Losing myself in Koh Tao

Koh Tao was the one place from our last trip that Katie and I both desperately wanted to go back to. Last summer, we felt like we didn't have enough time, and after 11 days there, I felt the same this year. We had booked 'Spicy Tao' accommodations ahead of time, knowing that there would be a flood of people from Koh Phagnan following the Full Moon Party. But when we arrived to check in, we found out that they had booked us for August instead of July! We, along with the man at reception, were a little panicked as he admitted that the island was pretty well booked up. He eventually offered us a small cabin (which we suspect is where he was living) for very cheap, but after a few nights, we returned to our old stomping grounds of 'Coral Grand' to be right on the beach and live slightly more luxuriously for our last stop. The days quickly slipped by as we dove, snorkelled, lay by the pool, lay by the beach, ate way too many 'ham and cheese croissants' from 7-11 and met many people who loved Koh Tao just us much as us. We went to Koh Nang Yuan for a day which is 2 islands connect by one strip of beach. I had been talking a lot about wanting to dive with sharks, and as we went out snorkelling, we found MANY black-tip sharks, swimming with us. We took another fire dancing lesson with our favourite fire dancer at 'Lotus Bar' and proceeded to spend many hours practicing our moves in the privacy of our room (and often, during the wee hours of the morning). We also did our first night dive! You enter the water just after sunset and use your torch to find your buddies and the marine life. Unfortunately the conditions were not great so we couldn't see much, but I will have to try again on my next dive trip. As this is my last blog post, I made a list of the top 10 things I will miss about the past 3 months: 1. Feeling like a hero when I realize I crossed the street in Hanoi, and am still alive. 2. Getting excited to meet fellow Winnipegers. 3. Forgetting the day of the week. 4. Realizing that often the people who have the least are the most welcoming and happy people out there. 5. Broken English. 6. Feeling lucky when there is toilet paper. 7. Wishing I was a Dive Master. 8. The "Where are you from"'s and "Where have you been"'s. 9. Feeling at home away from home. 10. Koh Tao. Until next time.

Rock-Climbing in Railay

After the hustle and bustle of its busier neighbour, Koh Phi Phi, we were happy to spend several days in the paradise of Railay. It is a quaint little island, with massive limestone rock faces jutting out of the ground everywhere you look. This makes for great rock-climbing and is one of the top rock-climbing destinations in the world. Like Koh Tao, this is also a place where many travellers find themselves staying much longer than intended, or even living here for months on end. We spent our days exploring the beaches and the caves, and our nights at 'The Last Bar.' There was live music every night as well as fire shows and the occasional Muay Thai fight. However, the special aspect was that the fire dancers actually hung around with the tourists after the show, and by the end of our stay, it felt as though we had made friends with many of the locals living and working on the island. We tried our hands at fire dancing one day on the beach, with one of the fire dancers as our personal teacher. We also spent a day rock climbing, caving, and abseiling ourselves down the edge of cave. We were not quite up to snuff as we had spent the previous night, along with our roomie, Kim, sick with food poisoning. But, we pushed through and somehow still managed to hoist ourselves up to the top of the rocks. It was sad saying goodbye to this lovely island but we knew Koh Tao was next on the list, and also knew it would not disappoint.

Koh Phi Phi

After Katie and I left Indonesia we stopped over in Phuket, Thailand for one day only because of our flight. During the day, the town was crowded with white, tattooed biker dudes hitting on local Thai girls, and by night converted to young white backpackers also hitting on local girls. As we walked the main strip at night, we were bombarded with lizards being shoved into our arms as well as little bear-like animals (which were actually adorable), but knew that petting or holding these animals never comes without a cost. I’m happy to have experienced Phuket but was even more happy to only be staying the day. We struggled figuring out our next move as it is monsoon season in the western Thai islands, but didn’t want to make our way over to the east just yet as that would mean not seeing the west at all. The online weather forecasts claimed 100% chance of rain for the next several days on Koh Phi Phi but we figured we would give it a shot. We spent 3 days in Koh Phi Phi and experienced only clear, blue skies and no rain. We booked a tour to see a variety of sites, of which the main attraction was Maya Bay, where the film ‘The Beach’ with Leonardo DiCaprio was filmed. We had assumed that our long tail boat would float right up to the beach but instead we stopped on the opposite end of the island, and were told to get out of the boat. We weren’t sure if this was the snorkelling portion of the trip or if we were going for a mid-day swim, but we got out anyways, only to be led through a ropes course of sorts, barely touching the sharp rocks beneath us, and with each wave, being pushed into the rock wall beside us. If nothing else, it was a bonding experience for everyone on the boat. We have also fallen in love with a family of kittens, no older than 6 weeks, living under the stairs at our hostel. We check on them each time we walk by, making sure they are all accounted for.

Amongst the Bugs

After returning to Bali to bid Jenn and Michelle farewell, I also met up with my old travel partner, Katie! We took a surf lesson on Kuta beach, visited Sky Garden several times if only for the free drinks and cheap BBQ, took a motor bike ride down to Ulu Watu to watch the sunset from 'Single Fin' bar, and attempted to track down Katie's lost luggage. We then journeyed back to the Gili islands for scuba diving, laying on the beach, and relaxation. Our accommodation on Gili Trawangan was somewhat interesting as the floor boards were wide enough to see the floor, and the walls did not go all the way to the ceiling. This was nothing shocking but that evening, when we were greeted by a whole host of large insects, we second guessed our decision to take the cheapest room possible. Our first night there, there was a large spider hanging out right in front of the toilet. Not knowing anything about poisonous vs. non-poisonous spiders I decided to wait until the spider left. When I checked soon after, he had disappeared, so I was in the clear and could finally use the toilet. Upon standing to flush, I noticed a skinny black leg creeping out from under the toilet seat, and sure enough, it was our little friend that I was trying desperately to stay away from. Lesson learnt: always check under the toilet seat before sitting down in bug infested rooms! We were also able to complete two dives while on the islands which has only made me more excited to keep diving while in Thailand. Sadly, we have to bid Indonesia farewell, but will be returning to Thailand for the last 3 weeks of our holiday.

Lost in Paradise

After spending 5 days in Bali, we made the short 4-hour journey to Gili T, one of three small islands off the west coast of Lombok. The small village community with hens and roosters running wild as well as the fact that motorized vehicles are not allowed, reminded me of 4000 Islands in Laos. Everybody gets around either on foot, bicycle or horse and buggy. We were very quickly welcomed to Gili T by a local who invited us into his backyard only to be serenaded with his rendition of Neil Young. The locals here are possibly the friendliest people I have ever met. Instead of being constantly pressured into buying their products, they simply say hello, ask us how we are, and wish us well on our travels. There is a great mixing of locals and tourists as the locals sit around with the tourists on the beach and hang out at the same bars in the evening. It makes it much easier to learn about their lives, and we were surprised to find out that few have ever even left the island. Gili T is a sort of paradise, with the bluest water, soft sand, and plenty of marine life to be explored. We did a one-day snorkelling trip around all three Gili islands and once again I was lucky enough to spot a turtle. Jennifer also bought her first beer of the trip, I was very proud of her. I will be returning for a longer stay with Katie as we plan on taking full advantage of our Scuba certification. I hear diving is amazing in Indonesia, so I can’t wait to get back into the water.

On Top of the World

I had been looking forward to Indonesia since I first started planning my trip, and it has not disappointed. Upon arriving in Kuta we heard the murmurs of fellow travellers: “there is nothing to do in Bali, you will get bored after a couple days,” “don’t walk around in the evening,” and “get out of Kuta as quickly as possible.” After 5 days here I still feel like I have only touched the surface of Bali. We have been staying in ‘Bed Bunkers’ which bragged on the Internet over the fact that they have three-bed bunks. Not sure why this is a selling point but makes for interesting mid-night washroom breaks. We booked a tour to see the temples, which included the famous floating temple featured on the 50 000 rupiah bill, as well as Monkey Temple. I have never seen so many monkeys in my life and all the “don’t feed or touch monkeys in Asia” advice that I had received back home was flashing in my mind as the lady handed us peanuts and said “get closer, get closer!” I think I am monkey-ed out since they can be so unpredictable. While visiting the other temples we realized that we were quite the hot commodity to these people who have apparently seen very few white people. We would get asked by one group if they could be in a picture with us, only to be joined by 5 or 10 others who wanted to get in on it as well. I had mothers put little children on my lap for photos, made more peace signs than I wish to admit, and maybe enjoyed the ‘fame’ just a little. Since we really liked our tour guide, Hogen, we asked him where else in Bali we need to visit. He named off many activities and sights, and we ended up hiring him as transportation for the next two days to introduce us to Bali. Our first activity was to wake up at 2am to hike up Mount Batur to watch the sunrise. Although I questioned my decision when the alarm went off at 1:30 in the morning, I knew I had made the right decision as we sat above the clouds, watched the sky light up, and I sipped on a delicious cup of Bali coffee. We went dolphin watching and snorkelling in Lovina, spent the day at hot springs, held bats and ate dog (sorry puppy). I have two weeks left in Indonesia and hope to learn to surf, fit in several scuba dives, and lay on the beach for many more hours. I have to give Jenn credit for some of the amazing pictures you are about to see.