Day 63/64 (1-2/2/10) - Hong Kong (Peaking Early)

Monday saw us head over to Hong Kong Island where we took the Peak Tram up Victoria Peak. The ride itself is quite a novelty, as the tram climbs a steep incline and gives a skewed view of the buildings and foliage on the way up.


Once at the Peak we went out on the Sky Terrace, where we had 360-degree views over the city. Unfortunately the smog made a it a little difficult to see very far.


We started doing the Morning Trail (a walk that takes you around part of the peak) but then got sidetracked off it, so we wound up walking for about 90 minutes. It was a nice walk though - the weather was perfect and the views were amazing.


We had a late lunch up the top before taking the tram back down again.

On Tuesday the weather unfortunately took a turn for the worst, which (very literally) put a dampener on our plans. We had initially planned to take the Star Ferry over to Hong Kong island, but due to the grey cloud we took the MTR (train) instead. We tried to stay indoors as much as possible; we went to Causeway Bay and Times Square and did the shopping mall there.


Everyone seemed gripped by Lunar New Year Fever; there were sculptures, plants and decorations (with a multitude of Chinese people posing in front of them). We decided to get in on the Year of The Tiger action.



That's about all the exciting stuff we did (I won't bore everyone with the shopping and browsing that was done in between). Nik really enjoyed his first time in Hong Kong, and I noticed a few things that have changed since I was there in December 2005. I am not sure if I would hurry back again (four days of intense pushing through crowds and shopping centres is enough, even for me), but it is definitely a city I would like to pass through again.

Day 62 (31/1/10) - Hong Kong (Birds Of A Feather)

We began the day by taking the hotel shuttle into Mong Kok, where we wandered the streets browsing electronics, clothes and other kitschy Asian merchandise. We also went to the expensive Langham Place Shopping Mall...although the only thing we bought was cheap Starbucks coffee.


Around lunchtime we met up with a friend of ours from back home - Steph Wong. Steph is in Hong Kong doing an internship with their Refugee Advice Centre, but she took some time out to show us around.


We had lunch with her and another of her friends in Mong Kok before Steph walked us through the Flower Market, Bird Market (where I confronted my fear of winged creatures) and a number of other specialty streets.



Everyone is gearing up for the Lunar New Year at the moment, so it was a struggle at times navigating the crowded streets.


When the afternoon got the better of us, we went to a cute little coffee shop that did a vast number of coffees, chocolate and jelly drinks. We spent a couple of hours in there talking. As evening turned into night, we strolled through the Temple Street Markets before having dinner at a Cantonese place.


However there was still room for dessert, so we rolled into a small cafe-style shop that specialises in Mango and Mango-related desserts.


All this took us through to 12:30am, when it was time to call it a night. It was really wonderful having someone who knows the city better than we do to show us around (and it helped that Steph speaks Cantonese).

Day 60-61 (21-30/1/10) Chiang Mai --> Bangkok --> Hong Kong (One Night In Bangkok)

We managed to get out of Chiang Mai just fine. We had breakfast at the Secret Garden, enjoyed the surrounds for a couple of hours, got driven to the airport by one of the proprietors and breezed through the airport. The flight was delayed by about half an hour, but even that wasn't really all that bad. The trip itself passed without incident.


Things were a little more complex once we made it back to Bangkok ahead of a one-night stopover in the city. We disembarked on the tarmac and took the world's slowest airport bus back to the terminal, where we were greeted by a 45-minute wait for the baggage carousel to start up. Then came a struggle to find our airport shuttle, followed by a wait for it to arrive.

Eventually, though, we made it to the Silver Gold Garden Airport Hotel, which wasn't really silver or golden but was cheap. It was comfortable enough for a night, but I wouldn't recommend a longer stay.

Anyway, we headed out and checked out a market immediately outside the hotel grounds. Full of very unsafe looking food products and illegal VCDs, it was an interesting place to spend some time in.


Later, we had dinner in the hotel restaurant, which was fine, before heading back up to our room to enjoy some of the great movies on cable highlights: Sydney White, a hip update of Snow White starring Amanda Bynes and Prom Night, a slasher movie starring someone who Zarah says guest starred on Gossip Girl).

We got back to the airport and out of Thailand without a hitch, taking a Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong. There was some turbulence along the way, which bothered Zarah more than it did me, but we got to Hong Kong safe and sound. We took a taxi to our hotel, the Metropark Hotel Kowloon, which was very nice.


That night, we headed out to the nearby Ladies Bazaar, where Zarah did a little shopping, before heading down to the harbourfront to watch the Symphony of Lights. It was pretty cool, even if thick haze did dim the skyline a little. We ate in the food court of a nearby department store and then turned in.


Zarah will fill you in on the rest of Hong Kong soon enough.

Day 55-59 (24-28/1/10) - Bangkok --> Chiang Mai (Off We Went With A Trumpety-Trump)

I think Nik's previous blog post probably didn't highlight exactly how sick I was. Yes, we did not do a lot in Bangkok. And that was mainly my fault, as I was struck down with (what I thought was) food poisoning from the moment we left Amman. When the symptoms got worse and I was still incapacitated when we got to Chiang Mai, I decided it was time to see a doctor. Turns out I had a bacterial infection in my gut. Nice. Long and gory story short, I was unceremoniously stabbed in the left buttock with a needle and prescribed a course of antibiotics.

Unfortunately our first night in Chiang Mai - in which we were supposed to do the Sunday Market and see the city - saw us once again confined to the hotel room (where I became acquainted with yet another toilet). But the story gets better from hereon out, I promise.

The next morning we made our way to our new accommodations, 12km out of the city in a village called Bor Sang. The place is called The Secret Garden, and is a secluded property with 12 self-contained bungalows. It is run by Peter (originally from Germany) and his wife, Pai (born and raised in Bor Sang). Pai picked us up from our Chiang Mai hotel and drove us up. It was there that I got a chance to recuperate and get better. Our bungalow was simple but very cute, with tiled floors and Thai decor.



Pai cooks dinner for guests every night - luckily as I started to feel better I was able to fully enjoy the various Thai dishes she and her workers made.

On the second day in Bor Sang I was feeling more energetic, so we decided to cycle into the village. Basically it consists of one main road, about 1km long, lined with small shops and eating spots. The ride in was nice, and we got to see the semi-rural properties on which many of the locals live. I loved the fact that we only saw two other couples who were tourists (and one couple were staying at The Secret Garden too). Everyone else was local. It also meant that the shopping I did was considerably cheaper than it would have been in Chiang Mai (or Bangkok, for that matter). I was able to buy some beautiful cotton dresses and pants - only about 80-120 baht each - so I didn't bother to barter down.


The third day was almost exactly the same; we took the bikes out a bit earlier this time though and spent a bit more time in Bor Sang. This time I bought so much I had to use both the basket on my bike and the handlebars.


The village is known for umbrella-making, and although I didn't buy any, there were beautiful, coloured umbrellas lining the entire street. Apparently they have recently had their Umbrella Festival.


On our last day, we did a one-day tour run through a tour company. Peter dropped us off in Chiang Mai in the early morning, and the tour departed from there. First up was elephant riding, where Nik and I got possibly the greediest elephant in Thailand. He refused to move unless we fed him bananas - of which we bought four bags (each holding numerous bunches).


The walk through the jungle was nice, if a little touristy. But what is a trip to Thailand without elephant riding?


We took a brief stop for lunch (fried rice, tofu soup, stir-fry vegetables and fresh tropical fruits), and also met the cutest little litter of puppies (not on the menu, fear not).



Then we followed our guides through rice fields and jungle for a two-hour trek.


It was surprisingly bearable, given the heat and humidity. We saw some beautiful insects and so many different fruits trees, orchid plants...and even a waterfall.


We were also joined by a dog for part of the way - apparently one of the local hill tribe villages looks after him, and he regularly joins tour groups heading into the jungle.


On the way back we stopped in one of the villages and made a few purchases.


The afternoon saw us given the choice between bamboo rafting or white water rafting. Our group elected the latter, so filled with excitement we headed down to the river.


Because it is not rain season the rapids aren't too dangerous (only a level 2-3 as opposed to 4+); after a quick crash course in white water rafting we were in the rubber rafts and on the water. I was a bit nervous at times, but at least I didn't capsize (which is more than I can say for Nik). There were a few instances where I thought my head was going to hit the rocks - but the entire experience was awesome fun. The last 10 minutes of the rafting was actually very calm; we floated happily downstream to our departure point, just taking in the scenery and listening to the birds.

After being dropped in the city center by the tour guides, we caught a "bus" back to Bor Sang (where Peter picked us up again). By "bus", I mean a songthaew - essentially a covered pickup truck. It was pretty fun, with the added thrill that we had no idea whether we were going the right way.



All in all, Chiang Mai was the perfect mix of relaxation and adventure. I am really happy we decided to stay a bit out of the city though, as we got a real taste of the local life for a lot of Thai families.


That brings the blog almost to the end of our stay in Thailand. Nik will update on our last night in Bangkok and flight to Hong Kong, where we arrived today. And for everyone's information, I am fully recovered, so prepare for much more interesting blog entries!

Day 52-54 (21-23/1/10) Amman --> Bangkok (Dude, Where's My Camera?)

Sorry for the delay in posting. We took a little break while in Thailand, which was probably a good idea. Anyway, now its time to bring everyone up to date.

We arrived in Bangkok a little the worse for wear after the long flight and our earlier adventures in Amman. We endured the wait at passport control headed out into the open air only to endure a rude shock - it was hot. Like, really hot. We hadn't felt anything remotely like this in months. It hadn't been that warm when we left Australia. And the humidity was a killer. Nevertheless, we persevered, got in a taxi and headed into Bangkok proper.

We arrived at our hotel, the Legacy Suites Bangkok. It was great. The room was huge. it had a kitchenette, it had a separate bath and shower, it had a plasma TV. All in all, not bad. We stayed in that night, worn out as we were from the long trip.


The next day, we met up with Clare Whyte (a good friend of ours) who happened to be in Southeast Asia on a multi-nation tour. We went down to a nearby shopping centre (which was stacked out with luxury boutiques and stores. While there, I also managed to lose my camera, and many of my photos along with it. Go me. To date, it has not been found but on our very final day in Bangkok I saw at a market what becomes of found electronics, and I don't have high hopes of it turning up.


Anyway, after that unfortunate experience, we wandered down to a nearby market which was scattered along Sukhamvit, a major street. That got old pretty quickly and we returned to the hotel. Zarah and Clare skyped with friends back home before we all headed out to join Clare's tour group for dinner. The restaurant was pretty cool. It was on an open-air second floor overlooking the river.


The next day we stayed in because Zarah was feeling unwell. So not too much to report.


And the next day we left for Chiang Mai, where Zarah will pick up the tale.

Bangkok seems like a great city; we weren't really there long enough to properly get a handle on it though. That's something I hope to correct in the not-to-distant future.

Day 51 (20/1/10) - Istanbul --> Amman (Crossing Jordan)

We enjoyed our last breakfast on the hotel's roof (and said goodbye to the resident cat) before checking out and leaving for the airport.


We were able to through-check our luggage to Bangkok and get our boarding passes for both legs of the trip (Istanbul - Amman; Amman - Bangkok). We were both flying Royal Jordanian for the first time, and we thought it was quite a pleasant experience. The service was great and the first flight to Amman took only a couple of hours.

When we reached Amman we purchased a visa (10 dinar) so that we could leave and see some of the city. For some reason the immigration officers found something funny about my passport (perhaps the photo?) and then decided to question me on the fact that I was born in Singapore but was an Australian citizen. Still, I wasn't denied entry (which in hindsight wasn't necessarily a good thing). Royal Jordanian actually provides free accommodation for all long-haul transit passengers at the Golden Tulip (airport hotel), so we caught the free transit bus there and passed through the heavy security to check in. The room itself was large and had been recently renovated. We should have stayed in and slept on that lovely, safe bed. But no, we ventured out.

One of the hotel employees had told us taxis to downtown Amman should cost about 10 dinar, so when a cab stopped and agreed to that price, we got in. Our driver was a man named Mohamed, who decided that he would give us "good price" - 30 dinar to take us downtown, drive us around for a couple of hours, show us the sights, and deposit us back at the hotel. This was a fine deal, so we said okay. He seemed alright at first - showing us a photo of his son, complaining about his wife ("she always call, want to know 'where are you?', 'what are you doing?'"). When Mohamed started telling us about a little shop he wanted to take us to, I got a bit uneasy and firmly told him a few times we did not want to go (which was true, we had no room in our hand luggage for shopping anyway). Then he wanted to take us to a particular restaurant. I said no to that, too. He did show us a lot of the new and old downtown areas, including a swish new bridge and the very old Roman Theatre.



Despite what I had said earlier, he did pull back up at the previous restaurant. We got out and I made it clear we wanted to look at the menu first. The menu looked fine and there were also other people there, so we settled. It was essentially a fast food place, and Mohamed knew the man serving us (of course he did). In fact, he joined us at the table for dinner...and then made no attempts to pay for himself afterwards either.

By then I had seen enough and wanted to get back to the hotel. When we stopped outside the hotel Mohamed was taking ages with the invoice, so I knew something was up. We had 30 dinars ready (about all we had left on us) and then he told us it would be 45 dinar (essentially an extra USD$20) because he waited for us. Well, too bad. I told him again very firmly that we had made a deal, and that it had included his driving/waiting time. When he pushed back, I threatened to call over one of the hotel security guards. He backed down a bit, but insisted we still give him an extra 10. Poor Nik by this stage was willing to hand over the few dinar we had left, but I told him to get out of the car. By this time Mohamed was pulling the old "what about my children" line and begging for 5 dinar. I reminded him he had got a free dinner out of us (cheeky bastard) and then told him to take the money out of that. With that, I pushed Nik out and promptly got out and walked away. Mohamed called after us ("don't worry Zarah, I take it from my own pocket"). I honestly don't even know if that photo he showed us of his "son" was legit or not.

So that was the sum total of our Jordanian experience: a few glimpses of the city, terrible food (which I am pretty sure made me so sick, but more on that later) and an authentic taxi experience in which we almost got scammed. Not really one that makes one want to rush back. I hope Mohamed's wife gives him hell.

Day 50 (19/1/10) - Istanbul (The Crimson Flag That Proudly Ripples In This Glorious Dawn)

Although the last day in any place usually means packing for us, we still managed to get out of the hotel for a bit. It was raining steadily, so we caught a taxi up to the Edirnekapı district to see the famous Chora Church (I have a feeling the meter was not so orthodox, as we paid 40 YTL for what should have been a 20 YTL journey).


Although briefly converted into a mosque during the Ottoman Empire, the church is now a museum where one can appreciate the old artwork from Byzantine times.



By the time we emerged from the church it was well and truly snowing, so we didn't want to walk around too much. We did have to navigate our way to the main road, which wasn't too difficult, and we stopped along the way to pick up some things from a supermarket and say hello to a couple of kittens taking shelter outside it.

We had lunch at Malkoc's and were treated to free tea again. We also tried a traditional Turkish sweet called baklava, which I really loved.


In between lunch and a late dinner we finished up our packing. Dinner tonight was at Rumist, where Turkish Kirby (or Tirby, as we call him) was up to mischief. He somehow got inside the restaurant and, sensing allies in us, settled at our feet beneath our table. When some American patrons spotted him the owners kicked him out...but wiley little Tirby wound up back inside again and nuzzled up to our legs. It took a while but the owners managed to get him out (they said he likes to jump on the tables and eat people's food). However we did discover that he is their cat, and his name is actually Sultan.


It feels appropriate that we have spent the portion of our trip between Europe and Asia in a city that straddles both; where, quite literally, east meets west. Istanbul has been an eye-opening experience for the both of us. It has seen the rise and fall of empires and religions, and these stages in its history are reflected in the well-preserved art, monuments and streets...even below the ground. The city demands attention: from the restaurateurs and vendors hawking their wares to the adhān (call to prayer) that rings out from minarets across Istanbul five times daily.

"View not the soil you tread on as mere earth - recognize it!" This line from the Turkish national anthem makes one realise how special it is to be able to walk the stone floors of mosques and cobbled paths of the old city where men and women of empires past once trod. There is a sense that you are part of something great. And though the frescoes may fade and the gold leaf lose its luster, I think Istanbul - at least for me - will retain its appeal for years to come.