious, as you probably know I'm not a massive fan of spicy food, but it was definitely worth it. I was a bit silly though and didn't order any water, so I had to wash it down with wine when it got too hot... not a good idea. I started chatting with a couple on the table next to me, they were from Northern Germany. We had a great time talking for a couple of hours and they kept filling up my wine glass so I wasn't complaining!! After that I left them with the intention of finding a phone to call my Mum...anyway, I was just walking past a pub and saw a guy, I thought, I know him... it turns out it was Riggly!! (for those who don't know he used to work in Murphys in Munich) how suprised were we, he had to do a double take too. I knew he was travelling about the same time as me, but I had no idea that I would actually bump into him, I just couldn't believe it! So we had a drink then we went to this cabaret bar where all the lady boys were putting on a show, was great to watch (trust Riggly to take me there!) we were trying to tell if they were all guys as some of them look amazing. I even won a poster of them all in the raffle so I had a real close up of them when I had to go on stage to get it. So after that we went to another bar, and the second shock was that we saw someone else that we both know who used to live in Munich...Richie from Birmingham!! we were all pretty flabbergasted I can tell you. He was there with some of his mates, one of them called Mally who used to live in Munich too, I've heard of his reputation, but I don't think I'd met him before, by all accounts he's a bit of a mad one! So we had a few drinks together. I was planning on getting up to watch the sunrise this morning, but I couldn't drag myself out of bed, probably won't make it tomorrow either cos we're all meeting up again tonight!! It's really nice to see a couple of familiar faces, but how spooky!!
So sorry Mum you didn't get your phone call!!!

Lazy days in Koh Samui...
Had a lovely day today, what an amazing place. I moved into my new home for the next few days this morning, it's actually not bad, it even seems a bit cooler than the other place, which is great as it's cheaper. So I settled in there and then headed to the beach. As I'd moved up the resort a bit, the beach was a bit nicer than where I was yesterday, and there weren't any stray dogs! I went in the sea for the first time, it was just bliss, so warm but still refreshing. I saw the island for what everyone told me it was like today, it's just a tropical paradise and I can't believe I'm here ;o) I was sat under a palm tree all day, I had corn on the cob from one of the Thai guys who walk up and down the beach, he cooks the corn on his little barbeque in front of you...it was delicious, then I had some fresh pineapple for dessert, what a way to live... I've come to the point now I don't even know what day it is and can't even imagine having to go to work everyday...sorry, don't mean to make you all jealous!!
I met a couple of Israelis today, they seemed ok until one of them kept asking if he could massage me....I scarpered a bit quick after that! Just before I went back to the bungalow I took a walk right up the other end of the beach, thought I'd better get some exercise!
I'm off out again for dinner now, it's a really lively resort, although it doesn't seem so busy right now. The food is fantastic and the people are so friendly, I can see why people keep coming back to Thailand. I saw my first 'lady boys' last night too...oh my god, they look fantastic, what a laugh!!!

Greetings from Koh Samui
As you have seen from my SMS I have arrived in Koh Samui. What a long trip that was, I quite enjoyed it though. I met a few people on the way, one guy from Sweden sat opposite me spoke Thai so he was speaking to our neighbours for a while, they were really nice people. I learnt how to say 'I don't eat any meat' in Thai (well I've forgotten now, but I wrote it down!) I actually managed to get quite a lot of sleep on the train journey, the seats turned into beds which was very good. I was rudely awakened so many times to the sound of trains going past the other way and loud train signals, I was actually frightened sometimes wondering where I actually was. I think I was on the loudest train in the world, and it got pretty cold too as all the windows were open. I arrived in Surat Thani about 6am, then we had to get the bus to the pier, then hang around there for nearly 2 hours, then it was a 2 hour ferry trip. That was pretty cool, there are so many small islands to see. When I got to Lamai on Koh Samui, I started to regret not booking any accomodation, it was really hard work lugging all my bags in this heat, so I took one of the first places I saw. It is ok, but a little more than I wanted to pay, 500 baht, which is about 7 pounds (not much I know, but I'm on a budget here!) Anyway, after I'd sorted my stuff out I went for a wander and found another room for 300 baht...and it's not that much worse either, so I've arranged to move there tomorrow. I actually had to go on the back of this womans moped to get there as it was quite a bit of a walk back from where I was...that was fun, I've never been on one before! After that I laid on the beach for a few hours, the sea is gorgeous, the only thing that ruins it is all the stray dogs doing god knows what to each other, not very pleasant! I actually met a couple of German guys who are staying in the same place as me, they were ok, I had to laugh to myself though....one of them looked like a young Jeremy Beadle!!
Just off out to get some dinner now, it seems really lively here ;o)

SMS Message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Thailand GMT + 7.00) - Arrival in Koh Samui
Finally got here 18 hrs later! Found a bungalow, but will have 2 look 4 a cheaper one tomorrow. Beach is gorgeous! Speak soon x

SMS Message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Thailand GMT + 7.00)
On the train now... just having a beer and a chat... loving it! 10 hrs to go till we're there

Bangkok sightseeing experience

I had a pretty early night last night, after I left the internet cafe I treated myself to half a pineapple, it was gorgeous, I managed to eat the whole lot, unfortunately I felt a bit sick afterwards, had a bit of an overdose!! I watched a bit of The Mummy on TV, then fell asleep!!

Was up early this morning, had another fantastic breakfast, then went to Wat Pho (temple) and saw the reclining Buddha, which was pretty impressive. Had a wander round there for an hour or so, then I went onto the Grand Palace, now that was impressive too. It's not really the right weather for sightseeing though, it's absolutely sweltering here, I'm feeling so tired from it now.

It's funny people warned me about the locals that tell you the Temples are closed when they're not really, I had a few doing that to me, they then tell you other temples to go to and that it is too hot to walk and you should get a tuk tuk and they hail you one (apparently then the drivers take you to gem stores where they get a commission for taking you)...I just had to walk off in the end, they start off all friendly, but when you say no, they don't like it. It's not until you experience these things that you realise what everyone warns you about. Also some mad women came up to me and some other tourists and before I could even realise it she had thrust some bags of seed in my hand saying 'good luck good luck' and to throw it to the pigeons, I must have had about 5 packets, I couldn't stop her once she's started, she kept opening the bags and putting them in my hand, when I went to walk off she was asking me for money..I walked straight into that one! I gave her a bit, not what she asked for and then I walked off. At least now I know not to accept things from people and to keep my hands closed...I thought she was just being nice...how naive of me!!

I'm just going to get ready for my train ride to Ko Samui, will leave in an hour or so...

I'm back again...you can't keep me away from these internet cafes, mind you they are everywhere!

I've just been for my dinner, am absolutely stuffed. I had my first authentic Thai meal, I ordered spicy noodles and veg, was a bit surprised when I got it as they didn't look like noodles, but like some sort of slimey fish, but I didn't let that put me off and it was absolutely lovely, I also had a Chang beer, cost me just over a pound, bargain!

I had a good day today, was up early and had a big breakfast, the hotel buffet was really great, that kept me going until this evening. Then I went to book my train tickets to the islands, it took me a while to find the cheapest place, I went to a travel agent in the end, it's a little more expensive, but it saves the hassle of doing it all yourself. So I leave tomorrow evening on the overnight train to Surat Thani, it gets there at 6am on Sunday, from there I get the boat to Ko Samui, I'll stay there about a week, and then I go to Ko Phangnan for another week or so, returning to Bangkok for a couple of days before I leave where hopefully I'll meet up with Ric and he'll show me the good bits of Bangkok. I must admit I haven't really ventured too far since I've been here.

After I booked my tickets I was tired from traipsing around, so I sat by the pool for a few hours, apparently it was 37 degrees today.....so hot, unbelievable, I ended up having to move into the shade after 20 mins, it was nice and relaxing though. Gonna do some touristy things tomorrow.

From what I've experienced so far of Bangkok, I actually think it's not as bad as everyone told me it would be, not that I've seen so much of it, but I was expecting more madness...I guess it's cos I came from the cities in India, that probably prepared me for it. It does seem very tame here, and the locals are so friendly, I really love walking around here ;o)

Ok, just off for another beer now!!

Thailand - Bangkok - What to do next...
Last night I decided to head down to the islands in the South straight away... I'm itching to get on the beach. I've just been to find out about the trains and boats, I'm going to book it so I leave tomorrow on the overnight train and come back to Bangkok in just under 3 weeks, I just want to chill out now, been on the go for the last few months and need to relax... so watch this space...

Thailand - Arrival in Bangkok
Well I finally got here, that was a bit of a long trip, at the moment I don't know whether I'm coming or going! I was so glad I'd arranged a transfer from the airport and a hotel booking, it made life so much easier. The hotel is really nice, it's a really good location, quite close to the infamous Khao San Road, but not too close! I had a sleep earlier, then I took a walk to Khao San Road, it's pretty cool there, loads of people about and there are some really great cheap clothes, shoes, handbags etc, again I wish I had more room in my rucksack! maybe on the way back before I go to Oz I can pick up a few bargains! It's really hot and sticky here, its a funny sort of heat, quite heavy, makes you feel really lethargic...but that could be cos I've had no sleep. After that I went back to the hotel where Ric phoned me and we had a chat about my plans, unfortunately he couldn't make it to Bangkok now, but maybe we'll meet up again before I go.
I'm feeling pretty lonely at the moment, I've just eaten my dinner and saw an Internet cafe so I thought I'd pop in... actually I'm just talking to Chris on messenger which is making me feel a bit closer to home. It seems everyone here is in big groups or in couples so I feel a bit weird, I'm sure it'll get better tho, I mean I have just spent the last 2 weeks with people so I'm sure I'm going to feel a bit cut off now being on my own again.

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Thailand GMT + 7.00)
Hi there its 11:00 am, just got to the hotel... seems cool! Havent had any sleep yet so gonna have a snooze now. Cu. x

En route to Thailand - stop over in Singapore
Well I'm back at Singapore airport on the way to Bangkok. It's 6.15 here and I'm feeling pretty tired as I've had no sleep, I have 3 hours to kill till my next flight. The flight wasn't the best, was very bumpy and I had an Indian guy sat next to me who I don't think had flown before, he didn't know how to use anything (belt buckle, headset etc) and kept trying to ask me how (he didn't speak English either!) also he had no concept of the meaning 'this is my chair, stop leaning over me and digging your elbow in my side'... jeez, some people, thank god that flight is over!!
Anyway, going back to today... I didn't really do much earlier, just had a walk and a look in some shops. I went back to the apartment after lunch and started to pack my bags. I'm actually getting better at it, everything seems to fit in a lot better now, I guess I'll be an expert after the next few weeks! Said my goodbyes to Jeanette, I've had such a nice time staying with her... it was really kind of her to have me there. I decided on taking an autorickshaw to the airport, that was a hair-raising experience as it was a 40 min journey in the maddest and noisiest traffic. I'll quite miss riding in them actually, mind you I think they have something similar in Thailand.
Chennai airport had absolutely nothing there, had to wait for over 2 hours doing nothing... boring... and I've still got more waiting to do now, it's gonna be a long night!
I feel quite sad at leaving India, it has really grown on me since I've been there... from what I've seen it's an amazing country... and I hadn't even touched the surface. It's definitely not your luxury holiday though, I haven't really felt properly clean for the last 11 days as there was so much pollution, dust and muck about. I'm starting to miss dressing up nicely now, I feel a right mess. Maybe when I get to Australia I'll be in the position to make an effort again...I'm a bit lost without my hairdryer!! I also can't wait to get a bit of a tan...my legs haven't even seen the light of day yet... wearing shorts is frowned upon in India, but I'm sure I'll make up for it over the next 3 weeks!!
Ok, I'm just off to wonder around the airport, or fall asleep on a chair... not sure which yet ;o)

Update information

Weds 23rd Feb
Left Chennai tonight at 23:35 local time (flight time 3hrs 55 mins) stoppedoff at Singapore. At 08:50 continued to Bangkok (flight time 2 hrs 20 mins). Estimated arrival in Thailand 10:10am local time/GMT 3:10am.

Chennai contd....

I went to meet Jeanette at her school yesterday evening, it was quite handy cos she took me to the school nurse while I was there and they put some really good cream on my bites...I've woken up this morning with even more, I've got big bumps all over my hands and feet now!!

She took me to a cafe where they make fruit juices and smoothies...I had a chocolate ice cream milkshake, was really yummy, beats Mcdonalds any day!!

We had a full house last night, a colleague of Jeanette's and his friend were staying over for the one night, we ordered curry and watched some TV. I like the TV here, it's mostly English speaking, they run all the American sit-coms (as you can probably tell, the nightlife isn't as good here as in Bangalore!!)

So now I'm off to Marina Beach which is the second longest in Asia.

*********************************

Just got back from my day out. I caught a auto rickshaw to the beach....I'm getting quite good at haggling with the guys now, they really try to rip off any foreigners! I'm slowly building my confidence up these last few days as I've had to do things on my own, which is definitely a good thing. I had a long walk along the beach, I didn't actually go down to the water cos it's not really that kind of beach. This was one of the beaches that was caught in the Tsunami, although now you can't see any real damage. Basically it's just full of fishing boats and people doing their washing. I had another coconut water on the way to cool me down, I'm getting quite fond of them now. Lots of people were coming up to me and saying 'hi hi hi' again....they seem to love it when they see a foreigner, it's quite amusing! I've found the people here are a bit friendlier than in Bangalore, even the rickshaw drivers always have a smile. Jeanette recommended me to go to a cafe/restaurant in the city called Amethyst, so I took my book with me and had a nice lunch and read for a couple of hours, it was really peaceful. I'm also now addicted to chocolate milkshakes, I had another one at lunchtime, but it wasn't as good as yesterdays.

So, I'm heading off to Thailand tomorrow night, I have 2 nights booked in Bangkok, then I'm going to see where the mood takes me, hopefully some beautiful island where I can lie on the beach all day long....aren't you jealous!! I had a mail from Ric and he said he's hoping to get to Bangkok to meet up with me, so that'll be great.

We're off out tonight as one of Jeanette's colleagues has a birthday, I'm going to have a quick sleep as I have a bit of a headache from all the sun and driving around in the rickshaws, it's just mad and noisy in the city. I'm actually going to miss India, I'm just getting used to the madness and the Indian culture. I'm really going to miss the way the Indians wobble their heads when you ask them something, it takes a while to realise whether they're saying yes or no!!!

India - a few piccies...

Vikki isnt able to send many pictures at the moment, because of her travels... but thanks to Gav, I managed to get two pictures of Vikkis fun loaded up - see previous Bangalore posts. More to follow...!

Chris.

India - Chennai cont...

Had quite a relaxing day yesterday, we were supposed to go to the cinema to see a Hindi movie, but in the end we took Jeanette's friends' kids to see The Polar Express..not quite the right time of year for it, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. In the evening we decided to be a bit more cultured, so I watched my first Bollywood film. It was ok I guess, but it went on for so long, I think it was 3.5 hours (with subtitles) everytime it looked like it was going to finish they burst into song again, don't think I'll be watching another one!!

I am starting to get badly bitten by the mosquitos. There isn't any netting on the windows where I'm staying, and as it's so hot, they always keep the windows open...not good for me. It's weird cos noone else seems to get bitten like me, I had to put a jumper and socks on in the end to cover my skin, and that's not very comfortable cos it's so hot and sticky. I woke up this morning and I have the most horrendous bumps all over me, my hand is so swollen it looks twice it's normal size, thank goodness for my Aloe Vera gel!

It's so nice waking up to a sunny day everyday. I must say that Bangalore was the most comfortable climate so far, even though it was hot, it was bearable...Chennai is really humid, but because it's on the coast there is a nice breeze which does make it better. I'm actually quite gutted cos apparently the beach here isn't very nice, so no sunbathing for me :-(

This morning I took a stroll down the road to the Kalakshetra foundation, I was told that you can see them making saris, and also watch the dance classes, unfortunately I got there at lunchtime and they stop for 2 hours break so I just decided to walk back to the apartment... luckily seeing this internet cafe on the way.

India - Leaving bangalore / Arriving in Chennai.

After updating my blog on Friday, Kumar took me to the Bull temple, it wasn't very big, there was just a huge granite bull inside. We gave a donation and were given some jasmine to take with us. Had a bit of a drive around and then we went to a small lake called Sankey Tank (which doesn't sound too inviting, but was actually very nice) we hired a pedaloe for half an hour, it was so nice and relaxing, it felt we were miles away from the city.

After that we went to the Krishna temple (another Hindu god) it was one of the bigger temples I have visited, it's the one Kumar goes to regularly. After you come out of the temple there are lots of stalls where you can buy books, pictures, food etc. Kumar pointed out a picture of Krishna and his mother to me, he asked if I liked it, I said yes, then he said would I like to buy it, I just said no, thank you..then I felt a bit guilty as I didn't want to insult him and his beliefs, so I ended up buying one for me and another for him...but at about 20p per picture it didn't really break the bank!!

Friday night after we picked Gav up from work we went out for dinner and to meet his golfing mate Gerry, who is also from Northern Ireland. Had a good night and a few glasses of wine. When we got back I gave Gav a run for his money playing snooker...actually I'm lying, I was hopeless apart from a few flukey shots! I did pot the black to win the second game tho!

Woke up bright and early on Saturday to get my stuff ready for my next trip. I didn't manage to pack my rucksack very well so I had a bit of stress with that, it seems even fuller than before..I don't quite know how. Anyway, when I got that done we went to the restaurant we were at the other night on the 13th floor for lunch. I had quite a pleasant suprise seeing the view in the daytime, it was pretty amazing, no wonder they call Bangalore the Garden City. After lunch it was a quick drive to the train station where Gav helped me find the train, then we said our goodbyes. I've had such a great time in Bangalore and Gav and Kumar were so generous and made me feel so welcome, I was sad to leave :-(

The train journey was pretty uneventful, I managed to get a seat in the air con carriage and suprisingly there was quite a lot of leg room which was a good job as I had to keep my bags in front of me. It was really interesting travelling through the countryside, there are so many palm trees here, it all looks really tropical. We passed through a lot of small towns too. Seen lots of monkeys on the way, they're everywhere! The train was quite noisy, was pretty busy, so I just put on my headphones and relaxed. I was determined not to have to use the toilet on the train so I tried not to drink too much water, from what I've experienced the public toilets here are pretty horrific, so needless to say I haven't drunk much all week..yes, Chris I know it's not healthy but a girl has to sacrifice these things sometimes ;o) Lots of people passing through the train selling drinks and curry which made the train really smell!

So I arrived at the train station and found the taxi rank and arrived at Jeanettes flat. It's a lovely place and she's made me feel really welcome even though we have never met before. I didn't have a very good nights sleep tho, and to top it off I woke up in the night and managed to smash a glass on the floor, how embarrassing!! she was ok about it though. I think these next few days will be an experience as I will have to navigate my own way around...we shall see!!

SMS Message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in India GMT + 5.30)
Hiya, Just got to Chennai, Everything is fine with me. Hope you are having fun!

India, Bangalore continued....
On Wednesday Kumar took me to another national park, unfortunately I'm not prepared today and I've forgotten the name of it! (Edit: it was Bannerghatta National Park) Anyway, it was really cool, we went on a safari which lasted 1.5 hours We drove through an elephant park, bear park, tiger and lion park. Saw loads and loads of animals again, even a white tiger, I've seen so many animals since I've been here, I'm becoming a right David Bellamy!! Have lots of photos too and I can't wait to see them properly. After the safari we stopped off for some food and then I went home for a rest...all this lady of leisure business is really tiring!! Then after Gav finished work we went out for dinner again, he took me to another really nice restaurant where I tried a couple of new dishes again...I'm getting a lot better with the spicy foods now!
Thursday I went to a proper Indian shopping mall, I was really suprised at how modern it was, there were quite a few Western shops there too, I was looking in one of the department stores and the CDs are about 5 pounds and Gav tells me that's expensive for here! After that Kumar took me to a handicraft place which had some really beautiful hand made rugs, hand carved ornaments and silk scarves amongst other things, but I didn't enjoy the fact that the salesman kept walking behind me trying to sell me everything in the shop..I know it's the way they do it here, but I couldn't wait to leave the shop, I suppose it's good preparation for Thailand.
Went out for dinner again, Gav says he hasn't been out quite so much before this week!! He really knows the good places to go though. This restaurant was right on the 13th floor, luckily for us the lift was working, mind you after I could have done with walking down the stairs after to walk the food off!! I had the best meal I've had in ages and couldn't stop till I'd nearly eaten it all....bad idea! I really can't believe how cheap everything is, you can go out for a nice dinner with a few drinks for about 4 pounds, and thats in a posh restaurant, it's great.
Off to a fair I think this afternoon, although I'm a bit wary on going on any rollercoasters here...I'll probably have to see what it looks like first, so wish me luck!
PS. Having a few problems with the photos on this site and I can't change the size of the text either, so bear with me.

A big thank you...
Thanks for all your emails, I love getting them! I just wanted to say I'm sorry if I don't get a chance to reply to you at the moment! Its hard to find the time to get to the Internet cafes... Please do keep them coming, it's great to catch up with everything!! I always try to update my blog, then everyone can see for themselves what I am up to ;o)

India Bangalore continued...

back again...I'm having real withdrawl symptoms from the internet!!

After I left you yesterday Kumar took me to the Shiva (one of the many gods') temple, where there is the biggest statue in India, they were painting it at the time tho so there was scaffolding all around it. Shiva is the father of the Elephant God, Ganesha who is the most widely worshipped God in India. Apparently there are 330 million Gods worshipped here, I must say I'm finding understanding the religions here pretty difficult and unusual.

We drove past the Government offices and the High Court, they were really pretty impressive buildings, and then we visited the aquarium, which was very very basic. We had a nice lunch where I tried a different curry, I'm trying to learn about all the different foods here as I haven't got a clue about curry, I only know Chana masala! Kumar must think I'm a bit odd!

I had my first real experience of Bangalore today, I am so glad I'm not on my own here otherwise I think I would hate it and would be pretty scared, it's just so manic and I really feel like I stick out like a sore thumb, there are hardly any Westerners here.

Last night Gav took me to a really cool restaurant, we were sat on the top floor and it was a really chilled out place with great music, I actually forgot I was in India. I tried some chilli paneer, which is cheese coated with chilli, I am trying to try more foods honest! actually it was really nice, but burned my mouth out for ages after.

I had a really good night there, it was really relaxing. Then we went home on an auto rickshaw, I tell you if I was scared in the car....that is nothing compared to this! The driver had big speakers in the back of the seat and had music blaring out and was driving like a complete lunatic, I'd had a couple of glasses of wine tho by that time, so it was more funny than anything!! When we got back I gave Mum a quick ring, and then Chris phoned me up later on, was lovely to speak to them again, I felt a bit homesick :-(

so thats me uptodate now, hopefully will log on again soon...until then...

Coconut anyone?

Arrival in India - Bangalore - Saturday 11th Feb
The flight to Bangalore was good, it was 4 hours, but after the 12 hour flight to Singapore it was nothing! Gav and his driver, Kumar, picked me up from the airport so as it was late I didn't get a chance to see much of the city. I must admit it was nice to see a friendly familiar face! Gav's appartment is really cool, was much bigger than I expected.
The next day we had to be up at 5.30am for our safari trip. I was really happy that we could do the 6 hour drive there in a nice air conditioned car! It was a great experience as I got to see India from the road, firstly I have to say the driving is absolutely mad, I've never seen anything like it and I'm sure I never will again! There are no rules, they just overtake whenever they feel like it and it's not a quiet journey as they are forever beeping their horns. Normally I'm quite a scared passenger, but I was suprisingly calm about it all, I felt quite safe with Kumars driving. I have to say I'm not suprised Gavin doesn't want to drive there!
I was absolutely amazed on the drive there, there is so much poverty, I found it very hard hitting. There are so many people working really hard on the roadsides and in the fields and driving along the roads with their old cows dragging their trailers. We drove past lots of villages on the way and they are all really busy, the people are so colourful too it was great to see the women in their saris, they looked really beautiful. I'm in a bit of a hurry, so I can't go into too many details otherwise I'd be here all day! We arrived at the safari resort Casa Deep Woods in the Masinagudi jungle in Tamil Nadu, at 12ish, where we had some lunch, a lovely selection of curry, my first authentic Indian curry! The safari was at 17.30, it was a 2 hour ride in an open top jeep, I was bit sceptical at first because there were no cages on the jeep so anything could have got in and attacked us, but I soon forgot about it. We were really lucky, we saw 13 elephants in total, 10 of them were all together and were crossing the road behind us while we watched, I'd never been so close to a wild elephant, we were all really elated with that experience. Unfortunately we didn't see any tigers (actually I was secretly relieved we didn't!) we saw lots of deer and a few wild pigs, but it got dark quite quickly so we couldn't see much after that.
When we got back we had some appetisers by the bonfire and then our dinner, which you guessed it consisted of curry! As I'm not a big curry eater, I couldn't really eat too much, I'm just not used to it, so I gave up after a while. Had another early night where I was lying in the bungalow listening to all the animals outside and was certain that I'd wake up with a snake in the room with me, so I didn't sleep too well...We heard that the night before some elephants broke into the resort, so that didn't help! The bungalow was really nice though, only trouble was the toilet and bathroom were outside, which I didn't fancy at night at all, so I snuck in the drivers bathroom!
Next morning it was up again at 6.00 for our trek in the jungle...again I was pretty scared about coming face to face with a tiger or elephant. It was quite a hard walk actually, we went up into the hills, and as I'm a bit unfit at the moment, it took a lot out of me, but I managed to keep up with the guide. When we were at our highest point, we stopped and saw some bison through the binoculars, we also saw some elephants again, but we were really far away from them. I was quite relieved when we got back to the bungalow safe and sound for breakfast!
We started the journey back at 10.30 where we drove back through the Bandipur National Park. We saw so many animals on the way back, I spotted an elephant drinking some water so we stopped and took some photos. We saw lots of monkeys, they were really cute, some of them even try and get in the car, we saw deer too, hopefully my photos will come out ok, I can't wait to see them on the big screen. Again we drove through lots of villages, it's so interesting to see how Indians live, I couldn't stop watching everything going on around me. In one of the villages we had school kids banging on the car window saying hi hi hi, and running after the car, it was really funny, they were so cute, one of them actually kept up with the car for ages! We also stopped off for coconut milk on the roadside, which was good photo opportunity! On the way back we stopped at the Maharaja's Palace in Mysore. We had a tour from one of the guides, it was very spectacular inside, again I would go into more details, but I have no time :-( Gav and I went on an elephant ride too...that was so cool. Her name was Ruby and she was 65 years old, was a bit of a bumpy ride, but a great experience!
We arrived back in Bangalore in the rush hour, the traffic is indescribable, it's each to their own out here, I'm going to have to get some photos of it. Last night we just had a takeaway and watched a film.
I'm really lucky this week, Gav has loaned me his driver so I'm travelling around in luxury! Kumar is going to take me to all the attractions which I'm really pleased about...today it's the internet cafe, a bit of food shopping and maybe a temple, well I want to take it easy! then we'll go and pick Gavin up from work. Talking of Kumar, I'd better get a move on as he's waiting outside for me!!

Gav, me and Ruby

Singapore continued...

Back again, in a internet cafe in Bangalore!

So, I just wanted to finish off my experiences in Singapore. After the jewellery showroom the tour took us to the National Orchid Garden located in the Botanical Gardens where we saw lots of different types of the Singapore National Flower (the orchid) it was all very tropical and there were some very unusual plants there. Our final stop was Little India, as soon as you got off the bus you could smell all the wonderful foods they were cooking, unfortunately I didn't see too much of it there as we only had 20 mins.
Another thing I noticed about Singapore as we were on the bus was that it is so clean, there is no graffiti anywhere, also the guide was telling us they only have a 2% crime rate that is because of them having really strict punishments for any crimes comitted there.

After the tour finished I went back to the hotel for another sleep before I went out for the evening, I really was so tired to go out again, but obviously I had to do it! I took myself down to the quayside, I'd read about it in the guidebooks. It was suprisingly easy to find places there, I navigated my way on the buses as it was really cheap. I was pleasantly suprised when I got to the riverside, it looked amazing, there are just restaurants and bars lined up on the banks of the river. I had a walk around, then I stopped at a seafood restaurant for some Chinese fried rice (I know I'm not very adventurous!) and a glass of wine. It was so nice just sitting by the water and watching people go by. After I'd eaten I decided to take a walk and treat myself to a river cruise on a bumboat, that was a really great experience, there are so many of these boats going by and they are all lit up with the little orange lanterns. I tried to take a few snaps of the Singapore skyline, but they didn't come out particularly well, which I was a bit annoyed about. I was actually really overwhelmed by this stage, I have always wanted to come to Asia and I just couldn't believe I was actually there, I was just a bit sad that I was there on my own and had noone to share it with, but I guess that will take a while to get used to. After the boat trip I had another walk, as its the Chinese New Year at the moment there were lots of decorations and things going on, I witnessed the Chinese dragons doing a dance which was cool. As it'd been a really long day, I had to go back to the hotel earlyish for some sleep so I could get up early for the next day.

Saturday 11th Feb

Up bright and early today, must be the jet lag. Had a nice breakfast at the hotel, then thought I would go and do a bit of shopping as thats what Singapore is really known for. First stop was to buy another camera, I just couldn't resist it at those prices, I even did a bit of haggling and the guy also threw in a camera case and a bigger memory card, I was quite chuffed with that!! I walked along the main shopping road, Orchard Road, which is a really really long road full of shops and shopping malls, I was amazed at how good the shopping is, I was disappointed that because of not being able to carry much more I couldn't really buy anything, mind you it was probably a good job for my wallet! There are so many Western shops there, Marks and Spencer, Top Shop, Dorothy Perkins, I couldn't resist a quick look! Then I headed towards the famous Raffles hotel and had a look there, really posh! After that I took a walk through one of the many shopping malls towards the Worlds largest fountain (Fountain of Wealth). You are supposed to walk around it clockwise 3 times with your hand in the water, it's supposed to give you wealth in the future...lets hope so!!

Had a quick lunch there, then thought I'd better head back to the hotel as my flight to India was at 9pm. So thats where I left you last time as my flight was nearly ready..unfortuntately I didn't get a chance for my Singapore Sling, but I'm going back there in a week or so, so hopefully I'll get one then! On the whole, I absolutely loved Singapore and had the best time I would really recommend it.

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in India GMT + 5.30)
Hiya, havin a wicked time, just been on an elephant ride! Hopefully will get online tomorrow. Hope u r well. X

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in India GMT + 5.30)
Hiya. Just got to Gavs place now, its really cool. I've updated my blog already... Going on Safari tomorrow! Have fun tonight! x.

First stop Singapore
Wow, what an amazing couple of days!! I'm just writing this from Singapore airport, haven't got long so better make it quick.

My journey started on Thursday morning, I awoke at 3.30 and started to worry about how much stuff I had in my rucksack and I couldn't get back to sleep...so I got up and unpacked it all and took out even more things that I might be able to do without and then packed it again! After a tearful goodbye to Mum, I got the coach to Heathrow and then had about 4 hours waiting for my flight (this all seems like ages ago now!). I actually was in a bit of a state about going, but once I'd said my goodbyes I felt a bit better especially after all the build up. The flight was long, 12 hours and quite bumpy in parts..luckily the tablets my doctor gave me worked pretty well. I must say I was very impressed with Singapore Airlines, they fed us loads of really nice food and lots of drinks, they also had TV sets on the back of the chairs with a choice of 60 films which meant I hardly got any sleep. So we landed in Singapore airport at 7.40am (on Friday) it was really midnight for me... which meant I lost a whole nights sleep, so as you can imagine me not sleeping the last 2 nights I have been absolutely shattered. The landing of the plane was quite cool as you don't fly over Singapore, it just descends over the water so it looks like you're not going to make dry land! Everything went so smoothly, the bags came out really quickly and then I got my transfer to the hotel. The first thing that striked me when I walked out the airport was the heat...oh my god, I've never known anything like it, well it's the humidity really, even at that time of the morning it was unbearable, it was 26 degrees already, I guess being just 1 degree north of the Equator would be the reason for that!! Another thing I was suprised about was everyone speaks English as a first language and everything is written in English apart from the odd bit of Chinese, there are 4 main languages spoken here, firstly English, then Chinese, Malay and Tamil, it's very odd, but nice for me!

Ok, my time is running out, going to see if I can get on another computer to get another 15. mins!!

Back now...so anyway, I have to say I really love Singapore, it's a fantastic place and I definitely want to come back. When I got to my hotel I organised a half day city tour so I could fit as much in as possible cos I'm only here a short time, then I had a couple of hours sleep till 1pm. The tour was really worthwhile, although I was worn out and couldn't really seem to concentrate a lot. First off they took us to one of the oldest temples in Singapore called Thian Hock Keng Temple (Heavenly Temple), then we drove up to Mount Faber (2nd largest hill in Singapore) via Chinatown, unfortunately we didn't get to go on the cable car ride which looked pretty specacular as we only had a short time. Then we went to the Singapore gem and metals warehouse where they had some pretty amazing pictures made from gems and loads of lovely jewellery.

Going to have to go now, my time is running out again...and I've got so much to write. I'm now going to go on a quick mission to drink a Singapore Sling before my flight to Bangalore as thats one thing I haven't tried yet. Will continue soon ;o)

SMS message

SMS from Vikki (Currently in Singapore GMT + 8.00)
Hiya. Its 8am here, just landed, am knackered, gonna miss a whole nights sleep! Flight was ok, long and bit bumpy tho.
Speak soon x

So it's the big day tomorrow..
...just under 24 hours until my first flight to Singapore ;o) I'm feeling a bit poorly today, my throat hurts and my head is pounding a bit....typical! I'm hoping it's a side effect from the anti-malarial tablets I'm taking. I've even had to try and avoid some of my friends that have the flu as I didn't want to catch their germs! Oh well, I'll probably go to the chemist later to get something to help.
The past couple of days I've been feeling a bit emotional, the last month has been really hard for me as I'm continually having to say goodbye to my family and friends, I know I'm going on a big adventure and I'm really excited, but it still is not easy :-( It's been lovely spending time with Mum again, I've got quite used to being back at home, it's going to be weird not being able to speak to her all the time.
Today is going to be another busy day, I've sorted all my stuff out, I'm just left with packing up my rucksack...again. I did another trial run on Monday night, I had this huge rucksack on my back and then a little rucksack on my front (like you'd carry a baby!!) Mum seemed to find this very amusing!!! Another thing is I can't take many books for the flights as they make the bag a lot heavier, I already have the big Lonely Planet guide books to take which weigh a ton. Anyway the doctor gave me some tablets to help me relax during the flights, (I'm really scared of flying!) so I'm hoping they'll knock me out and I won't need to read!!
So, better get on now, I'm hoping to be able to keep this blog updated as much as I can...so until next time...... ;o)

4 days to go.....!!!
Had another busy week, I went to my friend Sarahs on Tuesday to pick up some of her tips for living in Australia, that was really helpful. I caught up with Rachel on Wednesday night, we have stayed in touch via email, but we haven't seen each other for probably over 5 years. It was lovely to see her again, we had a laugh talking about what we used to get up to, very amusing, we were a right pair!!
So the rest of the week I spent spending more money. Got my travellers cheques and some currency for Singapore and Thailand so that's one less thing to worry about. All of the stuff I need to take with me is now laid out on the bed in the back room, I can't face trying to see if it all fits in my bag yet, guess I should really do that tomorrow.
So thats my week, oh and I went into town on Friday night which was good fun. Managed a bit of exercise this morning, Mum and her friend and I rode our bikes to Wimborne market..exciting I know! Mum has really been feeding me up since I've been back home, so I had to do some exercise, especially if I'm going to have to fit into my bikini in less than a week!!! Talking of food, my Sunday dinner is ready now ;o)

Had a quietish weekend, I went out on Friday night, but the rest of it I tried to relax a bit as I'd had a really busy week. I had a trial run with the packing of my rucksack on Sunday, got a bit stressed as it started to get really heavy, so I had to take it all out again and re-think what I actually need to take. Everyone keeps saying that I can buy stuff when I'm there as it's really cheap, actually I might have to as a lot of my summer clothes are now too big for me...I was quite chuffed cos normally it's the other way round, on the other hand it's annoying as I bought them all for Munich's hardly existant summer last year so I'd hardly even worn them!! oh well.
I had a mail from Gav who I'm visiting in Bangalore, India. He asked me if I wanted to go on a safari while I'm there, although it would mean staying in the jungle for a night...I said absolutely...it's not often you get a chance like that, I just hope there are no snakes there! I also managed to get hold of a friends' sister who I'm going to be staying with in Chennai (Madras). She sounded really nice, she's used to having people who are travelling through stay with her, I'm looking forward to meeting her. She mentioned that I could go horseriding with them, should be interesting as I haven't been on a horse since I was about 8!!!
I was also looking into what I can do in Singapore while I'm there...it looks like the answer is shopping...I can' t believe how many shopping centres there seems to be there, I will definitely have to make some more room in my rucksack now!!
I was in a bit of a tiz again last night, but I spoke to Chris on the phone and he managed to calm me down...again...sometimes I wish I was a bit more laid back.
So this week I've got some more friends to visit and a few more bits and pieces to buy, but I'm getting there slowly, I also need to get my travellers cheques. Having my hair chopped later on today too.
oh and I had a lovely early Valentines suprise this morning...12 beautiful red roses ;o)