The Death Railway

Right, I'm a bit behind now and wrote this section before the island Christmas special, just to confuse things and mess with the timeline! We arrived back in Bangkok at 5:30 in the morning with a couple of days left in country. We first scoured the tailors looking for dresses for Amy, there being a plethora of shops offering custom made items for a fraction of the UK cost. Eventually she decided that there was no real immediate use for a frock, I thought the same when considering a suit (my university interview suit is still going strong after all!), and so we moved onto the next job. We confirmed our flights to Christchurch, bought a few little gifts and had a power nap; nothing much to write home about. Eager not to just waste our time, we booked a tour of the area surrounding the infamous bridge over the river Kwai for the following day. First stop was an allied war cemetery, row upon row of headstones set in an immaculately maintained garden, followed by the death railway museum. This graphically detailed the plight of the 60,000 PoW's who were involved in the construction of the bridge and onward railway line which was designed to transport munitions and men into Burma for the Japanese offensive on that front. Approximately half of the men were British, the others being Australian, Dutch, Canadian and American; and around 16,000 died in its construction. To lighten the mood, the next stop was a less than impressive waterfall but Amy and I decided to walk into the hills for an hour, visiting the source of the river and letting the small fish found in the pools nibble all of the hard skin from our feet (in Bangkok the charge for this "fish feet massage" is 100Bt/2 pounds for 10 minutes). Finally, before the long 3 hour drive back to the city, we rode a train along the railway for an hour, admiring the countryside as we went. Our final excursion was not to see a ping pong show (if you don't know best not google) but instead we were pummeled for an hour having a Thai massage. relaxing it was not but it did a good job of invigorating mostly unused muscles and we were pleased not to come away with any bruises. And that's it, a taxi took us to the airport the following morning to end our 6 month Asian adventure.....

Island Festivities

A long 14 hour bus journey dropped us in Krabi, bleary eyed and eager to stretch our cramped limbs and escape the confined of the mobile fridge, the a/c having been on full blast all night. A van whisked us to the nearest jetty and the sight of the coast on the subsequent long boat banished any fatigue, the beaches, soaring cliffs and lush vegetation painted an amazing scene. Jumping off the boat onto the beach at Raily (the only way to get there) we hauled our bags to the cheapest accommodation around, a pricey 600Bt reminding us this was definitely not India! Our hut was however very smart with a goon en-suit so no complaints there, it was however apparent that things had definitely gone more upmarket and package holiday orientated since Amy's visit 6 years before. Still, the sea was bath-warm, the water turquoise, the sand gold and sun hot! After an afternoon of swimming and lying (or mostly sleeping) on the beach I booked a morning climbing while Amy decided on a snorkeling trip. The climbing was excellent and really allowed me to brush off some of the cobwebs from my small indoor climbing experience back in Bristol. The hardest of the 5 routes I managed was a 30 foot 6A+ with spectacular views over the area from the top. As it was just me and my wiry rasta "instructor" we raced through the routes finishing at around 11am with dead arms. Later in the day we tackled the route to the viewpoint. Half way up we realised that perhaps shoes would have been a good idea rather that battered flip flops though the view made it worth the extra effort. We had no left ourselves enough time for the onward lagoon bit as darkness descended, maybe next time! The evening brought a DJ to our little hut bar and we supped a few cold ones while the (Irish) DJ knocked them back before a duo arrived to put on a very impressive fire show with poi and sticks. It was then time to move on, a day early as a result of the package feel of Raily, and we splashed out getting a speedboat across the water to the island of Koh Yoa Noi. Now this was more like it, a small cheep "bungalow" on the edge of a golden, palm lined beach run by a local family. Offshore there was a fabulous collection of jutting islands thrust from the sea and so on our first full day we hired a long boat with another couple and spent the day cruising the waters, swimming, snorkeling (though the recent rough water had reduced visibility a fair bit) and general relaxing. Day 2 and we hired a scooter, pros after India, and cruised the dirt tracks between rubber plantations which along with fishing makes up most of the islands economy. When it came to finding petrol, we drove past more than a few places before realising that the large glass jars full of multicoloured liquid was what we were looking for! the rest of the time we read, slept, sat, eat, drank and generally enjoyed the time spent in this haven. It was only with great reluctance that we left to visit our 3rd and final island, Koh Phi Phi, in time for Christmas. This involved heading back to Krabi to arrange the ferry, and our return Bangkok bus while we were at it, before slinging our bags on the boat and enjoying the views. Koh Phi Phi is renown as the most beautiful island and it probably does come close, though serious development has spoiled its charms. thankfully we had anticipated this and booked a place on the opposite coast only accessible by 45 minute hike or boat. This payed off as again we were in heaven, good beer, food, people and setting. Neither of us felt very festive having not been subjected to any build-up and this being the first on a beach in 30+ degrees! Not that that's a complaint, we hiked over the viewpoint to civilisation to skype home and enjoy a lunch of burger and chips, very posh! Boxing day was the highlight however as we splashed out on 2 dives where we witnessed the most amazing coral walls either of us have seen so far along with a plethora of fish including a nurse shark and massive turtle. It was a good end to our island holiday before repeating the overnight ordeal back to the capital.

Bangkok

Our flight with Jet Airways was great, the latest Harry Potter ensuring the time flew by. A city bus then took us to the backpacker heart of Bangkok, Koh San road, and a 10 minute stroll brought us to our hotel. The shock of having to pay 15 pounds for the room was slightly dampened by the fact that we then headed out and had a large meal for under a quid, a single beer then more than doubled the price! Although we had come to Thailand for the beaches we could not stop in Bangkok without a trip to the palace complex and Amy was still keen despite having been 6 years ago. It was spectacular, gold was everywhere, statues of Buddhas and demons abounded, intricate paintings lined the covered walkways and at the very centre was the fabled Emerald Buddha wrapped in its winter dress. Next stop on the river boat, a great way to avoid the traffic and see the city, was China town. Once we got off the main street packed with restaurants from the upmarket to canteens (which we chose!), the small streets felt like jumping back in time by several months. Everything under the sun was being sold and spilled out onto the narrow lanes on overflowing tables. It was then time for some refreshment which was our first real night out for longer than we remember (maybe Kathmandu!). We had decided to head to New Zealand after Christmas and so needed to buy our flights. Scouring the travel agents we quickly realised that the entire Kiwi population was flying back home after the festivities and so we ended up getting a flight that landed in Christchurch on the 31st December for more than we had hoped. Oh well, needs must and all that! A random trip to Jim Thompsons house, a collection of traditional Thai wooden buildings, then filled the time before the nightly Muay Thai or Thai boxing at the large stadium a short walk from the hotel. In the cheap "seats" we were surrounded by the hardcore fans screaming and placing bets left right and centre which provided a much more exciting atmosphere than the ringside seats filled with other foreigners. Things peaked for the 2 KOs we saw, pretty impressive considering each fight only lasts for 5 rounds of 3 minutes each.

A Hill Station Escape

We had an ambitious target heading from Jalgaon. 3 trains needed to take us first to the outskirts of Mumbai where a connection would whisk us east before the final narrow gauge "toy" train climbed the steep slopes to the hill station of Matheran. Leaving at 7.45am (only 1 hour late) we made it, climbing into the small trains carriages for the final stage of the journey in the company of a large group of transvestites/transsexuals/lady-boys who giggled and squealed the entire journey like excited schoolgirls! This small train took 2 hours to wind its way up the steep slope navigating some of the tightest bends in the world (according to the guide book). Arriving at the station we then had a 20 minute walk to get to our chosen accommodation isolated on the plateau, there are no motor vehicles allowed on the top. The peace and quiet was a welcome escape. We were full board for a mere 1500Rs (or 10 pound each) per night and were provided with more food than we could ever have hoped to get through. In between feeds we attempted to walk around the perimeter to some of the spectacular viewpoints (though the haze was incredibly thick) passing many abandoned buildings, relics of the early 20th century when Matheran was a popular escape for the ruling colonials. Otherwise we simple read, slept and tried to fend off the monkeys who appeared at every meal time despite one of the staff keeping a close watch out. After 3 nights we had to leave for Mumbai and thinking it would be faster we had arranged for some porters to help take our luggage the 3km to the bus stop for the 7am bus. !0 minutes late, at 6.10am, a tiny elderly lady turned up and promptly put both rucksacks on her head despite our protests. Expecting her to be crushed at every step we persevered for 5 minutes before insisting that we would take them ourselves which would be much quicker. We would still be walking now otherwise. Frog marching along the railway track we arrived just in time only for the bus then fail to navigate the first 2 hairpins. Much reversing and burning rubber later we made it to the bottom and caught the commuter train into Mumbai, spoiling ourselves with 1st class tickets which simple meant we were not forced to hang out of the doors. Having expected a serious quest to find anywhere affordable to stay, we were pleasantly surprised that the first hostel, run by the Salvation Army, had free dorm beds right in the heart of Colomba. As a result we were settled in by 11am and free to wonder the area that includes the Gateway to India, the Taj hotel (still in scaffolding following the terror attacks a year ago) and plenty of cafes and clothes stalls. Unable to avoid the need for jobs we also had to spend a painful 4 hours on the internet. Our only full day in town was then spent first at the excellent Ghandi museum where much of my ignorance about the great man was removed followed by a couple of hours sat watching local cricket in the shadow of many grand colonial buildings before finally strolling along promenade of Marine Drive as the sun set over the skyline of skyscrapers. As our final stop in India, Mumbai is not Indian at all. The streets are tree-lined and wide, there is little rubbish, drivers pay attention (sort of) to any traffic signals, there are no rickshaws and European chains are found everywhere ranging from coffee bars to designer clothes. A taxi sped us to the airport early on the 14th and our 2 month stay ended as we flew to Bangkok.

Holy Peaks and Caves

The 7000 steps of Girnar were so easy we thought that the 3500 steps of Pallitana would be a piece of cake. We weren't wrong, the climb was much more pleasant, there were fewer people and the temples at the top were better. All in all very much worth the sweaty 7 hour bus ride to get there. Having said the temples were better they were not quite what we had expected having read that there were over 900 on the hill. I thought they would be very spread out but instead turned out to be housed in 3 main complexes all crammed next to one another. We were free to roam at will and had most of the temples completely to ourselves. A friendly official at the bottom had given us the best 3 to see and while I'm sure we didn't look at them all we made a good attempt! The views over the entire hill top was spectacular and stretched to the distant sea. It was only at the main temple where we came across the crowds of pilgrims offering food and sumptuous smelling petal garlands to the various idols. As at Girnar the men wore white robes while the women had on their best saris contrasting nicely with the gleaming marble.

With there being no rest for the wicked we took a 6 hour bus in the afternoon to the capital of Gujert, Ahmedabad. The pollution was horrendous and a walk the following morning did not add any charm to the place, we had only stopped to get on yet another night bus to Aurangebad 18 hours away. Although the longest we had the most comfortable night sleep yet and arrived relatively refreshed. After looking round the dull town, we headed out to the local caves in a posh new rickshaw. Although fairly simple, they were worthwhile too visit and also gave great views over the surroundings and Bibi-ka-Maqbara (the so called "mini Taj") found in the city outskirts. Unfortunately as the evening wore on I felt progressively worse before succumbing to a bout of acute food poisoning, I blame the fried potato things we had at lunch. I'll spare the details, suffice to say that you know its bad when you don't know which end to point at the toilet! Come the morning I was better but too weak to head to the nearby Elora caves, leaving Amy to tag along with a couple from the hotel. Sleeping and rehydration sachets made sure that I was not going to miss out on the Ajanta caves the following day, sharing a taxi there with 4 others to spread the cost. The caves were spectacular, occupying the outside of a beautiful horseshoe gorge cut by the river. The caves themselves were massive Buddhist temples in varying degrees of completion. The finished temples held not only intricate carvings, splendid pillars and giant Buddhas, they were also richly decorated with detailed paintings unlike anything we had seen in any other cave system. Amy correctly told me that it was far better than Elora as we made our way to the railway town of Jalgaon for an early train the next morning.

Too Much of a Good Thing?

We have been doing a lot of thinking about future plans, even more so now that we have booked our flights to Thailand where we plan to spend Christmas. There are 2 main options, either travel around one or several of the south east Asian countries or head to New Zealand in the new year. By the end of December we will have been on the road for 6 months which is a long time. Thinking back on how much we have done makes us wonder how we have managed to fit it all in! While we have enjoyed India it would be fair to say that we do not love it (or the other extreme, hate it) and we wonder if this is in part because we have become accustomed to chaos and change. Thailand will be our 5th country (6 if you count Tibet as separate) and while they have all been very individual, what does not change is the constant change that you experience when you move on. In its own way this accustoms you to different experiences which would be unique and exciting if they were seen with completely fresh eyes. Instead sites, temples and forts start to merge into one. Do not get me wrong, this is not a complaint about being forced to travel! What we always said from the start though was that we did not want to go somewhere just because it was close and because we felt we should. It would be better to save it for another day, and after all we are also hoping to see a bit of South America on our way back home (whenever that may be!). We have been looking at going to Burma, a place we have had recommended and on doing a little research sounds absolutely fascinating. We shall see and make up our minds once we get to Thailand...

7000 Steps to a Portugese Escape

A grey scratchy blanket kept us a tad warmer on the following night bus, pulling into the Gujerat town of Rajkot as dawn warmed the sky. We were the only foreigners on the bus, refreshing after India to this point, and once we rescued our bags from belly of the bus a rickshaw took us to the local bus station for the next 3 hour leg with the driver apologising for not speaking better English! 3 people then helped make sure we were on the right bus and sure enough we arrived in Junagadh without a hitch. We hoped everybody was going to be so friendly in Gujerat! The town of Junagadh was not what I expected, a swarming mass of motorbikes and rickshaws that choked the air but there was a good bustling atmosphere and sites worth seeing. First stop was some old Muslim buildings (I forget the name) which were different to anything we had seen in India but also were in a sorry state of repair. While there we ended up being filmed and interviewed by some local journalists who tried their hardest to get us to show our contempt for the corrupt local government who were siphoning off restoration funds. This was of course all news to us but we still managed to attract quite a crown of curious children. Next stop was the massively overgrown and overrated fort before attempting to show interest by visiting the museum. The final excursion involved us getting up at 6am and climbing the 7000 steps to reach the top of the pilgrimage site of mount Girnar. We were joined by hundreds of others and for the whole climb our soundtrack was "Whats your name" and "Which country"! The first exercise in a while was both refreshing and the views worth the effort, the main Jain temple was fantastic with the white clad men and technicolour women forming separate thronging queues to enter.

Next stop was the small island of Diu, a former Portugese colony that was only handed over around 40 years ago. The next 4 days were spent in true holiday mode! Hiring a scooter on the first day we coughed and spluttered our way around the island, a 12 year old boy patched a puncture for 20 Rs, we swimming in the warm waters on a deserted beach all afternoon and finally headed back to a fishing village where we had been invited on a 1 hour trip by the boat electrician. Its a good job he wasn't the captain as we spent a couple of hours drinking tea or being shown around the port because the tide was too low to leave the harbour! As the sun set we made our excuses and headed the 20 minutes back to the hotel while it was still light. The next 3 days were spent swimming and reading under a parasol on a lovely sandy beach shared with at most 4 other people. The occasional local group of boys had to be put up with but they were harmless enough, generally just wanting a photo. Meals were glorious fish dishes and we left feeling well and truly relaxed.

The Name's Bond

Apart from the fact that the shaking opened the window, blasting us with a jet of cold air every 30 minutes, the 14 hour overnight bus to Udaipur was not as bad as the Shangri-La experience (at least I got a bit of kip!). After then crashing for another couple hours we were treated to a breakfast right on the lakefront overlooking the beautiful city of Udaipur. Having thought that Jaisalmer was a fairytale fort, this is where the princesses would have come from! The Palace Hotel was floating in the clear waters, the hills were shimmering in the distance, the ghats were alive with the sound of clothes being violently beaten clean and the waters were lined with ornate havelis, temples and hotels. A pre-lunch amble confirmed the attraction of the old city, only marginally spoiled by the ridiculous number of rickshaws and cars trying to squeeze through the narrow streets and the tourist hordes adding to the general blockage. Day 2 was for joining the other tourists, we marveled at the Palace, went shopping for "miniature" paintings and then watched the Bond film Octopussy on the roof of a restaurant, spotting all of the places in the city where it was filmed whilst eating pizza! With 4 of us we were then able to hire a car for a day costing a paltry 4 quid each and so were able to take in the more distant sites of Kumbalgarh and Ranakpur. Kumbalgarhfort fort was impressively placed at the summit of a dominating outcrop, the 36km outer wall snaking off into the distance. The whole place was also remarkably empty and in excellent repair. Ranakpur was an excellent contrast, being a group of intricately carved marble Jain temples set in a remote wooded valley. The detail rivaled those of Jaisalmer and the marble must have been much harder to work here compared to the softer sandstone. All in all the day panned out to make a wonderful trip, the car also taking us through valleys and a countryside of small villages, crops drying in fields and cattle driving water collection from deep wells for collection, washing and the irrigation of the lush sugar cane fields.

The Fairytale Fort and Desert Nights

Next stop Jaisalmer, the bus being luxurious compared to the previous. We were met at the bus station by the hotel, recommended by a couple we had met in Varanasi, and the rooftop yet again provided the most amazing view of the old city and ancient fort towering over the rooftops below and all glowing gold as the sun sunk below the horizon shortly after our arrival. Having booked the required camel safari the following day was free top explore the old town and fort, unique in that it is still home to around 25% of the old cities inhabitants, other forts are all empty. Despite all the hawkers and touts, the narrow streets adorned with the magnificent stonework of old havelis along with the fort itself still appear to have leapt straight from the pages of a medieval fairytale. We had a great time meandering through the lanes of the fort, exploring the magnificent Jain temple complex housed within, and then the old town, somehow managing to find Patwa-ki-Haveli. This huge former home bridges a narrow lane and the stonework detail is unsurpassable. Inside the treat continues with room after room of opulent decoration and furniture giving a real glimpse into the lives of the then rich. The following morning, bright and early we were picked up by 4x4 and whisked to our waiting camels and four guides. Pepsi was to provide my transport for the next 3 days with big Ali, who looked like an India Chuckle Brother, providing the steadying hand on this reluctant, complaining 3 year old. Little Ali was the provider of endless enthusiasm and at 20 had learnt English from his 10 years already spent in the job. Bobby was quiet, smoking endlessly, but very attentive. Ramjan was the final member, the old man at 49, an excellent chef and only member to wear a turban! The first couple of hours were spent wondering how I was going to put up with another 2 and half days on the back of such an uncomfortable beast with its jerking gait but thankfully my legs soon stretched and eased with the final day actually proving the most comfortable. Most of the time was spent crossing flat, baked, rubble strewn plain only interrupted by straggly bushes and a few trees which provided the shade for the much needed lunch stops. To say the landscape was beautiful would be overstating the case but it did have a certain attraction which just about lasted the length of the trip. It was only when we stopped for the two nights that we encountered small strips of sand dunes which were special although tiny in comparison to the dunes of Morocco we have had the privilege of visiting and hardly untouched with footprints snaking over every face. Cooking over an open fire and then sleeping under such a blanket of stars was not bad at all. It is also only during the night that you can appreciate the desert climate as the baking days gave way to the bitter nights of the approaching winter. In all I did enjoy the trip though found it somewhat a contrived tourist experience (though not sure what I expected), always being led and hardly out in the sticks with villagers greeting us every evening with cold coke and beer. Our guides however could not have been better though I think that's me done with camel trekking for the foreseeable future.