Do you ever really pay attention to the crew as they talk about
fastening your seatbelt and so on? Probably not- but if not, it is probably
because you’ve flown that many times you feel you could do the demo yourself. I was surprised, though, when on a Vietnamese internal fight there was no such safety demo...
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Sunday, August 25, 2013
'Joy Travel'- Not a Joy to travel with
1 minibus; a few (folding) seats free. I sat on one of these at an angle (the seat was on top of a backpack) and I kept having to move as the guide arranged the luggage and people.This wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for a rude German woman hitting me on the shoulder with her fan trying to boss me about!
"You move. You sit there," she instructed me.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Cham Island
I was lying on the beach, looking
at Cham island in the distance and wondering what to do, when I remembered you
can dive the Cham Islands.
Back at the guest house I got my phone out, googled Cham and found Cham Island Diving- a dive shop in Hoi An. Shortly after I was booked into a hotel for the next night- Tuesday, and to go diving on Wednesday. Seemed perfect!
Back at the guest house I got my phone out, googled Cham and found Cham Island Diving- a dive shop in Hoi An. Shortly after I was booked into a hotel for the next night- Tuesday, and to go diving on Wednesday. Seemed perfect!
Monday, August 12, 2013
Lost on the Beach!
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Out in Bangkok
After going past bar upon bar with girls plying for trade
–whether for themselves or for the bar I wasn’t sure- I came across an Irish
pub called ´Hannigans’. There was a band playing and it seemed allright.
They played well and didn’t sing too badly either, but next thing, they gave a guy the mic and
he sang a whole song about Hindustan. Next it was the bagpipes played off a
woman’s mobile phone! Did he not want to sing any more or what? As I neared the
end of my beer and started to wonder if this was the best there was, another
guy in the band started singing. He had a great voice and the other could
certainly play guitar, so I decided to hang around a while.
Regular bars tend to close 2 a.m. but there is always the option of reasonably priced drink served from a camper van on the street, often with pumping music!
Night Dive
Being a bit claustrophobic, I quite honestly didn't enjoy the last time I did a night dive. All we saw was plankton- not ideal for keeping your mind off
the surrounding darkness!
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
How things change- Island life.
How many times do we seek to find the unspoiled only to spoil it?
I begin to wonder if we should keep places a secret more- only disclosing to people we know can be trusted! Would that even work?
I remember the first time I went to the island of Zanzibar- there was no electricity, just 2 tiny guest houses and paraffin lamps for light.The next time. a gust house and hotel were being built... The time after that, there was electricity and a dive shop had opened, together with various guest houses and of course the hotel. I made the most of it and learned to dive, enjoying the peaceful beauty of the ocean.
This year, I returned to the lovely island of Koh Tao, off the coast of Thailand. The first time I stayed on the East coast of Koh Tao, and it is still quiet there, but the West has the potential to become a mini Koh Pang Yang pre full moon party stop off. As one of the Dive Masters said on passing a thumping music bar,
"If I'd wanted to go to Koh Pang Yang, I'd have have gone to Koh Pang Yang!"
I agree- I caught a glimpse of the downside of party islands on a night at Cancun bar. All started off well at the bar, in spite of the sale of copious beer and buckets of vodka redbull and laughing gas balloons. As the night rolled on though, two of the local guys got angry with a couple of tourists. One signalled he had his eye on someone, but the guy on the receiving end just laughed! Next thing it all kicked off, with two guys getting bottles smashed over their heads.
I only hope that the generally quiet nature of the island doesn't give way to more madness.
I begin to wonder if we should keep places a secret more- only disclosing to people we know can be trusted! Would that even work?
I remember the first time I went to the island of Zanzibar- there was no electricity, just 2 tiny guest houses and paraffin lamps for light.The next time. a gust house and hotel were being built... The time after that, there was electricity and a dive shop had opened, together with various guest houses and of course the hotel. I made the most of it and learned to dive, enjoying the peaceful beauty of the ocean.
This year, I returned to the lovely island of Koh Tao, off the coast of Thailand. The first time I stayed on the East coast of Koh Tao, and it is still quiet there, but the West has the potential to become a mini Koh Pang Yang pre full moon party stop off. As one of the Dive Masters said on passing a thumping music bar,
"If I'd wanted to go to Koh Pang Yang, I'd have have gone to Koh Pang Yang!"
I agree- I caught a glimpse of the downside of party islands on a night at Cancun bar. All started off well at the bar, in spite of the sale of copious beer and buckets of vodka redbull and laughing gas balloons. As the night rolled on though, two of the local guys got angry with a couple of tourists. One signalled he had his eye on someone, but the guy on the receiving end just laughed! Next thing it all kicked off, with two guys getting bottles smashed over their heads.
One collapsed in the sea, the other came off a bit better.
People then started to get a move on out of there and the party was over.
People then started to get a move on out of there and the party was over.
The next day all as quiet on the beach, and the bar was thankfully shut for Buddha day. There was a guy in the 7/11 mind having serious difficulty saying what he wanted, as he had a balloon hanging from his mouth and couldn't stop laughing.
Monday, July 29, 2013
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