No such thing as goodbye

Sunset in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Maybe its because there’s only one main route through Vietnam. Perhaps its because it’s the low season for tourists. Or it could be both, but during this discovery of Vietnam it seems inevitable that you cross paths with people multiple times in different cities and on different tours without knowing each other would be on it.

It began at the start of our Vietnam odyssey on a tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels near Ho Chi Minh City. Five strangers (among others) got on the bus and exchanged pleasantries as travellers do.

“Hi, how are you going? What’s your name and where are you from? How long have you been in Vietnam and what have you done so far? What are your plans?”

You start chatting through the day and you get along fine, knowing that, if their plans aren’t necessarily the same as yours you might not see them again.

The tour ends and everyone goes their separate ways.

Until the next night. 

A Dutch girl from the tour and a friend of hers get on a night bus a friend and I were on as we headed to our second stop Nha Trang. Small world.

They’re heading to Mu Nei which is only a few hours from Ho Chi Minh and well before our stop. Again we say goodbye and joke that we’ll probably see them again somewhere.

In Hoi An we see an Australian guy who was also on that Cu Chi tunnel tour. We didn’t really get talking to him and his English girlfriend on the bus, but we acknowledged each other when exchanged glances again. We find out later too that our Dutch friend saw me and my friend on a scooter in Hoi An.

In Hue, we met again when our Dutch friend and her travelling buddy were staying at a hotel across the allyway from us. The hotels themselves were down a long alley which, as a traveller you would be hesitant to go down if you didn’t know what was down there.

And now here we are, the six of us on a two day, one night trip in Ha Long Bay. No planning involved, just a bit of luck (there are a lot of different tour groups which go out into the bay every day) and a growing realisation of the inevitable re-connection with other backpackers.

In Vietnam there really is one well-trodden path which is quite linear (because the country itself is not very wide) and travellers are either heading south or going north. Each trip either starts in Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi with major stops in Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Mu Nei and Dalat – and each of these places only have a couple of different tours the surrounding areas.

It’s a good feeling meeting people you’re already familiar with because you’ve already dealt with all the formalities of the first meeting and you can just get down to enjoying yourselves.

The Ha Long Bay tour itself is a bit hit and miss. It looks like Milford Sound or the Marlborough Sounds, but dirtier. Firstly, the rain is not ideal, but it does bring the temperature down. Most of the morning is also taken up with the 3 -4 hour trip from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay itself and you don’t actually get on the boat until about 1pm. 


The first stop at the Heaven Cave is impressive at first – a wide expanse of stalagmites and stalactites which were discovered by a group of fisherman in 1993 – but the coloured lights which illuminate the rock features give the place a set-like, unnatural and man-made feel. The second stop – kayaking around Ha Long Bay has been the highlight so far though. Getting up close to the large rock formations jutting out of the water makes you feel so small and insignificant as they tower above you. If those rocks could talk they would have amazing stories to tell about Vietnam’s history. 


The night is deathly still. Only the distant chugging of a nearby boat, karaoke and the bark of a few dogs pierce the silence. 


No moon and the stars are concealed by cloud. A cool breeze - possibly cool enough for a light jacket.


The towering islands now towering silhouettes and only the lights from neighbouring boats cut through the darkness. 


A restful sleep in a small cabin shared with small cockroaches later and morning has broken. A meager breakfast of bread, butter and jam and we're spending the rest of the day slowly making our way back to Hanoi (by boat and bus).


And there we are. Standing on a busy Hanoi street corner. The goodbyes are fleeting. We know we'll probably see each other again.


Its just a matter of when and where.    

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The faces of Vietnam

Most countries have that quintessential image that when you see it you can't help but think "yeah, that's definitely x country - it can't be anywhere else".

It could be a landmark - the Eiffel Tower - a festival - Carnaval - something which you associate with a particular country without even thinking.

After 10 days in Vietnam I don't think I've found that image or had that moment where I've thought - "Yeah, this is Vietnam". A quick google image search brings up maps of Vietnam, photos from the Vietnam war and Ha Long Bay (somewhere I haven't been yet.)

I think mostly because all the places we've been so far (Ho Ch Minh City/ Saigon, Nha Trang, Hoi An, Hue) have been so diverse and different there hasn't really been a constant. And most things which you might consider could be Vietnamese - the conical hats, street vendors, insane traffic - can also be attributed to other Asian countries.

Ho Chi Minh City is built up rather unevenly with high-rises near strips of small shops, markets and food vendors. The roads are clogged with motorbikes which in turn clog your airways with exhaust fumes and your ears with the excessive honking of horns. Its a city that definitely has life to it in a frenetic and hectic kind of way. A 24/7 sensory overload.

Head northeast to Nha Trang and things slow down a bit. You find a tropical white sand beach with water so clear you can see the grooves in the sand beneath your feet. At 6am its warm enough to go for the first swim of the day. (As soon as we got off the sleeper bus the feeling of wanting to jump right in was only marginally outweighed by the thought we should probably check in somewhere so we can leave our things.) Its a fancy resort town sitting amongst a city of high-rises. The traffic is less and so is the feeling you need to be somewhere in a hurry. This has holiday destination written all over it - if you're into that kind of thing.

Further north in Hoi An is something which resembles a sleepy seaside town with old, yellow buildings with wooden shutters and a lot of character down by the riverside. There are remnants of its history still about - the old Japanese bridge and some houses which have been preserved as a reminder of years gone by. The streets are lined with tailors, restaurants and art galleries. Life indeed seems to go slower the further north you go.

Hue is the home of an imperial city surrounded by high walls, a moat and a relatively expensive entrance fee (80,000VND = $5NZD). No longer used in its official capacity as well, an imperial city, it has become one of the major tourist attractions in the city - aside from the tombs of some dudes which is kind of creepy. The buildings within the walls which survived the bombings during the Vietnam War have been preserved and repaired while others have been left as they stood after being reduced to rubble. The citadel sits on the other side of the Perfume River from the rest of the city and is linked by two bridges. The rest of the city is largely nondescript with no obvious landmarks and seemingly thin on street food vendors compared to other cities.

I suppose amongst all that the constant seems to be the people. Persistent (most will try their hardest to make you buy something and won't take your first "no" as an answer) and content enough with their lot despite the obvious devastation of the Vietnam War just 40 years ago. Though in the faces and voices of some street vendors selling bracelets, sunglasses, fruit and cigarettes (among other things), there is an air of desperation - that if they drop their prices too much or don't sell enough they may not be able to feed themselves or their family that night.

Like any country which has witnessed firsthand the worst of human depravity there are reminders everywhere in the form of museums, ruins and scars on the land and people.

Describing Vietnam and its culture is complicated - there seem to be regional differences in food and attitudes and influences taken from its past including french style bagguettes (which you can buy filled with various meats, vegetables and sauces from street stalls) and bakeries from during the French occupation. It also still uses the US Dollar as well as the Vietnamese Dong - a remnant from the Vietnam War. Its food is also very similar to that of the rest of Asia - rice, noodles, steamed buns and even some desserts which I myself are familiar with from growing up around part of the Chinese culture. I'm not sure which country influenced which in this respect, though.

So Vietnam really seems like a country which has taken the best of parts of its chequered history and mashed it together to create its own unique character within South East Asia.

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Up the Mekong without a paddle (w/ video)

The famed Mekong River Delta, Vietnam

My arrival in Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon and HCMC) Vietnam several days ago was marked with an air of excitement, a new currency system (the Dong as well as the US dollar), cooler weather than Thailand (it actually rained a bit) and an insanely large of motorbikes and scooters.

The motorbike riders are the top of the food-chain when it comes to road users here. They fill up all the spaces between the trucks, cars and other vehicles and outnumber them greatly. They just look like a massive motorcycle gang. At first it can be intimidating crossing the road with hundreds of them coming at you in both directions but once you summon the courage to start moving they part as if you're moving through water. Its the cars, trucks and buses you should watch for.

With that number of motorbikes and the soundtrack of a busy metropolis playing 24/7 it seemed about time to get out of the city and explore. A day-trip to the Mekong Delta, in the southwest of Vietnam seemed the perfect option ($8USD or 168,000 VND).

About 20 minutes south on the bus toward the city of My Tho and the crowds of motorbikes thins out and to a trickle and the greenery takes over. Its almost serene and peaceful - until a pothole jolts you back to reality.

Upon reaching My Tho we jump on a boat to cruise around the delta visiting three islands - Unicorn Island, Phoenix Island and Dragon Island - be warned, none of these islands contain unicorns, dragons or phoenixes as their names suggest.

Most of these island hopping stops are just elaborate sales pitches - the first was for honey, the second, coconut candy and other knick knacks - but we did do some interesting things which were not on the itinerary; both of which involved snakes.

During our honey tasting session, one of the waitresses brings out her "friend" - a two-metre long python for people to hold and (obviously) take photos with. The sensation of feeling a snake that size and that heavy tensing up and starting to constrict is not the most pleasant of experiences. "Don't worry, it's my friend" the girl says. It may be YOUR friend, but its not mine! I think to myself. A little freaked out and with photos to prove it we move on. And quick.

A waitress brings out a Python during a day trip to the Mekong River Delta

A large, unlabeled, dusty jar filled with a yellow liquid and dead, coiled snakes is our next encounter. "Snake wine", says our guide Pho, "is good for your insides". He rubs his belly as he speaks. Small, dusty bottles of the supposedly healthy liquid, with a small snake and scorpion inside, sit on a table for sale. It smells a bit like vodka and Chinese rice wine. Tastes a bit like vodka, too (and probably would taste alright with a mixer). My insides feel no different.

Cruising along the brown Mekong river and the palms growing along its shores, you kind of get a sense of, as my friend Ian put it, being an American GI going into the harshest environment known to man (at the time of the Vietnam war).

Only 40 years on and the river has more tourist boats and fishing boats than gun boats.

The bus ride back to HCMC seems to take less time than getting to My Tho and with a lot more potholes. Soon enough we're back into the heart of the city. We walk across the road to the hostel and we glide through the traffic like a boat on up the Mekong River.

                              Drinking Snake Wine on Phoenix Island, Mekong Delta, Vietnam

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Lessons from Thailand

The end of the first leg of this trip almost over - I leave for Vietnam on Tuesday - so I thought I'd share a few things I've learned which will help you survive and enjoy Thailand.

Drink - enough water and more than enough Chang. I've started a ritual of buying two 950ml bottles of water from the 7/11 down the street no matter how long I'm going out for. I keep them in my bag which also keeps them cool for longer and for 7 baht each ($0.30NZD) you can't really go wrong. The weight is negligible, but you can buy water along almost every street if you want. If you buy smaller bottles of water for 10B, it really adds up. Keep your water in your backpack - it gets real warm real quick if you carry it with you.

Eat - forget what you like and don't like - try all of the things. It doesn't matter if its bugs, fish or spicy food - just eat it - it wouldn't be for sale if it was bad for you. Maybe don't forget your allergies.

Bring sunscreen. I forgot mine, but obviously easy to get if you're like me and forget it too.

Bring a small towel/ face cloth - wipe that sweat from your brow. And everywhere else while you're out.

Appreciate a good breeze - its like nature's air conditioning. Its uplifting and takes away the heat of the day for a fleeting moment. It goes as quickly as it comes and are sometimes few and far between so stop and take it all in.

Keep to the shade as much as possible.

Have no expectations - if you build something up and it doesn't meet what you envisaged you'll be disappointed. Better to expect nothing and then be wowed.

Take off your pants - why are you even wearing those anyway? Its too hot. The dress code here is pared down a lot and you can get into most places with just jandals, shorts and a tshirt. If you're a woman some temples will require you to wear a long-sleeve top and longish shorts or skirt. If you don't bring any most temples which have a dress code will have sarongs etc that you can hire when you get there. For guys they have pants for hire too, but the only place I've come across the need for this is the Grand Palace in Bangkok. Forget your jackets too. Whether its 1pm or 1am you won't need more than one layer of clothing around here. Unless you're driving a motorbike or scooter - then cover up to be safe.

Stay - at Bodega backpackers in Phuket. The guys there are great and its a good environment to meet other travellers. Its no real surprise its one of the best rated hostels. I was not paid to write this - seriously.

With Vietnam on the horizon I'm starting to get excited. I leave on Tuesday morning and will be there for three weeks before flying back to Bangkok. I am probably more excited about Vietnam than I was about going to Thailand (sorry Thailand) I think mostly because I know a bit more about the Vietnam war and Vietnamese history and know little about the food there. I think its also because I'll have a travel buddy for a lot of that time and will also possibly meet up with a uni friend who happens to be travelling the same region but sort of going the opposite way in terms of countries.

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Ruins and monkeys (The benefits of travelling alone)

A headless buddha statue at Wat Maha That, Ayutthaya, Thailand

I had prepared myself for a costly day when I decided to go to Thailand's historic capital of Ayutthaya, about 90km north of Bangkok.

Surrounded by three rivers, the Chao Phraya, Lopburi and Pa Sak rivers, the once prosperous city was, in 1700, the worlds largest with a population of 1 million. Merchants from all over the world, including China, India, Japan, France and the Netherlands came here to trade. The city was founded around 1350 and became the second capital of Siam after Sukothai. The reign of Ayutthaya came to an end in 1767 when the Burmese invaded and razed almost all of the city to the ground and leaving many temples in ruins.

From the research I had done, getting there wasn't a problem - 20B (less than 1NZD) one way to get there on the third class train (yay trains!). By third class they just mean the seats may not be as comfortable and there's no air conditioning - only rotating fans and open windows - which is totally cool for short-ish trips. Possibly even better if you like taking photos from trains and like hanging out the window where you get whipped by passing tree branches. I know this from first-hand experience.

As a side note, there are some quite enterprising people who ride the trains selling food and drinks to passengers. I think I'll miss that when I'm back in NZ (not that I take the train much anyway).

From the other things I read, when Ayutthaya gets expensive is when you have to hire a tuk-tuk for about 200B an hour ($8NZD). When you take into account how many temples there are (conservatively about a dozen in and around the outskirts of the city) and how big the place is (quite) and the fact that I was planning to see many of them, I was estimating it would take me at least 4 hours to see it all. About 800B (depending on my bargaining skills) and possibly more because it was just me.

Then I saw her.

A tall, blond girl sitting a seat back on the opposite side of the train. What are the chances she was also going to Ayutthaya? What if we banded together to get a better deal on a tuk-tuk?

Turns out she was going to Ayutthaya, but she had planned to explore the city by bike.

Shame.

We sit and chat exchanging all the pleasantries because if I can't make a travel buddy at least I can make a new friend. A few stops later a group of six people get on our train and one wants to take a photo with my new the tall, blond, Polish friend. Turns out he's from Vietnam and also, Asian people love taking photos with white people. Fact.

We start having a chat with this group and turns out they're from the military in Indonesia and Vietnam and are in Thailand for six months learning to speak Thai. Their teacher is Thai and worked as part of the airforce for 36 years, has since retired and now teaches Thai to military folk which is part of a programme run in conjunction with 11 Asian countries.

She is taking the group to Ayutthaya as well to do some sight-seeing and invite us both to join them. Total win.

This will surely save me money and also I won't be alone.

The eight of us, plus the teacher's friend, fit nicely in a converted ute and manage to get a price of 100B each for three hours after some rigorous bargaining.

We come up with a basic plan which is to visit the floating market (because its close to the train station) and a couple of the major temples. There are concerns about a couple of working temples because some of the group are Muslim.

I know I've talked about Wat Fatigue before but there is something different about a temple in ruin. The temples, some of which suffered damage during the flooding in November, 2011, have sat what I would like to imagine are the same state as they were left by the Burmese some 250 years ago. Headless buddha statues, crumbling towers, places of worship, learning and religion destroyed. It seems eerie and actually gives a sense of history and how life may have been before. Compared to many of the functioning temples in Bangkok overloaded with tourists which feel, to me, somewhat fake and with no sense of past and history even though they are full of it. The idea of monks and buddhists having to share their sacred sites with non-buddhists (myself included) and those with no sense of the importance of the temples (myself included) makes me a bit uneasy. Something to do with mixing tourism and religion, I can't quite put my finger on it.

These temples in Ayutthaya have been left to sit as a reminder of a rich past and a fiery end and they are beautiful. A sense of peace abounds which comes from the silence which envelops them. While there are some tourists here you are still able to find places where it feels like you have the entire place to yourself.

And so it goes that we end up back at the Ayutthaya train station and part ways with our military friends. They are going back toward Bangkok - they have class the next day. Anna (the Polish girl) and I go further north to Lop Buri to see one temple in particular. (13B from Ayutthaya to Lop Buri)

"I would like to go to Lop Buri", she tells me earlier in the day, "I want to see monkeys."

I'm quite partial to seeing some monkeys myself.

When we arrive in Lop Buri the sun is close to setting. Its about 4.30pm and some of the temple have already closed - but not the one we want (Phra Prang Sam Yod) thankfully. This town is run by macaques. They even have a monkey festival in November.

A Macaque sits on a ute in Lop Buri, Thailand

Several stray monkeys roam the streets, sit under cars and eat food left for them. One even sits on the back of a ute as it waits for a green light.

Then you see the temple (50B entry fee). I don't know what else to say other than there are a lot of monkeys here. Anna and I wander around the small Cambodian style temple and the monkeys roam free, fighting, cleaning each other and climbing all over the buddha statue.

The one thing they don't tell you when you enter is how to literally get the monkey off your back. We were warned by teacher earlier in the day about watching our things because the monkeys will take whatever they can get their little monkey hands on and won't give them back. The big bullies. To be fair, it's mostly the young-ish, teenage monkeys who cause the most trouble. Pretty much everyone gets set upon by these guys - they even try to get me. They do get Anna and one takes the fake red flower from her headband. According to her they're not aggressive, just kind of excited and probably hungry.

A word of advice: watch your back while your taking photos here or those monkeys will getcha.

Cameras full of monkey photos (and after Anna's camera battery runs out) we make the long trip back to Bangkok (28B) by train.

During dinner on Khao San Rd we make a plan to travel together the next day to Kanchanaburi - famous for the bridge over the river Kwai which was built by POWs during WWII.

Such is life as a lone traveller.  

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Bangkok by night

I tried a bit of night shooting at the Democracy Monument in Bangkok.

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Temple fatigue - its a real thing.

Buddha statues at Wat Pho, Bangkok.

Monks mix with tourist at The Grand Palace (Wat Phra Kaew), Bangkok

After my time in Thailand I think I will have seen enough Buddha's to last me a lifetime (and well into the next).

I kind of understand what people say now about how sick they get of seeing Wats (temples) and statues of Buddha that they just don't visit them anymore. Many temples look just like the last one you came from and for non-Buddhists (like myself) the significance of Buddha may be lost. All their western eyes see are rows upon rows of differently sized statues in myriad poses. One is made of emerald (actually green jade) and in a state of meditation. Another is giant, covered in gold leaf and lying down stretched out with a hand behind its head.

I suppose you'd call it Wat or Temple Fatigue. (Did I just make up a syndrome?) 

Granted, I've only been to two temples so far, but there is potential to see more. A lot more.

A friend and I visited two major beacons for tourists in the centre of Bangkok in one day and my enthusiasm for them dwindled after the first one. Perhaps it was just the heat of the day, but by the time we left the second temple Wat Pho, the home of the reclining buddha, I just wanted to go back to the hostel.

Sure, the glistening, colourful and towering spires spread throughout the temple grounds are impressive, but what are they for?

And sure, you can't help but stand in awe at the work that went into creating the insanely large 15 metre high, 43 metre long gold leaf covered, tightly curled haired, reclining Buddha with its hand supporting its head. But what does it mean?   

Don't get me wrong though, the workmanship that has gone into the buildings and statues is immense and I appreciate that, but without a cultural context all I'm looking at is a statue of giant gold-leaf coated buddha sitting in a comfortable position chilling out. The other thing I'm spending my time looking at are big bunches of tourists who probably are thinking the same thing and care little for the meaning and history of the places.

Our first stop was The Grand Palace (Wat Phra Kaew) which is the biggest tourist attraction in Bangkok and has been the official residence of the kings of Siam and Thailand since 1782. We got to the palace just before it opened at 8.30am and got some breakfast from the market down the street. Dressed in jeans and shoes I was sweating like crazy already, but that's the price you pay to get into the palace (along with 400B = $16NZD). Dress code for both sexes is quite conservative - most of the body has to be covered before they let you in, although I did see some who were not clothed according to the dress code. However, they do have an area once inside, but before the main entrance, where you can borrow shirts and pants to satisfy Buddha's dress code.

This place is huge. Huge and full of intricately detailed and painted statues of mythical creatures and warriors who guard the various temples and libraries within the palace walls. Full of history, a scale model of Cambodia's Angkor Wat and tourists. Even in the early part of the day it is difficult to find much personal space in the mish mash of tour groups. To give us an educated view on what we were looking at (that was the theory anyway), we hired an audio tour guide (200B for two hours - as opposed to the 800B tour some guy was going to charge us to show us around and the free tours which you can sign up for once you get inside the palace walls). I didn't really pay much attention to what the voice was telling me about all the different places, perhaps that's why I don't appreciate the significance of Buddha and the roles the kings-of-old played in Thai history. Its just difficult to care when its 30C and sunny and you're sweating like crazy.

The second stop, after a short ride down river, was Wat Pho, the (for some reason) less touristed home of the reclining buddha (entry is 100B and you get a free small bottle of water). He is actually really impressive, but again, no cultural context. Although the internet tells me the reclining buddha is also the largest in the entire universe. Wat Pho is also the oldest and largest temple in Bangkok, measuring 80,000sqm, and is home to more than a thousand buddha images.

No wonder I feel all buddha'd out.

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Who said sleeping wasn’t an experience?

My new favourite thing is sleeper cars on trains. They bring together my two greatest loves – sleeping and trains. As I am writing this I am on my way in a second class air-conditioned sleeper carriage train from Surat Thani in southern Thailand to the capital Bangkok (Approx 698B = $28NZD). About 12 hours total on a train which, really is nothing considering I was on a train for three days straight this one time (from Vancouver to Toronto). But it wasn’t this awesome. You probably think I’m weird but I don’t care. As soon as I stepped into the carriage I was trying to figure out how the beds came together and pretty much everyone sitting near me – mostly Thais - were looking at a wide-eyed me like I hadn’t been on a train before. 

The top bunk, where I’m sleeping folds down from the roof and contains the bedding, sheets and pillows for both beds. The bottom bunk is made by converting the two seats, which face each other, into a bed – sort of like a fold out couch. You pay a bit less for being on the top bunk, I think mostly because of the perceived inconvenience. You don’t get to see anything out the window either, but it doesn’t really matter because its night time (duh). I guess that’s also the downside of the night train is that you don’t see any of the countryside which is the whole reason I take trains whenever I can. The night train however, does take care of one night’s (amazing) accommodation and you get to your destination quite early so you pretty much have that entire day to do stuff. I’m scheduled to get in about 5.30am or something which is not ideal, but its ok, I guess.

I’ll also be taking a train probably from Bangkok to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand too – I can’t wait!

Both beds are single and the mattress is thin, but still quite soft. The top bunk also has two leather straps which stop you from rolling out (I don’t really want to test them out, though) and there’s a tiny ladder which you climb up. Its easily long enough for a 5”5 or so me to stretch out fully, but I’ve put my bags at the end of the bed so I can get to them easily – and mitigates the whole theft thing. You can also sit cross-legged and do things like write and change without hitting your head – although the roof does slope downward because that’s how the carriage roof is shaped.

I just took photos of one of the guys putting the beds across from me together. Totally not weird.

Setting up the beds on the sleeper train from Surat Thani to Bangkok.

The only really annoying thing is that there are no plugs in which I can charge my things – including my iPod which I used during the five hour mini-van journey from Phuket to Surat Thani (450B = $18NZD). There was a lot of waiting around today. I was meant to leave Phuket about 7.30 in the morning but the minivan didn’t show up till about 8ish (I was really tired and not feeling too hot. We’d been out that night to Bangla Rd, the main strip in Phuket, to celebrate my birthday, see.) We got to Surat Thani bus transfer point for everyone else who was heading to either Koh Pha-nang for the full moon party or to Koh Samui. I had to wait to take another minivan – which turned out to be the same driver who took us from Phuket – for about 40 minutes to get to the train station (600B = $24NZD) where I waited for about 4 hours for my train. I thought the train station would have a plug somewhere where I could charge things, but it was not to be. So I sat, feeling a bit sick and eating some snacks I bought the night before which I didn’t feel like eating that morning.   

Turns out the wait was worth it though. At least until this point – we’ll see how the sleeping bit goes.

Twelve hours later and we get to Bangkok about 7am, kind of still tired and cold from the air con. The sleeping turned out alright, but I kept getting woken up during the night which must have been people selling food as they came through the carriages at each stop. Seriously you guys? It must be like, 2 in the morning. No one wants your steamed buns. 

                  Here's a video of the beds being set up (not on the train I was on, but same same).

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Ko Phi Phi: An island made for two (or more)

The weather takes a turn over Phi Phi Ley. Taken from Long Beach. 

From the moment you step onto the pier at Ton Sai on Thailand's tourist mecca Koh Phi Phi Island you can tell this place is made for couples and groups. Not only do they dominate and roam the long, brown sugar coloured beaches but they get things cheaper than a serial singleton like myself.

Phi Phi is an island east of Phuket which draws in divers and snorkellers from all around the world and has been a tourist hotspot since ages ago.

I was staying at Long Beach at what I thought was a backpackers which was about a 10 minute long tail boat ride which cost me 200B ($8NZD) one way from Ton Sai - 100B each for 2 or more people. I had booked to stay in a six bed dorm at the Long Beach Hotel. It had no reviews on Hostelworld, but I assumed this was because it was pretty new and I booked because it was a reasonable price (600B/ night. About $30NZD/ night). When I eventually got to the hotel I was told I couldn't book a 6 bed dorm for myself  ("the eff?"). Instead I was offered a little bungalow with a mosquito net, a fan and a super hard mattress for slightly cheaper price than I would have paid for the dorm for the inconvenience. Win, I guess.

The hotel also runs 1/2 and full day tours around Phi Phi and the surrounding islands including Phi Phi Ley where Leo DiCaprio once sat on a beach in a movie fittingly entitled "The Beach". The 1/2 day tour  to Phi Phi Ley costs $1200B per person for two people, but I managed to get it at that price too - either because of the earlier inconvenience or because the guy was taking pity on me for being on my own. Either way - win.

Some helpful advice: If you decide to stay on Phi Phi (they also run day trips from Phuket and other places too) and you're on your own either find someone to go with or stay in Ton Sai which is where the majority of shops, bars and accommodation is. There's more of a chance to meet people and save some Baht not making the 200B+ trip to other parts of the island. Plus there's more to do unless you like lying on a beach - in which case it doesn't really matter.

Now, before you take pity on me (if you haven't already) I actually had an alright time. I probably didn't do as much as I could have though, although diving and snorkelling aren't really my scene. It probably would have just been better with more people. Funnily enough, I did know two people who were staying in Phi Phi for the two nights I was there, but I wasn't able to meet up with them for various reasons.

But, if you're an eternal optimist (well, mostly) like me than I suppose the upside was that I got to catch up on some sleep. The downside was the bad Pad Thai (Bad Thai - lolz) I had which had me feeling a bit ill the next day - when I had to spend more than an hour on a ferry in sometimes choppy waters.  

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